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Nancy Pelosi

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Nancy Pelosi
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from California's 8th district
In office
1987 - present
Preceded bySala Burton
Personal details
Political partyDemocratic
SpousePaul Pelosi

Nancy Patricia D'Alesandro Pelosi (born March 26, 1940) is the House Minority Leader of the 109th Congress of the United States. Since 1987, she has been the Democratic Representative from the 8th district of California, which falls entirely within and includes most of the city and county of San Francisco (except for a tiny portion within the neighboring 12th District).

As a result of the Democrats winning a majority of seats in the recent 2006 midterm elections, Pelosi is expected to be elected the next Speaker of the House when Congress reconvenes in January 2007 for the 110th Congress of the United States. While the Speaker is formally elected by the full House, Pelosi was chosen as the Democrats' candidate for Speaker on November 16, 2006.[1] Pelosi is the first woman to lead a major political party in either house of Congress, and once formally elected, she would be the first woman to serve as Speaker. She would also be the first Californian to hold the post. As Speaker, she would rank second in the presidential line of succession (behind the Vice President).

Early life and career

Pelosi was born Nancy D'Alesandro to Italian American parents in Baltimore, Maryland.[2] The youngest of six children, she was involved with politics from an early age. Her father, Thomas D'Alesandro, Jr., was a U.S. Congressman from Maryland and a Mayor of Baltimore. While he was mayor, Nancy helped him maintain a ledger of political favors owed or performed.[3] Her brother, Thomas L. J. D'Alesandro III, also served as Mayor of Baltimore, from 1967 to 1971.

Pelosi graduated from Baltimore's Institute of Notre Dame high school and from Trinity College (now Trinity Washington University) in Washington, D.C. in 1962, where she met Paul Pelosi. When the couple married, they moved to his hometown of San Francisco, where his brother was a member of the city's board of supervisors (San Francisco city and county council).

After her youngest child became a high school senior, Pelosi worked her way up in Democratic politics to become party chairwoman for Northern California, and joined forces with one of the leaders of the California Democratic Party, 5th District Congressman Phillip Burton.

Pelosi is an honorary board member of the National Organization of Italian American Women.

Family

Pelosi has five children: Nancy Corinne, Christine, Jacqueline, Paul and Alexandra. Alexandra, a journalist, covered the Republican presidential campaigns in 2000 and made a movie about the experience, Journeys with George. She also covered the campaigns in 2004 and wrote a book on it.

The Pelosi family has a net worth of over $25 million, mainly from Paul Pelosi's investments. Besides a large portfolio of jointly owned San Francisco Bay Area real estate, he also has millions of dollars worth of shares in publicly traded companies such as Microsoft, Amazon.com and AT&T.[4] In 2003, the Pelosi family sold their 8 acre Rutherford vineyard.[4]

Congressional career

Pelosi and House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer meeting with George W. Bush on November 9, 2006.

Phillip Burton died in 1984 and was succeeded by his wife, Sala. In late 1986, Sala became ill with cancer. She decided not to run for reelection in 1988, and suggested that Pelosi run in her place. Burton died on February 1, 1987, just a month after being sworn in for a second full term. Pelosi won a special election to succeed her, narrowly defeating left-wing San Francisco Supervisor Harry Britt, and took office on June 2, 1987. She was subsequently elected to a full term in 1988.

Pelosi represents one of the safest Democratic districts in the country. Democrats have held the seat since 1949, and Republicans, who currently make up only 13 percent of registered voters in the district, have not made a serious bid for the seat since the early 1960s. Since defeating Britt, Pelosi has been reelected nine times, winning an average 81.66% of the vote. She has never participated in a candidates' debate.[5]

In the House, she served on the Appropriations and Intelligence Committees, and spent much time raising funds for other members. She was the ranking Democrat on the Intelligence Committee for two years.

Democratic Party leadership

In 2001 Pelosi was elected the House Minority Whip, second-in-command to Minority Leader Dick Gephardt of Missouri. She was the first woman in U.S. history to reach that position. Since then, she has campaigned for candidates in 30 states and in 90 Congressional districts.

In 2002, after Gephardt resigned as minority leader to seek the Democratic nomination in the 2004 presidential election, Pelosi was elected to replace him, becoming the first woman to lead a major party in the House.

Speaker-elect of the House of Representatives

On November 16, 2006, Pelosi was unamimously chosen as the Democratic candidate for Speaker, effectively making her Speaker-elect. Pelosi supported her longtime friend, John Murtha of Pennsylvania for the position of House Majority Leader, the second-ranking post in the House Democratic caucus, over House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland. Pelosi and Hoyer had a somewhat frosty relationship dating back to 2001, when they ran against each other for minority whip. However, Hoyer was elected as House Majority Leader over Murtha by a margin of 149-86 within the caucus.[6]

Political platform and voting record

Pelosi is generally considered to be a liberal, in large part because she represents famously liberal San Francisco. Indeed, she has one of the most liberal voting records in the House. She was a founding member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, a group of left-leaning congressmen, but stepped down after being elected minority leader and has since adopted a policy of not belonging to any caucuses. For some time, Republicans (especially in the South) have used the prospect of a "San Francisco liberal" becoming Speaker as a campaign tool.

