Are you a Californian who feels like your views on politics in California are not popular? Do you feel like no one will agree with you? Feels like when you meet someone who does agree you are part of a secret underground club of people who think like you? Then join us on the California Underground Podcast to hear others who share your views and solutions to save our beautiful state.
On this episode, Camille and I are joined by State Senator Brian Dahle (and former gubernatorial candidate) and his wife Assemblywoman Megan Dahle to discuss their experience in the legislature, the state of the CAGOP and plans to grow it, and how conservatives can stay strong in the face of divisive social issues.
This episode was recorded on 6.20.23
*The California Underground Podcast is dedicated to discussing California politics from a place of sanity and rationality.*
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If you're a California, conservative a Libertarian, a
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moderate Democrat. Believe in common sense or just
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the same person. This is the political podcast
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for you. It's the California underground
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podcast. What's going on everybody?
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Thanks for tuning in to another episode of the California
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underground podcast. I'm your host.
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Phil with me, as always is my trusty Coast the best and
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fastest researcher in the west Camille, and tonight.
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Tonight, I think we're making history on the California
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underground podcast for the first time.
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We have a state senator and an assembly woman as guests on the
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same podcast. We've never had this before.
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This is exciting, Brian, and Megan Dolly, welcome to the
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show. Thank you guys for coming on,
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Brian. You've been on but Megan it's
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your first time on. So thank you both for coming on.
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How are you guys doing tonight? We're great.
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Thank you so much for having us. Yeah we're really excited.
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Thank you. Yeah, absolutely.
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We were just right before we were about to hop on.
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I asked, is there anything you guys specifically want to talk
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about? You said, there's so much to
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talk about and I agree, there's so much to talk about in
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California. But before we hop into that, for
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people who don't know you, why don't you introduce yourselves
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and give us a Little, how you guys got into politics and where
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you are, right? And how you got to where you are
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right now? Great start.
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You'll be a star. Yeah.
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Well first off you should know that we've been married for 24
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years and we have three children, we have our oldest has
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23 are a natural Tucson is 21 and we have a 13 year old
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daughter. So two, boys, and a girl, we
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both are from Northern California.
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Our families have a deep long history in Northern California.
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My family homesteaded in Siskiyou County, 93 years ago,
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go and Megan's family will work. I don't know how long long long
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we've been there longer than longer than us.
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So been around a long time and so we got I actually got into
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politics just by wanting to serve my community and make sure
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that you know all my values and our community's values were
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represented at the county level. And so I served 16 years on the
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Lassen County Board of Supervisors.
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Before I ran for the State, Assembly was elected to the
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assembly. 2012 and served six and a half years in the At
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assembly and my remaining time in the Senate.
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When I went to the Senate Megan came to the assembly, so she can
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tell her journey but we basically, I think for both of
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us, it's that we love California.
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It's amazing, beautiful state. Where those couple that aren't
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willing to leave, we will fight till The Bitter End because
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there's something worth fighting for here.
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And what happens in California will eventually happen Across
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the Nation. So we need to get it right in
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here. Yes, and so we're Farmers.
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We have a seed business and a trucking Division and when our
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children were small and Brian was, and the assembly, I also
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was co-owner of a plant nursery and on our local school board.
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So when Brian wins started in Sacramento, our boys, were 10
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and 12 and not quite old enough to run the farm yet.
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So, I took over most of the operations, and the school
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board, really motivated, me and move me.
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Me into that. Local people like political
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realm and very passionate about rural education.
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Most of the legislation I've run since I've been elected to the
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assembly as been around our rural schools and making sure
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that those outline areas children, get all access to all
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the classes that they need a proud moment for me as both for
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boys were accepted to Cal Poly and that's really hard to do.
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They graduated from a high school 52 students.
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No, that's all for grades all for grades.
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So just really pushed hard but something I learned on the
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school board. As a parent with kids in school,
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you have to Advocate at every level for your kids and although
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we have great teachers in our schools, you know, the
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curriculum and things that come down from at the state level,
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really impact our children and our children are they really are
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our future, they're our Workforce and they're the
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leaders coming up. And it's so vital.
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So that's where my passion started.
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And when Bryan ran for Senate, the question was, who would run
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for the assembly seat and we're Partners in life and everything
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we do and so it just it felt right.
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I ran, and I won, and a special election.
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And so I've been Alexis elected 16 since November of 2019.
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When Brian turns out in 2024, I'm running for his senate seat.
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So I've just made that decision. Well, that's great.
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Out my more dollies, we need more dollies.
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People like you in the legislature real quick.
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Maybe this is a good way to kind of guide our episode tonight
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because there's two of you and I want to make sure we discuss
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some really important issues right off the bat as
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legislators. What do you think is your number
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one topic that you are advocating for in the
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legislature whoever wants to go first?
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Well, I would start. Start with just saying that
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there's so many things that are just unfortunate about
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California. We have proposition 47, fits of
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crime, we have a lot of things happening but I would just say
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that as a business owner and as somebody who has been here for
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10 years, we've had a lot of money in Sacramento more than
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there's ever been. And we last year, we had 108
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billion dollars in extra revenue and this year we see Thirty 1
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billion dollar deficit. So we went from a Ornate to
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minus Thirty 1 billion. And when you talk about what the
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future of California, looks like where we chased businesses out
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of California mean, HP, Oracle, huge worldwide companies are
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leaving California, and that's our tax base.
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And so for me, the biggest issue is that are we going to have the
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resources and are they going to be spent in a way that allows
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Californians to thrive and we still and we have the highest
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poverty rate at the same time. So it's really ironic Enoch that
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we have where the fourth-largest economy and we have highest
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poverty rate in the nation and we have the highest living
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expenses and those two, don't go where it very well together and
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at the same time, we're seeing businesses, leave, California.
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The future looks really Bleak for, how are we going to manage
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balancing the budget and giving the services that government is
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supposed to do like Public, Safety and education and those
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things we all need infrastructure.
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But if we don't do though, if we don't keep businesses here,
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they're the ones that pay the bill and we are Pushing them out
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of California. So I think for Me overall,
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that's the biggest issue and it affects every single California,
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no matter where your incomes at. But it especially it hurts to
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low income and people of color more than it does others.
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And I think from for in my office and what we hear the most
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about is affordability and from that, just how stems our housing
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crisis. You know, we don't have We're
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short 10 teachers, right now, you know, we're short,
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Physicians, and dentists and every, you know, we hear I hear
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a lot because of our rural communities is very hard to
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recruit for every level of professional.
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You know, people that we need and so affordability.
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It comes back to housing. The cost of living experience,
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you know, your electricity bill, the cost of gas.
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And so we spend a lot of time just educating our constituents
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and people to call into our office or send us emails.
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How did we get here? Why does everything cost so
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much? And so you spend it and people
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are waking up. They're starting to understand
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that when your gas is high, they start to ask those questions
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where the taxes will shouldn't all the taxes that were
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collecting, then argh acid, fix our roads, but you're still
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driving through potholes. We're touting how proud We Are
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that we're spending more money than we ever have on education
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and we're still some of the lowest in the nation per pupil
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more money than we've ever spent.
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And we're still, you know, there's 100 students and in
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California that haven't returned back to our schools as
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detrimental and that isn't just to our school system.
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But like I said, education for me, is a foundation for the
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future. So if you don't leave our public
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education with a with a Solid education and be able to go into
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a trade or work for a business. What, what I hear consistently
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is I am short, deputies? Were short.
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Everywhere were short. We don't have enough work force.
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So if our education system is not solid and is not, it's not
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turning out the workforce that we need for the future.
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We're in dire times. Hmm.
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Senator, I saw a clip that is, I would say it's starting to go
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viral. So kudos to you.
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It was it was you on the floor. You had made this comment that
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actually, I reacted audibly. So loud, that, my wife thought
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something happened. Bad in the other room, she goes
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honey, what and I looked at her and I said, can you believe
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this? You would say that in California
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when it comes to business expenses, that can be written
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off. Only California Labs 25
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dollars and you said, the federal is a million dollars.
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And even she looked at me and just in shock because she works
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for a trucking company. And so she understands small
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business owners trying to buy anything.
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I mean, you can't buy a Toyota Corolla for 25 dollars.
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Let alone any sort of construction equipment or
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farming equipment, or anything like that.
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That requires millions of dollars, talk a little bit about
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that and how Ow, you said businesses are?
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It's just not friendly to do business here in California?
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Yeah, I was speaking on the budget, on the floor, I missed a
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few, my points, I got a little bit too ahead of myself but yes,
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in California, the amount you can ride off dollar-for-dollar
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is 25 thousand dollars. If you buy us, just for example,
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for in the trucking business as well.
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So if you buy a hundred and fifty thousand dollar,
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Commercial vehicle, you're going to be able to ride off the in
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that year the first twenty five thousand dollars dollar for
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dollar at the federal level. It's million dollars and so
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there's no incentive for you to invest which when you and when
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you do, invest in that new piece of equipment, there's a sales
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tax, that goes to the county, there's a sales tax, that goes
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to the state, there's a license of it, there's all this revenue
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generated by your purchase and at the same time you're
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providing jobs which there's a revenue.
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Some jobs as well. And so I brought that up because
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it should be a lot higher and you would get more businesses to
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invest in their business because of the tax availability purposes
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like they do at the federal level.
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So, but what my point was in the budget is that, you know, it's
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yeah, there's there's some Cuts coming but there's nothing in
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that budget. There was not one thing that
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budget that actually promoted a business staying in California,
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not one, it was not One thing you could identify.
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So why would you stay in California?
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When we have higher lawsuits to your business, we have higher
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regulations to your business. We have the highest taxes for
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your business. There's no real incentive for a
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business to stay in California unless they just can't lead.
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That's Megan. And I, we first of all, we don't
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want to leave. We love California, and we're
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going to fight to the bitter, but we can't pick our land up
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and move it to another state. And so, that's what you see is
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the businesses are left in California.
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Are those businesses that, you know, Most part don't want to
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leave. Our can't leave and people that
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can move with their feet and still run their business.
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Have left California. We've seen that and that is I
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think to me was the message I was trying to explain is that
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there's nothing in here that makes a business.
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Want to say which I did explain it, the first of that is that
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you can't have no member on the senate floor.
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Can get a paycheck until a private industry.
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Pays a tax first so you continue to regulate them you continue
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continue to Tax them and burden them.
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When you, when you have no businesses, you don't get a
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paycheck. That was my point was trying to
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say, hey, let's do something from the businesses make
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California, a place where its business friendly and we will
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grow and will have those resources to have Public Safety
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to have good schools to have good roads.
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That was the point. Yeah.
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It's almost like San Francisco. We've had a couple episodes on
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it recently. Is not enough of a warning sign
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to the legislature that hey, this is what happens when you go
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down this road, totally not being business.
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Friendly feels like every day. I open Instagram and I see oh
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the Westfield mall is closing Nordstrom's is closing.
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You know this business it's just day after day is like pretty
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soon. Is going to be a ghost town in
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San Francisco and London briefs Doing anything about it.
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You would think that they take like stock in that and say boy,
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if we keep going down this road where we overt acts, we
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over-regulate, we're all good. The whole states going to end up
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like San Francisco. Why do your Democrat colleagues
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not seem to realize that when it comes to the real world and the
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budget they're facing? Well I think there's been a lot
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of warnings, right? Like you can visit like San
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Francisco. Perfect example.
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Just drive through the streets right like the homelessness and
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open drug use, you know? That is, it's coming to the your
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community near you. That's what basically it's going
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to happen. And so, but there's All These
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Warnings but you're right. It doesn't seem to make to move
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them. And when you're here, you know,
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within this one block, one might was a 21, Mile One Mile Square.
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I call it like the dome, right? We're inside of this Dome when
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you're in Sacramento and it's kind of you're protected from
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the outside world as a member, right?
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You don't let your hearing from your constituents when you're
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here, the there. Odds.
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Are they think the right? Because that's what they're all,
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they're hearing from each other, right?
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The same thought process so but we know it's coming RL AA, which
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is our legislative analysis office, you know, they warned
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they say that revenues are not going to come in will be 11
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billion dollars, short of what they're expecting coming and the
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warning signs always come. But somehow, they move things
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around and use some smoke and mirrors in the budget to make it
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look like they're, they're balancing it.
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It. But it's coming.
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It's coming in the next year or two and I think as Republicans,
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but we are. We have Solutions.
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They're not hurting committee. They don't hear our bills.
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You know, we are, we are a super minority.
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So we're shut out of those conversations, but we do have
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Solutions just like Brian said, we're in business.
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So if we had an incentive to grow, we haven't grown a lot in
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the last five years. Because what's, what's the why
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would I go put another truck on the road?
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Hmm, why would I why would I go pie or another truck driver?
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Go through all the drug screens, all the things I have to do to
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put a truck, you know, on the road and have the other payment,
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right? For another 200 thousand dollar
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piece of equipment. And so people are just they're
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holding, were if you're still, if you're still in business in
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California or in a holding pattern, you're not growing.
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And so when we, when we finally wake up as a state and you know,
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give us those incentives. We will grow again.
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And another thing To as you know, we're in agriculture, we
00:16:01
innovate, we change, we change directions and that's a blessing
00:16:06
of being a business owner, as you can hear in government.
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You don't, we don't change quickly.
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The changes don't come how you know fast enough like we can in
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our own business so that kind of that's a perfect segue to one of
00:16:19
the questions I wanted to talk about both.
00:16:23
You obviously very involved in the California GOP, got your
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plaque, bout you have the with with the frame.
00:16:29
They're what the California GOP. Look at this.
00:16:33
I wanted to kind of talk about sort of the state of the
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California GOP and how do you we start to get these conservative
00:16:44
Solutions in front of Californians and propose them
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and get them in front of people who cuz I feel like a lot of
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these Solutions. If you just went to the person
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on the street and said, hey, here's an idea that we can do in
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California, don't put a Democrat or Republican label on it.
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It I bet nine times out of ten, someone's going to say yeah that
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sounds like a great idea. Why don't we do it?
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And it just seems like there's this disconnect with the
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California GOP and reaching voters right now.
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So let's start there and talk a little bit about that.
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And how do we get those Solutions in front of people?
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Well, I would say as somebody, you want me to So you stayed
00:17:27
married 24 years, you make sure that you are okay to to talk.
00:17:32
But I would just say advice, yeah.
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As somebody who has been in politics now, 27 years and a
00:17:42
republican in California, which is kind of interesting in
00:17:45
itself. But the fact of the matter is
00:17:48
that, you know, I just went through a Governor's race where
00:17:50
28 percent of the electorate is Republican and we were able to
00:17:54
get 41% of the vote. So I want to say that.
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I think our message is that, you know, if you like what you're
00:18:01
getting with one party control in California and we saw a big
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move. I we got more votes for our
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governors race than any candidate since towards negar
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quite frankly. And so I want to say to the our
00:18:15
party is a lot of independent, free thinking.
00:18:19
People who are don't just lock step with everybody.
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We have our own opinions and we're strong about those
00:18:24
opinions. It's but I think, and I think we
00:18:26
are trying to move with our leadership in the assembly and
00:18:30
the Senate with James Gallagher and Brian Jones, that we are
00:18:34
focused on putting our differences aside and getting in
00:18:38
lockstep and trying to get all these Grassroots.
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There's so many Grassroots organizations that are are doing
00:18:46
quite frankly. What we're doing right here
00:18:47
today, we're talking about the issues and doing that but trying
00:18:49
to get them United behind the party.
00:18:53
Insane look okay. After the Hi Mary lay your
00:18:56
swords down and let's go get the enemy.
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Who the enemy is that? The Democrat Party is so we're
00:19:03
hopeful. That's why we're doing these
00:19:04
things. That's why we continue to do
00:19:05
this that we can unite all these what I call the line officers on
00:19:12
the ground that are doing Warfare with those of us in
00:19:15
Sacramento and at the local levels that are elected to try
00:19:18
to move the ball forward, and I think we're going to get there
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because at some point, Californians are going to wake
00:19:23
up and I and a lot of them are because we saw that, you know,
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gap between 28% and 41 that we actually got boats.
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There's any way we want to try something different.
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So we need to get up. And I think Megan was the one
00:19:34
that brought it up today and caucuses said, you know,
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Democrats all speak the same language when they get on point
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they all say to me, you can turn on the TV and watch it every
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night. It's like whatever they're
00:19:46
saying, they're all saying Republicans were all saying
00:19:49
something different, even though we're still saying it.
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We're saying in a different way instead of saying it in a way
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that messages. So if we could figure that out
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that we can message and the message doesn't you know, waiver
00:20:01
back and forth too much. I think we can gain a lot of
00:20:03
ground. Yeah.
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My so where I prefer to be is the strategist and the
00:20:10
situation, right? Like for instance this one
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doesn't have any idea how much money we have but he would have
00:20:17
to ask me, so which is, it's true.
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It's just straight up. So I love uniting people.
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I love people putting people in a room and trying to figure out
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how we can do get to the same place that we all want to go,
00:20:30
right? And we all are independent
00:20:32
thinkers and each one of us and in our district we know our
00:20:35
districts well because we all have very different issues that
00:20:39
we're facing but nothing else matters.
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And I say this over and over to get again, two groups that come
00:20:44
in to meet with me, you know, great parent groups to come in
00:20:47
to Advocate at the Capitol and I sit with them and we spend time
00:20:51
but absolutely nothing else. Hours until we're as super
00:20:53
minority, we can fight over whatever we want to fight over.
00:20:57
But the only focus should be getting us out of the super
00:21:00
minority. That means pick those seats in
00:21:03
the Senate. And the assembly those targets.
00:21:05
Eats hold our pickup know, our hold seats are Target seats and
00:21:09
pick up the ones that we're all going after.
00:21:11
And we're going to do. We are committed through the on
00:21:14
the I know on the assembly caucus and Wells on the Senate
00:21:17
is to be able to really voice that to our constituents.
00:21:20
And to the voters, these are the race.
00:21:22
That we are getting involved in and we're getting behind.
00:21:25
And so, that way, every Grassroots effort can be there
00:21:28
with us because right now, we aren't, we're not doing that,
00:21:32
right? We're talking about issues,
00:21:33
which is very important. But not like running for school
00:21:36
board. I was on the school board so I
00:21:37
can speak to this, right? You could be on a school board
00:21:40
and you can Advocate and you can raise High call all you want.
00:21:44
But if the curriculum comes down from the state, that is what
00:21:47
they're going to teach in your school, even if you're on that
00:21:50
school board, even if you protest out, Front.
00:21:52
Even if you do all those things it's coming, right?
00:21:56
So unless we flip those seats and I've said this in at too
00:22:00
many Republicans before Republicans do not author bills
00:22:04
with mandates. Republicans do not offer bills
00:22:07
that come after your program parental rights.
00:22:09
We do not offer bills that, you know, hurt us for our Public
00:22:12
Safety. We are for affordability and
00:22:15
accountability, public safety, you know, safe communities,
00:22:19
that's what we are for. And so I'm just always like
00:22:22
You're not your problem. Republicans are on your team.
00:22:26
We just need more of us, so that is like our focus.
00:22:29
And that's where that's what I'm going to push for.
00:22:31
That's why I'm meeting with groups and talking to them
00:22:33
individually. And we're really hoping to unite
00:22:37
coming into this next election, our Grassroots efforts across
00:22:40
the state. That's something iíve told.
00:22:44
I think, Ad nauseam and Camille, can back me up on this.
00:22:47
How many times have I said? It's so important.
00:22:50
Everybody wants to, you know, Make California flip it red
00:22:54
overnight and I try to tell people I'm like, no, no, no.
00:22:57
You have to start small. Politics is an incremental game
00:23:00
where if the goal right now should be break up the
00:23:04
supermajority in Sacramento, all of a sudden, a lot of things
00:23:07
change and you guys know more about the procedurals in the
00:23:10
caucuses and committees and stuff like that.
00:23:12
But breaking up the supermajority goes a long way in
00:23:15
California and and I feel personally when you look at the
00:23:20
races up and down the state, A lot of races are very close
00:23:26
there within percentage points. So while you look up in a table,
00:23:29
oh you know we're getting our butts kicked up and down the
00:23:31
state, you look at them and they're really close races so
00:23:34
you get good candidates. You put them in there and then
00:23:38
going back to the center of dahlias in or were your election
00:23:42
recently gave me hope that it was the best in over 10 years.
00:23:47
I said this is amazing that there's so much enthusiasm
00:23:50
behind you so I think Is a cause for some sort of enthusiasm that
00:23:56
people are starting to maybe tune into these conservative
00:23:59
solutions. Would you agree with that?
00:24:02
Yeah. And I would say to, you know,
00:24:06
people who criticized the Republican party that look at.
00:24:10
There's no, there's we don't have to reinvent the wheel.
00:24:13
We don't have to have a movie star or we don't have to have,
00:24:18
you know, a talk show radio talk, show hosts, save us at the
00:24:21
end of the day. Day.
00:24:23
It's, there's a form of the proposal to tax the people that
00:24:26
show up take from the people who don't show up, that's it.
00:24:31
And it's, it's so simple that we can't seem to grab some grasp,
00:24:35
how it works. But I will tell you, the
00:24:37
Democrats understand they show up.
00:24:39
They're here all the time, the end.
00:24:41
And when I say, who are they, the Union's, the SEIU, the
00:24:45
teachers union, they're here every day, they pile, a lot of
00:24:48
money in and they advocate for the things that they want, and
00:24:51
they get what they Ain't right. Frankly, they get what they want
00:24:53
because they own the legislators because they're fearful of them.
00:24:58
Nobody is fearful of a republican in this building.
00:25:02
Nobody Except for another public and it's going to run against a
00:25:06
republican. That's the only Republican that
00:25:08
matters. But to be honest with you, if we
00:25:11
had Californian, Republicans, dedicate the time and their
00:25:15
resources, the way the Democrats do, it would change this game
00:25:20
and because we do, we spend with what is, why does money matter
00:25:24
in politics? Because money is name
00:25:26
identification. Why did everybody vote for
00:25:29
Arnold Schwarzenegger? Gives they all knew who the
00:25:31
Terminator was. It wasn't because he was Was
00:25:33
some great guy in politics is because they knew he was in
00:25:36
there, like they wanted something different, so no
00:25:38
different in this game. Money means you can advertise
00:25:41
who you are and you can also exploit your opponent.
00:25:45
And they do that very well on the other side of the aisle.
00:25:47
They have a lot of money, they exploit us, they exploit
00:25:49
National stuff, they spin it. If you all those things because
00:25:52
they have the resources, do we have a very little bit of
00:25:54
resources to try to defend what their lies are, at the same
00:25:57
time, trying to promote ourselves.
00:25:58
So if we had the resources, we had the people behind us, we can
00:26:03
Change the say that there's a lot of people that if you just
00:26:06
like you said earlier Phil, if they did know who the law author
00:26:09
was and we you ask him about an issue, Californians are with us,
00:26:13
but we have to be able to not be demonized.
