Bonus Episode: The state of the GOP endorsement and Royce White

[00:00:00] . Welcome to The Breakdown with Brodkorb and Becky, a weekly podcast that breaks down politics,

[00:00:17] policy and current affairs. I'm Becky Scherr. And I'm Michael Brodkorb. We are bringing

[00:00:21] you a bonus episode today with a return guest, David Fitzsimmons. David is a great friend,

[00:00:26] one of the smartest political minds in Minnesota and the country, I would say, and longtime

[00:00:30] chief of staff on the Hill. Michael and I have both worked with David over the

[00:00:33] years and he gave me my first shot with a role in the Tom Emmer's gubernatorial

[00:00:37] campaign back in 2010. He has served in the Minnesota House of Representatives,

[00:00:42] then went on to serve as chief of staff for Congressman Tom Emmer, campaign manager

[00:00:46] for Congressman Jim Hagedorn, then chief of staff for Congresswoman Michelle

[00:00:51] Fischbach and currently leads the office for Congressman Brad Finstead.

[00:00:56] And he is an endorsement expert. And that is what we are really here to discuss

[00:00:59] today. We're going to start by breaking down the state of the GOP here in

[00:01:02] Minnesota, especially as it relates to Trump's recent visit to the state.

[00:01:06] The recent MNGOP convention and its outcomes and participation, and all of

[00:01:11] it centers around the breakdown of what this all means for the endorsement

[00:01:14] process for Republicans in Minnesota. Thanks for joining us and enjoy the show.

[00:01:20] We are joined today by one of my favorite people ever, David Fitzsimmons.

[00:01:25] David, we want to start by talking about Trump's recent visit to Minnesota.

[00:01:29] You were at the Lincoln Reagan dinner. You talked to us a little bit about

[00:01:33] the vibe in the room, how he was received, how his speech went down and just

[00:01:37] the overall event.

[00:01:39] Yeah, it was a great visit by President Trump to the MNGOP and in Minnesota.

[00:01:46] He's talked about putting Minnesota on the map and expanding the map.

[00:01:51] That's been a lot of the chatter out there. I think we've seen two

[00:01:55] polls, two or three polls in a row that have again shown President

[00:02:01] Trump within two points of President Biden.

[00:02:04] I think that's a real proof that there's something there and definitely in

[00:02:10] the room you could feel it.

[00:02:11] This was a plate at dinner, so there's only so many places.

[00:02:14] It's a fundraiser, so people are paying to be there.

[00:02:17] And it was a packed house. There were over 1500 people.

[00:02:20] It was sold out in really pretty short notice as well of the president

[00:02:25] being there and then throwing it together.

[00:02:27] He was in great form.

[00:02:28] I very lively, I've seen him enough now to see some of the different

[00:02:33] styles that he can bring.

[00:02:34] And he was really in his in his comedic comedian role.

[00:02:38] He was really funny and really had the crowd going and reacting

[00:02:43] very positively.

[00:02:44] Many ovations for him.

[00:02:46] So it was a great event and they were able to announce it as a big

[00:02:51] financial success to the party as well.

[00:02:54] David, one of the points and I've said this on the show,

[00:02:58] I didn't vote for Trump in 16 or 20.

[00:03:00] And one of the things that was really interesting to me and Becky and I

[00:03:04] discussed this on last week's episode with John Rouleau and Kip

[00:03:07] Christensen about Trump's visit, that it was very much a team atmosphere

[00:03:10] because one of my kind of criticisms of Trump has been that if he's a

[00:03:15] nominee, it's not going to be much of a team effort.

[00:03:16] And I think that argument that I've made was was blown away last week

[00:03:20] because he came and it was a very much a team atmosphere.

[00:03:23] Keep hearing from people that were at the event that it was a different

[00:03:27] kind of event that Minnesota Republicans have seen in a long time,

[00:03:30] which is largely attended big fundraiser for the party, which was great.

[00:03:36] And a very much a collaborative team effort.

[00:03:38] And I think that's a fresh change and what I think is needed for

[00:03:43] Republicans to be competitive in this state.

[00:03:44] Is that fair?

[00:03:46] Yeah, I think that's exactly right.

[00:03:47] He was very complimentary of David Han, the chair of the party, very

[00:03:51] complimentary of the party at large, complimentary of Whit Bemer and

[00:03:57] our congressional delegation, Fishbox, Sabur and Finstad and encouraging

[00:04:03] people to support them.

[00:04:04] There was governor Burgum was there as well and really got in on on

[00:04:09] on that vibe also talking about working together.

[00:04:13] And do you think from president Trump having been in there for

[00:04:18] the four years that that he was, I was out here during that time and

[00:04:23] he definitely had very different experiences.

[00:04:25] And I think he's very appreciative, I believe, of what having a Congress

[00:04:32] that he can work with looks like and what that can do versus

[00:04:35] what the alternative is.

[00:04:37] And so I think he very much wants to get back in the White House, but

[00:04:41] I think he definitely wants a Congress that he can get things done with.

[00:04:45] That was in his first two years, the first half of his, his first term,

[00:04:51] he had a Republican Congress and they were able to get through tax cuts

[00:04:55] and jobs in many of the CRAs and the deregulation and get Keystone

[00:05:00] pipeline rolling and make those, make that progress.

[00:05:04] And in the second half, he didn't have that anymore and really had

[00:05:09] to play a much more fighting for every inch kind of game.

[00:05:13] So I think he's, I believe he's very aware of that and he's

[00:05:17] shown that in his endorsements, really trying to bring productive

[00:05:20] members and good team members back to Congress to work with them.

[00:05:25] What does it mean for the party's operations to have that type of event?

[00:05:29] How does both of you have worked more recently than I have in kind

[00:05:33] of party operations and how things happen, what does it mean to

[00:05:37] have that type of big event fill the party's coffers operationally?

[00:05:41] How much is that a benefit coming into this elections cycle?

[00:05:45] Yeah, it's critical and crucial even with really good

[00:05:48] grassroots support and volunteer efforts and all of those things,

[00:05:53] which are obviously helpful and can be leveraged.

[00:05:56] You really still need an organizational side that, that comes with having

[00:06:01] staff and having people that are day in and day out managing,

[00:06:05] managing people, managing resources, targeting, being strategic

[00:06:09] and tactical with where they're going.

[00:06:10] That it's huge.

[00:06:12] I just did a little quick math here.

[00:06:14] So we talked last week about how tickets were ranging from 500 to $100,000,

[00:06:19] the different tiers and everything of that sort.

[00:06:22] So if we look at this with 1500 people in the room and party

[00:06:25] effectively brought in probably close to three quarters of a million

[00:06:28] dollars or upwards, and those are resources, those are dollars,

[00:06:32] those are mailers, phone calls, text messages, those are events they're

[00:06:35] able to hold, those are staff they're able to hire and that is just huge.

