The Town Square Podcast

Who Pays and Who AnswersDon Scarbrough on taxes, data centers, and accountability | Town Square Podcast Episode 108 | Candidate ConversationsListen to Episode 108 in your favorite podcast app by searching for Town Square Podcast. Watch the full conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/dEDjt44eNjsYou work, pay your bills, and pay your taxes. How much should government ask of you, and how clearly should it explain what happens to that money?For Don Scarbrough, those questions sit at the center of his campaign for Georgia House District 113. In Episode 108 of the Town Square Podcast, our Candidate Conversations series continues with a candidate who describes himself as a working man, an IT professional, and a Christian constitutional conservative.He has strong opinions about taxes, public spending, and the role of government. Trey asks him to explain what those convictions would mean for schools, law enforcement, health care, and the data centers drawing so much attention in Newton County.The conversation also gets into the harder part of running for office: turning a principle into something that can work alongside other lawmakers and serve people who may disagree with you.A working man with firm convictionsScarbrough says he did not set out to become a politician. People who knew him encouraged him to run, and he describes his motivation in familiar terms: taking care of his family, practicing his faith, and wanting government to stop making life harder for working people.That perspective shapes his approach to the District 113 race. He wants voters to understand his principles before they decide whether he should represent them. He also acknowledges that people across party lines have much in common, even as the conversation explores some sharp ideological differences.When Trey asks about his campaign language opposing the Democratic agenda, Scarbrough narrows his objection to what he calls a Democratic Socialist agenda. His concern, as he explains it, is the growth of government power and its effect on individual freedom. Trey brings the conversation back to affordability and why people who feel shut out of homeownership might become open to different economic ideas.Taxes and the question of who should payScarbrough uses blunt language to describe his frustration with taxation. But he also says taxes are necessary to support basic services. His argument is that government takes too much, spends too loosely, and makes it too difficult for people to see whether programs deliver what they promise.He favors exploring a consumption-based tax approach and discusses a simpler system with possible relief for people living in poverty. This is a statement of direction in the interview, rather than a costed legislative proposal. He also recognizes that federal tax administration is outside the office he is seeking.The discussion becomes especially local when it turns to school taxes. Scarbrough questions why people without children in public schools should have to pay them, including families using private schools and people without school-age children. Trey presses on the shared-service principle behind that argument and asks whether rising property assessments are part of what makes the burden feel so heavy.It is a real disagreement about how communities fund services. The interview gives voters a chance to hear both Scarbrough’s objection and the questions it raises about paying for public education.Education and the ability to think independentlyEducation comes up as both a spending question and an opportunity question. Scarbrough argues that larger budgets should be judged against results. Trey raises the science of reading, phonics, and the importance of getting the fundamentals right.Scarbrough emphasizes independent thought: students should learn the basics and develop the ability to research, evaluate information, and make decisions for themselves. That concern resurfaces later when he discusses AI and the risk of relying on technology to do the thinking for us.For local readers, the connection is straightforward. Literacy and critical thinking affect a person’s ability to work, support a family, and participate in community life. The interview explores what Scarbrough thinks schools should accomplish without laying out a detailed education funding plan.Public safety with an emphasis on trainingScarbrough’s views on crime are informed in part by personal experiences he recounts during the conversation, including a house fire while he was in Iraq and theft from his property afterward. He also describes more recent vehicle break-ins.He supports law enforcement, stronger enforcement of existing laws, and Second Amendment rights. When Trey asks what safer communities would require, Scarbrough discusses hiring more officers and investing in training, especially constitutional law and knowledge of the laws officers enforce.He also calls for accountability when judges make decisions involving repeat offenders. He clarifies that his point is about whether a judge should remain in office. Throughout this portion of the interview, his stated priorities are public safety, fairness, and constitutional protections.An IT perspective that calls for slowing down data centersAn IT background might lead you to expect an enthusiastic pitch for data centers. Scarbrough takes a more skeptical position.He questions the pace of development, the assumptions behind AI demand, and the consequences for local power, water, and infrastructure. He