Jack Kingston
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| Jack Kingston | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 5, 1993– |
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| Preceded by | Robert Lindsay Thomas |
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| Succeeded by | Incumbent |
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| Born | April 24, 1955 (age 51) Bryan, Texas |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Libby Morris |
| Religion | Episcopalian |
John Heddens "Jack" Kingston (born April 24, 1955), an American Republican politician, has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since 1993, representing Georgia's 1st congressional district in the southeastern part of the state (map).
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[edit] Background
He was born in Bryan, Texas, but spent most of his life in Athens, Georgia. He and his parents also spent some time living in Ethiopia when he was a child. He earned a degree in economics from the University of Georgia. He has lived in Savannah since 1977 and spent 25 years selling insurance and agribusiness throughout southeastern Georgia before his election to Congress. He is married and has four children.
[edit] Georgia Congressional District 1
The 1st District comprises the entire coastal area of The Golden Isles, which are mainly: St. Simons Island, Jekyll Island and Sea Island, where many of the large cotton and rice plantations flourished in the nineteenth century, and much of the rural southeastern part of the state. This section of the South was solidly Democratic country for many years after General Sherman’s troops marched through Georgia, but voters here are conservative on cultural and military issues and many economic issues as well. In addition to Savannah, there are a few modest-sized cities like Brunswick, Waycross, and Valdosta, but much of the district is rural, with cotton and tobacco fields. In addition, the district includes four military bases: Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base, at Kings Bay in Camden County, Fort Stewart, near Hinesville in Liberty County, Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, and Moody Air Force Base near Valdosta, all of which contribute to Kingston’s staunch Congressional support for the armed forces.
[edit] First bid for House of Representatives
Kingston ran for Congress in 1992 at the age of 37 after serving eight years in the Georgia House of Representatives. His opponent was Democrat Barbara Christmas, a school principal. At the time, he claimed, “I have a Democrat’s heart and a Republican’s brain. You have to have a heart, but a brain, too, to solve problems,” a message that resounded well with a realigning Southern electorate. For two decades, the 1st District had voted for national Republicans but Georgia Democrats, so it was important for Kingston to convince voters that he was the conservative choice. In the campaign, he supported enterprise zones and tax incentives to spur economic growth and he wanted to promote agricultural exports and welfare reform. It also helped that most of Savannah had been cut out of the district and placed in the new, majority-black 11th District, which stretched all the way to Atlanta. Kingston won decisively with 58 percent of the vote, and he has not been seriously challenged since. He ran unopposed in 1998 and 2004.
[edit] Positions
Kingston is a pro-life conservative who opposes stem cell research. He supports the death penalty, the Patriot Act and President Bush’s tax cuts. He has sponsored resolutions calling for the Ten Commandments to be displayed in the House and Senate Chambers. He spent a significant amount of time in his district promoting President Bush’s overhaul of the Social Security program in town hall meetings. USA Today named Kingston "one of the most partisan Republicans in the House," having been one of 19 co-sponsors of the 1997 resolution asking for an impeachment inquiry of President Clinton. [1]
In 2002, Americans for Democratic Action gave him a rating of zero, and the American Conservative Union gave him a rating of 96. In 2004, the National Journal claimed that Kingston was the most conservative member of the House of Representatives on economic issues, social issues, and foreign issues, judging solely by his voting record.[citation needed] According to the National Journal, he falls to the right of former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. In fact, in 2005 Congressman Kingston was rated as the "most conservative member of the House" by National Journal for his voting record the previous year. His conservative track record has won him continual awards and recognition, and he has been named each term as a “Taxpayer’s Hero," and “A Guardian of Small Business.” Congressman Kingston was also awarded the “Watchdog of the Treasury Award,” and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s “Spirit of Enterprise” Award.
[edit] Status in Congress
From 2003 through the end of 2006, Kingston served as vice-chairman of the House Republican Conference. Meanwhile, he also served on the powerful Appropriations Committee.
