Thomas W Pauken

Pauken, who got his political start in the Reagan administration, is a former Army intelligence officer and Vietnam veteran, and a former chairman of the Republican Party of Texas. He ran for Congress and lost twice to Jim Mattox. Years later, he ran for attorney general and finished third in a race eventually won by John Cornyn, now a U.S. senator. From 1994 to 1997, he served as State Chairman of the Republican Party of Texas. Previously, he was Director of ACTION, an independent federal agency, from 1981 to 1985. He also was on the White House Counsel’s staff during the Reagan Administration. He served in the Nixon Administration from 1970 to 1971 as Associate Director of the White House Fellowship Program and as White House Staff Assistant. Mr. Pauken’s military service included a tour of duty in Vietnam as a military intelligence officer. He was a National Chairman of the College Republicans from 1965 to 1967. Mr. Pauken received a bachelor of arts from Georgetown University and a J.D. from Southern Methodist University Law School. He is the author of The Thirty Years War: The Politics of the ‘60s Generation. He has been a newspaper columnist, talk show host, and president of a radio station. Mr. Pauken currently serves on the Board of Directors of the American Conservative Union and the Rockford Institute.