Gregory Meeks
Encyclopedia
Gregory Weldon Meeks is the U.S. Representative
for , serving since 1998. He is a member of the Democratic Party
. The district includes most of Southeastern Queens
including Jamaica, Laurelton
, Rosedale
, Saint Albans, Springfield Gardens
, and Far Rockaway, as well as John F. Kennedy International Airport
. His district is made up mainly of middle-class and upper middle-class African-American communities, but also includes a small part of Ozone Park and part of Howard Beach known as Old Howard Beach, both of which are mainly made up of middle-class Italian-Americans. He also represents much of Kew Gardens
and northern Richmond Hill
, middle-class white and South Asian neighborhoods.
, New York City
and raised in a housing project, Meeks attended Adelphi University
and obtained a law degree
from Howard University School of Law
. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha
fraternity.
He worked as an Assistant District Attorney and Special Narcotics Prosecutor for the City of New York before joining the Investigations Commission to investigate official misconduct and organized crime
. He then was Supervising Judge for the New York State Workers Compensation System.
Meeks was elected to the New York State Assembly
in 1992.
Meeks is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus
, the International Conservation Caucus
and the New Democrat Coalition
.
On the Federal Budget, Gregory Meeks supports Social Security and Medicare and wants to balance the budget, lower national debt while sending money to education, environment and national defense. He is also against the privatization of Social Security. On Homeland Security, Gregory Meeks has unwavering support of on-ground troops and a large supporter of veterans and emergency responders. Finally, Gregory Meeks is a strong supporter of the Health Care plan and is currently working to promote the extension and expansion of the State’s Children’s Health Insurance Program. He has also worked hard to increase the federal funding to research fields to speed cures.
Meeks is pro-choice on abortion and he supported Planned Parenthood all throughout his career. His votes, such as voting against the prohibition of late-term or partial birth abortions, twice in 2003 against the Republicans, support and strengthen his position on abortion. However, in the recent 2008 election for funding federal money to abortions, he voted against it.
He is supported by NARAL Pro-Choice America, National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association. He is the not supported by National Rights to Life Committee.
Meeks is for animal rights and he never supported or voted for the organizations supporting hunters and animals owners based on his votes in Congress. He is also a supporter of endangered species and voted to protect them. In the 2005 Endangered Reauthorization Species bill, he voted against the Republicans in vain.
He is supported by the Humane Society of the United States, Big Cats Rescue and is not supported by Sportmen and Animal Owner’s Voting Alliance.
Meeks is not supported by the Americans for Fair Taxation, which wants to the change the tax system, so a clean slate is given to every American and he or she is taxed equally by using retail sales tax. However, this banishes Social Security, Medicare and other government supported plans. Also, the National Taxpayers Union does not support Meeks. The National Taxpayers Union strives to change the current tax system to make it simpler to the individual. Similarly, he is not supported by the National TaxPayers Union, National Tax Limitation Committee and American for Tax Reform, which have supported more Republicans than Democrats. None of these groups have overwhelmingly supported Gregory Meeks since he has been a representative of New York.
Meeks supported the Bush Administration's warrantless wiretapping programs.
During the 2008 electoral campaign, he appeared in a TV ad endorsing the reelection of Puerto Rico
Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
.
, chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the Armed Services Committee and four other US Congressmen visited American troops deployed in the southern Philippines
to overview the US-Philippines relationship. Reyes headed the bipartisan delegation which included New Jersey
Rep. Rodney P. Frelinghuysen , member of appropriations committee and the select intelligence oversight panel; New Mexico
Rep. Heather Wilson
of the committee on energy and the intelligence committee; New York
Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, a Democrat, of the financial services and international relations committees; and Maryland
Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger
of the appropriations and intelligence committees. They drove to the base of the Joint Special Operation Task Force Philippines (JSOTFP), a US-led body, which trains Filipino soldiers against terror, in Barangay Upper Calarian.
and Jim McGovern
), Meeks wrote a letter thanking the head of the leftist Colombian guerilla FARC (Revolutionary army of Colombia, in Spanish) for the release of evidence that confirms the survival of several of the 45 hostages that the terrorist groups holds captive (including 3 US citizens), some of them for over a decade.
The group is considered a terrorist organization by the US government and the European Union. The terrorist are currently demanding for the release of the captives the surrender of Colombian territory; this demand is vehemently rejected by the current democratically elected Colombian government.
460, at $998 per month. Meeks was unwilling to provide further comment when questioned by the New York Times, on the lease arrangement, saying "These are never lighthearted stories."
. His House primary election challenger was Ruben Wills
, a former chief of staff for State Senator Shirley L. Huntley and an organizer for Obama. Wills said “I was on board with Obama from Day 1. Meeks had to be dragged across the line.” Some suggest that a young black political class is seeking to assert the neighborhood’s power against what it sees as an older establishment, based in Harlem, that has long exercised disproportionate influence in New York City
.
artist and graduating law student Mike Scala
has announced that he is running for the seat in 2012.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
for , serving since 1998. He is a member of the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
. The district includes most of Southeastern Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
including Jamaica, Laurelton
Laurelton, Queens
Laurelton is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is now a largely middle class neighborhood. In the 1930s through 1970s and beyond, the neighborhood was populated by many Jewish Americans, but succeeding generations have been made up of new migrants. The neighborhood is part...
, Rosedale
Rosedale, Queens
Rosedale is a suburban neighborhood in Queens. The neighborhood is on the Nassau County, New York - Queens border and is part of Queens Community Board 13.- History :...
, Saint Albans, Springfield Gardens
Springfield Gardens, Queens
Springfield Gardens is a neighborhood in the southeastern area of the New York City borough of Queens, bounded to the north by St. Albans, to the east by Laurelton & Rosedale, to the south by John F. Kennedy International Airport, and to the west by Farmers Boulevard...
, and Far Rockaway, as well as John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport is an international airport located in the borough of Queens in New York City, about southeast of Lower Manhattan. It is the busiest international air passenger gateway to the United States, handling more international traffic than any other airport in North...
. His district is made up mainly of middle-class and upper middle-class African-American communities, but also includes a small part of Ozone Park and part of Howard Beach known as Old Howard Beach, both of which are mainly made up of middle-class Italian-Americans. He also represents much of Kew Gardens
Kew Gardens, Queens
Kew Gardens is a triangular-shaped neighborhood in central Queens bounded to the north by the Jackie Robinson Parkway , to the east by Van Wyck Expressway and 131st Street, to the south by Hillside Avenue, and to the west by Park Lane, Abingdon Road and 118th Street...
and northern Richmond Hill
Richmond Hill, Queens
Richmond Hill is a neighborhood in central-southern Queens, New York City, USA. It is bordered by Kew Gardens to the north, Woodhaven and Ozone Park to the west, South Ozone Park to the south and South Jamaica to the east...
, middle-class white and South Asian neighborhoods.
Early life, education and career
Born in East HarlemHarlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and raised in a housing project, Meeks attended Adelphi University
Adelphi University
Adelphi University is a private, nonsectarian university located in Garden City, in Nassau County, New York, United States. It is the oldest institution of higher education on Long Island. For the sixth year, Adelphi University has been named a “Best Buy” in higher education by the Fiske Guide to...
and obtained a law degree
Law degree
A Law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Such degrees are generally preparation for legal careers; but while their curricula may be reviewed by legal authority, they do not themselves confer a license...
from Howard University School of Law
Howard University School of Law
Howard University School of Law is one of the professional graduate schools of Howard University. Located in Washington, D.C., it is one the oldest law schools in the country and the oldest historically black college or university law school in the United States...
. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha
Alpha Phi Alpha
Alpha Phi Alpha is the first Inter-Collegiate Black Greek Letter fraternity. It was founded on December 4, 1906 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Its founders are known as the "Seven Jewels". Alpha Phi Alpha developed a model that was used by the many Black Greek Letter Organizations ...
fraternity.
He worked as an Assistant District Attorney and Special Narcotics Prosecutor for the City of New York before joining the Investigations Commission to investigate official misconduct and organized crime
Organized crime
Organized crime or criminal organizations are transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals for the purpose of engaging in illegal activity, most commonly for monetary profit. Some criminal organizations, such as terrorist organizations, are...
. He then was Supervising Judge for the New York State Workers Compensation System.
Meeks was elected to the New York State Assembly
New York State Assembly
The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The Assembly is composed of 150 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 128,652...
in 1992.
