Phillip Burton

Early years and education

Burton was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, the son of Mildred (Leonard) and Thomas Burton, who was a salesman and physician. He attended Washington High School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and graduated from George Washington High School, in the Richmond District of San Francisco, in 1944. He earned a B.A. from the University of Southern California in 1947 and an LL.B. from Golden Gate College School of Law in 1952.

Career

Burton worked as a lawyer and was admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court in 1956. He was a member of the United States Air Force during both World War II and the Korean War.

Burton was elected to the California State Assembly in November 1956, and served there from 1957 to 1964. In 1959 he represented the United States at the Atlantic Treaty Association Conference in France.

U.S. Congress

Burton, as a Democrat, won a special election in February 1964 to fill the U.S. House of Representatives vacancy caused by the resignation of John F. Shelley, who was elected mayor of San Francisco. Burton was reelected to the ten succeeding Congresses (February 18, 1964 – April 10, 1983). In 1965, Burton was one of only three members of the House to vote against appropriations that President Lyndon B. Johnson requested for the Vietnam War.

Burton was a delegate to the California State Democratic convention from 1968 to 1982. He was also a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1968 and 1972. At the 1968 convention, he was a part of the delegation pledged to Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated after winning the California Democratic primary in June.

In 1973, Burton allowed a bill to go to the floor without a "closed rule"—a stipulation that there could be no amendments proposed to it—for the first time since the 1920s. The ending of the closed rule created an infusion of federal lobbyists at the Capitol building; the lobbyists targeted members of Congress to add funding for lobbyists' favorite projects into bills. For this reason, David Frum wrote that Burton "created the modern Congress" more than anyone else.

After the Democrats gained a strong majority in 1974, he was successful in getting the House to abolish the House Un-American Activities Committee. Burton was supported by labor unions and championed union activists, supporting the activities of the farm workers union and the coal miners union. Burton voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964, Civil Rights Act of 1968, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

When President Gerald Ford appeared before Congress in 1975 to request aid during a refugee crisis in the Vietnamese and Cambodian capitals, Burton became so upset with Ford's request that he called it "an outrage" and left halfway through the speech. In December 1976, Burton narrowly lost a bid for House Majority Leader to Jim Wright of Fort Worth, Texas, by a vote of 148 to 147.

He was the author of the bill that created the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and legislation setting up wilderness areas across the country. He sponsored a law that substantially enlarged Redwood National Park in 1987. The Point Reyes National Seashore includes the Phillip Burton Wilderness, named for the congressman in 1985. In the early 1980s, he worked with gay liaison Bill Kraus to create legislation and funding for AIDS research in the San Francisco area. He also was instrumental in establishing the position of non-voting representative from Guam, the Virgin Islands, and American Samoa.

Before 1976, Phil Burton encouraged Nancy Pelosi to hold political fundraisers at the San Francisco mansion she shared with her husband, investor Paul Pelosi. In 1976, she was elected as a member of the Democratic National Committee, later chair of the Northern California Democratic Party and then the statewide Democratic Party, and in 1985, bidding for DNC chair.

Death and legacy

Burton died on April 10, 1983, in San Francisco at age 56, of a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm. He was cremated, and the ashes were interred in the National Cemetery of the Presidio of San Francisco. His wife Sala Burton won a special election in June 1983 to serve the remainder of his term. She was elected to full terms in 1984 and 1986. Burton's House seat was later held by Nancy Pelosi, who won a special election in 1987, following Sala Burton's death.

There is a statue of Burton at the Great Meadow at Fort Mason, in the Golden Gate Recreation Area. San Francisco's federal building is named for Burton. Phillip & Sala Burton High School, in San Francisco on the site of the former Woodrow Wilson High School, is named for Burton and his wife.

In popular culture

He was portrayed by Dakin Matthews in HBO's 1993 film And the Band Played On and by Robert Chimento in the 2008 film Milk.

Electoral history

References

References

1. (2000). "Burton, Phillip (1926–1983), congressman | American National Biography".
2. (2006-04-25). "The House: The History of the House of Representatives". HarperCollins.
3. "National Park Service: Biography (Congressman Phillip Burton)".
4. "H.R. 7152. CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964. ADOPTION OF A RESOLUTION (H. RES. 789) PROVIDING FOR HOUSE APPROVAL OF THE BILL AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE".
5. "TO PASS H.R. 2516, A BILL TO ESTABLISH PENALTIES FOR INTERFERENCE WITH CIVIL RIGHTS. INTERFERENCE WITH A PERSON ENGAGED IN ONE OF THE 8 ACTIVITIES PROTECTED UNDER THIS BILL MUST BE RACIALLY MOTIVATED TO INCUR THE BILL'S PENALTIES.".
6. "TO PASS H. RES. 1100, A RESOLUTION PROVIDING THAT IMMEDIATELY ON THE ADOPTION OF THIS RESOLUTION, THE BILL (H.R. 2516) PRESCRIBING PENALTIES FOR INTERFERING WITH ANY PERSON IN THE PERFORMANCE OF HIS CIVIL RIGHTS, AND MAKING CERTAIN ANTIRIOT LEGISLATION, SHALL, TOGETHER WITH A SENATE AMENDMENT THERETO, PROVIDING PENALTIES FOR DISCRIMINATION IN THE SALE OR RENT OF HOUSING, BE TAKEN FROM THE SPEAKER'S TABLE, TO THE END THAT SAID AMENDMENT IS AGREED TO.".
7. "TO PASS H.R. 6400, THE 1965 VOTING RIGHTS ACT.".
8. (2014-11-28). "The beginning of the end for Nancy Pelosi?".
9. "26 Mar 1978, 11 - The Fresno Bee at Newspapers.com".
10. Faleomavaega, Eni F.H.. (1995). "Navigating the Future: A Samoan Perspective on U.S.-Pacific Relations". KIN Publications.
11. (17 November 2022). "The Real Story of the Making of Nancy Pelosi".
12. (June 22, 1983). "Widow elected to fill seat of Phil Burton". Associated Press.
13. [http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1964election.pdf 1964 election results]
14. [http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1966election.pdf 1966 election results]
15. [http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1968election.pdf 1968 election results]
16. [http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1970election.pdf 1970 election results]
17. [http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1972election.pdf 1972 election results]
18. "1974 election results".
19. "1976 election results".
20. "1978 election results".
21. [http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1980election.pdf 1980 election results]
22. [http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1982election.pdf 1982 election results]