00:26:16
We have to have the resources to be able to tell our story.
00:26:19
I think that's the biggest challenge that we're faced with.
00:26:22
And it is a long game. I think you hit the nail on the
00:26:24
head. This is a, this is not a one-hit
00:26:26
wonder, you know, every once in a while we get a republican as a
00:26:29
governor, but we need to take back the legislature and that
00:26:32
means that we have to have a A long and that means you have to
00:26:34
be dedicated to staying here. I mean, Scott will guy would
00:26:38
bless his heart. He get a great quote on, think
00:26:41
was 957. Yes, about if you love your
00:26:44
children, get out of California. Well, I love my children and I'm
00:26:48
not leaving, California. I'm going to stay here and fight
00:26:50
and that's the point was we have to, we have to be in the fight
00:26:53
for a long time and it takes a lot of work and a lot of
00:26:56
resources, do it. And the other side, quite
00:26:58
frankly is here all the time and they're consistent, they're
00:27:01
longing to take a little bit of the The pie at a time.
00:27:04
In Brazil before long, you have the whole pie.
00:27:06
We need to have that same attitude as Republicans and we
00:27:09
need to show up and we need to get get our wallet out.
00:27:12
We need to do our job and it's not, you know, we're out spent
00:27:15
three, two, one, but we may lead, you know, lose a seat by a
00:27:18
thousand votes. So, I mean, they have to spend a
00:27:21
lot of money to tell their lies right?
00:27:25
And so we can do it and we don't have to have that.
00:27:29
We don't, we need money and resources but we don't have to
00:27:32
have that same. Mmmmm, you know, it's okay if
00:27:34
we're maybe only spent two to one.
00:27:36
So three, two, one. Because our message is right.
00:27:39
It, my message is good. It sounds and and we just need
00:27:42
the resources to get out there. And I guess that leads me to
00:27:46
another question about this is that you guys are much more
00:27:51
involved. This, this idea to me is that,
00:27:57
if you don't stop it here, this is something.
00:27:59
I say a lot. We're sort of on the front lines
00:28:02
here in Erica. If you don't stop it here in
00:28:06
California, you can guarantee. It's going to end up in Texas
00:28:11
and Arizona, and Nevada, and all these safe red states where you
00:28:16
go. I'm safe here in Texas.
00:28:17
This will never come to me. It's going to get there
00:28:20
eventually. So it has to be stopped here in
00:28:23
California. And I scratch my head as to why
00:28:28
there isn't more of a push for Outside money or people to
00:28:33
support California in, pushing back so that it can be stopped
00:28:39
here. And I understand a lot of money,
00:28:41
goes to Congressional races, because people like to send
00:28:43
people to DC, and I have my own thoughts about people going to
00:28:46
d.c. to save California, but that's a whole different
00:28:49
episode. I just don't understand why
00:28:53
there couldn't be more of an effort to say, look, we need to
00:28:56
stop this here bills like the ones that are being passed,
00:28:59
where kids can be taken away for For if they you you don't affirm
00:29:03
their gender. The state can just come in and
00:29:05
take them away. We need to stop that the state
00:29:07
level and we need your help. So why aren't we getting more
00:29:11
help from the rest of the country or big money donors to
00:29:14
kind of fight back a little bit more?
00:29:17
Well, I would say just coming off of the governor's race that
00:29:21
a lot of people have given up on California, as far as the
00:29:24
legislature goes. But I will tell you this
00:29:26
everything that affects our business and our children, the
00:29:30
air we breathe, the kind of vehicle.
00:29:32
We're going to drive, what kind of Road we're going to drive
00:29:34
down. All is a California problem.
00:29:36
It's not a federal issue. I mean, look at the end of the
00:29:38
day, the federal government really doesn't they, we get
00:29:42
money from them, but at the end of the day, it's not the
00:29:44
regulations to to deal with our schools or business.
00:29:49
It's happening here in Kaplan is exactly why I didn't run for
00:29:52
Congress. I ran for governor because the
00:29:53
problems we have here in California, but I will say that.
00:29:56
I think a lot of Republicans and, you know, you're a lot of
00:29:59
the attitude like, well, I'm just going to leak out for me
00:30:01
because I'm going to flee to somewhere later.
00:30:04
We see it. Florida is getting a lot of
00:30:05
people. Texas is getting a lot of
00:30:07
California. Not just Republicans, but
00:30:10
Democrats as well. So I think we have to somehow
00:30:14
craft the message that And I always say it if you're leaving
00:30:17
California to they're coming, they're next once they was it,
00:30:20
you get. If you look if you look at the
00:30:23
legislation that was passed in California, 10 years ago, it's
00:30:27
being pushed at the federal level when the Democrats are in
00:30:29
control. And so, I think what we need to
00:30:32
do here is we're going to make a stand, any California is over
00:30:35
reach has been over reaching, the Democrats have been
00:30:37
overreaching in California. It's catching up with him.
00:30:40
When we have poor budget times to a lot of things will come out
00:30:44
the issues that we Have that are troubling, California and I
00:30:47
think we have an opportunity to catch our state and bring it
00:30:50
back to us. That's again, why I ran for
00:30:53
governor, the guy at the top can has a veto pen.
00:30:55
You can do a lot as governor in all the appointments, to every
00:30:59
agency, which is huge in California.
00:31:01
We have a lot of agencies that are doing their own rules and
00:31:05
regulations, without the oversight of the government
00:31:08
without double-sided the legislature.
00:31:09
That's unfortunate. Yeah.
00:31:11
Well, you know, we have friends and all over the country, right?
00:31:15
Idaho and Has moved to Arizona and now there's signs
00:31:18
everywhere. Like look if you're from
00:31:19
California, keep your ideas. They're like you don't bring
00:31:22
your ideas. You're welcome to come but you
00:31:24
cannot bring your ideas with you when you get here.
00:31:27
So you know, we had friends that flew to Tennessee just to check
00:31:30
it out to see what they were, you know, going to do.
00:31:33
And but we love California, and you're right.
00:31:37
What happens in California. Will happen Across the Nation.
00:31:39
I mean, if you're watching our current governor right now, I
00:31:42
don't even want to say his name out loud but he you know, he's
00:31:44
doing National News and he's, you know, he's, he has a plan
00:31:48
and he's laying it up. And so I don't I I strongly, you
00:31:52
know, I do not think our nation is ready for that.
00:31:55
I don't think our nation wants our current governor as our
00:31:58
president, but that's something that we talked about a lot on
00:32:00
the campaign Trail during the governor's races.
00:32:02
Like, this is what's coming and it's going to come for, you
00:32:06
know. You might think you're safe and
00:32:07
Texas, just like you said or Tennessee or wherever it's
00:32:11
coming, it will come. So you're right.
00:32:13
We need to put up a strong fight here in.
00:32:16
For you and we are, but I don't know yet.
00:32:20
How we maybe if we just get all those people that have
00:32:23
California to donate, and to some kind of a, you know, flip
00:32:27
your state back so you can return that's what we need.
00:32:32
Yeah, I definitely need a good plug, good slogan, or good
00:32:36
campaign, do that. Sorry Camille.
00:32:38
You were about to hop in and say can I say some things?
00:32:40
Ask some questions. I was watching that hearing with
00:32:44
when Scott will His comment. And I really appreciated his
00:32:47
comment that for years. He's seen were protecting
00:32:50
children, but it's time to protect parents.
00:32:52
I definitely resonated with that, but then he did follow
00:32:54
that up. With, if you're a parent, you
00:32:57
need to leave. And I didn't like that.
00:32:59
I'm a parent of four. I'm not leaving, and I want to
00:33:02
save California, and I want my children to stay here if they so
00:33:05
choose. As you know, they're entering
00:33:07
adulthood and I would like them to be able to afford to stay
00:33:10
here and I hope they want to to be near me.
