Every week, I will profile a Democrat that interests me in some way. He or she may be in the news, or not. He or she can be a candidate, a Governor, a Senator, or a Representative. I believe this will be a great way to get to know our Democratic Party better.
Feel free to discuss your agreements and disagreements with the person I profile in the comments. I also hope that people who live in the state or district represented or governed by the Profilee will provide antidotes and information as well.
This Week's Democrat is Congressman Ike Skelton, D-Missouri.
Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Pennsylvania, was airlifted to a military hospital in Germany for an MRI on his neck, and Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Missouri, was sent to a Baghdad hospital, said U.S. Rep. Jim Marshall. Marshall, a Georgia Democrat, was in the vehicle but was not hurt.
The politicians were riding in a box-like vehicle in a convoy. The convoy was taking up the middle of the road, a common practice used by the military to deter oncoming motorists. Shortly after dark, an oncoming truck refused to yield, Marshall said.
"Then all of a sudden brakes get slammed on. Then we hit something and go off the side of the road and tip over," Marshall said.
Marshall said that as the vehicle toppled over, he held onto Skelton, who has limited use of his arms due to childhood polio.
The delegation had traveled to Afghanistan for Thanksgiving with the troops and then on to Baghdad to meet with troops there.
Fortunately, Mr. Skelton only suffered minor injuries.
Congressman Isaac Newton Skelton was born in Lexington, Missouri on December 20, 1931.
He has been serving as the Representative of Missouri's Fourth Congressional District since 1977, currently serving his 15th term. It is unknown whether he will be running for a 16th term, but my bet is that he will. His latest FEC filing, as of September 30, shows that he has raised $490,274 during the last quarter and has $596,024 cash on hand. That is formidable in a district that only has the Kansas City media market.
The Fourth Congressional District also includes Missouri's state capital, Jefferson City, and much of the southwestern part of the state.
Congressman Skelton is a graduate of Wentworth Military Academy. He received his B.A. and Master's Degree at the University of Missouri at Columbia. He attended the University of Edinburgh, Scotland in 1953. He became a lawyer, working in private practice in Lafayette County. Later, he was a prosecuting attorney from 1957 until 1960, a special assistant attorney general, and Missouri state attorney general from 1961 until 1963. Mr. Skelton further served as a Missouri State Senator from 1971 until 1977, whereupon he was elected to Congress.
Like Congressman John Murtha, Mr. Skelton is a military defense hawk. He is the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, and is also a member of the Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee. Unlike Mr. Murtha, he has no military experience. Skelton's district is home to two military installations -- Fort Leonard Wood and Whiteman Air Force Base. Skelton was instrumental in bringing the Army Engineer School to Fort Leonard Wood and the B-2 Stealth bomber to Whiteman.
Mr. Skelton is also the former chairman of the Small Business Subcommittee on Procurement, Tourism and Rural Development and the Congressional Rural Caucus, back when the Democrats had a majority in the House.
He is a conservative Democrat. He is Pro-Life, or at least his voting record indicates such. He has voted for the Constitutional Amendment banning same sex marriage. He is rated 33% by the ACLU, indicating an anti-civil rights voting record.
But, he has voted against ending preferential treatment by race in college admissions. Mr. Skelton has been rated 100% by the NEA, indicating pro-public education votes. And while he is pro-death penalty and is "tough on crime," he has voted for more funding for alternative sentencing instead of building more prisons. He does hold conflicting positions. He has voted for drilling in ANWR, and has repeatedly endorsed and voted for the Bush-Cheney-Halliburton Energy Policy, yet also voted to implement the Kyoto Protocol.
(For more information about his policy positions and voting record, please see below.)
Congressman Skelton voted for the Iraq War and has been a consistent supporter of the effort there. Recently, during the vote on the Blunt (nee Murtha) resolution, the Congressman indicated his disagreement with any immediate withdrawal, preferring instead for a phased withdrawal.
However, he has challenged Administration and Republican stances concerning prisoner abuse at Abu Gharib and elsewhere.
In August 2004, during the presentation and discussion of the Schlesinger Report before the House Armed Services Committee, Representative Skelton challenged Chairman Duncan Hunter and other Republicans, stating that "We must not continue to call this the work of just a few bad apples." However, Congressman Hunter continued to hold that the investigation shows that only a handful of US soldiers were responsible for the abuses.
So upon my brief and cursory examination of Mr. Skelton and his record, I believe him to be a conservative Democrat who is representing a conservative district. I'd rather have an honorable man who I may disagree with on some social issues rather than a nondescript and undistinguished ideologue who agrees with me all the time. It is voices like Mr. Murtha and Mr. Skelton that give our credibility to the fact that we are a Big Tent.
I wish Mr. Skelton a speedy recovery from his recent injuries.
Oh yes, on final thing, he has a bridge named after him in his district.
Sure, it is not the Golden Gate, or even the Ben Franklin, but it will do.
THE ISSUES
Voting History via Congress Merge
Policy Positions via Project Vote Smart
Campaign Contributions via Open Secrets
On the Issues
DISTRICT OR STATE INFORMATION
Census and Demographic Date from the U.S. Census Bureau
CONTACT INFORMATION
Website: http://www.house.gov/skelton/
Email: http://www.house.gov/skelton/zipauth.htm
Washington D.C. Office
The Honorable Ike Skelton
U.S. House of Representatives
2206 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515-2504
Telephone: 202-225-2876
District Offices
514-B NW Seven Highway
Blue Springs, MO 64014-2733
Telephone: 816-228-4242
219 N Adams St
Lebanon, MO 65536-3000
Telephone: 417-532-7964
908 Thompson Blvd.
Sedalia, MO 65301-4593
Telephone: 660-826-2675
1401 Southwest Blvd, Suite 101
Jefferson City, MO 65109-2429
Telephone: 573-635-3499
PREVIOUS DEMOCRATIC PROFILES
Representative Earl Pomeroy
Representative Robert Brady
Representative Tammy Baldwin
Senator, Governor-elect Jon Corzine
Governor Ted Kulongski
Representative Sander Levin
Representative Jim McDermott
Governor Brad Henry
Representative Artur Davis
Senator Daniel Akaka
|
|
|
Permalink :: 2 Comments :: Post a Comment
|
In order to post a comment, you must be logged in. If you have a member account, please log in to comment.
If not, you can make an account right here. It's quick and free.
