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Rob Simmons

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For other people named Rob or Robert Simmons, see Robert Simmons (disambiguation).
Rob Simmons
First Selectman of Stonington, Connecticut
In office
November 16, 2015 – November 18, 2019
Preceded byGeorge Crouse (acting)
Succeeded byDanielle Chesebrough
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Connecticut's 2nd district
In office
January 3, 2001 – January 3, 2007
Preceded bySam Gejdenson
Succeeded byJoe Courtney
Member of the Connecticut House of Representatives
from the 43rd district
In office
1991–2001
Preceded byFrank Turek
Succeeded byDiana Urban
Personal details
Born
Robert Ruhl Simmons

(1943-02-11) February 11, 1943 (age 81)
New York City, New York
Political partyRepublican
SpouseHeidi Simmons
Residence(s)Stonington, Connecticut
Alma materHaverford College (BA)
Harvard Kennedy School (MPA)
ProfessionIntelligence professional, college professor, congressional staff member
AwardsBronze Star (2)
WebsiteCampaign website
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Army
Central Intelligence Agency
Years of service1965–1968 (active)
1969–2000 (reserve)
RankColonel
Battles/warsVietnam War

Robert Ruhl "Rob" Simmons (born February 11, 1943) is an American politician and retired U.S. Army colonel who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 2001 to 2007, representing Connecticut's 2nd congressional district as a Republican.[1]

Simmons unsuccessfully ran as a candidate for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senator from Connecticut in 2010.

In 2014, he controversially endorsed Democrat Andrew Maynard for re-election to the Connecticut State Senate, despite the fact that Maynard was incapable of fulfilling his duties due to a brain injury that he had suffered. This was done so that Senator Maynard would be able to enjoy the retirement benefits of a state employee, which he otherwise would not have been entitled to as a four term senator. On the Lee Elcee Show radio program, Simmons reflected on how Maynard had introduced his daughter and her husband. [1]

Simmons was formerly Chairman of the Yankee Institute for Public Policy.[2] On November 3, 2015, he was elected First Selectman in his hometown of Stonington, Connecticut, which he once represented in Congress.[3] He defeated the incumbent, George Crouse.[4] He did not seek reelection in 2019.[5]

Military career

Simmons was born in New York City and attended Haverford College, graduating in 1965. He enlisted in the United States Army as a private, serving in active duty from 1965 to 1969. He graduated from Infantry Officer Candidate School in 1967 and became a commissioned officer. He fought in the Vietnam War and earned two Bronze Star Medals for his service. He was in Vietnam for 19 months.[6]

Simmons served in the United States Army Reserve as a Military Intelligence Officer from 1969 to 2003, retiring at the rank of full colonel. He led the 434th Military Intelligence Detachment (Strategic) affiliated with Yale University, and in this capacity led the writing of the "Open Source Intelligence Guide for the Military Intelligence Officer." Under his command, the unit was selected as the best small unit in the U.S. Army Reserve in 1996 by the Reserve Officers Association.[6]

Early political career

Simmons joined the Central Intelligence Agency in 1969, working as an Operations Officer for a decade, including five years on assignment overseas in East Asia. He ran the Phu Yen Province Interrogation Center from November 1970 to June 1972, according to an article by Douglas Valentine in Everything You Know is Wrong, and he "mounted numerous paramilitary and psychological warfare operations against" the Viet Cong.[7] Simmons was awarded the CIA's Agency Seal Medal in 1985. In 1979, he earned a Master of Public Administration from Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. In 1979, he became a staff member for Senator John Chafee of Rhode Island, and then the Staff Director for the United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence in 1981 under the chairmanship of Senator Barry Goldwater (R-AZ).[8]

Simmons then became a professor of political science at Yale College and at the University of Connecticut. In 1991, he became a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives, replacing incumbent Frank Turek who died in office.[9][10] He represented the 43rd district before running for Congress.[8][11]

U.S. Congressional tenure

Overview

Rob Simmons at a POW-MIA memorial event in 2006.

Simmons was a member of the House Armed Services Committee and was involved in issues concerning the district's major defense presence at the Electric Boat submarine shipyard in Groton and the nearby Naval Submarine Base New London. In 2005, the Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) targeted the United States Navy's Groton submarine base for closure. Simmons led the successful fight to save the base and the BRAC removed it from its closure list on August 24, 2005.

Simmons also served on the House Homeland Security Committee as chairman of the Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing, and Terrorism Risk Assessment. He was a strong advocate of improved intelligence-sharing among federal, state, and local authorities. Simmons also championed Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) on Capital Hill, where he helped to legally define open source intelligence in the 2006 National Defense Authorization Act, requiring the Department of Defense to establish an OSINT program.[12] He also spearheaded an effort to establish an open source intelligence unit at the Department of Homeland Security.[13]

Electoral history

Connecticut's 2nd congressional district, 2000:[14]

  • Rob Simmons (R) – 114,380 (50.63%)
  • Sam Gejdenson (D) – 111,520 (49.37%)

Connecticut's 2nd congressional district, 2002:[15]

  • Rob Simmons (R) – 117,434 (54.09%)
  • Joe Courtney (D) – 99,674 (45.91%)

Connecticut's 2nd congressional district, 2004:[16]

  • Rob Simmons (R) – 165,558 (54.18%)
  • Jim Sullivan (D) – 139,987 (45.82%)

Connecticut's 2nd congressional district, 2006:

  • Joe Courtney (D) – 121,248 (50.02%)
  • Rob Simmons (R) – 121,165 (49.98%)

Elections

In 2000, Simmons ran for the United States House of Representatives defeating ten-term Democratic incumbent Sam Gejdenson by only 2,000 votes.

Despite being in the most Democratic GOP-held seat in the nation and being targeted by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee as a possible pickup in 2002, Simmons fought off a challenge from Democrat Joe Courtney, a former state representative from Vernon, winning 54% to 46%.

In 2004, Simmons defeated his Democratic challenger, Norwich City Councilman Jim Sullivan, by a margin of 54% to 46%.

In 2005, the NRCC listed Simmons as one of their most vulnerable members and his seat was widely seen as a possible Democratic pickup in 2006. Courtney was once again the Democratic nominee in 2006 and the race was considered a toss-up.

On election night Simmons trailed his Democratic challenger, Joe Courtney, by 167 votes out of over 242,000 votes cast. This margin was small enough to trigger an automatic recount under Connecticut law. During this recount, elections officials discovered several errors in the original vote. The recount concluded on November 14 giving Courtney an 83-vote victory over Simmons.[17]

As Simmons fared far better than other defeated Republican incumbents it was speculated he would try for a political comeback in 2008, which he did not rule out in conceding the 2006 election to Courtney. However, on March 4, 2007, on an episode of Face the State, he stated that he would not challenge Joe Courtney in 2008. To date, Simmons is the last Republican to garner even 40 percent of the vote in this district.

Post congressional career

Business advocate

On February 26, 2007, Rob Simmons was nominated by Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell to become the State's first Business Advocate.[18] The Office of the Business Advocate was established as part of the Governor's 2006 "Jobs for the 21st Century" Act (PA 06-83), for the purpose of providing centralized assistance to businesses in the state, and to pro-actively provide assistance to businesses of broader economic significance to the State.[19] He served until December 2008.[11]

2010 U.S. Senate campaign

Main article: 2010 United States Senate election in Connecticut

On March 15, 2009, Simmons announced his intention to challenge Senator Chris Dodd for the United States Senate in 2010.[20] A May 2009 poll showed Simmons leading Dodd by six points,[21] with the lead growing to 13 points in a December 2009 poll.[22] Sen. Chris Dodd however announced in January 2010 that he would not be seeking re-election to the U.S. Senate due to high pressure from the Democratic Party leaders, falling poll numbers, and controversy over business dealings with Countrywide Financial.

While Simmons originally led in the polls early on, Linda McMahon gained traction on him in the primary and won at the Republican convention.[23][24] McMahon, a billionaire, spent more than $22 million through the primary, while Simmons spent under $3 million.[25] Simmons was deeply disappointed by his loss and later suspended his campaign. In late July – two weeks before the primary – however, he re-entered the race by airing TV ads, participating in debates, and accepting interviews with editorial boards.[26] Simmons, however, went on to lose the primary to McMahon.[27] General election polls showed Simmons as the more electable candidate,[28] and McMahon would lose the election by 12%.

Stonington First Selectman

In 2015, Simmons was elected First Selectman of Stonington, Connecticut. He was sworn into office on November 16, 2015.[11] In 2019, he did not seek reelection for First Selectman. He was succeeded by Danielle Chesebrough.[29] She took over on November 18, 2019.[30]

Personal life

Simmons is married to the former Edith Heidi Paffard. They have a son Robert and a daughter Jane.[citation needed]

References

  1. ^ "Rob Simmons". The Register Citizen. August 7, 2010. Archived from the original on March 13, 2012. Retrieved August 14, 2010.
  2. ^ "About – Yankee Institute for Public Policy". Archived from the original on 2014-09-14. Retrieved 2014-09-14.
  3. ^ "Rob Simmons: Former congressman, selectman candidate, purveyor of corn". Archived from the original on 2015-12-25. Retrieved 2015-11-21.
  4. ^ "Rob Simmons Wins Big in Stonington Election". 4 November 2015. Archived from the original on 2018-06-19. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  5. ^ "Stonington First Selectman Rob Simmons not running for reelection". 19 July 2019. Archived from the original on 2019-11-06. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
  6. ^ a b Official Rob Simmons for Senate website – Rob Simmons Biography Archived 2009-08-21 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ Valentine, Douglas (2002). Russ Kick (ed.). Everything You Know is Wrong: The Disinformation Guide to Secrets and Lies. Disinformation Company. p. 40. ISBN 978-0-9713942-0-9.
  8. ^ a b "SIMMONS, Robert (Rob) – Biographical Information". Archived from the original on 2014-08-03. Retrieved 2009-05-10.
  9. ^ Associated Press. "Simmons wins Assembly election", Hartford Courant, June 27, 1991, page A14.
  10. ^ "Our Story".
  11. ^ a b c "Rob Simmons Biography | Stonington CT". Archived from the original on 2018-06-19. Retrieved 2018-06-19.
  12. ^ "Sec. 931 of Public Law 109-163, entitled, "National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006"" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-29. Retrieved 2018-12-15.
  13. ^ "CQ.com – Login". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2009-05-10.
  14. ^ "CT District 02 Race – November 07, 2000". Our Campaigns. Archived from the original on June 14, 2011. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  15. ^ "CT District 02 Race – November 05, 2002". Our Campaigns. Archived from the original on June 14, 2011. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  16. ^ "CT District 02 Race – November 02, 2004". Our Campaigns. Archived from the original on June 14, 2011. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  17. ^ "Page Not Found – Hartford Courant". Archived from the original on 2004-01-13. Retrieved 2006-11-15. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
  18. ^ http://www.allamericanpatriots.com/m-news+article+storyid-20043.html [dead link‍]
  19. ^ "AN ACT CONCERNING JOBS FOR THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY". Archived from the original on 2007-03-21. Retrieved 2007-03-08.
  20. ^ "Topic Galleries". Courant.com. Archived from the original on 2009-04-06. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  21. ^ Quinnipiac University – Office of Public Affairs (2009-05-27). "Connecticut (CT) Poll * May 27, 2009 * Dodd Gains On Challenger, But – Quinnipiac University – Hamden, Connecticut". Quinnipiac.edu. Archived from the original on September 18, 2010. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  22. ^ "Election 2010: Connecticut Senate Race - Rasmussen Reports™". www.rasmussenreports.com. Archived from the original on September 14, 2009.
  23. ^ Quinnipiac University – Office of Public Affairs (2010-03-17). "Connecticut (CT) Poll * March 17, 2010 * McMahon Wrestles To The Top In – Quinnipiac University – Hamden, Connecticut". Quinnipiac.edu. Archived from the original on 2010-03-22. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  24. ^ "Election 2010: Connecticut Senate – Rasmussen Reports". Rasmussenreports.com. Archived from the original on 2010-04-11. Retrieved 2010-08-14.
  25. ^ "2010 House and Senate Candidate List". Fec.gov. Archived from the original on 2009-08-20. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
  26. ^ Davis, Susan (July 28, 2010). "Washington Wire Q&A: Rob Simmons". The Wall Street Journal (blog). Archived from the original on July 30, 2010. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
  27. ^ Neil Vigdor and Brian Lockhart (August 11, 2010). "McMahon sweeps to victory in GOP Senate race". Connecticut Post. Archived from the original on August 17, 2010. Retrieved August 11, 2010.
  28. ^ "Rob Simmons Suspends Connecticut Senate Republican Primary Campaign". CBS News. 25 May 2010. Archived from the original on 2016-12-20. Retrieved 2016-12-13.
  29. ^ "Stonington makes history by electing three women to Board of Selectmen". 6 November 2019. Archived from the original on 2019-11-06. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
  30. ^ "Chesebrough becomes first woman to lead Stonington". Archived from the original on 2019-11-06. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
Connecticut House of Representatives
Preceded by
Frank Turek
 Member of the Connecticut House of Representatives
from the 43rd district
1991–2001 		Succeeded by
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Connecticut's 2nd congressional district
2001–2007 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by
George Crouse
 First Selectman of Stonington, Connecticut
2015–2019 		Succeeded by
Danielle Chesebrough
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded byas Former US Representative Order of precedence of the United States
as Former US Representative 		Succeeded byas Former US Representative
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rob_Simmons&oldid=1168070603"