Richard Keith "Dick" Armey (ˈɑrmi; born July 7, 1940) is a former
U.S. RepresentativeThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Texas's (1985–2003) and
House Majority LeaderParty leaders of the United States House of Representatives are elected by their respective parties in a closed-door caucus by secret ballot and are also known as floor leaders. The U.S. House of Representatives does not officially use the term "Minority Leader", although the media frequently does...
(1995–2003). He was one of the engineers of the "
Republican RevolutionThe Republican Revolution or Revolution of '94 is what the media dubbed Republican Party success in the 1994 U.S. midterm elections, which resulted in a net gain of 54 seats in the House of Representatives, and a pickup of eight seats in the Senate...
" of the 1990s, in which
RepublicansThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
were elected to majorities of both houses of
CongressThe United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
for the first time in four decades. Armey was one of the chief authors of the
Contract with AmericaThe Contract with America was a document released by the United States Republican Party during the 1994 Congressional election campaign. Written by Larry Hunter, who was aided by Newt Gingrich, Robert Walker, Richard Armey, Bill Paxon, Tom DeLay, John Boehner and Jim Nussle, and in part using text...
. Armey is also an author and former economics professor. After his congressional career he worked as a consultant, advisor and lobbyist.
Early life, education and career
Armey was born in the farming town of
Cando, North DakotaAs of the census of 2000, there were 1,342 people, 595 households, and 345 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,178.3 people per square mile . There were 707 housing units at an average density of 1,147.6 per square mile...
, the son of Marion (née Gutschlag) and Glenn Armey. He grew up in a rural area. He graduated from
Jamestown CollegeJamestown College is a private liberal arts college founded by the Presbyterian Church located in Jamestown, North Dakota. It has about 1,000 students enrolled today and has been co-educational from its founding....
with a B.A. and then received an
M.A.A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
from the
University of North DakotaThe University of North Dakota is a public university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, USA. Established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of North Dakota, UND is the oldest and largest university in the state and enrolls over 14,000 students. ...
and a PhD in economics from the
University of OklahomaThe University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...
. Armey is a member of the
Pi Kappa AlphaPi Kappa Alpha is a Greek social fraternity with over 230 chapters and colonies and over 250,000 lifetime initiates in the United States and Canada.-History:...
fraternity.
Armey served on the economics faculty at the University of Montana from 1964 to 1965, was an Assistant Professor of economics at West Texas State University from 1967 to 1968, an Assistant Professor of economics at
Austin CollegeAustin College is a private liberal arts college affiliated by covenant relationship with the Presbyterian Church and located in Sherman, Texas, about 60 miles North of Dallas....
from 1968 to 1972, an Associate Professor of economics at North Texas State (now the
University of North TexasThe University of North Texas is a public institution of higher education and research in Denton. Founded in 1890, UNT is part of the University of North Texas System. As of the fall of 2010, the University of North Texas, Denton campus, had a certified enrollment of 36,067...
) from 1972 to 1977 and Chairman of the economics department at North Texas State from 1977 to 1983.
U.S. House of Representatives
Armey was first elected to the House in 1984 in the 26th District of Texas, defeating freshman congressman
Tom VandergriffTommy Joe Vandergriff was a politician from Texas. He served as Mayor of Arlington from 1951 to 1977, as a U.S. Representative from from 1983 to 1985, and as County Judge of Tarrant County from 1991 to 2007...
in what is still considered a huge upset (Vandergriff is well-known in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, most notably for bringing
Major League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
's
Texas RangersThe Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
to the area). Armey was one of six freshmen
Republican PartyThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
congressmen elected from Texas in 1984 that were known as the
Texas Six PackThe Texas Six Pack was a group of six freshmen Republican congressmen from Texas who were elected during the 1984 Ronald Reagan landslide victory over Walter Mondale. With their victories the Texas congressional delegation shifted from a 22-5 Democratic advantage to only 17-10. Several of the six...
. Due to the increasingly Republican tilt of the Metroplex, Armey would never face another tough race and was reelected eight times. In his early years in Congress, Armey was influenced by
libertarianLibertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
Austrian economist
Ludwig von MisesLudwig Heinrich Edler von Mises was an Austrian economist, philosopher, and classical liberal who had a significant influence on the modern Libertarian movement and the "Austrian School" of economic thought.-Biography:-Early life:...
.
Leadership challenge
In the summer of 1997 several House Republicans, who saw
SpeakerThe Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, or Speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives...
Newt GingrichNewton Leroy "Newt" Gingrich is a U.S. Republican Party politician who served as the House Minority Whip from 1989 to 1995 and as the 58th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999....
's public image as a liability, attempted to replace him as Speaker. The attempted "coup" began July 9 with a meeting between Republican conference chairman
John BoehnerJohn Andrew Boehner is the 61st and current Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. Representative from , serving since 1991...
of
OhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
and Republican leadership chairman
Bill PaxonL. William Paxon , known as Bill Paxon, is a lobbyist and former member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York.-Early life:...
of
New YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. According to their plan, House Majority Leader Armey,
House Majority WhipA whip in the United States House of Representatives manages his party's legislative program on the House floor. The Whip keeps track of all legislation and ensures that all party members are present when important measures are to be voted upon....
Tom DeLayThomas Dale "Tom" DeLay is a former member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1984 until 2006. He was Republican Party House Majority Leader from 2003 to 2005, when he resigned because of criminal money laundering charges in...
, Boehner and Paxon were to present Gingrich with an ultimatum: resign, or be voted out. However, Armey balked at the proposal to make Paxon the new Speaker, and told his chief of staff to warn Gingrich about the coup.
On July 11, Gingrich met with senior Republican leadership to assess the situation. He explained that under no circumstance would he step down. If he was voted out, there would be a new election for Speaker, which would allow for the possibility that Democrats—along with dissenting Republicans—would vote in
Dick GephardtRichard Andrew "Dick" Gephardt is a lobbyist and former prominent American politician of the Democratic Party. Gephardt served as a U.S. Representative from Missouri from January 3, 1977, until January 3, 2005, serving as House Majority Leader from 1989 to 1995, and as Minority Leader from 1995 to...
as Speaker. On July 16, Paxon offered to resign his post, feeling that he had not handled the situation correctly, as the only member of the leadership who had been appointed to his position—by Gingrich—instead of elected.
Later congressional career
After heavy Republican losses in the 1998 elections, Armey had to fend off a bruising challenge for his majority leader post from
Steve LargentSteven Michael "Steve" Largent is a retired American football player, enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and a former U.S. Congressman, having served in the U.S. House of Representatives for Oklahoma from 1994 until 2002...
of
OklahomaOklahoma 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...
, a member of the Republican class of 1994. Although Armey was not popular in the Republican caucus, Largent was thought to be far too conservative for the liking of some moderate Republicans, and Armey won on the third ballot. Soon afterward, Speaker-elect
Bob LivingstonRobert Linlithgow "Bob" Livingston Jr. is a Washington, D.C.-based lobbyist and a former Republican U.S. Representative from Louisiana...
of
LouisianaLouisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
announced he wouldn't take the post after the revelation of an extramarital affair, Armey initially seemed to have the inside track to become Speaker. As majority leader, he was the number-two Republican in the chamber. However, he was still badly wounded from Largent's challenge, and opted not to run. The post eventually went to Chief Deputy Whip
Dennis HastertJohn Dennis "Denny" Hastert was the 59th Speaker of the House serving from 1999 to 2007. He represented as a Republican for twenty years, 1987 to 2007.He is the longest-serving Republican Speaker in history...
of
IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
.
Armey served another four years before announcing his retirement in 2002. In his last legislative effort, he was named chairman of the House Select Committee on Homeland Security and was the primary sponsor of the legislation that created the Department of Homeland Security.
After Armey's retirement, fellow Texan and Republican
Tom DeLayThomas Dale "Tom" DeLay is a former member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1984 until 2006. He was Republican Party House Majority Leader from 2003 to 2005, when he resigned because of criminal money laundering charges in...
