Clifford, Clark McAdams

(1906-1998)

   Clark Clifford was born in Fort Scott, Kansas, attended Washington University law school, and ran his own law practice from 1928 to 1943. He served in the navy from 1944 to 1946 and was assistant naval aide and then special counsel to President Harry S. Truman. He helped to negotiate settlements in the rail and mining strikes in 1946 but was also influential in foreign policy matters. He helped draft the speech outlining the Truman Doctrine advocating support for the policy of containment. Clifford also played a significant role in planning Truman’s successful election strategy in 1948 before returning to his private law practice in 1949. In 1960, he returned as an advisor on defense matters and foreign intelligence in the administration of John F. Kennedy and in 1968 was appointed secretary of defense by Lyndon Johnson. He left office in 1968 and advocated the withdrawal from Vietnam. He was awarded the presidential Medal of Freedom in 1969 and served as an emissary to India and Cyprus for President Jimmy Carter in 1980.