John Connally

Connally was born on February 27, 1917, into a large family in Floresville, the seat of Wilson County, southeast of San Antonio. He was one of seven children born to Lela (née Wright) and John Bowden Connally, a dairy and tenant farmer.[1] His six siblings included four brothers: Golfrey, Merrill, Wayne and Stanford Connally, and sisters Carmen and Blanche.[2] Connally attended Floresville High School and was one of the few graduates who attended college. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin, where he was the student body president and a member of the Friar Society. He subsequently graduated from the University of Texas School of Law and was admitted to the bar by examination.

Connally served in the United States Navy during World War II, first as an aide to James V. Forrestal, then as part of the planning staff for the invasion of North Africa by General Dwight D. Eisenhower. He transferred to the South Pacific Theater, where he served with distinction. He was a fighter-plane director aboard the aircraft carrier USS Essex and was awarded the Bronze Star for bravery. He was shifted to another Essex-class aircraft carrier, the USS Bennington and was awarded the Legion of Merit. He was also involved in the campaigns in the Gilbert, Marshall, Ryukyu, and Philippine islands. He was discharged in 1946 at the rank of lieutenant commander.[3]

On his release from the navy, Connally practiced law in the Alvin Wirtz law firm, until Lyndon Baines Johnson, then a newly elected senator, persuaded him to return to Washington, D.C. to serve as a key aide. He had close ties with Johnson before his navy days and maintained them until the former president's death in 1973.

Two of Connally's principal legal clients were the Texas oil tycoon Sid W. Richardson and Perry Bass, Richardson's nephew and partner, both of Fort Worth. Richardson's empire in the 1950s was estimated at $200 million to $1 billion. Under Richardson's tutelage, Connally gained experience in a variety of enterprises and received tips on real estate purchases. The work required the Connallys to relocate to Fort Worth. When Richardson died in 1959, Connally was named to the lucrative position of co-executor of the estate.[4]

Connally was also involved in a reported clandestine deal to place the Texas Democrat Robert Anderson on the 1956 Republican ticket as vice president. Although the idea fell through when Dwight Eisenhower retained Richard Nixon in the second slot, Anderson received a million dollars for his efforts and a subsequent appointment as U.S. Treasury Secretary, the same position that Connally would fill for Nixon 14 years later in 1971. In another coincidence, Anderson had been Eisenhower's first Navy secretary, the post that Connally filled for John F. Kennedy in 1961.[5]

At the 1960 Democratic convention in Los Angeles, Connally led supporters of Senator Lyndon Johnson. He claimed that John F. Kennedy, if nominated and elected, would be unable to serve as president for a full term because of Addison's disease and dependence on cortisone.[6] Kennedy, however, had wrapped up the needed delegates for nomination before the convention even opened. Kennedy realized that he could not be elected without support of traditional Southern Democrats, most of whom had backed Johnson. Therefore, Johnson was offered the vice-presidential nomination.[7]

Connally served as governor from 1963 until 1969. In the campaigns of 1964 and 1966, Connally defeated weak Republican challenges offered by Jack Crichton, a Dallas oil industrialist, and Thomas Everton Kennerly Sr. (1903–2000), of Houston, respectively. He prevailed with margins of 73.8 percent and 72.8 percent, respectively, giving him greater influence with the nearly all-Democratic legislature.[13]

Connally was governor during a time of great expansion of higher education in Texas. He signed into law the creation of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. He appointed regents who backed the entry of women into previously all-male Texas A&M University in College Station, having been prompted to take such action by State Senator William T. "Bill" Moore of Bryan, who in 1953 had first proposed the admission of women to the institution.[14]

Governor Connally signing the bill that separated Arlington State College from the Texas A&M University System in 1965

In 1965, Connally appointed Speaker Byron M. Tunnell to the Texas Railroad Commission, upon the retirement of 32-year veteran Ernest O. Thompson, a former mayor of Amarillo. This appointment enabled the future Connally business associate Ben Barnes of De Leon in Comanche County to succeed Tunnell and become the youngest Speaker in Texas history.

As governor, Connally promoted HemisFair '68, the world's fair held in San Antonio, he believed would net the state an additional $12 million in direct taxes. A permanent Institute of Texan Cultures museum was an outgrowth of the fair. It was designed to be "a dramatic showcase, not only to Texans, but to all the world, of the host of diverse peoples from many lands whose blood and dreams built our state."[15]

