Conradson: When it comes to January 6, we’re seeing the tapes are getting released. But some Republicans, Democrats, they are crying out against it. They’re saying that it is a “threat to democracy.” They’re saying it should have never been on Fox News. What’s your response to Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer saying those things?
Crane: I think the real threat, Jordan, is to their integrity because they only wanted the American people to see one side of that story. And they’re scared to death now that the American people are seeing the other side of the story, which isn’t convenient for their narrative. And I think that it’s one of these cases where the light always exposes darkness. And I’m hopeful that this leads to some of the folks that haven’t been treated fairly getting taken care of and hopefully getting out of jail. And I know some of us; there’s talk right now of some Republicans getting to go finally go to the prison and possibly meet with some of the January 6 prisoners. And when I first got here, that was one of the first things that I asked my staff to schedule, and I was told that unless I think it was the mayor and the warden signed off on it, I wouldn’t be able to do that. So, it’s definitely frustrating for many of us that don’t feel as if those folks have been treated very fairly. But I think that I want to commend Speaker McCarthy and I also want to commend Tucker Carlson for his courage in not only releasing the tapes but then exposing the tapes to the American people so we can actually see the other side of the story.
Conradson: Exactly. We need justice for these January 6 prisoners, these people that were essentially murdered by Capitol Police on January 6. What are your thoughts to the Weaponization of Government Committee? It’s underfunded they’re only getting a $2 million budget. This compared to the J6 committee, which had a $20 million budget. I hear they only have five staffers on the committee. Are you calling for Kevin McCarthy to put more funding towards the committee?
Crane: I think we definitely need resources, and to my knowledge, that was part of the agreement that some of the 20 made. There’s behind the scenes discussions going on right now up here on Capitol Hill about what needs to be done about that. I can’t tell you exactly what’s going to happen yet. But, there’s definitely some disappointment in I would say the level that that committee is being resourced, and quite frankly, I think it could be one of the best committees up here as far as transparency and justice, and I mean, the American people know; they’re not stupid, Jordan.
They know that in many ways this government and many of our institutions have been turned and weaponized against them. It’s one of the only reasons I’m here. You and I have talked many times in Arizona that this was never something that was on my radar as something I wanted to do. But that’s one of the reasons I’m here, and I’m hoping that I can be a part of holding some of these folks accountable. The specific committee assignments that I got were small business, Veterans Affairs, and homeland security.
There were others that I asked for, that I was told I wouldn’t be able to be on just because of some of my stances and some of the things that I’d said publicly but when you get up here, you fight where you can, and hopefully, you can make an impact. And I’m going to tell you, it’s not easy. There’s a reason it’s called the swamp. There’s a reason it’s called the establishment. But, I am encouraged that there still are some folks up here that are willing to get after it every single day even though we’re outnumbered.
Conradson: I just talked to Paul Gosar and back to Homeland Security like you were saying, Gosar says that he is looking forward to basically prosecuting; he said to stay tuned for prosecutions of Mark Milley and Mayorkas for his failures on the border. Is that something you’re willing to participate in, prosecuting these people and holding them accountable for letting our country go unprotected?
Crane: Well, I haven’t talked to Congressman Gosar about that. I did see him last night. What I can tell you is that Congressman Andy Biggs and several of us have already released Articles of Impeachment for Secretary Mayorkas, and I think that that needs to be step one, to be honest with you. And so I’m not going to put the cart before the horse from what I’ve been told, just talking to people around here that have a lot more experience than me, and looking at how squishy some of our conference can be, even something like that is going to be tough to get done. But I know that if given the chance and if that vote comes to the floor, I will absolutely vote to impeach Secretary Mayorkas because there’s been a complete dereliction of duty at the southern border, and especially coming from Arizona. We know everything that comes through that southern border, and it’s completely unacceptable.
Conradson: Do you support President Trump for President in 2024?
Crane: Jordan, I think I was one of the first guys that endorsed him. So, I think I endorsed him on day one. So, there’s not too many people that have the level of courage that that man has. And I tell people all the time, it’s not intelligence that’s missing up here. It’s moral courage, and it’s just courage in general, and President Trump has as much as I’ve ever seen in a human being, and that’s why he’s my number one choice. I think there are some other good candidates on the Republican ticket, but I think he is the best one and that’s why I endorsed him. The other thing, Jordan, is in this town, there is a learning curve. when you get up here, you feel like you’re getting fed through a firehose, and especially at that level. So the fact that President Trump has already done the job, I think, is gonna give him a definite advantage over anybody else on that ticket.