The Daily Signal - Virginia GOP Unites: Reid, Earle-Sears, and Miyares Launch Joint Campaign

Episode Date: July 2, 2025

Politics, the concept not the American spectator sport, comes from Ancient Greek politiká or 'affairs of the cities' and is defined as “a set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups.” Little is known about the lead up to the July First joint rally of Virginia’s three state-wide candidates, Winsome Earle-Sears the nominee for Governor, John Reid for Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General Jason Miyares running for re-election. Many insiders expressed concern over the media coverage of allegations of scandalous photographs or the nation-wide coverage that Reid was a gay would put a rift in the party. However, one thing is sure, after rally after rally of standing room only crowds, the former George Allen aide proved that he had learned well from the former Senator and Governor how to focus on the positives ahead of them as he sits down with us on the eve of this kickoff rally. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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We'd love to talk, business. Thanks for listening to this bonus episode of the Daily Signal podcast. I'm your host, Joe Thomas, Virginia correspondent for The Daily Signal. Before we dive into today's interview, I want to thank you for tuning in today. If you're a first-time listener, The Daily Signal, brings you fact-based reporting and conservative commentary on politics, policy, and culture. And I hope you join our band of regular listeners to our podcast. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and also take a

moment to rate and review us wherever you get your podcast. You can find additional content at DailySignal.com. Now, let's get started with today's conversation right after this. I've been trying to focus on these two bellwether campaigns that always follow a presidential election, New Jersey, which surprised so many folks four years ago within just a hair's breadth with nobody paying any attention of a Republican winning that seat. And I was watching some polls coming in on the New Jersey race that show the Chattarelli is within a couple of points of a congresswoman that I've talked to New Jersey residents. They don't know who she is. I think people are just like, well, I vote for Democrats, and they're just checking a box.

I mean, holy cow, have we devolved to this point? I guess that's how you wind up with a mayoral candidate in New York like that. But Virginia as well, same, same. You look at the polls of the last few weeks and months, it's a point or two in between Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger and Lieutenant Governor Winsom Sears and running mate, I can say that because they're going to be having a big rally going on later on today, all three statewide candidates in the Commonwealth of Virginia. John Reed is back on with us. How are you doing this Tuesday morning, John? I am great. It's been a busy few days. I was down in Virginia Beach for the weekend, lots of events taking place there and then a big event up here in northern Virginia and then I spent the night

so that I could be ready for a bunch of meetings and the big rally in Vienna, which is at 630 this evening. So it's it's kind of non-stop, man. Well, it's it's that you want a big job. You're going to have to do some big work, some heavy lifting for it, John. And it's, you know, that's, you know, one of the crucibles of these campaigns is, is you can't, you can't go into it halfway there. and I appreciate your time. Do you get a lot of folks because I know that one of the narratives about this one big, beautiful bill, is that if it doesn't pass, it's going to cost Republicans elections? What are the people coming to your rallies telling you about the one big beautiful bill, the 2017 tax cuts that are about to expire and all that stuff? Yeah, well, the Republicans certainly recognize that the tax breaks that are built into this bill need to be expired. and we're going to crush this economy, which is, you know, coming back. Right.

If we don't get, if we don't make sure that the tax cuts stay as a part of the calculus here. What's interesting to me is the Democrats keep sending these trackers to different events that I go to. You know, these are the people that, they're usually like cute college kids, you know, guys, girls. They're really buoyant and everything. and they pretend like they're your friends, oh, hey, I've seen you on the internet. And then you look down and they're recording you with their phone and they're trying to trick you into saying something stupid

so that they can hammer you in social media or in TV ads. Often out of context. Oh, really, yeah. They pull whatever you tell them. So you've got to be very careful. And I'm a friendly guy. So if somebody comes up to me, you know, old, young, but whatever, I'll talk to you.

It's not a problem to me. That's been my life. But over the weekend, I had several people come up, and it was clear that they were trying to record the conversation. And they're obsessed. The Democrats are obsessed with the idea that American citizens are going to lose access to medical care because of Donald Trump's proposal here. And they refuse to accept the idea that we are cracking down on the abuse of the system from people. who were in the country illegally. You know, we're, I don't know whether other people have encountered what I've encountered,

but, you know, my parents, the last few years have been sick. So I've been in the emergency room with them. And I look around and I'm like, wow, these people who are here are using the emergency room as their primary care. Yeah. Oh, yeah, without question. And that was supposedly something. That was supposedly something that the Affordable Care Act was going to fix, John. Remember that in 2009?

Oh, yeah. But they're all afraid. And I have dear friends who call me and say, well, you made me vote for this guy. Of course, that's a disingenuous statement on its own. But they're, you made me vote for this guy. And now my mom is going to lose Medicare. And that's Medicaid. And it's not true at all.

If anything, getting the people who aren't supposed to be on it is going to save it longer. Yeah, we hope so. I will tell you, everyone should have anxiety about whether or not a country. with 330, what, 5 million people can sustain a socialist program without problems going forward. I mean, I hope we can because everybody has built their lives around this. But the only way that it has any chance of surviving is by taking the people who don't have the right to use it out of the system. And Americans are going to have to sober up real quick and make some tough decisions. Nobody likes to tell anybody no, but if you're here illegally and you have been able to access medical care that's paid for by everybody else, that's got to stop.

