Charles Stenholm
Encyclopedia
Charles Walter "Charlie" Stenholm, (born October 26, 1938) is a politician
from the state
of Texas
. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives
for 13 terms, from 1979 to 2005.
Stenholm was born in Stamford, Texas
, near Abilene
and he graduated from Texas Tech University
— with a B.S. (1961) and an M.S. (1962) in Agriculture Education (1961). He was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Fraternity. He has operated a cotton
farm in Stamford for many years, and also worked as a vocational teacher.
in 1978, representing the 17th District. The district, based in Abilene, was a vast and mostly rural district stretching from San Angelo
to the western fringes of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. He became one of the most conservative Democrats in the House, belonged to the Blue Dog Coalition and was a leader of the Boll Weevils
during the 1980s. He was one of the more prominent Democratic supporters of Ronald Reagan
's tax-cut package in 1981.
Like many conservative Texas Democrats, Stenholm opposed abortion
and gun control
. In 1990 he was one of the only three House Democrats to vote against the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
. However, his main interests were in agriculture and budget matters. For six years, he was ranking Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee. He worked very closely with the committee's chairman, Republican Larry Combest
of the neighboring 19th District (and himself a farmer), to shepherd the 2002 Farm Bill through Congress. He was a longtime supporter of a balanced budget amendment
to the Constitution.
Stenholm frequently clashed with President Bill Clinton
, and voted for three of the four articles of impeachment against him. However, he was a severe critic of the Bush Administration
's fiscal policy. He voted against making Bush's tax cut
permanent, as he now opposed cutting taxes unless the budget was balanced.
From 1980 to 1990, Stenholm was reelected without major-party opposition, even running unopposed in 1980 and from 1984 to 1990. This occurred even as the 17th was trending more and more Republican at the national level. However, in 1994, Stenholm was held to only 53 percent of the vote against an unknown Republican in an election that saw dozens of other moderate and conservative Democrats toppled. Indeed, when his children heard the initial returns, they were so certain he'd lost that they traveled to the family farm to console him. Afterwards, he ran for House Minority Whip, losing to David Bonior. While he was reelected four more times after that, he never crossed the 60 percent mark again, and was nearly defeated in 1996 and 2002. By the end of the 20th century, Stenholm was the only elected Democrat above the county level in much of the district. It was considered very likely that he would be succeeded by a Republican once he retired.
-engineered redrawing of Texas' congressional districts in 2003
. Stenholm's district was dismantled and split among four districts. Most of his former territory, including his home in Abilene, was thrown into the heavily Republican Lubbock-based 19th District, represented by Combest's successor, Randy Neugebauer
. The next-biggest chunk of his old territory, including his cotton farm, was thrown into the equally Republican Amarillo-based 13th District, represented by Mac Thornberry
.
Stenholm opted to run in the reconfigured 19th. The new district contained 60 percent of Neugebauer's former territory, a disadvantage Stenholm couldn't overcome despite his 13 terms of seniority. He lost by 18 percentage points in the November 2004 election.
in President Bush's second term Cabinet, despite Bush's support of the redistricting plan. In the end, Bush nominated Nebraska Governor Mike Johanns
, a fellow Republican, for the post.
After leaving Congress, Stenholm became a lobbyist, representing various agricultural interests, including the horse meat
industry. In 2006, he was the most visible lobbyist for three foreign-owned horse-slaughter plants in the U.S. that are fighting legislation that would force them to close. Meat from these horses is used as food in some European Union countries, Japan and Mexico, for zoo food, and for medical purposes. Since 2005, Stenholm has been a senior policy advisor and lobbyist with Olsson Frank Weeda
, a Washington law and lobbying firm that specializes in representing food, drug, and agriculture interests before material federal agencies.
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
from the state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. He was a 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...
for 13 terms, from 1979 to 2005.
Stenholm was born in Stamford, Texas
Stamford, Texas
Stamford is a small city located on the border of Jones and Haskell counties in the western part of the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 3,111 in 2008. H. McHarg, president of the Texas Central Railroad, named the site in 1900 for his hometown in Connecticut...
, near Abilene
Abilene, Texas
Abilene is a city in Taylor and Jones counties in west central Texas. The population was 117,063 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Abilene Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2006 estimated population of 158,063. It is the county seat of Taylor County...
and he graduated from Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University, often referred to as Texas Tech or TTU, is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and originally known as Texas Technological College, it is the leading institution of the Texas Tech University System and has the...
— with a B.S. (1961) and an M.S. (1962) in Agriculture Education (1961). He was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national social fraternities today, Sigma Alpha Epsilon is the only one founded in the Antebellum South...
Fraternity. He has operated a cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
farm in Stamford for many years, and also worked as a vocational teacher.
Congressional career
Stenholm was elected to the House as a DemocratDemocratic 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...
in 1978, representing the 17th District. The district, based in Abilene, was a vast and mostly rural district stretching from San Angelo
San Angelo, Texas
San Angelo is a city in the state of Texas. Located in West Central Texas it is the county seat of Tom Green County. As of 2010 according to the United States Census Bureau, the city had a total population of 93,200...
to the western fringes of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. He became one of the most conservative Democrats in the House, belonged to the Blue Dog Coalition and was a leader of the Boll Weevils
Boll weevil (politics)
Boll weevils was an American political term used in the mid- and late-20th century to describe conservative Southern Democrats.During and after the administration of Franklin D...
during the 1980s. He was one of the more prominent Democratic supporters of Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
's tax-cut package in 1981.
