Jack Bascom Brooks (born December 22, 1922) is a retired
DemocraticThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
politicianA politician or political leader is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making. This includes people who hold decision-making positions in government, and people who seek those positions, whether by means of election, coup d'état, appointment, electoral fraud, conquest,...
from the
U.S. stateA U.S. state is any one of 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government . Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile...
of
TexasTexas is the second-largest U.S. state in both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States.The name had wide usage among native Americans, meaning "friends" or "allies"...
, who served for more than 40 years in the
U.S. House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives, commonly referred to as the "House," is the lower house of the bicameral United States Congress, the upper house being the United States Senate. The composition and powers of the House and the Senate are established in Article One of the Constitution...
. He was defeated for reelection in the 1994 election. He is the most senior Representative to have ever lost a general election.
Early life
Brooks was born in
Crowley, LouisianaCrowley is a city in and the parish seat of Acadia Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 14,225 at the 2000 census. The city is noted for its annual International Rice Festival. Crowley has the nickname of "Rice Capital of America", because at one time it was a major center for...
. His family moved to Beaumont, Texas, when he was five years old. He attended public schools and received a
scholarshipA scholarship is an award of access to an institution, or a financial aid award for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
to
Lamar Junior CollegeLamar University is a comprehensive university offering bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees; located in Beaumont, Texas, and a member of The Texas State University System...
. He enrolled in Lamar in 1939, where he majored in
journalismJournalism is the craft of conveying news, descriptive material and comment via a widening spectrum of media. These include newspapers, magazines, radio and television, the internet and even, more recently, the mobile phone...
, and completed his first two years of college. When Brooks entered Congress, he sponsored a bill which would make Lamar a four-year institution. The bill failed, but the following year the necessary bill passed both houses. Brooks transferred to the
University of Texas at AustinThe University of Texas at Austin is a public research university located in Austin, Texas, United States, and is the flagship institution of The University of Texas System. The main campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol...
where he earned a
B.A.Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences or both....
in journalism in 1943 and was a member of the
Texas CowboysTexas Cowboys is an honorary service organization at the University of Texas in Austin.-Mission:To serve the University of Texas at Austin by promoting the spirit and high ideals of the Texas Cowboys, fostering positive relationships among all members of the University community, and assisting in...
. While a member of the Texas legislature, he earned a
law degreeA Law degree is the degree conferred on someone who successfully completes studies in law. However many law degrees are insufficient education for a license to practice law by the administrative body of that jurisdiction...
from the University of Texas at Austin, in 1949.
During
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Brooks enlisted in the
U.S. Marine CorpsThe United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States armed forces responsible for providing force projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to rapidly deliver combined-arms task forces. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
, serving for approximately two years in the Pacific theater on
GuadalcanalThe Guadalcanal Campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal, was fought between August 7, 1942 and February 9, 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific theater of World War II...
, Guam, Okinawa, and in North
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
. He continued his military service in the Marine Corps Reserves, reaching, upon his retirement in 1972, the rank of colonel.
Political involvement
In 1946, Brooks was elected to represent
Jefferson CountyJefferson County is a county located in the state of Texas, United States. As of 2000, the population was 252,051. Its county seat is Beaumont, and it is named for the former U.S...
in the
Texas LegislatureThe Legislature of the State of Texas is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. The legislature is a bicameral body composed of a 31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. The Legislature meets at the Capitol in Austin...
. He won re-election in 1948 without opposition.
In 1952, Brooks was elected to the
U.S. House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives, commonly referred to as the "House," is the lower house of the bicameral United States Congress, the upper house being the United States Senate. The composition and powers of the House and the Senate are established in Article One of the Constitution...
in Texas's
2nd districtTexas's 2nd congressional district of the United States House of Representatives is in the southeastern portion of the state of Texas. As of the 2000 census, District 2 represents 651,619 people....
as a
DemocratThe Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world. In the U.S...
. During the 1950s and 1960s he was one of the more liberal Southern Congressmen on issues like labor and civil rights (he refused to sign a
Southern ManifestoThe Southern Manifesto was a document written in February-March 1956 by legislators in the United States Congress opposed to racial integration in public places. The manifesto was signed by 101 politicians from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South...
) while remaining conservative on issues like the death penalty and gun control. In 1966, he changed to representing
Texas's 9th congressional districtTexas District 9 of the United States House of Representatives is a Congressional district that serves the southwestern portion of the Greater Houston area in Texas...
