Rick Crawford (politician)

Rick Crawford
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Arkansas's 1st district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2011
Preceded byMarion Berry
Personal details
Born
Eric Alan Crawford

(1966-01-22) January 22, 1966 (age 58)
Homestead Base, Florida, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseStacy Crawford
Children2
EducationArkansas State University (BS)
WebsiteHouse website
Military service
Branch/serviceUnited States Army
Years of service1985–1989
RankSergeant
Unit56th Ordnance Detachment
Awards

Eric Alan "Rick" Crawford (born January 22, 1966)[1] is an American politician and author who has been the U.S. representative for Arkansas's 1st congressional district since 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party. Before he was elected to Congress, Crawford was a radio announcer, businessman, and U.S. Army soldier.

Early life and education

Crawford was born at Homestead Air Force Base in Florida, the son of Ruth Anne and Donnie J. "Don" Crawford.[2] He grew up in a military family; his father served in the United States Air Force. He graduated from Alvirne High School in Hudson, New Hampshire. Crawford enlisted in the United States Army and served as an explosive ordnance disposal technician assigned to the 56th Ordnance Detachment at Fort Indiantown Gap in Pennsylvania.[3] He left the U.S. Army after four years' service[4] at the rank of Sergeant. After his service, Crawford attended Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, Arkansas, graduating in 1996 with a B.S. in agriculture business and economics.[5]

Rodeo and music career

In 1993, Crawford was seriously injured in a rodeo accident. He transitioned into a career in radio announcing for the rodeo. He also launched a music career, and has been called a "singing cowboy" as he sometimes performed his music while riding a horse. In 1994, Legacy, Inc. released his album Crackin' Out, recorded at Haage Studios in Kirbyville, Missouri. Crawford dedicated the project to "that dyin' breed called 'Cowboy'".[6]

Radio career

Crawford was a news anchor and agri-reporter on KAIT-TV in Jonesboro and farm director on KFIN-FM. He owned and operated the AgWatch Network, a farm news network heard on 39 radio stations in Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Kentucky.[7]

U.S. House of Representatives

Crawford's freshman portrait (112th Congress)

Elections

2010

Main article: 2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Arkansas § District 1

Crawford ran for Arkansas's 1st congressional district after U.S. Representative Marion Berry decided to retire. He was endorsed by Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, former federal official Asa Hutchinson, and former U.S. Representative Ed Bethune.[8] He won the Republican primary, defeating Princella Smith, 72% to 28%,[9] and the general election, defeating Berry's chief of staff Chad Causey, 52% to 43%.[10]

2012

Main article: 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Arkansas § District 1

Crawford was reelected, defeating Democratic nominee Scott Ellington, 56% to 39%.[11]

2014

Main article: 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in Arkansas § District 1

Crawford was reelected to a third term, defeating Heber Springs Mayor Jackie McPherson, 63% to 33%.[12]

2016

Main article: 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Arkansas § District 1

Crawford was reelected to a fourth term, defeating Libertarian candidate Mark West, 76% to 24%.[13]

2018

Main article: 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Arkansas § District 1

Crawford was reelected to a fifth term, defeating Democratic nominee Chinton Desai, 70% to 29%.[13]

2020

Main article: 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Arkansas § District 1

Crawford was reelected unopposed.[14]

2022

Main article: 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Arkansas § District 1

Crawford was reelected to a seventh term, defeating the Democratic nominee, Arkansas State Representative Monte Hodges, 75% to 25%.[13]

Tenure

On January 5, 2011, Crawford was sworn into office as a member of the 112th Congress. He is the first Republican to represent his district since Reconstruction. The last Republican to represent the district was Asa Hodges, who vacated the seat on March 3, 1875.[15] Crawford is a member of the Republican Study Committee.[16]

In 2010, Crawford signed a pledge sponsored by Americans for Prosperity to vote against any global warming legislation that would raise taxes.[17]

Crawford supported President Donald Trump's 2017 executive order to impose a ban on travel to the U.S. by citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, saying that the order was "designed to keep our nation safer" but that "Green card holders and aides of the U.S. military should be allowed entry."[18]

Crawford voted for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.[19] He believed the bill would make it easier for people to file their taxes and that "the vast majority of middle-income families in my district will get to keep more of their money to use as they wish." He also believed that local businesses would hire more and raise employees' pay in the wake of the bill's implementation.[20]

In 2019, Crawford received a death threat from James Powell, a 43-year-old Arkansas resident. Powell was charged with "first-degree terroristic threatening" after an investigation by U.S. Capitol Police and the FBI. The charge carries a maximum six-year prison sentence and $10,000 fine.[21][22]

Crawford opposed Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court ruling that same-sex marriage bans are unconstitutional.[23]

In December 2020, Crawford was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated[24] Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.[25][26][27]

As of October 2021, Crawford had voted in line with Joe Biden's stated position 7.5% of the time.[28]

Crawford voted to provide Israel with support following 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.[29][30]

Immigration

Crawford sponsored H.R. 6202, the American Tech Workforce Act of 2021, introduced by Representative Jim Banks. The legislation would establish a wage floor for the high-skill H-1B visa program, thereby significantly reducing employer dependence on the program. The bill would also eliminate the Optional Practical Training program that allows foreign graduates to stay and work in the United States.[31]

Legislation

On January 18, 2013, Crawford introduced the Farmers Undertake Environmental Land Stewardship Act (H.R. 311; 113th Congress).[32] The bill would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to modify the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule, which regulates oil discharges into navigable waters and adjoining shorelines.[33] The rule requires certain farmers to develop an oil spill prevention plan certified by a professional engineer and may require them to make infrastructure changes.[33] According to supporters, the bill would "ease the burden placed on farmers and ranchers" by making it easier for smaller farms to self-certify and raising the level of storage capacity under which farms are exempted.[34]

Veterans

The PACT ACT which expanded VA benefits to veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during their military service, received a "nay" from Crawford.[35] Regarding cannabis, despite lobbying from VSOs such as the DAV[36] Crawford also voted against 2022 MORE Act.[37][38]

Committee assignments

Congressman Crawford questions Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack in 2013.

For the 118th Congress:[39]

Temporary resignation

On November 8, 2019, Crawford announced he would temporarily resign from his seat on the House Intelligence Committee. Taking his place was Jim Jordan. This move allowed Jordan to lead President Donald Trump's public impeachment hearings. Crawford said he would resume his position once the "impeachment hoax" had concluded.[40]

Electoral history

Arkansas 1st Congressional District Republican primary election, 2010[41]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rick Crawford 14,461 71.79
Republican Princella Smith 5,682 28.21
Total votes 20,143 100.00
Arkansas 1st Congressional District Election, 2010[42]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Rick Crawford 93,224 51.79
Democratic Chad Causey 78,267 43.48
Green Ken Adler 8,320 4.62
Write-in 205 0.11
Total votes 180,016 100.00
Republican gain from Democratic
Arkansas 1st Congressional District Election, 2012[43]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Rick Crawford (incumbent) 138,800 56.23 +4.44
Democratic Scott Ellington 96,601 39.13 −4.35
Libertarian Jessica Paxton 6,427 2.60 N/A
Green Jacob Holloway 5,015 2.03 −2.59
Total votes 246,843 100.00 +37.12
Republican hold
Arkansas 1st Congressional District election, 2014[44]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Rick Crawford (incumbent) 124,139 63.25 +7.02
Democratic Jackie McPherson 63,555 32.38 −6.75
Libertarian Brian Scott Willhite 8,562 4.36 +1.76
Total votes 196,256 100.00 −25.78
Republican hold
Arkansas 1st Congressional District election, 2016[45]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Rick Crawford (incumbent) 183,866 76.28 +13.03
Libertarian Mark West 57,181 23.72 +19.36
Total votes 241,047 100.00 +22.82
Republican hold
Arkansas 1st Congressional District election, 2018[46]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Rick Crawford (incumbent) 138,757 68.95 −7.33
Democratic Chintan Desai 57,907 28.77 N/A
Libertarian Elvis Presley 4,581 2.28 −21.44
Total votes 201,245 100.00 −19.78
Republican hold
Arkansas 1st Congressional District election, 2020[47]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Rick Crawford (incumbent) 237,596 100.00 +31.05
Total votes 237,596 100.00 +18.06
Republican hold
Arkansas 1st Congressional District election, 2022[48]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Rick Crawford (incumbent) 153,774 73.80 −26.20
Democratic Monte Hodges 54,598 26.20 N/A
Total votes 208,372 100.00 −14.02
Republican hold
Arkansas's 1st congressional district election, 2024[49]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Rick Crawford (incumbent) 194,711 72.88 −0.92
Democratic Rodney Govens 64,113 24 −2.20
Libertarian Steve Parsons 8,353 3.13 N/A
Total votes 267,177 100 +22
Republican hold

