Attorney General: William P. Barr
William P. Barr was born on May 23, 1950, in New York City. He received a bachelor’s degree in government from Columbia University in 1971 and a master’s degree in government and Chinese studies in 1973. From 1973 to 1977, Barr served in the Central Intelligence Agency before receiving his Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree with highest honors from George Washington University Law School in 1977. In 1978, Barr served as a law clerk under Judge Malcolm Wilkey of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Following his clerkship, Barr joined the Washington, D.C., office of the law firm of Shaw, Pittman, Potts & Trowbridge. He left the firm to work in the White House under President Ronald Reagan from 1982 to 1983, then returned to the firm and became a partner in 1985. Under President George H.W. Bush, Barr served as Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Office of Legal Counsel from 1989 to 1990 and as Deputy Attorney General from 1990 to 1991.
Barr was appointed the 77th Attorney General of the United States by President George H. W. Bush on November 26, 1991. He held that office until January 20, 1993. Barr then served as executive vice president and general counsel for GTE Corporation from 1994 to 2000 and as executive vice president and general counsel of Verizon Communications from 2000 to 2008. President Donald J. Trump appointed Barr the 85th Attorney General of the United States on February 14, 2019. Barr served in that office until December 23, 2020. He is the second person to have served two non-consecutive terms as Attorney General of the United States.
William Alan Shirley was born in 1950 in northern California and studied art, writing, filmmaking, and philosophy in California, New York City, and Paris, France. He worked as a freelance artist for major record labels and film studios in Los Angeles and New York City before specializing primarily in realist portraiture. Shirley's portrait of Attorney General Barr was painted in 1994.