Rangel, Charles B., 1930-

<p>New York Congressman and Harlem native Charlie Rangel was born in New York on June 11, 1930. Raised by his mother and maternal grandfather, a Pullman porter and elevator operator, Rangel grew up in the streets of New York. After dropping out of high school, Rangel served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, where he was seriously wounded in battle and received the Bronze Star and Purple Heart.</p>

<p>After his return from Korea and near-death experience, Rangel enrolled at New York University, earning a B.A. in 1957 and receiving his law degree from St. John's University Law School in 1960. In 1961, Attorney General Robert Kennedy appointed Rangel assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. In 1967, Rangel won election to the New York State Assembly. In 1971 Rangel ran for U.S. Congress and defeated the famous Reverend Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. in a historic election. Rangel's victory inaugurated the first of his seventeen consecutive terms as representative of the Fifteenth Congressional District of New York. This district contains the neighborhood of Harlem.</p>

<p>Rangel's tenure in Congress has been marked by a continued activism and concern for his constituency. Rangel was one of the founding members of the Congressional Black Caucus and served at one time as its chairman. He has also been active on issues of trade and human resources. In 1987, Rangel, one of the leading opponents to South African apartheid, pushed the Internal Revenue Service to eliminate tax credits for taxes paid to the apartheid government of South Africa. In 1995, he helped to create a federal "empowerment zone" in Manhattan and authored the low-income tax credit to stimulate the development of affordable housing in urban areas. Early in 2003, Rangel proposed the reinstatement of the military draft as a way to deter the use of force and promote a peaceful resolution to the standoff in Iraq. In 2007, Rangel became the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.</p>

<p>Rangel and his wife, Alma, have two children, Steven and Alicia. The Rangels, active still in many civic and community organizations, maintain their home in Harlem.</p>

RANGEL, Charles B., a Representative from New York; born in New York, New York County, N.Y., June 11, 1930; attended DeWitt Clinton High School; B.S., New York University School of Commerce, New York, N.Y., 1957; LL.B. (J.D.), St. John’s Law School, Brooklyn, N.Y., 1960; United States Army, 1948-1952; lawyer, private practice; assistant United States Attorney, Southern District of New York, 1963; counsel to speaker of the New York state assembly, 1965; counsel to the President’s Commission to Revise the Draft Laws, 1966; secretary, New York State Penal Law and Code Revision Commission; member of the New York state assembly, 1966-1970; elected as a Democrat to the Ninety-second and to the twenty-two succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1971-January 3, 2017); censured by the U.S. House of Representatives on December 2, 2010, for misuse of congressional letterhead and financial impropriety; was not a candidate for reelection to the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress in 2016; chairman, Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control (Ninety-eighth through One Hundred Third Congresses); chairman, Committee on Ways and Means (One Hundred Tenth and One Hundred Eleventh Congresses); chairman, Joint Committee on Taxation (One Hundred Eleventh Congress).

<p>Charles Bernard Rangel (born June 11, 1930) is an American politician who was a U.S. representative for districts in New York from 1971 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the second-longest serving incumbent member of the House of Representatives at the time of his retirement, serving continuously since 1971. As its most senior member, he was also the Dean of New York's congressional delegation. Rangel was the first African-American Chair of the influential House Ways and Means Committee. He is also a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus.</p>

<p>Rangel was born in Harlem in Upper Manhattan and lives there to this day. He earned a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for his service in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, where he led a group of soldiers out of a deadly Chinese army encirclement during the Battle of Kunu-ri in 1950. Rangel graduated from New York University in 1957 and St. John's University School of Law in 1960. He then worked as a private lawyer, assistant U.S. attorney, and legal counsel during the early-mid-1960s. He served two terms in the New York State Assembly, from 1967 to 1971, and then defeated long-time incumbent Congressman Adam Clayton Powell Jr. in a primary challenge on his way to being elected to the House of Representatives.</p>

<p>Once there, Rangel rose rapidly in the Democratic ranks, combining solidly liberal views with a pragmatic approach towards finding political and legislative compromises. His long-time concerns with battling the importation and effects of illegal drugs led to his becoming chair of the House Select Committee on Narcotics, where he helped define national policy on the issue during the 1980s. As one of Harlem's "Gang of Four", he also became a leader in New York City and State politics. He played a significant role in the creation of the 1995 Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation and the national Empowerment Zone Act, which helped change the economic face of Harlem and other inner-city areas. Rangel is known both for his genial manner, with an ability to win over fellow legislators, and for his blunt speaking; he has long been outspoken about his views and has been arrested several times as part of political demonstrations. He was a strong opponent of the George W. Bush administration and the Iraq War, and he put forth proposals to reinstate the draft during the 2000s.</p>

<p>Beginning in 2008, Rangel faced a series of personal legal issues focusing on ethics violations and allegations of failures to abide by the tax laws. The House Ethics Committee focused on whether Rangel improperly rented multiple rent-stabilized New York apartments, improperly used his office in raising money for the Rangel Center at the City College of New York, and failed to disclose rental income from his villa in the Dominican Republic. In March 2010, Rangel stepped aside as Ways and Means Chair. In November 2010, the Ethics Committee found Rangel guilty of 11 counts of violating House ethics rules, and on December 2, 2010, the full House approved a sanction of censure against him. During the 2012 and 2014 elections, Rangel faced two strong primary challenges in a now primarily Hispanic district but prevailed. He did not run for re-election in 2016 and left office in January 2017.</p>

<p>Known in his Harlem, New York, district as the “Lion of Lenox Avenue,” Representative Charles B. Rangel rose to become the first African-American chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee.1 With a House career that spanned 46 years, Rangel—whose safe Democratic district provided him with seniority and stature on Capitol Hill—was one of the longest-serving Members of Congress in American history. And he is one of only two African-American Representatives to chair three separate committees. Rangel helped found the Congressional Black Caucus in 1971, and was a staunch defender of inner city economic development and international trade. His assignment to the Ways and Means Committee gave him considerable influence over America’s tax policy, and he shaped major bills that ranged from anti-drug policies to health care reform. Upon his retirement, Rangel reflected on his long career, noting, “Thank God I never had to decide between doing the right thing or being defeated at the polls.”</p>

<p>Charles B. (Charlie) Rangel was born on June 11, 1930, in Harlem, New York City, to Blanche Wharton and Ralph Rangel. The second of three children, he was raised by his mother and his maternal grandfather, Charles Wharton. From 1948 to 1952, Rangel served in the U.S. Army and was awarded the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart for his service in the Korean War when he led 40 U.S. soldiers from behind enemy lines despite being wounded himself. After returning to New York and graduating from DeWitt Clinton High School, Rangel earned a bachelor of science degree from New York University under the GI bill in 1957. Three years later, he completed a JD at St. John's University Law School. In 1960 Rangel passed the New York bar and began practicing law. In 1963, U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy appointed him Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. He later served as an aide to the speaker of the New York assembly and was counsel for the President’s Commission to Revise the Draft Laws. On July 26, 1964, Rangel married the former Alma Carter. They raised two children, Steven and Alicia.</p>

<p>After the war, Rangel became involved in the Civil Rights Movement, marching with Martin Luther King Jr. in Alabama from Selma to Montgomery. Combined with his work for the state assembly and for the New York City housing and redevelopment board, politics became a natural home. In 1966, he ran successfully for a seat in the New York state assembly, representing central Harlem. During his time in Albany, he forged a bipartisan friendship with Republican Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller.</p>

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