Morgan Griffith

H. Morgan Griffith
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia's 9th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Rick Boucher
Majority Leader of the Virginia House of Delegates
In office 2000–2010
Preceded by	Richard Cranwell
Succeeded by	Kirk Cox
Member of the Virginia House of Delegates from the 8th district
In office 1994–2011
Preceded by	Thomas Jackson, Jr
Succeeded by	Greg Habeeb
Personal details
Born	March 15, 1958 (1958-03-15) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Hilary Davis; 3 children
Residence	Salem, Virginia, U.S.
Alma mater	Emory and Henry College B.A., Washington and Lee University J.D.
Profession	Lawyer
Committees	Courts of Justice; Militia, Police and Public Safety; Rules
Religion	Evangelical Christian

Howard Morgan Griffith (born March 15, 1958) is the U.S. Representative for Virginia's 9th congressional district. He is a member of the Republican Party. He was the majority leader of the Virginia House of Delegates and represented the 8th District, serving from 1994 until 2011. The district included all of Salem, Virginia and parts of Roanoke County.

Early life, education, and career

Griffith was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but his family moved to Salem, Virginia while he was a baby. He attended Andrew Lewis High School, graduating in 1976. He attended Emory and Henry College, graduating in 1980. Griffith completed his education with a J.D. from the Washington and Lee University Law School in 1983.

After law school, Griffith settled in Salem where he worked as a private attorney with a focus on traffic violations and DUI. On June 23, 2008, Albo & Oblon LLP, a law firm run by fellow Republican delegate Dave Albo, announced that Griffith was joining the firm as head of its new Roanoke/Salem office.

Early political career

Griffith first became seriously involved in politics in 1986, when he was chosen as the chairman of the Salem Republican Party. He held that position from 1986 to 1988 and from 1991 to 1994.

Virginia House of Delegates

In 1994 Griffith was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. He served as the Vice-Chairman of the Rules Committee in the House of Delegates. He served on the Courts of Justice Committee, and was the chairman of its Criminal Law Subcommittee. He also served on the Commerce and Labor and the Militia, Police, and Public Safety Committees.^{[citation needed]}

U.S. House of Representatives

2010 election

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia, 2010

Griffith was the Republican nominee to face longtime U.S. Congressman Rick Boucher (D-VA) who was first elected in 1982. A "GOP Young Gun", Griffith won the election.

Griffith's home in Salem is located just inside the neighboring 6th District, represented by fellow Republican Bob Goodlatte.

Committee assignments

• Committee on Energy and Commerce
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Power
  • Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations

Political positions

Immigration

Griffith has voted to allow the Commonwealth of Virginia to enforce federal immigration laws to criminalize knowingly employing illegal immigrants or undocumented workers, and also voted to criminalize possession of firearms by illegal aliens.

Gay rights

While serving in the Virginia House of Delegates, Griffith supported a constitutional amendment to prohibit same-sex marriage by defining marriage as between one man and one woman. He voted in favor of a bill to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation for government employees

Gun control

Griffith voted in favor of several bills to reduce restrictions on gun ownership, including a bill to allow concealed weapons in vehicles without a permit and to allow concealed weapons permit holders to carry their firearms in restaurants and bars. Griffith also voted to prohibit consumption of alcohol while in possession of a concealed weapon. In 2004 Griffith voted to prohibit carrying firearms or ammunition in the non-secure areas of airport terminals, including baggage claim areas.

Health care

Early in 2010, Griffith voted in favor of a bill to prohibit any individual mandate to purchase health insurance. This law passed Virginia's legislature before the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was enacted, which Virginia has used to challenge the individual mandate in federal court.

Death penalty

Griffith has voted consistently for expansions of the death penalty to include eligibility for accomplices to a murder, as well as for those who murder a judge or a witness.

Abortion

When surveyed in 1999 on his political positions by Project Vote Smart, Griffith indicated that he supports legalized abortion in the first trimester and to save the life of the mother, while favoring the restriction of abortion through parental notification laws and prohibition of partial-birth abortion. Griffith's voting record has generally been consistent with his 1999 survey, voting in favor of restrictions on late term abortions such as parental-notification and parental-consent, while voting against bills that would restrict first-term abortions. In 2010 Griffith voted to restrict state funding of abortions, and to require abortion clinics to meet the same licensing requirements as surgical centers. In 2006 Griffith voted to restrict state funding for fetal stem cell research.

In 2007 Griffith voted against a bill in the Virginia General Assembly, HB 2797, which stated: "That life begins at the moment of fertilization and the right to enjoyment of life guaranteed by Article 1, § 1 of the Constitution of Virginia is vested in each born and preborn human being from the moment of fertilization" This was the only bill introduced to the General Assembly during Griffith's tenure that would have affected the legality of first-term abortions on the principal of the fetal personhood as opposed to regulating abortion on other grounds.^{[citation needed]}

Griffith's 2010 campaign website reported that Griffith has a "100% pro-life" voting record and an "A" rating from the Virginia Society for Human Life (VSHL). However, VSHL's report on 2007 legislation in Virginia omits reference to HB 2797 Project Vote Smart indicated that Griffith declined to take their survey again in 2010.

Taxes and spending

Griffith supports raising the retirement age and reducing the number of American troops serving overseas as means of reducing the federal budget deficit.

Electoral history

Virginia House of Delegates, District 8: Results 1995 to 2009

Year		Republican	Votes	Pct		Democrat	Votes	Pct		Third Party	Party	Votes	Pct
1995		Morgan Griffith	14,052	100%		no candidate				Write-ins		35	0%
1997		Morgan Griffith	15,383	100%		no candidate				Write-ins		12	0%
1999		Morgan Griffith	11,066	100%		no candidate				Write-ins		19	0%
2001		Morgan Griffith	17,401	70%		D. Martin	7,581	30%
2003		Morgan Griffith	10,860	59%		M Q Emick Sr.	7,469	41%
2005		Morgan Griffith	20,484	98%		no candidate				Write-ins		417	2%
2007		Morgan Griffith	13,670	96%		no candidate				Write-ins		563	4%
2009		Morgan Griffith	16,790	69%		E. Carter Turner III	7,563	31%

Virginia's 9th congressional district

Year		Republican	Votes	Pct		Democrat	Votes	Pct		Third Party	Party	Votes	Pct
2010		Morgan Griffith	95,726	51%		Rick Boucher	86,743	46%		Jeremiah Heaton	Independent	4,282	2%

Personal life

Griffith is married to Hilary Davis. The couple has three children.

External links

• Congressman Morgan Griffith official U.S. House site
• Morgan Griffith for 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
• Current Bills Sponsored at StateSurge.com
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at the National Institute for Money in State Politics
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• H. Morgan Griffith at The Virginia Public Access Project
• Albo & Oblon L.L.P.

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by Rick Boucher	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia's 9th congressional district January 3, 2011 – present	Succeeded by Incumbent
United States order of precedence
Preceded by Tim Griffin R-Arkansas	United States Representatives by seniority 374th	Succeeded by Mike Grimm R-New York