Who is grover norquists wife

He believes it was crossover votes from vapers. Aside from his take on Trump, this was the topic I wanted to discuss at my breakfast with Norquist. Then Vape again. Norquist is working to move them into the Republican tent.

How high a bar is that? I asked Norquist how he could be so sure that vaping ought not be regulated, given that experts disagree on its potential health effects and much research remains to be done. He later clarified that rather than banning dangerous substances, the government should warn people and let them make their own decisions, as it does with alcohol and tobacco.

The vapers, Norquist contends, were pivotal in at least two swing states in —one that Trump won, and one that he lost. Although she led in most polls, Ayotte lost her bid for reelection in November by a minuscule margin—one-tenth of a point—and Trump lost the state. Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, on the other hand, supports legislation to keep vaping legal. He arguably dragged Trump to victory in the state on his coattails: Trump won Wisconsin by just seven-tenths of a point.

During the campaign, ATR sponsored a cross-country pro-vaping bus tour, and hammered the issue particularly hard in Wisconsin. The idea that vapers were the key to the election struck me as exotic, to say the least.

And now, 10 million vapers. The campaign targeted digital ads at vapers as a result. Yet Norquist is confident he will win the war. He told me he trusted Trump because of the time he had spent in his presence. He had met Trump four times: Once in , when he viewed him as a potential donor. This was apparently the same reception at which Trump notoriously met the Russian ambassador, Sergey Kislyak. And finally, at the White House in January. Norquist smiled, an impish, purse-lipped, cat-that-ate-the-canary smile.

What could be clearer? Skip to content Site Navigation The Atlantic. Popular Latest. The Atlantic Crossword. Humorist P. Lott, Jr. He has served as a monthly "Politics" columnist and contributing editor to The American Spectator.

In Virginia's Republican primaries, Norquist encouraged the defeat of a number of legislators who voted for higher taxes. Norquist has described himself as a "boring white bread Methodist. The couple has adopted two children, both girls, one of whom was adopted from the city of Bethlehem. Norquist was listed as one of the five primary leaders of the post-Goldwater conservative movement by Nina Easton in her book, Gang of Five.

Working with eventual Speaker Newt Gingrich, Norquist was one of the co-authors of the Contract with America, and helped to rally grassroots efforts, which Norquist later chronicled in his book Rock the House. Norquist also served as a campaign staff member on the , and Republican Platform Committees. Norquist was instrumental in securing early support for the presidential campaign of then-Texas Governor George W.

Bush, acting as his unofficial liaison to the conservative movement. He campaigned for Bush in both and After Bush's first election, Norquist was a key figure involved in crafting Bush's tax cuts. John Fund of the Wall Street Journal dubbed Norquist "the Grand Central Station" of conservatism and told The Nation: "It's not disputable" that Norquist was the key to the Bush campaign's surprising level of support from movement conservatives in The meeting eventually became one of the most significant institutions in American conservative political organizing.

The meetings have been called "a must-attend event for Republican operatives fortunate enough to get an invitation", and "the Grand Central station of the conservative movement. Early in his career, Norquist was executive director of both the National Taxpayers Union and the national College Republicans, holding both positions until He served as Economist and Chief Speechwriter at the U. Chamber of Commerce from to Norquist traveled to several war zones to help support anti-Soviet guerrilla armies in the second half of the s.

He worked with a support network for Oliver North's efforts with the Nicaraguan Contras and other insurgencies, in addition to promoting U. In , he went to a conference in South Africa sponsored by South African businesses called the "Youth for Freedom Conference", which sought to bring American and South African conservatives together to end the anti-apartheid movement. John McCain. Norquist sits on the advisory board of the conservative gay rights group, and the organization often attends ATR's Wednesday meetings.

Norquist joined GOProud in , calling it "an important part of the conservative movement. Norquist married Alrayyes, a Washington consultant who is 16 years his junior, in Since his marriage to Alrayyes, Norquist has begun to speak out on certain Muslim-related political issues. In , he urged Republicans to stop politicizing the planned construction of the so-called "Ground Zero" mosque. He was involved in a dispute with the Center for Security Policy head Frank Gaffney, who questioned whether Norquist and his wife were sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood.

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Log out. US Markets Loading H M S In the news. Brett LoGiurato. Norquist came up with the idea for the anti-tax pledge when he was 12 years old. Norquist volunteered for Richard Nixon's presidential campaigns in and , but got in a tiff with the campaign staff because of his long hair. In the s, Norquist traveled to different war zones to aid anti-Soviet guerrillas. He's funny. Norquist holds signature weekly meetings of conservative groups, which have been dubbed the "Grand Central station of the conservative movement.

He was a major player in the scandal involving former lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Norquist is a member of GOProud.