Kentucky.

Tonight I'm Renee Shaw, and we thank you so much for joining us this evening.

Tonight we conclude our series of candidate conversations with primary candidates in the second and fifth congressional districts.

In the second district, two Republicans met our criteria to appear.

Congressman Brad Guthrie declined our invitation.

Shay Perry Edelman accepted our invitation to appear this evening.

We want to hear from you.

You can send us your questions and comments by X, formerly Twitter at PublicAffairs KET, or send an email to KY tonight@ket.org or use the web form at ket.org/ky tonight.

Or you can simply give us a call at one 800 4947605.

Well, welcome, Miss Perry Edelman.

We appreciate you being here with us this evening.

>> Thank you, Renee, for having me.

>> So let's have the viewers and the voters, particularly in the second Congressional District, get to know you a little bit better.

Give us a little bit about your background and why you're running for this second Congressional District seat.

>> Well, let me start by just saying I'm I'll be 62 years old this summer.

And so throughout my life, I've done a lot of different things.

I'm a retired Wall Street broker.

I consider myself currently a professional volunteer because for the last 12 years or so, I've just tried to be part of the solution.

When I saw organizations that were floundering.

My marketing background in particular is how I tried to be, you know, try to contribute.

But also I saw things happening in our public school system.

So I started an advocacy group advocating for parents and teachers and students within the largest district in the state, but also across the state.

We started a nonprofit called Save Our Schools Kentucky.

At one point, we were really leading voices to keep privatization out of our public schools.

And so just a little bit about staying on my background.

I could go into that and spend all day on that.

I'm very passionate about our public schools, but I'm an animal rescuer.

I have a vision for getting strays into having their own sanctuary.

So I've been working on acquiring property for that.

I'm a hemp farmer, so my my husband of 37 years used to work for GE appliances.

So that's what brought us back to Kentucky in 2012.

My youngest son is an active duty marine, and my oldest son is also draft eligible.

And I'm definitely concerned about the potential for losing any military in unnecessary wars.

So that's one of the things.

>> We'll talk about that a little bit more.

One of the.

>> Things the daughter of a of a veteran as well.

>> Thank you.

Yeah.

Thank you for sharing that.

Thank you.

You describe yourself as a Massie Republican and an independent Republican.

Define what those mean.

You're referring to Congressman Thomas Massie from the fourth district.

>> Most definitely.

Massie is really the inspiration for not just me, but several of us that are running on the Republican ticket this primary.

We saw the writing on the wall when it came to the files, the Epstein files in particular, and the fact that we weren't getting we weren't getting the transparency and what the Constitution calls for.

The Constitution was not being followed, and the victims were not being respected in how the files were being released.

And it was just a big quagmire.

Quagmire, quagmire.

And there were several of us that stood behind him because he would stand up to the the current leadership and do what was right, what he felt was right.

And we said, you know, he needs some support out here.

He can't do this alone.

So we're kind of like the reinforcements, if you will.

But, you know, I'm a libertarian, probably more than anything.

I'm independent.

I've been I've been a Democrat before.

I like to vote in the primaries.

I've run for office because I like to be part of the solution.

I've been I've run as a Democrat.

But when it comes to criticism of either party, I'm an equal opportunity critic.

I don't you know, if I see something that's not right in my party, regardless of which party I'm a part of, I believe in the core values of the Republican Party.

I want to see conservatism brought back to our finances.

And so, you know, but I guess I kind of lean toward Massie's views in some ways, but I don't agree with him on everything.

>> I do want to go to a point you just made about having run as a Democrat in 2018.

You ran for Kentucky State Senate seat unsuccessfully.

You have been accused by your opponents of being a Republican in name only a Rino.

Are you just said that you would classify yourself as a libertarian.

So are you.

Are you characterizing yourself in such a way that is genuinely for Republican ideals and values and principles?

Or are you just seeing a path by which you can get elected?

>> Well, you know, that is a loaded question for sure.

And my opponent and the Kentucky Republican Party has been harassing me and sending me threatening messages and slandering me.

So I appreciate the opportunity to to address this because the, the the two party system is compromised.

That's what we're learning from these files that are being released.

If you watch the congressional hearings that are taking place and you listen to what Massie is saying, and you listen to what Tim Burchett is saying, and Nancy Mace and various other Republicans who are taking the lead on making sure that the Epstein justice victims get the Epstein victims get justice.

And I'm endorsed by the Epstein Justice Foundation, by the way, their their PAC.

So or I don't know if they're a PAC, but their nonprofit has endorsed me because I am committed to getting the congressional hearings started.

And I am committed to making sure that that the those who are responsible not just for committing the acts, but for enabling it to continue this long, are held responsible.

And I would like to see I don't know if this is an opportunity for me to say some of the things that I would do along this lines.

>> But go ahead quickly.

Yes.

>> I would like to see nondisclosure agreements as well as secret settlements, you know, gag orders, if you will.

