Jamie Raskin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jamie Raskin
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Official portrait, 2019
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| Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2025 |
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| Preceded by | Jerry Nadler |
| Ranking Member of the House Oversight Committee | |
| In office January 3, 2023 – January 3, 2025 |
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| Preceded by | James Comer |
| Succeeded by | Gerry Connolly |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maryland's 8th district |
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| Assumed office January 3, 2017 |
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| Preceded by | Chris Van Hollen |
| Member of the Maryland Senate from the 20th district |
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| In office January 10, 2007 – November 10, 2016 |
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| Preceded by | Ida G. Ruben |
| Succeeded by | Will Smith |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Jamin Ben Raskin
December 13, 1962 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Sarah Bloom
(m. 1990) |
| Children | 3 |
| Parents |
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| Education | Harvard University (BA, JD) |
| Signature |  |
| Website | |
Jamin Ben Raskin (born December 13, 1962) is an American lawyer, law professor, and politician. He has been a U.S. representative for Maryland's 8th congressional district since 2017. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Before joining Congress, he served in the Maryland State Senate from 2007 to 2016.
Raskin helps lead the Congressional Freethought Caucus. He was the main impeachment manager for the second impeachment of President Donald Trump. This happened after the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Before being elected to Congress, Raskin taught constitutional law at American University Washington College of Law. There, he helped start a special program on law and government.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Jamin Ben Raskin was born in Washington, D.C., on December 13, 1962. His parents were Barbara Raskin and Marcus Raskin. His mother was a journalist and writer. His father worked for President John F. Kennedy and was a progressive activist. Raskin's family came to the U.S. from Russia.
Raskin finished high school at Georgetown Day School in 1979 when he was 16. He then went to Harvard College and graduated in 1983 with a degree in government. In 1987, he earned his law degree from Harvard Law School. He was also an editor for the Harvard Law Review.
Legal Career and Teaching
For over 25 years, Raskin was a professor of constitutional law at the American University Washington College of Law. He taught many students, including Stacey Plaskett, who later worked with him during the impeachment process. He helped create and lead a special law program there. He also co-founded the Marshall-Brennan Constitutional Literacy Project. This project helps teach young people about the U.S. Constitution.
From 1989 to 1990, Raskin worked as a lawyer for Jesse Jackson's National Rainbow Coalition. In 1996, he represented Ross Perot when Perot was not allowed to join the 1996 United States presidential debates. Raskin wrote an article criticizing this decision.
Early Political Work
In 1999, the Governor of Maryland, Parris Glendening, chose Raskin to be the first chairman of the Maryland State Higher Education Labor Relations Board. This board deals with worker issues in higher education. Later, he managed Doug Gansler's campaign for Attorney General in Maryland in 2006.
Maryland State Senate Role
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Raskin was elected to the Maryland Senate in 2006. He won against the person who held the seat before him, Ida G. Ruben. He represented District 20, which included parts of Silver Spring and Takoma Park. In 2012, Raskin became the Senate majority whip. This means he helped make sure his party's members voted together. He also led the Montgomery County Senate Delegation.
While in the state legislature, Raskin called himself a "hands-on progressive." He supported laws to end the death penalty in Maryland. He also worked to expand a program for ignition interlock devices, which prevent people from driving if they have been drinking. Raskin also helped create rules for "benefit corporations." These are businesses that aim to do good for society, not just make money. He was a strong supporter of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. This plan would make the presidential election decided by the total number of votes across the country.
Raskin also played a key role in legalizing same-sex marriage in Maryland. In 2006, during a hearing on same-sex marriage, he famously told another lawmaker: "Senator, when you took your oath of office, you placed your hand on the Bible and swore to uphold the Constitution. You did not place your hand on the Constitution and swear to uphold the Bible."
U.S. House of Representatives Work
Becoming a Representative
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In 2015, Raskin announced he would run for Congress. He said his goal was "to be in the moral center." The person who held the seat before him, Chris Van Hollen, decided to run for the United States Senate.
Raskin won the Democratic primary election, which was the main contest in his district. He received 33% of the votes in a race with seven candidates. He was seen as the most liberal candidate. In the general election, he won against Republican Dan Cox with 60% of the votes.
Key Actions in Congress
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One of Raskin's first actions in Congress was to object to the results of the 2016 presidential election. He raised concerns about possible Russian interference and efforts to prevent people from voting.
