Parker Griffith

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Parker Griffith
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Alabama's 5th district
Incumbent
Assumed office  January 3, 2009
Preceded by	Bud Cramer
Member of the Alabama Senate from the 7th district
In office 2006 - 2009
Political party	Democratic (2006-2009) Republican (2009-present)
Spouse(s)	Virginia Griffith
Residence	Huntsville, Alabama
Alma mater	Louisiana State University, Louisiana State University Medical School
Profession	oncologist
Religion	Episcopalian

Parker Griffith, M.D. (born August 6, 1942) is an American politician and Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Alabama's 5th congressional district since 2009. He was a Blue Dog Democrat^[1] but announced on December 22, 2009, that he would switch parties and become a Republican.^[2][3][4]

[edit] Background

Before his election to the United States Congress, Griffith was a member of the Alabama Senate, representing the 7th District from 2006 to 2008. The district includes parts of Madison County and Huntsville.

Griffith was born in Shreveport, Louisiana. He received his medical degree from the Louisiana State University Medical School and served in residency at the University of Texas. He is a Board Certified Radiation Oncologist, now retired, and a businessman. He resides in Huntsville and, along with his wife Virginia, has 5 children and eleven grandchildren.

Griffith ran for Mayor of Huntsville against popular three-term mayor Loretta Spencer in 2004. He then ran for the Alabama State Senate in 2006, defeating Cheryl Baswell Guthrie in a race where he carried 66% of the vote to Guthrie's 34%.^[5]

[edit] 2008 U.S. Congress campaign

On March 22, 2008 Griffith announced that he would run for the open seat in the 5th District. The district's 9-term incumbent, fellow Democrat Bud Cramer, was not running for reelection.^[6] He won the June 2008 Democratic primary election with 90% of the vote, defeating physicist David Maker. Cramer had endorsed Griffith in the primary.^[7]

Griffith faced Republican Wayne Parker, an insurance agent from Huntsville, in the November election. Parker had sought this seat unsuccessfully twice before, in 1994 and 1996, losing both times to Bud Cramer.

The 5th was considered one of the few realistic chances for a Republican pickup in what was forecast to be a very bleak year for Republicans, due to the district and state's recent voting history. The 5th is one of the few districts in the former Confederacy that has not elected a Republican since Reconstruction. Democrats still hold most local offices as well as most state legislative seats in the area, but the district's residents have been increasingly willing to support Republicans at the national and state level. It last supported a Democrat for president in 1976, and George W. Bush and John McCain won the district by double-digit margins in 2000, 2004 and 2008.

Due to these trends, most forecasters rated the district as a toss-up. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'No Clear Favorite', The Cook Political Report ranked it 'Democratic Toss Up', and The Rothenberg Political Report rated it 'Pure Toss-Up'.^[8][9][10]

Griffith defeated Parker, taking 52 percent of the vote to Parker's 48 percent. He carried all but one of the district's seven counties. This came even as McCain (who carried the 5th with 61 percent of the vote) and Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions (whose seat was up for re-election) won every county in the district. His victory, and that of Bobby Bright in the 2nd District, gave Alabama two white Democratic congressmen for the first time since Glen Browder and Tom Bevill left the House in 1997.

[edit] Congressional career

[edit] Political positions

In November 2009, Griffith voted against the Affordable Health Care for America Act. ^[11]

[edit] Party switch

On December 22, 2009; Griffith announced he would become a Republican, becoming the first Republican to represent the Huntsville-based district since Reconstruction. He cited the health care bill as a major reason for his switch, and had also clashed with the Democrats over fiscal policy. The GOP had been courting Griffith since August, when he publicly criticized the Democratic House leadership in the wake of raucous town hall meetings in his district. He'd even gone as far as to say that he wouldn't vote for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker again.^[2] His switch is the first time a member of Congress switched from the majority party to the minority party since New York Representative Michael Forbes' switch from Republican to Democrat in 2000.

[edit] Committee Assignments

• Committee on Science and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment
  • Subcommittee on Research and Science Education
  • Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics
• Committee on Small Business
  • Subcommittee on Contracting and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Regulations, Healthcare and Trade
  • Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight
• Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
  • Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management
  • Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Congressman Parker Griffith official U.S. House website
• Parker Griffith for Congress official campaign website

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Congressional profile at GovTrack.us
• Follow the Money - Parker Griffith
  • 2006 campaign contributions
• Alabama State Senate - Senator Parker Griffith
• Parker Griffith Family Foundation
• Parker Griffith at the Open Directory Project