Randy Neugebauer
Encyclopedia
Robert Randolph "Randy" Neugebauer (born December 24, 1949) 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
. According to a 2011 survey by the National Journal
, Neugebauer is the most conservative member in the House.
, and raised in Lubbock
. His father was an insurance salesman and his mother a real estate agent and interior designer. They had two children, Randy and John. When Randy was 9-years old, his parents divorced, and his father died soonafter. In 1963, his mother married Joe W Smith, a bank manager. Neugebauer graduated from Coronado High School and later from Texas Tech University
in 1972 with a bachelor of business administration in accounting
.
Neugebauer has long been involved in the real estate
business, having served as president of the development company Lubbock Land before his election to Congress. He was also the president of the state Homebuilders Association from 1996 to 1997.
, Neugebauer yelled out "Baby killer!" The remark was believed to have been directed at Representative Bart Stupak
of Michigan, a leader of the anti-abortion Democrats in the House, who was discussing a motion filed by the Republicans. While immediate inquiries began to determine who shouted the words, it wasn't until more than 12 hours later, on March 22, 2010, that Neugebauer publicly identified himself as the person, apologized for the incident and argued that his words were "It's a baby killer," referring to the bill, not Stupak himself.
However, reporters and others in the room insist that Neugebauer precisely shouted “Baby killer!", referring to Stupak. Stupak said that he doesn’t “buy” Neugebauer’s description of the outburst, said his words were “very clear,” and believes that Neugebauer should apologize for his remark on the floor of the US House. In contrast to Neugebauer's "baby killer" comment, Stupak and the Politifact watchdog group agree that "there will be no public funding of abortion in this legislation" that Neugebauer detests.
The New York Times and Colorado Springs Gazette have compared Neugebauer's comment to Joe Wilson
shouting "You lie!" during President Barack Obama
’s September 2009 address to Congress, and to racial and sexual slurs said to have been shouted at Democratic legislators outside the Capitol building by members of the public who opposed the bill during the 48 hours preceding Neugebauer's March 21, 2010 outburst. Neugebauer’s comment was covered by media worldwide including Canada
’s Macleans magazine, the United Kingdom
's The Times
and Australia
’s Sydney Morning Herald.
announced his retirement not long after having been reelected to a 10th term in 2002. The 19th is one of the most conservative areas of Texas (indeed, in the entire nation), and it was taken for granted that Combest would be succeeded by another Republican.
Neugebauer finished first in the crowded seven-way, all-Republican field. However, as he finished well short of a majority, he forced into a second round of balloting with fellow Republican Mike Conaway
of Midland
, the chairman of the Texas Board of Public Accountancy and a friend of President George W. Bush
. In a close third-place finish in the first round of balloting was State Representative
Carl Isett
of Lubbock. In the runoff election, Neugebauer defeated Conaway by only 587 votes, becoming only the fourth person to represent the 19th since its creation in 1935. Soon afterward, Conaway won election to Congress in the newly created 11th District in 2004.
Neugebauer ran for a full term in 2004, facing 26-year incumbent Democrat Charles Stenholm
of Abilene. Stenholm had previously represented the Abilene-based 17th District, but that district had been dismantled in the 2003 Texas redistricting
. The largest chunk of Stenholm's former territory was thrown into Neugebauer's district. Although Stenholm had more seniority, the new district retained about 60 percent of Neugebauer's former territory. Neugebauer won by 18 points, and has been reelected three more times with no substantive opposition.
election, Neugebauer supported the election of the conservative Jim Landtroop
to the District 85 seat. Landtroop had worked in past Neugebauer campaigns and is a member of the congressman's campaign finance committee. Landtroop upset the Democratic incumbent Joseph P. Heflin
of Crosbyton
.
, real estate
, commercial banks and crop production/processing industries, and leadership PACs
. His largest corporate and association donors have been the National Auto Dealers Association, National Association of Home Builders
, Quantum Energy Partners, the National Beer Wholesalers Association and the National Association of Realtors
. Outspoken against abortion
during Congress’ debate on health care reform legislation, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics Neugebauer has received a total of $3,000 during his career from people and committees associated with anti-abortion groups.
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 a special election in 2003. 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 West Texas
West Texas
West Texas is a vernacular term applied to a region in the southwestern quadrant of the United States that primarily encompasses the arid and semi-arid lands in the western portion of the state of Texas....
, including Lubbock
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
and 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...
. According to a 2011 survey by the National Journal
National Journal
National Journal is a nonpartisan American weekly magazine that reports on the current political environment and emerging political and policy trends. National Journal was first published in 1969. Times Mirror owned the magazine from 1986 to 1997, when it was purchased by David G. Bradley...
, Neugebauer is the most conservative member in the House.
Early life, education and career
Neugebauer was born in St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, and raised in Lubbock
Lubbock, Texas
Lubbock is a city in and the county seat of Lubbock County, Texas, United States. The city is located in the northwestern part of the state, a region known historically as the Llano Estacado, and the home of Texas Tech University and Lubbock Christian University...
. His father was an insurance salesman and his mother a real estate agent and interior designer. They had two children, Randy and John. When Randy was 9-years old, his parents divorced, and his father died soonafter. In 1963, his mother married Joe W Smith, a bank manager. Neugebauer graduated from Coronado High School and later 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...
in 1972 with a bachelor of business administration in accounting
Accountancy
Accountancy is the process of communicating financial information about a business entity to users such as shareholders and managers. The communication is generally in the form of financial statements that show in money terms the economic resources under the control of management; the art lies in...
.
Neugebauer has long been involved in the real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
business, having served as president of the development company Lubbock Land before his election to Congress. He was also the president of the state Homebuilders Association from 1996 to 1997.
Early political career
Neugebauer was a Lubbock city councilman from 1992 to 1998. He was mayor pro tempore from 1994 to 1996. While involved in Lubbock government, Neugebauer worked to reduce taxes and to privatize city services.Committee assignments
- Committee on AgricultureUnited States House Committee on AgricultureThe U.S. House Committee on Agriculture, or Agriculture Committee is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. The House Committee on Agriculture has general jurisdiction over federal agriculture policy and oversight of some federal agencies, and it can recommend funding...
- Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk ManagementUnited States House Agriculture Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk ManagementThe House Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management is a subcommittee within the House Agriculture Committee. The subcommittee oversees program and markets for major commercial crops, such as cotton, cottonseed, wheat, feed grains , soybeans, oilseeds, rice, dry beans, peas, and...
- Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and PoultryUnited States House Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and PoultryThe House Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry is a subcommittee within the House Agriculture Committee. It oversees all issues relating to livestock, dairy, poultry, meat, seafood and seafood products including federal inspection, marketing, and promotion of these commodities...
- Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management
- Committee on Financial ServicesUnited States House Committee on Financial ServicesThe United States House Committee on Financial Services is the committee of the United States House of Representatives that oversees the entire financial services industry, including the securities, insurance, banking, and housing industries...
- Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises
- Subcommittee on Oversight and InvestigationsUnited States House Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and InvestigationsThe U.S. House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations is a subcommittee of the House Committee on Financial Services.-Jurisdiction:The Subcommittee conducts oversight of the agencies, departments, and programs under the Committee’s jurisdiction...
(Chairman)
- Committee on Science, Space and Technology
- Subcommittee on Energy and Environment
- Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation
- Congressional Hispanic ConferenceCongressional Hispanic ConferenceThe Congressional Hispanic Conference is a Republican Party-controlled caucus in the United States Congress. The CHC was formed in 2003, with the stated goal of promoting policy outcomes of importance to Americans of Hispanic or Latino and Portuguese descent. These priorities included support of...
{associate member} - Tea Party CaucusTea Party CaucusThe Tea Party Caucus is a caucus of the United States House of Representatives and Senate launched and chaired by Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann on July 16, 2010. The caucus is dedicated to promoting what it considers fiscal responsibility, adherence to the movement's interpretation of...
"Baby Killer" remark
On March 21, 2010, during the debate in the House of Representatives of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care ActPatient Protection and Affordable Care Act
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is a United States federal statute signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. The law is the principal health care reform legislation of the 111th United States Congress...
, Neugebauer yelled out "Baby killer!" The remark was believed to have been directed at Representative Bart Stupak
Bart Stupak
Bartholomew Thomas "Bart" Stupak is a lobbyist and American politician of the Democratic Party. He served as the U.S. Representative from from 1993 to 2011....
of Michigan, a leader of the anti-abortion Democrats in the House, who was discussing a motion filed by the Republicans. While immediate inquiries began to determine who shouted the words, it wasn't until more than 12 hours later, on March 22, 2010, that Neugebauer publicly identified himself as the person, apologized for the incident and argued that his words were "It's a baby killer," referring to the bill, not Stupak himself.
However, reporters and others in the room insist that Neugebauer precisely shouted “Baby killer!", referring to Stupak. Stupak said that he doesn’t “buy” Neugebauer’s description of the outburst, said his words were “very clear,” and believes that Neugebauer should apologize for his remark on the floor of the US House. In contrast to Neugebauer's "baby killer" comment, Stupak and the Politifact watchdog group agree that "there will be no public funding of abortion in this legislation" that Neugebauer detests.
The New York Times and Colorado Springs Gazette have compared Neugebauer's comment to Joe Wilson
Joe Wilson (U.S. politician)
Addison Graves Wilson, Sr., most commonly known as Joe Wilson , is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2001. He is a member of the Republican Party...
shouting "You lie!" during President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
’s September 2009 address to Congress, and to racial and sexual slurs said to have been shouted at Democratic legislators outside the Capitol building by members of the public who opposed the bill during the 48 hours preceding Neugebauer's March 21, 2010 outburst. Neugebauer’s comment was covered by media worldwide including Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
’s Macleans magazine, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
’s Sydney Morning Herald.
