Daniel Scott Sullivan (born November 13, 1964) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior

United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

from

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

since 2015. A member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

, Sullivan previously served as the commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources from 2010 to 2013, and as the

Alaska Attorney General The Alaska Attorney General is the chief legal advisor to the Government of Alaska, government of the State of Alaska and to its List of Governors of Alaska, governor. The Attorney General is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Alaska L ...

from 2009 to 2010. Sullivan grew up in a suburb of

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. He studied

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, then earned joint foreign service and

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

degrees from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

. He was in active duty for the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

from 1993 to 1997, 2004 to 2006, and in 2009 and 2013. Between 1997 and 1999, he clerked for judges on the

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District ...

and the Alaska Supreme Court. After working as an attorney in private practice in

Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...

from 2000 to 2002, Sullivan moved to

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

to work for the Bush administration; he worked with the National Economic Council and the

National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a na ...

and later served as Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs. Sullivan ran in the 2014 election for the

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

seat held by Democratic incumbent

Mark Begich Mark Peter Begich ( ; born March 30, 1962) is an American politician who served as a United States senator from Alaska from 2009 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as Mayor of Anchorage from 2003 to 2009. Born in An ...

. In August 2014, he won the Republican primary, defeating Alaska Lieutenant Governor

Mead Treadwell Louis Mead Treadwell II (born March 21, 1956) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 11th lieutenant governor of Alaska from 2010 to 2014. Treadwell also served as chair of the United States Arctic Research Commission from 20 ...

and

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

Senate nominee Joe Miller. Sullivan defeated Begich in the general election, 47.96% to 45.83%, a margin of 6,014 votes out of 282,400 cast. He was reelected in

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

, defeating

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

challenger Al Gross by about 13 percentage points.Axelrod, Tal & Zack Budryk
Sullivan wins reelection in Alaska, giving Republicans 50 seats in Senate
'' The Hill'', November 11, 2020.

Early life and education

Sullivan was born and raised in

Fairview Park, Ohio Fairview Park is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. A suburb of Cleveland, it once formed part of the historical Rockport Township, along with the area of West Park and the suburbs of Lakewood and Rocky River. It borders Clevelan ...

, the son of Sandra (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Simmons) and Thomas C. Sullivan. Sullivan's father is the president and CEO of RPM International, a publicly traded multinational corporation with over 15,000 employees that was founded by Sullivan's grandfather, Frank C. Sullivan. Sullivan graduated from Culver Military Academy in Indiana in 1983. He then studied

, graduating in 1987 with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree ''

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...

''. He then went to

, where he jointly attended the

Walsh School of Foreign Service The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the school of international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It is considered to be one of the world's leading international affairs schools, granting degrees at both ...

and the Georgetown University Law Center, receiving joint

and Master of Science in Foreign Service degrees in 1993. Sullivan was a member of the ''

Georgetown Law Journal ''The Georgetown Law Journal'' is a student-edited scholarly journal published at Georgetown University Law Center. It is the flagship law review of the Georgetown University Law Center. Overview The ''Georgetown Law Journal'' is headquartered ...

'' and received his

degree with ''cum laude'' honors.

Early career

Military service

Sullivan joined the

in 1993 after completing his law and foreign service degrees. He was on active duty from 1993 to 1997, when he transitioned to the

U.S. Marine Corps Reserve The Marine Forces Reserve (MARFORRES or MFR), also known as the United States Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) and the U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve, is the reserve force of the United States Marine Corps. It is the largest command, by assigned pe ...

. Sullivan has spent several years with a reconnaissance battalion based in Anchorage, and has since been recalled to active duty three times: from 2004 to 2006, again in early 2009, and for a six-week tour in Afghanistan in July 2013. Sullivan is currently a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in the Marine Corps Reserve. He is a recipient of the Defense Meritorious Service Medal.

Early legal career

After leaving active duty in the Marines, Sullivan served as a

law clerk A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person, generally someone who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial clerks often play significant ...

to judge Andrew Kleinfeld of the

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District ...

from 1997 to 1998 and to chief justice

Warren Matthews Warren W. Matthews, Jr. (born April 5, 1939) is an American lawyer and jurist who was a justice of the Alaska Supreme Court from 1977 to 2009. Matthews served as the 8th and 12th chief justice of the Alaska Supreme Court. His service from May 19 ...

of the Alaska Supreme Court from 1998 to 1999.Profile
, adn.com, April 19, 2014; accessed November 7, 2014. In 2000, Sullivan joined the Anchorage office of the law firm Perkins Coie, where he worked in

commercial law Commercial law, also known as mercantile law or trade law, is the body of law that applies to the rights, relations, and conduct of persons and business engaged in commerce, merchandising, trade, and sales. It is often considered to be a branc ...

and corporate law. He joined the Alaska bar that same year.

