Latest / Corpus Christi Originals Podcast / EP105: Luis Buentello - TX-34 Congress Candidate

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EP105: Luis Buentello - TX-34 Congress Candidate · Corpus Christi Originals Podcast

0:00
SPEAKER_02: What's going on, y'all?
0:01
SPEAKER_02: Welcome back to the Covid Security Originals podcast.
0:03
SPEAKER_02: I'm Astusa Hernandez.
0:04
SPEAKER_02: Uh episode 105 tonight.
0:06
SPEAKER_02: Uh I've got Luis Buenteo.
0:08
SPEAKER_02: He's running for Congress in uh TX34.
0:10
SPEAKER_02: Same seat we talked about last episode.
0:13
SPEAKER_02: Born in Mexico, uh became a citizen, spent 12 years working in Congress for Blake Ferrentold and Michael Cloud.
0:20
SPEAKER_02: Uh he now wants uh the job for himself.
0:23
SPEAKER_02: Um, same format as always, one-on-one, real questions about this city.
0:27
SPEAKER_02: Let's get into it.
0:28
SPEAKER_02: How are you doing?
0:28
SPEAKER_00: All right, hey man, thank you for having me here.
0:30
SPEAKER_00: This is great.
0:31
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, awesome.
0:32
SPEAKER_02: I I seen your episode with uh one of the guys from the valley, uh Rock James, rock and roll with the glasses and everything, the American flag right behind you was cool.
0:42
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, he's a great guy.
0:43
SPEAKER_00: I really liked him, you know.
0:46
SPEAKER_00: Uh love the 80s music, so yeah.
0:49
SPEAKER_00: Very knowledgeable in music, man.
0:51
SPEAKER_00: I was impressed with him.
0:52
SPEAKER_02: Did y'all grow up?
0:53
SPEAKER_02: Did you grow up in the 80s or uh yeah?
0:55
SPEAKER_02: Okay, I don't know.
0:56
SPEAKER_02: I was born in the 80s, so different time for me.
0:59
SPEAKER_00: That's the best music, man.
1:00
SPEAKER_00: 80s.
1:01
SPEAKER_00: Okay, before yeah.
1:03
SPEAKER_00: So 80s is for me the best music.
1:05
SPEAKER_00: Hey, right off.
1:06
SPEAKER_02: That's cool, man.
1:07
SPEAKER_02: Uh, yeah, so you so you're born born in in Mexico.
1:10
SPEAKER_02: Um uh so when did you come to the United States?
1:15
SPEAKER_00: Well, I used I used I used to come when I was a little kid, you know.
1:18
SPEAKER_00: Uh we had relatives in in Brownsville.
1:21
SPEAKER_00: My dad's family.
1:23
SPEAKER_00: Um my dad was born in Matamoros, so eventually people move move along the border.
1:28
SPEAKER_00: You know, my my dad was born in 1912, so like a long time ago.
1:32
SPEAKER_01: Definitely.
1:33
SPEAKER_00: And um, and uh we used to visit our families, our my aunts, uh quite often.
1:39
SPEAKER_00: Uh so we used we we came a lot uh growing up, but then then I came as a foreign student a long many decades ago as well.
1:47
SPEAKER_00: And and that's where I learned English.
1:50
SPEAKER_00: My first year was ESL.
1:51
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
1:52
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, English as a second language, and then I continue with uh sophomore junior senior year uh at a school in in Harlingen, spent four years, and then I went for a year to uh Texas AI.
2:05
SPEAKER_00: Oh, nice in Kingsville when he was AI back in the day.
2:08
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
2:09
SPEAKER_00: You you were how old were you?
2:10
SPEAKER_02: I I heard that name A I.
2:12
SPEAKER_02: A and I, yeah.
2:13
SPEAKER_02: And it might have been AI.
2:14
SPEAKER_02: I'm I'm 43.
2:15
SPEAKER_02: Okay, so it might have been AI like when I was like 10 or 15 or something like that.
2:20
SPEAKER_02: And then just recently, James.
2:21
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think it changed in '94 to AM Kings Christian.
2:25
SPEAKER_02: Hey, right on.
2:26
SPEAKER_02: Cool.
2:26
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I'm I'm an alum from AM Corpus Christi.
2:30
SPEAKER_00: All right.
2:30
SPEAKER_00: I took my last five classes there.
2:32
SPEAKER_00: No, okay.
2:33
SPEAKER_00: Uh I started in UTB, you know, again.
2:36
SPEAKER_00: UT Brownsville.
2:37
SPEAKER_00: UT Brownsville.
2:38
SPEAKER_00: Nice.
2:38
SPEAKER_00: And now it changed by the time I got my certificate, it was UTRGB.
2:43
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, I never went to UTRGB, it was UTB when I spent my all nice.
2:48
SPEAKER_02: What was your what was your degree in?
2:49
SPEAKER_00: Government.
2:50
SPEAKER_02: Government.
2:50
SPEAKER_02: Oh, no kidding.
2:52
SPEAKER_02: What uh political science or something?
2:53
SPEAKER_00: Well, yeah, uh AM calls it political science.
2:56
SPEAKER_00: I do UT calls it uh government.
2:59
SPEAKER_02: Ah, okay, okay.
3:00
SPEAKER_02: Nice.
3:01
SPEAKER_02: So uh what was the process like becoming a citizen for you?
3:05
SPEAKER_02: Oh, that was a long process.
3:06
SPEAKER_00: We got married, you know.
3:07
SPEAKER_00: My my process was through through marriage.
3:10
SPEAKER_00: We got we got married and and and we applied.
3:13
SPEAKER_00: It's it's a process.
3:14
SPEAKER_00: It it is uh, you know, I at the time my my one of my cousins, you know, related to my blood through my dad's side of the family, he was working for immigration at the time.
3:25
SPEAKER_00: And he told me, don't ever use a lawyer.
3:27
SPEAKER_00: You can fill the forms.
3:28
SPEAKER_00: You know, you're gonna spend a lot of money on on the forms, don't do that.
3:32
SPEAKER_00: Fill them out.
3:32
SPEAKER_00: That's it, you can do it.
3:34
SPEAKER_00: So I did that, you know, and um uh you you start with the i-130, which is the the petition to uh to petition for someone to to uh adjust status, and then you uh justify the reason why you're adjusting, you know, there's criteria.
3:50
SPEAKER_00: So do you meet that criteria?
3:52
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so it's through marriage, this is our marriage certificate, and that goes through a process.
3:56
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
3:56
SPEAKER_00: And then once approved, then they said send uh a notice, okay, yes, we can approve you can petition for your for your husband now that that we we verify that yes, everything is it's it's uh according and in it's valid.
4:11
SPEAKER_00: So then you can petition for your husband, then then you go to a different form, which is the I-435.
4:15
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
4:16
SPEAKER_00: That starts a process.
4:18
SPEAKER_00: Um and and this is oh man, we started the process early in late to 2004, late 2000, early 2005, and and this is post-uh 9-11, so background investigations are taking forever, and it seems like my file was misplaced.
4:40
SPEAKER_00: I don't know what happened because it took like five years.
4:44
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
4:45
SPEAKER_00: And I had friends from our church in in Brownsville who got married within six months.
4:49
SPEAKER_00: Hey, I became a resident like okay, why not?
4:51
SPEAKER_00: Like, yeah, something, you know, my uh file was misplaced or something.
4:56
SPEAKER_02: How were we wow?
4:57
SPEAKER_02: What were you thinking?
4:58
SPEAKER_02: Oh my gosh.
4:58
SPEAKER_02: But yeah, I can't imagine.
5:00
SPEAKER_00: It was a mess.
5:00
SPEAKER_00: It was a mess.
5:01
SPEAKER_00: I I don't know.
5:02
SPEAKER_00: And and I used uh the time who was a congressman Solomon Ortiz, I went to his office and they did inquiries into the um my application, but you know, nothing.
5:14
SPEAKER_02: When you hear people say just come legally, uh, what do you want them to understand about what it is?
5:19
SPEAKER_00: There's a process, you know.
5:20
SPEAKER_00: Uh this is something that the people need to understand about the U.S.
5:24
SPEAKER_00: legally, we admit a million people by law.
5:28
SPEAKER_00: By law, we have numbers that that we have to admit uh legally in our states, and and that's immigrant visas.
5:35
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
5:35
SPEAKER_00: Uh not visitors, no, not students, no immigrant visas.
5:39
SPEAKER_00: People who are immigrating into the US, there's a million a year.
5:43
SPEAKER_00: But if you have, and that's a problem, and I and I think that's one of the things that needs to change, because if you only allow one million and you have two million applicants a year, so you already delayed one year because you only take the first million, and then next year you're gonna take the million that already applied the previous year, and then that new year, another two, three million applied.
6:05
SPEAKER_00: So that's why some applications take depending on the uh on the preference, because there's different preferences, you know, through marriage, uh marriage through a US citizen, your visa is automatic.
6:18
SPEAKER_00: But when you married someone, uh let's say you married a US uh take uh a legal resident, okay, that's a that's a different preference.
6:27
SPEAKER_00: If uh if your relative is petitioning for you, that's a different preference.
6:32
SPEAKER_00: And it varies under age, above 21, so there are different preferences.
6:38
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
6:38
SPEAKER_00: And then there's job uh uh through your job, you there's that's that's a total different separate uh classification that they have in it.
6:48
SPEAKER_00: But so that's the thing, you know, if you have so many applications a year, but you still haven't changed the number of applicants that you can admit every year, that's why the process takes so long.
6:57
SPEAKER_00: Oh wow for some for a lot of people.
6:58
SPEAKER_00: And my my wife had a relative who her brought her uncle petitioned for her sister, uh, but she was already uh about 21.
7:09
SPEAKER_00: It took 21 years before she can before her visa became available.
7:16
SPEAKER_00: Because whenever you apply for the 485, they give you a priority date.
7:21
SPEAKER_00: That's the day they received the application.
7:24
SPEAKER_00: And her application was received, I think, in October 1997.
7:30
SPEAKER_00: And but it wasn't until early 2020, 21 when they were working on applications receiving October 1997.
7:39
SPEAKER_00: That's when she got a letter.
7:40
SPEAKER_00: Okay, now your business is available.
7:42
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, you know, and then you go through the process, the interview, and all of that.
7:46
SPEAKER_00: Uh, but in the meantime, you're you're just waiting.
7:49
SPEAKER_00: Oh smokes.
7:50
SPEAKER_00: No, no, it it just it's it's something has to change in that aspect because yeah, it it it's it takes a long time.
7:56
SPEAKER_02: Is that something that you you'll be dealing with when you know if elected?
8:01
SPEAKER_00: It all depends.
8:02
SPEAKER_00: A lot of that depends on what committee you you you get uh put into.
8:06
SPEAKER_00: Uh there's a uh a committee in Congress that selects okay, all these new members that are coming, the new class.
8:12
SPEAKER_00: So where are we gonna assign them?
8:14
SPEAKER_00: And and you you have some say uh on where you want to be, but but they also look at your district.
8:23
SPEAKER_00: What do you have in your district?
8:24
SPEAKER_00: It has to make sense for them as well.
8:26
SPEAKER_00: It has to make sense for you.
8:28
SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, if you ask me what committees would I would I like to be in, one of them is Armed Services Committee.
8:37
SPEAKER_00: That's a big one because we have two military bases in our district.
8:40
SPEAKER_00: You know, one here in Corpus Christi, one in Kingsville.
8:43
SPEAKER_00: Uh transportation is a big one.
8:44
SPEAKER_00: Uh we have the port of Brandsville, we have the port here in Corpus Christi, even though the port is outside of the district, but still it's in Corpus Christi.
8:52
SPEAKER_00: Transportation is a big one.
8:54
SPEAKER_00: Uh, homeland security, I'm at the border, you know.
8:57
SPEAKER_00: It it just depends on that.
8:58
SPEAKER_00: Of course, appropriations, that's an A committee.
9:01
SPEAKER_00: And the thing about when you have an A committee, you can only serve on an A committee.
9:06
SPEAKER_00: You cannot serve on different committees.
9:07
SPEAKER_00: Oh wow.
9:08
SPEAKER_00: Because it's a lot of it's the load is a lot.
9:12
SPEAKER_00: You can ask for a dispensation and they probably allow you to to join a different committee.
9:16
SPEAKER_00: And and and and it it happens a lot, you know, but you have to ask for that.
9:21
SPEAKER_00: You know, it's just not given.
9:22
SPEAKER_00: You usually you only have if you are if you have an A committee, you stay on that A committee.
9:26
SPEAKER_02: Wow, interesting, interesting.
9:27
SPEAKER_02: Uh so uh you went to UT Brownsville.
9:30
SPEAKER_02: Uh what what brought you there?
9:31
SPEAKER_00: Uh my wife and I were living in Brownsville all the time.
9:34
SPEAKER_02: Okay, okay.
9:35
SPEAKER_02: So is that the only university out there?
9:37
SPEAKER_02: Uh oh.
9:38
SPEAKER_00: Well, they they have a community college.
9:40
SPEAKER_00: Community college.
9:41
SPEAKER_00: Uh Texas San Moss College.
9:43
SPEAKER_00: Okay, okay.
9:43
SPEAKER_00: And it used to they used to be together, but I think they um they separate.
9:48
SPEAKER_00: They were trying to merge, but they separated, and they didn't they they weren't able to merge another two different entities.
9:54
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
9:55
SPEAKER_00: Texas San Mont College is one, just like Belmar College, and then they have UTRGV.
9:59
SPEAKER_00: UTB merge with Pan American, UT Pan American in in in uh where is it in Edinburgh.
10:07
SPEAKER_00: So now it's UTRGV.
10:08
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's like yeah, so you have two two children?
10:11
SPEAKER_02: Uh two girls.
10:13
SPEAKER_02: Two girls, right?
10:14
SPEAKER_02: 11 and 13.
10:15
SPEAKER_02: Okay, okay.
10:16
SPEAKER_02: What what does it look like uh as far as talking to them about college?
10:19
SPEAKER_02: Have you started talking to them?
10:21
SPEAKER_00: We were recently talking with my oldest the other day.
10:24
SPEAKER_00: You know, you know, I cannot tell them what they want to do.
10:27
SPEAKER_00: You know, it's their interest, their their their passion.
10:30
SPEAKER_00: Uh, and I think for everybody, you know, what's your passion?
10:34
SPEAKER_00: What do what what do you like to do?
10:36
SPEAKER_00: Something that comes out of your heart, do it, you know.
10:40
SPEAKER_00: And and she's she's been talking about that.
10:42
SPEAKER_00: Uh uh, we we had a conversation uh a few nights ago about her interest.
10:48
SPEAKER_00: And of course, my wife's a naggie.
10:52
SPEAKER_01: Oh, cool.
10:52
SPEAKER_00: Uh and we took him in 2024.
10:55
SPEAKER_00: Uh, what was it, October 24, 2024?
10:58
SPEAKER_00: We took him to a game with uh against LSU.
11:01
SPEAKER_00: Oh wow, and they drank that Kool-Aid.
11:03
SPEAKER_00: And that day they was like, Wow, I want to come here.
11:07
SPEAKER_00: It's an experience.
11:08
SPEAKER_00: I I never experienced something like that.
11:10
SPEAKER_00: You know, I love AM.
11:11
SPEAKER_00: It's it was a really great experience.
11:14
SPEAKER_00: I know everywhere you hear everybody's like, what the heck?
11:19
SPEAKER_00: Like, yeah, but that's part of uh the traditions that they have there.
11:22
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so so you live there for how long have you lived in in this area?
11:26
SPEAKER_00: Uh here I moved here in 2013, the beginning of 2013.
11:31
SPEAKER_00: That's when redistrict when when I started with Blake, we we had the current uh the district that looks like 34 now from Noises all the way to Brownsville, which Solomon Ortiz had.
11:42
SPEAKER_00: And then 2012, uh there was redistricting in 2011, and then it went through the courts because they were there were some losses against it, but then it got approved.
11:54
SPEAKER_00: So he moved forward, so then it took effect in 2013, so they pushed the district north from noises north instead of noises south.
12:02
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
12:03
SPEAKER_00: So Blake, uh I think from the team in in Brownsville, he only asked me to come to Corpus Christine.
12:08
SPEAKER_00: And so I moved to Corpus.
12:10
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
12:11
SPEAKER_00: Uh in 2013, and I've I I've been ever here ever here ever since.
12:15
SPEAKER_02: Nice.
12:16
SPEAKER_02: So so you worked in the the TX27 uh representatives?
12:21
SPEAKER_02: Yep.
12:21
SPEAKER_02: Uh why Y34 now?
12:23
SPEAKER_02: Why TX34?
12:25
SPEAKER_00: Well, they changed the maps again.
12:27
SPEAKER_00: Uh the legislature changed the map.
12:29
SPEAKER_02: So you were already here in Corpus.
12:30
SPEAKER_00: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
12:31
SPEAKER_00: I was already here.
12:32
SPEAKER_00: I've been here since 20 uh 13.
12:34
SPEAKER_02: Okay, okay.
12:35
SPEAKER_02: So the the the map was changed in this.
12:38
SPEAKER_00: That's what it is.
12:39
SPEAKER_02: Okay, so that's why you're you're doing 34 now because you're here.
12:42
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
12:43
SPEAKER_00: And they had asked me in the past, um, when I left Congress in 2022, December 16, 2022.
12:51
SPEAKER_00: I think the next year, someone asked me, Can you uh we want you to run against Michael?
12:55
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, I can't.
12:56
SPEAKER_00: Oh wow, why not?
12:58
SPEAKER_00: You know, we don't want him anymore.
13:00
SPEAKER_00: Like, yeah, but he's my former boss.
13:01
SPEAKER_00: I'm not gonna run against him.
13:02
SPEAKER_02: Wow, that's crazy.
13:03
SPEAKER_00: Like, that's not that's no good optics.
13:05
SPEAKER_00: I'm sorry.
13:06
SPEAKER_00: And I like I'm not your guy for that.
13:09
SPEAKER_02: Oh man.
13:10
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's interesting.
13:11
SPEAKER_00: And I think Michael is doing a good job.
13:12
SPEAKER_00: Um, he's a strong believer as well, you know.
13:16
SPEAKER_00: So, you know, he's a good friend.
13:18
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so you lived in both areas.
13:20
SPEAKER_02: Uh yeah.
13:21
SPEAKER_02: So you kind of know what's going on in both places.
13:23
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
13:24
SPEAKER_00: Uh Brownsville, I went to Kingsville for one year.
13:26
SPEAKER_00: Uh, and I've been here 13.
13:28
SPEAKER_00: So yeah.
13:29
SPEAKER_02: Wow, amazing, amazing.
13:30
SPEAKER_02: Uh yeah, so that that's uh so you know, so you know the area you went to school here, but also 12 years in Congress.
13:36
SPEAKER_02: Let's talk about that, that those years.
13:39
SPEAKER_02: Um what what did you actually you spent 12 years working in Congress.
13:43
SPEAKER_02: What does a senior field representative actually do?
13:45
SPEAKER_00: So first I started as a caseworker with with Blake.
13:49
SPEAKER_00: And the caseworker, what they do, uh you know, a lot of the things that the the a congressional uh district office, they they you deal a lot with the constituents.
14:00
SPEAKER_00: They they come with issues.
14:01
SPEAKER_00: Just as I went over to or Congressman Ortiz with my issue with immigration, like it's taking forever.
14:07
SPEAKER_00: What's going on?
14:08
SPEAKER_00: There's a lot of issues that at the federal level.
14:11
SPEAKER_00: So I would I would meet with people, hey, I have an issue with immigration, or I have an issue with social security, or I have an issue with Medicare, you know, all these things, passports.
14:22
SPEAKER_00: It it's just incredible the amount of of traffic that you get in that congressional office with people that have you know regular lives dealing with with a federal bureaucracy.
14:31
SPEAKER_00: It's it's insane.
14:32
SPEAKER_00: It's it's so you're a uh red tape cutter, that's what basically you are.
14:38
SPEAKER_00: So I I did that for the first two years in Brownsville.
14:41
SPEAKER_00: When I come came to corpus, I kept doing it, and then I got promoted to field rep with Blake.
14:47
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
14:47
SPEAKER_00: And I and it field rep is a little bit different.
14:50
SPEAKER_00: You're not at the office, your job is to be outside, just talking to people, talking to people, getting a uh a feel of the community.
14:57
SPEAKER_00: What are you hearing, what are you seeing, and report it back to the congressman.
15:00
SPEAKER_00: So whenever he's making decisions in DC based on the knowledge that he has of the area.
15:05
SPEAKER_00: So that's what I did uh with Blake.
15:07
SPEAKER_00: By the time Blake retired or resigned in April 2018, I was district director.
15:15
SPEAKER_00: Um and then he resigned April Friday, the 6th, I think, 2018.
15:24
SPEAKER_00: And then we became part of uh CAO, the chief administrative office of Congress.
15:29
SPEAKER_00: It is a nonpartisan office, so we had no representation, but we still provided services to constituents.
15:37
SPEAKER_00: Um, but we couldn't attend any political event at all.
15:40
SPEAKER_00: Provided services meaning you you stay at the office, okay, and people come, take phone calls, whatever.
15:45
SPEAKER_00: Take phone calls, issues with like regular issues with you name it, immigration BA VA cases already.
15:52
SPEAKER_02: Was there ever a point like where somebody had something similar to your situation and you were talking to them?
16:00
SPEAKER_00: Oh man, you know, I don't remember, but I know I I did help a lot of people because a lot of people have no knowledge what a process looks like.
16:08
SPEAKER_00: And uh oh, I I applied for this form, but it got denied.
16:11
SPEAKER_00: Well, you apply for the second form, you need to first apply and again I-130.
16:15
SPEAKER_00: So you know, there's there's uh it's systematic Yeah.
16:19
SPEAKER_02: So what's can you give me a specific example of cutting through red tape for someone in this district?
16:24
SPEAKER_00: So a lot of like let's say VA, you know, uh for I don't know how it is in other states or other parts of the country or parts of Texas, but uh a lot of people they said that a Houston VA, it was okay.
16:41
SPEAKER_00: That let me let me backtrack a little bit.
16:43
SPEAKER_00: The VA has two parts.
16:45
SPEAKER_00: When you refer to the VA, what are you referring to?
16:47
SPEAKER_00: The medical side or the benefits side?
16:49
SPEAKER_00: So you you gotta understand what is the constituent asking for.
16:54
SPEAKER_00: Um a lot of them are benefits, you know.
16:57
SPEAKER_00: Hey, I I apply for my disability, it's taking forever.
17:00
SPEAKER_00: All right, let me let me reach out to the you know, you need to sign a privacy release form.
17:04
SPEAKER_00: You get their information, they sign it, and then you send it to the VA.
17:08
SPEAKER_00: Hey, this constituent came to our office.
17:10
SPEAKER_00: This is his uh his claim, and he applied for this disability or or uh percentage on his disability.
17:18
SPEAKER_00: What's the status of it?
17:19
SPEAKER_00: And then the VA will will re reply to you and give you an answer of where the status of that application is.
17:26
SPEAKER_00: Um it's it's just pushing things, bringing it to the attention of someone, and instead of just a bunch of paperwork and it's just there.
17:34
SPEAKER_02: Holy smokes.
17:35
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, there's there's a lot of that.
17:36
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, wow.
17:37
SPEAKER_02: Man, so what so how come you decided to like I guess it you have to come from a place of understanding to one wanting to help people for one.
17:48
SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah, to me, that was one of the things that I wanted, man.
17:51
SPEAKER_00: I just want to make a difference in people's lives, a positive uh difference in people's lives.
17:55
SPEAKER_00: And and it was through my work, like I, you know, I couldn't solve every single issue because there's issues that you cannot solve, and that and that I remember one case that I had in Brazil with a specific person who had an issue with um a passport.
18:12
SPEAKER_00: That person wanted to get the passport and apply for that passport, and when they were going through the process, the passport agency called me.
18:22
SPEAKER_00: The person that you're talking to cannot get a passport.
18:24
SPEAKER_00: And the reason is this when that person was a baby, they crossed the border because a lot of the issues that you find in the border is they were born through midwives and some were illicit documents that people bought him instead of really being born and then here's your birth certificate.
18:43
SPEAKER_00: Some people paid for him and got him.
18:46
SPEAKER_00: So there were some uh midwives that were the they were they knew government knew okay, these are these people are selling fraudulent documents.
18:56
SPEAKER_00: So whenever they had received a document from oh, we have that name of this on our list that is blacklisted, so there's some more paperwork that you need to provide to make sure it it matches everything.
19:09
SPEAKER_00: And one of in this specific case, that person came when that person was a baby, and they were crossing the border, the port of entry, and then the officers are like, uh I don't know, secondary interrogation.
19:25
SPEAKER_00: And the the mother of this person confessed, Well, yeah, my husband bought the birth certificate.
19:33
SPEAKER_00: So there's a record on that in their system.
19:37
SPEAKER_00: And then they call me and they tell me this, and they said, You cannot tell this to this person.
19:43
SPEAKER_00: And I couldn't because you know and she that person uh the the the person that called me was her name.
19:51
SPEAKER_00: I I forgot her name.
19:52
SPEAKER_00: That the person that called me.
19:53
SPEAKER_00: She she she was very clear, Luis, but honestly, you cannot tell him what that you know that happened many, many decades ago.
20:00
SPEAKER_00: And now this person being an adult, that person had no idea what the mom had done.
20:06
SPEAKER_02: Do you think there's anything like that's maybe broken in Congress that most people don't see?
20:11
SPEAKER_00: There's a lot of things broken in Congress.
20:13
SPEAKER_02: Uh and and that that's normal to government.
20:16
SPEAKER_00: I mean, not normal, but it shouldn't be normal.
20:19
SPEAKER_00: It shouldn't be normal.
20:20
SPEAKER_00: Uh a lot of it, what what you see, and I uh I had conversations with Congressman Cloud a lot about this, where you see on TV and they're fighting and attacking each other, members of Congress.
20:32
SPEAKER_00: Right, right, right.
20:32
SPEAKER_00: And then once C-span and the TVs are off, hey, man, sorry, dude, but you know, they do that.
20:39
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
20:40
SPEAKER_00: No way, they do that a lot.
20:41
SPEAKER_00: Like, man, I'm sorry that personal attack, but my my people, my base is asking me, and they want pressure on this, but you know, nothing personal, but on TV, that's what it appears.
20:52
SPEAKER_00: And and that's not right.
20:54
SPEAKER_00: I I you know uh a different thing that I see there's no more you know, back in the day, there used to be men with character, personal people with character that would always do what's right, you know, do the right thing, not just what's best for you or for your party.
