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===Tenure===
===Tenure===
Like his tenure in the state legislature, Amash has been a leader in the [[Libertarian conservatism|libertarian]] [[Factions in the Republican Party (United States)|wing of the Republican party]] and a leader in "no votes." So far in congress, he has only voted with his party 78% of the time, the third lowest behind fellow libertarians [[Ron Paul]] (74%) and [[Walter B. Jones, Jr.]] (70%). He has endorsed [[Ron Paul presidential campaign, 2012|Ron Paul for president]] in [[Republican presidential primaries, 2012|2012]]. Paul's brother, David, was an assistant pastor in Amash's district and has endorsed Amash saying "I think [Amash] is doing an extremely good job at what he’s doing, and I know he’s going to do very well.”<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1211/70145.html#ixzz1gutZ0ngo |title=Justin Amash casts himself in Ron Paul's mold |last=Mak |first=Tim |publisher=Politico |date=December 8, 2011 |accessdate=March 2, 2012}}</ref> He is one of the few Republicans who voted against the [[National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011|2011 National Defense Authorization Act]].<ref>{{cite web|first=Jim |last=Harger |url=http://www.mlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2011/12/us_rep_justin_amash_gathering.html |title=U.S. Rep. Justin Amash gathering support in fight against the National Defense Authorization Act |publisher=The Grand Rapids Press |date=December 12, 2011 |accessdate=March 2, 2012}}</ref> Amash called it “one of the most anti-liberty pieces of legislation of our lifetime.” <ref>{{cite web|last=Hunter |first=Jack |url=http://dailycaller.com/2011/12/02/the-terrorists-have-won/#ixzz1guuJTL4Qh |title=The terrorists have won |publisher=The Daily Caller Opinion |date=December 2, 2011 |accessdate=March 2, 2012}}</ref>
Like his tenure in the state legislature, Amash has been a leader in the [[Libertarian conservatism|libertarian]] [[Factions in the Republican Party (United States)|wing of the Republican party]] and a leader in "no votes." So far in congress, he has only voted with his party 78% of the time, the third lowest behind fellow libertarians [[Ron Paul]] (74%) and [[Walter B. Jones, Jr.]] (70%). He has endorsed [[Ron Paul presidential campaign, 2012|Ron Paul for president]] in [[Republican presidential primaries, 2012|2012]]. Paul's brother, David, was an assistant pastor in Amash's district and has endorsed Amash saying "I think [Amash] is doing an extremely good job at what he’s doing, and I know he’s going to do very well.”<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1211/70145.html#ixzz1gutZ0ngo |title=Justin Amash casts himself in Ron Paul's mold |last=Mak |first=Tim |publisher=Politico |date=December 8, 2011 |accessdate=March 2, 2012}}</ref> He is one of the few Republicans who voted 2against the [[National_Defense_Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012|2011 National Defense Authorization Act]].<ref>{{cite web|first=Jim |last=Harger |url=http://www.mlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2011/12/us_rep_justin_amash_gathering.html |title=U.S. Rep. Justin Amash gathering support in fight against the National Defense Authorization Act |publisher=The Grand Rapids Press |date=December 12, 2011 |accessdate=March 2, 2012}}</ref> Amash called it “one of the most anti-liberty pieces of legislation of our lifetime.” <ref>{{cite web|last=Hunter |first=Jack |url=http://dailycaller.com/2011/12/02/the-terrorists-have-won/#ixzz1guuJTL4Qh |title=The terrorists have won |publisher=The Daily Caller Opinion |date=December 2, 2011 |accessdate=March 2, 2012}}</ref>


===Committee assignments===
===Committee assignments===

Revision as of 23:35, 5 March 2012

Justin Amash
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Michigan's 3rd district
Assumed office
January 3, 2011
Preceded byVern Ehlers
Member of the Michigan House of Representatives
from the 72nd district
In office
January 1, 2009 – January 1, 2011
Preceded byGlenn D. Steil
Succeeded byKen Yonker
Personal details
Born (1980-04-18) April 18, 1980 (age 44)
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Political partyRepublican
SpouseKara
Children3
ResidenceCascade Township
Alma materUniversity of Michigan
ProfessionAttorney
Websiteamash.house.gov

Justin Amash (/[invalid input: 'icon']əˈmɑːʃ/;[1] born April 18, 1980) is an American attorney, politician, and member of Congress. He has been the U.S. Representative for Michigan's 3rd congressional district, which encompasses the Grand Rapids area, since 2011.

