Nate Morris, a candidate in the Kentucky Republican Senate primary to succeed the retiring Mitch McConnell, discusses being endorsed by Elon Musk and supporting President Trump on “Fox News Sunday.”
AISHA HASNIE, FOX NEWS: OK. Well, you have aligned yourself with the president and you’re presenting yourself as an outsider in this race, which has become very trendy in politics now. But talk to me about how you’re setting yourself apart because we do want to remind our voters that you interned for Mitch McConnell a long time ago and you worked for his wife, Elaine. So, walk me through what change from them and who you are now.
MORRIS: Well, Aishah, that was 26 years ago. I was 19, 20 years old. And, look, I’m not a politician. Never run for office before. I’m proud that I’m a ninth generation Kentuckian.
You know, I was raised by a single mom. We were on food stamps. We’ve been fighting and scrubbing for everything we have.
I’ve took about $10,000 and built one of the largest waste management companies in the United States. And that’s a very tough industry, as you know. This is the Tony Soprano industry. And I want to take that same fight to the U.S. Senate and stand with the president. You know, we’ve got so many things going on. We can’t pass the SAVE America Act right now and we need people with spines of steel that are willing to go in there and fight. And that’s why we’ve got to get rid of the zombie filibuster.
You know, my opponent, Andy Barr, would never oppose the zombie filibuster because Mitch McConnell won’t let him. So, I think that’s what we’ve got to have somebody from the outside and someone who’s willing to go and shake it up.
HASNIE: So, you did get Charlie Kirk’s endorsement before he passed away tragically. No Trump endorsement yet, but you’ve got money coming in from Elon Musk, which is a big deal. But “Bloomberg” wrote this up about you the other day. And it said — they said that it’s Republicans that they were talking to, “some Republicans are griping that Musk may have picked the wrong candidate.”
Where is that coming from? Explain that.
MORRIS: Well, that’s coming from a very liberal source. And, obviously, look, I think we’re the outsider. President Trump knows that the media continues to lie. These are career politicians that continue to lie. But, look, Elon Musk picks winners. And I’m so proud that he’s endorsed our campaign, he’s been supportive and I’m confident that we’re going to win because I think Kentucky’s ready for a change. They’re tired of what they’ve had with Mitch McConnell over the last 40 years. They’re tired of career politicians. They want someone who’s going to stand with Trump, have his back and that’s why I think, you know, you take —
HASNIE: But they also want someone who’s going to bring prices down. Affordability is a big issue. I’ve got family in Kentucky. So, just 30 seconds left here, Nate. What would you do about the affordability issue?
MORRIS: Well, look, I’m so proud of what the president’s doing related to tariffs. We need senators that are willing to stand and support the president’s tariffs. You know, 19 of my family members worked in an auto plant. It was people like my family that got hurt by things like NAFTA. And the president is protecting the American worker from getting ripped off from these foreign countries. And I’m so proud of everything that he’s doing to help people like my family get ahead in this country.
HASNIE: Tariffs also hit the bourbon industry in Kentucky.
MORRIS: Look, overall, they’ve been fantastic for Kentucky. We just got a $2.5 billion investment from Apple right in central Kentucky. That would have never happened without President Trump’s tariffs. So, I’m going to continue to fight. And when I go to the United States Senate, I’m going to make sure that we stand strong for his economic policy.
