Sean Patrick Sullivan (born November 30, 1958) is an American lawyer, politician, a retired

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

and was

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

of the

Naval Submarine Base New London Naval Submarine Base New London is the primary United States Navy East Coast submarine base, also known as the "Home of the Submarine Force." It is located in Groton, Connecticut directly across the Thames River from its namesake city of New Lon ...

. He was the Republican candidate for the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

in Connecticut's 2nd congressional district in 2008.

Career

Sullivan was appointed to the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

in 1976 by recommendation of Senator Lowell Weicker. Upon

graduation Graduation is the awarding of a diploma to a student by an educational institution. It may also refer to the ceremony that is associated with it. The date of the graduation ceremony is often called graduation day. The graduation ceremony is a ...

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

'' with a degree in

Engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

, he joined the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

submarine force and served there for nearly two decades. He became commander of the USS ''Jefferson City'' in 1996. By the time of his retirement from the Navy, he achieved the rank of Captain and was Commanding Officer of the Naval Submarine Base in New London. He has served on Ledyard's

Board of education A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional are ...

, the Military Affairs Committee of The Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut, and is on Governor

M. Jodi Rell Mary Carolyn "Jodi" Rell (née Reavis; born June 16, 1946) is an American former Republican politician and the 87th governor of Connecticut from 2004 until 2011. Rell also served as the state's 105th lieutenant governor of Connecticut. Rell was C ...

's Commission of the Economic Diversification of Eastern Connecticut. He holds a M.A. in National Security Affairs from the Naval War College and a J.D. from the

University of Connecticut School of Law The University of Connecticut School of Law (UConn Law) is the law school associated with the University of Connecticut and located in Hartford, Connecticut. It is the only public law school in Connecticut and one of only four in New England. In ...

. He is an associate lawyer with the firm Brown Jacobson P.C. in

Norwich, Connecticut Norwich ( ) (also called "The Rose of New England") is a city in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The Yantic, Shetucket, and Quinebaug Rivers flow into the city and form its harbor, from which the Thames River flows south to Long ...

. He was elected and served on the Ledyard Town Council in Connecticut from 2009 to 2012.Former Board Members of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board
/ref> In 2012 he was nominated by 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, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

to serve as a member of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board.PN1561 — Sean Sullivan — Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, 112th Congress (2011-2012)
/ref> He was confirmed by the

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

on August 2, 2012 and was sworn in. He was appointed Chairman of the board by 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 ...

on January 23, 2017 and served as Chairman until he resigned on February 4, 2018.

2008 congressional campaign

Sullivan accepted the Connecticut Republican Party's nomination to run against Joe Courtney for Connecticut's 2nd congressional district seat on May 9, 2008. A poll released by the University of Connecticut on September 30, 2008 showed Courtney leading the race among likely voters fifty percent to twenty-three percent with twenty-four percent undecided. Sullivan has the loyalty of ⅔ of registered Republicans but Courtney has eighty-six percent of registered Democrats and a two to one lead among Independents. Sullivan lost the election to Courtney by a two to one margin.

Stances on issues

Sullivan is a proponent of spending control in Washington and places the blame for increased spending on

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

rather than on President

Bush Bush commonly refers to: * Shrub, a small or medium woody plant Bush, Bushes, or the bush may also refer to: People * Bush (surname), including any of several people with that name **Bush family, a prominent American family that includes: *** ...

. He believes health care should be administered by the states even if funding comes from the

Federal Government A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

. He advocates increasing use of

naval power A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It inc ...

to stabilize the situation in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

rather than increasing ground troop levels. He is a strong advocate for

nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...

and supports removing political obstacles to building new plants.

References

External links

Campaign website

Sean Sullivan Talks About Nuclear Power
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivan, Sean Connecticut Republicans United States Naval Academy alumni Naval War College alumni University of Connecticut School of Law alumni United States submarine commanders Connecticut lawyers 1958 births People from Bridgeport, Connecticut Living people People from Gales Ferry, Connecticut