Mac Sweeney
Encyclopedia
David McCann "Mac" Sweeney (born September 15, 1955) is a former Republican
Member of the United States House of Representatives
from Texas
.
Born in Wharton
, Texas, Sweeney earned his B.A. and J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin
. In his early political years Sweeney served on the staffs of Republican Senator
John G. Tower from 1977–1978, and former Governor
John B. Connally, Jr.
, from 1979 to 1980, when Connally was seeking the 1980 Republican presidential nomination.
Sweeney served as Director of administrative operations in the Ronald Reagan
White House
from 1981–1983. In this capacity he worked directly with John F.W. Rogers
and began a long-term association with another well-known Texan, James A. Baker III, then the White House Chief of Staff. In 1984 he unseated Democratic
U.S. Representative William Neff "Bill" Patman
in one of the nation's closest congressional elections. In doing so, Sweeney became the first-ever Republican to represent District 14 and the only person in United States history before the age of 30 both to serve on the White House staff and to be elected to the United States Congress.
He was appointed to the House Armed Services Committee and became in 1985 one of six freshmen Republican congressmen from Texas infamously known as the Texas Six Pack
, including future House Majority Leaders
Dick Armey
and Tom DeLay
. Sweeney served two terms from 1985–1989, but was unseated in 1988 by Democrat Greg Laughlin
. The prior, sprawling, 22-county District 14 has been divided, primarily by the 2003 Texas redistricting
, into five different congressional districts today. Approximately one-third of the original District 14 is now represented by Ron Paul
, a physician
and two time candidate for the United States presidency (1988 Libertarian Party
nominee and 2008 Republican Party
candidate.
After his final unsuccessful campaign, Sweeney entered the private practice of law on Wall Street with the international firm Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle
before later heading two businesses in New Jersey and Texas involved in successful restructurings or turnarounds. In 1997 he began what became a seven-year commitment to humanitarian and missionary
work, based out of Cairo but also working in over five different Arab countries. A large number of the 400-plus Christians, Muslims and Coptics trained and funded by the Sweeney family continue to work today in Syria
, Tunisia
, Bahrain
, Lebanon
and Sudan
primarily with schools, clinics, job training, micro-business and tent making enterprises.
In 2004 Sweeney was considered for top positions at the Peace Corps
and in helping to organize the first democratic Afghan presidential election, 2004 and the Afghan parliamentary election, 2005
; but could not come to terms with the Bush Administration
. As of 2011 he operates the Washington-based Paraclete Group which funds large infrastructure projects in developing nations that are typically paired with select in-country charities or international NGO groups. He serves on four non-profit or business boards, and he and his wife split time between Bethesda, Maryland
and Houston
. He has four children
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 United States House of Representatives
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...
from Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
.
Born in Wharton
Wharton, Texas
Wharton is a city in Wharton County, Texas, United States. The population was 9,237 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Wharton County and is located on the Colorado River of Texas just south of U.S...
, Texas, Sweeney earned his B.A. and J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
. In his early political years Sweeney served on the staffs of Republican Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
John G. Tower from 1977–1978, and former Governor
Governor of Texas
The governor of Texas is the head of the executive branch of Texas's government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Texas Legislature, and to convene the legislature...
John B. Connally, Jr.
John Connally
John Bowden Connally, Jr. , was an influential American politician, serving as the 39th governor of Texas, Secretary of the Navy under President John F. Kennedy, and as Secretary of the Treasury under President Richard M. Nixon. While he was Governor in 1963, Connally was a passenger in the car in...
, from 1979 to 1980, when Connally was seeking the 1980 Republican presidential nomination.
Sweeney served as Director of administrative operations in the Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
from 1981–1983. In this capacity he worked directly with John F.W. Rogers
John F.W. Rogers
John F.W. Rogers is a partner at Goldman Sachs. He was Chief of Staff at Goldman to CEOs Jon S. Corzine and Henry Paulson. He is said to have been current United States Treasury Secretary Paulson's closest advisor while at Goldman, as well as a member of United States Secretary of State James...
and began a long-term association with another well-known Texan, James A. Baker III, then the White House Chief of Staff. In 1984 he unseated Democratic
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...
