Stephen Ernest Stockman (born November 14, 1956) is an American politician who is a member of the Republican Party and a convicted felon.

In 1977 as Stockman was reporting to jail for traffic tickets, the jailers found valium in his possession after his girlfriend allegedly hid some in his underwear.

[13] Since no candidate had a majority, there was a runoff election and, with the support of third-place finisher Steve Clifford,[15] Meyers beat Stockman to win the Republican nomination.

Stockman organized a "congressional cruise" on the Houston Ship Channel as a fundraising opportunity, but no members of Congress attended.

[21] In a major upset, Stockman beat Brooks, who, had he won, would have become Dean of the United States House of Representatives,[22] by 51% to 49%.

[25] Stockman won a plurality in the November election with 46%, forcing a runoff against Democratic Jefferson County assessor Nick Lampson.

[28][29] In 1995, Stockman wrote an article for Guns & Ammo claiming that the Waco siege had been orchestrated by the Clinton administration in order "to prove the need for a ban on so-called 'assault weapons.

[33] Stockman believed that the allegations discredited current theories of sexual education in the United States, writing to his congressional colleagues that"[o]ur children have been taught that ... any type of sex is a valid outlet for their emotions.

Health and welfare services for military veterans were curtailed; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stopped disease surveillance; new clinical research patients were not accepted at the National Institutes of Health; and toxic waste cleanup at 609 sites was halted.

Other impacts included: the closure of 368 National Park sites resulted in the loss of some seven million visitors; 200,000 applications for passports were not processed; and 20,000-30,000 applications by foreigners for visas went unprocessed each day; U.S. tourism and airline industries incurred millions of dollars in losses; more than 20% of federal contracts, representing $3.7 billion in spending, were affected adversely.

[45] In the November general election, Stockman defeated Democrat Max Owen Martin, a retired pilot from Clear Lake City, Texas, with 71% of the vote.

In 2013, Stockman supported a government shutdown caused by Republican members of Congress who sought to block a continuing resolution that includes funding for the Affordable Care Act.

"[51] The same month, Stockman issued a press release condemning gun control executive orders issued by President Barack Obama post-Sandy Hook, stating, "I will seek to thwart this action by any means necessary, including but not limited to eliminating funding for implementation, defunding the White House, and even filing articles of impeachment.

[54] Committee assignments Caucus memberships On December 9, 2013, Stockman filed for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate for Texas against incumbent U.S.

[57][58] On December 31, Stockman visited Bitcoin center NYC to raise money and became the first U.S. Senate candidate to officially accept campaign contributions in cryptocurrency.

[63][64] On election night, Stockman quickly conceded and called upon Texas Republicans to vote the straight party ticket on November 4, 2014.

In March 2017, Stockman was arrested for allegedly conspiring to use contributions designated for a charity to fund his campaign and for personal use, a felony, under 18 U.S.C. § 371.

[citation needed] According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), in January 2013, Stockman requested and received $350,000 in donations from an unidentified businessman.

Stockman allegedly solicited the money by using the name of Life Without Limits, a Las Vegas-based nonprofit intended to help people who have experienced traumatic events.

The donation was allegedly intended to be used to renovate the Freedom House in Washington D.C.[66] Stockman was also charged with conspiracy to falsify statements when reporting contributions to try to launder the money.

The FBI also alleged that financial records indicate that Stockman "made no significant expenditures toward the purchase, renovation, or operation of the 'Freedom House,' which was never opened.

According to the Houston Chronicle, the alleged conspiracy involved attempts "to bilk conservative foundations out of at least $775,000 in donations meant for charitable purposes or voter education".

[74][75] Due to its complexity and the need for time to review 142,378 pages of documents disclosed by the prosecution, a motion for postponement of Stockman's trial by his court-appointed attorney was granted.

According to the White House, he will remain subject to a period of supervised release and an order requiring that he pay more than $1,000,000 in restitution.