Sam Johnson
| Sam Johnson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 3rd district | |
|
Assumed office May 8, 1991 | |
| Preceded by | Steve Bartlett |
| Acting Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee | |
|
In office October 29, 2015 – November 5, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Paul Ryan |
| Succeeded by | Kevin Brady |
| Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 60th district | |
|
In office January 8, 1985 – May 21, 1991 | |
| Preceded by | Frank Eikenburg |
| Succeeded by | Brian McCall |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 11, 1930 San Antonio, Texas, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) |
Shirley Melton (m. 1950; her death 2015) |
| Education |
Southern Methodist University (BBA) George Washington University (MS) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 |
| Service/branch |
 |
| Years of service | 1950–1979 |
| Rank |
 |
| Unit |
51st Fighter Interceptor Wing 8th Tactical Fighter Wing |
| Commands | 31st Tactical Fighter Wing |
| Battles/wars |
Korean War Vietnam War |
| Awards |
Silver Star (2) Legion of Merit (3) Distinguished Flying Cross Bronze Star with valor Purple Heart (2) Meritorious Service Medal Air Medal (4) Prisoner of War Medal |
Samuel Robert Johnson (born October 11, 1930) is the U.S. Representative for Texas's 3rd congressional district serving in Congress since 1991. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district includes much of Collin County, an affluent suburban county north of Dallas. In October–November 2015, he was the acting Chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, where he also serves as chairman of the Social Security Subcommittee.
Johnson is also a retired United States Air Force Colonel and was a decorated fighter pilot in both the Korean War and the Vietnam War where in the latter he was an American prisoner of war in North Vietnam for nearly seven years.
On January 6, 2017, Johnson announced he will not run for reelection in 2018.[1] He is the oldest current member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Early life and education
Johnson grew up in Dallas and graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School.[2] Johnson graduated from Southern Methodist University in his hometown in 1951, with a degree in business administration. While at SMU, Johnson joined the Delta Chi social fraternity as well as the Alpha Kappa Psi business fraternity.[3] He attained a master's degree from the Elliott School of International Affairs of the George Washington University in 1976.
Military career
Johnson 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.[4]
He is a combat 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 and shot down one Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15. During the Vietnam War, Johnson flew the F-4 Phantom II.
- POW
On April 16, 1966, while flying his 25th combat mission in Vietnam, he was shot down over North Vietnam and suffered a broken arm and back. He was a prisoner of war for nearly seven years, including 42 months in solitary confinement. During this period, he was repeatedly tortured.
Johnson was part of a group of eleven U.S. military prisoners known as the Alcatraz Gang, a group of prisoners separated from other captives for their resistance to their captors. They were held in "Alcatraz", a special facility about one mile away from the Hỏa Lò Prison, notably nicknamed the "Hanoi Hilton". Johnson, like the others, was kept in solitary confinement, locked nightly in irons in a windowless 3-by-9-foot concrete cell with the light on around the clock.[5][6][7][8][9] Johnson was released on February 12, 1973 during Operation Homecoming. Johnson recounted the details of his POW experience in his autobiography, Captive Warriors.
In 2018, Johnson donated objects related to his imprisonment to the collection of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History.[10]
He walks with a noticeable limp, due to a wartime injury.
Post-military career
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.
U.S. House of Representatives
On May 8, 1991, he was elected to the U.S. 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).[11] Johnson thereafter won a full term in 1992 and has been reelected 12 times. The 3rd has been in Republican hands since 1968. The Democrats did not even field a candidate in 1992, 1994, 1998, or 2004.
