Charlie Wilson ( Texas politician ) Charles " Charlie " Nesbitt Wilson ( June 1 , 1933 – February 10 , 2010 ) was a United States naval officer and former 12 - term Democratic United States Representative from Texas ' s 2nd congressional district . Wilson is best known for leading Congress into supporting Operation Cyclone , the largest - ever Central Intelligence Agency ( CIA ) covert operation which , under the Reagan administration , supplied military equipment including anti - aircraft weapons such as Stinger antiaircraft missiles and paramilitary officers from their Special Activities Division to the Afghan Mujahideen during the Soviet war in Afghanistan . His behind - the - scenes campaign was the subject of the non - fiction book " Charlie Wilson ' s War " by George Crile III and a subsequent film adaptation starring Tom Hanks as Wilson . Early life and naval career . Wilson was born in the small town of Trinity , Texas , to Charles Edwin Wilson , an accountant for a local timber company , and Wilmuth Wilson , a local florist , on June 1 , 1933 . Wilson had one younger sister , Sharon Wilson Allison , former chair of Planned Parenthood and president of the International Planned Parenthood Federation , who currently resides in Waco , Texas . Growing up , Wilson attended Trinity public schools and , upon graduation from Trinity High School in 1951 , he attended one semester at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville , Texas before being appointed to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis , Maryland . While at Annapolis , Wilson earned the second most demerits in the history of the academy ( his roommate , Robert Mullen , earned the most demerits ) . Despite the excessive number of demerits Wilson graduated eighth from the bottom of his class in 1956 with a B . S . in Engineering , specializing in electronics . Between 1956 and 1960 , Wilson served in the United States Navy , attaining the rank of lieutenant and gunnery officer on a destroyer . While in the Navy , Wilson ' s commanders reported that he was the " best officer on ship but the worst in port . " Wilson ' s exploits in port did not impede his career in the Navy and he was assigned to the Pentagon as part of an intelligence unit that evaluated the Soviet Union ' s nuclear forces . Early political career highlights . From a young age , Wilson took an interest in national security and foreign matters . Growing up during World War II encouraged Wilson to avidly read military history , including numerous articles and other literature on the war . This led Wilson to have a lifelong reverence for Winston Churchill . Wilson even took the opportunity as a child to “ keep watch ” over Trinity for Japanese aerial attacks from his post in the back yard . Wilson ' s early sense of patriotism and his strong interest in international affairs encouraged him to become politically active later in life . According to Wilson himself , he first entered politics as a teenager by running a campaign against his next - door neighbor , city council incumbent Charles Hazard . When thirteen years old , Wilson ' s fourteen year old dog entered Hazard ' s yard . Hazard retaliated by mixing crushed glass into the dog ' s food , causing fatal internal bleeding . Following this incident , Wilson obtained a driver ' s permit and drove ninety - six voters , primarily black citizens from poor neighborhoods , to the polls in his family ' s two - door Chevrolet . As patrons left the car , Wilson told each of them that he didn ' t want to influence their vote , but that the incumbent Hazard had purposely killed his dog . After Hazard was defeated by a margin of 16 votes , Wilson went to his house to tell him he shouldn ' t poison any more dogs . Wilson cited this as " the day [ he ] fell in love with America . " While Wilson worked at the Pentagon , he volunteered to help in John F . Kennedy ' s 1960 presidential campaign . While volunteering in Kennedy ' s campaign , Wilson took a 30 day leave from the Navy and entered his name into the race for Texas state representative of his home district on the Democratic ticket . This action violated Navy regulations , as active - duty service members are prohibited from holding public office . When Wilson returned to duty , his family and friends went door to door campaigning . In 1961 , at age 27 , he was sworn into office in Austin , Texas . Temple Inland , Inc . , an East Texas forest products producer owned by Arthur Temple , Jr . , and Temple ' s son , Buddy Temple , employed Wilson during his incumbency in the Texas legislature , but business interests were nevertheless suspicious of Wilson ' s policies . While serving as a Texas state representative for twelve years , Wilson battled for the regulation of utilities , fought for Medicaid , tax exemptions for the elderly , the Equal Rights Amendment , and attempted to raise the state ' s minimum wage . He was also one of the few prominent Texas politicians to be pro - choice . All of these policies earned Wilson the reputation of being the " liberal from Lufkin . " Congressional politics . In 1972 , Wilson was elected to the United States House of Representatives from Texas ' s 2nd congressional district , taking office the following January . Re - elected eleven times , Wilson thoroughly enjoyed his job and always