By Paul Lathrop | Contributing Editor
On Wednesday morning Nov. 25 Congressperson-elect Lauren Boebert discussed a wide variety of topics in a telephone interview with TGM.
Boebert is a mother of four, the owner/operator of The Shooters Grill, a successful Rifle, Colorado restaurant, and a Second Amendment activist.
Speaking of her decision to run for congress Boebert began, “I certainly wasn’t bored. I ran for congress because I was fed up with politicians. We elect people to secure our rights and too often they go to DC and forget who they work for. They overtax, overspend, and ultimately destroy everything that we are trying to build here at home. So I was just really fed up with politicians and government overreach.”
Boebert began her political career by unseating a five-term incumbent in Scott Tipton in the Republican primary. She stated that it was an “uphill battle all the way.” Many voters in her district did not think she was qualified to be in congress and Tipton was a popular candidate. Boebert won the primary by nearly 10 points by reaching out to the voters in her district and campaigning vigorously.
Boebert then went on to win the General Election against a Democratic opponent who outspent her nearly 2 to 1.
“I think it just proves that the voters don’t care about what the media was pushing,” she said. “We had the local newspapers pretty much campaigning against me. We were outspent tremendously, but the voters didn’t care about that. The voters cared about the issues that matter most to them. The Democrats tried to make this personal because they couldn’t win on policy.”
Boebert has made news recently by inquiring about carrying a gun in the House Chamber. She stated that she still hasn’t gotten a straight answer as to whether she will be allowed to do that or not.
“I did receive a lot of DC Double talk which I expected to receive when I go there,” she said. “I came to the conclusion that what we have is a ‘Don’t ask don’t tell’ policy and really it’s unclear and potentially dangerous. I was told that I could still carry in my office and the halls but not on the House floor.” She asked if a locker would be provided for her use when entering the House floor and as of yet, there has been no clear response.
Boebert went on to explain that Washington DC has a crime rate that is 158% of the national average and continues to climb. She will be walking from her home in Washington DC to her offices and will not have a security detail.
“I am a 5-foot tall girl and weigh 100 pounds,” she explained. “I need a way to protect myself and I think this is a perfect example of women’s rights because a firearm is an equalizer and a way for me to defend my most basic and fundamental right of life.”
Boebert expects to be on the front lines of any discussion of gun control in the House of Representatives.
“Our constitutional right to keep and bear arms exists even in places that reject that fundamental principle,” she stated, “and in Washington DC I will always be a loud voice and a strong advocate for all of our constitutional rights.”
Speaking of the makeup of Colorado’s Third District, Bobert stated, “We are a bunch of rugged individuals full of grit and determination, we are hard-working people here. This is a very rural district, there are 29 counties in Colorado’s Third District. There are a lot of energy workers here, and a lot of them have been put out of work through overregulation. It’s really unfortunate because we extract the resources better than anyone in the world in our energy industry we are even self-regulating. We want to do a good job here and protect the environment.” She continued “Next to energy agriculture is the largest economic driving force here in the Western Slopes and the people who rely on the earth to provide for their families, want to take care of it and they want it to be clean and environmentally friendly.”
Speaking of her seemingly meteoric rise to prominence in the political world, Boebert said that she is used to the spotlight.
“I’ve received national and international attention for several years now because of my restaurant,” she acknowledged. “Any time something like that happens it’s not because I was trying to garner attention, I was just doing what I thought was right. It was several months after we began open carrying at my restaurant that anyone started picking up stories and caring about it. Our locals didn’t care, they had guns too! They were coming to our restaurant for hot food and a smile, and that was what we were giving them. I’ve received attention in the past, but that really pioneers the way for others to step up and encourages them to stand up for the constitution, to stand for American exceptionalism, and that it’s not extreme to do that.”
Boebert continued “I am living the American dream, and it’s because of the American dream that I am here. I was raised in a Democratic household under failed Democrat policies. We relied on the Government for food, housing, and healthcare. At 11 years old, I stood in line for bread and cheese and that’s not America’s best.”
Boebert stated that she was a self-taught conservative from the age of 15. Working and discovering that she could take care of herself better than the Government could.
Boebert left high school at the end of her senior year to begin working and got a GED diploma. She spoke with pride about working at McDonald’s and achieving a management position making more than $40,000 per year as a young woman.
“At that time in my life, there was more value to that in my life than finishing high school,” she said.
Throughout the interview, Boebert remained humble. Speaking of the support she has received from her community she observed, “I anticipated a victory, but every step of the way I have been humbled at how much support I have received in this. I credit each and every victory that we have seen throughout this process to the people I surround myself with. I have surrounded myself with people who know more than me, who are more successful than me, and I have the best volunteers and staff that Colorado can offer. They put in days and weeks and months of their lives because they care about the direction that our country is going. Any area of my life that shows success it’s because I have surrounded myself with successful people.”
Boebert has been mostly away from her restaurant for a year while running for office and expects things to continue smoothly while she is serving in the House.
Speaking about working with people who may be concerned about her history of open carrying in her restaurant and her vocal intention of carrying in the Capitol Building Bobert said, “I am always willing to work across the aisle if it doesn’t grow government or cost the American people more money, and in the Democrats can’t agree on the Constitution of the United States of America then I guess that’s where we draw the line. If me having my constitutional right to keep and bear arms prevents them from working with me for the good of the people, then maybe they need to reconsider being there at all.”
