David Bossie

David Bossie
Born David Norman Bossie
(1965-11-01) November 1, 1965
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Alma mater Towson University
University of Maryland, College
Park
Political party Republican
Spouse(s) Susan
Children 4

David Norman Bossie (born November 1, 1965)[1][2] is an American political activist. Since 2000, he has been President and Chairman of conservative advocacy group Citizens United and since 2016, Deputy Campaign Manager to the Donald Trump presidential campaign.[3]

Early life

Bossie grew up in Massachusetts to parents he has described as "apolitical". When he first registered to vote he left the political affiliation box blank. When an employee explained to him that it was a requirement for registration in Massachusetts, he said that he wanted to be whatever Ronald Reagan was. The employee said that she was not permitted to tell him but gave him a newspaper and said, "Here, read this, figure it out and fill in the appropriate box."[2]

Bossie attended Towson State University and the University of Maryland.

Career

A longtime volunteer firefighter, Bossie briefly attended Towson University but dropped out to pursue politics. By 1988, four years after he studied a newspaper to determine Reagan's political affiliation, he was the youth director of Sen. Bob Dole's 1988 presidential campaign.[4]

Congressional investigator

Bossie addressing the 2012 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington, D.C.

After the Republicans won control of the United States House of Representatives in the 1994 elections Dan Burton (R-IN), became chairman of the House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight. In 1997, he hired Bossie as chief investigator to look into a possible campaign finance abuses by U.S. President Bill Clinton.[5]

By May 1998, Burton came under intense partisan pressure; even fellow Republicans complained that committee staff had published redacted tapes and transcripts of former United States Associate Attorney General Webster Hubbell's prison telephone calls omitting some exculpatory passages. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich pressed Burton to seek Bossie's resignation.[6] Shortly thereafter, Burton accepted Bossie's resignation.[7] Bossie has also been investigated by various journalists for possible connections to mob hitman Sammy Gravano and other mafioso figures but has consistently been able to squelch any probes due to his GOP connections.

Citizens United

Bossie speaking about Citizens United at the 2013 CPAC in National Harbor, Maryland.

During his tenure at Citizens United, the organization focused increasingly on producing film documentaries through its Citizens United Productions division. Their films have included:

Citizens United hoped to begin distribution of the feature film Hillary: The Movie in January or February 2008. The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 made that an unlawful electioneering communication. They sued, unsuccessfully, for an injunction to prohibit the Federal Election Commission from enforcement of those provisions of BCRA on first amendment grounds.[8]

In a 2010 landmark decision, the Supreme Court decided Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission for Citizens United. For-profit and not-for-profit corporations may now advertise and broadcast messages of a political nature without limits on how much they can spend and with few limits on the timing and nature of the messages.

Citizens United supported Newt Gingrich in the 2012 Iowa caucuses.[9]

Trump campaign

In September 2016, presidential candidate Donald Trump hired Bossie to be his new deputy campaign manager.[10]

Publications

Bossie is the author of The Many Faces of John Kerry, a critical look at the Democratic nominee in the 2004 presidential election, then-Senator John Kerry. He has also written Intelligence Failure, a piece alleging failings on the part of the national security apparatus during the Clinton Administration in the years before September 11, 2001. Bossie is also the author of the 2008 publication Hillary: the Politics of Personal Destruction and co-author of the 2000 release Prince Albert: the Life and Lies of Al Gore with Floyd Brown.

At the Tea Party Convention, Bossie debuted his documentary Generation Zero, focusing on the 2008 financial crisis, and its basis in the selfishness of the Baby Boomer generation.

Personal

Bossie has served for 20 years as a Montgomery County, Maryland volunteer firefighter. He lived in the firehouse for several years before his marriage. He met his wife, Susan, through his political work. They reside in Montgomery County with their four children. Bossie received the Ronald Reagan Award from the Conservative Political Action Conference in 1999.

References

  1. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n00087102.html
  2. 1 2 Bossie, David (20 February 2010). Washington Journal (Interview). C-SPAN [rtsp://video1.c-span.org/project/c04/c04_wj100304_bossie.rm rtsp://video1.c-span.org/project/c04/c04_wj100304_bossie.rm]. Retrieved 2012-01-21. Missing or empty |title= (help) (date not verified)
  3. David N. Bossie biography, Citizens United official website (accessed September 21, 2008)
  4. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-rnc-convention-bossie-20160718-story.html
  5. Clines, Francis X. (March 9, 1997). "'Pit Bull' Congressman Gets a Chance to Be More Aggressive". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
  6. Alvarez, Lizette (May 11, 1998). "Top Democrat Issues Threat To Head of House Inquiry". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-01-21.
  7. Schmitt, Eric (May 10, 1998). "May 3–9; A Top Aide Resigns". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-01-21. Under pressure from Speaker Newt Gingrich, Representative Dan Burton, an Indiana Republican who heads the House Government and Reform Committee, accepted the resignation of the aide, David N. Bossie, a dogged anti-Clinton sleuth.
  8. Confessore, Nicholas (December 28, 2011). "Third-Party Groups Are Gearing Up in Iowa". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-01-21. Citizens United, has begun showing a television commercial in Iowa that features Mr. Gingrich and his wife, Callista, talking about Ronald Reagan. The group is run by David Bossie, a longtime friend and ally of Mr. Gingrich.
  9. Garrett, Major (September 2, 2016). "Donald Trump hires longtime president of Citizens United David Bossie to be new deputy campaign manager". CBS news. Retrieved September 2, 2016.

External links

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