- Jim Olin
James R. (Jim) Olin (
February 28 ,1920 –July 29 ,2006 ) was a member of theUnited States House of Representatives fromVirginia .Olin was born in
Chicago, Illinois and raised in an upper-class suburb. He attended the ultra-exclusive and non-traditionalDeep Springs College , before moving on toCornell University , from which he earned anelectrical engineering degree. Olin served for three years in theU.S. Army duringWorld War II . Upon discharge,General Electric hired him. He worked for the corporation for 35 years, eventually reaching the rank of corporate vice president and general manager of industrial electronics.Olin, a Democrat, made his first bid for political office in 1953, when he became
Rotherdam, New York and Schenectady County supervisor. In 1982, Olin was elected to represent the 6th district of Virginia in the U.S. House of Representatives. While in the House, Olin was considered by most to be a moderate member of the state's delegation. For example, in 1991, he opposed thePersian Gulf War . In 1990, he was one of the only three Democrats in the House to vote againstAmericans with Disabilities Act of 1990 . [http://clerk.house.gov/evs/1990/roll123.xml#N] That same year, he clashed with PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush over his budget proposals.Olin did not run for a sixth term in 1992. That same year he received an honorary
LLD fromWashington and Lee University . He died at age 86 inCharlottesville, Virginia .Sources
* [http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/76208 Obituary from The Roanoke Times]
*###@@@KEY@@@###USRepSuccessionBox
state=Virginia
district=6
before=M. Caldwell Butler
years=1983–1993
after=Bob Goodlatte
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