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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.

As a result of the Democrats winning control of the House in the 2006 midterm elections, Pelosi is expected to become the next Speaker of the House when Congress reconvenes in January 2007 for the 110th Congress of the United States.[1] Pelosi is the first woman to lead a major political party in either house of Congress, and would be the first woman to serve as Speaker. If she were to indeed be elected Speaker, she would be the closest woman ever to the Presidency (behind the Vice President in succession).

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 in politics at an early age. Her father, Thomas D'Alesandro, Jr., was a U.S. Congressman from Maryland and a Mayor of Baltimore. 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).

Once the youngest of their five children became a senior in high school, Nancy 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'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.[3] In 2003, the Pelosi family sold their 8 acre Rutherford vineyard.[3]

Congressional career

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

When Phillip Burton died in 1983, his wife Sala won a special election to complete his term. When she became ill with cancer, she suggested that Pelosi run for her seat in 1988. Sala Burton died on February 1, 1987, just a month after being sworn in for a second full term. Pelosi won in a special election to succeed her, narrowly defeating left wing San Francisco Supervisor Harry Britt, and took office on June 2, 1987. She was elected to a full term in 1988 and has been reelected eight times.

Pelosi represents one of the safest Democratic districts in the country; Democrats have held the seat since 1949. Pelosi has never faced a credible Republican opponent, which is not surprising since Republicans only make up 13 percent of registered voters in the district. Since defeating Britt, she has never really had to campaign, and has never participated in a candidates' debate.[4]

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

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.

As of the 2006 mid-term elections, Representative Pelosi appears poised to become the first female Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and the first Californian to hold the position.

Democratic Party leadership

In 2001, she was elected the House Minority Whip, second-in-command to Minority Leader Dick Gephardt of Missouri, becoming 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.

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

Political record and platforms

Pelosi is generally considered to be a liberal in American politics.[5]

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 interrupts or terminates her pregnancy. 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 fetus. Pelosi is also a consistent "yes" vote for both federal funding of abortion facilities and of financial aid to such organizations. Pelosi has a long record of being pro-choice. [6]

Since 1995 she has consistently voted against challenges to the Supreme Court’s decision regarding the landmark abortion case of Roe vs. Wade.

The California legislature passed the California Therapeutic Abortion Act in 1967 that was signed into law by then California Governor Ronald Reagan. This California law is at the root of Pelosi's support for access to abortion for all citizens of the United States.[7]

Raised a Catholic, she has said that she will continue to ask for communion despite some Catholic bishops refusing communion to those who support abortion.[8] Some pro-life activists have called for her to be denied communion.[9]

Agriculture

Pelosi has a reputation of being generally supportive of agriculture.[10] However, agriculture is not a large factor in her district.

Budget and taxes

Pelosi supports federal funding of government programs with tax increases when necessary.[11] 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 outspoken supporter of a balanced budget, though she voted against the 1995 Balanced Budget Proposed Constitutional Amendment.[12]

Civil liberties

Pelosi has consistently favored general civil liberties and First Amendment rights[13]. She has been steadfast in voting for freedom of speech including voting against laws banning flag-burning. She has voted 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]

National defense

Before September 11, 2001, Pelosi had been opposed to much government spending for national defense and military programs. After 2001, she has generally supported spending for national defense in areas of the War on Terrorism.[14] In San Francisco, however, Pelosi is sometimes seen as more right wing, because she voted for the USA PATRIOT Act (which she now opposes) and authored the Presidio Trust Act, which privatized the Presidio of San Francisco. Like a majority of House Democrats, Pelosi opposed the resolution authorizing President Bush to use military force against Iraq,[15] and has acknowledged Saddam Hussein's WMD program.[16] [17] She has also begun to criticize strongly the war effort, and has introduced an amendment to the FY 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.

Education

Pelosi has been a strong ally in the federal funding of education, both in public schools and higher education.[18] She was a supporter of the hotly contested “No Child Left Behind Act” in May of 2001, which instituted testing to track students' progress and authorized an increase in overall education spending.

