Mike Castle

Michael Newbold Castle (born July 2, 1939) is an American attorney and politician who was governor of Delaware (1985–92) and the U.S. Representative for Delaware's at-large congressional district (1993–2011). He is a member of the Republican Party.

Mike Castle
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Delaware's at-large district
In office January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Tom Carper
Succeeded by	John Carney
69th Governor of Delaware
In office January 15, 1985 – December 31, 1992
Lieutenant	S. B. Woo Dale E. Wolf
Preceded by	Pete du Pont
Succeeded by	Dale E. Wolf
20th Lieutenant Governor of Delaware
In office January 20, 1981 – January 15, 1985
Governor	Pete du Pont
Preceded by	James D. McGinnis
Succeeded by	S. B. Woo
Member of the Delaware Senate from the 1st district
In office January 7, 1969 – January 4, 1977
Preceded by	Russell D. F. Dineen
Succeeded by	Harris McDowell III
Member of the Delaware House of Representatives from the 6th district
In office January 3, 1967 – January 7, 1969
Preceded by	Frank A. Parisi
Succeeded by	George C. Hering III
Personal details
Born	Michael Newbold Castle July 2, 1939 Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Jane DiSabatino
Education	Hamilton College (BS) Georgetown University (LLB)

The district includes the entire state of Delaware and is the oldest intact surviving district in the nation. He was the longest-serving U.S. Representative in the state's history.[1] Before his election to Congress, Castle served as a member of the Delaware General Assembly, starting in the State House of Representatives (1966–67) and then in the State Senate (1968–76). He was the 20th lieutenant governor of Delaware from 1981 to 1985, and the 69th governor of Delaware from 1985 to 1992.

On October 6, 2009, Castle announced his candidacy in the 2010 special election for the seat in the United States Senate held by Democrat Ted Kaufman.[2] Kaufman, appointed by Governor Ruth Ann Minner to fill the vacancy created by Joe Biden (who resigned to become Vice President of the United States), was not a candidate in the election.[3] The election determined who would fill the balance of Biden's term, which ended on January 3, 2015. In one of the most surprising election results of 2010, Castle lost the Republican primary to Christine O'Donnell.[4] He would have been heavily favored in the general election against Democrat Chris Coons, who defeated O'Donnell by 17 percentage points.[5]

Castle has acknowledged drafting the bill which became law and created the trillion-dollar coin controversy by apparently authorizing the United States Department of Treasury to mint platinum coinage in any denomination.[6] He is a member of the ReFormers Caucus of Issue One.[7]

Early life and education

Castle was born in Wilmington, Delaware, the son of Louisa Johnston (née Bache) and James Manderson Castle, Jr.[8] One of his maternal great-great-grandfathers was Virginia Senator John W. Johnston, and Castle's fifth great-grandfathers were founding fathers Benjamin Franklin and Daniel Carroll. Castle's father was a patent lawyer for DuPont, a firm so central to the city that it was long known in Wilmington simply as "the company." After graduating from Tower Hill School in 1957, he attended Hamilton College in Clinton, Oneida County, New York. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in economics from Hamilton in 1961.[9] While at Hamilton, Castle was a brother of the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity.

In 1964, he earned a Juris Doctorate degree from Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. He was admitted to both the Delaware Bar and the Washington, D.C. Bar that same year.

Family

Michael Castle and Jane DiSabatino married on May 23, 1992; they have no children. Both are Roman Catholics.

Professional and political career

Following his admission to the bar, Castle returned to Wilmington and joined Connolly, Bove and Lodge, working as an associate (1964–1973) and later partner (1973–1975). A Republican, he served as Deputy Attorney General of Delaware from 1965 to 1966, and was elected to the Delaware House of Representatives in 1966. He served as a state representative for two years before winning a seat in the Delaware Senate, where he remained for eight years. He also served as minority leader from 1975 to 1976.

In 1976, Castle left the state legislature and returned to the full-time practice of law, founding his own firm with Carl Schnee (who was later nominated as U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware by President Bill Clinton in 1999). He returned to politics in 1980, when he was recruited to run for Lieutenant Governor of Delaware by Governor Pete du Pont. He defeated Democratic state senator Thomas B. Sharp, with 59% to 40% of the vote. He served from 1981 to 1985, and headed panels on education and drunk driving.

