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COLORADO FLORIDA Ken Salazar, D Mel Martinez, R Election: Defeated Pete Coors, R, to Election: Defeated Betty Castor, D, to succeed Ben Nighthorse Campbell, R, succeed Bob Graham, D, who retired who retired Home: Orlando Home: Denver Born: Oct. 23, 1946, Sagua La Grande, Born: March 2, 1955, Alamosa, Colo. Cuba Religion: Roman Catholic Religion: Roman Catholic Family: Wife, Hope Salazar; two children Family: Wife, Kitty Martinez; three children Education: Colorado College, B.A. 1977; Education: Orlando Junior College, A.A. U. of Michigan, J.D. 1981 1967; Florida State U., B.A. 1969, J.D. 1973 Career: Lawyer; ice cream shop owner; gubernatorial aide; farmer Career: Lawyer Political Highlights: Colo. Natural Resources Department execu- Political Highlights: Sought Republican nomination for lieutenant tive director, 1990-94; Colo. attorney general, 1999-present governor, 1994; Orange County chairman, 1998-2001; U.S. Housing and Urban Development secretary, 2001-03

In a state that prizes rugged individualism and homespun Florida’s newest senator was 12 years old and living in a small living, Ken Salazar has a background that fits hand in Cuban coastal town when Fidel Castro installed himself as dic- glove. tator of the island nation off Florida’s coast. Mel Martinez, a de- Salazar, who portrays himself as a Hispanic everyman vout Catholic, soon found himself a victim of religious and po- and a fiscally conservative consensus-builder, grew up on a litical persecution. ranch that had no electricity in Colorado’s mountainous At 15, he left Cuba as part of “Operation Pedro Pan,” a San Luis Valley. The ranch has been in his family since joint effort of the U.S. government and the church to free 1850. Catholic children from Castro’s regime. Martinez speculates His background led him to play an active role in environ- that it may have been one of the first public-private “faith mental, water rights and land resources issues, particularly based” initiatives, an idea that later would become dear to during his tenure as Colorado’s attorney general and head of both Martinez and President Bush, a close political ally. its Department of Natural Resources. The journey helped form his attitude toward international “Once you are born into a ranching and farming family, affairs — he supports Bush’s approach to foreign policy, from you develop a special relationship and a special sense of the war on terror to the embargo on Cuba. “My understanding place through the ditches and the rivers and the trees,” of good and evil in the world was based on that experience,” Salazar said at a recent debate with defeated rival Pete Martinez said in an Oct. 23 interview. “My understanding of Coors. America being a beacon of hope in the world, a positive force Salazar, a lifelong sportsman, believes in conservation in the world, comes from that immigrant experience.” and has been a strong supporter of renewable energy. Martinez grew up in a series of foster homes in the Orlando He is against allowing drilling in Alaska’s Arctic Nation- area and was not reunited with his family until adulthood. Af- al Wildlife Refuge. However, he has said he supports in- ter law school, he became active in the Cuban expatriate com- creasing petroleum production, in general, as long as envi- munity that plays a central role in Florida’s economic and po- ronmental concerns are adequately addressed. litical landscape. But he was a relative latecomer to politics. On fiscal issues, Salazar is aligned with most Coloradans, Martinez spent 20 years building a succession of law firms in who tend toward conservatism in spending decisions. He Orlando before losing a race for the Republican lieutenant gu- has said he would support making some of President Bush’s bernatorial nomination in 1994. In 1998, he was elected to the tax cuts permanent but only those that benefit the middle office of Orange County chairman, where he won notice for class. He has said he supports overhauling estate tax laws, the “Martinez Doctrine,” a growth-management policy that “so that family businesses can stay in the family.” He does tied the approval of new homes to school construction. not support privatizing Medicare. In 2001, Bush tapped Martinez to lead the Department of On the war in Iraq, Salazar has agreed with the Demo- Housing and Urban Development. There, he launched a cratic Party line that the war has been mishandled but that HUD Center for Faith-Based and Community Services, an withdrawing troops prematurely would be devastating. In- office intended to help religious-oriented organizations com- stead, he has said, America must rebuild its international pete for federal grants. His stay in the Cabinet was short-lived; coalitions. he left at the end of 2003 to run for the Senate at Bush’s urging. Salazar supports stronger border enforcement and has As a senator, Martinez said he will support much of Bush’s said he would like to see a crackdown on human trafficking. domestic agenda. His preferred committee assignment would In the ongoing debate over whether gay people should be Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, which regu- be allowed to marry, Salazar’s position is similar to John lates housing and financial issues, and from which he could Kerry’s. Salazar has said marriage should be between a man pursue his goal of creating a new, more powerful regulator for and a woman, but he does not support a constitutional the government-sponsored mortgage financiers Fannie Mae amendment banning same-sex marriage. and Freddie Mac. Senate leaders have warned him that Salazar supports drug reimportation and empowering the banking “is a tough committee to get on,” Martinez said. He federal government to bargain for lower prescription drug is also interested in two other popular assignments: Foreign prices. Relations and Judiciary. CQToday,Thursday, November 4, 2004 Page 23