[00:06:40] Going into end of May here, beginning of June, we're having filing

[00:06:44] deadline just around the corner.

[00:06:45] And so being able to really focus on taking back that house and of

[00:06:49] course, up ballot benefits the congressional and, and presidential as well.

[00:06:53] I think it's really incredible.

[00:06:55] One thing that David, I did want to ask you about this attitude change,

[00:06:59] maybe the teamwork and Trump's way of looking at it.

[00:07:02] Do you think that, and I know you don't have the inner workings

[00:07:05] of, of president Trump's mind.

[00:07:07] Wouldn't that be a thing to have?

[00:07:09] But do you think this was a conscious effort and decision by his team to

[00:07:13] have a little bit different way of communicating and acting

[00:07:17] through this campaign cycle?

[00:07:20] Yeah, I think they're definitely operating in a very collaborative and team

[00:07:24] manner and I, and again, I think they have before, but I think having

[00:07:29] that experience of being the different ways he has a Congress that he can

[00:07:34] work with and a Congress that he doesn't really pulls that into full

[00:07:37] contrast of what he wants, wants to have in his second term.

[00:07:41] So I think they're doing a great job at working with people and making

[00:07:44] sure they have the right people going back to Congress.

[00:07:47] David, how does Minnesota has been a real puzzle for Republicans

[00:07:51] to win on the presidential race?

[00:07:53] What is the Trump campaign closing out this part of the show, this

[00:07:56] subject, what does the Trump campaign need to do to be competitive in Minnesota?

[00:08:02] Yeah, I think they obviously the resources we covered that piece

[00:08:05] I in the, and the attention it's going to need to be, to stay top of

[00:08:11] mind and stay part of the overall plan.

[00:08:14] I think one of the, one of the good things about Minnesota and in that

[00:08:18] regard and from the presidential map is it really, it weaves in pretty

[00:08:23] nicely with Wisconsin.

[00:08:25] I know we don't necessarily think that from a sports perspective,

[00:08:29] but from a media market perspective and shared logistics and things of

[00:08:34] that nature, I think it really can play together well with that.

[00:08:39] And so I think if they really get in on the early side and marry those things up,

[00:08:43] again, the crossover with Minneapolis TV, with Duluth TV, with La Crosse TV,

[00:08:47] you're heading all that from a media side.

[00:08:50] So I think staying on the air and in Minnesota is going to, is going

[00:08:56] to be a big, a big part of what needs to happen.

[00:09:00] I think having that, that real engagement at the congressional

[00:09:03] level is also a big thing.

[00:09:05] We now, it was only in 2020 was the first time post 2020, the first time

[00:09:12] since a brief then when Chip Kravak was in Congress and after the 10

[00:09:18] election until the 12 election.

[00:09:20] But that's largely the only time we're in the only time in the last 20

[00:09:24] years, other than that, that where we've had four and four on the

[00:09:28] congressional level, we've generally played at a disadvantage of a five three.

[00:09:33] And so I think from, and especially that maturing of those operations, I

[00:09:37] think that can really play in and maximize those vote totals.

[00:09:42] We did a lot in the fishbot campaign last cycle to drive up her vote totals.

[00:09:49] Which wasn't just for the bragging rights of, of winning by 40 points.

[00:09:54] It was to drive up the Republican vote totals in the district.

[00:09:58] And we were able to improve the gubernatorial from 18 to 22 by 7% in her district.

[00:10:05] I think that's yeah.

[00:10:07] And so I, that, I think repeating that doing the work that we had obviously set

[00:10:11] up in congressional six with Congressman Emmer and they're doing a great job

[00:10:15] there and then an eight and one, I really think that's a big part of it

[00:10:19] as well, that we can turn that tide.

[00:10:21] David, you may not know that Becky is raised as, is a Packers family.

[00:10:26] So she's probably very happy with the fact that Wisconsin's getting this attention.

[00:10:29] Making the peace.

[00:10:30] I'm just pure Minnesota and Viking.

[00:10:33] So I think it makes sense for her.

[00:10:35] I'm sure she's going to be very supportive of, of that kind of

[00:10:38] connection between Minnesota and Green Bay, which is disappointing.

[00:10:41] And obviously that, that plays off that Milwaukee national convention

[00:10:45] as well being right next door.

[00:10:47] And hopefully that also is a boost just in general to, to the upper

[00:10:52] Midwest here of our attention, the attention being here from the

[00:10:57] Trump campaign and the RNC.

[00:10:59] Absolutely.

[00:11:00] We had a great, so the Republican party had, as you would say, great

[00:11:04] Friday night, and then we go into Saturday.

[00:11:06] Let's talk about the events at the state convention and the endorsement

[00:11:09] process, let's lump these sections in together.

[00:11:12] David, I, you and I had some exchange, some messages offline

[00:11:14] and going through some stats, give your kind of rundown of the

[00:11:18] events at the state convention and also dip into some of that

[00:11:21] analysis on the attendance and what's going on now at, at, with the

[00:11:25] endorsements and the convention that occurred on Saturday.

[00:11:28] I think we're seeing some definitive trend lines of participation rates

[00:11:34] in the party process.

[00:11:35] And I think we have to figure out how to have some real honest

[00:11:39] conversations about those things.

[00:11:42] Um, we never really saw reported, uh, attendance from precinct caucus,

[00:11:49] at least I've not seen any.

[00:11:51] Um, but by my estimations on the Republican side were maybe in the

[00:11:55] 12,000 statewide range, which is well below, um, really any historical

[00:12:03] averages in the last few decades.

[00:12:04] So I really relatively low at they're harder to track now that

[00:12:10] the presidential straw poll is not in there, so we don't get that kind

[00:12:15] of snapshot and that help with our math and that reporting.

[00:12:19] And then, and I think that of course makes a difference, but I think

[00:12:21] that's a reality than that.

[00:12:23] We have to readdress of where we're at because again, seeing when you

[00:12:27] look at 12,000 people, um, participating at the end of February

[00:12:34] on Republican, and then one week later having 340,000 Republicans vote

[00:12:39] in a presidential primary, that's a big Gulf of participation.

[00:12:45] And if people are not wanting to participate, then what is the

[00:12:51] solution to that?

[00:12:52] Because I think that the endorsement system had set up to be a

[00:12:57] representative way of doing things.

[00:12:59] But if the pool just continues to be so self selecting, uh, then you

[00:13:04] really aren't representing because for the most part, then people

[00:13:08] are going to precinct caucuses.

[00:13:09] They call it being elected from precinct caucuses, but in

[00:13:13] nearly all cases, everybody that attends a precinct caucus and wants

[00:13:17] to be a precinct delegate is a precinct delegate.

[00:13:22] And then they're going to their, their local convention, their BPLU.

[00:13:25] So their Senate district or county convention.

[00:13:29] And again, then they're asking to be elected to state and congressional

[00:13:33] district conventions, but really what we saw more pronounced in this cycle

[00:13:38] than ever before is very few elections for those.

