Orrin Grant Hatch (born March 22, 1934) is a
Republican United States
Senator from Utah, serving since 1977.
Hatch is a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance,
where he serves on the subcommittees on Energy, Natural Resources, and
Infrastructure and Taxation and IRS Oversight.
Hatch is also on the Select Committee on
Intelligence, where he is the ranking Republican, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Committee, as well as the Joint Committee on
Taxation. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Until 2004, he chaired the U.S. Senate
Committee on the Judiciary (where he famously asked Clarence Thomas during his Senate
Supreme Court confirmation, "did you ever say in words or substance something like, 'There is a pubic hair in my Coke?'"[1]), and previously chaired the U.S. Senate Committee on Labor and Human
Resources. Hatch has endorsed former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney in the 2008 presidential
election.
Early life, marriage, and descendants
Hatch was born to Helen Kamm and Jesse Hatch[2] in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His great-grandfather, Jeremiah Hatch, founded what
is now known as Vernal, located in eastern Utah. Hatch married Elaine Hansen of
Newton, Utah and they have six children and twenty-two grandchildren. He and his family are
members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints.
Education
Hatch, first in his family to attend college, attended Brigham Young
University and, in 1959, received a degree in History. In 1962, he received a
J.D. from the University of
Pittsburgh Law School. As a law student, he worked as a janitor, a construction worker in the Wood, Wire and Metal Lathers
Union (putting up walls over various kinds of lath), and a dormitory desk attendant.
Political career
For fourteen years after graduating, Hatch worked as an attorney at law in
Pittsburgh and Utah. In 1976 in his first run for public office, he was elected
to the United States Senate, defeating Democrat Frank Moss, a three-term incumbent. Among other issues, Hatch criticized Moss's 18-year tenure
in the Senate, saying that many Senators, including Moss, had lost touch with their constituents.
In 2000, Hatch made a failed bid for the Republican Presidential
nomination, losing to Texas Governor George W. Bush.
Hatch has long expressed interest in serving on the US Supreme Court and he had long been mentioned as a possible nominee
after George W. Bush became president. But after the appointments of John Roberts and Samuel Alito, a potential appointment seems
to be very unlikely. In the aftermath of the U.S. Attorney firing
scandal, Orrin Hatch was mentioned in various news sources as a candidate to succeed Alberto Gonzales as United States Attorney
General.
Actions in the Senate
Seated as 100th in seniority in January 1977, Hatch set about making his presence known through advocacy of conservative
causes. That year he led the longest filibuster on a legislative issue in Senate history,
taking the Labor Law Reform Act to a record six unsuccessful cloture votes (to end debate), killing the bill and earning Hatch a
reputation as anti-labor. In the process, Hatch invented the "filibuster by amendment" tactic, proposing and filing more than
2,000 amendments to the bill, discouraging even supporters from supporting an end to the filibuster.
After campaigning as the top surrogate for Ronald Reagan in the presidential campaign in 1980, Hatch was catapulted to the
chairmanship of the Labor and Human Resources Committee when the Senate turned Republican on Reagan's coattails. Liberals feared what might happen, since the committee's jurisdiction covered
labor, education and health. But while the Republicans held a majority on the committee, that majority included maverick Sen.
Lowell Weicker, (R-CT), who would frequently vote with the Democrats. Unable to
force legislation, Hatch developed a policy of frequent consultations with Ranking Democrat Edward
Kennedy, and the committee became a hotbed of health legislation and reform on other issues. During this period Hatch won
cooperation from Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), on "orphan drug" legislation, and with Rep.
Al Gore (D-TN), on organ transplant legislation. Hatch continued and expanded the anti-smoking
work of Sen. Moss, expanding the warning labels on cigarette packages to four more-specific, rotating warnings. Hatch wrote and
passed the Home Health Care Act, authorizing Medicare funds to provide health care to people in their homes rather than at
hospitals, saving significantly on individual actions and expanding the reach of federal health care assistance.
Hatch's chief effect in education was persuading President Reagan to appoint fellow Utahn Ted
Bell as Secretary of Education. Bell proposed the Excellence in Education Commission whose report started education reform
in the 1980s. Secretary of Labor Raymond Donovan was at odds with Hatch through much of
Donovan's term, however, due to administration bobbling of FBI information during the confirmation hearings.
Hatch also worked to increase conservative influence in Washington by recruiting a top-flight staff that would provide
candidates for other key administrative positions. His Labor Committee staff included future National Labor Relations Board
members Robert P. Hunter and James M. Stephens, future FDA Commissioner David Aaron
Kessler, future Surgeon General Antonia Novello, future Health Care Finance
Administration (HCFA)Director David N. Sundwall, and others.
During Hatch's first year in the Senate, 1977, reporter Gordon Eliot White of the Deseret News published the first of what
would be a lengthy series of articles detailing government malfeasance in atmospheric testing of nuclear bombs at the Nevada Test
Site. Over the next 13 years White's articles detailed how the government determined to proceed with the tests, and with mining
and refining, without adequate safeguards for innocent citizens whose health would be damaged. Though Hatch feared an
investigation would endanger the nation's nuclear deterrence versus the Soviet Union and the Peoples Republic of China, by 1979
he was pushing for hearings on the issue before the Senate Labor Committee. Hatch prevailed on Committee Chairman Ted Kennedy to
hold field hearings in Utah in 1980. At the end of 1980, Hatch was positioned to chair the committee himself.
By 1984 Hatch had held a dozen hearings, passed legislation requiring scientific investigation of the injuries and had
enlisted the aid of the National Science Foundation and National Cancer Institute, but still could not muster the votes to get a
bill. When a vote was obtained in the Senate in 1985, it failed. Hatch's ferreting discovered a clause to pay at least $100
million to Marshall Islands injured similarly to Utah citizens, and Hatch took the treaty hostage. His hold on consideration of
the treaty eventually got agreement from the Reagan administration to agree not to oppose radiation compensation for Utah
citizens, but it still took another five years to get the bill through. The Radiation Compensation Act of 1990 provided
compensation for citizens injured by radioactive fallout from the tests.
In 1980, Hatch spoke in favor of rolling back provisions of the Fair Housing
Act. Acting on his motion in 1988, Congress eventually voted to weaken the ability of plaintiffs to prosecute cases of
discriminatory treatment in housing. At the time the 1988 Fair Housing Amendments were being debated, he introduced a bill
endorsed by the National Association of Realtors to severely limit who can file anti-discrimination suits and to make the
proceedings a private affair.
Hatch caused an overnight controversy on June 17, 2003 by
proposing that copyright owners should be able to destroy the computer equipment and
information of those suspected of copyright infringement, including
file sharing. In the face of criticism, especially from technology and privacy advocates,
Hatch withdrew his suggestion days later, after it was discovered that Sen. Hatch's official website was using an unlicensed
JavaScript menu from United Kingdom based software developer Milonic Solutions. Milonic founder Andy Woolley stated that "We've had no contact with them. They are in
breach of our licensing terms." Shortly after the publication of that story in Wired
magazine, the company who runs Hatch's website contacted Milonic to start registration.[3]
One year later, he proposed the controversial INDUCE Act that
attempted to make illegal all tools that could be used for copyright infringement. According to many critics, this act would
effectively outlaw the Internet and personal computers, giving unprecedented legal leverage to media companies.
Hatch was one of the architects and advocates of the expansion of H-1b visas and has
generally been an advocate of looser immigration policy, which upsets most members of his delegation in Utah. He also proposed
the somewhat controversial DREAM Act, which would grant state-subsidized higher education to
illegal immigrants.
A vocal supporter of stem cell research, Hatch was one of 58 senators who signed a letter
directed to President George W. Bush, requesting the relaxing of federal restrictions on
stem cell research.
He has also pushed legislation for the Equal Opportunity to Govern
Amendment, which would amend Article 2, Section I, Clause 5 of the United
States Constitution, under this amendment it would allow anyone who has been a US citizen for twenty years to seek both
the presidency and vice-presidency.
In 2006 Hatch gave a controversial speech to the Utah Senate, stating that terrorists across the world were "waiting for the
Democrats here to take control, let things cool off and then strike again."[4] On April 12, 2007, rumors started circulating suggesting that Orrin Hatch may be named President
George W. Bush's third Attorney General, should Alberto Gonzales resign over the U.S. Attorney firing dispute.[citation needed]
Controversy
Sen. Orrin Hatch has called global warming "science fiction" in media interviews.[5] Senator Hatch has also legislated for dietary supplements to be governed outside
of the realm of drugs and food additives. Utah, his constituency, is considered the "Silicon Valley" of the supplement industry.
And when the FDA was reviewing the adverse effects of ephedra Hatch defended the supplement industry. Hatch's son was working for
a lobbying firm at the time that represented interests in ephedra manufacturing.[6] In 2005 Sen. Hatch had an ethics award revoked.[7]
2006 re-election campaign
-
Hatch was heavily favored to win reelection for his 6th term in November 2006. The Utah Republican Party made him their formal
candidate on May 13, 2006 by giving him 78% of the delegate vote at the State Convention.[citation needed] In November, he faced Democrat
Pete Ashdown, an Internet company executive, Libertarian Dave
Starr Seely, Desert Green Julian Hatch, Constitutionalist Scott Bradley, and Personal
Choicer Roger Price.
