Anthony Lee Coelho (born June 15, 1942) is an American politician from

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

who served in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the primary sponsor of the

Americans with Disabilities Act The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ...

and is a former chairman and current member of the board of directors of the Epilepsy Foundation.

Early life and education

Coelho was born in rural Los Banos, California to parents of Portuguese descent. Coelho attended public schools in nearby Dos Palos, and grew up working on his family's dairy farm. At age 15, Coelho was injured in a pickup truck accident, which doctors later suggested was the precipitating event for the onset of his

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrica ...

. For years after the accident, Coelho did not know he had the illness. Coelho graduated with a B.A. from Loyola University of Los Angeles (now Loyola Marymount University) in 1964. At Loyola, he was initiated as a member of the

Phi Sigma Kappa Phi Sigma Kappa (), colloquially known as Phi Sig or PSK, is a men's social and academic Fraternities and sororities, fraternity with approximately 74 List of Phi Sigma Kappa chapters#List of Chapters, active chapters and provisional chapters in ...

fraternity and a member of the Crimson Circle, and later was elected Student Body President during his senior year. After the Kennedy assassination, Coelho decided to become a priest.'Why Tony Coelho fights for the disabled: epilepsy kept him from Vietnam and the Jesuits,' The National Catholic Reporter, January 20, 1995. He went to a doctor for a medical exam, a prerequisite for entering the seminary. The doctor informed him that he had epilepsy. Because of

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is t ...

, he was unable to become a priest. Once his diagnosis was reported to the state, Coelho lost both his driver's license and his

health insurance Health insurance or medical insurance (also known as medical aid in South Africa) is a type of insurance that covers the whole or a part of the risk of a person incurring medical expenses. As with other types of insurance, risk is shared among m ...

Career

Coelho worked as a staff member for Congressman Bernie Sisk from 1965 until 1978. By 1970, Coelho was serving as Sisk's administrative assistant. He enhanced his expertise in agriculture policy as staff director for the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Cotton. As staff coordinator for the House Rules Subcommittee on Broadcasting, on which Sisk served, Coelho helped develop the procedures that made possible the television coverage of the House proceedings via

C-SPAN Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American cable and satellite television network that was created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a nonprofit public service. It televises many proceedings of the United States ...

. When Sisk retired, Coelho ran for his seat and won. During his first campaign for Congress, Coelho's opponent asked how people would feel if Coelho went to a meeting at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

and had a seizure. "The press called me and the good Lord was with me," Coelho later related. "Off the top of my head I said, 'Well, in the 13 years I have served in Washington I knew a lot of people who went to the White House and had fits. At least I'd have an excuse.""Tony Coelho reflects on his life with epilepsy," Epilepsy/USA staff, April 1, 2002.

Congress

In November 1978, Coelho was elected to the 96th Congress. He was later elected to the five succeeding Congresses where he served until his resignation on June 15, 1989. He served on the Agriculture, Interior, Veterans Affairs, and Administration Committees during his tenure. However he specialized in rights of disabled people. Coehlo was involved and facilitated the savings and loan crisis. See "Goliath," Matt Stoller, at 402 (2019). Specifically, he accepted donations from Drexler executives in order to defeat efforts to prevent the use of junk bonds in the purchase of companies by private equity firms. Id. Tony Coelho (D–CA)

In 1980, Coelho was named chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, a

Hill committee The Hill committees are the common name for the political party committees that work to elect members of their own party to United States Congress ("Hill" refers to Capitol Hill, where the seat of Congress, the Capitol, is located). The four major ...

that supports Democratic Party candidates. As the ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...

'' observed, "They made the sophomore congressman from central California, their chief House fund-raiser, a position not bestowed on such a junior member since it was given to a young

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

congressman named Lyndon B. Johnson in 1940.""Rep. Coelho: Democrats' Fund-Raiser Extraordinaire," ''Washington Post'', August 26, 1982, A2. Coelho raised money from businesses, which later Ralph Nader would blame for changing the party. As a member of the House leadership, Coelho helped lead the effort to pin the political blame for enactment of the

Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

economic program on the Republicans in the House. One Democratic campaign advertisement, airing early in the 1982 election season, featured scissors cutting a

Social Security Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifical ...

card and a voice accusing Republicans of trying to cut benefits."Short but Not Sweet: Democrats Counter GOP Ad," ''Washington Post'', July 16, 1982. In 1986, Coelho was elected House Majority Whip. As the chief vote counter for his party, Coelho oversaw a series of Democratic victories in the House on measures ranging from the budget to cutting off funds for the war in

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

. In 1989, Coelho resigned from the House after six terms in the wake of press reports that he had received a loan from a

savings and loan Wealth is the abundance of valuable financial assets or physical possessions which can be converted into a form that can be used for transactions. This includes the core meaning as held in the originating Old English word , which is from an ...

executive to purchase junk bonds. He was not charged with any crime."The Coelho Network is Alive and Well," by Tim Burger, ''Roll Call'', January 28, 1991. While in the House, he was a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.Lewis, Neil A. "Was a Hispanic Justice on the Court in the '30s?" ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. May 29, 2009. Coelho was credited by congressional colleagues as the primary sponsorExcerpt from the Congressional Record-House, July 12, 1990, headed "Tribute to Hon. Tony Coelho," 136 Cong. Rec. 17297, 199

/ref> of the

, which was signed into law by President George H. W. Bush. By 1994, four years after the law's passage, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that some 800,000 more people with severe disabilities had found employment than had been employed when the ADA was first enacted."Coelho Reflects on the Law," The Modesto Bee, January 18, 1997, B1.

Electoral history

, + California's 15th congressional district: Results 1978-1988 ! Year ! ! Subject ! Party ! Votes ! % ! ! Opponent ! Party ! Votes ! % , - , 1978 , , , , Tony Coelho , , Democratic , , 75,212 , , 60.11 , , , , Chris Patterakis , , Republican , , 49,914 , , 39.89 , - ,

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – In ...

, , , , Tony Coelho (inc.) , , Democratic , , 108,072 , , 71.81 , , , , Ron Schwartz , , Republican , , 37,895 , , 25.18 , - ,

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C ...

, , , , Tony Coelho (inc.) , , Democratic , , 86,022 , , 63.70 , , , , Ed Bates , , Republican , , 45,948 , , 34.03 , - , 1984 , , , , Tony Coelho (inc.) , , Democratic , , 109,590 , , 65.46 , , , , Carol Harner , , Republican , , 54,730 , , 32.69 , - ,

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal en ...

, , , , Tony Coelho (inc.) , , Democratic , , 93,600 , , 71.03 , , , , Carol Harner , , Republican , , 35,793 , , 27.16 , - , 1988 , , , , Tony Coelho (inc.) , , Democratic , , 118,710 , , 69.75 , , , , Carol Harner , , Republican , , 47,957 , , 28.18

Later career

Since his retirement from Congress, Coelho has pursued careers in business and public service, while remaining active in the disabilities community. After leaving Congress, he joined Wertheim Schroder & Company, an investment firm as a managing director. From 1990 to 1995, he also served as president and CEO of Wertheim Schroder Investment Services, which grew from $400 million to $4 billion in managed investments under his management."About Us," Epilepsy Foundation, www.epilepsyfoundation.org. In 1995, Coelho formed ETC w/tci, an education and training technology company in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morg ...

. He was the chairman and chief executive officer until 1997. President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...

appointed Coelho to serve as chairman of the President's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, a position he held from 1994 to 2001; he also served as Vice Chair of the National Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities. In 1998, Clinton appointed Coelho as the United States Commissioner General at the

1998 World Expo Expo '98 (1998 Lisbon World Exposition) was an official specialised World's Fair held in Lisbon, Portugal from Friday, 22 May to Wednesday, 30 September 1998. The theme of the fair was "The Oceans, a Heritage for the Future", chosen in part to ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of th ...

. Clinton also appointed Coelho as co-chair to the U.S. Census Monitoring Board, a position he held until his appointment as general chairman of the Gore Presidential campaign. In the summer of 1994, Coelho was the principal Democratic political strategist during the run-up to the mid-term Congressional elections. Officially, he was Senior Advisor to the

Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the governing body of the United States Democratic Party. The committee coordinates strategy to support Democratic Party candidates throughout the country for local, state, and national office, as well ...

. The Republican Party won a landslide victory in the fall congressional elections, capturing both the House and Senate by commanding margins. On November 29, 1994, then-

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hunger ...

Tom Foley appointed Coelho as one of 17 members of the Aspin–Brown Commission. Congress created the commission to study what intelligence agencies should do after the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...

, and was charged with preparing a report of its findings and recommendations to the President and the Congress. In 1999, Coelho was made chairman of Vice President

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic ...

's presidential campaign. During his tenure, Coelho moved the campaign headquarters from Washington, DC to

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

. He oversaw an overhaul of the campaign's message and strategy, and changed personnel and consultants. Gore prevailed over former Senator

Bill Bradley William Warren Bradley (born July 28, 1943) is an American politician and former professional basketball player. He served three terms as a Democratic U.S. senator from New Jersey (1979–1997). He ran for the Democratic Party's nomination f ...

in the Democratic primaries of 2000 in every primary and caucus contest and received the Democratic nomination to be president. Before the 2000 Democratic National Convention, Coelho became ill and resigned his position as general campaign chairman. Doctors later found and removed a tumor on the left side of his brain. He was replaced by former Commerce Secretary William M. Daley. He participates annually at

New York Law School New York Law School (NYLS) is a private law school in Tribeca, New York City. NYLS has a full-time day program and a part-time evening program. NYLS's faculty includes 54 full-time and 59 adjunct professors. Notable faculty members include ...

with its Tony Coelho Lecture in Disability Employment Law & Policy. He has endowed a chair in public policy at the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, University of Califor ...

Merced Merced (; Spanish for "Mercy") is a city in, and the county seat of, Merced County, California, United States, in the San Joaquin Valley. As of the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 86,333, up from 78,958 in 2010. Incorporated on Apri ...

. He is the chairman of the board of directors of the Epilepsy Foundation. He partnered with

NBCUniversal NBCUniversal Media, LLC is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate corporation owned by Comcast and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States. NBCUniversal is primar ...

and the

American Association of People with Disabilities The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization which advocates for the legal rights of people with disabilities.Imparato, Andrew J. 2005. "AAPD In Its Second Decade," ''AAPDnews'' (Spring 2005), p ...

(AAPD) to create the ''NBCUniversal Tony Coelho Media Scholarship'', which encourages people with disabilities to pursue media-related degrees and careers. He is a former chairman and current member of the board of directors of the American Association of People With Disabilities. He also sits on the Council on American Politics, the advisory board of

George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management The Graduate School of Political Management (GSPM) at the George Washington University is a school of political management and applied politics, strategic communications and civic engagement. Its graduates hold a variety of professional titles in ...

. Coelho served as an advisor of ZeniMax Media as well. Coelho serves as a founding partner of Vectis Strategies, a national public affairs firm. Coelho was one of the recipients of the inaugural

Henry Viscardi Achievement Awards The Henry Viscardi Achievement Awards were established to honor the legacy of the founder of the Viscardi Center, Dr. Henry Viscardi, Jr., a leading disability rights The disability rights movement is a global social movement that seeks ...

in 2013. In 2015, the National Disability Mentoring Coalition named Coelho an inaugural inductee to Susan M. Daniels Disability Mentoring Hall of Fame for his commitment to mentoring and improving the lives of people with disabilities. Coelho was named a vice-chair of the 2020 Democratic National Convention.

Personal life

Coelho now lives in

Rehoboth Beach, Delaware Rehoboth Beach ( ) is a city on the Atlantic Ocean along the Delaware Beaches in eastern Sussex County, Delaware. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the population was 1,327, reflecting a decline of 161 (11.2%) from the 1,488 counted in the 2000 cen ...

References

External links

New York Law SchoolLibrary of Congress Biographical DictionaryEpilepsy Foundation of AmericaThe Council on American Politics at GW's Graduate School of Political Management
* , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Coelho, Tony 1942 births American people of Portuguese descent American politicians with disabilities Disability rights activists from the United States Living people Loyola Marymount University alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California People from Los Banos, California People with epilepsy Activists from California 20th-century American politicians People from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware