Mike Collins
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Georgia's 10th district
Assumed office
January 3, 2023
Preceded byJody Hice
Personal details
Born (1967-07-02) July 2, 1967
Jackson, Georgia, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseLeigh Ann Collins
Children3
RelativesMac Collins (father)
EducationGeorgia State University (BA)
WebsiteHouse website

Michael Allen Collins Jr. (born July 2, 1967) is an American politician and businessman serving as the U.S. representative for Georgia's 10th congressional district since 2023. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life and career

Collins graduated from Georgia State University with a bachelor's degree in business. He has operated several businesses, including a trucking company.[1]

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2022

Collins ran to represent Georgia's 10th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives in the 2014 elections, when incumbent Paul Broun was not seeking reelection. Collins finished in second place in the primary election to Jody Hice, advancing to a runoff election.[2] Hice defeated Collins in the runoff.[3]

After Hice announced that he would not seek reelection in the 2022 elections, Collins announced his candidacy.[1] Collins and Vernon Jones advanced to a runoff election,[4] and Collins defeated Jones in the runoff on June 21.[5] Collins defeated Tabitha Johnson-Green, the Democratic nominee, in the November 8 general election.[6]

After his election, Collins drew attention for hiring Brandon Phillips as his chief of staff. Phillips was arrested in November 2022 on a misdemeanor charge of animal cruelty for kicking a dog, and had two previous criminal incidents, including pleading guilty to criminal trespassing and battery for a 2008 incident when he attacked a man and slashed his car's tires, and threw a woman's laptop.[7]

118th Congress

2023 U.S. House of Representative Impeachment Inquiry into U.S. President Joe Biden

On December 13, 2023, Collins voted to formalize the impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden.[8]

Budgetary Policy

Collins was among the 71 Republicans who voted against final passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 in the House.[9]

In December 2023, Collins used a music-themed Mariah Carey display on the floor of the United States House of Representatives titled "All I want for Christmas is 12 appropriations bills".[10]

Community Policy

In December 2023, Collins' H.R. 1734 Testing, Rapid Analysis, and Narcotic Quality (TRANQ) Act passed both the House and the Senate and was sent to the President of the United States to be signed into law. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Collins was "in line to become the first member of this year’s freshman class to see a bill signed into law."[11][12]

Collins' 10th District is located within Georgia's I-75 Central Corridor.[13]

Foreign Policy

Collins was among 47 Republicans to vote in favor of 2023's H.Con.Res. 21 which directed President Joe Biden to remove U.S. troops from Syria within 180 days.[14][15]

Collins voted to provide Israel with support following 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.[16][17]

Technology Policy

After the 2023 Collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, Collins gained attention around the time of the October 2023 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election for his internet content. Around the same time, OpenAI fired and rehired Sam Altman after the President of the United States issued an executive order to regulate artificial intelligence with the United Nations involved.Twitter, X, soon suffered an advertiser withdrawal as Elon Musk went on a profanity-laden tirade and Mark Cuban sold the Dallas Mavericks and announced plans to leave Shark Tank and to not run for President of the United States. Soon thereafter, Liz Cheney considered running for President of the United States as a third-party candidate.[18][19][20][21][22][23][24] In mid-December, the Federal Communications Commission denied Musk's Starlink funding and then Musk announced that "DEI must DIE".[25][26]

Transportation Policy

Collins called for the impeachment and resignation of United States Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg in 2023.[27]

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:[28]

Caucus memberships

Personal life

Collins's father, the late Mac Collins, also served in the House of Representatives, representing Georgia's 3rd congressional district.[30] Where Georgia's Interstate 75 Exit 205 and Georgia's Highway 16 cross is known as the "Congressman Mac Collins Memorial Exchange".[31] Collins and his wife, Leigh Ann, have three children.[30] Collins is a Methodist.[32] Collins' business 'Collins Trucking' is a sponsor of the Butts County, Georgia Historical Society.[33]

References

  1. 1 2 "GOP businessman Mike Collins joins race to succeed Congressman Jody Hice". Onlineathens.com. June 8, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  2. ↑ Cochran, Kelsey. "Hice, Collins move on to July runoff". Online Athens.
  3. ↑ "Georgia Runoff Results for House Races: Ex-Congressman Bob Barr Loses Comeback Bid". Roll Call. July 23, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Collins, Jones in GOP runoff in Georgia's 10th Congressional District". Ajc.com. May 25, 2022. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  5. ↑ "Collins beats out Trump-backed Jones for Georgia GOP House nod". The Hill. June 17, 2022. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
  6. ↑ "Mike Collins wins election in Georgia's 10th congressional district". ajc.
  7. ↑ Lippman, Daniel (December 13, 2022). "GOP operative who allegedly kicked a dog hired as top aide to new congressman". Politico. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  8. ↑ "House formally approves Biden impeachment inquiry". December 14, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Republicans and Democrats who bucked party leaders by voting no". The Hill. May 31, 2023. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Georgia Rep. Mike Collins uses Mariah Carey poster to encourage colleagues". December 14, 2023.
  11. ↑ "PG A.M.: GOP state lawmakers use special session to muscle Democrats". The Hill. December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Collins' TRANQ Act Headed to White House to be Signed into Law". The Hill. December 5, 2023. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
  13. ↑ "I-75 Central Georgia Corridor Coalition". December 14, 2023.
  14. ↑ "H.Con.Res. 21: Directing the President, pursuant to section 5(c) of … -- House Vote #136 -- Mar 8, 2023". March 8, 2023.
  15. ↑ "House Votes Down Bill Directing Removal of Troops From Syria". Associated Press. March 8, 2023.
  16. ↑ Demirjian, Karoun (October 25, 2023). "House Declares Solidarity With Israel in First Legislation Under New Speaker". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  17. ↑ Washington, U. S. Capitol Room H154; p:225-7000, DC 20515-6601 (October 25, 2023). "Roll Call 528 Roll Call 528, Bill Number: H. Res. 771, 118th Congress, 1st Session". Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved October 30, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  18. ↑ "'Memer' of the House". October 25, 2023.
  19. ↑ "Mike Collins is the Republican Troll We Need". New Republic. October 23, 2023.
  20. ↑ "Could X go bankrupt". December 2, 2023.
  21. ↑ "We now have more details on what the heck happened at OpenAI". Business Insider. December 1, 2023.
  22. ↑ "The fallout from Musk's profanity-laden attack on advertisers isn't over". The New York Times. December 1, 2023.
  23. ↑ "Mark Cuban grants sweet relief on a grateful nation". The New Republic. December 1, 2023.
  24. ↑ "Liz Cheney says she's ready to consider a third party, warns of 'grave' threat of Trump-led GOP". USA Today.
  25. ↑ "The FCC Ambushes's Musk's Starlink".
  26. ↑ "Elon Musk says DEI must Die, explains why". Fox Business.
  27. ↑ "Pete Buttigieg resignation demanded on House Floor". Fox News. March 8, 2023.
  28. ↑ "Mike Collins". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  29. ↑ "3 strikes for McCarthy — but he's not out yet". POLITICO. January 3, 2023. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  30. 1 2 larry.stanford@rockdalecitizen.com, Larry Stanford (September 17, 2021). "Mike Collins kicks off his campaign for Georgia's 10th Congressional District". Jackson Progress-Argus.
  31. ↑ https://buttscountyga.com/2023/06/06/cr202303/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  32. ↑ "Religious affiliation of members of 118th Congress" (PDF). PEW Research. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  33. ↑ https://buttscountyhistoricalsocietyinc.org/home. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.