Orrin Hatch | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2015 | |
| President pro tempore of the United States Senate | |
| In office January 3, 2015 – January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Patrick Leahy |
| Succeeded by | Chuck Grassley |
| United States Senator fromUtah | |
| In office January 3, 1977 – January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Frank Moss |
| Succeeded by | Mitt Romney |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Orrin Grant Hatch (1934-03-22)March 22, 1934 Homestead, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | April 23, 2022(2022-04-23) (aged 88) Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 6 |
| Education | Brigham Young University (BA) University of Pittsburgh (JD) |
| Awards | Presidential Medal of Freedom (2018) Canterbury Medal (2020) |
| Signature |  |
Orrin Grant Hatch (March 22, 1934 – April 23, 2022) was an American attorney and politician who served as aUnited States senator fromUtah from 1977 to 2019. Hatch's 42-year Senate tenure made him thelongest-servingRepublican U.S. senator in history, overtakingTed Stevens, untilChuck Grassley surpassed him in 2023.
Hatch chaired theSenate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions from 1981 to 1987. He served as chair of theSenate Judiciary Committee from 1995 to 2001 and from 2003 to 2005. On January 3, 2015, after the114th United States Congress was sworn in, he becamepresident pro tempore of the Senate. He was chair of theSenate Finance Committee from 2015 to 2019, and led efforts to pass theTax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.
Orrin Grant Hatch was born inHomestead, Pennsylvania, a suburb ofPittsburgh.[1][2] He was the son of Jesse Hatch (1904–1992), a metal lather,[3] and his wife Helen Frances Hatch (née Kamm; 1906–1995). Hatch had eight brothers and sisters, two of whom died during infancy.[4] Hatch was profoundly affected by the loss of his older brother Jesse, aU.S. Army Air Forcesnose turret gunner with the725th Bombardment Squadron who was killed on February 7, 1945, when theB-24 he was aboard was shot down overGerman Austria.[3][5][6][7]
Hatch, who grew up in poverty,[8] was the first in his family to attend college; he attendedBrigham Young University and earned aBachelor of Arts in history in 1959. He also fought 11 bouts as an amateur boxer.[3] In 1962, Hatch received aJuris Doctor from theUniversity of Pittsburgh School of Law.[3] Hatch has stated that during law school, he and his young family resided in a refurbished chicken coop behind his parents' house.[8][9] Hatch worked as an attorney in Pittsburgh and moved to Utah in 1969, where he continued to practice law.[10]
In 1976, in his first run for public office, Hatch was elected to theUnited States Senate, defeating DemocratFrank Moss, a three-term incumbent.[11] Hatch criticized Moss's 18-year tenure in the Senate, saying, "What do you call a Senator who's served in office for 18 years? You call him home."[12] Hatch ran on the promise of term limits[13] and argued that many senators, including Moss, had lost touch with their constituents.[14]
In 1982, Hatch won re-election, defeatingTed Wilson, themayor of Salt Lake City, by 17 points.[14] He defeated Brian Moss (Frank Moss' son) by 35 points in 1988[15] and was re-elected in 1994, 2000, 2006, and 2012.[11]
In 2000,Hatch campaigned for the Republican Party nomination for president. After finishing last in theIowa caucuses, Hatch withdrew his candidacy on January 27, 2000, and endorsed the eventual winnerGeorge W. Bush.[16]
After the defeat of Utah's SenatorBob Bennett in 2010, conjecture began as to whether six-term Senator Hatch would retire in 2012. It was also speculated that CongressmanJason Chaffetz would run against Hatch, though Chaffetz would later decline. In January 2011, Hatch announced his campaign for re-election.[17] Later, nine other Republicans, including former State SenatorDan Liljenquist and then-State LegislatorChris Herrod, declared campaigns for U.S. Senator.[18][19]
Having elected state delegates in mid-March, both the Democratic and Republican parties held conventions on April 21, with the possibilities to determine their nominees for the November general election. At the Republican convention, Hatch failed to get the 60% vote needed to clinch the Republican nomination, so he faced Liljenquist (the second-place finisher) in the June 26 primary.[20] Hatch won the primary easily.[21] It was Hatch's first primary competition since his election in 1976. The Democratic convention chose former state senator andIBM executiveScott Howell as the Democratic Party candidate. Hatch defeated Howell, receiving 65.2% of the vote to Howell's 30.2%.[20]
In the 2016 presidential election, Hatch originally supported former Florida GovernorJeb Bush and later endorsed Florida SenatorMarco Rubio once Bush ended his campaign. On May 12, 2016, afterDonald Trump became the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, Hatch endorsed him.[22] On May 27, 2016, after Trump suggested that a federal judgeGonzalo P. Curiel was biased against Trump because of his Mexican heritage, Hatch said: "From what I know about Trump, he's not a racist but he does make a lot of outrageous statements ... I think you can criticize a judge but it ought to be done in a formal way" and said that Trump's statements were not so inappropriate that he would rescind his support.[23][better source needed] On October 7, 2016, following theDonald TrumpAccess Hollywood controversy, Hatch described Trump's comments as "offensive and disgusting" and said that "[there] is no excuse for such degrading behavior. All women deserve to be treated with respect."[24] Hatch maintained his endorsement of Trump's candidacy.[25]
