Family, Freedom & Fairness: It's Time to Live Better with Democratic Candidate Tamie Wilson
Tamie Wilson is a 2024 Democratic candidate seeking election to the U.S. House of Representatives for Ohio’s 4th Congressional District to unseat Jim Jordan. An accomplished professional, devoted single mother, and proud granddaughter of a WWII veteran, Tamie’s journey is shaped by her strong family values and her commitment to community service.
Born and raised in Ohio, the heartland of America, Tamie has lived through the daily challenges facing her fellow Ohioans, having either experienced them personally or through close connections. Tamie’s background brings a unique perspective to the political arena. She offers a fresh and unifying female voice, advocating for common-sense solutions to core issues often overlooked in Washington.
Listen to the episode here.
LINKS
ON THIS EPISODE
[00:00:00] Introduction of Tamie Wilson
[00:01:43] Tamie Wilson on what she’s most passionate about
[00:02:56] Tamie Wilson on why Jim Jordan is the most dangerous man in America
[00:06:13] Tamie Wilson on where her passion for helping people comes from and about her background and childhood
[00:09:16] Tamie Wilson on her steps to running for the House of Representatives and the mentors she had along the way
[00:13:12] Tamie Wilson on her five point plan
[00:18:22] Tamie Wilson on people’s reaction to Jim Jordan and her candidacy with Ohio being a red state
[00:21:00] Tamie Wilson on her nine bills and how the process of those bills work that she is not in the government
[00:31:01] Tamie Wilson on if there will be a debate between her and Jim Jordan
[00:32:04] Tamie Wilson on her experience when she went to Mexico to visit the border
[00:41:41] Tamie Wilson on what she’s most passionate about
[00:43:37] Tamie Wilson on how people can support her campaign
[00:45:36] Tamie Wilson on one lesson that she has learned on her journey far
[00:48:23] Tamie Wilson on what is her dream for herself and women
FULL TRANSCRIPT
Passionistas: Hi, we're sisters, Amy and Nancy Harrington, the founders of The Passionistas Project. We've created an inclusive sisterhood where passion driven women come to get support, find their purpose, and feel empowered to transform their lives and change the world. On every episode, we discuss the unique ways in which each woman is following her passions, talk about how she defines success and explore her path to breaking down the barriers that women too often face, Today, we're talking with Tammy Wilson, the 2024 Democratic candidate seeking election to the U. S House of Representatives for Ohio's 4th Congressional District to unseat Jim Jordan, an accomplished professional, devoted single mother and proud granddaughter of a World War II veteran, Tamie's journey is shaped by her strong family values and her commitment to community service. Born and raised in Ohio, the heartland of America, Tamie has lived through the daily challenges facing her fellow Ohioans, having either experienced them personally or through close connections.
Tamie's background brings a unique perspective to the political arena. She offers a fresh and unifying female voice, advocating for common sense solutions to core issues often overlooked in Washington. If you're joining us live here today, please feel free to drop any comments or questions in our chat, and we'll do our best to get them answered.
Now, please welcome Tamie Wilson. We're so excited to have you here.
Tamie: I'm so excited to be here. Thank you guys.
Passionistas: Tamie, what are you most passionate about?
Tamie: And, uh, he, I see him as the most dangerous man in Congress or person. And, um, I, I'm really worried about the future of our country. If he were to get reelected and God forbid, if Trump was to get elected. Um, so I'm most passionate about that. I literally work on my campaign 24 seven. If I'm not awake, I'm still dreaming about it.
So, yeah, it's a full time job, so I'm real excited about it. The reason why I want to unseat him is because I want to actually help people. I, I care about people, um, all people. You know, I am a biracial woman, and so I've experienced all kinds of discrimination from being a woman, being a mother, a single mother, married, unmarried, um, being short And so I really want to give voice to all the people that feel forgotten, unheard, ignored by their government and really bring real representation.
Passionistas: That's amazing.
So why do you think he's the most dangerous man in America?
Tamie: He has no integrity. Some people may be aware, when he was the assistant wrestling coach at OSU, um, there was a doctor there that served the teams, the athletic teams, he was the athletic doctor at OSU, and he allegedly raped or sexually abused close to 2, 000 students, and, uh, I'm very close, uh, Jim Jordan, he was a wrestling, assistant wrestling coach there, so he recruited some of the wrestlers, and some of those guys have come forward, 143 of them have come forward and said that they were victims of sexual abuse by Dr. Strauss, and some of them have said, shared that they actually went to Jordan, When it was happening and you know asked for him to intervene and help them and he didn't do anything from what they have said so, I believe them and you know where Jordan turned his back on those students, I actually, I wrote the bill that will stop future students from being sexually abused at any educational institution.
Passionistas: Yeah.
Tamie: So I'm working now with lawmakers to get that introduced and hopefully passed. This is bipartisan legislation. Everyone Once they're child protected, a lot of schools have not changed their policies, so their kids are still vulnerable and susceptible to these sexual predators. I think it's extremely important.
One in four boys are sexually abused in athletics, and they don't come forward till they're like 50, 52 years old. These are real statistics.
And it's really important that we do something to protect these students. It's really heartbreaking. Now, the interesting thing is, um, when we went to D. C., I took a couple of the wrestlers with, with me. One of them, he is the attorney for a lot of the wrestlers. Rocky Ratcliffe, actually, and we had shared with the lawmakers, um, they, you know, we, they talked about Title IX, and so, but Title IX doesn't address the statute of limitations, so every state has their own statute of limitations when it comes to sexual abuse, and there shouldn't be statute of limitations when it comes to sexual abuse, especially when you're, you know, a young adult, child, you know, whatever, anyone, really, because.
Who can say when you're ready to deal with it? No one. No one can tell you when you're ready to deal with it. I mean, we've seen over the past few years, the whole Me Too Movement, how they villainized the victim and, uh, victim shame and, you know, it ruined a lot of people's lives and, you know, their lives were threatened and, you know, they were harassed.
So I think it's really important that there be no statute of limitations when it comes to sexual abuse. So I'm working on those things. Those are really important things to me.
Passionistas: That's excellent. So where does this, um, passion for helping people come from? Tell us a little bit about your background and your childhood, where you grew up, your family.
Tamie: That was just the way I was born. I've always been, you know, one of those helper type of people. And my parents, they called me the child advocate. It's always helping my friends with their problems, you know, they're like, oh, who is it today, you know, because I would ask them, you know, I would ask their advice for things and then, um, you know, kind of use their input and then my own and then go and tell my friends, you know, well, I think you should do this here, whatever.
And so, um, early on, I thought I would want it to be a psychologist or psychiatrist, but then when I was exposed to, um, holistic life coaching, that felt more real to me. It encompasses the whole person, the mind, body, and spirit, which I think is really important and it's a missing element out of, you know, psychology.
I got my training for that. Now I went to college actually later in life. So I was like the 40 year old freshman. So I wanted the whole college experience, so I was rushing to be a sorority girl, and they were like, oh my god, this woman is just too old. But you know, I like living life to the fullest, and, but I didn't, I didn't get, I didn't make it, I didn't make the cut.
So, I had to try. I mean, my motto is you don't know unless you try.
Passionistas: It's their loss.
Tamie: That's what got me in this race because I was watching the news. I mean, we all scream at the news, right?
Passionistas: Every, every night.
Tamie: I know. And so, you know, and I was watching the news. The announcement was made that Rob Portman was not going to run for Senate in Ohio when I said I should run.
And I'm telling you, it's like, as soon as I released the words, it's like my whole life flashed before my eyes. And it's like, You know, I would make a really good candidate give voice to a lot of people. You know, I have experience with the military. I was married to a Marine for close to 10 years. And my grandfather was, you know, he's a World War II veteran and, um, I'm biracial, single mom, entrepreneur.
You know, I check a lot of boxes and, um, So I thought, I wonder what you have to do. And so that just started the process. And so I actually started to run for Senate until Tim Ryan made the announcement that he was going to run. I said, I will forget it. They'll never. And so, uh, that's when I decided to run for the house.
And at that time I was in district 12. Well, then in November of 2021, they redrew the district and they cut me into Jordan's district. And, uh, I thought, well, all right, let's do it. And so I've just been balls to the walls ever since.
Passionistas: That's amazing. So how, okay, so you have that moment where you go, I'm gonna run. How did you figure out what the steps were and have you had a mentor kind of
guiding you through this?
Tamie: I will say I've had a ton of mentors. So I like doing research. So I got online, I found out what the, you know, the actual process was to file and everything like that. And, um, but I went through so much online training.
I did all the training I could get my hands on, like NDTC has really good online training and their videotapes. So you can catch some of the sessions live, or you can watch them on tape. And, uh, and so there's several organizations that have training like that online. So I did that and I got plugged into, uh, the party, um, here in Ohio and I went through their training as well.
And so but I think the thing that really helped me is that I have been an entrepreneur, so I know, and I went to school for marketing. It's all marketing, you know, it's all about messaging and marketing and connecting with people. And I just love it. It's everything I love. It's talking to people, solving problems, marketing, and reading everywhere.
So they don't tell you you're going to gain weight. And so now I'm getting kind of used to it, you know, so getting my body back. But, um, yeah, so I actually, I wrote a book, um, about, um, running to help women. I really want to inspire more women to get into politics because women make over 50 percent of the population.
