Howard Berman

{{Short description|American politician (born 1941)}} {{Use American English|date=May 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2019}} {{Infobox officeholder | image = Howard Berman official photo.jpg | caption = Official portrait, 2006 | office1 = Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee | term_start1 = February 11, 2008 | term_end1 = January 3, 2011 | predecessor1 = Tom Lantos | successor1 = Ileana Ros-Lehtinen | state2 = California | term_start2 = January 3, 1983 | term_end2 = January 3, 2013 | predecessor2 = John H. Rousselot | successor2 = Brad Sherman (redistricted) | constituency2 = {{ushr|CA|26|C}} (1983–2003) {{ushr|CA|28|C}} (2003–2013) | office4 = Majority Leader of the California State Assembly | term_start4 = December 2, 1974 | term_end4 = December 1, 1980 | predecessor4 = Jack R. Fenton | successor4 = Mike Roos | office5 = Member of the California State Assembly | term_start5 = January 8, 1973 | term_end5 = November 30, 1982 | predecessor5 = Charles J. Conrad | successor5 = Gray Davis | constituency5 = 57th district (1973–1974) 43rd district (1974–1982) | birth_name = Howard Lawrence Berman | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1941|4|15}} | birth_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | party = Democratic | spouse = Janis Berman | children = 2 | education = University of California, Los Angeles (BA, LLB) | module = {{Listen |pos=center |embed=yes |filename=Rep. Howard Berman on the 50th Anniversary of the 1959 Tibetan Uprising.ogg |title=Berman's voice |type=speech |description=Berman supporting a resolution recognizing the 50th anniversary of the 1959 Tibetan uprising. Recorded March 11, 2009}} }} '''Howard Lawrence Berman''' (born April 15, 1941) is an American attorney and retired politician who served as a U.S. representative from California from 1983 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented the state's 26th congressional district until redistricting and the 28th congressional district—which both encompassed parts of the San Fernando Valley—for a combined 15 terms.

==Early life, education, and legal career== Berman was born in Los Angeles, to Jewish parents,<ref>[http://www.njdc.org/site/page/howard_berman National Jewish Democratic Council, "Jewish Members of Congress"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101105050717/http://www.njdc.org/site/page/howard_berman |date=November 5, 2010}}. Retrieved September 24, 2010.</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Zach Silberman|title=Calif. Rep. Howard Berman raps coalition behind anti-Israel billboards|agency=JTA|date=June 25, 2012|url=https://www.jta.org/2012/06/25/news-opinion/united-states/calif-rep-howard-berman-raps-coalition-behind-anti-israel-billboards}}</ref> the son of Eleanor (née Schapiro) and Joseph Berman. His maternal grandparents immigrated from Russia.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~battle/reps/berman.htm|title=Howard Lawrence Berman profile |publisher=Freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com|access-date=September 10, 2012}}</ref> He graduated from Alexander Hamilton High School in 1959 and earned his B.A. in international relations in 1962 and his LL.B. in 1965 at the University of California, Los Angeles where he befriended future congressman Henry Waxman.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://dailybruin.com/2015/01/07/alum-henry-waxman-retires-from-congress-leaves-legislative-legacy | title=Alum Henry Waxman retires from Congress, leaves legislative legacy }}</ref> Blanche Bettington, his high school civics teacher, inspired him to enter politics and government.<ref>{{cite news|access-date=December 4, 2010|title=Obituaries – Blanche Bettington; Inspired Generations in L.A. Schools|date=March 3, 2001|first=Kenneth|last=Reich|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-mar-03-me-32668-story.html|work=The Los Angeles Times|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120701174021/http://articles.latimes.com/2001/mar/03/local/me-32668/2|archive-date=July 1, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

