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Charles Walter Stenholm (b. October 26, 1938) is a politician from the state of Texas. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives for 13 terms, from 1979 to 2005.
Stenholm was born in Stamford, Texas and he graduated from Texas Tech University. Stenholm was elected to the House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1978. Stenholm was a leader (with Phil Gramm) of the Boll Weevil Democrats. While Gramm later became a Republican, Stenholm remained a Democrat, though he became one of the most conservative Democrats in the House. He opposed gun congtrol and voted against an assault weapons ban. Stenholm did, however, opposed the Bush tax cut. Stenholm has faced tough re-election campaigns. Due to the redistricting plan passed by the Texas Legislature in 2003, Stenholm ran for re-election against Congressman Randy Neugebauer and was defeated. After his defeat, he was mentioned by some major news organizations, as a possible candidate for Secretary of Agriculture in President Bush's second term Cabinet, despite Bush's support of the redistricting plan. Stenholm had been very interested in agriculture issues while in Congress. In the end, Bush nominated Nebraska Governor Mike Johanns, a fellow Republican for the post.
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