Greg Walden

Greg Walden
Chair of the House Energy Committee Designate
Taking office January 3, 2017
Succeeding	Fred Upton
Chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2013
Leader	John Boehner Paul Ryan
Preceded by	Pete Sessions
Succeeded by	Steve Stivers (Designate)
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon's 2nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 1999
Preceded by	Bob Smith
Member of the Oregon Senate from the 28th district
In office January 1995 – January 1997
Preceded by	Wes Cooley
Succeeded by	Ted Ferrioli
Member of the Oregon House of Representatives from the 56th district
In office January 1989 – January 1995
Preceded by	Wayne Fawbush
Succeeded by	Bob Montgomery
Personal details
Born	Gregory Paul Walden January 10, 1957 The Dalles, Oregon, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Mylene
Children	1 son
Alma mater	University of Oregon (BS)

Gregory Paul Walden (born January 10, 1957) is an American politician, the U.S. Representative for Oregon's 2nd congressional district, first elected to that office in 1998. He is a member of the Republican Party, as of 2016 the only Republican member of the congressional delegation from Oregon. The 2nd district covers more than two-thirds of the state (generally, east of the Cascades). He is the son of Paul E. Walden, three-term Oregon state representative.^[1]

Early life, education and career

Walden was born in The Dalles, Oregon, the son of Elizabeth (née McEwen) and Paul Ernest Walden.^[2] He earned a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Oregon in 1981.^[3] Before being elected to Congress, Walden owned and ran radio stations.

Political career

Walden served as Press Secretary and Chief of Staff to Congressman Denny Smith from 1981 to 1987. He was elected to the Oregon House of Representatives in 1988 and served in the House until 1995, when he was appointed to the Oregon State Senate to fill a vacancy that opened up when Wes Cooley was elected to the U. S. House. Walden rose to the position of assistant majority leader in the Senate and was considering a bid for Oregon Governor in 1994. However, upon discovering that the son he and his wife were expecting had a heart defect, Walden decided to not run for Governor and to not seek re-election to the state Senate. Their son died soon after birth.^[4]

After Cooley was caught in several lies about his military service, Walden announced he was running for the 2nd District seat as an independent. However, he served as Oregon state chairman of Bob Dole's presidential campaign, and he touted his "strong Republican credentials"--implying that he would serve as a Republican if elected. Walden's candidacy led to fears that the Democrats could take advantage of a split in the Republican vote and take a seat they hadn't held since 1981.^[5] This ended, however, when Cooley's predecessor, Bob Smith, was called out of retirement.^[6]

Smith didn't run for reelection in 1998. Walden easily won the Republican primary and breezed to election in November. He has been reelected five times. Though his district contains some liberal-leaning communities such as Ashland, most of the district leans heavily Republican, and Walden has always been reelected easily. In 2002, he defeated Democrat Peter Buckley, who later became a member of the Oregon House of Representatives. In 2006, Walden defeated Democratic candidate Carol Voisin, and in 2008 he won a sixth term with 70% of the vote over Democrat Noah Lemas and Pacific Green Tristin Mock. Following the defeat of Senator Gordon Smith in the 2008 elections, Walden became the only Republican to represent Oregon in the United States Congress.

U.S. House of Representatives

Party leadership

Walden was chosen by Speaker John Boehner to be chairman of the House Majority Transition Committee. He served as chairman of the House Republican Leadership through most of 2010.^[7]

Following the 2012 Elections, Walden became chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee. In July 2014, he announced he would seek a second term as chairman of the committee, arguing he would help provide continuity in a changing leadership team after the defeat of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. ^[8]

Committee assignments

• Committee on Energy and Commerce
  • Subcommittee on Communications and Technology (Chairman)
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Power

From 2010 to 2011, Walden gave up his seat on the Committee on Energy and Commerce, at Republican leadership request so that Parker Griffith, who had recently switched parties, could take his spot on that committee.^[9]

Walden founded the Small Brewers Caucus (see Alcohol in Oregon) and the Digital Television Caucus; as of 2007, he was a member of 39 congressional caucuses.^[10]

Oregon Congressmen Earl Blumenauer (left) and Walden, hiking on Mount Hood during a 2005 fact-finding trip.^[11]

Walden is also a member of the centrist Republican Main Street Partnership and the Congressional Cement Caucus.

Legislation sponsored

The following is an incomplete list of legislation that Walden introduced into the House of Representatives.

• Central Oregon Jobs and Water Security Act (H.R. 2640; 113th Congress) – a land-use and water bill related to the Crooked River in Oregon and the Bowman Dam.^[12] H.R. 2640 would modify features of the Crooked River Project located in central Oregon, near the city of Prineville, and prioritize how water from the project would be allocated for different uses.^[13]
• Federal Communications Commission Process Reform Act of 2013 (H.R. 3675; 113th Congress) – a bill that would make a number of changes to procedures that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) follows in its rulemaking processes.^[14] The FCC would have to act in a more transparent way as a result of this bill, forced to accept public input about regulations.^[15] Walden indicated that the bill was written in response, among other things, to a proposed FCC study on the decisions made by newspaper editorial boards.^[15] Walden argued that "Americans deserve greater... transparency and accountability from their government," particularly because "an item as controversial as this study made it all the way through the FCC without so much as a commission vote."^[15] The study was deemed "dangerous" because it the free speech and freedom of the press rights of the newspapers.^[15]
• Hermiston Reversionary Interest Release Act (H.R. 3366; 113th Congress) – a bill that would release the interest of the United States in some land currently being used for the Hermiston Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Oregon.^[16] This would enable the Hermiston Agricultural Research and Extension Center to relocate without the land it is currently on being returned to the federal government.^[17]
• STELA Reauthorization Act of 2014 (H.R. 4572; 113th Congress) – a bill related to the regulation of satellite broadcasting in the United States.^[18]

Personal life

Walden and his wife, Mylene, live in Hood River with their son Anthony. They are members of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America and participate in local civic groups such as the Rotary Club and the Chamber of Commerce.