[00:13:43] It was really, uh, just whoever said I will do it.

[00:13:47] And in some cases near arguments over who should do it, uh, because there

[00:13:53] weren't enough volunteers and I think then that's ultimately, you know,

[00:13:58] was born out with what we saw at state convention, which is something

[00:14:02] I've never seen in my time before.

[00:14:04] And my guess is Michael and Becky, the same with you, where we've really

[00:14:09] barely had 60% of delegation.

[00:14:13] And it's really worse than that because if you take all the delegates

[00:14:16] and alternates who were elected at their local conventions, that would

[00:14:20] have been almost 3,600 people that were eligible to be at that

[00:14:25] convention and be seated in our top voting strength after seeding

[00:14:30] all alternates was 1,375 delegates and seated alternates.

[00:14:37] So that's about 38% of the eligible people who could have been there

[00:14:42] were there and voting.

[00:14:44] And I think that's a real, I think that's a real conversation we

[00:14:47] have to have as Republicans is what do we do with that?

[00:14:50] Because that is, that's really then a shrinking pool just in size

[00:14:55] and coming from already shrinking pool.

[00:14:57] And so you're representing even fewer people.

[00:15:00] And then you really just then come to, I think some difficult truths.

[00:15:05] We saw multiple counties in greater Minnesota that didn't have a single

[00:15:10] person there and one that was seated right by mine was Lyon County.

[00:15:14] City of Marshall, the former headquarters founding of Schwann's

[00:15:18] ice cream and minority leader and gubernatorial candidate Marty

[00:15:22] Seifert from there for, and represented that for years and over

[00:15:26] 25,000 people and not one single delegate or alternate, not a ballot

[00:15:30] cast in any function that we did as a party.

[00:15:34] And so it's hard then to say given all of that, that then that

[00:15:40] convention could speak in a representative voice when the

[00:15:44] participation levels were so low.

[00:15:46] So I think that's a real, I think that's a real problem in a

[00:15:50] disconnect between the wider Republican world and what's going on at

[00:15:57] precinct, caulking it and convention.

[00:16:00] We've talked about this a lot.

[00:16:01] I love and hate the endorsement process.

[00:16:04] Right.

[00:16:04] I learned from you back in 2010 at the Emmer gubernatorial battle with

[00:16:08] Marty Seifert from Marshall, Minnesota back then it is a chess game that

[00:16:12] can be won and lost.

[00:16:13] There are benefits to it.

[00:16:15] But as you say, it is really something, and especially something

[00:16:18] that I recognize a lot more now as, you know, being married, owning a house,

[00:16:23] having a child, that life obligations really do are a lot.

[00:16:28] So to go to caucus in February and then your BPOU convention in March or

[00:16:32] April, and then take a whole weekend where you often have to stay overnight

[00:16:36] and spend hundreds of dollars to go sit in a room for long days at times.

[00:16:41] We've seen them go 12, 15 hour days.

[00:16:44] It's a lot to ask of people.

[00:16:46] And so you already, like you mentioned, already are pulling from a pool of

[00:16:50] people who have means, have time, have accessibility, have help and the

[00:16:54] support to be able to do that.

[00:16:56] And it is just when you were sharing those numbers, that

[00:16:59] is mind boggling to me.

[00:17:00] I come from the same as history that you were talking to of 2010 and

[00:17:05] 2014 where we had, you have 600 alternates waiting up there for their

[00:17:10] opportunity to get down on the floor and be part of the voting delegation.

[00:17:14] And so not only that there wasn't even, that there was almost 40% of

[00:17:20] that delegation filled is just really astounding.

[00:17:23] And we've talked a lot about how there's always a conversation about

[00:17:27] moving away from the endorsement and moving to a primary.

[00:17:30] And we've seen some candidates over the years going to the primary,

[00:17:34] whether that's Tim Pawlenty or others, going to that primary to

[00:17:39] attempt to buck the endorsement process.

[00:17:41] And today it hasn't been super successful.

[00:17:44] I think this might be the year where some of the endorsed candidates

[00:17:47] do get picked off in the primary.

[00:17:50] But as you said, we really need to, if this is supposed to be a

[00:17:53] representation of the Republican party across Minnesota, we're

[00:17:57] clearly not there and missing the mark.

[00:17:59] So either something significant needs to happen to fix that.

[00:18:02] And I don't know what that is.

[00:18:04] I don't think there is one single thing that can draw those people back

[00:18:08] in to get more than 12,000 people attending precinct caucus in February.

[00:18:12] But it does seem the gig might beat up on this, right?

[00:18:17] Yeah.

[00:18:17] I think there's again, I think it's at least illustrative of an

[00:18:22] issue that I think we need to talk about.

[00:18:24] And I do think, yeah, primaries generally haven't been successful

[00:18:30] in Minnesota, but I think a lot of times that's where I think there's

[00:18:34] still a connection between they, you have enough people involved in

[00:18:38] the process where they, you are getting a sample size and you think of a poll.

[00:18:42] Right?

[00:18:43] You there's a way, there's a process you can do a scientific poll to

[00:18:46] actually get a representative number to be able to talk to 400 people

[00:18:52] and still know what a state is thinking.

[00:18:54] So there is a way to have a selection process.

[00:18:58] But when that becomes so again, the pool becomes so shallow that

[00:19:02] there's not enough pieces to pick out of, then you start getting

[00:19:06] what's regarded as junk polls where, you know, the poll is not done

[00:19:10] scientifically and then so you're getting a result that's out of whack.

[00:19:14] And if that's the case, then a primary is always going to be a check on

[00:19:20] if that was actually where people were at.

[00:19:23] And so we have seen those.

[00:19:24] Jim Hagedorn won against an endorse candidate back in 2014.

[00:19:29] Obviously governor Carlson did, and those are at higher levels.

[00:19:34] It's happened more numerous times.

[00:19:35] At house and Senate campaigns at the local level.

[00:19:39] I think that argument, aware endorsement in primary should be

[00:19:43] beginning end is going to take place yet for a while, but I think at

[00:19:47] the end of the day, you can't go so far out of the will of the

[00:19:52] majority of people and make it work.

[00:19:55] And so if the world, the majority of Republicans is too out of alignment

[00:20:00] with the numbers that have self-selected at an endorsement process, then

[00:20:05] that's not ultimately a recipe for success.

[00:20:08] No, and I agree with both of your, the points you made.

[00:20:11] I think all of us fairly would say that we've all been, we've, I think

[00:20:15] our positions on the endorsement have evolved.

[00:20:17] I was, when I served in party leadership was party staff and we

[00:20:21] supported the endorse process.

[00:20:23] The endorsement simply isn't working.

[00:20:24] I think there's far too much emphasis on this non-binding intramural

[00:20:28] contest and it is, it has become a distraction from campaigns focusing

[00:20:33] on the broader electorate, focusing on primaries, focusing on the general

[00:20:37] elections and it has just become, it's become an essence in it's like

[00:20:42] winning a pre-season game in the NFL.

[00:20:44] It's just meaningless, but we seem to be celebrating it and we want to

[00:20:47] have parades for a candidate winning, for a team winning a pre-season game.

[00:20:51] I think it's just a huge mistake.

[00:20:53] And I think it's this weekend.

[00:20:54] I think the endorsement was on life support.

[00:20:56] The process was particularly as we've seen some of the congressional

[00:21:00] endorsements.

[00:21:00] And I want to be clear with, and just say that I think that the fact

[00:21:05] that congresswoman Fischbach was not endorsed, that's a problem for me

[00:21:09] in a sense that to think that she's not the type of Republican who can

[00:21:13] get endorsed, that boggles the mind.

[00:21:16] That boggles the mind to me.

[00:21:17] And then to have what's going on in other parts of the state with

[00:21:20] these endorsements and then come into the state convention and see who does

[00:21:23] get endorsed and the low percentages.

[00:21:25] The bottom line is if someone can show to me how the endorsement

[00:21:29] process is helping candidates win elections, then I would be more

[00:21:33] of an advocate for it, but it's not.

[00:21:35] The last time the Republican endorsed candidate for governor got more than

[00:21:38] 50% of the vote was 1978.

[00:21:41] Al Quay was the last Republican endorsed candidate to get

[00:21:44] more than 50% of the vote.

[00:21:46] The last time a US Senate candidate in Minnesota got over 50% of

[00:21:50] it was Dave Durenberger in 88.

[00:21:52] Arne Carlson won in 90 and 94.

[00:21:55] He was not endorsed either time by the Republican party.

[00:21:58] And so that doesn't count.

[00:21:59] So Republicans have last won statewide in 2006, but that was a very

[00:22:03] close selection for governor Pawlenty.

[00:22:05] And so the party's endorsement process has far too much emphasis and it has

[00:22:11] become a distraction just like an intramural game, it's an intramural

[00:22:15] contest, just like a preseason game, but it's gotten far too much significance.

[00:22:19] And I think the fact that we're sitting here today and David, your

[00:22:22] analysis on the numbers really show how much it's on life support and

[00:22:26] really how much it's not working.

[00:22:28] When you get to the fact that 1,375 people, which is only 38% of

[00:22:33] the larger pool showed up, but of that 1,375, 67% made an endorsement

[00:22:39] for US Senate and that's not a reflection of where the entire broad party is.

[00:22:44] And the questions you, what you said about Lyon County, it used to be

[00:22:47] the second district field rep for the party in 1998.

[00:22:50] Lyon County was part of the Republican L it's the heart and soul

[00:22:54] used to be some of the gold coast for Republicans to win and to not have them

[00:22:58] have any representation at the state convention is just astounding to me.

[00:23:03] Yeah, I think there's again, some reflection that needs to take place.

[00:23:08] And I do think that's part of, we have to have some of these things out

[00:23:12] there to be able to talk about them.

[00:23:16] And I, again, I think that's where I get a little frustrated because people

[00:23:21] don't know how many people were at precinct caucus, right?

[00:23:25] Generally Republicans have no ability to have your average Republican has

[00:23:29] no ability to access that information.

[00:23:31] So they have, they simply have no clue what the participation rate is.

[00:23:37] And so I think getting that out there and again, we also never had that.

[00:23:41] We never had that such a close comparative test, A B test before, right?

[00:23:49] And now with the presidential primary being one week from precinct caucus,

[00:23:54] we can see side by side the difference.

[00:23:58] And what was very clear and undeniable is 30 times as many people decided to

[00:24:06] participate in, and let's be honest, a largely foregone conclusion, presidential

[00:24:13] primary election just one week after precinct caucus and for every one

[00:24:18] person that went to precinct caucus, they and 29 other people went and

[00:24:23] voted in that presidential primary.

[00:24:26] So I think you do have to realize that there's a wide Gulf there.

[00:24:30] And what does that mean?

[00:24:32] And I think if people from the endorsement process side, if you want

[00:24:36] to set yourself up as being a representative form of government, right?

[00:24:41] Like you're going to be representative of your area, then you have to see it

[00:24:46] And so when is the last time people that were any process of the delegate posted

[00:24:52] on their Facebook page and said, I'm a delegate, what do you think?

[00:24:55] What, what do you think I should do?

[00:24:57] When people are elected officials, they, all of that is public information.

[00:25:01] They can be access.

[00:25:02] They have to get the public feedback.

[00:25:05] So I think there's a disconnect between people wanting to say they want the

[00:25:10] power side without the responsibility side and the power to speak for people

[00:25:15] without actually making themselves accessible to those people, to get

[00:25:19] their opinions and figure out where they're at.

[00:25:21] David, where does the party go from here?

[00:25:25] I think one thing is really the party needs to, and I think that it

[00:25:30] seems obvious to say maybe, but I've seen it become very not obvious.

[00:25:35] And the party's really mission is to elect Republican.

[00:25:39] And that's really the core mission, the prime directive of the party.

[00:25:46] And that needs to be the focus of people who are involved in the party.

[00:25:50] And I think it's really got sidetracked from that.

[00:25:54] And I think when you lose your core mission, when you lose your prime

[00:25:57] directive, you really can begin to wander off in a lot of different directions.

[00:26:02] And, and again, I think that's, that's not to say people as individuals

[00:26:08] shouldn't do whatever contact methods they want of elected officials and

[00:26:14] weighing in with them and expressing themselves, but the party as a

[00:26:18] structure really was meant to win in general elections.

[00:26:23] That's what it's supposed to be due.

[00:26:24] And that's what is supposed to be set up to do.

[00:26:27] And I think the party needs to get back to that.

[00:26:30] David, you're right.

[00:26:31] We appreciate you being here today and giving your perspective.

[00:26:34] And we hope to have you back as we continue to do analysis that

[00:26:37] your wisdom is second to none.

[00:26:39] And your analysis and your commentary and your understanding of the

[00:26:42] party apparatus is just remarkable.

[00:26:44] And so we thank you so much for being with us today.

[00:26:46] Okay.

[00:26:47] Thank you, guys.

[00:26:48] Thank you.

[00:26:51] Becky, we just interviewed one of the smartest Republican strategists

[00:26:55] in this state, David Fitzsimmons to talk about a little bit of a

[00:26:59] breakdown on the numbers of the convention.

[00:27:01] He had some great analysis on the attendance and other kinds of

[00:27:04] process and really put, I think in, in a, in numbers terms, why

[00:27:09] the endorsement process is dying.

[00:27:10] Your take.

[00:27:12] Yeah.

[00:27:12] Like I said, David, like you just put it, David is one of the truly

[00:27:17] smartest political minds in the state and beyond, and has played

[00:27:22] a significant role in numerous endorsement wins, has been a

[00:27:26] huge role.

