Mark Deli Siljander (born June 11, 1951) is an American author and politician who served as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from the state of

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. He authored the book'' A Deadly Misunderstanding: A Congressman's Quest to Bridge the Muslim-Christian Divide''. In 2008, Siljander was indicted on charges of

money laundering Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...

conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, is a secret plan or agreement between persons (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder or treason, especially with political motivation, while keeping their agree ...

and

obstruction of justice Obstruction of justice, in United States jurisdictions, is an act that involves unduly influencing, impeding, or otherwise interfering with the justice system, especially the legal and procedural tasks of prosecutors, investigators, or other gov ...

. In 2010, he pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and acting as an unregistered foreign agent. In 2020, 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 ...

pardoned Siljander.

Early life, education, and early career

Siljander was born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, and graduated from

Oak Park and River Forest High School , motto_translation = Those things that are best , address = 201 N. Scoville Avenue , location = , region = , town = Oak Park , county = , state ...

in 1969. He received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

and

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

from

Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...

Kalamazoo, Michigan Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropolit ...

Career

He served as a

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...

on Fabius Township Board in St. Joseph County, Michigan, from 1972 to 1976 and also worked as a real estate broker.

U.S. House of Representatives

Siljander served as a U.S. Representative from the

Michigan's 4th congressional district Michigan's 4th congressional district is a United States congressional district that from 2003 to 2013 included portions of Northern and Central Michigan, consisting of all of Clare, Clinton, Gladwin, Gratiot, Isabella, Mecosta, Midland, ...

from April 21, 1981 to January 3, 1987. He served on the

House Foreign Affairs Committee The United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs, also known as the House Foreign Affairs Committee, is a standing committee of the U.S. House of Representatives with jurisdiction over bills and investigations concerning the foreign affairs ...

. At the time of Siljander's election,

covered southwestern Michigan and included Three Rivers and

Kalamazoo Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropolit ...

. ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'' magazine noted that the district was predominantly conservative, having elected only one Democrat in

he twentieth He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

century, in 1932. Siljander was known as a dogmatic

social conservative Social conservatism is a political philosophy and variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional power structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institution ...

. He criticized

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 ...

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

's appointment of

Sandra Day O'Connor Sandra Day O'Connor (born March 26, 1930) is an American retired attorney and politician who served as the first female associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1981 to 2006. She was both the first woman nominated and th ...

to the Supreme Court, viewing her track record as insufficiently conservative. ''

'' described him as a

fundamentalist Christian Christian fundamentalism, also known as fundamental Christianity or fundamentalist Christianity, is a religious movement emphasizing biblical literalism. In its modern form, it began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries among British and ...

. During his race, Siljander expressed opposition to the

Equal Rights Amendment The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex. Proponents assert it would end legal distinctions between men and ...

pornography Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults,

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

school busing Race-integration busing in the United States (also known simply as busing, Integrated busing or by its critics as forced busing) was the practice of assigning and transporting students to schools within or outside their local school districts in ...

and "big spending," as well as support for the

neutron bomb A neutron bomb, officially defined as a type of enhanced radiation weapon (ERW), is a low-yield thermonuclear weapon designed to maximize lethal neutron radiation in the immediate vicinity of the blast while minimizing the physical power of the b ...

, the

MX missile The LGM-118 Peacekeeper, originally known as the MX for "Missile, Experimental", was a MIRV-capable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) produced and deployed by the United States from 1985 to 2005. The missile could carry up to twelve Mark ...

and

prayer in public schools School prayer, in the context of religious liberty, is state-sanctioned or mandatory prayer by students in public schools. Depending on the country and the type of school, state-sponsored prayer may be required, permitted, or prohibited. Countries ...

. In Congress, Siljander's voting record was generally consistent with most other Republicans, although he became known for his firebrand conservative rhetoric; for example, he denounced "secular humanists" as having a "perverted" philosophy.Christine C. Lawrence, ''Congressional Quarterly's Politics in America: 2008, the 105th Congress'' (Congressional Quarertly: 1997), p. 729. ;1981 On January 27, 1981, incumbent Congressman

David Stockman David Alan Stockman (born November 10, 1946) is an American politician and former businessman who was a Republican U.S. Representative from the state of Michigan (1977–1981) and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (1981–1985) ...

resigned to serve as the director of the

Office of Management and Budget The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). OMB's most prominent function is to produce the president's budget, but it also examines agency programs, pol ...

in the

Reagan administration Ronald Reagan's tenure as the 40th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1981, and ended on January 20, 1989. Reagan, a Republican from California, took office following a landslide victory over D ...

. In the following special Republican primary, Siljander ranked first in a seven-candidate field with a plurality of 37%. He defeated Stockman-endorsed tax attorney John Globensky (36%) and State Senator John Mowat (22%). In the April 1981 special general election, he defeated Democratic Cass County Commissioner Johnie Rodebush 69%-29%. ;1982 Siljander was challenged in the next Republican primary by attorney Harold Schuitmaker and defeated him 56%-44%. In the general election, he won re-election to a full term with 60% of the vote. ;1984 Siljander was challenged again in the Republican primary, and defeated Tim Horan 58%-42%. In the general election, he won re-election to a second full term with 67% of the vote. In 1984, Siljander sponsored a single-sentence amendment which read, "For the purposes of this Act, the term 'person' shall include unborn children from the moment of conception."

Alexander Cockburn Alexander Claud Cockburn ( ; 6 June 1941 – 21 July 2012) was a Scottish-born Irish-American political journalist and writer. Cockburn was brought up by British parents in Ireland, but lived and worked in the United States from 1972. Together ...

referred to the Siljander Amendment as "the most far-reaching of all the measures dreamed up by the conservative right to undercut ''

Roe v. Wade ''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973),. was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States conferred the right to have an abortion. The decision struck down many federal and st ...

''." It failed 186-219. In 1985, Siljander proposed legislation which would deny most favored nation status to countries that discriminate on cultural, ethnic or religious grounds. ;1986 Once again Siljander was challenged in the Republican primary, this time by

Fred Upton Frederick Stephen Upton (born April 23, 1953) is an American politician serving as a U.S. representative from Michigan since 1987, representing the state's 6th congressional district since 1993. He is a member of the Republican Party. His dist ...

, a staffer to Stockman. Upton defeated Siljander 55%-45%, becoming the only Republican to unseat an incumbent in a primary that year. A key to his defeat was believed to be a tape sent to fundamentalist Christians in his district asking them to "break the back of Satan" by defeating Upton.

Later career

Siljander was appointed by President Reagan as an alternate representative to the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...

, serving from September 1987 to September 1988. He was an unsuccessful candidate in 1992 for nomination to the 103rd Congress from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. He stated then his message was, "not religious values as much as it's common-sense American traditional values." He campaigned on a

budget freeze A budget freeze in the USA is when a budget for an aspect of government or business is fixed- or frozen- at a specific level. One can be applied in a business to increase profits as well as in a government, often to reduce taxes. Budget freezes be ...

, a ten percent

flat tax A flat tax (short for flat-rate tax) is a tax with a single rate on the taxable amount, after accounting for any deductions or exemptions from the tax base. It is not necessarily a fully proportional tax. Implementations are often progressiv ...

and a

line-item veto The line-item veto, also called the partial veto, is a special form of veto power that authorizes a chief executive to reject particular provisions of a bill enacted by a legislature without vetoing the entire bill. Many countries have different ...

. In the Republican primary, Siljander came in second to Henry N. Butler, a

law professor A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner. In the Uni ...

George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was origin ...

. Siljander is the president of Bridges to Common Ground. He also founded Trac5, with the stated goal to build a bridge between Islam, Judaism and Christianity. Siljander's book, ''A Deadly Misunderstanding: A Congressman's Quest to Bridge the Muslim-Christian Divide'' was a 2009 Nautilus Silver Award Winner, and has a foreword written by

UN Secretary General The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the United Nations System#Six principal organs, six principal organs of the Un ...

Ban Ki Moon Ban Ki-moon (; ; born 13 June 1944) is a South Korean politician and diplomat who served as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations between 2007 and 2016. Prior to his appointment as secretary-general, Ban was his country's Minister ...

, with whom Siljander worked closely to resolve the humanitarian disaster in Darfur. Siljander was featured in the 2019

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

miniseries ''The Family'', which details the history and activities of The Fellowship, a secretive Christian organization with ties to politicians and world leaders.

Criminal conviction and pardon

On January 16, 2008, Siljander was

indicted An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felonies, the most serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use the felonies concept often use that of an ...

in the federal district court in the Western District of Missouri on five counts including

and

. Siljander initially pleaded not guilty, but on July 7, 2010, as part of a

plea agreement A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or '' nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendan ...

, Siljander pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and acting as an unregistered foreign agent. On January 12, 2012, he was sentenced to a year and a day in prison. The group for which Siljander worked as an unregistered foreign agent was the

Islamic American Relief Agency The Islamic American Relief Agency (IARA-USA) was an "American non-profit organization established in 1985 and dedicated to the empowerment of disadvantaged people everywhere through relief and participatory development programs emphasizing human di ...

, a

Columbus, Missouri Columbus is an unincorporated community in Johnson County, in the U.S. state of Missouri. The community is on Missouri Route M approximately 2.5 miles north of US Route 50. Warrensburg is ten miles to the southeast. The North Fork of the Blackwat ...

-based Islamic charity with ties to terrorism, which hired Siljander in early 2004 to lobby to get IARA removed from a

Senate Finance Committee The United States Senate Committee on Finance (or, less formally, Senate Finance Committee) is a standing committee of the United States Senate. The Committee concerns itself with matters relating to taxation and other revenue measures generall ...

list of charities suspected of funding international terrorism. IARA closed in October 2004 after it was added to the Treasury Department's list of global terrorist organizations due to the group's links to

Osama bin Laden Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until Killing of Osama bin Laden, his death in 2011. Ideologically a Pan-Islamism ...

al-Qaida Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military targets in various countri ...

and the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

. In December 2020, President

pardoned Siljander, praising his anti-abortion record while a congressman and his post-prison work abroad. Trump's decision to pardon Siljander was criticized by Republican Congressman

, who succeeded Siljander after defeating him in the 1986 Republican primary. * *

References

External links

Siljander at the Biographical Directory of the United States CongressAuthor's page on Amazon

Global Strategies, Inc.Trac5Bridges to Common GroundA Deadly Misunderstanding
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Siljander, Mark D. 1951 births 20th-century American diplomats 20th-century American politicians American Christian writers American officials of the United Nations George Wythe University alumni Living people Members of the Michigan House of Representatives Michigan politicians convicted of crimes People convicted of obstruction of justice People from Fairfax County, Virginia People from St. Joseph County, Michigan Politicians from Chicago Recipients of American presidential pardons Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan United Nations General Assembly officials Virginia Republicans Western Michigan University alumni