Pete Sessions
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 32nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2003
Preceded by	New District
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 5th district
In office January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2003
Preceded by	John Bryant
Succeeded by	Jeb Hensarling
Personal details
Born	(1955-03-22) March 22, 1955 (age 57) Waco, Texas
Political party	Republican
Residence	Dallas, Texas
Alma mater	Southwestern University
Occupation	telecommunications executive
Religion	Methodist

Peter Anderson Sessions (born March 22, 1955) is a politician from the state of Texas. He is a Republican, and currently represents the 32nd congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives. He is the current Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee^[1]

Personal[link]

Sessions was born in Waco, Texas, and grew up there and in the suburbs of Washington, DC. His father is William S. Sessions, the former director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He graduated from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas in 1978. Sessions then worked for Southwestern Bell for 16 years. He rose to the rank of district manager for marketing in Dallas, supervising 435 employees and managing a $16 million budget. He also worked at Bell Communications Research (AKA Bellcore, currently named Telcordia Technologies) in New Jersey.

He is an Eagle Scout with four generations of Boy Scouts in his family, and recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America,^[2][3] as well as a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity.^[4] As a Congressman, Sessions has sponsored legislation to raise money for the Boy Scouts.^[5] At the 2007 National Convention, Sessions was presented with the Pi Kappa Alpha Distinguished Alumni Award.

Sessions and his ex-wife Juanita have two sons, Bill (age 21), who is also a member of Pi Kappa Alpha, and Alex (age 16). Roll Call Newspaper reported that Sessions and Juanita divorced in August 2011 after 27 years of marriage. ^[6]

Boy Scouts[link]

Congressman Sessions has led congressional efforts to recognize the 100th anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America by introducing a "100 Years of Scouting" commemorative coin that will be released in 2010.^{[dated info][7]} In 2008, President George W. Bush signed H.R. 5872 entitled, the Boy Scouts of America Centennial Commemorative Coin Act. The bill calls for 350,000 $1 silver coins to be minted.^[8] The Boy Scouts of America has recognized Congressman Sessions as a Distinguished Eagle Scout. He currently holds a position on the Circle Ten Council of Boy Scouts of America. Both of the Congressman's sons are active in the Boy Scouts. Last year, Alex, who was born with Down Syndrome, joined the Order of the Arrow. Congressman Sessions received the Vigil Honor, the highest achievement in the OA from the Mikanakawa Lodge, Order of the Arrow, in April 2008.^[9]

U.S. House of Representatives[link]

Campaigns[link]

In his 1991 election bid, Sessions finished third in a special election for the House of Representatives.

In 1993, Sessions left his job with Southwestern Bell to again run for Congress, against 5th District incumbent Democrat John Bryant. Sessions made a tour of the district with a livestock trailer full of horse manure, claiming that the Clinton administration's health care plan stank more than the manure. Sessions lost by 2,400 votes. He subsequently became Vice President for Public Policy at the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA), a Dallas-based conservative public policy research institute.

In 1996, when Bryant decided to seek a Senate seat, Sessions was elected to succeed him in the 5th District, defeating Democrat John Pouland with 47 percent of the vote. Sessions was re-elected in 1998, defeating school teacher Victor Morales with 56 percent of the vote. He was re-elected in 2000 with 54 percent of the vote against Regina Montoya Coggins.

When redistricting after the 2000 Census made the 5th slightly more Democratic, Sessions moved to the new 32nd District (map) for the 2002 election. He won that with 68 percent of the vote over Pauline Dixon.

In 2004, Sessions defeated fellow Congressman Martin Frost, a 13-term Democrat, who had moved to the 32nd after the Republican-engineered redistricting in 2003 eliminated Frost's former district. Sessions won 54-44%, in what was considered the most expensive U.S. House race in the nation. According to the Associated Press, "The race also was one of the nastiest, with Frost unearthing a decades-old streaking incident by Sessions in his college days and questioning Sessions' commitment to security with an ad featuring the World Trade Center towers in flames. Sessions criticized Frost for booking Peter Yarrow of the 1960s group Peter, Paul and Mary for a fundraiser. Yarrow had faced an indecency with a child charge years earlier."

In 2010, Sessions faced Dallas businessman and attorney Grier Raggio and Libertarian John Jay Myers. The election was initially named as one of the top dark horse battles in the country. Anti-Democratic sentiment rose nationwide throughout 2010, however, and Sessions won re-election easily.^[10]

Committee assignments[link]

• House Committee on Rules
  • Subcommittee on Rules and the Organization of the House (Ranking Member)

Party leadership and caucus memberships[link]

• National Republican Congressional Committee (Chairman)
• Results Caucus
• Malaysia Trade, Security and Economic Cooperation Caucus
• Republican Study Committee
• Congressional Hispanic Conference
• Tea Party Caucus

Controversies[link]

Connections to Abramoff[link]

In late 2001 and early 2002, Sessions cosigned letters to two Cabinet members asking them to shut down casinos operated by several Native American tribes. Within 18 months of sending the letters, Sessions received a total of $20,500 from tribes associated with Jack Abramoff raising suspicion^{[according to whom?]} that Sessions had written the letters to curry favor with Abramoff as he represented a number of competing tribes. In response, the Sessions office said he wrote the letters because of his view that gambling is a local issue, falling under his long held support for federalism.^[11]

Taliban comments[link]

In early February 2009 he made the following comment about the Republican Party legislative strategy in the House of Representatives: "Insurgency, we understand perhaps a little bit more because of the Taliban," Sessions said during the 60-minute sitdown. "And that is that they went about systematically understanding how to disrupt and change a person's entire processes." He continued: "I'm not trying to say the Republican Party is the Taliban.... I'm saying an example of how you go about [it] is to change a person from their messaging to their operations to their frontline message. And we need to understand that insurgency may be required when the other side, the House leadership, does not follow the same commands, which we entered the game with."^[12]

Blimpgate[link]

In 2008, Sessions added a $1.6 million earmark to an appropriations bill, for dirigible research. The earmark benefitted a Chicago company, Jim G. Ferguson & Associates, which has no experience in government contracting or dirigible research. A former Sessions aide and convicted felon, Adrian Plesha is a lobbyist for the firm.^[13][14]

In September, Adrian Plesha sued Jim G. Ferguson & Associates for non-payment of fees and expenses connected with his lobbying effort on their behalf. The lawsuits mentions the dirigible research project, saying, "as a direct result of Plesha’s services in 2007 through 2008, Plesha was able to secure a $1.6 million appropriation for defendants in September 2008...".^[15]

Ties to Allen Stanford[link]

Sessions has come under criticism^{[according to whom?]} for his personal ties to Allen Stanford. Records show that Sessions received over $44,000 in political contributions from Allen Stanford and his associates.^[16] Sessions also took multiple trips to the Caribbean to attend Stanford sponsored events.^[16] These trips included private travel for Sessions on Stanford's fleet of jets and accommodations.^[16]

Contributions from Wyly brothers[link]

On July 29, 2010 the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed fraud charges against brothers Samuel and Charles Wyly.^[17] The two brothers were charged with creating phony overseas accounts to illegally trade $750 million in stocks.^[17] Both brothers were two of the top Republican financial contributors in the country, and gave Pete Sessions nearly $30,000 during his time in the United States Congress.^[18]

Racial comments[link]

In September 2010, Sessions remarked after watching the Princeton University men's basketball team, "How often can you go see a bunch of white guys play basketball?" He also reportedly said that the players stayed entirely below the rim. The comments were described as an allusion to the phrase "White Men Can't Jump", and were labeled as inappropriate by New Jersey Democratic Rep. Bill Pascrell.^[19]

Less than two weeks after his "white guys" comments Sessions made derogatory comments about African-American support for Democratic candidates.^[20][21]

Countrywide Financial loan[link]

In January 2012, it was reported that Sessions received a so-called "VIP" or "Friends of Angelo" loan in 2007 from troubled mortgage lender Countrywide Financial, in which loans were granted at lower interest rates than were available to the public. Former Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo created the program to boost the company's standing with politicians, celebrities and well-connected business figures. The congressman received a $1 million loan from Countrywide at below-market rates, which he never declared in financial disclosures. Sessions as well as names of other legislators who received similar loans were subsequently referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform as part of an ethics investigation into improper gifts.^[22][23]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Campaign Website
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs

Soledad O'Brien
O'Brien at Marquette University, February 7, 2008
Born	María de la Soledad Teresa O'Brien (1966-09-19) September 19, 1966 (age 45) St. James, New York, United States
Education	Harvard University (B.A.)
Occupation	Broadcast journalist
Notable credit(s)	Anchor of CNN In America Author of Latino in America (2009)
Spouse	Bradley Raymond (1995–present)
Children	2 daughters, 2 sons
Awards	Local Emmy Award
Website
Soledad O'Brien on CNN

María de la Soledad Teresa O'Brien^[1] (born September 19, 1966) is an American broadcast journalist. She is the anchor of CNN's morning news program Starting Point which premiered on January 2, 2012 and airs weekdays from 7:00 am to 9:00 am ET.^[2]

Along with Early Start, Starting Point replaced American Morning, which aired from 2001 to 2011. O'Brien co-anchored American Morning from July 2003^[3] to April 2007, with Miles O'Brien. Their common surname is coincidental.

After leaving the morning anchoring position, O'Brien worked with the "In America" documentary unit on CNN.

Personal life[link]

O'Brien's parents, both immigrants, met at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland in 1958.

My parents were both immigrants—my mother from Cuba, my father from Australia. Both attended daily Mass at the church near campus. Every day my father would offer my mother a ride. Every day, she declined. Finally she said yes. One year later, the day after Christmas, the two of them were married.^[4]

O'Brien's parents married in 1958 in Washington, D.C. Her father Edward, an Australian (from Toowoomba, Queensland)^[5] of Irish descent, was a mechanical engineering professor.^[6] Her mother, Estella, who is Afro-Cuban, was a French and English teacher.^[6] O'Brien is the fifth of six children, who all graduated from Harvard College; O'Brien attended Harvard from 1984 to 1988, but did not obtain a degree until she returned in 2000.^[7] Her siblings are law professor Maria (born 1961); corporate lawyer Cecilia (born 1962), businessman Tony (born 1963) - who heads a documents company;^[5] eye surgeon Estela (born 1964); and anesthesiologist Orestes (born 1967).^[6][8]

At the time, interracial marriage in Maryland was illegal, so O'Brien's parents married in Washington, D.C. where marriage laws were less restrictive.^{[citation needed]} The newly wedded O'Briens then moved to the Long Island community of St. James, on the affluent North Shore, where O'Brien was born and raised. O'Brien graduated from Smithtown High School East in 1984.^[9] On the NPR quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!, O'Brien explained that in Spanish her full name means, "The Blessed Virgin Mary of Solitude". When she started working in TV, many people recommended that she change her name, but she refused.^[10]

Despite her Hispanic heritage, O'Brien does not speak Spanish fluently. That has resulted in some awkward exchanges with people who assume she does, including former US Vice President Al Gore.^[11] Since 1995, O'Brien has been married to Bradley Raymond, co-head of investment banking at Thomas Weisel Partners. Together they have two daughters and twin sons.^[12]

Television career[link]

Soledad O'Brien began her career as an associate producer and news writer at WBZ-TV, then the NBC affiliate in Boston. She joined NBC News in 1991, and was based in New York as a field producer for the Nightly News and Today. O'Brien then worked for three years as a local reporter and bureau chief for San Francisco NBC affiliate KRON. At KRON she was a reporter on "The Know Zone." The program later moved to CNET without O'Brien.

O'Brien was featured on a regular segment of the Discovery Channel program The Next Step, holding the position of "Sun Microsystems Infogal."

NBC News[link]

O'Brien then anchored MSNBC's weekend morning show and the cable network's award-winning technology program The Site, which aired weeknights from the Spring of 1996 to November 1997.

O'Brien co-anchored Weekend Today with David Bloom beginning July 1999. During that time, she contributed reports for the weekday Today Show and for weekend editions of NBC Nightly News, and covered such notable stories as John F. Kennedy Jr.'s plane crash and the 1990s school shootings in Colorado and Oregon.

CNN[link]

[edit] American Morning

O'Brien moved to CNN where she joined Miles O'Brien to co-anchor CNN's flagship morning program American Morning from New York City in July 2003. In 2005, she covered the Hurricane Katrina aftermath in New Orleans, where she interviewed then head of FEMA Michael Brown. On April 16, 2007, reportedly due to lagging ratings, O'Brien was replaced by former Fox News anchor Kiran Chetry (O'Brien's co-host at the time, Miles O'Brien, was replaced as well; former co-host Bill Hemmer had previously moved to Fox News).