supports a moratorium while those issues receive closer scrutiny. Trey presses him on the services data centers already support, including cloud computing, business operations, and the platform carrying this very conversation.Scarbrough acknowledges that data centers are useful. His position centers on how many are needed, whether the technology and demand justify the buildout, and who carries the cost. He also raises concerns about AI errors, bias, privacy, and dependence on technology.His clearest line is about infrastructure: private enterprises should pay for the demands they create. “Taxpayers do not need to pay for private enterprise,” he says. That principle also drives his skepticism toward public subsidies more broadly.Follow the money before expanding programsOn Medicaid, Scarbrough says he wants fraud and waste addressed before considering expansion. He argues that government should understand where existing money goes and what it achieves before asking taxpayers to support more spending.He calls for audits and public access to their findings. His broader goal is to make spending traceable so residents can see what was purchased, what it cost, and whether it worked. The conversation presents his case for oversight; it does not establish how much an audit would recover or whether those savings would meet additional health care needs.“Accountability is my number one goal here,” he says.The flashlight candidateNear the end, Trey gives Scarbrough a memorable description: the flashlight candidate. The idea is to shine a light on spending and let the public see what is happening.Scarbrough is careful about promising results. He can commit to trying, he says, but cannot honestly guarantee what he would accomplish in a first term. That distinction matters in a conversation full of firm convictions: governing would still require working with other members of the House.That is why we do Candidate Conversations. Voters deserve time to hear a candidate explain his priorities, respond to follow-up questions, and work through the places where a slogan leaves something unanswered.Watch Episode 108 and hear Don Scarbrough’s perspective in full. Bring your questions to the messy middle. Unity does not require uniformity.Links MentionedWatch Episode 108: https://youtu.be/dEDjt44eNjsDon Scarbrough campaign website, shared in the episode: https://caariga.comCampaign email, shared in the episode: [email protected] Square Insiders: https://TheTownSquarePodcast.com/insidersSponsors and AdvertisersHeadbangers TaphouseCold beer, food, and live entertainment in Covington, as featured in the episode’s sponsor message. Gather some friends and check them out.https://headbangerstaphouse.comSteelCo BuildingsCustom pre-engineered metal building systems for commercial, agricultural, and other projects. Planning a building? Visit SteelCo to explore the options.https://www.steelcobuildings.com

Our Candidate Conversation series continues as Trey Bailey welcomes Rev. Dr. Eric Lee, candidate for Georgia Senate District 42. A young family moves in with relatives, works to get on its feet, and hopes a first home is somewhere within reach. Rev. Dr. Eric Lee knows that experience personally. In this conversation, he recalls receiving food assistance and substitute teaching during the year he began pastoring Springfield Baptist Church. Six months later, he says, his family bought its first home.Now he looks at his own children and wonders how many young adults can still make that kind of move.That question runs through Episode 107 of The Town Square Podcast. Lee joins Trey Bailey for our continuing Candidate Conversation series to discuss his run for Georgia Senate District 42 and the priorities he would bring to the Gold Dome. Affordability gets much of the attention, but the conversation also asks what makes a community worth living in and what residents should expect from the people who represent them.A pastor with family on both sides of the affordability questionLee and his wife came to Newton County in 1999 with a young son. Their family grew to five children, and his ministry at Springfield grew with the community. He talks warmly about Mansfield Elementary, where his wife worked as a speech therapist and their first three children attended school.His decision to run is rooted partly in the stage of life he occupies now. He has aging parents and children beginning their adult lives. Healthcare, housing, and the cost of getting established feel immediate when he thinks about both generations.Lee also describes how ministry has shaped his understanding of influence. He recalls the sense of calm he felt hearing Senate Chaplain Barry Black pray in the aftermath of January 6. The moment helped him think about the importance of bringing his voice into places where public decisions are made.“It’s not just what you say,” Lee says. “It’s where you say it.”He sees public service as another opportunity to help people, while recognizing that representing a district means reaching people beyond his own congregation.Making a first home feel possible againFor Lee, homeownership is one measure of whether hard work can still lead to stability. He wants first-time buyers to have a better chance of purchasing a primary residence, and he argues that competing with corporate buyers can put families at a disadvantage.He calls for incentives for first-time homebuyers and consideration of ways to limit direct competition from corporate entities. These are priorities he wants lawmakers to pursue; the conversation does not lay out a completed bill or a detailed financing plan.Trey connects the issue to the character of a neighborhood. A home can give people a reason to invest in the place and the neighbors around them. Lee’s concern is that families who work and save should have a realistic opportunity to put down those roots.Fuel costs and access to healthcareLee also raises shorter-term relief from fuel costs. He suggests considering periods of suspended state gas taxes, with attention to travel seasons and the fuel needs of farmers. His argument is that transportation costs reach beyond the pump and affect the price of producing and moving food.On healthcare, he supports Medicaid expansion. He points to North Carolina as an example and argues that broader coverage could help Georgians afford care and reduce pressure on hospitals. Trey and Lee connect that discussion to their experience around a hospital board table, where financial decisions have practical consequences for local care.The proposals give listeners a sense of where Lee would focus. They also leave room for the questions that follow any policy idea: how it would be funded, who would benefit, and how lawmakers would measure whether it works.Tax relief without leaving schools shortProperty taxes bring the discussion directly into Trey’s work on the school board. Families need relief, especially seniors at risk of being priced out of homes they have already paid for. Schools and other public services still need dependable funding.Lee argues that those responsibilities can be addressed together. He favors looking at relief based on income and says revenue removed from one place has to be accounted for somewhere else. He is skeptical of sweeping promises to eliminate taxes without explaining how essential services would continue.“We should all have skin in the game,” he says.He also challenges the idea that a large state surplus, by itself, proves government is meeting its responsibilities. His concern is whether needs in healthcare, education, and infrastructure remain unmet while money sits unused. The conversation makes the tradeoff concrete: a tax decision eventually reaches a classroom, a school bus, a hospital, or a household budget.Data centers and the need for public answersWhen the conversation turns to data centers, Lee resists an easy yes-or-no answer. He describes them as growth that communities will have to manage and calls for a substantial role for local control.His concerns include energy demands, the distinction between temporary construction jobs and permanent employment, and the information residents receive before decisions are made. He questions the use of nondisclosure arrangements in a process that affects the public.Trey raises the possibility of appropriately located industrial development helping support local services, while acknowledging the concerns of people living nearby. Lee encourages people to keep learning and to approach educational discussions with an open mind.The exchange leaves listeners with a useful set of questions: What is being promised? What will the community be responsible for? And how much will residents know before a decision is final?What wages have to do with community lifeLee supports raising wages, but he does not offer a specific minimum-wage target in this interview. He says employers and economists need to be part of the discussion and acknowledges concerns about the effects on small businesses.He describes conversations with people whose employees work multiple jobs to make ends meet. The issue, in his telling, is both income and the time left over for living.Trey follows that thought into the community. If someone can meet expenses with one job instead of several, there may be time to attend a child’s game, volunteer, or participate in church. Lee adds Bible study to the list. It is a small exchange that explains why the conversation keeps returning to quality of life.Representing the whole districtLee’s view of community investment includes places where people meet outside political arguments. He talks about the Cricket Frog Trail, local arts events, and Springfield’s support for the Fuzz Run. Those experiences, he says, can help neighbors get to know one another.Asked what distinguishes his candidacy, Lee says he wants to represent the entire district. He rejects a county-against-county approach and says he is seeking support from people across political affiliations. He wants voters to consider what their communities could become.That is also the purpose of making time for a full Candidate Conversation. A campaign name on a sign tells you very little about how a person thinks. This episode gives listeners time to hear Lee’s reasoning, weigh his proposals, and decide which questions they want their next state senator to answer.Watch the full conversation: https://youtu.be/-iZSh6fJfvgLinks MentionedRev. Dr. Eric Lee campaign website - https://ericleeforgeorgia.comSpringfield Baptist Church - https://www.sbcgrowth.churchWatch Episode 107 on YouTube - https://youtu.be/-iZSh6fJfvgSponsors and AdvertisersUnited Bank — Covington BranchThank you to United Bank’s Covington Branch for supporting local conversations on The Town Square Podcast. United Bank offers personal and business banking, mortgage services, and financial planning. Stop by the Covington office or visit the website to learn more, and let the team know you appreciate their support of the show.https://www.accessunited.comMember FDIC. Equal Housing Lender.

