Lincoln Davenport Chafee ( ; born March 26, 1953) is an American politician. He was mayor of
Warwick, Rhode Island
Warwick ( or ) is a city in Kent County, Rhode Island, the third largest city in the state with a population of 82,823 at the 2020 census. It is located approximately south of downtown Providence, Rhode Island, southwest of Boston, Massach ...
from 1993 to 1999, a
United States Senator
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 po ...
from 1999 to 2007, and the 74th
Governor of Rhode Island
The governor of Rhode Island is the head of government of the U.S. state of Rhode Island and serves as commander-in-chief of the state's Army National Guard and Air National Guard. The current governor is Democrat Dan McKee. In their capac ...
from 2011 to 2015. He was a member of the
Democratic Party from 2013 to 2019; in June 2019, ''
The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' reported that he had become a registered
Libertarian
Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's en ...
,
having previously been a
Republican until September 2007 and an independent and then a
Democrat in the interim.
The son of Republican politician
John Chafee, who was the 66th Governor of Rhode Island, the
United States Secretary of the Navy
The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense.
By law, the se ...
, and a U.S. Senator from Rhode Island, Lincoln Chafee's first elected office was as a member of the Warwick City Council in 1985. After John Chafee died in 1999 while serving in the United States Senate, Rhode Island Governor
Lincoln Almond appointed Lincoln Chafee to fill his father's seat in the U.S. Senate to which he was
elected to a full term in 2000 as candidate of the Republican Party.
Chafee was the only Republican in the Senate to vote against
authorization of the use of force in Iraq in the lead-up to the
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
. He was defeated in his
2006 reelection bid by Democrat
Sheldon Whitehouse
Sheldon Whitehouse (born October 20, 1955) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Rhode Island since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States Attorney from 1993 to 1998 ...
. Chafee subsequently shifted his affiliation towards the Democratic Party by first endorsing
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
in the
2008 presidential election, running as an
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
* Independe ...
for Governor of Rhode Island in
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 ...
, serving as the co-chair of Obama's
2012 re-election campaign, and then finally officially switching his registration to the Democratic Party in May 2013. In March 2019, he switched his political affiliation again to the
Libertarian Party.
In 2015, he sought nomination to become the Democratic Party
candidate
A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example:
* to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs.
* ...
in the
2016 presidential election, but withdrew prior to the
primaries
Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the c ...
. In January 2020, Chafee filed to
run again for president, this time seeking the
Libertarian nomination. Chafee withdrew his candidacy on April 5, 2020, and announced he would instead focus on helping "other Libertarians seeking office."
Early life, education and career
Lincoln Davenport Chafee was born on March 26, 1953, in
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...
, the son of Virginia (née Coates) and
John Chafee. Chafee's great-great-grandfather
Henry Lippitt was
Governor of Rhode Island
The governor of Rhode Island is the head of government of the U.S. state of Rhode Island and serves as commander-in-chief of the state's Army National Guard and Air National Guard. The current governor is Democrat Dan McKee. In their capac ...
. Among his great-great-uncles are Rhode Island Governor
Charles Warren Lippitt
Charles Warren Lippitt (October 8, 1846 – April 4, 1924) was an American politician and the 44th Governor of Rhode Island.
Early life
Lippitt was born in Providence, Rhode Island on October 8, 1846. He graduated from Brown University. Later, ...
and United States Senator
Henry Frederick Lippitt. His great-uncle
Zechariah Chafee was a
Harvard law
Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States.
Each class i ...
professor and a notable
civil libertarian. The Chafee family was among the earliest settlers of
Hingham, Massachusetts, before moving south to Rhode Island.
He attended
public schools in
Warwick, Rhode Island
Warwick ( or ) is a city in Kent County, Rhode Island, the third largest city in the state with a population of 82,823 at the 2020 census. It is located approximately south of downtown Providence, Rhode Island, southwest of Boston, Massach ...
,
Providence Country Day School
The Providence Country Day School (often abbreviated to the initials PCD) is a private middle and high school, founded in 1923. Located in East Providence, Rhode Island, United States, it serves 255 students in grades 5 through 12. The school ...
, as well as later,
Phillips Academy
("Not for Self") la, Finis Origine Pendet ("The End Depends Upon the Beginning") Youth From Every Quarter Knowledge and Goodness
, address = 180 Main Street
, city = Andover, Massachusetts, Andover
, stat ...
. At
Brown University
Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
, Chafee captained the
wrestling
Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat s ...
team, and in 1975 earned a Bachelor of Arts in
classics
Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
. He then attended
Montana State University
Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's largest university. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's degrees in 68 fields, and doctoral degrees in 35 fie ...
's non-degree Farrier School (a sixteen-week
horseshoe
A horseshoe is a fabricated product designed to protect a horse hoof from wear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface (ground side) of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall that is anatomically akin to the human ...
ing program) in
Bozeman
Bozeman is a city and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. Located in southwest Montana, the 2020 census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it the fourth-largest city in Montana. It is the principal city of ...
. For the next seven years, he worked as a
farrier
A farrier is a specialist in equine hoof care, including the trimming and balancing of horses' hooves and the placing of shoes on their hooves, if necessary. A farrier combines some blacksmith's skills (fabricating, adapting, and adj ...
at
harness racetracks in the United States and Canada. One of the horses he shod, Overburden, set the track record at
Northlands Park
Northlands Park was the "Alberta A circuit" horse racing track at Northlands in Edmonton, Alberta. The horse racing season generally consisted of a spring harness (Standardbred) meet from February/March, a Thoroughbred meet from May/June to Sept ...
in
Edmonton, Alberta
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anch ...
. In describing how his time as a farrier affected him, Chafee stated that "when you're around horses, you tend to be a quieter person."
Local politics (1985–1999)
Chafee entered politics in 1985, when he was elected over eight other candidates to become delegate to the Rhode Island Constitutional Convention. A year later he was elected to the Warwick City Council, defeating an incumbent, and re-elected in 1988. He ran for Warwick Mayor in 1990, losing by 5 percent in a three-way race.
In 1992, he was elected Warwick's first Republican mayor in 32 years, and was re-elected in 1994, 1996, and 1998, when he won by 17% and carried all nine wards.
Chafee was praised for his fair-minded and sensible approach to government, including his ability to work with seven Democrats (of nine seats) on the Warwick City Council. He conservatively managed the city's finances, strengthening the city's bond rating and paying down the outstanding pension liability.
He worked effectively and cooperatively with the municipal unions, especially in settling a difficult and prolonged teacher labor dispute that he inherited from the previous administration.
As mayor, Chafee made conservation, environmental protection and wise growth a priority. He purchased 130 acres of open space, planted hundreds of street trees, and created new historic districts and a new economic development "intermodal" district at the state airport. His municipal composting and recycling initiatives dramatically decreased landfill waste. His "Greenwich Bay Initiative", which extended sewer service to the most environmentally-sensitive areas of the city, earned Warwick recognition by EPA as one of the best local watershed programs in the nation.
United States Senate (1999–2007)
Elections
2000
After his father announced he would not seek re-election in 2000, Lincoln Chafee announced he would run for the seat. When John Chafee died suddenly in October 1999, Governor
Lincoln Almond appointed the younger Chafee to serve out the term.
In the general election he faced the
Democratic nominee, then-
U.S. Representative Robert Weygand
Robert A. "Bob" Weygand (born May 10, 1948) is an American politician. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1997 until 2001. He is a member of the Democratic Party from Rhode Island.
Life and career
Weygand was b ...
. Chafee won the election 57%–41%.
2006
In September 2005,
Steve Laffey
Stephen (Steve) Laffey is an American politician, businessman, author and filmmaker. He is the former Republican mayor of Cranston, Rhode Island from 2003 to 2007 and lost a bid for the United States Senate in 2006. He is a former executive of ...
, the mayor of
Cranston, Rhode Island
Cranston, once known as Pawtuxet, is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island. The official population of the city in the 2020 United States Census was 82,934, making it the second largest in the state. The center of population of Rhode Island ...
, announced his intention to run against Chafee in the Republican
primary election
Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...
. Among other stances differing from those of Chafee, Mayor Laffey opposed abortion and
stem cell research
In multicellular organisms, stem cells are undifferentiated or partially differentiated cells that can differentiate into various types of cells and proliferate indefinitely to produce more of the same stem cell. They are the earliest type of ...
. Laffey was supported by notable conservative groups including the
Club for Growth and several anti-abortion groups. Chafee went on to defeat Laffey in the primary on September 12 by a margin of 53%–47%. The turnout for the Republican primary was the largest in Rhode Island history. In his victory speech, Chafee credited independent voters and disaffiliated Democrats for his victory.
Despite Chafee's high approval ratings statewide, the state had tended to lean heavily toward socially liberal or moderate candidates for many decades. As a result, Democrat
Sheldon Whitehouse
Sheldon Whitehouse (born October 20, 1955) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Rhode Island since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States Attorney from 1993 to 1998 ...
succeeded by attacking the instances in which Chafee supported his party's conservative congressional leadership (whose personalities and policies were very unpopular statewide).
Chafee lost to Whitehouse in the general election, 54%–46%. In response to a question at a news conference on November 9, 2006, Chafee stated he was unsure whether he would remain in 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 Party ...
after serving out the remainder of his term. According to Michelle R. Smith of 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. new ...
, when asked whether he felt that his loss may have helped the country by switching control of power in Congress (away from Republicans and toward the Democrats), he replied: "To be honest, yes."
Tenure
Descended from a long line of moderate, center-right New England Republicans, Chafee's stances became increasingly liberal, more so than his father's positions had been. The now dominant
conservatives referred to him as a "
Republican In Name Only", or RINO. Most notable among these was ''
Human Events
''Human Events'' is an American conservative political news and analysis website. Founded in 1944 as a print newspaper, ''Human Events'' became a digital-only publication in 2013.
''Human Events'' takes its name from the first sentence of the U ...
'' magazine, which named Chafee "the No. 1 RINO in the country." In 2006, the ''
National Journal
''National Journal'' is an advisory services company based in Washington, D.C., offering services in government affairs, advocacy communications, stakeholder mapping, and policy brands research for government and business leaders. It publishes d ...
'' rated Chafee as the most liberal Republican in the Senate, and placed him to the left of two Democrats,
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...
's
Ben Nelson
Earl Benjamin Nelson (born May 17, 1941) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician who served as the 37th governor of Nebraska from 1991 to 1999 and as a United States Senator from Nebraska from 2001 to 2013. He is a member of the Dem ...
and
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is bord ...
's
Mary Landrieu
Mary Loretta Landrieu ( ; born November 23, 1955) is an American entrepreneur and politician who served as a United States senator from Louisiana from 1997 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, Landrieu served as the Louisiana State Treas ...
(the only Republican ranked to the left of the latter senator).
GovTrack also ranked Senator Chafee as the most liberal Republican member in 2006; according to GovTrack's analysis, Chafee was to the left of his Republican colleagues as well as to the left of fourteen Democrats.
Known for often disagreeing with the Republican Party leadership, Chafee says he did not cast his ballot for President
George W. Bush in the
2004 election, instead choosing to
write in former president
George H. W. Bush as a nod to the Republican Party of his father. Chafee frequently criticized the younger Bush's record on the
environment
Environment most often refers to:
__NOTOC__
* Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally
* Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...
, and expressed concern about the 2004 Republican
platform and overall philosophical direction of the party. He described the younger Bush's presidency as "an agenda of energizing the
far-right-wing base, which is divisive." Soon thereafter, he rejected Democratic overtures to leave the Republican Party after appeals to him from other Republican
senators to remain in their caucus. Chafee considered challenging George W. Bush for re-nomination in the
New Hampshire primary
The New Hampshire presidential primary is the first in a series of nationwide party primary elections and the second party contest (the first being the Iowa caucuses) held in the United States every four years as part of the process of choos ...
in 2004 on an anti- (Iraq and Afghanistan) war platform. In his autobiography, ''Against the Tide'' (2007), he states that "In the fall of 2003, part of me thought it was cowardly to oppose the president on so many issues and then not oppose him head-on as he sought renomination." However, he decided not to run after the capture of
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein ( ; ar, صدام حسين, Ṣaddām Ḥusayn; 28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003. A leading member of the revolutio ...
on December 13, 2003.
Fiscal policy
Chafee also voted against both the 2001 and 2003 congressional budget bills that cut and/or rebated individuals' federal income taxes. He asserted that tax cuts reduce revenue to the federal government, thereby worsening the federal budget deficit and increasing the amount of money it has to borrow in order to operate. In 2004, Chafee broke with his party again to oppose the acceleration of the Bush tax cuts. "Four Senate moderates --
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two te ...
of Arizona,
Olympia J. Snowe and
Susan Collins, both of Maine, and Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island -- had insisted on attaching a provision that would have applied pay-as-you-go-rules for the next five years."
On November 17, 2005, he voted in favor of reinstating the top
federal income tax rate of 39.6% (which last existed under President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...
in the 1990s) on the highest-income taxpayers.
In 2003, Chafee voted against the
Medicare Part D
Medicare Part D, also called the Medicare prescription drug benefit, is an optional United States federal-government program to help Medicare beneficiaries pay for self-administered prescription drugs. Part D was enacted as part of the Medica ...
prescription drug
A prescription drug (also prescription medication or prescription medicine) is a pharmaceutical drug that legally requires a medical prescription to be dispensed. In contrast, over-the-counter drugs can be obtained without a prescription. The r ...
expansion. However, Chafee also cast a crucial procedural vote against a Democratic attempt to kill that bill, which failed by only two votes. Chafee also co-sponsored the
Class Action Fairness Act of 2005, which expanded federal jurisdiction over class-action lawsuits, and voted against a wholesale ban on gifts from employees of lobbying companies.
The
Cato Institute
The Cato Institute is an American libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Ed Crane, Murray Rothbard, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries.Koch Ind ...
's Center for Trade Policy Studies identified Chafee as a "free trader" during his U.S. Senate tenure, indicating a pro-
free trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econ ...
, pro-
market, and anti-
subsidies voting record. Chafee has supported
free trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econ ...
agreements (e.g.,
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA ; es, Tratado de Libre Comercio de América del Norte, TLCAN; french: Accord de libre-échange nord-américain, ALÉNA) was an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States that crea ...
and
Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement
Dominican may refer to:
* Someone or something from or related to the Dominican Republic ( , stress on the "mi"), on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles, in the Caribbean
** People of the Dominican Republic
** Demographics of the Domi ...
(CAFTA) and
bankruptcy reform.
As U.S. Senator from Rhode Island, Chafee received grades of D in 2000, C− in 2001, C in 2002, C− in 2003 and 2004, and D in 2005 and 2006 from the
National Taxpayers Union
The National Taxpayers Union (NTU) is a fiscally conservative taxpayer advocacy organization and taxpayers union in the United States, founded in 1977 by James Dale Davidson. NTU says that it is the oldest taxpayer advocacy organization in th ...
, a
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
taxpayers advocacy organization.
Environment
Chafee was one of the few Republicans to vote against allowing drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and was a member of the Republicans for Environmental Protection. He has been endorsed throughout his career by the Sierra Club and the League of Conservative Voters as a strong leader for environmental causes, despite criticisms from other progressive activist groups decrying the endorsement of a (then) Republican.
Chafee sponsored the
Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act of 2002, enabling the clean up and redevelopment of thousands of abandoned urban buildings throughout the United States.
Social policy
Chafee was a member of the
Republican Majority for Choice
The Republican Majority for Choice (RMC) was a Republican organization in the United States dedicated to preserving legal access to abortion. The group also supported federal funding for all kinds of stem cell research, including embryonic stem c ...
and
Republicans for Choice. Chafee was also a member of the
Republican Main Street Partnership.
Chafee is
pro-choice
Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pr ...
. In 2003, Chafee was one of the three Republican Senators to oppose the
. His 2006 senatorial re-election bid was endorsed by
NARAL Pro-Choice America
NARAL Pro-Choice America, commonly known as simply NARAL ( ), is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization in the United States that engages in lobbying, political action, and advocacy efforts to oppose restrictions on abortion, to expand access t ...
. He also supported federal funding for
embryonic stem cell
Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are pluripotent stem cells derived from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst, an early-stage pre- implantation embryo. Human embryos reach the blastocyst stage 4–5 days post fertilization, at which time they consist ...
research.
In 2004, Chafee was one of six Republicans to vote against the
Federal Marriage Amendment
The Federal Marriage Amendment (FMA), also referred to by proponents as the Marriage Protection Amendment, was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution that would legally define marriage as a union of one man and one woman. The FMA ...
, an amendment intended to ban gay marriage; in 2006, he voted against banning gay marriage a second time. During his tenure, Chafee was the only sitting or former Republican senator to support the legalization of
same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
, until
Rob Portman
Robert Jones Portman (born December 19, 1955) is an American attorney and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Ohio since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, Portman was the 35th director of the Office of Management ...
of
Ohio
Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...
endorsed it in 2013.
He supported
affirmative action and
gun control
Gun control, or firearms regulation, is the set of laws or policies that regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, or use of firearms by civilians.
Most countries have a restrictive firearm guiding policy, with onl ...
, and was one of only two Republicans to vote against the
Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (which prevents
firearms
A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions).
The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...
manufacturers and
dealers from being held liable for crimes committed with their products). On June 27, 2006, Chafee was one of only three Republicans to vote against the proposed
Flag Desecration Amendment
The Flag Desecration Amendment (often referred to as the Flag-Burning Amendment) is a proposed addition to the Constitution of the United States that would allow the U.S. Congress to prohibit by statute and provide punishment for the physical " ...
.