However, in the view of many of Pelosi's colleagues, she is not as liberal as widely perceived. Her longtime friend, fellow congressman Jim McDermott, told Newsweek that he and other left-leaning Democrats "wish she would tilt a little more our way from time to time." After the Democrats suffered heavy losses in 2004, she turned to several corporate image consultants who urged her to downplay ideology and focus more on attacking the weaknesses in the Republican platform. Even before then, she made her name in San Francisco politics by holding glitzy fundraisers in the wealthy Presidio Heights neighborhood. [7]

Abortion

Pelosi with Lance Armstrong.

Pelosi voted for the Unborn Victims of Violence Act in 2001, legislation that made it a federal crime to commit violence against a pregnant woman that results in the death of her unborn child. In 2004, Pelosi voted against the measure when it was reintroduced with a new definition of a violent attack on a pregnant woman as two distinct crimes: one against the woman herself, and the other against her unborn child.

Pelosi has voted "yes" for both federal funding of abortion facilities and for financial aid to such organizations. Pelosi has a long record of voting for abortion rights.[8] Since 1995, Pelosi has voted against challenges to the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the landmark abortion case of Roe vs. Wade.

Agriculture

Pelosi has a reputation of being generally supportive of the agriculture sector in her district.[9] However, agriculture as an industry does not have a big impact in her mostly urban district, so Pelosi's votes regarding subsidies for the industry have varied. Pelosi was criticized by the agriculture industry when she voted against the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002.

Budget and taxes

Pelosi supports federal funding of government programs with tax increases when necessary.[10] She has supported many bills which would increase assistance to the poor and disadvantaged while increasing taxes on higher wage earners.

Pelosi has also voted against repealing the Estate Tax. She has been an advocate for a balanced budget, though she voted against the 1995 Balanced Budget Proposed Constitutional Amendment, which was passed by the House almost strictly along party lines, but was twice rejected by the Senate.[11]

Civil liberties

Pelosi has voted for protection of civil liberties and First Amendment rights.[12] She voted against laws banning flag-burning. She has voted for and been a strong supporter of the separation of church and state. She has also been an opponent of the Federal Marriage Amendment and supports the enforcement of the Fourteenth Amendment barring discrimination based on race.[citation needed]

Education

Pelosi supported the No Child Left Behind Act in May of 2001, which instituted testing to track students' progress and authorized an increase in overall education spending.[13]

Environment and energy

Pelosi has supported the development of new technologies to reduce U.S. dependence upon foreign oil and ameliorate the adverse environmental effects of burning fossil fuels.[14] She has widely supported conservation programs and energy research appropriations. She has also voted against ANWR Drilling.[15]

Foreign policy

After the Tiananmen protests of 1989, Pelosi became a vocal critic of the government of the People's Republic of China, sponsoring the Chinese Student Protection Act of 1992.

Nancy Pelosi during the 2006 Chinese new year celebrations in San Francisco

Gun control

Pelosi has voted to limit the ownership of firearms and concealed weapons.[16] She voted against the 24 Hour Background Check Amendment bill.[17] She later voted for an amendment to this bill that would extend the waiting period to 72 hours.[18] She also voted against the Gun Ban Repeal Act of 1995.[19]

Health care

Pelosi has voted to increase Medicare and Medicaid benefits.[20]

Immigration

Pelosi has been a supporter of immigrant rights.[21] She voted against the Secure Fence Act of 2006.

Israel and the Middle East conflict

Pelosi has said "America and Israel share an unbreakable bond: in peace and war; and in prosperity and in hardship."[citation needed] Pelosi's record on Israel-related topics has been described as "perfect."[citation needed]

In a speech she gave at the AIPAC 2005 yearly conference, Pelosi said that "If evidence of participation by other nations in Iran's nuclear program is discovered, I will insist that the Administration use, rather than ignore, the evidence in determining how the US deals with that nation or nations on other issues."[citation needed]

Pelosi declared the birth of the State of Israel as "the great shining moment of the 20th century,"[citation needed] praised former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's leadership as "remarkable,"[citation needed] and said Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas "has not removed Arafat's corrupt cronies from positions of power, nor has he moved to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure. That is, I am sorry to say, cause for concern. President Abbas has said his goal is to establish the rule of law, but he has done nowhere near enough to realize that vision."[citation needed]

Regarding the claim that the Arab-Israeli conflict is based on Israel's control of the West Bank and Gaza, Pelosi said: "This is absolute nonsense. In truth, the history of the conflict is not over occupation, and never has been: it is over the fundamental right of Israel to exist."[22][23]

Lobbyist guidelines and ethics issues

Pelosi introduced the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act to Congress.

