Bob Rucho
{{short description|American politician}}
{{use mdy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| image = RARucho.jpg
| name = Robert Rucho
| office = Member of the North Carolina Senate
| term_start = June 9, 2008
| term_end = January 1, 2017
| preceded = Robert Pittenger
| succeeded = Dan Bishop
| constituency = 39th district
| term_start1 = January 1, 1997
| term_end1 = January 1, 2005
| preceded1 = Jerry Blackmon
| succeeded1 = Robert Pittenger
| constituency1 = 35th district (1997–2003)
39th district (2003–2005)
| party = Republican
| birth_name = Robert Anthony Rucho
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1948|12|8}}
| birth_place = Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| alma_mater = Northeastern University
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
| spouse =
| residence = Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.
| occupation = Dentist
}}
Robert Anthony Rucho (born December 8, 1948), a dentist from Matthews, North Carolina, is a former Republican member of the North Carolina General Assembly representing the state's thirty-ninth Senate district, including parts of Mecklenburg County.{{Cite web |url=http://www.nccommerce.com/Portals/0/BoardsAndCommissions/EDB/Members/Bio_Bob%20Rucho.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2013-07-30 |archive-date=2013-10-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029190535/http://www.nccommerce.com/Portals/0/BoardsAndCommissions/EDB/Members/Bio_Bob%20Rucho.pdf |url-status=dead }}
Career
Rucho served as co-chairman of the Senate Finance Committee until his abrupt resignation in June 2013 in a dispute with Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger over tax reform policy.[http://projects.newsobserver.com/under_the_dome/ap_rucho_resigns_cochair_spot_in_spat_with_berger AP: Rucho resigns co-chair spot in spat with Berger] Berger never accepted the resignation and the next month, Rucho resumed his chairmanship.[http://projects.newsobserver.com/under_the_dome/rucho_back_in_front News & Observer Under the Dome: Rucho back in front]
=Views on the Affordable Care Act=
Rucho gained much criticism, including from within his own party, after he tweeted "Justice Robert's pen & Obamacare has done more damage to the USA then [sic] the swords of the Nazis, Soviets & terrorists combined" on December 15, 2013.{{cite tweet|number=412200682477744128|user=SenatorBobRucho|title=Justice Robert's pen & Obamacare has done more damage to the USA then the swords of the Nazis,Soviets & terrorists combined. |date=December 15, 2013}}{{cite web|last=Rugg|first=Diana|title=Senator Bob Rucho compares Obamacare to Nazis|url=http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/Senator-Bob-Rucho-compares-Obamacare-to-Nazis-235957011.html|publisher=NBC Charlotte|access-date=December 16, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131216190711/http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/Senator-Bob-Rucho-compares-Obamacare-to-Nazis-235957011.html|archive-date=December 16, 2013}}
=''Rucho v. Common Cause''=
Rucho notably was named as the defendant in the 2019 Supreme Court case Rucho v. Common Cause, which involved redistricting and partisan gerrymandering. Though Rucho had already departed the state legislature by the time the case made its way up to the Supreme Court, he had previously been the chair of the committee in the state senate responsible for redrawing North Carolina's congressional districts, which drew a map heavily favoring Republicans under his leadership.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://projects.newsobserver.com/under_the_dome/rucho_retakes_legislative_seat News & Observer: Rucho retakes legislative seat]
{{s-start}}
{{s-par|us-nc-sen}}
{{s-bef|before=Jerry Blackmon}}
{{s-ttl|title=Member of the North Carolina Senate
from the 35th district|years=1997–2003}}
{{s-aft|after=Fern Shubert}}
|-
{{s-bef|before=James Forrester}}
{{s-ttl|title=Member of the North Carolina Senate
from the 39th district|years=2003–2005}}
{{s-aft|after=Robert Pittenger}}
|-
{{s-bef|before=Robert Pittenger}}
{{s-ttl|title=Member of the North Carolina Senate
from the 39th district|years=2008–2017}}
{{s-aft|after=Dan Bishop}}
{{s-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rucho, Robert A.}}
Category:Republican Party North Carolina state senators
Category:Northeastern University alumni
Category:People from Matthews, North Carolina
Category:Politicians from Raleigh, North Carolina
Category:Politicians from Worcester, Massachusetts
Category:University of North Carolina at Charlotte alumni
Category:21st-century members of the North Carolina General Assembly
{{NorthCarolina-politician-stub}}