Warren Chisum
Encyclopedia
Warren Darrel Chisum is a conservative
Republican
member of the Texas House of Representatives
from the Panhandle
city of Pampa
, a community of some 20,000 people and the seat of Gray County. He has served in the state House since 1989. A key lieutenant of former Speaker
Thomas Russell "Tom" Craddick, Sr.
, of Midland
, Chisum chaired the budget
-writing House Appropriations
Committee from 2007-2009.
In addition to his own Gray County, Chisum represents a huge geographic area of eighteen other Panhandle or West Texas counties in House District 88: Armstrong
, Bailey
, Briscoe, Castro, Childress, Collingsworth, Donley
, Hall, Hansford
, Hemphill, Hutchinson
, Lamb, Lipscomb, Ochiltree, Parmer, Roberts, Swisher
, and Wheeler. From 199 to 1993, Chisum represented District 84, which then included his Gray County.
and natural gas
producer and rancher. He began his career on oil drilling rigs and in truck yards.
Chisum served the first eight years of his House tenure as a Democrat
, but he switched to GOP
allegiance in 1996, when his district became measurably more Republican in orientation after redistricting
. Chisum said that his relationship with the Democratic Party—and fellow Panhandle resident, then Speaker Laney—remains as cordial as it has ever been: "They were my friends then, and they are my friends now. I think probably the old-line conservative Democrat was just as conservative as some of the new conservative Republicans."
Chisum is a member of the Texas Conservative Coalition, a consortium
of right-leaning House members. He headed the organization for a number of years.
He is particularly known for his opposition to same-sex marriages and adoption
s. He has also opposed hate crimes legislation: "Any time you start producing a list of people who, for whatever reason, have greater protection than other people, I think you weaken the law," Chisum said. Though he declared crimes of "bias and prejudice... wrong... the record shows clearly that I've always opposed this laundry list."
Chisum described his chairmanship as "a bully pulpit. You really set the priorities for the state. We deal with a budget in excess of $200 billion" (the Texas budget is set for a biennium, or two-year cycle).
During the January 2007 speaker's race between Craddick and Jim Pitts
, Chisum led the effort to re-elect the Speaker. He again aided Craddick during the May 2007 controversy over Craddick's refusal to recognize Members seeking his removal.
In February 2007 Chisum delivered to the state House a memo by Georgia state Rep. Ben Bridges
attacking what it called "the evolution monopoly in the schools". The memo claims that in teaching evolution
, schools are indoctrinating students in the beliefs of the ancient Jewish
Pharisees
sect.
Chisum has chided many of his conservative and Republican colleagues for failure "to stand up and be counted and take the abuse that you're going to take" for having unpopular views on liberal
issues. Chisum is also critical of government in general. He boasts of having killed numerous liberal legislative agenda items: "Most of them don't come back up again.... The only thing the law ever does is, it either takes away your money or your freedom, so there's 100 times that we didn't take away your money or your freedom."
A former chairman of the House Environmental Regulation Committee, Chisum has opposed many environmental regulations as unwise government intrusion into private economic activities. He once tried to bring a nuclear waste dump into Andrews County but then voted against his own bill after opponents loaded it with objectionable amendments.
On January 30, 2007, Chisum introduced a bill in the Texas House which would clarify parental permission for their children to participate in sex education programs in public schools. The Chisum proposal would require parents to check "Yes" for their children to participate in the programs. Some school districts begin teaching students as young as five or six about sex, Chisum said.
In 2008, Chisum announced that he will introduced a bill to prolong the waiting time in Texas to finalize a divorce
. His bill would extend the time needed from one to two years. Chisum feels the extended time will result in more reconciliations. Divorce attorney Rikky Rivers called Chisum's idea "ludicrous".
Chisum said that existing state law requires school officials to give parents the option of removing their children from any sex education programs, but officials in some districts have not informed parents of their rights, the content of the programs, and at what age those programs begin. Chisum said that the checkoff-box bill he supports would make school districts more responsible to the wishes of the parents.
In his last election in 2006, Chisum won every county in the district to defeat the Libertarian
candidate Timothy Justice, 24,044 to 4,244. There was no Democratic nominee.
Chisum resides in Pampa with his wife, Omega C. Chisum (also born 1938).
Conservatism
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...
Republican
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 Texas House of Representatives
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...
from the Panhandle
Texas Panhandle
The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the northernmost 26 counties in the state. The panhandle is a rectangular area bordered by New Mexico to the west and Oklahoma to the north and east...
city of Pampa
Pampa, Texas
Pampa is a city in Gray County, Texas, United States. The population was 17,887 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Gray County.Pampa is the principal city of the Pampa Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Gray and Roberts counties....
, a community of some 20,000 people and the seat of Gray County. He has served in the state House since 1989. A key lieutenant of former Speaker
Speaker (politics)
The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...
Thomas Russell "Tom" Craddick, Sr.
Tom Craddick
Thomas Russell Craddick, known as Tom Craddick , was the first Republican to have served as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives since Reconstruction. Craddick wielded the Speaker's gavel from 2003-2009...
, 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...
, Chisum chaired the budget
Budget
A budget is a financial plan and a list of all planned expenses and revenues. It is a plan for saving, borrowing and spending. A budget is an important concept in microeconomics, which uses a budget line to illustrate the trade-offs between two or more goods...
-writing House Appropriations
Appropriation (law)
In law and government, appropriation is the act of setting apart something for its application to a particular usage, to the exclusion of all other uses....
Committee from 2007-2009.
