James Adelbert McDermott was born on December 28,1936 and is an American politician and psychiatrist who was the US representative for from 1989 to 2017.
20 Facts About Jim McDermott
2.
Jim McDermott served on the House Ways and Means Committee and was a member of the House Progressive Caucus.
3.
Jim McDermott was formerly the committee chairman, then in 1995, ranking minority member on the House Ethics Committee.
4.
Jim McDermott was born on December 28,1936, in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Roseanna and William Jim McDermott.
5.
In 1970, Jim McDermott made his first run for public office and was elected to the Washington state legislature as a representative from the 43rd District.
6.
Jim McDermott did not seek re-election in 1972 but instead ran for Governor of Washington losing the primary to former governor Albert Rosellini, who was seeking a return to the governorship after losing a third term bid in 1964.
7.
Jim McDermott chose for a third time in 1984 to run for governor.
8.
Jim McDermott ended up losing his third primary to Gardner, who then went on to defeat Spellman in the general election.
9.
In 1987, Jim McDermott briefly left politics to become a Foreign Service medical officer based in Zaire now known as Democratic Republic of the Congo, providing psychiatric services to Foreign Service, USAID, and Peace Corps personnel in sub-Saharan Africa.
10.
Jim McDermott returned from Africa to run for the seat and won handily with 71 percent of the vote.
11.
Jim McDermott was re-elected 13 times with no substantive opposition.
12.
Jim McDermott usually garnered wide support in his district, the most Democratic white-majority district in the nation, even in disastrous years for Democrats nationally.
13.
Jim McDermott was re-elected in 2010, taking 83 percent of the vote against independent challenger Bob Jeffers-Schroder.
14.
In 2012 Jim McDermott was challenged in the Democratic primary by attorney Andrew Hughes.
15.
Jim McDermott did not seek reelection in 2016 following the announcement of a primary challenge by state representative Brady Walkinshaw.
16.
The incident occurred after atheist Michael Newdow lost his court case to have the phrase "under God" dropped from the Pledge, and after Jim McDermott had voted against a congressional resolution that called for overturning a court ruling that declared the phrase unconstitutional.
17.
On March 31,2008, Chief Judge Thomas Hogan of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia ordered Jim McDermott to pay Boehner $1.05 million in attorney's fees, costs and interest.
18.
Jim McDermott paid over $60,000 in fines and close to $600,000 in his own legal fees.
19.
Jim McDermott belonged to several dozen Congressional caucuses and co-chaired the following caucuses:.
20.
Jim McDermott married Therese Hansen in 1997, divorcing in 2012.