Governor of Wisconsin
Jim Doyle took which position in late 2000s?
Jim Doyle James Edward Doyle , Jr. , ( born November 23 , 1945 ) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 44th Governor of Wisconsin , serving from January 6 , 2003 to January 3 , 2011 . In his first election to the governorship , he defeated incumbent Governor Scott McCallum by a margin of 45 percent to 41 percent ; the Libertarian Party candidate Ed Thompson won 10 percent of the vote . Although in 2002 Democrats increased their number of governorships , Doyle was the only one of them to unseat a Republican . Doyle also served as Wisconsin’s Attorney General for 12 years before becoming Governor . He is currently an attorney of counsel in the Madison , Wisconsin office of the law firm of Foley & Lardner and serves on the corporate board of Epic Systems . Early life and education . Jim Doyle was born on November 23 , 1945 , in Washington , D.C. , the son of Ruth Bachhuber Doyle and James Edward Doyle , who were influential leaders of the post-1946 Democratic Party of Wisconsin . James E . Doyle Sr . ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1954 and was appointed as a federal judge in 1965 . Ruth Bachhuber Doyle was the first woman from Dane County to be elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1948 . Doyle , who graduated from Madison West High School in 1963 , attended Stanford University for three years , then returned home to Madison to finish his senior year at the University of Wisconsin–Madison . After graduating from college and inspired by John F . Kennedys call to public service , Doyle worked as a teacher with his wife , Jessica Doyle in Tunisia as part of the Peace Corps from 1967 to 1969 . In 1972 , Doyle earned his Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School . He then moved to the Navajo Indian Reservation in Chinle , Arizona , where he worked as an attorney in a federal legal services office . Early political career . In 1975 , Doyle returned to Madison , Wisconsin , and served three terms as Dane County District Attorney , from 1977 to 1982 . After leaving that office , he spent eight years in private practice . Doyle was elected Wisconsin Attorney General in 1990 , and reelected in 1994 and 1998 . Between 1997 and 1998 , he served as the president of the National Association of Attorneys General . During his twelve years as attorney general , Doyle was considered tough on crime , but not unsympathetic to its causes . He also gained recognition as a result of several successful lawsuits against tobacco companies in the state . Campaigns for governor . 2002 gubernatorial election . Doyle ran against Republican Scott McCallum , the former lieutenant governor who had assumed the office of governor in 2001 after Tommy Thompson left to become Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Bush administration . The 2002 governors race is considered by some to have been the most negative campaign in the states history . In response , Libertarian Ed Thompson ( brother of Tommy ) , publicly critical of the negative campaigning of both major party candidates , who became a more viable option for some voters , garnered 10% of the vote . On election day , Doyle defeated McCallum by over four percent of the vote , becoming the first Democratic governor in the state since Anthony Earl was defeated in 1986 . Doyle was sworn in on January 6 , 2003 at the State Capitol in Madison . 2006 gubernatorial election . Doyle defeated Republican Congressman Mark Green in 2006 . Doyle topped Green 53% to 45% in a year in which no incumbent Democratic governor , senator , or congressman lost their reelection bid . During the campaign , Doyle was dogged by charges that Georgia Thompson , a state employee , had steered a travel agency contract to a firm whose principals had donated $20,000 to his campaign . Thompson was convicted in federal court in late 2006 and sentenced to 18 months in prison . The conviction was reversed by the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in April 2007 , with one judge calling the U.S . Attorneys case beyond thin . Retirement . Doyle raised about $500,000 for a campaign fund in the first half of 2007 , leading political analysts to think he would have been financially ready to run for a third-term as governor . In a speech to the state Democratic Party convention on July 6 , 2007 , he said , And at the end of these four years of working together , who knows , maybe well need four more . He had changed his campaign website to JimDoyle2010.com , which had been seen a further indication of a re-election run . However , on August 17 , 2009 , Doyle announced that he would not seek a third term . Governor . Upon Doyles taking office , Wisconsin faced a $3.2 billion deficit . The state ended the year 2003 with a deficit of $2.15 billion . Proposals for new programs were constrained by continued budget-cutting and his decision to honor a campaign pledge to not raise taxes . Facing political pressure , he signed a property tax freeze that has resulted in an anticipated decrease in average statewide property taxes in 2003 . Doyles stated priorities were investing in public schools , including the University of Wisconsin system ; lowering property taxes ; regional economic development ; transportation reform ; and funding of stem cell research . On January 2 , 2009 , Doyle joined the governors of four states in urging the federal government to provide $1 trillion in aid to the countrys 50 state governments to help pay for education , welfare and infrastructure as states struggled with steep budget deficits amid a deepening recession . On May 19 , 2009 , Doyle proposed a 75-cent-per-pack increase in the cigarette tax , an assessment against oil companies to help pay for road improvements , imposition of sales tax on music downloads and cell phone ringtones , and a 1 percent hike in the state income tax for individuals earning above $300,000 a year ( approximately 1 percent of the states population ) . Doyle served as chair of the Midwestern Governors Association in 2007 . In October 2007 , the Republican-led Assembly , Democratic-controlled Senate , and Governor Doyle passed a balanced budget that approved transferring $200 million from a medical malpractice fund to the Medical assistance trust fund . In July 2010 , the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that the transfer was illegal and that the state must restore the money to the malpractice fund . Personal life . Doyle is married to Jessica Laird Doyle , niece of former Congressman Melvin R . Laird , and great-granddaughter of William D . Connor , who was Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin from 1907–1909 , and great-great-granddaughter of Wisconsin State Representative Robert Connor . They have two adopted sons , Gus and Gabe , a daughter-in-law Carrie , a grandson Asiah , and granddaughters Lily and Lucy . Sources . - Laird , Helen L. , A Mind of Her Own Helen Connor Laird and Her Family 1888-1982 The University of Wisconsin Press , 2006 . External links . - James Doyle in the Dictionary of Wisconsin History , Wisconsin Historical Society - Peace Corps biography of Jim Doyle