Barbara Cubin
Encyclopedia
Barbara Lynn Cubin was a Republican
member of the United States House of Representatives
, having served as the sole member of that body from Wyoming
. In the 109th Congress, she was a member of the House Resources Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee
. In the wake of the Democratic
takeover of Congress in the 2006 elections, Cubin was relegated to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, as a Member of both the Health and Telecommunications Subcommittees
. She was the first woman elected to Congress from Wyoming and also the only member of Congress who was a member of the National Rifle Association
Board of Directors.
. She grew up in Casper, Wyoming
, and graduated from high school
there. She received a bachelor of science
degree in chemistry
from Creighton University
in Omaha, Nebraska
.
Cubin worked as a substitute science and schools employed full-time as a social worker for senior citizens and disabled adults. She later worked for the state Labor Department and Ironworkers' Union to train minorities and Vietnam War
veterans to become iron workers.
In 1974, Cubin joined the Wyoming Machinery Company as a chemist
, and in 1975, began managing the office of her husband, Fritz Cubin, a physician
. She became a Realtor in 1979.
In past elections, Cubin has had to fend off attacks on missed floor votes, which she attributed to her husband's severe health problems. Cubin also has had health issues of her own. In 1993 and 1995, she had surgeries related to her gall bladder. In July 2005 she suffered a mild heart attack and underwent surgery to place a stent in an artery that was 70 percent blocked.
The Wyoming GOP confirmed on February 22, 2010 that Rep. Cubin's husband Fritz had died.
from Natrona County, Wyoming. She served there for six years. During the 1992 session, she was the primary sponsor of legislation that put on the ballot an initiative
that would create the sentence of life without parole.
In November 1992, Cubin was elected to the Wyoming Senate
, representing part of Casper, Wyoming
. She served there for two years before being elected to the U.S. House.
. Cubin defeated eight other Republicans in the primary, then won the general election against Bob Schuster, a Jackson attorney and then-partner of prominent trial attorney Gerry Spence
.
Cubin's first race was very close by Wyoming standards (Wyoming is one of the most Republican states in the nation), with Cubin getting 53% of the vote. It was also the most expensive campaign in state history.
Cubin became the first woman to win an election for federal office in the state of Wyoming.
won the state with 69 percent of the vote. In 2006, Cubin won her seat again, but barely, registering 48.3 percent of the vote to her Democratic opponent Gary Trauner
's 47.8 percent.
: the American Conservative Union
gave her 2005 voting record a rating of 96 points out of 100.
A staunch opponent of abortion
in any form, Cubin consistently voted for restrictions on abortion and against funding of family planning groups that provide abortion services, counseling or advocacy.
In 2006, Cubin was listed as cosponsoring legislation that would sell off some federal land to help pay for Hurricane Katrina
and other disaster relief. Cubin maintains she never signed on to the legislation, saying there must have been a clerical error. About 42 percent of Wyoming's land is owned by the federal government, including Yellowstone
and Grand Teton
national parks.
With regard to global warming
, Cubin has stated that "there still exists broad disagreement within the scientific community on the extent to which humans actually contribute to the Earth's temperature changes."
The League of Conservation Voters
, a nonpartisan PAC, gave Cubin a lifetime rating of 3 on a scale of 0 to 100. In 2006, she scored a 0.
On the motion to strike Cubin's words from Watt, the motion was defeated
candidate Gary Trauner and Libertarian
candidate Thomas Rankin, Cubin approached Rankin, who has multiple sclerosis
and is a wheelchair user. Rankin states that Cubin said, "If you weren't sitting in that chair, I'd slap you across the face." Rankin called her comment an inappropriate slur to the disabled. Rankin maintains he said nothing to Cubin before her remark.
's Americans for a Republican Majority
political action committee (ARMPAC).
On July 23, 2006 the Casper Star-Tribune
reported Cubin "will keep the money she received from former Rep. Tom DeLay's fundraising committee even though the organization has been fined for campaign finance violations and is shutting down." ARMPAC agreed to pay a fine to the Federal Election Commission
for "misstatements of financial activity, failure to report debts and obligations and failure to properly allocate expenses between federal and non-federal accounts."" As of October 2006, Cubin's position was that she will return the money if DeLay is convicted.
replaced Cubin as the Republican Nominee for Wyoming's At-Large U.S. House District, and succeeded her in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
member of the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
, having served as the sole member of that body from Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
. In the 109th Congress, she was a member of the House Resources Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee
United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce
The Committee on Energy and Commerce is one of the oldest standing committees of the United States House of Representatives. Established in 1795, it has operated continuously—with various name changes and jurisdictional changes—for more than 200 years...
