Jim Moran

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For other persons named James Moran, see James Moran (disambiguation).
Jim Moran

Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Virginia's 8th district
Incumbent
Assumed office 
January 3, 1991
Preceded by Stanford Parris
Born May 16, 1945 (1945-05-16) (age 64)
Buffalo, New York
Political party Democratic
Spouse LuAnn Bennett
Residence Alexandria, Virginia
Alma mater Holy Cross College, University of Pittsburgh
Occupation stockbroker
Religion Roman Catholic

James Patrick "Jim" Moran Jr. (born May 16, 1945 in Buffalo, New York) has represented the 8th congressional district of Virginia since 1991. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Contents

[edit] Early life

Moran was born in Buffalo, New York and grew up in Natick, Massachusetts, a western suburb of Boston. His brother, Brian Moran is a former member of the Virginia House of Delegates and was a candidate for Governor of Virginia in the 2009 election. He attended Marian High School in Framingham, Massachusetts, the College of the Holy Cross and the University of Pittsburgh, graduating with a master's degree in Public Administration. Voters elected him to the Alexandria, Virginia, City Council in 1979. He served as deputy mayor from 1982 to 1984, when he resigned as part of a Nolo contendere plea bargain to a misdemeanor conflict of interest charge, which courts later erased. Moran subsequently ran successfully for Mayor of Alexandria in 1985.

[edit] Congress

In 1990, Moran won the Democratic nomination for the 8th District. Due to his popularity as mayor of Alexandria, he defeated 10-year incumbent Republican Stanford Parris by seven points. Mary "Mame" Reiley was instrumental in persuading (then) Mayor of Alexandria James Moran to run for Congress in 1989[1] later serving as his communications director during the campaign, and eventually serving as his chief of staff from 1991 to 1996. After the 1990 census, most of the more Republican areas were drawn into the newly created 11th District, and Moran hasn't faced serious opposition since. He is a member of the House Appropriations Committee. In 1998, during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, Moran was one of 31 House Democrats who voted with Republicans to launch a formal impeachment inquiry into President Bill Clinton. During his time in the House, Moran has been involved in a few controversies related to personal financial dealings with lobbyists and business interests. He served as the chief Democratic sponsor of a bankruptcy reform bill after a major credit card issuer gave him a large home equity loan under favorable terms. Moran contended in press accounts that his support for the bankruptcy bill had nothing to do with this loan.

On October 10, 2002, Jim Moran was among the 133 members of the House voting against authorizing the invasion of Iraq.

Politically, Moran is a New Democrat, and is affiliated with the Democratic Leadership Council. On economic issues he often breaks with his party, supporting CAFTA and other free trade agreements, harsher bankruptcy laws, and increased restrictions on the right to bring class action suits. However, he strongly supports gay rights and gun control, and voted against the Defense of Marriage Act. At different times he has voted to ban flag-burning and partial-birth abortions, though he has reversed his positions on both issues.

He is a cosponsor of legislation to provide the District of Columbia with voting representation. [2]

Moran appeared on The Colbert Report as part of the series "Better Know a District". During the appearance he described himself as "gentle," but later jokingly punched Colbert in the face after Colbert called Moran a "coward."[3]

In May 2009, Moran introduced a bill that would restrict broadcast advertisements for erectile dysfunction or male enhancement medication. He claimed that such ads were indecent and should be prohibited on radio and television between the hours of 6 am and 10 pm, in accordance with Federal Communications Commission policy.[4]

[edit] Darfur

On April 28, 2006, Moran, along with four other members of Congress and six other activists, was arrested for disorderly conduct in front of the Sudanese embassy in Washington. They were protesting the alleged role of Sudan's government in ethnic cleansing in Darfur. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, "Their protest and civil disobedience was designed to embarrass the military dictatorship's ongoing genocide of its non-Arab citizens."[5]

[edit] Controversies

 This article's Criticism or Controversy section(s) may mean the article does not present a neutral point of view of the subject. It may be better to integrate the material in such sections into the article as a whole.

[edit] Comments regarding Jews

Prior to the 2003 invasion of Iraq he told an antiwar audience in Reston, Virginia on March 3, 2003, that "If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this. The leaders of the Jewish community are influential enough that they could change the direction of where this is going, and I think they should."[6][7]

Moran said that his comments were taken out of context, and he had said the same about the Catholic Church and Southern Baptist Convention at three antiwar forums.[8][9]

The National Jewish Democratic Council criticized Moran's comments.[10] Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle said Moran's comments were "unfounded, baseless, and way out of line." House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said Moran's comments have "no place in the Democratic Party." Joe Lieberman called the comments "deeply offensive and morally wrong."[6]

Writing in the December 22, 2003 edition of The Nation, Letty Cottin Pogrebin charged that "Representative James Moran of Virginia stirred up another incendiary canard — Jewish influence — by attributing America's war with Iraq to 'the strong support of the Jewish community.'"[11] According to a Gallup Poll, the vast majority of Jewish Americans oppose the war, even the minority of Republican Jews. .[12]

According to an article about Moran by Alexander Cockburn in The Nation,[13] reporters like Robert Kaiser in the Washington Post have described the neoconservative lobby that supported the Iraq war, which includes such prominent Jewish neocons as Richard Perle, Paul Wolfowitz, and Douglas Feith; The Forward reported that Jewish groups, such as Workmen's Circle, were angry at the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations for supporting the war; and the American Jewish Congress supported the war.

In 2004 Moran for the first time faced a Democratic primary challenger, Andy Rosenberg. 58.5 percent of the district voted for Moran versus 41.5 percent for Rosenberg. Moran went on to be reelected to the U.S. Congress in the general election for his eighth term.

In September 2007, Moran again angered Jewish organizations. In an interview with Tikkun,[14] Moran said, "Jewish Americans, as a voting bloc and as an influence on American foreign policy, are overwhelmingly opposed to the war," more than any other ethnic group. "But AIPAC is the most powerful lobby and has pushed this war from the beginning. I don’t think they represent the mainstream of American Jewish thinking at all, but because they are so well organized, and their members are extraordinarily powerful — most of them are quite wealthy — they have been able to exert power. The reason I don’t hesitate to speak out about AIPAC’s influence — notwithstanding the fact that I’ll be accused of being anti-Semitic every time I suggest it — is that I don’t think AIPAC represents the mainstream of American Jewish thinking.[15][16] The National Jewish Democratic Council responded "Rep. Moran’s comments are not only incorrect and irresponsible – they are downright dangerous.”[17] The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington complained that "[Moran] uses clearly anti-Semitic images such as Jewish control of the media and wealthy Jews using their wealth to control policy."[16]

[edit] Comments about earmarks

The June 10, 2006, edition of the Arlington Sun reported that the previous evening Moran had told a crowd of 450 at the Arlington County Democratic Committee's annual Jefferson-Jackson dinner that if Democrats regained control of the House of Representatives in the 2006 midterm elections, he would use his seniority to secure more money for his congressional district. He stated, "When I become chairman [of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies], I'm going to earmark the shit out of it" [18] This assertion resulted in nationwide negative publicity for Moran after conservative columnist Robert Novak repeated the story in his syndicated column. Moran's office issued a statement asserting that he had made his remark in jest and that he remains committed to fiscal responsibility. (Moran did not become chairman of any subcommittees of the Appropriations Committee as a result of the Democrats taking control of the House in 2007.)

On June 19, 2006, the Washington Post reported that Moran supports earmarks stemming from "Project M", a technology involving magnetic levitation. To date, the project has received $37 million in earmarks. This project was designed to keep submarine machinery quieter, keep Navy SEALs safer in their boats, and protect Marines from roadside bombs. The Pentagon, however, has said that it has no use for the project. The owner of Project M's prime contractor, Vibration & Sound Solutions Ltd., has given $17,000 to Moran's campaign.

[edit] Comments regarding House Majority Leader election

Leading up to the election for House Majority leader, which John Murtha, who Moran and newly elected Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi had supported, lost to Steny Hoyer. Moran said, "Some of the freshmen who came in with some naïvete are understanding the meaning [of Pelosi’s endorsement]...They'll screw themselves for the rest of their lives."[19] He subsequently alleged that some members had told both candidates that they would support them, saying, "We know who they are."[20]

[edit] Incident with U.S. Capitol Police

On Inauguration Day, January 20, 2009, Moran got into an argument with a U.S. Capitol policeman when Moran's wife tried to enter the Capitol unescorted during a lockdown situation just after President Obama had entered the Capitol. [21]

[edit] PMA Group

The Washington Times reported in March 2009 that Moran had received, over ten years, $997,348 in campaign donations from clients of the PMA Group. In 2007 and 2008, the United States House Committee on Appropriations, of which Moran is a member, directed $137 million in government purchasing to PMA's clients. The PMA Group is currently under investigation by the FBI.[22]

[edit] Elections to the House of Representatives

[edit] 2006

In 2006, Moran was re-elected with 66 percent of the vote, defeating Republican Thomas O'Donoghue, (31 percent) and Independent candidate Jim Hurysz (3 percent).

