One-on-one with Mike Beltran: Ending sugar subsidies, flood insurance and restricting federal power

TAMPA, Fla. - Republican former Florida State Representative Mike Beltran is challenging Democratic incumbent Congresswoman Kathy Castor for Florida's 14th Congressional District. In an interview with Fox 13 Political Editor Craig Patrick, Beltran discussed his platform focused on constitutional limits, spending cuts, and border security, while addressing topics ranging from federal agricultural policy and flood insurance to foreign relations and climate science.

Sugar Subsidies and Free Market Economics

Taking a stance against government market intervention, Beltran broke news by declaring his opposition to federal sugar price supports, which artificially inflate consumer prices on products containing sugar.

Pointing to his baseline philosophy of limited government, Beltran argued that federal subsidies run counter to free-market principles.

"I'm not a fan of government intervening in the economy. I'm for limited government, separation of powers, individual liberty. Those are my first principles," Beltran said.

While acknowledging the political difficulty of repealing agricultural protections in Congress, Beltran confirmed he would vote to eliminate them if given the opportunity.

"As a practical matter, I don't think they will end," Beltran said. "I think, you know, there are enough people that, if you had a vote... I would cast a vote [to] end those subsidies."

Birthright Citizenship and Border Security

Advocating for changes to birthright citizenship, Beltran proposed a constitutional amendment targeting unlawful border crossings and commercial surrogacy arrangements.

"So I would do a constitutional amendment to get rid of anchor babies and to get rid of birth tourism," Beltran said.

When asked about individuals present in the country on temporary visas, Beltran clarified that his stance targets unlawful entry and commercial transactions rather than lawful residents.

"If they're lawfully in the United States, I don't have a problem," Beltran said. "If someone's unlawfully in United States or they do a commercial transaction... I don't think that's proper."

Addressing concerns that restricting birthright citizenship could leave children without legal status, Beltran noted that children inherit the nationality of their parents under international law.

"They would have the citizenship of their parents," Beltran said. "If you come to the United States on a trip for a week, or you sneak across the border or you enter into some commercial transaction, that shouldn't be a way, a back door through our immigration policies."

Flood Insurance and Federal Disaster Relief

Addressing the National Flood Insurance Program's $22 billion debt, Beltran opposed cutting benefits or scaling back federal support for flood-prone areas, arguing that emergency management is a foundational duty of the federal government.

Beltran framed disaster relief as a shared national responsibility, asserting that Florida should receive federal support during crises just as other states do.

"We have a fiscal union. When there's a wildfire in California, we pay for that. If there's a terrorist attack in New York, Floridians pay for that," Beltran said. "...Part of government, one of the legitimate purposes of government is disaster relief and emergency management."

When asked about potential cost controls for the program, Beltran said he would support income-based premium adjustments, noting that "most government programs should be means tested."

Property Insurance

Reflecting on his legislative record in Tallahassee, Beltran defended his votes on Florida's property insurance crisis, taking credit for bolstering the state’s reinsurance fund while noting his opposition to civil litigation reforms that make it financially riskier to sue property insurance companies over claim disputes.

Beltran said spiraling costs required state action to stabilize the market.

"In the property insurance arena, there was a legitimate problem with excessive claims, and the rates were going up uncontrollably," Beltran said. "So, I voted for that."

Alignment with Donald Trump and Campaign Strategy

Addressing questions regarding changes to his campaign website—specifically the repositioning or removal of prominent photos featuring Donald Trump after the primary—Beltran rejected suggestions that he was distancing himself from the former president. Beltran explained that the website was simply updated with new artwork following summer photo shoots in July and August.

"I think we only changed a few photos on the website. We got a new photo shoot in July and August. We didn't have time to update it until after the primary," Beltran said. "Obviously you can only have one photo on the front page, or you can have one in the most prominent position."

He emphasized that his primary advertisements and social media posts remain intact and explicitly comprise pro-Trump messaging, highlighting both his support of Trump and Trump's official endorsement of his candidacy.

"We haven't gone back and changed any of the social media posts that we've made. Those are all intact. And on the website, you can still see the ads from the primary where we referred to support, support of Trump and support from Trump," Beltran said.

Beltran noted that Trump endorsed him shortly after the primary, that he recently joined Vice Presidential nominee JD Vance in Lakeland, and that he plans to appear with Trump at upcoming events.

Political Rhetoric, Free Speech, and Radicalism

During that campaign rally in Lakeland, Vice President JD Vance criticized the political views of Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Angie Nixon, asserting that based on her stances she "doesn't belong here" and "needs to leave the country."

Asked whether Vance crossed a line, Beltran first deflected by taking the remark literally: "I don't know about Angie Nixon's immigration status... I assume she's a U.S. citizen."

