Watauga Students Meet with North Carolina Representative Virginia Foxx

NC House Representative, Virginia Foxx, in the Watauga High School auditorium. Foxx has been serving North Carolina for 19 years. She represents the 5th Congressional District which includes counties Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Caldwell, Guilford, Rockingham, Stokes, Surry, Watauga, and Wilkes. Photo Creds: Charlie Stumb, Yearbook

Andrew Larsen, Staff Writer for The Powderhorn, and Carrie Bradbury, Review Desk Lead

North Carolina House Representative, Virginia Foxx, visited Watauga High School on October 24, 2025 to speak with the students currently taking AP United States Government and Politics. She gave an hour-long speech where she shared the story of her impoverished upbringing, her political background before joining the House of Representatives, and how current events have shaped her personal politics during President Trump's current term. This meeting with Foxx allowed students, who are currently learning about the systems within the United States government, to have the opportunity to interact with a government official from Watauga County.

The presentation started off with Foxx giving a summary of her background and how it shaped her into the person she is today. For Foxx, her upbringing is something that began her political narrative long before she stepped into the North Carolina Senate, making it a focal point of her politics. 

"It does make a difference in our philosophy, I think, as to how you grow up and what your experiences are," said Foxx. 

Foxx escaped poverty through her success in college. Attending both Appalachian State University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Foxx dedicated herself to education. Both her childhood and schooling left Foxx a deep connection to North Carolina, making her want to serve the state in government. 

"[My husband and I] moved back here in 1968 because this is where we always wanted to live," said Foxx. "I love living here, I love knowing some people in Watauga County."

After Foxx finished giving her backstory and experiences within a political setting, students were given the opportunity to ask questions, which they had prepared in class before meeting Foxx. A handful of students took this opportunity to ask questions that either pertained to themselves, Watauga High School, or the state as a whole.

Caroline Strickler, a sophomore, had a particular interest in learning more about Foxx's backstory and how that affected her opinions regarding poverty in the current economic climate. 

“What are you planning on addressing for North Carolina in a new bill to help impoverished students and families?” asked Stickler. 

Foxx responded quickly to Strickler by redirecting her answer to focus on enumerated rights given to representatives by the United States Constitution. 

“I see nowhere in this book, in this Constitution, that it says that the United States government has a responsibility to help impoverished people," said Foxx. 

Following her first point, Foxx explained how she believes people can find success in the United States. Foxx then segued into her next point about the importance of education and the work she has done to support the education system.

“There is a path to wealth in our country,” said Foxx. “First, you get a good education and you get a good job, and if you're interested in getting married, you get married, and you have children. If you follow that pattern, you have only a 2% chance of being in poverty.”

Within the US Constitution, the elastic clause serves to allow the government to accomplish duties that aren’t specifically stated in the Constitution. While providing for all citizens despite socioeconomic status is not explicitly stated within the Constitution, some people consider it a responsibility of the US Government. 

A very different topic, but one that is equally prevalent and important for Watauga students, is issues regarding immigration. Sophomore Addilou Tobiassen asked Foxx about what she plans to do in the future to protect both immigrated citizens and their healthcare plan.

“Why do you not include the extended premium tax credits for millions of American citizens so we could continue affording healthcare, knowing that undocumented immigrants are not included?” said Tobiassen. 

Foxx responded to Tobiassen’s question by focusing on her concerns regarding undocumented immigrants in the United States. 

“We don’t know how many illegal aliens we have in our country, but we have a lot, and some of them are criminal, illegal aliens. I advocate very strongly for having the illegal aliens taken out of our country. I don't have any problems with these people. In fact, I would, if the Lord put me in charge, I would help make those people legal,” said Foxx. “You can become a citizen in this country if you have a child, and I don’t know every bit of the law, but you can.”

Foxx discussed Tobiassen's question about obtaining affordable healthcare for more American citizens. Foxx connected the lack of affordable healthcare to the government shutdown.

“52 Republicans voted to pass the House bill, along with 2 Democrats, and 1 independent, so that was 55 people. They needed 60,” said Foxx. “So the other Democrats would not vote for it even though Chuck Schumer, who’s the head of the Democrats, had voted in March for the exact same thing.” 

During Foxx’s response, she explained how immigrants should transition into becoming legal citizens. Tobaison originally asked about the connection between immigration and healthcare, but didn't feel like her question was sufficiently answered.

“I remember her saying that she was all for helping immigrants, she just didn’t want them to become citizens, which confused me and I didn’t really know what to say,” said Tobiassen.

Mr. Vining, one of the AP US Government and Politics teachers who was present at the speech, reflected upon her statements regarding the government shutdown, highlighting that the facts she presented were partisan in nature. 

"To me, it seems as though Virginia Foxx's response to the government shutdown was that she put a lot of the blame on House Democrats for Medicaid funding,” said Vining. “I think that's the reason why she was upset with the government shutdown, because she believed it was a partisan thing.”

For the duration of the shutdown, the Democrats have been seeking to extend healthcare subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, which reduces the costs of healthcare for those below the Federal Poverty Level, currently a $32,150 yearly income for a family of four. These tax credits are set to expire at the end of 2025, if legislation is not passed to extend them. 

Foxx went into the origins and definition of the word gerrymandering explaining how she has no power over the redrawing of districts within North Carolina.

“Members of Congress have no authority at all to work on gerrymandering. Redistricting is prescribed in the Constitution to be done every 10 years. In North Carolina it is done by the legislature. The governor has no power. Some states have independent commissions, but these commissions are not really independent because they’re appointed by the legislature,” said Foxx. “The legislature will appoint their friends to make sure that they draw the districts the way they want them drawn.” 

Foxx expressed that redistricting is a needed system in order to uphold democracy. She describes how she believes Democrats use redistricting to their advantage. Gerrymandering is a process that happens during redistricting, when the voting district lines are drawn to benefit the party in power. As a member of Congress, Foxx has the power to vote in favor of legislation that outlaws the practice. Foxx in the past has voted no on legislation that would make gerrymandering illegal. 

Senior Kole Denny asked Foxx about the relationship between her and the public because he has previously noticed Foxx’s perceived lack of availability to constituents.

"I was hearing in an interview from you that you don't do town halls because you think they're an excuse for your constituents to yell at you," said Denny. "Do you believe it is a right for all constituents to hold their politicians accountable? How do you make up for this absence, and do you plan to hold town halls in the future?"

Representative Foxx responded by expressing her desire to speak with her constituents and outlining how to contact her. 

"I'm here today, right? I'm very happy to come here and talk to you all. I'm very happy to talk to people in my office,” said Foxx. “I talk to more people than any member of Congress. I will guarantee you that. If anybody wants to meet with me, all you have to do is send me a note through my website and say you'd like to talk with me or meet with me, and I'll even talk with you on the phone or meet in my office. Or if you want to write me a letter, you'll get a personal response. I'm very accountable. "

According to the Watauga Democrat, groups of Foxx's constituents have been protesting outside of her office in Boone. Each protester has filed requests to meet with her, receiving either an automatically generated response or no response. Phone calls to Foxx's office and mail sent to her P.O. box yield no reply.

Having the opportunity to talk to Representative Foxx provided a chance for students to discuss civic issues with a federal politician. While some students might have disagreed with Foxx’s answers, having the opportunity to have a face-to-face conversation with a representative showcases part of the legislative process in the United States. The interaction with a local politician gave students a better understanding of what a career in politics may look like.