Patrick Joseph "Pat" Toomey, Sr. (born November 17, 1961) is the junior
United States SenatorThe 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...
for
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and a member of the
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...
. Previously, Toomey served as a
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...
for three terms, but did not seek a fourth in compliance with a pledge he had made while running for office in 1998. He also served as president of the
Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
.
Toomey attended school at
La Salle AcademyLa Salle Academy is an independent, co-educational Roman Catholic college preparatory day school located in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island...
in
Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
before earning an A.B. in government from
Harvard CollegeHarvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
. He was employed first by Chemical Bank and subsequently
Morgan, Grenfell & Co.Morgan, Grenfell & Co. was a leading London-based investment bank regarded as one of the oldest and once most influential British merchant banks.-History:...
beginning in 1984 and 1986, respectively, until resigning from the latter in 1991.
Prior to being elected to the U.S. Senate, Toomey served as the U.S. Representative for from 1999 to 2005. He narrowly lost the Republican primary for United States Senate in 2004. From 2005 to 2009, he served as president of the Club for Growth. After becoming the Republican nominee for the
2010 U.S. Senate electionThe 2010 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on November 2, 2010, during the 2010 midterm elections. Incumbent Republican-turned-Democrat U.S. Senator Arlen Specter ran for re-election to a sixth term, but lost in the Democratic primary to Joe Sestak. Republican nominee Pat...
in Pennsylvania, Toomey was elected to the seat on November 2, 2010, defeating
DemocraticThe Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
opponent Joe Sestak.
Early life, education, and early career
Born in
Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, Toomey was raised by
CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
parents, and was one of six children. He attended
La Salle AcademyLa Salle Academy is an independent, co-educational Roman Catholic college preparatory day school located in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island...
on scholarship and graduated from
Harvard CollegeHarvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
with an A.B. in government.
Toomey was hired by
Chemical BankChemical Bank was a bank with headquarters in New York City from 1824 until 1996. The bank operated as the primary subsidiary of the Chemical Banking Corporation, a bank holding company established in 1988. At the end of 1995, Chemical was the third largest bank in the U.S...
in 1984, where he was involved in
currency swapA currency swap is a foreign-exchange agreement between two parties to exchange aspects of a loan in one currency for equivalent aspects of an equal in net present value loan in another currency; see foreign exchange derivative. Currency swaps are motivated by comparative advantage...
transactions. In 1986, Toomey was hired by
Morgan, Grenfell & Co.Morgan, Grenfell & Co. was a leading London-based investment bank regarded as one of the oldest and once most influential British merchant banks.-History:...
, where he dealt in multiple foreign currencies, interest rates, and currency-related
derivativesA derivative instrument is a contract between two parties that specifies conditions—in particular, dates and the resulting values of the underlying variables—under which payments, or payoffs, are to be made between the parties.Under U.S...
. In 1991, Toomey resigned from the firm when it was acquired by
Deutsche BankDeutsche Bank AG is a global financial service company with its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. It employs more than 100,000 people in over 70 countries, and has a large presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the emerging markets...
in order to avoid the decreased flexibility and entrepreneurship that the acquisition would have caused. The same year, Toomey and two younger brothers, Steven and Michael, opened Rookie's Restaurant in
Allentown, PennsylvaniaAllentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and the 215th largest city in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 118,032 and is currently...
.
In 1994, aged 32, Toomey was elected to Allentown's newly established Government Study Commission. During his term, Toomey drafted a new charter for the Commission requiring a super-majority for any tax increase. The charter was approved by Allentown voters on April 23, 1996.
Elections
In 1998, Toomey ran for the 15th District seat being vacated by the Democratic incumbent
Paul McHalePaul F. McHale, Jr. is an American politician. He was the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and from 1993 to 1999, he represented Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives....
against state Senator and future Allentown Mayor
Roy AfflerbachRoy C. Afflerbach is an American lobbyist and former Pennsylvania state senator and Representative. He was Mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the third largest city in Pennsylvania, from 2002 to 2006...
.
During the campaign, Toomey criticized the agenda of the
Clinton-Gore administrationThe United States Presidency of Bill Clinton, also known as the Clinton Administration, was the executive branch of the federal government of the United States from January 20, 1993 to January 20, 2001. Clinton was the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second full term...
, specifically plans to modify the
Internal Revenue ServiceThe Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
. He criticized the plan by claiming that it did not "address the real fundamental problems plaguing American taxpayers", arguing that the IRS should be abolished. Later in the campaign, Toomey and Democratic opponent
Roy C. AfflerbachRoy C. Afflerbach is an American lobbyist and former Pennsylvania state senator and Representative. He was Mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the third largest city in Pennsylvania, from 2002 to 2006...
debated the effectiveness of 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...
-based system, an issue on which the two sharply disagreed.
Toomey won by a ten-point margin. Toomey was reelected two more times by relatively comfortable margins. He did not run for reelection to his House seat in 2004, fulfilling a pledge that he had signed in 1998 to serve only three terms.
Tenure
Toomey served as the
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...
for from 1999 to 2005. While serving in the United States House of Representatives he distinguished himself as a fiscal expert. Honoring his three-term pledge, he did not seek reelection in 2004.
Elections
In
2004The 2004 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held on November 2, 2004. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Arlen Specter won re-election to a fifth term.-Campaign:...
, Toomey challenged
incumbentThe incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
SenatorThe 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...
Arlen SpecterArlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
in the Republican
primary electionA primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
. Aided by $2 million of advertising from the
Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
, Toomey's campaign theme was that Specter was not a conservative, especially on fiscal issues. However, most of the state's Republican establishment closed ranks behind Specter. This included endorsements by Pennsylvania's other Senator,
Rick SantorumRichard John "Rick" Santorum is a lawyer and a former United States Senator from the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Santorum was the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference -making him the third-ranking Senate Republican from 2001 until his leave in 2007. Santorum is considered both a social...
and by 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....
. Toomey lost the election by a 1.7% margin.
On April 15, 2009, Toomey announced his intention to once again challenge Specter in the
Republican senatorial primaryThe 2010 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on November 2, 2010, during the 2010 midterm elections. Incumbent Republican-turned-Democrat U.S. Senator Arlen Specter ran for re-election to a sixth term, but lost in the Democratic primary to Joe Sestak. Republican nominee Pat...
. On April 28, 2009, Specter announced that he was switching parties and would run as a Democrat in 2010 after polls showed him losing to Toomey in the primary. Specter's withdrawal left Toomey as the front runner for the 2010 Republican nomination. Toomey won the Republican Senate primary on May 18, 2010. On November 2, 2010 he was elected to the United States Senate defeating Democrat Joe Sestak.
Tenure
Toomey was elected to the United States Senate on November 2, 2010. His term began on January 3, 2011. He joined the
Congressional Hispanic ConferenceThe Congressional Hispanic Conference is a Republican Party-controlled caucus in the United States Congress. The CHC was formed in 2003, with the stated goal of promoting policy outcomes of importance to Americans of Hispanic or Latino and Portuguese descent. These priorities included support of...
, a caucus which he was an original member of in his days in the House.
On August 11, 2011, Toomey was named to the
United States Congress Joint Select Committee on Deficit ReductionThe Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, colloquially referred to as the Supercommittee, is a joint select committee of the United States Congress, created by the Budget Control Act of 2011 on August 2, 2011...
by Senate minority leader
Mitch McConnellAddison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Kentucky and the Republican Minority Leader.- Early life, education, and military service :...
. The committee's duties included composing a package of spending cuts for submission to both Houses of Congress.
