William Roth

For other uses, see William Roth (disambiguation).

"Senator Roth" redirects here. For other uses, see Senator Roth (disambiguation).

William Victor Roth Jr. (July 22, 1921 – December 13, 2003) was an American lawyer and politician from Wilmington, Delaware. He was a veteran of World War II and a member of the Republican Party. He served from 1967 to 1970 as the lone U.S. Representative from Delaware and from 1971 to 2001 as a U.S. Senator from Delaware.^[1] He is the most recent Republican to have served as a U.S. Senator from Delaware.

William Roth
Official portrait, c. 1971–1990
United States Senator from Delaware
In office January 1, 1971 – January 3, 2001
Preceded by	John J. Williams
Succeeded by	Tom Carper
Chair of the Senate Finance Committee
In office October 1, 1995 – January 3, 2001
Preceded by	Bob Packwood
Succeeded by	Max Baucus
Chair of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee
In office January 3, 1995 – October 1, 1995
Preceded by	John Glenn
Succeeded by	Ted Stevens
In office January 3, 1981 – January 3, 1987
Preceded by	Abraham Ribicoff
Succeeded by	John Glenn
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Delaware's at-large district
In office January 3, 1967 – December 31, 1970
Preceded by	Harris McDowell
Succeeded by	Pete du Pont
Chair of the Delaware Republican Party
In office April 10, 1961 – May 13, 1964
Preceded by	Ellwood S. Leach
Succeeded by	Clayton S. Harrison Jr.
Personal details
Born	William Victor Roth Jr. (1921-07-22)July 22, 1921 Great Falls, Montana, U.S.
Died	December 13, 2003(2003-12-13) (aged 82) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Jane Richards ​ (m. 1965)​
Children	2
Alma mater	University of Oregon Harvard Business School Harvard Law School
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Army
Years of service	1943–1946
Unit	Intelligence
Battles/wars	World War II
William Roth's voice Roth congratulates Joe Biden on his recovery from a brain aneurysm Recorded September 7, 1988

Roth was a sponsor of legislation creating the Roth IRA, an individual retirement plan that can be set up with post-tax dollars, offering tax-free withdrawals.

Early life and family

Roth was born in Great Falls, Montana, the son of Clara (née Nelson) and William Victor Roth, who ran a brewery.^[2] His paternal grandparents were German and his maternal grandparents were Swedish.^[3] He attended public schools in Helena, Montana, graduating from Helena High School. Roth started college at Montana State University before moving on to graduate from the University of Oregon in 1943, Harvard Business School in 1947, and Harvard Law School in 1949. During World War II he served in a United States Army intelligence unit from 1943 until 1946.

After being admitted to the California Bar in 1950, he moved permanently to Delaware in 1954, and began his work as an attorney for the Hercules Corporation. He married Jane Richards in 1965 and they had two children, William III and Katharine. Jane Richards Roth was U.S. District Court judge for the District of Delaware from 1985 until 1991 and then a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. They were members of the Episcopal Church.

Roth became active in politics as a Republican, and served as secretary of the Delaware Republican Party and a vice president of the Active Young Republicans of New Castle County.^[4] In addition, Roth served as a member of Delaware's "Little Hoover Commission", which studied state government and made recommendations for modernizing and reforming it.^[4]

Professional and political career

 

Roth with President George H. W. Bush in 1990

 

Roth speaks on the floor of the Senate, c. 2000

After losing the election for Lieutenant Governor of Delaware in 1960, Roth was named chair of the Delaware Republican Party on April 10, 1961.^[5] He replaced incumbent Ellwood S. Leach.^[6] He served until May 13, 1964 when he lost his reelection bid to Clayton S. Harrison Jr. by a 32-24 vote.^[7][8] In 1966, he defeated incumbent U.S. Representative Harris McDowell, and went on to serve two terms in the United States House of Representatives from January 3, 1967, until December 31, 1970. Roth voted in favor of the Civil Rights Act of 1968.^[9]

He then began his five terms in the United States Senate, succeeding the retiring incumbent senator John J. Williams. He served in the U.S. Senate from January 1, 1971, having been appointed when Williams left office two days early, until January 3, 2001, having been defeated in the 2000 election by the Democratic candidate, Governor Tom Carper. Many consider Roth's defeat due to his age and health, as he collapsed twice during the campaign, once in the middle of a television interview and once during a campaign event.^[10][11][12]

Roth was known for fiscal conservatism. Critics blamed him for national deficits during the presidency of Ronald Reagan.^[13] He was a longtime member of the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs and the Senate Committee on Finance, serving as chairman from September 12, 1995 through January 3, 2001. He was best remembered as a strong advocate of tax cuts, and he co-authored the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981, also known as the Kemp-Roth Tax Cut with Jack Kemp. Roth was also the legislative sponsor of the individual retirement account plan that bears his name, the Roth IRA. It is a popular individual retirement account that has existed since 1998.^{[citation needed]} The Roth 401(k), which did not become available until 2006, is also named after Roth.^[14] He was also one of the few Republicans to vote for the Brady Bill and the ban on semi-automatic weapons. Roth strongly supported environmental protections. Roth was also very engaged in international affairs and policy. He served as the president of NATO's parliament, the North Atlantic Assembly, from 1996 to 1998.^[15]

In 1977, Roth was one of nine senators to vote against the Senate adopting a stringent code of ethics intended to assist with the restoration of public confidence in Congress.^[16]

On December 2, 1981, Roth was one of four senators to vote against^[17] an amendment to President Reagan's MX missiles proposal that would divert the silo system by $334 million as well as earmark further research for other methods that would allow giant missiles to be based. The vote was seen as a rebuff of the Reagan administration.^[18][19]

Roth voted in favor of the bill establishing Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a federal holiday and the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987 (as well to override President Reagan's veto).^[20][21][22] Roth voted in favor of the nominations of Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas to the U.S. Supreme Court.

During the 1999 impeachment of Bill Clinton Roth voted to convict the President on both charges of impeachment. However Clinton was acquitted on both charges.

Roth was a witty man but not a natural campaigner. To help himself, he would ease himself into public appearances by bringing along a Saint Bernard dog. His succession of St. Bernards through his 34-year political career became a trademark of sorts.^[23]

Death

On December 12, 2003, Roth fell ill while visiting his daughter in Washington, and was admitted to George Washington University Hospital, where he died from heart failure the following day.^[24] The Chesapeake & Delaware Canal Bridge carrying Delaware Route 1 was dedicated as the Senator William V. Roth Jr. Bridge, and a celebration was held on July 9, 2007. The bridge is a cable-stayed bridge and notable landmark in northern Delaware. Roth helped secure its funding.

Electoral history

Public offices
Office	Type	Location	Began office	Ended office	Notes
U.S. Representative	Legislature	Washington	January 3, 1967	January 3, 1969
			January 3, 1969	December 31, 1970
U.S. Senator			January 1, 1971	January 3, 1977
			January 3, 1977	January 3, 1983
			January 3, 1983	January 3, 1989
			January 3, 1989	January 3, 1995
			January 3, 1995	January 3, 2001

United States Congressional service
Dates	Congress	Chamber	Majority	President	Committees	Class/District
1967–1969	90th	U.S. House	Democratic	Lyndon B. Johnson		at-large
1969–1971	91st			Richard Nixon
1971–1973	92nd	U.S. Senate	Democratic		Governmental Affairs Finance	class 1
1973–1975	93rd			Richard Nixon Gerald R. Ford
1975–1977	94th			Gerald Ford
1977–1979	95th			Jimmy Carter
1979–1981	96th
1981–1983	97th	U.S. Senate	Republican	Ronald Reagan	Governmental Affairs, Chair Finance
1983–1985	98th
1985–1987	99th
1987–1989	100th	U.S. Senate	Democratic		Governmental Affairs Finance
1989–1991	101st			George H. W. Bush
1991–1993	102nd
1993–1995	103rd			Bill Clinton
1995–1997	104th	U.S. Senate	Republican		Governmental Affairs, Chair Finance, Chair
1997–1999	105th
1999–2001	106th

Election results
Year	Office	Election		Republican	Votes	%		Democrat	Votes	%
1960	Lt. Governor	General		William V. Roth Jr.	96,671	50%		Eugene Lammot	97,826	50%
1966	U.S. Representative				90,961	56%		Harris B. McDowell Jr.	72,142	44%
1968					117,827	59%			82,993	41%
1970	U.S. Senator				94,979	59%		Jacob W. Zimmerman	64,740	40%
1976					125,454	56%		Thomas C. Maloney	98,042	44%
1982					105,357	55%		David N. Levinson	84,413	44%
1988					151,115	62%		Shien Biau Woo	92,378	38%
1994					111,074	56%		Charles M. Oberly III	84,540	42%
2000					142,891	44%		Thomas R. Carper	181,566	56%

Works

• Roth, William V. Jr.; Nixon, William H. (1999). The Power to Destroy: How the IRS Became America. Atlantic Monthly Press. ISBN 0-87113-748-8.

References

1. "Roth, William Victor Jr. (1921 - 2003)". United States Congress. Retrieved July 23, 2011.
2. "Roth Biography". dehistory.org. Delaware Historical Society. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
3. "United States Census, 1930", FamilySearch, retrieved April 26, 2018
4. "The Candidates .... Their backgrounds: William V. Roth, Jr. for Lieutenant Governor". Wilmington Morning News. Wilmington, DE. September 1, 1960. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Biography – Senator William V Roth".
6. "The Morning News 11 Apr 1961, page Page 1".
7. "The Morning News 13 May 1964, page Page 1".
8. Miller, Beth (December 15, 2003). . The News Journal. Archived from the original on December 17, 2003. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
9. "TO PASS H.R. 2516, A BILL TO ESTABLISH PENALTIES FOR INTERFERENCE WITH CIVIL RIGHTS. INTERFERENCE WITH A PERSON ENGAGED IN ONE OF THE 8 ACTIVITIES PROTECTED UNDER THIS BILL MUST BE RACIALLY MOTIVATED TO INCUR THE BILL'S PENALTIES".
10. Gorenstein, Nathan. . Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on July 12, 2001. Retrieved July 29, 2017.
11. "Delaware U.S. Race, 2000 -- Sussex County Online, Delaware". sussexcountyonline.com. Retrieved December 6, 2016.
12. Wilkie, Curtis (October 26, 2000). . Boston Globe. Archived from the original on February 12, 2001.
13. "Sen. William Roth, 82; Created Popular Retirement Account". LA Times. December 15, 2003. Retrieved October 4, 2014.
14. Dustin, Woodard. "About: Mutual Funds: The Roth 401k".
15. "NATO PA - PRESIDENTS FROM 1955 TO 2014". Retrieved August 8, 2016.
16. "SENATE, 86-9, ADOPTS A STRICT ETHICS CODE TO BUILD CONFIDENCE". New York Times. April 2, 1977.
17. "The 90-4 vote by which the Senate approved the..." UPI. December 3, 1981.
18. Roberts, Steven V. (December 3, 1981). "SENATORS REJECT PLAN FOR PLACING MX MISSILE IN SILOS". New York Times.
19. Webbe, Stephen (December 4, 1981). "Reagan scorns Senate rejection of silo-based MX missile plan". The Christian Science Monitor.
20. "TO PASS H.R. 3706. (MOTION PASSED) SEE NOTE(S) 19".
21. "TO PASS S 557, CIVIL RIGHTS RESTORATION ACT, A BILL TO RESTORE THE BROAD COVERAGE AND CLARIFY FOUR CIVIL RIGHTS LAWS BY PROVIDING THAT IF ONE PART OF AN INSTITUTION IS FEDERALLY FUNDED, THEN THE ENTIRE INSTITUTION MUST NOT DISCRIMINATE".
22. "TO ADOPT, OVER THE PRESIDENT'S VETO OF S 557, CIVIL RIGHTS RESTORATION ACT, A BILL TO RESTORE BROAD COVERAGE OF FOUR CIVIL RIGHTS LAWS BY DECLARING THAT IF ONE PART OF AN INSTITUTION RECEIVES FEDERAL FUNDS, THEN THE ENTIRE INSTITUTION MUST NOT DISCRIMINATE. TWO-THIRDS OF THE SENATE, HAVING VOTED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, OVERRODE THE PRESIDENTIAL VETO".
23. "ONLY IN DELAWARE: WILLIAM V. ROTH JR".
24. Wald, Matthew L. (December 15, 2003). "William V. Roth Jr., Veteran of U.S. Senate, Dies at 82". The New York Times. p. B10. Retrieved December 9, 2023.

Other sources

• Barone, Michael & Richard E. Cohen (2005). Almanac of American Politics. Washington: National Journal Group. ISBN 0-89234-112-2.
• William W. Boyer (2000). Governing Delaware. Newark: University of Delaware Press. ISBN 0-87413-721-7.

External links

• Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• home page (archived from December 2000)
• Appearances on C-SPAN

Party political offices
Preceded by Ellwood S. Leach	Chair of the Delaware Republican Party 1961–1964	Succeeded by Clayton S. Harrison Jr.
Preceded by John J. Williams	Republican nominee for U.S. Senator from Delaware (Class 1) 1970, 1976, 1982, 1988, 1994, 2000	Succeeded by Jan Ting
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Harris McDowell	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Delaware's at-large congressional district 1967–1970	Succeeded by Pete du Pont
U.S. Senate
Preceded by John J. Williams	U.S. senator (Class 1) from Delaware 1971–2001 Served alongside: J. Caleb Boggs, Joe Biden	Succeeded by Tom Carper
Preceded by Abraham Ribicoff	Chair of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee 1981–1987	Succeeded by John Glenn
Preceded by John Glenn	Chair of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee 1995	Succeeded by Ted Stevens
Preceded by Bob Packwood	Chair of the Senate Finance Committee 1995–2001	Succeeded by Max Baucus