Local ballot measures in Arizona, California, Idaho, Oregon and Wisconsin
Read the Tuesday Count!
Bill Pascrell
| Bill Pascrell | ||
 | ||
| U.S. House, New Jersey, District 9 | ||
| Incumbent | ||
| In office | ||
| January 3, 1997-Present | ||
| Term ends | ||
| January 3, 2015 | ||
| Years in position | 16 | |
| Party | Democratic | |
| Predecessor | Steve Rothman (D) | |
| Compensation | ||
| Base salary | $174,000/year | |
| Elections and appointments | ||
| Last election | November 6, 2012 | |
| First elected | November 5, 1996 | |
| Next election | November 4, 2014 | |
| Campaign $ | $8,312,687 | |
| Term limits | N/A | |
| Prior offices | ||
| Mayor of Paterson, New Jersey | ||
| 1990-1996 | ||
| New Jersey General Assembly | ||
| 1989-1997 | ||
| Paterson, New Jersey Board of Education | ||
| 1979-1982 | ||
| Education | ||
| Bachelor's | Fordham University | |
| Master's | Fordham University | |
| Military service | ||
| Service/branch | United States Army | |
| Years of service | 1961-1962 | |
| Service branch | United States Army Reserve | |
| Years of service | 1962-1967 | |
| Personal | ||
| Birthday | January 25, 1937 | |
| Place of birth | Paterson, New Jersey | |
| Profession | High School Teacher | |
| Net worth | $3,085,518 | |
| Religion | Roman Catholic | |
| Websites | ||
| Office website | ||
| Campaign website | ||
Contents |
Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Pascrell is a "rank-and-file Democrat".[2]
Biography
Pascrell was born in Paterson, New Jersey. He earned a B.A. in journalism from Fordham University in 1959 and an M.A. in philosophy in 1961.[3]
Career
After earning his degrees, Pascrell worked as both a high school history teacher and an adjunct professor at Farleigh Dickenson University. He served in the U.S. Army and the U.S. Army Reserve beginning in 1961 and received an honorary discharge in 1967. He also served as president of the Paterson Board of Education and as a member of Passaic County Community College’s Board of Trustees.[4][5]
Committee assignments
U.S. House
2013-2014
Pascrell serves on the following committees:[6]
- Budget Committee
- Ways and Means Committee
- Subcommittee on Health
2011-2012
Pascrell served on the following committees:[7]
- Ways and Means Committee
- Subcommittee on Health
- Budget Committee
Issues
Debates
February 23, 2012
On February 23, 2012, Pascrell met for a debate with Steve Rothman, his opponent for the Democratic nomination.[8]
Specific votes
Fiscal Cliff
Pascrell voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. He was one of 172 Democrats that voted in favor of the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257/167 vote on January 1, 2013.[9]
Endorsements
2012
Pascrell was endorsed by former president Bill Clinton.[10]
A full list of endorsements from New Jersey elected officials and labor unions were listed on Pascrell's campaign website.
