Thomas John Campbell (born August 14, 1952) is an American academic, educator, and politician. He is a professor of law at the Dale E. Fowler School of Law, and a professor of economics at the George Argyros School of Business and Economics, at Chapman University, in Orange, California.
He was Dean of Chapman University School of Law from 2011 to 2016, Director of Finance for the State of California from 2004 to 2005, a former five-term Republican United States Congressman from California's 12th and 15th districts, a former member of the California State Senate, a former professor at Stanford Law School, former dean of the Haas School of Business, and former professor of business administration at the University of California, Berkeley.
In 2000 he retired from his House seat to run for the U.S. Senate but lost decisively to incumbent Dianne Feinstein. On June 8, 2010, he lost his third bid for the United States Senate, campaigning once again for the seat held by Democrat Barbara Boxer but losing the Republican nomination to Carly Fiorina.
Campbell is a member of the ReFormers Caucus of Issue One.
Early life
Born in Chicago, Campbell was the valedictorian of Chicago's St. Ignatius College Prep, Class of 1969. He went on to obtain his B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of Chicago (1973), a J.D. from Harvard Law School (1976) and then a subsequent Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago (1980). He served as a clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Byron White from 1977 to 1978 and, the year before that, for U.S. Court of Appeals Judge George E. MacKinnon. His mentor was Milton Friedman. Tom Campbell's father was the late Hon. William Joseph Campbell, a former Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. While Tom Campbell was raised in a Democratic family, he joined the Republican Party in 1980.
Campbell was admitted to the Illinois bar in 1976 and went into private practice in Chicago. He was a White House Fellow in the offices of the Chief of Staff and Counsel (1980–1981). He then served in the Reagan Administration as Director of the Bureau of Competition in the Federal Trade Commission from 1981 to 1983, the youngest person ever to serve in that position.
Law professor
Campbell became a law professor at Stanford Law School in 1983, receiving tenure as a full professor in 1987.
Congressional and State Senate career
Campbell ran for the Republican nomination in California's 12th Congressional District, which included his home in Campbell and the campus of Stanford University. The 12th had traditionally been a moderate Republican bastion, but had grown increasingly friendly to Democrats over the years. Campbell soundly defeated first-term incumbent Ernie Konnyu in the Republican primary and narrowly defeated his Democratic opponent, San Mateo County Supervisor Anna Eshoo. He served two terms before making an unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination for the Senate seat being vacated by Alan Cranston. He lost the Republican primary to a considerably more conservative Republican, Bruce Herschensohn, who in turn was defeated by Democratic Congresswoman Barbara Boxer. His political career might have been in jeopardy in any case; his district had been renumbered as the 14th District and had been made considerably more Democratic than its predecessor. Eshoo won the seat and still holds it today; no Republican running in this district (now numbered as the 18th District) has won more than 39 percent of the vote since Campbell left office.
In 1993, California State Senator Becky Morgan stepped down mid-term, and Campbell won a special election to succeed her; the state Senate district overlapped significantly with his old congressional district. In the California state Senate, Campbell was Chairman of the Housing Committee, Vice Chairman of the Education Committee, and served on the Budget Committee. California Journal rated him the Best Problem Solver in the State Senate, the Most Ethical State Senator, and the overall Best State Senator.
In 1995, 15th District Democratic Congressman Norman Mineta, later the Secretary of Commerce under President Bill Clinton and Secretary of Transportation under George W. Bush, unexpectedly resigned. Campbell's home had been re-drawn into this San Jose-based district, and he ran in the special election. Mineta had held the seat since 1975, and it was widely considered a safe Democratic district. Despite the considerable disadvantage in voter registration and Democratic attempts to tie him to Speaker Newt Gingrich, Campbell won the December special election easily. He won a full term almost as easily in 1996 and was handily re-elected in 1998.