Eugene Siler

Eugene Edward Siler Sr. (June 26, 1900 – December 5, 1987) was an American politician and member of the United States House of Representatives from Kentucky between 1955 and 1965. He was the only member of the House of Representatives to oppose (by pairing against) the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. That resolution authorized deeper involvement of the United States in the Vietnam War.

early life and career Siler, a self-described "Kentucky hillbilly", was born in Williamsburg, Kentucky, the son of attorney Adam Troy and Minnie (née Chandler) Siler. He was a staunch Republican and hailed from a traditionally Republican region of Kentucky. Siler served in the United States Navy during World War I and in the United States Army as a captain during World War II. Siler was a devout Baptist and became a renowned preacher. He abstained from alcohol, tobacco, and profanity; and, as a lawyer, rejected clients seeking divorces or who were accused of alcohol-related crimes. as well as the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, but did not vote on the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Siler was critical of U.S. involvement in Vietnam. In 1964, after deciding not to seek reelection, he quipped in jest that he would run for President as an antiwar candidate—he pledged to resign after one day in office, after ordering the troops brought home. He considered the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which authorized President Lyndon B. Johnson to take "all necessary steps" in Vietnam, as a "buck-passing" pretext to "seal the lips of Congress against future criticism." Siler was the sole member of the House of Representatives to vote against the Resolution.

Legacy In 1985, Cumberland College, in Siler's hometown of Williamsburg, built a men's residence hall named Eugene Siler Hall.