John Boehner

John Andrew Boehner
Preceded by	Donald "Buz" Lukens
Personal details
Born	1949-11-17 Cincinnati, Ohio
Political party	Republican
Website	http://johnboehner.house.gov

John Andrew Boehner (pronounced BAY-ner) (born November 17 1949), is an American politician of the Republican Party who serves as House Majority Leader, and a U.S. Representative from the eighth congressional district of Ohio, which includes parts of the city Dayton as well as several southwestern counties along the Indiana border and which he has now represented for eight terms. On January 8 2006, Boehner announced his candidacy for the post of House Majority Leader, after his predecessor, Tom DeLay, was forced, by GOP party rules, from the post upon a criminal indictment. On February 2 2006, Boehner was elected House Majority Leader in a surprise victory over acting Majority Leader Roy Blunt of Missouri.

Early life

Boehner was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, into a large, devoutly Roman Catholic family, and has 11 siblings. He attended Moeller High School. During the Vietnam War, he enlisted in the Navy, but was honorably discharged after eight weeks of training because of a bad back (see [1]).

He received a bachelor’s degree in business from Xavier University in Cincinnati in 1977 and then worked as a businessman.

He lives in the Wetherington section of West Chester Township, Butler County, Ohio. He has a wife Debbie and two daughters, Lindsay and Tricia.

Political career

In 1981 Boehner served on the board of trustees of Union Township, Butler County, Ohio. In 1984, he served as president of the township board of trustees.

Boehner served as an Ohio state representative from 1985 to 1990. In 1990, when U.S. Rep. Donald "Buz" Lukens (R-Ohio) was caught in a sex scandal involving a minor, Boehner challenged Lukens in the Republican primary and defeated the incumbent, while also upsetting the district's former representative, Tom Kindness. Boehner went on to victory in the 1990 general election and began serving in the U.S. House of Representatives the 102nd Congress. He was a member of the Gang of Seven, a group of freshman conservatives who publicly criticized Congressional perks.

From 1995 to 1999, Boehner served as the House Republican Conference Chairman. He served as Chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee from 2001 until 2006, when he resigned the Chairmanship to become House Majority Leader.

Boehner is widely credited with championing the Contract With America, the 1996 Freedom to Farm Act, and the passage of "No Child Left Behind Act." He was also alleged to be one of the key figures in the failed 1998 coup to replace House Speaker Newt Gingrich with Buffalo, New York congressman Bill Paxon.

Congressional leadership

Boehner was elected House Majority Leader on February 2 2006, following Tom DeLay's departure because of a criminal indictment.

There was brief controversy on the first ballot for Majority Leader. The first count showed more votes cast than Republicans present at the Conference meeting.[2] However, this turned out to be due to a misunderstanding on whether or not Congressman Luis Fortuño was allowed to vote on leadership. [3]

Boehner campaigned as a reform candidate who could help the House Republicans cleanse and recover from the political damage caused by charges of ethics violations, corruption and money laundering leveled against prominent conservatives such as DeLay and disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, in spite of his own ties to Abramoff. He bested fellow candidates Rep. Roy Blunt of Missouri and Rep. John Shadegg of Arizona, even though he was considered an underdog candidate to House Majority Whip Blunt. It was the most contested election among House Republicans since 1998. Boehner received 122 votes compared to 109 by Blunt in a run-off vote. Rep. Shadegg dropped out of the race after a loss in the first round of voting. Blunt kept his previous position as Majority Whip, the No. 3 leadership position in the House. Boehner has a strong pro-business reputation but the social conservatives in the GOP are questioning his commitment to their values. According to the Washington Post "From illegal immigration to sanctions on China to an overhaul of the pension system, Boehner, as chairman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, took ardently pro-business positions that were contrary to those of many in his party. Religious conservatives -- examining his voting record -- see him as a policymaker driven by small-government economic concerns, not theirs..... [He opposes] a tough illegal immigration bill that passed in December [2005] with overwhelming Republican support over Boehner's opposition. One provision in the bill would mandate that every business verify the legality of every employee through the federal terrorism watch list and a database of Social Security numbers. For the bill's authors, the measure is central to choking off illegal immigrants' employment opportunities. To business groups and Boehner, it is unworkable." [4]

On May 25, 2006, with support for Bush and the GOP Congressional candidates lagging in the polls, Boehner issued a fiery call defending the Republican agenda and attacking his "Democrat friends" like Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. He explained regarding national security that voters "have a choice between a Republican Party that understands the stakes and is dedicated to victory, and a Democrat Party with a non-existent national security policy that sheepishly dismisses the challenges of a post- 9/11 world and is all too willing to concede defeat on the battlefield in Iraq."[5] (On his usage of "Democrat" as an adjective, see Democrat Party (United States)

Controversies

Connections to lobbyists

In 1995, Boehner provoked contentions of unethical conduct when he distributed money from tobacco industry lobbyists on the House floor to members who had voted in favor of tobacco interests. He later led the effort to change House rules and prohibit such practices from occurring. Boehner is also well known for chain smoking cigarettes -- even in his Capitol office. [6]

Boehner's PAC has raised $31,500 from four Indian tribes who at one time were associated with lobbyist Jack Abramoff^[7], who is currently the central figure in an unfolding lobbying scandal. Boehner and spokesmen for the Indian tribes maintain that the contributions were not related to Jack Abramoff.

On February 8, 2006, it was learned that Boehner's Capitol Hill apartment is rented at market rates from a Washington lobbyist [8]. Boehner did not deny his close ties to "K Street" lobbyists and claims that his relationships are ethical. These claims are under investigation.

Lawsuit against Congressman McDermott

Boehner is currently involved in a lawsuit, first filed in 1998, against fellow Congressman Jim McDermott — the first such case ever between two sitting Congressmen. Boehner v. McDermott centers on the release by McDermott to the media of an illegally taped conference call between Boehner, Newt Gingrich, and other Republican Congressional leaders. The call was a discussion of strategy over an investigation of Gingrich by the House Ethics Committee. [9] Gingrich had publicly pledged not to organize opposition to the probe. McDermott was ordered to pay $60,000 to Boehner in addition to attorney fees and costs and this verdict was upheld on appeal.

See also

• Election Results, U.S. Representative from Ohio, 8th District
• List of United States Representatives from Ohio

Reference

• Barone, Michael, and Grant Ujifusa, The Almanac of American Politics 2006: The Senators, the Representatives and the Governors: Their Records and Election Results, Their States and Districts (2005).
• Edsall, Thomas B. and Weisman, Jonathan Boehner Rents Apartment Owned by Lobbyist in D.C., washingtonpost.com, February 8, 2006

External links

• Official website
• Office of the House Majority Leader
• Committee on Education & the Workforce
• The Freedom Project
• Friends of John Boehner
• List of Donors to John Boehner's Campaigns
• NNDB profile - John Boehner
• The Charter Difference (8.24.04)
• Stick to the Basics (Fall 2003)
• The Farm State Pig Out (2002-05-05)
• Washington Post article
• Alleged Abramoff ties
• Gingrich is Heard Urging Tactics in Ethics Case. New York Times, January 10 1997, pA1.

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