Latest / Breaking The Meta / This Idaho Candidate Is REWRITING THE RULES | Kaylee Peterson

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This Idaho Candidate Is REWRITING THE RULES | Kaylee Peterson · Breaking The Meta

• Breaking The Meta: Hello, everyone, and welcome to Breaking the Meta. My name is Mike Winston. Today we have a special friend back. She's back. Her name is Kaylee Peterson, and she is running in Idaho's first district, right? I got it right. Okay. and ⁓ we're bringing her back partially because Idaho just had their primaries and Kaylee won. Congratulations. And ⁓ Kaylee Peterson: That's it. There's only two. Breaking The Meta: We just I just wanted to catch up. Kaylee was one of the first people that I interviewed who was running for office. And it's been many months since we've really talked. And I wanted to see how things were going and and and just kind of let people that maybe didn't see that first one get a chance to see you again. But hi Kaylee, how are you doing? Kaylee Peterson: Doing as well as we possibly can under this administration in a Ruby Red district like Idaho's first. But ⁓ after the primaries, we won with almost 90% of the vote, which was, I think, just kind of the perfect opportunity for us to celebrate. We don't get wins very often in Idaho's first congressional district, but then ⁓ it really just becomes the starting lines. So now the real hard work starts before November. Breaking The Meta: Ha ha. Yeah. Yeah, it it's really interesting. So I when we talked before, you talked about how big the first district was in Idaho. And I believed you, but I don't think it fully clicked until the primaries when I was watching all the different states doing their voting and I went into yours to see how I was doing. And I just saw how much of Idaho was taken up in this district. And I went, how? How? That was that was really just what went into my brain was how? How does anybody run in a district that big as one person in in such a short amount of time? Kaylee Peterson: No. Yeah, it's I swear the only reason, because I've talked, I'm I I come from a working class background, right? Raised by a single mom. My husband and I started our family with two nickels to rub together, living with my mom because we could afford to help her with the mortgage, and that was about it. ⁓ the only reason I can run this campaign is because I just so happened to have invested in a Toyota hybrid RAV4 all-wheel drive. About six months before they recruited me for Congress. And up until this administration, I could get most of the way through my district with $40 in the guest tank. But it is, it's 500 miles. And so when people think about the state of Idaho, they think of that kind of L shape. And my district goes from the Canadian border all the way down to Nevada. It is all of North Idaho, all of central Idaho, and then the southwest strip. Breaking The Meta: Ha ha. Kaylee Peterson: So it's kind of like the only thing you take out is the the eastern part of the rectangle at the bottom. And that's and that includes the capital, which is Boise. So even when people look at Idaho, they assume that Boise is part of my district. It's not. I have the Republican side of the county, but all of the Democratic voters are in the other district. So it really is a huge challenge. It's 12 hours to drive from one end to the other. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: It is massive geographic and demographic differences. I mean, it's almost like driving across four different states. You have suburban and rural and there are even parts of my state that are considered frontier because of how few people live there. So ⁓ it's a unique challenge. I think for me, I lucked out that my husband is incredible and is great at taking care of the kids while I'm gone. So I can be on the road for weeks at a time. Breaking The Meta: Wow. Yeah, it's ⁓ it it's been it's been really funny watching ⁓ you've had some some blooper reels come up recently in your social media where you know a bee just lands on your hand while you're talking or the wind blows your phone over. It it's it's been it's been really cool watching your campaign grow just since I first Kaylee Peterson: And it is one of the most beautiful places. Breaking The Meta: You know, first got to talk to you. That being said, for everyone who is has watching this, we're not gonna go into the same nitty-gritty stuff like we did in the first episode. I'm gonna link that episode down below. If you want to watch that first before you watch this, feel free to go. You can learn about everything that ⁓ that Kaylee stands for. I want to talk about kind of where you are now. And and the first question that comes to my mind is has Anything changed in your mind between the last time we talked and at this point, now that you have traveled back and forth as many times as you have? Kaylee Peterson: Yeah, I think that we got really lucky because there is this energy and momentum and I would call it the working class movement. I think rural working class families are starting to see how destructive this administration is and how they've been completely sold down the river. I I think I'm glad that we are now four and a half years into the work because I don't think it would be possible Build the relationships and have the trust and know all these organizations and have the support of all the unions that we have and the groups that we work with. If we were just starting and this was my first cycle. And so I'm really grateful we built this in 2022. We grew it in 2024. And so now we actually have this opportunity to seize on what's happening in this kind of collective conscious. And it has changed. I mean, people in twenty twenty two when I told people my opponent wanted to get rid of the Department of Education and how he was going to sell off public lands, they thought I was just a lying Democrat and an alarmist, but now he's done those things and the votes are on the record. And so it's a lot easier for me to go into these communities and show them that I truly am trying to represent their best interests and that the incumbent is incredibly dangerous to a state like Idaho. So Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: A lot has changed. We do for the first time have an actual path to victory. And a lot of people don't think that's the case. But luckily, I know this district better than anybody else. And it's a huge hill to climb. It is a Hail Mary play, but there is for the very first time ever a real path to success if we can pull it off. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Has there been anything that has truly surprised you? Like you it i we're talking a left field, you know, out of nowhere thing? Kaylee Peterson: Yes and no. I think one of the more surprising experiences for me, and I think coming from a working class background and not being independently wealthy and not going to Ivy League schools, when I started the campaign, I wanted to prove myself as a policy expert and as a professional. And so I didn't share a lot of my personal life and some of the traumas and tragedies and things that have kind of shaped me. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: And then I had a podcast reach out to me, and it is a relatively conservative, very right wing podcast, but it's not a political podcast. And we were talking about my experience, and you know me, I've been doing Republican town halls and the IDO G O P sent me a cease and desist and we get unaliving threats constantly. And ⁓ you know, it's a dangerous place to be a a loud and proud Democrat. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. ⁓ Kaylee Peterson: And this podcast reached out and we talked for a little bit. I promised them that I didn't take money from Israel, which apparently is the one uniting factor between everybody in the country right now. And I shared my story. And we recorded for three hours. And I shared my story from before I started my family, how I got here, and then now this political journey that I've been on. And I was so surprised at how overwhelmingly positive. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: The responses were, I think the meanest comment I got was, wow, she's a beautiful, intelligent young woman who's been deceived by the devil. And I think that's about as bad as it got. But people that reached out to me from this community, that hearing from a grassroots candidate, the political reality of what it's like on the ground, made them look at elections differently, made them look at candidates differently, taught them how to look into the background of somebody and also not to make assumptions. I think until today's political reality, we look at a political candidate and assume they all come from the same place, have the same support systems, get their money from the same, and it's just not the case. ⁓ there are grassroots candidates all across the country that don't get the platform, don't have the money, and are really just doing it on a wing and a prayer on the ground out with a bunch of grassroots volunteers. That really surprised me. at the potential when we really do have these authentic conversations and share more of ourselves and peel back the curtain so that people can see the reality of what it's like running a campaign without the party, without the establishment, without the money. I think it showed me that there really is an opportunity to reach people that have been deceived and divided by the current establishment. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Is is there has there been anything that you wished that you that you've done that you wish you could have done differently between, you know, just a f even six months ago or however many it was since we talked, and now? Kaylee Peterson: Yeah. ⁓ I wish I understood how to share my work and my campaign and my story more authentically online. I had never been in the public eye. I wasn't even rarely on social media. I always joke that the only social media I did were the kind of cringy millennial stay-at-home mom selfies, like with the massive filters. That's about all I and I think. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Yep, yep, yep. Kaylee Peterson: Also, a huge part of the work that we did was face to face on the ground. You forget to record that. You don't think to take photos, or when you're volunteering at you don't think to ask if you can take a photo with all the volunteers. So there's all this work and these moments and these experiences and who we are, not just as a campaign, but a candidate and a movement that is lost because I was too afraid to put it out there or share it. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: in a really authentic way. And now we've learned how to do that and use our social media to share who we are authentically without being superficial or without selling out. So that's something I wish we could go back and capture more of. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Obviously authenticity, accountability, all those things are really important. There's something that we talked about way back then, something I talk about with everybody. It's something that comes up almost no matter who you talk to, is especially since something like accountability. How has your desire to be held accountable been been taken by those by the the Republicans or or independents or anyone that you're interacting with as you're as you're walking around and campaigning? Kaylee Peterson: Yeah, it's it's difficult. One of the hardest parts about the campaign is realizing that I'm never gonna change minds on social media. Like at least not with ⁓ the the Republicans who hate me on Facebook or the troll comments. I'm never gonna convince them that I am actually the more grassroots, authentic, you know, better candidate for working class rural constituents. So Breaking The Meta: Mm. Yeah. Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: But the accountability, especially when it's my third cycle, the trust that I've built with the organizations that I work with in the state, that reputation grows. You know, I work with one union out of Lewiston, but the other two unions weren't responding to my comments. Well, when I've been there for four years and I stand shoulder to shoulder with them on this the entire time, and I don't change unless the evidence or the numbers or the data changes, ⁓ That allows it to grow. and so for me, I look at the numbers this cycle. I need roughly 157,000 votes to win. ⁓ the last election I received 120,000 votes. Now, the big difference is that was a presidential election versus a midterm. However, This election, this midterm, you have every progressive, every them who is willing to show up this November because they understand how it's important it is. But also, Idaho has reproductive rights on the ballot this November. That means women, families, healthcare professionals, the voters who would normally choose me on the ballot will show up in greater numbers than we have ever seen in a midterm. So then Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: People say, well, how are you going to convince 30 to 40,000 Republicans to vote for you? And the truth is, well, I'll welcome anybody into the community who realizes they've been deceived. I don't need a single Republican voter to win because my district has over a hundred thousand unaffiliated voters. And every one of those is somebody who is sick and tired of a two-party system, sick and tired of the government as is. They don't trust any of them. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: And when we can show, listen, we've been here for five years, we've been accountable, we've been transparent, we've been consistent, that kind of trust is not something easily won. And I think it's why we have a real opportunity to reach those unaffiliated voters, to reach those groups and actually potentially flip this district in what would be a historic and unimaginable win for rural America. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Have have a lot of the things that have come up, especially over the last three months, are those things that people in rural Idaho are paying attention to, such as the war in Iran, and obviously increased gas prices, I'm sure are ⁓ a big deal for a rural area where you've gotta travel everywhere. Kaylee Peterson: ⁓ yeah. I mean, even for me on the campaign, it used to be I could get ⁓ through most of my district on thirty-five dollars. And now that's closer, you know, to eighty, ninety dollars. Also, I've had so many miles in my car, I'm she might not be getting as good a gas mileage as she was a year ago. But the issues, what this administration has done has been so immediately destructive in rural America. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Ha Kaylee Peterson: So you look at Trump's tariff policies. Nationwide, we lost 15,000 farms and 360,000 working class jobs. On top of that, it's farm equipment, chemical, seeds, all of the things that local Idaho farmers rely on in these very thin profit margins they were already operating under that are now gone. So if you look at the tariff policy, you look at the war in Iran, which that was the one promise I think. Even on my side, I assumed this administration would not get us into another war. And to watch him so quickly flip on something that only benefits Israel. There is no benefit for the United States of America here. There is no excuse. There is no reason. it rural America sees that. And then they see the fuel prices skyrocket after these tariff tariffs had already made life completely unaffordable. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: So yeah, the issues that the nation are talking about, I think hit rural America so hard and immediately that it is why I think a lot of rural Republicans, I call them the Eisenhower Republicans, who really thought Trump was going to be more fiscally responsible and then realized that was nonsense, they they are starting to be willing to listen and they are trusting me when I say that this administration does not care about them. And we'll throw them right in front of the bus the second they can make higher profits for themselves. Breaking The Meta: It's it's been a really it's been a really interesting just dynamic that we are seeing, not just in in you know the stuff that you've said in your state, but nationwide when it comes to this. It's what is happening because of this administration has created a very stark line of people that that have shown that they don't care about the people that put them into office. You have talked obviously tons of times about how Russ Fulcher has never had a a town hall and you know rarely goes and talks to anybody unless it's people with money. The you know, the normal stuff that we hear from a lot of Republicans. How and I and I appreciate the fact that you that people are noticing that this is the third time that you're running for office and you haven't changed. And that's I think that's a great I think that's something