The Daily Signal - College Student Stands Up for Vice President Pence Amidst Leftist Protests

Episode Date: October 28, 2019

“I Like Mike” was the campaign Taylor University freshman David Muselman created when a handful of progressive students tried to keep Vice President Mike Pence from visiting Taylor’s campus.  The Vice President was invited to deliver the 2019 commencement address at the Christian college in Upland, Indiana. When a few leftist students tried to block the Vice President's visit, Muselman rallied the student body in support of Pence through the “I Like Mike" campaign, that spread like wildfire across campus. Muselman joins the Daily Signal podcast to discuss how the campaign was created and why he chose to take a stand-up for the Vice President. Also on today's show: Vice President Mike Pence joined 1,500 Heritage Foundation members and friends last week at the first ever Heritage honors gala. The vice president addressed a number of the key issues facing our nation right now, including our First Amendment rights.  We also read your letters to the editor. You can leave us a message at 202-608-6205 or write us at [e-mail]. And we share a good news story about how a simple act of kindness from a garbage man led to a new friendship and a viral video. Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkC7yvd0qHU. The Daily Signal podcast is available on Ricochet, Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or your favorite podcast app. All of our podcasts can be found at dailysignal.com/podcasts. Enjoy the show! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feeling festive. Catch classic holiday favorites like Home Alone, the Santa Claus and Die Hard, along with holiday episodes from Family Guy, Abbott Elementary, and more with Hulu on Disney Plus. From festive Disney flicks to binge-worthy Hulu originals, Hulu on Disney Plus is your home for the holidays. Celebrate the season with Hulu, available on Disney Plus in Canada. This is the Daily Signal podcast for Monday, October 28th. I'm Robert Blewey. And I'm Virginia Allen. Today we share an interview with David Musselman, a student and proud conservative at Taylor University who rallied the student body to support Vice President Mike Pence when a handful of progressive students tried to keep the vice president from visiting the Indiana College. And speaking of Vice President Pence, the Heritage Foundation welcomed him to our first ever Heritage Honors Gala last week. We will share a few minutes of his remarks with you today. And we'll wrap up today's show with your letters to the editor and a good news story about a simple act of kindness from a garbage man that led to a new friendship and a viral video.

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I am joined on the Daily Signal podcast by David Musselman, a student and proud conservative voice on his college campus at Taylor University in Indiana. David, thanks so much for joining me. Thanks for having me, Virginia. So earlier this year, Taylor University announced that Vice President Mike Pence would be their graduation, speaker in May of 2019. And there was such a backlash from the students that it made national headlines. Now, in response to this, you launched the I Like Mike campaign. This was a very bold move on your part as you were willing to stand up on campus and express your support for the vice president. Why did you decide to launch the I Like Mike campaign? Absolutely. And thanks for that question.

that's a great question, but first and foremost, the day our president of the university announced Vice President Pence would be speaking at commencement, everybody was thrilled. I mean, I got text messages, I got phone calls, and everybody could not believe that the vice president would be coming to speak at our university in the middle of cornfields. It's in Upland, Indiana, it's in the middle of nowhere, and it's an honor to have the vice president. So that was first and foremost, everybody was thrilled. A day or two later, the very loud, outspoken minority on the campus freaked out a little bit.

There was a girl who said she was actually shaking in fear, and there was another girl who said she was terrified at the fact that Mike Pence was coming to speak on our campus. And then after those two instances, the, well, what I like to call the fake media, took a hold of the story, and really, really put articles out and put other stuff out in the media saying how much Taylor doesn't want the vice president to come speak, does not appreciate what he does, do not value his commitment and service to our country. And so that's from the outside looking in.

That's what everybody thought, you know. That's everybody thought Taylor was a place that did not want the vice president to come. from the inside looking out, that wasn't the case at all. It was a loud, loud, loud minority of students who were not in favor. And in fact, a ton of people on campus really, really were excited for it. And so then that launched me into the idea of making these t-shirts. I made these t-shirts. They're called I Like Mike T-shirts.

They had the vice president's face in the middle of them. and it was so cool because a lot of, I went door to door and sold these t-shirts and a lot of people didn't buy them at first and then once our initial group of the people who bought them wore them on campus and got a picture, everybody wanted them. From maintenance men, from technicians,

from faculty to alumni, I was getting, my phone was blowing up because everybody was, it was a foamo in a way, it was a fear of missing out. They all wanted to be a part of it. of this, I like Mike campaign. So it was a great opportunity. The vice president actually met with us at commencement then. Yeah, and I wanted to ask you about that. What was that like sitting down with the vice president, having really played an integral part of standing up on your campus and saying, no, we want the vice president to come? It was an unbelievable experience. Just having the vice president on campus is one thing. But then him being willing to meet with us in my team and the group of people that we worked with.

