John Ensign
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John Eric Ensign (born March 25, 1958) is the junior United States Senator from Nevada. He is a member of the Republican Party.
Background
Ensign was born in Roseville, California to Sharon Cipriani and ?? Mueller, but he and his family moved to Nevada when he was a child. He went to universities in Nevada, Oregon, and Colorado, becoming a veterinarian in 1985. He then became a successful businessman, opening a 24-hour animal hospital in Las Vegas. Ensign spends his workweek in Washington and his weekends in Las Vegas with his wife, Darlene, and their three children—Trevor, Siena, and Michael. He is a devout Christian and attends a Foursquare church in northwest Las Vegas.Political career
Ensign quickly became successful at politics, being elected to the United States House of Representatives in the Republican landslide 1994 Congressional election. He was reelected in 1996 but declined to run again in 1998. Instead he ran for the Senate but was defeated by the Democratic incumbent, Harry Reid, by 428 votes.http://sos.state.nv.us/nvelection/1998recount/ Nevada Secretary of State - 1998 US Senate Recount Results] He gained a Senate seat after his second try in 2000, defeating Democratic opponent Ed Bernstein by a 55%-40% margin,[Nevada Secretary of State - 2000 General Election Results] to succeed the retiring Democratic incumbent, Richard H. Bryan.Ensign has become a leading voice against the Kelo v. New London Supreme Court ruling, and has announced plans to introduce a bill that would strongly blunt the effects of the ruling.
Senator Ensign has been praised by many organizations for his support for fiscal conservatism. In 2003, the American Conservative Union named Ensign along with Senators Chuck Hagel (NE) and Don Nickles (OK) as the most conservative Senator in 2003. Ensign failed to achieve the award in 2004, receiving a 92% score. His accolades for 2004 include being named, along with Senator Jon Kyl (AZ), the most taxpayer-friendly senator by the National Taxpayers Union. Ensign also received the highest rating for a senator by the Citizens Against Government Waste, while being hailed as a "Taxpayer's Hero" for his lifetime efforts against government waste. Both Citizens for a Sound Economy, whose chairman is former House Majority Leader Dick Armey, and the National Tax Limitation Committee gave Senator Ensign their highest ratings.
On the morning of January 30 2006, Senator Ensign and an aide were involved in a traffic accident in Las Vegas after their car was struck by an oncoming car on their way to the airport. Both suffered minor injuries. [link]
For a short time in March 2006, Senator Ensign blocked the nomination of VADM Thad Allen to become the next Commandant of the United States Coast Guard. [link]. VADM Allen was the principal federal official following the Katrina hurricane, replacing FEMA director Brown.
2006 re-election campaign
Main article : Nevada U.S. Senate election, 2006Ensign is running for re-election. A recent (May 2006) poll shows he has a 49% approval rating, traditionally low for an incumbent going into an election year.
Jack Carter, son of former President Jimmy Carter, is the only declared candidate for the Democratic nomination in the primary election. Popular Las Vegas mayor Oscar Goodman had flirted with running, having said in January that he would probably run [link], but in late April seemed to decisively rule out a run [link].
Ensign is a strong supporter of the U.S. effort in Iraq, and has recently, as of May, 2006, accused Democratic senators of "aiding" terrorists in Iraq by criticizing George W. Bush.[link]
He has also claimed Iraq war critics in general have "hurt our military" and "embolden the enemy." [link]
Committee assignments
- Committee on Armed Services
- *Subcommittee on Strategic Forces
- *Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
- *Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support (Chairman)
- Committee on the Budget
- Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation
- *Subcommittee on Aviation
- *Subcommittee on Communications
- *Subcommittee on Competition, Foreign Commerce, and Infrastructure
- *Subcommittee on Science, Technology and Space
- Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
- *Subcommittee on Aging
- *Subcommittee on Children and Families
- *Subcommittee on Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
- Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
- Committee on Veterans' Affairs
External links
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