Daniel Morey

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Current revision as of 13:26, 28 December 2008

Daniel James Morey
Senator from the Southeast
In Office: 2011 - 2013 Served alongside: Richards 2020 - 2025 Served alongside: Allum, Portela, King, Zipolo
Preceded by	Hiroko Fox (2011) Alyssa Richards (2021)
Succeeded by	Harmon C. Dooley (2014) Obadiah Harrison Perry (2025)
Member of the House of Representatives
In Office: 2001 - 2011 2013 - 2014 2016 - 2020
Preceded by	Zach Wamp
Succeeded by	Ileana Hayden
House Minority Leader
In Office: 2013 - 2014
Preceded by	Buford T. Justice
Succeeded by	Daniel Pennypacker
Born	September 28, 1959 Chattanooga, TN
Political Party	Republican
Spouse	Dr. Rebecca Morey (1979-2016) Elisabeth Morey (2018-2024) Abigail Morey (2024 - )
Religion	Episcopalian

Daniel James Morey is an American politician and former United States Senator for the Southeast, serving from 2011 to 2013 and from 2020 to 2025. He previously served as United States House Representative for Tennessee's 3rd District (from 2001 to 2011, 2013 to 2014 and 2016 to 2020). Mr. Morey is also the former House Minority Whip and House Minority Leader. He was a candidate for the Republican Party nomination in the 2020 presidential election, coming in fourth in Iowa and winning the South Carolina primary before dropping out and endorsing Akeem Mellis for the nomination. In 2024 he married Great Lakes Senator and former Senate Majority Whip Abby Brocklin of Michigan, who is currently a candidate for the Democratic Party nomination in the 2028 presidential election, making Morey the first Republican to be married to a potential Democratic President of the United States.

Early Life and Military Career

Senator Morey in 1964

Daniel, the patriarch of the Morey family, was born in 1959 in Chattanooga, Tennessee as second son to a U.S. war veteran and a secondary school teacher.

Family Background

His father, General James W. Morey, served in both Korea and Vietnam, being awarded several medals including the Congressional Medal of Honor for his outstanding bravery during the Vietnam War.

Marion Morey, his mother, was born in Germany but, with her parents, emigrated to the United States in 1947. She was an activist for the women's rights movement and supported female candidates for office in Tennessee. She also served two terms as Mayor of Chattanooga. Her party affiliation is Republican.

His older brother, Francis S. Morey, joined the U.S. Air Force after High School and later worked as an attorney after graduating from law school.He is married and currently lives in Louisiana where he practiced law and later ran to become State Senator in the Louisiana Senate. He was elected in 2016 and serves since then. In 2020 it was speculated Frank would seek the Governorship of the Mississippi Valley, but he never announced to run despite the formation of an exploratory committee.

Ava Morey, Senator Morey's younger sister, studied Law and Political Science at the University of Tennessee and Yale University. Returning home to Tennessee Ava began her career as a professor of Political Science and later of Law at Carson Newman College in Jefferson City, TN. She taught at Carson Newman College until 2000. From 1993 to 1996 she headed the School of Political Science and from 1996 to 2000 she was the head of Carson Newman's law school. After her divorce Ava moved to Oak Ridge,TN with her two children. Here she worked as Superintendent for Anderson County, TN until 2007 when she was elected Mayor of Oak Ridge a position she held until January 2021. During her time as Superintendent she came to believe that the federal role in education is too intrusive and too bureaucratic, and has become part of the problem. Ms. Morey became a strong supporter of education reforms handing authority back to the sates and local institutions as well as reforms which emphasize the importance of science and math. As Superintendent for Anderson County, TN one of her major goals was to create an educational environment promoting transparency to assess performance, promote accountability, and share innovations in education at all levels. Ava Morey held seminars at many Universities across the nation, pointing out the need for such reforms and the need to provide parents with more choice in education and to make schools less bureaucratic. Most recently she published a report on the state of America's educational system, condemning the failure to deliver a real education reform and drew a wide range agenda of actions necessary to ensure America's children receive the education they deserve. President Mellis recently appointed her to serve as United States Secretary of Education in January of 2021.

