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Pete Hoekstra

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This article is about the American Congressman. For the Dutch soccer player, see Peter Hoekstra (footballer).
Pete Hoekstra
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Michigan's 2nd district
In office
January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2011
Preceded byCarl Pursell
Succeeded byBill Huizenga
Personal details
Born (1953-10-30) October 30, 1953 (age 71)
Groningen, The Netherlands
Political partyRepublican
SpouseDiane M. Johnson
ChildrenErin Hoekstra, Allison Hoekstra, Bryan Hoekstra
ResidenceHolland, Michigan
Alma materHope College (B.A.)
University of Michigan (M.B.A.)
OccupationPolitician

Peter "Pete" Hoekstra (born October 30, 1953) is the former U.S. Representative for Michigan's 2nd congressional district, serving from 1993 until 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life, education and career

Born in Groningen, The Netherlands, he moved to America with his parents at the age of three. He received a B.A. in political science from Hope College in 1975 and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Michigan in 1977.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

Caucus memberships

  • Founding chairman of the Education Freedom Caucus
  • Founding chairman of the Congressional Caucus on the Netherlands

Hoekstra has a conservative voting record, consistent with the conservative nature of the 2nd congressional district. However, he opposes amending the Constitution to prohibit flag desecration.

Political positions

Criticism of the Islamic Society of North America

Hoekstra and a fellow Republican sent an open letter to then Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales regarding the Islamic Society of North America as blogged about via the Washington Times: In a letter to then-Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, Reps. Peter Hoekstra, Michigan Republican and ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and Sue Myrick, North Carolina Republican, called the Justice Department's involvement a "grave mistake."

"In light of the threat that our nation ... is currently facing from radical jihadists, and because of the president's commitment to fighting the war on terror on all fronts, we believe it is a grave mistake to provide legitimacy to an organization with extremist origins, leadership and a radical agenda," the lawmakers said.

The amendment, which was approved by a voice vote to a spending measure, states that "no funds appropriated under this act may be used to support a conference sponsored by any organization named as an unindicted co-conspirator by the government in any criminal prosecution.".[1]

Weapons of mass destruction (WMD)

On June 22, 2006, Hoekstra made headlines by announcing at a press conference in the Capitol that weapons of mass destruction had been located in Iraq in the form of 500 chemical weapons.[2]

A number of other media outlets disputed the claims made by Hoekstra and Rick Santorum regarding the existence of weapons of mass destruction, reporting that the claims were disputed by both Pentagon officials, the Duelfer Report, and the intelligence community.[3][4]

On November 3, 2006, The New York Times reported that a website created at the request of Hoekstra and Senator Pat Roberts was found to contain detailed information that could potentially be helpful to those seeking to produce nuclear weapons. The website was shut down on November 2 following questioning by The New York Times.[5]

As of September 17, 2007, some news outlets reported that the Congressional committee Hoekstra had overseen had created "erroneous" and "misleading" reports about Iran's nuclear capabilities. "Among the committee's assertions is that Iran is producing weapons-grade uranium at its facility in the town of Natanz. The IAEA called that "incorrect", noting that weapons-grade uranium is enriched to a level of 90 percent or more. Iran has enriched uranium to 3.5 percent under IAEA monitoring." [6][7]

Repatriation of Yemeni captives in Guantanamo

On December 27, 2009, Hoekstra commented on reports that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, who had allegedly tried to set off a suicide bomb on Northwest Airlines Flight 253 on December 25, 2009, had subsequently confessed to being trained and equipped in Yemen.[8][9] Hoekstra called for a halt to the repatriation of Yemeni captives in Guantanamo.

Political campaigns

The district had been held for twenty six years by Guy Vander Jagt, longtime chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee. Hoekstra rode his bicycle across the district, charging that Vander Jagt had served in Congress for too long. He scored a monumental upset, winning by almost six percent. This primary win was tantamount to election in the 2nd district, the "most Republican" district in Michigan (Republicans have held the district for all but four years since it was created in 1873). (Hoekstra continues to ride his bicycle across the district every summer, and for his 2010 gubernatorial campaign will also be riding across the state.[10]

In 2004, Hoekstra did not meet his initial term limits pledge by announcing that he would run for a seventh term, citing his membership on the Select Committee on Intelligence. In 2006, Hoekstra's Leadership PAC (the Mileage Fund) raised nearly $160,000 in Political Action Contributions from such diverse contributors as the Teamsters, Michigan Credit Union League, and Little Planet Books.[11]

Hoekstra faced no significant opposition in the Republican primary or in the general election (as in his previous five reelection campaigns) and went on to secure his seventh term. Shortly after the primary, he was named chairman of the committee, succeeding Porter Goss, who became Director of the Central Intelligence Agency.

2006

Hoekstra had no primary opponent. In November he was opposed by the Democratic candidate Kimon Kotos,[12] who was also his 2004 opponent. Hoekstra defeated Kotos 183,518 votes to 87,361 votes.[13]

2008

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Michigan, 2008

Hoekstra ran for re-election in 2008 against Fred Johnson, Associate Professor of History at Hope College. He beat Johnson by 215,471 to 119,959 votes.

