Charles Boustany

The Honorable Charles William Boustany, Jr.
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Louisiana's 7th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2005
Preceded by	Chris John
Personal details
Born	February 21, 1956 (1956-02-21) (age 55) Lafayette, Louisiana
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Bridget Boustany
Children	Erik and Ashley
Residence	Lafayette, Louisiana
Alma mater	University of Louisiana, Lafayette, Louisiana State University
Occupation	Surgeon
Religion	Episcopalian

Charles William Boustany, Jr. (pronounced /bʊˈstæni/; born February 21, 1956) is the U.S. Representative for Louisiana's 7th congressional district, serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life, education and career

Boustany was born in Lafayette to the former Madlyn M. Ackal and Charles W. Boustany, Sr., M.D. (1930–2009); his paternal grandparents, Alfred Frem Boustany and the former Florida Saloom, were immigrants from Lebanon.^[1] The senior Boustany, a Democrat, served for sixteen years as coroner of Lafayette Parish. Congressman Boustany has nine siblings: James Boustany, Jon Boustany, Ron Boustany, Dr. Stella Boustany Noel, Terese Reggie, Kathryn Scurlock, Madlyn Juneau, Adele Weber, and Cheryn Eppley.^[2]

Boustany, Jr., attended the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where he was a member of Kappa Alpha Order fraternity. He earned his medical degree from Louisiana State University. Boustany is a heart surgeon, who completed his residency in Rochester, New York before returning to Louisiana to take a job at Charity Hospital in New Orleans.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

• Committee on Ways and Means
  • Subcommittee on Oversight (Chairman)
  • Subcommittee on Human Resources
  • Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures

Boustany's plan for reinvigorating the economy of his district is known as the Prescription for Prosperity.^[3]

Representative Boustany presented the Republican response to President Obama's joint address to congress on Wednesday September 9th, 2009.

Political campaigns

Boustany won an open race in 2004, when Christopher "Chris" John, the incumbent Democrat, did not seek re-election in order to run for the U.S. Senate. Boustany, another Republican (the late David Thibodaux of Lafayette) and two Democrats vied for the House seat.

In the primary election, Boustany won 39 percent, with the next highest vote-getter being Democratic State Senator Willie Landry Mount, the former mayor of Lake Charles, who received 25 percent. Under Louisiana's nonpartisan blanket primary system, in the event no candidate wins a "50 percent plus one vote" total, a runoff is conducted between the two top candidates, regardless of party.

In the resulting December 4 runoff election, in which then Vice President Dick Cheney campaigned on behalf of Boustany, the Republican prevailed, 55 percent to 45 percent for Willie Mount. He became only the second Republican to represent the district, the first being Jimmy Hayes (who switched from the Democrats in 1995).

In the Louisiana House elections of 2006, Boustany won with 71 percent of the vote, handily defeating Democrat Mike Stagg despite the national tide that favored Democratic congressional nominees.^[4]

2008

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Louisiana, 2008‎#District 7

Boustany was reelected over Don Cravins, Jr., and Peter Vidrine.

2010

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Louisiana, 2010#District 7

Boustany was unopposed in 2010.^[5]

Personal life

His wife, Bridget Edwards Boustany, is a niece of former Democratic Governor Edwin Washington Edwards.^[6]

References

1. ^ 1
2. ^ "Obituary of Charles Boustany, Sr., M.D.". Baton Rouge Morning Advocate. http://www.legacy.com/theadvocate/DeathNotices.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=125203346. Retrieved March 17, 2009. 
3. ^ http://www.charlesboustany.com/site3.php
4. ^ Boustany secured a second term with 71 percent of vote, The Daily Advertiser
5. ^ Unopposed Candidates in Acadiana, KATC.com
6. ^ Jim Brown, "Internal Republican Battles Affect La. Congressional Races" from Jim Brown's Journal.

External links

• Congressman Charles Boustany official U.S. House site
• Charles Boustany, Jr., MD official campaign site
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• Current Bills Sponsored at StateSurge.com
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Louisiana Secretary of State — Official Parish Election Results, Parish of Lafayette
  • Election Date 10/04/03, Election Date 10/23/99
• "Kallakis previously convicted for American titles scam", Property Week, 03.04.09

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Chris John	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Louisiana's 7th congressional district 2005–present	Incumbent
United States order of precedence
Preceded by Dan Boren D-Oklahoma	United States Representatives by seniority 231st	Succeeded by Russ Carnahan D-Missouri

Persondata
Name	Boustany, Charles
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	February 21, 1956
Place of birth	Lafayette, Louisiana
Date of death
Place of death