In the broader family, Daniel Morey's grandfather was Governor of Tennessee and several of his ancestors held political offices in Tennessee ever since 1860. The early Morey clan's success was made during the Civil War as strong supporters of secession. Following the Civil War the Moreys were a strong Southern Democratic family until post WW2 when the entire family became Republican. In the 50s and 60s the Morey family was the only Republican political dynasty in Tennessee to hold offices in Tennessee and Washington without interruption. Since the 70s the Morey family has continually gained more and more political strength outside of Tennessee. The Morey family is the only family in Tennessee to have strong political influence sine 1860.

Military Service and Law Career

Senator Morey in the Navy in 1977

After finishing high-school Daniel served in the United States Navy from 1977 to 1980 being stationed in Europe holding the rank of Lieutenant, although he later retired. During his three years on active duty in the Navy he served as Navy Seal and was injured during several missions. It is rumored he worked on covert missions in Soviet territory. Following his retirement he served in the Navy Reserve. It is here that he met his wife Rebecca, who he married in 1979.

After returning home to Tennessee Daniel started his studies of Law at the Tennessee State University and graduated in 1986. While his wife had completed her degree in medicine and had her own clinical practice Daniel joined a law firm in Chattanooga, TN and quickly rose to become a partner. In 1994 he opened his own law firm, Morey & Kaiser together with his old friend Jonathan Kaiser. The law firm is today one of the biggest international law firms in America, having offices across the world. Daniel Morey's youngest son, Matthew Daniel Morey recently became Partner in the firm and leads their international head office in Washington, D.C..

Political Career

Overview

• United States Representative for Tennessee's Third Congressional District, 2001 - 2011
• United States Senator for the Southeast, 2011 - 2013
• United States Representative for Tennessee's Third Congressional District, 2013 - 2014, 2016 - 2020
• United States Senator for the Southeast, 2020 - 2025

Pre-Cancer-Career

Dan Morey during his first years in Congress

In 2000 Daniel decided to give back something to his beloved home and successfully campaigned for Tennessee's 3rd congressional district seat. From Jan. 2001 until early 2011 he served as member of the United States House of Representatives before being assigned by the Governor to serve as Senator of the Southeast. In the 2000 election Mr. Morey beat his Democratic opponent Andrew Miller, receiving 66.45% of the votes. The only time Mr. Morey received less than 60% of the votes in a House election was in 2002 when he was again challenged by Andrew Miller and was only able to gather 59.64%.

Senator Morey and President Ella Warren

He served as United States Senator from 2011 until 2013 winning his election in 2012 by a clear margin. The 2012 campaign was a campaign of experience and a consistent conservative record. The Democratic party chose with Cassandra Calhoun the best they had to offer and while Ms. Calhoun was considered to be a rather conservative Democrat Mr. Morey could convince 55.9% of the voters that he is is the candidate with the right experience and the truly conservative record.

Cancer

In 2013 his wife was diagnosed with cancer and Daniel resigned from the Senate to help his wife overcome the struggle with cancer. After her victory over the disease Daniel and Rebecca returned to Tennessee and Daniel once again picked up Tennessee's 3rd district seat to serve the people of Tennessee and was elected House Minority Leader after Senator Buford T. Justice's appointment to the United States Senate, just a few months after he had been elected House Minority Whip.

In late 2014 Daniel himself got diagnosed with cancer and had to resign his seat once more. The diagnosis came just weeks after he had he had been replaced by Daniel Pennypacker as Minority Leader, a party decision which had been considered quite a blow to Mr. Morey's reform agenda.

Post-Cancer-Career

In December of 2015 Daniel had won the battle against cancer and in January of 2016 announced his intentions to serve as Representative for Tennessee's third district once more. In a special election he returned to the House and was re-elected in 2016 with 77.90% of the votes. In the 2017 - 2018 session Daniel served as Ranking Member of the House Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committee. Since the Republican Revolution of 2018 he served as Chairman of this committee. He also sat on the Science, Health, Education and Environment Committee as well as the Conference Committee. Since 2016 Daniel also serves as GOP Member Services Director after having lost the GOP Chairman election to Vincent Halfhyde by only one vote.

2020 Presidential Campaign

In early 2018, just after his marriage to Elisabeth, Daniel Morey announced the formation of a Presidential exploratory committee. Two weeks later he declared his candidacy for the Presidency before thousands of supporters in his hometown of Chattanooga. While Daniel Morey had built an impressive record during the course of his twenty year Congressional career, and while he had been able to raise significant funds he was seen as the underdog candidate. Prior to the first Caucus in Iowa he received endorsements from politicians in both parties. Most significantly he was endorsed by six Democratic leaders. The Democratic leaders who endorsed Daniel Morey included Gulf Coast Senator Evelyn Breaux, who served as Deputy Minority Leader of the Democratic Senate Caucus, Florida politician Elizabeth Anne Daniels who initially filed to challenge President Mason herself, Big Sky Country Minority Leader Lucien Kaine who in the same year lost a special Lt. Governor election to Daniel Morey's niece Carry Ann Yearling, Dixie Minority Leader Aiden Derrick LaSalle of Tennessee, Congressman Logan Andrews of New York and former Atlanta Mayor and Senatorial Candidate Ryan Howson who nearly upset Alexander Allum in the Southeast Senatorial election of 2018. On the Republican side Daniel Morey received endorsements from the President Pro Tempore of the Senate Buford T. Justice, Michigan Congressman Edgard A. Portela II and Congressman Edward Moore of Kansas.

Dan Morey meeting voters in Iowa

On the eve of the Iowa Caucus polls suggested that Mr. Morey would come almost last with approximately three percent of the vote. This was the first big surprise of the Morey 2020 campaign as Daniel Morey surprised the nation coming in fourth, nearly upsetting now Vice-President Tim Kent. Mr. Morey received 18.7% of the votes and a total of 7 delegates from Iowa. The Morey campaign largely ignored the New Hampshire Primary and focused on three weeks of heavy campaigning in South Carolina. Morey came in last in New Hampshire winning the votes of 9% of the Republican electorate. National Press saw the Morey campaign at an end and projected a third place finish in South Carolina at best. They widely ignored the fact that Daniel Morey had been Senator for the Southeast region and enjoyed great popularity in the South. Another issue which has highly underestimated was the large amount of cash the Morey campaign was willing to spend in South Carolina. The South Carolina victory turned out to be a big upset for the two frontrunner campaigns as Morey won the contest with 36%, gathering 18 delegates. On the night of the primary Daniel Morey gave passionate speech to thousands of supporters vowing to fight on until they would eventually reach the White House in November. Experts now saw a long lasting Republican contest with three candidates in a gridlock. Daniel Morey was widely expected to focus on Dixie and the rest of the South which would have prolonged the search for a candidate until the convention. As it became clear the Republican party would not find a nominee until the convention Daniel Morey surprised the nation by declaring the termination of his campaign in his hometown of Chattaooga. He gave a passionate speech, endorsing Akeem Mellis for President. The same night Speaker Dale Thomas also withdrew from the contest and Akeem Mellis became the nominee of the Republican Party.

Return to the Senate

Dan Morey back in the Senate

Following the tragic death of Senator Alyssa Richards, Governor Vincent Halfhyde appointed Daniel Morey to serve as Southeast Senator once more. Following his appointment he served as Vice-Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations, Intelligence and Defense Committee and sat on the Senate Judiciary Committee where he became known as a constant voice of traditional moral values and Southern conservative beliefs. It is in this first session back in the Senate that Daniel Morey also first acted as Acting President Pro Tempore of the Senate in the absence of President Pro Tempore Buford T. Justice.

Following the 2022 election victory over Eric Smith (D-GA) Dan Morey was named Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations, Intelligence and Defense committee as well as member of the Senate Judiciary committee. President Pro Tempore Buford Justice also named Dan Morey Deputy President Pro Tempore. In 2023 the Senator presided over the Senate during the absence of both Vice-President Tim Kent and President Pro Tempore Buford Justice. After the removal of Senator Elisabeth Battenberg (R-IL) from office and the resulting loss of the majority Dan Morey returned to serving as Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations, Intelligence and Defense committee and Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Retirement from politics

In the summer of 2025 Daniel Morey's father, James Winslow Morey fell ill and died in early September. Dan Morey took a time out from the Senate over the summer months to return to the Senate in late September. In November, just a year before the end of his term, he made the surprising announcement that he would immediately retire from all political offices. This included his position in the United States Senate as well as his position as Republican Party Memberservices Director. In a last speech to the people of the Southeast Mr. Morey made clear that he would not seek political office again and that he would focus on being a good husband to his third wife Abby Morey who declared her intentions to seek the Presidency that same year.

In Chattanooga he was welcomed with great affection and love. In December of 2025 the Chattanooga City Council announced that the city's largest High School be named after Senator Morey and that one of the many bridges in the city would from now on be called "Daniel J. Morey Bridge".

Personal Life

Daniel Morey got married to Rebecca Morey in 1979, both being very young.

Both Mrs. and Mr. Morey were diagnosed with cancer in 2013 and 2014. While she seemed to have won the battle, Mrs. Morey died on October 19th, 2016. He however achieved to overcome the disease.

Dan Morey in 1987

Daniel and Rebecca Morey have three children. Madeleine Mary (born Nov. 21, 1984) is the oldest. After High School Madeleine enrolled at Yale University in 2002 to begin her medical studies. Since 2008 she practiced medicine as partner in her mothers private practice in Chattanooga and took over the practice after her mothers retirement in 2013. Madeleine married the German lawyer Andreas (Andrew) Schott in 2011. They have two children, Mary Louise (born in 2014) and James Issac (born in 2018). Her husband Andreas currently work as Junior Partner in Daniel Morey's law firm "Morey & Kaiser" in Chattanooga, TN. Madeleine's family currently lives in the outskirts of Chattanooga. Madeleine used to be rather shy and introverted and did not enjoy public appearances with her father. This changed during his 2020 presidential campaign, where she moved much more into the spotlight giving many speeches on behalf of her father and actively working for his campaign as his top health care adviser. Washington insiders see her as the number one choice to one day succeed her father in politics. Currently she serves as member of the board of the "Rebecca Morey Fund". Madeleine currently also works for her father has health care adviser and still runs her private practice in Chattanooga.

Isabel Hazel (born Apr. 14, 1987) studied at Vanderbilt University from 2005 until 2009 and holds a Bachelor's degree in Journalism and Political Science. In 2011 she graduated Yale University with a Master's degree in Political Science. Isabel is the most extroverted of the three Morey children and always greatly enjoyed public appearances with her father. From 2011 until 2013 she worked for the New York Times and since 2013 is the owner and publisher of the Chattanooga Free Times Press. She also writes articles for several national and international papers and magazines. Isabel Morey currently lives in New York City where she is lecturing in Journalism and Political Science at Columbia University. During the Mason administration she belonged to the White House Press Corps, a position she gave up after the administration left office so she could return to a full-time job at Columbia University. She currently lives in New York and is enganged to John Howson, brother of Ryan Howson.

The youngest of the three children is Mr. Morey's only son Matthew Daniel (born Jun. 2, 1989) who studied Law at Yale University graduating in 2013. Matthew is Senior Partner in his father's law firm "Morey & Kaiser" and lived in Boston where he lead the New England office of "Morey & Kaiser". In 2015 he moved back to Tennessee and was elected Mayor of Murfreesboro, the youngest in the cities history. In 2019 he decided not to run again, in order to be with his fiancée Carolina Saint John]], and became General Manager of "Morey International Golf and Hunt Resorts" which is owned by his father. He also heads the international head office of "Morey & Kaiser" in Washington. In 2021 he married Carolina and they moved into their new home in Washington D.C.. Matthew and Carolina Morey have two children, Emily Natasha (born in 2021) and Daniel (born in 2023).

