Alphonse D’Amato: Senatorial Career
Following the several years he devoted to political service in Nassau County, New York, Alphonse D’Amato made up his mind and decided to run as a senator for New York. In 1980, he won against Republican incumbent Jacob Javits for the Republican nomination. Later on, during the elections, he won against Democrat Elizabeth Holtzman with a 45% plurality victory for the senatorial seat. All in all, Al D’Amato served as senator for three terms, winning elections and reelections in 1980, 1986, as well as in 1992.
During the 18 year he served as a US senator, Al D’Amato earned the reputation for handling people’s individual problems, meeting his constituents on a face-to-face basis, and giving them political and personal advices.
In his senatorial endeavors, Al D’Amato was known for his filibuster strategies. In fact, he was the person behind the 2nd and 7th longest filibusters ever recorded in the US Senate history. By 1986, he held a filibuster against a military bill and it lasted for more than 23 hours. He likewise conducted a filibuster in order to help prevent the loss of 750 jobs in the northern areas of New York.
Moreover, Al D’Amato is distinguished for being in various committees while in office. Following the 1989 Pan Am Flight 103 disaster, he was selected as the President’s Commission on Aviation Security and Terrorism (PCAST) member. In his time at the committee, he established new security policies so as to protect the nation from further terrorist attacks. Aside from PCAST, he was a member of both the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the Senate Finance Committee. During his time in the committee, he did a fundraising activity that gathered $54 million for the Republican Party, which was far better than the $25 million that was raised by Democrats. In addition, he was the chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. There, he headed the cause of Holocaust survivors trying to retrieve their money in Swiss bank accounts.
In 1998, Al D’Amato retired from his political career and formed his own lobbying and consultancy firm. However, he continues to do fundraising activities for members of the Republican Party.