Rep. Mike Pence
Mike Pence was born in Columbus, Indiana, graduated from Hanover College in 1981 and earned his Doctorate in Jurisprudence from Indiana University School of Law in 1986.
Rep. Pence was elected to Congress in November 2000 and was re-elected to the Sixth Congressional District, encompassing much of the eastern half of Indiana, in 2002 and 2004.
In September of 2004, Rep. Pence was unanimously elected Chairman of the House Republican Study Committee for the 109th Congress. The Republican Study Committee is the largest caucus in the House of Representatives, comprised of more than 110 House Republicans, and has been the leading voice for advancing conservative social and economic issues in Congress since the mid-1980's.
Committees
Congressman Mike Pence is a member of the Judiciary Committee, International Relations Committee and Agriculture Committee.
As a member of the International Relations Committee, Rep. Pence traveled to visit troops serving in Iraq in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. He also led congressional delegations to Afghanistan, Egypt and Pakistan.
Following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Rep. Pence was appointed to the Judiciary Committee, where he serves on the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security. Pence participated in drafting the Patriot Act and legislation creating the Department of Homeland Security.
During the 108th Congress, Rep. Pence authored the Truth in Domain Names Act, which President Bush signed into law as part of historic child protection legislation. The law will punish those who use misleading domain names to attract children to sexually explicit Internet sites and has already been employed by federal prosecutors to clean up the Internet.
In the 109th Congress, Pence authored two bipartisan measures to advance the principles of freedom in the press and American politics. The Free Flow of Information Act (or “Federal Media Shield”) would establish statutory protections for reporters under federal law. The 527 Fairness Act would strengthen political parties and free speech rights by bringing modest changes to campaign finance law.
As a member of the Agriculture Committee, Rep. Pence participated in drafting the 2002 Farm Bill. Rep. Pence has worked closely with Senator Richard Lugar to advance the vision of Freedom to Farm and is the author of the Farm Flexibility Act (or "Farm Flex"), which would give American farmers freedom to diversify their crops without fear of excessive penalties.
Conservative Leader
Rep. Pence has emerged as a national spokesman for conservative principles. In March of 2005, The Washington Post described Pence as "A New Face on Conservatism" observing, “he delivered conservative opinions with the even tones and polite demeanor of his Midwest upbringing.” In November 2005, Business Week described Pence as a "new power broker" and syndicated columnist George Will singled out Pence and Governor Mitch Daniels’ brand of conservatism as the “wave of the future." An April 2006 profile in U.S. News and World Report said Pence "has emerged as a powerful force, moving Congress further to the right."
Pence’s role as a conservative leader has been profiled recently in The Chicago Tribune, Business Week, The Weekly Standard, U.S. News and World Report and The New York Times. In late 2005, Pence was named “Man of the Year” by the national conservative weekly Human Events for his leadership on behalf of fiscal discipline. Previous honorees include President George W. Bush and Attorney General John Ashcroft. He appears regularly on Fox News, CNN and MSNBC. Pence also makes weekly appearances on Indiana's most prominent talk radio stations.
Background
Following graduation from law school, Pence ran for Congress in 1988 and 1990. In 1991, Pence was named president of a conservative state think tank based in Fort Wayne known as the Indiana Policy Review Foundation.
In 1992, Pence started a career in radio broadcasting and, two years later, Network Indiana syndicated his show statewide. The Mike Pence Show aired weekdays on 18 radio stations. Pence also hosted a Sunday morning political television show in Indianapolis from 1995 to 1999.
Mike and his wife Karen have three children and reside in Columbus, Indiana. When Congress is in session, the Pence family lives in Arlington, Virginia.
Mike describes himself as "a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order."
