Ellen Tauscher facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ellen Tauscher
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Official State Department portrait
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| Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs | |
| In office June 26, 2009 – February 7, 2012 |
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| President | Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | John Rood |
| Succeeded by | Rose Gottemoeller |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 10th district |
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| In office January 3, 1997 – June 26, 2009 |
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| Preceded by | Bill Baker |
| Succeeded by | John Garamendi |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Ellen O'Kane
November 15, 1951 Newark, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | April 29, 2019 (aged 67) Stanford, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouses |
William Y. Tauscher
(m. 1989; div. 1999)James Cieslak
(m. 2009; div. 2011) |
| Children | 1 |
| Education | Seton Hall University (BS) |
Ellen O'Kane Tauscher (born November 15, 1951 – died April 29, 2019) was an American businesswoman and diplomat. She was also a politician from the Democratic Party. Ellen Tauscher served as a U.S. representative for California's 10th congressional district. She held this role from 1997 to 2009.
After her time in Congress, she became the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs. This important job lasted from 2009 to 2012. Later, she worked as a Special Envoy for Strategic Stability and Missile Defense. While in Congress, Tauscher was a key leader for moderate Democrats. She chaired the New Democrat Coalition, a group of moderate Democrats.
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Early Life and Career
Ellen Tauscher was born in Newark, New Jersey. Her father, John E. O'Kane, was a union leader. Her mother, Sally, worked as a secretary. Ellen graduated from Seton Hall University in 1974. She earned a degree in early childhood education.
After college, she became an investment banker. This means she helped people and companies manage their money. At just 25 years old, she was one of the youngest women to join the New York Stock Exchange. This is a major place where stocks are traded. She also worked for the American Stock Exchange.
In 1989, Tauscher moved to California. There, she started the ChildCare Registry. This was a service to help parents check the backgrounds of childcare workers. She also wrote a book called The ChildCare Sourcebook. Ellen Tauscher also led the Tauscher Foundation. This foundation helped elementary schools buy computers and get Internet access.
Political Career
Before running for Congress, Tauscher was active in the Democratic Party. She helped raise money for political campaigns. She also led Dianne Feinstein's successful campaigns for the U.S. Senate in 1992 and 1994.
In 1996, she decided to run for the United States House of Representatives. She ran against a Republican who had been in office for two terms. Her district included wealthy areas in California. During her campaign, Tauscher focused on balancing the government's budget. She also supported businesses, protecting the environment, and the military. She won the election by a small number of votes.
Tauscher was re-elected in 1998 and 2000. Her district was once mostly Republican. However, many people there started to support Democrats. In 2000, her district boundaries changed. More Democratic areas were added. After 2002, she won four more elections easily. She received more than 65 percent of the votes each time.
In the House of Representatives, Tauscher worked on important committees. These included the Armed Services Committee. This committee deals with military matters. She also served on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. This committee handles roads, bridges, and other public works.
She led the Strategic Forces subcommittee. This group watched over the country's nuclear weapons and missile defense. Her district was special because it had two national labs. These were Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories. These labs do important scientific research. Tauscher also helped bring $33 million to her district for transportation projects.
In 2009, President Barack Obama chose Tauscher for a new role. She became the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security. The United States Senate approved her for this job. She left her seat in Congress on June 26, 2009.
As Under Secretary of State, Tauscher achieved a major success. She helped negotiate the New START treaty with Russia in 2010. This treaty aimed to reduce nuclear weapons. It was the first big agreement with Russia in almost 20 years. She also represented the U.S. at a U.N. meeting about nuclear non-proliferation. This meeting happens every five years. Tauscher also worked on agreements for the European missile defense system.
In 2008, Tauscher strongly supported Hillary Rodham Clinton for president. She traveled to different states to speak for Clinton. In 2013, she joined the "Ready for Hillary" effort. This group supported Hillary Clinton's future presidential campaign.
Political Views
Ellen Tauscher was known as a centrist Democrat. This means she held moderate political views. She led the New Democrat Coalition. This group was made up of moderate Democrats in the House. She also served as vice-chair of the Democratic Leadership Council.
Tauscher supported universal health care. She especially wanted to help uninsured children. She supported the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). She also wanted to change the estate tax. She supported stricter rules for bankruptcy. She also favored expanding free trade.
Gun Rights
Tauscher believed in stronger gun control laws. However, she also supported the Second Amendment. This amendment protects the right to own guns. She called for "common sense gun safety legislation." She wanted laws that balanced gun rights with public safety.
While in Congress, she supported allowing commercial pilots to carry guns. She also wanted background checks for gun owners. She was against certain types of cheap handguns.
Iraq War
In 2002, Tauscher voted to approve military force in Iraq. However, she later became a critic of the Iraq War. She continued to vote for funding for the war. In 2005, she asked President George W. Bush to withdraw U.S. troops. She hoped the Iraqi government would take more responsibility. She later voted to bring troops home from Iraq quickly.
LGBT Issues
Tauscher was an early supporter of same-sex marriage. In 2004, she said that the government should not discriminate based on gender in marriage. She believed it was a civil rights issue. In 2006, she voted against a law that would have banned same-sex marriage.
In 2009, Tauscher introduced a bill to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." This was a policy that affected gay people in the military. The bill passed in 2010, after she left Congress. This led to the end of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. She also opposed banning gay people from the Boy Scouts. She received a perfect rating from the Human Rights Campaign. This is a large group that supports gay rights.
Career After Politics
After leaving the State Department, Tauscher joined several company and non-profit boards. She served on the boards of Edison International and eHealth. She was also on the Board of Advisors for SpaceX. SpaceX is a company that builds rockets and spacecraft. She was also on the boards of BAE Systems, Invacare Corporation, and SeaWorld Entertainment. She was a member of the Board of Governors for The Commonwealth Club of California. She also served on the University of California Board of Regents.
She was the chairman of the Board of Governors for Los Alamos National Security. She also chaired the board of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Foundation.
In 2013, Tauscher was chosen to lead the Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety. This group works to improve safety for garment workers in Bangladesh. It includes major clothing companies like Wal-Mart and Target.
Tauscher also worked as an advisor for a law firm. She advised them on defense, transportation, energy, and health care.
Personal Life and Death
Ellen Tauscher lived in Pleasanton and later Alamo, California. She was married to William Tauscher, a businessman. They divorced in 1999. She had one daughter named Katherine.
In 2009, she married James Cieslak, a retired pilot. They divorced in 2011.
In 2010, Tauscher was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. This is a very serious type of cancer. After treatment, she was declared cancer-free later that year. She then became active in cancer advocacy. She spoke around the country to raise awareness. She also worked to get more funding for cancer research and early screening.
Ellen Tauscher died from pneumonia on April 29, 2019. She was 67 years old. She passed away at the Stanford University Medical Center in Stanford, California.
Images for kids
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Tauscher (second from left) at a discussion about U.S. nuclear weapons in Washington, D.C., in 2017.
