New Mexico Second District congressional candidate Claire Chase discusses the reasons why she is running for Congress and the political dynamics of her district.
Claire Chase is running for Congress to turn New Mexico’s Second District red again.
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The political newcomer and former New Mexico Oil and Gas Association chairman and mother of two told FOX Business’ Maria Bartiromo that two major themes of her campaign are the Second Amendment and the border.
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Chase said the border is the “No. 1 issue” in her district, which serves the southern half of New Mexico. Albuquerque, she added, was named one of the seven most dangerous cities in the U.S. and maybe, she pointed out, it’s because the cartel is living and operating there.
“I’m running to help President Trump build the wall, secure our border,” she said.
And when it comes to bearing arms, she said, protecting Second Amendment rights comes “at all costs.”
“That’s the way of life out here,” Chase explained.
Chase is running against Democratic Congresswoman Xochitl Torres Small who flipped the primarily Republican district in 2018. However, Chase believes it may have been a “fluke” that Republicans lost their seat and the party may have run a candidate that couldn’t get “across the finish line.”
“The district itself is still a very conservative district,” she said, and she added “we do have a lot of conservative Democrats, a lot of independents, and then obviously the conservative base.”
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Still, Chase is determined to do things a lot differently than her counterpart two years ago. Her plan is to not only take on Torres Small, who voted to impeach Trump, but also take on the congresswoman’s liberal record when she ran as a moderate.
Chase pointed out that Torres Small may have voted with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez 90 percent of the time and that, she said, doesn’t “reflect New Mexico values.”
Chase said she is also running for more access to health care.
