Paul Broun

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Paul Collins Broun, Jr. (born December 7, 1946)^[1] is a Republican United States Representative from Georgia's 10th congressional district. He is a member of the House Homeland Security Committee and the House Science & Technology Committee.

[edit] Legislation

Congressman Broun introduced a military anti-pornography bill into the House of Representatives. The bill is meant to stem the sales of pornography on U.S military installations. This bill basically notes that the there should be no loopholes in a former piece of legislation (Title 10 of the United States code), effectively banning military personnel from viewing pornography (Now entitled the "Military Honor and Decency Act").^[2] According to Broun's website, legislation will only be passed based on his "Four Way Test", which includes, "1) Is it moral/right?, 2) Is it constitutional?, 3) Is it necessary?, and 4) Is it affordable?".^[3]

[edit] Personal

Broun was born in Athens, Georgia, the son of Democratic Georgia state senator Paul Broun, Sr. (1916–2005), who represented Athens and the surrounding area from 1963 to 2001. The younger Broun is a graduate of the University of Georgia at Athens and earned his medical degree from the PCU. He and his wife, the former Niki Bronson, have two adult daughters and a teenaged son.

[edit] Political career

Broun grew up as a Democrat, but became a Republican sometime in the 1980s. He was previously a candidate for the U.S. House in 1990, losing to Democratic incumbent Richard Ray, and for the U.S. Senate in 1996, losing the Republican primary.^[4]

Broun was one of the top two vote-getters in a June 2007 special congressional election to fill the seat vacated by the late Charlie Norwood. The first place finisher, State Senator Jim Whitehead, more than doubled Broun's vote total, and Broun had only 198 votes more than the third-place finisher.

In the runoff campaign, Whitehead angered some voters by failing to appear at a debate held in Athens and then by referring to his alma mater, the University of Georgia, as a "liberal bastion" that should be bombed, save for the football team.^[5] In the runoff election held on July 17, 2007, Broun upset Whitehead by 0.8 percent, fewer than 400 votes. Broun's victory could be attributed to his margin of more than 4,500 votes in Athens-Clarke County, where he received over 89 percent of the vote,^[6] likely due to Whitehead's comments about the area, causing Democrats to vote overwhelmingly for Broun.^{[citation needed]} After the votes were certified, Whitehead declined to ask for a recount despite the narrow margin.^[5] On July 25, 2007, Broun was sworn in by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.^[7]

[edit] Committee assignments

• Committee on Homeland Security
  • Subcommittee on Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection
  • Subcommittee on Emerging Threats, Cybersecurity, and Science and Technology
• Committee on Science and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation
  • Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• U.S. House website
• SourceWatch Congresspedia — Paul Broun profile