All Episodes

November 4, 2025 20 mins
Ed Gallrein is a retired Navy Seal with over 30 years of U.S. military service plus years of work in the intelligence sector.

Team Trump has chosen the Kentucky farmer with challenging Kentucky Congressman Thomas Massie (District 4), who often votes against the Republicans and Trump's interests.

Gallrein and Terry Meiners discussed the campaign, the U.S. military strikes on South American drug cartel boats, diplomacy efforts with China, American drug dependency, and other matters pertinent to voters.
Mark as Played
Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
I want to welcome in a guy. I haven't seen

(00:01):
it in a while, but he made some headlines since
the last time the two of us spoke. Ed Galrian
born and raised in Kentucky, a farmer, businessman, served thirty
years in our military, became a Navy seal officer. Welcome back.
It's great to see you, sir.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
Thank you, Terry, thank you for the listeners for dialing
in today, and I'm glad to be here.

Speaker 1 (00:23):
Thank you for your service to America, first and foremost.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
It was an honor and a privilege, and I'm humbled
by that. I led America's greatest treasure, the young daughters
and sons, to include from folks from right here in Kentucky.
And that's a sacred obligation. I had to lead those
to the best degree possible, and I thank you for
those compliments.

Speaker 1 (00:43):
You bet you are running for Congress. The reason you
made news recently is because the Trump administration has handpicked
you to run against Thomas Massey in the northern Kentucky
districts at four District four of Congress.

Speaker 2 (00:59):
It is actually starts over here in Oldham County, right,
so it's right here in our neighborhood more or less.
And uh, before we get into all that, do you
have a load of hay in our parking garage? Well,
and I hope y'all don't get a complaint. So having
said that, you know, the workday's not done on the farm.
But yes, I do guilty as charge. That's my truck
out there as a load of hay because I got
to get it dropped off to one of my hate customers.
So I want to thank Joel from your team got

(01:21):
me a cup of coffee because as I look at
the clock, we got work to get done and I
got to get that hay off. I hope they don't
give me a surd charge on the way out.

Speaker 1 (01:28):
No, but the sun does go down earlier because we
switched the clocks.

Speaker 2 (01:32):
Back and that's why we got extra lights and all
the equipment at Gali.

Speaker 1 (01:35):
Okay, good, Yeah, I know I'm eating into your farming time,
but I want you to stay in here for two segments.
You you've done so much in this world. I want
to pick your brain about certain things, but you are
running for Congress. It is ed Galerne dot com g
A L L R E I N is the website
for you just so people can read about you. But

(01:56):
you do have a terrific military history and so well,
I want to start with the bombing of boats off
the coast of Venezuela, where the United States of America
looks like they are picking off what they're saying or
drug dealers. And there's a lot of pushback from people
here at home, including Senator Ran Paul who thinks this

(02:17):
is we're playing executioner without judicial process.

Speaker 2 (02:22):
Hey, thank you for that question, and I look forward
to answering that to finish up the peace on my service.
Just give you a data point, though, Terry, I was
twenty six years old before I went off to the
Navy Seal Officer program. Twenty six. I turned twenty seven
in seal training. I wasn't a guy straight out of
high school college. Were already had the biggest dairy farm
down a valley station. Then my dad and I transitioned

(02:43):
to grain. So I grew up and had a career
in a life long before I went off to the Navy,
And that was when Reagan was rebuilding our service after
President famously, you know, Jimmy Carter's failed presidencies. All that
to say, you know, I didn't just go off to
the service, but thank you for that. And it's great
to be back on.

Speaker 1 (03:00):
And I know you're well versed in these issues in
South America and beyond. That was your position of duty, well.

Speaker 2 (03:07):
One of numerous commanding officer positions. I was literally the
last commanding officer, so folks in the business world, I
went to you to think president of a company. I
was the last commanding officer of the Navy seal unit.
Think forward based Seal team, and we have a model
fight tonight. We're ready to go at a moment's notice
anywhere in Central and South America. We weren't just ready

(03:27):
to do combat ops. We also did what we call
security assistance, counter drug ops and such. In the counter
drug ops, I had one hundred and ten foot patrol
coastal ships that I would embark law enforcement detachments from
the coast Guard and we would chase these go fast boats.
They were far faster than us. I was literally the

(03:48):
last guy down there's commanding officers. I was responsible for
everything in Central and South America. All that to say,
we knew where the drugs were coming out of, we
knew where they were going to, but it was largely
a law enforcement led fffort with significantly constrained resources and
rules of engagement to engage them. All that changed when

(04:08):
the President followed the process and designated them foreign terrorist organizations.
One to also impact that a little farther about to strike.
So I have a what and I have a master's
in military intelligence, so I understand how these things are studied, researched,
and tracked and then targeted intimately. So can we shift
to now, what's going on now?

Speaker 1 (04:28):
Please? Because we're we're told that some of these people
in these boats are just fishermen.

Speaker 2 (04:33):
Well, having said that, the fact, you know, indicate otherwise.
So that targeting is not by I, say a skipper
of a ship or a pilot of an aircraft say hey,
there's a boat going real fast, let's hit at No. No,
the entire complex and sophisticated US intelligence capability system, not
just one, not just a guy on a ship, are

(04:54):
are identifying where these drugs are coming from, where they're
going to. Then they're engaged. I want to mention this
to the listeners. This is important before that boat can
be declared hostile. Instruct there is an attorney somewhere, a
lawyer that's going to sign off that they meet the
standard of hostile. Let's go back. Everything changed when the

(05:17):
President designated him based on the clear and present danger,
their connections with the narco traffickers. And we need to
get back to General Manuel Noriega. Remember when we went
in on just cause it wasn't to overthrow the government
of Panama. I was on the task force with the
mission to capture General Manuel Noriega. Why he had an

(05:37):
indictment in federal court in Miami for narco trafficking and
other crimes to include his henchmen. All that to say,
it's Maduro is Noriego two dot zho in many ways,
but to put a bow on this, those strikes are
being done with the same justification. We're hitting al Qaeda,
isis isis K, etc. Once. The last time pop tests

(06:00):
pop tests make the SAYNEX proud. When was the last
time we declared war? The US.

Speaker 1 (06:06):
Pearl Harbor nineteen forty one.

Speaker 2 (06:08):
Well, listen, that's good, your history teachers. You're gonna get
an A minus B plus on that. Nineteen forty two.
The last time US declared war, I think was Bulgaria,
Hungary and Romania. Some satellites in Nazi Germany. Folks, that's
the last time we declared war. What has been said
is various contracts for the president to act in a
legal manner, and that's what he did with respect to

(06:29):
these these entities that are clearing present dangers and meet
the threshold, and they are designated formally foreign terrorists organizations.
So those folks that are calling these extra judicial killings,
that's a little reckless, if not a lot, because that's
indicting US service members. That's literally indicting service members. The
sons and daughters include parents right here in Kentucky, Fort Campbell,

(06:51):
Fort Knox, etcetera, and Swan that might have some connection
to those strikes. So I encourage our elected and appointed
officials and former folks that have served to get some
understanding of what it means once are declared hostile. Now,
one other data point. The end doesn't justify the means.
But let's remember that the data indicates we've lost more
folks from the US to fentanyl than all the casualties

(07:13):
since World War Two. That is stunning, of course. And
behind the scenes, isn't somebody smoking cigars at a villa
down there in Venezuela it's the full horsemen of the
apocalypse that are engaged, from everything from the money Lautern
to the fentanyl to assisting them with other support. Many
times they might not even be aware that China, Russia,

(07:35):
North Korea, Iran are somehow enabling their actions directly or indirectly,
because in the end, right here on the streets of Louisville,
those are extensions and their disruption operation, their disruption operation.

Speaker 1 (07:48):
What did you make of Donald Trump's visit recently with
the Chinese presidents and they said they've worked a deal
or something to the effect to dampen the opportunity for
fentanyl to come out of China.

Speaker 2 (07:58):
Well, here's what he did. Some chess, I would call it.
He's calling him out. He says, okay here, you know,
he goes over here. Okay, Now, if I understand, we
got some a relaxation on the export of the rare
earth minerals and some things with the electronics, and they're
going to get some soybeans, you know, because again, food
security is a cornerstone of national security, I would argue,
and so with respect to that, I'd argue, he's playing chess.

(08:20):
It's not just one meeting it's it's his continuing engagement
and his team's engagement as he plays. I would call
chess with the Chinese who have been playing chess against
us for over twenty years, and we've had the snooze
alarm on shame honest, include the balloon that went over,
which was a drone, all the all.

Speaker 1 (08:39):
The land purchase that's going on near our bases.

Speaker 2 (08:42):
You believe, no Chinese are down with a load of
hay like me trying to make a nickel before I
get back to Shelby County tonight, and I still got
to feed cattle. I'll have the lights on the sixty
four to thirty putting a bail out tonight.

Speaker 1 (08:51):
All right, we're going to do another segment on here.
But the Trump administration contacted you. They want you to
run for Congress against Thomas Massey, who's obviously been a
thorn in Donald Trump's side. He said he was going
to find someone, and you're that someone. How are you
contacted by Donald Trump?

Speaker 2 (09:08):
No, a really nice lady. It reached out to me
and asked if I'd be available to meet with a president.
And you know, frankly, I thought it was a prank.
You know, you get a lot of that stuff. And
as an aside, I'm on the list of those foreign
countries that know who we are, that we're in black
ops and our senior officers. Do you recall what happened
right after the strikes and Iran I sent out a

(09:29):
note to some of you and media, how we were
notified that we are being actively research to be targeted.
Of course, that is rarely done. What they saw was
a spike by Iranian surrogates to find us and track us.
That doesn't mean they're going to hit us tomorrow morning
or next week. They know who we are, they know
how to find us. You can guarantee that I will

(09:51):
be the target of foreign intelligence entities during.

Speaker 1 (09:56):
This election because of your priority.

Speaker 2 (09:58):
They do not want me in Congress. I'm a nightmare
for them because I've been in the black world for
going on forty years, counting my ten more years as
a senior advisor to US military and senior elected and
appointed officials all over the world, to include in the midies,
not just the middies.

Speaker 1 (10:15):
Ed Gal Ryan running for Congress in Kentucky's fourth district
against Thomas Massey, and his website is edgalerand dot com
it's g A L LRI.

Speaker 2 (10:24):
I N yes, Hey, one more thing, Terry. When I
walked into the office with the President on seventeen October.
For the record, the only thing I was running for
was Grandfather of the Month, but I knew I had
stiff competition back here in Kentucky.

Speaker 1 (10:34):
Did he talk you into it right away?

Speaker 2 (10:35):
No, twenty five minutes into it. I'm gonna be frank
with you, and I don't mean to be melodramatic or corny.
Duty honor countries. I looked at the flags behind him,
and he talked about what he was up against and
what he was trying to do. It was my sacred
obligation to honor those that didn't come back. We buried
a lot of guys.

Speaker 1 (10:57):
Continue our conversation with Ed gall He's running for Congress
in Kentucky's fourth district against Thomas Massey and hand selected
by Donald Trump. Who convinced you. You said it took twenty
five minutes.

Speaker 2 (11:10):
Well, even at that juncture, I wouldn't say I was convinced.
But he had a compelling argument. But the voice in
my head said duty, honor country, and I prayed about it,
talked to the family and Then on the morning of
twenty one October, I woke up and I declared.

Speaker 1 (11:22):
You're a farmer, what have these tariffs meant to you
and other farmers in Kentucky.

Speaker 2 (11:27):
Well, I'm going to speak for myself in the group
of folks that I talked to. We have got to
have a reset of the entire agricultural commodity sector. We
have been woefully underrepresented globally and it's been so unfair.
And the farmers recognize that we're such a small voting block.
Although everybody wants to come get a photo op, you know,

(11:47):
out at the farm, of course and say I support
to farmers, until it comes down, you know, to votes
and policies and such. Accordingly, we've been sold out for years.
President Trump is exercising the elements of national power diplomat.
I had a informational, military, and economic. The prior primary one,
as you've heard me say before Terry right here on
whas the primary and most powerful one is economic. And

(12:09):
he's being very muscular in the chest that he's playing.
And it's not just one thing, it's a combination of things.
And I would caution the listeners and the media, and
I don't want to pop your bubble. We don't know everything.
There are things that go on behind the scenes, whether
it's briefings, he gets, communications that go on, deals that
are made. Recognizing I'm stained ins guard by having worked

(12:31):
in the top secret world for over forty years, things
go on behind the scenes. Things are not always what
they seem. All to say that, back to the agricultural
commodity sector, we have got to have a reset. We've
been getting punished for decades. We're underrepresented with respect to
the value that we bring to the global economy. China
has done an in run on us. Now the largest

(12:51):
producer of soybeans because of the Chinese and long term
investment in play in our backyard is now in Brazil.
They surpassed us a few years ago. You will never
pass them up again. What we do have is efficiency.
The American farmer is extraordinarily efficient. Can I share one
data point with you about Kentucky. Here's something we ought
to be proud of. Would you believe the number one

(13:12):
beef producing state east of the Mississippi, eighth in the nation,
is little old Kentucky. You told me that little in Kentucky.
Let's hear it for the bluegrass because that was very frugal,
hard working families. The preponderance are family farms that's a
little business. Some are bigger. But because we're so frugal
and we're so efficient and hardworking.

Speaker 1 (13:34):
Why did China agree to start buying American soybeans? If
Brazil feeds them all they need.

Speaker 2 (13:38):
Well, they don't treat them all they need. But to say,
President Trump played some chess and we might not know
what else happened behind the scenes. That's why I wanted
to bring that out, so there was something to incentivize them.
Because there's an old saying. People don't do things for
your reasons. They do things for their reasons. The magic
is making that reason the one you want.

Speaker 1 (14:00):
Donald Trump wanted you to run against Thomas Massey. Did
he complain about Massey in the meeting that you had
with him or did that not even come up?

Speaker 2 (14:07):
It wouldn't be appropriate for me to speak to you
what the President mentioned in there and thinks that's recognizing.

Speaker 1 (14:12):
Well, Thomas Massey's voted against the President's interest multiple times.
He's a thorn and Donald Trump's side. You're there, so
you're going to be Team Trump all in if you
get elected.

Speaker 2 (14:22):
Well, fact, you're stubborn things. Let's back up. He's been
this is he's asking for his eighth term. He repeatedly
runs on term limits at some juncture. Now you gotta
ask yourself. It's an ESPN Come on, man, Okay, So
he's asking for an eighth time at bat all right,
it's not just against President Trump and his agenda. He's

(14:43):
been voting against the party for years, so it's not
just President Trump. But could could I now that we're
reset and recognized and I previously came to you talking
national security and foreign policies, could I talk a bit
more about my role in running exactly.

Speaker 1 (14:56):
I want to know what you're going to bring to
the people of the district. If you do, you beat
Thomas Massey.

Speaker 2 (15:01):
Well, let's talk about my background, experience, and skills. So
I'll start with that. Now. When I was drove that
truck in today and this is a no kider, I
got this load of hay, and everybody's getting me the
big eye down here in Louisville, Like, what's that load
of hay doing coming down here? I remember as a kid,
I came in from Valley Station to the Bourbon stockyards.
Some of the folks listening might remember that you could
hear the cows ball, and you remember that Terry, and

(15:23):
you could smell it too, though, I know, especially when
that win went towards you probably could.

Speaker 1 (15:28):
Well.

Speaker 2 (15:28):
The Trinity guys could smell it.

Speaker 1 (15:29):
No, I'm a Germantown boy.

Speaker 2 (15:31):
Yeah, the Trinity guys could smell it. Probably in folks over.

Speaker 1 (15:33):
There we had the incinerator.

Speaker 2 (15:36):
So all that to say, I mean, I'm coming down
the Bourbon stockyard at the cattle, I'm going down to
Brinley Harder Warehouse where the ball field is now the
bats and we're getting farm parts. I'm shopping here where
our mall was four Street. I'm more like the folks
here and in District four than I am. You know
somebody else, I'm more like than them. I'm different. Now,
let me talk about the Navy Seals. It wasn't about

(15:56):
me that first Bronze Star. I got us thirteenth man
left door of the first aircraft. Of thirteen, ten of
them were hit by fire. We were four hundred and
fifty foot above the ground, going one hundred and twenty knots.
We had four killed, forty four wounded. It was a
bloodbath down there, so to speak in terms of us
getting hit hard, we went down there was just like
World War Two. So having said that, I didn't do
any of that alone. And then the subsequent three more

(16:17):
Bronze stars, none of that was loan, the presidential citations.
Those five degrees, I got mighty racer Nation, four of them,
you know, in masters, and three with honors. You know
what all that education taught me? How much? I don't know,
ask a good question to listen to people. We don't
have that in our current congressman.

Speaker 1 (16:34):
What do you learning when you're asking these constituents.

Speaker 2 (16:37):
They want a voice, They want a voice in Washington
and to be respected for that voice. And they want
that voice back. And I'm going to run to give
them that voice. So what you have is very simple,
don't overthink it. You want a career farmer. Remember I
was twenty six years old. I left the largest grain
farm in the state of Kentucky in one off to

(16:58):
join our nation. So I won from the corn field
to the battlefield and now I'm back. And do you
want somebody that's a career farmer, Navy seal officer, Army ranger,
qualified combat all over the World Seal Team six twice
five other Seal teams in units working for our nation
that you can count on. Who wants to call a
Congressman to come get you out when the chips are down?
All right? Or do you want a career politician? Secondly,

(17:20):
we are at the most vautal and dangerous time since
pre World War two, not just abroad but domestically. People
forget that our country had been infiltrated by the Communists,
the fascists, and the Nazis to divide us late thirties
and for they were setting the conditions the same things
that are going on now with respect to the They

(17:42):
want us divided, They want us to not have an
agreement to extend the budget. So all that to say,
do you want somebody that's going to help make our
nation great again? Because I'm one of four to thirty five,
then there's one hundred senators and there's one president. It's
like a battalion. I've got to be able to be
able to have a conversation with folks and get things
done farmers and seals or action and results oriented and

(18:07):
we listen. So with respect to that, the second part
of it, it's that simple do you want somebody it's
going to help us make the nation great again? Supporting
President Trump and look at all the good things going
on around us and also all the threats. Who'd have
thought Charlie Kirk would have been shot? That was a
terrorist act in broad daylight. That was a terrorist act,
full stop. Or do you want somebody that continues to

(18:27):
be a roadblock to that act? Because he's the smartest
guy in the room. Just ask him. He'll do another
post and tell.

Speaker 1 (18:31):
You he's in the Liberty Caucus. He doesn't vote with
the Republicans oftentimes, instead he votes with the other team,
which is very peculiar instead of abstaining.

Speaker 2 (18:41):
Deeply flawed logic, because think about that, the voter's the
voice of Kentucky out here. He takes your vote, vote
in your voice. He could vote for it, he could
vote against it, he could not vote at all, he
could abstain. Instead, he takes the moral low ground votes
with them and then claims he's so smart. It was
really the clever thing to do.

Speaker 1 (19:01):
And it's it's an odd situation that he's in, but
he does have a strong following, and you're building yours.
That's just how that goes, is Donald Trump gonna be
here in Kentucky to help you.

Speaker 2 (19:12):
At giron dot com. I don't know. We still got
to get ready for winter. It's gonna be twenty degrees
according to Jude on WDRB, and we're getting winter rized
this week on the farm. So I can't speak to
what the president's schedule is.

Speaker 1 (19:23):
But I know when you're in the Oval Office, did
they promise, Hey, we're gonna bring money, We're gonna help you.

Speaker 2 (19:28):
I can't speak to those cars. I'm gonna protect those
just like a ball coach talking down. I'm not. I'm
gonna protect those conversations. Uh, But to say I'm gonna
serve the people my life and the Gallerins, We're We're
nobody important. We serve others, whether it's what we do
in agriculture, Gallerian farms and and I gotta credit my
family just what they do for h for all the
various charities around here. We don't want to, we don't

(19:49):
even credit. It's either service above self or self above service. Voters,
it's an easy equation. Don't overthink it.

Speaker 1 (19:56):
I've met enough candidates over the year to know that
you can't trade Hey, for commercials. You're gonna need You're
gonna need some help. I'm just wondering if they're gonna
come through for you.

Speaker 2 (20:05):
Well, I appreciate that.

Speaker 1 (20:07):
Thank you for that, Terry, ed Gal Ryan He's Oh,
thank you for the hat.

Speaker 2 (20:11):
I brought for the record. I had brought Terry the
coveted Gal Ryan Farm's hat because there was a squabble
with Dwight and Tony. But I brought to Terry another one,
a different version. Look, you got the little corn emblem
on yours. You can one up them.

Speaker 1 (20:24):
Okay, I'm always one upping them. Best of luck, Ed,
Let's talk again down the road soon.

Speaker 2 (20:29):
Yes, thank you, thank you for the listeners.

Speaker 1 (20:31):
Ed Gal rynd G A L L R E I
N dot com
Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

Stuff You Should Know
Medal of Honor: Stories of Courage

Medal of Honor: Stories of Courage

Rewarded for bravery that goes above and beyond the call of duty, the Medal of Honor is the United States’ top military decoration. The stories we tell are about the heroes who have distinguished themselves by acts of heroism and courage that have saved lives. From Judith Resnik, the second woman in space, to Daniel Daly, one of only 19 people to have received the Medal of Honor twice, these are stories about those who have done the improbable and unexpected, who have sacrificed something in the name of something much bigger than themselves. Every Wednesday on Medal of Honor, uncover what their experiences tell us about the nature of sacrifice, why people put their lives in danger for others, and what happens after you’ve become a hero. Special thanks to series creator Dan McGinn, to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and Adam Plumpton. Medal of Honor begins on May 28. Subscribe to Pushkin+ to hear ad-free episodes one week early. Find Pushkin+ on the Medal of Honor show page in Apple or at Pushkin.fm. Subscribe on Apple: apple.co/pushkin Subscribe on Pushkin: pushkin.fm/plus

Dateline NBC

Dateline NBC

Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.