American Audacity
Show focused on how big and small issues affect the daily lives of Americans through conversations with elected officials, business owners, and exploration.
American Audacity
Tom Sell - Congressional Candidate - District 19 - West Texas Republican Primary
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
Tom Sell is running for Texas' Congressional District 19, which covers Lubbock and Abilene and most of rural West Texas. We do 20 Rapid Fire Questions right off the bat, from best BBQ to the Iran War, and then dive into Data Centers and Agriculture. Early Voting is May 18 through May 22, and Election Day for this Runoff is May 26, 2026.
Tom, welcome to the show. Glad to have you. Great to be with you, Blaze. We're gonna jump right in for the listeners. So we're gonna start off a little different this time. We're gonna do some rapid fire questions. We've got about 20 questions. You have the rules are you have three seconds to answer each, no context allowed, just your gut reaction, no campaign speech either. It can be a one-word, two-word answer kind of deal. Okay. Uh but just real quick, uh, three, three-second answer to each. Ready?
SPEAKER_00All right, yeah, this is gonna be a good discipline for me.
SPEAKER_02Let's go. All right. Number one, what's the best barbecue in West Texas?
SPEAKER_00Oh man. Uh Rahinio's in Holton, Texas.
SPEAKER_02Dead in here in Abilene as well. Good save, good save. What is the mascot of Wiley High School here in Abilene?
SPEAKER_00Oh gosh. Oh, tigers. Bulldogs. Bulldogs. I went there, so I'm barfing.
SPEAKER_02Oh my gosh. Um, let's see. I'm a Task as a Rebel, by the way. Abilene is known as the storybook capital of the world. What is your favorite storybook statue here in downtown Abilene?
SPEAKER_00Man, I love the one just driving in right by the porch uh coffee house where it looks like it has kind of one of the trolls on it, is what it looks like.
SPEAKER_02Oh, okay, yes. What is the best college football team? Textech Red Raiders, baby. Correct. Um What are the three private Christian universities in Abilene, Texas? McMurray, Hardin Simmons, and ACU. Easy peasy. All right.
SPEAKER_00Uh what was your very first paying job? Uh I was I I did property maintenance for Mextex Realty in Amarilla, Texas, picking up trash. How old were you then? 13.
SPEAKER_02Are you an early, late, or always on time kind of person?
SPEAKER_00Uh I tend to run from one thing to the next and I tend to be a little late. That's a confession. I'm trying to be better. Your inbox, is it zero or five thousand unread emails? Five thousand. No, not unread, but but I always think I'm gonna follow them later. Sorry, there's more than thirty seconds, and uh and my filing system is is way behind. When you're eating wings, how hot?
SPEAKER_02Very hot, extremely scorching. Dogs or cats? Dogs. Movies or books? Books. Favorite movie?
SPEAKER_00Ooh, man, that's a great question. Spinal tap. No, uh, well, yeah, it's it's a great comedy. Uh Princess Bride is also one I've loved with the kids. Braveheart. So more of a top three. Okay.
SPEAKER_02Breaking the rules. We're gonna get a little deeper now. Are you more afraid of failure or regret? Uh regret.
unknownOkay.
SPEAKER_02What's one word that differentiates you from your opponent in this race? Trustworthy. What's one thing that Americans do better than Europeans? Everything.
SPEAKER_00We are great capitalists. We we we are Americ our patriotism. How about patriotism? That's one we do better.
SPEAKER_02Debt crisis. We get out of it by increasing taxes, cutting spending, or both? Both.
SPEAKER_00Ukraine war, keep supporting or cut loose. Sorry, can I put on that one? I would say raise, we've got to raise revenue through a healthy economy, not raising taxes. That can somehow have a have a detrimental impact. But we've got to cut spending. We've got to grow the economy, cut spending. Ukraine war. Keep supporting, cut loose. I appreciate President Trump's uh kind of midterm. I mean we we've got to stay hitched in some ways, but we've got to put more of that obligation on the Europeans. Gut reaction, Iran war.
SPEAKER_02Positive. Say one genuine compliment about either your opponent or a Democrat, your choice. On opponent, Abe's a he's a he's a talented speaker, a talented young man. What is something people often get wrong about you on first impression?
SPEAKER_00Uh maybe that I'm unapproachable. I mean, I I I think I have a kind of a you know a presence that can be intimidating. Term limits for Congress? Yes.
SPEAKER_02I signed on to one. I'd love to talk about it though. And we'll end on an easy one. Uh what's the best NFL football team in the world? Dallas Cowboys, baby. Amen. Good job. All right. We'll end there on the rapid fire. All right. Thanks for those. Now we can now we can jump in. All right. So um Tom, tell tell the listeners a little bit about you. I know they've they've heard the story. You've been on the campaign trail for months now, they've heard the story, but uh for those new listeners out there, give them a sense of uh where you come from, uh family, background, and then we'll lead into to the current race.
SPEAKER_00Oh, thanks for that. Heritage is really important. Uh uh, I'm a family man. Raised my family in Lubbock. Uh we have four kids married to my college sweetheart, Kyla, former Kyla Nelson from Spearman, Texas, top of the pain handle. We met the first day of college at Texas Tech, and it took me a while to win her over. But by our fifth, uh, fifth year is when I really started dating her. I was kind of back after an internship in DC, and and uh we've been married 28 years, and she's wonderful. Love my life. Um, but we also have heritage out here in West Texas. You know, she is a pain handle girl. Her parents grew up in Lochney, a little farmtown northeast of Lubbock. Her dad was in Lasbuddy, northwest of Lubbock. Uh my parents were from a farm town called Petersburg, both in both, both my mom's case and my my parents, uh sorry, both in Kyla's case, her parents and my parents were both first in their families to go to college, which I think is pretty cool. My father was a banker, Kyla's dad was a farmer. We just have deep roots in this kind of West Texas heritage, where I think the pioneer spirit is still alive and well. And it's one of the things that I love about our kind of creative, come together community that is West Texas. And I've seen that in Abilene, alive and well, it's certainly alive and well in Lubbock, and in all the small towns around. So I love this kind of entrepreneurial, you know, pull yourself up by your bootstraps, let's get after it. Hard work is the one thing that that is a is a common recipe for success. And we got to do it out here because this is a tough environment. So let's work hard, work together, and go. And I think that's one of the beautiful things about West Texas. We're I'm fifth generation West Texas. My my family, Noah Milton Sale, came out to Lubbock County in in 1905 uh and and broke some land out looking for land, looking to kind of create a a better future for his family. And that's what we're all still trying to do today. That is the American dream, right? And and I I think that that part of it has just shaped me. I mean, my grandparents all went through the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl days in farming communities. So I got to sit at their feet as a young man and kind of hear their their wisdom and philosophy on on how things had come together. Um and the the challenges, the tragedies and the challenges that that that shaped their worldview at the time. I'd say I have a strong, you know, Christian uh heritage, although Kylie and I, when we were in DC, you know, whereas in in growing up in West Texas, here in the Bible Belt, um, you know, we both had great uh Christian parents that shaped us. But I think for Kylie and I, actually living in Washington, DC, after we graduated from college, uh, where there's no particular advantage uh to being a person of of faith, there's there's no advantage to going to church. You you had to go because out of an act of discipline and faith. And we it was really a uh an incredible time for us to try and grow together as a young married couple and grow in our faith uh too. And it's been fun to to to bring that back and serve in the church here in West Texas, in Lubbock, where we where we are. So family, faith, these are the important things that that have have shaped me. Obviously, I'm still in business, some with my own father. Uh we raise cattle and do some farming together, which is a ton of fun, in addition to my uh business that we've built over the last 20 um, well, we started in 2004, so so 22 years there in Lubberg, Texas with Combat Sell and Associate. So um I I've I've loved just being a part of that community, kind of building upon the heritage that I love out here in West Texas, being involved in big picture issues, where I think you know the Lord kind of gifted me with talents for for working and thinking through issues and matters of policy. So it's just been a it's been a it's been a beautiful uh life to date and and and now and that's part of why I believe I'm probably going well beyond what your question you asked was, but when Jody uh Arrington, who's a good friend, made his decision to leave office and and uh and retire from the Congress, obviously at the end of this year, not run again for office. Uh Kyle and I just felt a burden uh uh that that you know perhaps the Lord had had called us to uh the so we felt this kind of internal call to throw our hat in the ring to try and serve the people of the 19th district in this very messy body, particularly right now, that is U.S. Congress. And uh we've felt affirmed in that through this campaign, obviously. So we've we felt the internal call and we'll we'll we'll see, Lord willing, uh uh the votes go our way and we can step up to try and do a good, honest, faithful uh work in Washington, D.C. for our nation, also for the people of the 19th District, where my heart is. You said you lived in um DC early on. What were you doing there? Yeah, so uh when I was graduating from Texas Tech, uh my father was a banker and he was he had a great reputation in West Texas, and I kind of wanted to break out of his shadow a little bit, and Texas Tech offered this internship. Go to Washington, D.C. They would give it to one student uh uh per semester at that time. So you're saying you're special. Uh oh, I applied for that, and by by God's grace, I don't I don't certainly uh I don't know, it's not because of my merit, but I've been the recipient of Grace Upon Grace, and so I'm grateful for that. One of those was to win that internship to go to Washington, D.C. And this was 1995, please. So you'll remember this, I think. You're younger than me, but this is when Newt Gingrich kind of led the contract with America, and the Republicans won back control of the U.S. House for the first time in 42 years. They'd been in the wilderness just with Democratic control for all those all those years. So Republicans won it back in 1994. COMBES kind of came in, and I went up there as an intern with COMBES, then he hired me back out after I graduated, and uh I kind of worked up to where I was his right-hand man when he became the chairman of the Agriculture Committee in Washington, D.C. And that's a prominent position, an important position for the 19th District of Texas. It was a tough time in the Ag Committee, and I kind of got to be his his voice, his right hand, uh, as he was trying to really fundamentally remake agricultural policy in a very Republican way in that O2 farm bill and also in a big crop insurance rewrite of 2000. So I I got to be kind of the chief staff on these on these efforts to get uh laws made. And these these these couple of bills that we worked through the committee during that time are still largely the law of the land. They've been amended and updated