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‪Mel Martinez‬‬ From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search This article is about the politician. For the actress, see Melanie Martinez. Mel Martinez United States Senator from Florida In office January 3, 2005 – September 9, 2009 Preceded by	Bob Graham Succeeded by	George LeMieux 12th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development In office January 24, 2001 – December 13, 2003 President	George W. Bush Preceded by	Andrew Cuomo Succeeded by	Alphonso Jackson Personal details Born	Melquíades Rafael Martínez Ruiz October 23, 1946 (age 65) Sagua La Grande, Cuba Political party	Republican Spouse(s)	Kitty Martínez Children	Lauren Martínez Shea John Martínez Andrew Martínez Residence	Orlando, Florida Alma mater Florida State University Profession	Lawyer Religion	Roman Catholic Melquíades Rafael Martínez Ruiz, usually known as Mel Martinez (born October 23, 1946), is a former United States Senator from Florida and served as Chairman of the Republican Party from November 2006 until October 19, 2007, the first Latino to serve as chairman of a major party. Previously, Martínez served as the 12th Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President George W. Bush. Martínez is a Cuban-American and Roman Catholic. Martínez and his wife Kitty have three children (Lauren Martínez Shea, John Martínez, and Andrew Martínez) and three grandchildren. He is the brother of Rafael E. Martinez. Martinez is a senior level executive with JPMorgan Chase, serving as chairman of Florida, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, and as chairman of the firm’s philanthropic organization. Martinez serves as a co-chair of the Housing Commission at the Bipartisan Policy Center.[8] CHILDHOOD AND LEGAL CAREER Martínez was born in Sagua La Grande, Cuba, to Gladys V. (Ruíz) and Melquíades C. Martínez.[9] He came to the United States in 1962 as part of a Roman Catholic humanitarian effort called Operation Peter Pan, which brought into the U.S. more than 14,000 children. Catholic charitable groups provided Martinez a temporary home at two youth facilities. At the time Martínez was alone and spoke virtually no English. He subsequently lived with two foster families, and in 1966 was reunited with his family in Orlando. Martínez received an Associate's degree from Orlando Junior College in 1967, a Bachelor's degree in International Affairs from Florida State University, and his Juris Doctor from Florida State University College of Law in 1973. He began his legal career working at the Orlando Personal Injury law firm Wooten Kimbrough, et al.,[10] where he became a partner and worked for more than a decade. [Started own firm? Recognitions? Significant cases?] ENTERING POLITICS Martinez first ran for public office in 1994, when he sought the office of lieutenant governor for Florida. He teamed up with former Family Research Council President Ken Connor, the gubernatorial candidate. The Connor/Martínez ticket was defeated in the Republican primary, finishing fifth with 83,945 votes, or 9.31% of the vote. In 1998, he ran for and won the post of Orange County mayor. During Martinez’s tenure as mayor, he implemented the “Martinez doctrine” which prohibits development from taking place unless adequate public infrastructure, specifically school capacity, is able to support such development. The doctrine was upheld by the judicial system when the Florida Supreme Court declined to hear a challenge to a lower court’s ruling in support of Martinez’s land use planning policy. In addition to serving as Orange County mayor, Martínez served on the Governor's Growth Management Study Commission. He previously served as President of the Orlando Utilities Commission, on the board of directors of a community bank, and as Chairman of the Orlando Housing Authority. Serving as co-chairman of George W. Bush's 2000 presidential election campaign in Florida, Martínez was a leading fundraiser. He was one of the 25 electors from Florida, who voted for George W. Bush in the 2000 election. Shortly after George W. Bush was declared the winner of the 2000 presidential election, the president-elect appointed Martinez as his nominee to lead the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. President Bush officially sent Martinez’s nomination to the U.S. Senate on January 20, 2001. Martinez was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate and on January 24, 2001 was sworn in as the 12th Secretary of HUD. While serving as HUD Secretary, Martinez sat as an ex officio member of the President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans. U.S. SENATE Martínez resigned his cabinet post on December 12, 2003, to run for the open U.S. Senate seat in Florida being vacated by retiring Democratic Senator Bob Graham. Much of Martinez's support came from Washington: he was endorsed early by many prominent Republican groups, and publicly supported by key national Republican figures such as Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. His Cuban background and his popularity in the battleground Orlando, Florida, region both contributed to his appeal to the statewide GOP in Florida. Martínez secured the Republican nomination and narrowly defeated the Democratic nominee, Betty Castor. His election made him the first Cuban-American to serve in the U.S. Senate. Furthermore, he and Ken Salazar (who is Mexican-American) [2] were the first Hispanic U.S. Senators since 1977. They were joined by a third, Bob Menéndez (who is also Cuban-American) in January 2006. During part of his tenure in the Senate, Martinez sat at the Candy desk. On December 2, 2008, Martinez announced he would not be running for re-election to the Senate in 2010. On August 7, 2009, CNN and the Orlando Sentinel reported that Martinez would be resigning from his Senate seat.[3][4] Later that month, Governor Crist announced that he would appoint George LeMieux as the successor to Martínez for the remaining year and a half of the Senate term.[5] Two weeks after resigning his Senate seat, The Hill reported that Martínez would become a lobbyist and partner at international firm DLA Piper.[6] Release of Cuc Foshee In 2006, Senator Martinez became involved in the case of Thuong Nguyen “Cuc” Foshee, a U.S. citizen detained by the Vietnamese government, accused and convicted of terrorism. To draw attention to Foshee’s plight, Martinez blocked the Senate from considering the U.S. Vietnam free trade bill, and brought the issue directly to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and President Bush during travel on Air Force One. The government of Vietnam released Foshee in November, 2006. Immigration Reform Senator Martinez played a significant role during the drafting of the comprehensive immigration reform bills of 2006 and 2007. Congress approved neither the 2006 nor 2007 bills. Groups heaped praise and intense criticism on Martinez for his position on immigration reform. His office received more than 200 bricks from individuals, each with a note reflecting their desire to “build a wall” along the southern border of the United States. The bricks were collected and donated to Habitat for Humanity. Energy Production in the Gulf of Mexico In 2006, Senator Martinez worked with Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) and other Florida members of Congress to block efforts to open the coastal areas of the Gulf of Mexico within 100 miles of Florida to oil and natural gas exploration. As a concession to those seeking to expand domestic energy production, Martinez negotiated a compromise with Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) to open 8.3 million acres in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico in exchange for a prohibition on drilling within 125 miles of Florida’s coastline at least until the year 2022. The compromise language was made part of H.R. 6111, the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 and was signed into law on December 20, 2006 (public law 109-432). Republican National Committee Co-Chair On November 14, 2006, President George W. Bush nominated Martinez to serve as general chairman of the Republican National Committee. Some felt the choice was made in part due to the dip in support for Republicans among Latino voters in the 2006 midterm elections.[18] Some conservatives objected to Martínez's selection, citing his positions on immigration. He announced he was resigning as Chairman of the Republican National Committee on October 19, 2007.[1]

Contents [hide] 1 Personal life 2 U.S. Senate election, 2004 2.1 Primary 2.2 General election 2.3 Campaign reporting violations 3 Terri Schiavo 4 Staffing controversies 5 Republican National Committee 6 Interference with Spanish Justice system 7 Positions 8 Electoral history 9 Footnotes 10 External links [edit]

Senator Mel Martínez chats with U.S. President George W. Bush in the Center Hall of the White House during a celebration of Cinco de Mayo. The official portrait of former First Lady Betty Ford can be seen on the wall.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY In August 2008, Martinez released an autobiography titled “A Sense of Belonging; From Castro’s Cuba to the U.S. Senate, One Man’s Pursuit of the American Dream.” The book was written by Martinez with Ed Breslin (Crown Publishing, August 2008) ISBN 978-0-307-40540-1.

HONORS, PROFESSIONAL AND CHARITABLE ACTIVITIES Chairman, United States-Spain Council, 2006 to 2009 Co-Chairman, Presidential Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba, 2003 Chairman, U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, 2002 President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans, 2002 Harvard University 13th Annual John T. Dunlop Lecturer, 2012 Ohtli Silver Medal from the Embassy of Mexico, 2012 Florida State University Circle of Gold Award, 2010 Department of the Navy’s Distinguished Public Service Award, 2009 Order of Malta Tuitio Fidei award, 2006 Florida State University Grads Made Good Award, 2003 Florida State University College of Law Alumni Association Distinguished Alumnus Award, 2003 John Carroll Society Medal, 2003 Yale University Chubb Fellow, 2002 Legatus Ambassador of the Year, 2001 Orlando Chamber of Commerce John Young Award, 2001

CONTROVERSIES Campaign reporting violations In August 2006, the Martínez campaign acknowledged that the 2004 campaign had been under review by the Federal Election Commission for more than a year. Following the 2004 election, Martínez originally reported that his $12-million campaign had about $115,000 in debt, according to FEC documents. An audit performed by the Martinez campaign revised the debt to $685,000 in election expenses. An FEC audit found Martínez's campaign accepted a total of $313,235 in contributions that exceeded limits from 186 donors. A $99,000 fine was agreed to by the Martinez campaign and the FEC on Sept. 10 and was posted a month later in its database. CREW complaint The organization Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed a complaint with the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) in August 2006 that charged Martínez with having illegally accepted more than $60,000 from the Bacardi beverage company in the campaign. CREW alleged Bacardi violated the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) and FEC regulations by soliciting contributions from a list of the corporation’s vendors for these campaigns, and by using corporate funds to pay for food and beverages at campaign events held in the company’s corporate headquarters on May 11, 2004. An amended complaint by CREW in October 2006 alleged similar behavior by Bacardi for Democratic Senator Bill Nelson's 2006 re-election campaign.[14] In April 2007, the FEC notified CREW it had reviewed the allegations against Bacardi, the Martinez campaign and the Nelson campaign, found no reason to believe any of the alleged violations occurred, and closed the matter. Terri Schiavo Staff Memo In the early hours of March 20, 2005, Martinez was among the Senators who voted for the Palm Sunday Compromise, formally known as the Act for the relief of the parents of Theresa Marie Schiavo (S. 686 CPS), to allow the case of Terri Schiavo to be moved into a federal court. On April 6, 2005, Martinez accepted the resignation of his legal counsel, Brian Darling,[15] who was responsible for writing and circulating the Schiavo memo related to the Terry Schiavo case. Martínez immediately denied all knowledge of Darling's involvement in the situation, noting that he himself had inadvertently passed a copy of the memo to Democratic Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, believing that it was nothing more than an outline of the Republican proposal. Martínez asserted that the memo "was intended to be a working draft," stating that Darling "doesn't really know how I got it." Interference with Spanish Justice system Main article: The Bush Six Three months into Barack Obama's Presidential term, the Administration tapped Senator Mel Martinez to deliver a private message to Spanish Government officials in order to thwart a probe into former Bush Administration officials for rendition and torture of Guantanamo detainees which the U.S was failing to investigate. According to Carol Rosenberg, "The cause for alarm at the U.S. Embassy was what a U.S. diplomat called a "well documented 12-inch-tall dossier compiled by a Spanish human rights group. In the name of five Guantánamo captives with ties to Spain, it accused the Bush legal insiders of laying the foundation for abuse of detainees in the months following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.[19] The six accused are: former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales; David Addington, former chief of staff and legal adviser to the Vice President; William Haynes, former DOD General Counsel; Douglas Feith, former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy; Jay Bybee, former head of the DOJ Office of Legal Counsel; and John Yoo, a former member of Bybee’s staff. On April 15, 2009, Martinez met with Acting Foreign Minister Angel Lossada on a visit to the Spanish foreign ministry, where he warned that an investigation would have consequences, and "that prosecutions would not be understood or accepted in the U.S. and would have an enormous impact on the bilateral relationship." Lossada told Martinez that he understood the complications but "the independence of the judiciary and the process must be respected", and "that the executive branch of government could not close any judicial investigation and urged that this case not affect the overall relationship, adding that our interests were much broader, and that the universal jurisdiction case should not be viewed as a reflection of the Spanish Government's position." Following the outreach, the Spanish Attorney General Conde Pumpido’s press chief told the media that the Prosecutor’s office will deliver the AG’s recommendation to the National Court, where it will be up to investigating judge Baltasar Garzon to decide whether to pursue the case or not. Baltasar Garzon has been an outspoken critic of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility and has publicly stated that former President George W. Bush should be tried for war crimes. [20] [edit] Positions ▪	Abortion: Rated 100% by National Right to Life Committee,[21] which indicates a pro-life stance. Morally opposed to abortion even in case of rape or incest, he supports education to reduce abortions, and supports the promotion of alternatives such as adoption. His position on the legality of abortion is unclear, but he has indicated that he would not vote for prosecuting involved parties even in the event of a reversal of Roe v. Wade. In a debate moderated by Tim Russert, Martínez stated: "The bottom line is I don't plan on prosecuting anyone. When I go to the United States Senate, I'm going to be confirming judges who will go to the courts, and the courts will deal with the issue. This is not up for a vote by the United States Senate." He added, "We're far from prosecuting people in this country over that issue" [22] ▪	Economy: Supports free trade generally; supports tax cuts; advocates lowering regulation of employers and reducing liability insurance burdens. ▪	Education: Supports No Child Left Behind Act; advocates more standardized testing; supports school voucher programs; supports English-only education. ▪	Immigration: In his 2004 campaign, Martínez said "Our immigration policy should first and foremost ensure the security of our great Nation and those individuals posing a terrorist threat should be prevented from entering our country. I strongly oppose amnesty for illegal aliens; our immigration laws should not reward lawlessness" and "I oppose amnesty for illegal aliens. I support a plan that matches workers with needy employers without providing a path to citizenship. Immigration to this country must always be done through legal means" In a 2006 after election platform reversal, he helped craft the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 that would be referred to by much of his own party as "amnesty". (see [23] On June 28, 2007, he would later vote for the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 – which he helped form with other Senate leaders – that would allow many illegal immigrants to become citizens. The bill was defeated through being denied cloture on the Senate floor. ▪	Environment: Supports funding state conservation preservation funding without raising taxes; supports opening up maximum amount of Forest Services federal land for hunting and shooting sports; supports "voluntary incentives" legislation to make it easier for private landowners to set aside land for hunting, shooting, and conservation purposes. ▪	Foreign policy ▪	Cuba: Critical of Cuba's human rights record; supports tightening travel and strengthening the economic and trade blockade against Cuba; supports U.S. government funding of persons in Cuba who are opposed to current Cuban government; opposes foreign aid to countries that oppose U.S. policies; Advocates closure of Guantanamo Bay detainment camp Senator Martínez is also a member of the Congressional Cuba Democracy Caucus ▪	Iraq: Supports the Bush Doctrine, but has asserted that the U.S. erred in hastily dismantling the Iraqi Army. ▪	Israel: Supports Israeli self-determination; supports close ties between U.S. and Israel ▪	Health care: Supports private Medicare and Social Security accounts for new workers; advocates more thorough investigations of Medicare fraud; supports reimportation of drugs from Canada.[22] ▪	Homeland security: Opposes base closures in Florida; advocates maintaining "the strongest military in the world." Even to the point of spending additional funds to keep Oliver Hazard Perry class frigates in service even after they have lost their air defense missile capabilities.[24] ▪	Religion: Supports free exercise of religion; opposes "removing all public displays of religious devotion" from society. ▪	Same-sex marriage and gay rights: Supports an amendment to the United States Constitution to ban same-sex marriage. In June 2006, he is quoted on the matter regarding not amending the Constitution, thus leaving each State to come up with its own laws, "It isn't good enough to say, 'Leave it up to the states.' ... If we leave it up to the states we will see the erosion of marriage that we've seen by activist courts, which we otherwise will not see if we protect the institution of marriage at the federal level". He opposes legislation that would protect employers from firing gays, and has declined to endorse anti hate crimes legislation. ▪	Senior Citizens: Lead sponsor of legislation to create a nationwide Silver Alert program to help locate missing seniors. ▪	U.S. Supreme Court nominations: Has voted in favor of all three nominees who were nominated during his Senate tenure: John Roberts (2005), Samuel Alito (2006), and Sonia Sotomayor (2009). ▪	Welfare: Supports Republican-style welfare reforms encouraging personal responsibility; supports programs for job training and retraining. ▪	Public housing: Supports providing housing for peoples of a needy situation: physically, mentally, as well as financially. When secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Senator Martinez played a large part in the construction of housing and continued to do so as a junior senator. On January 25, 2008, Martínez endorsed Sen. John McCain in the Florida Republican primary of the 2008 presidential election, citing McCain's understanding of national security and economic and foreign policy.[25] McCain subsequently won the primary.