Shelley Berkley
Encyclopedia
Rochelle "Shelley" Berkley (born Rochelle Levine on January 20, 1951) is the U.S. Representative
for , serving since 1999, and a candidate for U.S. Senate. She is a member of the Democratic Party
.
. She was also a member of Delta Zeta
sorority. Elected student body president her senior year, Shelley graduated with honors in 1972, earning a B.A. in Political Science. After obtaining her law degree in 1976 from the University of San Diego School of Law
, Shelley returned to Las Vegas and began her professional career.
Berkley practiced law for several years, mainly as a member of the legal counsel for several Las Vegas casinos. She also served as the national director for the American Hotel-Motel Association.
from 1982 to 1984 and was involved in civic affairs locally. She also served on the Nevada University and Community College System Board of Regents from 1990 to 1998, and was appointed vice chair.
barely won re-election in Nevada's 1st congressional district
with 50.1% of the vote. The day after, Berkley filed papers to run in the district. She raised $206,000 in the first six months and $410,000 in the next six months. Berkley was Democrats' dream candidate, as she easily won the primary with 81.5% of the vote. Ensign decided to retire in order to run against U.S. Senator Harry Reid
in the very close and competitive 1998 senate election
. In the general election, she defeated Republican Don Chairez, a Deputy District Attorney in Clark County
with 49.2% of the vote.
In 2000, she won re-election with 51.7% against State Senator Jon Porter
. In 2002, she defeated Republican Las Vegas City Councilwoman Lynette Boggs
with 53.7%. She won re-election in 2004, 2006, 2008, and 2010 with more than 60% of the vote in each election.
since 1999 and is currently in her seventh term as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. The district includes most of the city of Las Vegas
as well as the Las Vegas Strip
and the city of North Las Vegas
. She is the second woman elected to Congress from Nevada, the first woman elected to the 1st district and the first elected as a Democrat.
Berkley is a member of the New Democrat Coalition
. She views her top priorities as affordable health care coverage for all Americans, veteran's rights and alternative energy. Berkley is also strongly opposed to the building of a nuclear waste repository in Yucca Mountain
, Nevada.
Endorsements
As a 6th term congresswoman Berkley has been endorsed by a number of interest groups. The themes of some groups endorsing Berkley include education, environmental protections, and gender equality in politics. Berkley has received endorsements from groups such as The National Education Association
, The Sierra Club
and The National Women’s Political Caucus. Many of these interest groups play a big role in giving politicians such as Berkley political cues as to what voters are thinking.
Interest Groups
Berkely has been given various scores from a variety of interest groups. These groups include topics ranging from abortion
issues, agriculture
, criminal issues, animal rights
, budget
and taxes and foreign aid. The NARAL Pro-Choice America-Position has given Berkely a 100% (2010) on the issue while the National Right to Life Committee
has given Berkley a 0% rating (2010).
The American Farm Bureau Federation
has given Berkley 33% (2010) the topic of agriculture, while one the other hand The National Farm Workers Union has proudly given Berkley a 100% (2010). Other interest groups Berkley has received High ratings from Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants
, and ppDefenders of Wildlife Fund]]. Groups that Berkley has received poor ratings from include the National Taxpayers union
and Peace Action
.
, which would have implemented a cap-and-trade system similar to the regulations proposed by the Reagan administration in the 1980s, then known as "emissions trading".
's addition of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, to the unrelated SAFE Port Act
.
.
, which created the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) that bailed out Wall Street
banks.
, during the construction of The Venetian casino and resort in Las Vegas, at the behest of her employer, Berkley advised about options available to the employer with two Clark County Commissioners and two Clark County judges to secure their approval for the new hotel.
Berkley also suggested to her employer, the option of hiring an uncle of County Commissioner Erin Kenny
and to grant a daiquiri concession to commission chairwoman Yvonne Atkinson Gates. Berkley also recommended making campaign contributions to two judges because they "tend to help those who helped them."
On September 19, 2011, the ethics watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
(CREW) released their annual Most Corrupt Members of Congress report. The report listed Berkley in the "Dishonorable Mention" category.
in April 2011 to succeed John Ensign
, who resigned amidst an ethics scandal.
in Las Vegas. Both Berkley and Lehrner have two children from prior marriages.
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...
for , serving since 1999, and a candidate for U.S. Senate. She is a member of the Democratic Party
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...
.
Early life, education, and legal career
Berkley moved with her family to Nevada when she was a junior high school student, attending Fremont Junior High. Her mother is of Greek Jewish descent. After completing junior high and high school in Las Vegas, Shelley became the first member of her family to attend college when she enrolled as an undergraduate at the University of Nevada, Las VegasUniversity of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of Nevada-Las Vegas is a public, coeducational university located in the Las Vegas suburb of Paradise, Nevada, USA. The campus is located approximately east of the Las Vegas Strip. The institution includes a Shadow Lane Campus, located just east of the University Medical Center of...
. She was also a member of Delta Zeta
Delta Zeta
Delta Zeta is an international college sorority founded on October 24, 1902, at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Today, Delta Zeta has 158 collegiate chapters in the United States and over 200 alumnae chapters in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada...
sorority. Elected student body president her senior year, Shelley graduated with honors in 1972, earning a B.A. in Political Science. After obtaining her law degree in 1976 from the University of San Diego School of Law
University of San Diego School of Law
The University of San Diego School of Law, commonly referred to as USD Law, is a law school located on the campus of the University of San Diego in San Diego, California in the community of Linda Vista. Founded in 1954, the law school has held ABA approval since 1961...
, Shelley returned to Las Vegas and began her professional career.
Berkley practiced law for several years, mainly as a member of the legal counsel for several Las Vegas casinos. She also served as the national director for the American Hotel-Motel Association.
Early political career
Berkley served in the Nevada AssemblyNevada Assembly
The Nevada Assembly is the lower house of the Nevada Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Nevada. The body consists of 42 members, elected to two-year terms from single-member districts. Each Assembly district contained approximately 47,400 people as of the 2000 census, although...
from 1982 to 1984 and was involved in civic affairs locally. She also served on the Nevada University and Community College System Board of Regents from 1990 to 1998, and was appointed vice chair.
Elections
In 1996, U.S. Congressman John EnsignJohn Ensign
John Eric Ensign is a former United States Senator from Nevada, serving from January 2001 until he resigned amid an investigation of an ethics violation in May 2011...
barely won re-election in Nevada's 1st congressional district
Nevada's 1st congressional district
Nevada's 1st congressional district occupies most of Nevada's largest city, Las Vegas, as well as parts of North Las Vegas and parts of unincorporated Clark County. The district now leans Democratic....
with 50.1% of the vote. The day after, Berkley filed papers to run in the district. She raised $206,000 in the first six months and $410,000 in the next six months. Berkley was Democrats' dream candidate, as she easily won the primary with 81.5% of the vote. Ensign decided to retire in order to run against U.S. Senator Harry Reid
Harry Reid
Harry Mason Reid is the senior United States Senator from Nevada, serving since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, he has been the Senate Majority Leader since January 2007, having previously served as Minority Leader and Minority and Majority Whip.Previously, Reid was a member of the U.S...
in the very close and competitive 1998 senate election
United States Senate election in Nevada, 1998
The 1998 United States Senate election in Nevada was held on November 3, 1998. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Harry Reid won re-election to a third term.-Results:-Candidates:*Michael Cloud *John Ensign , U.S. Congressman...
. In the general election, she defeated Republican Don Chairez, a Deputy District Attorney in Clark County
Clark County, Nevada
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 1,375,765 people, 512,253 households, and 339,693 families residing within the MSA. The racial makeup of the MSA was 71.6% White , 9.1% Black, 5.7% Asian, 0.8% American Indian and 12.8% of other or mixed race. 22.0% were Hispanic of any race...
with 49.2% of the vote.
In 2000, she won re-election with 51.7% against State Senator Jon Porter
Jon Porter
Jonathan Christopher "Jon" Porter , an American politician, was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, the first representative elected from the new 3rd Congressional District of Nevada....
. In 2002, she defeated Republican Las Vegas City Councilwoman Lynette Boggs
Lynette Boggs
Lynette Boggs was a Republican politician in Clark County, Nevada, and a former winner of the Miss Oregon scholarship pageant. She went by the name of Lynette Boggs McDonald for most of her political career and dropped McDonald following a divorce....
with 53.7%. She won re-election in 2004, 2006, 2008, and 2010 with more than 60% of the vote in each election.