A data center moves into the conversation. A school needs resources. A family needs medical care, but help is a long drive away. State policy can feel distant until the consequences land close to home.For Michael Caw, those concerns are connected by a question he says he hears from residents: Are the people making decisions actually listening?In Episode 106, our Candidate Conversation series continues with the Newborn councilman and candidate for Georgia House of Representatives District 114. Caw joins Trey Bailey and Gabriel Stovall to discuss growth, education, healthcare access, local businesses, and how he would approach representing his neighbors at the Gold Dome.From testing building materials to serving neighborsCaw introduces himself with stories from Wichita, Kansas, his move to the South, and a career at Georgia-Pacific testing building materials. The work involved walls, roofs, ceilings, and doors, with safety as a practical concern: Would the materials and hardware do their job when people depended on them?He returns to that idea of standards throughout the conversation. Working with different people requires flexibility, he says, along with a foundation everyone can build on. He connects that experience to service on the Newborn council and volunteer work with the Newborn Heritage Trust.Asked why he wants to run for the state House, Caw says residents need representatives who hear their concerns and bring them into the policy process. He describes himself as a fellow constituent seeking to become their advocate.Data centers and the responsibilities of a neighborData centers are among the concerns Caw says he hears while talking with voters. He questions the scale of their resource use and raises concerns about water, noise, lighting, and the surrounding environment.“People should be first for those resources,” he says.Caw recognizes artificial intelligence as a tool, while questioning how much infrastructure is needed and what communities should expect from the companies building it. His test is whether a business will be a good corporate neighbor and participate in the life of the community.He points to the local merchants and gathering places that help sustain Newborn and nearby Mansfield. For him, economic development should be evaluated with the people already living there in mind.School funding gets a closer lookWhen Caw names education as a priority, Trey pauses the conversation to dig into the school funding formula. Caw says Georgia needs to revisit its Quality Basic Education, or QBE, formula and better support schools.The conversation looks at how the demands on schools have changed, including technology, safety, and the cost of educating students. Caw also calls for residents to take an active role by helping children read, explore their interests, and understand their responsibility to the community.His view of preparation goes beyond learning to operate the latest device. He emphasizes thinking, communication, and adaptable skills, along with the lessons students learn through art and athletics. The hosts join him in discussing why young people need an education that can serve them through changing jobs and stages of life.Healthcare that people can reachHealthcare access is Caw’s third major priority. He describes concerns about ambulance response times and the distance residents in rural areas may need to travel for care. He asks whether more places to stabilize patients before transfer could help families who live far from a hospital.He also raises access to care for women and children and argues for a stronger regional healthcare presence. Mental health belongs in that discussion, he says, alongside physical health.The conversation presents his priorities and reasoning rather than a detailed plan for financing or implementing those services. His central argument is that healthy residents and accessible care are investments in the community’s future.Keeping local businesses and farms in the pictureAsked about supporting businesses, farmers, and working families, Caw starts with buying locally. He describes purchases from a neighborhood merchant as part of a network that supports mortgages, children, jobs, and other businesses nearby.He wants farmers to have markets for their products and encourages people to develop and share practical skills. That leads to a lighter exchange about artisan businesses, handmade goods, and his own interest in sewing and learning to repair shoes.There is also a question about how government spends. Caw says public resources have limits and argues that policy should look beyond the next election cycle. He wants leaders to consider who benefits from a decision and whether the investment serves residents over time.Working together starts with seeing the personWhen Gabriel asks about working with Republicans and Democrats, Caw starts with recognizing the other person’s humanity and the people they represent. Listening, patience, and empathy are part of his answer.“Compromise is not a dirty word,” he says.Trey recalls meeting Caw at a gathering of local leaders from different political backgrounds. Sharing a meal and talking helped build relationships that could matter later, when those same leaders needed to solve a difficult problem together.That is a fitting place for this Candidate Conversation to land. Voters deserve time to hear how a candidate thinks, what he prioritizes, and how he responds to questions. Watch the full conversation, consider Caw’s answers, and keep asking questions of the people who want to represent you.Learn more about Michael Caw’s campaign:https://cawforgeorgia.comLinks MentionedWatch Episode 106 on YouTube - https://youtu.be/dxvfHeb9H7oMichael Caw campaign website - https://cawforgeorgia.comAngel Pitts with United Bank Wealth Management - https://www.accessunited.com/wealth-managementTown Square InsidersJoin the Town Square Insidershttps://TheTownSquarePodcast.com/insidersSponsors and AdvertisersAngel Pitts with United Bank Wealth ManagementThis episode is sponsored by Angel Pitts with United Bank Wealth Management. United Bank offers financial and retirement planning services built around clients’ goals. Reach out to Angel to start a conversation about your financial future, and thank her for supporting local conversations on The Town Square Podcast.https://www.accessunited.com/wealth-management

A grocery bill. A long drive to medical care. A veteran still trying to get help. When Pamela DeLancy talks about the people she meets on the campaign trail, those are the kinds of concerns she brings to the table.In Episode 105, our Candidate Conversation series continues with DeLancy, a retired Army colonel and registered nurse running for US Congress in Georgia’s 10th District. She joins us to discuss the experiences that shaped her, why she decided to run, and what she hears from residents across a district that takes serious windshield time to cover.She is direct about her convictions. She also has stories to tell, beginning long before she ever thought about putting her name on a ballot.Learning to lead before she had a titleAs the oldest of six children, DeLancy describes taking on family responsibilities early. After her parents divorced, her mother worked nights as a licensed practical nurse. DeLancy helped get her siblings up, fed, and ready for school so that the morning could run smoothly when her mother came home.She also recalls her younger brother’s serious medical needs and the family’s move from Louisiana to Houston to find care. Helping her family was part of daily life. Looking back, she sees those experiences as the beginning of her understanding of accountability and service.At 17, she asked her mother to sign the paperwork allowing her to join the Army. She saw a way to continue her education, support herself, and send money home. The plan eventually led her into nursing and a military career that lasted much longer than she initially imagined.From enlisted soldier to Army colonelEarly in the interview, DeLancy corrects the hosts’ notes: her service totaled 39 years, including 31 on active duty and eight in the Army Reserve. She describes beginning as an enlisted soldier, taking college classes while stationed in Germany, and later returning to school full time.Through ROTC and nursing school, she became an officer. She tells the story of discovering that the Army needed her back on active duty as a nurse, a development she now sees as one of the best turns her career took.The conversation also addresses the challenges she experienced as a Black woman in leadership. DeLancy says she learned to stay focused on her work and goals even when others questioned her authority. Her advice to younger soldiers was practical: be dependable, meet the standard, and do not let someone else’s behavior determine the course of your career.Why she decided to runDeLancy says her decision grew out of concerns about constitutional rights and the direction of the country. She emphasizes the military oath to the Constitution and argues that public officials should serve the people rather than pledge loyalty to a particular administration.Her experience surviving gallbladder cancer also changed how she thought about the time ahead of her. She describes surgery, chemotherapy, and the importance of advocating for herself as a patient. After a long career of service, she felt called to do more.There is a candid campaign origin story, too: a YouTube class, advice about raising money, and a prospective campaign manager whose discounted fee was still beyond what she had available. DeLancy kept going. A friend’s phrase, “Pam speaks boldly,” becomes a recurring thread in the interview.What she hears on the roadAsked what residents tell her, DeLancy returns to affordability. She describes concerns about groceries, housing, fuel, and wages, along with the practical difficulty of finding services in rural communities. Some of the conversations she recounts involve limited access to dental care, maternity care, or a nearby grocery store.For DeLancy, those issues connect. A job needs to pay enough to support a household, and a community needs the services that allow people to keep living and working there. She argues for stronger wages and career training, including opportunities for people who do not pursue a four-year degree.She also talks about farmers who want to preserve agricultural land as pressure for development grows. The needs of a rural community, she says, cannot be understood solely from a distance. That is part of why she puts so much emphasis on visiting people in person.Veterans and the work of getting helpVeterans’ care is one of the most personal parts of the episode. DeLancy describes people she has met who spent years trying to secure benefits, and she recounts her uncle’s experience seeking disability compensation. She says his approval arrived the day before the family buried him.Her central argument is that veterans should not have to struggle through an exhausting process to obtain support connected to their service. She calls for more consistent access to mental healthcare, with attention to continuing treatment and prevention as well as crisis response.She also describes an idea for a public-service employment and training program inspired by earlier conservation efforts. In her proposal, veterans and workers who need additional skills could train for jobs that meet needs in their own communities. She connects that idea to rural employment and the care an aging population will require.Affordability without a magic wandThe hosts ask what Congress can realistically do about food and housing costs. DeLancy acknowledges that Congress cannot simply make prices fall overnight. She discusses supporting locally grown food, scrutinizing corporate pricing, and improving pay so that more families can cover basic expenses.She also argues that debates about food assistance need to account for what people earn. In her view, it makes little sense to criticize families for needing help while accepting wages that leave them unable to pay for necessities.Her answers place household stability at the center of her campaign. They also give listeners a useful starting point for follow-up questions about the federal policies, costs, and partnerships that would be needed to carry out her priorities.Data centers and the people living nearbyWhen the conversation turns to data centers, DeLancy questions whether the promised economic benefits adequately account for the burdens on nearby residents. She raises concerns about water use, electricity demand, noise, and the protection of farmland.She argues that developers should bear responsibility for addressing resource needs and community impacts. She also suggests that residents should share more directly in the benefits of projects built near them. These are her policy views and concerns; the interview is not a technical assessment of a particular facility.The hosts acknowledge that they have heard different perspectives on data centers across the podcast. This conversation adds DeLancy’s priorities to that wider discussion: protect essential resources and ask who receives the benefit when a community accepts a major development.Voting and the meaning of representationDeLancy recounts receiving a voter-registration mailing that concerned her and contacting election officials about it. The experience becomes part of a larger conversation about access to voting and the importance she places on constitutional rights. For official registration and polling information, Georgia listeners can use the state’s My Voter Page: https://mvp.sos.ga.gov/s/The hosts also ask her to identify both a difference and a point of agreement with her Republican opponent. DeLancy draws a sharp distinction between their approaches and says the shared pursuit of the office is the only common ground she can name. It is a revealing answer in a series built to let candidates explain where they stand.She closes by asking voters to consider a candidate’s values and commitment to representation. Her case for running rests on the idea that serving people has been the consistent work of her life. Hear her make that case, weigh the ideas, and bring your own questions to the conversation.Watch Episode 105: https://youtu.be/zHkwm1U8VKALinks Mentioned and Listener ResourcesPamela DeLancy campaign website https://www.votepamdelancy.comWatch Episode 105 https://youtu.be/zHkwm1U8VKAGeorgia My Voter Page — official voter information resource https://mvp.sos.ga.gov/s/Town Square Insiders. https://TheTownSquarePodcast.com/insidersSponsors and AdvertisersBizzy Bee ExterminatorsThank you to Bizzy Bee Exterminators for supporting this episode. Bizzy Bee provides pest control for homes and businesses, including termite and mosquito services. Visit https://www.bizzybeeexterminators.com to explore their services and request help with unwanted pests.Headbangers TaphouseWelcome to our newest sponsor, Headbangers Taphouse! The episode’s sponsor spot introduces a Covington gathering place with food, beer on tap, sports, music bingo, and live music. Bring your friends and get to know the business helping support these local conversations. Visit https://headbangerstaphouse.com for more information.

What does “meeting in the middle” actually mean when the conversation turns to healthcare, immigration, abortion, and the cost of living? It is easy to say we need more cooperation. The harder question is where a candidate is willing to practice it.In Episode 104, our Candidate Conversation series continues with Jonathan Chavez, a Republican running for US Congress in Georgia’s 13th District. The Conyers resident joins us to discuss the experiences behind his positions, the problems he wants Congress to address, and the places where his answers depart from familiar party talking points.There is also a surprisingly detailed conversation about loading a dishwasher. Around here, getting to know a candidate includes the person who goes home after the campaign event.The family and work behind the campaignChavez describes a path from Albuquerque to Boston and eventually to Conyers, where his wife’s family helped draw them to Georgia. He talks about raising four children, his family’s decision to homeschool, and the work ethic his father passed down to him.Those family stories help explain how he approaches opportunity and responsibility. He recalls working as a teenager and learning to keep a goal in view when setbacks came. Today, he says, his children are a central reason he keeps pushing himself.His professional background brings another perspective. Drawing on his military medical service and work in healthcare administration, Chavez describes leadership as a responsibility to make decisions with the best information available, including information that challenges your first instinct.Why he wants people who will challenge himOne of the episode’s most revealing stories comes from a military training exercise. Faced with a simulated casualty lying on a grenade, Chavez had to decide how to protect his team while continuing to help other patients. He describes choosing to report the hazard and move the team forward.The lesson he carried away was about making a decision under pressure, then learning from it. In his civilian work, he says that also means hiring people who will question his approach.“I need to surround myself with not just yes people,” Chavez says. He wants respectful opposition because someone else may see the angle he missed. That idea becomes a recurring test throughout the conversation: how would it translate from a hospital team to Congress?Healthcare beyond a yes or no on ObamacareHealthcare produces some of the most detailed policy discussion. Chavez says he values the Affordable Care Act’s protections for people with preexisting conditions and wants to improve the system rather than reject it wholesale.He proposes expanding public coverage for certain expensive medical conditions while giving health insurers more ability to compete across state lines, with a minimum coverage standard. In his view, taking on some of the costliest care could create room to press insurers for lower premiums. Those are his proposed changes and expected benefits, not established outcomes.Chavez connects his ideas to the patients he encounters through his work, including people who struggle to afford copayments. He also describes efforts to shorten inpatient MRI turnaround times and develop cardiac imaging services. For him, the policy question starts with whether people can actually get the care they need.The discussion leaves room for the implementation questions: how coverage would be financed, how quality would be protected, and what would make the promised savings reach patients. It gives listeners a clearer picture of what he wants to pursue.Affordability and a different way to collect taxesOn affordability, Chavez discusses housing tax credits, business regulation, and support for small businesses. The hosts press him on the boundary between what Congress can change and what belongs to state or local government.He also explains his interest in the FairTax proposal, a national consumption tax approach with a monthly household “prebate.” He sees potential in changing how federal taxes are collected, while saying the idea needs more research and questioning whether it would really eliminate the IRS.For listeners, the useful question is what such a change would mean for a household’s full budget: take-home pay, purchases, and the monthly prebate together. Chavez’s expectations about prices and savings are part of his case for studying the proposal.Border security and a pathway for longtime residentsAsked what securing the border means to him, Chavez argues for enforcement alongside a more workable legal immigration system. He also says some longtime undocumented residents who have contributed to their communities should have a pathway toward citizenship.His grandfather’s immigration story helps shape that view. Chavez says this is one area where he differs from some people in his own party, and he describes wanting a process that is faster and better able to vet applicants.The exchange gets at an important part of Candidate Conversations: a broad campaign phrase can hold very different ideas. Asking the next question is how listeners find out what a candidate actually means.Schools and measuring student growthEducation brings the conversation back to the relationship between federal support and local decisions. Chavez favors expanding support for students facing poverty, educator development, and students from immigrant backgrounds while giving states and districts room to determine how resources are used.He argues for measuring students’ progress from their starting points. When students struggle, he wants schools to receive help and resources to improve. He also supports assistance for homeschooling families, while acknowledging that homeschooling is not a workable option for everyone and that public schools will continue to serve families.Faith, abortion and the limits of party labelsChavez is direct about his Christian faith and opposition to abortion. He describes those convictions as central to his reasons for running, and he discusses wanting a larger place for prayer and Christian principles in public life.The hosts also explore how voters weigh competing priorities. A person’s party affiliation does not necessarily tell you what they believe about every issue, or which concern will carry the most weight in their vote. That exchange adds context without resolving the disagreements.Chavez says he once identified as a Democrat, and he credits conversations with his wife with challenging his views. His willingness to describe that change sits alongside firm positions that some listeners will share and others will question. Both are part of understanding the candidate.Hear the reasoning and bring your questionsNear the end, the conversation returns to accountability: what should voters expect from the person they send to Washington, and how should they judge the results? Chavez argues for a change in representation and says he does not want a lifelong career in Congress.This episode offers listeners time to hear his reasoning across several issues, including where he draws a firm line and where he sees room to work with others. Watch the full conversation, consider the proposals, and bring your own questions. That is the work of the messy middle.Watch Episode 104: https://youtu.be/4b3pWEq1Cv8Links MentionedJonathan Chavez campaign website - https://jonathanchavezforcongress.com/FairTax proposal discussed in the episode - https://fairtax.org/about/how-fairtax-worksWatch Episode 104 - https://youtu.be/4b3pWEq1Cv8Become a Town Square Insider. Don't miss a single episode or the weekly blog posts. Click the link and enter your email address to be a Town Square Insider - https://TheTownSquarePodcast.com/insidersSponsors and AdvertisersThank you to United Bank Mortgage for supporting Town Square Podcast and our Candidate Conversation series. United Bank offers mortgage services with local lenders who can help you explore buying or refinancing a home. Visit https://www.accessunited.com to learn more and connect with their team. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender.