Voting Station

John Heinz

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U.S. Senator

The Resume

    (October 23, 1938-April 14, 1991)
    Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
    Birth name was Henry John Heinz III
    Grandson of H.J. Heinz
    Represented Pennsylvania's 18th District (1971-77)
    US Senator from Pennsylvania (1977-91)
    Republican
    Died in the collision of his Piper airplane with a helicopter
    First husband of Teresa Kerry

Why he might be annoying:

    He was the richest member of Congress.
    In a not entirely successful effort to shed his patrician image, he went from using 'H. John Heinz III' as his name to 'John Heinz.'
    His campaign 'unintentionally' accepted $600 in illegal contributions from Gulf Oil (1972).
    Senator Tim Wirth (D-Colorado) said, 'He could send the Senate leadership up the wall faster than anyone I've seen.'
    He was chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee when the Democrats regained control of the Senate (1986) and further ticked off party donors when he awarded bonuses to many Committee staff members despite the loss.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was one of the group of investors who brought an NHL franchise to Pittsburgh (1967).
    An avid skier, fisher, and tennis player, while in the House he won the 'King of the Hill' title as best overall athlete in Congress.
    He developed a cap and trade system to reduce acid rain.
    He teamed with Senator Daniel Moynihan to enact legislation that kept Social Security solvent (1983).
    When the Reagan administration briefly tried to classify ketchup as a vegetable for school lunch programs, he said, 'This is one of the most ridiculous regulations I have ever heard of, and I suppose I need not add that I know something about ketchup.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 13 Votes: 53.85% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 7 Votes: 57.14% Annoying