John Faso
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New York's 19th district
In office
January 3, 2017 – January 3, 2019
Preceded byChris Gibson
Succeeded byAntonio Delgado
Member of the Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority
In office
July 3, 2003 – June 5, 2006[1]
Preceded byPosition established[2]
Succeeded byAnthony J. Colucci Jr.
Minority Leader of the New York State Assembly
In office
March 2, 1998 – December 31, 2002
Preceded byThomas M. Reynolds
Succeeded byCharles H. Nesbitt
Member of the New York State Assembly
from the 102nd district
In office
January 1, 1987 – December 31, 2002
Preceded byClarence D. Lane
Succeeded byJoel Miller
Personal details
Born
John James Faso Jr.

(1952-08-25) August 25, 1952
Massapequa, New York, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Mary Frances
​
(m. 1983)​
Children2
EducationState University of New York, Brockport (BS)
Georgetown University (JD)

John James Faso Jr. (/ˈfæsoʊ/; born August 25, 1952) is an American attorney and politician who served as the U.S. representative for New York's 19th congressional district from 2017 to 2019. Faso was first elected to the post in 2016. A Republican, Faso previously represented the 102nd district in the New York State Assembly from 1987 to 2002 and served as Assembly Minority Leader from 1998 to 2002. Faso ran for New York State Comptroller in 2002 and for Governor of New York in 2006, but did not prevail in either race. He was defeated for re-election to Congress in November 2018 by Democrat Antonio Delgado.

Early life, education, and early career

Faso is of Italian and Irish descent, the eldest of five siblings.[3] He attended Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens, New York and SUNY-Brockport. After college, Faso became a grants officer for Nassau County, New York.[3] Faso graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 1979.[4] After law school, Faso took political jobs in Washington, D.C., including as a lobbyist, while considering running for elective office in New York.[3]

From 1979 to 1981, Faso served as a staff member on the United States House Committee on Government Operations. From 1983 to 1986, he worked at the New York State Legislative Bill Drafting Commission.

Political career

New York State Assembly

In 1983, Faso moved to upstate New York, purposely choosing to live in a district where an Assembly seat would soon become open so that he could run. He was elected to the New York State Assembly for the first time in 1986.[3]

Faso was a member of the New York State Assembly from 1987 to 2002.[3] He received the 1997 Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy Award for distinguished public service.[5] In 1987, Faso called Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision regarding abortion rights, a "black mark upon this country."[6][7] In late 1994, Faso served on George Pataki's transition team, where he chaired the budget committee.[8] He became head of the team that wrote Pataki's first budget as governor.[3]

In 1995, Faso became ranking member of the Assembly Ways and Means Committee.[9] He was the original sponsor of charter school legislation and was involved in the passage of Governor Pataki's proposal to create charter schools in New York State in 1998. He supported expanding the current cap on charter schools.[10] John Faso was elected Assembly Minority Leader in 1998.[3]

2002 campaign for New York State Comptroller

Faso's work on the state budget fueled a run for New York State Comptroller in 2002. Initially trailing Democrat Alan Hevesi (then-Comptroller of New York City) by a 20-point margin,[11] Faso lost the election 50%-47%.

During the campaign, Faso accused Hevesi of having mismanaged the city's pension funds.[12] Hevesi was later forced to resign from office and jailed in a pay-to-play scheme involving New York's state pension fund.[13]

2006 campaign for Governor of New York

Faso and Governor George Pataki attend the NY State Fair.

In 2005, Faso announced his intention to run for governor. For the Republican nomination, Faso faced former Massachusetts Governor William Weld, former New York Secretary of State Randy Daniels, and Assemblyman Patrick Manning. Weld reportedly offered Faso the chance to join his ticket as a candidate for lieutenant governor.[14]

Faso received the Conservative Party's endorsement[15] while Weld received the Libertarian Party's nomination,[16] guaranteeing both candidates a spot on the ballot if they stayed in the race. However, once the Republican State Convention voted to endorse Faso,[17] Weld announced his withdrawal from the race.[18] Faso's running mate was former Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef.[19] Faso was opposed by Democratic nominee Eliot Spitzer.[20]

On Election Day 2006, Spitzer defeated Faso[21] 3,086,709 votes to 1,274,335 votes.[22] Spitzer resigned from office a year into his tenure in the midst of a prostitution scandal.[23][24]

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2016

On September 14, 2015, Faso announced he would run for New York's 19th congressional district in the 2016 election.[25] Republican Chris Gibson, the retiring incumbent, endorsed Faso.[26] He won the Republican primary against Andrew Heaney, 67.5% to 32.5%.[27] During the general election, Faso faced academic and political activist Zephyr Teachout. Faso defeated Teachout with 54.3% of the vote.[28]

Faso was named to the House Budget and House Agriculture Committee as well as the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, where he served for one term as Vice Chairman of the Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Material Subcommittee.[29]

2018

Faso ran for re-election in 2018 and was challenged by Democrat Antonio Delgado. According to the Poughkeepsie Journal, the race was "considered one of the more closely watched in the nation as Faso seeks a second term in a moderate Hudson Valley district that stretches from Dutchess County and into the Albany area and Southern Tier."[30]

During the campaign, the National Republican Congressional Committee ran an advertisement criticizing Delgado for his previous career as a rapper. Faso called some of Delgado's rap lyrics "very troubling and offensive", saying they "paint an ugly and false picture of America." The then-candidate, who was seeking to become the first nonwhite person to represent New York's 19th district, has said the criticism of his rap lyrics is an attempt to "otherize" him.[31] The ad against Delgado stirred controversy, with The New York Times editorial board criticizing Faso for what they termed a "cynical campaign of race-baiting".[32][33]

On November 6, 2018, Delgado defeated Faso[34] 147,873 votes to 132,873.[35]

Political positions

Faso at an Indivisible movement protest in Kinderhook

As of August 2018, Faso had voted with his party in 87.7% of votes in the 115th United States Congress and voted in line with President Trump's position in 90% of votes.[36][37]

Faso was a member of the moderate Republican Main Street Partnership[38] and the Climate Solutions Caucus.[39] In the 115th United States Congress, Faso was ranked the 18th most bipartisan Representative in the House by the Bipartisan Index, a metric created by The Lugar Center and Georgetown's McCourt School of Public Policy to assess congressional bipartisanship.[40][41]

Drugs

On April 26, 2018, Faso announced that he had joined the bipartisan Heroin Task Force, which works on issues related to heroin and opioid abuse. Faso has "co-sponsored alongside more than 100 lawmakers" the Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act, which aims to crack down on the shipment of synthetic drugs, such as fentanyl, to the United States.[42]

Economy

Faso voted against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.[43] "From the beginning, I wanted to support a tax reform plan that would increase economic growth, increase worker paychecks, incentivize small business investment and ensure New York families are better off," he stated after voting against the bill. Faso argued that the $10,000 state and local tax deduction would also deeply impact New York residents of all wealth levels.[44]

In November 2017, Faso said he would vote against the Republican tax overhaul bill, citing the removal of state tax deductions as his reason.[45]

Environment

In February 2018, Faso and Dan Lipinski (IL-3) introduced the bipartisan Challenges and Prizes for Climate Act of 2018 to encourage innovation in combating climate change.[46]

Health care

In January 2017, The Washington Post reported on a closed-door meeting in which Faso said that he had "no problem" with defunding Planned Parenthood, but urged his fellow Republicans not to do so as part of the proposed repeal of the ACA (Obamacare); Faso added that using Obamacare repeal legislation to defund Planned Parenthood would be "a gigantic political trap," "a political minefield," and a "grave mistake."[47][48] In a later interview, Faso clarified that he "does not favor defunding Planned Parenthood" and that "if a separate up-or-down vote on Planned Parenthood funding came up in the House, he would vote for the status quo, effectively keeping the organization funded."[49] In February 2017, Faso voted against a resolution that "reverse[d] an Obama Administration rule barring states from defunding Planned Parenthood."[50] In March 2017, Faso voted to amend an Obamacare repeal bill to remove language that would have defunded Planned Parenthood for one year.[51]

On May 4, 2017, Faso voted in favor of the American Health Care Act, the House Republican bill to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).[52][53] He faced protests in his congressional district over his position on the AHCA.[54][55][56] During his 2018 re-election campaign, Faso said that he supported protections for individuals with preexisting conditions.[57] Faso said that the AHCA bill that he voted for would have protected people with preexisting conditions; however The New York Times noted that the bill would have allowed states to drop protections for individuals with preexisting conditions.[57]

Immigration

On June 20, 2018, after attending a meeting on immigration with President Trump and other GOP House members, Faso said that Trump should halt the “zero tolerance” immigration policy under which children were removed from their parents at the Mexican border. On June 24, 2018, Faso told NPR that he supported a Republican compromise bill that would provide legal status for undocumented immigrants that were illegally brought to the U.S. as children.[58][59]

Social programs

In 2018, Faso pushed for stricter work requirements on recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (also known as the Food Stamps program), claiming that SNAP was an easy target for fraudsters and drug dealers. Studies show that SNAP fraud is rare and that fraud represents a small fraction of the SNAP program.[60]

Following his loss in the state comptroller election in 2002, Faso joined the firm of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips as a lobbyist/partner; he took a leave of absence to run for governor in 2006, then rejoined the firm.[5][61] Manatt, Phelps & Phillips agreed to a settlement in 2010 in response to a corruption probe in which the firm was investigated for its "efforts to serve as a "placement agent" for public pension funds in New York and California without a state or federal license." According to the Wall Street Journal, some "of Manatt's efforts to secure investments were made by John Faso".[61]

From 2003 to 2006, Faso served as a member of the Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority control board.[62]

From 2012 to 2015, Faso worked as a public affairs consultant for the Constitution Pipeline Co., an energy company that was attempting to build a pipeline to carry natural gas from Pennsylvania to New York State. The pipeline was controversial because the pipeline would have transported gas extracted from hydraulic fracturing (fracking). Construction of the pipeline was ultimately blocked by the state.[63]

Personal life

Faso is married to Mary Frances Faso; they have two children, Nicholas and Margaret. Faso is a Roman Catholic.[3]

Further reading

  • Paterson, David "Black, Blind, & In Charge: A Story of Visionary Leadership and Overcoming Adversity." New York, New York, 2020

References

  1. ↑ "Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority - BFSA MEMBERS AND OFFICERS". bfsa.ny.gov.
  2. ↑ Duke, Daniel L. (April 6, 2016). The Children Left Behind: America's Struggle to Improve Its Lowest Performing Schools. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9781475823615 – via Google Books.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Healy, Patrick (October 18, 2006). "An Ill-Timed Candidate Believes His Time Is Now". The New York Times.
  4. ↑ Herszenhorn, David M. "In the Race for Governor, a Big Divide on School Aid", The New York Times, November 2, 2006. Accessed December 6, 2007. "Mr. Faso, whose father worked as a janitor in the Catholic grammar school that he attended on Long Island, went on to Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens and the State University of New York at Brockport."
  5. 1 2 "John J. Faso Rejoins Manatt". Business Wire. December 1, 2006. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  6. ↑ Jessica Bruder (December 12, 2005). "Is John Faso Fighting An Unbeatable Foe?". Observer. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  7. ↑ Cooper, Michael (October 22, 2006). "A History of Going Against the Grain With Republican Colleagues". The New York Times. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Faso to head Pataki budget team". News Bank. November 21, 1994.
  9. ↑ Dao, James (June 5, 1995). "More Budget Battles; This Year's Fiscal Fight Is Over in Albany But Squabbling May Be Worse Next Year". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 3, 2012. Retrieved April 3, 2010.
  10. ↑ Peterson, Helen (September 9, 1999). "Charter School Experiment Begins". New York Dailly News. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  11. ↑ Now it's 'real race' for controller seat. As gap closes, Faso & Hevesi get nasty Archived December 19, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
  12. ↑ Jonathan P. Hicks (November 2, 2002). "Testy Debate By 2 Running To Become Comptroller". The New York Times. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  13. ↑ "New York gets another chance to listen to John Faso". nypost.com. September 21, 2015.
  14. ↑ Healy, Patrick (June 1, 2006). "Weld-Faso? Faso-Weld? The Kingmaker From Nassau Holds the Cards". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 3, 2014. Retrieved April 3, 2010.
  15. ↑ Healy, Patrick (May 24, 2006). "Conservative Party Endorses Faso for Governor, Setting Up a Political Fight in G.O.P." The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 3, 2014. Retrieved April 3, 2010.
  16. ↑ "Bill Weld as a Libertarian Party Candidate in New York?". Hammer of Truth. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  17. ↑ Edsall, Thomas B. (May 29, 2006). "Another Stumble for Ralph Reed's Beleaguered Campaign". The Washington Post. Retrieved April 3, 2010.
  18. ↑ "Former Mass. Gov. Weld drops out of New York race". The Washington Post. June 6, 2006. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved September 12, 2016.
  19. ↑ Jennifer Medina (May 23, 2006). "Faso Expected to Name Suburban Moderate as Running Mate". The New York Times. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  20. ↑ Healy, Patrick (October 13, 2006). "Faso Jabs Sharply at Spitzer, Who Assails 'Angry' Tone". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Spitzer, in a Historic Landslide, Vows 'A New Brand of Politics'". The New York Sun.
  22. ↑ "2006 General Election Results for Governor of New York" (PDF). Elections.ny.gov. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  23. ↑ "Spitzer to step down by Monday". CNN. March 12, 2008. Retrieved March 12, 2008.
  24. ↑ "Spitzer Resigns After Sex Scandal, Pressure". NPR.org. March 12, 2008.
  25. ↑ "John Faso to kick off congressional campaign". Capitalnewyork.com. July 28, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  26. ↑ Kilgallen, Michaela (July 18, 2016). "Chris Gibson endorses GOPer John Faso in NY-19". Times Union. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  27. ↑ "New York's 19th Congressional District election, 2016". Ballotpedia.org. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  28. ↑ "New York State Official Election Night Results" (PDF). New York Board of Elections. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 29, 2016. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  29. ↑ "Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials - U.S. House of Representatives". transportation.house.gov.
  30. ↑ Arnold, Chad (September 12, 2018). "19th Congressional District: Polls show tight race between Faso, Delgado". Poughkeepsie Journal. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  31. ↑ Herndon, Astead (July 17, 2018). "A Congressional Candidate Used to Be a Rapper. Will It Matter?". New York Times. Retrieved September 15, 2018.
  32. ↑ "Opinion | John Faso Is Race-Baiting His Opponent". The New York Times. July 19, 2018. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  33. ↑ Brooks, Paul. "Rap battle between Faso, Delgado heats up". recordonline.com. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  34. ↑ Foderaro, Lisa W. (November 7, 2018). "Antonio Delgado Upsets John Faso as 3 House Republicans Fall to N.Y. Democrats (Published 2018)". The New York Times.
  35. ↑ "2018 U.S. House of Representatives General Election Results" (PDF). Elections.ny.gov. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  36. ↑ "Congress Tracker:John J. Faso, Republican representative for New York's 19th District". FiveThirtyEight. January 30, 2017. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
  37. ↑ Willis, Derek. "Legislators: John Faso (R-N.Y.)". ProPublica. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
  38. ↑ "Members". Republican Mains Street Partnership. Archived from the original on August 26, 2018. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
  39. ↑ "90 Current Climate Solutions Caucus Members". Citizen´s Climate Lobby. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  40. ↑ "The Lugar Center - McCourt School Bipartisan Index" (PDF). Washington, D.C.: The Lugar Center. April 24, 2018. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  41. ↑ "Faso ranks 18th in House for bipartisanship bills". Middletown, New York: Times Herald-Record. April 28, 2018. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
  42. ↑ Roach, Sarah; Faso-backed opioid legislation passes; Times Union; June 14, 2018;
  43. ↑ Almukhtar, Sarah (December 19, 2017). "How Each House Member Voted on the Tax Bill". The New York Times. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  44. ↑ Moody, Richard. "House passes final tax reform bill; Faso votes against partial elimination of SALT deductions | Hudson Valley 360". HudsonValley360. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  45. ↑ Upstate NY Rep. John Faso will split with GOP on tax plan;Syracuse.com; November 15, 2017;
  46. ↑ "Creating prize competitions to encourage finding breakthroughs in fighting climate change". The Hill. April 16, 2018.
  47. ↑ "Behind closed doors, Republican lawmakers fret about how to repeal Obamacare". Washington Post. Retrieved February 5, 2017.
  48. ↑ Seiler, Casey (January 27, 2017). "Faso to GOP: Don't defund Planned Parenthood in ACA repeal". Times Union. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  49. ↑ "Rep. Faso Clarifies Quotes on Planned Parenthood". WAMC. January 27, 2017. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  50. ↑ Tom Strode (February 17, 2017). "House votes to annul rule protecting Planned Parenthood". Bpnews.net. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  51. ↑ "Faso Votes To Advance Health Care Bill". Nystateofpolitics.com. March 16, 2017. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  52. ↑ Kim Soffen, Darla Cameron & Kevin Uhrmacher (May 4, 2017). "How the House voted to pass the GOP health-care bill". Washington Post.
  53. ↑ "How every member voted on health care bill". CNN. May 5, 2017.
  54. ↑ Brian Hubert (January 16, 2017). "People gather outside Faso office to protest GOP pledge to repeal Affordable Care Act". Daily Freeman.
  55. ↑ Horrigan, Jeremiah (February 2, 2017). "Demonstrators at Congressman John Faso's home ask him to oppose Trump's plans". Hudson Valley One.
  56. ↑ Patricia R. Doxsey (February 24, 2017). "Forum in Faso's congressional district expected to draw more than 600 people, but not Faso". Daily Freeman.
  57. 1 2 Foderaro, Lisa W. (October 2018). "He's a Rhodes Scholar. The G.O.P. Keeps Calling Him a 'Big-City Rapper.'". The New York Times. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  58. ↑ Moore, Mark (June 20, 2018). "GOP lawmaker rips 'zero tolerance' policy at Mexico border". New York Post.
  59. ↑ "Rep. John Faso On The GOP's Immigration Bill". NPR. June 24, 2018.
  60. ↑ Freedman, Dan (April 29, 2018). "Faso continues push to link food stamps to crime". Times Union.
  61. 1 2 Rothfeld, Michael (October 13, 2010). "Law Firm to Pay $550,000 in Pension Probe". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  62. ↑ "Colucci named to city control board". Buffalo Business Journal. August 29, 2006. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  63. ↑ Dan Clark (July 18, 2016). "Faso was paid for his work on pipeline project". PolitiFact.
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