View source for Chic Hecht

{{short description|American politician (1928–2006)}}
{{redirect|Senator Hecht|the Georgia State Senate member|Greg Hecht}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Chic Hecht
| image name = File:Senator Chic Hecht.png
| ambassador_from= United States
| country= Bahamas
| term_start= August 23, 1989
| term_end= March 1, 1993
| predecessor= [[Carol Boyd Hallett]]
| successor= [[Sid Williams]]
| president= [[George H. W. Bush]]<br />[[Bill Clinton]]
| jr/sr2 =United States Senator
| state2 =[[Nevada]]
| party =[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| term_start2 = January 3, 1983
| term_end2 = January 3, 1989
| alongside2 = 
| preceded2 = [[Howard Cannon]]
| succeeded2 = [[Richard Bryan]]
| office3 = Member of the [[Nevada Senate]]
| term3 = 1967–1975
| birth_name=Mayer Jacob Hecht
| birth_date = {{birth date|1928|11|30}}
| birth_place = [[Cape Girardeau, Missouri]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2006|5|15|1928|11|30}}
| death_place = [[Las Vegas, Nevada]], U.S.
| spouse = Gail Kahn
| education = [[Washington University in St. Louis]] ([[Bachelor of Science|BS]])
| profession=
}}

'''Mayer Jacob Hecht''' (November 30, 1928 – May 15, 2006) was an American [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] politician and diplomat who served as a [[United States Senate|United States Senator]] from [[Nevada]] from 1983 to 1989, and as [[U.S. Ambassador to the Bahamas]] from 1989 to 1993.<ref name=congress>{{Cite web |url=https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/H000439 |title=HECHT, Jacob Chic |website=bioguide.congress.gov}}</ref>

==Early life and education==
Hecht was born into a [[Jewish]] family in [[Cape Girardeau, Missouri|Cape Girardeau]], [[Missouri]]. His mother was born in Kiev and his paternal grandparents were from Poland and [[Germany]].<ref>{{citation |url= https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHXZ-FG5 |title= United States Census, 1930 |website= [[FamilySearch]] |access-date=March 7, 2018 }}</ref> He received a [[Bachelor of Science]] degree in [[retail]]ing from [[Washington University in St. Louis]] in 1949.<ref name=LVRJ>{{cite news |url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2006/May-16-Tue-2006/news/7342787.html |last=Vogel |first=Ed |publisher=Las Vegas Review-Journal |title=Hecht, former U.S. senator, dies in LV |date=2006-05-16}}</ref>

=== Korean War ===
Hecht attended Military Intelligence School at [[Fort Holabird]] and served as a counter intelligence special agent with the [[United States armed forces|U.S. armed forces]] during the [[Korean War]], from 1951 to 1953.

Hecht was a member of the National Military Intelligence Association, and was inducted into the [[Military Intelligence Hall of Fame]] in 1988.<ref name=congress />

== Career ==
After leaving military service, Hecht moved to Nevada. His business activities included retailing, the operation of a bank, and interests in hotels. He married the former Gail Kahn in 1959.

===Politics===
In 1966, he was elected to the [[Nevada Senate]], the first [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] to represent his predominantly [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] district in and around [[Las Vegas]] in more than 25 years. He was a state senator from 1967 to 1975, serving as Senate minority leader from 1969 to 1970.

=== U.S. Senate ===
In [[1982 United States Senate election|1982]], he was elected to the U.S. Senate, replacing four-term incumbent Democrat [[Howard Cannon]], whom he had defeated for reelection. He served only one term, from 1983 to 1989, having been defeated for reelection in [[1988 United States Senate election|1988]] by Democratic [[Governor of Nevada|Governor]] [[Richard Bryan]]. In the Senate, Hecht became known for his verbal slips and miscues, including a vow at one point not to permit a "nuclear suppository" in his home state.<ref>{{cite news|title=Chic Hecht, 77, Former Senator and Businessman From Nevada, Is Dead|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/18/us/18hecht.html?_r=0|access-date=12 October 2014|work=New York Times|date=18 May 2006}}</ref>

