James Curtis Oberwetter was nominated by President Bush on November 17, 2003, confirmed by the U.S. Senate on December 9, 2003, and sworn in on January 8, 2004 as U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Prior to becoming Ambassador, Mr. Oberwetter served as Senior Vice President of Governmental and Political Affairs for Hunt Consolidated, Inc., a Dallas based company he joined in 1974. Earlier, the Ambassador was Press Secretary for then-Houston Congressman George H.W. Bush. He also worked for the U.S. Government as special assistant to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
A native of Texas, Ambassador Oberwetter has been an active member of many community service organizations in his home state, as well as in professional associations. He was appointed Chairman of the Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse from 1996-2001 by then-Governor George W. Bush. Among other honors, Ambassador Oberwetter is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Texas Parent-Teachers Association. He was for many years a member of the American Petroleum Institute’s Communications Committee, and has served as its Chairman.
Ambassador Oberwetter was born November 3, 1944 in Cuero, Texas, and is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor degree of Journalism.
