Aram Bakshian

Aram Bakshian
White House Director of Speechwriting
In office November 17, 1981 – October 19, 1983
President	Ronald Reagan
Preceded by	Anthony R. Dolan(Chief Speechwriter)
Succeeded by	Ben T. Elliott
Personal details
Born	(1944-03-11)March 11, 1944 Washington, D.C.,U.S.
Died	September 14, 2022(2022-09-14)(aged 78) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political party	Republican

Aram Bakshian Jr.(March 11, 1944 – September 14, 2022) was an American political aide and speechwriter. He began his career working forCongressmanBill Brock(1966–70), then became a special assistant andspeechwriterforRepublican National Committee(RNC) ChairmanSenatorBob Dole(1971). He joined the speechwriting staff ofPresidentRichard Nixonand, later, of PresidentFord(1972–75). He then became a senior consultant toTreasury SecretaryWilliam E. Simon(1976–77). Following his government service, Aram went on the lecture circuit as well as becoming a senior fellow atHarvard Kennedy SchoolatHarvard Universitybefore being brought back for White House service.

PresidentRonald Reaganbrought Aram on during his first term initially in the Office of Public Liaison as a Special Assistant to the President (Arts, Humanities, Education/Academia, and International Affairs (1981), before he was hired as the Director of the White House Office of Speechwriting (1981–83). In 1987, President Reagan nominated him to a term on theNational Council on the Humanities(1987–92). Following his years in government, Bakshian began his tenure as the editor-in-chief of the periodic journal theAmerican Speaker(1992 until his retirement in 2009). In 2014, he began to serve as a contributing editor toThe National Interestmagazine.

Aram died September 14, 2022, ofpancreatic cancer.

External links

• Biography at Harvard University
• Appointment of Aram Bakshian, Jr., as Special Assistant to the President and Director of the Presidential Speechwriting Office, 1981
• Aram Bakshian, Jr. Oral History, Director of Speechwriting
• AppearancesonC-SPAN