Steve Kagen
Encyclopedia
Steven Leslie Kagen, M.D. (born December 12, 1949, in Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton is a city in Outagamie, Calumet, and Winnebago Counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is situated on the Fox River, 30 miles southwest of Green Bay and 100 miles north of Milwaukee. Appleton is the county seat of Outagamie County. The population was 78,086 at the 2010 census...

) is a physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...

 and was the U.S. Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 for , serving from 2007 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

. He was defeated in his bid for re-election in 2010 by Reid Ribble, and officially succeeded by him on January 3, 2011.

The district is located in the northeastern part of the state and includes Green Bay
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...

 and Appleton
Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton is a city in Outagamie, Calumet, and Winnebago Counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is situated on the Fox River, 30 miles southwest of Green Bay and 100 miles north of Milwaukee. Appleton is the county seat of Outagamie County. The population was 78,086 at the 2010 census...

.

Early life and education

Kagen was born on December, 12 1949 in Appleton
Appleton, Wisconsin
Appleton is a city in Outagamie, Calumet, and Winnebago Counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is situated on the Fox River, 30 miles southwest of Green Bay and 100 miles north of Milwaukee. Appleton is the county seat of Outagamie County. The population was 78,086 at the 2010 census...

, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

. His first job was with the Appleton Department of Parks and Recreation as a playground leader during the summer months of both his sophomore and junior years at Appleton High School. After graduating in the first class from the new Appleton East High School
Appleton East High School
Appleton East High School is a comprehensive secondary school located in Appleton, Wisconsin. Part of the Appleton Area School District, Appleton East is one of three public four-year high schools in the city. It is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools and...

, Kagen worked as a Teamster
Teamster
A teamster, in modern American English, is a truck driver. The trade union named after them is the International Brotherhood of Teamsters , one of the largest unions in the United States....

 in a dairy bagging sugar and whey for part of a summer. He later attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he earned a Degree in Molecular Biology
Molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...

, with Honors. Kagen then entered medical school, and later trained at both Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....

 in Chicago, Illinois and the Medical College of Wisconsin
Medical College of Wisconsin
Medical College of Wisconsin is a private, freestanding medical school and graduate school located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was formerly affiliated with Marquette University....

 in Milwaukee. He is triple Board Certified in Internal Medicine; Allergy, Asthma and Immunology; and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology.

Kagen's father, Marv, also a doctor, was an unsuccessful Democratic Congressional candidate in 1966. The younger Dr. Kagen performed extensive volunteer work for his father's campaign and cited his father's campaign as a major factor in his interest in politics.

Medical career

Dr. Kagen went on to become an allergist, founding four clinics in Appleton, Green Bay, Fond du Lac
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
Fond du Lac is a city in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, United States. The name is French for bottom of the lake, for it is located at the bottom of Lake Winnebago. The population was 42,203 at the 2000 census...

, and Oshkosh
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
As of the census of 2000, there were 62,916 people, 24,082 households, and 13,654 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,662.2 people per square mile . There were 25,420 housing units at an average density of 1,075.6 per square mile...

.

Before his election, he also served as an Assistant Clinical Professor at the Medical College of Wisconsin
Medical College of Wisconsin
Medical College of Wisconsin is a private, freestanding medical school and graduate school located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was formerly affiliated with Marquette University....

. He is Board Certified in Internal Medicine, Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology. He is also credited with having discovered many new causes of allergy and asthma, and served for seven years as the exclusive Allergy Consultant to CNN, CNN Airport News, CNN Headline News, and CNN Interactive.

Committee assignments

  • Agriculture Committee
    United States House Committee on Agriculture
    The U.S. House Committee on Agriculture, or Agriculture Committee is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. The House Committee on Agriculture has general jurisdiction over federal agriculture policy and oversight of some federal agencies, and it can recommend funding...