Hatch took office as a U.S. senator on January 3, 1977.[26] He chaired theSenate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions from 1981 to 1987.[27] He also served as chair of theSenate Judiciary Committee[28] and theSenate Finance Committee.[29]
In September 1989, Hatch was one of nine Republican senators appointed by Senate Republican LeaderBob Dole to negotiate a dispute with Democrats over the financing of President George HWBush's anti-drug plan that called for spending $7.8 billion by the following year as part of the president's efforts to address narcotics nationwide and abroad.[30]
Hatch long expressed interest in serving on theUnited States Supreme Court.[31] It was reported that he was onRonald Reagan's short list of candidates to succeedLewis F. Powell Jr. on the Supreme Court, but was passed over at least in part because of theIneligibility Clause.[32] Despite that, he vocally supportedRobert Bork, who was nominated for the vacancy instead.[33]
Hatch "worked across the aisle to pass landmark legislation, including theAmericans with Disabilities Act and the Children's Health Insurance Program".[34] During the 1991 confirmation hearings regarding the Supreme Court nomination ofClarence Thomas, Hatch "famously defended Thomas ... by reading aloud fromThe Exorcist to suggestAnita Hill lifted details of her sexual harassment allegations from the horror book".[35]
On January 3, 2015, after the114th United States Congress was sworn in, Hatch becamePresident pro tempore of the Senate.[36]
Hatch was absent from the 2017 Inauguration Day festivities. At the request of President-elect Donald Trump, he agreed to serve asdesignated survivor during the inauguration and was kept at a secure, undisclosed location.[37]
On December 25, 2017,The Salt Lake Tribune published an editorial entitled "Why Orrin Hatch is Utahn of the Year". The newspaper described its criteria for the designation as "Utahn of the Year" as "the Utahn who, over the past 12 months, has done the most. Has made the most news. Has had the biggest impact. For good or for ill."[38] The editorial criticized Hatch for his role in the size reduction of theGrand Staircase–Escalante National Monument and the passage of theTax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and accused him of lacking integrity.[39]
Hatch announced on January 2, 2018, that he would retire from the Senate instead of seekingre-election that November.[40] Hatch retired from the Senate on January 3, 2019,[35] having served there for 42 years.[41] At the time of his retirement announcement, he was the longest-serving U.S. Senator in Utah history (having eclipsed previous record-holderReed Smoot in 2007),[42] the longest-serving Republican U.S. Senator in the history of Congress,[26] and also one of the longest-serving Republican members of Congress in the history of the United States. In the latter distinction, Hatch was surpassed in length of service by fellow senatorsTed Stevens andStrom Thurmond, who joined the Republican Party in 1964, and was later surpassed byChuck Grassley andDon Young.[43]
Hatch was strongly opposed toabortion and is the author of theHatch Amendment proposed to theU.S. Constitution, which states that there is no constitutional right to abortion and would empower the states to restrict abortion as they see fit.[44][45]
In 1995, Hatch was the leading figure behind the Senate'santi-terrorism bill, to a large extent a response to theOklahoma City Bombing. Elements of the bill were criticised by theAnti-Defamation League andAmerican Jewish Committee on civil liberties grounds, especially the new limits imposed onhabeas corpus in capital cases.[46]
As a senior member of theSenate Select Intelligence Committee, Hatch was also instrumental in the 2008extension of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. He said, "This bipartisan bill will help defeat terrorism and keep America safe. No, the legislation is not perfect, but it ensures that the increased expansion of the judiciary into foreign intelligence gathering doesn't unnecessarily hamper our intelligence community."[47]
Hatch voted in favor of the2008 legislation that established theTroubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).[48] In 2011, Hatch said that he "probably made a mistake voting for it", and also claimed "at the time, we were in real trouble and it looked like we were ready for adepression. I believe we would have gone into a depression."[49]He voted against the renewal of TARP in 2009, and the renewal was voted down by 10 votes in the Senate.[50]
Hatch voted in favor of theHousing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008.[51] The bill authorized $300 billion to guarantee mortgages and restore confidence inFannie Mae andFreddie Mac.[52]
Hatch was a longtime advocate of amending theUnited States Constitution to require that total spending of the federal government for any fiscal year not exceed total receipts.[53][54]
During his time in the Senate, Hatch sponsored a balanced budget amendment 17 times—4 times as lead sponsor and 13 times as a co-sponsor.[53] He also voted in favor of passing a Balanced Budget Amendment on at least nine occasions.[55][56] Hatch's proposed amendment passed the House of Representatives in 1997, but failed to pass the Senate by the required two-thirds majority by one vote to move on the states for ratification.[53][57]
In January 1990, the federal judge in a case against theBank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) accepted a 1989 plea bargain offered to the bank by theU.S. Department of Justice. The bank was to pay $15 million in fines and only admit that it had laundered drug money. Afterward, Hatch presented an impassioned defense of the bank in a speech on the Senate floor. It had been largely written for him by the bank's attorneyRobert Altman. Hatch said, "The case arose from the conduct of a small number of B.C.C.I.'s more than 14,000 employees." Since 1989, Hatch and his aide, Michael Pillsbury, had been involved in efforts to counter the negative publicity that surrounded the bank. Hatch had also solicited the bank to approve a $10 million loan to a close friend,Monzer Hourani. In 1991, B.C.C.I. was shut down after regulators accused it of one of the biggest international financial frauds in history. Law enforcement officials accused the bank of making bribes throughout the third world to arrange government deposits.Clark Clifford, a former presidential advisor and Defense Secretary, and Altman, his law partner, were charged with taking bribes from B.C.C.I., in exchange for concealing its illegal ownership of First American Bankshares, a Washington holding company which Clifford chaired. Both had denied the charges, which were filed in New York State and Federal courts.[58] In 1992, in a "Report to theCommittee on Foreign Relations of the United States Senate", prepared by committee members, U.S. SenatorsJohn Kerry (D-MA) andHank Brown (R-CO), noted that a key strategy of "BCCI's successful secret acquisitions of U.S. banks in the face of regulatory suspicion was its aggressive use of a series of prominent Americans," Clifford amongst them.[59] The relationship with Hourani included the receipt of campaign contributions laundered through his employees, for which Hourani was fined $10,000, as well as his purchase of 1,200 CDs of Hatch's songs, for which Hatch received $3 to $7 each, and the management of a blind trust for Hatch. These led to a Senate Ethics Committee investigation, by which Hatch was eventually cleared.[60]
Hatch opposed PresidentBarack Obama's health reform legislation; he voted against theAffordable Care Act in December 2009,[61] and he voted against theHealth Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.[62] Hatch argued that the insurance mandate found in the legislation was not in the category that can be covered by theinterstate commerce clause since it regulates the decision to engage in commercial activity rather than regulating the activity itself. He therefore regarded the Act as unconstitutional.[63] NPR called Hatch a "flip-flopper" on this issue since in 1993 Hatch co-sponsored a bill along with 19 other Senate Republicans that included an individual insurance mandate as a means to combat healthcare legislation proposed by New York SenatorHillary Clinton.[64][65] In 2018, Hatch said that Obamacare supporters were "the stupidest, dumbass people I've ever met".[66]
Hatch was one of the first senators to suggest that the individual mandate was unconstitutional and promised to work on dismantling it when he becomes the Finance Committee Chairman.[67] Hatch was part of the group of 13 senators drafting theSenate version of theAHCA behind closed doors.[68][69][70][71]
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In 2003, Hatch supported theMedicare prescription drug benefit plan known asMedicare Part D.[72][73] Responding to criticism of the legislation during the 2009 debate on health care reform, Hatch said that in 2003 "it was standard practice not to pay for things" and that although there was concern at the time about increasing the deficit, supporting the bill was justified because it "has done a lot of good".[74]
On March 25, 2014, Hatch cosponsored theEmergency Medical Services for Children Reauthorization Act of 2014 in the Senate. The bill that would amend thePublic Health Service Act toreauthorize theEmergency Medical Services for Children Program through FY2019.[75] The bill would authorizeappropriations of about $20 million in 2015 and $101 million over the 2015–2019 period.[76] Hatch argued that "children require specialized medical care, and that specialized care comes with unique challenges. The EMSC program helps ensure that some of our country's most vulnerable have access to the care they need, and I've been proud to support it all these years."[77]
Hatch was one of the architects and advocates of the expansion ofH-1B visas and has generally been an advocate of tougher enforcement immigration policy including voting for 1,500 new law enforcement agents to patrol the United States' borders. His 2010 Immigration Bill titled Strengthening Our Commitment to Legal Immigration and America's Security Act has received the support of theCenter for Immigration Studies (CIS).[78] He also proposed theDREAM Act, which would provide a pathway to citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants, who were children when their parents came to the United States.[79]
Hatch critiqued PresidentDonald Trump's 2017executive order to temporarily suspend immigration from seven Muslim countries until better screening methods are devised. He reflected on his own family's immigration history and described the order as placing "unnecessary burdens" on families.[80]
As ranking minority member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Hatch fought hard to get conservative judges nominated to the Supreme Court. He took a leading role in the Senate confirmation hearings ofClarence Thomas in October 1991. He was also a strong supporter ofJay Bybee during Bybee's confirmation hearings for a seat on theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, stating "I've seen a lot of people around and a lot of judges and I don't know of anybody who has any greater qualifications or any greater ability in the law than you have."[81][82]
Nevertheless, in 1993, Hatch recommendedRuth Bader Ginsburg, whom he knew personally, to PresidentBill Clinton to fill a vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court, even as he knew she was a political liberal. Clinton had not previously considered Ginsburg, and Hatch, as ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, assured him that a Ginsburg confirmation would go smoothly.[83] Ginsburg was ultimately confirmed 96–3 in the Senate.
With regards to theSenate filibuster being used to stall President Barack Obama'sjudicial appointments, Hatch voted against theNovember 2013 reforms, which eliminated the use of the filibuster on executive branch nominees and judicial nominees other than to the Supreme Court.[84] In September 2014, Hatch argued that the filibuster should be restored, saying: "We should get it back to where it was. You can see the destruction that has happened around here."[85] In November 2014, after the Republicans retook control of the Senate following the2014 elections, Hatch wrote inThe Wall Street Journal that "if Republicans re-establish the judicial-nomination filibuster, it would remain in place only until the moment that a new Democratic majority decided that discarding the rule again would be useful" and called for "the next Republican president to counteract President Obama's aggressive efforts to stack the federal courts in favor of his party's ideological agenda" by nominating conservative judges.[86]
As an opponent of the confirmation ofMerrick Garland, Hatch submitted to theDeseret News an opinion piece stating that, after meeting with Garland, his opinion on blocking Garland had not changed; the piece was published prior to Hatch's meeting with Garland.[87] On March 13, 2016, regarding the nomination of Supreme Court candidates by Obama, Hatch stated "a number of factors have led me to conclude that under current circumstances the Senate should defer the confirmation process until the next president is sworn in."[88]
Hatch was long a proponent of expandingintellectual property rights and in 1997 introduced the Senate version of theCopyright Term Extension Act.[89] Hatch believed that intellectual property laws should, in general, more closely mirror real property laws, and offer greater protections to authors and creators.[89]
Hatch caused an overnight controversy on June 17, 2003, by proposing thatcopyright owners should be able to destroy the computer equipment and information of those suspected ofcopyright infringement, includingfile sharing, he stated that "This may be the only way you can teach somebody about copyrights."[90] In the face of criticism, especially from technology and privacy advocates, Hatch withdrew his suggestion days later, after it was discovered that Sen. Hatch's official website was using an unlicensedJavaScript menu from United Kingdom-based software developer Milonic Solutions. Milonic founder Andy Woolley stated that "We've had no contact with them. They are in breach of our licensing terms." Shortly after the publication of that story inWired magazine, the company that runs Hatch's website contacted Milonic to start registration.[91][92]
On September 20, 2010, Hatch once again attempted to outlaw websites which could be used for trademark and copyright infringement through theCombating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act (COICA). This bill would authorize theUnited States Department of Justice to blacklist and censor all websites that the department deemed to be dedicated to "infringing activities".[93]
The Salt Lake Tribune reported that in 1977, Hatch told students from theUniversity of Utah, "I wouldn't want to seehomosexuals teaching school anymore than I'd want to see members of theAmerican Nazi Party teaching school."[94] Hatch supported theDefense of Marriage Act in 1996.[95]
In 2012, Hatch recommended and supported District Court JudgeRobert Shelby, a Barack Obama appointee, though Utah SenatorMike Lee voted against him in the Judiciary Committee. In 2013 Shelby overturned Utah's ballot Amendment 3, which constitutionally defined marriage as between a man and a woman.[96][97][98]
In April 2013, Hatch stated that he viewedsame-sex marriage as "undermining the very basis of marital law", but declined to support aFederal Marriage Amendment and endorsed same-sex couples' right to form acivil union, stating that the law should "give gay people the same rights as married people".[99] Later that same year, Hatch voted in favor of theEmployment Non-Discrimination Act, legislation creating protected classes for those identifying as gay, lesbian,bisexual ortransgender.[100][101] In 2018, Hatch "honoredPride" by giving a speech in support of programs to help and serve LGBT youth.[102]
During Hatch's first year in the Senate in 1977, reporter Gordon Eliot White of theDeseret News published the first of what would be a lengthy series of articles detailing government malfeasance in atmospheric testing of nuclear bombs at theNevada Test Site.[103] Over the next 13 years White's articles detailed how the government determined to proceed with the tests, and with mining and refining, without adequate safeguards for innocent citizens whose health would be damaged.[104] Though Hatch feared an investigation would endanger the nation's nuclear deterrence versus theSoviet Union and thePeople's Republic of China, by 1979 he was pushing for hearings on the issue before the Senate Labor Committee. Hatch prevailed on Committee ChairmanTed Kennedy to hold field hearings in Utah in 1980. At the end of 1980, Hatch was positioned to chair the committee himself.[105]
By 1984, Hatch had held a dozen hearings, passed legislation requiring scientific investigation of the injuries, and enlisted the aid of theNational Science Foundation andNational Cancer Institute, but still could not muster the votes to get a bill passed. When a vote was obtained in the Senate in 1985 (as an amendment to a bill to compensate affectedPacific Islanders for nuclear tests in the 1950s), it failed by a handful of votes.[106] Hatch discovered a clause in the proposed Treaty of Peace and Friendship withKiribati andTuvalu to pay at least $100 million to residents of theMarshall Islands for injuries similar to those of Utahns, and Hatch took the treaty hostage. His hold on consideration of the treaty eventually got agreement from the Reagan administration to agree not to oppose radiation compensation for Utah citizens, but it still took another five years to get the bill through. TheRadiation Exposure Compensation Act of 1990 provided compensation for citizens injured by radioactive fallout from the tests.[106]
In December 2010, Hatch was one of twenty-six senators who voted against the ratification ofNew Start,[107] a nuclear arms reduction treaty between the United States and Russian Federation obliging both countries to have no more than 1,550 strategic warheads as well as 700 launchers deployed during the next seven years along with providing a continuation of on-site inspections that halted whenSTART I expired the previous year. It was the first arms treaty with Russia in eight years.[108]
Hatch introduced theEnsuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act, narrowing the broad authority of theDEA to suspend drug "manufacturers, distributors, and dispensers".[109] Hatch stated the bill was also written to protect patients from disruptions in the production and delivery of theirprescription drugs, saying that ..."The fact that prescription drugs can be abused should not prevent patients from receiving the medications they need. This bill takes a balanced approach to the problem of prescription drug abuse by clarifying penalties for manufacturing or dispensing outside approved procedures while helping to ensure that supply chains to legitimate users remain intact".[110] The bill passed the Senate unanimously[111] andTom Marino passed a version of the bill in the House.[112] It was then signed by President Barack Obama.[113]
Critics of the bill claim the new law fuels the opioid crisis by limiting the DEA's ability to halt production and distribution by predatory drug companies.[114][115] DEA Chief Administrative Law Judge John J. Mulrooney II wrote in theMarquette Law Review that ..."At a time when, by all accounts, opioid abuse, addiction and deaths were increasing markedly, this new law imposed a dramatic diminution of the agency's authority. It is now all but logically impossible for the DEA to suspend a drug company's operations for failing to comply with federal law."[116] Donald Trump's Attorney GeneralJeff Sessions said he was "dubious" about the law when it passed and joined 44 state attorneys general calling for "repeal or amendment of the law to restore some of the DEA's authority."[117][118] Jim Geldhof, a former DEA program manager who spent 43 years with the DEA called the bill "outrageous. It basically takes any kind of action DEA was going to do with a distributor or manufacturer as far as an immediate suspension off the table. And then the other part of that really infuriates me is that corrective action plan."[119] Mulrooney compared the corrective action plan to one that would "allow bank robbers to round up and return inkstained money and agree not to rob any more banks—all before any of those wrongdoers actually admit fault and without any consequence that might deter such behavior in the future."[120]
Hatch responded to aWashington Post and60 Minutes investigation into the bill by writing aWashington Post opinion article calling the investigation "misleading" and asking to "leave conspiracy theories toNetflix".[121] SenatorSheldon Whitehouse, a co-sponsor of the senate bill, also defended the bill: "This bill was drafted in consultation with the DEA to offer better guidance for companies working to safely and responsibly supply prescription drugs to pharmacies, and to promote better communication and certainty between companies and regulators."[122] RepublicanPat Toomey expressed doubts that a conspiracy existed, but still suggested amending the bill: "I'm a little surprised that it passed unanimously in both houses, was signed by President Obama and got no opposition from the DEA at the time. That's not the way controversial legislation usually ends up, but hey, if there's problems, then we ought to revisit them."[123]
Hatch received $177,000 in donations from the drug industry while pushing the bill through[124] and has received $2,178,863 from the Pharmaceuticals/Health Products industry from 1989 to 2014 according to required filings by theFederal Election Commission.[125]
Hatch was the main author of theReligious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, which protected all religions' right to build facilities on private property.[126] In 2010, Hatch defended the right of a private organization to build a mosque on private property indowntown Manhattan, citing this law and defense of the freedom of religion.[127]
On November 16, 2018, PresidentDonald Trump awarded Hatch the highest civilian honor, thePresidential Medal of Freedom.[128]
Hatch sponsored theDietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, which "all but eliminated government regulation of the dietary and herbal supplements industry." The bill has resulted in the unregulated sale of supplements with misleading labeling that have no beneficial health effects at all, or may have adverse health effects. It was intended to enable the marketing ofquack medicine.[129]
In 1999, Hatch called for a federal probe into manufacturers ofviolent video games, and proposed making the existing voluntary rating system for video games (ESRB) mandatory by federal law.[130]
Hatch pushed legislation for theEqual Opportunity to Govern Amendment, which would amend Article 2, Section I, Clause 5 of theUnited States Constitution. This amendment would allow anyone who has been a U.S. citizen for twenty years to seek the presidency or vice-presidency.[131]
A vocal supporter ofstem cell research, Hatch was one of 58 senators who signed a letter directed to PresidentGeorge W. Bush, requesting the relaxing of federal restrictions on embryonic stem cell research. In 2010, Hatch's bill was reauthorized which allowed stem cells fromumbilical cords to be used to find treatment options.[132]
In June 2013, Hatch commented on aG8 proposal that tax authorities in the world's largest economies openly share information among themselves in order to fighttax evasion. The proposal has strong suggestions about ways to make companies more transparent and governments more accountable for their tax policies. Hatch stated that transparency is always a good thing, but he would like to see a bill before giving any support.[133]
In 2017, Hatch was one of 22 senators to sign a letter[134] to President Donald Trump urging the President to have the United States withdraw from theParis Agreement. According toOpenSecrets, Hatch received over $470,000 from oil, gas, and coal interests from 2012 on.[135]
In 2018, over the JudgeBrett Kavanaugh U.S. Supreme Court controversy, Hatch said that it did not matter even if Kavanaugh did what his accusers alleged was true. Hatch said, "If that was true, I think it would be hard for senators to not consider who the judge is today. That's the issue. Is this judge a really good man? And he is. And by any measure he is.”[136]
Hatch voted for the impeachment of President Bill Clinton in 1999, saying "committing crimes of moral turpitude such as perjury and obstruction of justice go to the heart of qualification for public office ... This great nation can tolerate a president who makes mistakes. But it cannot tolerate one who makes a mistake and then breaks the law to cover it up. Any other citizen would be prosecuted for these crimes."[137] In 2018, in the wake of court filings that implicated President Trump in campaign finance violations and in attempting to buy the silence of women who alleged affairs with Trump, Hatch said, "I don't care, all I can say is he's doing a good job as president."[138][139][137]
In April 2018, Hatch was one of eight Republican senators to sign a letter toUnited States Secretary of the TreasurySteven Mnuchin and actingU.S. Secretary of StateJohn Sullivan expressing "deep concern" over a report by theUnited Nations exposing "North Korean sanctions evasion involving Russia and China" and asserting that the findings "demonstrate an elaborate and alarming military-venture between rogue, tyrannical states to avoid United States and international sanctions and inflict terror and death upon thousands of innocent people" while calling it "imperative that the United States provides a swift and appropriate response to the continued use ofchemical weapons used byPresident Assad and his forces, and works to address the shortcomings in sanctions enforcement."[140]
Hatch's son Scott Hatch was formerly a partner and registered lobbyist at Walker, Martin & Hatch LLC, a Washington D.C. lobbying firm. The firm was formed in 2001 with Jack Martin, a staff aide to Hatch for six years, and H. Laird Walker, described as a close associate of the senator.[147] In March 2003, theLos Angeles Times reported that the firm was formed with Hatch's personal encouragement and that he saw no conflict of interest in working on issues that involved his son's clients.[148] In 2009,The Washington Times reported that Hatch said "My son, Scott, does not lobby me or anyone in my office".[147]
In March 2009,The Washington Times reported that the pharmaceutical industry, which has benefited from Hatch's legislative efforts, had previously unreported connections to Hatch. In 2007, five pharmaceutical companies and the industry's main trade association,Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), donated $172,500 to theUtah Families Foundation—a charitable foundation which Hatch helped start in the 1990s and continued to support. Walker, Martin & Hatch LLC was paid $120,000 by PhRMA in 2007 to lobby Congress on pendingU.S. Food and Drug Administration legislation.[147] Hatch and his son also had close ties to the dietary supplement industry, which Hatch deregulated in 1994.[129]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General election | ||||
| Republican | Orrin Hatch | 290,221 | 53.73 | |
| Democratic | Frank Moss (incumbent) | 241,948 | 44.80 | |
| American Independent | George M. Batchelor | 4,913 | 0.91 | |
| Libertarian | Steve Trotter | 3,026 | 0.56 | |
| Total votes | 540,108 | 100.00 | ||
| Republicangain fromDemocratic | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Orrin Hatch (incumbent) | 309,332 | 58.28 | |
| Democratic | Ted Wilson | 219,482 | 41.35 | |
| Libertarian | George Mercier | 1,035 | 0.19 | |
| American | Lawrence R. Kauffman | 953 | 0.19 | |
| Total votes | 530,802 | 100.00 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Orrin Hatch (incumbent) | 430,084 | 67.13 | |
| Democratic | Brian Moss | 203,364 | 31.74 | |
| American | Robert J. Smith | 6,016 | 0.94 | |
| Socialist Workers | William M. Arth | 1,233 | 0.19 | |
| Total votes | 640,697 | 100.00 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Orrin Hatch (incumbent) | 357,297 | 68.80 | |
| Democratic | Patrick Shea | 146,938 | 28.30 | |
| Independent | Craig Oliver | 9,550 | 1.84 | |
| American | Gary Van Horn | 2,543 | 0.49 | |
| Socialist Workers | Nelson Gonzalez | 1,514 | 0.29 | |
| American Independent | Lawrence Topham | 1,462 | 0.28 | |
| Total votes | 519,304 | 100.00 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Orrin Hatch (incumbent) | 504,803 | 65.58 | |
| Democratic | Scott Howell | 242,569 | 31.51 | |
| American Independent | Carlton Edward Bowen | 11,938 | 1.55 | |
| Libertarian | Jim Dexter | 10,394 | 1.35 | |
| Total votes | 769,704 | 100.00 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | Orrin Hatch (incumbent) | 356,238 | 62.36 | |
| Democratic | Pete Ashdown | 177,459 | 31.06 | |
| Constitution | Scott Bradley | 21,526 | 3.77 | |
| Personal Choice | Roger Price | 9,089 | 1.59 | |
| Libertarian | Dave Seely | 4,428 | 0.78 | |
| Green | Julian Hatch | 2,512 | 0.44 | |
| Total votes | 571,252 | 100.00 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Republican | Orrin Hatch (incumbent) | 146,394 | 66.5 | |
| Republican | Dan Liljenquist | 73,668 | 33.5 | |
| Total votes | 220,062 | 100.00 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Republican | Orrin Hatch (incumbent) | 657,608 | 65.31 | |
| Democratic | Scott Howell | 301,873 | 29.98 | |
| Constitution | Shaun McCausland | 31,905 | 3.17 | |
| Justice | Daniel Geery | 8,342 | 0.83 | |
| Independent | Bill Barron | 7,172 | 0.71 | |
| Total votes | 1,006,901 | 100.00 | ||
| Republicanhold | ||||
Hatch married Elaine Hansen on August 28, 1957. They had six children.[149] In January 2024, his son, Brent, declared his candidacy to replaceMitt Romney as aUnited States Senator for Utah in the2024 election.[150]
Hatch was a lifelong member ofthe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).[151] Although he was born in Pennsylvania, his parents had been raised in Utah and he had ancestors who were members of the LDS Church inNauvoo, Illinois. Hatch served as aLatter-day Saint missionary in what was called the "Great Lakes StatesMission" essentially covering large parts of Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. Hatch later served in various positions in the church, including as abishop.[152][153]
Hatch was a founder and co-chair of theFederalist Society, an organization of conservative lawyers.[154]
Hatch served as a member of the board of directors of theUnited States Holocaust Memorial Museum.[155] In a 1996 interview on60 Minutes, Hatch said he wears amezuzah necklace in order to remind himself that anotherHolocaust should never be allowed to occur.[156]
Despite their political differences, Hatch was a longtime friend of fellow senatorTed Kennedy,[157] spoke at his memorial service in 2009,[158] and publicly suggested Kennedy's widow,Victoria Reggie, as a replacement for Kennedy in the Senate.[159]
Hatch was a close friend ofMuhammad Ali. Ali campaigned for Hatch when he was running for re-election in the Senate. The senator later spoke at Ali's funeral in 2016.
Hatch died inSalt Lake City on April 23, 2022, aged 88, from complications of astroke he had the week prior.[1][160] He is buried inNewton.[161]
Hatch played the piano, violin, and organ. Fueled by his interest in poetry, Hatch composed songs for many artists. One of his songs, "Unspoken", went platinum after appearing onWOW Hits 2005, a compilation ofChristian pop music.[162] He co-authored "Everything and More", sung byBilly Gilman. In addition to serving as a United States senator, Hatch earned over $10,000 as anLDS musical recording artist.[163]
Rock musicianFrank Zappa composed a guitar instrumental entitled "Orrin Hatch on Skis", which appears on his 1988 album,Guitar.[164]
In March 1997, Hatch andJanice Kapp Perry jointly recorded an album with Tree Music entitledMy God Is Love.[165] Hatch's later albums with Perry included "Come to the Manger".[166]
Hatch appeared as himself, alongsideChuck Grassley, inSteven Soderbergh's 2000 Oscar-winning dramaTraffic, in a brief cameo in a scene set during a Washington, D.C. cocktail party.[167] Soderbergh later featured one of Hatch's songs, "Souls Along The Way," in his filmOcean's 12 as background music for a scene in Hatch's home state of Utah.[168]
Hatch and Janice Kapp Perry co-wrote the song "Heal Our Land", which was performed atGeorge W. Bush's January 2005 inauguration.[169][170]
Hatch, along with Lowell Alexander and Phil Naish, composed the 2006 song "Blades of Grass and Pure White Stones".[171][172]
Hatch's likeness was featured in the30 Rock episode "Jack Gets in the Game", aired in 2007, as one ofDr. Leo Spaceman's famous clients.[173]
In 2009, at the request ofThe Atlantic correspondentJeffrey Goldberg, Hatch authored the lyrics to "Eight Days of Hanukkah",[170] described by Goldberg as "a hip hop Hannukah song written by the senior senator from Utah."[174][175]
Hatch appeared in a 2015 scene in theParks and Recreation episode "Ms. Ludgate-Dwyer Goes to Washington" alongsideCory Booker.[176]
Hatch had been awarded the following:
Commander of theOrder of the Star of Romania, Romania (June 8, 2017)[179][180]
Order of Duke Branimir, Republic of Croatia (October 29, 2018)[181].svg)
Presidential Medal of Freedom (November 16, 2018)[128]I was born and raised in Pittsburgh.
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forU.S. Senator from Utah (Class 1) 1976,1982,1988,1994,2000,2006,2012 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | United States Senator (Class 1) from Utah 1977–2019 Served alongside:Jake Garn,Bob Bennett,Mike Lee | Succeeded by Mitt Romney |
| Preceded by | Chair of theSenate Labor Committee 1981–1987 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Ted Kennedy | Ranking Member of theSenate Labor Committee 1987–1993 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Ranking Member of theSenate Judiciary Committee 1993–1995 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Joe Biden | Chair of theSenate Judiciary Committee 1995–2001, 2001 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Patrick Leahy | Ranking Member of theSenate Judiciary Committee 2001, 2001–2003 | |
| Chair of theSenate Judiciary Committee 2003–2005 | Succeeded by | |
| Preceded by | Ranking Member of theSenate Finance Committee 2011–2015 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Ron Wyden | Chair of theSenate Finance Committee 2015–2019 | Succeeded by Chuck Grassley |
| Preceded by | Chair of theJoint Taxation Committee 2016–2017 | Succeeded by Kevin Brady |
| Chair of theJoint Taxation Committee 2018–2019 | Succeeded by | |
| New office | Chair of theJoint Pensions Committee 2018–2019 | Position abolished |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by | Most seniorRepublican in theUnited States Senate 2013–2019 | Succeeded by Chuck Grassley |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Patrick Leahy | President pro tempore of the United States Senate 2015–2019 | Succeeded by Chuck Grassley |
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