January 5, 2026 • 35 mins
Rep. Jeff Crank (R, CO-5) joins Dan with an update on his perspective in Congress, including the veto of Rep. Lauren Bobert's bipartisan co-sponsored bill (HR 131, Arkansas Valley Conduit Act) by President Trump, as well as Trump's decision to invade Venezuela and extract communist dictator Nicolas Maduro to be tried on narco-terrorism charges in the United States.
Former Congressman Greg Lopez joins Dan to provide an update on his campaign for Colorado governor, which includes his re-registering as an unaffilated candidate after leaving the Republican Party, along with the reasons behind his decision and his plan for a path to victory against both Democrat and Republican nominees.
Greg Lopez for Colorado Governor
Former Congressman Greg Lopez joins Dan to provide an update on his campaign for Colorado governor, which includes his re-registering as an unaffilated candidate after leaving the Republican Party, along with the reasons behind his decision and his plan for a path to victory against both Democrat and Republican nominees.
Greg Lopez for Colorado Governor
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is Dan Caples and welcome to today's online podcast
edition of The Dan Caplis Show. Please be sure to
give us a five star rating if you'd be so kind,
and to subscribe, download and listen to the show every
single day on your favorite podcast platform.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Yeah, and it's all coming true already. Hard to believe, right.
We talked at the end of twenty twenty five, that
last show of twenty five about hey, spoiler alert, I
don't want to ruin your twenty six by taking the
suspense out of it. And then I made my predictions
for twenty six, and sure enough they're coming true already.
I can't wait for the rest of this year. But
(00:35):
what a start, my goodness. You know, as predicted, it
would be a great twenty six, and it'd be a
great twenty six for a lot of different reasons, but
two main ones. One is that there's a return to
faith in America and the other is Donald Trump force
of nature. And we've seen it on display already, how
(00:56):
dramatically in ways we haven't even had time to think about,
let alone talk about the ways that America and the
world is so much safer today and on a better
arc because of what Trump just did in Venezuela. Let
me amend that. Okay, what Trump just very courageously ordered,
But the brilliance of the operation, the men and women
(01:17):
of our military, the people who put this plan together
and then executed it, it blows you away. Right, It's
almost impossible to comprehend how something with that many moving pieces,
the stakes so high, could be performed so flawlessly. But
that's one of the reasons why we've now seen kind
(01:37):
of a reshaping of the world order overnight with that
particular mission. Now, of course that's because it stands on
the shoulders of other things that the military and Trump
have done. But this extraction, this extraction, I think sends
such a message, such a powerful, concrete message to so
(01:58):
many enemies, but also encourage so many friends, including the
good people of Iran, who are once again on the
verge of overthrowing. You know, they're horrific leaders. And the
difference is back in two thousand and nine, because I
was on air then two thousand and nine, where they
cried in the streets did the Iranian people for Obama?
(02:19):
And Obama turned his back and he sided with the
Mulahs and the Iahtolas. Here Trump is openly siding with
the people taking to the streets. But the fact that
he had the guts and that the US military had
the ability to pull off this mission and to pluck
this evil, mass murdering dictator out of his bed in
the middle of the night, put him on a US
(02:40):
helicopter and put him an American prison. That has to
give such tangible encouragement to the people taking to the
streets of Iran, just as very concrete deterrence to bad
actors out there. So is it a silver bullet that
makes everything better immediately forever. Of course not. That's not
the human condition, that's not the way it works. You
(03:02):
know that better than I do. But does that mean
we're powerless, that one man or one woman can't dramatically
change the course of events. We know better than that.
We've seen that man before, we've seen that woman before,
and now we're seeing that man in the form of
Donald Trump. So we are living through history together. Very
exciting time. Glad you're here at three at three seven
(03:23):
one three eight two five five the number techs d
an five seven seven three nine. I'll tell you a
couple of guys who aren't that excited about it. Why
is Jared Poulis Because think about that. Think about that,
Jared Polis has decided to go to war with Donald Trump,
and Colorado's the big loser for it. But think about
(03:43):
how preposterous that is that Polis has decided to go
to war with that guy, the guy who is willing
to go in and have Maduro the alleged president of
a country. Obviously he's just taken over that country through
his his cartel, in his gang, but the alleged president
of a major country. Trump's willing to go in and
(04:05):
able to go in and pluck him out of his
bed in the middle of the night and put him
in a prison cell. And Poulus decides to go to
war with that Donald Trump, with Colorado, of course being
the big loser. And we'll talk about the latest installment that.
But that was one of my other predictions in twenty
five was that Trump was going to punish Colorado in
so many different ways. For Polis's refusal to grant Trump's
(04:31):
request to transfer TEENA Peters to federal custody. Now Poulis
was willing to grant Kim Kardashian's request to reduce the
sentence of the mass murdering trucker, and he reduced it
by ninety percent. But the President of the United States
then comes in and makes a request for a particular
prisoner who's over seventy years old, did commit a crime,
(04:54):
should have been charged and was properly convicted, but over
seventy years old, a victimless crime, nonviolent crime. And Polis
gives a double middle finger to Trump after granting Kardashian's request. Yeah,
so that's the pip fight police has picked. And we'll
go through the latest armed Colorado as a result of
(05:14):
Jared Polis deciding it's more important to keep this senior
citizen in jail well over a year than it is
to serve the broader interests of Colorado. Three h three
seOne three eight two five five takes d an five
seven seven three nine and the latest price tag for
that one right. Obviously, Trump cutting off the funding via
(05:36):
a veto about a million billion pardon me with a
b bucks at stake now, And it's a project that
should be funded, and I wish the President would not
have vetoed it, but we all know why he did.
And think about it, Polis now has three years of
this fight ahead of them. Oh, I take that back.
Polus does, and he's going to be out of there.
(05:57):
Colorado now has three years of this punishment ahead of them.
So that was another prediction I made. And it's going
to come true. Whether it'll be sooner or later, we'll
find out together, but it is going to come true.
Polis is going to fold on this. Polis is going
to commute the sentence of Tina Peters. She is going
to be released from prison. It's not going to be
(06:18):
a full pardon when it happens. I think it's going
to be sooner than later. But remember I told you
it would happen. And Ryan, here's another sign that it's
going to happen. What did police not do at the
end of twenty twenty five that he's done every single
year as governor. What did he not do? Yeah, he
(06:40):
did not pardon anybody. He did not commute any sentences.
Every year as governor he's done that, it's usually around
twenty He did have a mass pardon of over a
thousand for drug related charges. But Polis has commuted the
sentence of like murders, people who that this one guy,
this one guy who just went and put the guy
under the back of a woman's head, pressed it up
(07:02):
against her neck, pointed the barrel up, pulled the trigger,
and just shot her right through the brain and killed her.
That's Ronald Janushek. Polus commuted his sentence, led him out
of prison. Rudy Shyron Yeah, drive by shooting killed a
man celebrating his sixty six birthday. Polis commuted that sentence.
Let that guy out of jail. Travis Coleman, sexual assault,
(07:27):
attempted murder. Polis commuted that sentence, Let that guy out
of jail. So Polis has this history of doing it.
Why do you think we didn't see any commutations or
pardons at the end of twenty twenty five. Why do
you think? I think it's because it's coming. Polis knew
that he couldn't do what he normally does with the
(07:50):
commutations or pardons because then he couldn't justify keeping Peters
by comparison behind bars over seventy you know, non violent
and victimless offense. So he just didn't do anybody at
this point. So I think what's cooking is he's going
to pull together every part in every commutation. His far
left heart is ever desired, and he's going to roll
(08:12):
them all into one big package, and he's going to
do Tina Peters at the same time. So I do
think that's coming. Three h three s one three eight
two five five text d an five seven seven three nine. Hey,
quick look ahead today's show. Among many others, we will
have Congressman Jeff Crank. He'll do a quick drop at
four thirty six to talk about what we're talking about
right now, which just Paul is deciding to go to
(08:35):
war with Donald Trump. Yeah, how's that working out for Colorado?
