This election, a record number of veterans and working class candidates appear on the Democratic ticket. Colorado Representative Jason Crow is largely to thank — he has led the charge on recruiting “normal,” authentic Democratic candidates who understand the real issues affecting Americans.
Rep. Crow sits down with Tim on Election Day to talk about fixing a system where the political class is out of step with the people it represents. Spotlighting the all-star service members running for office, the pair also discuss how a Democratic Congress must take action against Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s abuse of power.
Congressman Jason Crow represents Colorado’s 6th District . He serves on the House Armed Services and Intelligence Committees.
The following transcript has been edited for formatting puposes.
Tim Dickinson
Our guest today is Representative Jason Crow from Colorado, who’s also been really instrumental in recruiting a lot of this extraordinary class of ‘26. Jason. Congressman, welcome.
Rep. Jason Crow
Yeah, Jason, please! Tim, good to be on, man. Thanks for having me.
Tim Dickinson
Tell us… we’ve been interviewing a lot of the Democratic recruits, and a lot of them don’t sort of fit the mold of the politician, or the lawyer, or the medical professional, we’ve seen firemen, we’ve seen nurses, teachers, middle-class folks, people with military backgrounds. Can you tell us a bit about what your strategy was going into recruiting this class?
Rep. Jason Crow
Yeah, well, you’re right, they don’t fit the mold, because if the mold doesn’t work, you gotta change the mold. I mean, I mean, it’s crazy, right? We lost 90% of U.S. counties in the fall of 2024, the election of 2024, so who in their right mind would have thought that, like, we’re killing it and we should be doing the same thing over and over again? So, yeah, we’re doing things differently. We’re finding new folks, you know, firefighters, sheriff’s deputies, smokejumpers. You know, small business owners, doctors, nurses, military veterans, people that have largely done things outside of politics, that have deep roots in their community that are trusted, and they’re normal people, actually. This is the shocking thing, like, it turns out. normal people like normal people, right? And if you’re just not weird, and you’re a normal person, and have spent your life You know, raising a family, growing a small business, doing normal stuff, like, that’s what people want for their leadership, and what’s more is That’s, that’s where we need to take our country, right? We need to take our country, back to the basics, back to, the, the main street, and, and to build something new, right? We’re not… when I say back, I’m talking about the fundamentals. We’re not going back to build an old system, we’re building a new one.
Tim Dickinson
Well, two things, jumping off what you said. The authenticity of the candidates that we’ve been talking to has been sort of off the charts, and it’s, like, something you can’t fake, right? I’ve been around politics for decades now, and you know political types, and these people you know, they grew up on SNAP and Medicaid, or they, you know, had to pay off their student loans, or they, you know, were working 3 jobs at one point. You know, they really have that lived experience that isn’t just like, oh, I know what my constituents are going through. It’s like, their constituents, would be constituents are going through when you talk about… I guess the… so that came through in spades, but the other thing that came through is that these people are not interested in, sort of, business as usual. They want to do something different in the governing, and so I’m wondering, what is the difference? What is… what’s… what can people expect to be texturally different going forward?
Rep. Jason Crow
Yeah, a couple of things. Number one, you’re right. These are folks who don’t want business as usual, because I don’t want business as usual, right? We’re not going back. We’re not going to try to rebuild what once was, because that system wasn’t delivering for folks, particularly working-class Americans. It was leaving them behind. The American dream was broken for most Americans. So we need America 2.0. And we need people who are willing to think what that new system looks like. So that’s number one. Number two is, you know, politics is just a weird, strange thing. warping environment, right? I’m in my fourth term now, and I’m still shocked when, you know, I’m doing an interview, or I’m on TV, and they’re like, a poll just was released showing that Americans want to be able to pay their bills. What do you think about that, Jason? I’m like, huh. I’m glad you commissioned a poll to tell me that people want to be able to afford healthcare and pay their bills, and send their kids to a good school. I mean, that’s just crazy, as if, like, this is shocking. And it just shows the extent to which, you know, the political class and the bubble is just so… out of step with where people are, which is why getting real folks in, real, actually lived life experience people into politics is so fundamental, right? That old saying that personnel is policy, right? You can have all the best slogans and mantras and policy position papers you want, but if you don’t have the right people, none of that matters, right? So that’s fundamental to me. And we have to be willing to have people that, You talked about authenticity. So I worked construction to help pay my way through college. And, and, you know, when you’re arriving on a construction site, you’re shaking everyone’s hand, and, you shake their hands, and you’re actually feeling their hands. Because you want to see what type of hands do they have. Do they have calluses? Do they have working… a working person’s hand? Right? And that’s more important than almost anything. You know, are you one of us? You are one of me? Do you actually understand what it’s like? to live my life. Do you actually understand what it’s like to not know where the rent money’s coming from at the beginning of the next month, to not know whether or not you’re gonna be able to buy your prescriptions? Like, that is a uniquely gutting feeling. I remember what it’s like. I grew up having those moments, and a lot of Americans have, and that, for me, is the biggest difference between folks, is people that have lived that experience and understand that versus those who haven’t.
Tim Dickinson
The projections are good. I’m wondering what it, you know, I don’t mean to make you tip your cards, but how are you feeling heading into this final election evening?
