The first time I
ever saw Congressman John D. Dingell, Jr. I was riding the subway from the House office buildings over
to the Capital Building. As I was riding, I saw an older gentleman riding a
power scooter along the walking path parallel to the subway tracks. I wondered
who this man was zipping along going faster than the subway. I later learned it
was Congressman Dingell, representative for Michigan’s 12th district
and he was on he way to the House floor to give a speech opposing fracking in
the Great Lakes region. I know this because I was on my way to the House
gallery and saw him give this speech. From the way he presented his argument
you could tell he was a seasoned politician, it would only be from doing
research on him I would learn how seasoned John Dingell really is.
John Dingell is a
congressman that comes with many titles. He is the longest-serving member of
Congress, the longest-currently-serving member of Congress, longest ever to
serving exclusively in the House, and the longest-serving Dean of the House of
Representatives. If you notice every one of those titles has the word ‘longest
’ in the name that is because Dingell has been serving in the House for over 57
years. He entered Congress in 1955 and has never left. But Dingell’s political
journey began before 1955, from an early age he was exposed to Congress and
Washington politics; this would go on to have a large impact on his life.
John D. Dingell,
Jr. was born June 8, 1926 in Colorado Springs, Colorado and is the son of a
former House representative, John D. Dingell Sr., who served Michigan’s 15th
district from 1933-1955. Because his father was a congressman, John Dingell,
Jr. was in the political sphere from an early age. His family lived in
Dearborn, Michigan, but Dingell spent a lot of time in Washington D.C. During
his youth he was page for the House of Representatives from 1938-1944 right in
the middle of his father’s years of service. After Dingell was elected in 1955,
the Detroit News
reported: "Rep. Dingell (Jr.) believes every Member of Congress should
start his Capitol Hill career as a page boy. 'It's the best training in the
world! A page knows what's going on in government at an age when most boys can
talk only about sports and dates and cars.'" (Detroit News, 1.21.59) He
later attended undergrad and law school at Georgetown University. Dingell is also a veteran
serving in World War Two and attended Georgetown on the GI bill.
So how did Dingell end up
serving in Congress for 57 years? After the death of father in 1955, he won a
special election as the Democratic candidate to fill the seat until 1956. From
there he went on to win the seat again and has hold it ever since.
Environmental concerns has always been an expertise of his, “writing the
Endangered Species Act, the 1990 Clean Air Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act,
and legislation to build North America's first international wildlife refuge.”
(http://dingell.house.gov/about-me/full-biography)
Congressman Dingell has gone on to accomplish a lot in his career and still
continues to be an advocate for the environment, civil rights, and healthcare.
Dingell
currently sits on six committees: House Energy and Commerce
Committee, the Subcommittee
on Health, the Subcommittee
on Communications and Technology, the Subcommittee
on Commerce, Manufacturing & Trade, and the Subcommittee
on Environment and the Economy. He also continues his duties as Dean
of the House of Representatives, which is an honorary position that swears in
the Speaker of the House when he or she is elected in.
Source: www.dingell.house.gov
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