March 13, 2025 • 28 mins
In this episode, Lisa welcomes Daniel Cameron, the former Attorney General of Kentucky, who is running for the Senate seat soon to be vacated by Mitch McConnell. Cameron discusses his motivations for entering politics, highlighting his commitment to Kentucky and conservative values. He reflects on his tenure as Attorney General, including his handling of the Breonna Taylor case and efforts to combat the opioid crisis. Cameron also shares his support for President Trump, his stance against DEI and ESG policies, and his vision for a constitutional conservative approach in the Senate. The Truth with Lisa Boothe is part of the Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Podcast Network - new episodes debut every Tuesday & Thursday.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Our next guest grew up in a small town in
Kentucky and went on to become the state's first black
attorney general. He is now gunning for the student to
be vacant Senate seat held by Mitch McConnell. So what
drives the former attorney general and why does he want
this job, especially after his attempt to unseat Kentucky's Democrat
Governor Andy Basheer. We'll talk about his handling of the
(00:21):
Brionna Taylor case, which drew protests as well as national attention.
How does he feel about his decision now? Additionally, how
does he reconcile being Mitch McConnell's former general counsel while
also having previously received an endorsement from President Trump? Will
that create challenges for him in this campaign? Stay tuned
(00:42):
for all of that and more with Daniel Cameron. Well
Attorney General Daniel Cameron. I appreciate you making the time
looking forward to discussing why you decided to run for
a Senate and also just you know, there's a lot
going on, all good things, but a lot going on,
So I appreciate you making the time for us.
Speaker 2 (01:05):
Lisa, Thank you so much. Honored to be on with
you and I talked to you obviously, but to get
to share with your listeners as well, and again, just
grateful for the opportunity.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Absolutely So I always ask people, you know the why, right,
because being out of politics is so much easier than
being in politics. You've previously served as the attorney general,
you did run for governor, so you know, you've been
in the private sector. Why do you want to get
back into the game. You know why politics? Again, Well,
it's a.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Thank you for asking.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Look, you know, Mackenzie, my wife and I have a
heart for this commonwealth, in this country. We've got two
little boys, Theodore's three and Benett is ten months.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
And what we want to see.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
And it really mirrors what I think the majority of
not only Kentucky's but Americans want to see is a
colorblind society. And I believe in the American identity one
that it's again rooted in color blindness and merit and
perseverance and grit. It's like core to our DNA as
(02:12):
Americans and in our founding. And I want to go
to Washington to help promote that on behalf of the men,
women and children of our commonwealth. I think I've obviously
got the track record to do so. And as Attorney General,
I was helping preserve constitutional rights here.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
And standing up for our values.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
But I want to do that in Washington and help
support President Trump's agenda as well. And so this is
a core conviction for us, is that you know, again
as you have, you're raising two boys, and obviously we
pray for them and over them every night, but we
want them to be able to flourish in a colorblind society,
(02:53):
one in which you know, it's based on their content,
of their character, if you will, and their ability to
get things done as opposed to what they look like
and all those other woke ideologies that exist to try
to divide our country. We've got to get back to
that core conviction that we are Americans, that we're driving
(03:14):
towards this more perfect union and one that reflects the
idea that we've got to take care of our communities
and the folks in our homes and our states.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
And I want to be a part of driving that
in Washington.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
What are you most proud of from your time as
Attorney General.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
Well, you know, there were things that got a lot
of headlines, but you let me tell you that when
I ran for Attorney General, I often talked about the
public safety challenge that we faced here in Kentucky. In
it was opioid overdoses and abuses, and we know that
Sittanel was coming across a poor southern border and it
(03:54):
was hurting people right here in Kentucky. But that was
also exacerbated by wholesale distributors manufacturers of opioids that again
were you know, helping bring this poison into our communities.
And so as a commitment, I said, look, we're gonna
we're going to address this issue. We're going to confront
(04:15):
it and meet it face on and confront it.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
In that way.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
And I was proud of the fact that these wholesalers
and manufacturers ultimately came to the table and acknowledged that, hey,
we've got some we've got some culpability here, if you will.
And because we were able to fashion agreement, Kentucky has
taken in nearly nine hundred million dollars. In fact, we've
(04:41):
taken in more than nine hundred million at this point
with my predecessor, but when I was in office, we
took in nearly nine hundred million dollars that money's coming
in over a span of years, but that was a
moment in which, you know, regardless of where you fell
on the political spectrum, we got people together in a room.
We made an agreement. We're bringing money into the state
to address the opioid epidemic. And look, it's not a
(05:03):
magic elixir, it's not an end all, be all, but
it is a significant down payment to help address some
of the challenges that we have. And when it comes
to the broader argument, I was helping lead the charge
against Joe Biden to fight and oppose his decisions to
(05:24):
make us less safe when it came to our southern
border again, because I understood the real impact that it
was having on families in Eastern Kentucky, in West Kentucky,
in Central Kentucky, and so wanted to address that. Was
very proud of the effort and the ability to bring
those dollars into the state. And then I was proud
(05:45):
of the fact that we were able to stand up
and preserve our constitutional rights. We had a governor that,
as crazy as the sounds, actually shut down our churches
and I told him before he did it that it
was unconstitutional. I stood on the steps of our Capital
and said this is an unconstitutional act. He did it,
(06:06):
but we took him to court, suit him and got
our churches reopen here in Kentucky in nine days. And
again that's a moment in which, you know, it's one
thing to talk about standing up and preserving constitutional rights,
but to be able to effectively do it and get
something changed in a positive result I was proud of
(06:27):
as well.
