Richard Shelby
Encyclopedia
Richard Craig Shelby is the senior U.S. Senator
from Alabama
. First elected to the Senate in 1986, he is the ranking member of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
and was its chairman from 2003 to 2007.
Born in Birmingham, Alabama
, Shelby received his law degree from the University of Alabama
in Tuscaloosa
, where he went on to serve as city prosecutor (1963–1971). During this period he worked as a U.S. Magistrate
for the Northern District of Alabama
(1966–1970) and Special Assistant Attorney General of Alabama
(1969–1971). He won a seat in the Alabama Senate
in 1970. In 1978 he was elected to the United States House of Representatives
from the 7th District
, where he was among a group of conservative Democrats
known as the boll weevils
. Shelby won a tight race in 1986 for the U.S. Senate. Originally elected as a Democrat, Shelby switched to the Republican Party in 1994 when Republicans gained the majority in Congress
midway through President Bill Clinton
's first term. He was re-elected by a large margin in 1998 and has faced no electoral opposition since.
, the son of Alice L. (née Skinner) and Ozie Houston Shelby. He attended the University of Alabama
, receiving an undergraduate degree in 1957 and a Juris Doctor
in 1963.
Shelby is a member of the American Bar Association
and Alabama State Bar
, as well as the American Judicature Society
, Alabama Law Institute, Delta Chi
Fraternity, and Phi Alpha Delta
legal fraternity.
Shelby currently lives in Tuscaloosa with his wife, Annette Nevin Shelby. They have two sons, Richard Jr., and Claude Nevin.
from 1963 to 1971. From 1966 to 1970, he was a U.S. Magistrate for the Northern District of Alabama; from 1969 to 1971, Shelby was a Special Assistant State Attorney General.
Shelby began his legislative career as a member of the Alabama Senate
in 1970, serving until 1978, when he was elected to the House of Representatives
from the Tuscaloosa-based 7th District. He was reelected three times. He was one of the more conservative Democrats in Congress, and a member of the boll weevils
, a group of moderate to conservative leaning Democrats who often worked with Republican President Ronald Reagan
on defense issues.
, the first Republican elected to the Senate from Alabama since Reconstruction. He won a very close race as the Democrats regained control of the Senate. He was easily re-elected in 1992 even as Bill Clinton
lost Alabama's electoral votes.
On November 9, 1994, Shelby switched his party affiliation to Republican, one day after the Republicans won control of both houses in the midterm elections, giving the Republicans a 53-47 majority in the Senate. He won his first full term as a Republican in 1998 by a large margin, and faced no significant opposition in 2004 or 2010.
Shelby remains popular in Alabama
. A September 2009 poll showed he had a 58% approval rating, with 35% disapproving.
to the Supreme Court; a move attributed to lobbying by Alabama African-American leaders who reminded Shelby that he had relied on support from African-American voters in defeating Denton in 1986.
during the first half of Clinton's first term. At a meeting with Vice President Al Gore
, he turned to 19 Alabama TV cameras and denounced the Clinton program as "high on taxes, low on spending cuts".
Shelby served on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence from 1995 to 2003, stepping down because of a Senate rule limiting committee terms to eight years. Shelby took an adversarial stance towards the intelligence community during both Clinton and Bush administrations. He helped sink Anthony Lake
's nomination as CIA director in 1997 and promised to investigate the use of American-made satellites by the Chinese to gather intelligence. Shelby also took a hard line on leaks of classified information. In 2000. he introduced a bill (vetoed by President Clinton) "that would have broadened the law that criminalizes release of "national defense information." According to the Washington Post:
Senator Shelby has supported several gun control
measures put forth by Democrats including the 1991 Crime Bill S.1241 sponsored by then Senator Joseph Biden that instituted a national waiting period for handgun purchases as well as a federal ban on semi-automatic firearms. In 1998, Shelby voted for Senator Barbara Boxer
's Trigger Lock Amendment 3230, requiring the purchase of a trigger lock with the sale of each handgun. Firearms dealers who do not comply are guilty of a federal crime and face revocation of their Federal Firearms License
and civil fines up to $10,000 for each omission.
in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. When Tenet resigned in July 2004, Shelby commented "This is not a surprise to me at all. What was a surprise was that he held onto the job as long as he did."
From 2003 until 2007, he chaired the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. He is also a member of the Appropriations Committee (where he chaired its subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science) and Special Committee on Aging. He lost his chairmanships in 2007 when the Democrats regained control of the Senate.
In 2004, a federal investigation concluded that Shelby revealed classified information to the media when he was a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Specifically, Shelby revealed classified information on June 19, 2002 to Carl Cameron
, the chief political correspondent on Fox News. The information consisted of two messages intercepted by the National Security Agency
on September 10, 2001, but were only translated the day after the attacks — "the match is about to begin" and "tomorrow is zero hour." The Department of Justice
declined to file criminal charges against Shelby and transferred the case to the Senate Ethics Committee, which dismissed its probe into the alleged leak.
Shelby, in his role as chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, & Urban Affairs
, opposed proposed legislation that would have permitted additional competition in the title insurance industry.
Shelby is currently co-chair of the Congressional Privacy Caucus and Zero Capital Gains Tax Caucus. He is also the Senate co-chair of the National Security Caucus. In addition, he is a member of the National Republican Senatorial Committee
and the Senate Centrist Coalition
.
In the Metroplex of Dallas–Fort Worth, Shelby is known for the Shelby Amendment, a law he sponsored that eased some of the restrictions placed on Dallas' secondary airport by the contentious Wright Amendment
.