Governor of Delaware

Lt. Governor Castle (left) with Governor Dick Thornburgh of Pennsylvania (center) and Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, July 1982.

As the hand-picked choice of the popular Governor du Pont, he easily won election as Governor of Delaware, defeating former Delaware Supreme Court Justice William T. Quillen. In the campaign, Castle was criticized for being a shadow of his mentor and only promising an extension of du Pont's program. Delaware voters however elected him to another term in 1988 when he defeated Democrat Jacob Kreshtool by a wide margin, and is the last time a Republican won a governor election in the state. Castle served two terms, cutting the second one slightly short when he resigned to begin his first term as U.S. Representative.

U. S. House of Representatives

Castle during the 109th Congress

Committee assignments

• Committee on Education and Labor
  • Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education (Ranking Member)
  • Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness
• Committee on Financial Services
  • Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government-Sponsored Enterprises
  • Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit
  • Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology

In 1992, Castle could not run again for Governor, due to constitutional term limits. The result was what became known as "the Swap." Castle ran for the seat of U.S. Representative Tom Carper and Carper ran for Governor. Delaware's political leadership had quietly worked out the arrangement and retained the services of two very popular office holders.

Castle was first elected U.S. Representative in 1992, defeating former Lieutenant Governor Shien Biau Woo. Since then, he won election by wide margins eight times, defeating Democrats Carol Ann DeSantis in 1994, Dennis E. Williams in 1996 and 1998, Michael C. Miller in 2000 and 2002, Paul Donnelly in 2004, Dennis Spivack in 2006, and Karen Hartley-Nagle in 2008.

Castle was the co-chair of several Congressional caucuses, including the Diabetes Caucus, the Community College Caucus, the Biomedical Research Caucus and the Passenger Rail Caucus. He was also considered one of the most moderate Republicans in the U.S. House. In the wake of Tom DeLay's indictment in September 2005, liberal columnist E.J. Dionne named Castle as one of four lawmakers capable of leading an anticorruption reform of the Republican Party. Castle was a member of various moderate/liberal Republican Organizations, such as Republicans For Environmental Protection, The Republican Majority For Choice, Republicans For Choice and Christine Todd Whitman's Its My Party Too. He is pro-choice and supports some gun control measures.[10] He voted against a constitutional amendment that would have banned same-sex marriage.[11] The non-partisan National Journal gave Mike Castle an ideological composite score of 59% conservative and 41% liberal.[12]

Castle's centrist positions served him well in a state that trended increasingly Democratic during his tenure in the House. Delaware had long been reckoned as a bellwether, but has voted Democratic in every presidential election since 1992, due almost entirely to heavily Democratic New Castle County. At the same time, his centrist record made him the target of conservative groups such as Club for Growth, who ranked him the least conservative Republican in the U.S. House in 2008, and RemoveRINOs, who, in April 2010, named him the Ace of Spades on its most-wanted list.

In February 2004, Castle sponsored H.R. 3831 to reauthorize the assault weapons ban of 1994. The bill was co-sponsored by 11 Republican colleagues and 129 Democrats.[13] In June 2008, Rep. Mark Kirk, R-IL, introduced H.R. 6257 to reinstate the ban, and Castle was one of the bill's four Republican co-sponsors.[14] Both bills died in committee.

Castle cosponsored the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act. The bill proposed expanding the number of embryonic stem cell lines that are eligible for federally funded research, expecting that this funding would generate more research and ultimately greater progress in developing new treatments for a wide range of medical conditions. Presently, the only embryonic stem cell lines eligible for federal funded research were derived before August 9, 2001. This legislation removes that date restriction, along with proposing stronger ethical requirements. After successfully passing both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House, it received U.S. President George W. Bush's first presidential veto in July 2006.