He was a VISTA volunteer (1966–1967) in Baltimore and San Francisco, and was an associate at a Los Angeles law firm, Levy, Van Bourg & Hackler (1967–72) specializing in labor relations.<ref name=Barone1998a>{{cite book|last=Barone|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Barone (pundit)|author2=Grant Ujifusa|title=The Almanac of American Politics|edition=1998|year=1997|publisher=National Journal, Inc.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/almanacofamerica00mich_4/page/206 206–08]|location=Washington, D.C.|isbn=0-89234-081-9}}</ref><ref name=Barone2008a>{{cite book|last=Barone|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Barone (pundit)|author2=Richard E. Cohen|author2-link=Richard E. Cohen|title=The Almanac of American Politics|year=2007|edition=2008|publisher=National Journal, Inc.|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/almanacofamerica00mich_0/page/233 233–37]|isbn=978-0-89234-117-7|url=https://archive.org/details/almanacofamerica00mich_0/page/233}}</ref><ref name=Carrolla>"Howard L Berman", ''Carroll's Federal Directory'', Carroll Publishing, 2008. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC Document Number: K2415002198. Fee, via Fairfax County Public Library.</ref><ref name=Barone2004a>{{cite book|last=Barone|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Barone (pundit) |author2=Grant Ujifusa |author3=Douglas Matthews|title=The Almanac of American Politics|year=2003|edition=2004|publisher=National Journal, Inc.|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=236–39|isbn=0-89234-106-8}}</ref><ref name=WhoWhoa>"Howard Lawrence Berman." Marquis Who's Who TM. Marquis Who's Who, 2008. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC Document Number: K2017593147. Fee.</ref>

==California State Assembly== [[File:Howard Berman, 1975.jpg|thumb|left|Berman in the California State Assembly in 1975|upright]] ===Elections=== Berman won election to the State Assembly in 1972 from a district in the Hollywood Hills, unseating the incumbent Republican speaker pro tempore. His brother Michael, campaign manager in Henry Waxman's 1968 Assembly race, again ran a targeted mail operation.

===Tenure=== In 1974, Berman and Waxman both opposed Willie Brown's unsuccessful revolt against Speaker of the California State Assembly Leo McCarthy, who rewarded Berman's loyalty by appointing him the youngest majority leader in Assembly history. McCarthy fired Berman when Berman tried to replace him in 1980. Although McCarthy failed to retain the speakership, Berman failed to win it and Brown became speaker. Other members remarked on what a tough politician he was; the Bermans helped arrange a primary defeat for at least one colleague (Jack R. Fenton) who had opposed his bid.<ref name=Barone1998/><ref name=Carroll/><ref name=Meyerson1994>{{cite news|first=Harold|last=Meyerson|title=The Liberal Lion in Winter. The Democrats' Legislative Genius, Los Angeles Congressman Henry A. Waxman is Back on Defense |url=http://www.waxman.house.gov/news_files/news_profiles_liberal_lion_12_4_94.htm|work=Los Angeles Times Magazine|date=December 4, 1994|access-date=September 20, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080731230242/http://www.waxman.house.gov/news_files/news_profiles_liberal_lion_12_4_94.htm |archive-date=July 31, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Alex|last=Vassar|author2=Shane Meyers|title=11-07-1992 Election |url=http://www.joincalifornia.com/election/1972-11-07|work=Join California|publisher=One Voter Project|access-date=September 19, 2008}} </ref><ref name=BaneOral>{{cite web|url=http://www.sos.ca.gov/archives/pdf/TBane.pdf|title=Oral History Interview with Tom Bane |access-date=September 18, 2008|last=Isoardi|first=Steven L.|date=1994–1995|work=State Government Oral History Program |publisher=California State Archives |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070611095410/http://www.sos.ca.gov/archives/pdf/TBane.pdf|archive-date=June 11, 2007|quote=On top of that, Michael Berman was after votes. He figured if he'd knock off Jack Fenton, another vote for Howard. ... He did it to Jack Fenton, he'd do it to them.}}</ref>

===Committee assignments=== He also served as Chairman of the Assembly Democratic Caucus and on the Policy Research Management Committee of the Assembly.<ref name=Carroll/>

==U.S. House of Representatives== ===Elections=== ==== 1982 ==== After redistricting made the 26th district significantly more Democratic, incumbent Republican Congressman John Harbin Rousselot decided to run in California's 30th congressional district in 1982. Berman won the Democratic primary for the open seat with 83% of the vote,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=513759 |title=CA District 26 – D Primary Race – Jun 08, 1982 |publisher=Our Campaigns |access-date=September 10, 2012}}</ref> and the general election with 60% of the vote.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=36753 |title=CA District 26 Race – Nov 02, 1982 |publisher=Our Campaigns |access-date=September 10, 2012}}</ref>

