Robert Torricelli

Robert Guy Torricelli (born August 27, 1951) is an American attorney and former politician. A Democrat, Torricelli served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey's 9th district from 1983 to 1997 and as a United States senator from New Jersey from 1997 to 2003.

He is notable for his tenure as chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. In September 2002, Torricelli ended his Senate re-election campaign after having been formally admonished by the U.S. Senate in connection with a campaign finance scandal. He later founded Rosemont Associates and Woodrose Properties. Rosemont is an international consulting firm and Woodrose has developed and managed commercial and multi family real estate in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Florida.

Torricelli was born in Paterson, New Jersey, the son of Betty (Lotz), a school librarian, and Salvatore Torricelli, a lawyer. He attended boarding school at Storm King School in Cornwall-on-Hudson, New York, where he earned the nickname "the Torch" for his aggressive campaigning style, by which he would be referred to throughout his later political career. After graduation from Storm King School, Torricelli attended Rutgers University, New Brunswick where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1974. He then earned his J.D. degree in 1977 from Rutgers Law School in Newark. He was admitted to the New Jersey bar in 1978 and later attended Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, earning a master's in public administration in 1980.

Torricelli was an assistant to the Governor of New Jersey, Brendan Byrne, from 1975 to 1977. In 1978, he served as associate counsel to Vice President Walter Mondale, and managed the Carter-Mondale campaign in the Illinois primary. At the 1980 Democratic National Convention, he served as the director of the Rules Committee.

In 1982, Torricelli ran for U.S. Congress, defeating incumbent Republican Harold Hollenbeck. Torricelli served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 until 1997 representing New Jersey's 9th congressional district.

Torricelli was a resident of New Milford, New Jersey during his first term in Congress.

Torricelli was Democratic floor leader in the Persian Gulf War discussion regarding the adoption of the "Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution" in 1991 and gave the closing speech.

In 1988, Torricelli visited Cuba and stated, "Living standards are not high, but the homelessness, hunger and disease that is witnessed in much of Latin America does not appear evident." He sponsored the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 which prohibits U.S. trade with Cuba. Torricelli stated that the act would "wreak havoc on that island. He defended the legislation as necessary to force democratic refirm on the island and halt Castro’s export of violent revolution in Latin America. After candidate Bill Clinton endorsed the legislation, President Bush signed it." Academic Helen Yaffe writes that between Toricelli's 1988 visit and the 1992 Act, he received significant campaign contributions from the Cuban American National Foundation.