Jimmy Duncan (U.S. politician)
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John James Duncan Jr. (born July 21, 1947) is an 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 from 1988 to 2019. A lawyer, former judge, and former long serving member of the
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, he is a member of the
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.


Early life, education, and legal career

Duncan was born in
Lebanon, Tennessee Lebanon is the county seat of Wilson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 38,431 at the 2020 census. Lebanon is located in Middle Tennessee, approximately east of downtown Nashville. Lebanon is part of the Nashville Metropolit ...
. His "paternal grandparents were small-acreage farmers in Scott County, which in 1861 left Tennessee, refusing to follow the Volunteer State into the
Confederacy Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between ...
, and declared itself 'the Free and Independent state of Scott.'" Kauffman, Bill (2005-09-12
Volunteer Statesman
'' The American Conservative''
Duncan's parents were Lois (Swisher) and
John Duncan Sr. John James Duncan Sr. (March 24, 1919 – June 21, 1988) was an American attorney and Republican politician who represented Tennessee's 2nd Congressional District in the U. S. House of Representatives from 1965 until his death in 1988.Michael R ...
, who "hitchhiked into Knoxville with five dollars in his pocket,' and after an education at the University of Tennessee was elected mayor of Knoxville and then congressman." The elder Duncan was also a co-owner of the
Knoxville Smokies Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state's ...
of the " Sally League," for which his son "was a batboy, a ball shagger, scoreboard operator, and, as a freshman at the University of Tennessee, the Smokies' public-address announcer." Duncan also worked as a grocery bagger and salesman at Sears while working his way through school. Duncan supported
Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the Republican Party nominee for presiden ...
's
1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...
presidential campaign, and sent the first paycheck he earned as a bagboy at the local A&P to the Goldwater campaign. Duncan graduated from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville in 1969 with a Bachelor of Journalism degree and subsequently received 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 ...
degree from
George Washington University Law School The George Washington University Law School (GW Law) is the law school of George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. Established in 1865, GW Law is the oldest top law school in the national capital. GW Law offers the largest range of cou ...
in Washington, D.C. in 1973 and was admitted to the
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that same year. He also served in the
Army National Guard The Army National Guard (ARNG), in conjunction with the Air National Guard, is an organized Militia (United States), militia force and a Reserve components of the United States Armed Forces, federal military reserve force of the United States A ...
from 1970 to 1987. He was an
attorney Attorney may refer to: * Lawyer ** Attorney at law, in some jurisdictions * Attorney, one who has power of attorney * ''The Attorney'', a 2013 South Korean film See also * Attorney general, the principal legal officer of (or advisor to) a gove ...
in private practice until he became a state court
judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...
in
Knox County, Tennessee Knox County is located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 478,971, making it the third-most populous county in Tennessee. Its county seat is Knoxville, which is the third-most populous city in Tennessee. K ...
, where he served from 1981 to 1988.


U.S. House of Representatives


Elections

John Sr., who had represented the Knoxville-based 2nd District since 1965, died in June 1988. Jimmy Duncan won the Republican nomination to succeed him. He ran in and won two elections on November 8, 1988–a special election for the balance of his father's 12th term, and a regular election for a full two-year term. He was re-elected every two years from then until his retirement from a district that had been held continuously by Republicans (or their antecedents) since 1859, and by a Duncan since his father was first elected in 1964. He never faced a serious or well-funded challenge for reelection, and was reelected without major-party opposition in four consecutive elections (1994 through 2000). On the occasions he did face major-party opposition, he only dropped below 70 percent of the vote twice, during the special and regular elections in 1988. Indeed, the 1988 contests were the only times since the elder Duncan's first run that a Democrat has managed as much as 40 percent of the vote in this district.


