Caspar Willard "Cap" Weinberger (August 18, 1917 – March 28, 2006) was an American politician, lawyer, and businessman born in San Francisco, California. He graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University with a bachelor's degree in government in 1938 and earned a Bachelor of Laws from Harvard Law School in 1941. During World War II, he served as a captain in the U.S. Army in the Pacific theater and on General Douglas MacArthur's intelligence staff. Weinberger began his political career in California, serving in the State Assembly from 1953 to 1959, and later as chairman of the Federal Trade Commission from 1959 to 1960. He also worked in business and was appointed Director of Finance by Governor Ronald Reagan in 1968. Under President Ronald Reagan, Weinberger served as U.S. Secretary of Defense from 1981 to 1987, overseeing the largest peacetime military buildup in American history with particular attention to European and NATO affairs. He played a central role in the Iran-Contra affair, for which he was indicted in 1992 but was pardoned alongside Abrams by President George H. W. Bush on Christmas Eve 1992. After leaving government, Weinberger worked as a business consultant and author, publishing his memoir "Fighting for Peace" in 1990.