The Washington Stand’s Casey Harper reviews Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s press conference on the Iran ceasefire update and President Trump’s meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte to discuss America’s frustration with several member-
SPEAKER 09 :
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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The president’s very clear. The deal is a ceasefire, a negotiation. That’s what we give. And what they give is the straits are going to be reopened.
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That was Vice President J.D. Vance earlier today addressing the two-week ceasefire deal that was agreed to last night with Iran. Welcome to this Wednesday, April 8th edition of Washington Watch. I’m your host, Tony Perkins. Thanks for tuning in. Well, coming up, a fragile and shaky two-week ceasefire between the U.S., Israel, and Iran has been agreed to, with multiple sides claiming victory. Senator Lindsey Graham joins us to look at what is in and not in the agreement. Plus, Louisiana Solicitor General Ben Aguinaga will outline the next steps after a federal court ruling yesterday that agreed with Louisiana’s concerns over the abortion drug mephiprestone, but left the flawed federal policy in place, at least for now. All of that and more straight ahead on this Wednesday edition. President Donald Trump said he agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran less than two hours before his deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face what the president called the death of, quote, a whole civilization. He is now striking a dramatically different tone on Iran, signaling possible sanctions and relief on tariffs. But despite the optimism, major disagreements remain unresolved as all sides evaluate next steps. Joining me now is Casey Harper, the Washington Stand reporter. He’s been closely following today’s developments. Casey, what’s behind the sudden shift in tone from the president and how close are the U.S. and Iran to an actual agreement?
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, Tony, a deal remains elusive. We’re going to have some updates on that this weekend, I think. But you’re right. This is a total 180 from 24 hours ago when we last talked, and we thought we were on the eve of really an unprecedented level of attacks on Iran. But I think we’re going to see more details this weekend. U.S. and Iranian officials will meet face-to-face on Saturday in Islamabad to restart these negotiations, which had really broken down. But they have a lot to work through. President Trump says that parts of a 15-point deal U.S. proposal have been accepted, including discussions, as you mentioned, on easing sanctions and tariffs, but they’re far from a deal. Now, Iran put forward its own 10-point proposal. But White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt today, I covered that press conference, and that the president is not happy with that plan. It’s really unacceptable to him. There’s a lot of key sticking points that remain, especially concerning Iran’s nuclear program and the enriched uranium, even talk around possible reparations and rebuilding Iran. And then there’s just the broader regional security concerns. Now, some of those concerns were addressed this morning by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Here’s what he had to say.
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We’re going to make sure Iran complies with this ceasefire and then ultimately comes to the table and makes a deal. So we’ll stay put, stay ready, stay vigilant. As the chairman laid out, our troops are prepared to defend, prepared to go on offense, prepared to restart at a moment’s notice with whatever target package would be needed in order to ensure that Iran complies. As far as the Strait, you saw the initial agreement that was struck, which is Iran’s letting ships go through. So that will be happening. They will be sailing.
SPEAKER 10 :
Now, one more thing, Tony. You heard Hegseth talk about Iran letting ships go through, but that’s one of the concerns here is that we’ve now set the precedent that Iran controls the Strait of Hormuz, which is really something that was not the case before the war.
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All right, Casey, Senator Lindsey Graham is going to join us here in just a moment. He shared some similar concerns about this deal, and he’s going to unpack that for us. I want to turn very quickly to a meeting between President Trump and NATO Secretary General Mark Reuter at the White House. Now, President Trump has been pretty critical of the European members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Were some of those tensions between the two resolved at this meeting?
SPEAKER 10 :
You know, it’s hard to tell. It is a start, Tony. But there’s good reason that Mark, the secretary general, came to the U.S., because President Trump has made his thoughts clear, as you said. I mean, this hasn’t even been in the discussions. But not long ago, President Trump was threatening to take Greenland, and troops were being sent to defend Greenland. That seems like distant memory, but it wasn’t long ago at all. And now we have threats from the president to leave NATO altogether. So suffice to say, it’s a strained relationship. Now, today’s meeting happened just a little over an hour ago. And NATO Secretary General Mark Rudy, he pushed for unity and cooperation, as you might expect, as officials warned that the alliance is really at a dangerous point. So it’s something to be following. And we’ll see if this meeting really makes a meaningful difference.
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Very quickly, there’s another important front that we’re fighting here at home, and that is the fight to defend human life. Planned Parenthood released their annual report, which validates a concern that we’ve raised on this program many times. Abortion numbers are actually up, and chemical abortion is the cause. Give us some of the additional highlights from this report, Casey.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, I’ll just hit a couple of the highlights here, Tony. Planned Parenthood, which is still getting some taxpayer funding, facilitated about 434,000 abortions in 2024-2025 fiscal year. That’s an 8% increase from the year before. Just put that in perspective. I mean, that’s almost 1,200 abortions every single day. And as you said, Tony, it is largely coming through the abortion pill Mifepristone, which the FDA could drop the hammer on today if they had the political will.
