Pete Domenici

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Pete Domenici
Senior Senator from New Mexico
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 3, 1973 Serving with Jeff Bingaman
Preceded by	Clinton P. Anderson
Born	May 7, 1932 (1932-05-07) (age 76) Albuquerque, New Mexico
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Nancy Burk Domenici
Alma mater	University of New Mexico
Religion	Roman Catholic
Website	Pete V. Domenici

Pietro Vichi "Pete" Domenici (born May 7, 1932) is an American politician, currently serving as a Republican Senator from New Mexico. He has served continuously since 1973, the longest tenure in the state's history. On September 7, 2006, he cast his 13,000th vote, joining only seven other Senators who have done the same.

During Domenici's tenure in the Senate, he advocated waterway usage fees, nuclear power, and related causes. However, in recent years, his environmental record was rated to be one of the worst in the Senate, he has been involved in a scandal involving the dismissal of U.S. attorneys, and he has had dwindling approvals in his sixth term. Domenici announced on October 4, 2007 his decision not to seek re-election to the Senate in 2008 for health reasons, in particular frontotemporal lobar degeneration.^[1][2]

[edit] Early years

Domenici was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, to Italian-American parents^[3] Alda Vichi and Cherubino Domenici, who were born in Sorbarro, Italy.^[4] Growing up, he worked in his father's grocery business after school. He graduated in 1950 from St. Mary's High School in Albuquerque. After earning a degree in education at the University of New Mexico in 1954, he pitched for one season for the Albuquerque Dukes, a farm club for the Brooklyn Dodgers. He taught mathematics at Garfield Junior High in Albuquerque. He earned his law degree at the University of Denver in 1958 and returned to practice law in Albuquerque.

After graduating, he married Nancy Burk. Together they have two sons and six daughters (Lisa, Peter, Nella, Clare, David, Nanette, and twins Paula and Helen).

In 1966, Domenici successfully ran for a position on the Albuquerque City Commission and in 1968 was elected Commission Chairman. This position was equivalent to that of "mayor" under the structure of the city government at the time. Albuquerque since has changed to a popularly elected mayor position resulting from city wide balloting and a move beyond the internal appointment.

Domenici was unsuccessful in his 1970 attempt in New Mexico's governor's race, losing to Democrat Bruce King, 148,835 to 134,640.

[edit] Early Senate career

In 1972, Domenici successfully ran for a position in the U.S. Senate and became the first New Mexico Republican to be elected to the position in 38 years. Domenici polled 204,253 votes (54 percent) to 173,815 (46 percent) for the Democrat Jack Daniels. He was helped by the Presidential election, with New Mexico voting for Richard Nixon by a large margin against George McGovern.

One of the first issues that Pete Domenici concerned himself with was waterway usage fees in spite of his state lacking any waterway capable of commercial traffic. The idea behind a waterway usage fee was that the Army Corps of Engineers built dams and other expensive waterway projects, which the barge industry got to use for free. A waterway usage fee would charge the users of waterways with a fee that would then be spent on upkeep and the construction of more waterways. In 1977, Domenici set himself to the task of enacting a waterway usage fee. After a long two-year battle with stiff lobbying on both sides,^[5] the waterway fee was finally passed along with a new lock and dam project (the rebuilding of Lock and Dam 26.) Reporters attributed the passage of this fee to, in no small part, Domenici's legislative skill.^[6] The legislation was signed by President Jimmy Carter in 1978.

The issue greatly assisted Domenici at home, where the railroad industry was big (railroads competed with barges, and they long wanted to end the "free ride" issue.) The railroads donated $40,000 to Domenici's campaign, and the barge industry gave a small sum to his opponent.^[7] He was reelected in 1978 with 53.4% of the vote.

[edit] Later Senate years

Domenici was subsequently re-elected in 1984, 1990, 1996, and 2002 and is the longest-serving senator in his state's history. He is the ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development. He is also a member of the U.S. Senate Committees on Appropriations, Budget, and Indian Affairs. He is an advocate for the mentally ill, having pushed the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996.^[8]

Domenici is an avid proponent of nuclear power and has published two books on the subject: "A Brighter Tomorrow: Fulfilling the Promise of Nuclear Energy" (Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2004), which he wrote; and "Advanced Nuclear Technologies — Hearing Before the Committee on Appropriations, U.S. Senate" (Collingdale, Pennsylvania: D I A N E Publishing Company, 1999), which he edited.

Domenici is the fifth-most senior sitting Senator and second-most senior sitting Republican.

A November 9-11, 2007 SurveyUSA poll has his approval rating at 62%, with 31% disapproving. [1]

[edit] Committee Assignments

• Committee on Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Defense
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development (Ranking Member)
  • Subcommittee on Homeland Security
  • Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
• Committee on Energy and Natural Resources (Ranking Member)
  • Subcommittee on Energy (Ex Officio)
  • Subcommittee on National Parks (Ex Officio)
  • Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests (Ex Officio)
  • Subcommittee on Water and Power (Ex Officio)
• Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
  • Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Disaster Recovery
  • Ad Hoc Subcommittee on State, Local, and Private Sector Preparedness and Integration
  • Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
  • Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security
• Committee on the Budget
• Committee on Indian Affairs

[edit] Department of Justice controversy

Main article: Dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy

Prior to the 2006 midterm election Domenici called and pressured then-United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico David Iglesias to speed up indictments in a federal corruption investigation that involved at least one former Democratic state senator. When Iglesias said an indictment would not be handed down until at least December, Domenici said "I'm very sorry to hear that" — and the line went dead. Iglesias was fired a little over one month later by the Bush Administration. A communication by a senator or House member with a federal prosecutor regarding an ongoing criminal investigation is a violation of ethics rules. In a March 2007 statement, Domenici admitted making such a call.^[9] House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., issued subpoenas to require Iglesias and three other ousted U.S. attorneys to testify before Congress.^[10]

Domenici later admitted calling Iglesias, though Domenici claimed he never used the word "November" when he called Iglesias about an ongoing Albuquerque courthouse corruption case.^[11] Domenici has denied trying to influence Iglesias, and has hired lawyer K. Lee Blalack II to represent him.^[12]

According to the Justice Department, Domenici called the Department and demanded Iglesias be replaced on four occasions.^[13]

According to the Washington Post, on the day of the firing (Dec 7, 2006) William Kelley, a deputy to then White House Counsel Harriet Miers, said in an email that Domenici's chief of staff was "happy as a clam" about the Iglesias firing. A week later, a Justice Department email to the White House counsel stated: "Domenici is going to send over names tomorrow (not even waiting for Iglesias's body to cool)."^[14]

[edit] Environmental record

The grassroots organization Republicans for Environmental Protection singled out Domenici as “Worst in the Senate in 2006” on environmental issues.^[15] In addition to assigning Domenici a score of zero for his environmental voting record, the group issued him “environmental harm demerits” for what they saw as two particularly irresponsible acts: first, for spearheading efforts to include in federal budget legislation provisions for “speculative revenues from oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge; second, “for sponsoring and securing passage of S. 3711, the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act, which would perpetuate America’s dangerous oil dependence, set a precedent for drilling in sensitive marine waters, and direct a disproportionate share of federal royalty revenues from a public resource to four states.”^[16] Domenici also received an exceptionally low environmental rating from the nonpartisan League of Conservation Voters, who claimed in 2003 that “[d]uring the last decade his voting record has become even more strikingly anti-environmental.”^[17] The LCV went on to criticize Domenici for voting in 1995 “to allow mining companies to ‘patent’ (purchase) public lands in order to extract minerals from them, without environmental standards, for the ridiculously low ‘price’ of $5 an acre or less.”^[18]

[edit] Electoral history

2002 New Mexico United States Senatorial Election

• Pete Domenici (R) (inc.), 65%
• Gloria Tristani (D), 35%

1996 New Mexico United States Senatorial Election

• Pete Domenici (R) (inc.), 64%
• Art Trujillo (D), 30%

1990 New Mexico United States Senatorial Election

• Pete Domenici (R) (inc.), 72.9%
• Tom R. Benavides (D), 27.1%

1984 New Mexico United States Senatorial Election

• Pete Domenici (R) (inc.), 71.9%
• Judith A. Pratt (D), 28.1%

1978 New Mexico United States Senatorial Election

• Pete Domenici (R) (inc.), 53.4%
• Toney Anaya (D), 46.6%

1972 New Mexico United States Senatorial Election

• Pete Domenici (R), 54%
• Jack Daniels (D), 46%

[edit] Bibliography

• "A Brighter Tomorrow: Fulfilling the Promise of Nuclear Energy" (Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2004)
• "Advanced Nuclear Technologies — Hearing Before the Committee on Appropriations, U.S. Senate" (Collingdale, Pennsylvania: D I A N E Publishing Company, 1999), which he edited.

[edit] See also

• Energy Policy Act of 2005, sponsored by Senator Domenici and Representative Joe Barton
• Monsignor Peter Vaghi, a former staffer of Senator Domenici's, now a Catholic prelate

[edit] Footnotes

[edit] External links

Find more about Pete Domenici on Wikipedia's sister projects:
	Dictionary definitions
	Textbooks
	Quotations
	Source texts
	Images and media
	News stories
	Learning resources

• United States Senator Pete Domenici, U.S. Senate site

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• New York Times — Pete V. Domenici News collected news and commentary
• SourceWatch Congresspedia — Pete Domenici profile

v • d • e United States Senators from New Mexico Class 1: Catron • Jones • Cutting • Larrazolo • Cutting • Chavez • Mechem • Montoya • Schmitt • Bingaman Class 2: Fall • Bursum • Bratton • Hatch • Anderson • Domenici