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Join Tony Perkins as he explores the pivotal political events shaping our nation. Discover how President Trump’s administration is reshaping DEI policies within the military, the implications of designating the Iranian-backed Houthis as a terrorist group, and the robust support rallying for pro-life activism. With an engaging blend of guest interviews and in-depth analysis, this episode provides timely information for those committed to faith, family, and freedom.
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from the heart of our nation’s capital in Washington, D.C., bringing compelling interviews, insightful analysis, taking you beyond the headlines and soundbites into conversations with our nation’s leaders and newsmakers, all from a biblical worldview. Washington Watch with Tony Perkins starts now.
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This bill just asks the simple question, if an abortion is botched, and the child is delivered instead of destroyed in the womb, and the child is alive and viable on the table, what happens next? Current medical practice is everyone in the room just backs away and you allow the child to die on the table. I don’t think that’s what most Americans would want.
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That was Oklahoma Senator James Lankford on the Senate floor yesterday debating the Born Alive Infant Protection Act. Welcome to Washington Watch. Thanks for tuning in and making us part of your day. Well, the Born Alive Infant Protection Act failed to advance in the Senate yesterday when every Democrat senator voted against it. One of the most common arguments that was given was that it doesn’t happen, so it’s not necessary. Later in the program, Senator Lankford himself will join us along with Josiah Presley. an abortion survivor. Meanwhile, the big question on Capitol Hill is, will there be one bill or two?
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I like the concept of the one bill. I guess I said one big beautiful, and that’s what everyone faces. Actually, it’s sort of a nice sound to it. But I do like that concept. It could be something else. It could be a smaller bill and a big bill. Right. But as long as we get to the right answer.
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That was President Trump in an interview with Sean Hannity discussing possible paths forward on a reconciliation bill, which is a budgetary means to circumvent the 60-vote threshold required in the Senate. Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson will join us with the latest on this debate. And actually, he’s leaning toward three bills. We’re going to talk about that. Also, President Trump signed an executive order once again designating Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels as a foreign terrorist organization. Former President Biden had previously removed that designation. Montana Senator Steve Daines, who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, will give us his perspective and the latest on this. Finally, in evidence that it’s not business as usual in D.C., the commandant of the Coast Guard, Admiral Linda Fagan, was ousted Monday night. One reason cited, an excessive focus on diversity, equity and inclusion, which diverted resources from operational priorities. That, of course, is a hallmark of much of the federal government under the Biden administration. Retired Coast Guard Vice Admiral Dean Lee joins us to discuss what this signals ahead for our armed services. All right. We are in the first 100 days and we’ve created a brand new resource for you. It’s the first 100 days toolkit. It helps you track campaign promises as they become policy, provides contact information so that you can take action when necessary to contact your senators and your congressmen. And it includes prayer points for our government leaders and for the policies they’re considering. To find the toolkit, you can find it on the StandFirm app, or you can text TOOLKIT to 67742. That’s TOOLKIT to 67742, and you’ll be prepared for the first 100 days. All right, the Trump administration continues to take shape following the president’s return to the Oval Office on Monday. The Senate voted today to confirm John Ratcliffe as the next CIA director, making him the second highest level appointment for the new administration to be confirmed. And Senate leaders are pushing ahead with a series of votes on President Trump’s other cabinet picks. Meanwhile, Republicans are still working to reach consensus on budget reconciliation with more members of Congress and even the president saying it’s the results that matter, not whether it’s one or two bills. Well, joining us now is Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, who serves on four Senate committees, including the Budget Committee and the Finance Committee. Senator Johnson, welcome back to Washington Watch. Great to see you. Well, Tony, thanks for having me on. All right. Where are we on this reconciliation? We’ve got one bill, two bill, and now you say maybe three is the best way forward.