[edit] 2008

Candidates for this District in 2008 include Ron Fisher (IG), Ellmore (R), and Jim Moran (D). Moran did face a primary challenger, in which he beat with 86% of the vote. In the November 4 General Election, Moran beat Mark Ellmore 67.94 percent to 29.68 percent. He received 222,986 votes, while Ellmore and Fisher received 97,425 and 6,829 votes, respectively. 957 write-in votes were cast.

[edit] Committee assignments

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Women's Caucus Leader Extols Trailblazers". washingtonpost.com. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A19300-2004Jul27.html. Retrieved on 2009-04-13. 
  2. ^ http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:HR02043:@@@P. (HR 2043)
  3. ^ Colbert, Stephen (2005-12-08). "Know a District: Virginia's 8th". Better Know a District. Comedy Central. http://www.comedycentral.com/motherload/player.jhtml?ml_video=41474&ml_collection=&ml_gateway=&ml_gateway_id=&ml_comedian=&ml_runtime=&ml_context=show&ml_origin_url=%2Fshows%2Fthe_colbert_report%2Fvideos%2Fdistrict%2Findex.jhtml%3FplayVideo%3D41474&ml_playlist=&lnk=&is_large=false. Retrieved on 2008-03-21. 
  4. ^ Jones, Susan (2009-05-05). "Liberal Democrat Wants Restrictions on Erectile Dysfunction Ads". Cybercast News Service. http://www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.aspx?RsrcID=47636. Retrieved on 2009-05-05. 
  5. ^ Jim Doyle, Five members of Congress arrested over Sudan protest, San Francisco Chronicle, April 28, 2006. Accessed 25 September 2006.
  6. ^ a b CNN Newsnight Aaron Brown CNN
  7. ^ CNN.com - Lawmaker under fire for saying Jews support Iraq war - Mar. 12, 2003
  8. ^ Q & A. The Incumbent: Rep. James P. Moran. Washington Post, June 3, 2004.
  9. ^ Berlau, John. "Moran can't keep his tongue tied: there is growing alarm about Rep. Jim Moran's habit of uttering offensive statements about Jews and Israel, apologizing for his remarks, then doing it all over again. (The nation: anti-semitism)." Insight on the News 19.9 (April 15, 2003): 34(2). General OneFile. Gale. Fairfax County Public Library. <http://find.galegroup.com/ips/start.do?prodId=IPS>. Gale Document Number:A100111693. Retrieved 2007-11-27.
  10. ^ Retiring Senator blasts AIPAC influence Mid-East Realities
  11. ^ In Defense of the Law of Return
  12. ^ http://www.galluppoll.com/content/?ci=26677
  13. ^ 'No place in the Democratic Party,' Alexander Cockburn, The Nation, March 31, 2003, p. 8
  14. ^ The Israel Lobby--and the Interview with Cong. Jim Moran, Michael Lerner, Tikkun, September 2007.
  15. ^ Video - Breaking News Videos from CNN.com
  16. ^ a b Gardner, Amy (September 15, 2007). "Moran Upsets Jewish Groups Again". Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/14/AR2007091402171.html. Retrieved on 2007-09-15. 
  17. ^ "NJDC TO MORAN: RETRACT AIPAC STATEMENTS". National Jewish Democratic Council. September 8, 2007. http://www.njdc.org/njdcspeaks/detail.php?id=739. Retrieved on 2007-09-15. 
  18. ^ McCaffrey, Scott (2006-06-10). "Moran: Democratic Majority Means More Money for Eighth District". Arlington Sun. Retrieved on 2008-08-19.
  19. ^ thehill.com
  20. ^ NPR.org
  21. ^ http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=M2JiNzBmOWVjMzQ4M2MwZGYyZTBhNmU2NTdhM2RiZTA=
  22. ^ Yost, Pete, (Associated Press), "Murtha Fundraiser Missed Donor Pal", Washington Times, March 24, 2009, p. 6.

[edit] External links

Preceded by
Stanford E. Parris		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Virginia's 8th congressional district
1991 – present		 Incumbent
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