{"id":115963,"date":"2026-04-01T13:26:58","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T18:26:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/?p=115963"},"modified":"2026-04-01T13:26:58","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T18:26:58","slug":"115963","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/?p=115963","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"

An Interview with The AK Guy, GOP Candidate for U.S. House, Brandon Herrera<\/a><\/p>\n

By\u00a0Lee Williams<\/a><\/p>\n

SAF Investigative Journalism Project<\/p>\n

Special to Liberty Park Press<\/em><\/p>\n

Brandon Herrera, the GOP\u2019s official candidate for Texas\u2019 23rd<\/sup>\u00a0Congressional District, may know more about guns and gun rights than any member of Congress.<\/p>\n

Herrera, who\u2019s known as \u201cThe AK Guy<\/a>,\u201d has millions of followers on\u00a0X<\/a>,\u00a0YouTube<\/a>, and\u00a0Instagram<\/a>, who tune him in regularly for two reasons: He knows what he\u2019s talking about and he\u2019s entertaining as hell.<\/p>\n

Perhaps President Donald J. Trump said it best in his recent endorsement:<\/p>\n

\u201cToday I am endorsing America First Patriot, Brandon Herrera, who is running to represent the wonderful people of Texas\u2019 23rd Congressional District. Brandon is strongly supported by many Highly Respected MAGA Warriors in Texas, and Republicans in the U.S. House. As your next Congressman, he will work tirelessly to advance our MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN Agenda. Brandon will fight hard to Grow the Economy, Cut Taxes and Regulations, Advance MADE IN THE U.S.A., Unleash American Energy DOMINANCE, Safeguard our Elections, Champion School Choice, Keep our Border SECURE, Stop Migrant Crime, Support our Brave Military, Veterans, and Law Enforcement, and Protect our always under siege Second Amendment. Brandon Herrera has my Complete and Total Endorsement to be the next Representative from Texas\u2019 23rd Congressional District \u2014 HE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN,\u201d President Trump posted on social media.<\/p>\n

Recently, Herrera took some time answering questions about his life, candidacy and the Second Amendment.<\/p>\n

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Here\u2019s the Q & A:<\/p>\n

The AK Guy, gun dealer, constitutionalist, pro-gun advocate, political candidate\u2014how do you describe yourself?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cI\u2019m a business owner who lives in my district who was unhappy with my congressman. I\u2019ve been a constitutional advocate and activist for years now. This is very different, but it\u2019s the same cause I\u2019ve been doing for a very long time.\u201d<\/p>\n

How would you describe your firearms knowledge?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cFairly intimate. I\u2019ve always been a firearms person. I\u2019ve been a firearms manufacturer for well over 10 years now, specializing in the AK platform but providing a long list of other firearms and kit builds.<\/p>\n

How did you get started as a Second Amendment expert?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cIt just took over. I\u2019ve used my comedy to entertain, but as my platform grew, my voice became greater and I got the ability to speak about an incredibly important issue: The Second Amendment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Are you aware of any other federal elected official with greater firearm knowledge than you?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cThe only ones who might come close or maybe give me a run for my money are\u00a0Pat Harrigan<\/a>\u00a0from North Carolina or\u00a0Andrew Clyde<\/a>\u00a0from Georgia. They both owned or own FFLs and firearm manufacturing businesses.<\/p>\n

Are you willing to instruct, teach or somehow guide other politicians about guns, gun rights?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cI would love to whenever possible. I\u2019d like to think I\u2019d be a resource if there are any questions or technical issues, or if passing legislation that the majority of the Second Amendment crowd thinks is okay, but it could hurt our gun rights. I want pro-gun legislation to stay entirely pro-gun. I would also be willing to be a resource if anyone on either side of the aisle wants more information. A lot of the anti-gun sentiment usually comes from a lack of education.\u201d<\/p>\n

What is the worst thing anti-gunners don\u2019t know?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cThere is a majority of Democrats\u2014but a few Republicans too\u2014who voted to enhance background checks where they thought it would stop firearm deaths. It\u2019s completely misguided. Look at the bipartisan\u00a0Safer Communities Act<\/a>. It was a piece of Democratic legislation. It had Tony Gonzales, who I just replaced, and John Cornyn, who both fell into the trap of \u2018common sense gun laws.\u2019 There\u2019s no common-sense thing in that bill that would have changed a thing that would have affected the outcome at Uvalde. They passed it to feel good, to make it look to their voters like they were doing something.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tell me your opinion about Patrick \u201cTate\u201d Adamiak\u2019s incarceration?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cIt\u2019s f\u2013king bulls\u2013t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Did Adamiak do anything illegal?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cIt depends on what lens you use. According to the ATF, which is my functional problem with this, he possessed demilled parts kits, and no law has changed since they were imported. There was no change of law. They had been previously approved by the ATF, which led to this young service member\u2019s incarceration.\u201d<\/p>\n

What do you think about Adamiak\u2019s 20-year prison sentence?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cI disagree with the NFA fundamentally in general, but playing the devil\u2019s advocate, as unconstitutional as the law may be, to choose to throw the book at Tate is notorious even if he was a gang member. I\u2019ve bought hundreds of these kits over the years. To throw the book at Tate was abhorrent\u2014flat out abuse of the law.\u201d<\/p>\n

What was your reaction when you received President Trump\u2019s endorsement?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cObviously, I\u2019m very grateful to the President for the endorsement. I think now, while I may have some things I don\u2019t see eye to eye on with leadership in the past, all of us have the same goal for November, to keep the Texas 23rd<\/sup>\u00a0red.<\/p>\n

Do you have any congressional committee interest?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cWe just had a couple meetings about this in particular. Tony (Gonzalez) was in an Appropriations seat. Tony got it as a freshman. There\u2019s an open seat on that committee. Perhaps Judiciary as well as Veterans\u2019 Affairs. Those are the three that come to the top of my head.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tell me about Texas\u2019 23rd Congressional District<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cIt\u2019s the biggest district in all of Texas. I can leave my house in San Antonio and drive west for seven hours. It\u2019s the biggest border district in the entire country. It shares more border with Mexico than any other district. We really were Ground Zero for Biden\u2019s border crisis. It\u2019s very important for me and my district to make sure the border stays secure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Why did you take the \u201cNo New Taxes\u201d pledge?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cBecause I believe the average American is radically overtaxed. Government is a terrible steward of our money. They\u2019re not only stealing our money but stealing the value of our money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tell me how you will defend our gun rights?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cI think it\u2019s a multi-level system\u2014combined arms. There\u2019s the federal level, of course. For states, some states are getting worse, but a few are getting better. The third element is the judiciary. That\u2019s where we have the potential to get the most pressure done. The Supreme Court is only as good as the cases they take. There\u2019s no excuse for them not to take these items. We came incredibly close to having suppressors and short-barreled rifles removed from the NFA. I never thought I\u2019d see that in my lifetime.\u201d<\/p>\n

What have you found is the best way to communicate with potential voters?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cI have my online audience, but a lot of it is going out and talking. I have 27 counties in my district, and I have visited all of them. You actually go out and talk to them. I rarely leave a room without having a good experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

How is your money doing?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cI have a donation\u00a0link<\/a>, but unfortunately, because of the scandal Tony (Gonzalez) was in, while this is a safe Republican seat, it wouldn\u2019t surprise me if the Democrats drop a few million to try to take it. So far, I\u2019ve personally put in more than a half-million dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n

Has Trump\u2019s election hurt gun dealers financially\u2014has business slowed?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cUnfortunately, a lot of times people slow down on their gun-buying when they\u2019re not afraid of losing their rights. We saw panic buying under the Democrats. That\u2019s scary. It\u2019s good that we\u2019re in a position where we\u2019re not afraid of that, and it\u2019s good we don\u2019t have to worry about it. If gun dealers suffer, it\u2019s temporary. I would prefer to have a slow buying season rather than a panic buy because rights are being stripped away from us.\u201d<\/p>\n

What are your takeaways on Tony Gonzalez\u2019s failed candidacy?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cWell, I didn\u2019t originally run because I wanted to be in Congress. Frankly, I originally ran because I didn\u2019t like Tony\u2019s voting record. He was weak on the Second Amendment, but no one in the race could beat him. I assessed my ability to fundraise and whether I thought I could give it a good run. Last cycle, as a total newcomer, I took him to a runoff and lost by only 400 votes. He was hoping he could get better. He certainly didn\u2019t. I\u2019m just a business owner in the district, but I was able to rally the grassroots enough that we were able to take down a Goliath. That should be reassuring to everyone out there.\u201d<\/p>\n

How has the pushback been from the left?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cIt\u2019s been hilarious. They\u2019re like \u2018look, this guy is a radical.\u2019 They went hard for that right out of the gate. It hasn\u2019t affected our numbers at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

What haven\u2019t I asked you about?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Herrera: \u201cThe big this is that it\u2019s important just to show up. We need to do a better job showing up. If every single gun owner showed up to every single election, we would have a supermajority. We need to rally our base and get out there. We also have a responsibility to write good legislation to do the job for the people who put us there. It\u2019s a two-sided responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An Interview with The AK Guy, GOP Candidate for U.S. House, Brandon Herrera By\u00a0Lee Williams SAF Investigative Journalism Project Special to Liberty Park Press Brandon Herrera, the GOP\u2019s official candidate for Texas\u2019 23rd\u00a0Congressional District, may know more about guns and gun rights than any member of Congress. Herrera, who\u2019s known as \u201cThe AK Guy,\u201d has … Continue reading “”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[69,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-115963","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-elections","category-rkba"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115963","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=115963"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115963\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":115964,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115963\/revisions\/115964"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=115963"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=115963"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=115963"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}