Nancy Mace, the first woman to graduate from The Citadel, announced her candidacy for U.S. Senator for the state of South Caroline, officially throwing down the gauntlet for progressive incumbent Sen. Lindsay Graham. Glenn has been desperate for a strong candidate to rise up and challenge Graham - is Mace the answer?
During the interview, Glenn pulled no punches and asked tough questions right out of the gate. He wanted to press Mace as she should be facing some tough obstacles in her quest to be the new Senator from South Carolina.
"$6.3 million war chest. You're going to run against (Sen. Graham) in a state that allows the Democrats to vote in the Republican primary. There's a ton of Democrats that don't want to see Lindsey Graham go anywhere. He has a fortune. The last person that spends the most amount of money in the last 30 days is going to be the winner and this guy also is going to get all of the democratic votes. How do you think you're going to beat him?" Glenn asked.
Mace said that she feels like she has to force a run-off in order to make sure a true conservative comes out on top.
"I disagree with you on part of the remarks because no one in this race is going to have the mountain of money that he has. He has special interests, he has PACs, he has a lot of money. And no one's going to raise that kind of cash. But what we are going to do is build a grassroots network around this, around the state. And that's the only way you're going to win in this race is if you're able to have a message that, I think that most people can believe in and also have a grassroots network. And that's what we're doing right now. I mean, we've been overwhelmed by the response of people to be included in this race. And in South Carolina, it's a runoff state. So the goal here is to force a runoff. And I believe the most conservative candidate wins the primary after the runoff," she said.
What is the biggest issue facing the country? Mace said it was the lack of trust in government.
"I think the biggest problem facing this country today is trust. I mean, do we trust this government to do what it says it's going to do? Do we trust this government with our individual liberties to protect us?" she said. "I look what's happening with ObamaCare and I look what's happening with our individual liberties when our personal e‑mail records and phone records are being gone through with the NSA spying program."
Glenn also asked a tough question of her, but one that he has asked a lot of candidates over the past year: How is your soul?
"What I can say about my soul is that, I mean, I am founded on very specific principles and I do not waver, and I believe I'm on the right side here, on the right side of the angels. And when I go to Washington, I'm not going to waver from that. I mean, I have shown consistently in my life that I'm a very hard worker and I'm self‑reliant and that's what I want to bring to D.C. I mean, I see what's happening up there and it's very frustrating," she said. "I believe in life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That's what our country was founded on and that's what I believe in."
Glenn wished Mace luck in her race, but when he came back from the break he seemed a little less than impressed by the interview. Pat and Stu wondered why he threw her some obscure and unusual questions about the state of her soul on her first major outing since announcing her candidacy.
"She's the candidate that has announced now, the first one that was announced and I'm getting all kinds of heat here in the studio because I was tough on her. Well, are you kidding me? I was a piece of cake compared to what she's about to show up and face," Glenn said. " A, that's my job; and B, if you are a small government person and you can't handle an interview on the Glenn Beck Program, you can't handle it."
"When I was asking her about her soul, what do you believe?" he said. "Tell me what it means to you. What is the core of who you are? What makes you stand against that lion? Because I guarantee you when that lion is unleashed and it's coming toward you, you're going to question everything in your life. And he's going to make you question everything in your life. And the media is going to then eat your entrails. So you better know who you are and what keeps you moving and why you're doing it."
Glenn said that he hoped in future interviews that she would make a point of talking about what it was like to be the first woman to go through The Citadel and how the obstacles she faced shaped her into a fighter and the woman she is today.
"Do you know what it's like to go to the Citadel? As the first woman to graduate? They didn't want me to graduate. They put me through absolute hell. I had to be torn down, and I was alone. And I was torn down to the very fiber of my being. I know who I am. I know what gets me through life. And it's these principles that I had to hold onto at the ‑‑ tell the story of the worst time you were at the Citadel, when you thought, there's no way, nobody wants me to succeed, there's no way I can succeed. Tell me the story of what got you to succeed. Give me a reason to see that you're a fighter. Give me a reason to see that you're not ‑‑ once you get your teeth into it, you are not letting go. That's what I want to see," Glenn said.
