Nomination of Donald J. Atwood To Be Deputy Secretary of Defense

The President today announced his intention to nominate Donald J. Atwood to be Deputy Secretary of Defense. He would succeed William H. Taft IV.

Mr. Atwood has been vice chairman of the board of General Motors, 1987 to the present, and a member of the finance committee and the executive and administration committees. He was appointed president of Delco Electronics Corp. in 1988. He has served as executive vice president of General Motors and a member of the corporation's board of directors since January 1, 1984, and president of GM Hughes Electronics Corp., since 1985. Mr. Atwood was vice president and group executive in charge of the worldwide truck and bus group, 1981 - 1984.

Mr. Atwood attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He served in the U.S. Army, 1943 - 1946. He was born May 25, 1924, in Haverhill, MA.