Committee assignments
- Committee on Financial ServicesUnited States House Committee on Financial ServicesThe United States House Committee on Financial Services is the committee of the United States House of Representatives that oversees the entire financial services industry, including the securities, insurance, banking, and housing industries...
- Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer CreditUnited States House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer CreditThe U.S. House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit is a subcommittee of the House Committee on Financial Services.-Jurisdiction:...
- Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and TechnologyUnited States House Financial Services Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and TechnologyThe U.S. House Financial Services Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology is a subcommittee of the House Committee on Financial Services...
- Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit
- Committee on Foreign Affairs
- Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific
- Subcommittee on Europe and Eurasia (Ranking Member)
Caucus memberships
- Co-chair of the Dialogue Caucus
- Co-chair of the Malaysia Caucus
- Co-chair of the Middle East Economic Partnership Caucus
- Co-chair of the Services Caucus
Meeks is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus
Congressional Black Caucus
The Congressional Black Caucus is an organization representing the black members of the United States Congress. Membership is exclusive to blacks, and its chair in the 112th Congress is Representative Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri.-Aims:...
, the International Conservation Caucus
United States Congressional International Conservation Caucus
The U.S. Congressional International Conservation Caucus is a bipartisan congressional organization that was founded in September 2003 with the conviction that “the United States of America has the opportunity, the obligation and the interests to advance the conservation of natural resources for...
and the New Democrat Coalition
New Democrat Coalition
The New Democrat Coalition is a Congressional Member Organization within the United States Congress made up of Democrats who support an agenda that the organization describes as moderate and pro-growth. A July 2009 Press release described the organization as "the largest moderate coalition in the U.S...
.
On the Federal Budget, Gregory Meeks supports Social Security and Medicare and wants to balance the budget, lower national debt while sending money to education, environment and national defense. He is also against the privatization of Social Security. On Homeland Security, Gregory Meeks has unwavering support of on-ground troops and a large supporter of veterans and emergency responders. Finally, Gregory Meeks is a strong supporter of the Health Care plan and is currently working to promote the extension and expansion of the State’s Children’s Health Insurance Program. He has also worked hard to increase the federal funding to research fields to speed cures.
Meeks is pro-choice on abortion and he supported Planned Parenthood all throughout his career. His votes, such as voting against the prohibition of late-term or partial birth abortions, twice in 2003 against the Republicans, support and strengthen his position on abortion. However, in the recent 2008 election for funding federal money to abortions, he voted against it.
He is supported by NARAL Pro-Choice America, National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association. He is the not supported by National Rights to Life Committee.
Meeks is for animal rights and he never supported or voted for the organizations supporting hunters and animals owners based on his votes in Congress. He is also a supporter of endangered species and voted to protect them. In the 2005 Endangered Reauthorization Species bill, he voted against the Republicans in vain.
He is supported by the Humane Society of the United States, Big Cats Rescue and is not supported by Sportmen and Animal Owner’s Voting Alliance.
Meeks is not supported by the Americans for Fair Taxation, which wants to the change the tax system, so a clean slate is given to every American and he or she is taxed equally by using retail sales tax. However, this banishes Social Security, Medicare and other government supported plans. Also, the National Taxpayers Union does not support Meeks. The National Taxpayers Union strives to change the current tax system to make it simpler to the individual. Similarly, he is not supported by the National TaxPayers Union, National Tax Limitation Committee and American for Tax Reform, which have supported more Republicans than Democrats. None of these groups have overwhelmingly supported Gregory Meeks since he has been a representative of New York.
Meeks supported the Bush Administration's warrantless wiretapping programs.
During the 2008 electoral campaign, he appeared in a TV ad endorsing the reelection of Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
Aníbal Salvador Acevedo Vilá is a Puerto Rican politician and lawyer. He served as the eighth Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a Commonwealth of the United States, from 2005 to 2009. He is a Harvard University alumnus and a graduate of the University of Puerto Rico School of Law,...
.
Philippine Visit
On August 25, 2007, Silvestre ReyesSilvestre Reyes
Silvestre "Silver" Reyes is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997, and the Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the primary Committee in the U.S...
, chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the Armed Services Committee and four other US Congressmen visited American troops deployed in the southern Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
to overview the US-Philippines relationship. Reyes headed the bipartisan delegation which included New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
Rep. Rodney P. Frelinghuysen , member of appropriations committee and the select intelligence oversight panel; New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
Rep. Heather Wilson
Heather Wilson
Heather A. Wilson , is a former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives representing from 1998 to 2009...
of the committee on energy and the intelligence committee; New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, a Democrat, of the financial services and international relations committees; and Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger
Dutch Ruppersberger
Charles Albert "Dutch" Ruppersberger III is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
of the appropriations and intelligence committees. They drove to the base of the Joint Special Operation Task Force Philippines (JSOTFP), a US-led body, which trains Filipino soldiers against terror, in Barangay Upper Calarian.
Letter to "Tirofijo"
On December 20, 2007 along with 2 other US representatives (Bill DelahuntBill Delahunt
William D. Delahunt is a former U.S. Representative for , serving from 1997 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Delahunt did not seek re-election in 2010, and left Congress in January 2011. He was replaced by Norfolk County District Attorney Bill Keating...
and Jim McGovern
Jim McGovern
James Patrick "Jim" McGovern is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
), Meeks wrote a letter thanking the head of the leftist Colombian guerilla FARC (Revolutionary army of Colombia, in Spanish) for the release of evidence that confirms the survival of several of the 45 hostages that the terrorist groups holds captive (including 3 US citizens), some of them for over a decade.
The group is considered a terrorist organization by the US government and the European Union. The terrorist are currently demanding for the release of the captives the surrender of Colombian territory; this demand is vehemently rejected by the current democratically elected Colombian government.
Congressional Auto Lease
It was recently noted by the New York Times that Meeks utilizes the option to use tax dollars to lease a car, for use as a member of Congress. This option does not exist for Senate members. The lease is forgone by many members of Congress, but Meeks presently holds the most expensive lease among all members. Despite having one of the most compact districts in the entire Congress, with access to public transportation, he currently uses tax dollars to lease a 2007 Lexus LSLexus LS
The Lexus LS is a full-size luxury sedan that serves as the flagship model of Lexus, the luxury division of Toyota. Four generations of the sedan have been produced, all equipped with V8 engines and rear-wheel drive, although since 2006 all-wheel drive, hybrid, and long-wheelbase variants have also...
460, at $998 per month. Meeks was unwilling to provide further comment when questioned by the New York Times, on the lease arrangement, saying "These are never lighthearted stories."
2008 House Primary election
Meeks was criticized for initially supporting Hillary Clinton over Barack ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
. His House primary election challenger was Ruben Wills
Ruben Wills
Ruben Wills is a Councilman representing the New York City Council's 28th District, covering the Richmond Hill and Jamaica sections of Queens. Wills has also worked for the SEIU Local 1199 Union, as well as under councilman Leroy Comrie...
, a former chief of staff for State Senator Shirley L. Huntley and an organizer for Obama. Wills said “I was on board with Obama from Day 1. Meeks had to be dragged across the line.” Some suggest that a young black political class is seeking to assert the neighborhood’s power against what it sees as an older establishment, based in Harlem, that has long exercised disproportionate influence in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Investigations and Fraud and 2010 elections
In late 2009, and ongoing through 2010, Greg Meeks has been investigated by a House ethics committee on loans with New York Senate Temporary President Malcolm Smith and the local Jamaica Rev. Floyd Flake. Meeks has also been investigated about his mortgage loans to a Guyanese immigrated real estate tycoon Edul N. Ahmad of Century21 Ahmad Realty and Ace Mortgage, Inc. Meeks has denied this, although being investigated by the New York State Attorney General's office and the House Ethics Committee. In 2010, Meeks faced Republican Asher Taub and won reelection despite his investigation.2012 House Primary election
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) named Meeks one of the most corrupt members of Congress in 2011. It was subsequently reported that Meeks' continuing ethical and criminal probes would cause his premature exit from Congress. However, Meeks has denied this. Hip HopHip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
artist and graduating law student Mike Scala
Pizon
Michael "Mike" Scala , also known as Pizon, is an Italian-American rapper, record producer, and computer science graduate on the verge of earning his law degree. He is the son of the late actor Michael Scala , who played Sally Gaga in Martin Scorsese's first feature film Who's That Knocking at My...
has announced that he is running for the seat in 2012.
External links
- U.S. Congressman Gregory W. Meeks official U.S. House site
- Congressman Gregory Meeks official campaign site
- Profile on SourceWatchSourceWatchSourceWatch is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal Center for Media and Democracy...