Fred Upton | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Official portrait, 2019 | |
| Chair of theHouse Energy and Commerce Committee | |
| In office January 3, 2011 – January 3, 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Henry Waxman |
| Succeeded by | Greg Walden |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMichigan | |
| In office January 3, 1987 – January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Mark D. Siljander |
| Succeeded by | Bill Huizenga (redistricted) |
| Constituency | 4th district (1987–1993) 6th district (1993–2023) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Frederick Stephen Upton (1953-04-23)April 23, 1953 (age 72) St. Joseph, Michigan, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Emory Upton (2x great grand-uncle)[citation needed] Louis Upton (grand-uncle) Kate Upton (niece) |
| Education | University of Michigan (BA) |
Frederick Stephen Upton (born April 23, 1953) is an American politician who served as aU.S. representative fromMichigan from 1987 to 2023. A member of theRepublican Party, he representedKalamazoo and much of southwestern Michigan for 18 terms before retiring in 2023.[1]
A former chairman of theCommittee on Energy and Commerce, Upton has played a major role in shaping post-Obamacare health care legislation. He is the only person in American history to vote to impeach two presidents; he voted for theimpeachment of Bill Clinton in 1998 and thesecond impeachment of Donald Trump in 2021, as one of ten Republicans who voted to impeach Trump.[2] AfterSander Levin retired at the end of the115th Congress, Upton became the dean ofMichigan's congressional delegation.
Upton was born inSt. Joseph, Michigan, the son of Elizabeth B. (née Vial) and Stephen Edward Upton (1924–2022[3]).[4] He attendedShattuck-Saint Mary's, graduating in 1971.[5] He earned aB.A. in journalism from theUniversity of Michigan in 1975. He was a member of theAlpha Delta Phi fraternity, Peninsular Chapter, and became a sports editor atThe Michigan Daily and thought he might someday cover theChicago Cubs.[6] He served on the congressional staff of U.S. RepresentativeDavid Stockman from 1976 to 1980. He was in theOffice of Management and Budget (OMB) underRonald Reagan from 1981 to 1985, while Stockman served as OMB Director.[7]
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Upton ran inMichigan's 4th congressional district against incumbentMark Siljander, Stockman's successor. Upton won the Republicanprimary 55%–45%[8] and the general election with 62% of the vote.[9]
Upton won reelection to a second term with 71% of the vote.[10]
Upton defeatedEd Fredricks in the Republican primary, 63%–37%.[11] In the general election, he was reelected to a third term with 58% of the vote.[12]
After redistricting, Upton's district was renumbered as the6th district. It absorbed a large slice of the Kalamazoo-based3rd district, represented by DemocratHoward Wolpe. While Kalamazoo was the largest city in the reconfigured district, it was geographically more Upton's district than Wolpe's, prompting Volpe to retire.
Upton won reelection to a fourth term with 62% of the vote.[13]
After redistricting, Upton faced a primary challenge from State Senator Dale Shugars. Upton defeated Shugars 66%–32%.[14] He won the general election with 69% of the vote.[15]
Upton defeatedDemocratic nominee Scott Elliott, an art gallery owner, 65%–32%.[16]
Upton defeated Democratic nomineeKim Clark, 61%–38%.[17]
Upton defeated Democratic nomineeDon Cooney, a Kalamazoo City Commissioner, 59%–39%.[18]
Upton defeated former State RepresentativeJack Hoogendyk in the Republican primary, 57%–43%.[19] In the general election, he defeated Cooney, 62%–34%.[20]
In 2011, Hoogendyk met with theClub for Growth, a conservative501(c)4 organization, about running against Upton again.[21] Upton had been criticized for not beingconservative enough byRush Limbaugh,Glenn Beck,FreedomWorks, Right to Life of Michigan, and the Southwest MichiganTea Party Patriots.[22] On January 17, 2012, Hoogendyk announced that he would challenge Upton in the primary, the winner of which would face the Democratic nominee, formermarine and businessmanMike O'Brien.[23][24]
Initial polls showed Upton with a sizable lead over O'Brien, but an October poll showed Upton and O'Brien in a dead heat heading into the final stretch of the campaign.[25][26]
Upton won with 55.9% of the vote, defeating Democrat Paul Clements, Libertarian Erwin Haas, and Green Party candidate John Lawrence.
