In Congress. I served for almost eight years on the Armed Services Committee. You did run
for president. Yes. If you're not focused on serving the people, then you're focused on the
wrong things. Our government exists only with the consent of the government. We are lucky in
a presidential election year. If we get 50% of the American citizens to vote. Uh I was
campaigning for re election. This was the coming to the close of my first term in office
and uh my Hawaii National Guard Army unit was activated for deployment to Iraq. It would be
an 18 month long deployment. About a year of that spent actually in Iraq. The other months
being spent training up and, and preparing. Were you, did you not have any fear and anxiety
about putting yourself in that kind of harm's way? Uh No, we want
to be people who are continuing to learn from experiences from mistakes, from failures, from
successes, from lessons learned from things other people have done. Like that's the only
way we actually be better as people, you know, husbands, wives, friends, coworkers, bosses,
leaders, everything.
Welcome to the show. Thank you. I'm so honored to have you here. Thank you for having me. It
was a happenstance meeting, unexpected and I'm grateful that this all worked out, you know. So
am I, and before we get in, I think all of us should take a moment and say, thank you for 21
years of veteran service. Thank you. I, I, I'm the one that feels grateful to be able to
serve. I'll be headed out here shortly. Um I'm in the US Army Reserve and I
have the privilege of commanding a unit of Civil affairs soldiers. And we have our two
weeks of annual duty coming up and I'll be taken off the civilian hat, putting on the
military hat. And it's just, uh, you know, I've started as enlisted enlisted because of
911, like a lot of Americans volunteered to deploy to the Middle East and uh throughout
my 20 almost 21 years of service, it's, I can't express in words,
um, how grateful I feel to have served alongside just such incredible
people from all walks of life, from all parts of the country. Uh people who really care
and uh not only care for our country but care and love each other. Well, I think especially
in today's world where there's a lot of sideline criticism. Um Not a lot of us realize
what it means for someone to dedicate their life to public service and defend this country.
So we all owe you a sense of gratitude because we aren't the ones doing that. And so thank you.
I take it seriously. Yes, but you mentioned something there. You did say when you
volunteered to deploy, which is a huge thing. Um What was the catalyst that made you decide
to actually volunteer versus being told you're going to be deployed? Uh Well, the first time I
volunteered, uh it's there, there's a recurring theme here but uh I
was serving as a state representative in Hawaii. Uh I was campaigning for re election.
This was the coming to the close of my first term in office and uh my Hawaii National Guard
Army unit was activated for deployment to Iraq . It would be an 18 month long deployment. About
a year of that spent actually in Iraq, the other months being spent training up and, and
preparing uh for that deployment was the first deployment our unit had seen since Vietnam. And
so when you think about, you know, the ages and ranks of people who, um you know, filled
our unit there, you know, maybe there was like one of the older uncles who had served in
Vietnam, but, but by and large, no one had any combat experience. And uh when the unit was
activated, my commander, I served in a medical unit, he called me up and he's like, hey, good
news. You don't have to go because we already have someone filling the job that you're
trained to do. Uh which is essentially medical operations and logistics. And he said you can
stay home, finish running for re-election, get re-elected, continue doing the work that you're
doing for Hawaii. And I, I just knew, I just knew very quickly and we went back and forth. I
told him there's, there's no way I'm staying home and watching you guys go and ship off to
the other side of the world to a war. Uh, that at that time was 2004, going into 2005 was
still very much the height of that um war in Iraq that was billed as operation
Iraqi freedom. And so we went back and forth. He realized I wouldn't take no for an answer.
Uh I suspended my re-election campaign to the State House uh one where there wasn't any real
opposition, uh and then went and got trained in a different job that they needed filling and,
and went out on that, uh that deployment. It changed my life. I can't even imagine.
I mean, did you have a sense of, I mean, obviously the sense of duty and loyalty to your,
to your um division, but were you, did you not have any fear and anxiety about putting
yourself in that kind of harm's way? Um
No, no. And I don't, I don't say that in a way that should be misconstrued to
make people think I took it lightly. I did not take it lightly at all, but uh I volunteered to
serve my country and enlisted by choice, uh specifically for this purpose. And I chose the
National Guard so that I could serve my community in my home state during times of
natural disaster. But if called to serve my country and to go after those
who attacked us on that tragic day out on 911. And so
the feelings I felt were not fear and anxiety. There was definitely a sense of uh
soberness um and, and gravity about what we were about to do. Um
Like I said, no one had had any recent experience in any combat environment, you know,
going uh going into a situation where you're dealing with an insurgent Islamist terrorist
group. Um that, that was really the one causing the casualties in the war. Uh
Yes, we trained a lot, we trained for months for this. But if anyone said, I know exactly
what it's going to be like, I know exactly what's going to happen. They would have been
wrong. They were still rewriting and, and editing and, and getting feedback from units
that were deploying to improve the training manuals and training uh scenarios that we were
going through. So it was a quickly evolving situation. And um the real
powerful thing that II I don't think I fully anticipated until just before I left was just
being confronted with the fact that my saying goodbye to my family uh could very well
be my final Goodbye. And I didn't gloss over that at all. I
took the time to sit down and write letters to my family and express to them
the things that I didn't want to left unsaid if my
time came and I didn't make that trip home. I mean, I, I can't fathom having to write those
letters and putting myself in that position. Did you always see yourself in the military or
was it truly the 911 changed that whole paradigm. 911 changed everything. You know, I
was a kid. I grew up in Hawaii. Uh Yes, we are the 50th state of America. Sometimes people are
like, oh yeah, Hawaii was great. Now I gotta go back to the States. It happens a lot. Um
But uh you know, we are, I mean, we're the most remote island chain in the world and so
it's easy to be removed from um a lot of things. Uh So I grew up, you know,
surfing and hiking and appreciating and enjoying what it means to grow up on an island.
