| Barbara Lee | |
 |
|
|
|
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office April 7, 1998 |
|
| Preceded by | Ron Dellums |
|---|---|
| Succeeded by | Incumbent (2009) |
|
|
|
| Born | July 16, 1946 El Paso, Texas |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | None |
| Residence | Oakland, California |
| Religion | Baptist |
| Website | Barbara Lee |
Barbara Jean Lee (born July 16, 1946), is an American politician, and has been a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 1998, representing California's 9th congressional district (map). The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. California's 9th congressional district covers a significant portion of the East Bay portion of the San Francisco Bay Area. Events 529 - First draft of Corpus Juris Civilis (a fundamental work in Jurisprudence) is issued by Eastern Roman Emperor Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) Ronald Vernie "Ron" Dellums (born November 24 1935 is the current Mayor of Oakland, California Events 622 - The beginning of the Islamic calendar. 1054 - Three Roman legates fractured relations between the Western and Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. Oakland (ˈoʊklənd founded in 1852 is the eighth-largest city in the U Baptist is a term describing individuals belonging to a Baptist church or a Baptist denomination. Events 622 - The beginning of the Islamic calendar. 1054 - Three Roman legates fractured relations between the Western and Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. California's 9th congressional district covers a significant portion of the East Bay portion of the San Francisco Bay Area. She is the first woman to represent that district. Lee is the First Vice-Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The Congressional Black Caucus is an organization representing the African American members of the Congress of the United States. The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC is the single largest partisan caucus in the United States House of Representatives, and works together to advance Lee is notable as the only person in either chamber of Congress who voted against the authorization of use of force following the September 11, 2001 attacks. An unlawful combatant or unprivileged combatant/belligerent is a Civilian who directly engages in armed conflict under the International Humanitarian Law [1] This made her a hero among the anti-war movement, but also caused her to receive death threats. A peace movement is a Social movement that seeks to achieve ideals such as the ending of a particular war (or all wars minimize inter-human violence in a particular place or [2] Lee has been a vocal critic of the Iraq War and supports legislation creating a Department of Peace. The Iraq War, also known as the Second Gulf War, the Occupation of Iraq, or the War in Iraq, is an ongoing Military campaign The Department of Peace and Non-violence is a proposed cabinet -level department of the Executive branch of the U
Contents |
Biography
Early life and education
Congresswoman Lee was born in El Paso, Texas. She moved from Texas to California in 1960 with her military family parents, and attended high school at San Fernando High School, San Fernando, California. Texas ( is a state geographically located in the South Central United States and is also known as the Lone Star State. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. San Fernando is a city located in northwestern Los Angeles County California, United States. She was a young single mother of two receiving public assistance when she began attending college. [3][4] Lee was educated at Mills College and received an M.S.W. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1975. Mills College is an independent liberal arts women's college founded in 1852 that offers The Master of Social Work ( MSW) is a Master's degree in Social work received from a Graduate school that has been approved by the Council The University of California Berkeley (also referred to as Cal, Berkeley and UC Berkeley) is a major research university located in Berkeley [5]
Political career
While a student at Mills College, she was a volunteer at the Oakland chapter of the Black Panther Party's Community Learning Center and worked on Panther co-founder Bobby Seale's 1973 Oakland mayoral campaign. The Black Panther Party (originally the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense) was a Marxist / Maoist African-American organization established Robert George "Bobby" Seale (born October 22, 1936 in Dallas Texas) is an American Civil rights activist who along [6] Lee was a staff member for United States Representative Ron Dellums and a member of the California State Assembly and the California State Senate before entering the House. Ronald Vernie "Ron" Dellums (born November 24 1935 is the current Mayor of Oakland, California The California State Assembly is the Lower house of the California State Legislature. The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. She ran for Congress in a special election that created a year-long series of five special elections as various East Bay politicians vied for political office. A by-election or bye-election (called special election in the United States) is an Election held to fill a political office that has become vacant (For a detailed account of these elections, see Special election musical chairs. " Special election musical chairs " is a term used by editorialists to describe a series of Special elections triggered by the mid-term resignation or death of an officeholder )
Lee gained national attention in 2001 as the only member of congress to vote "No" on the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Terrorists (AUMF), stating that she did not do so because she opposed action but because she believed the AUMF, as written, granted overly-broad powers to wage war to the president at a time when the facts regarding the situation were not yet clear. The Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Terrorists ( one of two resolutions commonly known as "AUMF" (the other being " Authorization for Use of Military She explained "It was a blank check to the president to attack anyone involved in the September 11 events -- anywhere, in any country, without regard to our nation's long- term foreign policy, economic and national security interests, and without time limit. In granting these overly broad powers, the Congress failed its responsibility to understand the dimensions of its declaration. . . . The president has the constitutional authority to protect the nation from further attack and he has mobilized the armed forces to do just that. The Congress should have waited for the facts to be presented and then acted with fuller knowledge of the consequences of our action. "
This vote made nationwide news reports and brought about a large and extremely polarized response, with the volume of calls gridlocking the switchboard of her Capitol Hill office. While it appears to have reflected the beliefs of the majority of her constituents, the majority of responses from elsewhere in the nation were angry, some referring to her as "communist" and "traitor". Enough responses included death threats against her or her family that the Capitol Hill Police provided round the clock plainclothed bodyguards. [7] She was also criticized by politicians and in editorial pages of conservative-leaning newspapers, e. g. John Fund's column in The Wall Street Journal. John Fund (born on April 8 1957 in Tucson Arizona) is an American political Journalist and Columnist for the website [8]
She was one of the 31 who voted in the House to not count the electoral votes from Ohio in the 2004 presidential election [1]. The Electoral College consists of 538 popularly elected representatives who formally select the President and Vice President of the United States. Ohio ( is a Midwestern state of the United States. As part of the Great Lakes region, Ohio has long been a cultural and geographical crossroads The United States presidential election of 2004 was held on Tuesday November 2, 2004, to elect the President of the United States.
Rep. Lee is the author of the Shirley A. Chisholm United States-Caribbean Educational Exchange Act, H.R. 176, which would enhance U. S. foreign relations with CARICOM nations. The Caribbean Community ( CARICOM) is an organization of Caribbean nations and dependencies The bill directs the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to develop a comprehensive program that extends and expands existing primary and secondary school initiatives in the Caribbean to provide: (1) teacher training methods; and (2) increased community involvement in school activities. [9] The bill is named for former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, who helped inspire Lee to become involved in politics when Chisholm ran for the Democratic nomination for President; Lee became the Northern California Chair of the Chisholm campaign. Shirley Anita St Hill Chisholm ( November 30, 1924 – January 1, 2005) was an American politician educator and author
Personal life and public image
Lee has two sons, Tony and Craig, both of whom work in the insurance industry. Tony is a partner in Dickerson Employee Benefits, the largest African-American owned insurance brokerage consulting firm in the United States.
Lee has endorsed Senator Barack Obama for President in the 2008 primary. [10]
Lee was ranked as the sixth-most liberal member of the House by the National Journal, based on roll-call votes on economic, social and foreign policy issues in 2006. Liberalism in the United States is a broad political and philosophical mindset favoring individual Liberty, and opposing restrictions on liberty whether they come from National Journal is a weekly magazine that reports on the current political environment and emerging political and policy trends [11] Lee received a 97% progressive rating from a self-described non-partisan group that provides a "searchable database of Congressional voting records from a Progressive perspective,"[12] and a 4% conservative rating from the American Conservative Union. Progressivism is a term that refers to a broad school of international social and political philosophies. Conservatism in the United States includes a variety of political ideologies including Fiscal conservatism, Supply-side economics, Social conservatism The American Conservative Union ( ACU) is an American political organization advocating conservative policies. [13]
Committee Assignments
- Appropriations Committee
- Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Subcommittee
- Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
- Legislative Branch Subcommittee
- Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus
- First Vice-Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus
- Co-Chair of the CBC Outreach Task Force
References
- ^ Final Vote Results for Roll Call 342, U. S. House of Representatives. Accessed 7 April 2007. Events 529 - First draft of Corpus Juris Civilis (a fundamental work in Jurisprudence) is issued by Eastern Roman Emperor Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.
- ^ Office of Representative John Conyers, Jr. , United States House of Representatives (2001-09-19). Year 2001 ( MMI) was a Common year starting on Monday according to the Gregorian calendar. Events 335 - Dalmatius is raised to the rank of Caesar by his uncle Constantine I. "Conyers Denounces Death Threats Against Rep. Barbara Lee". Press release. A news release, media release, press release or press statement is a written or recorded Communication directed at members of the News Retrieved on 2008-03-05. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 363 - Roman Emperor Julian moves from Antioch with an army of 90000 to attack the Sassanid Empire, in a
- ^ East Bay Daily News, November 16, 2006
- ^ San Francisco Chronicle Profile September 26, 2001
- ^ University of California, Berkeley
- ^ Oakland Tribune, October 8, 2006
- ^ Lee, Barbara. "Why I opposed the resolution to authorize force" San Francisco Chronicle September 23, 2001.
- ^ Wall Street Journal, September 17, 2001
- ^ Search Results - THOMAS (Library of Congress)
- ^ Rep. Barbara Lee: Today I Endorsed Barack Obama - Politics on The Huffington Post
- ^ National Journal "liberal" ranking
- ^ Leading with the Left. Progressive Punch. Retrieved on 2007-10-19. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 202 BCE - The Battle of Zama results in the defeat of Carthage and Hannibal.
- ^ ACU Ratings of Congress, 2006. American Conservative Union (2006). Retrieved on 2007-10-19. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 202 BCE - The Battle of Zama results in the defeat of Carthage and Hannibal.
External links
- U.S. Congresswoman Barbara Lee official House site
- Barbara Lee at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Federal Election Commission — Barbara Lee campaign finance reports and data
- On the Issues — Barbara Lee issue positions and quotes
- OpenSecrets.org — Barbara Lee campaign contributions
- Project Vote Smart — Representative Barbara J. Lee (CA) profile
- Washington Post — Congress Votes Database: Barbara Lee voting record
- Re-Elect Barbara Lee official campaign site
Articles
- Alone on the Hill Mother Jones, September 20, 2001, interview with Barbara Lee
- Permanent Occupation Rep. The Biographical Directory of the United States Congress is a Biographical dictionary of all present and former members of the United States Congress as Barbara Lee, In These Times, September 29, 2005
- A Progressive State of the Union Barbara Lee and Lynn Woolsey, In These Times, January 31, 2006
- Text of Barbara Lee's dissent against the war in Afghanistan on the House Floor September 15, 2001
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Elihu Harris |
California State Assemblywoman, 13th District 1990-1992 |
Succeeded by Willie Brown |
| Preceded by John L. Burton |
California State Assemblywoman, 16th District 1992-1996 |
Succeeded by Don Perata |
| Preceded by Ron Dellums |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 9th congressional district 1998–Present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic