Gordon R. England

Gordon Richard England, of Texas, served in the George W. Bush administration as the Deputy Secretary of Defense, the first Deputy Secretary of the then-newly-created Department of Homeland Security, and twice as United States Secretary of the Navy.

First Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security
England was confirmed as the "first Deputy Secretary in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on January 30, 2003 (six days after the Department was created). Although England was only briefly in this position, a close associate quoted in the Washington Post states that it "broadened his exposure to the White House and his 'contact base' in Washington."

Deputy Secretary of Defense
England was nominated February 10, 2006, by President George W. Bush to be Deputy Secretary of Defense to replace Paul Dundes Wolfowitz, who resigned.

England was appointed to the Deputy Secretary of Defense position on January 4, 2006 by President Bush in a recess appointment. Previously, England was nominated by President Bush on March 31, 2005, for the same position and his nomination was sent to the Senate April 7, 2005. England's nomination was not confirmed.

Deputy Secretary of the Navy
"Secretary England served as the 72nd Secretary of the Navy from May 24, 2001 until confirmation as Deputy Secretary [of Homeland Security]. As Secretary of the Navy, Mr. England was responsible for an annual budget in excess of $110B and over 800,000 personnel.

Business Career and Early Life
"Mr. England served as executive vice president of General Dynamics Corporation from 1997 until 2001 and was responsible for two major sectors of the corporation: Information Systems and International. Previously, he served as executive vice president of the Combat Systems Group, president of General Dynamics Fort Worth aircraft company (later Lockheed), president of General Dynamics Land Systems company and as the principal of a mergers and acquisition consulting company.

"A native of Baltimore, Mr. England graduated from the University of Maryland in 1961 with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering. In 1975 he earned a master's degree in business administration from the M.J. Neeley School of Business at Texas Christian University and is a member of various honorary societies: Beta Gamma Sigma (business), Omicron Delta Kappa (leadership) and Eta Kappa Nu (engineering).

"Mr. England has been actively involved in a variety of civic, charitable and government organizations, including serving as a city councilman; Vice Chair, Board of Goodwill, International; the USO's Board of Governors; the Defense Science Board; the Board of Visitors at Texas Christian University; and many others.

"He has been recognized for numerous professional and service contributions from multiple organizations such as Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Maryland; the Department of Defense Distinguished Public Service Award; the Silver Beaver Award from the Boy Scouts of America; the Silver Knight of Management Award from the National Management Association; the Henry M. Jackson Award and the IEEE Centennial Award."