The Honorable Jesse Brown, Vice Chairman
The Honorable Jesse Brown, of Chicago, Illinois, served in President Clinton's Cabinet as Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs from 1993 to 1997. As Secretary, he undertook an aggressive research initiative to determine the causes of the illnesses of Persian Gulf War Veterans, and was successful in aiding the enactment of laws authorizing payment to those Veterans' undiagnosed illnesses. Mr. Brown grew up in Chicago, where he was an honors graduate of Chicago City College. He enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1963, and was wounded in combat in Vietnam in 1965. Following military service, he spent his professional career with the Disabled American Veterans, serving as their Executive Director from 1989 to 1993.