- Alan K. Simpson
Infobox Senator |name=Alan K. Simpson
nationality=American
jr/sr=United States Senator
state=Wyoming
party=Republican
term_start=January 1 ,1979
term_end=January 3 ,1997
preceded=Clifford Hansen
succeeded=Michael Enzi
date of birth=Birth date and age|1931|9|2|mf=y
place of birth=Denver,Colorado
dead=alive
date of death=
place of death=
law school=University of Wyoming , 1958
spouse=Susan Ann (Ann) Schroll Simpson
children=Colin M. Simpson
religion=EpiscopalianAlan Kooi Simpson (born
September 2 ,1931 , inDenver, Colorado , U.S.A.) is a Republican politician who served from 1979 to 1997 as a United States senator fromWyoming . His father,Milward L. Simpson , was also a member of the U.S. Senate from Wyoming (1962–1967) and a former governor of Wyoming (1955–1959) as well.Early life
As a young man, Simpson was a
Boy Scout , and visitedJapanese American Boy Scouts who, along with their families, had been interned inWyoming duringWorld War II . There, he developed a friendship withNorman Mineta , who later became a U.S. Congressman and cabinet member. They both served together on the Board of Regents of theSmithsonian Institution , and remain close friends. [cite web |last = Matthews |first = Chris |authorlink = |coauthors = |year =2002 |url =http://www.scoutingmagazine.org/issues/0201/d-wwas.html |title = A Pair of Boy Scouts |format = |work =Scouting Magazine |publisher =Boy Scouts of America |accessdate =2006-12-16]One of Simpson's babysitters as a young boy was the future lieutenant governor and education superintendent of
Louisiana ,William J. "Bill" Dodd , who played baseball for a time as a young man in Cody with teammate Milward Simpson.Alan Simpson graduated from
Cody High School inCody, Wyoming , in 1949 and attendedCranbrook School inBloomfield Hills, Michigan , in 1950. He graduated from theUniversity of Wyoming in 1954 with aBachelor of Science degree and in 1958 with aJuris Doctor degree. He served in theUnited States Army inGermany from 1955–1956 with the 10th Infantry Regiment, Fifth Infantry Division and with the 12th Armored Infantry Battalion,Second Armored Division.He was a member of the
Alpha Tau Omega fraternity at the University of Wyoming.U.S. Senate
Simpson was elected to the
U.S. Senate onNovember 7 ,1978 , but was appointed to the post early onJanuary 1 ,1979 , following the resignation ofClifford P. Hansen . From 1985 to 1995, Simpson was the Republican whip in the Senate, having served with then Republican Leader Robert J. "Bob" Dole ofKansas . He waschairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee from 1981 to 1987 and again from 1995 to 1997 when Republicans regained control of the Senate. He also chaired the Immigration and Refugee Subcommittee of Judiciary; the Nuclear Regulation Subcommittee; the Social Security Subcommittee and the Committee on Aging. In 1995, he lost the whip's job toTrent Lott ofMississippi , and he did not seek reelection to the Senate in 1996. From 1997 to 2000, Simpson taught at theJoan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics, and Public Policy atHarvard University 'sJohn F. Kennedy School of Government inCambridge, Massachusetts , and served for two years as the Director of the Institute of Politics at theKennedy School .Simpson returned to his home of Cody and practices law there with his two lawyer sons (William and Colin) in the firm of
Simpson, Kepler and Edwards . The three are also partners in the firm ofBurg Simpson Eldrege Hersh and Jardine ofEnglewood, Colorado . Colin Simpson, the third generation of his family in Wyoming politics, is a Republican member of the Wyoming House of Representatives and a potential candidate for the U.S. Senate seat vacated onJune 4 ,2007 , by the death of SenatorCraig L. Thomas , a boyhood friend of Alan Simpson's.After Congressional Service
Alan Simpson teaches periodically at his "alma mater", the
University of Wyoming at Laramie. He has completed serving as chair of the UW capital "Campaign for Distinction", which raised $204 million. That success was celebrated by the gala event, "An Extraordinary Evening", featuring former PresidentGeorge H.W. Bush (who had reportedly considered Simpson for the vice presidency in 1988) and Vice PresidentDick Cheney and wifeLynne V. Cheney (who are both honored UW alumni).Simpson serves on the
Commission for Continuity in Government . He also serves as co-chair ofAmericans for Campaign Reform with former Senate colleaguesBill Bradley ofNew Jersey ,Warren Rudman ofNew Hampshire andBob Kerrey ofNebraska , is active with theNational Commission on Writing , is on the Advisory Board ofCommon Good (atort reform advocacy group), is a former member of theAmerican Battle Monuments Commission , and is a member of theIraq Study Group .Simpson's father, Milward Simpson, also served in the Senate and was among six Republican members who voted against the
Civil Rights Act of 1964 on constitutional grounds. Alan Simpson, however, has been an outspoken advocate for access toabortion , gay and lesbian rights, and equality for all persons regardless of race, color, creed, gender, or sexual orientation. In an article in the "Washington Post ", the former senator wrote an article criticizing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell " policy stating " 'Gay' is an artificial category that says little about a person. Our differences and prejudices pale next to our historic challenge."In 2001, Simpson became Honorary Chairman of the Republican Unity Coalition (RUC), a gay/straight alliance within the Republican Party. In this capacity, Simpson personally recruited President
Gerald R. Ford to serve on the RUC's Advisory Board. The organization has since disbanded.In 2002, Simpson got involved in the Republican
gubernatorial primary on behalf of former DemocratEli Bebout of Riverton, the seat of Fremont County. Simpson criticized Bebout's principalconservative challenger, Raymond Breedlove Hunkins of Wheatland, the seat of Platte County in southeastern Wyoming. Bebout defeated Hunkins but then lost thegeneral election to the Democratic nominee David Duane "Dave" Freudenthal, a formerUnited States Attorney appointed by PresidentBill Clinton .In 2006, Mr. Simpson was one of twelve contributors to the
Iraq Study Group Report.In popular culture
The June 7, 1994, edition of the now-defunct supermarket tabloid "
Weekly World News " reported that 12 U.S. Senators were aliens from other planets, including Simpson. TheAssociated Press ran a follow-up piece which confirmed the tongue-in-cheek participation of Senate offices in the story. Then-Senator Simpson's spokesman Charles Pelkey, when asked about Simpson's galactic origins, told theKlaatu barada nikto ." [ [http://www.skepticfiles.org/ufo2/12senaln.htm "Senators Jokingly Confirm Tabloid Claim They Are Space Aliens"] , "Associated Press", May 25, 1994] This was a reference to the 1951 science fiction classic film, "The Day the Earth Stood Still", in which an alien arrives byflying saucer inWashington, D.C. Simpson also played himself in a
cameo appearance for the 1993 film, "Dave". [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0800883/]ee also
References
External links
* [http://rmoa.unm.edu/docviewer.php?docId=wyu-ah10449.xml Al Simpson Finding Aid at the University of Wyoming]
Bibliography
*"Right in the Old Gazoo: A Lifetime of Scrapping with the Press" (ISBN 0-688-11358-3, 1997, William Morrow & Company)
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