Wright Patman
Wright Patman | |
---|---|
Sam B. Hall | |
Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 2nd district | |
In office January 11, 1921 – January 13, 1925 | |
Preceded by | J. D. Newton |
Succeeded by | George Coody |
Personal details | |
Born | John William Wright Patman August 6, 1893 Hughes Springs, Texas, U.S. |
Died | March 7, 1976 Bethesda, Maryland, U.S. | (aged 82)
Political party | Democratic |
Spouses | Merle Connor
(m. 1919; died 1967)Pauline Tucker (m. 1968) |
Children | 4, including Bill |
Education | Cumberland University (LLB) |
Military service | |
Allegiance | United States |
Branch/service | United States Army |
Years of service | 1917–1919 (active) 1919–? (Texas Army National Guard) |
Battles/wars | World War I |
John William Wright Patman (August 6, 1893 – March 7, 1976) was an American politician. First elected in 1928, Patman served 24 consecutive terms in the United States House of Representatives for Texas's 1st congressional district from 1929 to 1976. He was a member of the Democratic Party. From 1973 to 1976, he was Dean of the United States House of Representatives.
Patman grew up in Hughes Springs, Texas. After graduating from Cumberland University, Patman returned to Hughes Springs to be a lawyer. From 1916 to 1917, Patman held his first political office as assistant county attorney for Cass County, Texas. He then served in the United States Army during World War I from 1917 to 1919. After the war, Patman was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1920. Patman served two terms in the Texas House before serving as a district attorney in Texas from 1924 to 1929.
In Congress, Patman was a fiscal watchdog who challenged practices of major banks and the Federal Reserve. He co-sponsored the
Early life
Patman was the son of John N. and Emma (Spurlin) Patman, was born near
Political career
Early political career
Patman was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1920. He left the House in 1924 when he was appointed district attorney of the fifth judicial district of Texas.[2]
Early Congressional career
In 1928, Patman was elected to the House of Representatives from Texas's 1st congressional district. In 1932, Patman introduced a bill that would have mandated the immediate payment of the bonus to World War I veterans.[4] It was during the consideration of this bill that the Bonus Army came to Washington. Patman was a supporter of the New Deal.[5]
In January 1932, Patman spearheaded a movement to impeach Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon,[6] which forced the latter's resignation the following month.[7]
In 1935, Patman took on the cause of independent retailers, who were engaged in a nationwide battle to stop the growth of chain retailing by taxing chains and restricting their business practices.
Patman was one of four members of the Texas congressional delegation to originally sign the "
Watergate inquiry
Wright Patman's namesake committee played an important role in the early days of the
The Patman Committee investigated the hundred dollar bills found on the
Loss of chairmanship
In 1975, Patman was voted out of his position as Chairman of the Banking committee by younger Congressmen, in a revolt against the 'Seniority system' which also removed
Personal life
In 1919, Patman married Merle Connor, who died in 1967. They had four children, including Bill Patman, who served in the U.S. House from 1981 to 1985. Wright Patman remarried in 1968 to Pauline Tucker.[2]
Patman died of pneumonia in Bethesda, Maryland on March 7, 1976.[22][23] He was buried at Hillcrest Cemetery in Texarkana.[24] "His funeral in Texarkana was one of the largest, most important occurrences in the town's history," wrote Mark Stanley in a 2004 essay for the East Texas Historical Journal.[25]
Legacy
Patman is regarded as a liberal and populist who brought federal jobs and works projects to his district, where agriculture previously was the dominant economic sector.[25] However, the left wing Americans for Democratic Action scored Patman low in its 100-point "liberal quotient" (LQ) scale, at 13 in 1972[26] and 24 in 1973.[27] In contrast, the American Conservative Union rated Patman a more favorable 47 out of 100 in 1973.[28]
In the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington, the Wright Patman Congressional Federal Credit Union is named after him. This credit union serves the banking needs of elected and former members of the House and their staff.[29] In addition, Wright Patman Lake and Wright Patman Dam in Northeast Texas are also named for him.[30]
In fiction
In the alternate history novel
Publications
- Tax Exempt Foundations and Charitable Trusts: Their Impact on Our Economy (December 1962) 87th Congress, 2nd Session
- Commercial Banks and Their Trust Activities: Emerging Influence on the American Economy (Washington DC 1968) 90th Congress, 2nd Session, volumes I and II
See also
- List of United States Congress members who died in office (1950–99)
Notes
- ^ Roger D. Blair, and Christina DePasquale. "Antitrust's Least Glorious Hour": The Robinson-Patman Act." Journal of Law and Economics 57.S3 (2014): S201-S216. in JSTOR
- ^ a b c Grant, Philip A. Jr. (September 1, 1995). "Patman, John William Wright (1893–1976)". Handbook of Texas. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
- ^ "Guard Regiments are Being Formed". The Victoria Advocate. May 29, 1921. Retrieved April 14, 2021 – via Google News.
- ^ "World War I Veterans Bonus Bill". United States House of Representatives.
- ISBN 978-0-674-01248-6.
- ^ "National Affairs: Texan, Texan & Texan", Time Magazine, January 25, 1932, archived from the original on September 3, 2009
- ^ Associated Press, (AP) (February 10, 1932). "Patman Charges Against Mellon Are Voted Down". Spokane Daily Chronicle. p. 1.
- ^ levinson, Marc (2019). The Great A&P and the Struggle for Small Business in America, 2nd ed.
- ISBN 978-0-12-733950-4.
- ^ "Southern Manifesto" (PDF). Congressional Record - Senate: 4459–4461.
- ^ "Southern Manifesto on Integration (March 12, 1956)". WNET. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
- ^ "HR 6127. CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1957. -- House Vote #42 -- Jun 18, 1957". GovTrack.us. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
- ^ "HR 8601. CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1960. APPROVAL BY THE … -- House Vote #106 -- Apr 21, 1960". GovTrack.us. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
- ^ "H.R. 7152. CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964. ADOPTION OF A … -- House Vote #182 -- Jul 2, 1964". GovTrack.us. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
- ^ "TO PASS H.R. 2516, A BILL TO ESTABLISH PENALTIES FOR … -- House Vote #113 -- Aug 16, 1967". GovTrack.us. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
- ^ "S.J. RES. 29. CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO BAN THE USE OF … -- House Vote #193 -- Aug 27, 1962". GovTrack.us. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
- ^ "TO AGREE TO CONFERENCE REPORT ON S. 1564, THE VOTING … -- House Vote #107 -- Aug 3, 1965". GovTrack.us. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
- The Atlantic Monthly
- ISBN 978-0-521-69409-4.
- ^ Alexander Cockburn, James Ridgeway, The Village Voice, Why They Sacked the Bane of the Banks, February 3, 1975
- ^ Beverly Deepe, Enterprise Washington Service, Harlan Daily Enterprise, Demos Reluctant to Reveal Committee Chairmen Votes, January 21, 1975
- ^ United Press International, (UPI) (March 8, 1976). "Veteran Demo Lawmaker Wright Patman Dies". Beaver County (Pa.) Times. p. A-2.
- ^ "Today in Texas History: Wright Patman dies" Houston Chronicle, March 7, 2010. Retrieved 2014-09-25.
- ISBN 978-1-4196-7884-4.
- ^ a b Stanley, Mark (March 2004). "The Death of Wright Patman: Mourning the End of an Era". East Texas Historical Journal. 42 (1): 34–41. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Stephen F. Austin State University.
- ^ "1972 voting record" (PDF). adaction.org. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
- ^ "1973 voting record" (PDF). adaction.org. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
- ^ "Federal Legislative Ratings: 1973". American Conservative Union. Archived from the original on December 14, 2004. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
- ^ "Wright Patman Congressional Federal Credit Union". www.usacreditunions.com/. USA Credit Unions.com. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
- ]
Further reading
- Levinson, Marc (2019), The Great A&P and the Struggle for Small Business in America, 2nd ed., Marc Levinson, ISBN 978-0-578-56210-0
- Owens, John E. (1985), "Extreme Advocacy Committee Leadership in the Pre-Reform House: Wright Patman and the House Banking and Currency Committee", British Journal of Political Science, 15 (2), Cambridge University Press: 149–168, S2CID 154079730
- Schwarz, Jordan A. The New Dealers: Power politics in the age of Roosevelt (Vintage, 2011) pp 285–296. online
- Stoller, Matt (2019), Goliath: The 100-Year War Between Monopoly Power and Democracy, Simon & Schuster, ISBN 978-1501183089
- Young, Nancy Beck (2000), Wright Patman: Populism, Liberalism, and the American Dream, Southern Methodist University Press, ISBN 0870744534
External links
- United States Congress. "Wright Patman (id: P000103)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Wright Patman from the Handbook of Texas Online
- Texas A&M University Press: Wright Patman: Populism, Liberalism, and the American Dream by Nancy Beck Young
- A film clip "Longines Chronoscope with Wright Patman" is available for viewing at the Internet Archive