, then
House Majority WhipA whip in the United States House of Representatives manages his party's legislative program on the House floor. The Whip keeps track of all legislation and ensures that all party members are present when important measures are to be voted upon....
, was elevated to Armey's Majority Leader position. Armey's son, Scott, ran for his father's seat in the 2002 election, but lost in the Republican Party (GOP) runoff to
Michael C. BurgessMichael Clifton Burgess, is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003, and a member of the Tea Party Caucus.-Early life, education, and early career:...
, who would go on to hold the strongly Republican 26th District for the GOP in November.
Contract with America
In 1994, Armey, then House Republican Conference Chairman, joined
Minority WhipA whip in the United States House of Representatives manages his party's legislative program on the House floor. The Whip keeps track of all legislation and ensures that all party members are present when important measures are to be voted upon....
Newt GingrichNewton Leroy "Newt" Gingrich is a U.S. Republican Party politician who served as the House Minority Whip from 1989 to 1995 and as the 58th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999....
in drafting the
Contract with AmericaThe Contract with America was a document released by the United States Republican Party during the 1994 Congressional election campaign. Written by Larry Hunter, who was aided by Newt Gingrich, Robert Walker, Richard Armey, Bill Paxon, Tom DeLay, John Boehner and Jim Nussle, and in part using text...
. Republican members credited this election platform with the Republican takeover of Congress, rewarding Gingrich with the position of Speaker and Armey with the number two position of House Majority Leader. Gingrich delegated to Armey an unprecedented level of authority over scheduling legislation on the House floor, a power traditionally reserved to the Speaker. Armey has been accused of being involved in a 1997 attempt to oust Gingrich as Speaker, something Armey has strongly denied. In 1995 Armey referred to openly homosexual Congressman
Barney FrankBarney Frank is the U.S. Representative for . A member of the Democratic Party, he is the former chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and is considered the most prominent gay politician in the United States.Born and raised in New Jersey, Frank graduated from Harvard College and...
, as "Barney Fag". Armey said it was a
slip of the tongue-20th Anniversary Edition DVD:-Singles:*"Fool for Your Loving"*"Now You're Gone"*"The Deeper the Love"-Personnel:*David Coverdale – vocals*Steve Vai – All Guitars*Adrian Vandenberg - Guitars *Rudy Sarzo – bass...
. Armey and his staff, especially spokesman Jim Wilkinson, took the lead in spreading the idea that
Al GoreAlbert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
claimed to have "invented the internet."
Defense spending
During his time in Congress, Armey conceived the
independent nonpolitical commissionBase Realignment and Closure is a process of the United States federal government directed at the administration and operation of the Armed Forces, used by the United States Department of Defense and Congress to close excess military installations and realign the total asset inventory to reduce...
that became responsible for identifying those
military baseA military base is a facility directly owned and operated by or for the military or one of its branches that shelters military equipment and personnel, and facilitates training and operations. In general, a military base provides accommodations for one or more units, but it may also be used as a...
s to be closed as a cost-cutting measure. After his retirement from Congress, he told the
New York Times: "A lot of people say if you cut defense, you’re demonstrating less than a full commitment to our nation’s security, and that’s baloney."
Economy and taxation
As a free-market economist influenced by the ideas of
Milton FriedmanMilton Friedman was an American economist, statistician, academic, and author who taught at the University of Chicago for more than three decades...
, Armey favored relatively open immigration and the elimination of
barriers to the movement of goods and people across national boundariesUnder a free trade policy, prices emerge from supply and demand, and are the sole determinant of resource allocation. 'Free' trade differs from other forms of trade policy where the allocation of goods and services among trading countries are determined by price strategies that may differ from...
. Armey was one of Congress's fervent supporters of privatization of
Social SecurityIn the United States, Social Security refers to the federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program.The original Social Security Act and the current version of the Act, as amended encompass several social welfare and social insurance programs...
and phasing-out of
farm subsidiesAn agricultural subsidy is a governmental subsidy paid to farmers and agribusinesses to supplement their income, manage the supply of agricultural commodities, and influence the cost and supply of such commodities...
. He is a strong supporter of replacing the progressive tax levels and a complex system of deductions with a simplified single rate known as a
flat taxA flat tax is a tax system with a constant marginal tax rate. Typically the term flat tax is applied in the context of an individual or corporate income that will be taxed at one marginal rate...
where the poorest taxpayer would pay the same tax percentage as the wealthiest. Armey is very critical of a competing tax reform proposal that would replace the current system with a national sales tax, the
FairTaxThe FairTax is a tax reform proposal for the federal government of the United States that would replace all federal taxes on personal and corporate income with a single broad national consumption tax on retail sales. The Fair Tax Act would apply a tax once at the point of purchase on all new goods...
.
Health Care
In 1999, Armey sponsored the
Fair Care for the Uninsured Act: something that would also be proposed in
2001,
2003, and
2005 (by
Mark KennedyMark Raymond Kennedy , is an American businessman and politician. Kennedy was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 2001 to 2007. He represented Minnesota's 2nd congressional district during the 107th Congress and Minnesota's 6th congressional district during the...
, after Armey left Congress). It proposed using tax credits to offset the cost of
health insuranceHealth insurance is insurance against the risk of incurring medical expenses among individuals. By estimating the overall risk of health care expenses among a targeted group, an insurer can develop a routine finance structure, such as a monthly premium or payroll tax, to ensure that money is...
; providing for individuals to be able to go outside the workplace to obtain portable private health coverage directly from an insurance company; and the creation of a "safety net" for the uninsured. The law never made it through Congress, but some of these concepts did make it into the
Massachusetts "Romneycare" lawThe Massachusetts health care insurance reform law, enacted in 2006, mandates that nearly every resident of Massachusetts obtain a state-government-regulated minimum level of healthcare insurance coverage and provides free health care insurance for residents earning less than 150% of the federal...
of 2006 and from there into President Obama's controversial health-care reform in 2010 ("Obamacare"). Armey is a vocal opponent of the most controversial element of the Romney/Obama approach to health reform, namely, its
individual mandateAn individual mandate is a requirement by a government that certain individual citizens purchase or otherwise obtain a good or service.In the United States, the United States Congress has enacted two individual mandates, the first was never federally enforced, while the second is not scheduled to...
to purchase health benefits. He also voiced public opposition to the individual mandate when it was proposed by both First Lady Hillary Clinton and the conservative
Heritage FoundationThe Heritage Foundation is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C. Heritage's stated mission is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong...
during the contentious national health care reform debate of 1993 and 1994.
Iraq War
In 2006,
Michael IsikoffMichael Isikoff is an investigative journalist for NBC News, formerly with the United States magazine Newsweek. He joined Newsweek as an investigative correspondent in June, 1994, and has written extensively on the U.S...
's book
Hubris included Armey as an on-the-record source, who said he was initially reluctant to support the
Bush administrationThe presidency of George W. Bush began on January 20, 2001, when he was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States of America. The oldest son of former president George H. W. Bush, George W...
's call for
war with Iraq, and that he had warned President
George W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
that such a war might be a "quagmire". Armey said that the intelligence presented to him in support of the war appeared questionable, but he gave Bush the benefit of the doubt.
According to
Pulitzer PrizeThe Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning journalist
Barton GellmanBarton David Gellman is a Pulitzer Prize winning American journalist, blogger and bestselling author.-Career:After 21 years on the staff of The Washington Post, Gellman resigned in February 2010 to concentrate on book and magazine writing...
, former Vice President
Dick CheneyRichard Bruce "Dick" Cheney served as the 46th Vice President of the United States , under George W. Bush....
told Armey that
Saddam HusseinSaddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
's family had direct ties to
Al-QaedaAl-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
and that Saddam was developing miniature nuclear weapons. Armey then voted for the
Iraq War, but after it became clear this was not true, stated that he "deserved better than to be bullshitted by the Vice President."