On February 5, 2010, Shelby placed a hold
on over 70 of Obama's nominees to various government posts, in a protest over an Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker
contract and the FBI's Terrorist Explosive Device Analytical Center. Shelby lifted all but three of the holds on February 8, 2010, releasing a statement that "The purpose of placing numerous holds was to get the White House’s attention on two issues that are critical to our national security – the Air Force’s aerial refueling tanker acquisition and the FBI’s Terrorist Device Analytical Center (TEDAC). With that accomplished, Sen. Shelby has decided to release his holds on all but a few nominees directly related to the Air Force tanker acquisition until the new Request for Proposal is issued." White House spokesman Robert Gibbs
criticized Shelby for "hold[ing] up qualified nominees for positions that are needed because he didn't get two earmarks"; Shelby denied the holds were over earmarks
.
Shelby criticised the Obama administration for abandoning NASA's
Constellation program stating "It is unfortunate that this administration is choosing to abandon our nation's only chance at remaining the leader in human space flight. It is ironic that Constellation, a program born out of the recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board, would be eliminated in lieu of rockets repeatedly deemed unsafe for astronauts by NASA's own Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel. If this budget is enacted, NASA will no longer be an agency of innovation and hard science; it will be the agency of pipe dreams and fairy tales." Shelby failed to cite any evidence that the untested Ares rockets, being developed under the Constellation program, would be any safer than existing rockets.
Critics point out that Shelby supports big government programs but ignores the private sector at every opportunity. Although he called Constellation "our nation's only chance at remaining the leader in human space flight," a number of private companies were, and are, competing to develop orbital launch systems. Among these companies is United Launch Alliance, a Boeing-Lockheed joint venture that builds rockets in Shelby's home state. Numerous other companies are developing reusable suborbital launch vehicles, which could evolve into orbital systems. Unlike Constellation, these reusable vehicles offer the promise of significant cost and safety improvements. Critics worry that Shelby's support of an expensive expendable rocket will lock NASA into using expendable technologies for another several decades, thereby jeopardizing astronaut safety.
, abortion
and immigration, while siding with the Democratic stance on other issues, such as opposing free-trade agreements and voting against the Gramm–Leach–Bliley Act. During the 1990s he was a strong opponent of the Clinton administration's spending and tax policies, while supporting some gun control measures. He served on the Select Committee on Intelligence
, where he battled CIA leaders and attempted to curtail the release of information to the public. A federal investigation uncovered that he had released classified memos to the Fox News Channel
in 2002, but no charges were pressed. He chaired the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee from 2003 to 2007 and remains the committee's Republican ranking member. During President Barack Obama
's administration he placed a hold on 70 government nominees to draw attention to certain national security issues. He has opposed the bulk of the Democratic legislative agenda since they took control of the Senate in 2007, including economic bailout measures and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
.
Shelby first opposed, then ignored the Republican Party moratorium on earmark funding. He is a leading backer of the Space Launch System, more commonly known as the Senate Launch System , an expensive, Congressionally mandated rocket that would increase the cost of space transportation but benefit NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, located in Shelby's home state.
Shelby has disagreed with other Senators over details design of the SLS, however. Other Senators, include Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, want an SLS design that uses solid-rocket motors manufactured by ATK for its strap-on boosters. Shelby favors competition for the strap-on booster design. Neither favors competition for core elements of the rocket, however.
The SLS earmark has been opposed by fiscal conservative groups, including the Tea Party. , as well as space-exploration advocacy groups. Congressman Tom McClintock (R-CA) has expressed "serious concerns with NASA's attempt to avoid holding a full and open competition to acquire the SLS." Rep. McClintock "stringly believe[s] that such a de facto sole source award would be a violation of the 1984 Competition in Contracting Act." Rep. McClintock has asked the Government Accountability Office to investigate the SLS earmark.
Because of its high cost, the SLS is the single largest earmark in the Federal budget and possibly the single large earmark in US history.
Shelby took a leading role in the resistance to bailing out the banks and other corporations (such as AIG
), both under the Bush Administration, in 2008, and the Obama Administration, beginning in 2009.
Senator Shelby has also supported several key gun control
measures put forth by Democrats, including the 1991 Crime Bill S.1241 sponsored by then Senator Joseph Biden that instituted a national waiting period for handgun purchases as well as a federal ban on semi-automatic firearms.
In 1998, Shelby voted for Senator Barbara Boxer
's Trigger Lock Amendment 3230, a law requiring the purchase of a trigger lock with the sale of each handgun. Firearms dealers who do not comply with the law are guilty of a federal crime and face revocation of their Federal Firearms License
and civil fines up to $10,000 for each omission.
He is against abortion
, and supports the Federal Marriage Amendment
. He has also been a staunch advocate of a flat tax
and of the Bush Administration's tax cuts
. He cites disagreements with the Democrats on tax policy as one of the main reasons he became a Republican; he feels the Democrats are too willing to enact tax increases. Among the bills sponsored by Shelby over the years have been bills to make English the sole language
of the federal government, to limit federal government spending by statute, and to provide a moratorium on certain forms of immigration.
Shelby is considered to be much more independent-minded than his Senate colleague from Alabama, Jeff Sessions
. For instance, shortly after becoming a Republican he voted against two major tort reform
bills, the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
and the Common Sense Product Liability and Legal Reform Act. Both bills were vetoed by President Clinton, though the first bill was successfully passed over his veto. In 1999 he was the only Senate Republican to vote against the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act
. Shelby also voted against the North American Free Trade Agreement
and opposes most free trade agreements, most recently the Central America Free Trade Agreement. When he was a Democrat, Shelby opposed the confirmation of Robert Bork
to the United States Supreme Court in 1987. He supported the confirmation of John Roberts
and Samuel Alito
almost two decades later.