. Brooks was the chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Government Operations from 1975 through 1988 and the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary from 1989 until 1995. Brooks was one of the few Texas congressional supporters of liberal Democrat Sen.
Ralph YarboroughRalph Webster Yarborough was a Texas Democratic politician who served in the United States Senate and was a leader of the progressive or liberal wing of his party in his many races for statewide office. As a U.S...
.
JFK assassination
On November 22, 1963, Brooks was in the motorcade carrying President
John F. KennedyJohn Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
and his wife Jackie Kennedy through downtown Dallas,
TexasTexas is the second-largest U.S. state in both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States.The name had wide usage among native Americans, meaning "friends" or "allies"...
, when Kennedy was shot and killed. Brooks was present on
Air Force OneAir Force One is the official air traffic control call sign of any United States Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States...
at Dallas Love Field when then-
Vice PresidentA vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...
Lyndon B. JohnsonLyndon Baines Johnson , served as the 36th President of the United States from 1963 to 1969 after his service as the Vice President of the United States from 1961 to 1963...
was sworn in as President.
Iran-Contra Hearings: Exposure of FEMA's plan to suspend the U.S. Constitution through "Continuity of Government"
During the Iran-Contra Hearings, Brooks questioned Col. Oliver North about his involvement with "
Continuity of GovernmentContinuity of government is the principle of establishing defined procedures that allow a government to continue its essential operations in case of nuclear war or other catastrophic event....
". The questioning was abruptly cut off by the chairman and deemed a "a highly sensitive and classified area."
Congress
In 1965, Brooks sponsored the Act that opened up the government information technology market for competitive contracts, a move subsequently credited by computer experts as significantly contributing to technological advances and which, in 2002, was the reason for Brooks being selected as "Post Newsweek Tech Media’s civilian executive of the last twenty years" by the
Government Computer News.
Subsequently, in 1967, Brooks opposed the move of the US Patent Office to attempt to introduce guidelines for
software patentSoftware patent does not have a universally accepted definition. One definition suggested by the Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure is that a software patent is a "patent on any performance of a computer realised by means of a computer program".
[In 2005, the European...]
ability.
When the House first began requiring financial disclosures in the late 1970s, Brooks became known as one of the richest men in Congress, having acquired a number of banks and other businesses during his years in office.
During his congressional tenure, he held many leadership roles on committees and subcommittees, including chairmanship of the House Committee on Government Operations from 1975 through 1988, and chairmanship of the House Committee on the Judiciary between 1989 and 1995. He became the senior member of the Texas Congressional delegation in 1979, a position he held until he left office.
As a ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, Brooks helped write the
Civil Rights Act-United States federal legislation:* Civil Rights Act of 1866, extending the rights of emancipated slaves* Civil Rights Act of 1871, also known as the Ku Klux Klan Act...
of 1964 and the
Voting Rights ActThe National Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed discriminatory voting practices that had been responsible for the widespread disenfranchisement of African Americans in the United States. Echoing the language of the 15th Amendment, the Act prohibited states from imposing any "voting qualification...
of 1965; he was one of the few southern congressmen to support civil rights legislation. He was a leader in the investigation that uncovered millions of dollars in public funds expended at the vacation homes of President Nixon. During the impeachment proceedings following the
Watergate scandalThe Watergate scandal was a political scandal in the United States in the 1970s. Named for the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., effects of the scandal ultimately led to the resignation of Richard Nixon, President of the United States, on August 9, 1974...
in 1974, he drafted the articles of impeachment against Nixon, subsequently adopted by the Committee.
Among the bills sponsored by Congressman Brooks were the Single Audit Act of 1984, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Omnibus Crime Control Act of 1991, and the
Civil Rights Act of 1991The Civil Rights Act of 1991 is a United States statute that was passed in response to a series of United States Supreme Court decisions which limited the rights of employees who had sued their employers for discrimination...
.
As the leader of the Government Operations Committee, Brooks oversaw legislation affecting budget and accounting matters and the establishment of departments and agencies. He also helped pass the
Inspector General ActOffice of the Inspector General is an office that is part of Cabinet departments and independent agencies of the United States federal government as well as some state and local governments...
of 1978, the
General Accounting Office ActThe Government Accountability Office is the audit, evaluation, and investigative arm of the United States Congress. It is located in the legislative branch of the United States government....
of 1980, and the
Paper Reduction Act"Red tape" is a derisive term for excessive regulation or rigid conformity to formal rules that is considered redundant or bureaucratic and hinders or prevents action or decision-making...
of 1980.
