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Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.)

U.S. Representative (since January 1989)

(Congress Bio Directory)

Why He Matters

Rohrabacher (ROAR-ah-BAH-ker) is among the House's most quotable Republicans, a colorful and free-spirited maverick with a libertarian streak. He has referred to the world's largest Communist nation as "Red China," once described illegal immigration as an "invasion of the United States," and said a Senate provision that repealed the ban on HIV-positive visitors to the United States "adds insanity to irresponsibility." Shortly after President Obama took office, Rohrabacher described him as "naive about what to expect from enemies of the United States and about what to expect from the left wing of his party."

He is among his party's most vocal opponents of legislation to reduce global warming and one of its leading skeptics of the scientific view that the acceleration of greenhouse gas emissions is caused by humans. "Global warming predictions appear designed to strike fear into the heart of those malcontents who just won't willingly accept the mandates in their lifestyle changes that are needed in order to save the planet," he said in a 2008 House floor speech.

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Background

At a Glance

Career History: Senior speechwriter and special assistant to President Reagan (1981-1988); Radio and newspaper journalist (1970-1980)
Birthday: June 21, 1947
Hometown: Huntington Beach, Calif.
Alma Mater: California State University-Long Beach, B.A. 1969; University of Southern California, M.A. 1971
Spouse: Rhonda
Religion: Christian
Committees: Foreign Affairs; Science and Technology

DC Office: 2300 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515-0546, (202) 225-2415
State/District Office: 101 Main Street, Suite 380 Huntington Beach, CA 92648, (714) 960-6483
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Path to Power

Rohrabacher grew up in Orange County, the area south of Los Angeles that he now represents. He attended elementary school locally and during his college days, lived in Sunset Beach.

He is an avid surfer and friends with many of the area's artists, writers and musicians from his era, including hard-rock vocalist Sammy Hagar and folk singer Joan Baez; he also has boasted that John Wayne taught him how to drink tequila. He once had a folk band himself called the Goldwaters.

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The Issues

A sign in Rohrabacher's office reads: "Fighting for Freedom ... and Having Fun." He takes avowedly conservative positions in support of what he considers personal freedom, such as lower taxes, less government regulation and a strong national defense.

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Rohrabacher's district includes numerous aerospace and technology companies and he has worked to champion their interests throughout his tenure. He formerly chaired the Science Committee panel on Space and Aeronautics, where he introduced bills intended to foster human space flight; in 2004, Goerge W. Bush signed into law his bill to promote development of the commercial human space flight industry.

Foreign Policy

Rohrabacher regularly makes his emphatic views known during Foreign Relations Committee debates. He is ranking Republican on the Foreign Relations' International Organizations, Human Rights and Oversight panel.

He has long sought to be more hawkish on China and sharply criticized the 2000 law permanently permitting Chinese goods to enter the United States under the same low tariffs afforded most other countries. With California Democrat Maxine Waters, he sought to have the United States boycott the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

He joined with Democrats in 2009 to threaten the Obama administration to disclose, in open session, whether a Chinese delegation was allowed to question detainees in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, who are members of a Muslim minority in China called the Uighurs.

In September 2008, Rohrabacher publicly sided with Russia when it invaded Georgia, putting himself at odds with George W. Bush's administration. Earlier that year, he joined Democrats in blasting the Bush White House for being unwilling to obtain Congress' approval for an agreement on Iraq.

Immigration

Rohrabacher has been in line with the majority of his party in his unwillingness to allow illegal immigrants a path to U.S. citizenship.

He joined conservatives in taking up the cause of a pair of U.S. Border Patrol agents who were sentenced to prison in 2006 for the non-fatal shooting of a man who turned out to be a drug smuggler seeking to flee across the Texas border. When President Bush commuted the agents' sentences in January 2009 shortly before leaving office, Rohrabacher was jubilant. "This is not just a day of celebration for the families but it is a victory for all Americans, while acknowledging our system is flawed, to see that if they are involved, if they speak up and utilize their freedom, injustices can be corrected," he said.

Health-Care Reform

Rohrabacher also is staunchly opposed to Democratic efforts to enact what he dismissively calls "government-mandated" health care.

After Obama gave a September 2009 speech on the subject to a joint session of Congress, Rohrabacher criticized the president for paying lip service to listening to Republicans: "Republicans are used to hearing the president talk about cooperation followed by a total lack of cooperation by his administration. It's no different than Charlie Brown, Lucy, and the football."

The Network

Despite his conservatism, Rohrabacher occasionally introduces bills that attract Democratic support.

Among those who have worked on legislation with him in 2009 are Bill Delahunt (Mass.), who chairs the International Organizations panel where Rohrabacher serves as ranking member; Brian Baird (Wash.); and Gene Taylor (Miss.).

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