Don Nickles

Don Nickles is a seasoned and important voice on American politics and the national agenda. This four-term U.S. Senator (now retired) is a superb and experienced presenter who brings a sound conservative perspective on economic growth, social issues and the political landscape. After being steeped in the ways of Washington and the world for decades, Don Nickles retired from the Senate in 2005 and formed The Nickles Group, a new consulting and business venture company. The company provides strategic advice, policy development, and political executive for clients seeking to engage in the federal legislation of executive process.      

Don was elected to the United States Senate in 1980 at age 31 (the youngest Republican ever elected to the Senate) and served the state of Oklahoma and the nation for 24 years. He was a key member of the Senate Republican Leadership for more than a decade, serving as Chairman of the Republican Senatorial Committee, Chairman of the Republican Policy Committee and as the Assistant Republican Leader from 1996-2002. Nickles was Chairman of the powerful Senate Budget Committee during his last two years in the Senate and was a senior member of both the Senate Finance Committee and the Energy and Natural Resources Committee.        

Nickles was born in Ponca City, Oklahoma and graduated from Oklahoma State University where he stared his first small business, a janitorial service. He worked as Vice President and General Manager of Nickles Machine Corporation and served two years as a State Senator before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 1980.        

Senator Nickles built a legacy of advancing free-enterprise causes throughout his Senate career, from natural gas deregulation and the repeal of the windfall profits tax in the 1980s, to the repeal of onerous ergonomics regulation and the fight against federalized health care during the Clinton administration. He was the author of the Congressional Review Act and the Child Citizenship Act, and the principal sponsor of the President's economic growth package in 2003, which cut capital gains taxes and dividend rates. He developed a reputation as an effective negotiator able to form bipartisan coalitions.      

After graduating from college, Don served six years in the US National Guard. He worked as Vice President and General Manager of Nickles Machine Corporation and then served as a state senator in Oklahoma from 1978 until his election to the US Senate in 1980.