Those should be null and void if the if there is a crime underneath these nondisclosure agreements, these victims have suffered enough.

They should be free to speak about their experiences and tell the truth.

And so I would pass, I would sponsor some kind of legislation to not only get the hearings started and the due process, but people who have been implicated need to be just like if you were a teacher or a coach at a school and you were implicated in one of these crimes, you're removed from your position until a hearing can take place.

And I would call for swift and speedy due process of these perpetrators, but also the harshest penalties for those found guilty.

>> So you are very passionate about this issue regarding The Jeffrey Epstein files, but there could be some voters in the second Congressional District who are wondering about where you stand on issues that they feel are a little bit closer to home.

Absolutely.

So talk about some of your issues when it comes to the economy or wages.

You mentioned that you're a hemp farmer and you do have a platform about farming.

Tell us.

Let's start with jobs in the economy.

Do you agree with the approach of the president so far, and how would you rate him as handling the economy, and what would you do differently?

>> Well, I would not give the president a very good score when it comes to handling of the economy, because our debt is continuing to increase at a massive rate, and that is due mostly to the war.

But we've seen gas prices and grocery prices.

And these are all promises that he campaigned on.

And so I'm a true America First Republican.

I don't just say one thing and do another.

And I have a track record going back, at least actually to my college days, if you really want to go back.

I've been advocating for making sure that things are done properly, you know, and leading is, as I was president of the Student Activities Board in my when I was in college.

So I've been an organizer and trying to be part of the solution really.

I get around people and I hear complaining and I'm thinking, hey, here's an idea, here's a solution.

And then I don't see anybody else doing it.

And even with this seat coming up for election right now, I saw people really saying, we don't want to vote for who Maggie Maga is endorsing in Thomas Massie's race.

And so the same applies to Brett Guthrie's race.

He's also Maga.

He's also Trump endorsed.

He also takes AIPAC money, AIPAC money.

If people are not aware of what AIPAC is, they need to.

Because this is not putting America first.

This is putting foreign interests first, and it's funding genocide.

So there are some war treason.

There are some war crimes taking place that I am also very upset about.

And so I decided that the filing deadline was coming.

I changed my registration from independent to Republicans so that I could qualify to file as a Republican, because we know I've tried to run as an independent as well.

It's impossible to win as an independent, you have to be part of the two party system.

And, you know, I'm the Democrats that there are some Democrats that I still work with.

Well, I will admit there are some Republicans that I still work with.

Well, that's not that's not a factor.

But I have spoken.

I could never run as a Democrat.

I could never run as a Democrat for a lot of reasons.

I have character and I've seen what happens behind the curtain in their elections.

They do put their thumb on the scale, and there have been lawsuits and court cases.

This is not just my opinion, I have information.

See, back to the justice for the victims I've been raising, sounding the alarm about public education in my city and my state, and things that I've seen that I believe are similar, if not related, if not even bigger than the Epstein files.

And I think that the information I think information exists that could end some of the most prominent Democrats careers, including Andy Beshear and Morgan McGarvey.

Morgan also takes AIPAC money, by the way.

>> So let's talk about your your urban activism.

You mentioned that you had co-founded actually, you've co-founded two pro-public education advocacy groups, Save Our Schools, that you just mentioned.

And dear JC, which is Jefferson County Public Schools, you have been openly and fully opposed to charter schools and actively campaigned against them with your Save Our Schools Kentucky activism.

How does your activism for an urban school district translate to a mostly rural and conservative congressional district?

>> So that is a really great question.

And what I ended up finding out is I'm not necessarily opposed to charter schools.

What I was opposed to was the money grab and the power grab that was coming out of, at the time, Koch brothers.

Like I said, it's not always AIPAC.

Sometimes it's Koch brothers.

It's not always Israel, sometimes it's Russia.

But there are powerful entities that have infiltrated our Congress and are blackmailing our lawmakers.

And this is you can find this when you if you go to Tim Page, he says, we're being blackmailed.

So the compromise getting compromised politicians out of office is the most important thing we can do, because we can keep beating our head against the wall and expecting a different result.

But until we get people who are not acting in our interests out of the way, whatever we agree on or don't agree on isn't as important as making sure that we put these guardrails in place so it can't happen again.

But when it comes to schools, because I do want to address school choice in particular, because this is a question I get.

I've been out in the community at the Republican meetings and at the at the different programs that are being put on.

And I talked to a lot of people in the crowds, and for the most part, I talked I've known what the Democrats have stood for.

And I hear I know what the Republicans stand for.

And for the most part, we actually agree on a lot of things.

The division has been stoked from the top.

It's two two arms of the same corrupt body who really report to the billionaire elites and the kleptocrats and the foreign interests.

And frankly, I believe that treason has been committed and we should enforce section four of article two of the Constitution.

Article two, section.

>> Who has committed treason, in your view?

>> I think by taking money from AIPAC and committing war crimes on behalf of America in the interest of Israel, I believe that that is a war crime.

>> So let's talk about who you're up against and electability.

Brett Guthrie was elected to that district seat back in 2008.

He serves now as the chairman of a very powerful committee, the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

This is the oldest, longest standing legislative committee in the House has broad jurisdiction over energy, environment, health care, telecommunications, consumer product safety policies.

Why should voters trade in all of that power, that seat at the table for an incoming freshman with no legislative experience?

>> So I appreciate that question very much.

How much has he done to really thwart the project 2025 agenda?

How much has he done to acknowledge these AI data centers that are coming into our communities at breakneck speeds and threatening not only to use up our resources?

Kentuckians have been raked over the coals literally for generations, and our resources continue to be depleted by people and allowed by people like Mitch McConnell.

So with Brett Guthrie's assistance, these things have been taking place.

Brett voted against the releasing of the files Brett has been in, like you mentioned, in his seat for nine terms.

I'm supportive of term limits.

He should be mentoring people.

He better hurry up and mentor me because I'm going to win this primary, and I'm going to jump right into those seats and take his space.

But I'm also going to do it with knowledge and awareness of what the community actually needs and what these threats truly are.

And I will address these threats and call them out because he has been silent.

>> In terms of fundraising.

I don't have to tell you, you are kind of pale in comparison to the incumbent, Brett Guthrie, who has millions of dollars in awards.

>> Because I don't take AIPAC money.

>> And for those who would connect that fundraising capacity and ability to electability, you say what you've already declared that you're going to be the nominee.

How can you with limited resources.

>> So I reject the notion that we should have to have money to win an election.

I believe that grassroots candidates and viral the ability of a message going viral is is has greater capacity.

I know from my own marketing background, I can take a dollar and turn it into $1,000 and make my message carry further than somebody who has a bunch of money with a, with a message that's intended to keep voters divided and staying home.

So I, I reject the notion that I, that I need that kind of funds.

But the reason I don't have those kinds of funds is, like I said, I don't take dark money, PAC money, blood money.

And I also feel like there's just so many ways that we can get in here and make a difference by listening to our constituents.

But most importantly, and I didn't want to miss this point, we need to end Citizens United, and we need to put limits on fundraising so that I would have liked to have all of the challengers on the ticket.

I mean, Guthrie made the cut.

He could have been here.

He chickened out because he he had a coveted seat.

He could be sitting right here.

All of the Democratic candidates, as well as my other Republican candidate, would have loved to have been here, and I would have loved to have had them up here.

So I, I spoke out about that at the time, and I'm still going to speak out about it today.

I welcome everyone's voice and everyone's awareness of what we stand for, because I don't want to trick anyone into voting for me.

I want people to know that I am not a Trump loyalist.

I'm not a bootlicker.

If I agree with him, I will say so.

If I disagree with him, I will say so because I want to be.

I want to make Kentucky Republicans proud to send me to DC.

>> On what issues do you agree with President Trump?

>> Oh, so I remember recently reading about restricting corporate ownership of property, real rental property in particular, I agree with the limits on credit card financing and spending.

I agree that we should be releasing the files.

So I agree that we should have not gotten into any new wars and that we should be getting grocery prices and gas prices keeping them low.

So I agree with the things that have been some some of the things that have been said, but I also have not seen I feel like the people who are protecting the interests of those who have done harmful things to children are saying whatever they need to say to continue to serve their own interests.

And I don't really I don't know how high it goes.

I think it's above our our our current administration though, and we need we need people with spines and backbones and with, without fear to fearlessly go in and call out what needs to be exposed.

And it's, it's starting to happen.

It's starting to happen.

>> Why should a Trump supporter vote for you?

>> Renee, I am not trying to get a Trump supporter to vote for me.

If they believe that Trump is is going to guide us out of this mess, then I encourage them to continue staying with that conviction.

What I am hoping to do is get people who are disenfranchized and disinterested from these elections, because it is so full of the backbiting and division and toxicity.

I want to I want to give Republicans who were checked out a choice.

They deserve a choice.

The Republicans who are tired of the double speak and the Maga agenda deserve a choice.

>> You have said that you're running a people powered candidacy if elected, and you've spoken a little bit about this, how would you go about dismantling the power and influence that runs Washington, the way it runs now?

How would you do that?

>> I don't think I'm going to have to do a thing.

It is on its own path to destruction, and you have even heard them say, oh, we can't do this.

We can't do that.

It'll collapse the government.

It's a constitutional crisis.

And we've even heard people like Marjorie Taylor Greene say, let it collapse.

Then if we're propping up a system so that certain people can continue to get away with heinous, heinous acts, let's admit that whether it's Republicans or Democrats, heinous acts have been committed in these files by these individuals and who have been abusing their power and and possibly foreign intelligence assets on both parties, we have to acknowledge that people our our president was a Democrat once, and he's crossed party lines.

So we have to acknowledge that both sides are capable of being infiltrated and compromised.

And some of the people that are doing so are not Americans.

We need to realize that we have been played.

America has been played, and I'm here to put America first again.

>> There appear to be four main pillars of your candidacy, according to your website, justice for Sexual Assault Victims.

And you've talked extensively about that, standing up for dark money in our elections.

And you've spoken about that in the intro.

When you were describing yourself, you talked about being a hemp farmer, and one of your priorities, priorities is prioritizing farmers.

Tell us more about what that means.

And we know that there are two proposals by Kentucky congressman or federal members of the federal delegation dealing with hemp.

Senator Rand Paul has a measure, and so does Congressman Andy Barr.

So where should hemp legislation lie?

What would you like to see happen, and what are the other ideas you have for boosting the agricultural and even industrial economies in the Second Congressional District?

>> Well, Renee, I'm really worried.

I'm worried about the future for the consumers of the agricultural industry because so much of power, of the ability to feed us has been concentrated into so few hands that honestly are not people that care whether we eat or not.

And we have food deserts in our in various pockets of both rural and urban communities.

And just with this war in Iran, we've seen fertilizer shortages and threaten threats to fertilizer.

We've seen seed prices double.

We've seen far.

I've talked to farmers who.

Now, because of the prices in.

This is mostly due to transportation costs.

They.

They're not planning as many crops.

And so we have an impending food shortage as well as fewer crops going in the ground.

And I want to support the local farmer all the way down to the backyard farmer.

I think one of my one of my notes that I brought with me today was I want to give people a little bit of heads up, like, prepare for a hurricane.

I've survived a few hurricanes in my day, and there's just this energy that we need to be doing things to prepare.

And I believe that includes planting a garden, planting your own, you know, let's call it a victory garden because we're going to win this primary.

But it's also known as a kitchen garden.

And if you've got some extra space, I feel like we need to not be relying on big pharma, these, these toxin chemical companies that are evasive of any consequences.

I'm opposed to all of the things that McConnell has really done to put his finger on the farm bill, especially tying restoring the hemp derived THC products to reopening the government.

Like.

These are the games that need to stop.

I one of the things I hear from Republicans when I'm out in the community is they want to see bills that aren't filled with quagmires, and everything needs to be more upfront with what is actually in each bill because it's, it's just one of the games that they play.

And again, people who put their own interests and maybe it's just keeping their secrets.

They need to, they need to come out with the truth and turn state's evidence if they've been compromised, because there's no room for people like that in either party.

We don't want people like that in our party.

>> In the last couple of minutes we have remaining.

I want to get one of the other pillars of your candidacy, and that's health care for all, which sounds like a very progressive platform.

You say you want to advance a patient first health care system built on affordability, transparency and choice.

Explain more about that and why that is a Republican idea.

>> Well, Marjorie Taylor Greene probably said it best we can't take away the health care of millions of Americans until we have a better plan in place.

And my my plan is more along the lines of let it fail.

We've been propping up Big Pharma.

We've been propping up the the medical industry.

And I talk to people who have been medically gaslit, who have been told they don't have certain symptoms that may be a homeopathic or more natural, less expensive, less addictive solution.

Cannabis being a perfect example, might actually help cure.

We've got toxins in our in our the PFAs, in our cookware, and forever chemicals in our foods and in our soil.

And they're poisoning us.

There's, there's metals in our water.

So in addition to the garden, I encourage people to start filtering the heavy metals out of their water because we have to be ready for potentially another depression type event because they're, they're, they're digitizing our currency.

They're going to use these AI data centers to track our, our, our carbon credits and our movement and monitor.

They're monitoring things that we do.

Look at China.

This is this has been discussed.

This may seem like, you know, and I hope, I hope if people are turning, turning this off at this point and saying, oh, she's a little she's been down too many rabbit holes.

I hope that they remember that they heard it from me because I'm continuing to spread the message.

And I'm going to be continuing.

I'm going to be back on the ballot in 2028.

We're going to keep this momentum going.

>> Well, thank you, Shea Perry Edelman, for being here this evening.

We appreciate your time.

>> Thank you.

Just remember elect Shea this May.

And also I released a video of a of a prisoner who is a whistleblower, who's being who people need to go look at that video.

Let me just say that.

>> Thank you.

Thank you, and thank you for being with us.

We have much more coming up on Kentucky tonight.

So stay with us.

You will hear from Kevin Smith, a candidate in the fifth Congressional District, right after this break.

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>> Welcome back to Kentucky.

Tonight I'm Renee Shaw.

We thank you for hanging in there with us as we continue our candidate conversations.

Two Republican candidates in the fifth Congressional District met our criteria to appear on Kentucky tonight.

This evening, Congressman Hal Rogers declined our invitation.

Kevin Smith accepted our invitation.

We still want to hear from you.

You can send us your questions and comments by X, formerly Twitter at Pub Affairs.

KET.

Send an email to KY tonight@ket.org or use the web form at ket.org/ky tonight, or you can call us at one 800 494 7605.

Well, welcome, Mr.

Smith.

We appreciate you being here this evening.

>> Thank you Renee.

