Bergman was born on February 2, 1947, in Shakopee, Minnesota,[3] and received his undergraduate degree in business from Gustavus Adolphus College in 1969.[4][5] He subsequently earned an M.B.A. degree from the University of West Florida.[6] His formal military education includes Naval Aviation Flight Training, Amphibious Warfare School, Marine Corps Command & Staff College, Landing Force Staff Planning (Marine Expeditionary Brigade [MEB] and Air Command Element [ACE]), Reserve Component National Security and Naval War College Strategy & Policy, Syracuse University National Security Seminar, Combined Forces Air Component Command, LOGTECH, and CAPSTONE.[citation needed]
After a 1978 civilian employment transfer to Chicago, Bergman transferred from the Rhode Island National Guard back to the Marine Corps Reserve, where he served in several 4th Marine Aircraft Wing units at NAS Glenview, Illinois: HML-776, flying the UH-1; VMGR-234, flying the KC-130; and Mobilization Training Unit IL-1. He was selected to stand up the second KC-130 squadron in 4th MAW and in 1988 became the first commanding officer of VMGR-452, Stewart Air National Guard Base (ANGB), Newburgh, New York. From 1992 to 1994 he commanded Mobilization Station, Chicago.
Transferred in June 1998 to Headquarters, Marine Forces Europe, Stuttgart, Germany, Bergman served as deputy commander. Recalled to active duty from April to July 1999, he was dual-hatted as EUCOM, Deputy J-3A. He then commanded II Marine Expeditionary Force Augmentation Command Element, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, until assuming command of the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing, New Orleans, Louisiana in August 2000.
In September 2002, Bergman assumed command of the 4th Force Service Support Group, New Orleans, Louisiana. He also served as chairman of the Secretary of the Navy's Marine Corps Reserve Policy Board from 2001 to 2003. Returning to active duty in October 2003, he served as director of Reserve Affairs, Quantico, Virginia. He began his final assignment, command of the Marine Forces Reserve/Marine Forces North, on June 10, 2005. He relinquished that command in October 2009 and retired from active duty in December of that year.
Bergman won the Republican primary in Michigan's 1st congressional district in August 2016. He defeated Democratic nominee Lon Johnson and Libertarian nominee Diane Bostow in the November general election.[1] Bergman, who was elected to succeed retiring Republican Representative Dan Benishek, won 55% of the vote to Johnson's 40% and Bostow's 4%.[8][9]
In June 2017, Bergman was one of the Republican congressmen who were practicing on an Alexandria, Virginia, baseball field for the annual Congressional Baseball Game when James Hodgkinson began shooting at them, harming four people, including Representative Steve Scalise.[12] Afterward, Bergman blamed the incident on anti-GOP rhetoric and the media.[13]
As of January 2022[update], Bergman has voted with President Joe Biden's stated position roughly 6% of the time.[14]
In March 2016, Bergman said that cutting spending would be his top priority in Congress.[19]
In a July 2016 television interview, Bergman said his three top priorities were to "get Congress working together" instead of being preoccupied with partisan division, to "utilize the Constitution", and to pass a balanced budget amendment.[20]