Billy Long

William Hollis Long II (born August 11, 1955)[2] is an American auctioneer and politician serving as the U.S. Representative for Missouri's 7th congressional district since 2011. The district includes much of the southwestern quadrant of the state and is anchored in Springfield. The district also includes Joplin and the popular tourist destination of Branson.

Billy Long
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Missouri's 7th district
Assumed office
January 3, 2011
Preceded byRoy Blunt
Personal details
Born
William Hollis Long II[1]

(1955-08-11) August 11, 1955
Springfield, Missouri, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Barbara Long
(
m. 1984)
Children2
EducationUniversity of Missouri (did not graduate)
Missouri Auction School
WebsiteHouse website

A member of the Republican Party, he was elected to fill the district's vacant seat in the 2010 midterm elections following the successful election of Roy Blunt to the U.S. Senate.

Early life and education

A fourth-generation native of Missouri, Long was born in Springfield in 1955. He attended the University of Missouri[3] and was a member of the Delta Upsilon fraternity[4] prior to dropping out. After taking time off from school for three years, Long decided to attend a nine-day training program at the Missouri Auction School in Kansas City.[3][5] He received his Certified Auctioneer designation via the National Auctioneers Association.

Professional career

Long owned Billy Long Auctions, LLC. He was also a talk radio show host on the Springfield-based station KWTO. He is a member of the National Association of Realtors, National Auctioneers Association, the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, the National Rifle Association, and the Greater Springfield Board of Realtors.[6]

During a September 2018 House Committee on Energy and Commerce hearing on alleged anti-conservative bias on social media, far-right internet personality Laura Loomer interrupted the meeting. Long began a mock auction chant pretending he was selling Loomer's mobile phone until she was escorted out.[7][8] The incident generated considerable laughter and applause from the audience.[9]

Long also participated in the World Poker Tour, participating in professional sanctioned games including the Southern Poker Championship at the Beau Rivage and the Bellagio Cup.

In September 2018, in response to sexual assault allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, Long retweeted a post comparing attempted rape to a "kiss on the forehead" on Twitter.[10]

U.S. House of Representatives
Long during the 112th Congress

2010
See also: 2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Missouri § District 7

Republican Primary

Long joined the race for the 7th Congressional District after incumbent U.S. Representative Roy Blunt chose to run for the U.S. Senate seat that was being vacated by Kit Bond. In the crowded seven-way Republican primary—the de facto real election in the most Republican district in the state—Long won with 36 percent of the vote.

Missouri's 7th district Republican primary, August 3, 2010
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Billy Long 38,218 36.56
Republican Jack Goodman 30,401 29.08
Republican Gary Nodler 14,561 13.93
Republican Darrell Moore 9,312 13.93
Republican Jeff Wisdom 4,552 4.35
Republican Mike Moon 4,473 4.28
Republican Steve Hunter 2,173 2.08
Republican Michael Wardell 844 0.81
Total votes 104,534 100.00

General Election
2010 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 7th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Billy Long 141,010 63.39
Democratic Scott Eckersley 67,545 30.37
Libertarian Kevin Craig 13,866 6.23
Write-in Others 10 0.00

2012
See also: 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Missouri § District 7
2012 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 7th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Billy Long 203,565 63.87
Democratic Jim Evans 98,498 30.90
Libertarian Kevin Craig 16,668 5.23
Write-in Others 9 0.00

2014
See also: 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in Missouri § District 7

In the August 5, 2014 primary race, Long defeated sole Republican challenger Marshall Works 62.4% to 37.6%.[11]

2014 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 7th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Billy Long 104,054 63.46
Democratic Jim Evans 47,282 28.84
Libertarian Kevin Craig 12,584 7.68
Write-in Others 37 0.02

2016
See also: 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Missouri § District 7

On August 2, Bill Long defeated Republican candidates Nathan Clay, Christopher Batsche, Matthew Evans, Lyndle Spencer, Matthew Canovi, James Nelson and Mary Byrne in the Republican primaries.[12]

2016 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 7th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Billy Long 228,692 67.5
Democratic Genevieve Williams 92,756 27.4
Libertarian Benjamin Brixey 17,153 5.1
Write-in Others 6 0.0

2018
See also: 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Missouri § District 7

In the 2018 Republican primaries, Congressman Long defeated Republican challengers Jim Evans, Lance Norris, and Benjamin Holcomb. In the general election, he defeated Democratic nominee Jamie Schoolcraft, who had defeated Democrats Kenneth Hatfield, John Farmer de la Torre, and Vincent Jennings.[13]