21:12
SPEAKER_00: And and that's what has changed a lot in our politics.
21:15
SPEAKER_00: You know, when I came to this country as a foreign student, I fell in love with the values and ideals.
21:21
SPEAKER_00: But the last 20, 25 years, man, I don't know what's happening.
21:25
SPEAKER_00: Everybody's pushing for their side, and it's not about our country, it's about their party, who's in power, how do we remain in power?
21:32
SPEAKER_00: So there's a lot that needs to change, but a lot of it goes back to the heart.
21:36
SPEAKER_00: You know, people have complained about oh, Luis has a heavy accent, I don't think he has a path for victory.
21:40
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, yeah, speech may uh might not be my forte, but hey, coaching, you the practice, you get better.
21:49
SPEAKER_00: But the heart, you don't change that that easily.
21:52
SPEAKER_00: That takes time if you don't have the integrity to do what's right, how do you change that, either you have it or not?
21:59
SPEAKER_00: Um Uh but I I've seen that uh the the people have been sent to Congress with the wrong character, there are no integrity, and and you see all of all of a sudden these people that became super wealthy because insider trading, and you know, and they don't think twice.
22:15
SPEAKER_00: They just oh yeah, I have that chance, why not?
22:18
SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah, but is it right?
22:19
SPEAKER_00: No, it's not right.
22:20
SPEAKER_02: Lito says we need Luis in office.
22:23
SPEAKER_02: Uh Lito.
22:25
SPEAKER_02: What's up, Lito?
22:27
SPEAKER_00: Love you, brother.
22:27
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, good job at the show the other day, man.
22:30
SPEAKER_02: Uh comedy show.
22:31
SPEAKER_02: He was there.
22:31
SPEAKER_00: Uh, I want to be there on your show on the 14th.
22:34
SPEAKER_00: Looking forward to that.
22:35
SPEAKER_02: You better kill it, bro.
22:37
SPEAKER_02: Uh yeah, so you know, so you basically know what's going on.
22:40
SPEAKER_02: Uh, what would you diff do differently uh if you were the one in this in that seat?
22:45
SPEAKER_00: Look, uh, I'm your worst liar.
22:48
SPEAKER_00: If I do something that is not right, you will see it in my face.
22:51
SPEAKER_00: Oh, wow.
22:52
SPEAKER_00: I cannot hide it, man.
22:53
SPEAKER_00: Is that true?
22:54
SPEAKER_00: Oh, yeah.
22:55
SPEAKER_00: Right, they're calling you.
22:56
SPEAKER_02: Is that true?
22:57
SPEAKER_02: What?
22:58
SPEAKER_02: Is that is that true that he's a bad liar?
23:00
SPEAKER_00: He is you'll see you see it in my face, man.
23:03
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, I cannot hide it.
23:05
SPEAKER_00: And I to me, it is the Holy Spirit when you feel like, oh man, I don't think that's right.
23:13
SPEAKER_00: It is the Holy Spirit talking, hey, watch out.
23:15
SPEAKER_00: There's a reason.
23:16
SPEAKER_00: And I I experienced that with the Holy Spirit so many times.
23:19
SPEAKER_00: We're like, let me do it.
23:22
SPEAKER_00: I will regret it.
23:23
SPEAKER_00: Is the Holy Spirit telling you, yeah, stop, don't do it.
23:26
SPEAKER_02: Yo, talking about that, uh, like so reading the Bible, do verses ever come to your mind like when when you're in those situations, like, oh, I remember reading this.
23:36
SPEAKER_02: This is what the word says about this situation.
23:38
SPEAKER_00: And I think I think to me, the the the the one that always like honor honor God in everything you do.
23:44
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
23:44
SPEAKER_00: You you know, because we are we're a reflection of him in a way, you know.
23:50
SPEAKER_00: Or at least we're supposed to reflect him in but we usually fall short.
23:56
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, we're humans, our humanity kicks in.
23:59
SPEAKER_02: You know, yeah, yeah.
24:01
SPEAKER_02: So yeah, uh fair the Farrenhold questions.
24:03
SPEAKER_02: Obviously, we gotta bring uh so you worked with Blake Farrenholdt.
24:06
SPEAKER_02: What was that experience like?
24:07
SPEAKER_02: You mentioned he was a godly, you know, or or a cloud is cloud is, you know, and Blake too.
24:12
SPEAKER_00: Uh uh, I know Blake and his family attended a church here.
24:16
SPEAKER_00: My goodness, Blake, he was you know, I can only experience what I for my experience, what I saw, what I experienced with him.
24:26
SPEAKER_00: He was a great guy, funny guy, and uh extremely smart, very intelligent.
24:32
SPEAKER_00: You could talk any topic, and he will give you an answer.
24:36
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, okay, so how do you know that?
24:40
SPEAKER_00: But that's that's uh in our government, in in in high levels of government, that's what you will find.
24:47
SPEAKER_00: People know they he said a mile mile wide, one inch deep.
24:55
SPEAKER_00: So we have knowledge of a lot of things, but not uh we don't get into the weeds, we just know enough to engage in a conversation.
25:02
SPEAKER_00: Then the more intricate stuff, okay, let me research on that and I'll get back to you.
25:06
SPEAKER_00: And they would, yeah.
25:07
SPEAKER_00: But that was the thing about Blake Man.
25:09
SPEAKER_00: He knew, oh my goodness, you know, because I was with him at different meetings, and our I don't know out of our community, and and and they would ask Blake, hey Blake, what about this?
25:20
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, Oh, yeah, and then blah blah blah, like, I'm like, why is that?
25:24
SPEAKER_00: Uh I didn't know, but yeah, he knew it and he was well versed.
25:28
SPEAKER_00: That was he was I was very impressed with him because he knew a lot of things, a lot of things.
25:34
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
25:35
SPEAKER_02: So uh obviously allegations came up and stuff.
25:38
SPEAKER_02: You were you surprised, or like what were your did you have any initial thoughts?
25:43
SPEAKER_02: Do you have any initial thoughts about that?
25:45
SPEAKER_00: Was I surprised, of course.
25:46
SPEAKER_00: Like, like that's not Blake.
25:48
SPEAKER_00: And and uh I think one well I read a lot of that, but what my understanding, and and really I don't know much about it.
25:57
SPEAKER_00: Um my understanding of that, you know, they they came with an initial amount because they w they wanted to settle immediately.
26:05
SPEAKER_00: And and they're like, I'm blake, I don't want to settle, I didn't do anything.
26:10
SPEAKER_00: And and the problem with with that happen with Blake whenever he got a lawsuit, he was to the office of Blake, uh Congressman Blake Farendal.
26:21
SPEAKER_00: And so he called his lawyer, and then the lawyer came, and they're talking, and a house counsel comes along and then they ask him who's this guy?
26:30
SPEAKER_00: Oh, he's my lawyer, he's gonna represent me.
26:32
SPEAKER_00: No, he's not.
26:33
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, excuse me, he's my lawyer.
26:36
SPEAKER_00: Like, uh the lawsuit is against the office of, not Blake Farrental, two different things.
26:42
SPEAKER_00: When it's the office of, we house counsel represent you.
26:47
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, and he like, but I don't know you guys, like but that's how it is.
26:52
SPEAKER_00: And to my understanding, that for them it's how do we save money to the taxpayers?
26:59
SPEAKER_00: And they said, Okay, if we settle, we can pay the settlement that they're asking, but if we go to look, if we go to court, it's gonna cost a million dollars.
27:06
SPEAKER_00: That's a lot of money for from taxpayers.
27:08
SPEAKER_00: And when they told him, I uh we're gonna settle.
27:11
SPEAKER_00: Oh no, I don't want to settle.
27:12
SPEAKER_00: Oh, we're not asking you.
27:13
SPEAKER_00: I'm telling you, we're gonna settle.
27:15
SPEAKER_00: And then and Blake, wait a minute, my reputation's at stake, doesn't matter to us.
27:20
SPEAKER_00: Our job is to save taxpayers money, and that's the fastest way to do it.
27:25
SPEAKER_00: So we're settling.
27:26
SPEAKER_02: So he prom he promised to pay some a sum of amount back or something like that.
27:31
SPEAKER_00: I I don't know, but but that's the thing, you know, it was not Blake Ferrandel if anything.
27:37
SPEAKER_00: Right, right, okay, okay, okay.
27:38
SPEAKER_00: House counsel.
27:39
SPEAKER_00: So I don't I don't I don't know.
27:40
SPEAKER_00: I don't know the details of the whole thing.
27:42
SPEAKER_00: Just for from what I heard from different people, you know, I know that there were some agreements with Blake.
27:47
SPEAKER_00: He couldn't say anything, he didn't say anything at all.
27:49
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, you know, that was kept confidential.
27:52
SPEAKER_02: So what did you learn?
27:53
SPEAKER_02: Did you learn anything from that when that that situation was unfolding?
27:58
SPEAKER_00: That maybe you know, that's a great question.
28:01
SPEAKER_00: Uh I I don't know, you know, some people it's it's hard to understand why people do what they do.
28:09
SPEAKER_00: You know, what what are the motives of of the lawsuit?
28:11
SPEAKER_00: Why do you just want money or what what is it, you know?
28:14
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
28:15
SPEAKER_00: Um, so I don't know.
28:17
SPEAKER_02: Nice, nice, nice.
28:18
SPEAKER_02: Um, yeah, I looked on Wikipedia and it said that you were a lobbyist.
28:22
SPEAKER_02: Is that accurate?
28:23
SPEAKER_00: That's very inaccurate.
28:24
SPEAKER_00: But I don't know.
28:25
SPEAKER_00: Maybe that's a difference.
28:28
SPEAKER_02: Maybe you lobby your daughter.
28:30
SPEAKER_02: Hey, I'll give you a couple dollars, help mom out.
28:33
SPEAKER_02: Uh so uh and so you worked with Shineer Energy?
28:37
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
28:38
SPEAKER_02: Um, biggest biggest LNG company, one of the biggest companies in in the country for LNG.
28:43
SPEAKER_02: Uh, how would voters know you're work you're working for them and not your oh they're you're you're not employed with them, right?
28:50
SPEAKER_00: Oh no, no, no, I had to resign uh before announcing that I was running for Congress.
28:54
SPEAKER_01: Oh, okay, okay.
28:54
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, they told me if I decided to run to announce or run, it would be a conflict of interest.
28:59
SPEAKER_00: So I had to wait until I was out in order for me to announce.
29:02
SPEAKER_00: Well, I could say I was I'm thinking about it, I haven't made a decision, and that's what I did, that's how I handled it because that was my commitment to senior that I was not gonna announce until I was officially out.
29:13
SPEAKER_02: Wow, oh my gosh.
29:14
SPEAKER_02: So you had made that you had that decision is like seems hard to me.
29:18
SPEAKER_02: Oh, because trust me, you got a family.
29:21
SPEAKER_00: It was hard.
29:21
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, what was that like?
29:22
SPEAKER_02: I mean, it's it was it was prayer, prayer.
29:25
SPEAKER_00: It was a lot of prayer, honestly.
29:26
SPEAKER_00: It was a lot of prayer when uh the the process with them uh when I talked to my VP at the time.
29:32
SPEAKER_00: Uh he said, Well, you know, he's asking me because I'm supposed to be informed of what's happening in our communities.
29:39
SPEAKER_00: And then we had rumors about 34.
29:42
SPEAKER_00: So, okay, Luis, so who's running for Congress in that new district?
29:46
SPEAKER_00: And I just put a big smile.
29:48
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, okay, tell me, you I know you know who's running.
29:52
SPEAKER_00: Uh Maya running, right?
29:53
SPEAKER_00: Like, yeah, I think she's gonna jump in and then all of that.
29:56
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, okay, but okay, so what's up with as well?
29:59
SPEAKER_00: Who else?
30:00
SPEAKER_00: And I said, Well, I'm thinking about jumping on in the coup.
30:03
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, what?
30:04
SPEAKER_00: He said, I'm thinking about jumping, so I want to see what does that look for Shane?
30:08
SPEAKER_00: You know, can I take a leap of absence?
30:10
SPEAKER_00: Oh, wow, what does that look like?
30:12
SPEAKER_00: And he said, Man, Luis, I have no idea.
30:14
SPEAKER_00: We never had anybody from Shane run for office.
30:16
SPEAKER_00: Let it let me have conversations with HR, legal, ethics, and get an answer for you.
30:22
SPEAKER_00: So it took about a month or so, and then he came back and he told me, Okay, so we finally have a final decision for you.
30:30
SPEAKER_00: If you decide to run, you have to resign.
30:32
SPEAKER_01: Oh, wow.
30:33
SPEAKER_00: And I was like, Excuse me.
30:34
SPEAKER_00: He said, Yeah.
30:35
SPEAKER_00: So when I talked to my wife, hey, you know, I was coming back from from work, and and I said, We gotta sit down and talk, and we did.
30:43
SPEAKER_00: And I said, So this is what she said.
30:46
SPEAKER_00: And my wife says, thinking, okay, it's easy.
30:49
SPEAKER_00: She's gonna say, Well, keep your job, you know.
30:51
SPEAKER_00: She homeschooled, we homeschooled, so yeah, she stays home with with our daughters.
30:56
SPEAKER_00: And now she just so I I thought, okay, it's gonna be an easy answer.
