John Sumners Tanner (born September 22, 1944) is a former American politician who served as the
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 1989 until 2011. 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 ...
. Since his retirement, Tanner has served as the Vice Chairman of
Prime Policy Group.
Early life, education, and early political career
Tanner was born in
Halls, Tennessee
Halls is a town in Lauderdale County, Tennessee. The population was 2,255 at the 2010 census.
The town was founded in 1882 as a railroad station stop. It is named after Hansford R. Hall, one of the founders. Among the early business ventures we ...
, the son of Edith Adell (Sumners) and Emerson Beck "Buzz" Tanner. He grew up in
Union City, Tennessee
Union City is located in Obion County, Tennessee, United States. The 2020 census reported the population of the town as 11,170. It is the principal urban settlement of the surrounding micropolitan area, which includes Obion County and Fulton Count ...
. Following graduation from the
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...
, he served in the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
from 1968 to 1972. He was elected to the
Tennessee House of Representatives as a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
in 1976, replacing Larry Bates, who mounted an unsuccessful
primary challenge against U.S. Congressman
Ed Jones.
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
When Jones retired in 1988, Tanner won the Democratic nomination for the seat and handily defeated
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 ...
nominee
Ed Bryant
Edward Glenn Bryant (born September 7, 1948) is an American politician who is a former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee (1995–2003). From 1991–1993, he served as the United States Attorney for t ...
, who went on to represent the neighboring 7th District from 1995 to 2003. Tanner was reelected in 1990 with no major-party opposition, a feat he repeated in 1992. In 1998, he was completely unopposed. He handily defeated Republican opponents in 1994 (the only time besides his initial election that he faced a serious or well-funded challenger), 1996, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006. In 2004 and 2008, he faced
James L. Hart, an avowed
eugenicist
Eugenics ( ; ) is a fringe set of beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter human gene pools by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior or ...
. On both occasions, Hart was disavowed by the state Republican Party.
Tanner announced on December 1, 2009, that he would not seek re-election in 2010 and would retire after 11 terms in Congress. State Senator
Roy Herron
Roy Herron (born September 30, 1953) is an American politician, attorney and author. He is the former Chairman of the Tennessee Democratic Party. He was the Tennessee State Senator for the 24th district for 16 years and for 10 years before tha ...
gave up his gubernatorial bid and ran for Tanner's congressional seat. However, he only tallied 39.8 percent of the vote against Republican farmer
Stephen Fincher. Indeed, no Democrat running in the district has cracked the 40 percent mark since Tanner left office.
Tenure
As a Congressman, Tanner has sponsored a bill to repeal the
inheritance tax (which was
veto
A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In the most typical case, a president or monarch vetoes a bill to stop it from becoming law. In many countries, veto powers are established in the country's constitution. Veto ...
ed by
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Clinton) and he is in favor of a balanced budget. It is reported that Tanner could have been appointed to the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
by
governor of Tennessee
The governor of Tennessee is the head of government of the U.S. state of Tennessee. The governor is the only official in Tennessee state government who is directly elected by the voters of the entire state.
The current governor is Bill Lee, a ...
Ned McWherter
Ned Ray McWherter (October 15, 1930April 4, 2011) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 46th Governor of Tennessee, from 1987 to 1995. Prior to that, he served as Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives from 19 ...
in 1992 to replace
Al Gore
Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic Part ...
but he declined the offer, and
Harlan Mathews
Harlan Mathews (January 17, 1927 – May 9, 2014) was a Democratic United States Senator from Tennessee from 1993 to 1994. He had previously served in the executive and legislative branches of state government in Tennessee for more than 40 yea ...
was appointed as a
caretaker
Caretaker may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''The Caretaker'' (film), a 1963 adaptation of the play ''The Caretaker''
* '' The Caretakers'', a 1963 American film set in a mental hospital
* Caretaker, a character in the 1974 film '' ...
instead. Tanner was a founder of the
Blue Dog Democrats
The Blue Dog Coalition (commonly known as the Blue Dogs or Blue Dog Democrats) is a caucus in the United States House of Representatives comprising centrist members from the Democratic Party. The caucus was founded as a group of conservative ...
and has denied rumors that he might switch parties, and has an earned reputation as a
moderate
Moderate is an ideological category which designates a rejection of radical or extreme views, especially in regard to politics and religion. A moderate is considered someone occupying any mainstream position avoiding extreme views. In American ...
. Tanner gained notoriety during the
Clinton–Lewinsky scandal
The Clinton–Lewinsky scandal was a sex scandal involving Bill Clinton, the president of the United States, and Monica Lewinsky, a White House intern. Their sexual relationship lasted between 1995 and 1997. Clinton ended a televised speech in ...
when it was revealed in the
Starr Report that Clinton was receiving
fellatio
Fellatio (also known as fellation, and in slang as blowjob, BJ, giving head, or sucking off) is an oral sex act involving a person stimulating the penis of another person by using the mouth, throat, or both. Oral stimulation of the scrotum may ...
from
Monica Lewinsky
Monica Samille Lewinsky (born July 23, 1973) is an American activist and writer. President Bill Clinton admitted to having an affair with Lewinsky while she worked at the White House as an intern in 1995 and 1996. The affair, and its repercus ...
while on the phone with Tanner on November 15, 1995, between 9:31pm and 9:35pm.
Tanner is strongly in favor of balancing the budget and paying down the national debt. He has been a strong opponent of the fiscal policies of President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
, voting against many of the tax cuts passed during his terms; yet, he was one of 43 Democrats to vote to repeal the estate tax in 2006. Tanner was one of the few Democrats in the House to vote in favor of CAFTA and has long distanced himself from the majority of his party on issues such as bankruptcy law and lawsuit reform. He voted for the Federal Marriage Amendment, the ban on "partial-birth" abortions, limiting death penalty appeals, and has voted against most gun control measures. On other issues he is more liberal: he often votes with his party on separation of church and states issues, and has consistently voted against the Flag Desecration Amendment. Tanner voted with the majority of his party to expand
stem cell research
In multicellular organisms, stem cells are undifferentiated or partially differentiated cells that can differentiate into various types of cells and proliferate indefinitely to produce more of the same stem cell. They are the earliest type o ...
and against renewing the controversial portions of the
Patriot Act
The USA PATRIOT Act (commonly known as the Patriot Act) was a landmark Act of the United States Congress, signed into law by President George W. Bush. The formal name of the statute is the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appro ...
. He also supports
affirmative action and
public education
State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...
. Tanner was firmly opposed to Bush's attempt to reform
Social Security
Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...
.
Tanner received much of his knowledge of politics as a youth from his father E.B. "Buzz" Tanner who was successful in the financial and insurance business. He became a member of a highly political and influential law firm out of law school in his home town community and soon ran for office as a state legislator in the House of Representatives. He was also a relative of then House Speaker Ned McWherter, who later was elected governor twice and was an extremely powerful political force in the state, having friends on both sides of the political aisle.
In 2004, Congressman Tanner made a brief but unintended cameo appearance alongside
Michael Moore
Michael Francis Moore (born April 23, 1954) is an American filmmaker, author and left-wing activist. His works frequently address the topics of globalization and capitalism.
Moore won the 2002 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for ' ...
in ''
Fahrenheit 9/11'', where Moore was trying to get Congressmen to have their children enlist in the Military to go to Iraq.
He recently drafted a bill that would require special bipartisan commissions rather than state legislatures to redraw congressional districts when necessary due to U.S. Census count changes. It is generally believed that this bill is a response to Republican-inspired mid-decade redistricting in
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 ...
and recent similar efforts in
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
and
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
.
After both his district and state chose the former first lady, Congressman Tanner endorsed Senator
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
's presidential campaign in April 2008.
Committee assignments
*
Committee on Foreign Affairs
**
Subcommittee on Europe
**
Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere
*
Committee on Ways and Means
The Committee on Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee has jurisdiction over all taxation, tariffs, and other revenue-raising measures, as well as a number of other program ...
**
Subcommittee on Trade (Chairman)
**
Subcommittee on Social Security
Post-congressional career
He currently works for Nashville law firm Miller & Martin and the Prime Policy Group, a lobbying firm. He became chairman of the
International Conservation Caucus Foundation
The International Conservation Caucus Foundation (ICCF) is a non-partisan 501(c)(3) educational foundation based in Washington, D.C. ICCF's stated mission is "to advance U.S. leadership in international conservation through public and private pa ...
, a non-profit group that advocates U.S. leadership in conservation programs globally, in fall of 2011.
Tanner is a member of the ReFormers Caucus of
Issue One
Issue One is an American nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that seeks to reduce the role of money in politics. It aims to increase public awareness of what it views as problems within the present campaign finance system, and to reduce the influ ...
. He also serves on the board of directors of the
Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) is a non-profit public policy organization based in Washington, D.C. that addresses federal budget and fiscal issues. It was founded in 1981 by former United States Representatives Robert Gia ...
.
Personal life
He is married to Betty Ann Tanner and has two children.
References
External links
*
Profileat
SourceWatch
The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) is a progressive nonprofit watchdog and advocacy organization based in Madison, Wisconsin. CMD publishes ExposedbyCMD.org, SourceWatch.org, and ALECexposed.org.
History
CMD was founded in 1993 by progr ...
*
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, -
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tanner, John
1944 births
Living people
21st-century American politicians
American Disciples of Christ
United States Navy sailors
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee
Democratic Party members of the Tennessee House of Representatives
National Guard (United States) colonels
20th-century American politicians
People from Halls, Tennessee
People from Union City, Tennessee