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James Traficant

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Jim Traficant
Official portrait, 1997
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Ohio's 17th district
In office
January 3, 1985 – July 24, 2002
Preceded byLyle Williams
Succeeded byTim Ryan
Sheriff of Mahoning County
In office
1981–1984
Preceded byGeorge D. Tablack
Succeeded byEdward Nemeth
Personal details
BornJames Anthony Traficant Jr.
(1941-05-08)May 8, 1941
Youngstown, Ohio, U.S.
DiedSeptember 27, 2014(2014-09-27) (aged 73)
Poland, Ohio, U.S.
PartyDemocratic (until 2002)
Other political
affiliations
Independent (from 2002)
SpouseTish Choppa
EducationUniversity of Pittsburgh (BS, MS)
Youngstown State University (MS)
James Traficant's voice
Traficant speaks on the importance of water resource projects
Recorded September 26, 1996

James Anthony Traficant Jr. (/ˈtræfɪkənt/ TRAF-ih-kənt; May 8, 1941 – September 27, 2014) was an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio. A staunch economic populist known for his flamboyant personality,[1] he represented the 17th congressional district, which centered on his hometown of Youngstown and included parts of three counties in northeast Ohio's Mahoning Valley.

Traficant was expelled from the House on July 24, 2002, after being convicted of 10 felony counts, including taking bribes, filing false tax returns, racketeering, and forcing his congressional staff to perform chores at his farm in Ohio and houseboat in Washington, D.C.[2] He was sentenced to prison and released on September 2, 2009, after serving a 7-year sentence. Traficant died on September 27, 2014, following a tractor accident at his farm in Green Township, Ohio.

Traficant was one of the most conservative congressional Democrats in history, and both his personality and his political views have been argued to be a predecessor to Trumpism.[3]

Early life and education

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Born into a working-class Catholic family in Youngstown, Ohio, Traficant was the son of Agnes (née Farkas) and James Anthony Traficant.[4][5] He was of mostly Italian and Hungarian ancestry.[6] Traficant graduated from Cardinal Mooney High School in 1959 before receiving a B.S. in education from the University of Pittsburgh in 1963. He played quarterback for Pitt's football team, and his teammates included Mike Ditka.[7] Traficant was drafted in the NFL's twentieth round (276th overall) by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1963, and tried out for the Steelers and the Oakland Raiders of the American Football League, but did not play professionally.[8][9] He later obtained an M.S. in educational administration from the University of Pittsburgh in 1973 and a second Master's degree in counseling from Youngstown State University in 1976.[10]

Early career

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At the start of his career, Traficant was the consumer finance director for the Youngstown Community Action Program. He taught courses on drug and alcohol dependency and recovery at Youngstown State University and Kent State University, as well as lecturing on drug and alcohol abuse for colleges and government agencies outside Ohio. In addition, Traficant taught at the Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy.[11] He was the executive director of the Mahoning County Drug Program from 1971 to 1981, and sheriff of Mahoning County from 1981 to 1985.

While serving as sheriff, Traficant made national headlines by refusing to execute foreclosure orders on several unemployed homeowners. This endeared him to the local population, which was dealing with the consequences of the loss of steel-associated businesses.[12] In 1983, he was charged with racketeering, under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), for accepting bribes. Representing himself in the trial, he argued that he had been undertaking an undercover investigation into corruption. He was acquitted, becoming the only person to date who has won a RICO case while representing themself.[13][14]

Traficant's time as sheriff served as the focus of Crooked City: Youngstown, OH., a podcast produced by Marc Smerling.[15]

U.S. House of Representatives (1985–2002)

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Publicity from the RICO trial increased Traficant's local visibility. He was elected in 1984 as a Democrat to Congress from Ohio's 17th District, defeating Lyle Williams, a three-term Republican incumbent. He was reelected eight times without serious opposition.[citation needed]

Traficant was infamous during his time in Congress for his short, rambling, and often crude rants on the House floor, often decrying his key issues such as his opposition to free trade and the IRS. He became known for ending speeches with the Star Trek reference "Beam me up!", and wearing cowboy boots, polyester suits, and a toupee.[1][16]

While in Congress, Traficant was a supporter of immigration reduction.[17] His major legislative accomplishment was restraining the Internal Revenue Service from taking punitive action against delinquent taxpayers. Traficant was also known for frequently pushing to include "Buy American" provisions in spending bills.[18]

After the Republicans took control of the House in 1995, Traficant tended to vote more often with the Republicans than with his own party. On the issue of abortion, he voted with the position of the National Right to Life Committee 95% of the time in the 105th Congress, and 100% of the time in the 106th and 107th Congresses. However, he voted against all four articles of impeachment against Bill Clinton. After he voted for Republican Dennis Hastert for Speaker of the House in 2001, the Democrats stripped him of his seniority and refused to give him any committee assignments. Because the Republicans did not assign him to any committees either, he became the first member of the House of Representatives in over a century (outside the top leadership) to lack a single committee assignment.[19]

Traficant twice[20] asked the FBI to investigate the missing persons case of Philip Taylor Kramer, whose family he knew.[21] The FBI opened a case, but did not launch a new criminal investigation, although it did assist the Ventura County sheriff's office in the matter. Traficant's office also did some investigation of its own.[22]

Defense of John Demjanjuk

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Traficant championed the unpopular case of John Demjanjuk, a Ukrainian-born autoworker from Seven Hills who had been convicted in Israel and sentenced to hang for having been the brutal Nazi concentration camp guard nicknamed "Ivan the Terrible".[23] For almost a decade, Traficant, along with Pat Buchanan,[24] insisted that Demjanjuk had been denied a fair trial, and been the victim of mistaken identity. In 1993, the Supreme Court of Israel overturned the conviction on the basis of reasonable doubt. Demjanjuk was later deported to Germany on May 11, 2009, after the Supreme Court of the United States refused to overturn his deportation order. Demjanjuk was tried and convicted by a German criminal court of being an accessory to murder, but died before the German appellate court could hear his case, thereby voiding the conviction.[25]

Defense of Arthur Rudolph

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Following Buchanan's recommendation to reconsider the denaturalization of former Nazi and NASA scientist Arthur Rudolph, who had been brought to the United States as part of Operation Paperclip, Traficant spoke to the Friends of Arthur Rudolph, an organization based in Huntsville, Alabama.[26] He argued that denaturalization had happened because of a "powerful Jewish lobby" influencing Congress.[26] He added that it was a violation of a U.S. citizen's civil rights, and he suggested that Rudolph return to the United States nonetheless.[26] Additionally, he "introduced a resolution in Congress [...] calling for an investigation into the OSI's handling of Rudolph's case."[26] Meanwhile, in 1990, Traficant had planned to meet Rudolph at Niagara Falls, on the Canadian–American border, but Rudolph was arrested by immigration officials in Toronto, and the meeting never occurred.[26]

Trial and expulsion

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On May 4, 2001, Traficant was federally indicted for taking campaign funds for personal use.[27] The charges against him included bribery, racketeering, and tax evasion. During the two-month trial,[28] he again represented himself, insisting that this was the continuation of a vendetta which began with his 1983 trial. One of the men he was bribed by, John J. Cafaro, testified against him.[29]

Traficant was convicted of ten of the charges on April 11, 2002,[28][30] leading the House Ethics Committee to recommend that he be expelled from the House of Representatives. On July 24, this was agreed to by nearly the entire House; one member, Gary Condit, voted no,[31] nine members voted 'present', and four members did not vote.[32] Traficant was only the second person to be expelled from Congress since the end of the Civil War;[33] the first was Michael Myers, one of the many politicians involved in the Abscam scandal, in 1980.[34]

On July 30, 2002, U.S. District Judge Lesley Wells sentenced Traficant to eight years in prison and fined him $150,000.[30]

Incarceration

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Traficant entered the Federal Correctional Institution, Allenwood Low, on August 6, 2002,[35] with the Federal Bureau of Prisons ID # 31213-060.[36] He served his first seventeen months at Allenwood, being moved to the Federal Medical Center, Rochester in 2004.[33] He claimed that he was put into solitary confinement shortly after his arrival at Allenwood for telling a guard, "People can't hear you. Speak up."[37] He refused to meet visitors, saying that he did not want anyone to see him.[38]

A few months into Traficant's incarceration, the 2002 midterm elections took place. Despite being ineligible for his seat in the House because he was being held in another state, he became one of the few American prisoners to seek federal office, running as an independent candidate.[39] He received 28,045 votes, or 15 percent; the winner was Tim Ryan, a former aide.[34]

While in prison, Traficant received support from neo-Nazi David Duke. Through his website, Duke urged people to donate on Traficant's behalf, and posted a letter from Traficant which claimed that he been targeted by the Department of Justice, in part for defending John Demjanjuk, and hinted at divulging information he knew about several American conspiracy theories. Michael Collins Piper, who wrote Target: Traficant, The Untold Story[40] and helped to circulate Traficant's letter, noted that his writings about Traficant had been circulated far and wide online, and denied that Traficant had direct connections to Duke.[41]

Traficant was freed on September 2, 2009,[36] beginning three years of supervised release. On September 6, supporters held a banquet with a dress code mirroring his.[38]

On November 2, 2009, Traficant wrote a column defending Demjanjuk in the American Free Press.[42] In January 2010, he signed a limited, three-month contract, with permission to quit and run for office, to be a part-time weekend host for the Cleveland news/talk station WTAM.[43]

Later life and death

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On September 12, 2009, Traficant spoke at a Tea Party protest in Columbiana, Ohio.[44] In September 2010, he was certified to run for his former seat in the House; his plaform was repealing the Sixteenth Amendment.[45] For a second time, he lost to Tim Ryan,[46][34] receiving 30,556 votes, or 16%.[47]

Traficant began a grassroots campaign in July 2014, Project Freedom USA,[48][better source needed] to, among other things, put pressure on Congress to get rid of the IRS and "divorce" the Federal Reserve.[49][better source needed] He continued to live on the farm in Greenford that he had purchased in 1987.[50]

On September 23, 2014, Traficant drove his tractor into a pole barn on his farm. The tractor flipped over and landed on him,[51] subjecting him to fatal positional asphyxia.[52] On September 27, he died at a hospice in Poland, Ohio, aged 73.[53][54] His body was buried in an undisclosed location after a private family funeral.[55]

Publications

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  • Piper, Michael Collins (2005). Target: Traficant, The Untold Story. American Free Press. ISBN 978-0981808611.
  • Traficant, James (2011). America's Last Minuteman. New York: Sports Calendar International. ISBN 978-1-889036-01-4.

