Tony Kozycki
August 27, 2026 · Newsletter
Rich McCormick Was Invited to Debate. He Left an Empty Podium Instead.
Last week, I walked into a packed room in Dawsonville, GA for the first debate of our six-county series across GA-07. Every seat was full. The fire marshal would not have approved. The only thing missing was the MAGA incumbent, Rich McCormick.
I hand-delivered a written invitation to McCormick’s office the week after I won the Democratic nomination with nearly 70% of the vote. I followed up through his team and the press. McCormick never responded, and never showed. So I answered every question anyway: Iran policy, veterans’ care, Social Security, immigration, gerrymandering, and why my opponent won’t hold an open town hall.
Watch the full debate here:
A few moments worth your time:
[06:33] The elephant in the room. I address McCormick’s absence head-on and at [07:00] walks through exactly how I tried to get him to show in Dawson County: a hand-written letter, a hand-delivered copy to McCormick’s own office.
[08:24] Combat veteran, not a talking point. I lay out my military record: Naval Academy, F-18 Naval Aviator, three combat deployments, before connecting it directly to sailors, my friends, currently serving on the USS Abraham Lincoln.
[56:16] The DACA story. A personal account of a friend who can’t visit her dying mother because of a broken immigration system and the moment I call out as the single issue I’d fix first.
[66:12] The gerrymandering gut-punch. I point out McCormick didn’t just benefit from a favorable map, he introduced a bill to help gerrymander another state entirely.
[73:21] “An empty podium really pisses me off.” Sharpest line of the night on why a representative, who won’t show up, can’t claim to know what his district needs.
[77:33] The closing line. I asks the room to help “pick up a needle” and start sewing the country back together and to send this video to a neighbor, whichever side of the aisle they’re on.
This is the first of six county debates across the district: Lumpkin, Cherokee, Hall, Forsth, and Fulton are still ahead. If Rich McCormick keeps skipping them, the only way voters see the contrast is if this video gets in front of them.
Watch it. Share it with someone in Dawson County. And if you want every debate in this series delivered straight to your inbox, subscribe below.
Watch the full debate → and if you’re able to, please donate what you can to the campaign at KozyckiforCongress.com
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