McCaul first ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2004 and won a crowded Republican primary in the newly created 10th District. The district, which included part of Austin, the western part of Harris County and several rural counties in between, was thought to be so heavily Republican that no Democratic candidate even filed, effectively handing him the seat.
In 2006 he defeated Democratic nominee Ted Ankrum and former Libertarian presidential candidate Michael Badnarik with 55% of the vote. McCaul was reelected again in 2008, against Democratic candidate Larry Joe Doherty and Libertarian candidate Matt Finkel,[4] 54% to 43%.
Four years later, he was reelected to a fourth term with 76% of the vote against Ankrum (22%) and Libertarian candidate Jeremiah "JP" Perkins (1%). McCaul won a seventh term in 2016 with 179,221 votes (57.3%) to Democratic nominee Tawana W. Cadien's 120,170 (38.4%). Libertarian Bill Kelsey received 13,209 (4.2%).[5]
In 2018, McCaul won an eighth term in the House with 157,166 votes (51.1%) to Democratic nominee Mike Siegel's 144,034 (46.8%) and Libertarian Mike Ryan's 6,627 votes (2.5%). It was the closest race of McCaul's career.[6]
He was elected to a ninth term in 2020, defeating Siegel again.[7]
On December 11, 2013, McCaul introduced legislation to require the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to conduct cybersecurity activities on behalf of the federal government and codify DHS's role in preventing and responding to cybersecurity incidents involving the information technology (IT) systems of federal civilian agencies and critical infrastructure in the U.S.[8][9] McCaul said the bill was "an important step toward addressing the cyber threat."[10]
Donald Trump
On December 18, 2019, McCaul voted against both articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump. Of the 195 Republicans who voted, all voted against both impeachment articles. He also voted against creating an independent commission to investigate the January 6 attack encouraged by Trump's false claims of electoral fraud. However, unlike Trump and most Republican legislators, McCaul did not sign the Texas v. Pennsylvania amicus brief to file a motion in support of the case.[11]
McCaul with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel, November 12, 2023
McCaul chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee.[12]
In April 2019, McCaul spoke out against a resolution that would end U.S. involvement in the Yemeni Civil War, saying it would "disrupt US security cooperation agreements with more than 100 countries."[13]
In 2021, McCaul strongly supported President Joe Biden's airstrikes on Iranian targets in Syria.[14]
McCaul said he supports heavily arming Ukraine with the weapons they need to win the Russo-Ukrainian War.[15] He believes the United States should send fighter jets and more missiles to Ukraine.[16] In February 2023, McCaul met the President of Ukraine in Kyiv and advocated for the United States to send more military aid to Ukraine, especially ATACMS.[12]
On April 23, 2023, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced sanctions over McCaul , alleging his frequent interference in China's "internal affairs."[18] In 2024, McCaul was targeted by the Chinese government's Spamouflage influence operation.[19]
McCaul is married to Linda Mays McCaul, the daughter of Clear Channel Communications founder and former chairman Lowry Mays and sister of its former CEO Mark Mays. In 2011, Roll Call named McCaul as one of the wealthiest members of the United States Congress, surpassing then U.S. senatorJohn Kerry. His net worth was estimated at $294 million, up from $74 million the previous year.[26] In 2004, the same publication estimated his net worth at $12 million. His wealth increase was due to large monetary transfers from his wife's family.[27]
Incumbent Michael McCaul faced Assistant Attorney of Austin Mike Siegel in the 2018 general election, winning by 4.3 percent of the vote. This is the closest contest McCaul has faced.[33] The outcome was notable in a district that political experts rated as "Heavily Republican."[34][35]
^ abLaco, Kelly (February 21, 2023). "House Foreign Affairs Chair McCaul leads GOP delegation to Kyiv". Fox News. Retrieved February 21, 2023. Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Michael McCaul traveled to Kyiv Tuesday with a congressional delegation to see 'first-hand' what is happening on the ground in Ukraine and conduct oversight to gain better insight on the Russia-Ukraine war. 'It's good President Biden visited Ukraine, but a photo op isn't enough,' said McCaul. 'He needs to get Ukraine the weapons they need to win now, especially ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile System), instead of slow-rolling them.'
^Herridge, Catherine; Kazarian, Grace (December 9, 2022). "Incoming House Foreign Affairs chairman favors heavily arming Ukraine '100%'". CBS News. Retrieved December 10, 2022. I think going with the amount of investment we've had is very small relative to destroying the Russian military," he told CBS News in an interview Friday. "And that's what we've done without one American soldier being attacked, killed or in country. To me, that's a pretty good investment." Asked if he would favor more heavily arming the Ukrainians to bring the war to a faster conclusion, McCaul responded, "100% because the longer you drag this out, the more bloodshed."
^Mueller, Julia (February 19, 2023). "Top GOP lawmaker urges US to send fighter jets, missiles to Ukraine". The Hill. Retrieved February 21, 2023. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) on Sunday said he's hopeful the U.S. will send more missiles and move to supply fighter jets to Kyiv as Russia's war with Ukraine approaches its one-year mark.
^Fox, Lauren; Alvarez, Priscilla (April 27, 2022). "Republican lawmakers slam Homeland Security secretary over the border". CNN. Retrieved December 10, 2022. McCaul cited the "remain in Mexico" policy, a program launched under the Trump administration that required non-Mexican migrants to stay in Mexico until their US immigration court date. "Don't rescind what was working," he said.
^"Our Members". U.S. House of Representatives International Conservation Caucus. Archived from the original on August 1, 2018. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
