Full interview: Colorado Republican gubernatorial candidate Victor Marx

[0:00] Victor Marsh, thank you for your time. [0:01] Great to be with you. [0:02] So you have agreed to debate your Republican opponents on 9 News next week, [0:07] and that discussion is going to focus on policy. [0:09] Our conversation here is going to talk about your backgrounds and your qualification. [0:12] Great. [0:13] The stories that you tell about your life and your accomplishments are extraordinary. [0:20] How much of it's true? [0:24] All of it. [0:26] Easy enough. [0:27] You describe yourself as a high-risk missionary, a renowned martial artist. [0:32] You're a ministry leader, you're a speaker, you're an author. [0:37] What qualifies you to be the governor of Colorado? [0:41] I'd say first is what are the qualifications to be governor? [0:47] The main one for me, you first got to care for people. [0:54] You got to truly care for Coloradans because if it's just some type of job, [0:59] it's going to be reflected in the way you run the state. [1:04] I think it's reflected right now in how bad the state is. [1:08] So, and then it's a CEO position. [1:13] It's not a legislator. [1:16] And that matters to be able to build teams out, [1:22] probably assign the right people in the right positions to help run the state. [1:28] And that's one of the things I do well. [1:31] I build out solid teams. [1:33] One claim that you make as central to your life story and your accomplishments, [1:40] to me, stands out above all of the others. [1:42] And it's about saving women and children. [1:45] Yeah. [1:46] Your campaign website falsely claimed that you had rescued more than 45,000 women and children. [1:52] And that claim has since been taken down. [1:54] How many women and children have you rescued from captivity and abuse? [1:58] Well, regarding the 45,000, is that the number you're making reference to? [2:07] Never did I ever say that I rescued 45,000 women and children. [2:14] And I mean, I've been doing this for years. [2:17] Our ministry website never claimed that. [2:22] Our current campaign website doesn't say it. [2:27] I think what happened, the best that we can see, [2:32] is an independent contractor put together a first, you know, website for the campaign. [2:44] And then that individual inadvertently put rescued. [2:48] And it was corrected as soon as we knew. [2:51] So mistakes happen. [2:52] I understand that. [2:52] How many women and children have you rescued? [2:57] We've never publicly given the number out for security reasons. [3:03] And we don't have a need to. [3:04] I would say it's more than one and less than a bunch. [3:10] Our desire is to protect those that we have and our current network that's in place. [3:17] So there's no benefit from us. [3:20] Giving a number would put people in danger. [3:23] Yes. [3:24] How does the number put people in danger? [3:27] I think if those that we've disrupted, [3:35] nefarious characters and organizations had the number, [3:40] it would put us and our network at much greater risk than we are now. [3:46] You certainly fundraise off of your ability to rescue women and children. [3:49] In 2021, you said we're best known for recovering women and children from ISIS. [3:53] You said to donors in 2022, [3:55] your donation empowers us to rescue women, children, and the exploited. [3:58] You said in 2024 to donors, [4:00] your faithful support helps to set captives free. [4:03] But you're saying that your donors and voters [4:06] don't get to know how many people you've actually rescued. [4:09] What I'm saying is people trust that the work that we've done, [4:20] which we've documented throughout all the years, [4:23] is sufficient enough so that we don't put either those we've helped [4:28] or us in unreasonable danger because of it. [4:36] It's when we say, I mean, our mission statement, [4:41] it's to set captives free physically, emotionally, and spiritually. [4:44] I think what I've always said is true. [4:48] We're best known for rescue and recovering [4:50] because people, whether military or the special operations community [4:56] or law enforcement, people who are in that realm have, [5:01] especially in the beginning, [5:02] are shocked that we've been able to do some of the things that we've done. [5:05] You certainly do use specific rescue numbers, though, [5:09] when you feel that it suits your purposes. [5:13] You wrote in February of this year, [5:14] just last month, our team rescued 43 children [5:17] from the grips of evil predators. [5:19] Where did that rescue of 43 children happen? [5:21] In the U.S. [5:22] That was by, through, and with law