    • Subcommittee on Department Operations, Oversight, Nutrition and Forestry
    • Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry
      United States House Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry
      The House Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry is a subcommittee within the House Agriculture Committee. It oversees all issues relating to livestock, dairy, poultry, meat, seafood and seafood products including federal inspection, marketing, and promotion of these commodities...

  • Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
    United States House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
    The U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. John Mica currently chairs the committee.-History:...

    • Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation
      United States House Transportation Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation
      The Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation is a subcommittee within the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The Subcommittee has jurisdiction over maritime safety, security, law enforcement, and defense. Additionally, the Subcommittee exercises jurisdiction over...

    • Subcommittee on Highways and Transit
      United States House Transportation Subcommittee on Highways and Transit
      The House Transportation Subcommittee on Highways and Transit is a subcommittee within the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The subcommittee oversees highway, transit, and highway safety programs in the United States, as well as policy governing how highway and transit projects...

    • Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment
      United States House Transportation Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment
      The Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment is a subcommittee within the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The subcommittee has jurisdiction over water conservation, pollution control, infrastructure, and hazardous waste cleanup, the civil works programs of the U.S. Army...


Political positions

Rep. Kagen supported and voted for the 911 Commission Recommendations Act, the Minimum Wage increase, the SCHIP Children's Health Bill, the "Pay As You Go" Bill, campaign and lobbying reforms, oversight of FISA warrants and terror surveillance. He is a cosponsor of the Pharmaceutical Market Access and Drug Safety Act (H.R.380). This legislation would allow the importation of drugs from Canada for personal use and from an importer registered by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Kagen is also a cosponsor of the Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act of 2007 (H.R. 4) and voted in favor of its passage in the U.S. House of Representatives in January 2007. The U.S. Senate has yet to consider this measure. Kagen has voted for all military appropriations bills, and authored a bill, the Rural Veterans Mental Health Improvement Act (H.R. 4231), which would expand mental health coverage for veterans.

"No Patient Left Behind"

The predominant legislative issue Kagen stressed during his 2006 campaign was an initiative he called "No Patient Left Behind." This proposal provides for open disclosure of all health care-related prices, unitary pricing where every citizen pays the same amount for the same product or service, a single insurance risk pool to leverage down insurance and prescription drug prices, set deductibles at 3% of a household's federal taxable income, and provide coverage to all children and working adults.

Kagen declined to participate in the Congressional health care plan until all Americans have access to affordable health care. In a post on the Daily Kos
Daily Kos
Daily Kos is an American political blog that publishes news and opinions from a progressive point of view. It functions as a discussion forum and group blog for a variety of netroots activists, whose efforts are primarily directed toward influencing and strengthening the Democratic Party...

, Kagen said, "I did not run for this office to get health care benefits."

"Gas Price Relief for Consumers Act of 2008"

On May 15, 2008, legislation sponsored by Kagen titled "To amend the Sherman Act to make oil-producing and exporting cartels illegal and for other purposes" (H.R.6074) was introduced before the House. On May 19, 2008, the House overwhelmingly decided in a 324-84 vote to approve this legislation, which allows the Justice Department to sue any foreign state that limits the production/distribution of oil or engages in price fixing.

2006

On September 12, 2006, Kagen, a first time candidate, won the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 nomination for Wisconsin's 8th District. The seat was left open by the four-term incumbent Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

, Mark Green, who unsuccessfully ran for Governor of Wisconsin. On November 7, Kagen defeated Wisconsin Assembly Speaker John Gard
John Gard
John Gard was a Republican member of the Wisconsin State Assembly representing the 89th Assembly District from 1987 until 2007. He served as Speaker of the State Assembly from 2003 until 2007....

 of Peshtigo in the most expensive Congressional race in Wisconsin history, a race dominated by attack ads, mainly created by third-party 527 issue ad groups, outside the control of the candidate or parties. Some of the issues where Kagen and Gard disagreed were President George W. Bush's direction in the Iraq War, stem-cell research, and tax policy.

Kagen's campaign presented his national and international reputation for groundbreaking research while discovering new causes of asthma
Asthma
Asthma is the common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and bronchospasm. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath...

. His advertising reported the fact that Wisconsin doctors voted him one of the "best doctors in America." He promised to fight to ensure that every American could get affordable health care.

Before Kagen's congressional campaign, his allergy clinic sponsored pollen count
Pollen count
Pollen count is the measurement of the number of grains of pollen in a cubic meter of air. The higher the number, the more people will suffer if they are allergic to a particular pollen. Usually, the counts are announced for specific plants such as grass, ash or olive...

 and allergy reports on several local television stations which aired after their weather reports during the last few years.

Kagen won the 2006 election 51-49% against Gard and again defeated Gard in Brown County, home to Green Bay
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...

, in 2008. Kagen narrowly lost Gard's home county of Marinette
Marinette County, Wisconsin
Marinette County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 43,384. Its county seat is Marinette.Marinette County is part of the Marinette, WI–MI Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:According to the U.S...

. Kagen is the third Democrat to represent the 8th District since World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.


Democratic Primary results
Candidate Votes Percentage
Steven L. Kagen (D) 25,523 48%
Jamie Wall (D) 15,427 29%
Nancy Nusbaum (D) 12,731 23%



General Election results
Candidate Votes Percentage
Steven L. Kagen (D) 141,598 51%
John Gard (R) 134,990 49%

2008

Kagen was again challenged by Republican former State Assembly Speaker and self-proclaimed farmer John Gard
John Gard
John Gard was a Republican member of the Wisconsin State Assembly representing the 89th Assembly District from 1987 until 2007. He served as Speaker of the State Assembly from 2003 until 2007....

 in 2008. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Leans Democratic'. Kagen won reelection, defeating Gard with 54% of the vote. Kagen is only the second Democrat ever to win reelection in the 8th District.

2010

Kagen was defeated by Republican nominee Reid Ribble on November 2, 2010.

FDA compliance question

Kagen received a letter from the FDA regarding a compliance issue with one of his allergy formulas. News reports stated Kagen was accused of "selling allergy shots without a valid license." The formulation was registered with the FDA during manufacture and distribution, but was re-classified under a new regulation and required a new application. The FDA accepted the allergy clinic's decision to no longer offer that particular formulation and the FDA ended its license question.

Politically incorrect comment

After attending a campaign event on the Oneida
Oneida tribe
The Oneida are a Native American/First Nations people and are one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy in the area of upstate New York...

 reservation, and then in Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...

 on 20 October 2006, Kagen commented, in part:


Appreciate getting here almost on time. Our excuse in Oneida was, well, we're on Injun time. They don't tell time by the clock. Our excuse here is that I am a doctor and that we're never on time.


Kagen later apologized. The apology was accepted by the Oneida and other state tribes within two days.

Behavior at White House function

Kagen came under fire for a rumored comment at a November 13, 2006 White House function, after Appleton-area newspapers picked up on a story printed in an alternative paper, The Scene. According to the paper, Congressman-elect Kagen met presidential adviser Karl Rove in a bathroom and told him : "You recognize me? My name's Dr. Multimillionaire and I kicked your ass." The term "Dr. Multimillionaire" refers to the name "Dr. Millionaire" the Republican campaign used to refer to Kagen during the 2006 campaign. The Scene also said that the Congressman-elect thanked Vice President Cheney and President Bush for campaigning in Wisconsin for his opponent, telling them, "'I couldn't have won without your help.'" It's reported that he then referred to the First Lady Laura Bush as Barbara saying "He learned on the campaign trail that the biggest insult you could do to another man is to call his wife by another name."

The White House officially denied the conversation took place, calling the story "ridiculous." Kagen talked to constituents about the reported verbal insults he delivered to the President and Mrs. Bush six days after the November election,

External links

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