Greg Lopez, I can't wait for this conversation. I always
enjoy talking to Greg. He'll join us at four fifty
to talk about his decision to drop out of the
GOP primary for governor and now run for governor as
an independent.
Speaker 3 (08:54):
Think of the.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Ramifications that Greg got a whole lot of votes, Greg,
Greg got all whole lot of I think it was
close to two hundred and fifty thousand votes in that
last GOP primary for governor. So what effect now is
this going to have in the general election on the
GOP candidate and what effects are going to have in
the primary. So we'll be talking to Greg about first
(09:16):
and foremost, why did you do it? And then Aaron
Lee Protect Kids Colorado. Aaron will join us at five
oh six to talk about the decision now of Children's
Hospital in Denver Health as well to suspend so called
tender affirming care, which we all know is a ludicrous
thing to call it because it's in reality the exact opposite,
(09:38):
and they've now suspended it under pressure from the Trump administration.
So all of that, and I do have to talk
to you about Tucker Carlson. What happened to Tucker Carlson
and why has he become so absolutely whacked? Did you
hear what he had to say about Trump and Venezuela,
his theory on Mike Trump actually went into Venezuela. If
(10:00):
there's any doubt in your mind, and I praised Tucker
a lot in the past for stuff he should have
been praised on, criticism, criticized him for other things. But
if there's any doubt in your mind about whether something's
going on there and whether he's lost it, wait till
you hear his explanation for why he thinks Trump extracted
Maduro from Venezuela. I'll get you that after the break.
(10:21):
You're on the Dan Caplas Show.
Speaker 4 (10:24):
And now back to the Dan Taplass Show podcast.
Speaker 5 (10:27):
And here's President Biden back in the late eighties in
an address. Here's what President Biden said.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
Let's go after the drug lords where they live with
an international strike force. There must be no safe haven
for these narco terrorists and they must know it.
Speaker 5 (10:46):
So do you agree with all three of them, at
least in their early iterations of what they said, that
Maduro needed to go?
Speaker 6 (10:55):
Absolutely, there's no question that Venezuela without Medua to be
without the Maduro regime. Right, he's been in control for
ten years, and then there's an entire security apparatus his
defense minister.
Speaker 5 (11:08):
Should they have taken them all out at once?
Speaker 6 (11:10):
Because that answers that goes to the first question, Martha,
is this our responsibility? Do Americans want us to be
doing this, to be running and controlling and occupying Venezuela?
Is that in our interest? Does that make healthcare cheaper?
Does that make housing cheaper? Does that make us stronger
as a country?
Speaker 2 (11:29):
To see if does? Does Jason Crow have any idea?
How foolish she looks? I mean, really, and it's not
a rhetorical question. I think the answer is no, he
doesn't because he's like a moth to flame. He's so
focused on just getting himself in front of the camera.
And that example with Fox, I mean Donald Trump in
the US military just brilliantly took out a narco terrorist,
(11:52):
a major drug lord, you know, somebody who's been running
large amounts of drugs into the US and has been
destabilizing our hemisphere of collaborating with our enemies. And what
Crow doesn't understand, and the vast majority of these Democrats don't,
is that if you just stood up and gave credit
where credit is due, you'd have so much more credibility
(12:13):
with the people you're trying to win over. And so, yeah,
but he's too small. It's a guy who served this
country bravely in the armed forces, but has gone from
being a very large man when he served this country
so nobly and courageously to be a very small man
in politics. And that's an interesting study in and of itself,
(12:34):
is how does somebody who displayed such physical courage and
was such a large person turn into such a small
person in a different arena, this arena being politics, where
he's out there trying to undermine our troops and turn
them against the commander in chief. And then now he's
out there and he can't even give credit. Now he's
(12:56):
opposing what Trump did, and he just looks foolish in
the process. Please, Jason Crow, keep doing it. Go on
every network you can think of along with your lefty bodies,
and keep ripping Trump for this mission. And one of
these days politically, you'll end up just like Tim Walls.
Remember it wasn't that long ago that Crow and others.
You know, we're just trumpeting the majesty of Tim Walls
(13:19):
and what a great vp'd be when they must have known.
And this is the thing that drives you kind of whack. Right.
They know that things are they're saying are not true
and are absolutely goofy, and things they support like legalized
abortion on demand, are fundamentally wrong. But they say and
do all these things they know are wrong just to
get and keep power in a party that has become
so radically secularly left that the truth now is viewed
(13:43):
as weakness within that party. Three oh three seven one
three eight two five five text d an five seven
seven three nine. So so many otherwise talented, smart people
who may have succeeded in other aspects of life, who
are now just debasing themselves in order to be in
power or in the Democratic Party. Pretty sad when you
think about it. Hey, let's go to the phone lines.
(14:05):
We'll start with Ellen and Kreumling. You're on the Dame
Caplis show.
Speaker 7 (14:08):
Welcome, Thank you, I'm calling about Hello.
Speaker 2 (14:14):
Yes, sir.
Speaker 7 (14:17):
During your philoloquay, you you referred to Keen of Peter's
actions as a victimless crime. I don't think so. More
than anything, when we weren't really considered public uh crime.
Somebody goes out and murder somebody or commits the robbery,
we consider that a victim crime and us the obligation
(14:40):
of the government to go ahead and the public retribution
for the public. When Keen of Peters said what she did,
she made a direct attack on the on the public.
Dead is victim more clearly than then bobbery's or murderers
or any other THINGY consider her crime?
Speaker 2 (15:00):
How was the public hurt?
Speaker 7 (15:04):
I think that her actions made a definite impact on
people's trust to the system. She'd furthered. The idea is
that our election system is not trust clothing.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
Well, this is thank you Ellen for leading us there.
I've got a follow up for you, thank you for
leading us there, because this is part of Tina Peter's
argument in federal court, and an argument I think she'll
eventually succeed on that the length of her sentence wasn't
due to the underlying offense. And I believe she was
(15:40):
properly charged and convicted, as I've said, but that the
length of her sentence was due to what she was saying.
That she was saying that elections were stolen. Now I
don't think that's been proven, so I disagree with Tina
Peters on that, but she shouldn't be punished for saying that.
So isn't that what you're saying, Allan, that you believe
(16:03):
that because she has said the elections were stolen, she's
undermined confidence in elections, and therefore that's why you consider
her to have considered a crime against the public, to
have victimized the public. Do I hear you? Right?
Speaker 7 (16:19):
Oh you don't. It's not about her saying that the
It wasn't about her saying that the election was stolen,
unders about the fact that she pop right or allowed
the person without any election clariss to go in and
then start to investigate election.
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Right, But how does that How does that act? And
I agree it's a crime and it should have been prosecuted,
but how does that undermine public confidence in the election?
I mean, You've got Jenna Griswold, who ended up releasing
all of these bios passwords to the public online for months,
talk about undermining confidence in her system. How did Tina
(17:04):
Peters giving access which he should not have done, giving
access to that individual to photograph software and hardware? How
does that undermine confidence in the system.
Speaker 7 (17:18):
The prosecution conviction of her is what generated the public
and she needs to serve a.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Sentence for that.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
How long do you think that sentence should be?
Speaker 7 (17:34):
I think nine years is app okay.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
How long do you think, for comparison, how long do
you think that killer trucker whose sentence was reduced from
one hundred years to ten years by police, how long
do you think his sentence should be?
Speaker 7 (17:51):
I think I think that.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
Okay?
Speaker 2 (17:55):
So do you think do you think that sense? Do
you think that? And I'm so start to interrupt on
because we're hitting a break. Do you think that since
Polus shortened his sentence by ninety percent at Kim Kardashian's
request that Polish should shorten Peter sentenced by ninety percent
at Trump's request.
Speaker 7 (18:14):
Oh, I don't.
Speaker 2 (18:16):
And the reason is, well, that's fascinating. Hey, I want
to do this. I want to continue this conversation because
I don't know how you can possibly justify your last answer,
either logically or in good faith. So I do hope
you come back. We are talking to Congressman Jeff Krank
after the break about Polus's decision to go to war
with Donald Trump and all the ways Colorado's now being
(18:39):
harmed by that. You're on the Dankplas Show.
Speaker 4 (18:47):
You're listening to the Dan Kapliss Show podcast.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
I do think this is.
Speaker 8 (18:51):
One of the most you know, daring, you no, complicated,
sophisticated missions this country has carried out in a very
long time, tremendous credit to the US military personnel and
did it. It was unbelievable and tremendous success. And today an
indicted drug trafficker who was not the legitimate president of Venezuela.
Speaker 2 (19:10):
We don't recognize.
Speaker 8 (19:11):
The Biden administration didn't recognize sixty something countries don't recognize,
the European Union doesn't recognize, and many countries in Latin
America don't recognize. He was a convict. He was an
indicted drug trafficker. He was arrested, his wife was arrested.
Speaker 9 (19:24):
But the others there, others who are also indicted are
still system of course, the others who are also indicted
are still in place. So that's the point of my
questioning there. But you talked about not being the legitimate you.
Speaker 8 (19:36):
Wanted to still land in five other military bases.
Speaker 9 (19:39):
No, I'm asking why you chose that this was the
limit of the military operation. But to your point that
you just made that because Maduro was not the legitimate president.
Speaker 8 (19:48):
He was the guy who was claiming to be the president.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
Right, Well, the opposition target, well, think about what they've
been reduced to. Now, the left's been reduced to, including
their media, are making that argument you didn't get them all.
Speaker 7 (20:01):
Right.
Speaker 2 (20:01):
Well, by that measure, the US military is paralyzed. We
can never do anything against any bad guy because there's
no silver bullet that lets you get them all. Hey,
let's go to the VIP line. Welcome Congressman Jeff Krank
back to the Dan Caplis show.
Speaker 10 (20:16):
How you doing Congressman, Hey, Dan big to talk with you.
I hope you have a happy new year.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Well, it was a happy new year to begin with,
and it's even happier now because I think this mission
and how the mission was carried out is one of
the best possible ways to start the new year in
terms of making this country and the world safer. So yeah,
it's a very happy new year.
Speaker 7 (20:38):
Yeah, I agree.
Speaker 10 (20:39):
This was incredible and there is no other military on
the face of the earth that could do what was done,
and I'm just so proud of it. I was asked
today if I knew anything about it, and if I
was briefed. You know, got all these members of Congress
running around upset that they weren't briefed. They said, you
know what, it's much important to me every member of
our military who did that mission returned home safe than
(21:03):
if any member of Congress got a briefing on it.
And I think putting that out there for members of
Congress just in general beforehand would have put them a
great risk.
Speaker 2 (21:13):
Oh my lord, I don't care if every member of
Congress is mother Teresa. I mean, you can't do that
kind of briefing because one way or the other, it's
going to leak out right, and didn't I read somewhere
where New York Times actually had a leak on this,
and to their credit, they sat on it.
Speaker 3 (21:30):
Yeah.
Speaker 10 (21:30):
Yeah, I think that's right.
Speaker 3 (21:31):
I think that's right.
Speaker 10 (21:32):
And look, you know, Dan, I mean, I'm on the
Armed Services Committee. I'm in classified briefings probably you know,
every other week at least, and sometimes several in a week.
But they have these briefings where they have all the
members come in. And we had one on the drug
boat issue maybe a month ago. Yeah, and I just
sit there and you know, it was Pete Hagsath, and
(21:53):
it was Marco Rubio and others are there and in
the in the room is ilhan Omar and all.
Speaker 7 (22:00):
So I'm thinking to myself, why would they say.
Speaker 10 (22:02):
Anything in this setting of the classified nature. I mean,
it's just a waste of time.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
Yeah, yeah, it's oh man, I'll have to have a
picture of that. Jeff Crank our guest. Yeah, Armed Services Committee,
let me ask you about that. I can't wait for
the movie on this thing. We might have to wait
five years because I'm sure there were some tactics and
methods and sources involved to they'll probably want to employee again.
(22:29):
But I can't even imagine outside of the movies, how
something like this gets pulled off. What, if anything, can
you tell us about that?
Speaker 10 (22:39):
Well, first and foremost, I'm sure you know, over one
hundred and fifty aircraft were used in this twenty of
military basis. They flew from twenty separate bases in they
went in and did this mission. And the Venezuelans were blind,
completely blind. We used cyber operations to to make them,
(23:01):
to make the city dark, to shut down their power.
I mean they they even though they may have had
an inkling that we were coming, there was literally nothing
that they could do to stop it. And it was flawless.
It had to be. Every piece had to work. If
one piece didn't work, others were put in jeopardy. There
(23:21):
was a lot of planning that went into this, and
a lot in Colorado. I've been asked this about, you know,
Colorado's role in this. You know Buckley, A lot of
the intel that was provided to our military came through
Buckley and came through Space Command down in Colorado Springs.
And you know, we fly all the GPS satellites in
(23:42):
Colorado Springs down down in El Paso County, so we
played in Colorado a very oversized role in this operation,
even though we may not get all the credit because
we do a lot of behind the scene stuff.
Speaker 2 (23:53):
Man, I want to meet the guys and or gayos
who repelled down to the roof of that presidential I
guess palace on the military base and took them out
of the room. So I'm serious when I say I
can't wait to see the movie, but I can only
imagine the impact, the positive impact it had around the
world instantly. I mean the way the mission was carried out,
(24:14):
the fact that the US military is capable of something
like that that you could only dream about in the
movies or novel and that the president had the guts
to order it. Well, what impact do you think that's
going to have around the world.
Speaker 10 (24:27):
Well, I think I don't think it has a tremendous impact.
First of all, on the war on drugs. It says, hey,
we're serious about this number one, and this president has
been serious with the strikes on drug boats. But in addition,
the message that it really sends, and I think many
people don't understand how much influenced China, particularly China, but
(24:49):
also Russia has been trying to exert in our hemisphere,
throve Venezuela and this belt and Road initiative that China
has embarked upon, trying to basically buy friends in our
hemisphere to spy on us. And this was the President
saying you need to back off, and they took note.
(25:10):
I was thinking about it today. You think of all
the people who are upset about this mission, and let's
go through them.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
Right.
Speaker 10 (25:16):
It's the Russians aren't happy, The Chinese aren't happy, all
the Jason Crow isn't happy. All the various socialists that
hate our country and like to protest about everything that's
positive in America. They're not happy. The Democrat party leadership
isn't happy. But you know who is happy? I think
the Venezuelan people are happy, right, I mean our Democrat
(25:43):
leadership here in Congress and others. They are aligning themselves with,
you know, with drug dealers and socialists and Marxists and
all because they hate Donald Trump.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
Well, and the week after they align themselves with these
people who committed the mass fraud up in Minnesota, you know,
they align themselves with them. Now they align themselves with
Maduro and his gang. I mean, it's just crazy. But
it's great that it's opening some eyes because I can
tell you it's a former Democrat myself. There are so
many people who just vote Democrat out of habit and
(26:17):
they just you know, have this stereotype of the GOP
like me, that that's really hard to get over. When
I was a Democrat, I had that same stereotype. So
goofiness like this where they're siding with a group of
Somalis who ripped the government off for a billion, now
they're siding with Maduro. That's going to help open more
eyes to what the Democratic Party has really become.
Speaker 10 (26:38):
Well it is, isn't it interesting?
Speaker 3 (26:39):
Too? Dan?
