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Revision as of 18:46, 3 March 2008

Ron Wyden
United States Senator
from Oregon
Incumbent
Assumed office
February 6, 1996Serving with Gordon Smith
Preceded byBob Packwood
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Oregon's 3rd district
In office
January 3 1981 – February 5 1996
Preceded byRobert B. Duncan
Succeeded byEarl Blumenauer
Personal details
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)(1) Laurie Wyden (divorced)
(2) Nancy Bass
Alma materStanford University

Ronald Lee Wyden (born May 3, 1949) is Oregon's senior United States Senator. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early career and personal life

Wyden was born in Wichita, Kansas to Edith Rosenow and Peter H. Wyden, both of whom were Jewish and had fled Nazi Germany a few years earlier. Before his election to the Senate in 1996, he served 15 years in the United States House of Representatives. Wyden attended the University of California, Santa Barbara on a basketball scholarship before receiving his B.A. with distinction from Stanford University. He received a J.D. degree from the University of Oregon School of Law and taught gerontology at several Oregon universities. During this time he was the founder of the Oregon chapter of the Gray Panthers. Senator Wyden's home is in Portland, Oregon, he has an apartment in Washington, DC; he has two grown children, Adam (22) and Lilly (17), by his former wife, Laurie.

Wyden married his second wife, Nancy Bass, the owner of New York's Strand Bookstore, on September 24, 2005, in a ceremony performed by Rabbi Ariel Stone of Portland. On October 26, 2007, Nancy gave birth to twins, Ava Rose Wyden and William Peter Wyden.

Congressional career

In the 1980 Democratic primary, Wyden, who was just 30 years old at the time, upset incumbent Representative Bob Duncan in Oregon's 3rd congressional district. Later that fall, Wyden easily defeated his Republican opponent Darrell Conger. Wyden was re-elected to the House in each of the following seven elections.

In January 1996, Wyden narrowly defeated state senate president Gordon Smith in a special election to fill the Senate seat vacated by Bob Packwood. (Smith was elected later that year to Oregon's other Senate seat.) Wyden now holds the Senate seat once held by his mentor, the late Wayne Morse—the last Democratic Senator from Oregon before Wyden's election. Wyden was elected to a full term in 1998, and in 2004, was re-elected to another full term, receiving 64% of the vote compared to 31% for his main opponent, Republican Al King.

In the Senate, Wyden serves on the following Committees: Finance; Intelligence; Energy and Natural Resources; Budget and the Special Committee on Aging.

He chairs the Energy Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests.

As of August 2007, Wyden has an approval rating of 58%, with 33% disapproving.

Voting record

Ron Wyden and wife Nancy in New York City

Wyden's voting record is largely consistent with his image as a fiscally moderate, socially liberal, pro-trade Democrat.

Civil liberty and law

  • On March 2, 2006, he was one of only 10 senators to vote against renewing the USA PATRIOT Act, citing concerns about privacy protections.

War, peace, and foreign policy


Social issues

  • Wyden has opposed most limits on abortion.
  • Wyden has voted against limiting lawsuits against gun manufacturers.
  • Wyden has consistently opposed a constitutional amendment to ban flag desecration.
  • Wyden has publicly announced support for same-sex marriage and was one of only 14 Senators to vote against the Defense of Marriage Act.
  • Wyden has stated personal opposition to physician assisted suicide, but has also stated a commitment to defending the Oregon Death with Dignity Act, which was twice passed by voter referendum. Wyden successfully blocked Senate attempts to pass legislation interfering with the Act by threatening a filibuster.
  • Wyden has consistently voted against limitations on the use of the death penalty.
  • Wyden has voted against restrictions on travel and trade with Cuba and also to end anti-Castro broadcasting to the country.
  • Wyden has sponsored the Healthy Americans Act that would institute a national system of universal health care through market based private insurance.
  • In June of 2007 he was among the minority of Democrats to vote in favor of declaring English the official language of the United States.

Trade and business

  • Wyden mostly supports free trade. While still in the House, he voted for NAFTA and has subsequently supported many trade deals in the Senate being one of the very few Democrats to vote in favor of CAFTA. He has however voted against free trade agreements with Chile, Singapore, and Oman. He was also one of the few Democrats to vote in favor of the Bush-Administration-proposed prescription drug plan passed in 2003. In 1996, he voted against the majority of his party to phase out many farm subsidy programs and also to implement welfare reform policies.
  • Wyden wrote the Stop Arming Iran Act to ban the Defense Department from selling surplus F-14 parts and prohibit buyers who have already acquired surplus Tomcat part from exporting them. Iran is the only nation other than the U.S. to fly the F-14.

Tax policy

  • Wyden is critical of the estate tax, which he feels is inefficient, and has voted repeatedly to abolish it. He has also voted with Republicans to lower the capital gains tax, to encourage the study of the flat tax, and to require a 3/5 majority to raise taxes. However, Wyden voted against the Bush tax cuts passed in 2001 and 2003. He has also voted against the balanced-budget amendment.

Environment

  • Wyden is a strong supporter of environmental protection measures, and was among the minority of senators to vote against confirming the appointment of Gale Norton as Secretary of the Interior. In May 2007, Wyden also opposed the appointment of Lyle Laverty as assistant interior secretary for fish, wildlife and parks (this time on ethical grounds.)

Committee Assignments

  • Committee on Finance
    • Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure
    • Subcommittee on Health Care
    • Subcommittee on Taxation, IRS Oversight, and Long-term Growth
  • Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
    • Subcommittee on Energy
    • Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests (Chairman)
    • Subcommittee on Water and Power
  • Committee on the Budget
  • Select Committee on Intelligence
  • Special Committee on Aging

Electoral history

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items.
Oregon's 3rd congressional district: Results 1980–1994
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct
1992 Ron Wyden 208,028 77% Al Ritter 50,235 19% Blair Bobier Libertarian 11,413 4% *
1994 Ron Wyden 161,624 73% Everett Hall 43,211 19% Mark Brunelle Independent 13,550 6% Gene Nanni Libertarian 4,164 2% *
*Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 1992, minor candidates received 203 votes. In 1994, minor candidates received 273 votes.
Oregon Senator (Class III) results: 1992–2004
Year Democrat Votes Pct Republican Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct 3rd Party Party Votes Pct
1992 Les AuCoin 639,851 46% Bob Packwood ** 717,455 52% Miscellaneous 12,934 1% Write-ins 5,793 <1%
1996 Ron Wyden 571,739 48% Gordon Smith 553,519 47% Karen E. Shilling American Independent 25,597 2% Gene Nanni Libertarian 15,698 1% Vickie Valdez Socialist 7,872 1% Lou Gold Pacific 7,225 1%
1998 Ron Wyden 682,425 61% John Lim 377,739 34% Karyn Moskowitz Pacific 22,024 2% Jim Brewster Libertarian 18,221 2% Michael A. Campbell Natural Law 8,372 1% Dean M. Braa Socialist 7,553 1%
2004 Ron Wyden 1,128,728 63% Al King 565,254 32% Teresa Keane Pacific Green 43,053 2% Dan Fitzgerald Libertarian 29,582 2% David Brownlow Constitution 12,397 1% Write-ins 1,536 <1%
*Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 1998, minor candidates received 1,413 votes.

**Packwood resigned in 1995, and the remainder of his term was filled by Wyden. The 1996 election was the January 1996 special election, not the general election in November 1996 (won by Wyden's opponent in the special, Gordon Smith).

References

  1. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~battle/senators/wyden.htm
  2. http://www.blueoregon.com/2007/10/first-photo-lit.html
  4. http://wyden.senate.gov/meet/bio.html
  5. Stout, David (March 2, 2006). "Senate Approves Renewal of Antiterrorism Bill". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-02-21.
  6. http://wyden.senate.gov/media/2005/12142005_oppose_patriot_act.html
  7. http://www.ontheissues.org/Domestic/Ron_Wyden_Crime.htm
  8. http://www.ontheissues.org/Social/Ron_Wyden_Abortion.htm
  9. http://www.oregonlive.com/special/assisted_suicide/index.ssf?/special/oregonian/suicide/031405.html
  10. "Assisted suicide debate not over?". CBS News. January 18, 2006.
  11. http://www.ontheissues.org/Domestic/Ron_Wyden_Crime.htm
  12. "Sen. Ron Wyden: Stop Pentagon Sales of Surplus F-14 Parts." Associated Press, January 30, 2007.
  13. Sleeth, Peter (May 1, 2007). "Wyden delaying key appointment to Interior agency". The Oregonian. Retrieved 2007-05-01.
  14. ^ "Election Statistics". Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Retrieved 2007-08-08.
  15. "Oregon Special Election Official Results". Oregon Secretary of State. Retrieved 2007-12-19.

External links

Articles
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded byRobert B. Duncan Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Oregon's 3rd congressional district
January 3, 1981 – February 5, 1996 		Succeeded byEarl Blumenauer
U.S. Senate
Preceded byBob Packwood U.S. senator (Class 3) from Oregon
February 6, 1996 – present
Served alongside: Mark Hatfield, Gordon Smith 		Incumbent
United States senators from Oregon
Class 2
Class 3
Oregon's current delegation to the United States Congress
Senators
Representatives
(ordered by district)
Current United States senators
President: ▌ Kamala Harris (D) ‧ President pro tempore: ▌ Chuck Grassley (R)
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