Speaker 1 (06:28):
One of the things that did draw a lot of
attention during your time as Attorney general was the Breonna
Taylor case. It predated the George Floyd incident, but then
you know, gain more attention after that. So you know,
you decided to charge one of the officers with one
ton endangerment rather than homicide, which is what obviously.
Speaker 4 (06:49):
You know, people who.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
Were protesting wanted at the time, drew a lot of
national scrutiny, a lot of protests, a lot of attention.
You know, look at back, is there anything you would
have done differently, either in your decision making or kind
of you know, take us through the decision making there
and what that time period was like for you and
trying to figure out what to do, what the right
thing was to do.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Yeah, you know, when I took the oath of office
in December of twenty nineteen. I said, you know, after
I concluded with the oath, I talked to some members
of the press that had gathered and said, you know,
this job won't always produce easy answers, but we.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
Are going to do our job without fear or favor.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
And that really came into focus in twenty twenty with
the passing of Miss Taylor. And it look, it was
there's no question it was a challenging case.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
And I had people protesting at our house.
Speaker 2 (07:47):
You know, folks were threatening to you know, protest our wedding.
You know, I had all sorts of you know, my
mother was you know, sort of just you know, uh,
scared for her child, her son because of all the
sort of vitriol and animosity that was coming.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
But I said from the very beginning.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
That we were going to do the job without fear
of favor, and we did what was right in the case.
And I just note for people that, you know, the
the federal government when they came in in the Biden
administration and the Department of Justice ended up bringing the
same essentially the same charge. Now they you know, they
(08:30):
have a civil rights sort of regime that they can
uh file uh case, you know, specific things going and so,
but it was essentially the same charge and wanting endangerment
for us and again their civil rights kind of mirror
that that that charge against Brett Hankinson.
Speaker 3 (08:49):
And so you know, once.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
People I think recognize that, you know, a lot of
the tension and stuff, you know, dissipated. You know, again,
obviously you're not going to satisfy every want, but we
did what was right. You know, there's no question about that.
And you all but when you're in these public positions,
you have to take difficult stands and have to do
(09:14):
what is right.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
And we did that. And I'll never back away from
doing what is right.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
I think I showed in that case that I have
a strong spine and can take the heat regardless of
what the situation is.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
And I'm going to do what's right by the laws
of our state.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
And again that doesn't discount just the heaviness of the
situation and the loss of a life. And I think
regardless of whether you got an R or D by
your name, people understand that. But you have to do
you have to do what's right by the law, and
we certainly did that.
Speaker 1 (09:48):
You've been very supportive of President Trump, and he endorsed
you in the gubernatorial race. However, you know, you did
get your political start with Mitch McConnell, who's now retiring,
which is the c that you have announced for Uh,
you worked as his general counsel.
Speaker 4 (10:05):
He kind of helped you get your political start. You know,
how do you bridge.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
The gap between you know, these different factions in both
Kentucky's g O P and as well just in the
Republican Party at large? You know, will that be a
challenge or or you know kind of how do you
how do you see that?
Speaker 3 (10:23):
Well?
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Look, I am you know I certainly worked hard to
you know, throughout my career, whether it was you know,
an undergrad at U of L or in law school
where I was a member of the Law review where
you know, I was the student body president of our
law school. I had an opportunity to clerk for a
federal judge. UH, and you know, graduated from law school
(10:46):
with honors and worked at a uh, you know, pretty
significantly sized law firm here for Kentucky. UH.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
And so I've you know, worked hard to do the
things that I've.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Done over life and certainly grateful for the opportunities that
I've had. And what I share with people is, look,
I don't run away from, you know, the opportunities that
I've had or the responsibility that I've been given to
in service as Attorney General or in previous roles.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
But I'm my own man, and I've.
Speaker 2 (11:21):
Whether it was running for attorney general in twenty nineteen
or running for governor in twenty three. I think people
recognize that. You know, again, you talked about twenty twenty.
You know, folks weren't protesting at any other political officeholder's home.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
They were protesting at mine.
Speaker 2 (11:39):
And you know, I when people sort of connect or
associate me with specific folks, those folks haven't been in
the fire the way that I have. And again, I've
shown repeatedly that I'll make the tough decisions and I'll
do what's right by our laws here in Kentucky and
by the men, women and children of our commonwealth.
Speaker 3 (12:01):
And I'm going to continue to do that. You know,
it's it's my goal to bring as many people.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
You got to have to win an election, you have
to have uh, you know, you got to have all
Republicans UH working together to do that, and so I
do want to you know, try to bring as many
people together as I possibly can. I think that has
to you know, ultimately be the post or somebody that's gonna,
you know, hope to be in a general election. And
(12:29):
I've I've been grateful that you know, President Trump has
supported and endorsed me, and we uh, you know, feel
very strongly about what it looks like to to help
uh support his agenda in Washington. And you know, I'll
just say that I was the first statewide elected office
(12:51):
holder in Kentucky to endorse him for re election. You know,
when when others refuse to do so, and you know
we're calling me and asking for my advice on you know,
whether they should support and endorse President Trump, I was
willing to stand out and support him. And I've never
backed away from that, never will I back away from it.
