Christina Jeffrey

Last updated

Christina Jeffrey is an American political scientist who briefly served as Historian of the United States House of Representatives.

Contents

Biography

Jeffrey attended Vassar College from 1965 to 1966 and graduated from the University of Plano with a Bachelor of Arts in 1969. She earned a Master of Arts in 1973 and a Doctor of Philosophy in 1984 from the University of Alabama. Her dissertation was titled "Explaining Adoption of Foreign-Trade Zones Among Sunbelt Cities". While at Alabama she worked in several positions, including as director of international student affairs from 1974 to 1978 and director of student affairs from 1978 to 1980. Jeffrey worked at Troy State University from 1984 to 1987 before finding employment as an associate professor of political science and public administration at Kennesaw State College. [1]

Jeffrey also worked as a consultant to the United States Department of Education during the Presidency of Ronald Reagan. In 1986 she criticized a program called “The Holocaust and Human Behavior,” because “The program gives no evidence of balance or objectivity,” as “The Nazi point of view, however unpopular, is still a point of view and it is not presented; nor is that of the Ku Klux Klan.” She further noted that the program did not cover any other 20th century genocides. The program did not receive federal funding after her recommendation. [2] [3] After the incident, Congress examined her in 1988 and the Department of Education removed her as an approved consultant. [3]

As Historian of the House

Newt Gingrich, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, fired the Historian of the United States House of Representatives, Raymond Smock, in late December 1994. [4] That month he offered Jeffrey, who he had taught with at Kennesaw, the role. Her husband, Robert, wrote a book about Gingrich's career. [2] [5] [6] She accepted it on December 15. [1] The appointment was not announced until early January. [2] [5] [6] Upon taking the position on January 3, [7] she was described as an "outspoken political supporter" of Gingrich. [5] On January 9 her comments as a Department of Education consultant were discovered and widely publicized. [1] Shortly afterwards Gingrich requested that Jeffrey resign from the role, [8] and she formally did the following day. [1]

Gingrich and his staffers stated that he had not known about her comments, [1] [9] but an aide to Jeffrey told The New York Times that he had been advised of the incident before appointing her to the role. [8] Politicians such as Chuck Schumer accused Jeffrey of "showing surprising insensitivity to antisemitism and bigotry." [1] Jeffrey responded to the criticism, calling it "outrageous" and "slanderous". [2] [9] She told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that attacks on her were actually aimed at Gingrich and that she considered it "a complete distortion", noting that the Department of Education had formally apologized for its treatment of her. [1]

Later career

Jeffrey's actions were widely discussed. [3] [10] The Atlanta Journal-Constitution criticized her dismissal as stifling free speech. [11] Others praised Gingrich for acting quickly to remove her. Julianne Malveaux, writing in Black Issues in Higher Education, asked what sides there were to present to the Ku Klux Klan or the Holocaust. [12] In September, the Anti-Defamation League said that Jeffrey was "stigmatized unfairly" and "mislabeled anti-Semitic". [13] On November 30, Gingrich apologized for firing her and John Lewis voiced support for efforts to clear her name. Other politicians continued to criticize her actions, including Barney Frank and Chuck Schumer. [10] [14] In early 1986 Jeffrey announced that she was considering filing a lawsuit against Gingrich, [14] and in May she published an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal titled "Why I Am Suing Gingrich and Schumer", where she detailed a lawsuit against Gingrich and Schumer for "defamation and contract violations." [15] The suit was dismissed. [16] The House did not have a Historian for several years after Jeffrey resigned. [7]

After leaving the position as Historian, she returned to teaching at Kennesaw State. [17] In 2000, Jeffrey ran to represent Georgia's 6th congressional district in the House of Representatives, which had been vacated when Gingrich retired. [18] [16] She received 25% of the Republican vote in primaries. [19] In 2010, Jeffrey ran in the Republican primary to represent South Carolina's 4th congressional district in the House of Representatives. [20] Jeffrey left Kennesaw State and began working at Limestone University, where she chaired the department of political science. By 2011 she was giving lectures at Wofford College and Lander University in South Carolina. [21]

Selected publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cobb County, Georgia</span> County in Georgia, United States

Cobb County is a county in the U.S. state of Georgia, located in the Atlanta metropolitan area in the north central portion of the state. As of 2020 Census, the population was 766,149. It is the state's third most populous county, after Fulton and Gwinnett counties. Its county seat is Marietta; its largest city is Mableton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newt Gingrich</span> American politician and author (born 1943)

Newton Leroy Gingrich is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U.S. representative for Georgia's 6th congressional district serving north Atlanta and nearby areas from 1979 until his resignation in 1999. In 2012, Gingrich unsuccessfully ran for the Republican nomination for president of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rebecca Latimer Felton</span> American feminist activist and white supremacist (1835–1930)

