| Timothy V. Johnson | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2001 |
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| Preceded by | Tom Ewing |
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| Born | July 23, 1946 Champaign, Illinois |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | divorced |
| Residence | Urbana, Illinois |
| Alma mater | University of Illinois |
| Occupation | attorney |
| Religion | Assembly of God |
Timothy V. (Tim) Johnson (born July 23, 1946) is an American politician who has been a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives since 2001, representing Illinois's 15th congressional district (map). He was born in Champaign, Illinois and graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He was a lawyer, a realtor, a member of the Urbana City Council, and a member of the Illinois House of Representatives before entering the U.S. House of Representatives.
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Johnson was born in Champaign to Robert and Margaret Evans Johnson and spent his childhood in Urbana where he graduated from high school.
Johnson has nine children and ten grandchildren.[1] He was an attorney and senior partner at Johnson, Frank, Frederick and Walsh from 1972 to 2001.[2]
He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1964[2] followed by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Johnson majored in history and graduated in 1969 Phi Beta Kappa, receiving the Bronze tablet,[3] an honor given to the top 3% of undergraduates.[4] In 1972, Johnson graduated with honors from the University of Illinois College of Law and was elected to the Order of the Coif, a national legal honor society.[1][5]
In 1971, Johnson was elected to the city council of Urbana, Illinois. In 1976, Johnson was elected to serve as a representative in Springfield, after besting five other Republican candidates in the 1976 Republican primary.[1] During his initial congressional race, in 2000, his competitor published a photo from 1980 of a paper clip lodged into Johnson's voting button at the Illinois House of Representatives, allowing him to vote "yes" or "no" on the upcoming bill while out of the chamber; however, this was common practice at the time on the house floor when members knew how they wanted to vote.[6]
In the House, Johnson's voting record is the most moderate among Illinois Republicans outside of the Chicago area. The American Conservative Union gave him its second-lowest rating among Illinois Republicans, behind only Mark Steven Kirk of the 10th District.
Johnson voted against the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act,[7] which passed but was vetoed by President George W. Bush.
In June 2006, Johnson voted against net neutrality, by voting for the COPE Act, and against the Markey amendment that would have inserted provisions to preserve network neutrality.
For each of the 107th, 108th, 109th, and 110th Congresses Johnson received a score of 0% from the Human Rights Campaign. This was for, among other things, voting against the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would have prohibited discrimination in the workplace based on sexual orientation, and for refusing to adopt a written policy for his own office pledging not to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation in employment decisions.[8] Meanwhile the Family Research Council, a conservative watchdog, in its most recent scorecard gives Johnson a 100%.[9]
On November 7, 2009, Johnson was the only Republican voting against the Republican Health Care Reform plan, the Boehner amendment to the Affordable Health Care for America Act.
Timothy V. Johnson was the sole Republican congressman to vote against the FISA Amendments Act of 2008[10][11] including immunity for American telecommunications companies that implemented warrantless wiretaps outside of the scope of the FISA program for the Bush administration. The bill passed, 293, 129.
From 2003 through 2005, $14.7 billion in crop subsidies went to the congressional districts of members on the House Committee on Agriculture, an analysis by the non-partisan Environmental Working Group found. That was 42.4% of the total subsidies. Johnson is reported to have brought $716 million to his District.[12]
In 2004, Johnson raised $533,478 in campaign funds,[13] less than half the national average for a Republican running for reelection ($1,206,138).
The 2004 campaign fundraising was about a quarter of the [14] $1,943,630 raised by his initial campaign in 2000; that in turn was nearly double the amount raised by his fellow freshmen Republicans ($1,171,118).[13]
In his 2000 campaign, Johnson pledged not to serve more than three terms. However, he is running for re-election in 2008, for his fifth term. Johnson "underestimated the value of seniority," spokesman Phil Bloomer says of his boss' decision to run for a fifth term. "As a rookie going in, (he) didn't understand what he could accomplish for his district by being there a longer period."[15]
In the 2006 election in November, Johnson again faced Democrat David Gill, M.D., whom he had defeated in 2004, 61% to 39%.
At the end of June 2006, Johnson had over $130,000 available for spending for his 2006 campaign, more than double the total amount raised by his opponent at that point. In the 2006 midterm elections, he was reelected by a slightly narrower 58-42% margin [1].
| United States House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Thomas W. Ewing |
U.S. Representative of Illinois's 15th Congressional District 2001– |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
  | Total raised and spent, 2000 race, Illinois district 15 - Congressional Elections: Illinois District 15 Race: 2000 Cycle | OpenSecrets |
| | The price of admission - Price of Admission | OpenSecrets |
| | Recipients of the Bronze tablet, 1960s - University Honors -- the Bronze Tablets |
| | Representative Timothy V. Johnson - Project Vote Smart - Representative Timothy V. 'Tim' Johnson - Biography |
| | Billions go to House panel members' districts" - Billions go to House panel members' districts - USATODAY.com |
| | Term-limit pledges get left behind - USATODAY.com - Term-limit pledges get left behind |
| | Bronze tablet - University Honors -- the Bronze Tablets |
| | A trio of races in this state could help tip the partisan balance in Congress - Power play for Illinois Races in this state could help tip the partisan balance in Congress. by Lucio Guerrero |
| | Biography - Congressman Tim Johnson : Home |
| | U.S. Congressman Timothy V. Johnson - Congressman Tim Johnson : Home |
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