John W. Olver

John Walter Olver (born September 3, 1936) is an American politician who was the U.S. representative for Massachusetts's 1st congressional district from 1991 to 2013. Raised on a farm in Pennsylvania, Olver graduated from college at the age of 18 and went on to earn a Ph.D. in chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and later taught chemistry at the University of Massachusetts Amherst for eight years.

He served in both chambers of the Massachusetts General Court, being elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1968, and the Massachusetts Senate in 1972. He ran in a 1991 special election to succeed 17-term Congressman Silvio O. Conte, who died in office. He was the first Democrat to ever represent the .

Olver announced that he would not seek re-election in 2012, and retired at the end of his eleventh term in Congress after his district was dismantled in redistricting.

Early life, education, and career

Olver was born on September 3, 1936 in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, the son of Helen Marguerite (née Fulleborn) and Thomas Horace Olver. His paternal grandparents were of English descent and his maternal grandparents were German. Olver grew up on his father's farm, where the two tended cows, while his mother ran a boarding house which served families from Philadelphia and New York City. Olver graduated from high school when he was 15 and enrolled in Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in chemistry at the age of 18. After earning his undergraduate degree, Olver went on to earn a Master of Science in chemistry from Tufts University in 1956, and a Doctor of Philosophy in chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1961.

Olver taught chemistry at the University of Massachusetts Amherst for eight years, and later resigned to pursue a career in politics. He served two terms as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from January 1, 1969, to January 3, 1973. He later served for nine terms in the Massachusetts Senate from January 3, 1973, until his resignation in 1991 to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

On February 18, 1991, Congressman Silvio O. Conte died one month after taking office for his 17th term. That June, Olver, who had been sworn in for his 10th term in the state Senate a few months earlier, in January 1991, narrowly defeated Republican Steven Pierce in a special election for the seat, becoming the first Democrat to win the seat since it changed from being the in 1893.Duncan, Philip D., and Nutting, Brian (eds.) (2004). "Olver, John W., D-Mass." '' CQ's Politics in America 2004: The 108th Congress''. Washington: Congressional Quarterly. pp. 480–481. . Olver resigned from the state Senate on June 15 and was sworn in June 18.

Olver won election to a full term in 1992. In 1994, the year which Republican took control of the House for the first time in 40 years, Olver ran unopposed. In 1996, he defeated State Senator and future Lieutenant and Acting Governor Jane Swift by a 53% to 47% margin. After 1996, Olver continually won re-election with high margins above 60%.

On October 26, 2011 Olver announced he would not seek re-election in 2012, clearing the way for any potential Democratic primaries due to Massachusetts losing a congressional seat after the 2010 United States Census. His district, which covered most of rural Western Massachusetts including Amherst, North Adams and Northampton, had been eliminated in redistricting. The bulk of his former territory had been merged with the Springfield-based 2nd district of fellow Democrat Richard Neal. The reconfigured 1st was geographically and demographically more Neal's district than Olver's, even though it retained Olver's district number. Olver's home in Amherst was drawn into the Worcester-based 2nd District (the old 3rd District) of fellow Democrat Jim McGovern.

Tenure

'' Congressional Quarterly''s ''Politics in America'' described Olver as "a staunch liberal who prefers to yield the spotlight to other similarly ideological members." Olver has consistently high rankings from the progressive lobbying group Americans for Democratic Action, and consistently low rankings from its conservative counterpart the American Conservative Union.

As a superdelegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention, Olver endorsed future President Barack Obama. In a tribute to an outgoing Olver and Barney Frank, Ed Markey remarked that, unlike other elected officials who embraced superficial positions to curry public favor, the two were "happy to tell you heydisagree with you" if they believed so.

Objection to the 2004 presidential election

Olver was one of thirty-one House Democrats who voted to not count the electoral votes from Ohio in the 2004 presidential election. Republican President George W. Bush won Ohio by 118,457 votes. Without Ohio's electoral votes, the election would have been decided by the U.S. House of Representatives, with each state having one vote in accordance with the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Foreign policy

Olver has been a staunch opponent of the United States involvement in Iraq, and opposed a United States military presence in Iraq since the 2002 authorization for the use of force in Iraq. Olver has advocated for the removal of U.S. troops from Iraq, and has consistently voted against proposals to increase funding for military operations and increased deployment. Olver stated that he believes that the United States should seek out a political solution in cooperation with the states neighboring Iraq, such as Iran and Syria, rather than pursuing a strategy based primarily on military means in order to create a stable and democratic Iraq.

Olver has been critical of the United States lack of involvement regarding the genocide in Darfur. Olver was one of five members of Congress arrested April 28, 2006 after protesting the genocide outside the Sudanese Embassy. Olver was arrested again in front of the Sudanese Embassy during a protest in 2012 along with other members of Congress and actor George Clooney.

Domestic policy

Olver co-sponsored which would introduce a universal health insurance program with single-payer financing. In addition to supporting different pieces of health care reform legislation in the House, Olver has also strongly supported allowing federal funds related to health care programs to fund abortion operations. In addition to supporting the inclusion of coverage for abortions in health care, Olver has consistently supported pro-choice legislation in the House and has received favorable ratings from pro-choice interest groups such as the NARAL Pro-Choice America, which gave Olver a rating of 100.

Olver supports efforts to reduce the number of illegal immigrants entering the United States, but also believes in immigration reform so that qualified immigrants could more easily be granted entrance. Olver also believes that illegal immigrants currently residing in the United States need to be provided with a pathway to citizenship, and that these immigrants should not have to return to their countries of origin before obtaining citizenship.

Committee assignments

* Committee on Appropriations
** Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
** Subcommittee on Homeland Security
** Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies ''(Ranking Member)''

Party leadership
* Congressional Progressive Caucus
*Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus

Personal life

Olver was married to Rose Richardson Olver, a Professor of Psychology and Sexuality, Women's and Gender Studies at Amherst College, from 1959 until her death in 2014, and they had one daughter named Martha. He has lived in Amherst, Massachusetts, since 1963.

On May 4, 2012 a new central bus and rail station in Greenfield, Massachusetts was dedicated in Olver's honor. The building is the first zero-net-energy transportation facility in the nation, generating heat and power via geothermal wells, photovoltaic panels and sunlight.

On October 27, 2017, the John W. Olver Design Building at the University of Massachusetts Amherst was dedicated in Olver's honor. The building was the largest and most technologically advanced academic wood structure in the US upon completion. It was also the first in the US to use a wood-concrete composite floor system researched at the University of Massachusetts.

On October 28, 2010 Olver was awarded the Soldier On Award presented by the veterans group, Soldier On. This award, created for Soldier On by sculptor Andrew DeVries, recognizes individuals whose leadership and actions have advanced the goal of ending veteran homelessness.

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Olver, John
1936 births
20th-century American politicians
21st-century American politicians
American people of English descent
American people of German descent
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts
Living people
Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science alumni
Democratic Party Massachusetts state senators
Democratic Party members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives
People from Honesdale, Pennsylvania
Politicians from Amherst, Massachusetts
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute alumni
Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences alumni
University of Massachusetts Amherst faculty