Chip Pickering | |
|---|---|
 Pickering in 2016 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMississippi's3rd district | |
| In office January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Sonny Montgomery |
| Succeeded by | Gregg Harper |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Charles Willis Pickering Jr. (1963-08-10)August 10, 1963 (age 62) Laurel, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Leisha Pickering |
| Children | 5 |
| Relatives | Charles W. Pickering (father) Stacey Pickering (cousin) |
| Education | University of Mississippi (BA) Baylor University (MBA) |
Charles Willis"Chip" Pickering Jr. (born August 10, 1963) is an American businessman and former politician who has served as thechief executive officer (CEO) of Incompas since 2014.[1]
Pickering representedMississippi's 3rd congressional district as aRepublican in theUnited States House of Representatives from 1997 to 2009.[2]
Chip Pickering was born inLaurel, Mississippi, to attorneyCharles W. Pickering.[3] He is a cousin ofStacey Pickering, formerState Auditor of Mississippi, Mississippi State Senator, and executive director of the Mississippi Veterans Affairs Board.[4]
Pickering graduated with abachelor's degree inbusiness administration from theUniversity of Mississippi where he was a legacy member of the Eta chapter ofSigma Chi. He went on to receive aMaster of Business Administration fromBaylor University in 1989.[5][6]
Pickering served as aSouthern Baptist missionary inHungary, after the Hungarian government ceased its persecution of religious believers.[citation needed]
In 1989, PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush appointed Pickering as aDepartment of Agriculture liaison to the former European Communist countries.[citation needed]
Pickering served as a staff member ofSenatorTrent Lott between 1992 and 1996.[6] He helped shape theTelecommunications Act of 1996, the first major overhaul of US telecoms law since 1934.[7] After a year at theSenate Commerce Committee, Pickering ran for Congress.[8] He defeated eight other Republicans in the primary and won the general election over DemocratJohn Arthur Eaves Jr. with 61 percent of the vote.[9]
In 1998, as chairman of the Basic Research Subcommittee of the U.S. House Science Committee, Pickering helped oversee the transition from a government research internet to a commercial internet, as well as the establishment of internet domain names, registries, andmulti-stakeholder governance.[10]
In 2002, Pickering contributed to legislation included in the2002 Farm Bill, which doubled the funding for the conservation reserve, the wetland reserve programs, and other conservation initiatives administered by theU.S. Department of Agriculture.[11]
Pickering served asGeorge W. Bush's co-chairman for Mississippi in Bush's presidential campaigns in 2000 and 2004.[12]
From 2003 to 2007, Pickering served as vice-chairman of theEnergy and Commerce Committee.[13]
In 2008, Pickering, along withBennie Thompson, received Lewis-Houghton Leadership Award.[14]
In January 2009, Pickering retired from the House of Representatives.[2]
Pickering serves as anadjunct professor at theUniversity of Mississippi's Department of Public Leadership Policy, where he teaches a bi-monthly seminar class, PPL 211: Political Campaigns.[1]
In 2014, Pickering joined Incompas, where he currently serves as the CEO. Prior to this, he was a partner at Capitol Resources LLC, representing numerous companies and organizations.[1]
Pickering also made a brief appearance in the 2006 film,Borat, as a speaker at a church that Borat attended.[15]
In April 2023, the archives of Chip Pickering andCharles W. Pickering were donated to the Mississippi Political Collections, located atMississippi State University's Mitchell Memorial Library, by them.[16][17]
Pickering and his former wife, Leisha, have five sons.[18] Chip Pickering filed for divorce in June 2008.[19][20]
On July 16, 2009, Pickering's estranged wife filed a complaint in Hinds County (Mississippi) Circuit Court under Mississippi'salienation of affection law, alleging that Pickering and his college sweetheart Elizabeth Creekmore Byrd had a long-standing adulterous extramarital relationship during his congressional career in Washington, D.C.[21] Creekmore Byrd is a member of Mississippi's Creekmore family that founded of theCellular South telephone company.[19] She further alleged inPickering v. Pickering that Creekmore-Byrd insisted that Pickering turn down Mississippi Gov.Haley Barbour's 2007 offer of former Sen. Trent Lott's Senate seat so that Pickering could divorce his wife and the two of them be together.[22][23][24] According toMax Blumenthal atThe Daily Beast, "In the end, Pickering chose his mistress over his congressional career and his wife."[25]
Pickering's family had a close relationship withAntonin Scalia.[16]
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMississippi's 3rd congressional district 1997–2009 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
