Virginia Foxx criticizes Biden for domestic violence spike but refuses to support relief

Virginia Foxx is not unique in her disdain for Joe Biden and the Democratic Party. But this week she took it to a new and hypocritical level Tuesday in remarks she made to the House about a domestic violence bill — before voting against that bill.

Foxx was on the floor to discuss H.B. 2119, an improvement plan for the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA). She spent part of her time on the floor pointing out issues she blames on Biden that have potentially led to an increase domestic violence cases.

“COVID-19 and President Biden’s failed economic policies have dealt our nation government-mandated restrictions and economic challenges,” Foxx told the House. “It appears those negative outcomes have snowballed to exacerbate an even worse fallout.”

That fallout, she suggested, was an increase in domestic violence in North Carolina and across the country. “Recent statistics show that domestic violence-related homicides have increased in my home state of North Carolina,” Foxx told the House. “Domestic violence in any form is an evil that demands a strong response.”

But in spite of her apparent frustration with domestic violence trends, Foxx voted against H.B. 2119, which would have expanded funding for domestic violence prevention services across the country, saying it pushed “left wing priorities” and wasn’t bipartisan enough.

She wasn’t the only member of the Republican Party to vote “no.” She was joined by 199 of her closest friends, including the other seven Republicans in North Carolina. Yet she was the only North Carolina Republican to speak against the improvement plan, and despite alluding to the bill’s necessity, wouldn’t budge on the matter.

Foxx is entitled to her beliefs on abortion (ones that the majority of U.S. residents do not share). But some things, such as domestic violence prevention, should be non-negotiable.

Foxx claims H.B. 2119 paved the way for “taxpayer funded abortion,” despite the fact that federal taxes can’t be used to cover almost all abortions under the Hyde Amendment. Aside from that discrepancy, the bill does not mention reproductive care at any point, which could be the issue for Foxx. I reached out to Foxx’s Washington office multiple times for comment.

She also claims that religious organizations are hurt by the bill, presumably because abortions might get funded with the same tax dollars. The reasoning she has for this is also unclear: the bill specifically allows funds to be used to foster prevention programs with faith-based organizations.

“The bill also tramples the rights of faith-based providers by forcing organizations to abandon their sincerely-held religious beliefs, or give up helping victims through these programs,” she says.

Foxx has never been one to shy from reactionary politics. This past May, she and Rep. Greg Murphy sent a letter to the UNC-Chapel Hill chancellor expressing their “very strong disappointment in, and objection to” Nikole Hannah-Jones becoming a journalism professor. Months before, Huffington Post reported her indifference to setting off metal detectors in the House chamber days after the Jan. 6 insurrection attempt. It goes back years: in 2009, she called Matthew Shepard’s death a “hoax” while opposing new hate crime legislation (she later apologized, which was not accepted by Matthew’s mother).

North Carolinians shouldn’t condone her hypocrisy when others are being assaulted in their homes. Maybe it’s time for her to be a bit more flexible if she wants bipartisanship like she claims. Her Democratic counterparts have been for years.