Tenure
Congresswoman Berkley has represented Nevada's 1st congressional districtNevada's 1st congressional district
Nevada's 1st congressional district occupies most of Nevada's largest city, Las Vegas, as well as parts of North Las Vegas and parts of unincorporated Clark County. The district now leans Democratic....
since 1999 and is currently in her seventh term as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. The district includes most of the city of Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
as well as the Las Vegas Strip
Las Vegas Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is an approximately stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada; adjacent to, but outside the city limits of Las Vegas proper. The Strip lies within the unincorporated townships of Paradise and Winchester...
and the city of North Las Vegas
North Las Vegas, Nevada
North Las Vegas is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States, located in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The city was incorporated on May 16, 1946.-Geography:...
. She is the second woman elected to Congress from Nevada, the first woman elected to the 1st district and the first elected as a Democrat.
Berkley is a member of the New Democrat Coalition
New Democrat Coalition
The New Democrat Coalition is a Congressional Member Organization within the United States Congress made up of Democrats who support an agenda that the organization describes as moderate and pro-growth. A July 2009 Press release described the organization as "the largest moderate coalition in the U.S...
. She views her top priorities as affordable health care coverage for all Americans, veteran's rights and alternative energy. Berkley is also strongly opposed to the building of a nuclear waste repository in Yucca Mountain
Yucca Mountain
The Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository was to be a deep geological repository storage facility for spent nuclear reactor fuel and other high level radioactive waste, until the project was canceled in 2009. It was to be located on federal land adjacent to the Nevada Test Site in Nye County,...
, Nevada.
Endorsements
As a 6th term congresswoman Berkley has been endorsed by a number of interest groups. The themes of some groups endorsing Berkley include education, environmental protections, and gender equality in politics. Berkley has received endorsements from groups such as The National Education Association
National Education Association
The National Education Association is the largest professional organization and largest labor union in the United States, representing public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college students preparing to become...
, The Sierra Club
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
and The National Women’s Political Caucus. Many of these interest groups play a big role in giving politicians such as Berkley political cues as to what voters are thinking.
Interest Groups
Berkely has been given various scores from a variety of interest groups. These groups include topics ranging from abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
issues, agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, criminal issues, animal rights
Animal rights
Animal rights, also known as animal liberation, is the idea that the most basic interests of non-human animals should be afforded the same consideration as the similar interests of human beings...
, budget
Budget
A budget is a financial plan and a list of all planned expenses and revenues. It is a plan for saving, borrowing and spending. A budget is an important concept in microeconomics, which uses a budget line to illustrate the trade-offs between two or more goods...
and taxes and foreign aid. The NARAL Pro-Choice America-Position has given Berkely a 100% (2010) on the issue while the National Right to Life Committee
National Right to Life Committee
The National Right to Life Committee is the oldest and largest pro-life organization in the United States with affiliates in all 50 states and over 3,000 local chapters nationwide. The group works through legislation and education to work against abortion, infanticide, euthanasia and assisted...
has given Berkley a 0% rating (2010).
The American Farm Bureau Federation
American Farm Bureau Federation
The American Farm Bureau Federation , commonly referred to as the Farm Bureau, is a nonprofit organization and the largest general farm organization in the United States...
has given Berkley 33% (2010) the topic of agriculture, while one the other hand The National Farm Workers Union has proudly given Berkley a 100% (2010). Other interest groups Berkley has received High ratings from Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants
Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants
Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants, or CURE, is a United States prisoner support and prison reform organization that was founded by Charles and Pauline Sullivan in San Antonio, Texas. It has supported legislation such as the Second Chance Act and, most famously, the Federal Prison Work...
, and ppDefenders of Wildlife Fund]]. Groups that Berkley has received poor ratings from include the National Taxpayers union
National Taxpayers Union
National Taxpayers Union is a taxpayers advocacy organization and taxpayers union in the United States, founded in 1969 by James Dale Davidson. NTU advertises that it is the largest and oldest grassroots taxpayer organization in the nation, with 362,000 members nationwide. It is closely...
and Peace Action
Peace Action
Peace Action is a peace organization formed through the merger of The Committee for a SANE Nuclear Policy and the Nuclear Weapons Freeze Campaign...
.
Committee assignments
- Committee on Ways and MeansUnited States House Committee on Ways and MeansThe Committee of Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. Members of the Ways and Means Committee are not allowed to serve on any other House Committees unless they apply for a waiver from their party's congressional leadership...
- Subcommittee on Social Security
- Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures
Energy policy
On June 26, 2009, Berkley voted for the American Clean Energy and Security ActAmerican Clean Energy and Security Act
The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 was an energy bill in the 111th United States Congress that would have established a variant of an emissions trading plan similar to the European Union Emission Trading Scheme...
, which would have implemented a cap-and-trade system similar to the regulations proposed by the Reagan administration in the 1980s, then known as "emissions trading".
Internet gambling
Berkley is known as one of the supporters of the drive to regulate online gambling. She was one of the few congressional members to oppose Bill FristBill Frist
William Harrison "Bill" Frist, Sr. is an American physician, businessman, and politician. He began his career as an heir and major stockholder to the for-profit hospital chain of Hospital Corporation of America. Frist later served two terms as a Republican United States Senator representing...
's addition of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, to the unrelated SAFE Port Act
SAFE Port Act
The Security and Accountability For Every Port Act of 2006 was an Act of Congress in the United States covering port security and to which an online gambling measure was added at the last moment...
.
Iraq war
On October 10, 2002, Berkley was among the 81 House Democrats who voted in favor of authorizing the invasion of Iraq2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
.
Wall Street bailout
On October 3, 2008, Berkley voted for the controversial Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (Division A of , commonly referred to as a bailout of the U.S. financial system, is a law enacted in response to the subprime mortgage crisis...
, which created the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) that bailed out Wall Street
Financial market
In economics, a financial market is a mechanism that allows people and entities to buy and sell financial securities , commodities , and other fungible items of value at low transaction costs and at prices that reflect supply and demand.Both general markets and...
banks.
Ethics criticism
In 1996 and 1997, while working as a government affairs adviser for Las Vegas SandsLas Vegas Sands
Las Vegas Sands Corp. is an integrated resort company based in Paradise, Nevada, USA.-History:Founded in 1988, the company was the owner and operator of the Sands Hotel, which was demolished in 1996 to make room for The Venetian, which opened in 1999....
, during the construction of The Venetian casino and resort in Las Vegas, at the behest of her employer, Berkley advised about options available to the employer with two Clark County Commissioners and two Clark County judges to secure their approval for the new hotel.
Berkley also suggested to her employer, the option of hiring an uncle of County Commissioner Erin Kenny
Erin Kenny
Erin Leigh Callin Kenny is a former Democratic politician from Nevada.Kenny earned her law degree on May 17, 2002, from William S. Boyd School of Law, University of Nevada, Las Vegas...
and to grant a daiquiri concession to commission chairwoman Yvonne Atkinson Gates. Berkley also recommended making campaign contributions to two judges because they "tend to help those who helped them."
On September 19, 2011, the ethics watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington is a nonprofit 501 organization that describes itself as "dedicated to promoting ethics and accountability in government and public life by targeting government officials – regardless of party affiliation – who sacrifice the common good to...
(CREW) released their annual Most Corrupt Members of Congress report. The report listed Berkley in the "Dishonorable Mention" category.
2012 U.S. Senate election
Berkley announced that she will run for the United States SenateUnited States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
in April 2011 to succeed John Ensign
John Ensign
John Eric Ensign is a former United States Senator from Nevada, serving from January 2001 until he resigned amid an investigation of an ethics violation in May 2011...
, who resigned amidst an ethics scandal.
Personal life
In March 1999, Berkley married Dr. Lawrence Lehrner, a practicing nephrologistNephrology
Nephrology is a branch of internal medicine and pediatrics dealing with the study of the function and diseases of the kidney.-Scope of the specialty:...
in Las Vegas. Both Berkley and Lehrner have two children from prior marriages.
External links
- U.S. Representative Shelley Berkley official U.S. House site
- Shelley Berkley for Senate official campaign site
- Shelley Berkley (D-NV) | CREW's Most Corrupt Members of Congress
- Profile at SourceWatchSourceWatchSourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...
- Kira Wissman, Internet Gambling Bill Would Not Prohibit Online Poker Says Congresswoman gambling911.com, October 9, 2006