Department of Transportation
Nomination of William J. Beckham, Jr., To Be Deputy Secretary.
October 26, 1979

The President today announced that he will nominate William J. Beckham, Jr., of Detroit, Mich., to be Deputy Secretary of Transportation. He would replace Alan Butchman, resigned. Beckham has been manager of North American government affairs for Ford Motor Co. since 1978.

He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on November 7, 1940. He attended Detroit Institute of Technology, Wayne State University, American University, and the University of Maryland, taking courses in political science.

Beckham worked as a Capitol Police officer at the U.S. Senate from 1962 to 1964. In 1964 he went to work for Senator Philip Hart’s campaign in Detroit as a campaign assistant. In January 1965 he joined Senator Hart’s staff in Washington as an aide responsible for correspondence to constituents.

From 1966 to 1970, Beckham served as an administrative aide in Senator Hart’s Detroit office, where he was responsible for managing the office and establishing an additional office in Grand Rapids.Beckham served as staff assistant in Senator Hart’s Washington office from 1971 to 1973, responsible for monitoring and reviewing legislative and agency actions in the areas of labor, education, housing, and hunger and malnutrition, and for coordinating the activities of the Michigan Offices,

From January 1973 to November 1973, Beckham served as director of the Equal Opportunities Subcommittee of the House Education and Labor Committee.

In November 1973 Beckham joined Detroit Mayor-elect Coleman Young’s transition staff as director, and from January 1974 until 1977, he was chief executive assistant and deputy mayor of Detroit. From 1977 to 1978, he was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Administration.