In December 2010, Castle was one of fifteen Republican House members to vote in favor of repealing the United States military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ban on openly gay service members.[15][16]

Castle suffered two minor strokes during the 2006 campaign, but fully recovered. Considering the general Democratic sweep of other offices, he won the election comfortably, but with a greatly reduced margin over previous years. Despite the increased Democratic sweep of the 2008 election, he, unlike many Republicans, managed to increase his margin of victory, winning over Democratic challenger Karen Hartley-Nagle by 23 points. Considering his moderate profile, popularity, and long history of service to the state, his victory was not considered surprising. Castle appeared in the documentary, Keeping the Peace, which focused on Michael Berg's 'anti-war' campaign for Castle's congressional seat in 2006. It premiered at the Philadelphia Independent Film Festival in 2009 and won the Audience Award.

On November 9, 2009, Congressman Castle's District was profiled by Stephen Colbert in his segment "Better Know a District."

2010 Senate campaign

In 2010, Congressman Castle ran to be the Republican candidate to fill the seat of former Senator Joe Biden, who had become Vice President on January 20, 2009. Castle was defeated in the Republican primary on September 14, 2010, by Christine O'Donnell, the Tea Party favorite. The primary drew 57,000 voters, a small slice of the overall electorate. After the primary, Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind twice polled Delaware voters, running a hypothetical match-up between Castle and the Democratic candidate, Chris Coons; in it, Castle beat Coons by a 21-point margin (54%–34%) and also had a favorable rating of 48% compared to O'Donnell's 34%.[17] Castle refused to support O'Donnell in the Senate campaign against Coons.[18] Coons went on to defeat O'Donnell decisively in the general election.

In June 2010, Castle was one of only two Republicans to vote in favor of the DISCLOSE Act, intended to limit spending on political campaigns by corporations in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. The bill requires added disclosure for political spending by corporations and prohibits some corporate political spending.[19]

Town hall

A town hall style meeting organized by Castle to discuss health care reform with constituents[20] was featured on the Drudge Report with the headline "VIDEO: Congressman's town hall erupts over Obama birth certificate ...".[21] The story was linked to a tape[22] documenting a few minutes of the event and hosted on YouTube. The incident sparked discussion of the topic in relation to the moderate Republican congressman and commentators' surprise at the audience reaction.[23][24][25] Castle was heckled and booed after calmly responding to a protester, "If you're referring to the President there, he is a citizen of the United States."[20]

Reporting in the international press on the explosion of interest in the subject focused on the central role of the Castle incident. The British newspaper The Guardian reported:

But the real impact has been a video that has garnered hundreds of thousands of hits on the web (in which Congressman) Mike Castle, address(es) a town hall meeting on health care in Delaware last month when a woman suddenly stands up waving a bunch of papers ... The encounter was a warning to Republican officials how far the conspiracy theory has permeated parts of their party.[26]

Almanac

Elections are held the first Tuesday after November 1. Members of the Delaware General Assembly take office the second Tuesday of January. State Senators have a four-year term and State Representatives have a two-year term. The Governor and Lieutenant Governor take office the third Tuesday of January and have four-year terms. U.S. Representatives take office January 3 and have a two-year term.

Delaware General Assembly (sessions while Governor)
Year	Assembly		Senate Majority	President pro tempore		House Majority	Speaker
1985–1986	133rd		Democratic	Richard S. Cordrey		Republican	Charles L. Hebner
1987–1988	134th		Democratic	Richard S. Cordrey		Republican	B. Bradford Barnes Terry R. Spence
1989–1990	135th		Democratic	Richard S. Cordrey		Republican	Terry R. Spence
1991–1992	136th		Democratic	Richard S. Cordrey		Republican	Terry R. Spence

Public Offices
Office	Type	Location	Began office	Ended office	notes
State Representative	Legislature	Dover	January 10, 1967	January 14, 1969
State Senator	Legislature	Dover	January 14, 1969	January 11, 1977
Lt. Governor	Executive	Dover	January 20, 1981	January 15, 1985
Governor	Executive	Dover	January 15, 1985	December 31, 1992	resigned
U.S. Representative	Legislature	Washington	January 3, 1993	January 3, 2011

