Barbara Lee

Lee was a staff member for U.S. Representative Ron Dellums as well as a member of the California State Assembly and the California State Senate before entering the U.S. House of Representatives. She was elected to Congress in a 1998 special election with 66% of the vote. She won the seat in her own right later that year with 82.8% of the vote, and has been reelected nine more times with no substantive opposition in what has long been one of the most Democratic districts in the nation. It presently has a Cook Partisan Voting Index of D+40, making it the most Democratic district in California and the fourth-most Democratic in the nation. The district and its predecessors have been in Democratic hands without interruption since 1959.

Lee endorsed Senator Barack Obama for president in the 2008 Democratic primary.[12]

Lee's voting record as a member of the House was ranked by the National Journal in 2007, based on roll-call votes on economic, social and foreign policy issues in 2006. Lee scored an overall 84.3%, meaning she voted with a more liberal stance than 84.3% of the House. National Journal scored Lee as voting 82% liberal on economic issues, 92% liberal on social issues, and 65% liberal on foreign policy. The 92% rating on social issues came from Lee being grouped with 35 other House legislators who all tied for the highest, most liberal ranking.[13] Lee received a 97% progressive rating from "The Progressive Punch",[14] and a 4% conservative rating from the American Conservative Union.[15] In 2016, GovTrack's 2015 Report Card on members in Congress ranked Lee the 3rd most progressive member of the House.[16]

Lee gained national attention in 2001 as the only member of congress to vote "No" on the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Terrorists (AUMF), stating that she voted no not because she opposed military action but because she believed the AUMF, as written, granted overly-broad powers to wage war to the president at a time when the facts regarding the situation were not yet clear. She "warned her colleagues to be 'careful not to embark on an open-ended war with neither an exit strategy nor a focused target.'"[17]

Lee explained,

"It was a blank check to the president to attack anyone involved in the September 11 events—anywhere, in any country, without regard to our nation's long-term foreign policy, economic and national security interests, and without time limit. In granting these overly broad powers, the Congress failed its responsibility to understand the dimensions of its declaration. I could not support such a grant of war-making authority to the president; I believe it would put more innocent lives at risk. The president has the constitutional authority to protect the nation from further attack, and he has mobilized the armed forces to do just that. The Congress should have waited for the facts to be presented and then acted with fuller knowledge of the consequences of our action."[18]

This vote made nationwide news reports and brought about a large and extremely polarized response, with the volume of calls gridlocking the switchboard of her Capitol Hill office. Although it appears to have reflected the beliefs of the majority of her constituents, the majority of responses from elsewhere in the nation were angry and hostile, some referring to her as "communist" and "traitor". Many of the responses included death threats against her or her family to the point that the Capitol Police provided round-the-clock plainclothes bodyguards.[18] She was also criticized by politicians and in editorial pages of conservative-leaning newspapers, e.g. John Fund's column in The Wall Street Journal.[19] She was awarded the Seán MacBride Peace Prize by the International Peace Bureau in 2002 for that vote.

In her speech, she quoted the Rev. Nathan D. Baxter, dean of National Cathedral: "As we act, let us not become the evil that we deplore."[20]

On June 29, 2017, the House Appropriations Committee approved Rep. Barbara Lee's amendment to repeal the 2001 authorization for the use of military force that was the foundation of the U.S.'s post-September 11 military actions. The amendment, if passed, would have required that the 2001 authorization for the use of military force be scrapped within 240 days.[21] Lee has initiated several attempts to repeal the authorization, but as of 2020 has not been successful.

Although Lee is considered a liberal Democrat, she has occasionally split with members of her own party throughout her congressional career, especially on foreign policy matters. She voted in favor of limiting military operations in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, against authorizing air strikes, and in favor of a Republican-backed plan to completely withdraw U.S. troops from the operation, all in 1999.[22] Lee voted against the Iraq War Resolution in 2002.[23][24][25] Lee was one of only 46 Democrats to vote for the Online Freedom of Speech Act of 2005.[26] Lee was one of only 13 Democrats to vote against an emergency supplemental appropriations bill in 2007 which, among other things, funded the war in Iraq but required withdrawal of U.S. forces to begin by October 1.[27] However, Lee voted in favor of overriding President Bush's veto of the measure on May 2.[28] In November 2009 Lee was one of 36 representatives to vote "nay" on House Resolution 867, which condemned the UN's Goldstone Report.[29] Lee voted to withdraw troops from Afghanistan in 2010 and 2011.[30][31] Lee also voted in favor of similar resolutions involving troop withdrawal from Pakistan and, most recently, Libya.[32][33] Lee also joined her Republican colleagues, one of 70 Democrats to do so, in voting against a resolution to authorize limited use of force in Libya.[34] Lee was also one of only 36 Democrats to vote in favor of limiting funds appropriated for military operations in Libya.[35]

In an August 2017 interview, Lee said of President Trump's comments on North Korea, "His saber-rattling is putting the world at risk. The United States should be the grown-up in the room", and that his rhetoric reminded her of news about the Cuban Missile Crisis during mid-teens, adding, "the words of war weren’t as profound and dangerous and scary [then] as they are now."[36]

In September 2018, Lee was one of 11 Democratic representatives to sign a statement announcing their intent "to introduce a new, privileged resolution in September invoking the War Powers Resolution of 1973 to withdraw U.S. Armed Forces from engaging in the Saudi-led coalition’s conflict with the Houthis should additional escalations continue and progress fail to be made towards a peace agreement."[37]

In April 2019, after the House passed the resolution withdrawing American support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, Lee was one of nine lawmakers to sign a letter to Trump requesting a meeting with him and urging him to sign "Senate Joint Resolution 7, which invokes the War Powers Act of 1973 to end unauthorized US military participation in the Saudi-led coalition's armed conflict against Yemen's Houthi forces, initiated in 2015 by the Obama administration." They asserted the "Saudi-led coalition's imposition of an air-land-and-sea blockade as part of its war against Yemen’s Houthis has continued to prevent the unimpeded distribution of these vital commodities, contributing to the suffering and death of vast numbers of civilians throughout the country" and that Trump's approval of the resolution would send a "powerful signal to the Saudi-led coalition to bring the four-year-old war to a close".[38]

In July 2019, Lee voted against a House resolution condemning the Global Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement targeting Israel. The resolution passed 398–17.[39]

In October 2020, Lee co-signed a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemning Azerbaijan’s offensive operations against the Armenian-populated enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.[40]

Lee is a strong advocate for legislation restricting the availability of guns. She participated in the 2016 sit-in against gun violence in the House of Representatives.[41] Democratic members of Congress adopted the slogan "No Bill, No Break" in an attempt to push the introduction of legislation increasing restrictions on guns.[41] In a statement on the sit-in, Lee said:[42]

Time and again, House Republicans have blocked our ability to keep Americans safe by preventing us from passing common sense gun reforms, including closing a glaring loophole that allows suspected terrorists to purchase weapons of war. These weapons of war, some of which can fire 900 rounds per minute, have no place on America's streets. We simply cannot allow this insanity. My constituents and people from all over the nation have been demanding action, but they are being ignored by the House's Republican leadership. Too many people have already been lost to senseless gun violence. Enough is enough; Congress must act to protect the lives of Americans.

Barbara Lee meets with NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and the STS-129 space shuttle crew

Lee introduced the Women and Climate Change Act in February 2018. The bill aims to create a Federal Interagency Working Group on Women and Climate Change.[43] Lee said of the Act, "Climate change is already impacting communities around the world with a disproportionate effect on the world's poorest residents. Women make up the majority of the world's poor and are especially vulnerable to abrupt changes in the environment. As leaders in their families, women are called upon to find food and clean water, secure safe housing, and care for loved ones. As climate change worsens, provoking historic droughts, rising sea levels and violent storms, women and girls will bear the brunt of this global crisis".[44]

Lee is the author of the Shirley A. Chisholm United States-Caribbean Educational Exchange Act, which would enhance U.S. foreign relations with CARICOM nations. This act directs the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to develop a comprehensive program that extends and expands existing primary and secondary school initiatives in the Caribbean to provide teacher training methods and increased community involvement in school activities.[45] The bill is named for former Representative Shirley Chisholm, who helped inspire Lee to become involved in politics when Chisholm ran for the Democratic nomination for president; Lee was the Chisholm campaign's Northern California Chair.

In 1968, Lee began volunteering at the Black Panther Party's Community Learning Center in Oakland, California.[46] Lee also worked on Bobby Seale's 1973 campaign for mayor in Oakland.

Lee disagreed with the National Park Service removing funding for a Black Panther Legacy Project in 2017. The Representative released a statement saying, "It is outrageous that the National Park Service has stripped resources from the Black Panther Party Research, Interpretation & Memory Project. The Black Panther Party was an integral part of the civil rights movement and the public has a right to know their history. I call upon the National Park Service and the Department of Interior to provide a full explanation as to why these critical federal resources have been taken away".[47]

Lee has supported a number of efforts to reform cannabis laws in Congress. In 2018 she introduced the Marijuana Justice Act to remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act, penalize states that enforce cannabis laws disproportionately (regarding race or income status), and enact other social justice-related reforms.[48] Additional legislation Lee has introduced includes the States' Medical Marijuana Property Rights Protection Act,[49] Veterans Medical Marijuana Safe Harbor Act,[50] Restraining Excessive Federal Enforcement & Regulations of Cannabis (REFER) Act,[51] and the Realizing Equitable & Sustainable Participation in Emerging Cannabis Trades (RESPECT) Resolution.[51] Lee was an original cosponsor of the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act when it was first introduced in 2011.[52] In January 2019 she was named a co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus.[53]

Barbara Lee meets with Barack Obama

Lee called for a 10% cut to the military budget of the United States.[54] She backed an amendment to reduce the size of the $740 billion National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, but it was rejected by a majority of Democrats and Republicans.[55]

Lee has made affordable housing in the East Bay area and beyond a top priority. She has supported and backed legislation meant to expand home ownership opportunities, improve public housing quality, and assist the homeless.[56]

Lee was strongly critical of the Stupak-Pitts Amendment, which places restrictions on health insurance plans providing coverage for abortions in the context of the Affordable Health Care for America Act.[57] Lee supports Medicare For All.[58]

On September 29, 2008, Lee was one of 95 Democrats to vote against the defeated Emergency Economic Stabilization Act.[59] She voted for a modified version on October 3.[60]

After the 2000 presidential election, Lee and other House members objected to counting Florida's electoral votes after a contentious recount. Because no senator joined their objection, it was dismissed by Vice President Al Gore, who lost the election to George W. Bush.[61]

Lee was one of 31 House Democrats who voted not to accept Ohio's electoral votes in the 2004 presidential election.[62] Bush won Ohio by 118,457 votes.[63]

After the 2016 presidential election, Lee objected to Michigan's and West Virginia's electoral votes. Because no senator joined her objections, they were dismissed.[64] Donald Trump won Michigan by slightly over 10,000 votes and West Virginia by over 300,000 votes.[65]

Lee's opposition to the death penalty was recognized in 2002 by Death Penalty Focus, which gave her the Mario Cuomo Act of Courage Award.[66]

In March 2018 Lee said, “I unequivocally condemn Minister Farrakhan’s anti-Semitic and hateful comments.”[67]

On November 28, 2018, Lee lost an attempt to become Chair of the House Democratic Caucus to New York Representative Hakeem Jeffries.[68] Lee blamed ageism and sexism for her defeat.[69]

On November 30, 2018, House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi announced that she had recommended Lee to become one of three co-chairs of the Steering and Policy Committee[70][71] alongside Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) and Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.).[70][71] The change was approved on December 11, 2018.[72]

• Committee on Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
  • Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Related Programs
  • Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies.
• Committee on the Budget

• Medicare for All Caucus
• Whip Task Force on Poverty, Income Inequality and Opportunity (Chair)
• Congressional Caucus on HIV/AIDS (Co-Chair)
• Congressional Out of Poverty Caucus (Co-Chair)
• Congressional Progressive Caucus[73] (Former Co-Chair and former Whip)
• Congressional Black Caucus[74] (Former Chair 2008–2010)
• Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus[75]
  • Health care Task Force
• Congressional Caucus on Global Road Safety (Member)
• United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus[76]
• Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus (Vice-Chair and Founding Member)
• Congressional Social Work Caucus (Chair)
• Congressional Arts Caucus[77]
• Congressional HIV/AIDS Caucus (Co-Founder and Co-Chair)
• Afterschool Caucuses[78]
• Congressional Cannabis Caucus[79] (Co-Chair)

On March 15, 2013, Lee announced the official relaunch of the Congressional Social Work Caucus to the 113th Congress as its new chairwoman.[80]

Lee was Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus from 2008 to 2010.[1]

• 68th and 70th General Assemblies (United States Representative)[1]