James G. Watt

James Gaius Watt (born January 31, 1938 in Lusk, Wyoming) served as U.S. Secretary of the Interior under President Ronald Reagan from 1981 to 1983.

Related Topics:
January 31 - 1938 - Lusk, Wyoming - U.S. Secretary of the Interior - President - Ronald Reagan - 1981 - 1983

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Watt's tenure as Secretary was marked by controversy, stemming primarily from his alleged hostility to environmentalism and his support of the development and use of federal lands by foresting, ranching, and other commercial interests.

Related Topics:
Environmentalism - Foresting - Ranch

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Watt's conservative strain of born-again Christianity also came in for scrutiny and criticism in some quarters, as when (in 1983) he banned The Beach Boys from performing their annual Fourth of July concert on the National Mall on the grounds that rock concerts drew "an undesirable element." http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20040725/news_m1a25timelin.html

Related Topics:
Born-again Christianity - The Beach Boys - Fourth of July - National Mall

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Later in 1983 Watt was made to resign as a result of a controversy that arose because he told an ethnic joke.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1995, Watt was indicted on 18 counts of felony perjury and obstruction of justice by a federal grand jury. The indictments were due to false statements made to a grand jury investigating influence peddling at the Department of Housing and Urban Development where he had been a lobbyist in the mid to late 1980s. On January 2, 1996, as part of a plea bargain, Watt pled guilty to a misdemeanor count of withholding documents from a federal grand jury. On March 12, 1996 he was sentenced to 5 years probation and forced to pay a $5000 fine and perform 500 hours of community service. http://www.cnn.com/US/Newsbriefs/9603/03-12/index.html

Related Topics:
Perjury - Obstruction of justice - Grand jury - Influence peddling - Department of Housing and Urban Development - Lobbyist - Plea bargain - Probation - Community service

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~