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Well, you know, Tony, I come from the private sector, and I’m a firm believer in the KISS principle. Keep it simple. I’m well aware of the grotesque dysfunction here in Washington, D.C., also very well aware of the slim margin in the House. We have a little bit more leeway in the Senate, but, again, that doesn’t necessarily guarantee success. So when you talk about one big, beautiful bill, I recognize that one big, beautiful bill is really complex. And what I think, we need to really lay out the goals. And the first goal is what President Trump ran on in his 2016 election and then 2024, because Biden opened up the borders. We have to secure that border. We need to make sure this administration has the resources and funding for the full four years. That’s something we all agree on. So get that one done off the table. Then we have this massive automatic tax increase barreling toward us. By the way, We did that because we couldn’t have the pay-fors to make it permanent, but we have this massive automatic tax increase. Let’s take that off the table. I understand that the whole discussion around President Trump’s tax proposals, the SALT deduction, I want to take the time to simplify and rationalize our tax code. So what we can do is we can just extend current policy Get that off the table. Assure the American public there’s not going to be a tax increase. I think that would be very good for our economy. Private sector wants stability. They want certainty. And then let’s take our time to simplify, rationalize our tax code, and make sure that whatever we do is permanent so we’re not facing another fiscal cliff like this. So again, I think three makes sense because I think we can knock the two out pretty fast. and then take our time, because we’ll have the time, to get tax simplification right. Does the reconciliation process allow for three bills? Absolutely. So what we’re going to first be doing is we’re going to be passing a fiscal 2025 budget. We’re four months into that fiscal year already. By the way, I didn’t even mention the complications of increasing the debt ceiling— funding 2025 before we turn our attention. So, yeah, we would pass a 2025 budget, as bizarre as that sounds, use that for the first two reconciliation packages, and then turn our attention to a fiscal 2026 budget. And then we would use that for reducing the size of government. You know, I have proposals on that as well. We’ve not returned to pre-pandemic levels. 2019, we spent $4.4 trillion. Pandemic spending spree, $6.6 trillion. But we haven’t reduced that. A family, if you have a major medical issue, maybe they have to borrow $50,000 to pay for bills. They’re not going to keep borrowing and spending that level if they get well. They’re going to return to their reasonable baseline of spending. We didn’t do that for the last five years. We spent six point five trillion dollars. So we need to work hard to reduce the level of spending. I thought it was interesting in President Trump’s double speech. He mentioned the fact that because of this gross mismanagement on part of Biden, we’re spending one point five trillion dollars more than we would have under his projection. So I’ve actually been talking about the budget he proposed. proposed was about $5.5 trillion versus the $7 trillion. So we need to, in some way, shape, or form, return to that pre-pandemic baseline. And again, that’s going to be complex to do.
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Yeah. Once government gets kind of attached to that funding stream, inflated funding stream, dialing it back is a challenge, but needed. Absolutely needed. When you look at the fact that our interest on our debt is more than what we’re paying for national defense, there’s something seriously wrong there. Is it a foregone conclusion that Democrat members of the Senate will not vote for the extension or the making permanent the tax cuts? They want to vote a tax cut upon the American people?
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Well, they want to vote a tax increase on some of the American people. I think a good chunk of that, the middle-income tax cuts, they would want to extend as well. But, you know, to get back to spending, what I proposed is, you know, rather than talk about cuts, why don’t we go back to other baselines? You know, President Trump’s budget would be one. That’s $5.5 trillion. if you’d use President Clinton’s back in 1998, the last time we had a, or the first time we had a surplus since 1969, and if you increase that budget, it was 1.7 back then, by population growth and inflation, and you use this year’s Social Security, Medicare, and interest, you know, At current levels, so you basically exempt Social Security and Medicare. You spend what you need to spend. That also would be $5.5 trillion. And President Biden is projecting $5.5 trillion worth of revenue. Tony, we’d have a balanced budget. Now, I don’t think Bill Clinton spent too little. back then. So again, you’re basically using his spending levels, just inflate them, we’d have a balanced budget. And by the way, if that’s too reasonable, use President Obama’s 2014 spending levels, do the same thing, it’d be 6.2. So there you’ve got your range, somewhere between $5.5 and $6.2 trillion versus the $7 trillion we’re spending basically this year. So let’s talk about the obstacles to get there. What stands in the way? Republican votes, probably. We can do this through reconciliation. So we really need presidential leadership, which is why I was really glad to hear President Trump talking about his projection for 2025 at that 5.5 level that I’ve been proposing using Bill Clinton’s baseline as well. So again, it’s kind of a confluence of rationales for returning to about a $5.5 to $6 trillion baseline of spending. To me, that’s really good news, because if we have presidential leadership, I think House members, I think senators will get behind this concept. Again, we can do this quick. I actually printed out that budget. It’s about that thick, over 6,000 line items, a couple hundred pages worth. I can drop that today. I’d vote for it.
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All Republicans should vote for that. If I recall correctly, Senator Johnson, before the pandemic in the last budget, I think the president, President Trump proposed, it was actually lower and Congress beefed it up. He actually had a very, in fact, I think if I’m not mistaken, it took out funding for national public broadcasting and some of the other leftist agencies. But the Congress put it back in.
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Well, we have big spenders in our Republican Party here in Congress, too, so that’s why we need presidential leadership. Now, obviously, he ran on reducing the size, scope, and cost of government, its influence over our lives. If you want to do that, don’t fund it. Again, we’d still be spending somewhere around $6 trillion, which is still trillions of dollars too much, but… That would be a reasonable level to return to. Hopefully, it’s not going to be much of a fight. Hopefully, again, President Trump will lead us in this effort and kind of embrace this concept that I’ve laid out there in a Wall Street Journal column on January 2nd.
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That would be absolutely amazing if we could balance our budget. I mean, it can be done. But if we had the intestinal fortitude to actually accomplish it, that could be quite—I mean, the impact that that would have on our economy, I mean, that would fuel economic growth, would it not?
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Absolutely. And again, I’m using a rationale. Go back to Bill Clinton’s budget. Grow it by inflation population. We’ll use his spending priorities. We’d be at $5.5 trillion. Or again, use President Trump’s projected budget. I don’t care which one we use. We can mix and match. Some things we can increase. Some things we can decrease. We can get into greater detail. But that’s the general framework. That’s how we control government spending.