. In the wake of the Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
takeover of Congress in the 2006 elections, Cubin was relegated to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, as a Member of both the Health and Telecommunications Subcommittees
United States House Energy Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet
The U.S. House Energy Subcommittee on Communications and Technology is a subcommittee within the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. The subcommittee existed as the Subommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet during the 111th Congress....
. She was the first woman elected to Congress from Wyoming and also the only member of Congress who was a member of the National Rifle Association
National Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
Board of Directors.
Early life, education
Cubin was born in Salinas, CaliforniaSalinas, California
Salinas is the county seat and the largest municipality of Monterey County, California. Salinas is located east-southeast of the mouth of the Salinas River, at an elevation of about 52 feet above sea level. The population was 150,441 at the 2010 census...
. She grew up in Casper, Wyoming
Casper, Wyoming
Casper is the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming, United States.. Casper is the second-largest city in Wyoming , according to the 2010 census, with a population of 55,316...
, and graduated from high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
there. She received a bachelor of science
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degree in chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
from Creighton University
Creighton University
Creighton University is a private, coeducational, Jesuit, Roman Catholic university located in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1878, the school is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities. The university is accredited by...
in Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
.
Cubin worked as a substitute science and schools employed full-time as a social worker for senior citizens and disabled adults. She later worked for the state Labor Department and Ironworkers' Union to train minorities and Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
veterans to become iron workers.
In 1974, Cubin joined the Wyoming Machinery Company as a chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
, and in 1975, began managing the office of her husband, Fritz Cubin, a physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
. She became a Realtor in 1979.
Personal
The Cubins have two children.In past elections, Cubin has had to fend off attacks on missed floor votes, which she attributed to her husband's severe health problems. Cubin also has had health issues of her own. In 1993 and 1995, she had surgeries related to her gall bladder. In July 2005 she suffered a mild heart attack and underwent surgery to place a stent in an artery that was 70 percent blocked.
The Wyoming GOP confirmed on February 22, 2010 that Rep. Cubin's husband Fritz had died.
Early political career
Cubin began her political career in November 1986, when she was elected to the Wyoming House of RepresentativesWyoming House of Representatives
The Wyoming House of Representatives is the lower house of the Wyoming State Legislature. There are 60 Representatives in the House, representing an equal amount of single-member constituent districts across the state, each with a population of at least 9,000. The House convenes at the Wyoming...
from Natrona County, Wyoming. She served there for six years. During the 1992 session, she was the primary sponsor of legislation that put on the ballot an initiative
Initiative
In political science, an initiative is a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote...
that would create the sentence of life without parole.
In November 1992, Cubin was elected to the Wyoming Senate
Wyoming Senate
The Wyoming Senate is the upper house of the Wyoming State Legislature. There are 30 Senators in the Senate, representing an equal amount of constituencies across Wyoming, each with a population of at least 17,000. The Senate meets at the Wyoming State Capitol in Cheyenne.Members of the Senate...
, representing part of Casper, Wyoming
Casper, Wyoming
Casper is the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming, United States.. Casper is the second-largest city in Wyoming , according to the 2010 census, with a population of 55,316...
. She served there for two years before being elected to the U.S. House.
1994 election
In November 1994, Cubin ran for Wyoming's U.S. House seat, to succeed Republican Craig Thomas, who was running for (and would be elected to) the United States SenateUnited States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
. Cubin defeated eight other Republicans in the primary, then won the general election against Bob Schuster, a Jackson attorney and then-partner of prominent trial attorney Gerry Spence
Gerry Spence
Gerry Spence is a trial lawyer in the United States. In 2008, he announced he would retire, at age 79, at the end of the Geoffrey Fieger trial in Detroit, MI. Spence states that he "has never lost a criminal case either as a prosecutor or a defense attorney...
.
Cubin's first race was very close by Wyoming standards (Wyoming is one of the most Republican states in the nation), with Cubin getting 53% of the vote. It was also the most expensive campaign in state history.
Cubin became the first woman to win an election for federal office in the state of Wyoming.
Subsequent elections
In 1996, Cubin was re-elected with 55 percent. Subsequent races were less close, until 2004, when she again won with 55% of the vote. By contrast, George W. BushGeorge W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
won the state with 69 percent of the vote. In 2006, Cubin won her seat again, but barely, registering 48.3 percent of the vote to her Democratic opponent Gary Trauner
Gary Trauner
Gary S. Trauner is a Wyoming businessman and a two-time unsuccessful Democratic nominee for , his state's lone seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was defeated in the 2006 and 2008 general elections by Republicans Barbara Cubin and Cynthia Lummis, respectively.Trauner lost by 1,012...
's 47.8 percent.
Political positions
Cubin's voting record is conservativeConservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
: the American Conservative Union
American Conservative Union
The American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
gave her 2005 voting record a rating of 96 points out of 100.