Elections
- 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 opponent Robert Edward Johnson in the Republican primary, 85 to 15 percent.[12][13]
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[14] and Claytor served in Operation Southern Watch in Kuwait in 1992. 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
Johnson retained his seat in the House of Representatives by defeating the Democrat Tom Daley and Libertarian nominee Christopher J. Claytor in the 2008 general election. He won with 60 percent of the vote, an unusually low total for such a heavily Republican district.[12]
- 2010
Johnson won re-election with 66.3 percent of the vote against Democrat John Lingenfelder (31.3 percent) and Libertarian Christopher Claytor (2.4 percent).[15]
- 2014
Johnson handily won re-nomination to his 12th full term, twelfth full term, in the U.S. House in the Republican primary held on March 4. He polled 30,943 votes (80.5 percent); two challengers, Josh Loveless and Harry Pierce, held the remaining combined 19.5 percent of the votes cast.[16]
- 2016
Johnson won reelection to his 13th full term in the general election held on November 8, 2016. With 193,684 votes (61.2 percent), he defeated the Democrat Adam P. Bell, who polled 109,420 (34.6 percent). Scott Jameson and Paul Blair, the nominees of the Libertarian and Green parties, polled 10,448 votes (3.3 percent) and 2,915 (0.92 percent), respectively.[17]
- 2018
Three days after being sworn in for his 14th term overall and his 13th full term, Johnson announced he would not run for reelection.[1]
Tenure
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.[18]
Johnson is a member of the conservative Republican Study Committee,[19] 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 2000-01.
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 allow 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[20] benefits for employees. In December 2016, Johnson introduced H.R. 6489, a bill that would decrease Social Security payments to retired individuals and require individuals to wait two additional years in order to qualify for full retirement payments.[21][22]
Johnson 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 called for allowing additional drilling for oil in Alaska.
After the death of John McCain, Johnson became the only Vietnam-era prisoners of war currently serving in Congress.[23]
Net Neutrality
In December 2017, Johnson signed a letter from congress (along with 106 other congress members) to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai supporting his plan to repeal net neutrality ahead of the commission's vote.[24]
Committee assignments
- Committee on Ways and Means (Interim Chairman)
- Joint Committee on Taxation
Caucus memberships
- Immigration Reform Caucus
- United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus[25]
- Public Pension Reform Caucus
- Sportsmen's Caucus
Personal life
Johnson was married to former Shirley L. Melton of Dallas from 1950 until her death on December 3, 2015.[26] They were the parents of three children and ten grandchildren.
Military awards
Johnson's decorations and awards include:[27]
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US Air Force Command Pilot Badge |
 |
Air Force Parachutist Badge |
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Other awards and honors
- 1990: Johnson was inducted into the Woodrow Wilson High School Hall of Fame.
- October 2009: the Congressional Medal of Honor Society awarded Johnson the National Patriot Award, the Society's highest civilian award given to Americans who exemplify patriotism and strive to better the nation.[28]
- 2011: Freedom of Flight award[29]
- March 2016: Congressional Patriots Award[30]
- April 2016: Patriot Award[31]
- 2015: Johnson was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.[32]
Bibliography
- 1992, Captive Warriors: A Vietnam P.O.W.'s Story; ISBN 0-89096-496-3
References
- 1 2 Scott Bland; Kyle Cheney (2017-01-06). "Texas Rep. Sam Johnson announces he won't run for reelection". Politico.
- ↑ U.S. Congress.Biographical Directory of the United States Congress: Sam Johnson
- ↑ Rotunda Yearbook. Dallas, Texas: Southern Methodist University. 1951. p. 284.
- ↑ "U.S. Congressman Sam Johnson : Serving the 3rd District of Texas". Samjohnson.house.gov. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
- ↑ Adams, Lorraine. "Perot's Interim Partner Spent 71⁄2 Years As Pow", Dallas Morning News, March 11, 1992. Accessed July 2, 2008. "He was one of the Alcatraz Gang – a group of 11 prisoners of war who were separated because they were leaders of the prisoners' resistance."
- ↑ Rochester, Stuart; and Kiley, Frederick. "Honor Bound: American Prisoners of War in Southeast Asia, 1961–1973", 2007, Naval Institute Press; ISBN 1-59114-738-7, via Google Books, p. 326. Retrieved July 8, 2008.
- ↑ Stockdale, James B. "George Coker for Beach Schools", letter to The Virginian-Pilot, March 26, 1996.
- ↑ Johnston, Laurie (December 18, 1974). "Notes on People, Mao Meets Mobutu in China". The New York Times. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
- ↑ Kimberlin, Joanne (2008-11-11). "Our POWs: Locked up for 6 years, he unlocked a spirit inside". The Virginian Pilot. Landmark Communications. pp. 12–13. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
- ↑ "Advisory: Smithsonian Accepts Congressman Sam Johnson's POW Possessions; Tin Cup, Toothpaste From Vietnam War Join National Museum of American History's Collections - Newsdesk". newsdesk.si.edu. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
- ↑ Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. Elections 6th ed., Washington, D.C., 2010, p. 1341
- 1 2 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-01-09. Retrieved 2014-02-22.
