Kevin Brady
Encyclopedia
Kevin Patrick Brady is the U.S. Representative
for , serving since 1997. He is a member of the Republican Party
. The district includes a large swath of suburban and rural territory around Houston
and Beaumont
.
, one of five children of William and Nancy Brady. His father, a lawyer, was killed in 1967 in a courtroom shooting in Rapid City
when Brady was 12 years old. Brady graduated from the University of South Dakota
in Vermillion, where he also became a member of Lambda Chi Alpha
Fraternity.
A chamber of commerce executive who also served on the Rapid City Common Council, Brady moved to Texas to work for the Beaumont Chamber of Commerce and later the South Montgomery County Woodlands Chamber of Commerce.
, representing The Woodlands and other parts of Montgomery County.
Brady has been a reliable conservative
. He has advocated victims' rights
and free trade
, and called for replacing the income tax
with a federal sales tax
. As a member of the Ways and Means Committee, in 2004 he restored the sales tax deduction, which had been eliminated in 1986. Recently, Brady acted as the point man for President George W. Bush
to steer the Central America Free Trade Agreement
through the House. However, he is best known as the author of a federal "sunset law" that would require every federal program not specifically written into the Constitution to justify its existence to taxpayers within 12 years or face elimination. He has introduced this bill at the beginning of every Congress. It was approved overwhelmingly by the House as an amendment in 2004 but did not progress further. In 2006 it passed the Government Reform Committee but did not reach a floor vote.
As the ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee, Brady and his staff developed the "Organizational Chart of the House Democrats Health Plan", the complex chart that showed the creation of at least 31 new federal agencies, commissions and mandates included in the America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009
. He has also called on Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to step down, citing rising unemployment, exaggerated stimulus job claims, unsustainable debt and "failed economic policies" of the Obama administration.
Brady's district was hit hard by Hurricane Rita
and again by Hurricane Ike
, and he has helped lead the Texas recovery effort in the House for both disasters.
chose not to run for re-election in 1996, and Brady ran in the Republican primary
to succeed him. Brady faced fellow Republican Eugene Fontenot four times in 1996 due to court-ordered redistricting
. Fontenot led Brady in the primary in March, but Brady won the runoff election
in April and two subsequent elections that stretched into December. Brady has won reelection six times without serious opposition and serves as a deputy minority whip.
, a suburb
of Houston.
On October 7, 2005 Brady was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol while in South Dakota. He faced a fine of up to $1,000 and a year in jail. He pleaded no contest. Upon his misdemeanor conviction on November 8, he was fined $350, and his right to drive in South Dakota was suspended for 30 days. Before his sentencing, Brady had stated that "no one is above the law" and he would accept "every consequence" of his actions, even if that meant a jail sentence. "To me, regardless of how this turns out, what it says is that you don't get behind the wheel." Conroe (Texas) Courier.
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 , serving since 1997. He is a member of the Republican Party
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...
. The district includes a large swath of suburban and rural territory around Houston
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
and Beaumont
Beaumont, Texas
Beaumont is a city in and county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 118,296 at the 2010 census. With Port Arthur and Orange, it forms the Golden Triangle, a major industrial area on the...
.
Early life, education and career
Brady was born in Vermillion, South DakotaVermillion, South Dakota
Vermillion is a city in and the county seat of Clay County, in the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of South Dakota, and the tenth largest city in the state. According to the 2010 Census, the population was 10,571. Vermillion lies atop a bluff near the Missouri River.The area has been home to...
, one of five children of William and Nancy Brady. His father, a lawyer, was killed in 1967 in a courtroom shooting in Rapid City
Rapid City, South Dakota
Rapid City is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota, and the county seat of Pennington County. Named after Rapid Creek on which the city is established, it is set against the eastern slope of the Black Hills mountain range. The population was 67,956 as of the 2010 Census. Rapid...
when Brady was 12 years old. Brady graduated from the University of South Dakota
University of South Dakota
The University of South Dakota ', the state’s oldest university, was founded in 1862 and classes began in 1882. Located in Vermillion, South Dakota, United States, USD is home to South Dakota's only medical school and law school. USD is governed by the South Dakota Board of Regents, and its current...
in Vermillion, where he also became a member of Lambda Chi Alpha
Lambda Chi Alpha
Lambda Chi Alpha is one of the largest men's secret general fraternities in North America, having initiated more than 280,000 members and held chapters at more than 300 universities. It is a member of the North-American Interfraternity Conference and was founded by Warren A. Cole, while he was a...
Fraternity.
A chamber of commerce executive who also served on the Rapid City Common Council, Brady moved to Texas to work for the Beaumont Chamber of Commerce and later the South Montgomery County Woodlands Chamber of Commerce.
Texas House of Representatives
Brady began his political career in 1990 when he was elected to the Texas House of RepresentativesTexas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Texas Legislature. The House is composed of 150 members elected from single-member districts across the state. The average district has about 150,000 people. Representatives are elected to two-year terms with no term limits...
, representing The Woodlands and other parts of Montgomery County.
Committee assignments
- Committee on Ways and MeansUnited States House Committee on Ways and MeansThe Committee of Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. Members of the Ways and Means Committee are not allowed to serve on any other House Committees unless they apply for a waiver from their party's congressional leadership...
- Subcommittee on TradeUnited States House Ways and Means Subcommittee on TradeThe House Way and Means Subcommittee on Trade is one of the six subcommittees within the House Ways and Means Committee-Jurisdiction:From the House Rules:...
