A break down about why Michael endorsed VP Harris and Gov. Walz, and a preview of the primary election

[00:00:12] Welcome to The Break Down with Brodkorb and Becky, a weekly podcast that breaks down politics, policy, and current affairs. I'm Becky Scherr.

[00:00:19] And I'm Michael Brodkorb.

[00:00:21] We are live once again today on a holiday. It's primary day. We are going to start today's episode by breaking down some breaking news.

[00:00:29] The Break Down Zone, Michael Brodkorb had a big week. Yesterday, the Star Tribune posted an op-ed from Michael detailing his decision to endorse the Harris-Walls ticket.

[00:00:38] We will get into how Michael came to his decision and what he hopes to tell other folks, like myself, grappling with who to support in November.

[00:00:45] We will then break down all things surrounding the primary day election.

[00:00:48] We will head on the battle between Rice White and Joe Frazier and for who the Republican side will run against Amy Klobuchar.

[00:00:55] We will chat about the second congressional district primary to determine Angie Craig's opponent.

[00:01:00] We have primaries in the fifth congressional district, the seventh congressional district, and a smattering of legislative seats across the state.

[00:01:07] And then we will end by breaking down some bizarre news in House District 12B.

[00:01:12] Thanks for joining us and enjoy the show.

[00:01:15] So, Michael, we're going to kick off and make it all about you right now.

[00:01:18] I want to start with how did you come to the decision to endorse Harris and Rawls and then be public about it?

[00:01:29] We've just, first of all, a lot of it was grounded in our conversations.

[00:01:33] You and I have had a number of conversations about, first of all, as everyone, most listeners know that have listened to this podcast, I am not a supporter of Donald Trump.

[00:01:43] I didn't vote for him in 1620 or I didn't vote for him earlier this year in the presidential election, presidential primary, excuse me.

[00:01:51] It was not my intention to vote for him this election cycle.

[00:01:55] And I was struggling with what I was going to do, in particular because of Biden's debate performance.

[00:02:01] And I had mentioned earlier on the podcast, but leading up to that, I had mentioned earlier in the podcast, an earlier episode, that I had decided what I was going to do this election cycle.

[00:02:10] And we would talk about it later.

[00:02:11] My intention at that time was to write in Liz Cheney.

[00:02:15] And I was going to write in Liz Cheney for president and Dean Phillips for vice president.

[00:02:20] That was going to be my vote this election cycle.

[00:02:23] And I thought about it and then it changed.

[00:02:26] And it changed the day that I was driving back from Iowa with my family and I listened to Trump's performance and his horrible presentation at the National Association of Black Journalists meeting, where he engaged in, I think, clear, direct racism.

[00:02:43] He acted in an entirely bigoted way, in a sexist way.

[00:02:48] And as I was driving back, I said to myself, that's it.

[00:02:52] I got to do something.

[00:02:53] And we did a podcast episode after I got back from Iowa.

[00:02:56] And I, in fact, told you that I had my decision had changed.

[00:03:00] And this was the decision I had made.

[00:03:02] And then as we moved forward, then there was so I already put the marker down that I was going to vote for Harris, for the vice president Harris.

[00:03:11] And then on when she selected Walls as her running mate, that was even more of a reason to validate my decision to do that.

[00:03:19] I want to explain why for listeners.

[00:03:22] And I want to be very inviting.

[00:03:23] And Becky, I have to say to you that I'm really looking forward to this discussion because our discussions is really what grounded this.

[00:03:31] And I think I'm being consistent with what we've talked about.

[00:03:34] I was someone who would have been classified as a bit of a double hater, I think, even though I don't like the word double hater.

[00:03:42] I would have been classified as a little bit of a double hater.

[00:03:45] And again, I don't like that kind of phraseology, double hater.

[00:03:49] But I was someone who was not supportive of Trump and wasn't excited about Biden.

[00:03:54] And a lot of that came down to age and just performance.

[00:03:58] And Dean Phillips' message of we should do better in this country really resonated with me, really resonated with me.

[00:04:06] And I felt very comfortable in my decision.

[00:04:08] And so what I decided to do is I decided to write an op-ed.

[00:04:12] And I went back and I went back to when I've been, as I mentioned in the op-ed, I turned 50 last year.

[00:04:18] I've been voting in presidential elections since 1992, voting in elections since 1992.

[00:04:23] I went over and I did some analysis.

[00:04:25] And as accurately as I could in just remembering every election, I figured out that I voted Republican well over 80% of the time.

[00:04:32] In the eyes of Reagan, that should make me an ally.

[00:04:36] It was Reagan who said that the person who agrees with you 80% of the time is a friend and an ally, not a 20% traitor.

[00:04:47] And some of the reaction to my endorsement has been to call me a traitor and to call me a rhino and Republican in name only.

[00:04:54] But this is, as Reagan articulated in 64, which I discussed, my time of choosing.

[00:05:00] Reagan was a Democrat and he became a Republican.

[00:05:04] And the 1964 presidential race, he gave a speech on behalf of Barry Goldwater, which I talk about on my op-ed.

[00:05:10] And he talked about the time of choosing, that this was Reagan's time for choosing.

[00:05:16] It was our time for choosing.

[00:05:18] And the speech is called the time for choosing.

[00:05:20] And it really launched Reagan and propelled him to the presidency 16 years later.

[00:05:25] And over the course of the week or 10 days since I got back from Iowa, I listened to a time for choosing on YouTube.

[00:05:32] I listened to Reagan's 76 speech at the national convention.

[00:05:36] I listened to his 80 speech, his 84 speech, his 88 kind of endorsement of George H.W. Bush.

[00:05:42] I listened to his 92 farewell speech.

[00:05:44] I listened to a whole bunch of Republican speeches at the national convention and other types of things.

[00:05:49] And I did a lot of reading and interest and thought a lot about my policies.

[00:05:54] And I came to the very clear conclusion that I'm a Republican.

[00:05:57] And it would have been easier for me just to be, oh, I'm a Democrat and this is what I'm doing with all this type of work.

[00:06:03] But the truth of the matter is I'm not a Democrat.

[00:06:05] And I can articulate some of those reasons why.

[00:06:07] But what it led me to is that in the course of doing that kind of self-discovery and learning and just analyzing,

[00:06:13] I came to the conclusion that a lot of what Reagan talked about and what he talked about in 64 and in particularly 84,

[00:06:21] really put into context what this election is for me.

[00:06:24] And that's why I made, and that was the framework of my decision to support a Harrison Walls.

[00:06:31] And I'd like to give the floor back to you for questions and to grill me if you'd like.

[00:06:35] I don't think there's any grilling, but a couple of different things.

[00:06:38] I'll get into you.

[00:06:38] I'll be disappointed if there's not a little grill.

[00:06:39] We'll get into some of the notable quotes and some subsequent questions I do have.

[00:06:44] But as I was reading this at bed, it did remind me of a lot of these conversations.

[00:06:48] I think you and I have both struggled with, especially when it was Trump-Biden and what that matchup is and what it means for our country in the future.

[00:06:56] And I think anybody who has listened to the podcast over the last couple of years knows that I'm also not a super big Trump fan.

[00:07:02] I did vote for him in 2020.

[00:07:03] I did not in 2016.

[00:07:04] And I've really been struggling with what I'm going to do.

[00:07:07] And last week when we had Senator Benson and John on, we chatted a little bit about my concerns with Walls.

[00:07:14] And that didn't necessarily mean I am voting for Trump.

[00:07:17] I'm not there.

[00:07:18] But when I was reading your op-ed, it read as though it was talking to folks like me, folks who are still having a lot of concerns about a Trump-Banz ticket.

[00:07:29] And what their personalities and previous statements and some of their beliefs and policies and what that truly means.

[00:07:37] And the issues with some rude derogatory statements, some racist statements, all sorts of questionable things that these two men bring to the table.

[00:07:46] So talk to me a little bit about why you felt this was important to make a plea to Republicans almost.

[00:07:52] To let them know it's okay to come over to this side.

[00:07:54] And why you wanted that to be part of your message, not just solely it's Walls-Harris for you.

[00:07:59] Because part of what drove this decision was not just a lot of our conversations, but a lot of conversations that I've had with friends and other Republicans.

[00:08:07] And I don't think, I don't want to shame in any way their decisions.

[00:08:11] And how people approach voting is a very private decision and how they wish to do that.

[00:08:16] And all I would say is I encourage people to vote.

[00:08:19] I've always been an advocate for people voting independent of, the worst thing to me is someone just having apathy and not voting.

[00:08:27] And I think it's important that people vote.

[00:08:30] And some people choose to leave a black, that section of the ballot blank as a statement.

[00:08:35] I understand that mindset.

[00:08:36] But for me, my, I believe in voting.

[00:08:39] And so when I was thinking about this, I thought, what was the best way that I could be value added to and explain my decision?

[00:08:46] And I think my decision and my thought process is very much where a lot of Republicans are, is that they have felt frustrated with the kind of the binary choices between Biden and Trump.

[00:08:59] But speaking specifically about Trump, there's a number of Republicans that I know who don't feel comfortable with his rhetoric, who don't feel comfortable with the position and want him to not be a part of the party.

[00:09:08] And for a variety of reasons, don't feel as comfortable speaking out and voting this way.

[00:09:14] And I just want to remind people that people can vote privately.

[00:09:17] And my plea today or my pitch today is vote.

[00:09:22] And first of all, vote.

[00:09:24] Whether you're going to vote for, whether you're going to vote for Trump or whether you're going to vote for Harris or you're going to write something, vote.

[00:09:29] Just please make sure you vote.

[00:09:30] Second of all, I know that there's a number of conflicted Republicans.

[00:09:33] And the case that I'm trying to make is that it is consistent with the values of the Republican Party and being a Republican to make a decision that you are going to put documents such as the Constitution over everything else.

[00:09:48] And I do question, and there's been a lot of discussion as to would Ronald Reagan get endorsed today by today's Republican Party?

[00:09:57] And whether would George W. Bush and would Mitt Romney?

[00:09:59] That's for other people to analyze.

[00:10:02] But what I do know is that I do have a lot of confidence in saying is that Republicans supporting a presidential candidate who has called for and advocated and said he would suspend the Constitution,

[00:10:15] that if he gets into office, there will not need to be a vote again in four years is really some troubling statements.

[00:10:20] And the decision that I'm making is that I believe that Vice President Harris and Governor Walz will be a better safeguard of the institutions of this country, such as the Constitution, such as democracy.

[00:10:35] And I think that's the overriding principle to me.

[00:10:38] This was not and this wasn't it was I put a lot of thought into this because I think that there are a lot of Republicans struggling out there.

[00:10:47] And I know that they are. And the last thing that I want to do is to spike the football.

[00:10:51] And but I want to be part of a purpose of a persuasion and a discussion as to why this is the right course of action for Republicans to do if they are conflicted.

[00:11:01] Like I know many Republicans are.

[00:11:03] But I stand by my decision.

[00:11:05] And I just want to add this.

[00:11:07] It felt so good.

[00:11:08] I have to be honest with you.

[00:11:10] The minute the minute that op ed was published, I've had a smile on my face since yesterday and I got my USA cap on because I just feel really excited about the opportunities that this country is facing and the opportunities that people are going to have.

[00:11:27] And I feel really proud of being a part of supporting Harris and Walz.

[00:11:32] And it was the right decision for me.

[00:11:34] It's not the right decision for everybody, but I would say in the privacy of the ballot box, I do hope people vote their conscience.

[00:11:42] I appreciate your optimism.

[00:11:43] I'm not quite there yet about what the future, the next four years look like under either of these tickets.

[00:11:50] Part of your op ed, you wrote this election can be can also be your time for choosing as it is not just about rejecting Trump and J.D. Vance.

[00:11:57] It is about embracing a vision of leadership essential for this country's future.

[00:12:01] Now, I don't disagree with that.

[00:12:03] I think that is something that this election can be about.

[00:12:07] But my question and what I struggle with is what about the policies that I think are damaging to our country's future under our walls in Harris administration?

[00:12:16] Is the spending and taxing sustainable?

[00:12:20] Is it going to be more government control over our daily lives and in our children's schools?

[00:12:24] Is it going to be making life more difficult?

[00:12:29] And that's where I struggle is I don't understand.

[00:12:32] I can't right now cast a ballot for Harris and Walls because I don't believe that their policies are going to make our lives better in the next four years.

[00:12:43] And so that's where I really struggle about wanting to this to be a vision of leadership that I do believe Walls and Harris could bring.

[00:12:49] I do believe that they have the ability to lead.

[00:12:53] It's their policies that I struggle with getting on board.

[00:12:58] Talk to me a little bit about that.

[00:12:59] And I want to be affirmative about the policies.

[00:13:01] There are a lot of policies that I disagree with Harrison, with the Harrison Walls.

[00:13:06] A couple of things I'd point out.

[00:13:07] If you're a fiscal hawk, Donald Trump on the budget, there was a lot of deficit spending.

[00:13:13] From a monetary standpoint, from a fiscal policy standpoint, in terms of your, if your issue is the debt, Donald Trump added a lot of debt to this country.

[00:13:20] And so on and from an economic standpoint, from the debt perspective, I think there's a lot of cases you made.

[00:13:25] But let me just offer something to you and say this to you.

[00:13:28] I have faith in this, that if Harrison Walls are elected, that they will work within the bounds of normal, acceptable legislative process.

[00:13:39] If there's a Republican Senate, if there's a Republican House, or there's some branches of government that are working in a collaborative way,

[00:13:47] that those types of leadership and leading will be done on the field of play.

[00:13:52] And it will be fair play.

[00:13:53] I think that the opportunity that exists by putting Harris and Walls into the White House is the possibility of a Republican Senate or a Republican House that can work with them.

[00:14:04] And there could be some compromise on a number of issues that I think would be what's good.

[00:14:08] And it's something that I've talked about.

[00:14:10] One of the things that I said is, and I endorsed Governor Walls in 2022.

[00:14:14] I endorsed Steve Simon.

[00:14:17] I endorsed Walls because he was clearly the better choice in the race against Scott Jensen.

[00:14:22] I also chose to endorse Steve Simon because when it comes to democracy and believing in the institutions of voting, I think Steve Simon is a great safeguard of that.

[00:14:33] My concern here, Becky, is the possibility of Trump and Vance in office.

[00:14:38] We're talking about someone who doesn't agree and would uphold the basic kind of rules of how the game should be played and on the field of play.

[00:14:48] When you're talking about suspending the Constitution, when you're talking about telling people that they might not have to vote in four years again, when you're talking about someone who's bragged about potentially being a dictator on day one, when you've talked about someone who's interested in retribution and retaliation, that's not something that I think the Republican Party can work with.

[00:15:08] And that's not something that can happen.

[00:15:09] I have more faith that I have faith that this country will be in a better position with Harris and Walls and leadership in the House and Senate, potentially Republican, that'll put us back on track than any type of that divisiveness and that kind of ugliness that comes with Trump.

[00:15:28] Now, this is not like Mitt Romney.

[00:15:31] This is not like George W. Bush.

[00:15:34] This is not like George Herbert Walker Bush.

[00:15:36] This is, and it's not John McCain.

[00:15:39] And so he isn't, Donald Trump is an agent of chaos.

[00:15:43] It's very important that I also frame this in two ways.

[00:15:46] Number one, yes, by supporting Harris and Walls, I am encouraging people not to vote for Donald Trump.

[00:15:52] But I will tell you very proudly that I have had a smile on my face since I made the decision.

[00:15:58] And I feel better about the opportunity of Harris and Walls being in leadership in Washington than I ever have felt that with Trump in advance.

[00:16:10] Noted.

[00:16:11] Noted.

[00:16:11] Said.

[00:16:11] And some good reminders.

[00:16:13] I think that while we look at a lot of the news cycle is very 24, 48 hours these days.

[00:16:18] January 6th was not that long ago.

[00:16:20] And that is one thing you wrote in your op-ed, too, is I expected that Trump directing a mob to engage in a violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol would prevent him from becoming the Republican nominee for president in 2024.

[00:16:32] And we don't need to spend a lot of time on this because we've talked about the topic quite a bit and how we both feel about it indeed being an insurrection.

[00:16:40] Is it surprising to you that this hasn't been isn't really talked about that much these days when people talk about considering Donald Trump as their who they're going to support in November?

[00:16:49] Yes, it is surprising.

[00:16:50] And I'm struggling and I don't want to I really want to be engaging and I really want to be as inviting as I can.

[00:16:57] And I don't think the way in which I can be that way is to poke people.

[00:17:00] But I just want to say a couple of points.

[00:17:01] I am very challenged by people like J.D. Vance, who went out and said that Donald Trump is like America's Hitler.

[00:17:09] And then he's standing with them to be with to be his running mate.

[00:17:13] There has been a number of Republicans who have lobbed some very substantive criticism about where Trump will take this country if he gets another term.

[00:17:23] And I wish it's I'm challenged by their some of their rhetorical statements that they've made about Trump and then they've come back and support him.

[00:17:33] I can't reconcile those two things.

[00:17:35] My rhetoric towards Donald Trump has always been I don't support him.

[00:17:39] My rhetoric became much harsher in Donald Trump in the last week because I've seen there's been some more I think because his the worst elements of his character have been out in a very strong way.

[00:17:55] And I'm really concerned about what's going to happen the next 80 some days of this election cycle.

[00:18:00] But I think the question that a lot of Republicans need to answer is that they've said some things on the record against Donald Trump.

[00:18:07] How do you reconcile that?

[00:18:09] And what I would say is if you can't reconcile that, there is another way.

[00:18:14] And this is an option that you can take.

[00:18:16] And I want to be as value added I can in my advocacy.

[00:18:20] I'm willing to door knock, willing to let drop or willing to have conversations with Republicans because I truly believe how I'm decision that I made came from my core beliefs prior to us doing this podcast, but also from our discussion, but also from a vast number of Republicans who have who are in a very similar situation.

[00:18:40] And I really want to be as inviting as I can be to be a part of that discussion.

[00:18:45] And that's the way I frame my op-ed.

[00:18:48] And I hope it's a good discussion point for others to have.

[00:18:52] You have it has gained a lot of traction on social media in the last just over 24 hours, maybe just under 24 hours since since it was published.

[00:19:00] Republicans for Harris posted it has 1.3 retweets, almost 4000 likes.

[00:19:05] Let's come back to Luke Skywalker and Republicans for Harris, because that I think needs to be noted.

[00:19:11] Republicans against Trump has over 10,000 retweets, almost 30,000 likes.

[00:19:15] Your post has 400 retweets, 1.5 thousand likes.

[00:19:19] Obviously, people are seeing this.

[00:19:21] It's resonating with folks.

[00:19:22] But you hit on a little bit earlier of you knew that you were going to get a little bit of backlash, people calling you rhinos, whatever that may look like.

[00:19:29] How has the response been both from folks across the country, but also friends and family and people in your Twitter feed?

[00:19:36] Is there a lot of backlash?

[00:19:37] Is there more support than you were expecting?

[00:19:39] What's it been?

[00:19:40] How's it been going for you?

[00:19:41] The response has been overwhelmingly positive.

[00:19:45] And the social media can be rough.

[00:19:48] There's a few people are.

[00:19:49] But the response has been absolutely overwhelming in terms of positive support.

[00:19:54] And I think that's a I'm very surprised by that.

[00:19:57] I expected there to be more.

[00:20:00] My read was I knew that I was stepping into a political landmine, battlefield landmines, whatever it is, whatever the battlefield is.

[00:20:08] I was going to be stepping into that and taking a side.

[00:20:10] And I did that coming in.

[00:20:11] But I have to say to you that I have had a smile on my face since it happened.

[00:20:17] And the number of positive conversations that I've had with people that is really surprised me that the response wasn't more negative.

[00:20:25] Because I think the tone that I tried to strike was to be inviting, was to not shame anyone, but to recognize that I was in that similar situation of struggling with this decision.

[00:20:36] And I wanted to provide a landing, a platform by which to have that discussion.

[00:20:41] And it's been very positive.

[00:20:44] And people that I've had discussions with people that disagree with me.

[00:20:47] I did an interview this morning with Andy Bram.

[00:20:50] He takes a different position than I do.

[00:20:52] Boy, it was a you made some really good points in our discussion this morning.

[00:20:56] And I hope to have Andy back on our podcast to talk about it because he feels in a different way.

[00:21:01] Those are the type of discussions that I wanted to have.

[00:21:03] And I hope that people get some thought into it.

[00:21:07] And it's it was important to me that I was not just as Becky.

[00:21:12] I am someone who is an internal optimist.

[00:21:15] I am a glass half full.

[00:21:16] I have to be positive.

[00:21:17] And so I tried to balance my net, the concerns I had with Trump, but also be uplifting to my Republican friends and others out there and allies that I know are struggling.

[00:21:28] And that's why I leaned into Reagan.

[00:21:30] I went back into my archive of books and videos and things that I have.

[00:21:34] And I've been doing a lot of introspection, examining my core beliefs as to why I'm a Republican, but also finding, I think, the words that will connect the message that Republicans need to hear.

[00:21:45] So others will feel comfortable making this decision.

[00:21:49] I like it.

[00:21:50] I'm glad you feel everything has been treated.

[00:21:53] You've been treated well.

[00:21:55] It's still early.

[00:21:56] It still is early.

[00:21:57] I'm sure you're going to get some more arrows targeted towards you.

[00:22:00] Is there anything else on this op-ed you want to chat about?

[00:22:03] Anything coming that we should expect from you in the last couple of months or next couple of months?

[00:22:07] And really, was it easier or harder than the governor endorsement of laws?

[00:22:13] That's a good question.

[00:22:14] I will tell you that I don't know.

[00:22:16] I think the scale is different.

[00:22:18] I think the scale is different.

[00:22:20] And so I think that was the challenge.

[00:22:22] I have to also just say something, just so everyone understands this.

[00:22:25] I don't know if you've seen the movie Moneyball, but in the end of Moneyball, Brad Pitt is talking with Jonah Hill about, and he just says, how can you not love baseball?

[00:22:33] How can you not love America?

[00:22:34] I am a romantic about this country.

[00:22:36] That's why I cheer for the Olympics.

[00:22:39] I've been wearing my USA cap.

[00:22:41] I am a romantic about the United States and its institutions and things like the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

[00:22:48] Those mean so much to me.

[00:22:51] And after writing this piece, I have fallen in love again with what this country can be and the optimism that it can have.

[00:23:00] After listening to Reagan talk about that shining city on a hill.

[00:23:04] And talk about the inviting language of it.

[00:23:07] That's not what we have today.

[00:23:08] And so it was an incredibly rewarding process, but it reminded me how just great this country is and how proud I am to be an American.

[00:23:18] And again, how can you not be romantic about this country?

[00:23:21] Because it is a wonderful place.

[00:23:24] And I have more hope and optimism than I've ever had before.

[00:23:28] We can all applaud that.

[00:23:30] We've got just under 90 days.

[00:23:31] Can you?

[00:23:32] I'll try.

[00:23:33] Hey, I'm trying to take some of your optimism here.

[00:23:36] I'm just, I'm still at a loss.

[00:23:38] I'm at a, it's a tough spot to be at.

[00:23:40] So I'm sure I will get there and hopefully talk about it as we continue on towards the election in November.

[00:23:46] And obviously we're going to continue talking about the topic of Walls Harris versus Trump fans.

[00:23:51] And we've got the DNC convention coming up.

[00:23:53] We've got a debate just a couple weeks away.

[00:23:55] And so we're going to be hitting this quite a bit more, but it was a great piece.

[00:24:00] I appreciate you opening the conversation and really making sure we continue to chat about where you stand and how you got there.

[00:24:07] Because I think there, it obviously resonates with a lot of voters out there.

[00:24:11] Thank you, Becky.

[00:24:12] I really appreciate the discussion and how responsible you've been.

[00:24:14] And here's the upside.

[00:24:16] You get to now bring up for the rest of the presidential cycle that I've endorsed Walls.

[00:24:20] And now I'm Harris-A-Walls.

[00:24:22] So every time there's something, I just filled your bingo card for the rest of the podcast episodes.

[00:24:27] You sure did.

[00:24:28] I am going to.

[00:24:30] It's the Harris-Walls Bradcorp ticket.

[00:24:32] We got it.

[00:24:32] Exactly.

[00:24:33] So as we talked about at the top of the show, it is primary day here in Minnesota.

[00:24:37] First off, if you haven't voted and don't have plans to vote, change your mind.

[00:24:41] Go to minnesotavotes.gov.

[00:24:42] That is where you can find out where to vote and who's on your ballot.

[00:24:47] So there are a number of races down the ballot that have primary races.

[00:24:50] On the Republican side, we have U.S. Senate congressional seats in two and seven.

[00:24:55] On the Dem side, there is a rematch between Don Samuels and Ilhan Omar.

[00:24:59] Handful of legislative seats.

[00:25:01] Some of them being Action for Liberty versus the quote-unquote establishment.

[00:25:04] So there are a lot of things that we'll be talking about.

[00:25:07] We're going to preview a little bit today and, of course, recap them after we know results.

[00:25:12] A couple numbers to throw at you.

[00:25:14] As of Monday, yesterday, 104,000 absentee ballots had been accepted.

[00:25:19] Turnout in 2020 was just shy of a million.

[00:25:22] There was 916,000.

[00:25:24] So Minnesota notorious for turning out.

[00:25:26] So get out and vote.

[00:25:28] Let's kick things off with the Royce White Joe Frazier.

[00:25:32] Now, how are you thinking this one?

[00:25:35] If you are going to make a prediction, who comes out on top?

[00:25:39] I feel more confident.

[00:25:41] I have more hope and optimism that Frazier will come out on top.

[00:25:44] I voted in the interest of disclosure.

[00:25:46] I voted in the Republican primary today.

[00:25:48] I voted for Joe Frazier.

[00:25:49] I'm very excited about the possibility.

[00:25:52] Not necessarily because I think Amy Klobuchar needs to be voted out of office, but because,

[00:25:57] again, as we talked about, the campaigns can be idea generators and they're good for the

[00:26:04] democracy.

[00:26:04] So I hope that Frazier gets through.

[00:26:07] I'm worried about what would happen if Royce White gets through.

[00:26:10] I would really worry for, again, I'm a Republican who can be called a traitor and a rhino and

[00:26:16] all that stuff, but I'm a Republican who wants Republicans to succeed and have a footprint

[00:26:20] in this state.

[00:26:21] And I still struggle with how Republicans do well in this state if it's Donald Trump,

[00:26:26] J.D. Vance, and Royce White at the top of the ticket.

[00:26:28] I think that's a real challenge.

[00:26:29] I think that's the ticket's not offering a lot.

[00:26:31] And so my hope is that Royce White is defeated and that Joe Frazier comes out on top today

[00:26:37] in the Republican primary.

[00:26:38] But we're watching those results very closely.

[00:26:39] Have you decided who you're voting for in that race?

[00:26:42] Yes.

[00:26:42] I will be casting my ballot after work today.

[00:26:44] For Joe Frazier, I want to be cautiously optimistic.

[00:26:48] I don't know if I was predicting.

[00:26:52] I do think, unfortunately, that Royce White is going to come out on top of that.

[00:26:55] I think he's got more name ID.

[00:26:57] I think he has been more vocal, much to the dismay of Republicans everywhere.

[00:27:02] But I just think he has more visibility.

[00:27:04] I don't know that the Frazier camp has done enough to get them over the finish line.

[00:27:09] I'm hopeful that people who have seen something about Royce White and know his name,

[00:27:13] know it with some of the awful and horrific things that he has said and what he stands for.

[00:27:19] But I got nothing, not a ton more to say in that one until we see how the results come out.

[00:27:25] I want to give a shout out to Preya because I have, Preya is working with Joe Frazier's campaign.

[00:27:31] I have never seen a staffer, a consultant to a campaign, take more arrows than she has since Royce White got endorsed.

[00:27:40] She is as tough as nails.

[00:27:42] She has, like you, Becky, she has agreed with me and she has disagreed with me.

[00:27:46] And we've had her on this podcast multiple times.

[00:27:49] Sometimes she is absolutely the heart and soul of the Republican Party.

[00:27:54] And she is someone who is in the arena and she will not be one of those, as Teddy Roosevelt said,

[00:27:59] not one of those gray and timid souls that knows neither victory nor defeat.

[00:28:02] But she will have no victory and she will, in some times she'll know defeat.

[00:28:07] But she is as tough as nails.

[00:28:08] And I think she has endured such vitriol and hate directed at her by Royce White directly and some of the other hooligans on that campaign.

[00:28:18] And I voted for Joe Frazier probably just as much as I voted for Preya today because I'd like to see her get a win and get through that.

[00:28:27] But I just want to give a shout out to her.

[00:28:29] I think she's great.

[00:28:30] Her opinion is just top shelf.

[00:28:32] We've had her on this pod and she disagrees with me a lot and she calls me out on stuff.

[00:28:36] But she has taken an unnecessary amount of volleys.

[00:28:40] And I just want to give out a shout out to her and just say, Preya did a great job.

[00:28:43] Win or lose, you did a great job.

[00:28:45] But you've taken some arrows and you're tough.

[00:28:48] And all Republicans in this state should be appreciative of people like Preya.

[00:28:52] Absolutely agree.

[00:28:53] I'll double down on that.

[00:28:54] I've worked with, had the opportunity to work with Preya through a variety of different campaigns and elections over the years.

[00:29:01] And she really has endured a lot and come out fighting.

[00:29:04] And I got to love that spirit and in campaign workers and operatives, certainly much needed.

[00:29:10] Want to hit on two Republican races on the, or two congressional races that have primary battles, starting with Congresswoman Michelle Fisk, who is being challenged from the, what I would say before.

[00:29:23] And by a gentleman named Steve Boyd.

[00:29:25] CD7 has been a treacherous place for endorsements and activism and treacherous over the years.

[00:29:32] I certainly had some experience working with them while I was over at the state party.

[00:29:37] And Congresswoman Fiskbach has been a great legislator for, a great member of Congress for Minnesota and for people all over the country.

[00:29:45] She's fought hard.

[00:29:46] She has just done really good things for our state.

[00:29:49] And for her to have this challenge just is a little ridiculous.

[00:29:52] But I want to read a quote from an article about Steve Boyd, who is challenging.

[00:29:58] Boyd has set, Boyd has criticized Fiskbach as being too legislative, legislation driven, saying he would be more of a hardliner who takes principled stands on cultural issues.

[00:30:08] He said he would be willing to shut down the government to fix the border crisis and that he would seek to join the highly conservative House Freedom Caucus.

[00:30:15] Now there's obviously an audience for this.

[00:30:20] There are folks who fall into this Freedom Caucus, Action for Liberty, more right line side of things.

[00:30:27] He's not going to be successful.

[00:30:29] Fiskbach's going to come out triumphant.

[00:30:31] Once again, she has been kicking butt in the 7th Congressional District.

[00:30:35] But this guy sympathized with the January 6th rioters.

[00:30:39] This is really what we're battling through again.

[00:30:41] Yes, exactly.

[00:30:42] And I will just say to you, the most ridiculous primary endorsement contest that we have in this state is in the 7th Congressional District.

[00:30:51] To think that Michelle Fiskbach, Congresswoman Michelle Fiskbach, with all of her experience in the conservative causes, did not get endorsed and is simply ridiculous.

[00:31:05] Congresswoman Fiskbach knocked off Colin Peterson.

[00:31:08] She has led on a variety of issues.

[00:31:11] To think in any way that she's not a Republican and that she's not conservative enough is just laughable.

[00:31:18] And what we have is we have a Christian nationalist challenging her from the right.

[00:31:23] And that's not what we need to have in this party.

[00:31:27] And so it's a ridiculous decision by the Republicans up in the 7th.

[00:31:32] I hope, I have every expectation based on Fiskbach's outstanding record, her level of customer service, the people that are supporting her, working on her behalf, David Fitzsimmons and others, that Steve Boyd's going to get beat like a drum in the primary tonight.

[00:31:48] And he should.

[00:31:48] And this is the one that has been frustrating.

[00:31:51] And in calls with reporters that I've had where I've disclosed in some of these races, the race with Fiskbach has not gotten enough attention.

[00:31:59] And I think it is just the most egregious example of where the party activists have failed.

[00:32:05] To not give Congresswoman Fiskbach the endorsement is just laughable.

[00:32:10] That does not mean I agree with Congresswoman Fiskbach on every issue.

[00:32:13] But she's a Republican.

[00:32:14] She's a conservative.

[00:32:15] And to not give that to her is just embarrassing.

[00:32:19] And the amount of time and energy and resources that have been spent because some Christian nationalist wants to challenge her is just ridiculous.

[00:32:27] And that comment you made, exactly what she's supposed to do.

[00:32:30] She's supposed to work at the legislative process.

[00:32:33] This is someone who was president of the Senate.

[00:32:36] This is someone who was lieutenant governor.

[00:32:38] And it's the exact type of Republican message that needs to resonate.

[00:32:42] Yes, she supports Donald Trump and I don't.

[00:32:44] But so what?

[00:32:45] She is the type of Republican that can be successful in the state.

[00:32:49] And rather than trying to penalize her, Republicans in the seven should be supporting her.

[00:32:55] And I hope she literally beats Boyd like a drum tonight.

[00:32:57] There was recently a Men Post piece that talked about the Royce White, Frazier, the Fiskbach, and these different competitive, or not even competitive, these different primary battles.

[00:33:06] And how it is the base.

[00:33:08] We've got more maybe centrist.

[00:33:11] Not even centrist.

[00:33:12] We've got more of what we call the common sense Republican.

[00:33:14] The quote unquote sometimes establishment Republican versus maybe more of the far right fringe activist.

[00:33:20] Is this something that, did it surprise you that we continue to see this?

[00:33:24] That this is continuing to be a battle here where we have the action for liberty versus someone like Michelle Fiskbach?

[00:33:31] Or did you expect it to go away by now?

[00:33:34] Or is it just on its rise up?

[00:33:36] It's on its rise up because it's been embraced by some campaigns.

[00:33:39] It's been fed by the Royce White campaign.

[00:33:41] We'll talk about the second is your grace in a second.

[00:33:43] But it's been, it's gotten a foothold in Boyd's campaign.

[00:33:46] That's why I hope, I have, that's why I hope it's crushed tonight in the primary.

[00:33:50] It's disappointing.

[00:33:50] It's sad.

[00:33:51] You were talking about those elements of the party.

[00:33:53] Would you consider yourself a common sense Republican?

[00:33:56] I like to.

[00:33:57] I would say that.

[00:33:58] I just was curious what your answer was.

[00:34:00] I thought it would identify as a common sense because that doesn't imply to food tics.

[00:34:05] But, but.

[00:34:05] Sure, sure.

[00:34:05] Yeah, I always got to zing it in there.

[00:34:07] So, so no, but I would absolutely.

[00:34:08] And that's exactly what I mean.

[00:34:10] Exactly.

[00:34:10] The kind of common sense that I need.

[00:34:11] And I will also say this to you, Becky.

[00:34:14] Congresswoman Fiskbach is a woman.

[00:34:15] And not to just talk about identity politics,

[00:34:18] but it is important on an issue that we've talked about,

[00:34:21] that our party is represented broadly.

[00:34:24] And I just think this is shameful on a variety of reasons.

[00:34:27] And again, I hope that, that Action for Liberty's efforts will wither on the vine and die.

[00:34:33] It is always interesting to me when I first really started working in politics was Michelle Fiskbach,

[00:34:39] or I'm sorry, Michelle Bachman was still in Congress.

[00:34:41] And to watch how activists made it so that Michelle Bachman was no longer conservative enough.

[00:34:49] I think that this is something we've really seen over the last 10, 12, 14 years,

[00:34:53] is as they go and vote for common sense things to actually make sure that we're not just completely

[00:35:00] gridlock, that we're getting things done in Congress.

[00:35:02] Even if the 80-20 model you said about under Reagan,

[00:35:06] when Michelle Bachman was no longer conservative,

[00:35:09] Tom Emmer is no longer conservative,

[00:35:10] Michelle Fiskbach is no longer conservative.

[00:35:12] Now, you and I know that those things are not true.

[00:35:14] We know that they do stand behind the conservative principles of the Republican Party of Minnesota.

[00:35:19] Of course they do.

[00:35:20] And the Republican Party nationally.

[00:35:22] It's just bonkers to me to see that these folks come in.

[00:35:25] And because you vote to get things done and not just completely be a roadblock to any progress,

[00:35:33] that's also not going to benefit Minnesota families.

[00:35:36] And so it's where it just is so asinine to me that folks can really stand on this,

[00:35:41] that they just want to have somebody stand there and saying no.

[00:35:44] It goes back to our first podcast episodes with Annette Meeks,

[00:35:48] that we need to have a vision.

[00:35:49] We need to have a mission.

[00:35:50] Saying no is not enough.

[00:35:52] And that's why we keep losing.

[00:35:53] And so with contenders like this, that's what they're standing on is I'm going to be a no for you.

[00:35:59] It's a no for me.

[00:36:00] No.

[00:36:01] Fantastic.

[00:36:02] Great way to say it.

[00:36:04] You mentioned, alluded to our upcoming conversation,

[00:36:07] second congressional district we've talked about on and off over the years.

[00:36:11] Over, I don't know the exact timeline, a month or two ago,

[00:36:15] Taylor Romm was tapped by the Trump campaign to be, I believe, the state director.

[00:36:18] I don't know the exact title, but I believe he was tapped for state director

[00:36:21] here in Minnesota for the Trump campaign.

[00:36:23] And said that he was going to be no longer running for Congress.

[00:36:26] His website's still active.

[00:36:27] Signs are still up.

[00:36:28] He's obviously still on the ballot because he missed the date to remove himself from the

[00:36:32] ballot back in June.

[00:36:33] I'd like your thoughts on this because I know you got them.

[00:36:36] This is very frustrating.

[00:36:38] Taylor Romm was the Republican endorsed candidate and he won the endorsement,

[00:36:42] left the primary with literal and no money.

[00:36:43] But on July 13th, he, in the morning before the day Trump was nearly assassinated,

[00:36:49] it was announced that he was going to be the state director and a senior advisor to the

[00:36:53] Trump campaign.

[00:36:54] In that time, Taylor Romm has said, and there was an article that said he was suspending his

[00:36:58] campaign.

[00:36:59] There has been an ongoing effort since that article came out where the campaign is still

[00:37:03] functioning in some way.

[00:37:04] Literature has gone out.

[00:37:06] Law signs have gone up.

[00:37:07] There has been a active continuing kind of shadow campaign and it's, I'm really disappointed

[00:37:14] and I'm disappointed because of this.

[00:37:16] I think Taylor Romm could have spoke up more and said, this is what I'm doing.

[00:37:21] This is what I'm saying.

[00:37:22] And you can't, first of all, suspending and ending means the same, it should mean the same

[00:37:27] thing, but we've, we've won a couch our phrase in these types of cute ways.

[00:37:30] If you're suspending your race, that means you're not, it should mean you're not running.

[00:37:35] And the frustration I have is that he made a statement to the star tribune.

[00:37:39] He has yet to post anything on social media, clarifying his position.

[00:37:42] He is website was up.

[00:37:44] I think it's down now, but there's, they have not effectively communicated this.

[00:37:49] And here's the reason why it frustrates me.

[00:37:51] First of all, I'm a Republican that lives in the second district.

[00:37:54] I have voted split ticket in the past.

[00:37:56] I have voted for Angie Craig in the past, but I'm a split ticket and I want there to be

[00:38:00] competitive elections because again, I think there's good discussions.

[00:38:03] My frustration with Rahm's campaign and with Republicans in general, you know what Rahm

[00:38:08] is engaging in right now?

[00:38:09] It's called election misinformation.

[00:38:11] When you're out there and you tell people in the newspaper that you're suspending your

[00:38:14] campaign, but your lawn signs are still going up and your literature is still being dropped

[00:38:18] and you're still engaging in this.

[00:38:20] That's not, that's misinformation.

[00:38:23] And for Republicans who want to have such clean and precise and pristine elections, this

[00:38:28] has been confusing in the second congressional district.

[00:38:30] Second district Republicans have been out there continuing to push that Taylor Rahm is the,

[00:38:36] is a candidate.

[00:38:37] And Rahm has been absent, has been an absentee landlord.

[00:38:40] He's been absent without leadership.

[00:38:42] He's been completely AWOL on resolving this type of issue.

[00:38:45] And I think it's sad.

[00:38:47] It's frustrating.

[00:38:48] And this is why Republicans can't have nice things.

[00:38:51] The other thing I'd point out to you is this, the democratic party nationally, Joe Biden

[00:38:56] ended his campaign.

[00:38:58] The Democrats were able to coalesce around Kamala Harris, pick a running mate, be unified,

[00:39:04] get her nominated.

[00:39:05] And they're steamrolling ahead.

[00:39:08] Taylor Rahm can't get out of the race cleanly.

[00:39:11] And we still have this confusion.

[00:39:13] This is why Republicans can't have nice things.

[00:39:16] And so it's an embarrassment that it's going on in the second.

[00:39:19] It's a waste of resources.

[00:39:21] There's only one Republican candidate that's in a position to win.

[00:39:24] And that's Joe Tara.

[00:39:25] We're going to have, hopefully have more discussions about, uh, more discussions about the second

[00:39:30] district race as we go forward.

[00:39:31] I know you've spent some time down there.

[00:39:33] I live in the second, but this is the type of, it's just a very frustrating situation.

[00:39:38] And I guess I grew up at a time when you got out, when you ended your campaign, you got

[00:39:42] out of office.

[00:39:43] You didn't put, you didn't still put your lawn signs up.

[00:39:45] You still didn't drop literature and it's frustrating.

[00:39:47] And you want to know what this is?

[00:39:49] This is the endorsement priests.

[00:39:52] These are the people that want to be the Republican cops in the state.

[00:39:55] And I've spoken to a couple of them on the phone and I've called them these Republican

[00:39:59] cops that want to go out there and act as if an endorsement is greater than everything.

[00:40:03] You want to know what?

[00:40:04] It's not.

[00:40:04] I say that as someone who supported the endorsement process when I was deputy chair, but the endorsement

[00:40:09] process is broken because the endorsement process gave us Taylor Robb.

[00:40:13] The endorsement process gave us Royce White and the endorsement process was blocked and

[00:40:18] was given, wasn't given to Fishbock.

[00:40:20] Those are three examples as to why the endorsement process is broken in the state and Republicans

[00:40:25] have to start winning.

[00:40:26] And as someone who just wants Republicans to succeed in some way, but doesn't want to be

[00:40:32] a part of this maggot, mega cult of personality.

[00:40:34] This is exactly why we lose the last ones.

[00:40:36] I think it should be a topic for, it was good.

[00:40:39] I think we have, this should be a topic we obviously dive into more later, but in a yes

[00:40:44] or no right now, do you think this election, the results from this primary election will

[00:40:49] have significant ramifications on the, the weight held behind the Republican party endorsement

[00:40:54] going forward?

[00:40:56] Republican party endorsement should be dead.

[00:40:58] Put a stake in it.

[00:41:00] I'm like a vampire.

[00:41:01] Put a stake in it.

[00:41:02] Like a vampire.

[00:41:03] I don't know if you knew what you put a stake in a vampire or sprinkle gargoyle on it.

[00:41:06] Or garlic, right?

[00:41:07] Yeah.

[00:41:07] It's more dramatic.

[00:41:08] There you go.

[00:41:09] I appreciate that.

[00:41:10] If Taylor Rahm were to be successful, would he be hitting the campaign trail tomorrow

[00:41:14] and unsuspending his campaign?

[00:41:16] Yes.

[00:41:17] That's the point.

[00:41:18] That's the game here.

[00:41:19] Of course he is.

[00:41:19] Cause he's going to be on the ballot.

[00:41:20] That's the big ruse.

[00:41:22] That's the, that's the ruse.

[00:41:24] That's why it's not a suspension.

[00:41:25] Look, as someone who is suspended in high school, I understood the distinction between

[00:41:29] being suspended and being expelled.

[00:41:32] Now, it should not surprise any of our listeners and anyone who knows me that I spent a little

[00:41:36] bit of time in suspension.

[00:41:37] Okay.

[00:41:37] There's a difference between being expelled and being suspended, which is a point I had

[00:41:41] to make to my father in the car when I was coming home from school.

[00:41:43] So there's, I was trying to spin back then.

[00:41:45] You, when you suspend, you end, but he didn't suspend.

[00:41:49] So he hasn't ended.

[00:41:51] God, that's a great line.

[00:41:52] When you suspend, you end.

[00:41:54] I like it.

[00:41:54] Good.

[00:41:55] Mark that down.

[00:41:55] I'm channeling a little Johnny Cochran right there.

[00:41:57] I'll take it.

[00:41:58] Moving on to the fifth congressional district.

[00:42:00] My lovely Congresswoman has a challenge as a rematch with Don Samuels.

[00:42:07] I, do you think Samuels will be able to pull it off?

[00:42:10] I think it's very interesting.

[00:42:12] I think it's going to be too, as they would say, too close to call.

[00:42:15] Um, and I think that's a very, it's going to be very interesting to see what happens

[00:42:19] in the race.

[00:42:20] I think interesting dynamic, and I don't know how this plays out.

[00:42:23] Uh, and I'd like to get your thoughts on this.

[00:42:25] Does, so Royce White did this.

[00:42:27] And then Laura Loomer did this kind of endorsement of, they were telling people in the fifth to

[00:42:32] not vote for, let me make sure I get this right.

[00:42:36] I get confused when Laura Loomer is involved.

[00:42:38] So Laura Loomer and Royce White encouraged Republicans to vote in the DFL primary for Don

[00:42:46] Samuels.

[00:42:47] Now, here's the thing about that type of stuff.

[00:42:50] It rarely works.

[00:42:52] Okay.

[00:42:52] Number one, and people talk about that type of stuff.

[00:42:55] And as someone who's got a little bit of a track record and is someone who I would consider

[00:42:59] to have a little bit of a, an understanding of the dark arts of politics, that type of

[00:43:04] stuff doesn't work.

[00:43:05] It doesn't work.

[00:43:06] And I'll be curious what impact it has, but Congresswoman Ilhan Omar is a member of the squad,

[00:43:12] as they would say that they're, as they're called in Congress.

[00:43:15] And a member of the squad was knocked off a few weeks ago.

[00:43:19] Dropping like flies.

[00:43:20] Corey Bush.

[00:43:21] Corey Bush.

[00:43:22] Yes.

[00:43:22] Congresswoman from the state of Missouri, I believe was knocked off.

[00:43:25] And so there's some renewed, I think, enthusiasm about knocking members of the squad out.

[00:43:32] As you would say, look, I've, we've had great conversations with Don Samuels and I don't

[00:43:38] know that we're necessarily endorsing candidates aside from the ones that I've endorsed, but

[00:43:42] I really liked our conversations with Don Samuels and the limited interactions that I've had.

[00:43:47] I think he'll do a great job.

[00:43:48] I'm, I don't agree with him on much, but I just think he's got a heart in him for service.

[00:43:54] And I think it's going to be a really interesting race in which to watch.

[00:44:00] Yeah, I agree.

[00:44:01] I don't necessarily think I'm going to be voting in that primary election today, but I do.

[00:44:06] Our conversations with Samuels have been great.

[00:44:08] He certainly, like you said, he has a great past of working with constituents and being

[00:44:14] open and accessible and transparent.

[00:44:15] The major arguments that he's been flinging at Omar, which are very warranted.

[00:44:21] And we'll be back to chat more about that and other election results.

[00:44:24] There are some down ballot primary battles as well.

[00:44:27] Next week, we'll probably chat a little bit through some of those.

[00:44:30] But before we wrap today, I want to hit on one legislative seat that has gotten even weirder

[00:44:37] over the last week here.

[00:44:38] So this one is a throwback to a candidate who is named Judd Hoff, who we discussed a while

[00:44:45] back for his dangerous and bizarre antics.

[00:44:49] He is running for 12B, which includes Alexandria and Tuck Center.

[00:44:53] He previously, he's running in the primary against sitting incumbent representative Mary Franzen.

[00:44:59] Judd Hoff moved across the street from Mary Franzen.

[00:45:02] There has been a history of harassment.

[00:45:04] He has a violent history and criminal record as well.

[00:45:07] But over the weekend, according to a criminal complaint, a whole lot went down.

[00:45:12] Over the summer, authorities in Alexandria took multiple reports of stolen signs in the

[00:45:16] area, including political garage sale, real estate signs, among others.

[00:45:20] Following a theft at a towing company, surveillance video showed Wendy Hoff, Judd Hoff's wife,

[00:45:25] showed her car at the scene.

[00:45:27] In another incident in late July, an Alexandria police officer allegedly witnessed Wendy Hoff

[00:45:32] stealing signs honoring Pope County Deputy Josh Owen, who was shot and killed in the

[00:45:36] line of duty last year.

[00:45:38] And then last week, authorities searched the Hoff's home and found 242 signs worth thousands

[00:45:44] of dollars in their garage, some of which had been painted over and now bore the phrase,

[00:45:50] vote Hoff, state representative 12B.

[00:45:53] They were arrested over the weekend.

[00:45:56] Woo!

[00:45:57] Your initial take when you saw this story come out.

[00:46:00] Wow.

[00:46:00] Wow.

[00:46:01] You literally can't make this up.

[00:46:02] Jeff Kolb will quote Kelly Ewell, who will frequently say, tens don't marry ones.

[00:46:08] And this is an example of further evidence to the point of tens not marrying ones.

[00:46:12] I have to just tell you something.

[00:46:13] This is bonkers.

[00:46:15] It took me like 15 minutes to understand this because I'm like, there's so much.

[00:46:20] We've done such a good job of discussing Judd Hoff on this podcast and some of the craziness

[00:46:24] that's been involved in this.

[00:46:26] This is the most bizarre story I've ever read about lawn signs in particular.

[00:46:32] Hoy people get in trouble about lawn signs.

[00:46:34] Lawn signs really upset people.

[00:46:37] I, one of my, I interned for the state party back in 2008 and Ashwin Medea was running against

[00:46:42] Eric Paulson and there was a staffer who was caught stealing signs back then.

[00:46:47] That's me.

[00:46:48] That was the one that recorded it.

[00:46:49] Oh, I was going to say you were the one that stole signs?

[00:46:51] No, I didn't steal it, but that's my, that's one of my lawn sign origin stories.

[00:46:54] There you go.

[00:46:55] No, it really, it sticks with you because how wild, how wild.

[00:47:00] First of all, yes, lawn signs are expensive, but they're an expense.

[00:47:04] You just put it in your budget.

[00:47:05] It's if that's something that's important to you from my, I'll say it here and now lawn

[00:47:10] signs don't win elections, people.

[00:47:12] So can you imagine the amount of work to steal paint and rebrand these pay the $2,000, man.

[00:47:24] It really takes a lot of chutzpah to just pull this off and vote off state representative

[00:47:29] 12B.

[00:47:30] There's an, and the problem is that it just shows, first of all, I feel so bad for representative

[00:47:35] Mary Franzen because she lives across the street from this.

[00:47:38] And it just shows that the, what, how there's, that this is an element of lawlessness in that

[00:47:43] house across the street and how it's injured.

[00:47:45] This is just ridiculous that this happened.

[00:47:48] And this was the amount of signs that were stolen and the property that was taken.

[00:47:52] This is an impressive haul.

[00:47:54] And it, but again, it's a violation.

[00:47:56] I don't know that I've ever heard felony and lawn signs in the same sentence, but this

[00:48:02] is, this might be a first.

[00:48:03] I've never seen anything quite like this.

[00:48:05] And, and it just, the, the oddest thing to me is it's 2024.

[00:48:10] It's not 2008 anymore.

[00:48:12] There are cameras everywhere at businesses, at homes in your pocket.

[00:48:17] Like how do you expect that you're not going to get caught for this?

[00:48:22] Is it just woeful negligence or just absolute ignorance?

[00:48:25] I guess a little bit of the same.

[00:48:27] It's so wild.

[00:48:30] I don't think he had much of a chance in this primary to begin with, but this certainly

[00:48:34] is, is going to ding this again.

[00:48:36] Back when all of these different issues from his past came out, if correct me if I'm wrong,

[00:48:42] but I believe the Minnesota DFL condemned his actions and endorsement and urged the Douglas

[00:48:47] County DFL to rescind.

[00:48:48] I don't believe they did, but I think this last week now that the Douglas County DFL has

[00:48:53] said we don't, we don't like him anymore.

[00:48:56] Yes.

[00:48:56] So first of all, I would, I'd like to say this.

[00:48:58] Both parties have to deal with this type of situation.

[00:49:01] And I think both party chairs on the Republican and Democrat side are somewhat handcuffed by

[00:49:07] what they can do when it comes to local elections, because both parties are local.

[00:49:10] They can offer suggestions and the chair of the DFL party, Ken Martin encouraged the local

[00:49:15] activists to not stick with their endorsement of Hoff, John Hoff or Judd Hoff, excuse me,

[00:49:20] after more in the initial reports of some of his stalking and other behavior against

[00:49:25] a representative Franzen came to light.

[00:49:27] They decided to stick with him.

[00:49:29] But when we came to felony charges of lawn signs, that was apparently a bridge too far.

[00:49:33] And so the DFL has removed the endorsement of Judd Hoff up in that area.

[00:49:38] And so this is an example of a couple of things.

[00:49:42] First of all, don't steal lawn signs.

[00:49:44] I don't stalk people, don't harass people.

[00:49:46] But this is the date.

[00:49:47] This is how sometimes the endorsement process.

[00:49:49] I think we've seen good examples this election cycle of both Republicans and Democrats having

[00:49:53] endorsement issues that they need to deal with.

[00:49:56] And that's why there needs to be, I think, more vetting of these candidates that happen,

[00:50:00] because I think there was enough in Judd Hoff's past that should have raised concerns about

[00:50:06] whether he should be bestowed with the DFL's endorsement.

[00:50:09] And it's the same that happens on the Republican side.

[00:50:11] But in this particular instance also, I would say that this situation raises it.

[00:50:15] And again, it's important that people do these types of course corrections.

[00:50:20] And so my hope is that this is another reason why I think endorsements are a problem.

[00:50:25] And I think we need to just start having people focus on the primaries,

[00:50:29] because this is the type of stuff that we just can't deal with,

[00:50:32] because this is clearly someone who is not qualified.

[00:50:35] And I will also say this.

[00:50:37] Judd Hoff has had some issues in his past.

[00:50:38] And I'm a big believer in second, third, and fourth chances.

[00:50:42] And Judd Hoff is, I don't think, accepted full and complete responsibility.

[00:50:45] For some of the mistakes in his past,

[00:50:46] and I think they were overlooked far too quickly by the local Democrats.

[00:50:51] And hopefully this happens.

[00:50:52] But I will still say this.

[00:50:54] An ongoing concern about Representative Franzen and her safety,

[00:50:57] living in the neighborhood, and I hope, and independent of politics,

[00:51:01] I hope everyone can agree that Representative Franzen should be able to live

[00:51:04] and travel and feel safe in her home.

[00:51:08] And I just have concerns.

[00:51:09] Some concerns, but maybe this felony charge for long signs,

[00:51:13] holy moly, I haven't seen before.

[00:51:15] This adds something to that.

[00:51:17] It helps, maybe puts Mr. Hoff behind bars,

[00:51:20] he and his wife behind bars for a little bit,

[00:51:21] which I think they need to learn.

[00:51:23] By the way, we're not quite done yet, Becky.

[00:51:25] Okay.

[00:51:25] Two subjects we have to discuss.

[00:51:26] Number one, Luke Skywalker.

[00:51:28] How can you skip over Luke Skywalker?

[00:51:29] I forgot to come back.

[00:51:31] Let's talk about Luke.

[00:51:32] First of all, do you know who Luke Skywalker is?

[00:51:34] Yes, I'm aware.

[00:51:35] Okay.

[00:51:35] I don't know him personally.

[00:51:37] I don't know him personally.

[00:51:38] So Republicans for Harris, as they were promoting your op-ed,

[00:51:42] they were also promoting Mark Hamill is doing or did.

[00:51:46] Was it last night?

[00:51:47] No, it's tonight.

[00:51:48] Tonight.

[00:51:49] Are you participating?

[00:51:50] I am participating.

[00:51:51] Are you earning now a paycheck from the Harris Walls campaign?

[00:51:54] Easy now.

[00:51:55] Come on.

[00:51:55] Jeez Louise.

[00:51:56] I got to get them in already.

[00:51:57] Come on.

[00:51:58] No, that's not what's happening.

[00:51:59] I know.

[00:52:00] People should look at their FEC report.

[00:52:01] Dispel that.

[00:52:03] Dispel that notion that on the FEC reports.

[00:52:06] No, that's not what happened.

[00:52:07] But there's a Harris.

[00:52:08] There's Republicans for Harris Zoom call tonight.

[00:52:12] And Mark Hamill is going to be on it.

[00:52:14] Now, I screamed in my house yesterday when I saw this.

[00:52:17] And I first saw this.

[00:52:18] And I ran through the house.

[00:52:20] I was so excited.

[00:52:21] I don't think my children had seen me really prance before.

[00:52:25] But I was certainly prancing when this news came out.

[00:52:27] And I was so excited.

[00:52:29] I don't know.

[00:52:30] I don't know what I'm going to.

[00:52:31] This is my first time on the Harris Walls thing.

[00:52:35] I don't think I can lead with Star Wars outfit.

[00:52:37] But we'll see.

[00:52:38] I could go on.

[00:52:39] I have a very expensive Darth Vader helmet I could join the show with.

[00:52:45] That would go over very well.

[00:52:47] I think it'd be difficult for me to communicate my advocacy for Harris and Walls while wearing

[00:52:52] a Sith mask.

[00:52:54] But we'll see how that maybe goes.

[00:52:55] I might just, for my first time, I might just play it straight.

[00:52:58] Right.

[00:52:58] Did we know that Mark Hamill was a Republican prior to this announcement?

[00:53:03] I don't believe that Mark Hamill is a Republican.

[00:53:05] I think he's coming on to show support for us brave Republicans who are willing to stand

[00:53:10] up to the rebellion and stand up and be a part of, stand up to, excuse me, stand up to the

[00:53:16] empire and be a part of the rebellion and be a part of that new hope that we need for

[00:53:20] this country.

[00:53:21] We're going to get a lot of, yeah.

[00:53:23] You get those Star Wars references?

[00:53:24] Yeah.

[00:53:24] Are we going to get a lot of those?

[00:53:25] I think we're going to get a lot of those.

[00:53:27] I'm pretty giddy right now.

[00:53:30] Mark Hamill once liked one of my tweets and I was talking about that for days.

[00:53:37] Yeah.

[00:53:38] Can you imagine what happened?

[00:53:38] I'm going to message him in Zoom to see if he remembers.

[00:53:40] I might.

[00:53:41] I might.

[00:53:42] I'm so excited.

[00:53:43] This is what the politics of joy and hopefulness can bring back in.

[00:53:46] And there's plenty of time.

[00:53:48] Maybe someone from Star Trek will come and join in and then you could feel a part of it.

[00:53:53] We can only be so lucky.

[00:53:54] We can only be so lucky.

[00:53:55] The second subject we need to get into the final subject we need to get into, Becky,

[00:53:59] is football is starting.

[00:54:01] It is.

[00:54:02] Are you ready for this?

[00:54:06] Another pick them league?

[00:54:07] I am ready.

[00:54:08] Are you sure?

[00:54:09] I am.

[00:54:10] I am not going to mess up the first week.

[00:54:12] So there's that.

[00:54:13] Yeah.

[00:54:14] I'm ready.

[00:54:14] You're ready.

[00:54:15] So we're going to do the pick them league again.

[00:54:16] Correct.

[00:54:17] So we'll share a link to with our listeners for the, our, the breakdown with broad,

[00:54:20] Corbin, Becky's pick them league.

[00:54:22] Becky, I'm a little fuzzy on this.

[00:54:24] Could you remind our listeners who won last season?

[00:54:27] Yes, you did.

[00:54:29] Yes.

[00:54:30] Who won your fantasy league?

[00:54:32] I don't know.

[00:54:32] I don't think they kept records.

[00:54:34] I don't think those, I don't think they've kept records for that.

[00:54:36] I don't think, I think that's been lost to the agents.

[00:54:38] Yes.

[00:54:39] Yes.

[00:54:39] One of my little sister won in fantasy football and the fantasy league that I'm in, but no,

[00:54:44] I'm excited about doing this and it's going to be a great time for football again.

[00:54:48] And we'll send out an invitation to, for folks, our listeners to participate.

[00:54:52] And I have nothing but hope and optimism that my dominance in this league will continue.

[00:54:57] But again, if you need any pointers.

[00:54:59] I'll let you know.

[00:55:00] No, talk to somebody else.

[00:55:01] Oh, perfect.

[00:55:03] All right.

[00:55:03] Becky, I want to thank you for doing this.

[00:55:05] I want to thank everyone for listening to the breakdown with broad, come on Becky.

[00:55:08] Before we go show some love for your favorite podcast by leaving us a review on Apple podcasts

[00:55:13] or any platform where you listen.

[00:55:15] You can also leave a review or follow us on all our social media platforms at BB Brockport

[00:55:20] at BB Broad Corp.

[00:55:22] The breakdown with broad, come on Becky.

[00:55:24] We'll return.

[00:55:25] Maybe this week.

[00:55:26] We'll see with a boat.

[00:55:27] We'll see.

[00:55:28] We'll talk about it, but it definitely will return next week.

[00:55:30] Thank you for listening and watching.

[00:55:32] See ya.