Political campaigns
Neugebauer was elected to Congress after a hotly contested special election runoff in the spring of 2003. The seat came open after 18-year Republican incumbent Larry CombestLarry 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:...
announced his retirement not long after having been reelected to a 10th term in 2002. The 19th is one of the most conservative areas of Texas (indeed, in the entire nation), and it was taken for granted that Combest would be succeeded by another Republican.
Neugebauer finished first in the crowded seven-way, all-Republican field. However, as he finished well short of a majority, he forced into a second round of balloting with fellow Republican Mike Conaway
Mike Conaway
Kenneth Michael "Mike" Conaway, is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district is located in West Texas and includes Midland, Odessa, San Angelo, Brownwood and Fredericksburg....
of Midland
Midland, Texas
Midland is a city in and the county seat of Midland County, Texas, United States, on the Southern Plains of the state's western area. A small portion of the city extends into Martin County. As of 2010, the population of Midland was 111,147. It is the principal city of the Midland, Texas...
, the chairman of the Texas Board of Public Accountancy and a friend of 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....
. In a close third-place finish in the first round of balloting was State Representative
Texas 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...
Carl Isett
Carl Isett
Carl Hawkins Isett is a Certified Public Accountant from Lubbock, Texas, and a Republican former member of the Texas House of Representatives. First elected in 1996, Isett announced on December 18, 2009, that he would not be a candidate for an eighth two-year term in the Republican primary held...
of Lubbock. In the runoff election, Neugebauer defeated Conaway by only 587 votes, becoming only the fourth person to represent the 19th since its creation in 1935. Soon afterward, Conaway won election to Congress in the newly created 11th District in 2004.
Neugebauer ran for a full term in 2004, facing 26-year incumbent Democrat Charles Stenholm
Charles Stenholm
Charles Walter "Charlie" Stenholm, 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....
of Abilene. Stenholm had previously represented the Abilene-based 17th District, but that district had been dismantled in the 2003 Texas redistricting
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...
. The largest chunk of Stenholm's former territory was thrown into Neugebauer's district. Although Stenholm had more seniority, the new district retained about 60 percent of Neugebauer's former territory. Neugebauer won by 18 points, and has been reelected three more times with no substantive opposition.
2010
In the 2010 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...
election, Neugebauer supported the election of the conservative Jim Landtroop
Jim Landtroop
James Franklin Landtroop, Jr., known as Jim Landtroop , is a businessman from Plainview, Texas, who is an in incoming Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 85 in the South Plains. In the general election held on November 2, 2010, Landtroop handily unseated two-term...
to the District 85 seat. Landtroop had worked in past Neugebauer campaigns and is a member of the congressman's campaign finance committee. Landtroop upset the Democratic incumbent Joseph P. Heflin
Joseph P. Heflin
Joseph Paul Heflin, known as Joe Heflin , is a departing Democratic member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 85 in the South Plains...
of Crosbyton
Crosbyton, Texas
Crosbyton is a city in and the county seat of Crosby County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,874 at the 2000 census. Crosbyton is part of the Lubbock Metropolitan Statistical Area....
.
Campaign funding
During the first seven years of his political career, from 2003 to February 2010, he has raised $6.4 million, most of these funds coming from the oil and gasPetroleum industry
The petroleum industry includes the global processes of exploration, extraction, refining, transporting , and marketing petroleum products. The largest volume products of the industry are fuel oil and gasoline...
, real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
, commercial banks and crop production/processing industries, and leadership PACs
Political action committee
In the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...
. His largest corporate and association donors have been the National Auto Dealers Association, National Association of Home Builders
National Association of Home Builders
The National Association of Home Builders is one of the largest trade associations in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, DC, NAHB's mission is "to enhance the climate for housing and the building industry...
, Quantum Energy Partners, the National Beer Wholesalers Association and the National Association of Realtors
National Association of Realtors
The National Association of Realtors , whose members are known as Realtors, is North America's largest trade association. representing over 1.2 million members , including NAR's institutes, societies, and councils, involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries...
. Outspoken against 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...
during Congress’ debate on health care reform legislation, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics Neugebauer has received a total of $3,000 during his career from people and committees associated with anti-abortion groups.
Personal life
Neugebauer married his high school sweetheart, Dana Collins, and they had one son named Toby who was the co-ceo of Quantum Energy Partners along with Wil VanLoh, Scott Soler, and D Verma. He additionally serves as a deacon at his local Baptist church.External links
- U.S. Representative Randy Neugebauer official U.S. House site
- Randy Neugebauer for U.S. Congress official campaign site