Toomey and the rest of the committee failed to do this.
Toomey is the first
Lehigh ValleyThe Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
resident to serve as United States Senator from Pennsylvania since
Richard BrodheadRichard Brodhead was an American lawyer and politician from Easton, Pennsylvania. He represented Pennsylvania in both the U.S. House and Senate. He was the father of U.S. Representative Jefferson Davis Brodhead....
, in the mid-1800s.
Committee assignments
- Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
The United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs has jurisdiction over matters related to: banks and banking, price controls, deposit insurance, export promotion and controls, federal monetary policy, financial aid to commerce and industry, issuance of redemption of notes,...
- Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection
- Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development
The Senate Banking Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development is one of five subcommittees within the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.-Jurisdiction:...
- Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment
The Senate Banking Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment is one of five subcommittees within the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.-Jurisdiction:...
- Committee on the Budget
The United States Senate Committee on Budget was established by the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. It is responsible for drafting Congress's annual budget plan and monitoring action on the budget for the Federal Government. The committee has jurisdiction over the...
- Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
The United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is a standing committee of the United States Senate in charge of all senate matters related to the following subjects:* Coast Guard* Coastal zone management* Communications...
- Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet Ranking Member
- Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security
- Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance
- Joint Economic Committee
The Joint Economic Committee is one of four standing joint committees of the U.S. Congress. The committee was established as a part of the Employment Act of 1946, which deemed the committee responsible for reporting the current economic condition of the United States and for making suggestions...
- Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction
The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, colloquially referred to as the Supercommittee, is a joint select committee of the United States Congress, created by the Budget Control Act of 2011 on August 2, 2011...
- Congressional Hispanic Conference
The Congressional Hispanic Conference is a Republican Party-controlled caucus in the United States Congress. The CHC was formed in 2003, with the stated goal of promoting policy outcomes of importance to Americans of Hispanic or Latino and Portuguese descent. These priorities included support of...
Political positions
Based on his three terms in United States House of Representatives, the conservative
American Conservative UnionThe American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
(ACU) has assigned Toomey a lifetime congressional rating of 97%, and the liberal
Americans for Democratic ActionAmericans for Democratic Action is an American political organization advocating progressive policies. ADA works for social and economic justice through lobbying, grassroots organizing, research and supporting progressive candidates.-History:...
(ADA) a lifetime "Liberal Quotient" of 6%. The ACLU has given Toomey a 13% lifetime rating on civil rights.
In January 2005 Toomey became president of the
Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
, which had greatly supported his 2004 race against Specter.
Abortion
Toomey identifies as
pro-lifeOpposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
. Toomey received a 100% by the
National Right to Life CommitteeThe National Right to Life Committee is the oldest and largest pro-life organization in the United States with affiliates in all 50 states and over 3,000 local chapters nationwide. The group works through legislation and education to work against abortion, infanticide, euthanasia and assisted...
. He has stated that he supports imposing jail terms for doctors who perform abortions.
Earmarks
In his first term as a congressman, Toomey won $9 million overall in earmark funding to his district. In successive terms in Congress, he swore off earmarks and signed the "No Pork" pledge as a senate candidate.
Environment
During Toomey's tenure in Congress, he supported legislation that would speed up approval of forest thinning projects in 2003, supported opening the
Arctic National Wildlife RefugeThe Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a national wildlife refuge in northeastern Alaska, United States. It consists of in the Alaska North Slope region. It is the largest National Wildlife Refuge in the country, slightly larger than the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge...
to oil drilling and development, opposed implementing the
Kyoto ProtocolThe Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , aimed at fighting global warming...
, and opposed legislation that would mandate increased vehicle fuel efficiency standards and provide incentives for
alternative fuelsAlternative energy is an umbrella term that refers to any source of usable energy intended to replace fuel sources without the undesired consequences of the replaced fuels....
. In 2003, Toomey was given a 0% rating by the
League of Conservation VotersThe League of Conservation Voters is a political advocacy organization founded in 1969 by American environmentalist David Brower in the early years of the environmental movement. LCV's mission is to "advocate for sound environmental policies and to elect pro-environmental candidates who will adopt...
, indicating what the organization considers to be an anti-environmental voting record.
Financial regulation
Since his first days as a freshman Congressman, Toomey has strongly advocated deregulation of the financial services industry: "The trend in deregulation, beginning in the early 1980s, is one of the biggest reasons for the sustained economic expansion. I would like to see us continue to deregulate on many fronts, including the financial services industry,” he stated in the spring of 1999.
While serving on the
House Banking CommitteeThe United States House Committee on Financial Services is the committee of the United States House of Representatives that oversees the entire financial services industry, including the securities, insurance, banking, and housing industries...
, Toomey, in 1999, helped write House Resolution 10, which led to the repeal of parts of the Depression-era
Glass-Steagall ActThe Banking Act of 1933, , was a law that established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in the United States and introduced banking reforms, some of which were designed to control speculation. It is most commonly known as the Glass–Steagall Act, after its legislative sponsors, Senator...
. The repeal of the Act, which had regulated the separation of banks and investment firms, allowed the creation of huge companies that combined banking and investment operations. President
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
and others have pointed to the repeal of Glass-Steagall as a significant cause of the current global financial crisis, on the grounds that it opened up the door for the financial sector to form so-called
too big to failToo Big to Fail is a television drama film in the United States broadcast on HBO on May 23, 2011. It is based on the non-fiction book Too Big to Fail by Andrew Ross Sorkin. The TV film was directed by Curtis Hanson...
financial services giants like
AIGAIG is American International Group, a major American insurance corporation.AIG may also refer to:* And-inverter graph, a concept in computer theory* Answers in Genesis, a creationist organization in the U.S.* Arta Industrial Group in Iran...
.
Guns
Toomey advocates the reduction of gun regulations. While serving in Congress, Toomey supported bills that would prohibit suing gun makers and sellers for gun misuse and would decrease the waiting period due to
background checkA background check or background investigation is the process of looking up and compiling criminal records, commercial records and financial records of an individual....
s from three days to one for purchases made at
gun showA gun show is a temporary exhibition or gathering in the United States where firearms, firearm accessories, ammunition, literature, knives, jerky, militaria, and miscellaneous collectibles are displayed, bought, sold, traded, and discussed. Gun shows also often include exhibitions related to...
s. Toomey received an "A" by the
National Rifle AssociationThe National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
(NRA), indicating what the NRA considers to be a pro-gun rights voting record.
LGBT issues
Toomey has supported several legislative actions designed to block the expansion of certain civil rights to homosexuals, or to revoke existing rights; specifically, he voted to amend the U.S. Constitution to ban
same-sex marriageSame-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
; to ban gay adoptions in the District of Columbia; and for the
Marriage Protection ActThe Marriage Protection Act is a bill in the United States Congress to amend the federal judicial code to deny federal courts jurisdiction to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of the Defense of Marriage Act or the MPA...
of 2004, a bill that would amend the federal judicial code to deny
federal courtsThe United States federal courts make up the judiciary branch of federal government of the United States organized under the United States Constitution and laws of the federal government.-Categories:...
jurisdiction to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of the
Defense of Marriage ActThe Defense of Marriage Act is a United States federal law whereby the federal government defines marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman. Under the law, no U.S. state may be required to recognize as a marriage a same-sex relationship considered a marriage in another state...
or of the Marriage Protection Act itself.
Toomey did, however, support the repeal of
Don't Ask, Don't Tell"Don't ask, don't tell" was the official United States policy on homosexuals serving in the military from December 21, 1993 to September 20, 2011. The policy prohibited military personnel from discriminating against or harassing closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants, while...
, the policy which bans openly gay or bisexual persons from serving in the military, in a statement made while he was Senator-elect.
Healthcare
Toomey opposed the passage of the
Medicare Prescription Drug ActThe Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act is a federal law of the United States, enacted in 2003. It produced the largest overhaul of Medicare in the public health program's 38-year history.The MMA was signed by President George W...
which he argued was fiscally irresponsible.
Toomey's 2012 budget proposal called for turning Medicaid into a block grant to states and cutting federal funding for the program by half by 2021.
Taxes and government spending
Toomey has been a consistent advocate of reducing and eliminating taxes. While in Congress he voted to reduce the capital gains tax, to eliminate the
estate taxThe estate tax in the United States is a tax imposed on the transfer of the "taxable estate" of a deceased person, whether such property is transferred via a will, according to the state laws of intestacy or otherwise made as an incident of the death of the owner, such as a transfer of property...
, to cut small business taxes, to eliminate the "
marriage penaltyThe marriage penalty in the United States refers to the higher taxes required from some married couples, where spouses are making approximately the same taxable income, filing one tax return than for the same two people filing two separate tax returns if they were unmarried...
", to first cut federal income taxes and other taxes by $958B over 10 years (the
Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 , was a sweeping piece of tax legislation in the United States by President George W. Bush...
) and later to make these cuts permanent, to reduce capital gains and income taxes by nearly $100 billion (the Economic Security and Recovery Act of 2002), and to expand and extend multiple tax credits to individuals and businesses.
Toomey publicly opposed the 2009 federal stimulus package. He opposes government-run or subsidized healthcare. Toomey opposed farm subsidies and called farm subsidies in a 2009 article in U.S.A Today "Moscow on the Mississippi" He has supported a federal balanced budget amendment.
Toomey was rated 80% by the
National Taxpayers UnionNational Taxpayers Union is a taxpayers advocacy organization and taxpayers union in the United States, founded in 1969 by James Dale Davidson. NTU advertises that it is the largest and oldest grassroots taxpayer organization in the nation, with 362,000 members nationwide. It is closely...
(NTU), classifying him as what the NTU considers to be a "Taxpayer's Friend" on tax votes. From 1999-2004, He received a 78% rating by the
Republican Liberty CaucusThe Republican Liberty Caucus is a political action organization dedicated to promoting the ideals of individual liberty, limited government and free market economics within the Republican Party in the United States. It is part of the libertarian wing of the Republican Party...
(RLC) on its 'Liberty Index', indicating what the RLC considers his career to be, on average, one of a libertarian-leaning voting record. However, it should be noted that throughout his career, his Liberty Index rating has always decreased, starting at 89% in for 1999–2000, 84.5% in 2001, 79.5% for 2002–2003, 75% in 2004, and 65% in 2005; suggesting that Toomey is increasingly a
centristIn politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting policies that lie different from the standard political left and political right. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between...
. In 2003, Toomey was given a 90% rating by the
United States Chamber of CommerceThe United States Chamber of Commerce is an American lobbying group representing the interests of many businesses and trade associations. It is not an agency of the United States government....
.
Electoral history
Patrick Joseph "Pat" Toomey, Sr. (born November 17, 1961) is the junior United States SenatorThe 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...
for PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and a member of the 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...
. Previously, Toomey served as a 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...
for three terms, but did not seek a fourth in compliance with a pledge he had made while running for office in 1998. He also served as president of the Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
.
Toomey attended school at La Salle AcademyLa Salle Academy is an independent, co-educational Roman Catholic college preparatory day school located in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island...
in Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
before earning an A.B. in government from Harvard CollegeHarvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
. He was employed first by Chemical Bank and subsequently Morgan, Grenfell & Co.Morgan, Grenfell & Co. was a leading London-based investment bank regarded as one of the oldest and once most influential British merchant banks.-History:...
beginning in 1984 and 1986, respectively, until resigning from the latter in 1991.
Prior to being elected to the U.S. Senate, Toomey served as the U.S. Representative for {{ushr|PA|15}} from 1999 to 2005. He narrowly lost the Republican primary for United States Senate in 2004. From 2005 to 2009, he served as president of the Club for Growth. After becoming the Republican nominee for the 2010 U.S. Senate electionThe 2010 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on November 2, 2010, during the 2010 midterm elections. Incumbent Republican-turned-Democrat U.S. Senator Arlen Specter ran for re-election to a sixth term, but lost in the Democratic primary to Joe Sestak. Republican nominee Pat...
in Pennsylvania, Toomey was elected to the seat on November 2, 2010, defeating DemocraticThe Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
opponent Joe Sestak.
Early life, education, and early career
Born in Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, Toomey was raised by CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
parents, and was one of six children. He attended La Salle AcademyLa Salle Academy is an independent, co-educational Roman Catholic college preparatory day school located in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island...
on scholarship and graduated from Harvard CollegeHarvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
with an A.B. in government.
Toomey was hired by Chemical BankChemical Bank was a bank with headquarters in New York City from 1824 until 1996. The bank operated as the primary subsidiary of the Chemical Banking Corporation, a bank holding company established in 1988. At the end of 1995, Chemical was the third largest bank in the U.S...
in 1984, where he was involved in currency swapA currency swap is a foreign-exchange agreement between two parties to exchange aspects of a loan in one currency for equivalent aspects of an equal in net present value loan in another currency; see foreign exchange derivative. Currency swaps are motivated by comparative advantage...
transactions. In 1986, Toomey was hired by Morgan, Grenfell & Co.Morgan, Grenfell & Co. was a leading London-based investment bank regarded as one of the oldest and once most influential British merchant banks.-History:...
, where he dealt in multiple foreign currencies, interest rates, and currency-related derivativesA derivative instrument is a contract between two parties that specifies conditions—in particular, dates and the resulting values of the underlying variables—under which payments, or payoffs, are to be made between the parties.Under U.S...
. In 1991, Toomey resigned from the firm when it was acquired by Deutsche BankDeutsche Bank AG is a global financial service company with its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. It employs more than 100,000 people in over 70 countries, and has a large presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the emerging markets...
in order to avoid the decreased flexibility and entrepreneurship that the acquisition would have caused. The same year, Toomey and two younger brothers, Steven and Michael, opened Rookie's Restaurant in Allentown, PennsylvaniaAllentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and the 215th largest city in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 118,032 and is currently...
.
In 1994, aged 32, Toomey was elected to Allentown's newly established Government Study Commission. During his term, Toomey drafted a new charter for the Commission requiring a super-majority for any tax increase. The charter was approved by Allentown voters on April 23, 1996.
Elections
In 1998, Toomey ran for the 15th District seat being vacated by the Democratic incumbent Paul McHalePaul F. McHale, Jr. is an American politician. He was the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and from 1993 to 1999, he represented Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives....
against state Senator and future Allentown Mayor Roy AfflerbachRoy C. Afflerbach is an American lobbyist and former Pennsylvania state senator and Representative. He was Mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the third largest city in Pennsylvania, from 2002 to 2006...
.
During the campaign, Toomey criticized the agenda of the Clinton-Gore administrationThe United States Presidency of Bill Clinton, also known as the Clinton Administration, was the executive branch of the federal government of the United States from January 20, 1993 to January 20, 2001. Clinton was the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second full term...
, specifically plans to modify the Internal Revenue ServiceThe Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
. He criticized the plan by claiming that it did not "address the real fundamental problems plaguing American taxpayers", arguing that the IRS should be abolished. Later in the campaign, Toomey and Democratic opponent Roy C. AfflerbachRoy C. Afflerbach is an American lobbyist and former Pennsylvania state senator and Representative. He was Mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the third largest city in Pennsylvania, from 2002 to 2006...
debated the effectiveness of 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...
-based system, an issue on which the two sharply disagreed.
Toomey won by a ten-point margin. Toomey was reelected two more times by relatively comfortable margins. He did not run for reelection to his House seat in 2004, fulfilling a pledge that he had signed in 1998 to serve only three terms.
Tenure
Toomey served as the 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...
for {{ushr|PA|15}} from 1999 to 2005. While serving in the United States House of Representatives he distinguished himself as a fiscal expert. Honoring his three-term pledge, he did not seek reelection in 2004.
Elections
In 2004The 2004 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held on November 2, 2004. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Arlen Specter won re-election to a fifth term.-Campaign:...
, Toomey challenged incumbentThe incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
SenatorThe 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...
Arlen SpecterArlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
in the Republican primary electionA primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
. Aided by $2 million of advertising from the Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
, Toomey's campaign theme was that Specter was not a conservative, especially on fiscal issues. However, most of the state's Republican establishment closed ranks behind Specter. This included endorsements by Pennsylvania's other Senator, Rick SantorumRichard John "Rick" Santorum is a lawyer and a former United States Senator from the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Santorum was the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference -making him the third-ranking Senate Republican from 2001 until his leave in 2007. Santorum is considered both a social...
and by 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....
. Toomey lost the election by a 1.7% margin.
On April 15, 2009, Toomey announced his intention to once again challenge Specter in the Republican senatorial primaryThe 2010 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on November 2, 2010, during the 2010 midterm elections. Incumbent Republican-turned-Democrat U.S. Senator Arlen Specter ran for re-election to a sixth term, but lost in the Democratic primary to Joe Sestak. Republican nominee Pat...
. On April 28, 2009, Specter announced that he was switching parties and would run as a Democrat in 2010 after polls showed him losing to Toomey in the primary. Specter's withdrawal left Toomey as the front runner for the 2010 Republican nomination. Toomey won the Republican Senate primary on May 18, 2010. On November 2, 2010 he was elected to the United States Senate defeating Democrat Joe Sestak.
Tenure
Toomey was elected to the United States Senate on November 2, 2010. His term began on January 3, 2011. He joined the Congressional Hispanic ConferenceThe Congressional Hispanic Conference is a Republican Party-controlled caucus in the United States Congress. The CHC was formed in 2003, with the stated goal of promoting policy outcomes of importance to Americans of Hispanic or Latino and Portuguese descent. These priorities included support of...
, a caucus which he was an original member of in his days in the House.
On August 11, 2011, Toomey was named to the United States Congress Joint Select Committee on Deficit ReductionThe Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, colloquially referred to as the Supercommittee, is a joint select committee of the United States Congress, created by the Budget Control Act of 2011 on August 2, 2011...
by Senate minority leader Mitch McConnellAddison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Kentucky and the Republican Minority Leader.- Early life, education, and military service :...
. The committee's duties included composing a package of spending cuts for submission to both Houses of Congress.
Toomey and the rest of the committee failed to do this.
Toomey is the first Lehigh ValleyThe Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
resident to serve as United States Senator from Pennsylvania since Richard BrodheadRichard Brodhead was an American lawyer and politician from Easton, Pennsylvania. He represented Pennsylvania in both the U.S. House and Senate. He was the father of U.S. Representative Jefferson Davis Brodhead....
, in the mid-1800s.
Committee assignments
- Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
The United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs has jurisdiction over matters related to: banks and banking, price controls, deposit insurance, export promotion and controls, federal monetary policy, financial aid to commerce and industry, issuance of redemption of notes,...
- Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection
- Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development
The Senate Banking Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development is one of five subcommittees within the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.-Jurisdiction:...
- Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment
The Senate Banking Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment is one of five subcommittees within the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.-Jurisdiction:...
- Committee on the Budget
The United States Senate Committee on Budget was established by the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. It is responsible for drafting Congress's annual budget plan and monitoring action on the budget for the Federal Government. The committee has jurisdiction over the...
- Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
The United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is a standing committee of the United States Senate in charge of all senate matters related to the following subjects:* Coast Guard* Coastal zone management* Communications...
- Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet Ranking Member
- Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security
- Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance
- Joint Economic Committee
The Joint Economic Committee is one of four standing joint committees of the U.S. Congress. The committee was established as a part of the Employment Act of 1946, which deemed the committee responsible for reporting the current economic condition of the United States and for making suggestions...
- Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction
The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, colloquially referred to as the Supercommittee, is a joint select committee of the United States Congress, created by the Budget Control Act of 2011 on August 2, 2011...
- Congressional Hispanic Conference
The Congressional Hispanic Conference is a Republican Party-controlled caucus in the United States Congress. The CHC was formed in 2003, with the stated goal of promoting policy outcomes of importance to Americans of Hispanic or Latino and Portuguese descent. These priorities included support of...
Political positions
Based on his three terms in United States House of Representatives, the conservative American Conservative UnionThe American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
(ACU) has assigned Toomey a lifetime congressional rating of 97%, and the liberal Americans for Democratic ActionAmericans for Democratic Action is an American political organization advocating progressive policies. ADA works for social and economic justice through lobbying, grassroots organizing, research and supporting progressive candidates.-History:...
(ADA) a lifetime "Liberal Quotient" of 6%. The ACLU has given Toomey a 13% lifetime rating on civil rights.
In January 2005 Toomey became president of the Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
, which had greatly supported his 2004 race against Specter.
Abortion
Toomey identifies as pro-lifeOpposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
. Toomey received a 100% by the National Right to Life CommitteeThe National Right to Life Committee is the oldest and largest pro-life organization in the United States with affiliates in all 50 states and over 3,000 local chapters nationwide. The group works through legislation and education to work against abortion, infanticide, euthanasia and assisted...
. He has stated that he supports imposing jail terms for doctors who perform abortions.
Earmarks
In his first term as a congressman, Toomey won $9 million overall in earmark funding to his district. In successive terms in Congress, he swore off earmarks and signed the "No Pork" pledge as a senate candidate.{{Citation needed|date=October 2010}}
Environment
During Toomey's tenure in Congress, he supported legislation that would speed up approval of forest thinning projects in 2003, supported opening the Arctic National Wildlife RefugeThe Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a national wildlife refuge in northeastern Alaska, United States. It consists of in the Alaska North Slope region. It is the largest National Wildlife Refuge in the country, slightly larger than the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge...
to oil drilling and development, opposed implementing the Kyoto ProtocolThe Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , aimed at fighting global warming...
, and opposed legislation that would mandate increased vehicle fuel efficiency standards and provide incentives for alternative fuelsAlternative energy is an umbrella term that refers to any source of usable energy intended to replace fuel sources without the undesired consequences of the replaced fuels....
. In 2003, Toomey was given a 0% rating by the League of Conservation VotersThe League of Conservation Voters is a political advocacy organization founded in 1969 by American environmentalist David Brower in the early years of the environmental movement. LCV's mission is to "advocate for sound environmental policies and to elect pro-environmental candidates who will adopt...
, indicating what the organization considers to be an anti-environmental voting record.
Financial regulation
Since his first days as a freshman Congressman, Toomey has strongly advocated deregulation of the financial services industry: "The trend in deregulation, beginning in the early 1980s, is one of the biggest reasons for the sustained economic expansion. I would like to see us continue to deregulate on many fronts, including the financial services industry,” he stated in the spring of 1999.
