Hershel W. Gober
| The Honorable Hershel Gober |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs Acting |
|
| In office July 25, 2000 – January 20, 2001 |
|
| President | Bill Clinton |
| Preceded by | Togo West |
| Succeeded by | Anthony Principi |
| In office July 1, 1997 – January 2, 1998 |
|
| President | Bill Clinton |
| Preceded by | Jesse Brown |
| Succeeded by | Togo West |
| Director of the Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs | |
| In office February 4, 1993 – August 10, 2000 |
|
| President | Bill Clinton |
| Preceded by | Anthony Principi |
| Succeeded by | Leo Mackay |
| In office January 4, 1988 – February 4, 1993 |
|
| Governor | Bill Clinton Jim Tucker |
| Preceded by | Grady Brown |
| Succeeded by | Nick Bacon |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Hershel Wayne Gober December 21, 1936 Monticello, Arkansas, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Alma mater | Alaska Pacific University |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service/branch |  United States Army United States Marine Corps |
| Battles/wars | Vietnam War |
| Awards | Purple Heart Bronze Star |
Hershel Wayne Gober (born December 21, 1936)[1] is a former government official and Vietnam War veteran. He served as acting United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) on two occasions during the administration of Bill Clinton. The first occasion to serve as Acting Secretary was from July 1, 1997[2] until January 2, 1998[3] between the resignation of Secretary Jesse Brown and the appointment of Togo D. West, Jr. as Acting Secretary. The second time to serve as Acting Secretary came on July 25, 2000[4] and lasted until January 20, 2001[1] after the resignation of Secretary West; this time Gober served in the post until the end of the Clinton presidency.
He started out in the VA as Deputy Secretary, serving from February 4, 1993[4] until August 10, 2000.[5] Gober was also briefly Secretary-designate, when Clinton named him on July 31, 1997[6] to replace Jesse Brown. However, the nomination was withdrawn before Senate action on October 27 the same year.[6] This happened because of fears nomination hearings for Gober would become heated due to questions about a 1993 claim of sexual misconduct made against him;[7] he also wished to stay as Deputy Secretary.[8]
During his tenure Gober played an important role in the Clinton (to whom he was a close and longtime aide[2]) era VA. He headed a delegation traveled to Vietnam to seek the fullest possible accounting of missing veterans.[9] He was also active in improving health care and expanding clinics for veterans.[9]
Before serving in the VA, Gober was Director of the Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs from January 4, 1988[1] to February 4, 1993[1] during President Clinton's tenure as Governor.[10]
In Vietnam
Gober served two tours in Vietnam.[4] In addition to his combat duties, at one point he worked with an American/Vietnamese team that produced songs to help sway Vietnamese public opinion in favor of the American and South Vietnamese causes as and to encourage the leadership in Washington to favor reaching the hearts and minds of the Vietnamese people. Later, in 1969, he was wounded while serving as a company commander.[11]
In 1970, Gober released a 45 rpm single,"Picture of a Man," which received some airplay on popular music radio stations.[12]
Gober had at least 5 single releases and one album as a recording artist; the first two were as Hershel Almond on Ace and Challenge in 1959. The others were on ABC ("The Proud American", 1966), Tee Pee (1967) and Buddah (1969).[13]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 DeArmond-Huskey, Rebecca. Monticello (Drew County). Encyclopedia of Arkansas. 2007-07-03. Accessed 2008-01-15.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Staff reporter. Veterans Affairs Chief Steps Down After Four Years. 1997-06-07. CNN. Accessed 2008-01-15. "Veterans Affairs Secretary Jesse Brown plans to leave his post July 1, and President Bill Clinton accepted the resignation Saturday "with deep regret."
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 US Department of Veterans Affairs. The Honorable Hershel W. Gober. July 2000. Accessed 2008-01-15.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 U.S. Senate. Chapter 10: Cabinet Nominations Rejected or Withdrawn Accessed December 24, 2007.
- ↑ Rosenbaum, David E. Clinton Withdraws Nomination For Secretary of Veterans Affairs. New York Times. 1997-10-25. Accessed 2007-12-25. "In confirmation hearings, the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs intended to explore circumstances surrounding the exoneration of Mr. Gober after he was accused of sexual misconduct in 1993, a Congressional staff member said tonight."
- ↑ Rosenbaum, David E. Clinton Withdraws Nomination For Secretary of Veterans Affairs. New York Times. 1997-10-25. Accessed 2007-12-25. "Mr. Gober said he preferred to remain as Deputy Secretary, and Mr. Clinton said he regretted Mr. Gober's decision not to pursue the nomination."
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Clinton, Bill. Remarks by the President, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Togo West, and Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs Hershel Gober. July 10, 2000. Accessed 2007-12-25. " A few years ago, I was honored that he agreed to head a delegation back to Vietnam to seek the fullest possible accounting of our men and women still missing in uniform. Hershel has already made his mark on the critical issue of veterans' health care. Early in our administration, he came to me and recommended that we look for ways to bring health care closer to the veterans who needed it. Since then, we've opened more than 200 out-patient clinics all across America and have more planned this year. That's one of the big reasons we were able to treat -- listen to this -- 400,000 more veterans last year than we did the year before."
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7698055.stm Winning hearts and minds in Vietnam
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ "On That Wisconsin Beat" (MusicGem, 2006)- Gary E. Myers
External links
- Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture entry
- Department of Veterans Affairs biography of Acting Secretary Gober at the Wayback Machine (archived January 29, 2004)
- Profile at American President: An Online Reference Resource
- Recordings of Gober singing songs in Vietnam are available in the Edward G. Lansdale collection at the Hoover Institution Archives, Stanford University
- Appearances on C-SPAN
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | United States Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs 1993–2000 |
Succeeded by Leo Mackay |
| Preceded by | United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs Acting 1997–1998 |
Succeeded by Togo West |
| Preceded by | United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs Acting 2000–2001 |
Succeeded by Anthony Principi |
- Pages using duplicate arguments in template calls
- 1936 births
- American military personnel of the Vietnam War
- Clinton Administration cabinet members
- Living people
- People from Drew County, Arkansas
- Recipients of the Bronze Star Medal
- Recipients of the Purple Heart medal
- Recipients of the Soldier's Medal
- Rejected or withdrawn nominees to the United States Executive Cabinet
- State cabinet secretaries of Arkansas
- United States Department of Veterans Affairs officials
