Pete Riehm

Pete Riehm
Candidate for
U.S. House, Alabama, District 1
Party	Republican
Education
High school	Clear Lake High School, 1978
Bachelor's	University of Houston
Master's	General Staff College
Military service
Service/branch	U.S. Navy
Personal
Profession	Real Estate Agent
Websites
Campaign website

Pete Riehm was a 2012 Republican candidate who sought election to the U.S. House representing the 1st Congressional District of Alabama.

Biography

Riehm earned his Bachelor's degree from the University of Houston. He went on to receive his MMAS in national security from General Staff College. He served in the United States Navy and Marine Corps as a commanding officer. Riehm works in commercial real estate.

Issues

Campaign themes

2012

Riehm's campaign website listed the following issues:

• Economy

Excerpt: "Government must get out of the way!"

• Education

Excerpt: "Education is a job for parents and teachers, local and/or state governments"

• Energy Independence

Excerpt: "We have oil and natural gas, so let’s use it."

• Federal Reserve

Excerpt: "Our monetary system needs major reform! "

• Healthcare

Excerpt: "Repeal Socialized Healthcare (Obamacare)"

• Jobs

Excerpt: "Leave job creation to the private sector."

• Pro-Family

Excerpt: "Marriage is between a man and a woman- Uphold DOMA!"

• Pro-Life

Excerpt: "Life is sacred and must be protected!"

• 2nd Amendment

Excerpt: "Protect 2nd Amendment Gun Rights"

• Social Security

Excerpt: "Reform and Protect Social Security for our Seniors."

• States’ Rights

Excerpt: "Reaffirm the 10th Amendment (States’ Rights)"

• Taxes

Excerpt: "Simplify the Tax Code and Cut Taxes!"

Impeachment of President Obama

Riehm and one of his 2012 opponents Dean Young, speaking at a Tea-Party sponsored event in early 2012, said they would support the introduction of article of impeachment against President Barack Obama. Young indicated he would put President Obama "on notice" prior to attempting impeachment. "First, I would cut off his funding. If that didn’t work, I would introduce a resolution describing what he’s done wrong. The last resort, which I am willing to take, would be to impeach him. We simply cannot allow him to continue to operate the way he has," Young said. Riehm cited violations of the U.S. Constitution and added, "failure to recognize wrong-doing is moral dereliction and, when you have the authority, failure to uphold the law is accessory to the crime." Incumbent Jo Bonner and candidate Peter Gounares said they did not support pursuing impeachment.

RESTORE Act

Riehm and Peter Gounares stated that they oppose the RESTORE Act, which would distribute oil spill fines to the governments of states along the Gulf coast. Gounares said he instead favored handing out the money to the individuals affected by the spills, claiming that it would cause a local "economic boom". Riehm accused the RESTORE Act of inflating big government but did not favor handing the money out to individuals either. Incumbent Jo Bonner disagreed, stating, "I'm trying to be respectful to a dissenting view, but I would say it's very much a minority view."

Economic issues

Riehm advocated for federal budget cuts "across the board." He suggested cutting up to 5% from the entire federal budget, including the defense budget. Riehm opposed tax increases, saying, "the government wastes way too much stinking money to be talking about raising taxes." Riehm said he decided to challenge Jo Bonner because of Bonner's vote to pass TARP and his "abominable" vote to raise the debt limit.

Term limits

Riehm supports congressional term limits.

Elections

2012

See also: Alabama's 1st congressional district elections, 2012

Riehm ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House, representing Alabama's 1st District. Riehm was defeated by incumbent Jo Bonner in the March 13, 2012, primary.

U.S. House, Alabama District 1 Republican Primary, 2012
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Jo Bonner Incumbent	55.6%	48,481
Dean Young	24.3%	21,216
Pete Riehm	15.7%	13,744
Peter Gounares	4.4%	3,828
Total Votes		87,269

Personal

Riehm lives in Mobile, AL, with his wife, Debra. They have three children and one grandchild.

External links

Suggest a link

• Pete Riehm Official Campaign Website
• Project Vote Smart biography
• Pete Riehm 2012 Twitter
• Pete Riehm for Congress 2012 Facebook Page