GEORGIA ILLINOIS Johnny Isakson, R , D Election: Defeated Rep. Denise L. Majette, Election: Defeated Alan Keyes, R, to D, to succeed Zell Miller, D, who retired succeed Peter G. Fitzgerald, R, who retired Home: Marietta Home: Chicago Born: Dec. 28, 1944, Atlanta, Ga. Born: Aug. 4, 1961, Honolulu, Hawaii Religion: Methodist Religion: United Church of Christ Family: Wife, Dianne; three children Family: Wife, Michelle Obama; two children Education: U. of , B.B.A. 1966 Education: Occidental College, attended Military: Ga. Air National Guard, 1966-72 1979-81; Columbia U., B.A. 1983; Harvard Career: Real estate company president U., J.D. 1991 Political Highlights: Candidate for Cobb County Commission, Career: Lawyer; voter registration and education project director; 1974; Ga. House, 1977-90; GOP nominee for governor, 1990; Ga. community outreach organizer; business reporter Senate, 1993-96; sought nomination for U.S. Senate, 1996; Ga. Political Highlights: Ill. Senate, 1997-present; sought Democratic Board of Education chairman, 1996-99; U.S. House, 1999-present nomination for U.S. House, 2000

A pragmatic consensus-builder who has demonstrated a taste Few have entered the Senate to as much fanfare as Barack for bipartisan dealmaking, Johnny Isakson is positioned to Obama, whose celebrity status following his widely praised play a prominent Senate role on issues including education. Democratic convention keynote address led party officials to Isakson — chairman of the Georgia Board of Education send him on the campaign trail to promote other Democrats from 1996-99 — played an important role in guiding and even predict that the White House is in his future. through the House the education overhaul of 2001. He Obama has already won friends among his new colleagues helped provide the impetus for compromise in the con- by transferring more than $268,000 of his unneeded cam- tentious debate over President Bush’s education plan and paign funds to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Com- said he will continue to try to find agreements on other is- mittee and specific candidates. The DSCC will almost cer- sues, including higher education funding and education of tainly want to harness his star power for future campaigns. children with disabilities. “If there’s anything in my history, For now, however, Obama — whose Swahili first name it’s that I’m going to work for people first and work with roughly translates to “blessed by God” — will concentrate whomever wants to work with me,” Isakson said recently. on serving Illinois in the Senate. He is only the third black “These types of issues cannot be solved in [a] vacuum of par- senator in the past century and the first since Illinois Demo- tisanship. . . . I don’t say everyone on our side has all the an- crat Carol Moseley Braun, who was elected in 1992 but de- swers [and that] theirs has none.” feated after a single term. During 17 years as a state legislator, Isakson’s reputation “I am rooted in the African-American community, but I was that of an arbitrator capable of bridging factions within am not limited to it,” Obama frequently has said. his party and forging links with state Democrats. Health care is perhaps the biggest legislative priority for Although he is a conservative, Isakson is not captive to Obama, who chaired the Public Health and Welfare Com- ideology. He sometimes takes a more moderate stance than mittee in the state Senate. He wants to increase funding for other conservatives on social issues. He opposes amending children’s health care, overhaul the 2003 Medicare prescrip- the Constitution to ban abortion and was wary of Bush’s plan tion drug law to allow the federal government to negotiate to partially privatize Social Security. the best price for medications; allow individuals to buy into Isakson, who owned an Atlanta real estate company, is a the Medicare system at age 55; provide tax credits to small country club Republican who believes in entrepreneurship and businesses that provide health coverage for their workers; low taxes. He strongly supports robust defense spending but is promote technology to reduce costs and medical errors; and concerned about the effect of other spending on the budget amend patent laws that he says pharmaceutical companies deficit. “Once again, we need people to take their donkey and abuse to block or delay generic drugs. elephant hats off and say we have a significant problem: Obama was an early opponent of the Iraq conflict, which There’s too much debt on our children,” he said. “Only when he called “ideologically driven” and a “not well-thought or wise people are able to do that are you going to find a solution.” well-fought war.” Mindful of the threat of nuclear terrorism, His friendship with Georgia Republican Sen. Saxby Obama would seek a more aggressive timetable to reduce nu- Chambliss should produce a smooth working relationship. clear weapon stockpiles in the former Soviet Union. They have been friends since being students at the Universi- Obama will be a reliably liberal vote on social questions, ty of Georgia. from abortion to gun control. He supports the death penalty “We married sorority sisters, both of us love golf, and only for the most heinous crimes and was involved in his we’ve been friends for 40 years,” Isakson said. He takes cred- state’s effort to overhaul its death penalty system. its for pushing Chambliss into politics. Chambliss helped in Obama’s more parochial interests include transportation. Isakson’s unsuccessful campaign for the governor’s seat in He will work to improve the rail system, build a third Chica- 1990 against Democrat Zell Miller, now the retiring senator go-area airport in the suburbs south of the city and expand Isakson will replace. O’Hare Airport, which he calls “the crown jewel of our Isakson would like to serve on the Health, Education, La- transportation system.” Another big Illinois industry is bor and Pensions Committee. His other long-term interests ethanol, and Obama says he will promote increased produc- include appropriations, taxes, and defense issues. tion of the corn-based fuel. Page 24 CQToday,Thursday, November 4, 2004

LOUISIANA NORTH CAROLINA , R Richard M. Burr, R Election: Defeated Rep. Chris John, D, Election: Defeated Erskine Bowles, D, to John Kennedy, D, and Arthur A. Morrell, D, succeed John Edwards, D, who ran for vice to succeed John B. Breaux, D, who retired president Home: Metairie Home: Winston-Salem Born: May 3, 1961, , La. Born: Nov. 30, 1955, Charlottesville, Va. Religion: Roman Catholic Religion: Methodist Family: Wife, Wendy Baldwin Vitter; four Family: Wife, Brooke Burr; two children children Education: Wake Forest U., B.A. 1978 Education: Harvard U., A.B. 1983; Oxford Career: Marketing manager; kitchen U., B.A. 1985; Tulane U., J.D. 1988 appliance salesman Career: Business lawyer; adjunct law professor Political Highlights: Republican nominee for U.S. House, 1992; Political Highlights: La. House, 1992-99; U.S. House, U.S. House, 1995-present 1999-present

In David Vitter, Louisianians have picked a senator whose Richard M. Burr moves to the Senate after 10 years in the style sharply contrasts with his Democratic predecessor, House, where he was part of the Republican takeover of John B. Breaux. Where Breaux thrived politically through 1994 and a loyal conservative vote. He makes no bones deal-making and compromise, Vitter has a track record of about his intention to continue supporting the Republican near-unbending loyalty to President Bush and House Re- line. publican leaders, and a reputation for being something of a North Carolina has been trying for more than a decade to lone wolf. convert its economic base from the old mainstays of tobacco, Vitter comes to the Senate after a stint in the House that textiles and furniture to the high-tech and financial indus- began when he narrowly won a special election in 1999. His tries now clustered around the state’s two metropolises, front-runner status in ’s unusual congressional elec- Raleigh and Charlotte. Any senator representing the state tion process — pitting him against four Democrats and two must help nurture the new economy while struggling to en- independents — was never questioned; what was in doubt sure that U.S. trade policies protect the old. was whether his competitors would succeed in holding his Burr walked a fine line on trade during the campaign, say- vote total below 50 percent to force a Dec. 4 runoff between ing that he believed in free trade but pledging to support him and the second-highest vote-getter. But Vitter managed only those free-trade agreements that provide adequate guar- to get a majority of the votes and avoid a runoff. antees for American workers who could be hurt by foreign Vitter promises to be a strong defender of Louisiana’s competition. farming and energy interests and of what he calls “Louisiana Burr’s House career was marked chiefly by building a values,” namely, socially conservative stands on issues such as strong political base in his district through constituent opposition to abortion rights and same-sex marriage. service and by ascending to a senior position on the Ener- He has expressed an interest in joining fellow Sen. gy and Commerce Committee, where former Republican Mary L. Landrieu, a Democrat, on the Appropriations Chairman of Louisiana, considered him his Committee, where he intends to continue his advocacy for right-hand man. federal spending on a $14 billion Louisiana coastline Burr was given a key role in shaping legislation to over- restoration project. “Another Democrat from the same haul the Food and Drug Administration’s policies for im- state will be not appointed, but there is precedent for two proving drugs and medical devices. He was credited with senators from the same state serving on that committee if writing a provision of the law that established a speedier they are from different parties,” Vitter said in an e-mail to approval process for drugs with the potential to treat life- Congressional Quarterly. threatening illness. Vitter’s record in the House shows that he rarely votes North Carolina is home to burgeoning medical research against the wishes of Republican leaders. But in what would centers near Raleigh and Winston-Salem, and Burr can be be one of his few breaks with Bush, he says he will oppose the expected to carry his interest in medical issues — includ- Central American Free Trade Agreement because it would ing curtailing medical liability lawsuits — with him to the put the state’s sugar farmers at risk. He also stood in solidari- Senate. He could find seats on the Health, Education, La- ty with other Louisiana lawmakers against steel tariffs im- bor and Pensions or Finance committees attractive. posed in 2002 by the Bush administration. Burr can also be expected to fight for additional federal In the House, he was on the Appropriations and Budget support for North Carolina’s agricultural sector. In the 108th panels. His staunch support for Bush’s tax cuts, and his prom- Congress, he helped push through a buyout of a Depression- ise to vote to make them permanent, led the Americans for era federal price support for tobacco growers, a key issue in Tax Reform to name him a “Hero of the Taxpayer.” his Senate campaign. The 109th Congress is expected to He also has railed against political corruption, which he draft additional legislation to guide implementation of the has said has tarnished Louisiana’s image. His rejection of buyout. go-along-to-get-along politics has turned off some poten- For that reason, Burr could land a seat on the Agriculture tial allies in his own party, but Vitter has said he is not Committee, which has a Republican vacancy due to the re- concerned about that. tirement of Peter G. Fitzgerald of Illinois. CQToday,Thursday, November 4, 2004 Page 25

OKLAHOMA Tom Coburn, R Jim DeMint, R Election: Defeated Rep. Brad Carson, D, to Election: Defeated Inez Tenenbaum, D, to succeed Don Nickles, R, who retired succeed Ernest F. Hollings, D, who retired Home: Muskogee Home: Greenville Born: March 14, 1948, Casper, Wyo. Born: Sept. 2, 1951, Greenville, S.C. Religion: Baptist Religion: Presbyterian Family: Wife, Carolyn Coburn; three Family: Wife, Debbie DeMint; four children children Education: U. of Tennessee, B.S. 1973; Education: Oklahoma State U., B.S. 1970; Clemson U., M.B.A. 1981 U. of Oklahoma, M.D. 1983 Career: Market research company owner; Career: Physician; optical firm manager advertising and sales representative Political Highlights: U.S. House, 1995-2001 Political Highlights: U.S. House, 1999-present

It is difficult to imagine that Oklahomans could elect a sena- Jim DeMint became an expert in positioning a product in a tor more conservative than the man being replaced, Repub- crowded marketplace — be it Homelite chain saws or St. lican Don Nickles, or the state’s other senator, Republican Pauli Girl beer — while running a market research business James M. Inhofe. in Greenville, S.C. In Washington, that background in ad- But in Tom Coburn, perhaps the most zealous member of vertising has served him well. the revolutionary 1994 House GOP freshman class, the “What we do in business is develop a product and then Sooner State has managed to do exactly that. figure out how you sell it. So much of politics is talking about Coburn, a self-styled “citizen legislator,” never wavered in problems. To get something done, you need to package an three terms in the House in his ardent fiscal conservatism, idea and understand that you’ve got to sell it, not just to vot- his opposition to abortion, and his determination not to ers but to Hill leaders,” DeMint said. adopt a mindset of incumbency or be seduced by the promise Though a political neophyte when he was first elected to of power. Unlike some other members of the 1994 class, the House in 1998, DeMint was president of his freshman Coburn stuck to his term-limits pledge. He now promises to class. He immediately put his advertising skills to work, de- serve no more than two Senate terms. veloping a communications plan to promote the GOP Coburn may prove a difficult fit in the Senate, where old- agenda. DeMint produced a laminated card of Republican school Republicans occupy many senior posts and a go-along- themes to “secure the future,” and distributed them to his get-along ethos tends to dominate. Successful players recog- colleagues. nize the necessity of compromise in the body, where comfort- DeMint is best known for spearheading new and contro- able majorities are needed to pass most legislation. Many Re- versial ideas. He has supported enacting a 30 percent federal publicans, even devout fiscal conservatives, also focus much sales tax to replace the current tax code, and has pushed cre- of their energy on delivering federal dollars to their states. ating private investment accounts to replace Social Security. That is exactly the mindset Coburn decried in a book he He is one of the rare ardent free traders from the Deep South authored after leaving Congress: “Breach of Trust: How who even welcomed Chinese clothing imports while his Washington Resists Reform and Makes Outsiders Insiders.” home-state textile mills were going bankrupt. In the book, Coburn laments that for too many Republicans, DeMint is fully aware that some of his positions make him pushing conservative principles became secondary to staying a punching bag for the opposition. “That’s the painful part. in power. He was among the group that plotted in 1997 to You make yourself very vulnerable in a campaign,” he said, oust then-Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., for abandoning “But the only way to get something done is to stake out an conservative principles. idea and stand outside the box. To come up with a better so- “We have a deficit of moral courage in the lution, you have to understand what your choices are and get Congress,” Coburn says. a debate going.” Coburn, an obstetrician who continued to practice during He vows to keep doing it in the Senate and dreams some his House service and promises to do so while in the Senate, day of joining the Finance Committee, which oversees the said he will focus on health care issues, as he did in the tax, retirement and trade issues he cares deeply about. House. And despite his sharp political leanings, he said he Raised by a single mother who operated a dancing school will work to forge bipartisan coalitions, as he did in 2000 as out of the family home, DeMint and his three siblings grew the chief House sponsor of legislation to reauthorize the up quickly, vacuuming the house and handling adult house- Ryan White AIDS law, which passed unanimously. hold chores at a young age. His proposals for health savings accounts and overhauling DeMint first became interested in politics in 1992, when medical liability laws, however, come straight out of the Re- he was part of a kitchen cabinet to get Republican Bob Inglis publican playbook. (1993-99) elected. Six years later he took Inglis’ seat after And on spending, Coburn can be expected to take a hard defeating a Christian conservative in the primary. line. He favors a freeze in non-defense discretionary appro- Religion is a big part of DeMint’s life as well. In Congress priations and he promises to assume an active oversight role he meets weekly in an interdenominational Bible study in search of wasteful programs. group, a practice he has followed for 20 years. Page 26 CQToday,Thursday, November 4, 2004

SOUTH DAKOTA John Thune, R Election: Defeated Sen. Tom Daschle, D Home: Sioux Falls Born: Jan. 7, 1961, Pierre, S.D. Religion: Protestant Family: Wife, Kimberley Thune; two children Education: Biola U., B.S. 1983; U. of South Dakota, M.B.A. 1984 Career: Lobbyist; municipal league executive; U.S. Small Business Administration official; congressional aide Political Highlights: S.D. Republican Party executive director, 1989-91; S.D. railroad director, 1991-93; U.S. House, 1997-2003; Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, 2002

Having defeated the top Senate Democrat, John Thune stands poised to take a prominent role in his party on issues crucial to farmers and small towns in South Dakota. Senate Republicans grateful for the ouster of Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., are likely to reward Thune with a seat on the Agriculture Committee, which currently has a vacancy. And he will be in the running for any open- ings on the Environment and Public Works and Small Busi- ness panels. His rural priorities mirror those he set while serving in the House (1997-2003), where he sat on the Agriculture and Transportation and Infrastructure committees, and chaired the Small Business Subcommittee on Rural Enterprise, Agri- culture and Technology. A longtime participant in congressional and charity bas- ketball games, Thune cultivates allies on the court after hours. The son of a high school and a librarian, he stresses support for the small towns and small businesses that dot South Dakota. And as a reliable conservative on a host of issues, Thune supports GOP efforts to restrict abortion, limit liability lawsuits and prevent gay marriage. But he has bucked his party to support legislation to per- mit the importation of prescription drugs from Canada. And while he has been a proponent of spending cuts to balance the budget, Thune deviates from the anti-deficit conserva- tive line when it comes to spending on programs for South Dakota. He has joined a bipartisan Midwestern chorus that backs more spending for drought and flood relief and agricultural subsidies, and increasing tax incentives for ethanol. And he supports federal funding to help sell U.S. farm products overseas and efforts to quickly implement a man- date for country-of-origin labeling for meat. Identifying the origin of meat has been promoted by ranchers who compete with beef imported from Canada and other countries. In 2000, he voted in the House for permanent normal trade relations with China, but took a stand on the cam- paign trail against a free-trade deal with Australia that was approved by Congress in 2004, citing concerns about tariff reductions on imported beef and wheat. Thune also has been a staunch defender of Ellsworth Air Force Base near Rapid City, home of the B-1 bomber. He has vowed to oppose any efforts by the Pentagon to close Ellsworth or to relocate, retire or cut funding for the bombers that are assigned to the base.