U.S. Representative William Neff "Bill" Patman
William Neff Patman
William Neff "Bill" Patman , was an American politician who served from 1981 to 1985 as a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from Texas. He was the son of John William Wright Patman, the long-time U.S...
in one of the nation's closest congressional elections. In doing so, Sweeney became the first-ever Republican to represent District 14 and the only person in United States history before the age of 30 both to serve on the White House staff and to be elected to the United States Congress.
He was appointed to the House Armed Services Committee and became in 1985 one of six freshmen Republican congressmen from Texas infamously known as the Texas Six Pack
Texas Six Pack
The Texas Six Pack was a group of six freshmen Republican congressmen from Texas who were elected during the 1984 Ronald Reagan landslide victory over Walter Mondale. With their victories the Texas congressional delegation shifted from a 22-5 Democratic advantage to only 17-10. Several of the six...
, including future House Majority Leaders
Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives
Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives are elected by their respective parties in a closed-door caucus by secret ballot and are also known as floor leaders. The U.S. House of Representatives does not officially use the term "Minority Leader", although the media frequently does...
Dick Armey
Dick Armey
Richard Keith "Dick" Armey is a former U.S. Representative from Texas's and House Majority Leader . He was one of the engineers of the "Republican Revolution" of the 1990s, in which Republicans were elected to majorities of both houses of Congress for the first time in four decades. Armey was...
and Tom DeLay
Tom DeLay
Thomas Dale "Tom" DeLay is a former member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1984 until 2006. He was Republican Party House Majority Leader from 2003 to 2005, when he resigned because of criminal money laundering charges in...
. Sweeney served two terms from 1985–1989, but was unseated in 1988 by Democrat Greg Laughlin
Greg Laughlin
Gregory H. "Greg" Laughlin is a politician from the state of Texas. He is a former member of the United States House of Representatives....
. The prior, sprawling, 22-county District 14 has been divided, primarily by the 2003 Texas redistricting
2003 Texas redistricting
The 2003 Texas redistricting refers to a controversial mid-decade congressional redistricting plan appealed to the United States Supreme Court in League of United Latin American Citizens v. Perry...
, into five different congressional districts today. Approximately one-third of the original District 14 is now represented by Ron Paul
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
, a physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
and two time candidate for the United States presidency (1988 Libertarian Party
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
nominee and 2008 Republican Party
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...
candidate.
After his final unsuccessful campaign, Sweeney entered the private practice of law on Wall Street with the international firm Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle
Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle
Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP is a New York-based international law firm with 260 attorneys in 15 offices worldwide. In 2009, its declared revenues were approximately $135 million...
before later heading two businesses in New Jersey and Texas involved in successful restructurings or turnarounds. In 1997 he began what became a seven-year commitment to humanitarian and missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
work, based out of Cairo but also working in over five different Arab countries. A large number of the 400-plus Christians, Muslims and Coptics trained and funded by the Sweeney family continue to work today in Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
, Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
and Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
primarily with schools, clinics, job training, micro-business and tent making enterprises.
In 2004 Sweeney was considered for top positions at the Peace Corps
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name. The mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance, helping people outside the United States to understand US culture, and helping...
and in helping to organize the first democratic Afghan presidential election, 2004 and the Afghan parliamentary election, 2005
Afghan parliamentary election, 2005
Afghanistan held parliamentary and provincial council elections on 18 September 2005. The first results were declared on 9 October, with final results being delayed by accusations of fraud, and were finally announced on 12 November.-Results:...
; but could not come to terms with the Bush Administration
George W. Bush administration
The presidency of George W. Bush began on January 20, 2001, when he was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States of America. The oldest son of former president George H. W. Bush, George W...
. As of 2011 he operates the Washington-based Paraclete Group which funds large infrastructure projects in developing nations that are typically paired with select in-country charities or international NGO groups. He serves on four non-profit or business boards, and he and his wife split time between Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House , which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda...
and Houston
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
. He has four children