Despite the United States House of Representatives passing articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump this week, Congressman Mark Meadows is confident enough in Trump’s potential for re-election that he announced he was retiring from Congress — but not from work with President Trump.
“My work with President Trump and his administration is only beginning,” said Congressman Mark Meadows in a press release sent out early Thursday morning. “This President has accomplished incredible results for the country in just three years, and I’m fully committed to staying in the fight with him and his team to build on those successes and deliver on his promises for the years to come. I’ve always said Congress is a temporary job, but the fight to return Washington, DC to its rightful owner, We The People, has only just begun.”
Meadows was elected to serve Western North Carolina in Congress eight years ago after long-term Congressman Heath Shuler retired. Meadows, who has won re-election three times, made the decision not to seek a fifth term, the day before the filing deadline.
“For everything there is a season,” Rep Meadows said in a release. “After prayerful consideration and discussion with family, today I’m announcing that my time serving Western North Carolina in Congress will come to a close at the end of this term.”
When Meadows was first elected, he lived in Jackson County in the Cashiers community. While in office, he and his wife Debbie relocated to Asheville, just on the border of District 11.
During his tenure in Congress, Meadows began spending less time in the district and more time in Washington as he quickly climbed the ranks in the Republican Party. Meadows became a national name when he made headlines as being responsible for the government shutdown during his freshman year in Congress. Meadows was soon thereafter named founder and chair of the United States House Freedom Caucus, the leading Conservative caucus in Congress.
Once President Trump was elected, Meadows was frequently part of national politics, siding with the President on most topics. Rumors circulated that Meadows was being eyed for the President’s Chief of Staff post over the last few years, but the Congressman always maintained his duty was to Western North Carolina.
That, however, seems to be changing as Meadows will close out his tenure in Congress in 2020, right as President Trump would be starting his second term as President, if re-elected.
“I do intend to keep working with the President and his team in the future to continue delivering on his promises — though I don’t know what the next steps will be quite yet,” said Meadows. “I look forward to sharing those with you when the time comes.”
By Brittney Lofthouse