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Here’s a challenge. The clock is ticking and we’re having this. This debate’s been going on now for a few weeks about one bill, two bill, one bill, two bill. If we don’t do something, we’re going to miss the opportunity.
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Well, I think Chairman Graham, chairman of our budget committee, I serve in that committee with him. We’re in talks. We’re meeting with House Freedom Caucus individuals who are being more than reasonable, as I think we are being more than reasonable. I think Lindsey wants to plow forward. So if President Trump gets behind this effort, we’ll plow ahead. We can get this done literally in weeks.
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Now, the reconciliation process, does that have to originate in the House?
SPEAKER 08 :
I think we can pass our budget here and marry it with the House product. It’s not the same thing as like a tax bill or something. So I think we can, you know, lead this effort if the House is having trouble kind of gaining consensus. Again, keep it simple. Let’s break this up into pieces. I think it’s eminently doable then.
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Senator, I have to say, it makes a lot of sense, especially if it gets back to that place of having a balanced budget. That could be huge for our country. Senator Johnson, thanks so much for joining us. Always great to see you. Have a great night. All right. And, of course, we’re going to check back with him and see if he’s making progress on that. It really is. I’m getting a little concerned because it’s more about a debate, just back and forth, one bill, two bill. Let’s just move. We’ve got to get something done. All right. Coming up next, could there be a change ahead in our nation’s military as we see the president relieving the head of the Coast Guard for being too DEI-focused? That’s next. We’ll go away.
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During these challenging times for our nation, Family Research Council continues to serve as a watchman on the wall for faith, family, and freedom. And together, thanks to your support, we’re making an eternal impact. 2024 was a year of shining the light for biblical truth in Washington, DC. Last fall, over 1,000 spiritually active, governance-engaged conservatives gathered for the Pray, Vote, Stand Summit to pray for our nation and ensure that the issues impacting sage cons were understood and advanced. Washington Watch with Tony Perkins marked a major milestone this year, its 900th episode, and added the Washington Watch News Desk, a new production that presents the top news each day from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand published 2,000 articles of news, commentary, and podcasts in 2024, garnering over 5 million views. FRC’s outlet for news and commentary continues to pursue the truth on the issues that matter most to you and your family. And with the launch of the Stand Firm app, you can listen to, watch, and read our content in one simple place. Pray for current issues, stay rooted in the scriptures, and engage the political sphere with the community of believers on our new platform. In 2024, FRC shaped public policy and culture, organizing the National Gathering for Prayer and Repentance, where members of Congress and Christian leaders came together to seek God’s intervention in America. In May, FRC called upon believers to pray for and stand with Israel by dedicating a portion of their worship services to pray for Israel’s peace, prosperity, and protection. With Pray, Vote, Stand Decision 2024, FRC and Real Life Network led a powerful evening of election night coverage to analyze the election results and pray that our nation would turn back to God. We also filmed a transformative educational course, God and Government. Launching early this year in January 2025, this series will explore the biblical, historical foundations of our government empowering you to stand confidently in your role as a citizen of heaven and earth family research council thanks you for partnering with us and we look forward to 2025 and standing for faith family and freedom
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Thank you.
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Welcome back to Washington Watch. Be sure and get the first 100 days toolkit. You can get it at the Stand Firm app or you can text toolkit to 67742. That’s toolkit to 67742. You’ll have all the information you need there at your fingertips to be engaged. As I’ve said many times, our government, our system of government was not created for spectators. It’s for participants. So be involved. All right, in rolling back, Biden-era attempts to let DEI drive hiring in federal government. President Trump made clear that he wants to see hiring based upon merit. His administration is working quickly to do just that and move away all remnants of DEI. On Monday, the new acting head of the Department of Homeland Security fired the Coast Guard Commandant, Admiral Linda Fagan. reportedly due to her excessive focus on DEI initiatives, which hindered the actual mission of the Coast Guard. Will we soon see a turnaround in our military as the Trump administration continues to shake things up? Joining me now to discuss this and more is Vice Admiral William Dean Lee, who retired from service in the Coast Guard in 2016 after 35 years of distinguished service. Admiral Lee, welcome back to Washington Watch. Good to see you.
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Well, it’s good to see you again, Tony.
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Let me ask you a question. Were you concerned about the kind of the DEI policies that were moving into the Coast Guard and affecting the agency’s focus on its mission?
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Well, the short answer is yes. Yes, I was. But I belong to an organization of like-minded generals, admirals, retired JAG officers and colonels called STARS.US, who has been trying to get attention placed on that issue for the last two or three years. I mean, it’s not just the U.S. Coast Guard. It’s rampant and deeply embedded in all of the military services. And it was our concerted opinion that it was divisive in nature. On the surface, it sounds good. But underneath, it’s got its roots in Marxist ideology. which pits one group against another, one gender against another. And we do not think, based on our decades of service, that that’s how you build a team. And so I’m glad to see that it’s being rooted out of our services.
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Now, the Coast Guard is different than the other branches of the service. It comes under the Department of Homeland Security. Does that—did that enable the president to take more directive action immediately?
SPEAKER 06 :
I can’t speak to that, Tony. I mean, obviously, the Coast Guard is under the Department of Homeland Security, and it’s because we have a law enforcement mission that requires that. I was as shocked as anybody on Tuesday morning when I awoke and my phone had exploded with People sent me the message that my former friend and colleague, Admiral Fagan, had been relieved. I did not see that coming. I’m not surprised that they’re going to let loose some generals and admirals, but I was a little bit surprised to see that she was the first. And I feel that. I do.
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Let’s talk about something that you and I discussed sometime back on this program, back during the COVID pandemic. We saw many service members pushed out because they refused to get the jab, and that included the Coast Guard. And you were on—we were discussing that. You had real concerns about that. President Trump is looking to reinstate those who were expelled. I’m sure you’re relieved to hear that. But How’s that work? How is that going to work with these individuals whose reputations, their careers in many ways were tarnished, some ruined? How’s that restored?
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, that’s a good question, sir. We’ve been talking about that a lot. The first thing you do is you acknowledge that we, the government, were wrong in forcing that mandate down upon them based on what we know now. And then you—and you actually—you just apologize, and you make it right to the best of your ability. For those who got dismissed with 7, 16, 17, 18, sometimes 19 years of service, they need to be allowed to come back on active duty and to— and to get the benefits that they worked so hard to earn. And I hope that that happens. And with that, you’ll start to build—you’ll be in confidence, again, that leaders, at least the new leaders and commander-in-chief, is willing to take a hard look at what happened, why it happened, and make sure that we don’t make the same mistakes again.
SPEAKER 05 :
I think that last statement is so important that we acknowledge what happened was wrong, but how do we put safeguards in place to ensure that it doesn’t happen again?
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, the first thing I think we need to do is this team I’ve been working with has developed a draft executive order that we hope to get into the president’s office for signature. We call it the Comcat. It’s to develop, create a commission to study the COVID and the anthrax policies, how they rolled those out, what was done right, what was done wrong. pull it all out into the report, capture that information, and then codify it and make sure that we don’t do it again. And to the extent that some people may have broken the law or breached policies, hold them accountable. Not a witch hunt, but it’s just, if you want to restore trust in the military services, because this is one thing, one policy that affected all of them, we owe it to them. We have a duty of care to do just that. Let’s analyze it, recognize what we did wrong, acknowledge it, and ask forgiveness and move on.
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I think that is so important. And I’ve had this discussion with those in the healthcare industry, FDA and others, where the policies that they pushed through, they now recognize were wrong, admitted it. But unless we put new processes in place going forward, we’re going to repeat the same mistakes again. Somebody will. I mean, it might not be the same people, but there’s going to be another challenge somewhere down the road. And it’s best if we have documented and made the necessary changes to ensure that these people that serve this country are not harmed again.
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Right. Yes, sir. So to the extent that you can help us with this effort, if you just remember this word, you know, we got a draft executive order. It’s titled ComCap. And if you can talk people into at least taking that thing out and looking at it, we would be grateful, sir.
SPEAKER 05 :
We will do that, Admiral. Admiral, always great to see you. Thanks so much for joining us today.
SPEAKER 06 :
Likewise, my friend. God bless.
SPEAKER 05 :
Take care. Admiral Dean Lee. All right. When we come back, we’re going to talk foreign policy. The Trump administration redesignating the Iranian-backed Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization. We’re going to talk about it. Don’t go away.
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So if you like to think and you like to pray, FRC is the place for you.
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I think it is the best program out there.
SPEAKER 14 :
Yeah, I’ve absolutely loved my experience interning at FRC.
SPEAKER 04 :
They really are making waves out in the political world and doing it from the light of the Lord.
SPEAKER 03 :
It’s really humbling for me as a college student who has been involved in the life movement for only a couple of years to be able to witness it alongside of some of the people who have spent their entire lives fighting. A huge thing that sets FRC’s internship apart from others is they are looking for what they can pour into you instead of what they can get out of you.
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Hello, I’m Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council here in Washington, D.C. Behind me is one of the most recognizable buildings in all the world, the U.S. Capitol. What does it stand for? Well, most people say government. But you know, the Bible talks about four institutions of government. You know what they are? And do we have a republic or a democracy? Well, what do you say? Also, what about this saying separation of church and state? Does that mean Christians shouldn’t be involved in government? Guess what? We address those issues and more in our new God and Government course. I invite you to join us to see what the historical record and the Bible has to say about government. Join us for God and Government. Welcome back to Washington Watch. Good to have you with us. I’m Tony Perkins, your host, and I’ve got a great resource for you as we move into the first 100 days of the Trump administration. It is the 100-Day Toolkit, and it will help you keep track of promises made and policies adopted. It will also give you… Access to contact information for members of Congress, your senators, so that you can be involved. So simply text the word TOOLKIT to 67742. That’s TOOLKIT to 67742. And you’ll have it right there with you. All right. Yesterday, President Trump redesignated the Iranian-backed Houthis as a terrorist organization, reversing the decision by the Biden administration. This follows Trump’s continued push to strengthen U.S.-Israeli relations, including lifting restrictions on arms sales to Israel, cutting funding to the terrorist-compromised aid group UNRWA with the United Nations, and giving the go-ahead for deportations of U.S. visa holders linked to pro-Hamas protests. With all that… happened with all that’s happening in the Middle East during the Biden administration. What message did these actions send to our allies and why are they important? Joining me now to discuss this is Senator Steve Daines, who serves on four Senate committees, including the Foreign Relations Committee. He represents the state of Montana. Senator Daines, welcome back to Washington Watch. Great to see you. Hey, good to see you, Tony. Now, yesterday, you actually introduced the standing against the Houthis Aggression Act to designate the Houthis as a terrorist group. So you should be pleased with the president’s actions.
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Tell you what, it’s been a flurry of activity with President Trump out in front. There are all these executive orders and so forth, but we’re doing it on the floor here to move President Trump’s nominations through. But I couldn’t be more pleased. I introduced the bill to designate the Houthis as a foreign terror organization, and lo and behold, Trump, through the stroke of a pen, did the same thing. Look, what I’m really encouraged by, Tony— is restoring the moral clarity that was so needed by the commander of chief under the Biden and Harris administration. They were really handcuffing Israel. They didn’t know who the good guys were and the bad guys were. Now President Trump’s in office. There’s moral clarity with President Trump, Marco Rubio, Elise Stefanik, our next UN ambassador. You’ve got Mike Huckabee, soon to be the U.S. ambassador to Israel. They understand what’s going on with Israel in the Middle East. And the path forward in the Middle East is first and foremost, make sure that Israel is strengthened and protected. And second, to make sure we diminish the capabilities of her adversaries, which in this case, add the Houthis to that list, as well as Hamas and Hezbollah as terror organizations.
SPEAKER 05 :
I mean, this isn’t difficult. I mean, they’ve been firing missiles on Israel. In fact, when I was there in Israel the week before Christmas, two missiles were fired by the Houthis into Israel. But talk for just a moment, Senator Daines, why this designation is important. What does it mean? Why do we designate these entities as terrorist organizations?
SPEAKER 13 :
Well, it gives the United States government, starting with the president of the United States, our commander in chief, more optionality as it relates to amping up necessary, whether it’s force, literally preemptive, a kinetic force against a terror organization. to ramp up sanctions, to cut the flow of financial resources organizations. It just gives, again, more tools in the tool chest that allows us to ultimately destroy these organizations. That’s what we have to remember, that when Obama was president, I remember spending some time at Bagram Air Force Base there in Afghanistan, talking to our generals who were frustrated by the fact that Obama required every single kill shot against what they call jackpot targets, which would be known terrorist leaders. They had to go all the way through the Oval Office to get cleared, and by the time they got clearance from the Oval Office, they’ve lost their shot on a terrible bad guy. President Trump’s elected. He comes in. He tells the military, here’s the objective. Destroy ISIS. You figure that out on the battlefield. I’m not here to run the war. I’m here to give you the tools you need to win the war. And that’s exactly what happened when we took ISIS off the battlefield. Well, now they’ve reconstituted, certainly under Joe Biden. And you’re seeing the same thing with these Iranian proxy groups of terror proxy groups of Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis. This just gives the United States government now, under President Trump’s leadership, more tools to destroy these adversaries.
SPEAKER 05 :
And as you mentioned, as you referenced, this certainly sends a strong message to our ally Israel that we’re standing with and no equivocation here on that. And speaking of encouragement, I want to shift gears here. We just got about a minute and a half left. You founded the pro-life caucus in the Senate. You’ve got to be encouraged by the fact that just less than two hours ago, the president signed pardons for the pro-lifers who were unjustly targeted and jailed by the Biden administration under the FACE Act. Your reaction?
SPEAKER 13 :
Well, thank God for that. And thank God for the election of November. Thank God for these protesters that are standing for life out there, being the voice for those who are voiceless. Talk about injustice, Tony, to think that these protesters literally were thrown in jail in some cases. Absolutely wrong. You think about Micah 6-8 when we talk about injustice. walk humbly and to seek justice. Here’s a great example of that, of justice being delivered to these individuals who are fighting on behalf of the unborn and now are set free. Very, very thankful for the President’s action today.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, it is. Praying grandmothers are safe in America again. Intercession is no longer grounds for an indictment, and probable cause will not be pursued by those who protect the unborn.
SPEAKER 13 :
Tony, maybe we need to have some hats that say, making praying grandmothers safe again. Maybe some red hats and distribute them, but it’s a day to be encouraged.
SPEAKER 05 :
It is. Senator Daines, always great to see you. Thanks so much for joining us today. Thanks, Tony. All right. We’re going to continue our conversation about life next with Senator James Langford of Oklahoma. So don’t go away. We’re back right after this with more.
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As President-elect Donald Trump’s second inauguration approached, a powerful prayer gathering took place in Washington, D.C., drawing Christians together to intercede for our nation.
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The church does not recapture its prophetic zeal. It will become an irrelevant social club without moral or spiritual authority. God help us to recapture that prophetic zeal.
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This is not an interreligious service. We will not be praying to Allah or Buddha. We’ll be praying to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We’re talking to God, a holy, righteous, just God from a nation that desperately needs the touch of this God.
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We’ve not been a secular nation. We don’t want to be a secular nation. We’ve been a nation built around God, and our history shows that.
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Well-versed and Family Research Council led the inauguration praise and prayer convocation, urging attendees to pray for the incoming presidential administration and for the church to embody holiness and righteousness, champion biblical justice, and proclaim truth prophetically.
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Lord, may this not be the end, but may this be the beginning, this convocation, this gathering. And may we commit to pray and to seek you and to walk in your word and in your ways. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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All of us are born with the desire to find truth and meaning. Where did I come from? What happens when I die? While our answers to these questions may divide us, we are united in our need for the freedom to answer life’s biggest questions and make life’s biggest decisions for ourselves. That’s why religious freedom matters for everyone. Religious freedom matters because the powerful have long wanted to control those who are less powerful. Religious freedom matters because the freedom of those who are different is often threatened by those who believe different is dangerous. at the Center for Religious Liberty at Family Research Council. We promote religious freedom for everyone because the only alternative is religious freedom for no one. We encourage Americans and the American government to engage and advocate for the persecuted. And they do. We work every day to bring good news to the afflicted, to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners. We do it because that’s what Jesus does. We work to give freedom to others because we ourselves have been set free.
SPEAKER 05 :
You are tuned in to Washington Watch, and I’m Tony Perkins, your host, and I am glad to have you with us. And as I mentioned, we’ve got a resource available for you. It’s the 100-Day Toolkit. It’s for the first 100 days of the Trump administration. It’ll help you keep track of the promises made as they become policy, and sometimes they’re going to need a little push. So we’ve got contact information here for members of Congress, for your senators and your congressmen. And you’ll get action alerts. So go, if you have the StandFirm app, you’ll find it right there in the StandFirm app. If not, text TOOLKIT to 67742, TOOLKIT to 67742. Our word for today comes from 2 Kings chapter 22. Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the Lord. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan and he read it. Then Shaphan the scribe showed the king saying, Hilkiah the priest has given me this book. And Shaphan read it before the king. Now it happened when the king heard the words of the book of the law that he tore his clothes. Now this is amazing. The word of God had been lost in the temple. How do you lose the word of God? The word was their authority, it was their direction, it was the core of their identity, but yet it was missing and no one even noticed. But could the same be said of the church today? The Bible remains one of the best-selling books, with sales actually increasing last year. But is it being read? And more importantly, is it being followed? What would happen if the church rediscovered the Word of God? I mean, really rediscovered it and returned to living by it. To find out more about our journey through the Bible, text BIBLE to 67742. That’s BIBLE to 67742. Well, yesterday, Democrats in the Senate blocked the advancement of a bill that would prevent a doctor from simply ignoring a newborn who survives a botched abortion procedure, an action that inevitably leads to the death of that newborn child. All 47 Democrats voted against the Born Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act. That prevents Republicans from getting the 60 votes needed to secure a vote on the measure. That’s a procedural vote. It’s known as a cloture. Now, they accused Republicans of using false narratives and fearmongering, saying, no, no, this never happens. It’s not a problem. Well, joining me to separate fact from fiction is the senator who introduced the bill, Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma. And with him is Josiah Presley, the survivor of a first trimester abortion. Senator Lankford, Josiah, thanks for joining me today. Great to see both of you.
SPEAKER 07 :
Absolutely glad to do it, Tony.
SPEAKER 05 :
Josiah, good to see you again. Before we unpack this, I want to get your reaction to something that just happened within the last couple of hours, President Trump signing pardons for the pro-lifers who were unjustly targeted and jailed by the Biden administration under the FACE Act. Your response, Senator?
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, it’s good to be able to see on that. As people get the context of this, this was a time when abortion clinics were being, or I’m sorry, where pro-life pregnancy resource centers were being attacked, were being defaced, were having graffiti on them. People were being afraid. The Department of Justice wouldn’t step in and protect those individuals, but individuals that were speaking out for life around abortion clinics, they were being jailed. So literally, the Department of Justice was saying, pregnancy resource centers, you don’t need protection. Abortion clinics, you do, and we’re going to overprotect you. So this was a response from President Trump. It was a positive response to say, we’re going to be back to equal justice under the law, and these individuals aren’t going to be targeted because of their beliefs about the value of children.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, it certainly reestablishes a sense of justice in this country. It’s unfortunate that we have to wait for a new president to come in to establish justice in a system that is ruled by law. We should be able to trust our laws, but it’s the unequal application of them that creates this problem. Senator, let’s get to the bill that you introduced yesterday on the Senate floor. It was blocked by Democrats. Unpack for our viewers and our listeners what this bill would do.
SPEAKER 07 :
It’s a very straightforward, what I consider a common sense, common ground kind of bill. This is not about abortion at all. This is literally if an abortion is carried out, but the abortion, instead of destroying the child in the womb, the child is actually delivered. What do you do in that case where a child is actually delivered? They’re literally crying and breathing on the table in front of you. Now you have a fully delivered child in front of you. Do they get medical care or not? This seems like a no-brainer. I don’t run into anyone that says you do abortion after a child is fully delivered, but that is the current practice. The current practice now is they can’t take the life of that child at the table. That’d be infanticide. So what they do is they basically back away and allow the child to die on their own right in front of them. I think that’s horrific to just allow a child to be able to die of exposure. And so we’re trying to step in and to say, hey, where are we as a culture? Post-abortion conversation here, just delivery conversation. Can’t we at least agree? that when a child is fully delivered they should get medical care and painfully yesterday democrats said no if it was intended to be an abortion even after they’re fully delivered and alive on the table their life should still be taken from them i think that’s abhorrent and i think that’s very extreme and well past where the american people are
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, I think you made that point very clearly yesterday on the Senate floor. That’s not America. That’s certainly not how we want to be known. Josiah, you spoke at our Prevost Stan Summit back in 2021. And Senator, I don’t know if you know this, but I know Josiah at the Prevost Stan Summit, as we began to have a conversation, his father was my youth minister back when I was in high school there in Oklahoma. So I know you have an affinity for youth ministers having overseen the campground there in Oklahoma for summer camp for churches. But Josiah, for those that haven’t heard your story, can you share that with us?
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, so I grew up in Oklahoma. I’m adopted. I’m one of 12 kids, 10 of us being adopted. And my story, my adoptive parents, when I was 13 years old, they told me more about my adoption story. And they told me how two months into my birth mother’s pregnancy with me in South Korea, she actually underwent a DNC abortion. a type of abortion where the doctor goes into the mother’s womb and rips the baby apart and brings them out in pieces. This obviously was a lot for me to take in at 13. And as a kid who’d grown up in the church, who’d grown up very pro-life, and with these Christian convictions, it was a lot for me to take in, something I struggled with for years. And then it wasn’t really until I was 16, and I surrendered my life to Jesus actually at Falls Creek, that God changed my heart. And as I found value and worth in him, I also began to see that in everybody’s life, in every human being’s life. And that’s then flowed into a lot of the advocacy I’m able to do now.
SPEAKER 05 :
Josiah, kind of walk us through how you dealt with this revelation that your parents shared with you. And then when you hear people today, just like on the center floor yesterday saying, well, this doesn’t happen. It’s not really a problem.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, so I mean, so at the age of 13 and for a number of years, I struggled with a lot of anger and really a lot of hatred and hurt over the circumstances surrounding my birth. I knew what we believed as Christians and what we believed as people who were pro-life. And that’s just talking about my birth mother, her decision for abortion. That was a first trimester abortion. And even when we think about this act that was voted against yesterday, that’s not even talking about abortion. And to me, the scary and really the disheartening thing that I think that really we should hear me thinking about as American people is, We’re not talking about abortion there. What we’re talking about is a baby who’s been born. Right. Like, that should be an easy threshold. That should be an easy common ground thing for us to all say, hey, yeah, human life, they’re born. They’re valuable. We ought to protect them. And we can’t even find that common ground there. And that’s very concerning, I think.
SPEAKER 05 :
I mean, we’re talking infanticide is what we’re talking about. about, is allowing a child to die. In fact, if you go back to the origins of the church, that’s where the church really made its first incursion into society, was taking those abandoned babies and caring for them. And as a Christian society, I mean, we want to identify ourselves as a Christian society, at least the majority does. This is a no-brainer, as you pointed out, Senator.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, this should be easy. Democrats were saying, well, this is going to be some secret backdoor way to instruct doctors or to be able to punish doctors that aren’t doing care. But quite frankly, every physician has basic Hippocratic oath to do no harm and then to also to do basic care. If you’ve got a living child in front of you, there’s a responsibility to be able to take care of a living child, not back away. And this doesn’t happen often. But it does happen. And then the question is, when it does happen, what are we going to do? And currently, we’ve not even been able to agree on that.
SPEAKER 05 :
Josiah, there is a growing number of those who have survived abortions who are now speaking out. There’s a network. Speak to that for a moment, how that has been helpful in just having those conversations with others who have had some of the similar experiences that you’ve had.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, so when I first found out the origins of my story and I was navigating what it meant to be an abortion survivor, frankly, I thought I was one that was far and few between. Like, I was not aware of very many others. And as I’ve been able to connect with specifically Melissa Oden, as she’s the one who’s founded the Abortion Survivors Network, it’s It’s been crazy to see the number of people who have come out of the woodworks who actually are abortion survivors, who are going through that grief or going through that pain, that anger, trying to sort out those pieces of their story. And so it’s been really encouraging for me personally in my own journey, as I’ve been sorting through it as I go, but then also to see that I’m not alone. And it’s also a reminder, though, of the humanity of the unborn. more and more of us get through. And those who get through, they’re the proof. They’re the reminder. They’re the living, walking, breathing voice to us all that the unborn, they’re human and they’re valuable and we ought to protect them.