Um, now in 2023, we were 24 percent in the Senate, 26 percent in the house and 30 percent at state and local government. Those numbers have changed a little bit, but not that much. And. You know, we need more women in government. I mean, we have these men making healthcare decisions that they do not know anything about.
You know, here in Ohio, well, actually today, they're voting in Congress about, in the Senate, about contraception. Well, I had to take birth control just to help regulate my hormones and other, you know, health purposes. It wasn't even for birth control, and they just don't have no right. They have no right. They don't understand the woman's body or medicine.
They have no business making medical decisions for women. So we just, we need more women that are going to advocate for the freedom of more women. I, I've seen recently several videos of men I don't know if you guys saw the one of the Lieutenant Governor nominee for North Carolina. He's a GOP pick for the governor and he was saying women shouldn't have the right to vote.
I mean, I'm like, what?
Passionistas: Oh my god.
Tamie: It just blows me away.
Passionistas: It's a slippery slope.
Tamie: It is, it really is. But women, you know, and you guys will understand this because I know you interview a lot of businesswomen, there's the imposter syndrome, you know, I don't know if I'm good enough, I don't know if I know enough, or you know, whatever, and a lot of women, you know, we're financially challenged, you know, it's not like a lot of women are just , You know, extremely financially affluent, you know, and, um, finance is a big portion of, of politics of running for office.
And then the other aspect is we are still the primary caregiver of the home. And so women are challenged with that. And so I'm not surprised that the GOP is pushing for women to stay home with the kids and, you know, and stay barefoot and pregnant, you know, because, uh, You know, when we get in there, we actually do stuff.
We get things done. And so, you know, more women need to get involved.
Passionistas: Absolutely. So tell us about that. Tell us about what you propose to do when you get in office. You have a five point plan, right? So tell us a little bit about that.
Tamie: Oh, geez. I've got my five point plan. I'm writing nine bills. I'm, I have all kinds of ideas of things that I want to do.
Um, I just want to serve the people. And so my, um, my big interest. Like with education, we need to have um, a more comprehensive approach to education. I believe that we should teach the basic life skills that everyone needs to survive. I mean basic life skills. These are things that You're lucky if your parent teaches you things, but most times they kind of don't.
I'm talking about mental fitness. We have physical fitness. We should have mental fitness and emotional fitness with the rise of social media, bullying, and you know, all of the kids that are just so traumatized by social media. That is a huge issue with the school shootings. You know, that's another one. I think We need to teach kids how to think positively and how to manage their emotions and how to dig themselves out of the hole.
Anyone who's lived at all, you know that you're going to get challenged with something and you're going to go in the hole about something and you have to be able to have the skills to pull yourself out. Not all parents have those skills let alone able to teach their children those things. I think it's really important that we teach financial literacy in school, time management, and communication. Communication is the foundation of everything, so, um, teaching kids, especially in, you know, this cyber world where a lot of the kids, they're just so used to texting or emailing, or they do not know how to have a conversation with people, or, , Um, I don't know how familiar you guys are with this generation, but they ghost your employer.
It is so bizarre. Never seen that before. And so like a few years ago, I, I, a friend of mine, she owns a store at one of the malls here. And you know, she has, she employs like 20 something year old young women. And. They'll just not show up to work. They don't call, they don't answer their phone. And it's like, do you understand if you do not open the store, she could get fined like 10,000.
It's just, it's so interesting. But I think a lot of them are not, they're not confrontational. They don't like any kind of like a negativity or any kind of like criticism or any kind of negative. response. They don't know how to deal with it. I think, I think that is the biggest issue. I don't know, it's very interesting.
So, education is a big thing. I really want to bring jobs to the district and, you know, bring money to the district. You know, government. They come up with a financial plan, they have budgets, they earmark finances for different areas. Jordan doesn't believe in earmarks, so he doesn't bring any money home to the district.
He has not helped bring jobs to the district. Actually, he votes against jobs everywhere in Ohio, not only everywhere else. But, um, the CHIPS Act got passed, so that plant is being built, but it's being built like an hour, two hours away from my constituents. Can't drive that far to go to work. He of all people should have been fighting to get that plant built in our district.
There's so much land and there's so much opportunity and a lot of our people would love to make, you know, 100,000 a year and he didn't do that. He did not fight for them. So, you know, obviously that's an issue. There's a lot of food deserts in the district and healthcare deserts in the district. He doesn't do anything to serve the people.
And this area, I'm sure you guys are aware of all the news. All he cares about is defending Trump and that's it. That's all he does. He doesn't, he votes against everything all the time. He votes against the people 97 percent of the time. He votes against veterans. He votes against unions. I mean, every time he votes against the war in Ukraine, he's voting against the tank plant in Lima.