Upton was reelected, defeating Democratic nominee Paul Clements, a political science professor at Western Michigan University, 58.5%–36.4%.[citation needed]
Upton was reelected with 50.2% of the vote against Democratic nomineeMatt Longjohn (45.75%) andU.S. Taxpayers Party candidate Stephen Young (4.1%).[27]
Upton was reelected with 55.9% of the vote against Democratic nomineeJon Hoadley (40.2%), Libertarian Party nominee Jeff Depoy (2.75%), and Green Party candidate John Lawrence (1.2%).[28]
Michigan's congressional map was significantly redrawn after the 2020 census. Upton's district was renumbered as the4th district, and picked up the remainder ofAllegan County that hadn't been in the old 6th, as well asHolland (which Upton had represented for his first three terms) andBattle Creek.
The new territory included the home of fellow RepublicanBill Huizenga, who had represented the neighboring 2nd district. Huizenga filed for reelection in the 4th, even though it was geographically more Upton's district. On April 4, 2022, Upton announced on the floor of the House that he would not run for a 19th term.[1]
Upton has been a member of moderate Republican factionsThe Tuesday Group and theRepublican Main Street Partnership.[29] On February 4, 2021, he joined 10 other Republican House members voting with all voting Democrats to stripMarjorie Taylor Greene of herHouse Education and Labor Committee andHouse Budget Committee assignments in response to controversial political statements she had made.[30]
Upton voted against passage of theAffordable Care Act (ACA) and has since voted in favor of its complete repeal. In November 2013, in response to Americans losing theirhealth insurance coverage because of the ACA, Upton proposed a bill that would allow them to retain it.[31] The essence of his bill was to allow insurance companies to maintain their individual insurance market policies according to state insurance rules that were in effect as of 2013.[32] In 2017, Upton played an important role advancing Republican Party efforts to repeal the ACA.[33]
In 2013, Upton introduced a bill that would grant theFood and Drug Administration more power to regulate drugcompounding in the wake of theNew England Compounding Center meningitis outbreak.[34] In 2016, Obama signed the21st Century Cures Act[35] into law, a bill Upton co-sponsored. The act establishes funds for biomedical research and to develop and implement a strategic plan for biomedical research.[36] In 2018, Upton and RepresentativeDebbie Dingell worked together on legislation designed to combatopioid addiction. Among other things, it would allocate funding for research into new, non-addictive pain relievers.[37]
In 2007 Upton co-sponsored theEnergy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which, among other things, mandated phased-inenergy efficiency standards for most light bulbs.[38] At the time, he noted that the legislation, ultimately signed into law by President George W. Bush, would "help preserve energy resources and reduce harmful emissions, all while saving American families billions of dollars on their electric bills."[39]Glenn Beck called Upton "all socialist" for supporting the bill.[40]
In April 2009, Upton said that "climate change is a serious problem that necessitates serious solutions. Everything must be on the table."[41] He would later be criticized for moderating his position on carbon emissions,[42] leading a failed effort to stop the Obama administration from enforcing the new energy standards.[39]
Upton's website once stated: "I strongly believe that everything must be on the table as we seek to reducecarbon emissions."[42] In late 2010, he co-authored aWall Street Journal opinion piece saying he was "not convinced" that "carbon is a problem in need of regulation" and urgingCongress to overturnMassachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency.[43]
Upton andEd Whitfield co-sponsored H.R. 910, theEnergy Tax Prevention Act of 2011.[44] Due to his environmental policies,The Los Angeles Times wrote in 2011 that Upton "represents one of the biggest threats to planet Earth on planet Earth."[45]
In 2012, Upton, as chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said that Congress's refusal to setgreenhouse gas limits "constituted a decision and that lawmakers should act now to reverse theEPA emissions rules." Carbon regulation, he said, "threatens to drive energy prices higher, destroy jobs and hamstring our economic recovery."[46]
On October 22, 2013, Upton introduced theNorth American Energy Infrastructure Act (H.R. 3301; 113th Congress), a bill that would make changes to permitting requirements for pipelines and other energy infrastructure at international borders.[47][48] He said the bill "is a sincere effort to focus a targeted solution to lessons learned from theKeystone Pipeline... No one can rightly argue that the current presidential permit process as the State Department is not broken, no matter what side of the climate debate you're on."[49] Upton added, "we're creating a fair and transparent approval process for cross-border energy projects, putting them all on a level playing field for the benefit of North American energy security, lower energy prices, and jobs."[50]
As of 2017, Upton has received more than $2 million in campaign donations from oil and gas companies and electric utilities over the course of his political career.[51] In 2018, he joined theClimate Solutions Caucus.[52]
Upton introduced legislation to reverse theFCC's ruling on net neutrality in 2015.[53][54] On November 5, 2021, Upton was one of 13 House Republicans to break with their party and vote with a majority of Democrats in favor of theInfrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.[55]
In 2019, Upton supported a bill that requires background checks for private firearm sales.[56] He has called for Congress to pass a bipartisanred flag law.[57]
In March 2021, Upton was one of eight Republicans to join the House majority in passing theBipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021.[58]
In 2004 and 2006, Upton voted for a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.[59] In 2019, he voted against the Equality Act, which would extend existing civil rights legislation to protect LGBT individuals from discrimination.[59]
In 2013, Upton condemned controversial anti-gay remarks by Republican National CommitteemanDavid Agema.[60]
In 2021, Upton was one of 29 Republicans to vote to reauthorize theViolence Against Women Act.[61] This bill expanded legal protections for transgender people, and contained provisions allowing transgender women to use women's shelters and serve time in prisons matching their gender identity.[62]
In 2021, Upton was one of 33 Republicans to vote for the LGBTQ Business Equal Credit Enforcement and Investment Act.[63]
In 2021, Upton co-sponsored the Fairness for All Act, the Republican alternative to the Equality Act.[64] The bill would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity, and protect the free exercise of religion.
On July 19, 2022, Upton and 46 other Republican Representatives voted for theRespect for Marriage Act, which would codify the right to same-sex marriage in federal law.[65]
In 2019, during the116th Congress, Upton broke with his party, one of seven Republicans to side with Democrats by voting for legislation that would fund government services and end ashutdown.[66]
In February 2021, Upton voted against a $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill that provided $10 billion in federal aid to Michigan.[67]
During Trump's presidency, Upton voted in line with Trump's stated position 78.6% of the time.[68]
In July 2019, Upton was one of four Republican House members to vote in support of a motion to condemn comments Trump made on Twitter calling on fourDemocratic Congresswomen, three of whom were born in the U.S., to "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came."[69][70]
On December 18, 2019, Upton voted againstboth articles of impeachment against Trump.[71]
On January 12, 2021, Upton announced he would vote to impeach Trump in the pending vote ona second impeachment, claiming Trump incited theJanuary 6 United States Capitol attack, becoming the fourth House Republican to say they would vote to impeach.[72][73] He ultimately did so alongside nine other Republicans on January 13.[74] On January 21, 2021, theAllegan County Republican Party censured Upton for his vote to impeach Trump.[75] He was later censured by theCass County Republican Party for voting to removeMarjorie Taylor Greene from the House Education Committee.[76]
On May 19, 2021, Upton was one of 35 Republicans who joined all Democrats in voting to approve legislation to establish theJanuary 6 commission meant to investigate theCapitol attack.[77] Before the vote, he was one of few Republican lawmakers to openly express support for the commission.[78]
In October 2024, Upton endorsedKamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, calling Trump "unfit to serve".[79]
In June 2021, Upton was one of 49 House Republicans to vote to repeal theAUMF against Iraq.[80][81]
On October 21, 2021, Upton was one of nine House Republicans who voted to holdSteve Bannon in contempt of Congress.[82]
Upton voted for the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020 which authorizes DHS to nearly double the available H-2B visas for the remainder of FY 2020.[84][85]
Upton voted for the Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 1158),[86] which effectively prohibits ICE from cooperating with Health and Human Services to detain or remove illegal alien sponsors of unaccompanied alien children (UACs).[citation needed]
Upton was one of three Republicans to vote for H.R. 8297: Ensuring Access to Abortion Act of 2022.[87]
Upton voted for H.R. 8373: The Right to Contraception Act. This bill was designed to protect access to contraceptives and health care providers' ability to provide contraceptives and information related to contraception.[88] The bill would also fundPlanned Parenthood.[89]
In 2022, Upton was one of 39 Republicans to vote for the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2022, an antitrust package that would crack down on corporations for anti-competitive behavior.[90][91]
Upton's grandfather and eponym, Frederick Upton, served as vice-president of appliance manufacturer and marketerWhirlpool Corporation, headquartered inBenton Harbor, which was founded by his great-uncleLouis Upton. He and his wife have two children.[100] Upton's niece is supermodelKate Upton.[101][102] Open Secrets reported that Upton had a net worth of $78 million in 2018, making him one of Congress's richest members.[103]
Upton is a supporter ofMichigan Wolverines athletics, as well as an enthusiasticChicago Cubs baseball fan.[6] He is a member of theEmil Verban Society.[100]
Upton is aCongregationalist.[104]
| Year | Republican | Votes | % | Democratic | Votes | % | Third Party | Party | Votes | % | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Fred Upton | 70,331 | 62% | Dan Roche | 41,624 | 37% | Richard Gillmor | Independent | 1,649 | 1% | ||||
| 1988 | Fred Upton | 132,270 | 71% | Norman Rivers | 54,428 | 29% | ||||||||
| 1990 | Fred Upton | 75,850 | 58% | JoAnne McFarland | 55,449 | 42% |
| Year | Republican | Votes | % | Democratic | Votes | % | Third Party | Party | Votes | % | Third Party | Party | Votes | % | Third Party | Party | Votes | % | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Fred Upton | 144,083 | 62% | Andy Davis | 89,020 | 38% | ||||||||||||||||||
| 1994 | Fred Upton | 121,932 | 73% | David Taylor | 42,348 | 26% | E. A. Berker | Natural Law | 1,667 | 1% | ||||||||||||||
| 1996 | Fred Upton | 146,170 | 68% | Clarence Annen | 66,243 | 31% | Scott Beavers | Libertarian | 3,370 | 2% | ||||||||||||||
| 1998 | Fred Upton | 113,292 | 70% | Clarence Annen | 45,358 | 28% | Glenn Whitt | Libertarian | 1,833 | 1% | Ken Asmus | Natural Law | 1,091 | 1% | ||||||||||
| 2000 | Fred Upton | 159,373 | 68% | James Bupp | 68,532 | 29% | William Bradley | Libertarian | 3,573 | 2% | Richard Overton | Reform | 1,872 | 1% | C. Dennis James | USTPM | 1,290 | 1% | ||||||
| 2002 | Fred Upton | 126,936 | 69% | Gary Giguere | 53,793 | 29% | Richard Overton | Reform | 2,788 | 2% | ||||||||||||||
| 2004 | Fred Upton | 197,425 | 65% | Scott Elliott | 97,978 | 32% | Randall MacPhee | Green | 2,311 | 1% | Erwin Haas | Libertarian | 2,275 | 1% | W. Dennis FitzSimons | USTPM | 2,169 | 1% | ||||||
| 2006 | Fred Upton | 142,125 | 61% | Kim Clark | 88,978 | 38% | Kenneth Howe | Libertarian | 3,480 | 1% | ||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Fred Upton | 188,157 | 59% | Don Cooney | 123,257 | 39% | Greg Merle | Libertarian | 4,720 | 1% | Edward Pinkney | Green | 3,512 | 1% | ||||||||||
| 2010 | Fred Upton | 123,142 | 62% | Don Cooney | 66,729 | 34% | Melvin Valkner | USTPM | 3,672 | 2% | Fred Strand | Libertarian | 3,369 | 2% | Pat Foster | Green | 1,784 | 1% | ||||||
| 2012 | Fred Upton | 174,955 | 55% | Mike O'Brien | 136,563 | 43% | Christie Gelineau | Libertarian | 6,366 | 2% | Jason Gatties | USTPM | 2,591 | 1% | ||||||||||
| 2014 | Fred Upton | 116,801 | 56% | Paul Clements | 84,391 | 40% | Erwin Haas | Libertarian | 5,530 | 3% | John Lawrence | Green | 2,254 | 1% | ||||||||||
| 2016 | Fred Upton | 193,246 | 58% | Paul Clements | 119,975 | 36% | Lorence Wenke | Libertarian | 16,249 | 5% | ||||||||||||||
| 2018 | Fred Upton | 147,436 | 50% | Matt Longjohn | 134,082 | 46% | Stephen J. Young | USTPM | 11,920 | 4% | ||||||||||||||
| 2020[109] | Fred Upton | 211,496 | 56% | Jon Hoadley | 152,085 | 40% | Jeff Depoy | Libertarian | 10,399 | 3% | John Lawrence | Green | 4,440 | 1% |
In addition, a vote is scheduled Friday in the Republican-controlled House on a bill that would allow Americans to keep their existing health coverage through 2014 without penalties. The measure, drafted by Representative Fred Upton, the Michigan Republican who is the chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, is opposed by the White House, which argues that it would severely undermine the Affordable Care Act by allowing insurance companies to continue to sell health coverage that does not meet the higher standard of Mr. Obama's health care law.
Mr. Upton, who has received more than $2 million in campaign donations from oil and gas companies and electric utilities over the course of his career, won the chairmanship and has coasted comfortably to re-election since.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMichigan's 4th congressional district 1987–1993 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMichigan's 6th congressional district 1993–2023 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chair of theHouse Energy and Commerce Committee 2011–2017 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| New office | Chair of theTuesday Group 1995–2005 Served alongside:Mike Castle,Nancy Johnson | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chair of theRepublican Governance Group Tuesday Group: 2019–2020 2019–2021 Served alongside:Susan Brooks,John Katko | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
| Commerce and Manufactures (1795–1819) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Commerce (1819–1893) | ||
| Interstate and Foreign Commerce (1893–1981) | ||
| Energy and Commerce (1981–present) | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
