Thomas Davis



Thomas M. Davis III, a Republican, represented the Eleventh Congressional District of Virginia in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1994-2008. (map)

Environmental record
For more information on environmental legislation, see the Energy and Environment Policy Portal

David Safavian
Davis has a direct link to David Safavian, the former Federal Procurement Policy officer currently on trial facing charges of obstruction of justice. The charges state that he made inaccurate statements to a GSA ethics officer, the GSA-OIG, the FBI, and the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. Safavian was the first person to be arrested in the Jack Abramoff scandal. 

Davis works very closely with David Safavian's wife, Jennifer Safavian. Mrs. Safavian is the chief investigative counsel to the House Committee on Government Reform, which Davis chairs. This committee, which handles procurement issues, will investigate the government's response to Hurricane Katrina. 

Davis has returned all campaign donations from David Safavian. 

Relationship with consultant
In 2002, Donald W. Upson, a close friend of Davis, formed ICG Government, a consulting company for technology firms seeking government contracts. One of his first hires was Jeannemarie Devolites, a Virginia politician who eventually married Davis.

From the beginning, Upson worked with Davis and his staff as he built his consulting business, which advises clients on winning government technology contracts. Often, these contracts come under the oversight of the House Committee on Government Reform, which Davis chairs.

In an opinion issued in July 2006, the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct told Davis that his wife can continue working for the consulting firm as long as the couple does not personally benefit from any official acts by the congressman. Davis insisted that Upson and his staff do not have “unique access” to his Capitol Hill office. He also cited the fact that he married his wife after she was hired by Upton.

ICG, however, has arranged for clients to meet with Davis in his congressional office. Upson has also scheduled dinners and receptions with the lawmaker for his clients; and arranged for clients to testify before Davis's committee. On one occasion, Upson helped a client write a threatening letter to the Pentagon which was then mailed out with Davis’s signature on his committee’s letterhead. 

DC voting rights
On May 3, 2005, Davis introduced the District of Columbia Fairness in Representation Act (H.R.5388), which would have given the District a voting seat in the House. The bill, which was the only District voting rights measure to be voted out of a committee during the 109th Congress, passed the House Committee on Government Reform on May 18, 2006 in a 29-4 vote. Regarding the measure, Davis stated that “Congress ultimately will grant voting rights to the District of Columbia because -- and it's really no more complex than this -- it's the right thing to do.” The bill eventually stalled however, and never advanced to the floor during the 109th Congress.

DC Metro funding
Davis sponsored a bill that would give $1.5 billion for the DC Metro, sparking criticism from fellow Republican party members. The bill was temporarily blocked by those who considered it to be pork, citing it as the "largest [earmark] in American history." Davis, who was considering running for Senate if Sen. John Warner (R-Va.) decided not to run in 2008, claimed that the funds were necessary to further develop the mass-transit system vital to capitol security and transportation.

National security and foreign policy
In early May 2007, Rep. Davis attended a meeting, organized by Rep. Charlie Dent (R-Pa.), between several moderate Republicans in the House and President Bush to express their concerns over the War in Iraq. The group warned the President that his pursuit of the war in Iraq was risking the future of the Republican Party, and that he could not count on Republican support for much longer. Despite their concerns, each of the members promised to oppose the short-term funding measure for the War that was being considered in the House.

Bio
Davis was born January 5, 1949 in Minot, North Dakota but moved to Fairfax County at an early age. He is a graduate of Amherst College, in Political Science, and the University of Virginia, in law. He attended Officer Candidate School of the U.S. Army, served on active duty, and spent eight years with the Virginia National Guard and the U.S. Army Reserve. In June, 2004, he married Virginia State Senator Jeannemarie Devolites.

Davis was a member of the Fairfax County, Virginia Board of Supervisors from 1980 to 1994, serving as Chairman of the Board of Supervisors from 1991 until his election to the House.

Congressional career
Even after redistricting the 11th Congressional District in the Republican Party's favor, the voters of the new district continue to move toward the Democratic Party. Before redistricting in 2000, Gore carried it by 2%. If the new district lines had been in effect, Bush would have carried the same district by 7% (a nine-point Republican swing simply by redrawing lines). However, the new district voted for Bush over John Kerry in 2004 by less than a 1% margin (49.9% to 49.3%). Davis himself defeated challenger Ken Longmyer by a 60% to 39% margin. In the race he outspent his opponent $1,835,000 to $72,000 &mdash; a ratio of over 24 to 1. 

The areas of Prince William County that were added to the district joined the remaining Fairfax County portions in moving towards the center (from the right) of the political spectrum. It is widely expected that Davis will have the 11th redrawn even more favorably after the 2010 Census in an effort to keep his seat from the increasing popularity of Democrats in Northern Virginia.

2006 elections
In 2006, Democrats nominated Andrew Hurst to face Davis in his November 2006 bid for reelection. (See U.S. congressional elections in 2006)  Davis retained his seat.

No senate run
On October 25, 2007 Davis officially announced that he would not run for Warner's Senate seat in 2008. He cited the Virginia Republican Party's decision to select a nominee using a convention as opposed to a primary, which he said hurts the party.

Retirement
After serving 12 terms (14 years) representing Virginia in Congress, Davis announced his retirement on January 30th, 2008. Davis called his retirement "a sabbatical" and did not rule out a return to public service in the future.

Davis admitted in 2007 that he considered retiring before the 2006 election, but decided to run in part because he believed the political climate would have enabled Democrats to pick up his Northern Virginia seat. If he were to not run in 2008 the seat would again be in danger of switching to the Democrats. Davis acknowledged in 2006 that he passed up an offer to head the national Federation of Independent Business in 2005, a job that reportedly would have given him a million-dollar-plus salary.

Money in politics
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Committees and Affiliations

 * Board of Governors, Partnership for Public Service
 * Congressional Advisory Board, Humpty Dumpty Institute

Committee assignments in the 110th Congress (2007-2008)

 * House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform -Ranking Member
 * Subcommittee on Government Management Finance and Accountability
 * Subcommittee on Federal Workforce and Agency Organization
 * House Committee on Homeland Security
 * Subcommittee on Management, Investigations, and Oversight
 * House Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina - Chair

Coalitions and Caucuses

 * Republican Main Street Partnership

More Background Data

 * 2006 Virginia CD 11 Candidate List from VIS

Direct link to Thomas M (Tom) Davis on Wikipedia.

Contact
DC Office: 2348 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, DC 20515-4611 Phone: 202-225-1492 Fax: 202-225-3071 Web Email Website

District Office- Annandale: 4115 Annandale Road, Suite 103 Annandale, VA 22003 Phone: 703-916-9610 Fax: 703-916-9617

District Office- Woodbridge: 13546 Minnieville Road Woodbridge, VA 22192 Phone: 703-590-4599 Fax: 703-590-4740

Resources

 * Official website
 * Campaign website
 * Open Secrets - 2006 congressional races database
 * Tom Davis' Colbert Report interview. (Other Colbert Report interviews with members of Congress.)

Local blogs and discussion sites

 * Hurst 2006 Blog
 * Pjvoice.com
 * Americanprogressaction.org
 * Richmond Democrat
 * Act Blue

Articles

 * Amelia Gruber, "Davis Sponsors Bill to Shield Contractors from Laws," GovExec, July 25, 2003.
 * Jonathan E. Kaplan,"Arrest of top Bush official makes wife a political issue for Dems," The Hill, September 21, 2005.
 * Susan Milligan,"Congress Reduces Its Oversight Role," Boston Globe, November 20, 2005.
 * Dana Milbank, "Republicans Slammed for Kid-Glove Oversight," Washington Post, December 18, 2005.
 * Robert O'Harrow Jr. and Scott Higham, "Wife, Friend Tie Congressman to Consulting Firm," Washington Post, July 28, 2006.
 * Seth Stern, "Members Were Aware of Lapses at Walter Reed," CQ TODAY, March 7, 2007. re Walter Reed Army Medical Center scandal

Related SourceWatch/Congresspedia Resources

 * Walter Reed Army Medical Center scandal