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John Conyers, Jr. (born and Hamtramck , as well as parts of Detroit and Dearborn . He has served since 1965 and is the second longest serving member of the House of Representatives, outranked only by fellow Michigan member John Dingell BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION Conyers served in the Michigan National Guard 1948-50; US Army 1950-54; and the US Army Reserves 1954-57. Conyers served for a year in Korea as an officer in the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers and was awarded combat and merit citations. {Link without Title} . Conyers grew up in Detroit, and received both his B.A. and his J.D. from Wayne State University . Having entered the House of Representatives in 1964, Conyers is the second most senior member in the House of Representatives and was elected by his congressional colleagues to lead the Democratic side of the pivotal House Committee on the Judiciary. Previously, he worked as a legislative assistant to Congressman John Dingell. In addition to its oversight of the Department Of Justice (including the FBI) and the Federal Courts, the Judiciary Committee has jurisdiction over copyright, constitutional, consumer protection, and civil rights issues. Congressman Conyers was also a member of the Judiciary Committee in its 1974 hearings on the Watergate impeachment scandal and played a prominent role in the recent impeachment process, giving him the distinction as the only Judiciary Committee Member to have served on both panels. Conyers is a leading figure in the Democratic Party and the Congressional Black Caucus , and is currently Ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee . He is actually one of the 13 founding members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) and is considered the Dean of that group. Formed in 1969, the CBC was founded to strengthen African-American law makers ability to address the legislative concerns of Black and minority citizens. He is the longest serving African-American Member of Congress to date. In 1971 , he was one of the original members of Nixon's Enemies List . According to the '' National Journal '', Conyers has been considered, with Pete Stark , to be one of the most Liberal members of Congress for many years. Civil Rights icon Rosa Parks served on Conyers' staff between 1965 and 1988 . He appeared in Michael Moore 's Documentary '' Fahrenheit 9/11 '' discussing the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 Attacks , stating that members of Congress "We don't read most of the bills". Conyers frequently posts at Daily Kos and Democratic Underground . Since May 2005 he's been a contributing blogger at The Huffington Post and his own blog. DOWNING STREET MEMO On May 5 , 2005 , Conyers and 88 other members of Congress wrote an open letter to the White House inquiring about a leaked Memo which revealed an apparent secret agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom to Attack Iraq in 2002. '' The Times '', a British national newspaper, reported that newly-discovered documents reveal British and U.S. intentions to invade Iraq and leaders of the two countries had "discussed creating pretextual justifications for doing so". The documents go on to say that Tony Blair decided the U.S. would need to "create" conditions to justify the war. The trial and a Runaway Bride ." CNN picked up the story on May 12. Fox News had a story about two weeks later on June 1. Conyers et. al are seriously considering sending a congressional investigation delegation to London. {Link without Title} WHAT WENT WRONG IN OHIO In May, in the state of Ohio during the 2004 Presidential Election . The evidence offered of wrong-doing consists of statistical abnormalities in the differences between Exit Poll results and actual votes registered at those locations. The book also discusses reports of faulty Electronic Voting machines and the lack of credibility of those machines used to tally votes. THE CONSTITUTION IN CRISIS On altered intelligence to justify the invasion of Iraq . ''The Constitution in Crisis'' examines much of the evidence presented by the Bush Administration prior to the invasion and questions the credibility of their sources of intelligence. Additionally, the document investigates the conditions which led to the torture scandal in Abu Ghraib as well as further evidence of torture having been committed, but not made known to the public. Finally, the document reports on a series of 'smear tactics' purported to be used by the administration in dealing with its adversaries. The document calls for the censure of President George W. Bush and Vice-President Dick Cheney . CONTROVERY OVER MISUSE OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES In complaints made to a House Ethics Committee meeting released on March 2, 2006, three former aides who worked for Conyers were allegedly used as Babysitters , Valet s, and workers on the Political Campaign s of other politicians (including that of his wife who was running for Detroit city council) instead of working in his offices for governmental purposes. The allegations run the gamut including babysitting and tutoring Conyers' children, chauferring him to private functions, paying for bills at hotels and restaurants, and working on various political campaigns including local Michigan elections and a campaign for Conyer's wife, Monica. According to a Detroit Free Press article, one aide reported that she picked Conyers' kids up from school, drove them home, helped with their homework, made dinner, and set them to bed while on the congressional salary. Conyers' lawyer has stated that they have been "fully forthcoming" on the allegations in the committee report. [http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060302/NEWS01/603020473/1004/NEWS02] Spokesmen for Monica Conyers have denied at least the allegations concerning her campaign, stating that the former staff members are simply "disgruntled employees who couldn't cut it in the work force."[http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/04/12/griffin.conyers/index.html] SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS
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