David Schweikert

	David Schweikert
	U.S. House, Arizona, District 6
	Incumbent
	In office
	2011-Present
	Term ends
	January 3, 2015
Years in position	2
Party	Republican
Predecessor	Harry Mitchell (D)
	Compensation
Base salary	$174,000/year
	Elections and appointments
Last election	November 6, 2012
First elected	November 2, 2010
Next election	November 4, 2014
Campaign $	$5,107,199
Term limits	N/A
	Prior offices
	Treasurer, Maricopa County
	2004-2007
	Arizona House of Representatives
	1991-1994
	Education
Bachelor's	Arizona State University
Master's	Arizona State University
	Personal
Profession	Co-Owner, Real Estate Business
Net worth	$3,170,006
Religion	Catholic
Websites
	Office website
	Campaign website

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David Schweikert is a Republican member of the U.S. House representing Arizona's 6th congressional district. Schweikert was first elected to the House in 2010.

Due to redistricting, Schweikert ran for re-election in the Arizona's 6th District. He faced fellow GOP incumbent Benjamin Quayle in the August 28, 2012 primary.^[1] Schweikert won the general election on November 6, 2012.^[2]

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Schweikert is a "rank-and-file Republican".^[3]

Career

Below is an abbreviated outline of Schweikert's academic, professional and political career:^[4]

1985: Graduated from Scottsdale Community College with A.A.
1988: Graduated from Arizona State University with B.S.
2005: Graduated from Arizona State University with M.B.A.
1989-1994: Arizona House of Representatives
1995-2003: Arizona State Board of Equalization
2004-2006: Treasurer, Maricopa County
2011-Present: U.S Representative from Arizona

Committee assignments

U.S. House

2013-2014

Schweikert serves on the following committees:^[5]

United States House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
- Subcommittee on Oversight
- Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics
- Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation
United States House Committee on Small Business
Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax and Capital Access
Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight and Investigations - Chair

2011-2012

Schweikert served on the following committees:^[6]

Financial Services Committee
- Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises, Vice Chair
- Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology

Issues

Committee removal controversy

In December 2012, Schweikert and Walter B. Jones (NC) learned that they would not serve on the House Financial Services Committee in the 113th Congress. Their dismissal was part of the Republican Steering Commission's December purge of so-called "obstinate" team members.^[7] Completing the quartet of alienated (or alienating, according to those who determined their dismissal), Republican Reps. Justin Amash (MI) and Tim Huelskamp (KS) lost their seats on the House Budget Committee. (Huelskamp was also relieved of his Agriculture Committee assignment).^[8]^[9]

The decision to terminate the four Rep.'s committee assignments, spearheaded by House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), resonated powerfully with the increasingly divergent party ranks and the political media. Both a virtual anomaly, historically, and as a not-altogether-unexpected reaction to the tea party's storming of the GOP institution in 2010, the purge threw the internal conflict into harsh relief. Huelskamp called it a “typical Backroom deal,” of the sort the tea party targeted upon invasion as a symbol of the detachment of the GOP congressional establishment from the needs and problems of their constituencies. “I should vote for the team more,” was the lesson Schweikert took away, as he wrote to the The Washington Post. Many party insiders dispute the claims presented by Huelskamp and his spurned cohort that ideological differences played any role in their dismissal from the committees. Instead, the decision was the result of bad behavior on the part of three of the four, according to Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (GA), whose candid response to the event provided a headline-worthy insult byte that was quickly refined by a spokeswoman into what the mainstream press could call "the obstinate factor."^[10] Huelskamp, for example, was not punished for voting against his colleagues on the budget, but for undermining his fellow team members through various social media postings, he says. Matt Kibbe, president of a Tea party group called Freedomworks, represents the position of those skeptical of Boehner and the party establishment's motivations: “This is a clear attempt on the part of Republican leadership to punish those in Washington who vote the way they promised their constituents they would — on principle — instead of mindlessly rubber-stamping trillion dollar deficits and the bankrupting of America.” ^[11] Westmoreland's comments were primarily in defense of the leadership's cause of removing difficult personalities from the equation, but his loyalty faltered on their treatment of Jones, whose own ideological dissent came from the left. “I love Walter Jones; he’s one of the nicest, most sincere, honest people up here,” Westmoreland said.^[10]

Campaign themes

2012

Schweikert's campaign website listed the following issues:^[12]

Reducing the Size of Government

Excerpt: "As one of the leading proponents of smaller government in Congress, David Schweikert has consistently voted to reduce the size and cost of government."

Taxes

Excerpt: "Throughout his career, David Schweikert has been a committed tax-cutter. Whether it was sponsoring one of the largest tax cuts in Arizona history, or standing firm against President Obama’s proposals to increase taxes, David has been consistent in his commitment to protect taxpayers."

National Debt

Excerpt: "Our national debt is out of control. Far too many politicians in Washington believe that there is nothing wrong with continuing to borrow more and keep piling on more debt that we are all responsible for. David Schweikert is a staunch opponent of raising the national debt."

Strengthening Our Economy

Excerpt: "David Schweikert knows that the politicians in Washington don’t create jobs. A strong economy creates jobs. In Congress, David has focused his efforts on getting government out of the way of job creation with their burdensome regulations and out of touch policies."

Pro-Life

Excerpt: "As the child of a birth mother who gave him up for adoption, David Schweikert understands more than most the importance of the sanctity of life. 100 percent pro-life throughout his career, David Schweikert is committed to protecting and defending the rights of the unborn."

Specific votes

Fiscal Cliff

Schweikert voted against 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 151 Republicans that voted against the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257/167 vote on January 1, 2013.^[13]

Elections

2012

See also: Arizona's 6th congressional district elections, 2012

Due to redistricting, Schweikert sought re-election in the Arizona's 6th District. He defeated fellow GOP incumbent Benjamin Quayle in the August 28, 2012, Republican primary. He then defeated Matt Jette (D), Jack Anderson (L), and Mark Salazar (G) in the general election on November 6, 2012.^[14]^[15]^[16] He was considered one the vulnerable incumbents. ^[17]

According to the fiscal watchdog organization Club for Growth, the primary race between incumbents Quayle and Schweikert was the "most watched Republican congressional primary race in the country." Quayle appeared to be the favorite of Republican leadership, while Schweikert stood as a Tea Party favorite. Both representatives were new to the House and were running for re-election to their 2nd term in 2012. ^[18]

U.S. House, Arizona, District 6 General Election, 2012
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	David Schweikert	61.3%	179,706
	Democratic	Matt Jette	33.3%	97,666
	Libertarian	Jack Anderson	3.5%	10,167
	Green	Mark Salazar	1.9%	5,637
	NA	James Ketover	0%	1
Total Votes				293,177
Source: Arizona Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for David Schweikert, click [show] to expand the section.

2010

On November 2, 2010, David Schweikert won election to the United States House. He defeated Harry Mitchell (D) and Nick Coons (L) in the general election.^[19]

U.S. House, Arizona District 5 General Election, 2010
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	David Schweikert	52%	110,374
	Democratic	Harry Mitchell incumbent	43.2%	91,749
	Libertarian	Nick Coons	4.8%	10,127
Total Votes				212,250

2008

On November 4, 2008, Harry Mitchell won re-election to the United States House. He defeated David Schweikert (R), Warren Severin (L), and Ralph Hughes (Write-in) in the general election.^[20]

U.S. House, Arizona District 5 General Election, 2008
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Harry Mitchell incumbent	53.2%	149,033
	Republican	David Schweikert	43.6%	122,165
	Libertarian	Warren Severin	3.3%	9,158
	Write-in	Ralph Hughes	0%	9
Total Votes				280,365

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Schweikert is available dating back to 2008. Based on available campaign finance records, Schweikert raised a total of $5,107,199 during that time period. This information was last updated on March 22, 2013.^[21]

David Schweikert's Campaign Contribution History
Year	Office	Result	Contributions
2012	US House (Arizona, District 6)		$1,952,869
2010	US House (Arizona, District 5)		$1,732,731
2008	US House (Arizona, District 5)		$1,421,599
Grand Total Raised			$5,107,199

2012

Breakdown of the source of Schweikert's campaign funds before the 2012 election.

Schweikert won re-election to the U.S. House in 2012. During that election cycle, Schweikert's campaign committee raised a total of $1,952,869 and spent $1,939,383.^[22]

U.S. House, Arizona District 6, 2012 - David Schweikert Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$1,952,869
Total Spent	$1,939,383
Total Raised by Election Runner-up	$22,921
Total Spent by Election Runner-up	$22,921
Top contributors to David Schweikert's campaign committee
Express Scripts	$19,950
Honeywell International	$18,999
Sellstate Nres	$15,000
Southwest Retirement	$13,100
Pragmatic Marketing	$12,030
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Real Estate	$159,080
Retired	$143,995
Insurance	$110,250
Securities & Investment	$109,750
Health Professionals	$75,462

2010

Breakdown of the source of Schweikert's campaign funds before the 2010 election.

Schweikert won election to the U.S. House in 2010. During that election cycle, Schweikert's campaign committee raised a total of $1,732,731 and spent $1,721,364.^[23]

His top 5 contributors between 2009-2010 were:

U.S. House, Arizona District 5, 2010 - David Schweikert Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$1,732,731
Total Spent	$1,721,364
Total Raised by General Election Opponent	$2,174,509
Total Spent by General Election Opponent	$2,308,400
Top contributors to David Schweikert's campaign committee
Services Group Of America	$38,950
WDP Partners	$11,100
American Academy of Ophthalmology	$10,000
Freedom Project	$10,000
Swartz & Brough	$9,600
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Retired	$149,887
Leadership PACs	$123,722
Real Estate	$65,560
Republican/Conservative	$58,438
Health Professionals	$52,844

Analysis

Lifetime voting record

See also: Lifetime voting records of United States Senators and Representatives

According to the website GovTrack, Schweikert missed 11 of 1,695 roll call votes from January 2011 to March 2013. This amounts to 0.6%, which is better than the median of 2.2% among current congressional representatives as of March 2013.^[24]

Congressional staff salaries

See also: Staff salaries of United States Senators and Representatives

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Schweikert paid his congressional staff a total of $752,656 in 2011. He ranked 27th on the list of the lowest paid Republican Representative Staff Salaries and he ranked 29th overall of the lowest paid Representative Staff Salaries in 2011. Overall, Arizona ranked 47th in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.^[25]

Net worth

See also: Net Worth of United States Senators and Representatives

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Schweikert's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $790,015 and $5,549,997. That averages to $3,170,006, which is lower than the average net worth of Republican Representatives in 2011 of $7,859,232. His average net worth decreased by 48.58% from 2010.^[26]

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Schweikert's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $1,480,029 and $10,849,994. That averages to $6,165,011.50, which is lower than the average net worth of Republican Representatives in 2010 of $7,561,133.^[27]

National Journal vote ratings

See also: National Journal vote ratings

2012

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Schweikert ranked 75th in the conservative rankings in 2012.^[28]

2011

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of congress voted in the previous year. Schweikert ranked 66th in the conservative rankings.^[29]

Political positions

Percentage voting with party

The website Open Congress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus. According to the website, Schweikert votes with the Republican Party 91.4% of the time. This ranks 154th among the 242 House Republicans in 2011.^[30]

Personal

Schweikert has a wife, Joyce.

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