sought to " take care of the home folks " until his resignation on October 8 , 1996 . Although hawkish on foreign issues , he was liberal on other issues such as women ' s rights , social security and abortion . As a freshman representative , Wilson achieved the designation of the Big Thicket in Southeast Texas as a National Preserve in 1974 . This early achievement made his colleagues respect his political power and Wilson quickly earned an appointment on the House Appropriations Committee . During his incumbency , Wilson ' s colleagues regarded him as the " best horse trader in Washington " because of his ability to negotiate and trade votes with other congressmen to ensure passage of his favored bills . Despite not having many , if any , Jewish constituents , Wilson developed a strong relationship with Israel during his entire congressional career . This bond began during Wilson ' s first year in Washington when the Yom Kippur War occurred . From a young age , Wilson had always supported the " underdog , " and Wilson quickly went to Israel ' s defense as a self - proclaimed " Israeli commando . " While on the Appropriations committee , Wilson increased U . S . aid to Israel to $ 3 billion annually and in return got continuous campaign contributions from Jews throughout the country . Later , Wilson ' s close ties with Israel enabled him to collaborate with Israeli defense engineers to create and transport man - portable anti - aircraft guns into Pakistan to be used in the Soviet - Afghan War . As for domestic policy , Wilson ceaselessly championed for the individual ' s rights , especially women and minority rights . He continuously voted pro - choice and fought voting discrimination against African Americans , two of his largest constituent bases . Wilson respected his district ' s female vote so much that in 1974 he used the League of Women Voters to pass the Safe Drinking Water Act . In addition to supporting women ' s rights legislation , Wilson broke Washington tradition and hired female staffers . Although Wilson never had a female chief of staff , his office was filled with gorgeous women who tirelessly helped the congressman . " Charlie ' s Angels , " as they were commonly referred to , handled constituent problems for Wilson to ensure none of his constituents lacked in aid and support . Despite their beauty , all of Wilson ' s " Angels " were brilliant and were dedicated in their service for the congressman . Wilson ' s staff quickly drew the attention of his colleagues and media . Although rumors of scandals surrounded Wilson ' s office , Wilson emphatically insisted that his staff should be respected and their diligent work for the representative enabled them to have freedom to work independently of Wilson . Wilson worked on improving Americans ' lives , especially those of the underprivileged . Wilson lobbied against business interests to maintain a $ 3 . 35 per hour minimum wage . Wilson also continuously sought to increase Medicare and Medicaid funding for the elderly and underprivileged and Veterans ' Affairs funding for veterans . His efforts in these regards gained him the reputation of “ taking care of the home folks ” and gained funding to open the Veterans Affairs Hospital in Lufkin , Texas . Wilson avidly supported the Second Amendment and the individual ' s rights to own firearms . His Second Amendment support created tension between Wilson and his sister Sharon Allison , but the siblings reached an agreement that Allison would leave Wilson alone about his second amendment support , and Wilson would support Allison ' s pro - choice agenda . Wilson achieved a measure of success through his horse trading capabilities . Speaker of the House Tip O ' Neill appointed Wilson to the House Ethics Committee in 1980 to help protect Representative John Murtha , Jr . from investigations during the Abscam scandal . In return for Wilson ' s appointment to this committee , O ' Neill also gave him a coveted spot on the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees . Wilson also gained a position on the House Defense Appropriations subcommittee . This appointment enabled Wilson to funnel support money for Somoza in Nicaragua and support Mujahideen efforts to oust the Soviets from Afghanistan . Soviet - Afghan war . In 1980 , Wilson read an Associated Press dispatch on the congressional wires describing the refugees fleeing Soviet - occupied Afghanistan . The communist Democratic Republic of Afghanistan had taken over power during the Afghan Civil War and asked the Soviet Union to help suppress resistance from the mujahideen . According to biographer George Crile III , Wilson called the staff of the House Appropriations Committee dealing with " black appropriations " and requested a two - fold appropriation increase for Afghanistan . Because Wilson had just been named to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense ( which is responsible for funding CIA operations ) , his request went through . That was not the last time he increased the CIA budget for its Afghan operation . In 1983 , he won an additional $ 40 million , $ 17 million of which was allocated for anti - aircraft weapons to shoot down Mil Mi - 24 Hind helicopters . The next year , CIA officer Gust Avrakotos directly approached Wilson — breaking the CIA ' s policy against lobbying Congress