SC Rep., Freedom Caucus chair Adam Morgan announces run for Congressman William Timmons' seat

South Carolina Freedom Caucus Chair Adam Morgan has thrown his hat in the race to challenge U.S. Rep. William Timmons in the Upstate.

"We need strong representation who are ready to focus on the district, focus on the big fights in Washington, and the fights locally," Morgan, 34, told the Greenville News Tuesday, two days before he announced his official run at the Greer Depot.

The Greenville lawmaker, who derives inspiration from former congressmen like Jim DeMint, a known Tea Party ideologue, and Trey Gowdy, said he was focused on representing conservative values across Greenville and Spartanburg counties. He plans to join the U.S. House Freedom Caucus on day one.

"It is a numbers game, right? You have to find friends who are your people and have a positive impact on those people and provide leadership even as a freshman," Morgan said.

Timmons, the incumbent, has already announced that he is seeking re-election. In the last election cycle, Timmons enjoyed an endorsement from former President Donald Trump. This year, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, and Freedom Caucus leader U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, have thrown their weight behind Timmons.

“William is an asset to the Republican Conference – he’s an experienced leader who gets things done, and his background as a prosecutor makes him a key leader in our Biden impeachment investigations. I fully endorse his continued service in Congress,” Johnson said.

But Morgan is confident. Critical endorsements from Greenville County Sherriff Hobart Lewis and current and former state lawmakers, including his peers in the freedom caucus, have set the stage for a local show of force. Yet, the most noteworthy endorsement came from 5th Congressional District Congressman Ralph Norman, who has chosen to endorse a challenger to a sitting congressman in his delegation. Norman is also a Freedom Caucus member.

Norman went after Timmons and said he disagreed with toeing the party line in protecting former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

"I think people elect someone who recognizes what's at stake, and is willing to speak out even speak when that comes with personal attacks and animosity," Morgan said. "I know that I've faced that and I try to deal with it with a smile in a way that can win friends and influence people in the right direction."

In a press statement, Timmons had sharp words for Morgan’s record and focused on the Republican fighting in the Statehouse between the Freedom Caucus and the GOP conference.

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“I was born and raised in the 4th Congressional District. I know firsthand that Upstate voters are conservative, and they expect results,” Timmons said. “Adam Morgan thinks that by picking fights with fellow Republicans, he is advancing the conservative agenda, but we have enough self-serving, do-nothing politicians in Washington. We do not need another one.”

What to know about Adam Morgan

Morgan was born in Dallas, Texas in 1989. His family moved to South Carolina when he was in high school. He lives in Taylors with his wife, Megan Hamilton, and his three children, one of whom is a newborn.Morgan has already started discussing the journey to Washington D.C. and back with his family. Homeschooling his children has been an option that him and his wife have been considering to keep the family together.A Bob Jones University graduate, Morgan went to University of South Carolina for law school. He then worked at the Lexington-based Cofield law firm, and soon moved on to take over Majesty Music, a Christian music publisher based in Greenville, from his father-in-law Ron Hamilton.

In 2018, Morgan ran for S.C. House District 20 and has served on the transportation, legislative oversight and education committee. His brother, Alan Morgan, was elected in a special election after former Rep. Tommy Stringer announced his departure from the seat in 2022.

From South Carolina Freedom Caucus to the U.S. House Freedom Caucus

Morgan's decision to run began with his journey with the S.C. Freedom caucus. He shot to prominence last year when his group of hardline conservatives waged a war of words with the larger House Republican Caucus over a "loyalty pledge" that forbade Republican lawmakers from endorsing challengers against a sitting lawmaker.

“We changed the Statehouse,” Morgan said.

The outlier group has argued that the Republican caucus was not passing good, conservative bills despite a supermajority in the legislature.

“We're passing hate crimes legislation. We're passing a $1.3 billion handout and asking foreign companies to move here,” Morgan said on April 3, during a Freedom Caucus event. “I mean, crazy things with a supermajority."

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The larger GOP caucus has resisted the notion. They've instead categorized the group as a disruptive force.

Timmons, on a warpath, platformed the infighting.

“The facts are clear: Adam Morgan has failed to deliver results in Columbia and does not deserve a promotion to Congress. In his own words, Adam’s greatest 'legislative accomplishments' are filing a lawsuit and abandoning the Republican Party to form a third-party caucus that shrank in size under his ‘leadership’,” Timmons said.

Since its inception, the Freedom Caucus has gone after alleged teachings of critical race theory in Lexington and Charleston County. It demanded records related to gender-affirming healthcare for transgender youth from the Medical University of South Carolina, prompting the state institution to shut down services. Locally, members of the group also sued the Greenville County Council for allegedly breaking FOIA law and making budgetary decisions in a secret meeting.

In the House, members of the group introduced amendments to strip diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives from higher education institutions, opposed earmarks for pet projects and supported a bill that would make abortion a crime punishable with the death penalty.

Morgan did not join his peers. In previous interviews, Morgan has said his caucus members are not a monolithic group.

The Freedom Caucus itself was a brain-child of Mark Meadows, former Congressman and Chief of Staff for Donald Trump, and part of its funding comes from DeMint’s non-profit, Conservative Partnership Institute. The non-profit amassed over $45 million in revenue according to 2021 IRS filings. As the group grew, so did Morgan's interactions with the conservative movement on the national scale.

As a congressman, Morgan said he wanted to tamp down federal spending, balance the budget and focus on border security issues. He echoed the intention to rein in the Internal Revenue Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice and said these federal agencies were being used as "political weapons" against conservatives.

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"If we were focused on more core government functions, we would probably be able to find more common ground," he said, adding that he is generally against federal funding for welfare programs. "We need to get back to core government functions, especially at the federal level."

One core issue he would advocate for would be cutting the income tax. This is not new for the Greenville lawmaker. On the House floor, he often employed a similar rhetoric of focusing on core government issues.

Whether nixing the income tax is possible remains to be known, but Morgan said removing the income tax would help people have more spending money that would go right back into the economy.

When asked what sets him apart from Timmons, Morgan said he was not focusing on the incumbent's negatives.

"I'm running on my record," he said, adding that his candidacy could also be seen as a marker of a new and younger generation of leadership.

"I still have my student loans," he joked.

Devyani Chhetri covers SC politics for The News. Reach her via email at dchhetri@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: SC Rep. Adam Morgan announces run for US Rep. William Timmons' seat