Meet Brett
Brett Guthrie was elected to Congress in November 2008, and has fought to reduce government spending and for legislation that would create jobs in all sectors of the economy. Brett is 100% pro-life and is endorsed by the National Right to Life Committee; has an “A” rating from the National Rifle Association; has been named a “Friend of Farm Bureau;” and was called a “Taxpayer Hero” by the Council of Citizens Against Government Waste.
Brett’s background is in manufacturing. He worked as Vice-President of Trace Die Cast, a company in Bowling Green that employs hundreds of people in the automotive supply business. Brett’s outlook is shaped by his experience in the real world – he knows what government can do to help small businesses, and what it often does to hurt them. Brett has a real understanding of how government over-taxes and overregulates small companies and the workers who depend on them for good paying jobs. Brett believes in lower taxes and has fought to reduce the red tape that often impedes job creation.
Brett was elected to Kentucky’s State Senate in 1998 and served there until his election to Congress in 2008. As a State Senator, Brett compiled a strong record of standing up for the unborn and fighting for affordable health care for Kentuckians. Brett voted to cut taxes while also supporting investments in Kentucky’s infrastructure and education system. Brett is involved in public service because he feels it is our generation’s responsibility to leave a better world behind for our children and grandchildren, just as our parents and grandparents did for us.
Today, in his second term in Congress, Brett serves on one of the most important committees in the U.S. House – the Energy and Commerce Committee – where he has led the charge against Obamacare, voting to repeal a law that is driving up health care costs and putting government bureaucrats between patients and doctors. Brett strongly opposed Obamacare because it cut $500 billion out of Medicare to pay for a new entitlement program. Brett believes there are better, market-based solutions to lower the cost of health care and expand coverage to more Americans, including allowing the purchase of health care across state lines. Obamacare is driving up the cost of health care for families and small businesses, and Brett is fighting for a smarter approach.
Brett is also speaking out against President Obama’s EPA which is waging a “War on Coal.” Over 90% of Kentucky’s electricity is produced from coal, yet, under President Obama, the permitting process for new mining operations has ground to halt. Brett believes we can and should mine coal as it gives Kentucky a key economic advantage and ensures low utility costs for working families. Brett has an “all of the above” attitude when it comes to our national energy policy. He believes we should embrace all of our domestic resources to reduce our dependence on unstable foreign countries that supply most of our oil.
Drawing on his background in manufacturing, Brett has become a leader in formulating policy to revitalize America’s manufacturing sector. He serves on a key subcommittee dealing with manufacturing issues and is a leader in the Jobs and Innovation Forum Series which brings together experts and business leaders from around the country to discuss obstacles facing American job creators. Brett’s goal is to figure out what can be done to improve the climate for job growth in America. Under Republican leadership, the U.S. House has passed nearly 30 pro-jobs bills that now languish in the Senate where that chamber’s leadership refuses to call them up for votes.
Brett is a veteran of the U.S. Army, and is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (’87). After graduation, Brett served as an Artillery Officer in the 101st Airborne Division – Air Assault at Fort Campbell. Brett was honorably discharged from the military after the end of the Cold War and went on to earn a Master’s Degree from Yale in Public and Private Management. Brett is a strong supporter of America’s military veterans and enjoys representing the growing Ft. Knox community in the heart of the Second District.
Brett Guthrie was born on February 18, 1964, and is married to the former Beth Clemmons. They have three children – Caroline, Robbie, and Elizabeth. Brett and his family reside in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
