Mark Pryor

Mark Pryor
United States Senator from Arkansas
In office January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2015
Preceded by	Tim Hutchinson
Succeeded by	Tom Cotton
53rd Attorney General of Arkansas
In office January 12, 1999 – January 3, 2003
Governor	Mike Huckabee
Preceded by	Winston Bryant
Succeeded by	Mike Beebe
Member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from the 57th district
In office January 1991 – January 1995
Preceded by	???
Succeeded by	Lisa Ferrell
Personal details
Born	Mark Lunsford Pryor (1963-01-10) January 10, 1963 Fayetteville, Arkansas, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Jill Pryor (Divorced) Joi Pryor
Children	Adams Porter
Alma mater	University of Arkansas (B.A., J.D.)
Religion	Southern Baptist
Signature
Website	Senate website

Mark Lunsford Pryor (born January 10, 1963) is an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Arkansas from 2003 to 2015. He is a member of the Democratic Party, and he was Attorney General of Arkansas from 1999 to 2003.

Born in Fayetteville, Arkansas, Pryor is the son of former Arkansas Governor and U.S. Senator David Pryor. He received his bachelor's degree and law degree from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. He worked in private practice for several years until being elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives in 1990. He was elected the state Attorney General in 1998. Pryor announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate in 2001, running for the same Senate seat his father had held from 1979 to 1997. He was elected with 54 percent of the vote.

He was re-elected with no Republican opposition in 2008. During the 112th Congress he served as the chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance. Pryor ran for re-election in 2014, but lost to Representative Tom Cotton.^[1]

Early life, education, and early political career

Pryor was born in Fayetteville, Arkansas, to the former state First Lady Barbara Jean (Lunsford) and former Governor and U.S. Senator David Hampton Pryor. He attended Little Rock Central High School and Walt Whitman High School in Maryland, graduating in 1981.^[2][3] He graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville in 1985 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and went on to receive his Juris Doctor from the university's law school in 1988. During college, he was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.

Prior to entering politics, Pryor worked as a private practice attorney. He was a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from 1991 to 1995. In 1994, he ran for Arkansas Attorney General, challenging incumbent Winston Bryant in the Democratic primary. Pryor lost 58%-42%.^[4] In 1998, he ran for the same position again and became the Democratic Party nominee. He defeated Republican nominee Betty Dicky, the Redfield City Attorney, 59%-41%. He won all but four counties in the state: Benton, Boone, Marion, and Baxter.^[5] He was also delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 2000.

U.S. Senate

Pryor was recognized for providing a high level of constituent service, and he helped to secure millions of dollars in highway funds for the state. Pryor was also a committed advocate of the state’s military families; he guided the SACRIFICE Act to passage, thus providing families of those injured in combat more timely and reliable medical care. ^[6]

Elections

2002

In late 2001, Pryor announced his candidacy for the Senate seat held by Tim Hutchinson, who six years earlier had become the first Arkansas Republican to serve in that body since Reconstruction. The seat had been held by his father David Pryor (also a former Arkansas governor), who actively campaigned for his son. Pryor defeated Hutchinson 54% to 46% and was the only Democratic candidate for the Senate to defeat a Republican incumbent in that election cycle.

2008

Pryor won re-election in 2008 without a Republican opponent. There had been speculation that former Governor Mike Huckabee would run against Pryor if his presidential bid was unsuccessful, but on March 8, Huckabee said he would not contest the race.^[7] The only Republican to express interest in the race, health care executive Tom Formicola, decided not to run.^[8] Pryor's only announced opponent was Green Party candidate Rebekah Kennedy, whom he defeated 80% to 20%.

2014

Pryor ran for re-election to a third term in 2014, against Republican U.S. House Rep. Tom Cotton.

In March 2014, during an MSNBC news segment regarding the Senate race, Pryor said that Cotton gave off a "sense of entitlement" to a seat in the Senate due to his service in the military.^[9] After receiving much criticism for the remark, Pryor later said he was not attacking Cotton’s military service, but his perceived lack of accomplishments in the House: "But the point remains that he's been in the House now for a little over a year, he hadn't passed any legislation, there's no one thing he's done for Arkansas."^[10]

FactCheck.org called two ads aired by Pryor's 2014 Senate campaign misleading in their criticisms of Paul Ryan's Medicare plan, supported by his opponent.^[11]

Pryor lost to Cotton by a 57% to 39% margin.

