Kay Granger
Kay Granger | |
---|---|
Chair of the House Appropriations Committee | |
In office January 3, 2023 – April 10, 2024 | |
Preceded by | Rosa DeLauro |
Succeeded by | Tom Cole |
Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee | |
In office January 3, 2019 – January 3, 2023 | |
Preceded by | Nita Lowey |
Succeeded by | Rosa DeLauro |
Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference | |
In office January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2009 | |
Leader | John Boehner |
Preceded by | Jack Kingston |
Succeeded by | Cathy McMorris Rodgers |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 12th district | |
Assumed office January 3, 1997 | |
Preceded by | Pete Geren |
41st Mayor of Fort Worth | |
In office May 21, 1991 – December 19, 1995 | |
Preceded by | Bob Bolen |
Succeeded by | Jewell Woods (acting) |
Personal details | |
Born | Norvell Kay Mullendore January 18, 1943 Greenville, Texas, U.S. |
Political party | Republican |
Children | 3 |
Education | Texas Wesleyan University (BA) |
Website | House website |
Norvell Kay Granger (née Mullendore; born January 18, 1943)[1] is an American politician from the U.S. state of Texas serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 12th congressional district since 1997. She is a member of the Republican Party, and was chair of the United States House Committee on Appropriations from 2023 to 2024.
A former teacher and businesswoman, Granger is the first Republican woman to represent Texas in the U.S. House. After serving on the zoning commission of Fort Worth, Texas, in 1991 she was elected the city's first female mayor; she served two terms.
Early life
[edit]Granger was born in Greenville, Texas, and grew up in Fort Worth. She attended local public schools and graduated from Eastern Hills High School in 1961. She graduated from Texas Wesleyan University in 1965.[2]
U.S. House of Representatives
[edit]Elections
[edit]After Congressman Pete Geren announced he would retire in 1996, both the Democratic and Republican parties worked to recruit Granger to run for his seat.[3] Republicans were bullish on their chances of winning Texas's 12th congressional district. It had once been represented by Democratic Speaker of the House Jim Wright, but legislative redistricting after the 1990 census had added areas with more Republican residents.[citation needed]
Granger ran as a Republican. She won handily, taking 56% of the vote against Democratic nominee Hugh Parmer, also a former Fort Worth mayor. She was reelected in 1998 and faced serious opposition only in 2000. In 2008, Granger defeated Democratic nominee Tracey Smith with 67% of the vote.
In 2006 Granger published What's Right About America, Celebrating Our Nation's Values, a book reflecting on lessons from prominent figures of U.S. history.[citation needed] That year, she was reelected to her sixth term in Congress, and was elected Conference Vice Chair, the fourth-ranking position among House Republicans. She previously served as chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State-Foreign Operations. She also sat on the United States House Committee on Appropriations's Subcommittee on Defense (the first woman to do so), and the Labor, Health, Human Services, and Education Subcommittee. She has also served as a House Deputy Whip.[citation needed]
On September 25, 2007, Granger endorsed former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney in the Republican presidential primary.[4] She also took the position of national co-chair of the campaign organization Women for Mitt, filling a vacancy left by the death of Jennifer Dunn.[5] In a statement to the press following her endorsement, she said that she had heard Romney speak and "I agreed with everything he said, in the order he said it."[citation needed]
She is a member of the International Republican Institute's[6] and Southwestern University's board of directors. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the board of trustees for the Harry S. Truman Scholarship foundation.[citation needed]
Tenure
[edit]Granger is the first Republican woman to sit on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense Appropriations, and became chair after Republicans won the House majority in the 2022 elections.[7] She is the third consecutive woman to chair the committee, and the first Republican woman to do so.
