August 13, 2026 • 15 mins
Physician and small business owner has thrown his hat into the ring to run for Congress in Denver's first congressional district. Dr. Shimon Blau, a self-proclaimed moderate, is taking on the Democratic nominee, Malac Kiros, in a bid to bring a fresh perspective to the city's politics.
This episode delves into Dr. Blau's motivations for running, his stance on key issues like healthcare and anti-Semitism, and what sets him apart from his opponents. With a unique blend of medical expertise and business acumen, Dr. Blau is looking to bring a much-needed dose of pragmatism to the nation's capital. From his thoughts on the Patients Deserve Price Transparency Act to his views on universal healthcare, Dr. Blau shares his vision for a more inclusive and effective government.
As a doctor, Dr. Blau has seen firsthand the impact of healthcare costs on his patients, and he's committed to finding solutions that balance accessibility with affordability. He's also unafraid to speak out against anti-Semitism, a growing concern in the Democratic Party. With his independent streak and willingness to challenge the status quo, Dr. Blau is an intriguing candidate who's definitely worth getting to know.
Tune in to hear the full conversation with Dr. Shimon Blau and learn more about his platform, his vision for the future, and why he's the perfect choice for Colorado's first congressional district.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Very special guest, doctor Shimone Blau, for bringing Krispy Kreme donuts,
which seems like an odd gift from a doctor. And
Gina has one in front of her. I ate one
and a half already, dragonhead half. We're trying to give
the other half to Gina because Dragon touched it, but
she wouldn't.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
And then you proceeded to smush your fingers through that
entire donut and then say hey, you want it?
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Yeah, all right, then you rate it.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Let's do this, Doctor Shimone Blau, somehow.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
Through perseverance, hard work, and.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Whatever else, made the ballot to run for Congress in
Denver in just a few days of collecting signatures, which
I thought was really a remarkable thing. He joins us
in studio now, and why don't we start with the
basic question for those who don't know you, who are you?
And why are you running for Congress as an un
affiliated candidate?
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Sure?
Speaker 4 (00:49):
First of all, thank you so much for having me
on this morning.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
Hi.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
We welcome anyone who brings donuts. Thank you.
Speaker 4 (00:54):
Yeah, yeah, I am. I was born and raised here
in Denver, Colorado.
Speaker 3 (00:58):
I love the city. You know.
Speaker 4 (01:01):
My parents were both immigrants. They were really the American
dream that worked really hard, and you know that had successes,
some failure, some successes again, And I'm a physician and
a small business owner. You know, I was very disturbed
with the results of the primaries, and I really wanted
to give voters another choice, you know, somebody who is
(01:21):
not a socialist, somebody who believes in growing businesses.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
Here.
Speaker 4 (01:24):
I was extremely disturbed by some of the remarks that
the Democratic nominee made about businesses leaving Denver not caring
if they left, including Lockheed Martin, which is about fourteen
thousand jobs.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
And I know that businesses.
Speaker 4 (01:37):
Are struggling right now in Denver, and you know, for
somebody to say that, it's like putting up a big
close for business sign over the city. And what we
really need is a huge sign in Neon flashing lights
saying open for business right now.
Speaker 2 (01:52):
So you've really pitched yourself as a more moderate alternative
than what we see with the other candidate, and you've
called her extreme anti semitic at times.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
So you mentioned businesses.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
That's one point that you've acknowledged here, But what do
you think are some other points that you say why
people should vote for you?
Speaker 3 (02:09):
And not just well I don't like the other candidate.
Speaker 4 (02:12):
Sure, yeah, well, you know, my area of expertise, obviously
is healthcare. I have been a physician for over twenty years,
and my opponent is running on a universal healthcare platform,
which it's not something that I'm necessarily against, but she
also freely admits that that's not going to happen during
(02:32):
the Trump administration for the next two years, which is
essentially the length of her term. I want to start
making changes on day one to bring healthcare costs down.