SPEAKER 07 :
All right. Thank you, Casey. We’re going to talk a little bit more about that later. All right. I want to return to the issue of this agreement with Iran and how this might affect the entire Middle East, of course, how it might affect Israel. Joining us now with his analysis is Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. He’s chairman of the Senate Budget Committee. He also has a distinguished record in the United States Air Force, retiring at the rank of colonel after serving uniform for 33 years. Senator Graham, welcome back to Washington Watch. I know you’re joining us from the road. Thanks so much for taking time to join us.
SPEAKER 21 :
Thank you, Tony. Your voice on this has been absolutely indispensable. Thank you so much.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, I want to first get your reaction to the ceasefire deal and what led up to that last night.
SPEAKER 21 :
Well, number one, I prefer diplomacy to to end the reign of terror of the Iranian regime. But the goal is to end the Iranian regime’s terror tactics. And if we can do it through diplomacy, fine. The president said today that the 10-point Iranian plan, he didn’t support. The president said today no enrichment, they can never enrich again, is non-negotiable. The president said today that the 900 pounds of highly enriched uranium that’s buried at the bottom of the enrichment facility in Iran needs to be dug up and turned over to the United States. I like the tactic that President Trump is taking. He’d like to end this well, but it takes two to tango. And I’m very suspicious that Iran will ever do this. It’s in their DNA to want to acquire a nuclear weapon, because this is not a normal regime. They’re kind of deep in their bench. But if you’re on the team at all, you have to sign up to the radical Islamic view of the world, where they want to purify Islam, destroy Islam, come after us. So there’s really no moderates in that system. The Iranian people have suffered greatly. We’ll see how it ends here. But I think the president is getting more firm. I hope he’ll issue an ultimatum in saying two weeks. We’re going to do my deal in two weeks. We’re back at it. And remember this, Kargalin It’s where almost all the oil and gas infrastructure resides for Iran. If you control Kargil and you control the Iranian economy, and if you have to go back to this, that would be a good place to start.
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So this, I guess, the backbenchers that are now running Iran, is it a more reasonable group? I mean, how do you take this ideology that drives Iran and say you have a more reasonable group leading?
SPEAKER 21 :
Well, being part of the regime takes you out of the reasonable camp. If you think it’s reasonable to want to, you know, make the entire world bend to your knee as a religion. They’re religious Nazis. That’s what they want. They want to purify Islam. If you think it’s reasonable to kill all the Jews, I don’t. That’s what they want to do. They’ve been saying this for 47 years. They’ve been acting on their beliefs. So no, I don’t. Like the parliament, the speaker of the parliament, they call him the butcher of Tehran, who’s in charge of the cops. They’ve killed like 45,000 of their own people. So Never lose sight of who we’re dealing with here, and I don’t think President Trump has. He’s a pretty cagey guy, and there is no such thing as a moderate regime member if you’re a part of the regime.
SPEAKER 07 :
What prompted us to, according to the president, it was the nuclear and the ballistic missile programs that the Iranians had. The Iranians have said in their 10-point plan they will not agree to no enrichment of uranium. They might dial it back a little bit, but they’re not going to agree to no enrichment. Isn’t that a red line for us, or shouldn’t it be?
SPEAKER 21 :
Well, it’s a red line for the president. Carolyn Levitt said it just about two hours ago. Now, why do we say that? The Obama deal allowed them to enrich. Now, what are we talking about? If you take uranium and you enrich it to about 3.5% to 5%, you can have peaceful nuclear power. If you get up to 20%, there’s medical isotopes that will no purpose for 20% enriched uranium peacefully. 60%, there is no peaceful purpose for enriching uranium at 60%. You need 90% to get a weapon. 60 to 90 is about three or four weeks of enrichment. That’s why Trump did Midnight Hammer. When it was disclosed that the Iranians were boasting about having almost 900 pounds of 60% enrichment that can only be used for weapon purposes or a dirty bomb, he blew up the enrichment facilities so they can’t go to 90%. Their behavior regarding enriching uranium is one of consistent cheating. No enrichment, not one ounce can ever be enriched again in Iran. They will cheat if you let them do it. There’s 20-something countries that have peaceful power programs that don’t enrich uranium. You don’t need to enrich to have a peaceful program. You do need to enrich to make a bomb. No enrichment. And somebody said, well, you know, it’s an embarrassment to Iran not to be able to enrich. You know, it’s a face-saving deal. I don’t care about saving face for somebody who’s killed 45,000 of their own people, got American blood dripping from their hands. I don’t care about saving face.
SPEAKER 07 :
Beyond the national security issues, for our listeners and viewers, there are two issues by which I think they will evaluate the success of our efforts in Iran and any deal that is agreed to. Number one, will religious freedom be advanced in that region of the world, and will Israel be safer?
SPEAKER 21 :
You’re over two. The Nazis of the 30s wanted a master race, the Aryan race. The regime in Iran since 1979 has been designed around, built around a cult of death and a goal to have a master religion. They’re religious Nazis. So at the end of the day here, all I can say is that Trump, I think, understands the threat. There is no good deal if they can enrich, because they’ll cheat again. The 900 pounds of highly enriched uranium that could be made into a dirty bomb or enriched in the future to make eight bombs has to be turned over to us. The Straits of Hormuz cannot be a cash cow for the Iranians in the future, because they try to hold the world hostage. We don’t want to reward that. So all I can say is that I don’t mind trying a diplomatic solution But the deal has to stop what we’ve been living with for 47 years.
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Or the latter can be worse than the former if we walk away and we haven’t fixed those issues.
SPEAKER 21 :
About Israel? Oh, my God. I mean, you know, you asked about Israel. Okay. Does it advance religious liberty? Yeah. No, it doesn’t advance religious liberty. If Iran ever comes back, it’s a nightmare for Israel. We’re very close to finishing this regime off. Let’s finish them off if they don’t do a good deal.
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Senator, last question, 15 seconds. Will Congress have a voice in this? Absolutely. Must have. All right. Senator Lindsey Graham, thank you for joining us. Always appreciate your insights into this. One of the most insightful members of the Senate when it comes to foreign policy issues, especially the Middle East and Israel. All right. Don’t go away. On the other side of the break, we’re going to take a look at a decision that came out of Louisiana yesterday on MIFA Press Stone. Both good and bad. So don’t go away.
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The Family Research Council is key. It’s one of a handful of groups that I think will determine whether our children live in a country that enjoyed all of the freedom and all the opportunity that we enjoyed in this great land.
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It’s just a wonderful parachurch organization that doesn’t seek to take the place of the church, but it seeks to assist the family and the church as we try to move forward successfully, not in a defensive mode, but in an offensive mode as we seek to live our lives according to the Holy Scriptures.
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You will never see in front of this building here in Washington, D.C., a white flag flying. We will never step back. We will never surrender. And we will never be silent. Welcome back to Washington Watch. Good to have you with us on this Wednesday. Yes, it’s Wednesday. Yesterday, a federal judge agreed with Louisiana’s concerns over the trafficking of mail order abortion drugs into the state. But refused to overturn the federal policy that is undermining Louisiana’s pro-life laws, along with about 25 other states. The judge said the FDA should be given time to conduct their review of the impact of this deadly drug. Well, the problem is that the FDA has been saying for a year that they were going to look into this. They’ve told Congress this. This is a Biden era policy that was designed, put in place intentionally to undercut the Dobbs decision that sent the issue of protecting life back to policymakers, both at the federal level and at the state. But most of the work is done at the state. The state of Louisiana filed an appeal today wanting the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to take this up. Joining us now to discuss this development is the Louisiana Solicitor General, Ben Aguinaga. Mr. Solicitor General, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for joining us. Thank you for having me, Tony. Good to see you. So, Ben, let me get your reaction to the federal judge’s ruling yesterday. It appeared in some parts it was good, but the outcome, not so much so.
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Yeah, there was some bitter in it, but there was a lot of sweet. I will say that, you know, in terms of ways you could potentially lose a case in a district court, in federal court, that’s about the best way you can do it. And I think you rightly pointed out that this is the first federal court decision that outright says, that states like Louisiana are suffering irreparable sovereign harm every day that this 2023 REMS from the Biden administration remains in effect. That is a powerful court decision. And I think that’s a finding that we’re going to be able to take up on appeal and tell the Fifth Circuit, look, even the district court, despite ruling against us at the end of the day, agrees that this is fundamentally a serious issue for the states, especially states like Louisiana, that have chosen to protect life. And so, yes, at the end of the day, the district court denied preliminary relief to us, but having already determined that we’re likely to win this case at the end of the case and that we’re suffering sovereign harm every day that this action remains in place, you know that’s about as good as position we can be in to go up on appeal I would think so.
SPEAKER 07 :
I mean, he basically agreed with everything you said. He just said, well, we need to let the FDA and the executive branch run its due process in reviewing this, the policy that’s in place, the rims that you talked about. The problem has been that they’ve been saying this for a year and they’re not doing it. Now, the judge did say that he gives them six months to come back. But there’s a lot of people that could die in six months.
SPEAKER 19 :
That’s right. So let’s just start with the facts, which the district court accepted, which is every month in Louisiana, approximately 1,000 Louisiana babies are being illegally aborted. That’s a given in this case. And, you know, for any ruling from a court that says, well, let’s wait another year, maybe another two years to see what happens, every month that ticks by is another thousand lives lost. So just in terms of numbers, Tony, you’re exactly right to say the stakes cannot be higher. In terms of the promises, you know, that the FDA will review this problematic regulation from the Biden administration era, you know, we’ve heard that last year. We heard it this year. You know, from the federal court hearing earlier this year, the judge pushed them on what does that review look like and what’s your timeline? and the fda attorney outright said i can’t give you a timeline judge our best hope is that maybe some part of our review will be done in 2027 but not the whole part of the review and so you know i think there’s a lot of frustration on our end to say uh you can’t just you know enough is enough and that’s why we’ve had to resort to the federal courts to say we need preliminary relief if this relief if this review is going to take years to accomplish. We need preliminary relief. In the meantime, that stops the unlawful regulation.
SPEAKER 07 :
Just so folks know, Ben, Louisiana is not alone in this. There are other states that are suffering the same consequences and are supporting Louisiana in this challenge to the FDA.
SPEAKER 19 :
That’s right. We’re one of three lawsuits across the country brought by states seeking to achieve the same result, which is to vacate this regulation, level set, return this in-person dispensing requirement that protects women, that protects babies. And so, you know, this is not just a one state sort of thing. There are a lot of states in our situation, many states whose laws are being infringed in exactly the same way, which is when you got a doctor in New York or California who says, I’m going to mail thousands of pills across state lines into these pro-life states. where I know it’s illegal to distribute those drugs for the purpose of causing abortions. That is a problem that is facing us, it’s facing Texas, it’s facing Mississippi, Tennessee, all over the country. This is not a solely Louisiana specific issue. And so we’re grateful to have the support of other states who have filed briefs in our case. We’re grateful to have your support, the Family Resource Council that filed a brief in our case, because as I say, the stakes could not be higher. And this is our moment to stand up and stand up for life.
SPEAKER 07 :
So this today, earlier today, I believe, as you appealed to the Fifth Circuit, what’s the timeline that you’re looking at there?
SPEAKER 19 :
Right. We filed our notice of appeal today. As you know from our district court papers, what we’ve sought all along is a preliminary injunction or what we call a preliminary stay, which is while the lawsuit is pending, stop the 2020-23 REMS. And that’s something that we’re going to ask the Fifth Circuit to do. I think you could see a filing from us in the next couple of days or so that does exactly that, which is say, look, the circuit, the district court was with us up to the one yard line. We need you to take us the extra the extra yard and score the touchdown.
SPEAKER 07 :
You know, I you know this better than I do. But as I’ve been watching the Fifth Circuit and knowing some of the justices there, given the the opinion from this district level judge agreeing with everything that you laid out there for the most part, I would think that the Fifth Circuit would be amenable to to putting a stay in place, given the fact that it looks like you will ultimately win.
SPEAKER 19 :
I hope you’re right, and I think you are right, in part because of what you just said, but also because this case is not new to the Fifth Circuit. The Fifth Circuit has already seen this case back in 2023, 2024, when a different lawsuit challenging the same rims went up to the Fifth Circuit than the Supreme Court. Two panels in the Fifth Circuit already looked at this regulation and said, it’s clearly unlawful, and so a stay is appropriate. And so that’s what we’re going to tell the Fifth Circuit, which is, you’ve already seen this play before. All you got to do is run the same play.
SPEAKER 07 :
All right, Ben Aguinaga, when you get your date, we’ll talk with you again because we want to make sure our folks are praying for you as you take this down to the Fifth Circuit. We appreciate you and the Attorney General of Louisiana, Liz Murrell, and all that you’re doing on behalf of the sanctity of human life. Yes, sir. Thank you so much. Have a good one. All right. You too. Thank you, Ben. All right, folks. More reason to pray. This could be huge. I mean, quite significant. Anyway, you can add your voice. Text LIFE to 67742. LIFE to 67742 and add your voice. All right. We’re coming back with more after this.
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I think all people really need to have this type of education. Well, I can tell you that it’s been an amazing course, period.
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I think this course is a reminder that a biblical worldview should really impact everything. It impacts our government from the federal to the state to the local. It should impact what we’re doing with our families and with our work.
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God and Government is a video-driven, Bible-based training course from Family Research Council that explores the connection between between biblical principles and American government. In this six-session video series, FRC President Tony Perkins equips participants with a practical understanding of civil government from a biblical worldview.
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I would encourage all people to take it. I almost wish I would have took it earlier that I could have taught my kids this. I wish I had known these things when we were homeschooling because I think children and my adults now would just greatly be influenced by that information.
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So I’m an attorney, and for me, it gives me some direct practical knowledge of what I can do to try to impact my legal community, to make better legislation, to try to encourage legislators to make choices that have a biblical worldview, which is what we really want.
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Any pastor would benefit from taking this course because we are dual citizens, right? We are citizens of the kingdom of God, but we’re also citizens of this great land, and that comes with responsibility.
