NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Carol Moseley Braun

Carol Elizabeth Moseley Braun (born August 16, 1947) is an American politician and lawyer who represented Illinois in the United States Senate from 1993 to 1999. She was the first, and to date, the only, black woman elected to the United States Senate. Also, she was the first African-American senator to be elected as a Democrat. She briefly participated as a candidate for the Democratic Party nomination in the 2004 U.S. presidential election. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The United States Senate is the upper house of the U.S. Congress, smaller than the United States House of Representatives. ... Official language(s) English[1] Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Largest metro area Chicago Area Ranked 25th - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 kmÂ²) - Width 210 miles (340 km) - Length 390 miles (629 km) - % water 4. ... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar). ... Alan John Dixon, a Democrat, served as a U.S. Senator from Illinois from 1981 to 1993. ... Peter Fitzgerald Peter G. Fitzgerald (born October 20, 1960) was the junior United States Senator from Illinois from 1999 until 2005. ... The United States has maintained a consular presence in New Zealand since 1838. ... December 15 is the 349th day of the year (350th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar). ... March 1 is the 60th day of the year (61st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... August 16 is the 228th day of the year (229th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Illinois. ... Flag Seal Nickname: The Windy City Motto: Urbs In Horto (Latin: City in a Garden), I Will Location Location in Chicagoland and northern Illinois Coordinates , Government Country State Counties United States Illinois Cook, DuPage Mayor Richard M. Daley (D) Geographical characteristics Area City 606. ... The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... August 16 is the 228th day of the year (229th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box: A politician is an individual who is a formally recognized and active member of a government, or a person who influences the way a society is governed through an understanding of political power and group dynamics. ... English barrister 16th century painting of a civil law notary, by Flemish painter Quentin Massys. ... Official language(s) English[1] Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Largest metro area Chicago Area Ranked 25th - Total 57,918 sq mi (149,998 kmÂ²) - Width 210 miles (340 km) - Length 390 miles (629 km) - % water 4. ... Federal courts Supreme Court Chief Justice Associate Justices Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures (List) State Courts Local Government Other countries Politics Portal The United States Senate is one of the two chambers of the bicameral United States Congress, the... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar). ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. ... Presidential election results map. ...

Early history

Braun was born Carol Elizabeth Moseley in Chicago, Illinois, and educated in the Chicago public school system. Her father, Joseph Moseley, was a law enforcement officer and her mother, Edna, was a medical technician.^[1] She graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 1969 and earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Chicago in 1972. Flag Seal Nickname: The Windy City Motto: Urbs In Horto (Latin: City in a Garden), I Will Location Location in Chicagoland and northern Illinois Coordinates , Government Country State Counties United States Illinois Cook, DuPage Mayor Richard M. Daley (D) Geographical characteristics Area City 606. ... The term public school has two distinct meanings: elementary or secondary school supported and administered by state and local officials, or, in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, a private or independent, fee-paying school, generally not coeducational, which prepares pupils for university. ... The University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) is a public, state-supported research university. ... For the Stargate SG-1 episode, see 1969 (Stargate SG-1). ... Doctor of Law, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Juris Doctor (abbreviated J.D. or JD, from the Latin, Doctor of Law) is a professional degree in law offered by universities in a number of countries. ... The University of Chicago is a private university located principally in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. ... Year 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Public service career

As an attorney, Moseley Braun was a prosecutor in the United States Attorney's office in Chicago from 1973 to 1977. An Assistant United States Attorney, she worked primarily in the civil and appellate law areas and tried cases of national importance.^{[citations needed]} Her work in housing, health policy, and environmental law won her the Attorney General's Special Achievement Award. She subsequently received over 300 awards for achievements in the public interest.^{[citations needed]} She left the US Attorney's office in 1977 to start a family. Her adult son Matthew, is a computer engineer. An attorney is someone who represents someone else in the transaction of business: For attorney-at-law, see lawyer, solicitor, barrister or civil law notary. ... The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries adopting the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. ... United States Attorneys (also known as federal prosecutors) represent the U.S. federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. ... Year 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the 1973 Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ...

