Susan Molinari | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference|Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference | |
| In office January 3, 1995 – July 17, 1997 | |
| Leader | Newt Gingrich |
| Preceded by | Bill McCollum |
| Succeeded by | Jennifer Dunn |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew York | |
| In office March 20, 1990 – August 2, 1997 | |
| Preceded by | Guy Molinari |
| Succeeded by | Vito Fossella |
| Constituency | 14th district (1990–1993) 13th district (1993–1997) |
| Member of theNew York City Council from the1st district | |
| In office January 1, 1986 – March 20, 1990 | |
| Preceded by | Frank Fossella |
| Succeeded by | Fred Cerullo |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1958-03-27)March 27, 1958 (age 67) New York City,New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Guy Molinari (father) |
| Education | State University of New York, Albany (BA) |
Susan Molinari (born March 27, 1958) is an American politician, company executive, journalist, and lobbyist from New York. A member of theRepublican Party, she sat in theU.S. House of Representatives from 1990 to 1997, representingStaten Island for three terms. Molinari, who was considered a rising star in the party, was selected to deliver the keynote address at the1996 Republican National Convention. However, the next year, she resigned from Congress to become a television journalist forCBS News. Later, she became a vice president for public policy at Google from 2012 to 2018.[1]
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Molinari was born inStaten Island, New York, the daughter of Marguerite (Wing) and lawyer and perennial Republican politicianGuy Molinari. She is the granddaughter of Italian-born Republican politicianS. Robert Molinari.
She graduated from the then SUNY Albany (now called theUniversity at Albany, The State University of New York). She served on theNew York City Council before winning a special election to the House of Representatives in 1990 as aRepublican to replace her father, who retired from Congress to become Staten Island Borough President.[2]
Molinari is a member of the Advisory Board forWeProtect which is a global non-profit cooperation with the goal to protect children online and stop the crime of onlinechild sexual abuse and exploitation.[3]
On January 1, 1990, her father, incumbent Republican U.S. RepresentativeGuy Molinari, decided to resign in order to becomeBorough President ofStaten Island. She ran for her father's seat in Staten Island-based14th congressional district. On the eve of the special election,The New York Times endorsed Molinari because she "promises to add a moderate Republican voice to the city's Democratic-dominated congressional delegation". In March 1990, she defeated Robert Gigante 59% to 35%.[4]
After redistricting, she ran inNew York's 13th congressional district. She won the Republican primary with 75%.[5] In the general election, she defeated NYC CouncilmemberSal Albanese 56%–38% and was elected to her first full term.[6]
She won re-election to her second full term with 71% of the vote.[7]
She won re-election to her third full term with 62% of the vote.[8] She resigned effective August 2, 1997.
While in the House of Representatives, Molinari was among the moremoderate and liberal members of the Republican Party.
She signed on to the Republicans' 1994Contract with America, which promised abalanced budget amendment to theU.S. Constitution, and opposed the placing of U.S. troops under UN command. Concerning social policy, she leaned more liberal than many of her Republican colleagues. Molinari supportedabortion rights, but stated onCNN in January 2012 that, after having children, she is nowanti-abortion.[9] She also sided with the Democrats in voting for theFamily and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), a cornerstone ofBill Clinton's social policy. She offset these positions with her own standing as a new mother, framing her outlook in terms of "family values", and in fact energetically campaigned for fellow Republicans with whom she disagreed on both abortion and FMLA. She favored reduction ofSocial Security taxes, middle class tax cuts, and tax credits for families. Molinari worked withChristopher O. Ward to acquire the Staten Island Railroad to re-establish freight service to theHowland Hook Marine Terminal.[10]
On issues of crime and punishment, she favored extended use of the federal death penalty and other restrictions. Molinari is also remembered for her role as principal sponsor ofFederal Rules of Evidence 413-15.[11] As Molinari put it on the House floor in 1994, the rules "strengthen the legal system's tools for bringing the perpetrators of these atrocious crimes to justice."[12]
In her autobiography she intimated that the tense ideological atmosphere within the Republican Party after they won majority in the House and GeorgianNewt Gingrich became Speaker contributed to her unease. Molinari gave the keynote speech at the1996 Republican National Convention, but resigned from the House in June 1997 to take a job as a television journalist forCBS.[13]
When first elected, she received assignments on theSmall Business Committee andPublic Works committees. In the 102nd Congress (1991–1993), she traded those assignments to take a seat on theEducation and Labor Committee. When the Republicans took control of the House in the 104th Congress (1995–1997), Molinari traded in her Education/Labor seat for a place on theHouse Budget Committee.[14]
She was vice chairwoman of the Republican Conference and Republican Policy Committee.[15][16]
AtCBS, Molinari was co-host of news programCBS This Morning for about nine months until 1998. Her hiring was controversial from the very beginning; Although Molinari had earned degrees incommunication, her major professional credentials were political, and her main national public recognition came from her speech at theRepublican National Convention. Media critics asked whether a partisan politician could reasonably be expected to maintainobjectivity. Others at the time criticized her on-air demeanor as either too "stiff" or too "perky", or attacked her interviews as superficial. Conservatives accused her of "selling out". Although allegedly CBS had first tried to respond to these criticisms by switching Molinari into "home and garden" journalism, the official comment from CBS executives was that they thought her better suited to political commentary, and had no such position available.[citation needed]
Molinari announced she was pregnant at the end of her nine-month run at CBS. Her second child was born in late January 1999.[17]
Molinari later hosted a public affairs show calledThe Flipside and has been a frequent guest commentator on major political talk shows.[18]
After a stint as alobbyist on her own, Molinari joined the Washington Group in October 2001, becoming the lobbying firm's president and chief executive.[19]
Molinari joined the law and public policy firmBracewell & Giuliani in 2008 as a senior principal. The firm is home to former New York City MayorRudolph Giuliani and has a well-established government relations and strategic communications practice. Previously, she was president of Ketchum Public Affairs and also served as chief executive officer ofKetchum Inc.'s lobbying firm, The Washington Group, where she served as its chairman. In 2006 Molinari's firm received $300,062 from home mortgage giantFreddie Mac to lobby on their behalf.[20]
Molinari supports the Rape Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN), which operates a telephone hotline in conjunction with more than 1,000 rape crisis centers nationwide. The group also sponsors outreach programs on college campuses. Her activities have included sponsoring legislation, and more recently heading a task force directed toward developing an Internet-based counterpart to the existing hotline.
Molinari also serves as Chair ofThe Century Council, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to fightingdrunk driving and underage drinking by advocating and facilitating education, communications, research, law enforcement, and other programs. In its fight against these types ofalcohol abuse, the Council is funded by "America's leading distillers" of alcoholic liquor, includingBacardi, Inc. and several other liquor manufacturers.
Although she has maintained a public face, Molinari's subsequent political activities have been largely behind the scenes. She supportedGeorge W. Bush'selection in 2000, but joined with more moderate members of her party such asGerald Ford,David Rockefeller, andRichard Riordan in forming theRepublican Unity Coalition, which opposed Bush's decision to support an amendment to theU.S. Constitution banninggay marriage.
Molinari did not seek elected office in 2006, bucking speculation that she would run againstDemocratic SenatorHillary Clinton. She served as an adviser to former New York City MayorRudy Giuliani's (R)2008 presidential campaign. There was early speculation she might consider running formayor of New York City in2009, but she never did. In January 2010, Molinari confirmed that she was seriously considering a Senate bid against U.S. SenatorKirsten Gillibrand, before issuing a public statement three days later saying that she had decided not to run.
In 2013 Molinari was a signatory to anamicus curiae brief submitted to the Supreme Court in support of same-sex marriage during theHollingsworth v. Perry case.[21]
In 2020, it was announced that she would speak at the2020 Democratic National Convention in support of Democratic presidential nomineeJoe Biden, becoming one of two one-time U.S. political party convention keynote speakers, along withZell Miller, to speak at a convention for the opposite party.[22]
Molinari is also a member of theAtlantic Council's[23] Board of Directors.
Molinari married fellow U.S. RepresentativeBill Paxon on July 3, 1994, after having previously been married to John Lucchesi. She and Paxon have two daughters, and reside inAlexandria, Virginia as of 2006[update].[24]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minority Leader of theNew York City Council 1986–1990 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew York's 14th congressional district 1990–1993 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromNew York's 13th congressional district 1993–1997 | Succeeded by |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by | Baby of the House 1990–1991 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference 1995–1997 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Keynote Speaker of theRepublican National Convention 1996 | Succeeded by |
| Media offices | ||
| New title | Co-Host ofCBS Saturday Morning 1997–1998 Served alongside:Russ Mitchell | 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 |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
