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John Berlinger Breaux (; born March 1, 1944) is an American lobbyist, attorney, and retired politician from
Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...
. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1972 to 1987 and as a
United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...
from 1987 to 2005. A Southern Democrat, he was considered one of the more
conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
national legislators from the Democratic Party. Breaux was a member of the New Democrat Coalition. After his congressional tenure, he became a lobbyist, co-founding the Breaux-Lott Leadership Group. The firm was later acquired by law and lobbying firm Patton Boggs, now Squire Patton Boggs.


Early life and career

Breaux was born in
Crowley, Louisiana Crowley (Local pronunciation: ) is a city in, and the parish seat of, Acadia Parish, Louisiana, Acadia Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. At the 2020 United States census, Crowley had a population of 11,710. Crowley is the principal city of ...
, on March 1, 1944. He graduated from the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now called the University of Louisiana at Lafayette) in Lafayette in 1964 and from Louisiana State University Law School in
Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...
in 1967. After graduation, he practiced law, and then served as an assistant to U.S. Representative Edwin Edwards. He was also a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity.


Congressional career

Breaux was elected as a Democrat to the 92nd United States Congress in a
special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...
on September 30, 1972, to fill the vacancy created by Edwards' resignation in order to become governor. Breaux's campaign manager was Ron Faucheux, later a member of the
Louisiana House of Representatives The Louisiana House of Representatives (; ) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 representatives, each of whom represents approximately 4 ...
. At the age of twenty-eight, Breaux was the youngest member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Breaux was re-elected with ease to the seven succeeding Congresses and served until January 3, 1987. He was not a candidate for re-election to the House of Representatives in 1986, but was instead elected as a Democrat to the
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
. Breaux opposed
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
's
nomination Nomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to a public office, or the bestowing of an honor or award. A collection of nominees narrowed from the full list of candidates is a short list. Political office In ...
of
Robert Bork Robert Heron Bork (March 1, 1927 – December 19, 2012) was an American legal scholar who served as solicitor general of the United States from 1973 until 1977. A professor by training, he was acting United States Attorney General and a judge on ...
to the U.S. Supreme Court. On October 23, 1987, he voted with all but two Democrats, and six Republicans to defeat his nomination by a vote of 42-58. On October 15, 1991, Breaux was one of seven Southern Democrats who voted to confirm the nomination of Clarence Thomas to the U.S. Supreme Court in a 52 to 48 vote, the narrowest margin of approval in more than a century. Breaux was seen as a centrist in a Senate divided along partisan lines, and was frequently sought out by Republican leaders to corral a few Democratic votes when they needed them; conversely he also often served as the Democratic emissary in attempts to gather a few moderate Republicans to win votes on their proposals. He was pro-life and a supporter of Second Amendment rights, though he gradually moderated his position on gun control. He was more conservative on taxes than most in his party and challenged many environmental protections. He voted in favor of the
North American Free Trade Agreement The North American Free Trade Agreement (, TLCAN; , ALÉNA), referred to colloquially in the Anglosphere as NAFTA, ( ) was an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States that created a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The ...
(NAFTA), welfare reform, the balanced budget amendment, and tighter bankruptcy laws. He was a key Democratic supporter of Republican attempts to abolish the
estate tax International tax law distinguishes between an estate tax and an inheritance tax. An inheritance tax is a tax paid by a person who inherits money or property of a person who has died, whereas an estate tax is a levy on the estate (money and pr ...
and in 2001 was among the minority of Democrats to support Bush's tax cut and opposed virtually all attempts by Democrats to alter it. However Breaux had voted with the majority of Democrats in favor of the 1993 Budget. In 2003 he submitted an amendment to reduce the tax cut to $350 billion. In 1995 he notably voted twice with more liberal elements of his party against the widely approved lawsuit reform measures, the Common Sense Product Liability and Legal Reform Act and the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, , 109 Stat. 737 (codified as amended in scattered sections of 15 U.S.C.) ("PSLRA") implemented several substantive changes in the United States that have affected certain cases brought under t ...
. Both acts were vetoed by President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
, although the second act was passed over his veto. On June 22, 2004, Breaux cast the lone vote against amendment, S.A. 3464, which would increase the maximum fine from $27,500 to $275,000 when the FCC determines a broadcaster is guilty of "obscene, indecent or profane language." Breaux also opposed the loosening of FCC rules that would allow cross-media platforms in the same community to fall under a single owner. In 1993, Breaux was elected by Senate Democrats as Deputy Majority Whip, a position he held until his retirement. He also held a number of key Senate committee positions. A senior member of the Finance Committee, Senator Breaux served as the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Social Security and Family Policy. From his position on the Finance Committee, he helped build the coalition that passed welfare reform and health insurance reform bills in 1996. He also pushed for a reduction in the capital gains tax and for tax relief for college education expenses. In 1998, Breaux was selected by the White House and House and Senate leaders to chair the National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare. Also in 1998, Senator Breaux co-chaired the National Commission on Retirement Policy, which produced legislation to help reform Social Security. Breaux was the principal architect of the $400 billion Medicare Prescription Drug Modernization Act. Breaux was a founder of the bipartisan Senate Centrist Coalition and served as chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council. Breaux's state director and press secretary was the journalist Robert "Bob" Mann, who holds the Douglas Manship Chair of Journalism at Louisiana State University. In the 2003 Louisiana gubernatorial campaign, after flirting briefly with the possibility of running himself, Breaux campaigned hard for the successful Democratic candidate, Kathleen Babineaux Blanco of Lafayette. That same year, Breaux was inducted into the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame in Winnfield. He announced that he would not run for re-election in 2004; by most accounts he was so popular that it was believed he would have easily won a fourth term had he chosen to run again. He was succeeded in the Senate by Republican David Vitter of suburban
New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
. Despite Breaux's popularity, he was unable to dictate his successor in the Senate, as Russell Long and J. Bennett Johnston, Jr. had done. He endorsed Democrat Chris John, the U.S. representative from the seventh district, which Breaux had once represented. However, John came second in the jungle primary to Republican David Vitter. Vitter won 51% of the vote, which allowed him to avoid a runoff election.


Post-congressional career

In February 2005, Breaux took a position as Distinguished Professor in the Douglas Manship School of Mass Communication at
Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...
in
Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...
. Since 2005, Breaux has been a lobbyist for
Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...
, firm Squire Patton Boggs, specializing in issues of health care and energy law. Since leaving office, Breaux has spearheaded his own national campaign, "Ceasefire on Health Care: Finding Common Ground for the Uninsured." Breaux coined the campaign name as a play on the CNN TV program ''
Crossfire A crossfire (also known as interlocking fire) is a military term for the siting of weapons (often automatic weapons such as assault rifles or sub-machine guns) so that their arcs of fire overlap. This tactic came to prominence in World War I. ...
'', which he points out has been canceled. Breaux has hosted multiple events with prominent members of both parties to establish a dialogue that will lead to real healthcare reform. Breaux developed the campaign alongside
American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...
's Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies. Beginning in February 2007, there was much speculation among Louisiana political commentators as to whether Breaux would announce his candidacy in the 2007 Louisiana governors' race. Breaux, arguably the most popular Democratic politician in Louisiana, was considering entering the race, if Blanco would be willing to step aside for Breaux. On March 20, 2007, Blanco announced that she would not run for re-election as governor. On March 29, 2007, John Breaux made his first Louisiana public appearance since speculation began concerning his potential candidacy. Breaux said that he intended to run, and would announce his candidacy as soon as Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti, a Democrat, gave a formal legal opinion on whether Breaux was eligible to run. It was alleged that he would not meet the residency requirements to run for governor as he is registered to vote, and has listed his primary address in
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
since 2005. At issue was the clause in the Louisiana constitution that states that a candidate for governor must be a 'citizen' of the State of Louisiana; what constitutes a citizen is not defined. On April 13, 2007, Breaux released a statement that he would not be running for governor. Attorney-General Foti had declined to issue an opinion on Breaux's eligibility, stating it was an issue for the courts to decide. Breaux stated that he did not want the issue of eligibility to overshadow his campaign, as a court challenge would not occur until September. Breaux also serves on the board of directors for
CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...
. In 2021, Breaux was involved in efforts to lobby against taxation of large inheritances. In Acadiana, and in honor of the legacy Breaux has left behind, a local Japanese restaurant chain named a sushi roll after him, the John Breaux, with crawfish and avocado.


References


External links


Bio from Ceasefire on Health Care website
* , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Breaux, John 1944 births Cajun people Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Louisiana Democratic Party United States senators from Louisiana Living people Louisiana lawyers Louisiana State University Law Center alumni Members of Congress who became lobbyists People associated with Squire Patton Boggs People from Crowley, Louisiana University of Louisiana at Lafayette alumni 21st-century United States senators 20th-century United States senators 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives Chairs of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee