Elijah E. Cummings

From KeyWiki

Elijah Cummings is a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, representing the 7th district of Maryland.

Early Life

Congressman Elijah E. Cummings was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, where he still resides today.^[1]

Education

He obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Howard University, serving as Student Government President and graduating Phi Beta Kappa, and then graduated from the University of Maryland School of Law.^[2]

Private Affiliations

Congressman Cummings serves on numerous boards and commissions. He is spearheading an effort to strengthen the Maritime curriculum at the Maritime Academy in Baltimore. He is the Chairman of the Maritime for Primary and Secondary Education Coalition (MPSEC). He also serves on the U.S. Naval Academy Board of Visitors, the Morgan State University Board of Regents, the Baltimore Aquarium Board of Trustees, and the Baltimore Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America Board of Directors. He is an honorary Board member of the SEED School of Maryland, KIPP Baltimore Schools, and the Baltimore School for the Arts.^[3]

Political Career

He began his career of public service in the Maryland House of Delegates, where he served for sixteen years and became the first African American in Maryland history to be named Speaker Pro Tem. Since 1996, Congressman Cummings has proudly represented Maryland’s 7th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Congressman Cummings currently serves as the Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. As the main investigative committee in the House of Representatives, Oversight and Government Reform has jurisdiction to investigate any federal program and any matter with federal policy implications. As the Committee’s Ranking Member, Congressman Cummings fights to hold the Presidential Administration to a high standard of excellence and to ensure efficiency and effectiveness in the actions of the government of the United States. He also seeks to identify appropriate reforms that prevent waste, fraud and abuse and that ensure government programs meet the needs of the American people.

Congressman Cummings is also a senior member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, serving on both the Subcommitte on Coast Guard and Maritime Transport and the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit.

Congressman Cummings has consistently been an advocate for the rights of those facing foreclosure and holds regular Foreclosure Prevention Seminars for people who are at risk of being foreclosed upon. The homeowners are matched with lenders to work out loan modifications on site to prevent foreclosure. He began the 112th Congress by requesting that the first hearing in the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform investigate the causes of, and potential solutions to, the foreclosure crisis. ^[4]

HR 3000

On September 3, 2003 Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) introduced H.R. 3000, the United States Universal Health Service Act, which would provide health coverage for all Americans. H.R. 3000 would establish a United States Health Service (USHS), which would eliminate profit issues from health care because it would be owned and controlled by the public and administered primarily at the local level.^[5]

According to the Communist Party USA's People's World, initial supporters of HR 3000 were Julia Carson, (D-Ind.), Donna Christensen (D-Va.), John Conyers (D-Mich.), Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), Danny Davis (D-Ill.), Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-Ill.), Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), Major Owens (D-N.Y.), Donald Payne (D-N.J.), and Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.).

The World went on to say;^[6]

We will not win the United States Health Service without a massive, prolonged struggle by working people against the corporate defenders of the current for-profit health care industry.

Congressional Progressive Caucus

As of February 20 2009 Elijah Cummings was listed as a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.^[7]

Supported Lifting the Gaza Blockade

On Jan. 27, 2010, U.S. Representatives Keith Ellison and Jim McDermott led 52 other members of Congress in signing a letter addressed to President Barack Obama, calling for him to use diplomatic pressure to resolve the blockade affecting Gaza. Elijah E. Cummings was one of the signatories of the letter. ^[8] The entire letter together with a complete list of signatories can be read by clicking here.

21st Century Democrats

On July 28, 2010, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Congressman Elijah Cummings and former "Green Jobs Czar", Van Jones spoke about the future of American politics at the kick-off event for 21st Century Democrats' 2010 Youth Leadership Speaker Series. The event was sponsored by Representative John Lewis and Senator Tom Harkin.^[9] 21st Century Democrats is led by one-time DSAer, Jim Scheibel.

Staff

The following are past and present staff:^[10]

External links

• Cummings' website with the House of Representatives

References