Tom Davis (Virginia politician)
Tom Davis | |
---|---|
House Oversight Committee | |
In office January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2007 | |
Preceded by | Dan Burton |
Succeeded by | Henry Waxman |
Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee | |
In office January 3, 1999 – January 3, 2003 | |
Preceded by | John Linder |
Succeeded by | Tom Reynolds |
Chair of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors | |
In office 1991–1994 | |
Preceded by | Audrey Moore |
Succeeded by | Katherine Hanley |
Member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors from the Mason district | |
In office 1980–1991 | |
Succeeded by | Christine Trapnell |
Personal details | |
Born | Thomas Milburn Davis III January 5, 1949 Minot, North Dakota, U.S. |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse(s) | Margaret Rantz (m. 1973–2003) Jeannemarie Devolites (m. 2004–present) |
Children | 3[1] |
Residence(s) | Vienna, Virginia, U.S. |
Education | Amherst College (BA) University of Virginia (JD) |
Military service | |
Branch/service | United States Army |
Years of service | 1971-1972 (active duty) 1972-1979 (inactive duty) |
Unit | Virginia Army National Guard Reserves |
Thomas Milburn Davis III (born January 5, 1949) is an American lobbyist and former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives who represented Virginia's 11th congressional district in Northern Virginia. Davis was considering a run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by five-term incumbent and fellow Republican John Warner in the 2008 election, but decided against it.[2] He announced on January 30, 2008, that he would not seek reelection to an eighth term.[3][4] Davis resigned from Congress on November 24, 2008.[5]
From 2008 to 2018, he was a director of federal government affairs at Deloitte.[6] He is currently the rector (head of the Board of Visitors) of George Mason University and a trustee of its Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study.[7][8][9] In January 2019, he began work as a partner in the law firm Holland and Knight.[10]
Early life and education
Davis was born in
Early career
He is the former vice president and general counsel at government contractor PRC, Inc., former chairman of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, and former president of the Washington Metropolitan Council of Governments.[11]
Political career
Davis was a member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors from 1980 to 1994, serving as chairman of the Board of Supervisors from 1991 until his election to the House. During his service as board chairman, Fairfax County was ranked first financially by City and State magazine in their list of Top 50 Counties.[12]
Congressional career
Davis won election to the House in 1994, the year of the Republican Contract with America. Davis defeated one-term incumbent Leslie Byrne. The Contract with America called for citizen-legislators who would retire after 12 years, instead of career politicians. Davis signed the Contract and voted in favor of the Citizens Legislature Act; however, the bill did not achieve support from the 2/3 majority needed for the amendment to pass. Although the 11th was considered a swing district, Davis was reelected five more times without substantive opposition in part due to his popularity in Fairfax County. Democrats did not field a candidate against him in 1998 and 2002.
In the 2006 Democratic wave, when Democrats took the House for the first time since 1994, Davis faced an unexpectedly strong challenge from Democrat Andrew Hurst, but was reelected with 55 percent of the vote, which was his lowest total since his initial bid against Byrne. Nonetheless, he began fundraising for a Senate bid in 2007.
Davis was chairman of the
House Committee on Government Reform
In 2003, Davis became Chairman of the
ICG government
Davis's second wife,
At the time of her hire at ICG, Davis was her mentor and campaign manager. After being hired, Devolites married Davis. On July 28, 2006, the Washington Post reported that the
His wife continued to work for ICG, which paid her $78,000 in 2005 for working 10 to 20 hours a week, primarily at home on her cell phone. She was making $18,000 a year as a Virginia legislator. Her bio was the only one on the ICG site to name her spouse.[20] The same Post writers[21][22] continued the investigation of oversight of contractual influence by the committee and its chair in November[23] and December 2006.[24][25][26]
Major League Baseball team in Washington
Davis was accused of threatening Major League Baseball with an investigation when a consortium that included George Soros offered to buy the Washington Nationals.[27]
"I think Major League Baseball understands the stakes", Davis told
Transportation development positions
Davis also appeared at a local zoning meeting to oppose a "smart growth" plan near the Vienna Metro station. Approval of the project, to build what was called a "mini-city" within walking distance of the Metro, was considered routine. Some of the longest commutes to work in the nation begin in Virginia—second only to New York City—and in Prince William County in particular.[29] The project was a key resolution to congestion in the congressional district. Davis's pledge to approve the legislation led several county supervisors to accuse him of meddling in a local land-use issue.[30][31]
One politician who spoke to Davis said the congressman told him that he opposed Pulte Homes' MetroWest project because "all it does is produce Democrats".[32]
In July 2006, Davis wrote a letter to Virginia's then-Governor Tim Kaine discouraging the state from constructing an underground Metrorail through Tysons Corner. According to a July 17, 2006, story in The Washington Post, Davis said switching to a tunnel in Tysons would require reviews that could delay the rail line by as much as two years. On February 26, 2007, The Post reported that Davis had switched positions.