[00:27:26] He's chaired the convention.

[00:27:27] He's been in the party.

[00:27:29] He's really done everything at all levels and to always has great analysis.

[00:27:34] And one that I hadn't heard before, and I guess not maybe too surprising

[00:27:38] is blown away by the numbers of folks that showed up and, and

[00:27:43] participated in the convention this last weekend.

[00:27:45] And it really is a little sad.

[00:27:47] Like I said, I came up in this process, these conventions were

[00:27:50] the thing they were big, they were huge parties and ways to

[00:27:55] celebrate and really come together and get party business done, get

[00:27:59] these endorsements done, but also work together and have

[00:28:03] conversations and really try to move our party forward together.

[00:28:06] And so the fact that 1400 people were when it was at its top voting

[00:28:11] strength is just wild to me and really disappointing.

[00:28:15] But I think as David laid out and as we discussed is really what

[00:28:20] needs to be looked at when we talk about the future of the

[00:28:22] endorsement, because we've had this history of Republicans continuing

[00:28:27] to lose in on election day.

[00:28:29] And that is a problem in itself.

[00:28:31] But when we've seen these kinds of different groups and organizations

[00:28:35] and wings and factions of the party kind of take over this process,

[00:28:39] it's not working.

[00:28:40] It's no longer representative of who Republicans are and

[00:28:44] what we stand for in the state.

[00:28:45] I didn't go to carcass this year.

[00:28:47] I had this as I think one of the first 21 or again, the last couple

[00:28:52] of years have been the first time that I haven't been active in that.

[00:28:56] And it's because I don't feel that's my place to be anymore.

[00:29:00] But this is where we elect our candidates that stand for

[00:29:03] our party on the ballot.

[00:29:05] And as we know, when that came out of this last convention,

[00:29:09] it really blew up in our face.

[00:29:10] And I think it's going to be something that Republicans in Minnesota

[00:29:13] are going to have to wear hopefully only till primary, but unfortunately

[00:29:17] likely through election day in November.

[00:29:20] Let's use that as a transition point to our next subject, which is

[00:29:24] the endorsement process and the endorsement of Royce White.

[00:29:27] Would you like to start or should I begin?

[00:29:29] I'll just start by saying we last week briefly mentioned

[00:29:33] the upcoming convention.

[00:29:34] I said, I didn't really know much about even who was running in general,

[00:29:38] but I think Joe Frazier is one that we business man, somebody that

[00:29:42] we thought had a good shot as a good, a good candidate of moving forward.

[00:29:47] It's Amy Klobuchar.

[00:29:48] I'm not under any illusion that any Republican was going to take down

[00:29:51] Amy Klobuchar regardless of who got endorsed.

[00:29:53] But when I saw what came out and the overwhelming, it was an

[00:29:58] overwhelming endorsement of Royce White.

[00:30:00] We can say that.

[00:30:02] What I then started to look into a little bit more of who he is

[00:30:07] and how he conducts himself and wowser.

[00:30:10] It is, it's sad.

[00:30:13] It's alarming.

[00:30:14] It's disturbing and really unfortunate that again, this is somebody who

[00:30:20] Republicans up and down the ballot right now are tied to unfortunately

[00:30:24] in the state of Minnesota.

[00:30:26] But I want to give you the opportunity here because it's been really,

[00:30:31] it's been tough to watch the, what you've been enduring on Twitter

[00:30:35] since the endorsement.

[00:30:36] And I always said all along, I don't want to work for a candidate

[00:30:41] who is a Twitter warrior.

[00:30:43] It's not a good place for a candidate in any capacity, but especially

[00:30:47] one who conducts himself in such a gross inhumane way that this is

[00:30:53] has been coming out over the last couple of days.

[00:30:55] So I would like you to share a little bit of your interactions

[00:30:58] and what you are seeing and we can get into some of the

[00:31:01] disturbing history for us right here.

[00:31:04] It was surprising.

[00:31:04] I think there was a number of people that were surprised by the process.

[00:31:07] Again, one of the things that I want to note is for the last 10 years

[00:31:10] and you talked a little bit about your history, 2014, there was a

[00:31:14] convention and what happened around 10 years ago was something I think

[00:31:18] changed a bit when the endorsement process and it used to be that

[00:31:21] the endorsement process was and the endorsement and the state

[00:31:24] convention was the culmination of campaigns racing around the state

[00:31:28] doing good work.

[00:31:29] And then after the activists have kicked the tires on these

[00:31:32] candidates, they come into the state convention, they give a speech

[00:31:35] and there's a victor.

[00:31:36] That's at least it was for me.

[00:31:38] Something changed in 2014 and you were at that convention where

[00:31:42] Philip Parrish came in out of the blue and gave some crazy in speech

[00:31:46] and he was a real player at that convention.

[00:31:49] We saw that at the state convention in 2022 where Mike Murphy, who

[00:31:54] had no money comes in and he's able to upend that convention.

[00:31:58] And what's happened is that the activists inside the party, the

[00:32:02] delegates and alternates who have a responsibility and who like to

[00:32:05] present themselves as being good stewards of the party brand and

[00:32:09] that they're going to do their homework.

[00:32:11] What this is happening is that they're just endorsing the best

[00:32:14] person who gives the best speech the day of the convention.

[00:32:17] There's no discussion and analysis about what the status of the

[00:32:21] campaign is, how can they win?

[00:32:22] Are they going to win?

[00:32:23] Are they in a position to win?

[00:32:24] It is an absolute.

[00:32:26] Advocation of their responsibility as Republicans to vet and examine

[00:32:30] these candidates.

[00:32:31] And we need to dispel the myth that these are thoughtful decisions

[00:32:35] made by thoughtful people that are really getting their pen and pencil

[00:32:38] out and they're really checking off and really examining these candidates.

[00:32:42] The endorsement of Royce White, I think is going to be the death

[00:32:44] nail of the Republican party endorsement process.

[00:32:48] I think it's an absolute failure.

[00:32:49] Let's talk about the numbers again.

[00:32:51] There were 1,375 people at the top number.

[00:32:54] Royce White got roughly 67% of that number and that's who bestowed

[00:32:59] this endorsement.

[00:32:59] There were empty seats in the convention hall.

[00:33:02] Royce White was able to get 67% and he was able to get endorsed.

[00:33:05] Anyone who voted for Royce White, anyone who facilitated Royce

[00:33:09] White getting endorsed is really not very smart.

[00:33:13] And I'm really challenged by the mindset of people that helped

[00:33:17] facilitate the endorsement, voted for him and do it.

[00:33:20] First of all, let me say the job of the party, and I'm someone

[00:33:23] who's been very critical of the party in the past, the job of

[00:33:25] the party in this situation is to be like the NFL, their job is

[00:33:28] to run the venues, make sure there's referees and that the

[00:33:31] process is fair.

