Jason Chaffetz: Mormon Politician
Jason E. Chaffetz is the United States Representative for Utah’s third congressional district. He is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Chaffetz was born on March 26, 1967, in Los Gatos, California, and raised in Arizona and Colorado. His father was Jewish and his mother was Christian Scientist. Chaffetz attended Brigham Young University on an athletic scholarship and was starting placekicker on the BYU football team in 1988 and 1989. He made, and continues to hold, two school records. He was baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when he was a senior. He earned a bachelor’s degree in communications.
Chaffetz, a Republican, was first elected in 2008. During his college years he was a Democrat. His father had been married previously to Katherine Dukakis, the wife of Democratic Governor Michael Dukakis. While a student at BYU, Chaffetz was a Utah co-chairman for Michael Dukakis’s 1988 campaign for president of the United States. Chaffetz had been drifting more toward the Republican right even while working for Dukakis, and he became a Republican after meeting Ronald Reagan in 1990, when Reagan visited Nu Skin International where Chaffetz was employed as a spokesman.
In 2004, Chaffetz managed Jon Huntsman’s Utah gubernatorial campaign. After Huntsman won, Chaffetz became his chief of staff. Eleven months later Chaffetz left the governor’s office to manage his own company, Maxtera Utah, a communications and marketing company. In 2007, Governor Huntsman appointed Chaffetz as a Trustee for Utah Valley University.
On January 1, 2007, Chaffetz announced he was exploring the possibility for a Congressional run for the Republican nomination against six-term incumbent, Chris Cannon. On October 1, 2007, Chaffetz formally entered the race for the Republican nomination. David Leavitt, a brother to popular three-term Utah Governor and Bush Administration cabinet member Mike Leavitt, also joined the race.
Although a poll showed Chaffetz trailing Cannon and Leavitt, Chaffetz consistently called for a return to the core conservative principles of fiscal discipline, limited government, accountability and a strong national defense. He campaigned on stronger measures to fix legal immigration and remove the incentives for illegal immigration.
At the May 10, 2008 Utah Republican State Convention Chaffetz won 59 percent of the third district's delegates to Cannon's 41 percent. On June 24, 2008, Chaffetz defeated Cannon by a vote of 60 percent to 40 percent. The win was considered an upset victory because George W. Bush, Orrin Hatch, and Bob Bennett endorsed Cannon.
Chaffetz won the seat in the 2008 general election with 66 percent of the vote; not suprising given that the third district is one of the most Republican districts in the nation. Chaffetz kept his seat in the 2010 election with 72 percent of the vote.
Throughout his tenure, Chaffetz has been outspoken. For example, in a January 2010 meeting of the GOP Conference, Chaffetz applauded Obama for some of the promises made during the campaign, but asked why promises to broadcast healthcare debates on CSPAN, keep lobbyists out of senior positions, go line-by-line through the health care bill and end earmarks had not been kept. Video of the Q&A went viral and received extensive media coverage. Upon hearing that U.S. President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize on October 9, 2009, Chaffetz said he had “lost all respect for the award,” saying “it used to be one of distinction, but [now] it is hard to give it any credibility.” [1]
At the start of the Congressional term in 2009, he announced that he would be sleeping on a cot in his office rather than renting a Washington, D.C. apartment. Chaffetz said, “I'm trying to live the example that it doesn’t take big dollars in order to get where we want to go. I can save my family $1,500 a month by sleeping on a cot in my office as opposed to getting a fancy place that's maybe a little bit more comfortable.” His family will continue to live in Alpine. “We are now $10 trillion in debt. $10 trillion. Those are expenses that have to be paid at some point,” he said. If he can tighten his belt in these tough economic times, Chaffetz said, Congress should be able to as well.[2]
Chaffetz pledged to vote against what he calls “trivial resolutions,” including those dealing with sports, such as congratulating the winning team of the Super Bowl. Chaffetz feels that the House could be taking up more important legislation.[3]
Chaffetz married Julie Marie Johnson in 1991. They have three children and live in Alpine, Utah.
