22 Facts About Bill Halter

Bill Halter previously worked as a senior adviser in the Office of Management and Budget from 1993 to 1999.

Bill Halter unsuccessfully challenged two-term incumbent Blanche Lincoln for the Democratic nomination for the US Senate, losing in the June 8,2010, runoff after neither won a majority in the May primary.

Bill Halter ran for the Democratic nomination for Governor of Arkansas in 2014 but dropped out, citing concerns over a divisive primary hurting Democratic chances for the seat.

Bill Halter graduated from Little Rock Catholic High School as valedictorian of his class in 1979.

Bill Halter entered the public sector, serving as an economist to the US Congress Joint Economic Committee and as chief economist for the US Senate Committee on Finance.

Bill Halter advised on a range of policy issues, reviewed and evaluated budgets and management practices of Federal cabinet departments, presented budget options to the President, and formulated Administration positions on domestic and international policy issues.

Bill Halter coordinated the work of the President's Management Council, a group consisting of the Chief Operating Officers of the Federal Cabinet departments.

On October 1,1999, Bill Halter was nominated by President Clinton to serve as Deputy Commissioner of the Social Security Administration.

Bill Halter was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate on November 10,1999, becoming the first confirmed Deputy Commissioner of the SSA as an independent agency.

Bill Halter pushed the Agency to accelerate its adoption of Internet service delivery and maintained constant pressure on the organization to find new and innovative ways to use the Internet in its business operations.

From January 21 to March 28,2001, Halter served as Acting Commissioner of the SSA during the first months of the administration of George W Bush.

Bill Halter re-entered the private sector by joining the board of directors of several companies in biotechnology and information technology, including Akamai Technologies, webMethods, InterMune, Threshold Pharmaceuticals and Xenogen.

Bill Halter won a Democratic primary election run-off against Tim Wooldridge and then defeated Jim L Holt of Springdale, a conservative former Republican state legislator and Southern Baptist minister, in the general election.

In 2007, there was speculation that Bill Halter would run for the United States Senate against incumbent Mark Pryor in 2008, but this did not occur.

Bill Halter chaired the Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association and of the Southern Region of the National Lieutenant Governors Association.

On March 1,2010, Bill Halter announced his candidacy in the 2010 US Senate election, challenging two-term incumbent Blanche Lincoln in the Democratic primary.

Bill Halter has been described as an outspoken supporter of gay rights and a "classic populist, progressive Democrat".

Bill Halter criticised then-US Senator Blanche Lincoln's support for the big banks that profit from student loans.

Bill Halter has made agriculture one of his "top priorities", pledging to support farmers, not corporate agribusiness.

Bill Halter believes that too much money is given in subsidies to those who don't need it, whilst failing to provide support for family farmers.

Bill Halter has repeatedly criticized Congress' close relationship with special interests and lobby groups.

Bill Halter has said that banks that take taxpayers' money should be held to account.