=== Ambassador ===
After his loss, he was then appointed ambassador to the [[Bahamas]] by President [[George H. W. Bush]] on March 24, 1989.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/nomination-chic-hecht-be-united-states-ambassador-the-bahamas|title=Nomination of Chic Hecht To Be United States Ambassador to the Bahamas &#124; The American Presidency Project|website=www.presidency.ucsb.edu}}</ref> During his confirmation, he encountered opposition from some Democratic senators, an unusual occurrence for senators to oppose the nomination of a former colleague. Some members like Senator [[Bob Graham]] and [[John Breaux]] argued Hecht was unqualified to serve in a position growing in importance in the War on Drugs and took exception to Hecht's remarks during his confirmation hearing, when he stated he would feel at home because the position "is a nice lifestyle" with "a lot of nice golf courses and good fishing."<ref>{{cite news|last1=Reidy|first1=Chris|title=Graham Loses Battle On Hecht Ex-senator Confirmed As Ambassador To The Bahamas|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1989/07/12/graham-loses-battle-on-hecht-ex-senator-confirmed-as-ambassador-to-the-bahamas/|access-date=1 December 2014|work=Orlando Sentinel|agency=Sentinel Washington Bureau|date=July 12, 1989}}</ref> Nevertheless, Hecht was easily confirmed by a 78 to 19 vote on July 11, 1989.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=101&session=1&vote=00105|title=U.S. Senate: U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 101st Congress - 1st Session|website=www.senate.gov}}</ref> He served from 1989 until 1993.

===Activism for Soviet Jews===
Before the [[Reykjavík Summit]] in 1986, Hecht met with [[President of the United States|President]] [[Ronald Reagan]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.chabad.org/526509|title=Senator-Hecht and President Reagan}}</ref> Hecht urged Reagan to ask [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] leader [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] to ease [[emigration]] requirements for Soviet Jews, including those on a list that had been prepared by a member of the Council for Soviet Jewry.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2006/May-18-Thu-2006/opinion/7470040.html |publisher=Las Vegas Review-Journal |date=2006-05-18 |title=EDITORIAL: Chic Hecht, at 77}}</ref><ref name=jss>{{cite web |url=http://www.jewishsightseeing.com/dhh_weblog/2006-blog/2006-06/2006-06-20-chic_hecht.htm |title=Jewish Sightseeing |date=2006-06-20}}</ref> Hecht reported his effort as successful:

<blockquote>The former senator related that Reagan told him afterwards that he had given the list to the Soviet leader at the beginning of the summit when the two men met alone. Hecht said that Reagan was told by Gorbachev, "as long as nothing is in the paper, there is no publicity, and we don't hear about it," Jews on the list would be quietly released.<ref name=jss /></blockquote>

Hecht credited the [[Lubavitcher Rebbe]], [[Rabbi]] [[Menachem Mendel Schneerson|Menachem Schneerson]], for prompting him to undertake the effort.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.chabad.org/therebbe/article.asp?AID=523711 |publisher=Chabad.org |date=2006-05-15 |title=Obituary: Senator Jacob ("Chic") Hecht (1929-2006)}}</ref>

===Relationship with John Kerry===
Hecht's name reappeared in the news in the course of the [[2004 United States presidential election|2004 presidential election]] because of an event during his term in the Senate. On July 12, 1988, Hecht was leaving a Republican weekly policy lunch when he began to choke on an apple slice from his lunch of fruit salad and cottage cheese. Unable to talk to his colleagues and not wanting to vomit on them, he ran into the hallway, where Senator [[Kit Bond]], a Republican from [[Missouri]], unsuccessfully tried to help Hecht. Senator [[John Kerry]], a Democrat, stepping off an elevator at the same time, recognized what was happening to Hecht and quickly performed the [[Heimlich maneuver]], saving Hecht's life.<ref name=life_save>{{cite news |url=http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2004/feb/06/former-gop-sen-hecht-owes-life-to-democratic-candi/ |publisher=Las Vegas Sun |date=2004-02-06 |title=Former GOP Sen. Hecht owes life to Democratic candidate Kerry |first=Kirsten |last=Searer}}</ref>

For the rest of his life, Hecht always called Kerry on [[Christmas Day]] (December 25) each year to thank him. Though a conservative Republican who contributed the maximum amount to the re-election campaign of [[George W. Bush]], Hecht said that he would appear in support of Kerry if asked,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.rollcall.com/politics/index.html |title=Politics Home Page : Roll Call |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120722193152/http://www.rollcall.com/politics/index.html?cqp=1 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-07-22 |access-date=2021-08-27 }}</ref> though he declined to reveal whether he planned to vote for Kerry or for Bush.<ref name=life_save /> One of Hecht's daughters, Leslie Helmer, who worked for the presidential campaigns of [[Ronald Reagan]] and George H. W. Bush, helped raise funds for Kerry's campaign, out of gratitude for his action.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.campaignline.com/webedition/page.cfm?pageid=400&navid=51|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041209094741/http://campaignline.com/webedition/page.cfm?pageid=400&navid=51 |url-status=dead |title=Campaign Line |archive-date=December 9, 2004}}</ref>

===Later career===
After finishing his time as ambassador to the Bahamas in 1994, Hecht returned home to Las Vegas to focus on his business activities. On May 24, 2016, his brother, businessman and philanthropist Martin Hecht, died in [[Palm Springs, California]]. The [[Hecht Synagogue]] at the [[Hebrew University of Jerusalem]] was constructed through funds raised for over a decade by Martin.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.semissourian.com/story/2307274.html|title=Cape businessman Martin Hecht remembered for faith, generosity|date=2016-05-24|access-date=2016-05-24|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161005200821/http://www.semissourian.com/story/2307274.html|archive-date=2016-10-05}}</ref> Opened in 1981 and dedicated in 1985 in the presence of the Hecht brothers and Senator [[Jesse Helms]], it was named after the Hechts' then 96-year-old father.<ref>{{cite news|title=Behind the Headlines the Transformation of Jesse Helms|url=https://www.jta.org/1985/12/26/archive/behind-the-headlines-the-transformation-of-jesse-helms|work=[[Jewish Telegraphic Agency]]|date=December 26, 1985|access-date=August 15, 2017}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
Hecht was diagnosed with [[prostate cancer]] in 2005. He died of the cancer on May 15, 2006, at the age of 77. Hecht was survived by his wife and two daughters, Lori and Lesley.<ref name="LVRJ" />

==See also==
*[[List of Jewish members of the United States Congress]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{CongBio|H000439}}
*{{C-SPAN|3261}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-ppo}}
{{s-bef|before=[[David Towell]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] nominee for [[List of United States Senators from Nevada|U.S. Senator]] from [[Nevada]]<br />([[Classes of United States Senators|Class 1]])|years=[[1982 United States Senate election in Nevada|1982]], [[1988 United States Senate election in Nevada|1988]]}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Hal Furman]]}}
{{s-par|us-sen}}
{{U.S. Senator box|
 before=[[Howard Cannon]]|
 state=Nevada|class=1|
 after=[[Richard Bryan]]|
 years=1983–1989
|alongside=[[Paul Laxalt]], [[Harry Reid]]}}
{{s-dip}}
{{succession box
|title=[[United States Ambassador to the Bahamas]]
|before=Carol Boyd Hallett
|after=[[Lino Gutierrez]]<br />(as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim)
|years=August 23, 1989–March 1, 1993}}
{{s-end}}

{{USSenNV}}
{{USCongRep-start | congresses= 98th–100th [[United States Congress]]es | state=[[Nevada]]}}
{{USCongRep/NV/98}}
{{USCongRep/NV/99}}
{{USCongRep/NV/100}}
{{USCongRep-end}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hecht, Chic}}
[[Category:1928 births]]
[[Category:2006 deaths]]
[[Category:Ambassadors of the United States to the Bahamas]]
[[Category:Republican Party Nevada state senators]]
[[Category:American people of German-Jewish descent]]
[[Category:American people of Romanian-Jewish descent]]
[[Category:United States Army personnel of the Korean War]]
[[Category:Jewish American military personnel]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Missouri]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Nevada]]
[[Category:United States Army officers]]
[[Category:Olin Business School (Washington University) alumni]]
[[Category:People from Cape Girardeau, Missouri]]
[[Category:Deaths from prostate cancer in Nevada]]
[[Category:Jewish United States senators]]
[[Category:Republican Party United States senators from Nevada]]
[[Category:Jewish American people in Nevada politics]]
[[Category:20th-century American diplomats]]
[[Category:20th-century Nevada politicians]]
[[Category:20th-century American Jews]]
[[Category:20th-century United States senators]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the Nevada Legislature]]
[[Category:Jewish state legislators in Nevada]]