Environment and energy

Pelosi has a history of supporting the development of new technologies to reduce U.S. dependence upon foreign oil and the adverse environmental effects of burning fossil fuels.[19] She has widely supported conservation programs and energy research appropriations. She has also voted against ANWR Drilling.[20]

Gun control

Pelosi is a proponent of gun control and has voted to limit the ownership of firearms and concealed weapons.[21] She has routinely voted to restrict the number of handguns sold in the United States and to extend the waiting period for purchasing a firearm of any type. She voted against 24 Hour Background Check Amendment bill that would make background checks at a gun show mandatory because the waiting period was only 24 hours.[22] She later voted for an amendment to this bill that would extend the waiting period to 72 hours[23]. She also voted against the Gun Ban Repeal Act of 1995, which sets the mandatory minimum prison sentence to 5 years in prison for possession of a firearm while committing a crime and 10 years in prison for brandishing a firearm while committing a violent federal crime or drug trafficking[24].

Health care

Pelosi with Bono and James E. Clyburn.

Pelosi has been a supporter of strong government control over the health care industry.[25] She has continually voted to increase Medicare and Medicaid benefits across the board.

Immigration

Pelosi has been a constant supporter of immigrant rights.[26] She has voted against the States' choice to deny public education services to illegal immigrants and allow them to collect public assistance such as welfare and Medicaid. She also voted against the Secure Fence Act of 2006, which authorizes the construction of 700 miles of double-layered fencing between the U.S. and Mexico.

Minimum wage

Pelosi has consistently voted for increasing the federal minimum wage.[27]

Anti-Lobbyist

Pelosi has introduced a bill, the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act, to congress. This bill is a set of rules aimed at reducing the amount of corruption in congress by lobbyists. The rules are intended to stop anyone who might try to buy a congressman's vote through gifts of any kind. Furthermore, house members will not be able to slip in special interest amendments to laws that are unrealated. All new bills presented to congress, under the HLOG Act, will be subject to a 24 holding period so it can be checked over for any deceptive legislation. HLOG will also ban lobbyists from accessing the House Gym, and even keeps them away from the House floor. All of this will be monitored directly by the Office of Public Integrity, which reports directly, and solely, to the U.S. Attorney's Office.[28]

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. ^ 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.
  4. ^ 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.
  5. ^ "A look at Pelosi's voting record". Editorials/Op-Ed. The Washington Post. Nov 3 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ "Project Vote Smart". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  7. ^ "Abbreviated History Of Abortion Law In California". Planned Parenthood. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  8. ^ "Pelosi says she'll take Communion in spite of Vatican policies". USA Today & AP. April 29 2004. Retrieved 2006-11-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ By, Staff (May 14, 2004). "Catholic battle over pro-choice politicians grows". LIFE DIGEST. Baptist Press. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  10. ^ "Project Vote Smart Research". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  11. ^ "Vote Smart Research". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  12. ^ "Balanced Budget Proposed Constitutional Amendment". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  13. ^ "Data from Vote Smart Research". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  14. ^ "Defense Issues Voting Data from Vote Smart Research". Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  15. ^ "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)
  16. ^ 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.
  17. ^ 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.
  18. ^ "Education". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  19. ^ "Energy Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  20. ^ "Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Drilling Amendment". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  21. ^ "Gun Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  22. ^ "24 Hour Background Check Amendment". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  23. ^ "72 Hour Background Check Amendment". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  24. ^ "Gun Ban Repeal Act of 1995". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  25. ^ "Health Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  26. ^ "Immigration Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  27. ^ "Labor Issues". Key Vote. Project Vote Smart. 2006. Retrieved 2006-11-12.
  28. ^ http://www.cbc.ca/news/reportsfromabroad/champblog/2006/10/nancy_pelosis_tough_new_rules.html
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

Template:Persondata

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