While serving on the House Banking CommitteeThe United States House Committee on Financial Services is the committee of the United States House of Representatives that oversees the entire financial services industry, including the securities, insurance, banking, and housing industries...
, Toomey, in 1999, helped write House Resolution 10, which led to the repeal of parts of the Depression-era Glass-Steagall ActThe Banking Act of 1933, , was a law that established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in the United States and introduced banking reforms, some of which were designed to control speculation. It is most commonly known as the Glass–Steagall Act, after its legislative sponsors, Senator...
. The repeal of the Act, which had regulated the separation of banks and investment firms, allowed the creation of huge companies that combined banking and investment operations. President Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
and others have pointed to the repeal of Glass-Steagall as a significant cause of the current global financial crisis, on the grounds that it opened up the door for the financial sector to form so-called too big to failToo Big to Fail is a television drama film in the United States broadcast on HBO on May 23, 2011. It is based on the non-fiction book Too Big to Fail by Andrew Ross Sorkin. The TV film was directed by Curtis Hanson...
financial services giants like AIGAIG is American International Group, a major American insurance corporation.AIG may also refer to:* And-inverter graph, a concept in computer theory* Answers in Genesis, a creationist organization in the U.S.* Arta Industrial Group in Iran...
.
Guns
Toomey advocates the reduction of gun regulations. While serving in Congress, Toomey supported bills that would prohibit suing gun makers and sellers for gun misuse and would decrease the waiting period due to background checkA background check or background investigation is the process of looking up and compiling criminal records, commercial records and financial records of an individual....
s from three days to one for purchases made at gun showA gun show is a temporary exhibition or gathering in the United States where firearms, firearm accessories, ammunition, literature, knives, jerky, militaria, and miscellaneous collectibles are displayed, bought, sold, traded, and discussed. Gun shows also often include exhibitions related to...
s. Toomey received an "A" by the National Rifle AssociationThe National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
(NRA), indicating what the NRA considers to be a pro-gun rights voting record.
LGBT issues
Toomey has supported several legislative actions designed to block the expansion of certain civil rights to homosexuals, or to revoke existing rights; specifically, he voted to amend the U.S. Constitution to ban same-sex marriageSame-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
; to ban gay adoptions in the District of Columbia; and for the Marriage Protection ActThe Marriage Protection Act is a bill in the United States Congress to amend the federal judicial code to deny federal courts jurisdiction to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of the Defense of Marriage Act or the MPA...
of 2004, a bill that would amend the federal judicial code to deny federal courtsThe United States federal courts make up the judiciary branch of federal government of the United States organized under the United States Constitution and laws of the federal government.-Categories:...
jurisdiction to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of the Defense of Marriage ActThe Defense of Marriage Act is a United States federal law whereby the federal government defines marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman. Under the law, no U.S. state may be required to recognize as a marriage a same-sex relationship considered a marriage in another state...
or of the Marriage Protection Act itself.
Toomey did, however, support the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell"Don't ask, don't tell" was the official United States policy on homosexuals serving in the military from December 21, 1993 to September 20, 2011. The policy prohibited military personnel from discriminating against or harassing closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants, while...
, the policy which bans openly gay or bisexual persons from serving in the military, in a statement made while he was Senator-elect.
Healthcare
Toomey opposed the passage of the Medicare Prescription Drug ActThe Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act is a federal law of the United States, enacted in 2003. It produced the largest overhaul of Medicare in the public health program's 38-year history.The MMA was signed by President George W...
which he argued was fiscally irresponsible.
Toomey's 2012 budget proposal called for turning Medicaid into a block grant to states and cutting federal funding for the program by half by 2021.
Taxes and government spending
Toomey has been a consistent advocate of reducing and eliminating taxes. While in Congress he voted to reduce the capital gains tax, to eliminate the estate taxThe estate tax in the United States is a tax imposed on the transfer of the "taxable estate" of a deceased person, whether such property is transferred via a will, according to the state laws of intestacy or otherwise made as an incident of the death of the owner, such as a transfer of property...
, to cut small business taxes, to eliminate the "marriage penaltyThe marriage penalty in the United States refers to the higher taxes required from some married couples, where spouses are making approximately the same taxable income, filing one tax return than for the same two people filing two separate tax returns if they were unmarried...
", to first cut federal income taxes and other taxes by $958B over 10 years (the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 , was a sweeping piece of tax legislation in the United States by President George W. Bush...
) and later to make these cuts permanent, to reduce capital gains and income taxes by nearly $100 billion (the Economic Security and Recovery Act of 2002), and to expand and extend multiple tax credits to individuals and businesses.
Toomey publicly opposed the 2009 federal stimulus package. He opposes government-run or subsidized healthcare. Toomey opposed farm subsidies and called farm subsidies in a 2009 article in U.S.A Today "Moscow on the Mississippi" He has supported a federal balanced budget amendment. {{Citation needed|date=September 2010}}
Toomey was rated 80% by the National Taxpayers UnionNational Taxpayers Union is a taxpayers advocacy organization and taxpayers union in the United States, founded in 1969 by James Dale Davidson. NTU advertises that it is the largest and oldest grassroots taxpayer organization in the nation, with 362,000 members nationwide. It is closely...
(NTU), classifying him as what the NTU considers to be a "Taxpayer's Friend" on tax votes. From 1999-2004, He received a 78% rating by the Republican Liberty CaucusThe Republican Liberty Caucus is a political action organization dedicated to promoting the ideals of individual liberty, limited government and free market economics within the Republican Party in the United States. It is part of the libertarian wing of the Republican Party...
(RLC) on its 'Liberty Index', indicating what the RLC considers his career to be, on average, one of a libertarian-leaning voting record. However, it should be noted that throughout his career, his Liberty Index rating has always decreased, starting at 89% in for 1999–2000, 84.5% in 2001, 79.5% for 2002–2003, 75% in 2004, and 65% in 2005; suggesting that Toomey is increasingly a centristIn politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting policies that lie different from the standard political left and political right. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between...
. In 2003, Toomey was given a 90% rating by the United States Chamber of CommerceThe United States Chamber of Commerce is an American lobbying group representing the interests of many businesses and trade associations. It is not an agency of the United States government....
.
Electoral history
Patrick Joseph "Pat" Toomey, Sr. (born November 17, 1961) is the junior United States SenatorThe 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...
for PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
and a member of the 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...
. Previously, Toomey served as a 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...
for three terms, but did not seek a fourth in compliance with a pledge he had made while running for office in 1998. He also served as president of the Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
.
Toomey attended school at La Salle AcademyLa Salle Academy is an independent, co-educational Roman Catholic college preparatory day school located in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island...
in Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
before earning an A.B. in government from Harvard CollegeHarvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
. He was employed first by Chemical Bank and subsequently Morgan, Grenfell & Co.Morgan, Grenfell & Co. was a leading London-based investment bank regarded as one of the oldest and once most influential British merchant banks.-History:...
beginning in 1984 and 1986, respectively, until resigning from the latter in 1991.
Prior to being elected to the U.S. Senate, Toomey served as the U.S. Representative for {{ushr|PA|15}} from 1999 to 2005. He narrowly lost the Republican primary for United States Senate in 2004. From 2005 to 2009, he served as president of the Club for Growth. After becoming the Republican nominee for the 2010 U.S. Senate electionThe 2010 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on November 2, 2010, during the 2010 midterm elections. Incumbent Republican-turned-Democrat U.S. Senator Arlen Specter ran for re-election to a sixth term, but lost in the Democratic primary to Joe Sestak. Republican nominee Pat...
in Pennsylvania, Toomey was elected to the seat on November 2, 2010, defeating DemocraticThe Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
opponent Joe Sestak.
Early life, education, and early career
Born in Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, Toomey was raised by CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
parents, and was one of six children. He attended La Salle AcademyLa Salle Academy is an independent, co-educational Roman Catholic college preparatory day school located in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island...
on scholarship and graduated from Harvard CollegeHarvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
with an A.B. in government.
Toomey was hired by Chemical BankChemical Bank was a bank with headquarters in New York City from 1824 until 1996. The bank operated as the primary subsidiary of the Chemical Banking Corporation, a bank holding company established in 1988. At the end of 1995, Chemical was the third largest bank in the U.S...
in 1984, where he was involved in currency swapA currency swap is a foreign-exchange agreement between two parties to exchange aspects of a loan in one currency for equivalent aspects of an equal in net present value loan in another currency; see foreign exchange derivative. Currency swaps are motivated by comparative advantage...
transactions. In 1986, Toomey was hired by Morgan, Grenfell & Co.Morgan, Grenfell & Co. was a leading London-based investment bank regarded as one of the oldest and once most influential British merchant banks.-History:...
, where he dealt in multiple foreign currencies, interest rates, and currency-related derivativesA derivative instrument is a contract between two parties that specifies conditions—in particular, dates and the resulting values of the underlying variables—under which payments, or payoffs, are to be made between the parties.Under U.S...
. In 1991, Toomey resigned from the firm when it was acquired by Deutsche BankDeutsche Bank AG is a global financial service company with its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. It employs more than 100,000 people in over 70 countries, and has a large presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the emerging markets...
in order to avoid the decreased flexibility and entrepreneurship that the acquisition would have caused. The same year, Toomey and two younger brothers, Steven and Michael, opened Rookie's Restaurant in Allentown, PennsylvaniaAllentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and the 215th largest city in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 118,032 and is currently...
.
In 1994, aged 32, Toomey was elected to Allentown's newly established Government Study Commission. During his term, Toomey drafted a new charter for the Commission requiring a super-majority for any tax increase. The charter was approved by Allentown voters on April 23, 1996.
Elections
In 1998, Toomey ran for the 15th District seat being vacated by the Democratic incumbent Paul McHalePaul F. McHale, Jr. is an American politician. He was the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and from 1993 to 1999, he represented Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives....
against state Senator and future Allentown Mayor Roy AfflerbachRoy C. Afflerbach is an American lobbyist and former Pennsylvania state senator and Representative. He was Mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the third largest city in Pennsylvania, from 2002 to 2006...
.
During the campaign, Toomey criticized the agenda of the Clinton-Gore administrationThe United States Presidency of Bill Clinton, also known as the Clinton Administration, was the executive branch of the federal government of the United States from January 20, 1993 to January 20, 2001. Clinton was the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second full term...
, specifically plans to modify the Internal Revenue ServiceThe Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
. He criticized the plan by claiming that it did not "address the real fundamental problems plaguing American taxpayers", arguing that the IRS should be abolished. Later in the campaign, Toomey and Democratic opponent Roy C. AfflerbachRoy C. Afflerbach is an American lobbyist and former Pennsylvania state senator and Representative. He was Mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the third largest city in Pennsylvania, from 2002 to 2006...
debated the effectiveness of 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...
-based system, an issue on which the two sharply disagreed.
Toomey won by a ten-point margin. Toomey was reelected two more times by relatively comfortable margins. He did not run for reelection to his House seat in 2004, fulfilling a pledge that he had signed in 1998 to serve only three terms.
Tenure
Toomey served as the 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...
for {{ushr|PA|15}} from 1999 to 2005. While serving in the United States House of Representatives he distinguished himself as a fiscal expert. Honoring his three-term pledge, he did not seek reelection in 2004.
Elections
In 2004The 2004 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held on November 2, 2004. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Arlen Specter won re-election to a fifth term.-Campaign:...
, Toomey challenged incumbentThe incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
SenatorThe 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...
Arlen SpecterArlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
in the Republican primary electionA primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
. Aided by $2 million of advertising from the Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
, Toomey's campaign theme was that Specter was not a conservative, especially on fiscal issues. However, most of the state's Republican establishment closed ranks behind Specter. This included endorsements by Pennsylvania's other Senator, Rick SantorumRichard John "Rick" Santorum is a lawyer and a former United States Senator from the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Santorum was the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference -making him the third-ranking Senate Republican from 2001 until his leave in 2007. Santorum is considered both a social...
and by 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....
. Toomey lost the election by a 1.7% margin.
On April 15, 2009, Toomey announced his intention to once again challenge Specter in the Republican senatorial primaryThe 2010 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on November 2, 2010, during the 2010 midterm elections. Incumbent Republican-turned-Democrat U.S. Senator Arlen Specter ran for re-election to a sixth term, but lost in the Democratic primary to Joe Sestak. Republican nominee Pat...
. On April 28, 2009, Specter announced that he was switching parties and would run as a Democrat in 2010 after polls showed him losing to Toomey in the primary. Specter's withdrawal left Toomey as the front runner for the 2010 Republican nomination. Toomey won the Republican Senate primary on May 18, 2010. On November 2, 2010 he was elected to the United States Senate defeating Democrat Joe Sestak.
Tenure
Toomey was elected to the United States Senate on November 2, 2010. His term began on January 3, 2011. He joined the Congressional Hispanic ConferenceThe Congressional Hispanic Conference is a Republican Party-controlled caucus in the United States Congress. The CHC was formed in 2003, with the stated goal of promoting policy outcomes of importance to Americans of Hispanic or Latino and Portuguese descent. These priorities included support of...
, a caucus which he was an original member of in his days in the House.
On August 11, 2011, Toomey was named to the United States Congress Joint Select Committee on Deficit ReductionThe Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, colloquially referred to as the Supercommittee, is a joint select committee of the United States Congress, created by the Budget Control Act of 2011 on August 2, 2011...
by Senate minority leader Mitch McConnellAddison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Kentucky and the Republican Minority Leader.- Early life, education, and military service :...
. The committee's duties included composing a package of spending cuts for submission to both Houses of Congress.
Toomey and the rest of the committee failed to do this.
Toomey is the first Lehigh ValleyThe Lehigh Valley, known officially by the United States Census Bureau as the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan area and referred to locally as The Valley and A-B-E, is a metropolitan region consisting of Lehigh, Northampton, Berks, and Carbon counties in eastern Pennsylvania and...
resident to serve as United States Senator from Pennsylvania since Richard BrodheadRichard Brodhead was an American lawyer and politician from Easton, Pennsylvania. He represented Pennsylvania in both the U.S. House and Senate. He was the father of U.S. Representative Jefferson Davis Brodhead....
, in the mid-1800s.
Committee assignments
- Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
The United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs has jurisdiction over matters related to: banks and banking, price controls, deposit insurance, export promotion and controls, federal monetary policy, financial aid to commerce and industry, issuance of redemption of notes,...
- Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection
- Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development
The Senate Banking Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development is one of five subcommittees within the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.-Jurisdiction:...
- Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment
The Senate Banking Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment is one of five subcommittees within the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.-Jurisdiction:...
- Committee on the Budget
The United States Senate Committee on Budget was established by the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. It is responsible for drafting Congress's annual budget plan and monitoring action on the budget for the Federal Government. The committee has jurisdiction over the...
- Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
The United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is a standing committee of the United States Senate in charge of all senate matters related to the following subjects:* Coast Guard* Coastal zone management* Communications...
- Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet Ranking Member
- Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security
- Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance
- Joint Economic Committee
The Joint Economic Committee is one of four standing joint committees of the U.S. Congress. The committee was established as a part of the Employment Act of 1946, which deemed the committee responsible for reporting the current economic condition of the United States and for making suggestions...
- Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction
The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, colloquially referred to as the Supercommittee, is a joint select committee of the United States Congress, created by the Budget Control Act of 2011 on August 2, 2011...
- Congressional Hispanic Conference
The Congressional Hispanic Conference is a Republican Party-controlled caucus in the United States Congress. The CHC was formed in 2003, with the stated goal of promoting policy outcomes of importance to Americans of Hispanic or Latino and Portuguese descent. These priorities included support of...
Political positions
Based on his three terms in United States House of Representatives, the conservative American Conservative UnionThe American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
(ACU) has assigned Toomey a lifetime congressional rating of 97%, and the liberal Americans for Democratic ActionAmericans for Democratic Action is an American political organization advocating progressive policies. ADA works for social and economic justice through lobbying, grassroots organizing, research and supporting progressive candidates.-History:...
(ADA) a lifetime "Liberal Quotient" of 6%. The ACLU has given Toomey a 13% lifetime rating on civil rights.
In January 2005 Toomey became president of the Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
, which had greatly supported his 2004 race against Specter.
Abortion
Toomey identifies as pro-lifeOpposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
. Toomey received a 100% by the National Right to Life CommitteeThe National Right to Life Committee is the oldest and largest pro-life organization in the United States with affiliates in all 50 states and over 3,000 local chapters nationwide. The group works through legislation and education to work against abortion, infanticide, euthanasia and assisted...
. He has stated that he supports imposing jail terms for doctors who perform abortions.
Earmarks
In his first term as a congressman, Toomey won $9 million overall in earmark funding to his district. In successive terms in Congress, he swore off earmarks and signed the "No Pork" pledge as a senate candidate.{{Citation needed|date=October 2010}}
Environment
During Toomey's tenure in Congress, he supported legislation that would speed up approval of forest thinning projects in 2003, supported opening the Arctic National Wildlife RefugeThe Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a national wildlife refuge in northeastern Alaska, United States. It consists of in the Alaska North Slope region. It is the largest National Wildlife Refuge in the country, slightly larger than the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge...
to oil drilling and development, opposed implementing the Kyoto ProtocolThe Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , aimed at fighting global warming...
, and opposed legislation that would mandate increased vehicle fuel efficiency standards and provide incentives for alternative fuelsAlternative energy is an umbrella term that refers to any source of usable energy intended to replace fuel sources without the undesired consequences of the replaced fuels....
. In 2003, Toomey was given a 0% rating by the League of Conservation VotersThe League of Conservation Voters is a political advocacy organization founded in 1969 by American environmentalist David Brower in the early years of the environmental movement. LCV's mission is to "advocate for sound environmental policies and to elect pro-environmental candidates who will adopt...
, indicating what the organization considers to be an anti-environmental voting record.
Financial regulation
Since his first days as a freshman Congressman, Toomey has strongly advocated deregulation of the financial services industry: "The trend in deregulation, beginning in the early 1980s, is one of the biggest reasons for the sustained economic expansion. I would like to see us continue to deregulate on many fronts, including the financial services industry,” he stated in the spring of 1999.
While serving on the House Banking CommitteeThe United States House Committee on Financial Services is the committee of the United States House of Representatives that oversees the entire financial services industry, including the securities, insurance, banking, and housing industries...
, Toomey, in 1999, helped write House Resolution 10, which led to the repeal of parts of the Depression-era Glass-Steagall ActThe Banking Act of 1933, , was a law that established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in the United States and introduced banking reforms, some of which were designed to control speculation. It is most commonly known as the Glass–Steagall Act, after its legislative sponsors, Senator...
. The repeal of the Act, which had regulated the separation of banks and investment firms, allowed the creation of huge companies that combined banking and investment operations. President Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
and others have pointed to the repeal of Glass-Steagall as a significant cause of the current global financial crisis, on the grounds that it opened up the door for the financial sector to form so-called too big to failToo Big to Fail is a television drama film in the United States broadcast on HBO on May 23, 2011. It is based on the non-fiction book Too Big to Fail by Andrew Ross Sorkin. The TV film was directed by Curtis Hanson...
financial services giants like AIGAIG is American International Group, a major American insurance corporation.AIG may also refer to:* And-inverter graph, a concept in computer theory* Answers in Genesis, a creationist organization in the U.S.* Arta Industrial Group in Iran...
.
Guns
Toomey advocates the reduction of gun regulations. While serving in Congress, Toomey supported bills that would prohibit suing gun makers and sellers for gun misuse and would decrease the waiting period due to background checkA background check or background investigation is the process of looking up and compiling criminal records, commercial records and financial records of an individual....
s from three days to one for purchases made at gun showA gun show is a temporary exhibition or gathering in the United States where firearms, firearm accessories, ammunition, literature, knives, jerky, militaria, and miscellaneous collectibles are displayed, bought, sold, traded, and discussed. Gun shows also often include exhibitions related to...
s. Toomey received an "A" by the National Rifle AssociationThe National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
(NRA), indicating what the NRA considers to be a pro-gun rights voting record.
LGBT issues
Toomey has supported several legislative actions designed to block the expansion of certain civil rights to homosexuals, or to revoke existing rights; specifically, he voted to amend the U.S. Constitution to ban same-sex marriageSame-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
; to ban gay adoptions in the District of Columbia; and for the Marriage Protection ActThe Marriage Protection Act is a bill in the United States Congress to amend the federal judicial code to deny federal courts jurisdiction to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of the Defense of Marriage Act or the MPA...
of 2004, a bill that would amend the federal judicial code to deny federal courtsThe United States federal courts make up the judiciary branch of federal government of the United States organized under the United States Constitution and laws of the federal government.-Categories:...
jurisdiction to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of the Defense of Marriage ActThe Defense of Marriage Act is a United States federal law whereby the federal government defines marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman. Under the law, no U.S. state may be required to recognize as a marriage a same-sex relationship considered a marriage in another state...
or of the Marriage Protection Act itself.
Toomey did, however, support the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell"Don't ask, don't tell" was the official United States policy on homosexuals serving in the military from December 21, 1993 to September 20, 2011. The policy prohibited military personnel from discriminating against or harassing closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants, while...
, the policy which bans openly gay or bisexual persons from serving in the military, in a statement made while he was Senator-elect.
Healthcare
Toomey opposed the passage of the Medicare Prescription Drug ActThe Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act is a federal law of the United States, enacted in 2003. It produced the largest overhaul of Medicare in the public health program's 38-year history.The MMA was signed by President George W...
which he argued was fiscally irresponsible.
Toomey's 2012 budget proposal called for turning Medicaid into a block grant to states and cutting federal funding for the program by half by 2021.
Taxes and government spending
Toomey has been a consistent advocate of reducing and eliminating taxes. While in Congress he voted to reduce the capital gains tax, to eliminate the estate taxThe estate tax in the United States is a tax imposed on the transfer of the "taxable estate" of a deceased person, whether such property is transferred via a will, according to the state laws of intestacy or otherwise made as an incident of the death of the owner, such as a transfer of property...
, to cut small business taxes, to eliminate the "marriage penaltyThe marriage penalty in the United States refers to the higher taxes required from some married couples, where spouses are making approximately the same taxable income, filing one tax return than for the same two people filing two separate tax returns if they were unmarried...
", to first cut federal income taxes and other taxes by $958B over 10 years (the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 , was a sweeping piece of tax legislation in the United States by President George W. Bush...
) and later to make these cuts permanent, to reduce capital gains and income taxes by nearly $100 billion (the Economic Security and Recovery Act of 2002), and to expand and extend multiple tax credits to individuals and businesses.
Toomey publicly opposed the 2009 federal stimulus package. He opposes government-run or subsidized healthcare. Toomey opposed farm subsidies and called farm subsidies in a 2009 article in U.S.A Today "Moscow on the Mississippi" He has supported a federal balanced budget amendment. {{Citation needed|date=September 2010}}
Toomey was rated 80% by the National Taxpayers UnionNational Taxpayers Union is a taxpayers advocacy organization and taxpayers union in the United States, founded in 1969 by James Dale Davidson. NTU advertises that it is the largest and oldest grassroots taxpayer organization in the nation, with 362,000 members nationwide. It is closely...
(NTU), classifying him as what the NTU considers to be a "Taxpayer's Friend" on tax votes. From 1999-2004, He received a 78% rating by the Republican Liberty CaucusThe Republican Liberty Caucus is a political action organization dedicated to promoting the ideals of individual liberty, limited government and free market economics within the Republican Party in the United States. It is part of the libertarian wing of the Republican Party...
(RLC) on its 'Liberty Index', indicating what the RLC considers his career to be, on average, one of a libertarian-leaning voting record. However, it should be noted that throughout his career, his Liberty Index rating has always decreased, starting at 89% in for 1999–2000, 84.5% in 2001, 79.5% for 2002–2003, 75% in 2004, and 65% in 2005; suggesting that Toomey is increasingly a centristIn politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting policies that lie different from the standard political left and political right. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between...
. In 2003, Toomey was given a 90% rating by the United States Chamber of CommerceThe United States Chamber of Commerce is an American lobbying group representing the interests of many businesses and trade associations. It is not an agency of the United States government....
.
Electoral history
{{ushr|Pennsylvania|15|}
}: Results 1998–2002
!|Year
!
!|Democrat
!|Votes
!|Pct
!
!|Republican
!|Votes
!|Pct
|-
|1998
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |{{nowrap|Roy C. AfflerbachRoy C. Afflerbach is an American lobbyist and former Pennsylvania state senator and Representative. He was Mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the third largest city in Pennsylvania, from 2002 to 2006...
}}
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |66,930
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |45%
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Patrick J. Toomey
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |81,755
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |55%
|-
|2000
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |Edward O'Brien
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |103,864
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |47%
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |{{nowrap|Patrick J. Toomey}}
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |118,307
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |53%
|-
|2002
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |{{nowrap|Edward O'Brien}}
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |73,212
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |43%
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Patrick J. Toomey
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |98,493
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |57%
{{s-end}}
{{Election box begin | title=United States Senate Republican primary election in Pennsylvania, 2004}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Republican Party (US)
|candidate = Arlen SpecterArlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
|votes = 530,839
|percentage = 50.82
|change =
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Republican Party (US)
|candidate = Pat Toomey
|votes = 513,693
|percentage = 49.18
|change =
}}
{{Election box end}}
{{Election box begin | title=United States Senate Republican primary election in Pennsylvania, 2010}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Republican Party (US)
|candidate = Pat Toomey
|votes = 667,614
|percentage = 81.5
|change =
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link|
|party = Republican Party (US)
|candidate = Peg LuksikMarguerite "Peg" Anna McKenna Luksik is a conservative politician, frequent candidate, and Constitution Party activist in Pennsylvania.Luksik was born on August 11, 1955 in Huntsville, Alabama, where her father was in the Army...
|votes = 151,901
|percentage = 18.5
|change = }}
{{Election box end}}
{{Election box begin |title = United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, 2010The 2010 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania took place on November 2, 2010, during the 2010 midterm elections. Incumbent Republican-turned-Democrat U.S. Senator Arlen Specter ran for re-election to a sixth term, but lost in the Democratic primary to Joe Sestak. Republican nominee Pat...
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link
| party = Republican Party (United States)
| candidate = Pat Toomey
| votes = 2,028,945
| percentage = 51.01%
| change = -1.61%
}}
{{Election box candidate with party link
| party = Democratic Party (United States)
| candidate = Joe Sestak
| votes = 1,948,716
| percentage = 48.99%
| change = +7.00%
}}
{{Election box majority|
|votes = 80,229
|percentage = 2.02%
|change =
}}
{{Election box total
| votes = 3,977,661
| percentage = 100.0
| change =
}}
{{Election box gain with party link
| winner = Republican Party (United States)
| loser = Democratic Party (United States)
| swing =
}}
{{Election box end}}
Personal life
In November 1997, Toomey married Kris Ann Duncan. They have three children, Bridget, Patrick and Duncan.
External links
{{commons}}
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{{s-bef|before=Arlen SpecterArlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
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{{s-ttl|title=United States Senator (Class 3) from Pennsylvania|years=January 3, 2011 - present|alongside=Bob Casey, Jr.Robert Patrick "Bob" Casey, Jr. is the senior U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania and a member of the Democratic Party. He previously served as Pennsylvania Treasurer, and Pennsylvania Auditor General. He is the son of former Governor Bob Casey, Sr..He is the first Democrat elected to a full term in...
}}
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{{s-prec|usa}}
{{s-bef|before=John BoozmanJohn Nichols Boozman is the junior U.S. Senator for Arkansas . A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the U.S. Representative for .Born in Shreveport, Louisiana, he was the brother of state Senator Fay Boozman...
R-ArkansasArkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
}}
{{s-ttl|title=United States Senators by seniority |years=92nd}}
{{s-aft|after=John HoevenJohn Henry Hoeven III is the junior United States Senator from North Dakota. He is a member of the North Dakota Republican Party. He is expected to become the state's senior senator when Kent Conrad retires from the Senate in January 2013.Hoeven served as the 31st Governor of North Dakota,...
R-North DakotaNorth Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
}}
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{{USRepSuccessionBox|
state=Pennsylvania|
district=15|
before=Paul McHalePaul F. McHale, Jr. is an American politician. He was the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and from 1993 to 1999, he represented Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives....
|
years=January 3, 1999 – January 3, 2005|
after=Charlie DentCharles "Charlie" Dent is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party.The district includes all of Northampton County, most of Lehigh County, and small parts of Berks and Montgomery Counties....
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{{s-other}}
{{succession box|
title=President of the Club for GrowthThe Club for Growth is a politically conservative 527 organization active in the United States of America, with an agenda focussed on taxation and other economic issues, and with an affiliated political action committee . The Club advocates lower taxes, limited government, less government spending,...
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before=Stephen Moore|
years=2005–2009|
after=Chris ChocolaJoseph Christopher "Chris" Chocola is the president of the Club for Growth, a fiscally conservative political organization that supports a low-tax and limited-government agenda....
}}
{{s-ppo}}
{{s-bef|before=Arlen SpecterArlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
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{{s-ttl|title=Republican nominee for United States Senator (Class 3) from Pennsylvania|years=2010}}
{{s-aft|after=Most Recent}}
{{s-end}}
{{Current U.S. Senators}}
{{PA-FedRep}}
{{USSenPA}}
{{Current Pennsylvania statewide political officials}}
{{Persondata
| NAME =Toomey, Pat
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH =November 17, 1961
| PLACE OF BIRTH =Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, U.S.
| DATE OF DEATH =
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Toomey, Pat}}