00:33:13
I can't stand the thought of them being far away.
00:33:16
But one thing and like you mentioned, we don't need movie
00:33:20
stars and radio talk show host, but I do feel like people are
00:33:23
very uninspired. I know for me personally,
00:33:26
getting involved in politics the last few years.
00:33:28
I have certainly met several politicians candidates.
00:33:31
Now, gotten to know some, you guys, I truly still appreciate
00:33:35
you. You know, I've gotten to know
00:33:36
you guys a little bit personally and I've gotten to know other
00:33:41
politicians personally, and I'm very disenchanted by them.
00:33:43
But I really appreciate the work that you guys.
00:33:45
Guys are doing. So I want to say that that I
00:33:47
still. I still respect you guys like if
00:33:50
there's so many before I'm like, no staying far away from that
00:33:53
one. But I don't feel that way about
00:33:55
you guys. But I think twofold, I think a
00:33:59
lot of people feel like It's hard to run.
00:34:02
It is hard to run, I've never run.
00:34:03
But from talking to people, it's hard to run and they're giving
00:34:06
up a lot of their life to run, but then voters are so
00:34:10
uninspired. Like, we haven't had many
00:34:12
inspiring politicians that are really getting people out to
00:34:15
register to vote or even vote in general.
00:34:18
And I would like to hear your thoughts on that.
00:34:22
Well, I think I would speaking from a Republican side, right?
00:34:27
Like if you watch, you know, people in our life if we've
00:34:31
talked them through the years. Like what would you run?
00:34:33
Would you want know they watched us, right?
00:34:35
He watched thankfully our children are good and we've all
00:34:39
survived and they're still they're thriving, but you can
00:34:42
watch other families. I mean, you can watch it on the
00:34:45
national level on any level, right?
00:34:47
Like once you get into politics this is an ugly sport this isn't
00:34:50
for everyone, right? And some people All really good.
00:34:53
People will never run for office who have great ideas, who are
00:34:56
inspiring who run a bit. All, you know, the perfect on
00:35:00
paper, but they are not going to enter into this world because
00:35:03
I'm not going to put their family, on their line, then I
00:35:05
can put their business on the line.
00:35:07
And like I said, it's ugly, right?
00:35:09
And so, I think that's hard. And so when you do find, I think
00:35:15
for us like the inspiring part, is like, we're also in it.
00:35:18
So we're in politics and in when you're in a super minority, you
00:35:21
have to Do politics, right? Like if I ever want my bills out
00:35:25
of committee or want them to be heard you, there's a certain
00:35:28
thing there, certain things that you have to do.
00:35:30
So you have there are some trade-offs, right?
00:35:32
You can be super charismatic and I always say, there's those
00:35:35
rallies speakers. I'm not a rally speaker.
00:35:37
It's not my maybe someday, maybe someday that will be like, what
00:35:41
I move into, but right now, my strategy is, I want skirt a
00:35:45
school, you know, nurses in my school's, right?
00:35:47
Like we don't have any and we have a type 1 diabetic.
00:35:49
Godson who needs his insulin? I mean, we Have, you know, these
00:35:52
are the I just chip away at those things that I'm really
00:35:55
passionate about, but I have to do it in such a way in a super
00:35:57
minority but I'm not going to get up on the floor and yell at
00:36:01
people and tell him, you know, they're all going to hell or
00:36:04
whatever. So I have to do it in such a way
00:36:07
to get things done. So right now my lens for me as a
00:36:10
in this role is to get things done for my constituents, but
00:36:14
you're right like an overall charismatic.
00:36:16
And what happens though? I think and Brian can lay it on
00:36:19
this. You might have something that's
00:36:20
really charismatic and they're great.
00:36:22
Figure and they will rally people but they get here and
00:36:24
they don't know how it works. And so you know Arnold
00:36:27
Schwarzenegger is kind of a great example, he gave it, you
00:36:31
know, so you have to know how it works, right?
00:36:33
You have to know how this place works.
00:36:35
You have to know how the budget Cycle Works, how you can get a
00:36:36
bill through the that both houses.
00:36:39
And so I would say that, you know, at the end of the day, as
00:36:46
Megan said, this is a contact sport.
00:36:48
It's, it's, um, and I think for us, it's more For me it's like
00:36:54
we've had a hundred and I think thirtysomething legislators to
00:36:57
our district and so you can be strong and you can be
00:37:01
conservative and you can do it in a way that you're respectful
00:37:04
the same time and not and it's not personal.
00:37:06
So I think a lot of people take politics personal and it's their
00:37:11
badge to you know get on TV and spout off and but if you want to
00:37:15
be effective and true to who you are which is what are, this
00:37:18
isn't the best job we ever had. We would rather be home.
00:37:22
Raising our children and running our farm and join California.
00:37:25
But we know this is something we're called to do and there's a
00:37:28
higher calling than that and we'll put ourselves out there
00:37:30
for that. And so, for me, it's the ability
00:37:33
to be able to say what you need to say in a way.
00:37:37
Just like I do. I mean, if on this on the senate
00:37:39
floor and on the assembly floor and I still have friends across
00:37:42
the aisle, that I totally disagree with on almost
00:37:45
everything. But there's something in there
00:37:47
that I can find that we can work together on and that's been my
00:37:50
attitude all along in pain. Politics because, you know, you
00:37:54
can be loud and you can and you can get all the likes.
00:37:57
You want, you can get all the Instagram stuff you want, but at
00:38:01
the end of the day, you're here to represent in our case, my
00:38:03
case a million three hundred thousand people is what I
00:38:06
represent today. It's a lot of people that want
00:38:08
to know, they can pick the phone up and I will work on their
00:38:10
issue. And so I we can do that and I
00:38:13
can always say you want to be right, you want to be right, or
00:38:18
do you want to win, which one? Because you can win, By just
00:38:22
being that person. That is very good at media and
00:38:25
politics. Or do you want to really?
00:38:28
Because if you if you win, you can be right.
00:38:30
That's why I say you want to be let me ride or you want to win.
00:38:32
So I hope I didn't confuse you there.
00:38:34
But my goal is that I want to win the race that I'm in so that
00:38:39
I can then be right because what you're when you have the power
00:38:42
to be able to actually put a bill forward and actually help
00:38:45
somebody it's awesome but you can't do that.
00:38:48
If you're just number, one goal is to climb to the next spot.
00:38:51
And get elected because that's easy to do.
00:38:53
That's all you have to do is say the things that your
00:38:55
constituents want to hear and go to the backyard barbecues and be
00:38:59
there. You will win.
00:39:00
But at the end of the day, if you really want to do something
00:39:02
big for California and hard, you have to get in the trenches.
00:39:05
You have to work hard to get it done.
00:39:07
I need that's where Megan and I come from we don't want to leave
00:39:10
we were willing to put the hard work in.
00:39:11
We're not somebody who is going to just throw the bomb and try
00:39:14
to get a bunch of people to follow us on social media, we
00:39:18
want to do what's right? We will we will point out the
00:39:21
Faults with the legislation and respectful Manner and be
00:39:25
courteous about at the same time.
00:39:28
Andres pow recently, you brought up a good point about.
00:39:32
You can be conservative and strong and stand by your
00:39:36
principles recently. I think it was was it last week
00:39:39
or just recently? They Republicans walked out on
00:39:43
the sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the honoring
00:39:46
ceremony and I think I actually applauded the California
00:39:52
Republicans for it and I said it's great that they stood for
00:39:55
something and said something and represented.
00:40:00
My feelings about it. I'm a Catholic and I my own
00:40:04
personal feelings Camille knows. I've been ranting about this
00:40:07
sisters of Perpetual Indulgence for the past three podcast
00:40:11
episodes. And I think like there's there's
00:40:14
a good way to be strong in your convictions and represent,
00:40:19
especially that photo. Bill Sally with the, you know,
00:40:22
any bigotry is religious any bigotry against religious one,
00:40:25
religion is bigotry against all of us.
00:40:29
I thought that was great and I think that's a great message
00:40:32
where you kind of stepped aside and differentiate yourself from
00:40:36
the Democrats and said we represent, we're going to stand
00:40:39
for these social issues and represent millions of
00:40:43
Californians who stand behind you.
00:40:47
Do you see that going forward as a good strategy for Republicans
00:40:51
leaning into social issues and kind of be bold on stuff like
00:40:54
that. Yeah.
00:40:56
So I was Caucus. And I was part of the group that
00:41:00
did receive very respectfully, get up off the floor and go
00:41:04
outside. There was a prayer vigil that
00:41:05
was happening outside. So I think for me, you know, we
00:41:09
did all the right things. We ask for the passes off the
00:41:12
floor, you know. Because when we're on the floor,
00:41:13
we can't just walk off. You have to be given permission
00:41:16
to leave the floor. So, our floor leader asked for
00:41:20
the passes for the members that wanted to leave.
00:41:22
We were, we were given the passes and we just respectfully
00:41:25
got up and went out to the event outside.
00:41:29
And for me, it was, you know, there are members of our caucus
00:41:33
that are Catholic. We're Christian not Catholic,
00:41:36
but it was just, it was just too much, you know, at some point.
00:41:40
There's this, always those lines that you that you reach and it's
00:41:44
just, it's just too much. And so I think what was hard
00:41:49
after that is like we were we were respectful in like the way
00:41:54
we stood up, I guess. And that was Back of course
00:41:59
because we did that and there was a few members of our caucus
00:42:02
that had some, you know, issues afterwards.
00:42:06
But in the end for me, I slept well I'm peaceful about it
00:42:12
because we're allowed to have court, were allowed to have core
00:42:14
values, right? This is California for all,
00:42:17
we're supposed to be inclusive, and everyone should be able to
00:42:20
feel the way. They feel believe what they want
00:42:21
to believe. And ultimately, you know, are
00:42:23
your core values should guide. Should guide, you know,
00:42:27
everything you do in life. And so just I think it was a
00:42:30
couple months ago, we had a resolution on the floor to
00:42:35
recognize the Tennessee 5 because I don't know if you saw
00:42:38
that but because of, you know, they I will I use the word
00:42:43
storm, the capital, but they did in Tennessee, right?
00:42:45
And they're there in our situation, they're in the super
00:42:47
minority there. The Democrats are so we on the
00:42:50
floor, the Democrats of California, recognize them for
00:42:54
their bravery. We for their standing up for
00:42:57
their, you know, going in with bull horns and doing.
00:43:00
So I think our leader James Gallagher did a great job.
00:43:04
That's a and said, look, we hope that we would have that same
00:43:06
respect because you're speaking to us who are also in the super
00:43:09
minority here. So if we show up with bull
00:43:12
horns, that we show up, you know, shouldn't we be also
00:43:15
received that same that same recognition right for doing that
00:43:19
so fast forward, you know, less than two months later, we
00:43:23
respectfully walk off the Or and there's pushback.
00:43:27
So you know the Hop the hypocrisy here is pretty thick,
00:43:31
sometimes I would say. So on the Senate side, we had
00:43:35
the same celebration, I should say and we wrote a letter
00:43:40
originally we wrote a letter asking them saying we oppose it,
00:43:43
we oppose it and so I'm in the Senate, we don't have to have we
00:43:47
don't have to ask permission to anybody.
00:43:48
We can do whatever we want, we can leave the floor whatever we
00:43:51
want, we don't have to consult with anybody and so So for me
00:43:56
though, I actually stayed on the floor.
00:43:58
I have, I represent, I take a little different take than the
00:44:02
there was some members to of our caucus that actually left and
00:44:05
and left the floor and and but for me, I represent 1.3 million
00:44:09
people. I worked my ass off to get on
00:44:11
that floor and by golly, I'm not going to let some sisters of
00:44:14
Perpetual Indulgence. Take my spot on the floor.
00:44:19
My I have a right and I have a whole bunch of people that
00:44:21
represent that I voted for me to for me to be on that floor.
00:44:25
Now, I didn't Clap and stand up and and do all that.
00:44:28
But I'm going to take my seat on the floor.
00:44:30
You're not going to push me off the floor.
00:44:31
I have a I have a 1.3 million people.
00:44:33
I represent the expected on that floor.
00:44:35
So I look at maybe a little bit different, but we did push back.
00:44:38
We wrote the letter and said, hey, we we don't want these.
00:44:41
We think, we think this is. Hey, this is hey the way they're
00:44:44
going about it against the Catholic church and we're
00:44:46
Christians. But we stand with all religions,
00:44:48
whether you're Muslim, whether you're Jewish, whether you're
00:44:51
Catholic, whether you're whatever, you know, we have a
00:44:54
fundamental, right? And America to freedom of speech
00:44:58
and freedom of religion and we respect that totally Okay.
00:45:02
Thanks, the one thing is hate speech is something they're
00:45:05
doing. I mean it's straight up, they
00:45:07
are there, you know, mocking Christ and the Catholic church
00:45:13
and we don't stand for that period.
00:45:17
They're my questions personal. So feel free to just be like
00:45:20
nope since he said that I am so curious.
00:45:25
You guys are two different people.
00:45:26
I know you're on the same side and same beliefs but you're
00:45:29
still doing people with independent thoughts.
00:45:31
Do you ever bring your work home and argue about it?
00:45:34
Feel free to disregard. I just dying to know.
00:45:36
Oh, yeah. So look at her.
00:45:38
She didn't we we, you know, when we, when I first got like, two,
00:45:44
we did not we didn't really talk a lot.
00:45:46
We had I think it was like I would say as I kind of like her
00:45:49
transition period, right. Our kids, our boys were just
00:45:52
starting college. So I had a lot to talk about
00:45:54
with children and business-class.
00:45:55
It's and everything. So now everything's kind of
00:45:57
settled in. We do taught me to 8:00 in the
00:45:59
morning. I'll say, why did you vote
00:46:00
against that? Like, should not that.
00:46:01
I mean, we'll be getting ready in the morning, right?
00:46:04
And like, did you really read that bill?
00:46:05
Because that's you should not have voted for that?
00:46:07
He's like, well, do it looks like that when I was on my side
00:46:09
we have these little back and forth because bills do have
00:46:11
amendments and things come through.
00:46:13
But there was an issue, was last year in the budget.
00:46:18
He told me that I could There was a budget-ass that I was
00:46:22
pretty, make sure you say this right?
00:46:24
I know there was a budget asked that I was prepared to make for
00:46:30
one of my counties and Brian said, I don't know why you're
00:46:33
doing that, like you're going to use up your political capital on
00:46:36
that and he was like, you're never going to get it anyway.
00:46:38
Huh. So telling me that I'm not going
00:46:41
to get something done as probably probably a great way to
00:46:44
motivate me. So I did get that in the budget
00:46:48
and so but we actually had a pretty pretty good.
00:46:50
I meant over it actually because I was like, what do you?
00:46:53
I can tell me. Did God do that?
00:46:55
So, but we he's the loud one. I just wait until he calms down
00:47:01
and then I tell him what you're wrong.
00:47:03
So, now go go fix it. I will 100% agree with her.
00:47:09
We really do our whole time. We've since we met.
00:47:14
I mean, we dated for three years before we got married.
00:47:17
And so, but we are a real team. I mean, at the end of the day,
00:47:20
Megan, I'm the, I'm the go do it.
00:47:24
Don't really think about a lot, just get it done and she's the
00:47:27
one that comes behind the scenes and really organizes me and
00:47:30
keeps me focused and grounded and we make a great team.
00:47:34
But we do. I think it was like somebody
00:47:36
actually it was like 10 times we voted opposite on bills and it's
00:47:41
we do talk about it. We have look we have three
00:47:44
children are amazing. We don't always agree on how we
00:47:47
should raise them, but one thing we are committed to her
00:47:49
committed each other. We're committed to our family
00:47:51
were committed to our community and you know, we can agree to
00:47:54
disagree and still have the same goals and so you're right.
00:47:58
It is it is sometimes fascinating at home when we talk
00:48:03
about and we just have different opinions which is healthy.
00:48:06
I think we were not the same always and that's good.
00:48:10
What are our oldest said to me? One day?
00:48:12
It was pretty funny because Brian had told him that he could
00:48:16
spend a certain amount of money at a auction that was coming up.
00:48:20
I said, I don't know, I'll see what I want to do, when I get
00:48:23
there, right? And chases said, okay, whatever
00:48:25
Mom it's just your world that we all live in it.
00:48:30
I'm like okay, I was going to ask because you guys both
00:48:35
worried I was going to ask. If you guys carpool to work
00:48:38
together, we try to as much as we can because it actually saves
00:48:42
the state money, but it's really kind of interesting.
00:48:46
Well, the fact is our daughter's school here in Sacramento.
00:48:50
And so I try to get home or to the district as much as I can.
00:48:55
And so Megan, usually stays behind and waits for Roslyn
00:48:58
because she has the Friday that We get on Thursday afternoon and
00:49:02
session and then we go to the district or home.
00:49:04
So I try to work my way through the District home.
00:49:07
We try to do as much as we can, because it saves money for the
00:49:09
state, but there's obviously we have a lot of different areas
00:49:13
that we go, so not always So we got about 10 minutes left.
00:49:19
Before we wrap for the hour, you guys aren't in any Rush, right?
00:49:23
We still got the minutes and I want to make sure.
00:49:24
Yeah, okay, okay, excellent. I just want to kind of finish up
00:49:29
on this idea of conservative Solutions and how they can help
00:49:33
California. There's so many things we can
00:49:36
touch upon Senator. You came on and you eloquently
00:49:41
described a whole bunch of solutions when you're running
00:49:43
for governor, I guess. What's one conservative solution
00:49:48
that you see in your mind that maybe you pull your hair out and
00:49:51
go, this would fix California if we just implemented, this
00:49:55
conservative solution for this issue and we need to do it like
00:49:59
yesterday. What's something that you would
00:50:02
say right now to listeners to kind of explain that?
00:50:07
Well, I think that There's many, it's hard to really narrow down
00:50:12
but at anything the day it's like you can't expect there's
00:50:17
consequences for what for what we do I think that's it.
00:50:22
Whether it's we put money in for infrastructure and it never gets
00:50:26
spent on infrastructure. Whether we put you know we try
00:50:30
to do some. If we if we don't enforce public
00:50:34
safety laws you're going to have a lot of people breaking the
00:50:36
lobby and you can still $950 with it merchandise in It's a
00:50:39
misdemeanor, you can rape an unconscious woman and it's not a
00:50:42
felony. So for me there's a lot of just
00:50:45
common sense things that, you know, there has to be a
00:50:48
deterrent or there has to be the F to have result and we in
00:50:52
California, really, if you look back at the hundred and just
00:50:55
last year and I can, every year it's the same, we spend billions
00:51:01
and billions of taxpayers dollars and we get zero results.
00:51:04
We spend a lot on education in our students, don't have better
00:51:08
test scores. We spend a lot on
00:51:11
infrastructure. We have paid, the highest gas
00:51:13
tax in the nation and our roads are the worst.
00:51:15
Now, I can go down the list. So for me, it's like, what does
00:51:19
it take? What is that thing?
00:51:21
That will make somebody go. You know what?
00:51:23
This isn't working for me. I actually want a result and
00:51:26
that is the craziest thing to me about government is you just,
00:51:30
it's not what you do. It's what you say you do.
00:51:34
I mean there's there's and it's not just, you know, the
00:51:37
governor, it's all across the board.
00:51:39
And when it comes to legislators who who promote all these
00:51:42
things, but really never get it done.
00:51:44
And I think that's unfortunate and we could go into the Ed with
00:51:48
the 30 billion dollars. That was ripped off from
00:51:51
California and businesses, we're having to pay back.
00:51:54
We just down the line. So that, that to me, is that
00:51:58
fascinating. Unbelievable thing that's
00:52:00
happening every day here in the state capital to, but there's no
00:52:04
blowback or there's no, like, oh my gosh.
00:52:06
This is just, I can't take it anymore and, you know, from from
00:52:10
the other side of the electorate.
00:52:14
I think accountability. We just don't we talk about
00:52:18
that, but it doesn't really happen.
00:52:19
I mean, I was on, you know, you have hearings where they bring
00:52:22
in, you know, the different agencies.
00:52:24
And they have to come before you and give you a briefing, but we
00:52:27
need more money. We're short positions, we can't
00:52:29
do it. We can't officially do our job,
00:52:32
you know, you know, whatever board, right?
00:52:35
We have all these boards in these bureaucrats across but,
00:52:38
you know, we still don't have above ground water storage and
00:52:42
We're they're looking to pass and put a new Bond on the ballot
00:52:46
because after this flooding and all the water like we should be
00:52:49
doing more for water structure, you know, infrastructure.
00:52:53
But there's no accountability for where the bond money
00:52:56
previously has been spent. So we're just going to keep
00:52:59
pushing it down the road and I think right now, I think that
00:53:02
Californians are fine. It's finally where we can't push
00:53:04
it any further because, you know, you can say everything's
00:53:08
great and the governor can say, look at us, we lead, we
00:53:11
innovate, we lead we But you still go to the grocery store
00:53:14
and you pay more for groceries than you have that you that I
00:53:17
can think of since raising our children, you still go to the
00:53:20
grocery store and it costs you four bags of groceries are $150
00:53:25
and you're like, what did I buy you?
00:53:26
Bring them home and lay them out on the counter.
00:53:28
You'll put, what do we buy today or the gas for your child?
00:53:31
To go to sporting events is now, you know, you're gonna have to
00:53:35
pick a sport. It can do all the everything you
00:53:37
did before so Brian's, right, they say keep saying,
00:53:42
everything's great. Everything's fine.
00:53:43
But nothing's fine and nothing is great.
00:53:50
We're both just speechless we're sorry.
00:53:55
We could basically got one thing that we could do.
00:54:00
No, I agree. I, we've talked about this idea
00:54:04
of, you know, California Bragg's.
00:54:07
It's the tech center of the world.
00:54:10
It's the Silicon Valley and all that yet, we can't have a
00:54:15
government. That is transparent.
00:54:17
That is accountable, that can track every dollar that can show
00:54:20
citizens. Where's your money going?
00:54:23
You know, show me in real time with technology, I voted for
00:54:28
this Bond. Where's the money going?
00:54:31
Where's the gas tax going? Is it going to fix roads?
00:54:34
Is it going to some slush fund that's being paid off to unions
00:54:38
or Democratic lobbyists or stuff like that?
00:54:41
It just and I think, unfortunately, the silver lining
00:54:46
of the state. Having a deficit is it does
00:54:50
expose a little bit more of the rot of what's going on in
00:54:53
Sacramento. Because now, they can't kind of
00:54:56
cover it up with a lot of money and throw money at issues and
00:54:59
make things You feel better now. They have to make the tough
00:55:01
choices of what we can't make but, you know, we can't support
00:55:04
this program. We can't support the service.
00:55:06
Now, we actually have to make the hard decisions and maybe
00:55:09
these things were bloated and we were over spending money on him
00:55:12
anyway. And I think personally, if kind
00:55:17
of rounding this all out, if Republicans really got on a
00:55:20
platform of Megan, you said it best accountability,
00:55:24
transparency in the government and just efficiency.
