Portal:Texas/Selected Biography/2

William Perry "Bill" Clements, Jr. (born April 17, 1917) is the first Republican to have served as governor of the U.S. state of Texas since Reconstruction. He served two nonconsecutive terms from 1979-1983 and 1987-1991. Clements was born in Dallas and worked as an oil driller for many years. He founded SEDCO, the world's largest offshore drilling company. Clements entered politics as the Deputy United States Secretary of Defense under Presidents Nixon and Ford, in the latter administration under Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.