Robert DraperRobert Draper is a freelance writer, a correspondent for GQ and a contributor to The New York Times Magazine. Previously, he worked for Texas Monthly, where he first became acquainted with the Bush political family. He is the author of Dead Certain: The Presidency of George W. Bush, a chronicle of...
's
Dead Certain: The Presidency of George W. Bush recounts a conversation in late summer 2002 between Armey and Cheney. Armey insisted that American forces would get "mired down" in
IraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
if they invaded, but Cheney offered this assurance: "They're going to welcome us. It'll be like the American army
going through the streets of ParisThe Liberation of Paris took place during World War II from 19 August 1944 until the surrender of the occupying German garrison on August 25th. It could be regarded by some as the last battle in the Battle for Normandy, though that really ended with the crushing of the Wehrmacht forces between the...
. They're sitting there ready to form a new government. The people will be so happy with their freedoms that we'll probably back ourselves out of there within a month or two."
Israel
On May 1, 2002, on
MSNBCMSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
's "
Hardball with Chris MatthewsHardball with Chris Matthews is a talk show on MSNBC, broadcast weekdays at 5 and 7 PM hosted by Chris Matthews. It originally aired on now-defunct America's Talking and later CNBC. The current title was derived from a book Matthews wrote in 1988, Hardball: How Politics Is Played Told by One Who...
", Armey, then the House Republican Majority Leader, called for Palestinians to be expelled from the Palestinian Occupied Territories. Armey repeatedly said that he would be "content" with Israel completely taking over all of the Palestinian Occupied Territories and transfer the Palestinian population out. He further stated that the Palestinians could then build their state in the "many Arab nations that have many hundreds of thousands of acres of land".
Controversies
In 1989 he wrote a letter to the
National Endowment for the ArtsThe National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
about the grants for
Andres SerranoAndres Serrano is an American photographer and artist who has become notorious through his photos of corpses and his use of feces and bodily fluids in his work, notably his controversial work "Piss Christ", a red-tinged photograph of a crucifix submerged in a glass container of what was purported...
and
Robert MapplethorpeRobert Mapplethorpe was an American photographer, known for his large-scale, highly stylized black and white portraits, photos of flowers and nude men...
, calling their work "morally reprehensible trash."
Quote during Clinton Impeachment
In 1998, during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, a reporter asked him what he would do if he were in President
Bill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
's position. He replied "If I were in the President's place I would not have gotten a chance to resign. I would be lying in a pool of my own blood, hearing Mrs. Armey standing over me saying, 'How do I reload this damn thing?'"
Focus on the Family
According to Armey, he also sparred with
Focus on the FamilyFocus on the Family is an American evangelical Christian tax-exempt non-profit organization founded in 1977 by psychologist James Dobson, and is based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Focus on the Family is one of a number of evangelical parachurch organizations that rose to prominence in the 1980s...
leader
James DobsonJames Clayton "Jim" Dobson, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian author, psychologist, and founder in 1977 of Focus on the Family , which he led until 2003. In the 1980s he was ranked as one of the most influential spokesman for conservative social positions in American public life...
while in office. Armey wrote, "As Majority Leader, I remember vividly a meeting with the House leadership where Dobson scolded us for having failed to 'deliver' for Christian conservatives, that we owed our majority to him, and that he had the power to take our jobs back. This offended me, and I told him so." Armey states that Focus on the Family targeted him politically after the incident, writing, "Focus on the Family deliberately perpetuates the lie that I am a consultant to the ACLU." Armey has also said that "Dobson and his gang of thieves are real nasty bullies."
DLA Piper
At the start of 2003, Armey joined the Washington office of the law firm
DLA PiperDLA Piper is a global law firm with 76 offices across 30 countries and more than 4,200 lawyers. As of May 2011, it was the largest law firm in the world by number of attorneys. The firm's global revenues were $1.92 billion in 2009-2010. The firm is composed of two partnerships, DLA Piper...
(formerly DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary) as a senior policy advisor. Armey was also the firm's co-chairman of its Homeland Security Task Force.
