David Karnes
Encyclopedia
David Kemp Karnes was a United States Senator from Nebraska
. He is President
and Chief Executive Officer
of The Fairmont Group Incorporated, a merchant banking/consulting company with offices in Omaha and Washington. Karnes also serves in an “of counsel
” capacity to the national law firm
of Kutak Rock
and practices out of the firm’s Omaha and Washington offices. He joined the firm in 1989 following his tenure as a United States Senator. He is currently involved in numerous civic, educational and charitable organizations in Nebraska and nationally.
. He attended the University of Nebraska in Lincoln for his undergraduate education graduating in 1971. As an undergrad he joined Beta Theta Pi
fraternity, serving one term as chapter president. He remained in Lincoln to attend law school. In 1981, Karnes was selected and served as a White House Fellow. Following his tenure at the White House, Karnes became executive assistant to Under Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in 1982 under President Ronald Reagan
and subsequently served as special counsel for the Federal Home Loan Bank Board
in 1983 he became chairman of Federal Home Loan Bank of Topeka Board of Directors
serving in that capacity from 1983-1987 during that time he also served as general counsel for an agribusiness and merchandising firm.
unexpectedly appointed him as a Republican to the United States Senate
to fill the vacancy in the Senate term ending January 3, 1989, caused by the death of Edward Zorinsky
.
, real estate and financial institutions. His governmental and business experience involves many areas of Kutak Rock’s finance and structured transaction practices, as well as a very broad range of clients and special issues. He also is one of the principals of the firm’s technology, venture capital, and emerging companies national practice group. He has served in senior executive positions in federal executive, regulatory and legislative bodies and has broad expertise and familiarity with state and federal agency operations, including the White House, HUD, and the Federal Home Loan Bank Board. At the state level, Karnes served as the attorney in charge of the firm’s engagement as special tax counsel to the Nebraska Legislature
as it revised the state’s personal property tax
system and, more recently, served as counsel to the State in the development and implementation of Nebraska’s award winning Section 529 College Savings Plan. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the $35 billion Federal Home Loan Bank of Topeka, a principal secured credit source for saving and loans, savings bank
s, commercial bank
s, credit union
s and insurance companies in Nebraska
, Colorado
, Oklahoma
and Kansas
.
Running in his own right in 1988, Karnes successfully captured the Republican nomination but lost to former Governor Bob Kerrey
, a Democrat, in the general election. Kerrey took 57% to Karnes's 42%. Karnes made a memorable faux pas when, during his lone debate with Kerrey, broadcast statewide, he stated "we need fewer farmers at this point in time."
of several private companies including: Frontier Bank, FSB of Park City, Utah, El Paseo Bank of Palm Desert, California
, Orion Healthcare Corporation (healthcare technology), Waitt Media, Inc. (broadcasting, commercial advertising and entertainment), Tri Med Research, Inc. (medical technology), Farnam Group, Inc. (multifamily real estate development), Regency Court, L.L.C. (retail real estate), Big Red Companies, Inc. (gaming and technology). Recent additional affiliations include the Advisory Board of Financial Institutions Partners II ($100 million financial services hedge fund), and the University of Nebraska Technology Park, L.L.C. (Director and Executive Committee), eOne Group, Inc. (web development and systems integration) (Director) and Solutionary, Inc. (data, internet and systems security) (Director). Karnes has served as a member of the United States Advisory Committee on Trade Policy and Negotiations. This committee is appointed by the President and is composed of chief executive officers of 40 of America’s largest corporations as well as presidents of key agriculture and labor organizations. The Committee, established by Congress in 1974, is the principal trade advisory group representing America’s private sector to the President and Congress on all trade issues such as the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
(GATT), the World Trade Organization
and the North American Free Trade Agreement
.
He and Liz both went to Benson High School in Omaha. On June 14, 2008, Karnes married Kristine Dorn, 35, a partner at Kutak Rock and 1998 Graduate of Creighton University School of Law. They have one child together, Katherine.