Chafee opposes the death penalty, and has consistently voted against limiting death penalty appeals in federal cases. He has also favored including
racial statistics in death penalty appeals, and making
DNA analysis
Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, or ...
a prerequisite for any federal-level, criminal executions.
On May 23, 2005, Chafee was one of
14 bipartisan senators to forge a compromise on the Democrats' use of the judicial
filibuster
A filibuster is a political procedure in which one or more members of a legislative body prolong debate on proposed legislation so as to delay or entirely prevent decision. It is sometimes referred to as "talking a bill to death" or "talking out ...
, forestalling the Republican leadership's implementation of the so-called "
nuclear option
In the United States Senate, the nuclear option is a parliamentary procedure that allows the Senate to override a standing rule by a simple majority, avoiding the two-thirds supermajority normally required to invoke cloture on a resolution ...
". Under the agreement, the Democrats would retain the power to filibuster a Bush II judicial nominee only in an "extraordinary circumstance", and three of the most conservative Bush
appellate court
A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of ...
nominees (
Janice Rogers Brown,
Priscilla Owen and
William Pryor) would receive a vote by the full Senate. Chafee was the only Republican to oppose George W. Bush's nomination of
Samuel Alito
Samuel Anthony Alito Jr. ( ; born April 1, 1950) is an American lawyer and jurist who serves as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was nominated by President George W. Bush on October 31, 2005, and has serve ...
to the
United States Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
. However, he voted to end debate on the nomination, helping to end any chance of a Democratic filibuster of it. Chafee did not announce his opposition to the nomination until a majority of Senators had already publicly said they would support Alito.
Foreign policy
Chafee was the only Republican in the Senate to vote against authorization of
the use of force in Iraq in the lead-up to the
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
. On June 22, 2006, he was the only Republican to vote for the Levin amendment calling for a nonbinding timetable for a withdrawal of
US troops
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...
from
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. Chafee voted against the
Kerry-Feingold amendment calling for a binding timetable.
Chafee is now involved in
J Street, a liberal Jewish group that calls for Israel to withdraw from all occupied territories and advocates for a "two state" solution to the
Arab–Israeli conflict
The Arab–Israeli conflict is an ongoing intercommunal phenomenon involving political tension, military conflicts, and other disputes between Arab countries and Israel, which escalated during the 20th century, but had mostly faded out by th ...
.
In November 2006, immediately following the midterm elections, Chafee joined key Democrats in opposing President Bush's renomination of
John Bolton as
United States Ambassador to the United Nations
The United States ambassador to the United Nations is the leader of the U.S. delegation, the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. The position is formally known as the permanent representative of the United States of America to the United Nation ...
. On December 4, 2006, the White House announced that Bolton would no longer seek the appointment, and would resign within a matter of weeks.
Committee assignments
*
U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the U.S. Senate charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. It is generally responsible for overseeing and funding foreign aid pro ...
*
U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works
*
Political hiatus (2007–2009)
In December 2006, Chafee announced he was accepting a fellowship to serve as a "distinguished visiting fellow" at Brown University's Thomas J. Watson Jr. Institute for International Studies. The university had Chafee lead a student group studying U.S. foreign policy.
In September 2007, Chafee officially left the Republican Party, changing his affiliation to Independent. He said that he did so because of the Republican Party's drifting away from its core values, such as its abandoning fiscal conservatism. Citing the party's new tendency to pass tax cuts without spending cuts to balance the loss of revenue, he noted how the party was destroying social programs aimed to help middle-class and lower-income Americans, particularly
Pell Grant
A Pell Grant is a subsidy the U.S. federal government provides for students who need it to pay for college. Federal Pell Grants are limited to students with financial need, who have not earned their first bachelor's degree, or who are enrolled i ...
s and
Head Start. In February 2008, he said he was considering voting for then-Senator
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
in Rhode Island's
Democratic presidential primary election. On February 14, 2008, with the Rhode Island Democratic primary approaching in three weeks, Chafee officially endorsed Obama. In 2012, he was one of 35 co-chairs selected to "act as key surrogates and ambassadors" for Obama's re-election campaign.
In 2008, Chafee joined the advisory board of
J Street, a lobbying group that promotes diplomatic relations between Israel and its neighbors, and supports an independent
Palestinian state
Palestine ( ar, فلسطين, Filasṭīn), officially the State of Palestine ( ar, دولة فلسطين, Dawlat Filasṭīn, label=none), is a state located in Western Asia. Officially governed by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PL ...
.
In September 2008, Chafee received media attention for describing
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 ...
, then-
Governor of Alaska
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
and the Republican vice-presidential nominee in the
2008 presidential election, as a "cocky wacko."
Governor of Rhode Island (2011–2015)
2010 election
On January 4, 2010, Chafee formally declared his intention to run for Governor of Rhode Island in 2010 as an independent, as the incumbent Governor
Donald Carcieri
Donald Louis Carcieri ( ; ; born December 16, 1942) is an American politician and corporate executive who served as the 73rd Governor of Rhode Island from January 2003 to January 2011. Carcieri has worked as a manufacturing company executive, aid ...
(a Republican re-elected the same day Chafee lost his Senate re-election bid) was
term-limited at the time. On October 31, 2010, electoral analysis site
FiveThirtyEight.com gave Chafee a 63.8% chance of victory, compared to Democratic opponent
Frank T. Caprio's 26.2% and Republican opponent
John Robitaille
John Robitaille ( ; born August 14, 1948) is an American politician and businessman. He was the Republican party nominee in the 2010 election for Governor of Rhode Island, which he lost to independent candidate Lincoln Chafee on November 2, 2010.
...
's 10.0%. Likewise, other sites, such as the
Cook Political Report
''The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter'' is an American online newsletter that analyzes elections and campaigns for the U.S. Presidency, the United States Senate, the United States House of Representatives, and U.S. governors' offices. Sel ...
, classified the race as a "toss-up". Chafee's approval rating at the time of his 2006 defeat was between 51% and 63%.
On September 16, 2010, New York City Mayor
Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is the majority owner, co-founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P. He was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and was a c ...
