Charlie Dent
Charlie Dent | |
---|---|
Pennsylvania Senate from the 16th district | |
In office January 5, 1999 – November 30, 2004 | |
Preceded by | Roy Afflerbach |
Succeeded by | Pat Browne |
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the 132nd district | |
In office January 1, 1991 – November 25, 1998 | |
Preceded by | John Pressman |
Succeeded by | Jennifer Mann |
Personal details | |
Born | Charles Wieder Dent May 24, 1960 Allentown, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse | Pamela Serfass |
Children | 3 |
Education | Pennsylvania State University (BA) Lehigh University (MPA) |
Charles Wieder Dent[1] (born May 24, 1960) is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 15th congressional district from 2005 to 2018.
Born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, Dent worked in a variety of occupations after graduating from Pennsylvania State University. He earned a master's degree in public administration from Lehigh University and served as an aide to Congressman Donald L. Ritter. From 1991 to 2004, he served in the Pennsylvania General Assembly. In 2004, Dent won election to the United States House of Representatives, succeeding Pat Toomey.
In the House, Dent became a member of the centrist
In September 2017, Dent announced that he would retire from Congress and not seek re-election to another term in
Early life, education, and early career
Dent was born and raised in Allentown, Pennsylvania, the son of Marjorie L. (née Wieder) and Walter R. Dent. He is of German, English, and Irish descent.[6] Dent is a 1978 graduate of Allentown's William Allen High School. He received a bachelor's in international politics from Pennsylvania State University in 1982 and a masters in public administration from Lehigh University in 1993.[7] He is a member of Phi Kappa Psi,[citation needed] and previously worked as a development officer for Lehigh University, an industrial electronics salesman, a hotel clerk, and an aide to U.S. Representative Donald L. Ritter.[7]
Pennsylvania legislature
Before being elected to the
In 1998, Dent won an open 16th District Senate seat[8] when Democrat Roy Afflerbach, who later served as Mayor of Allentown from 2002 to 2006, retired to take up an ultimately unsuccessful bid for Congress.[citation needed]
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
- 2004
Dent was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2004, succeeding Pat Toomey, who gave up his seat to challenge Arlen Specter for the U.S. Senate. He defeated Democrat Joe Driscoll 59%–39%.
- 2006
He won re-election 54%–44% against Charles Dertinger.
- 2008
He won re-election 59%–41% against Allentown Democratic Party Chairman Sam Bennett.
- 2010
Dent won re-election against Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan with 54% of the vote,[9] the smallest percent of the vote he received in any of his election campaigns.[10]
- 2012
Dent defeated Democrat Rick Daugherty, the Chairman of the Lehigh County Democratic Party, 57%–43%.[11]
- 2014
Dent won re-election unopposed.
- 2016
Dent defeated Daugherty in a rematch, 58%–38%.
Tenure
Dent is a
In 2014, Dent introduced a bill to give states more flexibility in how they provide health insurance to children from families between 100 and 133 percent of the
The Next Generation Choices Foundation selected Dent to be the Elsie Hillman Speaker at their annual National Cancer Prevention Day event in 2016 in recognition of his efforts to support legislation related to cancer prevention.[18]
Before retiring, Dent voted in line with President Trump's position on legislation 93% of the time.[19] After announcing his retirement during late 2017, he said that dealing with the "freewheeling president" became "exhausting". According to The Hill, he said "disorder, chaos, instability, uncertainty, intemperate statements" were not "conservative virtues".[20] He delivered a farewell speech on May 10,[21] and resigned on May 12, 2018, leaving the seat vacant.[5]
Political positions
Social policy
In April 2011, after admitting that it was highly controversial, Dent voted along with the other Republican members of the House for a budget bill that would have abolished government-run Medicare. It proposed to make senior citizens purchase individual private health insurance using vouchers that would have covered only a part of their costs. The Congressional Budget Office found that privatizing Medicare under this plan would significantly increase the out-of-pocket costs to seniors; by 2030, the out-of-pocket share for standard medical expenses paid by a typical 65-year-old would have risen to 68% under the Republican plan, as opposed to 25% under the then existing Medicare system. The CBO found that the Republican bill would also have increased the budget deficit for at least a decade.[22][23][24]
Dent voted against the 2007 Re-authorization of the
As a Republican who represented a district with Democratic leanings, he occasionally crossed party lines on legislation. On the issue of abortion and reproductive health care, Dent is a
Citizenship and immigration
In April 2010, Dent introduced a resolution urging the
In January 2012, Dent co-sponsored the Enemy Expatriation Act with Senator Joe Lieberman. The bill's purpose was "To add engaging in or supporting hostilities against the United States to the list of acts for which United States nationals would lose their nationality," where the term "hostilities" means any conflict subject to the laws of war.[37] The proposal would allow the United States government to strip U.S. citizens of their citizenship without requiring that the citizen have been convicted of a crime.[38]
