[3][4] When Tom was 14, his father, Patrick J. Rooney Sr., moved with the family to Palm Beach Gardens, Florida where they owned a dog track and gambling business.

[14][15] During his active duty time in the JAG Corps, he served with fellow future Congressman Patrick Murphy, a Democrat from Pennsylvania who was the first Iraq War veteran elected to the U.S.

In 2005, Rooney was named CEO of Home Safe; because of his work there, Governor Jeb Bush appointed him to the Children's Services Council of Palm Beach County Board of Directors in January 2006.

[20] In the Republican Party primary, Rooney was endorsed by Florida's Governor, Charlie Crist, and defeated State Representative Gayle Harrell and investment banker Hal Valeche.

[33][34] Rooney received endorsements in Florida from Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, U.S. Reps. Allen West and Dennis A. Ross as well as from the NRA Political Victory Fund.

[40] Rooney sponsored a bill to name a federal courthouse under construction in Fort Pierce in honor of a St. Lucie County rancher, and former Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Alto L. Adams.

[42][43][44][45][46] In April 2011, House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, traveled to Iraq with Rooney and four other members, who met with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Ambassador James Franklin Jeffrey.

"[40][65][66] Rooney fought to remove spending for an alternate engine program (built by GE Aviation and Rolls-Royce plc) for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

[67] Rooney sponsored an amendment to the 2012 House spending bill to end funding for the extra engine of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, which passed with support from freshman members of the Tea Party Caucus.

"[70] Rooney criticised Justin Amash in May 2012, accusing the Michigan Republican of wanting to "coddle foreign enemy combatants" because he proposed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to stop the military from indefinitely detaining suspected terrorists who were caught in the United States.

The letter said that Abedin "has three family members–her late father, her mother and her brother–connected to Muslim Brotherhood operatives and/or organizations," referring to a study by the Center for Security Policy.

[78][79][80] Republican Senators John McCain, Lindsey Graham, and Scott Brown, as well as Bachmann's former campaign chief Ed Rollins defended Abedin against these allegations.

"[88] Rooney expressed similar concerns: "As a member of the House Armed Services and Intelligence committees, my top priority is ensuring the security of our nation."

"[89] A couple of months later, Rooney admitted that it was an unfortunate mistake to include Mrs. Abedin: "What got lost was a legitimate question, for the sake of using Congressman (Anthony) Weiner's wife and Sec.

"[90] During an October campaign stop in Florida to support Mitt Romney, John McCain acknowledged that Rooney and Bachmann had realized that including Abedin's name in the letter to the State Department was a mistake.

"[91] Nitrogen and phosphorus pollution provide nutrients that can cause algae blooms, which in turn produce toxins harmful to humans and animals across the state of Florida.

[92] In 2008 the public interest law firm Earthjustice sued the EPA on behalf of five environmental groups, claiming that delays by both state and federal governments in establishing quantitative (rather than qualitative) limits for nutrient pollution of Florida's waters were unacceptable.

In August 2009 the Obama administration settled the lawsuit by agreeing to begin the process of imposing enforceable EPA standards for nutrient levels in the public waters of Florida.

[93] Numerical nutrient level standards announced in November 2010 provoked the State of Florida to fight back by suing the EPA (enraging Earthjustice and environmentalists).

As the EPA begins to establish nutrient levels for Florida waters, it is important for the state to be a part of the decision process and to use the invaluable information that has been collected.

"[101] Rooney and other members of Florida's Congressional delegation met with EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson in March, concerning the proposed Numeric Nutrient rules.

[104] In August, Rooney again called for delay of final federal rulemaking, pending the results of a third-party analysis, in a bipartisan letter from Florida's Congressional delegation to Lisa Jackson.

"[108] Rooney sent a letter thanking Jackson for her promise that the EPA would cooperate with the state of Florida (and their Congressional delegation) to come up with reasonable nutrient levels, and for allowing both scientific review and economic analysis of the new regulations.

"[115] In an October 2011 column, Rooney justified congressional review of EPA regulations, reduction of red tape and interference with new mandates as a means to "get the federal government off the backs of farmers.

"[116] Rooney welcomed amended rules for numeric nutrient standards, approved in December by the Florida Environmental Regulation Commission and submitted to the EPA.

[121] The bill includes disaster relief aid for Florida citrus growers who suffered loss due to Hurricane Irma, which Rooney calls a "big win.

[125] Of the Act, Rooney said, "Just as a driver's license would be recognized in another state, a person who is legally permitted to carry a concealed handgun for their or their loved ones' own protection should have that ability anywhere in our nation.

[128] In 2015, Rooney signed a letter to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives objecting to a proposed ban of a certain rifle cartridge due to its armor-piercing capabilities.

Rooney stated that even supporting a bump stock ban after the 2017 Las Vegas shooting was akin to "political suicide" and that "the NRA has an extremely sophisticated ability to either help you or hurt you from being able to continue to call yourself 'Congressman.

[149] Tom's cousin Joe Rooney is a spokesman for, as well as Co-Chair and Treasurer of the coalition supporting the Palm Beach County slot machines referendum.