Catalina Vasquez Villalpando - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Catalina "Cathi" Vásquez Villalpando (born April 1, 1940) was the 39th Treasurer of the United States

Treasurer of the United States

The Treasurer of the United States is an official in the United States Department of the Treasury that was originally charged with the receipt and custody of government funds, though many of these functions have been taken over by different bureaus of the Department of the Treasury...

from December 11, 1989 to January 20, 1993 under President George H. W. Bush

George H. W. Bush

George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...

. She had previously held minor positions under President Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan

Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....

and was also a chairman of the Republican National Hispanic Assembly

Republican National Hispanic Assembly

The Republican National Hispanic Assembly is an American political organization founded in 1967 which seeks to promote Hispanic issues and interests within the Republican Party, and the Party's interests and candidates within the Hispanic population...

. In 1994, Villalpando was found guilty of obstruction of justice and tax evasion, becoming the only U.S. Treasurer ever to be sent to prison.

Early life

Villalpando was born Catalina Vásquez to a poor family in San Marcos

San Marcos, Texas

San Marcos is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, and is the seat of Hays County. Located within the metropolitan area, the city is located on the Interstate 35 corridor—between Austin and San Antonio....

, Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

, one of four girls and two boys. Villalpando's father, a lifelong Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

and migrant worker, used to take her and her siblings out into the fields so they would know what it was like to pick crops for a living. After attending parochial school, Villalpando graduated from San Marcos High School

San Marcos High School (Texas)

San Marcos High School is a secondary school in San Marcos, Texas. The school serves grades 9 through 12, and is part of the San Marcos Consolidated Independent School District.-Administration:*Principal - Michelle Darling...

. She subsequently went to work at a jewelry store and as a secretary at Southwest Texas State College

Texas State University–San Marcos

Texas State University–San Marcos is a doctoral-granting university located in San Marcos, Texas...

where she also attended part time. She did not complete her studies at Southwest, instead- at her father's advice- enrolled at The University of Texas College of Business Administration

McCombs School of Business

The McCombs School of Business, also referred to as the McCombs School or simply McCombs, is a business school at The University of Texas at Austin. In addition to the main Austin campus, McCombs offers classes outside Central Texas in Dallas, Houston and internationally in Mexico City...

.
Villalpando's association with Republican Party

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

(GOP) politics began at this time when she took a secretarial position with the Texas Republican Party (TRP) in Austin

Austin

Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas.Austin may also refer to:-In the United States:*Austin, Arkansas*Austin, Colorado*Austin, Chicago, Illinois*Austin, Indiana*Austin, Minnesota*Austin, Nevada*Austin, Oregon...

while attending business school. In 1969, she became an assistant to the local director of the Community Service Administration where she dealt with minority and business issues. Villalpando eventually became director and, later, worked for the now defunct Office of Economic Opportunity

Office of Economic Opportunity

The Office of Economic Opportunity was the agency responsible for administering most of the War on Poverty programs created as part of United States President Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society legislative agenda.- History :...

.

By the late 1970s, Villalpando was working for the Commerce Department's

United States Department of Commerce

The United States Department of Commerce is the Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with promoting economic growth. It was originally created as the United States Department of Commerce and Labor on February 14, 1903...

Minority Business Development Agency

The Minority Business Development Agency is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that promotes growth and competitiveness of the United States' minority-owned businesses. The current National Director is David A...

(MBDA) in Texas. In 1979, Villalpando returned to the private sector taking up the position of vice president for the Mid-South Oil Company. She also organized her own consulting firm, V.P. Promotions, providing public relations to minority-owned savings and loan institutions under a federal contract.

Political career

Villalpando was an early supporter of George H. W. Bush

George H. W. Bush

for the 1980 election cycle. After Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan

Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....

secured the GOP nomination, she enthusiastically volunteered in the Reagan-Bush campaign

Ronald Reagan presidential campaign, 1980

Ronald Reagan, the 33rd Governor of California, announced his candidacy for President of the United States in New York City on November 13, 1979. On July 17, 1980, he became the nominee of the Republican Party for the 1980 presidential election. After receiving the Republican nomination, he...

effort in Texas. She was rewarded with a position as staff assistant in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel when Reagan took up office in 1981. Later that year, she returned to Texas where she served as the voter groups coordinator for the TRP.

For the next two years, Villalpando was a prolific activist in both Republican and Hispanic circles, serving on the boards of the Texas Federation of Republican Women

National Federation of Republican Women

The National Federation of Republican Women is the women's wing of the Republican Party in the United States. Founded in 1938, it is a grassroots political organization with more than 1,600 local clubs in the 50 states and in the U.S. territories...

, the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project, the League of United Latin American Citizens

League of United Latin American Citizens

The League of United Latin American Citizens was created to combat the discrimination that Hispanics face in the United States. Established February 17, 1929 in Corpus Christi, Texas, LULAC was a consolidation of smaller, like-minded civil rights groups already in existence...

, and the American GI Forum

American GI Forum

The American G.I. Forum is a Congressionally chartered Hispanic veterans and civil rights organization. Its motto is "Education is Our Freedom and Freedom should be Everybody's Business". AGIF currently operates chapters throughout the United States, with a focus on veteran's issues, education,...

. Additionally, she was appointed to seats on the Texas Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and the Secretary's Advisory Committee on Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization at the Department of Transportation

Department of Transportation

The Department of Transportation is the most common name for a government agency in North America devoted to transportation. The largest is the United States Department of Transportation, which oversees interstate travel. All U.S. states, Canadian provinces, and many local agencies also have...

.

In 1983, Villalpando's work was noted by the Reagan Administration and she was brought back to Washington

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

as a Special Assistant to the President for Public Liaison

White House Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs

The Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs is a unit of the White House Office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States...

. In this capacity, she dealt with public interest groups, lobbyists, and the general public and soon stood out for her "formidable...administrative skills." Villalpando's political profile also rose considerably when her skills and ethnicity were utilized in outreach efforts to attract Hispanics to the Republican Party.

Private sector work

After two years, Villalpando left government service again and, in August,1985, took up the position of senior vice president- as well as partner and large share holder- at Communications International, Inc. (CII), a Norcross

Norcross, Georgia

As of 2010 Norcross had a population of 9,116. The racial and ethnic composition of the population was 40.8% white , 19.8% black or African American , 0.7% Native American, 2.1% Asian Indian, 10.7% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 21.5% from some other race and 4.3% reporting two or more races...

, Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

-based telecommunications firm. CII was run by its founder, Joseph Profit, a former Atlanta Falcons

Atlanta Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are a member of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...

running back and popular businessman in Georgia who had served in various appointed capacities in the Reagan Administration and, later, the first Bush Administration. Villalpando was one of several high-profile Republicans that Profit brought on board who helped the company garner millions in federal contracts.

Despite her leaving government service during this time, Villalpando's political involvement, especially in regards to bringing more Hispanics into the Republican Party, did not cease.

In 1987, Villalpando became the national chair for the Republican National Hispanic Assembly (RNHA). At the time, the RNHA was the auxiliary of the Republican National Committee

Republican National Committee

The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...

responsible for Hispanic outreach and advocacy on behalf of the Party. The effort to get her elected as the group's leader came at a time when the presidential campaigns of then Vice President Bush and Senate Minority Leader Robert Dole were engaged in a particularly nasty competition to win the support of Hispanic Republicans for the 1988 election cycle. Villalpando had developed a special talent for attracting Hispanics to the Party and, as a Bush ally, was expected to swing the support of the Assembly to his run for the GOP nod.

MBDA investigation

That same year, Villalpando's assumption of the RNHA leadership post came under scrutiny by the Commerce Department's inspector general. An unrelated investigation was already underway looking into allegations that MBDA director James Richardson Gonzalez and Ernest Olivas, Jr., an MBDA employee, had been using their positions to drum up support for Bush's campaign. The probe revealed that Olivas, a friend of Villalpando when the two were on staff together in the Reagan White House where he was the speech-writer for the vice president, had also been soliciting prominent Hispanic Republicans to support her bid for the RNHA chairmanship. RNHA co-founder Fernando Vega was one of those contacted and who confirmed to investigators that Olivas had called him from his government office while on work time, a potential violation of the Hatch Act

Hatch Act of 1939

The Hatch Act of 1939 is a United States federal law whose main provision is to prohibit federal employees in the executive branch of the federal government, except the President and the Vice President, from engaging in partisan political activity...

. Villalpando's role was tangential to the investigation and she was not implicated in any wrongdoing. Olivas subsequently left government service and became employed by Villalpando's company, CII, as manager of its Washington office.

On April 4, 1989, President Bush nominated Villalpando to be U.S. Treasurer. She was confirmed by the U. S. Senate on November 20.

