Michael N. Castle

Though Castle has voted with Republicans nearly 86 percent of the time in the 111th Congress, he has shown far less party loyalty throughout his career. He was one of just three Republicans who voted for all six of the provisions of the "100 hours" agenda that Democrats pushed upon winning control of Congress in 2007.

He voted for the George W. Bush tax cuts in 2001, but initially against them in 2003.He warned against the election of Tom DeLay (Texas) as Republican leader in 2001, saying the Texas lawmaker was "more interested in the extreme conservative agenda."

Castle has long earned high ratings from the League of Conservation Voters and opposes oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. He opposed a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

On foreign policy, Castle supported the war in Iraq, and while he voted for a non-binding resolution against the troop surge in 2007, he has also opposed measures mandating an American withdrawal in a specific timeframe.

The Economy

Castle broke with many of his House Republican colleagues to support both versions of the $700 billion Wall Street bailout package in fall 2008. "I just felt the economy needed a boost very badly, and I thought this was the best way to do it," he said then.

In February 2009, Castle stood with his Republican colleagues as they collectively opposed President Barack Obama's $787 billion economic stimulus bill. In what he called a "very difficult vote," the Delaware congressman criticized the legislation as "short-sighted" and said it "contains too much unrelated, unfocused spending that does more to burden Americans than it does to help change our current course."

Castle noted, however, that several provisions of the bill would be beneficial to Delaware. Castle later appeared at an event with Vice President Joseph R. Biden to highlight stimulus funding for Amtrak, an appearance that drew criticism from liberals who chastised Castle for celebrating a project he voted against.

Banking

With banking and credit-card companies a major economic force in Delaware, Castle has long watched out for local industry interests through his seat on the House Financial Services Committee. He voted for a major bill setting new restrictions on credit-card companies in May 2009, but noting opposition from the industry, he said he would closely monitor the law's implementation to see if the new rules led to a reduction in credit lending.

Castle was the leading sponsor of the popular 1997 legislation establishing new commemorative quarters for each state. He followed that up with a bill sponsoring a new Sacagawea dollar coin and later a further revised dollar coin in 2004. The coins have become collector's items and are credited with bringing $6 billion into the federal coffers.

Education

Castle has focused on education issues dating to his time as governor. As a congressman, he is a senior member of the House Education and Labor Committee and a former chairman of its Education Reform subcommittee.

He was heavily involved in the drafting of the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act, and he helped President George W. Bush sell the bill to the public. Castle votes more than other Republicans for increased education funding, and he threatened to try to block a Bush budget bill in 2006 in part over cuts to school spending.

But Castle also angered Democrats by calling for reform of the popular Head Start program in 2003, which he criticized for a lack of accountability.

In 2005, Castle considered running for the chairmanship of the full Education committee but decided against it after concluding that his differences with GOP leaders would prevent him from winning the post. "The bottom line is I wouldn't make it," Castle said, according to the News-Journal of Wilmington. "Let's face it, once you become head of a committee, you have to totally support the leadership in anything. And that's never been one of my interests."

Stem-Cell Research

Though Castle initially supported President George W. Bush's 2001 decision to limit federal funding for stem-cell research, he has since become a vocal proponent of the research.

In 2005, he used his influence as a leader of GOP moderates to block a budget resolution unless the Republican leadership scheduled a stem-cell vote.

He succeeded, and the bill passed, but it failed to draw the votes necessary to override a presidential veto. Castle's push for the vote was so aggressive that he drew a rebuke from the House Republican Conference for polling its members' districts on the issue.

Amtrak

The Amtrak train stop in Wilmington - made famous by Vice President Biden - is directly in the middle of the heavily-trafficked Northeast corridor, and Castle has long been a top supporter of the rail system. "It's like an extension of my office," he said in 2005.

He opposed the Bush administration efforts to split apart Amtrak, and as a co-chairman of the Passenger Rail Caucus, he has pushed for more funding. In recent years, he has taken up the issue of rail security, advocating for increased funding and security training for personnel.

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