A conservative Republican, Amash is backed by the Tea Party movement and was elected to the House in the 2010 election.[2][3] He is a former member of the Michigan House of Representatives representing the 72nd District, which consists of the city of Kentwood and the townships of Caledonia, Cascade, and Gaines. At the age of 44, Amash is the second youngest current U.S. Representative, behind 43-year-old Aaron Schock of Illinois. Justin Amash has endorsed Ron Paul for President of the United States in 2012 election.[4]

Early life, education, and pre-political career

Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan and raised in Kentwood, Amash is a second generation Arab-American of Palestinian Christian and Syrian descent.[2] His father is a Palestinian business owner who immigrated to the United States with the sponsorship of a Christian church. He attended Kelloggsville Christian School and graduated as class valedictorian from Grand Rapids Christian High School. He graduated from the University of Michigan magna cum laude with an B.A. in Economics and earned his J.D. at the University of Michigan Law School in 2005.[3][5]

After graduating from college, he became a consultant to his family’s tool business. He also served as a corporate lawyer for a year before being elected to Michigan's state legislature in 2008.[6]

Michigan House of Representatives

Election

Amash ran for state representative in 2008 in Michigan's 72nd House District seat. During this time, he donated to the campaigns of Congressman Ron Paul and John McCain.[7] In the Republican primary, he won a five candidate election with 42% of the vote, defeating candidates such as Ken Yonker, who succeeded him in 2010.[8] In the general election, he defeated Democrat Albert Abbasse 61%-36%.[9]

Tenure

After taking his seat in the Michigan House of Representatives in January 2009, conservatives claimed Amash had been the first legislator to use his Facebook Page to explain all of his votes in real time and to interact with constituents.[10][11][12][13] He earned praise - and criticism - for being the sole “no” vote on 59 bills in his first term in the 110-member House.[14] Additionally, Amash was one of the first state representatives to post all of his office expenses, staff salaries, and legislative benefits online. In the 2009 annual State Capitol Leadership Survey, Amash was the most frequently named freshman legislator in response to the question, "Who is the most effective member of the Michigan House?"[5]

Committee assignments

  • Education
  • Judiciary
  • Labor
  • Military and Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security[15]

U.S. House of Representatives

Election

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Michigan, 2010 § District 3

On August 3, 2010, Amash won the five-way Republican primary for the seat vacated by retiring Republican Vern Ehlers with over 40% of the vote. Amash was a favorite of the Tea Party movement, having been endorsed by iCaucus.[citation needed] He was also endorsed by The Club for Growth,[citation needed] Rep. Ron Paul,[16] and FreedomWorks PAC[citation needed] during his primary campaign.

During the general election campaign, Amash ran on a conservative platform.[3] On November 2, 2010, Amash defeated Democrat Pat Miles by a 59.6%-37.4% margin out of the 224,063 votes cast.[17]

Tenure

Like his tenure in the state legislature, Amash has been a leader in the libertarian wing of the Republican party and a leader in "no votes." So far in congress, he has only voted with his party 78% of the time, the third lowest behind fellow libertarians Ron Paul (74%) and Walter B. Jones, Jr. (70%). He has endorsed Ron Paul for president in 2012. Paul's brother, David, was an assistant pastor in Amash's district and has endorsed Amash saying "I think [Amash] is doing an extremely good job at what he’s doing, and I know he’s going to do very well.”[18] He is one of the few Republicans who voted 2against the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act.[19] Amash called it “one of the most anti-liberty pieces of legislation of our lifetime.” [20]

