Isaac Newton Skelton IV (December 20, 1931 – October 28, 2013) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the
U.S. representative for from 1977 to 2011. During his tenure, he served as the chairman of the
House Armed Services Committee
The U.S. House Committee on Armed Services, commonly known as the House Armed Services Committee or HASC, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is responsible for funding and oversight of the Department of ...
. He was a member of the
Democratic Party. On November 2, 2010, he unexpectedly lost his seat to
Republican Vicky Hartzler amid a Republican landslide. Notably, he was one of three Democratic committee chairmen to lose reelection in the 2010 midterm cycle, alongside
House Budget Committee chairman
John Spratt of
South Carolina
South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...
and
House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chairman
Jim Oberstar
James Louis Oberstar (September 10, 1934 – May 3, 2014) was an American politician and Congressman who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 2011. Hailing from Minnesota and a member of the state's local Minnes ...
of
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
.
Early life and education
Skelton was born in
Lexington, Missouri
Lexington is a city in, and the county seat of, Lafayette County, Missouri, United States. The population was 4,726 at the 2010 census. Lexington is in western Missouri, within the Kansas City metropolitan area, approximately east of Kansas C ...
, a rural town with extensive
Civil War
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
history. He was the son of Carolyn Marie (Boone) and Isaac Newton Skelton III.
In 1928, Skelton's father met
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...
, then a
Jackson County judge
A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...
, and the men became good friends. When he was 17, Skelton attended Truman's
1949 inauguration.
Skelton was an
Eagle Scout.
He earned an
associate of arts
An associate degree or associate's degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of academic qualification above a high school diploma and below a bachelor's degree ...
degree from
Wentworth Military Academy and College in 1951, followed by an
A.B. in 1953 and an
LL.B. in 1956 from the
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...
. He is a brother of
Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi () International Fraternity is one of the largest North American social Fraternities and sororities, fraternities. The fraternity has 244 active undergraduate chapters and 152 alumni chapters across the United States and Canada and has ...
and
Alpha Phi Omega
Alpha Phi Omega (), commonly known as APO, but also A-Phi-O and A-Phi-Q, is a national Mixed-sex education, coeducational Service fraternities and sororities, service Fraternities and sororities, fraternity. It is the largest College fraterniti ...
at the University of Missouri. He also attended the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...
in
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
in 1953.
Career
Skelton became a lawyer and entered private practice in
Lafayette County, Missouri
Lafayette County is a County (United States), county in the western portion of Missouri, part of the Kansas City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 32,984. Its county seat is Lexington, Misso ...
. He was a
prosecuting attorney
A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the adversarial system, which is adopted in common law, or inquisitorial system, which is adopted in civil law. The prosecution is the legal party responsible ...
from 1957 until 1960 and a special assistant attorney general in the office of the
Missouri Attorney General
The Office of the Missouri Attorney General was created in 1806 when Missouri was part of the Louisiana Territory. Missouri's first Constitution in 1820 provided for an appointed attorney general, but since the 1865 Constitution, the Attorney Ge ...
.
Skelton served as a member of the
Missouri Senate
The Missouri Senate is the upper chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 34 members, representing districts with an average population of 181,000. Its members serve four-year terms, with half the seats being up for election every two yea ...
, representing Lafayette County, from 1971 until 1977.
U.S. House of Representatives
160px, left, Inaugural Congressional photo of Skelton from the 1977 ''Congressional Pictorial Directory''.
Committee assignments
*
Committee on Armed Services (Chair)
**As chairman of the full committee, Skelton was entitled to sit as an ''
ex officio
An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, or council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by r ...
'' member of all subcommittees.
Skelton served as chair of the
House Armed Services Committee
The U.S. House Committee on Armed Services, commonly known as the House Armed Services Committee or HASC, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is responsible for funding and oversight of the Department of ...
, having previously served as ranking member on the House Armed Services Committee since 1998 but was promoted to chairman following the 2006 midterm elections when Democrats regained control of Congress.
Political positions
Skelton voted with Democratic leadership 94.6% of the time during the 111th Congress, meaning he broke with his party more frequently than 82% of the Democratic Caucus. Vicky Hartzler, Skelton's 2010 Congressional opponent, stated on the campaign trail that Skelton has voted in line with House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Patricia Pelosi ( ; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who was the List of Speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives, serving from 2007 to 2011 an ...
95% of the time during his tenure in the House.
Before the 2006 election, Skelton told columnist
George Will that if the Democrats won control of Congress, his main priority would be "oversight, oversight, oversight!" While he voted for the
War in Iraq, he expressed serious misgivings about troop readiness. In 2006, he favored reducing the number of troops in
Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
and supported redeploying a brigade from Iraq to
Kuwait
Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...
. Will suggested that under Skelton, the Armed Services Committee would resemble a
U.S. Senate committee created to examine defense spending during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. This committee was chaired by Skelton's hero,
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...
.
Fiscal issues
Skelton voted against the
2001 Bush Tax cuts. In 1981, he voted against Reagan's tax cuts. He was supportive of
labor
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
.
The
League of Conservation Voters
The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) is an American environmental advocacy group. LCV says that it "builds political power for people and the planet." Through its affiliated super PAC, it is a major supporter of the Democratic Party. The org ...
rated Skelton at 53 percent on environmental issues. He was one of the few Congressional Democrats to vote in favor of
CAFTA and mostly supported
free trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold Economic liberalism, economically liberal positions, while economic nationalist politica ...
deals. He was a supporter of TRiO programs.
Social issues
Skelton was fairly conservative on social issues. He opposed
abortion
Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...
and
gun control
Gun control, or firearms regulation, is the set of laws or policies that regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, or use of firearms and ammunition by civilians.
Most countries allow civilians to own firearms, bu ...
. He helped craft the
Don't Ask, Don't Tell
"Don't ask, don't tell" (DADT) was the official United States policy on Sexual orientation in the United States military, military service of homosexual people. Instituted during the Presidency of Bill Clinton, Clinton administration, the pol ...
policy, and voted against its repeal in 2010.
Military issues
Skelton was a long-time proponent of the Missouri National Guard, in recognition for which the National Guard Training Center in Jefferson City is named in his honor. However, at times he has disagreed with other members of Missouri's congressional delegation over the state's defense installations. In 2005, for instance, he opposed Senator
Kit Bond
Christopher Samuel Bond (March 6, 1939 – May 13, 2025) was an American attorney and politician from Missouri. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as a United States Senate, U.S. Senator from 1987 to 20 ...
's efforts to keep open the 131st Air National Guard Fighter Wing in St. Louis County.
The wing was considered an "alert site" by the
Defense Department, responsible for maintaining sovereignty over United States air space. In its final report, the
9/11 Commission found that the lack of alert sites, and with their positions primarily on the nation's periphery, reduced the capability of the military to respond effectively to the 9/11 attacks. Senator Bond testified in the
Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) hearings against the closure of the 131st, which was based at
Lambert International Airport. He noted that this wing, which was located in a strategically important location, had protected critical assets on 09-11-01. He warned that the loss of the wing would compromise security over a vast area of the Midwestern United States. Representative Skelton, as the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, voted in favor of closure. The House passed the BRAC recommendations, and the base was subsequently closed, with its components deployed elsewhere.
Controversy
On October 8, 2009, Skelton, after addressing fellow Missouri Congressman
Todd Akin, a
Republican, on the House floor, said to Akin, "stick it up your ass." The comment was picked up by the microphone and could be heard on the
C-SPAN
Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American Cable television in the United States, cable and Satellite television in the United States, satellite television network, created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a Non ...
broadcast. Skelton's spokeswoman, Jennifer Kohl, said the comment was not intended to be broadcast and was "said out of frustration in the heat of debate." Akin's spokesman, Steve Taylor, said the remark was "shocking and not characteristic of Skelton's behavior."
Political campaigns
When
William J. Randall retired after 17 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, Skelton won the Democratic nomination to succeed him with 40% of the vote in a crowded primary field of nine Democratic candidates.
He ran with the endorsement of Truman's widow,
Bess, which he attributes to his own father's support for Harry S. Truman in the
1940 U.S. Senate primary. He was reelected 16 times, usually by well over 60 percent of the vote. Before 2010, he only faced one truly serious challenge, in 1982. That year, Missouri lost a district, and Skelton's district was merged with the neighboring 8th District, represented by freshman Republican
Wendell Bailey. Although Skelton retained almost 60 percent of his former territory, Bailey held him to 55 percent of the vote.
2010
Skelton seemed to have a fairly secure hold on his district, even though it had been trending Republican for some time. Historically, it had had a character similar to
Yellow Dog Democrat districts in the South. However, the rural areas of the district, once solidly Democratic, had swung hard to the GOP since the turn of the century. Indeed, in 2000, Republicans captured most of the area's legislative seats and have held them ever since. Even before then, the district had been shedding more of the strongly Democratic areas near Kansas City due to that city's dwindling population. As late as 1983, during Skelton's third term, the 4th stretched as far west as
Independence
Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...
on Kansas City's eastern border. As a result, it had been pushed further into heavily Republican
Southwest Missouri.
Al Gore
Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...
,
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...
and
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
all won less than 40 percent of the vote in the district even as Skelton skated to reelection. It was considered very likely that Skelton would be succeeded by a Republican once he retired.
In 2010, Skelton faced former Republican
state Representative Vicky Hartzler of
Harrisonville, who had been out of politics for more than a decade. Polls consistently showed a very competitive race, easily the most competitive the district had seen in decades. Many pundits rated it as a toss-up.
It was still a surprise when Skelton lost to Hartzler, 50% to 45%. While Skelton ran evenly with Hartzler in the areas closer to Kansas City, he lost badly in the rural areas, including some that had supported him for many years. No Democrat has managed as much as 40 percent of the vote since Skelton left office.
Awards and honors
In 2005 the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation awarded Skelton its Naval Heritage award for his support of the U S Navy and military during his years in Congress. In 2010, Skelton was recognized by then,
Commandant of the Marine Corps Commandant of the Marine Corps may refer to:
* Commandant of the Marine Corps (Indonesia)
* Commandant of the Netherlands Marine Corps
* Commandant of the Philippine Marine Corps
* Commandant of the Republic of Korea Marine Corps
* Commandant of th ...
, General
James F. Amos, as an
Honorary Marine, the first U.S. congressman to be awarded the title. In 2012, the
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...
recognized Skelton with the
Sylvanus Thayer Award. In the same year, the USAF Air University presented Skelton with an honorary Doctor of Law degree for his work in the advancement of military education.
Personal life
His wife of 44 years, Susan Anding Skelton, died on August 23, 2005. Later that year, on November 26, Skelton was injured when a van carrying him and fellow
U.S. Representatives
Tim Murphy and
Jim Marshall overturned near
Baghdad Airport while on an official visit to
Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
. Skelton and Murphy were airlifted to a U.S. Military hospital in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
after complaining of neck pain. Both made a full recovery.
On August 29, 2009, Skelton married Patty Martin, a longtime friend and widowed
middle school
Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school.
Afghanistan
In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...
counselor from his home town.
Skelton was a member of the
Christian Church
In ecclesiology, the Christian Church is what different Christian denominations conceive of as being the true body of Christians or the original institution established by Jesus Christ. "Christian Church" has also been used in academia as a syn ...
and an honorary chieftain in Scouting's
Tribe of Mic-O-Say. He was also of distant relation to
Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone (, 1734September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyo ...
as well as to
U.S. Representative Louise Slaughter of
New York.
Death
Skelton died of pneumonia at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Virginia on October 28, 2013, at the age of 81. According to Skelton's colleague, Russell Orban, Skelton had been admitted to the hospital a week earlier with a bad cough.
[Fields, Dana. "Former Rep. Ike Skelton Dead at 81." ABC News. N.p., 28 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Oct. 2013. .]
Skelton's memoir, ''Achieve the Honorable'', had been published just two weeks before his death.
References
External links
*
*
*
Profileat
SourceWatch
The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) is a progressive nonprofit watchdog and advocacy organization based in Madison, Wisconsin. CMD publishes ExposedbyCMD.org, SourceWatch.org, and ALECexposed.org.
History
CMD was founded in 1993 by prog ...
*
, -
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skelton, Ike
1931 births
2013 deaths
20th-century American lawyers
20th-century members of the Missouri General Assembly
Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
American Disciples of Christ
Deaths from pneumonia in Virginia
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri
Democratic Party Missouri state senators
Missouri lawyers
People from Lexington, Missouri
University of Missouri School of Law alumni
Wentworth Military Academy and College alumni
Writers from Missouri
21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives