View source for Dave Hobson

{{Short description|American politician (1936–2024)}}
{{for|the Australian opera singer|David Hobson (tenor)}}
{{Sources|date=October 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name                = Dave Hobson
| image name          = Dave Hobson, official 109th Congress photo.jpg
| state               = [[Ohio]]
| district            = [[Ohio's 7th congressional district|7th]]
| party               = [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| term_start          = January 3, 1991
| term_end            = January 3, 2009
| preceded            = [[Mike DeWine]]
| succeeded           = [[Steve Austria]]
| state_senate2       = Ohio
| state2              = Ohio
| term2               = December 13, 1982 – January 3, 1991
| preceded2           = [[Mike DeWine]]
| succeeded2          = [[Merle G. Kearns]]
| district2           = 10th
| birth_date          = {{Birth date|1936|10|17}}
| birth_place         = [[Cincinnati|Cincinnati, Ohio]], U.S.
| death_date          = {{Death date and age|2024|10|6|1936|10|17}}
| death_place         = [[Dayton, Ohio]], U.S.
| spouse              = Carolyn Alexander Hobson
| residence           = [[Springfield, Ohio]]
| alma_mater          = [[Ohio Wesleyan University]], [[Ohio State University]]
| occupation          = Attorney
| branch              = [[United States Air National Guard]]
| serviceyears        = 1958–1963
| unit                = [[Ohio Air National Guard|Ohio]]
| caption             = Official portrait, 2005
}}

'''David Lee Hobson''' (October 17, 1936 – October 6, 2024) was an American lawyer and politician of the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] who served as a [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. representative]] from the [[United States House of Representatives, Ohio District 7|seventh congressional district]] of [[Ohio]] from 1991 to 2009.

==Early life and education==
Hobson was born in [[Cincinnati]], [[Ohio]], and graduated from [[Withrow High School]] in 1954. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from [[Ohio Wesleyan University]] ([[Delaware, Ohio]]) in 1958 and a law degree from [[Ohio State University]] ([[Columbus, Ohio]]) in 1963. He served in the [[Ohio Air National Guard]] from 1958 to 1963, and was inducted into the Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame. Hobson served as an Ohio state senator from 1982 to 1990, serving as [[President of the Ohio Senate|President]] of the [[Ohio Senate]] from 1988 to 1990 and as a majority whip. Hobson was responsible for Ohio's first [[AIDS]] law and grants for treatments for Alzheimer's disease.<ref name="u776" />

==Congress==
In 1990, after [[Mike DeWine]] left his seat in the [[U.S. House of Representatives]] to become [[Lieutenant Governor of Ohio]], Hobson was elected to replace him. It was the second time Hobson had succeeded DeWine; he had followed DeWine into the Ohio Senate. Hobson began serving in the House in 1991 ([[102nd Congress]]), and was reelected eight times without serious difficulty. Hobson was the assistant majority whip for the [[110th Congress]]. Hobson was a member of the [[Republican Main Street Partnership]] and was considered to be a [[moderate Republican (modern United States)|moderate Republican]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=OUR VIEW: Dave Hobson's superpower was no secret |url=https://www.daytondailynews.com/ideas-voices/our-view-dave-hobsons-superpower-was-no-secret/UKSG5BY3UBBUDAFI4QGLA5TZH4/ |access-date=2024-11-04 |website=dayton-daily-news |language=English}}</ref>

As a congressman, some of Hobson's primary concerns were improving health care, controlling government spending and balancing the budget, and strengthening national security. Hobson also believed that Congress needed to help stimulate the economies of former industrial towns which had seen factories leave. He sought to privatize military housing and fund military research at the [[Wright-Patterson Air Force Base]], which was in his district, and helped to establish the [[Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery]] and [[Glenn Research Center]]. He also secured funding for a memorial at the [[Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial]] for American soldiers killed in World War II.<ref name="u776" />

Hobson served in the [[United States House Committee on Appropriations|House Committee on Appropriations]], and became the top Republican on the Military Construction and Energy-Water subcommittees. He opposed several attempts by the administration of [[George W. Bush]] to fund a [[bunker buster]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wehrman |first=Jessica |date=2024-10-07 |title=Former Rep. David Hobson, longtime appropriator, is dead at 87 |url=https://rollcall.com/2024/10/07/former-rep-david-hobson-longtime-appropriator-is-dead-at-87/ |access-date=2024-11-04 |website=Roll Call |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Controversies ===
In October 2006, the ''[[Wall Street Journal]]'' reported that Hobson led a delegation to [[Normandy]], France in August 2004 for the groundbreaking of an "interpretive center" at a cemetery for American soldiers killed during [[World War II]]. During the seven-day trip, the delegation was feted with at least two private restaurant dinners, one given by [[Northrop Grumman]] and another by the [[PMA Group]], a leading lobbyist for defense companies. On a 2005 trip to visit [[nuclear fuel reprocessing|nuclear fuel processing]] plants in France, Hobson and his delegation attended a dinner near [[Avignon]], in southern France, hosted by [[Areva SA]], the world's largest maker of [[nuclear reactor]]s. Because House rules prohibit members from accepting any gifts worth $50 or more, the article cited the opinions of “experts” on congressional ethics who speculated that the trip may have violated House rules and possibly federal law.<ref>Scot J. Paltrow, [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116191099430905393?mod=googlenews_wsj "On Overseas Trips, Congress's Rules Are Often Ignored"], ''Wall Street Journal'', October 27, 2006</ref> However, no legal or ethics charges were brought forward and no impropriety was alleged by either legal or congressional ethics officials.

On October 14, 2007, Hobson announced that he would retire at the end of his term in 2009.<ref>Jessica Wehrman, [http://www.daytondailynews.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2007/10/14/ddn101407hobsonweb.html "Rep. Hobson to retire at end of current term"], ''Dayton Daily News'', October 14, 2007</ref> After leaving Congress, he became president of the lobbying firm Vorys Advisors LLC. <ref name="u776" />

===Committee assignments===
* Appropriations Committee
** Subcommittee on Defense
** Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development (Ranking Member)
** Subcommittee on Military Construction (Chair)

==Death==
On October 6, 2024, Hobson died at [[Miami Valley Hospital]] in [[Dayton, Ohio]], at the age of 87.<ref name="u776">{{cite web | last=Smyth | first=Julie Carr | title=Dave Hobson, Ohio congressman who backed D-Day museum, has died at 87 | website=AP News | date=October 7, 2024 | url=https://apnews.com/article/dave-hobson-obituary-ohio-congressman-e770e142525c4ffb93041cb7acff56ae | access-date=October 7, 2024}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of United States representatives from Ohio]]

==Footnotes==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.house.gov/hobson/ U.S. Congressman Dave Hobson], U.S. House site
* [http://quotesbox.org/authors/david-hobson-11260/ David Hobson's statements]
* {{C-SPAN|19594}}
* {{CongLinks | congbio=h000666 | votesmart= | fec=H0OH07021 | congress= }}<!--
Links formerly displayed via the CongLinks template:
* [http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cid=N00003725 Financial information (federal office)] at [[Center for Responsive Politics|OpenSecrets.org]]
* [http://www.ontheissues.org/OH/Dave_Hobson.htm Issue positions and quotes] at [[On the Issues]]
* -->

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Hobson, Dave}}
[[Category:1936 births]]
[[Category:2024 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American lawyers]]
[[Category:20th-century American military personnel]]
[[Category:21st-century Ohio politicians]]
[[Category:American United Methodists]]
[[Category:Members of the United States Congress who became lobbyists]]
[[Category:Methodists from Ohio]]
[[Category:Ohio lawyers]]
[[Category:Ohio National Guard personnel]]
[[Category:Ohio State University Moritz College of Law alumni]]
[[Category:Ohio Wesleyan University alumni]]
[[Category:Politicians from Cincinnati]]
[[Category:Republican Party Ohio state senators]]
[[Category:Republican Party United States representatives from Ohio]]
[[Category:21st-century United States representatives]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the Ohio General Assembly]]