Patty Murray

Patricia Lynn "Patty" Murray (née Johns; October 11, 1950) is the senior United States Senator from the State of Washington and a member of the Democratic Party. Murray was first elected to the Senate in 1992, becoming Washington's first female senator. Murray was re-elected in 1998, 2004, 2010, and 2016.

Murray has served as the Senate Majority Conference Secretary from 2007 until 2017, making her the fourth-highest-ranking Democrat and the highest-ranking woman in the Senate. In 2017 Murray became the Senate Assistant Minority Leader, making her the third-highest-ranking Democrat and still the highest-ranking woman in the Senate. Murray chaired the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee from 2001 to 2003 and again from 2011 to 2013. Murray chaired the Senate Budget Committee from 2013 to 2015. She also previously served as co-chair of the United States Congress Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction. Beginning in January 2015, Murray will be the Ranking Democratic Member on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. She is currently the 9th most senior member of the United States Senate and the 3rd most senior Democrat.

On December 10, 2013, Murray and Republican Representative Paul Ryan announced that they had negotiated a two-year, bipartisan budget, known as the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013.

One of seven children, Murray was born in Bothell, Washington, a daughter of David L. Johns and Beverly A. McLaughlin. Her mother was an accountant. Her father served in World War II and was awarded a Purple Heart. Her ancestry includes Welsh, Irish, Scottish, and French-Canadian. When she was a teenager, her family was forced to apply for welfare assistance when her father became disabled by the onset of multiple sclerosis. He had previously been the manager of a five-and-ten store. She attended Saint Brendan Catholic School as a young child.

Murray received her Bachelor of Arts degree in physical education from Washington State University in 1972. She was a preschool teacher for several years and taught a parenting class at Shoreline Community College from 1984–87.

As a citizen-lobbyist for environmental and educational issues, she says she was once told by a state representative that she could not make a difference because she was just a "mom in tennis shoes". The phrase stuck, and she later used it in her successful campaigns for Shoreline School District Board of Directors (1985–1989), Washington State Senate (1989–1993), and United States Senate (1993–present). Murray was successful in gathering grassroots support to strike down proposed preschool program budget cuts.

Her 1988 State Senate campaign was successful and she unseated two-term incumbent Republican Bill Kiskaddon.

Senator Murray at the podium, joined by (left to right), Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), launching an interactive website regarding the nomination of Judge John Roberts as the Chief Justice of the United States.

Committee assignments

• Committee on Appropriations
  • Subcommittee on Defense
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
  • Subcommittee on Homeland Security
  • Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Ranking Member)
  • Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
  • Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
• Committee on Veterans' Affairs
• Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (Ranking Member)
• Committee on the Budget

Caucus memberships

• Senate Oceans Caucus
• Senate Aerospace Caucus

Legislation

On February 28, 2013, Murray introduced the Green Mountain Lookout Heritage Protection Act into the United States Senate. The bill would prevent the United States Forest Service from removing a building from the Glacier Peak Wilderness Area in the State of Washington unless the agency determines that the structure is unsafe for visitors. Murray argued that the bill should be passed in order to help the tourism industry in the area, but protecting the lookout point in question. The bill would be "a very small step in what will be a very long recovery" and that it would "provide a glimmer of hope for the long-term recovery of this area." Murray was referring to the recovery of the area from the casualties and damage caused by the 2014 Oso mudslide. The bill passed in both the House and the Senate.

Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan

Major General Galen Jackman briefs Senator Patty Murray on the Manned Ground Vehicle program in Washington D.C.

In October 2002, Murray was one of 21 Democrats in the Senate to vote against the War Authoritization for invading Iraq. Quoted from her Senate speech:

Mr. President, if we do take action in Iraq, there is no doubt that our armed forces will prevail. We will win a war with Iraq decisively, and, God willing, we will win it quickly. But what happens after the war? That will have as big an impact on our future peace and security. Will we be obligated to rebuild Iraq? If so, how? Our economy is reeling, our budget is in deficit, and we have no estimate of the cost of rebuilding. And with whom? As New York Times columnist Tom Friedman points out, there's a retail store mentality that suggests to some – if "you break it, you buy it."

In December 2002, while speaking to students at Columbia River High School in Vancouver, Murray made a number of remarks about Osama bin Laden, as she attempted to explain why the US had such problems winning hearts and minds in the Muslim world, and how bin Laden had garnered support among some in the Middle East. Among other things, she had stated that bin Laden has "been out in these countries for decades, building schools, building roads, building infrastructure, building daycare facilities, building health care facilities, and the people are extremely grateful. He's made their lives better. We have not done that." This attracted attention from political opponents, who argued that this was inaccurate and constituted support for bin Laden.

Global Trade Exchange

Senator Patty Murray put the controversial intelligence ports-data project Global Trade Exchange into the Homeland security budget.

1992

In 1992, Murray announced her intention to run for the U.S. Senate following the publication of a series of articles by The Seattle Times alleging that incumbent Democratic Senator Brock Adams had sexually assaulted a number of women. Adams denied the allegations, but his popularity statewide was weakened considerably by the scandal and he chose to retire rather than risk losing the seat for his party. Murray defeated Representative Don Bonker to win the Democratic nomination. In the general election she faced Republican Representative Rod Chandler, whom she defeated 54% to 46% despite being outspent by a wide margin. Chandler seemed to have the upper hand in one of the debates until for some unknown reason he quoted the Roger Miller song "Dang Me." He was further damaged by the unpopularity of President George H. W. Bush in the Pacific Northwest.

Results

1998

In 1998, Murray faced Representative Linda Smith, a staunch conservative and maverick who was one of nine House Republicans to vote against confirming House Speaker Newt Gingrich in early 1997, opposed gay rights and viewed homosexuality as a "morally unfit inclination." Murray won re-election by 58% to 42%.

Results

2004

In 2004, Murray faced another Republican Representative, George Nethercutt. Term limits became an issue in the campaign, as Democrats seized on Nethercutt's broken term-limits pledge that he had made when he unseated Speaker Tom Foley in 1994. Nethercutt was also hampered by his lack of name recognition in the more densely populated western part of the state, home to two-thirds of the state's population. Washington has not elected a Senator from east of the Cascades since Miles Poindexter in 1916. Other important issues included national security and the war in Iraq. Nethercutt supported the invasion of Iraq, while Murray opposed it. Nethercutt was a heavy underdog from the start and his campaign never gained much traction. In the general election, Murray was re-elected by 55% to 43%.

Results

2010

The 2010 election was the first Senate election to be held under the new blanket primary since Initiative 872 had passed in 2004. In the August 17 primary, Murray appeared on the ballot alongside four other Democratic candidates, six Republican candidates, a Reform Party candidate and three Independent candidates. Murray received a plurality, 46%, and advanced to the general election along with her main Republican challenger, former State Senator and two-time gubernatorial nominee Dino Rossi, who received 33%. Leading up to the election, Murray was endorsed by several prominent Washington State newspapers. Rossi conceded the election to Murray on November 4, 2010, two days after election day. The final tally showed Murray with 52.36% to Rossi's 47.64%, enabling Murray to go on to serve a fourth term in the United States Senate.

Results

Blanket primary election results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Y Patty Murray (incumbent)	670,284	46.22
	Republican	Y Dino Rossi	483,305	33.33
	Republican	Clint Didier	185,034	12.76
	Republican	Paul Akers	37,231	2.57
	Independent	Skip Mercer	12,122	0.84
	Democratic	Charles Allen	11,525	0.79
	Democratic	Bob Burr	11,344	0.78
	Republican	Norma Gruber	9,162	0.63
	Republican	Michael Latimer	6,545	0.45
	Democratic	Mike the Mover	6,019	0.42
	Democratic	Goodspaceguy	4,718	0.33
	Reform	William Baker	4,593	0.32
	Independent	Mohammad Said	3,387	0.23
	Independent	Schalk Leonard	2,818	0.19
	Republican	William Chovil	2,039	0.14
Total votes			1,450,126	100

2016

Murray ran for a fifth term in 2016. She faced three Democratic challengers in the August 2, 2016 primary election. In the general election, she faced Chris Vance. She defeated Vance 60% to 40% and won a fifth term.

Murray is married to Rob Murray and has two grown children, Sara and Randy. Murray's hometown is Bothell, Washington, but she now lives on Whidbey Island, Washington.