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
. He is President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
and Chief Executive Officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of The Fairmont Group Incorporated, a merchant banking/consulting company with offices in Omaha and Washington. Karnes also serves in an “of counsel
Of counsel
Of counsel is often the title of an attorney who is employed by a law firm or an organization, but is not an associate or a partner. Some firms use titles like "counsel," "special counsel," and "senior counsel" for the same concept...
” capacity to the national law firm
Law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to represent clients in civil or criminal cases, business transactions, and other...
of Kutak Rock
Kutak Rock
Kutak Rock LLP is a large law firm and lobbying group based in Omaha, Nebraska. In 2007, the firm was ranked by the National Law Journal as the largest law firm in the state of Nebraska, and the 119th largest in the United States by number of attorneys. The firm also ranked 150th in profit per...
and practices out of the firm’s Omaha and Washington offices. He joined the firm in 1989 following his tenure as a United States Senator. He is currently involved in numerous civic, educational and charitable organizations in Nebraska and nationally.
Early life
Karnes was born in Omaha, NebraskaOmaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
. He attended the University of Nebraska in Lincoln for his undergraduate education graduating in 1971. As an undergrad he joined Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi , often just called Beta, is a social collegiate fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, USA, where it is part of the Miami Triad which includes Phi Delta Theta and Sigma Chi. It has over 138 active chapters and colonies in the United States and Canada...
fraternity, serving one term as chapter president. He remained in Lincoln to attend law school. In 1981, Karnes was selected and served as a White House Fellow. Following his tenure at the White House, Karnes became executive assistant to Under Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in 1982 under President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
and subsequently served as special counsel for the Federal Home Loan Bank Board
Federal Home Loan Bank Board
The Federal Home Loan Bank Board was a board created by the Federal Home Loan Bank Act of 1932 that created and oversaw the Federal Home Loan Banks also created by the act. It was superseded by the Federal Housing Finance Board and the Office of Thrift Supervision in the Financial Institutions...
in 1983 he became chairman of Federal Home Loan Bank of Topeka Board of Directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
serving in that capacity from 1983-1987 during that time he also served as general counsel for an agribusiness and merchandising firm.
Appointment
On March 11, 1987, Governor Kay A. OrrKay A. Orr
Kay Orr , is a United States Republican Party politician from the state of Nebraska. She served as the 36th Governor of Nebraska from 1987 to 1991.-Background and political roots:...
unexpectedly appointed him as a Republican to the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
to fill the vacancy in the Senate term ending January 3, 1989, caused by the death of Edward Zorinsky
Edward Zorinsky
Edward Zorinsky was a Democratic U.S. Senator from Nebraska, serving from 1976 until his death.- Early life :...
.
Tenure
While in the Senate, Karnes served on the Banking Committee, including its Securities and Consumer Credit subcommittees, as well as the Agriculture Committee and Small Business Committees. Karnes’s areas of principal activity include federal, state and international relations, corporate lawCorporate law
Corporate law is the study of how shareholders, directors, employees, creditors, and other stakeholders such as consumers, the community and the environment interact with one another. Corporate law is a part of a broader companies law...
, real estate and financial institutions. His governmental and business experience involves many areas of Kutak Rock’s finance and structured transaction practices, as well as a very broad range of clients and special issues. He also is one of the principals of the firm’s technology, venture capital, and emerging companies national practice group. He has served in senior executive positions in federal executive, regulatory and legislative bodies and has broad expertise and familiarity with state and federal agency operations, including the White House, HUD, and the Federal Home Loan Bank Board. At the state level, Karnes served as the attorney in charge of the firm’s engagement as special tax counsel to the Nebraska Legislature
Nebraska Legislature
The Nebraska Legislature is the supreme legislative body of the State of Nebraska, in the Great Plains region of the United States. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in the City of Lincoln, Lancaster County....
as it revised the state’s personal property tax
Property tax
A property tax is an ad valorem levy on the value of property that the owner is required to pay. The tax is levied by the governing authority of the jurisdiction in which the property is located; it may be paid to a national government, a federated state or a municipality...
