46 Facts About Jim Oberstar

James Louis Oberstar was an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 2011.

Jim Oberstar was chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee from 2007 to 2011, and ranking minority member prior to that.

Jim Oberstar is the longest-serving member ever of the United States House of Representatives from the state of Minnesota.

Jim Oberstar was born in Chisholm, Minnesota, and at his deathbed still owned his original family home in Chisholm.

Jim Oberstar's father Louis, of German ancestry, was an iron ore miner and the first card-carrying member of the USW on the Iron Range of Minnesota.

Jim Oberstar received a master's degree in European Studies from the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium in 1957, with further study at Universite Laval in Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Canada and Georgetown University in Washington, DC.

Jim Oberstar spent four years as a civilian language teacher in the United States Marine Corps, teaching English to Haitian military personnel and French to American Marine officers and noncommissioned officers.

Jim Oberstar was administrator of the Committee on Public Works for the US House of Representatives from 1971 to 1974.

Jim Oberstar was first elected as a Democrat to the 94th Congress and was reelected to 17 succeeding Congresses; serving from January 3,1975, to January 3,2011.

Jim Oberstar was an internationally recognized expert on aviation and aviation safety.

Jim Oberstar served on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee during his entire time in the House.

Jim Oberstar was a member of the President's Commission on Aviation Security and Terrorism.

In 1965, Jim Oberstar helped create the Economic Development Administration, the only federal agency devoted to the creation and retention of jobs in economically distressed American communities.

Jim Oberstar was a strong supporter of the Duluth-based aircraft manufacturer Cirrus Aircraft, and even helped bring the company to Minnesota in 1994 from its first home in Baraboo, Wisconsin.

An avid cyclist, Jim Oberstar championed the creation of trails for cycling and hiking to promote active lifestyles.

Jim Oberstar generally had a liberal voting record, but opposed abortion and gun control.

Jim Oberstar was the co-chairman of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, along with Republican Chris Smith of New Jersey.

In 2007, Jim Oberstar was one of 16 Democrats who voted against federal funding for stem cell research.

In 2004 Jim Oberstar led the opposition to the Commercial Space Launch Amendments Act of 2004, a bill that established a regulatory framework for private suborbital spaceflight, arguing that the bill did not sufficiently safeguard passenger and crew safety.

Jim Oberstar was co-chair of the Great Lakes Task Force and was a member of the Upper Mississippi Task Force and the Democratic Homeland Security Task Force.

Jim Oberstar co-chaired the Congressional Travel and Tourism Caucus and was a member of the following caucuses: the Bike Caucus; the Caucus for Sustainable Development; the Congressional Caucus on Global Road Safety; the Congressional Human Rights Caucus; the Congressional Steel Caucus; the Medical Technology Caucus; the Mississippi River Caucus; the Native American Caucus and the Renewable Energy Caucus.

In 2009, Jim Oberstar received the Tony Jannus Award for distinguished leadership in the field of commercial aviation.

On June 19,2012, Jim Oberstar was made Commander in the French Ordre national du Merite.

In October 2015, the new passenger terminal of the Duluth International Airport was named in honor of Jim Oberstar, who helped secure funding for the facility prior to its 2013 opening.

Jim Oberstar was a strong supporter of the Head Start Program, which is a national program from the Department of Health and Human Services to promote school readiness by enhancing social and cognitive development of children through the provision of educational, health, nutritional, social, and other services.

Jim Oberstar considered it to be one of the most successful federal anti-poverty programs ever created.

Jim Oberstar supported the American Association of University Women, which has been a leading voice promoting education and equality for women and girls nationwide; he fully supported the AAUW in 2007 and 2008.

Jim Oberstar was given a rating of 100 by the Environment America and the League of Conservation Voters in 2009.

Jim Oberstar voted to pass the Energy and Environmental Law Amendments which had the goal of establishing a program to regulate greenhouse gas emissions in 2009.

Jim Oberstar voted to pass a bill, Trade-in Vouchers for Fuel-Efficient Cars, in 2009 which granted a $3,500 voucher, or document that could be exchanged for services in the place of money, for trading in an old vehicle with at least 4 miles per gallon more, the purpose of which was to increase the purchasing of fuel efficient cars.

However, Jim Oberstar went against most Democrats and voted in favor of allowing drilling in ANWR.

Jim Oberstar was given a rating of 100 by the interest groups AFL-CIO, a voluntary group of labor-unions working to improve the lives of working families.

Jim Oberstar was given a rating of 92 by the American Federation of Government in 2009 and a rating of 90 by the group, Federally Employed Women in 2009.

Jim Oberstar voted for three unemployment benefits extension bills in 2010 as well as three Employment Discrimination Law Amendments in 2009.

Jim Oberstar supported a tax plan containing tax relief for working families, investment tax credits for small businesses, and support for the states including incentives for transportation construction projects that will immediately put people back to work.

Jim Oberstar did not support free trade agreements, such as North American Free Trade Agreement, the Central American Free Trade Agreement.

Jim Oberstar believed that the free trading offers little or no economic opportunity for American workers and producers due to inadequate provisions contained in the agreements.

Democrats Blatnik and Jim Oberstar held the seat from 1947 until 2011.

Jim Oberstar is the longest-serving member of either house of Congress in Minnesota's history, having served in the 94th through the 111th Congresses; from January 3,1975 to January 3,2011.

Grams was by far the strongest opponent Jim Oberstar had ever faced, and the first reasonably well-funded Republican to run in the 8th in decades.

Jim Oberstar won with more than 67 percent of the vote.

Jim Oberstar resided with his wife, Jean, in Potomac, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, DC, and maintained his boyhood residence in Chisholm, Minnesota.

Jim Oberstar died in his sleep at his home in Potomac on May 3,2014, four months before his 80th birthday.

Jim Oberstar was survived by 4 children and 8 grandchildren.

Jim Oberstar's funeral was at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church, where Jim Oberstar attended Mass every Sunday morning.

The Congressional Papers of James L Oberstar are available for research use.