Jennifer and David Safavian
One of 12 counsels for oversight and investigations on the
David Safavian had replaced Angela Styles, who was forced from the General Services Administration after Davis wrote letters to her bosses at the Office of Management and Budget. He had written to Mitchell E. Daniels Jr. and Joshua Bolten, Styles's superiors at the Office of Management and Budget.[36]
Prior to his GSA job, Safavian had no government contracts experience. He did have connections to Davis, as a lobbyist with
Schiavo subpoena
Among notable
K Street Project and NRCC fundraising
As chairman of the NRCC, Davis's chief responsibility was fundraising for members of Congress, and his work overlapped with the financial efforts of the Republican Party's
Legislative activity
Davis was chair of the Select Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina. Democrats, who had proposed an independent investigation, objected and did not officially take part in the committee. The committee proceeded, eventually producing a stinging report critical of government's response to the disaster.[44]
Davis introduced the bill that became the Elizabeth Morgan Act, passed in 1996. In 2003, a federal appeals court ruled that the act was an unconstitutional bill of attainder.[45]
Davis has been instrumental in getting federal funding for the replacement of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.[46][47]
Davis sponsored legislation creating a
Apparently in a surprise to the
but later versions of the bill make the expansion to 437 seats permanent. The bill did not make it to the House floor, however.The bill was reintroduced, cosponsored by Davis, as the "District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act of 2007", as H.R. 1433 in the 110th Congress. The bill permanently increases the size of the House by two members. One seat will go to the District of Columbia and the other seat will go to the next state in line to get a congressional seat. Based on the 2000 decennial census and apportionment calculations, Utah will get the second seat until the reapportionment taking place after the 2010 Decennial Census.[53] On March 13, 2007 it passed the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform with a vote of 24–5.[54]
2004 and 2006 election campaigns
Davis's congressional district was redistricted after the 2000 census, which increased the percentage of Republicans in the district. In 2004, he defeated his relatively unknown Democratic challenger, Ken Longmyer, by a 59 percent to 39 percent margin. In the race, Davis outspent Longmyer, $1,835,000 to $72,000.[55]
In the November 2006 election, Davis defeated Democrat Andrew Hurst by 11 percentage points. It was the closest and costliest race Davis faced in 12 years. In financing his campaign, Davis outspent Hurst almost 9-to-1, $2,607,125 to $310,561.[56]
Independent Green Party co-founder, businessman Joseph Oddo was on the ballot in 2004. Ferdinado Greco, a physicist, George Mason University grad, owner and operator of a hybrid taxi business, was the Independent Green candidate in 2006.
Initial steps toward a 2008 Senate campaign
On September 15, 2007, Davis told WTOP's Politics Program that he was running for the Senate seat being vacated by John Warner. He said that he has been assembling money and staff for the contest, but was delaying a formal announcement until November. It had been presumed that he would face former Governor Jim Gilmore for the nomination. However, the state Republican Party opted to choose its nominee at a nominating convention rather than in a primary.
Davis argued that a primary would expose the candidates to the kind of environment they would face in November. It was also thought that a primary would have favored Davis due to his popularity in voter-rich Northern Virginia. In contrast, the delegates at the nominating convention would have been made up mostly of party activists; the state's Republican activist base is much more conservative than the primary and general electorates. Gilmore had argued strongly for a convention, claiming that a primary would leave the winner short of cash; he is also much more conservative than Davis, and would therefore have likely been the favorite at the convention. Funding was no small consideration, as the race for the Democratic nomination essentially ended when former Governor Mark Warner announced his candidacy. Warner was one of the state's most popular politicians, and had the ability to self-finance his campaign due to his considerable personal fortune.
