James L. Buckley was born in New York City in 1923, grew up in rural Connecticut, and received his B.A. from Yale University. Following his service as a naval officer in World War II, he returned to New Haven to secure his law degree. After several years in private practice, he joined a group of small companies engaged in oil exploration abroad. He was elected to the United States Senate in 1970 as the candidate of New York’s Conservative Party. He served as an under secretary of state in the Reagan administration; president of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in Munich, Germany; and as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Buckley retired in 2000 and lives in his hometown of Sharon, Connecticut.