This race is about leadership. It's about leadership under pressure

Jay Collins: This race is about leadership. It's about leadership under pressure. It's about the future of the great free state of Florida. We have been blessed to have Governor Ron DeSantis as our governor for quite some time now. In that time, he has stood boldly with strong, bold, conservative leadership. This simply cannot change. Under his watch, we have become the free state of Florida. We have become the conservative proving grounds of the United States of America. And, friends, if you look around the world, there is nowhere else to go. The simple fact is this. When Florida leads, America wins. We have to keep that momentum. He has shown what conservative leadership is truly about. Friends, the next governor has to hold that line. There is no falling back. The left, what do they want to see? They want to see the free state of Florida devolve. They want to see it break down and be soft on crime, soft on dei, and go back to where we came. That simply cannot happen. You've heard my story. Yes, I was honored to be a Greene Beret for many years. It's something I'm incredibly proud of. Brave men who I serve beside, and I look up to this day. Yes, I got shot. Yes, I lost a leg, and yes, I requalified. But the greatest part of all of that is that I kept getting up, fighting and serving the great state of Florida, the United States of America. Because that is what grit. That is what leadership is, and that is what makes this nation what it is. Friends, I cannot be intimidated. I will not be broken. And under my watch, as the next governor of the great state of Florida, the brightest days won't be behind us. They'll be ahead of us. Because this state and this nation are worth fighting for every single day.

Jay Collins is running for Florida governor.

Sandy Rios: All right, that was the voice of Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins, who's running for governor in the state of Florida. And you may be saying, well, why? Why would he run for governor when Byron Donalds was, endorsed by the president and, you know, he's the heir apparent? Why? Why? Why? Why? Well, I can tell you that in the state of Florida because I live here now. There's, a lot of controversy about that, actually. because, the people feel that they haven't really chosen the candidate, and they're maybe not so happy as they're seeing Byron sort of reveal more about himself than in months that he may not be the candidate they thought he might be. And so, the people of Florida have an uphill battle, though, to reverse this, because, for the most part, they love the president, which I go on record as Saying I do, too. Strong supporter. But I don't always support his nominations or his endorsements, because I think he gets bad advice. And I think maybe this time he did. And so I wanted you to hear. I watched a debate of the three other candidates, recently in Florida for governor, and one of them was my next guest. He's the current lieutenant governor. Governor Ron DeSantis chose him to be his lieutenant governor. Before that, he was a. The state senator in Florida. He's got a great bio and we'll talk about that. But I wanted just, just you to get to know him and see what you think. for those of you in Florida, but also those of you that are outside of Florida, but you have friends in Florida, see what you think. You won't be bored, I guarantee you, because Florida is kind of important to all of us right now, I think. Call me crazy, but, it was like the only free state in this 50, during Cove and it remains very strong. People are moving down here for a reason. And so. And you always know you can come here, right, if things, get bad in your blue state. So if you want to keep it that way, it matters who's running for governor. So I hope you'll stay tuned to today's show.

An international pro life leader was assassinated in her home this week

Well, we're living in a defining moment in many, many ways. But on the issue of life, it's just getting violent. I'm sure, you know, it's getting violent on everything. People that represent really goodness are being attacked. Charlie Kirk was assassinated. There was another assassination across the pond in England just a few days ago. And an international pro life leader was assassinated in her home, we think in her bed. She was 78 years old. Her name is Anne Whitakem. perhaps you've heard of her. I can't spend a lot of time talking about her, but she has the most beautiful countenance. because she was trying to save the lives of the babies. Because you know why? Because she believes in the sacredness of life. So she gets murdered in her bed. The suspected killer is a 28 year old Joshua Carey. So we'll find out what happens, over there. But my point is, this is serious business. It's not business as usual. It truly isn't. And I make it my goal to have you not get casual about any of this, to sit up and take notice and be willing in your own mind and your own heart and your own body, to fight when you need to. if it's just verbally, but, respectfully, but make the case, remain silent. And certainly in these upcoming elections, don't be silent. Make yourself educated on the candidates in your state and then do something about. Otherwise, we're going to lose the midterms, meaning conservatives. It's going to be gone and you will be so sorry. And when your parents, your kids ask you later, what did you do during that time, mom and dad, that was a turning point in the country, what did you do? You're going to be so ashamed that you can't say you did anything. So don't let that happen. And so preborn, of course, is in the business of saving lives. I don't know what Ana would come, you know, what her approach was. I'll read more about it, maybe tell you later. But, this method of saving lives is showing moms their babies. That's the secret sauce. That's the, you know, the intriguing part about it. And it actually works. It actually works when moms, doesn't surprise me. Doesn't surprise me. But when moms see their babies moving around, enter in their womb, sucking their thumb, whatever, the little heart's beating and maybe a nose like their brother or their mother or, you know, eyes like somebody, I. It's just kind of, it's just wonderful. And most moms just can't bring themselves to ending their lives. So if you would like to help us save more babies using these photos and these ultrasound images to show the moms, go to preborn.com sandy. That's preborn.com sandy. It's $28 for one ultrasound. And make your most generous donation. All right. Well, this is really good show. I mean, I've had a really good discussion with Jay, which we're going to play, Lieutenant Governor Collins, that we're going to play for you. And I think you'll enjoy the interaction. You'll learn something, as I did on, this edition of Sandy Rios, 247 from American Family Radio, Sandy Rios. We are not called to be nice. We are to be confrontational. And here with me in D.C. is

Sandy Rios: Fox News contributor Sandy Rios. I think the most important thing we need to demonstrate to our children is genuineness, that we actually believe what we say we believe. Longtime FOX News contributor Sandy Rios, thanks very much for being with us.

Sandy Rios: Seek justice. Not social justice, but God's justice, what's right and what's wrong.

Sandy Rios: Sandy Rios is with the American Family Association, a pro life radio talk show host.

Sandy Rios: We've got to say this is the line. Life is sacred. Director of Governmental affairs for the American Family Association. Step up. Speak up. Say something. Do something.

Jay Collins: You grew up in a small town, just like I did.

James Fishback: Where was it? Where did I grow up?

Jay Collins: I think you grew up in a small town.

James Fishback: Where did I grow up?

Jay Collins: In Florida.

James Fishback: Where did I grow up? Here in Florida. Called Madison Home. Right.

James Fishback: I grew up here in Florida. Right. All right.

James Fishback: Case closed. Drop the lawsuit.

Jay Collins: Oh, really, James? Let me be clear on this, buddy. We're not going to discuss that and the reality.

James Fishback: Why not?

Sandy Rios: Feisty back and forth. As Lt. Governor Jay Collins has filed a lawsuit to try to get James Fishback disqualified from the Republican primary for governor, claiming Fischbach hasn't lived in Florida long enough under state rules. The CBS 12 News I team took a look at the GOP field for governor In a recent special report. There's controversy over the party's decision not to host a major debate with all four candidates. Thursday night's debate was put on by a podcaster and was streaming on digital rather than being televised and backed by the party's top brass. That's because the party says Congressman Byron Donalds is so far ahead and the others didn't meet the criteria to be on a debate stage.

Jay Collins: What has Byron ever done? What has he been successful at? What has he done that's made a difference?

James Fishback: Why don't we discuss the fact that a Montana man hired a California lawyer to sue Governor DeSantis administration to remove

James Fishback: a fourth generation Floridian from your ballot. You're trying to steal the election with Byron Donald.

Sandy Rios: Former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner was in Thursday night's YouTube debate, but he didn't appear to be in combat mode like Fishback and Collins. The primary is August 18th. For the ITM, I'm Mike Magnoli, CBS 12 News.

Jay Collins is bringing a lawsuit challenging Florida's election integrity

Sandy Rios: All right, Sandy Rios with you. Well, I watched that debate. you know, Florida, all eyes are on Florida because we have had such a. I'm down in Florida now. You all know that. I've told you we've had such great success. Governor DeSantis has been a wunderkind. He's just been such an unexpected, fabulous leader and he had to fight for that position. And he's transformed things. He's, made Florida really a place to be so proud to live. Thousands of people are moving into Florida for that reason. So now Governor DeSantis is term limited. He has to step down. And there's a, a primary Aug. 18 for the Republicans running, in that primary. And it's pretty scary, honestly. I think most people know that Byron Donalds was, selected by the president endorsed many, many months ago before really any other candidates had a chance to get into the race. And we're going to talk about that a little bit. But I watched a debate that took place. It was hosted by, what's his name? A Patrick Bet David, who I love. Great voice. He did an. Absolutely. One of the best debates really, in terms of how it was run and even how the. The, three nominees conducted themselves. I enjoyed it thoroughly and I thought it was a very good debate. What a shame that Byron Donalds refused to be on that stage. Well, there's a man who didn't refuse to be on that stage. And actually, funny enough, I accidentally met him at a, McAllister's Deli, where I live, just a few days ago. So it was kind of fun and we had a chance to talk a little bit and I've asked him to join us, this morning to talk about who he is and what his candidacy is all about. He is the Lieutenant Governor of this state and his name is Jay Collins. Jay, thanks for joining me this morning, Sandy.

Jay Collins: It's good to be on and great chance, encounter. And, you gotta love McAllister's too. The food was great.

Sandy Rios: It was. But next time, if I know I'm going to meet you, I'm going to wear makeup. I felt so embarrassed. But anyway, it was great to meet you. Now. It was great to meet you. Jay and I want to talk about a lot of things. I felt that that debate. Let me explain. You had. There were three of you. It was James Fishback. He was the one that was sparring with you all night, actually. And the third was the former speaker of the House, Paul Renner, who was actually pretty impressive himself. I thought to myself, I mean, I wish that the two of you could run together, but, you know more about that than I do. you bringing a lawsuit against James Fishback? I know you can't discuss it, but since that clip repeated it twice, from my research, I'm seeing that James Fishback does not qualify, allegedly because he has not lived seven years consecutively in Florida before running for governor. He was in Washington, D.C. signed a contract on a residency which he claimed was his primary residence, and voted in the District of Columbia in the last seven years. So I believe that's the issue. so I just wanted people to know that, Can you say something about it? I don't really want you to understand.

Jay Collins: Sandy, I can talk a little bit about this, but in the end, you know, openly. I've said this over and over. I have complete faith and respect for our judicial system. that case is actually being heard right now, today and tomorrow, and, we'll see what the judge decides. But this is about election integrity. That is what matters. This is about the sanctity of our elections. We just heard the president talk about it. We talk about it all the time in Florida. We have to have faith in the foundational aspects of our republic. And a free and fair election is one of those things. And when we looked at the facts, you know, it was pretty clear to us that there was a concern. And the way a new law was written in Florida, the only way to deal with it was for another candidate or the party to do a lawsuit to sue. So, look, I'm willing to do the hard right and, you know, go out there and push the lawsuit where I think there's a problem. But let me be clear. I think that, the facts are there. I would encourage people to go on. All of that information is readily available and read the details. But, you know, at that debate, what I've often seen in life is that people who object and yell and scream the loudest are generally trying to cover for something. And, the facts speak for themselves. winning matters. Election integrity matters. And doing the right thing is always the right thing.

Sandy Rios: Yeah. I need to explain to people a little bit, Jay, that in an election, at least traditionally, unfortunately, people are not vetted thoroughly. I, mean, people just don't volunteer to go out and make sure candidates are who they say they are. We know now because we pick up audio video from around the country, and you gather information here and there, but there's really no way to expose a fraudulent candidate. And I'm not saying James is. I'm just talking about, in general, a fraudulent candidate. Unless a candidate brings those charges up. That's what these, That's what elections are all about, where you guys debate and you point out each other's weaknesses, because who. Who else is going to do that? And so that's the role that you. You have to play if you're going to be serious about that.

On election integrity, Jay says he's absorbed in the midterms

And on the election integrity thing, Jay, before we move on to lots of other things, that's a passion. A passion. A passion of mine. I'm going to be devoting my show to this probably from now until, the. The, midterms, because I'm so, I'm absorbed. Many of my friends in D.C. this is what they do. This is what they are Absorbed in. And this is.

What steps have Florida taken to prevent Chinese hacking of voting machines

None of this is news to me, really, except the numbers, the exact numbers. But I'm wondering, what has Florida done to prevent that the Chinese from stealing information to prevent voting machines from being, corrupted. What. What. What steps have you guys taken?

Jay Collins: Well, we passed our version of the SAVE act in Florida. but we have. Every year I was in the government, legislatively or as lieutenant governor, we've done something to help protect and provide better election integrity. we work very, very hard to make that work. You know, there's always more work to do. But here's what I will tell you. We have to understand that there is risk out there. Countries of concern are always trying to meddle. You know, we have to take them seriously. And at the federal level, I am so glad that President Trump, Marco, and everybody around them is taking this with the level of seriousness that they should. We've got to have a federal government that looks at those other nations, especially the countries concerned, like China, Venezuela, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, and says, look, you will not meddle. Russia, Ukraine, right? You will not meddle in our elections. We're going to hold you accountable. And if there, are people in our government who are abiding them or abetting them, guys, you're going to be held accountable as well. Without accountability, we have nothing. It's a problem. And I'm so grateful to see federal collaboration with states and both working with local governments. It is the best I've seen in my 50 years. 30 years around government. What we're doing right now, you got to have an id. Why is that even a question? I love the idea of a voter verifiable paper record. and, you know, election day should be election day. I think that's exactly how it should work. And we have to have tighter parameters on DBM to make sure that those are going where they're supposed to go. And again, man, it's voter rolls, accountability, cleaning up the excess data, the old data, and making sure that we make this free, fair, and up to the standards of our Constitution and our people. Good enough isn't good enough.

Sandy Rios: Well, I have to say, the proof is in the pudding. And since I've been down here now for 10 years, just about every election that DeSantis has been governor, the ballot, the results are counted, and we know the very next day who won these races. That is probably, you know, the pudding that we were looking for, because we know how it went in California. That's the opposite of good fair. Good fair. Clean elections. And so I'm. That's another thing. Just another thing that I'm so grateful for down here. M. But Jay, let's get into, let's get into your life because you have a great bio. I. I need to say before I even introduce you in this way, military is a big part. Well, I don't know how exactly. My husband is, he's not military, but He's a retired FBI. My father was in World War II. His father was. My father in law was in Vietnam and World War II. I mean, this. There's service that runs in my country and my country and my family. but I've also learned, unfortunately, that not every military man is a patriot. We have been burned so much by so many bad. I know I could say something very controversial about Jon McCain, but I'll hold my peace. But he, But I could think of, you know, the astronaut. Mark. Mark. Whatever. Mark. yeah. Anyway, he's. He's terrible, really on the issues. And we've been burned so many times.

Ron DeSantis is running for Florida governor

So you are a former Greene Beret, U.S. army Special Services. You served for 23 years. You have so many, awards. Really not. Let's just list the Purple Heart in your PR information. But you won the Legion of Merit, the Soldiers Medal, the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, Meritorious Service Medal. You were wounded, you got shot in the arm, you fixed your own arm and then you lost your leg and then retrained and went back into service for five more years, which is just amazing. so my question for you though, Jay, is what caused you to love America? Because you obviously do, because you went right into public service. I don't think just to be serving. Obviously what you say and what you do reflects that you really actually love this country. So why.

