Gwen Moore

Gwen Moore
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Wisconsin's 4th district
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 3, 2005
Preceded by	Jerry Kleczka
Member of the Wisconsin Senate from the 4th District
In office 1993–2004
Preceded by	Barbara Ulichny
Succeeded by	Lena Taylor
Born	April 18, 1951 (1951-04-18) (age 59) Racine, Wisconsin
Political party	Democratic
Residence	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Alma mater	Marquette University
Occupation	Politician
Religion	Baptist

Gwendolynne Sophia Moore (born April 18, 1951) is the U.S. Representative for Wisconsin's 4th congressional district, serving since 2005. She is a member of the Democratic Party.

The district is based in Milwaukee and also includes South Milwaukee, Cudahy and St. Francis, and part of West Allis. She is the first woman to represent the district. She is also the second woman and the first African-American elected to Congress from Wisconsin.

[edit] Early life, education and career

Moore was born in Racine, Wisconsin, but has spent most of her life in Milwaukee. She is the eighth of nine children; her father was a factory worker and her mother a public school teacher. Moore graduated from North Division High School, became a single mother, and was for a while a welfare recipient. Nonetheless, she was able to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science at Marquette University, graduating in 1973.

She worked as a city development specialist and as an organizer with Volunteers In Service to America.

[edit] Wisconsin Legislature

Moore was elected to the Wisconsin Assembly in 1989 and served two terms before winning the election to the Wisconsin State Senate, in which she served the 4th District from 1993 to 2004. Moore was the first African-American woman to be elected to the upper chamber of the Wisconsin legislature.

[edit] U.S. House of Representatives

[edit] Committee assignments

• Committee on the Budget
• Committee on Financial Services
  • Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government-Sponsored Enterprises
  • Subcommittee on International Monetary Policy and Trade
  • Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations

Congresswoman Gwen Moore

Moore was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 2004, earning 69.6 percent of the vote and defeating Republican attorney Gerald Boyle in the general election. Moore was one of a handful of African-Americans to have been elected to Congress as freshmen in 2004, and she was the first African-American and second woman (after Tammy Baldwin) to represent Wisconsin in Congress.

In the House, Moore has earned, over the first session of the 109th Congress, 90% and higher legislative agenda approval scores from Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Sierra Club of Wisconsin, and the Service Employees International Union. Moore has focused herself legislatively on traditional Democratic and progressive issues, believing that the federal government should play a significant role in the amelioration of poverty and the resolution of difficult local problems.

During her first term, Moore introduced legislation to provide certain economic incentives and tax cuts to small businesses to promote job creation, and also cosponsored legislation in support of community block grants, continued and expanded Medicaid funding, the amendment of the Truth in Lending Act to prevent so-called "predatory lending", and the removal of troops from Iraq; Moore is also a cosponsor of two prospective amendments to the US Constitution, providing for uniform national election standards and prohibiting gender discrimination under law.

Moore has sponsored seven bills since Jan 4, 2005, two which have made it out of committee (Average) and zero which have been successfully enacted (Average, relative to peers). Moore has cosponsored 343 bills during the same time period (Many, relative to peers). [1]

On May 6, 2006, Moore and eight fellow members of the Congressional Black Caucus were arrested and ticketed for unlawful assembly and disorderly conduct after they stepped onto the grounds of the Embassy of the Sudan to call attention to the ongoing Darfur conflict in Sudan. Moore said that the group expected ex ante to be arrested but that they were pleased to participate in a "peaceful act of civil disobedience".^[1]

[edit] Political campaigns

[edit] 2010

In the 2010 election cycle, her total income was $571,546. She spent a total of $543,826.

Top contributors: Credit Union National Assn with $11,750, Finmeccanica Spa with $10,250, American Assn for Justice with $10,000, Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers with $10,000, Machinists/Aerospace Workers Union with $10,000, Northwestern Mutual with $10,000, Painters & Allied Trades Union with $10,000, Plumbers/Pipefitters Union with $10,000, Assurant Inc with $9,000 and American Bankers Assn with $8,000.

Top sectors: Finance/Insur/RealEst with $162,015, Labor with $123,750, Lawyers & Lobbyists with $35,236, Health with $27,500, Misc Business with $16,280, Other with $15,125, Defense with $11,750, Transportation with $10,500, Ideology/Single-Issue with $7,233, and Energy/Nat Resource with $6,450.

Top industries:Insurance with $79,750, Building Trade Unions with $42,500, Industrial Unions with $29,750, Public Sector Unions with $26,000, Commercial Banks with $26,000, Lawyers/Law Firms with $25,405, Health Professionals with $16,750, Real Estate with $15,600, with Transportation Unions with $15,000.^[2]

[edit] Electoral history

• 2006 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — 4th District
  • Gwen Moore (D), 72%
  • Perfecto Rivera (R), 28%

• 2004 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — 4th District
  • Gwen Moore (D), 70%
  • Gerald Boyle (R), 30%

• 2004 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — Democratic Primary
  • Gwen Moore (D), 64%
  • Matt Flynn (D), 25%
  • Tim Carpenter (D), 10%

[edit] Personal life

Moore was the eighth of nine children born to a factory worker father and public school teacher mother. After graduating from North Division High School, she attended Marquette University as an expectant mother, receiving welfare benefits to aid her in her pursuit of a degree. On her campaign website, Moore recalled, "I was on welfare and just shy of 19 when my first daughter was born, but I was encouraged to take advantage of my ability and drive and remained in school." [2] Moore graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science. In 2000, she received a Certificate for Senior Executives in State and Local Government from Harvard University. During the congressional debate in February 2011 on the Pence Amendment proposing to defund the health services organization Planned Parenthood, in response to comments from Paul Broun suggesting that Planned Parenthood promoted racist eugenics because more black women than white women have abortions, Moore spoke about her experience raising children on little money, and why "planned parenthood is healthy for women, it’s healthy for children and it’s healthy for our society" .^[3]

[edit] Arrest of her son

Moore's son, Sowande Ajumoke Omokunde, aged 26, was arrested in connection with the November 2, 2004, (election day), tire-slashing of Republican party vehicles in Milwaukee; he was charged with a felony in connection with the event on January 24, 2005, but agreed, on January 20, 2006, to plead no contest in exchange for a sentencing recommendation of restitution and probation.^[4] However, on April 26, 2006, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Michael Brennan threw out the plea deal and sentenced Omokunde to serve four months in prison and to pay $2,305 in fines and restitution. In response, Moore said, "I love my son very much. I'm very proud of him. He's accepted responsibility."^{[citation needed]}

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Congresswoman Gwen Moore official U.S. House website
• Gwen Moore for U.S. Congress official campaign website
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Congressional profile at GovTrack.us
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at the National Institute for Money in State Politics
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Profile at the Democratic Party of Wisconsin
• 4th Senate District, Senator Moore in the Wisconsin Blue Book (2003-2004)