Speaker 10 (26:40):
Now all of a sudden, you know, they sat through
pretty silent. And I don't want to be too critical
of my colleague mister Crow, but I will be in this.
He was pretty silent through five hundred and thirty strikes
drone strikes by Barack Obama.
Speaker 3 (26:55):
Great point. He wasn't out.
Speaker 10 (26:58):
There calling for the video of all of those to
be released. In fact, I wonder if there's any of
these double tap operations where he's arguing that this one
and I've seen the video on the boat attack that
I was in the room with Congressman Crowe there. We
both saw the video.
Speaker 3 (27:15):
We came to two different conclusions about it.
Speaker 10 (27:18):
But he wants that released. Well, how about we release
the all any double tap that happened under the Obama administration.
Speaker 3 (27:26):
I mean at starting point.
Speaker 10 (27:27):
But you know, these guys, all of a sudden they
are constitutional scholars now right that the president somehow should
have come and asked for a declaration of war.
Speaker 3 (27:36):
Are we at.
Speaker 10 (27:37):
War with Venezuela. We're not at war with Venezuela. We
went in and got some bad people who were indicted
in the United States. What if it's the child's sex
trafficker in Venezuela who also doesn't happen to be the
leader of Venezuela. Does America have the right to go
in and grab that person and bring him to justice.
(27:58):
Of course the president does and must.
Speaker 2 (28:00):
Amen. Congressman well said, so grateful for the time today
and look forward to the next visit.
Speaker 7 (28:05):
Dan.
Speaker 10 (28:06):
I appreciate everything you do. Thanks for having me. A
happy New Year.
Speaker 2 (28:09):
Thank you, sir. That is Congressman Jeff Krank Hay Up next,
Greg Lopez running for governor. The big news over the
weekend he announced he's no longer running as a Republican.
He's going to run for governor as an independent? Why
is he doing it? What will the effect on the
race be? Greg Lopez next on The Dankapla Show.
Speaker 4 (28:28):
And now back to the Dan Kaplas Show podcast.
Speaker 2 (28:31):
One of the great Ryan shooing pulls ever that for
Greg Lopez. Have always enjoyed our conversations with Greg. And
Greg ran for governor in Colorado in the last cycle
and the GOP primary pulled a lot of votes, two
hundred and ninety two thousand votes in that primary, lost
by oh I probably about forty fifty thousand votes Tidigan
(28:52):
all in that race. But now Greg has announced that
he is running for governor as an independent in Colorado,
not as a Republican. Greg, Welcome back to the Dan
Kapla Show.
Speaker 3 (29:04):
Hey Dan, Happy new year. Thank you for having me,
well you as well.
Speaker 2 (29:08):
Now the question on everybody's mind, why why Greg now
becoming independent?
Speaker 3 (29:16):
Well, you know, you know this decision it really allows
me to take my message to the people in November
and I don't have to worry about filtering through a
primary or more importantly, you know, allowing the Democrats to
spend two million dollars during the primary against me, and
so I decided, you want my goal is to be
(29:36):
the governor of this great state, to be the voice
of the people, to be a problem solver, and the
best way for me to do that is to go
to the general election and just allow everyone to decide
whether my vision and my direction is what Colorado wants.
Speaker 2 (29:52):
Now, Greg, given that you're very popular and a lot
of people like you, and a lot of people have
voted for you, a lot of Republicans have voted for you,
two hundred and ninety two and eighty seven of them
in the last primary, will this now undermine the Republican
nominee in that general election?
Speaker 3 (30:13):
Well, I don't believe it will. I really don't. Look,
you know, I have a lot of friends in the
Republican Party. You know I've traveled the state. I think
at the end of the day, you know, if a
party loses because voters to something different, that's not voting,
that's not vote splitting, that's not hurting the party. That's democracy.
And we're going to have the ability to have all
(30:36):
the Colorado voters in November to have three viable options.
You know, they will be a Democratic candidate, and they'll
be a Republican, they'll have me as well, and so
it's going to be an exciting year as it retains
for the election for governor here in Colorado.
Speaker 2 (30:52):
Greg Lopez our guest, Now, Greg, if you believe that
you could win the Republican primary, would you have stayed
a Republican and state in the race that way?
Speaker 3 (31:04):
No, I can tell you this. Like I said, the
Democrat Party is very focused on trying to get rid
of the strongest candidates in the primary, and so I
haven't forgotten what they did to me. So what I
decided to do was once again go directly to the
general and look at what are the people of Colorado
(31:24):
looking for? And I'm looking for a problem solver, And
this really does allow me to not worry about the
political politics. I didn't change my values, Dan, I am
the still person, the same person I am that I've
always been. I've just changed who I answer to, and
I'm looking forward to engaging with the in affiliate voters
and I'm looking forward to the election in November.
Speaker 2 (31:47):
Creig Lopezer guests, Now, Greg, when you say you changed
who you answered to, does that allude to some friction
within the GOP. Is there some tension or negativity there
with the party?
Speaker 3 (31:59):
It's oh no, Look I'm not running against the Republicans
or Democrats. I'm running for Colorado. Look, we all know
that the parties themselves, the Democrat Party and the Republican Party,
they're struggling. They're struggling internally, you know, they're struggling and
finding their message. They're struggling and finding, you know, the foothold.
And when you see that fifty percent of the registered
(32:22):
voters in Colorado are unaffiliated because they no longer want
to see the vickery. They're tied of the political back
and forth, you know, you cannot ignore the voters of
this great state. And so I'm going to be that voice,
and I'm going to work very closely with them. But
more importantly, my goal is to make Colorado a state
that we can all be proud of, you know, and
(32:44):
make it where we can all have a better life,
not just for some of us, but for all of us.
Speaker 2 (32:50):
And Greg, you have been such a popular Republican and
again a major vote getter in that last primary. If
at the end of the day, your candidacy is an
end de pendant ends up electing the Democrat in the
governor's race. Will you regret having run as an independent?
Speaker 3 (33:09):
I say this, that's not going to happen. Look, you
and I both know that the Republicans have been losing
statewide races for the last twenty years. Most of the
votes that I'm going to get they would not vote
for a Republican anyway. You know, I'm going to increase
the voter turnout on the unaffiliated vote, and I heard
the Democrat Party more than the Republican Party. I'm going
(33:32):
to take the Hispanic vote and the hard working men
and women. You know, people forget that I was the
director for the United States Small Business Administration. They forget
that I've been the president of the Democact, Hispanic Chamber
of Commerce and served on the Martin Luther Team Awards Committee.
So I am here for the people. I'm going to
fight for the poor. I'm going to fight for those
(33:54):
that are struggling. And I can tell you this is
not going to guarantee any dem crad to win. Actually,
I firmly believe this is gonna be a great year
for an affiliate voters because they're going to make history.
Speaker 2 (34:07):
Well, I sure do hope that you take more from
Democrats than Republicans, because it's a tough enough battle obviously
for the GOP nominee, and the Dems are so bad
and so far left. So I sure hope it turns
out that way. My belief is it's going to go
the other way because you are so popular. You're so
popular with what some label grass roots Republicans, and we
(34:31):
saw that in the last primary, and I'm afraid that
we're going to see a lot of grass roots Republicans enough.
In any case, I vote for you as an independent
in the governor's race and thereby undermine the GOP candidate.
At the same time, Listen, I'd love to have you
as governor. I'd be very very happy with a governor
Greg Lopez in Colorado. And if there was a realistic
(34:52):
path for an independent, i'd again i'd be very to
have you as governor. I just don't see how anyone,
not just you, gets the as an independent.
Speaker 3 (35:01):
Well, I can tell you, you know, if it was easy,
everybody would be doing it. Yes, this is a hard
path for me to take, but I can assure you
this based on everything. We looked at a lot of people.
Dan when I walk into Denver, they think I'm a Democrat.
Why do they think I'm a Democratic because of my ethnicity?
And so I engage with them, and so be ristlysured
(35:24):
I want to take more vote away from the Democrat
Party than anybody else.
Speaker 2 (35:28):
Boy, I sure hope so, Greg, thank you for the
time today. I hope we visit often and we'll talk soon.
Speaker 3 (35:34):
All right, take care, Thank you you too.
Speaker 2 (35:36):
My friend Aaron Lee up next on The Dan Kaplas Show.
This is Dan Caples and welcome to today's online podcast
edition of The Dan Caplis Show. Please be sure to
give us a five star rating if you'd be so kind,
and to subscribe, download and listen to the show every
single day on your favorite podcast platform.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Yeah, and it's all coming true already. Hard to believe, right.
We talked at the end of twenty twenty five, that
last show of twenty five about hey, spoiler alert, I
don't want to ruin your twenty six by taking the
suspense out of it. And then I made my predictions
for twenty six, and sure enough they're coming true already.
I can't wait for the rest of this year. But
(00:35):
what a start, my goodness. You know, as predicted, it
would be a great twenty six, and it'd be a
great twenty six for a lot of different reasons, but
two main ones. One is that there's a return to
faith in America and the other is Donald Trump force
of nature. And we've seen it on display already, how
(00:56):
dramatically in ways we haven't even had time to think about,
let alone talk about the ways that America and the
world is so much safer today and on a better
arc because of what Trump just did in Venezuela. Let
me amend that. Okay, what Trump just very courageously ordered,
But the brilliance of the operation, the men and women
(01:17):
of our military, the people who put this plan together
and then executed it, it blows you away. Right, It's
almost impossible to comprehend how something with that many moving pieces,
the stakes so high, could be performed so flawlessly. But
that's one of the reasons why we've now seen kind
(01:37):
of a reshaping of the world order overnight with that
particular mission. Now, of course that's because it stands on
the shoulders of other things that the military and Trump
have done. But this extraction, this extraction, I think sends
such a message, such a powerful, concrete message to so
(01:58):
many enemies, but also encourage so many friends, including the
good people of Iran, who are once again on the
verge of overthrowing. You know, they're horrific leaders. And the
difference is back in two thousand and nine, because I
was on air then two thousand and nine, where they
cried in the streets did the Iranian people for Obama?
(02:19):
And Obama turned his back and he sided with the
Mulahs and the Iahtolas. Here Trump is openly siding with
the people taking to the streets. But the fact that
he had the guts and that the US military had
the ability to pull off this mission and to pluck
this evil, mass murdering dictator out of his bed in
the middle of the night, put him on a US
(02:40):
helicopter and put him an American prison. That has to
give such tangible encouragement to the people taking to the
streets of Iran, just as very concrete deterrence to bad
actors out there. So is it a silver bullet that
makes everything better immediately forever. Of course not. That's not
the human condition, that's not the way it works. You
(03:02):
know that better than I do. But does that mean
we're powerless, that one man or one woman can't dramatically
change the course of events. We know better than that.
We've seen that man before, we've seen that woman before,
and now we're seeing that man in the form of
Donald Trump. So we are living through history together. Very
exciting time. Glad you're here at three at three seven
(03:23):
one three eight two five five the number techs d
an five seven seven three nine. I'll tell you a
couple of guys who aren't that excited about it. Why
is Jared Poulis Because think about that. Think about that,
Jared Polis has decided to go to war with Donald Trump,
and Colorado's the big loser for it. But think about
(03:43):
how preposterous that is that Polis has decided to go
to war with that guy, the guy who is willing
to go in and have Maduro the alleged president of
a country. Obviously he's just taken over that country through
his his cartel, in his gang, but the alleged president
of a major country. Trump's willing to go in and
(04:05):
able to go in and pluck him out of his
bed in the middle of the night and put him
in a prison cell. And Poulus decides to go to
war with that Donald Trump, with Colorado, of course being
the big loser. And we'll talk about the latest installment that.
But that was one of my other predictions in twenty
five was that Trump was going to punish Colorado in
so many different ways. For Polis's refusal to grant Trump's
(04:31):
request to transfer TEENA Peters to federal custody. Now Poulis
was willing to grant Kim Kardashian's request to reduce the
sentence of the mass murdering trucker, and he reduced it
by ninety percent. But the President of the United States
then comes in and makes a request for a particular
prisoner who's over seventy years old, did commit a crime,
(04:54):
should have been charged and was properly convicted, but over
seventy years old, a victimless crime, nonviolent crime. And Polis
gives a double middle finger to Trump after granting Kardashian's request. Yeah,
so that's the pip fight police has picked. And we'll
go through the latest armed Colorado as a result of
(05:14):
Jared Polis deciding it's more important to keep this senior
citizen in jail well over a year than it is
to serve the broader interests of Colorado. Three h three
seOne three eight two five five takes d an five
seven seven three nine and the latest price tag for
that one right. Obviously, Trump cutting off the funding via
(05:36):
a veto about a million billion pardon me with a
b bucks at stake now, And it's a project that
should be funded, and I wish the President would not
have vetoed it, but we all know why he did.
And think about it, Polis now has three years of
this fight ahead of them. Oh, I take that back.
Polus does, and he's going to be out of there.
(05:57):
Colorado now has three years of this punishment ahead of them.
So that was another prediction I made. And it's going
to come true. Whether it'll be sooner or later, we'll
find out together, but it is going to come true.
Polis is going to fold on this. Polis is going
to commute the sentence of Tina Peters. She is going
to be released from prison. It's not going to be
(06:18):
a full pardon when it happens. I think it's going
to be sooner than later. But remember I told you
it would happen. And Ryan, here's another sign that it's
going to happen. What did police not do at the
end of twenty twenty five that he's done every single
year as governor. What did he not do? Yeah, he
(06:40):
did not pardon anybody. He did not commute any sentences.
Every year as governor he's done that, it's usually around
twenty He did have a mass pardon of over a
thousand for drug related charges. But Polis has commuted the
sentence of like murders, people who that this one guy,
this one guy who just went and put the guy
under the back of a woman's head, pressed it up
(07:02):
against her neck, pointed the barrel up, pulled the trigger,
and just shot her right through the brain and killed her.
That's Ronald Janushek. Polus commuted his sentence, led him out
of prison. Rudy Shyron Yeah, drive by shooting killed a
man celebrating his sixty six birthday. Polis commuted that sentence.
Let that guy out of jail. Travis Coleman, sexual assault,
(07:27):
attempted murder. Polis commuted that sentence, Let that guy out
of jail. So Polis has this history of doing it.
Why do you think we didn't see any commutations or
pardons at the end of twenty twenty five. Why do
you think? I think it's because it's coming. Polis knew
that he couldn't do what he normally does with the
(07:50):
commutations or pardons because then he couldn't justify keeping Peters
by comparison behind bars over seventy you know, non violent
and victimless offense. So he just didn't do anybody at
this point. So I think what's cooking is he's going
to pull together every part in every commutation. His far
left heart is ever desired, and he's going to roll
(08:12):
them all into one big package, and he's going to
do Tina Peters at the same time. So I do
think that's coming. Three h three s one three eight
two five five text d an five seven seven three nine. Hey,
quick look ahead today's show. Among many others, we will
have Congressman Jeff Crank. He'll do a quick drop at
four thirty six to talk about what we're talking about
right now, which just Paul is deciding to go to
(08:35):
war with Donald Trump. Yeah, how's that working out for Colorado?
Greg Lopez, I can't wait for this conversation. I always
enjoy talking to Greg. He'll join us at four fifty
to talk about his decision to drop out of the
GOP primary for governor and now run for governor as
an independent.
Speaker 3 (08:54):
Think of the.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Ramifications that Greg got a whole lot of votes, Greg,
Greg got all whole lot of I think it was
close to two hundred and fifty thousand votes in that
last GOP primary for governor. So what effect now is
this going to have in the general election on the
GOP candidate and what effects are going to have in
the primary. So we'll be talking to Greg about first
(09:16):
and foremost, why did you do it? And then Aaron
Lee Protect Kids Colorado. Aaron will join us at five
oh six to talk about the decision now of Children's
Hospital in Denver Health as well to suspend so called
tender affirming care, which we all know is a ludicrous
thing to call it because it's in reality the exact opposite,
(09:38):
and they've now suspended it under pressure from the Trump administration.
So all of that, and I do have to talk
to you about Tucker Carlson. What happened to Tucker Carlson
and why has he become so absolutely whacked? Did you
hear what he had to say about Trump and Venezuela,
his theory on Mike Trump actually went into Venezuela. If
(10:00):
there's any doubt in your mind, and I praised Tucker
a lot in the past for stuff he should have
been praised on, criticism, criticized him for other things. But
if there's any doubt in your mind about whether something's
going on there and whether he's lost it, wait till
you hear his explanation for why he thinks Trump extracted
Maduro from Venezuela. I'll get you that after the break.
(10:21):
You're on the Dan Caplas Show.
Speaker 4 (10:24):
And now back to the Dan Taplass Show podcast.
Speaker 5 (10:27):
And here's President Biden back in the late eighties in
an address. Here's what President Biden said.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
Let's go after the drug lords where they live with
an international strike force. There must be no safe haven
for these narco terrorists and they must know it.
Speaker 5 (10:46):
So do you agree with all three of them, at
least in their early iterations of what they said, that
Maduro needed to go?
Speaker 6 (10:55):
Absolutely, there's no question that Venezuela without Medua to be
without the Maduro regime. Right, he's been in control for
ten years, and then there's an entire security apparatus his
defense minister.
Speaker 5 (11:08):
Should they have taken them all out at once?
Speaker 6 (11:10):
Because that answers that goes to the first question, Martha,
is this our responsibility? Do Americans want us to be
doing this, to be running and controlling and occupying Venezuela?
Is that in our interest? Does that make healthcare cheaper?
Does that make housing cheaper? Does that make us stronger
as a country?
Speaker 2 (11:29):
To see if does? Does Jason Crow have any idea?
How foolish she looks? I mean, really, and it's not
a rhetorical question. I think the answer is no, he
doesn't because he's like a moth to flame. He's so
focused on just getting himself in front of the camera.
And that example with Fox, I mean Donald Trump in
the US military just brilliantly took out a narco terrorist,
(11:52):
a major drug lord, you know, somebody who's been running
large amounts of drugs into the US and has been
destabilizing our hemisphere of collaborating with our enemies. And what
Crow doesn't understand, and the vast majority of these Democrats don't,
is that if you just stood up and gave credit
where credit is due, you'd have so much more credibility
(12:13):
with the people you're trying to win over. And so, yeah,
but he's too small. It's a guy who served this
country bravely in the armed forces, but has gone from
being a very large man when he served this country
so nobly and courageously to be a very small man
in politics. And that's an interesting study in and of itself,
(12:34):
is how does somebody who displayed such physical courage and
was such a large person turn into such a small
person in a different arena, this arena being politics, where
he's out there trying to undermine our troops and turn
them against the commander in chief. And then now he's
out there and he can't even give credit. Now he's
(12:56):
opposing what Trump did, and he just looks foolish in
the process. Please, Jason Crow, keep doing it. Go on
every network you can think of along with your lefty bodies,
and keep ripping Trump for this mission. And one of
these days politically, you'll end up just like Tim Walls.
Remember it wasn't that long ago that Crow and others.
You know, we're just trumpeting the majesty of Tim Walls
(13:19):
and what a great vp'd be when they must have known.
And this is the thing that drives you kind of whack. Right.
They know that things are they're saying are not true
and are absolutely goofy, and things they support like legalized
abortion on demand, are fundamentally wrong. But they say and
do all these things they know are wrong just to
get and keep power in a party that has become
so radically secularly left that the truth now is viewed
(13:43):
as weakness within that party. Three oh three seven one
three eight two five five text d an five seven
seven three nine. So so many otherwise talented, smart people
who may have succeeded in other aspects of life, who
are now just debasing themselves in order to be in
power or in the Democratic Party. Pretty sad when you
think about it. Hey, let's go to the phone lines.
(14:05):
We'll start with Ellen and Kreumling. You're on the Dame
Caplis show.
Speaker 7 (14:08):
Welcome, Thank you, I'm calling about Hello.
Speaker 2 (14:14):
Yes, sir.
Speaker 7 (14:17):
During your philoloquay, you you referred to Keen of Peter's
actions as a victimless crime. I don't think so. More
than anything, when we weren't really considered public uh crime.
Somebody goes out and murder somebody or commits the robbery,
we consider that a victim crime and us the obligation
(14:40):
of the government to go ahead and the public retribution
for the public. When Keen of Peters said what she did,
she made a direct attack on the on the public.
Dead is victim more clearly than then bobbery's or murderers
or any other THINGY consider her crime?
Speaker 2 (15:00):
How was the public hurt?
Speaker 7 (15:04):
I think that her actions made a definite impact on
people's trust to the system. She'd furthered. The idea is
that our election system is not trust clothing.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
Well, this is thank you Ellen for leading us there.
I've got a follow up for you, thank you for
leading us there, because this is part of Tina Peter's
argument in federal court, and an argument I think she'll
eventually succeed on that the length of her sentence wasn't
due to the underlying offense. And I believe she was
(15:40):
properly charged and convicted, as I've said, but that the
length of her sentence was due to what she was saying.
That she was saying that elections were stolen. Now I
don't think that's been proven, so I disagree with Tina
Peters on that, but she shouldn't be punished for saying that.
So isn't that what you're saying, Allan, that you believe
(16:03):
that because she has said the elections were stolen, she's
undermined confidence in elections, and therefore that's why you consider
her to have considered a crime against the public, to
have victimized the public. Do I hear you? Right?
Speaker 7 (16:19):
Oh you don't. It's not about her saying that the
It wasn't about her saying that the election was stolen,
unders about the fact that she pop right or allowed
the person without any election clariss to go in and
then start to investigate election.
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Right, But how does that How does that act? And
I agree it's a crime and it should have been prosecuted,
but how does that undermine public confidence in the election?
I mean, You've got Jenna Griswold, who ended up releasing
all of these bios passwords to the public online for months,
talk about undermining confidence in her system. How did Tina
(17:04):
Peters giving access which he should not have done, giving
access to that individual to photograph software and hardware? How
does that undermine confidence in the system.
Speaker 7 (17:18):
The prosecution conviction of her is what generated the public
and she needs to serve a.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Sentence for that.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
How long do you think that sentence should be?
Speaker 7 (17:34):
I think nine years is app okay.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
How long do you think, for comparison, how long do
you think that killer trucker whose sentence was reduced from
one hundred years to ten years by police, how long
do you think his sentence should be?
Speaker 7 (17:51):
I think I think that.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
Okay?
Speaker 2 (17:55):
So do you think do you think that sense? Do
you think that? And I'm so start to interrupt on
because we're hitting a break. Do you think that since
Polus shortened his sentence by ninety percent at Kim Kardashian's
request that Polish should shorten Peter sentenced by ninety percent
at Trump's request.
Speaker 7 (18:14):
Oh, I don't.
Speaker 2 (18:16):
And the reason is, well, that's fascinating. Hey, I want
to do this. I want to continue this conversation because
I don't know how you can possibly justify your last answer,
either logically or in good faith. So I do hope
you come back. We are talking to Congressman Jeff Krank
after the break about Polus's decision to go to war
with Donald Trump and all the ways Colorado's now being
(18:39):
harmed by that. You're on the Dankplas Show.
Speaker 4 (18:47):
You're listening to the Dan Kapliss Show podcast.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
I do think this is.
Speaker 8 (18:51):
One of the most you know, daring, you no, complicated,
sophisticated missions this country has carried out in a very
long time, tremendous credit to the US military personnel and
did it. It was unbelievable and tremendous success. And today an
indicted drug trafficker who was not the legitimate president of Venezuela.
Speaker 2 (19:10):
We don't recognize.
Speaker 8 (19:11):
The Biden administration didn't recognize sixty something countries don't recognize,
the European Union doesn't recognize, and many countries in Latin
America don't recognize. He was a convict. He was an
indicted drug trafficker. He was arrested, his wife was arrested.
Speaker 9 (19:24):
But the others there, others who are also indicted are
still system of course, the others who are also indicted
are still in place. So that's the point of my
questioning there. But you talked about not being the legitimate you.
Speaker 8 (19:36):
Wanted to still land in five other military bases.
Speaker 9 (19:39):
No, I'm asking why you chose that this was the
limit of the military operation. But to your point that
you just made that because Maduro was not the legitimate president.
Speaker 8 (19:48):
He was the guy who was claiming to be the president.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
Right, Well, the opposition target, well, think about what they've
been reduced to. Now, the left's been reduced to, including
their media, are making that argument you didn't get them all.
Speaker 7 (20:01):
Right.
Speaker 2 (20:01):
Well, by that measure, the US military is paralyzed. We
can never do anything against any bad guy because there's
no silver bullet that lets you get them all. Hey,
let's go to the VIP line. Welcome Congressman Jeff Krank
back to the Dan Caplis show.
Speaker 10 (20:16):
How you doing Congressman, Hey, Dan big to talk with you.
I hope you have a happy new year.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Well, it was a happy new year to begin with,
and it's even happier now because I think this mission
and how the mission was carried out is one of
the best possible ways to start the new year in
terms of making this country and the world safer. So yeah,
it's a very happy new year.
Speaker 7 (20:38):
Yeah, I agree.
Speaker 10 (20:39):
This was incredible and there is no other military on
the face of the earth that could do what was done,
and I'm just so proud of it. I was asked
today if I knew anything about it, and if I
was briefed. You know, got all these members of Congress
running around upset that they weren't briefed. They said, you
know what, it's much important to me every member of
our military who did that mission returned home safe than
(21:03):
if any member of Congress got a briefing on it.
And I think putting that out there for members of
Congress just in general beforehand would have put them a
great risk.
Speaker 2 (21:13):
Oh my lord, I don't care if every member of
Congress is mother Teresa. I mean, you can't do that
kind of briefing because one way or the other, it's
going to leak out right, and didn't I read somewhere
where New York Times actually had a leak on this,
and to their credit, they sat on it.
Speaker 3 (21:30):
Yeah.
Speaker 10 (21:30):
Yeah, I think that's right.
Speaker 3 (21:31):
I think that's right.
Speaker 10 (21:32):
And look, you know, Dan, I mean, I'm on the
Armed Services Committee. I'm in classified briefings probably you know,
every other week at least, and sometimes several in a week.
But they have these briefings where they have all the
members come in. And we had one on the drug
boat issue maybe a month ago. Yeah, and I just
sit there and you know, it was Pete Hagsath, and
(21:53):
it was Marco Rubio and others are there and in
the in the room is ilhan Omar and all.
Speaker 7 (22:00):
So I'm thinking to myself, why would they say.
Speaker 10 (22:02):
Anything in this setting of the classified nature. I mean,
it's just a waste of time.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
Yeah, yeah, it's oh man, I'll have to have a
picture of that. Jeff Crank our guest. Yeah, Armed Services Committee,
let me ask you about that. I can't wait for
the movie on this thing. We might have to wait
five years because I'm sure there were some tactics and
methods and sources involved to they'll probably want to employee again.
(22:29):
But I can't even imagine outside of the movies, how
something like this gets pulled off. What, if anything, can
you tell us about that?
Speaker 10 (22:39):
Well, first and foremost, I'm sure you know, over one
hundred and fifty aircraft were used in this twenty of
military basis. They flew from twenty separate bases in they
went in and did this mission. And the Venezuelans were blind,
completely blind. We used cyber operations to to make them,
(23:01):
to make the city dark, to shut down their power.
I mean they they even though they may have had
an inkling that we were coming, there was literally nothing
that they could do to stop it. And it was flawless.
It had to be. Every piece had to work. If
one piece didn't work, others were put in jeopardy. There
(23:21):
was a lot of planning that went into this, and
a lot in Colorado. I've been asked this about, you know,
Colorado's role in this. You know Buckley, A lot of
the intel that was provided to our military came through
Buckley and came through Space Command down in Colorado Springs.
And you know, we fly all the GPS satellites in
(23:42):
Colorado Springs down down in El Paso County, so we
played in Colorado a very oversized role in this operation,
even though we may not get all the credit because
we do a lot of behind the scene stuff.
Speaker 2 (23:53):
Man, I want to meet the guys and or gayos
who repelled down to the roof of that presidential I
guess palace on the military base and took them out
of the room. So I'm serious when I say I
can't wait to see the movie, but I can only
imagine the impact, the positive impact it had around the
world instantly. I mean the way the mission was carried out,
(24:14):
the fact that the US military is capable of something
like that that you could only dream about in the
movies or novel and that the president had the guts
to order it. Well, what impact do you think that's
going to have around the world.
Speaker 10 (24:27):
Well, I think I don't think it has a tremendous impact.
First of all, on the war on drugs. It says, hey,
we're serious about this number one, and this president has
been serious with the strikes on drug boats. But in addition,
the message that it really sends, and I think many
people don't understand how much influenced China, particularly China, but
(24:49):
also Russia has been trying to exert in our hemisphere,
throve Venezuela and this belt and Road initiative that China
has embarked upon, trying to basically buy friends in our
hemisphere to spy on us. And this was the President
saying you need to back off, and they took note.
(25:10):
I was thinking about it today. You think of all
the people who are upset about this mission, and let's
go through them.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
Right.
Speaker 10 (25:16):
It's the Russians aren't happy, The Chinese aren't happy, all
the Jason Crow isn't happy. All the various socialists that
hate our country and like to protest about everything that's
positive in America. They're not happy. The Democrat party leadership
isn't happy. But you know who is happy? I think
the Venezuelan people are happy, right, I mean our Democrat
(25:43):
leadership here in Congress and others. They are aligning themselves with,
you know, with drug dealers and socialists and Marxists and
all because they hate Donald Trump.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
Well, and the week after they align themselves with these
people who committed the mass fraud up in Minnesota, you know,
they align themselves with them. Now they align themselves with
Maduro and his gang. I mean, it's just crazy. But
it's great that it's opening some eyes because I can
tell you it's a former Democrat myself. There are so
many people who just vote Democrat out of habit and
(26:17):
they just you know, have this stereotype of the GOP
like me, that that's really hard to get over. When
I was a Democrat, I had that same stereotype. So
goofiness like this where they're siding with a group of
Somalis who ripped the government off for a billion, now
they're siding with Maduro. That's going to help open more
eyes to what the Democratic Party has really become.
Speaker 10 (26:38):
Well it is, isn't it interesting?
Speaker 3 (26:39):
Too? Dan?
Speaker 10 (26:40):
Now all of a sudden, you know, they sat through
pretty silent. And I don't want to be too critical
of my colleague mister Crow, but I will be in this.
He was pretty silent through five hundred and thirty strikes
drone strikes by Barack Obama.
Speaker 3 (26:55):
Great point. He wasn't out.
Speaker 10 (26:58):
There calling for the video of all of those to
be released. In fact, I wonder if there's any of
these double tap operations where he's arguing that this one
and I've seen the video on the boat attack that
I was in the room with Congressman Crowe there. We
both saw the video.
Speaker 3 (27:15):
We came to two different conclusions about it.
Speaker 10 (27:18):
But he wants that released. Well, how about we release
the all any double tap that happened under the Obama administration.
Speaker 3 (27:26):
I mean at starting point.
Speaker 10 (27:27):
But you know, these guys, all of a sudden they
are constitutional scholars now right that the president somehow should
have come and asked for a declaration of war.
Speaker 3 (27:36):
Are we at.
Speaker 10 (27:37):
War with Venezuela. We're not at war with Venezuela. We
went in and got some bad people who were indicted
in the United States. What if it's the child's sex
trafficker in Venezuela who also doesn't happen to be the
leader of Venezuela. Does America have the right to go
in and grab that person and bring him to justice.
(27:58):
Of course the president does and must.
Speaker 2 (28:00):
Amen. Congressman well said, so grateful for the time today
and look forward to the next visit.
Speaker 7 (28:05):
Dan.
Speaker 10 (28:06):
I appreciate everything you do. Thanks for having me. A
happy New Year.
Speaker 2 (28:09):
Thank you, sir. That is Congressman Jeff Krank Hay Up next,
Greg Lopez running for governor. The big news over the
weekend he announced he's no longer running as a Republican.
He's going to run for governor as an independent? Why
is he doing it? What will the effect on the
race be? Greg Lopez next on The Dankapla Show.
Speaker 4 (28:28):
And now back to the Dan Kaplas Show podcast.
Speaker 2 (28:31):
One of the great Ryan shooing pulls ever that for
Greg Lopez. Have always enjoyed our conversations with Greg. And
Greg ran for governor in Colorado in the last cycle
and the GOP primary pulled a lot of votes, two
hundred and ninety two thousand votes in that primary, lost
by oh I probably about forty fifty thousand votes Tidigan
(28:52):
all in that race. But now Greg has announced that
he is running for governor as an independent in Colorado,
not as a Republican. Greg, Welcome back to the Dan
Kapla Show.
Speaker 3 (29:04):
Hey Dan, Happy new year. Thank you for having me,
well you as well.
Speaker 2 (29:08):
Now the question on everybody's mind, why why Greg now
becoming independent?
Speaker 3 (29:16):
Well, you know, you know this decision it really allows
me to take my message to the people in November
and I don't have to worry about filtering through a
primary or more importantly, you know, allowing the Democrats to
spend two million dollars during the primary against me, and
so I decided, you want my goal is to be
(29:36):
the governor of this great state, to be the voice
of the people, to be a problem solver, and the
best way for me to do that is to go
to the general election and just allow everyone to decide
whether my vision and my direction is what Colorado wants.
Speaker 2 (29:52):
Now, Greg, given that you're very popular and a lot
of people like you, and a lot of people have
voted for you, a lot of Republicans have voted for you,
two hundred and ninety two and eighty seven of them
in the last primary, will this now undermine the Republican
nominee in that general election?
Speaker 3 (30:13):
Well, I don't believe it will. I really don't. Look,
you know, I have a lot of friends in the
Republican Party. You know I've traveled the state. I think
at the end of the day, you know, if a
party loses because voters to something different, that's not voting,
that's not vote splitting, that's not hurting the party. That's democracy.
And we're going to have the ability to have all
(30:36):
the Colorado voters in November to have three viable options.
You know, they will be a Democratic candidate, and they'll
be a Republican, they'll have me as well, and so
it's going to be an exciting year as it retains
for the election for governor here in Colorado.
Speaker 2 (30:52):
Greg Lopez our guest, Now, Greg, if you believe that
you could win the Republican primary, would you have stayed
a Republican and state in the race that way?
Speaker 3 (31:04):
No, I can tell you this. Like I said, the
Democrat Party is very focused on trying to get rid
of the strongest candidates in the primary, and so I
haven't forgotten what they did to me. So what I
decided to do was once again go directly to the
general and look at what are the people of Colorado
(31:24):
looking for? And I'm looking for a problem solver, And
this really does allow me to not worry about the
political politics. I didn't change my values, Dan, I am
the still person, the same person I am that I've
always been. I've just changed who I answer to, and
I'm looking forward to engaging with the in affiliate voters
and I'm looking forward to the election in November.
Speaker 2 (31:47):
Creig Lopezer guests, Now, Greg, when you say you changed
who you answered to, does that allude to some friction
within the GOP. Is there some tension or negativity there
with the party?
Speaker 3 (31:59):
It's oh no, Look I'm not running against the Republicans
or Democrats. I'm running for Colorado. Look, we all know
that the parties themselves, the Democrat Party and the Republican Party,
they're struggling. They're struggling internally, you know, they're struggling and
finding their message. They're struggling and finding, you know, the foothold.
And when you see that fifty percent of the registered
(32:22):
voters in Colorado are unaffiliated because they no longer want
to see the vickery. They're tied of the political back
and forth, you know, you cannot ignore the voters of
this great state. And so I'm going to be that voice,
and I'm going to work very closely with them. But
more importantly, my goal is to make Colorado a state
that we can all be proud of, you know, and
(32:44):
make it where we can all have a better life,
not just for some of us, but for all of us.
Speaker 2 (32:50):
And Greg, you have been such a popular Republican and
again a major vote getter in that last primary. If
at the end of the day, your candidacy is an
end de pendant ends up electing the Democrat in the
governor's race. Will you regret having run as an independent?
Speaker 3 (33:09):
I say this, that's not going to happen. Look, you
and I both know that the Republicans have been losing
statewide races for the last twenty years. Most of the
votes that I'm going to get they would not vote
for a Republican anyway. You know, I'm going to increase
the voter turnout on the unaffiliated vote, and I heard
the Democrat Party more than the Republican Party. I'm going
(33:32):
to take the Hispanic vote and the hard working men
and women. You know, people forget that I was the
director for the United States Small Business Administration. They forget
that I've been the president of the Democact, Hispanic Chamber
of Commerce and served on the Martin Luther Team Awards Committee.
So I am here for the people. I'm going to
fight for the poor. I'm going to fight for those
(33:54):
that are struggling. And I can tell you this is
not going to guarantee any dem crad to win. Actually,
I firmly believe this is gonna be a great year
for an affiliate voters because they're going to make history.
Speaker 2 (34:07):
Well, I sure do hope that you take more from
Democrats than Republicans, because it's a tough enough battle obviously
for the GOP nominee, and the Dems are so bad
and so far left. So I sure hope it turns
out that way. My belief is it's going to go
the other way because you are so popular. You're so
popular with what some label grass roots Republicans, and we
(34:31):
saw that in the last primary, and I'm afraid that
we're going to see a lot of grass roots Republicans enough.
In any case, I vote for you as an independent
in the governor's race and thereby undermine the GOP candidate.
At the same time, Listen, I'd love to have you
as governor. I'd be very very happy with a governor
Greg Lopez in Colorado. And if there was a realistic
(34:52):
path for an independent, i'd again i'd be very to
have you as governor. I just don't see how anyone,
not just you, gets the as an independent.
Speaker 3 (35:01):
Well, I can tell you, you know, if it was easy,
everybody would be doing it. Yes, this is a hard
path for me to take, but I can assure you
this based on everything. We looked at a lot of people.
Dan when I walk into Denver, they think I'm a Democrat.
Why do they think I'm a Democratic because of my ethnicity?
And so I engage with them, and so be ristlysured
(35:24):
I want to take more vote away from the Democrat
Party than anybody else.
Speaker 2 (35:28):
Boy, I sure hope so, Greg, thank you for the
time today. I hope we visit often and we'll talk soon.
Speaker 3 (35:34):
All right, take care, Thank you you too.
Speaker 2 (35:36):
My friend Aaron Lee up next on The Dan Kaplas Show.
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