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Norman Yoshio Mineta (born November 12 , 1931 ) is an America n politician and member of the Democratic party. Mineta is Currently serving in the President's Cabinet as the United States Secretary Of Transportation . BIOGRAPHY Mineta was born in San Jose , California to Japanese immigrant parents. During World War II the Mineta family was detained in an Internment Camp near Cody, Wyoming , along with hundreds of other Japanese immigrants and Japanese Americans . While detained in the camp, Mineta, a Cub Scout , met fellow scout Alan K. Simpson , future Senator from Wyoming, who often visited the scouts in the detainment camp with his troop. The two became, and have remained, close friends and political allies. He graduated from the University Of California, Berkeley 's Walter A. Haas School Of Business in 1953 with a BS in business administration. That year he joined the US Army and served as an intelligence officer in Japan and Korea . He then joined his father in the Mineta Insurance Agency. His political career began in 1967 when he was appointed to a vacant San Jose City Council seat by mayor Ron James . In 1969 he was reelected to his seat on the council and became the vice mayor. In 1971 he ran against 14 other candidates to replace James. Mineta won every precinct in the election, and with over 60% of the total vote was elected the 59th Mayor of San Jose, becoming the first Asian American mayor of a major U.S. city. As mayor, Mineta ended the city's 20 year old policy of rapid growth by Annex ation, creating development free areas in East and South San Jose. His vice mayor, Janet Gray Hayes , succeeded him as mayor in 1975. From 1975 to 1995 he sat in the United States House Of Representatives representing the Silicon Valley area. He co-founded the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus and served as its first chair. Mineta served as chairman of the House Public Works And Transportation Committee between 1992 and 1994. He chaired the committee's aviation subcommittee between 1981 and 1988, and chaired its Surface Transportation Subcommittee from 1989 to 1991. During his career in Congress he was a key author of the landmark Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act Of 1991 . He also pressed for more funding for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Mineta, with his friend Republican Senate Whip Alan Simpson , was also the driving force behind passage of H.R. 442, the Civil Liberties Act Of 1988 , which officially apologized for and redressed the injustices endured by Japanese Americans during World War II. In 1995, George Washington University awarded the Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Medal to Mineta for his contributions to the field of civil rights. After leaving the Congress, Mineta chaired the National Civil Aviation Review Commission , which in 1997 issued recommendations on reducing traffic congestion and reducing the aviation accident rate. Many of the commission's recommendations were adopted by the Clinton administration, including reform of the FAA to enable it to perform more like a business. After serving as vice president of Lockheed Martin Corporation , he was appointed in 2000 by President Clinton as the United States Secretary Of Commerce , making him the first Asian American to hold a post in the presidential cabinet. He was appointed United States Secretary Of Transportation by President George W. Bush in 2001, a post he was originally offered eight years previously by Bill Clinton . He is currently the only Democrat in Bush's cabinet and also the first Secretary of Transportation to have previously served in a cabinet position. During the September 11, 2001 Attacks , he issued an order to ground all civilian airplane traffic for the first time in U.S. history. After hearing of Mineta's orders, Canadian Transport Minister David Collenette acted swiftly and issued orders to ground all civilian airplane traffic across North America, resulting in Operation Yellow Ribbon . On September 21 , 2001 , Mineta sent a letter to all U.S. airlines forbidding them from practicing Profiling ; or subjecting Middle Eastern or Muslim passengers to a heightened degree of pre-flight scrutiny. He stated that it was illegal for the airlines to discriminate against passengers based on their race, color, national or ethnic origin or religion. The Norman Y. Mineta San José International Airport in San Jose, California was named after him in November 2001 when Mineta was serving as Secretary of Transportation. The Mineta Transportation Institute , located at San Jose State University , was also named after him. Mineta is married to Danealia (Deni) Mineta. He has two sons, David and Stuart Mineta, and two stepsons, Robert and Mark Brantner. |
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