And um I cared a lot about the environment I cared about was really passionate about clean
water, you know, get my friends, let's go clean up the beach this weekend and, and that
was what got me involved. That's what instigated my run for office in Hawaii. But
honestly, I hadn't spent much time thinking about foreign policy or what are the threats
that we're facing in the world. And uh 911 was , um obviously, it was an eye
opening experience for a lot of people. And uh it,
it, what I did know, even though I didn't think about the military, what I did know and
understand and experience from a young age was that was that I wanted to pursue a path of
service. And it started out as like, ok, well, let me start with taking care of my
neighborhood. Let me start with taking care of the beach that I love to go to as a kid.
Uh And that, that led to as a teenager starting an environmental nonprofit where, um,
cleaning up the beach is good and it's important, but it kind of gets frustrating when
you go back to that beach every weekend and there's more trash and it got me starting to
think like, ok, how do I start? Like we got, we got to be able to do more. Uh And so the,
the nonprofit that I co-founded, we focused on kids like k through fourth grade. And I, I, uh,
wrote a little fun skit, uh called The Adventures of Water Woman. Her nemesis was oily
and uh had a friend draw up a little coloring book. And so we took this to uh public schools,
you know, private schools, charter schools across the state. And it was so fun for me. I
played water woman naturally had the Blue cape with a little like bedazzled water drop on it
and everything and then, um, you know, there's oily and, and it was just cool just going
through everyday things like oily, changed the oil in his car and he's about to dump the oil
down the storm drain. Water. Woman comes in in the nick of time and saves the day and just
seeing the reaction in these kids eyes as they are like, ok, here's what happens when you
throw your empty soda can out of the car as you're driving down the street, seeing them
realize in their own little minds and in their own little world. Um the connection between
like, OK, if you take this action, there's a very real consequence that affects you and your
family in your, in your lives and, and seeing that light bulb go off for them
was a pretty transformational experience for me to see how this little idea
that I had would plant that seed in their minds if nothing else to think twice
before doing something that they would not realize is bad for them and bad for their
home and their beach and everything else. I, I don't think enough young people appreciate the
ripple effect and that they can create big waves by small maneuvers by just doing that by
impacting them at that point and putting those ideas in their head can allow them to grow up
into a world that is more conducive to those ideals. And really, and I I, I've been talking
about this, the, the issue of individual responsibility a lot lately and I, I wouldn't
have thought of those words back then, but looking back at that now, while my focus was on
clean water and protecting the environment, really, the, the deeper foundational principle
that I was trying to get across was exactly that thinking about your actions before you
take actions and taking responsibility and understanding what those consequences are. Um
And, and, and how that is such a, a critical principle of what it means to be a
responsible member of our society. So I get why you joined the military, the
catalyst and I understand your time in the military, but you're still in the military. And
that is a whole different testament because during that duration, I mean four terms in the
Congress running for president and yet you're still serving despite the way as a gen this is
a very generalized statement, but despite the way we as a country have treated our military
and the lack of appreciation that maybe is displayed at times. But yet you still serve
even though you're impacting so many in the public office, what's keeping you there?
I love it. I really truly am grateful to be able to serve in different ways, both in
uniform and outside of uniform. My deployments , I had two deployments to the Middle East that
served as the catalyst for my wanting to run for Congress. I hadn't thought about it before.
My running for State House was not at any point, uh, done within the context of, well,
now I'm going to do politics for the rest of my life. It was the answer to a question that I
continuously reflect on and ask myself, which is how, how can I best be of service? Where can
I make the most impact and, and being completely comfortable with the fact that, like,
I don't, I've never known the answer to these, these uh generic questions we find on
applications or job interviews. Like where do you see yourself in five years? Where do you
see yourself in 10 years? Like, I don't know. And I, I like that, I don't know because while
I have been very focused and driven with a clear sense of purpose, not being rigidly
stuck to a quote unquote plan, um has allowed me to see
and seize opportunities to serve in a lot of ways that I could not have foreseen or planned.
Even if I had tried. Um I have found throughout my time in serving in uniform, how
for example, in Congress, I served for almost eight years on the armed services committee,
the committee that exercises whose job it is to exercise oversight over the Department of
Defense essentially. And I know this may surprise you, Jeff, but when we
have uh you know, cabinet secretaries and four star generals coming and briefing members of
Congress, um they, they oftentimes would tell us things that they wanted us to know.
And if you didn't ask the right questions or if you didn't know where to look, you might not
actually find the things that really should be focused on because there are problems that need
to be addressed or changes that need to occur, even if, you know, the bureaucrats are
resistant to that change. And so I saw really, um, an ability to be
more effective as a legislator because, you know, whether in the National Guard or
Reserve, I'm going out there and putting on my uniform and feeling the
downstream effects of those policies and those decisions that are made, even with the best of
intentions, they can very quickly warp uh into something either
very different or actually counterproductive. Once it reaches that quote unquote end user, uh
the soldier who's just showing up for duty and waiting for somebody to tell him or her what to
do. And that, that kind of experience has been um awesome to be
able to help serve our soldiers uh in, in a different way. Would you say the military
helped shape your leadership style or did you bring a certain style to the military and have
kind of held on to that? It has certainly shaped my approach to leadership
and has taught me some fundamentals just about how to tackle a problem,
how to build a strategic plan, asking questions that, you know,
you think might be simple or obvious or even dumb questions. But as I have found some of the
most high ranking officials in our government don't ask those questions. For example, you
know, obviously there's a very specific um application when you're talking about the
question of do we go to war or not? But these questions really apply across the board. What
is your objective? What are you trying to accomplish? What does success or winning look
like? How do you define that? Because the way you define it even given the same scenario may
be very different than I would define that? How do you know when it's time to exit? And
what is that exit strategy and that exit plan and from a US government, military
diplomacy, whatever, whatever department it is that the most important question is how does
this actions serve the interests of the American people? Or is it counter it will it
will it end up being a counterproductive action? And so these are all things like this
kind of basic analysis. These were things that I learned in the military at a very low rank
as like, OK, before you step out the door and you take your team with you, you better know
the answers to these questions because you got to tell your team so that they know everybody's
moving in the same direction on the same page, knowing that when the stuff hits the fan as it
always does in some way, shape or form, you're able to adapt and overcome those unforeseen
obstacles and continue moving towards that shared uh objective. Yeah, I mean, those
lessons I think are parallel, parallel in so many different walks of life. And the fact that
you're able to learn those and apply those in your political aspirations is great because you
just hit it earlier when you said a lot of times the right questions aren't being asked.
And I always wondered, why are they not being asked? And could it be that because they don't
know what questions to ask? They're kind of lost in those situations. And so having that
breath of experience when a general is speaking to you, although you may never have
been at that high level, even at the low level of military, you do understand the standard
operating procedures of the military and how it operates. There is one part of the military
mindset, right, which is required once an order has been given, you follow it. But as a
politician and someone serving in the public sphere, sometimes we have to question those
decisions and really look at it from all the different angles. How do you juggle those two
sides of that training and your own perspective? Uh Well, first of all, as, as a, a
person who has served in the National Guard and the Reserve Component, there is a very
clear line between uh my role as a civilian or a person who's held public
office or holding public office versus my role as someone who wears the uniform. So there's,
it's never been a problem for me because once I take this, this uniform off and put on the
other one, it's about knowing my place and knowing my role and my job and, and
what is expected of me. And so there's no bleed over or overlap. Um, when I was in the
Hawaii National Guard, for example, I would be home in Hawaii for our, our normal duty weekend.
Uh I would see our two star commander there and salute him and, you know, pay due respects
and I'm doing my work and then a couple of days later, I'd be back in Washington DC in my
congressional office and he would come and pay me a visit in my office and the roles would be
very different and he was, ma'am, how are you? And it was, it was, some people found it
strange. It wasn't strange for me because it's just about knowing like, hey, this is, you know,
if I'm a captain, uh when I'm in the army, uh then there is a certain place for that
and, um, and similarly vice versa. But, but here's something that I think is, is kind
of cool as, as the, the generational shift goes on. Yes. Ultimately, when you're given an
order, you will execute the order. But um I, I'll just speak. I, I am a, currently a
commander of a battalion of close to 200 soldiers. I'm a lieutenant colonel and one of
my first, I think it was my first day on the job. I was introducing myself talking to my
soldiers and there was a young sergeant like e five. Not, not very high. I've probably been in
the army maybe 34 years at most. And I was talking about a certain mission and this is
what's going on and she raised her hand. She's like, why are we doing it? Why? Like, why is
this important for us to focus on? What good does it bring to the country
that I thought that's a very important question. And I'm glad you asked because we,
we are, we are not as strong as we could be if we have just a bunch of blind followers and it
kind of goes back to um but, but, you know, a generation ago you could get screamed at for
saying, why are we doing this? But is it, is it appropriate to ask that question in a
military setting? That's my point in a different, in a different uh you know, I mean,
if you're under fire and the commander is like , let's go this way now, you really, it's
not the time or place to be like, well, hey, let's discuss this for a minute here. As an
entrepreneur, I know how meaningful it is to invest in the people. And causes that are close
to me. And on GoFundMe, it's easy, safe and powerful to do just that, whether you're
supporting a family member, friend, local business or charity and whenever you make a
donation, you're protected by the gofundme giving guarantee visit gofundme.com today to
help make a positive difference in your community.
Um But, but uh yeah, so time and place circumstance dependent but, but in a previous
generation of the military that would not be encouraged, it would be looked down upon or
even reason for some, you know, some good physical fitness, disciplinary action. Uh But
I'm encouraged that with a younger generation, a newer generation coming in while some may see
it as insubordinate and you know, how you deliver those questions matters. Uh II, I found
it as a positive thing because I want soldiers who are thinking about things, thinking
themselves, um how to tackle a problem that being able to communicate to other people. Why
are we doing this? But I think even at a deeper level, people in the National Guard and
Reserve, uh they have professions. Uh I have a clinical psychologist with like
two phd S. We have EMTS, we have firefighters, we have police officers, we have college
students, we have moms and dads, we have people, people who are small business owners,
people who are very, very successful in their, in their civilian life. It's, it's, I believe
it's an awesome thing that they choose to dedicate uh, what turns out to be a minimum of
47 days a year out of their year, one weekend out of every month and then two weeks, a
minimum, they usually, they end up doing a lot more to set their family aside, to set their
school aside, to set their jobs aside and come in and serve our country and it's a big deal
and I want them to know that there is real value to that sacrifice that they are
making. And so I, I have encouraged and, and created an environment where those kinds of
questions are welcome. And that kind of discussion is welcome. And I think that's the,
the the bigger picture thing that we're seeing um lacking in a lot of our society in the age
of, you know, quick scrolling social media. A lot of that critical thinking goes out the
window and you just like, OK, I saw a tweet, I saw a headline, it was like, oh wow, ok. We
shouldn't take things at face value. We should actually exercise our, our uh our brains and
figure out what's really going on. I mean, you're right, but because of the realization of
where we're at today with that, how we consume and get our information and what we now hold as
our truths. Doesn't that concern you a little bit to have a group of an eclectic
group of people from all different backgrounds , as you said, consuming information very
differently, but not actually going very deep. Right? It's a mile wide and an inch deep of how
they're getting their source of truth, challenging questioning. Because what if you
have two different people in your under your command? Ask the same question and differ on
whether or not the values in the mission and now you have potential, you know, concern
amongst your ranks or trepidation. How do you kind of unite everybody when you have such an
eclectic group with all of these different perspectives. It's a really great question and
I think it speaks to the whole debate around speech. First of all, uh there are some who
say that our speech, free speech should be limited, you know, you have this whole
misinformation and disinformation and who should be platformed, who should not be allowed
to be platformed all of these different discussions. I am, I am a firm believer in free
speech and that um bad speech or misinformed speech, uh
offensive speech even uh is best defeated by superior speech by more informed speech.
And so I, I in your uh in your scenario that you're pointing out when I may have different
soldiers and I do uh who have differing views on certain things or uh may
not agree with the purpose statement that I've , I've given them there, there is a time and
this again, this is the military, it's a very structured organization for a reason. Um And
frankly, when you're in uniform, you do give up some of your freedoms. Um, and so I
find it to be a healthy, um, exercise to be able to openly have these
discussions instead of squashing them and telling people, ok, they're going to have the
discussion anyway. So let's have the discussion together and feel free to question
what I'm telling you and saying, well, it does that make sense. Well, why, why is it that,
versus this having that we get to a better place where they know they've been heard, we've
talked about it. Maybe they've brought something that I haven't considered before,
which has happened. Uh They've, hey, this is the experience that I have. This is how I think
it applies. And um ultimately, we get to a place where the commander says,
awesome, great discussion. This is the direction we are going. This is why we are
doing it. It's time to execute and then it's go so taking that and extrapolating it out
to the public world, the non-military side, you did run for president. Um If I remember
you were down to the final three in 2020 on the democratic side. And one of the things
that I always appreciated, regardless of what side of the aisle anyone sits is, you had and
you spoke publicly about people over party and you're not gonna just say something because the
team you're on happened to do that, which in a way is kind of that same military example
brought out because although it's not the military, there was certain talking points on
both sides and if you're part of that party, you're supposed to fall in line and there are
consequences if you don't, there are and there's consequences if you do that. Right? So
I always appreciated that about you and your approach. What was your intention? Knowing you
were part of a party and knowing you were in a way going against them during that time, let's
pretend you want what was gonna be the, the back end of that? How were you gonna drive kind
of that new approach to politics and leadership and, and serving our country? What
was the intention goal there? And was it to break those old static party lines on both
sides and really turn it into more of a fluid party? It, it was um
it was a desire to be in a position where I could actually um well, in this specific
example, I was trying to be a little bit more broad. But in this specific example, I saw a
National Democratic Party that I felt had strayed so far away from
its principles that drew me to be a Democrat in the first place 20 plus years ago. Uh the
party that I joined, I was attracted to be aligned with because I saw a party of the
people, I saw a party that would actually uh fight for the well being of the little guy, I
saw a big tent party that welcomed people with different views, encourage discussion, defended
free speech, even for those who said things that were horrible and highly offensive. Um
A party that understood the importance of civil rights and civil liberties. Um
you know, that celebrated people like President JFK and Martin Luther King. And not
just because of the iconic leaders that they were, but because of what made them iconic with
the kind of like serious disruptive change they sought to bring about and the courage
that they embodied. Uh And, and so, you know, throughout my time in Congress, I served as a
vice chair of the Democratic National Committee for a few years. And, and uh when I
was running for president, I spoke about how, you know, the president ultimately is the de
facto leader of their party. My desire to bring the Democratic Party back to those
principal foundations that drew me to the party in the first place because of my concern
that I saw the leadership of the party was becoming one of the elite versus the people
that was more inward looking, rather than outward looking, that was increasingly um
uh trying to get people to conform rather than encouraging
diversity of thought. Uh I felt that they were focusing on the wrong things and by ultimately,
what are the wrong things? If you're not focused on serving the people, then you're
focused on the wrong things. I mean, it's, it's fair and you clearly made a public
decision to leave the party. Um And before we talk about the upcoming book,
how I guess this is one last leadership question before, before we touch on that. But
how do you see us solving the huge divisive polarizing place we find America in
today when it seems identity politics and everyone's speaking to that one point on both
sides and you don't see any way for the middle to bring us back. Is it one of those things in
your mind where eventually we're gonna snap back just because you can only go so far apart?
Or is there a path you see that you're pushing for, to help us do that? There is a
path and that, that is really at the crux of why I wrote this book.
It's called For Love of Country, Leave the Democrat Party Behind. And it speaks to the
experiences that I've had. I'm specific in this book. Um in the words that I choose,
I'm not speaking about all Democrats, there are a lot of Democrats that I've personally
heard from in the country who have share the same frustrations that I've been through and
that I've felt with the direction that the leadership of the party has chosen to take. And
uh it's really not a book about partisan politics. Obviously, II, I talk a lot about the
Democratic Party because I was in it for over 20 years and now I've left it and become an
independent. I also talk about some of the serious problems with the Republican Party and
some of the leaders in that party with the political system as a whole. That, that in
Washington it is like a bubble and people care more about, you know, what are the reporters
think or what are the lobbyists think, or am I getting invited to this party? And, oh my gosh,
I'm not popular anymore and they left me off the guest list for this other fancy embassy
party and, and just, it's like if that's what you're worried about when you, when you're
walking through those historic halls where literally if you've never been to the US
Capitol before you should go and take a tour and walking up those marble stairs in the US
Capitol, you can see the grooves in that marble. And I've often imagined like man, the
people who have come before us for generations into this place that is rightfully
known as the People's House. And yet, sadly, we have so many politicians from both parties
who are more concerned about the next election than they are about the people. And uh when
you talk about hyperpartisanship too often, when the parties do come together, it is
most often around the cause of starting another war. Uh without thinking through,
hey, is this actually good? Is this necessary, is have we exhausted all other possible means
of diplomacy? Before resorting to either economic warfare or kinetic warfare, either
with our troops or proxy force, asking the most essential and important questions. And,
and ultimately, this leads to not only a less safe country and a greater security
threat, but a power grab, taking away our freedom. And so I point
out a lot of big problems in this book, but most importantly, I talk about where there's
hope we won't accidentally come together as a country as a reaction of the extremes that are
very real. The only way we come together is if we choose to come together
and the path for how to do that is really laid out by our founding fathers,
people who disagreed about a lot of things. There's this thing that people think like, oh,
well, well, I don't agree with this person. And so like, why bother have a conversation,
have a conversation. You might learn a thing or two. Uh you know, the Democratic Party,
unfortunately, now has got a lot of purity tests. Like if you're not 100% on all of this
laundry list of issues, then you don't belong here. That's, that's like, that's not how we
are in life. Why would we expect politicians to be that way? Why would we want them to be
that way? Um We don't want a country of people who are robots and think alike and act alike
and walk in lock, step out of fear of some kind of cancellation consequence. We need this
open marketplace of ideas. We need to treat each other with respect even when we disagree,
have those fierce debates, even arguments around the things that you're passionate about
and that you really care about. But come together in the same way that our founders did
around the fundamental principles and freedoms enshrined in the constitution enshrined in the
Bill of Rights enshrined in the Declaration of Independence. Because if we don't, if we don't
find our way to come together as fellow Americans first, then we will very quickly find
ourselves in a place as we already are seeing signs that we are headed in a direction
where these freedoms are being eroded and taken away by those who only care about power.
And if we do nothing, we will wake up one day and wonder how did this happen? How
did these United States of America become a country that resembles
more of a banana republic than an actual Democratic Republic? But isn't that a lot?
Don't we struggle with the boiling frog problem here? Because, well, everything you
just laid out is 100% true. We do need the population to spend the time, energy and effort
to a understand the problems. B not only just consume the, this is what I want to hear. Media,
which is what we now have regardless of political side. And it's dangerous in business.
It's dangerous in life when you assume you have all the facts because you heard it from
one source that may or may not have an intention behind delivering that or be credible
or, or be credible. So how can we help? Because I travel, speaking around the country
opening ever bowls and I meet great humans. And that's what I've learned. Even though I
live in southern California people all over the country. Good humans, good people are so
politically divided because that's their community and their product of that. And so how
do we grassroot this because it's not gonna come from the top because as you said, power
begets more power and they have a motive. How can we actually touch these communities to
showcase where those founding fathers uh delivered the path forward and how we have to
get reunited and become the United States of America that we once were and hopefully we will
remain. How do we actually break down to that level? Um I am
doing all that I can. I am, I am on the road almost constantly delivering this message. It's
why I wrote the book. Thank you for inviting me here to join you today, but no single person
or single organization can accomplish this. Thankfully, there are, there are a lot of other
folks who are rightfully concerned about our freedoms being um under assault
and, and who are doing the same. And that's the challenge that I pose in the book and it's
the challenge I pose whether I'm speaking to Democrats or Republicans or Libertarians or
independents or whomever the audience is. Um The challenge is if you don't
like what's happening, look in the mirror, ask yourself, how can I be of service?
How can I do more? What action can I take uh to save our country and to defend our freedom?
And so there's no, there's no easy clean path to get there. But like you experience in your
travels, it's what I've experienced when I it's what gave me hope when I ran for president,
even in the midst of a very crazy dark political environment, man. The
the I had like four or five town halls a day on any given day in any given part of the
country. And it was such an amazing and inspiring experience because our
country is filled with incredible humans who really do care for each other and they care for
their community, they care for their family, they care for our country and in my situation,
they were coming together in those spaces because they wanted to be a part of the
solution. But maybe weren't quite sure how I have, I have faith and hope
that if, if we are able to spread the truth and
sound the alarm about the realities that we face today, um That enough Americans
will be spurred to take action. How do we defend our freedoms by exercising our
freedoms by not self censoring because you're afraid of what the consequences could be. And
obviously, by not only going and casting your vote when it comes time to do so, but being
informed, uh before you go and know that our job is to hold leaders accountable. We can only
do that if, if we put in the work uh to know what exactly they're doing. And are they for us
or are they for themselves? There's no easy path. There's no easy answer. We go back to
where we started from with those kids. It's about individual responsibility and taking
ownership of the power that, that those who founded this country placed in our hands.
Which is a pretty incredible thing when you really think about it. You know, that we, the
people. Wow, those are powerful words. They said that our government exists only with the
consent of the governed and so we can rail away all day and night, justifiably. So about
how, you know, government bureaucracy and, and just all, all that is broken. It really is
broken in a lot of our government systems. Uh, got it. Those
people are elected by voters and it, I mean, look, the reality
is that we, we are lucky in a presidential election year if we get 50% of the American
citizens to vote. Hey, fitness fans ready to crush your fitness goals. Make your move to eos
fitness where becoming a member starts at just 999 a month. Gyms are open 24 7 and packed with
the latest gym equipment to keep your workouts fresh. What are you waiting for? Give them a
call drop by or hit up Jeff fenster.com/eos to join Eos Fitness. Better Gym.
Better price. Now, let's get after those goals . That's fascinating. It's
fascinating and, um, sad. It really is sad, but it's also you yourself
excluded at a time and place where a lot of the people you talk to say this sentence, I
would never want that job. And which means some of our most qualified potential candidates
will never put their, raise their hand and say , I'm willing to take the beating to go through
that process. And so those are the people, by the way, when I meet them, I'm like, you are
the one who should run because we don't, we, the politicians that I've met and I know many
of them personally, the ones who chase those parties, they chase the title, they chase the
special treatment that they get. They're the ones who should never be in power. It's the
unwilling leader and servant, someone with a servant's heart, um who's willing to
do it in spite of the fact that they have no desire to and and are willing to bear those
sacrifices of scrutiny and judgment and attacks and all of the things that go along
with it because they are driven by a love of country and recognize that,
that the people in this country need real leaders uh who have their best interests at
heart. So is the spirit for love of country to be the starting point of a paradigm shift
for America? Or is it more to help us open our eyes? Like how would you, what do you want
people to take after they read your book? I want people to have the
opportunity to be reminded of what it means to be an American and the
vision that our founders had for our country, the vision that Martin Luther King had for our
country. Uh and our potential, we have to be able to see the truth and
identify the problem in order to be able to be that instigator of change and
problem solving. Um The takeaway here is uh there is no single
individual that will come and solve this problem that faces us as a country. It is up to
every one of us, every one of us as Americans to own that responsibility and take
action ourselves. It's a great cause because you're tackling big issues and you've
clearly identified it correctly. It starts with us all being self aware and accountable
because we can't solve it from the top down. It has to be solved from the bottom up. There's
a time frame for that. It doesn't, that also doesn't happen overnight. And there is a major
paradigm shift in how technology is serving us as a, as a world today. Um Nations have
way more access to the populace of other countries, obviously from immigration and all
of the major issues that we are tackling as a country and A I and all these different
elements. Is there a scenario where you see the grassroots
happening as you're mentioning? But could it come, should it come from politicians or should
it come at the local level? Because I read your book? Thank you for the uh giving me some
color so I can read it. It's a fascinating read. Um I loved a lot of the things you said
and how you said it because you did point out so many different areas that maybe are
forgotten and how we take the lens of our forefathers hundreds of years ago and apply it
to today's problems. That is where I see it a huge challenge, but a huge opportunity and if
we can help drive that, and I'm curious, your thoughts on how we help achieve that because
the government telling us to do it in whichever party, no one's listening, no one's
no one's taking that to heart. So how can we accomplish that in your eyes? Knowing that
you've clearly identified the path forward and the problem, how can we implement it and how
can the audience who's listening today? What can they do immediately to say? OK, after I
read this book, what is, what's the next step? What do I actually do? So the very, the very
specific steps that people can take, for example, after they read this book is to then
recognize that every one of us is a person of influence. Whether we realize it or not, people
think like, well, if I don't have a podcast or , you know, I'm not a business owner, I'm just a
mom or just a this or just of that. Um Every one of us has a sphere of influence, that's
probably a lot bigger than we may realize. And so scroll through your phone and look at all
the people in your phone and start thinking about how you can have this conversation with
them, see where their heads at. What are they thinking about? Maybe they like already on it
and they're like, yeah, cool. Let's join forces or maybe they're, they're one of those
people who understandably says I hate politics . Uh I don't even know if I should waste my time
voting because it's just a waste of time. The thing is irredeemably broken. There's an
opportunity to start have some real dialogue, uh Maybe share your copy of the book so that
you can start talking through uh these challenges and how you can join forces. This is,
this is about um uh this has to happen through the grassroots
and organically uh by everyone when we talk about taking individual responsibility. Yes,
obviously, the first step is getting informed and casting your vote, but that's not enough.