Jay Collins: Well, you know, I've been around the world. I've seen every major nation. I've been around the Middle east and Asia, Europe and South America. I have worked in and around indigenous and organic people. And let me tell you, there is no place like the United States of America. Every time that I traveled and I had to do work, business for our nation, in some way, shape or form, you leave just so much more appreciative of what we have here. While no nation is perfect, what we have in America so far and heads entails above anybody else is just amazing. But honestly, this goes back to my roots long before, the military, long before public service. I was born and raised. I was born to a 16 year old kid. I was adopted and raised by my grandparents. My grandfather, who I call dad, who adopted me, was, a World War II, veteran. And he didn't really talk a lot, but what he did talk about was service, sacrifice, freedom. You know, that good men can't stand idly by and watch the world burn. That you got to step in. My dad taught me everything I know about patriotism. Growing up in a small town, our neighbors taught us that. You know, my best friend growing up was a guy named Justin. Unfortunately, his dad just passed away. He was a, Navy veteran, a Seabee. And to hear him talk, as I was growing up and then later, when we were both adults, about America and the patriotism, every aspect of my adult life, I was raised around patriots, warriors, protectors, and, you know, you got to step up. If good men and women don't step into the breach to protect our people in our way of life, everything's gone already. We have to preserve and protect this republic, our future for our kids, just like every generation of American has done. We're 250 years old as a nation, and I believe in my core that the greatest days of this state, in this nation, they lie ahead of us. But it's because of the Patriots. It's because of people who put their neck on the line for others. We have to fight for that dream.

Sandy Rios: Oh, totally. Well, I'm with you. I fight with words. I fight with words for the same reason. And I think the dangers are just. Every year, they're worse. In fact, I'd like to ask you, Jay, what I'm talking, by the way, to the lieutenant governor of Florida. I should call him Lieutenant Governor. I'm sorry that I don't want to show respect, Jay.

Jay Collins: I know my title. I go by J.

Sandy Rios: Okay. describe for us the dangers, that you see in Florida if a strong governor is not elected. What are the dangers we face?

Jay Collins: Danny, that is the most important question in this election we can ask. You know, I go back to Covid. Think back to how close we were to losing everything. If Ron DeSantis hadn't been our governor, I can't imagine where Florida would be. But let's be very honest. Ron DeSantis didn't just protect Florida. He stepped in and stood there while the president and congress, international leaders, other members of our state government, attacked him daily. Having someone who's courageous enough to do the hard right, even if by themselves, is exactly the standard Ron has put in place, but then they have to have the conviction to follow through, and the candor to speak the truth. Our nation faced something unlike, anything we'd seen in a long time in Florida. We did it differently, and others followed. If we have someone whose moral compass doesn't point towards standing for the people and instead of points to them, we're going to lose that. If we have people who don't run to the sound of the problem and understand that leadership's not talking about things on Fox News. Leadership is being on the ground where people's lives are impacted, where lives are won or lives are lost, then Florida is going to fail. If we don't choose a leader who has a track record of not only getting things done, but prioritizing the people over anything else, and that's a problem. We don't need to be more like D.C. in Florida, but I'll tell you, I would love to see DC Be a lot more like Florida.

Sandy Rios: Oh, tell me about it.

Jay Collins: Single day.

Sandy Rios: Tell me about it. You know, I don't want to get on a tangent here, but I just read this morning, 10 Republican senators are overseas. They're in Europe. they're busy, you know, having fun while the president is begging for the Save America act to be passed in that House. That is how we're being represented in Washington, D.C. jay. So I.

Jay Caruso: I've learned about politicians who do nothing

Okay, so speaking of ridiculous dereliction of duty or worse, now, I want to say a word about Byron Donalds, because, Byron on television is just fabulous. He is. He says great things. He's got a very winsome personality. But trust me, Jay, I've been around the block. I've known. I've been in this business a long time, and I have learned. I learned a long time ago that there are lots of politicians, most of them, who are great talkers, who do nothing. We call them. I always say they're all. They're all hat and no cattle. I bet you're familiar with that because you're from Montana.

Jay Collins: Yes.

Let's talk about Byron Donalds. Let's address the elephant not in the room

Sandy Rios: all right, so I want to play something that Patric that David set before the debate, just two weeks ago. And then let's talk about Byron Donald. Here it is.

James Fishback: Let's address the elephant not in the room. Byron Donalds. Byron Donalds and I have had multiple conversations. I told him I want to be saying this. So when he's seen this, he knows. He and I talked about this. I invited him multiple times. I said, byron, I suggest you be here. I agree with the governor. You ought to be on the stage debating. He says, patience. I got $100 million. I've raised 10 times everybody combined together, I'm at 48% to 58%. If anybody gets to double digits in, approval rating as far as candidates, goes, I will entertain debating, but till then, I'm not showing up. So that's Byron Donalds.

Sandy Rios: Yeah, that's Byron Donalds.

Jay Carney: Byron Nelson's endorsements are always troubling

All right, so I. Jay, we just said that you are responsible for pointing out the flaws of other candidates. So tell us what you think.

Jay Collins: So first off, Byron's made a mistake here. He thinks that this debate is about me or about him. It's about the 23 and a half million people that call Florida home. This is a slap in the face to the voters and it's a direct slap in the face to our primary voters who he obviously does not respect enough to honor their wishes. Because I'll tell you what, people want to see him. And I get out there because the fact is I'm pulling in the mid-20s. I'm in double digits. That poll was weeks ago. At this point, more than likely you're going to see me and him a whole lot closer than he wants it to know. That's why he's trying to move on to the general election and say that it's done. He's trying to suppress voters by doing that. But let's just take a step back and let's undress a little bit. The Byron behind the scenes. And he's a multiple time felon. He sold drugs, he sold dope. You get caught once, how many times have you done it? That's a problem. There was bank fraud. He wanted to pass laws in Florida as a member of the State House that would have raised the minimum age of a minor from 16 to 25. Do we want more career criminals? That's a horrible policy. He would have raised the threshold for felonious crimes to $1,500. So anything below that, there'll be no prosecution. Again, do we want career criminals? During the Summer of Love, when the riots were happening, he actually went out there and eulogized George Floyd. You can go Google that right now. That's still on his congressional webpage. All of those things are open. There are plenty of problems with him as a candidate and his track record in the past. And it's not because I dislike Byron as a person. It's not because I have any umbrage there. It's because his performance and his policies don't match the pitch that he puts out there on Fox News every day. Good enough isn't good enough in Florida. We demand excellence. We need people who walk the walk. They don't just talk the talk. So again, Byron, you've got to get on the stage, you and me. This is a two person primary. If you want to vote, invite other people and bring them out there. Fine, get on the stage and earn it. Show the people, the primary voters, that you respect them and you respect their voice. They deserve that now more than ever.

Sandy Rios: Yeah, let me weigh in here just a little bit. We have a problem, and this is me talking, not you. I love President Trump. I am a tremendous supporter of his. but I've always said, and will continue to say that his endorsements are always troubling. Not always, but mostly. and I, he said the advisors and I won't name names right now because you're here with me. But I, I think I know who's behind all this. And they. He does not get the best advice. He doesn't. And it messes things up. And he actually nominated or endorsed Byron, what, 17 months ago, before anyone was ever even thinking about running. So it's like, Byron's the anointed one and all this money has come in and now the people have no choice that virtually the people have no choice if things move the way they're moving. The last thing I would say about this, Byron is not performing in Washington D.C. he's been derelict in his duties there during all of these problems that we've been having this past. I don't know how long he's been running. Seventeen months, I guess. He's been campaigning, raising that $100 million. And I just, I think that's troubling, Very, very troubling given what going through. And there's a little smugness here now that also bothers me tremendously.

Jay Gonzalez says Florida needs a strong pro-life governor

But, all right, so if, do you know anything about. I mean, we can speculate, but do you know anything about where that $100 million is coming from?

Jay Collins: Yeah, so that came from a lot of the large tech, tech donors, obviously. We know AI and data centers are a big part of this. Something like 70% of his money has come from about seven people. The lobby corps, the minutiae and the machine behind the system is who's pushing him, who's propping him up. you know what's funny? In Florida, in today's day and age, they don't want to have someone jammed down their throats. They don't want to be told that this is inevitable. This is Florida, man. We just do things a little different here. You know, I gotta remind people that every eight years we seem to relearn the same lesson. You know who is about exactly where I am right now eight years ago today? Governor Ron DeSantis.

Sandy Rios: Yeah, exactly.

Jay Collins: Adam Putnam was the ag commissioner. He had all the money, all the endorsements. And history shows us, as ah, does present time, that Governor Ron DeSantis won that election and he won it soundly because the people in Florida want to choose their governor, not be told to shut up in color and pick who we tell tell you to. That's not how Florida rolls. You have a voice, you have a choice. You need to pick a governor that actually speaks to you and shows your values and can lead this state.

Sandy Rios: Now Jay, I assessed you already. I think you'd be a very strong leader, which I think is very important. But there's some things I don't know about you and I need to ask them. I think that according to what I read, you supported the bill in Florida to not abort before, is it six weeks? I can't remember the bill exactly. But you are partially, at least in part pro life. But I want to know how you feel about the abortion pill.

Jay Collins: I, don't love it. I'm here because my mother, I was born to a 16 year old kid and she chose life. Don't know how, don't know why, but that's the only reason I'm even here. And my grandparents gave me a home. I think we have to protect the sanctity of life. And you know, in Florida we've led on that. We have our heartbeat bill and we stand on that. But I'll tell you what, and Sandy, this is something really important to me as a kid who grew up in a broken home and who could have fallen into foster care. I was adopted. We have to be pro life all the way through and that means we better make sure the kids have families. I ran an adoption bill a few years back. That was the first time that a conservative man had jumped in and led an adoption bill to protect our kids in foster care and going through the adoption process in a very long time. As, leaders, as men, as dads, we protect those who are vulnerable. We're going to make sure that kids get out of foster care, they get homes, they have opportunity that we help rebuild the sanctity of the American family. And that's what this is about. We have to put our money where our mouth is. And good enough isn't good enough. And I'm challenging everybody to get out and let's make that happen. If we want to make sure that we stand for the unborn, we gotta make sure we also stand with those people who are at risk of falling through the cracks in adoption, in foster care. Those kids deserve families. They deserve opportunity. I'll fight for it every day.