I know how expensive health care can be. I'm hearing
from my patients all the time that this is a
major issue, and I bring a lot of experience to
be able to do that. Here's where experience really really
makes a difference. Just last week, I was with a
(02:54):
friend and we met a woman who was telling us
she works in the healthcare field, and she works for
a large organization that sees a lot of pediatric patients.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
And she was saying how just a.
Speaker 4 (03:04):
Year ago, it was impossible for parents to get next
day appointments for their children, but today it's not a problem.
Anyone who calls can get a next day appointment. So
my friend, who was with me, who does not work
in the healthcare field, said Oh, that's great, that's wonderful,
and I said, no, that's not what she's saying. What
she's saying is that parents are not bringing their children
(03:24):
in to see the doctor anymore because their deductibles are
too high where they don't have insurance. So that's where
experience really makes a difference to understand the healthcare field
and the industry.
Speaker 3 (03:35):
So there's a lot going on in the world, and
there's a lot.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
That needs to be done in Washington on issues like
health care and plenty of other things. But I do
want to take a moment to talk about anti Semitism.
You're Jewish, I'm Jewish, and the rise of anti Semitism
is extremely troubling, to put it gently, you know, I
(03:58):
feel the need to carry a concealed weapon more often
than I used to. I think all Jews should, by
the way, and in Malac Kiros, I think she's an
anti semi right and given my opinion, you can give
yours or not. But do you think that the rise
of anti Semitism is a thing that a member of
(04:20):
Congress should talk about? And how would you talk about
that issue? I know it's not the focus of your campaign,
but it's something I want to ask you about. Yeah,
it is definitely something that I hope to call out.
I would add that I would call out hatred of
all kind. Hatred of all kind.
Speaker 4 (04:38):
Anti Semitism is a growing problem on the far right
and on the far left right. Now, you know, my
opponent has refused to call the horrific murder of Karen
Diamond and Boulder by somebody throwing molotov cocktails screaming free
Palestine an anti Semitic attack, and she's doubled down in
further subsequent interviews by saying she wasn't sure if it
(04:59):
was anti semitism, a antizionism, And for the vast majority
of Jews, we consider antizionism to be anti simitism. Right,
it's just an extension of that. It's the new form
of anti simitism. So, you know, those were very troubling
for me. You know, in a recent interview, she actually
pointed the finger to try to point out anti semitism
stemming from the far right. But one of the issues
(05:20):
I have is that we've been trying to tell her
that her own words and actions have actually been promoting
that same rhetoric from the far left.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
So let me just add one thing and then Gene
will have another question. So, when you look at anti
semitism on the right, with the exception of Thomas Massey,
who lost his primary and won't be in Congress anymore,
there is precious little anti semitism among elected officials on
the right. But in the Democratic Party now there's anti
(05:50):
semitism everywhere. And a hundred of them just voted to
cease funding for Israel.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
And these people are overtly.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
Anti Semitic, and they think it gets them votes and
gets them invited.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
To all the best cocktail parties.
Speaker 1 (06:03):
So it is kind of on both sides, but it's
not equally on both sides, and it's a much much
bigger problem on the left.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
And I just I want everyone to be honest about that.
Speaker 1 (06:12):
You want to just say anything about that before Gina
is our next question.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
Of course. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (06:16):
Well, I believe that the DSA, the Democratic Socialists of America.
I mean, I just call them socialists. There's really nothing
democratic about them. But I think that as we're saying
more of them become elected, they are definitely promoting a
lot of this Semitism and that's a major concern. You know,
(06:36):
I do believe that they're I'm an independent, I'm not
a Democrat, I'm not a Republican. But I think that
they are going to have to reckon with this growing
issue in their party.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
CD one is the state's bluest district. What do you
think you can do in this What's going to be
a pretty challenging uphill climb, and then on top of it,
bridging the gap between the cure of supporters and what
you stand for.
Speaker 4 (07:01):
Yeah, well, you know, I don't think we're going to
get the Caros supporters. I think they've made their minds
up already.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
However, let's say if you are elected and now everybody's like,
well I wanted the other person, what can you do
to try to cater for those that still are in
your district? Sure?
