Robert Jones Portman (born December 19, 1955) is an American attorney and politician who served as a United States senator from Ohio from 2011 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, Portman was the 35th director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) from 2006 to 2007, the 14th United States trade representative from 2005 to 2006, and a U.S. representative from 1993 to 2005, representing Ohio's 2nd district.
In 1993, Portman won a special election to represent in the United States House of Representatives. He was reelected six times before resigning upon his appointment by President George W. Bush as the U.S. trade representative in May 2005. As trade representative, Portman initiated trade agreements with other countries and pursued claims at the World Trade Organization. In May 2006, Bush appointed Portman the director of the Office of Management and Budget.
In 2010, Portman announced his candidacy for the United States Senate seat being vacated by George Voinovich. He easily defeated then-Lieutenant Governor Lee Fisher and was reelected in 2016, defeating former Governor Ted Strickland. On January 25, 2021, he announced that he would not seek a third term in 2022.
After leaving office in 2023, Portman founded The Portman Center for Policy Solutions at the University of Cincinnati. He currently serves as a Distinguished Visiting Fellow in the Practice of Public Policy at the American Enterprise Institute. Additionally, he currently serves as an independent director at Procter & Gamble
In 1926, Portman's grandfather Robert Jones purchased the Golden Lamb Inn in Lebanon, Ohio, and, together with his future wife Virginia Kunkle Jones, refurbished it and decorated it with antique collectibles and Shaker furniture furniture. The couple ran the inn together until 1969, when they retired.
When Portman was young, his father started the Portman Equipment Company, a forklift dealership where he and his siblings worked growing up. From his mother Joan, a liberal Republican, Portman inherited his sympathy for the Republican Party.
In 1989, Portman began his career in government as an associate White House Counsel under President George H. W. Bush. From 1989 to 1991, he served as Bush's deputy assistant and director of the White House Office of Legislative Affairs. While serving as White House counsel, Portman visited China, Egypt, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
In the primary, Portman was criticized for his previous law firm's work for Haitian president Baby Doc Duvalier. Buchert ran campaign commercials labeling Portman and McEwen "Prince Rob and Bouncing Bob." Portman lost four of the district's five counties, but won the largest, Hamilton County, his home county and home to 57% of the district's population. Largely on the strength of his victory in Hamilton, Portman took 17,531 votes (36%) overall, making him the winner.
In the general election, Portman defeated the Democratic nominee, attorney Lee Hornberger, 53,020 (70%) to 22,652 (29%).
Portman was reelected in 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, and 2004, defeating Democrats Les Mann, Thomas R. Chandler, and then Waynesville mayor Charles W. Sanders four times in a row.
One of Portman's first votes in Congress was for the North American Free Trade Agreement on November 17, 1993.
Of Portman's work on the Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998, Pete Sepp of the National Taxpayers Union said, "He set a professional work environment that rose above partisanship and ultimately gave taxpayers more rights." Democratic Representative Stephanie Tubbs Jones from Cleveland said Portman, "compared to other Republicans, is pleasant and good to work with." During the first four years of the George W. Bush Administration, Portman served as a liaison between congressional Republicans and the White House. Portman voted for the Iraq War Resolution in 2002. He was known for his willingness to work with Democrats to enact important legislation.
Portman has said that his proudest moments as a U.S. Representative were "when we passed the balanced budget agreement and the welfare reform bill." As a congressman, Portman traveled to Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait and Mexico. During his time in the House, Portman began assisting prominent Republican candidates prepare for debates by standing in for their opponents in practice debates. He took the role of Lamar Alexander (for Bob Dole in 1996), Al Gore (for George W. Bush in 2000), Hillary Clinton (for Rick Lazio in 2000), Joe Lieberman (for Dick Cheney in 2000), John Edwards (for Cheney in 2004), and Barack Obama (for John McCain in 2008 and Mitt Romney in 2012). His portrayals mimic not only the person's point of view but also their mannerisms, noting for instance that he listened to Obama's audiobook reading to study his pattern of speech.
Portman sponsored an unfair-trading claim to the World Trade Organization against Airbus because American allies in the European Union were providing subsidies that arguably helped Airbus compete against Boeing. European officials countered that Boeing received unfair subsidies from the United States, and the WTO ruled separately that they each received unfair government assistance.
Portman spent significant time out of the United States negotiating trade agreements with roughly 30 countries, visiting Brazil, Burkina Faso, China, France, Hong Kong, India, Mexico, South Korea, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. During his tenure, he also helped to win passage of the Central American Free Trade Agreement. Portman used a network of former House colleagues to get support for the treaty to lift trade barriers between the United States and Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Honduras. According to The Hill, Portman took his wife, Jane, with him to the Capitol on their wedding anniversary so he could work on the deal.
