Mike Crapo

Mike Crapo (born May 20, 1951, Idaho Falls, Idaho, U.S.) is an American politician who was elected as a Republican to the U.S. Senate in 1998 and began representing Idaho the following year. He previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1993–99).

Crapo grew up in Idaho, and he later attended Brigham Young University. After receiving a bachelor’s degree (1973) in political science, he studied law at Harvard University (J.D., 1977). During that time, he married Susan Hasleton, and the couple later had five children. From 1977 to 1978 Crapo clerked with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He then briefly practiced law in San Diego, California, before returning (1979) to Idaho, where he continued his legal career.

In the late 1970s Crapo joined the Republican Party, and he participated in state conventions and local races, while his brother, Terry Crapo, was a member of the Idaho House of Representatives. Terry’s death in 1982 impelled Crapo to seek public office himself, and he ran for and was elected to the state Senate in 1985. He served until 1992, when he successfully ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. He took office in 1993 and was reelected twice. He then entered the U.S. Senate race and won with about 70 percent of the vote in the predominantly Republican state. Crapo was sworn into office in 1998.

While in Congress, Crapo became known for his conservative views. He vigorously opposed such Democratic initiatives as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (2010) as well as efforts to regulate ownership of automatic weapons or require federal background checks on gun purchases. However, he demonstrated a willingness to forge bipartisan alliances around particular issues. He was a member of the so-called Gang of Six, a group of three Democratic and three Republican senators who formed in 2011 to mediate debate over the national debt, eventually arriving at a compromise. Similarly, Crapo sponsored initiatives with the Environmental Protection Agency, an entity unpopular with many conservatives. He sought market incentives, for instance, that would encourage landowners to protect endangered species on their property through tax breaks and other considerations. A survivor of prostate cancer, he was also a leader in sponsoring legislation related to medical-research funding.