Triggered - Donald Trump Jr - Sunshine State of Mind: Interview with Gubernatorial Candidate Byron Donalds | Triggered Ep.358

00:06:21.000 Hey guys, and welcome to another huge episode of Triggered.

00:06:24.000 We've also got a great show for you tonight because joining me is Florida gubernatorial candidate, Congressman Byron Donald.

00:06:33.000 My father's pick, my pick for the next governor of Florida.

00:06:37.000 And there's a lot to get into, a lot to cover.

00:06:40.000 So, guys, make sure, first and foremost, that you're liking, sharing, and subscribing, okay?

00:06:45.000 Like it so that other people get it out there.

00:06:47.000 Share this with your friends.

00:06:48.000 Subscribe so you never miss one of these major episodes.

00:06:51.000 If you do miss the show here on Rumble, Catch the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify Podcasts.

00:06:56.000 If your friends get their podcasts that way, make sure they are aware.

00:07:01.000 You guys are the first line of defense in getting the word and the truth out there.

00:07:06.000 For all of the top headlines that we cover on the show, go check out my news app, MXM News, where you can get the mainstream news without the mainstream bias.

00:07:14.000 And of course, a huge thank you to our sponsors for having the guts to support this program. 0.52

00:07:20.000 Washington debates are complicated.

00:07:22.000 This one isn't.

00:07:24.000 Cell phone carriers use mobile locking to trap your phone on their network, keeping you stuck with high prices when switching could save you $1,000 a year.

00:07:32.000 Americans are fed up.

00:07:34.000 93% of voters say switching carriers should be easy and about as easy as keeping your number.

00:07:40.000 You should be able to take your phone without being locked into the rules, okay?

00:07:46.000 If you agree, speak up.

00:07:48.000 Tell officials you want cell phone freedom, okay? 0.97

00:07:52.000 Cell phone freedom paid for by the Bull Moose Project. 0.96

00:07:55.000 Again, that's cell phone freedom.

00:07:59.000 And remember to check out Polymarket, where real people are putting real money on what's going to happen next.

00:08:04.000 On Polymarket, you can actually get real odds on what's likely to happen, frankly, on just about anything.

00:08:11.000 Polymarket is a prediction market where people trade on real events, elections, debates, policy moves, just about everything.

00:08:19.000 And it doesn't stop at politics, okay?

00:08:22.000 There are markets on the economy, tech, sports, pop culture, and so much more.

00:08:28.000 It's all live.

00:08:29.000 It's transparent.

00:08:30.000 It gives you a real time indicator of what people really think is going to happen.

00:08:35.000 So give it a look at polymarket.com.

00:08:39.000 Guys, before we get to Byron, I do have to say a few words about the late Senator Lindsey Graham.

00:08:44.000 Now, everyone knows Lindsey and my father didn't exactly start out as friends.

00:08:50.000 He ran against him in 2016.

00:08:52.000 There were some shots fired in both directions.

00:08:56.000 I think it was my father who held up Lindsey Graham's cell phone number at a public event, which Needless to say, he was clipped and went viral.

00:09:04.000 I think he had to change his number within a few minutes.

00:09:08.000 But he came, one of my father's closest allies in Washington, the golf course, the late night phone calls, the fights they took on together.

00:09:18.000 And it's moments like this that really mattered.

00:09:22.000 When a moment counted, he actually showed up.

00:09:25.000 Perhaps his finest hour was his defense of Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

00:09:30.000 If you wanted an FBI investigation, you could have come to us.

00:09:34.000 What you want to do is destroy this guy's life, hold this seat open, and hope you win in 2020.

00:09:41.000 You've said that, not me.

00:09:44.000 You've got nothing to apologize for.

00:09:48.000 When you see Sotomayor and Kagan, tell them that Lindsey said hello, because I voted for them.

00:09:54.000 I would never do to them what you've done to this guy.

00:09:57.000 This is the most unethical sham since I've been in politics.

00:10:04.000 And if you really wanted to know the truth, you sure as hell wouldn't have done what you've done to this guy. 1.00

00:10:10.000 Are you a gang rapist? 1.00

00:10:12.000 No. 1.00

00:10:17.000 I cannot imagine what you and your family have gone through.

00:10:21.000 Boy, y'all want power.

00:10:22.000 God, I hope you never get it.

00:10:24.000 I hope the American people can see through this sham that you knew about it and you held it.

00:10:29.000 You had no intention of protecting Dr. Ford.

00:10:33.000 None.

00:10:34.000 She's as much of a victim as you are.

00:10:37.000 God, I hate to say it because these have been my friends.

00:10:41.000 But let me tell you, when it comes to this, you're looking for a fair process.

00:10:46.000 You came to the wrong town at the wrong time, my friend.

00:10:51.000 Do you consider this a job interview?

00:10:55.000 The advice and consent role is like a job interview.

00:10:57.000 Do you consider that you've been through a job interview?

00:11:01.000 I've been through a process of advice and consent under the Constitution.

00:11:04.000 Would you say you've been through hell?

00:11:07.000 I've been through hell and then some.

00:11:10.000 This is not a job interview.

00:11:13.000 This is hell.

00:11:15.000 This is going to destroy. 1.00

00:11:18.000 The ability of good people to come forward because of this crap. 1.00

00:11:23.000 Your high school yearbook. 0.99

00:11:26.000 You have interacted with professional women all your life, not one accusation.

00:11:31.000 You're supposed to be Bill Cosby when you're a junior and senior in high school.

00:11:37.000 And all of a sudden you got over it. 0.99

00:11:40.000 It's been my understanding that if you drug women and rape them for two years in high school, you probably don't stop. 0.99

00:11:50.000 Here's my understanding. 0.94

00:11:52.000 If you lived a good life, people would recognize it, like the American Bar Association has the gold standard.

00:12:00.000 His integrity is absolutely unquestioned.

00:12:04.000 He is very circumspect in his personal conduct, harbors no biases or prejudices.

00:12:10.000 He's entirely ethical, is a really decent person.

00:12:14.000 He is warm, friendly, unassuming.

00:12:17.000 He's the nicest person.

00:12:20.000 The ABA.

00:12:22.000 And one thing I can tell you, you should be proud of, Ashley, you should be proud of this, that you raised a daughter who had the good character to pray for Dr. Ford.

00:12:34.000 To my Republican colleagues, if you vote no, you're legitimizing the most despicable thing I have seen in my time in politics.

00:12:46.000 You want this seat, I hope you never get it.

00:12:49.000 I hope you're on the Supreme Court.

00:12:52.000 That's exactly where you should be.

00:12:54.000 And I hope that the American people will see through this charade.

00:13:00.000 And I wish you well.

00:13:01.000 And I intend to vote for you.

00:13:03.000 And I hope everybody who's fair minded will.

00:13:09.000 Did we agree on everything?

00:13:11.000 Definitely not.

00:13:12.000 Lindsay and I had plenty of spirited debates face to face.

00:13:15.000 He was definitely one of the funniest people in all of politics, really just a funny guy in general.

00:13:20.000 Didn't mean we had to agree on anything.

00:13:21.000 But, you know, for the vast majority of the time, he showed up when it mattered.

00:13:26.000 But again.

00:13:27.000 Did we agree on everything?

00:13:28.000 No.

00:13:29.000 Lindsey never met a foreign policy debate.

00:13:32.000 He wanted to sit out, and, you know, we went, again, a few rounds over the years.

00:13:37.000 But you always knew exactly where he stood.

00:13:39.000 He told you to your face.

00:13:43.000 Here was my father yesterday reflecting on his legacy.

00:13:47.000 What are your thoughts about Lindsey Graham this morning?

00:13:50.000 Well, it's devastating.

00:13:51.000 I thought he was fine.

00:13:52.000 He called me last night.

00:13:53.000 He just got back from Ukraine, and he had a great trip.

00:13:58.000 He was telling me about the trip.

00:13:59.000 He was.

00:14:00.000 Pushing very, very hard.

00:14:01.000 You probably know he wanted to do the Save America Act.

00:14:04.000 He was talking about that.

00:14:06.000 He was full of vim and vigor.

00:14:07.000 He was tired.

00:14:08.000 He said, I'm tired because it's a long trip.

00:14:11.000 But other than that, he was fine.

00:14:14.000 And he called me, I guess, just moments before because he called me like at 6 30 or something.

00:14:22.000 And the medical people got there a little bit later, right after that.

00:14:27.000 What a terrible loss it is.

00:14:29.000 He's a great politician.

00:14:30.000 He was a natural, there are very few of them.

00:14:33.000 He was a natural politician, got along with everybody.

00:14:36.000 When he didn't, he was very tough.

00:14:38.000 You know, he was a tough cookie, too.

00:14:40.000 But he got along with everybody.

00:14:43.000 Rest in peace, Senator.

00:14:45.000 And guys, keep his family and the people of South Carolina in your prayers.

00:14:49.000 And Lindsay spent his final hours pushing to secure American elections with the Save America Act, because everything we talk about flows downstream from secure elections, including how the swamp spends your money.

00:15:02.000 So the rest of the Senate needs to think about that for a minute, okay?

00:15:05.000 And do something that is basically a 90 10 issue across the board.

00:15:10.000 Everyone, which is actually hard to believe.

00:15:12.000 There are no 90 10 issues in this world other than maybe like.

00:15:15.000 Oxygen.

00:15:16.000 Okay, we need oxygen.

00:15:17.000 In politics, that's probably still 90 10, amazingly enough.

00:15:20.000 Like, it's almost unheard of.

00:15:22.000 This should be the baseline.

00:15:24.000 This should be the thing we all agree on, just like we need to stop fraud in any form, anywhere.

00:15:31.000 So, let's talk about one of the biggest fraud rings you've ever heard of social adult daycares.

00:15:38.000 Yes, guys, adult daycares.

00:15:41.000 Dr. Oz, who runs Medicare and Medicaid, teamed up with independent journalist Nick Shirley.

00:15:47.000 Both have been on the show.

00:15:49.000 They went to Flushing, Queens in New York, an epicenter for these things.

00:15:54.000 Dozens of centers packed into a single neighborhood.

00:15:57.000 In Queens alone, social adult daycare generates $2.1 billion.

00:16:03.000 Okay, it's hard to believe.

00:16:06.000 Check this out.

00:16:08.000 This is a war on fraud, the likes of which you have never seen.

00:16:12.000 I feel like Johnny Cash.

00:16:14.000 I've been everywhere, man.

00:16:15.000 I've been to California, Iowa, Ohio, Minnesota.

00:16:18.000 Today, New York City, Flushing, Queens.

00:16:20.000 We take you to the front lines wherever we're going.

00:16:23.000 Here, social adult daycare centers, the biggest fraud you've never heard of.

00:16:27.000 I walk through here and I wonder how it is possible that you would have this many pharmacies in such close proximity to each other.

00:16:35.000 Are we going to start counting?

00:16:35.000 Are you ready?

00:16:36.000 Yeah.

00:16:36.000 Okay.

00:16:37.000 So, we got one here, one right there.

00:16:40.000 Number two.

00:16:41.000 Look at this.

00:16:43.000 This is the durable medical equipment supplier.

00:16:44.000 Those are all the things they sell wheelchairs and automatic scooters.

00:16:48.000 These are expensive.

00:16:49.000 Then we have another pharmacy.

00:16:51.000 Another pharmacy.

00:16:53.000 I'm losing track.

00:16:54.000 Yeah.

00:16:54.000 It's like a game show.

00:16:55.000 You get a pharmacy.

00:16:56.000 You get a pharmacy.

00:16:57.000 All Life Social Daycare, right here.

00:16:59.000 Another social adult daycare center.

00:17:01.000 But over here, we have a bunch more across the street.

00:17:03.000 Across the street.

00:17:05.000 And I mean, again, more pharmacies.

00:17:06.000 More pharmacies.

00:17:07.000 This business entity, this social adult daycare center, which I'm pretty sure none of your listeners have ever heard of, right?

00:17:15.000 Generated $2.5 billion over the last three years in New York State, of which almost all, $2.1 billion, was right here in Bushing, Queens, and Brooklyn next door, and the surrounding areas.

00:17:26.000 You go 10 miles to Long Island from here.

00:17:27.000 Doesn't exist, doesn't happen.

00:17:29.000 So, if you're me and I'm supposed to protect the federal tax dollars, it makes you very concerned.

00:17:33.000 Something's wrong when all the money's spent in one place, and what the problem is, it's now starting to metastasize.

00:17:39.000 This bad idea, the fraud, is starting to spread.

00:17:42.000 If you're a fraudster, run, because we are coming after you.

00:17:50.000 Think about how this scam works, guys.

00:17:53.000 These centers get seniors in the door with gift cards and freebies.

00:17:57.000 You sign them up and then bill you, the American taxpayer, through Medicaid.

00:18:03.000 The feds are now investigating across New York.

00:18:07.000 And this is exactly what the war on fraud looks like.

00:18:10.000 Because every dollar stolen by a fraudster is a dollar that never reaches a senior who actually needs the help.

00:18:18.000 If you want to know where the fraud mindset leads, look at what Democratic Socialists of America just put in writing.

00:18:26.000 Their brand new party platform calls for amnesty for every illegal alien in the country.

00:18:33.000 Defunding the Department of Defense and replacing the President and the Supreme Court.

00:18:40.000 Now, you think, oh, the Democrat Socialists of America, no big deal.

00:18:43.000 Guess what?

00:18:43.000 They're like the main people in the Democrat Party these days.

00:18:46.000 It's not a fringe party anymore.

00:18:48.000 They're winning major elections and major primaries, running as Democrats now.

00:18:53.000 That's not me characterizing it.

00:18:56.000 That is their own platform in their own words.

00:18:59.000 Check this out.

00:19:03.000 On the Hill. 0.98

00:19:04.000 They want to eliminate the U.S. Senate.

