Steny Hoyer

Steny Hoyer
26th Majority Leader of the United States House of Representatives
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 3, 2007
Speaker	Nancy Pelosi
Whip	Jim Clyburn
Preceded by	John Boehner
21st Minority Whip of the United States House of Representatives
In office January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2007
Leader	Nancy Pelosi
Preceded by	Nancy Pelosi
Succeeded by	Roy Blunt
Member of the United States House of Representatives from Maryland's 5th district
Incumbent
Assumed office  May 19, 1981
Preceded by	Gladys Spellman
82nd President of the Maryland Senate
In office 1975–1978
Governor	Marvin Mandel Blair Lee, III (acting)
Preceded by	William S. James
Succeeded by	James A. Clark, Jr.
Maryland State Senator
In office 1966–1979
Born	June 14, 1939 (1939-06-14) (age 71) New York City, New York
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Judith Hoyer (widowed)
Children	Susan Hoyer Stefany Hoyer Anne Hoyer
Residence	Mechanicsville, Maryland
Alma mater	University of Maryland, College Park Georgetown University Law Center
Profession	Attorney
Religion	Baptist

Steny Hamilton Hoyer (pronounced /ˈstɛni ˈhɔɪ.ər/; born June 14, 1939) is a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Maryland's 5th congressional district since 1981. On November 16, 2006, Hoyer was elected as House Majority Leader over John Murtha of Pennsylvania.^[1][2] He is the first Marylander to become Majority Leader.^[3]

Early life and family

Hoyer was born in New York City but grew up in Mitchellville, Maryland. His mother, Jean Baldwin, was American, and his father, Steen Theilgaard Høyer, was Danish and a native of Copenhagen; "Steny" is a variant of his father's name, "Steen",^[4] and Hoyer is an anglicized form of the fairly common Danish surname "Høyer". He graduated from Suitland High School in Suitland, Maryland. In 1963, he graduated magna cum laude from the University of Maryland, College Park, where he also became a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.^[5] He earned his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. in 1966.^[5] In the 1960s, Hoyer interned for Senator Daniel Brewster (D-Maryland), along with current Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.^[6]

Hoyer has three daughters: Susan, Stefany, and Anne from his marriage to his wife, Judy Pickett Hoyer, who died in 1997. Hoyer also has two granddaughters, one grandson and a great-granddaughter (born on November 2, 2006). His wife was an advocate of early childhood education, and child development learning centers in Maryland have been named in her honor ("Judy Centers").^[7] She also suffered from epilepsy, and the Epilepsy Foundation of America sponsors an annual public lecture in her name.^[8] Hoyer, too, has been an advocate for research in this area, and the Epilepsy Foundation presented him in 2002 with their Congressional Leadership Award.^[9]

Non-political career

Hoyer also serves on the Board of Trustees for St. Mary's College of Maryland^[5] and is a member of the board of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, a non profit that supports international elections.^[10]

Maryland Senate career

In 1966, Hoyer won a seat in the Maryland State Senate, representing Prince George's County, Maryland.^[5] In 1975, Hoyer was elected President of the Maryland State Senate, the youngest in state history.^[11] In 1978, Hoyer sought the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor of Maryland but lost out to Samuel Bogley. In the same year Hoyer was appointed to the Maryland Board of Higher Education, a position he served in until 1981.^[5]

Career in the House of Representatives

Ascent to Majority Leader

An earlier congressional portrait of Hoyer.

After Maryland Representative Gladys Spellman fell into a coma, her seat was declared vacant in 1981. Hoyer defeated Spellman's husband in the primary election, and then defeated a better funded Republican candidate in the general election, earning himself the nickname of "boy wonder".^[12]

Hoyer has served as chair of the Democratic Caucus, the fourth-ranking position among House of Representatives Democrats, from 1989 to 1994; the former co-chair (and a current member) of the Democratic Steering Committee; and as the chief candidate recruiter for House Democrats from 1995 to 2000. He also served as Deputy Majority Whip from 1987 to 1989.^[5] On November 14, 2002, Hoyer was unanimously elected by his colleagues in the Democratic Caucus to serve as the House Democratic Minority Whip, the second-highest-ranking position among House Democrats.^[11] Now as the Democratic Majority Leader he is the highest-ranking member of Congress in Maryland history, and the longest-serving House member from southern Maryland in history.^[11]

Nancy Pelosi became the Speaker of the House in January 2007. Hoyer, the second-ranking Democrat in the House, was elected by his colleagues to be House Majority Leader for the 110th Congress. He was successful in his bid for the leadership position against fellow Democrat John Murtha of Pennsylvania by a vote of 149-86 within the caucus.^[1][13]

Campaign fundraising

Then-President George W. Bush meets with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer on November 9, 2006.

Hoyer is a prolific fundraiser for House Democrats. He is the top giver to fellow party members in the House. He has given over $1 million to the party and individual candidates over the current election cycle as of July 14, 2008, according to CQ Moneyline. ^[14]

In March 2007, the Center for Public Integrity reported that Hoyer's political action committee "raised nearly $1 million for congressional candidates [in the 2006 election cycle] by exploiting what experts call a legal loophole." The Center reported:

Campaign finance disclosure records show that the Maryland Democrat used his leadership political action committee — AmeriPAC — as a conduit to collect bundles of checks from individuals, and from business and union interests. He then passed more than $960,000 along to 53 House candidates and another quarter of a million to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, data compiled from the Center for Responsive Politics Web site show. Federal law generally prohibits political action committees, including leadership PACs, which are run by politicians, from receiving more than $5,000 each year from a single donor or giving more than $10,000 to a single candidate ($5,000 each for the primary and the general election). But Hoyer collected as much as $136,000 from one labor union committee and distributed more than $86,000 to a single Congressional race.^[15]

The only media to cover the report, the Capital News Service (Maryland), quickly pointed out how common and legal the practice is:

"That's like saying somebody who deducts mortgage interest on their taxes is exploiting a tax loophole," said Nathaniel Persily, a campaign finance expert and University of Pennsylvania Law School professor. "What exactly is the problem?" "Bundling is very common," said Steve Weisman, of the George Washington University's Campaign Finance Institute. What Hoyer, a lawyer, did was perfectly legal, the Federal Election Commission said, too. In fact, his insistence on detailed reporting made tracking the funds easier. ^[16]

Massa controversy

In March 2010, Rep. Eric Massa resigned from Congress against allegations of sexual harassment of his staff members. The House Ethics Committee is actively investigating at what point Hoyer found out about the allegations surrounding Rep. Massa, as Hoyer never reported the allegations. In the course of the investigation, several Hoyer aides were interviewed by the House Ethics Committee.^[17][18]

2008 election

Hoyer won re-election against Republican Collins Bailey in November 2008 by a 74%-26% vote.^[19]

Positions

Domestic issues

Hoyer speaks during the second day of the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.

• Social Issues: Hoyer is pro-choice.^[20] He voted against the Partial-Abortion ban bill in 2003. Hoyer supports affirmative action and gay rights.
• Gun Rights: Hoyer opposes unrestricted gun ownership. He is rated F by the NRA, indicating a pro-gun control voting record
• Privacy: Hoyer claimed to oppose providing immunity to telecom companies but has come under fire for negotiating a bill, described by Senators Patrick Leahy and Russ Feingold as a "capitulation", that would provide immunity to any telecom company ^[21]that had been told by the Bush administration that their actions were legal.^{[22][23][24][25]} “No matter how they spin it, this is still immunity,” said Kevin Bankston, a senior lawyer for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a privacy rights group that has sued over President Bush's wiretapping program. “It’s not compromise, it’s pure theater.” ^[26]
• In a USA Today opinion piece regarding health care reform that was published August 10, 2009, Steny Hoyer wrote that "Drowning out opposing views is simply un-American." (http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2009/08/unamerican-attacks-cant-derail-health-care-debate-.html)

Position on international affairs

• India: Hoyer supports civilian nuclear cooperation with India. ^[27]
• Iraq: Hoyer initially supported the Iraq War and was even recognized by the DLC for his vocal leadership on this issue. After the war became publicly unpopular, Hoyer said he favored a "responsible redeployment". ^[28] However, he has repeatedly supported legislation to continue funding for the war without deadlines for troop withdrawal, most recently in return for increased funding of domestic projects. ^[29]
• Israel: Hoyer is a supporter of Israel, and has often been allied with American Israel Public Affairs Committee. In September 2007, he criticized Rep. Jim Moran for suggesting that AIPAC "has pushed (the Iraq) war from the beginning," calling the comment "factually inaccurate." ^[30].
• Iran: Hoyer has stated that a nuclear Iran is "unacceptable" and that the use of force remains an option.^[31]
• Human Rights: Hoyer is a former chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe.

Election history^[32][33]

References

External links

• Congressman Steny Hoyer official U.S. House website
• Office of the Majority Leader Steny Hoyer official website

• 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
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission

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Democratic Party Leaders in the United States House of Representatives Bailey • Richardson • Williams • Clark • Underwood • Kitchin • Clark • Kitchin • Garrett • Garner • Rainey • Byrns • Bankhead • Rayburn • McCormack • Rayburn • McCormack • Rayburn • McCormack • Albert • Boggs • O'Neill • Wright • Foley • Gephardt • Pelosi • Hoyer • Pelosi (elect)

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Democratic Whips of the United States House of Representatives Underwood • Lloyd • Bell • Oldfield • McDuffie • Greenwood • Boland • Ramspeck • Sparkman • McCormack • Priest • McCormack • Albert • Boggs • O'Neill • McFall • Brademas • Foley • Coelho • Gray •Bonior • Pelosi • Hoyer • Clyburn • Hoyer (elect)