==== 1984 through 2010 ==== Berman was reelected 14 times, never dropping below 61% of the vote, from 1984 through 2010.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/CandidateDetail.html?CandidateID=754 |title=Candidate – Howard L. Berman |publisher=Our Campaigns |access-date=September 10, 2012}}</ref>

The 2000 census allocated California one new House seat, 53 in all. Berman, "dad of the delegation" on redistricting, made a deal with Republicans Tom Davis and David Dreier to keep 34 safe seats for Democrats, add one new Republican district, and protect nineteen incumbent Republicans. Many California Democrats in the House and California State Senate hired Michael Berman, Howard Berman's brother, as a redistricting consultant, for a fee of $20,000 each.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ocregister.com/opinion/redistricting-265073-commission-prop.html|title=Editorial: Prop. 27 would strangle redistricting reform in the cradle|date=September 3, 2010|newspaper=Orange County Register}}</ref> When the August 2001 plan was unveiled, Congressman Brad Sherman, a fellow Democrat from California, complained that it undermined the safety of his seat with too many Hispanic voters, saying, "Howard Berman stabbed me in the back."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-sep-08-me-43535-story.html|title=Neighboring L.A. Democrats Trade Barbs Over Redistricting |date=September 8, 2001|first=Michael|last=Finnegan|newspaper=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> Berman agreed to redraw the boundary between their districts, giving himself 56% and Sherman 37% Latino population. The redistricting plan survived a court challenge from the MALDEF, which argued that the redistricting diluted Hispanic representation.<ref name=Barone2004/> The Republicans suffered some slippage; they had only 19 members in the delegation to the 110th Congress.<ref name=Barone2008/>

From 2001 to 2006, Berman paid his brother Michael Berman's consulting firm Berman & D'Agostino $195,000 from campaign funds.<ref name="usatoday2006">{{cite news |url= https://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20070618/a_campaignfunds_chart18.art.htm|title= Related recipients|date= June 18, 2007|newspaper= USA Today}}</ref> In the 2002 campaign, Berman & D'Agostino was paid $75,000 in political consulting fees. In 2005, $50,000 in consulting fees were paid to the company, and Michael Berman himself was paid a further $80,500 in campaign management and consulting fees. In 2006, $70,000 was paid in consulting fees.<ref name="ethicsreport">{{cite web |url=http://www.citizensforethics.org/files/FINAL_FULL_REPORT.pdf|title= Family Affair|date=June 19, 2007 |publisher=Citizens for Ethics|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090325072550/http://www.citizensforethics.org/files/FINAL_FULL_REPORT.pdf|archive-date= March 25, 2009}}</ref>

==== 2012 ==== {{see also|2012 United States House of Representatives elections in California#District 30}} Following redistricting, Berman decided to run in the newly redrawn 30th Congressional District, facing fellow Democrat Brad Sherman. Sherman had the advantage because he previously represented over half of the district.<ref>{{cite web |author=Alice Walton |url=http://www.scpr.org/news/2012/06/04/32664/fight-valley-berman-vs-sherman/ |title=Berman vs. Sherman: 2 longtime Democratic leaders face off in {{sic|the|hide=y|reason=duplicate 'the' in source title}} the Valley |website=Scpr.org |date=June 4, 2012 |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref> About 60% of voters of the new 30th district resided in Sherman's former district, while just 20% of voters resided in Berman's.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/09/us/politics/lines-redrawn-longtime-allies-fight-for-a-seat.html?pagewanted=all |work=The New York Times| title= Lines Redrawn, Longtime Allies Fight for a Seat|date=December 9, 2011 |last1=Steinhauer |first1=Jennifer }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/06/clone-wars/308983/ |work=The Atlantic |title=Clone Wars}}</ref>

The race, unprecedented in pitting two very similar candidates of the same party against each other in the general election, was called a "slugfest".<ref name="Democratic Slugfest">{{cite news|title=California Open Primary Leads to Democratic Slugfest |url=http://ivn.us/2012/07/19/california-open-primary-leads-to-democratic-slugfest/|access-date=July 23, 2012|newspaper=IVN}}</ref> Berman received the endorsements from about two-thirds of California's Democratic congressional delegation. Among Sherman's endorsements were then-Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom of California, then-State Controller John Chiang of California, former President Bill Clinton, and Congressman John Conyers of Michigan.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://forward.com/articles/146613/berman-beats-sherman-in-endorsement-race/#ixzz2H9qnOb5D |title=Berman Beats Sherman in Endorsement Race - News |website=Forward.com |date=November 21, 2011 |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref>

On June 5, 2012, Sherman ranked first in the seven-candidate open primary, with 42% of the vote. Berman ranked second, with 26% of the vote.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/06/rep-sherman-tops-rep-berman-in-calif-dem-primary/| work=ABC News|title=Rep. Sherman Tops Rep. Berman in Calif. Dem Primary}}</ref> The state's top-two primary system, implemented in 2010, allows for two candidates of the same party to face-off in the general election.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://cavotes.org/vote/how-vote/voting-primary-election|title=Voting in the Primary Election|date=2016-04-01|website=CAVotes.org|language=en|access-date=2019-07-26|archive-date=September 13, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190913213815/https://cavotes.org/vote/how-vote/voting-primary-election|url-status=dead}}</ref> Berman ran as the more conservative Democrat, hoping to divide the Democratic vote and dominate in the independent and conservative vote. However, in the November general election, Sherman defeated Berman, 60.3%–39.7%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=768456 |title=CA - District 30 Race - Nov 06, 2012 |publisher=Our Campaigns |access-date=February 27, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Brad Sherman defeats Howard Berman after bitter fight |url=https://www.politico.com/story/2012/11/sherman-defeats-berman-after-bitter-fight-083477 |author= Michelle Quinn |date=November 7, 2012 |access-date=November 7, 2012 |publisher=Politico}}</ref>

===Political positions=== Berman has been described as "one of the most creative members of the House, and one of the most clear-sighted operators in American politics". He has been an active legislator on several issues, but has also been described as "not one who gets much publicity".<ref name="Berman NJ">{{cite web |title=Rep. Howard Berman (D) |url=http://www.nationaljournal.com/almanac/2010/person/howard-berman-ca/ |work=The National Journal Almanac |access-date=June 21, 2012}}</ref>

Berman was the House sponsor of the 1986 False Claims Act that authorized civil litigation by whistleblowers. It led to recoveries for the United States Government exceeding $1 billion dollars.<ref name=Carroll/>

Berman has championed protecting American film industry jobs from outsourcing ("runaway production"). He has also voted against amending the constitution to require a balanced budget, against banning the desecration of the American flag,<ref name=Barone1998/> against the Defense of Marriage Act, and against restrictions on abortion.<ref name=Barone1998/>

However, Berman concurs with many on the right on a number of issues, particularly foreign policy and trade. Berman voted in support of the invasion of Iraq in both 1991 and 2003, as well as for the FISA Amendments Act of 2008,<ref name=Barone2008/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll145.xml |title=Final Vote Results for Roll Call 145: Agree to the Senate Amendment with an Amendment |access-date=September 18, 2008|publisher=U.S. House of Representatives |quote=To amend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 to establish a procedure for authorizing certain acquisitions of foreign intelligence, and for other purpoes (sic)}}</ref> positions that have hurt his standing among many liberals in his district.<ref>{{cite news |first=Linda |last=Sutton |title=Peace Activists Target Cong. Howard Berman |url=http://la.indymedia.org/news/2007/05/199869.php |work=Truth Now Sunday |publisher=Los Angeles Independent Media Center|date=May 17, 2007 |access-date=September 20, 2008 |quote=About 40 peace activists from multiple groups in the San Fernando Valley gathered in front of Congressman Howard Berman's home in Valley Village on Sat, May 26, 2007. Berman did NOT VOTE on the supplemental Iraq appropriations bill HR2206 that funds the war without timelines for withdrawal. Groups represented included Neighborhood Peace and Justice, Progressive Democrats of America, Progressive Caucus CDP, So. Cal. Grassroots, Valley Democrats United.}}</ref> While he generally supports free trade - for instance, voting in favor of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)<ref name=MoonPaper2006/> and various trade agreements with specific countries -, he voted against the more recent Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA).<ref name=Barone2008/> He opposes withdrawing U.S. support for the World Trade Organization. In that same year, he also voted to phase out many farm subsidy programs put into place by the administration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as part of the "New Deal".