In addition to his own Gray County, Chisum represents a huge geographic area of eighteen other Panhandle or West Texas counties in House District 88: Armstrong
Armstrong County, Texas
Armstrong County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas, and was formed in 1876 from Bexar County. It is part of the Amarillo metropolitan area. As of 2000, the population is 2,148. Its county seat is Claude. Armstrong is named for one of several Texas pioneer families named Armstrong...
, Bailey
Bailey County, Texas
Bailey County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2010, the population is 7,165. Its county seat is Muleshoe. Bailey is named for Peter James Bailey, a defender of the Alamo...
, Briscoe, Castro, Childress, Collingsworth, Donley
Donley County, Texas
Donley County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 3,828. It is named for Stockton P. Donley, a frontier lawyer. Its county seat is Clarendon....
, Hall, Hansford
Hansford County, Texas
Hansford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2010, its population was 5,613. The county is named for John M. Hansford, a Texas state congressman and judge. Hansford County is one of 30 prohibition, or entirely dry, counties in the state of Texas. Its seat is...
, Hemphill, Hutchinson
Hutchinson County, Texas
Hutchinson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas in the northern portion of the Texas Panhandle. In 2000, its population was 23,857. Its seat is Stinnett . Hutchinson County is named for Andrew Hutchinson, an early Texas attorney....
, Lamb, Lipscomb, Ochiltree, Parmer, Roberts, Swisher
Swisher County, Texas
Swisher County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 8,378. Its seat is Tulia. The county is named for James G. Swisher, a soldier of the Texas Revolution and signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence...
, and Wheeler. From 199 to 1993, Chisum represented District 84, which then included his Gray County.
Political career
Pampa native Chisum is an oilOil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
and natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
producer and rancher. He began his career on oil drilling rigs and in truck yards.
Chisum served the first eight years of his House tenure as a Democrat
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...
, but he switched to GOP
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...
allegiance in 1996, when his district became measurably more Republican in orientation after 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...
. Chisum said that his relationship with the Democratic Party—and fellow Panhandle resident, then Speaker Laney—remains as cordial as it has ever been: "They were my friends then, and they are my friends now. I think probably the old-line conservative Democrat was just as conservative as some of the new conservative Republicans."
Chisum is a member of the Texas Conservative Coalition, a consortium
Consortium
A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....
of right-leaning House members. He headed the organization for a number of years.
He is particularly known for his opposition to same-sex marriages and adoption
Adoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
s. He has also opposed hate crimes legislation: "Any time you start producing a list of people who, for whatever reason, have greater protection than other people, I think you weaken the law," Chisum said. Though he declared crimes of "bias and prejudice... wrong... the record shows clearly that I've always opposed this laundry list."
Chisum described his chairmanship as "a bully pulpit. You really set the priorities for the state. We deal with a budget in excess of $200 billion" (the Texas budget is set for a biennium, or two-year cycle).
During the January 2007 speaker's race between Craddick and Jim Pitts
Jim Pitts
James R. "Jim" Pitts is an American state politician and lawyer who currently serves in the Texas House of Representatives as the chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee...
, Chisum led the effort to re-elect the Speaker. He again aided Craddick during the May 2007 controversy over Craddick's refusal to recognize Members seeking his removal.
In February 2007 Chisum delivered to the state House a memo by Georgia state Rep. Ben Bridges
Ben Bridges
Ben D. Bridges, Sr. is a conservative Republican politician and former member of the Georgia House of Representatives from the 10th District based about Cleveland. He was chairman of the House Retirement Committee.Bridges worked as a barber for six years before joining the Georgia State Patrol...
attacking what it called "the evolution monopoly in the schools". The memo claims that in teaching evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
, schools are indoctrinating students in the beliefs of the ancient Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
Pharisees
Pharisees
The Pharisees were at various times a political party, a social movement, and a school of thought among Jews during the Second Temple period beginning under the Hasmonean dynasty in the wake of...
sect.
Chisum has chided many of his conservative and Republican colleagues for failure "to stand up and be counted and take the abuse that you're going to take" for having unpopular views on liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
issues. Chisum is also critical of government in general. He boasts of having killed numerous liberal legislative agenda items: "Most of them don't come back up again.... The only thing the law ever does is, it either takes away your money or your freedom, so there's 100 times that we didn't take away your money or your freedom."
A former chairman of the House Environmental Regulation Committee, Chisum has opposed many environmental regulations as unwise government intrusion into private economic activities. He once tried to bring a nuclear waste dump into Andrews County but then voted against his own bill after opponents loaded it with objectionable amendments.
On January 30, 2007, Chisum introduced a bill in the Texas House which would clarify parental permission for their children to participate in sex education programs in public schools. The Chisum proposal would require parents to check "Yes" for their children to participate in the programs. Some school districts begin teaching students as young as five or six about sex, Chisum said.
In 2008, Chisum announced that he will introduced a bill to prolong the waiting time in Texas to finalize a divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
. His bill would extend the time needed from one to two years. Chisum feels the extended time will result in more reconciliations. Divorce attorney Rikky Rivers called Chisum's idea "ludicrous".
Chisum said that existing state law requires school officials to give parents the option of removing their children from any sex education programs, but officials in some districts have not informed parents of their rights, the content of the programs, and at what age those programs begin. Chisum said that the checkoff-box bill he supports would make school districts more responsible to the wishes of the parents.
In his last election in 2006, Chisum won every county in the district to defeat the 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 Timothy Justice, 24,044 to 4,244. There was no Democratic nominee.
Chisum resides in Pampa with his wife, Omega C. Chisum (also born 1938).
External links
- http://www.lubbockonline.com - 88k (January 27, 2007)
- http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist88/chisum.htm
- http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2005-06-03/xtra_string2.html
- http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/story?oid=oid:81086
- http://www.amarillo.com/stories/013007/new_6682256.shtml