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Christine Todd "Christie" Whitman (born September 26, 1946) is an American Republican politician and author, who served as the 50th Governor of New Jersey and was the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in the administration of President George W. Bush.

Early life

Ms. Whitman was born in New York City. She was raised in Somerset County, New Jersey and attended the Chapin School in New York City. She graduated from Wheaton College in 1968, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in government. After graduating, she worked on Nelson Rockefeller's presidential campaign.

Whitman is a descendant of two powerful New Jersey political families, the Todds and the Schleys. She is married to John R. Whitman, a prominent private equity investor and they have two children. She is the granddaughter-in-law of former Governor of New York Charles S. Whitman. She retains her maiden name of Todd in part to continue the connection with Republican voters. Whitman is related by marriage to the Bush family; her brother, Webster B. Todd, married Sheila O'Keefe, the stepdaughter of James Wear Walker, whose sister Dorothy Walker Bush was the mother of George H.W. Bush and grandmother of George W. Bush.

Career in politics

During the Nixon administration, Whitman worked in the Office of Economic Opportunity under the leadership of Donald Rumsfeld. She also conducted a national outreach tour for the Republican National Committee, was Deputy Director of the New York State Office in Washington, and worked on aging issues for the Nixon campaign and administration.

She became involved in Somerset County politics in the 1980s and was appointed to the Board of Trustees of Somerset County College (now Raritan Valley Community College). Elected to two terms as a member of the Somerset County Board of Chosen Freeholders, she served as Deputy Director and Director of the Board. Among her accomplishments as freeholder was working to complete construction of a new county courthouse.

From 1988 to 1990 she served as President of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities in the cabinet of Gov. Thomas Kean.

In 1990, Whitman ran for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Bill Bradley, losing a close election.^{citation needed]} She was considered a longshot candidate against the popular Bradley. During her campaign, Whitman criticized the income tax hike proposed by then Gov. James Florio, which Bradley did not take a stance on, citing his role as a federal official.

Whitman ran against Florio for governor in 1993, defeating him by one percentage point to become the first female governor in New Jersey history. She was re-elected in 1997, narrowly defeating Jim McGreevey, the mayor of Woodbridge Township. As Governor, Whitman cut income taxes by thirty percent, instituted education reforms, and launched a program to preserve one million acres (4,000 km²) of open space, along with farmland preservation. She removed excise taxes on professional wrestling in 1997, which led The World Wrestling Federation to once again hold events in New Jersey. In 1999, Whitman vetoed a bill that outlawed partial birth abortion; the law was enacted when the Republican-controlled legislature overrode Whitman's veto and later declared unconsitutional by the courts. [1] [2]

In 1996 during a public relations event in Camden, New Jersey, Whitman rode along in a police patrol car as officers stopped a 16-year-old black male named Sherron Rolax for suspicious activity and proceeded to frisk him. After finding nothing, Whitman also frisked the suspect while a New Jersey State Police officer photographed her. The image of the smiling governor frisking Rolax was later published in newspapers statewide, which drew criticism from civil rights leaders who saw the incident as a violation of Rolax's civil rights and an endorsement by Whitman of racial profiling. Whitman told the press that she regretted the incident and pointed to her 1999 efforts against the New Jersey State Police force's racial profiling practices.

Whitman was co-chair, with Bush, of the 1996 Republican National Convention.

Environmental Protection Agency

Whitman was appointed by Bush as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. As head of the EPA, she challenged the validity of a government-commissioned report suggesting a human contribution to global warming.^{citation needed]}

Whitman appeared twice in New York City after the September 11 attacks to inform New Yorkers that the toxins released by the attacks posed no threat to their health.^{citation needed]} On September 18 the EPA released a report in which Whitman said, "Given the scope of the tragedy from last week, I am glad to reassure the people of New York and Washington, D.C. that their air is safe to breath and their water is safe to drink."^[1] Later, a 2003 report by the EPA's inspector general determined that such assurances were misleading, since when the statements were made the EPA "did not have sufficient data and analyses" to justify them.^[2] Further, the report found that the White House had "convinced EPA to add reassuring statements and delete cautionary ones" by having the National Security Council control EPA communications after the September 11 attacks^[3][4]. Although according to some sources the air was safe for Manhattan residents,^{citation needed]} Whitman was careful to note that the air on the actual World Trade Center site was not clean and had elevated chemical levels that would be detrimental to the workers there.^{citation needed]} As a result, even though they were not required to do so, the EPA itself provided thousands of respirators for workers to wear during their efforts.

On June 27, 2003, Whitman resigned from her position to spend more time with her family.

On February 2, 2006, U.S. District Court Judge Deborah A. Batts issued a ruling rejecting Whitman's request for immunity in a 2004 class action lawsuit brought by a group who claimed exposure to hazardous debris from the collapse of the World Trade Center. The judge stated that "No reasonable person would have thought that telling thousands of people that it was safe to return to lower Manhattan, while knowing that such return could pose long-term health risks and other dire consequences, was conduct sanctioned by our laws," and called Whitman's actions "conscience-shocking."^[5].

Whitman now has an energy lobbying group called the Whitman Strategy Group, "a consulting firm that specializes in government relations and environmental and energy issues"^[6].

Political philosophy

In early 2005, Whitman released a book entitled It's My Party, Too: Taking Back the Republican Party... And Bringing the Country Together Again in which she criticizes the policies of the Bush administration and its electoral strategy, which she views as divisive. Whitman has denied that she intends to run for the presidency in 2008. She has formed a political action committee called It's My Party Too-PAC that she intends to help elect moderate Republicans in 2006 and 2008 at all levels of government. She has allied her PAC with the Republican Main Street Partnership, The Wish List, the Republican Majority for Choice, Republicans for Choice, Republicans for Environmental Protection and The Log Cabin Republicans. Whitman is a leader of the moderate wing of the Republican Party, and is now working on uniting and expanding Rockefeller Republican candidates and ideals.

Electoral history

• 1997 Race for Governor: Christine Todd Whitman (R) (inc.), 47% - James McGreevey (D), 46%
• 1993 Race for Governor: Christine Todd Whitman (R), 49% - James Florio (D) (inc.), 48%
• 1990 Race for U.S. Senate: Bill Bradley (D) (inc.), 50% - Christine Todd Whitman (R), 47%

Quotes

• "It is time for Republican moderates to assert plainly and forcefully that this is our party too, that we not only have a place, but a voice - and not just a voice, but a vision - a vision that is true to the historic principles of our party and our nation.[3]
• "The defining feature of the conservative viewpoint is a faith in the ability, and a respect for the right, of individuals to make their own decisions - economic, social, and spiritual - about their lives. The true conservative understands that government's track record in respecting individual rights is poor when it dictates individual choices." From It's My Party Too, p.73

References

External links

• Christine Todd Whitman at the Notable Names Database
• It's My Party Too!.
• Laura Flanders, Bushwomen (ISBN 1-85984-587-8).