Delaware General Assembly service
Dates	Assembly	Chamber	Majority	Governor	District
1967–1968	124th	State House	Democratic	Charles L. Terry, Jr.	6th
1969–1970	125th	State Senate	Republican	Russell W. Peterson	1st
1971–1972	126th	State Senate	Republican	Russell W. Peterson	1st
1973–1974	127th	State Senate	Democratic	Sherman W. Tribbitt	1st
1975–1976	128th	State Senate	Democratic	Sherman W. Tribbitt	1st

United States Congressional service
Dates	Congress	Chamber	Majority	President	Committees	Class/District
1993–1995	103rd	U.S. House	Democratic	Bill Clinton	Education, Financial Services	at-large
1995–1997	104th	U.S. House	Republican	Bill Clinton	Education, Financial Services	at-large
1997–1999	105th	U.S. House	Republican	Bill Clinton	Education, Financial Services	at-large
1999–2001	106th	U.S. House	Republican	Bill Clinton	Education, Financial Services	at-large
2001–2003	107th	U.S. House	Republican	George W. Bush	Education, Financial Services	at-large
2003–2005	108th	U.S. House	Republican	George W. Bush	Education, Financial Services	at-large
2005–2007	109th	U.S. House	Republican	George W. Bush	Education, Financial Services	at-large
2007–2009	110th	U.S. House	Democratic	George W. Bush	Education, Financial Services	at-large
2009–2011	111th	U.S. House	Democratic	Barack Obama	Education, Financial Services	at-large

Election results
Year	Office	Election		Subject	Party	Votes	%		Opponent	Party	Votes	%
1980	Lt. Governor	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	128,827	59%		Thomas B. Sharp	Democratic	88,224	40%
1984	Governor	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	135,250	55%		William T. Quillen	Democratic	108,315	45%
1988	Governor	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	169,733	71%		Jacob Kreshtool	Democratic	70,236	29%
1992	U.S. Representative	Primary		Michael N. Castle	Republican	18,377	56%		Janet C. Rzewnicki	Republican	9,812	30%
1992	U.S. Representative	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	153,037	55%		Shien Biau Woo	Democratic	117,426	43%
1994	U.S. Representative	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	137,945	71%		Carol Ann DeSantis	Democratic	51,793	27%
1996	U.S. Representative	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	185,577	70%		Dennis E. Williams	Democratic	73,258	27%
1998	U.S. Representative	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	119,811	66%		Dennis E. Williams	Democratic	57,446	32%
2000	U.S. Representative	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	211,797	68%		Michael C. Miller	Democratic	96,488	31%
2002	U.S. Representative	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	164,605	72%		Michael C. Miller	Democratic	61,011	27%
2004	U.S. Representative	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	245,978	69%		Paul Donnelly	Democratic	105,716	30%
2006	U.S. Representative	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	143,897	57%		Dennis Spivack	Democratic	97,555	39%
2008	U.S. Representative	General		Michael N. Castle	Republican	235,419	61.1%		Karen Hartley-Nagle	Democratic	146,399	38.0%
2010	U.S. Senator	Primary		Michael N. Castle	Republican	27,021	46.9%		Christine O' Donnell	Republican	30,561	53.1%

Ancestors of Mike Castle

16. Rev. Joseph Castle 8. William Henry Castle 17. Harriet B. 4. James Manderson Castle 18. James Manderson 9. Annie Gorgas Manderson 19. Anna Thomas Gorgas 2. (James) Manderson Castle 20. Dr. Thomas Newbold 10. Thomas Mitchell Newbold 21. Margaret Cowell Mitchell 5. Margaret Mitchell Newbold 22. Dr. Henry Stuart Patterson 11. Caroline Bartram Patterson 23. Elizabeth Loomis Bonsall 1. Michael Newbold Castle[27] 24. Dr. Franklin Bache (great-grandson of Benjamin Franklin) 12. Charles Meigs Bache 25. Aglae Dabadie 6. Benjamin Franklin Bache 26. Benjamin Ellicott 13. Henrietta Maria Ellicott 27. Mary Adolphina Carroll (great-granddaughter of Daniel Carroll) 3. Louisa Johnston Bache 28. Dr. Daniel Trigg 14. Daniel Trigg 29. Anna Munford Tompkins 7. Nannie Greenway Trigg 30. John Warfield Johnston 15. Louisa Bowen Johnston 31. Nicketti Buchanan Floyd (daughter of John Floyd)

References

1. "Rep. Mike Castle announces run for U.S. Senate". WHYY. 2009-10-06. Archived from the original on 2009-11-06. Retrieved 2009-12-15.
2. "Delaware GOP Congressman to Run for Biden's Former Senate Seat". FOX News. 2009-10-06. Archived from the original on 2015-10-18. Retrieved 2010-02-01.
3. Brumfield, Sarah (2008-11-25). "Longtime Biden aide picked to fill his Senate seat". FOX News. Archived from the original on 2011-06-04. Retrieved 2010-02-01.
4. "Christine O'Donnell upsets Mike Castle in Delaware Senate primary". The Washington Post.
5. "Election 2010: Delaware Senate". Rasmussenreports.com. Retrieved 2011-01-04.
6. "Treasury: We won't mint a platinum coin to sidestep the debt ceiling". Washington Post. Retrieved January 12, 2013.
7. "ReFormers Caucus". Issue One. Retrieved 2017-06-16.
8. Barone, Michael; Richard E. Cohen; Grant Ujifusa (2008). The Almanac of American Politics. Washington, D.C.: National Journal Group. p. 370.
9. "Delaware Congressman, Alumnus Mike Castle to Deliver Commencement Address". Hamilton College. Retrieved July 11, 2014.
10. "Delaware Senate Race: A Kamikaze Republican and the Tea Party". ABC News. 2010-09-14. Retrieved 2018-07-08.
11. Issues2000.org. "Michael Castle on the Issues". www.ontheissues.org. Retrieved 2018-07-08.
12. "Mike Castle's Rating and Endorsements". votesmart.org.
13. H.R. 3831
14. H.R. 6257
15. Chris Geidner, House Passes DADT Repeal Bill Archived 2013-10-21 at the Wayback Machine, Metro Weekly (December 15, 2010).
16. House Vote 638 – Repeals 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Archived 2016-01-18 at the Wayback Machine, New York Times (December 15, 2010).
17. "O'Donnell Winning Tea Party, Losing Delaware" (PDF). Publicmind.fdu.edu. Retrieved 2017-06-16.
18. David Catanese (2010-09-15). "Mike Castle Won't Endorse Christine O'Donnell". Politico.
19. von Spakovsky, Hans A. (2010-06-24). "The Fight over the DISCLOSE Act Is Far from Over". National Review. Archived from the original on 2012-07-08. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
20. Archived July 24, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
21. "DRUDGE REPORT 2011". Drudgereport.com. Retrieved 2011-01-04.
22. "Mike Castle on Barack H. Obama Birth certificate". YouTube. 2009-06-30. Retrieved 2011-01-04.
23. "Hardball with Chris Matthews". MSNBC. Archived from the original on 2009-07-24. Retrieved 2011-01-04.
24. Rick PerlsteinJuly 21, 2009 (2009-07-21). "Feeling the Wrath of Bill O'Reilly's Army". Newsweek. Retrieved 2011-01-04.
25. Becker, Bernie (July 22, 2009). "The Early Word: Prime-Time Night". The New York Times.
26. McGreal, Chris (July 28, 2009). "Anti-Obama 'birther movement' gathers steam". The Guardian. London, UK.
27. "castle". Freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com. Retrieved 2017-06-16.

Sources

• Barone, Michael; Richard E. Cohen (2005). Almanac of American Politics. Washington: National Journal Group. ISBN 0-89234-112-2.
• Boyer, William W. (2000). Governing Delaware. Newark, Delaware: University of Delaware Press. ISBN 1-892142-23-6.
• Hoffecker, Carol E. (2004). Democracy in Delaware. Wilmington, Delaware: Cedar Tree Books. ISBN 1-892142-23-6.
• Martin, Roger A. (1995). Memoirs of the Senate. Newark, DE: Roger A. Martin.

Images

• Profile, Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress; accessed June 16, 2017.

External links

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Delaware's Governors
• Profile at SourceWatch
• News Meat
• Appearances on C-SPAN