Gene Taylor
Gary Eugene "Gene" Taylor is a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from the 4th District of Mississippi (map). The district includes Biloxi, Gulfport, Pascagoula and Hattiesburg. Taylor has served since 1989.
Contents
Bio
Background
Taylor was born September 17, 1953 in New Orleans and is a graduate of Tulane University. He earned additional post-graduate work at University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park Campus. From 1971 through 1984, he was a member of the United States Coast Guard, commanding a search and rescue boat and earning several commendations. Taylor is a devout Roman Catholic, one of the few who has been elected in the predominantly Southern Baptist state of Mississippi.
Congressional Career
Shortly after leaving the Coast Guard, Taylor was elected to the Mississippi State Senate. After only one term, he ran as the Democratic candidate to succeed Trent Lott in Mississippi's 5th District when Lott made an ultimately successful run for the Senate He lost to Harrison County sheriff Larkin I. Smith by almost 10 points. However, Smith died in a plane crash eight months later. Taylor came in first in an all-party primary to fill the vacancy and handily won the runoff two weeks later, taking office on October 18, 1989. He won a full term in 1990 with 81% of the vote and has had little trouble being reelected despite representing a district that has not supported the official Democratic presidential candidate since 1956. His district was renumbered the 4th after the 2000 census, when Mississippi's sluggish population growth cost it a congressional seat.
2006 elections
In 2006, the Republicans nominated Randy McDonnell to face Taylor in his November 2006 bid for reelection. (See U.S. congressional elections in 2006) [1] Taylor retained his seat.
Positions and Views
Taylor is one of the most conservative Democrats in the House. He voted for all four articles of impeachment against Bill Clinton, making him the only Democrat to do so, and has frequently skipped Democratic conventions. He is pro-life and a firm supporter of the right to bear arms. He strongly supports the death penalty and is more conservative on issues of immigration, crime, and drugs than many Republicans. Taylor also opposes affirmative action and was one of the few Democrats to vote against the Civil Rights Act of 1991. He is also a cosponsor of the Federal Marriage Amendment. He has voted in favor of lawsuit reform and tightening rules on personal bankruptcy. He also supported amending the U.S. Constitution to require a balanced budget and another amendment requiring a two-thirds majority to raise taxes.
However, he has been a severe critic of the Bush Administration's fiscal policy. Taylor voted against the tax cuts passed in 2001 and 2003, claiming that the cuts contained in those bills would only increase the national debt. He derided the prescription drug plan passed in 2003 as a give away to companies that donate to the Republican Party. He opposes free trade and was strongly opposed to the Bush Administration's proposals for reforming Social Security. He has also denounced Vice President Dick Cheney's ties to Halliburton.
In the 2004 primary elections, Taylor endorsed fellow Southern Democrat, General Wesley Clark.
Hurricane Katrina
Taylor has been a particularly harsh critic of the federal government's response to Hurricane Katrina. Much of his district took a direct hit from the storm, which destroyed his home in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi as well as Lott's home in Pascagoula. When Republican leaders appointed a select committee to investigate the federal, state and local response to Katrina, most Democrats boycotted it because they felt it would be a whitewash. However, Taylor was one of three Democrats invited to attend the hearings because their districts were particularly hard-hit by the storm. When former FEMA director Michael Brown appeared before the committee, Taylor reacted angrily to Brown's attempts to put primary responsibility for the failed response at the local level.
Quotes
- Here in Mississippi, there's a great provision of the constitution that says you can't get any financial benefit from any law that passes a body of which you are a member. There's an outfit out there called Halliburton with billions of dollars in noncompetitive contracts that passed through the United States Senate. The vice president of the United States is the president of the United States Senate. He could not do that in Mississippi. He's still drawing money from that firm. That's government by auction. We don't allow that in Mississippi. It shouldn't be allowed in Washington.--referring to Dick Cheney's ties to Haliburton.
- To Michael Brown on Hurricane Katrina:
- (Y)ou can try to throw as much as you can on the backs of Louisianians, but I'm a witness as to what happened in Mississippi. You folks fell on your face. You get an F-minus in my book.
- Maybe the president made a very good move when he asked you to leave your job.
Meet the Cash Constituents
| Links to more campaign contribution information for Gene Taylor from the Center for Responsive Politics' OpenSecrets.org site. |
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| Fundraising profile: | 2006 election cycle | Career totals |
| Top contributors by organization/corporation: | 2006 election cycle | Career totals |
| Top contributors by industry: | 2006 election cycle | Career totals |
Controversy
Committees and Affiliations
Committees
- House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
- Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation
- Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment
Committee assignments in the 109th Congress (2005-2006)
- House Committee on Armed Services
- Subcommittee on Projection Forces - Ranking Minority Member
- Subcommittee on Readiness
- House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
- Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation
- Subcommittee on Highways Transit and Pipelines
- Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment
Coalitions and Caucuses
- Coast Guard Caucus
- Co-Chair, Congressional Boating Caucus
- Co-Chair, Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus
- Conservative Democrat Forum
- Democratic Leadership Conference
- House Boating Caucus
- Member, House Impact Aid Coalition
- House Co-Chair, National Security Caucus
- Co-Chair, National Guard and Reserve Components Caucus
- Steering Committe
Boards and other Affiliations
- American Legion
- Boys and Girls Club of the Gulf Coast
- Co-Chair, National Guard and Reserve Components Congressional Members Organization
- Rotary
More Background Data
Wikipedia also has an article on Gene Taylor. This article may use content from the Wikipedia article under the terms of the GFDL.
Articles and Resources
- Official website
- Open Secrets - 2006 congressional races database
Local blogs and discussion sites
Contact
DC Office:
2311 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515-2404
Phone: 202-225-5772
Fax: 202-225-7074
Web Email
Website
District Office- Gulfport:
2424 14th Street
Gulfport, MS 39501
Phone: 228-864-7670
Fax: 228-864-3099
District Office- Hattiesburg:
Federal Building, Suite 215
701 Main Street
Hattiesburg, MS 39401
Phone: 601-582-3246
Fax: 601-582-3452
District Office- Laurel:
527 Central Avenue
Laurel, MS 39440
Phone: 601-425-3905
Fax:
District Office- Ocean Springs:
1314 Government Street, Suite B
Ocean Springs, MS 39564
Phone: 228-872-7950
Fax:
