Jim Hightower - Life and Career

Life and Career

Born in Denison in Grayson County in north Texas, Hightower came from a working class background. He worked his way through college as assistant general manager of the Denton Chamber of Commerce and later landed a spot as a management trainee for the State Department. He received a Bachelor of Arts in government from the University of North Texas in Denton, where he served as student body president. He later did graduate work at Columbia University in New York City in international affairs.

In the late 1960s, he worked in Washington, D.C., as legislative aide to U.S. Senator Ralph Yarborough. After managing the presidential campaign of former Senator Fred R. Harris of Oklahoma in 1976, he returned to Texas to become the editor of the magazine The Texas Observer. His first attempt at public office was an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic nomination for the Texas Railroad Commission, which regulates the oil and natural gas industries, rather than the railroads as the name indicates. In 1982, Hightower was elected Agricultural Commissioner, having unseated fellow Democrat Reagan V. Brown, who had ordered a quarantine of fruit coming into Texas from California. He served as agriculture commissioner until he was unseated in 1991 by the Democrat-turned-Republican Rick Perry, later the governor of Texas. His tenure was noted for fostering organic production, alternative crops, direct marketing by small farmers, and strong gross materials regulations. During that time, he also became a leading national spokesman for liberal populist and progressive Democrats and endorsed Jesse Jackson for president in 1988. Three of Hightower’s aides at the Agriculture Commissioner, Mike Moeller, Pete McRae, and Billie Quicksall were indicted and convicted on bribery charges related to Hightower's fund raising activities. The activities involved shaking down seed dealers under the departments oversight to make contributions to Hightower’s reelection campaign. While Hightower was not involved in the plot, it contributed to his defeat by Perry.

During the 1992 presidential election, he supported the candidacy of liberal U.S. Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa. After Harkin left the race, Hightower supported Jerry Brown, again the governor of California, and cast his superdelegate vote for Governor Bill Clinton at the 1992 Democratic National Convention.

Soon after Clinton was elected, Hightower became a critic of the president. He criticized Clinton for having accepted corporate soft money contributions, his support of NAFTA, his health care plan, and his refusal to crack down on "corporate welfare", as well as what Hightower viewed as inadequate efforts at fighting unemployment and poverty.

In 2000, he joined with talk show host Phil Donahue and actress Susan Sarandon to co-chair the presidential campaign of Ralph Nader. He also appeared at Nader's "super-rallies" and stumped across the country for him.

After the disputed outcome of the 2000 election, Hightower voiced the opinion that it was Vice President Al Gore himself, who lost his home state of Tennessee, and not Ralph Nader, who cost Gore defeat at the hands of Governor George W. Bush of Texas. Although he issued no endorsement of any candidate during the 2004 presidential primaries, he spoke and wrote approvingly of since defeated U.S. Representative Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, calling him a "clear populist with a lifelong history of unambiguous advocacy of populist principles." Once Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts won the nomination, Hightower endorsed him and urged fellow progressives to work for his election, saying, "I don't care if he's a sack of cement, we're going to carry him to victory." During this election, he also campaigned in support of the U.S. Senate bid of Doris "Granny D" Haddock, a friend and fellow activist who was running as a Democrat against incumbent Republican Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire.

Since 1993, Hightower has produced "Hightower Radio," a daily two-minute commentary carried by over 130 affiliates. He also hosted a weekend talk show on the American Broadcasting Company radio network and a weekday midday talk show on the United Broadcasting Network (later called America Radio Network). The show aired in thirty-eight markets around the United States. His producer was Rich Kennedy. Floyd Domino was his music director and co-host. Susan DeMarco, was also a co-host of the program and continues to work with him..

Hightower currently writes a nationally syndicated column carried by seventy-five independent weekly newspapers and other publications through Creators Syndicate. He also writes a monthly newsletter "The Hightower Lowdown," which has more than 125,000 subscribers. The newsletter is notable for its in-depth investigative reporting and criticism of George W. Bush's administration, which Hightower claims was beholden to corporations and extremist conservatives. He also writes for The Progressive Populist.