State Sen. Amanda Chase, R-Chesterfield, visited the Stuart Farmers’ Market last week.
By Taylor Boyd
State Sen. Amanda Chase stopped by the Stuart Farmers’ Market last week during her gubernatorial campaign.
Chase, who has served in her current position since 2016, said she decided to run for governor because “I can’t take it anymore. I can’t take the current Governor restricting we the people, our constitution rights, even in the midst of a healthcare crisis.”
If she were in office right now, Chase said that she would educate, not mandate.
“We should never be in the situation where we are where the solution is worse than the actual virus itself. We have in Virginia right now businesses that have closed, we have people that have committed suicide because of the mental health issues that we’ve had to endure,” she said.
She said these effects can be attributed to the way the government has addressed the pandemic.
“I agree that this is certainly something that’s unprecedented, but you still have to respect people’s constitutional rights. We need to educate people about what they can do and allow them to make that choice for them and their families,” she said.
Chase said she believes the government should not have the power to shut down businesses, schools and take many of the other actions related to the pandemic.
“Look at what’s going on with the parole board. I mean, they are allowing, under the guise of COVID, murderers to be set free in our streets, creating a public safety issue for we the people. We don’t like that at all. If COVID can be solved by putting a mask on, give them a mask and keep them in jail,” she said.
Chase was previously censured on the Senate floor for saying that she didn’t “do COVID. What the means to me is that I’m not going to live my life in fear. Yes, the virus is real, but you know, I’m not going to live my life in fear.”
She said she has heard from constituents who have been hospitalized because of the amount of time they had been forced by their employer to wear masks.
“It’s actually a healthcare crisis and I’m concerned in the long-term what’s going to happen with situations of the healthcare of those who have been forced to wear the masks,” she said.
If successful in her election bid, “the first thing I’m going to do is eliminate all of these executive orders. I’m going to give people their freedom back. We’re going to eliminate the mask mandate. We’re going to make people’s faces great again, and restore Virginia to Virginia,” she said.
Chase said another priority is getting rid of the indoctrination that she said is occurring in schools.
“Getting rid of critical race theory, getting rid of project 1619. We need to get back to reading, writing, arithmetic, and real history. We need to put our history back and not take down statues and monuments. We need to learn from it. The cancel culture has got to go,” she said.
She said she believe there is an all-out attack on Christian conservatives and Republicans.
“The left is trying to shut us down, and as Virginia’s next Governor, that is not going to happen on my watch. I will hold every social media company accountable. There will be fines that they won’t want to violate. This indoctrination that’s going on in our schools, public schools, and colleges and universities will lose that funding,” she said.
Chase said she favors parents choosing the type of education their children receive.
“We’re going to allow the money to follow the child, and allow the parents to choose what kind of education they want for their kids instead of this one-size fits all cookie-cutter education where they’re indoctrinating our kids,” she said.
Chase said she is a Virginia first and America first candidate.
“I’ve been called Trump in heels because I’m not politically correct, but we have to stop using politically correct language and properly identify the challenges of our state and of our country, so that we can actually solve the problems,” she said.
She said a leader who is looking to empower small business owners, encourage economic development, and open up commerce is needed.
“In these tough economic times, we should be working hard to encourage and innovate our Virginia businesses to safely open and provide the jobs, goods, and services that rea vital to our Commonwealth,” she said.
An ardent supporter of the Second Amendment, Chase said she believes that it is the backbone of every other right citizens have. “The Second Amendment is not just for hunting, it’s to protect us against terrorists, both foreign and domestic.”
She also would work to help address technology issues.
“We need to make sure that everyone has access to the internet. Proper upload and download speeds, that will really generate the economy” regardless of the area of Virginia, Chase said.
She earned a degree in business from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, where she double majored in corporate finance and business management. As a result, Chase said she understands fiscal policy and how to get Virginians back to work, and as a second term state senator also knows the issues.
“Unlike any other candidate that’s running on the Republican ticket, I know the issues and I have a conservative voting record that people can trust. A lot of these people running this year, I’m sure they’re good people, but they have never been tested. They’ve never been tried in the political world, they’ve never had the press in their face, they’ve never had lobbyists and PACs (Political Action Committees) putting the pressure on them to go a certain direction. I have. I just finished my sixth session, and yet I’ve withstood all of that,” she said.
Chase said she believes the people are tired of politicians and want a candidate who is loyal to the people instead of party, a caucus, and lobbyists.
“I’m the only candidate running for Governor that can say that I’ve never accepted any money from a political action committee or lobbyists. The only money that I’m getting is the money that I’m getting from people buying my” merchandise, she said.
She said her message resonates among those who are tired of politicians.
“They want a mom to come in there and clean this hot mess up that’s going on in that Executive Mansion. They’re done with the Democratic rule,” she said.
Chase said she has support from Independents and Democrats because of her gender. While the Republican Party is not into the identity politics, Chase said it also is supporting her because she is the most qualified candidate due to her education, background, and experience.
In addition to Chase, several other candidates are seeking the party’s endorsement during a nominating convention in May, including Kirk Cox, Peter Doran, Octovia Johnson, Sergio De La Peña, Pete Synder, and Glenn Youngkin.
The Democrat challenger will be selected during the June 8 primary from a field that includes Lee Carter, Justin Fairfax, Jennifer Carroll Foy, Terry McAuliffe, and Jenn McClellan.
