Bill Brady (politician)
Encyclopedia
William E. "Bill" Brady, Jr. (born May 15, 1961) is a Republican
member of the Illinois Senate
, representing the 44th Legislative District since his appointment in May 2002. He previously served in the Illinois House of Representatives
, representing the 88th District from 1993 to 2000.
. He graduated from Central Catholic High School
and Illinois Wesleyan University
.
A millionaire real estate developer and broker, Brady is a co-owner of Brady Homes, one of Central Illinois’ largest home builders, founded by his father, Bill Brady Sr.
twice: in 2006, he finished third in the Republican primary, getting about 18% of the vote; in the 2010 gubernatorial election
, he defeated his closest competitor, State Senator Kirk Dillard, by 193 votes in the GOP primary, but lost to incumbent Democrat Pat Quinn
by around 19,400 votes out of 3,600,000.
In the 2010 gubernatorial election
, he defeated his closest competitor, State Senator Kirk Dillard, by 193 votes in the GOP primary, and faced incumbent Democratic Governor Pat Quinn
and Green Party candidate Rich Whitney
in November. Brady's running mate was twenty-eight-year-old Jason Plummer, past Chairman of the Madison County
Republican Party and, at the time, an intelligence officer
in the U.S. Naval Reserve and vice president in his father's lumber business. Brady lost to Quinn by around 19,400 votes out of 3,600,000.
with a smaller agency that receives half of the current $80 million funding, or $40 million.
Brady believes that intelligent design
, which he has described as "in other words, teaching the Bible
", should be taught in public schools, saying that "we should teach the Bible in our schools. One of the basic, fundamental voids we have in our school system is bringing God into the system." In a follow-up interview, he explained: "I certainly believe that local school boards should have the opportunity to teach kids about the Bible, just as they ought to be able to teach them about the Koran." He added: "I believe in school prayer
. I think that local school boards should be able to dictate that they start the day with prayer."
Brady supports competition in elementary and secondary education and, "either through board action or citizens initiative", school districts funding the tuition to private schools, at a rate that is, at minimum, what the state provides to the school district.
on the death penalty
if he became governor.
. He supports a ban on all abortions, including in cases of rape
and incest
. He makes an exception and allows abortion when a mother's life is at risk. He has also backed legislation allowing pharmacists refuse to dispense emergency contraception.
on February 10, 2010 defining marriage as between "one man and one woman". The proposed constitutional amendment would also deny validity and recognition to any "uniting of persons of the same sex in a civil union, domestic partnership, or other similar same sex relationship." Although Brady was originally the main sponsor of the amendment, its chief sponsor is now Illinois State Senator John O. Jones
, who became co-sponsor with Brady the week following its submission. Brady has stated that he is "concerned that activist judges could overturn our current law protecting this institution". Brady has also stated his opposition to civil unions for gay couples on more than one occasion.
. The legislation passed.
to unmarried dependents. The legislation later passed.
Brady co-sponsored SB 908 – Insurance Without Mandated Coverage - in 2003. SB 908 would have allowed insurance providers to offer plans that do not include coverage otherwise mandated in Illinois law. He voted NO on HB 211 in 2003 – Contraceptive Coverage in Private Health Insurance. HB 211, which became law in 2003, required any private insurance plan that covered prescription drugs and devices to also cover FDA approved contraceptive drugs and devices, but expressly states that nothing in it requires the coverage of abortion services.
Brady has called for cuts to the state’s Medicaid program, where he says his proposed forensic audit would reveal fraud, mismanagement and abuse. He also favors switching many Medicaid patients to a managed care system – the type currently administered by many Health Management Organizations (HMOs) – to control the cost of health care.
, which would allow a law-abiding, licensed Illinois resident to carry a handgun or other weapon in public in a concealed manner.