(who had also switched from Republican to Independent to Democratic in recent years) traveled to Rhode Island. Bloomberg praised Chafee's "experience and integrity", saying that Chafee would put Rhode Islanders' interests "ahead of party interests", and that Chafee would "produce results -— because that's exactly what he did as a mayor and as senator."
It was reported that President Obama's lack of endorsement of any of the candidates indicated tacit support of Chafee over Democrat Caprio.
Chafee easily won the endorsements of all major public school teachers unions, including the Rhode Island affiliates of the
National Education Association
The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the United States. It represents public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college stud ...
and
American Federation of Teachers
The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) is the second largest teacher's labor union in America (the largest being the National Education Association). The union was founded in Chicago. John Dewey and Margaret Haley were founders.
About 60 per ...
in his 2010 gubernatorial campaign.
On November 2, 2010, Chafee won the gubernatorial race, winning with a 36% plurality in the seven-candidate race.
Switch to the Democratic Party
In August 2012, he announced plans to attend the
Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...
in
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most popu ...
, to show support for President
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
's re-election campaign. After constant speculation during his term, Chafee officially joined the
Democratic Party on May 30, 2013. He had previously indicated that he might run for re-election as an Independent or a Democrat.
Recession
Chafee came to office in the depths of the worst recession in decades. Unemployment peaked at 11.4% in the first months of his tenure. Over his four budgets, July 1, 2011, to June 30, 2015, the rate dropped to 5.9%, second best in the country.
Chafee also inherited a crisis with impending bankruptcies of a number of municipalities including Providence, East Providence, Pawtucket, West Warwick and Woonsocket.
As a former mayor, Chafee was a strong advocate for the state's city and towns. He increased state aid and intervened to protect these distressed communities.
One city, Central Falls, did declare a bankruptcy. Chafee appointed a special master to run the city on an interim basis, negotiate concessions with labor and retirees, and pass a budget with tax increases. Central Falls emerged from bankruptcy the following year.
Fiscal issues
Chafee had campaigned on a platform that included lowering the state sales tax by creating a 1% tax on 59 tax exempt commodities and services. This would have squarely addressed the Rhode Island legislature annual budget deficit.
A 2012 poll showed that some of Chafee's proposed tax increases, intended to move the state from budget deficit to surplus status, had received negative feedback from Rhode Island residents. As Governor of Rhode Island, Chafee received grades of D in 2012
and B in 2014
from the
Cato Institute
The Cato Institute is an American libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Ed Crane, Murray Rothbard, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries.Koch Ind ...
, a
libertarian
Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's en ...
think tank, in their biennial Fiscal Policy Report Card on America's Governors.
In two of his four budgets, there were no tax increases. At the same time, he restored 20% to local education and higher education, cut by his predecessor.
Social issues
In May 2012, Chafee refused on principle to release a prisoner charged with murder to federal custody because Rhode Island hadn't had an execution since 1842 and the US Attorney refused to guarantee the prisoner, if convicted would receive a maximum life imprisonment without parole. Chafee said: "The State of Rhode Island must seek to protect both the strong
states' rights
In American political discourse, states' rights are political powers held for the state governments rather than the federal government according to the United States Constitution, reflecting especially the enumerated powers of Congress and the ...
issues at stake, and the legitimacy of its longstanding public policy against the death penalty."
Chafee championed a bill that legalized
same-sex marriage in Rhode Island, signing it into law on May 1, 2012.
Chafee has shown some willingness to deviate from strict "
War on Drugs
The war on drugs is a global campaign, led by the United States federal government, of drug prohibition, military aid, and military intervention, with the aim of reducing the illegal drug trade in the United States.Cockburn and St. Clair, 1 ...
" policies, in favor of alternative approaches to America's drug-crime problem.
Education
On "education reform" in general, Chafee does not believe the politically and publicly popular presumption that America's schools are failing, saying:
This notion of all these failing schools, if this were true, how did America get to be at the status where we are in the world if it were that bad? So I don't buy into the trashing of our public school system. Somehow Brown University
Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
, and University of Rhode Island
The University of Rhode Island (URI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Kingston, Rhode Island, United States. It is the flagship public research as well as the land-grant university of the state of Rhode Isla ...
and Bryant University
Bryant University is a private university in Smithfield, Rhode Island. It has two colleges, the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Business, and is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education.
History
Butler ...
, Providence College
Providence College is a private Catholic university in Providence, Rhode Island. Founded in 1917 by the Dominican Order and the local diocese, it offers 47 undergraduate majors and 17 graduate programs.
It requires all of its undergraduat ...
are full of public school students that are doing very, very well and leading America in many fields. Yes, there's room for improvement, I don't deny that and I want to be part of the improvement. But the notion that our public school systems are in disarray and failing, I don't buy that.
38 Studios
Chafee was the only public figure in Rhode Island to vigorously oppose an ill-fated deal in which the previous Governor committed an unsecured $75 million loan to a former baseball star,
Curt Schilling
Curtis Montague Schilling (born November 14, 1966) is an American former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher who is a commentator for conservative media outlet BlazeTV. He helped lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a World Series appearance ...
, to develop a new video game, ''
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning''. The first payments started two months before he took office in January 2011.
The game was released in February 2012 to moderate critical success, but failed commercially. 38 Studios ended up laying off their staff and filed for bankruptcy. According to Schilling, Chafee's public comments calling the game a "failure" caused a publisher to pull out of a $35 million deal that could have paid for a sequel. In response, Chafee said he would need to "verify" Schilling's claim, saying that he couldn't "just take it as a leap of faith." He added that it "isn't accurate" to blame the state for the company's collapse.
As chair of the agency securing the loan, Chafee initiated a lawsuit to recover lost funds for Rhode Island taxpayers. To date, about $17 million has been recovered through settlements.
Christmas tree controversy
In 2011,
Fox News
The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is o ...
and local conservatives and pundits stirred up controversy over the Christmas tree at the Rhode Island State House. Governor Chafee said he called the towering fir, decorated with lights, tinsel and toys, a "holiday tree," because that had been the accepted practice of the two previous governors, both Republicans. Chafee went on national TV with commentator
Bill O'Reilly, calling Fox News' "war on Christmas" coverage "angry."