Rep. Jason Crow
I, I am, I am optimistic without being overconfident. Right? We have been burned enough. We have, we have taken premature victory laps. No more. We’re not taking any more premature victory laps. We have amazing candidates. The energy is on our side. We were talking earlier, we have the vibes. Have to have the vibes? Now we need the votes. The vibes aren’t gonna cut it. Votes are gonna cut it. So, that’s where we are. The conditions are there for a very good day. We just have to all put it together now and run through the tape. We have a lot of candidates right now. I just, I’ve endorsed, over three dozen candidates. I’ve been mentoring these folks, supporting them, campaigning with them around the country, and most of them are within the margin of error, right? So this is close for a lot of these races.
Tim Dickinson
Are there a few that you’d like to highlight of just people who stand out for you as either extraordinary Americans or just have a great story to tell?
Rep. Jason Crow
Yeah, you know, I love Cait Conley in New York. She’s a fellow combat veteran. She is a badass combat veteran. a real street fighter. That’s gonna be a… that is a tough race, one of the toughest races in the country. Right. That’s one. Joanna Mendoza in Arizona, another fellow veteran, a Marine Corps boot camp instructor, so she’s tough. As well, that’s one. Bale Dalton and Leela Gray, in Florida. Nancy LaCour in South Carolina. We have Dwayne Romero in western Colorado. Jessica Killen, another fellow Army veteran in southern Colorado and out in Colorado Springs. You know, these are the servant leaders that have been spending the last two years I’ve been working with to build these campaigns. You know, elections are won largely in the off year. Right? They’re one by finding the right people, building a strong fundamental campaign, raising the resources, building a strong campaign team, doing the, you know, grinding it out day to day, going to every meeting, going to every block party, being everywhere in your community, basically running for mayor of your district, is the way I always envision it.
Tim Dickinson
Huh.
Rep. Jason Crow
Right? You know, just ignore… ignore the president, right? These are seats. Just think about these seats, right? These are tough places to run as a Democrat. A lot of these folks have never voted for a Democrat, or haven’t in a very, very long time. Right? So you gotta be relentlessly focused on delivering for your district, and know what your district needs. And you have to ignore cable news, you gotta ignore a lot of the controversy at the national level, and just be relentlessly locally focused. And that’s what these folks have been doing for close to 2 years now.
Tim Dickinson
I know that military veterans are a key focus for you. I wonder what this new class of recruits… do they have a special interest in mind when they get to office? I know you’ve been critical of Pete Hagseth, for example.
Rep. Jason Crow
That’s… that’s an understatement, Tim. Beating headsets is a unique danger to our country and to our democracy and to our service members. And, you know, as a three-time combat veteran, I know what it’s like to be deployed and not have the support and the resources you need, not have the equipment you need, to be sent out over and over again without clear missions, to be asked to do something that we shouldn’t be asked to do. Okay, that is… that is… that is untenable. And you have a man in Pete Hegseth who’s sitting at the Pentagon, who doesn’t… who doesn’t care about the position he puts our service members in. That cares about himself, and filming vanity videos, doling out, you know, no-bid contracts to buddies and campaign donors. And I’m going after him. Right? I’m not going to apologize for that. You know, our service members are at great risk because of the failed leadership and the corruption of Pete Heckseth, and it’s a top priority of mine to put a stop to it.
Tim Dickinson
And you think a Democratic Congress can make that happen?
Rep. Jason Crow
Yeah, well, we gotta see how many seats we win. Right? We gotta see how many, we have a lot of tools, potentially, at our disposal, but a margin of victory matters. A number of votes matters, and the tools that we have available, they matter. All these things matter. So, listen, I am used to working with what I’ve got. And I want more tools, not less. I want a larger majority, not a smaller one. We’ll see where the chips fall tomorrow, and we’ll pick up. The work begins, early tomorrow morning, and we’ll get it done, one way or the other.
Tim Dickinson
Well, in my overall view of this election, and sort of reflecting on the competitive races, not just in the House, but in the Senate, it’s the candidate quality. that’s so often overlooked that has really played a very important role. So, just for your efforts in recruiting such an interesting and, honestly, extraordinary class, I’ll salute you here, and wish you good luck for the rest of the day, including in your own race, I understand.
Rep. Jason Crow
Never, never, never take anything for granted. That is the lesson. And, you know, the job is actually, is actually pretty easy to understand. My title is representative. That’s the job. Right? Your job is to represent your community, and to protect your people. That’s where it begins, and that’s where it ends.
Tim Dickinson
All right, any closing thoughts… closing thoughts about the day?
Rep. Jason Crow
Yeah, one more thing, if I may, and we talk a lot about elections and election strategy and tactics, but, you know, as the battleground chair. I’ve now been to every battleground state. I finished my 12th battleground state visit just a couple of weeks ago, dozens of events around this country, and I’ve been in red areas, blue areas, purple areas, everything in between. Talking to farmers, ranchers, people in cities. people in small towns, and I can tell you that there’s something very unique happening in America right now. People are fed up with the system. They know that it’s rigged and not working for them. They’re fed up with the corruption of this administration, and they desperately want change. So for us, if we win, which I think we will. This is an opportunity for us, right? Not to think that we’ve, you know, completely re-earned everyone’s trust. But an opportunity for us to continue to earn that, and to build a coalition to go back into places of America that we haven’t been in a long time, and to prove That we will focus on them, we will govern, and that we’re capable of reforming our own party, and ourselves, and do the right thing to grow and be better and deliver better. So that is our task. We can and we must do that, and we’re going to have great candidates and new members coming in that will help us achieve that project.
Tim Dickinson
Alright, Congressman Crow, we’ll leave it there. Thank you so much for joining us here on the Contrarian. We’ll look forward to talking to you again soon.
Rep. Jason Crow
Yeah, thanks, Tim.
Tim Dickinson
Take it easy.