In 1988, a law introduced by Brooks was passed, banning Japanese construction companies from participating in American public works projects for the next year. The rationale ostensibly justifying this legislation was that Japan had already placed obstacles before American construction companies seeking work in that country.
Brooks' sponsorship of the 1994
Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement ActThe Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, , , was an act of Congress dealing with crime and law enforcement that became law in 1994. It is the largest crime bill in the history of the US at 356 pages and will provide for 200,000 new police officers, $9.7 billion in funding for prisons and...
, which eventually was incorporated as an amendment with the Federal assault weapons ban, probably contributed to his electoral defeat by
RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the Grand Old Party or the GOP, despite being the younger of the two major parties. In the U.S...
Steve StockmanSteve Stockman is a Republican politician who represented Texas's 9th Congressional District between 1995 and 1997.- Biography :Stockman was born in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, near Detroit....
, despite Brooks's life membership in the
National Rifle AssociationThe National Rifle Association of America, or NRA, is an American non-partisan, non-profit organization which lists as its goals the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the...
and his personal opposition to the ban.
On his office desk, Brooks kept a silver paperweight with the inscription "Fighting Marine".
The gavel used by Brooks in the Judiciary Committee was made from wood taken from the podium used for President Nixon's resignation speech.
Political retirement
A park in
Galveston CountyGalveston County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. As of the 2007 U.S. Census estimate, the population was 283,987. Its county seat is Galveston...
and a federal courthouse in
Beaumont, TexasBeaumont is a city in and county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 113,866 at the 2000 census. With Port Arthur and Orange, it forms the Golden Triangle, a major industrial area on the Gulf...
are named in his honor. There is a statue of him at Lamar University.
On April 23, 2001,
NASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an agency of the United States government, responsible for the nation's public space program. NASA was established by the National Aeronautics and Space Act on July 29, 1958, replacing its predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for...
Administrator
Daniel GoldinDaniel Saul Goldin served as the 9th and longest-tenured Administrator of NASA from April 1, 1992, to November 17, 2001. He was appointed by President George H. W. Bush and served under three presidential administrations....
presented the agency’s highest honor, the
Distinguished Service MedalThe NASA Distinguished Service Medal is the highest award which may be bestowed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration of the United States...
to Brooks at a ceremony in the John Gray Center of Lamar University. Goldin cited Brooks’ long-standing support of the U.S. space program and praised his role in “strengthening the agency during its formative years”. Goldin, who served as NASA administrator from 1992 until 2002, added “Congressman Brooks took it upon himself to personally deliver support to one of the agency’s key programs: the design, development, and on-orbit assembly of the
International Space StationThe International Space Station is an internationally developed research facility currently being assembled in Low Earth Orbit. On-orbit construction of the station began in 1998 and is scheduled to be completed by 2011, with operations continuing until at least 2015...
”.
In 2008, Brooks donated his archives to the Center for American History, of the
University of Texas at AustinThe University of Texas at Austin is a public research university located in Austin, Texas, United States, and is the flagship institution of The University of Texas System. The main campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol...
.
Personal life
Jack Brooks married Charlotte Collins in 1960. The couple’s three children are Jeb Brooks, Kate Brooks Carroll, and Kim Brooks; their grandchildren are Matthew Carroll and Brooke Carroll. Jack Brooks continues to live in Beaumont, Texas. He is a 50-year member of Beaumont Lodge #286 A.F. & A.M.
See also
- Texas politics
For approximately 100 years, from the end of Reconstruction until the 1970s, the Democratic Party was dominant in Texas politics. However, since the 1970s the Republican Party has grown more prominent within the state, and is now the state's dominant political party...
- Iran-Contra Affair
The Iran–Contra affair was a political scandal in the United States which came to light in November 1986, during the Reagan administration, in which senior US figures agreed to facilitate the sale of arms to Iran, the subject of an arms embargo, to secure the release of hostages and to fund...
- Firearms legislation in the U.S.
The Second Amendment to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights that protects a right to keep and bear arms. The Second Amendment was adopted on December 15, 1791, along with the rest of the Bill of Rights...
External links