Gender: Male
Date of birth: 5/31/1942 (Age 68 as of 2010)
State and Region of Representation: California - Former Senator, Class II
Party: Republican
Education:
- BS Business Administration, University of Southern California, 1964
- MBA, University of Southern California, 1966
Family:
- Wife: Caroline Richards (60)
- Son: Christopher Richards Jr. (42)
- Son: James Richards (38)
- Daughter: Liza Richards (38)
- Son: William Richards (38)
- Daughter: Chloe Richards (34)
- Daughter: Mary Richards (30)
- Son: Thomas Richards (28)
Bio:
Christopher Richards was born may 31st, 1942, to a german physisist who fled the rise of Hitler's regime and an American woman working in ordinance manufacture, in Los Angeles, California. His parents were not perticularly well off, either of them, but he was their only child and they did everything they could to give him a good future. In school, Christopher was nothing short of brilliant, and he was eventually able to get a full academic scholarship to the University of Southern California.
Christopher dedicated himself to his studies, and was just as successful in college as he was in high school. Perhaps more so. He graduated in 4 years with a BS in Business Administration, and then earned an MBA in another two years. It was then, just as he was coming out of college, that he met the business associate who would change his life. Mitch Parker was a brilliant engineer, another graduate of USC about seven years older then Christopher. Together they brainstormed for months, before coming up with a product and a business plan - they were going to make engines for jet planes, and sell them to the 'big boy' Aerospace firms for big money. Linking up with a rich and ambitious venture capitalist, the Richards-Parker Aerospace Group was launched. The company's value exploded upwards, and Christopher was suddenly a man set for life.
In 1968, in a chance encounter in a bar, Christopher met the love of his life, Caroline Wellington. Caroline was a transfer student from England in her first year at USC, he was a 26 year old flush with cash but lonely in life. They hit it off immediately, and within seven months, they were married. Within two years, they had their first child. Caroline would go on to become a naturalized US citizen, and Christopher and her would have 6 more children.
In 1980, Christopher completed the process of buying out his business partners, and rebranded Richards-Parker Aerospace as 'Richards Systems'. His company expanded into IT work, satellite systems, automotive parts, and more. Incorporated in El Segundo, California, Richards became a trusted and valued member of the local business community. Richards was a massive supporter of Ronald Regan in 1980 and 1984, and over the course of the eighties became very involved in Republican politics. His personal views were never considered that conservative by those who knew him, but he was still a capable fundraiser.
Finally fed up with the actions of 'Decades of Democratic Congresses wasting our money and mortgaging our future', Richards ran for Congress in 1990, investing millions of his own dollars in a campaign that eventually ended with him beating the incumbent Democrat 46.8 - 46.3, with the rest voting for a third party Green candidate.
Richards ran for the US Senate in 1992, facing Gloria Delaney. He lost that election, but continued his time in the house, co-authoring and sponsoring the Repairing Riot Damages act with Governor Thorn and Senator Delaney. He ran again for Senate in 1994, getting heavily funded but losing by just over 19,000 votes to incumbent Senator McCoy.
After this election, he was elected House Majority Leader by the House Republican Caucus by unanimous vote. In 1996 he ran for Senate again, this time beating Yasmin Ramirez by just over 7,000 votes.
In his time in the Senate, Richards would go on to propose a number of legislative initiatives, including proposals for energy reform, ethics reform and tax relief. His two most notable accomplishments in office were, most likely, the repeal of the Alternative Minimum Tax and the passage of the Defending Regional Marriage Rights act into law. In 2002, Richards ran for re-election, winning by a slim (but wider then his first victory) margin. He would continue to work across party lines, but announced in 2004 that he was not running for another term after his expired in 2008. He believed in term limits, and 2 terms in the Senate was enough.
In 2007, Richards went on a major speaking tour in Iowa and New Hampshire, and formed an exploritory committee to run for president. However, he was hospitalized in August of that year for a minor stroke, and after concluding that his body probably could not take the rigor of a presidential election - much less being president - he announced he was not running. He quietly left the Senate in 2009, and has spent the last two years guest lecturing at the USC Business and Political Science schools, as well as operating an LA based charity.
