Jack Gargan (politician)
| Jack Gargan | |
|---|---|
| Born |
John Gargan October 20, 1930 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Political party | Reform |
John "Jack" Gargan (born October 20, 1930[1]) is a retired financial planner in the United States who became the second chairman of the Reform Party (after Russ Verney) started by Ross Perot. He was ousted from this position by a 109–31 vote in February 2000.[2] He is also known for the creation of Throw the Hypocritical Rascals Out (T.H.R.O.). An organization whose platform was to vote out all incumbent members of congress and to set term limits.
Life and career
John “Jack Gargan was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on October 20, 1930. In March 1932, Gargan’s father died and he was orphaned. (He was not "orphaned" in the popular sense of the word; he remained with his biological mother, Frances Kerhart Gargan Beck, through high school; his mother died November 13, 1994 at the age of 91.) Gargan graduated from Prospect Park High School in June, 1948. From there, Mr. Gargan served in the US Navy and was honorably discharged in Jun 1952, and then served in the US Army and was honorably discharged in June 1954.
Following his service in the military, Gargan attended Birmingham-southern College and graduated with a degree in Business Administration. By 1970, Gargan had moved to Florida and attending Stetson University College of Law.
Gargan had a career as an insurance agent and financial consultant since 1957 as well as a professional handwriting analyst since 1962. He was an adjunct professor of Finance until 1986.[3]
In 1984, Gargan became the founder and past President and CEO of The International Association of Registered Financial Consultants (IARFC).
In Florida in 1990, Gargan funded a series of "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore" (a reference to a famous quote from the 1976 political and mass media satire movie, Network) newspaper advertisements denouncing U.S. Congress for voting for legislative pay raises at a time when average wages nationwide were not increasing. Gargan later founded Throw the Hypocritical Rascals Out (T.H.R.O.), which Ross Perot supported.
Gargan was a speaker at the 2000 Libertarian National Convention.
In 1998, Gargan ran on the Reform Party ticket for the United States House of Representatives, 5th Congressional District seat against Democrat Karen Thurman. Gargan received 33.7% of the vote to Thurman's 66.3%. In 2002, Gargan ran again for the seat, this time as an independent in a three-way race. He received 3.39% of the vote. In this race, the Democratic incumbent Karen Thurman was defeated by Republican Ginny Brown-Waite.
Early Political Career
Gargan ran for Tampa Bay City Council in 1976 as a protest candidate, but lost 2 to 1 to Sandra Freedman.[4] In 1984, angry over the ease with which charlatans were able to register as authorized financial planners, Gargan submitted his dog, “Beauregard, for membership in the International Association for Financial Planning. The half-Schnauser, half-poodle received a membership card in the name Boris ‘Bo’ Regaard, CFP, CLU Certified Financial Planner, Chartered Life Underwriter.[5]
Publications
Jack Gargan is the author of “How to Get Around Income Taxes,” “How to Get Around Estate Taxes,” “The Complete Guide to Estate Planning,” and “Milking Your Business for all its Worth.”[6]
References
- ↑ "Man Spreads Money Message". Chillicothe Gazette. 23 March 1991.
- ↑ Kellman, Laurie (13 February 2000). "Reform Party ousts Gargan". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. p. A6. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
- ↑ . Ybor City Rotarian. 15 May 1991. Missing or empty
|title=(help) - ↑ "Retiree vs. the Rascals: Not over yet". USA Today. 3 December 1990.
- ↑ "Anger Fuels His Incumbent Hit List". The Miami Herald. 1 November 1990.
- ↑ "Fed up, fired up, he's mad as ... at Congress". Chicago Tribune. 7 October 1990.
External links
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Photograph of Jack Gargan at the Geoghegan family genealogical site.
