Heath Shuler

Infobox Congressman
name =Joseph Heath Shuler


imagesize =200px
state =North Carolina
district =11th
term_start =January 4, 2007
term_end =
preceded =Charles H. Taylor
succeeded =
birth_date =December 31, 1971 (age 36)
birth_place =Bryson City, North Carolina
death_date =
death_place =
nationality =
party =Democratic
spouse =Nikol Shuler
relations =
children =Navy Shuler
Island Shuler
residence =Waynesville, North Carolina
alma_mater =University of Tennessee
occupation =
profession =Real estate, Professional sports
net worth =
cabinet =
committees =
portfolio =
religion =Southern Baptist


website =
footnotes =

Infobox NFLretired


caption=
width=
position=QB
number=5
birthdate=birth date and age|1971|12|31
city-state|Bryson City|North Carolina
deathdate=
debutyear=1994
finalyear=1997
draftyear=1994
draftround=1
draftpick=3
college=Tennessee
teams=
* Washington Redskins (1994-1996)
* New Orleans Saints (1997)
* Oakland Raiders (1998) *:*Offseason and/or practice squad member only
stat1label=TD-INT
stat1value=15-33
stat2label=Yards
stat2value=3,691
stat3label=QB Rating
stat3value=54.3
databasefootball=SHULEHEA01
highlights=
* 1993 Heisman Trophy Runner-Up
HOF=

Joseph Heath Shuler (born December 31, 1971) is a congressman and former professional football player. On November 7, 2006 Shuler was elected to the U.S. House as a Democrat from North Carolina's 11th congressional district ( [http://nationalatlas.gov/printable/images/preview/congdist/nc11_109.gifmap] ). The district, based in Asheville, includes most of the Blue Ridge Mountains in western North Carolina.

A former NFL quarterback and real-estate investor, Shuler was born in Bryson City, North Carolina, a small town in the Great Smoky Mountains. Shuler attended the University of Tennessee in Knoxville from 1990-93. He and his family now live in Waynesville, North Carolina.

Athletic career

Heath Shuler's athletic career began at Swain County High School. He was a standout quarterback who drew plenty of scout attention, and accepted an athletic scholarship to the University of Tennessee.

At Tennessee, Shuler gained national attention as one of the SEC's top quarterbacks. He held nearly all Volunteer passing records at the end of his career, although most of them were later shattered by Peyton Manning. In 1993, he came in second in the vote for the prestigious Heisman Trophy.

Shuler was a first round selection in the 1994 NFL Draft, taken by the Washington Redskins with the third overall pick. He held out of training camp until he received a 7-year, $19.25 million contract. The Redskins had fallen on hard times since winning Super Bowl XXVI, and Shuler was looked on as the quarterback of the future. However, Shuler's poor play contributed to a quarterback controversy with fellow 1994 draft pick Gus Frerotte. This was evident when Shuler threw 5 interceptions in a game against the Phoenix Cardinals. This was surprising because Shuler had only thrown 8 interceptions in his senior year as a Volunteer. Shuler started only 18 games in his first two years with the team and was benched in his third year, as Frerotte went to the Pro Bowl.

After the 1996 season, Shuler was traded to the New Orleans Saints for a 5th round pick in the 1997 draft and a 3rd round pick in 1998. With less talent on the New Orleans roster, Shuler's statistics remained poor. He suffered a serious foot injury during the 1997 season in New Orleans and went through two surgeries.

After being unable to take the field due to his foot injury in his second season in New Orleans, Shuler signed with the Oakland Raiders, where he re-injured his foot in training camp and retired. As a pro, his career passer rating was a low 54.3 and in 2004 ESPN rated him the 17th biggest 'sports flop' of the past 25 years. [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/espn25/story?page=listranker/25biggestflops ESPN25: The 25 Biggest Sports Flops of 1979–2004] ] In 2008, ESPN rated him the 9th biggest NFL Draft bust of all time. [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/draft08/news/story?id=3325687 ESPN.com's ranking of the top 50 busts in NFL draft history] ]

Post-athletic Life and Career

After retiring from the NFL, Shuler returned to the University of Tennessee and completed his education, graduating with a degree in psychology. He then became a real estate professional in Knoxville, where he had starred in college. His real estate company is one of the largest independent firms in East Tennessee.