2010 gubernatorial campaign

Main article: Michigan gubernatorial election, 2010

In December 2008, Hoekstra said he would not seek re-election to his U.S. House seat in 2010, and instead campaign to be Michigan's governor. Hoekstra joined Mike Bouchard, the Oakland County Sheriff and former state senator, former Gateway, Inc. president Rick Snyder, State Senator Tom George and Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox as 2010 Republican gubernatorial candidates. In the primary, held on August 3, 2010, Hoekstra finished second to Snyder.[14][15][16][17][18]

2012 Senate Election

United States Senate election in Michigan, 2012

Hoekstra announced his bid against Stabenow.

Post-House career

Hoekstra was suggested as a possible challenger incumbent Debbie Stabenow in the 2012 Senate election,[19] but he declined to run.[20] In February 2011, Hoekstra joined the government relations group at Washington law firm Dickstein Shapiro,[21] and was named a visiting distinguished fellow at The Heritage Foundation, concentrating on education reform.[22] On July 19, it was reported by the Detroit News that Hoekstra would once again plan to challenge Stabenow[23]

See also

References

  1. ^ By Thursday, October 11, 2007 (2007-10-11). "Bill would cut Justice aid to suspect groups - Washington Times". Blogs.washingtontimes.com. Retrieved 2010-08-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ "Rep. Pete Hoekstra Details His Breakthrough WMD Report". Fox News. June 23, 2006.
  3. ^ "Report sparks debate over Iraq arsenal". The Seattle Times. June 23, 2006.
  4. ^ Media Matters - Despite all evidence to the contrary, media conservatives continued to hype Santorum's "weapons of mass destruction"
  5. ^ Broad, William J. (November 3, 2006). "U.S. Web Archive Is Said to Reveal a Nuclear Primer". The New York Times. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
  6. ^ "US Iran report branded dishonest". BBC News. September 14, 2006. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
  7. ^ "IAEA: Iran Nuclear Report 'Outrageous'". CBS News. September 14, 2006.
  8. ^ "Following Path of Least Resistance, Terrorists Turn Yemen Into Poor Man's Afghanistan". Fox News. 2009-12-27. Archived from the original on 2009-12-27. 'They should stay there. They should not go back to Yemen,' Hoekstra said. 'If they go back to Yemen, we will very soon find them back on the battlefield going after Americans and other western interests.'
  9. ^ Josh Gerstein (2009-12-27). "Bomb plot complicates Gitmo plan". Politico. Archived from the original on 2009-12-28. 'Yesterday just highlights the fact that sending this many people back—or any people back—to Yemen right now is a really bad idea,' said Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.), the ranking Republican on the House Intelligence Committee. 'It's just dumb….If you made a list of what the three dumbest countries would be to send people back to, Yemen would be on all the lists.'
  10. ^ "Home". Hoekstra for Governor. Retrieved 2010-08-23.
  11. ^ Peter Hoekstra: Campaign Finance/Money - Summary - Congressman 2006 | OpenSecrets
  12. ^ Kotos for Congress, Michigan District 2
  13. ^ 2006 Official Michigan General Election Results - 2nd District Representative in Congress 2 Year Term (1) Position
  14. ^ "Hoekstra slams Right to Life for snub, wants its director ousted | freep.com | Detroit Free Press". freep.com. 2010-08-13. Retrieved 2010-08-23. [dead link‍]
  15. ^ "Election 2010: Michigan Republican Primary for Governor - Rasmussen Reports™". Rasmussenreports.com. Retrieved 2010-08-23.
  16. ^ Time http://realclearpolitics.blogs.time.com/2010/06/03/mi-gov-poll-dillon-hoekstra-lead-primary-fields/. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  17. ^ "2010 Michigan Governor Race". RealClearPolitics. Retrieved 2010-08-23.
  18. ^ "Snyder wins in Michigan, Moran in Kansas; Rep. Kilpatrick loses primary". The Washington Post.
  19. ^ Cranson, Jeff (January 28, 2011). "Michigan poll: Pete Hoekstra tops in GOP Senate candidates, Mitt Romney for president, and 2-1 support for Detroit-Windsor bridge". The Grand Rapids Press. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  20. ^ Toeplitz, Shira (April 15, 2011). "Ex-Rep. Pete Hoekstra Won't Challenge Stabenow". Roll Call. Retrieved April 15, 2011.
  21. ^ Cranson, Jeff (February 1, 2011). "Former U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra named senior adviser at Washington law and lobbying firm". The Grand Rapids Press. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  22. ^ "Heritage Foundation Names Former Rep. Pete Hoekstra as Visiting Distinguished Fellow" (Press release). The Heritage Foundation. February 22, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2011. Former U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra of Michigan has been named a visiting distinguished fellow at The Heritage Foundation. He will concentrate on education reform for the prominent think tank. {{cite press release}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |trans_title= (help)
  23. ^ [1]
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Michigan's 2nd congressional district
1993-2011 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Chairman of House Intelligence Committee
2004–2007 		Succeeded by

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