Tenure

Somewhat atypically, he was, for 19 days in January 2009, the Baby of the Senate, despite not having previously held that distinction during his first term, because of the defeat of the younger John E. Sununu. Pryor was the oldest Senator (at age 45) to become "Baby of the Senate."

In June 2007, before the annual Arkansas Democratic Party Jefferson-Jackson dinner, Pryor announced his endorsement of his colleague Sen. Hillary Clinton for the President of the United States.^[12]

In 2013, Pryor voted with President Obama 90% of the time.^[13]

Since 2009, Pryor's top three donors have been lawyers ($1,131,431), leadership PACs ($429,149), and lobbyists ($323,769).^[14]

Fiscal policy

On February 13, 2009, Pryor voted to pass the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

On April 16, 2012, Pryor was the only Democratic Senator to vote against the "Buffett Rule", which was defeated 51 voting in favor to 45 voting against cloture of the Filibuster.^[15][16]

In April 2014, the United States Senate debated the Minimum Wage Fairness Act (S. 1737; 113th Congress). The bill would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) to increase the federal minimum wage for employees to $10.10 per hour over the course of a two-year period.^[17] The bill was strongly supported by President Barack Obama and many of the Democratic Senators, but strongly opposed by Republicans in the Senate and House.^[18][19][20] Pryor opposed the bill.^[19] Pryor was up for election in 2014 and was at that time considered "the Senate's most vulnerable incumbent."^[21]

Estate tax

In June 2006, Pryor voted against repeal of the federal estate tax (also known as the "death tax").^[22] In 2013, Pryor and Senator John Boozman (R-AR) were credited by Arkansas Farm Bureau president Randy Veach for their opposition to President Obama's plan to raise the estate tax. Pryor co-sponsored a bill that would implement a one-year extension on current estate tax rates.^[23][24] The bill did not pass. In 2008 Pryor voted against expanding the pool of people exempt from the death tax.^[25]

Health care

Pryor voted for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (usually called "Obamacare") in December 2009,^[26] and later voted against the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.^[27]

Pryor has said that he would vote for Obamacare again.^[28][29]

Foreign policy

Pryor opposes bringing Guantanamo Bay prisoners to the United States for trial.^[30]

On September 28, 2006, Pryor was one of 12 Senate Democrats who voted to adopt S.3930, the Military Commissions Act of 2006.^[31] He voted against the flag burning amendment in June 2006.

On March 15, 2007, Pryor was one of two Democratic Senators to vote against a resolution aimed at withdrawing most American combat troops from Iraq in 2008. The vote, requiring 60 votes to pass, was 50 to 48 against.^[32]

Social policy

In 2003, Pryor voted for a federal ban on partial-birth abortion.^[33] He has voted in favor of the expansion of embryonic stem cell research. He voted against restricting UN funding for population control policies, prohibiting minors crossing state lines for abortion, and barring Health and Human Services grants to organizations that perform abortions.^[34]

On December 18, 2010, Pryor voted in favor of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010.^[35][36]

Gun policy

In 2004 Pryor voted to extend the "Assault Weapons Ban".^[37][38]

In 2013, Pryor voted against a measure that would have required background checks for all firearms purchases.^[39]

In March 2013, Pryor cosponsored a bill that would flag individuals attempting to buy guns who have used an insanity defense, were ruled dangerous by a court, or had been committed by a court to mental health treatment. It did not address the gun show loophole. The bill has not been passed into law.^[40][41]

Judicial nominees

On May 23, 2005, Pryor was one of the 14 senators who forged a compromise on the Democrats' use of the judicial filibuster. This effectively ended any threat of a Democratic filibuster (and thus also avoided the Republican leadership's threatened implementation of the so-called nuclear option.) Under the agreement, the Democrats would exercise the power to filibuster a Bush judicial nominee only in an "extraordinary circumstance." The threat of a filibuster removed, Republicans were able to force cloture on the three most conservative Bush appellate court nominees (Janice Rogers Brown, Priscilla Owen and William Pryor-no relation), who subsequently passed a vote by the full Republican-controlled Senate.^[42] He did, however, vote against the nomination of Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court.^[43]

Legislation sponsored

Pryor introduced the Drought Information Act of 2013 (S. 376; 113th Congress) on February 25, 2013.^[44] The bill that would authorize funding for the National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) through 2018.^[45] The NIDIS is "charged with providing timely information to prevent drought and extreme weather damage."^[45] The bill passed the United States Senate on February 3, 2014.

