Lee Terry
A Nebraska Republican who represented Omaha for 16 years in Congress, focusing on energy policy and local economic interests.
Born 1962 (age 64)·American politician·Birthday: January 29·Baby Boomers
Biography
Lee Terry built a political career on a foundation of local service and pragmatic conservatism. A lawyer by training, he served on the Omaha City Council before successfully running for Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District in 1998, a swing district encompassing Omaha and its suburbs. For eight terms, Terry positioned himself as a pro-business Republican with a focus on energy independence, serving for years on the influential Energy and Commerce Committee. He championed the Keystone XL pipeline, a project with significant implications for his state, and often highlighted his work on telecommunications and infrastructure. His tenure ended in 2015 after a hard-fought election loss, attributed in part to a comment about not giving up his congressional salary during a government shutdown. Terry returned to the legal field, leveraging his legislative experience as a senior adviser for a Washington law firm, navigating the intersection of policy and corporate interests he once helped shape.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Lee was born in 1962, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Lee Was Born
The biggest hits of 1962
#1 Movie
Lawrence of Arabia
Best Picture
Lawrence of Arabia
#1 TV Show
Beverly Hillbillies
Lee's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1962Born
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1967Started school
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1975Became a teenager
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1978Could drive
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1980Could vote
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1983Turned 21
Internet adopts TCP/IP, creating the modern internet
Gas: $1.16/galHome: $57,700Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Every Breath You Take" — The PoliceBest Picture: Terms of Endearment
1992Turned 30
LA riots after Rodney King verdict
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $84,300Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"End of the Road" — Boyz II MenBest Picture: Unforgiven
2002Turned 40
Euro currency enters circulation
Gas: $1.36/galHome: $137,800Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"How You Remind Me" — NickelbackBest Picture: Chicago
2012Turned 50
Curiosity rover lands on Mars; Sandy Hook shooting
Gas: $3.64/galHome: $143,200Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Somebody That I Used to Know" — GotyeBest Picture: Argo
2022Turned 60
Russia invades Ukraine; Queen Elizabeth II dies
Gas: $3.97/galHome: $348,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"As It Was" — Harry StylesBest Picture: Everything Everywhere All at Once
2026Age 64 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served eight consecutive terms as the U.S. Representative for Nebraska's 2nd congressional district from 1999 to 2015.
- Served as a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, influencing national energy policy.
- Was a chief proponent of the Keystone XL pipeline project in Congress.
- Authored legislation to prevent the Federal Communications Commission from regulating internet network management.
Did You Know?
He was a member of the Omaha City Council for four years before his election to Congress.
Terry graduated from the University of Nebraska College of Law.
He was one of the few Republicans to vote against the 2008 Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) bailout.
After leaving Congress, he became a senior adviser at the international law firm Kelley Drye & Warren.
“My job is to represent the people of Omaha, not the party.”