Kingston ran for House Republican Conference Chairman for the 110th Congress, but lost to Adam Putnam in the third round of voting.[2]
[edit] Technology and innovation
Congressman Kingston has been at the forefront of the Republican modern media revolution. On April 13, 2006, the Washington Times[3] quoted the Republican National Committee's eCampaign Director as saying, “Kingston has been at the forefront of getting the congressional majority to understand what role the blogosphere plays... and not just in commenting, but in taking action. It’s been an incredibly helpful development.”
On December 10, 2006, the Savannah Morning News[4] highlighted Kingston's innovative leadership: "[Congressman Kingston] and others say an undercurrent of enthusiasm among Gen Y staffers brought him closer than expected to beating a candidate backed by the GOP establishment. Kingston was one of the first Republican members of the House to start his own blog. He became a regular on Comedy Central and preached the virtues of podcasting and interactive Web sites with 'pizazz.' The aim: reach young, hip, technologically savvy voters who seldom read newspapers or watch traditional television news."
In March 2007, Kingston won the 2007 Golden Dot People’s Choice Award for Online Politician of the Year,[5] which is sponsored by the Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet at George Washington University.
[edit] Interviews and public life
On October 18, 2005,[6] Kingston gave an interview with Stephen Colbert on the parody show, The Colbert Report, in which he discussed his experience "as an African-American." (Congressman Kingston was facetiously referencing his time spent in Ethiopia.)
In 2005, Triumph the Insult Comic Dog discussed global warming with Kingston along with four other Congressmen.
On November 3, 2006, Kingston appeared as a guest on HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher." Kingston, along with actor Alec Baldwin, reporter A.B. Stoddard, and comedienne Roseanne Barr joined Maher in humorous political debate.
Kingston spends half of his time meeting with constituents in his District. According to an interview on MSNBC[7], Kingston "typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays." His schedule has been criticized by opponents because it results in Kingston working in the Capitol only three days per week. He has spoken against the increased Congressional work schedule proposed by Democrats for the upcoming 110th Congress, saying that a full work week "damages families" and that "Democrats could care less about families." [8]
On December 11, 2006, Kingston gave another interview with Stephen Colbert to decry incoming Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's plan to have the House of Representatives debate and vote five days a week instead of the current three. Kingston argued that Congressmen already work 50-60 hours per week (mostly in their districts) and increasing this would force them to take time away from their families.
Kingston explained his position in a letter to the editor of the Savannah Morning News [1]stating that he did not advocate a three-day work week, but rather preferring to split his current six-day work week between Washington and constituents in his district.
[edit] Notes
- ^ http://asp.usatoday.com/news/politicselections/CandidateProfile.aspx?ci=828&oi=H
- ^ http://www.sptimes.com/2006/11/18/Worldandnation/Vote_boosts_Putnum_s_.shtml
- ^ http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20060412-114949-3390r.htm
- ^ http://savannahnow.com/node/194890
- ^ http://www.ipdi.org/blog/index.php/2007/03/19/winners-of-golden-dot-awards-07/
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0543825
- ^ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16065625
- ^ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/05/AR2006120501342_pf.html
[edit] External links
- U.S. Representative Jack Kingston official House site
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Federal Election Commission - Jack Heddons Kingston campaign finance reports and data
- On the Issues - Jack Kingston issue positions and quotes
- OpenSecrets.org - Jack Kingston campaign contributions
- Project Vote Smart - Representative Jack Kingston (GA) profile
- SourceWatch Congresspedia - Jack Kingston profile
- Washington Post - Congress Votes Database: Jack Kingston voting record
- Kingston introduction of Fuel Choices for American Security Act of 2005
| Preceded by Robert Lindsay Thomas |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's 1st congressional district January 3, 1993 – present |
Incumbent |
Categories: Articles with unsourced statements since February 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | 1955 births | Living people | American Episcopalians | Current members of the United States House of Representatives | Lambda Chi Alpha brothers | Members of the Georgia House of Representatives | Members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia | People from Georgia (U.S. state) | People from the College Station/Bryan, Texas, area | University of Georgia alumni
