Dutch Ruppersberger

C. A. "Dutch" Ruppersberger
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maryland's 2nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2003
Preceded by	Robert Ehrlich
Personal details
Born	January 31, 1946 (1946-01-31) (age 65) Baltimore, Maryland
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Kay Ruppersberger
Children	Cory Ruppersberger Jill Ruppersberger
Residence	Cockeysville, Maryland
Alma mater	University of Maryland, College Park, University of Baltimore
Occupation	attorney
Religion	Methodist

Charles Albert "Dutch" Ruppersberger III (born January 31, 1946) is the U.S. Representative for Maryland's 2nd congressional district, serving since 2003. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

The district covers parts of Baltimore County, Anne Arundel County, Harford County and Baltimore City, including Dundalk, Towson and Severn.

Early life, education and career

Ruppersberger attended Baltimore City College and the University of Maryland, College Park, where he played varsity lacrosse. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Baltimore School of Law.

In 1975, Ruppersberger was involved in a near-fatal car accident while investigating a drug trafficking case.^{[citation needed]} He currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Board of Visitors at the University of Maryland hospital where he was treated.^{[citation needed]}

Ruppersberger began his career as a Baltimore County Assistant State's Attorney. He was soon promoted to the Chief of the State's Attorney Office Investigative Division, pursuing organized crime, political corruption, and drug trafficking. He was elected to the Baltimore County Council in 1985 and was twice chosen as council chairman.^{[citation needed]}

In December 1994 and again in 1998, Ruppersberger was elected Baltimore County Executive.

U.S. House of Representatives

Congressman Ruppersberger calls on Congress to create a cabinet level intelligence director on August 3, 2004.

Committee assignments

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Strategic Forces
  • Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
• Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (Ranking Member)

Party leadership

• Assistant Whip

Ruppersberger was the first Democratic freshman ever to be appointed to the House Select Committee on Intelligence.

As the ranking Democratic member of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Ruppersberger is a member of the Gang of Eight, a group of the Congressional leaders whom the President is required to keep informed about national intelligence activities.

Philippines visit

On August 25, 2007, Ruppersberger joined Rep. Silvestre Reyes, chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the Armed Services Committee, and four other members of Congress visited American troops deployed in the southern Philippines to overview the US-Philippines relationship. They drove to the base of the Joint Special Operation Task Force Philippines (JSOTFP), a US-led body, which trains Filipino soldiers against terror, in Barangay Upper Calarian.^[1]

Operations Hero Miles

Ruppersberger created the "Operation Hero Miles" program, which encourages people to donate unused frequent flyer miles to U.S. armed forces personnel and families.^[2] He won a Charles Dick Medal of Merit for this initiative.^[2]

Political campaigns

Barred from a third term as County Executive, Ruppersberger opted to run for Congress in 2002 after 2nd District Congressman Bob Ehrlich made what turned out to be a successful run for governor. The Maryland General Assembly significantly altered the 2nd by shifting most of its share of Harford County to the 1st and 6th Districts. In its place, the legislature added a heavily Democratic portion of Baltimore City that had previously been in the 1st District. This turned the 2nd from a swing district into a strongly Democratic district. It was an open secret that the district was drawn for Ruppersberger; local media called the new district "the Dutch district." An August 2011 editorial by The Washington Post describes the 2nd district as "curlicue territories strung together by impossibly delicate tendrils of land" and "a crazy-quilt confection drawn for the express purpose of ousting the incumbent at the time, Rep. (and later Gov.) Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., a Republican, and installing C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, a Democrat who still holds the job."^[3] He defeated Republican opponent Helen Delich Bentley, who had represented the 2nd district from 1985 to 1995, with 55 percent of the vote. Ruppersberger has never faced another contest even that close, and has been reelected four times.

Electoral history

Year	Office	Election		Subject	Party	Votes	%		Opponent	Party	Votes	%
1994	Baltimore County Executive	General		Charles Albert Ruppersberger, III	Democratic	N/A	N/A		N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
1998	Baltimore County Executive	General		Charles Albert Ruppersberger, III	Democratic	166,482	70.47		John J. Bishop	Republican	69,449	29.4
2002	Maryland's 2nd congressional district	General		Charles Albert Ruppersberger, III	Democratic	105,718	54.16		Helen Delich Bentley	Republican	88,954	45.57
2004	Maryland's 2nd congressional district	General		Charles Albert Ruppersberger, III	Democratic	164,751	66.62		Jane Brooks	Republican	75,812	30.66
2006	Maryland's 2nd congressional district	General		Charles Albert Ruppersberger, III	Democratic	135,818	69.21		Jimmy Mathis	Republican	60,195	30.68
2008	Maryland's 2nd congressional district	General		Charles Albert Ruppersberger, III	Democratic	198,578	71.9		Richard Pryce Matthews	Republican	68,561	24.8
2010	Maryland's 2nd congressional district	General		Charles Albert Ruppersberger, III	Democratic	134,133	64.21		Marcelo Cardarelli	Republican	69,523	33.28

Personal life

Ruppersberger married in 1971 and has two grown children, Cory and Jill.^[4]

References

1. ^ "Inquirer.net, US congressmen visit troops in Mindanao". http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view_article.php?article_id=84644. Retrieved 2011-11-20. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "Ruppersberger Receives Medal For 'Operation Hero Miles'". WBAL-TV. http://www.wbaltv.com/travelgetaways/3853008/detail.html. Retrieved 17 August 2011. 
3. ^ "Maryland Democrats redraw the congressional district map". The Washington Post. 20 August 2011. http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/maryland-democrats-redraw-the-congressional-district-map/2011/08/16/gIQATbwfSJ_story.html. Retrieved 22 August 2011. 
4. ^ Biography (2011-10-25). "Biography - Congressman Ruppersberger". Dutch.house.gov. http://dutch.house.gov/bio.shtml. Retrieved 2011-11-20. 

• Official Congressional biography of Ruppersberger
• Dutch Ruppersberger at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Congressional Quarterly Voting and Elections Collection.
• Maryland Archives, Baltimore County elections, 1998

External links

• Congressman C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger official U.S. House 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

Political offices
Preceded by Roger B. Hayden	Baltimore County Executive 1994 – 2002	Succeeded by James T. Smith
United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Robert Ehrlich	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maryland's 2nd congressional district 2003–present	Incumbent
United States order of precedence
Preceded by Mike D. Rogers R-Alabama	United States Representatives by seniority 220th	Succeeded by Tim Ryan D-Ohio

Persondata
Name	Ruppersberger, Dutch
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	January 31, 1946
Place of birth	Baltimore, Maryland
Date of death
Place of death