Walden is a licensed amateur (ham) radio operator, W7EQI.^[19]

On October 20, 2009, it was reported that Walden was the first Member of Congress to contract the H1N1-A (Swine Flu) Virus.^[20]

Business interests

On January 31, 2007, Walden sold Columbia Gorge Broadcasting, which runs five stations in the eastern Columbia River Gorge, to Bicoastal Columbia River LLC in order to avoid any conflict of interest that might arise with his congressional duties.^[21]

Electoral history

Greg Walden General Electoral Results 1998–2014 ^[22]

Year		Democrat	Votes	Pct		Republican	Votes	Pct		Libertarian	Votes	Pct		Socialist	Votes	Pct		Constitution	Votes	Pct		Pacific Green	Votes	Pct
2014		Aelea Christofferson	73,785	25.67%		Greg Walden	202,374	70.41%		Sharon Durbin	10,491	3.65%		No candidate				No candidate				No candidate
2012		Joyce B. Segers	96,741	29.16%		Greg Walden	228,043	68.73%		Joe Tabor	7,025	2.12%		No candidate				No candidate				No candidate
2010		Joyce B. Segers	72,173	25.86%		Greg Walden	206,245	73.91%		No candidate				No candidate				No candidate				No candidate
2008		Noah Lemas	87,649	25.75%		Greg Walden	236,560	69.49%		No candidate				No candidate				Richard D. Hake	5,817	1.70%		Tristin Mock	9,668	2.84%
2006		Carol Voisin	82,484	30.35%		Greg Walden	181,529	66.80%		No candidate				No candidate				Jack Allen Brown Jr.	7,193	2.64%		No candidate
2004		John C. McColgan	88,914	25.63%		Greg Walden	248,461	71.64%		Jim Lindsay	4,792	1.38%		No candidate				Jack Allen Brown Jr.	4,060	1.17%		No candidate
2002		Peter Buckley	64,991	25.76%		Greg Walden	181,295	71.86%		Mike Wood	5,681	2.25%		No candidate				No candidate				No candidate
2000		Walter Ponsford	78,101	26.12%		Greg Walden	220,086	73.63%		No candidate				No candidate				No candidate				No candidate
1998		Kevin M. Campbell	74,924	34.81%		Greg Walden	132,316	61.48%		Lindsey Bradshaw	4,729	2.19%		Rohn Webb	2,773	1.28%		No candidate				No candidate

References

1. "Oregon Legislative Assembly (56th) 1971 Regular Session". Oregon State Archives (official website). Oregon Secretary of State. 2006. Retrieved 2006-12-08.
2. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~battle/reps/walden.htm
3. "Guide to the New Congress" (PDF). CQ Roll Call. 2010-11-04. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
4. Wong, Peter (April 26, 1998). "Profile: Walden hopes to snag May 19 GOP primary win". Mail Tribune. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
5. Toner, Robin (July 18, 1996). "Political briefing: the states and the issues". New York Times. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
6. "The 1996 elections: The states: West". New York Times. November 7, 1996. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
7. Meet the GOP transition leader: Greg Walden, WhoRunsGov.com, November 8, 2010
8. Livingston, Abby. "Greg Walden to Seek Second Term Running NRCC (Updated)". www.rollcall.com. Roll Call. Retrieved 30 July 2014.
9. "Walden Rises Up From Obscurity". Roll Call. National Republican Congressional Committee. March 8, 2010. Retrieved 2010-04-09.
10. Chu, Keith (2007-07-10). "Another day, another caucus". Bend Bulletin. |section= ignored (help)
11. "Walden, Blumenauer Statement on Mt. Hood Trek". house.gov. 19 August 2005. Retrieved 2010-04-09.
12. "H.R. 2640 – Summary". United States Congress. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
13. "CBO – H.R. 2640". Congressional Budget Office. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
14. "H.R. 3675 – CBO". Congressional Budget Office. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
15. Kasperowicz, Pete (11 March 2014). "House votes for more transparency at the FCC". The Hill. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
16. Nedd, Michael D (26 February 2014). "H.R. 3366: Hermiston Agricultural Research and Extension Center". United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
17. Clevenger, Andrew (29 May 2014). "House passes Hermiston legislation". The Bulletin. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
18. "H.R. 4572 – Summary". United States Congress. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
19. "Rep. Greg Walden, OR (R) used Morse code to announce chairmanship".
20. First lawmaker diagnosed with 'likely' swine flu, an October 20, 2009 blog post from The Hill's Blog Briefing Room
21. "U.S. Rep. Walden sells radio stations in Columbia Gorge". Associated Press. kgw.com. February 1, 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-02-26.
22. http://oregonvotes.org/other.info/stelec.htm Retrieved 5/21/2010

External links

• Congressman Greg Walden official U.S. House website
• Greg Walden for Congress
• Greg Walden at DMOZ
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Project Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Greg Walden at The Oregonian