Ben Barnes (on right) with House Speaker Gus F. Mutscher, Governor Preston Smith and former president Lyndon B. Johnson in Brenham, August 17, 1970.

Ben Barnes (born April 17, 1938) is an American politician and lobbyist, who was once the Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives and the Lieutenant Governor of Texas. He was a vice-chair [1] and top fund-raiser of the John Kerry campaign, being one of only eight persons who raised over $500,000 for Kerry [2]. Ben Barnes is an English actor. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Preston Smith is the name of two American politicians and a blues and country singer-songwriter. ... LBJ redirects here. ... Map of the city 1873 Brenham is a city situated in Central Texas in Washington County, Texas, United States, with a population of 13,507 according to the 2000 census. ... is the 229th day of the year (230th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 107th day of the year (108th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A politician is an individual who is a formally recognized and active member of a government, or a person who influences the way a society is governed through an understanding of political power and group dynamics. ... This article is about the political effort. ... Look up Speaker in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Texas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. ... Lieutenant Governor of Texas is the second-highest executive office in state government. ... John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is the junior United States Senator from Massachusetts, in his fourth term of office. ...

Personal life

Barnes was born in Gorman, Texas, on April 17, 1938 and named "Benny Frank Barnes". His parents, B.F. Barnes and Ina B. Carrigan, had another son 21 months later, Rick Barnes. He graduated from DeLeon High School in 1956. After high school he enrolled for one semester at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, followed by a semester at Tarleton College. That spring he married his high school sweetheart, Martha Morgan, and at age 20 began studying at The University of Texas at Austin. ^[1] Gorman is a city located in Eastland County, Texas. ... is the 107th day of the year (108th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1938 (MCMXXXVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... University of Texas redirects here. ...

Barnes and his third wife Melanie live in Austin with their two daughters Elena and Blaire, who were adopted from Romania and Russia respectively. Barnes has two children from his first marriage, son Greg and daughter Amy. He has four grandchildren: Ashley Mathis, Ben Barnes II, Kelly Barnes, and Katherine Mathis.

Political career

While a student at The University of Texas, Barnes worked at the Texas State Health Department. After discovering some financial irregularities that led to the indictment of the state health commissioner, Barnes became interested in politics. He went back to his home area of the state and ran for state representative, when he was barely 21 years old and pulled off an upset victory. Advancing quickly through the Texas legislature, by 1963, Barnes was chairman of the powerful Rules Committee. The U.S. Junior Chamber of Commerce recognized Barnes as one of the “Ten Outstanding Young Men in America” in 1965. Barnes served as state Speaker of the House in Texas from 1965-1969, U.S. representative to the NATO Conference in 1967, and United Nations Representative to Geneva, Switzerland, in 1968. Barnes served as lieutenant governor from 1969 until 1973, often called the most powerful position in the Texas state government. Texas Senate in session The Texas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. ... This article is about the military alliance. ... UN redirects here. ... For other uses, see Geneva (disambiguation). ...

Sharpstown scandal

In 1971, Barnes was caught up along with the Democratic Party in Texas in the political fallout of the Sharpstown scandal, though he stated he had no knowledge of the involvement of several state senators and no charges were filed against him. The scandal contributed to an unsuccessful run for governor and Barnes's exit from public office. (L to R) House Speaker Gus Mutscher, Governor Preston Smith, former president Lyndon B. Johnson, and Lieutenant Governor Ben Barnes, at Gus Mutscher Day in Brenham, August 17, 1970. ...

Real estate empire

During the seventies and eighties Barnes developed a multi-million dollar real estate empire which included the development of such projects as Southwest Parkway and Barton Creek Country Club in Austin. He entered bankruptcy following the collapse of the real estate bubble in the mid-1980s. Real estate is a legal term that encompasses land along with anything permanently affixed to the land, such as buildings. ... Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Travis County. ... Notice of closure stuck on the door of a computer store the day after its parent company, Granville Technology Group Ltd, declared bankruptcy (strictly, put into administration—see text) in the United Kingdom. ...

Lobbying career

By the late 1990s, Barnes had become a millionaire lobbyist working for GTECH Corporation, a company that operated lotteries in 37 states including Texas. The Texas lottery was losing money, in part because of a lucrative deal in which Barnes received 3.5 cents for every ticket sold – more than $3 million per year. GTECH Corporation, a company based in West Greenwich, Rhode Island, in the United States became a wholly owned subsidiary of Lottomatica, S.p. ... A lottery is a popular form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize. ...

Since leaving elective office, Barnes has become a successful business executive and civic leader. He is the founder of the Ben Barnes Group, a business consulting and lobbying firm. He has served as a consultant, director or chairman of more than two dozen companies, including SBC Communications, American Airlines, Dallas Bank and Trust, Grumman Systems Support Corporation, Laredo National Bank and the Barnes/Connally Partnership. SBC Communications NYSE: SBC is an American telecommunications company based in San Antonio, Texas. ... American Airlines, Inc. ...

The Ben Barnes Group has made millions of dollars by acting as the go-between, bringing special interest groups and companies together with highly-placed Democratic officeholders. The Center for Responsive Politics has listed Barnes as the third largest all-around Democratic donor in America from 1999 to 2004. Federal courts Supreme Court Circuit Courts of Appeal District Courts Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures (List) State Courts Local Government Other countries Atlas  Politics Portal      Further information: Politics of the United States#Organization of American political parties The Democratic... The Center for Responsive Politics is a non-partisan, non-profit research group based in Washington, D.C. that tracks money in politics, and the effect of money on elections and public policy. ...

In 1999, Barnes claimed that while Lt Governor of Texas he had "personally interceded" with Texas Air National Guard officials to get George W. Bush into the Guard. It was later discovered he was Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives at the time of this alleged intervention. At that point he stated he didn't use his political influence but rather his friendship with a General to get it accomplished. George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the forty-third and current President of the United States of America, originally inaugurated on January 20, 2001. ...

Barnes repeated the claim in the U.S. presidential election, 2004. His daughter Amy claims that he told her in 2000 that he didn't intercede on Bush's behalf and that he was only saying these things to promote his book and help get Kerry elected since he was so heavily involved in the Kerry campaign. Presidential electoral votes by state. ...

Awards and volunteering

In 1995, The University of Texas named him a Distinguished Alumnus. In addition to his corporate work, he also serves on the board of several non-profit organizations, including the Boys and Girls Club, the national group Patient Privacy Rights, and is vice-president of the LBJ Foundation.

Writing

Barnes is the author of the book Barn Burning Barn Building: Tales of a Political Life, From LBJ to George W. Bush and Beyond (ISBN 1-931721-71-8), which was first published in 2006.

External links

• Biography from Texas Monthly Talks hosted at the KLRU website.

v • d • e Speakers of the Texas House of Representatives Crump • Brown • Branch • Crump • Bourland • Perkins • Henderson • Keenan • Dickson • Runnels • Bee • W. Taylor • Locke • M. Taylor • Buckley • Darnell • Buckley • M. Taylor • Burford • Evans • Sinclair • M. Taylor • Bryan • Bonner • Cochran • Reeves • Gibson • Foster • Pendleton • Alexander • Milner • Cochran • Smith • Dashiell • Sherrill • Prince • Neff • Seabury • Love • Kennedy • Marshall • Rayburn • Terrell • Woods • Fuller • Thomason • Thomas • Seagler • Satterwhite • Bobbitt • Barron • Minor • Stevenson • Calvert • Morse • Leonard • Daniel • Gilmer • Reed • Manford • Senterfitt • Lindsey • Carr • Turman • Tunnell • Barnes • Mutscher • Slider • Price • Daniel, Jr. • Clayton • Lewis • Laney • Craddick

John McCain being interviewed by Evan Smith Texas Monthly Talks is a thirty-minute interview show on public television networks across the state of Texas hosted by Texas Monthly editor in chief Evan Smith. ... KLRU is the local PBS public television member station in Austin, Texas, in the United States of America. ... The Texas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. ... De Leon is a city located in Comanche County, Texas. ... The Texas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. ... District 64 is a district of the Texas House of Representatives that serves a portion of Denton County. ... De Leon is a city located in Comanche County, Texas. ... Byron Milton Tunnell (October 14, 1925 - March 7, 2000) was a state representative from 1957-1965, Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives from 1963 to 1965, and a member of the elected Texas Railroad Commission from 1965-1973. ... The Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the Texas House of Representatives. ... Preston Earnest Smith (March 8, 1912–October 18, 2003) was a U.S. politician who served as Governor of Texas from 1969 to 1973. ... Lieutenant Governor of Texas is the second-highest executive office in state government. ... William P. Hobby, Jr. ... Lieutenant Governor of Texas is the second-highest executive office in state government. ... James Wilson Henderson is the 4th Governor of Texas from November 1853 to December 1853. ... David Catchings Dickson (1818–1880) was an American politician and physician in early Texas who served as Lieutenant Governor of Texas and as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. ... Hardin Richard Runnels (August 30, 1820–December 25, 1873) was a U.S. political figure. ... Francis Richard Lubbock (October 16, 1815–June 22, 1905) was a governor of Texas during the American Civil War. ... This article concerns the Confederate governor of Texas. ... Fletcher Stockdale (1823 - 1902) was a U.S. political figure. ... George Washington Jones (5 September 1828–11 July 1903) was a Texas politician, a Lieutenant Governor of Texas and a Greenback member of the United States House of Representatives. ... James Winright Flanagan (September 5, 1805– September 19, 1887) was an American merchant, lawyer, and farmer from Henderson, Texas. ... The Albert Jennings Fountain disappearance involved an event which occurred on February 1, 1896 when Colonel Albert Jennings Fountain and his son Henry disappeared near Las Cruces, New Mexico. ... Richard Bennett Hubbard, Jr. ... Joseph Draper Sayers (September 23, 1841 — May 15, 1929) was Governor of Texas from 1899 to 1903. ... George Cassety Pendleton (April 23, 1845 - January 19, 1913) was a Democratic politician who served as Texas State Representative, Lieutenant Governor of Texas, and U.S. Representative (7th District). ... George Taylor Jester (August 23, 1847-July 19, 1922) served as Lieutenant Governor of Texas from 1895 to 1899. ... James Nathan Browning (March 13, 1850-November 9, 1921) was a Texas politician and lawyer. ... William Pettus Hobby (March 26, 1878–June 7, 1964) was the publisher of the Houston Post and the governor of the U.S. state of Texas from 1917 to 1921. ... Walter Frank Woodul (1892-1984) was a Texas politician who was an early proponent of a state highway system. ... Texas politician Coke Stevenson Coke Robert Stevenson (March 20, 1888–June 28, 1975) was a U.S. political figure. ... John Lee Smith (1894-1963) was the World War II lieutenant governor of Texas and a vocal opponent of Texas labor unions during his tenure. ... Texas governor Allan Shivers Robert Allan Shivers (October 5, 1907 - January 14, 1985) was a politician from the state of Texas. ... Ben Ramsey (1903-1985) was a Texas politician who served in a succession of offices during the mid-20th century. ... Preston Earnest Smith (March 8, 1912–October 18, 2003) was a U.S. politician who served as Governor of Texas from 1969 to 1973. ... William P. Hobby, Jr. ... Texas Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock Bob Bullock (July 10, 1929 - June 18, 1999) was an American politician from Texas. ... James Richard Perry (b. ... Bill Ratliff, born 1937, is a Texas politician who served as a member of the Texas State Senate from 1988 to 2004. ... Texas Lt. ... The Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the Texas House of Representatives. ... William E. Crump (1809 or 1810-January 3, 1889) was the first Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives following statehood. ... John “Red” Brown (1786–1852) was a politician in the Republic of Texas and early statehood Texas who served briefly