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Health care reform was yet another issue where the Republican and Democratic parties were at odds with each other. The Democratic Party – along with Democrat and President Barack Obama – supported and fought for reform, whereas most Republicans questioned it.
There were a few Republicans, however, who did not follow the majority Republican stand regarding health care reform. One of them was Rep. Virginia Brown-Waite, representative of the 5th Congressional District of Florida.
Virginia “Ginny” Brown-Waite was born on October 5, 1943 in Albany, New York. She has a bachelor of science degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from the Empire State College, State University of New York where she graduated in 1976. She proceeded to study at the Russell Sage College, earning a master’s degree in public administration. She was a staffer at the New York State Senate, eventually becoming a legislative director, before moving to Brooksville, Florida in the 1980s.
Brown-Waite was elected as representative of the 5th congressional district of Florida in 2002, narrowly edging out re-electionist Democrat Karen Thurman. Since she assumed office as representative she has been re-elected to a fourth term; she was first re-elected in 2004, then again in 2006 and 2008, running against Democrat John Russell in the last two.
On April 30, however, Brown-Waite announced that she was no longer seeking a fifth term, saying that she will retire at the end of the current Congress. She said that the retirement was spurred by health issues, specifically regarding her pancreas. She has endorsed Hernando County sheriff Richard B. Nugent as her successor.
We continue to share more information about the co-sponsors of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. On this post, we are featuring Congressman Xavier Becerra, who represents the 31st district of California, which covers part of Los Angeles County. He is a member of the Democratic Party and has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since 1993.
Rep. Becerra was born on January 26, 1958 in Sacramento, California, to working-class immigrants. He finished high school from C.K. McClatchy High School in central city Sacramento in 1976 and went on to attend Stanford University. At Stanford, Becerra earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics in 1980 and a Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School in 1984. His law practice consisted of working with individuals with mental impairment.
Before being elected into the House of Representatives, he served in the staff of California State Senator Art Torres as administrative assistant for Los Angeles. He also served as deputy attorney general from 1987 to 1990 at the Office of the Attorney General of California. He was elected into the California State Assembly in 1989, where he served until 1992. He assumed office as representative of the 31st district of California in January 1993, having won the 1992 election with the support of his predecessor, Edward Roybal.
Among the things that Becerra supports are social welfare legislation, as evidenced by his support of health care reform, and educational reform. He introduced a bill regarding the creation of an independent civil commission that will investigate violations of civil right at the Mexican border.
Let us get to know yet another figure who played a part in the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Congressman Joseph Crowley represents the 7th Congressional District of New York in the House of Representatives. The District includes portions of Queens and the Bronx, including the following neighborhoods: Woodside, Jackson Heights and College Point in Queens and Castle Hills, Co-op City and Pelham Parkway in the eastern Bronx.
Crowley was born on March 16 1962 in New York City. He is of Irish descent, his father being an Irish-American and his mother an immigrant Catholic from County Armagh in Northern Ireland. His education consisted of attendance in private Roman Catholic schools in New York City, including Power Memorial Academy. He earned a degree in political science from Queens College.
At the age of 24, Joe Crowley was elected to the New York State Assembly; he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1998, succeeding Thomas Manton. Since his election, Crowley has not had a serious challenger for his seat.
During the terrorist attack on New York City in September 11, 2001, Congressman Crowley lost his cousin John Moran, a New York City firefighter. It is not a surprise, therefore, that Crowley authored a bill for that provided for the 9/11 Heroes Medal of Valor that went out to emergency workers who lost their lives while serving on that fateful day. He is also among those who voted in favor of authorizing the invasion of Iraq.
Crowley is the fifteenth highest ranking New York House Democrat and is Chief Deputy Whip in the House of Representatives.