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Even as someone who has been involved in these types of issues for a while, you’re learning little bits and pieces of new stuff all the time. But it’s also approachable enough that newer people, younger people, high school, college students, they can really glean something from this. So I would encourage everybody to take this course, whether it’s the videos, whether it’s doing it in person, bring your Bible study group through it, bring your homeschool group through it and equip yourself for these challenging days ahead.
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View the course at frc.org slash God and government or on the Stand Firm app.
SPEAKER 07 :
All right. Welcome back to Washington Watch. Good to have you as a part of the Washington Watch family. Check out the website, TonyPerkins.com. And also, if you’ve not yet downloaded the Stand Firm app, get the Stand Firm app. That way you have Washington Watch with you no matter where you go. The release of the minutes from last month’s Federal Reserve meeting just happened to coincide with the announcement of a ceasefire with Iran. The minutes from last month’s meeting expressed inflationary concerns over a protracted conflict driven in large part by energy prices. So is that no longer a concern? Joining us now is David Bonson, founder, managing partner and chief investment officer of the Bonson Group, one of the top financial advisors in the country. David, welcome back to Washington Watch.
SPEAKER 22 :
Great to be with you, Tony.
SPEAKER 07 :
So let’s start off with today’s release from the Federal Reserve. They released the minutes about a month after they meet, gives everybody kind of an opportunity to dig into what they’re really thinking and talking about. What’s your take? Is that really not important now that we have this ceasefire?
SPEAKER 22 :
Well, I think that it is still important because the ceasefire itself comes with a lot of questions and what the sustainability will be, what the application will be. And also, even if the entire military operation comes to an end, where oil prices will end up settling. But I don’t expect the Fed to have had an opinion on that. These things are moving in flux. As you mentioned, these minutes are from a full month ago. The conflict had barely started at that time. And so there’s more data that has come in and will come in before the Fed next has to act on this.
SPEAKER 07 :
But given the rise in energy costs, I mean, that certainly could fuel inflationary concerns. Is this going to be short-lived? Do you think, I mean, we saw the price of oil go down today dramatically after the announcement of the ceasefire. I mean, what are we looking at?
SPEAKER 22 :
Well, the oil prices came down dramatically today, but they are still $30 a barrel higher than they were about two months ago. So there is still a lot of room to go until we get back to something that could resemble normalization. What I want to distinguish, though, Tony, is between the concern that represents in the economy and on prices and the impact it represents to both consumers and businesses and what the Fed is supposed to do about it. Because I do not agree that all inflation is in this particular case monetary or under the purview of the Fed? In other words, is the short-term interest rate relevant to a supply shock, which is obviously what has caused this oil spike? Historically, it is not. Now, the Fed could very well argue that there are other reasons to be concerned about inflationary pressures. I would argue that tariffs have put more upward pressure on prices than anything else. We saw that the inflation rate at the end of 2025 was higher than it was at the end of 2024. Not remarkably higher, but marginally higher. The Fed has a lot of things they have to navigate, but Congress gave them this thing called a dual mandate, where they’re supposed to be concerned with both price stability and full employment. And it’s a very tricky tension for them to hold. I think net-net, more questionable jobs data is probably a bigger concern. And I do expect the president’s new appointment, Kevin Warsh, is still going to push for a rate cut this year.
SPEAKER 07 :
You know, when I look at the you know, these short term economic reports, you know, we get the stock market every day. We’re tracking what the stock market does. And it sometimes reminds me of, you know, a wreck on the interstate and everybody’s rubbernecking and it creates another accident. I mean, is this, you know, more of we’re so focused on the short term that we’re really missing the bigger picture?
SPEAKER 22 :
That’s very true. And it’s not just that people are looking at day-to-day movements in the stock market as a measure, but even the month-over-month jobs report and inflation data. And why are people looking at it month by month for the reasons they are? It’s generally political. that they either want to say, oh, look, the president’s doing a great job, or, oh, look, the president’s doing a terrible job. It’s trying to match some politicized agenda. And it could be, you know, when there’s a Democrat in office or a Republican. But if you want to look to the real health of the economy, it takes a longer view. There’s a lot of lumpiness in data. So I really agree with the point I think you’re making, Tony. What do I believe creates economic growth long-term? You want a moral culture that is entrepreneurial, that celebrates risk-taking, that has low tax, low regulation, and facilitates the conditions of economic growth. We mostly have had these things, certainly relative to other countries in our nation’s history. It’s why we’ve become the most prosperous country on earth. But in the current cycle we’re in, There’s definitely questions as to how dependent we are on AI. What would economic growth be if we weren’t building data centers everywhere? And then the jobs market, which seems to not be creating a lot of firings. We’re not in recession. We’re not terminating a lot. But hiring has slowed quite a bit. So I just think we want to stay humble in the way we assess the economy right now and not jump to a politicized conclusion.
SPEAKER 07 :
So David, a little over a minute left. Where does the long-term debt of the nation factor in? I mean, we’re bumping up to $40 trillion. Isn’t that a drag on economic growth?
SPEAKER 22 :
Massive drag, massive. And the fact of the matter is, Tony, that since the financial crisis, we’ve grown at about 1.9% per year net of inflation. And for the 70 years before that, we grew at 3.1% a year. That’s a huge difference in opportunity costs to our kids, our grandkids. And that’s what the impact of the long-term debt is. So doomsdayism, thinking that any day now all of a sudden we’re going to fall in the ocean or default on the debt, that lulls people in a false sense of security. Sometimes we may not have this apocalyptic moment. We might just have it impact economic growth over time. That’s not good either.
SPEAKER 07 :
It’s kind of like the fable of the little boy who cried wolf. We have all those people crying wolf, wolf, wolf, and it doesn’t happen. And so people just go about their business, and our debt just continues to multiply rapidly.
SPEAKER 22 :
And unfortunately, there’s very little political will to do anything about it. And I think that you’re right, that the boy who cried wolf has caused a lot of people to be too complacent.
SPEAKER 07 :
David, always great to see you. Appreciate your insights greatly. Look forward to seeing you again soon. God bless. Thanks, Tony. All right, David Bonson, another prayer item. Don’t go away. We’re back with more.
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For over 4,000 years, the Jewish people have had legal, historical, and biblical ties to the land of Israel, especially the heartland of Israel, Judea and Samaria, which much of the world still calls the West Bank. To Israelis, Judea and Samaria is far more than a name. It’s the center of their ancestral homeland where nearly 80% of the Bible’s events took place. Abraham purchased property in Hebron, Jacob in Shechem, Joshua made an altar on Mount Ebal and led the Israelites into a covenant before God. On Mount Gerizim, overlooking Shechem, Jesus talked to the Samaritan woman at the well about worshiping neither on Mount Gerizim nor in Jerusalem, but in spirit and in truth. Judea and Samaria is nearly a quarter of Israel’s current landmass, not a small strip of land on the Jordan River, but a vital and strategic part of the nation’s identity. The October 7th massacre, launched from Gaza, shattered the illusion that giving away territory brings peace. Gaza, which was once seen as the cornerstone of a two-state solution, became a launchpad for terror. Today, only 21 percent of Israelis support a Palestinian state. Trust in a two-state solution has all but collapsed. The Middle East is changing. Iran’s grip is weakening. New alliances are forming. But Western countries and some U.S. officials still chase the mirage of a two-state solution. History speaks clearly. The 2005 Gaza withdrawal, backed by the U.S., led not to peace, but to a terrorist regime. Judea and Samaria are 24 times larger than Gaza, deeply woven into Israel’s geographic and spiritual fabric. To surrender them would not bring peace. It would invite conflict and existential danger. Family Research Council stands with Israel’s rightful claim to sovereignty. It’s time for America to do the same for history, for justice, and for lasting security in the Middle East. Welcome back to Washington Watch. I’m Tony Perkins. Good to have you with us. All right, before we go into this last segment, we want to update you on FRC’s Pray, Vote, Stand chapters. We have an initiative over the next 10 years to place a chapter of a Pray, Vote, Stand chapter in every county in America. Now this is designed to equip Christians to engage prayerfully, biblically, and locally, influencing local policies by building relationships with local leaders. Now there are a couple of new chapters we want to welcome. and congratulate. The new chapters are in Macon, Georgia, and Iredell County, North Carolina. So congratulations to these new chapters. We’re excited for them to join this important initiative. And if you would like more information on the chapters, how you can start a chapter or how you can join a chapter in Macon, your area, text CHAPTERS to 67742. That’s CHAPTERS to 67742. Or you can go to frc.org slash backslash chapters. As I mentioned, our vision is a chapter in every U.S. county within the next decade. All right, we’re getting there, and you can help us. So go to chapters, frc.org slash chapters. Our word for today comes from Deuteronomy chapter 17, where God gives Moses instructions to guide the policies of kings. That would be 400 years in the future. “…and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes.” that his heart may not be lifted up above his brethren, that he may not turn aside from the commandments to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children in the midst of Israel. To follow the ways of God requires being daily in the Word of God. Just think the impact the Word of God would have on our leaders today if they were daily in God’s Word. Let’s pray for a revival of God’s Word in America. To find out more about our journey through the Bible, text BIBLE to 67742. That’s BIBLE to 67742. Well, it’s been about six weeks since the U.S. military operation began, Operation Epic Fury, against Iran’s brutal regime. Now, over that time, we have seen the impact on the stock market, the gas pumps, on national security and in other areas. And while there is now a two-week ceasefire, it’s not clear. how this all will continue to unfold. There has been confidence in the White House that prices would come down very quickly, very soon. Many are looking forward to that. But even with some, when normalcy returns, the operation in Iran will continue to have far-reaching reverberations, both seen and unseen. And as I mentioned earlier with Senator Lindsey Graham, the two questions I asked him was – for our listeners and viewers, number one, we went there to eliminate the threat from the nuclear program of Iran. Beyond that, we want to see religious freedom. Many Christians in Iran – I mean it’s one of the places where Christianity is spreading rapidly – Are their lives at risk now? What about Israel? Will Israel be more secure when this deal is done? Those are questions we need to be asking and praying about. Joining us now for this discussion, Pastor Jack Hibbs, senior and founding pastor of Calvary Chapel in Chino Hills in Southern California, and also my battle buddy. Pastor Jack, welcome back to Washington Watch.
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Thank you, Tony. God bless you, my friend.
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All right. So you were on the program with me just three days after the U.S. military began its combat operations in Iran. I said then that I didn’t believe the operation would end quickly, but I believe the president’s decision was justified. And you agreed. Has your view of the operation changed over the past six weeks?
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No, not at all. And Tony, it’s not changed because it’s not biblically, or I should say it’s biblically rooted, not politically rooted. And what I mean by that is this. You said it in the introduction. The Iranian people are heavily… Christian in their belief system and or they’re atheistic toward Islam. They don’t want Islam. They didn’t want it in 79 and they don’t want it in 26. And so that said, my mind has not changed at all. I do have concerns, Tony, about us finishing the job. That’s what I’m concerned about. Now, I do believe that Israel is going to do what they need to do with or without America to finish the job of this horrific regime that just wholesale slaughters their own people. But, you know, in America, Tony, we have a very, very impatient view of how war should go. I understand that to a degree. But people need to realize that the Iranian people are a beautiful and powerful people, and they want freedom. And how important is it to us, the gatekeepers of freedom, how important is it to us that we can export freedom to them by getting this regime off their back?
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I know. A lot of Americans are… very short term in their thinking they’re looking at the gas prices are looking at the costs associated with not long-term in terms of uh… freedom not only for us but as you said freedom for others who are yearning for what we have here in the united states There is pressure to reach a deal. The president is feeling that pressure, this ceasefire that we have here. The 10-point plan that Iran has put forward is – now, the president did say today, after initially saying it was a good starting point, said that it’s garbage. I would agree with that. I think the 10-point plan from Iran is garbage. But what happens if the regime stays in place – Christians remain at risk, and Israel is even more vulnerable.
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Well, first of all, Tony, think of this. With what we have spent, with what we have invested in blood, sweats, and finances, of course, but military might. Imagine this for a moment. Imagine that Iran hangs on long enough, Tony, to either have a perceived victory or to wear out the politics of it all. And Trump loses control in November of 2026 in this midterm. And this thing falls apart. We are going to look like absolute fools and we’re going to look like we are weak. This is a critical situation for a lot of players. But one thing we know for sure, the Bible says that he who watches over Israel is neither slumbers nor sleeps. I’m not worried about Israel at all. They’re written down on the word of God. I’m concerned about America and I’m very concerned about looking at this military deployment and this mission as something either focusing on future business opportunities or some sort of political grandizement. Tony? we’re at war. None of those Marines and none of those Air Force pilots or Navy, they’re not thinking politics right now. They’re thinking about victory, and they’re thinking about surviving every sortie, every mission that they’re involved in. But a post, let’s imagine for a moment, a post-IRGC world would certainly bring a temporary peace to Israel, which could have a lot of prophetic ramifications. Ezekiel tells us that Israel will be dwelling in peace at the time of its sudden invasion. Israel right now is not at peace. And while Iran is Islamic as it is, there will not be peace in Israel because Iran will be a key factor in the latter days. But right now, Tony, I hope and pray that there’s just a tremendous harvest of souls among the Iranian people. That’s what we’re working on. That’s what we’re praying for.
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And that’s what the people want. They want that freedom. We know, as I mentioned earlier, that there is a—I would describe it as an awakening, a revival in Iran, many people coming to Christ. The regime, though, is desperate. And the president said, well, we’ve got more reasonable people here. You know the radical ideology of the Islamist regime that is running that, even if it’s a backbencher. Christians are not going to be better off there. Israel is not going to be safer as long as they’re at the helm, even though their weapons capability, their military capability has been degraded significantly. It’s just as long as they’re in power, they’re going to be a threat.
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Tony, I want your audience to take what you just said seriously. For those who don’t understand the mentality or have studied or been to that part of the world, they’ve got to hear this. And you said it. Right now, the Muslim world views Iran as winning. They believe they are winning. Why? Because every day they wake up and fight United States of America, and they’re standing at the end of the day. To them, that’s victory. You and I think that’s insanity. They do not think that way. They think in long-term survivability, even if one man is standing, every day they celebrate that they’re winning. And it’s hard for the West to fathom that. And listen, we’re a little bit guilty, Tony, of popping the victory cork too soon. Because the West does not understand that. I hope there are those around the president who understands, Tony, what you and I understand, that as long as there’s one IRGC operative or soldier standing, they view that as victory against the great Satan being America.
