David E. Bonior

David Edward Bonior
23rd United States House of Representatives Majority Whip
In office September 11, 1991 – January 3, 1995
Preceded by	William H. Gray III
Succeeded by	Tom DeLay
17th United States House of Representatives Minority Whip
In office January 3, 1995 – 2002
Preceded by	Newt Gingrich
Succeeded by	Nancy Pelosi
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 12th district
In office January 3, 1977 – January 3, 1993
Preceded by	James G. O'Hara
Succeeded by	Sander Levin
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 10th district
In office January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2003
Preceded by	Dave Camp
Succeeded by	Candice Miller
Born	June 6, 1945 (1945-06-06) (age 64) Detroit, Michigan
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Judy Bonior
Religion	Roman Catholic

David Edward Bonior (born June 6, 1945) is an American politician from the U.S. state of Michigan. First elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1976, Bonior served as Democratic whip in the House from 1991 to 2002, during which time Democrats were in both the majority (1991-1995) and minority (1995-2002), making Bonior the third and second highest-ranking Democrat in the House, respectively. During his tenure in office, Bonior was the public face of Democratic opposition to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA),^[1] and was known for his tenacity in opposing Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, against whom Bonior filed more than seventy-five ethics charges.^[2]

Early life

Bonior was born in Detroit, Michigan, and graduated from Notre Dame High School in Harper Woods, Michigan, in 1963 where he excelled in sports. He received a B.A. from the University of Iowa, where he also played football and was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, in 1967. He received a M.A. from Chapman College in Orange, California in 1972. He served in the United States Air Force during the peak of the Vietnam War, from 1968 to 1972. However, he did not serve in Vietnam.

Political career

David Bonior at a reception at Wayne State University in 2004

Bonior was a Democratic member of the Michigan State House of Representatives from 1973 to 1976. In 1976, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 12th District (based in Macomb County) for the 95th and to the twelve succeeding Congresses, serving from January 3, 1977 to January 3, 2003. His district was renumbered as the 10th in 1993, after Michigan lost a House seat as a result of the 1990 United States Census.

From 1991 to 2002, Bonior was the House Democratic Whip. He served as Majority Whip in the 102nd and 103rd Congresses. He was Minority Whip for the 104th through 107th Congresses. While the Democrats were in the majority, Bonior was the third-ranking Democrat in the House, behind the Speaker and House Majority Leader. While they were in the minority, Bonior was second-in-command behind the Minority Leader.

In Congress, Bonior generally had a liberal voting record, but opposed abortion in most cases.^[3]

During the 2000s round of redistricting, the Republican-controlled state legislature crafted a map designed to elect more Republicans from Michigan's congressional delegation. In the process, they made Bonior's district considerably more rural and Republican than its predecessor. It was an open secret that the new 10th had been drawn for popular Michigan Secretary of State Candice Miller. While the old 10th narrowly voted for George W. Bush in 2000, the new 10th would have voted for Bush by a large margin. The legislature also drew Bonior's home in Mount Clemens out of the 10th, shifting it to the nearby 12th District of Sandy Levin, a fellow Democrat and longtime friend of Bonior's. In either case, Bonior faced the prospect of running in territory that he didn't know and that didn't know him. He stepped down as House Democratic Whip in early 2002 and opted not to run for another term, but instead running for Governor of Michigan. However, he lost in a heavily-contested primary between former Governor James Blanchard, and then-Michigan Attorney General and eventual nominee Jennifer Granholm, who went on to be elected to two terms as governor.

Post-Congressional Career

Following his retirement from the House, Bonior became a professor of labor studies at Wayne State University,^[4], and founded American Rights at Work, a union advocacy organization of which he currently serves as Chairman.^[5] In 2006, former Senator John Edwards chose Bonior to run his campaign for the presidency in 2008.^[6] Bonior served as campaign manager for the duration of Edwards' candidacy. Upon the election of Barack Obama in November 2008, Bonior was a member of the President's-Elect economic advisory board. [1]

Bonior's Congressional District from 1993 to 2003

Controversies

An indictment unsealed in Detroit on March 26, 2008 accused Muthanna Al-Hanooti, a member of a Michigan nonprofit group, of arranging for three members of Congress to travel to Iraq in October 2002 at the behest of Saddam Hussein's regime, paid for by Iraqi intelligence officials.^[7] The dates from the indictment correspond to a trip by Democratic Reps. Jim McDermott of Washington, David Bonior of Michigan and Mike Thompson of California. During the trip, the lawmakers expressed skepticism about the Bush administration's claims that Saddam was stockpiling weapons of mass destruction.

References

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post

v • d • e Minority Whips of the United States House of Representatives Underwood • Lloyd • Dwight • Burke • Hamilton • Oldfield • McDuffie • Bachmann • Englebright • Arends • McCormack • Arends • McCormack • Arends • Michel • Lott • Cheney • Gingrich • Bonior • Pelosi • Hoyer • Blunt • Cantor

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