Minimum wage

Pelosi has voted for increasing the federal minimum wage.[24]

The War on Terrorism

In 1998 Pelosi stated that Saddam Hussein "has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruction technology."[25]

After 2001, Pelosi has generally supported spending for national defense in areas of the War on Terrorism.[26]

Pelosi voted for the USA Patriot Act, which she now opposes.[citation needed]

In 2002, Pelosi opposed the Iraq Resolution authorizing President Bush to use military force against Iraq,[27] while stating that Iraq, like "other countries of concern" had WMD.[28] She has begun to strongly criticize the war strategy, and has introduced an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2006 Defense Appropriations bill calling on President Bush to specify a strategy for success in Iraq, as well as a timetable for the safe withdrawal of American troops.[citation needed]

Electoral History

  • 2006 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 8th District (results not yet certified)
    • Nancy Pelosi (D) (inc.), 80%
    • Mike DeNunzio (R), 10%
    • Krissy Keefer (G), 8%
    • Philip Z. Berg (L), 1.5%
  • 2004 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 8th District
    • Nancy Pelosi (D) (inc.), 83%
    • Jennifer Depalma (R), 12%
    • Leilani Dowell (PF), 3.5%
    • Terry Baum (G) (write-in) 2%
  • 2002 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 8th District
    • Nancy Pelosi (D) (inc.), 80%
    • G. Michael Geman (R), 13%
    • Jay Pond (G), 6%
    • Ira Spivack (L), 2%
  • 2000 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 8th District
    • Nancy Pelosi (D) (inc.), 85%
    • Adam Sparks (R), 12%
    • Erik Bauman (L), 3%
    • David Smithstein (NL), 1.2%
  • 1998 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 8th District
    • Nancy Pelosi (D) (inc.), 86%
    • David Martz (R), 12%
    • David Smithstein (NL), 2%
  • 1996 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 8th District
  • 1994 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 8th District
    • Nancy Pelosi (D) (inc.), 82%
    • Elsa C. Cheung (R), 18%
  • 1992 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 8th District
    • Nancy Pelosi (D) (inc.), 82%
    • Marc Wolin (R), 11%
    • James R. Elwood (L), 3%
    • Cesar G. Cadabes, (PF), 3%
  • 1990 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 5th District
    • Nancy Pelosi (D) (inc.), 77%
    • Alan Nichols (R), 23%
  • 1988 Race for U.S. House of Representatives - California 5th District
    • Nancy Pelosi (D), 76%
    • Bruce Michael O'Neill (R), 19%
    • Sam Grove (L), 2%
    • Theodore "Ted" Zuur (PF), 2%
Wikiquote has quotations related to Nancy Pelosi.


See also

References

  1. ^ Ferraro, Thomas (Nov 8 2006). "Pelosi set to become first woman to lead House". Reuters. Retrieved 2006-11-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  2. ^ "The Italian American Congressional Delegation". Order Sons of Italy in America. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  3. ^ "Madam Speaker?". From The Economist print edition. The Economist. Nov 2 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ a b Zachary Coile: “Bay lawmakers among wealthiest / Feinstein and Pelosi continue to top the list of the richest members of Congress,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 26, 2004, p. B-3, retrieved October 29, 2006.
  5. ^ Edward Epstein: “CAMPAIGN 2006: Eighth Congressional District / 3 challengers fight for Pelosi seat,” San Francisco Chronicle, October 20, 2006, p. B-1, retrieved October 29, 2006.
  6. ^ "Democrats defy Pelosi, elect Hoyer House leader". Reuters. November 16, 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-16. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  7. ^ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15675859/site/newsweek/
  8. ^ "Project Vote Smart". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  9. ^ "Project Vote Smart Research". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  10. ^ "Vote Smart Research". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  11. ^ "Balanced Budget Proposed Constitutional Amendment". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  12. ^ "Data from Vote Smart Research". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  13. ^ "Education". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  14. ^ "Energy Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  15. ^ "Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Drilling Amendment". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  16. ^ "Gun Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  17. ^ "24 Hour Background Check Amendment". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  18. ^ "72 Hour Background Check Amendment". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  19. ^ "Gun Ban Repeal Act of 1995". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  20. ^ "Health Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  21. ^ "Immigration Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  22. ^ [1]
  23. ^ http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=47885
  24. ^ "Labor Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  25. ^ Pelosi, Nancy (December 16, 1998). "Statement on U.S. Led Military Strike Against Iraq". Press Release by Congresswoman Pelosi. House of Representatives. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  26. ^ "Defense Issues Voting Data from Vote Smart Research". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  27. ^ "Final vote results for roll call 455". Office of the Clerk. oct 10 2002. Retrieved 2006-11-12. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  28. ^ Pelosi, Nancy (October 10, 2002). "Pelosi: Unilateral Use of Force Will Be Harmful to the War on Terrorism". Press Release by Congresswoman Pelosi. House of Representatives. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nancy Pelosi.
Template:Incumbent succession box
Preceded by United States Representative for the 5th Congressional District of California
1987 – 1993 		Succeeded by
Preceded by United States Representative for the 8th Congressional District of California
1993 – Present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by House Democratic Whip
House Minority Whip
2002 – 2003 		Succeeded by

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