Paul Teller is the Executive Director of the United States House of Representatives Republican Study Committee. Teller was described in a Washington Post profile as “one of the most influential conservative aides in Congress.”[1] As a result of actions he and his subordinates took during the 2011 U.S. debt ceiling crisis, Republican members of the House of Representatives chanted "fire him, fire him" during a Republican Conference meeting the morning of July 27, 2011.[2]
Contents |
Raised on Long Island, he graduated from Duke University in 1993 with a B.A. in Political Science and earned his Ph.D. in the same from American University in 1999.[3]
After receiving his doctorate, Teller became a professional staff member for the Committee on House Administration under Rep. Bill Thomas. In 2001, he became legislative director for the Republican Study Committee, later rising to deputy director and executive director, the position he currently holds.[4][5]
Teller was involved in controversy during the 2011 U.S. debt ceiling crisis when, in July 2011, he and his subordinates reportedly emailed several conservative groups to urge the groups to lobby against a plan put forward by Speaker of the House John Boehner.[2][6] After the emails were discussed at a Republican conference meeting on July 27, 2011, which Teller attended, members of the conference chanted "fire him, fire him".[2][7] Anonymous Republican staff members criticized Teller for what they described as his "aggressive language and willingness to attack Republicans," while another anonymous senior GOP aide argued that "coordinating on message and revving up conservative activists is not, in and of itself, a bad thing."[6]