00:19:06.000 They want to replace the president and the U.S. Supreme Court with an executive and judiciary chosen by a subordinate to Congress. 0.96

00:19:15.000 They want amnesty for all immigrants.

00:19:17.000 And they want to defund the Department of War.

00:19:20.000 This is according to a source inside the DSA.

00:19:23.000 Yeah, but the main point is that there was this massive talking point that this is just liberal states and, you know, liberal districts where this has happened.

00:19:34.000 I'm sorry.

00:19:35.000 This is happening all across the country.

00:19:37.000 And they have some platforms that a lot of young people and a lot of people that have grievances with the rich are going with.

00:19:46.000 It's anti American, it's anti Jew, it's anti Israel, it's anti the foundation of how this country was built. 0.68

00:19:53.000 They believe that our country is deeply flawed, and they're winning.

00:19:58.000 So you got to have a Republican Party that speaks truth to power on all of the.

00:20:03.000 They don't even want the police, they don't want any boys.

00:20:06.000 One candidate said, I don't care if they committed a crime and they're a legal immigrant. 0.96

00:20:11.000 You still should not be able to deport them.

00:20:14.000 So we're not talking about reasonable people, but you got to make the case because these young people are showing up to vote.

00:20:20.000 And the college educated, I know there were some headlines about us talking about the other day, but these college educated people have been indoctrinated.

00:20:28.000 And they're not rational.

00:20:28.000 They don't understand the markets.

00:20:29.000 They don't understand any of that.

00:20:31.000 They understand this new world order.

00:20:34.000 And they're voting for this as well.

00:20:35.000 So we got to start focusing back on the college campuses again.

00:20:40.000 And some are framing this as sort of a.

00:20:42.000 East to West wave.

00:20:44.000 It's not.

00:20:44.000 It is a tide rising all around us.

00:20:47.000 These candidates have been erupting, have been fomenting all across the country.

00:20:52.000 You're absolutely right, starting with college campuses, city councils, mayors, district attorneys, et cetera.

00:20:58.000 So they are all around you.

00:21:00.000 They are all around us, and it is abjectly frightening.

00:21:03.000 Remember when they called us conspiracy theorists for saying that socialists wanted to fundamentally transform America?

00:21:10.000 Remember that?

00:21:10.000 I do.

00:21:11.000 They're not hiding it anymore, guys.

00:21:13.000 They're saying the quiet parts out loud.

00:21:16.000 They wrote it down.

00:21:17.000 It's basically communism.

00:21:21.000 And this is not some fringe weekly book club group.

00:21:24.000 This is the organization behind the mayor of New York City and a growing block of Democrats in Congress and congressional primaries that they've won.

00:21:36.000 Open the borders, disarm the military, and concentrate all the power in one body that they control.

00:21:44.000 So the next time the left tells you socialism is just social justice, Pull up this document and show it to them.

00:21:51.000 And it's why elections matter, and supporting candidates who support you matters.

00:21:57.000 Don't get complacent.

00:21:58.000 Don't take anything for granted.

00:22:00.000 Whether you're in a red state, a blue state, or a purple state, it all matters.

00:22:05.000 It all adds up.

00:22:06.000 It's all accretive.

00:22:08.000 And our apathy could cost us our country.

00:22:12.000 And that brings me to my guest today.

00:22:14.000 Because down in my new adopted home state of Florida, there's a race going on that might be the most important governor's race in America.

00:22:23.000 Byron Donalds.

00:22:24.000 You know him well.

00:22:25.000 Friend of the show, friend of my family, congressman from Southwest Florida.

00:22:30.000 And in February of last year, my father gave him the complete and total endorsement to be the next governor of Florida.

00:22:36.000 And since then, the sheriffs are with him, the police chiefs are with him, most of the Republicans in the state legislature are with him.

00:22:45.000 And the primary is coming up on August 18th, ahead of the general election on November 3rd.

00:22:51.000 Well, guys, joining me now, Florida gubernatorial candidate, Congressman Byron Donald, obviously of Florida, the Trump endorsed candidate for governor, and obviously just a great friend.

00:23:02.000 Byron, great to have you back on the show.

00:23:05.000 It's good to be back with you, man.

00:23:06.000 Okay, so we're getting into the season.

00:23:09.000 You got primaries coming up, you got a big election season this fall.

00:23:12.000 So let's talk about this campaign of yours because you've been everywhere Hialeah, one day Orlando, the next, burger joints, churches, county fairs.

00:23:23.000 I mean, I know you woke up at about 3 a.m. just last week to do the inaugural landing of Trump Force One at the new DJT airport, formerly PBI, Palm Beach International.

00:23:34.000 So you've been all over the place.

00:23:37.000 Paint the picture for the people.

00:23:40.000 What does a day in the life of this campaign actually look like?

00:23:43.000 And maybe what's the best meal? 0.99

00:23:45.000 Because I know they feed you along the way at all of these damn events. 0.96

00:23:48.000 So, what's the best meal? 0.98

00:23:50.000 And how much weight have you gained?

00:23:54.000 Well, I'm going to go in reverse order.

00:23:56.000 The weight is actually maintained.

00:23:58.000 We've done a good job of that, kind of watched it.

00:24:01.000 The truth is, we go to these events and there's a lot of food, but I barely get a chance to eat any of it because you're shaking hands, you're talking to people, people got questions.

00:24:13.000 They want to introduce themselves.

00:24:14.000 I'm glad that they would choose to do that because it means that you're resonating on the ground.

00:24:19.000 So I actually don't get a chance to eat at most of these events.

00:24:21.000 The best meal I've ever had at one was the Hillsborough County Cattlemen's Association.

00:24:28.000 And when the cattlemen do a deal, they cook the steaks right out on the grill, bring them into you.

00:24:32.000 So I had a medium ribeye.

00:24:35.000 It was excellent.

00:24:36.000 The only way the cattlemen do their steaks.

00:24:38.000 But other than that, we're just on the road.

00:24:40.000 In terms of the day, man, it's 7 a.m. to midnight.

00:24:45.000 Every single day, nonstop, you know, seven, eight events a day.

00:24:49.000 And then when I'm not doing that, I'm back in Washington on Capitol Hill.

00:24:52.000 Yeah, I mean, I guess that's a part a lot of people probably forget.

00:24:54.000 You're running a campaign, but you're also still a very active congressman out there doing all the things.

00:24:59.000 And, you know, in this time, that's got to be pretty crazy as well.

00:25:03.000 Very.

00:25:04.000 But that's all right.

00:25:05.000 It's a moment in time, it's a season in time.

00:25:08.000 And, you know, really, I'm just in a blessed position because to be this far along in the race is going really well.

00:25:14.000 Yeah, you're burning the candles at both ends, but it's worth it, man, because.

00:25:18.000 When you have an opportunity to take on a large responsibility, a very important responsibility, you can't be complaining about how many hours you're having to leave the lights on.

00:25:28.000 So, we do the work every single day.

00:25:30.000 Well, especially as you go from congressman to governor, God willing, a lot changes, especially in a place like Florida where you have a lot of natural disasters, you have hurricane seasons.

00:25:40.000 I mean, it is a 24 7 job.