for money — asking Wilson for $ 50 million more . Wilson agreed and convinced Congress , saying , " The U . S . had nothing whatsoever to do with these people ' s decision to fight . . . but we ' ll be damned by history if we let them fight with stones . " Later , Wilson succeeded in giving the Afghans $ 300 million of unused Pentagon money before the end of the fiscal year . Thus , Wilson directly influenced the level of United States government support for the Afghan Mujahideen . Wilson has said that the covert operation succeeded because " there was no partisanship or damaging leaks . " Michael Pillsbury , a senior Pentagon official , used Wilson ' s funding to provide Stinger missiles to the Afghan resistance in a controversial decision . Joanne Herring , along with others , played a role in helping the Afghan resistance fighters get support and military equipment from the United States government . She persuaded Wilson to visit the Pakistani leadership , and after meeting with them he was taken to a major Pakistan - based Afghan refugee camp so he could see for himself the atrocities committed by the Soviets against the Afghan people . About that visit , Wilson later said that it " was the experience that will always be seared in my memory , was going through those hospitals and seeing , especially those children with their hands blown off from the mines that the Soviets were dropping from their helicopters . That was perhaps the deciding thing . . . and it made a huge difference for the next 10 or 12 years of my life because I left those hospitals determined , as long as I had a breath in my body and was a member in Congress , that I was going to do what I could to make the Soviets pay for what they were doing ! " In 2008 , Wilson said he had " got involved in Afghanistan because I went there and I saw what the Soviets were doing . And I saw the refugee camps . " For his efforts , Wilson was presented with the Honored Colleague Award by the CIA . He became the first civilian to receive the award . However , Wilson ' s role remains controversial because most of the aid was supplied to Islamist hardliner Gulbuddin Hekmatyar , now a senior Taliban leader and a supporter of al - Qaeda . The decision of the Soviet Union to withdraw from Afghanistan and declare the invasion a mistake led to Wilson commending the Soviet leadership on the floor of the House of Representatives . He also supported United States involvement in the Bosnian War , touring the former Yugoslavia over five days in January 1993 ; on his return he urged the Clinton administration to lift the arms embargo on Bosnia , remarking " This is good versus evil and , if we do not want to Americanize this , then what do we want to Americanize ? We have to stand for something . " " Good Time Charlie " . Wilson unashamedly lived an extravagant and flamboyant life . Beginning in his naval years , Wilson enjoyed partying and having nights on the town . Wilson was a self - proclaimed " ladies ' man " and the news media reported on his exotic bedroom complete with hot tub and handcuffs where he engaged in romantic affairs . Wilson ' s " Good Time Charlie " image was first exposed to the public in a " Washington Post " editorial by Kathleen McLean in 1978 . Over the course of his congressional career , when reporters questioned Wilson about his constituents ' view of their representative , Wilson reported that they knew they were not electing a " constipated monk " to office . Wilson unashamedly embraced his playboy persona and never played down his " Good Time " image in public . Wilson ' s enjoyment of parties led him to invest with two Texas businessmen to open the Elan - Washington Club . This club promised to offer an attractive spot where professionals could get together and relax from a long day at work . To increase the number of club patrons , Wilson passed out memberships to his congressional colleagues . Halfway through his passing out memberships , Wilson decided that his actions might not be deemed ethical by congress and commented that he " was ethicized right out of business . " Throughout the course of his life , Wilson drank heavily , which may have been a factor in his divorce from Jerry . While in Washington Wilson became a functioning drunk and suffered from severe bouts of depression and insomnia , and his drinking intensified during his involvement in Afghanistan . Wilson ' s drunkenness also led to a scandal in 1980 when an eyewitness reported that Wilson ' s Lincoln Continental hit a Mazda in a hit - and - run accident on the Washington DC ' s Key Bridge the night before his first trip to Pakistan . Although never convicted , this accident illustrates Wilson ' s recklessness with alcohol during his involvement in Afghanistan . During one of his foreign excursions Wilson was transported to a hospital in Germany where doctors told Wilson his heart was failing due to his excessive drinking . Wilson sought a second and third opinion at hospitals in Bethesda and Houston and the German doctors ' conclusions were confirmed : Wilson had to stop drinking . After these diagnoses Wilson quit drinking hard liquor but continued to drink wine for several years . His excessive drinking and associated heart problems forced Wilson to have a heart transplant in September 2007 . Despite his continuous struggle