BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY
Sheila Jackson Lee
| Sheila Jackson Lee | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 18th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 1995 | |
| Preceded by | Craig Washington |
| Member of the Houston City Council from the At-large #4 District | |
| In office January 2, 1990 – January 3, 1995 | |
| Preceded by | Anthony Hall |
| Succeeded by | John Peavy |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Sheila Jackson January 12, 1950 Queens, New York |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Elwyn C. Lee |
| Children | 2 |
| Residence | Houston, Texas |
| Alma mater | Yale University University of Virginia Law School |
| Profession | Attorney, Judge |
| Religion | Seventh-day Adventist |
| Website | jacksonlee.house.gov |
Sheila Jackson Lee (born January 12, 1950) is the U.S. Representative for Texas's 18th congressional district, serving since 1995. The district includes most of inner-city Houston. She is a member of the Democratic Party.
Early life and education
Jackson Lee graduated from Jamaica High School in Queens. She earned a B.A. in political science from Yale University in 1972, followed by a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1975.[1] She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.[2]
Early political career
Jackson Lee made three unsuccessful attempts at local judgeships before becoming a municipal judge from 1987 to 1990.[3]Jackson Lee, along with Sylvia Garcia, was appointed by then Mayor of Houston Kathy Whitmire. In 1989 she won the at-large position for a seat on the Houston City Council, serving until 1994.[3] While on the city council, Jackson Lee helped pass a safety ordinance that required parents to keep their guns away from children.[4] She also worked for expanded summer hours at city parks and recreation centers as a way to combat gang violence.[5]
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
- 1994
In 1994, Jackson Lee challenged four-term incumbent U.S. Congressman Craig Washington in the Democratic primary.[3] Washington had come under fire for opposing several projects that would have benefited the Houston area.[6] Jackson Lee defeated Washington in a rout, taking 63% to Washington's 37%.[7] The victory was tantamount to election in this heavily Democratic, black-majority district. In the general election, she defeated Republican nominee Jerry Burley 73%-24%.[8]
- 1996-2008
During this time period, Jackson Lee was never challenged in the Democratic primary. She won re-election during this time with at least 76% of the vote.[9]
- 2010
For the first time in her congressional career, Jackson Lee was challenged in the Democratic primary; her opponents were Houston City Councilmember Jarvis Johnson and Sean Roberts. She defeated them 67%-28%-5%.[10]
It was reported that in October 2010 Jackson Lee was “asking the Department of Justice to investigate whether tea party groups are intimidating black and Hispanic voters in her district.” She requested that Attorney General Eric Holder send poll monitors to make sure that a local group wasn't stopping people from voting.[11]
She won the general election with 70% of the vote, the lowest winning percentage of her career.[12]
- 2012
In 2012, Jackson Lee was not challenged in the Democratic primary and won the general election with 75% of the vote.[13]
Tenure
Prior to the 110th Congress, Jackson Lee served on the House Science Committee and on the Subcommittee that oversees space policy and NASA.[citation needed] She is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus,[14] and a CBC whip.[6]
Worst boss
In 2011 she was reported to have one of the highest staff turnovers in Congress and to be one of the worst bosses. The Huffington Post and Houston Chronicle reported that she had gone through 11 chiefs of staff in 11 years.[15][16] In 2011 she was named as one of the "worst bosses in Washington" by "Daily Caller."[17] The Huffington Post stated that "Jackson Lee regularly appears on Washingtonian magazine's list of the “Best and Worst of Congress” as the “meanest” member of House of Representatives."[15][18] That reputation as the worst boss on Capital Hill continued;in 2012 Washingtonian again listed her as the meanest member of the House,[19] a report in 2013 concluded that "the veteran Texas Democrat had the highest turnover rate for all of Congress over the past decade."[20]
Foreign policy
In 2000, she favored permanently normalizing trade status for China, arguing that it would aid both human rights and Houston's economy.[21]
Jackson Lee traveled to the 2001 World Conference against Racism in South Africa, and has backed sanctions against Sudan.[22] On April 28, 2006, Jackson Lee, along with four other members of Congress and six other activists, was arrested for disorderly conduct in front of Sudan's embassy in Washington. They were protesting the role of Sudan's government in ethnic cleansing in Darfur.[23]
Jackson Lee has urged better relations between the U.S. and Venezuela, which she describes as a friendly nation. She said the U.S. should reconsider its ban on selling F-16fighter jets and spare parts to that country. The U.S. State Department bans such sales due to "lack of support" for counter-terrorist operations and Venezuela's relations withIran and Cuba.[24][25]
In July 2010 Jackson Lee said: "Today, we have two Vietnams, side by side, North and South, exchanging and working. We may not agree with all that North Vietnam is doing, but they are living in peace. I would look for a better human rights record for North Vietnam, but they are living side by side.”[26] It was noted that Vietnam had not been split for four decades.[27][28]
Immigration
Jackson Lee is active on immigration issues.[29] She has proposed increasing border security and increasing opportunities for legalization among those living in the United States. She has opposed a guest worker program, saying that the idea of guest: "connotate[s] `invite, come,' and, at the same time, it misleads because you ask people to come for a temporary job of three to six years and they have to leave if they don't have another job and I would think that they would not."[30]
Accusations against Tea Party
Speaking in July 2010 at the NAACP national convention, Jackson Lee compared the Tea Party to the KKK.[31]
Health Care
Jackson Lee said in January 2011 that repealing the health care law would be in violation of the Constitution. She argued that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is constitutional under the Commerce Clause, and that repealing it would violate both the Fifth and the Fourteenth Amendments.[32][33][34]
Al-Qaeda
At a Homeland Security Committee hearing on radical Muslims in the US, held in March 2011, Jackson Lee said that Peter King's hearings were helping al-Qaeda and “going the same route as Arizona.” She complained that the hearings were scaring Muslim Americans and called them “an outrage.”[35]
Legislation
On September 27, 2013, Jackson Lee introduced the Essential Transportation Worker Identification Credential Assessment Act (H.R. 3202; 113th Congress), a bill that would direct the United States Department of Homeland Security to assess the effectiveness of the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) program.[36] The bill would require an independent assessment of how well the TWIC program improves security and reduces risks at the facilities and vessels it is responsible for.[37]
Committee assignments
Caucus memberships
Jackson Lee is or has been a member of a number of caucuses, including: the 9-11 Commission Caucus, the Building a Better America Caucus (BABAC), the Congressional Caucus on Global Road Safety, and the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. Task forces in which she has participated include Children and Families, Homeland Security, Immigration, and Katrina. She has been the co-chair of the Congressional Algeria Caucus, the Congressional Pakistan Caucus, the Democratic Outreach Task Force, and the US-Afghan Caucus. Jackson Lee has also been a member of the House Democratic Steering Committee.
Personal life
Jackson Lee moved to Houston after her husband, Elwyn C. Lee, took a job at the University of Houston. Her husband now holds a dual position of Vice Chancellor and Vice President for Student Affairs of the University of Houston System and the University of Houston, respectively.[1]
Space program
In 1997, while on a trip to the Mars Pathfinder operations center in California, Jackson Lee confused the planet Mars with Earth's own moon, asking whether the Pathfinder had succeeded in taking a picture of the flag planted on Mars by Neil Armstrong in 1969.[38]
Hurricane naming
Jackson Lee complained in 2003 that storm names were too white. “All racial groups should be represented,” she said, and asked officials to “try to be inclusive of African-American names.”[39]
Foreign travel
In May, 2015, The Washington Post reported Jackson Lee took a trip to Azerbaijan paid for by the government of that country.[40][41]
Confederate flag issue
On Thursday, July 9, 2015, Representative Jackson Lee and others who were engaged in a debate over the Confederate battle flag produced an erroneous reproduction of what they thought was the original flag. The original battle flag contained 13 stars representing each state of the Confederacy as of 1861. The flag that Representative Jackson Lee presented to members of Congress contained 17 stars.[42]
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