It was this time last year that we published our original “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day” profile of the elected U.S. House Representative from Virginia’s 4th Congressional District, Randy Forbes, the man who founded the Republican Prayer Caucus shortly after taking office back in 2001. We noted that Forbes’ religious fervor is problematic, especially because he’s a big ally of David Barton, the exposed fraud who posits an alternative history of the United States where our Founding Fathers created the country as a Christian nation. Forbes is always quick to waste Congress’ time on meaningless resolution to reaffirm the national motto as “In God We Trust”, and when the American Humanist Association sent letters to members of Congress asking them to honor the separation of church and state guaranteed in our Constitution back in 2012, Forbes declared it a violation of HIS 1st Amendment rights that they would even ask, and that they were trying to censor how he talks about his faith. As you might expect from a modern Republican, Forbes’ Christian faith seems to be greatly diminished whenever bills come up regarding helping the sick or poor, like Jesus actually talked about, but he certainly is a zealot when it social issues like abortion or gay rights are up for discussion, trying to deny both whenever possible. On the latter, Forbes argued against the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, was one of the first Republicans in 2004 to talk about a Constitutional amendment for a same sex marriage ban, and insisted on getting in the last word on the floor of the House to argue against ENDA, so that gays could continue to be discriminated against in the workplace. Not surprisingly, he now also supports measures that would allow Christian businesses to discriminate against the LGBT community based on their “religious faith”.
Forbes’ paranoia and Christian victimization continued in the past year since we talked about him, most notably in October of 2015 when he spoke at a prayer rally at his home church in Chesapeke, Virginia, and he told the gathered throng about a massive conspiracy under way where funding was being funneled to systematically aim at “ killing and destroying faith in America”:
“faith.If.”
So, yeah… he’s still a poor victimized Christian, and there are legions of wealthy atheists out to get him. Poor, poor Randy Forbes. Why, I almost would feel bad for him, if his voting record the past year and other statements he’s made didn’t make him look like such a self-righteous, bigoted nut, too:
- On February 3rd, 2015, Forbes co-sponsors and votes for the 60th Republican attempt at repealing the Affordable Care Act. This in spite of the fact that the law is not just working, but better than experts predicted.
- On March 3rd, 2015, Randy Forbes votes against funding the Department of Homeland Security as part of a Republican protest of President Obama’s executive orders on immigration.
- May 13th, 2015, Rep. Forbes co-sponsors and votes for HR 36, a ban on abortion at 20 weeks.
- June 26th, 2015: Forbes puts out a press release reacting to the Supreme Court legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide, seething at the news.
- August 27th, 2015: Randy Forbes discusses legislation he sponsors to make English the official language of the United States, claiming over half of the 50 states have passed laws to do so. The problem is, he’s omitting the fact that states that have passed such laws have seen them overturned by courts as unconstitutional.
- September 11th, 2015: Forbes votes against the United States’ nuclear treaty with Iran.
- September 18th, 2015: Rep. Forbes votes with most House Republicans to defund Planned Parenthood, based on highly edited “sting” videos submitted by a Pro-Life advocacy group that have been repeatedly debunked by investigators.
- October 22nd, 2015: After four years and a seemingly never-ending parade of hearings on Benghazi that proved no wrongdoing by the Obama administration, or Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Randy Forbes still wasn’t sure if he was satisfied, putting a poll on his website to ask people if it was important for the Benghazi House Select Committee to continue to waste taxpayer dollars on further inquisitions.
- November 19th, 2015: One day after signing on to a letter demanding President Obama stop accepting foreign refugees, Forbes votes for the American Security Against Foreign Enemies Act, reacting to the terror attacks in Paris by jihadists from France and Belgium by trying to create greater restrictions to keep out Syrian refugees, of whom exactly zero were involved in those attacks. One terrorist had a fake passport of a member of Assad’s army, apparently to create a false trail to help in their escape, or hoping that the attacks would be blamed on Syrian refugees, and the governments of nations like France and the United States would fall for it and not allow refugees to escape ISIS abroad. And… the Congressman fell for it.
- February 2nd, 2016: Randy Forbes votes for HR 3762, the 61st attempt by Congressional Republicans to repeal the Affordable Care Act (which is still working better than was predicted).
Forbes has learned through the years to earn the support of his district’s military contractors to ensure his re-election, and in 2014, won office again with 60% of the vote. After a gerrymandered Republican Congressional Map was rejected by courts as unconstitutional, Virginia’s 4th District has a +8 Democratic lean, and as a result, wouldn’t you know it…. Forbes has decided to skulk away to try to continue to stay in office in safer territory over in Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District, where there is a +4 Republican lean, challenging two other Republicans in the 2016 GOP Primary for the seat currently held by Scott Rigell, who is retiring.
We will not mince words, we are hoping that not only does Virginia’s 4th get flipped in the new Congressional map, but we’re hoping Forbes’ misadventures come to an end before he wins office in Virginia’s 2nd, and instead, Democrat Shaun Brown wins office and denies Forbes a ninth term in Congress.