Ken Calvert

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U.S. Representative

Ken Calvert (R)

400057.jpeg

CA-42
Positions
Leadership: No leadership position
Committees: House Committee on Appropriations
(subcommittees and past assignments)
Next election: Nov. 6, 2012

Primary challenge: N/a

Incumbent running: Yes, for a different seat

2012 candidates for CA-42

Confirmed: Michael Williamson, Ken Calvert
Possible: None so far
Out: None so far
(more info & editing for CA-42)
On the Web
Official website


Ken Calvert, a Republican, has represented the 44th Congressional District of California in the United States House of Representatives since 1993.

Contents

Record and controversies

Congressional scorecards

Click through the score to see the records of other members of Congress and full descriptions of the individual votes.

Want to see someone else's scorecard added to the list? You can do it!

Organization 2007 Scorecard
Score - Agree ratio 		2008 Scorecard
Score - Agree ratio
American Civil Liberties Union not avail. not avail.
American Conservative Union 88 - 22/25 not avail.
AFSCME not avail. not avail.
Americans for Democratic Action 15 - 3/20 15 - 3/20
Club for Growth not avail. not avail.
Drum Major Institute not avail. not avail.
Family Research Council not avail. not avail.
Information Technology Industry Council not avail. not avail.
League of Conservation Voters not avail. not avail.
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People not avail. not avail.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce 89 - 17/20 not avail.


Iraq War

Calvert voted for the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002 that started the Iraq War.[1]

For more information see the chart of U.S. House of Representatives votes on the Iraq War.

Environmental record

For more information on environmental legislation, see the Energy and Environment Policy Portal

Earmarks

On June 8, 2006 Roll Call reported that the FBI had sent an agent from its Riverside, Calif. offices "to the Cannon House Office Building to retrieve the records of the lawmakers and advisers."[1] The FBI has also searched through Calvert's financial records from 1999 to 2004. The search of Calvert's records came eight days after the Los Angeles Times reported that Calvert made a 79% profit on a land deal after earmarking funds that helped drive up the price of his property.[2]

Land Deal

In 2005 Calvert and a partner, Woodrow Harpole, Jr., purchased a "dusty four-acre parce just south of March Air Reserve Base" for $550,000.[3] After the purchase Calvert wrote a number of earmarks that improved infrastructure around his property that significantly increased it's value. Calvert secured $8 million to improve a major freeway interchange and a $1.5 million earmark to "support commercial development of the area around the airfield."[4]

The earmarks were included in the 2005 highway bill that President Bush signed on August 10, 2005. A few months after the bill was signed Calvert and his partner sold the property for $985,000 -- a 79% profit.[5]

Bill Lowery

Calvert's top political campaign contributor in the 2004 election cycle, at $10,600, was the law firm of Copeland Lowery Jacquez & White. Since 1999, the firm has given Calvert nearly $30,000 in contributions. [6] The law firm is known for its involvement in a federal investigation into the earmarking practices of Appropriations Chairman Jerry Lewis. Calvert has been noted to have "secured funds for a number of projects pushed by campaign contributors, including employees of the Washington lobbying firm of Copeland Lowery & Jacquez".[7]

Principally as a result of these earmarking scandals, Calvert was named in 2006 by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington as one of the twenty most corrupt US legislators. [8]

Connections to Randy "Duke" Cunningham

In December of 2004 Calvert accompanied Duke Cunningham and one of Cunningham's alleged bribers Thomas Kontagiannis to Saudi Arabia, ostensibly to "promote better relations between the United States and Saudi Arabia."[9] Calvert has insisted that he did not know they would be picking up Kontagiannis, who has previously been convicted twice on bribery charges. The congressman said, "If I had known his background, I wouldn't have felt very comfortable, but I didn't know."[10]

Calvert has also received $10,500 from another alleged Cunningham briber, Brent Wilkes and his associates.

Caught by police with prostitute; not charged

On November 28, 1993, Calvert was caught by a police officer with a prostitute in his car. Calvert was parked on the side of the road, seemingly asleep, when a police officer pulled up behind and spotlit the interior of the vehicle.[11] As the officer approached the vehicle he saw a woman sit upright in the passenger seat. "It appeared as if her head were originally laying in the driver's lap," the officer would write in the police report.[12] The officer observed a woman with wearing unbuttoned and unzipped cut-off jean-shorts and the driver, Calvert, attempt to cover himself up before he put the car in drive and attempted to drive away. After three warnings by the officer Calvert stopped the car. Calvert stated that he was just talking with the woman.[13] The police asked to speak to the woman, Lore Lorena Lindberg, and discovered that she was a convicted prostitute with a heroin problem.[14] Calvert was not charged with any crime. [15]

Biography

Calvert was born June 8, 1953 in Corona, California. He was educated at San Diego State University, and was a restaurant manager and business owner before entering the House.

Ken Calvert was first elected in 1992 to his position representing the Inland Empire area of Southern California. He was re-elected in 1994 with 55% of the vote, again in 1996 with 55% of the vote, in 1998 with 55% of the vote. He was uncontested in 2000.

2006 elections

In 2006, the Democrats nominated Louis Vandenberg to face Calvert in his November 2006 bid for reelection. Calvert retained his seat. (See U.S. congressional elections in 2006)[2]

Money in Politics

This section contains links to – and feeds from – money in politics databases. For specific controversies, see this article's record and controversies section.

Top Contributors to during the 2008 Election Cycle
DonorAmount (US Dollars)
Northrop Grumman$ 19,000
General Dynamics$ 15,000
Stronghold Engineering$ 15,000
Tessera Technologies$ 13,000
All American Asphalt$ 12,500
Lincoln Club of Riverside County$ 12,000
University of California$ 10,250
II-VI Inc$ 10,011
American Crystal Sugar$ 10,000
American Maritime Officers$ 10,000
Source: The Center for Responsive Politics' www.OpenSecrets.org site.
Note: Contributions are not from the organizations themselves, but are rather from
the organization's PAC, employees or owners. Totals include subsidiaries and affiliates.
Links to more campaign contribution information for Ken Calvert
from the Center for Responsive Politics' OpenSecrets.org site.
Fundraising profile: 2008 election cycle Career totals
Top contributors by organization/corporation: 2008 election cycle Career totals
Top contributors by industry: 2008 election cycle Career totals

Committees and Affiliations

Committees

Committees in the 110th Congress (2007-2008)

Committee assignments in the 109th Congress (2005-2006)

More Background Data

Wikipedia also has an article on Ken Calvert. This article may use content from the Wikipedia article under the terms of the GFDL.

Contact

DC office
  • 2269 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515
    Ph: 202-225-1986 Fax: 202-225-2004
    Webform email
District offices
  • 3400 Central Avenue, Suite 200, Riverside, CA 92506
    Ph: 951-784-4300 Fax: (none entered)
  • 100 Avenida Presidio, Suite A, San Clemente, CA 92672
    Ph: 949-496-2343 Fax: (none entered)
On the Web
Campaign office
  • No campaign website entered.
  • No campaign webform email entered.
  • No campaign office information entered.

Articles and resources

Resources

Local blogs and discussion sites

Articles


Semantic data









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