Pete Wilson
Peter Barton " Pete " Wilson ( born August 23, 1933, Lake Forest, Illinois ) is an American politician ( Republican). He was governor of California, and represented this state in the U.S. Senate.
Life
Pete Wilson was born in a suburb of Chicago, the son of a jeweler. Due to the move of the family to St. Louis, he spent his school years at a private school in St. Louis County. In the fall of 1952 he began a college degree in English at Yale University, where he earned his bachelor's degree. He received a scholarship from the Reserve Officers Corps of the United States Marines. After three years of service in the infantry of the Marines he studied at the Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California at Berkeley Law.
In 1962 he worked for the campaign team of Richard Nixon, the Republican candidate for the office of governor, and learned the consultant Herb Klein know who recommended him to engage in San Diego in politics. Wilson moved in 1963 to San Diego, where he was initially a trial lawyer, he later worked as a lawyer. In 1964, he supported Barry Goldwater in his unsuccessful efforts to the presidency. Its use resulted in significant Republican support for a mandate in the California State Assembly in the city of his application. He was elected to succeed Clair Burgener in the House of Representatives at the age of 33 years, where he served from 1967 to 1971. From 1971 to 1982 he served as mayor of San Diego in office.
1982 Wilson stepped up to the election for the U.S. Senate and won against the former Democratic governor of California, Jerry Brown. With his re-election in 1988, he was from 3 January 1983 to 7 January 1991 as a Senator in office; He was a member of the Armed Services Committee and supported Ronald Reagan's SDI initiative.
On 7 January 1991 Wilson resigned as senator after he successfully ran in November 1990 as governor of California. In November 1994, Wilson was re-elected for a second term until January 4, 1999. A law passed during the 1990 Act was a renewed re-election in the way of his successor in office was Gray Davis. In Wilson's term of office falls is a strong economic recovery of the state; government spending were limited and a school reform carried out, which led among other things to smaller class sizes and a general compulsory curriculum. During his tenure, the deregulation of the electricity market in California falls.
In 1996 he ran for the Republican nomination for election to the U.S. President; his campaign was, however, also occur due to health restrictions, not successful.
In October 1999 he was awarded the Smithsonian Institution from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars of the Woodrow Wilson Award. 2007, a statue of him was erected in San Diego. After the end of his tenure, he served on various boards of directors of business and political bodies. In 2003, he supported the election of Arnold Schwarzenegger against the then incumbent Governor Gray Davis.
Wilson is married with his wife Gayle Edlund two stepchildren and five grandchildren.