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Kelly Ayotte
United States Senator from New Hampshire
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2011 Serving with Jeanne Shaheen
Preceded by	Judd Gregg
New Hampshire Attorney General
In office June 15, 2004 – July 17, 2009
Governor	Craig Benson John H. Lynch
Preceded by	Peter Heed
Succeeded by	Michael Delaney
Personal details
Born	Kelly A. Ayotte (1968-06-27) June 27, 1968 (age 43) Nashua, New Hampshire
Nationality	American
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Joseph Daley[1]
Children	Katherine, Jacob
Residence	Nashua, New Hampshire
Alma mater	Pennsylvania State University (B.A.) Villanova University School of Law (J.D.)
Religion	Roman Catholic[1]
Website	www.ayotte.senate.gov Campaign Website

Kelly A. Ayotte (born June 27, 1968) is the junior United States Senator from New Hampshire and a member of the Republican Party. She earlier served as the Attorney General of New Hampshire.^[2]

Early life, education and career[link]

Ayotte was born in Nashua, New Hampshire on June 27, 1968, the daughter of Kathleen M. (née Sullivan) and Marc Frederick Ayotte. Her father's family is French-Canadian.^[3] She attended Nashua High School. She received a B.A. from Pennsylvania State University majoring in political science. In 1993, Ayotte graduated from Villanova University School of Law, where she had served as Editor of the Environmental Law Journal.^[4]

Ayotte clerked for Sherman D. Horton Associate Justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court, for one year. From 1994 to 1998, she was an associate at the Manchester law firm of McLane, Graf, Raulerson & Middleton.^[5] In 1998, she joined the office of the New Hampshire Attorney General as a prosecutor. In 2003, Ayotte became legal counsel to Governor Craig Benson. She returned to the Attorney General's office three months later, becoming Deputy Attorney General.^[6] In June 2004, Ayotte was appointed Attorney General of the State of New Hampshire by Governor Craig Benson following Peter Heed's resignation as Attorney General amid allegations that he had sexually harassed a female state employee.^[7]

New Hampshire Attorney General[link]

Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England[link]

In 2003, the Federal District Court for the District of New Hampshire found the New Hampshire law requiring parental notification of a minor's abortion, the Parental Notification Prior to Abortion Act,^[8] unconstitutional and enjoined its enforcement. In 2004, New Hampshire Attorney General Peter Heed appealed this ruling to the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. The Court of Appeals affirmed the District Court's ruling. In 2004, Ayotte, having replaced Heed as New Hampshire Attorney General, appealed the Appeals Court's ruling to the Supreme Court, over the objection of incoming Democratic governor John Lynch. Ayotte personally argued the case before the Supreme Court. Governor John Lynch, upon assuming office as governor, submitted an amicus curiae brief in opposition to the Parental Notification Prior to Abortion Act.

In Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of New England, the Supreme Court vacated the ruling by the District Court and remanded the case back to the District Court.^[9] The Supreme Court held that (1) "invalidating the statute entirely is not always necessary or justified, for lower courts may be able to render narrower declaratory and injunctive relief" and (2) "when confronting a statute's constitutional flaw, this Court tries to limit the solution to the problem, preferring to enjoin only the statute's unconstitutional applications while leaving the others in force or to sever its problematic portions while leaving the remainder intact."^[9]

In 2007, the New Hampshire Parental Notification Prior to Abortion Act was repealed by the New Hampshire legislature, rendering a rehearing by the District Court moot.^[10]

In 2008, a Federal District Court judge ordered the New Hampshire Department of Justice to pay Planned Parenthood's attorney fees and court costs, finding that Planned Parenthood's position had been upheld at every level of judicial review.^[11] In April 2009, Ayotte, as Attorney General, authorized a payment of $300,000 to Planned Parenthood.^[12]

Prosecution of high profile murder cases[link]

Ayotte has prosecuted two high profile capital murder cases.