Or the whole system's going to collapse. And your grandma and your family and friends are the ones who are going to pay. So it's time to make some tough decisions. Let's do it. Well, yeah. And I think that's the important thing is that these are people who did not qualify for the services outside of some need. has been identified by a target group. What about, and I know that several of the folks who are hanging up the one big, beautiful

bill are talking about the calculus that's done regarding Medicare and the states. Rick Scott, Ron Johnson, Mike Lee are demanding change in Medicaid's formulation so that the states would have to pick up more or have. Have you heard anything from the folks coming to your rally? And what would that look like if Virginia had to pick up more of its Medicaid expenditures? Well, this was part of the problem, right? When we agreed to the Medicaid expansion, this was predictable. Yes.

That inevitably the state would have to pick up more of the cost, and that would inevitably mean more taxes on the people of Virginia. And, you know, this was my anxiety about this entire concept of the first place, is that you blow out the entire system of, nothing is normal. How do I put this correctly? Nothing is normal when you inject federal and state funding into the payment plan. Suddenly, the inflation goes through the roof because everybody had actually paying it. So why do they care what the final price is for something? Good point.

You know, you care about it when you actually have to write a check or put it on your credit card. You don't care about it when it's the federal government of the state government. Or even an insurance company subsidizing that John Reed on with us, John Reed for Virginia. John, you mentioned it and this has all been predictable. And this is still, you know, impacts of 2009 coming back on Virginians. Yet there's reality. Virginia is doing really well in terms of attracting businesses, good businesses, even a buckies now. And I saw the governor at the ribbon cutting for that. I didn't notice if he had any beef jerky in his pocket. But that good businesses are coming to Virginia.

How do we keep that inertia? You know, and what message does it send to the other businesses if our senators are interested in raising everyone's taxes? Yeah. How do you keep it happening? Vote Republican. Why do I say that? That's not just a partisan thing. The Democrats have said they're going to do away with your right to work. They're going to force you to join a union if you want to keep your job. They're going to take money out of your paycheck and give it to the union bosses, who, by the way, will then give the money to the Democrat Party. And I'm telling you right now, and you don't have to believe me, go do your research. If we lose the right. to work in Virginia, all of these businesses that, you know, Governor Rob, Governor Beliols, Governor Gilmore, Governor Allen, Governor McDonald, and Governor Yonkin have recruited to Virginia over many decades. Republicans and Democrats alike, they are not coming here. They're going to go to Tennessee. They're going to go to North Carolina and South Carolina. One of the main things we have as a competitive advantage is we're the northernmost state on the Atlantic Seaboard with the right to work. And if the Democrats get their way, and it's not like they're

hiding it. They're telling you to your face. They're getting rid of this thing. If they force you into a union, these companies are not coming to Virginia. So, yeah, we've got a great track record. We need to keep it by not allowing the more radical leaders of the modern Democrat Party in Virginia to make bad decisions. Well, and you mentioned radicals, and I can't help but think of my old hometown of New York and this Marxist who wants government grocery stores and and taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers to pay for social programs. And is that what's happening? Is the left is going so far out there that we can't, that the Republican Party is growing

just because it has to, because there's no place for anyone else to go? yet normal people who believe in a normal life are not going to embrace the radical ideas here. And you mentioned what's his name, Mandami in New York. You know, my opponent that the Democrats have chosen, state Senator Gazala Hashmi, I mean, she's essentially the female version of that guy. Every radical idea that has been implemented in Virginia since 2020, that most people kind of despise the trans idea. the fight over whether we're going to keep schools closed.

Remember that? The Democrats insisted on and keeping the schools closed and putting your kids in a bad situation. This lady has been the one advocating for all the craziness. That's her. So I don't know why the Democrats are doubling and tripling down on leftist policies that are widely being rejected. But that's what they're doing. You know, we lived in a state, at least when I was growing up in Virginia, because I'm a native Virginia. And I watched all this up close where Democrats and Republicans differed on some things.

There's all, you know, it's politics. There's always been conflict. But it wasn't this chasm between leftist ideology and just basic sound conservative principle. Democrats in Virginia were relatively conservative economically. And quite frankly, relatively conservative. conservatively, socially as well. And now the gap is huge. And I'm offering as a new Republican candidate, I mean, everybody knows my background. I'm kind of a different type of candidate. I'm showing up telling you, I'm going to help bring reasonable, responsible, and fair leadership back to the Capitol where everybody gets treated fairly and when we're rejecting the radicalism of the left. I think people are going to find that appealing. I think they already are good luck. What time is the rally today?

6.30 tonight in Vienna at the volunteer fire department there. I've not been to this venue, but everybody says it's so cool. And I think we're going to have a great crowd and people will be excited to see Winsome Sears and Jason E.R. So I hope they're excited to see me. And Governor Yonkin will be there. This will be, you know, the official kickoff of this really, really important campaign. And bring coattails with you because. we need a house victory as well in Virginia, just from where I said. I think we need to flip the

house very much as well. So we need strong coattails for those races as well. John, what's the website again? Yeah, it's John Reed for Virginia.com. R-E-I-D is the last name, John Reed for Virginia.com. We've got great candidates from the top of the ticket all the way down to dog catchers. So please take a look at your Republican candidates, and I'm always thankful to be on with you. Well, I appreciate it. We'll talk to you again very soon, my friend. Thank you. That'll do it for today's show. Don't forget to hit that subscribe button, so you never miss out on new episodes from The Daily Signal. Every weekday, you can catch top news in 10 to keep up with the day's top headlines in just 10 minutes, and every weekday afternoon catch Victor

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