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Yeah, Jack, I think it’s been one of the biggest liabilities. I’ve talked about this on the program before about our foreign policy here in the United States. The last Trump administration actually was pretty good at this with Mike Pompeo as secretary of state because he had a biblical worldview. And so many of our. political leaders have a secular mindset. And so, they don’t understand people that are driven by their faith, acting out that faith. And that’s what the Islamic world is doing. They’re actually telling us these things that they’re going to do. They want to wipe Israel off the map. They’re the little Satan. We’re the great Satan. We just take that as some kind of, you know, campaign pitch that they’re out there like we have here in the United States. But that is the intent of their heart.
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Not at all. In fact, not to take anything away from Secretary Mark Rubio, but Tony, Pompeo understood it because you said it. He had a deeply anchored biblical worldview of the Middle East. Pompeo, and you and I talked with him many times in the past, he understood it and he implemented his actions appropriately. And God honored those actions. And so we need to get back as a country to understanding our enemy. Look, we are, no doubt, we are a smart and informed country. But how smart are we informed, Tony, as a politic? regarding the theocratic geopolitical view of what is called Islam. We don’t like to mix the two. Islam will never separate the two. Religion and politics under the banner of Islam is actually Islam itself.
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Right. All right, Pastor Jack, we got about four minutes left. Where are we on the biblical timeline?
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I’m waiting. Luke, first of all, I hope Jesus comes back today. If he doesn’t come back today, I hope tomorrow. That said, in the meantime, I would keep my eyes prophetically on Isaiah chapter 17, verses 1 and 2. That is God’s word regarding the absolute destruction of Damascus. It will never again be inhabited, the Bible says. And then the second thing is that might very well queue up a time of peace with Iran where many Christians come to faith, and that might be short-lived, but we do know prophetically, Tony, from Ezekiel chapter 38, that Iran, Persia, will join in with Rosh, Meshach, and Tubal and those other nations and invade Israel in a sudden invasion that catches Israel off guard. Could these things be, could God be setting up the chess pieces for the events of the last day? I think we’re getting sufficient warning by God that we need to get right with him. And number one thing, number one thing is that we all need to repent of our sins. That needs to start with the Christian in our own home and in our church. And the church needs to become so beautifully holy and attractive. that the world will want the true Christ that you and I know, love, and preach.
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You know, Jack, I was just talking with David Bonson about the economy and about the national debt. And, you know, people have heard so often, well, we’re reaching this cliff, this debt cliff. It doesn’t happen. And so people just kind of go about their business. And I think, you know, we know that from Scripture that there is coming an end point. You know, we’ve heard that oftentimes. And I think as the scripture says, Jesus himself said, it’ll be like the times of Noah. Men were given in marriage, taken in marriage. I mean, they were just going about their business as if nothing was going to happen. And then it happened. And I do believe we’re at that point where we need to be prayerful. We need to repent, return to the Lord. I agree. I’m very concerned. What you said earlier, I’m not concerned about Israel. God is going to take care of Israel. But America is at risk if we take the wrong steps and we abandon Israel. And even in this ceasefire, we’ve wrapped Israel in this and we’ve tied their hands to some degree in this agreement.
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Yeah, I thank God for B.B. Netanyahu. He will not allow his country to be tied to a peace plan that results in the demise of Israel. Now, we know, Tony, you and I know Bible prophecy, and it’s remarkable you quoted that portion of Jesus’ Olivet Discourse. I actually read that this morning, which is crazy. The very fact of the matter is we know that Israel will stand alone in the last days. All nations will be against her in the last days. That includes America. And we also know this, Tony, that God will fulfill his prophetic plan for Israel. No matter what any podcaster has to say, God is going to return. Christ is going to return in the second coming, not to Southern California, not to Palestine, but But the Bible says to Israel and to the city of Jerusalem. And the Bible says that Jesus will set up his throne in Zion. There’s a lot of people talking today about Zionism. You can talk about it all you want. God is returning to Zion. That’s what the Bible says. So again, I have more concern. I do not know what’s going to happen to this great country of ours. I do have this hope, Tony. In all of Bible prophecy, America wasn’t written into it. There’s no sign of it. Yet we were the greatest nation, the most powerful nation, the most affluent nation, and the most biblically-based nation. And so I believe because America is absent from Bible prophecy, could it be, Tony, that America is this covenantal remarkable moment where God is basically saying to you and I right now, will my pulpits preach repentance and the gospel, and will the nation turn back to me? If they do, I’ll heal their land.
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Let’s pray that that be so. Pastor Jack, thanks for joining us. Folks, pray that prayer.
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