Rodney Frelinghuysen

Rodney Frelinghuysen
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey's 11th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 1995
Preceded by	Dean Gallo
Member of the New Jersey General Assembly from the 25th district
In office January 10, 1984 – January 3, 1995
Preceded by	James Barry
Succeeded by	Anthony Bucco
Personal details
Born	(1946-04-29) April 29, 1946 New York City, New York, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Virginia Robinson (1980–present)
Children	2
Alma mater	Hobart College Trinity College, Connecticut
Religion	Episcopalian
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1969–1971
Rank	Specialist 5[1]
Unit	93rd Engineer Battalion[2]
Battles/wars	Vietnam War

Rodney Procter Frelinghuysen (/ˈfriːlɪŋhaɪsən/; born April 29, 1946) is the U.S. Representative for New Jersey's 11th congressional district, serving since 1995. The district includes most of Morris County, an affluent suburban county west of New York City. It also includes some of the wealthier areas near Newark and Paterson, and is one of the richest congressional districts in the nation in terms of median income. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Family and early life

Frelinghuysen was born in New York City to Peter Hood Ballantine Frelinghuysen II, a New Jersey politician and Beatrice Sterling Procter, an heir to the Procter & Gamble fortune. He attended St. Mark's School, an exclusive Episcopal preparatory school in Southborough, Massachusetts.^[3] Rejected from Princeton,^[4] the alma mater of his father and grandfather, Frelinghuysen instead matriculated at Hobart College in New York. There he served as president of the Kappa Alpha Society and earned a BA in American history in 1969.^[5] Frelinghuysen next enrolled in a graduate program at Trinity College but was soon drafted into the United States Army. Following basic training at Fort Dix, he was assigned as a clerk to the commanding officer of the 93rd Engineer Battalion, which was primarily responsible for building roads and water supply systems in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam.^[5][6]

Local and state political career

After his military service, Frelinghuysen was hired by then-Morris County Freeholder Director Dean A. Gallo to be the county's state and federal aid coordinator and administrative assistant.^[7] He held this position until 1974, when he was elected to serve as a Morris County Freeholder. He served three terms as a member of the Morris County Board of Chosen Freeholders, and was chosen to be its director in 1980.^[8]

In 1983, Frelinghuysen was elected to the New Jersey General Assembly, representing the 25th legislative district. Frelinghuysen served in the Assembly until 1994. He was Chairman of the Assembly Appropriations Committee during the 1988–89 legislative session.^[8]

In 1990 he ran in the Republican primary for New Jersey's 12th congressional district against Dick Zimmer and Phil McConkey. During the race the Frelinghuysen campaign "broke ground in high-tech politicking" when it sent voters a seven-minute video cassette of Frelinghuysen. The video, which contained photographs of Frelinghuysen in Vietnam and praise from former Gov. Tom Kean, served as a preemptive tactic against opponents' attempts to characterize the blue blooded Frelinghuysen as "an irrelevant debutante".^[9] Frelinghuysen finished in third place.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

In late August 1994, U.S. Congressman Dean Gallo, the six-term Republican incumbent of New Jersey's Eleventh Congressional District, announced his intention to withdraw from the upcoming election for medical reasons (he had recently been diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer and died two days before the election). As Gallo had already defeated three opponents in a hard-fought primary the previous June, his withdrawal triggered a convention of Republican committee members from the district's municipalities. Frelinghuysen, who had been Gallo's former employee and fellow Morris County freeholder and state assemblyman, sought the committee's nomination at Gallo's request, and was chosen to be the Republican nominee for the district.^[10]

Frelinghuysen went on to defeat Democratic State Senator Frank Herbert 71% to 28% in the November 1994 election.^[11] However, the 11th is one of the most Republican districts in the Northeast, and Frelinghuysen had effectively clinched a seat in congress by winning the Republican nomination. He has been reelected nine times with no substantive opposition, never dropping below 59% of the vote.

He has only been challenged in the Republican primary twice; once in 2008 and again in 2010. In 2008, he defeated Kate Erber in the June primary 87% to 13%.^[12] In 2010, he defeated Richard Luzzi 76% to 24%.^[13]

In 2000, liberal activist Michael Moore attempted to have a ficus challenge Frelinghuysen's unopposed re-election in order to make the point that most Members of Congress "run unopposed in their primaries and 95% are re-elected every time in the general election", adding "we think it's time to point out to the Frelinghuysen family that we live in a democracy, not a dynasty."^[14] (Since 1793, New Jersey has sent six Frelinghuysens to Congress—four to the U.S. Senate and two to the House of Representatives.)

Campaign financing

Rodney Frelinghuysen's campaigns have been heavily supported by contributions from the aerospace and defense industrial sector;^[15] seven of his 2012 campaign's top ten donors came from this sector,^[16] and he received more defense funding in the last electoral cycle than any other representative from New Jersey.^[17] His campaigns have also been heavily supported by contributions from pharmaceutical and health care industries.^[15][18] Eight of the 14 bills sponsored by Mr. Frelinghuysen in the last congressional session (112th) were attempts to suspend duties on chemicals used by these industries.^[19]

Election statistics

Tenure

Voting record

Like most other Republicans from New Jersey, Frelinghuysen's voting record has been relatively moderate. He is a member of the Republican Main Street Partnership. Some have claimed, however, that his moderate record is a thing of the past.^[23][24][25] During his 2012 election, when charged with claims that he had aligned himself with the staunchly conservative Tea Party movement and "toes the line of Republican leadership", he insisted that he is still a moderate.^[24]

From the start of his tenure in the 104th Congress to the current 113th, Frelinghuysen has voted with his party 90% of the time.^[26]

Abortion

Frelinghuysen's record on abortion was once considered moderate; he is a member of Republican Majority For Choice and Republicans for Choice. In 2003 he received a 50% from the anti-abortion rights NRLC and a 30% from the pro-abortion rights NARAL.^[27] In recent years, however, Frelinghuysen's stance has shifted; from 2010 to 2012, his NARAL rating averaged just 7%, indicating an anti-abortion rights stance.^[28] He was singled out by NARAL President Nancy Keenan for strong criticism over his support of H.R. 3 "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortions Act"" “Reps. Lance and Frelinghuysen have traded in their moderate credentials to become foot soldiers in Speaker Boehner’s War on Women," Keenan said.^[25]

Environment

Frelinghuysen is a member of Republicans For Environmental Protection and was the sponsor of the Highlands Conservation Act, a piece of environmental protection legislation that directs federal funding towards preservation of the Highlands region of New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut.

Frelinghuysen tours a Superfund site in his district

However, the Sunlight Foundation pointed out that among the 435 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, Frelinghuysen has the third-highest amount of investment in oil stocks.^[29] Frelinghuysen's scores from the League of Conservation Voters dropped sharply after 2008, from the 42–67% range during 1999–2008 to 21–23% during 2009–12. During the 2011–12 Congress, his League of Conservation Voters rating was 11th out of thirteen members of the House from New Jersey, and 4th among the six Republicans from the state.^[30]

Legislative record

Since the start of his congressional tenure in 1995, Frelinghuysen has been the chief sponsor of 123 bills. Of these, four have become law:

• H.R. 1366 (104th): To authorize the extension of time limitation for the FERC-issued hydroelectric license for the Mount Hope Waterpower Project.
• H.R. 459 (106th): To extend the deadline under the Federal Power Act for FERC Project No. 9401, the Mount Hope Waterpower Project.
• H.R. 1964 (108th): Highlands Conservation Act
• H.R. 4850 (108th): District of Columbia Appropriations Act, 2005

He has also been the chief sponsor of nine resolutions, none of which passed.^[19]

Frelinghuysen introduced an amendment to the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013, the initial Hurricane Sandy relief legislation, which added $33.7 billion to the $17 billion initially allocated by the act. The amendment passed the House in a 228–192 vote, with the support of 38 Republicans and 190 Democrats.^[31] The amended act was not significantly modified by the Senate, and was signed into law.

Frelinghuysen is a supporter of earmarking, calling the practice a "constitutional responsibility."^[32] He is one of the most prolific earmarkers in the House, consistently ranking in the top 5% in terms of dollars procured. In fiscal year 2008 he ranked 21st, sponsoring or co-sponsoring 44 earmarks totaling $88 million; in fiscal year 2009 he ranked 12th, with 45 earmarks totaling $119 million; and in fiscal year 2010 he ranked 21st with 39 earmarks totaling $76 million. During the same period, Frelinghuysen was the top earmarker among New Jersey lawmakers.^[15] The majority of his earmarks were for defense-related expenses.^[33]

Committee assignments

• Committee on Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on Defense (Chairman)
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
  • Subcommittee on Homeland Security

Coalitions and caucuses

• Republican Main Street Partnership
• Republican Majority For Choice
• Republicans for Choice
• Republicans For Environmental Protection

Awards and honors

In June 2013, Frelinghuysen was awarded the Navy Distinguished Public Service Award, the Navy’s highest civilian honor, for the "long and selfless service" he had provided to the force, ensuring it had necessary resources and supporting its members' quality of life.^[34]

Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus speaks with U.S. Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen before presenting him with the Navy Distinguished Public Service Medal, at the U.S. Capitol.

Frelinghuysen was also awarded the Vietnam Service Medal for his service during the Vietnam War.^[1]

Family

Frelinghuysen is a member of a family long prominent in New Jersey politics, one which was ranked the seventh greatest American political dynasty by Stephen H. Hess, senior fellow emeritus at the Brookings Institution, and author of "America's Political Dynasties".^[35]

His father, Peter Frelinghuysen, Jr., served as the U.S. Representative from New Jersey's 5th congressional district from 1953 to 1975, representing much of the same area Rodney does today. He is the great-great-grandson of Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen was a U.S. Senator for New Jersey and U.S. Secretary of State in the administration of President Chester A. Arthur. His great-great-great-uncle (and adoptive father of Frederick Theodore) Theodore Frelinghuysen was a U.S. Senator for New Jersey, served as president of both New York University and Rutgers College, and was the vice-presidential running mate of Henry Clay on the Whig ticket in the Presidential election of 1844. Great-great-great-great-grandfather Frederick Frelinghuysen was one of the framers of the first Constitution of New Jersey, a U.S. Senator for New Jersey, and a soldier in the American Revolutionary War.^[36]

Aside from the Frelinghuysen name, he is also a great-great-great-grandson of Peter Ballantine, founder of Ballantine Brewery in Newark. On his mother's side, he is a great-great-grandson of William Procter, co-founder of Procter & Gamble.^[36]

Personal life

At the start of the 112th Congress, Frelinghuysen was ranked the ninth wealthiest member of congress, with an estimated personal wealth between $20 million and $65 million.^[37]

A CQ Roll Call report on Frelinghuysen's wealth in 2010 indicated that about a third stemmed from personal and family trust investments in Procter & Gamble stock. He also owns multiple properties, including nearly 18 acres of undeveloped land in Frelinghuysen Township, New Jersey.^[38]

On May 24, 2007, Frelinghuysen chased down a pickpocket who had stolen his wallet near his home in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Two Washington police officers saw the chase and arrested the 18-year-old suspect who had been caught by the 61-year-old congressman.^[39]

References

External links

• Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen official U.S. House site
• Rodney Frelinghuysen for Congress
• Rodney Frelinghuysen at DMOZ
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Project Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at The Library of Congress
• Profile at SourceWatch