AVL Watchdog reported some unsettling information about Madison Cawthorn: His comeback story does not flow. Newly elected Rep. Cawthorn said on the campaign trail that the car crash that paralyzed him when he was 18 and caused him to use a wheelchair impeded his dream of attending the United States Naval Academy, making it seem like he had been accepted, but was unable to attend. But, per the Citizen Times, the academy rejected him long before the accident.

Still, per the outlet, Cawthorn didn't correct the misrepresentation and his campaign website and social media pages feature pics of him wearing Navy gear and training in military fatigues. Although he didn't attend the Naval Academy, Cawthorn reportedly attended Patrick Henry College in Purcellville, Va., which is a " small evangelical Christian school often attended by homeschoolers and that has a reputation for successfully placing graduates into high federal government positions," per the Citizen Times, though he reportedly left after one semester due to his then-girlfriend breaking up with him.

His campaign website says he is a small businessman and the owner of a real estate investment company, though in a deposition with an insurance company after his accident, he reportedly testified that he had no job and lived off of his disability check. But misrepresentation about his education was the least of the candidate's issues heading into November 2020.

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