Tom Allen (Maine politician)

Template:Short description Thomas Hodge Allen (born April 16, 1945) is an American author and former politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives representing Template:Ushr, and the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2008 against Republican incumbent senator Susan Collins. Allen lost to Collins 61.5% to 38.5%.

Allen was first elected in 1996, defeating Republican incumbent James Longley, Jr. with 55 percent of votes cast to Longley's 45 percent. Allen was re-elected five times, receiving over 55 percent of the vote each time in his district, until his defeat in his 2008 run for the U.S. Senate. After, Allen was appointed president and CEO of the Association of American Publishers and began his term on May 1, 2009. His book Dangerous Convictions: What's Really Wrong with the U.S. Congress came out in 2013.

Early life

File:Tom and Diana Allen.jpg

Tom Allen and his wife, Diana Allen.

Allen was born in Portland, Maine, to Genevieve ("Sukey") Lahee and Charles W. Allen. His grandfather, Neal W. Allen, was a civic leader who served as chairman (mayor) of Portland from 1925 to 1926. He graduated from Deering High School. He went on to Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, before winning a Rhodes Scholarship to Wadham College, Oxford. During this time he became friends with fellow Rhodes scholar Bill Clinton. After Oxford he went on to Harvard Law School and practiced as a lawyer.

Early political career

He entered the field of politics when he became a staff member for Governor Kenneth M. Curtis and later for Senator Edmund S. Muskie. Allen was elected to the city council of Portland, Maine, in 1989 and served as the city's mayor between 1991 and 1992 before winning election to the House. Allen ran for governor in 1994, losing to Joe Brennan in the Democratic primary.

U.S. House

Tenure

Allen fought Republican efforts to weaken environmental rollbacks between 1996 and 2007. Allen called for a pay-as-you-go system that would require offsets to pay for new tax cuts and new spending while on the Budget Committee, much like the system Democrats enacted in their first 100 hours of Congressional control in the 110th Congress.

Allen has made health care, campaign finance reform, and small business his legislative priorities.

Committees

• Committee on Energy and Commerce
  • Subcommittee on Health
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality
  • Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials
• Committee on the Budget
• House Affordable Medicines Task Force (Co-Chairman)
• House Oceans Caucus