We got to take all of our people with us uh on this uh crusade for
peace and freedom, security and prosperity. Um you know, which is
actually kind of a perfect way for this change to take place because as you said, no
government official can come in and say, ok, you will do this, you will do that. We don't
have mandatory voting for a reason. We need to , we need to see that
opportunity for what it is and connect it to the things and people that we care about most.
I've got, I've got friends who I know some who serve in the military, which I'm always
surprised by when they say, well, I don't vote . It's like, wow, you even privately, you can
directly impact somebody making decisions about where you go, how you live, how your
family is taken care of. But even when we're talking about things like school choice, for
example, parents having the ability to choose uh where their child goes to school versus
saying well, because you live in this zip code , you will send your child to this school,
whether it's a good school or a bad school. We've got to get away from this idea
that all Children are the same and learn the same and should be treated like, you know,
products on a conveyor belt where you push them in one end and you get a good product on
the other end. And it's just not how people are, parents know their Children best and
should have the freedom to be able to choose uh what education style would work best for
each of their Children. Uh This is a um a policy or an issue that polls
show increasingly over time people across all political partisan demographics,
ethnic demographics, age demographics, nearly 80% of parents across America
would like to have this freedom to choose how to best educate their Children and yet they
don't in most places. Um There are political powers that be, that are standing in the way of
that for their own selfish interests. But this is one example of how someone who says I hate
politics and I, I get it, trust me, I get it. But when you're thinking about what's best for
your Children, there's a direct connection between your ability to have that
freedom as a parent and what kind of people you vote for in office or if you don't vote at
all. And I could give you 100 examples of those direct through lines between things that
impact you on a day to day basis or those that you love and care about the most and how
politicians at every level of government are directly impacting your life
positively or negatively. We cannot separate politics from life. It is
reality and, and, and, and our, our founders recognize the
fragile nature of democracy, how humans with power are unfortunately sometimes prone to
abuse that power. And uh and that's why we have the system of governance that we have, but
it only works if we, the people actually exercise our power and use it. Yeah. And, and I
challenge everyone who's listening and who, who's watching on all the different platforms
to buy your book because it is a refreshing perspective. Even if they disagree with you on
your politics, I believe it was. Albert Einstein said you can't solve the problems by
using the same logic you use to create them. And so we have to stay informed and we have to
be open to other ideas because as I said at the beginning and, and what I loved about you
and your political journey the most was you always said people over party instead of party
first and a lot of our politicians are party first and nobody agrees with 100% of their
party. Nobody does. And so we do need to tackle each issue on its face. And that is true
in business. And these principles, these leadership qualities that you're bringing to
the American people from the pub uh political sphere can be applied to all of us
entrepreneurs, CEO S managers, vps and everyone up and even in the family unit, which
is we believe this to be true. But let's take new information, let's attack that problem from
a different perspective and see if we still agree with ourselves. And if we do great, if
you read, if someone reads your book and still disagrees with everything you said. That's ok.
It is. But they're informed. Absolutely. And I , I can't, I mean, everything you said, I,
I 100% agree with. Um, and it's, it's, it's the thing is it, it
makes sense like it's just common sense that in our personal relationships in work in life,
we want to be people who are continuing to learn from experiences from mistakes, from
failures, from successes from lessons learned from things other people have done. Like,
that's the only way we actually be better as people, you know, husbands, wives, friends,
coworkers, bosses, leaders, everything. Why, why would we expect something different in
the political sphere or when it comes to conversations around politics? I've, I've been
around this for a long time. I am always eager I will listen to podcasts uh
from people who I already know from the outset . I'm not going to agree with, but I'm really
curious about why they hold a position that I think just doesn't make sense at all. Like,
what is your rationale? What's the logic you're using behind this? And I hope you have
some, sometimes there's not but usually, you know, they, they, they talk, which is the great
thing about podcasts. You have the chance to actually explore these things and I always gain
new information and sometimes it's caused me to think like, oh wow, that's an angle on this
that I've never really thought about. And whether it changes my position or reinforces my
position but allows me to strengthen my argument in a conversation or in a debate. Um
We, we, we individually and collectively get to a better place when we are challenging
ourselves first. Uh And the positions that, that um uh with others who we may disagree with
because I've seen it through my work in Congress by remaining open minded, treating
people with respect and actually listening, truly listening. Um We have found solutions to
things that neither of us would have found individually at all. And it was because we came
at it from two very different perspectives. Yeah. And I think that there's an opportunity
on your website right now. If someone preorder it to actually get a signed copy ahead of the
release, you'll get a discount and a signed copy. Um The book officially publishes April
30th. I just found out that uh that it's done being printed and they're at the warehouse
now. Uh So if you go to Tulsi gabbard.com, uh you can order the book there, you can get a
signed copy with a discount. Uh If you prefer to go through amazon.com, uh the books are
available for preorder and it will be in your mailbox on April 30th, which is exciting. I'm
going to as well because I want to sign copy and I would have one for you, but I don't, I
haven't even gotten a copy of the book yet. So I want to contribute. I appreciate you coming
on because it's rare, you know, I have a lot of CEO S and athletes and celebrities on, you
know, on my show and we talk about different elements of success and what drives them to be
successful and you just hit on so many of the same traits and, and it's all about defining
your core values and how you live and breed them on a daily basis. And again, whether
someone agrees or disagrees politically, that doesn't matter. It's the same in my business,
you can agree on my decision making or not. But if I understand how you approach problems
and what your intention and spirit is behind it, I can agree that I appreciate your path
regardless if I don't always agree on all the policies. And that's not me speaking. I'm
saying that abstractly and it's true in all things. And so your openness and your desire to
always put the people of America first, your commitment and dedication to serving in the
military and in Congress and take the wild path of running for president and putting
yourself out there to be attacked in, from every angle like all uh president
candidates go through. Um, before we hit rapid fire though, will you ever do it again? I don't
know. I don't know if there is an opportunity where I
can go and make the kind of truly transformational change that I believe in this
country uh I would chase that opportunity. I will just kind of see it in four years. There
will be a legacy shift of the names we're very accustomed to at the top of all the tickets not
being eligible to be at the top of all the tickets. Interesting point. So there will be a
bunch of new names on there just saying um abstracts of course. So you ready for a little
rapid fire? Alright. So you're gonna stare in the camera one, I'm gonna ask you four
questions, quick answers under a minute if you can. But really just what best serves the
response that comes? Number one, how do you define the word? Aloha. Aloha
is a powerful word that doesn't mean hello or goodbye. It's not a greeting, but we use it as
a word to greet each other because of its spiritual meaning. Allah means to share and
ha is a reference to the eternal life force that exists within every one of us. And so when
you greet someone with Aloha, you are really recognizing that we are spiritually connected.
We are all Children of God. And by seeing each other in that way, we can get past all of the
labels and the noise and the Presumptions and all this stuff that tends to get in the way of
having a truly meaningful substantive exchange . And this is why we greet each
other with Aloha. What is your greatest lesson in leadership
be humble and lead with a servant's heart. I've had
people argue that to be a servant leader is a contradictory concept.
I wholeheartedly disagree. Uh in order to lead , one must do so
truly with a servant's heart that cares for inspires and um
teaches those who they've been charged to lead in any circumstance. What
is your secret to keeping composure under pressure, remain
spiritually grounded in uh my purpose and know exactly who you
are. And um that generally those who are attacking you
are doing so based on their own insecurities and their own fears and they don't actually
care about you nor should you care about uh about their interests. Uh For me in a
very personal way uh doing my best to live a life that's pleasing to God is the most
important thing to me. And so through the uh drama and the chaos and the criticism and
harshness and toxicity of politics, especially in Washington, um living my life in a way where
I can best be pleasing to God and try to love God. That's, that's all that matters. Uh That's
all that matters to me. And finally, if you could have dinner with someone who's no longer
alive, who would it be and why uh I would, I would love to have dinner
with Dr Martin Luther King specifically because he
lived through a time of greater adversity than many of us could ever even possibly imagine.
And yet he was disciplined in his message of peace, uh delivering inspiration to people
about how we can come together, not based on the color of our skin or any other superficial
label, but instead as Children of God uh understanding, we are all equal.
Well, Tulsi, I wanna thank you so much for coming on today and for all the hard work that
you're doing, not only to serve this country but to also change it and be the voice for the
little guy and girl out there and hold all parties accountable to their values that they
speak publicly or what they should be. And the fact that you are going around the country,
meeting everyday Americans fighting for all of us and trying to effect change in the
manner with what you're doing. And for writing this book, which I think is going to be a great
voice in the space that needs to be read and heard. And so thank you so much. This was
really an awesome experience for me. Thank you . I, I am so grateful we crossed paths and that
we had this opportunity to really dig into the things that you talk about on your show on a
regular basis. I've enjoyed being here and learning more about ever bowl and, and what
sparked this mission of yours to help um help people be empowered to make better
choices for themselves and their loved ones. And uh I, I am leaving here inspired by our
conversation because I don't care whether you are, it doesn't matter what industry
you're in or what profession you're in or what , whether you are a mom raising incredible kids
or a dad for that matter, a teacher, a business owner, whatever it is, um, each of us
has the opportunity to, to lead and to spark that change and it's, it's an
incredible thing to see how you are doing that , uh, with your life. Well, well, thank you. And
for our audience, I really do recommend that you immediately go to Tulsi gabbard.com. You
got a copy of this book. I read it. There's so many lessons in leadership that you're gonna be
able to apply to your business or it's your entrepreneurial journey to your families, you
articulate it so well as well as holding ourselves and our, our establishment
accountable to what we say we can expect them to be. Um So please go do that because
learning is the foundation of future success, follow Tulsi on her journey. And thank you so
much for coming on the Jeff Fencer Show. Thank you, Jeff. Hey, everyone first. I want to thank
all of you for tuning in. And if you guys haven't heard about my new book, Relationship
Bank account, click the link in the show notes or search the title on Amazon. This book is
packed with all my secrets to success in both relationships and life. Make sure to pick up a
copy and if the book helps you on your journey , let us know by leaving a review. I appreciate
all of you and can't wait to see you on the next one.