Federico Peña

Infobox Officeholder
name =Federico Fabian Peña


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order =12th
office =United States Secretary of Transportation
term_start =January 21, 1993
term_end =February 14, 1997
deputy =
president =Bill Clinton
predecessor =Andrew Card
successor =Rodney E. Slater
order2 =8th United States Secretary of Energy
term_start2 =March 12, 1997
term_end2 =June 30, 1998
president2 =Bill Clinton
predecessor2 =Hazel R. O'Leary
successor2 =Bill Richardson
birth_date = Birth date and age|1947|3|15|mf=y
birth_place =Laredo, Texas
death_date =
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Federico Fabian Peña (born March 15, 1947) was United States Secretary of Transportation from 1993 to 1997 and United States Secretary of Energy from 1997 to 1998, during the presidency of Bill Clinton.

Born in Laredo, Texas, Peña earned a B.A. (1969) and a J.D. (1972) from the University of Texas at Austin and The University of Texas School of Law. Moving to Colorado, where he became a practicing attorney, Peña was elected to the Colorado House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1979, where he rose to become Minority Leader. In 1983, Peña defeated a 14-year incumbent, William H. McNichols, Jr. to become the first Hispanic Mayor of Denver, a post to which he was re-elected in 1987.

Peña advised Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton on transportation issues during Clinton's successful 1992 presidential campaign, and Clinton chose Peña to head the United States Department of Transportation. Although he had intended to leave Clinton's cabinet after a single term, Peña also served as Secretary of Energy for one year, from 1997 to 1998 [ Pena Resigns as Energy Secretary, Citing Concerns for Family, NY Times, April 7, 1998 [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B04E4DC1E3AF934A35757C0A96E958260] ] . In 1995 he came under investigation for awarding State and federal contracts to companies in which he had a financial interest. On March 17, 1995 Janet Reno ended the investigation. [Secretary of Transportation Will Not Face a Prosecutor, NY Times, March 17, 1995 [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE6DC1F3FF934A25750C0A963958260] ]

Upon leaving the Clinton administration, Peña returned to Denver and joined investment firm Vestar Capital Partners in August 1998, as Senior Advisor. On January 18, 2000, Vestar announced that Peña had been promoted to one of the firm's Managing Directors. [http://www.vestarcapital.com/news/details.aspx?id=178]

Peña Boulevard, a freeway in Denver connecting Denver International Airport to Interstate 70, is named for him. As mayor of Denver, Peña led the effort to build the airport.

Peña is the father of three children: Nelia, Cristina, and Ryan Peña. The divorce of Federico Peña and his first wife, Ellen Hart Peña, became final on September 10, 2001. Federico Peña married Cindy Velasquez on September 2, 2006. Cindy Velasquez is a former broadcast executive for Channel 7, KMGH-TV, and Channel 9, KUSA-TV, in Denver, Colorado.

Peña is also known for the case "Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Peña", ussc|515|200|1995, which overruled "Metro Broadcasting v. FCC", ussc|497|547|1990, and held that all cases dealing with racial classifications must be reviewed using "strict scrutiny."

On September 7, 2007, Peña announced that he would endorse Sen. Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election, and also serve as Obama's National Campaign Co-chair. The move was notable in that Peña did not endorse Sen. Hillary Clinton, the wife of the president under whom he served. [ [http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2007/09/07/clinton-cabinet-member-backs-obama/ CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive - Clinton cabinet member backs Obama « - Blogs from CNN.com ] ]

References

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Persondata
NAME=Peña, Frederico Fabian
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=U.S. Secretary of Transportation, 1993-1997
DATE OF BIRTH=March 15, 1947
PLACE OF BIRTH=Laredo, Texas
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=