Bob Livingston: Difference between revisions
Content deleted Content added
No edit summary |
No edit summary Tag: blanking |
||
| Line 17: | Line 17: | ||
| alma_mater= [[Tulane University]] |
| alma_mater= [[Tulane University]] |
||
|profession=[[Politician]], [[Lawyer]] |
|profession=[[Politician]], [[Lawyer]] |
||
|religion=[[Roman Catholic]] |
|religion=[[Roman Catholic]][[Louisiana]] before becoming embroiled in a [[Deborah Jeane Palfrey|sex scandal]] of his own. |
||
|footnotes= |
|||
}} |
|||
==Subsequent career== BALLLLSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS |
|||
'''Robert ("Bob") Linlithgow Livingston Jr.''' (born April 30, 1943), is a [[Washington, D.C.]]-based lobbyist and a former [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] [[U.S. Representative]] from [[Louisiana]]. He was chosen as [[Newt Gingrich]]'s successor as [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives]] late in 1998, but chose instead to withdraw and retire because, after denouncing then President Bill Clinton over the issue of adultery, it was discovered that he had extramarital affairs as well. He is a direct descendent of [[Robert Livingston]] elder brother of [[Philip Livingston]] signer of the of the [[Declaration of Independence]]. <ref>http://thehill.com/cover-stories/guess-whos-coming-to-the-firm-2007-12-11.html</ref> |
|||
==Early career== |
|||
Out of college, he joined the law practice of [[David C. Treen]], who would become Louisiana's first Republican congressman and [[governor of Louisiana|governor]] since [[Reconstruction era of the United States|Reconstruction]]. Treen had been an active Republican back in the days when the party barely existed in Louisiana, and this connection allowed Livingston to make valuable contacts in GOP circles. He was a delegate to all Republican conventions between 1976 and 2000. Livingston later worked for the U.S. attorney for [[U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana|Louisiana's Eastern District]], the [[Orleans Parish]] district attorney's office, and the Louisiana state attorney general, the Democrat [[William J. Guste|William J. "Billy" Guste, Jr.]] |
|||
==Career in Congress== |
|||
Livingston resigned his position as head of the state attorney general's [[organized crime]] unit in 1976 when he won the Republican nomination for Louisiana's 1st Congressional District, based in the New Orleans [[suburbs]] and including a large part of the city itself. The seat had opened up when 36-year incumbent [[United States Democratic Party|Democrat]] and former [[House Armed Services Committee]] chairman [[Felix Edward Hébert|F. Edward Hébert]] retired. Although the seat had been trending Republican for some time, Livingston narrowly lost to one-term state legislator [[Richard Alvin Tonry|Richard Tonry]]. Livingston was denied victory by the third-party candidacy of former Sixth District Congressman [[John Rarick]] of [[St. Francisville, Louisiana|St. Francisville]], the seat of [[West Feliciana Parish]]. Rarick, who had been one of the most [[Conservatism|conservative]] Democrats in Congress during his tenure, presumably siphoned off enough votes from Livingston to allow Tonry to win. |
|||
However, allegations surfaced of "tombstone" votes for Tonry in both the primary and [[general election]]. Tonry was forced to resign in May 1977 and lost the Democratic nomination for the [[special election]] in August to [[Louisiana House of Representatives|State Representative]] Ron Faucheux. Faucheux also faced an independent challenge from the [[left wing|left]]. Livingston took advantage of the split in [[Liberalism|liberal]] ranks to become the first Republican to represent New Orleans in Congress since [[Reconstruction era of the United States|Reconstruction]].<ref>[http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=32013 Our Campaigns - LA District 1 - Special Election Race - Aug 27, 1977<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Livingston was aided by a cadre of dedicated Republican volunteers, including the newly-installed National Committeewoman [[Virginia Martinez (Louisiana politician)|Virginia Martinez]] of Kenner.<ref>http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/la/orleans/obits/1/m-07.txt</ref> In 1978, Livingston won a full term with 86 percent of the vote. He was reelected eleven times, the last nine of those times unopposed. His district became even more Republican after the 1980s round of redistricting. Most of the district's share of New Orleans was shifted to the 2nd District and was replaced with some heavily Republican territory in [[Jefferson Parish, Louisiana|Jefferson Parish]]. |
|||
Although well-known in Louisiana, Livingston was a relatively low-key congressman for his first eighteen years in Washington. However, he managed early in his career to land a spot on the [[U.S. House Committee on Appropriations|Appropriations Committee]]. This, along with his conservative stances on most issues, made him popular with his constituents, most of whom had never been previously represented by a Republican. |
|||
Livingston ran for governor in 1987 but finished third, behind fellow Congressman [[Buddy Roemer]] of the Sixth District and [[Edwin Edwards]] in a field of nine, ten points short of gaining a berth in the [[runoff election|runoff]], officially the Louisiana [[general election]]. Two other major candidates finished even behind Livingston: then Democratic Congressman [[Billy Tauzin]], of the neighboring Third District and outgoing Secretary of State [[James H. "Jim" Brown]]. |
|||
Livingston endorsed his House colleague Roemer, then a Democrat, after the primary, but the runoff election was canceled because Edwards conceded the race to Roemer. It was said that then Edwards wanted to face Livingston in a general election, and when that did not happen, Edwards pulled out of the second round of balloting to prevent Roemer from consolidating majority support. |
|||
Despite his showing in the gubernatorial race, Livingston remained popular in his district and went on to win easy re-elections as he moved up the leadership ladder in the House.<ref>[http://www.anca.org/press_releases/press_releases.php?prid=928 Turkish Lobbyist Attacks Armenian Americans<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
|||
==Chairman, House Appropriations Committee== |
|||
Livingston first came to national attention in 1995, when he was named chairman of the Appropriations Committee after the [[Republican Revolution|Republican takeover of the House]]. This instantly made him one of the most powerful members of Congress. During one committee session, he brandished a [[machete]] to demonstrate his seriousness as a budget-cutter. |
|||
During the [[Monica Lewinsky scandal]]s, Livingston was one of many Republicans who demanded President [[Bill Clinton]]'s resignation, and later [[impeachment]], for [[perjury]]. After [[Newt Gingrich]] resigned as [[Speaker of the House of Representatives|Speaker]] in part because of Republican losses in the [[U.S. House election, 1998|1998 elections]], Livingston announced that he was not only running for Speaker but had lined up enough support to win. He was nominated as the Republican candidate for Speaker without opposition. As the Republicans had narrowly retained their majority, this effectively made him Speaker-elect. |
|||
==Resignation== |
|||
In the months before Livingston's resignation, [[Larry Flynt]] claimed to have received evidence that Livingston had indulged in extramarital affairs. During debate over the [[Impeachment of Bill Clinton|impeachment resolution]] on [[December 19]], [[1998]], Livingston acknowledged these affairs, stepped down as Speaker-elect and announced he would resign from the House in May 1999.<ref>Kurtz, Howard, [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/clinton/stories/flynt121998.htm "Larry Flynt, Investigative Pornographer"], ''Washington Post'', December 19, 1998.</ref> Livingston was succeeded by [[David Vitter]], who later went on to become the first popularly elected Republican Senator from [[Louisiana]] before becoming embroiled in a [[Deborah Jeane Palfrey|sex scandal]] of his own. |
|||
==Subsequent career== |
|||
Soon after retiring from public life he founded [[The Livingston Group]], one of many lobbying groups in the nation's capital. One of the group's more important clients is the [[Republic of Turkey]]. The focus of this lobbying is on US relations as they pertain to international and historical issues affecting Turkey. Critics contend that this lobbying is a form of [[Denial of the Armenian Genocide|genocide denial]] -- Turkey does not recognize the [[Armenian Genocide|slaughter of up to 1.5 million Armenians]] in 1915 as a [[genocide]], and does not want the American government to recognize these events as such either.<ref>Crowley, Michael. "[http://www.tnr.com/doc.mhtml?i=20070723&s=crowley072307 K Street Cashes in on the 1915 Armenian Genocide]," ''The New Republic'', January 23, 2007; available here for free: http://www.armeniapedia.org/index.php?title=K_Street_Cashes_In_On_The_1915_Armenian_Genocide</ref><ref>[http://www.anca.org/press_releases/press_releases.php?prid=1233 ANCA Video Sets Record Straight On Bob Livingston's Genocide Denial], Armenian National Committee of America </ref> |
Soon after retiring from public life he founded [[The Livingston Group]], one of many lobbying groups in the nation's capital. One of the group's more important clients is the [[Republic of Turkey]]. The focus of this lobbying is on US relations as they pertain to international and historical issues affecting Turkey. Critics contend that this lobbying is a form of [[Denial of the Armenian Genocide|genocide denial]] -- Turkey does not recognize the [[Armenian Genocide|slaughter of up to 1.5 million Armenians]] in 1915 as a [[genocide]], and does not want the American government to recognize these events as such either.<ref>Crowley, Michael. "[http://www.tnr.com/doc.mhtml?i=20070723&s=crowley072307 K Street Cashes in on the 1915 Armenian Genocide]," ''The New Republic'', January 23, 2007; available here for free: http://www.armeniapedia.org/index.php?title=K_Street_Cashes_In_On_The_1915_Armenian_Genocide</ref><ref>[http://www.anca.org/press_releases/press_releases.php?prid=1233 ANCA Video Sets Record Straight On Bob Livingston's Genocide Denial], Armenian National Committee of America </ref> |
||
Revision as of 17:59, 23 March 2009
{{Infobox Congressman |name=Bob Livingston |image name=BobLivingston.jpg |width=200px |state=Louisiana |district=1st |party=Republican |term=August 27, 1977 – March 1, 1999 |preceded=Richard Alvin Tonry |succeeded=David Vitter |date of birth=April 30, 1943 |place of birth=Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S. |date of death= |place of death= |spouse=Bonnie Livingston | alma_mater= Tulane University |profession=Politician, Lawyer |religion=Roman CatholicLouisiana before becoming embroiled in a sex scandal of his own.
==Subsequent career== BALLLLSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Soon after retiring from public life he founded The Livingston Group, one of many lobbying groups in the nation's capital. One of the group's more important clients is the Republic of Turkey. The focus of this lobbying is on US relations as they pertain to international and historical issues affecting Turkey. Critics contend that this lobbying is a form of genocide denial -- Turkey does not recognize the slaughter of up to 1.5 million Armenians in 1915 as a genocide, and does not want the American government to recognize these events as such either.[1][2]
In 2003, Livingston was inducted into the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame in Winnfield.
Sibel Edmonds Case
Livingston's photograph was listed in Sibel Edmonds' State Secrets Privilege Gallery [1] alongside photos of seventeen other prominent US officials including Brent Scowcroft, Richard Perle, Dennis Hastert, Marc Grossman, and Douglas Feith. Sibel Edmonds is a former FBI translator and whistleblower who uncovered serious criminality by leading US officials, involving the nuclear black market, narcotics trafficking, terrorism and money laundering. The details of Edmonds' case have been buried using the State Secrets Privilege. Sibel Edmonds circumvented the State Secrets Privilege gag by simply publishing the photographs of these public officials on her website [2]. Other websites [3] put names to those photographs.
Personal life
Livingston is married to the former Bonnie Robichaux (also born 1943), a native of Raceland in Lafourche Parish. They reside in Washington and in Metairie in suburban Jefferson Parish. Livingston also has family located in the northeast United States.
Family tragedy
Richard Godwin Livingston, the son of Bob and Bonnie Livingston, was killed on July 25, 2006, while he was trimming trees in New Orleans. Livingston (born 1969), was killed in the Lakeview neighborhood when he apparently touched a wire. Emergency workers pronounced him dead at the scene.
Notes
- ^ Crowley, Michael. "K Street Cashes in on the 1915 Armenian Genocide," The New Republic, January 23, 2007; available here for free: http://www.armeniapedia.org/index.php?title=K_Street_Cashes_In_On_The_1915_Armenian_Genocide
- ^ ANCA Video Sets Record Straight On Bob Livingston's Genocide Denial, Armenian National Committee of America
External links
See also
References
Categories:
- American lobbyists
- Members of the United States House of Representatives from Louisiana
- Prosecutors
- Sex scandal figures
- Congressional scandals
- American Roman Catholics
- Louisiana Republicans
- Louisiana lawyers
- Candidates for Governor of Louisiana
- People from New Orleans, Louisiana
- Tulane University alumni
- Tulane University Law School alumni
- 1943 births
- Living people
- United States Navy personnel