Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) Joins the Guy Benson Show and Talks Nation-Wide Senate Races for 2024
Senator Steve Daines, a Republican Senator of Montana, member on the Finance & Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committees, & Chairman of the NRSC, joined the Guy Benson Show today to discuss the latest on antisemitism on college campuses around the country. Guy also talks to Sen. Daines, who serves as the Chairman of the NRSC, about the future of the upcoming down ballot races across the country in 2024. Listen to the full interview below!
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Read the automated transcript below:
Guy Benson Joining us now is U.S. Senator Steve Daines, Republican of Montana. He is the chairman of the NSRC this cycle. And Senator, good to have you back on the show.
Sen. Daines Hey, glad to join you Guy.
Guy Benson Before we get into these races and the map for Senate Republicans this year, I just want to quickly get your reaction to the explosion of anti-Semitism, chaos, lawlessness across so many campuses on our country, in our country right now. We were talking a bit about it in the last hour. New developments seemingly by the minute. I know you’ve been very concerned about this.
Sen. Daines Look, Guy. It’s shocking to see what’s happening across these campuses. This is rooted in anti-Semitism and it’s hate. It has no place in America. You know, everybody has a right to free speech, but the First Amendment does not protect the right to threaten to intimidate Jewish students, to disrupt classes. You know, you look at the the emphasis on these universities, they will talk all day, these elites about embracing diversity and inclusion as long as Jewish students and Jewish professors are excluded. So this is just the the, hypocrisy that’s going on. And, frankly, this dangerous ideology that we’re seeing across campuses in our country. You know, Guy, we did a little research on the amount of money, federal money going to some of these universities. Columbia last fiscal year received $1.2 billion from the federal government. Yale $776 million. Harvard $676 million. UT Austin, which is you know, we’re watching this before our very eyes today received about $646 million. And that’s why one of the actions we’re taking is I joined several my Republican colleagues, by the way, zero Democrats only Republicans are calling for the defunding of these universities that are promoting anti-Semitism. One last point to when you hear this chant from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. This is a slogan that we’re hearing across the country with these, anti-Semitic, protests. That phrase call for the destruction of the state of Israel, for the removal of the Jewish people. This is very, very dangerous. Can you imagine for a moment if there was a center right or conservative group with this kind of of action that were that was promoting, you know, the removal of any ethnic group on campuses, they would be immediately condemned and arrested. And so this is why you must stand firm at this, I think, dangerous moment in our history as a nation to, to, to the full throated, condemn what’s going on and make sure that we have moral clarity at this moment when, frankly, there’s a lot of hate and evil brewing on campuses across our country.
Guy Benson You know, a number of weeks ago, there was an op ed in the Wall Street Journal talking about Dearborn, Michigan as the capital of jihad in the United States. And you had a bunch of Democrats just jumping out of their skins to condemn the Wall Street Journal and the author of that piece, and we didn’t see quite as much condemnation from those people when just weeks later, you watched and listened to Death to America chants in the streets of Dearborn, Michigan. And part of the reason why those condemnations weren’t forthcoming is because it’s not a secret. The Democrats have decided that the pro Hamas hate rallies, and these mobs represent at least some significant portion of their base upon whom they’re going to rely to win elections in November. And in the state of Michigan, there’s a Senate race where the Democrats are putting someone forward who has been absolutely silent as my understanding about some of these hate rallies, even on her own alma maters campus, a real profile in courage, it would seem, in that state.
Sen. Daines You know, Guy, this is a moment as leaders in our country when we need to be outspoken and to have moral clarity on this very important issue. This is the problem the Biden administration has, is that, first of all, there’s no moral basis to the beliefs right now at the white House. They don’t know what to do. That’s why you’ve got Blinken over in the Middle East, on one hand, trying to promote a deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel, which would be a very good thing. But the same time, telling the Israelis what they can and can’t do as it relates to securing their nation, protecting themselves from the terrorist Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and Iran. So they’re they’re just spinning out of control in the white House. I just can’t imagine what’s going to happen in August when the Democrats have their national convention in Chicago. This is going to be a mess, as you’re going to see so many of the who’s anti-Semitic out there protesting, anti-Israel, the hate for Jews for Israel will be on full display. The Democrats know this is a huge political problem for them. Never mind the moral problem. They know this is a political problem. And that’s why in Michigan you’ve got a guy like Mike Rogers, the Republican, running for that open seat. And open seats are always easier seats usually to win than having an incumbent in place. Senator Stabenow retired. So Michigan’s an open seat. But the Democrats have a problem in their so-called blue wall, which is Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin. They know these are very important battleground states for the presidency, but all three are very important battleground states for the U.S. Senate. And so when you have Michigan, that race is tied with Mike Rogers at the moment. He was former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. Just a wonderful leader. He has moral clarity on Israel. He has moral clarity on condemning anti-Semitism. Full throated without stuttering, unlike his opponent. And so when you’ve got Dearborn, Michigan, they’re chanting Death to America when you’re seeing the protests erupting around the nation. Mike Rogers has clarity. His opponent doesn’t know what to do. They’re running for cover because they know they’ve got a huge political problem on both sides.
Guy Benson Yeah, exactly. So they’re sort of like Elissa Slotkin is her name, who tries to present herself as a kind of more moderate Democrat. But when the chips are down, she votes with her party, you know, nearly 100% of the time. And with so much at stake, just good and evil when it comes to Israel and Hamas. She’ll put out occasional statements, but not in ways that would cause any potential political pain or risk to herself when leadership is required. She is not showing it. So that’s Michigan, roughly tied. Based on some of the polls that I’ve seen. You just referenced that Wisconsin. That place is always tied with the the election for the presidency is almost exactly you know, Trump’s up, I think one point on average, it seems like a tougher road there because it’s an incumbent running for the Democrats, but not an impossible one at all. For, Eric Hubbard, who we’ve had on this program, the Republican, a businessman running there. We also have enjoyed having a Dave McCormick here on the show. He’s up against this scion of privilege and political power. Bob Casey, famous last name in Pennsylvania. Polls showing Casey still ahead right now. How are you approaching those races in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania? How winnable are those?
Sen. Daines Yeah, well, you said exactly right. These states are both on the razor edge for the presidency, particularly Wisconsin. Pennsylvania will be as well. This is going to be a plus or -1 or 2 state, perhaps. Let’s get to November at the presidential level. Trump right now is leading in Pennsylvania. Wisconsin is tied. Michigan is leading. But here’s what’s different for Dave McCormick in Pennsylvania and Eric Hubbard in Wisconsin is they both cleared the primary. There’s no primary in Pennsylvania for Dave McCormick. That really hurt our efforts back in 22. Dave McCormick has a clear shot, has no primary opponent so he can stay on the attack and clarifying the difference between himself and Bob Casey. And as you know, Guy, every single Democrat is trying to sound as Republicans as they can in some of these states. But the reality is they’re voting with Joe Biden 95 to 98% of the time in who wants to be attached to Joe Biden. This will be the dilemma. Will be fun to watch. Guy, when Joe Biden’s campaigning in Pennsylvania, in Michigan, in Wisconsin. I just wonder if those Democrat Senate candidates want to be on the same stage. You know, he has the worst numbers in 70 years. He makes Jimmy Carter look reaganesque right now. Biden’s numbers are so bad.
Guy Benson You might see you might see a problem. Biden or Harris show up in a state. You might see some scheduling conflicts, perhaps.
Sen. Daines Well, you might I can just imagine they’ll have some kind of cut out of Ronald Reagan on the stage or something here at a separate rally where they’re far away from Joe Biden. But that’s because, you know, the nation, they’ve got Joe Biden figured out, I mean, truly got his numbers could hardly get any worse. They probably will between now and Election Day, because it looks like every macro factor is only getting worse for president by not getting better. And so it’s not going to be a pretty night in November if you are Joe Biden and anybody attached to him and his agenda voters, his independent voters are running away from Joe Biden. And this is the crazy part about this election is how unpopular Joe Biden is. And that’s why great candidates like Dave McCormick, like Mike Rogers, like Eric buddy, these are all stand up men, and we’ve got great women as well. And in some of race like New Mexico, no Domenici. But I tell you, these are ready to lead, senators from day one. They’re not going to need any training wheels, once they get elected and start serving in January 25th.
Guy Benson So we’ll see what happens in the upper Midwest and the Rust Belt. Looking a few other places, you’ve got, almost a slam dunk. You don’t want to jinx anything, but West Virginia looks like that is going to be a flip. Joe Manchin is out. It’s an open seat. That state is super rad. Donald Trump will be on the ticket. So I mean, Democrats I don’t think are going to really even try to contest that in a serious way. Then you’ve got some potentially low hanging fruit for Republicans to go out and pick up additional seats. They need to net two to guarantee a Senate majority. And I know you think that they can do a lot better than just two, seat gains. But you look at Ohio, you look at your state, Montana. Let’s talk about those two states. You know, Ohio is a Trump plus 8 or 9 state. But Sherrod Brown has been a tough nut to crack. He’s got a machine in that state. Do things change for him this cycle? And then the same question about Jon Tester. I don’t want to make it too awkward because you you served with him together in the Senate. I’ve always called him Chuck Schumer with a flattop haircut. I mean, he he looks the part of a moderate and he votes Chuck Schumer’s way all the time. He’s gotten a little lucky in terms of what cycles he’s been up in. And his opponents seems to have a really good opponent this time. How do you handicap those two races?
Sen. Daines Yeah. Well, just before we talk specifically about Montana and Ohio, I think it’s important that we step back and look at the map in 24. We have three red states that, that have Democrats defending their reelection for the Senate. And that’s what you mentioned, West Virginia, Montana, Ohio. But these states are very red. I mean, every single statewide official in West Virginia, in Montana, in Ohio is a Republican. And Trump will win West Virginia by 35 to 40 points, will win Montana by 15 to 20 points and Ohio by 6 to 10 points. And so they’ve got incredible headwind for those three states. And you’re exactly right. Sherrod Brown and Jon Tester have had the benefit of running the last two times. You go back to 2012, that was a pretty, popular Obama presidential election. Year 18 was a midterm. This is now the first time they will be on the ballot when President Trump is also on the ballot. Those are Trumpy states. You know, Montana and Ohio have clearly become more conservative, more red since the last time Jon Tester is on the ballot, as well as Sherrod Brown. By the way, on West Virginia, you’re right. That race is over. I’m a conservative forecaster, but Democrats have given up West Virginia, and that was not by accident. We were a very strong, candidate in Governor Jim Justice. We had President Trump endorse him. And that then sent Joe Manchin to the exits, and he retired. So we picked up that seat without having to spend virtually any money. Had Joe Manchin run, that would’ve been a 50 to $100 million Senate race at least. Now you go to Montana, Tim, see the latest polls. One public polling, our internals, have them up a couple of points, which I’m I’m surprised is even up at this point. It’s hard when you’re just starting out. The name I.D. lacks a Guy who’s served, you know, for 18 years in the US Senate. But he’s actually right now they’re neck and neck in this race. That’s a great position, Timothy, to be in between now and election. I’ve watched Montana closely for a long time when I ran for my reelect in 20 Guy, you know, the Democrat, thought they had this race. In fact, Charlie Cook at this is a lean Democrat state all the way to Election Day. We ended up winning by ten points, 5545. The reality is, in Montana, we’re seeing center right voters fleeing California, Oregon, Washington. We call these folks refugees coming to Montana, not missionaries. They’re coming to join us, not to change us. And consequently, the state has gotten redder since the last time Jon Tester ran. By the way, he only won by 18,000 votes in 2018, just quantifiably. We have had more center right voters register in Montana than his his, his winning margin back.
Guy Benson I mean, those and those happened. Sorry to jump in. Senator Cruz was up on a heartbreak. Those headwinds are going to be tough. But, you know, he’s going to have a ton of money and party support behind him. Same with Sherrod Brown in Ohio. There’s other states we didn’t even get to, plus some of the red states and Republican seats. The Democrats are going to spend a boatload in in Texas and maybe Florida. So there’s there’s more to this picture. Hopefully we can have this conversation again in a couple weeks and get an update based on what you’re seeing on the ground, what your internal polls are showing as well. Hopefully you’re open to that because we would love to have you back.
Sen. Daines I will, Guy our biggest issues resources right now, truly we’re being outspent outraised 3 to 1. That’s what we need.
Guy Benson Help that where where can people help.
Sen. Daines Boy. I’ll tell you. You can go to a Senate24.com. We’ve got a website there that we can direct directly to candidates. So that’s that’s the that’s the first place to go and the 25, $30 donation to make a big, big difference right now. That’s how the Democrats are beating us. They’ve got millions coming in small donations. We’ve got to answer what they’re doing at the moment.
Guy Benson NSRC chairman in the 2024 cycle and U.S. Senator from Montana Steve Daines, our guest on the Guy Benson Show. Senator talk soon. Thanks so much.
Sen. Daines Thanks, Guy. You bet.