00:25:43.000 Yeah.

00:25:44.000 Obviously, we're a hurricane prone state.

00:25:46.000 Everybody knows that.

00:25:47.000 So, you always have to be ready.

00:25:49.000 At any given moment.

00:25:51.000 But then there's the positive sides of the job.

00:25:53.000 Look, Florida is the best state in the country.

00:25:55.000 The size of our economy, we just went from number 15 in the world to number 14.

00:26:00.000 We are on our way to number 10.

00:26:02.000 And then you have all of the economic opportunities that are going to go along with that commercial space around Cape Canaveral, the fact that so much of the finance world is actually moving to Florida.

00:26:11.000 I believe we're going to be a major financial hub in the Western Hemisphere in a decade.

00:26:16.000 And then you have to balance all of that.

00:26:18.000 We still have agriculture, which is critical to our state, obviously, our conservation areas.

00:26:23.000 Our fishing areas, Don.

00:26:24.000 I know you love to fish, you love to hunt.

00:26:26.000 So much, so do so many Floridians.

00:26:28.000 We want to make sure we preserve that for the future of our state while having to figure out how we build new roads and new housing that's going to be built and new infrastructure around industry that's going to be built.

00:26:38.000 So it's a great job, a lot of stuff to balance, manage, and work through, but I'm ready for the challenge.

00:26:43.000 Yeah, it's one of those funny ones.

00:26:45.000 You know, with all the people, you know, migrating over here, you know, I was one of them like five or six years ago.

00:26:50.000 And, you know, while I came here my whole life, it was like, you know, like a second home, but now that it's my primary home, I'm like, Hey, all those New Yorkers are like, no, no, winter's awesome up there.

00:26:58.000 You should really just stay.

00:27:01.000 Just stay.

00:27:03.000 Yeah, the traffic's gotten a little bit problematic, but I guess you gotta figure all of it out, right?

00:27:09.000 Yeah, we'll figure it out.

00:27:10.000 I think in order to really manage it, we're gonna have to have some regional growth planning.

00:27:15.000 So let's take South Florida, Palm Beach, Broward County, Miami Dade County.

00:27:19.000 Historically, they've kind of always just worried about their county.

00:27:23.000 But today, that's not the case.

00:27:24.000 I mean, you know this.

00:27:25.000 You know, if you live in Palm Beach County, you might have a business meeting in Broward, a dinner in Miami Dade.

00:27:32.000 You know, your kids are in school during the day.

00:27:34.000 You want to meet up with a buddy down in Los Solos and Fort Lauderdale.

00:27:38.000 And so it's really about how do people commute between the Tri County area through that region of Florida so people can get to work, get home, get their kids, see their friends, enjoy the environment, and really have that quality of life that everybody loves and enjoys in Florida.

00:27:55.000 So, you know, we're going to have to work through those growing pains.

00:27:58.000 There's some road systems that got to be built out, some new innovations that we got to work through.

00:28:03.000 But it's about maintaining that quality of life that people have come to know and love in Florida.

00:28:07.000 Yeah, because I live just 15 miles north of Palm Beach, just up in Jupiter.

00:28:10.000 And sometimes it's a 20 minute drive, and sometimes it's an hour and 20 minute drive.

00:28:15.000 And just to get to Palm Beach, which is, you never would have even thought that, even in the summers, everyone usually fled, and people are just here year round now.

00:28:23.000 So, yeah, it's a big puzzle, but I imagine you guys will be all over that one.

00:28:29.000 Absolutely.

00:28:29.000 Looking forward to it too.

00:28:31.000 So, Byron, let's rewind the tape a little bit for those of you who are watching and don't necessarily know, because you actually have this sort of incredible childhood story.

00:28:40.000 Frankly, it's an incredible American dream story.

00:28:44.000 Was there a moment growing up that you thought, yeah, I could be running for governor of Florida someday?

00:28:48.000 I mean, you're a New York boy, Brooklyn, I guess, right?

00:28:55.000 I guess everyone down here is from Brooklyn at this point.

00:29:00.000 I think I married the one girl who was actually born in Florida, uh, in all of Florida.

00:29:03.000 But, you know, what can you do?

00:29:04.000 Listen, man.

00:29:06.000 In every room I go into, there's somebody from Brooklyn. 0.99

00:29:09.000 They're just the way it is.

00:29:09.000 There's somebody from Brooklyn.

00:29:11.000 And then you get somebody who does a shout out.

00:29:13.000 What about Queens?

00:29:14.000 Now I'm like, it's okay.

00:29:15.000 What about the Bronx?

00:29:16.000 That we never went up there much.

00:29:18.000 Uh, but that's all right.

00:29:19.000 But I never thought about politics as a kid.

00:29:21.000 It was never a part of my dreams.

00:29:24.000 Uh, when I was really young, I wanted to be a pro basketball player.

00:29:27.000 That's what I wanted to do.

00:29:29.000 And then in high school, I decided, you know what?

00:29:30.000 I think I want to go into finance.

00:29:32.000 And I did that and I graduated from Florida State with a degree in finance.

00:29:35.000 But politics was never the dream.

00:29:37.000 It was never the thing that I was shooting for as a kid.

00:29:40.000 You know, my mom, she raised me by herself.

00:29:43.000 You know, my dad, I know my dad, but he wasn't around.

00:29:46.000 So we were a single family household, a single parent household.

00:29:49.000 You know, my mom has two other daughters.

00:29:52.000 So she was doing everything that she could to make ends meet between my sisters and myself.

00:29:57.000 And it was a tough upbringing, but a simple one.

00:30:01.000 You know, in early New York at that time, it was the crack epidemic.

00:30:05.000 You know, you're having to basically dodge the gangs on your way to school.

00:30:09.000 I remember when Rudy Giuliani came in, the streets got cleaned up, they got a lot safer.

00:30:14.000 And then before you know it, I was on a Greyhound bus to Florida to go to college. 0.98

00:30:18.000 And I had my ups and downs when I got to Florida, made a bunch of stupid mistakes when I was 18, 19, and 20. 0.98

00:30:24.000 And it was actually, we all did. 0.98

00:30:26.000 It just got me on it.

00:30:27.000 Yeah.

00:30:28.000 Yeah.

00:30:28.000 You're a bit younger than me.

00:30:29.000 I always say, like, thank God we didn't have cell phone video cameras in our pockets when we're going through those years, right?

00:30:34.000 Because it's a conversation I have to have with my kids all the time because it's like, hey, guys, like, there's no second chances anymore.

00:30:42.000 The internet's forever.

00:30:43.000 That's right.

00:30:44.000 It's better not to post.

00:30:47.000 Just don't do it.

00:30:48.000 It's not worth it.

00:30:48.000 Leave the phones at home.

00:30:49.000 You live and you learn, you grow, you know?

00:30:51.000 And so my life is a life of redemption.

00:30:53.000 And to be in this position now really is a blessing.

00:30:55.000 Also, tell me a little bit about Erica and the boys, three sons.

00:30:59.000 What's that conversation like around the kitchen table when dad's running for governor?