[00:33:33] The party leadership doesn't vote in these endorsements.

[00:33:35] It's the activist in the crowd, the attendees of the delegates

[00:33:38] that they're, it's the party's job to make sure the

[00:33:41] venue is there and the lights are on and the microphones

[00:33:43] are paid for and all that type of stuff.

[00:33:44] And so this isn't a party leadership problem.

[00:33:47] This is an activist problem.

[00:33:48] And this is an activist inside the party.

[00:33:50] And anyone again who helped facilitate that endorsement,

[00:33:54] who helped speed it up, who voted for him to get endorsed.

[00:33:58] Boy, oh boy, you should be looking at the mirror because

[00:34:00] there's no credible way that anyone can say that Royce White

[00:34:04] is a credible, responsible candidate for the United States Senate.

[00:34:08] After Royce White got endorsed, I reached out to a couple of people

[00:34:11] that I knew were somewhat connected to the campaign just to get a

[00:34:15] sense as to what their thought process was.

[00:34:17] And basically it was this, Republicans weren't going to

[00:34:19] win the U S Senate race.

[00:34:20] So why not just throw a curve ball into the, in the election?

[00:34:23] And what's the worst that Royce White can do?

[00:34:25] There was no vetting of him, any substantive vetting of him.

[00:34:29] And Royce White has, uh, past statements that I think are problematic.

[00:34:34] He has current legal issues that are problematic.

[00:34:36] And I also do not believe that he has the temperament and the judgment

[00:34:40] and he has the ability to be, is going to farewell under the

[00:34:45] scrutiny of a statewide election.

[00:34:47] And let's just look just briefly since all politics is local,

[00:34:51] let's just, I'm going to make this just very briefly about me for a second.

[00:34:53] Within six hours of this guy getting endorsed, called me a moron,

[00:34:57] called me a dumb ass, called me a punk, challenged me to a

[00:35:00] debate and told me to shut my mouth.

[00:35:02] Now you'd be for our listeners.

[00:35:04] I'm not running for the United States Senate.

[00:35:06] I'm not.

[00:35:06] And so if you, just a little free kind of political one-on-one tip.

[00:35:10] When you run for office, the person you should challenge

[00:35:13] to a debate is your opponent.

[00:35:14] Not some dad who's at a softball or a baseball tournament, just

[00:35:18] watching things that it's happening.

[00:35:20] Royce White came out swinging and I understand in the action for

[00:35:24] Liberty kind of red meat crowd, this MAGA crowd.

[00:35:26] That's a great thing.

[00:35:27] He acted like a complete and utter jackass on social media.

[00:35:31] And successful politics is about addition and multiplication.

[00:35:35] It's not about subtraction and division.

[00:35:37] And there's not one thing that Royce White has done to show that

[00:35:41] he's in any type of credible position to win the nomination and win the race.

[00:35:45] Not only do I not think that he's in a credible position to win,

[00:35:48] or is he a credible candidate?

[00:35:50] I think he's a chaotic, combustible candidate.

[00:35:52] And I get the people that want to blow up the system and shake things

[00:35:55] up and do those types of, uh, this is like traveling with dynamite in,

[00:35:59] in the back car and what the, what, what the Republican activists just did.

[00:36:02] As they threw a couple of sticks of dynamite in the back seat of the car.

[00:36:05] And now the Republican car is driving around the state

[00:36:07] with Royce White in the back seat.

[00:36:09] And it's just a mess.

[00:36:10] His social media presence is obnoxious.

[00:36:13] And let me just say to you, I would be very hard pressed for anyone who

[00:36:16] knows my history to think that I've ever been afraid of throwing a punch

[00:36:21] in politics, nor receiving a punch.

[00:36:23] I got thick skin.

[00:36:24] I'm a big boy.

[00:36:25] I can handle it.

[00:36:26] But the level of just crude commentary that Royce White's engages in.

[00:36:32] My policy on social media has always been, I'm never going to say

[00:36:35] something to someone on social media that I wouldn't say to their face.

[00:36:38] And over the years, as I've gotten a little older and a little bit more

[00:36:41] sentimental and a little not necessarily softer, my rhetoric has certainly

[00:36:45] changed in terms of my level of partisanship, but I'm not afraid to mix it up.

[00:36:48] This guy is a foul mouthed jerk and he is just an absolute jerk.

[00:36:53] And to think that that's going to be a successful way is to make

[00:36:58] anti-Semitic statements, is to demagogue any particular person

[00:37:01] that you can, that's not a way to win.

[00:37:03] If we have to win by being anti-Semitic, if we have to win by

[00:37:07] being hateful towards every conceivable community that you can,

[00:37:12] that's not a way to win.

[00:37:13] And I absolutely do not believe that the wing of the party that

[00:37:17] endorsed Royce White on Saturday, the Alex Jones, Steve Bannon wing of

[00:37:22] the party is the recipe that's needed for Republicans to win.

[00:37:25] Anyone who endorsed, who voted for to endorse Royce White, any person

[00:37:30] who helped facilitate his name being placed in nomination or to speed up

[00:37:35] the process for him to get endorsed should absolutely be ashamed of themselves.

[00:37:39] Yeah.

[00:37:39] I, like I said, I was seeing some of the interactions, so I did a

[00:37:43] little bit more digging and I want to start by saying in my career, I've

[00:37:48] had some opportunities to be involved with hiring and communicating

[00:37:52] with staff and managing staff and things of that sort and there we'd

[00:37:56] always have a conversation of is there anything in your past on social

[00:38:00] media that would be an issue if it came out?

[00:38:04] Would there be anything that would be a story if it came out?

[00:38:08] Wow.

[00:38:08] Here that, and we're talking, I'm talking like a press secretary or

[00:38:12] like a field rep, lower level staff that are play an integral role.

[00:38:15] But I've also told them if I have to spend ever two minutes on defending

[00:38:19] something that you've tweeted or said to the press, we're going to have

[00:38:22] an issue.

[00:38:23] Now we have a candidate who is a statewide candidate representing our

[00:38:27] party as a U S Senate candidate who has all of these things in his past.

[00:38:32] And it is really unfortunate.

[00:38:33] I saw a reporter, former Minnesotan and good liberal reporter tweet about

[00:38:39] looking in his past just for how many times he used the word C-U-N-T.

[00:38:45] Last year, this is not, we're not talking when he was in college.

[00:38:48] We're not talking 20 years ago.

[00:38:50] In 2023, he used that word on Twitter eight times.

[00:38:53] That is still, eight times.

[00:38:55] I lost you in the audio.

[00:38:56] What word?

[00:38:58] C-U-N-T.

[00:38:59] I'm not going to say the word.

[00:39:01] It's not a word I like to have.

[00:39:02] I'm sorry.

[00:39:02] He said the C word eight times.

[00:39:04] That's what you're saying on Twitter.

[00:39:06] Oh, 2023 in 2023.

