1. Herbert Hiken Kohl was an American businessman, philanthropist, and Democratic politician from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
39 Facts About Herb Kohl
1. 2.
Herb Kohl served 24 years as a United States senator from Wisconsin, from 1989 to 2013, and earlier served as chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.
3.
From 1970 to 1979, Kohl was president of Kohl's Corporation, his family's business that owned the Kohl's department stores chain.
4.
Herb Kohl purchased the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association in 1985 to prevent the team from relocating out of Milwaukee.
5.
Herbert Hiken Kohl was born on February 7,1935, and raised in Milwaukee, the son of Mary and Max Kohl.
6.
Herb Kohl's father was a Polish Jewish immigrant and his mother was a Russian Jewish immigrant who came to the United States in the 1920s.
7.
Herb Kohl was a roommate of Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig.
8.
Between 1958 and 1964, Herb Kohl was a member of the United States Army Reserve.
9.
In 1970, Herb Kohl was named president of Herb Kohl's and served until the corporation was sold to BATUS Inc in 1978.
10.
Lucey encouraged Herb Kohl to seek the chairmanship, and Herb Kohl agreed.
11.
Herb Kohl was named interim chairman at an April 12,1975, emergency session, and was then elected by the party's state convention delegates later that summer.
12.
Shortly after the 1976 election, Herb Kohl announced he felt that he had accomplished enough as chairman and was ready to step down.
13.
Herb Kohl ultimately remained in office until the June 1977 state party convention.
14.
In 2013, Herb Kohl began to bring in new partners who were committed to keeping the team in Milwaukee.
16.
Herb Kohl won the nomination and defeated Republican Susan Engeleiter in the general election.
17.
Herb Kohl was reelected in 1994 against Robert Welch, in 2000 against John Gillespie, and in 2006 against Robert Lorge.
18.
Herb Kohl has been described as having been a populist-leaning liberal.
19.
Herb Kohl supported President Barack Obama's health reform legislation; he voted for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in December 2009, and he voted for the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.
20.
Herb Kohl voted in favor of most lawsuit reform measures as well as for rules tightening personal bankruptcy.
21.
Herb Kohl long supported amending the US Constitution to require a balanced budget.
22.
Herb Kohl was one of the few Democrats to vote for the tax cut passed in 2001, and he supported the elimination of the "marriage penalty".
23.
Herb Kohl was not opposed to the creation of individual, private savings accounts to supplement Social Security.
24.
Herb Kohl generally had a pro-environmental record and was an outspoken proponent of American energy independence.
25.
Herb Kohl supported increased production of hydrogen cars, establishing a federal goal for reducing oil consumption by 40 percent, and disallowing oil speculation in protected areas.
26.
Herb Kohl voted against Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards and was rated highly by groups that desire universal health care.
27.
Herb Kohl voted in favor of expanding Medicare and SCHIP and desired that prescription drugs be included under federal health coverage.
28.
Herb Kohl favored affirmative action and supported setting aside funds for women and minorities.
29.
In 2005, Herb Kohl secured a victory for one of his main causes: requiring handguns to be sold with child safety locks.
30.
Herb Kohl was a strong supporter of public education and rejected school vouchers.
31.
Herb Kohl voted in favor of allowing for the establishment of educational savings accounts.
32.
Herb Kohl voted against many free trade agreements including the North American Free Trade Agreement and the Central America Free Trade Agreement and voted against the Freedom to Farm Act in 1996.
33.
Herb Kohl supported fast-tracked trade normalization with the People's Republic of China and free trade with some of the developing world.
34.
Herb Kohl voted in 2002 to authorize military force in Iraq.
35.
Herb Kohl voted on a number of occasions with more liberal Democrats to reduce military spending, voting against 1996 defense appropriations increases and supporting a veto of funding new military projects.
36.
Herb Kohl was the wealthiest resident of Milwaukee, the richest Jewish American from Wisconsin, and one of the wealthiest US senators.
37.
Herb Kohl was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007.
38.
On July 22,2021, Herb Kohl was the key figure of the lead car in the Milwaukee Bucks NBA Championship parade.
39.
Herb Kohl died on December 27,2023, at age 88, at home in Milwaukee, following a brief illness.