Exclusive—Ohio GOP House Candidate J.R. Majewski: I’m Focused on Truth; Democrat Marcy Kaptur is Focused on ‘Slander’

J.R. Majewski, the Republican who hopes to win Marcy Kaptur's House seat. (courtesy J
Courtesy of J.R. Majewski

J.R. Majewski, the Republican candidate in Ohio’s 9th Congressional District looking to unseat longtime House Democrat Rep. Marcy Kaptur in November, told Breitbart News in an exclusive interview that he wants to focus on the truth, unlike his “career politician” opponent, who has been focusing on “slander” to win in November, according to Majewski.

Majewski, an Air Force veteran endorsed by former President Donald Trump, told Breitbart News he’s running for Congress as a lifelong resident of Ohio because he wants what’s best for the country and his community in the newly redistricted 9th District.

“We have a country that’s filled with career politicians,” he said, noting that Kaptur is one of them and that she “and her peers have failed families in Ohio. And I feel as if I can, I can serve the people and serve Ohio families, and I’m not committed to serving one political party, but I’m looking to fix the crises that Biden and Marcy Kaptur created.”

Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, speaks during an event with President Joe Biden at the Shipyards, Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022, in Lorain, Ohio.

Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, speaks during an event with President Joe Biden at the Shipyards, Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022, in Lorain, Ohio. (Alex Brandon/AP)

Endorsed by Trump, Majewski said that the former president has his back, just like he had Trump’s back when he was running. “I think he’s absolutely gonna play a factor in this election. Ohio Nine is Trump country, Ohio is Trump country, and frankly, Donald Trump scares the hell out of Marcy Kaptur.”

Majewski, when asked about being a Republican, told Breitbart News that “as a veteran, regardless of what your career field was, in the United States military, you learn many things during your time there.” The three main things Majewski brought up were gaining a “stronger love for the country;” “learn[ing] how to be a member of a team, a highly functioning team, and one that operates … for the betterment of the country;” and “com[ing] out with a level of dedication and fortitude” that could apply anywhere.

The Republican candidate further explained that he could have stayed at home and kept his successful career in the nuclear power industry but instead, he is running for office to “save the country and … restore America” to where it was when he was growing up. “Unlike Marcy Kaptur, I’m not focusing on and trying to slander my opponent. I’m talking about truth. And the truth is that constituents in Ohio Nine are worried about inflation,” he stated.

inflation prices

Elinor Mantin shops for groceries at Lorenzo’s Supermarket. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Majewski was referring to the beginning of the month when Kaptur, capitalizing on the anti-Trump January 6 Select Committee hearings, launched a smear campaign on social media, trying to blame Majewski for provoking the riots on January 6, 2021, and using parts of a video to accuse him of having “disdain” for law enforcement.

In response to Kaptur’s “slander,” he said, “What happened in Washington, DC, on January 6 was awful. What I did in June in Washington, DC, and [on] January 6 was peaceful. That’s the end of the story.”

Majewski said while his opponent is focused on “slander”, “The truth is that constituents in Ohio Nine are worried about inflation. They’re not worried about the circus show that we see on primetime TV. Inflation is causing everything in our district to cost more. We have soaring crime all over the country. District Nine has been a prolific hub for child and human trafficking. Marcy has done nothing about that.”

Speaking about how the Democrats respond to the child and human trafficking and soaring crime, he said, “[Democrats] wanted to defund the police,” while noting that Kaptur can be linked directly to the defund the police movement.

“I support the police. I back the blue,” Majewski said, adding that he is endorsed by “outstanding leaders in law enforcement in our community.” Having been “born and raised right in the heart of District Nine,” he has been “a solid contributor to the community,” he said.

When asked about specific issues facing the country, such as record gas prices, drug trafficking, and the economy, his number one solution is for Congress to work together to formulate a plan and get America back on track, referencing what Trump did during his presidency.

When it comes to working on the skyrocketing gas prices — the country saw a slew of record-high gas prices this month, the average gas price reaching above $5.00 per gallon — Majewski said that Congress needs to be restored to regular order.

“I think we need to restore Congress to regular order. We need to work together, and we need to disrupt the Biden administration’s assault on our liberties,” he explained. “That’s the number one, and I think with incoming members, senior members, and even junior members, we can formulate a plan to get America back on track. President Trump did it quite handily. He laid the blueprint. All we have to do is reflect, and I really think at the core of it all is we need to be fiscally responsible. And we’re not.”

As a Republican running for Congress, Majewski emphasized that he would be the best fit for the job with his experience in managing “multi-million, multi-billion dollar projects in the nuclear power industry,” and never having been in the “red,” noting that the “country is in every shade of red that you can possibly imagine.”

Further discussing law enforcement, crime, drug trafficking, and the economy, Majewski said that the “bureaucracy is diluting the power of our local law enforcement agencies,” and that the red tape needs to be pulled away from the agencies so they could do their jobs.

“I’m very, very in touch with our border patrol officers, our local sheriff’s departments, and our municipal police departments, and one thing that they’re concerned about is the red tape … that they have to deal with when they’re trying to work together across the district … in the best manner possible.”

Additionally, Majewski said that “we need to fund, not defund” law enforcement agencies, explaining that the “terrible” narrative of defunding the police must not prevail. “They are highly competent individuals, highly competent departments and leaders. And they’re not frivolous spenders like the Democratic Party.”

Majewski won the Republican nomination in Ohio’s Ninth Congressional District in May as a political newcomer, beating out two state legislators. He took 36 percent of the vote, earning 3,129 more votes than his nearest competitor.

In the general election in November, Majewski will go up against Kaptur, who has been a career politician for 40 years. She is a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee and is the longest-serving woman in House history.

Following Majewski’s win in the primary, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), the campaign arm charged with helping Republicans get elected to the House, told Breitbart News exclusively that it is doubling down in Ohio by backing Majewski as a political newcomer to unseat Kaptur.

“We’re committed to doing whatever is necessary to rid Ohioans of career politician Marcy Kaptur and her 40-year record of support for policies that caused higher prices, higher crime, and a massive border crisis,” NRCC Communications Director Michael McAdams told Breitbart News.

Republicans are looking to unseat as many Democrats as possible in the general election. After striving to win back the House in 2020, the Republicans left the Democrats with the slimmest majority in modern history and gave themselves the upper hand in the midterms.

While to win the majority the Republicans only need a net gain of five seats in November, a lot is on the line in both the House and the Senate. Losing either one could mean the Democrats and President Joe Biden will have a more challenging time passing their partisan agenda items before the next presidential election.

With the November elections getting closer, the NRCC also announced earlier this month that it would be spending $52.3 million on ad reservations in its effort to retake the majority in the lower chamber. The NRCC specifically said it would be spending just under a million dollars in the Toledo media market, which covers part of Ohio’s Ninth Congressional District.

Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jbliss@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter @JacobMBliss.

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.