Ed Whitfield was elected to Congress in 1994 as the first Republican to represent Kentucky 's First Congressional District since the Civil War. Congressman Whitfield came to the House of Representatives to help reverse a 40-year reign of leadership that expanded the cost, reach and size of the federal government and showed indifference to America 's common-sense values.
Whitfield is a native of Hopkinsville , Kentucky and attended Madisonville High School . He earned a Bachelor's Degree and Juris Doctorate from the University of Kentucky . He also studied at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington , D.C. , where he now serves on the Board of Governors. Whitfield served as a 1st Lieutenant in the 100th Division of the U.S. Army Reserves.
Congressman Whitfield served in the Kentucky House of Representatives from 1974-75 while practicing law in Hopkinsville , where he operated a successful oil distributorship in the west Kentucky coal fields. In 1979, he became Counsel to the President of Seaboard System Railroad in Washington , D.C. Later, he was named Vice President of State Relations and then Vice President for Federal Railroad Affairs for CSX Corporation. Whitfield served as Legal Counsel to the Chairman of the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) from 1991 to 1993 where he worked to reduce regulation of the nation's barge, railroad and trucking industries.
Congressman Whitfield serves on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. Whitfield is the ranking member on the Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection (CTCP) Subcommittee. The Subcommittee is responsible for matters relating to interstate and foreign commerce, regulation of commercial practices and the regulation of travel and tourism. In addition to CTCP, Whitfield serves on the Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality, which oversees national energy policy as well as utility issues and regulation of nuclear facilities, and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations which has jurisdiction over a wide range of Departments, Agencies and issues.
During his seven terms in Congress, Whitfield has championed the needs and views of his constituents. The First District is home to Fort Campbell , base for the 101 st Airborne Division, the 160 th Special Operations Aviation Command, and the 5 th Special Forces Group. Whitfield has consistently voted in favor of a strong national defense, including enhanced benefits for all active duty service personnel, retirees and veterans. He has pursued a pro-family agenda to permit prayer in schools, stop child pornography and outlaw flag burning. Through his Committee assignment, Whitfield has worked to promote access to health care, and to protect Medicare and Medicaid. He also has helped modernize our national energy policy, while promoting clean uses of coal and protecting domestic uranium enrichment capabilities at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, where he has been an advocate for the health and welfare of its active and retired employees.
Congressman Whitfield's major legislative accomplishments include creating the 170,000 acre National Recreation Area at the Land Between the Lakes; introducing and passing legislation to create a Health Compensation Program at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, which has paid over $315,000,000 in compensation to 3,139 employees and their survivors; helping to create the first Medicare Prescription drug benefit plan for seniors; and advocating for the humane treatment of animals.
The Congressman is married to Connie Harriman, who served as Assistant Secretary of the Interior and Director of the U.S. Export-Import Bank and, currently, as Senior Vice-President of the Humane Society.
