Corey Lewandowski

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Corey Lewandowski
Born (1973-09-18) September 18, 1973 (age 50)
Lowell, Massachusetts, U.S.
Alma mater University of Massachusetts,
Lowell

American University
Political party U.S. Republican Party
Spouse(s) Alison

Corey Lewandowski (born September 18, 1973)[1] is an American political operative. He is the manager of Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.[2][3][4][5]

Prior to joining Trump's campaign, Lewandowski worked for multiple campaigns and was a lobbyist. He worked for Americans for Prosperity in a variety of roles, and led the group's national voter-registration effort for 11 months.[5] Lewandowski has run for office himself twice, once in Massachusetts and once in New Hampshire, losing both races.

Early life

Corey Lewandowski was raised in Lowell, Massachusetts, graduating from Lowell Catholic High School in 1991.[6]

Lewandowski graduated from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell with a B.A. in political science in 1995.[7]

In 1994, while an undergraduate student, Lewandowski ran for a seat in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, losing to Thomas A. Golden Jr., a Democrat.[2]

Political career

Early work

After graduating from college, Lewandowski worked on Capitol Hill in Washington while earning a master's degree in political science at American University.[2] In 1999, Lewandowski was arrested for bringing a handgun and ammunition into Longworth House Office Building.[8]

Lewandowski then interned for Massachusetts State Senator Steven C. Panagiotakos, a Democrat.[6] He also worked on the campaign of Peter G. Torkildsen (who was one of two remaining Republican members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation, the other being Peter I. Blute).

Lewandowski worked on Ohio Republican Bob Ney's campaign,[6] and after the election became Ney's congressional chief of staff.[9] In 2007, before Ney was sentenced on federal corruption charges arising from the Abramoff scandal, Lewandowski wrote a letter to the presiding judge, Ellen Segal Huvelle, saying that Ney was a mentor and "surrogate father" to him and asking for leniency in sentencing.[10][11]

Lewandowski briefly worked for the Republican National Committee in 2001, serving as Northeast legislative political director.[2]

Lewandowski served as campaign manager for the 2002 re-election campaign for U.S. Senator Robert C. Smith of New Hampshire. Smith was defeated in the Republican primary by John E. Sununu.[9] During the campaign, Lewandowski generated controversy by publicly suggesting that Sununu, who is of Lebanese descent, had divided loyalties in fighting terrorism.[8]

Schwartz MSL, Americans for Prosperity, and other work

From 2003 to 2004, Lewandowski was executive director of the New England Seafood Producers Association.[12][13]

From 2004 to 2012, Lewandowski worked for Schwartz MSL, a strategic communication and engagement firm where, according to his LinkedIn profile, he served as director of public affairs from September 2004 until July 2012. Lewandowski was registered as a lobbyist for Schwartz MSL on behalf of Passport Systems in 2011, lobbying on homeland security issues.[13] Schwartz represented Passport Systems for six years, and the firm paid Schwartz more than $350,000 over that period. Between 2008 and 2011, Passport Systems secured more than $23.9 million in federal funds. Lewandowski represented two other clients: health care software company Logical Images and solar-power company Borrego Solar.[14]

Lewandowski graduated from the New Hampshire police academy in 2006[8] and worked from 2006 to 2010 as a seasonal marine patrol officer trainee[14] with the New Hampshire State Police.[15][16]

In 2008, Lewandowski began working for Americans for Prosperity, a Koch brothers-backed advocacy group.[13][14] Lewandowski's period working for Americans for Prosperity overlapped with his tenure as a marine patrol officer trainee and registered federal lobbyist.[14] Lewandowski was Americans for Prosperity's New Hampshire director,[14][17] and East Coast regional director before becoming the national director of voter registration, a position he held until January 2015.[13][5] Lewandowski's term at Americans for Prosperity was described by Politico as "tumultuous" and marked by "fiery confrontations" with other AFP employees.[16]

While working for Americans for Prosperity, Lewandowski criticized the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a cap-and-trade system for state utilities, saying "it does nothing to reduce greenhouse gases because jobs and businesses just move to other states."[17] At the same time, Lewandowski lobbied for Borrego Solar, helping to secure a $500,000 earmark in the 2010 Energy and Water Appropriations Act that benefited a solar electricity project in Lancaster, Massachusetts, that Borrego was involved in. Newsweek noted, "Though he had succeeded as a pro-solar lobbyist looking for government assistance, at AFP he waged a campaign against government programs that supported green energy."[14]

In 2012, while still working for Americans for Prosperity, Lewandowski unsuccessfully ran for town treasurer of Windham, New Hampshire. NPR reported that during the campaign, Lewandowski "upended the town's politics, using public records laws to probe local government and launching robocalls targeted at voters to stoke outrage over a visit to the town by President Obama."[11]

Trump 2016 presidential campaign

Lewandowski first met Trump in April 2014 at a political event in New Hampshire.[3][8] Six months before Trump announced his campaign, Lewandowski was invited to Trump Tower where he accepted an offer from Trump to run his campaign.[6]

Lewandowski's playbook running Trump's campaign has been "Let Trump be Trump" and those words appear on his office white board.[18] Trump has said of Lewandowski: "he leaves me alone, but he knows when to make his presence felt."[9]

After a win in New Hampshire on February 9, 2016, Trump acknowledged Lewandowski's role in the win by praising his ground game.[11]

Alleged physical incidents

File:Michelle-fields-incident.jpg
Corey Lewandowski is seen allegedly grabbing the arm of reporter Michelle Fields in this still frame from video taken March 8, 2016, and released by the Jupiter Police Department on March 29, 2016.

On March 10, 2016, Michelle Fields, a reporter for Breitbart News, wrote that, after she asked Donald Trump a question when she approached him after a March 8, 2016, press conference in Jupiter, Florida, she was forcefully grabbed by Lewandowski and almost fell to the ground.[19][20][21][22] On March 29, 2016, Lewandowski was charged with one count of simple battery by the Jupiter Police Department and surrendered himself to the authorities, after releasing a statement maintaining his innocence.[23][24][25]

On April 14, Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg filed court documents saying that his office would not prosecute Lewandowski. Prosecutors determined that "there was probable cause to make an arrest" and "the facts support the allegation that Mr. Lewandowski did grab Ms. Fields' arm against her will" but that "the evidence cannot prove all legally required elements of the crime alleged and is insufficient to support a criminal prosecution."[26]

On March 19, 2016, during a campaign event in in Tucson, Arizona, Lewandowski drew criticisms for his handling of a protester. A video shows Lewandowski grabbing the protester by the collar when the latter ignored Lewandowski's calls for him to leave.[27][28][29][30][31] The campaign and Lewandowski denied the allegation.[27][28]

Personal life

Lewandowski first met his wife Alison when he was in ninth grade and she was in eighth. She married one of his best friends in 1998, but he died on United Airlines Flight 175 during the September 11 attacks. She married Lewandowski four years later.[8] Lewandowski is a father of four children.[16]

Lewandowski is Roman Catholic.[8] He lives in Windham, New Hampshire.[7]

References

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  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Ben Schreckinger and Cate Martel (July 22, 2015). The man behind Donald Trump's run. Politico. Retrieved: July 23, 2015.
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External links