Tim Scott, the Senator from South Carolina, will be delivering the Republican Party’s rebuttal to President Joe Biden’s first Congressional Joint address. 

Who is Tim Scott?

Recognized as the only Black Republican in the Senate, Tim Scott started his political career from a seat on the Charleston County Council. Scott endorses conservatism without any qualms about it, reported The New York Times. This helped him reach a position of national prominence in the GOP. 

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Scott grew up in a poor, single-parent household in North Charleston, South Carolina. His parents divorced when he was seven. Living with his mother, Tim had to move every few years. He failed four classes in his freshman year at high school.

However, with the help of his mother’s mentorship and conservative principles, Scott managed to graduate from the Charleston Southern University before he started a small business. 

As Scott’s Senate biography page says, his mission statement is ‘to positively affect the lives of a billion people’. His first shot at public service was when he was elected to Charleston County Council. He then progressed and got elected in the South Carolina House of Representatives, the United States House of Representatives, and finally the United States Senate in 2013.

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Tim Scott’s legislation to create Opportunity Zones was passed as part of the 2017 tax reform package. He has worked for workforce development, education and diversity. Scott believes that federal spending and taxes should be reduced with a Balanced Budget Amendment and the Fair Tax respectively implemented for spending and taxes. He wants the Affordable Care Act to be repealed and supports strengthening penalties for employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants. He is a pro-life politician. According to him, United States’ withdrawal from Afghanistan would benefit Al Qaeda.