Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
Left Out Loud is a progressive political podcast breaking down the biggest stories shaping our democracy. From up-to-the-minute political news and midterm election coverage to in-depth interviews with grassroots Democratic candidates, the show spotlights the voices and movements fighting for real change. Smart, informed, and unapologetically loud, Left Out Loud pairs sharp analysis with humor and plain-spoken commentary, cutting through the noise to focus on what actually matters. If you care about elections, organizing, and the future of the Democratic Party—and you like your politics with a little personality—this is the podcast for you.
Hey, Ally
Hey, Seth.
All right.
Today we get to talk with Bernard Taylor.
He's running in the 21st District
in the great state of Florida.
Mm-hmm.
Our second, uh, congressperson
running in the state of Florida, and
we're so glad to have you, Bernard.
Uh, let's get right into it.
Really appreciate, ap- really
appreciate you, uh, taking
the time to, to talk with us.
Well, thank you for having me.
Yeah, welcome.
Welcome to Left Out Loud.
Thank you, Bernard.
Thank you.
Thank you guys for having me.
Absolutely.
Yeah.
Yeah, and so I mean, you are the
ty- you, you are an EMS worker.
Uh, that's your background.
Family man.
You got five kids.
God bless you.
Mm.
Uh, but you know, I mean, you fi-
but you find the time to help your
community, have the conversations
with the people in the 21st District.
And so, you know, when I was
looking at your website, you know,
off top Florida is a, is a, is a
state that just gets hammered with-
Mm-hmm
…
you know, weather and things like that.
But you're also prey to a lot of
companies that wanna take away some of
the natural beauty that Florida has,
and you're over here, like, wanting
to protect, uh, Florida's waterways.
You know, there are so many
beautiful things in Florida
that we wanna keep and preserve.
Uh, please talk about that because,
you know, Florida's a beautiful state.
Uh, there's a reason why the snowbirds
fly down to Florida for the winter.
So, uh, talk about that a little bit
because, you know, that's something
that I'm sure is close to your heart.
Absolutely.
Um, growing up here in Florida, you learn
and you realize very quickly how unique
our environment and our ecosystem is.
Mm-hmm.
Um, the Everglades here in Florida,
there's no natural resource like it
on anywhere in this entire planet.
Mm-hmm.
It's truly a one of a kind place, and
it's been under attack, unfortunately,
over the past two decades, whether that's
from overdevelopment, whether that's from,
uh, pollu- pollution and toxic runoff
that gets fed into the lake, um, up there
in Lake Okeechobee that unfortunately
because of developers and things of
that nature, they try to manipulate the
lake's natural flow, which is south into
the Everglades, in order to, you know,
protect the neighborhoods and the local
communities that surround the lake.
Mm-hmm.
But when you have a big sugar company and
sugar business here in Florida that is
south of the lake that doesn't necessarily
want those toxins to flow towards their
business, they find the right people
and find the right politicians in
order to steer those runoffs and steer
those pollutants that unfortunately
affect communities like mine here on
the Treasure Coast, um, that destroy
our waterways, that fill our waterways
with toxic red algae, blue-green algae.
Um, like I say, the pollution, the runoff,
it's, it's, it's been literally destroying
our community over the past decade.
And if anybody knows anything about-
It's heartbreaking … yeah, if anything,
anybody knows anything about Florida,
uh, Lake Okeechobee is only 14 feet deep.
So while it is a very big lake,
it is not a very deep lake.
Mm-hmm.
So a lot of that runoff and muck
sits at the bottom of the lake.
And when it is hot as it is pretty
much year-round in Florida, that
stuff evaporates into the air.
Yeah.
If you look at the communities that
surround the lake, then look at the
ter- the numbers in term of, in terms
of the percentage of cancer that has
gone up just over the past 10 years,
it's, it's, it's heartbreaking.
And it's- Mm … it's not
like it's the people's fault.
Um, and- Yeah … those communities
tend to be, um, more on the, uh,
lower income side, so a lot of them
can't really leave those communities.
Mm-hmm.
So they have to bear the brunt of this.
And it's, again, it's when you live in
a community like that and you have no
voice, you know, who is really there
to stand up for you to make sure that
you're not suffering from, unfortunately,
um, eco pollution and, um, uh, the
environment pretty much killing you?
Yeah.
That is heartbreaking.
And, you know, we have friends,
uh, Seth and I have a mutual
friend that lives in Florida.
I think she was just talking about
this today, earlier today on a live,
about the water quality where she
lives, and, um, it's just devastating.
It doesn't have to be this way.
Greed is such a corrupter in every
area, but it- people overlook how it
affects environments and how it then
trickles down to affect our health.
Which is why this is one of those
important election years, because a
hot topic here in Florida is the data
centers as it is a hot topic around-
Yes … around the entire country.
Um, the, uh, Florida being that it is a
natural wetland, obviously we have a lot
of, uh, water and a lot of, uh, a lot
of different, uh, land that has been not
developed, and these developers and these
AI companies and data center companies
see Florida as untapped potential for
them to come down and build those centers.