I look forward to speaking with you and speaking to the folks at home about the future of Eastern Kentucky.

>> Well, let's start by folks getting to know who you are and your background and talk to us about your professional and political experience.

>> Sounds great.

So I am a constitutional attorney.

I'm a former executive in our nation's government, and I'm a Christian, a husband and a father.

And Eastern Kentucky is home.

It's where I teach Sunday school.

It's where I coach Little League baseball.

And I was born in the center in the heart of the Eastern Kentucky fifth Congressional District in Clay County.

My family has been from Eastern Kentucky for eight generations, and it's those roots that have shaped my values, and I stand to fight for faith, family, freedom, and the future of Eastern Kentucky in my faith in Jesus Christ is foundational to who I am.

And I'm here to bring a new generation of conservative leadership.

Now, our region has lots of challenges, from affordability to being one of the poorest congressional districts in the country, to families just wanting to have real opportunity for the next generation.

And I'm right there with them.

My wife and I, we have four young kids, ages 3 to 10, and throughout this campaign, I've traveled to all 33 counties of the fifth Congressional District.

I've been there to show up, to listen and to speak with the people across the district.

One on one in this campaign has and will always be about the future of Eastern Kentucky.

>> Well, part of your bio is that you are an intern for Congressman Hal Rogers.

And even in a recent ad, you thank him for his service.

And I want to point out something, as was stated in the Lexington Herald-Leader article back when you announced your candidacy, in all 23 of Rogers election cycles, only once in 1992, after state Democrats significantly withdrew his or redrew his district, did an opponent come within single digits.

Every other cycle has been uncontested, or a 30 plus point blowout.

You're running against Congressman Hal Rogers, and it's been called a bold move by a lot of political operatives.

Why now and why go up against such an entrenched incumbent?

>> Yeah, we should think Hal Rogers for his 46 years in office.

But we need a new generation of conservative leaders.

When we look across Eastern Kentucky, there's lots of challenges, whether it be affordability or looking at our population.

Since the 1980s, we've lost over 100,000 people in our in our district.

When you look at latest reports of where census data looks to project, we're going to lose even more.

There is urgency in our mountains, and I'm here to be a fresh voice of conservative voice to fight for our future.

And that's what we need.

The world is changing quickly from AI to all the technology.

We can't be held back.

We need to move forward.

And I'm here to be that strong, conservative, fresh voice for Eastern Kentucky.

>> Is there anything in Congressman Hal Rogers voting record that you disagree with?

>> So we can go back and we can look at the things that I will fight for, which I will defend our values.

I will restore accountability back to Washington, and I will deliver opportunity for our region.

And when we look at ways that to do that, we can look at, you know, you know, from accountability, we need to look at our spending and we need to get that under control.

And we are spending in places.

We need to redirect our priorities.

For example, the Export-Import Bank.

We shouldn't be putting our American tax dollars to work to be an ATM for foreign corporations.

We need to direct those dollars back to America and redirect it into places like Eastern Kentucky.

That needs it, whether it be looking at Wioa funding, which hasn't been reauthorized in six years, and those type of investments can bring real economic and career technology and, and educational initiatives and education to really take our employers and employees ready for the next generation of jobs.

And that's what we need investment that multiplies opportunity.

>> I want to get to a point that you made just a moment ago about the fifth Congressional District, and you didn't say it in these words.

But we know that the fifth CD is one of the most impoverished areas in the United States, frequently ranked as the second poorest in the nation.

Do you have a plan that is aimed at reducing poverty for your neighbors and friends in the Fifth Congressional District, and what does it specifically look like?

>> Yeah, we need economic opportunity to build us out of where we are.

And when we look at that, when I go around the region, there are two big concerns that I hear, and that is affordability and jobs.

And when we look at affordability, people are struggling, whether it be at the gas pump, at the grocery store or their electricity bills.

I met with a guy in Pikeville who was telling me that his electricity bill was over $800 for his home, and he looked at me and he said, I can't afford to live here anymore.

And he's looking to leave our region to another state.

Our people are struggling, and it comes down to jobs, our jobs that we need, jobs for our people today.

And we need to be able to train our, our, our students and our and our schools to be able to have a pathway to the jobs of the future.

And when we look at jobs that are growing in our region, we look at like, like additive manufacturing that we see out of Somerset aerospace.

Aerospace is the number one export in Kentucky in aerospace manufacturing.

And we see items and jobs out of that.

And Morehead, we need to be able to take our students and create pathways for that.

For me, I have created educational and career opportunities for our youth and some of the nonprofit work that I've done.

I've been able to bring money back into our region to work with our schools.

That is creating a pipeline, that is creating an ecosystem, that brings our schools, that brings industry together so that they can tie to make sure that our students are focused on careers of the future of our district and that they, our students, see that there are jobs and careers here, and those are the type of things that we need to be investing in so that our people today and in tomorrow for our students can live, work and thrive right here in Eastern Kentucky.

>> The Iran war can be blamed for the spike in gas prices.

Do you believe that that war was done out of an imminent threat and danger?

Do you agree with President Trump's actions in Iran?

>> I 100% agree with Donald Trump's actions as it relates to Iran.

Iran is a bully.

It goes around saying, Death to America.

You see what they're doing with the Strait of Hormuz right now, and the blockade, which is stopping goods traveling around the globe.

And so, yes, they were imminent, about to create a nuclear weapon for our own national interests and for our sovereignty.

We need to make sure that that was taken care of.

And it was bold action, and I agreed with it.

>> And how did the people of the Fifth Congressional District benefit by U.S.

and Israeli involvement in Iran at this particular juncture?

>> For sure, this goes back to national sovereignty in our safety.

And so by taking and approaching Iran the way that President Trump did and making sure that they are not getting weapons, we are safer here at home today because of those actions.

>> You consider yourself a constitutional lawyer, correct?

>> That's what I do.

>> So many conservatives argue for a strict interpretation of the Constitution, given that article one grants the power of the Congress the sole power to declare war.

Do you believe the War Power Act provides too much leeway for the president to engage in military conflicts without a formal declaration?

>> I think there are.

Obviously, the role of Congress is to bring accountability to the actions of the executive.

And so as it relates that, I believe that the War Powers Act currently allows Congress to step in when the executive branch has been involved in a series of events overseas for a period of time, if it's going to.

If we.

One thing that we do not need is.

And it's Congress's responsibility is to make sure when we go to war and we're putting our troops in harm's way, that we have a strategy, that we know what we're doing.

And with that, we don't need to have any more forever wars.

We need to have that strategy with knowing what we're going to do and with objectives that we can get done.

>> Can you articulate for us what the strategy is of the Trump administration in engaging in this war in Iran?

>> I think it's safety of the American people and our interests abroad.

That's exactly what that is.

>> Let's talk about the debt limit you mentioned about federal government spending.

And I want to talk a little bit about House resolution one, which is the president's signature domestic policy omnibus measure, usually called the one big beautiful bill.

It will cost $3.4 trillion over the next ten years and more than 4 trillion when accounting for additional interest owed on the national debt.

This is according to two nonpartisan groups, the Congressional Budget Office and the Joint Committee on Taxation.

Would you have voted for the big beautiful bill?

Considering the trillions that will add to the nation's debt?

>> You know, spending is a very big key that we need to be addressing.

You know, right now, our nation spends $1 trillion a year on interest.

So our national debt is a huge issue.

We'll be reaching our debt limit again in 2027.

It's projected we'll hit $41 trillion.

This will be a conversation that will be critical for the next session of Congress.

Now, as it relates to the one big, beautiful bill, the working families tax cuts, what this has provided is record spending for border security, over $2 trillion in tax savings for the American citizens and hard working families.

It has provided.

You know, you look at what President Trump has been able to do with limiting the size of government, and there's a lot more to do, but this works in that direction.

So yes, the one big, beautiful bill, while, you know, is an omnibus bill and there's a lot to it, and we should be taking things one by one, I believe.

But this bill helps America.

And that's why we're seeing right now stock markets at record highs.

It's because of the what the big beautiful bill the Working Families tax cut is doing to our economy.

It is working.

>> Let's talk about what it's doing to possibly the voters and citizens of the fifth Congressional District, which you say you would have voted for.

H.R.

one also had cuts to Medicaid over $900 billion over ten years.

The Fifth Congressional District is one of the most Medicaid dependent districts in the country.

For those who live near you, who who work near you and who play near you, who could lose coverage due to Medicaid reforms, some say at the expense of tax cuts to high earners and big corporations.

How do you justify having support for the big, beautiful bill?

>> There's no doubt about it that our people in the Fifth Congressional District, we need to make sure that we have access to rural hospitals.

That is critical.

I have a lot of family that live in Clay County, and a lot of them are older, and they ask questions about if something happened, would I be able to get to a hospital in time?

Those are real concerns.

>> What do you.

>> Tell them?

>> What do you tell them?

>> Yeah, I am there that we need to be able to make sure that rural hospitals, their access to them, that we have physicians available across our district to work with them, that we that we make sure that there are physicians and patients able to speak with one another and work together and that there are access to them.

And that's what I'll be fighting for, is greater access.

>> So what does that look like?

How do you get greater access if the access has already been undone?

Partly through the big, beautiful bill?

>> Well, I think there's going to be a lot of conversations moving forward in Congress about how we direct impact rural hospitals and patients going forward.

And I would like I look forward to being a part of those conversations.

But part of that, too, is driven by economics and driven by reimbursement rates as well.

And how can we do that on a much better level, whether that is block grants to the states and allow that to work more closely on a more local level?

There are better ways that this can be done, and I think those conversations are coming up, and I would love to be a part of that.

>> You mentioned just a moment ago about border security.

So given the concern about federal government spending and the national debt that we just talked about, how much should be appropriated toward border security, and what would it pay for specifically, what should those dollars do?

