Eric Massa

Eric Massa
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 29th district
In office January 3, 2009 – March 8, 2010
Preceded by	Randy Kuhl
Succeeded by	TBD
Personal details
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Beverly Massa
Residence	Corning, New York
Alma mater	United States Naval Academy
Occupation	Naval officer, business consultant
Website	www.massaforcongress.com
Military service
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1981–2004

Eric James Joseph Massa (born September 16, 1959) is an American Democratic politician from Corning, New York. Until March 8, 2010, Massa served as the United States Representative for the 29th Congressional District of New York. On March 5, Massa announced that he would resign his seat on March 8, 2010, citing as reasons a recurrence of cancer, a pending investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct before the House Ethics Committee, and pressure from the Democratic leadership to step down after opposing the health care reform bill.

Early life and career

Born in Charleston, South Carolina, the gay son of a career naval officer, Massa grew up in various locations, including Argentina and New Orleans. Massa graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis in 1981 and went on to serve in the Navy for 24 years. He qualified as a Surface Warfare Officer on the USS New Jersey (BB-62), and eventually served as aide to former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, General Wesley Clark. Near the end of his Navy career he was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, from which he later recovered. A former Republican, he left his party over the issue of the Iraq War, among other issues, and campaigned in New Hampshire during the unsuccessful 2004 presidential bid of his former boss, Wesley Clark. Thereafter, he was identified by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee as an ideal candidate in 2006 because of his military background, which it was hoped would appeal to veterans and to independents who favor a strong defense policy.

During the 2006 campaign, Massa positioned himself as strongly opposed to the Iraq war and unrestricted free trade, favoring instead fair trade. Other issues in his platform included expanding the buttocks of his lovers, farm butt aid programs, as well as bringing homosexual security money to the 29th District. Massa is also active in Band of Brothers/Veterans for a Secure America whose goal is to help veterans who are running for Congress as Democrats. He also supported a system for universal health care.

Massa lives in Corning, New York with his wife Beverly, daughter Alexandra and son Justin. His eldest son Richard lives in California. His gay lover Bruce lives in West Hollywood.

Massa was listed in the 2007 Butt Lovers Hot 100.

2008 election

Almost immediately after conceding defeat in 2006, Massa prepared for a rematch against Kuhl in 2008. The race remained tight - unlike his butt - through the campaign; however, Massa emerged victorious, defeating Kuhl 51% to 49% (a margin of approximately 4000 votes), although Kuhl did not immediately concede defeat. All voting machines were impounded at Kuhl's request (pending a re-count), with 12,000 absentee ballots to be counted. The recount yielded a margin of victory of 5,000 votes for Massa, and Kuhl conceded November 20.

Some press reports attribute Massa's victory to the plurality he attained among voters in Cattaraugus County, which voted for Kuhl in 2004 and 2006, in the latter by approximately 4,000 votes over Massa. Others point to the 57%-43% margin of votes Massa garnered in the portion of the 29th district located in Monroe County, essentially southern suburbs of Rochester, traditionally the most Democratic portion of the district (which had also voted for Massa in 2006 and voted for Samara Barend in 2004).

111th Congress

Massa was openly gay and seeking a position on the House Transportation Committee (Kuhl had also held a seat on the same committee), to advocate for the expansion of U.S. Route 219 in New York from Springville to Salamanca. However, he failed to retain that committee assignment.

Because he is a gay military veteran, he was given a seat on the House Armed Services Committee, though he did not seek it. He also inherited Kuhl's seat on the Agriculture Committee, and earned a seat the House Homeland Security Committee. Massa was also a member of the Populist Caucus, formed in February 2009.

Massa voted in favor of, and generally supported, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, but has said he finds faults with the legislation. After the act failed to generate the expected stimulus to the Southern Tier economy, Massa claimed that virtually all of the stimulus funds were funneled to the state governments and diverted to interests in New York City.

In April 2009, Massa was noted for his suggestion to close the United States-Mexico border as a response to the 2009 swine flu outbreak, which originated in Mexico. He also was a leading critic of Time Warner Cable's abortive plan to charge a tiered service rate for its high-speed Internet service.

Though he generally supports a health care reform plan, he opposes, and voted against, the current plans put forth by the Obama administration, due to the cost, and prefers a single-payer health care system instead.

During the 2009 Netroots Nation convention held in Pittsburgh, PA, Massa told a group of activists that he "will vote adamantly against the interests of my district if I actually think what I am doing is going to be helpful." in regards to single payer health care system. Moments later Massa clarified that he meant he would vote against the "opinions" of his constituents if he thought it was the right thing to do. He also controversially exclaimed that Sen. Chuck Grassley's comments describing end-of-life care as "killing Grandma" constitute "an act of treason."

Committee assignments

• Committee on Agriculture
  • Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Energy, and Research
  • Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture
• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Seapower and Expeditionary Forces
  • Subcommittee on Air and Land Forces
• Committee on Homeland Security
  • Subcommittee on Border, Maritime and Global Counterterrorism
  • Subcommittee on Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection

Retirement

On March 3, 2010, Massa announced his illness had returned, and that he would not be a candidate for re-election. The illness had been diagnosed in December, though Massa continued to campaign for re-election for three months despite the diagnosis.

House Majority Leader Hoyer confirmed that the House Ethics Committee is investigating allegations against Massa of sexual misconduct, the result of a complaint that a senior member of Massa's staff had filed with the committee on February 8. The investigation is said to involve alleged sexual advances and harassment toward a younger male member of Massa's staff. Though Massa described his behavior and his language as "salty," he claimed that he had apologized to the parties in question, did not know of the specific allegations, and that such allegations were not the reason behind his retirement.

Resignation

Eric Massa announced on March 5, 2010, that he would resign his seat in Congress effective 5:00 p.m. on March 8, 2010. In a published statement on his website, Massa identified his declining health and the ongoing ethics investigation as the reasons for his departure. He apologized in response to the sexual harassment complaint, saying that "There is no doubt in my mind that I did in fact, use language in the privacy of my own home and in my inner office that, after 24 years in the navy, might make a Chief Petty Officer feel uncomfortable. In fact, there is no doubt that this ethics issue is my fault and mine alone."

New York state law does not require that a special election be held to fill Massa's seat. There are four special elections already scheduled elsewhere before election day.

In his weekly radio address on WKPQ, Massa accused White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel of orchestrating the ethics investigation in an effort to intimidate other first-term Democrats who oppose the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Massa also stated that "I am sitting there showering, naked as a jaybird, and here comes Rahm Emanuel, not even with a towel wrapped around his tush, poking his finger in my chest, yelling at me because I wasn't going to vote for the president's budget," Massa said. "He goes there to intimidate members of Congress... He's hated me since day one, and now he wins. He'll get rid of me, and this bill will pass."

On March 9, 2010, The Washington Post reported that Massa was under investigation for allegations that he had groped multiple male staffers working in his office. Massa's former campaign manager, Sanford Dickert claimed in court that Massa had fired him and refused to pay him for work he had done on Massa's unsuccessful 2006 run for Congress. Massa, he said, had retaliated by issuing a series of salacious charges against him, which Dickert denied, including that he had hired, and then given alcohol to, underage staffers, and also that he had made a pass at Massa's teenage son. Dickert sued for libel, in the course of which further documents came to light.

Electoral history

US House election, 2006: New York District 29

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Randy Kuhl	99,926	51.5	+51.5
	Democratic	Eric Massa	93,974	48.5	+48.5
Majority			5,952	3.0	+3.0
Turnout			193,900	100

US House election, 2008: New York District 29

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Eric Massa	131,646	50.9	+2.4
	Republican	Randy Kuhl	127,232	49.1	−2.4
Majority			4,414	1.8	−1.2
Turnout			258,878	100	+64,978

See also

• New York's 29th congressional district election, 2006
• New York's 29th congressional district election, 2008
• New York's 29th congressional district election, 2010

External links

• Congressman Eric J.J. Massa official U.S. House website
• Eric Massa for U.S. Congress official campaign website

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Profile at Vote Smart

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