Elections
2013
Pascrell briefly considered running for Governor of New Jersey in 2013. He quashed most rumors that he wanted to challenge incumbent Chris Christie in his bid for re-election when he told a reporter, "I'm not pursuing that position," in a January interview.[11][12] He announced his endorsement of presumptive Democratic nominee Barbara Buono soon thereafter.[13]
2012
Pascrell ran for re-election in 2012. Because of New Jersey's redistricting, Pascrell faced fellow Democratic representative Steve Rothman in the June 5 primary. Pascrell currently represents New Jersey's 8th district, but redistricting has put a significant chunk of Pascrell's territory in the new 9th district, along with some of Rothman's territory.[14] Pascrell defeated Rothman in the primary and faced Republican Shmuley Boteach and Independent E. David Smith in the November general election.[15][16]
| U.S. House, New Jersey, District 9 General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Bill Pascrell Incumbent |
74% | 162,822 | |
| Republican | Shmuley Boteach | 25% | 55,091 | |
| Independent | E. David Smith | 0.5% | 1,138 | |
| Independent | Jeanette Woolsey | 0.5% | 1,082 | |
| Total Votes | 220,133 | |||
| Source: New Jersey Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election" | ||||
| New Jersey's 9th Congressional District Democratic Primary, 2012 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|
Bill Pascrell Incumbent |
61.2% | 31,435 |
| Steve Rothman Incumbent | 38.8% | 19,947 |
| Total Votes | 51,382 | |
Pascrell v. Rothman
Due to redistricting, Pascrell faced fellow Democratic incumbent Steve Rothman for the newly redrawn 9th district in 2012. The one-time friends faced off in the June 5 primary. Politico rated it one of the 5 ugliest member vs. member battles[17] and and the North Jersey Record labeled it one of the most competitive primaries of 2012.[14]
Redistricting
The 8th district was eliminated as a result of redistricting in New Jersey following the 2010 census results. Rothman's territory was split into the new 9th district, which is Pascrell's new district, and Republican Scott Garrett's 5th. Rather than face Garrett in the Republican-leaning new 5th district, Rothman chose to challenge his Democratic colleague Pascrell. Pascrell resented this move, saying Rothman was "running from fights with the radical right."[18]
Ideological similarities
According to Roll Call, there is little policy or ideological difference between Rothman and Pascrell, and so voters were left decide the primary based on personality and location. The newly drawn 9th district encompasses a variety of demographics, and, the Roll Call article states, Pascrell is strong in the working class Passaic County, while Rothman is more at home in the white-collar Bergen County. The 9th also includes Hudson County, which may go either way.[19]
TV ads
Rothman came under criticism for a TV ad his campaign ran against Pascrell. The New Jersey Star-Ledger editorial board wrote that Rothman made "cheap shots" against Pascrell, and said a fact-check showed the ad's claims were false.[20]
Debates
February 23, 2012
On February 23, 2012, Rothman and Pascrell met for their first debate.[21]
Israel
In early 2012, a group of New Jersey synagogues encouraged their members to vote for Rothman in the primary, citing his pro-Israel stance. This prompted American Arab Forum President Aref Assaf to write an Op-Ed against what he described as putting another country above the U.S. in voting decisions. Rothman responded that he does put America first, and Pascrell distanced himself from Assaf's comments.[22]
2010
On November 2, 2010, Pascrell was re-elected to the United States House for an eighth term. He defeated Roland Straten (R) and Raymond Giangrasso (Independent).[23]
| United States House, New Jersey General Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Bill Pascrell Incumbent |
62.7% | 88,478 | |
| Republican | Roland Straten | 36.1% | 51,023 | |
| Independent | Raymond Giangrasso | 1.2% | 1,707 | |
| Total Votes | 141,208 | |||
Campaign donors
Comprehensive donor information for Pascrell is available dating back to 2000. Based on available campaign finance records, Pascrell raised a total of $8,312,687 during that time period. This information was last updated on April 23, 2013.[24]
| Bill Pascrell's Campaign Contribution History | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Office | Result | Contributions | |
| 2012 | US House (New Jersey, District 9) |  |
$2,861,094 | |
| 2010 | US House (New Jersey, District 9) | |
$1,499,697 | |
| 2008 | US House (New Jersey, District 9) | |
$1,450,970 | |
| 2006 | US House (New Jersey, District 9) | |
$1,389,546 | |
| 2004 | US House (New Jersey, District 9) | |
$1,111,380 | |
| Grand Total Raised | $8,312,687 | |||
2012
Pascrell won election to the U.S. House in 2012. During that election cycle, Pascrell's campaign committee raised a total of $2,861,095 and spent $3,506,000.[25]
| U.S. House of Representatives, New Jersey's 9th Congressional District, 2012 - Bill Pascrell Campaign Contributions | |
|---|---|
| Total Raised | $2,861,095 |
| Total Spent | $3,506,000 |
| Total Raised by Election Runner-up | $317,116 |
| Total Spent by Election Runner-up | $317,116 |
| Top contributors to Bill Pascrell's campaign committee | |
| Bio-Reference Laboratories | $20,250 |
| Synergy PAC | $15,727 |
| Waters McPherson Mcneill | $15,600 |
| Winning Strategies Washington | $15,500 |
| Roche Holdings | $14,568 |
| Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee | |
| Lawyers/Law Firms | $235,771 |
| Health Professionals | $172,650 |
| Real Estate | $111,527 |
| Insurance | $96,849 |
| Leadership PACs | $88,727 |
2010
| U.S. House, New Jersey, 2010 - Bill Pascrell Campaign Contributions | |
|---|---|
| Total Raised | $1,499,697 |
| Total Spent | $1,628,510 |
| Total Raised by General Election Opponent | $169,070 |
| Total Spent by General Election Opponent | $168,540 |
| Top contributors to Bill Pascrell's campaign committee | |
| Lowenstein Sandler PC | $19,300 |
| Roche Holdings | $14,780 |
| Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance | $13,300 |
| Winning Strategies Washington | $10,800 |
| American Assn/Oral & Maxillofacial Surg | $10,000 |
| Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee | |
| Lawyers/Law Firms | $120,115 |
| Health Professionals | $117,850 |
| Insurance | $79,000 |
| Pharmaceuticals/Health Products | $76,080 |
| Real Estate | $73,171 |
Analysis
Lifetime voting record
According to the website GovTrack, Pascrell missed 477 of 11,061 roll call votes from January 1997 to April 2013. This amounts to 4.3%, which is worse than the median of 2.2% among current congressional representatives as of March 2013.[27]
Congressional staff salaries
The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Pascrell paid his congressional staff a total of $934,731 in 2011. Overall, New Jersey ranks 42nd in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.[28]
Net worth
2011
Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Pascrell's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $1,862,037 to $4,309,000. That averages to $3,085,518, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic House members in 2011 of $5,107,874. His average net worth decreased by 8.89% from 2010.[29]
2010
Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Pascrell's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $2,026,041 to $4,747,000. Averaging to a net worth of $3,386,520.50 which is lower than the average net worth of Democrats in 2010 of $4,465,875.[30]
National Journal vote ratings
2012
- See also: National Journal vote ratings
Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Information with respect to Pascrell's votes in 2012 is unavailable.[31]
2011
Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Pascrell was tied with one other member of the U.S. House of Representatives ranking 121st in the liberal rankings among members of the U.S. House.[32]
Percentage voting with party
November 2011
The website Open Congress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus. According to the website, Bill Pascrell voted with the Democratic Party 93.2% of the time, which ranked 77th among the 192 House Democratic members in December 2011.[33]
Recent news
This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Bill + Pascrell + New Jersey + House
- All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.
Bill Pascrell News Feed
- Paterson NJ Actually Becomes Paterstine as PLO Flag Rises Over City Hall - FrontPage Magazine
- 'Palestinian-American Day' designated by NJ mayor, organized by possible ... - JNS.org
- Wimberly says Davis failed Politics 101 - PolitickerNJ
- Pascrell pushes path to citizenship for those in the US illegally - The Star-Ledger - NJ.com
- Rep. Pascrell Statement on Approval of New Jersey's Disaster Recovery Plan - ParamusPost.com
- NJ Politics Roundup: Christie signs bill next to Bon Jovi; Senate panel ... - The Star-Ledger - NJ.com
- Cassidy, Vitter, Richmond, Grimm, Pascrell, Palazzo Start Home Protection ... - RealEstateRama (press release)
- Bergen, NJ ? Congressman Pascrell Welcomes New Local Jewish Paper - Gestetner Updates
- Rep. Pascrell Announces Passaic River Added to Urban Waters Federal ... - TheAlternativePress.com (press release) (blog)
- NJ denies pension benefits to widow of convicted Paterson mayor - NorthJersey.com
Cite error: <ref> tags exist, but no <references/> tag was found
Personal
Pascrell has three sons and resides in Paterson with his wife, Elsie.[34]
External links
- Congressman Bill Pascrell official U.S. House site
- Pascrell for Congress official campaign site
- Social media:
- Biographies:
- Political profiles:
- Financial:
- Interest group ratings:
- Issue positions:
- Public statements:
- Voting record:
- Media coverage:
References
- ↑ Politico "2012 House Race Results"
- ↑ Gov Track "William “Bill” Pascrell" Accessed April 19, 2012
- ↑ Biographical Directory of the United States Congress "PASCRELL, William J., Jr., (1937 - )"
- ↑ Congressman Bill Pascrell, Representing the 8th District of New Jersey "Biography of Bill Pascrell, Jr."