It's right here in our district. So he's voting against jobs in our district. I mean, it's just, it's just outrageous. So I really want to bring representation. I want to help people live a better life. You know, a lot of people are struggling. He doesn't do anything about that. He votes against the farm bill and, um, but it's my job to just inform people of what he hasn't done, what he could have been doing.
And, you know, that way I can. Hopefully win and serve them better.
Passionistas: So we've talked about this offline. Um, you know, everybody. sees Ohio as a red state. And as you're going around your district, and you're pointing out these things that Jordan hasn't done for his constituents, um, how are people reacting? And are there enough Democrats in your district for you to be a viable candidate?
Tamie: In my district, so when the gerrymandering, I'm sorry, the redistricting happened, 53 percent of the district is new to Jordan. So a lot of people don't even know who he is. And I am just floored by that. Um, so that was interesting. But a lot of people hate him. And I mean, Democrats, Independents, Republicans.
A lot of them know him because they are in a union and they know he votes against the union. So I have that in my favor. A lot of them are veterans. Um, we have like 800,000 veterans in Ohio. That's a lot of veterans. And so, um, you know, I have a lot of them in my district and he votes against . You know, veterans.
So some of them are aware of him being a do nothing representative. Some people are aware of the OSU scandal. Um, some people are aware of him in office, uh, from being in the Ohio state house. He didn't do anything there either. They could not stand him. So, you know, he didn't win the speakership. And when he was running, those families I didn't hear that happening with any other candidate running for speaker.
Um, but a lot of people do not like him. They're embarrassed by him screaming and making an ass out of himself on TV all the time. Um, so that's another thing. Another thing people don't like that he just is Trump's biggest. ally or supporter. He doesn't do anything for the people. All he talks about is Trump.
So I have a path to victory. I've spent the last three years building name recognition, building alliances and relationships with independents, Republicans, and of course, Democrats, and just people all throughout the district. So I go everywhere. I can relate to everyone, everyone. And so when people meet me, then they're like, Oh, okay.
Yeah, I, I get her, you know, I can see how, you know, she would be good for me or honest or, you know, represent us well. So yeah, I really feel strongly that I can beat him, that I'm going to beat him. I have a really good strategy. I have a really good team. Um, so I'm, I'm super excited. I've made the inroads all throughout the district and a lot of people want to take him out.
Passionistas: So you've mentioned, um, I think you said nine bills that you're writing. So talk about what those other bills are. You've mentioned one of them already. And how does that process work when you're not actually in the government yet? So who do you approach and how do you make that happen?
Tamie: So what I've been doing is building my relationships and alliances in DC.
So I have been meeting with different lawmakers, um, Building those relationships with House Representatives and Senators. From there, you know, we've been making appointments and talking to them about the bill that I'm trying to get introduced this year. So anyone could write a bill and take it to their representative or a representative whoever is in that committee. So it goes by committee. So the committee has to bring it to the floor. And then, um, but they need to get the support to bring it to the floor. Um, so that's kind of the process about, you know, how that happens. And then my goal. My goal is to introduce the most bills on my first day.
That is what I want to do. He hasn't introduced anything in, well, in 17 years, he introduced his first bill like last year. And I take full credit for that because my team and I were constantly hammering him for being a do nothing representative. And so he wrote his first bill. And, uh, I'm like, whatever, you know, it's just way too little, too late.
And so, um, I'm just, I'm just so excited about that. So I'm writing a bill for, um, seniors. I want to help protect seniors. You know, people are living longer. Just because they're living longer doesn't mean they have, you know, all of their faculties and in the sense of being able to protect themselves from financial predators online or on the phone.
So I want to help protect seniors from things like that. I think that's really important. I had one lady, she was in a car accident and she rented a car and so she submitted the claim to her insurance. So they were paying for her car rental and then the car rental technician, waived her like extra, extra insurance, so he like, wiped out her checking account of like 500.
And here she is, she's like, Oh my God. I don't know how I'm going to buy my food or pay for my license, you know, that I have to buy, you know, pay for next . You know, next month. And I was just like, Oh my God, you know? So I've been trying to help her with that. I had another gentleman who was 82 or 83.
He was at a car dealership and he called his wife and he said, yeah, I want to buy a car. And she said, no, no, no, don't do that. We can't afford to buy a car. Well, we all know how car salespeople can be, right? And so he ended up driving it home. And so then they brought it back the next day and they charged him 5,000 dollars for that car and so It's just heart wrenching. So I think there needs to be guardrails in place. And we, I know that you guys have heard the online scams through email, or a lot of them are doing the whole phone and texting of, Oh, I'm your grandson and I need help, help me, you know, and people are sending these people money.
It's just heart wrenching. So. I'm really concerned about, you know, protecting our seniors, uh, obviously protecting Social Security and Medicare, you know, I would definitely vote to protect those. If we just lift the cap off of Social Security, then it would be solvent and there's nothing for them to, you know, complain about, but of course we know they use that for, uh, political purposes, so, um, but, That, that is, um, a really big issue is protecting, you know, that's the All American, um, retirement plan.
That's our money. They have no right to take our money. And to privatize it is extremely concerning because we've seen these corporations that just go under and then. They give their executives million dollar bonuses for the year rather than honoring the people that they're supposed to be serving, so we need to have protections in place for that.
I want to cut the overtime tax, so when someone is working overtime, They get taxed so much it's like not even worth working the overtime. So I think that we should take that away. I'm also working on a bill, uh, to, for domestic violence survivors. So with domestic violence, well, in Ohio, We don't even have a restriction for firearms or anything.
They just, they just changed that law. And Jordan, he voted against the Violence Against Women's Act. Votes against violence against women. I'm like, this guy just hates women. I mean, what else to say other than that? So bizarre. Why wouldn't you want to protect women? I don't know. Anyway. Um, so with domestic violence, A lot of times it starts verbally and then it escalates.
We all know that. And so words of violence lead to violence. And so a lot of times they will threaten the life of their, you know, their victim, their mate or whatever. And so I think it's really important that For people that have a restraining order against people that they should have to wear a tracking device if they come within proximity of the person that they, you know, abuse.
That way that person is notified. So my aunt was murdered from domestic violence. My, um, she was shot with a 12 gauge shotgun point blank, uh, four times. And it was just, it was so bizarre. She knew he was going to kill her. She told me he was going to kill her. Um, it was, it was just so sad. But had she had, or had he had the tracker and there was the alert system, she would have known that that was him that was trailing behind her because he had rented a car.
That's why she didn't know that it was him behind her. And so when she pulled into the parking lot of her work and parked the car. He pulled up behind her and jumped out of the car and, you know, cocked the gun and, and, and shot and killed her. And then, um, , went home and killed himself.
And so, but had the tracking device been in place, then she could have known that that was him and driven straight to the police department or whatever. and then hopefully they would have done something, but a lot of times they don't. So that's the other part. I really want to help abusers. You know, there's reasons why people are abusers, whether it's something that they grow up with, something that they witness, but We obviously know there's something out of balance there, but there are programs that help abusers stop abusing.
There is a, um, an organization, it's called the Duluth Model. And so they have a program that they put abusers through. It's like a six or eight week program, but it retrains their brain of how not to abuse. It's, they have to learn a whole new lifestyle that doesn't include abusing, which it doesn't blow your mind to even like conceptualize that.
It's just really sad. But. That's something that's needed, you know, that's how we can break the cycle of abuse. Um, another bill that I want to, uh, work on is the, uh, domestic violence. I'm sorry, domestic terrorism. So I actually consulted with a top, uh, domestic terrorist expert in the country. And so I had the idea that since they have these programs for abusers, there had to be like a de radicalization program for terrorists, for domestic terrorists.
And so I consulted with this gentleman and sure enough, there is. And I said, well, Where are they? Cause I was thinking like, you know, what state are they in? And, oh, Turkey and Pakistan. I was like, oh, okay. But, okay, well, yeah, that makes sense, you know? And so, um, but he reminded me that the guys that did 9/11, they won't be getting out of jail soon.
And nothing has been done to de radicalize them. So, I mean, just kind of think about that. This is the part that drives me nuts. I feel like we wait too long to act too many times. And I think it's important that we, we see it coming. We see Trump could be a nominee. Why didn't they write the bill if you are a felon or if you have been convicted or if you've been, you know, whatever, whatever.
Why didn't they write that bill so he wouldn't qualify to be on the ballot? I mean, it's not rocket science, you know, um, why is it that you can work at, you know, you cannot work at Chase Bank or McDonald's or something as a film, but you can be the president of the United States? I mean, that just blows me away.
So with domestic terrorism, um, I think it's important, just like people who receive multiple DUIs, they have to go through the, you know, alcohol program or whatever, we should have something like that in place. So we already had the attack on the Capitol, and And this is the other bill that I want to do is cybersecurity.
We have these other countries that are infiltrating our social media, internet airways that are, you know, programming, radicalizing these people, you know, and they're turning us against each other. And it's just, it's so detrimental to our country. I think it's really important that we get a handle on those things.
Passionistas: That's incredible. It's amazing for someone who wasn't involved in politics such a short time ago, how thoroughly you've thrown yourself into this and how focused you are on really important, really specific issues. I really admire that about you. Um, so my question is, Will there be a debate between you and Jim Jordan?Have you challenged him to…
Tamie: Debate me? First of all, I think he's too scared to debate me because I would have all the wrestlers. But, uh, no, I don't think he will. He wouldn't last time. He kept evading the people that wanted to organize it. It was so funny because the organizer, he said, I've been trying to get ahold of Tamie and she won't call me back.
