Mark Udall

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Mark Udall
United States Senator from Colorado
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 3, 2009 Serving with Michael Bennet
Preceded by	Wayne Allard
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Colorado's 2nd district
In office January 3, 1999 – January 3, 2009
Preceded by	David Skaggs
Succeeded by	Jared Polis
Born	July 18, 1950 (1950-07-18) (age 59) Tucson, Arizona
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Maggie L. Fox
Residence	Eldorado Springs, Colorado
Alma mater	Williams College
Occupation	teacher
Religion	Raised Presbyterian[1], currently unspecified

Mark Emery Udall (born July 18, 1950) is the senior United States Senator from Colorado and a member of the Democratic Party. From 1999 to 2009, Udall served as a five-term member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Colorado's 2nd congressional district. He also served a term in the Colorado House of Representatives.

Udall won the 2008 United States Senate election, defeating Republican challenger Bob Schaffer. He became Colorado's senior Senator just 17 days into his first term, as Ken Salazar resigned his seat to become United States Secretary of the Interior.^[2]

[edit] Personal background

Mark was born in Tucson, Arizona and is the son of Morris "Mo" Udall, a former congressman from Arizona and candidate for the Democratic Presidential nomination in 1976. He is a first cousin of Senator Tom Udall of New Mexico and a double second cousin of former Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon. He is also the nephew of former Interior Secretary Stewart Udall. The Udall family.

Mark Udall graduated from Canyon del Oro High School, located in the Tucson suburb of Oro Valley in 1968. He graduated from Williams College in 1972 and moved to Colorado. He was an instructor, course director and program director with the Colorado Outward Bound School for 20 years, serving as a program director for 10 years from 1975-1985 and as executive director from 1985-1995.

Mark is a 5th generation Westerner and currently lives in Eldorado Springs, a suburb of Boulder, with his wife and two children. He is an enthusiastic outdoorsman and enjoys skiing, golfing, hiking and camping. An avid mountaineer, he has climbed all 14ers (54 mountains in Colorado with peaks above 14,000 feet elevation) and attempted some of the world's most challenging peaks, including Mt. Everest. ^[3] He was recently featured in Men's Journal Magazine, which touted his athletic abilities.

In January 2008, Udall acknowledged to the Rocky Mountain News that he had pleaded guilty to possession of marijuana in 1972, and served a year's probation.^[4]

[edit] Elected offices

Mark Udall was elected to the Colorado State House of Representatives in 1997. After only one term in the Colorado State House of Representatives, Udall won the Democratic nomination for the 2nd District in 1998 after 12-year incumbent David Skaggs retired. The race was unexpectedly close, with Udall only defeating Boulder's Republican Mayor, Bob Greenlee, by 50% to 48%. He easily won reelection four times thereafter. He is co-chair of the Congressional Fitness Caucus, Vice President of the Democratic Freshman Class, on the Democratic Homeland Security Task Force and Co-chair of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucus ^[5]

Udall has always touted his commitment to working for bipartisanship in Congress. On his campaign website, he discusses his advocacy for the environment and development of alternative fuels. He is a strong supporter of the U.S. military and military-related industries, including the development of new jobs in the aerospace field. He has also stated that he has opposed the Patriot Act since it was first initiated.

[edit] Legislative accomplishments

• In 2000, a proposal led by Democratic Congressman Mark Udall and Republican Senator Wayne Allard, proposed transforming Rocky Flats, a former nuclear weapons production site, into a wildlife refuge, setting aside 6,400 acres (25 km²) after cleanup and closure. The Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge Act passed in 2001. ^[6]

• Amendment 37: Mark Udall championed the effort to pass Amendment 37, a Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard that requires an increase in the production of energy by renewable energy sources of 20% by 2020. Voters overwhelmingly supported Amendment 37 in 2004 and it was the first RES to be passed by voters as opposed to legislators.^[7]

• Mark Udall was part of the bipartisan effort of all Colorado delegates that proposed and passed a bill to improve the ability of the government to address the problems caused by the pine beetle infestation in Colorado's forestlands. It is estimated that all mature lodgepole pines could be decimated by 2010 if action is not taken. ^[8]

• Mark Udall secured $19 million in research and development funding for Colorado defense companies.
• Mark Udall (D-Colo.) and Sherwood Boehlert (R-N.Y.) worked together to successfully pass legislation that would provide funding to school districts to replace older diesel buses that used renewable sources of energy, such as compressed natural gas or electricity.
• Mark Udall re-introduced H.R. 595, the Stimulating Leadership in Cutting Expenditures (SLICE) Act, in January 2007 with the support of representatives including Jeff Flake and Tim Ryan. This Act would allow the President to identify specific items of federal spending that he thinks should be cut from appropriation bills and then require Congress to vote on each of those items individually. The goal would be to reduce the amount of federal money that goes to congressional earmarks.
• Mark Udall co-authored legislation with Republican Representative Frank Wolf that promoted a 'responsible' redeployment strategy in Iraq.

[edit] Political positions

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (February 2009)

• Fiscal Responsibility
  • Mark Udall voted against the $700 billion dollar bailout on September 29, 2008 and again on October 3.
• The Iraq War
  • Voted against the war in Iraq from the very start.
  • Sees veteran's issues as a legislative priority.
  • Supports a phased withdrawal of troops from Iraq.
  • Is a former Member of the United States House Committee on Armed Services.
• Gun Rights
  • Believes that the recent DC Court of Appeals (District of Columbia v. Heller) ruling on gun rights 'strikes a balance'.

• See Mark Udall's Project Vote Smart page at http://www.votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=12329 for more information on his political stances.

[edit] Committee assignments

[edit] U.S. Senate, 2009-Present

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
  • Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
  • Subcommittee on Strategic Forces
• Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
  • Subcommittee on Energy
  • Subcommittee on National Parks (Chairman)
  • Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests
• Special Committee on Aging

[edit] U.S. House, 1999-2009

Just prior to his election as a U.S. Senator, Udall served on the following committees in the 110th Congress:

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Readiness
  • Subcommittee on Terrorism and Unconventional Threats
• Committee on Science and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Environment
• Committee on Natural Resources
  • Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands
  • Subcommittee on Water and Power
• Co-chair of the House Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucus ^[9]
• NATO Parliamentary Assembly

[edit] Previous Committee membership

• Committee on Agriculture
• Committee on Small Business

[edit] Senate election 2008

On January 15, 2007, Senator Wayne Allard announced he would not run for a third term. Mark Udall ran unopposed in the primary election and was chosen as the Democratic nominee for the race, running against Republican former U.S. Representative Bob Schaffer. The Colorado U.S. Senate race became one of the most competitive races in the country.

As of August 28, 2008, over $10 million had been spent on so-called attack ads against Udall by political parties and independent issues group; more than any other Senate race in the US. ^[10] Udall's campaign responded by creating a website that addresses the claims in those ads. ^[11]

Mark Udall campaigning in Denver in June, 2008.

Udall's first cousin, U.S. Representative Tom Udall, ran for and won the U.S. Senate seat in New Mexico left open by the retirement of Pete Domenici (R-NM). Including their double second cousin, Senator Gordon Smith, there were three Udalls running in Senate elections in 2008. Smith in Oregon was narrowly defeated in his bid for a third term.^[12]

On September 28, 2008, Udall and Schaffer appeared on Meet the Press's Senate Debate series, discussing the proposed bailout of the U.S. financial system.^[13]

On election day, Udall defeated Schaffer by a 53% to 43% margin^[14].

[edit] Endorsements

• The Aspen Times endorsed Mark Udall on Friday, October 3, 2008 ^[15]
• Environment Colorado endorsed Mark Udall ^[16]

[edit] See also

• Udall family (political family)

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Mark Udall

• Senator Mark Udall official U.S. Senate website
• Udall for Colorado official Senate campaign website

• 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
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Current Bills Sponsored at StateSurge.com
• Congressional profile at GovTrack.us
• Profile at SourceWatch Congresspedia
• Mark Udall at the Open Directory Project
• Profile at Votimus
• Profile at About.com
• Udall Family of Arizona at the Political Graveyard
• Make It Fuller: A Conversation with Congressman Mark Udall Elephant, summer 2005 interview

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