Occupation Coastal Preservation Spouse Carissa Graves Nationality American | Children 3 Name Garret Graves Religion Roman Catholic | |
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Role United States Representative Office United States Representative since 2015 Profiles | ||
United states congressman garret graves discusses issues facing louisiana the nation
Garret Neal Graves (born January 31, 1972) is the United States Representative from Louisiana's 6th congressional district. In a runoff election on December 6, 2014, Graves, a Republican, defeated the Democratic candidate, former Governor Edwin Edwards.
Contents
- United states congressman garret graves discusses issues facing louisiana the nation
- U s rep garret graves r service academy nomination process
- Early life
- Career
- Election
- Congressional matters
- Committee assignments
- Personal life
- References
U s rep garret graves r service academy nomination process
Early life
Garrett Graves was born on January 31, 1972 to John and Cynthia (née Sliman) Graves; his father owns an engineering firm. He is a Roman Catholic.
Career
Graves served as an aide for nine years to former U.S. Representative Billy Tauzin of Louisiana's 3rd congressional district. He was also a legislative aide to the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce, of which Tauzin served as chairman. In 2005, he became an aide for the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, serving Republican U.S. Senator David Vitter. He was the staff director for the United States Senate's Subcommittee on Climate Change and Impacts. He also worked for Democratic former U.S. Senator John Breaux, a protege of Edwin Edwards and Vitter's predecessor in the Senate. He served as a chief legislative aide to the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.
In 2008, Governor Bobby Jindal appointed Graves to manage the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority. In the position, he negotiated on behalf of the state with British Petroleum over the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. He resigned the position effective February 17, 2014.
Election
In March 2014, Graves announced his intention to run in the 2014 election to the United States House of Representatives for Louisiana's 6th congressional district; incumbent Republican Bill Cassidy successfully challenged incumbent U.S. Senator Democrat Mary Landrieu. In the 2014 jungle primary, Edwin Edwards finished in first place with 30 percent of the vote; Graves was the runner-up with 27 percent. Graves and Edwards advanced to the December 6 runoff election. In a runoff election on December 6, 2014, received 139,209 votes (62.4 percent) to Edwards's 83,781 (37.6 percent).
Congressional matters
In April 2017, Representative Graves became engaged in a public dispute with Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards regarding the disbursement of federal assistance for Louisiana's 2016 flooding victims. Graves, who has been mentioned as a potential challenger to Edwards in the 2019 gubernatorial election, claims that he is "focused on flood recovery ... none of the governor's talk is helping flood victims." Edwards attributed the delay in disbursement of the funds, which began on April 10, to the state's financial shortfall which prevented the quick retaining of a disaster management firm. Edwards' executive counsel, Matthew Block, explained that the state had no money in 2016 to pay the contractor. Edwards currently projects a $440 million budget deficit for the fiscal year that begins on July 1, 2017.
Committee assignments
Personal life
Graves resides in his native Baton Rouge.