Andrew Card owns a home in Poland.

HEBRON – Andrew H. Card, chief of staff for President George W. Bush, will be keynote speaker Thursday, Jan. 29, when the Oxford Hills Chamber of Commerce holds its 27th annual dinner and awards banquet.

“This is a tremendous opportunity to showcase the Oxford Hills to one of the people who has his finger, literally, on the pulse of our entire nation and the world,” said chamber Executive Director John Williams in a prepared statement.

A Massachusetts native with a part-time home in Poland, Card was appointed White House chief of staff on Nov. 26, 2000. He soon began overseeing the transition from the Clinton administration.

From 1992 to 1993, Card was the 11th secretary of transportation, under former President George H.W. Bush.

In August 1992, at the request of the president, Card coordinated the administration’s disaster relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Andrew, which had devastated much of southern Florida.

Later that year, Card directed Bush’s transition office to the incoming Clinton administration.

From 1988 to 1992, Card was assistant to the elder Bush and his deputy chief of staff. He managed the daily operations of the White House staff and participated in economic, foreign and domestic policy development.

Card earlier served under the Reagan administration, first as special assistant to the president for intergovernmental affairs and then as his deputy assistant. He later became director of intergovernmental affairs, where he was liaison to governors, statewide elected officials, state legislators and mayors.

Between the Bush administrations, Card was General Motors’ vice president of government relations and from 1993 to 1998 served as president and chief executive officer of the American Automobile Manufacturers Association.

He began his rise in politics in the Massachusetts House, where he served from 1975-1983.

The annual dinner will be held at Hebron Academy, a longstanding member of the chamber.

The banquet is open to the public by reservation only, at $30 per person.

Seating will be limited, Williams stated.

To make reservations, people may phone the chamber at 743-2281, or e-mail the office at info@oxfordhillsmaine.com.

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