>> Yeah, I go back to our Constitution.

What are we mandated to do?

Right?

It is defense of our country.

And part of that is border security, making sure that we're enforcing our laws to making sure that we have immigration that is fair and just and is appropriate for our economy, and making sure that the people that are coming in, that we are creating a safe that is safe for our communities, what is coming across our borders because we don't need illicit drugs and fentanyl coming across our borders.

We need border security that is providing safety to our people at home here in Eastern Kentucky.

>> Do you approve of how the Trump administration has gone gone about immigration enforcement and the most recent months?

>> I 100% agree that if someone has come across this border and they are here illegally, then we should be utilizing our laws to make sure that they are detained and sent back to where they came from.

And that is important for the safety of America.

>> For those who were in the process of going through immigration courts who were detained and deported, do you support that action?

>> I believe that, you know, there are you know, it depends on the situation, and there may be some type of constitutional rights that they may have at some point in time.

But overall, I agree that if you are here illegally, you need to go back home.

>> Regardless of whether or not you are a violent or nonviolent offender.

>> Again, if you're here illegally, you need to go back home.

>> Let's talk about the Second Amendment, because I think this is part of also your platform, fourth District Congressman Thomas Massie has presented some ideas on gun rights, and I want to see if some of these you agree with, and maybe you would expand on them, a national constitutional carry act where you could carry nationally and that would Trump states restrictions, letting 18 to 21 year olds buy handguns from federally licensed gun dealers and repealing the Gun Free School Zone Act?

Do you support all three of those, or are there any in particular that you that give you pause?

>> I think it's common sense that that you should be able to buy a handgun if you're 18.

I think it's common sense that we should be able to have, you know, if you have a permit that you should be able to, you know, Kentucky is a constitutional carry state.

Not every state is constitutional carry, but if you have a, a carry permit, you should be able to carry across states.

That is common sense and I believe falls in line with our Second Amendment rights.

And so I fully support that.

>> How about the national constitutional carry?

I assume that you also support that.

I do support the Gun Free School Zone Act.

Do you agree that that should be repealed?

>> I think there you know, when we start going into schools, we need to be cognizant to make sure of of who is carrying weapons in those schools.

And there should be people who are carrying in those schools to be able to protect the safety of others.

>> Should educators be armed?

>> I think if they feel like they would like to carry their weapons into the school systems.

I think that, you know, an educator, I wouldn't have any problems with them.

You've they're there to protect our schools, protect our students.

And if that's one way they can do it, I support it.

>> Didn't mean to interrupt you.

So pardon me.

Parental rights.

You've mentioned that that's important to you.

Define parental rights, if you will, so that we have a clear understanding.

And in your view, where do they need strengthening?

Where are they weak?

>> Yeah, sure.

So you look at our Constitution under the 14th amendment, under due process, we have, you know, states can't intercede with us without due process.

It relates to life, liberty and property.

One of those is liberty.

Under liberty you have parental rights.

You know, I look at our schools and parents have the right to direct the upbringing and education of their students.

And we're seeing that play on the national stage right now, with governments and school boards encroaching on parents rights as it relates to directing the upbringing of their children, what are they receiving in school?

What type of education, what pronouns they're being called.

All of that is being, you know, taken advantage of, of parents and it's government encroachment.

And that's why we need parental rights.

And that's why the Constitution provides that under the 14th amendment of due process.

>> So what would a federal law look like under, in your view?

>> Yeah.

Well, I think we have the Constitution, and the Constitution provides parental rights that provides those rights that we have.

And so I think the Constitution, we just need to fight to defend our constitutional rights, those rights that were given to us by God.

Government should be limited and should only be there to protect our rights, those same rights given by God.

>> We've gotten this question from Harry Connors in Barbourville, Kentucky.

He asked, and I quote, why did you decide to run this year without the support of leading Eastern Kentucky Republicans like your mentor, Mike Duncan, instead of waiting on Congressman Rogers to retire?

>> Yeah, we spoke earlier about why I got in this race.

And there's urgency here in our region.

We need a new generation of conservative leaders.

I you know, the question asked about Mike Duncan, specifically, Mike Duncan has been a mentor of mine and to so many others across Eastern Kentucky.

I thank him so much for all the opportunities that he's been able to give to me and provide so many others.

And so I thank him a lot.

>> We know that Congressman Rogers sits at some pretty big tables and has a lot of power.

And so why should the voters of the Fifth Congressional District trade in their seat at the table?

For a newcomer to Washington, what could you do for them that Congressman Rogers has not, or maybe, in your view, not willing to do so?

>> We should thank Congressman Rogers for his 46 years in office.

But let's demystify some of the things that are that are there.

So part of that question was about seniority and and what Congressman Rogers has brought to the region.

We should be fighting to be able to bring federal dollars back to Eastern Kentucky, making sure that it's responsible spending.

But let's demystify some of the facts that are there.

When you look at the Appropriations Committee, half of the members have been there for five years or less.

And there's one member who was a freshman member last year who joined on day one as part of the Appropriations Committee.

And so I will fight for every single dollar for Eastern Kentucky.

I want responsible spending, and I want it done right here at home.

And I've already brought money back into our district as part of the initiatives that I've launched to create educational and career opportunities for our youth, I've been able to bring millions of dollars to work within our schools, to work with our local employers, to create pipelines, create opportunities so that our students can see a future right here at home, and be a part of the solution in this opportunity to why I'm running for office is because it allows me the opportunity to take what I'm already doing and do even more for Eastern Kentucky, a place that I love and I want to do better for.

>> You've worked in Washington.

What do you view as being broken and how would you go about fixing it?

>> Yeah, I mean, I have served in Washington.

I have served as a congressional aide.

I've been an executive in our nation's government.

I've had the opportunity to, to, to work with policy makers, to work with federal agencies, to work with leaders in Washington, D.C.

I've seen how decisions are made.

I know how money moves.

I know what it's like to write a bill to to write regulation.

Those things I have been able to see firsthand.

I've had a firsthand view to be a part of that for our country.

And I think those experiences allow me to step in on day one and be ready to be able to navigate and to fight for Eastern Kentucky, and I'll continue to fight to defend our values, to restore accountability to Washington, and to deliver opportunities for our people at home, make sure they have jobs, careers, and a pathway to success.

>> What does accountability look like?

You've said that a couple of times, and I'm not quite sure we're clear on what you mean by that.

>> Yeah, accountability means that Washington is there for the people, not for anyone else.

This seat is not one person's.

This seat is the people's.

And I'm there to represent the people of Eastern Kentucky.

And accountability means making sure that we're spending our money the right way, that we're not recklessly spending our dollars in Washington, D.C.

and that's what I'll fight for.

Because when we have outsized spending, it's causing inflation, and it's hurting the pocketbooks of the people here at home.

And I will fight for the people to make sure that there is tax reform, to put more money in their pockets, that there is regulatory reform so that we can have and support small businesses.

Cut the red tape to make sure that we're unleashing American energy.

And I want to promote something which is we need to take opportunity zones and make Opportunity Zones 3.0.

We need to be able to make energy, new energy opportunity.

We need to be able to focus energy resources to develop right here in Eastern Kentucky, which.

>> Is more than just coal.

Right?

>> Exactly.

We have so much resources that we, we, we've got the resources we need to deliver it.

Our country is moving in a direction where energy will be a huge dominant factor going forward with data centers, with technology.

Energy is what feeds it.

We've got it.

Let's deliver it.

>> Do you think there needs to be some federal regulation of data centers?

>> Well, I think data centers, first and foremost, needs to be something that is on a local level, AI and technology.

It's already happening with data centers and AI.

We're already seeing it augmenting whether it be work, the manufacturing process, creating new medical breakthroughs.

This is already happening.

It will be part of the 21st century.

It will drive the 21st century, but local with data centers needs.

This needs to be decided on a local level.

But there do need to be safeguards.

And I think safeguards need to be around the ratepayers, because ratepayers, I think, may be the ones that are most highly sensitive to this, because we need to make sure that their electricity rates do not go up.

>> Because you mentioned that some of them are already playing triple digit for their for their rates.

Let's talk a little bit more about affordability and the economy.

Before we let you perhaps give some final thoughts.

According to a recent Gallup poll, 55% of Americans say their financial situation is getting worse.

That's higher than at any point in the last 25 years, higher than the 28 2008 financial crisis and higher than the pandemic.

Covid 19.

What does your plan look like when it comes to improving what Americans, folks in the fifth Congressional District earn and keep?

>> And this comes down to bringing jobs.

We need more jobs here in Eastern Kentucky because the cost of living is it's hard to live.

And I think that's what the gentleman in Pike County was sharing with me.

And on my trip there, which was, you know, he's he's thinking about moving his family because he can't afford to live in Eastern Kentucky.

And so we need jobs.

We need jobs of today.

We need jobs that, you know, whether it be additive manufacturing, focusing on, you know, careers that are that are growing, like aerospace manufacturing, we need to be focusing on regulatory reform that that unleashes American energy so we can get people working in the energy sector again, but we need to also be focusing on the next generation.

Let me tell you a story about a young kid.

>> 10s, please.

>> In Barbourville, in Knox County, I created an organization, the organization that I founded that's created opportunities for youth.

He had an opportunity because of this to work with a dentist in Barbourville.

He told me last week that he is now decided to be a dentist, that he saw the need and he wants to be and live and work in Eastern Kentucky because he knows the needs and the challenges, and he wants to be there to be a leader.

>> Well, thank you so much, Mr.

Kevin Smith, for being here with us this evening.

Next Monday on primary eve, we will preview the big races and look for complete coverage of the primary campaign each weeknight on Kentucky edition at 630 eastern.

I'm Renee Shaw, thank you for being here.

See you tomorrow night.