00:31:06.000 Who in that house does the best job of keeping you humble in all of this?

00:31:10.000 Well, who keeps me the most humble is Erica.

00:31:12.000 I mean, I'll come off the campaign trail and then there's a honeydew list waiting for me.

00:31:17.000 She'll be like, Yeah, that was great.

00:31:18.000 Everybody wanted to shake your hand.

00:31:20.000 I need these things done in my house.

00:31:22.000 So she's the one that keeps everybody humble.

00:31:25.000 I think with the kids, really not even the kids anymore, my oldest is 22.

00:31:30.000 My middle one's 18, so they're men.

00:31:32.000 And then my youngest son is 15.

00:31:34.000 And so the conversations I try to have with them are much more about them and what's going on in their lives.

00:31:39.000 I mean, the campaign comes up, it's all encompassing.

00:31:42.000 So it comes up, or they'll see something on social media and they'll ask me about it and we'll have a laugh about it.

00:31:47.000 But I really try to just find out what's going on in their lives because, you know, I signed up for politics, they didn't, you know, and I still want to make sure that they're on the right track to accomplish their dreams.

00:31:57.000 Yeah, I know a little bit about that one, son, but it is all encompassing, right?

00:32:00.000 It's like, You know, when family's in a fight, all of us and everyone's in a fight, whether they chose to or not.

00:32:05.000 And so that can always be an interesting one.

00:32:09.000 So if you ever need, if they ever need to speak to someone who's been there and done that at this point, have them call me because I'm a decent sounding board because it can be frustrating as hell, I can tell you that.

00:32:20.000 No, I'll make sure that happens.

00:32:21.000 I know my oldest son, he'll definitely want to talk to you.

00:32:24.000 So, you know, take me back, you know, February last year.

00:32:27.000 You know, my father gives you the complete and total endorsement sort of right out of the gate because you've just been, you know, such a great supporter of ours.

00:32:35.000 So helpful for him in Washington.

00:32:38.000 And even during the four year period of time, where a lot of people that were friends during the first term, they read the articles, oh, but it's never coming back.

00:32:49.000 It's a crazy world.

00:32:50.000 There's not a lot of loyalty.

00:32:53.000 What's the best piece of advice, though, in all that process that perhaps he's given you before or since throwing your hat in the ring in this ring?

00:33:01.000 Oh, man.

00:33:01.000 Your dad said to me after he gave me the endorsement.

00:33:05.000 That this is not the end.

00:33:06.000 It's not a beginning.

00:33:07.000 Now that you have it, you got to go and work your ass off.

00:33:10.000 That's literally what he said to me.

00:33:12.000 And he was right.

00:33:13.000 You know, I think that obviously his endorsement is the best in politics, bar none.

00:33:17.000 Everybody knows it.

00:33:19.000 But when you have it, I think sometimes there's this thought that you can kind of sit back and rest, and you really can't.

00:33:25.000 When you have it, you have to go press the envelope and it has to be full throttle.

00:33:29.000 And so I've been running for governor now for almost 17 months, and it's been full throttle ever since your dad gave me his endorsement.

00:33:37.000 Yeah, and I've seen that a lot, man.

00:33:38.000 Guys, like, oh, I got the endorsement.

00:33:40.000 Now I'm just going to sit back and hope it miracles itself into existence.

00:33:43.000 And it doesn't work.

00:33:44.000 Our voters are smart.

00:33:45.000 The endorsements, you know, it's a great badge of honor.

00:33:48.000 It means a lot.

00:33:49.000 It gives them a lot of security.

00:33:50.000 But if they're not seeing you put in the time and the work and everything that it requires, they see through that.

00:33:57.000 And I've seen a couple of these guys, they get it.

00:33:59.000 They're longtime friends.

00:34:00.000 They're pretty good for a while.

00:34:01.000 And they get it.

00:34:02.000 And they're like, ah, now I'm going to skate into this thing.

00:34:04.000 It's never quite so simple.

00:34:06.000 No, listen, I don't think you skate into anything.

00:34:09.000 No matter how many advantages you have at your disposal, you still got to work.

00:34:13.000 You got to press every advantage you got because nothing's done until it's done.

00:34:17.000 And so in the campaign, that's what we always tell our guys nothing's done until it's done.

00:34:22.000 I don't care what the press is saying.

00:34:23.000 Let's just make sure that we're focused on the week that we're in.

00:34:26.000 Let's win this week.

00:34:27.000 And then as you start stacking weeks, you can look back and be like, oh, man, look how much we accomplished.

00:34:32.000 So we really have a no nonsense approach internally in the campaign.

00:34:35.000 And I got to tell you, a lot of that was really picked up watching the president's campaign, being a top surrogate on that campaign.

00:34:41.000 And even though, even in the primaries where there were a ton of advantages, it was as if internally, it was as if you were fighting and clawing for every inch.

00:34:50.000 Yeah, I ran every day like we're 10 points back.

00:34:53.000 Yeah.

00:34:53.000 You know, every day you're 10 points back, even if you're 30 points ahead.

00:34:57.000 It's like none of it matters.

00:34:58.000 You just got to keep going.

00:35:00.000 Yeah.

00:35:00.000 That's it.

00:35:01.000 So, you know, you've got the, I guess, the sheriffs, you've got the police chiefs behind you, Florida Republican and independent voters are supporting you more and more every day.

00:35:12.000 Obviously, still out grounding there literally every second of the time.

00:35:16.000 What are you not taking for granted in all of this?

00:35:20.000 Not taking for granted.

00:35:23.000 That's a good one because I'm kind of neurotic.

00:35:25.000 I'm too competitive.

00:35:27.000 Yeah.

00:35:27.000 So, like, I just, nothing is taken for granted.

00:35:30.000 And I'm serious.

00:35:31.000 No matter how much money we raise, you know, I'm on the phone with people who choose to support, just thanking them, sometimes overthinking them on the phone.

00:35:38.000 Yeah.

00:35:39.000 We were out knocking doors in Miami the other day.

00:35:42.000 And when one guy was like, You're out of here doing this?

00:35:45.000 And I said, Sir, if I won't do it, how can I expect my team or the people who volunteer their time to do it?

00:35:50.000 So I have to do it.

00:35:52.000 And so that's why we keep just such a frenetic pace.

00:35:56.000 That, you know, we want to make sure that I'm not taking something for granted.

00:35:59.000 The thing I try to make sure I cherish, though, is trying to have a day a week with the family.

00:36:04.000 And my wife, she presses on that one hard. 1.00

00:36:06.000 Her attitude is, look, go do whatever you got to do six days a week, but on Sunday, you better bring yourself into this house. 0.98

00:36:13.000 And I think those are wise words.

00:36:16.000 I've seen that one go wrong, too.

00:36:17.000 So, yeah, that's definitely, and honestly, you need that peace of mind to be able to do the other things as effectively.

00:36:22.000 So, I think, you know, that balance is so fundamentally critical in all of this.

00:36:28.000 Yeah.

00:36:28.000 So, you know, I guess the primary, you know, Democratic opponent, David Jolly, his resume is basically being, you know, washed up by, you know, MSN, DNC analysts and, you know, all of this stuff.

00:36:39.000 You see this stuff, you know, what's actually there, and then you have what's actually shown to the public.

00:36:44.000 You know, if it was a Republican resume, every one of the negatives, you know, would be out there.

00:36:49.000 So, you know, what else should voters know about, I guess, this, you know, very likely opponent of yours in the general?

00:36:57.000 He's a Trojan horse.

00:36:58.000 He's going to be running the same campaign that Abigail Spamberger ran in Virginia, the same one Katie Hobbs ran in Arizona, you know, where it's going to sound milquetoast.

00:37:07.000 It's going to sound nice.

00:37:08.000 It's going to be very boring.

00:37:10.000 And that's not a bug.

00:37:10.000 It's a feature.

00:37:11.000 It's by design.

00:37:13.000 They want to lull the people of Florida into sleep.

00:37:16.000 And I think it's important for people to understand that, yeah, he might sound nice on the trail, but if he wins, he's going to govern like a radical.

00:37:22.000 And I'll give you an example.

00:37:24.000 The Florida Democrat, LGBTQIA, whatever the rest of the party, came up.

00:37:31.000 But they came out and endorsed them.

00:37:32.000 And so, what does that organization stand for?

00:37:35.000 They want boys and girls sports. 1.00

00:37:36.000 They want boys and girls bathrooms. 0.92

00:37:38.000 They believe in the transgender agenda. 0.99

00:37:40.000 And they're going to push hard for that. 0.98

00:37:41.000 And if you look at what's happened to the Democrat Party, the socialism and the radicalism is on full display.

00:37:48.000 So you have a guy who was a Democrat, independent, and Republican all within three, four years.

00:37:55.000 And you think that guy's going to stand up to the radical left?

00:37:57.000 I don't think so.

00:37:58.000 He'll fold to the radical left.

00:38:00.000 And then if he were to win, and by the way, he's not going to win, but if in some way he won, he'd fold to the radical left.

00:38:07.000 And then the Florida dream, the beauty of Florida that everybody's chasing and trying to get to, that's going to start to erode.

00:38:13.000 Like what happens in Arizona, what's happening in Virginia?

00:38:16.000 And we don't want that in Florida.

00:38:18.000 So he's a Trojan horse.

00:38:20.000 And I think it's important for the people of Florida to know that.

00:38:22.000 Yeah, I think that's so critical because, you know, obviously, hey, Florida's got beautiful, you know, wildlife and beaches and stuff like that.

00:38:26.000 But, you know, so does New England.

00:38:29.000 You know, different kind of scenery.

00:38:30.000 As a guy that was a lifelong Northeastern boy, you know, I actually missed some of those things.

00:38:35.000 I mean, Florida has been so great because of the opportunity, the political climate, the, you know, lack of sort of excessive regulation to everything, the freedoms that we enjoy as Americans that are being, you know, really stripped away.

00:38:48.000 From us by all these Democrats all over the place.

00:38:50.000 I mean, it is so fundamentally important that these people never have an opportunity to strip that away because you're right.

00:38:57.000 You saw that in Virginia.

00:38:58.000 You saw that in Arizona.

00:38:59.000 You saw that in all these states.

00:39:00.000 It's like, no, no, no.

00:39:01.000 They're a moderate.

00:39:02.000 Every Democrat running is a moderate.

00:39:04.000 Turns out there actually are no moderate Democrats in politics.

00:39:08.000 There's moderate Democrats in America, and I get it.

00:39:11.000 They're all over the place.

00:39:12.000 They're great people.

00:39:13.000 They disagree on certain things, but they still believe fundamentally in what we believe in.

00:39:18.000 You can't win a major office anymore as a Democrat without basically having to kowtow.

00:39:23.000 To that radical faction.

00:39:24.000 And so they've run a smart playbook.

00:39:26.000 Hey, the people don't really want that.

00:39:27.000 Certainly the people in Florida wouldn't really want that.

00:39:29.000 So we're going to whitewash this.

00:39:31.000 We're going to make you the milquetoast, boring, and not so radical Democrat.

00:39:35.000 But then they get into power.

00:39:38.000 And then those favorites start getting called in.

00:39:40.000 Hey, we bankrolled your campaign.

00:39:41.000 We expect you to do this. 1.00

00:39:42.000 We want men in women's locker rooms. 1.00

00:39:44.000 We want all the nonsense. 0.88

00:39:45.000 And so I don't think people can get complacent in that because this is something the media has done a very good job of trying to create these people, make them seem like they're independent minded individuals.

00:39:56.000 They're not.

00:39:56.000 They're all.

00:39:57.000 They're all bought and paid for by the radical left, and that's the only way they can actually win a major race anymore in this country.

00:40:03.000 No, you're exactly right.

00:40:05.000 And so we're going to be on guard and we're going to just fight very hard.

00:40:08.000 To me, obviously, we have about six weeks left in the primary season, but after that, it's going to be no holes barred.

00:40:16.000 We're just going to be working every single day.

00:40:19.000 I had a friend come up and they were like, Well, if you win the primary, are you going to be able to take a couple days off?

00:40:24.000 And I said, No.

00:40:25.000 We go straight into the general and we campaign hard.

00:40:28.000 I mean, right now, there's about only a hundred and 13, 114 days until the general election.

00:40:33.000 Like, that's it.

00:40:34.000 So, it's going to be all hands on deck every single day fighting for Florida.

00:40:38.000 And I want to make sure Floridians don't take the blessings that we have for granted because we're a very good state for a reason.

00:40:45.000 We're the best state for a reason.

00:40:46.000 You don't start switching out policy and ideology just because you think times are good.

00:40:50.000 You have to reinforce them when times are good so that they get better for the future.

00:40:54.000 Yeah.

00:40:54.000 And it's something, you know, again, when I came down here as a, again, political refugee from the People's Republic of New York.

00:41:00.000 And I was worried.

00:41:02.000 I saw a lot of other people that I knew in New York that were definitely far more left leaning than me coming down.

00:41:07.000 I was like, oh boy, here it goes.

00:41:09.000 And yet they got here, they stayed here.

00:41:13.000 And in the last election, Florida actually was significantly more red than before, even though I imagine a lot of that influx would have been at least neutral, if not probably Democrat leaning from where these people were escaping. 0.59

00:41:26.000 So they got here, they bought into it, they went further red.

00:41:32.000 We actually have to maintain that mentality and can never, never hold up because we, again, we've seen how far they will push it if they ever regain power here.

00:41:40.000 Yeah, you're absolutely right.

00:41:41.000 And I think, you know, one of the reasons we've seen that occur, let's just be clear about it.

00:41:47.000 When people come to Florida, they buy into a way of life.

00:41:50.000 It's not just moving for a job or I'm just going to go retire now.

00:41:54.000 I think what you've seen, especially since COVID several years ago, you see a lot of people come here for that way of life in Florida and then they want to protect it. 0.90

00:42:02.000 And people, especially those who are coming from the Northeast, they're comparing to what they left.