Murder of police officer Michael Briggs[link]

One case resulted in both a conviction and death penalty sentence for the killing of an on-duty Manchester Police Officer in 2006.^[13] Ayotte has been criticized for pursuing the death penalty in the case, as opposed to seeking a life sentence without parole. Prosecutions seeking the death penalty typically cost several million dollars to adjudicate.^[14] To date, the state of New Hampshire has spent $2.7 million on the case.^[14] The death penalty in the case is currently being appealed.^[15][16] The defendant in this case is the sole inmate on New Hampshire's Death Row.^[14] New Hampshire has not carried out the death penalty in over seventy years and lacks an execution chamber.^[14] The New Hampshire Department of Corrections estimated in 2008 that it would cost $3.4 million to build and staff a chamber to carry out death by lethal injection.^[14] Several non-profit groups have argued that the money spent seeking the death penalty sentence would be better spent on assistance to the surviving families of the victims.^[17] In 2009, the New Hampshire legislature established the Commission to Study the Death Penalty in New Hampshire^[18] to study whether New Hampshire should abolish the death penalty. Some have also questioned whether race and class played a role in the jury's decision to impose a death penalty sentence in the case. The victim in the case was white and the defendant an unemployed indigent black man.^[13] Ninety-five percent of the New Hampshire population is white.

Members of the slain police officer's family have appeared in television ads for her Senate campaign praising her leadership.^[19][20]

Emails exchanged in 2006 between Ayotte and her 2010 campaign strategist Rob Varsalone, in which they discussed both her political future and her decision to seek the death penalty in the Briggs case, became public during her 2010 campaign for the Senate. Her Democratic opponent, Paul Hodes, accused Ayotte of using the case for political gain and politicizing the case.^[21]

Two former prosecutors turned personal-injury attorneys alleged that Ayotte's conduct in the case violated American Bar Association standards of conduct which state that "in making the decision to prosecute, the prosecutor should give no weight to the personal or political advantages or disadvantages which might be involved" and "should not permit his or her professional judgment or obligations to be affected by his or her own political, financial, business, property or personal interests."^[22]

John Brooks case[link]

In the second capital murder case that Ayotte prosecuted in 2008, a Rockingham County jury convicted a wealthy white businessman of capital murder for hiring three men to kill a handyman whom the defendant believed had stolen from him. In that case, the jury rejected the death penalty and elected to sentence the defendant to life in prison without parole even though the jury had found that aggravating factors had outweighed mitigating factors in their consideration of the sentence.^[23] Some have questioned whether race and class played a role in the jury's decision not to impose the death penalty in the case.^[13][23]

Dartmouth Murders[link]

In an earlier case, Ayotte, while serving as an assistant Attorney General, had prosecuted two defendants for the "Dartmouth Murders" in Etna, New Hampshire. In 2001, a married couple, both professors at Dartmouth College originally from Germany, were murdered in their home. The two defendants charged in the case, both high school students at the time of the murders, accepted plea bargains and pleaded guilty. The "Dartmouth Murders" were widely reported on by national and international media.

Financial Resources Mortgage fraud[link]

Ayotte has been criticized for her former office's alleged refusal to investigate charges against mortgage investment firm Financial Resources Mortgage (FRM)^[24] which has been accused of orchestrating a $80–100 million Ponzi scheme. Scott Farah, the former president of Financial Resources Mortgage, was accused of swindling investors out of millions of dollars, using investor funds to pay other investors and his own personal expenses, and has agreed, under a plea agreement, to plead guilty to federal wire and mail fraud charges in exchange for a nearly 20-year prison sentence.^[25]

In May 2010, New Hampshire's current Attorney General Michael Delaney issued a report^{[26][27][28][29][30][31][32]} faulting New Hampshire's Attorney General's office during Ayotte's tenure, the state Banking Department and the state Securities Bureau for failing to investigate complaints against Financial Resources Mortgage. Concurrently, a joint state legislative committee^[33][34] conducted an independent investigation and held public hearings. The Joint Legislative Committee to Review the State’s Regulatory Oversight Over Financial Resources Mortgage reached conclusions similar to those of Delaney's report, according to a draft report.^{[25][35][36][37]}

