text: James A. Baker's book "The Politics of Diplomacy" notes that Zoellick was one of Secretary Baker's "inner circle" . . . "combin[ing] Midwest common sense with policy sophistication." He was a "superb manager, policy analyst, and writer," Baker's "second brain" and "gatekeeper" and his "right hand man on NAFTA," the North American Free Trade Agreement. In August 1992, Zoellick was appointed White House Deputy Chief of Staff and Assistant to the President.
  Business, academia, and politics (1993–2001)
  After leaving government service, Zoellick served from 1993 to 1997 as an Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Fannie Mae.  Afterwards, Zoellick was John M. Olin Professor of National Security at the U.S. Naval Academy (1997–98); Research Scholar at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the John F. Kennedy School of Government; and Senior International Advisor to Goldman Sachs.
  From 1996 to 1999, he served as director of the Aspen Strategy Group. He served as an elected member of the board of the Council on Foreign Relations.
  From fall 1998 to May 1999, Zoellick headed the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He resigned when founder David Abshire chose not to retire.
  In the 2000 presidential election campaign, Zoellick served as a foreign policy advisor to George W. Bush as part of a group, led by Condoleezza Rice, which she termed The Vulcans, after her home town of Birmingham, Alabama. James Baker designated him as his second-in-command—"a sort of chief operating officer or chief of staff"—in the 36-day battle over recounting the vote in Florida.