Dana Rohrabacher facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dana Rohrabacher
|
|
|---|---|
.jpg) |
|
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California |
|
| In office January 3, 1989 – January 3, 2019 |
|
| Preceded by | Dan Lungren |
| Succeeded by | Harley Rouda |
| Constituency |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 21, 1947 Coronado, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Rhonda Carmony
(m. 1997) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Los Angeles Harbor College California State University, Long Beach (BA) University of Southern California (MA) |
Dana Tyrone Rohrabacher (born June 21, 1947) is an American former politician. He was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1989 to 2019. As a Republican, he represented parts of California. He was known for his strong opinions on foreign policy.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Dana Rohrabacher was born on June 21, 1947, in Coronado, California. He went to Palos Verdes High School. After high school, he studied history at California State University, Long Beach. He also earned a master's degree in American Studies from the University of Southern California.
During his time in graduate school and in the early 1970s, Rohrabacher was a folk singer. He also worked as a writer for the Orange County Register newspaper.
Rohrabacher worked for Ronald Reagan during his presidential campaigns in 1976 and 1980. Later, he became a speechwriter and special assistant to President Reagan from 1981 to 1988. During this time, he helped shape the Reagan Doctrine, which was a foreign policy idea.
Serving in the U.S. House of Representatives
Becoming a Congressman
In 1988, Rohrabacher decided to run for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. He won the election and became a congressman. He was re-elected many times over the years.
In 2012, after some changes to the voting districts, he ran in the new 48th Congressional district of California. He won that election too. However, in 2018, he was defeated by Democrat Harley Rouda.
Important Roles in Congress
As a congressman, Rohrabacher served on several important committees. These included:
- Committee on Foreign Affairs
- Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia
- Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations (He was the chairman of this one)
- Committee on Science, Space and Technology
- Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics
- Subcommittee on Energy and Environment
He led the Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee for many years. He also worked to deny special trading status to China because of concerns about human rights.
He was also part of several groups in Congress, such as:
- Congressional Human Rights Caucus
- United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus
- Congressional Taiwan Caucus
- Sportsmen's Caucus
- Freedom Caucus
- House Baltic Caucus
Key Events During His Time in Office
Rohrabacher visited Iraq in 2011. He said that Iraq should repay the U.S. for the money spent after the Iraq invasion. He also wanted to investigate an attack on Camp Ashraf.
In 2012, the FBI warned Rohrabacher that Russian spies might be trying to influence him. This was after he met with a Russian official in Moscow.
After Donald Trump became president in 2016, Rohrabacher was considered for the role of Secretary of State.
Foreign Policy Views
Rohrabacher had strong views on foreign policy. He supported pulling U.S. troops out of Afghanistan. He also had opinions on Russia, China, and other countries.
Russia
Rohrabacher was known for his friendly views towards Russia and Vladimir Putin. Some people even called him "Putin's favorite congressman."
.jpg)
He said that he and Putin became close friends after meeting early in his career. In 2014, he even tweeted that if people in Alaska wanted to be part of Russia, he would be okay with it.
In 2017, Rohrabacher visited Julian Assange in London. He later said he discussed the possibility of a presidential pardon for Assange.
Terrorism
Rohrabacher investigated whether the Oklahoma City bombing had foreign connections, but found no clear evidence. He also spoke about the need to fight radical Islamic movements.
He believed that force should not be used against unarmed civilians. However, he also said he preferred Sunni and Shiite terrorists to target each other rather than innocent people.
Afghanistan
Rohrabacher was interested in Afghanistan even before he became a congressman. He traveled there with Afghan fighters who were fighting Soviet forces.
He later became a strong supporter of withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan. He believed that the Afghan people should be responsible for their own country's future. He also spoke out against corruption in the Afghan government.
Bosnia and Kosovo
Rohrabacher was against sending American ground troops to the Yugoslav Wars. He believed that the U.S. should bomb military targets in Serbia to stop attacks on Bosnians. He saw the events in Bosnia as genocide.
He also supported the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and believed that Kosovo should be independent.
China
Rohrabacher was critical of the Chinese government. He spoke out against China's military actions in the Spratly Islands. He also opposed normalizing trade ties with China, citing concerns about human rights.
He described the Chinese government as a "gangster regime" that "murders its own people."
Iraq War
Rohrabacher voted to support the war in Iraq in 2002. However, he later said that this vote was "a mistake."
Iran
Rohrabacher supported U.S. efforts to help separatist groups in Iran. He also supported removing the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK) from the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations.
Pakistan
After Osama Bin Laden's death in 2011, Rohrabacher introduced a bill to stop aid to Pakistan. He believed that parts of the Pakistani government might have been helping Bin Laden.
