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Part of: The House Ethics reimbursement investigation (2025-2026) · House Ethics Committee Investigation of Rep. Nancy Mace (OCC Review 25-5681)

Dispatch

Rare Earth, Wellness, and Defense Tech: Nancy Mace's Post-Congress Wish List

Maceopedia ·

U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace at the South Carolina Manufacturers and Commerce Washington Night, where she named rare earth minerals, wellness, and defense technology as post-Congress interests.
Photo: South Carolina Public Radio. Source

In the same breath she used to say she wants to "whittle sticks," Nancy Mace named the fields she plans to explore once she leaves Congress. Per South Carolina Public Radio's Maayan Schechter, those interests are:

rare earth minerals and metals, wellness and defense technology

The Armed Services Connection

Two of those three fields are shaped directly by the federal government Mace has spent six years helping to run. She currently sits on the House Armed Services Committee, where her subcommittee assignments include Seapower and Projection Forces, Intelligence and Special Operations, and Military Personnel, according to her own House committee page.

Rare earth minerals and "defense technology" are not neutral hobbies. Rare earths are a stated national-security priority tied to defense-industrial policy, and defense technology is procured through the same Pentagon budget that Armed Services members authorize each year. A member who votes on defense and industrial policy naming those exact sectors as her private-sector future is the textbook shape of what ethics watchdogs call the revolving door.

Maceopedia takes no position on whether any future venture would be improper. We are cataloging what she said, and noting the overlap between her committee work and her stated business interests.

The One-Year Clock

Mace cannot act on any of this yet. As she explained on the We The Palmetto podcast on August 13, members of Congress are barred from signing an employment contract until after they leave office:

"Members of Congress are not allowed to sign a contract for a gig or a job until after they've left Congress."

Federal law also imposes post-employment "cooling off" restrictions on former members who lobby. Her term ends in January 2027, which is when any rare-earth, wellness, or defense-tech move could formally begin.

Context

Mace did not seek re-election in 2026, running instead for governor and losing the June Republican primary. She has already stood up the GET MACED podcast as a media venture and told business leaders in Washington she plans to "probably start some companies" after leaving office.

Sources & Related Coverage

Maceopedia: Cataloging the internet record about Nancy Mace.

Rare Earth, Wellness, and Defense Tech: Nancy Mace's Post-Congress Wish List: image 1