For over fifteen years, Debbie Wasserman Schultz has dedicated her public life to working on behalf of the people of Southern Florida.
On January 4, 2005, she was sworn in as a member of the United States House of Representatives to continue this fight as the Congresswoman from Florida's 20th Congressional District.
The first Jewish Congresswoman ever elected from Florida, Representative Wasserman Schultz brings to Congress her many years of service in the Florida Legislature and the kind of grassroots knowledge of the people of South Florida that can only be known through countless interactions with the families, businesses and organizations that make up the fabric of our community.
In Washington she continues to expand on her reputation as a fighter for South Florida families, a person whose word is her bond and who knows that she was sworn in to work hard in Washington for her constituents. Rep. Wasserman Schultz arrived in Washington with the reputation as a force to be reckoned with, someone who works hard on behalf of children, education, health care, Social Security, Medicare and the security of every American.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz serves on the House Committee on Appropriations. The Committee has what is commonly described as “the power of the purse” because it, along with its Senate counterpart, sets the specific expenditures of funds by the government of the United States. On the first day of the new 110th Congress, the House Committee on Appropriations recommended that Rep. Wasserman Schultz serve as a “Cardinal,” chairing the Legislative Branch Subcommittee. The subcommittees determine the Congressional appropriations of funds for particular parts of the federal government. As the subcommittee Chair, Rep. Wasserman Schultz will oversee the subcommittee that determines the funding level for the entire legislative branch, which includes the Library of Congress. She also serves on the Financial Services Subcommittee of the House Committee on Appropriations.
Rep. Wasserman Schultz also serves on the Committee on the Judiciary. Often called the lawyer for the House of Representatives, the committee maintains jurisdiction over matters relating to the administration of justice in Federal courts, administrative bodies, and law enforcement agencies. It also handles issues relating to bankruptcy, espionage, terrorism, the protection of civil liberties, constitutional amendments, immigration and naturalization, claims against the United States, Presidential succession, antitrust law, revision and codification of the statutes of the United States, state and territorial boundary lines, and patents, copyrights and trademarks. Particularly important in our time is the Committee's oversight responsibility for the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security.
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| Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz meeting with constituents at the Lippman Center |
House Majority Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina selected and Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California appointed her to serve as a Chief Deputy Whip. In this position she will work to advance legislation that meets the needs of the American people, helps to maintain unity within the Democratic Caucus, and sustains their majority. This role places her among an elite group of senior Members and Caucus opinion leaders that meet weekly to discuss long-range policy goals and key issues facing Congress. In her first term, Rep. Wasserman Schultz served as a Senior Whip, the only freshman chosen to serve on the Whip team.
Her first term was marked with remarkable success for a freshman member then serving in the minority. She was one of the key leaders in the Terri Schiavo debate, challenging President Bush and arguing forcefully that the courts had ruled in this case on multiple occasions and Congress would set a dangerous, and likely unconstitutional, precedent if the Legislative Branch attempted to circumvent the courts’ decisions. She introduced a resolution, passed unanimously by the House of Representatives, calling on the President to declare a Jewish American Heritage Month. The President subsequently did so, with the inaugural month in May, 2006. She passed key amendments to legislation protecting children from sexual predators (H.R. 4472 and H.R. 5005). Her legislation (H.R. 3639) outlawing discrimination by life insurance companies against those who want to travel to countries like Israel and Kenya passed the House of Representatives, however, failed to pass the Senate. She passed an amendment protecting women and children from legislation which would have outlawed warning labels on food containing high levels of mercury. Because of her role outlining the constitutional issues surrounding the Terri Schiavo debate, Rep. Wasserman Schultz was asked by the Senate Judiciary Committee to testify at the confirmation hearing of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito.
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| Rep. Wasserman Schultz visits with students at The Victory School for children with Autism located in North Miami Beach in the Spring of 2006. |
Rep. Wasserman Schultz has been recognized by numerous publications for her work in Congress. Campaigns and Elections Magazine named her one of “Five Women to Watch in Congress.” Congressional Quarterly called her “a rising star in House Democratic ranks.” For two consecutive years, The Forward Newspaper named her as one of the “Forward Fifty” (fifty most influential members of the Jewish Community). Florida International Magazine named her one of the 100 most influential Floridians. South Florida Business Journal named her one of the “Top 20 Business Leaders in South Florida.” Roll Call newspaper identified her as one of six members of the House of Representatives worth watching. Politico newspaper identified her as one of “Six Women in the House Worth Watching.” Rep. Wasserman Schultz’s work has been featured nationally in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today, among others. She is a frequent guest on national television shows, including CBS’s Face the Nation, CBS’s Evening News, NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, MSNBC’s Hardball, CNN’s Lou Dobbs, and MTV News.
Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s concern for children and working families first motivated her to run for office in 1992, where she made history as the youngest woman ever elected to the Florida state legislature at the age of only 26. Her enthusiasm and vision for the people of South Florida was evident in her first campaign where she won her seat with 53% of the vote in a six-way race –this despite the fact that she’d only been a resident of Broward County for three years. Since then she hasn’t looked back, serving in the Florida House of Representatives from 1992-2000 and in the State Senate from 2000-2004.
During her tenure in the Florida State Legislature, Wasserman Schultz made a name for herself as a fighter for South Florida families. As a Member of the Florida House, she authored and passed the “Drive Thru Baby Bill” and the “Drive Thru Mastectomy Bill” both of which helped women by mandating that they get the care they needed rather than the limited amount of care that the insurance companies were willing to pay for. As a State Senator, she passed another significant piece of legislation outlawing human and sexual trafficking in the State of Florida. Her tireless work on behalf of the Florida Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act helped to ensure its passage and has saved the lives of unknown numbers of toddlers from accidental drowning in Florida pools. While serving in the state House, Wasserman Schultz fought to increase funding to public schools to solve school overcrowding problems and drew praise for her efforts to establish a statewide child care administration agency to establish regulations for day care facilities. She also was recognized repeatedly as an environmental champion for her strong advocacy on environmental protection issues.
Her dedication to the people of Florida was well recognized by her colleagues in the Florida Legislature where she held several influential leadership positions. Wasserman Schultz's service in the House included a term as House Democratic Leader Pro Tempore, House Democratic Floor Leader and Chair of the Broward Legislative Delegation. She chaired the House Committee on Higher Education from 1994-1996.
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| Rep. Wasserman Schultz was asked by the Senate Judiciary Committee to testify during the nomination hearings for Judge Alito in January 2006. |
All of this experience serves to enhance her commitment to lower health care costs, improve the quality of education, protect Social Security and Medicare, and provide a sensible homeland security plan to protect our citizens from the ongoing threat of terror. She continues to fight to ensure that our first responders, our local police and firefighters, have the tools they need to do their jobs. And she continues to take up the fight to give our troops the equipment and compensation they deserve.
Debbie Wasserman Schultz was born in 1966 on Long Island, NY. She attended the University of Florida and graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science in 1988 and with a Master’s Degree in 1990. She has been married to Steve Schultz for 17 years and together they have three children. The Congresswoman is proud to call South Florida home where she resides with her family in Weston.
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