Daniel Morey's niece Carry Ann Yearling serves as Lt. Governor of the Big Sky Country.

One of Mr. Morey's closest friends has always been Elisabeth Arden, who he met in 1984. Although their friendship was very strong, they lost contact when she moved to Germany in 1995. She moved back to the United States in 2008, but they didn't meet again until 2016. It was then when they discovered very strong romantic feelings for each other, and decided to marry in 2018. Their marriage only lasted until late 2023 when Daniel discovered that Elisabeth was seeing another man. They separated in 2023 and got divorced only a few months later in early 2024.

Senator Morey is a passionate opera lover and is the main private sponsor of the Washington National Opera. In 2021 he was honored as honorary Director of the National Opera. In 2022, following his re-election victory Dan Morey announced that he had adopted a young African-American orphan who had lost both his parents in a tragic accident. Robert graduated Chattanooga Christian School in 2023 and is currently enrolled at Tennessee State University.

In 2024, Daniel Morey married Great Lakes Senator Abby Brocklin in Holland, Michigan. They had been seeing each other following Daniel's divorce and own an apartment at the riverside in Washington D.C.. In late 2024 the child of Dan and Abby, Jeffrey Thomas Morey was born in Florida.

It was not until 2025 that it became public knowledge that Dylan Douglas, son of Democratic New York Congresswoman Vivien Douglas Barnes Dunning is also the son of Daniel Morey. Congresswoman Douglas and Senator Morey had a short romantic involvement before the Senator's marriage to Abby Brocklin.

All together Daniel Morey has six children, three out of his first marriage to Dr. Rebecca Morey (Madeleine, Isabel, Matthew), an adopted son out of his marriage to Elizabeth Arden (Robert), a son out of third marriage to Abby (Jeffrey Thomas) and a son out of his romantic affair with Congresswoman Douglas Barnes Dunning.

Research on Cancer

Daniel also chairs a national fund to fund research on cancer and to help citizens struggling with the disease. The Fund has been renamed into "The Rebecca Morey Fund", named after Mr. Morey's first wife who died of cancer, and has an annual budget of some $10 million, $6 million out of this budget are direct donations made by Daniel Morey. Daniel enjoys hunting, golf, cigars, traveling, horses, writing, religion, history and baseball.

Memberships

• St.Paul's Episcopal Church, Chattanooga, TN
• American Bar Association
• Tennessee Bar Association
• Tennessee State University Alumni Board
• National Rifle Association
• National Taxpayers Union
• The Competitive Enterprise Institute
• The Dead Poets' Society
• American Legion
• American Conservative Union
• The American Conservative Party
• Sons of Confederate Veterans
• Ole Dixie Caucus
• Israel Allies Caucus
• Educational Excellence Caucus
• 2nd Amendment Caucus
• The American Way Forward Caucus
• Conservative Christian Caucus
• United States Conservative Party
• Gun Owners of America
• Global War on Terrorism Memorial Fund
• Committee for Religious Equality

Education

• B.A. Law & International Relations, Tennessee State University
• M.A. Law, Tennessee State University

Publications

• Book "Victory and Defeat", published in 2020 (The book tells the compelling story of Dan Morey's fight with cancer, the sad story of how cancer took his wife from him and gives an outlook on what can and must be done to defeat cancer on the long run.)
• Book "Heroic Dreams - The story of my life", published in 2023 (Mr. Morey's compelling life story.)

Honors

• 2017 - Claiborne County Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution Man of the Year
• 2019 - American Cancer Society Man of the Year
• 2021 - Honorary Director of the National Opera, Washington, D.C.
• 2023 - Honorary Marine Of The First Venezuelan Congressional Delegation, 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, Operation ROLLING PROMISE, Venezuela, "Forward For Freedom"

Election Results