White House and State Department

In 2002, Sullivan headed the International Economics Directorate of the National Economic Council and

staffs at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

. He advised President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

and the

National Security Advisor A national security advisor serves as the chief advisor to a national government on matters of security. The advisor is not usually a member of the government's cabinet but is usually a member of various military or security councils. National sec ...

and NEC chairman. He left the White House in 2004. In 2006, Bush appointed Sullivan United States Assistant Secretary of State for Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs. The

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

unanimously confirmed Sullivan in May of that year. He served in this capacity until January 2009. While serving as Assistant Secretary of State he owned a house in Anchorage and continued to vote in Alaska elections by absentee ballot, while claiming

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland. It is located just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House (1820, rebuilt 1849), which in ...

, as his primary residence for tax purposes.Profile
adn.com; accessed November 6, 2014.

Alaska Attorney General

Talis Colberg Talis James Colberg (born August 25, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician who was appointed by Governor Sarah Palin as the seventeenth attorney general of Alaska on December 13, 2006. Colberg resigned in February 2009 over controversy over ...

resigned in February 2009 over the

Alaska Public Safety Commissioner dismissal The Alaska Public Safety Commissioner dismissal, also known as Troopergate, involves the possibly illegal July 2008 dismissal of the Alaskan Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan by Republican Governor Sarah Palin. A complaint alleged that Pali ...

scandal. Governor

Sarah Palin Sarah Louise Palin (; Heath; born February 11, 1964) is an American politician, commentator, author, and reality television personality who served as the ninth governor of Alaska from 2006 until her resignation in 2009. She was the 2008 R ...

nominated

Wayne Anthony Ross Wayne Anthony Ross (born February 25, 1943) is an American attorney residing in Alaska. In 2009, Ross was nominated to be Alaska Attorney General by then Governor Sarah Palin. His nomination was rejected by the Alaska Legislature on April 16, 200 ...

for attorney general, but the Alaska Legislature rejected Ross. Palin then nominated Sullivan.Article 3 - The Executive
law.justia.com; accessed September 9, 2016. He was sworn into office in June 2009, while the Alaska Legislature was out of session. The Alaska Legislature unanimously confirmed Sullivan's appointment on April 9, 2010.
, adn.com; accessed November 6, 2014. Sullivan, who had been retained by Governor

Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources

On November 18, 2010, shortly after being elected, Alaska Governor

Sean Parnell Sean Randall Parnell (born November 19, 1962) is an American attorney and politician. He succeeded Sarah Palin in July 2009 to become the tenth governor of Alaska and served until 2014.Alaska Department of Natural Resources, replacing former Commissioner Thomas E. Irwin. In 2013, during his term in office, Sullivan was deployed to Afghanistan for six weeks, in his role as the executive officer of the 4th Marine Division's Anti-Terrorism Battalion.

U.S. Senate

Elections

2014

On October 15, 2013, Sullivan announced his candidacy for the

seat held by Democratic incumbent

in the 2014 election. He was endorsed by the Club for Growth. Begich had defeated longtime incumbent Ted Stevens in the previous election. Stevens had filed for the election in 2009 following his exoneration, and was widely expected to win, but died in a plane crash on August 9, 2010. This left the race for the Republican nomination wide open. On June 10, 2014, Sullivan offered Begich the Alaska Agreement. This was a modified version of the

People's Pledge The People's Pledge was a political campaign to secure a referendum on the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union. It aimed to achieve this by asking voters to sign a pledge that they would use their vote to help secure a majority of ...

. This tactic had previously been used in the Massachusetts 2012 U.S. Senate race between

Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth Ann Warren ( née Herring; born June 22, 1949) is an American politician and former law professor who is the senior United States senator from Massachusetts, serving since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party and regarded as a ...

and

Scott Brown Scott Brown may refer to: Sportsmen *Scott Brown (American football), American college football coach of Kentucky State * Scott Brown (baseball) (born 1956), former Major League Baseball pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds *Scott Brown (footballer, bor ...

to drastically limit outside, third-party spending. Begich rejected the agreement. According to

Ballotpedia Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...