And I was, so I called him, I was like, I'm sorry, I didn't know you were trying to get ahold of me. And, uh, so I was like, yeah, sure, let's do it. Well, and so then he called me, I go, well, you know, Jordan's office said that he won't be able to do it. And I thought, uh huh, sure. And you were complaining about me.
Okay.
Passionistas: He's too busy writing bills.
Tamie: Yeah, yeah. So I'm doing that. I'm like, I'll do your job since you won't do it. But I like solving problems, but you don't really, I think one reason why people are so frustrated with government, I'm a core issue person that goes back to my life coaching. You know, when you're coaching someone, you have to get to the root cause. Otherwise, you're not doing anything. Immigration, that's the other bill. So, I just went to Mexico to visit the border.
I wanted to get a firsthand knowledge of what the experience is, what is going on down there, what do we really need to do to fix the immigration issue. And I'm so glad that I went. I went with this organization. They're called Vote Common Good. And it is a group of pastors that They created this organization to fight Christian nationalism.
Now, through my domestic terrorism. Research. I went through this training with the FBI about domestic terrorists in the country. So they had, they've identified nine domestic terrorists and Christian Nationalism is one of them, Christian nationalists. And so when I went to the border, I went with that organization.
And so we actually, we stayed in the shelter where migrants stay on the U. S. side and on the Mexico side, we went to the border. We looked at the wall and, you know, you see all this razor wire. It's not barbed wire. It's razor wire, they have little razors all over the wire. It was, it was so, it was just terrible.
So on our side, you see this wall with this razor wire. It's like, it comes out, you know, really far. And so then there's like this road, and then there's another barrier of more razor wire and another little wall. And it's like, it's just so bizarre. And so, um, on the Mexico side, it's all artwork. They have murals painted on their side of the wall.
It's just so amazing. So anyway, I went there. I wanted to get a firsthand knowledge of what was going on with the border. And so it was really interesting because. No, we can't just let everyone in the country. We know that, right? Then there also has, there has to be a humanity part to it. So I met these families that are in this shelter, waiting for, to seek asylum.
They're doing it the right way. Um, They're waiting to get their paperwork process, which is like a 10 month process for them to apply. And so they're, these families, they just come to this shelter with just the clothes on their back because a lot of them are fleeing the cartel. And they just stay in this camp, in the shelter for nine, 10 months.
And it was just terrible. There's one little room, one little classroom for all the kids of all ages. I mean, at least they have that, but it's like, oh my God, that's, that's where they're getting their education. And, um, we have one, uh, cafeteria room. So they, and there's people from all over Venezuela, Bolivia.
Um, um, Columbia, I mean, all these different countries are staying in this shelter. And so they take turns cooking, which is pretty interesting because you're getting to experience different like cultures, you know, food and everything. Um, but it was just, it's really heartbreaking. And so you hear their stories.
I met one gentleman, he actually used to live in the United States. Um, he was here working. I think he overstayed his visa. So, he was a roofer here in Missouri, I believe he said, and he made 48 dollars an hour, good living, and, um, but then he got busted, got deported. And so he was shipped back to, sent back to Mexico where, you know, it's like 1 dollar an hour.
So he started his own business. He has a taxi service. Well, the cartel, they made him pay them a monthly fee. Well, then they raised the fee. And so they wanted him to pay them like 9,000 dollars a month. And I was like, oh my gosh, how much do you make? You know, it's like a thousand a day. I was like, wow. Anyway, so when it came down to it, when they raised it, they said, you have to pay by tomorrow or we will kill you and your family.
Well, in the meantime, he's seen people being killed in the streets. It's like common there. Cartel just coming and killing people right in the middle of the street. And so. That really scared him so he fled. He took his family and they fled and they just happened to find that, uh, shelter. There's another woman.
She was from, um, Bolivia. She was a, uh, she's a doctor. She's an anesthesiologist, this lady, and she was high in the, in the government, but she saw all the corruption. So then they threatened her and her, she and her family's life. And so, they had to flee for their lives. And so, you know, these people, they have nowhere else to go.
And so they are trying to get into the US so that their families can live, you know, and so it was, it was interesting to hear their stories. And it's like, there's a humanity aspect to the whole immigration issue that doesn't ever get shared. It's really sad. And so. Yes, we can't let everyone in, but we also, in this country, decided after what, World War II, that we wouldn't turn people away that are asylum seekers.
So, there's that aspect of it. So, I think it's really important. But the main problem is, we need to change our immigration laws because they are completely outdated and just outrageous for people that have been here that, uh, they are here illegally. They have to leave and they have to wait 10 years before they can come back.
And it's like some people, like the birthers, children that are brought over, you know, when they're young, they don't even have the relationships or some may not even speak the language, their native language of their country. And they're just, you know, sent back to just And for yourself, even though their whole life has been here, you know, so there's a lot of things that we can and should do to change our immigration laws, but nothing is going to happen with the border until they take the corruption out of it, and that means, you know, help these countries deal with the cartels.
Um, cause that is the biggest problem. So in Mexico, people will pay like five, 25,000 dollars to cross the border illegally. Now, if they do it the right way, they have to go through the process, which takes like 10 months. So imagine you like fearing for your life and then having to wait 10 months. Where do you go?
What do you do? You know? Uh, so, so what they do is they just come over and they will just sit there and wait to get picked up and then they say, you know, I am seeking asylum. So that's what they've been doing. But if we take the, um, it's, it's like since we tightened our restrictions that made the corruption go up, so it kind of increased the problem.
It's really an interesting dynamic.
Passionistas: It's heartbreaking to, to see the people who really need help
getting turned away.
Tamie: Yeah. They just villainize these people. And it's like, well, what would you do if you're, if your life was threatened or someone was saying they were going to kill you and your family? It's like.
I don't know anyone that wouldn't do everything that they could do to protect their family.
Passionistas: Absolutely.
Tamie: We even walked the path. We walked the path through the desert to the border. And, uh, and, you know, I saw the hole under the, under the wall. So, I mean, the wall doesn't really do anything. It's a deterrent.
But. That's not going to stop people that are determined to, um, you know, cross the border. It's, it's just not.
Passionistas: Yeah, and I want to say, backing up to something you had said earlier, for anybody who doesn't know about Christian nationalists and the, the, um, the danger, um, I recommend the Rob Reiner documentary, God and Country, which is really powerful and, um, really helps you understand the threat to our democracy that they present.
Tamie: So this gentleman here in Ohio, he ran for, I think the state or federal office, but he, uh, created this documentary and it's about the Proud Boys and all of these other groups that are targeting veterans. And so they are using the whole, you know, like, uh, That's the whole patriotism thing that you see.
And so I really, I can understand why this group would be appealing to, to these people, because it's all about the brotherhood. And you know what I mean? It's that camaraderie that they're probably craving that they had when they were in the military and it gives them a purpose and everything. And so I can understand why it would be appealing, but I mean, it's so anti American.
It's really interesting, but you have to watch that. It is very alarming. Very alarming against all enemies. You can watch it on Apple.
Passionistas: Okay, we'll check that one out.
I'll have to break myself for that one. Um, so earlier we had asked about, um, about what, what you think being a woman brings to your candidacy.
No, no, no. That's okay. I'm so glad you, I'm so glad that you talked about what you talked about. 'cause it would've been terrible to leave that out. Um, but
Tamie: That was my point because I, it's the empathy. It is the humanity aspect of it. You know, men are just very logical. It seems like all they care about is power where women, you know, statistics show that women are more about building community and helping people and helping the community.
So I really see us as being the true leaders in the community and the people that get things done. I mean, look at, uh, D. A. R. E. or Moms Demand Action. These organizations are getting things done and that is because of the moms. So I think that, that is a big aspect of it. Uh, having that different perspective, like I was talking about earlier about the healthcare, um, You know, I'm not going to get into the whole sex thing of men not understanding women's bodies, but when it comes to medical, they really don't understand women's bodies.
So I think it's important for women to, uh, advocate for other women. You know, some people need IVF to get pregnant. You know, I mean, it is what it is. Thank God we have the medicine to do it, you know, and some people need to take [00:43:00] contraceptives in order to, like I said earlier, balance their hormones to help keep from getting cancer.
I mean, there's so many different things that they don't even understand that we don't even understand because we're not doctors either, you know, but we should have the right to make our own choices and, uh, I mean, until the right, the, uh, GOP gets sane again, I think it is just so important for everyone to vote Democrat because, uh, they've really lost their minds.
Passionistas: Yeah, that's for sure. So, speaking of that, how can people support your campaign?
Tamie: So you can volunteer and you know, if you're in Ohio or if you want to volunteer remotely, there's tons of things that you can do for that. You know, uh, postcards, uh, phone banking, fundraising, organized fundraisers. Uh, I need the money, need the money, need the money.
Um, you know, Jordan will outrace me. We all know that, but I will outwork him and I'm fine with that. And, um, you know, when I ran the first time, I ran against a guy, it was his second time running. Uh, he raised a million dollars. He had a team of 60 volunteers. He had a full time staff and a team of experts.
