You might recognize Morgan Murtaugh as a former news anchor for One America News. This year, however, she made the announcement that she is launching a campaign for Congress as a Republican. She will be challenging Democrat incumbent Susan Davis in California’s 53rd Congressional District, which encompasses most of San Diego County. Her only other opponent is independent candidate Bryan Kim.
In her mid-twenties, should Murtaugh win the election, she would be the youngest member of Congress.
I spoke with candidate Murtaugh about her campaign, running in a blue state, her views on President Trump, and how she plans on reaching out to her prospective constituents.
The following is my interview with Murtaugh:
Q: Despite high taxes and increasing regulations, Democrats still seem popular in California and do not appear to be losing ground. How do you plan to reach out to blue voters in your district?
M: Here’s the thing, it’s funny you say they are not losing any ground, California is experiencing a huge exodus of people just leaving to other states like Arizona, Nevada, and even Texas. People are leaving California because they cannot afford to live in the state.
I really hope that the people in California start stepping up to the plate in leadership roles in places like Sacramento so that we can fix that.
On the Congressional side, my opponent Susan Davis has been in office for almost 20 years now. She has done nothing for taxes and even voted against Trump’s tax plan. To me, that is concerning because Californians are taxed enough as it is. It’s a slap in the face to her constituents, including myself, for her to say she knows how to spend our money better than we do.
Q: The Democrat Party seems in disarray. It seems they are pointing fingers at each other with even Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom, who’s running for governor, being accused of sexual misconduct by a primary opponent. Will that infighting give Republicans an edge in the upcoming mid-terms?
M: I don’t think that will give Republicans an edge because there is infighting going on in the GOP as well. Just look in D.C., half the party seems to be supporting Trump while the other half seems to be against him.
Q: Where do you stand on the Trump agenda?
M: At the time of the 2016 election, I was outspoken in my opposition to Trump. However, recently I have been impressed with him. As an example, every year the Heritage Foundation produces a list of goals that the president needs to accomplish in his first four years, and President Trump has done well over half of them in just one year.
To me, that is a testament that Trump is really is efficient, despite how controversial he is. That is evidence that he is a true leader who can get things done and has stayed true to the Conservative agenda.
So, I’m willing to eat my 2016 words when I said that Trump was not qualified to be president and will support him on the topics on which I agree because I don’t think he’s been given the credit he deserves.
Q: When it comes to GOP opponents of Trump, do you think it is because they do not trust the president or is it that they aren’t used to his brand of politics?
M: I think that traditional Conservatives aren’t used to his way of doing things. They are used to doing things more traditionally and Trump is not that way. He is different and lot of super-traditional Conservatives have a hard time swallowing that pill.
Q: Trump has had an agenda that is pro-Second Amendment, pro-life, lowering taxes, and has supported free speech. How do you communicate to your constituents who might be turned off by Trump’s brashness your support of his agenda?
M: I grew up in San Diego. I have lived here for most of my life. I love the people and I love the place.
Despite what people think, San Diego does a have a strong GOP presence; however, I think that people continue to vote blue based on social issues and not fiscal ones.
My goal is to encourage San Diego citizens to think more about the future. Millennials need to get more involved. That’s one of the reasons I’m running is I want to engage my age group.
A lot of millennials don’t realize that social security is going to collapse in 20 years. More people are going to be living off of it than paying into it and millennials are going to be the ones suffering.
Career politicians like Susan Davis have had years to figure out the problem and come up with a solution, but they just kept sweeping it under the rug and this is the stuff that will really affect us.
I want to engage millennials because our generation is the one that will suffer.
Q: What message do you want to convey to your potential constituents and how do you stand out from your Democrat Party opponent?
M: I’m the youngest Congressional candidate and a girl, those are the most obvious identifiers. (Laughs)
I’ve been active in politics since I was a teenager. I’ve been actively promoting Conservative values to young people for a long time. I think I have a voice that can connect to people who identify, vote, or are registered Democrats. I think that I am that voice that can convince them to vote Republican because I am millennial and I know how to relate and talk to them.
I think that is something that has gotten lost in the Conservative movement. We are considered the party of old, white men when in reality it’s not true. We are the party of free market, free speech, opportunity, Second Amendment rights, and liberty. We don’t want to tell people how to live their lives.
But, I think our message has gotten so muddled in all the chaos and drama of the last few years. Conservatives need to stand our ground and say, “No this is what we stand for and this how we can help you.”
I think I can do that here.
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For more information about Murtaugh, you can visit her website.