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Lisa Murkowski

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Lisa Murkowski
United States Senator
from Alaska
Assumed office
December 20, 2002
Serving with Mark Begich
Preceded byFrank Murkowski
Member of the
Alaska House of Representatives
from the 18th District
In office
2000–2002
Preceded byCon Bunde
Succeeded byNancy Dahlstrom[1]
Member of the
Alaska House of Representatives
from the 14th District
In office
1998–2000
Preceded byTerry Martin[2]
Succeeded byVic Kohring[3]
Personal details
Political partyRepublican
SpouseVerne Martell
ChildrenNic Martell
Matt Martell
ResidenceAnchorage, Alaska
Alma materGeorgetown University (B.A.)
Willamette University College of Law (J.D.)
ProfessionLawyer
Signature

Lisa Ann Murkowski (born May 22, 1957) is the senior U.S. Senator from the State of Alaska. A Republican, she was first appointed to the Senate in 2002 by her father, Governor Frank Murkowski. She won election in 2004, becoming the only woman ever elected to Congress from Alaska, in addition to being the first U.S. Senator born in Alaska. After her narrow, unexpected defeat in the 2010 Republican primary election, she mounted a write-in campaign. On November 11, 2010 the winner remained undetermined. With 99% of the precincts reporting, write-in ballots comprised 41% of the vote, Republican Party nominee Joe Miller had 34%, and Democrat Scott McAdams had 24%.[4] The process of examining the names on write-in ballots to determine the winner of the election is expected to begin by November 18. [4] If victorious, Murkowski would be the second US Senator to be elected by a write-in campaign (Strom Thurmond being the first).

Early life, family, and early career

Murkowski was born in Ketchikan, Alaska to Nancy (née Gore) and Frank Murkowski. Her paternal great-grandfather was of Polish descent, and her mother was of Irish and French Canadian ancestry.[5] As a child, she and her family moved all over the state due to her father's job as a banker.

Murkowski earned a B.A. in economics from Georgetown University in 1980, the same year her father was elected to the U.S. Senate. She is a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority.[6] She received her law degree from Willamette University College of Law in 1985. After passing the exam in 1987, she became a member of the Alaska Bar Association. She was employed as an attorney in the Anchorage District Court Clerk's office, working there from 1987 to 1989.[7] She was an attorney in private practice in Anchorage, Alaska from 1989 to 1998. She also served, from 1990 to 1991, on the mayor's task force on the homeless.

Alaska House of Representatives

In 1998, Murkowski was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives and named as House Majority Leader for the 2003–2004 session. She never served as Majority Leader, due to her appointment to the Senate. Murkowski sat on the Alaska Commission on Post Secondary Education and chaired both the Labor and Commerce and the Military and Veterans Affairs Committees. In 1999 she introduced legislation establishing a Joint Armed Services Committee.

U.S. Senate

Committee assignments

Source: 2009 Congressional Record, Vol. 155, Page S730

Political positions

Murkowski is considered a moderate Republican. She is generally pro-choice on abortion and supports embryonic stem cell research, but not when it is Federally funded. She is also a member of the Republican Majority For Choice, Republicans For Choice, and The Wish List (Women in the Senate and House), a group of pro-choice women Republicans.

Natives issues

Murkowski has helped protect and ensure that health care is delivered by the 100 percent Native owned and controlled Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and a network of tribally operated hospitals and clinics in rural Alaska hubs and villages.[citation needed] Murkowski is an active member of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and served as Vice Chair of the Committee during the 110th Congress. She is the Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and a member of the Committee on Appropriations, and has a continuing role on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. In 2009, she was honored with a Congressional Leadership Award by the National Congress of American Indians.[citation needed] She is the first Alaskan to receive the award.

Healthcare

Murkowski has stated numerous times that she would like to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Murkowski voted for H.R. 976, which called for the expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) to provide coverage for additional uninsured children.[8] That bill passed both the House and the Senate, but was vetoed by President Bush. She supports health care reforms in her native state as well, largely because health care costs for Alaskans are up to 70% higher than costs in the contiguous United States.

Hate Crimes Bill

Murkowski was one of five Republican senators who voted with Democrats for the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act.[9]

Energy and environment

Murkowski is currently the Ranking Member on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. She has given her support to efforts to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).[10] For the 109th Congress, Republicans for Environmental Protection, a group dedicated to environmental causes, issued Murkowski a rating of 2%, noting that in 2006 she voted:[11]

  • against S.C. Resolution 83, intended to bolster energy security and lower energy-related environmental impacts
  • against an amendment to S. 728 that would make the Army Corps of Engineers more accountable for the environmental and economic impacts of their projects
  • for oil drilling in ANWR
  • for offshore oil and gas drilling.

Murkowski believes that recent technological developments make it possible to drill without incurring environmental damage, which she stands by despite the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.[12]

On December 14, 2007, the Senate passed an energy bill that, among other things, encourages the use of renewable fuels. The legislation, which Murkowski supported, raises the renewable fuels standard to require the production of 36 billion gallons of biofuels by 2022, compared to the current production of about 7 billion gallons a year.[13]

She introduced a bill that would block the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from limiting the amount of greenhouse gases that major industries can produce. In a statement, Murkowski said, "We cannot turn a blind eye to the EPA’s efforts to impose back-door climate regulations with no input from Congress."[14]

In the wake of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Murkowski opposed a bill that would have raised the liability cap for oil spills from $75 million to $10 billion. She said that such a large cap would jeopardize various businesses, and that exposing companies to greater risk would make it impossible for smaller companies to compete.[15]

Controversies

In July 2007, Murkowski stated she would sell back land she bought from Anchorage businessman Bob Penney, a day after a Washington watchdog group filed a Senate ethics complaint against her, alleging that Penney sold the property well below market value.[16] The Anchorage Daily News noted, "The transaction amounted to an illegal gift worth between $70,000 and $170,000, depending on how the property was valued, according to the complaint by the National Legal and Policy Center."[16] According to the Associated Press, Murkowski bought the land from two developers tied to the Ted Stevens probe.[17]

In 2008, Murkowski amended her Senate financial disclosures for 2004 through 2006, adding income of $60,000 per year from the sale of a property in 2003, and more than $40,000 a year from the sale of her "Alaska Pasta Company" in 2005.[18][19]

Political campaigns

Murkowski, while a member of the state House, was appointed by her father, Governor Frank Murkowski, to his own unexpired Senate seat in December 2002, which he had vacated after being elected governor. The appointment caused a furor[20] in the state, and eventually resulted in a referendum that stripped the governor of his power to directly appoint replacement Senators.[21]

2004

See also: United States Senate election in Alaska, 2004

Murkowski was elected to a full six-year term against former Governor Tony Knowles in the 2004 election, after winning a primary challenge by a large margin. Near the end of the general campaign, senior senator Ted Stevens shot campaign ads for Murkowski and warned the public that if a Democrat replaced Murkowski they were likely to receive fewer federal dollars. She may have also been helped by George W. Bush carrying the state in a landslide over John Kerry.

2010

Lisa Murkowski campaigning for re-election in early 2010
See also: United States Senate election in Alaska, 2010

Murkowski faced the most difficult election of her career in the August 24 2010, Republican Party primary election against Joe Miller, a former U.S. magistrate judge[22] and a candidate supported by former Governor Sarah Palin.[23][24] The initial ballot count for the primary showed her trailing Miller by a margin of 51–49%, with absentee ballots yet to be tallied.[25] After the first round of absentee ballots were counted on August 31, Murkowski conceded the race, stating that she did not believe that Miller's lead would be overcome in the next round of absentee vote count.[26][27]

Following the outcome of the primary election, the Murkowski campaign floated the idea of her running as a Libertarian in the general election.[28] But on August 29, 2010, the executive board of the state Libertarian Party voted not to consider allowing Murkowski on its ticket for the U.S. Senate race.[29]

On September 17, 2010, Murkowski said that she would mount a write-in campaign for the Senate seat.[30]

Electoral history

United States Senate election in Alaska, 2004[31]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Lisa Murkowski (Incumbent) 149,446 48.62
Democratic Tony Knowles 139,878 45.51
Independent Marc J. Millican 8,857 2.88
Independence Jerry Sanders 3,765 1.22
Green Jim Sykes 3,039 0.99
Libertarian Scott A. Kohlhaas 1,237 0.40
Independent Ted Gianoutsos 726 0.24
Republican Primary results (438 of 438 precincts reporting)[32]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Joe Miller 55,878 50.91
Republican Lisa Murkowski (Incumbent) 53,872 49.09
Total votes 109,750 100

Personal life

Murkowski is married to Verne Martell.[33] They have two children, Nicolas and Matthew.[34] Her father, Frank Murkowski, was Governor of Alaska from 2002 to 2006 in addition to being her immediate predecessor in the Senate.[35]

See also

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References

  1. ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=35809
  2. ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=163071
  3. ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=35805
  4. ^ a b Becky Bohrer (November 3, 2010). "Write-in ballots lead in Alaska Senate race\". The Seattle Times. Associated Press.
  5. ^ "murkowski". Freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com. Retrieved 2010-06-20.
  6. ^ "Notable Pi Beta Phis in Government and Politics". Pi Beta Phi. Retrieved 2008-12-12.
  7. ^ Bolstad, Erika (2010-10-02). "Alaska". McClatchy Newspapers. Retrieved 2010-10-04. After she passed the bar exam, Murkowski worked from 1987 to 1989 as an attorney in the Anchorage District Court Clerk [dead link]
  8. ^ "110th Congress, 1st session, Senate vote 307 | Congressional votes database | washingtonpost.com". Projects.washingtonpost.com. 2007-08-02. Retrieved 2010-06-20.
  9. ^ Fulford, James: Hate Crimes Bill Passes–Five Republicans Voted For It. Vdare.com. 17 July 2009
  10. ^ "League of Conservation Voters". Lcv.org. Retrieved 2010-06-20.
  11. ^ "Republicans for Environmental Protection 2006 Scorecard". Rep.org. Retrieved 2010-06-20.
  12. ^ "United States Senator Lisa Murkowski". Murkowski.senate.gov. Retrieved 2010-06-20. [dead link]
  13. ^ "United States Senator Lisa Murkowski". Murkowski.senate.gov. Retrieved 2010-06-20. [dead link]
  14. ^ "Colorado companies blast Murkowski's bid to block EPA on greenhouse gases". Coloradoindependent.com. Retrieved 2010-06-20.
  15. ^ Clark, Lesley. "Alaska's Murkowski blocks Senate on higher oil spill liability". Miamiherald.com. Retrieved 2010-06-20. [dead link]
  16. ^ a b "Murkowski to sell back Kenai property". Anchorage Daily News. July 26, 2007. Archived from the original on August 29, 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-27.
  17. ^ "Stevens' aide said to testify in probe". Baltimore Sun. August 1, 2007. Retrieved 2007-08-21. [dead link]
  18. ^ Kate Klonick, "Murkowski Reveals Two More Murky Deals in Financial Disclosure Amendments", TalkingPointsMemo, June 17, 2008
  19. ^ Lisa Murkowski Exposed In Kenai River Land Scam, Alaska Report, July 20, 2007
  20. ^ McCormack, John (2010-08-25). "Who Is Joe Miller?". Weekly Standard. Retrieved 2010-09-05.
  21. ^ Weigel, David. "Right Now - Murkowski challenger hints at Palin endorsement". Voices.washingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2010-06-20.
  22. ^ http://joemiller.us/
  23. ^ Bohrer, Becky (2010-08-24). "Murkowski in close contest for Alaska Senate". Washington Post. Retrieved 2010-08-25. Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski trailed her lesser-known conservative opponent Tuesday in a surprisingly tight race that was seen as a test of the political power of Sarah Palin and the tea party movement. [dead link]
  24. ^ Cave, Damien (2010-08-25). "Murkowski of Alaska Locked in a Tight Senate Race". New York Times. Retrieved 2010-08-25. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, whose family has held a decades-long grip on one of the state's two Senate seats, was in a surprisingly tight race Wednesday morning against an insurgent candidate, a Tea Party favorite who received the backing of Sarah Palin.
  25. ^ "State of Alaska 2010 Primary Election, August 24, 2010 Unofficial Results". Alaska Secretary of State. 2010-08-25. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
  26. ^ Cockerham, Sean (2010-08-31). "It's another Tea Party win as Alaska's Murkowski concedes". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved 2010-09-01. Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski late Tuesday conceded the Republican primary election to Joe Miller, the Tea-Party backed challenger who maintained his Election Day lead after thousands of additional absentee and other ballots were counted through the day.
  27. ^ Joling, Dan (August 31, 2010). "Murkowski Concedes Alaska Primary Race". WBBM-TV. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |service= ignored (|agency= suggested) (help)
  28. ^ Memoli, Michael A. (2010-08-27). "Libertarians an option for Murkowski". Seattle Times. Retrieved 2010-08-28. The state Libertarian Party told the Anchorage Daily News that it was open to the possibility of nominating Murkowski as a third-party candidate, a notion that her campaign is not embracing but has not ruled out.
  29. ^ "Murkowski: No decision has been made on write-in option ; Despite rumors, her camp says it's not a done deal," by SEAN COCKERHAM, September 11, 2010 Anchorage Daily News
  30. ^ Bohrer, Becky (2010-09-18). "Murkowski mounting write-in bid for Alaska Senate". The Associated Press. Retrieved 2010-09-18. Murkowski faces tough odds with her write-in candidacy. She has lost support from members within the Republican establishment, who are backing the Republican nominee, Joe Miller.
  31. ^ GEMS ELECTION RESULTS[dead link]
  32. ^ "State of Alaska 2010 Primary Election, August 24, 2010, Unofficial Results". Alaska Secretary of State. 2010-08-31. Retrieved 2010-09-01.
  33. ^ "Murkowski-Martell". Anchorage Daily News. August 14, 1987. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
  34. ^ Bighash, Leila (2010). "Is Lisa Murkowski Married?". Politics Daily. AOL News. Retrieved November 1, 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  35. ^ "Alaska's Political Dynasty". The New York Times. December 24, 2002. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lisa Murkowski.
U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. senator (Class 3) from Alaska
December 20, 2002 – present
Served alongside: Ted Stevens, Mark Begich 		Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by Republican Party nominee for United States Senator from Alaska
(Class 3)
2004 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Vice-Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference
2009 – 2010 		Succeeded by
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by United States Senators by seniority
58th 		Succeeded by

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