In 2018, Raskin, along with Jared Huffman, Jerry McNerney, and Dan Kildee, started the Congressional Freethought Caucus. This group aims to support public policies based on reason and science. It also promotes the separation of church and state. The caucus works against discrimination toward people who are atheists, agnostics, or humanists.
On January 12, 2021, Raskin was chosen to be the lead impeachment manager for the Senate impeachment trial of Donald Trump. He was a main writer of the impeachment article. This article accused Trump of encouraging an attack on the U.S. Capitol. During the trial, Raskin shared that his daughter was with him at the Capitol on January 6. After the attack, she told him, "Dad, I don't want to come back to the Capitol."
In February 2022, there were reports that Raskin did not properly share information about his wife's stock dealings. This was related to the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act.
Investigating the January 6 Attack
On July 1, 2021, Raskin was one of seven Democrats chosen for the House Select Committee investigating the January 6 Capitol attack. He said that domestic violent extremism was the biggest security threat in the country. He noted that this threat was seen clearly on January 6.
On July 12, 2022, Raskin helped lead the committee's seventh public hearing. This hearing focused on how extremist groups like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers helped organize the attack. It also looked at the impact of Trump's tweet on December 19, which said, "Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!" The committee showed how this tweet encouraged his supporters.
In his closing statement for the July 12 hearing, Raskin said that Donald Trump was the first president to ask a crowd to come to the capital to stop the transfer of power. He also stated that Trump knew the crowd was angry and armed, but sent them to the Capitol anyway. Raskin ended by saying, "We need to defend both our democracy and our freedom with everything we have."
Raskin and other members of the January 6th Committee were nominated for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize. This was for their work in defending freedom and democracy.
Committee Roles
- United States House Committee on the Judiciary (Ranking Member)
- As the Ranking Member, Raskin can attend all subcommittee meetings.
Party Leadership and Groups
Raskin is part of several groups in Congress, including:
- Black Maternal Health Caucus
- House Democratic Caucus, Senior Whip
- Congressional Progressive Caucus, Vice Chair
- Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus
- Congressional Freethought Caucus, co-founder and co-chair
- Medicare for All Caucus
Political Views
Agriculture and Animal Welfare
In 2019, Raskin supported a bill called the Farm System Reform Act. This bill would have stopped the building of new large animal farms. It also aimed to help farmers switch from intensive animal farming to other types of farming.
In 2022, Raskin led a group of Congress members asking the White House to make sure all federal buildings offer daily vegetarian meal options. In 2024, he led another letter urging the government to follow through with this plan.
Foreign Policy
In March 2023, Raskin voted against a plan to remove U.S. troops from Syria.
In November 2023, Raskin asked for a break in the Gaza war. He called for a "humanitarian surge" of aid for people in Gaza.
LGBTQ Rights
Raskin supports laws that prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. In 2019, he voted for the Equality Act. This law aims to protect LGBTQ+ people from discrimination.
Presidential Capacity Oversight
In 2017, Raskin was the main supporter of a law to create a special commission. This commission would decide if a president was unable to do their job due to physical or mental health. This could lead to removing a president from office under the Twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
Personal Life
Raskin is married to Sarah Bloom Raskin. She has held important roles in finance, including serving on the Federal Reserve Board. They live in Takoma Park, Maryland.
The Raskins have two daughters, Hannah and Tabitha. They also had a son named Tommy. On December 31, 2020, Tommy passed away at age 25. Raskin and his wife shared that Tommy had struggled with depression. In a note, Tommy asked his family to "Look after each other, the animals, and the global poor." The day after Tommy's burial, Raskin was at the Capitol with his daughter during the Capitol attack. Soon after, he began working on the article of impeachment against President Trump. He later became the lead manager for Trump's second impeachment. Raskin wrote a book about his experiences, including his son's life and the impeachment trial. He was also featured in a documentary film called "Love & The Constitution."
Raskin has been vegetarian since 2009.
Health Updates
In May 2010, Raskin was diagnosed with colon cancer. He received treatment and had surgery. In December 2022, Raskin announced he had been diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, a type of cancer. He completed his treatment in April 2023. On April 27, 2023, he announced that his cancer was in remission.
See also
In Spanish: Jamie Raskin para niños