Taiwan
Rohrabacher supported Taiwan and believed that the U.S. should have strong ties with its democratically elected government. He said that a phone call between President-elect Trump and Taiwan's president showed that Trump was not easily pushed around by China.
Ukraine
Rohrabacher had a "qualified defense" of Russia's actions in Crimea in 2014. He voted against a loan to Ukraine and abstained from a vote condemning Russian military actions. He compared Crimea's situation to the American Revolution, saying people have the right to choose their government.
Other Foreign Policy Views
- Uzbekistan: In 2013, he suggested the U.S. should treat Uzbekistan like Saudi Arabia, focusing on national interests like selling weapons, even if it meant overlooking human rights issues.
- North Macedonia: In 2017, he suggested that Macedonia was "not a country" and that parts of it should join Kosovo or Bulgaria.
- Turkey: After clashes at the Turkish Ambassador's Residence in 2017, he urged President Trump not to invite Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to the U.S. again.
- Eritrea: In 2017, he proposed that the U.S. should establish military ties with Eritrea to fight terrorism and curb Iranian influence.
Domestic Political Positions
Rohrabacher had strong views on domestic issues as well. He voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). He also questioned the idea that humans cause global warming. He was a strong opponent of illegal immigration.
National Endowment for the Arts
In 1990, Rohrabacher opposed the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA), which provides government funding for art. He believed that federal money should not be used to support art that he considered offensive. He tried to add rules to prevent funding for art that disrespected the American flag or religions, but his amendment was rejected.
Race Quotas
In 1991, Rohrabacher asked for an investigation into the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). This was after some Filipino students said they were denied admission because of their race. He was concerned about what he called "a quota based upon race."
Impeachment of Bill Clinton
Rohrabacher supported efforts to impeach President Bill Clinton in the late 1990s. He voted in favor of opening an impeachment inquiry and later voted for all four proposed articles of impeachment against Clinton.
Firearms
In 2018, a TV show showed Rohrabacher supporting a fake program to train toddlers with firearms. Rohrabacher later said he was taken out of context and was talking about self-defense training for young people.
Global Warming
Rohrabacher doubted the scientific idea that humans cause global warming. He once joked that dinosaurs' flatulence might have caused past warming. He believed that global warming was not a problem and was part of a plan by some liberals to create a "global government."
Healthcare
In 2017, Rohrabacher voted to repeal Obamacare and pass the American Health Care Act of 2017. During his 2018 re-election campaign, he promised to protect people with pre-existing conditions.
Immigration
Rohrabacher supported Proposition 187 in California, which aimed to stop illegal immigrants from getting government services. He also proposed a bill to prevent illegal immigrants from receiving Social Security benefits. He was known for his strong stance against illegal immigration.
LGBT Issues
Rohrabacher had controversial views on LGBT rights. He opposed same-sex marriage and supported a ballot initiative in California to ban it. He believed that marriage should be defined as between a man and a woman.
In 2018, he caused criticism when he said that homeowners should be able to choose not to sell their homes to people whose "lifestyle" they didn't agree with. This was widely seen as referring to LGBT people.
Patent Reform
Rohrabacher opposed the America Invents Act, a bill that changed the patent system. He believed that changing from a "first to invent" system to a "first to file" system would hurt small inventors.
Space
Rohrabacher was very active on space-related issues. He chaired the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics. He also introduced a bill to help NASA develop ways to protect Earth from dangerous objects in space. He praised the Apollo astronauts as "unofficial ambassadors."
In 2017, he asked space experts if civilizations could have existed on Mars. The experts said it was "extremely unlikely."
Tax Reform
Rohrabacher voted against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. He felt the bill did not do enough to help his constituents, especially regarding home mortgage deductions.
2020 Presidential Election
After leaving Congress, Rohrabacher supported Donald Trump's "Stop the Steal" rallies. On January 6, 2021, he was filmed going past a police barrier during the January 6 United States Capitol attack.
Life After Congress
In May 2019, Rohrabacher joined the advisory board of a company that provides advertising services. In December 2018, after losing his re-election, he announced that he planned to move to Maine and write film scripts.
Personal Life
Rohrabacher married Rhonda Carmony in 1997. They had triplets in 2004. He is a Protestant and enjoys surfing.
Images for kids
-
Rohrabacher receiving the True Blue award from FRC President Tony Perkins in 2003
-
Rohrabacher speaking at the 2013 California Young Americans for Liberty State Convention
-
Rohrabacher speaking at the 2016 Young Americans for Liberty California State Convention
See also
- List of federal political scandals in the United States
- Timeline of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections
