It is a new year and the 118th Congress has begun. It’s an honor to continue serving you and our community representing North Carolina’s new 9th District. This includes all or portions of Chatham, Cumberland, Harnett, Hoke, Lee, Moore, Randolph, Richmond, and Scotland Counties. I will continue maintaining a district office in Fayetteville, while also operating a new primary district office in Southern Pines. My office locations can be found on my website at Hudson.House.gov.
Three counties I represented previously – Cabarrus, Stanly, and Montgomery – are now in North Carolina’s 12th and 8th Districts. It has been an honor to represent these communities throughout my time in Congress. Cabarrus County has also been home to me and my family for many years, and I am proud of all we have been able to accomplish together. My family and I are getting settled into the new home we purchased in Southern Pines. I look forward to serving the new 9th District and continuing to work on common sense solutions to challenges facing our entire region, Fort Bragg, and our nation.
Solving problems has always been my focus as your Congressman. Due in part to the misguided policies of Washington Democrats and the Biden administration, we have seen our nation weakened on many fronts. Across the country, families like yours have suffered the highest inflation in 40 years and record prices at the gas pump. In fact, North Carolina is experiencing some of the highest increases in gas prices in the country, up 14 cents from one week ago.
We have also witnessed an ongoing humanitarian and national security crisis at our southern border, as record numbers of illegal migrants crossed into the country over the course of last year. This border crisis has threatened the safety and security of communities nationwide, including exacerbating the fentanyl epidemic robbing countless Americans of their lives. President Joe Biden has been in office for more than 715 days, but last week announced his first ever visit to the southern border. This crisis can no longer be ignored, and House Republicans are ready to pass solutions to secure our border and protect our communities.
Washington Democrats have been largely unable, or unwilling, to address the many issues affecting you and your family. However, with Republicans now in the majority in the House, we have an obligation to address these issues and set things in the right direction. Our “Commitment to America” is a plan to do just that by implementing common sense policies to create an economy that’s strong, a nation that’s safe, a government that’s accountable, and a future built on freedom.
Last week, House Republicans hit the ground running to follow through on that agenda. I introduced my first bill of this Congress – the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act. H.R. 38 is a key piece of legislation that will protect law-abiding citizens’ rights to conceal carry and guarantees the Second Amendment does not disappear when we cross invisible state lines. It has even been called the “the greatest gun rights boost since the ratification of the Second Amendment in 1791.” I have introduced this bipartisan legislation each Congress and have promised to continue championing this measure until it becomes law.
Additionally, House Republicans voted on legislation to stop the hiring of 87,000 new IRS agents to spy on your bank account, a bill to block the Biden administration from selling oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to communist China, and pro-life bills to protect babies who survive a botched abortion and mothers who rely on crisis pregnancy centers.
We have a lot of work to do and it is an honor to serve as your Congressman. In this new year, and new Congress, I will never waiver from doing everything I can to fight for you and build a better future for your family.
Richard Hudson is serving his sixth term in the U.S. House and represents North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District. He currently serves as the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee and is a member of the House Republican Steering Committee.
