Wiley Mayne | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromIowa's 6th district | |
| In office January 3, 1967 – January 3, 1975 | |
| Preceded by | Stanley L. Greigg |
| Succeeded by | Berkley Bedell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 19, 1917 Sanborn, Iowa, U.S |
| Died | May 27, 2007(2007-05-27) (aged 90) Sioux City, Iowa, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse | Betty Mayne |
| Education | Harvard College (BS) University of Iowa (JD) |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Branch/service | United States Navy Reserve |
| Years of service | 1941–1943 |
| Rank |  Lieutenant Junior Grade |
Wiley Mayne (January 19, 1917 – May 27, 2007) was an American attorney who served as a four-termRepublicanUnited States Congressman from Iowa's6th congressional district. He was one of several Republican members of theHouse Judiciary Committee who were defeated in the fall of 1974 after he voted against resolutions toimpeach PresidentRichard M. Nixonin the summer of 1974.
Mayne was born inSanborn, Iowa, in 1917.[1] After attending public school in Iowa, Mayne studied atHarvard College, where he received hisB.S. and then continued on toHarvard Law School. In 1939, he received hisJ.D. from theUniversity of Iowa College of Law. He joined theFederal Bureau of Investigation in 1941, the same year that he was admitted to practice law. After a three-year tour of duty with theUnited States Naval Reserve as alieutenant junior grade from 1941 to 1943, Mayne returned to private practice, joining aSioux City, Iowa, law firm. In 1963, he served a one-year term as president of the Iowa Bar Association. Afterwards, he chaired the Grievance Commission of theIowa Supreme Court until 1966.[2]
On January 5, 1942, Mayne married Betty Dodson. The couple had three children; sons Wiley Mayne II and John Mayne, both of whom followed in their father's footsteps and became lawyers, and daughter Martha Mayne Smith.[3]
In 1966, Mayne ran for Congress in the now-obsoleteSixth Congressional District in Northwest Iowa and defeated Democratic freshman incumbentStanley L. Greigg.[4] Mayne was elected four times to theHouse, where he served on theHouse Agriculture Committee and theHouse Judiciary Committee. While serving on the House Agriculture Committee, a major issue of the era was a sudden and swift decline in the United Statescattle market.[3] In 1973, he was made a delegate to theFood and Agriculture Organization inRome.[2] One of Mayne's Congressional aides was future actor and congressmanFred Grandy.[5]
As a member of the House Judiciary Committee, Mayne played an influential role in amendments to theFederal Rules of Evidence, especially those involving the admissibility of opinion testimony. His political downfall, however, came in his fourth term during his service on that Committee, when Mayne was one of ten Republican Committee members to vote againstarticles of impeachment againstPresidentRichard Nixon arising from theWatergate scandal. At the time of his Committee votes, Mayne believed that the proof was not sufficient to necessitate a call forimpeachment. In Nixon's final days in office, however, Mayne's opinion quickly changed after evidence implicating Nixon in a subsequent coverup was made public, and he vowed to vote in favor of impeachment when the articles came before the full House.[4] The damage, however, had been done, and Mayne lost the 1974 election to his 1972 opponent, DemocratBerkley Bedell 54.6% to 45.4%.[6]
After leaving Congress, Mayne returned toSioux City, Iowa, to resume his law practice.[3] His wife, Betty, died in 2001, and Mayne continued to practice law until 2005.[3] Mayne died in May 2007 after suffering acardiopulmonary incident.[4]
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromIowa's 6th congressional district 1967–1975 (obsolete district) | Succeeded by |
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| National | |
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