Jim Nussle

James Allen Nussle is a former Republican member of Congress from Iowa (1991-2007). He was Director of George W. Bush's Office of Management and Budget for a little over a year. After leaving the Bush administration, he went on to form a lobbying and media consulting group, the Nussle Group.

Ties to Pete Peterson's "Fix the Debt"
The Campaign to Fix the Debt is the latest incarnation of a decades-long effort by former Nixon man turned Wall Street billionaire Pete Peterson to slash earned benefit programs such as Social Security and Medicare under the guise of fixing the nation's "debt problem."

Nussle is on the steering committee of the Campaign to Fix the Debt.

This article is part of the Center for Media and Democracy's investigation of Pete Peterson's Campaign to "Fix the Debt." Please visit our main SourceWatch page on Fix the Debt.

Undisclosed Conflicts of Interest
Nussle is on the board of Avista Capital Partners, a $4 billion private equity firm with investments in energy (including shale-based natural gas recovery in the Marcellus formation) and healthcare. Avista Capital has joined the Private Equity Growth Capital Council (PEGCC), trade group that is fighting efforts to raise the tax rate on "carried interest." Vic Fazio (see above) is a key lobbyist for the group. Other PEGCC members include the Blackstone Group (co-founded by Pete Peterson), Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and Apollo Global Management. Nussle is also president and CEO of Growth Energy, a pro-ethanol trade association that has pushed for federal ethanol tax breaks, and for which the Nussle Group has lobbied. While in Congress, Nussle voted to end the moratoria on offshore drilling and drilling in ANWR, and strongly favored privatizing Social Security, which earned him a zero percent rating from the Alliance for Retired Americans. Nussle Group has also lobbied for Fix the Debt firm Verizon. He is now co-chair of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), the Pete Peterson-funded parent organization of Fix the Debt.

Iraq War
Nussle voted for the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002 that started the Iraq War.

Background
Nussle was born June 27, 1960 in Des Moines, Iowa. He was educated at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa and Drake University in Des Moines, and was a lawyer before entering the House. When Tom Tauke made an unsuccessful run against Senator Tom Harkin during the 1990 election, Nussle ran as the Republican candidate for Tauke's seat and won.

His second wife, Karen Chiccehitto Nussle, worked for Speaker Newt Gingrich, then later for the lobbying firm of Black, Kelly, Scruggs & Healey, a foreign-owned lobbying firm. In 2002, she was a communications professor at the University of Dubuque and is a regular fixture in his gubernatorial campaign.

Congressional Career
Nussle was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1991-2007 representing the 1st District of Iowa (map), and because of redistricting, earlier representing the 2nd District. Nussle was defeated by Democrat Chet Culver in a bid Governor of Iowa in 2006. Democrat Bruce Braley picked up Nussle's old house seat.

Nussle's voting record has been relatively conservative, despite representing a district with a slight Democratic lean.

Nussle was elected to the U.S. House in 1990 in a close race. In 1992, Nussle ran against fellow House member David "Dave" Nagle for because the first and second district had been combined into one after Iowa lost a district after the 1990 census. Nussle won, even though he had only one term under his belt to Nagle's three.

Nussle's first national attention came when he made a speech from the well of the House while wearing a paper bag over his head to protest the "shameful" ethical behavior involved in the House banking scandal. Nussle, and the rest of the Gang of Seven cast themselves as young, idealistic conservatives, looking to reduce corruption in congressional politics.

Gubernatorial Bid
When Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack announced that he would not seek a third term as Governor, Jim Nussle considered a run shortly after Vilsack made his announcement. On June 2, 2005 in Davenport, Iowa Nussle announced he would run for Governor in the 2006. Democrats nominated Bruce Braley and Republicans nominated Mike Whalen to contest the November 2006 election for his vacant seat. (See U.S. congressional elections in 2006) Nussle lost the election to Democrat Chet Culver.

OMB Director
On June 19, 2007, following the resignation of Rob Portman as Director of the Office of Management and Budget, President Bush announced his nomination of Jim Nussle as his Portman's replacement.

Nussle was confirmed September 4, 2007, by the U.S. Senate as Director of the Office of Management and Budget. Nussle replaces Robert J. Portman, who resigned.

President George W. Bush nominated Nussle on June 19, 2007.

Committees in the 109th Congress (2005-2006)

 * House Committee on Budget - Chair
 * House Committee on Ways and Means
 * Subcommittee on Trade

Coalitions and Caucuses

 * Congressional Alcohol Fuels Caucus
 * Vice Chair, National Republican Congressional Committee
 * Co-Chair, Rural Health Care Coalition

Boards and other Affiliations

 * Steering Committee, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) project "Strengthening of America - Our Children's Future" (listed as a partner organization of Fix the Debt )
 * Member, Delaware County Farm Bureau
 * Deleware County Economic Development Committee, Manchester Area Chamber of Commerce
 * Volunteer Firefighter, Manchester Fire Department.

Featured SourceWatch Articles on Fix the Debt

 * Fix the Debt Portal Page
 * Fix the Debt's Leadership
 * Fix the Debt's Partner Groups
 * Fix the Debt's State Chapters
 * Fix the Debt's Lobbyists
 * Fix the Debt's Parent Group
 * Fix the Debt's Corporations
 * Pete Peterson
 * Peter G. Peterson Foundation
 * America Speaks
 * Simpson-Bowles Commission
 * Erskine Bowles
 * Alan Simpson
 * Social Security
 * Medicare
 * Medicaid

External Resources

 * 2004 profile of Nussle in US News and World Reports
 * Open Secrets - 2006 congressional races database

Local Blogs and Discussion Sites

 * Nussle & Flow
 * Nussle Watch
 * Diary of a political madman
 * Political Forecast
 * Blog for Iowa
 * Century of the Common Iowan

External Articles

 * "What will Jim Nussle put on the Auction Block next?" The GOPAuction House.
 * Arianna Huffington, "Enron and Nussle," Salon, January 28, 2002.
 * Terence Samuel, "Bracing for a bruising budget battle," U.S. News & World Report, March 22, 2004.
 * Thomas Beaumont, "Nussle announces intent to run for governor. The congressman files paperwork that allows him to raise and spend money related to running for governor," Des Moisnes Register, January 7, 2005.
 * Thomas Beaumont, "Democrats to release Nussle attack ad," Des Moines Register (Iowa), June 1, 2005.
 * Gordon R. Fischer, "Congresswoman Katherine Harris *LOVES* Congressman Jim Nussle. When Bad Things Happen to Bad People," Iowa True Blue, March 13, 2006.
 * O. Kay Henderson, "Democrats create website critical of Republican Jim Nussle," Radio Iowa, March 23, 2006.