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Ralph Bradley Miller (born May 19, 1953) is an American attorney and former
U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
for , serving from 2003 to 2013. District 13 included all of Caswell and
Person A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of property, ...
counties, and parts of
Alamance Alamance is a village in Alamance County, North Carolina, Alamance County, North Carolina, United States. It is part of the Burlington, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 951 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 cens ...
, Granville,
Guilford Guildford is a town in Surrey, England. It gives its name to the Borough of Guildford, the Diocese of Guildford and the Parliamentary constituency of Guildford. Guildford, Guilford, or Gildford may also refer to: Places Australia * Guildfor ...
, Rockingham and
Wake Wake or The Wake may refer to: Culture *Wake (ceremony), a ritual which takes place during some funeral ceremonies *Wakes week, an English holiday tradition * Parish Wake, another name of the Welsh ', the fairs held on the local parish's patron s ...
counties. He is a member of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
.


Early life, education, and law career

Miller was born in
Fayetteville, North Carolina Fayetteville () is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a major U.S. Army installation northwest of the city. Fayetteville has received the All-America C ...
to Margaret Hale Miller and Nathan David Miller. Miller earned a
BA degree Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
from the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...
in 1975, a
Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.
from the
London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...
in 1978, and a
Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
from
Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...
in 1979. After graduation he served as clerk to Judge J. Dickson Phillips Jr. of the
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (in case citations, 4th Cir.) is a federal court located in Richmond, Virginia, with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Maryla ...
. Miller practiced Law in
Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...
before entering politics.


North Carolina legislature

He was a member of the
North Carolina House of Representatives The North Carolina House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the North Carolina General Assembly. The House is a 120-member body led by a Speaker of the House, who holds powers similar to those of the President pro-tem in the North Ca ...
from 1992 until 1994 and a member of the
North Carolina Senate The North Carolina Senate is the upper chamber of the North Carolina General Assembly, which along with the North Carolina House of Representatives—the lower chamber—comprises the state legislature of North Carolina. The term of office for e ...
from 1996 to 2002.


U.S. House of Representatives


Elections

In 2002, Miller was elected to represent
North Carolina's 13th congressional district The thirteenth congressional district of North Carolina was re-established in 2002 after the state gained population in the 2000 United States census. Previously, the state had 13 districts from the first election following the 1810 census unti ...
in the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
. Following the 2000 Census, Miller had a hand in redrawing the district map which established NC 13. During the 2002 election, Miller advanced from a crowded Democratic primary, which included former Congressman
Robin Britt Robin may refer to: Animals * Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae * Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), including: **European robin (''Erithacus rubecula'') **Bush-robin **Forest rob ...
, to defeat
Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
Carolyn Grant and a
Libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...
candidate with roughly 55% of the vote. Grant later sued Miller alleging, among other things, that he and his campaign defamed her in an October 2002 television advertisement. She later dropped the suit after she failed to comply with several court orders. Miller was elected to his second term in the 2004 Congressional elections, earning 59% of the vote and defeating
Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
Virginia Johnson. Miller's opponent in the 2006 race was Vernon Robinson, a conservative
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
politician who is a former city council member and current resident of
Winston-Salem, North Carolina Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in N ...
(outside the thirteenth congressional district). Robinson was able to garner national attention due to his bombastic and exaggerative rhetoric.newsobserver.com, Contest for 13th already strident
Robinson made several accusations against Miller, including that he was cutting money from US troops to study the sex lives of
prostitute Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...
s. He also claimed that Miller was gay, despite having a wife, and that he was allowing
illegal immigrants Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwa ...
to sneak into America. Miller defeated Robinson 63.71% to 36.29%. In 2007 Miller considered a run for the U.S. Senate against incumbent
Elizabeth Dole Mary Elizabeth Alexander Hanford Dole (née Hanford; born July 29, 1936)Mary Ella Cathey Hanford, "Asbury and Hanford Families: Newly Discovered Genealogical Information" ''The Historical Trail'' 33 (1996), pp. 44–45, 49. is an American attorn ...
but decided against it. Later, he ruled out running against Sen.
Richard Burr Richard Mauze Burr (born November 30, 1955) is an American businessman and politician who is the senior United States senator from North Carolina, serving since 2005. A member of the Republican Party, Burr was previously a member of the United ...
in
2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
. After the
2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...
, Republicans who controlled the state's
General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...
redrew the districts. In the process, they placed Miller into a new, heavily Republican 13th District stretching from northern Raleigh all the way to Surry County on the other side of the state. While
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
carried the old 13th fairly handily with 59 percent of the vote,
John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...
would have won the reconfigured 13th with 56 percent of the vote. However, after 1st District Congressman
G. K. Butterfield George Kenneth Butterfield Jr. (born April 27, 1947) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for North Carolina's 1st congressional district from 2004 to 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, he was first elec ...
raised objections that the new map violated the rights of African-American voters in the eastern part of the state, the state legislature was forced to redraw the map again. The new plan made the 13th more compact, taking in territory from areas just west and east of Raleigh to just east of Rocky Mount. However, it is still significantly more Republican than its predecessor; McCain would have won it with 54 percent. The new map also placed Miller's apartment complex 50 yards inside the 4th district, represented by fellow Democrat David Price, but left the rest of Miller's precinct in the 13th. On January 26, 2012, Miller announced that he would not seek re-election to Congress.


Tenure

;Education Miller co-founded and co-chairs the bipartisan congressional
Community College A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior sec ...
caucus A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures. The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
, which educates members of Congress on the importance of community colleges. For his efforts, he was recognized with the Congressional Award from the Council for Resource Development. ;Healthcare reform Miller voted for the
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and colloquially known as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Presi ...
. ;Financial reform The Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act of 2009 In Congress, Miller served on the
House Financial Services Committee The United States House Committee on Financial Services, also referred to as the House Banking Committee and previously known as the Committee on Banking and Currency, is the committee of the United States House of Representatives that oversees t ...
, where he has worked to protect consumers from abusive lending, especially
predatory mortgage lending Predatory lending refers to unethical practices conducted by lending organizations during a loan origination process that are unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent. While there are no internationally agreed legal definitions for predatory lending, a 2006 ...
. In 2007 and 2009 the House passed comprehensive federal mortgage lending reform legislation authored by Miller, but neither bill was subsequently considered in the Senate. ;Financial Product Safety Commission Act of 2009 In 2009 Miller introduced
legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolled bill, enrolling, enactment of a bill, enacting, or promulgation, promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous Government, governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law i ...
with Rep. Bill Delahunt (D-MA) to establish a Financial Product Safety Commission. The bill, modeled on a concept proposed by
Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...
Professor
Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth Ann Warren ( née Herring; born June 22, 1949) is an American politician and former law professor who is the senior United States senator from Massachusetts, serving since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party and regarded as a ...
, was subsequently included in the financial regulatory reform package announced by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on July 24, 2009. ;Emergency Homeownership and Mortgage Equity Protection Act of 2007 On September 20, 2007 Miller introduced H.R. 3609, becoming the first member of Congress to propose that bankruptcy courts be allowed to modify the mortgage debt of persons in foreclosure or against whom foreclosure proceedings had been commenced. ;AIG Hearing On March 18, 2009 Miller, a member of the Financial Services Committee, excoriated
American International Group American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is an American multinational finance and insurance corporation with operations in more than 80 countries and jurisdictions. , AIG companies employed 49,600 people.https://www.aig.com/content/dam/aig/amer ...
(AIG) Chairman Edward Liddy during testimony pertaining to the insurance company's controversial financial policies following its receipt of federal assistance. Miller cited AIG's allocation of $49.5 billion of taxpayer resources toward bank credit insurance policies, criticizing the company for acting to compromise "market discipline." ;Repeal of Defense of Marriage Act In September 2011, Miller announced that he will co-sponsor a bill that would repeal the
Defense of Marriage Act The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was a United States federal law passed by the 104th United States Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton. It banned federal recognition of same-sex marriage by limiting the definition of marr ...
, the 1996 law that forbids federal agencies from recognizing the legal marriages of gay and lesbian couples. Describing the legislation, Miller said "North Carolina would still not be required to perform civil marriage, but it would be required to recognize marriages performed in other states." The announcement comes on the heels of the North Carolina Legislature announcing that it would include a proposed constitutional amendment on the next ballot banning gay marriage. ;Environment Miller was originally in favor of having the
National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility The National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) is a biosafety level 4 research laboratory in Manhattan, Kansas, operated by the United States Department of Agriculture. Slated to open in Summer 2022, the facility is designed to combat biologi ...
(NBAF) located close to his district in
Butner, North Carolina Butner is a town in Granville County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 8,397 as of the 2020 census. Butner was managed by the state of North Carolina from 1947 through 2007. History A bill passed by the North Carolina General ...
, but changed his mind after his constituents objected to the project.


Committee assignments

*
Committee on Financial Services The United States House Committee on Financial Services, also referred to as the House Banking Committee and previously known as the Committee on Banking and Currency, is the committee of the United States House of Representatives that oversees t ...
** Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government-Sponsored Enterprises ** Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit ** Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations *
Committee on Science, Space and Technology The Committee on Science, Space, and Technology is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. It has jurisdiction over non-defense federal scientific research and development. More specifically, the committee has complete jurisdic ...
** Subcommittee on Energy and Environment (Ranking Member) ** Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight In January 2007 Miller was named to the
House Foreign Affairs Committee The United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs, also known as the House Foreign Affairs Committee, is a standing committee of the U.S. House of Representatives with jurisdiction over bills and investigations concerning the foreign affairs ...
. Soon thereafter he was appointed chairman of the new Science and Technology Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight.


Caucus memberships

* Historic Preservation Caucus (Chair) *African Great Lakes Caucus (Co-Chair) *Congressional Bike Caucus *Congressional Caucus on Youth Sports *Congressional Community College Caucus (Co-Chair) * International Conservation Caucus *Congressional Arts Caucus


Personal life

Miller is an occasional blogger at the
Daily Kos Daily Kos ( ) is a group blog and internet forum focused on the U.S. Democratic Party and liberal American politics. The site includes glossaries and other content. It is sometimes considered an example of "netroots" activism. Daily Kos was f ...
.


See also

*
North Carolina Democratic Party The North Carolina Democratic Party (NCDP) is the North Carolina affiliate of the Democratic Party. It is headquartered in the historic Goodwin House, located in Raleigh. Governor Roy Cooper is a North Carolina Democrat. Since the 2010 passage of ...


References


External links


Representative Brad Miller
''official U.S. House website''
Brad Miller for Congress
''official campaign website'' *
Brad Miller
at Congress.org
Daily Kos: Democrats Form New Science SubcommitteeNews & Observer "Under the Dome" ProfileDraft Brad Miller for Senate
* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Bradley 1953 births Living people Politicians from Fayetteville, North Carolina American Episcopalians Alumni of the London School of Economics Columbia Law School alumni Democratic Party members of the North Carolina House of Representatives Democratic Party North Carolina state senators University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from North Carolina 21st-century American politicians