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• Ben Nelson is the junior Democratic Senator from Nebraska. Nelson assumed office in January of 2001, filling a vacancy left by retiring Senator Bob Kerry.

  On February 2, 2009, Nelson told FOX News that he had proposed the removal of "tens of billions" from the economic stimulus package. According to Nelson, Senators from both parties wanted to revise the bill to remove funding for programs that would not directly stimulate economic and employment growth. Nelson's declaration conflicted with reports from the Obama Administration that disagreements over the package concerned much smaller dollar amounts.FOX News: Key Democrat Says Lawmakers Should Strip 'Tens of Billions'... (February 2, 2009)

• Fast Facts

  1. Born: May 17, 1941
  2. Birthplace: McCook, Nebraska
  3. Party: Democratic
  4. Assumed office: January 3, 2001
  5. Former profession: Attorney and insurance executive
  6. Alma mater: University of Nebraska
  7. Spouse: Diane Nelson
  8. The Nelsons have four children and three grandchildren
  9. Elected governor of Nebraska in 1990; served two terms in office
  10. Member: Senate Agriculture Committee, Senate Appropriations Committee and the Senate Committee on Armed Services
  11. Member of the "Gang of 10", a group of bipartisan senators that offered a compromise plan for offshore oil drilling

• "Gang of Ten"

  On August 1, 2008, Nelson and nine other senators, both Republican and Democratic, introduced an energy compromise plan that would allow for offshore drilling. The so-called "Gang of 10" hoped the proposal would help ease the nation's ongoing energy crisis.

• Related Pages on Mahalo

  U.S. Senate | U.S. House of Representatives | Daniel Akaka | Lamar Alexander | Wayne Allard | John Barrasso | Max Baucus | Bob Bennett | Jeff Bingaman | Sherrod Brown | Jim Bunning | Richard Burr | Maria Cantwell | Ben Cardin | Thomas Carper | Bob Casey | Saxby Chambliss | Tom Coburn | Thad Cochran | Norm Coleman | Susan Collins | Kent Conrad | John Conyers | Bob Corker | Mike Crapo | Jim DeMint | Byron Dorgan | Richard Durbin | John Ensign | Mike Enzi | Chuck Grassley | Paul Hodes | Kay Bailey Hutchison | Johnny Isakson | Ron Wyden | Gang of 10 | Offshore Drilling | Earmarks in Stimulus Package

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