Kay Granger
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Kay Granger | |
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| In office 1997–present |
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| Preceded by | Pete Geren |
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| Born | January 18, 1943 Greenville, Texas |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | divorced |
| Religion | Methodist |
Kay Granger (born January 18, 1943), a Republican politician from the U.S. state of Texas, currently represents the 12th congressional district (map) in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Granger was born in Greenville, Texas, and attended Eastern Hills High School, which recognized her as Distinguished Eastern Hills High School Graduate in 1993.[1] She graduated from Texas Wesleyan University. She was elected to the Fort Worth city council in 1989 and was elected Mayor in 1991. Her tenure as mayor saw a drop in violent crime, although violent crime decreased statewide in Texas and in the country generally during that same period. After the retirement of Congressman Pete Geren in 1996, both the Democratic and Republican parties worked to recruit Granger. Granger made the decision to run as a Republican, much to the dismay of local GOP activists, who criticized Granger as being too liberal. She was handily reelected in 1998 and hasn't faced serious opposition since.
In 2006, Granger was reelected to serve her sixth term in Congress. She was also elected Conference Vice Chair, the fourth-ranking position among House Republicans, in November 2006. She sits on the United States House Committee on Appropriations's Subcommittee on Defense (the first woman to do so), and the Labor, Health, Human Services, and Education Subcommittee. She also serves as a Deputy Minority Whip.
Granger is the author of the book, What's Right About America, Celebrating Our Nation's Values.
In August 2007, Kay Granger Elementary School opened in far north Fort Worth. Land for the school was donated to the Northwest Independent School District by Hillwood Development Corp. (H. Ross Perot, Jr.'s company) with the agreement that the school would be named for the sitting Congresswoman. A school named for Granger's mother - Mullendore Elementary - was opened several years earlier in North Richland Hills, Texas. The adjacent Kay Granger Park is maintained by the city.
On September 25, 2007, she publicly endorsed former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney in the primary race for the Republican Party presidential nomination.[2] She also took up the position of national co-chair of the campaign organization Women for Mitt, filling a vacancy left by the death of Jennifer Dunn.[3] In a statement to the press following her endorsement, she said that she had heard Romney speak and that "I agreed with everything he said, in the order he said it."
[edit] Ideology
Granger is a member of several groups of moderately conservative Republicans, such as The Republican Main Street Partnership (which supports embryonic stem cell research), The Republican Majority for Choice, Republicans for Choice, and The Wish List.
In practice, her voting record reflects that she almost always votes with her party's leadership in Congress. Her own website posts an article from "Conservative Quarterly" that calls her "a dependable vote for the leadership on most issues."
Because of the divergence between her public pronouncements and her Congressional voting record, she has been characterized as having "a muddled ideological background".[4]
In 2003, Granger was given a 10% rating by NARAL and an 84% rating by the Christian Coalition of America.
Granger has also voted several times in favor of an amendment to the United States Constitution to make it a crime to physically desecrate the American flag. She also supports the Federal Marriage Amendment.
[edit] References
- ^ Kay Granger, USA Centers for Global Commercial & Investment Relations]. Accessed October 25, 2007.
- ^ http://www.mittromney.com/News/Press-Releases/Granger_Endorsement
- ^ Granger endorses Romney and will co-chair Women for Mitt | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas-Fort Worth Politics | The Dallas Morning News
- ^ Granger endorses Romney and will co-chair Women for Mitt | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas-Fort Worth Politics | The Dallas Morning News
[edit] External links
- U.S. Congresswoman Kay Granger Lee official House site
- Kay Granger at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Federal Election Commission — Kay Granger campaign finance reports and data
- On the Issues — Kay Granger issue positions and quotes
- OpenSecrets.org — Kay Granger campaign contributions
- Project Vote Smart — Representative Kay Granger (TX) profile
- SourceWatch Congresspedia — Kay Granger profile
- Washington Post — Congress Votes Database: Kay Granger voting record
- Kay Granger for U.S. Congress official campaign site
| Preceded by Pete Geren |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 12th congressional district 1997–Present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by Jack Kingston Georgia |
Vice-Chairman of House Republican Conference 2007–Present |
Succeeded by Present |
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