Patrick Murray (politician)
Encyclopedia
Patrick Murray is a retired United States Army
Colonel
and Virginia
politician who ran for the United States House of Representatives
from Virginia's 8th congressional district
in 2010 and is running for the same seat again in 2012.
by a single mother. He first began work at the age of 14 to help pay his family's bills. He attended Oklahoma State University
, which he paid for through a combination of working part time, student loans, and a stipend from the Veterans Administration
owing to his father's service in World War II
. While attending college, Murray joined the Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps
program and received an ROTC scholarship.
and was assigned to combat units on the Inner German border between West
and East Germany. He went on to become a foreign area officer
in the Defense Intelligence Agency
, and was covered
as a military attaché
for United States embassies for intelligence collection missions in Russia
, Belarus
, Bosnia and Herzegovina
, Yugoslavia
, and Kosovo
. During the Iraq War, he deployed to Baghdad
in 2007 from United States Joint Forces Command
to serve as part of Multi-National Force – Iraq. His final tour of duty was at the United Nations Headquarters
in New York City
as a member of the U.S. Military Staff Committee. He served for 24 years in the Army.
in the United States House of Representatives
during the 112th Congress
. The Republican Party
nomination was contested between Murray and Matthew Berry
, attorney and former Federal Communications Commission
general counsel
. Murry narrowly won the June 8th primary by a margin of 52%-48%, allowing him to challenge 10-term Democratic
incumbent Jim Moran
and Independent Green candidate Ron Fisher, a retired United States Navy
captain, in the general election
. As of June 30, 2010, Murray had raised , including $41,872 in candidate self-financing.
Ultimately, however, Moran was re-elected to an eleventh term in the November 2, 2010 general election.
. In an email to supporters, Murray wrote, "This decision to run for a second time took much soul-searching, thought and prayer. Campaigns are a crucible, but, just as with my military service, this is a matter of duty for me."
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
and Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
politician who ran for the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Virginia's 8th congressional district
Virginia's 8th congressional district
Virginia's Eighth Congressional District is a U.S. congressional district in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The residents of the 8th District are currently represented by Democratic Congressman Jim Moran, first elected to the 8th's seat in the U.S...
in 2010 and is running for the same seat again in 2012.
Early life
Murray was raised in OklahomaOklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
by a single mother. He first began work at the age of 14 to help pay his family's bills. He attended Oklahoma State University
Oklahoma State University–Stillwater
Oklahoma State University–Stillwater is a land-grant, sun-grant, coeducational public research university located in Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA. OSU was founded in 1890 under the Morrill Act...
, which he paid for through a combination of working part time, student loans, and a stipend from the Veterans Administration
United States Department of Veterans Affairs
The United States Department of Veterans Affairs is a government-run military veteran benefit system with Cabinet-level status. It is the United States government’s second largest department, after the United States Department of Defense...
owing to his father's service in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. While attending college, Murray joined the Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps
Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps
The Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps is the United States Army component of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps. It is the largest ROTC program, with 20,000 ROTC cadets in 272 ROTC programs at major universities throughout the United States.The modern Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps...
program and received an ROTC scholarship.
Military service
After graduating from Oklahoma State University in 1984, Murray was commissioned in the United States Army as a second lieutenantSecond Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
and was assigned to combat units on the Inner German border between West
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
and East Germany. He went on to become a foreign area officer
Foreign area officer
A Foreign Area Officer is a commissioned officer from any of the four branches of the United States Armed Forces who is a regionally focused expert in political-military operations. Such officers possess a unique combination of strategic focus and regional expertise, with political, cultural,...
in the Defense Intelligence Agency
Defense Intelligence Agency
The Defense Intelligence Agency is a member of the Intelligence Community of the United States, and is the central producer and manager of military intelligence for the United States Department of Defense, employing over 16,500 U.S. military and civilian employees worldwide...
, and was covered
Undercover
Being undercover is disguising one's own identity or using an assumed identity for the purposes of gaining the trust of an individual or organization to learn secret information or to gain the trust of targeted individuals in order to gain information or evidence...
as a military attaché
Military attaché
A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission . This post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer who retains the commission while serving in an embassy...
for United States embassies for intelligence collection missions in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
, and Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
. During the Iraq War, he deployed to Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
in 2007 from United States Joint Forces Command
United States Joint Forces Command
United States Joint Forces Command was a former Unified Combatant Command of the United States Armed Forces. USJFCOM was a functional command that provided specific services to the military. The last commander was Army Gen. Raymond T. Odierno...
to serve as part of Multi-National Force – Iraq. His final tour of duty was at the United Nations Headquarters
United Nations headquarters
The headquarters of the United Nations is a complex in New York City. The complex has served as the official headquarters of the United Nations since its completion in 1952. It is located in the Turtle Bay neighborhood of Manhattan, on spacious grounds overlooking the East River...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
as a member of the U.S. Military Staff Committee. He served for 24 years in the Army.
2010
In 2010, Murray ran for Congress to represent Virginia's 8th congressional districtVirginia's 8th congressional district
Virginia's Eighth Congressional District is a U.S. congressional district in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The residents of the 8th District are currently represented by Democratic Congressman Jim Moran, first elected to the 8th's seat in the U.S...
in the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
during the 112th Congress
112th United States Congress
The One Hundred Twelfth United States Congress is the current meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It convened in Washington, D.C. on January 3, 2011, and will end on January...
. The Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
nomination was contested between Murray and Matthew Berry
Matthew Berry (politician)
Matthew B. "Matt" Berry is a Republican Party politician and attorney. He challenged Military veteran Patrick Murray in the 2010 Republican primary election in Virginia's 8th congressional district, a Congressional seat in Northern Virginia currently held by 10-term Democratic incumbent Jim Moran...
, attorney and former Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
general counsel
General Counsel
A general counsel is the chief lawyer of a legal department, usually in a corporation or government department. The term is most used in the United States...
. Murry narrowly won the June 8th primary by a margin of 52%-48%, allowing him to challenge 10-term Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
incumbent Jim Moran
Jim Moran
James Patrick "Jim" Moran, Jr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1991. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district is located in Northern Virginia and includes the cities of Falls Church and Alexandria, all of Arlington County, and a portion of Fairfax County.Jim Moran was...
and Independent Green candidate Ron Fisher, a retired United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
captain, in the general election
Virginia's 8th congressional district election, 2010
Virginia's 8th congressional district election, 2010 was an election held to determine who would represent Virginia's 8th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives during the 112th Congress. The seat contested is located in Northern Virginia, and includes part of Fairfax...
. As of June 30, 2010, Murray had raised , including $41,872 in candidate self-financing.
Ultimately, however, Moran was re-elected to an eleventh term in the November 2, 2010 general election.
2012
On November 10, 2011, Murray announced he would challenge Moran for a second time in the 2012 electionUnited States House of Representatives elections in Virginia, 2012
The 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia will be held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012 to elect the 11 U.S. Representatives from Virginia, one from each of the state's 11 congressional districts. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected will serve in...
. In an email to supporters, Murray wrote, "This decision to run for a second time took much soul-searching, thought and prayer. Campaigns are a crucible, but, just as with my military service, this is a matter of duty for me."
External links
- Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
- Patrick Murray