Lyn Nofziger
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Franklyn Curran "Lyn" Nofziger (June 8, 1924 – March 27, 2006) was an American journalist, conservative Republican
political consultant Political consulting is a form of consulting that consists primarily of advising and assisting political campaigns. Although the most important role of political consultants is arguably the development and production of mass media (largely tel ...
and author. He served as press secretary in
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
's administration as Governor of California, and as a
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
advisor during the
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
administration and again during the Reagan presidency.


Early years

Nofziger was born and raised in
Bakersfield, California Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...
. Politically conservative by the time he attended high school, he worked on the school newspaper. He accused one of his teachers, Blanche Bettington, of being "communistic" because she warned her students against "reactionary" publications. Bettington and another teacher were removed from teaching as a result, but were reinstated by the Los Angeles Board of Education in 1946, commenting, "While this inquiry has raised serious questions as to certain classroom practices engaged in by these teachers, it has also produced evidence of many outstanding accomplishments by them". Nofziger served in the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
and then earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from
San Jose State College San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...
in
San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...
, and later worked for sixteen years as a reporter, editor and Washington, DC, correspondent for Copley Newspapers and Copley News Service. In 1966, Nofziger was named press secretary for Ronald Reagan's successful California gubernatorial campaign and served two years as Reagan's Director of Communications.


Nixon years

After
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
's election as
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
in 1968, Nofziger served in the Nixon White House as Deputy Assistant to the President for Congressional Relations and the
Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...
as its Deputy Chairman for Communications. Nofziger worked for Nixon's presidential re-election campaign in 1972 as executive director of the California Committee for the Re-Election of the President.
John Dean John Wesley Dean III (born October 14, 1938) is an American former attorney who served as White House Counsel for U.S. President Richard Nixon from July 1970 until April 1973. Dean is known for his role in the cover-up of the Watergate scandal ...
, Nixon's White House counsel, wrote that Nofziger had helped compile the Nixon White House's
enemies list "Nixon's Enemies List" is the informal name of what started as a list of President of the United States Richard Nixon's major political opponents compiled by Charles Colson, written by George T. Bell (assistant to Colson, special counsel to th ...
. As Reagan set his sights on the
Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
presidential nomination in
1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...
, Nofziger served his campaign as Press Secretary, Convention Director, and Director of the California campaign. When
Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...
won the Republican nomination, Nofziger assisted with the Ford-Dole campaign, which lost the election to
Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
. Nofziger went back to work for Reagan as he began laying the groundwork for the 1980 campaign, serving as executive vice-chairman of
Citizens for the Republic Citizens for the Republic (CFTR) is an American political action committee founded in 1977 by Ronald Reagan, five months after he narrowly lost his bid for the 1976 Republican Party (GOP) presidential nomination to Gerald Ford The committee ...
, a political action committee founded by Reagan. With the run for the White House in full gear in 1979, Nofziger served as deputy chairman for finance for the Reagan for President organization. Reagan won the election, defeating Carter's bid for a second term. Nofziger never sought to be Press Secretary in the White House, it being in his words "a young man's job".
James Brady James Scott Brady (August 29, 1940 – August 4, 2014) was an American public official who served as assistant to the U.S. president and the seventeenth White House Press Secretary, serving under President Ronald Reagan. In 1981, Brady b ...
was named Press Secretary. Nofziger was instead named to the post of Assistant to the President for Political Affairs, and was employed in that position for about a year. Nofziger was a senior consultant for the
1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...
Reagan-Bush Re-Election Campaign and a member of the 1985 Inaugural Committee. Nofziger also ran political campaigns for
Pat Buchanan Patrick Joseph Buchanan (; born November 2, 1938) is an American paleoconservative political commentator, columnist, politician, and broadcaster. Buchanan was an assistant and special consultant to U.S. Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, an ...
and
Steve Forbes Malcolm Stevenson Forbes Jr. (; born July 18, 1947) is an American publishing executive and politician who is the editor-in-chief of ''Forbes'', a business magazine. He is the son of longtime ''Forbes'' publisher Malcolm Forbes and the grandso ...
.


Wedtech scandal

In 1987, Nofziger was investigated for allegedly violating the
Ethics in Government Act The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 is a United States federal law that was passed in the wake of the Nixon Watergate scandal and the Saturday Night Massacre. It was intended to fight corruption in government. Summary The Ethics in Governmen ...
when he lobbied on behalf of
Wedtech Corporation The Wedtech scandal was an American political scandal involving the award of government contracts. It was first brought to light in 1986. History The Wedtech Corporation was founded in Bronx County, the Bronx, New York (state), New York by John ...
, a defense contractor. Under this law, former government officials could not lobby their former office for a period of two years. Nofziger knew this, and for two years he did not lobby the Office of Political Affairs at the White House. Federal prosecutors said the law made it illegal for Nofziger to contact ''any'' office at the White House. Nofziger was indicted and later convicted of violating the law. Nofziger vigorously fought the indictment and conviction, which was eventually overturned on appeal. The government pressed its case to the United States Supreme Court, which refused to reinstate the conviction.


Memoir

Nofziger's political memoir, titled ''Nofziger'', was published in October 1992 by
Regnery Publishing Regnery Publishing is a politically conservative book publisher based in Washington, D.C. The company was founded by Henry Regnery in 1947, and is now a division of radio broadcaster Salem Media Group. It is led by President & Publisher Thomas Sp ...
. He wrote four Western novels with a hero named Tackett, a drifter who falls into situations that compel him to rescue women in distress. The Tackett series was an homage to Nofziger's friend,
Louis L'Amour Louis Dearborn L'Amour (; né LaMoore; March 22, 1908 – June 10, 1988) was an American novelist and short story writer. His books consisted primarily of Western novels (though he called his work "frontier stories"); however, he also wrote hi ...
, author of ''The Sacketts'' and scores of other Westerns.


Death

Nofziger died on March 27, 2006 at his home in
Falls Church, Virginia Falls Church is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 14,658. Falls Church is included in the Wash ...
from
kidney cancer Kidney cancer, also known as renal cancer, is a group of cancers that starts in the kidney. Symptoms may include blood in the urine, lump in the abdomen, or back pain. Fever, weight loss, and tiredness may also occur. Complications can include spr ...
, aged 81.


Anti-metrication

Nofziger and
Frank Mankiewicz Frank Fabian Mankiewicz II (May 16, 1924 – October 23, 2014) was an American journalist, political adviser, president of National Public Radio, and public relations executive. Life and career Frank Mankiewicz was born in New York City ...
were major players in halting the 1970s
metrication Metrication or metrification is the act or process of converting to the metric system of measurement. All over the world, countries have transitioned from local and traditional units of measurement to the metric system. This process began in F ...
effort in the United States, largely by convincing President
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
to shut down the
United States Metric Board The United States Metric Board (USMB) was a United States government agency set up to encourage metrication. The United States Metric Board was commissioned by the Metric Conversion Act of 1975 (15 U.S.C. 205d, enacted on December 23, 1975). The ...
.


Works


Autobiography

* ''Nofziger''; Lyn Nofziger; Regnery Publishing (September 1992);


Other works

* ''The Tacketts''; Lyn Nofziger; Jameson Books (May 2004); * ''Unbridled Joy: The Verse of Joy Skilmer''; Lyn Nofziger; MND Books (April 10, 2000);


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nofziger, Lyn 1924 births 2006 deaths United States Army personnel of World War II California Republicans Deaths from cancer in Virginia Metrication in the United States Military personnel from California Reagan administration controversies Reagan administration personnel San Jose State University alumni United States presidential advisors Virginia Republicans Writers from Bakersfield, California