David Price (American politician)

Infobox_Congressman
name = David Price


date of birth = birth date and age|1940|08|17
place of birth = Erwin, Tennessee
alma_mater= Mars Hill College, University of North Carolina, Yale University
residence= Chapel Hill, North Carolina
occupation= College Professor
state = North Carolina
district = 4th
term = January 6, 1987–January 4, 1995
January 3, 1997–
preceded = Bill Cobey
Fred Heineman
succeeded = Fred Heineman
Incumbent
party = Democrat
spouse = Lisa Price
children = Karen Price
Michael Price
religion = Baptist

David Eugene Price (born August 17 1940) is a professor and politician currently serving as Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, representing the 4th district of North Carolina.( [http://nationalatlas.gov/printable/images/preview/congdist/nc04_109.gifmap] ) The district includes portions of Raleigh, Cary, as well as all of Durham and Chapel Hill, and surrounding suburbs.

Early life and education

Born in Erwin, Tennessee, Price attended Mars Hill College in Mars Hill, North Carolina when it was a junior college.cite news
title = Dogged Price does homework, pursues goals
work = "Raleigh News and Observer"
date = 1994-10-29
url =
accessdate = 2008-07-03 ] He later transferred to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill after winning a scholarship and earned a B.A. degree in 1961. Price continued his education at Yale University where he received a divinity degree (1964) and a Ph.D. in political science (1969). Originally intent on becoming an engineer, Price decided instead to study divinity and political science.

Career

He served as an aide to Alaska Senator Bob Bartlett from 1963 to 1967 and then entered academia, working as a political science and public policy professor at Duke University until his first campaign for Congress in 1986. Price has written a political science textbook entitled "The Congressional Experience", from the unusual perspective of a candidate for office, and then, a Member of Congress.

Price also served as executive director and then state chair for the North Carolina Democratic Party prior to being elected to Congress.

Congress

Price first entered Congress in 1987 and served there continuously until the 104th Congress. That year, he was narrowly defeated by Republican Fred Heineman during the Republican Revolution of 1994, in part to lower-than-expected turnout in the Democratic stronghold of Orange Countyfact|date=July 2008 (home to Chapel Hill), but despite the fact that heavily Republican Randolph County had been excised from the Fourth District during redistricting prior to that election year.

Price defeated Heineman in a rematch and returned to the seat following the 1996 elections. He was helped in part by the addition of heavily Democratic Durham to the district, as well as a tremendous get-out-the-vote effort among students at UNC.fact|date=July 2008 In addition, voters were not happy with the lack of progress made by the Freshman Class on the goals of the Contract with America. [ [http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB116251835022712110-pJlH0UbKjEJxPOgJSQGH_KAvL4o_20061110.html?mod=blogs Wall Street Journal - Republican Rebels of '94 Now Face Their Own Revolt] ]

Price was elected to his 10th term (sixth consecutive) in the 2006 Congressional elections, earning 65% of the popular vote. Price's opponent in the 2008 election is Republican B.J. Lawson.

Political positions

Price is a member of the New Democrat Coalition. An early opponent of the Iraq War, he has recently been cited for his work to rein in abuses by private military companies working in Iraq ["House Bill Would Allow Prosecution of Contractors," [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/washington/05cong.html] , David M. Herszenhorn, "The New York Times", October 4, 2007.] . He has also introduced legislation to prohibit contractors from performing interrogations of prisoners in the custody of intelligence agencies. ["Interrogation for Profit," [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/12/opinion/12thu1.html] Editorial, "The New York Times", June 12, 2008.] As chairman of the House subcommittee responsible for determining the budget for the Department of Homeland Security, Price is seeking to focus immigration enforcement efforts on criminal convicts and suspects. ["Dems raise stakes on immigration," [http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0608/11125.html] "Politico", David Rogers, June 17, 2008; and "Dems: ICE should focus on criminals, not workers," [http://www.newsobserver.com/politics/story/1119495.html] "The News & Observer", Barbara Barrett, June 25, 2008.] He is also the author of legislation to reform the public financing system for presidential campaigns. ["Point of View: Public financing's cleansing power," [http://www.newsobserver.com/opinion/columns/story/1136500.html] "The News & Observer", Chase Foster, July 10, 2008.]

Committee assignments

In the 110th Congress, Price serves on the House Appropriations Committee and is chairman of the Subcommittee on Homeland Security--making him arguably the most influential House Member from North Carolina. Price is a member of the Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies and the Subcommittee Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies. He also serves as Chairman of the House Democracy Assistance Commission, which works through peer-to-peer partnerships with emerging democratic legislatures to assist in the development of the fundamental building blocks of legislative government. [See http://hdac.house.gov.]

*Appropriations Committee
**Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
**Subcommittee on Homeland Security (Chairman)
**Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
*House Democracy Assistance Commission (Chairman)

Personal life

Price married his wife, Lisa Kanwit, in 1968. They were longtime Democratic Party activists together, and they have two children: Karen a filmmaker; and Michael, a professor.fact|date=July 2008 They have one grandson, Charles Albert, born in 2006. Today Price resides in Chapel Hill and is a member of the Binkley Memorial Baptist Church.

References

External links

* [http://www.house.gov/price/ Congressman David Price] official U.S. House site
* [http://davidprice.campaignoffice.com/ David Price for Congress] official campaign site
* [http://ncdp.org/ North Carolina Democratic Party]