- Nick Rahall
-
Nick Rahall 
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from West Virginia's 3rd districtIncumbent Assumed office
January 3, 1993Preceded by Bob Wise Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from West Virginia's 4th districtIn office
January 3, 1977 – January 3, 1993Preceded by Ken Hechler Succeeded by District Eliminated Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee In office
January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2011Preceded by Richard Pombo Succeeded by Doc Hastings Personal details Born May 20, 1949
Beckley, West VirginiaPolitical party Democratic Spouse(s) Melinda Rahall Residence Beckley, West Virginia Alma mater Duke University
George Washington UniversityOccupation Broadcast executive Religion Presbyterian Nick Joe Rahall II (born May 20, 1949) is the U.S. Representative for West Virginia's 3rd congressional district, serving since 1977. Rahall is currently Ranking Member of the House Resources Committee. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes much of the southern portion of the state, including Huntington, Bluefield and Beckley. Rahall has served in Congress since 1977.
Contents
Early life, education, and early career
Rahall was born in Beckley. He is of Lebanese descent. His father was a businessowner with diverse holdings, including many radio stations throughout the state. Rahall graduated in 1971 from Duke University. Following his graduation, he attended graduate school at the George Washington University. He then went to work for the late U.S. Senator Robert Byrd (who was from nearby Sophia) as a staff member.
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
See also: United States House of Representatives elections in West Virginia, 2010#District 3Rahall was first elected to Congress in 1976 in what was then the 4th district, after nine-term incumbent Democrat Ken Hechler gave up his seat to run for governor. Rahall won the Democratic primary with a plurality of 38%.[1] Hechler lost the primary for governor, and tried to mount a write-in campaign for his old congressional seat. However, Rahall won the general election with 46% of the vote, while Hechler got 37%.[2] In 1978, Hechler challenged Rahall in the Democratic primary, and Rahall won with 56% of the vote.[3] He has been re-elected 17 times.[4] Hechler became the West Virginia Secretary of State a few years later, and ran against Rahall in the primary again in 1990. Rahall once again defeated him, this time with 57% of the vote.[5]
Only three times has he gotten less than 61% of the vote in a general election (1976, 1990, and 2010). In 1990, he defeated Republican insurance agent Marianne Brewster[6] with just 52%, the second lowest winning percentage of his career.[7] His poor performance may have been caused by the nasty primary election with Ken Hechler back in May of that year. The district was renumbered the 3rd after the 1990 census, when West Virginia's declining population cost the state a congressional seat. In 2010, he defeated Republican State Supreme Court Justice Spike Maynard with just 56% of the vote, the third lowest winning percentage in a general election in his career.[8] Out of the seventeen counties in the district, Maynard won just two of them: Raleigh (52%) and Mercer (53%).[9] Assuming Rahall completes this term, he will pass Harley Staggers, who represented the now-defunct 2nd District from 1949 to 1981, as the longest-serving US Representative in West Virginia's history.
Tenure
Rahall is a staunch opponent of legislation designed to end Mountaintop Removal Mining, a process often used to mine coal in West Virginia,[10] and has introduced legislation to improve mine safety.[11]
Rahall strongly believes in global warming, remarking to the Register-Herald that denial of climate change is "to just put your head in the sand."[12] However, as a strong advocate for the coal industry, Rahall voted both against the American Clean Energy and Security Act and to block the Environmental Protection Agency from reducing the gases blamed for global warming.[13]
On October 3, 2008 Rep. Rahall voted in favor of the Troubled Asset Relief Program.[14] He said he believes the Constitution grants Congress the authority to "purchase assets and equity from financial institutions in order to strengthen its financial sector."[citation needed] In November 2009 and March 2010 he voted in favor of the Affordable Health Care for America Act.[15]
Rahall received attention when he, along with other Lebanese American lawmakers, expressed concern with a bipartisan resolution supporting Israel in the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict without adding language urging restraint against civilian targets, saying, "I'm just sick in the stomach, to put it mildly." Rahall assisted in drafting a bipartisan alternative resolution that urged "all parties to protect innocent life and civilian infrastructure."[16]
He has a mixed record on gay rights. He voted for the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity as hate crimes in April 2009 but was one of 15 Democrats who voted against the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in December 2010.[17]
In 2011, he co-sponsored HR 3, the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act.[18] The bill contained an exception for "forcible rape," which opponents criticized as potentially excluding drug-facilitated rape, date rape, and other forms of rape.[19] The bill also allowed an exception for minors who are victims of incest.[18]
In August 2010, Politico reported that in February 2005, Rahall used congressional stationery to write a letter to a Fairfax County judge asking for leniency for his son, Nick Rahall III, who was facing felony robbery charges. The congressman denied that his son was given special treatment because of his father's status as a member of Congress or because of his intervention. Rahall acknowledged that he should not have used congressional stationery for letter but said it was not the same type that he uses for official or committee business. Rahall stated he may have drawn the wrong paper "[i]n the emotions" and that he would reimburse the Treasury for the cost.[20][21]
The House Ethics Committee has not launched an inquiry into the incident.[22]
Committee assignments
- Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure (Ranking Member)
Rahall has been the Chairman of the Resources Committee since the Democrats won control of the House in 2007. He is also the second-most senior Democrat on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