In August 2009 Armey was asked to step down from his
lobbyingLobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by various people or groups, from private-sector individuals or corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or...
position at DLA Piper, which was doing lobbying work for the pharmaceutical industry regarding health care reform legislation. Armey was simultaneously chairing the conservative group
FreedomWorksFreedomWorks is a conservative non-profit organization based in Washington D.C., United States. FreedomWorks trains volunteers, assists in campaigns, and encourages them to mobilize, interacting with both fellow citizens and their political representatives....
which was actively working to defeat health care reform by encouraging and organizing high conservative turnouts at congressional and senatorial town hall meetings. DLA Piper was concerned about the
conflict of interestA conflict of interest occurs when an individual or organization is involved in multiple interests, one of which could possibly corrupt the motivation for an act in the other....
particularly since their clients were spending millions in advertising and lobbying money to support the passage of health care reform and FreedomWorks was linked to demonstrations at town hall forums where health care reform was being discussed.
FreedomWorks
In 2003, Armey became co-chairman of
Citizens for a Sound EconomyCitizens for a Sound Economy was a conservative political group operating in the United States, whose self-described mission was "to fight for less government, lower taxes, and less regulation." In 2004, Citizens for a Sound Economy split into two new organizations, with Citizens for a Sound...
, which in 2004 merged with Empower America to become
FreedomWorksFreedomWorks is a conservative non-profit organization based in Washington D.C., United States. FreedomWorks trains volunteers, assists in campaigns, and encourages them to mobilize, interacting with both fellow citizens and their political representatives....
. "FreedomWorks" is a common Armey saying and the organization is dedicated to advancing a "Freedom Agenda" of "lower taxes, less government, and more freedom." FreedomWorks states that it has 700,000 members nationwide and full time staff in 10 states. In his role as Chairman, Armey continues to be a national political figure and grassroots leader. He travels widely, meeting with activists and legislators. In 2005, for example, he testified before the President's Advisory Panel on Tax Reform and debated
Governor of ColoradoThe Governor of Colorado is the head of the executive branch of Colorado's government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Colorado General Assembly, to convene the...
Bill Owens on a tax increase ballot measure.
August 2009 town hall meetings health care controversy
In 2009, FreedomWorks launched a campaign against health care reform proposals, accusing the Obama administration of attempting to "
socialize medicineSocialized medicine is a term used to describe a system for providing medical and hospital care for all at a nominal cost by means of government regulation of health services and subsidies derived from taxation. It is used primarily and usually pejoratively in United States political debates...
". A strategy manual disseminated by a FreedomWorks volunteer explained "best practices" including "Inflate your numbers", describing how one group succeeded in dominating a group of 150 voters in which only 30 opposed healthcare reform.
Referencing a piece entitled "On Private Conference Call,
Tea PartyThe Tea Party movement is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009...
Organizers Say
No Reform At All is Goal" on Greg Sargent's liberal blog
The Plum Line, Rachel MaddowRachel Anne Maddow is an American television host and political commentator. Maddow hosts a nightly television show, The Rachel Maddow Show, on MSNBC. Her syndicated talk radio program, The Rachel Maddow Show, aired on Air America Radio...
argued in her opinion piece "TRMS Investigates FreedomWorks" that the right's strategy was to disrupt and shut down the August 2009
town hallA town hall meeting is an American English term given to an informal public meeting. Everybody in a town community is invited to attend, not always to voice their opinions, but to hear the responses from public figures and elected officials about shared subjects of interest. Attendees rarely voted...
congressional meetings on
health care reformHealth care reform is a general rubric used for discussing major health policy creation or changes—for the most part, governmental policy that affects health care delivery in a given place...
by “scaring real
AmericansThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
with increasingly paranoid and kooky lies about health care and then providing a
scriptA play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
for how to express that fear.” At many of the town halls Democratic "members of Congress have been shouted down, hanged in effigy and taunted by crowds" in an apparent organized effort to rattle the congresspeople presiding over the meetings rather than to seek a compromise solution to health care reform.