with alcoholism , Wilson finally quit drinking after marrying Barbara Alberstadt , a former ballerina , in 1999 . In addition to alcohol abuse , Wilson allegedly used illegal drugs . In 1980 , Wilson was accused of using cocaine at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas ; however , the investigation by Justice Department attorney Rudolph Giuliani was dropped due to lack of evidence . Liz Wickersham told investigators that she saw Charlie use cocaine only once in the Cayman Islands , however this was outside United States jurisdiction . In " The Charlie Wilson Real Story " Wilson reveals he traveled to Las Vegas in the summer of 1980 , and recalls an experience with two strippers in a hot tub . When questioned about his past alleged cocaine use in 2007 Wilson reaffirmed " Nobody knows the answer to that and I ain ' t telling " . Wilson was also a lifelong romantic and continuously surrounded himself with gorgeous women . In addition to his " Angels " in the office , Wilson always had a female escort when he was not on the House floor . Wilson ' s primary motivator to be on the Kennedy Center Committee was so he always had a place to take a date . Also , following his second trip to Pakistan , Wilson always brought a female companion with him . At one point he even brought Carol Shannon to entertain his hosts with her belly dancing ability . Bringing women to Pakistan created tension between Wilson and the CIA in 1987 when the agency refused to fund his girl friend ' s travel expenses . In response , Wilson cut the agency ' s funding the next year . Wilson ' s exotic bedroom is indicative of his enjoyment of women , but his relationships were not just about sex . According to Joanne Herring , Wilson truly cared about his dates and he thoroughly enjoyed being a romantic . Although he was an " unapologetic sexist , chauvinistic redneck , " he attracted many gorgeous ladies and treated them well . Wilson has been said to have lived life as " one big party " , and lived by the mantra that he could " take his job seriously without taking himself seriously . " Retirement . Wilson retired from Congress in October 1996 and became a lobbyist for Pakistan before retiring to Lufkin . He donated his congressional papers to Stephen F . Austin State University . In 1999 , he married Barbara Alberstadt , his second marriage . Wilson received a heart transplant in 2007 , and continued to follow the situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan , where he expressed concerns about events in that region . In July 2009 , the University of Texas System Board of Regents established the Charles N . Wilson Chair in Pakistan Studies , which encourages research in the geo - political importance of Pakistan , as well as its culture , history , and literature . Death . Wilson died on February 10 , 2010 , at Lufkin Memorial Hospital in Lufkin , Texas after collapsing earlier in the day . He suffered from cardiopulmonary arrest . He was pronounced dead at 12 : 16 P . M . Central Time . " America has lost an extraordinary patriot whose life showed that one brave and determined person can alter the course of history , " said Robert Gates , then US Defense Secretary . Wilson received a graveside service with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery on February 23 , 2010 . A six - piece jazz band punctuated each eulogy with Charlie ' s favorites " As Time Goes By " , " My Way " , and in honor of his years as a naval intelligence officer " Anchors Aweigh " , and " Navy Hymn " . " He will be missed from the Golan Heights to the Khyber Pass , from the Caspian to the Suez and the halls in Congress , for his civility , and willingness to listen and help and not posture , " said John Wing , who traveled with Wilson on his journeys to Pakistan and Afghanistan . The front rows of the school ' s Temple Theater were packed with people such as Republican Sen . Kay Bailey Hutchison , former U . S . Representative Martin Frost , former Lieutenant Governor Gov . Ben Barnes and Houston gas titan Oscar Wyatt and his wife Lynn . After Sunday ' s service , his widow Barbara welcomed a small group of her late husband ' s intimates to their home on the golf course in Lufkin . Next to an American eagle sculpture in the living room , the words of Abdur Rahman Khan , emir of Afghanistan from 1880 to 1901 , are emblazoned on a brass plaque : " My spirit will remain in Afghanistan even though my soul will go to God . My last words to you my son and successor are : Never Trust the Russians . " In popular culture . Wilson ' s successful effort to increase the funding of the anti - Soviet Afghan war was revealed in the book " Charlie Wilson ' s War : The Extraordinary Story of the Largest Covert Operation in History " ( 2003 ) , by George Crile III . In the 2007 film version of the book , actor Tom Hanks portrayed Wilson . The film portrayed him as a politically incorrect swashbuckler who liked the company of beautiful women . Wilson was a key character in " Ghost Wars : The Secret History of the CIA , Afghanistan , and Bin Laden , from the Soviet Invasion to September 10 , 2001 " ( 2005 ) , by Steve Coll . On December 27 , 2007 , the History Channel broadcast " The True Story of Charlie Wilson " , a two - hour documentary about the congressman ' s Afghan war efforts and his personal life .