Strauss, Lewis

Strauss, Lewis (Lichtenstein)

(1896– ) banker, cabinet member; born in Charleston, W.Va. After working on Belgian relief with Herbert Hoover (1917–19), he joined New York investment bankers Kuhn, Loeb & Co. (1929–45). A reservist, he was appointed naval rear admiral for distinguished service in 1945. He became an Atomic Energy Commission member (1946–50), later chairman (1953–58), championing the hydrogen bomb and denying Robert Oppenheimer security clearance. Briefly secretary of commerce (1958–59), he wrote Men and Decisions (1962).