Yes.
Even in my district alone, there
have been four proposed in the three
different counties that I represent.
And, you know, I try my best to educate
the community on the impact these data
centers have and all the negative impacts.
I mean, if we've already been
dealing with negative environmental
impacts from, again, the
overdevelopment and the, uh- Mm-hmm
sugar, sugar farms, imagine what's gonna
happen when we have a data center- Mm
… let alone four of them, in our district.
So, um- I know … we are, we are really
fighting this, um, myself and candidates
from all around the state, um, our
potential Democratic nominee for governor.
Like, all these different local
and state elections, like, we
really have to be locked in here in
Florida in terms of this- We need a
coalition
because people- Yeah.
Yes.
We have to.
We need to build that coalition.
Yes.
Um, so Bernard, you're
an EMS worker, correct?
Yes, ma'am.
And a firefighter?
Yes, ma'am.
You, you do both of those things,
which is remarkable, so admirable.
Um, being on the front lines
in those two, you know, really
hectic, dangerous, um, environments
on a day-to-day basis, what…
Are those experiences, did they
kind of influence you to run?
Or, like, what, what was the specific
moment for you that decided, I, I, I'm
a public servant already, 'cause that's
what you are, you know, as a firefighter,
as an EMS worker, that is, you know,
one of the most selfless public servant
jobs you can do, you're doing two.
Um, what made you decide to take that and,
and turn that into a run for Congress?
But again, just seeing some of the
things that I've seen in my career.
I've been doing this- Yeah … for about
six years now, being in the back of an
ambulance, being on the fire truck, and
seeing different communities, seeing
how certain people are living, seeing
how the 1% among us live, seeing how
the people who have barely enough to
get by live, seeing how our healthcare
industry is truly, truly broken.
It's not working for- Yeah … anyone.
It's especially not go- working for the
people that it needs to be working for.
And in my line of work, I get to see
how legislation really impacts Americans
on a every daily, on a everyday basis.
Mm-hmm.
Um, you know, for example, the,
uh, insulin cap that was here,
uh, in the previous administration
that made insulin- Yeah
more affordable.
You know, nobody was being
charged more than $35.
When this administration came in and
pretty much got rid of all those things,
and the insulin prices shot back up
into the hundreds of dol- hundreds of
dollars, I know personally of a situation
that- They cost someone their life on
the back of my ambulance because- Hmm
he was rationing, rationing his insulin
because he could no longer afford to
get it in the way he needed to get it.
And-
In America, y'all.
In America.
Yeah, so-
Rationing insulin.
It's unbelievable.
Yeah, so it's, um, it's unfortunate,
and it wasn't… It's not like it
was, you know, some really old person.
It was someone in their 50s who
had a family and kids, and still
a lot of life left to live.
And because of a pen stroke from somebody-
Mm-hmm … 2,000 miles away who they
have never met, who doesn't really care
about them, uh, they're no longer here.
So seeing things like that and just
seeing how this stuff really impacts
people, it inspired my wife to go ahead
and run for Congress because I looked
at the current landscape, I looked at
the current representation that we had,
and I was just not pleased, and I came
to realize that it wasn't working for
anyone here in this country.
Mm.
Yeah.
And, um, we're, and we're so glad that
you did because- Yeah … uh, I mean,
we've talked to multiple now EMS workers
who are also running for office, and
I think it's just a perfect thing.
Because who else better to run and
to try to fix this broken system
than the people who are working
within it, who have spoken to people
who have been struggling with it?
I think that… I think that's, uh, it's
a natural thing, and I don't know why
it hasn't happened more up until now.
But I'm, but I'm so glad that
you and others are running
that we're talking with.
Uh, you know, Florida, a hot button
issue almost all the time is immigration.
Um, Florida has a lot of
legal ports of entry- Mm-hmm
um, making it different from a
lot of different states like that.
Um, and obviously you've seen, uh, the
havoc that ICE and CBP have been, you
know, wreaking upon, you know, people
in border states, states like Florida.
Uh, talk about that a little bit and,
and just kinda what, what, uh, what
are the kind of solutions that you've
been kinda talking with other people
about and coming w- up with to try
to fix, uh, another broken system
that we have, which is immigration?
Well, the first thing is finding enough
people that actually wanna fix the system.
Mm.
Problem with our current representation
and our current government is they keep
the system broken so they have something
to run on every two to four years.
Nobody actually wants
to solve the problem.
They wanna have a problem to talk about,
they wanna have a group of people to,
uh, make out to be the enemy, make
out to be the bad guy, blame things
on, when in actuality if they just
fixed what's broken, a lot of their
problems and a lot of things that
they're worried about would be solved.
But again, if you fix a broken system,
what are you gonna campaign on?
Mm.
So there are solutions,
there have been solutions.
There was a bipartisan solution back in
2024 that was placed on the House floor,
that was placed- Right … in the Senate,
that was approved by both parties, that
would've streamlined our immigration
process, that would've put more money into
the immigration, uh, judicial process to
maybe streamline the asylum process so
you're not waiting three, four, and 10
years to get you know, to be determined
if you can be here legally or not.
