A father of seven whose home was raided by the FBI because of his pro-life activism has launched a campaign for a House seat in Pennsylvania, saying it’s time to bring back family, faith and freedom to Washington.
Mark Houck announced his run last Wednesday against incumbent Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick in the Republican primary race for the 1st Congressional District in southeastern Pennsylvania north of Philadelphia.
Although Mr. Houck previously voted for Mr. Fitzpatrick, he said it’s time for new representation and one that is reliably pro-life.
Mr. Fitzpatrick was one of three Republicans who voted for the Ensuring Access to Abortion Act of 2022, which would have restricted states from prohibiting out-of-state abortion access. He also joined 11 other GOP lawmakers in voting to strip Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Republican, of her committee assignments in 2021 when Democrats controlled the chamber.
“The republic is falling apart. Perhaps for such a time as this, I have been called,” Mr. Houck told The Washington Times.
He said his run-in with the FBI prodded him toward politics.
“My family was raided,” he said. “I don’t want any other American citizen to have to experience that.”
Mr. Houck was arrested at gunpoint last year at his home in front of his family when federal agents raided his home. He was charged with violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which makes it a federal crime to obstruct the entrance to an abortion facility.
A jury acquitted him.
The charge stemmed from a 2021 incident in which Mr. Houck pushed an abortion clinic worker who was harassing Mr. Houck’s son. Local law enforcement had dismissed the matter, but President Biden’s Justice Department decided to prosecute.
Mr. Houck and his family are pro-life advocates and pray on public sidewalks outside of abortion clinics for women and their unborn babies.
He told The Times that he has retained a lawyer to sue the feds and Planned Parenthood over the incident. He doesn’t believe the litigation will affect his campaign.
“What I am pursuing for Congress is nothing to do for the lawsuit,” he said. “We are pursuing justice on all those fronts for my wife and my seven children.”
His campaign’s top issues are limited government, pro-life work, education reform, and ensuring a strong military and support for veterans.
Focusing on protecting girls from transgender policies in schools and strengthening parental rights will be big issues in the 1st Congressional District for voters, he said.
“I am a home-school dad, so I am all about parental rights,” Mr. Houck said.
The 1st Congressional District is composed of Bucks County and part of Montgomery County. It is a purple territory where voters elected President Biden in 2020 and a Republican to the House in 2022.
Mr. Fitzpatrick, the GOP incumbent, has been representing the area since 2019 after his brother, Mike Fitzpatrick, previously held the seat. His campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment about his challenger or criticism of his pro-life record.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
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