00:55:29
I think that's a Any message that Californians, it can get
00:55:32
behind for Republicans like let's just clean up Sacramento
00:55:35
and figure out where the heck all our money is going.
00:55:41
Think we're losing your belt. We did lose him.
00:55:49
Did you guys catch any of that? So that some of it, but I think,
00:55:55
I think his point was that, you know, there has to be
00:56:00
accountability and you can't just continue to spend money and
00:56:06
not have results. And so, we put we do that.
00:56:09
We don't have to thing is when you have every single
00:56:12
constitutional office to controlled by democrats, I mean,
00:56:15
you have the Attorney General laying out, you know, what's
00:56:19
going to be on the propositions and how they're going to be
00:56:22
worded, you have the governor. Don't you mean every every
00:56:24
office is working, get you to the control or supposed to be
00:56:29
out Oddity and checking things out.
00:56:32
And you know, they're all from the same office, they never get
00:56:34
audited. And so there is there's real
00:56:37
opportunity for. I'm not going to say just 100%
00:56:40
fraud, but I would say that there's opportunity to hide
00:56:43
things in a way that aren't daylight.
00:56:46
If you have, you know, other parties involved to look at it.
00:56:51
So I think that's the most unfortunate thing, but I think
00:56:54
the biggest question to me is that what does it take for
00:56:58
somebody in California who's independent or a Democrat?
00:57:02
Or even a republican, this not voting to wake up and say, wait
00:57:06
a minute, I actually want a result for what I'm paying out.
00:57:10
I want my children to have a better education, what a better
00:57:12
road to ride on. I don't want to pay the highest
00:57:14
gas tax and Highest energy costs in the power, go out every
00:57:17
summer, and I don't want to see my Force burned down.
00:57:20
While we're supposed to be Leading The Way with global
00:57:22
warming and we're showing the world, how we're going to do it.
00:57:24
I think that's where we and have daylighting now.
00:57:29
So like look you can spend all the money you can can say we're
00:57:32
doing Governor Newsom talks so much about homelessness and then
00:57:37
on Sean Hannity said, you know we really felt after you spent
00:57:39
twenty billion dollars he said failure and every just gives a
00:57:42
passable you know, failure is not an option right now.
00:57:44
You spent a lot of taxpayer A money that could go to education
00:57:47
or could go to other things. And so that to me, I think is
00:57:51
the biggest Apocrypha see in our state.
00:58:00
But I'm back. It looks Frozen, shoot.
00:58:03
Well, since we only have a few minutes left, we asked, what are
00:58:07
your future plans? I know, Meghan at the beginning,
00:58:09
you mentioned, you're going to run in 2244 for his seat.
00:58:14
Yes, Brian. What can we expect from you?
00:58:19
Well, as you know, I love California and I you know, I
00:58:23
have a I don't have a plan yet, I'm Eating on, you know, the
00:58:27
Holy Spirit to give me a move of where I'm going.
00:58:30
I don't know. I usually pray about things a
00:58:33
lot before I do them. And so I'm waiting to see where
00:58:36
I will be involved in trying to work with everybody that has the
00:58:42
same values. I have so far but I don't have a
00:58:45
office. I do have a office.
00:58:46
I do have the lieutenant Governor's account open.
00:58:49
I'm not running for lieutenant governor.
00:58:50
Its ability for me to be able to raise money into that account
00:58:53
and help my other help Megan and other Odors that are trying to
00:58:57
get elected. And so, but for right now I will
00:59:00
just tell you that I don't have a plan.
00:59:02
And the one thing about is I don't have to have a plan, I
00:59:04
have a business and of awesome family to go to, and I'm always
00:59:08
do that. I've so I'm not a legislator
00:59:10
that my purpose in life was to be a legislator.
00:59:13
My purpose in life was to be a husband, a father, and a
00:59:16
business owner and take care of my community, and I'll continue
00:59:19
that. Awesome.
00:59:23
It still is gone. I can't and this yet.
00:59:29
Do you mind real quick? Because it's kind of it's sad.
00:59:33
How many issues have Arisen since then but few months ago,
00:59:35
we were all talking about water infrastructure.
00:59:39
Oh, and here he is, it's but we lost you.
00:59:43
Yeah, you're really underground. Phil, I'm so underground that I
00:59:48
lose internet connection. I heard the whole conversation
00:59:51
about future plans and I was like, I can't get in.
00:59:54
So, can we expect to see another Governor?
01:00:06
Run, possibly. You did do the best in 10 years.
01:00:10
So there is momentum to build upon their Well I'm continue to
01:00:14
network and try to work on ways to get more people involved
01:00:18
because at the end of the day, as Camille knows who work
01:00:22
alongside me and thank you for that Community was awesome to
01:00:24
get to know you. And and so many wonderful people
01:00:27
in California that, but at the end of the day, we really need
01:00:30
to have a army of donors and army of people to get the job
01:00:35
done. So we're not ever given up on
01:00:37
California. We're going to we're not going
01:00:39
to be like, Senator. Well, we're not leaving for
01:00:41
Stan. Lee man.
01:00:42
I love I tease him all the time, he's like I'm out of your sight
01:00:46
but I don't know what to do teacher holds at this point
01:00:49
right now. We're not close any doors or not
01:00:51
open any right now. We're just going to continue to
01:00:53
be doing what we do and that's loving California.
01:00:56
Working with people, we love and daylighting out the things that
01:00:59
we think are not great about California.
01:01:03
So I'll put you down for a maybe running for governor again.
01:01:10
It was a pencil he could erase it, we're not having any
01:01:14
breaking news on. California underground tonight
01:01:17
shots night. All right, well I want to thank
01:01:20
you guys for coming on. This is an amazing conversation.
01:01:24
Having both of you on doors, always open.
01:01:27
If you guys want to come back on discuss, more stuff.
01:01:29
I know, I tried to pin you guys down on Solutions and stuff.
01:01:32
There's probably so much more we can talk about in terms of every
01:01:35
issue and topic. So let's have you guys been Back
01:01:38
on again, we can talk more about issues specifically.
01:01:42
So do you guys have any final thoughts before we sign off for
01:01:45
the night? Well, we just wanted to thank
01:01:49
you for giving us the opportunity to share our vision
01:01:51
of California who we are and what we do, we won't change.
01:01:55
We will guarantee you that we will continue to fight the good
01:01:58
fight and we love California. We thank you for what you're
01:02:02
doing as far as just, you know, bringing people together.
01:02:05
And I think that's very important and I know that we
01:02:07
need more of that and we need to share our vision and get more
01:02:10
people engaged. So we appreciate what you do as
01:02:12
well. And we're honored to be on your
01:02:13
program is telling me. Yes, thank you for the Petit,
01:02:17
it's always good to talk about ideas and solutions and just
01:02:21
basically I think what one of the big things we learned from
01:02:24
the governor's race is just meeting with different groups of
01:02:26
people and really sharing your heart, your heart for
01:02:28
California, and for Solutions. So thank you for this
01:02:33
opportunity and the platform. Thank you guys.
01:02:38
She called again as I said whenever you guys want to come
01:02:40
back on so I'll do like it. Did I get lost again?
01:02:46
The hard to spell. Okay, I'm going to finish it up
01:02:51
real quick before we lose internet connection.
01:02:53
Thank you to everyone for tuning in.
01:02:55
Make sure you go follow, both Senator and assemblywoman Dolly
01:02:59
on Instagram, although they're not trying to be Instagram
01:03:01
famous. Make sure you like And
01:03:03
subscribe. If you share share this episode
01:03:07
with everybody who, you know, this is a great episode and with
01:03:11
that, we'll say good night. Good night, everybody.
01:03:15
Thank you. Thank you for listening to
01:03:29
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01:03:31
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