Ron Klein

Infobox_Congressman
name = Ron Klein

---

date of birth = birth date and age|1957|07|10
place of birth = Cleveland, Ohio
state = Florida
district = 22nd
term_start = January 4, 2007
preceded = E. Clay Shaw, Jr.
succeeded = Incumbent
party = Democratic
religion = Jewish
spouse = Dori Dragin
alma_mater= Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University
occupation= attorney
residence= Boca Raton, Florida

Ronald "Ron" Klein (born July 10 1957) is an American politician from the U.S. state of Florida. Klein, a Democrat, served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1993 to 1996 and in the Florida Senate from 1996 till 2006, where he was the Senate minority leader.

Klein was elected in the 2006 House election in ushr|Florida|22|, defeating 13-term Republican incumbent Clay Shaw. He took office on January 4, 2007

Early life

Klein was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He graduated from Cleveland Heights High School in 1975, and attended The Ohio State University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science in 1979.

While at Ohio State, Klein became a member of the Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity. Klein also spent time during college as an intern at the Ohio General Assembly. Klein attended Case Western Reserve University School of Law and graduated with a law degree in 1982. Ron married Dori Dragin in 1982 and they moved to Boca Raton, Florida in 1985. They have two children - Brian and Lauren.

Florida legislature

In 1992, Klein defeated ten-year incumbent Steve Press in the Democratic primary to win a seat in the Florida House of Representatives ( [http://election.dos.state.fl.us/elections/resultsarchive/Index.asp?ElectionDate=9/1/1992&DATAMODE=] ). Klein became a member of the Florida Senate in 1996, and served as minority whip in 1998 and as minority leader in 2002–2004 ( [http://www.flsenate.gov/Legislators/index.cfm?Members=View+Page&District_Num_Link=030&Submenu=1&Tab=legislators&chamber=Senate&CFID=12470567&CFTOKEN=68538832] ).

Legal career

Klein was a Director at the Boca Raton, Florida law firm of Sachs Sax Klein. His practice was focused on transactional law.

2006 Congressional race

Klein ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in Florida's 22nd congressional district against 13-term Republican incumbent Clay Shaw. Alhough Shaw won re-election easily in the 2004 election (his opponent dropped out before the election), John Kerry carried the district by a margin on 50-48 percent over George W. Bush in 2004.

On Election Day 2006, Klein defeated Shaw by a margin of 51%-48% and assumed office when the 110th Congress convened on January 4, 2007. Klein was aided by voter discontent over the war in Iraq and the scandal involving Republican Congressman Mark Foley in the neighboring district.

On December 18, 2007, The Politico, named Ron Klein as its "Rookie of the Year". Citing his willingness to cross party lines and his ability to get major legislation passed as support for their choice. [(http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1207/7442.html)] .

Position on 2008 "Bailout"

On September 29, 2008, Klein voted for the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008cite web|title= Bailout Roll Call | url= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/images/09/29/bailout.rollcall.0929.pdf| date= 2008-09-29 Retrieved on September 29, 2008]

Committee Assignments

# Committee on Agriculture
# Committee on Appropriations
# Committee on Armed Services
# Committee on the Budget
# Committee on Education and Labor
# Committee on Energy and Commerce
# Committee on Financial Services
# Committee on Foreign Affairs
# Committee on Homeland Security
# Committee on House Administration
# Committee on the Judiciary
# Committee on Natural Resources
# Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
# Committee on Rules
# Committee on Science and Technology
# Committee on Small Business
# Committee on Standards of Official Conduct
# Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
# Committee on Veterans' Affairs
# Committee on Ways and Means
# Joint Economic Committee
# Joint Committee on Taxation
# House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
# House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming

External links

* [http://klein.house.gov/ Congressman Ron Klein] official U.S. House site
* [http://www.ronkleinforcongress.com Ron Klein for Congress] official campaign website
* [http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Ron_Klein Profile] at SourceWatch Congresspedia