Dent criticized President Donald Trump's 2017 executive order to temporarily curtail Muslim immigration until better screening methods were devised. He stated that "This is ridiculous. I guess I understand what his intention is, but unfortunately the order appears to have been rushed through without full consideration. You know, there are many, many nuances of immigration policy that can be life or death for many innocent, vulnerable people around the world."[39]
Economy
In 2005, Dent cosponsored H.R. 4411, the
Education
At the start of the 112th Congress, Dent received a new position on the coveted House Appropriations Committee, and continued to serve on the House Ethics Committee. In June 2013, Dent decided to co-sponsor the Safe Schools Improvement Act (SSIA), a bill that would require schools and districts to adopt policies specifically prohibiting bullying and harassment against all students, including LGBT young people. Dent is known for his efforts to promote LGBT equality throughout the nation.[42]
Energy
Dent is a proponent of
Drug policy
Dent is a proponent of drug prohibition, and is outspoken on the dangers of novel synthetic drugs, having personally sponsored several bills aimed to schedule new psychoactive compounds. In 2011, he sponsored the Synthetic Drug Control Act of 2011, which sought to schedule a large number of cannabimimetic agents, as well as 26 other psychoactive substances. The bill passed the House but did not make its way through the Senate.[43] On March 27, 2017, the bill was re-introduced as the Synthetic Drug Control Act of 2017.[44] If passed in its current text (as of May 14, 2017), this bill would schedule a large number of novel psychoactive substances, including 96 phenethylamines, 94 cannabimimetic agents, 15 arylcyclohexylamines, 21 tryptamines, 8 benzylpiperazines, 4 benzodiazepines, 4 opioid or opioid-like substances, 8 piperazines, and 2 tropane alkaloids.[citation needed]
Committee assignments
- Committee on Appropriations
- Chairman, United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
- Vice Chairman, United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
- United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Caucus memberships
- Congressional Arts Caucus[45]
- Congressional Cement Caucus, Co-chair
- U.S.-Japan Caucus[46]
- Friends of Wales Caucus
- Problem Solvers Caucus[47]
Electoral history
Post-political career
Following his resignation from Congress, Dent joined the law firm DLA Piper as a non-attorney policy adviser. He registered as a lobbyist following the mandatory one-year cooling off period.[49]
On August 19, 2020, Dent announced his formal endorsement of Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for the 2020 presidential election, joining other Republicans such as Colin Powell, John Kasich, Christine Todd Whitman, Jeff Flake, Chuck Hagel, Susan Molinari and John Warner in choosing to vote for the Democrat in the election.[50]
On July 6, 2022, Dent endorsed Democrat Josh Shapiro in the Pennsylvania Governor Election over Republican Doug Mastriano, claiming that Shapiro would 'unite the state' and that Mastriano 'is a threat to the rule of law'.[51]
Personal life
Dent is married to Pamela Jane Serfass and has three children.[citation needed]
References
- ISBN 9780939667246. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
- ^ DeBonis, Mike. "Rep. Charlie Dent, outspoken GOP moderate, will not seek reelection". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 7, 2017.
- ^ Circa, ERIN VOGEL-FOX. "GOP Congressman Charlie Dent resigning". WSYX. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
- ^ "Rep. Charlie Dent Resigning 'In the Coming Weeks'". Roll Call. April 17, 2018.
- ^ a b Brelje, Beth (May 14, 2018). "Charlie Dent, Pat Meehan's constituents can still get help". Reading Eagle.
- ^ "Dent". Freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com. Archived from the original on April 23, 2016. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
- ^ a b "Charlie Dent". House Republicans. Archived from the original on June 3, 2014. Retrieved June 6, 2014.
- ^ "Pennsylvania State Senate - Charles W Dent Biography". www.legis.state.pa.us. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
- ^ "Pennsylvania Election Results". The New York Times.
- ^ "House Races". The New York Times. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
- ^ 2014 Election Results Senate: Live Map by State, Midterm Midterm Races Races, Politico.com; accessed November 12, 2016.
- ^ "Moderate Republican Rep. Charlie Dent to resign". Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ a b "The Voter's Self Defense System". Vote Smart. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ISSN 1091-2339. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ "Charles Dent, former Representative for Pennsylvania's 15th Congressional District - GovTrack.us". GovTrack.us. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ The Lugar Center – McCourt School Bipartisan Index (PDF), The Lugar Center, March 7, 2016, retrieved April 30, 2017
- ^ Martin, Aaron. "Dent bill aims to protect state-run CHIPs" Archived April 21, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, Ripon Advance. January 28, 2014; retrieved January 31, 2014.
- ^ "Dent outlines congressional cancer prevention efforts". The Ripon Advance. The Ripon Society. February 17, 2016. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
- ^ Bycoffe, Aaron (January 30, 2017). "Tracking Congress In The Age Of Trump". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ Zanona, Melanie (April 8, 2018). "Retiring GOP lawmakers cut loose on Trump". The Hill. Retrieved April 9, 2018.
- ^ "Transcript: U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent's farewell speech to Congress". The Morning Call. May 11, 2018.
- ^ Itkowitz, Colby (April 15, 2011). "A series of tough votes in Congress". Morning Call. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
- ^ Rettig, Jessica (April 12, 2011). "House Set to Debate Paul Ryan's 2012 Budget". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
- ^ Hiltzik, Michael (April 17, 2011). "Neediest and sickest would pay the price under GOP budget plan". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 20, 2011. Retrieved April 17, 2011.
- ^ "The Voter's Self Defense System". Vote Smart. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ "Charlie Dent: Bipartisan caucus creates new Obamacare repeal-and-replace plan". The Washington Times. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ "The 20 Republicans who voted against the Obamacare repeal bill". POLITICO. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ Kilgore, Ed. "The Near-Extinction of Pro-Choice Republicans in Congress". Daily Intelligencer. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ Helfrich, Jesse (June 29, 2011). "Stem cell bill gets Republican champion". TheHill. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ "Republican Congressman Backs Gay Marriage Because 'Life Is Too Short'". Daily Intelligencer. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ "Meet Charlie Dent, One of Two Moderately Sane House Republicans". The New Republic. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ Campaign, Human Rights. "Congressional Scorecard | Human Rights Campaign". Human Rights Campaign. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ Chris Geidner, House Passes DADT Repeal Bill Archived October 21, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, Metro Weekly (December 15, 2010).
- ^ House Vote 638 – Repeals 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Archived January 18, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times, December 15, 2010.
- ^ Levine, Mike (April 22, 2010). "Rep. Introduces Resolution to Strip Radical Cleric of US Citizenship". Fox News Covers Congress. Fox News. Archived from the original on December 2, 2010. Retrieved May 12, 2010.
- ^ Myre, Greg. "Trump Aims For Big Splash In Taking On Terror Fight", NPR, 29 January 2017. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
- ^ (112th Congress), H. R. 3166. "Enemy Expatriation Act". GovTrack. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ New Bill Known As Enemy Expatriation Act Would Allow Government To Strip Citizenship Without Conviction, Addictinginfo.org, January 6, 2012.
- ^ Blake, Aaron (January 29, 2017). "Coffman, Gardner join Republicans against President Trump's travel ban; here's where the rest stand". Denver Post. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
- ^ "H.R.4411 – Internet Gambling Prohibition and Enforcement Act: Co-Sponsors" (109th Congress, 2005–2006). Congress.gov. July 13, 2006. Retrieved March 23, 2017.
- ^ Wong, Scott. "Five things lawmakers want attached to the $1 trillion funding bill". The Hill. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
- ^ Middleton, Josh (June 17, 2013). "Pennsylvania Congressman Charlie Dent to co-sponsor LGBT-specific anti-bullying Bill". Philly Magazine. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
- ^ "Text – H.R.1254 – 112th Congress (2011–2012): Synthetic Drug Control Act of 2011 – Congress.gov – Library of Congress". Congress.gov. May 14, 2017. Retrieved May 14, 2017.
- ^ "H.R.1732 – 115th Congress (2017–2018): Synthetic Drug Control Act of 2017 – Congress.gov – Library of Congress". Congress.gov. May 14, 2017. Retrieved May 14, 2017.
- ^ "Membership". Congressional Arts Caucus. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved March 13, 2018.
- ^ "Members". U.S. - Japan Caucus. Retrieved December 1, 2018.
- ^ "Featured Members". Problem Solvers Caucus. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
- ^ "CQ 2008 Election Guide". CQ Politics. Archived from the original on December 11, 2008. Retrieved March 2, 2009.
- ^ Jonathan Tamari (October 4, 2019). "Ex-Congressmen Pat Meehan, Charlie Dent, and Ryan Costello move to lobbying ranks". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
- ^ Solender, Andrew. "Former Rep. Charlie Dent Joins Expanding Bloc Of Republicans Endorsing Biden". Forbes.
- ^ Sweitzer, Justin (July 6, 2022). "Charlie Dent and other former GOP officials endorse Josh Shapiro for governor".
External links
- Charlie Dent on Twitter
- Charlie Dent at Curlie
- Appearances on C-SPAN