Like many conservative Texas Democrats, Stenholm opposed 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...
and gun control
Gun control
Gun control is any law, policy, practice, or proposal designed to restrict or limit the possession, production, importation, shipment, sale, and/or use of guns or other firearms by private citizens...
. In 1990 he was one of the only three House Democrats to vote against the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 is a law that was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1990. It was signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H. W. Bush, and later amended with changes effective January 1, 2009....
. However, his main interests were in agriculture and budget matters. For six years, he was ranking Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee. He worked very closely with the committee's chairman, Republican Larry Combest
Larry Combest
Larry Ed Combest is a retired Texas Republican U.S. politician who was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1985 to 2003.-Early life:...
of the neighboring 19th District (and himself a farmer), to shepherd the 2002 Farm Bill through Congress. He was a longtime supporter of a balanced budget amendment
Balanced Budget Amendment
A balanced-budget amendment is a constitutional rule requiring that the state cannot spend more than its income. It requires a balance between the projected receipts and expenditures of the government....
to the Constitution.
Stenholm frequently clashed with President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, and voted for three of the four articles of impeachment against him. However, he was a severe critic of the Bush Administration
George 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....
's fiscal policy. He voted against making Bush's tax cut
Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001
The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 , was a sweeping piece of tax legislation in the United States by President George W. Bush...
permanent, as he now opposed cutting taxes unless the budget was balanced.
From 1980 to 1990, Stenholm was reelected without major-party opposition, even running unopposed in 1980 and from 1984 to 1990. This occurred even as the 17th was trending more and more Republican at the national level. However, in 1994, Stenholm was held to only 53 percent of the vote against an unknown Republican in an election that saw dozens of other moderate and conservative Democrats toppled. Indeed, when his children heard the initial returns, they were so certain he'd lost that they traveled to the family farm to console him. Afterwards, he ran for House Minority Whip, losing to David Bonior. While he was reelected four more times after that, he never crossed the 60 percent mark again, and was nearly defeated in 1996 and 2002. By the end of the 20th century, Stenholm was the only elected Democrat above the county level in much of the district. It was considered very likely that he would be succeeded by a Republican once he retired.
Reelection defeat
However, he was a major target of the 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...
-engineered redrawing of Texas' congressional districts in 2003
2003 Texas redistricting
The 2003 Texas redistricting refers to a controversial mid-decade congressional redistricting plan appealed to the United States Supreme Court in League of United Latin American Citizens v. Perry...
. Stenholm's district was dismantled and split among four districts. Most of his former territory, including his home in Abilene, was thrown into the heavily Republican Lubbock-based 19th District, represented by Combest's successor, Randy Neugebauer
Randy Neugebauer
Robert Randolph "Randy" Neugebauer is the U.S. Representative for , serving since a special election in 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district includes a large swath of West Texas, including Lubbock and Abilene...
. The next-biggest chunk of his old territory, including his cotton farm, was thrown into the equally Republican Amarillo-based 13th District, represented by Mac Thornberry
Mac Thornberry
William McClellan "Mac" Thornberry is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1995. He is a member of the Republican Party....
.
Stenholm opted to run in the reconfigured 19th. The new district contained 60 percent of Neugebauer's former territory, a disadvantage Stenholm couldn't overcome despite his 13 terms of seniority. He lost by 18 percentage points in the November 2004 election.
Post-Congressional career
After his November 2004 defeat, Stenholm was mentioned by some major news organizations as a possible candidate for Secretary of AgricultureUnited States Secretary of Agriculture
The United States Secretary of Agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The current secretary is Tom Vilsack, who was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on 20 January 2009. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other...
in President Bush's second term Cabinet, despite Bush's support of the redistricting plan. In the end, Bush nominated Nebraska Governor Mike Johanns
Mike Johanns
Michael Owen "Mike" Johanns is an American Republican politician who has been the junior United States Senator from Nebraska since 2009. Previously he was the 38th Governor of Nebraska from 1999 to 2005 and was U.S. Secretary of Agriculture from 2005 to 2007, becoming the fourth Nebraskan to hold...
, a fellow Republican, for the post.
After leaving Congress, Stenholm became a lobbyist, representing various agricultural interests, including the horse meat
Horse meat
Horse meat is the culinary name for meat cut from a horse. It is a major meat in only a few countries, notably in Central Asia, but it forms a significant part of the culinary traditions of many others, from Europe to South America to Asia. The top eight countries consume about 4.7 million horses...
industry. In 2006, he was the most visible lobbyist for three foreign-owned horse-slaughter plants in the U.S. that are fighting legislation that would force them to close. Meat from these horses is used as food in some European Union countries, Japan and Mexico, for zoo food, and for medical purposes. Since 2005, Stenholm has been a senior policy advisor and lobbyist with Olsson Frank Weeda
Olsson Frank Weeda
Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Matz PC is an American law firm and lobbying firm based in Washington, D.C., that specializes in representing business interests in the food, drug, medical device, and agriculture industries in their dealings with the Food and Drug Administration or United States...
, a Washington law and lobbying firm that specializes in representing food, drug, and agriculture interests before material federal agencies.
External links
- Charlie Stenholm, on NNDB.
- Congressman Charlie Stenholm bio, from the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. Accessed January 27, 2006
- "National Farmers Union presents leadership award", Southwest Farm Press, September 27, 2004. Accessed January 27, 2006