← The Riley Gaines Show
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- [00:01]
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- [00:35]
Riley Gaines
Well, Congressman, thank you for joining the Riley Gaines show. Look, you are in your first congressional term. Is it everything that you dreamed of and more?
- [00:46]
Brandon
Well, thanks for having me on. You know, it's been a heck of a ride over the past year and a half. I mean, I always get frustrated that Congress doesn't move fast enough. But we've been more productive this Congress than I think in the past. But whenever you look at everything the president's doing on multiple fronts, I mean, immigration, social issues, that is the standard for us and we're trying to keep up with them. But you know, it's a really exciting time to be here because Republicans are in power, we're taking the country back. We've got a lot of good work that we've done. We've got a lot more to do.
- [01:20]
Riley Gaines
Yeah. You know, you mentioned the timeliness of which things get done. You see people online who are very quick to get frustrated, angry with conservative members in the House or the Senate. But talk about that majority, that very slim majority that you guys have because it makes things increasingly difficult to get done again in a timely manner.
- [01:42]
Brandon
Yeah, and that's the thing, you know, we've got about a two seat majority right now on the Republican side. And as you know, every single bill that we do is on party lines. Any bill that's good that is going to excite the base, that's going to get us excited. It's going to be done on party lines. Democrats are never going to help us out. Every Democrat that you think is moderate is going to be with the Democrat team whenever they need the votes. So whenever you have a two seat majority, that means that almost anybody in the Republican conference can kill core legislation that we need to get done if they just decide they don't want to be with the team. And at the end of the day, politics is a team sport. Like, you know, it's shirts and skins, it's the reds versus the blues. So it is important for us to stick together. But I mean, think of the Republican conference. I mean, we've gotand the Republican Party. We're an ideologically diverse party. You've got the Libertarians and the Neoconservatives and the Paleo conservatives and the sort of Reaganite fusionists, you've got all kinds of different ideological strands. So to get everybody on the same page with virtually zero room for error is difficult. With that said, I mean, we've already gotten, you know, you know, massive tax cuts through massive funding for border security and deportations, repealed half of the Green New Deal, the biggest welfare reform in American history. I mean, we've done all of that this Congress. So, you know, there's a lot of work to do. Again, I'm frustrated we can't go faster, but this has been a wildly productive Congress already. And I think, you know, the goal is to expand that majority in the midterms so that we can continue doing more work.
- [03:20]
Riley Gaines
Yeah, it's a good point. I think historically and even currently, of course, conservatives tend to be more calculated and analytical and principled. And so you do have people who aren't willing to vote on party lines simply for the sake of doing so. Whereas comparing that to the Democratic Party, that doesn't really seem to be the case. I really thought after the 2024 election, when you have President Trump back in the Oval Office, of course, maintaining control in the House and Senate, whatever it, I really thought we would start to see Democrats, like, recant from their voting records or from their previous positions or like, slowly start to distance themselves, but that's really not at all what they've done.
- [04:03]
Brandon
Right.
- [04:04]
Riley Gaines
You mentioned there's really no such thing as a moderate Democrat, at least in terms of elected representation. Do you feel like they're leaning in to the extremism?
- [04:13]
Brandon
I think so. And, you know, it's, you know, we like to say woke is dead. And I think that that feels good. But the reality is the Democrats are still latched on to woke. I mean, we'll have a vote on the House floor. Should men be in Women's Sports 8020 issue. Most Americans think that's insane and insulting and dangerous, and yet you'll have every Democrat vote vote against it to ban men from women's sports. I mean, they are so ideologically latched onto wokeness that they can't let go. It really is kind of the core of their ideology, which is to eliminate distinctions between men and women, to turn our society upside down. So I don't think that they've walked away from it at all. I think they're probably less vocal about it now. You know, we have a lot of congressional hearings where I'll ask witnesses things about saidthings about things they've said in the past and try to get them, you know, for instance, you know, pronouns. You know, the left pushed bizarre pronouns, Fay, ex, I mean, stuff that I had never even heard of. And I feel like I'm pretty up on left wing vernacular. And you can tell the left wants to back away from it. They don't want to be straightforward about it. In other words, they don't want to say, yes, I think everybody should use these crazy pronouns, but they'll never disown it or disavow it in any way because that is their core philosophy.
- [05:38]
Riley Gaines
You know, at your hearings and the way you're able to interrogate or ask the witnesses these questions have been. And I think a large part of that is because you just use really plain language, at least from the viral clips that I've seen online. It's not a lot of the legalistic terms. It's just what's your favorite method of abortion? And you're asking someone who has clearly advocated for abortions or for what they call pro choice implementations or policies. And when they're asked that on the spot, it's exactly as you said, they don't want to say it out loud. I want to hear about the preparation that that goes into those hearings because again, you kind of are walking a fine line there where you want to make yourself seem as distinguished as you are, but also using language that everyday common sense Americans understand and putting these witnesses on the hotspot.
- [06:31]
Brandon
Yeah. And, you know, I think that so many political issues are actually pretty simple and it's easy to get in the weeds and to get buried in details about, you know, different genders and, you know, different types of abortion and all kinds of stuff. They're actually really simple issues like should you be able to kill a baby in the womb, yes or no. And if you should, if you're going to advocate for that, why don't you just clearly tell us about it? There's a whole bunch of different methods of abortion that are commonly used. And if you're going to say that you're a reproductive rights advocate, which is a really euphemistic and kind of condescending way to talk to people. Why don't you just explain to me the methods that you think are most preferable? So that's what I asked. I think that's a very straightforward question. If you're going to spend 20 years of your life advocating for abortion, why don't you tell me about it? Why don't you explain which method you like? And whenever you read out the details. I think that most people hearing can hear how just grotesque and barbaric these procedures are, and they're indefensible. You know, I think that, you know, the transgender movement is the same way, you know, we can get into, well, there's a difference between sex and gender. And, you know, people, some people have a third or fourth gender. All this nonsense. It really comes down to, should boys be in girls sports? Yes or no? Most people say no, because that's crazy. Should boysshould men be able to use my daughter's bathroom? Absolutely not. And if you think they should, you're nuts and you're insane or you're just an evil, perverted person. And I think, again, that's something most people agree with. So it comes down to just being. Getting to the core of whatever the political issue is. And I think that's. I think that we always win. Whenever you can do that, girl.
- [08:18]
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- [08:48]
Riley Gaines
Yeah, it's true. I think especially over the past five or so years, certainly since President Trump has been back in the Oval Office for his second term, there's almost like a level of COVID at least again, for your everyday American who feels bold enough, again, to say it outright. I think they instilled a lot of fear in people. For a really long time, you were fearful of being called any of the phobia or isms. You insert the derogatory term because again, they will call you anything for saying the very real and true fact that men can't become women. It's, you're a bigot, you're a Nazi, you're Hitler, you're a far right extremist. Again, you insert it. So I think there's a level of COVID now that President Trump provides for your normal person who is finally willing to say the truth. What are we saying?
- [09:38]
Brandon
I would say you provided a lot of that cover, Riley. I think that, you know, you were at the forefront of the transgender, you know, boys and girls, sports, you know, long before it was sort of politically accepted. Even on the Republican side to be for that issue. And it's because you experienced it firsthand. But I didn't mean to cut you off. But your boldness really was the start of this movement that I think opened up and got a lot of elected representatives comfortable talking about these issues. So you were a big part of that too, you know.
- [10:10]
Riley Gaines
That's very kind. And I'll tell you, I was fearful for a while, admittedly, which I'm kind of ashamed to say as someone who's always been a Christian first and foremost. But of course those viewpoints align. Conservative. That's never changed. The throughout my entire life, I've always had the views that I even still currently hold. But I was scared. But I realized upon speaking out, when I finally got the courage to do it, that a lot of the fear was, I guess, self imposed. None of it really came to fruition like I thought it was going to. I thought I was going to lose friends. I thought I was never going to get a job. I thought I was going to be ostracized from public life. That didn't happen. It. It's really only been opportunities. You meet amazing people, you go amazing places. The ability for real and lasting impact. So it made me realize what was I so scared of. So thank you. That's very kind. One of the things that I've been following that you have been leading the charge on is Trey's Law. Of course, this is a measure to protect child abuse victims from NDAs. Can you talk about this? I think more specifically, what inspired it and how does it fit into, like, these broader efforts against institutional cover ups?
- [11:24]
Brandon
Yeah. So Trey Carlock was a victim of sexual assault when he was a child and ended up committing suicide at 28. And what happened was he was not allowed to tell his story, which is therapeutic and cathartic for so many people who go through this type of trauma. And he wasn't allowed to because he had signed an NDA with his abuser that stopped him legally from being able to say anything publicly. And I think that that's wrong. And I think most Americans think that's wrong. So the Texas state legislature passed a bill called Trey's Law that would nullify NDAs in the case of child sexual assault. What Trey's Law does, which I introduced in the House nationally, would make that law national so that you cannot silence child victims of sexual assault. Now, right now, there are certain state laws that might cover NDAs that were done prior to a settlement. This law applies to any NDAs, including NDAs as part of a settlement makes them null and void. It does look backwards. So it nullifies any NDA that have been signed in the past. And I think that's a core part of protecting people who oftentimes don't have a voice in Washington. Victims of sexual assault, children, the people who a civilized society ought to be looking after the most.
- [12:49]
Riley Gaines
You mentioned previously there's not a lot of bipartisan legislation or support, even on key issues like this. Can we expect, I mean, I would hope some Democrats to support this effort?
- [13:02]
Brandon
I think we'll be able to get some Democrats on this effort. We've already had positive feedback so far. Luckily, this is one of the few issues where you do see Democrats jump on board. Now they won't jump on board when it comes to a law banning castrating, you know, a six year old boy, but they will jump on board. It seems bills like this, which I'm frankly, I'm very thankful for, this is something that we should all be able to get behind.
- [13:28]
Riley Gaines
Yeah, 100%. One of the things that I admire most about you and your family, I mean, really is just that, that you're able to seemingly balance it all. It's got to be difficult being in Washington D.C. of course, your home state is Texas. That's where your wife and two kids are. How do you kind of manage the toll that it takes?
- [13:49]
Brandon
Well, I would say that that is by far the most difficult part of the job. It's a very demanding job and you know, you sign up and you know what you're getting into. But my wife has been phenomenal through this whole time. And actually my wife and two kids travel back and forth to Washington with me most of the time. So that means that I get to go home every night or almost every night and be able to put the kids to bed. I get to see Danielle and get to spend time with them, which is incredibly important to me and to Danielle. You know, I don't want my kids to be, to grow up feeling like they have an absent father. So we go out of our way to make sure that we carve out family time so that I can be with them. But that is one of the challenges. It's a constant. You know, it means that my calendar pretty much consists of work and family time and that's about it. But we're able to do this by, I mean, honestly, by God's grace. But also because Danielle has been a phenomenal mom to both our kids and is willing to go out of her way to make sure that we can stay together.
- [14:54]
Riley Gaines
Danielle, of course, is a firestorm in her own right. You guys are like the power couples of all power couples. I was actually with your father in law this past weekend and I was asking him about you and just telling him how grateful I am for you and your family and what you guys are doing and the clips online and, you know, before he mentioned anything about what you've been doing politically and the movement that you've made there, he said, Brandon is such a good dad. And that spoke volumes to me. Of course, your father in law, for those who don't know, know, I imagine most people do, is Dinesh d', Souza, who's, who's fantastic. Your wife, actually, I just saw her on Fox and Friends recently and she was sharing about how you guys met and giving kind of marriage tips. Marriage tips specifically to young women. What's your message to young men? Because I think the younger generation in general, again, something that you can speak really well to given your age and given your, your experience, they're desperate for clear leadership. What's your message to young men right now?
- [15:58]
Brandon
Yeah, I would say, you know, I think that a lot of young people, men and women, are yearning for almost for more tradition. They see what the left has done to America and to sort of American culture and they want to go back. They want to see a country where, you know, men can, on a single income, raise a family and stay together and have God fearing kids. And I guess I would say, you know, you hear that the trite advice oftentimes, which I totally agree with, to get married young, I think you certainly should. But for young men, you know, be the man that you would want your daughter to marry or be the man that the type of woman you would like, would be attracted to, you know, and conduct yourself in a way that's dignified and becoming to the world that you want to create. I think that you are seeing a massive move towards more tradition. It's because people are yearning. They've felt what it's like to be in a secular country where you have these weird perversions shoved on you all the time. And they want to return to a country that's rooted in Christian faith and to a society that's built upon, I think, Christianity. And that starts with you. I mean, that starts with each individual, each individual person.
- [17:22]
Riley Gaines
You know, despite the fact that he's old, objectively, President Trump, I think he does a fantastic job at appealing to younger people too. I think it's kind of like the rebellious thing to do is to Support President Trump. It's kind of like going against the status quo, which it's no surprise that younger generations almost want to do that. They want to almost act out of spite. He's very charismatic. He says what he thinks, and that appeals to young people. But his time in office, granted, we still have several years, and we certainly shouldn't will it away or think too far in the future. There are some concerns, I think, going into 2028, or even sooner, 2026, the midterms, into how we reach younger voters. Is there concern there? Historically, this isn't something that the Republican Party has done really well. Again, I think we are seeing, you know, we're kind of going around that corner. But what do we need to be doing to reach younger voters in a more effective manner?
