Lou Barletta facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lou Barletta
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Official portrait, 2013
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 11th district |
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| In office January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2019 |
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| Preceded by | Paul Kanjorski |
| Succeeded by | Dan Meuser (Redistricting) |
| Mayor of Hazleton | |
| In office January 3, 2000 – December 14, 2010 |
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| Preceded by | Michael Marsicano |
| Succeeded by | Joseph Yannuzzi |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Louis John Barletta
January 28, 1956 Hazleton, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Mary Malloy
(m. 1977) |
| Children | 4 |
| Education | Luzerne County Community College Bloomsburg University (BA) |
Louis John Barletta (born January 28, 1956) is an American businessman and politician. He was a U.S. Representative for Pennsylvania from 2011 to 2019. Before that, he served as the mayor of Hazleton, Pennsylvania, from 2000 to 2010. He is a member of the Republican Party.
As mayor, he became well-known for a special law about immigration. He ran for Congress three times against a long-serving Democratic politician, Paul Kanjorski. Barletta finally won in 2010. He was re-elected to Congress three more times. In 2018, Barletta ran for the U.S. Senate but lost. He also ran for governor of Pennsylvania in 2022 but did not win the primary election.
Contents
Early Life and Career Beginnings
Lou Barletta was born in Hazleton, Pennsylvania, on January 28, 1956. His parents, Angeline and Rocco Barletta, were of Italian background. His father helped manage family businesses, including an amusement park called Angela Park.
After high school, Barletta went to Luzerne County Community College and Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. He studied elementary education. He also tried out for the Cincinnati Reds baseball team but didn't make the team. After college, he worked in his family's construction and heating oil business.
In 1984, Barletta started his own company, Interstate Road Marking Corporation. This company painted lines on roads. He sold the company in 2000. By then, it was the biggest road marking company in Pennsylvania.
Serving as Mayor of Hazleton
Lou Barletta, a Republican, first ran for Hazleton City Council in 1995 and lost. But he won a seat two years later. In 1999, he ran for mayor. The city's current mayor, Michael Marsicano, was having trouble with the city's budget. Barletta won the election, even though more people in Hazleton were registered as Democrats. He became mayor on January 3, 2000.
Barletta was re-elected as mayor in 2003 and again in 2007. During his time as mayor, Hazleton received an award for how well it managed its money. Crime rates in Hazleton also went down every year between 2006 and 2011.
Immigration Law in Hazleton
During Barletta's time as mayor, the number of Hispanic residents in Hazleton grew a lot. In 2006, Barletta gained attention for his strong stance against illegal immigration. He wanted to make Hazleton a very difficult place for people living in the U.S. without permission.
He introduced a law called the Illegal Immigration Relief Act. This law would have stopped businesses from getting permits if they hired undocumented immigrants. It also would have fined landlords who rented to them. The law also made English the official language of Hazleton. This meant city workers could not translate documents into other languages without special permission.
Many people, including some Republican politicians, supported Barletta's actions. However, groups like the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sued the city. They argued the law was against the U.S. Constitution.
In 2007, a judge ruled that the law was unconstitutional. The judge said it interfered with federal immigration laws. This decision was upheld by a higher court in 2010. The Supreme Court later chose not to hear the case. Years later, Hazleton had to pay the ACLU $1.4 million for their legal fees.
Serving in the U.S. House of Representatives
Lou Barletta ran for the U.S. House of Representatives several times. He wanted to represent Pennsylvania's 11th congressional district.
Congressional Elections
2002 and 2008 Attempts
In 2002, Barletta ran against Paul Kanjorski, who had been in Congress for a long time. Even though Barletta was a popular mayor, he lost this election.
He ran against Kanjorski again in 2008. Many polls showed Barletta leading, and it was thought to be a very close race. However, Barletta lost again.
Winning in 2010
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On December 9, 2009, Barletta announced he would challenge Kanjorski for a third time in 2010. This time, Barletta won the election. He beat Kanjorski by a margin of 55% to 45%. After he won, Joe Yannuzzi became the new mayor of Hazleton.
Re-elections in Congress
Barletta was re-elected to Congress three more times.
- In 2012, he won with 58% of the vote.
- In 2014, he won easily with 66% of the vote.
- In 2016, he ran against Michael Marsicano, a former Hazleton mayor. Barletta won again with 63% of the vote.
Work in Congress
During his time in the House, Barletta helped pass five bills that became law.
He worked on bills related to immigration. For example, he proposed a bill that would have stopped federal money for cities that did not cooperate with immigration enforcement. He also introduced bills to review past immigration laws and prevent visa fraud.
In 2014, Barletta introduced a bill to change a part of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). This part required volunteer emergency workers to be offered health care. Barletta argued that this would be too expensive for some volunteer groups.
In 2017, Barletta proposed the Disaster Recovery Reform Act. This bill aimed to improve how federal aid is given after natural disasters. It sought to help disaster victims with housing and provide support for people with disabilities. It also encouraged preparing for future disasters. This bill became law in 2018.
Committees Barletta Served On:
- Committee on Homeland Security: This committee deals with protecting the country.
- Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure: This committee works on roads, bridges, and other public works.
- Committee on Education and the Workforce: This committee focuses on education and jobs.
2018 Senate Race
On July 31, 2017, it was reported that Barletta was planning to run for the U.S. Senate. He wanted to challenge the Democratic Senator Bob Casey Jr. in the 2018 elections. He officially announced his campaign on August 29.
Barletta was a strong supporter of President Donald Trump. Trump had even asked Barletta to run for Senate. Barletta promised to "give President Trump the help he needs" if elected.
Barletta won the Republican nomination for the Senate. However, he lost to Senator Casey in the general election on November 6, 2018. Barletta's campaign had less money than Casey's. He also said Casey had a more recognizable name.
After Congress
Consulting Work
After leaving Congress, Barletta decided not to run again. Instead, he started his own consulting firm called Pioneer Strategies. He also joined the board of World for Brexit, an organization that supported the United Kingdom leaving the European Union.
2020 Presidential Election Role
Barletta was chosen to lead the Pennsylvania group for the 2020 Republican National Convention.
He also took part in an effort related to the 2020 election results. In Pennsylvania, a group of Republicans, including Barletta, met and pretended to cast votes for President Donald Trump. This happened even though the official votes in Pennsylvania were for President-elect Joe Biden. The group said their action was to protect any legal challenges Trump might have. Because of a specific statement in their document, Barletta and the other Pennsylvania Republicans were not charged with any crimes.
2022 Governor's Race
After Senator Pat Toomey announced he would not run again in 2022, Barletta decided not to run for that Senate seat. However, he did show interest in becoming governor of Pennsylvania.
On May 17, 2021, Barletta officially announced he was running for governor. He said he was running because of Governor Tom Wolf's actions during the COVID-19 pandemic. He also had concerns about mail-in ballots. During his campaign, Barletta talked about his experience as mayor and a U.S. Representative. He highlighted that he had won elections in areas that usually voted Democratic.
Barletta lost the Republican primary election for governor to Doug Mastriano. He received 20% of the votes, while Mastriano got 44%. After his loss, Barletta said this would be his last campaign. He also said he would support Mastriano in the general election.
Political Views
In 2018, a news website called Vox said Barletta was generally more moderate than other Republicans in the House. However, he usually voted with his party on important issues. While in Congress, Barletta was a strong supporter of President Donald Trump. But in late 2022, Barletta said he would not support Trump's 2024 presidential campaign.
Economy and Budget
In 2011, Barletta voted for a budget plan proposed by Paul Ryan. Barletta has said he believes in a balanced budget amendment. He also stated he would not vote to raise the country's debt limit.
In 2017, Barletta voted for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. This was a major tax reform bill by the Republican Party. Barletta said the plan would help all taxpayers. However, some experts said that while many people would see tax cuts at first, some would see their taxes go up later.
When he ran for governor, Barletta said Pennsylvania was not "business friendly." He wanted to make policies that would help businesses.
Healthcare
Barletta was against the Affordable Care Act (often called Obamacare). He voted to cancel it. He wanted to make sure that undocumented immigrants could not get health insurance tax credits. After meeting with President Trump, Barletta said they promised to work on a separate law for this. In 2018, Barletta said that canceling Obamacare would not hurt protections for people with pre-existing health conditions. However, some experts said that canceling the law could allow states to let insurance companies charge more for these conditions.
Immigration Views
Barletta supported President Donald Trump's 2017 order that temporarily stopped people from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the U.S. He said these countries were "terrorist havens." In 2007, Barletta was against a plan for broad immigration reform.
In 2018, it was reported that Barletta had given interviews to some anti-immigration groups. A spokesperson for Barletta said he condemned "hate, bigotry, and racial supremacy." The spokesperson added that as a mayor of a small city, Barletta did not have staff to check everyone who asked him questions.
Mail-in Voting
In 2022, Barletta said that Pennsylvania's law allowing mail-in voting without a reason was a mistake. He felt it made "free and fair elections" less certain. However, in 2023, Barletta encouraged Republicans to use mail-in voting. He said they should do this to avoid losing elections.
Personal Life
Lou Barletta is a Roman Catholic. He is married to Mary Grace Malloy Barletta. They have four daughters. Mary works as an elementary school teacher, and two of their daughters are also teachers.
Barletta loves baseball. He wanted to be a major league baseball player when he was young. He often played in the yearly Congressional Baseball Game when he was in Congress. Barletta's family came from Italy. After his time in Congress, he led a group called the American Italian Food Coalition. This group worked to protect Italian food products from U.S. taxes.
Barletta has a cousin, Allison Barletta, who is a Republican on the Hazleton City Council.
