Ray LaHood
Raymond H. LaHood (/ləˈhʊd/ lə-HOOD; born December 6, 1945) is an American politician who served as the 16th United States Secretary of Transportation from 2009 to 2013 under President Barack Obama. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served in the Illinois House of Representatives (1982–1983) and United States House of Representatives (1995–2009).
Ray LaHood | |
|---|---|
| 16th United States Secretary of Transportation | |
| In office January 23, 2009 – July 2, 2013 | |
| President | Barack Obama |
| Deputy | Thomas J. Barrett John Porcari |
| Preceded by | Mary Peters |
| Succeeded by | Anthony Foxx |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 18th district | |
| In office January 3, 1995 – January 3, 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Robert Michel |
| Succeeded by | Aaron Schock |
| Member of the Illinois House of Representatives from the 72nd district | |
| In office May 1, 1982 – January 11, 1983 | |
| Preceded by | Ben Polk |
| Succeeded by | Bob DeJaegher |
| Personal details | |
| Born | December 6, 1945 Peoria, Illinois, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Kathy |
| Children | 4, including Darin |
| Education | Spoon River College Bradley University (BS) |
In 2015 Seeking Bipartisanship: My Life in Politics, a book by Ray LaHood, coauthored with Frank H. Mackaman of The Dirksen Congressional Center, was published by Cambria Press.
In 2017, LaHood admitted to the FBI that while holding federal office he had accepted a $50,000 payment from a foreign national for personal home repairs, and that he violated federal government ethics by not reporting the payment on his Office of Government Ethics Form 278. In 2019, government prosecutors and LaHood agreed to a Non-Prosecution Agreement that required LaHood to admit responsibility, repay the $50,000 loan and pay a $40,000 fine to the U.S. government.