Connie Mack IV, U.S. Congress

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connie_Mack_IV

Cornelius Harvey McGillicuddy IV[2] (born August 12, 1967), popularly known as Connie Mack IV, is the U.S. Representative for Florida's 14th congressional district, serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district includes Fort Myers and Naples.

Early life, education, and family

Mack was born in 1967 in Fort Myers, Lee County, Florida, the son of cancer prevention advocate Ludie Priscilla (née Hobbs) and former U.S. Senator Connie Mack. In 1993, he earned a B.S. from the University of Florida. He became a marketing executive, working as a "special events coordinator" for Hooters.

His father, Connie Mack III, represented the district from 1983 to 1989 (when it was numbered as the 13th District) before serving two terms in the U.S. Senate. He is a great-grandson of Connie Mack, the manager and owner of baseball's Philadelphia Athletics, and member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. He is also a great-grandson of Morris Sheppard, U.S. Senator and Representative from Texas, and a step-great-grandson of Tom Connally, who was the Texas Junior Senator to Sheppard for 12 years (Sheppard's widow married Connally the year after Sheppard died). Mack's great-great-grandfather was John Levi Sheppard, who was also a U.S. Representative from Texas.

Florida House of Representatives

Mack served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2000 to 2003, representing the 91st district in Fort Lauderdale.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2004 

In 2004, incumbent Republican U.S. Congressman Porter Goss decided to retire. In October 2003, Mack decided to resign his seat in the State Legislature to to run for the open seat. He moved to Fort Myers, where he'd grown up, and entered the Republican primary for Florida's 14th congressional district, once held by his father. Mack stated "The people of the 14th District deserve to be represented in Washington by someone who shares our mainstream conservative Republican values in the mold of my father and Congressman Porter Goss." He narrowly won a four-way primary with a plurality of 36% of the vote. He defeated well experienced challengers such as State Representative Carole Green and Lee County Commissioner Andy Coy. The general election, which was tantamount to election in this heavily Republican district, was won by Mack with 68% of the vote.

2006 

Mack won re-election to a second term with 64% of the vote.

2008 

Mack won re-election to a third term with 59% of the vote. He faced Democrat nominee Robert Neeld for a third time and Republican State Senator Burt Saunders, who ran as an independent in the election. Neeld got 25% and Saunders got 14%.

2010 

Mack won re-election to a fourth term with 69% of the vote.

Tenure

Mack is a vocal supporter of less federal spending and lower taxes. He is a signer of the Taxpayer Protection Pledge.[18] Additionally, he is an original co-sponsor of a constitutional amendment to require a balanced federal budget and has been one of the most outspoken opponents of federal bailouts.

Mack also has been a prominent advocate for greater congressional oversight of government activities related to surveillance. For example, he voted against George W. Bush's domestic eavesdropping program in 2006 and FISA Reform in 2007.

Mack serves on the Foreign Affairs Committee, where he is the Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere. In particular, Mack is an outspoken critic of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, and was one of the most vocal critics of the creation of the pan-Latin American TV network teleSUR. He is also a member of the Congressional Cuba Democracy Caucus. As a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Mack helped secure over $81 million to expand Interstate 75 in Southwest Florida, a project of significant concern to the region.

Unlike many in his party (as well as in Congress in general), Mack has been a vigorous and outspoken defender of the whistle-blowing site WikiLeaks.

U.S. Senate election

Mack was considered a potential candidate against incumbent Democratic Senator Bill Nelson in the 2012 Senate election. However, he declined to run on March 25, 2011, citing family and his work in the U.S. House of Representatives. On October 26, 2011, it was announced Mack had changed his mind regarding a challenge to Bill Nelson and that he will indeed seek the Republican nomination. Mack's spokesman cited the fact that he felt no one in the current field was able to defeat Nelson.