Slade Gorton

{{For|the American fishing business formerly known as Slade Gorton & Company, of which he was a scion|Gorton's of Gloucester}}

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = Slade Gorton

| image = Slade Gorton, official Senate photo portrait.jpg

| jr/sr = United States Senator

| state = Washington

| term_start = January 3, 1989

| term_end = January 3, 2001

| predecessor = Daniel J. Evans

| successor = Maria Cantwell

| term_start1 = January 3, 1981

| term_end1 = January 3, 1987

| predecessor1 = Warren Magnuson

| successor1 = Brock Adams

| office2 = 14th Attorney General of Washington

| governor2 = Daniel J. Evans
Dixy Lee Ray

| term_start2 = January 15, 1969

| term_end2 = January 1, 1981

| predecessor2 = John O'Connell

| successor2 = Ken Eikenberry

| office3 = Majority Leader of the Washington House of Representatives

| term_start3 = January 9, 1967

| term_end3 = January 13, 1969

| predecessor3 = John L. O'Brien

| successor3 = Stewart Bledsoe

| state_house4 = Washington

| district4 = 46th

| term_start4 = January 12, 1959

| term_end4 = January 13, 1969

| predecessor4 = Alfred E. Leland

| successor4 = George W. Scott

| birth_name = Thomas Slade Gorton III

| birth_date = {{birth date|1928|1|8}}

| birth_place = Chicago, Illinois, U.S.

| death_date = {{death date and age|2020|8|19|1928|1|8}}

| death_place = Clyde Hill, Washington, U.S.

| party = Republican

| education = Dartmouth College (BA)
Columbia University (JD)

| spouse = {{marriage|Sally Jean Clark|1958|2013|end=died}}

| children = 3

| relatives = Nathaniel M. Gorton (brother)

| allegiance = {{flag|United States}}

| branch = {{army|United States}}
{{air force|United States}}

| serviceyears = 1945–1946 (Army)
1953–1956 (Air Force)
1956–1980 (Reserve)

| rank = Colonel

| unit = United States Air Force Reserve

}}

Thomas Slade Gorton III (January 8, 1928 – August 19, 2020) was an American lawyer and politician from Washington. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a member of the United States Senate from 1981 to 1987, and again from 1989 to 2001. He held both of the state's U.S. Senate seats in his career and was narrowly defeated for reelection twice, first in 1986 by Brock Adams and again in 2000 by Maria Cantwell following a recount, becoming the last Republican senator to date for each seat.

Early life and education

Gorton was born in Chicago, on January 8, 1928, and raised in the suburb of Evanston, Illinois, the son of Ruth (Israel) and Thomas Slade Gorton, Jr., descendant of one of the founders of the companies that would become Gorton's of Gloucester, and himself the founder that year of Slade Gorton & Co., another fish supplier.{{cite web|url=https://www.sladegorton.com/about-us/our-story/|title=Our Story|publisher=Slade Gorton & Co., Inc|access-date=June 7, 2021|archive-date=June 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210607213417/https://www.sladegorton.com/about-us/our-story/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.gloucestertimes.com/news/national_world_news/slade-gorton-former-us-senator-scion-of-fish-stick-family-dies-at-92/article_2f130fef-90ce-51b0-a843-1d61f70a80d6.html | title=Slade Gorton, former US senator, scion of fish stick family, dies at 92|author=Gene Johnson|publisher=Associated Press|date=Aug 20, 2020|access-date=June 7, 2021}}{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a4cYAAAAIAAJ&q=Thomas+Slade+Gorton+1928|title=Current Biography Yearbook|year=1993}}{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3VLGh02rC2sC&q=Thomas+Slade+Gorton+1928|title=Current Biography Yearbook|last1=Moritz|first1=Charles|year=1962|publisher=H. W. Wilson Company |isbn=9780824201289}} His younger brother is Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. He attended and graduated from Dartmouth College and subsequently from Columbia Law School. Gorton served in the United States Army from 1945 to 1946 and the United States Air Force from 1953 until 1956. He continued to serve in the Air Force Reserve Command until 1980 when he retired as a colonel.{{citation needed|date = June 2021}}

Early career

Gorton practiced law and entered politics in 1958, being elected to the Washington House of Representatives, in which he served from 1959 until 1969, becoming one of its highest-ranking members.{{Cite web|title=Former U.S. Senator Slade Gorton dies at age 92|url=https://www.king5.com/article/news/politics/slade-gorton-dies-at-92/281-1ad86071-edfc-47a0-a16f-51ef6657d5c5|access-date=2020-11-01|website=king5.com|date=August 19, 2020|language=en-US|archive-date=August 20, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200820161440/https://www.king5.com/article/news/politics/slade-gorton-dies-at-92/281-1ad86071-edfc-47a0-a16f-51ef6657d5c5|url-status=live}} He then served as Attorney General of Washington from 1969 until he entered the United States Senate in 1981. During his three terms as attorney general, Gorton was recognized for taking the unusual step of appearing personally to argue the state's positions before the Supreme Court of the United States, and for prevailing in those efforts.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

In 1970, Attorney General Gorton sued Major League Baseball for a violation of anti-trust laws after the loss of the Seattle Pilots, who were moved to Milwaukee after the league declined a bid from local ownership group. He hired trial lawyer William Lee Dwyer to oversee the case and eventually withdrew following the league's approval of a second expansion team—the Seattle Mariners, who began play in 1977.{{cite web |last=Caldbick |first=John |date=February 12, 2013 |title=Seattle, King County, and State of Washington suspend lawsuit against baseball's American League on February 14, 1976, clearing way for Mariners. |url=https://www.historylink.org/file/10321 |work=HistoryLink |accessdate=November 21, 2022}}{{Cite news |last=Calkins |first=Matt |date=August 19, 2020 |title=Former U.S. Sen. Slade Gorton was there for the Mariners 'at every turn' |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/mariners/former-u-s-sen-slade-gorton-was-there-for-the-mariners-at-every-turn/ |work=The Seattle Times |accessdate=November 21, 2022}}

Years later, he approached Nintendo President Minoru Arakawa and Chairman Howard Lincoln in his search to find a buyer for the Mariners. Arakawa's father-in-law, Nintendo President Hiroshi Yamauchi, agreed to buy a majority stake in the team, preventing a potential move to Tampa.{{cite news |title=Thiel: Strange saga of Slade Gorton and baseball – Sportspress Northwest |url=https://www.sportspressnw.com/2246903/2020/thiel-strange-saga-of-slade-gorton-and-baseball |access-date=17 December 2022 |work=www.sportspressnw.com}}{{cite news |title=Guest: Hiroshi Yamauchi was Seattle's anchor to the Mariners |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/guest-hiroshi-yamauchi-was-seattlersquos-anchor-to-the-mariners/ |access-date=17 December 2022 |work=The Seattle Times |date=23 September 2013 |archive-date=December 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221217233104/https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/guest-hiroshi-yamauchi-was-seattlersquos-anchor-to-the-mariners/ |url-status=live }} Gorton later helped broker a deal between King County officials and Mariners ownership on what is now called T-Mobile Park.{{cite news |last1=Brock |first1=Corey |title=Captain's Log: Remembering the man who thrice saved baseball in Seattle |url=https://theathletic.com/2016388/2020/08/24/captains-log-remembering-the-man-who-thrice-saved-baseball-in-seattle/ |access-date=17 December 2022 |work=The Athletic |language=en}}

U.S. Senate campaigns

File:President Ronald Reagan shaking hands with Senator Slade Gorton.jpg at the White House]]

=1980=

In 1980, Gorton defeated longtime incumbent U.S. Senator and state legend Warren Magnuson by a 54% to 46% margin.

=1986=

Gorton was narrowly defeated by former U.S. Representative and United States Secretary of Transportation Brock Adams.

=1988=

Gorton ran for the state's other Senate seat, which was being vacated by political ally Daniel J. Evans, in 1988 and won, defeating liberal Congressman Mike Lowry by a narrow margin.

In the Senate, Gorton had a moderate-to-conservative voting record, and was derided for what some perceived as strong hostility towards Native tribes.{{cite news|first=Danny |last=Westneat |title=Where has McCain's honor gone? |date=September 14, 2008 |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/dannywestneat/2008178468_danny14.html |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=September 15, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915111906/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/dannywestneat/2008178468_danny14.html |archive-date=September 15, 2008 |df=mdy }}{{cite news | title=Senator Slade Gorton's bill is an assault on sovereignty | date=May 1998 | url =http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb5088/is_199805/ai_n18491145 | work =Indian Country Today (Lakota Times) | access-date =September 15, 2008 }} {{Dead link|date=August 2010|bot=RjwilmsiBot}}{{cite news | first=Matt | last=Kelley | title=Tribes' Top Target in 2000: Sen. Slade Gorton | date=April 30, 2000 | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-apr-30-me-24924-story.html | work=Los Angeles Times | pages=B6 | access-date=September 15, 2008 | archive-date=August 9, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200809053148/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-apr-30-me-24924-story.html | url-status=live }} His reelection strategy centered on running up high vote totals in areas outside of left-leaning King County (home to Seattle).{{cite news | first=John | last=Hendren | title=Tough re-election race is nothing new to Gorton | date=September 10, 2000 | url =https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/20000910/4041793/tough-re-election-race-is-nothing-new-to-gorton | work =The Seattle Times | access-date =September 15, 2008 }}{{cite news|first=Joel |last=Connelly |title=Gorton is Already Lining Up Pieces for Re-election in 2000 |date=September 10, 2000 |url=http://www.seattlepi.com/archives/1998/9811160009.asp |work=The Seattle P-I |pages=A3 |access-date=September 15, 2008 }}{{dead link|date=November 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

=1994=

In 1994, Gorton repeated the process, defeating then-King County Councilman Ron Sims by 56% to 44%. He was an influential member of the United States Senate Committee on Armed Services as he was the only member of the committee during his tenure to have reached a senior command rank in the uniformed services (USAF).

Gorton campaigned in Oregon for Gordon H. Smith and his successful 1996 Senate run.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

In 1999, Gorton was among ten Republican senators who voted against the charge of perjury during the Impeachment of Bill Clinton, although he voted for Clinton's conviction on the charge of obstruction of justice.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

=2000=

In 2000, Democrat Maria Cantwell turned his "it's time for a change" strategy against him and won by 2,229 votes out of nearly 2.5 million cast.{{cite news | first=Joni | last=Balter | title=Who is Maria Cantwell? | date=April 24, 2005 | url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2002250292_sundayjoni24.html | work=The Seattle Times | access-date=September 15, 2008 | archive-date=April 19, 2009 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090419182308/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2002250292_sundayjoni24.html | url-status=live }}{{cite news | title=Maria Cantwell (Dem) | date=September 15, 2008 | url =http://www.washingtontimes.com/elections/candidate/84/ | work =The Washington Times | access-date =September 15, 2008 }} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}

Furthermore, Washington's Native tribes strongly opposed Gorton in 2000 because he consistently tried to weaken Native sovereignty while in the Senate.Getches, David H., Charles F. Wilkinson, Robert A. Williams, Jr. Cases and Materials on Federal Indian Law (2005). St. Paul: Thompson West. 5th ed. p. 29.

Twice during his tenure in the Senate, Gorton sat at the Candy Desk.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

Later career

In 2002, Gorton became a member of the 9/11 Commission, which issued its final report, the 9/11 Commission Report, in 2004.{{cite web |url=http://www.9-11commission.gov/about/bio_gorton.htm |title=National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States |publisher=9-11commission.gov |date=2004-08-21 |access-date=2020-08-19 |archive-date=October 4, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061004114120/http://www.9-11commission.gov/about/bio_gorton.htm |url-status=live }}

In 2005, Gorton became the chairman of the center-right Constitutional Law PAC, a political action committee formed to help elect candidates to the Washington State Supreme Court and Court of Appeals.{{Cite news |last=Modie |first=Neil |date=November 24, 2005 |title=State PAC to push for right-wing judges |url=https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/state-pac-to-push-for-right-wing-judges-1188373.php |access-date=August 27, 2023 |website=Seattle Post-Intelligencer}}

Gorton was an advisory board member for the Partnership for a Secure America, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to recreating the bipartisan center in American national security and foreign policy. Gorton also served as a Senior Fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center.{{Cite web|url=http://www.bipartisanpolicy.org/about/senior-fellows|title=Senior Fellows, Bipartisan policy Center|access-date=February 28, 2012|archive-date=December 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181216022850/https://bipartisanpolicy.org/about/senior-fellows/|url-status=dead}}

Gorton served on the board of trustees of the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, which is a museum dedicated to the Constitution of the United States.{{cite web |url=http://www.constitutioncenter.org/ncc_about_Board_of_Trustees.aspx |title=National Constitution Center, Board of Trustees |access-date=July 27, 2010 |date=July 26, 2010 |work=National Constitution Center Web Site |publisher=National Constitution Center |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615033447/http://constitutioncenter.org/ncc_about_Board_of_Trustees.aspx |archive-date=June 15, 2010 |url-status=dead |df=mdy }}

Gorton represented Seattle in a lawsuit against Clay Bennett to prevent the Seattle SuperSonics relocation basketball franchise, in accordance to a contract that would keep the team in Climate Pledge Arena until 2010. The city settled with Bennett, allowing him to move the team to Oklahoma City for $45 million with the possibility for another $30 million.{{cite news | url=https://blogs.wsj.com/dailyfix/2008/07/03/seattle-bennett-slam-door-on-the-sonics/ | work=The Wall Street Journal | title=Seattle, Bennett Slam Door on the Sonics | date=July 3, 2008 | access-date=August 4, 2017 | archive-date=February 28, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228153132/http://blogs.wsj.com/dailyfix/2008/07/03/seattle-bennett-slam-door-on-the-sonics/ | url-status=live }}

