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Nancy Johnson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Chair of theHouse Ethics Committee | |
| In office January 3, 1995 – January 3, 1997 | |
| Preceded by | Jim McDermott |
| Succeeded by | James V. Hansen |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromConnecticut | |
| In office January 3, 1983 – January 3, 2007 | |
| Preceded by | Toby Moffett |
| Succeeded by | Chris Murphy |
| Constituency | 6th district (1983–2003) 5th district (2003–2007) |
| Member of theConnecticut State Senate from the6th district | |
| In office January 5, 1977 – January 3, 1983 | |
| Preceded by | Paul S. Amenta |
| Succeeded by | Joe Harper |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Nancy Elizabeth Lee (1935-01-05)January 5, 1935 (age 90) Chicago,Illinois, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Ted Johnson |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Harvard University (BA) University of London |
Nancy Elizabeth Johnson (néeLee; born January 5, 1935) is an American lobbyist andpolitician from thestate ofConnecticut. Johnson was aRepublican member of theUnited States House of Representatives from 1983 to 2007, representing the6th district and later the5th District after reapportionment.
In September 2007, Johnson began lobbying forBaker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC in Washington, D.C.[1]
Nancy Johnson was born inChicago. She graduated from theUniversity of Chicago Laboratory School (high school) in 1953, and fromRadcliffe College ofHarvard University in 1957. She attended theUniversity of London'sCourtauld Institute of Art in 1957 and 1958. She later moved toNew Britain, Connecticut, where she lives today.[citation needed]
She was an active volunteer in the schools and social service agencies of her community, before serving in theConnecticut Senate from 1977 to 1983.
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Johnson was elected to the House of Representatives in 1982 with 52 percent of the vote, defeating Democratic state senatorWilliam E. Curry Jr. She replaced DemocratAnthony "Toby" Moffett, who made an unsuccessful bid for the U.S. Senate that year.[2]
She won narrowly in her re-election bid in 1996, defeating Democrat Charlotte Koskoff 50%–49%, her only close race for re-election.[3] She attributed her decreased percentage to the time she had spent on the House ethics panel, dealing with ethics allegations against SpeakerNewt Gingrich, which prevented her from getting around in her district.[citation needed] She won in 1998, again against Koskoff, with 59% of the vote, and got 63% of the vote in 2000 against Paul Valenti.
HadAl Gore won the2000 presidential election, Johnson was widely considered to be the front runner[4] to win the appointment ofGovernorJohn G. Rowland to serve in theUnited States Senate, filling the seat of Gore's running mateJoe Lieberman. Lieberman had been reelected to the Senate at the same time as the presidential election.[5]
In 2002, Johnson's New Britain-based district was merged with theWaterbury-based 5th District of Democratic CongressmanJames H. Maloney. While the new district retained Maloney's district number, its geography and demographics slightly favored Johnson. She won the general election over Maloney with 54% of the vote. In 2004, she defeated Democrat Theresa Gerratana, getting 60% of the vote.
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In theNovember 2006 general election, Johnson faced DemocratChris Murphy, astate senator originally elected from the First District town ofSouthington, Connecticut, who now lives inCheshire.
In April 2006, Johnson became the target of a negative ad campaign run by a political action committee,MoveOn.org, which alleged ties to disgraced lobbyistJack Abramoff and former Majority LeaderTom DeLay (R-TX). Johnson responded with her own advertising campaign dismissing the charges and strongly attacking Murphy, accusing him of not disavowing the MoveOn attack ads.
Johnson had a large cash advantage over her challenger. In April 2006, Johnson reported that she had raised $436,000 in the first quarter of the year, with 60% of that coming fromPACs, and 56% from contributors from outsideConnecticut.[6] In the second quarter of 2006 she raised almost $800,000, and had cash on hand, as of June 30, 2006, of $2.6 million.[7]
In late October, Chris Murphy had a slight lead, and heading into the election, polls showed him ahead by four points.[8] Johnson ultimately lost the race in November to Chris Murphy by 12 points;[9] the only House incumbent to suffer a worse defeat wasJohn Hostettler (IN-08).
Articles in theHartford Courant speculated that Johnson's negative TV ads, which accused Murphy of coddling sex offenders and drug dealers, may have proven counterproductive.[9] Johnson won only six of the district's 41 towns, losing many areas that had reliably supported her in the past. For instance, she lost badly in New Britain, an area she had represented for 30 years at both the federal and state level. She had failed to carry New Britain in her last two elections.
Johnson is amoderate Republican. She called herself "an independent voice in Washington",[10] although she frequently supported the mainstream Republican agenda. Some nonpartisan observers such asNational Journal rated her near the ideological midpoint in the House, although others, like theAmerican Conservative Union (ACU) rated her as a moderate conservative. The ACU gave Johnson's 2005 voting record 40 points out of 100; the liberalAmericans for Democratic Action gave her 35 points. In general, she was moderate-to-liberal on social issues and conservative on economic ones.
Johnson is a member of several socially moderate Republican groups includingThe Wish List, TheRepublican Main Street Partnership,Republicans for Choice, the Republican Majority for Choice, and Republicans for Environmental Protection, now known asConservAmerica, although she has supported many elements of PresidentGeorge W. Bush's agenda and the agenda of conservative House leaders.[citation needed]
In 1998, Johnson voted for two of the fourarticles of impeachment then-PresidentBill Clinton—the only member of the Connecticut delegation to support Clinton's impeachment.
In 2003, Johnson voted with the House Democrats to opposePartial-Birth Abortion Ban Act. The bill was passed by a large majority 281–142 on October 2, 2003.
In 2006, Johnson attracted considerable controversy after voting against a Republican budget reconciliation bill that passed the House by two votes. She was one of 14 moderate Republicans who crossed party lines to side with Democrats against it.
Johnson is a strong supporter of Republican policy on health care and theIraq War, but opposed the Bush energy agenda, including oil drilling in theArctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) refuge. She has received favorable marks and awards from such groups as theNational Education Association and theSierra Club.[11]
In 2005, Johnson supported theWhite House plan to partially privatizeSocial Security, and voted for a measure sponsored by then-Majority LeaderTom DeLay that would have weakened House ethics rules.[12]
One of Johnson's central issues is health care. She was one of the authors of theMedicare Part Dprescription drug benefit program, which took effect in 2006. On May 15, 2006, Johnson announced she would submit legislation to waive penalties for those who miss deadlines to enroll in Medicare Part D, reacting to widespread criticism of the Johnson-authored program. Her bill was unsuccessful but was supported by theAARP.[13]
She also authored the legislation that allowed welfare recipients to remain eligible for Medicaid, adding a more moderate influence to the welfare reform law.[14]
In 1988, Johnson became the first Republican woman to be named to the powerfulWays and Means Committee. She eventually rose to chair three separate Ways and Means subcommittees.[15]
With the retirement of Ways and Means Committee chairmanBill Thomas (R-CA) at the end of the109th Congress in 2006, Johnson was a possible candidate to replace him as chairman if Republicans were to retain the House and Johnson retained her seat in theNovember elections.[16] Neither happened.
In 1983, Johnson was one of the original congressional members of theUnited States House Select Committee on Children, Youth, and Families.[17]
Connecticut is a center of the pharmaceutical industry withPfizer andBayer operating major facilities in the state. According to the nonpartisanOpenSecrets, Johnson had been one of the leading Congressional recipients of contributions from the pharmaceutical industry, receiving $534,830 in related contributions since 2000.[18][failed verification]
Following her career in Congress, in 2007 Johnson became aresidentfellow atHarvard University's Institute of Politics.[19] She also served as co-chair of theInformation Technology and Innovation Foundation, a public policythink tank.[20]
In October 2007, Johnson endorsed former New York City MayorRudy Giuliani's bid for the Republican presidential nomination.[21]
In 2013, Johnson was a signatory to an amicus curiae brief submitted to the Supreme Court in support of same-sex marriage during theHollingsworth v. Perry case.[22]
Johnson is married to Theodore Johnson, anobstetrics and gynaecology (OBGYN) physician; and has three adult daughters.[23]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)| Connecticut State Senate | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theConnecticut State Senate from the 6th district 1977–1983 | Joe Harper |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromConnecticut's 6th congressional district 1983–2003 | Constituency abolished |
| Preceded by | Chair of theCongressional Women's Caucus 1997–1999 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromConnecticut's 5th congressional district 2003–2007 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chair of theHouse Ethics Committee 1995–1997 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| New office | Chair of theTuesday Group 1995–2005 Served alongside:Mike Castle,Fred Upton | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former US Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former US Representative | Succeeded byas Former US Representative |
| People | |
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| Other | |
