Paul Cook
Official portrait, 2020
Vice Chair ofSan Bernardino County
In office January 10, 2023 – January 8, 2025
Preceded by	Dawn Rowe
Succeeded by	Joe Baca Jr.
Member of theSan Bernardino County Board of Supervisors from the 1st district
Incumbent
Assumed office December 7, 2020
Preceded by	Robert Lovingood
Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia's8th district
In office January 3, 2013 – December 7, 2020
Preceded by	Jerry Lewis
Succeeded by	Jay Obernolte
Member of theCalifornia State Assembly from the65th district
In office December 4, 2006 – November 30, 2012
Preceded by	Russ Bogh
Succeeded by	Sharon Quirk-Silva
Personal details
Born	Paul Joseph Cook (1943-03-03)March 3, 1943 (age 82) Meriden, Connecticut, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Jeanne Cook
Education	Southern Connecticut State University (BS) California State University, San Bernardino (MPA) University of California, Riverside (MA)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Marine Corps
Years of service	1966–1992[citation needed]
Rank	Colonel
Battles/wars	Vietnam War
Awards	Bronze Star Purple Heart (2)

Paul Joseph Cook (born March 3, 1943) is an American politician serving as aSan Bernardino County Supervisor since 2020, previously serving as theU.S. representative forCalifornia's 8th congressional district from 2013 to 2020. A member of theRepublican Party, Cook also served on theYucca Valley Town Council from 1998 to 2006 and represented the65th district in theCalifornia State Assembly from 2006 to 2012.

In September 2019, Cook announced that he would not run for re-election to Congress in2020, and instead run for a seat on theSan Bernardino CountyBoard of Supervisors.^[1] In the March 3, 2020 primary election, Cook defeated three opponents with an outright majority to avoid a November runoff and succeed Robert A. Lovingood, making him the new supervisor from San Bernardino County's 1st district.^[2] Cook resigned his U.S. House seat and assumed his new office on December 7, 2020.

Cook was born inMeriden, Connecticut in 1943. He was raised in Meriden and did not permanently move to California until the end of his military career. In 1966, he graduated fromSouthern Connecticut State University, earning a B.S. in teaching.

Later that year, he joined theUnited States Marine Corps. As an infantry officer, Cook served in theVietnam War.^[3] His actions in combat earned him many honors, including theBronze Star and twoPurple Hearts. He served in the Marine Corps for 26 years.^[4]

After he retired from the Marine Corps in 1992 as a colonel, he earned anMPA fromCalifornia State University, San Bernardino in 1996 and a master's in political science fromUniversity of California Riverside in 2000.

From 1993 to 1994, he was Director of Yucca Valley Chamber of Commerce. From 1998 to 2002, he was a professor atCopper Mountain College. Cook taught courses on political violence and terrorism atUniversity of California Riverside since 2002.^[5]

In 2006, Cook ran for California's 65th Assembly District. Cook won a five candidate Republican primary field with 29% of the vote.^[6] In the general election, Cook defeated Democrat Rita Ramirez-Dean 60%–37%.^[7] In 2008, he won re-election to a second term, defeating Democrat Carl Wood 53%–47%.^[8][9] In 2010, he won re-election to a third term, defeating Wood again 58%–42%.^[10]

The 65th district included the cities ofBanning,Beaumont,Big Bear Lake,Calimesa,Cherry Valley,Hemet,Moreno Valley,Perris,San Jacinto,Sun City,Twentynine Palms,Yucaipa,Yucca Valley and other smaller communities and unincorporated areas inRiverside County,San Bernardino County,Inyo County andMono County.

The California Chamber of Commerce and the California Taxpayers Association gave Cook a perfect 100% rating, 2007–2011.^[11] In 2010, DemocraticSpeaker of the AssemblyJohn Pérez appointed Cook to chair the Veterans Affairs Committee, the first time a Democratic speaker had appointed a Republican to chair a committee since 2002.^[12]

• Accountability and Administrative Review Committee
• Budget Committee
• Emergency Management Committee
• Governmental Organization Committee
• Higher Education Committee
• Inland Empire Transportation Issues Committee
• Master Plan for Higher Education
• Preservation of California's Entertainment Industry Committee
• Sunset Review Committee
• Veterans Affairs Committee (Chair)^[13]
• Judiciary Committee

In January 2012, 34-year incumbentJerry Lewis announced he would not seek re-election in November. Cook entered the primary for the district, which had been renumbered from the 41st to the 8th in redistricting. He finished second in the 13-candidate all-party open primary. He earned 15% of the vote. Fellow Republican and conservative activist Gregg Imus ranked first with 16% of the vote.^[14] Cook was endorsed by the California Off-Road Vehicle Association (CORVA) past presidents, theSan Bernardino Sun, National Vietnam and Gulf War Veterans Coalition, the County Farm Bureau, state AssemblymanSteve Knight, state SenatorSharon Runner, and U.S. CongressmanEd Royce.^[15] In the November election, Cook defeated Imus 58%–42%.^[16]

In 2013, Cook co-signed a letter to then-presidentBarack Obama, urging him to finalize theKeystone XL pipeline, stating that it was about "jobs, jobs jobs." He also expressed fear thatChina "is ready to take advantage of America's missteps with the Keystone pipeline."^[17]

Early in 2017, Cook voted in favor ofrepealing the Affordable Care Act. His reason for voting for the repeal was to ensure that "every American has access to quality care to fit their budget."^[18] In August 2017, he voted in favor of outlawinglate term abortions, unless the woman was a victim of rape or incest or that her life was threatened.^[19]

Cook voted in favor of theTax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.^[20] By voting for the bill, Cook says that the bill will "deliver crucial tax relief for middle-class and low-income Americans." He voted for this bill because more than 90 percent of taxpaying constituents will receive a tax break. He also supports it because it simplifies the tax code.^[21]

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces
  • Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces
• Committee on Foreign Affairs
  • Subcommittee on Europe and Eurasia
  • Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade
• Committee on Veterans' Affairs
  • Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
  • Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity

• Congressional Cement Caucus
• House Baltic Caucus^[22]
• Republican Main Street Partnership^[23]
• Congressional Western Caucus^[24]

In the first session of the115th United States Congress, Cook was ranked the 33rd most bipartisan member of theHouse by the Bipartisan Index, a metric published byThe Lugar Center andGeorgetown'sMcCourt School of Public Policy to assesscongressional bipartisanship.^[25]

Cook opposes abortion,^[26] as well asCommon Core State Standards.^[26]

Cook supports repealing theAffordable Care Act ("Obamacare"). He supports legislation that "decreases premiums, makes it easier for employers to offer affordable healthcare options for their employees, and allows greater freedom for people to purchase a plan of their choice."^[18]

Cook believes that theDeferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is unconstitutional.^[27]

Cook resides inApple Valley, California with his wife, Jeanne.^[28]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toPaul Cook (politician).

• Appearances onC-SPAN
• Biography at theBiographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at theFederal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at theLibrary of Congress
• Profile atVote Smart
• Join California Paul Cook

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