Jerry Weller (born July 7, 1957) is an American politician who has been a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 1995, representing the 11th District of Illinois (map). He was born in Streator, Illinois, was educated at the University of Illinois, and was a staff member for Representative Tom Corcoran, assistant to the director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture, an aide to Secretary of Agriculture John R. Block and a member of the Illinois House of Representatives before entering the House. He serves as Deputy Majority Whip and is a member of the Ways and Means Committee where he gained national recognition for his efforts to eliminate the marriage penalty. He also sits on the House International Relations Committee- Western Hemisphere, which oversees all legislation and policy regarding Guatemala, among many other countries in the western hemisphere.
On November 20, 2004, just after being re-elected, Weller married Zury RÃos Montt in her father's home in Guatemala. The marriage has raised some controversy, as Montt's father is former Guatemalan dictator General EfraÃn RÃos Montt. The General lost the 2003 presidential election, but both father and daughter remain highly visible political figures. This has caused concern among 11th district voters, who have asked that Weller make a public statement renouncing General Rios Montt's past actions.
A member of the Guatemalan Congress, Zury RÃos Montt has been married previously to Jeovanny Chávez, Garci'a Bravatti, and Lopez Villatoro. She has also used her mother's name RÃos Sosa, but in Guatemala and on her official website she is known by her father's name, RÃos Montt.
She has been accused of being one of the organizers of Black Thursday. In the summer of 2003, the FRG party was trying to get RÃos Montt's father on the presidential ticket, even though numerous government rulings went against him because of his policy of genocide in the early 1980s when he seized control of the government in a military coup. FRG officials and supporters took part in a bloody riot that left one man dead, but did succeed in getting General RÃos Montt's name on the presidential ticket nomination. He lost the election. However, he has always had his daughter's full support and admiration. She was quoted in a Guatemalan newspaper for the following remark: "my father is my inspiration."
In March 2006 RÃos Montt and Weller announced that she was pregnant , and that the child was to be due in August . RÃos-Montt de Weller was quoted in La Prensa newspaper as saying they had not yet decided if the child would be born in Guatemala or the United States.
Weller's advocacy and vote for CAFTA - his vote being one of two that passed CAFTA - disturbed some voters in his district. He had promised prior to his marriage to Rios Montt that he would not vote on any legislation involving Guatemala. However, Weller has long supported free-trade agreements. As an FRG party leader, Mrs. Rios-Montt de Weller is also a supporter of CAFTA.