I mean, President Trump is not only changing the Republican
(13:17):
Party in good ways, but he's changing the country in
preserving those ideas, that ideals that I talked about earlier
for future generations. And you know, again, as we think
about our two little boys, I mean, we want them
to grow up in a country that is prosperous, that
(13:37):
is strong, that is not taking advantage of, that is
merit based, that is color blind. Those are the sorts
of things that we care deeply about. And it mirrors
President Trump's agenda and his values, and so I'm hopeful
to continue to earn his support. And you know, this
race has got to be about the future. You know,
(14:01):
it can't be about the past. We've got to have
a senator in the United States Senate that recognizes that
there is there are myriad opportunities for Kentucky to lead
on the national landscape. Whether it's in education, or in
AI or robotics or in cryptocurrency, Kentucky can lead. And
(14:25):
you've got to have somebody that is in the Senate
continuing to press on those points.
Speaker 3 (14:32):
And I want to be able to do that.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
I think I could be a pretty effective advocate for
those things and for the Trump agenda, and I'm hopeful
that again I'll earn his support and earn the support
of Kentuckian's because ultimately they're the ones that go to
the polls to make a decision about who they want.
And I hope that I build a strong relationship with
the people here in Kentucky and they've gotten to know me,
(14:56):
and they've gotten to know Mackenzie, and they've gotten to
know our family. And you know, again this is this
is core to who we are. And I say that
because we are. You know, I'm not a Johnny come
lately to these issues, whether it's DEI, whether it's ESG.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
I have I've been in fid of those.
Speaker 1 (15:14):
Let's talk about that for a moment, because you know,
following the Gubernas Royal race, you became the CEO of
seventeen ninety two Exchange.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
Why did you take that role and what was the
what was the work there?
Speaker 2 (15:29):
Yeah, at least it was like a it was it
was the opportunity to continue some work that I'd started
as the Attorney General for I was the first Attorney
General in the nation to say that if you are
a member of our state pension board, then your fibuciary duty,
meaning your sole responsibility is to maximizing the return on
(15:50):
investment for the shareholder. And those shareholders in our pension
system are teachers, firefighters, and police officers, and so that
has to be your focus. It can't be these you know,
extraneous ideas about ESG environmental social governments, and it certainly
can't be that. When the Larry Thinks of the world
said that they want to destroy the fossil fuels industry
(16:11):
by twenty thirty or twenty fifty in Kentucky, that means
you want to destroy our competitive advantage, which is coal
and natural gas. So I was the first Attorney general
to speak out on that issue. I was one of
just a handful of attorneys general that essentially, you know,
went out on a limb and said to big law
(16:34):
firms that, hey, you cannot implement and advise companies to
go full force on DEI because it's it's frankly against
the law. That was two years ago when I was
making those statements, and again there weren't many people that
were saying that then.
Speaker 3 (16:51):
But now, based on court.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
Decisions and based on what we've seen from the Supreme
Court in the context of public universities, we know that
DEI is unconstitutional and is in violation of law. Again,
I was one of the few that was willing to
say that as Attorney general, and so at seventeen ninety
two exchange it's given me an opportunity to continue that.
Speaker 3 (17:11):
Work on DEI and ESG there. And I've talked about
this a lot.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
There are a lot of things that a CEO or
executives are having to compete with and having to think about.
And some of them are willing to stand up to
the pressures, and some of them, frankly, have not been
willing to do so. And they need encouragement, and they
need help in getting to the right position of back
(17:36):
to neutral and away from these woke.
Speaker 3 (17:39):
Left leaning policies. They just need they need to focus
on business.
Speaker 2 (17:44):
And seventeen ninety two, Exchange has been the vehicle to
help companies to steer back to neutral. And I say
it all the time. I mean, you know, last year
in particular, you know, we saw that the domino, if
you will, was tractors supply. And we've seen a whole
host of companies, iconic brands Walmart, McDonald's, Ford Motor Company,
(18:07):
that have said, hey, we are getting out of di
We're no longer bowing the knee to the Human Rights Campaign,
a far left advocacy group. We're not doing that anymore.
We're going to focus on business. And again, to my organization,
we've been proud to be a part of that decision
making process. And again, this is a continuation of the
work that I did as Attorney General. And the reason
(18:29):
I wanted to jump into it is because, again it's
a core conviction of who I am. To stop the
craziness of DEI and ESG and I think we're going
down that road, and I want to help in the
Senate continue that work by being an advocate for colorblind society.
Speaker 4 (18:45):
How has President Trump done so far?
Speaker 3 (18:48):
President Trump's been amazing.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
I mean, here's somebody who absolutely ran on disrupting the
establishment in the normal going about business and looking out
for the American people and the American worker. Those are
the things that he ran on, ran on immigration, ran
(19:10):
on bettering in our strengthening our economy for the long haul.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
And he's he is.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
He's made those commitments clear and he's fulfilling those commitments.
And by the way, in shrinking government, which is something
that conservatives have been talking about for decades, but President Trump,
Elon Musk, others within the administration are actually getting it done.
And it's refreshing to see a president who says something
(19:38):
and then actually gets it done.
Speaker 3 (19:40):
And I've been excited to watch and see it.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
From my view in Kentucky and again hope to be
able come November twenty twenty six to help him in
those efforts.
Speaker 4 (19:52):
We've got more with Daniel Cameron, but first.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
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Speaker 3 (21:06):
Bang?
Speaker 2 (21:08):
Yeah, I see myself being a Senator that is supporting
and advancing President Trump's agenda because I think it reflects
the values of the men, women and children of our commonwealth,
of our one hundred and twenty counties. I'll be a
Senator that, as I did as Attorney General, will preserve
and protect and defend our constitutional rights. And I will
(21:29):
be a Senator that is dogged in pursuit of ensuring
that we get rid of DEI. I mean DEI is
ultimately become a divisive tool for the Left to use
to destroy the.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
Fabric of our country. And it has to end.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
President Trump is doing a terrific job of that work,
but he needs help in the Senate and somebody that
has a perspective that can speak on these issues in
a in a forceful way. And I want to do that.
I want to lead on it. And again, it's not
it's not an easy thing to do, you know. I
get you know, as a as a black man, I
(22:10):
get ridiculed and talked about because you know, I hold
these core convictions.
Speaker 3 (22:16):
Uh, but that's okay. I'm willing to stand up and
speak the truth.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
I'm going to continue to do so, and I hope
to be able to do so in the United States Senate.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
We've seen the Republican Party evolve, and you know, President
Trump has really changed the party into, you know, more
of a working class party. We saw that movement in
this past election. How do you see yourself as a Republican?
You know, do you consider yourself kind of more traditional conservative,
you know, a populist or kind of how do you
how do you define yourself?
Speaker 2 (22:48):
I need to describe myself as a constitutional conservative, somebody
who is deeply uh concerned with the preservation of our
constitutional rights.
Speaker 3 (23:04):
And you know, most of us think of it as
our as the Bill of Rights and.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
Being able to forcefully defend those That's how I see
myself and I am. I am grateful to President Trump.
I mean, it's it's it's it's similar to what you know,
President Reagan did in the eighties and and you know
this this is a party and I just go back.
I mean, if you think about the Republican Party at
(23:28):
its inception, it is a party that is spoken for
the downtrodden, those that didn't have a voice, those that
could not defend themselves, those that felt like that they
were detached from from the ability to get things done
on their behalf and didn't necessarily have the ability to
(23:50):
connect to the power structure, structures, or the establishment. That
that is the Republican Party at its inception, at its
core is what it was to do, was to help
those people, to help the downtroten, to help those that
are most vulnerable.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
And then you think about Teddy Roosevelt.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
I mean, here's here's somebody that recognized that, you know,
the financial health and well being of this country couldn't
be in the hands of just a few. And then
you think of even before that, Abraham Lincoln and what
he did to again speak up for the vulnerable. And
then you think of Ronald Reagan and his idea that
(24:29):
you got to get the thumbs off of the bureaucrats,
off the backs of the hard working men and women
of this country, and he brought into the party the hard,
hardworking folks, and that there's been a revival of that
with President Trump. He is brought back into the party
the people that make this country run. And there's no
(24:50):
better way to say it, and that the folks that
make this country run, the people that are are our
day in day out doing the hard task that that
that you know, make that build our cities, that make
our communities run efficiently.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
Those people are now in the Republican Party.
Speaker 2 (25:11):
And we've got to say thank you to President Trump
for making that a reality, because those folks, in many
ways felt like they had been left behind and and
that's ended now. And I'm proud to be a part
of a party that that that is working class, that
is uh, that is that parents that are deeply concerned
about what what is being put into their their children's bodies.
(25:35):
I'm proud to be a part of a party that
recognizes that we've got to take care of our own
and and be concerned about what's happening here in our
country is as opposed to what's happening across or overseas.
I mean, these are core things to to who we
are as Americans, and that is reflected in the values
of the Republican Party now and I'm proud to be
(25:55):
a part of it.
Speaker 3 (25:56):
Before we go.
Speaker 1 (25:58):
There's been a lot of controversy for the former Columbia
University student, my Mood Khalil. The Trump administration has sought
to revoke his legal status and deport him because of
his involvement and really you know, pro hamas anti Israel
protests on the campus.
Speaker 4 (26:16):
Where do you see this case going? And how do
you see it?
Speaker 3 (26:19):
Well, I see it as you know, I agree with
the administration.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
Look, there is this anti Semitic vein that has made
its way into our country and uh, this individual in
particular is helping lead that charge.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
And I support the administration.
Speaker 2 (26:36):
And I am you know, concerned about this again, this
vein that has tried to poison our campuses and trying
to you know, ultimately destroy a community that is is
a part of the fabric and dna of our country.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
And so I support the administration.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
And uh, I think it's uh, you know, important that
we we be mindful of of of.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
Who is in the country.
Speaker 2 (27:07):
Yeah, you know, as we think about immigration as a
as a broader topic and issue. I mean the president, uh,
as he said in the in the the address to
Congress the other night, you know that we had seen
an incredible number of people that were coming across the
southern border. And you know, there's been all this talk
(27:28):
about how policy needed to change and what have you.
Speaker 3 (27:32):
But as as.
Speaker 2 (27:33):
President Trump so eloquently put it, it turns out you
just needed a new president. And so this president has
run on enforcing our immigration laws, cutting and cracking down
on a legal immigration. So as you think about more
broadly the immigration question, uh, I'm supportive of the administration
and want to make sure that we are protecting our
(27:53):
country and uh, you know, keeping uh keeping the bad
actors out right.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Well, Daniel Cameron, I appreciate your time, sir, thank you
so much for coming on the show.
Speaker 4 (28:02):
We appreciate your time.
Speaker 3 (28:03):
Thanks Lisa, appreciate you.
Speaker 1 (28:05):
That was Daniel Cameron. Appreciate him for making the time.
Appreciate you guys at home for listening every Tuesday and Thursday.
But you can listen throughout the week until next time.
Our next guest grew up in a small town in
Kentucky and went on to become the state's first black
attorney general. He is now gunning for the student to
be vacant Senate seat held by Mitch McConnell. So what
drives the former attorney general and why does he want
this job, especially after his attempt to unseat Kentucky's Democrat
Governor Andy Basheer. We'll talk about his handling of the
(00:21):
Brionna Taylor case, which drew protests as well as national attention.
How does he feel about his decision now? Additionally, how
does he reconcile being Mitch McConnell's former general counsel while
also having previously received an endorsement from President Trump? Will
that create challenges for him in this campaign? Stay tuned
(00:42):
for all of that and more with Daniel Cameron. Well
Attorney General Daniel Cameron. I appreciate you making the time
looking forward to discussing why you decided to run for
a Senate and also just you know, there's a lot
going on, all good things, but a lot going on,
So I appreciate you making the time for us.
Speaker 2 (01:05):
Lisa, Thank you so much. Honored to be on with
you and I talked to you obviously, but to get
to share with your listeners as well, and again, just
grateful for the opportunity.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Absolutely So I always ask people, you know the why, right,
because being out of politics is so much easier than
being in politics. You've previously served as the attorney general,
you did run for governor, so you know, you've been
in the private sector. Why do you want to get
back into the game. You know why politics? Again, Well,
it's a.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Thank you for asking.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
Look, you know, Mackenzie, my wife and I have a
heart for this commonwealth, in this country. We've got two
little boys, Theodore's three and Benett is ten months.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
And what we want to see.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
And it really mirrors what I think the majority of
not only Kentucky's but Americans want to see is a
colorblind society. And I believe in the American identity one
that it's again rooted in color blindness and merit and
perseverance and grit. It's like core to our DNA as
(02:12):
Americans and in our founding. And I want to go
to Washington to help promote that on behalf of the men,
women and children of our commonwealth. I think I've obviously
got the track record to do so. And as Attorney General,
I was helping preserve constitutional rights here.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
And standing up for our values.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
But I want to do that in Washington and help
support President Trump's agenda as well. And so this is
a core conviction for us, is that you know, again
as you have, you're raising two boys, and obviously we
pray for them and over them every night, but we
want them to be able to flourish in a colorblind society,
(02:53):
one in which you know, it's based on their content,
of their character, if you will, and their ability to
get things done as opposed to what they look like
and all those other woke ideologies that exist to try
to divide our country. We've got to get back to
that core conviction that we are Americans, that we're driving
(03:14):
towards this more perfect union and one that reflects the
idea that we've got to take care of our communities
and the folks in our homes and our states.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
And I want to be a part of driving that
in Washington.
Speaker 1 (03:29):
What are you most proud of from your time as
Attorney General.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
Well, you know, there were things that got a lot
of headlines, but you let me tell you that when
I ran for Attorney General, I often talked about the
public safety challenge that we faced here in Kentucky. In
it was opioid overdoses and abuses, and we know that
Sittanel was coming across a poor southern border and it
(03:54):
was hurting people right here in Kentucky. But that was
also exacerbated by wholesale distributors manufacturers of opioids that again
were you know, helping bring this poison into our communities.
And so as a commitment, I said, look, we're gonna
we're going to address this issue. We're going to confront
(04:15):
it and meet it face on and confront it.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
In that way.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
And I was proud of the fact that these wholesalers
and manufacturers ultimately came to the table and acknowledged that, hey,
we've got some we've got some culpability here, if you will.
And because we were able to fashion agreement, Kentucky has
taken in nearly nine hundred million dollars. In fact, we've
(04:41):
taken in more than nine hundred million at this point
with my predecessor, but when I was in office, we
took in nearly nine hundred million dollars that money's coming
in over a span of years, but that was a
moment in which, you know, regardless of where you fell
on the political spectrum, we got people together in a room.
We made an agreement. We're bringing money into the state
to address the opioid epidemic. And look, it's not a
(05:03):
magic elixir, it's not an end all, be all, but
it is a significant down payment to help address some
of the challenges that we have. And when it comes
to the broader argument, I was helping lead the charge
against Joe Biden to fight and oppose his decisions to
(05:24):
make us less safe when it came to our southern
border again, because I understood the real impact that it
was having on families in Eastern Kentucky, in West Kentucky,
in Central Kentucky, and so wanted to address that. Was
very proud of the effort and the ability to bring
those dollars into the state. And then I was proud
(05:45):
of the fact that we were able to stand up
and preserve our constitutional rights. We had a governor that,
as crazy as the sounds, actually shut down our churches
and I told him before he did it that it
was unconstitutional. I stood on the steps of our Capital
and said this is an unconstitutional act. He did it,
(06:06):
but we took him to court, suit him and got
our churches reopen here in Kentucky in nine days. And
again that's a moment in which, you know, it's one
thing to talk about standing up and preserving constitutional rights,
but to be able to effectively do it and get
something changed in a positive result I was proud of
(06:27):
as well.
Speaker 1 (06:28):
One of the things that did draw a lot of
attention during your time as Attorney general was the Breonna
Taylor case. It predated the George Floyd incident, but then
you know, gain more attention after that. So you know,
you decided to charge one of the officers with one
ton endangerment rather than homicide, which is what obviously.
Speaker 4 (06:49):
You know, people who.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
Were protesting wanted at the time, drew a lot of
national scrutiny, a lot of protests, a lot of attention.
You know, look at back, is there anything you would
have done differently, either in your decision making or kind
of you know, take us through the decision making there
and what that time period was like for you and
trying to figure out what to do, what the right
thing was to do.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Yeah, you know, when I took the oath of office
in December of twenty nineteen. I said, you know, after
I concluded with the oath, I talked to some members
of the press that had gathered and said, you know,
this job won't always produce easy answers, but we.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
Are going to do our job without fear or favor.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
And that really came into focus in twenty twenty with
the passing of Miss Taylor. And it look, it was
there's no question it was a challenging case.
Speaker 3 (07:43):
And I had people protesting at our house.
Speaker 2 (07:47):
You know, folks were threatening to you know, protest our wedding.
You know, I had all sorts of you know, my
mother was you know, sort of just you know, uh,
scared for her child, her son because of all the
sort of vitriol and animosity that was coming.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
But I said from the very beginning.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
That we were going to do the job without fear
of favor, and we did what was right in the case.
And I just note for people that, you know, the
the federal government when they came in in the Biden
administration and the Department of Justice ended up bringing the
same essentially the same charge. Now they you know, they
(08:30):
have a civil rights sort of regime that they can
uh file uh case, you know, specific things going and so,
but it was essentially the same charge and wanting endangerment
for us and again their civil rights kind of mirror
that that that charge against Brett Hankinson.
Speaker 3 (08:49):
And so you know, once.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
People I think recognize that, you know, a lot of
the tension and stuff, you know, dissipated. You know, again,
obviously you're not going to satisfy every want, but we
did what was right. You know, there's no question about that.
And you all but when you're in these public positions,
you have to take difficult stands and have to do
(09:14):
what is right.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
And we did that. And I'll never back away from
doing what is right.
Speaker 2 (09:18):
I think I showed in that case that I have
a strong spine and can take the heat regardless of
what the situation is.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
And I'm going to do what's right by the laws
of our state.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
And again that doesn't discount just the heaviness of the
situation and the loss of a life. And I think
regardless of whether you got an R or D by
your name, people understand that. But you have to do
you have to do what's right by the law, and
we certainly did that.
Speaker 1 (09:48):
You've been very supportive of President Trump, and he endorsed
you in the gubernatorial race. However, you know, you did
get your political start with Mitch McConnell, who's now retiring,
which is the c that you have announced for Uh,
you worked as his general counsel.
Speaker 4 (10:05):
He kind of helped you get your political start. You know,
how do you bridge.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
The gap between you know, these different factions in both
Kentucky's g O P and as well just in the
Republican Party at large? You know, will that be a
challenge or or you know kind of how do you
how do you see that?
Speaker 3 (10:23):
Well?
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Look, I am you know I certainly worked hard to
you know, throughout my career, whether it was you know,
an undergrad at U of L or in law school
where I was a member of the Law review where
you know, I was the student body president of our
law school. I had an opportunity to clerk for a
federal judge. UH, and you know, graduated from law school
(10:46):
with honors and worked at a uh, you know, pretty
significantly sized law firm here for Kentucky. UH.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
And so I've you know, worked hard to do the
things that I've.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Done over life and certainly grateful for the opportunities that
I've had. And what I share with people is, look,
I don't run away from, you know, the opportunities that
I've had or the responsibility that I've been given to
in service as Attorney General or in previous roles.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
But I'm my own man, and I've.
Speaker 2 (11:21):
Whether it was running for attorney general in twenty nineteen
or running for governor in twenty three. I think people
recognize that. You know, again, you talked about twenty twenty.
You know, folks weren't protesting at any other political officeholder's home.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
They were protesting at mine.
Speaker 2 (11:39):
And you know, I when people sort of connect or
associate me with specific folks, those folks haven't been in
the fire the way that I have. And again, I've
shown repeatedly that I'll make the tough decisions and I'll
do what's right by our laws here in Kentucky and
by the men, women and children of our commonwealth.
Speaker 3 (12:01):
And I'm going to continue to do that. You know,
it's it's my goal to bring as many people.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
You got to have to win an election, you have
to have uh, you know, you got to have all
Republicans UH working together to do that, and so I
do want to you know, try to bring as many
people together as I possibly can. I think that has
to you know, ultimately be the post or somebody that's gonna,
you know, hope to be in a general election. And
(12:29):
I've I've been grateful that you know, President Trump has
supported and endorsed me, and we uh, you know, feel
very strongly about what it looks like to to help
uh support his agenda in Washington. And you know, I'll
just say that I was the first statewide elected office
(12:51):
holder in Kentucky to endorse him for re election. You know,
when when others refuse to do so, and you know
we're calling me and asking for my advice on you know,
whether they should support and endorse President Trump, I was
willing to stand out and support him. And I've never
backed away from that, never will I back away from it.
I mean, President Trump is not only changing the Republican
(13:17):
Party in good ways, but he's changing the country in
preserving those ideas, that ideals that I talked about earlier
for future generations. And you know, again, as we think
about our two little boys, I mean, we want them
to grow up in a country that is prosperous, that
(13:37):
is strong, that is not taking advantage of, that is
merit based, that is color blind. Those are the sorts
of things that we care deeply about. And it mirrors
President Trump's agenda and his values, and so I'm hopeful
to continue to earn his support. And you know, this
race has got to be about the future. You know,
(14:01):
it can't be about the past. We've got to have
a senator in the United States Senate that recognizes that
there is there are myriad opportunities for Kentucky to lead
on the national landscape. Whether it's in education, or in
AI or robotics or in cryptocurrency, Kentucky can lead. And
(14:25):
you've got to have somebody that is in the Senate
continuing to press on those points.
Speaker 3 (14:32):
And I want to be able to do that.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
I think I could be a pretty effective advocate for
those things and for the Trump agenda, and I'm hopeful
that again I'll earn his support and earn the support
of Kentuckian's because ultimately they're the ones that go to
the polls to make a decision about who they want.
And I hope that I build a strong relationship with
the people here in Kentucky and they've gotten to know me,
(14:56):
and they've gotten to know Mackenzie, and they've gotten to
know our family. And you know, again this is this
is core to who we are. And I say that
because we are. You know, I'm not a Johnny come
lately to these issues, whether it's DEI, whether it's ESG.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
I have I've been in fid of those.
Speaker 1 (15:14):
Let's talk about that for a moment, because you know,
following the Gubernas Royal race, you became the CEO of
seventeen ninety two Exchange.
Speaker 4 (15:24):
Why did you take that role and what was the
what was the work there?
Speaker 2 (15:29):
Yeah, at least it was like a it was it
was the opportunity to continue some work that I'd started
as the Attorney General for I was the first Attorney
General in the nation to say that if you are
a member of our state pension board, then your fibuciary duty,
meaning your sole responsibility is to maximizing the return on
(15:50):
investment for the shareholder. And those shareholders in our pension
system are teachers, firefighters, and police officers, and so that
has to be your focus. It can't be these you know,
extraneous ideas about ESG environmental social governments, and it certainly
can't be that. When the Larry Thinks of the world
said that they want to destroy the fossil fuels industry
(16:11):
by twenty thirty or twenty fifty in Kentucky, that means
you want to destroy our competitive advantage, which is coal
and natural gas. So I was the first Attorney general
to speak out on that issue. I was one of
just a handful of attorneys general that essentially, you know,
went out on a limb and said to big law
(16:34):
firms that, hey, you cannot implement and advise companies to
go full force on DEI because it's it's frankly against
the law. That was two years ago when I was
making those statements, and again there weren't many people that
were saying that then.
Speaker 3 (16:51):
But now, based on court.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
Decisions and based on what we've seen from the Supreme
Court in the context of public universities, we know that
DEI is unconstitutional and is in violation of law. Again,
I was one of the few that was willing to
say that as Attorney general, and so at seventeen ninety
two exchange it's given me an opportunity to continue that.
Speaker 3 (17:11):
Work on DEI and ESG there. And I've talked about
this a lot.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
There are a lot of things that a CEO or
executives are having to compete with and having to think about.
And some of them are willing to stand up to
the pressures, and some of them, frankly, have not been
willing to do so. And they need encouragement, and they
need help in getting to the right position of back
(17:36):
to neutral and away from these woke.
Speaker 3 (17:39):
Left leaning policies. They just need they need to focus
on business.
Speaker 2 (17:44):
And seventeen ninety two, Exchange has been the vehicle to
help companies to steer back to neutral. And I say
it all the time. I mean, you know, last year
in particular, you know, we saw that the domino, if
you will, was tractors supply. And we've seen a whole
host of companies, iconic brands Walmart, McDonald's, Ford Motor Company,
(18:07):
that have said, hey, we are getting out of di
We're no longer bowing the knee to the Human Rights Campaign,
a far left advocacy group. We're not doing that anymore.
We're going to focus on business. And again, to my organization,
we've been proud to be a part of that decision
making process. And again, this is a continuation of the
work that I did as Attorney General. And the reason
(18:29):
I wanted to jump into it is because, again it's
a core conviction of who I am. To stop the
craziness of DEI and ESG and I think we're going
down that road, and I want to help in the
Senate continue that work by being an advocate for colorblind society.
Speaker 4 (18:45):
How has President Trump done so far?
Speaker 3 (18:48):
President Trump's been amazing.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
I mean, here's somebody who absolutely ran on disrupting the
establishment in the normal going about business and looking out
for the American people and the American worker. Those are
the things that he ran on, ran on immigration, ran
(19:10):
on bettering in our strengthening our economy for the long haul.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
And he's he is.
Speaker 2 (19:16):
He's made those commitments clear and he's fulfilling those commitments.
And by the way, in shrinking government, which is something
that conservatives have been talking about for decades, but President Trump,
Elon Musk, others within the administration are actually getting it done.
And it's refreshing to see a president who says something
(19:38):
and then actually gets it done.
Speaker 3 (19:40):
And I've been excited to watch and see it.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
From my view in Kentucky and again hope to be
able come November twenty twenty six to help him in
those efforts.
Speaker 4 (19:52):
We've got more with Daniel Cameron, but first.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
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sponsored by Preborn. What kind of senator do you see yourself?
Speaker 3 (21:06):
Bang?
Speaker 2 (21:08):
Yeah, I see myself being a Senator that is supporting
and advancing President Trump's agenda because I think it reflects
the values of the men, women and children of our commonwealth,
of our one hundred and twenty counties. I'll be a
Senator that, as I did as Attorney General, will preserve
and protect and defend our constitutional rights. And I will
(21:29):
be a Senator that is dogged in pursuit of ensuring
that we get rid of DEI. I mean DEI is
ultimately become a divisive tool for the Left to use
to destroy the.
Speaker 3 (21:47):
Fabric of our country. And it has to end.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
President Trump is doing a terrific job of that work,
but he needs help in the Senate and somebody that
has a perspective that can speak on these issues in
a in a forceful way. And I want to do that.
I want to lead on it. And again, it's not
it's not an easy thing to do, you know. I
get you know, as a as a black man, I
(22:10):
get ridiculed and talked about because you know, I hold
these core convictions.
Speaker 3 (22:16):
Uh, but that's okay. I'm willing to stand up and
speak the truth.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
I'm going to continue to do so, and I hope
to be able to do so in the United States Senate.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
We've seen the Republican Party evolve, and you know, President
Trump has really changed the party into, you know, more
of a working class party. We saw that movement in
this past election. How do you see yourself as a Republican?
You know, do you consider yourself kind of more traditional conservative,
you know, a populist or kind of how do you
how do you define yourself?
Speaker 2 (22:48):
I need to describe myself as a constitutional conservative, somebody
who is deeply uh concerned with the preservation of our
constitutional rights.
Speaker 3 (23:04):
And you know, most of us think of it as
our as the Bill of Rights and.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
Being able to forcefully defend those That's how I see
myself and I am. I am grateful to President Trump.
I mean, it's it's it's it's similar to what you know,
President Reagan did in the eighties and and you know
this this is a party and I just go back.
I mean, if you think about the Republican Party at
(23:28):
its inception, it is a party that is spoken for
the downtrodden, those that didn't have a voice, those that
could not defend themselves, those that felt like that they
were detached from from the ability to get things done
on their behalf and didn't necessarily have the ability to
(23:50):
connect to the power structure, structures, or the establishment. That
that is the Republican Party at its inception, at its
core is what it was to do, was to help
those people, to help the downtroten, to help those that
are most vulnerable.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
And then you think about Teddy Roosevelt.
Speaker 2 (24:08):
I mean, here's here's somebody that recognized that, you know,
the financial health and well being of this country couldn't
be in the hands of just a few. And then
you think of even before that, Abraham Lincoln and what
he did to again speak up for the vulnerable. And
then you think of Ronald Reagan and his idea that
(24:29):
you got to get the thumbs off of the bureaucrats,
off the backs of the hard working men and women
of this country, and he brought into the party the hard,
hardworking folks, and that there's been a revival of that
with President Trump. He is brought back into the party
the people that make this country run. And there's no
(24:50):
better way to say it, and that the folks that
make this country run, the people that are are our
day in day out doing the hard task that that
that you know, make that build our cities, that make
our communities run efficiently.
Speaker 3 (25:07):
Those people are now in the Republican Party.
Speaker 2 (25:11):
And we've got to say thank you to President Trump
for making that a reality, because those folks, in many
ways felt like they had been left behind and and
that's ended now. And I'm proud to be a part
of a party that that that is working class, that
is uh, that is that parents that are deeply concerned
about what what is being put into their their children's bodies.
(25:35):
I'm proud to be a part of a party that
recognizes that we've got to take care of our own
and and be concerned about what's happening here in our
country is as opposed to what's happening across or overseas.
I mean, these are core things to to who we
are as Americans, and that is reflected in the values
of the Republican Party now and I'm proud to be
(25:55):
a part of it.
Speaker 3 (25:56):
Before we go.
Speaker 1 (25:58):
There's been a lot of controversy for the former Columbia
University student, my Mood Khalil. The Trump administration has sought
to revoke his legal status and deport him because of
his involvement and really you know, pro hamas anti Israel
protests on the campus.
Speaker 4 (26:16):
Where do you see this case going? And how do
you see it?
Speaker 3 (26:19):
Well, I see it as you know, I agree with
the administration.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
Look, there is this anti Semitic vein that has made
its way into our country and uh, this individual in
particular is helping lead that charge.
Speaker 3 (26:34):
And I support the administration.
Speaker 2 (26:36):
And I am you know, concerned about this again, this
vein that has tried to poison our campuses and trying
to you know, ultimately destroy a community that is is
a part of the fabric and dna of our country.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
And so I support the administration.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
And uh, I think it's uh, you know, important that
we we be mindful of of of.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
Who is in the country.
Speaker 2 (27:07):
Yeah, you know, as we think about immigration as a
as a broader topic and issue. I mean the president, uh,
as he said in the in the the address to
Congress the other night, you know that we had seen
an incredible number of people that were coming across the
southern border. And you know, there's been all this talk
(27:28):
about how policy needed to change and what have you.
Speaker 3 (27:32):
But as as.
Speaker 2 (27:33):
President Trump so eloquently put it, it turns out you
just needed a new president. And so this president has
run on enforcing our immigration laws, cutting and cracking down
on a legal immigration. So as you think about more
broadly the immigration question, uh, I'm supportive of the administration
and want to make sure that we are protecting our
(27:53):
country and uh, you know, keeping uh keeping the bad
actors out right.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Well, Daniel Cameron, I appreciate your time, sir, thank you
so much for coming on the show.
Speaker 4 (28:02):
We appreciate your time.
Speaker 3 (28:03):
Thanks Lisa, appreciate you.
Speaker 1 (28:05):
That was Daniel Cameron. Appreciate him for making the time.
Appreciate you guys at home for listening every Tuesday and Thursday.
But you can listen throughout the week until next time.
Host
Lisa Boothe
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