(Chairman)) - Subcommittee on Social SecurityUnited States House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social SecurityThe Subcommittee on Social Security is a subcommittee of the Committee on Ways and Means in the United States House of Representatives.-Jurisdiction:From the House rules...
- Subcommittee on Trade
- Joint Economic Committee (Vice Chairman)
Caucus memberships
- Army Caucus
- Congressional Missing and Exploited Children Caucus
- Congressional Rural Caucus
- International Conservation CaucusUnited States Congressional International Conservation CaucusThe U.S. Congressional International Conservation Caucus is a bipartisan congressional organization that was founded in September 2003 with the conviction that “the United States of America has the opportunity, the obligation and the interests to advance the conservation of natural resources for...
- Sportsmen's Caucus
Brady has been a reliable conservative
American conservatism
Conservatism in the United States has played an important role in American politics since the 1950s. Historian Gregory Schneider identifies several constants in American conservatism: respect for tradition, support of republicanism, preservation of "the rule of law and the Christian religion", and...
. He has advocated victims' rights
Victims' Rights
-History:Victim movements in the U.S. grew in the 1970s. In 1982, President Ronald Reagan's Task Force on Victims of Crime released its Final Report. The report drew attention to the re-victimization of crime victims within the criminal justice system...
and free trade
Free trade
Under a free trade policy, prices emerge from supply and demand, and are the sole determinant of resource allocation. 'Free' trade differs from other forms of trade policy where the allocation of goods and services among trading countries are determined by price strategies that may differ from...
, and called for replacing the income tax
Income tax
An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or businesses . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate...
with a federal sales tax
Sales tax
A sales tax is a tax, usually paid by the consumer at the point of purchase, itemized separately from the base price, for certain goods and services. The tax amount is usually calculated by applying a percentage rate to the taxable price of a sale....
. As a member of the Ways and Means Committee, in 2004 he restored the sales tax deduction, which had been eliminated in 1986. Recently, Brady acted as the point man for President George W. Bush
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....
to steer the Central America Free Trade Agreement
Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement
The Dominican Republic – Central America Free Trade Agreement, commonly called DR-CAFTA, is a free trade agreement . Originally, the agreement encompassed the United States and the Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua, and was called CAFTA...
through the House. However, he is best known as the author of a federal "sunset law" that would require every federal program not specifically written into the Constitution to justify its existence to taxpayers within 12 years or face elimination. He has introduced this bill at the beginning of every Congress. It was approved overwhelmingly by the House as an amendment in 2004 but did not progress further. In 2006 it passed the Government Reform Committee but did not reach a floor vote.
As the ranking member of the Joint Economic Committee, Brady and his staff developed the "Organizational Chart of the House Democrats Health Plan", the complex chart that showed the creation of at least 31 new federal agencies, commissions and mandates included in the America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009
America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009
The proposed America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 was an unsuccessful bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on July 14, 2009. The bill was introduced during the first session of the 111th Congress as part of an effort of the Democratic Party leadership to enact health...
. He has also called on Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to step down, citing rising unemployment, exaggerated stimulus job claims, unsustainable debt and "failed economic policies" of the Obama administration.
Brady's district was hit hard by Hurricane Rita
Hurricane Rita
Hurricane Rita was the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded and the most intense tropical cyclone ever observed in the Gulf of Mexico. Rita caused $11.3 billion in damage on the U.S. Gulf Coast in September 2005...
and again by Hurricane Ike
Hurricane Ike
Hurricane Ike was the second-costliest hurricane ever to make landfall in the United States, the costliest hurricane ever to impact Cuba and the second most active hurricane to reach the Canadian mainland in the Great Lakes Region after Hurricane Hazel in 1954...
, and he has helped lead the Texas recovery effort in the House for both disasters.
Political campaigns
Congressman Jack FieldsJack Fields
Jack Milton Fields, Jr. , is a Texas businessman and a former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from a Houston-based district....
chose not to run for re-election in 1996, and Brady ran in the Republican primary
Primary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
to succeed him. Brady faced fellow Republican Eugene Fontenot four times in 1996 due to court-ordered redistricting
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...
. Fontenot led Brady in the primary in March, but Brady won the runoff election
Two-round system
The two-round system is a voting system used to elect a single winner where the voter casts a single vote for their chosen candidate...
in April and two subsequent elections that stretched into December. Brady has won reelection six times without serious opposition and serves as a deputy minority whip.
Personal life
Brady lives in The WoodlandsThe Woodlands, Texas
The Woodlands is a master-planned community and a Census-designated place in the U.S. state of Texas within the metropolitan area. The population of the CDP was 55,649 at the 2000 census—a 90 percent increase over its 1990 population. According to the 2010 census, The Woodlands' population rose...
, a suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
of Houston.
On October 7, 2005 Brady was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol while in South Dakota. He faced a fine of up to $1,000 and a year in jail. He pleaded no contest. Upon his misdemeanor conviction on November 8, he was fined $350, and his right to drive in South Dakota was suspended for 30 days. Before his sentencing, Brady had stated that "no one is above the law" and he would accept "every consequence" of his actions, even if that meant a jail sentence. "To me, regardless of how this turns out, what it says is that you don't get behind the wheel." Conroe (Texas) Courier.
External links
- U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady official U.S. House site
- Profile at SourceWatchSourceWatchSourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...