There was some talk of Connally being selected as Hubert Humphrey's running mate in 1968, but the liberal Senator Edmund Muskie of Maine was instead chosen. Connally endorsed Humphrey and greeted the nominee at the Fort Worth airport and even reconciled for a month with intraparty rival Ralph Yarborough. Ashman, however, claims that Connally was "privately helping Nixon, recruiting a number of influential Texans, members of both parties, to work for the Republican candidate."[16] Ben Barnes recounts a story that Connally shouted at Hubert Humphrey in a private meeting at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago and accused the vice president of being disloyal to President Johnson by trying to soft-pedal Johnson's position regarding Vietnam. Barnes said that the "tongue-lashing" Connally gave Humphrey was "an epic... He orally spanked that man as hard as I've ever seen anyone chastised. He either strengthened Hubert's backbone, or gave him some, or scared him half to death."[17]

Connally was succeeded as governor by Lieutenant Governor Preston Smith, a theater owner from Lubbock, who twice defeated the Republican attorney Paul Eggers in 1968 and 1970. Eggers, a friend and later associate of Republican Senator John G. Tower, served as general counsel in the Treasury Department from 1969–70, before Connally joined the Nixon Cabinet.

Kennedy assassination

Main article: Assassination of John F. Kennedy

Governor Connally, seated in front of President Kennedy, minutes before the assassination

On November 22, 1963, Connally was seriously wounded while riding in President Kennedy's car at Dealey Plaza in Dallas when the president was assassinated. Connally, riding in the middle jump seat of the president's limousine in front of the president, recalled hearing the first shot, which he immediately recognized as a rifle shot. He said that he immediately feared an assassination attempt and turned to his right to look back to see the president. He looked over his right shoulder but did not catch the president out of the corner of his eye, so he said he began to turn back to look to his left when he felt a forceful impact to his back. He stated to the Warren Commission: "I immediately, when I was hit, I said, 'Oh, no, no, no.' And then I said, 'My God, they are going to kill us all.'" He looked down and saw that his chest was covered with blood and thought he had been fatally shot. Then he heard the third and reportedly final shot, which sprayed blood and brain tissue on the car's passengers.[18] Connally suffered a fracture of the 5th rib, a punctured lung and a shattered wrist and had a bullet lodged in his leg. He underwent four hours of surgery after the shooting and recovered from his wounds.[19] In testimony before the Warren Commission, Connally said: "There were either two or three people involved, or more, in this – or someone was shooting with an automatic rifle."[20]

The 10-month investigation by the Warren Commission of 1963–64 concluded that President Kennedy was assassinated by 24-year-old ex-Marine Lee Harvey Oswald and that Oswald had acted entirely alone. Connally refused to accept the single-bullet theory, which suggested that one shot passed through President Kennedy's neck and caused all of Connally's wounds. He insisted that all three shots struck occupants of the limousine. Publicly, he agreed with the Warren Commission's conclusion that Oswald acted alone.[21][22] Journalist Doug Thompson claimed that in 1982 he had a private conversation with Connally, and asked him whether he was convinced that Oswald had killed Kennedy. According to Thompson, Connally replied, "Absolutely not. I do not for one second believe the conclusions of the Warren Commission."[23]

In 1971, Republican President Nixon appointed the then Democrat Connally as Treasury Secretary. Before agreeing to take the appointment, however, Connally told Nixon that the president must find a position in the administration for George H. W. Bush, the Republican who had been defeated in November 1970 in a hard-fought U.S. Senate race against Democrat Lloyd M. Bentsen. Connally told Nixon that his taking the Treasury post would embarrass Bush, who had "labored in the vineyards" for Nixon's election as president, while Connally had supported Humphrey. Ben Barnes, then the lieutenant governor and originally a Connally ally, claims in his autobiography that Connally's insistence saved Bush's political career because the former U.S. representative and twice-defeated GOP Senate candidate managed to further his well-known resume by which to seek the vice-presidency in 1980 and finally becoming president in 1988. Nixon hence named Bush as ambassador to the United Nations in order to secure Connally's services at Treasury. Barnes also said that he doubted George W. Bush could have become president in 2001 had Bush's father not first been given the string of federal appointments during the 1970s to strengthen the family's political viability.[17]

Shortly after taking the Treasury post, Connally famously told a group of European finance ministers worried about the export of American inflation that the dollar "is our currency, but your problem."[24]

Connally's official Treasury Department portrait

Secretary Connally defended a $50 billion increase in the debt ceiling and a $35 to $40 billion budget deficit as an essential "fiscal stimulus" at a time when five million Americans were unemployed. He unveiled Nixon's program of raising the price of gold and formally devaluing the dollar—finally leaving the old gold standard entirely, a process begun in 1934 by Franklin D. Roosevelt. Prices continued to increase during 1971, and Nixon allowed wage and price guidelines, which Congress had authorized on a stand-by basis, to be implemented. Connally later shied away from his role in recommending the failed wage and price controls, and announced guaranteed loans for the ailing Lockheed aircraft company. He also fought a lonely battle against growing balance-of-payment problems with the nation's trading partners, and undertook important foreign diplomatic trips for Nixon through his role as Treasury Secretary.[25]

Historian Bruce Schulman wrote that Nixon was "awed" by the handsome, urbane Texan who was also a tough political fighter. Schulman added that Henry Kissinger, Nixon's National Security Advisor, noted that Connally was the only cabinet member whom Nixon did not disparage behind his back, and that this was high praise indeed.[26]

Connally on August 15, 1971

Connally's signature, as used on American currency

Connally stepped down as Treasury Secretary in 1972 to head "Democrats for Nixon", a group funded by Republicans. Connally's former mentor, Lyndon B. Johnson, stood behind Democratic presidential nominee George S. McGovern of South Dakota, although McGovern had long opposed Johnson's foreign and defense policies. It was the first time that Connally and Johnson had been on opposite sides of a general election campaign. Connally's brother, Golfrey Connally, an economics professor at a junior college in San Antonio, also endorsed McGovern.[27] Some evidence even suggests that Connally privately supported Eisenhower in 1952 and 1956, not the Democratic candidate Adlai E. Stevenson of Illinois, for whom Johnson campaigned with considerable loyalty. During the war, Connally had served on Eisenhower's planning staff for the invasion of North Africa.[28]

In the 1972 U.S. Senate election in Texas, Connally endorsed Democrat Harold Barefoot Sanders, later a federal judge from Dallas, rather than the Republican incumbent John G. Tower, also of Dallas. Connally had considered running against Tower in 1966, but chose to run for a third term as governor. Tower then defeated a Connally ally, Texas Attorney General Waggoner Carr of Lubbock.

Tower, Nixon's choice in the Senate race, won handily over Sanders, but the Republican candidate for governor, Henry Grover of Houston, a victim of intraparty maneuvering, fell short and lost to Democrat Dolph Briscoe of Uvalde, a city in South Texas.

In January 1973, Johnson died of heart disease. He and Connally had been friends since 1938. Connally eulogized Johnson during interment services at the LBJ Ranch in Gillespie County, along with the Rev. Billy Graham, who officiated at the service.[29] Millions around the world viewed Connally's eulogy as the most famous moment of the LBJ funeral, as it was a reminder that Connally was wounded in the assassination that made his mentor and fellow Texan president.[29]

In May 1973, Connally joined the Republican party. When Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned five months later because of scandal, Connally was among Nixon's potential choices to fill the vacancy. However, Nixon tapped Gerald Ford, the House Minority Leader from Grand Rapids, Michigan, because he believed that the moderate Ford could be easily confirmed by both houses of Congress, as required by the 25th Amendment to the United States Constitution. A Connally nomination presumably could have been blocked by liberal Democratic opposition. The weakened Nixon did not want a fight for the vice-presidential selection.[30]

Connally's party bolt left a sour taste in the mouth of at least one prominent Texas Democrat who stood with George McGovern in 1972: Bob Bullock, the Hillsboro native who served as Texas secretary of state, comptroller and lieutenant governor: "...I got some ideas on Mr. Connally. He ain't never done nothin' but get shot in Dallas. He got the silver bullet. He needs to come back here and get hisself [sic] shot once every six months. I attack Connally on his vanity. He's terribly bad [sic] vain, y'know..."[31]

In July 1974, Connally was indicted for allegedly pocketing $10,000 for influencing a milk price decision by Texas lawyer Jake Jacobsen.[32] At his April 1975 trial, Connally's defense called as character witnesses former First Ladies Jacqueline Kennedy and Lady Bird Johnson, as well as Texas state senator Barbara Jordan (the first female, black state senator in Texas history), Dean Rusk, Robert McNamara and Billy Graham.[33] According to a November 1979 profile by Paul Burka in Texas Monthly magazine, "The case turned first on whether Connally would simultaneously be tried for perjury—some embarrassing inconsistencies had crept into his pretrial testimony—but his lawyer was able to prevent it, and then the issue came down to whether John Connally or Jake Jacobsen was telling the truth." On the strength of the defense's prominent character witnesses, Connally was acquitted.[34][35]

Connally announced in January 1979 that he would seek the Republican nomination for President in 1980. He was considered a great orator and strong leader and was featured on the cover of Time with the heading "Hot on the Trail". His wheeler-dealer image remained a liability. Connally raised more money than any other candidate, but he was never able to overtake the popular conservative front-runner, Ronald Reagan of California. Connally spent his money nationally, while George H. W. Bush, who was from Houston like Connally, targeted his time and money in early states and won the Iowa caucus. The Houston political activist Clymer Wright rejected both Connally and Bush and served as Reagan's finance chairman in Texas.[36] Bush's status as a challenger to Reagan was at first heightened by his victory in Iowa. Connally drew the backing of Republican state representative Fred Agnich of Dallas, former president of Texas Instruments.[37]

Connally focused on South Carolina, an early primary state in which he had the support of popular U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond, but he lost there to Reagan 55 to 30 percent and withdrew from the contest. After spending $11 million during the campaign, Connally secured the support of only a single delegate, Ada Mills of Clarksville, Arkansas, who became nationally known for a brief time as the "$11 million delegate".[38]

Connally quickly endorsed Reagan, appeared with the former governor at the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, fundraisers and other campaign events. He helped Reagan win a narrow primary victory over Bush in Texas. During a press conference, Connally was asked if he thought Reagan was the best man to be president. Connally naughtily replied: "I think he's the second best man I can think of."[39]

Connally said that he and Bush despised each other.[40] The statement seemed to contradict Connally's earlier insistence that President Nixon name Bush to a post in the administration before Connally would accept appointment as Secretary of the Treasury. Rumors also abounded in 1964 that Connally voted for Bush for senator because of his greater dislike for Bush's then-opponent, Senator Ralph Yarborough. Bad feeling between Yarborough and both Connally and Vice President Johnson was evident in the early stages of President Kennedy's tour of Texas in November 1963. It was widely reported at the time that Yarborough had refused to travel in Johnson's car, although, after Kennedy's intervention and Connally's agreement to give Yarborough a more prominent role in functions planned for Austin, he did so during the fatal motorcade in Dallas.[41] Charles Keating once contributed to Connally's campaign for president.[42]

In 1986, Connally filed for bankruptcy as a result of a string of business losses in Houston.[43] In December 1990, Connally and Oscar Wyatt, chairman of the Coastal Oil Corporation, met with President Saddam Hussein of Iraq. Hussein had been holding foreigners as hostages (or "guests" as Hussein called them) at strategic military sites in Iraq. After the meeting, Hussein agreed to release the hostages.

Connally was known as an immaculate dresser who wore expensive and stylish suits wherever he went. Biographer Charles Ashman related a story about Connally carrying a lighter in his pocket and lighting cigarettes as a courtesy only for very wealthy men who might be inclined to contribute to his political causes or to retain him as a consultant on business arrangements.

The Connally Memorial Medical Center on U.S. Highway 181 in Floresville

In one of his last political acts, Connally endorsed Republican congressman Jack Fields of Houston in the special election called in May 1993 to fill the vacancy left by U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentsen of Houston. Bentsen was appointed Treasury Secretary in the new administration of Bill Clinton. Fields finished fourth in the special election and left Congress thereafter. Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison, for whom Connally's daughter had been employed in the state treasurer's office, won the seat by a wide margin in the special election runoff against the appointed Democratic senator, Robert Krueger.

Connally tombstone at Texas State Cemetery in Austin, Texas

Connally died on June 15, 1993 of pulmonary fibrosis, a progressive scarring of the lungs. His funeral was held at the First United Methodist Church of Austin where he and his wife, Nellie Connally, had been members since their days living one block to the south in the Texas Governors Mansion, 1963–69. Former President Nixon left the bedside of his wife, Pat Nixon, who died a week later, and flew to Austin to attend Connally's funeral. Connally's wife Nellie died in 2006. The Connallys are interred at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin. When Connally died, forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht and the Assassination Archives and Research Center petitioned Attorney General Janet Reno to recover the remaining bullet fragments from Connally's body, contending that the fragments would disprove the Warren Commission's single-bullet, single-gunman conclusion. The Justice Department replied that it "...would have no legal authority to recover the fragments unless Connally's family gave [it] permission." Connally's family refused permission.[44]

Interstate 410 in San Antonio is named the Connally Loop in his honor. The John B. Connally Middle School, part of Northside ISD also in San Antonio, is also named in his honor.

The Connally Memorial Medical Center in Floresville is named for John, Wayne, and Merrill Connally.

The John B. Connally Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice south of Kenedy in Karnes County is named in his honor.

The Connally Plaza, including a life-sized statue of Connally, in downtown Houston.

The Texas A&M University System Offices, located in College Station, are housed in a building named in his honor.

John B. Connally High School, part of Pflugerville ISD in Austin, is also named in his honor.

In January 1964, Connally donated the suit he wore on November 22, 1963, to the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC). The suit was displayed to the public until March 1964. In 2000, TSLAC loaned the suit to the National Archives and Records Administration for examination purposes.[45] From October 2013 to February 2014, the suit was featured as part of an exhibit at the TSLAC to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Kennedy assassination.[46]

• List of U.S. political appointments that crossed party lines

• The Handbook of Texas Online
• "John Connally". Find a Grave. Retrieved 2008-02-07.
• Photos of John Connally
• Oral History Interviews with John Connally, from the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library
• Photos of Jonn Connally from University of Houston Digital Library
• Appearances on C-SPAN
  • Booknotes interview with James Reston Jr. on The Lone Star: The Life of John Connally, December 17, 1989.