2014 election
Chafee had previously indicated that he might run for re-election as an Independent or a Democrat.
[ With polling showing him trailing in the Democratic primary, Chafee announced on September 4, 2013, that he would not run for re-election. Chafee thus became just the fourth Governor in the history of Rhode Island to decline to seek a second term, and the first since William S. Flynn in 1924.
]
2016 presidential campaign
On April 9, 2015, Chafee announced that he had formed an exploratory committee
In the election politics of the United States, an exploratory committee is an organization established to help determine whether a potential candidate should run for an elected office. They are most often cited in reference to candidates for pre ...
in preparation for a potential candidacy for President of the United States as a Democrat in 2016. He formally declared candidacy on June 3, 2015, with the campaign focused on ten stated issues with "Prosperity Through Peace" being his slogan.
Following a widely panned debate performance and poor polling numbers, Chafee announced on October 23, 2015, that he would be ending his campaign. After she secured the Democratic nomination, a Chafee spokesman said that he would support Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
.
Subsequent activities
Chafee considered challenging Sheldon Whitehouse for his former Senate seat in 2018, but ultimately decided against doing so.
Between 2018 and 2019, Chafee and his family moved their residency to Wyoming. By 2018, Chaffee's wife Stefanie had registered as a voter in Teton Village, Wyoming
Teton Village is a census-designated place (CDP) in Teton County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 330 at the 2010 census. The village surrounds the base of the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. It is accessed from nearby Jackson and the s ...
.[ Chafee completed his move to Wyoming in 2019.
In 2020, Chafee joined the Libertarians for National Popular Vote advisory board.
]
2020 presidential campaign
In February 2017, Chafee had made it known that he was not ruling out another run for the presidency.
On March 11, 2019, Chafee officially switched from the Democratic to the Libertarian Party, stating, "It's what I've always been—fiscally conservative and socially liberal." In August, Chafee declared that he'd "be open" to running for president as a Libertarian.
On January 5, 2020, Chafee formally filed to run for the Libertarian Party nomination. He formally announced his candidacy on January 8 at the National Press Club
Organizations
A press club is an organization for journalists and others professionally engaged in the production and dissemination of news. A press club whose membership is defined by the press of a given country may be known as a National Pre ...
in Washington, D.C.
Chafee's 2020 platform highlighted issues such as foreign intervention, the war on drugs, and government spending. While individuals such as former New York gubernatorial candidate Larry Sharpe and national party chair Nicholas Sarwark
Nicholas Joel Sarwark (born August 27, 1979) is an American attorney and businessman who served as the 19th chair of the Libertarian National Committee (LNC), the governing body of the Libertarian Party. Prior to his election in 2014, he served on ...
were supportive of Chafee, others including the Rhode Island
Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...
state chair Pat Ford were more skeptical due to his historical positions on gun control issues, among other things. According to ''The Providence Journal
''The Providence Journal'', colloquially known as the ''ProJo'', is a daily newspaper serving the metropolitan area of Providence, Rhode Island, and is the largest newspaper in Rhode Island. The newspaper was first published in 1829. The newspape ...
'', Chafee hired Libertarian consultant Christopher Thrasher as campaign manager
{{Political campaigning
A campaign manager, campaign chairman, or campaign director is a paid or volunteer individual whose role is to coordinate a political campaign's operations such as fundraising, advertising, polling, getting out the vo ...
and selected Westerly Town Council member Caswell Cooke Jr. for the position of campaign treasurer.
On April 5, 2020, Chafee announced on Facebook that he was ending his campaign for the Libertarian presidential nomination. He did not make any endorsements for president.
Political positions
While serving in the U.S. Senate, Chafee was characterized as a "moderate
Moderate is an ideological category which designates a rejection of radical or extreme views, especially in regard to politics and religion. A moderate is considered someone occupying any mainstream position avoiding extreme views. In American ...
" or even " liberal Republican." The non-partisan ''National Journal
''National Journal'' is an advisory services company based in Washington, D.C., offering services in government affairs, advocacy communications, stakeholder mapping, and policy brands research for government and business leaders. It publishes d ...
'' in 2005 gave him a composite 59% liberal score and a 41% conservative score. His record as a more liberal Republican Senator earned him criticism from conservatives; the conservative magazine, ''Human Events
''Human Events'' is an American conservative political news and analysis website. Founded in 1944 as a print newspaper, ''Human Events'' became a digital-only publication in 2013.
''Human Events'' takes its name from the first sentence of the U ...
'', labeled him one of the top ten RINOs, or what they consider to be insufficiently conservative, in 2005. According to GovTrack, Chafee was the most liberal Republican Senator in 2006 being placed by GovTrack's analysis to the left of every Republican and several Democrats. Later, as governor of Rhode Island, he pursued a centrist agenda that alienated special interests on both the left and right, "from unions to the state's Roman Catholic bishop." He has called for moderation and deescalation in U.S. foreign policy, combined with pragmatic fiscal conservatism, and liberal social policies.
Domestic policy
Abortion
Chafee has generally been considered pro-choice
Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pr ...
. In the U.S. Senate, Chafee was one of three Republicans to vote against the . He has received a 90-percent rating from NARAL and previously served on that organization's national board. In 2015 Chafee said that he strongly supported "a woman's right to make her own personal reproductive decisions."
Chafee is the only governor to have vetoed a bill proposing the availability of to Rhode Islanders, citing an inappropriateness of using state license plates to fund politically divisive initiatives and as a violation of the separation of Church and State
The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular s ...
. This decision was criticized as a violation of free speech
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recog ...
and as having been influenced by his previous post on NARAL's Board of Directors.
Crime and civil rights
Chafee's policy on firearms regulation previously mirrored the views of his father, John Chafee, who was generally supportive of a strict regulatory environment. Chafee later said he supports "common sense adherence to the Second Amendment
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds each ...
." In January 2020, in an interview with ''Reason'' magazine, he cited “distrust in government” as the reason his position had evolved, and that he “believe the authors of the Second Amendment wrote it with that in mind.”
In 2011, as governor of Rhode Island, Chafee challenged an order of a federal court to transfer a prisoner in state custody to the United States government, because the prisoner in question might be subject to capital punishment, which Rhode Island had abolished. At the time, Chafee said, "my actions are motivated by my obligation as governor to safeguard Rhode Island's sovereignty and the integrity of its laws."
Chafee has indicated he is receptive to the idea of legalizing the recreational use of marijuana and in 2006 supported Rhode Island's legalization of medical marijuana. He has praised the Libertarian Party for its “enlightened approach to the corrosive and failed war on drugs.”
In March 2020, after moving to Wyoming, Chafee testified in favour of a bill in the Wyoming House of Representatives
The Wyoming House of Representatives is the lower house of the Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming State Legislature. There are 60 Representatives in the House, representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts across the Wyoming, st ...
that would have legalized and regulated marijuana usage in Wyoming.
In 2015 Chafee said he believed "certain of our rights have been wrongfully infringed upon. Particularly the Fourth Amendment which forbids the tapping of our phones without a warrant." While in the U.S. Senate, Chafee was the only Republican to vote against the Military Commissions Act of 2006
The Military Commissions Act of 2006, also known as HR-6166, was an Act of Congress signed by President George W. Bush on October 17, 2006. The Act's stated purpose was "to authorize trial by military commission for violations of the law of ...
, which restricted habeas corpus
''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a recourse in law through which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment to a court and request that the court order the custodian of the person, usually a prison official, ...
rights of persons detained by the U.S. Department of Defense as enemy combatants.
Elections
Chafee has said he supports requiring voters to present photo identification at polling places. In 2011 he signed legislation mandating photo ID in Rhode Island elections, stating that he believed requiring photo ID was a "reasonable request to ensure the accuracy and integrity of our elections." The Rhode Island law does allow voters without an approved form of identification to cast a provisional ballot that will be counted if the voter's signature matches the one on file.
In 2013, five years after his ''Providence Journal'' commentary urging passage of the plan, Chafee signed legislation entering Rhode Island into the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. As governor he also signed legislation creating the Voter Choice Study Commission "for the purpose of studying instant-runoff voting
Instant-runoff voting (IRV) is a type of Ranked voting, ranked preferential Electoral system, voting method. It uses a Majority rule, majority voting rule in single-winner elections where there are more than two candidates. It is commonly referr ...
and other advanced voting methods."
In the Senate, Chafee voted in support of the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act
The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (, ), commonly known as the McCain–Feingold Act or BCRA (pronounced "bik-ruh"), is a United States federal law that amended the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, which regulates the financing o ...
(commonly known as the McCain-Feingold Act), which tightened regulation of "soft money" contributions in political campaigns.
Environment
Chafee has stated his opposition to oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR or Arctic Refuge) is a national wildlife refuge in northeastern Alaska, United States on traditional Gwich'in lands. It consists of in the Alaska North Slope region. It is the largest national wildli ...
. In the Senate he opposed the Clear Skies Act of 2003 which critics said would increase air pollution if enacted. Chafee has argued that granite is objectively the best rock as it is vital to Rhode Island's economy. The League of Conservation Voters
The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) is an American environmental advocacy group. LCV says that it "advocates for sound environmental laws and policies, holds elected officials accountable for their votes and actions, and elects pro-environmen ...
has given Chafee a 79-percent rating while, in 2006, he received an endorsement from the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is an environmental organization with chapters in all 50 United States, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by Scottish-American preservationist John Muir, who b ...
.
Metric system
Chafee supports switching the U.S. to the metric system
The metric system is a system of measurement that succeeded the decimalised system based on the metre that had been introduced in France in the 1790s. The historical development of these systems culminated in the definition of the Intern ...
.
Same-sex marriage
Chafee opposes a constitutional amendment
A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, ...
intended to ban gay marriage. In 2011, Governor Chafee signed a bill into law legalizing civil union
A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...
s. In 2013, as governor of Rhode Island, Chafee signed legislation legalizing same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
in that state, declaring that "we are living up to the ideal of our founders". ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' described Chafee as a "strong proponent" of the bill, which faced significant opposition from the Democratic president of the Rhode Island State Senate
The Rhode Island Senate is the upper house of the Rhode Island General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, the lower house being the Rhode Island House of Representatives. It is composed of 38 Senators, each of w ...
.
Taxes
As Rhode Island governor, Chafee called for a cut in the commercial property tax to spur economic development in Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...
. From the National Taxpayers Union
The National Taxpayers Union (NTU) is a fiscally conservative taxpayer advocacy organization and taxpayers union in the United States, founded in 1977 by James Dale Davidson. NTU says that it is the oldest taxpayer advocacy organization in th ...
, a conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
taxpayers advocacy organization, as U.S. Senator from Rhode Island, Chafee received grades of D in 2000, C− in 2001, C in 2002, C− in 2003 and 2004, D in 2005 and 2006, and as Governor of Rhode Island, Chafee received a "B" rating, the National Taxpayers Union
The National Taxpayers Union (NTU) is a fiscally conservative taxpayer advocacy organization and taxpayers union in the United States, founded in 1977 by James Dale Davidson. NTU says that it is the oldest taxpayer advocacy organization in th ...
citing his move to repeal the Rhode Island franchise tax and reduce estate taxes. Also as Governor of Rhode Island, Chafee received grades of D in 2012 and B in 2014 from the Cato Institute
The Cato Institute is an American libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Ed Crane, Murray Rothbard, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries.Koch Ind ...
, a libertarian
Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's en ...
think tank, in their biennial Fiscal Policy Report Card on America's Governors.
In 2001 and 2003, while in the U.S. Senate, Chafee voted against the Bush tax cuts arguing he was concerned they favored the highest income brackets and about unchecked growth in the federal deficit. Chafee said that "cutting taxes is easy for politicians, we love to cut taxes. It takes responsibility to make sure our revenues match our expenditures and we're not doing that right now."
Foreign policy
Iran
Chafee supports President Obama's nuclear disarmament agreement with Iran. He has called for deescalation combined with cultural dialogue and exchange modeled after "the ping pong diplomacy of the Nixon era." He is strongly opposed to a possible war with Iran, which he sees as a negative consequence stemming from the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which he also opposed.
Israel
Chafee has criticized what he has characterized as a Biblical influence on U.S. policy with respect to Israel. He has said he opposes the expansion of Israeli settlements
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 ...
in the West Bank
The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
, but described Hamas as a "violent organization with a genocidal charter" In 2007, Chafee also stated that Israel's security was a paramount consideration in resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict
The Arab citizens of Israel are the largest ethnic minority in the country. They comprise a hybrid community of Israeli citizens with a heritage of Palestinian citizenship, mixed religions (Muslim, Christian or Druze), bilingual in Arabic an ...
. Chafee serves on the advisory council of J Street and has voted to continue foreign aid to the Israeli government, among others.
Latin America
Referring to Latin America, Chafee has called for the U.S. government to "reengage our neighbors." However, Chafee has also said recent U.S. inattention to the region was "a blessing in disguise" as it allowed democratic governments to flourish free of U.S. influence.
Russia
Chafee has said one of the U.S.' highest priorities should be improving relations with the Russian Federation
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
and has called for rapprochement, including the lifting of sanctions against Russia Sanctions, economic or international, that have been imposed on Russia include:
* International sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian War (2014–)
** Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, US legislation (2017)
** International sanc ...
.
War
While serving in the United States Senate, Chafee was one of 23 senators, and the only Republican, to vote against the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq, which provided the legal mechanism for the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. When asked, in 2015, how the U.S. could most effectively deal with ISIS
Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kin ...
, Chafee said the U.S. should pursue a policy of containment through alliance-building with regional powers. Chafee has said the U.S. "must make international decisions with brains and not biceps", and at the first 2016 Democratic primary debate, stated that the U.S. must end its use of "perpetual war
Perpetual war, endless war, or a forever war, is a lasting state of war with no clear conditions that would lead to its conclusion. These wars are situations of ongoing tension that may escalate at any moment, similar to the Cold War. From the ...
s", referring in part to the War on Terror
The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant ...
. In his speech declaring his withdrawal from the 2016 Presidential race at the annual Women's Leadership Forum in Washington, DC, Chafee again made the case for peace, attacking the field of Republican candidates for demonstrating a lack of desire "to understand anything about the Middle East and North Africa" and instead espousing "more bellicosity, more saber rattling, and more blind macho posturing." He ended the speech by reminding the audience that the United States is one of the strongest countries in history, economically, militarily, and culturally, and so not only could afford to take risks for peace, but "must take risks for peace." Arguing for a new paradigm, he concluded by asking the audience whether they wanted to be remembered as bombers of weddings and hospitals, or as peace makers. He has cited its anti-war stance as one of the primary reasons he joined the Libertarian Party, calling it “the party of peace” in a ''Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Gl ...
'' op-ed.
Endorsements
Chafee endorsed George W. Bush in the 2000 U.S. presidential election
The 2000 United States presidential election was the 54th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 7, 2000. Republican candidate George W. Bush, the governor of Texas and eldest son of the 41st president, George H. W. Bush, ...
, but declined to endorse Bush in the 2004 contest. In 2008 Chafee endorsed Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
for U.S. president during the Democratic Party presidential primaries, and went on to serve as national co-chair of Obama's 2012 reelection campaign. During the 2014 election for governor of Rhode Island, which Chafee did not contest, he endorsed Clay Pell
Herbert Claiborne Pell IV (born November 17, 1981) is an American lawyer, military officer, and politician. He is a commander and judge advocate in the United States Coast Guard Reserve, and served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Internat ...
in the Democratic primary.
Personal life
Chafee and his wife, Stephanie Birney (Danforth) Chafee, married in January 1990. They have three children: Louisa, Caleb, and Thea. Louisa qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics
)
, nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams)
, athletes = 11,238
, events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines)
, opening = 5 August 2016
, closing = 21 August 2016
, opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer
, cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...
in sailing. He is a member of The Episcopal Church
The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine provinces. The presiding bishop o ...
. , he lives in Teton Village, Wyoming
Teton Village is a census-designated place (CDP) in Teton County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 330 at the 2010 census. The village surrounds the base of the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. It is accessed from nearby Jackson and the s ...
.
Electoral history
See also
* List of American politicians who switched parties in office
* 2016 Democratic Party presidential candidates
* Republican and conservative support for Barack Obama in 2008
United States President Barack Obama, a member of the Democratic Party, was endorsed or supported by some members of the Republican Party and by some political figures holding conservative views in the 2008 election. Although the vast majority ...
* Rockefeller Republican
* Lowell Weicker, another liberal Republican senator who was elected governor of his home state (Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...
) as a third-party candidate.
References
External links
Lincoln Chafee for President 2020 Website
Lincoln Chafee at Libertarians for National Popular Vote
*
*
*
Guide to the Governor Lincoln D. Chafee records
from the Rhode Island State Archives
, -
, -
, -
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chafee, Lincoln
1953 births
Living people
Candidates in the 2016 United States presidential election
Candidates in the 2020 United States presidential election
20th-century American politicians
21st-century American politicians
American expatriates in Canada
American University of Beirut trustees
Brown University alumni
Brown University faculty
Chafee family
Democratic Party governors of Rhode Island
Farriers
Governors of Rhode Island
Independent state governors of the United States
Mayors of Warwick, Rhode Island
Montana State University alumni
People from Teton County, Wyoming
Phillips Academy alumni
Politicians from Providence, Rhode Island
Politicians from Warwick, Rhode Island
Progressivism in the United States
Republican Party United States senators from Rhode Island
Rhode Island city council members
Rhode Island Democrats
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Rhode Island Libertarians
Rhode Island Republicans
Wyoming Libertarians