Tenure

Duncan voted against authorizing the 2003 War in Iraq based on opposition to what he believed to be an unnecessary foreign involvement. He also opposed and voted against a June 2006 House declaration in support of the war. He was one of the most conservative Republicans to do so.Vote-smart.org
Duncan later remarked that the Iraq War vote had been Duncan was among only six Republicans to vote against funding for the Iraq War on May 24, 2007. Duncan voted, along with three other Republicans, to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq by April 2008 on July 12, 2007. On March 10, 2010, Duncan again joined three other Republicans in voting for the removal of troops from Afghanistan. Duncan and
Ron Paul Ronald Ernest Paul (born August 20, 1935) is an American author, activist, physician and retired politician who served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1976 to 1977 and again from 1979 to 1985, as well ...
were the only members of Congress to vote for the removal of troops from Afghanistan and against all recent bailout and stimulus bills. He has criticized neoconservatism and supports a non-interventionist foreign policy. Duncan was a member of the Liberty Caucus, a group of libertarian-minded congressional Republicans. Other members included
Walter B. Jones Walter Beaman Jones Jr. (February 10, 1943 – February 10, 2019) was an American politician who served twelve terms in the United States House of Representatives as a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party for from 19 ...
of North Carolina, Roscoe Bartlett of Maryland, Scott Garrett of New Jersey, and
Jeff Flake Jeffry Lane Flake (born December 31, 1962) is an American politician and diplomat who is the current U.S Ambassador to Turkey. A member of the Republican Party, Flake served in the United States House of Representatives from 2001 to 2013 and ...
of Arizona. A former neighbor of his district, Zach Wamp of the 3rd district, also belonged to the group during his tenure in the House. Duncan voted against the
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. In a column he explained his vote stating he "thought it would be better in the long run not to adopt the socialist approach." The American Conservative Union gave Duncan a 96% score for his voting record in 2013, higher than any other federal Representative in Congress from Tennessee. The Family Research Council has rated Duncan as a 92% or above since 2002 and the
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has rated him in equally positive terms. In 2012, Duncan received the number one spot in the 435-member House in the National Taxpayers Union's (NTU) annual ranking of Congress, earning him the "Taxpayer Hero" award. Duncan is a frequent contributor to '' Chronicles'' and '' The American Conservative,'' both magazines associated with the paleoconservative movement. He has also contributed to numerous trade publications and Capitol Hill newspapers. Duncan has also voiced public support for returning the gold standard. In April 2016, Duncan endorsed Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination. On 5 January 2017, he was one of only four Republicans to oppose the House's resolution 11 condemning the
United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334 United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334 was adopted on 23 December 2016. It concerns the Israeli settlements in " Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem". The resolution passed in a 14–0 vote by member ...
.


Controversies

In February 2017, Duncan refused to hold any town halls in his district after the election of then recently inaugurated President Donald Trump. Duncan said that he preferred one-on-one meetings rather than town halls, adding that he was not willing to give a platform to "extremists, kooks and radicals."


Misuse of campaign funds

Duncan was accused of misuse of campaign funds for using them to pay his son almost $300,000 over the course of five years, for work not done or for fees that were too high. Duncan denied the charges. However his son, John Duncan III (R) a Knox County Trustee, pled guilty to a felony charge of official misconduct for handing out bonuses to his own staff for training they had not received. Duncan III resigned from office and was given one year of probation. His charges are now expunged.


Retirement from Congress

On July 31, 2017, Duncan announced that he would not run for reelection in 2018, citing to spend more time with his family.


Committee assignments

* Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure (Vice Chairman) ** Subcommittee on Aviation (Former Chairman) ** Subcommittee on Highways and Transit (Former Chairman) ** Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials *
United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform The Committee on Oversight and Reform is the main investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee's broad jurisdiction and legislative authority make it one of the most influential and powerful panels in the ...
** Subcommittee on Transportation and Public Assets ** Subcommittee on National Security


Caucus memberships

* Congressional Friends of Scotland Caucus (Founding Co-Chairman) * Congressional Immigration Reform Caucus * Liberty Caucus * United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus * Sportsmen's Caucus *
Veterinary Medicine Caucus The Congressional Veterinary Medicine Caucus is a Congressional Member Organization within the United States Congress and is officially recognized by the Committee on House Administration. Information and purpose According to the Caucus's offici ...
* Congressional Constitution Caucus * Congressional NextGen 9-1-1 Caucus * U.S.-Japan Caucus


Personal life

Duncan and his wife Lynn ( Hawkins) were married in 1978. They have four children, including former Knox County Trustee John Duncan III, and eight grandchildren. Lynn died in August 2021. He is also the brother of Tennessee State Senator
Becky Duncan Massey Becky Duncan Massey is a Republican member of the Tennessee Senate for the 6th district, encompassing Knoxville and Knox County. Biography Early life and education Becky Duncan Massey was born on January 2, 1955. Her father was John Duncan, ...
. After retiring from Congress, Duncan relocated from his home in Knoxville to Bean Station in neighboring
Grainger County Grainger County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 23,527. Its county seat is Rutledge. Grainger County is a part of both the Knoxville Metropolitan Statistical Area and Morristown ...
.


References


External links

* * *
John Duncan articles at lewrockwell.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duncan, Jimmy 1947 births Living people 20th-century American politicians 20th-century Presbyterians 21st-century American politicians 21st-century Presbyterians American nationalists American Presbyterians Critics of neoconservatism George Washington University Law School alumni The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company Non-interventionism Paleoconservatism People from Lebanon, Tennessee Politicians from Knoxville, Tennessee Presbyterians from Tennessee Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee Right-wing populism in the United States Sears Holdings people Tennessee lawyers Tennessee state court judges University of Tennessee alumni