Bost on Bailey Challenge: Arguing Over "Silly Things"
Congressman Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro) outside of the Capitol in 2019.
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After tweets accusing him for having lost touch with voters because he wore a scarf on a cold day and touting the endorsement of President Trump’s former physician, you may not have to work hard to convince Congressman Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro) that his primary with former GOP gubernatorial nominee Darren Bailey in the southern Illinois-based 12th congressional has gotten a little absurd.
Speaking with The Illinoize after an event in the Chicago suburbs Monday featuring former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Bost said Bailey is grasping at straws because he’s
“When you go and run against a person that’s going to vote like you, you kind of give up your options to have issues to debate or discuss,” Bost said. “I vote exactly like the 12th district would want me to vote. That’s who I am. Now that just leaves silly things that they can argue over.”
Bost, a former Marine who was first elected to Congress in 2014, has risen to chair of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee
He says the race should be more focused on issues like securing the southern border, “dealing” with foreign affairs crises in Israel, Ukraine, and China, and reducing the national debt.
But both Bost and Bailey have been openly pining for the endorsement of former President Trump.
“I would love to have the Trump endorsement,” Bost said. “We’ll see how it plays out. I’d love to have it, but it’s not going to stop me from running.”
Until if or when Trump weights in on the race, the silliness may continue.
“When you get down to that petty stuff, it’s ridiculous,” Bost said. “Let’s talk about the issues.”