Robert Bauman

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Robert Edmund Bauman (born April 4, 1937) is a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maryland's 1st congressional district.

Contents

[edit] Career

He was elected to the House as a Republican in an August 1973 special election, replacing William O. Mills, who had committed suicide the previous May. He was re-elected in 1974, 1976, and 1978 but was narrowly defeated in 1980. In 1982, he again ran for the nomination for the House seat he had lost, but withdrew from the race before election day.

During his House service, Bauman was considered a leading conservative. He was best known for his familiarity with the rules and procedures of the House, which he often used to stall progress on proposals he disliked. He became a familiar face in the first two years of C-SPAN's live television broadcasts of House proceedings.

[edit] Fall from grace

Bauman had established a reputation as a staunch conservative, often criticizing the state of morality in the United States. He was a founding member of several conservative activist groups, including Young Americans for Freedom and the American Conservative Union (he was national chairman of both groups), and received a perfect 100 on the Christian Voice Morality Rating. [1] A Catholic, he was married to Carol Dawson, a fellow founding member of YAF, and they had four children.

Bauman was charged on October 3, 1980, for attempting to solicit sex from a 16-year-old male prostitute,[1] contributing to his electoral defeat one month later.

As he related in his 1986 autobiography, The Gentleman from Maryland, he had led a secret double life for years. The resulting stress eventually caused him to become an alcoholic. In 1983 Bauman came out as gay. His wife had their marriage annulled, although he and his children have remained close. Bauman was able to overcome his alcoholism with the help of 12-step programs.

[edit] Current activities

Bauman now serves as legal counsel for the Sovereign Society, a group dedicated to offshore banking and investment, and is the author of numerous books on offshore and tax haven issues.

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ Will Mark Foley End the GOP Reign? (October 4, 2006). Retrieved on 2006-10-04.
Preceded by
William Oswald Mills		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Maryland's 1st congressional district
1973 – 1981		 Succeeded by
Roy Dyson
Representatives to the 93rd – 96th United States Congresses from Maryland
93rd Senate: C. Mathias | J. Beall House: C. Long | G. Gude | L. Hogan | G. Byron | P. Mitchell | P. Sarbanes | M. Holt | R. Bauman
94th Senate: C. Mathias | J. Beall House: C. Long | G. Gude | G. Byron | P. Mitchell | P. Sarbanes | M. Holt | R. Bauman | G. Spellman
95th Senate: C. Mathias | P. Sarbanes House: C. Long | G. Byron | P. Mitchell | M. Holt | R. Bauman | G. Spellman | B. Mikulski | N. Steers
96th Senate: C. Mathias | P. Sarbanes House: C. Long | P. Mitchell | M. Holt | R. Bauman | G. Spellman | B. Mikulski | M. Barnes | B. Byron