Ken Calvert
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| Ken Calvert | |
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| In office 1993 - present |
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| Preceded by | Mary Bono |
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| Succeeded by | Incumbent |
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| Born | June 8, 1953 Corona, California |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Divorced |
| Religion | Congregationalist |
Kenneth Stanton (Ken) Calvert (born June 8, 1953), an American politician, has been a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives since 1993, representing California's 44th congressional district. The district is part of the Inland Empire area of Southern California.
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[edit] Early life, education, and early career
Calvert was born in Corona, California, and still lives there. In 1970, shortly after high school, he joined the campaigns of former state legislator Victor Veysey. Calvert worked in Veysey's Washington, D.C., office as an intern after a 1972 victory.
Calvert received an associate of arts degree from Chaffey Community College in 1973 and a bachelors of arts degree San Diego State University in 1975. After graduation, he managed his family's restaurant, the Jolly Fox, in Corona for five years. He then entered the real estate industry and ran Ken Calvert Real Properties until he was elected to Congress.
In 1983, at age 29, Calvert made his first run for Congress. He narrowly lost the Republican primary in the 37th District to Riverside County Supervisor Al McCandless.
[edit] Congressional career
[edit] Elections
Calvert was first elected to the House in 1992, with 47% of the vote (a plurality, but he was the highest vote-getter), defeating Democrat Mark A. Takano. He was re-elected in 1994 with 55 percent, again defeating Takano.
In 1996, he was re-elected with 54 percent of the vote, defeating Democrat Guy Kimbrough. In 1998 he defeated Democrat Mike Rayburn with 55 percent of the vote. Calvert won again in 2000 with 74 percent of the vote, facing no major-party opposition.
Calvert was re-elected in 2002, defeating Louis Vandenberg with 64 percent of the vote. He defeated Vandenberg again in 2004 with 61 percent of the vote. Vandenberg, a college administrator, was again Calvert's opponent in the November 2006 election.[1] Calvert won with 59.6 percent of the vote; Vandenburg got 37.5 percent. [1]
[edit] Committees
Calvert is on the House Armed Services Committee, the House Resources Committee, and the House Science Committee. For the last, he is the Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics.
[edit] Other
Calvert is a member of The Republican Main Street Partnership and a co-chair to the Congressional Caucus to Fight and Control Methamphetamine (Meth Caucus).
Calvert giving a floor speech in the House of Representatives said of Bill Clinton's private life, "We can't forgive what occurred between the President and Lewinsky."
[edit] Controversies
In September 2006, Calvert was named one of the "20 Most Corrupt Members of Congress" in a report by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The organization said "His ethics issues stem from his use of earmarks for personal gain and his connections to a lobbying firm under investigation."[2]
[edit] Solicitation of prostitution
In 1993 Calvert was arrested for soliciting a prostitute.[3] The Riverside Press-Enterprise went to court to force the Corona police to release the police report. In that report, the arresting officer wrote:
"I observed a male subject in the driver seat... As I made my way to the driver door, a female immediately sat up straight in the front passenger seat. It appeared as if her head was originally laying in the driver's lap... Both subjects were extremely nervous. I noticed that the male subject was placing his penis into his unzipped dress slacks, and was trying to hide it with his untucked dress shirt... The male subject started his vehicle and placed it into drive and proceeded to leave. I ordered him three times to turn off the vehicle, and he finally stopped and complied... The male identified himself as Kenneth Stanton Calvert... and stated 'We're just talking that's all, nothing else.' ...I spoke with Linberg separately. I asked her if she had ever been arrested for anything, and she said, 'Yes, for prostitution and under the influence of heroin.' Linberg said she had last 'shot up' approximately one week prior and is currently on methadone."
[edit] Personal crisis
Also in 1993, Calvert and his former wife, Robin, were divorced after 15 years of marriage. His ex-wife later accused him of not paying the alimony arranged. In addition, his father committed suicide. After these experiences, Calvert said that the experiences "have helped me mature greatly... and become a better person."[4]
[edit] Real estate investments
A map of Calvert's recent real estate holdings and those of a partner, Woodrow Harpole Jr., show many of them near the transportation projects he has supported with federal appropriations. For example, Calvert and Harpole own properties close to a bus depot in Corona for which Calvert sought funding. According to development experts, improvements to the transportation infrastructure have contributed to the area's explosive growth.
Calvert said he had used earmarking solely to benefit his district. Those appropriations, he said, have had nothing to do with his investments or financial gains. Noting that property values have climbed throughout the Inland Empire, he added: "They haven't passed a law against investing yet."
Calvert's May 2005 financial disclosure statement showed that he owned eight parcels of land, most in Riverside County, as of December 31, 2004.[5]
[edit] March Air Reserve Base
In 2005, Calvert and Harpole paid $550,000 for a 4.3 acre parcel just south of March Air Reserve Base. Calvert's real estate firm, where Calvert's brother, Quint, is the president,[6] and Halpole is vice president, received brokerage fees from the seller, Rod Smith of Greeley, Colorado, for representing both buyer and seller in the deal. Less than a year later, Calvert and Harpole sold the property for nearly $1 million. During the time he owned the land, Calvert used the earmarking process to secure $8 million in federal funds for a freeway interchange 16 miles from the property, and an additional $1.5 million to support commercial development of the area around the base.
[edit] Cajalco and I-15 interchange
In early summer 2005, Harpole bought property with a group of investors at 20330 Temescal Canyon Road, a few blocks from the site of the what was then a proposed interchange at Cajalco and I-15. The purchase price was $975,000. Within six months, after the bill passed which provided federal funding for the interchange, they sold the parcel for $1.45 million. Calvert's firm took a commission on the sale.[5]
[edit] Jurupa CS District
In the spring of 2006, Calvert and Harpole purchased 4 acres of land from Jurupa Community Services District, a water and sewer district in northwestern Riverside County, for $1.2 million, along with five investment partners who jointly had a one-third interest. A newspaper investigation reported in August 2006 that the district first offered the land to other public agencies, a requirement of state law intended to provide more recreational land. The district's general manager said other agencies were notified, but representatives of those agencies said they received no such notice. The district could not provide evidence of the notification, saying relevant files had been misplaced.
The community services district did not advertise or list the land for sale, a practice required by counties and many other public agencies seeking top dollar on behalf of taxpayers. District general manager Carole McGreevy, who is stepping down from that position in late 2006 and retiring in late 2007, said the district proclaimed the land surplus in the early 1990s after it was no longer needed for flood control. The record of that decision was among the missing documents, as was the updated appraisal that McGreevy said was done in May 2005.
The land could have served as the only community park in a predominately Hispanic, lower-income neighborhood in Mira Loma. The Calvert partnership plans to build a mini-storage business.[6]
[edit] Connections to lobbyists
Calvert went with businessman Thomas Kontogiannis and now-convicted Congressman Randy Cunningham on a December 2004 trip to Saudi Arabia. They were accompanied by Rancho Santa Fe businessman Ziyad Abduljawad, who paid for the trip. Kontogiannis is currently an unindicted co-conspirator (#3) in the Cunningham scandal.[7]
The activities of lobbying firm Copeland, Lowery, Jacquez, Denton and White (now dissolved) is currently under investigation by a federal grand jury. On May 23, 2006, the FBI obtained Calvert's financial records at the same time it pulled the records of Representative Jerry Lewis, who is at the center of the Copeland Lowery lobbying controversy. Calvert helped pass through at least 13 earmarks sought by Copeland Lowery in 2005, totalling over $91 million.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ California Secretary of State, 2006 general election results, U.S. Congress District 44, accessed November 14, 2006
- ^ a b CREW summary of ethics issues of Calvert, September 2006
- ^ Alex Brant-Zawadzki, Of Pork and Ken: Local congressman likes toll roads, money, blowjobs", Orange County Weekly, February 16, 2006
- ^ Robinson, Jack. "Two years have brought Calvert crises, lessons." Riverside Press Enterprise. November 3, 1994. Page B01.
- ^ a b Tom Hamburger, Lance Pugmire and Richard Simon, "Rep. Calvert's Land of Plenty: He has earmarked funds for Riverside County projects near properties he sold for a profit.", Los Angeles Times, May 15, 2006
- ^ a b David Danelski and Sandra Stokely, "Sale of park site draws questions", Press-Enterprise, August 17, 2006
- ^ Joe Cantlupe, "Ex-congressman's friend emerges as mystery man", Copley News Service, April 15, 2006
[edit] External links
- Official Website
- Campaign Website
- Associated Press profile
- Calvert's Arrest Report
- Voting record maintained by the Washington Post
| Preceded by: Ron Packard |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 43rd congressional district 1993 – 2003 |
Succeeded by: Joe Baca |
| Preceded by: Mary Bono |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 44th congressional district 2003 – present |
Incumbent |