enforcement, [5:25] through special operations [5:26] that we do with protecting children's innocence. [5:29] Are you referring to Operation Northern Lights in Florida? [5:32] Yes. [5:32] Okay, so the U.S. Marshals named 25 partner agencies, [5:36] including two rescue ministries, [5:38] that were involved in that operation. [5:40] They said nothing about you and your ministry, [5:42] but you're claiming credit for those 43 rescues? [5:45] They didn't even mention you. [5:46] Yeah, not credit, participation in what we do. [5:50] You said our team rescued 43 children, [5:53] and the Marshals who ran that operation named 25 partners [5:56] and never said a word about you. [5:58] Does that mean we didn't help them? [6:00] No, I'm just curious why you think that is. [6:02] We don't require that we be listed or named in any operations. [6:10] Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. [6:13] When you say our team rescued 43 children, [6:16] what did your team specifically do? [6:18] Well, when I say our team, [6:21] our team has expanded associate team members in what we do. [6:25] We were part of seeing 43 kids being rescued. [6:30] What part? [6:30] Training, equipping. [6:36] Again, the Protecting Children's Instance Task Force, [6:40] we come alongside to help law enforcement do what they do best. [6:45] You give folks grants so that they can hire officers, [6:48] they can hire, they can buy vehicles, [6:50] they can get technology, that kind of thing. [6:52] And your own organization, PCI, [6:54] says that you do so without directing cases. [6:58] So you're not actually involved in the actual rescues themselves in those situations. [7:02] The Connecticut rescues here in the U.S., no. [7:04] No. [7:05] So when you say our team rescued 43 children from the grips of evil predators, [7:09] you mean to say your organization gave a grant to officers [7:13] who went out and rescued those kids? [7:15] Well, were any of those officers here at our retreat center getting trained? [7:21] That could have been. [7:23] When were those MOUs signed? [7:25] Because I see dates in September of 2025. [7:29] That raid was in late 2025. [7:31] Yeah. [7:32] You would need a check with Buddy, Jericho, [7:36] who's the commander of the task force. [7:38] And your campaign manager, right? [7:40] Yeah. [7:40] I don't hold on to those details like that. [7:43] I want to talk about some of the specifics of what you will share about your rescues. [7:52] You said that you've performed more than 130 missions [7:56] to rescue women and children from terror and abuse. [7:58] Your organization says that you've saved women and children from 30 nations. [8:02] 30 nations. [8:03] That's a lot of countries. [8:04] Could you list off a bunch of those for me? [8:07] Start with the first. [8:08] Yes, sir. [8:10] What did I say? [8:11] You said that, this is in 2024, [8:13] you said that you've performed more than 130, quote, [8:16] missions to rescue women and children from terror and abuse. [8:20] Is what you said factually true, [8:22] that you have performed more than 130 missions [8:24] to rescue women and children from terror and abuse? [8:26] Where do you cite that? [8:27] You said that on X on August 12th of 2024. [8:32] That's not something I believe I would ever say. [8:36] Your full quote was, [8:37] I wrote this book, Dangerous Gentleman, [8:38] after 130 plus missions to rescue women and children from terror and abuse. [8:43] So that's not true, what you wrote. [8:46] I wouldn't, that doesn't sound accurate, [8:50] that I would specify how many missions. [8:55] Okay, I'm happy to provide you with a copy afterwards. [8:58] Yep. [8:58] Your organization claims that you've saved women and children in 30 nations. [9:02] And I was wondering if you could list off a bunch of those countries. [9:05] Saved or helped? [9:06] Quote, saved women and children in 30 nations. [9:10] That was from the Protecting Children's Innocence Task Force fact sheet. [9:15] Well, I would say check with Buddy. [9:21] Again, our commander. [9:22] I don't hold on to stats right now. [9:24] I mean, you're the CEO of the organization. [9:26] If you really have saved women and children in 30 nations, [9:28] you could name off a bunch, right? [9:32] I don't, I mean, I don't memorize every place that we've gone. [9:37] Okay. [9:38] So I got a passport. [9:39] You said that you have, quote, [9:41] never failed at a mission, which is quite a claim. [9:44] Yeah. [9:44] I mean, elite military units would envy that success rate. [9:48] In decades of what you describe as this high-risk work, [9:50] you've never had an unsuccessful mission. [9:54] I would say we've accomplished the mission [9:56] and never failed at what we were wanting to accomplish. [10:00] I mean, there have definitely been challenges and variables. [10:05] But yeah, we're really excited that we've been able to accomplish what we have. [10:10] I want to return again to the core question about what I think is the biggest claim [10:15] that you make about your life's accomplishments, [10:17] this idea of rescuing women and children. [10:19] You'll share the number of missions that you've supposedly gone on, [10:25] these rescue missions, 130 plus. [10:27] You will say how many countries you've supposedly rescued women and children from, 30. [10:32] You will share very specific totals of individual operations, [10:36] like the 43 kids in Florida. [10:38] Yeah. [10:38] But you won't provide a total number. [10:40] No. [10:41] Because it will endanger safety and security. [10:45] Of everything that we do. [10:48] Let me throw out another theory about why you won't share the number. [10:50] Well, let me ask you, why do you think it's so important that we present the entire number? [10:58] Why? [10:59] Or even just a ballpark so that people have some idea if you're telling the truth [11:03] and the scope of impact that you've had. [11:06] Anytime somebody's running for public office and they claim to have done something, [11:09] I ask them for proof. [11:11] And in lieu of proof, I at least ask them for specifics. [11:13] You have no proof and you have no specifics. [11:16] That's not true. [11:18] You won't offer the specifics. [11:20] What is the proof that you have rescued significant numbers of women and children? [11:24] Well, I just walked you through our training. [11:26] You show me your own photographs. [11:28] Yeah. [11:28] Which are not proof of anything other than the fact that you took a photo of someone. [11:31] What do you think is required of proof? [11:37] I would even be willing to let you set the bar other than something that is simply I verify [11:44] it by saying it myself. [11:45] I've heard you say the proof is a video I made, a promotional video I made. [11:50] The proof is a photo I took. [11:52] The proof is my book. [11:53] You get that we can't rely on you to verify your own stories, right? [11:57] Like who can independently verify that you have rescued significant numbers of women and [12:01] children? [12:01] Well, I think a video was just put out. [12:06] We didn't ask for it, but… [12:08] The promotional video with the people saying that you saved them. [12:12] Who are those people? [12:14] Where are they? [12:15] How can we talk to them? [12:16] How can we corroborate their stories? [12:17] Well, I mean, they made it public, that's in Southeast Asia. [12:24] But I can tell you this, without reservation, I have no need to prove to anyone what we've [12:33] done over the last many years because we know what we've done. [12:41] People believing it or not, it has no bearing on our work. [12:46] Let me throw out another theory and you can tell me what you think about it. [12:48] Okay. [12:50] Most of the reason that you won't say how many women and children that you've rescued [12:54] is because that number is actually quite small. [12:59] But admitting that would hurt your fundraising. [13:02] And now it would hurt your political campaign. [13:04] So you cite individual stories of rescues, this one story in depth, this one story in depth, [13:10] and then you tie those individual anecdotes together with big numbers, like we've helped [13:15] 45,000 women and children. [13:19] And if people think that your operation is bigger and more impactful than it is, it helps [13:24] you financially and it now helps you politically. [13:26] I don't think that's true. [13:30] And whether people think we rescued one or a hundred or 300 or 3000, I think the response [13:40] is still going to be the same. [13:42] We're doing the work that we say we do. [13:45] And if people want to give, we're not some big marketing machine. [13:49] If people want to give to the ministry, like we don't even do fundraisers. [13:53] They give. [13:54] If people want to support me as a candidate based on my life or what we've done, that's [14:00] just one aspect. [14:02] They can. [14:03] But I'm a person of integrity that won't compromise or risk always. [14:09] I'd rather be misunderstood than risk putting any body in danger or network or kids or women [14:16] that we've helped because we still do the work. [14:19] I want to talk about other claims that you've made about your life. [14:24] And a lot of your life's work is centered around and motivated by childhood abuse, that [14:30] your