[edit] Post-American Morning

O'Brien has recently completed a documentary entitled Latino In America documenting the lives of Latinos living in America. She continues to work as a reporter for CNN,^[13] mainly hosting "In America" documentaries and occasionally filling in for Anderson Cooper on Anderson Cooper 360. She also anchored exit poll coverage during CNN's coverage of the primaries and caucuses in the 2008 United States presidential race. She also has filled in for Paula Zahn on Paula Zahn Now whenever Zahn was unable to make the broadcast (Zahn has since stopped working for CNN as of August 2, 2007).

O'Brien anchored a CNN special, Black in America, in July 2007. The program documented the successes, struggles and complex issues faced by black men, women and families forty years after the death of Martin Luther King Jr. In the first installment, O'Brien investigated how James Earl Ray, an armed robber and escaped convict, had already spent a year on the run just a month before his path collided with Dr. King in Memphis, Tennessee. In "The Black Woman & Family," O'Brien explored the varied experiences of black women and families and investigated the disturbing statistics of single parenthood, racial disparities between students and the devastating toll of HIV/AIDS.

[edit] Starting Point

In 2011, CNN canceled American Morning and replaced it with two new programs, Early Start and Starting Point. O'Brien began anchoring Starting Point on January 2, 2012.^[14]

Honors and recognitions[link]

O'Brien's work has been honored several times, including a local Emmy for her work co-hosting the Discovery Channel's The Know Zone.

In 2007, O'Brien was awarded the NAACP President's Award.

She is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists, which named her the Journalist of the Year 2010 ^[15] and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. She is a member of the Board of Directors of The After-School Corporation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding educational opportunities for all students.She also serves on the board of directors of The Harlem School of the Arts.

She was named to Irish American Magazine's "Top 100 Irish Americans" on two occasions. She is also on Black Enterprise magazine's 2005 Hot List. Also in 2005, she was awarded "Groundbreaking Latina of the Year" award by Catalina magazine.

O'Brien has given several keynote speeches over the years, including the undergraduate commencement at Bryant University in May 2007, where she was presented with a Doctor of Humane Letters honorary degree,^[16] the convocation speech at Cornell University's Commencement in May 2007, a speech at Binghamton University commencement in December 2007, and the keynote speech at the 2008 annual National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) Conference in Boston, MA in March 2008.

In April 2008, she became the first recipient of the Soledad O’Brien Freedom’s Voice Award, an award created in her name by Morehouse School of Medicine. "The award was created to recognize her accomplishments and willingness to be a voice for the voiceless in our society, and her determination to cover stories that might otherwise go untold. It will be given annually to mid-career professionals who serve as catalysts for social change in their given fields."

She has been named in People's 50 Most Beautiful in 2001 and in People en Español's 50 Most Beautiful in 2004.

In November 2008, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health awarded CNN anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien the Goodermote Humanitarian Award for her efforts while reporting on the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina and the 2004 Asian Tsunami.^[17]

“Ms. O’Brien has shown the world tragedies of human conflict, natural disasters, chronic and infectious diseases,” said Michael J. Klag, MD, MPH, dean of the Bloomberg School of Public Health. “In addition to focusing attention on the people impacted, she has shed a light on how humanitarian efforts can help alleviate suffering and where current efforts have fallen short. Ms. O’Brien has challenged all of us to think and act in ways that offer humanitarian answers to the problems of the moment and the problems of the century, including public health issues.”

During a panel discussion for the 50th National Convention for Delta Sigma Theta sorority in New Orleans, LA, O'Brien announced that she would be inducted as an honorary member of the sorority in February 2011. She was inducted on February 7, 2011 during the Sorority's 22nd Annual Delta Days in the Nation’s Capital.

Criticism[link]

O'Brien drew criticism from FactCheck.org on September 8, 2008, for falsely asserting, during an interview with a McCain campaign spokesperson, that vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, as Governor of Alaska, had slashed the special education budget by 62%,^[18][19] when, in fact, she had increased it.^[20][21][22] O'Brien was also criticized for these claims by other sources,^{[23][24][25][26][27]} including the McCain/Palin campaign.^[28]

O'Brien has also been criticized for using democratic election campaign talking points during CNN interviews. ^[29] While interviewing the former Governor of New Hampshire John Sununu, she was accused of excessive focus on Donald Trump's inquiries regarding President Obama's foreign birth to the detriment of other pressing issues. ^[30]

Career timeline[link]

• July 1999–July 2003: Weekend Today co-anchor^[31]
• July 2003–April 2007 American Morning co-anchor^[31]

November 2010 The Next Big Story: My Journey Through the Land of Possibilities written by Soledad O'Brien and Rose Marie Arce published.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Soledad O'Brien, CNN.com biography
• Soledad O'Brien at the Internet Movie Database
• Convocation 2007 Preview Cornell Daily Sun, May 24, 2007 - Interview with O'Brien
• Soledad O'Brien Interview

Sam Johnson
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 3rd district
Incumbent
Assumed office May 8, 1991
Preceded by	Steve Bartlett
Personal details
Born	(1930-10-11) October 11, 1930 (age 81) San Antonio, Texas
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Shirley Johnson
Residence	Plano, Texas
Alma mater	Southern Methodist University, George Washington University
Occupation	construction executive
Religion	Methodist
Military service
Service/branch	United States Air Force
Years of service	1950–1979
Battles/wars	Korean War Vietnam War
Awards	Silver Star (2) Legion of Merit (2) Distinguished Flying Cross Bronze Star Purple Heart (2) Air Medal (4) Prisoner of War Medal USAF Outstanding Unit Award (3)

Samuel Robert "Sam" Johnson (born October 11, 1930) is an American politician and a retired career U.S. Air Force officer and fighter pilot. He currently is a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from the 3rd District of Texas (map). The district includes much of northeastern Dallas, as well as Plano, where he lives.

Early life, education, military service[link]

Johnson grew up in Dallas and graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School and Southern Methodist University.^[1] He served a 29-year career in the United States Air Force, where he served as director of the Air Force Fighter Weapons School and flew the F-100 Super Sabre with the Air Force Thunderbirds precision flying demonstration team. He commanded the 31st Tactical Fighter Wing at Homestead AFB, Florida and an air division at Holloman AFB, New Mexico, retiring as a Colonel.^[2]

He is a veteran of both the Korean and Vietnam Wars as a fighter pilot. During the Korean War, he flew 62 combat missions in the F-86 Sabre. During the Vietnam War, Johnson flew the F-4 Phantom II.

In 1966, while flying his 25th combat mission in Vietnam, he was shot down over North Vietnam. He was a prisoner of war for seven years, including 42 months in solitary confinement. During this period, he was repeatedly tortured.

Johnson was part of a group of about a 11 prisoners known as the "Alcatraz Gang": George Thomas Coker, George McKnight, Jeremiah Denton, Harry Jenkins, James Stockdale, James Mulligan, Howard Rutledge, Robert Shumaker, Ronald Storz and Nels Tanner; which was separated from other captives and placed in solitary confinement for their leadership in resisting their captors. "Alcatraz" was a special facility in a courtyard behind the North Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense, located about one mile away from Hoa Lo Prison. In Alcatraz, each of the 11 men were kept in solitary confinement, where cells measured 3 feet by 9 feet that had a light bulb kept on around the clock and they were locked each night in irons by a guard.^{[3][4][5][6][7]}

Johnson recounted the details of his POW experience in his autobiography, Captive Warriors.

A decorated war hero, Johnson was awarded two Silver Stars, two Legions of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, one Bronze Star with Combat "V" for Valor, two Purple Hearts, four Air Medals, and three Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards. He was also retroactively awarded the Prisoner of War Medal following its establishment in 1985. He walks with a noticeable limp, due to an old war injury.

Post-military career[link]

After his military career, he established a homebuilding business in Plano. He was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1984 and was re-elected four times.

In 1990, Johnson was inducted into the Woodrow Wilson High School Hall of Fame.

In October 2009, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society rewarded Johnson the National Patriot Award, the Society's highest civilian award given to Americans who exemplify patriotism and strive to better the nation.^[8]

U.S. House of Representatives[link]

Elections[link]

On May 8, 1991, he was elected to the House in a special election brought about by eight-year incumbent Steve Bartlett's resignation to become mayor of Dallas. Johnson defeated fellow conservative Republican Thomas Pauken, also of Dallas, 24,004 (52.6 percent) to 21,647 (47.4 percent).^[9]

Johnson thereafter won a full term in 1992 and has been reelected nine times. The 3rd has been in Republican hands since 1968. The Democrats did not even field a candidate in 1992, 1994, 1998, or 2004.