Sandy Rios: Yeah. Plus, then we go to the elderly, we go to euthanasia, all of that. Ah, Canada, you know, has adopted this program called mad, where it's, you know, you can. They're actually having parties, Jay, in. In Canada, when they plan their suicide. Plan their suicide. They have a party and then they go in the back room and kill themselves. I'm not saying I don't know how many people are doing this, but they are doing it. I did a whole show on it. We have to protect life. I am. I am totally with you. And you have to do it with passion. It's not enough for it to be a talking point in your campaign. I mean, I. I've lived through a lot where a lot of, back in the 80s, politicians didn't want to be pro life. And even the candidates, like presidential wives, were all pro choice. And then there was this huge push to educate people with the. Through ultrasound by pro life leaders. so that. And they changed hearts and minds and everything switched. And now all Republicans are pro life, except they're not really. They're not really. And that's why I'm asking you this hard question. So.

Jay Collins: No, that's great.

Sandy Rios: Yeah.

The issue at hand is hyperscale data centers. So when the Democratic nominee is aligned on this issue

All right. I want to ask you. There's another controversial issue that I don't fully understand. and it's the. The data centers. I'm not even probably have. Don't have the rights. Those, centers that were. As part of your debate with those three gentlemen. James Fishback is totally against it. And I don't remember where Paul Renner stood on it. But you are saying that the state government. I mean the, the states, the local government should make a decision if they want one of those centers. Hey, fill in the blanks a little bit for me on that and explain your position.

Jay Collins: Yeah. So let's take a macro perspective. There are three courses of action. There is one, which is the Byron Donald approach. that's raising the racing flag, basically, and just letting it rip. That will lead to overgrowth. That will lead to a loss of farmland. That will lead to our waterways, our aquifers being harmed. That is not good for Florida. We can't cease being who we're. Who we are. This is why people live here and move here. Then you have what I would call the artificial moratorium crowd. That's Paul Renner, and that's James Fishback, and, oh, by the way, that's also David Jolly. So when the Democratic nominee is aligned with you on this issue, you may want to scratch your head. And I'm going to tell you why that's concerning. when we give a moratorium, what we're saying is we're going to kill this entire lane of business, this entire data center footprint. On one hand, yes, that solves a problem. But, here's the reality. Not all data centers are the same. Data centers have been around since 1950. You know, in Polk county, where there's been a lot of back and forth on this, there's like 160 plus data centers, small ones that have been used for cell phones, for tv, for other systems. The issue at hand is hyperscale data centers. And I think hyperscale data centers are absolutely something we should be concerned about. And I'm going to tell you exactly why. The third rail of how to take care of this is what I'm talking about. And this guy you might have heard of, his name is Ron. Governor Ron DeSantis agrees with me because that's what we're doing as a state of Florida. Hyperscale data centers are enormous structures. They can take the same amount of power and water as a city of 50 to 100,000 people. that's amazing. That's one data center. What has to happen is legislation has to be passed, which we did this year in Florida, that protects people from any energy costs being dumped on them. So we did that. There's box one, box two. You have to protect the water, because when the water comes in there, and it's a city of 50 to 100,000 people, that can divert water away from our people, it can cause, an issue in water quality and water safety. That's not okay. It can also artificially redirect or drain the aquifers. Also not okay. So unless you can show us, with proof, not just talking about it, that you are not going to impact the waterways, you're not going to impact the water availability, and you're not going to harm the water quality, then you should not build in Florida. Hard stop. The third rail is one that I'm talking about. And this is really imperative. We have to have transparency. And by we, I mean the people of Florida at the city and county level. If you are going to choose to build something, you cannot have the customer behind the data center wrapped up in an NDA you can't build it and they get a surprise. That's what the Democrats have done for years, like surprise. It's not constitutional as a problem. It's wrong. Right. You can't do that to people. I'm over that. You have to have complete transparency in who the customer is, because then you know the second, third and fourth order effects of those hyperscale data centers. And the last leg is this. I want limited government. I'm not just talking about it when it's easy. It's one thing to get out there and put out a hard line on TV or on radio and say we're going to ban them and protect our people. Well, that's not really true because they can't do that. You don't have the executive function as a governor to do that. One, two. You have to pass a law. And one data center isn't like everybody else. You have to call it what it is. These guardrails have to be in place to protect our people long term. And that means actually having a conversation like this, Sandy. And I'm so glad you brought it up, because I believe in our people. I believe in their ability to digest and understand this. But as a leader, I'm going to spend every waking moment I can informing our people, preparing them for what's out there and making sure we protect our communities. I don't want federal overreach. I don't want our state to become what we push back on at the federal government. We should give our cities and counties local authority and local rule. But you have to have accountability. So if you lie, cheat, dupe, steal, harm our local government, do something disingenuous, we will absolutely hammer you and hold you accountable, because that is what we do in Florida. We stand for our people. Right is right, wrong is wrong, and actions speak far louder than words.

Sandy Rios: You know something similar? gosh, I'm trying to think of.

The real issue was, ah, it was a huge issue in Iowa

The real issue was, ah, it was a huge issue in Iowa. I'm fracking. It was something underground and they were taking farmland and putting in. Congressman King was a huge opponent of this. And my point is going to be, industry tried to do this in a lot of places. And because it was a local issue for those governments, they lost because the people got riled up and they knew who was responsible, what businessmen, mayors were compromising. And so it is a good model, I think. I mean, it can backfire on you.

Tech industry players have poured millions of dollars into Representative Byron Donald's campaign

But I want to share something else with you. This just came in my inbox. This is from Politico. Now, you know that Politico is, an outlet in Washington D.C. it goes national, but it's mostly D.C. based and it's very political and it's mostly on the left. and this is what it says. Tech industry players have poured millions of dollars into Representative Byron Donald's campaign for Florida governor. And the money keeps flowing. Even as the Trump endorsed GOP frontrunner has seemingly shifted his stance on regulating the technology's presence in Florida and says he's received dozens of contributions from artificial intelligence groups and donors, as well as from multiple companies seeking to build hyperscale data centers in Florida. It goes on and on, but I just want you to know that just came up. so it's something that Floridians are going to have to educate themselves to this and we need to pay attention to what Byron Donalds is standing for here. I want to ask you in closing here, Jay, is there going to be enough.

Jay Collins: Can I address one thing? And I'll call out what is a complete and utter lie by Byron. He has commercials running right now where he says he's going to protect the people of Florida from hyperscale data centers while he's selling them out and taking money from big tech and the data centers themselves. He's not being honest with the people of Florida. And I have a real problem with that.

Sandy Rios: Well, I have a real problem with that too. And that's what has to be pointed out, I'll say. So, is there going to be another debate to your knowledge?

Jay Collins: No. Right now Byron Donald has decided that he is moving on to the general election and he's focused on David Jolly and again, man, ma', am, that is a slap in the face to the primary voters, the conservatives, all Republican voters. You should be frustrated and angry that Byron Donald doesn't respect you enough to show up on the debate stage and that he thinks you're just going to mail it in. You have a choice in Florida. Vote for the candidate who knows how to lead the state. Remember, this isn't baseball. You can't go to the bullpen and warm up Byron. You got to show up ready to lead on day one.

Sandy Rios: And he doesn't have any experience with that. I always make the point that Congressman has all these young staffers, so does the senator. the young staffers are the ones who actually run things, write their speeches. That's why they can't talk. They're looking down at a sheet of paper that their 23 year old staffer wrote and that's what I'm. I know that's. There are exceptions because I love some of those guys up there, but most of them, oh, not so much. And so Byron has done that. And, but I don't think he's ever actually done something. He just talks about it, but he doesn't actually do it. And that's an important.

Jay Collins: He's passed one or two bills. I passed 55 in three years.

Sandy Rios: Okay, well, case in point.

Jay Collins urges Floridians to vote for Ron DeSantis

All right, so, how can people help you?

Jay Collins: Well, I would encourage you to go to our website, which is j a y for Florida or j4florida.com. You can donate, you can sign up to volunteer. And we need Floridians to come out. You have a choice. Use your voice and vote for the candidate who speaks to you. You can follow us on all the social media platforms. It's JCollinsFL again. That's J A Y C O L L I N S F L. And, would love to have you come out and join us. We do events, and I answer questions just like this all over the state. I'm not hiding from anybody. I'm talking to people of Florida. It's your vote that matters.

Sandy Rios: Jay, do you have any yard signs?

Jay Collins: Yes, ma'. Am. We can get you yard signs. You can sign up for them right there, or you can text me and, you can go ahead and I'll get you a yard sign delivered to you and your friends. Tell your neighbors and tell other people that there are alternative choices, good people who can lead this state.

Sandy Rios: Now, people have to get the word out and, and understand. I'll say this one more time. You can love President Trump as I do, and not support Byron Donald. Yes. So, give. Give us that. Give us your exact, address, web address again, please. I'm sorry. J. Collins, Florida sure will.

Jay Collins: It is J A Y J4Florida.com. That's J A Y F O R Florida spelled out.com J4Florida.com and look, Sandy, I agree with you. I love the president. I voted for him three times. I requalified as a Greene Beret. But in this race, Floridians want to make sure that we have a leader who's like Ron DeSantis. And Byron is not Ron DeSantis. He is not President Trump. There is only the people of Florida that matter in this race, and the vote is up to them.

Sandy Rios: And we have to add that you've been by Ron DeSantis side now for several years. You know, everything you've been in the.

Jay Collins: That's right.

Sandy Rios: In the trenches with me to be his lieutenant governor. That makes a big difference.

Jay Collins: He said I was day one ready. I can leave this state right now.

Sandy Rios: Yeah. All right, well, thank, you so much. We've been talking to Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins and, that's, something that you should consider strongly, you Floridians. It's important. Can you imagine what will happen if we get a bad governor? If you don't want that to happen, then listen up and do something about it. And that's my last word. Jay, thanks for joining us. Lieutenant Governor, Collins, thank you so much for joining us.

Abortions performed by Planned Parenthood among top four leading causes of death

This is Sandy rios on Sandy Rios 24. 7.

Jay Collins: This is Sandy Rios 24. 7 on American Family Radio.

Sandy Rios: Abortions performed by Planned Parenthood were among the top leading causes of of death in America, revealing the terrifying truth of the left's anti life agenda. According to Planned Parenthood's 202223 annual report, Abortions performed by the organization accounted for the top four leading causes of death. Think about that. Paid for by our tax dollars. And honestly, this freight train was going down the track so fast and so powerfully. It's really hard. It's going to be hard for us to stop this. And I think one of the best ways I've said before, I'll say again, is preborn. Preborn who was not part of the government, not part of the public debate or campaigns, but an organization that's simply providing ultrasounds for moms who are pregnant and doubting whether they should carry the baby to allow them to see their baby through ultrasound. It's an amazing process and it actually works. when the moms see their babies, I think it doubles the chance that they will not take the life of their baby. You know, you can't beat those odds. If you'd like to help, $28 pays for one ultrasound, just one. And you can send however much you can afford. Go to preborn.com sandy that's preborn.com sandy

Jay Collins: the Sandy Rios 24. 7 podcast are available at afr.net back to Sandy Rio 24. 7 on American Family Radio.

Ron DeSantis weighed in on Byron Donalds' potential Florida governor run

Speaker F: Byron Donalds and his potential run for governor. Our current governor Ron DeSantis has now weighed in on the possibility and he didn't have anything nice to say.

Jay Collins: This comes less than a week after President Donald Trump endorsed Donald's for governor, encouraging him to run. Witness anchor Claire Galt is live with us in the studio. Claire, the governor doesn't think too much of Donald succeeding him.

Speaker F: Well, Krish, Ron DeSantis certainly did not Endorse Byron Donalds. In fact, the governor suggested that Donalds is not the best person for the job, saying he hasn't done enough for Florida. But the question does this really matter when Donalds has President Donald Trump on his side with this endorsement? On true social, President Donald Trump ramped up Florida's governor race and gave Congressman Byron Donald a big boost.

Jay Collins: I just want to say, Mr. President, thank you.

Speaker F: Byron Donalds won't be thanking Ron DeSantis. Listen to the governor's response when asked if he'll be endorsing the southwest Florida congressman.

Jay Collins: You know, you got a guy like Byron. He just hasn't been a part of any of the victories that we've had here over the left over these last years. He's just not been a part of it. he's been in other states campaigning, doing that, and that's fine, but. Okay, well, then deliver results up there. You know, I think what I want

Sandy Rios: to see and fair enough, that's Governor Ron DeSantis assessing Byron right after President Trump endorsed him. And that is, again, a 17 months ago. The other thing that you need to know is, according to what I'm hearing, the Republican Party of Florida has never been in charge of the debates. I don't know if there are exceptions to that, but, my understanding is they, they don't. They don't dictate the terms. They don't dictate these rules. That said, these other three cannot be in a debate if they don't meet certain criteria. That's just coming out of the blue. And, Ron DeSantis has gone on record just completely objecting to that. He said, well, I would never have made that debate when I ran, if they'd had those kind of rules. And he said, and they didn't even announce the rules until these candidates were already in the race. So something's wrong here. Something's not right. It, seems to me like people, you know, want, they have decided they want Byron Donalds. And I don't know if it's the hundred million dollars that's gone to Byron, which might have, bled over into other officials in the Republican Party. I don't know, but, you know, sounds possible to me. What else explains it? The people should be able to choose their own government. The governor. The people of Florida are smart enough that they should be able to choose, and now they really have no choice if things continue as they are. So I just wanted you to hear all of that. Remember that if you're interested in Jay Collins. Go to j4florida.com j4florida.com all right. Remember that, PreBorn is, our sponsor, and they just do such great work, and I'm so proud to have them as sponsors. And if you would like to help them, just go to preborn.com sandy that's preborn.com sandy well, thank you for listening. Listening to today's edition of Santa Rios 24 7.

Sandy engages with Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins as he outlines his vision for the future of Florida amidst a critical gubernatorial race. Collins emphasizes the importance of strong conservative leadership and discusses the challenges facing the state, including election integrity and the impact of technology on local governance.

(00:00) This race is about leadership. It's about leadership under pressure

(01:49) Jay Collins is running for Florida governor.

(03:41) An international pro life leader was assassinated in her home this week

(09:09) Jay Collins is bringing a lawsuit challenging Florida's election integrity

(14:22) On election integrity, Jay says he's absorbed in the midterms

(14:43) What steps have Florida taken to prevent Chinese hacking of voting machines

(18:22) Ron DeSantis is running for Florida governor

(24:13) Jay Caruso: I've learned about politicians who do nothing

(24:50) Let's talk about Byron Donalds. Let's address the elephant not in the room

(25:41) Jay Carney: Byron Nelson's endorsements are always troubling

(29:31) Jay Gonzalez says Florida needs a strong pro-life governor

(34:04) The issue at hand is hyperscale data centers. So when the Democratic nominee is aligned on this issue

(39:29) The real issue was, ah, it was a huge issue in Iowa

(39:58) Tech industry players have poured millions of dollars into Representative Byron Donald's campaign

(42:36) Jay Collins urges Floridians to vote for Ron DeSantis

(45:06) Abortions performed by Planned Parenthood among top four leading causes of death

(46:57) Ron DeSantis weighed in on Byron Donalds' potential Florida governor run