In 2010, the National Bureau of Asian Research founded the Slade Gorton International Policy Center. The Gorton Center is a policy research center, with three focus areas: policy research, fellowship and internship programs, and the Gorton History Program (archives).{{cite web | url = http://sladegortoncenter.nbr.org | title = Slade Gorton Policy Center Web site. | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140110224643/http://sladegortoncenter.nbr.org/ | archive-date = January 10, 2014 | df = mdy-all }} In 2013 the Gorton Center was the secretariat for the ‘Commission on The Theft of American Intellectual Property’, in which Gorton was a commissioner.{{cite web | url = http://www.ipcommission.org/Commissioners/index.html | title = IP Commission Web Site. | access-date = April 7, 2014 | archive-date = December 8, 2013 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131208114651/http://www.ipcommission.org/Commissioners/index.html | url-status = dead }} Gorton was also a counselor at the National Bureau of Asian Research.{{cite web | url = http://www.nbr.org/About/team.aspx?id=976d7c1a-03fb-4de5-a580-ea39ef2926e7 | title = National Bureau of Asian Research Web Site. | access-date = April 7, 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160828113712/http://nbr.org/About/team.aspx?id=976d7c1a-03fb-4de5-a580-ea39ef2926e7 | archive-date = August 28, 2016 | url-status = dead | df = mdy-all }}

In 2012, Gorton was appointed to the board of directors of Clearwire, a wireless data services provider.{{cite web|url=http://corporate.clearwire.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID%3D695693 |title=Clearwire Announces Appointment of Former U.S. Senator Slade Gorton to Company's Board of Directors (NASDAQ:CLWR) |access-date=2012-02-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121110095309/http://corporate.clearwire.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=695693 |archive-date=November 10, 2012 |df=mdy }}

Gorton was a member of the board of the Discovery Institute, notable for its advocacy of the pseudoscience of intelligent design.

Gorton was also of counsel at K&L Gates LLP.{{cite web|url=http://www.klgates.com/slade-gorton/|title=K&L Gates Firm Bio|access-date=January 11, 2019|archive-date=January 21, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150121174053/http://www.klgates.com/slade-gorton/|url-status=dead}}

Gorton opposed the candidacy of Donald Trump for President of the United States in 2016, instead writing in Independent candidate Evan McMullin.{{cite web |url=http://www.politico.com/story/2016/09/evan-mcmullin-on-virginia-ballot-227696 |title=Never Trump conservative McMullin makes Virginia ballot |last=Strauss |first=Daniel |date=September 2, 2016 |work=Politico |access-date=September 3, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160903182339/http://www.politico.com/story/2016/09/evan-mcmullin-on-virginia-ballot-227696 |archive-date=September 3, 2016 |url-status=live }} He later supported the First impeachment of Donald Trump and urged other Republicans to join him.{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/25/opinion/my-fellow-republicans-please-follow-the-facts.html |title=My Fellow Republicans, Please Follow the Facts |newspaper=The New York Times |date=November 25, 2019 |last1=Gorton |first1=Slade |access-date=September 22, 2020 |archive-date=October 2, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201002011303/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/25/opinion/my-fellow-republicans-please-follow-the-facts.html |url-status=live }}

Personal life and death

He married the former Sally Jean Clark on June 28, 1958. They had three children, Sarah Nortz, Thomas Gorton, and Rebecca Dannaker. Sally Gorton died on July 20, 2013, one day before her 81st birthday.{{cite web|date=July 22, 2013|title=Civic leader, political wife Sally Clark Gorton dies|url=http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2021451028_sallygortonxml.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140728130400/http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2021451028_sallygortonxml.html|archive-date=July 28, 2014|access-date=July 17, 2014|publisher=The Seattle Times|df=mdy}}

Gorton died after a brief illness with complications of Parkinson's disease on August 19, 2020 at the home of his daughter, Sarah Nortz in Clyde Hill, Washington, age 92.{{cite web |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/former-u-s-sen-slade-gorton-92-dies/ |title=Former U.S. Sen. Slade Gorton, a towering figure in Washington state, dies at 92 |date=August 18, 2020 |publisher=Seattletimes.com |access-date=2020-08-19 |archive-date=August 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819163436/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/former-u-s-sen-slade-gorton-92-dies/ |url-status=live }}

References

External links

[http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=G000333 Congressional Bio]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20110509140653/http://www.klgates.com/professionals/detail.aspx?professional=3672 Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis LLP ("K&L Gates") Lawyer Bio]
[http://www.nbr.org/research/activity.aspx?id=171 The Next Ten Years of Post-9/11 Security Efforts], Q&A with Slade Gorton (September 2011)
{{C-SPAN|4381}}