I Don’t Care What the Former First Drug Addict Thinks
A Theological and Philosophical Rebuttal to Tom Homan’s Dehumanizing Attack on Recovery
(Published in response to Fox News, July 22, 2025)
Introduction
There are some statements so spiritually bankrupt, so civically corrosive, so ontologically violent, that they demand more than a passing rebuttal—they require a public exorcism.
In a recent interview with Fox News, former ICE Director and Trump-era “border czar” Tom Homan responded to Hunter Biden’s public critique of border policies by saying:
“I don’t really care what the former first drug addict thinks.”
— Fox News Interview, July 22, 2025
It wasn’t a policy refutation. It wasn’t a factual correction. It was a sentence designed to exile.
Let me be clear: I do not defend the political stances of Hunter Biden. I defend the dignity of all those who have been to hell and lived to tell about it. I defend the principle that addiction is not a stain that disqualifies you from citizenship, credibility, or conscience. I defend the truth—scientific, theological, and civic—that people in recovery are not lesser humans.
Because when you use someone’s past addiction as the reason their voice should be ignored, you are not engaging in debate.
You are declaring war on redemption itself.
I. Theological Slander: Confusing Sin with Scarcity
Homan’s remark is not just impolite—it is heretical.
In Christian theology, identity is not fixed by past failure but transformed by grace. The New Testament is saturated with figures who were called by God precisely because of their brokenness:
The demoniac becomes an evangelist.
Saul becomes Paul.
The Samaritan woman becomes a messenger.
Peter denies Christ—then becomes the rock of the Church.
The thief on the cross becomes the first to walk into Paradise.
To reduce someone to “drug addict” while ignoring their recovery, healing, or attempts at moral repair is to utterly reject the gospel itself. Romans 8:1 does not read:
“There is therefore now no condemnation—unless you were once addicted.”
It says:
“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Even if Hunter Biden is not a believer, the theology of the imago Dei—the belief that all people bear the divine image—requires that we treat every human being as infinitely valuable, capable of renewal.
II. Philosophical Collapse: Disqualifying the Redeemed
Let’s suppose, for argument’s sake, that Homan truly believes addiction history disqualifies someone from participating in national discourse.
If that’s true, then:
George W. Bush—who overcame alcoholism—must never speak again.
Any veteran who struggled with opioids post-deployment must remain silent.
Any Christian leader who once relapsed must surrender their pulpit.
And Donald Trump—whose inner circle has included convicted criminals, porn stars, divorce attorneys, and ethically compromised aides—should perhaps never have been elected.
But of course, that’s not what’s really happening.
What Homan has done is weaponize selective moralism—a tactic where one side’s sins are exploited while the other's are forgiven by tribal exception. It’s not a standard. It’s a cudgel.
And it falls hardest not on Hunter Biden, but on every person trying to rebuild their life with trembling hands and a one-day chip in their pocket.
III. Civic Degradation: The Death of Mercy in Public Policy
From a civic standpoint, the implications are devastating.
When we teach that a past addiction disqualifies you from public discourse, we teach:
That recovery means nothing.
That your worst moment is your permanent resume.
That those who suffer from real illness—like substance use disorder—must forever walk through the world with gag orders sewn into their throats.
That is not justice. That is moral eugenics.
IV. What Kind of Church, What Kind of Country?
This is not about Hunter Biden anymore.
This is about the man in Arkansas who’s six months sober and just watched a national figure erase every ounce of progress he’s made.
It’s about the mother in Kansas who watched her son relapse—and now wonders if it’s even worth trying again.
It’s about the veteran in recovery who risked their life for this country only to learn their suffering makes them politically disposable.
To quote someone’s addiction history as a reason to ignore their speech is not just bad taste. It’s ontological warfare against the very idea of healing.
V. The Real Gospel Response
For those who claim Christianity:
You are not permitted to mock the redeemed.
You are not permitted to weaponize someone’s repentance.
You are not permitted to tell someone, “You were once broken. Therefore, shut up.”
Jesus did not say that.
He said, “Come to me.”
He said, “Your faith has made you well.”
He said, “Go and sin no more.”
He said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.”
VI. Reference & Evidence Section
This section contains direct links to Homan’s quote and contextual facts countering his claims:
🔗 Original Statement:
Fox News | Homan: “I don’t care what the former first drug addict thinks”
📉 Misleading Immigration Arrest Claims Debunked:
FactCheck.org | July 2025
⚖️ Reuters on ICE and Non-Criminal Detentions:
Reuters | Trump’s ICE arrested thousands of non-criminals
🧬 Addiction Is a Brain Disorder, Not a Moral Failing:
=NEJM | Volkow et al., 2016
🫣Words Matter: Non-Stigmatizing Language:
-NIDA Language Guide
🕊 SAMHSA Recovery Definition:
-SAMHSA Recovery Page
📘 Tom Homan Biography:
-Wikipedia | Tom Homan
Final Word
Let this be known: those who have suffered and survived addiction have more to say about mercy, perseverance, and justice than most political operatives ever will. Their voices are not liabilities—they are lanterns.
So when someone says, “I don’t care what the former drug addict thinks,”
you can answer:
“Then you don’t care what grace sounds like when it finally gets a voice.”
— J.S. Matkowski
Fayetteville, Arkansas