Francis Rooney
| Francis Rooney | |
|---|---|
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 19th district |
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| Assumed office January 3, 2017 |
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| Preceded by | Curt Clawson |
| United States Ambassador to the Holy See | |
| In office October 13, 2005 – January 15, 2008 |
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| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | James Nicholson |
| Succeeded by | Mary Ann Glendon |
| Personal details | |
| Born | December 4, 1953 Muskogee, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Alma mater | Georgetown University |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
| Website | House website |
L. Francis Rooney III (born December 4, 1953) is an American businessman and politician currently serving as the U.S. Representative from Florida's 19th congressional district. He previously served as the United States Ambassador to the Holy See, from 2005-2008. He had served as the CEO of Rooney Holdings (formerly known as Rooney Brothers Company), an investment and holding company based in Naples, Florida and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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Early Life
Rooney is the oldest of Laurence Francis and Lucy Turner Rooney's six children. His younger siblings are Patrick T. Rooney, Timothy P. Rooney, Lucy Rooney Kapples, James H. Rooney, and Rebecca Rooney.
He is a graduate of Georgetown University (A.B. 1975) and Georgetown University Law Center (J.D. 1978).[1]
Business Career
Rooney is the majority owner of Manhattan Construction Company; he is the fourth generation of his family to own that company. Manhattan Construction built the new Cowboys Stadium in Texas, the U.S. Capitol Visitors Center at the United States Capitol, the Oklahoma State Capitol, the George Bush Presidential Library, the Cato Institute headquarters, New Orleans Sports Arena, and Reliant Stadium. The company is working on the George W. Bush Presidential Library earning it the distinction to be the only construction company to work on two presidential libraries. They have also done extensive projects for Morehouse College, George Washington University, Oklahoma State University, and the University of Georgia. The subsidiary won an estimated $100 million in Pentagon contracts in 2003, nearly four times the amount the company won in 2002, according to the Center for Public Integrity.
Activities in Central America
Rooney is a member of the Advisory Board of the Panama Canal Authority. He was among the U.S. delegation led by Colin Powell to the inauguration of Panamanian president Martín Torrijos.
Political activities
Rooney is a major Republican donor, having contributed to the campaign of George W. Bush. Rooney served on the fundraising team of Connie Mack IV.[2] Rooney donated $1 million to Restore Our Future, Mitt Romney's Super PAC,[3] and Rooney hosted a fundraiser for Romney in Rooney's Naples, Florida home.[4] In 2015, Rooney gave over $2 million to Jeb Bush's Super PAC.[5]
U.S. House of Representatives
2016 campaign
In May 2016, incumbent Republican congressman Curt Clawson announced he would not run for a third full term. Soon afterward, Rooney entered the Republican primary to succeed him--the real contest in this heavily Republican district. Rooney spent $4 million of his own money and far outspent his opponents in an election that was shortened due to the timing of Clawson's late announcement.[6] In the August 30 primary, he defeated Sanibel Councilman Chauncey Goss and radio personality Dan Bongino. Rooney received an unprecedented endorsement from Rick Scott, who is his neighbor in the Naples, Florida Port Royal community.[7] As expected, he won handily in the November general election to become only the fifth person to represent this district since its creation in 1983 (it had been the 13th District from 1983 to 1993, the 14th from 1993 to 2013, and has been the 19th since 2013).
Tenure
Rep. Rooney was sworn in January 3, 2017. He is a member of the Republican Study Committee.
Committee assignments
See also
References
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- ↑ http://www.fec.gov/fecviewer/CandidateCommitteeDetail.do
- ↑ http://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2016/06/in-rare-move-scott-endorses-rooney-in-gop-primary-103404
External links
- Congressional website
- Official Website For Francis Rooney's Book The Global Vatican
- Francis Rooney at Ballotpedia
- Profile and History of Manhattan Construction Company
- Nominations and Withdrawal Sent to the Senate, a July 2005 White House press release
- Who is Francis Rooney?, a January 2005 article from MSNBC
- Panama Canal Authority Appoints Six New Members to the Advisory Board
- Appearances on C-SPAN
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | U. S. Ambassador to the Holy See 2005–2008 |
Succeeded by Mary Ann Glendon |
| United States House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 19th congressional district 2017–present |
Incumbent |
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