Name Ann Wagner | Preceded by Peter Terpeluk Role U.S. Representative Spouse Raymond Wagner | |
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Full Name Ann Louise Trousdale Born September 13, 1962 (age 62) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. ( 1962-09-13 ) Office Representative (R-MO 2nd District) since 2013 Children Stephen Wagner, Mary Ruth Wagner, Raymond Wagner III Profiles | ||
Congratulatory message on jci 100 years of impact ann wagner
Ann Louise Wagner (née Trousdale; born September 13, 1962) is an American politician who currently serves as the incumbent U.S. Representative for Missouri's 2nd congressional district, serving since 2013. The district, based in St. Louis County, is heavily suburban and the wealthiest district in the state. It includes most of St. Louis's southern and western suburbs as well as some of the northern exurbs in St. Charles County and the northern portion of Jefferson County.
Contents
- Congratulatory message on jci 100 years of impact ann wagner
- Rep Ann Wagner on Sex Trafficking Big Tech Paul Ryan Syria
- Early life and education
- 1990s
- Chairwoman of Missouri GOP
- National campaigning
- US Ambassadorship
- 2010 US Senate election
- 2011 RNC Chairman election
- 2012
- 2014
- Tenure
- Committee assignments
- Personal life
- Recent events
- References
Wagner is a member of the Republican Party. Previously, she served as the United States Ambassador to Luxembourg from 2005 to 2009. Prior to her diplomatic post, Wagner was Chair of the Missouri Republican Party for six years, from 1999 until 2005, and Co-chair of the Republican National Committee for four years.
Rep. Ann Wagner on Sex Trafficking, Big Tech, Paul Ryan, Syria
Early life and education
Wagner was born and raised in St. Louis. She attended Cor Jesu Academy, a private Catholic all-girls school in South County, and graduated from the University of Missouri in 1984 with a BSBA from the business school with an emphasis in logistics. After college, she went to work in the private sector and held management positions at Hallmark Cards in Kansas City and Ralston Purina in St. Louis.
1990s
Wagner entered Republican politics in 1990, heading the GOP's efforts during the decennial redistricting of Missouri. In 1992, she was state director of the unsuccessful campaign for the reelection of President George H.W. Bush and Vice President Dan Quayle.
Chairwoman of Missouri GOP
She was elected to her first term of office as chair of the Missouri Republican Party in 1999, becoming the first woman to occupy the position. Her most notable achievement in that role came during her second two-year term when she oversaw the party's taking of majority control of both chambers of the Missouri General Assembly, winning the Senate in a 2001 special election and the House in the 2002 general election, the first time this had been seen for over 40 years. During her third term, the party held its majorities in both chambers and also took the Governor's seat for the first time in 12 years with the election of Matt Blunt in 2004, giving the GOP complete control of state government for the first time since 1921. Her six years as chairperson witnessed George W. Bush carry Missouri in both of his presidential bids and also saw the Republican Party win a majority of the state's congressional delegation.
National campaigning
In 2001, she took office as a co-chair of the Republican National Committee and helped preside over the 2004 Republican National Convention. In this position, she took a strong role in directing the development of the Winning Women initiative, whose aim was to improve the image of the GOP towards women and demonstrate the relevance of its platform to them. Her work with the committee took her to 48 states. In January 2005, she left her role as co-chair after one term.
In 2004, Wagner was a fundraising "ranger" for President George W. Bush.
U.S. Ambassadorship
On February 20, 2005, Wagner was elected to a fourth term as Chair of the Missouri Republican Party. On May 16, she was nominated by President Bush to the position of United States Ambassador to Luxembourg. On July 16, 2005, she was confirmed in the post by a voice vote in the United States Senate, after which U.S. Senator Jim Talent (R-Mo.) said that she was, "A considerate woman, whose character and abilities uniquely qualify her to represent our nation."
On August 1, she was sworn in as Ambassador by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in the Benjamin Franklin Room of the Harry S. Truman Building of the US Department of State in Washington D.C..
2010 U.S. Senate election
After returning from Luxembourg, Wagner served as Chairwoman for Roy Blunt's successful 2010 U.S. Senate campaign. Blunt defeated Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan 54%-41% to retain the seat in the Republican column following Kit Bond's retirement from the seat.
2011 RNC Chairman election
On November 29, 2010, Wagner sent a video message to the committee members of the Republican National Committee announcing she was running for RNC Chair. The election was held in January 2011, and Wagner conceded after the sixth round after receiving 17 votes The contest was ultimately won by Reince Priebus, Chairman of the Wisconsin Republican Party.
2012
Wagner announced her candidacy for Missouri's 2nd congressional district after incumbent Republican U.S. Representative Todd Akin announced his unsuccessful bid to challenge incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill. Wagner received endorsements from Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey, former Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas, former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft, and the pro-life women's group the Susan B. Anthony List. She won the four-way Republican primary—the de facto election given the lack of support for the Democrat nominee, Glenn Koenen —with 66% of the vote. In November, she won the general election by 23 points.
Wagner is the third Republican woman elected to Congress from Missouri (after Jo Ann Emerson and Vicky Hartzler), and the second who was not elected as a stand-in for her husband (after Hartzler; Emerson was originally elected to finish out the term of her late husband, Bill Emerson).
2014
In her first bid for reelection, Wagner ran unopposed in the Republican primary and proceeded to easily win the general election while simultaneously increasing her margin of victory from her first election in 2012.
Tenure
The following is an incomplete list of legislation sponsored by Rep. Wagner.
Committee assignments
Personal life
Wagner is married to Ray Wagner Jr, a former Missouri director of revenue, and has three children: Raymond III (Married to Julia, [nee: Grawe] of St. Louis, Missouri), a West Point graduate and U.S. Army Ranger stationed at Fort Stewart, GA with the 3rd Infantry Division, Stephen, a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis and Mary Ruth, a senior at Miami University.
Her mother-in-law was Loretto Wagner, a noted pro-life activist, who died on June 17, 2015, of complications from diabetes at age 81.
Recent events
In a 2011 RNC debate, she stated that her favorite book was Decision Points, by George W. Bush.
Congresswoman Wagner recently spoke at a Ripon Society forum and addressed the 2013 IRS scandal and tax reform. Wagner stated that it was the Administration's lack of oversight and connection to the issue that has caused these problems. [It is] "...a failure of leadership when you have a president who is so disconnected—not from our conference and our party, but from his own Democrat Party and other leadership here on the Hill. This is the trickledown effect of real arrogance here."
In 2016, Wagner made headlines by withdrawing her endorsement for the GOP nominee for President, Donald Trump. Wagner's position on Trump changed several times since her initial endorsement in September; in October she withdrew her support and called on Trump to step down, but in November walked that statement back and voiced her intent to vote for Trump.
Ann Wagner has consistently opposed financial regulations, including retirement investment rules that require brokers to put their clients’ best interests before their own profits. Wagner has worked with the Trump Administration to target financial oversight rules. On February 3, 2017, Congresswoman Wagner appeared in the Oval Office with President Donald Trump during the signing of executive orders to examine a repeal of the popular Dodd-Frank financial regulatory package, as well as to delay the Department of Labor's proposed fiduciary standard, which requires that financial advisors act in their clients' best interests and disclose all fees. Wagner, who has been a vocal and consistent opponent of the fiduciary rule, was invited by President Trump to explain the rule to the White House press pool. She said to the assembled reporters, "What we’re doing, is we are returning to the American people, low and middle income investors and retirees their own control over their own retirement savings." President Trump then congratulated her, calling her a "very special person." Critics argue that this change allows brokers to conceal kickbacks and conflicts of interest from investors.
More recently, Wagner's efforts to undermine the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau have led local newspapers to accuse her of playing "swamp politics." Since she formed her Congressional campaign committee in 2011, Wagner has received millions of dollars in campaign contributions from employees of investment and insurance companies.
Wagner was among the first members of Congress to sponsor the Financial CHOICE Act of 2017, which weakens oversight by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, allows greater risk-taking by financial institutions, and eliminates the requirement that financial advisors act in their clients' best interests.
During the February 2017 Congressional recess, when some members of Congress outside of Missouri held town hall meetings with constituents, Representative Wagner did not. Despite repeated calls from constituents to meet, she did not schedule any town halls. A group of constituents planned demonstrations in front of financial advisory company and Wagner donor Edward Jones. On March 16th, Rep. Wagner reported on Twitter that she had hosted a teletownhall with over 9,000 supporters in the Second Congressional District.
Wagner has continued to avoid public town halls in favor of listening sessions for corporate donors.
On May 4, 2017, Wagner voted in favor of the American Health Care Act, also known as Trumpcare.
Wagner announced she will not be challenging Claire McCasskil for the U.S. Senate seat in 2016 and instead will run for re-election in the House of Representatives.