Posted on 02/02/2006 11:03:36 AM PST by new yorker 77
John Boehner (Bay-ner), elected to represent the Eighth Congressional District of Ohio for an eighth term in November 2004, continues to be a key leader in the fight for a smaller, more accountable federal government.
Born in Cincinnati in November 1949 as one of 12 brothers and sisters, John has lived in Southwest Ohio his entire life. He and his wife Debbie have been married for 32 years. They have two daughters – Lindsay and Tricia – and live in the northern Cincinnati suburb of West Chester. After graduating from Cincinnati’s Moeller High School, in 1968, John earned a bachelor’s degree in business from Xavier University in Cincinnati in 1977.
Upon his graduation, he accepted a position with Nucite Sales, a small sales business in the packaging and plastics industry, and eventually became president of the firm. While working in the private sector, John entered the political arena – first serving as Union Township trustee from 1982 to 1984 and then as a representative to the Ohio state legislature from 1984 to 1990.
In 1990, he was elected to represent Ohio’s Eighth Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives. During his tenure in the House, he has worked consistently to reform the federal government. His first two terms in the House were marked by an aggressive campaign to clean up Congress and make it more accountable to the American people. In fact, during his freshman year, Boehner and fellow members of the reform-minded "Gang of Seven" took on the House establishment and successfully closed the House Bank, uncovered "dine-and-dash" practices at the House Restaurant, and exposed drug sales and cozy cash-for-stamps deals at the House Post Office.
John was also active in education reform issues, despite serving in the minority at the time. In 1994, he passed legislation with strong bipartisan support allowing school districts to use their Title I funds for public school choice programs, under which parents could choose which public school their children would attend. Later, John was instrumental in crafting the Contract with America, the bold 100-day agenda for the 104th Congress that nationalized the 1994 elections. One of the Contract's cornerstones - the Congressional Accountability Act, requiring Congress to live under the same rules and regulations as the rest of the nation - bears the unmistakable imprint of his drive to reform the House.
The success of John's reform-minded agenda earned him election to the House Republican leadership after the Republican election victories in 1994. While in Congress, John has never lost sight of the need for greater fiscal responsibility in the federal government - a hallmark of his career as a small business owner. As House Republican Conference Chairman in the 104th and 105th Congress, John was a powerful voice in the fight to force Washington to stick to the strict spending limits in the Balanced Budget Act. And in September 1999, as Vice-Chairman of the House Administration Committee, John joined House Speaker Dennis Hastert to announce the first-ever "clean" independent audit of the House – a reform he first called for as a member of the Gang of Seven in 1992. "It was a proud day for the man who joined the committee in part because of his expertise in accountability and advocacy of government entities run by private-sector principles," Roll Call, a top Capitol Hill news source, observed.
In January 2001, John opened a new chapter in his congressional career when he was selected by House Republicans to chair the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. In accepting the post, John pledged to work with his committee colleagues – "Republican and Democrat alike – to make positive reforms for Americans from grade school to the golden years." As committee chair, he has helped deliver on President George W. Bush’s promise to reform America’s education system. In May 2001, the House passed John’s No Child Left Behind Act, a bill based on the President’s reform plan, with overwhelmingly bipartisan support. This success was highlighted by The Almanac of American Politics, which noted, “Putting together a bipartisan education package on a committee which has long been one of the most partisan in Congress…was a considerable achievement. Boehner now seems to be a more powerful member than ever.”
On January 8, 2002 President Bush culminated more than a year of intense legislative activity by signing the No Child Left Behind Act in Hamilton - a city in Ohio's Eighth District. And he did so in what he called one of the most important places in America: a public school. On the heels of this historic success, Boehner is now leading his committee as it tackles a wide variety of other issues including retirement security, higher education affordability and quality, special education reform, and expanded school choice.
Meanwhile, John continues to serve as Vice-Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, on which he is a consistent free market voice for Ohio’s farmers and ranchers. In his leadership positions on both of these key congressional committees, John is certain to have a major impact on the national legislative agenda during the 109th Congress - which is good news for the Ohio families he represents on Capitol Hill.
Sounds good. It also doesn't hurt that he's a hunk :-)
Boehner's 'no pork' pledge rankles:
Hurricane Katrina No Pork Pledge
Last Update: September 30, 2005
The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) unveiled its “Hurricane Katrina No Pork Pledge” at a press conference alongside members of Congress on September 8. With the rebuilding in the Gulf states expected to cost more in the first year than the past three years of the Iraq war combined, the potential for pork-barrel spending in the upcoming federal disaster relief measures is enormous. By signing the pledge, members of Congress vow to oppose any project or provision that is not directly related to the impact of Hurricane Katrina in any supplemental appropriations bill that provides funds for hurricane relief.
The following members of Congress have signed the “No Pork Pledge”:
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.)
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.)
Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md.)
Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio)
Rep. Steve Chabot (R-Ohio)
Rep. Chris Chocola (R-Ind.)
Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.)
Rep. Tom Feeney (R-Fla.)
Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.)
Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.)
Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas)
Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.)
Rep. Jefferson Miller (R-Fla.)
Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Ohio)
Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.)
Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kans.)
Rep. Lynn Westmoreland (R-Ga.)
Can't say I've seen him speak much. Hopefully, he's got a good "Q Factor." Make a nice contrast with Stretch Pelosi....
I was just thinking the same thing...Lord, he's cute! ;-)
How's his conservatism? Is he a good bulldog like DeLay was? How's his second-amendment positions?
Yum :-)
Boehner scores A by NRA on pro-gun rights policies
Voted YES on decreasing gun waiting period from 3 days to 1.
Voted YES on prohibiting suing gunmakers & sellers for gun misuse.
Boehner is decent on fighting pork....
He's NOT a good pick based on influence-peddling. Not after he handed out campaign contributions from the tobacco lobby ON THE FLOOR of the House while the House was considering eliminating tobacco subsidies.
If it quacks like a duck....
I think Shadegg (sp?) was a better choice (coming from Boehner's own district)
Acceptable.
I'd prefer a mark of AAAAAA+++++++++OMG_HE_PRACTICALLY_INVENTED_GUN_RIGHTS_+++++AAA+A+A+++A++AAAAA+++
But an A will do.
I wish he wanted to secure the borders using the troops instead of us having to do it, but oh well, we'll do it if the Feds won't.
Feh. *BOTH* parties seem to want the United States of Amerexico.
Shadegg was the best conservative choice, for sure, but he wasn't going to win, and Boehner is a damn sight better than Roy Blunt. He is very telegenic and will be tough for the Democrats to demonize. He was one of Newt Gingrich's original lieutenants and one of the key architects of the GOP takeover of the House in 1994, and he remembers why that happened and how far the House GOP has strayed from their original reform agenda. The tobacco-check thing is the only real black mark on him. Blunt dumped his wife of 32 years to marry a lobbyist, for goodness' sake. He was Tom DeLay's handpicked successor. I think the Dems were licking their chops at the prospect of running against Blunt this fall. Thank heaven we dodged that bullet.
I don't disagree that he is a MUCH better choice than Roy Blunt. Blunt is almost as bad as you get in the GOP....
I still say Boehner is a lousy choice compared to Shadegg, though. :)
You're right - check out those blue eyes!
I agree. I SO wanted Shadegg.
Thanks for the post. I liked Shadegg best too, and I thot Blunt swaggered like one of Boss Tweed's guys. Glad to hear he beat Blunt.
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