In Congress, Berman led the investigation into the conduct of House members in the Mark Foley page scandal.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/no-house-members-broke-rules-in-ex-rep-foleys-congressional-page-scandal |publisher=Fox News |title=No House Members Broke Rules in Ex-Rep. Foley's Congressional Page Scandal |date=October 21, 2011 |access-date=August 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110209203909/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,235478,00.html |archive-date=February 9, 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In May 2012, Berman co-sponsored a bill with Republican Congressman David Dreier of California to reinstate tax credits given to films produced mainly in the United States. The credits were active from 2008 until 2011, and were aimed at keeping films in Hollywood. Berman stressed that we "must make every effort to keep American productions here in the United States".<ref name="Credits for US Production">{{cite news |last=Daunt|first=Tina|title=Rep. Howard Berman Seeks Tax Credit Extensions for U.S. Film Production |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/howard-berman-hollywood-tax-credits-326652|access-date=June 12, 2012|newspaper=The Hollywood Reporter|date=May 18, 2012}}</ref>

====Copyright law==== Berman is known for his protection of copyright interests, and his alliances with the entertainment industry; he was sometimes referred to as the "representative from Hollywood".<ref name=Forward2008>{{cite news |first=Nathan |last=Guttman|title=New Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Draws Praise From All Sides |url=http://www.forward.com/articles/13244/ |work=The Forward |date=April 24, 2008 |access-date=September 18, 2008}}</ref> The major industry contributing to his election campaigns has been the entertainment industry.<ref name="Open Secrets">{{cite web |url=http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?CID=N00008094|title=Howard L. Berman: Campaign Finance/Money summary|publisher=Open Secrets}}</ref> He proposed legislation under which copyright holders would be able to employ technological tools such as file blocking, redirection, spoofs, and decoys—among others—to curb piracy (Peer to Peer Piracy Prevention Act). He has been named as one of the primary politicians involved in the creation of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA).{{Citation needed|date=June 2023}} In a September 2008 hearing of the House Intellectual Property Subcommittee, Berman criticized the National Institutes of Health's policy requiring NIH-sponsored research to be submitted to a database open to the public by saying that "the N in NIH shouldn't stand for Napster."<ref name="NIHhearing">{{cite web|url=http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/hear_090911_1.html|title=Hearing on: H.R. 6845, the "Fair Copyright in Research Works Act|date=September 11, 2008|publisher=United States House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130427011558/http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/hear_090911_1.html|archive-date=April 27, 2013}}</ref><ref name="arstechnica">{{cite web|url=https://arstechnica.com/articles/culture/open-access-science.ars |title=Backlash against open access|website=Ars Technica|date=September 16, 2008}}</ref>

====Iraq==== According to ''LA Weekly'', "Berman played a key and under-appreciated role in securing passage of a resolution that gave President George W. Bush broad authority to use force".<ref name="LA Weekly">{{cite news |url=http://blogs.laweekly.com/informer/2012/06/howard_berman_iraq_war.php |title=The Iraq Vote: Howard Berman's Most Momentous Achievement Is One He's Come to Regret |work=LA Weekly}}</ref> The ''National Journal'' reports that Berman, "played a critical role in winning passage, by a wide margin, of the Iraq War resolution in October 2002. He strongly supported military action against Iraq, and in September, he organized a group of Democrats who shared his views. Berman's discussions led to House Democratic Leader Dick Gephardt's agreement with the administration on the terms of the resolution—talks that undercut the demands of other senior Democrats, including then House Democratic Whip Nancy Pelosi and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joe Biden. In June 2006, Berman voted for the Republican resolution to reject a timetable for withdrawal from Iraq."<ref name="Berman NJ"/>

====Israel==== Berman is a supporter of Israel, telling the Jewish newspaper, ''The Forward'', after being appointed Chairman of the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs, "Even before I was a Democrat, I was a Zionist."<ref name=Forward2008/> He sponsored a bill called the Anti-Boycott Act in the House in 2011 which would have prohibited American individuals and organizations from actively boycotting Israeli goods, if it had passed.<ref>{{cite web |author=Rep. Howard Berman [D-CA28] |url=http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h112-2589 |title=Antiboycott Act (H.R. 2589) |publisher=GovTrack.us |date=July 19, 2011 |access-date=September 10, 2012}}</ref>

====Immigration==== In 2003, Berman expressed his concerns over the Patriot Act with then-United States Attorney General John Ashcroft, specifically on the method to hold illegal immigrants until they prove they are not terrorists.<ref>{{cite news|last=Tapper |first=Jake |url=http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2003/06/11/ashcroft |title=How Ashcroft beats a full House |work=Salon |date=June 11, 2003 |access-date=September 10, 2012}}</ref>

In 2000, Berman, along with then-Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon, proposed an amnesty, which would have granted legal status to hundreds of thousands of undocumented farm laborers. In exchange, requirements that growers provide housing to guest workers, and pay them a minimum wage adjusted annually for inflation, would have been relaxed.<ref>{{cite news|first=David |last=Bacon |url=http://www.dollarsandsense.org/archives/2001/1101bacon.html |title=Braceros or Amnesty |work=Dollars & Sense |date=November–December 2001 |access-date=September 10, 2012}}</ref> In 2005, Berman was part of the bi-partisan group in Congress that fought for immigration reform efforts.<ref>{{cite news|author=Le Templar |url=http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/article_63627e3c-43a7-5b79-8299-02db3afae91b.html |title=Guest worker plan dropped from House immigration bill |work=East Valley Tribune |date=December 9, 2005 |access-date=September 10, 2012}}</ref> That path to citizenship was also supported by President George W. Bush and Senator John McCain.{{Citation needed|date=June 2023}}

====Investments====  OpenSecrets named 151 members of Congress who had investments (as of year end 2006) in companies that do business with the United States Department of Defense, suggesting that such holdings conflict with their responsibility for U.S. security policy. The most important such companies, ranked by estimated total value of members' holdings, were Procter & Gamble, General Electric, Pepsi, ExxonMobil, Berkshire Hathaway, IBM, Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, H. J. Heinz Company, and Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company. OpenSecrets identified the top ten members of Congress, and the report named no other members among the 151, save committee chairmen Senator Joseph Lieberman and Representative Berman.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41893 |title=FINANCE: U.S. Lawmakers Invested in Iraq, Afghanistan Wars |access-date=September 18, 2008 |last=Abid |first=Aslam |date=April 7, 2008 |publisher=Inter Press Service International Association (Rome, Italy) |quote=Other panel chiefs who invested in defence firms include Sen. Joseph Lieberman, the Connecticut Independent who presides over the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Rep. Howard Berman, the California Democrat who heads the House Foreign Affairs Committee. In all, 151 current members of Congress – more than one-fourth of the total – have invested between 78.7 million dollars and 195.5 million dollars in companies that received defense contracts of at least $5.0 million, according to CRP. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080911135609/http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=41893 |archive-date=September 11, 2008 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2008/04/strategic-assets.html |title=Strategic Assets |access-date=September 18, 2008 |last=Mayer |first=Lindsay Renick |date=April 3, 2008 |work=Capital Eye |publisher=OpenSecrets |quote= ... lawmakers are personally invested in companies reaping billions of dollars from defense contracts.}}</ref> None of the firms listed above ranked among the top ten DOD contractors in 2008,<ref>{{cite web |title=Top Defense Contractors by Revenue |url=http://www.bnet.com/blog/government/top-defense-contractors-by-revenue/126 |access-date=December 4, 2010 |first=Matthew |last=Potter |date=November 13, 2008 |publisher=CBS News}}</ref> nor in the top twenty for 2009.<ref>{{cite web |title=Top 20 defense contractors |url=http://defensesystems.com/articles/2010/05/27/top-20-defense-contractors.aspx?s=ds_081110&admgarea=TC_DEFENSE |access-date=December 4, 2010 |publisher=Defense Systems News|date=May 28, 2010}}</ref>

====Ethics==== Alan Mollohan, ranking member of the House Ethics Committee, resigned from the committee after he himself became the subject of an ethics complaint. Berman had been its senior Democrat from 1997–2003, and on October 5, 2006, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi re-appointed him to replace Mollohan. Berman served on the subcommittee investigating the House's page program in the wake of the Mark Foley scandal.<ref name=Barone2008/><ref>{{cite news |first=Chris |last=Cillizza |author-link=Chris Cillizza |title=House: Mollohan Steps Down From Ethics Post |url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/2006/04/mollohan_steps_down_from_ethic.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112220805/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/2006/04/mollohan_steps_down_from_ethic.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 12, 2012 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=April 21, 2006 |access-date=September 19, 2008 |quote=Congressman Howard Berman, who previously served as the senior member of the Ethics Committee, has agreed to accept my appointment to return temporarily as ranking member.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=2531925 |title= ABC News - ABC News|website=www.abcnews.go.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090626131812/http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=2531925 |archive-date=June 26, 2009}}</ref> "This is an honor I could have done without."<ref name=Barone2008/>

The Center for Public Integrity reported in 2006 that members of the House Ethics Committee and their staffs had taken many privately sponsored trips, about 400 trips from 2000 to mid-2005, at a total expense nearly $1 million. Of these, Democrats took about 80% of the trips at about 70% of the cost. Berman and his staff were at the top of the chart, with trips costing more than $245,000. Berman himself had taken 14 trips at the Aspen Institute's expense, including two to China with Mrs. Berman. Aspen replied that its events for members were like graduate seminars, and did not push any policy agenda. "Gene Smith, Berman's chief of staff, said that the bulk of the congressman's foreign travel can be attributed to his being a senior member on the House Committee on International Relations." Five private groups (Campaign Legal Center, Democracy 21, the League of Women Voters, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG) jointly sent a letter to the ethics committee urging it to ban or restrict such travel.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://projects.publicintegrity.org/powertrips/report.aspx?aid=412 |title=Ethics Committee Members, Staff Among the Well-Traveled. House legislators mulling rules and their aides took about $1 million in trips |last=Robert |first=Brodsky |date=June 14, 2006 |publisher=Center for Public Integrity |access-date=September 19, 2008 |archive-date=October 25, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081025033826/http://projects.publicintegrity.org/powertrips/report.aspx?aid=412 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://projects.publicintegrity.org/powertrips/default.aspx?act=profiles&pid=2 |title=Sponsor Profile – Aspen Institute |access-date=September 20, 2009 |date=June 5, 2006 |publisher=Center for Public Integrity |archive-date=July 6, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100706023200/http://projects.publicintegrity.org/powertrips/default.aspx?act=profiles&pid=2 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Committee assignments=== * Committee on Foreign Affairs (Ranking Member) * Committee on the Judiciary ** Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet

====Caucus memberships==== * Congressional Children's Working Group * Congressional Diabetes Caucus * International Conservation Caucus

==Career after Congress== Berman joined Washington, D.C. law firm Covington & Burling as a senior advisor in March 2013.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cov.com/news/detail.aspx?news=1860 |title=Archived copy |website=www.cov.com |access-date=13 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020155446/http://www.cov.com/news/detail.aspx?news=1860 |archive-date=20 October 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Berman also serves on the Board of Directors of the National Democratic Institute.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ndi.org/board-of-directors|publisher=ndi.org|title=Board of Directors|date=June 10, 2016 |access-date=February 26, 2017}}</ref> He serves on the board of The Washington Institute for Near East Policy,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/about/board-of-advisors|access-date=December 24, 2015|title=Board of Advisors - The Washington Institute for Near East Policy}}</ref> and is an advisory board member of the Counter Extremism Project.<ref>{{cite news|title=Leadership|url=http://www.counterextremism.com/leadership |agency=Counter Extremism Project|access-date=February 26, 2017}}</ref>

==Personal life== Berman married Janis Gail Schwarz in 1979; they have two daughters, Brinley and Lindsey.<ref name=Barone1998>{{cite book|last=Barone|first=Michael|author-link=Michael Barone (pundit)|author2=Grant Ujifusa|title=The Almanac of American Politics|edition=1998|year=1997|publisher=National Journal, Inc.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/almanacofamerica00mich_4/page/206 206–208]|location=Washington, D.C.|isbn=0-89234-081-9|url=https://archive.org/details/almanacofamerica00mich_4/page/206}}</ref><ref name=Carroll>"Howard L Berman." ''Carroll's Federal Directory''. Carroll Publishing, 2008. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC Document Number: K2415002198. Fee.</ref><ref name=Barone2004>{{cite book|last=Barone|first=Michael|author2=Grant Ujifusa|author3=Douglas Matthews|title=The Almanac of American Politics|edition=2004|year=c. 2003|publisher=National Journal, Inc.|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=236–239|isbn=0-89234-106-8}}</ref><ref name=Barone2008>{{cite book|last=Barone|first=Michael|author2=Richard E. Cohen|title=The Almanac of American Politics|edition=2008|year=c. 2007|publisher=National Journal, Inc.|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=[https://archive.org/details/almanacofamerica00mich_0/page/233 233–237]|isbn=978-0-89234-117-7|url=https://archive.org/details/almanacofamerica00mich_0/page/233}}</ref><ref name=MoonPaper2006>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/elections/candidate/32/|title=Politics, Breaking News, US and World News – Howard Berman |access-date=September 19, 2008|date=July 19, 2006|work=The Washington Times}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref><ref name=WhoWho>"Howard Lawrence Berman." ''Marquis Who's Who'', 2008. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC Document Number: K2017593147. Fee.</ref>

== Memberships and awards == * First Annual Farmworker Justice Award, 2000<ref>{{cite news|title=2000 Farmworker Justice Award Presented to Rep. Howard Berman |url=http://www.fwjustice.org/FJNews%20Summ%202000.pdf|work=Farmworker Justice News, Summer 2000|publisher=Farmworker Justice Fund, Inc.|page=4|date=July 18, 2000|access-date=January 16, 2008|quote=The Board of Directors of the Farmworker Justice Fund, Inc. presented the 2000 Farmworker Justice Award to Rep. Howard Berman of California. The presentation was made by Dolores Huerta, Secretary-Treasurer of the United Farm Workers, a long time friend of Howard Berman. The award reception was held at the Mott House in Washington, D.C. during the evening of May 24, 2000.|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060929033146/http://www.fwjustice.org/FJNews%20Summ%202000.pdf|archive-date=September 29, 2006}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Farmworker Justice Award 2000|publisher=Farmworker Justice Fund |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030608034526/http://www.fwjustice.org/2000_award.htm|archive-date=June 8, 2003 |url=http://www.fwjustice.org/2000_award.htm}}</ref> * President, California Federation of Young Democrats, 1967–1969 * President's award, National Music Publishers Association, 2007<ref name=WhoWho/> * NATO Parliamentary Assembly * Mexico Parliamentary Group<ref name=Carroll/>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20120830055052/http://www.house.gov/berman/ Congressman Howard Berman] official U.S. House website (archived) * [https://web.archive.org/web/20110712223820/http://www.howardberman.com/ Howard Berman for Congress] official campaign website (archived) * {{C-SPAN|1592}} * [http://www.joincalifornia.com/candidate/5787 Join California Howard L. Berman]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Berman, Howard}} Category:1941 births Category:20th-century members of the California State Legislature Category:21st-century American Jews Category:21st-century United States representatives Category:American people of Russian-Jewish descent Category:American Zionists Category:California lawyers Category:Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly Category:Democratic Party United States representatives from California Category:Jewish United States representatives Category:Living people Category:Members of the United States Congress who became lobbyists Category:People associated with Covington & Burling Category:Politicians from Los Angeles Category:The Asia Foundation Category:The Washington Institute for Near East Policy Category:UCLA School of Law alumni Category:UCLA College of Letters and Science alumni