The party opted for a convention, and Davis therefore announced in October 2007 that he would not run for the Senate. Gilmore was nominated, and lost the general election to Warner in a landslide. Davis also did not run for reelection to his House seat, and was replaced by Democrat Gerry Connolly.
Davis told the
Post-congressional career
On November 17, 2008, Davis joined
Davis served as president and CEO of the Republican Main Street Partnership, a moderate Republican organization.[60]
He has also started teaching a class at George Mason University, called "Southern Politics" in the 2008 Fall Semester. In the Spring and Fall of 2010, Davis taught Political Parties and Campaigns. The course is described as "Characteristics and functions of political parties, influence of parties and other political forces on electoral decisions, and emphasis on parties' inability or ability to hold government accountable to citizens" in the catalog. Former Virginia U.S. Representative Jim Moran also teaches the class with him.[citation needed]
On December 21, 2010, it was announced that
In August 2014 Davis was named rector of George Mason University. He had been on the university's Board of Visitors since 2013.[citation needed]
Davis is a member of the ReFormers Caucus of Issue One, a group of former members of congress, governors and cabinet officials dedicated to campaign finance reform.[62]
In 2019, he left his position at Deloitte and became a lobbyist for the Holland & Knight law firm.[63]
Political positions
Davis's district is in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. He was active in efforts to change federal procurement and contracting practices that make it faster to award contracts but also easier to award
Tom Davis was one of only eleven Republicans to vote against the Contract with America Tax Relief Act[66] that cut taxes by $189 billion over five years, including lowering the capital gains tax rate and easing the "marriage penalty,"[67] and supported a tax hike referendum to raise sales taxes in northern Virginia by 4.5 to 5%.[68]
He also went against his party by supporting
Davis supported Virginia's
In 2006, Davis said he opposed
Davis voted to support
In 2007, expressing disapproval
In 2012, Davis was elected president of the Federal City Council, a group of business, civic, education, and other leaders interested in economic development in Washington, D.C.[75]
Personal life
Davis is a member of the Christian Science Church.
In 1973, Davis married Margaret "Peggy" Rantz, a medical doctor. They have three children together. He
Electoral history
Year | Democratic | Votes | Pct | Republican | Votes | Pct | 3rd Party | Party | Votes | Pct | 3rd Party | Party | Votes | Pct | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1994
|
Leslie L. Byrne
|
84,104 | 45% | Tom Davis | 98,216 | 53% | Gordon S. Cruickshank | Independent
|
3,246 | 2% | * | ||||||||
1996
|
Thomas J. Horton | 74,701 | 35% | Tom Davis | 138,758 | 64% | C. W. "Levi" Levy | Independent
|
2,842 | 1% | * | ||||||||
1998
|
(no candidate) | Tom Davis | 91,603 | 82% | C. W. "Levi" Levy | Independent
|
18,807 | 17% | Write-ins | 1,701 | 2% | ||||||||
2000
|
M. L. "Mike" Corrigan | 83,455 | 34% | Tom Davis | 150,395 | 62% | Robert K. McBride | Independent
|
4,774 | 2% | C. W. "Levi" Levy | Independent
|
4,059 | 2% | * | ||||
2002
|
(no candidate) | Tom Davis | 135,379 | 83% | Frank W. Creel | Constitution | 26,892 | 16% | Write-ins | 1,027 | 1% | ||||||||
2004
|
Ken Longmyer | 118,305 | 38% | Tom Davis | 186,299 | 60% | Joseph P. Oddo | Independent
|
4,338 | 1% | * | ||||||||
2006
|
Andrew L. Hurst | 102,511 | 44% | Tom Davis | 130,468 | 55% | Ferdinando C. Greco | Independent Green | 2,042 | 1% | * |
*Write-in and minor candidate notes: In 1992, write-ins received 145 votes. In 1994, write-ins received 114 votes. In 1996, write-ins received 181 votes. In 2000, write-ins received 285 votes. In 2004, write-ins received 291 votes. In 2006, write-ins received 259 votes.