U.S. Treasurer

Villalpando was sworn in by the president on December 11. In attendance at her ceremony was Senator Phil Gramm

Phil Gramm

William Philip "Phil" Gramm is an American economist and politician, who has served as a Democratic Congressman , a Republican Congressman and a Republican Senator from Texas...

of Texas and Gustavo Petricioli

Gustavo Petricioli

Gustavo Petricioli Iturbide was a Mexican economist who served as Secretary of Finance in the last cabinet of Miguel de la Madrid and as Mexican ambassador to the United States ....

, Mexico's

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

ambassador to the United States. As U.S. Treasurer, Villalpando became the highest-ranking Latina in the Bush Administration exhibiting a high-profile presence in the Hispanic community on its behalf.

While Treasurer, Villalpando presided over the first major change in US currency since the motto "In God We Trust" was introduced in 1957. Beginning in September, 1991, $50 and $100 bills with new, advanced technology designed to defeat digital printers was introduced into public circulation. The same year, Villalpando initiated a special program to raise $37 million by selling commemorative coins honoring Mt. Rushmore. Half of the money raised would go toward restoration of the monument- the cost of which was estimated at $40 million- and half to pay into the national debt.

Clinton comments

In August, 1992, Villalpando became embroiled in controversy over comments made by her and Commerce Secretary

United States Secretary of Commerce

The United States Secretary of Commerce is the head of the United States Department of Commerce concerned with business and industry; the Department states its mission to be "to foster, promote, and develop the foreign and domestic commerce"...

and Bush campaign manager Robert Mosbacher

Robert Mosbacher

Robert Adam Mosbacher, Sr. , was an American businessman, accomplished yacht racer, and a Republican politician. In sailing, Sports Illustrated called him "the unquestioned master of fleet racing." In business in 1954, he found a million-dollar field of natural gas in South Texas...

. The comments concerned ongoing sex scandals and rumors surrounding Arkansas Governor and Democratic presidential nominee Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton

William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...

and former San Antonio mayor Henry Cisneros

Henry Cisneros

Henry Gabriel Cisneros is a politician and businessman. A Democrat, Cisneros served as the 10th Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the administration of President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1997...

. Visiting the New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

delegation at the 1992 Republican National Convention, Villalpando reportedly said to the delegates: "Can you imagine two skirt-chasers campaigning together?" She also questioned Clinton's qualifications under these circumstances. Some members of the delegation were not pleased with the comments, in particular former New Jersey Governor

Governor of New Jersey

The Office of the Governor of New Jersey is the executive branch for the U.S. state of New Jersey. The office of Governor is an elected position, for which elected officials serve four year terms. While individual politicians may serve as many terms as they can be elected to, Governors cannot be...

Tom Kean who called the remarks, "totally unnecessary." Although both Bush and Villalpando issued apologies, Clinton campaign spokesman George Stephanopolous called on the president to dismiss both officials.

Investigation

While still enveloped in the controversy surrounding her Clinton and Cisneros comments, Villalpando became the central figure in a criminal probe launched by the Department of Justice

United States Department of Justice

The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...

. The investigation initially focused on allegations that Villalpando accepted favors and other gratuities from CII while in office- a violation of federal law. However, it also incorporated an array of potential charges including "bribery, conspiracy to defraud the government, making false or fraudulent claims, racketeering, making false statements to federal agents and fraud by wire, radio or television."

News of the investigation broke on October 29, the day after FBI agents raided several buildings and residences in DC, Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

, and Georgia. Among these were the homes of Villalpando and Olivas as well as the offices of CII in Norcross where boxes of documents were seized.
Villalpando took an immediate leave of absence from her post while Olivas, who was already on leave from CII to act as director of Hispanic outreach for the Bush-Quayle re-election

Republican Party (United States) presidential primaries, 1992

The 1992 Republican presidential primaries were the selection process by which voters of the Republican Party chose its nominee for President of the United States in the 1992 U.S. presidential election. Incumbent President George H.W...

team, quit the campaign. Profit was not considered a suspect in the probe, telling reporters instead that investigators told him- and presumably other employees- that "'[t]hey...were witnesses' and would be asked to provide information."

Records obtained during the investigation revealed that Villalpando received in excess of $147,000 from CII after she assumed her post as U.S. Treasurer in December 1989. They further showed $441,417 in additional bonuses being received in the fall as she was readying her departure from the company. Finally, the records indicated that Villalpando still had between $250,000 and $500,000 in company stock.