And I beat him by myself with 2,500 bucks. And I was really happy about that. But it was because I have the business sense and marketing sense and, you know, so that, that worked in my favor, but, um, yeah, so volunteering, fundraising, making a donation. If you'd like to make a donation, you can make it at ActBlue or my website at Tamie, T A M I E, TamieWilson.com. Follow me on social media. I'm on all the social media platforms. Most of them are @tamieuscongress. That's my, uh, my handle. Um, only one it's like, TikTok is like tamieforohio or something, but that's the only one that, that isn't the, the tamieuscongress, but yeah, follow me on social media, like it, share it, post, you know, comment, cause that, that helps the algorithms.
That's a huge part of social media nowadays is, uh. Getting all of the energy behind it. Those are, those are big things.
Passionistas: Bump Tamie's posts up to your stories so that,
Tamie: Yeah. Write letters to the editor.
Passionistas: Everything, all the things.
Tamie: Everything, all the things, all the things.
Passionistas: So is there one lesson that you've learned on your journey so far that really sticks with you?
Tamie: I will tell you the thing that, uh, shocked me was how women don't back other women. I was just, I'm just completely floored by that. And this is what I mean. I have heard over and over, Tamie, your nails are too long. Your heels are too high. Your lips are too bright. Your eyebrows are too dark. And I mean, all of these stupid comments about my looks.
I had one woman sent me a letter and it said, Oh, I got your email. And it was really great. I just love everything that you said and everything you're doing. And then I looked at your picture and I thought, Playboy Bunny. I'm not going to donate to your campaign. I'm a wealthy woman and I'm thinking, Oh my God, this is why we don't have more women in office.
It's just like, what do you mean? You know? And I mean, it just blew me away, but I don't know. It's so bizarre. But I really, I want to honor everything about being a woman. I think we need that feminine element in our government. We need more empathy. We need more people that believe in being kind and loving and You know, we need that right now more than ever, more than ever.
We need that in our country and our government. So, um, I was really shocked by that. I get a lot of nasty criticism, but it's always from women. And then, um, women working against me for whatever reason. I'm like, do you understand who I'm running against? I mean, just think about what you're doing, you know?
It's really bizarre. That was the thing that just floored me. But the other thing was, is that, uh, how unorganized the Democratic party is. And so someone shared this. This saying with me. They said oh yeah I don’t belong to an organized party, I'm a democrat. And I thought oh my god that is so true. But um, I really hope to change that, that’s why I’m involved. I, I can see so many ways that we can just make so many huge transformational changes within the party to make a big impact and results that we get.
And there's not big things either, just minor little tweaks that we can make that would just make such a transformational change. And I just, I'm like, why aren't we doing this? So, but I'm not at the place at the level for people to listen to me yet. So I'm, I'm trying to, I'm working my way up there.
Passionistas: Yet. The key word is yet. Yeah. Yeah. So we have one last two part question. What's your dream for yourself and what's your dream for women?
Tamie: My dream for women is for women to, um, live out their dream. I, I want people to, people and women to just, really get the most out of their life and really go for what it is that they really, truly want.
Not what you think you have to do or what you can do, but really what you want to do. If everyone did what they wanted to do, what their passion is, Passionistas, um, then our whole world would just be a such a better place because everyone is. In their space of love of what they're loving, what they're doing, what they're passionate about, you know, people that are in that job that they can't stand when they're in that marriage that they can't stand, you're, you're conflicted with life and you're feeling that friction and you're not living a full, wonderful, happy life.
And, um, so that is my dream for women. To get more women in politics, I, I absolutely, I get it when Ruth Bader Ginsburg said, we'll have enough women in, uh, the Supreme Court when there are nine. Absolutely. That'd be great. Um, so I, I want to inspire women to get more involved in politics sooner and, and I'm guilty of it myself.
You know, I just kind of blew it off when I was younger and, um, I wasn't really that involved. And, um, you know, it was more like, oh, they've got it taken care of. And then Trump was elected and I was like, what is going on? My God, we have to get involved, you know, we have to get this under control. And, uh, so that's when I got into politics, but I want to inspire women to get in earlier.
So I guess the good thing we can say about them overturning Roe v. Wade is that we are, you know, getting the younger women involved sooner. So I guess that can be the, uh, the, um, um, the silver lining for that. So I'm happy about that. For myself? Wow. I don't know. I can see myself in the White House someday
.
To what capacity? I don't know yet, but something.
Passionistas: Excellent. Well, we cannot thank you enough for being here with us today. This has been a pleasure. We are behind you 100 percent and we're always here for anything you need. And we encourage our, uh, community members in Ohio to go and vote for Tamie in the fall and, um, And thank you for being here and thank you all for listening.
Tamie: Yes. Thank you so much. This has been great. I just love you guys. Thank you.
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