Other Republicans have criticized the SLS earmark, which has even become an issue in the Presidential primary. At a town meeting hosted by the Dallas Tea Party, Presidential Candidate and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich criticized politicians supporting the Space Launch System, "I think it is disgraceful the way getting into space has been turned into a political pork-barrel. It’s an abuse of the taxpayer and an abuse of America’s future.”
In 1999, Shelby was one of ten Republican senators to vote for the acquittal of President Bill Clinton
on the charge of perjury when Clinton was tried in the Senate in 1999
, although he voted for Clinton's conviction on the charge of obstruction of justice.
Shelby opposed the initial bailout proposal to extend billions of dollars in loan money to the Big Three US Auto Manufacturers. He is often seen as a front man for the GOP Senate opposition. In late 2008, he opposed a Federal government bridge loan for US-owned auto companies
, saying: "We don't need government - governmental subsidies for manufacturing in this country. It's the French model, it's the wrong road. We will pay for it. The average American taxpayer is going to pay dearly for this, if I'm not wrong." Shelby's opposition to manufacturing subsidies does not extend to his own state, however, especially the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville. When it comes to aerospace, Shelby ridicules private enterprise as a "faith-based initiative" and supports a national monopoly space transportation system owned and operated by the Federal government.
Sen. Richard Shelby voted to block three amendments to regulate banks, including an amendment #3812 to S. 3217,to cap ATM fees at $0.50 per transaction, and also to bar banks who borrowed tax payer money through TARP funds to use those funds for their own benefit. Sen. Shelby also believes that bank oversight violates the right to privacy and is against the Government Office of Financial Research being able to collect any financial data it needs to regulate the bank industry.
Shelby opposed President Barack Obama's health reform legislation; he voted against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
in December 2009, and he voted against the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010
.
Shelby opposed the nomination of Nobel Economics Prize laureate and Massachusetts Institute of Technology
professor Peter Diamond
to serve on the board of the Federal Reserve, on the grounds that professor Diamond "lacked the necessary qualifications".
Shelby is a signer of Americans for Tax Reform’s Taxpayer Protection Pledge.
, 1978:
Alabama's 7th congressional district, 1980:
Alabama's 7th congressional district, 1982:
Alabama's 7th congressional district, 1984:
United States Senate election in Alabama, 1986
:
United States Senate election in Alabama, 1992
:
United States Senate election in Alabama, 1998
:
United States Senate election in Alabama, 2004
:
United States Senate election in Alabama, 2010
, Republican primary:
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. First elected to the Senate in 1986, he is the ranking member of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
United States Senate 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,...
and was its chairman from 2003 to 2007.
Born in Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, Shelby received his law degree from the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
in Tuscaloosa
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west central Alabama . Located on the Black Warrior River, it is the fifth-largest city in Alabama, with a population of 90,468 in 2010...
, where he went on to serve as city prosecutor (1963–1971). During this period he worked as a U.S. Magistrate
United States magistrate judge
In the United States federal courts, magistrate judges are appointed to assist United States district court judges in the performance of their duties...
for the Northern District of Alabama
United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the following counties: Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne, Colbert, Cullman, De Kalb, Etowah, Fayette, Franklin, Greene, Jackson, Jefferson, Lamar,...
(1966–1970) and Special Assistant Attorney General of Alabama
Attorney General of Alabama
The Attorney General of Alabama is an elected, constitutional officer of the State of Alabama. The office of the Attorney General is located at the state capitol in Montgomery, Alabama. Henry Hitchcock was elected Alabama's first attorney general in 1819....
(1969–1971). He won a seat in the Alabama Senate
Alabama Senate
The Alabama State Senate is the upper house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alabama. The body is composed of 35 members representing an equal amount of districts across the state, with each district containing at least 127,140 citizens...
in 1970. In 1978 he was elected to the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from the 7th District
Alabama's 7th congressional district
Alabama's 7th congressional district is a U.S. congressional district in Alabama, which elects a representative to the United States House of Representatives. The district encompasses the counties of Greene, Choctaw, Sumter, Marengo, Dallas, Wilcox, Perry and Hale...
, where he was among a group of conservative Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The 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...
known as the boll weevils
Boll weevil (politics)
Boll weevils was an American political term used in the mid- and late-20th century to describe conservative Southern Democrats.During and after the administration of Franklin D...
. Shelby won a tight race in 1986 for the U.S. Senate. Originally elected as a Democrat, Shelby switched to the Republican Party in 1994 when Republicans gained the majority in Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
midway through President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
's first term. He was re-elected by a large margin in 1998 and has faced no electoral opposition since.
Early life
Shelby was born in Birmingham, AlabamaBirmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, the son of Alice L. (née Skinner) and Ozie Houston Shelby. He attended the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, receiving an undergraduate degree in 1957 and a Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
in 1963.
Shelby is a member of the American Bar Association
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...
and Alabama State Bar
Alabama State Bar
The Alabama State Bar is the integrated bar association of the U.S. state of Alabama.The Alabama State Bar was established in 1923 and is part of the 1975 Alabama Code, §§ 34-3-1 to 34-3-89....
, as well as the American Judicature Society
American Judicature Society
The American Judicature Society is an independent, nonpartisan, national organization of judges, lawyers, and interested members of the public whose mission is to improve the American justice system - to "secure and promote an independent and qualified judiciary and fair system of justice." ...
, Alabama Law Institute, Delta Chi
Delta Chi
Delta Chi or D-Chi is an international Greek letter college social fraternity formed on October 13, 1890,at Cornell University, initially as a professional fraternity for law students. On April 29, 1922, Delta Chi became a general membership social fraternity, eliminating the requirement for men...
