MJ Hegar

“My district doesn't come to vote to the polls against something because they fear something. They will come to the polls to vote for something because they are inspired by something.”

“I have long-since said that working... together and accomplishing things in a bipartisan way doesn't mean compromising your values.”

“I have a history with domestic violence myself. I have toddlers in my home, and I'm a gun owner. And, as a veteran, I'm a member of a community that has a very high suicide rate. So all of those things have touched my life.”

“Many don't think that there are women serving in combat roles. Others think that women who do serve in combat shrink in fear when the bullets fly. I know differently.”

“I had medevacked so many women off the battlefield that I knew that it was a misnomer to say that women weren't in combat. I had friends that were Marines that were taken to fight the enemy. They weren't just firing in defense of their position.”

“I think we have some amazing leaders. But then we have some leaders who turn a blind eye to things that contribute negatively to a really difficult culture for women.”

“I'm a medevac pilot. I have spent time suppressing wildfires and things like that. And as a combat pilot, I tend to find the biggest bucket of water I can find and put it on the biggest fire I can find, right?”

“I think of myself as a bit of a mother bear, and if anybody poses a threat to my kids they'll see both my mother's heart and my warrior spirit. I think that they're compatible.”

“We take responsibility for being firearm owners. We take responsibility for whose hands those guns get into.”

“The people who are sending our men and women in uniform into conflict need to understand that there are some things worth fighting for, but also understand the high cost of war.”

“I am a combat veteran and a working mom and a fighter, and I've already been successful taking on the dark forces in D.C.”

“I would argue that growing up in a Republican area actually makes me a lot more of a viable candidate than someone who is going to demonize and alienate someone who used to be a Republican or used to vote Republican.”

“Having a path to elected office was never the goal for me.”

“If we are to retain our position as the world's leading superpower, we must maintain our influence and diplomatic relationships. We cannot do that if we become known for abandoning our allies and reneging on our promises.”

“I grew up in a place that didn't have any Democrats, or if there were Democrats they weren't talking about it.”

“I am for the Second Amendment, but I am for common-sense gun legislation.”

“I knew that I wanted to apply for a job in the Air Force, that I couldn't because it was a direct-combat, ground-combat role.”

“I experienced a lot of discrimination in the military. One commander told me that if my time of the month got in the way of my job, he would fire me. An instructor in pilot training continually failed me for subjective things, like judgment and situational awareness--I couldn't get him to tell me what I was doing wrong.”

“In my opinion, you keep the standards very high and you maintain one standard. There shouldn't be two standards for women and men, there should be a standard for this job: To do this job, you should have to do these things.”

“We need to have leaders that aren't afraid to go against the grain to call out failures in leadership.”