as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives during the First Texas Legislature. ... William E. Crump (1809 or 1810-January 3, 1889) was the first Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives following statehood. ... William H. Bourland (1811–1860) was a politician in the Republic of Texas and early statehood Texas who served briefly as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives during the First Texas Legislature. ... Stephen W. Perkins (1809—after 1869) was a politician in the Republic of Texas and early statehood Texas who, in 1846-47, served as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives during the First Texas Legislature. ... James Wilson Henderson is the 4th Governor of Texas from November 1853 to December 1853. ... Charles Gradison Keenan (1813–1870) was a politician and physician in early statehood Texas who served as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives during the Third Texas Legislature. ... David Catchings Dickson (1818–1880) was an American politician and physician in early Texas who served as Lieutenant Governor of Texas and as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. ... Hardin Richard Runnels (August 30, 1820–December 25, 1873) was a U.S. political figure. ... Hamilton Prioleau Bee (July 22, 1822 – October 3, 1897) was an American politician in early Texas who served one term as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives and later was a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War. ... For other people named William S. Taylor, see William S. Taylor (disambiguation). ... Matthew Francis Locke (1824–1911) was an American politician in Texas. ... Marion DeKalb or M. D. K. Taylor (1818–1897) was an American politician in Alabama and Texas. ... Constantine W. Buckley (1815–1865) was an American politician in Texas who served two non-consecutive terms as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives between 1861 and 1863. ... Nicholas Henry Darnell (1807–1885) was an American politician in Tennessee and Texas. ... Constantine W. Buckley (1815–1865) was an American politician in Texas who served two non-consecutive terms as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives between 1861 and 1863. ... Marion DeKalb or M. D. K. Taylor (1818–1897) was an American politician in Alabama and Texas. ... Nathaniel Macon Burford (1824–1898) was an American politician in Texas who served as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives between 1866 and 1869. ... Marion DeKalb or M. D. K. Taylor (1818–1897) was an American politician in Alabama and Texas. ... Guy Morrison Bryan (January 12, 1821 - June 4, 1901) was a U.S. Representative from Texas. ... George Cassety Pendleton (April 23, 1845 - January 19, 1913) was a Democratic politician who served as Texas State Representative, Lieutenant Governor of Texas, and U.S. Representative (7th District). ... Patrick Morris Neff (1871–1952) was governor of Texas from 1921 to 1925. ... For the current professional American football player, see Sam Rayburn (football player). ... Robert Ewing Thomason (30 May 1879, Bedford County, Tennessee – 8 November 1973, El Paso, Texas) was a Texas politician, a member and Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, the mayor of El Paso, a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, and a federal district judge. ... Texas politician Coke Stevenson Coke Robert Stevenson (March 20, 1888–June 28, 1975) was a U.S. political figure. ... Texas politician Price Daniel Marion Price Daniel, Sr. ... Vincent Waggoner Carr (October 1, 1918 - February 25, 2004 was the Democratic attorney general of Texas who lost the 1966 general election for the United States Senate to the Republican incumbent John Goodwin Tower (1925-1991). ... Byron Milton Tunnell (October 14, 1925 - March 7, 2000) was a state representative from 1957-1965, Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives from 1963 to 1965, and a member of the elected Texas Railroad Commission from 1965-1973. ... Marion Price Daniel, Jr. ... Bill W. Billy Clayton (1928- ) served as a member of the Texas House of Representatives for twenty years. ... Gib Lewis applauds Governor Mark Whites address to a joint session of the Texas Legislature. ... James E. Pete Laney is an outstanding member Texas House of Representatives. ... Tom Craddick (Republican) succeeded Pete Laney as Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives during the 78th legislative session on January 11, 2003. ... Image File history File links This image, including all photography and graphics used in it, was taken and created by myself, Shem Daimwood. ...

References