Brady has opposed requiring campaign contributors to list their occupations. He also dismissed adopting detailed federal-style statements of economic interest for public officials in Illinois as an "overreaction."
es that he claims drive retail jobs and businesses to other states. He favors dedicating a percentage of Illinois revenue to property tax relief and eliminating the estate tax in Illinois.
of dogs and cats. After it received considerable criticism, he retracted his sponsorship and now has said that he would veto any such bill.
Governor campaign
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
member of the Illinois Senate
Illinois Senate
The Illinois Senate is the upper chamber of the Illinois General Assembly, the legislative branch of the government of the state of Illinois in the United States. The body was created by the first state constitution adopted in 1818. The Illinois Senate is made up of 59 senators elected from...
, representing the 44th Legislative District since his appointment in May 2002. He previously served in the Illinois House of Representatives
Illinois House of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The state House of Representatives is made of 118 representatives elected from...
, representing the 88th District from 1993 to 2000.
Early life, education and career
Brady was born May 15, 1961, in Bloomington, IllinoisBloomington, Illinois
Bloomington is a city in McLean County, Illinois, United States and the county seat. It is adjacent to Normal, Illinois, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area...
. He graduated from Central Catholic High School
Central Catholic High School (Bloomington, Illinois)
Central Catholic High School is a Catholic high school in Bloomington, Illinois, and serves approximately 400 students from around the Bloomington-Normal area....
and Illinois Wesleyan University
Illinois Wesleyan University
Illinois Wesleyan University is an independent undergraduate university located in Bloomington, Illinois. Founded in 1850, the central portion of the present campus was acquired in 1854 with the first building erected in 1856...
.
A millionaire real estate developer and broker, Brady is a co-owner of Brady Homes, one of Central Illinois’ largest home builders, founded by his father, Bill Brady Sr.
Illinois Senate
Committees on Insurance, (minority spokesperson); Pensions and Investments, (minority spokesperson); Public Health; Revenue; Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability; Select Committee on Public Pension InvestmentsPolitical campaigns
Brady ran for Governor of IllinoisGovernor of Illinois
The Governor of Illinois is the chief executive of the State of Illinois and the various agencies and departments over which the officer has jurisdiction, as prescribed in the state constitution. It is a directly elected position, votes being cast by popular suffrage of residents of the state....
twice: in 2006, he finished third in the Republican primary, getting about 18% of the vote; in the 2010 gubernatorial election
Illinois gubernatorial election, 2010
An election for Governor of Illinois was held on November 2, 2010. Incumbent Governor Pat Quinn, a Democrat, sought and was elected to a full term. Quinn was elected as the Democratic nominee, the Green Party nominee was Rich Whitney, the Republican nominee was State Senator Bill Brady, the...
, he defeated his closest competitor, State Senator Kirk Dillard, by 193 votes in the GOP primary, but lost to incumbent Democrat Pat Quinn
Pat Quinn (politician)
Patrick Joseph "Pat" Quinn III is the 41st and current Governor of Illinois. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Previously elected three times to statewide office, Quinn was the sitting lieutenant governor and became governor on January 29, 2009, when the previous governor, Rod Blagojevich,...
by around 19,400 votes out of 3,600,000.
In the 2010 gubernatorial election
Illinois gubernatorial election, 2010
An election for Governor of Illinois was held on November 2, 2010. Incumbent Governor Pat Quinn, a Democrat, sought and was elected to a full term. Quinn was elected as the Democratic nominee, the Green Party nominee was Rich Whitney, the Republican nominee was State Senator Bill Brady, the...
, he defeated his closest competitor, State Senator Kirk Dillard, by 193 votes in the GOP primary, and faced incumbent Democratic Governor Pat Quinn
Pat Quinn (politician)
Patrick Joseph "Pat" Quinn III is the 41st and current Governor of Illinois. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Previously elected three times to statewide office, Quinn was the sitting lieutenant governor and became governor on January 29, 2009, when the previous governor, Rod Blagojevich,...
and Green Party candidate Rich Whitney
Rich Whitney
Rich Whitney is an Illinois politician and civil rights attorney who was the Illinois Green Party's nominee for Governor of Illinois in the elections of 2006 and 2010. During the 2006 campaign Whitney received endorsements from several newspapers, including the Rockford Register Star, Southwest...
in November. Brady's running mate was twenty-eight-year-old Jason Plummer, past Chairman of the Madison County
Madison County, Illinois
Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. Madison County is part of the Metro-East region of the St. Louis Metro Area. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 269,282, which is an increase of 4.0% from 258,941 in 2000. The county seat is Edwardsville, home to...
Republican Party and, at the time, an intelligence officer
Intelligence officer
An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile and/or analyze information which is of use to that organization...
in the U.S. Naval Reserve and vice president in his father's lumber business. Brady lost to Quinn by around 19,400 votes out of 3,600,000.
Budget
According to his campaign website, Brady believes in balancing the budget and paying down debt by "deconstructing Illinois spending and constructing a new budget, based on efficiency and priorities". He has proposed a plan to cut “a dime for every dollar” in state spending. But depending on the starting point, that may cut $3 billion to $5 billion from the $13 billion deficit.Education
Brady supports replacing the Illinois State Board of EducationIllinois State Board of Education
The Illinois State Board of Education administers public education in the state of Illinois. The State Board consists of nine members who are appointed by the Governor with the consent of the...
with a smaller agency that receives half of the current $80 million funding, or $40 million.
Brady believes that intelligent design
Intelligent design
Intelligent design is the proposition that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." It is a form of creationism and a contemporary adaptation of the traditional teleological argument for...
, which he has described as "in other words, teaching the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
", should be taught in public schools, saying that "we should teach the Bible in our schools. One of the basic, fundamental voids we have in our school system is bringing God into the system." In a follow-up interview, he explained: "I certainly believe that local school boards should have the opportunity to teach kids about the Bible, just as they ought to be able to teach them about the Koran." He added: "I believe in school prayer
School prayer
School prayer in its common usage refers to state-approved prayer by students in state schools. Depending on the country and the type of school, organized prayer may be required, permitted, or prohibited...
. I think that local school boards should be able to dictate that they start the day with prayer."
Brady supports competition in elementary and secondary education and, "either through board action or citizens initiative", school districts funding the tuition to private schools, at a rate that is, at minimum, what the state provides to the school district.
Employment
Brady supports lowering Illinois' minimum wage from its current $8.25 per hour to match the federal minimum wage of $7.25. Brady has said that the minimum wage should be controlled by “market-forces”. “I think supply and demand in the marketplace determines the rate of minimum wage. I don't think governmental intrusion is as effective," said Brady. Brady has also called for a freeze in the state's minimum wage until the lower federal rate catches up to that in Illinois.Death penalty
Brady intended to lift the moratoriumMoratorium
Moratorium may refer to:*Moratorium *Moratorium *Moratorium to End the War in Vietnam*UN moratorium on the death penalty*2010 U.S. Deepwater Drilling Moratorium...
on the death penalty
Capital punishment in the United States
Capital punishment in the United States, in practice, applies only for aggravated murder and more rarely for felony murder. Capital punishment was a penalty at common law, for many felonies, and was enforced in all of the American colonies prior to the Declaration of Independence...
if he became governor.
Abortion
Bill Brady self-identifies as pro-lifePro-life
Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
. He supports a ban on all abortions, including in cases of rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
and incest
Incest
Incest is sexual intercourse between close relatives that is usually illegal in the jurisdiction where it takes place and/or is conventionally considered a taboo. The term may apply to sexual activities between: individuals of close "blood relationship"; members of the same household; step...
. He makes an exception and allows abortion when a mother's life is at risk. He has also backed legislation allowing pharmacists refuse to dispense emergency contraception.
LGBT issues
A week after winning the Republican primary, Brady introduced a proposed state constitutional amendmentConstitutional amendment
A constitutional amendment is a formal change to the text of the written constitution of a nation or state.Most constitutions require that amendments cannot be enacted unless they have passed a special procedure that is more stringent than that required of ordinary legislation...
on February 10, 2010 defining marriage as between "one man and one woman". The proposed constitutional amendment would also deny validity and recognition to any "uniting of persons of the same sex in a civil union, domestic partnership, or other similar same sex relationship." Although Brady was originally the main sponsor of the amendment, its chief sponsor is now Illinois State Senator John O. Jones
John O. Jones
John O. Jones is a Republican member of the Illinois Senate, representing the 54th district since 2003. Jones previously served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1995 to 2002....
, who became co-sponsor with Brady the week following its submission. Brady has stated that he is "concerned that activist judges could overturn our current law protecting this institution". Brady has also stated his opposition to civil unions for gay couples on more than one occasion.
Stem cell research
Brady voted against legislation that would authorize state funding for embryonic stem cell research but prohibit human cloningHuman cloning
Human cloning is the creation of a genetically identical copy of a human. It does not usually refer to monozygotic multiple births nor the reproduction of human cells or tissue. The ethics of cloning is an extremely controversial issue...
. The legislation passed.
Health insurance
Brady voted against extending parental health insuranceHealth insurance
Health insurance is insurance against the risk of incurring medical expenses among individuals. By estimating the overall risk of health care expenses among a targeted group, an insurer can develop a routine finance structure, such as a monthly premium or payroll tax, to ensure that money is...
to unmarried dependents. The legislation later passed.
Brady co-sponsored SB 908 – Insurance Without Mandated Coverage - in 2003. SB 908 would have allowed insurance providers to offer plans that do not include coverage otherwise mandated in Illinois law. He voted NO on HB 211 in 2003 – Contraceptive Coverage in Private Health Insurance. HB 211, which became law in 2003, required any private insurance plan that covered prescription drugs and devices to also cover FDA approved contraceptive drugs and devices, but expressly states that nothing in it requires the coverage of abortion services.
Brady has called for cuts to the state’s Medicaid program, where he says his proposed forensic audit would reveal fraud, mismanagement and abuse. He also favors switching many Medicaid patients to a managed care system – the type currently administered by many Health Management Organizations (HMOs) – to control the cost of health care.
Gun control
Brady has stated that he is opposed to any further restrictions to the ownership of firearms in Illinois. He is also for legalizing concealed carryConcealed carry
Concealed carry, or CCW , refers to the practice of carrying a handgun or other weapon in public in a concealed manner, either on one's person or in proximity.-In Canada:...
, which would allow a law-abiding, licensed Illinois resident to carry a handgun or other weapon in public in a concealed manner.
Ethics
Brady's campaign website states that his administration would be a "clean break" from the ethics scandals of past governors. He supports capping individual campaign contributions at $4,800 for each election cycle and prohibiting union and corporate contributions.Brady has opposed requiring campaign contributors to list their occupations. He also dismissed adopting detailed federal-style statements of economic interest for public officials in Illinois as an "overreaction."
Term limits
Brady has called for term limits in Illinois. He would limit legislators to five terms in the House (10 years) and three terms (10 years) in the Senate.Taxes
Brady has opposed efforts to raise state sales and income tax rates in Illinois. He favors reducing sales taxSales tax
A sales tax is a tax, usually paid by the consumer at the point of purchase, itemized separately from the base price, for certain goods and services. The tax amount is usually calculated by applying a percentage rate to the taxable price of a sale....
es that he claims drive retail jobs and businesses to other states. He favors dedicating a percentage of Illinois revenue to property tax relief and eliminating the estate tax in Illinois.
Animal control
In February 2010, Brady sponsored a bill (SB2999) in the 96th General Assembly that would allow the mass euthanasiaEuthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
of dogs and cats. After it received considerable criticism, he retracted his sponsorship and now has said that he would veto any such bill.
External links
Illinois General Assembly- Senator Bill Brady (R) 44th District official Illinois General Assembly site
- Illinois State Senator Bill Brady official constituency site
- Profile from Illinois State Senate Republicans
Governor campaign
- Bill Brady for Governor official campaign website