Fraternity, and Phi Alpha Delta
Phi Alpha Delta
ΦAΔ , or P.A.D., is the largest co-ed professional law fraternity in the United States of America. Phi Alpha Delta has members who are university students, law school students, lawyers, judges, senators, and even presidents. It was founded in 1902 and today has over 300,000 initiated members...
legal fraternity.
Shelby currently lives in Tuscaloosa with his wife, Annette Nevin Shelby. They have two sons, Richard Jr., and Claude Nevin.
Early career
Shelby was a city prosecutor in Tuscaloosa, AlabamaTuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west central Alabama . Located on the Black Warrior River, it is the fifth-largest city in Alabama, with a population of 90,468 in 2010...
from 1963 to 1971. From 1966 to 1970, he was a U.S. Magistrate for the Northern District of Alabama; from 1969 to 1971, Shelby was a Special Assistant State Attorney General.
Shelby began his legislative career as a member of the Alabama Senate
Alabama Senate
The Alabama State Senate is the upper house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alabama. The body is composed of 35 members representing an equal amount of districts across the state, with each district containing at least 127,140 citizens...
in 1970, serving until 1978, when he was elected to the House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from the Tuscaloosa-based 7th District. He was reelected three times. He was one of the more conservative Democrats in Congress, and a member of the boll weevils
Boll weevil (politics)
Boll weevils was an American political term used in the mid- and late-20th century to describe conservative Southern Democrats.During and after the administration of Franklin D...
, a group of moderate to conservative leaning Democrats who often worked with Republican President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
on defense issues.
Elections
In 1986, Shelby won the Democratic nomination for the Senate seat held by Republican Jeremiah DentonJeremiah Denton
Jeremiah Andrew Denton Jr. is a retired United States Navy rear admiral, naval aviator and a former Republican U.S. senator, for the state of Alabama...
, the first Republican elected to the Senate from Alabama since Reconstruction. He won a very close race as the Democrats regained control of the Senate. He was easily re-elected in 1992 even as Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
lost Alabama's electoral votes.
On November 9, 1994, Shelby switched his party affiliation to Republican, one day after the Republicans won control of both houses in the midterm elections, giving the Republicans a 53-47 majority in the Senate. He won his first full term as a Republican in 1998 by a large margin, and faced no significant opposition in 2004 or 2010.
Shelby remains popular in Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. A September 2009 poll showed he had a 58% approval rating, with 35% disapproving.
1980s
In 1987, Shelby opposed Reagan's nomination of Robert BorkRobert Bork
Robert Heron Bork is an American legal scholar who has advocated the judicial philosophy of originalism. Bork formerly served as Solicitor General, Acting Attorney General, and judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit...
to the Supreme Court; a move attributed to lobbying by Alabama African-American leaders who reminded Shelby that he had relied on support from African-American voters in defeating Denton in 1986.
1990s
Shelby publicly feuded with Bill ClintonBill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
during the first half of Clinton's first term. At a meeting with Vice President Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
, he turned to 19 Alabama TV cameras and denounced the Clinton program as "high on taxes, low on spending cuts".
Shelby served on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence from 1995 to 2003, stepping down because of a Senate rule limiting committee terms to eight years. Shelby took an adversarial stance towards the intelligence community during both Clinton and Bush administrations. He helped sink Anthony Lake
Anthony Lake
William Anthony Kirsopp Lake, best known as Tony Lake, is the Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund , author, academic, and former American diplomat, Foreign Service Officer, and political advisor. He has been a foreign policy advisor to many Democratic U.S...
's nomination as CIA director in 1997 and promised to investigate the use of American-made satellites by the Chinese to gather intelligence. Shelby also took a hard line on leaks of classified information. In 2000. he introduced a bill (vetoed by President Clinton) "that would have broadened the law that criminalizes release of "national defense information." According to the Washington Post:
"Civil libertiesCivil libertiesCivil liberties are rights and freedoms that provide an individual specific rights such as the freedom from slavery and forced labour, freedom from torture and death, the right to liberty and security, right to a fair trial, the right to defend one's self, the right to own and bear arms, the right...
groups and news organizations, which argued that the legislation would chill their ability to get information from officials, lobbied for the veto. . . .
In 2002, with George W. BushGeorge 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....
in the White House, Shelby reintroduced his language, but then-Attorney General John D. Ashcroft said that "rigorous investigation" and enforcement of existing laws -- not new legislation -- were the best way to fight leaks.
Senator Shelby has supported several gun control
Gun control
Gun control is any law, policy, practice, or proposal designed to restrict or limit the possession, production, importation, shipment, sale, and/or use of guns or other firearms by private citizens...
measures put forth by Democrats including the 1991 Crime Bill S.1241 sponsored by then Senator Joseph Biden that instituted a national waiting period for handgun purchases as well as a federal ban on semi-automatic firearms. In 1998, Shelby voted for Senator Barbara Boxer
Barbara Boxer
Barbara Levy Boxer is the junior United States Senator from California . A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives ....
's Trigger Lock Amendment 3230, requiring the purchase of a trigger lock with the sale of each handgun. Firearms dealers who do not comply are guilty of a federal crime and face revocation of their Federal Firearms License
Federal Firearms License
A Federal Firearms License is a license that enables an individual or a company to engage in a business pertaining to the manufacture of firearms and ammunition or the interstate and intrastate sale of firearms...
and civil fines up to $10,000 for each omission.
2000s
Shelby was also highly critical of CIA Director George TenetGeorge Tenet
George John Tenet was the Director of Central Intelligence for the United States Central Intelligence Agency, and is Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy at Georgetown University....
in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. When Tenet resigned in July 2004, Shelby commented "This is not a surprise to me at all. What was a surprise was that he held onto the job as long as he did."
From 2003 until 2007, he chaired the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. He is also a member of the Appropriations Committee (where he chaired its subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science) and Special Committee on Aging. He lost his chairmanships in 2007 when the Democrats regained control of the Senate.
In 2004, a federal investigation concluded that Shelby revealed classified information to the media when he was a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Specifically, Shelby revealed classified information on June 19, 2002 to Carl Cameron
Carl Cameron
Carl Cameron is an American television journalist and commentator for Fox News Channel.-Early life and education:As a child Cameron spent several years in Iran, where his father worked as an archaeologist....
, the chief political correspondent on Fox News. The information consisted of two messages intercepted by the National Security Agency
National Security Agency
The National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
on September 10, 2001, but were only translated the day after the attacks — "the match is about to begin" and "tomorrow is zero hour." The Department of Justice
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
declined to file criminal charges against Shelby and transferred the case to the Senate Ethics Committee, which dismissed its probe into the alleged leak.
Shelby, in his role as chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, & Urban Affairs
United States Senate 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,...
, opposed proposed legislation that would have permitted additional competition in the title insurance industry.
Shelby is currently co-chair of the Congressional Privacy Caucus and Zero Capital Gains Tax Caucus. He is also the Senate co-chair of the National Security Caucus. In addition, he is a member of the National Republican Senatorial Committee
National Republican Senatorial Committee
The National Republican Senatorial Committee is the Republican Hill committee for the United States Senate, working to elect Republicans to that body. The NRSC was founded in 1916 as the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee...
and the Senate Centrist Coalition
Senate Centrist Coalition
The name of the Senate Centrist Coalition is "Third Way," subtitled, "A Senate-Focused Progressive Advocacy Group." As of November 2004 it was chaired and co-chaired by Blanche Lincoln , Evan Bayh , Tom Carper , Mary Landrieu , and Mark Pryor .-Coalition Members :* Evan Bayh * Tom Carper * Susan...
.
In the Metroplex of Dallas–Fort Worth, Shelby is known for the Shelby Amendment, a law he sponsored that eased some of the restrictions placed on Dallas' secondary airport by the contentious Wright Amendment
Wright Amendment
The Wright Amendment of 1979 is a federal law governing traffic at Dallas Love Field, an airport in Dallas, Texas. It originally limited most nonstop flights to destinations within Texas and neighboring states. The limits began phasing out in 1997 and 2005...
.
On February 5, 2010, Shelby placed a hold
Secret hold
In the United States Senate, a hold is a parliamentary procedure permitted by the Standing Rules of the United States Senate which allows one or more Senators to prevent a motion from reaching a vote on the Senate floor....
on over 70 of Obama's nominees to various government posts, in a protest over an Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker
KC-135 Stratotanker
The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an aerial refueling military aircraft. It and the Boeing 707 airliner were developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype. The KC-135 was the US Air Force's first jet-powered refueling tanker and replaced the KC-97 Stratotanker...
contract and the FBI's Terrorist Explosive Device Analytical Center. Shelby lifted all but three of the holds on February 8, 2010, releasing a statement that "The purpose of placing numerous holds was to get the White House’s attention on two issues that are critical to our national security – the Air Force’s aerial refueling tanker acquisition and the FBI’s Terrorist Device Analytical Center (TEDAC). With that accomplished, Sen. Shelby has decided to release his holds on all but a few nominees directly related to the Air Force tanker acquisition until the new Request for Proposal is issued." White House spokesman Robert Gibbs
Robert Gibbs
Robert Lane Gibbs was the 28th White House Press Secretary. Gibbs was the communications director for then-U.S. Senator Barack Obama and Obama's 2008 presidential campaign...
criticized Shelby for "hold[ing] up qualified nominees for positions that are needed because he didn't get two earmarks"; Shelby denied the holds were over earmarks
Earmark (politics)
In United States politics, an earmark is a legislative provision that directs approved funds to be spent on specific projects, or that directs specific exemptions from taxes or mandated fees...
.
Shelby criticised the Obama administration for abandoning NASA's
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Constellation program stating "It is unfortunate that this administration is choosing to abandon our nation's only chance at remaining the leader in human space flight. It is ironic that Constellation, a program born out of the recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board, would be eliminated in lieu of rockets repeatedly deemed unsafe for astronauts by NASA's own Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel. If this budget is enacted, NASA will no longer be an agency of innovation and hard science; it will be the agency of pipe dreams and fairy tales." Shelby failed to cite any evidence that the untested Ares rockets, being developed under the Constellation program, would be any safer than existing rockets.
Critics point out that Shelby supports big government programs but ignores the private sector at every opportunity. Although he called Constellation "our nation's only chance at remaining the leader in human space flight," a number of private companies were, and are, competing to develop orbital launch systems. Among these companies is United Launch Alliance, a Boeing-Lockheed joint venture that builds rockets in Shelby's home state. Numerous other companies are developing reusable suborbital launch vehicles, which could evolve into orbital systems. Unlike Constellation, these reusable vehicles offer the promise of significant cost and safety improvements. Critics worry that Shelby's support of an expensive expendable rocket will lock NASA into using expendable technologies for another several decades, thereby jeopardizing astronaut safety.
Political views
With a reputation as a moderate Republican, Shelby has taken conservative stances on taxationTaxation in the United States
The United States is a federal republic with autonomous state and local governments. Taxes are imposed in the United States at each of these levels. These include taxes on income, property, sales, imports, payroll, estates and gifts, as well as various fees.Taxes are imposed on net income of...
