Martin Frost | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Ranking Member of theHouse Rules Committee | |
| In office May 28, 2001 – January 3, 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Joe Moakley |
| Succeeded by | Louise Slaughter |
| Chair of theHouse Democratic Caucus | |
| In office January 3, 1999 – January 3, 2003 | |
| Leader | Dick Gephardt |
| Preceded by | Vic Fazio |
| Succeeded by | Bob Menendez |
| Chair of theDemocratic Congressional Campaign Committee | |
| In office January 3, 1995 – January 3, 1999 | |
| Leader | Dick Gephardt |
| Preceded by | Vic Fazio |
| Succeeded by | Patrick J. Kennedy |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's24th district | |
| In office January 3, 1979 – January 3, 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Dale Milford |
| Succeeded by | Kenny Marchant |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jonas Martin Frost III (1942-01-01)January 1, 1942 (age 84) Glendale,California, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Jo Ellen Frost |
| Education | University of Missouri (BA,BJ) Georgetown University (JD) |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | United States Army Reserve |
| Years of service | 1966–1972 |
Frost on emergency elections to Congress after a terrorist attack. Recorded October 2, 2002 | |
Jonas Martin Frost III (born January 1, 1942) is an Americanpolitician, who was theDemocratic representative to theU.S. House of Representatives forTexas's 24th congressional district from 1979 to 2005.
Frost was born to aJewish family inGlendale, California, the son of Doris (nee Marwil) and Jack Frost.[1] He has one sister, Carol Frost Wagner.[1] His grandfather, Joe Frost, was co-founder ofFrost Brothers Department Store.[1] In 1949, his family moved toFort Worth, Texas where his father took a job withConvair Aircraft.[1] In 1964, he graduated from theUniversity of Missouri with abachelor of journalism and aBachelor of Arts inhistory. As a student, Frost was editor ofThe Maneater, is a brother ofZeta Beta Tau, and was tapped byOmicron Delta Kappa andQEBH.[2]
After graduating, Frost worked as anewspaperreporter, including positions atThe News Journal ofWilmington, Delaware. He received hisJuris Doctor degree from theGeorgetown University Law Center in 1970. Following his graduation he worked as a law clerk forFederal JudgeSarah T. Hughes of theNorthern District of Texas, after which he practiced law in the Dallas–Fort Worth area. In addition, Frost was a legal commentator onKERA-TV.
Frost served in theUnited States Army Reserve from 1966 to 1972.
Frost ran unsuccessfully for a seat in theHouse in 1974. He tried again successfully in 1978, becoming the firstJewish U.S. congressman fromTexas. Frost was reelected 12 times without serious opposition. In 1980, he defeated anAfrican American Republican opponent,Clay Smothers.[3]
On October 10, 2002, Martin Frost was among the 81 House Democrats who voted in favor of authorizing theinvasion of Iraq.[4]
He served two terms as the chairman of theHouse Democratic Caucus from 1999 to 2003, the number three post in the Democrats' House leadership after the minority leader and minority whip. As Democratic Caucus Chair, Frost was often at odds with another prominent Dallas-area Congressman,Dick Armey, who was the RepublicanHouse Majority Leader.[5]
Due to term limits as Democratic Caucus Chair, Frost made a bid for Minority Leader afterDick Gephardt resigned in the wake of losing four seats in the 2002 Congressional midterm elections, but Frost dropped out of the race and supported eventual winnerNancy Pelosi.
Frost was the ranking member of theHouse Rules Committee during his last term in the House.[6][7]
Due to his strong fundraising ability for fellow Democrats,[8] and the fact that he led the 1991 redistricting in Texas, he was one of the targets of a controversialmid-decade redistricting engineered by then-House Majority LeaderTom DeLay.[9] His district, which included portions ofDallas,Fort Worth andArlington, was redrawn to be much moreRepublican. Its portions of Fort Worth and Arlington were replaced with wealthier and more Republican territory around Dallas. WhileAl Gore won the old 24th fairly handily in 2000, the new 24th would have givenGeorge W. Bush a staggering 68 percent of the vote in that election. Moreover, Frost's home in Arlington was shifted into the heavily Republican6th District, represented by 10-term incumbentJoe Barton. Frost decided to seek re-election in the newly redrawn32nd District, which included a considerable amount of territory that he had represented from 1979 until 1993. He lost by 10 points to RepublicanPete Sessions. SinceRalph Hall's party switch earlier in 2004, Frost had been the only white Democrat to represent a significant portion of theMetroplex.
In 2005, Frost was acandidate for chairman of theDemocratic National Committee. He dropped out of the race on February 1.[10] On February 15, Frost was hired byFox News as a political commentator.
Frost is now[when?] an attorney at the Polsinelli law firm[11] and president ofAmerica Votes.[12] He is also a member of the ReFormers Caucus ofIssue One.[13]
In a July 2011 op-ed regarding thedebt ceiling crisis, Frost wrote, "We now have a group of U.S. politicians seeking political purity, who seem to have much in common with the Taliban. They aretea party members."[14]
Frost co-authored withTom Davis,Richard E. Cohen, andDavid Eisenhower the 2014 bookThe Partisan Divide in which they attempt to explain the reasons behind an increasingly polarized U.S. Congress and offer possible solutions.
After leaving office, he became involved in political reform efforts, including joining nine other former members of Congress to co-author a 2021 opinion editorial advocating reforms of Congress.[15]
.jpg)
In 1976, Frost married Valerie H. Hall in Dallas. They divorced in 1998. Later that year he marriedKathryn Frost, amajor general in theUnited States Army. She died in 2006, and in 2008, Frost married Jo Ellen Ronson.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's 24th congressional district 1979–2005 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Ranking Member of theHouse Rules Committee 2001–2005 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chair of theHouse Democratic Caucus 1999–2003 | Succeeded by |
| Chair of theDemocratic Congressional Campaign Committee 1995–1999 | 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 | |
|---|---|
| People | |
| Other | |
