| Revision as of 13:24, 26 October 2006 edit162.138.176.51 (talk) →Abortion: "criminalization" is not a word that was in the article. The equivalent of using that word would be to say that McCaskill supports the murder unborn babies.← Previous edit | Revision as of 13:27, 26 October 2006 edit undo162.138.176.51 (talk) →Lobbyist: already in reelect sect. donations have nothing to do with talent's lobbying. the article even says that there are several such funds for incumbents whether or not they were lobbyistsNext edit → | ||
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| For ten months in 2001, Talent worked for Washington ] firm, Arent Fox<ref></ref>, earning $230,000. During this time Talent was not allowed to directly lobby Congress, and he was not licensed to practice law in Washington, leading some Democratic opponents to accuse the lobbying firm of using his appointment to contribute money toward his upcoming Senate race.<ref></ref> Arent Fox said the idea that Talent was not paid for genuine work was "absurd", and that "Talent's Republican ties did play a role in his hiring." <ref></ref> | For ten months in 2001, Talent worked for Washington ] firm, Arent Fox<ref></ref>, earning $230,000. During this time Talent was not allowed to directly lobby Congress, and he was not licensed to practice law in Washington, leading some Democratic opponents to accuse the lobbying firm of using his appointment to contribute money toward his upcoming Senate race.<ref></ref> Arent Fox said the idea that Talent was not paid for genuine work was "absurd", and that "Talent's Republican ties did play a role in his hiring." <ref></ref> | ||
| In 2006, the Washington DC newspaper Roll Call reported that DC lobbying interests had pledged to raise $1 million for Talent's re-election.<ref></ref> | |||
| === Election to the Senate === | === Election to the Senate === | ||
Revision as of 13:27, 26 October 2006
Template:Future election candidate
| James M. "Jim" Talent | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Junior Senator, Missouri | |
| In office 2002 – Present | |
| Preceded by | Jean Carnahan (D) |
| Succeeded by | n/a |
| Personal details | |
| Nationality | american |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Brenda Talent |
James Matthes "Jim" Talent (born October 18, 1956) is an American politician, the junior Senator from Missouri. He is a Republican, and a lifelong resident of the St. Louis area. Talent is Presbyterian. Talent earned his A.B. in political science from Washington University and a J.D. from the University of Chicago. Following law school, he served as a law clerk to Judge Richard A. Posner of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Before winning political office Talent served as an adjunct professor at the Washington University Law school. He married Brenda Talent in 1984 and has two daughters, Kate and Chrissy, and a son, Michael.
The Senator's paternal grandparents immigrated to New England from Russia. Talent's mother, Marie Matthes, was an independent court reporter. Her parents were dairy farmers in Jefferson County. Talent's father, Milton Talent, was the first in his family to go to college, working his way through school and graduating from Harvard Law.
Political career
Talent began his political career in 1984 when he was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives. He served four terms there, the last two as minority leader.
House of Representatives
In 1992, Talent defeated Bert Walker, the cousin of then-president George H.W. Bush and won the Republican nomination for the state's 2nd Congressional District, based in St. Louis's western suburbs. He went on to defeat Democratic incumbent Joan Kelly Horn in the general election.
The district had been heavily altered after the 1990 census to preserve large Democratic majorities in the neighboring 1st District of Bill Clay and 3rd District of Dick Gephardt. Horn had appealed for a new map, even asking for a share of St. Louis, but was rebuffed by Clay and Gephardt.
Although Talent won narrowly in 1992, he never had another close race in what rapidly became a solidly Republican district. The only serious challenge he faced came in 1996, when Horn sought a rematch. Even though popular Democratic Governor Mel Carnahan was running for reelection, Talent dispatched Horn fairly easily, winning 61% of the vote.
Talent served as chairman of the Small Business Committee from 1997 to 2001.
Race for governor
Talent did not seek re-election to Congress in 2000, instead running for governor. He was narrowly defeated by Democratic state treasurer Bob Holden, 49.1% to 48.2%.
Lobbyist
For ten months in 2001, Talent worked for Washington lobbying firm, Arent Fox, earning $230,000. During this time Talent was not allowed to directly lobby Congress, and he was not licensed to practice law in Washington, leading some Democratic opponents to accuse the lobbying firm of using his appointment to contribute money toward his upcoming Senate race. Arent Fox said the idea that Talent was not paid for genuine work was "absurd", and that "Talent's Republican ties did play a role in his hiring."
Election to the Senate
In the November 2000 elections, Mel Carnahan, who had died in a plane crash three weeks before, remained on the ballot for election to the Senate. Carnahan received more votes than his Republican opponent, John Ashcroft, who did not legally contest being defeated by a dead candidate. Lieutenant Governor Roger Wilson, as he had promised before the election, appointed Carnahan's widow, Jean, in her husband's place.
The Seventeenth Amendment requires that appointments to the Senate last only until a special election is held. Talent, who received the Republican nomination, narrowly defeated Jean Carnahan in the November 2002 election, 50% to 49%. He was sworn in later that month to fill out the balance of Mel Carnahan's term .
Jack Abramoff contributed $2,000 to Talent's 2002 senatorial campaign and Preston Gates & Ellis, a former Abramoff employer, had also contributed $1,000 to Talent's campaign. Talent returned both contributions becoming one of the first lawmakers to do so.
Talent has been criticized for not returning the money received from Americans for a Republican Majority (ARMPAC), a PAC formed by Tom DeLay. DeLay is facing charges of money laundering and violation of campaign finance laws. A spokesman for Talent has stated that Talent has not yet made a decision about whether or not to return the ARMPAC contribution, stating "Senator Talent is not ready to presume guilt or innocence and wants to give the judicial process a chance to move forward."
Political views
Immigration
Talent is a strong supporter of increased border security including the phased-in hiring of 50,000 additional Customs and Border Protection personnel and 5,000 Customs Enforcement inspectors. Talent has outlined a plan to invest $5 billion for new border surveilence technology, helicopters, roads, multi-layered fences and barriers. Talent opposes any measure that would allow for de facto amnesty for illegal immigrants or increases in future immigrants.
Flag Desecration Amendment
Talent is a co-sponsor of the Flag Desecration Amendment, which would make it constitutional to criminalize flag burning. His office has said that "We should never support restricting anyone's right to say or write anything they want about the flag of America. But burning the flag is not speech; it is an act with expressive overtones, and that distinction is crucial for constitutional purposes."
Energy
Sen. Talent supports the new Renewable Fuel Standard, which would add 7.5 billion gallons of renewable fuels to the national supply by 2012, including a measure to include tax credits for businesses offering soybean-based fuels. In addition to renewable fuels, Sen. Talent supports drilling in the Arctic as a step in the direction of energy independence, which he sees as critical to national security.
Health Care
Senator Talent supported the Medicare prescription drug benefit called Medicare Part D, the purpose of which is to reduce the amount seniors pay for their prescription drugs. Talent called for waiving a one percent penalty for senior citizens who missed the deadline to sign up for the program.
Senator Talent has voted against an amendment allowing Medicare to negotiate a bulk purchase discount for prescription drugs.
Sen. Talent has supported limiting awards in medical liability lawsuits. He believes that 'Medical liability relief will cut costs because physicians won’t have to practice “defensive medicine".' Talent has said that 'awards are paid and then passed along to consumers in the form of higher prices and fewer jobs.'
Sen. Talent supports and has proposed legislation to allow trade organizations to sponsor health insurance plans, which he believes would provide unisured workers the opportunity for more affordable health care.
Predatory Lending
Talent supports and has sponsored legislation to cap the annual percentage interest rate for payday loans to military service personnel from an average of around 390% to 36%.
Stem Cell Research
Since joining the Senate in 2002, Talent had supported federal legislation that would ban all stem cell research. This included co-sponsoring a bill (S.658) sponsored by Senator Sam Brownback which would ban all forms of human cloning including embryonic therapeutic cloning techniques that are seen as crucial to stem cell research.
Many felt this law was unneeded since President Bill Clinton outlawed Human Cloning in 1998.
On Feb 10, 2006, Talent withdrew his support for the bill, citing the need to balance research and protection against human cloning. This move followed criticism by Talent's opponent in the 2006 election, Claire McCaskill, as well as pressure from Missouri business interests that oppose restrictions on stem cell research. Though this reversal was widely criticized as being due to politics , Talent told the Associated Press, "The technology is changing all the time and so I'm always considering whether there is a better way to strike the balance.". Talent suggests that moral concerns might be put to rest through a possible future scientific breakthrough - replicating embryonic stem cells without the use of cloned embryos.
There is a ballot-initiative in Missouri in November 2006 to amend the state constitution and allow, in line with federal law, stem cell research and treatment. On May 1, 2006, Talent announced his opposition to the proposed ballot-initiative . Stem cell research and treatment is working up to be a divisive issue for many Republicans and is taking a particular prominence in Missouri. In the senate, he subsequently voted against expanding federal funds for embryonic stem cell research in July of 2006.
Minimum Wage
There is a ballot-initiative in Missouri, called Proposition B, that would raise the minimum wage in the state to $6.50 per hour, or to the level of the federal minimum wage if that is higher, with subsequent adjustments for inflation. Talent refuses to take a position on this initiative since he believes it is a state issue, but has stated he supports minimum wage increases if they are coupled with tax breaks for small businesses. Without the corresponding tax cuts, Talent believes that increasing the minimum wage could actually reduce the number of jobs by raising the cost of doing business..
Methamphetamines
Talent co-sponsored The Combat Meth Act with Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.). The legislation, which was attached to the reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act, passed on March 2, 2006 and restricts the sale of products necessary to cook methamphetamines. President Bush signed the Act into law on March 9, 2006. As a result of the Act, certain cold medicines are only to be made available behind the counter and the amount of such medicines that can be purchased by one person is limited.