stepfather forced you at age three to behead a cat and put it on your head. [14:35] One moment. [14:36] One moment. [14:38] Yeah, please. [14:39] Motivated. [14:40] What do you mean by that? [14:41] Meaning you seek to help children because you were hurt as a child. [14:45] Yep. [14:46] Is that fair? [14:47] Fair. [14:48] Okay. [14:49] So you've talked about how your stepfather forced you at age three to behead a cat and [14:51] wear it on your head, that your stepfather made you- [14:54] It was the carcass of the cat. [14:56] Carcass of the cat. [14:57] That your stepfather made you shoot and kill a man when you were seven. [15:00] Yep. [15:01] I heard more than a decade ago you refer to those claims as unprovables or non-provables. [15:08] Yeah. [15:09] What did you mean by that? [15:10] And how should voters now assess claims that you acknowledge can't be proven? [15:14] Yeah. [15:15] Well, I think people who've been abused will best understand this, that horrible things [15:23] happen to children that you can't prove. [15:27] And those are the things that actually, I think, hurt a person worse because you want [15:34] to be able to have justice brought on your abusers. [15:40] For me, those acts were done without the aid of other people that could help me collaborate [15:47] it. [15:48] And I was a child. [15:49] So me working through it my entire life, I mean, there were definitely what I would say [16:01] the horrible results of abuse that I wish I didn't have to deal with as a kid and a young [16:07] man, but I did. [16:10] So the people that understand it most are those who've suffered abuses where, again, was it [16:19] videoed? [16:20] Were there pictures? [16:21] Back in the 60s and 70s, not so much. [16:23] Sure. [16:24] We expect you to prove it. [16:25] I guess, is there a part of your life story that can't be scrutinized? [16:32] Or is it all fair game for people to look at? [16:34] It's all fair game. [16:35] Okay. [16:36] Okay. [16:37] Your claim that your abusive stepfather forced you to kill a man when you were seven years [16:41] old. [16:42] Is that the only person you've ever killed? [16:43] Well, I would say as a child, yes, without question. [17:02] But I've been in other situations where possibly people or persons died as a result of me defending [17:15] myself in other countries. [17:19] There's no count on that and there's no photos, but that was something as a kid without a doubt. [17:33] Yeah. [17:34] Do you think that you've killed people as an adult? [17:37] Does it matter? [17:40] Yeah, I'd say so. [17:42] Why? [17:43] Killing somebody is a pretty weighty thing. [17:45] If someone's trying to kill you or you're in combat? [17:50] It's still a weighty thing to take somebody else's life. [17:53] I mean, it could be self-defense, it could be justified, but it's still a weighty thing. [17:57] So I'm just asking you, how many people have you killed? [17:59] Well, if I did, I wouldn't be telling a reporter sitting here at my training center. [18:09] How about voters? [18:10] Would you tell voters? [18:11] There's no need. [18:13] I don't think that's important. [18:15] It's actually kind of, it's an odd question to me. [18:19] It's funny, you describe it as an odd question because you actually talk about the idea of killing [18:23] people with some frequency and why it's a necessary thing to do, killing people. [18:28] You said on NRA TV in 2017, now a lot of them just got to be killed. [18:33] I've had them shoot at me and I had to shoot back. [18:35] There's a time and place to eliminate the enemy and you have to. [18:38] You said on Jeff Lerner's podcast in 2025, some people have to get killed. [18:42] Some people have to die. [18:44] But it's an odd question to ask you how many people you've killed. [18:48] Yes. [18:49] Okay. [18:52] You claim that you once called in a US military airstrike that killed 70 ISIS fighters. [18:57] I didn't realize that civilians could essentially facilitate military airstrikes. [19:02] Could you walk me through how that worked? [19:04] No. [19:06] You've previously spoken about the details. [19:09] Didn't say them. [19:10] Well, I don't want to read back your own words too. [19:12] I'm curious how you would describe the act of calling in a military airstrike that killed 70 people. [19:16] I'd like to hear my own words. [19:19] Honestly, I don't want to spend our interview time reading your own words back to you. [19:22] I'd rather ask you some other questions that I think are pertinent interest. [19:25] You told a church congregation earlier this month that you caught child traffickers at the US-Mexico border and, quote, [19:30] made them pay a price. [19:32] Can you tell us what your ministry was doing catching human smugglers at the border and what the price was that you made them pay? [19:37] We were working both with the National Guard and the Border Patrol. [19:46] And we were helping children and women crossing over. [19:53] That was that night. [19:55] That was memorable. [19:56] But receiving kids crossing the river, it was a horrible reality. [20:03] And then later that night in a different part of the river, we caught men smuggling children over. [20:10] And we were, again, the Border Patrol took care of that. [20:16] When you say the words, we caught them, do you mean your team caught them or you watched the Border Patrol catch them? [20:23] We identified them. [20:26] We were by ourselves and then we brought in Border Patrol. [20:29] And then you said, quote, we made them pay a price. [20:33] What was the price that you made them pay? [20:35] Consequences through the Border Patrol. [20:37] Last night when you told the same story at your town hall, you said we caught guys bringing kids in. [20:44] They got their feelings hurt. [20:46] You use that phrase, hurting people's feelings, frequently for acts of violence, right? [20:51] Beating somebody out, shooting somebody, killing somebody. [20:54] Did any of those things happen to those smugglers that you caught when you said they got their feelings hurt? [21:00] I believe when I used the term feelings hurt, that could literally mean hurting someone's emotional feelings and sometimes other things. [21:11] But we were not involved in any acts of violence against those traffickers. [21:18] They were arrested by Border Patrol. [21:21] You perform exorcisms, commanding demons to come out of people. [21:26] Can you explain to me how that works? [21:28] When you say I perform exorcisms. [21:33] Yeah. [21:34] You described yourself as a, quote unquote, reluctant exorcist. [21:38] Right. [21:39] Yeah. [21:40] Describe to me how your exorcisms work when you command demons out. [21:43] Well, that's a joke the way I say that. [21:46] But as a follower of Christ and someone who's very familiar with evil that's been both forced upon me as a kid and then seeing the effects of it in human lives. [21:59] I believe the Word of God that I can pray for people and see people set free from whether it's demonic oppression. [22:09] I never call it possession. [22:11] I believe there's levels of demonization where people are suffering because of evil. [22:16] But could you explain to folks who have never witnessed this, don't understand how it works? [22:20] I've heard you describe it a number of times. [22:22] Yeah. [22:23] You've got the two angels with the swords. [22:25] You've got the circle of judgment and you command the demons out of someone. [22:29] Can you explain to folks how that works so they can hear you describe it? [22:32] Well, I don't command the demons to come out of someone. [22:36] I think of them as assignments or attachments to people. [22:42] And we identify the demon like Jesus did. [22:46] We ask what their name is and then we give them commands. [22:51] And they very frequently and typically will answer through the person's mind. [22:56] They'll tell us what they hear. [22:58] And then we destroy them, banish them to perfect judgment from Christ. [23:03] You also perform these exorcisms by phone. [23:08] Are those just as effective? [23:10] They are. [23:11] You claim to have cast demons out of a number of people, including your friend [23:16] and the late conservative commentator, Charlie Kirk. [23:19] You claim to have cast demons out of a high ranking Pentagon official and other celebrities. [23:24] If you're elected governor, would you continue to perform exorcisms while governor? [23:28] Well, let's make sure we get the semantics right. [23:31] It's not casting demons out of people. [23:34] It's breaking strongholds, which are evil, oppressive. [23:39] I mean, I think there are people out there that suffer tremendously because of evil. [23:47] And I would never stop praying for people. [23:50] Can I ask an ignorant question? [23:51] Sure. [23:52] You're going to say you've asked 13. [23:53] But no, here's my question. [23:54] When you do command the demon at the end of the retooling prayer, the demon stays inside the person? [24:01] I'm not saying the demon was ever inside the person. [24:05] Assigned to the person. [24:06] Yes. [24:07] Okay. [24:08] Thank you for clarifying that. [24:09] Assignment or attachment, not inside of a person. [24:15] Where does the demon go at the end of the exorcism? [24:18] We send them to the foot soul of Jesus Christ, who we believe is sitting at the right hand of the Father, [24:23] who then absolutely gives them perfect judgment of what happens. [24:27] You don't charge for the exorcisms, right? [24:29] No. [24:30] Okay. [24:31] But they were part of the how-to guide that was available on your website for $99, the spiritual warfare guide with battle tools and resources. [24:40] It's no longer available on the site. [24:42] I think that's a film. [24:45] And it's always, whatever we have posted with that was, you can pay $1.99 or yeah. [24:53] You did have a pay as you could function on that. [24:55] And the exorcism thing was also part of the unseen war movie, right? [25:00] At the end. [25:01] Right. [25:02] And when I checked last night, that was on sale on your website for $19.95. [25:05] Well, that's a film about retooling and the prayer, but we've never charged. [25:11] I've never looked at a person and asked for remuneration for casting demons to Christ or praying for someone. [25:20] Gotcha. [25:21] I would never do that. [25:22] And you and your wife keep recordings of these sessions. [25:25] Most of the time, yeah. [25:27] Yeah. [25:28] Where people will often divulge very sensitive, painful things about their lives. [25:35] Sometimes. [25:37] And you maintain a recording of those? [25:39] No. [25:40] Tell the person to record them. [25:41] You do not keep a recording yourself. [25:43] No. [25:44] Sometimes we record them. [25:46] If they don't have a phone, it will send it to them. [25:49] But our practice is to say, Kyle, turn your phone on, record this prayer, which is normally [25:56] 10 to 15 minutes. [25:57] That way you can refer back to it and go, I don't remember what was said or what did he [26:02] pray? [26:03] Yep. [26:04] That actually reminds me, I think we lost track of a question earlier because you corrected [26:08] me on the casting the demons out and I appreciate you explaining that. [26:12] So by the last count that I saw, you said you had performed at least like 800 of these exorcisms. [26:19] It's okay if you don't know an exact number, but I heard you say 800 at one point. [26:23] Does that sound fair? [26:24] That does. [26:25] Okay. [26:26] Would you continue to perform exorcisms as governor? [26:30] Well, let's go back to you got to change the terminology. [26:35] They're not exorcisms. [26:37] They're simply praying for people who are oppressed or have strongholds of evil. [26:43] So I don't perform exorcisms. [26:45] So when you called yourself a reluctant exorcist? [26:47] That's my sense of humor. [26:49] Okay. [26:50] So commanding demons to leave people alone is not an exorcism? [26:53] No. [26:54] Oh, no. [26:55] No. [26:56] I think exorcisms are more performed by Catholic priests. [27:03] What I'm doing is just praying for people who have been oppressed by evil and the results [27:11] are astonishing in an incredible way. [27:14] You'd acknowledge that there's a difference between prayer, which many, many people do daily, [27:20] if not many times a day, and then the idea of giving specific commandments to demons, which [27:25] is the specialization that you have that you've taught other people to do. [27:29] It's different than just a simple prayer. [27:30] No. [27:31] It's just prayer. [27:33] The way that you command the demons to do this now is just simple prayer. [27:36] Yeah. [27:42] Last question for you. [27:43] That's it. [27:44] One more. [27:45] That's it. [27:46] I want to be respectful of your time. [27:47] Thank you. [27:50] All of us have to deal with the reality of life. [27:53] All of us have to deal with other people's perceptions of us. [27:59] Do you understand why so many of your critics think you're a con man? [28:05] No. [28:08] Don't have the slightest idea why they would think that. [28:11] I wouldn't say the slightest idea, but I don't know how they justify taking a position [28:19] that I'm a con man. [28:23] That doesn't resonate with me at all. [28:25] Some prefer the word grifter. [28:27] I had to look it up. [28:29] Sure. [28:30] No. [28:31] When you looked it up, it didn't seem like you? [28:33] Not at all. [28:34] This is not unique to you, certainly. [28:40] You don't seem to hold your critics in high esteem. [28:42] Depends on what they're being critical about me. [28:47] Do you think any of them have good points? [28:51] Depending on what are they criticizing me about. [28:55] Hiding the number of your rescues? [28:57] No. [28:59] Victor Marks, I appreciate your time. [29:02] Thanks for having us here. [29:03] Well, thanks for coming here, Kyle. [29:05] I appreciate it. [29:06] Yeah. [29:07] You bet, man. [29:08] You bet, man.