The phone conversation cited by Sargent in "On Private Conference Call . . ." was moderated by The Tea Party Patriots, a national co-partner of Dick Armey's
FreedomWorksFreedomWorks is a conservative non-profit organization based in Washington D.C., United States. FreedomWorks trains volunteers, assists in campaigns, and encourages them to mobilize, interacting with both fellow citizens and their political representatives....
, according to FreedomWorks itself. The Tea Party Patriots website later called for Patriots to begin making calls to melt Congress' phone lines and to weigh in on the health care debate actively, aggressively, and with big numbers. In addition to being the chair of FreedomWorks, Dick Armey was a senior policy adviser for DC-based lobbying firm
DLA PiperDLA Piper is a global law firm with 76 offices across 30 countries and more than 4,200 lawyers. As of May 2011, it was the largest law firm in the world by number of attorneys. The firm's global revenues were $1.92 billion in 2009-2010. The firm is composed of two partnerships, DLA Piper...
, whose recent and/or current clients include "pharmaceutical maker
Bristol-Myers SquibbBristol-Myers Squibb , often referred to as BMS, is a pharmaceutical company, headquartered in New York City. The company was formed in 1989, following the merger of its predecessors Bristol-Myers and the Squibb Corporation...
Company, ... health care provider Metropolitan Health Networks, and the pharmaceutical firm Medicines Company,". Dick Armey's concurrent posts with both FreedomWorks and DLA Piper became particularly controversial in light of the $1,290,000 DLA Piper received in 2009 from the pharmaceutical company Medicines Co. However, Pharmaceutical companies generally supported and lobbied in favor of the Democratic health care agenda, since it is expected to increase their profits. In the report cited above, Maddow also cited the example of The American Council of Life Insurers, which paid DLA Piper $100,000 shortly before FreedomWorks lobbied to deregulate
life insuranceLife insurance is a contract between an insurance policy holder and an insurer, where the insurer promises to pay a designated beneficiary a sum of money upon the death of the insured person. Depending on the contract, other events such as terminal illness or critical illness may also trigger...
, as one instance of a possible conflict of interest involving Armey and the two organizations.
Addressing DLA Piper's role in the situation, chairman Francis Burch said “…DLA Piper represents clients who support enactment of effective
health care reformHealth care reform is a general rubric used for discussing major health policy creation or changes—for the most part, governmental policy that affects health care delivery in a given place...
this year and encourages responsible national debate." Amid what
PoliticoThe Politico is an American political journalism organization based in Arlington, Virginia, that distributes its content via television, the Internet, newspaper, and radio. Its coverage of Washington, D.C., includes the U.S. Congress, lobbying, media and the Presidency...
called "the health care flap", on August 14, 2009, DLA Piper asked Armey to resign, and he left the firm.
External links
- Appearances on Charlie Rose
Charles Peete "Charlie" Rose, Jr. is an American television talk show host and journalist. Since 1991 he has hosted Charlie Rose, an interview show distributed nationally by PBS since 1993...
- Profile at SourceWatch
SourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...
- Dick Armey political contributions from Influence Explorer at the Sunlight Foundation
The Sunlight Foundation is a 501 educational organization founded in April 2006 with the goal of increasing transparency and accountability in the United States government....
- Profile at FreedomWorks
FreedomWorks is a conservative non-profit organization based in Washington D.C., United States. FreedomWorks trains volunteers, assists in campaigns, and encourages them to mobilize, interacting with both fellow citizens and their political representatives....
- Profile on PremiereSpeakers.com
Articles
- Tea Partiers air doubts about Dick Armey, Kenneth P. Vogel, Politico
The Politico is an American political journalism organization based in Arlington, Virginia, that distributes its content via television, the Internet, newspaper, and radio. Its coverage of Washington, D.C., includes the U.S. Congress, lobbying, media and the Presidency...
, March 25, 2010
- Secrets of the Tea Party: The Troubling History of Tea Party Leader Dick Armey, Beau Hodai, Truthout, March 26, 2010
- 'Tea party's' Dick Armey: A GOP majority would take up abortion fight, Dave Cook, Christian Science Monitor, September 13, 2010