Stuart Bowen
{{Short description|American lawyer (born 1958)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Stuart Bowen
| image = Stuart Bowen.jpg
| office = Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction
| president = George W. Bush
Barack Obama
| term_start = January 20, 2004
| term_end = October 13, 2013
| predecessor = Position established
| successor = Position abolished
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1958|3|24}}
| birth_place = Washington, D.C., U.S.
| education = University of the South (BA)
Vanderbilt University
St. Mary's University, Texas (JD)
}}
Stuart W. Bowen Jr. (born March 24, 1958) is an American lawyer who served as the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) from 2004 to 2013, overseeing U.S. government expenditures on Iraq’s reconstruction.{{Cite news |last=Risen |first=James |date=2014-10-12 |title=Investigation Into Missing Iraqi Cash Ended in Lebanon Bunker |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/12/world/investigation-into-missing-iraqi-cash-ended-in-lebanon-bunker.html |access-date=2022-09-09 |work=*The New York Times* |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}
Early life and education
Bowen was born in Washington, D.C., on March 24, 1958. He attended Episcopal High School in Alexandria, Virginia. He earned a B.A. from the University of the South (Sewanee), studied at Vanderbilt University Law School, and obtained a J.D. from St. Mary's University School of Law, where he served on the Law Journal's editorial board.
Career
From 1994 to 2000, Bowen served in various legal positions for Texas Governor George W. Bush, including Deputy General Counsel and Assistant General Counsel.{{Cite web |title=results.gov : Resources For The President's Team |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/results/leadership/bios/bowens.html#:~:text=Stuart%20Bowen%20--%20White%20House&text=Prior%20to%20holding%20his%20current,then%20as%20Deputy%20General%20Counsel. |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov}}
During the 2000 U.S. presidential election, he was part of Bush’s legal team in the Florida recount litigation and later served as counsel to the Bush–Cheney transition team.{{Cite web |title=Transition--Building the New Administration...Timeline |url=https://p2000.us/buildtime.html#01 |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=p2000.us}}
Between 2001 and 2003, Bowen served in the Bush administration as Deputy Assistant to the President, Deputy Staff Secretary, and Special Assistant to the President and Associate Counsel.{{Cite web |title=results.gov : Resources For The President's Team |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/results/leadership/bios/bowens.html |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov}} In 2003, he left the administration to join the law firm Patton Boggs LLP in Washington, D.C.{{Cite news |last=Witte |first=Griff |date=June 22, 2005 |title=U.S. Attorney Gets 3 Cases in Iraq Fraud Probe |work=*The Washington Post* |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/21/AR2005062101451.html |access-date=September 9, 2022 |issn=0190-8286}}
In 2004, Bowen was appointed Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, overseeing $63 billion allocated for Iraq's relief and reconstruction.Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR). {{cite web |title=Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction : SIGIR Homepage |url=http://www.sigir.mil/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060820105245/http://www.sigir.mil/ |archive-date=2006-08-20 |access-date=2006-08-19}} During his tenure, he oversaw 35 quarterly reports to Congress, made 34 trips to Iraq, and testified before Congress 35 times. His office produced several in-depth reports on reconstruction, including *Hard Lessons* (2009), which analyzed reconstruction challenges and provided policy recommendations.{{Cite web |title=cybercemetery.unt.edu |url=https://cybercemetery.unt.edu/sigir/20131001084741/http:/www.sigir.mil/publications/index.html |access-date=2025-01-25 |website=cybercemetery.unt.edu}}
In January 2015, Texas Governor Greg Abbott appointed Bowen as Inspector General for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC).
{{cite web |date=2015-01-21 |title=Stuart Bowen named inspector general of embattled Texas health agency |url=http://www.statesman.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/abbott-names-bowen-who-rooted-out-fraud-in-iraq-to/njsrm/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170517082026/http://www.statesman.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/stuart-bowen-named-inspector-general-embattled-texas-health-agency/GETOTl9sCcb4IQG624Xg3O/ |archive-date=2017-05-17 |publisher=*Austin American-Statesman*}}
His role focused on investigating fraud and ensuring accountability in Texas health services.
On May 10, 2017, Governor Abbott requested Bowen’s resignation following reports that he had performed outside work for a lobbying firm representing the Iraqi government.{{cite web
|author=Edgar Walters
|title=State fraud investigator forced to resign over ties to Iraqi government lobbying
|url=https://www.texastribune.org/2017/05/11/report-texas-fraud-investigator-resigns-over-work-iraqi-government/
|date=2017-05-11
|publisher=*Texas Tribune*
}}
References
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