Addison Graves "Joe" Wilson Sr. (born July 31, 1947) is an American politician and attorney serving as the U.S. representative for South Carolina's 2nd congressional district since 2001.

[2] In September 2009, Wilson interrupted a speech by U.S. President Barack Obama to a joint session of Congress, shouting, "You lie!

Thereafter, he was a Staff Judge Advocate in the South Carolina Army National Guard assigned to the 218th Mechanized Infantry Brigade until retiring from military service as a colonel in 2003.

In 1981 and 1982, during the first term of the Reagan administration, Wilson served as deputy general counsel for former governor Jim Edwards at the U.S. Department of Energy.

During his tenure in the South Carolina Senate, Wilson was the primary sponsor of bills including the following: establishing a National Guard license plate,[13] providing paid leave for state employees to perform disaster relief services,[14] and requiring men aged 18–26 to register for the Selective Service System when applying for a driver's license.

[42] In 2003, Wilson voted for the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act, including its Section 1011 authorizing $250,000 annually of taxpayer money to reimburse hospitals for treatment of illegal immigrants.

[43] Wilson has sponsored and co-sponsored a number of bills concerning teacher recruitment and retention, college campus fire safety, National Guard troop levels, arming airline pilots, tax credits for adoptions, tax credits for living organ donors, and state defense forces.

The bill would also eliminate the Optional Practical Training program that allows foreign graduates to stay and work in the United States.

[53] Following the fall of the Assad regime, Wilson called for the lifting of sanctions related to the economy, investment, and reconstruction.

[54] On September 9, 2009, during a nationally televised joint address to Congress by President Barack Obama, Wilson shouted "You lie!

"[61][62] Wilson said later in a statement: This evening I let my emotions get the best of me when listening to the President's remarks regarding the coverage of undocumented immigrants in the health care bill.

[69] Several fact-checking organizations wrote that Wilson's view was inaccurate because HR 3200 expressly excludes undocumented aliens from receiving government-subsidized "affordability credits".

[76][77] After the incident, Wilson and Democrat Rob Miller, his 2010 general election opponent, experienced a significant upswing in campaign donations.

[79] On a 2002 live broadcast of the C-SPAN talk show Washington Journal, Wilson and Representative Bob Filner were discussing Iraqi weapons of mass destruction.

[83] In December 2020, Wilson was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated[84] incumbent Donald Trump.

The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.

[85][86][87] The PACT ACT which expanded VA benefits to veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during their military service, received a "nay" from Wilson.

It also tasks U.S. government agencies with reporting to Congress on improper influence, sanctions evasion, and the activities of Russian intelligence assets in Georgia.

[92] On 26 December 2024 Wilson wrote on X that “President Donald Trump has made it very clear where he stands on the self-professed enemies of America.

Are you ready for sanctions, Bidzina?”[95] On 27 December, Wilson, extended an invitation to President Salome Zourabichvili, recognizing her as the sole legitimate leader of Georgia, to attend the inauguration of Donald Trump.

"[96][97] On December 29, Wilson announced on X that he would introduce a bill in the U.S. Congress recognizing Salome Zourabichvili as the sole legitimate president of Georgia until fair re-elections are conducted in the country.

He stated that the proposed legislation, titled the "Georgian Nightmare Non-Recognition Act", would prohibit U.S. recognition of the "illegal dictatorial regime" in Georgia and reaffirm Zourabichvili's legitimacy as the country's leader pending free and fair elections.

[98] In November 2009, the New York Times reported that Wilson and Representative Blaine Luetkemeyer made identical written statements, reading, "One of the reasons I have long supported the U.S. biotechnology industry is that it is a homegrown success story that has been an engine of job creation in this country.

Unfortunately, many of the largest companies that would seek to enter the biosimilar market have made their money by outsourcing their research to foreign countries like India."

The statement was originally drafted by lobbyists for Genentech, now a Swiss biotechnology firm, but founded and still headquartered in San Francisco, California.

[103] In January 2023, Wilson proposed a bill to direct "the Fine Arts Board to obtain a bust of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, for display in the House of Representatives wing of the United States Capitol".

[111] In a 2005 guest article on Rediff.com, Wilson wrote that his father, Hugh, was a member of the Flying Tigers in World War II.

[120][123] Wilson was mentioned as a possible candidate for retiring Senator Fritz Hollings's seat in 2004, but decided to run for a second House term.

Challenged by Democratic nominee Sean Carrigan and American Party candidate Sonny Narang, Wilson was reelected in 2018 with 56.3% of the vote.

[141] Challenged by Democratic nominee Adair Ford Boroughs and Constitution Party candidate Kathleen K Wright, Wilson was reelected in 2020 with 55.66% of the vote.