Asia-Pacific

Former Nixon aide, Alexander Haig dead at 85

(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-02-21 09:00

Long, distinguished career

Haig served as NATO commander from 1974-79. He was appointed secretary of state by Reagan in 1981 and tried to mediate between Argentina and Britain to head off the Falklands War in 1982.

His 18-month tenure as foreign policy chief was marred by constant battles with the White House staff. He quit in anger in June 1982. He was succeeded by George Shultz.

K.T. McFarland, a former aide to Haig, told Fox News Haig shaped US foreign policy during and after the Vietnam War and played a significant role in helping to end the Cold War.

Hillary Clinton, Obama's secretary of state, said Haig had earned "honor on the battlefield, the confidence of presidents and prime ministers, and the thanks of a grateful nation."

In typical Haig fashion -- critics called it arrogance -- he did little to hide his contempt for Reagan's senior staff.

"I think my last experience in government left me convinced that I could do it better," he said years later when he was conducting his ill-starred 1988 campaign for president.

That appearance of supreme self-confidence only seemed to turn voters off and his campaign ended with a thud. Running last among Republicans and in nationwide popularity surveys, Haig dropped out as the primaries began and threw his support behind Senator Bob Dole of Kansas.

Not one to spare foes his disdain, Haig seemed to relish attacking Bush. "From my point of view, Bob Dole is head and shoulders above George Bush as a potential president."

Haig was the only 1988 Republican contender who made a point of criticizing some of Reagan's policies, including the conduct of US-Soviet relations that led to a thaw in superpower relations and progress in arms control.

Born December 2, 1924, in Philadelphia, Alexander Meigs Haig entered the US Military Academy at West Point and spent World War II as a cadet officer. He later served in the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

His big break came in 1962 when, as a lieutenant colonel, he became an assistant to Defense Secretary Robert McNamara.

He moved into the higher echelons of national policymaking in 1969 when he was chosen to be Henry Kissinger's deputy at the national security council.

Nixon rewarded him for his national security service by bumping him past 240 more senior officers and naming him vice chief of staff of the Army. He held the post for just four months before he was called back to White House duty.