00:42:07.000 And they're saying, I don't want to see New Jersey.

00:42:09.000 I don't want to see New York.

00:42:11.000 I definitely don't want to see Connecticut or Michigan or Wisconsin.

00:42:14.000 They want Florida.

00:42:15.000 Yeah.

00:42:16.000 And so I think that's why we've been able to see people come down and understand that they have a responsibility to keep the place that they chose the way that it's been.

00:42:24.000 Yeah.

00:42:24.000 It's why they went there in the first place.

00:42:26.000 And by the way, it's sort of an interesting one because watching the World Cup for the last month, you see exactly what we're sort of talking about here, but on a grander scale, as it relates to America in general, all these people from other countries around the world there to celebrate their teams and their countries.

00:42:40.000 It's wonderful.

00:42:40.000 But they're like, wow, America is so much cooler than I thought.

00:42:43.000 Everything I saw on CNN International, which makes, by the way, for those of you who don't know, CNN International makes.

00:42:49.000 CNN America seems like Fox News.

00:42:53.000 It's that radically left.

00:42:54.000 And these people come to America, they experience American culture, they experience American food, and they're all amazed.

00:43:01.000 And it seems to be driving the left absolutely crazy because they spent such a long time creating this marketing campaign of America is this terrible oppressor nation, yada, yada, all the BS.

00:43:11.000 And yet, when foreigners actually got there, despite what they've been told for years, they're like, this place is awesome.

00:43:17.000 What's going on?

00:43:18.000 I mean, it's almost exactly the same thing on a grander scale.

00:43:22.000 No, you're right.

00:43:23.000 Look, people have come from everywhere.

00:43:24.000 And look, the other piece about Scene International, you're right.

00:43:27.000 They're trying to paint the president as if all he's doing is bringing chaos to America and everything's in upheaval.

00:43:33.000 And then people come and spend, you know, a couple days, a week, a month in our country.

00:43:38.000 And they're like, oh my gosh, can I, when am I coming back?

00:43:40.000 They're probably begging FIFA, hey, just keep the World Cup in the United States every four years.

00:43:45.000 So it gives us an excuse to come back and just be able to have great food, have air conditioning in the summertime.

00:43:52.000 By the way, I should, I got to.

00:43:55.000 It's funny, I'm in my studio right now.

00:43:57.000 It's really hot today in Florida.

00:43:58.000 And of course, I lost my AC this day.

00:44:00.000 But 364 out of 365 days, I have AC here, and it's wonderful.

00:44:06.000 I mean, imagine being like, you're coming from a European country, and it's like, oh, wow.

00:44:11.000 You have AC?

00:44:13.000 Maybe that's one of the things we take for granted is like AC functions here.

00:44:18.000 We all have it, except for me in my studio today.

00:44:20.000 But everywhere else, it's hard to believe.

00:44:26.000 We're a great country.

00:44:27.000 We're a great country.

00:44:28.000 We're the best country.

00:44:29.000 We are exceptional.

00:44:31.000 The world has, it's not, they've seen it multiple times, but now you just have people who are just visiting.

00:44:35.000 They got a chance to see it firsthand.

00:44:37.000 The one guy on X who was just doing like video tours.

00:44:41.000 Oh, yeah.

00:44:41.000 That guy was awesome.

00:44:43.000 That guy.

00:44:43.000 And then so now I forget his name, but like he went and saw, like, you know, they went to the Gulf of America.

00:44:49.000 They were like traveling through our country, being like, man, this place is awesome.

00:44:53.000 And I think that when other people see that, I think it helps the American people realize that, man, put away a lot of the petty politics.

00:45:00.000 For a moment, our country is great.

00:45:02.000 Let's just celebrate that.

00:45:04.000 Yeah, and the best one I think I saw was it was like a Japanese family, and they go to like, I think it was maybe in Florida or somewhere, but they go to like a gun store that has a range built in, and they're like, they're playing with guns, and they were like, this is the greatest thing in the world. 0.98

00:45:16.000 I thought these things were weapons of mass destruction.

00:45:18.000 And they're, yeah, I think it's been a great campaign for America because people have finally realized what, you know, what actually is, and frankly, you know, how much they've been lied to over the last few years.

00:45:31.000 Yeah, it's.

00:45:32.000 I think for us, as a nation, as people, we really have to lock in and help our young kids, our young men in particular, but also help even some of those moderate Democrats who they're registered Democrats, they're moderate people.

00:45:46.000 They love this country, but they're not quite sure where to go.

00:45:49.000 I think we have to make sure that they understand that there's a home for them with common sense Americans who, quite frankly, all live in the Republican Party today.

00:45:57.000 We're common sense people.

00:45:59.000 We just want law and order, safe streets.

00:46:02.000 A sound economy, good job.

00:46:04.000 I want to be able to raise my kids, hang out with my friends, enjoy a good sporting event, and largely just be left alone.

00:46:10.000 And I think that's what most people want.

00:46:12.000 Yeah, and the other side is exactly the opposite.

00:46:14.000 I mean, that's right.

00:46:16.000 Like in our party, on our side, you can actually have a conversation where you disagree about nuance of things and disagree about even major topics, sometimes party platform things.

00:46:28.000 And that's okay.

00:46:29.000 The other side, you could be 99.9% there, but if you disagree on one little aspect, usually some of the craziest aspects, And you're fully ostracized.

00:46:38.000 So, you know, the party of tolerance is anything but tolerant.

00:46:41.000 The Republican Party turns out they're the ones that are actually tolerant of different ideas and different people coming together and actually formulating the best concept from all of those opinions, not just taking a blind approach to, you know, this is the narrative and we must stick to it at all costs or you're out.

00:46:56.000 Yeah.

00:46:57.000 I mean, don't get me wrong.

00:46:57.000 We'll argue about it, though.

00:46:59.000 We will argue about it.

00:47:01.000 And by the way, but that's the whole point.

00:47:02.000 We're actually able to have that conversation.

00:47:04.000 You know, it doesn't get you banned, it doesn't get you thrown out of, you know, the party.

00:47:09.000 It stimulates a real conversation to figure out where people actually are in this country, not just blindly following political dogma.

00:47:16.000 Yeah.

00:47:17.000 You know, you're right.

00:47:18.000 I think that for people who want to know, like, why be a Republican, I would tell you, I chose being in a Republican party back in 2010.

00:47:26.000 I chose it.

00:47:27.000 And when I did that, what I realized is that there are people who are just really thoughtful about this country, thoughtful about public policy, wanting to do the right thing, really just want to live in harmony and peace.

00:47:38.000 And that spoke to me and resonated to me.

00:47:41.000 And so, through all my years, first as a political activist and now as an elected official, you know, I've always found that people in our party, for the most part, still have that same core about them.

00:47:51.000 You know, they're intellectually curious, they're willing to have long debates, they're willing to read about these subject matter, but they just want the country to operate.

00:47:59.000 They just want it to be free, they want it to flourish, they want other people to flourish.

00:48:04.000 I mean, people in our party, like we don't have problems if people in other parties flourish.

00:48:08.000 All we're saying is just don't impose your crazy ideas on everybody and give us no option, give us no way out, don't give us our freedoms.

00:48:14.000 I think that's really the biggest holdup.

00:48:17.000 If you have a crazy idea and you want to do that in your home, okay, that's in your home.

00:48:21.000 But just don't make everybody else have to do it so that way you feel comfortable about the decisions you've made in your life.

00:48:27.000 And that's really what the core of our party and our movement is about.

00:48:30.000 And so, you know, I think it's a special time in the country's history.

00:48:33.000 Let's not waste it.

00:48:34.000 Let's not squander it.

00:48:35.000 Let's take advantage of it and make America greater and greater.

00:48:38.000 I love that.

00:48:39.000 Yeah.

00:48:39.000 So, Byron, when a family in Florida asks you, you know, why you want this job, you know, what's the first thing you tell them maybe that you're going to fix?

00:48:45.000 You know, obviously nothing's perfect, everything can use some improvement.

00:48:50.000 Is it insurance, housing, cost of living, healthcare?

00:48:53.000 What should Floridians know about either your top priority or the top few priorities of things that could use a little bit of work?

00:49:02.000 The top priority for what impacts every Floridian is insurance rates.

00:49:06.000 We got to get our insurance costs down.

00:49:09.000 Everybody's having to deal with it.

00:49:11.000 Even if you don't own your home and you're a renter, you're dealing with it through your rental payment because your landlord's dealing with it.

00:49:17.000 And so that's going to be a priority number one.

00:49:20.000 I chaired insurance and banking when I was in the state house.

00:49:23.000 So, and I spent 17 years in the finance industry.

00:49:25.000 So, this is an area where I know a lot about it.

00:49:28.000 We want to make sure that we're changing up some of the regulatory tools to make costs go down for the people of Florida.

00:49:35.000 And there's a bunch of adjustments that we can make.

00:49:37.000 We've not changed the regulations in Florida in about 25 years.

00:49:41.000 And so I think there's definite room for improvement that'll push down costs.

00:49:45.000 The big thing that's an internal government thing that's got to happen modernization.

00:49:49.000 We want to modernize all these agencies.

00:49:51.000 We want to make them very responsive.

00:49:53.000 We want to make sure that they're able to track fraud and get fraud out of the system on a daily basis, not having to wait till something blows up and then everybody's scrambling trying to do.

00:50:03.000 Press conferences.

00:50:04.000 We want to do all that work early on.

00:50:06.000 So, we're going to be doing audits in the first couple of weeks of every agency and come up with a plan about how we modernize them, save taxpayer money, make sure dollars are going exactly where they're supposed to go.

00:50:18.000 So, Florida can be the most efficient state in all of America.

00:50:21.000 That's great.

00:50:22.000 You know, Byron, you've been very open about your faith, about being a young guy who got a second chance and, you know, clearly made the most of it.

00:50:30.000 How does that shape the kind of governor you think you'd be?

00:50:34.000 What I realized, you know, being a born again Christian is it's not about me.

00:50:39.000 It's really not, man.

00:50:40.000 I'm in a position that I'm in because God has really redeemed my life and really ordered my steps.

00:50:47.000 I try to listen to Him all the time.

00:50:49.000 Sometimes I don't, but, you know, that's just the human nature in all of us.

00:50:53.000 But it's really about knowing that this thing is bigger than you.

00:50:57.000 I'm in a position I've been really by His glory.

00:51:00.000 And so that keeps me humble.

00:51:01.000 You know, I've watched people kind of come and go through politics over the years.

00:51:06.000 And the one thing I know is that, you know, everybody in elective office, we're all vapors in time.

00:51:11.000 We're here for a period of time and then we're gone.

00:51:13.000 And that's a good thing.

00:51:14.000 I think it's important for new blood to come in.

00:51:17.000 And so, you know, I don't take it for granted.

00:51:19.000 I understand where I am, really, really humbled to be there.

00:51:23.000 Like, truly, you have no idea.

00:51:25.000 So, really, it's about just doing the right job for the people of Florida.

00:51:29.000 And the way I look at it, I'm 47 years old.

00:51:32.000 I moved to Florida 30 years ago.

00:51:34.000 So, I'm looking 30 years into the future.

00:51:36.000 And with my time as Florida's governor, just making all the decisions necessary.

00:51:40.000 So, that in 30 years, when I'm retired and I'm long gone and somebody else is running for office or running government, that I get to look back and just be like, man, Florida is still the best state in the country.

00:51:51.000 And so that's what's in it for me.

00:51:52.000 So, Byron, where can voters go to learn more, to get involved, to find out, make sure they're voting, A, not just in a general, but also in a primary?

00:52:01.000 Where's the best place for those people to get that information?

00:52:04.000 Well, to get the voting information, you definitely want to go.

00:52:08.000 Every county in Florida has a supervisor of elections.

00:52:11.000 Go to their website and call your county.

00:52:12.000 Ours is callyourvotes.com.

00:52:14.000 But there are 67 counties in Florida.

00:52:16.000 Every county has one.

00:52:18.000 I would say go to your supervisor of elections website, find that, Google it, AI it, whatever, and you'll be able to get that information.

00:52:26.000 If you want to know more about the campaign, volunteer, find events, or even help us out along the way, just go to ByronDonald's.com and all my social media.

00:52:34.000 Everything's at ByronDonald's.

00:52:35.000 We'll be posting about election times, where to go, about voting locations, have links on that as well.

00:52:40.000 Excellent.

00:52:41.000 And the primary date is August 18th.

00:52:44.000 August 18th.

00:52:45.000 Okay.

00:52:46.000 Florida, get out there, get involved.

00:52:49.000 Byron Donalds, everyone, go check out the campaign at ByronDonalds.com.

00:52:53.000 Byron, thank you so much.

00:52:54.000 Great being with you last week.

00:52:55.000 Now get back out there and win this thing, okay?

00:52:58.000 I will.

00:52:59.000 Thanks, Don.

00:52:59.000 Appreciate you.

00:53:00.000 Thanks, my friend.

00:53:00.000 Be well.

00:53:02.000 Guys, thanks so much for tuning in.

00:53:04.000 Remember to like, to share, and subscribe so you never miss one of these major episodes, okay?

00:53:09.000 Check us out, not just on Rumble, but on Apple, Spotify podcasts.

00:53:13.000 If your friends get their podcast that way, make sure they are aware of it.

00:53:17.000 Check out our great sponsors down below and in the video description.

00:53:20.000 Okay, it takes a lot of guts to support a show like this.

00:53:22.000 Support those who share your values.

00:53:25.000 And as always, guys, remember stay strong, stay informed, stay engaged, and always stay just a little bit triggered.

00:53:34.000 Thanks a lot, guys.

00:53:35.000 I'll talk to you all again on Thursday.

Triggered - Donald Trump Jr - July 13, 2026

Sunshine State of Mind: Interview with Gubernatorial Candidate Byron Donalds | Triggered Ep.358

Episode Stats

Summary

Transcript