It was humbling. You know, it was humbling. I learned the week before that the vice president, it was not in the schedule to shake every person's hand at commencement. And he said, he saw that and he said, hey, I'm shaking every person's hand. And he didn't have to meet with us, and he saw our article on Fox News. And he said, hey, find those guys. I want to meet with them.

And that's just the man he is. And that's just, I'm so thankful for that type of vice president in our country. So what did you all talk about? It was awesome. He came in the room and there was probably 20, maybe a little more students. It was hard to get people back because the seniors couldn't contribute because they were walking on the stage and a lot of seniors bought shirts. And a lot of people left.

And so it was more the local crowd. But we were all starstruck when he came in. I mean, the vice president walking into the room is pretty humbling. We talked about a lot of stuff. He mainly talked about how thankful he was. for the support and for us backing him. And we just told him how thankful we were. Because really, a lot of us, you know, listening to the show even,

we believe in those basic biblically sound, conservative values. But sometimes we're not willing to stand up for those values. And Vice President Pence is an unbelievable example for standing up for those values. But then as well as not just standing up, being willing to take the heat. And obviously he's taking a lot of heat in the past few years, but that's just the man he is. He's an unbelievable man. Did you receive any backlash on your campus from launching the I Like Mike campaign? So back, I wouldn't say backlash.

No, I did get a couple of dirty looks, and some professors, you know, don't talk to me as much as they did because they don't agree with what I agree with. But at the end of the day, you know, who cares? That's my opinion. I mean, who cares? We got to stand firm for what we believe in. And at the end of the day, if they're not willing to talk to us or hang out with us or even have a friendly conversation with us, what's the point, you know? And did you have a group of friends that you were all kind of launching this together?

Or did you really come up with this idea and spearheaded it on your own? It was actually my good friend named Jarrett Boyer from Indiana. He came into my room. He said, hey, I have an idea. We got to make T-shirts. I said, no way. All right, I'm in. And so his girlfriend's dad, like, designs T-shirts and stuff.

And so I helped him. I edited all the T-shirts and stuff, and then I sold them all. But it was Jaris's idea. So, I mean, without Jarris, none of this would have happened. But it was awesome. Yeah, it sounds like you all are. Yeah, quite the team. That's great.

So what did you learn from this experience that you would like to share with other young adults? Yeah, other young adults, I would say don't be scared of the other side. Always remember that half the country voted for Trump, half the country voted for Vice President Pence. Over half the country shares the beliefs we have. It doesn't feel like that watching the news. It doesn't feel like that watching the media. But a good Bible verse I think of is Galatians 110 and it says, Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings or of God?

Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. And so, just bottom line, like, if you, if the spirit is telling you to do something or you feel that sense or if you just have that gut feeling to do it, just do it, you know? Like, don't think about the backlash you could. I mean, we have it so easy in America and we are so blessed to live in the greatest country in the world. Where in China and North Korea and other countries, it's pretty hard. And so we have it really easy, and we got to remember that.

And no matter what, you just got to do it. Yeah, yeah. So, David, you're a finance major at Taylor, and you have a few more years of school left. But has this experience led you to think that you might want to be more involved in policy or politics moving forward? I've got that question a lot in the last year. And as of now, I am going to be more involved. to stick with the business route. I'm trying to build a business. I want to do real estate with my brother. We're best friends. We want to be real estate partners. That's awesome. But down the road,

I mean, I would be interested if the situation would present itself. I'm not forcing anything. I'm going with the flow. But I'm going to start a business first, and then we'll see where the Lord takes me. Yeah. Well, we certainly appreciate you standing up for freedom and for the vice president and Taylor, and we really appreciate your time here at The Daily Signal. Thank you so much, Virginia. Tired of high taxes, fewer health care choices, and bigger government, become a part of the Heritage Foundation. We're fighting the rising tide of homegrown socialism

while developing conservative solutions that make families more free and more prosperous. Find out more at heritage.org. Vice President Mike Pence joined 1,500 Heritage Foundation members and friends last week at the first ever Heritage Honors Gala. The Vice President addressed a number of key issues facing our nation right now, including our First Amendment rights. Take a listen.

And this administration will always defend the freedom of religion of every American, of every faith. So help us God. On with the steady Council of Heritage Foundation, we've restored federal enforcement of our nation's conscience laws. We ended the last administration's assault

on the Little Sisters of the Poor. And under the last administration, you might not have heard about this, but VA hospitals around the country were actually removing Bibles and even banning Christmas carols over the holidays in the hallways of those hospitals. Can't even imagine it. But after we took office, this administration went to court to stop activists from removing a Bible that was carried in World War II and displayed. on a missing man table in a VA hospital in New Hampshire. I promise you, this administration will

always protect the right of our veterans to practice their faith and follow our conscience, and our message to the VA hospital in New Hampshire was simple. The Bible stays. You know, I've long believed that a society can be judged by how it deals with its most vulnerable. And Heritage Foundation has always stood for that principle as well. The way of society deals with the age of, the infirm, the disabled, and the unborn speaks to the heart of the nation. And at a time when leading Democrats are advocating late-term abortion and defending infanticide, I couldn't be more proud to serve as vice president to the most pro-life president in American history. You can listen to the full speech at daily signal.com.

What the heck is trickle-down economics? Does the military really need a space force? What is the meaning of American exceptionalism? I'm Michelle Cordero. I'm Tim Desher, and every week on the Heritage Explains podcast, we break down a hot button policy issue in the news at a 101 level. Through an entertaining mix of personal stories, media clips, music, and interviews, we help you actually understand the issues.

So do this. Subscribe to Heritage Explains on iTunes, Google Play, or wherever you get your podcasts today. Thanks for sending us your letters to the editor. Each Monday we feature our favorites on this show and in our Morning Bell email newsletter. Virginia, who's up first? In response to Kay Cole's James article,

building a movement to stop Democratic socialism, Victory writes, Socialism regulates groups of people by their group identity. Individual persons lose their individual identity, their sovereign personhood, to the sovereign. state and have no vote in socialism. Socialism is the imposition of one person as the master of another

person. And in response to syndicated columnist Walter Williams article, U.S. and moral decline, plebious writes, government has no business in business. They should not set wages for labor. Yes, you're going to have underpaid employees in some cases, but money is not the motivator. The will to make money is the motivator. Educate yourself or move to another job. That is what the free market allows. I agree with Walter. Your letter could be featured on next week's show. Send an email to Letters at DailySignal.com

or leave a voicemail message at 202-608-6205. We are joined in studio by Kiana Stedman, interned here at the Heritage Foundation. Keanu, you have a good news story to share with us today. Yes, thank you, Virginia. Every day, millions of kind acts go and note. But lucky for us, a doorbell camera captured one inspiring act of friendship between an 88-year-old woman and a waste management employee. Their friendship began one cold winter day this January when Opal Zuka fell and hit her head while trying to will her trash can up the driveway. Billy Shelby saw it happen and rushed from his garbage truck to help, wrapping her in his jacket and calling an ambulance.

But Shelby's kindness didn't stop there. wanting to ensure that a similar incident when it happened again, he began helping her will up her trash can after emptying it every Tuesday. Opal's daughter happened to see the doorbell's footage of one of their interactions one day. She said, I actually got teary-eyed that a stranger would take a couple minutes out of their day to not only help her but to build a relationship and friendship. She shared the video on Facebook and it quickly received over 100,000 views

and was shared over 1,000 times. Shelby found out his video was inspiring the nation while he was watching the news with his mom. When asked about his service, Shelby humbly said, I always try to make her smile. That's my goal. I always tell myself, how do you know you're a good person? Is it when you're doing good things and people are watching

or when people are not watching? I did it because it's the right thing to do. If you do the right thing when no one is looking, it's really good for the soul. Shelby also shared this inspiring message. But here it is, I drive a trash truck. That's it. Right?

But even with that being saying, I can still be the best person I can be and it can help somebody through that day. I just believe, man, good energy, man. If you give it out, more than likely, that's what you're going to get back. I love this reminder from Billy Shelby that we all have the ability to brighten someone's day.

So thank you to all the millions of people making the world a better place. even when no one is watching. Kiana, thank you so much for sharing that. I think it's something that we talk about a lot on this show, that it's in these little practical ways that we go about making the world a better place and spreading joy by just taking the time for the people around us.

So thanks for sharing. Of course. We're going to leave it there for today. The Daily Signal podcast comes to you from the Robert H. Bruce Radio Studio at the Heritage Foundation. You can find it on the Rurkache Audio Network. All our shows can be found at DailySignal.com. slash podcasts. You can also subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or your favorite podcast app. And be sure to listen every weekday by adding the Daily Signal podcast as part of your Alexa Flash briefing. If you like what you hear, please leave us a review and a five-star rating. It means a lot to us and helps us spread the word to other listeners. Be sure to follow us on Twitter at DailySignal and Facebook.com slash the Daily Signal News. Have a great week.

and Virginia Allen. Sound design by Lauren Evans and Thalia Rampersad. For more information, visitdailysignal.com.