that that we need to to keep an eye on. I see this issue though, and I think it's a it's a wide, broad issue of how do you go about talking to people and and attempting to say, I want to make life better for you, with the knowledge that there might not even be a guarantee you could make life better for them, especially in the first in these next two years. Kaylee Peterson: Yeah, I mean that is the hardest. And there's something I want to explain online that I don't think is always very clear, especially to progressives or people on the left that aren't from a rural state. A lot of times when I talk about talking to voters across the aisle, progressives and people online think of the trolls and the hardcore MAGA and the hateful people that are spewing stuff online. And my experience in a state like Idaho is that is 10 to 20 percent of the right are these kind of really vocal minority hardcore freedom hating bigots. And those are not the people I'm reaching out to. ⁓ in a state like Idaho, there is this silent majority. And it really it covers such an expansive part of the political spectrum. And these are everyday working class people. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: Who are working 70 hours a week, taking care of their family. They're not, you know, chronically online. They're not talking about politics on social media. They're the people we don't hear from online. And so those are the people that we really desperately want to bring to the table because they're not the ones who are, you know, screaming hate and storming the Capitol on January 6th and now getting a $1.8 billion slush fund. Breaking The Meta: Right. Kaylee Peterson: So then the reality becomes not just what do I stand for, but how do we actually plan to implement that? You know, I'm a if I'm gonna be a 36-year-old freshman in Congress, I can't just go back to DC and scream these things into the void and expect it to change anything. So that's where I think being a rural organizer has had a tremendous impact on my ability to be successful because we learned how to build coalition. And find solutions. So for me, that was building coalition with other grassroots candidates that were committed at least to the same core policies that I myself are. And that way, as we work together over the next six months, when we are elected, we're not going back to DC individually. We're going back already with a coalition ready to try and introduce the necessary bills. And part of that is just learning how to bring stakeholders to the table. You know, I specialize in getting Republican labor unions to the table who can agree with me on a lot of my social like that is something I can do is bringing all of these stakeholders to the table and communicating policy in a way that they see it as beneficial to themselves. And I think between those two things, ⁓ rural constituents can believe that. I'll at least be more effective in DC than my opponent, who is best friends with the president. He's been back there for ten years. He holds two incredibly important committee assignments and he hasn't delivered on a single promise. So yeah, it's it's trying to weigh those two two things together. Breaking The Meta: I I think it's also just an issue of to some extent, we've seen this before, right? ⁓ unfortunately in politics it's not new for anyone to promise they are going to do things. It's not new for anyone to say and we have taught we have taught all politicians that it's better to just promise the sun. and and then just blame the other side than it is to to actually talk with them and be realistic about it. So have you found that you can be realistic with the people you're talking to? Kaylee Peterson: yeah, absolutely. I think for me, what I do is I look at the bigger picture, right? And one of the things that I talk about in the abstract and the big idealistic promises ⁓ this idea that we as Americans don't really dream ⁓ reimagining and innovating and trying to be at the forefront of all of these, ⁓ having the best education in the world, trying to imagine the best healthcare system in the world. ⁓ These are the things that when people talk about America being great, that's really what they're hearkening back to is this time when we were innovating a new, brighter future and we messed up a whole bunch of ways. But now we have politicians who are trying to convince us why at least it's not worse. It could be worse. You're lucky you're not in Venezuela, you're lucky you're not in which is Breaking The Meta: Right. Mm. North Korea. Kaylee Peterson: Exactly. It's just such the antithesis of I think the things that when we talk about the American dream, it's the antithesis to that. But then the reality is that we desperately need politicians who understand how to do the real work, who understand how to draft legislation, who understand how to bring that legislation to stakeholders. ⁓ for instance, one of the issues in Idaho is we are such a giant state. 63% of our lands are federally owned and managed. And so when politicians from the West go back east, East Coast congressmen don't understand issues of the West, right? They don't understand how vital these public lands are to our quality of life. They don't understand the issues, drought, ⁓ watersheds. Breaking The Meta: Mm-hmm. Kaylee Peterson: So in the nineteen eighties and nineties, and back then we had Frank Church, Senator Frank Church, and he could not get East Coast congressmen to actually preserve these incredibly important wildlands. So he brought all of these members of Congress out to Idaho with Jimmy Carter and Jimmy Carter's family. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: And he had him rafting down a river called literally the river of no return. He had him hiking down the trails. He brought him to local communities. He introduced him to local businesses that lived off the river. And he was able to pass one of the largest federally protected wilderness lands that's now called the Frank Church Wilderness. Now we have a congressman, Russ Fulcher, who's back in DC, and he's telling the people in Idaho nobody has a solution to federal lands. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: Nobody on the East Coast understands Idaho. Nobody knows how to fix this. And he's been saying that for eight years. And he hasn't done a single thing to try and fix the problem. So when I'm talking to these local communities, I'm like, hey, so not only do I have the local, state, and federal of endorsement of our forest service and the federal agencies that manage these lands. But I'm already working with local stakeholders and businesses that manage these lands. I've identified where issues of clear cutting and loss of public access and artificially hiking the cost of tent and RV permits to get onto these lands. So it's being able to identify those problems, communicate with the stakeholders, and then identify legislation that would immediately address the problems. And I think that's where we balance optimism and the big dream of what we want this country to be with reality and what we need to be focused on in the short term. Breaking The Meta: That's fair. I think we're gonna go ⁓ a a little more difficult direction. ⁓ just recently the Supreme Court came came out with a decision that pretty much gutted the Voting Rights Act. And obviously in a place like Idaho where there are only two districts, gerrymandering isn't isn't as much of a thing as you're gonna see in a state that's got a larger population. For you as a candidate, what what did that decision what did that decision feel like mean to you? And what do you it is that something you hope to work on if you win? But also even a step further if you wouldn't mind, have you interacted with anyone in your district that like is that something that people in Idaho think about? Kaylee Peterson: Yes. A surprising amount. One of the issues that we have in Idaho and one of the ways that conservative far-right think tanks and special interests have been able to manipulate the vote here is that we are one of the whitest states in the country, right? The black community makes up less than 1% of our population. When we talk to rural communities and we tell them that undocumented people are swaying elections and voting by the millions and that reverse racism and now white voters don't have it's easy to sell the lie because the reality of the situation isn't here. Right? Rural communities don't understand the history of black voters and why the John Lewis, you know, voting rights, why all of these things were incredibly important. They don't see the the impact on black communities because that doesn't happen here. So for me, especially I think being the person you know me, I was a huge political nerd. I loved history and politics and government. And learning all of these individual stories of these great organizers, you know, that's what inspired me. So for me, watching what they've done to the Voting Rights Act, and this actually started over a decade ago, right? They they trimmed back, they trimmed back, and then they immediately went for the kill, which is what's just happened. Trying to communicate with rural voters in a way where I can represent the importance of this issue at the federal level. While undoing the harm and manipulation and the lies of organizations like the Freedom Foundation and my opponent, is the best that I can do. And so trying to tackle, for instance, the idea that you can have millions of people voting in an election, well, that's that's not the case, right? The federal government has our data. They know who each and every one of us are. They have our photo, our signature, our every history. The idea you can just create new people or or vote fraudulently, it doesn't exist. Idaho actually has one of the safest and most secure elections and has for over 50 years. And we were one of the first states to have mail-in balloting. Mail-in ballot and absentee ballots. We've had it for over 50 years, right? So trying to attack this narrative ⁓ that is both so dangerous and harmful with Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: evidence and statistics and data without losing how important these stories are and the reality of how much harm is happening to black communities, especially in the southeast right now, especially in on the east coast. It's probably the hardest part of my job, especially when it's not something Idahoans are seeing face to face. And Breaking The Meta: Right. Kaylee Peterson: they've been sharing this false narrative for almost thirty years and so it's trying to tackle thirty years of of manipulating the information versus what I'm saying now. And so it it's it's one of the hardest parts of my job for sure. Breaking The Meta: Is there anything that you could see yourself and ⁓ your fellow congressmen ⁓ being able to do to help in something like that, like help people in places like Idaho and other and other states where they have very small ⁓ minority communities to better understand what it is like because I feel like we have spent a lot of time This government, especially people that look like you and I, have spent a lot of time trying to do the exact opposite and either whitewash or just prevent other people that look like us to get the kind of information. Because if there is a possibility that there is more humanity and empathy in the world, then