Spencer Abraham | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2001 | |
| 10thUnited States Secretary of Energy | |
| In office January 20, 2001 – January 31, 2005 | |
| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Bill Richardson |
| Succeeded by | Samuel Bodman |
| United States Senator fromMichigan | |
| In office January 3, 1995 – January 3, 2001 | |
| Preceded by | Donald Riegle |
| Succeeded by | Debbie Stabenow |
| Chair of theMichigan Republican Party | |
| In office 1983–1991 | |
| Preceded by | Melvin L. Larsen |
| Succeeded by | David J. Doyle |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Edward Spencer Abraham (1952-06-12)June 12, 1952 (age 73) East Lansing, Michigan, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | Jane Abraham |
| Education | Michigan State University (BA) Harvard University (JD) |
| Awards | Lebanese National Order of the Cedar (Commander Class) |
Edward Spencer Abraham (born June 12, 1952) is an American attorney, author, and politician who served as the 10thUnited States secretary of energy from 2001 to 2005, under PresidentGeorge W. Bush. A member of theRepublican Party, he previously served as aUnited States Senator fromMichigan from 1995 to 2001. Abraham is one of the founders of theFederalist Society, and a co-founder of theHarvard Journal of Law & Public Policy. As of 2026, he is the last Republican to have served as a U.S. senator from Michigan.
Abraham was born inEast Lansing, Michigan, the son of Juliette Elizabeth (Sear), a member of the Michigan Republican State Central Committee, and Eddie Joseph Abraham.[1] He is a graduate ofEast Lansing High School. OfLebanese descent, Abraham is married to Jane Abraham, chair of theSusan B. Anthony List. They have three children. He holds aJuris Doctor (J.D.) degree fromHarvard University, and is a 1974Honors College graduate ofMichigan State University. In 1978, while atHarvard Law School, Abraham helped found theHarvard Journal of Law & Public Policy,[2] which became one of the official journals of theFederalist Society, which was founded in 1982.
Before his election to the Senate, Abraham was a law professor atThomas M. Cooley Law School.
He was elected chairman of theMichigan Republican Party from 1983 to 1990. He was deputy chief of staff for Vice PresidentDan Quayle from 1990 to 1991. He later served as co-chairman of theNational Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) from 1991 to 1993 and ran for chairman of theRepublican National Committee in 1993, coming second toHaley Barbour.
Abraham was elected to representMichigan in theUnited States Senate in1994, and he served until 2001 after being defeated for reelection in2000 byDebbie Stabenow. He was the onlyLebanese American in the chamber. According to theNew York Times, state Republicans attributed his loss to "scathing advertisements by a wide range of special interest groups, including advertisements that criticized Mr. Abraham's support for a relaxation of some immigration restrictions".[3] During the campaign, theFederation for American Immigration Reform, an anti-immigration advocacy group with ties towhite nationalism,[4] ran ads asking: "Why is Senator Spencer Abraham trying to make it easier for terrorists like Osama bin Laden to export their war of terror to any city street in America?"[5][6][7] The media denounced these commercials as "vengeful".[8] In 1996, when President Bill Clinton endorsed RepresentativeBarbara Jordan's proposed cuts to legal immigration, Abraham played a leading role in blocking the cuts.[9] Another factor in his defeat was his vote to convict Clinton in his1999 impeachment trial.[10] The next year he received the "Defender of the Melting Pot" award from theNational Council of La Raza for his efforts on immigration.[11]
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Abraham served on the Budget, Commerce, Science and Transportation, Judiciary, andSmall Business Committees. He also chaired two subcommittees: Manufacturing and Competitiveness, and Immigration. Abraham authored the H1B Visa in Global and National Commerce Act, establishing a federal framework for online contracts and signatures; the Government Paperwork Elimination Act, and the Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, which protects Internetdomain names for businesses and persons againstcopyright andtrademark infringements. In 1999, Abraham co-sponsored S.896, a bill to abolish theU.S. Department of Energy, which would have transferred control of theStrategic Petroleum Reserve in large part to theDefense Department.[12]
In 2001,George W. Bush appointed AbrahamSecretary of Energy. On November 15, 2004, Abraham announced that he would resign from this position, effective with the swearing-in of his successor,Samuel W. Bodman, on February 1, 2005.
In 2004, Lebanese AmbassadorFarid Abboud awarded Abraham theNational Order of the Cedar.[13]
From 2005 to 2007, Abraham was a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at theHoover Institution, a think tank based atStanford University. After leaving office, he opened The Abraham Group,[14] a Washington DC–based international strategic consulting firm, of which he is chairman and CEO.[15][16]
On July 24, 2007, Abraham was announced as an "ambassador to official Washington" forFred Thompson's2008 presidential campaign.[17]
In 2006, Abraham was appointed Non-Executive Chairman of the Board of AREVA Inc., the American arm of the French nuclear companyAreva, which is planning to buildEPR nuclear power plants in the United States and is building themixed oxide fuel (MOX) manufacturing plant at theSavannah River Site to convert legacy weapons-grade plutonium into power station fuel.[15][18]
With William Tucker, Abraham wroteLights Out!: Ten Myths About (and Real Solutions to) America's Energy Crisis (2010).
In 2016, Abraham was elected to the board of trustees of theCalifornia Institute of Technology.[19]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Debbie Stabenow | 2,061,952 | 49.5 | ||
| Republican | Spencer Abraham (Incumbent) | 1,994,693 | 47.9 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Spencer Abraham | 1,577,865 | 52 | ||
| Democratic | Bob Carr | 1,298,726 | 43 | ||
| Libertarian | Jon Coon | 127,783 | 4 | ||
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Chair of theMichigan Republican Party 1983–1991 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forU.S. Senator fromMichigan (Class 1) 1994,2000 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. Senator (Class 1) from Michigan 1995–2001 Served alongside:Carl Levin | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | United States Secretary of Energy 2001–2005 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Cabinet Member | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Cabinet Member | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Cabinet Member |
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