As OMB director from May 2006 to August 2007, Portman helped craft a $2.9 trillion budget for fiscal year 2008. The Cincinnati Enquirer wrote, "The plan called for making the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts permanent, at a cost of more than $500 billion over the five-year life of the proposal. It requested a hefty increase in military spending, along with reductions in low-income housing assistance, environmental initiatives, and health care safety-net programs." Portman is said to have been "frustrated" with the post, calling the budget that Bush's office sent to Congress "not my budget, his budget," and saying, "it was a fight, internally." Edward Lazear of Bush's Council of Economic Advisers said that Portman was the leading advocate for a balanced budget, while other former Bush administration officials said that Portman was the leading advocate for fiscal discipline within the administration.
On June 19, 2007, Portman resigned as OMB director, citing a desire to spend more time with his family and three children. Democratic Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee Kent Conrad expressed regret at Portman's resignation, saying, "He is a person of credibility and decency that commanded respect on both sides of the aisle."
Of all candidates for public office in the US, Portman was the top recipient of corporate money from insurance industries and commercial banks in 2010. Portman possessed the most campaign funds of any Republican during 2010, at $5.1 million, raising $1.3 million in his third quarter of fundraising.Kraushaar, Josh. Cha-ching! Campaign cash tops and flops, Politico, October 16, 2009
Portman won the election by a margin of 57 to 39 percent, winning 82 of Ohio's 88 counties. In a 2010 campaign advertisement, Portman said a " could cost Ohio 100,000 jobs we cannot afford to lose;" subsequently, The Cleveland Plain Dealer and PolitiFact called Portman's claim "barely true" with the most pessimistic estimates.
As Real Clear Politics noted, Portman faced "the thorny challenge of keeping distance from Trump in a state Trump was poised to win. Portman, in the year of the outsider, was even more of an insider than Clinton ... Yet he ran a local campaign focused on issues like human trafficking and opioid addiction, and secured the endorsement of the Teamsters as well as other unions" (despite being a mostly conservative Republican). Real Clear Politics, November 6, 2016, "Things we know at a moment of uncertainty," accessed thru
Polls showed the race even (or Portman slightly behind) as of June 2016; afterwards, Portman led Democratic ex-Gov. Ted Strickland in every public survey through Election Day. The final result was 58.0% to 37.2%, nearly a 21-point margin for Portman.
Chris Cillizza of The Washington Post argued that the context of Ohio's result had wider implications. "There are a lot of reasons Republicans held the Senate this fall. But Portman's candidacy in Ohio is the most important one. Portman took a seemingly competitive race in a swing state and put it out of reach by Labor Day, allowing money that was ticketed for his state to be in other races, such as North Carolina and Missouri ..."
The Washington Post said "Portman took the crown for best campaign", while Real Clear Politics said, "Sen. Rob Portman ran the campaign of the year.".Real Clear Politics, Portman himself was generous in praising his campaign manager: "With an emphasis on utilizing data, grassroots, and technology, Corry led our campaign from behind in the polls to a 21-point victory. He's one of the best strategists in the country."Altimari, Daniela, Hartford Courant, December 21, 2016, "Bliss a Big Winner of 2016 Cycle," accessed thru
In March 2013, Portman was one of several Republican senators invited to have dinner with President Obama at The Jefferson in an attempt by the administration to court perceived moderate members of the upper chamber for building consensual motivation in Congress; however, Portman did not attend and instead had dinner with an unnamed Democratic senator.
Portman delivered the eulogy at the August 2012 funeral of Neil Armstrong, "Sen. Portman to deliver eulogy at Neil Armstrong funeral." www.cleveland.com, August 2012. Retrieved September 19, 2012. and the commencement address at the University of Cincinnati's December 2012 graduation ceremony.
In August 2011, Portman was selected by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to participate in the United States Congress Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction. During the committee's work, Portman developed strong relationships with the other members, especially Sen. John Kerry and Rep. Chris Van Hollen. The committee was ultimately unsuccessful, with Portman left disappointed, saying "I am very sad about this process not succeeding because it was a unique opportunity to both address the fiscal crisis and give the economy a shot in the arm."
Portman spoke at the May 7, 2011 Michigan Law School commencement ceremonies, which was the subject of criticism by some who opposed his stance on same-sex marriage. He and his wife walked in the 50th anniversary march over the Edmund Pettus Bridge commemorating Bloody Sunday and the March on Selma.
