Jim McDermott

Jim McDermott serves in the United States House of Representatives. He represents Washington’s 7th District, which includes the city of Seattle.http://mcdermott.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2&Itemid=9 McDermott has served in public office since 1974.http://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=4 A former psychiatrist, McDermott’s political career began when he won a seat in Washington State’s House of Representatives.http://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=4 He also served in the Washington State Senate and the United States Foreign Service before becoming a U.S. congressman.http://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=4

In the November 2010 elections, McDermott won his 11th term by beating Republican challenger Bob Jeffers-Schroder with 82.97 percent of the vote.http://vote.wa.gov/Elections/WEI/Results.aspx?ElectionID=37&JurisdictionTypeID=3&JurisdictionID=153&ViewMode=Results The congressman voted for the Patient Protection and Affordable Insurance Act in 2010.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/votes/page5/

He also voted to extend the Bush tax cuts for another two years.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/votes/page1/ Representative McDermott and several other public officials received threatening phone calls after voting for this bill.http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/12/AR2011011203983.html The suspect, who gave his name in the calls, was arrested in January 2011. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/12/AR2011011203983.html

Jim McDermott was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois.http://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=4 He attended Wheaton College, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/ McDermott earned his medical degree at University of Illinois Medical School.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/ After residencies in adult psychology at University of Illinois hospitals and child psychology at the University of Washington hospitals, McDermott joined the U.S. Navy medical corps in 1968.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/ Later, McDermott was assigned to Long Beach Naval Station in California.http://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=4 As a lieutenant commander, he worked with Vietnam veterans and their families as they returned to civilian life.http://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=4

In 1970, McDermott was elected to the Washington State House of Representatives. http://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=4 By 1974, he became a Washington State senator and held the position for three terms.http://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=4 McDermott became the gubernatorial nominee for the Democratic Party in 1980 but lost the election.http://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=4 He served in the Washington State Senate until 1987.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/ McDermott served as a medical officer in the United States Foreign Service from 1987 to 1988.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/ In 1988, he was elected as a Democrat to the U.S. House of Representatives and began his first term in 1989.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/

In late December 2010, McDermott voted for a two-year extension to the Bush administration tax cuts.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/votes/page1/ The congressman also supported President Obama's health care reform bill that provides health insurance to all Americans.http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m000404/votes/page5/ He sponsored the Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act, the Unemployment Supplemental Assistance Act, and the Worker, Homeownership and Business Assistance Act of 2009; all of these became law.http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/R?d111:FLD003:@2%28rep+mcdermott%29

McDermott serves on several committees:

• Committee on Ways and Meanshttp://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=14
• Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Supporthttp://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=14
• Subcommittee on Tradehttp://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=14
• Congressional Africa Trade and Investment Caucushttp://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=14
• Congressional Task Force on International HIV/AIDShttp://www.mcdermottforcongress.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=36&Itemid=14