Personal life

Rick and Stacy Crawford

Crawford and his wife, Stacy, live in Jonesboro with their children. He attends Central Baptist Church, a Southern Baptist congregation in Jonesboro.[50] In 2023, Crawford released a novel titled The Stinger Proxy based on his Cold War experiences.[51]

References

  1. ^ "Biography | Representative Rick Crawford". crawford.house.gov. Archived from the original on 2019-02-14. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  2. ^ "freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com". Archived from the original on 2016-05-09. Retrieved 2012-02-20.
  3. ^ "Improvised bombs 'tricky' to handle, Arkansas congressman says". Congressman Rick Crawford. 25 October 2018. Archived from the original on 21 December 2018. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  4. ^ Stiles, Andrew (2010-10-27). "National Review: Turning Arkansas Red". National Public Radio. Archived from the original on 2015-02-26. Retrieved 2010-10-31.
  5. ^ "Rick Crawford (Arkansas)". Ballotpedia. Archived from the original on 2021-12-27. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  6. ^ "Music in the Mountains Show welcomes special guest musician Rick Crawford". Areawide Media. 14 June 2012. Archived from the original on 28 October 2021. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  7. ^ "About – Rick Crawford for Congress". www.meetrickcrawford.com. Archived from the original on 2020-02-01. Retrieved 2020-02-01.
  8. ^ "meetrickcrawford.com endorsements". Archived from the original on 2010-08-20. Retrieved 2010-08-27.
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  11. ^ "Our Campaigns – AR – District 01 Race – Nov 06, 2012". www.ourcampaigns.com. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  12. ^ "NOVEMBER 4, 2014 ARKANSAS GENERAL ELECTION AND NONPARTISAN RUNOFF ELECTION OFFICIAL RESULTS OUTSTANDING PROVISIONAL & UOCAVA BALLOTS". results.enr.clarityelections.com. Archived from the original on 2 September 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  13. ^ a b c "Rick Crawford (Arkansas)". Ballotpedia. Archived from the original on 2018-11-07. Retrieved 2018-07-28.
  14. ^ Barger, Kaitlin (3 November 2020). "Arkansas Republican Rick Crawford re-elected to Congress". KATV. Archived from the original on 4 November 2020. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  15. ^ "Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress – Retro Member details". bioguideretro.congress.gov. Archived from the original on 2020-11-11. Retrieved 2020-11-20.
  16. ^ "mcallennow.com voter resources, Rick Crawford". Archived from the original on 2015-02-26. Retrieved 2015-02-26.
  17. ^ "/americansforprosperity.org Americans for Prosperity Applauds U.S. House Candidate Rick Crawford" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2014-10-02.
  18. ^ Blake, Aaron (January 31, 2017). "Whip Count: Here's where Republicans stand on Trump's controversial travel ban". Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 16, 2020. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
  19. ^ Almukhtar, Sarah (19 December 2017). "How Each House Member Voted on the Tax Bill". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  20. ^ "Senate OKs tax bill; House revote set". Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette. 20 December 2017. Archived from the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  21. ^ Connolly, Griffin (2 October 2019). "Arkansas man arrested for death threats against Sen. Tom Cotton, Rep. Rick Crawford". Roll Call. Archived from the original on 9 August 2020. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
  22. ^ "Man jailed in Faulkner Co. accused of threatening Rep. Rick Crawford and Sen. Tom Cotton". Fox 16. 30 September 2019. Archived from the original on 9 August 2020. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
  23. ^ "Arkansas politicians, activists divided on same sex marriage ruling – Talk Business & Politics". Talk Business & Politics. 28 June 2015. Archived from the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  24. ^ Blood, Michael R.; Riccardi, Nicholas (December 5, 2020). "Biden officially secures enough electors to become president". AP News. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  25. ^ Liptak, Adam (2020-12-11). "Supreme Court Rejects Texas Suit Seeking to Subvert Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  26. ^ "Order in Pending Case" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. 2020-12-11. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  27. ^ Diaz, Daniella. "Brief from 126 Republicans supporting Texas lawsuit in Supreme Court". CNN. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
  28. ^ Bycoffe, Anna Wiederkehr and Aaron (2021-10-22). "Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?". FiveThirtyEight. Archived from the original on 2021-10-28. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  29. ^ Demirjian, Karoun (2023-10-25). "House Declares Solidarity With Israel in First Legislation Under New Speaker". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-10-30.
  30. ^ Washington, U. S. Capitol Room H154; p:225-7000, DC 20515-6601 (2023-10-25). "Roll Call 528 Roll Call 528, Bill Number: H. Res. 771, 118th Congress, 1st Session". Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved 2023-10-30.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  31. ^ "Cosponsors – H.R.6206 – 117th Congress (2021–2022): American Tech Workforce Act of 2021 | Congress.gov | Library of Congress". U.S. Congress. December 9, 2021. Archived from the original on July 3, 2022. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
  32. ^ "H.R. 311 – Summary". United States Congress. Archived from the original on 11 March 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
  33. ^ a b "H.R. 311 – CBO". Congressional Budget Office. 6 November 2013. Archived from the original on 11 March 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
  34. ^ "Committee passes legislation to ease burden of SPCC program". High Plains Journal. 23 December 2013. Archived from the original on 11 March 2014. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
  35. ^ "Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives".
  36. ^ "DAV Magazine July/August 2023 Page 5". www.qgdigitalpublishing.com.
  37. ^ "House Session | April 1, 2022 | C-SPAN.org". www.c-span.org.
  38. ^ "Vote Smart | Facts For All". Vote Smart.
  39. ^ "Eric A. "Rick" Crawford". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Archived from the original on 18 April 2023. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
  40. ^ KATV (2019-11-08). "Rep. Crawford announces temporary resignation from the House Intelligence Committee". KATV. Archived from the original on 2019-11-10. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
  41. ^ "Arkansas 1st District Profile". New York Times. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  42. ^ Karen, Haas (June 3, 2011). "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010" (PDF).
  43. ^ "AR – Election Results". results.enr.clarityelections.com. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  44. ^ "2014 Arkansas general election and nonpartisan runoff election". November 4, 2014. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  45. ^ "2016 Arkansas general election and nonpartisan runoff election". Clarity Elections. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  46. ^ [email protected], scytl. "Election Night Reporting". results.enr.clarityelections.com. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
  47. ^ "Election Night Reporting". results.enr.clarityelections.com. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
  48. ^ "Election Night Reporting". results.enr.clarityelections.com. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
  49. ^ "Election Night Reporting". results.enr.clarityelections.com. Archived from the original on January 3, 2025. Retrieved January 3, 2025.
  50. ^ Staff (5 January 2011). "Ten Southern Baptists sworn in as new reps". Baptist Press. Archived from the original on 26 December 2014. Retrieved 25 December 2014.
  51. ^ Jared, George (2023-07-20). "U.S. Rep. Rick Crawford releases a novel based on his Cold War experiences". Talk Business & Politics. Retrieved 2024-11-12.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rick Crawford.
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Arkansas's 1st congressional district
2011–present 		Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by United States representatives by seniority
95th 		Succeeded by