Crazy.
Yeah.
Um, so all those things were put on
the table, but because someone wanted
to win an election, we had to keep
the system broken so they can keep
talking about the system being broken.
So there are people that
wanna solve the problem.
Um, as we saw back in 2024, people
came together and came to a compromise.
Um, we need to get back to that.
We need to get back to more
people coming together and coming
up with that compromise so we
can actually fix the system.
Um, it's not enough to just keep
something so you can stay in power.
Um, that's what I tell
people all the time.
I'm going up here to try to fix as
many things as I can, and then I
wanna go back to the fire truck.
I'm not trying to be there- … forever.
Um, I, I truly love what I do.
Yeah.
Um, I'm trying to be up there no
more than six years if, if, if that,
and then you guys find somebody else
that want to do this 'cause, um,
I am- That's the right attitude,
Bernard- Honestly … because so many
people unfortunately go into this
role like they've hit the lottery, and
they're never leaving, no matter what.
Well, I'm not- You know, we've got people
in Congress 80 and beyond saying, "I'll
never retire" which is crazy to me.
Well, I'm a tropical person.
I don't do snow, and I
heard- … it snow in DC, so I ain't
trying to do that for y'all.
He said, "I heard there's
snow in DC." You're not wrong.
Yeah, so
I ain't trying to- Not all
the time, but it happens.
No, I'm not trying to do that forever,
so- … yo, we gotta get this thing
done in a short period of time.
Yeah.
Uh, we love that.
That's a great attitude to have.
So, um- You know, a lot of people, I think
… I've been asking this question lately.
I'm gonna try and ask it a different way.
So, you know, we see a lot of people
running for whether it be Congress
or Senate, um, or even local,
you know, local representation.
Um, they come in feeling
very strong in their morals.
You know, they're progressive,
non-compromising, um, don't take
PAC money, all of the things that,
you know, we appreciate about
the candidates that we talk to.
But for some reason, when
people get to Congress, they
lose their minds apparently.
So
What about you, Bernard, and your
sort of background and your character
would prevent you from becoming
the thing that you're running
against if you were to get elected?
So for one, like, I'm almost six
feet tall and 230 pounds, so you
can't bully me into doing anything.
Um, um, I'm introverted at, at heart,
so if you tell me, "Ain't nobody gonna
be my friend," that's cool with me.
I
mean, I'm, I'm not, I'm not gonna
be, I'm not gonna be sad about it.
No.
And I'm not afraid to
call people out, man.
I'm not afraid- Yeah … to stand
in front of the camera and say,
"Hey, this is what's going on.
These are the, these are the games these,
these people are playing, and this is why
I'm trying to bring resources back to my
district, and they're not allowing me.
These people don't wanna compromise.
These people don't wanna work with."
Like, I'm, I'm not afraid to go
in there and burn it all down.
They're gonna get- I
100% believe
you … I'm not trying to stay in power.
I 100% believe you.
I don't think anyone's
gonna bully you, for sure.
That's out of the question.
Mm-mm.
Um, and I do think, I think
that needs to be the approach.
Like, not enough people spend time
calling each other out and holding
each other accountable in Congress.
So just that approach alone is a
huge improvement to what we have now.
Yeah.
I mean, I, I love that, like, 'cause
it's like Bernard Taylor is not here
to hang out in DC and make friends.
That's
not his look.
Get me back to Florida away
from y'all- … in this snow.
Yes.
And so I, I, I love that, man.
And, and the thing is you're kind
of, uh, running against a guy who
is the complete opposite, right?
Brian Mast is a guy who is
trying to make some DC friends.
He is trying to collect
some of this money.
And, um, you know, right now, I
mean, he took over $2 million in
AIPAC funding according to Track
AIPAC, who you are backed by.
You got endorsed by Track
AIPAC, which is great.
But I, I tell you what, Bernard,
growing up I didn't realize the
power that AIPAC has and that Israel
at large has, and I think that's,
it's really coming to the spotlight.
Uh, talk a little bit about that,
your opponent Brian Mast, and just,
like, the, the, the importance
of everyone understanding here in
America that we're being bogarted.
We are being, you know, infiltrated, uh,
by people who are not looking out for
our self-interest, and they're buying
politicians, you know, root and stem.
No, absolutely.
And whether it's AIPAC, whether it's
the oil industry, whether it's the
pharmaceutical industry, um, all these
different lobbyist groups have one goal,
and that is to keep their lobby in power.
When you talk about AIPAC, their goal is
to create and strengthen American-Israeli
relationships, period, end of story.
Mm.
You saw the bill that
just got r- proposed.
They wanna intertwine our
military so that they're one.
Yeah.
Like, like, what… That-
Wild … that is definitely not a,
quote-unquote, America first policy.
Mm-mm.
Um, when you, when you think about
the oil industries, why we can't have
renewable industries, because that impacts
their bottom line, so they're gonna pay
for as many politicians as possible.
When you think about why we have our
prescription drugs being so high, it's
because the pharmaceutical companies
pay for politicians, and they pay
to f- for them to speak out against
legislation that's gonna impact them.
So regardless of what group it is, we need
to make sure that we are f- calling these
people out, making sure we're calling the
representatives out when we find out that
they are taking money from these lobbies
and they're voting in their favors,
and then we need to get rid of them.
We need to stop looking at, oh,
this person's on my team, I'm
just gonna keep voting for them.
Right.
Because what you're doing is
you're allowing them to just do
whatever they wanna do, because
they know at the end of the day
you're not gonna see anything pass.
Well, this person's on my team.
So I think a lot of us are starting
to wake up to, to these things.
I think a lot of us, um… I think
the worst thing that probably
happened to, um, AIPAC and all
these different lobbies is that we
have these phones and the internet.
And a lot of stuff is being,
um- Mm-hmm … exposed.
You know, it's, it's easy
to operate in the shadows.
It's very, very hard to operate when
there is literally a camera and a
microphone in every wor- in every
person's hand all over the world.
Mm-hmm.
So the truth is coming out about a lot of
this stuff, and we need to take it upon
ourselves as, as Americans and as citizens
to root out as much of it as possible.
Yeah.
I'm not, I'm not- What's
the word I'm looking for?
Um, I don't sell pipe dreams.
I'm not gonna tell you- Mm … like,
during the midterms we're gonna get rid
of every person that takes AIPAC money,
'cause we're obviously seeing them still
having a, um, a unique control- Mm-hmm
over a lot of the politicians.
We saw what just happened
with, you know, Representative
Massie up there in Kentucky.
Yeah.
Um, so there's still a strong, um,
influence that they have, and it's
not gonna be something that's broken
overnight, and that's with any lobby.
Uh, so whether we're talking about
AIPAC, whether we're talking about
oil or, or pharmaceuticals or anything
like that, all this stuff is gonna
take a true generational movement of
candidates during this election cycle,
during next election cycle, and the
following election cycle to continue
to root out all these different people
and put people in there that actually
wanna make sure we're doing things to
help the people here in this country.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
And real quick, Ally, b- I,
'
cause I gotta say this- Yeah … before
you get to the next question.
This guy Brian Mast, you talk about
not America first, this guy wore a
foreign military uniform to Congress.
Ooh.
This is not, this is
not your friend, folks.
IDF?
This is not your friend.
Was it IDF?
Yes.
Oh.
So- Yeah, um, but they, uh-
So that's all you really
need to know, folks.
I mean, this is, this is not a
person who needs to be representing
you in the United States Congress.
Yeah, so that's, that's the
thing, what I tell everybody.
Just don't listen to what I gotta say.
At the end of the day, Brian has
a 10-year record in Congress.
He has a 10-year voting record.
He has a 10-year record of sound bites,
speeches, all these different things.
Judge a person by their actions.
Mm-hmm.
If he's, if he claims to be an
environmentalist, is he… And he's,
you know, he's fighting for clean water
here on the Treasure Coast, but when
you look at his voting record and he
has a 16%, uh, score in terms of his
environmental voting record, he actually
got a 0% back in 2024 in terms of
his, uh, advocacy for the environment.
So-
Unreal
…
that, those are the things that
I'm trying to, you know, educate
people on here in this district.
Don't necessarily li- let's just listen to
the rhetoric from either myself or Brian.
Literally look at his record and,
and ask yourself, "Has he been a
great representative for the people
here over the past 10 years?"
And if he hasn't, give
someone else a shot.
I love that.
And I, you know, I say all the time,
2026 is not the time to just vote
for the incumbent, to just blindly
vote for someone assuming because
they're already in office they must've
been the right choice at some point.
Mm-hmm.
You really need to look at
these people's voting records.
You really need to do what they're
doing to see what they're doing for
their community members, for their
constituents, 'cause I guarantee you,
when you start to pull that thread,
what you're gonna find on the other
end of it is a, a pile of yarn.
It's not- Mm-hmm.
There's not gonna be anything
there substantial- No
that's made your life better
since the time they got voted in.
It is, it is crazy when I
look at some of these things.
It's like a majority of the things
that get passed are, like, symbolic.
Yeah.
Oh, you got a po- you got a post office
named, or you got this road renamed.
That's
like
Trump.
Or like… Yeah.
Yeah.
Like, like you, you've done…
You've, you've passed four pieces of
legislation, and they're all, like,
renaming some building in, inside…
Like, why am I keep- All vanity
projects
…
Why do people keep sending… Yeah.
Why do people keep- Who cares?
… sending you back, man?
I need you to go out there and get
me some money for the district.
We got stuff that need to get fixed.
Oh,
right.
I don't, I don't, I don't go,
"Oh, I want that, I want that post
office to be named after the third
son of…" I don't, I don't care.
It's the post office.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
A zero
environmental score
in a state
like Florida?
You're doing less than nothing
if you're getting a zero.
Yeah, that's for real.
Less than nothing.
Yeah.
Um- The funniest, the funniest thing to
me is we're the Sunshine State and we are
not leading the world in solar energy.
That's crazy to me.
How… Yeah.
I mean, the whole… You could
be like your own Costa Rica.
The whole state could be completely
green- Mm-hmm … just on solar alone.
Yep.
Think of the cost savings, think of
the, the benefits to the environment.
It's, it's crazy.
We gotta get some of these Republicans
out of Florida, I'm telling you.
Um, all right.
So public trust in government, I
think, is at an all-time low, and for
many of the reasons that we've talked
about, including the money in politics.
You're out there canvassing, meeting
with potential voters, voters for you.
Um, what are you hearing?
Like, what are the things they're most
frustrated about at large, whether it
be locally or at the federal level?
What are you hearing from voters
that- potentially represent or
reflect this degradation of trust
that we're seeing across the country?
Yeah, people can't afford to live.
Um, Florida has become just-
That simple.
Yeah
…
people just- I just looked at it today.
Florida is now the worst state
for renters in the entire
country, the absolute worst state.
So thinking about, uh, young people, I
got an 18-year-old son that just graduated
high school, so he's a, he's an adult.
Yeah.
He's stepping into the world, and
I had to tell him that, "Yeah, you
probably ain't even gonna be able to
rent nothing before you're 30 at this
rate," um, to be honest with you.
Crazy.
Um, and at the end of the day, that's-
it's, it's hurting everybody, not just
young people, but our seniors here.
You know, Florida has- Yeah
a huge senior population.
Most of them are on the Social
Security, on a fixed income.
And with inflation at 4.2% now, that,
that single income, that fixed income is
just not stretching as far as it needs to.
And a lot of them are worried about
losing their homes that they spent
their entire lives trying to get
because of rising property taxes
and the homeowners insurance prices
that we have here in Florida.
So if I had to say the number one
things that I talk with in terms of
the constituents here where I am, it's,
it's just being able to afford to live.
Um, and we're not- Yeah … even talking
about gas prices and food right now.
Yeah.
Right.
That's, and that's even on top of that.
So, um-
It's just survival at this point.
Everything.
And I just, we just heard a lot of
seniors in Florida, there's also a,
a crisis where, you know, if they're
relying on, um, I think Medicaid for
nursing homes, um, because they'll
pay… They're getting booted out.
Mm-hmm.
They're getting kicked out
of these nursing homes.
So what some of these nursing homes
are doing, which again, I see firsthand
in my, in my experience, they will
call us because, you know, somebody
is, quote-unquote, "sick," maybe
have a little trouble breathing,
temperature, anything like that.
They'll call us to take
them to the hospital.
We'll get them to the hospital, and
they'll come to find out, you know, just
by checking on them, that the nursing
home says you can't bring them back here.
So they get abandoned.
What?
They get abandoned at the hospitals.
The hospitals can't keep
them, so now they're homeless.
So that is, that happens, um, frequently
because again- Oh, so it's- … with the
cuts to, the cuts to Medicaid- Oh, so-
… and Medicare, a lot of these nursing
homes requir- um, rely on, you know,
Medicaid and Medicare to fund them, and
with those subsidies, uh, it's- Are you,
are you telling me, do you think
that when they call you, it's not
necessarily a life-threatening
emergency, they just want them out so
they don't have to bring them back in?
I can neither confirm nor deny
But pattern recognition, right?
Pattern recognition, yeah.
Oh, Bernard, that, that make,
that literally makes me sick.
Yeah.
Yeah, so it's, it's, it's
not uncommon unfortunately.
I mean, I
mean, and, and imagine, and imagine like
voting for somebody like Trump 'cause you
wanna, you, you wanna get, uh, immigrants
out, you want this, that, and the third,
but you don't realize that you voted to
boot yourself out of your retirement home.
Like, that's gotta be, uh,
just a, a shock to the system.
And-
Hm
…
I mean, this, this is the, these are
the, the repercussions, right- These
are the consequences … of making these
decisions.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Which is why, you know, again, you
know, people kinda like ask me like
what are some of my, my morals or
my values, and always tell people
like I, I'm more inclined and I feel
better when I know people around me
are doing good and are okay- Yeah
as opposed to my own
personal, um, wellbeing.
Like for me, I'm, I'm good.
You know, I'm, I'm happily
married, my kids are great,
my wife, we're, we're good.
We're not, we're not struggling.
I, I come from struggle, so-
Yeah
…
to even sit here now and say I'm
not struggling is a blessing.
But I know there are way too many people
around me that are struggling, and that
just doesn't sit right with my spirit.
So that's another reason why I was
like, "Well, I gotta get in here and
try to do something," because there
are too many people around here, like
I say, are getting booted out of their
nursing homes or whether it's, you know,
homeless veterans who are considered,
who are s- who are seeing more and more
of their, their veteran's benefits and,
and their aid being taken away each day.
Um, you know, sometimes a ride to the
veteran's center here in my district
to the VA is, is the highlight of, of
a person's day because they, they know
at least they got their healthcare
even if they don't have a home.
Yeah.
And to see those benefits and to see
what they're going through and just
speaking with them in this district,
um, I can- I can't for the life of me
figure out why veterans vote the way
they do at about a 60% clip, because
these are the same people that are
cutting back- The things that they
fought for, the things that they earned.
So-
Yes
…
it's, it's, it's all
just disheartening.
But I try to be optimistic,
and I keep pushing forward.
Yeah.
And, and we're glad that you're doing it.
And I mean- Mm-hmm … you know, you,
you have in, uh, part of your proposals,
uh, are to protect renters, but it goes
really beyond that when you talk about,
uh, your Homes for Floridians Act.
I mean, you're talking about up
to $25,000 for new homeowners.
Uh, you know, a ni- nice little
chip off of the, off of the Kamala
block- Mm-hmm … which I think
is brilliant because we need that.
Our generation needs that.
Millennials don't have any kind of
real homeownership to look forward to.
Gen Z as well.
Um, and then y- also you, you go and help,
uh, small businesses who are developing
these homes within this act too.
So without, you know, basically blowing
the whole, your whole answer- … g-
talk about that a little bit, just
overall housing in Florida and how
you, uh, plan to help everybody out.
Well, I want people to, to really pay
attention to who actually is the reason
why housing is so unaffordable here
in Florida and all over this country.
Mm. And it's not the undocumented
immigrants, it's these corporations
and hedge funds that are buying up
all the single family cor- uh, homes-
Mm … and, and, and all the multifamily
units and things of that nature that are
trying to turn all of us into renters.
Yeah.
So we have to make sure that
we cut this off at the head.
I would love for there be, to be
an outright ban on corporations
and hedge funds from being able
to, to buy single family homes.
But again, I try to be
a realist about things.
So- Mm-hmm … uh, this proposal
was my way of kinda tempering it
as best as I could by making sure
that we tax them for bulk purchases.
So you can't come into a new development
and say you're gonna buy 10 homes.
If you're gonna do that, then you're
gonna char- we're gonna tax you, um,
an exorbitant amount to maybe make
you say, "Hey, this might be a little
too much to buy 10 homes." Mm-hmm.
"Maybe we'll only buy five or four homes."
So now you still, now you have more
inventory, and we know with supply and
demand, more inventory, less things cost.
Mm-hmm.
Less inventory, more thing cost.
So this is kinda my way of trying
to keep more inventory on the market
for, um, single families and single
people to be able to buy a home.
So that'll bring those home prices
down and also those rents down.
And also- Yeah … that bulk tax
for tho- for the companies that
do pay that tax, that tax can go
straight into the fund to be able to
provide that down payment assistance.
So it's not taxes from the working
class, it is literally taxes from these
corporations and taxes from the 1% that
would go to fund those $25,000 down
payment assistance for, um, the, the
next generation to become homeowners.
And on top of that, adding that right
of first refusal, not letting these
corporations buy a single family home
for up to a year that is on the market.
So you allow the community and you allow
people to purchase these homes, and if
they don't purchase within a year, then
these corporations and hedge funds can
come in and, and make you an offer.
'Cause I don't want
nobody to just be broke.
So, um- Yeah … just trying to do what
I can to keep more houses on the market
and actually attack the problem, um,
because we're just not building houses
at a, at a fast enough rate- Right
um, to, to what we need.
And that also ties into my other piece
of legislation that I want to get passed
in terms of, you know, education, making
sure that every high school student
in America can graduate with a skill.
On top of their high school diploma.
So, you know, whether that's, um,
electrician, whether that's plumbing,
whether that's HVAC, whether that's
cybersecurity, just something to get you
started when you graduate high school, and
also something to get more tradesmen into
the field so we can build these homes.
Because we know college
is not for everyone.
Yes.
You know, I tell people all the time,
I went to college, but if I'd have
knew about firefighting when I was
18- … you would've never seen me.
Yeah.
I would've been a 21-year-old
firefighter, and I'd have been
close to retirement by now.
But, you know, life, life lessons.
So, um, those, those are the kind
of things, and those are the…
And that's what I mean when
in terms of, like, solutions.
Trying to actually solve these problems.
Even if you don't think my solutions
are the best, c- help me make
it better or, or let's find a
solution that works for everyone.
But this is what our government's supposed
to be doing, is trying to come up with
ways to solve problems instead of keeping
us distracted with culture wars Yeah.
Facts.
Love that.
You know, Bernard, you're
just so… I don't know.
There's an energy about you.
You're just so calm and reassuring
and logical and straightforward.
I was gonna say
calm.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And there's just no bullshit,
there's no pretense.
It's really refreshing, honestly.
I tell people it's easy to do a interview
when you ain't gotta hide nothing.
Yes.
I love it.
So, I don't
know.
I love it.
Hey, I, I'd follow you into a
burning building, my friend.
I appreciate you, man.
Don't worry.
Tell me what.
We coming out.
Don't worry.
We coming out.
Yes, sir. Yes, sir. We coming
out one way or another.
That's why I keep a- All
right … sledgehammer with me.
All right.
Even if we not by a
door, we can make a door.
Oh my God.
Yeah.
So Bernard, your primary
is in August, right?
Mm-hmm.
What's the exact date?
August… Is it- August 18th.
18th, okay.
Yeah, so we are one of the last four
or five primaries in the country.
And tell me how many people are
in your race in your district.
So right now I'm the
only qualified Democrat.
This week is actually- Oh, well
we know that
…
Yes.
So this, this week is qualifying
week to put your name on the ballot.
So we put- Okay … our name
on the ballot on Monday, so we
are officially in this race.
Um, there
is a- Wonderful.
Congratulations.
Thank you.
There is another young man who's
been running since last October for
the Democratic nomination as well.
His, um, status is still showing active.
It hasn't showed as qualified yet.
Okay.
So I don't know if he submitted
his paperwork yet or not.
So-
Okay
…
um, if he has not submitted his paperwork
before Friday at noon, and I'm the
only Democrat qualified, there will
be no primary, and it will be- Oh, I
love that
…
it will just be a straight race to
the general election in November, so.
Okay.
But, um, there will be one other one.
I'm operating- Yeah … as
if there will be.
Fingers crossed.
Yeah.
I'm operating as if there
will be one other person in
my primary.
Sure.
Sure.
Okay.
So as a grassroots progressive
candidate who, we'll just knock
this out, no corporate PAC money,
no APAC money, no lobbyist money.
Yes.
Clean campaign, grassroots.
Um, lots of small dollar donations.
Uh, what do you need?
Lawsuit.
Yes.
What… Tell, tell our audience what
you need, um, in order to get to that,
that primary, in order to get to, um,
the midterm elections successfully,
and tell them how to find you
I need for your audience to visit
me at bernardtaylorforcongress.com.
I need you to research who I am
and the things that I wanna do.
I don't wanna ask you for your
support if you don't know who
I am and what I'm trying to do.
Now, if you agree with who I am and the
things that I'm trying to do, please
consider contributing to the campaign.
Every dollar helps.
Also, spread the word about our campaign.
The more visibility we have, the
better chance we have of winning
this race, and also better chance
we have of raising even more money.
Um, the more people that know about
me and know who I'm running against,
I find they are very generous.
So we wanna make sure- … that
we are, we are spreading the
word about this campaign.
Um, you can also volunteer to help
the campaign through the website.
If you are in the area, you
can come out and help us knock
doors and get the word out.
Even if you're not in the area, you know,
you can get on the phone bank and make
phone calls to the people in the area
and tell, tell them how wonderful and
great you think I am, all that fun stuff.
So … And share all the content,
like everything, comment,
get us onto the algorithms.
All, everything that you think you
can do within your power, please do.
That's gonna do nothing but help
us win this primary and eventually
win the general election, as we
speakin' this thing into existence.
So-
And, and ladies and, you know,
maybe some gentlemen too,
check out his Instagram page.
Now, this is a happily married
man with a family of five.
I wanna preface by saying that.
Yes.
But you will not be disappointed
when you visit the IG page.
Just, just sayin', just sayin'.
It's just Bernard doing
his job, that's all.
That's it.
He's situp doing his job.
That's it, that's it.
Absolutely.
One every day, just one day at a time.
It's tough
Well, listen- But we're working
there … we're wishing you
all the luck in the world.
Yeah.
Thank you so much.
Um, like I said, such a straight
shooter, really refreshing.
Don't get that a lot in politics,
and, o- on the right or the left.
Um, so really enjoyed talking to you,
and you're a friend of the show now.
You need anything between now and
your primary or when you win, win
your primary, before the midterms,
you're welcome back anytime.
Thank you very much.
Appreciate you guys for having me.
Be safe out there.
Keep doing the lo- the good
work that you're doing.
It's very much appreciated.
Yeah.
Thank you.
Absolutely,
ma'am.
Thank you,
Bernard.
All right.
Uh, Seth, I mean, Bernard Taylor, I-
You know,
a- as advertised … I'm gonna be
thinking about this one for a while.
As advertised.
Yeah.
Um- Yeah … of course,
we've never spoken to him.
That was the first time, but there's
something so- unique about him.
Uh, politicians, and listen, every
response he gave was so succinct
and common sense and perfect.
Um, but there were no, very
economical with his word choices.
No words wasted.
No frill, no fluff.
Frill
What politicians usually do
Yeah
Um, you know what I mean?
Yeah.
Do you know what I mean?
I mean, he- that's a, that's a, that's
a calm, collected dude- Yeah … who has
a plan, who's been in tough situations
before, and nothing's, nothing's,
you know, throwing this guy off.
No.
I mean, he's, he's seen it all.
He's… But he's six foot- He is like
this
230 He is just steady as a rock, that guy.
Yeah.
And he's like, I mean, what, what
he just said at the end of the
episode, "We're getting out of there.
We're getting out of the burning building.
If we gotta-" Mm-hmm "… if I gotta
make a new hole, if there ain't no
door, I'm making a new hole, and then
we're gonna get out of that building."
That's the kind of guy
that I want in my corner.
That's the kind of guy- 1,000,000%
… I want fighting in Congress.
And again, he's not there to make friends.
No.
He's not there trying to chum it up
with the DC crowd, with the AIPAC crowd.
He's trying to get in there- He's got-
… get the job done, and get the heck out
he's a happy family man.
He loves his wife.
He's got five children.
Yeah.
He's trying to get…
do his job and go home.
Yeah.
He's not there, you know, like you said,
to socialize, and go to dinners, and go
to the bars, and do all the, the, the
wasteful things that Congress likes to do.
He just wants to get in
and make a difference.
He doesn't want to be there forever.
You know, two to three terms maybe,
do the best that he can do, and
then go back to what he really
loves doing, which is saving lives.
I mean, he's like Superman.
I don't know.
That's, that, that's a dude.
That's a dude.
That's
a man.
That's a man.
I'm pretty sure I've seen him
in a comic book somewhere.
I… It has to be.
They just don't… You,
you just don't make them.
You know what I mean?
Like that… No offense, but
like Bernard's exceptional.
Um, I don't know what else to say.
Florida- I, I don't know if
there are- … 21st District
…
yeah
Like-
I, I don't know if they have telephone
booths in Florida, but Bernard's
probably breaking out of one tomorrow.
It might be … doing
something.
Uh,
and so- We might need a graphic
of him in the cape because-
Yeah,
honestly … he gives,
he gives superhero vibes.
I'm like, he's a Marvel character.
Yeah.
Florida, 21st District, I mean,
I don't know what you're doing.
He, he said, "I'm gonna get you out."
He's talking about as a firefighter,
he's gonna get you out, Florida.
He's there to save you collectively
as a politician, as your p-
locally elected politician.
My God, look him up.
Go to his website.
Go to his social media page.
You won't be disappointed.
Just saying.
Um, share, make donations.
We need to see Bernard
Taylor win this race.
Yeah.
So excited that we got to talk with him.
You know, this is a guy
with a l- a big reach.
And so for him to come on was, was
huge and we thank him for that That
too.
Yeah, just amazing And,
you know, and just a down home guy, man.
I mean, you can't ask for
anything more Florida.
I mean, this guy, again, he's gonna, he's
gonna give you the real, no BS, no frills.
He's in there to do the job
and get out, and that's what
you want in a politician, man.
Yeah.
Damn, don't we?
We, we don't, we don't want these
40, 50-year lifelong politicians.
We don't.
You want guys like Bernard.
So let's make it happen, Florida.
Yeah.
Bernard Taylor for Congress.
Make it happen.
Get out there.
Make it happen.
You know, even if, even if, even
if you don't live in Florida or
live in his district, volunteer,
get on the socials, make it happen.
Yes.
You know, let's
get- Small dollar donations.
He might have some phone banking-
Yep
…
opportunities later on.
But just if you're not voting for Bernard
Taylor, Florida, come on, get it together.
It's time.
Let's go.
All right, Seth, well,
that's it for today.
We had a double header, that's why, hence
you're gonna see a repeat outfit from Seth
and I in this and our previous episode.
You know, that's what happens
when you gotta do two in a row.
Mm-hmm.
Um, we have a little bit of a
break, and then we got some more
interviews scheduled for this weekend.
But-
Mm
…
it's primary season.
Yeah.
But today was great and, uh, you
know, just psyched to keep on going,
to continue to, this good work and-
Yeah
…
you know, I, I can tell
from our candidates, like
it, it makes a difference.
So-
It does make a difference
…
so,
so it feels good.
And it makes a difference for, for us.
Um, selfishly, I, I regain little
pieces of hope that have been- Yeah
shattered throughout this administration
with every person we talk to.
Um, and that's not like,
that's not bullshit.
Like I really… It's like,
um, this is my Lexapro.
I'm not even kidding.
This is what keeps me sane and keeps
me, my mood boosted and restores my hope
in humanity and for the future because
it's doom and gloom a lot of days.
I know you know that.
I know people- Yeah … that
listen to the show know that.
Um, I hope that you, I hope that you
glean just a sliver of the hope that
we do from every single person we talk
to because that's what it's all about.
And then voting them in.
It's not enough- Yeah … just
to enjoy listening to them.
Yeah.
Action.
We need that
vote from those folks.
Action.
After the, after the nice
frilly words, we need action.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
And I was just about to say
what you, what you said.
I mean, we draw life from the
candidates that we talk to.
Yeah.
And I, and I just hope that we give
them a little bit of life, too.
And you guys.
And just, you know, in, in these
close races- And you guys … yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, 5, 10, 15, 20 votes,
you don't know how much of a
difference that's gonna make.
So- Yeah … shout out to all of
our, all, all of our candidates.
You guys are awesome.
Aw, thanks.
And we appreciate all of you.
Yeah.
Every single one of them are so unique
and wonderful in their own ways.
Yeah.
And, uh, we'll be bringing
more to you very soon.
Right.
All right.
See you soon.
Let's go.
All right.
Bye.