David Vitter facts for kids

Quick facts for kids David Vitter
Official portrait, 2005
United States Senator from Louisiana
In office January 3, 2005 – January 3, 2017
Preceded by	John Breaux
Succeeded by	John Kennedy
Chair of the Senate Small Business Committee
In office January 3, 2015 – January 3, 2017
Preceded by	Maria Cantwell
Succeeded by	Jim Risch
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Louisiana's 1st district
In office May 29, 1999 – January 3, 2005
Preceded by	Bob Livingston
Succeeded by	Bobby Jindal
Member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from the 81st district
In office 1992–1999
Preceded by	David Duke
Succeeded by	Jennifer Sneed Heebe
Personal details
Born	David Bruce Vitter (1961-05-03) May 3, 1961 (age 64) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Wendy Baldwin ​ (m. 1990)​
Relations	Jeffrey Vitter (brother)
Children	4
Education	Harvard University (BA) Magdalen College, Oxford (BA) Tulane University (JD)
Signature

David Bruce Vitter (born May 3, 1961) is an American politician. He served as a U.S. Senator for Louisiana from 2005 to 2017. He is a member of the Republican Party. Before becoming a senator, Vitter served in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1992 to 1999. He was also a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1999 to 2005.

Vitter was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004. He was the first Republican to be chosen by popular vote to represent Louisiana in the Senate. In 2010, Vitter won a second Senate term. He defeated Democratic U.S. Representative Charlie Melançon.

In 2015, Vitter ran for governor. He lost the election to Democrat John Bel Edwards. After this, Vitter announced he would not run for his Senate seat again in 2016. He retired from office when his term ended. After leaving the Senate, Vitter started working as a lobbyist.

Early Life and Education

David Vitter and his family with Vice President Dick Cheney

David Bruce Vitter was born on May 3, 1961, in New Orleans, Louisiana. He went to De La Salle High School in New Orleans. After high school, Vitter studied at Harvard College, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1983. He then went to Magdalen College, Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, getting another Bachelor of Arts degree in 1985. In 1988, he earned a law degree from Tulane University Law School in New Orleans. He worked as a lawyer and taught law at Tulane and Loyola University New Orleans.

Vitter is married to Wendy Vitter, who used to be a prosecutor. They have four children. His brother, Jeffrey Vitter, is a computer scientist. Jeffrey was the chancellor of the University of Mississippi from 2016 to 2019.

Early Political Career

Louisiana House of Representatives

Vitter was a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1992 to 1999. While in the Louisiana Legislature, Vitter worked to change laws. He supported term limits, which set a maximum number of times a person can serve in an elected office. He helped pass a term limits amendment for the state constitution.

United States House of Representatives

In 1999, Vitter won a special election for Louisiana's 1st congressional district. He took the place of Republican U.S. Representative Bob Livingston. In the first round of voting, Vitter came in second. He then won the runoff election.

Vitter was re-elected in 2000 and 2002. He won with more than 80 percent of the votes. This showed that his district was strongly Republican. In 2003, Vitter suggested changing the U.S. Constitution. He wanted to ban same-sex marriage.

United States Senate

2004 Election

In 2004, Vitter ran for the U.S. Senate. He wanted to replace Democrat John Breaux. On November 2, 2004, Vitter won the election. He received more than half of the votes.

Vitter was the first Republican from Louisiana to be elected as a U.S. Senator by popular vote. Before this, senators were chosen by state legislatures. This changed after the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1914.

2010 Election

Vitter yard sign (2010)

Vitter started raising money for his 2010 re-election campaign in 2008. He raised a lot of money for his campaign. He was ahead of his Democratic opponents in polls. He won his party's primary election.

In the general election, he faced Democratic U.S. Representative Charlie Melançon. An independent candidate also ran. On November 4, 2010, Vitter was re-elected as Louisiana Senator. He defeated Melancon with about 57% of the total votes.

Tenure as Senator

Vitter has always identified as a political conservative. His work in the Senate included supporting gun rights. He also worked against increases in the State Children's Health Insurance Program. He supported a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. He also wanted to get rid of the federal and state estate tax.

After losing the 2015 Louisiana gubernatorial election, Vitter announced his retirement. He chose not to run for re-election in 2016. He left office at the end of his term.

Automotive Industry Bailout

Vitter was one of 35 Senators who voted against the "Big 3 Bailout" bill. This bill was meant to help car companies like GM, Chrysler, and Ford. The bill did not pass in December 2008.

BP Horizon Oil Spill

In April 2010, there was a large oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. This was called the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. It threatened the coast of Louisiana. Vitter worked with Senator Jeff Sessions to propose a law. This law would increase the amount of money an oil company had to pay for damages. He later suggested removing the limit entirely for this specific spill.

Chemical Safety

In May 2013, Vitter introduced a bill called the Chemical Safety Improvement Act. This bill aimed to update a law about toxic chemicals. It would have given more power to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA would be able to regulate chemicals better.

Children's Health Insurance Program

In September 2007, Vitter was against increasing funding for the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). This program helps provide health care for children whose families cannot afford private insurance. Vitter believed that private health insurance should provide this care instead.

Ethics and Term Limits

As a Senator, Vitter proposed constitutional amendments for term limits for members of Congress three times. He eventually decided to retire from the Senate in 2016 after serving two terms.

In 2007, Congress passed a law to improve lobbying and ethics rules. Vitter proposed several changes to this law. Some of his ideas were approved. These included limiting which legislators' spouses could lobby the Senate. They also created criminal penalties for officials who falsify financial reports.

In 2009, Vitter and former Democratic Senator Russ Feingold worked together. They wanted to stop automatic pay raises for members of Congress.

Vitter in 2005

Gun Rights

Vitter has always supported gun rights. The NRA Political Victory Fund gave him a high rating. In April 2006, after Hurricane Katrina, firearms were taken away in some areas. Vitter sponsored a bill to stop federal money from being used to take away legal firearms during a disaster. This bill became law in September 2006.

On April 17, 2013, Vitter voted against a bill to expand gun background checks. This bill did not pass. In February 2008, Vitter and other senators blocked the approval of Michael J. Sullivan. Sullivan was nominated to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). Vitter said Sullivan was too strict on gun owners.

Hurricane Katrina

Senator Vitter discussing relief efforts with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld

After Hurricane Katrina, Vitter and other Louisiana lawmakers worked to get help for the Gulf Coast. They aimed to rebuild damaged areas and help the many people affected.

In September 2007, Vitter announced that he had gotten a "critical concession" from the White House. This would reduce Louisiana's costs for hurricane recovery by $1 billion. However, the White House said this was not true.

Immigration

Vitter has been very involved with laws about immigration. In June 2007, he helped block a major immigration reform bill. This bill would have offered a way for 12 million undocumented immigrants to become legal residents. Vitter called the bill "amnesty," which means forgiving past actions.

In October 2007, Vitter proposed a change to a bill. It would stop funding for "sanctuary cities." These are cities that limit how much local police can ask about a person's immigration status. This change was not approved.

In November 2007, Vitter proposed a bill requiring banks to check if customers were legal immigrants before giving them banking or credit cards. This bill did not pass.

Louisiana Family Forum Earmark

In September 2007, Vitter set aside $100,000 in federal money for a Christian group called the Louisiana Family Forum. This group was known for promoting "intelligent design" alongside evolution in science education. Vitter said the money was "to develop a plan to promote better science education." Vitter later withdrew this funding.

Military

In May 2008, Vitter voted to expand education benefits for veterans. This was similar to the benefits given to veterans after World War II through the G.I. Bill. This bill passed despite some opposition.

Network Neutrality

Vitter was one of six Republican senators who proposed a change to a bill. This change would stop the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from enforcing network neutrality. They believed this was against the First Amendment.

New Orleans Public Housing

In September 2007, it was reported that Vitter was against a part of a housing bill. This part would require that every public housing apartment torn down be replaced. Vitter said this would bring back "housing projects exactly as they were," meaning isolated and with high crime. The bill aimed to replace old projects with mixed-income communities.

Obama Nominations

Vitter and Senator Jim DeMint were the only two senators to vote against Hillary Clinton's approval. She was nominated to be Secretary of State in 2009.

Vitter also delayed the approval of President Obama's choice for the new Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) administrator. He wanted a written promise about flood control issues first. He lifted his hold in May 2009.

Affordable Care Act

Vitter was against President Barack Obama's health reform laws. He voted against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in December 2009. He also voted against the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.

Same-Sex Marriage

Vitter is against both same-sex marriage and civil unions. In 2006, he stated that he was a conservative who opposed "radically redefining marriage."

School Board Prayer

In 2005, Vitter proposed a resolution to support prayer at school board meetings. This was in response to a court decision that said Christian prayers at meetings were unconstitutional. The bill did not get much support. Vitter tried again in 2007, but the bill still did not pass.

Tea Party Movement

In 2009, Vitter proposed a Senate Resolution. It would name April 15 as "National TEA Party Day." This was to recognize the Tea Party protests against President Barack Obama's policies.

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

In September 2007, Vitter expressed doubts about the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea treaty. He was concerned about U.S. sovereignty. This treaty sets rules for countries' control over their coasts and oceans. The committee approved the treaty, but Vitter voted no.

Water Resources and Development Act

Vitter helped write the Water Resources and Development Act. This act included money for flood control, hurricane protection, and coastal restoration projects in Louisiana. He called it the "single most important" law for helping Louisiana recover from Hurricane Katrina. President George W. Bush vetoed the act because of its cost. However, Congress voted to override his veto, making the bill a law.

Committee Assignments

During his time in the Senate, David Vitter served on several important committees:

• Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
• Committee on Environment and Public Works (He was the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure.)
• Committee on the Judiciary
• Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship (He was the Chairman of this committee.)

2015 Gubernatorial Election

On January 21, 2014, Vitter announced he would run for governor of Louisiana in the 2015 election. The previous governor, Bobby Jindal, could not run again due to term limits. Vitter was the first sitting or former U.S. Senator to run for governor in Louisiana since 1904. His main opponents were Republicans Scott Angelle and Jay Dardenne, and Democrat John Bel Edwards.

In the runoff election on November 21, Edwards defeated Vitter. Edwards won with 56% of the votes, while Vitter received 44%.

Other Political Involvement

In 2016, Vitter successfully helped pass a major law to reform the country's chemical safety rules. He called this law a "big accomplishment." He noted that everyone, from environmental groups to industries, agreed that the old law needed to be updated.

Post-Senate Career

After his Senate term ended, Vitter joined a lobbying firm in Washington, D.C., called Mercury LLC. As a lobbyist, Vitter has worked for various groups. These include a Chinese surveillance company, the Libyan Government of National Accord, and the Zimbabwean Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He also lobbied for a Russian bank.

Images for kids

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  David Vitter's signature