{"id":"william-cohen","type":"person","url":"https://diginpl.com/people/william-cohen","language":"en","name":"William Cohen","name_en":"William Cohen","name_ne":null,"description":"American politician (born 1940)","headline":"American politician (born 1940)","also_known_as":[],"summary":"William Sebastian Cohen is an American attorney, author, and politician. A member of the Republican Party, Cohen also served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1973 to 1979, United States Senate from 1979 to 1997, and as secretary of defense from 1997 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton.","summary_more":[],"facts":[{"key":"born","label":"Born","values":[{"text":"28 August 1940","date":"1940-08-28"}],"source":{"label":"Wikidata","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721#P569"}},{"key":"birthplace","label":"Place of birth","values":[{"text":"Bangor","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q327012"}],"source":{"label":"Wikidata","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721#P19"}},{"key":"citizenship","label":"Citizenship","values":[{"text":"United States","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q30"}],"source":{"label":"Wikidata","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721#P27"}},{"key":"occupation","label":"Occupation","values":[{"text":"politician","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q82955"},{"text":"lawyer","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q40348","start":"1965"},{"text":"entrepreneur","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q131524"},{"text":"university teacher","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1622272","start":"1968","end":"1972"},{"text":"assistant","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q23835475","start":"1968","end":"1970"},{"text":"writer","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q36180"}],"source":{"label":"Wikidata","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721#P106"}},{"key":"party","label":"Political party","values":[{"text":"Republican Party","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q29468"}],"source":{"label":"Wikidata","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721#P102"}},{"key":"education","label":"Education","values":[{"text":"Bowdoin College","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q895401","end":"1962"},{"text":"Boston University School of Law","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3064264","end":"1965"},{"text":"Boston University","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q49110"},{"text":"primary school","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q9842"},{"text":"Bangor High School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4855562"}],"source":{"label":"Wikidata","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721#P69"}},{"key":"spouse","label":"Spouse","values":[{"text":"Janet Langhart","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6153447"}],"source":{"label":"Wikidata","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721#P26"}},{"key":"positions","label":"Positions held","values":[{"text":"United States Secretary of Defense (24 January 1997 – 20 January 2001)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q735015","start":"1997-01-24","end":"2001-01-20"},{"text":"United States senator (3 January 1995 – 3 January 1997)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4416090","start":"1995-01-03","end":"1997-01-03"},{"text":"United States senator (3 January 1993 – 3 January 1995)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4416090","start":"1993-01-03","end":"1995-01-03"},{"text":"United States senator (3 January 1991 – 3 January 1993)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4416090","start":"1991-01-03","end":"1993-01-03"},{"text":"United States senator (3 January 1989 – 3 January 1991)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4416090","start":"1989-01-03","end":"1991-01-03"},{"text":"United States senator (3 January 1987 – 3 January 1989)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4416090","start":"1987-01-03","end":"1989-01-03"},{"text":"United States senator (3 January 1985 – 3 January 1987)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4416090","start":"1985-01-03","end":"1987-01-03"},{"text":"United States senator (3 January 1983 – 3 January 1985)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4416090","start":"1983-01-03","end":"1985-01-03"},{"text":"United States senator (3 January 1981 – 3 January 1983)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4416090","start":"1981-01-03","end":"1983-01-03"},{"text":"United States senator (3 January 1979 – 3 January 1981)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4416090","start":"1979-01-03","end":"1981-01-03"},{"text":"United States representative (3 January 1977 – 3 January 1979)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q13218630","start":"1977-01-03","end":"1979-01-03"},{"text":"United States representative (3 January 1975 – 3 January 1977)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q13218630","start":"1975-01-03","end":"1977-01-03"},{"text":"United States representative (3 January 1973 – 3 January 1979)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q13218630","start":"1973-01-03","end":"1979-01-03"},{"text":"mayor (1971–1972)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q30185","start":"1971","end":"1972"},{"text":"member (1970–1971)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8191099","start":"1970","end":"1971"},{"text":"member (1969–1972)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8191099","start":"1969","end":"1972"}],"source":{"label":"Wikidata","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721#P39"}},{"key":"awards","label":"Awards","values":[{"text":"Theodore Roosevelt Award","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7781991","date":"2001"}],"source":{"label":"Wikidata","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721#P166"}}],"office":null,"sections":[],"cited":[],"cited_from":null,"videos":[],"last_reviewed":null,"organizations":[],"same_as":["https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Cohen","https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721"],"faq":[{"q":"When was William Cohen born?","a":"William Cohen was born on 28 August 1940 in Bangor."},{"q":"What positions has William Cohen held?","a":"Positions held by William Cohen include: United States Secretary of Defense (1997–2001); United States senator (1995–1997); United States senator (1993–1995); United States senator (1991–1993); United States senator (1989–1991)."},{"q":"Where did William Cohen study?","a":"William Cohen was educated at Bowdoin College, Boston University School of Law, Boston University, primary school."}],"related":[{"name":"Dick Cheney","url":"https://diginpl.com/people/dick-cheney"},{"name":"Donald Rumsfeld","url":"https://diginpl.com/people/donald-rumsfeld"},{"name":"Barack Obama","url":"https://diginpl.com/people/barack-obama"},{"name":"Joe Biden","url":"https://diginpl.com/people/joe-biden"},{"name":"John F. Kennedy","url":"https://diginpl.com/people/john-f-kennedy"},{"name":"Harry S. Truman","url":"https://diginpl.com/people/harry-s-truman"},{"name":"Richard Nixon","url":"https://diginpl.com/people/richard-nixon"},{"name":"Lyndon B. Johnson","url":"https://diginpl.com/people/lyndon-b-johnson"}],"places_in":[],"nearby":[],"image":{"url":"https://diginpl.com/kb-img/william-cohen-cc845147af.jpg","width":500,"height":656,"license":"Public domain","credit":"SCOTT DAVIS","page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:William_Cohen,_official_portrait.jpg"},"sources":[{"label":"Wikipedia (English): William Cohen","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Cohen","license":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/"},{"label":"Wikidata item Q710721","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q710721","license":"https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/"},{"label":"Image: William Cohen, official portrait.jpg by SCOTT DAVIS (Public domain)","url":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:William_Cohen,_official_portrait.jpg","license":null}],"license":{"text":"CC BY-SA 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/","facts":"https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/"},"attribution":"Text from the Wikipedia article William Cohen, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: William Cohen, official portrait.jpg — SCOTT DAVIS, Public domain.","cite":"\"William Cohen\". DigiNepal. Last updated 1 November 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/william-cohen. Retrieved 4 November 2026.","date_modified":"2026-11-01T09:05:03Z","facts_checked":"2026-11-04","alternates":{"html":"https://diginpl.com/people/william-cohen","en":"https://diginpl.com/people/william-cohen","ne":"https://diginpl.com/people/william-cohen?lang=ne"}}