Meet the Lawmaker: Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), 21st District

What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Rep. Nunes : When I was young, I wanted to be a fireman — that’s what my mom tells me. Then I wanted to be a farmer. That’s what I went to school for.

What do you consider your biggest political achievement?
Rep. Nunes : Legislatively, the Hubbard Act. It’s the sole survivorship issue. I had a constituent who was in the military and lost his two brothers who were also in the military serving in Iraq. He left the military because of the sole survivorship policy, but his benefits were cut off when he returned home. The Hubbard Act fixed that.

What has been your biggest political mistake?
Rep. Nunes : When we had an opportunity to reform Social Security, Republicans made a mistake in not offering a proposal in legislative text.

What is your favorite hobby?
Rep. Nunes : I collect wine. It’s my one and only hobby.

Who’s your favorite lawmaker of the opposite party?
Rep. Nunes : I’ve come to really like [Rep.] Dan Boren [D-Okla.]. We’re the same age and we have children the same age.

What has been your craziest constituent request?
Rep. Nunes : We had a constituent that called our office because there was a bear that was eating apples in the apple orchard and he wanted me to come over and personally shoot the bear. We sent a staffer out there, and we saw the bear. Then the constituent said he actually liked the bear and didn’t really want us to shoot it.

What is your favorite place in the world?
Rep. Nunes : Probably the Azores Islands, where my family is from. It’s a group of islands in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. I like to spend time there with my family that’s left there and vacation there.

What’s your least favorite household chore?
Rep. Nunes : My wife would say I don’t do any household chores, so I guess I can’t have a least favorite.