DMA Politically Direct (Spring 2008): Hill Profile: Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)

May 16, 2008 — Representative Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) was elected to the US House of Representatives in 2002. When she began serving in 2003 at the start of the 108^thCongress, she was the first woman in Tennessee elected in her own right to the House.

Since her arrival on Capitol Hill, Rep. Blackburn has proven herself to be an effective, results-oriented, national leader. She was one of only a few newly elected Members selected to serve as an Assistant Majority Whip for the 108th Congress. This distinction continued with the congresswoman being selected to serve as an Assistant Majority Whip for the 109th Congress and as a Deputy Whip for the current 110th Congress.

Blackburn has proven herself to be tough on taxes. She even displays a gold-plated ax with the words “Ax the Tax” as a reminder of her crusade against a state income tax while serving in the Tennessee Senate. She has continued this position against taxes in Congress, fighting efforts to increase taxes, including her efforts in 2007 that resulted in the enactment of the seven-year extension (until November 2014) of the moratorium against taxing Internet access. DMA supported this extension.

Blackburn serves on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, whose areas of jurisdiction include communications, interstate commerce, and technology — all areas of critical importance to direct marketers. In fact, in the area of communications, Rep. Blackburn clearly understands the vital role of the flow of data and how the US economy runs on information.

From her position as a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Blackburn has earned a reputation for keeping her legislative focus on defending and expanding free enterprise as a recognized national anti-tax and government reform advocate.

Recognizing Representative Blackburn as a legislator with a strong, fiscally conservative approach and as a determined opponent of intrusive government regulation, DMA very much looks forward to continuing its work with her in the years to come.

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