David Rubenstein

DAVID RUBENSTEIN

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David M. Rubenstein co-founded The Carlyle Group, one of the world's largest private equity firms, in 1987. Since then he has acted as the group's Managing Director, and seen it grow into a firm that manages more than $75 billion from 33 offices around the world. A native of Baltimore, Rubenstein graduated Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude from Duke University in 1970. He received his law degree from the University of Chicago Law School, where he was also an editor for the Law Review. From 1975-76, Rubenstein was Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Constitutional Amendments. From 1977-1981, he was Deputy Assistant for Domestic Policy to President Jimmy Carter . Rubenstein has practiced law privately as well: for Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison (from 1973-75) and Shaw, Pittman, Potts & Trowbridge (1981-87). Rubenstein serves on the Board of Directors or Trustees of various educational and public institutions, including both of his alma maters, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Smithsonian Institution, the Institute for Advanced Studies, and the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, where he is the Vice Chairman. He is a member of the Visiting Committee of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, the Dean's Council at the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton, the Advisory Board of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, and is on the boards and advisory committees of many other public institutions nationally. He lives in Bethesda, Maryland.

Interests

Most Recent Idea

Policy & Politics

Re: What is George W. Bush's legacy?

01/28/2008

Description: Bush's legacy will be intimately tied to the war in Iraq.

Transcript: I’m not sure the legacy of George W. Bush will be the legacy that he thought it would be when he took office. No doubt the legacy will be how Iraq turns out. No matter what George W. Bush thinks, in my view, about what his legacy will be, it will be inextricably linked to the war. If the war is ultimately seen as a successful effort against terrorism and a successful military venture by the United States, then his legacy will be good. If it’s seen ultimately as a disastrous effort to stop Saddam Hussein from utilizing weapons of mass destruction, and an effort to keep Al Qaeda from coming to the United States, it may be viewed differently. If a terrorism attack occurs in the United States, it may be viewed one way. If no terrorism attack occurs here for five years, 10 years into the future, his effort may be looked at differently. I think the president is very much inspired by Harry Truman’s situation. Harry Truman left Washington in 1953 when Dwight Eisenhower became president a very unpopular person. His popularity ratings were probably 15 to 19 percent, and nobody had a big sendoff for him. He walked to the train station essentially and went back to Missouri. In hindsight, people think that Harry Truman was a great president. In hindsight they think he did some very courageous things. I think George Bush is propelled to think that the same thing might happen to him; that five years, 10 years, 15 years down the road people will say, “Well it’s a good thing that he fought the war in Iraq because of the things that developed subsequently.” I don’t think we have that perspective today. I think today the war is not that popular for sure, and George Bush isn’t viewed today as Harry Truman is viewed today. But I think he views it possible . . . possibly the case that he will be viewed that way.

Recorded on: 9/13/07