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James Thomas Kolbe (born June 28 1942), American politician, has been a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives since 1985, representing the 8th District of Arizona (previously numbered as the 5th District from 1985-2003).
He was born in Evanston, Illinois, was educated at Northwestern University and Stanford University, served in the United States Navy, and was a special assistant to Illinois Governor Richard Ogilvie, a business executive, and a member of the Arizona Senate before entering the House. He is one of three openly gay members (with Barney Frank and Tammy Baldwin) of the House of Representatives.
In 2000, he became the first openly gay person to address the Republican National Convention, though his speech did not address gay rights. He has been mild in his support of gay marriage, though strong in his support of universal civil unions.
Kolbe serves as Chair of the Subcommittee on Foreign Operations, Export Financing and Related Programs of the House Appropriations Committee.
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