Tom Harkin

Tom Harkin
United States Senator from Iowa
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 1985 Serving with Chuck Grassley
Preceded by	Roger William Jepsen
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Iowa's 5th district
In office January 3, 1975 – January 3, 1985
Preceded by	William J. Scherle
Succeeded by	Jim Ross Lightfoot
Personal details
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Ruth Harkin
Residence(s)	Cumming, Iowa
Alma mater	Iowa State University The Catholic University of America
Occupation	attorney

Thomas Richard "Tom" Harkin (born November 19, 1939) is a Democratic Senator from Iowa, serving in his fourth senate term. A Democrat and former candidate for his party's nomination for US President, Harkin is currently chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry.

Life before Congress

Harkin was born in Cumming, Iowa. His father, Patrick Harkin, was a coal miner and his mother, Frances, was a Slovene immigrant who died when he was ten. He attended Dowling Catholic High School which is currently located in West Des Moines, Iowa. Harkin attended Iowa State University and was a member of Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity. He graduated from there in 1962 and served in the United States Navy from 1962–1967. Harkin was stationed at Naval Air Facility Atsugi in Japan, where he ferried aircraft to and from the airbase that had been damaged in the Vietnam War and in operational and training accidents. He was also stationed for a time at Guantanamo Bay, where he flew missions in support of U-2 planes reconnoitering Cuba. He received his Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from The Catholic University of America's Columbus School of Law in 1972.

Harkin was an aide to Democratic Congressman Neal Smith, when he accompanied a congressional delegation that went to South Vietnam in 1970. Harkin published photographs he took during the trip and a detailed account of the "tiger cages" at Con Son Island prison in Life Magazine on July 17, 1970. The account exposed shocking, inhumane conditions and treatment to which prisoners were subjected.

In 1972, the same year that he graduated from law school, Harkin returned to Iowa and immediately ran against an incumbent Republican Congressman, William J. Scherle. Scherle represented the southwestern portion of Iowa, which (with one brief exception) had not elected a Democrat to Congress since the end of the Great Depression. While winning a higher percentage of votes than any of Scherle's previous opponents, Harkin nevertheless lost the race.

Congressional career

After his 1972 defeat, Harkin practiced law in Ames before being elected by Iowa's 5th congressional district to the United States House of Representatives in 1974. He was reelected to that House seat in 1976, 1978, 1980, and 1982. In 1984, Harkin was elected to the United States Senate from Iowa and was reelected in 1990, 1996 and 2002.

During the 2004 Presidential Elections Harkin was mentioned in Howard Dean's famous Iowa concession speech.

Senate committee assignments

• Committee on Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Defense
  • Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Chairman)
  • Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
  • Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
• Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
• Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
  • Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety
  • Subcommittee on Retirement and Aging
• Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry (Chairman)

Presidential candidate in 1992 election

Harkin ran for President in 1992 as a populist with labor union support. He criticized George H.W. Bush for being out of touch with working class Americans. Harkin was an early favorite in a small field of five candidates, but many felt that Harkin's style was too shrill and old-fashioned, and that he would not translate well to a national campaign. Harkin won the Iowa caucus and those in Idaho and Minnesota (with help from Senator Paul Wellstone), but he ran poorly in New Hampshire and other primaries and ultimately lost the Democratic Party nomination to Governor Bill Clinton of Arkansas. Harkin was the first Democratic primary contender to drop out and throw his support behind Clinton — a favor that led to a close relationship throughout the Clinton presidency.

Endorsements

• Senator Paul Wellstone (D-Minnesota)
• Commissioner of Agriculture Jim Hightower (D-Texas)
• Representative Lane Evans (D-Illinois)

Vice Presidential speculation

In 1992 Harkin was on the short list of running mates for Bill Clinton, alongside Senator Al Gore, Congressman Lee Hamilton, Senators Bob Graham, Bob Kerrey, and Harris Wofford. Gore was ultimately chosen. In 2000, he was frequently mentioned as a candidate Gore was considering for his running-mate, alongside House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt, Senators Bob Graham, Evan Bayh, John Kerry, and John Edwards. Gore ultimately selected Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut.

In the 2004 election Harkin was not on Kerry's vice presidential consideration list, while Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack was. In 2008, there are reports that Harkin is currently being vetted by Barack Obama to be a running mate. He has neither confirmed nor denied the rumors.

Political positions

Other than his shameful partisan speech at the late Senator Paul Wellstone's funeral, Harkin is perhaps best known as an advocate for people with disabilities. In 1990, he wrote and was the chief sponsor of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the nation's first comprehensive civil rights law for people with disabilities. Signed into law by President George H. W. Bush, the sweeping legislation prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, in public services, and in public accommodations.

File:HARKINSTEMCELL.jpg

Sen. Tom Harkin speaks at a rally held by the Coalition for the Advancement of Stem Cell Research.

