Rep. Jody Hice of the right-wing Freedom Caucus represents part of Clarke County, in a wildly gerrymandered district. But he does not represent the views of the majority of Athens citizens.
Hice is unknowledgeable about law or our constitution. A former small-town right-wing talk show host, he never held public office before his election.
Hice is so radically right-wing that he is even out of step with the ultra-conservative House GOP. Hice was passed over by the GOP House leadership to take over as the top GOP member of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, although he had seniority.
Hice has stated there were no campaign meetings with the Russians. What about Don Jr.’s Trump Tower Russian operative meeting?
Hice applauded Attorney General Bob Barr for dismissing charges against disgraced Gen. Michael Flynn, who had twice pleaded guilty to charges of lying to the FBI about his interactions with the Russians. Over 2,000 former DOJ lawyers have asked Barr to resign over his clearly political actions in the case, undercutting the rule of law.
Hice tweeted on July 3, 2019: “It is impossible to have limited government in a secular society. The more we kick God out of the public square the more important government becomes in our life.”
He has stated that he wants “Roe v Wade” found unconstitutional. Hice, an NRA member, also voted against the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act (VAWA) which protects women against abusive husbands owning firearms. Regarding women running for office, per Hice: “If the woman’s within the authority of her husband, I don’t see a problem.”
Hice states that “American gun manufacturers are being punished unfairly” by the ATF. His view is that gun violence is due to “kicking God out of the public square”, wanting all firearm restrictions lifted.
He has also repeatedly voted to kill the Affordable Care Act, providing 23 million Americans with insurance.
Hice wants to abolish the law reuniting extended immigrant families. Under this provision, preference for legal immigration is given for the grandparents of a family which has legally immigrated here. Although immigrants have a lower crime rate than other Americans, Hice’s web site is filled with rhetoric about immigrant “rapists, child molesters, and other sex offenders”, sounding much like Trump and Steven Miller.
He believes Islam “does not deserve First Amendment protection” (from his 2012 book). And that conversion therapy prevents “enslaving and entrapping potentially hundreds of thousands of individuals” in the LGBTQ lifestyle.
Hice has tweeted he wants to “expose the Democrat collusion delusion.” Hice totally ignores the mountain of evidence about Trump’s misuse of power, choosing instead to attack the process.
I’m hoping that someday gerrymandering will stop, and Athens voters will be able to select representatives who really represent their views.
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