A staunch opponent of abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
in any form, Cubin consistently voted for restrictions on abortion and against funding of family planning groups that provide abortion services, counseling or advocacy.
In 2006, Cubin was listed as cosponsoring legislation that would sell off some federal land to help pay for Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
and other disaster relief. Cubin maintains she never signed on to the legislation, saying there must have been a clerical error. About 42 percent of Wyoming's land is owned by the federal government, including Yellowstone
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...
and Grand Teton
Grand Teton National Park
Grand Teton National Park is a United States National Park located in northwestern Wyoming, U.S. The Park consists of approximately and includes the major peaks of the long Teton Range as well as most of the northern sections of the valley known as Jackson Hole. Only south of Yellowstone...
national parks.
With regard to global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
, Cubin has stated that "there still exists broad disagreement within the scientific community on the extent to which humans actually contribute to the Earth's temperature changes."
The League of Conservation Voters
League of Conservation Voters
The League of Conservation Voters is a political advocacy organization founded in 1969 by American environmentalist David Brower in the early years of the environmental movement. LCV's mission is to "advocate for sound environmental policies and to elect pro-environmental candidates who will adopt...
, a nonpartisan PAC, gave Cubin a lifetime rating of 3 on a scale of 0 to 100. In 2006, she scored a 0.
Racial comment
On April 9, 2003, Cubin said on the House floor, "My sons are 25 and 30. They are blond-haired and blue-eyed. One amendment today said we could not sell guns to anybody under drug treatment. So does that mean if you go into a black community, you cannot sell a gun to any black person, or does that mean because my …" Representative Melvin Watt, (D-N.C.), who is black, interrupted and demanded that Cubin retract the statement. Cubin said that she did not mean to offend her "neighbors" on the Democratic side, and maintained that her comment was within House rules.On the motion to strike Cubin's words from Watt, the motion was defeated
Slap
On October 22, 2006, after a televised debate with DemocraticDemocratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
candidate Gary Trauner and Libertarian
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
candidate Thomas Rankin, Cubin approached Rankin, who has multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is an inflammatory disease in which the fatty myelin sheaths around the axons of the brain and spinal cord are damaged, leading to demyelination and scarring as well as a broad spectrum of signs and symptoms...
and is a wheelchair user. Rankin states that Cubin said, "If you weren't sitting in that chair, I'd slap you across the face." Rankin called her comment an inappropriate slur to the disabled. Rankin maintains he said nothing to Cubin before her remark.
ARMPAC
The Wyoming Democratic Party has repeatedly called for Cubin to return the $22,520 she received from Tom DeLayTom DeLay
Thomas Dale "Tom" DeLay is a former member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1984 until 2006. He was Republican Party House Majority Leader from 2003 to 2005, when he resigned because of criminal money laundering charges in...
's Americans for a Republican Majority
Americans for a Republican Majority
Americans for a Republican Majority was a political action committee formed by former Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and directed by Karl Gallant. On July 7, 2006 ARMPAC reached an agreement with the Federal Election Commission to pay a fine of $115,000 for various violations and to...
political action committee (ARMPAC).
On July 23, 2006 the Casper Star-Tribune
Casper Star-Tribune
The Casper Star-Tribune is a newspaper published in Casper, Wyoming.It is Wyoming's largest newspaper with a daily circulation of 30,745 and a Sunday circulation of 33,264 . The Star-Tribune is the only Wyoming newspaper to be distributed statewide, with delivery available even in some of the most...
reported Cubin "will keep the money she received from former Rep. Tom DeLay's fundraising committee even though the organization has been fined for campaign finance violations and is shutting down." ARMPAC agreed to pay a fine to the Federal Election Commission
Federal Election Commission
The Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency that was founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign finance legislation in the United States. It was created in a provision of the 1975 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act...
for "misstatements of financial activity, failure to report debts and obligations and failure to properly allocate expenses between federal and non-federal accounts."" As of October 2006, Cubin's position was that she will return the money if DeLay is convicted.
2009 retirement
Cynthia LummisCynthia Lummis
Cynthia Marie Lummis Wiederspahn is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2009. She is a member of the Republican Party. She previously served as a state representative , state senator , and state treasurer .-Early life:Lummis was born on September 10, 1954 in Cheyenne...
replaced Cubin as the Republican Nominee for Wyoming's At-Large U.S. House District, and succeeded her in the U.S. House of Representatives.
External links
- Profile at SourceWatchSourceWatchSourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...
CongresspediaCongresspediaCongresspedia was a wiki that ran from April 2006 to March 2009, designed to hold information on the workings of the U.S. Congress. It was fully contained within SourceWatch, a larger wiki meant to document the people, organizations and issues shaping the public agenda. The Congresspedia portion of...