Adam Putnam

Adam Putnam
11th Florida Commissioner of Agriculture
Incumbent
Assumed office January 4, 2011
Governor	Rick Scott
Preceded by	Charles H. Bronson
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 12th district
In office January 3, 2001 – January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Charles Canady
Succeeded by	Dennis Ross
Personal details
Born	(1974-07-31) July 31, 1974 (age 37) Bartow, Florida
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Melissa Putnam
Alma mater	University of Florida

Adam H. Putnam (born July 31, 1974) is the current Florida Commissioner of Agriculture and the former U.S. Representative for Florida's 12th congressional district, serving from 2001 until 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life, education and career

Putnam was born in Bartow, Florida. He graduated from Bartow High School and attended the University of Florida, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in food and resource economics.

While at the University of Florida, Putnam was a brother of Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity. Putnam also served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1996 to 2000.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

• Committee on Financial Services
  • Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises
  • Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity

Tenure

In February 2006, Putnam became a member of the House leadership, assuming the role of chairman of the House Republican Policy Committee, the fifth-ranking Republican leadership position in the House. In November 2006, Putnam was elected by his colleagues as House Republican Conference Chairman, the third-highest ranking position.^[1] Following House Republican losses in the 2008 general election, Putnam resigned his post as Conference Chairman.^[2] In 2010 The Florida Independent reported that Putnam had earmarked $100,000 for an abscission chemical used in citrus harvesting that The Florida Independent said would benefit his family's citrus business.^[3]

Putnam described himself as one of Congress's leading supporters of developmental education for children from low-income families and was the author of the Head Start Accountability Bill. Putnam was also the co-chairman of the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus.

He was the youngest member of Congress when he took office in 2001 at age 26, just one year after becoming constitutionally eligible. In 2005, Patrick McHenry, a year younger than Putnam and a Southern Republican, was elected to Congress. However, McHenry was 29 at his inauguration, meaning of all members of Congress at the time, Putnam had still taken office the earliest in his life. This distinction would hold until Putnam left the House in 2011.

Putnam is a signer of the Taxpayer Protection Pledge.^[4]

Gonzales' ouster

After the numerous calls by Democrats, including Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Speaker of the House and Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), Putnam became the top Republican in either House to call for the ouster of former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. "For the good of the nation, I think it is time for fresh leadership at the Department of Justice," Putnam said.^[5]

This move was met with surprise by many Republicans, who were remaining silent on the Gonzales issue. However, Putnam mentioned that there remained severe discontent within the GOP circle over Gonzales and as the Chairman of the House Republican Conference, he thought that it was important to send this message out.

Political campaigns

2010

In February 2009, Putnam declared himself a candidate for Florida Commissioner of Agriculture in the 2010 election and that he would complete his 5th term in Congress.^[6] Putnam won the election over Democratic opponent Scott Maddox with 56% of the vote.

References

External links

• Congressman Adam Putnam official U.S. House site
• Adam Putnam for Commissioner of Agriculture official campaign site
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at the National Institute for Money in State Politics
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Opie's All Grown Up Now US News and World Report, December 3, 2006
• Opie? National Review, July 30, 2007

v t e Current statewide political officials of Florida U.S. Senators Bill Nelson Marco Rubio State government Rick Scott, Governor Jennifer Carroll, Lieutenant Governor Jeff Atwater, Chief Financial Officer Pam Bondi, Attorney General Adam Putnam, Commissioner of Agriculture Senate Mike Haridopolos, President Andy Gardiner, Majority Leader Nan Rich, Minority Leader House Dean Cannon, Speaker Carlos Lopez-Cantera, Majority Leader Ronald Saunders, Minority Leader Supreme Court (appointed) Charles T. Canady, Chief Justice Barbara Pariente R. Fred Lewis Peggy Quince Ricky Polston Jorge Labarga James E.C. Perry AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY