*He was the 80th Attorney General of the United      

  States (2005-07)

*He  served  as President George W. Bush's White 

  House counsel (2001-05)

*He was a member of the Texas Supreme Court

  (1999-01)

*In 1999, he was named Latino Lawyer of the Year by

  the Hispanic National Bar Association

Before becoming Attorney General, Alberto R. Gonzales served as then-Governor Bush's legal counsel (1995-97), then Texas Secretary of State (1997-99), then President George W. Bush's White House counsel (2001-05). He also served as a member of the state Supreme Court (1999-01).  Prior to his stint in government service, Gonzales was a partner with the Houston law firm of Vinson & Elkins (1982-95).  As one of the President's closest aides, he became Bush's nominee to replace resigning Attorney General,John Ashcroft,in February 2005. Alberto Gonzales was born to a Catholic family in San Antonio, Texas, and raised in a town outside of Houston. Of Mexican descent, he was the second of eight children born to Pablo and Maria Gonzales. His father, who died in 1982, was a construction worker. According to Gonzales, no immigration documentation exists for three of his grandparents and thus they may have entered and resided in the United States illegally from Mexico. Gonzales excelled in his studies, and was an honor student in high school. He enlisted in the United States Air Force after graduation. While serving in Alaska, he sought  to gain entrance to the Air Force Academy.  He was accepted and while at the  Academy, he found himself most intrigued by his classes in politics and government. He transferred to Rice University in Houston, graduated with honors in political science, and won admission to Harvard Law School. He then earned a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Harvard Law School in 1982 .Outside of his political and legal career, Gonzales was active in the community. He was chosen as one of Five Outstanding Young Texans by the Texas Jaycees in 1994. He was a member of delegations sent by the American Council of Young Political Leaders to Mexico in 1996 and to the People's Republic of China in 1995. He received the Presidential Citation from the State Bar of Texas in 1997 for his dedication to  addressing basic legal needs of the indigent. In 1999, he was named Latino Lawyer of the Year by the Hispanic National Bar Association. Amid several controversies and allegations of perjury before Congress, on August 27, 2007 Gonzales announced his resignation as Attorney General, effective September 17, 2007. In August 2009, Gonzales began teaching a political science course at Texas Tech University. He will also serve as the diversity recruiter for the Texas Tech University System.Gonzales has been married twice: he and his first wife, Diane Clemens, divorced in 1985; he and his second wife, Rebecca Turner Gonzales, have three sons.