Caucus memberships
- Congressional Coal Caucus
- Fire Services Caucus
- International Conservation Caucus
- Sportsmen's Caucus
- Steel Caucus
- Travel & Tourism Caucus
- Congressional Arts Caucus
Electoral history
West Virginia's 4th congressional district: Results 1976–1990[23] Year Democrat Votes % Republican Votes % Third Party Party Votes % 1976 Nick Rahall 73,626 46% F. S. Goodman 28,825 18% Ken Hechler Democratic (write-in) 59,067 37% 1978 Nick Rahall 70,035 100% No candidate 1980 Nick Rahall 117,595 77% Winton Covey 36,020 23% 1982 Nick Rahall 91,184 81% Homer Harris 22,054 19% 1984 Nick Rahall 98,919 67% Jess Shumate 49,474 33% 1986 Nick Rahall 58,217 71% Martin Miller 23,490 29% 1988 Nick Rahall 78,812 61% Marianne Brewster 49,753 39% 1990 Nick Rahall 39,948 52% David Morrill 36,946 48% West Virginia's 3rd congressional district: Results 1992–2010[23][24] Year Democrat Votes % Republican Votes % Third Party Party Votes % 1992 Nick Rahall 122,279 66% Ben Waldman 64,012 34% 1994 Nick Rahall 74,967 64% Ben Waldman 42,382 36% 1996 Nick Rahall 145,550 100% No candidate 1998 Nick Rahall 78,814 87% No candidate Joe Whelan Libertarian 12,196 13% 2000 Nick Rahall 146,807 91% No candidate Jeff Robinson Libertarian 13,979 9% 2002 Nick Rahall 87,783 70% Paul Chapman 37,229 30% 2004 Nick Rahall 142,682 65% Rick Snuffer 76,170 35% 2006 Nick Rahall 92,413 69% Kim Wolfe 40,820 31% 2008 Nick Rahall 133,522 67% Marty Gearheart 66,005 33% 2010 Nick Rahall 83,636 56% Spike Maynard 65,611 44% References
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=403634
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=31677
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=59888
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/CandidateDetail.html?CandidateID=1937
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=375887
- ^ http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/USAToday/access/56031910.html?dids=56031910:56031910&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Nov+08%2C+1990&author=&pub=USA+TODAY+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Final+election+results%3A+Pennsylvania+through+Wyoming+%28including+U.S.+territories%29&pqatl=google
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=34764
- ^ Workman, Jim (2010-11-03). "Rahall is elected to 18th straight term in Congress". The Register-Herald (Beckley, WV). http://www.register-herald.com/todaysfrontpage/x104125545/Rahall-is-elected-to-18th-straight-term-in-Congress. Retrieved 2010-11-04.
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=515070
- ^ Lillis, Mike (2010-10-17). "Rahall takes sole credit for blocking bill to end mountaintop mining". The Hill. http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/politics-elections/124339-rahall-takes-sole-credit-for-blocking-bill-to-end-mountaintop-mining. Retrieved 2010-10-17.
- ^ "Rahall Proposes Mine Safety Reforms". WTRF. 2010-06-29. http://wtrf.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=82179&catid=226. Retrieved 2010-10-17.
- ^ "U.S. HOUSE CANDIDATE CONVERSATIONS — Nick Rahall". Register Herald. http://www.register-herald.com/todaysfrontpage/x935815715/U-S-HOUSE-CANDIDATE-CONVERSATIONS-Nick-Rahall. Retrieved 2010-10-14.
- ^ Dems join GOP in fight to block EPA climate rules
- ^ http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll681.xml
- ^ "House Vote 887 - House Health Care Bill". The New York Times. http://politics.nytimes.com/congress/votes/111/house/1/887.
- ^ Weisman, Jonathan (2006-07-26). "Congress Cautioned On Support of Israel". washingtonpost.com. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/25/AR2006072501324.html?nav=rss_politics. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
- ^ "House Vote 638 - Repeals 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'". nytimes.com. http://politics.nytimes.com/congress/votes/111/house/2/638.
- ^ a b Full text of House Resolution 3: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act
- ^ "What is 'forcible rape' exactly?". The Washington Post. http://voices.washingtonpost.com/postpartisan/2011/02/what_is_forcible_rape_exactly.html.
- ^ "Questions raised about Nick Rahall helping son". Politico. http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0810/41002.html. Retrieved 2010-08-12.
- ^ "Democrat Nick Rahall misused official stationery". Associated Press. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gOM2iJE7aLkxUUMwsRwn0VcNeCbwD9HI7LOG0. Retrieved 2010-08-13.
- ^ Pergram, Chad (2010-08-12). "Second Congressman allegedly misuses stationary". FoxNews.com. http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/08/12/second-congressman-allegedly-misuses-house-stationery. Retrieved 2010-10-16.
- ^ a b "Office of the House Clerk – Electoral Statistics". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/index.html.
- ^ "Election Results". Federal Election Commission. http://www.fec.gov/pubrec/electionresults.shtml.
External links
- U.S. Congressman Nick Rahall official U.S. House site
- Congressman Nick Rahall official campaign site
- Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
- Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
- Congressional profile at GovTrack
- Congressional profile at OpenCongress
- Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
- Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
- Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
- Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
- Appearances on C-SPAN programs
- Profile at SourceWatch
United States House of Representatives Preceded by
Ken HechlerMember of the U.S. House of Representatives
from West Virginia's 4th congressional district
1977–1993District eliminated Preceded by
Bob WiseMember of the U.S. House of Representatives
from West Virginia's 3rd congressional district
1993–presentIncumbent Political offices Preceded by
Richard Pombo
CaliforniaChairman of House Natural Resources Committee
2007–2011Succeeded by
Doc Hastings
WashingtonUnited States order of precedence Preceded by
Dale Kildee
D-MichiganUnited States Representatives by seniority
12thSucceeded by
Jerry Lewis
R-CaliforniaCategories:- 1949 births
- American politicians of Lebanese descent
- American Presbyterians
- Duke University alumni
- George Washington University alumni
- Living people
- Members of the United States House of Representatives from West Virginia
- People from Beckley, West Virginia
- West Virginia Democrats
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