Rebecca Ann Felton was an American writer, politician, activist, and slave owner who was the first woman to serve in the United States Senate, serving for only one day. She was a prominent member of the Georgia upper class who advocated for prison reform, women's suffrage and education reform. Her husband, William Harrell Felton, served in both the United States House of Representatives and the Georgia House of Representatives, and she helped organize his political campaigns. Historian Numan Bartley wrote that by 1915 Felton "was championing a lengthy feminist program that ranged from prohibition to equal pay for equal work yet never accomplished any feat because she held her role because of her husband."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Johnny Isakson</span> American politician (1944–2021)

John Hardy Isakson was an American businessman and politician who served as a United States senator from Georgia from 2005 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served in the Georgia legislature and the United States House of Representatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nathan Deal</span> American politician (born 1942)

John Nathan Deal is an American politician and former lawyer who served as the 82nd governor of Georgia from 2011 to 2019. A Republican, he previously served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

The historian of the United States House of Representatives is an official appointed by the United States House of Representatives to study and document its past. The House historian heads the Office of the House Historian, which serves as the institutional memory for the institution. The current historian of the House is Matthew Wasniewski.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karen Handel</span> American politician (born 1962)

Karen Christine Handel is an American businesswoman and politician. A member of the Republican Party, Handel served as chair of the Fulton County Board of Commissioners from 2003 to 2006, as Secretary of State of Georgia from 2007 to 2010, and in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2017 to 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martha Zoller</span>

Martha Mitchell Zoller is a columnist, media personality, author, and former Republican candidate for the United States House of Representatives.

Jan Slaughter Jones is an American politician in Georgia. A Republican, she has been a member of the Georgia House of Representatives since 2003, and was acting Speaker of the House from November 2022 to January 2023 following the death of former Speaker David Ralston. Jones serves as Speaker pro tempore of the House, a position she has held continuously since 2010 with the exception of her brief stint as acting Speaker. She is the state representative for Georgia's 47th House district, which covers some of the northern Atlanta suburbs, including parts of Milton, Roswell, Alpharetta, Mountain Park, and unincorporated Cherokee County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Randy Evans</span> American lawyer & diplomat (born 1958)

James Randolph Evans is an American lawyer and diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Luxembourg from 2018 to 2021. He presented his credentials on June 19, 2018, to the Grand Duke of Luxembourg. A member of the Republican Party from Georgia, he specializes in litigation, as well as professional, legal and government ethics. Evans is a partner at the global law firm Squire Patton Boggs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Olens</span> Former Georgia Attorney General and University President

Samuel Scott Olens is an American lawyer and politician who served as Attorney General of Georgia. Olens was elected Georgia AG in 2010, resigning on November 1, 2016, following his appointment as President of Kennesaw State University. He subsequently resigned as KSU's president on February 15, 2018 and then served as counsel for Dentons global law firm. He was named partner Dentons' Public Policy practice in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 United States Senate election in Georgia</span>

The 2014 United States Senate election in Georgia was held on November 4, 2014, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Georgia, concurrently with the election of the Governor of Georgia, as well as elections to the United States Senate in other states, to the United States House of Representatives, and to various other state and local offices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stacey Abrams</span> American politician, lawyer, voting rights activist, and author (born 1973)

Stacey Yvonne Abrams is an American politician, lawyer, voting rights activist, and author who served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2007 to 2017, serving as minority leader from 2011 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Abrams founded Fair Fight Action, an organization to address voter suppression, in 2018. Her efforts have been widely credited with boosting voter turnout in Georgia, including in the 2020 presidential election, when Joe Biden narrowly won the state, and in Georgia's 2020–21 regularly scheduled and special U.S. Senate elections, which gave Democrats control of the Senate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 Georgia's 6th congressional district special election</span>

A special election to determine the member of the United States House of Representatives for Georgia's 6th congressional district was held on April 18, 2017, with a runoff held two months later on June 20. Republican Karen Handel narrowly defeated Democrat Jon Ossoff in the runoff vote, 51.8% to 48.2%. Handel succeeded Tom Price, who resigned from the seat following his confirmation as United States Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Trump Administration. The runoff election was necessary when no individual candidate earned the majority of votes in the election on April 18. Ossoff received 48.1% of the vote in the first round, followed by Handel with 19.8%.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 Georgia lieutenant gubernatorial election</span>

The 2018 Georgia lieutenant gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 2018, to elect the lieutenant governor of Georgia, concurrently with the 2018 gubernatorial election, as well as elections to the United States Senate and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucy McBath</span> American politician (born 1960)

Lucia Kay McBath is an American politician who has served in the United States House of Representatives from a district in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia since 2018. She represented Georgia's 6th congressional district from 2019 to 2023, and has represented the neighboring 7th district since 2023. McBath is a member of the Democratic Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nikema Williams</span> American politician (born 1978)

