Mark Warner
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Mark Robert Warner (born December 15, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the senior
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 powe ...
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 ...
, a seat he has held since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, Warner served as the 69th governor of Virginia from 2002 to 2006. He is vice chair of the
Senate Democratic Caucus The Democratic Caucus of the United States Senate, sometimes referred to as the Democratic Conference, is the formal organization of all senators who are part of the Democratic Party in the United States Senate. For the makeup of the 117th Cong ...
and chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Warner is the honorary chairman of Forward Together PAC. Apart from politics, he is known for his involvement in telecommunications-related venture capital during the 1980s; he founded the firm Columbia Capital. In 2006, Warner was widely expected to pursue the Democratic nomination in the
2008 U.S. presidential election The 2008 United States presidential election was the 56th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 4, 2008. The Democratic ticket of Barack Obama, the junior senator from Illinois, and Joe Biden, the senior senator from ...
, but he announced in October 2006 that he would not run, citing a desire not to disrupt his family life. Warner delivered the keynote address at the
2008 Democratic National Convention The 2008 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial presidential nominating convention of the Democratic Party where it adopted its national platform and officially nominated its candidates for president and vice president. The convent ...
, and was considered to be a potential vice presidential candidate until he took himself out of consideration after winning the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate. Running against his gubernatorial predecessor, Jim Gilmore, Warner won his first election to the Senate in 2008 with 65% of the vote. He was reelected in 2014, narrowly defeating
Ed Gillespie Edward Walter Gillespie (born August 1, 1961) is an American politician, strategist, and lobbyist who served as the 61st Chair of the Republican National Committee from 2003 to 2005 and was counselor to the President from 2007 to 2009 during the ...
, and in
2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...
defeating Republican nominee Daniel Gade by twelve percentage points. With a net worth of $214.1 million, Warner is the second wealthiest member of Congress.


Early life and education

Warner was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, the son of Marjorie (née Johnston) and Robert F. Warner. He has a younger sister, Lisa. He grew up in
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
, and later in
Vernon, Connecticut Vernon is the most populous town in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 30,215 at the 2020 census. Vernon contains the smaller villages of Talcottville and Dobsonville. Vernon contains the former City of Rockville. ...
, where he graduated from Rockville High School, a public secondary school. He has credited his interest in politics to his eighth grade social studies teacher, Jim Tyler, who "inspired him to work for social and political change during the tumultuous year of 1968." He was class president for three years at Rockville High School and hosted a weekly pick-up basketball game at his house, "a tradition that continues today." Warner graduated from George Washington University (GWU), earning his Bachelor of Arts in
political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
in 1977. He was inducted into
Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...
and graduated as the valedictorian of his class with a 4.0 grade point average. Warner was the first in his family to graduate from college. GWU later initiated him into Omicron Delta Kappa, the National Leadership Honor Society, as an alumni member in 1995. While at GWU, he worked on Capitol Hill to pay for his tuition, riding his bike early mornings to the office of U.S. Senator
Abraham Ribicoff Abraham Alexander Ribicoff (April 9, 1910 – February 22, 1998) was an American Democratic Party politician from the state of Connecticut. He represented Connecticut in the United States House of Representatives and Senate and was the 80th ...
(D- CT). His sophomore year, Warner took time off from school to serve as the youth coordinator on
Ella Grasso Ella Rosa Giovianna Oliva Grasso (née Tambussi; May 10, 1919 – February 5, 1981) was an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who served as the 83rd Governor of Connecticut from January 8, 1975, to December 31, 1980, after r ...
's successful gubernatorial bid in Connecticut. Upon returning to Washington, Warner took a part-time job in the office of then-Representative Chris Dodd. He went on to serve as Dodd's senatorial campaign manager during his freshman year of law school. When his parents visited him at college, he got two tickets for them to tour the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...
; when his father asked him why he didn't get a ticket for himself, he replied, "I'll see the White House when I'm president." Warner then graduated from Harvard Law School with a Juris Doctor in 1980 and coached the law school's first intramural women's basketball team. Warner then took a job raising money for the Democratic Party based in Atlanta from 1980 to 1982. Warner has never practiced law.


Early career

Warner attempted to found two unsuccessful businesses before becoming a general contractor for cellular businesses and investors. As founder and managing director of Columbia Capital, a venture capital firm, he helped found or was an early investor in a number of technology companies, including Nextel. He co-founded Capital Cellular Corporation, and built up an estimated net worth of more than $200 million. As of 2012, he was the wealthiest U.S. senator.


State activism

Warner involved himself in public efforts related to health care, transportation, telecommunications, information technology and education. He managed Douglas Wilder's successful 1989 gubernatorial campaign and served as chairman of the state Democratic Party from 1993 to 1995. Warner also served, in the early 1990s, on the Virginia Commonwealth Transportation Board and sat in on monthly committee meetings of the Rail and Public Transportation Division (headed by Robert G. Corder).


1996 U.S. Senate election

He unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. Senate in 1996 against incumbent Republican John Warner (no relation) in a "Warner versus Warner" election. Mark Warner performed strongly in the state's rural areas, making the contest much closer than many pundits expected.Biodata Document Number: K1650003526
Resource Center Online. Gale, 2003; reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008; retrieved September 25, 2008.
He lost to the incumbent, 52%-47%, losing most parts of the state including the north.


Governor of Virginia


Elections


2001

In 2001 Warner campaigned for governor as a
moderate Democrat New Democrats, also known as centrist Democrats, Clinton Democrats, or moderate Democrats, are a centrist ideological faction within the Democratic Party in the United States. As the Third Way faction of the party, they are seen as cultura ...
after years of slowly building up a power base in rural Virginia, particularly
Southwest Virginia Southwest Virginia, often abbreviated as SWVA, is a mountainous region of Virginia in the westernmost part of the commonwealth. Located within the broader region of western Virginia, Southwest Virginia has been defined alternatively as all Virg ...
. His opponents were Republican Mark Earley, the state's attorney general, and the Libertarian candidate William B. Redpath. Warner won with 52.16 percent of the votes, 96,943 votes ahead of the next opponent. Warner had a significant funding advantage, spending $20 million compared with Earley's $10 million.


Tenure

After he was elected in 2002, Warner drew upon a $900 million "rainy day fund" left by his predecessor, James S. Gilmore, III. Warner campaigned in favor of two regional sales tax increases (Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads) to fund transportation. Virginians rejected both regional referendums to raise the sales tax. In 2004, Warner worked with Democratic and moderate Republican legislators and the business community to reform the
tax code A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...
, lowering food and some income taxes while increasing the sales and cigarette taxes. His tax package effected a net tax increase of approximately $1.5 billion annually. Warner credited the additional revenues with saving the state's AAA bond rating, held at the time by only five other states, and allowing the single largest investment in K-12 education in Virginia history. Warner also entered into an agreement with Democrats and moderate Republicans in the Virginia Senate to cap state car tax reimbursements to local governments. During his tenure as governor, Warner influenced the world of college athletics. "Warner used his power as Virginia's governor in 2003 to pressure the Atlantic Coast Conference into revoking an invitation it had already extended to Syracuse University. Warner wanted the conference, which already included the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...
, to add Virginia Tech instead — and he got his way." Warner's popularity may have helped Democrats gain seats in the
Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two parts of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-number ...
in 2003 and again in 2005, reducing the majorities built up by Republicans in the 1990s. Warner chaired the
National Governors Association The National Governors Association (NGA) is an American political organization founded in 1908. The association's members are the governors of the 55 states, territories and commonwealths. Members come to the association from across the politica ...
in 2004-05 and led a national high school reform movement. He chaired the
Southern Governors' Association The Southern Governors' Association (SGA), formerly the Southern Governors Conference, was a United States association of governors founded in 1934. It was the oldest and historically the largest of the regional governors associations. Since its fi ...
and was a member of the Democratic Governors Association. In January 2005, a two-year study, the Government Performance Project, in conjunction with ''Governing'' magazine and the Pew Charitable Trust graded each state in four management categories: money, people, infrastructure and information.
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 ...
and
Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
received the highest ratings average with both states receiving an A− rating overall, prompting Warner to dub Virginia "the best managed state in the nation." Kaine and Kilgore both sought to succeed Warner as governor of Virginia. (The Virginia Constitution forbids any governor from serving consecutive terms; so Warner could not have run for a second term in 2005.) On November 8, 2005, Kaine, the former mayor of Richmond, won with 52% of the vote. Kilgore, who had resigned as attorney general in February 2005 to campaign full-time and who had previously served as Virginia secretary of
public safety Public security or public safety is the prevention of and protection from events that could endanger the safety and security of the public from significant danger, injury, or property damage. It is often conducted by a state government to ensur ...
, received 46% of the vote.
Russ Potts Harry Russell Potts Jr. (March 4, 1939 – December 19, 2021) was an American businessman, journalist, and politician who served as a Republican state senator in Virginia, representing the 27th district from 1992 to 2008. An independent candi ...
, a Republican state senator, also ran for governor as an independent, receiving 2% of the vote. Warner had supported and campaigned for Kaine, and many national
pundits A pundit is a person who offers mass media opinion or commentary on a particular subject area (most typically politics, the social sciences, technology or sport). Origins The term originates from the Sanskrit term ('' '' ), meaning "knowle ...
considered Kaine's victory to be further evidence of Warner's political clout in Virginia. On November 29, 2005, Warner commuted the
death sentence Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...
of Robin Lovitt to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Lovitt was convicted of murdering Clayton Dicks at an Arlington pool hall in 1999. After his trial in 2001, Lovitt's lawyers stated that a court clerk illegally destroyed evidence that was used against Lovitt during his trial, but that could have possibly exonerated him upon further DNA testing. Lovitt's death sentence would have been the 1,000th carried out in the United States since the Supreme Court reinstated capital punishment as permissible under the Eighth Amendment to the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...
in 1976. In a statement, Warner said, "The actions of an agent of the commonwealth, in a manner contrary to the express direction of the law, comes at the expense of a defendant facing society's most severe and final sanction." Warner denied
clemency A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...
in 11 other death penalty cases that came before him as governor. Warner also arranged for DNA tests of evidence left from the case of
Roger Keith Coleman Roger Keith Coleman (November 1, 1958 – May 20, 1992) was a convicted murderer and rapist from Grundy, Virginia, USA, who was executed for the rape and murder in March 1981 of his sister-in-law, Wanda McCoy. That day, he had been laid off fro ...
, who was put to death by the state in 1992. Coleman was convicted in the 1981 rape and stabbing death of his 19-year-old sister-in-law, Wanda McCoy. Coleman drew national attention, even making the cover of ''
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, ...
,'' by repeatedly claiming innocence and protesting the unfairness of the death penalty. DNA results announced on January 12, 2006 confirmed Coleman's guilt. In July 2005, his approval ratings were at 74% and in some polls reached 80%. Warner left office with a 71% approval rating in one poll.


U.S. Senate


Elections


2008

Warner was believed to be preparing to run for the Democratic nomination for president in 2008, and had "done everything but announce his candidacy" before suddenly stating in October 2006 he would not run for president, citing family reasons. Warner declared on September 13, 2007 that he would run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the retiring John Warner (no relation) in 2008. John Warner endorsed him, which was seen as a factor of his win by over 30 points. Warner immediately gained the endorsement of most national Democrats. He held a wide lead over his Republican opponent, fellow former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore (and Warner's predecessor), for virtually the entire campaign. Warner delivered the keynote address at the
2008 Democratic National Convention The 2008 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial presidential nominating convention of the Democratic Party where it adopted its national platform and officially nominated its candidates for president and vice president. The convent ...
. In a Washington Post/ABC News Poll dated September 24, 2008, Warner held a 30-point lead over Gilmore. In the November election, Warner defeated Gilmore, taking 65 percent of the vote to Gilmore's 34 percent. Warner carried all but four counties in the state— Rockingham, Augusta,
Powhatan The Powhatan people (; also spelled Powatan) may refer to any of the indigenous Algonquian people that are traditionally from eastern Virginia. All of the Powhatan groups descend from the Powhatan Confederacy. In some instances, The Powhatan ...
and
Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
. In many cases, he ran up huge margins in areas of the state that have traditionally voted Republican. This was the most lopsided margin for a contested Senate race in Virginia since Chuck Robb took 72 percent of the vote in 1988. As a result of Warner's victory, Virginia had two Democratic U.S. Senators for the first time since Harry Byrd, Jr. left the Democrats to become an independent (while still caucusing with the Democrats) in 1970.


2014

In 2014, Warner faced
Ed Gillespie Edward Walter Gillespie (born August 1, 1961) is an American politician, strategist, and lobbyist who served as the 61st Chair of the Republican National Committee from 2003 to 2005 and was counselor to the President from 2007 to 2009 during the ...
, who had previously served as Counselor to the President under George W. Bush and chairman of the
Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. Political action committee, political committee that assists the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republi ...
. Warner's margin of victory—only 17,000 votes—was much narrower than expected.


2020

In 2020, Warner faced college professor and U.S. Army veteran Daniel Gade. During the general election, he defeated Gade, taking 56 percent of the vote to Gade's 44 percent.


Tenure

Upon arriving in the U.S. Senate in 2009, Warner was appointed to the Senate's Banking, Budget, and Commerce committees. Warner was later named to the Senate Intelligence Committee in 2011. In 2009, Warner voted for the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...
, the stimulus bill. As a member of the Budget Committee, he submitted an amendment designed to help the government track how the stimulus dollars were being spent. When offered the chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in preparation for the 2012 election cycle, Warner declined because he wanted to keep a distance from the partisanship of the role. In the fall of 2012, Warner was approached by supporters about possibly leaving the Senate to seek a second four-year term as Virginia's governor. After considering the prospect, Warner announced shortly after the November 2012 elections that he had chosen to remain in the Senate because he was "all in" on finding a bipartisan solution to the country's fiscal challenges. Warner became the senior senator on January 3, 2013 when Jim Webb left the Senate and was replaced by Tim Kaine, who was lieutenant governor while Warner was governor. Warner has been identified as a radical centrist, working to foster compromise in the Senate. Warner was ranked the 10th most bipartisan member of the U.S. Senate during the 114th United States Congress in the Bipartisan Index, created by
The Lugar Center Richard Green Lugar (April 4, 1932 – April 28, 2019) was an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Indiana from 1977 to 2013. He was a member of the Republican Party. Born in Indianapolis, Lugar graduated from Den ...
and the
McCourt School of Public Policy The McCourt School of Public Policy is one of ten constituent schools of Georgetown University. The McCourt School offers master's degrees in public policy, international development policy, policy management, data science for public policy, an ...
to assess congressional bipartisanship. According to the same methodology, Senator Warner was the second most bipartisan Democrat in the
115th United States Congress The 115th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States of America federal government, composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from January 3, 2017, to January ...
.


Abortion

Warner is pro-choice and supports '' Roe v. Wade''; he also supports some restrictions on abortion, such as a ban on
partial-birth abortion Intact dilation and extraction (D&X, IDX, or intact D&E) is a surgical procedure that removes an intact fetus from the uterus. The procedure is used both after miscarriages and for abortions in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. In U ...
and a 24-hour waiting period.


Health care

On a video in his senate office, Warner promised Virginians, "I would not vote for a health-care plan that doesn't let you keep health insurance you like." He voted for the 2010
Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and colloquially known as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Pres ...
(ACA), commonly called Obamacare, helping the Senate reach the required sixty votes to prevent it from going to a filibuster. As there were exactly 60 Democratic Senators at the time, each Democrat can be said to have cast the deciding vote. He and 11 Senate freshmen discussed adding an amendment package aimed at addressing health care costs by expanding health IT and wellness prevention. In January 2019, Warner was one of six Democratic senators to introduce the American Miners Act of 2019, a bill that would amend the
Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) is the primary federal law that regulates the environmental effects of coal mining in the United States. SMCRA created two programs: one for regulating active coal mines and a second ...
to swap funds in excess of the amounts needed to meet existing obligations under the Abandoned Mine Land fund to the 1974 Pension Plan as part of an effort to prevent its insolvency as a result of coal company bankruptcies and the 2008 financial crisis. It also increased the
Black Lung Disability Trust Fund The Black Lung Benefits Act (BLBA) is a U.S. federal law which provides monthly payments and medical benefits to coal miners totally disabled from pneumoconiosis (black lung disease) arising from employment in or around the nation's coal mines. Th ...
tax and ensured that miners affected by the 2018 coal company bankruptcies would not lose their health care. In September 2019, amid discussions to prevent a government shutdown, Warner was one of six Democratic senators to sign a letter to congressional leadership advocating for the passage of legislation that would permanently fund health care and pension benefits for retired coal miners as "families in Virginia, West Virginia, Wyoming, Alabama, Colorado, North Dakota and New Mexico" would start to receive notifications of health care termination by the end of the following month.


Finance

From the start of his Senate term, Warner attempted to replicate in Washington, D.C. the bipartisan partnerships that he used effectively during his tenure as Virginia governor. In 2010, Warner worked with a Republican colleague on the Banking Committee, Bob Corker, to write a key portion of the Dodd-Frank Act that seeks to end taxpayer bailouts of failing Wall Street financial firms by requiring "advance funeral plans" for large financial firms. In 2013, the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress gave Warner and Corker its Publius Award for their bipartisan work on financial reform legislation. In 2018, Warner became one of the few Democrats in the Senate supporting a bill that would relax "key banking regulations". As part of at least 11 other Democrats, Warner argued that the bill would "right-size post-crisis rules imposed on small and regional lenders and help make it easier for them to provide credit".
Chuck Schumer Charles Ellis Schumer ( ; born November 23, 1950) is an American politician serving as Senate Majority Leader since January 20, 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, Schumer is in his fourth Senate term, having held his seat since 1999, an ...
and Elizabeth Warren have stated their opposition to the legislation.


Campaign finance

In June 2019, Warner and Amy Klobuchar introduced the Preventing Adversaries Internationally from Disbursing Advertising Dollars (PAID AD) Act, a bill that would modify U.S. federal campaign finance laws to outlaw the purchasing of ads that name a political candidate and appear on platforms by foreign nationals in the midst of an election year.


Foreign affairs and national security


= Saudi Arabia and Yemen

= Warner was the original Democratic sponsor of the Startup Act legislation and has partnered with the bill's original author,
Jerry Moran Gerald Wesley Moran ( ; born May 29, 1954) is an American lawyer and politician who is the senior United States senator from Kansas, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he was chair of the National Republican Senator ...
, to introduce three iterations of the bill: Startup Act in 2011, Startup Act 2.0 in 2012 and Startup Act 3.0 in early 2013. Warner has called the legislation the "logical next step" after enactment of the
JOBS Act The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or JOBS Act, is a law intended to encourage funding of small businesses in the United States by easing many of the country's securities regulations. It passed with bipartisan support, and was signed in ...
. In 2015, Warner criticized the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen, saying: "I'm concerned in particular with some of the indiscriminate bombing in Yemen ... ulf statesneed to step up and they need to step up with more focus than the kind of indiscriminate bombing." In June 2017, Warner voted to support Trump's $350 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia.


= Israel and Palestine

= In September 2016, in advance of UN Security Council resolution 2334 condemning Israeli settlements in the occupied
Palestinian territories The Palestinian territories are the two regions of the former British Mandate for Palestine that have been militarily occupied by Israel since the Six-Day War of 1967, namely: the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and the Gaza Strip. The ...
, Warner signed an AIPAC-sponsored letter urging President Obama to veto "one-sided" resolutions against Israel. In December 2017, Warner criticized Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, saying that it "comes at the wrong time and unnecessarily inflames the region."


= Sanctions: Iran, Russia, and North Korea

= In July 2017, Warner voted for the
Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act The Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) is a United States federal law that imposed sanctions on Iran, North Korea, and Russia. The bill was passed by the Senate on July 27, 2017, 98–2, after it passed the House 419 ...
, which grouped together sanctions against
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, Russia and
North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...
.


= Central America

= In April 2019, Warner was one of 34 senators to sign a letter to Trump encouraging him "to listen to members of your own Administration and reverse a decision that will damage our national security and aggravate conditions inside Central America", asserting that Trump had "consistently expressed a flawed understanding of U.S. foreign assistance" since becoming president and that he was "personally undermining efforts to promote U.S. national security and economic prosperity" by preventing the use of Fiscal Year 2018 national security funding. The senators argued that foreign assistance to Central American countries created less migration to the U.S., citing the funding's helping to improve conditions in those countries.


= Intelligence and counter-intelligence

= In May 2018, Warner voted for
Gina Haspel Gina Cheri Walker Haspel (born October 1, 1956) formerly an American intelligence officer, was director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from 2018 to 2021. The first woman to hold the post on a permanent basis, she had previously worked a ...
to be the next CIA director. In 2016, American foreign policy scholar Stefan Halper served as an FBI operative and contacted members of Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. In May 2018, Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, warned Republican lawmakers that it would be "potentially illegal" to reveal Halper's identity. Warner welcomed the arrest of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who exposed
American war crimes United States war crimes are violations of the law of war committed by members of the United States Armed Forces after the signing of the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 and the Geneva Conventions. The United States prosecutes offenders throu ...
in Iraq and
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 ...
, saying that Assange is "a dedicated accomplice in efforts to undermine American security." On May 13, 2020, Warner and
Joe Manchin Joseph Manchin III (born August 24, 1947) is an American politician and businessman serving as the senior United States senator from West Virginia, a seat he has held since 2010. A member of the Democratic Party, Manchin was the 34th governor o ...
were the two Democratic senators to vote against the Lee-Leahy FISA amendment, which strengthened oversight of counterintelligence.


= Telecommunications and infrastructure security

= In December 2018, Warner called Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei a threat to U.S. national security. In February 2019, Warner was one of 11 senators to sign a letter to Energy Secretary Rick Perry and Homeland Security Secretary
Kirstjen Nielsen Kirstjen Michele Nielsen (; born May 14, 1972) is an American attorney who served as United States Secretary of Homeland Security from 2017 to 2019. She is a former principal White House deputy chief of staff to President Donald Trump, and was ...
urging them "to work with all federal, state and local regulators, as well as the hundreds of independent power producers and electricity distributors nation-wide to ensure our systems are protected" and affirming that they were "ready and willing to provide any assistance you need to secure our critical electricity infrastructure." In July 2019, Warner was a cosponsor of the Defending America's 5G Future Act, a bill that would prevent Huawei from being removed from the Commerce Department's "entity list" without an act of Congress and authorize Congress to block administration waivers for U.S. companies to do business with Huawei. The bill would also codify Trump's executive order from the previous May that empowered his administration to block foreign tech companies deemed a national security threat from conducting business in the U.S.


Defense

In 2011, Warner voted for the four-year extension of the USA PATRIOT Act. Also in 2011, he engaged Northern Virginia's high-tech community in a ''pro bono'' effort to correct burial mistakes and other U.S. Army management deficiencies at Arlington National Cemetery. In 2012, he successfully pushed the Navy to improve the substandard military housing in Hampton Roads. Also in 2012, Warner pushed the Office of Personnel Management to address chronic backlogs in processing retirement benefits for federal workers, many of whom live in Washington's northern Virginia suburbs. He succeeded in pushing the Department of Veterans Affairs to expand access to
PTSD Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats on ...
treatment for female military veterans returning from service in
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 the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
and
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 ...
. In August 2013, Warner was one of 23 Democratic senators to sign a letter to the Defense Department warning that some payday lenders offer "predatory loan products to service members at exorbitant triple digit effective interest rates and loan products that do not include the additional protections envisioned by the law" and asserting that service members and their families "deserve the strongest possible protections and swift action to ensure that all forms of credit offered to members of our armed forces are safe and sound." U.S. Secretary of the Navy
Ray Mabus Raymond Edwin Mabus Jr. (; born October 11, 1948) is an American politician and lawyer. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 75th United States Secretary of the Navy from 2009 to 2017. Mabus previously served as the State Auditor ...
awarded Warner the Distinguished Public Service Medal, the Navy's highest honor for a civilian, for his consistent support of Virginia's military families and veterans.


Economy

Between 2010 and 2013, Warner invested considerable time and effort in leading the Senate's
Gang of Six In the politics of the United States, the Gang of Six refers to one of three bipartisan groups of six Senators consisting of three Democrats and three Republicans. One group, active in 2009, focused on health care reform in the United States du ...
, along with
Saxby Chambliss Clarence Saxby Chambliss (born November 10, 1943) is an American lawyer and retired politician who was a United States Senator from Georgia from 2003 to 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a U.S. Representative from ...
. Chambliss and Warner sought to craft a bipartisan plan along the lines of the Simpson-Bowles Commission to address U.S. deficits and debt. Although the Gang of Six ultimately failed to produce a legislative "grand bargain", they did agree on the broad outlines of a plan that included spending cuts, tax reforms that produced more revenue, and reforms to entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security—entitlement reforms that are opposed by most Democrats. Although President Obama showed interest in the plan, leaders in Congress from both parties kept a deal from being made. In 2011, the bipartisan Concord Coalition awarded Warner and Chambliss its Economic Patriots Award for their work with the Gang of Six.


Gun laws

On April 17, 2013, Warner voted to expand background checks for gun purchases as part of the Manchin-Toomey Amendment. He also voted against the 2013 Assault Weapons Ban, but changed his position in a 2018 op-ed and has co-sponsored similar efforts since then. In 2017, Warner called himself a strong supporter of Second Amendment rights and vowed to advocate for responsible gun ownership for hunting, recreation, and self-defense. In January 2019, Warner was one of 40 senators to introduce the Background Check Expansion Act, a bill that would require background checks for either the sale or transfer of all firearms including all unlicensed sellers. Exceptions to the bill's background check requirement included transfers between members of law enforcement, loans for hunting or sporting events on a temporary basis, gifts to members of one's immediate family, transfers as part of an inheritance, and giving a firearm to another person temporarily for immediate self-defense.


LGBT issues

Warner supports
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 ...
, announcing his support in a statement on his Facebook page in March 2013. His announcement came shortly after Senator
Claire McCaskill Claire Conner McCaskill (; born July 24, 1953) is an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Missouri from 2007 to 2019 and as State Auditor of Missouri from 1999 to 2007. McCaskill is a native of Rolla, Missouri. She g ...
announced her support for it. In July 2015, Warner and Tim Kaine cosponsored the Equality Act along with 38 other senators and 158 members of the House of Representatives, with Kaine saying, "it's critical that we prohibit discrimination in housing, education and the workplace."


Transparency

On the Senate Budget Committee, Warner was appointed chair of a bipartisan task force on government performance in 2009. He was a lead sponsor of the 2010
Government Performance and Results Act The Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA) () is a United States law enacted in 1993,Congress, U. S., and An Act. "Government Performance and Results Act of 1993." In ''103rd Congress. Congressional Record''. 1993. one of a series o ...
(GPRA), which imposed specific program performance goals across all federal agencies and set up a more transparent agency performance review process. On May 21, 2013, Warner introduced the
Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014 The Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014 (DATA Act) is a law that aims to make information on federal expenditures more easily accessible and transparent. The law requires the U.S. Department of the Treasury to establish common st ...
(DATA). "The legislation requires standardized reporting of federal spending to be posted to a single website, allowing citizens to track spending in their communities and agencies to more easily identify improper payments, waste and fraud." On November 6, 2013, the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs committee unanimously passed DATA. On January 27, 2014, the White House
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 ...
's (OMB) marked-up version of the bill was leaked. This version "move away from standards and toward open data structures to publish information" and "requir sOMB in consultation with Treasury to review and, if necessary, revise standards to ensure accuracy and consistency through methods such as establishing linkages between data in agency financial systems". Warner responded: "The Obama administration talks a lot about transparency, but these comments reflect a clear attempt to gut the DATA Act. DATA reflects years of bipartisan, bicameral work, and to propose substantial, unproductive changes this late in the game is unacceptable. We look forward to passing the DATA Act, which had near universal support in its House passage and passed unanimously out of its Senate committee. I will not back down from a bill that holds the government accountable and provides taxpayers the transparency they deserve." On April 10, 2014, the Senate voted by
unanimous consent In parliamentary procedure, unanimous consent, also known as general consent, or in the case of the parliaments under the Westminster system, leave of the house (or leave of the senate), is a situation in which no member present objects to a prop ...
to pass the bill, which was then passed by the House in a voice vote on April 28, 2014.


Minimum wage

In April 2014, the Senate debated the
Minimum Wage Fairness Act (S. 1737; 113th Congress) The Minimum Wage Fairness Act () is a bill that would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) to increase the federal minimum wage for employees to $10.10 per hour over the course of a two-year period. The bill was strongly supported ...
. The bill would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) to increase the federal minimum wage for employees to $10.10 per hour over two years. The bill was strongly supported by President Obama and many Democratic senators, but strongly opposed by congressional Republicans. Warner expressed a willingness to negotiate with Republicans about some of the provisions of the bill, such as the timeline for the phase-in. He said that any increase needs to be done "in a responsible way."


Controversies

In October 2014, Warner was implicated in a federal investigation of the 2014 resignation of Virginia State Senator Phillip Puckett, a Democrat. He was alleged to have "discussed the possibility of several jobs, including a federal judgeship, for the senator's daughter in an effort to dissuade him from quitting the evenly divided state Senate." A Warner spokesman acknowledged that the conversation occurred, but said Warner made no "explicit" job offer and that he and Puckett were simply "brainstorming". In January 2015, the
Republican Party of Virginia The Republican Party of Virginia (RPV) is the Virginia chapter of the Republican Party. It is based at the Richard D. Obenshain Center in Richmond. History The party was established in 1854 by opponents of slavery and secession in the commonwe ...
filed a formal complaint against Warner with the
United States Senate Select Committee on Ethics The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics is a select committee of the United States Senate charged with dealing with matters related to senatorial ethics. It is also commonly referred to as the Senate Ethics Committee. Senate rules require the ...
, alleging that Warner's interactions with Puckett violated the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act.


Campaign contributions

From 2008 to 2014, some of Warner's top ten campaign contributors were
JP Morgan Chase JPMorgan Chase & Co. is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered in New York City and incorporated in Delaware. As of 2022, JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the United States, the w ...
, the
Blackstone Group Blackstone Inc. is an American alternative investment management company based in New York City. Blackstone's private equity business has been one of the largest investors in leveraged buyouts in the last three decades, while its real estate bu ...
and Columbia Capital. BlackRock had never contributed until Warner bought shares in the BlackRock Equity Dividend Fund in 2011.


Committee assignments

*
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs The United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs (formerly the Committee on Banking and Currency), also known as the Senate Banking Committee, has jurisdiction over matters related to banks and banking, price controls, d ...
** Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection ** Subcommittee on Security and International Trade and Finance (Chair) ** Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment (Ranking Member) * Committee on the Budget * Committee on Finance ** Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure ** Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness ** Subcommittee on Health Care * Committee on Rules and Administration * Select Committee on Intelligence (Chair) * Joint Committee on the Library


Electoral history


Personal life

Warner is married to Lisa Collis. While on their honeymoon in 1989 in
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
and
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
, Warner became ill; when he returned home, doctors discovered he had suffered a near-fatal
burst appendix Appendicitis is inflammation of the Appendix (anatomy), appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and anorexia (symptom), decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these typical ...
. Warner spent two months in the hospital recovering from the illness. During her husband's tenure as governor, Collis was the first Virginia first lady to use her birth name. Warner and Collis have three daughters. Warner is involved in farming and winemaking at his Rappahannock Bend farm. There, he grows of grapes for
Ingleside Vineyards Ingleside Vineyards is a winery located in the Northern Neck George Washington Birthplace AVA, an American Viticultural Area located in the Northern Neck region of Virginia. Ingleside is one of the oldest and largest wineries in the state, est ...
; Ingleside bottles a
private label A private label, also called a private brand or private-label brand, is a brand owned by a company, offered by that company alongside and competing with brands from other businesses. A private-label brand is almost always offered exclusively by th ...
that Warner offers at charity auctions. Warner has an estimated net worth of $257 million as of 2014. He is not related to John Warner, his predecessor in the Senate.


Honorary degrees

Mark Warner has been awarded several honorary degrees, these include: ;Honorary degrees


See also

*
List of celebrities who own wineries and vineyards The trend of celebrities owning wineries and vineyards is not a recent phenomenon, though it has certainly garnered more attention in today's Information Age. In ancient Greek (wine), ancient Greek and Roman (wine), Roman times, the leading phil ...


References


Further reading

;Archival records
Archived website of the Office of the Virginia Governor

Archived website of Virginia Governor Mark R. Warner, 2005-2006
part o

at ttp://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/archival_web_collections Virginia Memory
A Guide to the Governor Mark R. Warner, Executive Office, Records, 2001-2006
a
The Library of Virginia


at ttp://www.lva.virginia.gov/ The Library of Virginia
A Guide to the Governor Mark R. Warner, Press Office records, 2001-2006 (bulk 2002-2006)
a
The Library of Virginia

A Guide to the Governor Mark R. Warner, Transition Office, Records, 2001
a
The Library of Virginia

A Guide to the Governor Mark R. Warner, Virginia Liaison Office, Records, 2002-2005
a
The Library of Virginia


External links


Senator Mark Warner
official U.S. Senate website
Mark Warner for Virginia
campaign website * * , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Warner, Mark 1954 births Living people 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American politicians American Presbyterians American technology company founders American venture capitalists Businesspeople from Connecticut Businesspeople from Illinois Businesspeople from Virginia Columbian College of Arts and Sciences alumni Democratic Party United States senators from Virginia Democratic Party of Virginia chairs Democratic Party governors of Virginia Governors of Virginia Harvard Law School alumni People from Vernon, Connecticut Politicians from Alexandria, Virginia Politicians from Indianapolis State cabinet secretaries of Virginia United States congressional aides Virginia Democrats