Bill Lipinski

Last updated
Bill Lipinski's voice
Bill Lipinski speaks on ending the sugar subsidy program
Recorded June 6, 2001
Bill Lipinski
Lipsr.jpg
Member of the U.S.HouseofRepresentatives
from Illinois
In office
January 3, 1983 –January 3, 2005

William Oliver Lipinski (born December 22, 1937) is an American politician and lobbyist who was a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from 1983 to 2005, representing a district in Chicago. [1]

Contents

Life and career

Lipinski (far left) in 2004 with RTA Executive Director Steve Schlickman and Illinois State Senator Barack Obama and State Representative Julie Hamos 20040712 01 Bill Lipinski, Steve Schlickman, Barack Obama, Julie Hamos (8183521427).jpg
Lipinski (far left) in 2004 with RTA Executive Director Steve Schlickman and Illinois State Senator Barack Obama and State Representative Julie Hamos

Pre-congressional career

He was born in Chicago, and was educated at Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa. Lipinski served in the United States Army Reserve from 1961 to 1967. [2] He was given a patronage job as public administrator with the Chicago Park District of the city of Chicago. [1]

In 1975, Mayor Richard J. Daley named him as the Democratic committeeman for Chicago's 23rd Ward, in the southwestern portion of the city. In the same year, Lipinski was elected to the Chicago City Council as the alderman for the 23rd Ward. Lipinski remained an alderman until he became a congressman in 1983. [3]

Congressional career

In 1982, he challenged incumbent Democrat John G. Fary in the primary for Illinois's 5th congressional district , which included most of southwestern Chicago. He won largely by running up the totals in his city council district, and was handily elected in November.

Lipinski became the mentor of future City Clerk of Chicago, James Laski, who by 1988 had become chief-of-staff of the joint Democrat Service Office for the city's southwest side, and acted as a personal aide to Lipinski. [4]

Lipinski played an important role in getting federal funding for the CTA Orange Line. [1]

Lipinski was reelected four times from the 5th Congressional District with almost no difficulty. After the 1990 census, however, his district was merged with the 3rd district, represented by a longtime friend, Marty Russo. Lipinski defeated Russo in the 1992 Democratic primary, mainly by running up his margins in the Chicago portion of the district—which is virtually coextensive with the 23rd Ward. This all but assured him of a sixth term. He was reelected five more times from this district, facing serious opposition only once, in 1994.

While in the House, Lipinski served on the Transportation Committee; his district included Midway Airport and also had more railroad crossings than any other district. [5]

Lipinski was conservative by national Democratic standards. He strongly opposed abortion, [6] and described himself as a staunch conservative on foreign policy. [7] He was a member of the Blue Dog Coalition.

Lipinski endorsed Bill Bradley for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2000. [8]

During the 2004 election cycle, Lipinski easily won the primary election, which practically assured him of a 12th term in Congress. On August 13, 2004, however, Lipinski withdrew his name from the November 2 general election ballot, announcing that he would retire at the end of his 11th term, which expired on January 3, 2005. As the 23rd Ward committeeman, he was able to persuade state Democratic party leaders to name his son, Dan Lipinski, a University of Tennessee professor, to replace him on the ballot. The younger Lipinski won all of his reelection bids up until 2020, when he lost his primary election in 2020 to Marie Newman. [9]

Lobbying career

In 2007, after leaving the House of Representatives, Lipinski opened a one-man lobbying firm. [10] In its first eight years, the firm was paid $4 million by clients with business before the House Transportation Committee: the Chicago Transit Authority, Metra, BNSF Railway, and the Association of American Railroads. [1] [10] Lipinski was an influential member of the Transportation Committee, and his son served on the committee. [10] This was described as concerning by Public Citizen; the younger Lipinski said that his father has not lobbied him and has pledged not to do so. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luis Gutiérrez</span> American politician (born 1953)

Luis Vicente Gutiérrez is an American politician. He served as the U.S. representative for Illinois's 4th congressional district from 1993 to 2019. From 1986 until his election to Congress, he served as a member of the Chicago City Council representing the 26th ward. He is a member of the Democratic Party and was a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus during his tenure in the House. In the 113th Congress, with his 20 years of service, Gutiérrez became, along with Bobby Rush, the longest serving member of the Illinois House delegation, and so was occasionally referred to as the unofficial "dean" of the delegation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anthony Beale</span> American politician

Anthony A. Beale is an American politician and the alderman of the 9th ward of the City of Chicago, Illinois United States. Beale is noted as having been one of the youngest members to serve as elected official on the City of Chicago's City Council. Beale was first elected in 1999. In 2023 Beale was elected to his seventh term in office. In 2013, Beale was an unsuccessful candidate in the Democratic primary for the special election to replace Jesse Jackson Jr. as U.S. Congressman from Illinois' 2nd congressional district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrick J. O'Connor</span> American politician

Patrick J. O'Connor is a former Chicago politician. He is the former alderman in Chicago's City Council representing the 40th ward on the North Side of the city. He was first elected in 1983 at age 28. His tenure ended in May 2019 after his loss to challenger Andre Vasquez in the 2019 Chicago aldermanic elections. O'Connor was an unsuccessful candidate in the Democratic Party primary election for Illinois's 5th congressional district special election, 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Lipinski</span> American politician (born 1966)

Daniel William Lipinski is an American politician and political scientist who served eight terms as the U.S. representative for Illinois's 3rd congressional district from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Blue Dog Coalition, Lipinski was one of the most socially conservative Democrats in Congress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ariel Reboyras</span> American politician

Ariel Reboyras is alderman of the 30th ward of the City of Chicago; he was first elected in 2003. He was previously a deputy commissioner in the general service department.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Pucinski</span> American politician

Roman Conrad Pucinski was an American Democratic politician from Chicago, Illinois. He was a U.S. Representative from 1959 to 1973 and alderman from the 41st Ward of Chicago from 1973 to 1991. He was considered a longtime leader of Chicago Polonia and was seen to represent its interests in Washington.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Illinois's 3rd congressional district</span> U.S. House district for Illinois

Illinois's 3rd congressional district includes parts of Cook County and DuPage County, and has been represented by Democrat Delia Ramirez since January 3, 2023. The district was previously represented by Marie Newman from 2021 to 2023, Dan Lipinski from 2005 to 2021, and by Lipinski's father Bill from 1983 to 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelly Cassidy</span> American politician

Kelly Cassidy is an American politician from Chicago. She is a Democrat and a member of the Illinois House of Representatives. She was appointed to represent the 14th district, on Chicago's North Side, in April 2011 following incumbent Harry Osterman's election to the Chicago City Council. She took office on May 16, 2011. Most notably Kelly Cassidy was the chief sponsor of House Bill 1438, making Illinois the first state to legalize the Adult-Use of Cannabis through legislature as opposed to a ballot measure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scott Waguespack</span> American politician

Scott Waguespack is a member of the Chicago City Council, representing the 32nd ward since May 2007. The current 32nd ward includes parts of the neighborhoods of Bucktown, Goose Island, Hamlin Park, Lakeview, Lincoln Park, and Roscoe Village. He is a member of the council's Progressive Reform Caucus, and was the chair during 2015–19. During the 2019–23 term, he was selected as the chair of the Finance Committee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1987 Chicago mayoral election</span>

The Chicago mayoral election of 1987 saw the re-election of incumbrnt Democrat Harold Washington. Partisan primaries were held on February 24, followed by the general election on April 7, 1987. Washington defeated Ed Vrdolyak, the leader of the Vrdolyak 29, who ran on the Illinois Solidarity Party ticket. Former mayor Jane Byrne unsuccessfully challenged Washington in the Democratic primary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chuy García</span> Mexican-American politician (born 1956)

Jesús G. "Chuy" García is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Illinois's 4th district since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served on the Cook County Board of Commissioners, as well as in the Illinois Senate and on the Chicago City Council before his election to Congress. He was also a candidate for mayor of Chicago in 2015 and 2023. Throughout his career in Chicago and national politics, he has been described as a progressive.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raymond Lopez</span> American politician (born 1978)

Raymond Anthony Lopez is an American politician who is currently a member of the Chicago City Council serving as alderman of the 15th Ward in Chicago, Illinois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gilbert Villegas</span> American politician

Gilbert Villegas is an American politician. He is a member of the Chicago City Council, serving as alderperson for the city's 36th ward. The 36th ward includes Belmont-Cragin, Galewood, Hermosa, Humboldt Park, Montclare and Portage Park. Prior to his election to the Chicago City Council, he served as chief of staff of the Illinois Capital Development Board.

James J. "Jim" Laski was the City Clerk of Chicago, Illinois from 1995–2006. The former congressional aid and city alderman resigned from the City Clerk's office following his indictment for obstruction of justice due to his involvement in the city's scandal-plagued Hired Truck Program. After serving a prison sentence, Laski became a controversial talk-radio host for a program that was broadcast on two Chicago-area radio stations. He also wrote a book about his experiences in Chicago politics and federal prison.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois</span>

The 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois were held on November 6, 2018, to elect U.S. representatives, one from each of the state's eighteen congressional districts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marie Newman</span> American politician (born 1964)

Marie Newman is an American politician and marketing consultant who served as the U.S. representative from Illinois's 3rd congressional district from 2021 to 2023. The district encompassed parts of southwestern Chicago as well as many of its nearby suburbs, such as Oak Lawn, Western Springs, and Lockport. Newman was elected to the United States House of Representatives as the Democratic nominee, after defeating incumbent Dan Lipinski in the 2020 primary election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019 Chicago aldermanic election</span>

The 2019 Chicago aldermanic election took place in two rounds on February 26 and April 2, 2019, to elect 50 aldermen to the Chicago City Council. Each alderman represents one of Chicago's 50 wards. The elections are non-partisan and use a two-round system where the top two finishers compete in a second-round run-off if no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote in the first round. The elections were party of the 2019 Chicago elections, which included elections for Mayor, City Clerk, City Treasurer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois</span>

The 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Illinois were held on November 3, 2020, to elect the 18 U.S. representatives from the state of Illinois, one from each of the state's 18 congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, various state and local elections, and the Illinois Fair Tax.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Cook County, Illinois, elections</span>

The Cook County, Illinois, general election was held on November 3, 2020. Elections were held for Clerk of the Circuit Court, State's Attorney, Cook County Board of Review district 1, three seats on the Water Reclamation District Board, and judgeships on the Circuit Court of Cook County.

Edmund L. Kelly is an American politician who formerly served as General Superintendent of the Chicago Park District and 47th Ward Democratic Committeeman.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Pearson, Bill Ruthhart, Rick (2 January 2021). "End of the Lipinski era: A 45-year political reign on Chicago's Southwest Side comes to a close". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2021-02-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ↑ "Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 16 - WILLIAM O. LIPINSKI FEDERAL BUILDING". www.govinfo.gov. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  3. ↑ Munson, Judy (5 February 1986). "REP. LIPINSKI GUIDED KRYSTYNIAK, MADRZYK". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  4. ↑ Cut From Ward, Laski Sets Out On His Own; Davis, Robert; February 28, 1993; article; Chicago Tribune; retrieved October 2016'
  5. ↑ Barone, Michael; Richard E. Cohen; Charles E. Cook, Jr. (2001). The Almanac of American Politics 2002 . Washington, D.C.: National Journal Group. pp. 511–513. ISBN   0-89234-099-1.
  6. ↑ "Statement on abortion from archive of Lipinski's congressional site". Archived from the original on January 6, 2004. Retrieved 2017-12-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. ↑ "Bio page from Lipinski's congressional site". Archived from the original on December 24, 2003. Retrieved 2017-12-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  8. ↑ Dao, James (1999-09-22) Moynihan to Endorse Bradley, Favoring Friend Over the Vice President, The New York Times
  9. ↑ Stolberg, Sheryl Gay (2020-03-18). "Marie Newman Beats Dan Lipinski, Democratic Incumbent, in Illinois House Primary". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2020-03-18.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Ex. Rep. Lipinski making millions from clients who go before son’s House committee, Chicago Sun-Times (October 25, 2015).
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the  U.S. House of Representatives
from Illinois's 5th congressional district
January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1993		Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of the  U.S. House of Representatives
from Illinois's 3rd congressional district
January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2005		Succeeded by
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded byas Former US Representative Order of precedence of the United States
as Former US Representative		Succeeded byas Former US Representative
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.