Nikema Natassha Williams is an American politician and political executive serving as the representative for Georgia's 5th congressional district. The district includes almost three-fourths of Atlanta. She was a member of the Georgia State Senate for the 39th district before her House campaign. She is also the chair of the Democratic Party of Georgia. Williams served as one of 16 electors for Georgia in the Electoral College following the 2020 United States presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carolyn Bourdeaux</span> American politician & educator (born 1970)

Carolyn Jordan Bourdeaux is an American educator and politician who served as the U.S. representative from Georgia's 7th congressional district from 2021 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, she was a professor at the Andrew Young School of Public Policy at Georgia State University from 2003 to 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Georgia</span>

The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Georgia were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the 14 U.S. representatives from the state of Georgia, one from each of the state's congressional districts. The elections coincided with the Georgia gubernatorial election, as well as other elections to the U.S. House of Representatives, elections to the U.S. Senate, and various state and local elections.

Michael J. Coles is an American entrepreneur, author, philanthropist, and politician. Coles was the co-founder of Great American Cookie Company and former CEO of Caribou Coffee. Coles was the 1996 Democratic nominee for the house of representatives in the Sixth District of Georgia, and the 1998 Democratic nominee for U.S senate. In 1994 Kennesaw State University named its school of business the Coles College of Business.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Her Story: Rise and Fall of the House Historian". The Atlanta Constitution. 1995-01-11. p. 8. Retrieved 2021-01-17– via Newspapers.com Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg .
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Fired Historian Denounces Charges as 'Outrageous' : Congress: Christina Jeffrey says she'll answer 'slanderous' allegations of anti-Semitism later in writing. She accepts abrupt dismissal by Gingrich". Los Angeles Times. 1995-01-11. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  3. 1 2 3 DuBuisson, David. "The Strange, Sad Saga Of Christina Jeffrey Is Both Amusing And Revealing". Greensboro News and Record. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  4. ↑ DuBUISSON, DAVID. "THE STRANGE, SAD SAGA OF CHRISTINA JEFFREY IS BOTH AMUSING AND REVEALING". Greensboro News and Record. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  5. 1 2 3 Seelye, Katharine Q. (1995-01-09). "A Personal 'Chronicler' for Newt Gingrich". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  6. 1 2 Engelhardt, Tom; Linethal, Edward T. (1996-08-15). History Wars: The Enola Gay and Other Battles for the American Past. Henry Holt and Company. p. 184. ISBN   978-1-4299-3677-4.
  7. 1 2 Kamen, Al (17 January 2000). "Revisiting Impeachment, With Senate Staff". The Washington Post .
  8. 1 2 Seelye, Katharine Q. (1995-01-11). "THE 104TH CONGRESS: THE SPEAKER; Gingrich Knew of Comment By Historian, Her Aide Says (Published 1995)". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  9. 1 2 Kovaleski, Kevin Merida; Serge F. (1995-01-11). "Fired House Historian Says She Is Victim Of 'Outrageous' Charges". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved 2021-01-17.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. 1 2 "The Vindication of Christina Jeffrey". Washington Examiner. 1995-12-18. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  11. ↑ Edmonson, Henry III (17 January 1995). "New speaker's Machiavellian dismissal of Christina Jeffrey stifles free speech". The Atlanta Journal .
  12. ↑ Malveaux, J. (1995, Jan 26). SPEAKING OF EDUCATION: How many sides to a story? Black Issues in Higher Education, 11, 40.
  13. ↑ "ADL Clears Historian Accused of Anti-semitism". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 1995-09-07. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  14. 1 2 Liefer, Richard. "Former House Historian Threatens To Sue Gingrich Over Firing". The Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  15. ↑ Jeffrey, Christina (1996-05-28). "Why I Am Suing Gingrich and Schumer". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  16. 1 2 Payne, D. (1998, Dec 17). Curtains open on window of opportunity minus obstacle gingrich, former would-be foe christina jeffrey seeks 6th district seat. The Atlanta Journal the Atlanta Constitution
  17. ↑ O'Neil, Robert (2009). Academic Freedom in the Wired World: Political Extremism, Corporate Power, and the University. Harvard University Press. p. 26. ISBN   978-0-674-03372-6.
  18. ↑ "Impeachment not a factor in the race for Gingrich's seat - February 16, 1999". CNN. Retrieved 2021-01-17.
  19. ↑ "Clipped From The Atlanta Constitution". The Atlanta Constitution. 1999-02-24. p. 28. Retrieved 2021-01-17– via Newspapers.com Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg .
  20. ↑ Rudin, Ken (2010-06-08). "Everything You Need To Know About Super Tuesday". NPR. Retrieved 2022-08-30.
  21. ↑ "Christina Jeffrey speaker at AAUW January meeting". The Gaffney Ledger. 2011-01-07. p. 7. Retrieved 2021-01-17– via Newspapers.com Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg .
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.