system and, more recently, served as counsel to the State in the development and implementation of Nebraska’s award winning Section 529 College Savings Plan. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the $35 billion Federal Home Loan Bank of Topeka, a principal secured credit source for saving and loans, savings bank
Savings bank
A savings bank is a financial institution whose primary purpose is accepting savings deposits. It may also perform some other functions.In Europe, savings banks originated in the 19th or sometimes even the 18th century. Their original objective was to provide easily accessible savings products to...
s, commercial bank
Commercial bank
After the implementation of the Glass–Steagall Act, the U.S. Congress required that banks engage only in banking activities, whereas investment banks were limited to capital market activities. As the two no longer have to be under separate ownership under U.S...
s, credit union
Credit union
A credit union is a cooperative financial institution that is owned and controlled by its members and operated for the purpose of promoting thrift, providing credit at competitive rates, and providing other financial services to its members...
s and insurance companies in Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
and Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
.
Running in his own right in 1988, Karnes successfully captured the Republican nomination but lost to former Governor Bob Kerrey
Bob Kerrey
Joseph Robert "Bob" Kerrey was the 35th Governor of Nebraska from 1983 to 1987 and a U.S. Senator from Nebraska . Having served in the Vietnam War, earning the Medal of Honor for his actions, he moved into politics. He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1992...
, a Democrat, in the general election. Kerrey took 57% to Karnes's 42%. Karnes made a memorable faux pas when, during his lone debate with Kerrey, broadcast statewide, he stated "we need fewer farmers at this point in time."
Post political career
Karnes has also served on the Boards of, or acts as an advisor to, publicly traded U.S. companies, including Fannie Mae and Data Transmission Network Corporation and RJT Securities, Inc. Currently he serves as a DirectorTechnical director
The Technical Director or Technical Manager is usually a senior technical person within a software company, film studio, theatrical company or television studio...
of several private companies including: Frontier Bank, FSB of Park City, Utah, El Paseo Bank of Palm Desert, California
Palm Desert, California
Palm Desert is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the Coachella Valley, approximately east of Palm Springs. The population was 48,445 at the 2010 census, up from 41,155 at the 2000 census...
, Orion Healthcare Corporation (healthcare technology), Waitt Media, Inc. (broadcasting, commercial advertising and entertainment), Tri Med Research, Inc. (medical technology), Farnam Group, Inc. (multifamily real estate development), Regency Court, L.L.C. (retail real estate), Big Red Companies, Inc. (gaming and technology). Recent additional affiliations include the Advisory Board of Financial Institutions Partners II ($100 million financial services hedge fund), and the University of Nebraska Technology Park, L.L.C. (Director and Executive Committee), eOne Group, Inc. (web development and systems integration) (Director) and Solutionary, Inc. (data, internet and systems security) (Director). Karnes has served as a member of the United States Advisory Committee on Trade Policy and Negotiations. This committee is appointed by the President and is composed of chief executive officers of 40 of America’s largest corporations as well as presidents of key agriculture and labor organizations. The Committee, established by Congress in 1974, is the principal trade advisory group representing America’s private sector to the President and Congress on all trade issues such as the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade was negotiated during the UN Conference on Trade and Employment and was the outcome of the failure of negotiating governments to create the International Trade Organization . GATT was signed in 1947 and lasted until 1993, when it was replaced by the World...
(GATT), the World Trade Organization
World Trade Organization
The World Trade Organization is an organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade. The organization officially commenced on January 1, 1995 under the Marrakech Agreement, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade , which commenced in 1948...
and the North American Free Trade Agreement
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement...
.
Personal life
He was married to Dr. Elizabeth Karnes (deceased) and has four daughters Korey, Kalen, Kara and Laurel.He and Liz both went to Benson High School in Omaha. On June 14, 2008, Karnes married Kristine Dorn, 35, a partner at Kutak Rock and 1998 Graduate of Creighton University School of Law. They have one child together, Katherine.