David Scott (Georgia politician)

David Scott
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's 13th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2003
Preceded by	None (New District Created After 2000 Census)
Personal details
Born	David Albert Scott June 27, 1945 Aynor, South Carolina
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Alfredia Scott
Residence	Atlanta, Georgia
Alma mater	Florida A&M University, University of Pennsylvania
Occupation	advertising executive
Religion	Baptist

David Albert Scott (born June 27, 1945) is the U.S. Representative for Georgia's 13th congressional district, serving since 2003. The district includes the southern fourth of Atlanta, as well as several of its suburbs to the south and west. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life and education

Scott was born in Loris, South Carolina and attended high school in Daytona Beach, Florida. He received a bachelor's degree in finance from Florida A&M University, and a master's degree in business from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Scott is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.^[1]

Georgia Legislature

Scott served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 1974 to 1982 and in the Georgia State Senate from 1982 to 2002.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

• Committee on Agriculture
  • Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management
  • Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry
• Committee on Financial Services
  • Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit
  • Subcommittee on International Monetary Policy and Trade
• NATO Parliamentary Assembly

Party leadership

• Co-Chair of the Democratic Study Group on National Security

Scott is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition and the New Democrat Coalition.^[1]

Scott was the lead sponsor on the following legislation:

• The Financial Literacy Act - an act to provide education to investors and home buyers
• The Access to Healthcare Insurance Act, extending affordable healthcare coverage
• The Extension for Unemployment Benefits and the Overtime Pay Protection Acts
• The Moment of Silence Act for reflection or prayer at the start of each school day in the nation's public schools
• The Retired Pay Restoration Act, giving veterans both retirement and disability pay
• The Zero Down Payment Act which eliminates the down payment requirement for middle and low income families who buy homes with a FHA insured mortgages
• The Mutual Fund Integrity Act which strengthens regulations of the stock market

Political positions

Online gambling

Scott is a staunch advocate of a federal prohibition of online poker. In 2006, he cosponsored H.R. 4777, the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act^[2] and voted for H.R. 4411, the Goodlatte-Leach Internet Gambling Prohibition Act.^[3] In 2008, he opposed H.R. 5767, the Payment Systems Protection Act (a bill that sought to place a moratorium on enforcement of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act while the U.S. Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve defined "unlawful Internet gambling").

Healthcare Reform

David Scott voted for healthcare reform. In the discussion leading up to his vote, Congressman Scott fielded several different points of view. On August 6, 2009, Scott was confronted by a local doctor who claimed to live in Scott's district. The doctor, who later appeared in subsequent debates with his opposition candidate, asked Scott why he was going to vote for a health care plan similar to the plan implemented in Massachusetts and if he supported a government-provided health care insurance option. Scott questioned whether or not the doctor was a resident of Scott's district, although the local TV station WXIA-TV's news department confirmed that the doctor did live and work in Scott's district.^[4] Scott also noted that Dr. Hill had not called Scott's office for setting up a meeting concerning health care but this has not been verified.^[5] Scott has allegedly received death threats from neoconservative activists.^[6] A swastika was found spray painted on a sign outside of his congressional office in his congressional district, reportedly painted by neoconservative activists. An investigation is underway.^[7]

Fiscal policy

Although Scott voted against the first version of the 2008 bailout, he backed the final version "after being assured the legislation would aid homeowners facing foreclosures. Scott crafted an added provision dedicating $14 billion to aid those homeowners."^[8]

Same-sex marriage

Scott supported two failed pieces of legislation in 2004 and 2006 that aimed to establish a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.^[8][9] However, in May 2013 thinkprogress.org reported receiving an email from a spokesman of Scott saying, 'Congressman Scott fully supports marriage equality.'^[10] HRC's profile of Scott also contains this sentence as his statement under 'position on marriage equality'.^[11]

Iran deal

Scott has announced his opposition to the nuclear deal with Iran, saying that “It’s a good deal for Iran, for Russia, China and probably Hezbollah, but is it not, definitely not a good deal for Israel or for the United States or our allies – especially Jordan and Saudi Arabia . . . ” ^[12]

Personal life

David Scott is brother-in-law to baseball hall of fame member Hank Aaron.

In 1978 David Scott founded owned Dayn-Mark Advertising (from the names of his two daughters, Dayna and Marcie), which places billboards and other forms of advertising in the Atlanta area. Scott's wife, Alfredia, now heads the business. In May 2007, it was reported that the business owes more than $150,000 in back taxes and penalties.^[13] Scott's campaigns have paid the company more than $500,000 over the eight years totalling from 2002 until current date - for office rent, printing, T-shirts, and other services. He has also paid his wife, two daughters, and son-in-law tens of thousands of dollars for campaign work such as fund raising and canvassing. In 2007, Scott was named one of the 25 most corrupt members of Congress by the political watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.^[14]

References

1. "Representative David Scott (GA)". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved 2008-06-06.
2. Thomas (Library of Congress): HR 4777
3. Thomas (Library of Congress): HR 4411
4. Carpenter, Amanda. "Georgia Democrat yells at local doctor over health care". Washington Times. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
5. Dixon, Duffie. "Congressman Scott's Town Hall Meeting". WXIA TV website. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
6. Boone, Christian (2010-03-30). "Georgia congressman says he's received death threats". ajc.com. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
7. Weiner, Rachel (2009-08-11). "Swastika Painted On Rep. David Scott's Office Door". Huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2010-07-12.
8. Sonmez, Felicia. "David Scott (D-Ga.)". Who Runs Gov (The Washington Post). Retrieved 25 June 2012.
9. "Electful LBGT Rights". Electful. Electful. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
10. http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2013/05/03/1958671/another-house-democrat-endorses-marriage-equality//. Missing or empty |title= (help)
11. http://www.hrc.org/elected-officials/profile/house/226#.UYO6erU3s5q. Missing or empty |title= (help)
12. "The Hill’s Whip List: House Dems divided on Iran deal".
13. Vogel, Kenneth (2007-05-24). "Rep. Scott's finances questioned". Retrieved 2008-05-26.
14. Kemper, Bob (2007-09-18). "Atlanta congressman on 'corrupt' list". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved 2008-05-26.

External links

• Congressman David Scott official U.S. House site
• David Scott for Congress
• David Scott at DMOZ
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Profile at Project Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at The Library of Congress