Michael Patrick Flanagan (born November 9, 1962) is a former captain in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

, a practicing attorney, and a Republican Party politician from Chicago, Illinois. Flanagan is best known for his victory over eighteen-term Congressman

Ways and Means Committee A ways and means committee is a government body that is charged with reviewing and making recommendations for government budgets. Because the raising of revenue is vital to carrying out governmental operations, such a committee is tasked with fi ...

chairman

Dan Rostenkowski Daniel David Rostenkowski (January 2, 1928 – August 11, 2010) was a United States Representative from Chicago, serving for 36 years, from 1959 to 1995. He became one of the most powerful legislators in Congress, especially in matters of t ...

in the 1994 United States midterm elections. His was one of 58 Republican victories (for a net gain of 54 seats) in the House of Representatives that allowed the party to take control of both houses of Congress, as part of the

Republican Revolution The "Republican Revolution", "Revolution of '94", or "Gingrich Revolution" are political slogans that refer to the Republican Party's (GOP) success in the 1994 U.S. midterm elections, which resulted in a net gain of 54 seats in the House o ...

Early life and education

Flanagan was born in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

on November 9, 1962, the second of five sons in a family of Irish-descent. He graduated from

Lane Technical High School Lane Tech College Prep High School (often shortened to Lane Tech, full name Albert Grannis Lane Technical College Preparatory High School), is a public four-year selective enrollment magnet high school located in the Roscoe Village neighborhoo ...

, and he earned a

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

from

Loyola University Loyola University is one of several Jesuit Universities named for St. Ignatius of Loyola. Loyola University may refer to: Democratic Republic of the Congo *Loyola University of Congo, Kinshasa, Congo Spain * Loyola University Andalusia, Sevilla ...

in 1984 and a J.D. from Loyola University School of Law in 1988. He served in the

as a

field artillery Field artillery is a category of mobile artillery used to support army, armies in the field. These weapons are specialized for mobility, tactical proficiency, short range, long range, and extremely long range target engagement. Until the ear ...

officer from 1984 to 1988 (), and from1991 to 1992 (during the

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

), achieving the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. Flanagan was admitted to the

Illinois State Bar Association The Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) is among the largest voluntary state bar associations in the United States. Approximately 28,000 lawyers are members of the ISBA. Unlike some state bar associations, in which membership is mandatory, ISB ...

in 1991.

Political career

Flanagan was elected to represent the fifth district of Illinois in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

in 1994, defeating 18-term Congressman and former

chairman

, becoming the first Republican to represent a significant portion of Chicago since 1975 and the first to represent this district since 1909. Rostenkowski was under indictment during the election.GOP Targets Dem 'Scandal Babies'
by Will Schultz, ''Time.com'', July 8, 2008. Accessed August 30, 2008. The election result was a considerable upset, considering that Flanagan was, according to the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'', "a political neophyte who was underfunded, understaffed and unknown." Due to his victory, Flanagan earned the nicknames of "the accidental congressman" and "the Rosty-slayer." During his tenure in Congress, Flanagan served on the House Judiciary Committee, the House Government Reform Committee, and the Joint Committee on Telecommunications. He had a conservative record in the House, opposing abortion and gun control, while supporting the death penalty. He also condemned then-President Clinton's national healthcare plan for its government takeover of the healthcare system. While the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

'' and the ''

'' both endorsed Flanagan for reelection in 1996, he was regarded as a heavy underdog against the Democratic challenger,

State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United St ...

Rod Blagojevich Rod R. Blagojevich ( ; born December 10, 1956), often referred to by his nickname "Blago", is an American politician who served as the 40th governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, Blagojevich previously worked ...

, being a conservative Republican in a strongly Democratic district. Before Flanagan's election, the district and its predecessors had been in Democratic hands for all but one year since 1909. As expected, the district reverted to form; Blagojevich soundly defeated Flanagan, and

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

easily carried the district. Flanagan's loss was one of the 12 seats first-term Republican candidates lost in the 1996 election. Proving just how Democratic this district was and still is, no Republican has tallied more than 35 percent of the vote since Flanagan left office. As of 2024, he is the last Republican to represent a significant part of Chicago in the U.S. House.

Electoral history

, - , colspan=8 style="text-align:center;" , ELECTORAL HISTORY , - , Year , Office , Winning Candidate , Party , Pct , Opponent , Party , Pct , - ,

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

U.S. House The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

, bgcolor=#FFB3B3 , Michael Flanagan , bgcolor=#FFB3B3 , Republican , bgcolor=#FFB3B3 , 54% , bgcolor=#B3D9FF ,

(inc.) , bgcolor=#B3D9FF ,

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, bgcolor=#B3D9FF , 46% , - ,

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, bgcolor=#B3D9FF ,

, bgcolor=#B3D9FF , 64% , bgcolor=#FFB3B3 , Michael Flanagan (inc.) , bgcolor=#FFB3B3 , Republican , bgcolor=#FFB3B3 , 36% , -

Post-congressional career

Flanagan moved to Washington, D.C., in 1999 and is currently the president of Flanagan Consulting

LLC A limited liability company (LLC) is the United States-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of a ...

.Flanagan Consulting, LLC: Michael P. Flanagan
, ''Flanagan Consulting LLP''. Accessed August 30, 2008. He has been active in Illinois

Boys State The American Legion Boys State and American Legion Auxiliary Girls State are summer leadership and citizenship programs for high school juniors, which focus on exploring the mechanics of American government and politics. The programs are sponsored ...

since 1979.''2008 Illinois Boys State Yearbook'' Flanagan worked in

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

for two years for the

U.S. State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs ...

, as part of a team sent to help set up democratic institutions in the country.

References

External links

Michael P. Flanagan at Flanagan Consulting LLC
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Flanagan, Michael 1962 births Living people Illinois lawyers United States Army officers United States Army personnel of the Gulf War American people of Irish descent Politicians from Chicago Defense Language Institute alumni Loyola University Chicago School of Law alumni Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois 20th-century American lawyers Military personnel from Illinois Members of Congress who became lobbyists 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives