Michael Waltz

Michael George Glen Waltz (born January 31, 1974)[2] is an American politician and United States Army officer serving as the U.S. Representative for Florida's 6th congressional district. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Michael Waltz
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Florida's 6th district
Assumed office
January 3, 2019
Preceded byRon DeSantis
Personal details
Born
Michael George Glen Waltz

(1974-01-31) January 31, 1974
Boynton Beach, Florida, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Brenda Craig
Children1
EducationVirginia Military Institute (BA)
WebsiteHouse website
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1996-2000 (active)
2000-present (reserve)
Rank Lieutenant Colonel[1]
UnitU.S. Army Special Forces
Battles/warsWar in Afghanistan
Awards

Early life and education

Waltz was born in Boynton Beach, Florida. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in international studies from the Virginia Military Institute and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Army National Guard.[3][4]

Career

A U.S. Army National Guard Special Forces officer, he is a veteran of the War in Afghanistan and is the first Green Beret ever elected to the United States Congress. Before his election to Congress, Waltz served in a senior role at The Pentagon as Director for Afghanistan policy within the Office of the Secretary of Defense, served as a senior advisor to Vice President Dick Cheney for South Asia and Counterterrorism in the George W. Bush Administration, was co-founder and partner at Askari Associates, LLC, and was president of Metis Solutions. He was formerly a FOX News Channel contributor, providing expert commentary on foreign policy and defense issues, and has also appeared frequently on CNN, MSNBC, BBC World News, and PBS Frontline.[5][6]

U.S. House of Representatives

2018

Waltz ran for Florida's 6th congressional district in 2018 to succeed incumbent Republican Ron DeSantis, who retired before being elected Governor of Florida in a close race.[7][8]

Tenure

He won the election over Democrat Nancy Soderberg and was sworn in to the 116th congress on January 3, 2019.

In April 2020, Waltz joined the National Guard's COVID-19 response efforts as a colonel on the planning staff.[9] On November 6, 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Waltz tested positive for the virus.[10]

In December 2020, Waltz was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives who signed an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden prevailed[11] over incumbent Donald Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of the election held by another state.[12][13][14] Shortly thereafter, the Orlando Sentinel editorial board rescinded its endorsement of Waltz in the 2020 election.[15] The Orlando Sentinel wrote, "We had no idea, had no way of knowing at the time, that Waltz was not committed to democracy."[15][16]

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a statement that called signing the amicus brief an act of "election subversion." Additionally, Pelosi reprimanded Waltz and the other House members who supported the lawsuit: "The 126 Republican Members that signed onto this lawsuit brought dishonor to the House. Instead of upholding their oath to support and defend the Constitution, they chose to subvert the Constitution and undermine public trust in our sacred democratic institutions."[17][18] New Jersey Representative Bill Pascrell, citing section three of the 14th Amendment, called for Pelosi to not seat Waltz and the other Republicans who signed the brief supporting the suit. Pascrell argued that "the text of the 14th Amendment expressly forbids Members of Congress from engaging in rebellion against the United States. Trying to overturn a democratic election and install a dictator seems like a pretty clear example of that."[19]

Committee assignments

Caucus memberships
  • Afghanistan Caucus
  • American Flood Coalition
  • Army Caucus
  • Florida Ports Caucus
  • For Country Caucus
  • Kurdish Caucus
  • Motorsports Caucus
  • Republican Study Committee
  • Special Forces Caucus
  • Shipbuilding Caucus
  • Taiwan Caucus

Electoral history
Florida's 6th congressional district Republican primary, 2018[20]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Michael Waltz 32,833 42.4
Republican John Ward 23,543 30.4
Republican Fred Costello 21,023 27.2
Total votes 77,399 100.0
Florida's 6th congressional district, 2018[21]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Michael Waltz 187,891 56.3
Democratic Nancy Soderberg 145,758 43.7
Total votes 333,649 100.0
Republican hold
Florida's 6th congressional district, 2020[22]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Michael Waltz 265,393 60.6
Democratic Clint Curtis 172,305 39.4
n/a Write-ins 158 <0.1
Total votes 437,856 100.0
Republican hold

Books
  • Warrior Diplomat: A Green Beret's Battles from Washington to Afghanistan. ISBN 1612346316.

References
  1. "Retired Lt. Col. Michael Waltz announces run for Congress". washingtontimes.com. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
  2. https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/416745-florida-new-members-2019
  3. VMI Grad Elected to Florida Congress
  4. "Representative Michael Waltz". Representative Michael Waltz. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  5. "Matchup between ex-Cheney aide and ex-Clinton aide set in Florida's 6th". The Washington Post. 2018-08-27. Retrieved 2018-11-07.
  6. Mark Harper. "Big money aids Nancy Soderberg, Michael Waltz in District 6 congressional race – News – The St. Augustine Record – St. Augustine, FL". Staugustine.com. Retrieved 2018-11-07.
  7. "Republican Michael Waltz wins open Florida House seat, keeping 6th District in GOP control". SFGate. Retrieved 2018-11-07.
  8. "Special forces: How Mike Waltz defeated the national left – Florida Politics". floridapolitics.com. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
  9. "These National Guard members also serve in Congress. Now they're fighting COVID-19". Roll Call. Retrieved 2020-04-07.
  10. "Rep. Mike Waltz Tests Positive for COVID-19". www.mynews13.com. Retrieved 2020-11-17.
  11. Blood, Michael R.; Riccardi, Nicholas (December 5, 2020). "Biden officially secures enough electors to become president". AP News. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  12. Liptak, Adam (2020-12-11). "Supreme Court Rejects Texas Suit Seeking to Subvert Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  13. "Order in Pending Case" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. 2020-12-11. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  14. Diaz, Daniella. "Brief from 126 Republicans supporting Texas lawsuit in Supreme Court". CNN. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  15. Board, Orlando Sentinel Editorial. "We apologize for endorsing U.S. Rep. Michael Waltz, who wants to overturn the election | Editorial". orlandosentinel.com. Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  16. reports, Staff and wire. "Waltz, Webster are among 106 Republicans who signed onto lawsuit to invalidate Joe Biden's victory". orlandosentinel.com. Retrieved 2020-12-11.
  17. Smith, David (2020-12-12). "Supreme court rejects Trump-backed Texas lawsuit aiming to overturn election results". The Guardian. Retrieved 2020-12-13.
  18. "Pelosi Statement on Supreme Court Rejecting GOP Election Sabotage Lawsuit" (Press release). Speaker Nancy Pelosi. December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
  19. Williams, Jordan (2020-12-11). "Democrat asks Pelosi to refuse to seat lawmakers supporting Trump's election challenges". TheHill. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  20. "Florida Primary Election Results: Sixth House District". The New York Times. August 30, 2018. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  21. "Florida Election Results: Sixth House District". The New York Times. January 28, 2019. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  22. "Florida Election Results: Sixth Congressional District". The New York Times. November 24, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Ron DeSantis		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Florida's 6th congressional district
2019–present		 Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by
Jeff Van Drew		 United States Representatives by seniority
367th		 Succeeded by
Jennifer Wexton
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