a little bit since then, but they they were a fundamental change and they have withstood the test of time. So, you know, it it was just an incredible run. I was up there seven and a half years right after college and just had an incredible experience. But we had had our first two kids out there, so I think I mentioned Kyle and I have four kiddos. Uh, we're empty nessers as of this year. Uh that was part of our decision in jumping in uh because we we just feel like we're at the right agent stage. But at that time we had we had our first two kids in DC. We would always take up a little bag of West Texas soil so that we could say that our kids were born on Texas soil, but that's that's a bit of a uh stretch. But we wanted to raise our family here, so came back to law school at Texas Tech University and loved the study of law for those three years. Although we started our business during my second year, my 2L year, uh, which was getting pretty stretched, pretty thin, but it was it was fun. And so I did complete law school, sat for the bar, uh I'm certified and all that stuff, but I've never practiced an hour of true law like yourself. So I'm I'm um uh but I've I've gotten to help out a lot of folks in navigating uh big policy issues, and and so we've loved that work, which is kind of a different area of the practice of law, but it's it's what I I think I'm really uh well suited for.
SPEAKER_02Now, in Congress, uh committee is really where you you know you you focus, I think a lot of times. Uh so for you, if if you're in Congress, what's what's your dream committee? What's your you know, first year in, first term in, what's that committee that you want to be on? Is it ag or or something else?
SPEAKER_00It is. I and I I uh I would I only uh my voice kind of trailed off here only because I I love all the topics. I mean I love I'm I'm kind of mathematically minded, so I love tax and budgeting policy. Um but given my experience in the ag world, and I think uh you know it would it would be hard to, you know, I think if you just looked in our nation of of the nation's kind of agricultural policy experts, I I would I would certainly be uh in even in what I've done to date, I would I would be in that that class of people. And I love bringing that expertise to the table. I think what really gives you good power in Washington DC, and there are different ways to try and exert power, but what gives you good power is depth in a subject area. And I have great depth there. Uh I know the personalities, I know kind of the constituencies, and and I think we know how to get things uh done. And I think even from a seat on the Ag Committee, where you're dealing with a very important Republican coalition, especially, uh, which is kind of that rural coalition, uh, you get to have uh if if you can kind of keep people together and get build these relationships, you can have an outsized impact on a lot of policies that go through other committees as well. So I would want to use that ag committee as a as a place of of real power and and depth and and authority. I would also love to serve. Uh I think my my top two going in as a freshman would be ag and judiciary. Um kind of bring back, get back to the law school days and think about uh uh the court systems and and uh which is another obviously important, hugely important constitutional uh branch of government and uh and all the issues that come before that. There's a lot of pro-life issues there that are important to me and others. So ag and judiciary is where I'd really want to start out.
SPEAKER_02We've got a lot of uh ranchers and farmers listening. Uh what would be one or two things that you in your experience of the last 22 years dealing with it that you would want to attempt to change or correct? And we don't have to go down the rabbit holes too deep, but just kind of if if there's a rancher or farmer out there listening and hears your answer going, okay, that's what Tom stands for. That's what that's something that's needed, and he's working to fix it. What would be that one or two things that off the top of your head?
SPEAKER_00Okay, yeah. Couple couple things that I that I have talked about with far as ranchers. I'd love to be clear about this. And this gets all weedy. This gets all down in the wheat, so let me just apologize in advance. But uh we we have in 1996 we what we call decoupled uh some of the farm program payments, and then in 02 we made it counter-cyclical so that when we have a down market because of maybe the actions of China or for whatever reason, these commodity markets are cyclical, and in a down market we try and step in and provide some help for the farmers. But it's decoupled, doesn't matter what you plant, doesn't matter what you do. I think we've maybe become too dependent on those decoupled. And I would like to see them uh tied to uh more of your production again. And I think in the as as the way the the world agricultural markets have developed, uh there's not the threat with that that there was you know 20, 30 years ago. So I'd like to kind of reattach so that we reward those who are actually um putting their chips on the table, right? They are they are risking their wealth to try and produce a crop for the world every year. And that's who I really want to stand by in terms of our farmers. So that's one thing. And then the second, you know, we've had some big acts uh in the history of the United States to try and help farmers gain more leverage in the marketplace. One of those was like the Kapra Volstead Act. You probably know this. Uh and this is what allowed for farmers to form co-ops, and this was done in the late 1800s. I think we need a Kapra Volstead 2.0. I want to help encourage and empower farmers to invest up the chain, uh up the value chain, uh, help them market some of their products better uh throughout the system. Not just in the old ways of uh of co-ops, but in what really consumers are wanting right now. Consumers are loving kind of seeing the story from farm to fork or for from you know farm to clothing. And uh I think if we can really empower farmers to seize more of that value chain, uh that's gonna help promote competition in these marketplaces where sometimes, you know, when we talk about consolidation in agriculture, it's not really the farms. I mean, farms are getting bigger, but we have better machinery where c one man can cover more ground. And uh it's a special lifestyle for those. But but we do have cons some consolidation in the markets beyond the farmer, right? Whether it's in in in beef processing or in in in any of these kind of value-added markets. So I think you get kind of two benefits. One, you give the farmers more resilience, and two, you bring competition into the marketplace. Um, and I think that's a great thing.
SPEAKER_02Is there anything that the Congress or the feds can do as far as the I think the average age of a farmer and it varies state by state, but I think the national average is is way above 60. Yeah. Um and as that generation tries to retire or passes on, there's going to be a bit of a bit of a deficit there.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_02What in your mind is is possible for Congress to do, if anything, on that.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I want to say first, Blaze, sometimes these these numbers are misused. So uh, you know, the average farmer in in Texas, it you know, basically you're defined as a farmer by the USDA if you have risk in a crop. And in Texas, for example, we're all share rent, almost all. Uh in the Midwest, you go to it and it's all cash rent. And so maybe the landowner doesn't have uh a vested or or an or a risk in what's produced on that crop. Uh but here in Texas, we're largely 2575 or or or a third, two-thirds kind of share rent, is what we call it. So a lot of landowners are uh defined as as farmers, and a lot of those are olders. In many cases, it's it's older widows, you know, as women tend to live longer than than than men. So sometimes these numbers do get distorted for that reason. Um I'll tell you, in going around the district, it is pretty encouraging to see a lot of young, hungry, creative, thoughtful uh farmers that are that are doing some really cool things. And and uh so I I never want to talk about this in a way that, oh gosh, we're we're at risk of losing all of our farmers. I I think we are backfilling in a good way. We need to make uh though, through some of these things I talked about, uh through you know building into the resiliency of farmers, we need young people to be able to look at a farming enterprise and say, I want to boldly go into that. It's not gonna be easy. It never has been easy work. Uh and it won't be easy in this fallen world, right? It's also it's biblical, it's this genesis. Maybe we are our lot in life is toil and struggle. Uh and farmers see that on a daily basis, right? From the markets, from the weather that they have to deal with. Uh so it's not gonna be easy, but but we need to have our ag economy in a place where young men and women can look at this and say, that's a lifestyle that's attractive to me. I love the thought of tending, cultivating, stewarding the land for future generations. I want to go there and embed and put my life toward that noble and and and honest and good work. Um, so um, I can't remember what your question was now, but but I hope that's helpful. I mean, the the numbers, I I think we are backfilling, but we gotta we gotta make that attractive so that young people continue to come in. And look, they can cover more ground today than they could, you know. And for generations, we've had farm families that have wanted their kids to go into you know the Harden Simmons uh and the McMurrays and the and the ACU's and the Texas Techs to get educated, to have what may be perceived as an easier uh lifestyle because because farming is so difficult at times. Um so and and and that's kind of created this natural movement away from the farms. But the fact is the ground is getting covered. We are still covering the same amount of ground in the United States, and we're doing it with greater productivity than we ever have. And uh and we've got to keep that trend going for to feed our our hungry world.
SPEAKER_02With your 22 years experience in AG, um what are your thoughts or concerns on uh foreign countries or foreign citizens owning uh farmland? Uh not just China, but China definitely included in that, but but really let's say any foreign country. What what are your thoughts for those out there? Because it's always a hot topic.
SPEAKER_00It is a hot topic. I don't like it, and I think it creates an emotional response in anyone. I think in Texas, we've we've obviously passed legislation. Uh and and of course, the feds don't control our land in Texas. Thank goodness, right? We have very little federal land except for military bases and stuff like that here in Texas. We are mainly state uh uh grant lands, and and Texas did pass a law to to prohibit that in uh uh in our state, and I'm I fully support that. Um and I think we also have to be concerned about foreign investment in the critical supply chains around agriculture or around energy or around electricity. You know, these these things are important, and I this is one thing that's really I I get excited about with and I really appreciate President Trump and his America First agenda. Part of that is just making sure that we we keep domestic control over our critical supply chains. He would put agriculture, he put energy production into that. And I I strongly agree with President Trump on that on that priority.
SPEAKER_02Shifting a little bit off of ag, what's one issue that you didn't know was so important to West Texans that you've kind of discovered on the campaign trail? And it could be a new Issue it could just be something that you just weren't weren't aware that it was such a big uh big issue, but has there been kind of a recurring uh surprise or novelty issue that you go, oh man, that's that is a big issue. That is something I need to think on and address. That's a really good question. Basically, what have you learned on the campaign?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I've learned so much, and we have we have been very intentional about getting around to as many communities as we possibly could, certainly all 33 counties. We haven't made every town uh uh, but but we have we've been intentional about this and we love getting around. And it is, man, Blaze, you know, it's taken me back a lot to those words from my childhood when George Herbert Walker Walker Bush, George W. Bush's father, when he was president, he would talk about the thousand points of light. You remember that? Mm-hmm. Yes. And and it was all kind of part of his deal of look, we need to take look, we need to not place our hopes in a federal government in Washington, D.C. Almost kind of channeling John F. Coonity's old quote of kind of ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country. George H. W. Bush's kind of theme on that was let's take the folks off Washington, D.C. and look at these thousand points of light across our land, the businesses, the charities that are investing in their local communities to make that local community a better place. That's who we need to empower. And what the fun thing about this campaign is going around and seeing the good things that are going in, uh going on in communities and learning about the struggles and the hurdles. So I will I'll say I've learned more about the challenges of healthcare policy on this campaign. So I've tried to visit a lot of the rural hospitals. I've tried to spend some time uh in Lubbock at Covenant and UMC uh and here in in Abilene at Hendrick. And I really, you know, gosh, healthcare providers, uh we we take them for granted. It's and it's such a difficult business model, right? You you you don't care about them until you really need them. Yeah. Uh and then you really want them to be excellent and good and have all the best facilities and all those kinds of things. There are some really complex challenges, uh healthcare challenges. And it has been just, you know, you go to any of the communities across, and inevitably in the conversation, it will be like, man, we see challenges in this. Whether whether I'm just a uh a patient consumer, I have a child or a or a or or family that has gotten into a tough situation, and I've realized just how complex and challenging and expensive uh these these uh procedures are and how much how reliant we are as a community uh on these on these hospitals. And the challenges are different in Toka, Texas, than they are in Abilene or in Lubbock. And and we have so many layers of kind of reimbursement systems coming out of out of the federal government, and we have the role of insurance companies. It is complex, it is challenging, and I've I enjoy is not the right word, but as a policy nerd, I love kind of trying to dig into the into the depths of this and really look forward to trying to work in Washington, D.C. to find some creative solutions to get us to a better place, a better place for the consumer, for people who need that that critical healthcare infrastructure, for the infrastructure, i.e. the hospitals, uh, and and all the equipment that it takes, and for the providers. You know, we need to, we need to, this this doctor-patient relationship is critical, and we've got to empower the doctors, particularly relative to the insurance companies.
SPEAKER_02I may be biased because I'm a red raider, but uh I think Texas Tech Health has really done a good job on the rural health uh scene. Um uh Marathon, Texas, out in the kind of middle of nowhere. Yeah. And Texas Tech has got a got a health uh clinic there. Or they did about a year, year and a half ago. And so they've really done a good job uh uh with that. And uh, yeah, I would say rural health, uh whether it's hospitals or or just clinics out there, they really do struggle. So that's that's great to great to hear that that's uh on your on your list.
SPEAKER_00I had a I had a meeting with Lori Rice Spearman of Texas Tech uh medical yesterday, and we were talking about marathon and some of the other things they're doing. There's a partnership with A ⁇ M where they're doing these kind of mobile container uh uh uh health units that can go out to remote places. It's it's remarkable. And then their telehealth is really uh they they they're really leading the way on some of that. So it is. It's been a it's been an area where I've I've gotten to dive in.
SPEAKER_02Telehealth is is hit or miss in my just applying my experience. Um a lot of my um law firm clients are over the age of 60, and man, they do not care for Zoom hearings. And so telehealth, I don't know, it it may take a while for them to jump on, but that's a good asset.
SPEAKER_00But if you're if you're in a critical situation and you go to a rural uh uh hospital where they don't have you know the the the staff that other would otherwise and the fact that you can get plugged in uh in real time to uh uh you know someone with a great level of expertise, particular expertise that's gonna be relevant to your particular problem in a moment, rather than rather than having to be air flighted or even take that time. Time is critical in these things. So it had it certainly has a role, and we've got to build upon it. We've got to do it in wise ways.
SPEAKER_02I want to be respectful of your time. So you're in a uh runoff in the Republican primary, and so um voters are voting for a Republican in in this primary, you're both Republican. Um, but how would you what's the biggest difference between you and your opponent since you're both Republicans? Uh basically, why should voters vote for you uh uh as opposed to your opponent?
SPEAKER_00Thanks for that question. Uh you know, the the word I used earlier was was just trustworthy as a distinguishing and and I think mine has been kind of a a a lived conservatism, um not not just talked about. Um and so I I I think that's that's it's it's kind of an issue of credibility. And and I appreciate uh my opponent his his his fire, his fervor. Uh uh he's a young man who's done uh been kind of a political activist and and uh has done a lot of work uh for the party. And I I greatly appreciate that. But in terms of kind of credibility on issues and the ability to kind of bring some focus, I think it's also just an advantage to to having having lived a life where you know having been married, having had kids, having owned property, paid property taxes. These are the kind of things that that grow you uh in wisdom and just in in uh in depth on issues. And and so I I think it's that that kind of uh lived conservatism, kind of credibility uh and consistency and uh and and depth of issues that that sets me apart. But I have I have a lot of respect for the opponent.
SPEAKER_02Um the hot topic across really the nation, but especially in West Texas data centers. Um is going through it right now uh in front of their city council. Um it's a big topic. Uh a lot of the issues are either local or state. You know, when you talk about uh water, water is regulated by the state of Texas. Uh typically, now there are some issues that go to federal, but in general, water's regulated by the state of Texas, so that wouldn't be necessarily under your purview uh in Congress. Uh a lot of the the deals that are made between the cities and the data centers, those are local deals. It's not really a federal issue. Um, but it is, you know, national security is typically cited as the reason and it and it's kind of a it's almost used as a bulldozer of well, any of your concerns, we bulldoze them over because of national security, right? Yes and no. And so there's still valid, I think, concerns by residents in West Texas about the the rise of data centers just over the last two years. Um so for you in Congress, what do you what do you see as the role of Congress in um protecting, let's say, West Texans from um being taken advantage of by data centers? Uh you may say, well, it's mainly cities, it's mainly state. Is there a role for Congress? And if so, what is that lever?
SPEAKER_00It's uh I love the way you framed that question, Blaze. Uh, because you you brought some important realities to the table. I'm gonna answer your question this way. Yes, absolutely, there is a role. Uh one of those I think was well articulated in an executive order that President Trump did about a month ago now, where he said, look, uh for and it was a message to the AI developers, uh, you have got to bring your own energy to the table. You cannot, nor you, nor should you. Uh, and it was kind of structured as an executive order that was kind of going to best practice. You should not expect local ratepayers to subsidize you by paying higher rates for the energy that you're using. For the same, you know, it's obviously off the grid, but uh bring your own energy to the table and protect the rate payers. That was one thing. And then and then the other thing it it went to was kind of the long-term resources. You have to come in with an idea of protecting long-term resources for us in this area. That is certainly our water resources where we're limited uh to start. And you have to be good neighbors, you know. That's it's it's trying to uh set that standard. I think so. I I would love to, I think we we could actually, as you said, you know, like the the federal government does not regulate our water. Thank goodness. We don't want the federals uh getting their their hooks into our private property rights in the state of Texas. But we can uh you know, particularly where there's a where is there is this hook to national security, uh where things are being done in the net in the name of national security, and I appreciate you're also kind of alluding to the fact that some you know some are trying to justify actions and use that as a bulldozer to just kind of bull through. Well, we got to have a strong defense. And one of the things that a that a federal legislator can do is just make sure that everyone's singing off sing songs, sing I'm doing that, tongue-tied here, singing off the same song page, right? I mean, where you get your municipal and your county and your state, uh, you know, Charles Perry has done some great work on these AI data centers to make sure that we are standing firm for long-term protection of resources, for fair treatment of local neighbors, being a good neighbor, but also making sure that that new energy is brought to the table. Uh we build that out that infrastructure, and that can be a good thing for our region for the future. It's not only a national security issue, there's a capacity building for West Texas. So I think if we insist in front up front on you know making the best deal possible, not just being bulldozed in the name of national security, but standing firm for our local ratepayers and our local citizens, that's gonna that's gonna create a uh a recipe for for better development out here. There is a national security component to this. Uh that is real. Um nations are racing to be at the lead in terms of the use of AI. There's also gonna be a role for regulating this. I mean, it can be used for good. We're all seeing some of that. We're all having some fun using uh artificial intelligence in in various ways. It can certainly be used for evil as well. And we need to be wise in the way we do this. We have to regulate it in the right way uh for good. Uh it's just like we prune our trees, right? Uh to try and bring out the good growth and and eliminate some of the some of the sucker growth. And um, and it's the same principle here.
SPEAKER_02Two quick questions on this. One, what what would be the first issue that you would love to tackle or dive in uh going into Congress? Now, whether you succeed or not, you know, Congress is, you know, you're one of many right up there. But what's you're like, man, this is what I'd want to day one, this is what I want to jump into.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Yeah. It's a great question. I mean, I and I I'm gonna be specific on it, but I'm gonna seriously there there's so many things where we have to be we we need a constructive ambassador for West Texas in in Washington, D.C. My priorities are certainly kind of reigning in the size of federal government. We want to balance the budget, continue what Jodie Errington has done there with in this attempt to reverse scurce, get to a balanced budget, cut red tape, have a business-friendly environment, uh uh have have a secure rule of law and enforcement of law, border security, all those kinds of things are important to continue to pitch in. We're on a good trend on those on those fronts. We need to continue that work. Certainly restoring values is another part. So reading the federal government, uh restoring values, uh, so kind of bringing this Christian worldview to the table, not being ashamed of our past. We are the greatest nation in the history of mankind. I'm proud to say that. And and we've done that based on Judeo-Christian pet principles. Um, and I think those are a blessing uh to our nation and to the world. And then fighting for the areas of of that are so important to this region's economy. Where we're outnumbered, right? We don't have a lot of big areas like the 19th District of Texas. In a Congress of 435, only 70 kind of rural districts. Um, and the rest are urban and suburban that often take what we do out here for granted, right? They they love the energy that we produce, they love the food and fiber that we produce, but they don't always take time to kind of understand where that comes from. So we need a fighter who will make sure that we're getting our fair share. National security is important, standing hard by diets. But I think one of the first things that we gotta do, that we gotta address right now, is our our agricultural community. Wanting to serve on the ag committee, the ag economy being in a bit of dire straits, given my particular expertise, I think it's a good area where I can go in early, build some credibility, and accomplish some good things for this region's agricultural-based economy.
SPEAKER_02So, Republican primary, I want to give you kind of the chance to show a little contrast between you and your opponent. Um, for those voters out there that you know don't know you, don't know your opponent, and they go, Well, how am I going to make a decision? Right? And you get maybe they get the mailers, um, they see the TV ads. But uh, and you mentioned earlier, you know, credibility uh on a kind of on a personal level, credibility.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_02Um, but on an on an issue, if you were um if you were to just to say uh pick one issue that you would approach differently or that you think that you and your opponent differ on, whether it's immigration, whether it's national security, whether it's uh ag specifically, hey, I think he believes this and I believe this. Can you highlight a uh a difference on a on a big issue that you think you and your opponent disagree that that a listener out there goes, oh, all right, Tom makes sense. That's I I agree with him on that. Anything coming to mind?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, well, um, you know, it is a Republican primary and and generally uh Abe is is is good at kind of talking the Republican talking points. He has been a little bit uh all over the board on the immigration issues uh uh over his career, you know, short career, but uh just a few years ago he was kind of in a in a pro-amnesty camp. Uh although he says all the right things uh now. So I I think but I think that kind of goes to the deeper issue of just kind of consistency and depth on on the issues, right? Um it it's it's pretty easy to memorize the talking points and just kind of be a be a hard charger on those. I think I think this district deserves someone who uh and needs someone who is who can bring you know greater depth and relationships and credibility to the table uh to really be a consistent uh incredible fighter on these issues in DC. I hope that's helpful.
SPEAKER_02Last question, I want to respect your time. So this one, you know, we kind of hear about it social media and just regular conversation as well, but um people in the abstract hate division and they want to see America united. Um but when you get on, let's say 10 or 15 issues, whatever you're passionate about, right? It's a it's a full-on war. And and I'm the same way, you're guilty of it. Every everyone in Abling's guilty of it. You know, you want a united America, but when you get down in on the issue, you're going, hey, that person's wrong and I'm right, and I'm gonna fight you, whether it's on social media or otherwise, you know, you're gonna take a hard stand. And I think that that bleeds into the mentality and the outlook, the cooperation, or is America headed down the right way or the wrong way, that kind of that kind of mentality. And and for me, uh you know, you can you can argue Congress sets the tone or the voters set the tone and it allows Congress to to say or do, you know, based on based on the voters. So you can look at it either way. But for you, um in Congress, how do you set the tone on what's permissible, both by fighting for that specific issue that you're passionate about that's right, um, but also at the same time uniting America so we're not going, yeah, we're on a bad, we're on a bad divisive road. Yeah. How do you approach that?
SPEAKER_00That's such a good question, Blaze. I'm loving this. First, let me just say we I I hope and I pray that this summer is a great time of unity building as our nation as we celebrate our 250th anniversary, birthday, as a great experiment in uh a Republican form of democracy, right? This constitutional democratic republic that we are all so very blessed to live in. I mean, we we truly live in the greatest nation in the history of the world that honors people's freedoms like no other and has has been a beacon to the world. And and I believe that our best days are still ahead. To your question, um, I I think the way that I approach it is by always just just trying to focus. My job in Washington, D.C. is not to just to to try and build my own glory, uh, because I see too many people in Washington, D.C. just trying to throw people under the bus. And they do it as if to kind of create a viral moment for themselves. And that doesn't get us anywhere. What we need, what and my job, like Blaze, if you and I are on an opposite side of an issue, my job in Congress is to try and win you over, to lay out my case, just like you do in your legal practice, right? You're laying out a case on behalf of your client to try and get to a better place uh that everyone can live with. And and I think that's that's kind of lost art in Congress, or you certainly don't see that talked about on the evening news. The evening news loves to talk about the divisions. They do not love to talk about the the the good work that's going on because that can be kind of boring at times, right? But they love to talk about the divisions. So I think all the listeners need to know there's there's probably more good going on up there than than than you would see. But I think my approach is always going to be to kind of bring that, bring that honesty and credibility and good cheer and winsomeness. You know, this idea of actually trying to win people over to your side by laying out a rational, thoughtful, well thought through case where you know all sides of an issue, but you're saying for these reasons, we believe it's the best the best landing zone for all of us. And and that it's that art that we need more of in Washington, D.C. In the old days that was called statesmanship. And that's not a bad word. And we need more statesmanship in Washington, D.C. And we all, whether in DC, as elected politicians or as citizens in in the country, we all need to spend more time counting our blessings rather than counting our grievances. Um it's what I hated about the Biden administration, honestly, is is it was almost like you, how have you been screwed? And how has the world, how's the deck been stacked against you? And would you ever say that to your kids? I mean that that that doesn't create any kind of positive thoughts in our culture. Yeah, right? It's much, it's so much better to say, you. We we live in a fallen world, uh, and the deck is often gonna be stacked against you. But through grit, through determination, by holding fast to values, the the known recipes that work over time, treating people with respect, doing the right thing, uh, you can get ahead in this world. That is that is the beauty of America. And by the same way, in in politics, you know, trying to actually win people over and talk through and be honest in exchanges and not just incendiary, not just we need you know, less heat, more light. And uh, and let's let's move forward that way. That's the recipe I'm gonna try and follow. It's what served me well in my career, actually, even even in in doing doing the work I have, the the advocacy work that I've done in DC, I think it's served us well, and we hope to build from there.
SPEAKER_02I like that line, less heat, more light. I think that's a good one. I'll end on on this note. You you've kind of um you know talked to the ranchers and the farmers of West Texas. Um a lot of the listeners live here in the city limits. They don't own a farm, they don't own a ranch, they're renters, they're you know working in retail, they're they're running a business. Um I'd like to end on the note of of uh speak to them and tell them uh why they should vote. One, why they should vote, why this vote uh matters, but also um what what you will do uh for Abilene and and kind of why they should vote for you. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00And we'll end on that note. Yeah, thanks for that. Well, I I do love uh the agricultural policies and and getting ag policies right is good for every single American. But I think I think for for for people in Abilene and in Lubbock uh that are detached from uh the farm, uh the the reason is that you know we've also had a a lot of great history just in in living life, in serving the community, uh in in making payroll, uh in running a business, um, in facing the day-to-day challenges of of home ownership and kids and four kids at the same time, trying to run them here and there and put food on the table and and all that goes on. That kind of lived life, that lived reality, uh, and the ability to identify on issues, you know, having having gone to the healthcare uh clinics and hospitals as a as a as a consumer and and and understanding how these things work together, not perfectly, but also knowing who to who to rely upon. I mean, it's been the funnest thing in this in this campaign is getting around and meeting so many people. And be able to build friendships and trust so that I'm not going to be one who goes to Washington, DC, thinking he knows everything and has all the answers. I'm going to be one who brings the resources together from this beautiful 19th District of Texas. The people that we know and trust in our neighborhoods, in our workplaces, uh in our churches, to come together uh to say, man, this is how this policy is affecting us. And maybe if we think about those things carefully and thoughtfully, this is a way that it could be improved for the future. So just being a true and honest voice for you, you know, for the people, uh, no matter where you are. I want to get to know you. I want to hear your story and uh and and try and move the ball forward in terms of policy that matters to you and your family.
SPEAKER_02Well, the election, uh, we're in the early voting right now, and then through the end of this week, and then the election day is May 26th.
SPEAKER_00That's right. So we have the 20th today, 21st, 22nd, uh, for early voting, and then we'll have our great Memorial Day weekend. God bless the United States of America. Thanks to for those who have sacrificed uh for our nation. Again, that's part of counting our blessings rather than counting our griefs as those who've who've served and have sacrificed for our nation that we'll celebrate on Memorial Day. And then on Tuesday, the 26th, that is the election day. And and uh, Lord willing, it goes our way. Uh either way, I've been honored to get to run this run this race for the people.
SPEAKER_02Well, I'm so happy that you came by and and chatted and um hopefully you've given some insights to Abilene and West Texas of of one why this election matters, but also um you know the issues that are present and uh where you stand on them and your insights and your experience. So I appreciate you coming by and talking, and good luck on uh Tuesday. Thanks for the opportunity. Really appreciate it. Thank you.