According to Villalpando's notes, the $147,000 was listed as severance pay, however, no reference was made to it as required in the financial disclosure forms she submitted to the government upon being nominated. She did indicate at her confirmation hearings that she would retain her stock ownership in the company but promised to have no involvement in the firm's business. The following year, she received her severance payment and an additional $7,000 in accrued leave. Investigators were charged with determining whether these payments were expected but simply not reported or received in expectation of gaining influence in obtaining federal contracts.

CII, it was revealed, had a large amount of business with the government. Between 1983 and 1992, the telecommunications firm was awarded 56 non-competitive contracts totaling $68.6 million. As recently as the Persian Gulf War

Gulf War

The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

, CII had been awarded huge contracts to provide communication networks for U.S. forces in the region as well as to help rebuild Kuwait

Kuwait

The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...

i infrustructure after the war.

Conviction

The investigation did not support charges of influence-peddling on Villalpando's part. Instead, the probe began to intersect with another criminal investigation ongoing within the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) over fraud and the improper awarding of federal contracts during the Reagan Administration. In May, 1992, Villalpando was ordered to testify before a grand jury as well as produce certain documents related to that case involving HUD official Deborah Gore Dean

Deborah Gore Dean

Deborah Gore Dean is a former United States federal employee, in the US Department of Housing and Urban Development during the Ronald Reagan presidency, she is also a distant relative of the famous Senator Albert Gore Sr. and second cousin once removed of former Vice President Albert Gore Jr....

. Villalpando's own investigation began to turn toward her failure to reveal compensation from CII and failure to pay appropriate taxes. The following year, she was also accused of obstruction of justice by lying to investigators as well as ordering the destruction of subpoenaed documents.

At her trial, prosecutors charged Villalpando with three felonies: tax evasion (specifically $47,013 in Federal income taxes), conspiracy to make false statements regarding her finances (namely that she believed she owed less than she did), and obstruction of a grand jury (due to the destruction of officially requested records in the HUD probe). The charges carried a maximum penalty of a $750,000 fine and 15 years imprisonment. Villalpando admitted to concealing "substantial funds and benefits" from CII, information which was "capable of influencing the actions and judgments of those departments and agencies" that would evaluate her qualification for the post of U.S. Treasurer. She further admitted that the conspiracy to conceal information was begun as early as March 1989, when she first learned that President Bush intended to nominate her for the post. Villalpando also acknowledged that in July 1992, she asked her long-time acquaintenance Olivas to destroy documents subpoenaed by the independent counsel in the Dean case.

On February 18, 1994, Villalpando pled guilty to all three counts and was released pending her sentencing at which time she was expected to cooperate with ongoing probes into CII contracts and HUD in return for consideration. At her sentencing, Villalpando received four months imprisonment, three years of probation (four months of which to be served under house arrest), 200 hours of community service, and a $150 tax evasion fee. Prosecutors had unsuccessfully sought a harsher penalty.

Post-Treasurer years

Villalpando technically remained in her post on leave of absence until the Clinton Administration

Bill Clinton

was inaugurated in January, 1993. In 2003, she appeared on a list produced by the D.C. government of notorious tax scofflaws. According to this report, the former treasurer owed the district government $168,417.72 in back taxes. As of 2008, she was still in arrears.

In 2006, Villalpando was awarded an honorary doctorate for her work from Atlantic Union College

Atlantic Union College

Atlantic Union College was a Seventh-day Adventist college in South Lancaster, Massachusetts. Its final year operating as an independent institution was the 2010-2011 school year following loss of accreditation from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges...

, a small liberal arts institution. She also served as that year's commencement speaker, admonishing the graduates to "embrace the tough times encountered in life." Villalpando also thanked the Seventh-Day Adventist Church

Seventh-day Adventist Church

The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...

- under whose auspices the college operates- for being there when she was at her lowest.

Villalpando currently works as a quality assurance specialist at the Amerix Corporation call center in Columbia

Columbia, Maryland

Columbia is a planned community that consists of ten self-contained villages, located in Howard County, Maryland, United States. It began with the idea that a city could enhance its residents' quality of life. Creator and developer James W. Rouse saw the new community in terms of human values, not...

, Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

Family life

Villalpando married her high school sweetheart in 1970. The marriage ended in divorce a few years later and produced no children. She resides in Reisterstown, Maryland

Reisterstown, Maryland

Reisterstown is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland. Founded by German immigrant John Reister in 1758, it is located to the northwest of Baltimore. Though it is older than the areas surrounding it, it now serves primarily as a residential suburb of...