During his political career, Harkin has generally supported legalized abortion. He has opposed most efforts to place legal restrictions on abortion, including voting against a ban on late term abortion, while supporting contraception and education to reduce teen pregnancy. As of 2003, Harkin received a 100% rating from NARAL, the pro-choice advocacy organization. [1]

Harkin is also a staunch supporter of Israel. He is a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations, which appropriates about $2 billion annually for military financing for Israel. In the Senate, he is the third-largest career recipient of pro-Israel Political Action Committee (PAC) contributions.[2]

Along with California Senator Barbara Boxer, Harkin is one of only two Senate Democrats to come out in favor of Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold's resolution to censure President George W. Bush, even though he voted in favor of the Iraq War Resolution.

Harkin has been rated F by Gun Owners of America and the National Rifle Association. He was one of 16 senators who voted against the Vitter Amendment.

In May 2006 Harkin voted in favor of Senate Bill 2611, also known as the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act. Among the bill's many provisions, it would increase the number of H1B visas, increase security along the southern United States border with Mexico, allow long-time illegal immigrants to gain citizenship with some restrictions, and increase the number of guest workers over and above those already present in the U.S. through a new "blue card" visa program. [3]

File:HARKINEAT.jpg

Sen. Tom Harkin holds a press conference regarding legislation to improve healthy eating habits.

Harkin has come out in favor of embryonic stem cell research. In July 2006, Harkin made a speech from the Senate floor in response to George W. Bush's veto of the embryonic stem cell research federal funding bill. His remarks were later criticized as "Catholic baiting" by the Catholic League. [4]

Harkin's current term ends in January, 2009. In mid-January of 2008, Senator Harkin announced he would seek reelection in the fall. A December 2007 poll shows that 58% of Iowans approve of Harkin's job in Washington, while 37% disapprove. [5] He is widely expected to retain his seat.

Personal life

Senator Harkin married Minnesota native Ruth Raduenz in 1968 and has two daughters: Amy, born in 1976, and Jenny, born in 1981.

Ruth Harkin is an attorney and was one of the first women in the United States to be elected as a prosecutor when, in 1972, she was elected to the office of county attorney of Story County, Iowa. She served as a deputy counsel for the US Department of Agriculture before joining the Washington lobbying firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, LLP, in 1983. In 1993, President Bill Clinton named her chairman and chief executive officer of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC). Ruth Harkin left the government and became United Technologies' senior vice president for international affairs and government relations in April 1997, leading their Washington DC office. In 2002, Mrs. Harkin became a director of ConocoPhillips. Mrs. Harkin currently sits on the Iowa Board of Regents, the body responsible for overseeing the state's public universities.

Their daughter Amy appeared on the NBC daytime reality series Starting Over from 2003 to 2004. Although Harkin never appeared on the show, his voice was heard when his daughter spoke to him on the phone. She is currently a graduate student at the UCLA Anderson School of Management.

Controversies

Military Service and Presidential Fitness

On May 22, 2008 Senator Harkin was quoted by several media sources as having questioned Senator John McCain's fitness for the presidency, based upon both his and his family's military service. The Des Moines Register quoted him as saying “I think he’s trapped in that. Everything is looked at from his life experiences, from always having been in the military, and I think that can be pretty dangerous.” In total, 33 of the 43 United States presidents have had military service, including George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and Harry Truman. Ten of these have held the rank of Brigadier General or higher, and only three of the 33 performed their military service exclusively in times of peace.

Wellstone memorial service

Following the death of Harkin's friend and colleague Senator Paul Wellstone in a 2002 plane crash while running for reelection, Harkin participated in a nationally televised memorial service for Wellstone and the other victims of the accident: Wellstone's wife, daughter, and three campaign aides. In the eulogy, Harkin urged the crowd to “stand up for Paul" and talked about “passing on Paul's legacy” and to win the 2002 Senate election “For Paul” — statements that drew loud cheers and were interpreted by some as overt political references and inappropriate for a memorial service.

Vietnam combat missions

While running for his Senate seat in 1984, and again while running for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1992, Harkin has faced criticism for claiming that he had flown combat missions over North Vietnam. In a 1979 round table discussion with other Congressional military veterans, Harkin said of his service as a Navy pilot: "One year was in Vietnam. I was flying F-4s and F-8s on combat air patrols and photo-reconnaissance support missions". These comments were later published in a 1981 book by David Broder. After subsequent inquiries by Barry Goldwater and The Wall Street Journal, Harkin clarified that that he had been stationed in Japan and sometimes flew recently repaired aircraft on test missions over Vietnam. His service flying F-4s and F-8s was later, while he was stationed in Cuba.

Fictionalized portraits

Character of Senator and former Wisconsin Governor Bart Nilson in novel and film Primary Colors is loosely based on Harkin and his '92 Presidential bid.

Books by Tom Harkin

• Harkin, Tom and Thomas, C. E. Five Minutes to Midnight: Why the Nuclear Threat Is Growing Faster Than Ever, Carol Publishing Corporation, 1990. ISBN 1-55972-042-5

See also

• 21st Century Democrats

External links

• Senator Tom Harkin Official Campaign site
• United States Senator Tom Harkin official Senate site

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Profile at Vote Smart
• New York Times — Tom Harkin News collected news and commentary
• SourceWatch Congresspedia — Tom Harkin profile