Ellen Tauscher

Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security (since June 2009)

(TWP)

Why She Matters

Tauscher was one of the few members of Congress who has her own brand. Dubbed "Tauscherism" by Time magazine, the former California representative blended fiscal conservatism and an emphasis on national security with more liberal positions on social issues.

However, those views turned Tauscher into a punching bag for netroots activists who want the Democratic Party to move left. Two blogs (aptly named Ellen Tauscher Weekly and Dump Ellen Tauscher) specialized in attacking her every move. But as the former head of a group of moderate congressional Democrats called the New Democrats, Tasucher wielded control over a sizable voting bloc. It was a powerful position - the Washingtonian called Tauscher one of D.C.'s 100 most powerful women - but one that requires constant compromise.

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Background

At a Glance

Career History: U.S. Representative (since 1997); Founder and CEO, Registry Cos. (1992 to 1996); New York Stock Exchange member (1977 to 1979)
Birthday: Nov. 15, 1951
Hometown: Newark, N.J.
Alma Mater: Seton Hall University, B.A. 1973
Spouse: Divorced

Religion: Catholic
DC Office: 2459 Rayburn HOB; (202) 225-1880
District Offices: Walnut Creek, (925) 932-8899; Antioch, (925) 757-7187; Fairfield, (707) 428-7792
Email
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Path to Power

Though Tauscher represented a district in California, she grew up on the other side of the country - in New Jersey. The daughter of a secretary and an Irish-Catholic grocery-store manager, Tauscher was the first person in her family to attend college.

She earned her degree in 1974 from Seton Hall University, where she studied early childhood education. After graduation, she struggled to find a teaching job that paid enough to cover her student loans. Eventually, she looked across the river to Wall Street and thought "why not?" she told Congressional Quarterly.

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Wall Street Career

Tauscher dove into the high stakes life of a Wall Street trader and was one of the first women to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange - a position she earned at age 25. Over the course of her 14-year finance career, she served as vice president of Bear Stearns and a vice president of the American Stock Exchange.

Tauscher left the Big Apple for the West Coast in 1989 after marrying an executive based there. Three years later, discouraged by her own experiences finding someone to care for her young daughter, she founded a company that screened prospective child-care workers for $140 each.

Political Career

Tauscher joined the political arena as an aide to Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) in her 1992 and 1994 campaigns. Eventually, she became the finance chairwoman for the Senator. Tauscher first toyed with running for office in 1994, but decided to hold off until her daughter started school.

In 1996, she challenged incumbent Rep. Bill Baker (R-Calif.), who had taken hard-line stances in against abortion rights gun control. She spent $1.7 million of her own money (almost double what Baker spent), which Baker tried to use against her. In one ad, he painted Tauscher as a lottery winner trying to buy a congressional seat. But in the end, Tauscher's more liberal positions won out, though only barely - she won the 1996 House race by just two percentage points.

Tauscher's subsequent races have been much easier in an increasingly Democratic seat. She has won by at least 30 points during each of her re-election campaigns.

New Democrat

Tauscher has often been accused by left-wing Democrats of being too centrist (the San Fransisco Chronicle described her as "the closest thing the Bay area has to a Republican"). They are right to pick Tauscher out as a moderate Democratic leader. In 2005, she became chair of the fiscally-conservative New Democrats, by pledging to find new areas of agreement between Republicans and Democrats, especially on national security issues.

But Tauscher voted with Democrats increasingly more often in her later years in Congress. In 2001, she supported Bush on 40 percent of all roll-call votes. According to The Washington Post Votes Database, she has voted with her party almost 100 percent of the time in the 111th Congress.

Tauscher endorsed then-Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) in the 2008 Democratic presidential primaries. The nod spurred further anger from many left-wing activists who were critical of Tauscher's early support of the Iraq war.

Tauscher was President Barack Obama's choice for under secretary of state for arms control and international security. In a statement, Tauscher said she took the job so that she could continue working to eliminate nuclear weapons.

The Issues

During her decade in the House, Tauscher has become an expert in military preparedness and stopping the spread of biological, chemical and nuclear weapons. As undersecretary at atate for arms control and International security affairs, she leads non-proliferation efforts integrates nuclear policy into overall foreign-policy efforts.

Stopping the Spread of Nuclear Weapons

Tauscher has a history of working against the spread of nuclear weapons. IAs former chairwoman of the House Armed Services Strategic Forces subcommittee (the third woman in U.S. history to lead a panel of the Armed Services committee), Tauscher advocated against creating a new generation of nuclear weapons. She called on then-President George W. Bush to work harder to prevent countries like India from accelerating their nuclear programs for fear that it would jump-start an arms race and make dangerous weapons easier for terrorists to access.

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The Network

Tauscher was an early backer of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton 's presidential run, and joined other Clinton loyalists like Judith McHale and Melanne Verveer in top State Department jobs.

Though Tauscher is close with some of her California colleagues (she got her start in politics as an aide to Sen. Dianne Feinstein 's (D-Calif.) and worked frequently with Democratic Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.)), she has had a famously rocky relationship with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Tauscher backed her close friend Rep. Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) over Pelosi in the 2001 contest for minority whip, becoming the only member of the California delegation to do so. Later that year, Tauscher accused Pelosi of influencing the redrawing of her congressional district to make it more conservative. However, the two have since mended their relationship. At a 2007 meeting, Pelosi told Tauscher that she wouldn't let the netroots run her out of office.

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