Committee assignments

Political positions

Amash opposes central government involvement in the economy and believes it causes unemployment, inflation, and dangerous economic cycles.[21][22][21] He believes health care insurance should not be mandatory, and that reform should consist of insurance companies being able to sell insurance across state lines and programs like health savings accounts.[21][22] He believes that only Congress has the power to declare war.[21] He believes there should be a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.[21] He supports the Second Amendment as a safeguard against violations of Americans' liberty.[21] He believes that schools should be managed locally.[21] He believes that the federal government should not be able to expand its powers using the General Welfare, Commerce, or Necessary and Proper clauses.[21]

Recognition

In its October 25, 2010 issue, Amash was named one of Time magazine's "40 under 40 - Rising Stars of U.S. Politics."[23] At the age of 30, Amash was the youngest federal candidate in the United States on the list of new civic leaders.[22]

Personal life

He has said his biggest heroes are economists F.A. Hayek and Frédéric Bastiat.[22] Amash is married and the father of three children. He also belongs to the Antiochian Orthodox Church.[24]

References

  1. ^ "Amash beats Miles in 3rd District Congress race". Connecticut Post. Associated Press. 2010-11-02. Retrieved 2010-11-17. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  2. ^ a b Ron Kampeas (2010-10-13). "Political Points: Hannity told me not to come". JTA-Jewish & Israel News. Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
  3. ^ a b c Jim Harger (2010-10-24). "Profile: 3rd Congressional district candidate Justin Amash". The Grand Rapids Press. M Live.
  4. ^ "Justin Amash Endorses Ron Paul". Facebook. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
  5. ^ a b "About Justin". Justin Amash for Congress. Retrieved 2010-07-26.
  6. ^ Newlin, Eliza. "Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI, 3rd District)". National Journal. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  7. ^ "The Huffington Post". huffingtonpost.com.
  8. ^ "MI State House 072 - R Primary Race - Aug 05, 2008". Our Campaigns. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  9. ^ "MI State House 072 Race - Nov 04, 2008". Our Campaigns. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  10. ^ Gantert, Tom (2010-05-24). "Lawmaker's Facebook Fans Get Blow-by-Blow Stories of His Votes [Mackinac Center]". Michigancapitolconfidential.com. Retrieved 2010-07-26.
  11. ^ Daniel Estrada (2010-05-14). "Influence blog: Stop blaming us for your own inadequacies". MLive.com. Retrieved 2010-07-26.
  12. ^ Mark Ambinder (2010-05-26). "The Night Beat: When Michael Sulick Speaks". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2010-07-26.
  13. ^ Katherine Mangu-Ward (2010-05-28). "Legislator Posts Votes on Facebook. All of Them. - Hit & Run : Reason Magazine". Reason.com. Retrieved 2010-07-26. {{cite web}}: Text "May 28, 2010" ignored (help)
  14. ^ Roelofs, Ted (November 2, 2010). "Early 3rd Congressional results show Justin Amash leading in race to replace Ehlers". The Grand Rapids Press. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  15. ^ "Justin Amash". Ballotpedia. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  16. ^ Ron Paul Endorses Justin Amash for Congress, EON, June 21, 2010
  17. ^ "2010 Official Michigan General Election Results - 3rd District Representative in Congress 2 Year Term (1) Position". Michigan Department of State. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  18. ^ Mak, Tim (December 8, 2011). "Justin Amash casts himself in Ron Paul's mold". Politico. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  19. ^ Harger, Jim (December 12, 2011). "U.S. Rep. Justin Amash gathering support in fight against the National Defense Authorization Act". The Grand Rapids Press. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  20. ^ Hunter, Jack (December 2, 2011). "The terrorists have won". The Daily Caller Opinion. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
  21. ^ a b c d e f g h "Issues". Amash For Congress. Retrieved 2010-11-16.
  22. ^ a b c d "TIME Magazine names Justin Amash one of its 40 Rising Stars". Justin Amash for Congress. 2010-10-14. Retrieved 2010-10-29.
  23. ^ TIME Magazine, "40 under 40 - Rising Stars of U.S. Politics - Justin Amash, time.com
  24. ^ Justin Amash. The Facebook.

External links

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Michigan's 3rd congressional district
2011–present 		Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by United States Representatives by seniority
342nd 		Succeeded by

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