Neal Patrick Dunn (born February 16, 1953) is an American surgeon and

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2017.

Early life and career

Dunn was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on February 16, 1953. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in interdisciplinary sciences from

Washington and Lee University , mottoeng = "Not Unmindful of the Future" , established = , type = Private liberal arts university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.092 billion (2021) , president = William C. Dudley , provost = Lena Hill , city = Lexington ...

and a

Doctor of Medicine Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. ...

from the

George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences (abbreviated as GW Medical School or SMHS) is the professional medical school of the George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. SMHS is one of the most selective medi ...

. He completed his

medical internship A medical intern is a physician in training who has completed medical school and has a medical degree but does not yet have a license to practice medicine unsupervised. Medical education generally ends with a period of practical training similar t ...

Walter Reed Army Medical Center The Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC)known as Walter Reed General Hospital (WRGH) until 1951was the U.S. Army's flagship medical center from 1909 to 2011. Located on in the District of Columbia, it served more than 150,000 active and ret ...

. Dunn served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

for 11 years of active duty, reaching the rank of

major Major ( commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicato ...

. He then settled in

Panama City, Florida Panama City is a city in and the county seat of Bay County, Florida, United States. Located along U.S. Highway 98 (US 98), it is the largest city between Tallahassee and Pensacola. It is the more populated city of the Panama City–Lynn ...

, where he helped found the Panama City Urological Center, the Panama City Surgery Center, and was the founding chairman of Summit Bank.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2016

In August 2015, Dunn announced his candidacy for 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 chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

for in the

2016 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2016. Africa Benin Republic * 2016 Beninese presidential election 6 March 2016 Cape Verde * 2016 Cape Verdean presidential election 2 October 2016 Chad * 2016 Chadian presidential election 10 ...

. The district's one-term incumbent, Democrat

Gwen Graham Gwendolyn Graham (born January 31, 1963) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2015 to 2017. She is the daughter of Bob Graham, the former United States senator and governor of Florida. A Democrat, ...

, opted to retire after court-ordered redistricting made the district heavily Republican. He won the Republican nomination, narrowly defeating attorneys Mary Thomas and Ken Sukhia, and defeated Walter Dartland in the general election. He was sworn in on January 3, 2017. Dunn's chief of staff, Brian Schubert, resigned in February 2018 after the

House Ethics Committee The Committee on Ethics, often known simply as the Ethics Committee, is one of the committees of the United States House of Representatives. Prior to the 112th Congress it was known as the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. The House Et ...

launched an investigation into alleged sexual harassment by Schubert and

Pat Meehan Patrick Leo Meehan (born October 20, 1955) is a former American Republican Party politician and federal prosecutor from Pennsylvania who represented parts of Delaware, Chester, Montgomery, Berks, and Lancaster counties in the United States Hou ...

. Dunn has held multiple virtual town hall meetings since the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

began in March 2020. He has told media outlets that he doesn't believe town halls are a productive format for engaging constituents. Constituents have voiced frustration with Dunn for his refusal to host town halls.

2018

In 2018, Dunn won reelection against challenger Bob Rackleff, 67.4% to 32.6%.

2020

Dunn has held multiple virtual town hall meetings since the

Committee assignments

United States House Committee on Energy and Commerce The Committee on Energy and Commerce is one of the oldest standing committees of the United States House of Representatives. Established in 1795, it has operated continuously—with various name changes and jurisdictional changes—for more th ...

Subcommittee on Health The U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health is a subcommittee within the Committee on Energy and Commerce. Jurisdiction The House Subcommittee on Health has general jurisdiction over bills and resolutions relating to pub ...

** Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations ** Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce

Caucus memberships

Republican Study Committee The Republican Study Committee (RSC) is a study group of conservative members of the Republican Party in the United States House of Representatives. As of 2021, the Chairman of the RSC is Representative Jim Banks of Indiana. Although the prima ...

Political positions

Dunn's campaign website identifies him as conservative.

Gun policy

Dunn received an "AQ" rating from the

NRA The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent gun rights lobbying organization while contin ...

during his 2016 run for office—the highest rating possible for a non-incumbent. He does not support a ban of semi-automatic weapons. From 2015 to 2016, Dunn accepted $1,000 from the

Political Victory Fund The Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF) is the political action committee (PAC) of the National Rifle Association (NRA). The Fund contributes money to political campaigns of candidates endorsed by the NRA. Chairman Chris W. Cox, who has been the NR ...

Net neutrality

Along with 107 Republican members of Congress, Dunn sent

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

Chairman

Ajit Pai Ajit Varadaraj Pai (; born January 10, 1973) is an American lawyer who served as chairman of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from 2017 to 2021. He has been a partner at the private-equity firm Searchlight Capital since April 20 ...

a letter on December 13, 2017, supporting his plan to repeal net neutrality protections ahead of the commission's vote. Dunn accepted $18,500 from the telecom industry before voting to repeal the rule.

Tax reform

Dunn voted for the

Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 The Act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to titles II and V of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2018, , is a congressional revenue act of the United States originally introduced in Congress as the Tax Cuts and Jobs A ...

, calling the bill "good medicine for America". He believes it will benefit many generations of Americans with a "great economy in which there will be jobs, there will be opportunity, there's possibilities for literally a whole new generation or two of Americans". Dunn says he has received support from "mostly small businessmen" in his district for supporting the bill.

Education

Dunn wants to defund the

Department of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

Healthcare

Dunn supports repealing the

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 Pres ...

, which he says is "failing", saying "no one can afford" the premiums and deductibles.

2020 presidential election certification

In December 2020, Dunn was one of 126 Republican members of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

to sign an

amicus brief An ''amicus curiae'' (; ) is an individual or organization who is not a party to a legal case, but who is permitted to assist a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case. The decision on ...

in support of '' Texas v. Pennsylvania'', a lawsuit filed at the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

contesting the results of the

2020 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2020 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2020 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *5 January: ** ...

, in which Joe Biden defeated incumbent

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked

standing Standing, also referred to as orthostasis, is a position in which the body is held in an ''erect'' ("orthostatic") position and supported only by the feet. Although seemingly static, the body rocks slightly back and forth from the ankle in the s ...

under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state. After the 2021 storming of the Capitol, Dunn condemned the rioters, but still voted to object to the certification of several states' electoral votes.

Personal life

Dunn and his wife, Leah, have three sons and three grandsons. On April 9, 2020, Dunn's office announced that he tested positive for

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

Electoral history

References

External links

Congressman Neal Dunn
official U.S. House website
Campaign website
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dunn, Neal 1953 births 20th-century American physicians 21st-century American physicians 21st-century American politicians American surgeons George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences alumni Living people People from Panama City, Florida Physicians from Florida Physicians from New Haven, Connecticut Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida United States Army Medical Corps officers United States Army officers Washington and Lee University alumni Conservatism in the United States