31:01
SPEAKER_00: Don't run, don't run, keep your job.
31:03
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
31:03
SPEAKER_00: And then she looks at me and said, Well, baby, I think I I have peace from God that you should run for office.
31:09
SPEAKER_00: I was like, Oh, no, don't tell me that not what I wanted to hear.
31:14
SPEAKER_00: I wanted the easy way out.
31:15
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, honestly, I wanted the easy, easy way out.
31:18
SPEAKER_00: And it took weeks of prayer, first direction, give me the direction, give me clear direction, Lord.
31:25
SPEAKER_00: I want you to, I want to know that you're behind me in this.
31:28
SPEAKER_00: When he finally did, I said, okay, now give me the courage to make that decision because it was hard, it wasn't easy.
31:33
SPEAKER_00: It was a lot of weeks uh of prayer, prayer, prayer, prayer, and finally, okay, let me write my letter of resignation.
31:42
SPEAKER_02: Well, when you told me you worked there, I thought you were like an engineer.
31:45
SPEAKER_02: Oh no.
31:45
SPEAKER_02: Uh, and so do you want to discuss maybe what you did there?
31:49
SPEAKER_00: Uh yeah, yeah, I was a local government and community affairs.
31:51
SPEAKER_00: So you know, kind of what I was doing for for Blake and Michael.
31:54
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
31:55
SPEAKER_00: Engage with our communities, with our nonprofits, understanding what's happening, what are the issues, oh my concerns, talking with all our elected officials, talking with community leaders, uh, and just engaging with our community.
32:08
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, being in that conversation, yeah, for sure.
32:09
SPEAKER_02: Uh man, that's awesome.
32:10
SPEAKER_02: Uh, so I got some questions from uh the community uh at my from my platform.
32:15
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
32:15
SPEAKER_02: Uh Joaquin.
32:16
SPEAKER_02: Uh he couldn't be here.
32:17
SPEAKER_02: He he was he said he wanted to watch it, but he was the Super Bowl's going on or whatever.
32:22
SPEAKER_02: Which I don't watch football uh.
32:25
SPEAKER_02: So it's cool that you're here at at this time and you're here with me.
32:28
SPEAKER_02: Uh so what are your plans for legislation to help secure uh water for the people of District 34?
32:35
SPEAKER_00: I I think uh uh the the legislation that I'd like to pass is just to bring funding for it, but have the federal government away from it.
32:45
SPEAKER_00: You know, we just provide the funding, let the state and the local communities and local entities work on that.
32:50
SPEAKER_00: You don't want the federal government email.
32:52
SPEAKER_02: You don't want them involved.
32:52
SPEAKER_00: No, just give some funding, help them, but stay out of it.
32:56
SPEAKER_02: Stay out of it.
32:57
SPEAKER_02: Wow, uh yeah, um follow uh specifically at the federal uh level, what would you fight for regarding uh the that issue?
33:08
SPEAKER_00: The water, you know, the the Bureau of Reclamation, you know, you can find some some some funding for it.
33:12
SPEAKER_00: You know, the only thing that I think you want the federal government involved is in the funding, you know, get some funding so the the the state of Texas, Nueces County, and the Citrous Christian can work on something for our communities.
33:25
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, for sure.
33:26
SPEAKER_00: You know, but don't don't involve the federal government to to be part of everything because then it's just a mess.
33:32
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, I can imagine.
33:34
SPEAKER_00: Leave it local.
33:35
SPEAKER_00: You know, I don't I don't I don't I don't see people you know people in DC dictating how it should be done.
33:41
SPEAKER_00: Like you don't live here, you don't understand the dynamics, you don't understand where things are, how far they are, and all of it that comes involved.
33:48
SPEAKER_00: And I I I don't like the fact that DC wants to involve in things where they don't even live.
33:53
SPEAKER_00: Like, yeah, give us the funding, let the local communities, let the state of Texas.
33:58
SPEAKER_00: And and but the most important thing of it is collaboration.
34:02
SPEAKER_00: You have to work together.
34:04
SPEAKER_00: Because if you don't have that collaboration, it's not gonna go anywhere.
34:07
SPEAKER_02: Oh, for sure.
34:07
SPEAKER_02: It reminds me of that story, I think it's in, I don't know where it's at, but Jethro, Moses' stepdad or something like that.
34:13
SPEAKER_02: Uh-huh.
34:13
SPEAKER_02: He tells him, he tells him you need to delegate.
34:15
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
34:16
SPEAKER_00: You know what I mean?
34:16
SPEAKER_02: It reminds me of that.
34:17
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
34:18
SPEAKER_00: Instead of just one and 70 people to do that.
34:20
SPEAKER_00: Yes.
34:20
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
34:21
SPEAKER_00: That's where the Sanhedrin's come from.
34:22
SPEAKER_00: That's 70 people.
34:24
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
34:24
SPEAKER_02: Nice, nice.
34:25
SPEAKER_02: Oh, yes.
34:26
SPEAKER_02: So being that you you live here in Corpus, uh, would you have voted against or for the diesel plant or have any alternatives for that?
34:33
SPEAKER_00: No, I think the diesel plant is it's a good idea.
34:36
SPEAKER_00: Uh uh to me, you know, I don't want to speculate on anything, you know, we uh hypotheticals have I I don't get in that.
34:46
SPEAKER_00: But to me, who are the experts on diesel?
34:51
SPEAKER_02: Right.
34:52
SPEAKER_00: You know, it's not San Diego, California.
34:54
SPEAKER_00: You gotta go either to Saudi Arabia, Israel, where they've been doing diesel plants for years.
35:03
SPEAKER_00: You know, Saudi Arabia has no rivers going through their country.
35:07
SPEAKER_00: So they need to get some.
35:08
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, figure that out.
35:10
SPEAKER_00: So they've been doing that for many, many, many years.
35:12
SPEAKER_00: So they have an expertise in that.
35:15
SPEAKER_00: Go talk to them.
35:15
SPEAKER_00: Hey, how do you guys do it?
35:17
SPEAKER_00: What works, what doesn't work?
35:19
SPEAKER_00: Let's not just try it out.
35:20
SPEAKER_00: You know, you gotta really just do it and do it very well because there's not such a second second chance because then you spend money on something that uh later on is like, oh man, we're having troubles.
35:31
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
35:32
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and me as a taxpayer here in corpus, it's like, dude, that's our money.
35:36
SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
35:36
SPEAKER_00: You know what I mean?
35:37
SPEAKER_00: No, no, exactly.
35:38
SPEAKER_00: It is our money.
35:39
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
35:39
SPEAKER_02: Uh yeah, so uh I guess we've moving to but bipartisan work from uh another topic.
35:44
SPEAKER_02: Are are you willing to work on issues in a bipartisan manner?
35:48
SPEAKER_02: I don't even know what that means, but Joaquin was asking that question.
35:50
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so look, something that I learned from Blake, and and that was such a great idea from Blake, and he did it a lot.
35:57
SPEAKER_00: Anytime that he wanted to introduce a bill, he would go to Philomon Bella.
36:02
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
36:02
SPEAKER_00: Or Henrik Wayar.
36:03
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
36:04
SPEAKER_00: Hey man, can we sponsor this bill?
36:05
SPEAKER_00: Gotcha.
36:05
SPEAKER_00: Can we co-sponsor this bill?
36:08
SPEAKER_00: And I think that's a great way to start.
36:10
SPEAKER_00: Because, hey, I have these ideas.
36:12
SPEAKER_00: What what ideas can you bring and together make it out there?
36:17
SPEAKER_00: You know, thousands of bills are presented every year in Congress.
36:21
SPEAKER_00: Thousands, and not all not all the bills passed, very few.
36:25
SPEAKER_00: It's by design, of course.
36:27
SPEAKER_00: You know, everybody's gonna present their things, but but when you have a partisan aspect of things where you can work with them because that's what Blake did, yeah, you know, and I think he passed his first bill as a freshman member of Congress, which is very rare, I think.
36:44
SPEAKER_00: You know, as a freshman, you hardly you're still learning, you you don't have any leverage whatsoever.
36:50
SPEAKER_00: Wow, and that's what people don't understand.
36:52
SPEAKER_00: That they want, you know.
36:53
SPEAKER_00: I've seen so many races where people scream, oh man, I want to go tell them how they need to vote and how I'm like, oh man, like you don't understand the system.
37:02
SPEAKER_00: You know, you have no leverage whatsoever.
37:04
SPEAKER_00: You at the bottom of the totem pole, you gotta build first uh relationships with people.
37:10
SPEAKER_00: That's what you need to start doing that.
37:12
SPEAKER_00: Your first year trying to see how things operate, who are the players, uh, build those uh relationships uh in and and to to be effective.
37:22
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
37:23
SPEAKER_00: When you think you you gotta go tell them what they need to do, oh yeah, they're that's not gonna work.
37:28
SPEAKER_00: It doesn't work that way.
37:30
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it reminds me of like even like at a like at my job or something like that, you get a new boss coming in, everything changes, or I for whatever reason they decide to change it, and everybody's like it happens in a lot of you know a lot of places.
37:43
SPEAKER_00: I remember, you know, from stories that I read uh in in in Vietnam War, you know, you had that West Point officer that came into the field, like, all right, recently graduates from West Point, and and people like, oh man, new officer from West Point.
37:56
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, you know what he would do?
37:58
SPEAKER_00: And that's great leadership.
37:59
SPEAKER_00: Hey, sergeant, what do you think we should do?
38:02
SPEAKER_00: Because he's brand new.
38:03
SPEAKER_00: The sergeant has been there for a long time in the field.
38:06
SPEAKER_00: Show me the ropes because I don't know it.
38:09
SPEAKER_00: Right.
38:09
SPEAKER_00: Yes, I have the rank, but I don't have the knowledge that you have.
38:12
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah.
38:13
SPEAKER_00: You know, and and it takes you're gonna be humble.
38:16
SPEAKER_00: Yep, you have to be humble.
38:17
SPEAKER_02: That's a good point.
38:18
SPEAKER_02: I was thinking that too, definitely.
38:20
SPEAKER_02: In my experience, uh, I got I I got my CDL through Delmar, and they teach you basic stuff.
38:28
SPEAKER_02: When they threw when I got into the actual job, hey, how do you do this?
38:32
SPEAKER_02: Which route do you take?
38:33
SPEAKER_02: Yes, you know what I mean?
38:34
SPEAKER_00: You have to you have to be humble and accept hey and and even right now, I don't know at all.
38:40
SPEAKER_00: I need to ask questions.
38:41
SPEAKER_00: I do not know at all.
38:43
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and you might ask me a question, I'm like, oh man, I have no idea.
38:46
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, but you know, I'm not afraid to say that because it it's it just it's true.
38:50
SPEAKER_00: You know, I'm not gonna say something that is inaccurate just to pretend that, oh yes, I know it all.
38:56
SPEAKER_00: I know that's not me.
38:57
SPEAKER_02: Well, that's part of what God teaches too.
38:59
SPEAKER_02: Like I believe, you know, uh, you know, pride before the fall that's Proverbs 16, 18.
39:04
SPEAKER_02: Proverbs, yep.
39:04
SPEAKER_00: You know, pride comes before the fall.
39:07
SPEAKER_00: Always.
39:07
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
39:08
SPEAKER_02: So give me an example of an issue you'd work with uh Democrats on.
39:14
SPEAKER_00: In Congress, well, uh I worked the district.
39:17
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
39:18
SPEAKER_00: I wor I didn't work in Washington.
39:20
SPEAKER_00: And so over here, you know, I I knew a lot of people that came to our office that that I knew they were not Republicans, but it doesn't matter because when they come to the office, you're representing everybody.
39:32
SPEAKER_00: You don't ask questions, so hey, are you what party?
39:35
SPEAKER_00: Like, no, you don't you don't do that.
39:36
SPEAKER_00: Yes, the bipartisan thing is in Washington, DC.
39:39
SPEAKER_00: That's where you work a lot of that.
39:41
SPEAKER_00: Uh over here, just helping the people, helping, helping your community, you know, with regardless of what party they or ideology or anything like that, you know.
39:49
SPEAKER_00: No, yeah, that's not that's not me.
39:51
SPEAKER_00: That's interesting.
39:52
SPEAKER_00: To me, it's making like how can we make a difference?
39:54
SPEAKER_00: How can we live this place better?
39:55
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, right on.
39:56
SPEAKER_02: Uh uh, what are the top three issues you want to address if elected?
40:03
SPEAKER_00: Oh man, there's more than three, but honestly, one of the things I I love to see a change, and I I don't think it is gonna need less legislation at all.
40:13
SPEAKER_00: But one of the things that I'm passionate about is how we do politics.
40:17
SPEAKER_00: Uh I don't know if you've been following my my page or or my campaign, but I'm not running any any negative campaign at all against anybody.
40:29
SPEAKER_00: And since every since the very beginning, people said, Oh, I have dirt on this, like I don't, I don't care.
40:35
SPEAKER_00: I don't care.
40:35
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, don't tell me I'm not gonna use it.
40:37
SPEAKER_00: And people send me information about all these other candidates, like I don't want to use it.
40:42
SPEAKER_00: Because it's a disservice to our country.
40:45
SPEAKER_01: Right.
40:45
SPEAKER_00: You know, there would be great people out there that will be fantastic members of Congress that we as a country would benefit.
40:52
SPEAKER_00: They just don't want to deal with it.
40:53
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, why expose myself and my family to the nastiness of how it is now?