, abortion
Abortion in the United States
Abortion in the United States has been legal in every state since the United States Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade, on January 22, 1973...
and immigration, while siding with the Democratic stance on other issues, such as opposing free-trade agreements and voting against the Gramm–Leach–Bliley Act. During the 1990s he was a strong opponent of the Clinton administration's spending and tax policies, while supporting some gun control measures. He served on the Select Committee on Intelligence
United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence
The United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence is dedicated to overseeing the United States Intelligence Community—the agencies and bureaus of the federal government of the United States who provide information and analysis for leaders of the executive and legislative branches. The...
, where he battled CIA leaders and attempted to curtail the release of information to the public. A federal investigation uncovered that he had released classified memos to the Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
in 2002, but no charges were pressed. He chaired the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee from 2003 to 2007 and remains the committee's Republican ranking member. During President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack 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...
's administration he placed a hold on 70 government nominees to draw attention to certain national security issues. He has opposed the bulk of the Democratic legislative agenda since they took control of the Senate in 2007, including economic bailout measures and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is a United States federal statute signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. The law is the principal health care reform legislation of the 111th United States Congress...
.
Shelby first opposed, then ignored the Republican Party moratorium on earmark funding. He is a leading backer of the Space Launch System, more commonly known as the Senate Launch System , an expensive, Congressionally mandated rocket that would increase the cost of space transportation but benefit NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, located in Shelby's home state.
Shelby has disagreed with other Senators over details design of the SLS, however. Other Senators, include Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, want an SLS design that uses solid-rocket motors manufactured by ATK for its strap-on boosters. Shelby favors competition for the strap-on booster design. Neither favors competition for core elements of the rocket, however.
The SLS earmark has been opposed by fiscal conservative groups, including the Tea Party. , as well as space-exploration advocacy groups. Congressman Tom McClintock (R-CA) has expressed "serious concerns with NASA's attempt to avoid holding a full and open competition to acquire the SLS." Rep. McClintock "stringly believe[s] that such a de facto sole source award would be a violation of the 1984 Competition in Contracting Act." Rep. McClintock has asked the Government Accountability Office to investigate the SLS earmark.
Because of its high cost, the SLS is the single largest earmark in the Federal budget and possibly the single large earmark in US history.
Shelby took a leading role in the resistance to bailing out the banks and other corporations (such as AIG
American International Group
American International Group, Inc. or AIG is an American multinational insurance corporation. Its corporate headquarters is located in the American International Building in New York City. The British headquarters office is on Fenchurch Street in London, continental Europe operations are based in...
), both under the Bush Administration, in 2008, and the Obama Administration, beginning in 2009.
Senator Shelby has also supported several key gun control
Gun control
Gun control is any law, policy, practice, or proposal designed to restrict or limit the possession, production, importation, shipment, sale, and/or use of guns or other firearms by private citizens...
measures put forth by Democrats, including the 1991 Crime Bill S.1241 sponsored by then Senator Joseph Biden that instituted a national waiting period for handgun purchases as well as a federal ban on semi-automatic firearms.
In 1998, Shelby voted for Senator Barbara Boxer
Barbara Boxer
Barbara Levy Boxer is the junior United States Senator from California . A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives ....
's Trigger Lock Amendment 3230, a law requiring the purchase of a trigger lock with the sale of each handgun. Firearms dealers who do not comply with the law are guilty of a federal crime and face revocation of their Federal Firearms License
Federal Firearms License
A Federal Firearms License is a license that enables an individual or a company to engage in a business pertaining to the manufacture of firearms and ammunition or the interstate and intrastate sale of firearms...
and civil fines up to $10,000 for each omission.
He is against abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
, and supports the Federal Marriage Amendment
Federal Marriage Amendment
The Federal Marriage Amendment H.J. Res. 56 was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution which would have limited marriage in the United States to unions of one man and one woman...
. He has also been a staunch advocate of a flat tax
Flat tax
A 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...
and of the Bush Administration's tax cuts
Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003
The Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 , was passed by the United States Congress on May 23, 2003 and signed into law by President George W. Bush on May 28, 2003...
. He cites disagreements with the Democrats on tax policy as one of the main reasons he became a Republican; he feels the Democrats are too willing to enact tax increases. Among the bills sponsored by Shelby over the years have been bills to make English the sole language
English-only movement
English-only movement, also known as Official English movement, refers to a political movement for the use only of the English language in official government operations through the establishing of English as the only official language in the United States...
of the federal government, to limit federal government spending by statute, and to provide a moratorium on certain forms of immigration.
Shelby is considered to be much more independent-minded than his Senate colleague from Alabama, Jeff Sessions
Jeff Sessions
Jefferson Beauregard "Jeff" Sessions III is the junior United States Senator from Alabama. First elected in 1996, Sessions is a member of the Republican Party...
. For instance, shortly after becoming a Republican he voted against two major tort reform
Tort reform
Tort reform refers to proposed changes in common law civil justice systems that would reduce tort litigation or damages. Tort actions are civil common law claims first created in the English commonwealth system as a non-legislative means for compensating wrongs and harm done by one party to...
bills, the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
The United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Pub. L. 104-67, 109 Stat. 737 implemented several substantive changes affecting certain cases brought under the federal securities laws, including changes related to pleading, discovery, liability, class representation, and...
and the Common Sense Product Liability and Legal Reform Act. Both bills were vetoed by President Clinton, though the first bill was successfully passed over his veto. In 1999 he was the only Senate Republican to vote against the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act
Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act
The Gramm–Leach–Bliley Act , also known as the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999, is an act of the 106th United States Congress...
