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Congressman Patrick McHenry became only the third person in forty years to represent the people of North Carolina’s 10th Congressional District with his victory in the 2004 election. The congressman won a competitive four-candidate primary and then an extremely close runoff election by 85 votes. The district stretches from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the South Carolina border.
Born in 1975, Congressman McHenry is the youngest member of the 109th Congress. He won membership on the House Financial Services Committee in January of 2005, which drafts and reviews all federal legislation involving the banking and financial services industry, including insurance companies, banks, credit unions, as well as legislation that relates to monetary policy, investment, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Congressman McHenry also serves on two additional committees: the House Budget Committee, which drafts the federal budget each year, and the House Committee on Government Reform, which has jurisdiction to investigate any federal program or department, and any matter with federal policy implications. He is Vice Chairman of the House Republican Conference’s Retirement Security Team, and a member of the Executive Committee of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC). Congressman McHenry is also a member of the Republican Whip Team.
Congressman McHenry is the recipient of several awards including: the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council's (SBE) "Small Business Champion"; the Americans for Tax Reform's (ATR) "Hero of the Taxpayer"; the Property Rights Alliance's (PRA) "Protector of Property Rights"; and, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's "Spirit of Enterprise" Award.
Legislative priorities:
• Second Amendment. Congressman McHenry is a strong proponent of the right to keep and bear firearms. He supports efforts to allow active and retired law enforcement officers to carry concealed weapons in any part of America. He is also a sponsor of “reciprocity” legislation, which allows people with concealed carry permits issued in one state to carry their weapons in other states.
• Pro-Life. Congressman McHenry strongly believes in protecting the rights of the unborn. He supports legislation that would put an end to abortion and assisted suicide, prohibit euthanasia, and opposes legislation that generally disregards the sanctity of human life.
• Traditional Marriage. Congressman McHenry believes that marriage is between one man and one woman, and is the principal institution that holds society together. He opposes efforts to allow same-sex marriage, and opposes the appointment of activist judges who legislate their values from the bench.
• Jobs. Congressman McHenry supports four principles to help bring good jobs to North Carolina. As small businesses are responsible for two-thirds of all new job creation, the congressman supports cutting regulations on small business that strangle job growth. He supports tort reform, which will lower the cost of heath care by limiting useless lawsuits. He supports the continued education and training of workers through institutions like community colleges. He also supports tax relief, which will spur economic growth and job creation, as taxpayers will spend more of their hard-earned dollars in the private sector.
• Social Security. Social Security is facing a crisis: In 12 years, the program will start paying out more money than it will receive from tax revenues. When the program was created, there were 40 workers for every retiree. Now there are only three workers per retiree. Congressman McHenry believes in reforming the Social Security system by allowing younger workers to voluntarily invest a portion of their Social Security taxes into a “nest-egg” that they can pass on to their children.
Congressman McHenry previously represented North Carolina House District 109 in the North Carolina House of Representatives. He is a graduate of Ashbrook High School in Gastonia, North Carolina and Belmont Abbey College, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in History. Congressman McHenry worked on the 1996 campaign staff of Robin Hayes for Governor, has been involved in two technology companies, and served as Coalition Director in the Bush for President Campaign in 2000. He also served as Special Assistant to the Secretary of the United States Department of Labor, a post he was appointed to by President Bush.
Congressman McHenry is a member of the Chambers of Commerce in all ten counties of the Tenth District, the Gastonia Rotary Club, the National Rifle Association and Saint Michael's Church. He also sits on the Board of Directors of the United Way’s Success by Six Youth Program.
Congressman McHenry maintains his residence in the Tenth District and commutes to Washington each week from his home in Cherryville, North Carolina.
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