, outside spending in the race hit nearly $40 million. Despite former Governor

's late-race endorsement of 2010 party nominee Joe Miller, Sullivan won the August 19 Republican primary with 40% of the vote to and Miller's 32% and Treadwell's 25%. On November 12, 2014, the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

Bohrer, Becky. Voted yes for Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh 106/18. sSenator Sullivan's father's company RPM made parts for Boeing during the Reagan era
Republican Dan Sullivan wins Senate race in Alaska
, ''

'', November 12, 2014. and

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...

declared that Sullivan had defeated Begich in the general election by about 8,000 votes—48.6% to 45.4%. At the time, there were approximately 31,000 votes left to count and Begich refused to concede. Begich eventually conceded on November 17. Final results showed that Sullivan won by 6,014 votes out of 282,400 cast, 47.96% to 45.83%.

2020

In the 2020 election, after running unopposed in the Republican primary election, Sullivan faced independent candidate Al Gross, an orthopedic surgeon and former commercial fisherman who had been nominated by the Alaska Democratic Party. The race was considered "unexpectedly close," with some polls indicating that the two candidates were neck-and-neck. Gross touted his "deep roots" in the state and published several campaign videos that received national attention. In addition to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee's funding of Gross's candidacy, Gross reportedly did "an excellent job fundraising", outraising Sullivan between July 1 and the end of September 2019. While the race was considered "too early to call" for several days after the November 3 election, Gross called Sullivan to concede on November 13. Ultimately, Sullivan defeated Gross 54% to 41%, with Alaskan Independence Party nominee John Howe receiving nearly 5% of the vote.

Tenure

Sullivan was sworn into office on January 6, 2015, by

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

Joe Biden.

Committee assignments

Committee on Environment and Public Works The United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works is responsible for legislation and oversight of the natural and built environment and for studying matters concerning environmental protection and resource conservation and utili ...

** Subcommittee on Fisheries, Water and Wildlife ** Subcommittee on Superfund, Waste Management, and Regulatory Oversight * Committee on Veterans' Affairs

Caucuses

* Senate Republican Conference

Political positions

According to ''FiveThirtyEight'', Sullivan voted in line with President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

's position 91.5% of the time. According to the American Conservative Union's Center for Legislative Accountability, Sullivan had a lifetime conservative rating of 79.5. Americans for Democratic Action gave Sullivan a zero on their liberalism score in 2019.

Abortion

Sullivan is a self-described "pro-life Catholic" and supported the June 2022 overturning of ''Roe v. Wade''. He supports improving child care and adoption as alternatives to abortion.

Donald Trump

Sullivan opposed Trump during the 2016 presidential race, releasing a statement that said, "We need national leaders who can lead by example" on issues of sexual assault and violence against women. Sullivan added, "The reprehensible revelations about Donald Trump have shown that he can't. Therefore, I am withdrawing my support for his candidacy." Sullivan voted to acquit Trump at the conclusion of his first impeachment trial. During Sullivan's reelection bid, Trump endorsed him, saying Sullivan supported Trump's agenda. By October 6, 2020, Sullivan announced that he would be voting for Trump, saying the choice was "very clear." Sullivan also voted to acquit Trump during his second impeachment trial.

Environment

Sullivan rejects that there is a

scientific consensus on climate change There is a strong scientific consensus that the Earth is warming and that this warming is mainly caused by human activities. This consensus is supported by various studies of scientists' opinions and by position statements of scientific org ...

. He has argued that "the verdict is still out on the human contribution to climate change"; the scientific consensus is that human activity is a primary contributor to climate change. In October 2020, the Environmental Investigation Agency recorded and published conversations between undercover actors, who pretended to be potential investors in

Pebble Mine Pebble Mine is the common name of a proposed copper-gold- molybdenum mining project in the Bristol Bay region of Southwest Alaska, near Lake Iliamna and Lake Clark. As of November 2020 the mine developer, Northern Dynasty Minerals, was seeking ...

in Alaska, and corporate executives. In these recordings, the corporate executives make clear that they intend to expand the mine far beyond previously stated intentions, and that they believe Sullivan would quietly support this project after the election. In response, Sullivan expressed his opposition to the project. Sullivan has stated that he plans to donate campaign contributions received from Pebble Mine executives to charity. Sullivan has lobbied the Trump administration to open up the

Tongass National Forest The Tongass National Forest () in Southeast Alaska is the largest U.S. National Forest at . Most of its area is temperate rain forest and is remote enough to be home to many species of endangered and rare flora and fauna. The Tongass, which i ...

in Alaska to logging and other forms of development. In October 2020, the Trump administration permitted such projects, stripping protections that had been in place for nearly two decades.