Granger is a member of the Ripon Society, a moderate Republican group.[8][9] The Washington Post described her as socially centrist, but fiscally conservative.[10] Heritage Action, a conservative PAC, gave her a score of 59% conservative during the 115th Congress and a 57% lifetime score.[11] In 2017, the Americans for Democratic Action, a liberal PAC, gave her a 15% rating.[12] She has an 83% lifetime rating from the American Conservative Union.[13] In 2013, the National Journal, a nonpartisan organization, gave Granger a composite political ideology score of 73% conservative and 27% liberal.[12] According to FiveThirtyEight, as of February 2020, she had voted with President Trump's position on legislative issues about 97% of the time.[14] As of October 2021, she had voted with President Biden's position on legislative issues about 11% of the time.[15]
Granger was not present at Trump's second impeachment, on January 13, 2021, due to being diagnosed with COVID-19, and was one of four Republicans who did not vote, but said she opposed impeachment.[16][17]
On October 31, 2023, it was reported that she would not run for re-election in 2024.[18] On March 22, 2024, she announced that she would be stepping down as chair of the House Appropriations Committee early.[19]
Reversal of position on abortion
[edit]Granger formerly supported abortion rights[20][21][22][23] and Roe v. Wade.[24][25] She reversed her position in 2020, asserting that she is now anti-abortion and signing an amicus brief asking the Supreme Court to overturn Roe.[26][27]
Granger's abortion reversal was especially significant given the fact that her 1996 campaign had been promoted by The WISH List, a pro-abortion rights PAC.[28][29][30] The WISH List also supported her 2008 campaign.[31] Granger has received mixed ratings from groups that support legal abortion.[21] Prior to 2020, Granger had supported embryonic stem-cell research and voted against banning "chemically induced abortions."[32][33][34][35] As of 2013, she supported banning abortion after 20 weeks,[36] but asserted that abortion was not her top issue.[37] In 2017, she declined to cosponsor a bill to ban abortion after six weeks.[38] Granger has voted for several spending bills that have included funding for Planned Parenthood, including some introduced in 2018.[39] In 2018, she had introduced legislation banning federal funding for abortion with exceptions for cases of rape, incest, or to save the life of the woman.[40] In 2019, she signed a letter to President Trump urging him to "veto any appropriations bill that weakens current pro-life protections".[41] Also in 2019, Granger was endorsed by Texas Alliance for Life, an anti-abortion movement PAC,[42][better source needed] and by Susan B. Anthony List.[43][better source needed]
Israel
[edit]Granger voted to support Israel following the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.[44][45]
Other issues
[edit]Granger has voted several times in favor of an amendment to the United States Constitution to make it a crime to physically desecrate the American flag. She supported the Federal Marriage Amendment to define marriage as only permitted between a man and a woman, and also opposed letting same-sex couples adopt children.[46] Granger was one of four Republicans in the House not to vote for or against repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell, though she previously voted against other repeal proposals.[47][48] In 2017, she said she had "no comment" in response to Trump's decision to ban transgender troops from the military.[49] She did not vote for or against legislation opposing the ban of transgender troops.[48]
In June 2013, Granger was among the members of Congress to vote for an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 to restrict the Pentagon from entering into new contracts with Russia's state arms broker, Rosoboronexport.[50] In 2015, she opposed Trump's candidacy, saying, “He definitely should not be considered to speak for our nation as our president.”[51] In 2020, she endorsed Trump and was endorsed by Trump.[52]
Granger was part of a group of eight Republicans who spent July 4, 2018, meeting with Russian officials in advance of Trump's summit with Vladimir Putin.
During her tenure, Granger has supported more than $50 million in earmarks to infrastructure projects in Fort Worth that benefited the Trinity River Vision Authority, an organization her son heads.[53]
Committee assignments
[edit]Caucus memberships
[edit]- Anti-Terrorism Caucus (Co-Chair)
- United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus[54]
- Iraqi Women's Caucus (Co-Chair)
- Sportsmen's Caucus
- Congressional Arts Caucus[55]
- U.S.-Japan Caucus[56]
- House Baltic Caucus[57]
- Congressional NextGen 9-1-1 Caucus[58]
- Republican Study Committee[59]
Personal life
[edit]Granger has three children and five grandchildren.[60] She is a member of the United Methodist Church.[60]
Honors
[edit]- In August 2007, Kay Granger Elementary School, named in her honor, opened in far north Fort Worth in the Northwest Independent School District.
- Kay Granger Park was named for her. It is a city park next to Mullendore Elementary, named for her mother, which opened several years earlier in North Richland Hills.
- She was elected to the Texas Women's Hall of Fame and the Fort Worth Business Hall of Fame.
- She received the National Federation of Independent Businesses' Champion of Small Business Award; the Manufacturing Legislative Excellence Award from the National Association of Manufacturers; and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Greater Fort Worth Home Builders Association.
- In 1993, her high school recognized Granger as a distinguished alumnus.[61]
Electoral history
[edit]Year | Democratic | Votes | Pct | Republican | Votes | Pct | Other | Party | Votes | Pct | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1996 | Hugh Parmer | 69,859 | 41.04% | Kay Granger | 98,349 | 57.78% | Heather Proffer | Natural Law | 1,996 | 1.17% | ||||
1998 | Tom Hall | 39,084 | 36.28% | Kay Granger | 66,740 | 61.94% | Paul Barthel | Libertarian | 1,917 | 1.78% | ||||
2000 | Mark Greene | 67,612 | 35.98% | Kay Granger | 117,739 | 62.66% | Ricky L. Clay | Independent | 2,565 | 1.36% | ||||
2002 | Kay Granger | 121,208 | 91.87% | Edward A. Hanson | Libertarian | 10,723 | 8.13% | |||||||
2004 | Felix Alvarado | 66,316 | 27.68% | Kay Granger | 173,222 | 72.32% | ||||||||
2006 | John R. Morris | 45,676 | 31.09% | Kay Granger | 98,371 | 66.95% | Gardner Osborne | Libertarian | 2,888 | 1.97% | ||||
2008 | Tracey Smith | 82,250 | 30.60% | Kay Granger | 181,662 | 67.59% | Shiloh Sidney Shambaugh | Libertarian | 4,842 | 1.8% | ||||
2010 | Tracey Smith | 38,434 | 25.13% | Kay Granger | 109,882 | 71.86% | Matthew Solodow | Libertarian | 4,601 | 3.01% | ||||
2012 | Dave Robinson | 66,080 | 26.68% | Kay Granger | 175,649 | 70.91% | Matthew Solodow | Libertarian | 5,983 | 2.42% | ||||
2014 | Mark Greene | 41,757 | 26.31% | Kay Granger | 113,186 | 71.31% | Ed Colliver | Libertarian | 3,787 | 2.39% | ||||
2016 | Bill Bradshaw | 76,029 | 26.85% | Kay Granger | 196,482 | 69.40% | Ed Colliver | Libertarian | 10,604 | 3.75% | ||||
2018 | Vanessa Adia | 90,994 | 33.89% | Kay Granger | 172,557 | 64.27% | Jacob Leddy | Libertarian | 4,940 | 1.84% | ||||
2020 | Lisa Welch | 121,250 | 33.04% | Kay Granger | 233,853 | 63.72% | Trey Holcomb | Libertarian | 11,918 | 3.25% | ||||
2022 | Trey Hunt | 85,026 | 35.73% | Kay Granger | 152,953 | 64.27% |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Texas Department of State Health Services, Texas Birth Index, 1903-1997, roll number: 1943_0008
- ^ "Bioguide Search".
- ^ Cottle, Michelle (January 24, 2014). "When Wendy Davis Was a Republican". The Daily Beast. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
- ^ "Mitt Romney's Free and Strong America PAC". Mittromney.com. November 9, 2009. Archived from the original on February 15, 2008. Retrieved August 29, 2010.
- ^ Granger endorses Romney and will co-chair Women for Mitt | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas-Fort Worth Politics | The Dallas Morning News Archived October 3, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ International Republican Institute web site, accessed July 16, 2010. Archived April 28, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "About". Congresswoman Kay Granger. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
- ^ "Advisory Board". The Ripon Society. July 10, 2014. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
- ^ "History". The Ripon Society. July 10, 2014. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
- ^ "Kay Granger (R-Tex.)". The Washington Post.
- ^ America, Heritage Action For (April 20, 2019). "Heritage Action for America". Heritage Action For America. Retrieved April 21, 2019.
- ^ a b "The Voter's Self Defense System". Vote Smart. Retrieved April 21, 2019.
- ^ "ACU Ratings". ACU Ratings. Archived from the original on September 21, 2020. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ Bycoffe, Aaron (January 30, 2017). "Tracking Congress In The Age Of Trump". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ Bycoffe, Anna Wiederkehr and Aaron (April 22, 2021). "Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
- ^ Cai, Weiyi; Daniel, Annie; Gamio, Lazaro; Parlapiano, Alicia (January 13, 2021). "Impeachment Results: How Democrats and Republicans Voted". The New York Times.
- ^ "For the record, Fort Worth Rep. Kay Granger also opposed impeachment of Trump". January 14, 2021.
- ^ "Kay Granger confirms she won't run again for Congress". November 2023.
- ^ "U.S. Rep. Kay Granger to step down from powerful House appropriations leadership position". March 22, 2024.
- ^ Ethridge, Emily (2015). Powerful Women: The 25 Most Influential Women in Congress (PDF). eBook: CQ Roll Call. p. 17.
- ^ a b "The Voter's Self Defense System". Vote Smart. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
- ^ "The Voter's Self Defense System". Vote Smart. September 25, 2007. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
- ^ "Kay Granger - Candidate for U.S. President, Republican Nomination - Election 2012". WSJ.com. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
- ^ "Election 2008: Who People in Texas Should Vote For". Esquire. October 16, 2008. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
- ^ Ford, Lynne E. (2008). Encyclopedia of Women and American Politics. New York City: Facts on File Inc. p. 216. ISBN 9780816054916.
- ^ Stolberg, Sheryl Gay (January 2, 2020). "More Than 200 Republicans Urge Supreme Court to Weigh Overturning Roe v. Wade". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
- ^ Tinsley, Anna (February 10, 2020). "Kay Granger has Trump's support. Here's why it might not be enough to win her primary". Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
- ^ "Republican Women Congressional Candidates | C-SPAN.org". C-SPAN. Retrieved January 27, 2020.
- ^ "AllPolitics - Congressional Races - Texas District 12". CNN. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
- ^ "AllPolitics/CQ - Freshmen of the 105th Congress". CNN. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
- ^ "Wish List: All Recipients | OpenSecrets". www.opensecrets.org. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
- ^ Perks, Ashley (September 16, 2008). "The struggling, single mother of three who worked her way up in the House". The Hill. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
- ^ Malhi, Sabrina (September 11, 2018). "The stakes are sky-high for the pro-life cause in the upcoming midterms". The Hill. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
- ^ Levine, Samantha; Bureau, Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle Washington (May 25, 2005). "House votes to expand stem cell research". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
{{cite web}}
:|last2=
has generic name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "The Voter's Self Defense System". Vote Smart. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ "Republican Women Cringe As Men Lead Abortion Fight". BuzzFeed News. July 9, 2013. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
- ^ "Republican Women Cringe As Men Lead Abortion Fight". BuzzFeed News. July 9, 2013. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
- ^ "House panel considers banning abortions at six weeks". Dallas News. November 1, 2017. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
- ^ "Chris Putnam Primary Bid Receives Big Endorsement, Attack Ads Purchased Targeting Rep. Kay Granger". The Texan. January 23, 2020. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
- ^ Granger, Kay (September 28, 2018). "H.R.6157 - 115th Congress (2017-2018): Department of Defense and Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Act, 2019 and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2019". www.congress.gov. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
- ^ "Letter to the Hon. Donald J. Trump, President of the United States - Lawmakers Urge the President to Veto Any Appropriations Bill that Weakens Current Pro-Life Protections". Votesmart.org. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
- ^ "Texas Alliance for Life Releases First Round of Endorsements for Federal Offices". Kay Granger for Congress. December 19, 2019. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
- ^ "SBA List Candidate Fund Endorses Kay Granger for Congress in TX-12". Susan B. Anthony List. January 6, 2020. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
- ^ Demirjian, Karoun (October 25, 2023). "House Declares Solidarity With Israel in First Legislation Under New Speaker". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
- ^ Washington, U. S. Capitol Room H154; p:225-7000, DC 20515-6601 (October 25, 2023). "Roll Call 528 Roll Call 528, Bill Number: H. Res. 771, 118th Congress, 1st Session". Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Kay Granger on the Issues". www.ontheissues.org. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
- ^ "H.R. 2965 (111th): Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of ... -- House Vote #638 -- Dec 15, 2010". GovTrack.us. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ a b "The Voter's Self Defense System". Vote Smart. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ Livingston, Abby; Samuels, Alex; Essig, Chris (July 27, 2017). "Where do Texans in Congress stand on Trump's ban on transgender troops?". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
- ^ Bowser-Soder, Brenda (June 14, 2013). "House Agrees to Amendment to Restrict U.S. Contracts with Syrian Regime Weapons Supplier". Human Rights First. Archived from the original on July 20, 2013. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
- ^ "Texas Congresswoman to Trump: Have You No Decency?". Roll Call. July 21, 2015. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ "Trump endorses Kay Granger, says she's 'strong supporter' of his agenda". Dallas News. December 17, 2019. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ^ "Public projects, private interests". The Washington Post. February 7, 2012. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
- ^ "Our Members". U.S. House of Representatives International Conservation Caucus. Archived from the original on August 1, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ "Membership". Congressional Arts Caucus. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
- ^ "Members". U.S. - Japan Caucus. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
- ^ "Members". House Baltic Caucus. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
- ^ "Members". Congressional NextGen 9-1-1 Caucus. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
- ^ "Member List". Republican Study Committee. Archived from the original on January 1, 2019. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
- ^ a b "About". Congresswoman Kay Granger. December 3, 2012. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
- ^ Kay Granger, USA Centers for Global Commercial & Investment Relations. Retrieved October 25, 2007. Archived July 17, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "HISTORICAL ELECTIONS - OFFICIAL RESULTS". Texas Secretary of State. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
- ^ "Texas Election Results - Official Results". Texas Secretary of State. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
External links
[edit]- Congresswoman Kay Granger official U.S. House website
- Kay Granger for Congress
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
- Legislation sponsored at the Library of Congress
- Profile at Vote Smart
- Profile at the Texas Tribune
- 1943 births
- 21st-century American women politicians
- American Methodists
- Female members of the United States House of Representatives
- International Republican Institute
- Living people
- Mayors of Fort Worth, Texas
- Methodists from Texas
- People from Greenville, Texas
- Protestants from Texas
- Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas
- Women mayors of places in Texas
- 21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives