Howard H. Baker, Jr-signed letter-32

Description

You are bidding on a Howard H. Baker, Jr Autographed letter.
Howard Henry Baker, Jr.
(born November 15, 1925) is a former
Senate Majority Leader
,
Republican
U.S. Senator
from
Tennessee
,
White House Chief of Staff
, and a former
United States
Ambassador
to
Japan
. He currently works as a lobbyist and adviser at
Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz
.
Known in
Washington, D.C.
as the "Great Conciliator", Baker is often regarded as one of the most successful senators in terms of brokering compromises, enacting legislation, and maintaining civility. A story is sometimes told of a reporter telling a senior
Democratic
senator that privately, a plurality of his Democratic colleagues would vote for Baker for
President of the United States
.
Baker began his political career in 1964, when he lost to the liberal Democrat
Ross Bass
in a U.S. Senate election to fill the unexpired term of the late Senator
Estes Kefauver
. In the 1966 U.S. Senate election for Tennessee, Bass lost the Democratic primary to former
Governor
Frank G. Clement
, while Baker handily won his Republican primary race over Kenneth Roberts, 112,617 (75.7 percent) to 36,043 (24.2 percent). Baker won the general election, capitalizing on Clement's failure to energize the Democratic base, including specifically
organized labor
. Baker thus became the first elected Republican senator from Tennessee since
Reconstruction
.
Harry W. Wellford
, then a private attorney but later U.S. District Court justice and then U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals Justice, served as Baker's campaign chair and closest confidant.
Baker was re-elected in 1972 and again in 1978, serving altogether from January 3, 1967, to January 3, 1985. In 1969 he was already a candidate for the Minority Leadership position that opened up with the death of his father-in-law,
Everett Dirksen
, but Baker was defeated 19-24 by
Hugh Scott
. At the beginning of the following Congress in 1971, Baker ran again, losing to Scott this time 20-24. In 1971, President
Richard Nixon
asked Baker to fill one of two empty seats on the
U.S. Supreme Court
. When Baker took too long to decide whether he wanted the appointment, Nixon changed his mind and nominated
William Rehnquist
instead. In 1973 and 1974, Baker was also the influential ranking minority member of the
Senate committee
, chaired by Senator
Sam Ervin
, that investigated the
Watergate scandal
. Baker is famous for having asked aloud, "What did the President know and when did he know it?", a question given him by his counsel and former
campaign manager
, future U.S. Senator
Fred Thompson
.
When Hugh Scott retired, Baker was elected senate minority leader in 1977 by his GOP colleagues, defeating
Robert Griffin
19-18. Baker served two terms as
Senate Minority Leader
(1977–1981) and two terms as
Senate Majority Leader
(1981–1985).
Baker was frequently mentioned by insiders as a possible nominee for
Vice President of the United States
on a ticket headed by
incumbent
President
Gerald Ford
in 1976 and, according to many sources, was a front-runner for this post. Ford, however, in a surprising move, chose
Kansas
Senator
Bob Dole
.
Baker ran for U.S. President in
1980
, dropping out of the race for the GOP nomination after losing the
Iowa caucuses
to
George H.W. Bush
and the
New Hampshire primary
to
Ronald Reagan
, even though a
Gallup poll
had him in second place in the presidential race at eighteen percent behind Reagan at 41 percent as late as November 1979.
Baker's duties as Senate Minority Leader prevented him from campaigning heavily in these important early test races.
Autograph is signed in Black Sharpie.
I would rate this autograph at a minimum of 9/10 but will more likely be 10/10!! Bid with Confidence as this is guaranteed to be the REAL deal!!
This is an actual autograph and not a copy or a reprint!
Please see my other auctions for other fine autographed photos, cuts and sports cards.
Check out my
ebay store
for even more great sports related items including one of the largest selections of sports memorabilia in the world!! I have also added a huge line of sports and celebrity autographs.
The winner pays .00 for shipping and handling to locations within the continental U.S. or .00 for locations outside the US.  Multiple winners shipped together to save on shipping. I accept, Paypal, amex, discover, visa or mastercard. All items are generally shipped within 3 business days of payment clearing.
This autograph will come with a COA from Clemente's Clubhouse ensuring its authenticity!
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