Louis Caldera Louis Caldera ( born April 1 , 1956 ) was Director of the White House Military Office from January 20 , 2009 , until May 22 , 2009 , and served as the 17th United States Secretary of the Army from July 2 , 1998 , until January 20 , 2001 . Family and education . Caldera , the son of Mexican immigrants , Soledad and Benjamin Caldera , was born on April 1 , 1956 in El Paso , Texas . His family left Texas for California when he was 4 years old , living briefly in public housing in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles before moving to the suburb of Whittier . He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in 1978 from the United States Military Academy at West Point , New York , then served on active duty from 1978 to 1983 , mostly at Fort Dix , New Jersey . He went on to enroll at Harvard University and in 1987 earned a joint J . D . / M . B . A . degree from Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School respectively . While studying at Harvard , he met his wife , Eva Orlebeke Caldera ; together they have three daughters - Allegra , Sophia , and Camille . Law career . After graduating from Harvard , Caldera practiced law from 1987 to 1990 at O ’ Melveny & Myers , then from 1990 to 1991 at Buchalter , Nemer , Fields and Younger . From 1991 to 1992 he was a Deputy Counsel for Los Angeles County . California State Assembly . Caldera then served as a California State Assemblyman from 1992 to 1997 , representing the nearly 400 , 000 residents of California ' s 46th State Assembly district , which is located in and around downtown Los Angeles . As an Assemblyman , he served as chairman of the Banking and Finance Committee , the Revenue and Taxation Committee , and the Budget Committee . Secretary of the Army . Before finishing his third term in the Assembly , Caldera resigned to begin serving as managing director and chief operating officer for President Bill Clinton ' s Corporation for National and Community Service ( 1997 – 1998 ) , a domestic volunteer program . On May 22 , 1998 , Clinton announced Caldera as his selection for Secretary of the Army . On July 2 , 1998 , Caldera was sworn in as the 17th Secretary of the Army by Secretary of Defense William Cohen . Other positions . He went on to serve as Vice Chancellor for University Advancement in the California State University System , the largest four - year university system in the country . Caldera became the 18th president of the University of New Mexico ( UNM ) in August 2003 , and left that position in January 2006 . Caldera ' s selection was controversial , considering there was a lack of faculty approval prior to his official selection . The UNM Faculty Senate took a vote on the appointment of Caldera , and 78 % voted against his appointment . Many students pointed out that he did not have a PhD , and would be in a position of overseeing PhD candidates . Still others chose to point out that Caldera had more than a few conflicts of interest as a former Secretary of the Army , and as a member of several corporate boards . Caldera ' s contract with the University granted him appointment as a tenured member of the University of New Mexico School of Law faculty , despite never having taught a law school course prior to his appointment . Caldera served on the board of directors of IndyMac Bank from 2002 until its failure , and subsequent seizure by the government , in July 2008 . Caldera served on the board of directors for Southwest Airlines until he submitted his resignation , effective January 15 , 2009 , in connection with his selection to serve as Director of the White House Military Office . In June 2010 Caldera was appointed to the role of Vice President of Programs for the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation , a non - profit organization that has awarded 1 , 200 scholarships totaling more than $ 60 million to high - achieving low - income students , and has given more than $ 46 million in grants to nonprofit organizations that have similar missions . Caldera left the Cooke Foundation in March 2012 . Caldera is now President of " Caldera Associates " , where he " provide ( s ) consulting services to for - profit and non - profit clients in the national security , education , philanthropic and human services delivery sectors " . Aircraft photo mission controversy . During his tenure as Director of the White House Military Office , Caldera approved a mission , conducted on April 27 , 2009 , where a Boeing VC - 25 ( a Boeing 747 military variant that is denominated Air Force One when the President of the United States is aboard ) , followed by an F - 16 military fighter jet , performed low - altitude fly - overs of New York City and New Jersey . The mission " was set up to create an iconic shot of Air Force One , similar to one that was taken in recent years over the Grand Canyon . " While the FAA and select local authorities were given some degree of notification in advance , many other officials and the general public were not . The fly - over of the lower Manhattan financial district created a panic . Many feared it was another terrorist attack like the one that destroyed the twin towers of the World Trade Center on September 11 , 2001 , or an aborted attack attempt , because of the F - 16 following the presidential plane . This led scores of people to leave their desks and large office buildings to be evacuated in a speedy but impromptu fashion . New York City police stated that " federal authorities " told them not to disclose information about the fly - over to the public in advance . President Obama was also not informed beforehand . Like New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg , Obama only learned of the incident after the disturbance it caused was already being reported by journalists , bloggers , websites and news outlets . The incident brought intense scrutiny and numerous highly critical comments directed at Caldera . White House officials said President Obama was fuming mad and did not see the need for a new Air Force One publicity photo anyway . < ref name = " Associated Press / Google " > < / ref > Mayor Bloomberg condemned the low flyover and the failure to provide public notice , saying he himself had not been adequately notified , that he was " furious " , and that it showed " poor judgment " . Senator John McCain stated the flyover photo op was " a fundamentally unsound exercise in military judgment and may have constituted an inappropriate use of Department of Defense resources . " The cost of setting up the flyover photo was reportedly $ 328 , 835 . Observers noted that an expense like this would have been incurred whether or not the photo shoot had been authorized . VC - 25 flying time requirements dictate the need for regular training flights . Had the flyover not been ordered , a similar expense would have been incurred in the normal course of VC - 25 flight training . Caldera , after meeting with White House officials , issued a public apology for the incident , stating , " Last week , I approved a mission over New York . I take responsibility for that decision . While federal authorities took the proper steps to notify state and local authorities in New York and New Jersey , it ’ s clear that the mission created confusion and disruption . I apologize and take responsibility for any distress that flight caused . " Following an investigation into how the decision to conduct the flight had been reached , directed by Deputy White House Chief of Staff Jim Messina , Caldera announced his resignation on May 8 , 2009 , effective May 22 , 2009 . . Notable in the investigation is Caldera ' s explanation of why he did not read an email from Deputy Director George Mulligan : " During our interview , the Director ( Caldera ) also offered another explanation for his failure to read the email . When he returned from Mexico , he was suffering from severe muscle spasms in his back . Doctors prescribed pain medications , he had difficulty walking around the office , and he went home early a couple days .