Product Code Database
Robert Linlithgow Livingston Jr. (born April 30, 1943) is an American lobbyist and politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Louisiana from 1977 to 1999. A Republican, he was chosen as Newt Gingrich's successor as Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, a position he declined following revelations of an extramarital affair. He served as a U.S. Representative from Louisiana from 1977 to 1999 and as the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee from 1995 to 1999. During his final years in Congress, Livingston was a strong supporter of Bill Clinton's impeachment. He is currently a Washington, D.C.–based lobbyist. Livingston's memoir, The Windmill Chaser: Triumphs and Less in American Politics, was published in September 2018. (2025). 9781946160270, University of Louisiana at Lafayette Press. ISBN 9781946160270
Livingston was married in 1965 to the former Bonnie Robichaux (also born 1943), a native of Raceland in Lafourche Parish. Bonnie's grandfather, Alcide Robichaux, served in the Louisiana State Senate, and her uncle, Philip Robichaux, was Lafourche Parish coroner for decades. Livingston's father, a Roman Catholic, and his mother, an Episcopalian, were divorced when Livingston and his sister were quite young. Raised first as Roman Catholic and later as an Episcopalian, he returned to his wife's religion, Roman Catholicism, in later years. The Livingstons have three biological sons, Robert, Richard and David, and an adopted daughter, SuShan a/k/a Susie. They have nine grandchildren. In July 2006, their son Richard died after being electrocuted by a live wire while trimming a tree damaged by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.
Allegations, however, surfaced of "tombstone" votes for Tonry in both the primary and general election. Tonry was forced to resign in May 1977 and run again in the special election for his seat. However, he lost the Democratic nomination in August to State Representative Ron Faucheux. While Faucheux may have been hindered by a split in the Democratic vote due to Sanford Krasnoff, who ran as an Independent challenger from the left wing, Livingston won the seat with a majority, 51%, of the votes cast (56,121 votes to Faucheux's 40,862, and Krasnoff's 12,665), becoming the first Republican to represent a significant portion of New Orleans in Congress since Reconstruction. Louisiana Almanac, 2006 Faucheux later lost an attempt to unseat New Orleans Mayor Dutch Morial in 1982, and was named Secretary of Commerce by Governor Edwin Washington Edwards in 1984.
Livingston was aided by a cadre of dedicated Republican volunteers, including the newly installed National Committeewoman Virginia Martinez of Kenner. In 1978, Livingston won a full term with 86 percent of the vote. He was reelected eleven times, dropping below 80 percent of the vote only once, in 1992. He was completely unopposed in 1986, 1996 and 1998. His district became even more Republican after the 1980 census, when most of the district's share of New Orleans was shifted to the 2nd District. It was replaced with some heavily Republican territory in Jefferson Parish. After the 1990 census, Livingston's district gained conservative Washington and Tangipahoa parishes from the 6th district while relinquishing equally conservative Saint Bernard and Plaquemines to the 3rd district.
Although well known in Louisiana, Livingston was a relatively low-key congressman for his first eighteen years in Washington. However, early in his career, he landed a spot on the powerful Appropriations Committee. This, together with his conservative stances on most issues, made him popular with his constituents, most of whom had never been previously represented by a Republican.
During the Monica Lewinsky scandals, Livingston was one of many Republicans who demanded President Bill Clinton's resignation, and later impeachment, for perjury. After Newt Gingrich announced that he would resign as Speaker (in part because of Republican losses in the 1998 elections, and in part because of revelations of an extramarital affair with a congressional employee 23 years his junior), majority leader Dick Armey and majority whip Tom DeLay had opted not to contest the Speaker's chair. Livingston subsequently announced that he was not only running for Speaker, but had lined up enough support to win. He was nominated as the Republican candidate for Speaker without opposition, and as the GOP had retained a narrow majority in the House, this effectively made him Speaker-elect. Although the Speaker is formally elected by the entire House, in practice the majority party's candidate is all but assured of winning that vote.
Following Livingston's announcement of his resignation, House Republicans settled on Chief Deputy Whip Dennis Hastert (who, unbeknownst to the public or his colleagues, was a child molester) to succeed Gingrich as Speaker of the House—a decision Livingston would later describe, in memoirs published in 2018, as "a disaster." Years later, Livingston recalled giving Hastert "a foot-thick binder" filled with notes intended to help him become a successful Speaker, "and if he read any part of the thing, I'd be surprised."
Livingston resigned from the House on March 1, 1999, two months into his 13th term.
In 1987, Livingston ran for governor himself and declared, "You can lay our problems at the hands of politicians." He questioned the state's poor performance regarding school drop-outs, unemployment, and credit rating. He even noted that Louisiana had a high number of cancer patients, a factor that was often attributed to environmental hazards. Livingston continued:
I'm prepared to clean house.... The rest of the nation has the impression that Louisiana doesn't want to work... that Louisiana will tolerate corruption... that Louisiana is not serious about improving its quality of life....
Despite polls that had generally showed that Livingston would face the incumbent governor, Edwin Edwards, in a second round of balloting, Livingston finished third of the nine candidates. Because of a last-week surge to his fellow U.S. representative, Buddy Roemer of Louisiana's 4th congressional district, Livingston fell ten points short of a runoff berth. Roemer was slated into a runoff election officially the Louisiana general election. Two other major candidates finished behind Livingston: the Democratic (later Republican) representative Billy Tauzin of Louisiana's 3rd congressional district and the outgoing Secretary of State James H. "Jim" Brown.
Despite his showing in the gubernatorial race, Livingston remained popular in his district and went on to win easy re-elections as he moved up the leadership ladder in the House.
The Livingston Group has also represented the government of Egypt until March 2012. Acting as lobbyist for Egypt Livingston "helped stall a Senate bill that called on Egypt to curtail human rights abuses" in 2010. His stated role is to enhance relations between the United States and the Republic of Egypt, which he perceives as critical to a resolution of tension in the Middle East.
During my time at the NSC, I received multiple calls from lobbyist Robert Livingston, who told me that Ambassador Yovanovitch should be fired. He characterized Ambassador Yovanovitch as an "Obama holdover" and associated with George Soros. It was not clear to me at that time-or now-at whose direction or at what expense Mr. Livingston was seeking the removal of Ambassador Yovanovitch.
In 2003, Livingston was inducted into the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame in Winnfield.
Livingston testified in the 2009 trial of Mose Jefferson, who was convicted on four counts related to bribery. In response to a comparison made by James Gill between Livingston and former U.S. representative William J. Jefferson (convicted of 11 felonies), Livingston defended the Livingston Group as having no relation to Jefferson's activities, but rather to the extent that they may have represented the same client, performed their own services in an entirely legal manner.
From 2011 to 2014, Livingston became Treasurer of the Louisiana Republican Party. Livingston said taking the fundraising assignment for the Louisiana GOP would not in any way undermine the work of The Livingston Group.
Livingston is also a member of the board of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, a non-profit involved in international elections, and he is a Knight of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
See also
Further reading
Retrieved on June 17, 2010
External links
Categories: 1943 Births, Living People, American Lobbyists, American People Of Dutch Descent, American Prosecutors, Converts To Roman Catholicism From Anglicanism, Lawyers From New Orleans, Bob, Politicians From Colorado Springs, Colorado, Politicians From New Orleans, Schuyler Family, Tulane University Law School Alumni, United States Navy Sailors, Catholics From Louisiana, Catholics From Colorado, Washington, D.c., Republicans, Members Of Congress Who Became Lobbyists
|
|
