Ralph Hall and District Judge Brett Hall (in the Hawaiian shirt)
Posted on 12/06/2005 1:15:21 PM PST by LdSentinal
'Bout time Ralph hung up his hat. He's been a little too wacky in recent years.
I'm a little surprised that with 13 terms under his belt, Congressman Hall is the senior member. We have several state legislators here in Kentucky that pass that mark.
For example, our senior legislator is Democrat State Representative Jim Bruce. He was first elected in 1963.
You're comparing a member of Congress to a member of the state legislature. There are way more state legislators out there and it's easier to get elected young and stay in office as long as you want, particularly in states like Kentucky where there isn't much partisan or social change in some areas.
But the power of incumbency for Congress is much higher, I think. Turnover for the Kentucky legislature is always at a higher rate than turnover in Congress.
Ralph Hall didn't enter Congress until he was almost 58. He had been in elective office over 30 years prior (elected a local Judge in 1950). He was already in the Texas Senate a year before your Rep. Bruce, and that was right about the time the most legendary holder of Hall's Congressional seat died... Speaker Sam Rayburn. As someone who probably personally knew Rayburn, it probably pained him to have to switch to the GOP.
If he wants 2 more years, give him 2 more years. He deserves to leave on his own terms.
I remember reading a few years ago that Hall wanted to be replaced by his son, who has been a Republican judge for years now. If so, watch out for the possibility of Hall deciding not to run on the afternoon of January 2 (the filing deadline) and a quick filing by his son. That's the best way to hand-pick your successor. Hall can also retire after the filing deadline has expired and have the GOP designate his son as the nominee, but only if he knows for sure that his son will be the one selected.
I'd hope Congressman Hall would choose a classier way to exit than a switcheroo like that. I know that a lot of Reps. as of late have tried to get their kids in to succeed them, failing rather frequently. If his son is well qualified, than let him compete with others and win the GOP nomination fair and square.
"I know that a lot of Reps. as of late have tried to get their kids in to succeed them, failing rather frequently."
Dick Armey's son, Scott Armey, was an example. I think that the same thing happened in the congressional district based in Champaign, Illinois. In both cases the son lost in the primary.
I should've specified Republicans have had more trouble as of late than the Democrats do with bequeathing seats. I know Tauzin's son failed, as did Dick Armey's, Nick Smith's... Bill Shuster almost didn't survive a renomination. I'm having a brain freeze on some other names.
Yes, I forgot about Scott Armey losing the run-off to now-Congressman Burgess. But note that Dick Armey announced his retirement like a year before the filing deadline, so Scott got plenty of competition, which is why he was held to 45% in the first round of the primary. Had Dick Armey said he was running for reelection and then dropped out right before the filing deadline, everyone would have been caught flat-footed and Scott Armey would have likely been unopposed in the GOP primary---and good luck to Burgess or anyone taking on incumbent Congressman Scott Armey in 2004, with or without the 2004 redistricting.
DJ, the CD that takes in Champaign, IL is the one held by Tim Johnson, right? Who held it before him?
It's the Illinois 15th. I had to look this up, but the congressman was Tom Ewing, who retired in 2000, and his son was Sam.
What court does the younger Hall serve on?
I stumbled across this list of names.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4706965
I had forgotten that mess when Tom Ewing retired in 2000. As with Bill Lipinski sending for his son in Tennessee (albeit later on), Ewing sent for his son, a Texas resident. With Ewing backing his son and Hastert backing another candidate, State Rep. Bill Brady, that allowed Tim V. Johnson to sneak in (alas, Johnson was the candidate backed by George Ryan). Ewing's son came in an embarrassing 3rd place, not even receiving half as many votes as 2nd place Brady. Johnson seems one of those stealth Congressmembers you almost hear nothing about (makes you wonder what they're up to ;-)).
That was an interesting article, pointing up some names I had since sent to the background of my brain.
This one I remember:
Hamilton Fish IV -- son of retiring Rep. Hamilton Fish (R-NY); lost general election 1994 running as a Democrat
The Fish family had been stalwarts in Congress going back well over 160 years ago. Fish III's father had served in the Congress at the time FDR was President (representing his Hyde Park district) and was no fan of his. He lived until 1991 (just short of 103 years old). The family sort of eroded away from its Conservative roots, and Fish, III was a bit of a RINO (G. Gordon Liddy nearly upended him as a Conservative challenger before his career started, before his Nixon days). Fish the IVth was of an entirely different stripe. He was not a Republican, he was an extremely rabid anti-Zionist leftist and former publisher of "The Nation." I think Fish III tried to perhaps persuade his son that if he wanted to end up in Congress to switch to the GOP and moderate his views, but that was never going to happen. I'm not even sure he was backing his son by the general, and was probably relieved to see his seat go to its current occupant, Sue Kelly, who was more his ideological heir.
His son, Judge Brett Hall is a local official in Rockwall County.
Ralph Hall and District Judge Brett Hall (in the Hawaiian shirt)
Thanks for the info. And yes, I agree that the senior Hall may step down after winning the primary so that his son can succeed him.
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