Lincoln Davis

Infobox_Congressman
name = Lincoln Davis


date of birth = birth date and age|1943|09|13
place of birth = Pall Mall, Tennessee
state = Tennessee
district = 4th
term_start=January 3, 2003
preceded = Van Hilleary
succeeded = Incumbent
party = Democrat
spouse = Lynda Davis
religion = Baptist
residence= Pall Mall, Tennessee
occupation= political assistant
alma_mater= Tennessee Tech University

Lincoln Davis (born September 13, 1943 in Pall Mall, Tennessee) is a U.S. Representative from Tennessee, currently representing the state's 4th congressional district ( [http://nationalatlas.gov/printable/images/preview/congdist/tn04_109.gifmap] ). He is a Democrat. He is a possible candidate for Governor of Tennessee in 2010. [ [http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2007/oct/08/davis-of-4th-district-will-run-for-governor/] ]

Davis, a 1966 Tennessee Technological University agriculture graduate who was raised in rural Fentress County, has been in public office in Tennessee since being elected as mayor of Byrdstown in 1978. Davis served two terms in the Tennessee House of Representatives, 1980–1984, and was later elected to two terms in the Tennessee State Senate, 1996–2002, resigning from that body midway through his second term when he was elected to represent the state’s Fourth Congressional District in November 2002, narrowly defeating Tullahoma Alderman Janice Bowling. He was handily reelected in a 2004 rematch against Bowling.

Davis has been recognized as a leader in the fight to allocate more federal money toward the cleanup of Tennessee’s abandoned coal mines, particularly in the Cumberland Plateau region, which lies partly in his district. He also recently joined Pete Sessions of Texas to cosponsor homeland security legislation to crack down on immigrants who overstay their visas.

In the state legislature, Davis supported state employee and teacher pay raises, long-term care for senior citizens, character education in schools and new domestic violence legislation. Davis initiated and fought for a bill requiring counseling and a 12-hour holding period for domestic violence offenders. While a State Senator, Davis also voted to allow non-documented non-citizen aliens to receive Tennessee drivers' licenses, which was highly criticized and has been since considered for repeal.

Davis holds membership in the House Committee on Science and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. He is a member of several caucuses, including the Congressional Caucus to Control Methamphetamine the Congressional Rural Caucus and the Blue Dog Coalition, which is made up of fiscally conservative Democrats.

Davis is considered a conservative Democrat by national Democratic standards but by Tennessee standards he is considered a moderate. In 2004, he was endorsed by right-to-life groups, the National Rifle Association, and the Tennessee Conservative Union, groups all more frequently associated with Republicans. He has also stated his opposition to gay marriage.

Recently, Davis has been under fire for slanderous comments made by a surrogate to the Nashville City Paper on June 13, 2008 [ [http://www.nashvillecitypaper.com/news.php?viewStory=60813] ] regarding Senator Barack Obama's Presidential campaign. He has stated that he will not make an endorsement of the candidate in advance of the DNC's convention in August 2008, leaving many to speculate on reasons why, ranging from the recent controversial remarks made on his behalf to suspicions political gaming or racist undertones.

Davis, who now lives in the rural Fentress County village of Pall Mall, also owns a construction business, Diversified Construction Co., which builds homes, apartments and offices. Davis and his wife Lynda, an elementary school teacher, have three daughters, Larissa, Lynn and Libby, and five grandchildren, Ashton, Alexia, Andrew, Austin and Adam.

He will face Republican Monty Lankford, Hospital Equipment Company Owner, on the November general election in one of the swing districts in the state.

References

External links

* [http://www.house.gov/lincolndavis/ Congressman Lincoln Davis] official U.S. House site
* [http://www.lincolndavis.com/ Congressman Lincoln Davis] official campaign site
* [http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Lincoln_Davis Profile] at SourceWatch Congresspedia
* [http://www.nashvillecitypaper.com/news.php?viewStory=60813 Nashville City Paper article, June 2008]