From DiscoverNikkei.org

Daniel K. Inouye

U.S. senator from Hawai`i, Lawyer (b. Sept. 7, 1924)

Sen. Daniel K. Inouye. Gift of U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye.
Sen. Daniel K. Inouye.
Gift of U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye.

Born in Honolulu, Hawai`i, Daniel Inouye is the senior U.S. Senator from Hawai`i. In a distinguished career, he has been a member of Congress for more than 40 years since Hawai`i first attained statehood. He first entered politics in 1954 during the "Democratic revolution" in Hawai`i. Dan Inouye was first elected to the Hawai`i Territorial House of Representatives and also served in the Territorial Senate. He is a Medal of Honor winner for his service during World War II, became the first Japanese American to serve in the U.S House of Representatives and the Senate, and gained national prominence as a member of the Senate Watergate Committee in 1973-74 and Chairman of the Iran-Contra Committee in 1987.

Enlisting in the Army at the age of 18, he served with the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the famed "Go for Broke" regiment of Japanese American soldiers during World War II. Dan Inouye earned a Bronze Star, Distinguished Service Cross and the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroic service in one of the most highly decorated units in the history of the U.S. Army. In the fall of 1944, his unit spent two of the bloodiest weeks of the war rescuing the "Lost Battalion" of American soldiers surrounded by German forces. He lost high right arm in combat during the Italian campaign in 1945. After military service, he attended college on the G.I. Bill earning a B.A. from the University of Hawai`i (1950) in Government and Economics and a law degree from George Washington University (1952).

Known as an effective bipartisan leader, Dan Inouye has been able to enact meaningful legislation. In his 8th term in the Senate, he serves on six Senate committees. He is a member of the powerful Appropriations Committee and the ranking Democrat on the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. He is Co-chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation; a current member and past Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, a member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, and the Senate Democratic Steering and Coordination Committee.

As of November 20, 2005

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