In 2003, Shuler moved back to western North Carolina. He now lives in Waynesville, 30 miles southwest of Asheville, with his wife Nikol and two children, Navy and Island. In 2008, he was raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason under the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of North Carolina, and is a member of Oconee Lodge 427. [ The North Carolina Mason, Volume 133, Number 3, 2008.]

Politics

In July 2005, Shuler announced his intentions to seek the Democratic nomination to run against eight-term incumbent Republican Charles H. Taylor. The district covers most of the Western North Carolina mountains where Shuler grew up.

Shuler repeatedly attacked Taylor for not standing up more often for the 11th's interests. For example, he blasted Taylor for missing a vote on the Central American Free Trade Agreement, which only passed by two votes. Shuler pointed out that according to the House roll call, Taylor voted 11 times on the same day CAFTA came up for a vote. [http://web.archive.org/web/20061113004505/www.heathshuler.com/newsroom_details.asp?id=848 Heath Shuler campaign press release on Taylor's missed CAFTA vote] ] Taylor was one of two Republicans who didn't vote on the bill, even though he'd strongly opposed it in the past. [Joel Burgess, [http://search.hendersonvillenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050729/NEWS/507290332&SearchID=73257445388771 "Taylor explains absent nay vote"] , "Times-News", July 29, 2005] Taylor, for his part, claimed that Shuler would be an extra vote for Nancy Pelosi, even though Shuler is almost as conservative on social issues as Taylor. [Whitmire, Tim. [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/08/12/politics/p082202D07.DTL GOP Raises Specter of 'Speaker Pelosi'] . Associated Press via San Francisco Chronicle, 2006-08-12.]

In the November election, Shuler won with 54 percent of the vote to Taylor's 46 percent. He carried nine of the district's 15 counties, including several areas that had reliably supported Taylor over the years. He even carried Taylor's home county of Transylvania.

As mentioned above, Shuler is a somewhat conservative Democrat. He opposes abortion [ [http://web.archive.org/web/20061113004035/www.heathshuler.com/issues_details.asp?id=39 Shuler on family values] ] and gun control, and also takes a hard line on illegal immigration. [ [http://shuler.house.gov/content/issues/2ndamendment.htm Shuler on the 2nd Amendment] ] These stances are not surprising given the nature of his district, which has a strong tinge of social conservatism (especially in Asheville's suburbs). However, on economic and environmental matters, Shuler tends to vote more with his party. He is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, a caucus of moderate-to-conservative House Democrats.

Not long after his election, he became close friends with Brad Ellsworth, a fellow conservative freshman Democrat from Indiana. [http://www.newsweek.com/id/44604]

In 2007, Shuler introduced proposed legislation co-sponsored with fellow North Carolina Congressman Walter Jones to require airlines to have sections of the aircraft where large movie screens would not be visible. [ [http://www.cnn.com/2007/TRAVEL/09/25/airline.movies.ap/index.html?iref=newssearch Bill targets sex and violence in inflight movies - CNN.com ] ] No mention was made regarding airlines who use a safety video for In-flight safety demonstration.

Reportedly owing to his success in real estate, Shuler was named chairman of the House Small Business Subcommittee on Rural and Urban Entrepreneurship. [ [http://www.hendersonvillenews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070131/NEWS/70131005/1042/NEWS Hendersonville Times-News] ] He is also a deputy majority whip.

Committee Assignments

*Committee on Natural Resources
**Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands
*Committee on Small Business
**Subcommittee on Rural and Urban Entrepreneurship (Chairman)
*Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
**Subcommittee on Highways and Transit
**Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment

Electoral History

*2006 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — North Carolina 11th District
**Heath Shuler (D), 54%
**Charles H. Taylor (R) (inc.), 46%

References

External links

* [http://shuler.house.gov/ Congressman Heath Shuler] official U.S. House site
* [http://www.heathshuler.com/ Heath Shuler for Congress] official campaign site
* [http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Heath_Shuler Profile] at SourceWatch Congresspedia
* [http://www.ncdp.org/taxonomy/term/36 North Carolina Democratic Party on Heath Shuler]
* [http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/ShulHe00.htm Career stats for Shuler]
* [http://www.nfl.com/players/heathshuler/profile?id=SHU320982 NFL.com career stats]
* [http://miva.citizen-times.com/cgi-bin/miva?blogs+blog_id=hshuler Heath Shuler's Blog.]