John Campbell (D-CA-48)

John Campbell California District 48

John Campbell, Biography from House.gov

Biography of Congressman John Campbell

Elected to represent the 48th Congressional District of California, John Campbell is currently serving his fourth term in the United States House of Representatives. Over the last six years, John has quickly become a leading voice of fiscal conservatism and a recognized champion of economic freedom, lower taxes and the right of the individual.

As both a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and small business owner, John continues to reinforce the need for fiscal restraint and responsible budgetary measures. Above all else, he believes that the enormous debt accrued in this country from out of control spending and exploding deficits is the greatest threat to America’s future security, prosperity and hegemony in the world. The primary author of the Earmark Reform Pledge and an ardent proponent of eliminating “pork barrel” spending, he helped bring about the earmark ban enacted by House Republicans in 2011.

Tapped by House Leadership to serve on several Congressional economic working groups in 2008 and 2009, he was most recently appointed to the Republican “Transition Team”, prior to the beginning of the 112th Congress, and the House Republican Policy Committee in 2011. As a member of the Policy committee, John joins a handful of Members in creating and driving policy initiatives for House Republican leadership.  Likewise, he was a natural choice for the bipartisan and bicameral Joint Economic Committee where he is tasked with monitoring economic conditions and recommending improvements in economic policy.

As a member of the House Committee on Financial Services, he has taken an active part in addressing the country’s top economic issues, including mortgage lending, corporate governance, banking reform, and insurance regulation. Through the recent economic crisis, he was influential in the responses to the crisis that averted a collapse in our markets and economy. Currently, he serves on the Capital Markets and International Monetary Policy subcommittees.

John also serves on the House Committee on the Budget, where he has had a hand in crafting portions of The Roadmap for America’s Future.  This plan championed by Congressman Paul Ryan contains a comprehensive proposal to ensure health and retirement security for all Americans, to lift the debt burdens that are mounting due to reckless spending, to reform and simplify the tax code, and to promote jobs and competitiveness in the 21st century global economy.  John is also a leading author of the Taxpayer Choice Act, which would make America’s tax system simpler and fairer by providing the opportunity to take advantage of an optional flat tax, in addition to repealing the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT).

Often called upon to offer his economic expertise, John appears regularly on CNBC, Fox News, Fox Business and Bloomberg TV.  His editorial submissions are also featured frequently in print media such as Investor’s Business Daily, Washington Times, London Daily Telegraph, and the Orange County Register.

John holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics from the University of California at Los Angeles, and a Masters Degree in Business Taxation from the University of Southern California. For nearly 25 years, Campbell worked in the automotive industry. He spent a majority of his career representing several automobile franchises, including Nissan, Mazda, Ford, Saturn, and Saab. He began his career in public service as a distinguished member of the California State Assembly and then California State Senate previous to his election to Congress in 2005. John and his childhood sweetheart Catherine have been married for 32 years and are the proud parents of two sons, Taylor and Logan, both of whom graduated from the University of Southern California.

Congressman Campbell represents California’s 48th Congressional District which encompasses Newport Beach, Irvine, Tustin, Lake Forest, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Woods, Laguna Niguel, Aliso Viejo, Dana Point, and portions of San Juan Capistrano, and Santa Ana.

Biography from Campbell for Congress

Congressman John Campbell is a fourth-generation Californian, and has lived in Irvine for over 30 years.  John and his wife Catherine were childhood sweethearts who have two sons, both of whom attended public school in Orange County and went on to graduate from USC.  John continues the Campbell family tradition as public servants.  His grandfather was elected to the California State Assembly in 1860 as part of Abraham Lincoln’s Republican ticket.

Campbell received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics from UCLA in 1976 and a Master’s Degree in Business Taxation from USC in 1977.  He is a lifelong businessman and has worked as a Certified Public Accountant for the firm that later became known as Ernst and Young.  A lifelong car enthusiast and collector, Campbell went to work for his first car dealership in 1978 and went on to own and operate various car dealerships across Southern California during a 25 year in that industry.  John represented numerous franchises over the course of his career including Nissan, Mazda, Ford, Saturn, and Saab.

In 2000, John was elected to California State Assembly, where he served two terms before being elected to the California State Senate in 2004.  While in the State Assembly, Campbell became known as a strong fiscal conservative and reformer in Sacramento.

In December of 2005, John was elected to the United States House of Representatives in a special election, and is currently serving his 3rd term in the House of Representatives.  John’s education and business background has made him a natural leader on the House Committee on Financial Services, the House Committee on the Budget, and the Joint Economic Committee.

Campbell has been a vocal and outspoken critic against earmarks, duplicative spending, and wasteful government expenditures.  He has been at the vanguard of efforts to curtail the corrupting practice of earmarks and was the primary author, and the first to sign the Earmark Reform Pledge.

Congressman Campbell has also crusaded on behalf of commonsense measures to provide humane treatment of animals, immigration reform, and government transparency.  As an active member of the Immigration Reform Caucus, he has been actively working for immigration reform.  In doing so, he has pushed for stronger border enforcement, the prevention of amnesty, punishing illegal ‘sanctuary cities,’ and enhanced and easily accessible worksite enforcement measures for employers.

Campbell has been endorsed by a number of organizations including the Legislative Fund of the Humane Society of the United States, Americans for Tax Reform, the Council for Citizens against Government Waste, the United States Chamber of Commerce, the Club for Growth, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.  He maintains an impressive 91% rating from the American Conservative Union.

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