2004

Johnson ran unopposed by the Democratic Party in his district in the 2004 election. Paul Jenkins, an independent, and James Vessels, a member of the Libertarian Party ran against Johnson. Johnson won overwhelmingly in a highly Republican district. Johnson garnered 86% of the vote (178,099), while Jenkins earned 8% (16,850) and Vessels 6% (13,204).

2006

Johnson ran for re-election in 2006, defeating his Republican opponent Robert Edward Johnson in the Republican primary, 85% to 15%.^[10][11]

In the general election, Johnson faced Democrat Dan Dodd and Libertarian Christopher J. Claytor. Both Dodd and Claytor are West Point graduates. Dodd served two tours of duty in Vietnam ^[12] and Claytor served in Operation Southern Watch in Kuwait in 1992. [1] It was only the fourth time that Johnson had faced Democratic opposition.

Johnson retained his seat, taking 62.5% of the vote, while Democrat Dodd received 34.9% and Libertarian Claytor received 2.6%. However, this was far less than in years past, when Johnson won by margins of 80 percent or more.

2008 campaign

Johnson retained his seat in the House of Representatives by defeating Democratic nominee Tom Daley and Libertarian nominee Christopher J. Claytor in the 2008 general election. He won with 60% of the vote, an unusually low total for such a heavily Republican district.^[10]

2010

Johnson won re-election with 66.3% of the vote against Democrat John Lingenfelder (31.3%) and Libertarian Christopher Claytor (2.4%).^[13]

Tenure[link]

In the House, Johnson is an ardent conservative. By some views, Johnson had the most conservative record in the House for three consecutive years, opposing pork barrel projects of all kinds, voting for more IRAs and against extending unemployment benefits. The conservative watchdog group Citizens Against Government Waste has consistently rated him as being friendly to taxpayers. Johnson is a signer of Americans for Tax Reform’s Taxpayer Protection Pledge.^[14]

Johnson is a member of the conservative Republican Study Committee, and joined Dan Burton, Ernest Istook and John Doolittle in refounding it in 1994 after Newt Gingrich pulled its funding. He alternated as chairman with the other three co-founders from 1994 to 1999, and served as sole chairman from 2000 to 2001.

On the Ways and Means Committee, he was an early advocate and, then, sponsor of the successful repeal in 2000 of the earnings limit for Social Security recipients. He proposed the Good Samaritan Tax Act to permit corporations to take a tax deduction for charitable giving of food. He chairs the Subcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations, where he has encouraged small business owners to expand their pension and ^[15] benefits for employees.

Johnson is a skeptic of calls for increased government regulation related to global warming whenever such government interference would, in his mind, restrict personal liberties or damage economic growth and American competitiveness in the market place. He also opposes calls for government intervention in the name of energy reform if such reform would hamper the market and or place undue burdens on individuals seeking to earn decent wages. He has expressed his belief that the Earth has untapped sources of fuel, and has called for allowing additional drilling for oil in Alaska.

Committee assignments[link]

• Committee on Ways and Means
  • Subcommittee on Health
  • Subcommittee on Social Security (Chairman)
• Joint Committee on Taxation

Caucus memberships[link]

• Immigration Reform Caucus
• International Conservation Caucus
• Public Pension Reform Caucus
• Sportsmen's Caucus

Personal life[link]

Johnson is married to the former Shirley L. Melton, of Dallas. They are parents of three children and ten grandchildren.

Bibliography[link]

• 1992, Captive Warriors: A Vietnam P.O.W.'s Story; ISBN 0-89096-496-3

See also[link]

• List of Korean War veterans who are recipients of the Bronze Star

References[link]

External links[link]

• U.S. Congressman Sam Johnson official House site
• Sam Johnson for U.S. Congress official campaign site
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Profile at SourceWatch
• USA Today Profile
• The Smithsonian Institution's Tribute To Sam Johnson
• Texas Nonprofit Is Cleared After GOP-Prompted Audit: Group Says Probe Was 'Political Retaliation' by DeLay Allies, Washington Post, February 27, 2006