Pawn Stars' Rick Harrison Tells CPAC 'Our Current System Just Screws the Kids

NATIONAL HARBOR, MD — Rick Harrison, of the world-famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop, spoke briefly at CPAC on Friday morning and gave a brief pep talk about working hard in this country, and the importance of stopping the left in 2020.

“I’m living the American dream,” he said. “Anybody in this country, if you bust ass, you can do well.”

He brought up the upcoming election and the importance of stopping the left from taking control and making the American dream impossible for anyone.

“There is a chance the left can win,” he warned.

One problem, he noted is that “it’s really difficult to explain to a young person” about the dangers of socialism because they don’t teach anything about what makes America great in school. “We literally have the teachers unions teaching our children.”

“We need school choice,” he added.

Harrison also suggested an alternative to putting young people in the criminal justice system, because it will ultimately make the rest of their lives difficult. “Instead of giving kids criminal records, put them in the military,” he suggested. “Our current system just screws the kids.”

Pivoting back to the economy and the election, Harrison said, “The less rules and regulations, the more businesses that will open. Bernie Sanders wants to tax me at 90%. Why would I want to open up a business if I’m not going to make any money?”

Bernie Sanders, he says, just wants to “crush everything we have.”

He then pleaded for everyone to vote and get people to vote in November, and suggested that there’s a right way and a wrong way to engage younger people. “People love to learn, but don’t like being talked down to.”

"The less rules and regulations, the more businesses that will open. Bernie Sanders wants to tax me at 90%. Why would I want to open up a business if I'm not going to make any money?" @GoldSilverPawn #CPAC2020 pic.twitter.com/Bwle0rQypm

— CPAC 2020 (Text CPAC to 56479) (@CPAC) February 28, 2020