Tony Kozycki
July 12, 2026 · Newsletter
What Democracy Is Supposed to Mean
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about why the founders set House terms at two years. It wasn’t an accident, and it wasn’t arbitrary. They wanted the people closest to the ground — in today’s reality, the ones paying the grocery bill, filling up the gas tank, waiting on a doctor’s referral — to have a direct, frequent say in who represents them in Washington. Two years is a leash, not a blank check. It’s supposed to keep a representative representative.
Rich McCormick (R-GA) has forgotten that as Georgia’s 7th District’s representative.
I served this country as a Naval Aviator. I worked alongside allies as a liaison officer. I’ve sat across from immigrant families as an attorney and watched what happens when the system fails people who did everything right. I’m running for this seat because I see a government that has stopped listening to the people, and I believe Georgia’s 7th deserves better.
So eleven days ago, I did something simple. I sent Rich a letter challenging him to six debates — one in every county of this district — so the people he represents could hear both of us, side by side, answer for our records.
The response has been overwhelming, just not from Rich:
Republicans have reached out wanting this debate.
Independents have reached out wanting this debate.
Nonpartisan civic groups have offered to host it.
Even longtime McCormick voters have told me they want to see him defend his record on a stage.
Rich’s answer? Silence.
Instead, I hear he’s planning a job fair at the end of July. I understand the instinct - after all, he’s the one who cheered on DOGE as it tore through the federal workforce, including nearly 1,300 probationary employees at the CDC, right here in Georgia. When a constituent at his own town hall pushed back on those cuts, Rich didn’t own it. He dismissed the work of laid-off federal scientists and public health workers as “duplicitous with AI.”
You don’t get to help cause the layoffs and then host a job fair for the people you laid off and call that leadership. That’s not solving a problem, that’s staging a photo op to distract from one you created.
And it doesn’t stop there. Rich is a doctor. He ran on that. He told the people of this district he understood healthcare from the inside and would bring costs down. That was the pitch. So where is it?
Premiums are up.
Prescription costs are up.
Georgians are choosing between medication and their mortgage.
Meanwhile, Rich has spent his time in Washington as a reliable vote for Donald Trump’s agenda, an agenda that’s driven up the price of gas, groceries, and healthcare while protecting a corrupt, self-dealing Epstein class instead of the people back home here in Georgia who trusted him with their vote.
I’m interested in accountability. That’s what those two-year terms are for. Rich, if your record is something to be proud of, prove it. Get on a stage.
Answer for the layoffs making Georgians suffer in the worst job market in decades due to policies you rubber stamp for Trump.
Answer for the price of gas rising due to an illegal war in Iran you want to see escalate further with a ground invasion costing American lives.
Answer for the veterans losing access to healthcare due to legislation you passed last year.
Answer for the families choosing between health insurance and their mortgage payments.
Answer for all of your votes that are making Georgians poorer, sicker, and less safe in the world.
The people of Georgia’s 7th aren’t fools, and they won’t be ignored. We’re still waiting, Rich.
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