References
- ^ 1997-1998 Official Congressional Directory: 105th Congress
- ^ Davis Confirms He Won't Seek Senate Seat washingtonpost.com
- ^ Another Republican congressman to retire cnn.com
- ^ Amy Gardner, U.S. Rep. Davis to Retire, Ending 14-Year Tenure in Congress, January 30, 2008.
- ^ a b "Offices of the Eleventh Congressional District of Virginia to Remain Open to Serve and Assist Constituents". Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives. November 25, 2008. Archived from the original on November 29, 2008. Retrieved November 28, 2008.
Representative Davis resigned from Congress effective November 24, 2008.
- ^ "Tom Davis, Director, Federal Government Affairs". Deloitte. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
- ^ "Board of Visitors". George Mason University. Retrieved November 29, 2011.
- ^ "Board Membership: Visitors". George Mason University. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
- ^ "The Honorable Thomas M. Davis, III". George Mason University. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
- ^ Maake, Katishi (January 7, 2019). "Holland & Knight hires former congressman". Washington Business Journal. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
- ^ 1995-1996 Official Congressional Directory: 104th Congress
- ^ Final Board Summary, July 12, 1993 fairfaxcounty.gov
- ^ Post Politics Hour washingtonpost.com
- ^ Key votes by Tom Davis Archived September 7, 2006, at the Wayback Machine Washington Post
- ^ Hill Oversight Committees to Get New Chairs The Federal Paper, November 18, 2002, Vol. 1 No. 5
- ^ article Washingtonpost.com
- ^ Boston Globe boston.com
- ^ a b Wife, Friend Tie Congressman to Consulting Firm washingtonpost.com
- ^ "ICG Government". Archived from the original on March 5, 2005. Retrieved October 27, 2006.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "Devolites Davis ICG biography" (PDF). Archived from the original on July 8, 2004. Retrieved January 21, 2007.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link), retrieved January 1, 2007 - ^ Articles by Scott Hingham at the Washington Post
- ^ Articles by Robert O'Harrow at the Washington Post
- ^ "Report Finds DHS Lax on Contracting Procedures" washingtonpost.com
- ^ "GSA Chief Seeks to Cut Budget For Audits" washingtonpost.com
- ^ "Trio From Hill Ask GSA Head Not to Shift Audit Burden" washingtonpost.com
- ^ "Interior, Pentagon Faulted In Audits" washingtonpost.com
- ^ Washington Post, Taking Aim At Soros Is Hardly Politic washingtonpost.com
- ^ USA Today, Soros's bid for Nationals gets political, 6/28/2005 usatoday.com
- ^ Average Travel Time to Work Archived February 16, 2010, at the Wayback Machine census.gov
- ^ Lawmaker Steps In on Va. Growth washingtonpost.com
- ^ Metro Postpones Vienna Land Sale washingtonpost.com
- ^ Welcome to Fairfax – if You Vote Red washingtonpost.com
- ^ "Jennifer Safavian - Autos Drive America (April 2020-), President/Chief Executive Officer - Congressional Salaries | LegiStorm".
- ^ Abramoff Figure Argues for No Jail Time[dead link] cached here: archive
- ^ Official in Abramoff Case Sentenced to 18 Months washingtonpost.com
- ^ "Are We Better Off: Contracts With America" MotherJones.com
- ^ ATR photos Archived January 23, 2007, at the Wayback Machine atr.org
- ^ "Senate report questions tax status of groups linked to Abramoff" USA Today
- ^ House to Issue Subpoena Stopping Removal of Feeding Tubes from Terri Schiavo Archived March 17, 2006, at the Wayback Machine seniorjournal.com
- ^ Republicans flex subpoena muscle sptimes.com
- ^ Law and Politics in Schiavo Case npr.org
- ^ The Constitution and Terri Schiavo npr.org
- ^ News Release, Party Misuse of Soft Money To Pay for Issue Ads Results in $280,000 Civil Penalty Archived May 15, 2008, at the Wayback Machine fec.gov
- ^ "A Failure of Initiative" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 16, 2007.
- ^ "Foretich v. United States 2003 striking down the Elizabeth Morgan Act" (PDF).
- ^ H.R. 2563 (106th Cong.): Woodrow Wilson Bridge Financing Act of 1999 govtrack.us
- ^ Wilson Bridge Deadlock Broken washingtonpost.com
- ^ Bill to Give D.C. Vote in House Advances washingtonpost.com
- ^ House Panel Endorses D.C. Vote washingtonpost.com
- ^ DC FAIR Act (DC Fairness in Representation Act, H.R. 2043) dcvote.org
- ^ LWV: Support and Cosponsor H.R. 2043, the DC Fairness in Representation Act lwv.org
- ^ Cosponsor list for H.R.2043 Archived November 26, 2013, at the Wayback Machine thomas.loc.gov
- ^ Text of H.R.1433 (110th Congress) oversight.house.gov
- Washington Post. p. B01.
- ^ Congressional Races: Total Raised and Spent for Va 11th, 2004 opensecrets.org
- ^ Congressional Races: Total Raised and Spent for Va 11th, 2006 Archived September 17, 2006, at the Wayback Machine opensecrets.org
- ^ Davis expresses doubt on Va. Senate race as Warner gains Archived October 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine TheHill.com
- ^ Washington Post (2008). Va. Legislator to Join Deloitte Consulting. Retrieved November 15, 2008.
- ^ Snyder, Jim (November 25, 2008). "Davis joins Deloitte". The Hill. Archived from the original on January 4, 2009. Retrieved November 28, 2008.
Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.) has accepted a position as federal government services director at Deloitte, a consulting firm.
- ^ Republican Main Street Partnership (2016). Board of Directors. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
- ^ "Thomas M. Davis III Appointed to Airports Authority Board of Directors". Archived from the original on January 5, 2011.
- ^ "Issue One – ReFormers Caucus". 2023.
- ^ Meyer, Theodoric (January 14, 2019). "Ex-lawmakers 'scrambling and looking' for lobbying gigs". POLITICO. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
- ^ 9/11 Bill's Provision on Homeland Security Unions Raises Questions of Its Purpose, Parentage washingtonpost.com
- ^ See the series on contractor oversight scandals at the Washington Post
- ^ Final Vote Results for Roll Call 295 Office of the Clerk U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved September 2, 2007.
- ^ Tom Davis is No Economic Conservative The Club For Growth. Press Release August 31, 2007. Retrieved September 2, 2007
- ^ Virginia's Newest Bad Tax The Daily Standard November 4, 2002
- ^ "District of Columbia Fair and Equal House Voting Rights Act of 2006 (109th Congress, H.R. 5388)". GovTrack. 2006. Retrieved December 28, 2008.
- ^ Labor Day Message from MTD President, Ron Ault Archived October 1, 2006, at the Wayback Machine metaltrades.org
- YouTube
- ^ Fairbanks tnr.com
- ^ Clerk house.gov
- ^ Project Vote Smart: Interest Group Ratings for Rep. Davis Archived February 7, 2006, at the Wayback Machine vote-smart.org
- ^ Heath, Thomas (December 10, 2012). "Federal City Council Has New Leadership". The Washington Post. p. A2; DeBonis, Mike (August 10, 2013). "Federal City Council, Ralph Nader Wade Into 'living wage' debate". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
- ^ Va. Republicans Devolites, Davis to Marry[dead link] washingtonpost.com
- ^ "Election Statistics". Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Archived from the original on July 30, 2008. Retrieved January 10, 2008.
External links
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- 2006 campaign funding record maintained by the Washington Post
- Tom Davis Papers 1994-2008
- Video
- First debate between Tom Davis and Andy Hurst 9/19/06 hurst2006.blogspot.com
- Second Debate with Tom Davis and Andy Hurst 10/19/06 kentonngo.com
- Andrew Hurst: Press Conference February 8, 2006 on YouTubeCalls for Davis resignation from Government Reform committee chairmanship
- Labor Day Rally on YouTube
- Davis Appearance on YouTubeat Ethnic Community Campaign Rally, VA, September 9, 2006