40:57
SPEAKER_02: Exactly.
40:57
SPEAKER_00: I want to change that.
40:58
SPEAKER_02: How do you yeah, how do you find yourself because obviously it's tempting.
41:01
SPEAKER_02: Uh, how do you find yourself how do well how do you find yourself being like it goes back to character, you know, because I I got an information about some of the candidates saying the race, I'm like, oh, this can benefit you sit against them, like, no.
41:17
SPEAKER_00: There's to me, there's no honor in that, honestly.
41:19
SPEAKER_00: Why am I gonna put someone down to just to make myself look good?
41:24
SPEAKER_00: That's not what I do, and and and that's what I've been telling people.
41:27
SPEAKER_00: Look at the character of the person, look at the integrity because that's what we need, that's what matters.
41:33
SPEAKER_00: And I'm I'm just gonna say it, and I've said it in the past, and I told him uh uh my opponents, they've been placing signs all over.
41:42
SPEAKER_00: Have they asked the owners, hey, can I place a sign on your property?
41:45
SPEAKER_00: They haven't.
41:46
SPEAKER_00: I'm pretty sure they have in some cases, right?
41:48
SPEAKER_00: Right.
41:48
SPEAKER_00: But uh, you know, one of them put a sign on on our on the property of our church that I go to in Rock City without asking.
41:55
SPEAKER_00: Wow, and and to me, think about stuff, man.
41:58
SPEAKER_00: Man, if you don't do what's right in the little things, you know, that just gives you a glimpse of how they're going to behave if they get elected in Washington, D.C.
42:07
SPEAKER_00: When things that are uh lucrative for them in a way, you know, and you see it with insider trading, all of a sudden they just became millionaires.
42:16
SPEAKER_00: Like, how did that happen?
42:17
SPEAKER_00: You only make$174,000 a year, but it's character.
42:22
SPEAKER_00: Because if they don't if they don't do what's right when in the little things, that just gives you a glimpse of what's happening or what's going to happen or what could happen.
42:30
SPEAKER_00: I'm not saying that it will happen, but it just you you can see that pattern.
42:35
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, for sure.
42:36
SPEAKER_00: It's integrity.
42:37
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, thanks a lot, you guys, for listening on the live stream, uh Lito Cortez on YouTube, anybody else on Facebook.
42:42
SPEAKER_02: Thanks a lot for listening.
42:43
SPEAKER_02: Uh, I wanted to plug out I got a merch store, corporatechristie originals.com, uh, support the podcast, you guys.
42:49
SPEAKER_02: Uh also I wanted to give a shout out to Corpus Christie Comedy.com.
42:54
SPEAKER_02: I just had an interview with uh uh Bobby Pena the third over there.
42:58
SPEAKER_02: Uh if you want to see what's going on with comedy and stuff like that, check out their page, corporatechristie comedy.com.
43:04
SPEAKER_02: Check them out.
43:05
SPEAKER_02: Uh yeah, so you so how politistics is done, right?
43:08
SPEAKER_02: That you would choose that.
43:09
SPEAKER_02: Why would you choose that over everything else?
43:12
SPEAKER_00: Well, uh no, it's just one of them.
43:14
SPEAKER_00: Honestly, there's a lot of things that you know our spending is out of control.
43:18
SPEAKER_00: You know, we need to cut our spending.
43:19
SPEAKER_00: You know, for years they haven't passed the 12 appropriation bills that they're supposed to be passing.
43:25
SPEAKER_00: And they haven't done any man, I don't even know when was the last time, 2009, I think.
43:29
SPEAKER_00: Oh, wow.
43:29
SPEAKER_00: It's always a CR continuing resolution.
43:31
SPEAKER_00: Let's use what we used last year.
43:33
SPEAKER_00: Let's like really don't be lazy.
43:36
SPEAKER_00: Let's really get on the issues and and pass those twelve appropriation bills.
43:41
SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I think we should have a balanced budget.
43:44
SPEAKER_00: Oh.
43:44
SPEAKER_00: But there's no law for that.
43:46
SPEAKER_00: Well, why don't we pass a a law like Texas?
43:48
SPEAKER_00: They need to have a balanced budget.
43:50
SPEAKER_00: How can we not do that in our country?
43:53
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
43:54
SPEAKER_00: Because uh yeah, we we we get we as revenue, we get about four point$9 trillion a year, but we spend 6.8?
44:04
SPEAKER_00: Whoa.
44:05
SPEAKER_00: Wait a minute.
44:06
SPEAKER_00: That doesn't make sense.
44:07
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
44:07
SPEAKER_00: It doesn't make sense.
44:09
SPEAKER_00: Why are we at$38 trillion in debt?
44:11
SPEAKER_00: Yep.
44:12
SPEAKER_00: You know, it does not make sense.
44:14
SPEAKER_02: Wow.
44:14
SPEAKER_02: So it's so there's something needs to be done.
44:16
SPEAKER_00: Okay, gotcha.
44:17
SPEAKER_00: Something needs to be done.
44:18
SPEAKER_00: Honestly, that spending is out of control.
44:19
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so we're talking about DEI and special needs.
44:22
SPEAKER_02: Uh given the state's attack on DEI, how do you plan to ensure that nonprofits centered around diversity, equity, and inclusion of special needs children are able to keep their doors open and help the community?
44:33
SPEAKER_00: And that's great.
44:34
SPEAKER_00: And and I I had a great experience with uh there's an organization in town that helps people with disabilities.
44:46
SPEAKER_00: You know, you whenever you they're in school, school system helps you through the process.
44:51
SPEAKER_00: You know, especially needs children.
44:53
SPEAKER_00: But once they're 18, figure out.
44:58
SPEAKER_00: And then what?
45:00
SPEAKER_00: They still have disabilities.
45:02
SPEAKER_00: How who's addressing that?
45:03
SPEAKER_00: No one.
45:04
SPEAKER_00: That goes back to the family.
45:07
SPEAKER_00: And um and Dr.
45:09
SPEAKER_00: Jennifer, she's fantastic, and and and I got to meet them while I while when I was a senior, and we made an investment with them, you know, for equipment, for a sensory room.
45:20
SPEAKER_00: And and I think more needs to be done because you know, these uh these needs don't go away when they turn 18.
45:27
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
45:28
SPEAKER_00: You know, that's a lifetime that goes with them.
45:30
SPEAKER_02: Do you think that that contributes to the home like homelessness and stuff like that?
45:34
SPEAKER_02: Because it seems like a lot of homeless people that I've talked to, they seem like there's I don't know, mental issues, I guess you can say.
45:44
SPEAKER_02: You know what I'm saying?
45:45
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it could be that, but uh you know, a lot of homeless also drugs, man.
45:50
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, drugs influence a lot on yeah, ages messes with the people, man.
45:55
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and and that needs to change.
45:57
SPEAKER_00: Uh we need to stop what's coming through the border.
46:01
SPEAKER_00: That's extremely important because ages poison our our our our people in our country.
46:06
SPEAKER_00: Oh fentanyl, uh um all those drugs that come, you know, cocaine, marijuana, they just poison our kill uh our children.
46:16
SPEAKER_02: We'll talk about, yeah, definitely we'll get to that.
46:18
SPEAKER_02: So moving into the local knowledge, uh Corpus Christi, uh, we just talked about a little bit about the water situation, uh reservoirs at 10%, uh desanalization got canceled, it ballooned from 160 million to 1.2 billion.
46:34
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
46:34
SPEAKER_00: So that that was to my understanding that it was on the works a few years ago, uh about three, four years ago, but then there were two entities wanting uh recognition or getting the credit, and they never came to an agreement.
46:54
SPEAKER_00: And it never got done.
46:56
SPEAKER_00: And and and that's the problem, you know, you have to collaborate.
46:59
SPEAKER_00: Who cares who gets the credit?
47:00
SPEAKER_00: It's not about the credit, it's about the people.
47:02
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and that's what some people, you know, that didn't get it didn't get done because of that.
47:10
SPEAKER_00: That's what I was told that you know, I I'm I'm not gonna get into that, but yeah, uh, that happens.
47:15
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, for sure.
47:16
SPEAKER_00: Uh it happens in Congress.
47:18
SPEAKER_02: So is it like a like a failure of leadership?
47:21
SPEAKER_02: Like what's I guess what could be the issue there?
47:25
SPEAKER_02: You know, I mean it's just like I always try to figure out like why why is this happening?
47:29
SPEAKER_02: You know, you just think like maybe this could happen, but we're also not in those seats either, you know what I mean?
47:35
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that type of I guess.
47:37
SPEAKER_00: So this is the thing about uh a lot of decisions that happen at different levels of government, local, state, federal.
47:44
SPEAKER_00: They're making decisions with the information they're they have at the time.
47:49
SPEAKER_00: And sometimes we're not privy to that information, especially in Congress.
47:52
SPEAKER_00: There's information that they're that they have that, oh man, we need to do something about it.
47:58
SPEAKER_00: And they make the decision and they're like, wait a minute, why are you making that?
48:01
SPEAKER_00: Hold on, like because that's information you don't have that we cannot tell you, but we have to make the decision because of that information that you have no idea.
48:09
SPEAKER_02: Well, it makes me think about like deadlines too.
48:11
SPEAKER_02: Like, could is there like deadlines or you need to do it by this day, or do they set the deadlines themselves?
48:17
SPEAKER_00: You know, so the only deadline that the Congress has, you know, every every two years there's a new Congress.
48:23
SPEAKER_00: So all bills, okay, if they don't get passed by the end of that Congress, they're dead.
48:29
SPEAKER_00: They're gone.
48:29
SPEAKER_00: They're dead.
48:30
SPEAKER_00: So the new Congress starts, all right, new bill.
48:34
SPEAKER_00: You know, so that's the only deadline Congress has, but they they put it based on their priorities, what they they want to push, depending who's in power.
48:44
SPEAKER_00: Uh if if if that Congress isn't the same as the White House, you know, there's a lot of variables that that that that play part.
48:52
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, you know.
48:53
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so regarding the water, the water uh XL motors, XL mobile supervisors are uh saying that their transfers sell their houses, refineries threatening to leave, uh port supports uh 76,000 jobs.
49:07
SPEAKER_02: Uh what do you tell them?
49:08
SPEAKER_02: I mean, you being like working at Shineer and stuff like that, I'm thinking like, would refineries like leave if there's no water or you know what I mean?
49:17
SPEAKER_02: And then what would happen to the economy in that case?
49:20
SPEAKER_02: You know what I'm saying?
49:21
SPEAKER_02: Um what are your thoughts on that?
49:22
SPEAKER_00: Well, uh would there be a possibility if there's we run out of water?
49:27
SPEAKER_00: You know, these those companies, you know, they gotta produce you know if they don't have the water to operate the way they should, you know, they're gonna have to close their doors.
49:36
SPEAKER_00: And is there gonna be an impact here?
49:38
SPEAKER_00: You better believe it.
49:38
SPEAKER_02: Oh, yeah, for sure.
49:39
SPEAKER_00: You better believe it.
49:40
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I will I myself work in those and you know go into those.
49:43
SPEAKER_00: And to that, Shineer, they hardly use any water.
49:47
SPEAKER_00: Okay, they don't we are getting rid of water from our systems.
49:50
SPEAKER_00: What?
49:51
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, because in order to to when you bring natural natural gas and you want to liquefy it, and you gotta you gotta put put it through a system to to negative 260 degrees.
50:03
SPEAKER_00: Okay, so it's gotta freeze.
50:05
SPEAKER_00: Yes, but it's gas.
50:06
SPEAKER_00: That temperature doesn't freeze, it becomes liquid.
50:09
SPEAKER_00: But if you have humidity, you have water that will freeze, and then it clogs the system.
50:14
SPEAKER_00: Okay, and they don't want that.
50:15
SPEAKER_00: So they get rid of any humidity, any water from the system.
50:19
SPEAKER_00: Oh wow.
50:19
SPEAKER_00: So we don't use water in our system, we don't have uh like the refiners, they need a lot of water to cooling towers.
50:27
SPEAKER_00: We don't we don't need any of that.
50:29
SPEAKER_02: Oh wow.
50:30
SPEAKER_02: Is that wow?
50:31
SPEAKER_02: So that's more innovative, I guess.
50:34
SPEAKER_00: It's we have a different product, you know.
50:36
SPEAKER_00: The the the nature of of LNG is different than than than crude oil, and and and how do you how you break it apart and how you take molecules and it's just different processes.
50:48
SPEAKER_00: We only have one single thing, which is natural gas.
50:51
SPEAKER_00: And our job is to put it to minus 260 degrees, get rid of uh uh heavy metals and uh any water or whatever.
51:00
SPEAKER_00: So you just liquid it's just uh natural gas and then cool it down to minus 260 and then becomes liquid.
51:06
SPEAKER_02: Nice, so awesome.
51:08
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I work very closely with like propane and butane and stuff like that.
51:11
SPEAKER_02: I've actually been into the that plant over there a couple times with my job.
51:15
SPEAKER_02: Oh, I think it was propylene or reloaded something, I can't remember what it was.
51:19
SPEAKER_02: But nice plant, nice place.
51:20
SPEAKER_02: Uh yeah, we're moving to uh we had a question from another viewer talking about beach access, SpaceX, controlling beach access in Cameron County.
51:29
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, uh locals can't get to the beach.
51:31
SPEAKER_02: Uh what's your position?
51:33
SPEAKER_00: No, I I to my understanding, uh this is the beauty about Texas.
51:39
SPEAKER_00: You have access to the beach at all times.
51:41
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
51:42
SPEAKER_00: You know, with SpaceX in Boca Chica, I my understanding is they only close the the access when they're having a launch because of safety reasons.
51:51
SPEAKER_00: Of course.
51:52
SPEAKER_00: They gotta they got they if something goes wrong, they don't want people around.
51:56
SPEAKER_00: So once there's nothing uh in the on the schedule to for a launch, people are free to go and come and go.
52:03
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's my understanding.
52:04
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so okay, so SpaceX is working with the county down there.
52:08
SPEAKER_02: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
52:08
SPEAKER_00: Definitely, definitely.
52:09
SPEAKER_00: Because I have a friend who owns a house on the beach in Boca Chica.
52:12
SPEAKER_02: Oh, nice, nice, nice.
52:14
SPEAKER_02: So cool.
52:14
SPEAKER_02: Uh yeah, so moving to the port and channel uh ship channel.
52:18
SPEAKER_02: Um which port?
52:20
SPEAKER_02: The port of Corpus Christi.
52:21
SPEAKER_02: Okay.
52:22
SPEAKER_02: Um I I wow, I I didn't even include the one down there.
52:25
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
52:25
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
52:26
SPEAKER_02: So do you have any thoughts on them?
52:27
SPEAKER_00: I guess it's I really no no just two different ports.
52:30
SPEAKER_00: You know, uh Corpus Christi is basically basically a lot of energy.
52:34
SPEAKER_00: You know, we're the number one exporter of recruit oil uh in the US, uh third in the world.
52:39
SPEAKER_00: Uh so it is uh the energy port of the Americas, that's what what they call it.
52:45
SPEAKER_00: Um Brownsville port is a little bit different.
52:49
SPEAKER_00: They do a lot of steel, they they cut ships, you know.
52:52
SPEAKER_00: They've been the commission, they cut them apart, and they it's a lot of oil, uh uh uh steel.
52:57
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
52:58
SPEAKER_00: There's a lot of trade.
52:59
SPEAKER_00: There's some energy now, they're building an LNG facility over there next decade.
53:04
SPEAKER_00: Uh so that's that's a new thing that is gonna be coming over there.
53:07
SPEAKER_00: So energy is gonna be included over there with LNG.
53:10
SPEAKER_00: Oh it's a little bit different.
53:12
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, what's so what does this district need from uh federal representatives to protect their jobs?
53:17
SPEAKER_00: Well, uh you gotta pres you gotta protect uh first of all, uh our military bases, that that's extremely important.
53:25
SPEAKER_00: Uh we had a debate in in Cameron County a few weeks ago, and they asked all the candidates about committee assignments.
53:34
SPEAKER_00: What would you like to be in a committee and all of that?
53:37
SPEAKER_00: No one mentioned uh Armed Services Committee.
53:39
SPEAKER_00: I was the only one who mentioned Armed Services Committee.
53:42
SPEAKER_00: That's that's why the importance of having someone from Noces County, because you understand the value that the Kingsville base and the Corpus Christi base bring to the area, to the region.
53:52
SPEAKER_00: It's such a strong uh uh uh economic driver for our region.
53:57
SPEAKER_00: And if if you're not careful, you can lose those bases and you don't want that.
54:01
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
54:01
SPEAKER_00: Uh so the bases are extremely important, helping our farmers, man.
54:06
SPEAKER_00: Our farming is uh uh and ranching is extremely big here as well.
54:11
SPEAKER_00: You know, from noises all the way to Cameron, there's a lot of farmland.
54:15
SPEAKER_02: Oh yeah, for sure.
54:16
SPEAKER_00: You know, you you gotta help a farmer from the farm farm industry as well.
54:19
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so so what's some of the things?
54:21
SPEAKER_02: Because I I never really thought about that either.
54:23
SPEAKER_02: I mean what?
54:25
SPEAKER_02: The farmers, the farmers, like what's some of the ways that they they would need uh uh you know, a representative for them.
54:31
SPEAKER_02: Like what were what what would they need uh uh from from So it's just legislation to protect their the their products.
54:39
SPEAKER_00: I I think there was an There was some legislation that happened back in I think 2018 and and but but um I don't I think it was with cotton but then so much was supposed to be provided and supplied and and China was supposed to do some something else, but China is not complying.
54:58
SPEAKER_00: No wow so that's affecting our farmers over here and they were supposed to get so much cotton from here and they're not doing it, they're they're they're getting it from Brazil, so so what's happening to our cotton?
55:09
SPEAKER_00: We're just producing it but not selling it because China decided to go somewhere else.
55:13
SPEAKER_02: Oh, so crazy, man.
55:14
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah.
55:15
SPEAKER_02: So there's 29 million in federal N marks pending on for the ship channel maintenance port here.
55:20
SPEAKER_02: Uh Michael Cloud is fighting for that.
55:23
SPEAKER_02: What would you fight for?
55:24
SPEAKER_00: Definitely, you know, uh the the the port is extremely important for our region here.
55:32
SPEAKER_00: It's such a strong economic driver.
55:34
SPEAKER_00: So you've got to make sure it's also protected and and and and has the funding needed uh to to advance what their their their mission as well.
55:44
SPEAKER_00: So that's important to protect the port as well as the bases.
55:47
SPEAKER_00: Nice, nice.
55:47
SPEAKER_00: I know that the bases are looking for some some other stuff uh diversified what they do.
55:54
SPEAKER_00: You know, there's conversation with the uh Congressman Cloud's office regarding Coast Guard.
55:58
SPEAKER_00: Coast Guard is looking for a new boot camp training facility in the US, you know.
56:04
SPEAKER_00: It could be Corpus Christi.
56:06
SPEAKER_00: Do you do you guys have the space for that?
56:09
SPEAKER_00: You know, it's so many, so many recruits per year and all of that.
56:13
SPEAKER_00: So they want to make sure.
56:14
SPEAKER_00: So there's uh I'm pretty sure there's gonna be other bases fighting for that, yeah, to bring that aspect to their bases.
56:20
SPEAKER_00: Oh wow.
56:21
SPEAKER_00: Hopefully, Corpus has a shot at that.
56:24
SPEAKER_02: Nice.
56:25
SPEAKER_02: Uh so talking about the Naval Air Station here in Corpus, uh, the Naval Air Station and Corpus Christi and the Army Depot are the our major employers here.
56:33
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
56:33
SPEAKER_02: Uh, what's your plan to protect those jobs and fight for federal defense dollars?
56:38
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, well, yeah, and that comes usually uh, you know, being in the armed services committee, uh having that understanding and what what's happening behind it and getting getting pro projects on that list.
56:49
SPEAKER_00: There's a list that they come out every year.
56:52
SPEAKER_00: And if your project is not on the list, it's not gonna get funded.
56:55
SPEAKER_00: That's the reality of things.
56:57
SPEAKER_00: But having been being in the armed services committee helps a lot.
57:01
SPEAKER_01: Right.
57:02
SPEAKER_00: Appropriations as well.
57:04
SPEAKER_00: But is it's making sure you vote for NDAA?
57:07
SPEAKER_00: You have to that's the thing about NDAA.
57:09
SPEAKER_00: If you have a base in your district, you have to vote for that.
57:13
SPEAKER_00: Because whenever they do BRAC, yeah, BRAC is uh base realignment and closure whenever they close bases.
57:21
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
57:22
SPEAKER_00: Uh so whenever they let yeah, whenever they do that, they look, okay, which members that have a military base have voted against NDAA?
57:31
SPEAKER_00: Oh, the uh National Defense Authorization Act.
57:36
SPEAKER_00: If you have voted against your NDAA, they probably want to put you on the list.
57:40
SPEAKER_00: Because if you don't care for your base to provide money for funding for the military, why do we keep your base?
57:46
SPEAKER_00: So they look at that.
57:47
SPEAKER_02: Uh and I learned that, you know, I think Well, you spent 12 years working for congressman.
57:52
SPEAKER_02: Uh did you ever work on a military-based issue?
57:54
SPEAKER_02: And what did you learn from that?
57:56
SPEAKER_00: I I I usually made the connections for the for the member.
57:59
SPEAKER_00: Uh, every time there was a new uh change of command, uh, one of the first things I did was always establish a meeting with a new commander, either Sinatra, N N A S Corpus Christi or CCAP.
58:11
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
58:11
SPEAKER_00: Because those are the three commanders in in Corpus Christi to have and have a meeting with the congressman.
58:16
SPEAKER_00: So they could hey first of all, introductions who they are, get to know each other, and hey, what are the needs?
58:23
SPEAKER_00: You know, all usually all those issues with the the with the basis are not handled through the district.
58:29
SPEAKER_00: It's usually needs legislation out of DC.
58:32
SPEAKER_01: Oh, true.
58:33
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
58:33
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
58:34
SPEAKER_00: Because it has to be it has to be on a bill, it has to be there should need to be some language on specific bills, especially NDAA.
58:41
SPEAKER_00: Oh, wow.
58:42
SPEAKER_00: So and and you gotta get it through a process and get it approved to be up to appear on the language.
58:47
SPEAKER_02: Wow, no, no, it's it's so what you you work with lawyer lawyers in that case to to get the wording.
58:52
SPEAKER_02: Is that what is that what you're talking about?
58:53
SPEAKER_02: Like the wording, uh like certain well that's in DC.
58:56
SPEAKER_00: Okay, okay.
58:57
SPEAKER_00: This is what they need, and uh uh and are usually in DC you have uh legislative director, uh uh legislative assistants, uh your chief of staff.
59:09
SPEAKER_00: And and in every uh legislative director or assistant, they have a portfolio.
59:16
SPEAKER_00: These are the industry the the agencies that you cover.
59:18
SPEAKER_00: Everybody has different pieces of the pie.
59:21
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
59:21
SPEAKER_00: Whoever's in charge of military, okay.
59:24
SPEAKER_00: You you gotta get very well versed on what the the the corpus custody needs, uh CCAT or or the base, and and make sure it gets on the language.
59:33
SPEAKER_00: And then you you work with the committee pertaining to the added armed services committee.
59:37
SPEAKER_00: Hey, can we include this language?
59:38
SPEAKER_00: Oh no, no, it's it's it's it's a lot in in in DC how to get things on on on a bill.
59:46
SPEAKER_02: Definitely gotta know what you're doing for sure.
59:48
SPEAKER_02: You like there's a lot of moving parts.
59:50
SPEAKER_02: Experience helps a lot.
59:51
SPEAKER_02: Holy smokes, man.
59:52
SPEAKER_02: Uh uh so next we're moving to affordable housing crisis.
59:56
SPEAKER_02: Um there's over 30,000 people in the section eight waiting list in corpus, Christy.
1:00:01
SPEAKER_02: Uh what times are uh what times are seven and ten years, wait times, sorry, are seven and ten years.
1:00:09
SPEAKER_02: What's the federal role in fixing that?
1:00:12
SPEAKER_00: Ooh, man, that's a tough one.
1:00:15
SPEAKER_00: Um it's a huge wait list, and I know it's it's administered to the state basically.
1:00:21
SPEAKER_00: You know, I know there's HUD is oversees the whole thing, but it's that's administered to the state uh on housing, and then the state allocates that to the local entities, uh cities uh specifically.
1:00:36
SPEAKER_00: They need to be probably more uh opportunities to to have more buildings, but you gotta make sure it's it's done the right way.
1:00:46
SPEAKER_00: Yeah because there were some issues here with our housing authority where all of a sudden, because it affects the city whether you like it or not, because they come out of the rolls of the tax, uh the property taxes, so you affect somehow whenever you remove that.
1:01:01
SPEAKER_00: And and I think there were some issues with the City of Brownsville, the city of Corpus Christi, when they bought these high-end uh apartment complexes that were paying a lot of tax property taxes, all of a sudden you take them off the rolls because now it's housing.
1:01:16
SPEAKER_00: And then that affects the uh the property values and how much income, the how much revenue the the county gets.
1:01:23
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
1:01:23
SPEAKER_00: So yeah, it's it's a delicate balance.
1:01:26
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I'm not I'm not sure uh how how does how does And there's a lot of nonprofits doing work on on that as well as well, you know.
1:01:34
SPEAKER_00: Uh I remember what was his name, Dan Brown.
1:01:36
SPEAKER_00: He was working with local people in in in here in Corpus Christi to build small houses uh very economically for people that needed some homes, you know, because that's a big issue.
1:01:49
SPEAKER_00: Affordability of a home is a big issue in Corpus Christi.
1:01:52
SPEAKER_02: Housing prices are up like 96 per 96 percent in a decade.
1:01:56
SPEAKER_02: Working families can't afford to live where they work.
1:01:59
SPEAKER_02: Um what do you what do you do about that?
1:02:02
SPEAKER_00: Ooh, man.
1:02:03
SPEAKER_00: I mean, it's affecting me like everybody.
1:02:06
SPEAKER_00: Everybody, man.
1:02:07
SPEAKER_00: Everybody's affected by it.
1:02:09
SPEAKER_00: Uh it just keep keeping prices down, but it goes a lot to keeping prices down, you know.
1:02:17
SPEAKER_00: Uh the the home builders, they're taking they're taking a hit because they they require a lot of labor to to build their houses to do it in a timely manner, because the longer you wait, the more expensive it gets because prices keep going up.
1:02:32
SPEAKER_00: So they need labor to do that.
1:02:34
SPEAKER_00: And I think the uh a good solution to that is it's offering good, more strict visas, or guest worker visa for people that come and help in those industries like farming, H1A or H1B to help uh builders, you know, home builders, in industry builders, construction, construction, because they need personnel to do that.
1:02:58
SPEAKER_00: Because the longer it takes, it was more expensive, so the prices keep going up and up and up, and then it takes months before the home can be delivered.
1:03:07
SPEAKER_00: But that affects a lot.
1:03:08
SPEAKER_00: It's a domino effect.
1:03:09
SPEAKER_02: Oh, sure.
1:03:10
SPEAKER_02: Domino effect.
1:03:11
SPEAKER_02: Uh so I guess the there's two more, two more uh issues uh uh fentanyl and cartel activity.
1:03:17
SPEAKER_02: Uh uh you lead with your let's see, where am I at?
1:03:21
SPEAKER_02: Sorry, here, 10.
1:03:23
SPEAKER_02: Um the a Harlogen man was just convicted of moving two million lethal doses of fentanyl through this area.
1:03:32
SPEAKER_02: What's your plan to address cartel activity in South Texas?
1:03:36
SPEAKER_00: Well, one of them is making sure our border is secure, honestly, providing the technology that border patrol needs and that uh CVP needs at the port of entry to detect uh and identify what's coming through.
1:03:49
SPEAKER_00: You know, usually through the port of entry, the customs and border protection, they only inspect about 10% of the of all entries.
1:04:00
SPEAKER_00: They don't inspect every single vehicle.
1:04:02
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
1:04:02
SPEAKER_00: Um they have very sophisticated systems.
1:04:04
SPEAKER_00: I don't want to get into that because I don't know if there's some uh secrets.
1:04:10
SPEAKER_00: I learned it when I was with with uh in Congress that I visited the ports of entry, that how they they tie when someone's coming through the port of entry when they read the license plates and Allah appears a lot of the connections that that license plate is connected to.
1:04:27
SPEAKER_01: Wow.
1:04:27
SPEAKER_00: And then that raises questions or like, oh, there's no concern, so come on.
1:04:31
SPEAKER_00: Oh wow so there's a lot of that.
1:04:33
SPEAKER_00: So providing our CVP and border and border patrol agents with the technology and the personnel to make sure nothing is through.
1:04:41
SPEAKER_00: That's extremely important because uh cartels are you know they're they will find ways to get it through, either through tunnels or many other ways.
1:04:53
SPEAKER_00: You know, cargo, you name it.
1:04:56
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, some 80 80% of people convicted of fentanyl trafficking are US citizens uh coming through legal ports of entry.
1:05:03
SPEAKER_02: Uh, how do you change how you think about border security or even border security in general regarding that?
1:05:12
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think it's it's it goes back to the same thing, you know, have that uh the technology where that's huge technology for yeah, because in a system, once uh uh a car is curr coming through the port of entry, they will read the license plates.
1:05:28
SPEAKER_00: If you have your passport or your something where it has a chip, it will read it through.
1:05:34
SPEAKER_00: You you don't you don't have to do good do anything just because there's a sensor on your left side and it will read any chip inside that vehicle that has your identity, like uh your passport or your passport card.
1:05:46
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
1:05:46
SPEAKER_00: It will read it and it will appear to the person the on the booth who you are, if you have any convictions, if you have any criminal activity, it will appear all of that in there.
1:05:55
SPEAKER_00: So if there's any connections, I'm pretty sure it's connected to NCIC uh.
1:06:00
SPEAKER_00: Um uh National Crime Investigation Center.
1:06:03
SPEAKER_00: So there's a lot of things.
1:06:04
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
1:06:04
SPEAKER_00: How to stop that.
1:06:05
SPEAKER_00: So but it's the technology.
1:06:06
SPEAKER_00: I think a lot of it is going to be technology and of course manpower on not portal friendship, but mainly on the border.
1:06:14
SPEAKER_00: That is wide open.
1:06:15
SPEAKER_00: You need the personnel there.
1:06:17
SPEAKER_02: Wow.
1:06:17
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that's interesting.
1:06:18
SPEAKER_02: Like, even like that's interesting.
1:06:20
SPEAKER_02: Uh, cartels are now a designated terrorist organization.
1:06:25
SPEAKER_02: Uh, how does what does that mean for how we fight them and what resources does the district need?
1:06:30
SPEAKER_02: Well, you just mentioned technology.
1:06:31
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, the technology, personnel, manpower.
1:06:33
SPEAKER_00: Manpower is gonna be always the same.
1:06:35
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, right on, right on.
1:06:37
SPEAKER_00: Uh so they have cameras, they have I I've seen how far they those cameras can see, and it's miles.
1:06:44
SPEAKER_00: You know, people you see the camera here, but they're not looking in the next 30 meters now, they're looking two, three miles down the road.
1:06:50
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and you have no idea, you don't even see the camera.
1:06:53
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, okay.
1:06:54
SPEAKER_02: Uh so uh I guess we're getting into uh let me see 10, 11, uh faith, immigration, identity.
1:07:02
SPEAKER_02: Uh so you lead a faith, you lead with faith in your campaign.
1:07:06
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, um, how does that translate into actual votes?
1:07:10
SPEAKER_00: I think I think my my faith, how it translates is integrity, uh having uh a good character.
1:07:18
SPEAKER_00: I I think that's what I've been pushing.
1:07:20
SPEAKER_00: That um do you have the integrity to do what's right when when it matters?
1:07:25
SPEAKER_00: And and I know that you know I keep pounding on the same thing which with the signs, but it's a small thing.
1:07:31
SPEAKER_00: And even you know, when I was talking with a pastor, he told me, Yeah, but I don't care about the the signs, you know, that's a small thing.
1:07:36
SPEAKER_00: Oh wow, yeah, but what makes me what tells me that you're not gonna do insider training and all of that?
1:07:42
SPEAKER_00: Well, if I don't do what's right in the little things, I can assure you I'm not gonna do the right things when I can benefit myself a lot a lot of money.
1:07:51
SPEAKER_00: So it comes back to character.
1:07:53
SPEAKER_00: Do you have the integrity to remain truthful uh to who you are as a person, to who you are as a son of God?
1:08:00
SPEAKER_00: And it goes it goes back to that.
1:08:01
SPEAKER_00: You have to remain true to God because at the end of the day, you you respond not only to contritions but mainly God.
1:08:08
SPEAKER_00: God is always watching you.
1:08:10
SPEAKER_02: Does your faith ever tell you to like compromise anything?
1:08:14
SPEAKER_02: Um I guess not really, right?
1:08:18
SPEAKER_00: When you believe in God, like well, I I don't compromise my values, you know.
1:08:24
SPEAKER_00: Um, and and that was brought up in that conversation with Pastor, like um, will you compromise an abortion?
1:08:30
SPEAKER_00: No, you know, there's values that I cannot compromise.
1:08:34
SPEAKER_00: But there's a lot of value, there's a lot of issues that that let's say spending that it's you know it's not not a uh a moral issue.
1:08:45
SPEAKER_00: It could be, but you know, it's just uh practical, you know.
1:08:48
SPEAKER_00: Why are we spending more than we're getting?
1:08:50
SPEAKER_00: You know, uh if if if you know that we need to stop, you know, there's a lot of issues just like that.
1:08:56
SPEAKER_00: Uh there's nothing of the moral issues that can uh affect or or or for me to compromise, I think.
1:09:03
SPEAKER_00: You know, that's what I'm trying to say.
1:09:05
SPEAKER_00: Um there's uh areas to to to be able to to work together, yeah.
1:09:12
SPEAKER_00: But you know, my my values, I cannot compromise my values.
1:09:15
SPEAKER_02: Is there ever tension between like your faith and and like your party?
1:09:20
SPEAKER_00: If if any uh yes, there could be some.
1:09:24
SPEAKER_00: You know.
1:09:26
SPEAKER_02: Uh immigration policy.
1:09:27
SPEAKER_02: Uh you came to Mexico legally.
1:09:29
SPEAKER_00: What should happen to people who are here uh uh and don't and and didn't know I know I know that oh man, that's that's been a recent, recent topic of conversation national, nationwide because of what's happening in Minnesota and uh with ice and everything uh happening there.
1:09:47
SPEAKER_00: You know what I and what I've been telling people look, whenever you see law enforcement operations, do not interfere.
1:09:54
SPEAKER_00: Please stay away, stay clear, let them do what they're doing.
1:09:58
SPEAKER_00: Uh whether you agree or not what they're doing, that's not the point.
1:10:02
SPEAKER_00: You don't like what they're doing, okay.
1:10:03
SPEAKER_00: Change the law.
1:10:04
SPEAKER_00: They're not gonna, they cannot change that.
1:10:06
SPEAKER_00: You're just enforcing.
1:10:07
SPEAKER_00: Talk to your member of Congress.
1:10:09
SPEAKER_00: Can we change the law on this?
1:10:10
SPEAKER_00: And and see if that works.
1:10:12
SPEAKER_00: Hey, see if your member wants to change the law.
1:10:14
SPEAKER_00: And good lucky passing it.
1:10:16
SPEAKER_00: You know, it you know the the the thing is that people need to understand about eyes, they're just enforcing what the members of Congress wrote, they're enforcing that law.
1:10:25
SPEAKER_00: It passed whenever it passed, if they don't like it, they can change it.
1:10:29
SPEAKER_00: But yeah it takes a partisan uh commitment to to change that.
1:10:35
SPEAKER_00: But otherwise, the way it's written now, just I can tell people do not do not get into do not interfere with the law enforcement uh operations.
1:10:44
SPEAKER_02: Is is there a difference between enforcement and cruelty?
1:10:47
SPEAKER_00: Oh, yeah, there's a difference.
1:10:49
SPEAKER_00: Big big time.
1:10:50
SPEAKER_00: You know, you and this is there every federal agency, they have an office of uh professional responsibility.
1:11:00
SPEAKER_00: Whenever you do something within your duties, but you don't do it, you don't do it professionally, you get in trouble.
1:11:05
SPEAKER_00: That's why they have internal internal affairs.
1:11:07
SPEAKER_00: Oh, it's the same thing.
1:11:08
SPEAKER_00: It's in in the federal government, it's OIG, office of inspector general.
1:11:12
SPEAKER_00: Any abuse of power that you uh execute, it comes back to you.
1:11:16
SPEAKER_00: And they're always afraid of that because you can leave your career for that.
1:11:18
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so they're very they're not intentionally trying to hurt people, I can assure you that.
1:11:25
SPEAKER_00: Would there be some bad people?
1:11:26
SPEAKER_00: Probably so.
1:11:26
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
1:11:27
SPEAKER_00: But like in anywhere everywhere else, yeah.
1:11:29
SPEAKER_00: You know, not everybody's uh a bad apple.
1:11:31
SPEAKER_00: Uh there's always agents and officers trying to do what's right, but there's always a bad apple.
1:11:37
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, but the the the thing is the the Office of Professional Responsibility keeps them accountable a lot.
1:11:42
SPEAKER_00: OIG will investigate them.
1:11:45
SPEAKER_00: And uh so should they be cruel?
1:11:48
SPEAKER_00: No.
1:11:50
SPEAKER_00: By all means, no.
1:11:51
SPEAKER_00: Be respectful.
1:11:53
SPEAKER_00: You know, uh the problem if the people are not complying, they they they gotta use more force to uh contain the person and not get hurt.
1:12:04
SPEAKER_00: And that's when a lot of issues happen, you know, people not complying.
1:12:07
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, well, identity.
1:12:09
SPEAKER_02: Uh you're a naturalized citizen running as a Republican in a majority Hispanic district.
1:12:14
SPEAKER_02: Uh, how do you want people, what do you want people to know about who you are?
1:12:19
SPEAKER_00: I'm I'm just a regular guy.
1:12:21
SPEAKER_00: That at the end of the month I'm looking, okay, how are we gonna uh do we have enough for to feed our family?
1:12:29
SPEAKER_00: You know, I'm just a regular guy.
1:12:31
SPEAKER_00: I'm not, you know, people have said it and and and I kind of experienced it, man.
1:12:36
SPEAKER_00: This is meant for people that have the means to not to be able to work because they gotta go campaign, but I had to go work first, yeah, and then I can campaign.
1:12:45
SPEAKER_00: It's it's a little bit different, it's it's more challenging because I'm not out there a hundred percent campaigning because I had to first provide for my family.
1:12:53
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, they are my first responsibility.
1:12:56
SPEAKER_00: It is first God, then my family, then my job, then you know, yeah, then my country, you know, the country and then job.
1:13:03
SPEAKER_00: For sure.
1:13:03
SPEAKER_00: But uh I'm just a regular guy.
1:13:06
SPEAKER_00: Uh do I know at all?
1:13:07
SPEAKER_00: No, I don't.
1:13:08
SPEAKER_00: Do I have uh a good heart to make sure we're represented well?
1:13:13
SPEAKER_00: By all means, yes.
1:13:14
SPEAKER_00: Yes, and and and and I've shown that throughout my campaign that I am running a clean campaign.
1:13:20
SPEAKER_00: I want to change the dynamics how politics are done in in the US, not only South Texas, in the US.
1:13:25
SPEAKER_00: There's you can win a career, uh a race without having to go negative, without having to be nasty and demeaning the other candidates.
1:13:34
SPEAKER_00: You don't have to do that.
1:13:35
SPEAKER_02: Well, what makes so what makes you different from the other candidates in this primary?
1:13:39
SPEAKER_00: Well, I have the experience of working for Congress.
1:13:43
SPEAKER_00: I you know I've already helped hundreds and hundreds of people dealing with the federal bureaucracy when I when I work for Congress.
1:13:52
SPEAKER_00: You know, they're gonna if they get elected, they're gonna start working on that.
1:13:56
SPEAKER_00: I already have 12 years doing that.
1:13:58
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
1:13:59
SPEAKER_00: Uh yeah, other candidates have the experience.
1:14:03
SPEAKER_00: Uh uh Mari spent six months, Eric hasn't spent time in Congress, he has federal experience, but not congressional experience.
1:14:11
SPEAKER_00: You know, yeah, it's experience, but not this the the the same experience.
1:14:15
SPEAKER_00: If you don't win, who should whoever the Lord decides to elect, because uh the the Bible tells me that it is the Lord who establishes government, so it is the Lord who's gonna put in people's hearts who to vote for.
1:14:28
SPEAKER_00: Because the Bible is to me, it's the Bible is the the word of God and it's true.
1:14:33
SPEAKER_02: We're not returned void.
1:14:35
SPEAKER_00: Oh, we'll never return void.
1:14:37
SPEAKER_00: So so I I I uh that is why I have peace on this process.
1:14:43
SPEAKER_00: Because if it's me, there's nothing anybody else can do to avoid it.
1:14:48
SPEAKER_00: Because if if God is said, oh yeah, you're gonna be the next member, okay, great.
1:14:52
SPEAKER_00: There's nothing else anybody can do.
1:14:54
SPEAKER_00: But if it's not me, there's nothing I can do to make it happen.
1:14:57
SPEAKER_00: That's our reality, you know.
1:14:58
SPEAKER_00: So, and I am at peace with that.
1:15:01
SPEAKER_00: You know, uh, I'll do my best.
1:15:04
SPEAKER_00: Uh, I'll try to appeal to the people.
1:15:07
SPEAKER_00: This is who I am.
1:15:08
SPEAKER_00: I'm just a regular guy that that have 12 years of experience in Congress.
1:15:13
SPEAKER_00: Uh that I handle myself with integrity.
1:15:15
SPEAKER_00: Am I perfect?
1:15:16
SPEAKER_00: By no means.
1:15:16
SPEAKER_00: And there's yes, you can tell you I'm not perfect.
1:15:19
SPEAKER_00: I'm not perfect.
1:15:20
SPEAKER_00: Am I?
1:15:21
SPEAKER_00: You see?
1:15:22
SPEAKER_00: No, I'm not.
1:15:23
SPEAKER_00: You know, you can ask my daughters.
1:15:24
SPEAKER_00: Oh no.
1:15:26
SPEAKER_00: Daddy, oh no.
1:15:27
SPEAKER_00: You know, there was a time that I was a hero, yeah, but they're getting one of already a teenager, so yeah.
1:15:33
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, awesome, man.
1:15:34
SPEAKER_02: Uh last.
1:15:35
SPEAKER_02: Uh so what's something voters should know about you that they don't they probably don't know?
1:15:40
SPEAKER_00: Oh.
1:15:42
SPEAKER_00: That's a great question.
1:15:44
SPEAKER_02: It doesn't have to be political, just no, no, no.
1:15:46
SPEAKER_00: It just uh I love history, I'm passionate about intelligence.
1:15:54
SPEAKER_00: You know, prior to running for Congress, I I I I wanted to to work for State Department.
1:15:59
SPEAKER_00: I applied several times with Foreign Service to work uh to be a diplomat.
1:16:03
SPEAKER_00: Uh that's a crazy memory.
1:16:06
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
1:16:07
SPEAKER_00: Yes, he calls me that I have sometimes uh Rainman moment.
1:16:11
SPEAKER_00: Oh wow.
1:16:12
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, okay.
1:16:14
SPEAKER_00: Uh yes, I I can remember things.
1:16:16
SPEAKER_00: I can, you know, I can tell you when Reagan got shot, it was March 30th, 1981.
1:16:23
SPEAKER_00: You know, uh so things like that are like I don't know why the Pope, Pope John Paul II also that was he Reagan was March the poll, the Pope was on May 14th.
1:16:34
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's crazy.
1:16:35
SPEAKER_00: It's the same year, 1981.
1:16:37
SPEAKER_00: The the challenger 20 uh January 28th, yeah, 1986.
1:16:42
SPEAKER_02: Oh wow and it's all history-related stuff.
1:16:45
SPEAKER_02: History, I love that.
1:16:46
SPEAKER_00: I I love intelligence.
1:16:48
SPEAKER_00: I applied for State Department, uh, applied with CIA.
1:16:52
SPEAKER_00: I went through some interviews with CIA.
1:16:54
SPEAKER_02: Wow, what was that like?
1:16:55
SPEAKER_02: Crazy.
1:16:56
SPEAKER_00: It is different, different interview process, like uh it's just an interview process per se.
1:17:02
SPEAKER_00: Uh but it was usually if you don't come from an I believe school, they they tell you that you, you know, I I know people that work there, and and they say, Yeah, you if you you might have to apply more than once.
1:17:14
SPEAKER_00: Wow.
1:17:14
SPEAKER_00: You said really?
1:17:15
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
1:17:15
SPEAKER_00: Because this is not your typical job.
1:17:17
SPEAKER_00: You they want to make sure you're committed to this.
1:17:19
SPEAKER_00: Oh, okay.
1:17:19
SPEAKER_00: And and and they told me, okay, can you apply next year again?
1:17:22
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, okay.
1:17:23
SPEAKER_00: But then Shineer came along, got into Shane, like, oh man, you know, great job.
1:17:29
SPEAKER_00: And I like, so that was that was still the itching my heart for many, many years.
1:17:34
SPEAKER_02: That's cool.
1:17:35
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so did you learn a lot of this, uh, your work ethic from your your your parents?
1:17:41
SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah.
1:17:41
SPEAKER_00: Oh, my dad, you know, my dad owned ranches, um, and every morning, you know, five o'clock he's up already.
1:17:49
SPEAKER_02: Oh, sure.
1:17:49
SPEAKER_00: And we he would make some coffee and go to the ranch and come back by 6 37 with uh the 20-liter of uh um how do you call those bottles of milk?
1:18:01
SPEAKER_02: The alum aluminum like a like a keg or uh of milk, yeah, type of thing, like a barrel or something, yeah, of full of milk.
1:18:09
SPEAKER_00: And that the worker in El Caporal at the ranch, he would have it ready for for him.
1:18:14
SPEAKER_00: Wow, and just check on things, how things are going.
1:18:17
SPEAKER_00: Okay, I'll be back later today.
1:18:18
SPEAKER_02: Did you work with him?
1:18:19
SPEAKER_02: Did you work with him like uh at the ranch or oh yeah?
1:18:23
SPEAKER_00: You know, you gotta understand my dad was born in 1912.
1:18:25
SPEAKER_00: When I was born, he was 59.
1:18:27
SPEAKER_00: So he was a different school, all old school.
1:18:31
SPEAKER_00: No internet, no internet, no phone, just wow.
1:18:35
SPEAKER_00: And he will tell, hey, let's go.
1:18:38
SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna let's go work at the ranch.
1:18:40
SPEAKER_00: Of course, he will just give us instructions.
1:18:42
SPEAKER_00: Do this, do that, do this.
1:18:43
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, and you hey, you do what I tell you to do, and um very strict, very strict, and uh, but he was a hard worker, worked hard all his life, and he will wake up early every single day.
1:18:59
SPEAKER_02: Well, what was the what was the what was your mom like your mother like?
1:19:03
SPEAKER_00: Different side of the game?
1:19:04
SPEAKER_00: Different, uh yeah, they were 32 years apart.
1:19:08
SPEAKER_00: Uh different uh very nerd that's that's natural of them.
1:19:16
SPEAKER_00: They nourish a lot your children.
1:19:18
SPEAKER_00: It's different.
1:19:19
SPEAKER_00: She was always home, you know.
1:19:20
SPEAKER_00: My dad worked, my mom stayed home, and that's what what we decided whenever we had our first girl, like she would stay home.
1:19:28
SPEAKER_00: She was a high school teacher, and yeah, it was gonna be more limited, but that's how we were raised, and providing a strong foundation, and that's what we want for our girls, and that's what we've been doing.
1:19:39
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's it's not easy.
1:19:40
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, honestly, it's not easy, it's it's tough at the end of the month, but it we we we look at the investment we're doing in our girls, you know, grow with strong values and all that.
1:19:53
SPEAKER_00: Amen.
1:19:54
SPEAKER_00: You know, and and yeah, uh, should we benefit with two salaries?
1:19:57
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it'd be great, but yeah, we have to make it with one, and it's sometimes it's difficult.
1:20:02
SPEAKER_00: And I know a lot of families go through the same.
1:20:05
SPEAKER_00: And so I empathize with them.
1:20:07
SPEAKER_00: So I understand whenever I make decisions, if I get elected in Washington, I'm gonna empathize with all of them because I want I'm going through the same.
1:20:15
SPEAKER_00: You know, even if you get elected, even if I get elected, you know, this is what people do not understand about members of Congress.
1:20:21
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I have my mortgage here.
1:20:24
SPEAKER_00: But what you're going to DC, you're gonna have to go pay rent over there too.
1:20:28
SPEAKER_00: And the rent over there is like three, four thousand dollars a month.
1:20:32
SPEAKER_00: So if you make what is 174,000, you're looking about about 70, 14,000 a month before taxes, and then after they're removing your taxes, you're probably looking maybe nine thousand and you're paying four thousand of rent over there, like two thousand here, that's six, like, and then food, gas, everything here, electricity, and same over there.
1:20:58
SPEAKER_00: Like it's it's it's not gonna be like it's not like oh, you're sad.
1:21:03
SPEAKER_00: No, you're not sad.
1:21:04
SPEAKER_00: People don't understand that.
1:21:06
SPEAKER_00: This is very expensive, extremely expensive.
1:21:08
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, right.
1:21:09
SPEAKER_02: Man, well, thanks for coming on the show, Luke.
1:21:11
SPEAKER_02: No, no, thank you, man.
1:21:12
SPEAKER_02: This is great.
1:21:12
SPEAKER_02: Good show.
1:21:13
SPEAKER_02: Great conversation.
1:21:14
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, definitely.
1:21:14
SPEAKER_02: A lot of stuff I learned.
1:21:16
SPEAKER_02: Wow, that's what really kind of why I do this a lot too.
1:21:19
SPEAKER_02: Uh I learn stuff good with different people, and we we gotta be learners every day.
1:21:23
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, definitely.
1:21:24
SPEAKER_00: We gotta learn every day.
1:21:25
SPEAKER_00: We don't know at all.
1:21:26
SPEAKER_02: Mm-hmm.
1:21:26
SPEAKER_02: Nice.
1:21:27
SPEAKER_02: Uh so where can people find you online?
1:21:29
SPEAKER_02: Uh do you have a website?
1:21:31
SPEAKER_00: Luisbuenteo.com.
1:21:32
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
1:21:33
SPEAKER_00: Or alecluis.com.
1:21:35
SPEAKER_00: Okay, two.
1:21:35
SPEAKER_00: So those two alegluis.com or social on Facebook uh Luis for uh Luis Buenteo for Congress.
1:21:41
SPEAKER_02: Luis Buenteo.
1:21:42
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I had trouble saying your name at first.
1:21:44
SPEAKER_02: Uh Buenteo.
1:21:44
SPEAKER_02: Buenteo, yes.
1:21:45
SPEAKER_02: Cool, nice.
1:21:46
SPEAKER_00: Luis Buenteo for Congress.
1:21:48
SPEAKER_00: Any last words before before we thank you, thank you for uh giving the opportunity to be here.
1:21:52
SPEAKER_00: Lito, thank you for the good word over here.
1:21:55
SPEAKER_00: Uh I appreciate you, man.
1:21:57
SPEAKER_00: Um and thank you for opening the doors and having me on your show.
1:22:01
SPEAKER_00: I really appreciate it, honestly.
1:22:02
SPEAKER_02: You're welcome.
1:22:03
SPEAKER_02: Thank you for coming.
1:22:04
SPEAKER_02: Uh Luis Puenteo, this is uh Luis Buenteo, everybody.
1:22:07
SPEAKER_02: Uh appreciate you coming through.
1:22:08
SPEAKER_02: Um episode 105.
1:22:10
SPEAKER_02: Uh, y'all heard it?
1:22:11
SPEAKER_02: Um, same qu diff hard questions, tough questions coming out uh about the city and stuff.
1:22:17
SPEAKER_02: Uh you guys decide.
1:22:18
SPEAKER_02: Uh, I'm gonna put clips of Luis on there so you can guys can uh get a feel for the type of person that he is, which is awesome the way I want to, this is how I want to do the show.
1:22:27
SPEAKER_02: Show you guys these candidates, uh, get get to know who they are a little bit.
1:22:31
SPEAKER_02: Um, so uh thanks a lot, you guys, for watching.
1:22:33
SPEAKER_02: Stay tuned for the next episode.
1:22:35
SPEAKER_02: Uh, thanks to the producer back there, Maya.
1:22:37
SPEAKER_02: Um, yeah, see you guys later.
1:22:39
SPEAKER_02: Bye.