Senator Hatch ignored or refused open requests to participate in a series of debates.[8] Democrat Pete Ashdown asked that all Senate candidates "visit all 29 counties" in
Utah during the summer but Hatch opted instead for "a debate or two" and refuses to "do it to a ridiculous extreme."[9] Hatch and Ashdown commenced this series of debates on October
11 at Tuacahn High School near St. George. Several days before the debate, radio hosts Shawn Ledingham and Justin Bowles of
nearby Southern Utah University requested an interview with both candidates. The students, representing the university's public
service program, the Rant and Raev Show, wished to allow students at the University
an opportunity to hear the candidates' platforms. Both candidates agreed, although the interviews were conducted separately.
Hatch prevailed on election night, winning 344,416 votes (62%) to Ashdown's 169,369 (31%).
Musical career
Orrin Hatch sings and plays the piano, violin and
organ. Fueled by his interest in poetry, Hatch also has
written many songs for other artists. (On the advice of U2 frontman
Bono, he has put several of the songs under a pen name, "because it's you, man.") He
co-authored "Everything And More," sung by Billy Gilman. Some claim that his position in the file-sharing debate is a
conflict of interest, as Sen. Hatch's music is published by companies associated
with the RIAA, the record industry lobbying group that has
vehemently opposed file-sharing. In addition to his work as a U.S. Senator, he has made over $65,000 as a Christian music recording artist.
Hatch also has a history in arts management. In the early 1970s he was the band manager for a Mormon-themed folk group called
the Free Agency. The Free Agency was made up of members of an earlier Mormon group called the Sons of Mosiah, that
was formed when guitarist David Zandonatti and vocalist Ron McNeeley relocated to Utah after their San Francisco based
psychedelic group Tripsichord music box disbanded in 1971.
Frank Zappa composed a song entitled "Orrin Hatch On Skiis," which appears on his album, Guitar.
Writing
In 2002, Hatch's book Square Peg: Confessions of a Citizen Senator was published by Basic Books, a member of the
Perseus Books Group. The majority of the book was written by a paid ghost-writer. This book dissertates Hatch's life in the
Senate, including the Confirmation Hearings of Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas. Many consider the book to be the Senator's memoirs. Senator Hatch's name is attributed
as the author for several law review articles although all were almost entirely written by his staff members.
Release of Dallas Austin
Hatch assisted R&B producer Dallas
Austin's release from Dubai following a conviction for drug possession. [1] On
May 19, 2006 Austin was arrested for bringing cocaine into the city, but hours after a local court sentenced Austin to four years in prison before
deportation, on July 4 Dubai ruler Sheik
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum pardoned and released him. Hatch has "good relations with the ambassador and other good
people in Dubai," said his office in a statement.
Electoral history
- 2006 Race for U.S. Senate
- 2000 Race for U.S. Senate
- Orrin Hatch (R) (inc.), 66%
- Scott Howell (D), 31%
- 1994 Race for U.S. Senate
- Orrin Hatch (R) (inc.), 69%
- Pat Shea (D), 28%
- 1988 Race for U.S. Senate
- Orrin Hatch (R) (inc.), 67%
- Brian Moss (D), 32%
- 1982 Race for U.S. Senate
- 1976 Race for U.S. Senate
See also
Footnotes
- ^ "THE THOMAS NOMINATION; To Specific Charges, Some Strong Denials." October 12, 1991.
Retrieved on July 12, 2007.
- ^ http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~battle/senators/hatch.htm
- ^ Kahney, Leander. "Orrin Hatch, Software
Pirate?", Wired Magazine, June 19, 2003. Retrieved on 2007-04-02.
- ^ "Hatch Says Democratic Win Could Help Terrorists", Salt Lake
Tribune, August 17, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-04-01.
- ^ http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/final-virus.html
- ^ http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/300234371.html?dids=300234371:300234371&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar+5%2C+2003&author=Chuck+Neubauer%2C+Judy+Pasternak+and+Richard+T.+Cooper&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&edition=&startpage=A.1&desc=The+Nation
- ^ http://www.ethicsscoreboard.com/list/hatch.html
- ^ debate request from Pete Ashdown's blog
- ^ audio from radio broadcast
External links
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