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Bruce Babbitt

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U.S. Governor

The Resume

    (June 27, 1938- )
    Born in Flagstaff, Arizona
    Governor of Arizona (1978-87)
    US Secretary of the Interior (1993-2001)
    Wrote 'Cities in the Wilderness: A New Vision of Land Use in America' (2005)
    Democrat

Why he might be annoying:

    He frequently demonized ranchers as environmental villains despite coming from a ranching family.
    While a lawyer in private practice, he urged environmentalists to avoid working with the establishment and instead fight like 'barbarians in the hills.'
    When his term as governor ended, rather than run against John McCain for Barry Goldwater's Senate seat, he launched a campaign for the presidency that fizzled out after the 1988 New Hampshire primary.
    The New York Times wrote that on television, he came across like 'Richard Nixon without the sweaty lip.'
    He was twice considered by Bill Clinton for a seat on the Supreme Court, but was passed over first for Ruth Bader Ginsburg (1993), then for Stephen Breyer (1994).
    He was investigated by a grand jury over whether he lied to Congress about denying a license to an Indian casino in return for political donations ('Wampumgate').
    Before leaving the Interior Department, he said he would not cash in on his years of government service by becoming a high-priced Washington attorney, then did just that.

Why he might not be annoying:

    At 15, he lied about his age to fight fires with the Forest Service.
    His anti-corruption campaign as state attorney general resulted in organized crime putting a contract out on him.
    Arizona House Majority Whip Jane Hull, a conservative Republican and frequent opponent, said of his term as governor, 'I guess he did drag us kicking and screaming into the 20th century.'
    Many commentators praised his presidential campaign as the only one that took the national debt seriously.
    One pundit quipped that he 'shared fellow Arizonan Morris Udall's vote-getting handicaps of keen intelligence and genuine wit.'
    On leaving the presidential race, he told the press, 'You won't have Bruce Babbitt to puff up anymore.' (Riffing on the famous line 'You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore.')
    He was cleared by a special prosecutor in the 'Wampumgate' investigation (1999).

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 17 Votes: 52.94% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 10 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 90.91% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 20 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 22 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 55 Votes: 56.36% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 29 Votes: 51.72% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 85 Votes: 50.59% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 50 Votes: 66.00% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 50 Votes: 80.0% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 55 Votes: 76.36% Annoying