business
Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...
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 ...
politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
from his native
Corsicana
Corsicana is a city in Navarro County, Texas, United States. It is located on Interstate 45, 56 miles northeast of Waco, Texas. The population was 23,770 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Navarro County, and an important Agri-business ...
in east central
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, who is a former
state representative
A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system.
Two federations literally use the term "state legislature":
* The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...
for District 8, which encompasses the
counties
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
of
Anderson
Anderson or Andersson may refer to:
Companies
* Anderson (Carriage), a company that manufactured automobiles from 1907 to 1910
* Anderson Electric, an early 20th-century electric car
* Anderson Greenwood, an industrial manufacturer
* Anderson ...
Hill
A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct Summit (topography), summit.
Terminology
The distinction between a hill and a mountain is unclear and largely subjective, but a hill is universally con ...
, and Navarro. In October 2017, Cook announced that he would not seek re-election in 2018.
Early life and education
Cook graduated from
Navarro College
Navarro College is a public community college in Texas with its main campus in Corsicana and branches in Fairfield, Mexia, Midlothian, and Waxahachie. The college has an annual student enrollment of more than 9,000 students.
The Corsicana ...
, a
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 ...
, with an
associate degree
An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelor's degree.
The fi ...
in 1974. Cook's father, the late Leland P. Cook, was the former circulation manager for the ''
Corsicana Daily Sun
The ''Corsicana Daily Sun'' is a morning daily newspaper published in Corsicana, Texas
Corsicana is a city in Navarro County, Texas, United States. It is located on Interstate 45, 56 miles northeast of Waco, Texas. The population was 23,770 a ...
''. Leland left the newspaper to start a family business. In 1986, he and Cook founded
Tradewest
Tradewest was an American video game company based in Corsicana, Texas that produced numerous games in the 1980s and early 1990s. The company was the publisher of the '' Battletoads'' and '' Double Dragon'' series in North America and the PAL regi ...
, a now-defunct
video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
company and licensee of several
Nintendo
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
games, including
Double Dragon
is a beat 'em up video game series initially developed by TechnÅs Japan and released as an arcade game in 1987. The series features twin martial artists, Billy and Jimmy Lee, as they fight against various adversaries and rivals.
The original ...
,
Battletoads
''Battletoads'' is a video game media franchise by Rare that began with the original beat 'em up game ''Battletoads'' in 1991. Starring three anthropomorphic toads named after skin conditions, Rash, Zitz, and Pimple, the series was created to ...
, and
Super Off Road
''Ivan "Ironman" Stewart's Super Off Road'' is an arcade video game released in 1989 by Leland Corporation. The game was designed and managed by John Morgan who was also lead programmer, and endorsed by professional off-road racer Ivan Stewart. ...
.
Texas House of Representatives
Cook served as the chairman of the Texas House State Affairs Committee and as a member of the Texas House Calendars Committee. He is also a member of the Texas House Republican Caucus and Texas Conservative Coalition. Cook has also served in past legislative sessions as chairman of the Texas House Committees on Civil Practices and the Committee on Environmental Regulation; and as a member of the Texas
Sunset Advisory Commission
The Sunset Advisory Commission is an agency of the Texas Legislature that evaluates state agencies and makes recommendations to the legislature on the need for, performance of, and improvements to agencies under review. The commission is headquar ...
.
During the 2015 Texas legislative session, Cook, who is generally considered to be a moderate Republican, filed a bill to allow
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 obtain one-year driving permits, which received pushback from lawmakers within the state.
Cook is one of two named investor victims in securities fraud charges filed against
Ken Paxton
Warren Kenneth Paxton Jr. (born December 23, 1962) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the Attorney General of Texas since January 2015. Paxton has described himself as a Tea Party conservative.
Paxton was re-elected to a th ...
in 2015. Cook and Paxton had earlier been friends who served together in the Texas House of Representatives.
On March 22, 2017, Cook asked an activist from
Waxahachie
Waxahachie ( ) is the seat of government of Ellis County, Texas, United States. Its population was 41,140 in 2020.
Etymology
Some sources state that the name means "cow" or "buffalo" in an unspecified Native American language. One possible ...
to leave the
Texas State Capitol
The Texas State Capitol is the capitol and seat of government of the American state of Texas. Located in downtown Austin, Texas, the structure houses the offices and chambers of the Texas Legislature and of the Governor of Texas. Designed in 18 ...
as she was filming a governmental meeting. She was charged with
trespass
Trespass is an area of tort law broadly divided into three groups: trespass to the person, trespass to chattels, and trespass to land.
Trespass to the person historically involved six separate trespasses: threats, assault, battery, wounding ...
ing in spite of the
Texas Open Meetings Act The Texas Open Meetings Act (TOMA) is an act in the Chapter 551 of the Government Code whereby meetings held by governmental bodies in the state of Texas, be they at the state or local level, must be open to the public (except for executive sessions ...
.
2016 primary election
In the March 2016 Republican primary, Cook defeated Thomas McNutt, a
Tea Party
A tea party is a social gathering event held in the afternoon. For centuries, many societies have cherished drinking tea with a company at noon. Tea parties are considered for formal business meetings, social celebrations or just as an afternoon ...
challenger and an heir of the
Collin Street Bakery
The Collin Street Bakery is located in Corsicana, Texas, USA. Its products are shipped to all US states, overseas possessions and 195 countries. The bakery is best known for its production of fruitcake.
The Bakery was the recipient of the Presi ...
in Corsicana. Cook won nomination to his eighth term by 225 votes, 14,421 (50.4 percent) to McNutt's 14,196 (49.6 percent). McNutt's campaign claimed that there was voter fraud in Hill County during the primary. After investigation, the Hill County Election Administration Board and the Hill County Election Administrator declared that there was no voter fraud in the primary.
McNutt ran again in the 2018 primary but lost the nomination to Cook's preferred successor, Cody Harris, who then prevailed in the general election, 36,471 votes (78.3 percent) to 10,136 (21.7 percent) for the Democrat Wesley D. Ratcliff.
Personal life
Cook and his wife, Kay, have two daughters. Outside of his political career, Cook is a businessman and rancher.