Smiley: We need strong leaders, we don’t need politicians

Tiffany Smiley is launching a new political action committee (PAC) called Endeavor — which is committed to training and elevating the people of America who won’t stand for the status quo.

“We are working to help candidates across the country,” Smiley said on The Jason Rantz Show on AM 770 KTTH. “I think what we saw on this last election was extremely disappointing for our country and for the future. What we found is, there’s a lot of people that just don’t vote. They don’t get involved. They don’t believe the government is going to change anything, the government’s not going to impact their life in a positive manner. And that just breaks my heart.”

Smiley previously ran against the current president pro tempore Patty Murray for her seat in the U.S. Senate representing Washington in 2022, with Murray grabbing 57% of the vote in comparison to Smiley’s 43%.

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“We need people involved. We need people voting,” Smiley said. “We need people engaged and understanding politics and getting the truth out of politics. We need that now more than ever. Endeavor means to finish the race.”

Smiley worked previously as a nurse before creating the Hope Unseen Foundation, an organization based around her husband’s combat injury in 2005, where he was blinded and temporarily paralyzed after a suicide car bomb went off. Scotty Smiley became the first blind active-duty officer in military history when he returned to the service.

Meanwhile, Tiffany describes herself as a “political outsider,” something her PAC wants to encourage among up-and-coming political candidates.

“I want to seek to find more candidates who are political outsiders, who have succeeded in the private sector because we need their voices in the halls of Congress now more than ever,” Smiley said. “I will be fighting and working to help them and help them get across the finish line and get elected.”

The idea of a political outsider ballooned in the wake of former President Donald Trump’s election in 2016, but the trend has been building ever since former President Richard Nixon abandoned the post, leaving just 36% of Americans still having complete trust in their government.

Public trust in the federal government was at 24% leading up to the 2016 election.

Smiley stated that the Endeavor PAC is looking for candidates with clear and compelling politics, a precise policy agenda, and a dedication to limited government, fiscal restraint, and individual freedoms.

“I mean, we need strong leaders, we don’t need politicians,” Smiley said. “We need leaders who will be willing to go fight for that in our halls of Congress and demonstrate leadership skills that are drawn from real-life experiences, successes and failures collectively.”

Smiley wants her PAC-backed candidates to focus on strengthening and supporting small businesses, while prioritizing public schools by acknowledging the parent’s right to have the ultimate say in how their children are educated.

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“When I ran this race in Washington state, it wasn’t necessarily Democrat vs. Republican. It was about policies. It was about common sense. It was about delivering results and actually getting people to believe in government again because, quite frankly, they don’t and I don’t blame them,” Smiley said. “Going forward, we need to give people a reason to vote, a reason to believe that good policy will make a difference in their lives, and I am fully committed to doing that for our country going forward and still staying in the fight.”

“Are you running for governor in Washington State?” Rantz asked.

“As of right now, I am not running for governor,” Smiley responded. “But, obviously, our family is committed to doing whatever we can for this country. So I always say, nothing’s off the table for me or Scotty as far as a future political run.”

Listen to the Jason Rantz Show weekday afternoons from 3 – 6 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (or HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here.