Speaker 3 (07:17):
Well, I'm going to work for Denver.
Speaker 4 (07:18):
My biggest focus is going to be bringing jobs, bringing
down healthcare costs. You know, I'm my focus is going
to be on all of the people in Denver, whether
or not they voted for me.
Speaker 3 (07:31):
It's an interesting thing, is it.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
As a representative, you're there to represent and you're also
in a national job in a federal Congress thinking about
you know, federal issues. So you know, you started this
conversation talking about Denver should be open for business, but
that really isn't a thing that a congressman is going
to be able to impact. The healthcare stuff is the
kind of stuff you'd be able to impact, or maybe
taxes or or maybe something else. So there's you know what,
(07:57):
there's there's a lot more to talk about here. We're
talking with doctor Shimon Blau. He's running for Congress in
the first congressional district, taking on Malat Cairos and some
Republican who won't get any votes whose name I don't remember,
but it's gonna be a very interesting battle. Doc, Can
you stick around for a few minutes and continue the conversation?
Speaker 3 (08:15):
All right, So we're gonna do that Denver.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
We're gonna first just get a quick news update from Gina,
including on the lawsuit about Denver's assault weapons ban, and
then we'll continue the conversation with doctor Blau, Doctor Shimone Blau,
who is running as an unaffiliated candidate for Congress in
the first congressional district. Thanks for being here, Doc, appreciate it,
(08:39):
and uh, let me let me ask you more of
a personal question than a political question. What's this been
like for you to jump into this. You've never done
politics before. You're a spine doctor and pain management doctor,
and now here you are running for Congress.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
What's it been like.
Speaker 4 (08:54):
Yeah, it's been It's been a whirlwind. I'm really excited
about doing this, but it's definitely something new. I'm not
a politician, you know. I'm not some slickly trained politician
that's gonna, you know, have all the answers on the fly.
I've got to think sometimes about things, and that's okay.
That makes me human. But I think it also testifies
to the fact that I really loved the city and
(09:16):
felt that there was a need. We talked healthcare a
little bit already.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
I think I want to pick your brain a little
bit more when it comes to just what we're seeing
in Congress. So Senator John Hickenlooper is one of the
sponsors of the Patients Deserve Price Tags Act. So it's
the bill that's hoping to increase transparency when it comes
around hospital pricing.
Speaker 3 (09:35):
Curious your thoughts on that.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
Is it something that you think is possible and is
it something that you would support?
Speaker 4 (09:40):
Yeah, That is definitely something that I would support. I
think it's a great first start. I want to see
a lot more done. So, like you said, that basically
covers transparency for hospital costs, what I really want to
see is consistency in hospital costs as well, because we'll
be able to know if a hospital is charging five
thousand dollars for a procedure or fifteen thousand dollars for
(10:01):
a procedure. Well, can we get to a point where
hospitals have to change right around the same, you know,
or at least within a range. So I think that
there's still a lot more to be done. I'd also
like to see more accountability for the insurance companies because
a lot of their practices tend to bring insurance costs up.
One great example on MRI right, if physician orders at MRI,
(10:24):
A lot of insurance companies will require six weeks of
conservative treatment first, but those are based on guidelines for
non traumatic cases. The insurance companies sort of expand those
guidelines to cover everything. Well, if somebody comes into my
office and they've just been involved in trauma, and I
want them to get an MRI right away, I don't
want them to wait six weeks for that. So the
only other way to get it done is to send
(10:44):
them to the emergency room. You've just taken something which
would have cost seven hundred dollars and turn it into
a ten thousand dollars visit.
Speaker 3 (10:51):
That happened to me.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
I had, I had, I don't remember if it was
an MRI or a CT in an er, and I
could build fifty five hundred dollars. And then I called
Health Images across the street or Sally Job or whoever
it was, and I gave him the code.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
What would this have been?
Speaker 1 (11:04):
It was like MRI of the abdomen without contrast, and
they said it was five hundred.
Speaker 4 (11:08):
Cause that's right, So five hundred seven hundred depending on
where and what area.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
So you have said that you will if you if
you win election to Congress, that we will caucus with
the Democrats and they will support Hakeem Jeffries as Speaker
of the House. As I'm reading your stuff and talking
with you, I guess I perceive you as a as
a moderate Democrat. But you know a lot of emphasis
(11:33):
on the word moderate. You don't strike me as the
usual fair for the Democratic Party these days. I wonder
if you're too moderate for the Democratic Party these days.
Speaker 4 (11:43):
I don't know, that's a great question, you know, I'm
sure that there are going to be things that people
agree with me on and things that people disagree with
me on. You know, I guess you could ask what
is what's considered progressive today? You know, I've always been
pro choice, I've been pro gay marriage. I do believe in,
you know, finding ways to try to grow that social
(12:05):
net a little bit. But you know, on social issues,
I've always considered myself to be quite liberal, right.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
But on economic issues, you don't seem to me like
a guy who wants a wealth tax on billionaires and
raise the top marginal rate to seventy percent and regulate
businesses to death.
Speaker 4 (12:23):
Now, I believe in lower taxes for everyone. I'm not
in favor of raising taxes.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
Can you paint a little clearer picture of where you
stand when it comes to you mentioned healthcare, But I've
heard a little bit of back and forth on your
statements of universal health care and universal childcare as well.
Speaker 3 (12:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (12:39):
Yeah, so I think that these are great things to
strive for.
Speaker 3 (12:42):
I really do.
Speaker 4 (12:42):
I think universal healthcare would be a great thing if
we can accomplish. I've had a lot of patients over
the last five to ten years who have been in
a real bind with insurance issues. Realistically, realistically, Again, it's
not going to happen in the next two years with
Trump in the presidency. However, I think it's something that
we really need to start looking at seriously. You know,
can we find the funds, can we make it happen.
(13:05):
I'm sure it's not going to be easy, but I
do believe that it should be a priority.
Speaker 3 (13:10):
I'm curious following up.
Speaker 1 (13:11):
On Gina's question, and we've had this conversation with Mayor
Mike Johnson of Denver, who's been talking about universal childcare,
and then we had a conversation with I forget who
about universal health care, and that is what does that even?
Speaker 3 (13:23):
What does it mean?
Speaker 1 (13:24):
Let's stick with healthcare for a second. We've only got
about ninety seconds here. Yeah, but what does universal health
care mean? Does it mean there's only one payer? Does
it mean you eliminate private health insurance? Some people mean
that by universal health care, some people don't.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
What do you mean?
Speaker 4 (13:37):
Yeah, Well, that's a great question, because you know, even
Medicare is not necessarily free. People still have to pay
even though they have Medicare. So there's a lot of
different ways that that that that can look like, and
those are things that are going to have to be explored. Right,
what does that mean? Does that mean free healthcare across
the board or is this just like, you know, an
expanded type of Medicare.
Speaker 1 (13:57):
Oh as I like to say, if you think he'll
care's expensive, now wait till you see how much it
costs when it's free.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
Gine, I'll have the last question for you if your
elevator pitch.
Speaker 2 (14:06):
There's a lot of people in CD one that honestly work,
very happy with any of their options, and now they have.
Speaker 3 (14:12):
A new option in the mix. Why should people vote
for you?
Speaker 4 (14:14):
Yeah, you know, I'm an independent. I know that it
can be very very difficult for people to cross party lines,
but I am hearing over and over from people that
they're feeling politically orphaned. Over fifty percent of the district
is also registered as unaffiliated or independent and don't really
like what's going on with either the Republican Party right
now or the Democratic Party. And you know, the water
(14:36):
is really warm, it's great right here in the middle.
Speaker 1 (14:40):
Doctor Blau's website is bloo b l a u for
Congress dot com. And it's the word fo or b
l a u foor Congress dot com.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
And I'm just going to throw this, throw this out there.
Speaker 1 (14:52):
If you are a Republican who lives and votes in
CD one, vote for doctor blow. The Republican cannot possibly win.
I don't know that doctor Blau has a high probability
of winning as an unaffiliated candidate against a Democrat, but
a Republican has zero zero, zero zero chance, and doctor
(15:15):
Bloo might have some chance. And also to show these
crazy Democrats that we don't want their anti Semitic socialism.
So please, if you're a Republican in Denver, when you
get your ballot in November, vote for Shimone Blau. Thanks
so much for joining us, Thank you so much for
having me
Very special guest, doctor Shimone Blau, for bringing Krispy Kreme donuts,
which seems like an odd gift from a doctor. And
Gina has one in front of her. I ate one
and a half already, dragonhead half. We're trying to give
the other half to Gina because Dragon touched it, but
she wouldn't.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
And then you proceeded to smush your fingers through that
entire donut and then say hey, you want it?
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Yeah, all right, then you rate it.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Let's do this, Doctor Shimone Blau, somehow.
Speaker 3 (00:27):
Through perseverance, hard work, and.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Whatever else, made the ballot to run for Congress in
Denver in just a few days of collecting signatures, which
I thought was really a remarkable thing. He joins us
in studio now, and why don't we start with the
basic question for those who don't know you, who are you?
And why are you running for Congress as an un
affiliated candidate?
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Sure?
Speaker 4 (00:49):
First of all, thank you so much for having me
on this morning.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
Hi.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
We welcome anyone who brings donuts. Thank you.
Speaker 4 (00:54):
Yeah, yeah, I am. I was born and raised here
in Denver, Colorado.
Speaker 3 (00:58):
I love the city. You know.
Speaker 4 (01:01):
My parents were both immigrants. They were really the American
dream that worked really hard, and you know that had successes,
some failure, some successes again, And I'm a physician and
a small business owner. You know, I was very disturbed
with the results of the primaries, and I really wanted
to give voters another choice, you know, somebody who is
(01:21):
not a socialist, somebody who believes in growing businesses.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
Here.
Speaker 4 (01:24):
I was extremely disturbed by some of the remarks that
the Democratic nominee made about businesses leaving Denver not caring
if they left, including Lockheed Martin, which is about fourteen
thousand jobs.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
And I know that businesses.
Speaker 4 (01:37):
Are struggling right now in Denver, and you know, for
somebody to say that, it's like putting up a big
close for business sign over the city. And what we
really need is a huge sign in Neon flashing lights
saying open for business right now.
Speaker 2 (01:52):
So you've really pitched yourself as a more moderate alternative
than what we see with the other candidate, and you've
called her extreme anti semitic at times.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
So you mentioned businesses.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
That's one point that you've acknowledged here, But what do
you think are some other points that you say why
people should vote for you?
Speaker 3 (02:09):
And not just well I don't like the other candidate.
Speaker 4 (02:12):
Sure, yeah, well, you know, my area of expertise, obviously
is healthcare. I have been a physician for over twenty years,
and my opponent is running on a universal healthcare platform,
which it's not something that I'm necessarily against, but she
also freely admits that that's not going to happen during
(02:32):
the Trump administration for the next two years, which is
essentially the length of her term. I want to start
making changes on day one to bring healthcare costs down.
I know how expensive health care can be. I'm hearing
from my patients all the time that this is a
major issue, and I bring a lot of experience to
be able to do that. Here's where experience really really
makes a difference. Just last week, I was with a
(02:54):
friend and we met a woman who was telling us
she works in the healthcare field, and she works for
a large organization that sees a lot of pediatric patients.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
And she was saying how just a.
Speaker 4 (03:04):
Year ago, it was impossible for parents to get next
day appointments for their children, but today it's not a problem.
Anyone who calls can get a next day appointment. So
my friend, who was with me, who does not work
in the healthcare field, said Oh, that's great, that's wonderful,
and I said, no, that's not what she's saying. What
she's saying is that parents are not bringing their children
(03:24):
in to see the doctor anymore because their deductibles are
too high where they don't have insurance. So that's where
experience really makes a difference to understand the healthcare field
and the industry.
Speaker 3 (03:35):
So there's a lot going on in the world, and
there's a lot.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
That needs to be done in Washington on issues like
health care and plenty of other things. But I do
want to take a moment to talk about anti Semitism.
You're Jewish, I'm Jewish, and the rise of anti Semitism
is extremely troubling, to put it gently, you know, I
(03:58):
feel the need to carry a concealed weapon more often
than I used to. I think all Jews should, by
the way, and in Malac Kiros, I think she's an
anti semi right and given my opinion, you can give
yours or not. But do you think that the rise
of anti Semitism is a thing that a member of
(04:20):
Congress should talk about? And how would you talk about
that issue? I know it's not the focus of your campaign,
but it's something I want to ask you about. Yeah,
it is definitely something that I hope to call out.
I would add that I would call out hatred of
all kind. Hatred of all kind.
Speaker 4 (04:38):
Anti Semitism is a growing problem on the far right
and on the far left right. Now, you know, my
opponent has refused to call the horrific murder of Karen
Diamond and Boulder by somebody throwing molotov cocktails screaming free
Palestine an anti Semitic attack, and she's doubled down in
further subsequent interviews by saying she wasn't sure if it
(04:59):
was anti semitism, a antizionism, And for the vast majority
of Jews, we consider antizionism to be anti simitism. Right,
it's just an extension of that. It's the new form
of anti simitism. So, you know, those were very troubling
for me. You know, in a recent interview, she actually
pointed the finger to try to point out anti semitism
stemming from the far right. But one of the issues
(05:20):
I have is that we've been trying to tell her
that her own words and actions have actually been promoting
that same rhetoric from the far left.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
So let me just add one thing and then Gene
will have another question. So, when you look at anti
semitism on the right, with the exception of Thomas Massey,
who lost his primary and won't be in Congress anymore,
there is precious little anti semitism among elected officials on
the right. But in the Democratic Party now there's anti
(05:50):
semitism everywhere. And a hundred of them just voted to
cease funding for Israel.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
And these people are overtly.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
Anti Semitic, and they think it gets them votes and
gets them invited.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
To all the best cocktail parties.
Speaker 1 (06:03):
So it is kind of on both sides, but it's
not equally on both sides, and it's a much much
bigger problem on the left.
Speaker 3 (06:10):
And I just I want everyone to be honest about that.
Speaker 1 (06:12):
You want to just say anything about that before Gina
is our next question.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
Of course. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (06:16):
Well, I believe that the DSA, the Democratic Socialists of America.
I mean, I just call them socialists. There's really nothing
democratic about them. But I think that as we're saying
more of them become elected, they are definitely promoting a
lot of this Semitism and that's a major concern. You know,
(06:36):
I do believe that they're I'm an independent, I'm not
a Democrat, I'm not a Republican. But I think that
they are going to have to reckon with this growing
issue in their party.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
CD one is the state's bluest district. What do you
think you can do in this What's going to be
a pretty challenging uphill climb, and then on top of it,
bridging the gap between the cure of supporters and what
you stand for.
Speaker 4 (07:01):
Yeah, well, you know, I don't think we're going to
get the Caros supporters. I think they've made their minds
up already.
Speaker 2 (07:08):
However, let's say if you are elected and now everybody's like,
well I wanted the other person, what can you do
to try to cater for those that still are in
your district? Sure?
Speaker 3 (07:17):
Well, I'm going to work for Denver.
Speaker 4 (07:18):
My biggest focus is going to be bringing jobs, bringing
down healthcare costs. You know, I'm my focus is going
to be on all of the people in Denver, whether
or not they voted for me.
Speaker 3 (07:31):
It's an interesting thing, is it.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
As a representative, you're there to represent and you're also
in a national job in a federal Congress thinking about
you know, federal issues. So you know, you started this
conversation talking about Denver should be open for business, but
that really isn't a thing that a congressman is going
to be able to impact. The healthcare stuff is the
kind of stuff you'd be able to impact, or maybe
taxes or or maybe something else. So there's you know what,
(07:57):
there's there's a lot more to talk about here. We're
talking with doctor Shimon Blau. He's running for Congress in
the first congressional district, taking on Malat Cairos and some
Republican who won't get any votes whose name I don't remember,
but it's gonna be a very interesting battle. Doc, Can
you stick around for a few minutes and continue the conversation?
Speaker 3 (08:15):
All right, So we're gonna do that Denver.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
We're gonna first just get a quick news update from Gina,
including on the lawsuit about Denver's assault weapons ban, and
then we'll continue the conversation with doctor Blau, Doctor Shimone Blau,
who is running as an unaffiliated candidate for Congress in
the first congressional district. Thanks for being here, Doc, appreciate it,
(08:39):
and uh, let me let me ask you more of
a personal question than a political question. What's this been
like for you to jump into this. You've never done
politics before. You're a spine doctor and pain management doctor,
and now here you are running for Congress.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
What's it been like.
Speaker 4 (08:54):
Yeah, it's been It's been a whirlwind. I'm really excited
about doing this, but it's definitely something new. I'm not
a politician, you know. I'm not some slickly trained politician
that's gonna, you know, have all the answers on the fly.
I've got to think sometimes about things, and that's okay.
That makes me human. But I think it also testifies
to the fact that I really loved the city and
(09:16):
felt that there was a need. We talked healthcare a
little bit already.
Speaker 2 (09:20):
I think I want to pick your brain a little
bit more when it comes to just what we're seeing
in Congress. So Senator John Hickenlooper is one of the
sponsors of the Patients Deserve Price Tags Act. So it's
the bill that's hoping to increase transparency when it comes
around hospital pricing.
Speaker 3 (09:35):
Curious your thoughts on that.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
Is it something that you think is possible and is
it something that you would support?
Speaker 4 (09:40):
Yeah, That is definitely something that I would support. I
think it's a great first start. I want to see
a lot more done. So, like you said, that basically
covers transparency for hospital costs, what I really want to
see is consistency in hospital costs as well, because we'll
be able to know if a hospital is charging five
thousand dollars for a procedure or fifteen thousand dollars for
(10:01):
a procedure. Well, can we get to a point where
hospitals have to change right around the same, you know,
or at least within a range. So I think that
there's still a lot more to be done. I'd also
like to see more accountability for the insurance companies because
a lot of their practices tend to bring insurance costs up.
One great example on MRI right, if physician orders at MRI,
(10:24):
A lot of insurance companies will require six weeks of
conservative treatment first, but those are based on guidelines for
non traumatic cases. The insurance companies sort of expand those
guidelines to cover everything. Well, if somebody comes into my
office and they've just been involved in trauma, and I
want them to get an MRI right away, I don't
want them to wait six weeks for that. So the
only other way to get it done is to send
(10:44):
them to the emergency room. You've just taken something which
would have cost seven hundred dollars and turn it into
a ten thousand dollars visit.
Speaker 3 (10:51):
That happened to me.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
I had, I had, I don't remember if it was
an MRI or a CT in an er, and I
could build fifty five hundred dollars. And then I called
Health Images across the street or Sally Job or whoever
it was, and I gave him the code.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
What would this have been?
Speaker 1 (11:04):
It was like MRI of the abdomen without contrast, and
they said it was five hundred.
Speaker 4 (11:08):
Cause that's right, So five hundred seven hundred depending on
where and what area.
Speaker 3 (11:12):
Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
So you have said that you will if you if
you win election to Congress, that we will caucus with
the Democrats and they will support Hakeem Jeffries as Speaker
of the House. As I'm reading your stuff and talking
with you, I guess I perceive you as a as
a moderate Democrat. But you know a lot of emphasis
(11:33):
on the word moderate. You don't strike me as the
usual fair for the Democratic Party these days. I wonder
if you're too moderate for the Democratic Party these days.
Speaker 4 (11:43):
I don't know, that's a great question, you know, I'm
sure that there are going to be things that people
agree with me on and things that people disagree with
me on. You know, I guess you could ask what
is what's considered progressive today? You know, I've always been
pro choice, I've been pro gay marriage. I do believe in,
you know, finding ways to try to grow that social
(12:05):
net a little bit. But you know, on social issues,
I've always considered myself to be quite liberal, right.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
But on economic issues, you don't seem to me like
a guy who wants a wealth tax on billionaires and
raise the top marginal rate to seventy percent and regulate
businesses to death.
Speaker 4 (12:23):
Now, I believe in lower taxes for everyone. I'm not
in favor of raising taxes.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
Can you paint a little clearer picture of where you
stand when it comes to you mentioned healthcare, But I've
heard a little bit of back and forth on your
statements of universal health care and universal childcare as well.
Speaker 3 (12:38):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (12:39):
Yeah, so I think that these are great things to
strive for.
Speaker 3 (12:42):
I really do.
Speaker 4 (12:42):
I think universal healthcare would be a great thing if
we can accomplish. I've had a lot of patients over
the last five to ten years who have been in
a real bind with insurance issues. Realistically, realistically, Again, it's
not going to happen in the next two years with
Trump in the presidency. However, I think it's something that
we really need to start looking at seriously. You know,
can we find the funds, can we make it happen.
(13:05):
I'm sure it's not going to be easy, but I
do believe that it should be a priority.
Speaker 3 (13:10):
I'm curious following up.
Speaker 1 (13:11):
On Gina's question, and we've had this conversation with Mayor
Mike Johnson of Denver, who's been talking about universal childcare,
and then we had a conversation with I forget who
about universal health care, and that is what does that even?
Speaker 3 (13:23):
What does it mean?
Speaker 1 (13:24):
Let's stick with healthcare for a second. We've only got
about ninety seconds here. Yeah, but what does universal health
care mean? Does it mean there's only one payer? Does
it mean you eliminate private health insurance? Some people mean
that by universal health care, some people don't.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
What do you mean?
Speaker 4 (13:37):
Yeah, Well, that's a great question, because you know, even
Medicare is not necessarily free. People still have to pay
even though they have Medicare. So there's a lot of
different ways that that that that can look like, and
those are things that are going to have to be explored. Right,
what does that mean? Does that mean free healthcare across
the board or is this just like, you know, an
expanded type of Medicare.
Speaker 1 (13:57):
Oh as I like to say, if you think he'll
care's expensive, now wait till you see how much it
costs when it's free.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
Gine, I'll have the last question for you if your
elevator pitch.
Speaker 2 (14:06):
There's a lot of people in CD one that honestly work,
very happy with any of their options, and now they have.
Speaker 3 (14:12):
A new option in the mix. Why should people vote
for you?
Speaker 4 (14:14):
Yeah, you know, I'm an independent. I know that it
can be very very difficult for people to cross party lines,
but I am hearing over and over from people that
they're feeling politically orphaned. Over fifty percent of the district
is also registered as unaffiliated or independent and don't really
like what's going on with either the Republican Party right
now or the Democratic Party. And you know, the water
(14:36):
is really warm, it's great right here in the middle.
Speaker 1 (14:40):
Doctor Blau's website is bloo b l a u for
Congress dot com. And it's the word fo or b
l a u foor Congress dot com.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
And I'm just going to throw this, throw this out there.
Speaker 1 (14:52):
If you are a Republican who lives and votes in
CD one, vote for doctor blow. The Republican cannot possibly win.
I don't know that doctor Blau has a high probability
of winning as an unaffiliated candidate against a Democrat, but
a Republican has zero zero, zero zero chance, and doctor
(15:15):
Bloo might have some chance. And also to show these
crazy Democrats that we don't want their anti Semitic socialism.
So please, if you're a Republican in Denver, when you
get your ballot in November, vote for Shimone Blau. Thanks
so much for joining us, Thank you so much for
having me
The Ross Kaminsky Show News
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