On January 25, 2021, Portman announced that he would not run for a third term in 2022. In a statement, he said he looked forward to "focusing all my energy on legislation and the challenges our country faces rather than on fundraising and campaigning." He added, "I have consistently been named one of the most bipartisan senators. I am proud of that and I will continue to reach out to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to find common ground. Eighty-two of my bills were signed into law by President Trump, and 68 were signed into law by President Obama." Of why he chose not to seek another term, he said, "I don't think any Senate office has been more successful in getting things done, but honestly, it has gotten harder and harder to break through the partisan gridlock and make progress on substantive policy, and that has contributed to my decision."
Portman belonged to the following caucuses in the United States Senate:
GovTrack places Portman toward the center of the Senate's ideological spectrum; according to GovTrack's analysis, Portman is the third most moderate Republican in 2017 being to the right of Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski but to the left of his other Republican colleagues. The American Conservative Union gives Portman a lifetime 79% conservative grade. The progressive Americans for Democratic Action gave Portman a 25% liberal quotient in 2014. The non-partisan National Journal gave Portman a 2013 composite ideology score of 71% conservative and 29% liberal.
According to FiveThirtyEight, which tracks congressional records, Portman voted in line with Trump's position on legislation 90.4% of the time. As of October 2022, he had voted with Biden's positions about 61.8% of the time. CQ RollCall, which also tracks voting records, found that Portman voted with President Obama's positions on legislation 59.5% of the time in 2011. He was one of five Senate Republicans who voted with Obama's position more than half the time.
After Mitt Romney selected Paul Ryan as his running mate, Portman spoke at the 2012 Republican National Convention about trade and his family business. "Rob Portman Speech At 2012 Republican National Convention Takes Aim At Obama." The Huffington Post. August 28, 2012. Retrieved September 2, 2012. On trade agreements, Portman stated: "President Obama is the first president in 75 years-Democrat or Republican-who hasn't even sought the ability to negotiate export agreements and open markets overseas. Now why is this important? Because 95 percent of the world's consumers live outside our borders. And to create jobs, our workers and our farmers need to exports to those people." In October 2012, Romney spoke at and toured Portman's Golden Lamb Inn.
Portman portrayed President Obama in Romney's mock debate sessions for the general election, reprising a role that he played in the debate preparations of Republican presidential nominee John McCain in 2008.
Portman initially endorsed his fellow Ohioan, Governor John Kasich, during the Republican primaries. In May 2016, after Kasich dropped out of the race and Trump became the presumptive Republican nominee, Portman endorsed Trump. After the emergence of old audio recordings where Trump bragged about inappropriately touching women without their consent in October 2016, Portman announced that he was rescinding his endorsement of Trump and would instead cast a write-in vote for Trump's running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence.
Portman was the Ohio state co-chair of Trump's 2020 re-election campaign. After Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election and Trump refused to concede, Portman initially refused to acknowledge Biden as the president-elect of the United States, although he did acknowledge that it was appropriate for Biden's transition to begin and that, contrary to Trump's false claims, there was no evidence of irregularities that would change the election outcome. Portman accepted the election results six weeks after the election, after the December 15 Electoral College vote.
Portman opposed Trump's attempt to overturn the election results, and did not back a last-ditch effort by Trump's Republican allies in Congress to object to the formal counting of the electoral votes from swing states in which Biden defeated Trump. Portman said, "I cannot support allowing Congress to thwart the will of the voters" and voted against the objections. Congress's counting of the electoral votes was interrupted by a pro-Trump mob that attempted an insurrection at the Capitol; Portman said Trump "bears some responsibility" for the attack. After Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives for incitement of insurrection, Portman joined most Republican senators in an unsuccessful motion to dismiss the charges and avoid a Senate impeachment trial on the basis that Trump's term had expired and he had become a private citizen. On February 13, 2021, Portman voted to acquit Trump on charges of inciting the January 6 attack on the Capitol.
In 2013, Portman sponsored a bill that would have made it a federal crime to transport a minor across state lines for an abortion if doing so would circumvent state parental consent or notification laws.
In November 2013, Portman was one of 10 Republican senators to vote for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), after the Senate adopted an amendment he proposed to expand religious protections.
After the House passed a bill to federally protect gay marriage on July 19, 2022, a press spokesman for Portman said he would cosponsor the bill in the Senate. He cosponsored the bill the following day. He was one of 12 Republicans in the Senate voting to advance and pass the Respect for Marriage Act, the legislation protecting federal same-sex marriage rights into federal law.
In 2013, Portman co-sponsored a bill that would reauthorize and modify the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Act of 1998 and would authorize the appropriation of $20.5 million annually through 2018 for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to mitigate the harmful effects of algal blooms and hypoxia.
Portman co-sponsored an amendment to the 2017 Energy Bill that acknowledged that climate change is real and human activity contributes to the problem.
In March 2016, Portman authored the bipartisan bill Countering Foreign Propaganda and Disinformation Act, along with Democratic Senator Chris Murphy. Congressman Adam Kinzinger introduced the U.S. House version of the bill. After the 2016 U.S. presidential election, worries grew that Russian propaganda on social media spread and organized by the Russian government swayed the outcome of the election, and representatives in the U.S. Congress took action to safeguard the National security of the United States by advancing legislation to monitor incoming propaganda from external threats. On November 30, 2016, legislators approved a measure within the National Defense Authorization Act to ask the U.S. State Department to take action against foreign propaganda through an interagency panel. The legislation authorized funding of $160 million over a two-year-period. The initiative was developed through the Countering Foreign Propaganda and Disinformation Act.
Portman has repeatedly supported legislation to treat currency manipulation by countries as an unfair trade practice and to impose duties on Chinese imports if China does not stop the practice. In 2016, Portman opposed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement because he said it does not address currency manipulation and includes less-strict country-of-origin rules for auto parts. In April 2015, Portman co-sponsored an amendment to Trade Promotion Authority legislation which would require the Obama administration to seek enforceable rules to prevent currency manipulation by trade partners as part of TPP.
In January 2018, Portman was one of 36 Republican senators who asked Trump to preserve the North American Free Trade Agreement.
In November 2018, Portman was one of 12 Republican senators to sign a letter to Trump requesting the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement be submitted to Congress by the end of the month to allow a vote on it before the end of the year; the letter-writers cited concerns that "passage of the USMCA as negotiated will become significantly more difficult" if it had to be approved through the incoming 116th Congress, in which there was a Democratic majority in the House of Representatives.
In 2019, Portman was one of 31 Republican senators to cosponsor the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, a bill introduced by Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz that would allow persons concealed carry privileges in their home state to also carry concealed weapons in other states.
In 2022, Portman became one of ten Republican senators to support a bipartisan agreement on gun control, which included a red flag provision, a support for state crisis intervention orders, funding for school safety resources, stronger background checks for buyers under the age of 21, and penalties for straw purchases.
Portman opposed Trump's Muslim ban, saying the executive order was not "properly vetted" and that he supported the federal judges who blocked its implementation.
In 2014, Portman opposed the Minimum Wage Fairness Act, a bill to phase in, over two years, an increase in the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour. The bill was strongly supported by President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats, but strongly opposed by congressional Republicans.
In 2015, Portman voted for an amendment to establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to allow employees to earn paid sick time.
In September 2020, Portman supported a vote on Trump's nominee to fill the U.S. Supreme Court vacancy left by the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg less than six weeks before the 2020 presidential election. In April 2016, Portman said that Obama's nominee to the Supreme Court, who was nominated eight months before the election, should not be considered by the Senate, as it was "a very partisan year and a presidential election year ... it's better to have this occur after we're past this presidential election."
Portman was one of the main senators involved in crafting the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan that passed the Senate in August 2021.
In December 2004, Portman and Cheryl Bauer published a book on the 19th-century Shakers community at Union Village, in Turtlecreek Township, Warren County, Ohio. The book was titled Wisdom's Paradise: The Forgotten Shakers of Union Village.
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January 6 commission
Abortion
SFC Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act
Budget and economy
LGBT rights
Women's rights
Environment
Foreign policy
Israel
Trade
Gun laws
Health care
Immigration
Jobs
Judiciary
Human trafficking
Biden administration
Electoral history
Personal life
Awards and honors
2013 Special Congressional Appreciation Award Small Business Council of America 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018 Hero of Main Street National Retail Federation (NRF) 2014 Margaret Mead Award International Community Corrections Association (ICCA) 2014 ABA Justice Award American Bar Association 2015 Everyday Freedom Hero National Underground Railroad Freedom Center 2015 President's Partnering for Quality Award Ohio Association of County Behavioral Health Authorities 2015 Bruce F. Vento Public Service Award National Park Trust 2015 Distinguished Service Award Tax Foundation 2016 Ohio Liberator Award Save our Adolescents from Prostitution (S.O.A.P.) 2016 Major General Charles Dick Award for Legislation Excellence National Guard Association of the United States 2017 Jefferson-Lincoln Award Panetta Institute for Public Policy 2017 Spirit of Enterprise Award U.S. Chamber of Commerce 2018 Congressional Award AARP 2021 Champion of Retirement Security Award Insured Retirement Institute 2022 Ohio History Leadership Award Ohio History Connection 2022 National Order, Gran Cruz (Great Cross) Embassy of Colombia 2022 Rob Portman Public Service Leadership Award Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) 2024 Honorary Officer of the Order of the British Empire United Kingdom Government
Foreign award during fight against military aggression
Notes
External links
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