biography
| name: |
Hastert, J(ohn) Dennis
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| |
known as Denny Hastert
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pronunciation:
[hastert]
| sex:
| male
|
| lived:
| (1942– )
|
| biography:
| US politician, Speaker of the House of Representatives, born in Aurora, Illinois, USA. He studied at Wheaton College, Il, and was a high-school teacher and coach in Yorkville, Il, until he was elected to the state legislature in 1980. Six years later he ran successfully for the US House of Representatives. A strong fiscal and social conservative, he was admired in both parties for his genial and open personality. When the leadership of the Speaker Newt Gingrich encountered intraparty opposition in 1997, Hastert was mentioned as a possible successor. Following Republican losses in the 1998 elections, Gingrich resigned and Representative Bob Livingstone became Speaker-designate. Then Livingstone announced he was leaving politics because of episodes of marital infidelity, and Hastert emerged as the consensus choice of the embattled Republicans. He became Speaker in 1999 with a small working majority of Republicans amid promises of bi-partisan co-operation. |
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