- ↑ Pascrell for Congress "About Bill"
- ↑ CQ.com, "House Committee Rosters for the 113th Congress"
- ↑ Congressman Bill Pascrell, Representing the 8th District of New Jersey "Bill's Work in Congress"
- ↑ [Two New Jersey incumbents thrown together by redistricting hold debate]
- ↑ U.S. House "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff" Accessed January 4, 2013.
- ↑ Bill Pascrell campaign website "Bill Clinton endorses Bill Pascrell," May 4, 2012
- ↑ PolitickerNJ, "Pascrell on governor: 'I'm not pursuing that position,'" January 10, 2013
- ↑ NJ.com, "Sen. Buono raises almost $250K in first month of campaigning," January 2, 2013
- ↑ The Associated Press, "Buono picks up key backing in NJ gov's race," January 28, 2013
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 North Jersey.com "Harrison: New Jersey's competitive primaries," April 22, 2012
- ↑ WYNC "Live! NJ Election Results," June 5, 2012
- ↑ New Jersey Secretary of State "2012 Primary Results"
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedpolitico - ↑ Politico "Congress 2012: The 5 ugliest member vs. member battles" Accessed April 18, 2012
- ↑ Roll Call "N.J. 9th district race pits county vs. county," May 7, 2012
- ↑ New Jersey Star-Ledger "With cheap shots at Pascrell, Rothman tarnishes his own integrity," May 14, 2012
- ↑ Two New Jersey incumbents thrown together by redistricting hold debate
- ↑ PolitickerNJ "Politics in Pascrell v. Rothman spills into religion," February 24, 2012
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010"
- ↑ Open Secrets "Career Fundraising for Bill Pascrell," Accessed April 23, 2013
- ↑ Open Secrets "Bill Pascrell 2012 Election Cycle," Accessed February 26, 2013
- ↑ Open Secrets "Bill Pascrell Jr. 2010 Election Data," Accessed December 1, 2011
- ↑ GovTrack, "Pascrell," Accessed April 10, 2013
- ↑ LegiStorm, "Bill Pascrell," Accessed October 2, 2012
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org "Bill Pascrell Jr (D-NJ), 2011," accessed February 14, 2013
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Bill Pascrell (D-NJ), 2010," Accessed October 2, 2012
- ↑ National Journal, "2012 Congressional Vote Ratings," March 6, 2013
- ↑ National Journal, "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: House," February 23, 2012
- ↑ Open Congress "Voting With Party"
- ↑ Pascrell for Congress "About Bill"
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Steve Rothman (D) |
U.S. House of Representatives - New Jersey District 9 2013-present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by Bill Martini |
U.S. House of Representatives - New Jersey District 8 1997-2013 |
Succeeded by Albio Sires (D) |
| Preceded by ' |
Mayor of Paterson, New Jersey 1990-1996 |
Succeeded by ' |
| Preceded by ' |
New Jersey General Assembly 1989-1997 |
Succeeded by ' |
| Preceded by ' |
Paterson, New Jersey Board of Education 1979-1982 |
Succeeded by ' |
| |||||||||||||