2018 Election for U.S. Representative of Missouri's 7th Congressional District
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Billy Long 195,872 66.3
Democratic Jamie Schoolcraft 88,642 30
Libertarian Benjamin Brixey 10,833 3.7
Write-in Others 270 0.1

Legislation

Since 2011 Rep. Long has sponsored 36 bills, 100 resolutions and 26 concurrent resolution, and co-sponsored 1,142 other pieces of legislation.[14] Long also introduced the Agricultural Certainty for Reporting Emissions Act on March 14, 2018, which would amend the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980. The bill, however, has not passed the House of Representatives for further voting in the Senate.[15]

Committee assignments

Caucus memberships

Political positions

National security

Long supported President Donald Trump's 2017 executive order to impose a temporary ban on entry to the U.S. to citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries. He stated that "President Trump’s recent executive order on national security shows how keeping Americans safe remains one of his top priorities. Allowing agencies to reevaluate the refugee resettlement program is a commonsense approach to making sure that happens."[19]

Abortion

Congressman Long opposes abortion, stating he is "100% pro-life" on his congressional website. Long opposes the 1973 United States Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade and said that the judiciary deciding on the topic of abortion does not give the American people the opportunity to choose for themselves through elected representatives. Long said on his congressional website: "When the Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade in 1973, it threw open the doors for abortion without giving the people an opportunity to make their views known on the issue through their elected representatives. The judicial protection for abortion has unfortunately continued in opposition to the expressed will of the majority of the people." Long is in favor of cutting government funding to Planned Parenthood and is a member of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus.[20]

Immigration

Long believes in "legal, regulated, and appropriate levels of immigration", according to his election website, but urges response to illegal immigration over the American–Mexican border. Long believes illegal immigration disrupts American society, and allows for criminals, drug traffickers, and terrorists to enter the United States unchecked.[21] In a 2010 campaign website, Congressman Long stated, "Our nation is built upon laws. People cannot be allowed to come into our nation illegally and become a drain on taxpayer money by taking advantage of our social safety net. Billy opposes liberals' amnesty efforts, which will do nothing to stem the tide of illegal immigration. Continuing to turn our back on illegal immigration is a national security issue that drains our economy and rewards people who knowingly violate our laws. We literally can no longer afford to ignore this problem."[22]

References
  1. "Obituary for William H. Long". Archived from the original on 2019-04-09. Retrieved 2018-12-24.
  2. John Bicknell 112th Congress: Billy Long, R-Mo. (7th District)) CQ Politics November 3, 2010
  3. "About Billy Long". Billy Long for Congress. 2010-11-02. Archived from the original on 2011-09-10. Retrieved 2011-07-25.
  4. "Prominent Alumni". www.deltau.org. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  5. "Rep. Billy Long (R-MO-07)". www.congressweb.com. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  6. "About Billy Long". Billy Long for Congress. 2010-11-02. Archived from the original on 2011-09-10. Retrieved 2011-07-25.
  7. "Congressman drowns out protester with auction call in Twitter hearing". Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  8. "Watch: A fast-talking auctioneer-turned-Congressman drowned out this far-right protester". PBS NewsHour. Associated Press. September 5, 2018. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
  9. Watkins, Eli. "Congressman uses old auctioneer skills to drown out protester during hearing". CNN. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  10. "Congressman retweets post mocking sexual assault allegation against Brett Kavanaugh". Washington Post. 2018-09-17.
  11. "2014 Missouri House Primaries Results". Politico. August 6, 2014. Retrieved August 8, 2014.
  12. "Missouri's 7th Congressional District election, 2016". Ballotpedia. Ballotpedia. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
  13. "Billy Long". Ballotpedia. Ballotpedia.
  14. Long, Billy. "Billy Long". www.congress.gov. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
  15. "H.R.5275 - Agricultural Certainty for Reporting Emissions Act". Congress. United States Congress.
  16. "Membership". Congressional Arts Caucus. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  17. "Members". Congressional Constitution Caucus. Archived from the original on 14 June 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  18. "Members". U.S. - Japan Caucus. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  19. Blake, Aaron. "Coffman, Gardner join Republicans against President Trump's travel ban; here's where the rest stand". Denver Post. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  20. Long, Billy. "Abortion". Long.House.Gov. United States House of Representatives. Archived from the original on 8 November 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  21. Long, Billy. "Immigration". Billy Long For Congress. Billy Long For Congress. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  22. "Billy Long on Immigration". On the Issues. On the Issues. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Roy Blunt		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Missouri's 7th congressional district
2011–present		 Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by
Adam Kinzinger		 United States Representatives by seniority
170th		 Succeeded by
David McKinley
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