Moseley Braun was first elected to public office in 1978, as a member of the Illinois House of Representatives. There, she rose to the post of assistant majority leader. As a State Representative, she became recognized as a champion for education, governmental reform, and civil rights.^{[citations needed]} As early as 1984, she proposed a moratorium on the application in Illinois of the death penalty. And in what became a landmark reapportionment case, Crosby vs State Board of Elections, she successfully sued her own party and the state of Illinois on behalf of African American and Hispanic citizens. When she left the state legislature in 1987, her colleagues recognized her in a resolution as "the conscience of the House."^{[citations needed]} That same year, she was elected as Cook County, Illinois, Recorder of Deeds, a post she held for four years. Year 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar). ... The Illinois House of Representatives convenes at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield. ... The majority leader is a term used in congressional systems for the chamber leader of the party in control of a legislature. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Cook County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. ... Recorder of deeds refers to the government office tasked with maintaining a record of real estate ownership, as well as other deeds that provide persons other than the owner of a property with real rights over that property. ...

In 1991, angered by incumbent Democratic senator Alan Dixon's vote to confirm Clarence Thomas, Moseley Braun challenged him in the primary election. Candidate Albert Hofeld's campaign ran many anti-Dixon ads, and Braun won the primary, ultimately defeating Richard S. Williamson in the Senate election. In 1992, she became the first African American woman to be elected to the United States Senate. Her election marked the first time Illinois had elected a woman, and the first time a black person was elected as a Democratic Party candidate to the United States Senate. She was one of two African Americans to serve in the Senate in the 20th century, and was the sole African American in the Senate from 1993 to 1999. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 372 Ã— 600 pixels Full resolution (941 Ã— 1517 pixel, file size: 382 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Carol Moseley Braun Metadata This... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 372 Ã— 600 pixels Full resolution (941 Ã— 1517 pixel, file size: 382 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Carol Moseley Braun Metadata This... Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the 1991 Gregorian calendar). ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... Clarence Thomas (born June 23, 1948) is an American jurist and has been an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States since 1991. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... An African American (also Afro-American, Black American, or simply black) is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ...

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Controversy

Her term in the Senate was marked with controversy. Before her swearing in, it was alleged that she had rewarded several campaign workers with jobs at the Cook County Recorder of Deeds. Further controversy came when several of her campaign staffers allegedly accused her campaign manager and fiancé, Kgosie Matthews, of sexual harassment; Moseley Braun supported Matthews against the allegations. To celebrate her 1992 victory, Matthews and Moseley Braun flew to Matthews' native South Africa using the Concorde for one leg of their trip. Meanwhile, several aides supposedly complained that they had not been paid. Sexual harassment is harassment or unwelcome attention of a sexual nature. ... British Airways Concorde G-BOAB. Concorde G-BOAD on a barge beneath Verrazano Narrows Bridge in New York City in November 2003, bound for the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum. ...

The most damaging allegation of illegal activity came when the Federal Election Commission began investigating $249,000 in unaccounted campaign expenditures in 1993. Charges had been made that Moseley Braun and Matthews had squandered the donations on trips and other personal expenditures. Numerous allegations of misappropriation were stated in various media reports. The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency created in 1975 by Congress to administer and enforce campaign finance legislation in the United States. ... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ...

Following the nearly five-year investigation, on January 16, 2003, the Federal Election Commission found those allegations to be without merit.^{[citations needed]} No fines or sanctions were ever levied against her or her campaign. On page 7, paragraph 2 of the Final Audit Report of the Federal Election Commission (AK007596, AR 93-32approved 5/6/96) it states: "Unless specifically discussed below, no material non-compliance was detected." Image:CarolMoseleyBraun.jpg|left|thumb|275px|Ambassador Moseley Braun]]

Further, the Justice Department later rejected two requests from the Internal Revenue Service to investigate Moseley Braun for criminal misappropriation of campaign funds.^{[citations needed]} The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is a Cabinet department in the United States government designed to enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States according to the law and to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans. ... Seal of the Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the United States federal government agency that collects taxes and enforces the internal revenue laws. ...

In 1996, she traveled to Nigeria accompanied by Matthews, who was also a registered agent of the Nigerian government. 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ...

In 1998, after George Will wrote a column reviewing the allegations of corruption against her, she responded to Will's comments, saying that "I think because he couldn't say nigger, he said corrupt."^[2] She also compared Will to a Ku Klux Klansman, saying "I mean this very sincerely from the bottom of my heart: He can take his hood and put it back on again, as far as I'm concerned."^[3] Later, Braun apologized for her remarks.^[2] George Frederick Will (born May 4, 1941) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning, conservative American newspaper columnist, journalist, and author. ... Members of the second Ku Klux Klan at a rally during the 1920s. ...

She lost reelection by about 4% of the vote in 1998 to Republican candidate Peter Fitzgerald. In 1999, President Clinton named her special consultant to the Department of Education on school construction and nominated her to become the Ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa. Once the Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee called a hearing on the nomination, she was confirmed by a vote of the full Senate of 98-2. As Ambassador her portfolio included New Zealand, Samoa, the Cook Islands, and Antarctica. She traveled extensively throughout the region and was very well received, becoming the first US Ambassador to be made an honorary member of the Te Atiawa Māori tribe. She describes this part of her public service as being "Ambassador to Paradise", a position she held until 2001. The Republican Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States of America, along with the Democratic Party. ... Peter Fitzgerald Peter G. Fitzgerald (born October 20, 1960) was the junior United States Senator from Illinois from 1999 until 2005. ... Te Ä€ti Awa is a MÄori iwi with traditional bases in the Taranaki and Wellington regions of New Zealand. ... Languages MÄori, English Religions MÄori religion, Christianity Related ethnic groups other Polynesian peoples, Austronesian peoples The word MÄori refers to the indigenous Polynesian peoples of New Zealand, and to their language. ...

Braun was given the regular security clearance and was officially absolved of all of the insinuations of wrongdoing by all investigations previously undertaken.^{[citations needed]}

Presidential campaign

She announced her intention to run for the Democratic Party presidential nomination in February 2003. On January 15, 2004, four days before the Iowa caucuses, Moseley Braun dropped out of the race and endorsed Howard Dean. Carol Moseley Braun from the US Senate website http://www. ... Carol Moseley Braun from the US Senate website http://www. ... The presidential seal was first used in 1880 by President Rutherford B. Hayes and last modified in 1959 by adding the 50th star for Hawaii. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... January 15 is the 15th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... A caucus is most generally defined as being a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement. ... Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American politician and physician from the U.S. state of Vermont, and currently the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, the central organ of the Democratic Party at the national level. ...

Life after politics

She currently runs a private law firm, Moseley Braun LLC in Chicago. Moseley Braun has launched a line of organic food products called Ambassador Organics.^[4] An organically-grown apple. ...

Moseley Braun is divorced and resides in Hyde Park, Chicago. She has one child, an adult son. Hyde Park is a neighborhood on the south side of Chicago, located seven miles south of the Chicago Loop. ...

Crime victim

In April 2007, Braun suffered a broken wrist when a mugger emerged from bushes near her front door to steal her purse, cutting the strap with a knife. Braun resisted, and fell during the struggle, fracturing her left wrist. The mugger was chased off without the purse by a University of Chicago student while his girlfriend called 9-1-1. Braun was later treated and released from a hospital.[1] The University of Chicago is a private university located principally in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

Electoral history

Peter Fitzgerald Peter G. Fitzgerald (born October 20, 1960) was the junior United States Senator from Illinois from 1999 until 2005. ...

Footnotes

The Associated Press, or AP, is an American news agency, the worlds largest such organization. ... The Cable News Network, commonly known as CNN, is a major cable television network founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. ... The Cable News Network, commonly known as CNN, is a major cable television network founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. ...

External links

Categories: Articles with unsourced statements since February 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | 1947 births | Living people | African American Senators | Cook County politicians | Illinois politicians | Prosecutors | Roman Catholic politicians | American Roman Catholics | United States Senators from Illinois | University of Chicago alumni | African American politicians | Female United States presidential candidates Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Wikiquote is a sister project of Wikipedia, using the same MediaWiki software. ... Alan John Dixon, a Democrat, served as a U.S. Senator from Illinois from 1981 to 1993. ... Illinois was admitted to the Union on December 3, 1818. ... For other persons named Paul Simon, see Paul Simon (disambiguation). ... Richard Joseph Dick Durbin, (born November 21, 1944) is currently the senior United States Senator from Illinois and Democratic Whip, the second highest position in the party leadership in the Senate. ... Peter Fitzgerald Peter G. Fitzgerald (born October 20, 1960) was the junior United States Senator from Illinois from 1999 until 2005. ...

Contents

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