Foreign policy

In July 2017, Sullivan co-sponsored the

Israel Anti-Boycott Act The Israel Anti-Boycott Act (IABA) (; ) was a proposed anti-BDS law and amendment to the Export Administration Act of 1979 designed to allow U.S. states to enact laws requiring contractors to sign pledges promising not to boycott any goods from I ...

(s. 720), which made it a federal crime for Americans to encourage or participate in boycotts against Israel and

Israeli settlement Israeli settlements, or Israeli colonies, are civilian communities inhabited by Israeli citizens, overwhelmingly of Jewish ethnicity, built on lands occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War. The international community considers Israeli se ...

s in the

occupied territories Military occupation, also known as belligerent occupation or simply occupation, is the effective military control by a ruling power over a territory that is outside of that power's sovereign territory.Eyāl Benveniśtî. The international law ...

if protesting actions by the Israeli government. Dan Sullivan with NRA in Alaska - 2019

On June 6, 2021, Sullivan and Senators Tammy Duckworth and

Christopher Coons Christopher Andrew Coons (born September 9, 1963) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Delaware since 2010. A member of the Democratic Party, Coons served as the county executive of New Castle Cou ...

visited

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...

in an U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III

transport Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, an ...

to meet

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Tsai Ing-wen and

Minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

Joseph Wu Joseph Wu Jaushieh (; born October 31, 1954) is a Taiwanese politician currently serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China under current President Tsai Ing-wen since February 26, 2018. He was formerly the Secretary-Gen ...

during the pandemic outbreak of

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

to announce President Joe Biden's donation plan of 750,000

COVID-19 vaccine A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Prior to the COVID19 pandemic, an e ...

s included in the global COVAX program.

Gun policy

In the 2014 Senate campaign in Alaska, the

National Rifle Association The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...

(NRA) declined to make an endorsement. The NRA gave Begich an "A−" rating and Sullivan an "A−q" rating, the "q" indicating the rating was qualified because Sullivan had no voting record at the time.

Health care and public health

Sullivan opposes the

Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and colloquially known as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Presid ...

and voted to repeal it. On November 17, 2020, during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Sullivan did not wear a mask while presiding over the Senate. Senator

Sherrod Brown Sherrod Campbell Brown (; born November 9, 1952) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Ohio, a seat which he has held since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the U.S. representative for Ohio's ...

asked him to "please wear a mask as he speaks." Sullivan told Brown he was not taking instructions from Brown and later called Brown a "far-left senator." Senator

Ted Cruz Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States Senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz served as Solicitor General of Texas from ...

called Brown an "ass" for making the request and suggested it was

virtue signaling Virtue signalling is the expression of a moral viewpoint with the intent of communicating good character. Definition "Virtue signalling", according to the ''Cambridge Dictionary'', is "an attempt to show other people that you are a good person, ...

CDC The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the National public health institutes, national public health agency of the United States. It is a Federal agencies of the United States, United States federal agency, under the United S ...

guidelines at the time stated that people should wear face masks while indoors.

Judiciary

In 2016, Sullivan defended the Republican refusal to hold a hearing for President Barack Obama's Supreme Court nominee,

Merrick Garland Merrick Brian Garland (born November 13, 1952) is an American lawyer and jurist serving since March 2021 as the 86th United States attorney general. He previously served as a U.S. circuit judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of ...

, on the basis that the nomination was made "in the midst of an important national election." Sullivan said it was not "about the individual, it's about the principle" and "Alaskans deserve to have a voice in that direction through their vote, and we will ensure that they have one."Becky Bohrer

Alaska US senator says he will support Barrett nomination, Associated Press (October 21, 2020). In October 2020, in the last few weeks before the 2020 United States presidential election, 2020 presidential election, Sullivan defended Trump's decision to nominate a Supreme Court justice—saying he was "well within his constitutional authority"—and voted to confirm the nominee, Amy Coney Barrett.

Missile defense system

In 2017, after

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

n leader

Kim Jong-un Kim Jong-un (; , ; born 8 January 1982) is a North Korean politician who has been Supreme Leader of North Korea since 2011 and the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) since 2012. He is a son of Kim Jong-il, who was North Korea's sec ...

threatened the United States with an

intercontinental ballistic missile An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more thermonuclear warheads). Conventional, chemical, and biological weapons c ...

(ICBM) strike and conducted an ICBM test in which its missile landed about off the coast of Japan, Sullivan called for improvements to the U.S.

missile defense system Missile defense is a system, weapon, or technology involved in the detection, tracking, interception, and also the destruction of attacking missiles. Conceived as a defense against nuclear-armed intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), ...

Social policy

Sullivan has not made social issues a major part of his platform. He opposes abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, or threat to the life of the mother. He opposes

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

. Sullivan introduced the bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation, the FIRST STEP Act, but opposed the act after incurring amendments by the House of Representatives. The amended bill passed the Senate 87–12 on December 18, 2018. Trump signed the bill into law 3 days later. Sullivan has cosponsored the bipartisan

STATES Act The Strengthening the Tenth Amendment Through Entrusting States (STATES) Act () was a bill proposed in the 115th United States Congress that would recognize legalization of cannabis and the U.S. state laws that have legalized it through their legisl ...

proposed in the

115th U.S. Congress The 115th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States of America federal government, composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from January 3, 2017, to January 3 ...

by Massachusetts Senator

and Colorado Senator

Cory Gardner Cory Scott Gardner (born August 22, 1974) is an American attorney, lobbyist, and politician who served as a United States senator from Colorado from 2015 to 2021. A Republican, he was the U.S. representative for Colorado's 4th congressional distr ...

that would exempt individuals or corporations in compliance with state cannabis laws from federal enforcement of the

Controlled Substances Act The Controlled Substances Act (CSA) is the statute establishing federal government of the United States, federal drug policy of the United States, U.S. drug policy under which the manufacture, importation, possession, use, and distribution of ...

2021 National Defense Authorization Act

In December 2020, during his lame-duck period, Trump vetoed the

National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 The William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 () is a United States federal law which specifies the budget, expenditures and policies of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) for fiscal year 2021. Analogo ...

. The veto left new Coast Guard

cutters Cutter may refer to: Tools * Bolt cutter * Box cutter, aka Stanley knife, a form of utility knife * Cigar cutter * Cookie cutter * Glass cutter * Meat cutter * Milling cutter * Paper cutter * Side cutter * Cutter, a type of hydraulic rescue to ...

that were scheduled to be homeported in Alaska without port facilities to maintain them. Sullivan questioned the veto, because it put in question whether the cutters could be placed in Alaska.

2021 storming of the United States Capitol

On May 28, 2021, Sullivan voted against creating an independent commission to investigate the

2021 United States Capitol attack On January 6, 2021, following the defeat of then-U.S. President Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election, a mob of his supporters attacked the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. The mob was seeking to keep Trump in pow ...

Personal life

While at Georgetown, Sullivan met fellow law student Julie Fate, a staffer for U.S. Senator Ted Stevens. Sullivan and Fate married and had three daughters. Fate is the daughter of retired dentist and former Alaska State Representative Hugh "Bud" Fate and

Mary Jane Fate Mary Jane Fate (née Evans; September 4, 1933 — April 10, 2020) was a Koyukon Athabascan activist. She was a founding member of the Fairbanks Native Association and the Institute of Alaska Native Arts and worked as a lobbyist for the Alaska Nat ...

, who was once the co-chair of the

Alaska Federation of Natives The Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) is the largest statewide Native organization in Alaska. Its membership includes 178 villages (both federally recognized tribes and village corporations), thirteen regional native corporations, and twelve re ...

. As of 2018, according to OpenSecrets.org, Sullivan's net worth was more than $2.3 million.

Electoral history

References

External links

Senator Dan Sullivan
official U.S. Senate website
Dan Sullivan for Senate
* * * , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivan, Dan 1964 births Living people 21st-century American politicians Alaska Attorneys General Alaska lawyers Alaska Republicans United States Marine Corps personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Culver Academies alumni Federalist Society members Georgetown University Law Center alumni Harvard University alumni Walsh School of Foreign Service alumni Lawyers from Anchorage, Alaska Military personnel from Anchorage, Alaska Military personnel from Ohio People from Bethesda, Maryland People from Fairview Park, Ohio Politicians from Anchorage, Alaska Republican Party United States senators from Alaska State cabinet secretaries of Alaska United States Department of State officials United States Marine Corps officers United States Marine Corps reservists White House Fellows People associated with Perkins Coie