Pryor introduced the bill "To repeal section 403 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013" on January 27, 2014.^[46] The bill would repeal the provision of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 that would reduce the amount of the annual cost of living increase to non-disabled military veterans under age 62.^[47] The Congressional Budget Office estimated that enacting Pryor's bill would stop the reduction of $6.813 billion from the amount paid to veterans annually.^[48]

Committee assignments

• Committee on Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies (Chairman)
  • Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Defense
  • Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
• Committee on Commerce, Science, Transportation
  • Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security
  • Subcommittee on Consumer Affairs, Insurance, and Automotive Safety (Chairman)
  • Subcommittee on Competitiveness, Innovation, and Export Promotion
  • Subcommittee on Science and Space
  • Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security
• Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
  • Subcommittee on Emergency Management, Intergovernmental Relations, and the District of Columbia
  • Subcommittee on the Efficiency and Effectiveness of Federal Programs and the Federal Workforce
  • Subcommittee on Financial and Contracting Oversight
  • Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
• Committee on Rules and Administration
• Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
• Select Committee on Ethics

Post-Senate career

In March 2015, Pryor became a partner at the law and lobbying firm, Venable.^[49]

Personal life

Pryor lives in Little Rock and has a son and a daughter, Adams and Porter.^[50] He was married to Jill Pryor from July 4, 1992 until their divorce in July 2012.^[51][52]

In 1996, Pryor was diagnosed with clear-cell sarcoma, a rare form of cancer, in his left leg.^[53] His treatment and rehabilitation took 15 months, and he was told by one doctor that he might have to have his leg amputated, but it was discovered early enough and the cancer was successfully removed.^[54]

Religious views

Pryor is Christian.^[55] He was featured in the 2008 Bill Maher documentary Religulous, in which he tells Maher that he could believe in Young Earth creationism,^[56] yet he also sees evolution as a feasible idea.^[57] He states at the beginning of the interview that he is an Evangelical Christian. He also states that he believes in the Rapture, and that "You don't need to pass an IQ test to be in the Senate".

According to author Jeff Sharlet, Pryor is affiliated with a political organization called the Family. Sharlet quoted Pryor as stating that through the Family he "had learned that the separation of church and state was a sort of secular exaggeration" and that "Jesus did not come to bring peace. Jesus came to take over."^[58]

Electoral history

U.S. Senator

2014

Arkansas U.S. Senate Election 2014

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Republican	Tom Cotton	476,309	56.52
	Democratic	Mark Pryor (Incumbent)	332,609	39.47

2008

United States Senate election in Arkansas, 2008^[59]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Mark Pryor (incumbent)	804,678	79.53
	Green	Rebekah Kennedy	207,076	20.47
Total votes			1,011,754	100.00
Invalid or blank votes			75,586	n/a
	Democratic hold

2002

Arkansas U.S. Senate Election 2002

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Democratic	Mark Pryor	433,306	53.9
	Republican	Tim Hutchinson (Incumbent)	370,653	46.1

References

Further reading

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Project Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at The Library of Congress

External links

• Mark Pryor at DMOZ
• Appearances on C-SPAN

Legal offices
Preceded by Winston Bryant	Attorney General of Arkansas 1999–2003	Succeeded by Mike Beebe
Party political offices
Preceded by Winston Bryant	Democratic nominee for U.S. Senator from Arkansas (Class 2) 2002, 2008, 2014	Most recent
United States Senate
Preceded by Tim Hutchinson	U.S. Senator (Class 2) from Arkansas 2003–2015 Served alongside: Blanche Lincoln, John Boozman	Succeeded by Tom Cotton
Honorary titles
Preceded by John Sununu	Youngest Member of the United States Senate January 3, 2009 – January 22, 2009	Succeeded by Michael Bennet