it certainly feels like there is right now. The way you get around that is by increasing information. So how do you think that is something that you could do in Congress? And it if so, how? And if not, where do you think that really needs to come from? I know I'm giving you the easy f softball answers, but that's what you get for coming in a second time. Kaylee Peterson: Out well, and it's it's the thing that keeps me up at night, right? ⁓ the niche that I have, which we've talked about all the time. This is not how I ever imagined my political career would be going straight into the most conservative parts of the state and ⁓ trying to reach across the aisle. Am I selling out my Commitment and dedication to marginalized communities by putting so much of my focus and attention into these areas. And for me, I try, I think for me, I try to be as present to listen to these communities that are here in the state. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: To be following local organizers and getting what their perspective, their reality, and seeing if there's any crossover if I'm if I'm being harmful in any way. But then I think the way that I try to frame it is if I can undo some of the damage that's being done in rural communities in order to harm these communities. And this is my this is my strength. This is where we're having success. Is this my part? Of the movement? Is this my part where I can be doing as much good as humanly possible? And for me, the the trick that I'm extremely I try to be really careful about is that I will never ever compromise on my progressive policy. I will never ever compromise on the message. I may try and change how I talk about the issue. I may try and change how I address the issue, but I never compromise the actual message. so that I can stay consistent and so that I can stay honest and so I can make sure I'm trying to represent as well as humanly possible. And education is so incredibly important in these issues. Like the SAVE Act. That was the one that all of a sudden rural communities were like, hey, ⁓ as a married woman, this makes it really hard for me to vote. And so then it's like, okay, well we can take why this is a bret problem and then Let's talk about the Voting Rights Act and how similar like how the messaging is similar. It's the hardest part of of what I do. It's the thing that keeps me up. It's the thing that I try and hold myself as accountable and also listen to the people who are talking to me. If somebody is addressing what they see as an issue with the work that we're doing, I I try and be as open and present and attentive to that as possible so we can try and be a ⁓ beneficial part of the movement and not just another thing that's being an obstacle and standing in the way. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Have much respect for you being willing to do what you're doing because I don't As someone who also walks, tries to walk in spaces and at least interact in such a way where I can make something safe, but also have hard conversations. ⁓ it is one of the hardest things to do. Again, especially as people who look like we do. And ⁓ I can only speak for me, but I appreciate you being willing to go out and do that because. In 2026, that is that's I I don't think people realize how much bigger an ask that might feel like ⁓ maybe they do. They should understand how much bigger of an ask it feels like. ⁓ so I just I I wanna If let's say that something just crazy happened and you were given the ability to add something to the constitution without having to go through the normal process of approval and ratification, what what would you what would you do? Kaylee Peterson: That might be the hardest question you've ever asked. Cause of course, my first thought is to go into the immediate needs. You know, equal rights for women, ⁓ codify like ensuring that Voting Rights Act is is forever. Like there are all these things. But then in my heart, I look at how all of this came to be. I look at all of the the organizations that are funneling money into states like Idaho to compel this false narrative. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: And all of it is possible because of Citizens United. All of it is possible because of how much money is being funneled from the evangelical right and from white supremacy groups and from the Heritage Foundation and Christian nationalist groups. And like I look at where all of that money comes from. So for me, I think that we can do the most good. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: And we can impact the government in a way where it actually represents the will of the people by overturning Citizens United and gutting any way for dark money to have any impact in our elections and on our political process. That's where my I think my first thought process goes. Breaking The Meta: I I think there's an argument that a lot of the problems that we are dealing with that are things that we are talking about. I mean, I also think they come from things like racism and and sexism that that never actually healed after the Civil War. They just kind of went and got hidden. but there's an argument that Citizens United United ⁓ helped allow. those kind of ideas to become big and proud. So I I definitely understand that perspective. the unfortunate reality is none of us can snap our fingers and get anything in the Constitution. So in the end, I also know that you would support all of those other things you talked about if those got the ability to to get in the Constitution. It does bring up an interesting other question that I have though. You know, back around the the writing of the Constitution, I think it was Andrew Jackson ⁓ talked about how the constitution should be rewritten every 19 years, basically every generation. And it really hasn't. ⁓ when you think about the fact that other than the Bill of Rights, we have only made what, 15? And if you take out the two that have to do with prohibition 13 times in since since the Bill of Rights, which is wild for 250 years. What are your thoughts on the idea of say a constitutional convention at some point? Kaylee Peterson: See, my first instinct is immediately all of the ways that we could update and improve. But my entire philosophy on this has changed because of the last two years. And what we've watched this administration do, I mean, it doesn't matter what's in the Constitution. Apparently, there are no consequences. Apparently, there is actually no Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: oversight and enforcement of these like laws that we thought. My fear is every 19 years or if we go to update more easily, we're losing right now this this fight on messaging and fundraising. And it's because we're not on the billionaire side and the fossil fuel side and the like some of the largest, most well funded Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Mm-hmm. Right. Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: And how successful they've been to even get working class people to turn against their best interest. And it makes me realize if we make this easier, then I worry about how successful, well-meaning, altruistic grassroots organizers would be in actually improving it versus making it infinitely worse, which is what this administration is wholeheartedly trying to do ⁓ in the face of the Supreme Court. Breaking The Meta: Do you I guess my only pushback would be do you see the reality that what we are dealing with in 2026 is something that you could argue the framers of the original framers of the constitution could not have even ⁓ thought of? I mean, internet alone has changed the way we view a lot of things, but also I think this administration has shown some major holes. In the constitution when it comes to the current society. Kaylee Peterson: a hundred percent. ⁓ agree with that wholeheartedly. A few of the things that we've been trying to do with the campaign, right now we're drafting legislation that would create new independent agencies for oversight and enforcement with no political appointment, no like you you don't have any crossover and the DOJ and political appointments. And so we can try and create some kind of enforcement. Breaking The Meta: I hope you're writing something in there that says the president can't just defund them with executive orders to Kaylee Peterson: Yeah. No, ⁓ we have to be able to safeguard the consequences for the people in the government, but also different ways where we can Yeah, I I agree wholeheartedly. I think that we need to up Our our focus and priorities. I think what's happening with data centers, what's happening with tech companies, what's happening with the way that big tech is using our data as consumers, the idea that companies and corporations can now just hike prices based on who you are using facial recognition software. Part of this problem is because we haven't even close to updated the laws or rules around digital and the change just in the last decade. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: It is crazy. So I do agree that we need to update how this country looks at its legal frameworks. I just think I am more cautious than ever on how easily we do that. This administration will forever change the way I look at precedent and the strength of legal frameworks. And how do we prevent this kind of corruption and abuse of power that we're witnessing now? That will always be forefront of my mind in how we look at what we do legally to change and improve this country for people. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. I I think one of the biggest things that I realized that that made me even consider the idea of rewriting the constitution in general was the fact that you could tell that they were writing they almost wrote it, they almost wrote parts, it feels like in a more general way, because they hoped it would cover more people, not thinking about the fact that. In the future, someone could take that generality and use it as a way to actually prevent people from being a part of it. And I feel like that is where it is failing the most, is in some of the some of the most consequential amendments and parts of the constitution are the ones that they almost needed to be very specific and not just say, ⁓ you know, people, but say people of any race, religion, gender, identity, don't matter what country you come from. Like they needed to be so stinking specific. And then maybe put a, you know, and anything else that might apply at the end just to kind of cover your bases. And I just that's I think that's where I'm coming from is is I just feel like too many are using the the fact they're they're using a framework that was set up that ⁓ racism that had misogyny built into its very foundation and it's being used by those same peace those same the people with the same kind of beliefs to ⁓ people now and I feel like that's where that that's why I feel even though there is a danger to it I think I I think we have to We gotta do something because nothing isn't helping. Kaylee Peterson: Couldn't agree more. If I could plan out the next six to ten years of this country, the first thing that we would do is gut the establishment members of Congress and hold them criminally responsible for every rule break, law break, every member of this administration that's been involved in any kind of corruption. I want major public trials. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: And then we look at how do we safeguard our elections in our government, especially the executive branch, from financial corruption and power. So that is overturning Citizens United and creating a really strong legal framework. And then as soon as we've had that kind of mass change, then we bring on a new kind of constitutional convention where we do reimagine the constitution in this new modern way. That knows how tricky lawyers are and how they try to use little loopholes and lack of strict scrutiny. And now we have that in mind. So we know how to lay down a framework that actually guarantees every single person in this country. I I mean the idea that people ⁓ yeah, ⁓ Ice came to Wilder, Idaho, and zip tied children. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Yeah. Kaylee Peterson: At a community fair. The FBI was investigating these four local racetrack owners for gambling. So ICE came to the state, decided they were gonna tag on with the FBI who served these four warrants during a very popular busy family fair. They zip tied children, they beat older teenagers than adults, indefinitely detained. These are people in my district. Breaking The Meta: Mm. Kaylee Peterson: These are these are Idahoans. These are our people. And the idea that the Constitution doesn't supposedly protect them is such a farce. But it's it's I couldn't agree more. I think I my hope is that we can cut out all of this crap. And I know that this is a big hope. I know that this is looking at the best possible future, but my hope is ⁓ that if we look towards what the best could possibly be. Breaking The Meta: Yeah. Of course. Kaylee Peterson: that we at least continue moving in the right direction and having the right priorities and ensuring that these protections are available to every single one of us. I and them those who are most vulnerable. Breaking The Meta: My my response to anyone saying that it's a big hope is rights for the black community was a big hope at one point. Rights for women was a big hope for people at one point. And while we went backwards far too much, ⁓ It's still it it's still farther than it was when there felt like no hope. So hopefully I I agree that there's a lot of work that is necessary, but I think we can we can definitely keep keep pushing in the right direction as long as we have people like you that are willing to get out there and do the kind of work that ⁓ that not many people would be willing to do at this point. ⁓ you know, Kaylee, thank you so much for for coming on here and talking with me more. It it was great the first time and it was and it was just as great this time. So ⁓ I appreciate you. For anyone who may not have checked you out the last time, could you let people know where they can find you if they do want to learn more about you and ⁓ support you? Kaylee Peterson: Yeah, I do want to throw this in too. Thankfully, I'm the only Kaylee running for Congress in the entire United States of America. So I'm very easy to find. If you just Google Kaylee for Congress, that's my social media. KayleeforCongress.com is our website. KayleeforCongress at gmail.com is our email. But one of the things that I wish we could scream from the rooftops is just how difficult it is to spread our campaign and movement. Without the money that establishment candidates have, how much it costs to try and get the work that we're doing and our endorsements and our stories and our social media to out to every single constituent. There's nearly 1.2 million people in my district. It's one of the largest in the country by population. And that's why you see establishment candidates so frequently. be successful because of that money. And so the one thing that we have that they don't is we are the majority. But it takes grassroots networking sharing campaigns and people and staffers and sharing that information like a 1960s phone tree in order to overcome the millions that establishment GOP members like my opponent have. So if anybody is wondering how they can help a grassroots candidate That really is the secret is helping share a platform, tagging us with major influencers, sharing us with contacts. Do you know a good publicist? Reach out to a grassroots candidate because we're all in need. But ⁓ that's the way that's the way I think we can overcome in the next six months. Breaking The Meta: Yep. Yeah. So as Kaylee said, go out and share her stuff. ⁓ share this video too. Again, ⁓ that is why I started doing what I'm doing here is to try and give ⁓ candidates like Kaylee the the visibility and name recognition to counter ⁓ all of the money. Because in the end, the great thing about social media is it doesn't need the money if people are willing to do the work. And so that is the question that I have for everyone listening right now is how important is change to you? How important is change to you? If change is as important as you say, it's gonna take more than just your district to win. And that's not to say your district may not be super important to win, but it's gonna take all of us. It's gonna take the people in Kaylee's district, in my district, in everyone's district to care all around and and The more people watch this content, the better the chance that people in Kaylee's district will see her name and want to learn more about her. So, Kaylee, again, thank you so much for being here. For everyone that has listened this far, please hit all those buttons down below. Like, subscribe, share, do all the things. It means the world to me and allows me to keep doing what I'm doing. And yeah, I'll see you next time on Breaking the Meta. Bye, guys. Kaylee Peterson: See it.