- John Culberson
Infobox_Congressman
name = John Culberson|
date of birth = birth date and age|1956|08|24
place of birth =Houston, Texas
state =Texas
district = 7th
term = 2001–present
preceded = Bill Archer
succeeded = Incumbent
party = Republican
spouse = Belinda Culberson
religion =Methodist
occupation= attorney
alma_mater=Southern Methodist University ,South Texas College of Law
residence=Houston, Texas John Abney Culberson (born
August 24 ,1956 ), Americanpolitician , is a Republican congressman fromTexas , representing that state's 7th congressional district ( [http://nationalatlas.gov/printable/images/preview/congdist/tx07_109.gifmap] ) in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2001. The district takes in large portions of westernHouston and surrounding Harris County. Culberson has been one of President Bush's staunchest allies regarding the war in Iraq.Born in Houston, Culberson attended
West University Elementary School , Lanier Middle School, and Lamar High School. [" [http://web.archive.org/web/20060329055851/http://www.culberson.house.gov/bio.aspx Biography] ," "U.S. Congressman John Culberson, 7th District of Texas"] " [http://www.houstonisd.org/HISDConnectDS/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=c3783acb02efc010VgnVCM10000052147fa6RCRD Distinguished HISD Alumni] ," "Houston Independent School District "] He graduated fromSouthern Methodist University (SMU) in 1981 with a degree inhistory . He earned hisJuris Doctor degree fromSouth Texas College of Law in 1989. He is a distant relative of former Governor of TexasCharles Allen Culberson .During his time in law school, Culberson was elected to the
Texas House of Representatives , serving his first term in 1987. He was a member of the Republican Whip team, becomingMinority Whip in 1999 during his last term. Culberson began working for the law firm of Lorance and Thompson as a civil defense attorney after he graduated from SMU. Culberson led the effort to regain state control of the Texas prison system. He also worked for exansion of urban freeway systems and for increased development of medical technology.Culberson won the Republican nomination for the 7th District in 2000 after 15-term incumbent Bill Archer announced his retirement. He finished first in the Republican primary — traditionally the real contest what has historically been a heavily Republican district — and defeated Peter Wareing in the runoff. He won easily in November, taking about 75% of the vote. He has since been reelected three times, the last against his 2006 opponent Jim Henley, a middle school debate teacher.
Like Archer, Culberson is an ardent fiscal and social conservative; his Website includes his slogan "Letting Texans run Texas," which Culberson sees as a way to personify historical
Jeffersonian values. Culberson is a member of the powerful Appropriations Committee.2008 Campaign
In 2008, Culberson will face his stiffest challenge to date in businessman
Michael Skelly in the November 2008 election. Skelly, a former executive ofHorizon Wind Energy , also served in thePeace Corps and earned an MBA fromHarvard University . Skelly currently serves on Mayor Bill White's Green Building Advisory Committee. [ [http://www.skellyforcongress.com Skelly for Congress] ]As of June 30, 2008, Culberson had raised $983,204 with $550,228 cash on hand. As of the same date, Skelly had raised $1,465,519 with $1,050,314 cash on hand--more than any of Culberson's four previous challengers. In the previous four election cycles, Culberson had raised $1,092,972 (2000), $508,138 (2002), $628,783 (2004), and $718,882 (2006). In 2006, Jim Henley raised $122,145. [ [ [http://opensecrets.org/races/summary.asp?ID=TX07 Race: Texas District 07] "Open Secrets", total raised and spent by year]
Online Activity
John Culberson is active online with
Twitter andQik . He has used these online information dispersion services from House Committee meetings and from theOval Office . On August 1, 2008, to protest the House going into summer recess without discussing a pending energy bill, Culberson and other House Republicans stayed to make speeches about the energy bill in question. The Democratic leadership in the House, which controls services in the chamber, responded by cutting the microphones and cameras. Culberson used the Twitter and Qik services to provide a live account of the proceedings.References
External links
* [http://www.house.gov/culberson/ U.S. Congressman John Culberson] official House site
*CongBio|c001048
* [http://herndon1.sdrdc.com/cgi-bin/can_detail/H0TX07055 Federal Election Commission — John Culberson] campaign finance reports and data
* [http://www.ontheissues.org/TX/John_Culberson.htm On the Issues — John Culberson] issue positions and quotes
* [http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.asp?CID=N00009738 OpenSecrets.org — John Culberson] campaign contributions
* [http://www.vote-smart.org/bio.php?can_id=BS023572 Project Vote Smart — Representative John A. Culberson (TX)] profile
* [http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=John_Culberson SourceWatch Congresspedia — John Culberson] profile
* [http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/c001048/ Washington Post — Congress Votes Database: John Culberson] voting record
* [http://www.culbersonforcongress.com/ John Culberson for U.S. Congress] official campaign site
* [http://www.twitter.com/johnculberson/ Twitter - John Culberson]
* [http://qik.com/johnculberson Qik - John Culberson]
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