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 Schudel, Matt (September 27, 2014). "James A. Traficant Jr., Ohio congressman convicted of corruption and expelled from the House, dies at 73". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Traficant guilty of bribery, racketeering". CNN.com. April 12, 2002. Archived from the original on October 10, 2002.
  3. ↑ Posey, Sean (August 15, 2016). "What Do Voters See in Donald Trump? Meet the Man Who Prefigured Him". BillMoyers.com. Retrieved June 10, 2026.
  4. ↑ Jerome, Richard (August 5, 2002). "To the Bitter End – Crime & Courts". People. Archived from the original on November 1, 2008. Retrieved March 27, 2013.
  5. ↑ Mass, Parties Fete Traficants on Anniversary, Youngstown Vindicator, June 15, 1977
  6. ↑ Frank, Dana (2000). Buy American: The Untold Story of Economic Nationalism – Dana Frank. Beacon Press. ISBN 9780807047118. Retrieved March 27, 2013 – via Google Books.
  7. ↑ Simonich, Milan (April 12, 2002). "Rep. James Traficant: 'He's perceived ... to have almost magical powers'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, PA. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 10, 2014.
  8. ↑ Snell, Jack (June 20, 1963). "Steelers Sign all but Four Draft Choices: Pitt's Traficant Still Undecided". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  9. ↑ "Steelers Cut Jim Traficant" (UPI). Beaver County Times. July 27, 1963.
  10. ↑ U.S. Government Printing Office, 1993–1994 Official Congressional Directory, 1993, page 238
  11. ↑ U.S. Government Printing Office, Congressional Directory, 1999, page 213
  12. ↑ Peyko, Mark C. (February 28, 2002). "Notes From Youngstown: The Angry Voice of a City Left Behind". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 6, 2009. Retrieved March 24, 2008.
  13. ↑ Scott A. Frisch, Sean Q. Kelly, Committee Assignment Politics in the U.S. House of Representatives, 2006, page 170
  14. ↑ Congressional Quarterly, Traficant Responds Defiantly to Corruption Indictment, Volume 59, 2001, page 989
  15. ↑ McCrae, Corey (July 30, 2022). "Youngstown Crime Podcast top ten in the world". WFMJ-TV. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Convicted ex-congressman James Traficant dies at 73". PBS NewsHour. September 27, 2014. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  17. ↑ "All Immigration Votes of Representative James Traficant." NumbersUSA. Accessed January 6, 2008.
  18. ↑ Gillispie, Mark (September 27, 2014). "James Traficant, convicted ex-congressman, dies". Associated Press. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  19. ↑ Rizzo, Katherine (May 8, 2001). "Armey: GOP doesn't want Traficant". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Associated Press. Archived from the original on July 27, 2015. Retrieved March 27, 2013.
  20. ↑ Rice, Fredric, "Iron Butterfly Member Disappears After Allegedly Working on Faster-Than-Light Communication - Is He In A Godda Da Vida?", Skeptic Magazine, Vol. 4, No. 2, 1996.
  21. ↑ Lei, Richard (October 6, 1996). "Far Out". The Washington Post.
  22. ↑ Reed, Mack (February 18, 1997). "Missing Man's Family Keeps Up Search Despite 2-Year Mystery". Los Angeles Times.
  23. ↑ "Traficant says he would testify for Demjanjuk". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. October 30, 2009. Retrieved October 5, 2012.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  24. ↑ Buchanan, Pat (May 13, 2011) Demjanjuk Convicted – By the KGB, The American Conservative
  25. ↑ Aderet, Ofer (March 23, 2012). "News article: Convicted Nazi criminal Demjanjuk deemed innocent in Germany over technicality". Haaretz. Retrieved July 4, 2012.
  26. 1 2 3 4 5 Laney, Monique (2015). German Rocketeers in the Heart of Dixie: Making Sense of the Nazi Past During the Civil Rights Era. New Haven and London: Yale University Press. pp. 173–174. ISBN 978-0-300-19803-4.
  27. ↑ Eggen, Dan; Eilperin, Juliet (May 5, 2001). "U.S. Grand Jury Indicts Traficant". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  28. 1 2 Gibian, Jonathan Jay (April 11, 2002). "Traficant convicted". United Press International.
  29. ↑ "Ohio man who skirted campaign finance law, bribed congressman hires lobbying firm | LegiStorm". www.legistorm.com. Retrieved June 19, 2026.
  30. 1 2 "Former Ohio Congressman Sentenced to Eight Years in Prison". PBS NewsHour. July 30, 2002.
  31. ↑ Trandahl, Jeff (July 24, 2002). "Final Vote Results for Roll Call 346". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved March 22, 2012.
  32. ↑ "In the Matter of Representative James A. Traficant Jr". U.S. House of Representatives. July 24, 2002. Archived from the original (REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON STANDARDS OF OFFICIAL CONDUCT) on July 25, 2019. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  33. 1 2 "Ex-Ohio congressman Traficant freed from prison". San Diego Union-Tribune. September 2, 2009. Retrieved September 30, 2026.
  34. 1 2 3 Glass, Andrew (July 24, 2014). "House expels fellow lawmaker, July 24, 2002". Politico.
  35. ↑ "Traficant arrives at federal prison". CNN. August 6, 2002. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  36. 1 2 "JAMES A TRAFICANT JR Archived July 27, 2010, at the Wayback Machine." Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved on May 29, 2010.
  37. ↑ Van Susteren, Greta (September 10, 2009). "Exclusive: Traficant – 'I Was a Target. ... I Must Have Been Doing Something Right'". Fox News. Retrieved November 13, 2009.
  38. 1 2 Merchant, Norman (September 2, 2009). "Ex-congressman Traficant freed". The Repository. Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2009.
  39. ↑ "Traficant arrives at federal prison". CNN. August 6, 2002. Archived from the original on October 10, 2009. Retrieved November 13, 2009.
  40. ↑ Piper, Michael (2005). Target: Traficant: the outrageous inside story of how the Justice Department, the Israeli lobby and the American mass media conspired to set up and take down Congressman Jim Traficant. Washington, D.C.: American Free Press. ISBN 0981808611. ISBN 978-0981808611
  41. ↑ Rodgers, Bill (August 30, 2009). "White nationalists, conspiracy theorists join Traficant's cause". Tribune Chronicle. Archived from the original on September 1, 2009. Retrieved January 15, 2017.
  42. ↑ "Former Congressman Traficant to Contribute Column to Anti-Semitic Newspaper". Anti-Defamation League. November 2, 2009. Archived from the original on February 12, 2011. Retrieved October 5, 2012.
  43. ↑ "Traficant lands a part-time job on radio". The Vindicator. Youngstown, Ohio. January 5, 2010. Archived from the original on May 30, 2013. Retrieved March 27, 2013.
  44. ↑ O'Brien, Dan (September 1, 2009). "Traficant Draws Cheers at TEA Party". Business Journal Daily. Youngstown, Ohio. Archived from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  45. ↑ "Traficant files petitions to be candidate for Akron congressional district". Akron Beacon Journal. May 3, 2010.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  46. ↑ Christian, Nichole M.; Cushman Jr, John H.; Day, Sherri; Dillon, Sam; Lewis, Neil A.; Pear, Robert; Pristin, Terry; Shenon, Philip; Steinberg, Jacques (November 7, 2002). "The 2002 Elections: Midwest; Ohio". The New York Times. Retrieved May 20, 2013.
  47. ↑ "REPRESENTATIVE TO CONGRESS - NOVEMBER 2, 2010 - Amended Official Results". Ohio Secretary of State. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  48. ↑ "Home". Project Freedom USA. Archived from the original on August 29, 2014. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  49. ↑ "Traficant launches Project Freedom". YouTube. Retrieved September 28, 2014. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine
  50. ↑ Gauntner, Mike (October 5, 2023). "Traficant farmhouse being demolished in Greenford". WFMJ-TV. Archived from the original on November 20, 2023. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  51. ↑ Eaton, Sabina (September 24, 2014). "Ex. Rep. Jim Traficant is seriously injured in tractor accident". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
  52. ↑ "Former Rep. Traficant didn't have heart attack, seizure before tractor death, pathologist says". The Plain Dealer. Associated Press. September 30, 2014.
  53. ↑ "James Traficant obituary: Colorful, expelled and jailed ex-congressman dies". Los Angeles Times. September 27, 2014. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
  54. ↑ "James A. Traficant Jr. dead at age 73". WFMJ-TV. September 27, 2014. Archived from the original on September 27, 2014. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  55. ↑ "No public funeral for Jim Traficant". WFMJ-TV. September 29, 2014. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014.
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