SPEAKER 05 :
Josiah, let me ask you this, because you’ve done a lot of this in terms of advocacy and having conversations. It’s hard to push back when people hear your story. But for those that need to engage in their elected representatives, whether it’s at the state level or the federal level, obviously, in this bill. How would you suggest they approach this conversation and politely push back on this narrative that it doesn’t really happen, this bill is not necessary?
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, I think actually just talking to Senator Lankford earlier and just hearing some of the things that he brings up when he talks about asking them, okay, we have to consider there’s three people involved in an abortion, the father, the mother, and the child. And he’s brought up, and I think this is a really good question, at what point does a child become a child and should have that protection? And I think that’s something every one of our elected officials should have to answer. I think that’s something every elected official should have to answer because that’s something they’re answerable to the people on. We should be able to know where elected officials stand on that and how they’re going to vote on that, how they’re going to pass legislation on that, because we’re literally talking about a life and death situation here. And it’s important, I think, for the people to ask those questions.
SPEAKER 05 :
So, Senator Lankford, for now— Senator Lankford, for now, is this bill—I mean, is it going to move forward? Is there going to be another attempt on it, or is it finished?
SPEAKER 07 :
So it is finished in the Senate for now. The House picked it up. They passed it. And what’s interesting, the House and the Senate both had a majority vote for this. But as you mentioned, the top of the of this conversation, you have to have 60 to be able to move it. But we had 52 votes. That’s a majority of the Senate agrees with this. But we don’t have enough to be able to move it. The House did have a majority when they voted on it today and they’re able to pass it in the House. But we’re not able to make law on it. until we get out of the Senate with 60. The other part of this, though, is there’s only eight states in the country that do full reporting for abortion survivors. So many states, and this is an era where state legislators and individuals can engage with their own states to say, what does our state do? How do we protect abortion survivors? So we’re talking about this on a federal level. But every single state and every single person that’s listening to this program right now should be able to say to their legislators, do we report abortion survivors? Do we require that? Do we require care for children in a botched abortion? My state in Oklahoma doesn’t allow abortions. Many other states do not allow that. That’s great. But for those states that do, as a minimum, we should also track botched abortions, where in this case, we typically think of a doctor who makes a mistake and a life is taken. In this case, a doctor makes a mistake and a life is actually protected. We should be able to know that documented and then to know what’s done.
SPEAKER 05 :
Just to have a couple minutes left, tomorrow’s the March for Life, which has been held every year since the infamous Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision. It’s clear that even after the Dobbs decision and Roe was kicked to the dustbin of history, we still have a fight on our hands to—as we just talked about here, this— common sense piece of legislation to provide aid to a child who survives an abortion. We can’t agree on that as public policy. We’ve got a lot of work to do, Senator. Where do we go from here?
SPEAKER 07 :
We do, even though we weren’t outside for an inauguration this week, we will be outside marching for life. It’s just as cold in DC, but those tough marchers are going to be out there standing up for the value of every single child. So that’s extremely important. I’m telling people more and more. There are folks that are out there saying we should stop talking about this. This is a state issue. Don’t discuss anymore. That’s exactly the opposite thing we need. We need to talk about it more. Just like I think about 105 years ago, my wife and my daughters couldn’t have voted. And I can’t believe there was a time in America that women were not allowed to vote. And this generation looks back at that time and is appalled by it. I think 50 years from now, that generation will look back at now and say there was a season where we considered some children valuable and some children disposable, and they’ll be appalled by it. But that doesn’t happen accidentally. That happens because this generation talks about the value of every child, continues that dialogue, and we continue the work that will take a generation to accomplish. But let’s keep going.
SPEAKER 05 :
Josiah, and we cannot overlook the fact that this is spiritual in nature when we look at this battle for life. Yeah. Josiah, I want to thank you for joining us. Senator Lankford, I want to thank you for joining us and for your continued fight for the unborn. I greatly, we all greatly appreciate it. And Josiah, tell your father I said hello.
SPEAKER 07 :
His father did a great job in youth ministry, clearly, Tony.
SPEAKER 05 :
Oh, I could tell you some stories. I could tell you some stories. All right, gentlemen, have a great evening. And folks, I want to thank you for joining us. And let us not give up standing for the unborn. And I leave you with the words of the Apostle Paul, who said, when you’ve done everything you can do, when you’ve prayed, you’ve prepared and you’ve taken your stand. That’s right. When you’ve taken your stand, just keep standing. Have a good evening.
SPEAKER 01 :
Washington Watch with Tony Perkins is brought to you by Family Research Council and is entirely listener supported. Portions of the show discussing candidates are brought to you by Family Research Council Action. For more information on anything you heard today or to find out how you can partner with us in our ongoing efforts to promote faith, family, and freedom, visit TonyPerkins.com.