[00:39:09] Mind boggling.

[00:39:10] I'm going to read one of these.

[00:39:11] Now I'm not going to read the word, but this is from April 24th, 2023.

[00:39:16] Must have been, I'm guessing there was a presidential debate.

[00:39:19] Mike Pence, cock paid for Nikki Haley.

[00:39:23] C-U-N-T paid for Chris Christie fat as F he used the F swear word here.

[00:39:29] Incompetent.

[00:39:29] Ron DeSantis.

[00:39:30] Did he really look down to row, down the road to see how everyone else was going

[00:39:34] to answer it's horrifying.

[00:39:36] The GOP candidates are intentionally horrible.

[00:39:38] Vivek, I'm watching.

[00:39:39] This is somebody who literally seven, eight months ago was using these words

[00:39:44] to talk about some of the best Republican leaders.

[00:39:48] Again, do we agree with all of these candidates that were running for president?

[00:39:51] No, but this is somebody who is now going to be the top of the ticket.

[00:39:55] Obviously not presidential, but the top of the Republican party of Minnesota.

[00:39:59] It is just really, really alarming and so unfortunate.

[00:40:03] And so it goes back to our Harrison buck.

[00:40:06] Our conversation is that now people look to this as thinking this is okay.

[00:40:10] This is somebody now who has a platform and people are going to look

[00:40:14] at to this and say, he says it so I can say it.

[00:40:16] This kind of way of speaking is embarrassing for a frack guy or

[00:40:21] is somebody anybody in general.

[00:40:24] But this is somebody who is now the you, the Republican party of Minnesota

[00:40:28] endorsed candidate for U.S.

[00:40:30] Senate and I'm ashamed.

[00:40:34] Yes.

[00:40:34] And one of the things I would say, and this is the, this will be the

[00:40:36] classic game now is that if we disapprove of the way that he's speaking,

[00:40:40] it's because we're trying to attack.

[00:40:42] We're trying to hide his message or that he's somewhere.

[00:40:45] He somehow knows this better than we do.

[00:40:48] It's this absolute classic gaslighting.

[00:40:51] Royce White does not live in the same world that I live in and does not live.

[00:40:55] I would fair to say in the same world that you and I both live in and where

[00:40:58] the vast majority of Minnesotans live, he lives in a different world.

[00:41:03] And he lives in a world where using that type of foul language, attacking

[00:41:08] everyone that you can in that type of volatile and disgusting way, attacking

[00:41:13] every conceivable group that he can.

[00:41:16] Uh, running around with Steve Bannon and Alex Jones, who's just a terrible

[00:41:20] human being somehow is going to put him in a path to win.

[00:41:25] And that's what I'm so damn frustrated with.

[00:41:27] I'm frustrated with people and I'm not going to name some of them right now,

[00:41:30] but I think some of the people that were at that convention stood on stage

[00:41:34] with him and placed his name and nomination who helped speed up the

[00:41:37] process for him to get endorsed should absolutely should be embarrassed

[00:41:40] of themselves.

[00:41:40] This is an embarrassment to Republicans, to the Republican brand.

[00:41:45] Let me also say something to you.

[00:41:46] I worked on Senate.

[00:41:47] I worked against Senator Klobuchar in 2006.

[00:41:51] I worked on Mark Kennedy's race.

[00:41:53] Senator Klobuchar is an incredibly good brand in terms of politics in

[00:41:57] Minnesota.

[00:41:58] Do I think that there should be a competitive race against her?

[00:42:02] Of course I do, but I'm going to tell you something.

[00:42:03] Amy Klobuchar is going to get a hell of a lot of Republicans to publicly

[00:42:08] come out and support her if Royce White is the candidate.

[00:42:11] She's already had a very strong support from the business community

[00:42:15] in this race to think that Republicans are just going to just wing it and

[00:42:18] throw Royce White into the race and up against Senator Klobuchar.

[00:42:23] This is appalling.

[00:42:24] And again, this is the question that I always say, and I've always asked.

[00:42:28] I've been hard on whether I've had been critical of the idea that

[00:42:33] Trump is going to be helpful to Republicans winning in Minnesota.

[00:42:36] I now have come to the position that, you know, if the Donald Trump

[00:42:40] and the kind of campaign operation that showed up on Friday to this

[00:42:43] state and that kind of cooperation with the party, that's really going to be

[00:42:47] helpful, I think, to the overall Republican ticket.

[00:42:49] And although I do not like Donald Trump and I will not be voting for him,

[00:42:53] this is an opportunity where he came to the state and Republicans from a

[00:42:57] financial standpoint had helped filled up the coffers.

[00:42:59] That's all undone now with Royce White.

[00:43:01] Royce White is an absolute train wreck.

[00:43:04] And here's the game that's going to be played here.

[00:43:07] And this is what we have to be mindful of, Becky, is that we're going

[00:43:11] to be accused of being racist.

[00:43:13] We're going to be accused of being part of the establishment and chills, like

[00:43:17] we're going to talk about in a second and other those types of comedy.

[00:43:19] We're going to be, our sense of reality is going to be challenged.

[00:43:23] Now I'm not going to be gaslit by Royce White and his supporters.

[00:43:27] I live in the real world.

[00:43:28] And I'm going to just tell you there is no electoral path for Royce

[00:43:32] White and the ilk that he has stood for and represented.

[00:43:36] And I hope he gets his ass kicked electorally in the state of Minnesota.

[00:43:40] I, it is anyone again who played any role in him getting endorsed

[00:43:45] should absolutely be embarrassed.

[00:43:47] And I hope electorally he gets his ass kicked.

[00:43:49] I also hope that there is a Republican challenge in the primary.

[00:43:53] I don't know if that's going to happen.

[00:43:55] I have my doubts because here's the problem now is that you got a

[00:43:58] U S Senator by the name of A.V.

[00:44:00] Klobuchar, who's going to win reelection?

[00:44:03] Who's got incredible brand in this state.

[00:44:05] Who's in a very strong position and she's going to win handily.

[00:44:09] So if you get a Republican that decides to run, first of all, they got to deal

[00:44:13] with Royce White in the primary.

[00:44:15] Now why would anyone now jump in the primary race and run against that jackass?

[00:44:20] That's what we're going to be dealing with now.

[00:44:21] You're going to have that goofball as the candidate.

[00:44:23] And so if that Republican candidate wins in the primary, what are

[00:44:26] they, who are they going to be left?

[00:44:27] Now their reward for being, for taking one for the team and being

[00:44:31] helpful is they now got to face Amy Klobuchar and that's the type of.

[00:44:36] My hope is that someone, there is someone that understands the role and

[00:44:41] the requirement to just help the team out and be a responsible steward.

[00:44:46] I think that elections are great opportunities for good ideas.

[00:44:50] I think a spirited U S Senate race would be great.

[00:44:53] It would be good for the state.

[00:44:54] It'd be a good policy discussion of back and forth.

[00:44:57] I'm not concerned about that type of rhetoric, but you think that Royce

[00:45:01] White is going to elevate the race?

[00:45:02] Do you think that Royce White and his, and the manner in which he's conducting

[00:45:05] himself is going to be better to Minnesota, that Minnesota is going to be

[00:45:09] better off this election cycle is going to be a train wreck.

[00:45:13] Explain to me, Becky, in as simple as terms as you can dumb it down for me

[00:45:18] as everyone as dumb as everybody thinks I am explained to me how Royce

[00:45:22] White helps Republicans in this state.

[00:45:25] I'm going to ask there too.

[00:45:27] It's one of those things I think we've made it very clear that we have

[00:45:30] certain issues with certain parts of the party or different Magalene and

[00:45:35] president Trump and different things.

[00:45:37] This is nothing to do with if we have a further right candidate, more

[00:45:42] power to you, that's fine.

[00:45:44] It is, it's all the other stuff for me that really is really

[00:45:47] disturbing about this candidate and how he has embraced kind of these

[00:45:50] conspiracy theorists and theories.

[00:45:53] And he's really putting that out there and being that brand.

[00:45:56] And like you said, every Republican now in Minnesota that's on the ballot

[00:46:00] in November is going to be tied to that.

[00:46:02] Right?

[00:46:03] They are going to, the Democrats are going to be capitalizing on

[00:46:06] this at every given moment.

[00:46:07] And it also ties our hands.

[00:46:08] Right?

[00:46:09] So now we just had this influx of dollars.

[00:46:12] Something that's always a really great thing to do before elections

[00:46:15] is send out sample ballots and have those names in front of folks who

[00:46:20] are the voters we need to show up, the voters we need to win over.

[00:46:23] And now how do you do that?

[00:46:25] You can't, so the party, their hands are tied.

[00:46:27] You can't just now, you either then put Royce White on there or you don't do them.

[00:46:31] And so other candidates are really going to be losing out from some

[00:46:34] of these different resources, whether it's being tied to Royce White or

[00:46:39] not having the benefits of different mailers and different things that you

[00:46:43] need to do of having two or more candidates in all of these different

[00:46:46] regulations and in the political world.

[00:46:48] And so now that we finally have the opportunity to spend resources

[00:46:52] and to support our candidates, the state party, I feel like is unfortunately

[00:46:56] going to have their hands tied a little bit of what they're going to want to do

[00:46:59] or be able to do because of this affiliation.

[00:47:03] I think the party is in a tough position because the party has an

[00:47:06] obligation to support the endorsement process.

[00:47:08] My hope would be that common sense would prevail and that the party

[00:47:11] would do little or nothing to support Royce White.

[00:47:15] I think that needs to happen because this is just, this is an introduction

[00:47:20] of chaos and Royce White has aligned himself with some of the ugliest

[00:47:27] forces in on the conservative side.

[00:47:29] It's the action for liberties.

[00:47:31] It's the Steve Bannon, it is Alex Jones.

[00:47:34] I'm going to just tell you something.

[00:47:36] I don't think that element is what has been missing from

[00:47:39] Republicans winning statewide.

[00:47:40] I don't believe we need more action for Liberty, Alex Jones and Steve

[00:47:44] Bannon, and that's been the missing ingredient.

[00:47:46] Anyone who thinks that Royce White is a viable candidate for the United States

[00:47:51] Senate or thinks his brain is going to help the Republican party win

[00:47:55] statewide has lost their mind.

[00:47:57] And what I'm seeing out in social media since this happened, since

[00:48:01] Royce White's candidacy and stuff, it's just bringing out ugliness.

[00:48:05] I have Taylor Rahm's father-in-law attacking me on social media for not

[00:48:09] supporting Royce White calling me a shill of the DC establishment.

[00:48:12] The level of mainstreaming and ugliness that we had, I don't have to put up with that.

[00:48:17] First of all, I'm not a candidate for the United States Senate.

[00:48:19] I'm certainly not a candidate for Congress in the second congressional

[00:48:22] district, and this type of behavior is just wrong.

[00:48:26] It's a setback for the party.

[00:48:28] I had a lot of high hopes.

[00:48:30] I think our interview with Kip and John, you and I, when we all

[00:48:34] participated in the discussion, I was left with a sense of things might get

[00:48:38] a little better for Republicans here in this state, and that event with Trump

[00:48:41] was successful by all accounts.

[00:48:43] I think the endorsement of Royce White fundamentally changes that,

[00:48:47] and we'll see where we go.

[00:48:49] But right now, I think he absolutely should be ignored and he

[00:48:53] should get no platforming.

[00:48:55] No one should mainstream his candidacy because I think he is

[00:48:59] living in a world that is not reality.

[00:49:02] My last comment is Royce White was also rather famous for his fear of

[00:49:07] flying.

[00:49:07] And I don't know if it was what level of conversation has been had, but

[00:49:12] to get to work every week, senators take planes.

[00:49:15] It is a very lengthy car ride to and from D.C., and I'm not bashing

[00:49:21] a free air of flying.

[00:49:22] Everybody has fears, and if that's his, that's fine.

[00:49:26] But how, if he were to be successful, would he actually be able to represent

[00:49:31] the state of Minnesota and all of the millions of folks who live here?

[00:49:34] Because he can't if he hasn't overcome that, it's truly that was mind

[00:49:39] boggling when I was reading up on this over the weekend.

[00:49:41] And thankfully, we'll never know because, again, Amy Globuchar is

[00:49:45] relatively untouchable in my eyes and especially in this situation.

[00:49:49] But just a little nugget I wanted to share.

[00:49:52] That's right, Becky.

[00:49:52] Thanks for doing this week.

[00:49:54] And we'll be following this.

[00:49:55] We should also note that the filing period is open.

[00:49:57] If you're a candidate running for office, filing period is open.

[00:50:00] I want to throw out a shout to the secretary, Steve Simon.

[00:50:03] Visit his website if you want to file run for office.

[00:50:06] We hope everyone runs for office.

[00:50:08] You're Democrat, you're Republican, whatever.

[00:50:10] Just run, participate.

[00:50:11] It's good for democracy.

[00:50:13] Absolutely. Thank you for sharing that.

[00:50:15] And sorry you're enduring this all on social media.

[00:50:18] Keep that thick skin and we'll be here to support you.

[00:50:21] Thanks so much. We'll be back next week.

[00:50:23] Bye.

[00:50:26] We want to thank you for listening to this bonus episode of The Breakdown

[00:50:30] with Brad Krumbecki.

[00:50:31] Before we go, show some love for your favorite podcast by leaving us

[00:50:34] review on Apple Podcasts or on the platform you listen.

[00:50:38] You can also review on our website at BBBreakpod.com.

[00:50:42] The Breakdown with Brad Krumbecki will return this week with a new episode.

[00:50:46] Thank you again for joining us.