James Louis Oberstar (September 10, 1934 – May 3, 2014) was an American politician and congressman who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 2011. Hailing from Minnesota and a member of the state's local Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, he represented the northeastern eighth congressional district, which included the cities of Duluth, Brainerd, Grand Rapids, International Falls, and Hibbing, within an area of Minnesota known as the Iron Range. He chaired the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee from 2007 until his departure, having been the ranking minority member since 1995. In November 2010, he was defeated by a margin of 4,407 votes by Republican Chip Cravaack. He had the longest tenure of any Congressman from Minnesota.

Early life, education and career

Oberstar was born in Chisholm, Minnesota, and on his deathbed, he still owned his original family home in Chisholm. His father Louis, of German ancestry, was an iron ore miner and the first card-carrying member of the United Steelworkers (USW) on the Iron Range of Minnesota.

Oberstar graduated from Chisholm High School in 1952 and went on to the College of St. Thomas (now the University of St. Thomas) in St. Paul, Minnesota where he received his B.A. degree in 1956.

thumb|right|Congressman [[Don Young hands over the gavel to incoming Transportation Chairman Jim Oberstar on December 6, 2006.]]

An avid cyclist, Oberstar championed the creation of trails for cycling and hiking to promote active lifestyles. In 2005, he authored, co-sponsored, and helped to pass the SAFETEA-LU act, a $295 billion program

One of his first congressional achievements was the passage of an amendment in 1976 to prohibit federal funding of the procedure. While the amendment, known as the Hyde Amendment, was officially introduced by fellow freshman member Henry Hyde (R-IL), Oberstar formulated the text himself, handwriting it on a slip of paper; due to the appeal of a Republican co-sponsor, and Hyde's seat on the House Judiciary Committee, it was determined the amendment would have an easier chance of passing if Hyde introduced it. Prohibition of federal funding of abortion services, through the amendment, was one of the first legislative gains made by the anti-abortion movement after the Roe v. Wade decision, which legalized abortion nationwide.thumb|Oberstar (second from right), watching President [[George W. Bush sign the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act in 2003.]]

He voted in 2003 to ban intact dilation and extraction, also known as "partial-birth abortion", and was present at the bill's signing by President George W. Bush. He showed his full support in 2005–2006 to the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC). He co-chaired the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, along with Republican Chris Smith of New Jersey.

Oberstar supported the bill to move the Terri Schiavo case to federal court, and appeared at a press conference with then-House Majority leader Tom DeLay to urge its passage.

During his congressional tenure, Oberstar had a generally supportive record on LGBT rights. The Defense of Marriage Act passed in 1996 with the support of 118 House Democratic members, including Oberstar. However, after that vote he started to vote more in line with LGBT advocacy groups, such as the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), which gave him ratings of 86%, 88%, 69%, and 88% for the 108-111th Congress'. He voted in favor of making crimes motivated by discrimination against sexual orientation or gender identity a federal hate crime in 2009, and cosponsored a bill in 2003 to prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Economic Issues

Oberstar was a strong supporter of the Head Start Program, a national program from to promote school readiness by enhancing social and cognitive development of children through the provision of educational, health, nutritional, social, and other services. The American Wind Energy Association also gave him a rating of 100 in 2006.

Oberstar was a strong supporter of organized labor. He was given an 100% rating by the AFL-CIO.

Awards and honors

thumb|upright|Bust of Oberstar located in the [[Duluth International Airport, now known as the "James L. Oberstar Terminal"]]

In 2009, Oberstar received the Tony Jannus Award for distinguished leadership in commercial aviation.

On June 19, 2012, Oberstar was made Commander in the French Ordre national du Mérite.

In October 2015, the new passenger terminal of the Duluth International Airport was named in honor of Oberstar, who helped secure funding for the facility before its 2013 opening. A sculpture of him was also unveiled during the renamed terminal's introduction.

In 2016, he was posthumously inducted into the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame.

Papers

The Congressional Papers of James L. Oberstar are available for research use. They include photographs, sound and video recordings, legislative materials, campaign and political activities, committee work, and legislative staff topical files documenting Oberstar's service as a U. S. Representative from Minnesota's 8th Congressional District (1975–2011). The collection emphasizes Oberstar's activities on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, demonstrated by an extensive series of staff office topical files addressing various issues, projects, and legislation related to aviation, highways and bridges, railways, waterways, and bikeways. Additional significant content focuses on economic development in the Iron Range, travel and tourism, trade, and environmental protection of Minnesota's land and water resources.

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Works cited

  • Official M/V Honorable James L. Oberstar Webpage
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Links formerly displayed via the CongLinks template:

  • Congressional profile at GovTrack
  • Congressional profile at OpenCongress
  • Financial information (federal office) at OpenSecrets.org
  • Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
  • Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
  • Appearances on C-SPAN programs
  • Collected news and commentary at The New York Times
  • -->
  • Profile at SourceWatch
  • Campaign 2006: Jim Oberstar profile from Minnesota Public Radio

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