John Ashcroft

John David Ashcroft (born May 9, 1942) is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and former politician who served as the United States Attorney General in the George W. Bush administration from 2001 to 2005. He previously held various positions in Missouri politics; as Auditor of Missouri (1973–1975), Attorney General of Missouri (1976–1985), Governor of Missouri (1985–1993), and as a United States Senator representing Missouri (1995–2001). He later founded The Ashcroft Group, a Washington D.C. lobbying firm.

Ashcroft graduated from Hillcrest High School in 1960 before receiving a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. After unsuccessfully running for the U.S. House of Representatives, he was elected Missouri State Auditor in 1974. He then served two consecutive terms as Missouri Attorney General and as Missouri Governor (a historical first for a Republican candidate in the state). He is only Republican to serve two full consecutive terms as governor to date. He also served one term as a U.S. Senator from Missouri until losing a race for a second term in 2000. Ashcroft had early appointments in Missouri state government and was mentored by John Danforth. He has written several books about politics and ethics.

After George W. Bush was elected president in 2000, he selected Ashcroft to serve as U.S. Attorney General. As Attorney General, Ashcroft was a key supporter of the USA Patriot Act following the September 11 attacks and the use of torture to suspected terrorists. Ashcroft stepped down as Attorney General in February 2005 and was replaced by Alberto Gonzales. Since 2011, Ashcroft sits on the board of directors for the private military company Academi (formerly Blackwater) and is a professor at the Regent University School of Law, a conservative Christian institution affiliated with the late televangelist Pat Robertson; he has also been a member of the Federalist Society. His son, Jay Ashcroft, is also a politician, serving as Secretary of State of Missouri since January 2017. Provided by Wikipedia