Brian Fitzpatrick (American politician)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Brian Fitzpatrick
Brian Fitzpatrick official congressional photo.jpg
Member of the
U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2017
Preceded byMike Fitzpatrick
Constituency8th district (2017–2019)
1st district (2019–present)
Personal details
Born
Brian Kevin Fitzpatrick

(1973-12-17) December 17, 1973 (age 47)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
RelativesMike Fitzpatrick (brother)
EducationLa Salle University (BS)
Pennsylvania State University (MBA)
Pennsylvania State University, Carlisle (JD)
WebsiteHouse website

Brian Kevin Fitzpatrick (born December 17, 1973) is an American attorney and politician who is a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives, serving as the representative for Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district since 2017. The district, numbered as the 8th district during his first term, includes all of Bucks County, a mostly suburban county north of Philadelphia, as well as a sliver of Montgomery County.

A former FBI agent, he was elected in 2016 and took office on January 3, 2017. He was re-elected on November 6, 2018, to the newly redrawn 1st district.

Early life and education[]

Born in Philadelphia and raised in nearby Levittown, Pennsylvania, Fitzpatrick graduated from Bishop Egan High School in Fairless Hills in 1992.[1][2] He graduated from La Salle University in 1996 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. In 2001, Fitzpatrick completed both a Master of Business Administration at Pennsylvania State University and a Juris Doctor at the Penn State Dickinson School of Law.[3][1]

Career[]

Republican Fitzpatrick is a former Special Assistant United States Attorney and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) supervisory special agent in California. At the FBI, he served as a national supervisor for the Bureau's Public Corruption Unit, and led the agency's Campaign Finance and Election Crimes Enforcement program. During his time in the FBI, he spent time in Kyiv, Ukraine, Mosul, Iraq and Washington, D.C.[3] He was embedded with U.S. Special Forces as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

U.S. House of Representatives[]

Elections[]

2016[]

In 2016, Fitzpatrick ran for the open U.S. House of Representatives seat of his brother Mike Fitzpatrick, who retired from Congress to uphold a promise to limit himself to four terms.[4][5]

In the April 26, 2016, Republican primary, Fitzpatrick received 78.4% of the vote, defeating Andy Warren and Marc Duome. Meanwhile, State Representative Steve Santarsiero defeated Shaughnessy Naughton for the Democratic nomination, 59.8% to 40.2%. In the general election, Fitzpatrick received 54.4% of the vote, while Santarsiero received 45.6%.[6]

2018[]

After a court-ordered redistricting, Fitzpatrick's district was renumbered as the 1st district. It remained largely unchanged from the old 8th, but absorbed a larger slice of central Montgomery County. According to Nate Cohn of The New York Times, "the old 8th had been one of the more regularly drawn districts in a map that had been thrown out as an unconstitutional partisan Republican gerrymander.[7] The new 1st was slightly more Democratic than its predecessor. Had it existed in 2016, Hillary Clinton would have carried it with 49 percent of the vote to Donald Trump's 47 percent.[8] In contrast, Clinton and Trump finished almost tied in the old 8th, with Trump winning by 0.2 percentage points."[9]

In the Republican primary on May 15, 2018, he defeated Dean Malik by a margin of 68.85% to 31.15%. In the Democratic primary, Scott Wallace won with 55.97% of the vote, defeating Rachel Reddick, who tallied 35.85%, and Steve Bacher, who brought in 8.18%.[10] In the general election, Fitzpatrick defeated Democratic nominee Scott Wallace by a margin of 51.3% to 48.7%. He carried Bucks County by 12,000 votes, more than his overall margin of 8,300 votes.[11] Fitzpatrick thus became one of only three Republican U.S. Representatives to survive during the 2018 U.S. House elections in congressional districts that Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton carried in 2016, along with Congressmen John Katko (R-NY) and Will Hurd (R-TX).[12]

2020[]

Fitzpatrick ran for a third term in 2020. In the Republican primary, he defeated Andrew Meehan, who ran as a more conservative candidate and a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump.[13] In the general election, his Democratic opponent was Ivyland councilwoman Christina Finello. Fitzpatrick was considered potentially vulnerable due to the fact that his district had voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016. However, he was ultimately reelected by a margin of 13 percentage points despite Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden winning Pennsylvania and carrying the district by 6 points.[14] He was one of nine House Republicans to win in a district carried by Biden.

Tenure[]

In the first session of the 115th United States Congress, Fitzpatrick was ranked the third most bipartisan member of the House of Representatives by the Bipartisan Index, a metric created by the Lugar Center and Georgetown's McCourt School of Public Policy to assess congressional bipartisanship.[15] GovTrack noted that Fitzpatrick introduced the most bills among freshman Representatives, and, of the 274 bills he cosponsored, 35% were introduced by a non-Republican legislator.[16]

On February 4, 2021, Fitzpatrick joined 10 other Republican House members voting with all voting Democrats to strip Marjorie Taylor Greene of her House Education and Labor Committee, and House Budget Committee assignments in response to controversial political statements she had made.[17]

Climate change[]

At a September 2018 forum hosted by the Bipartisan Policy Center and The Hill, Fitzpatrick highlighted man-made climate change as a serious issue. He stated that Republicans must "acknowledge reality and don't deny it." He is a member of the bipartisan congressional Climate Solutions Caucus and cointroduced the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2018,[18][19] which would impose a carbon tax with net revenue returned to households as a rebate.[20] He did not sponsor the 2019 version of the bill.

Gerrymandering[]

In September 2017, Fitzpatrick urged the U.S. Supreme Court to limit extreme partisan gerrymandering in the Gill v. Whitford case. He stressed that partisan redistricting had undermined the Founding Father's vision of the House of Representatives remaining the voice of the people.[21]

He was the only Republican Congressman from Pennsylvania who did not take part in a February 2018 lawsuit challenging a new district map drawn by Democrats. He explained that he opposes the drawing of congressional districts by elected officials of either party, saying instead that they should be drawn by independent, nonpartisan citizen panels.[22]

In March 2021, Fitzpatrick voted against the H.R. 1 For the People Act which would require congressional districts be drawn by nonpartison redistricting commissions.[23]

Gun policy[]

In 2018, Fitzpatrick was the only Republican to receive an endorsement from the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, the gun control organization founded by former U.S. Representative Gabby Giffords. Fitzpatrick voted to expand background checks and to restrict assault weapon sales. He voted against a bill that would require states to recognize concealed-carry permits issued by other states.[24]

In March 2021, the Representative was one of eight Republicans to join the House majority in passing the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021.[25]

Health care[]

Fitzpatrick opposed the American Health Care Act, a bill to repeal and replace the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. In a statement, Fitzpatrick said, "After considering the current healthcare bill in a thorough and deliberate manner, I have concluded that, although the American Health Care Act focuses on several much-needed reforms to our healthcare system, in its current form I cannot support this legislation".[26] Fitzpatrick joined many of his Republican colleagues as well as every congressional Democrat in an effort to oppose the bill.

On May 4, 2017, Fitzpatrick also voted against the second attempt to pass the American Health Care Act. In a statement, he said, "We saw what happened when healthcare reform – an issue impacting 1/5 of our economy – was rushed through Congress along extremely partisan lines in 2009," referring to the ACA in 2010.[27] On December 12, he took part in the Democratic bill to lower drug costs, the Elijah Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act.[28]

Immigration[]

In 2017, Fitzpatrick was critical of President Obama's executive order establishing the DACA program, but said the immigration system was broken. In a 2018 debate, Fitzpatrick said that he supported a path to citizenship for DREAMers, but that "any immigration reform package has to deal with border security."[29][30] In 2019, he voted for the American Dream and Promise Act, which included no new border security measures.[31][32]

Fitzpatrick opposed President Donald Trump's 2017 executive order to impose a temporary ban on entry to the U.S. to citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries. He stated that "the president's policy entirely misses the mark."[33]

LGBT rights[]

Fitzpatrick supports same-sex marriage.[34] In 2019, he co-sponsored and voted for the Equality Act, which would extend anti-discrimination protections to LGBT-identifying adults and minors and repealing Title IX; seven other House Republicans joined him in voting for it and it passed the House 236-173.[35][36][37][38] He was one of three Republicans to vote for it in 2021 when it again passed the House.[39]

Narcotics trafficking[]

Fitzpatrick sponsored the International Narcotics Trafficking Emergency Response by Detecting Incoming Contraband with Technology (INTERDICT) Act, which was signed into law by President Donald Trump in January 2018. The law directs $15 million to U.S. Customs and Border Patrol to expand screening for fentanyl and opioids at the U.S. border.[40]

President Donald Trump[]

In July 2019, Fitzpatrick was one of four Republican House members to vote in support of a motion to condemn remarks by President Trump made on Twitter calling on "'Progressive' Democrat[ic] Congresswomen who originally came from countries" that are described as failing to "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came."[41][42]

Fitzpatrick voted against the impeachment of then-President Donald Trump on December 18, 2019 and again on January 13, 2021. Prior to the second impeachment vote, Fitzpatrick introduced a censure resolution against Trump, which condemned the rhetoric that lead to the Capitol attack.[43]

On May 19, 2021, Fitzpatrick was one of 35 Republicans who joined all Democrats in voting to approve legislation to establish the January 6, 2021 commission meant to investigate the storming of the U.S. Capitol.[44]

Russia[]

In a 2018 debate, Fitzpatrick said that Russia held "by and large, sinister motives", noting that while he was stationed in Ukraine, twice Russia attempted to knock out the nation's electrical grids through cyber attacks.[29]

In July 2018, Fitzpatrick said that President Trump had been "manipulated" by Russian leader Vladimir Putin at the Helsinki Summit. Fitzpatrick said he was "frankly sickened by the exchange" between Trump and Putin. He criticized the "mixed signals" that the Trump administration was sending regarding Russian interference in the 2016 election.[45]

In April 2018, Fitzpatrick said that President Trump should stop attacking the FBI and allow Robert Mueller to complete his investigation, stating it was improper to "judge an institution based on the actions of a few bad actors."[46]

Taxes[]

In December 2017, Fitzpatrick voted in favor of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in a party-line vote.[47]

In March 2021, Fitzpatrick voted against the American Rescue Plan in a party-line vote, which expanded the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Childcare Tax Credit, and provided individuals making less than $75,000 with $1400 stimulus checks.[23]

Term limits and congressional perks[]

In April 2018, Fitzpatrick led a bipartisan group of freshmen House members in an Oval Office meeting at which they discussed with President Trump a proposed constitutional amendment imposing congressional term limits.[48]

In May 2018, Fitzpatrick and Stephanie Murphy (D-FL) introduced H.R. 5946, the Fostering Accountability, Integrity, Trust, and Honor (FAITH) in Congress Act, that would "end certain special perks reserved for Members of Congress, enact a lifetime ban preventing former Members of Congress from becoming lobbyists, and withhold Members' paychecks if they fail to pass a budget on time."[49]

Committee assignments[]

Caucus memberships[]

  • Republican Governance Group[50]
  • Republican Main Street Partnership[51]
  • Congressional Citizen Legislature Caucus (Chair/founder)
  • Problem Solvers Caucus (Co-Chair) [52]
  • Climate Solutions Caucus
  • Congressional PFAS Task Force (Co-Chair)
  • Animal Protection Caucus
  • Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Caucus
  • Bipartisan Heroin Task Force (Co-Chair)
  • Congressional Addiction, Treatment, and Recovery Caucus
  • Congressional Rare Disease Caucus
  • India and Indian American Caucus
  • Turkey and Turkish American Caucus
  • Ukraine and Ukrainian American Caucus (Co-Chair)
  • Congressional Cystic Fibrosis Caucus
  • Bicameral Congressional Arthritis Caucus
  • Congressional Cancer Caucus (Co-Chair)
  • Congressional ALS Caucus (Co-Chair)
  • House Small Brewers Caucus
  • Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Anti-Semitism
  • Congressional Congenital Heart Caucus
  • US-China Working Group
  • Congressional 21st Century Skills Caucus
  • Congressional Taiwan Caucus
  • International Basic Education Caucus (Co-Chair)
  • Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer's Disease
  • Congressional Task Force on Down Syndrome
  • Mitochondrial Disease Caucus (Co-Chair)
  • Congressional Veteran Jobs Caucus
  • NextGen911 Caucus
  • Bipartisan Taskforce for Combating Anti-Semitism (Co-Chair)
  • Middle Class Jobs Caucus
  • Congressional Civility and Respect Caucus
  • Chemistry Caucus
  • Friends of Australia Caucus

[53]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b "Fitzpatrick, Brian K. (1973- )". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. United States Congress. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  2. ^ Tamari, Jonathan (January 22, 2016). "Fitzpatrick's brother aims to succeed him in U.S. House". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b "Brian Fitzpatrick announces candidacy for Congress in Pennsylvania's 8th District". BucksLocalNews.com. Retrieved 2016-11-11.
  4. ^ "PA-8: Report: Fitzpatrick's Brother to Seek Seat". PoliticsPA.com. 2016-01-21. Retrieved 2016-11-11.
  5. ^ Tamari, Jonathan (2016-01-21). "Rep. Fitzpatrick's brother will run to replace him". Philly.com. Retrieved 2016-11-11.
  6. ^ "Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District election, 2016 - Ballotpedia". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2018-11-06.
  7. ^ Cohn, Nate (February 19, 2018). "The New Pennsylvania Congressional Map, District by District". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
  8. ^ Presidential results by congressional district for districts used in 2018, from Daily Kos
  9. ^ Presidential results by congressional district for districts used in 2016, from Daily Kos
  10. ^ "Brian Fitzpatrick - Ballotpedia". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2018-11-06.
  11. ^ "Pennsylvania Election Results: First House District". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  12. ^ Hohmann, James. "The Daily 202: Late gains in California vindicate DCCC's intervention in House primaries". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
  13. ^ Brennan, Chris. "Pa. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick beats a Trump fan in Bucks County GOP primary". Philadelphia Inquirer.
  14. ^ "Daily Kos Elections' presidential results by congressional district for 2020, 2016, and 2012". Daily Kos.
  15. ^ "Full List: Where Every House Member Stands on Impeachment Against Trump". The New York Times. December 18, 2019. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  16. ^ "Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick's 2017 Report Card". Washington, D.C.: GovTrack. January 6, 2018. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  17. ^ Clare Foran, Daniella Diaz and Annie Grayer. "House votes to remove Marjorie Taylor Greene from committee assignments". CNN. CNN. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  18. ^ "90 Current Climate Solutions Caucus Members". Citizen's Climate Lobby. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  19. ^ "Republican Congressman Urges Colleagues to Act on Climate Change - Eos". Eos. Retrieved 2018-11-06.
  20. ^ "CLIMATE: Carbon tax backers grapple with 'Green New Deal'". www.eenews.net. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  21. ^ [1] Archived 2018-07-24 at the Wayback Machine
  22. ^ Otterbein, Holly. "This Republican is bucking his party in the fight over Pa.'s new congressional map". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  23. ^ Jump up to: a b "Voting Record". Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  24. ^ Voght, Kara (July 6, 2018). "A Top Gun Control Group Just Endorsed a Republican Gun Rights Defender". Mother Jones. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  25. ^ Juliegrace Brufke (2021-03-11). "The eight Republicans who voted to tighten background checks on guns". The Hill.
  26. ^ "U.S. Rep. Fitzpatrick: 'I cannot support' Republican health care plan". PhillyVoice. 2017-03-19. Retrieved 2018-11-06.
  27. ^ "Bucks County Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick votes against American Health Care Act". The Advance of Bucks County.
  28. ^ Pallone, Frank (September 8, 2020). "H.R.3 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act". www.congress.gov.
  29. ^ Jump up to: a b "Bucks Republicans clash over Russia, immigration in congressional debate".
  30. ^ "Boyle, james; Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, Pennsylvania lawmakers call for legislative DACA solution; The Intelligence; September 5, 2017".
  31. ^ http://clerk.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.asp?year=2019&rollnumber=240
  32. ^ Sonmez, Felicia. "House passes immigration bill to protect 'dreamers,' offer a path to citizenship". The Washington Post.
  33. ^ Timmons, Heather. "The short (but growing) list of Republican lawmakers who are publicly condemning Trump's "Muslim ban"". Quartz. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
  34. ^ "Fitzpatrick says character and experience will win him 8th District seat, not family name". WHYY. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
  35. ^ http://clerk.house.gov/cgi-bin/vote.asp?year=2019&rollnumber=217
  36. ^ Rambaran, Vandana (17 May 2019). "House passes sweeping legislation to expand LGBTQ civil rights but GOP lawmakers worry it may threaten the rights of women".
  37. ^ "Congressional Democrats, GOP moderates look to enshrine LGBTQ legal protections". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2019-03-14.
  38. ^ Rambaran, Vandana (2019-05-17). "House passes sweeping legislation to expand LGBTQ civil rights but GOP lawmakers worry it may threaten the rights of women". Fox News. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  39. ^ Cohn, Alicia (2021-02-25). "Here are the three GOP lawmakers who voted for the Equality Act". TheHill. Retrieved 2021-03-05.
  40. ^ Boyle, James (January 10, 2018). "Trump signs Brian Fitzpatrick's fentanyl screening bill". Bucks County Courier Times. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  41. ^ Sonmez, Felicia; DeBonis, Mike (July 14, 2019). "Trump tells four liberal congresswomen to 'go back' to their countries, prompting Pelosi to defend them". The Washington Post.
  42. ^ LeBlanc, Paul (July 16, 2019). "Here are the 4 Republicans who voted to condemn Trump's racist tweets". CNN.com.
  43. ^ Ciavaglia, Jo. "Fitzpatrick votes against impeachment, favors censure of Trump". Bucks County Courier Times. Retrieved 2021-02-16.
  44. ^ LeBlanc, Paul (May 19, 2021). "Here are the 35 House Republicans who voted for the January 6 commission". CNN. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  45. ^ "GOP Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick: 'The President Was Manipulated By Vladimir Putin'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2018-07-24.
  46. ^ jomalley@couriertimes.com @omalley_news, James O'Malley. "Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick to Donald Trump: 'Stop attacking the FBI'". Bucks County Courier Times.
  47. ^ Almukhtar, Sarah. "How Each House Member Voted on the Tax Bill". Retrieved 2018-11-06.
  48. ^ Media, James O'Malley, GateHouse. "Fitzpatrick talks term limits with Trump". The Times.
  49. ^ "Stephanie Murphy sponsors 'congressional accountability' bill". May 24, 2018.
  50. ^ "Mixed Bag of Republicans Vote Against Obamacare Repeal Vehicle". Roll Call. 13 January 2017. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  51. ^ "MEMBERS". RMSP. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  52. ^ "Featured Members". Problem Solvers Caucus. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  53. ^ "Committees and Caucuses". Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick. Retrieved 2021-02-01.

External links[]

U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Mike Fitzpatrick 		Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 8th congressional district
2017–2019 		Succeeded by
Matt Cartwright
Preceded by
Bob Brady 		Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district
2019–present 		Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by
Tom Reed 		Co-Chair of the Problem Solvers Caucus
2021–present
Served alongside: Josh Gottheimer 		Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by
Drew Ferguson 		United States representatives by seniority
262nd 		Succeeded by
Matt Gaetz
  • v
  • t
Pennsylvania's delegation(s) to the 115th–present United States Congresses (ordered by seniority)
115th
Senate:
  • ▌B. Casey Jr. (D)
  • ▌P. Toomey (R)
House:
116th
Senate:
  • ▌B. Casey Jr. (D)
  • ▌P. Toomey (R)
House:
117th
Senate:
  • ▌B. Casey Jr. (D)
  • ▌P. Toomey (R)
House:
Retrieved from ""