- [18:19]
Brandon
Yeah, I think that we need to be really clear about what we provide. You know, the left will go to young people and they will say, we're going to give you free stuff. To put it kind of bluntly, that's kind of the Mamdani message. He's a compelling political figure in many ways, as evil as he is. I think what Republicans need to do is articulate very clearly. What we want to do is give you back your birthright that the left has been giving away. The left has flooded our country with illegal aliens that you're paying for their welfare. You're paying for their housing and for their medical expenses and for their education. That's wrong. We want to end that. They're the ones taking your jobs. They're the ones that are transforming your community. This is all things that the left is doing, and we're going to stop them. We're going to give you back the America that is your birthright, that you deserve, that we can restore and conserve. We are the ones who are going to reduce spending to bring down inflation. We are the ones who are going to get all of these weird perversions that you've been inundated with. You know, I think of myself in some ways. You know, if I look at my life, I was born in 1994. For almost my entire life, we've had a border crisis other than whenever President Trump was in the White House. For almost my entire life, other than a couple years. We've had a budget deficit for my entire life. I think in many cases, you've seen our foreign policy go off track. I think that's the America that young people grew up in. They grew up in an America where the left's long march through the institutions has kind of reached a culmination. That's why you've got kindergartners being read transgender books in public schools. I mean, things that would have been unfathomable even a decade ago. That's the America we grew up in, fundamentally different than the one that our grandparents grew up in. In many ways, the one our grandparents grew up in doesn't exist anymore. And I think young people see that, they recognize it and they realize how hard we're going to have to fight to get real America back. And, and whenever you can show them that we get the world that you grew up, we get that it's different than the 1, than the America of the 50s and 60s and 70s, and we would like to bring that back. I think that resonates with them, but they want to see sincerity and authenticity in that as well.
- [20:41]
Riley Gaines
You're young, it's your first term. You get to see it all, though on a very personal, firsthand basis. What do you make of term limits?
- [20:53]
Brandon
I think that it would certainly help a lot. I don't think the term limits would solve every problem in Washington, but there is an issue where you've got people who have come here and have been here for decades and decades and have come to believe that they represent Washington as opposed to their districts back home, and that you see that on both sides of the aisle. Candidly, I do think it's worse on the Democrat side for sure. But there is a level of, you know, just get out of touch with the rest of the country and that's not what the American people are looking for. So I think, I think it could be helpful.
- [21:32]
Riley Gaines
Today's Spotlight is a truly inspiring story about character and giving back. If you watch basketball, then you know the student. Congratulations to number one WNBA draft pick and UConn women's basketball guard as he fud for being named the Big East Women's Basketball Scholar Athlete of the Year. The I love AZI story because it shows her dedication goes so much deeper than what she does on the floor on the court over the past year as he has shifted her personal charitable mission to honor a cause deeply close to her heart, Abby Zitton, by heavily donating to and supporting the Arizona Family Foundation. On top of that, she spends her summers volunteering at the Hole in the Wall Gang camp, mentoring sick kids and coordinating charity events to raise vital funds for patients at the Connecticut Children's Hospital. I don't know how she has time for all that, but I'm grateful that she does. She is using her already large, incredible platform to lift up families and children when they need it the most. Why refi? They understand that your life is about more than just a balance on a screen. It's about your family. It's about your community and your future. They help you manage your student debt so you can focus on what actually matters. Last thing for you, what's some legislative priorities moving forward? I understand now you're chairing a pretty important task force committee. Can you talk about that?
- [22:53]
Brandon
Yep. So this is a task force on the House Oversight Committee. It's the task force on defending constitutional rights and exposing institutional abuses. And we've got a broad mandate to go after everything from DEI and universities and businesses to entities that are abusing our immigration system or entities that are defrauding the taxpayer. So we just created this about a week ago and we've already launched two different investigations. One into the Ohio Medicaid fraud, which we believe to be about a billion dollars a year in the home health services sector. And secondly, against four different birth tourism companies. These are companies that facilitate birth tourism, people coming into the United States for the sole purpose of having a child and then leaving so that their child can be an American citizen. One of them, by the way, the literal name of the business is called have My Baby in Miami. I mean, you can't even make this stuff up. So we've begun investigations and that we're just getting started here.
- [23:54]
Riley Gaines
Wow. Well, praise God. Thank you for what you do for representing the state of Texas so well, but more so than that, representing Americans, especially young Americans, so well, just very grateful for you and going to continue to cheer you on every step of the way. So thank you.
- [24:11]
Brandon
Well, thank you. I appreciate that.
- [24:14]
Riley Gaines
Thank you guys for watching the Riley Gaines Show. You can subscribe right here. We have new episodes every single Tuesday and Friday at 10:00am Eastern Time. And we are covering everything from pop culture to politics to deep dives to motherhood to sports, all of that and more. We want to hear from you, though. What is it that you want to hear? Comment down below. We can't wait to see you next time.