- ↑ "News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Dallas-Fort Worth Politics | The Dallas Morning News". Dallasnews.com. 2006-03-08. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2006-06-21. Retrieved 2006-05-04.
- ↑ "Texas Election Results 2010". The New York Times. 2010. Retrieved 2011-03-15.
- ↑ "Republican primary election returns, March 4, 2014". Texas Secretary of State. Archived from the original on March 5, 2014. Retrieved March 6, 2014.
- ↑ "Election Results". Texas Secretary of State. November 8, 2016. Retrieved December 17, 2016.
- ↑ "The Taxpayer Protection Pledge Signers 112th Congressional List" (PDF). Americans for Tax Reform. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
- ↑ "Member List". Republican Study Committee. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ↑ "Bill Summary & Status – 109th Congress (2005–2006) – H.R.525 – THOMAS (Library of Congress)". Thomas.loc.gov. 2005-07-27. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
- ↑ Wolff-Mann, Ethan. "GOP introduces plan to massively cut Social Security". Yahoo Finance. December 9, 2016.
- ↑ "H.R.6489: To preserve Social Security for generations to come, reward work, and improve retirement security". United States Congress. December 8, 2016; retrieved December 12, 2016.
- ↑ Catalina Camia (March 14, 2013). "McCain marks 40th anniversary of POW release". Army Times. USA Today. Retrieved March 15, 2013.
- ↑ "Letter to the FCC on Restoring Internet Freedom". ENERGY AND COMMERCE COMMITTEE. 2017-12-13. Retrieved 2017-12-14.
- ↑ "Our Members". U.S. House of Representatives International Conservation Caucus. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
- ↑ "Congressman Sam Johnson on the passing of wife, Shirley Melton Johnson". Congressman Sam Johnson. 3 December 2015. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
- ↑ "Veteran Tributes". www.veterantributes.org. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
- ↑ "Congressional Medal of Honor Society selects Sam Johnson for its National Patriot Award | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas Morning News | Texas Politics | The Dallas Morning News". Dallasnews.com. 2009-10-03. Retrieved 2010-08-29.
- ↑ "Sam Johnson - gop.gov". Retrieved 12 February 2018.
- ↑ "Sam Johnson Awarded Inaugural Bipartisan Congressional Patriot Award". Congressman Sam Johnson. 16 March 2016. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
- ↑ report, Staff. "U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson honored with Patriot Award at Dallas Military Foundation Gala". Retrieved 12 February 2018.
- ↑ Sprekelmeyer, Linda, editor. These We Honor: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame. Donning Co. Publishers, 2006. ISBN 978-1-57864-397-4.
External links
- Congressman Sam Johnson official House site
- Sam Johnson for Congress
- Sam Johnson at Curlie (based on DMOZ)
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Profile at Vote Smart
- Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
- Legislation sponsored at the Library of Congress
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Tribute to Sam Johnson, Smithsonian Institution
- Texas Nonprofit Is Cleared After GOP-Prompted Audit: Group Says Probe Was 'Political Retaliation' by DeLay Allies, Washington Post, February 27, 2006
| Texas House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Frank Eikenburg |
Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 60th district 1985–1991 |
Succeeded by Brian McCall |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by Steve Bartlett |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 3rd congressional district 1991–present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Paul Ryan |
Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee (Acting) 2015 |
Succeeded by Kevin Brady |
| Chair of the Joint Taxation Committee (Acting) 2015 | ||
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by Dan Burton |
Chair of the Republican Study Committee 1995–1999 Served alongside: Dan Burton, John Doolittle, Ernest Istook |
Succeeded by David McIntosh |
| Preceded by David McIntosh |
Chair of the Republican Study Committee 2000–2001 |
Succeeded by John Shadegg |
| Current U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded by Maxine Waters |
United States Representatives by seniority 27th |
Succeeded by Jerrold Nadler |
Authority control  |
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