When Patrick clarified that Vance was targeting her political views, Beltran pivoted again—reframing Vance's remark around voluntary exit rather than forced deportation, before quickly turning the attack onto Nixon's legislative conduct in Tallahassee and Castor's alignment with her.

"If people don't like the country, they don't like the way that we do things, they don't like our Constitution, and they don't like capitalism... people are free to leave," Beltran said. "Angie Nixon has been a very disruptive member of the Florida House. She screamed at the top of her lungs to grind proceedings to a halt [and] used a megaphone to again disrupt the proceedings. My opponent has welcomed Angie Nixon into her party as somebody who's running on the same ticket with her."

Tackling the $40 Trillion Debt

To restore fiscal discipline, Beltran called for eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse in entitlement programs, requiring foreign allies to pay their fair share for military defense, and strictly limiting federal operations to powers enumerated in the U.S. Constitution.

"First of all, we need to identify waste, fraud, and abuse. We need to root that out," Beltran said. "The founders were very prescient in this way. They made a very limited list of things that the federal government is supposed to do... It's when we get beyond that, into other areas of policy that should be done at the local level or should be done in the private sector, then we have these massive increases in the size of government."

Housing Costs and Federal Overreach

Beltran argued that skyrocketing housing costs are a direct result of federal overreach, inflationary deficit spending, and excessive market regulation.

He asserted that federal intervention inevitably inflates prices across core sectors—including healthcare, education, and housing—compared to goods traded freely in the private market.

"Everything that the federal government does increases the costs of a home," Beltran said. "When we spend $2 trillion more a year than we take in, you cause inflation and that increases the cost of a house... Anything that the government subsidizes, or regulates, or in some cases provides, is going to see cost increases."

Middle East Conflict, Iran, and Energy Supplies

Addressing ongoing instability in the Middle East and threats to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, Beltran expressed opposition to large-scale foreign military deployments while suggesting targeted operations to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear capabilities.

Beltran firmly ruled out conventional ground invasions while leaving surgical strikes or Special Forces operations on the table to protect navigation and dismantle nuclear infrastructure.

"I don't support boots on the ground," Beltran stated. "If we can send Special Forces in and recover that material... if that's not feasible, you bomb it. And if that's just not feasible, you just disrupt their ability to have these centrifuges, to power the centrifuges to build the missiles."

Climate Policy and Energy Regulation

Expressing skepticism regarding the scientific consensus surrounding human-driven climate change, Beltran voiced strong opposition to green energy subsidies, carbon regulations, and federal mandates that he said increase energy costs for consumers.

Beltran maintained that alternative energy sources like solar, wind, and nuclear should compete naturally in the free market without government intervention or regulatory burdens.

Asked directly if he personally believes carbon pollution contributes to climate change, Beltran rejected the premise as a justification for federal policy.

"I don't think there's sufficient evidence that we should be making policy or doing government subsidies or additional regulations on that," Beltran said.

Immigration Enforcement and Mandatory Deportation

Beltran reaffirmed his commitment to enforcing federal immigration laws, calling for the deportation of individuals residing in the country without legal authorization.

Citing his work on Florida’s sanctuary cities ban, Beltran emphasized that law enforcement efforts naturally prioritize individuals who commit additional offenses after entering unlawfully.

"Over half of the people who've been deported to date have committed additional crimes beyond that of entering the country illegally... So these people are already committing crimes just by their presence or by entering the country," Beltran said. 

When Patrick pointed out that overstaying a temporary visa is a civil infraction rather than a federal crime and asked if those individuals would also be targeted for removal, Beltran declined to grant exceptions based on legal classification.

"If we apprehend somebody who is not lawfully in the United States, then the government should deport them," Beltran said.

Protecting Social Security Solvency

Addressing projected shortfalls in the Social Security Trust Fund, Beltran pledged to protect senior benefits without raising payroll taxes or increasing the retirement age, advocating instead to shore up funding through general revenue and improper payment elimination.

"Social Security is a promise that we made to our seniors. I'm committed to protecting that. What my opponent has done is continuously raid the Social Security Trust Fund to pay for current spending," Beltran said. "First of all, eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse... and then if we need to shore it up, then we're going to shore it up... with general revenue funds if necessary."

Abortion

Asked whether he would vote for a federal abortion ban if elected to Congress, Beltran gave an unequivocal refusal, grounding his position strictly in constitutional limits under Article I, Section 8.

"Absolutely not," Beltran said. "There's no federal role. There's no general federal role for abortion. It's not in Article 1, Section 8... We've maintained for years that abortion is a state-level issue, and we're not going to change course now that the Supreme Court has adopted that view."