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About Bobby L. Rush
From raised fists of the Black Panther Party to
handshakes in the halls of Congress, the remarkable political journey of Bobby
Rush is marked by lifelong dedication to improving the quality of life for the
poor and the working men and women of Chicago.
Bobby Rush’s nationally-recognized leadership and
coalition-building skills transcend race, age and gender. He has inspired a
movement for change that has as its goal the creation of a city government for
and by the people and affordable city services for all.
Accomplishments of Bobby L. Rush
APPOINTMENTS:
- March 1995, appointed to the Congressional Black
Caucus Task Force to Preserve Affirmative Action
- January 1995, elected President of the
Democratic Class of 1992
- January 1995, appointed to 12-member Democratic
deputy whip organization
- January 1995, appointed to the House Commerce
Committee, an exclusive committee and the oldest standing committee in the
House
CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENT
House Committee on Commerce
- Serve as advocate and ally for Chicago business
community by promoting economic development and job creation endeavors
- Supported Securities Litigation Reform
legislation designed to provide protection for accounting firms, high-tech
companies, and securities exchanges from frivolous lawsuits
- Only Illinois Member appointed to the
House-Senate Conference Committee on the Communications Act of 1995, which was
the biggest rewrite in history of the nation's telecommunications laws
- Authored provision in the Communications Act of
1995 which seeks to eliminate market entry barriers for entrepreneurs and
small business owners who want to be active players in the telecommunications
industry
CONGRESSIONAL ACTIVITY ON BEHALF OF FIRST
CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT
105th Session of Congress:
- Convened town hall meeting to address the
concerns of the Englewood residents regarding the high number of sexual
offenders living in the community.
- Initiated a meeting with the Department of
Justice regarding alleged civil rights violations by the Chicago Police
Department against the citizens of Chicago.
- Brought $16 million of federal money into his
district for roadway improvement projects under ISTEA.
- Lead over 750 participants to City Hall in
protest of the draconian CTA service cuts.
- Assisted Alsip residents by having FEMA remove
Alsip fromthe Flood Zone Status list. This change means significantly lower
insurance costs for residents.
- Convened community meeting on resident
dissatisfaction with the Grand Crossing postal service.
- Introduced the Neighborhood Tobacco Advertising
Act which allows states and local governments to regulate the location of
cigarette billboard advertising.
- Held a Community job fair with over 800 job
seekers in attendance.
104th Session of Congress:
- Sponsored community workshop to discuss the
impact of Chicago's $100 million Empowerment Zone on the residents and
businesses in the 1st District
- Secured new suburban zip code for Evergreen
Park, bringing a twenty-year battle to an end
- Reconvened the Chicago Partnership for the
Earned Income Tax Credit, a diverse committee of business and civic leaders to
promote the use of the EITC by low- and middle-income families and
individuals.
- Held a community forum to seek input from
residents concerning $2.8 million renovations to the Green Line Tech/35th
Street "L" station
- Helped to establish five non-profit SeniorNet
Learning Centers in the Chicago metropolitan area to provide older Chicagoans
access to computers, telecommunications and other new technology
- Secured a 4-year, $2.2 billion U.S. Department
of Energy Contract for Argonne National Laboratory, thereby safeguarding more
than 4,000 jobs for Argonne employees, which is affiliated with the 1st
District's University of Chicago
- Helped to bring new computers and computer
software to Wirth Middle School in an effort to introduce students to new
technology and usher them in to the information age
- Convened a series of district-wide Town Hall
Meetings with District seniors to discuss the impact of budget cuts to
Medicare
- Secured over $6 million in emergency heat-relief
aid for Chicagoans felled by record high temperatures. The funds helped pay
cooling costs for thousands of elderly and low-income citizens
- Called for an immediate investigation of the
murder of homeless newspaper vendor Joseph Gould by an off-duty Chicago police
officer and led community protests over inadequate prosecution of the incident
by the States Attorney
- Launched debt relief program for Chicago area
federal employees affected by the Government Shutdown. The program involved
the participation of Chicago banks, mortgage companies, utility providers and
other businesses who agreed to provide no or low interest bank loans and
deferred billing for government employees left without paychecks.
- Established Lake Grove Village Fire Victims
Relief Fund following an extra alarm fire that left many residents homeless
- One of only two Illinois lawmakers to receive a
perfect 100 percent voting record from NETWORK, a National Catholic social
justice organization
- Intervened on behalf of the 100,000 Lithuanian
Americans in Chicago to prevent the closing of Chicago's honorary Lithuanian
consulate
- Continued support and sponsorship of the Chicago
Partnership of the Earned Income Tax Credit by helping to provide resources
and income tax preparation assistance to working families
- One of only four Illinois House members to
receive a rating of 90 or higher by the League of Conservation Voters on their
National Environmental Scoreboard
- Met with African-American local, state and
federal officials to discuss public-private partnerships aimed at cleaning up
contaminated and blighted urban industrial sights commonly known as
Brownfields
- Led more than 200 public housing residents in a
rally and march to protest Republican plan that would force low- and no-income
public housing residents to meet unaffordable rent requirements
- Took the lead in the effort to save from the
wrecking ball several historic properties that make up the Black Metropolis
known as Bronzeville. Initiated meeting on the issue with Mayor Daley
- Continued high tech outreach efforts to
constituents by launching a cable television program aimed at informing
constituents of the 1st District about issues and concerns that affect them in
Washington.
- Following the crash of ValuJet Flight 592,
introduced the Airline Passenger Safety Act of 1996 requiring the FAA to
comply with recommendations of the National Transportation Safety Board
governing the transport of chemical oxygen generators and other hazardous
materials on passenger and cargo aircraft. In Nov. 1996, the FAA implemented
these recommendations.
- Participated in Congressional Field Hearing in
Chicago to investigate the marketing abuses by Medicaid managed care programs
that take advantage of medicaid beneficiaries.
- Held meeting with Chicago public housing
residents and representatives and offered support over their concerns about
the City's revised public housing redevelopment and demolition plans
- Lead the effort to draw attention to the lack of
South Lakefront parks and neglected recreation areas in the wake of plans by
the city to replace Meigs Field with an unnecessary new park downtown
- Requested FAA officials to explain FAA's policy
reversal approving of the closure of Meigs Field and the potential affects of
this closing on communities near Midway airport
- Requested an audit by the U.S. General
Accounting Office on the effects of closing Meigs Field airport
- Brought James Johnson, U.S. Assistant Secretary
for Enforcement, Department of Treasury to Stateway Gardens public housing
development following a rash of gang violence there. Sponsored a meeting with
residents and urged Johnson to provide additional federal law enforcement
back-up from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
- Helped St. Bernard Hospital retain 200 much
needed professional foreign nurses by guiding legislation in the House to
extend the H1A Visa Program
- Obtained $4 million in funding through the FY
1997 Defense Appropriations for Illinois Institute of Technology's INFAC
program, a training and technical facility which assists small businesses
- Led the effort to include $8.5 million in the FY
1997 VA, HUD, Independent Agencies Appropriations bill for the Des Plaines
River System Tunnel and Reservoir Project (TARP) -- which will help prevent
flooding in the Chicago area and the release of sewage into Lake Michigan
NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY:
105th Session of Congress:
- Staved off attacks by telecommunication
companies to eliminate the Education Rate (E-rate) program. This program
provides discounts to poor schools and libraries for their telecommunication
services, including Internet service.
- Appointed chairman of the Congressional Urban
Caucus. He will lead members of Congress representing our country's largest
cities, in setting an urban agenda for the new millennium.
- Appointed member of the Congressional Caucus on
India and Indian-Americans. He will work to strengthen the relations between
the United States and India and will advocate the interests of
Indian-Americans.
- Received the Harold Washington Award for
excellence in coalition building at the 1998 Congressional Black Caucus
Foundation Awards dinner.
- Introduced the Microcredit bill (Program for
Investments in Microentrepreneurs---PRIME ACT) which provides funding for
training and technical assistance for small business entrepreneurs.
- Introduced a bill to amend title XVIII of the
Social Security Act to bar hospital limitations on emergency room workers
treating emergency cases in immediate vicinity of emergency room entrance.
- Introduced a bill to provide for programs to
develop and implement integrated cockroach management programs in urban
communities that are effective in reducing health risks to inner city
residents, especially children, suffering from asthma and asthma-related
illnesses.
- Introduced a bill to assist local governments
and local citizens' organizations in the assessment and remediation of
brownfield sites.
- Introduced a bill to preserve the eligibility
for Federal loans and guarantees of disabled children whose supplemental
security income benefits had been terminated.
- Co-sponsored of a major bill, The Imported Food
Safety Act of 1998, that will provide the Food and Drug Administration with
increased authority over imported food, including fresh fruits and vegetables.
104th Session of Congress:
Opposed OMNIBUS RESCISSIONS ACT; This legislation:
- Unfairly penalizes individuals most in need --
the elderly, young mothers and children, and students
- Eliminates $1.3 billion for the Low-Income Home
Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), leaving some 85,000 low-income and elderly
households in Chicago out in the cold
- Reduces funding to the Chicago Housing Authority
by nearly $8 billion, which will result greater numbers of homeless
Chicagoans, displaced citizens, as well as fewer opportunities for hundreds of
thousands of public housing residents
- Cuts funding to the WIC program which provides
nutritious food to pregnant women, infants and young children
- Drops 81,800 Illinois children from the school
lunch program
Opposed GOP WELFARE REFORM - PERSONAL
RESPONSIBILITY ACT; Voted against legislation that:
- Requires welfare recipients to work and yet does
not provide jobs, job training, child care or other assistance to help
individuals obtain and retain jobs
- Places a lifetime limit on AFDC benefits without
providing credit for time spent working
- Denies benefits to teen mothers, forcing them to
support themselves and their children rather than completing their educations
and achieving greater long-term earning capacity
- Relies on the states to invest in jobs programs
before authorizing matching federal funds. Illinois, which in the past has
demonstrated a lackluster commitment to investing state funds for jobs
programs, will potentially lose more than $130 million in federal funding
Withheld support for LOCAL GOVERNMENT LAW
ENFORCEMENT BLOCK GRANT ACT, which dismantles OMNIBUS CRIME ACT OF 1994
- Eliminates previously earmarked $7.5 billion
community policing grant
- Defunds crime prevention programs
- Allows local agencies to use federal monies as
they see fit instead of mandating that monies be used for additional police
hires
Supported MINIMUM WAGE INCREASE
- Increases the hourly minimum wage by 90 cents
from $4.25 to $5.15
- Calls for additional 40-cent increase on
September 1, 1997
Supported SECURITIES REFORM LEGISLATION
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Biography of Bobby L. Rush
Bobby Rush, 51, was born in Albany Georgia to Jimmy
Lee and Cora Rush on November 23, 1946. Seven years later, the Rush family moved
to Chicago and lived on the near north and west sides. Rush’s mother, Cora, was
a part-time teacher and owner of a beauty salon. Rush credits his mother, a
frequent volunteer in political campaigns, with instilling within him a
reverence for civic duty and responsibility.
As a young boy, Rush was a Boy Scout patrol leader
and member of the drum and bugle corps at the Wayman AME church in
Cabrini-Green. He attended Franklin elementary school and later, Marshall High
School. In 1963, at the age of 17, Rush enlisted in the United States Army. He
was honorably discharged in 1968.
Bobby Rush was an active participant in the
unprecedented Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's in an effort to secure basic
civil and human rights for African-Americans, women and others. He was a member
of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) from 1966 to 1968 and a
co-founder of the Illinois Black Panther Party in 1968. While a Black Panther,
he operated the Panther Party's Free Breakfast for Children program. He also
coordinated the Free Medical Clinic, which developed the nation's first mass
sickle cell anemia testing program. This visionary Panther initiative forced
America's health care providers to recognize the impact of sickle cell anemia on
the African-American community and to develop national research into its causes,
effects and solutions. This practice endures to this day.
Rush attended Roosevelt University and received a
bachelors degree with honors in 1973. In 1994, Rush completed his masters degree
in political science at the University of Illinois at Chicago and in 1998, he
received a second masters in theological studies from the McCormick Seminary.
Bobby Rush first held elective office as a member
of the Chicago city council, representing the 2nd Ward from 1983
until his election to the U.S. Congress in 1992. Alderman Rush distinguished
himself in the council as a strong advocate for handgun control, introducing
citywide ordinances banning automatic and semi-automatic weapons. As chair of
the council’s environmental committee, Rush was also instrumental in efforts to
crack down on toxic waste dumps in the city.
Rush’s arrival in the U.S. House of Representatives
on November 3, 1992 put Rush center stage nationwide. He brought his
Chicago-style knack for organizing and vote counting to the Congress, and as a
result, quickly gained recognition for his political effectiveness. The House
Democratic leadership successively appointed Rush to serve as part of the
Democratic whip organization and Rush’s Democratic colleagues in the class of
1992 elected him to two terms as class president. Bobby Rush was also appointed
by then speaker Thomas Foley to join the U.S. delegation to the North Atlantic
Assembly, an interparliamentary organization of NATO nations. Rush currently
serves as chairman of the Congressional Urban Caucus.
As a member of the influential House Committee on
Commerce and three of its subcommittees, the Subcommittee on Telecommunications,
Trade and Consumer Protection, and the Subcommittee on Energy and Power, Rush
weighs in on nearly three-quarters of legislation considered by Congress. He has
used his influence to help craft critical laws affecting everything from
healthcare to telecommunications. In 1996, Rush served as a conferee for the
historic Telecommunications Act of 1996, which eased previous restrictions and
opened local telephone, long distance service, and cable television to a new era
of competitiveness. Rush also authored a provision in the bill designed to
eliminate market entry barriers for small businesses and entrepreneurs. This
legislative achievement came on the heels of another unparalleled success Rush
enjoyed during his first term -- the signing into law of The Community
Development and Regulatory Act. This landmark community banking bill signed by
President Clinton was based largely on a plan then freshman Congressman Rush
introduced in the 103rd Congress.
Rush has also championed important local issues
such as job development and economic parity, community development and police
brutality. He initiated the Chicago Partnership for the Earned Income Tax
Credit, an ongoing program designed to help thousands of low-income working
Chicagoans receive federal tax credits and was instrumental in bringing a $100
million Empowerment Zone to Chicago to help spur neighborhood revitalization.
Congressman Rush has been married to his wife
Carolyn for 18 years.
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