Politics

McHenry picks Meadows over Patterson

By Bill Moss, Published: May 30, 2012

Congressional candidate Mark Meadows on Wednesday announced he had won the endorsement of U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry, a four-term incumbent from Cherryville who represents most of Asheville in the redrawn NC congressional map.

McHenry encouraged conservative voters to support Meadows "as the Christian conservative businessman most qualified and committed to repeal President Obama's assault on Western North Carolinians' values," the campaign said in a news release. Meadows faces Vance Patterson in the July 17 runoff.

"Mark Meadows is the only true conservative Western North Carolinians can count on to fight President Obama's assault on our values," McHenry said in a statement. "Mark is a conservative businessman willing to challenge the status quo in Washington and fix this broken economy. I strongly urge those who want less government and more conservative solutions to send Mark Meadows to Congress."

Meadows said he appreciates Rep. McHenry's support.

"Patrick and I share the same conservative vision for life, liberty, and less government," Meadows. "He's fought for these values, and I'm running to join the fight against liberals in Washington like Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama. Western North Carolinians have been hurt too badly by their assault on our values. They deserve better than more and more spending on big-government programs, funded by increasing taxes. They deserve a federal government that gets out of their way, so they can create jobs and provide for their families. I am committed to fight for them."

Rep. McHenry, the deputy Republican whip, is a member of the House Financial Services Committee and the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Meadows finished first among the eight candidates vying for the Republican nomination in the 11th district, which the state Legislature redrew to favor the GOP. Meadows won 38 percent of the vote to 23 percent for Vance Patterson, a businessman from Morganton.