23 Facts About Lowell Weicker

Lowell Weicker unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for president in 1980.

Lowell Weicker was known as a Rockefeller Republican in Congress, causing conservative-leaning Republicans to endorse his opponent Joe Lieberman, a New Democrat, in the 1988 Senate election which he subsequently lost.

Lowell Weicker graduated from the Lawrenceville School, Yale University, and the University of Virginia School of Law.

Lowell Weicker began his political career after serving in the United States Army between 1953 and 1955, reaching the rank of first lieutenant.

Lowell Weicker served in the Connecticut State House of Representatives from 1963 to 1969 and as First Selectman of Greenwich, Connecticut before winning election to the US House of Representatives, in 1968 as a Republican.

Lowell Weicker only served one term in the House before being elected to the US Senate in 1970.

Lowell Weicker benefited from a split in the Democratic Party in that election.

Lowell Weicker served in the US Senate for three terms, from 1971 to 1989.

Lowell Weicker gained national attention for his service on the Senate Watergate Committee, where he became the first Republican senator to call for Richard Nixon's resignation.

Lowell Weicker was a liberal voice in an increasingly conservative Republican Party.

Lowell Weicker voted against the nomination of William Rehnquist as Chief Justice of the United States, as well as the nomination of Robert Bork to the US Supreme Court.

Lowell Weicker was a strong advocate for the rights of the disabled during his time in Congress, although he ultimately lost his seat before the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 passed.

In later interviews, Lowell Weicker identified his work on the Americans with Disabilities Act, funding the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, increasing the funding for the National Institutes of Health, and funding research into AZT as his proudest achievements in the Senate.

Lowell Weicker initially campaigned on a platform of solving Connecticut's fiscal crisis without implementing an income tax.

Lowell Weicker lost Fairfield and New Haven County counties to Rowland, but won eastern Connecticut, drawing especially strong support from the Hartford metro area, where he had been strongly endorsed by the Hartford Courant and by many state employee labor unions.

The Los Angeles Times wrote that support from Democrats was credited for Lowell Weicker's victory, reflected in Morrison's third-place finish.

Lowell Weicker earned lasting criticism for his implementation of the income tax; the conservative Yankee Institute claimed in August 2006 that after fifteen years the income tax had failed to achieve its stated goals.

Lowell Weicker expressed sympathy for the budget struggles of Governor Dannel Malloy, drawing a parallel with his own efforts to remedy a fiscal crisis.

Lowell Weicker was said to be considering a rematch against Senator Joe Lieberman in the 2006 election cycle.

In 1996, Lowell Weicker joined the Board of Directors for Compuware and still holds this position.

In 1999, Lowell Weicker became a member of the Board of Directors for the World Wrestling Federation, and held this position until 2011.

Since 2003, Lowell Weicker has served on the board of Medallion Financial Corp.

Lowell Weicker had served with Biden in the Senate for 16 years before he was voted out.