John Shadegg



John Barden Shadegg, a Republican, is a former U.S. Representative for the 3rd Congressional district of Arizona, having served 1995 to 2011.

Iraq War
Shadegg voted for the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002 that started the Iraq War.

SKIL Act of 2007
The Securing Knowledge Innovation and Leadership Act, or the SKIL Bill, is targeted at increasing legal immigration of scientific, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workers into the United States by increasing the quotas on the H-1B visa, eliminating green card caps for certain advanced degree holders, and streamlining the processing of employment-based green cards.

Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.) introduced the House version (H.R.1930) of the SKIL Act on April 17, 2007.

As of April 2007, the SKIL Bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee.

Term limits
When Shadegg was first elected as part of the "Republican revolution" in 1994, he supported the application of term limits to all members of Congress. However, after the limits were struck down on constitutional grounds, Shadegg ran again and won election for a sixth term in 2004. 

Constituent memo
On June 12, 2006, Shadegg sent reelection supporters an opinion piece on the federal investigation surrounding House Appropriations Committee chairman Jerry Lewis (R-Calif.). He wrote, “The debate continues on earmark reform … and, in my ongoing effort to illustrate the potential for abuse in the congressional spending process, created by unlimited earmarks, you may find the following commentary by John Fund at the Wall Street Journal informative.” The piece which Shadegg referred to condenses newspaper reports concerning the relationship of Lewis to a political action committee run by his stepdaughter (Small Biz Tech PACand) and the lobbying firm of Bill Lowery (Copeland Lowery Jacquez Denton & White), a close friend and former colleague. 

Bio
Shadegg was born October 22, 1949 in Phoenix, Arizona. He was educated at the University of Arizona B.A. 1972 J.D. 1975, served in the Arizona Air National Guard from 1969 to 1975, and was a lawyer, a special counsel to the Arizona state House Republican caucus from 1991-1992, special assistant attorney general in the State of Arizona 1983-1990, and an advisor to the United States Sentencing Commission before entering the House.

He has established a reputation in Congress as a leading advocate for reduced government spending, federal tax relief, and the re-establishment of state and individual rights.

Shadegg was recently elected Chairman of the House Republican Policy Committee, the fifth-ranking position in the House Leadership below the Majority Leader. He is the only member of the Republican Class of 1994 currently serving in leadership. He was a key player on the leadership team of former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.

Shadegg claims to have never met DeLay associate and lobbyist Jack Abramoff. In 2005, he did return US$ 6,900 he received from parties linked to Abramoff. Shadegg explained that he accepted through a former associate who, unbeknownst to him, had become affiliated with Abramoff. 

From 2000 to 2002, Congressman Shadegg served as chairman of the Republican Study Committee (RSC), the largest conservative organization in the U.S. House of Representatives. Under Shadegg's leadership, the organization grew from 40 to more than 70 members, and became the most influential and respected force in the U.S. House shaping conservative policy for the country.

On January 13, 2006 Shadegg officially joined the race for the House Majority Leader as a compromise alternative candidate to Representatives Roy Blunt and John Boehner. On Feb. 2, after Shadegg came third in the first ballot, his supporters switched to second place Boehner, ensuring Boehner's election on the second ballot. Shadegg is also the son of Steve Shadegg of Arizona, 1964 campaign manager for Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater.

2006 elections
In 2006, the Democrats nominated Herb Paine to face Shadegg in his November 2006 bid for reelection. (See U.S. congressional elections in 2006)  Shadegg easily retained his seat with nearly 60% of the vote.

Retirement
On February 11, 2008, Shadegg issued a statement on his website announcing his decision not to seek reelection in 2008. Shadegg served 7 terms in the House of Representatives, starting in 1995. After Tom Delay’s resignation from the House in 2006, Shadegg unsuccessfully challenged for the Republican leadership of the House, losing to John Boehner and Roy Blunt. Shadegg plans on returning to the private sector.

2008 election
On February 21, at the urging of his Republican colleagues, Shadegg reversed his decision not to run for reelection. “146 of my colleagues in the U.S. House signed a letter asking me to reconsider, an unprecedented event,” Shadegg said in a statement. Shadegg said he was “stunned” and “humbled” by the response he received on Capitol Hill and, after careful consideration, decided he would run for another term.

2010 election
Shadegg decided again to retire and did not run for reelection in 2010.

Committees

 * House Committee on Energy and Commerce
 * Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality
 * Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials
 * Subcommittee on Health

Committee assignments in the 109th Congress (2005-2006)

 * House Committee on Energy and Commerce
 * Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality
 * Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials
 * Subcommittee on Health

Coalitions and caucuses

 * Chair, House Republican Policy Committee, 2005-present
 * Chair, Republican Study Committee, 2000-2002
 * Special Counsel, Arizona House Republican Caucus, 1991-1992
 * Chair, 'It's Time' Anti-Tax Initiative

Boards and other affiliations

 * Board Member, Arizona State University Law Society
 * Vestry, Christ Church of the Ascension
 * Former President, Crime Victim Foundation
 * Founding Member, Friends of Lake Powell
 * Founding Director, Goldwater Institute for Public Policy
 * Former Chair, Juvenile Justice Advisory Board
 * Advisory Board, Salvation Army
 * Victim's Bill of Rights Task Force.

Resources

 * Official website
 * Technorati Search: John Shadegg
 * Google News Search: John Shadegg
 * Yahoo! News Search: John Shadegg
 * Power Trips: How much did John Shadegg Travel?
 * Open Secrets - 2006 congressional races database

Local blogs and discussion sites

 * AZ Congress Watch
 * Western Democrat
 * Blog for Arizona

Articles

 * Billy House and John Kamman, "Shadegg Gets Rid of Tribal Donations", Arizona Republic, Jan. 12, 2006.
 * Jacob Weisberg, "Term Limit Traitors", Slate, Apr. 18, 1998.
 * Patrick O'Connor, "Shadegg’s Memo Stokes Fight on Pork," The Hill, June 13, 2006.
 * "Leaked Letter Reveals Conservative Strategy For Iraq Debate: Don’t Talk About Iraq," Think Progress, February 13, 2007.
 * Dana Milbank, "For the GOP, Taking the War Out of the War Debate," Washington Post, February 14, 2007.