Mike Collins | |
|---|---|
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's 10th district | |
| Assumed office January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Jody Hice |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 2, 1967 Jackson, Georgia, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Leigh Ann Collins |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Mac Collins (father) |
| Education | Georgia State University (BA) |
| Website | House website |
Michael Allen Collins Jr. (born July 2, 1967) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Georgia's 10th congressional district since 2023. He is a member of the Republican Party.
Collins graduated from Georgia State University with a bachelor's degree in business. He has operated several businesses, including a trucking company.[1]
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Main article: 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Georgia § District 10 |
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]
On December 13, 2023, Collins voted to formalize the impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden.[8]
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]
In December 2023, Collins's 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's 10th District is located within Georgia's I-75 Central Corridor.[13]
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] Collins supports the United States selling weapons to Taiwan, but voted against providing military aid to Ukraine during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[18]
Collins called for the impeachment and resignation of United States Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg in 2023.[19]
On January 24, 2024, Collins introduced a bill he called the "RAZOR Act" which would ban federal authorities from removing razor wire placed along the border with Mexico by the State of Texas and the Texas National Guard.[20][21]
After a migrant in New York City was released from jail without bail in February 2024 after allegedly attacking a police officer; Collins suggested the migrant be executed. Collins stated on X that the migrant should be given "a ticket on Pinochet Air for a free helicopter ride back.” Collins's post referenced the Chilean government's killing of dissidents on death flights carried out during the rule of Augusto Pinochet.[22] The migrant Collins had suggested be executed was later cleared of wrongdoing after the Manhattan District Attorney's office announced he had been misidentified.[23]
After the Killing of Laken Riley, who was a Georgia resident, Collins introduced the Laken Riley Act, which requires U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to detain undocumented immigrants charged with theft. The Laken Riley Act has passed the House of Representatives.[24][25]
Collins frequently posts memes on social media, jokingly declaring that "Press Releases are out, memes are in."[26] In March 2024, Collins replied "Never was a second thought" to an antisemitic post on X by user "Garbage Human", who was implicitly disparaging Washington Post journalist Maura Judkis for being Jewish. "Garbage Human" later confirmed they were alluding to Judkis' religion. Esther Panitch, the only Jewish member of the Georgia State Legislature, criticized Collins, saying "It’s one thing to mistakenly respond to an antisemitic account. It’s another thing to double down on it and gaslight us like it never happened.” Collins denied his post on X was antisemitic, stating he had called Judkis a "garbage human" because she had said the United States was "built on stolen land."[27][28][29][30]
In April 2024, amidst the ongoing pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses, Collins tweeted, "Not sure what y'all are doing up north, but we don't give them the time to encamp. Tazers set to stun!" Collins's post on X/Twitter was accompanied by a one-minute-17-second video clip depicting a series of scenes from the police crackdown on protesters at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, including a scene in which a Black man is seen lying on the ground in handcuffs while a Georgia State Patrol officer applies a taser to his leg and fires it. Other scenes in the video showed police struggling with protesters, protesters in handcuffs seated near an Atlanta Police prisoner transport van, and footage where the sound of police firing rubber bullets can be heard.[31][32] In May 2024, Collins approvingly shared footage of counter-protesters at the University of Mississippi heckling pro-Palestinian protesters. Collins praised the counter-protesters, posting “Ole Miss taking care of business." The footage showed a white student engaging in racist mockery of a pro-Palestinian black student by imitating a monkey. The video also showed the counter-protesters chanting "Lock her up!" at the pro-Palestinian student.[33][34][35]
In May 2024, following reports that presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. once said that a parasitic worm had been found in his brain, Collins posted on X, "You either die a Kennedy with a hole in the brain or live long enough to become a Kennedy with a hole in the brain", referring to the assassinations of Kennedy's father and uncle. His remark drew criticism.[36][37]
In July 2024, after Donald Trump was injured in an assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, Collins stated on his X account, without evidence, that Trump's 2024 United States presidential election opponent Joe Biden "sent the orders" for the shooting and that Butler County's district attorney "should immediately file charges against [Biden] for inciting an assassination."[38][39]
For the 118th Congress:[40]
Collins's father, the late Mac Collins, also served in the House of Representatives, representing Georgia's 3rd congressional district.[42] Where Georgia's Interstate 75 Exit 205 and Georgia's Highway 16 cross is known as the "Congressman Mac Collins Memorial Exchange".[43] Collins and his wife, Leigh Ann, have three children.[42] Collins is a Methodist.[44] Collins's business 'Collins Trucking' is a sponsor of the Butts County, Georgia, Historical Society.[45]