Republican candidate for Governor John Stephen has criticized Ayotte for her lack of oversight of Financial Resources Mortgage's activities. Stephens has said that Ayotte "has to be held accountable" for her and the New Hampshire Department of Justice's failure to act on complaints received about Financial Resources Mortgage's conduct.^[38]

Deleted emails[link]

Ayotte's office deleted Ayotte's email and calendar of appointments from their computer systems prior to Ayotte's resignation as New Hampshire Attorney General.^[39] Two days before Ayotte resigned her post as Attorney General and less than one week before Ayotte filed to run for the Senate Republican primary, Ayotte's office issued a policy memorandum covering deleted emails.^[40] The memorandum states that, "While courts have not yet addressed the issue, it is our view that electronic records that have been legally deleted and are available only on system back-up storage media are properly treated as no longer subject to disclosure" under New Hampshire's Right-to-Know Law.^[40][41]

On September 10, 2010, the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office released copies of many, but not all, of Ayotte's deleted emails in response to Right-to-Know requests.^[42] The Attorney General's Office also reported that many of Ayotte's "deleted" emails could not be recovered because backup tapes on which they had been stored had been re-used.^[40][41]

The legality of the permanent deletion of Ayotte's emails by New Hampshire's Attorney General's office is the subject of a law suit currently pending in New Hampshire's Merrimack County Superior Court.^[40]

On October 11, 2010, Paul Hodes, Democratic candidate for the Senate, accused Ayotte of using a capital murder case that Ayotte prosecuted in 2006 for political gain and for politicizing the case. Hodes based his accusation upon emails exchanged between Ayotte and Rob Varsalone, currently Ayotte's campaign strategist, during 2006.^[43][44] The emails were released to the public by the New Hampshire Department of Justice on September 10, 2010 under a Right-to-Know request. Subsequently, Hodes has suggested, based on Ayotte's released emails, that Ayotte's political ambitions may have in part motivated Ayotte's decision to seek the death penalty in the case.^[43][44]

New Hampshire Institute of Politics[link]

Ayotte previously served as a board member of the Public Advisory Board at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College while Attorney General.^[45]

U.S. Senate[link]

2010 election[link]

Ayotte campaigning in Amherst, New Hampshire on Independence Day 2010

Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Judd Gregg decided to retire, instead of seeking re-election in the 2010 senate election in New Hampshire. Ayotte resigned as Attorney General on July 7, 2009 to explore a run for U.S. Senate in 2010.^[46][47][48] Ayotte was recruited by the National Republican Party (National Republican Senatorial Committee) in Washington to enter the race.^{[49][50][51][52]} On September 14, 2010, Ayotte defeated lawyer Ovide M. Lamontagne, businessman Bill Binnie and Jim Bender in the Republican Senate primary. In the general election, Ayotte ran against Democratic nominee U.S. Representative Paul Hodes, Libertarian nominee Ken Blevens, and Independent Chris Booth.

Endorsements[link]

Many prominent GOP figures went to New Hampshire to help Ayotte in her 2010 campaign, including John McCain, Sarah Palin, Mitt Romney, Haley Barbour, and Rick Santorum.^[53] According to one senior GOP aide, “The addition of a Republican woman from New England who’s young, who’s a mom ... all of these things broaden the Republican party’s appeal and say to different segments of the population, ‘This party has folks in it that are just like you.’”^[53]

Committee assignments[link]

• Committee on Armed Services
• Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
• Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
• Special Committee on Aging

Political positions[link]

Abortion[link]

Ayotte is pro-life and believes that abortion should be prohibited except in cases of rape, incest or health of the mother.^[54] Where abortion is legal, Ayotte supports parental notification before abortions may be performed on unemancipated minors and opposes any federal funding for elective abortions in accordance with the Hyde Amendment.^[55] Ayotte has expressed her determination to be a vocal opponent of abortion in the U.S. Senate.^[55]

Gay marriage and adoption by same-sex couples[link]

Ayotte opposes same-sex marriage and adoption by same-sex couples which are both legal in New Hampshire.^[54][56][54] Ayotte resigned as state Attorney General shortly after Governor John Lynch signed a set of three same sex marriage bills into law to which she was opposed.^[57]

I absolutely support and believe in marriage as between a man and a woman, and I do think it's unfortunate that our state has made a different decision on that. And I know that many of you who are out there working at the state level, running for state office, I commend your efforts to repeal that law here in the state of New Hampshire. And I think that's very important. I do not think that we should overturn DOMA because absolutely, for states to decide marriage, we don't want one state's decision impacting another state's. So I would vote against any repeal of DOMA because of that. And I wish you all well and I would love to help with any effort to get our law back in the right place on this.

—Ayotte at the June 5th 2010 Americans For Prosperity/NH – Cornerstone Action Senatorial Debate^[58]

In 2008 Ayotte joined other Attorneys General to repudiate same-sex marriages performed in other states, however she changed her position when informed that New Hampshire already recognizes these marriages.^[59]

Labor rights and minimum wage[link]

Ayotte opposes passage of Employee Free Choice Act ("Card Check"), a bill currently under consideration by Congress that proposes to amend the National Labor Relations Act to change the process by which employees decide whether to form or join a labor union.^[60]

Ayotte opposes passage of legislation that would subject the minimum wage to automatic cost-of-living adjustments.^[61] Ayotte opposes any increase in the minimum wage.^[62]

Ayotte opposes passage of legislation that mandates that employers provide paid sick leave to their employees.^[61]

Gun rights[link]

Ayotte supports an individual's right to bear arms and Second Amendment rights.^[54] Ayotte supported the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the Washington, DC and City of Chicago gun ownership bans. As Attorney General, Ayotte fought against the reauthorization of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban.^[63]

In contrast, however, Ayotte opposed establishing a Castle Doctrine on the 2nd amendment. In 2006 Ayotte opposed a Republican-backed bill that would clearly establish a Castle doctrine for New Hampshire. Democratic Governor John Lynch sided with Ayotte and vetoed the bill.^[64]

Immigration[link]

Ayotte supports Arizona SB 1070, Arizona's anti-illegal immigration law passed in 2010. Ayotte believes that the Arizona legislature was justified in their passage of this law.^[65] Ayotte supports the enforcement of all existing immigration laws and is against the granting of amnesty to any illegal immigrant.^[65][66]

The Internet[link]

Ayotte withdrew her cosponsorship of the PROTECT IP (Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act of 2011).

Climate change[link]

Ayotte questions the findings of scientific societies that human activity has caused significant climate change.^[67] Ayotte says that "there is scientific evidence that demonstrates there is some impact from human activities. However I don't think the evidence is conclusive."^[68]

Health care[link]

Ayotte opposes a single-payer health care system. Ayotte opposes restrictions on purchasing insurance across state lines, supports a ban on insurance discrimination based on pre-existing conditions and supports tort reform. Ayotte supports the adoption of electronic medical records and processes that coordinate patient care.^[69] Ayotte supports state administered healthcare programs such as SCHIP and federal tax credits that serve to reduce the number of uninsured.^[70]

Ayotte has pledged to sponsor and support legislation to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ("ObamaCare") passed in 2010.^[69]

Medical marijuana[link]

Ayotte thinks marijuana should go through the FDA process before being approved.^[71]

Social Security[link]

Ayotte has stated that she is open to raising the Social Security retirement age for younger workers.^[61]

U.S. Supreme Court[link]

Ayotte has stated that she is in favor of increasing the diversity of the court by including candidates from the Executive branch of government such as former Presidential cabinet members or candidates who have held elected positions to avoid having a Supreme Court composed exclusively of former lower court judges.^[72]

Ayotte opposed the confirmation of Justice Elena Kagan, stating that Kagan is unqualified.^[73] Ayotte has said that she probably would have voted in favor of confirming Justice Sonia Sotomayor.^[72]

Congressional term limits[link]

Ayotte is in favor of congressional term limits. She has vowed to serve no more than two terms (12 years) in office.^{[citation needed]}

Government spending[link]

Ayotte favors passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.^[74] Ayotte favors ending any additional spending under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the"Stimulus Bill") and the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 ("TARP").^[75][75]

Ayotte believes that Congress should end the process of earmarking.^[75]

"I wouldn't have supported the TARP or the bailouts," Ayotte told a reporter. "Let the market adjust and pick the winners and losers. I do not think we should have bailed out the private sector. You start a business and when you succeed, the fruits of that is profits and when you fail, you pay the price."^[68]

To counter the federal government's debt and deficit problem, Ayotte proposes that every government department cut its budget by 20 percent from current levels, though "some may cut more, some may cut less".^[66][68] "We are on the path to bankrupt the greatest nation in the world."^[66][68]

Taxes[link]

Ayotte supports an indefinite extension of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 ("Bush tax cuts") which cuts the federal taxes paid by all taxpayers including the wealthiest, saying: "to increase taxes on anyone is the wrong approach",^[68] and "[I] fully support extending the tax rates the way they are now for everybody in this country".^[66] Ayotte supports the permanent elimination of all estate taxes,^[76] an immediate cut in payroll tax rates,^[76] additional income tax cuts for all corporations,^[66] cuts in capital gains taxes and reduced tax rates for small business owners who file individual income tax returns,^[76] accelerated depreciation for investments in equipment by small businesses^[76] and a simplified tax code.^[76]

Financial regulation[link]

Ayotte opposed passage of the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act signed into law on July 21, 2010. The purpose of the act is

To promote the financial stability of the United States by improving accountability and transparency in the financial system, to end "too big to fail", to protect the American taxpayer by ending bailouts, to protect consumers from abusive financial services practices, and for other purposes.

Ayotte's opposition to the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act is based on the Act's failure, in Ayotte's opinion, to directly address the "problem of" Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and Ayotte's belief that the Act imposes additional regulatory burdens on community banks.^[77]

War in Afghanistan[link]

In September 2009 Ayotte stated that she supports a timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan.^[78] Ayotte supports drone strikes in the tribal areas of Pakistan.^[79]

Al Qaeda[link]

Ayotte believes that Al Qaeda and its affiliates are foreign enemies that have declared war on the U.S. and that the U.S. must treat all members of Al Qaeda and its affiliates as enemy combatants regardless of their nationality and location.^[79]

Ayotte believes that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab is an Al Qaeda affiliated terrorist, and that Abdulmutallab should be treated as an enemy combatant and not as a criminal.^[79] Abdulmutallab is the Nigerian man who unsuccessfully attempted to detonate plastic explosives hidden in his underwear while on board Northwest Flight 253 en route from Amsterdam to Detroit, Michigan on December 25, 2009.^[80][81] On January 6, 2010, Abdulmutallab was indicted by a U.S. Attorney in the Federal District Court in Michigan on six criminal counts, including the attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and the attempted murder of 289 people.^[80] Abdulmutallab is currently in U.S. custody, awaiting trial and has been cooperating with the FBI.^[82]

Ayotte believes that Abdulmutallab should have been held in military custody and tried before a military commission, a process whereby Abdulmutallab would not be accorded the rights accorded by U.S. law to defendants in criminal proceedings.^[79] She also supports drone strikes in Yemen and tribal areas of North Waziristan (Pakistan), where Al-Qaeda terrorists are believed to be sheltered. She opposes a civilian criminal trial for 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed in New York City, and bringing Guantánamo detainees onto U.S. soil.^[79]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kelly Ayotte

• Senator Kelly Ayotte official U.S. Senate website
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Appearances at the Internet Movie Database
• Collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Works by or about Kelly Ayotte in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Profile at Ballotpedia