. Shelby also voted against the North American Free Trade Agreement
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement...
and opposes most free trade agreements, most recently the Central America Free Trade Agreement. When he was a Democrat, Shelby opposed the confirmation of Robert Bork
Robert Bork
Robert Heron Bork is an American legal scholar who has advocated the judicial philosophy of originalism. Bork formerly served as Solicitor General, Acting Attorney General, and judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit...
to the United States Supreme Court in 1987. He supported the confirmation of John Roberts
John Roberts
John Glover Roberts, Jr. is the 17th and current Chief Justice of the United States. He has served since 2005, having been nominated by President George W. Bush after the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist...
and Samuel Alito
Samuel Alito
Samuel Anthony Alito, Jr. is an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He was nominated by President George W. Bush and has served on the court since January 31, 2006....
almost two decades later.
Other Republicans have criticized the SLS earmark, which has even become an issue in the Presidential primary. At a town meeting hosted by the Dallas Tea Party, Presidential Candidate and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich criticized politicians supporting the Space Launch System, "I think it is disgraceful the way getting into space has been turned into a political pork-barrel. It’s an abuse of the taxpayer and an abuse of America’s future.”
In 1999, Shelby was one of ten Republican senators to vote for the acquittal of President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
on the charge of perjury when Clinton was tried in the Senate in 1999
Impeachment of Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton, President of the United States, was impeached by the House of Representatives on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice on December 19, 1998, but acquitted by the Senate on February 12, 1999. Two other impeachment articles, a second perjury charge and a charge of abuse of...
, although he voted for Clinton's conviction on the charge of obstruction of justice.
Shelby opposed the initial bailout proposal to extend billions of dollars in loan money to the Big Three US Auto Manufacturers. He is often seen as a front man for the GOP Senate opposition. In late 2008, he opposed a Federal government bridge loan for US-owned auto companies
Automotive industry crisis of 2008–2009
The automotive industry crisis of 2008–2010 was a part of a global financial downturn. The crisis affected European and Asian automobile manufacturers, but it was primarily felt in the American automobile manufacturing industry...
, saying: "We don't need government - governmental subsidies for manufacturing in this country. It's the French model, it's the wrong road. We will pay for it. The average American taxpayer is going to pay dearly for this, if I'm not wrong." Shelby's opposition to manufacturing subsidies does not extend to his own state, however, especially the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville. When it comes to aerospace, Shelby ridicules private enterprise as a "faith-based initiative" and supports a national monopoly space transportation system owned and operated by the Federal government.
Sen. Richard Shelby voted to block three amendments to regulate banks, including an amendment #3812 to S. 3217,to cap ATM fees at $0.50 per transaction, and also to bar banks who borrowed tax payer money through TARP funds to use those funds for their own benefit. Sen. Shelby also believes that bank oversight violates the right to privacy and is against the Government Office of Financial Research being able to collect any financial data it needs to regulate the bank industry.
Shelby opposed President Barack Obama's health reform legislation; he voted against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is a United States federal statute signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. The law is the principal health care reform legislation of the 111th United States Congress...
in December 2009, and he voted against the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010
Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010
The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 is a law that was enacted by the 111th United States Congress, by means of the reconciliation process, in order to amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act...
.
Shelby opposed the nomination of Nobel Economics Prize laureate and Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
professor Peter Diamond
Peter Diamond
Peter Diamond was an English actor who had trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and remembered as a stuntman on television or film....
to serve on the board of the Federal Reserve, on the grounds that professor Diamond "lacked the necessary qualifications".
Shelby is a signer of Americans for Tax Reform’s Taxpayer Protection Pledge.
Committees
- Senate Committee on AppropriationsUnited States Senate Committee on AppropriationsThe United States Senate Committee on Appropriations is a standing committee of the United States Senate. It has jurisdiction over all discretionary spending legislation in the Senate....
- Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science (Ranking Member)
- Subcommittee on DefenseUnited States Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on DefenseThe U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense is one of twelve subcommittees of the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations. Military defense spending is the largest individual component of federal discretionary spending, making the Defense Subcommittee one of the more powerful...
- Subcommittee on Energy and Water DevelopmentUnited States Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water DevelopmentThe U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development is one of twelve subcommittees of the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations.-Jurisdiction:...
- Subcommittee on Homeland SecurityUnited States Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland SecurityU.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security is one of twelve subcommittees of the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations. It was formally established in 2003 in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 to oversee national security programs and the newly created...
- Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education & Related Agencies
- Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
- Senate Committee on Banking, Housing & Urban Affairs (Ranking Member)
- As ranking member of the full committee, Sen. Shelby may sit as an ex officio member of all subcommittees.
- Senate Committee on AgingUnited States Senate Special Committee on AgingThe United States Senate Special Committee on Aging was initially established in 1961 as a temporary committee; it became a permanent Senate committee in 1977...
Group ratings (108th Congress)
See current Lawmaker Ratings at The HillThe Hill (newspaper)
The Hill, a subsidiary of News Communications Inc., is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C. since 1994.Its first editor was Martin Tolchin, a veteran correspondent in the Washington bureau of The New York Times....
- National JournalNational JournalNational Journal is a nonpartisan American weekly magazine that reports on the current political environment and emerging political and policy trends. National Journal was first published in 1969. Times Mirror owned the magazine from 1986 to 1997, when it was purchased by David G. Bradley...
- Economic: 42% Liberal, 57% Conservative
- Social: 16% Liberal, 81% Conservative
- Foreign: 0% Liberal, 67% Conservative
- Americans for Democratic ActionAmericans 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:...
: 20 - Human Rights CampaignHuman Rights CampaignThe Human Rights Campaign is the United States' largest LGBT advocacy group and lobbying organization; according to the HRC, it has more than one million members and supporters...
: 0 - American Civil Liberties UnionAmerican Civil Liberties UnionThe American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
: 11 - Chamber of Commerce of the United States: 88
- Christian Coalition: 100
- League of Conservation VotersLeague 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...
: 0 - American Conservative UnionAmerican 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:...
: 84 - National Taxpayers UnionNational 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...
: 65
Buildings
- The Shelby Hall Research Center at the University of Alabama named for Senator Shelby and his wife, a professor emerita at that university. The 200000 square feet (18,580.6 m²) square foot new center opened in 2007 and combines mathematics, chemistry and biology research in one building.
- The Richard C. and Annette N. Shelby Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research Building at the University of Alabama at BirminghamUniversity of Alabama at BirminghamThe University of Alabama at Birmingham is a public university in Birmingham in the U.S. state of Alabama. Developing from an extension center established in 1936, the institution became an autonomous institution in 1969 and is today one of three institutions in the University of Alabama System...
opened in April 2006. The building, costing $90 million, 12 stories high, with 323000 square feet (30,007.7 m²)square feet, increased UAB's available research space by 25%. Shelby was instrumental in securing federal funds for the building.
- The Senator Richard C. and Dr. Annette N. Shelby Center for Engineering Technology, part of the Ginn College of Engineering at Auburn UniversityAuburn UniversityAuburn University is a public university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 25,000 students and 1,200 faculty members, it is one of the largest universities in the state. Auburn was chartered on February 7, 1856, as the East Alabama Male College, a private liberal arts...
, was dedicated on April 18, 2008. Shelby helped secure $30 million of the $54 million cost of Phase I of the project.
Electoral history
Alabama's 7th congressional districtAlabama's 7th congressional district
Alabama's 7th congressional district is a U.S. congressional district in Alabama, which elects a representative to the United States House of Representatives. The district encompasses the counties of Greene, Choctaw, Sumter, Marengo, Dallas, Wilcox, Perry and Hale...
, 1978:
- Richard Shelby, Democrat – 77,742 (97.69%)
- Fulton Gray, Conservative – 3,285 (4.13%)
- Jim Scruggs, Republican – 1,841 (2.31%)
Alabama's 7th congressional district, 1980:
- Richard Shelby (inc.), Democrat – 122,505 (73.88%)
- James E. "Jim" Bacon, Republican – 43,320 (26.12%)
- Joe Walker, LibertarianLibertarian Party (United States)The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
– 2,132 (1.29%) - Mary Owensby, Statesman – 847 (0.51%)
Alabama's 7th congressional district, 1982:
- Richard Shelby (inc.), Democrat – 124,070 (96.83%)
- James Jones, Libertarian – 4,058 (3.17%)
- Write-in candidateWrite-in candidateA write-in candidate is a candidate in an election whose name does not appear on the ballot, but for whom voters may vote nonetheless by writing in the person's name. Some states and local jurisdictions allow a voter to affix a sticker with a write-in candidate's name on it to the ballot in lieu...
s – 11 (0.01%)
Alabama's 7th congressional district, 1984:
- Richard Shelby (inc.), Democrat – 135,834 (96.79%)
- Charles "Chuck" Ewing, Libertarian – 4,498 (3.21%)
United States Senate election in Alabama, 1986
United States Senate election in Alabama, 1986
The 1986 United States Senate election in Alabama took place on November 3, 1986 alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Republican U.S...
:
- Richard Shelby, Democrat – 609,360 (50.28%)
- Jeremiah DentonJeremiah DentonJeremiah Andrew Denton Jr. is a retired United States Navy rear admiral, naval aviator and a former Republican U.S. senator, for the state of Alabama...
(inc.), Republican – 602,537
United States Senate election in Alabama, 1992
United States Senate election in Alabama, 1992
The 1992 United States Senate election in Alabama took place on November 3, 1992 alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Richard...
:
- Richard Shelby (inc.), Democrat – 1,022,698 (66.21%)
- Richard Sellers, Republican – 522,015 (33.79%)
- Jerome Shockley, Libertarian – 31,811 (2.06%)
- Write-in candidates – 1,275 (0.08%)
United States Senate election in Alabama, 1998
United States Senate election in Alabama, 1998
The 1998 United States Senate election in Alabama took place on November 3, 1998 alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Richard...
:
- Richard Shelby (inc.), Republican – 817,973 (63.28%)
- Clayton Suddith, Democrat – 474,568 (36.72%)
- Write-in candidates – 864 (0.07%)
United States Senate election in Alabama, 2004
United States Senate election in Alabama, 2004
The 2004 United States Senate election in Alabama took place on November 2, 2004 alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Republican U.S...
:
- Richard Shelby (inc.), Republican – 1,242,200 (67.61%)
- Wayne SowellWayne SowellWayne Sowell was the Democratic candidate for Alabama in the United States Senate election of 2004. He was also a former Gubernatorial candidate in 1998 and former congressional candidate in 2000.-2002 elections:...
, Democrat – 595,018 (32.39%) - Write-in candidates – 1848 (0.10%)
United States Senate election in Alabama, 2010
United States Senate election in Alabama, 2010
The 2010 United States Senate election in Alabama took place on November 2, 2010 alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states, as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections...
, Republican primary:
- Richard Shelby (inc.) – 403,408 (84.36%)
- Clint Moser – 74,782 (15.64%)
External links
- Senator Richard Shelby official U.S. Senate site
- Richard Shelby for U.S. Senate official campaign site
- Profile at SourceWatchSourceWatchSourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...
- Collected news and commentary from PoliticoPolitico (newspaper)The Politico is an American political journalism organization based in Arlington, Virginia, that distributes its content via television, the Internet, newspaper, and radio. Its coverage of Washington, D.C., includes the U.S. Congress, lobbying, media and the Presidency...