Jim McCrery

Infobox_Congressman
name =Jim McCrery


date of birth=birth date and age|1949|09|18
place of birth =Shreveport, Louisiana
state = Louisiana
district = 4th
term_start =April 16, 1988 –
preceded = Buddy Roemer
succeeded = Incumbent
party =Republican
religion = Methodist
spouse = Johnette McCrery
children=Scott and Clark McCrery
occupation=attorney
residence= Shreveport, Louisiana
alma_mater= Louisiana Tech, Louisiana State University
footnotes=McCrery decided not to seek an eleventh full term in the United States House of Representatives after his Republican Party reverted to minority status in 2007.

James Otis "Jim" McCrery, III (born September 18 1949) is an American politician and a departing Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, having served since Apri 1988; he represents the 4th District of Louisiana ( [http://nationalatlas.gov/printable/images/preview/congdist/la04_109.gifmap] ). McCrery is the ranking member on the House Ways and Means Committee. He is also a member of the Executive Committee of the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Republican Main Street Partnership (a group of moderate Republicans). Had the Republicans maintained control of the U.S. House in 2007, he would have been in line to chair the Ways and Means Committee. Instead, the slot went to the veteran Democrat Charles Rangel of Harlem in New York City.

On December 7, 2007 McCrery announced his decision not to seek reelection in 2008. [ [http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/12/08/america/McCrery-Retirement.php] "International Herald-Tribune", December 8, 2008] Closed primaries will be held by both parties in the fall to begin the process of choosing a successor to McCrery.

Before Congress

McCrery was born in Shreveport, Louisiana and grew up in Leesville, the seat of Vernon Parish. He graduated from Leesville High School in 1967. In 1971, McCrery earned a bachelor of arts degree in both English and history from Louisiana Tech University in Ruston in Lincoln Parish. Thereafter, he obtained a law degree from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge in 1975. McCrery joined the law firm of Jackson, Smith & Ford in Leesville, where he worked from 1975 to 1978, and served in Shreveport as an assistant city attorney from 1979 until 1980.

From 1981 to 1984, McCrery was a district manager and later as a legislative director for then Democratic Congressman Charles Elson "Buddy" Roemer, III. He returned to Louisiana in 1984 to work for Georgia Pacific Corporation, a paper company. He remained there until his election to Congress four years later.

Congressional career

After Roemer resigned from Congress to become governor, McCrery ran for his former boss' seat as a Republican.

McCrery emerged from the special election in a runoff with Democratic State Senator Foster L. Campbell, Jr., of Elm Grove in Bossier Parish. A third contender, Shreveport journalist and then public relations representative Stanley R. Tiner, a Democrat, was eliminated in the first round of voting. McCrery became only the sixth Republican to represent Louisiana in the House since the end of Reconstruction. In his bid for a full term in 1988, he handily defeated Adeline McDade Roemer (born 1923), the Democratic mother of his former benefactor Buddy Roemer.

In 1992, Louisiana lost a district as a result of sluggish population growth during the 1980s. Also, the state was ordered to draw a second black-majority district by the Justice Department. The legislature responded by shifting most of Shreveport and Bossier City's black voters into a new 4th District. Most of McCrery's former territory was merged with the 5th District, represented by 16-year incumbent Jerry Huckaby. On paper, McCrery was in serious danger, since Huckaby retained nearly all of his former territory. However, the old 4th was considerably more urbanized than the old 5th due to the presence of Shreveport, and 60 percent of the new 5th's voters had been represented by McCrery. Also, the new 5th was only 5 percent African American (compared with a 30 percent black population in the old 5th). McCrery was thus such a heavy favorite that national Democratic leaders wrote off the seat as a loss and urged Huckaby to retire. Huckaby chose to stay in the race and was heavily defeated. To date, McCrery is the only Louisiana Republican to have unseated a Democratic incumbent at the federal level.

McCrery has not faced serious opposition since he defeated Huckaby. His district was renumbered as the 4th again in 1997, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the majority-black, Alexandria-to-Baton Rouge 4th was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander.

In the mid-term election of 2006, McCrery defeated Democratic challengers Patti Cox and Artis Cash and Republican Chester T. Kelley,cite press release
title =Chester T. Kelley for Congress Will Host a Town Hall Meeting at Semolina Restaurant
publisher =ChesterKelley.com
date =2006-08-23
url =http://www.primenewswire.com/newsroom/news.html?d=104189
accessdate = 2007-05-26 ] a Shreveport businessman who advertises his catfish restaurant on the Rush Limbaugh radio program and who has been interviewed on the statewide Moon Griffon radio talk show.

McCrery now serves as the ranking Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee.

ubcommittees and laws

Congressman McCrery sits on the following House Ways and Means subcommittees:
* [http://waysandmeans.house.gov/members.asp?comm=1 Health]
* [http://waysandmeans.house.gov/members.asp?comm=2 Human Resources]
* [http://waysandmeans.house.gov/members.asp?comm=4 Social Security] (chairman)

McCrery has sponsored or cosponsored six public bills in the 109th Congress that have been signed into law by the president, all of which involved disaster mitigation and assistance in response to 2005 hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma.

Family and personal life

On August 3, 1991, McCrery married the former Johnette Hawkins (born 1966), a former television newswoman. They have two children, Scott and Clark. McCrery is a Methodist.

Political controversies

During the China-U.S trade talks of March 2007, McCrery and New York Democrat Charles Rangel committed a gaffe when they accidentally insulted the Chinese Vice Premier, Wu Yi by referring to her as the Vice Premier of the "Republic of China" in a letter. The Republic of China is a name for the self-ruling government on the island of Taiwan, which the PRC considers a rogue province. cite news | last=Buckley| first =Chris| title =China, U.S. face bumpy road after trade talks| publisher =Reuters| date=2007-05-26| url =http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSPEK2434220070526?pageNumber=3| accessdate = 2007-05-26 ]

2008 Presidential support

In 2007, in the early stages of the campaign for the Republican presidential nomination for 2008, McCrery announced his endorsement of unsuccessful candidate Mitt Romney for president. [http://electioncentral.tpmcafe.com/blog/electioncentral/2006/dec/21/your_massive_election_central_guide_to_2008_presidential_campaign_staffs]

Notes

External links

* [http://mccrery.house.gov/ Congressman Jim McCrery] official U.S. House website
* [http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Jim_McCrery Profile] at SourceWatch Congresspedia
* [http://electioncentral.tpmcafe.com/blog/electioncentral/2006/dec/21/your_massive_election_central_guide_to_2008_presidential_campaign_staffs/ Election Central Guide to 2008]