Brad Sherman
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| Brad Sherman | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 3, 1997 |
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| Preceded by | Anthony C. Beilenson |
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| In office 1991 – 1997 |
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| Preceded by | Conway Collis |
| Succeeded by | John Chiang |
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| Born | October 24, 1954 Los Angeles, California |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Lisa Kaplan Sherman |
| Residence | Sherman Oaks, California |
| Alma mater | UCLA, Harvard Law School |
| Occupation | attorney, accountant |
| Religion | Jewish |
Bradley J. "Brad" Sherman (born October 24, 1954) is an American politician. He has been a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 1997, representing California's 27th congressional district. He was born in Los Angeles, California, was educated at the University of California, Los Angeles and later at Harvard Law School. Sherman was a lawyer and accountant before entering the House. He also was elected twice to the California State Board of Equalization. He was reelected for a seventh term as a congressman on November 4, 2008.
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[edit] Professional and personal life
Sherman worked at a major accounting firm after graduating from college. He performed audits of multinational corporations and of government entities and provided tax counsel for large investors. In the late 1980s, he worked with the government of the Philippines to reclaim the assets of former president Ferdinand Marcos, who had been overthrown due to corruption. After receiving a law degree, Sherman practiced as an attorney in 1990s and taught classes on tax law at Harvard.
On December 3, 2006, Sherman married Lisa Nicola Kaplan, a foreign affairs officer for the U.S. State Department[1], and the wedding was announced on the Colbert Report. They had their first child, Molly Hannah Sherman, on January 14, 2009[2]. Sherman is also known for his sense of humor, and he and his mother often make light of his baldness by passing out combs as a campaign prop. On the day of the United States general elections, 2008, he appeared on Ellen, a television show that is recorded within his district. He was placed in a dunk tank and dunked (only halfway) by a ball thrown by Bill Maher, raising $10,000 for charity.
In October of 2009, Sherman spoke at the Church of Scientology's reopening in Washington, DC. [3]
[edit] Congressional career
Congressman Sherman served on the House Budget Committee, and his 1998 Sherman Amendment greatly increased the amount of federal money set aside for the acquisition of land for environmental rehabilitaion and recreation. Achieving a balanced budget, upholding Social Security and Medicare, and environmentalism are listed as among his top priorities. On June 26, 2008 Sherman voted for the FISA Amendments Act of 2008. [2]
Sept 17 ,2009 Was one of only 75 members of the House to vote no to defund ACORN
The 345-75 roll call by which the House amended the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009 to deny all federal funds to the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, commonly known as ACORN
[edit] Remarks on 2008 financial bailout
During the debate over the Bernanke/Paulson Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, Sherman described a "panic atmosphere" of exaggerated predictions about what would happen if the bill was not passed rapidly.
...the only way they can pass this bill is by creating and sustaining a panic atmosphere. That atmosphere is not justified. Many of us were told in private conversations that if we voted against this bill on Monday, that the sky would fall, the market would drop two or three thousand points the first day, another couple thousand the second day. And a few members were even told that there would be martial law in America if we voted no. That's what I call fear fear-mongering, unjustified, proven wrong. We've got a week, we've got two weeks to write a good bill. The only way to write, to pass a bad bill: keep the panic pressure on."[4]
After conspiracy theorists and various internet bloggers picked up this statement, Sherman's office issued a clarification:
Speaking during the second House debate on the bailout bill, I was describing what I regarded as the increasingly unbelievable things that had been said while the House considered the bailout package – extreme things put forward as reasons why Congress had to pass that bill right away. I urged my colleagues not to take the extreme statements seriously and urged them to defeat the bill. It should be clear from the context of my speech that I did not believe that martial law would be declared under any circumstances and I did not think that such absurd and outlandish comments should cause members to vote for the bill.
I also want to stress that I have no reason to think that any of the leaders in Congress who were involved in negotiating with the Bush Administration regarding the bailout bill ever mentioned the possibility of martial law -- again, that was just an example of extreme and deliberately hyperbolic comments being passed around by members not directly involved in the negotiations.[5]
[edit] Committee assignments
[edit] External links
- U.S. Congressman Brad Sherman, U.S. House site
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
- Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
- Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
- Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
- Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
- Brad Sherman for U.S. Congress, Campaign site
[edit] References
- ^ nytimes.com
- ^ Oczypok, Kate (2009-01-20). "Congressmen Welcome Babies". The Hill. http://thehill.com/announcements/announcements-2009-01-20.html. Retrieved 2009-01-29.
- ^ [1]
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaG9d_4zij8
- ^ http://www.house.gov/list/press/ca27_sherman/morenews/BailoutComment.html
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Conway Collis |
Member, California Board of Equalization, 4th District 1991–1997 |
Succeeded by John Chiang |
| United States House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by Anthony C. Beilenson |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 24th congressional district 1997–2003 |
Succeeded by Elton Gallegly |
| Preceded by Adam Schiff |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 27th congressional district 2003 – present |
Incumbent |