War in Iraq
Although Talent was not in Congress at the time of the 2002 vote authorizing the war in Iraq, he stated in October 2006 that he would have voted for the war knowing that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction. Talent does not support a timetable for troop withdrawal from Iraq until American troops are able to train up an Iraqi army capable of maintaining security within the country. He believes that the results of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan outweigh the costs. Talent addressed the growing criticism of the cost of the war by stating, "What we’ve spent in Iraq and Afghanistan in total is 1 percent of the GDP. Now in return for that we've already removed Saddam Hussein and the threat he represented. Iraq is not competing with Iran to sponsor terror in the region. They're not threatening Kuwait. We don't have to station troops in Saudi Arabia. They're not trying to restart the nuclear program. All that would be happening under Saddam."
Abortion
Talent is pro-life and has supported a number of measures that restrict abortions, with exceptions for rape, incest, and when the life of the mother is at risk.
2006 re-election campaign
Main article: Missouri U.S. Senate election, 2006Talent is seeking re-election in 2006. His Democratic opponent is state auditor Claire McCaskill.
Talent currently holds a significant fundraising advantage, due in part to support from the Bush administration; on October 11, 2005, Vice President Dick Cheney held a fundraiser for Talent.
Jim Talent has received a number of endorsements for his re-election including from Missouri Farm Bureau, the St. Louis Police Officers' Association , the Missouri Pork Association , the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors, the Missouri Corn Growers Association and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
In 2006, the Washington DC newspaper Roll Call reported that DC lobbying interests had pledged to raise $1 million for Talent's re-election. Talent stated that he does not give favors in exchange for donations, and that he “wouldn’t take five dollars from someone who expects something for it."
McCaskill and Talent debated each other on Meet the Press on October 8, 2006.
| Candidate | Funds Raised Through 7/19/2006 | Cash On-Hand as of 7/19/2006 |
|---|---|---|
| Jim Talent (R) | $19,602,725 | $6,921,577 |
| Claire McCaskill (D) | $4,572,707 | $2,684,766 |
Electoral history
- 2006 Race for U.S. Senate
- Jim Talent (R)
- Claire McCaskill (D)
- Frank Gilmore (L)
- 2002 Race for U.S. Senate
- Jim Talent (R), 50%
- Jean Carnahan (D), 49%
- 2000 Race for Missouri Governor
- Bob Holden (D), 49.1%
- Jim Talent (R), 48.2%
- 1996 Race for U.S. House of Representatives
- Jim Talent (R), 61%
- Joan Kelly Horn (D), 37%
- 1992 Race for U.S. House of Representatives
- Jim Talent (R), 50.4%
- Joan Kelly Horn (D), 47.6%
- Jim Higgins (Libertarian), .2%
- 1992 Race for U.S. House of Representatives (Republican Primary)
- Jim Talent (R),
- Bret Waller (R),
Ratings by Outside Groups
Republican Liberty Caucus
In 2005, Talent was tied for the third-best rating among all senators and representatives as determined by the Republican Liberty Caucus which promotes "liberty-minded, limited-government individuals to office."
References
- Official Election Returns, State of Missouri General Election, November 5, 1996
- Official Election Returns, State of Missouri General Election, November 7, 1996
- US Lobby Registration & Reporting Disclosure Page
- Democrats Question Talent's Pay for Work
- Law Firm Calls Anti-Talent Accusations Absurd
- Chronological list of U.S. Senators
- Official Election Returns, State of Missouri General Election, November 5, 2002
- s. 658, "A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to prohibit human cloning", introduced March 17, 2005
- Kansas City Star
- "Stem-Cell Dilemmas: Senator Talent believes there is an 'ethically untroubling' option on embryonic research. Will it cost him re-election?", Eleanor Clift, Newsweek, February 17, 2006
- "Stem cell battle emerging as key issue in Missouri Senate race", Sam Hananel, AP, January 25, 2006
- ^ 2006 Ballot Measures, Missouri, Secretary of State
- Kristen Hinman (July 17, 2006). "A wedge issue that helps Democrats: Stem cell research is dividing Missouri's GOP". Salon.com.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - "Democrats see stem cell research as political tool", Sheryl Gay Stolberg, New York Times, April 25, 2006
- Matt Franck (October 19, 2006). "Many jabs in debate but no KO". St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - Lauren Phillips (September 29, 2006). "Talent's Bid for Second Term Just Like His First — a Tossup". CQPolitics.com.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - Press release from the office of Sen. Dianne Feinstein, March 2, 2006
- Meet the Press 8 October 2006
External links
- United States Congress. "Jim Talent (id: T000024)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Voting record maintained by the Washington Post
- House Clerk Office Election info
| Preceded byJean Carnahan | U.S. senator (Class 1) from Missouri November 25, 2002 – present Served alongside: Kit Bond |
Incumbent |
| Missouri's current delegation to the United States Congress | |
|---|---|
| Senators |
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| Representatives (ordered by district) |
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| Current United States senators | ||
|---|---|---|
| President: ▌ Kamala Harris (D) ‧ President pro tempore: ▌ Patty Murray (D) | ||
|  | |
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- 1956 births
- American legal academics
- Living people
- Members of the Missouri House of Representatives
- Members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri
- Missouri politicians
- People from St. Louis County, Missouri
- Presbyterians
- United States Senators from Missouri
- University of Chicago alumni
- Washington University in St. Louis alumni
- American conservatives