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On today’s program: Sarah Holliday, Reporter for the Washington Stand, reports on the impending partial government shutdown and the…
As Washington focuses on fostering peace in the Middle East, Tony Perkins brings you exclusive insights into the upcoming meetings between world leaders. Michelle Bachmann offers her perspective on safeguarding Israel’s sovereignty amid international negotiations. This episode intertwines compelling stories from the heart of Texas to the significant diplomatic discussions occurring at the White House, all underscored by the importance of maintaining faith and family in challenging times.
SPEAKER 24 :
From the heart of our nation’s capital in Washington, D.C., bringing compelling interviews, insightful analysis, taking you beyond the headlines and sound bites into conversations with our nation’s leaders and newsmakers, all from a biblical worldview, Washington Watch with Tony Perkins starts now.
SPEAKER 12 :
I need to tell my community and those families who are waiting, this will be a rough week. Primary search continues. And we remain hopeful every foot, every mile, every bend of the river. I have said this a hundred times, and I will say it again. We need your prayers. We need your prayers.
SPEAKER 06 :
That was Joe Herring, mayor of Kerrville, Texas. Welcome to this July 7th edition of Washington Watch. I’m your host, Tony Perkins. Thanks for tuning in. Search and rescue efforts continue today in the aftermath of devastating flash floods that swept through the Texas Hill Country. We’ll bring you more on the tragedy and the ongoing response a little later when we’re joined by Congressman Chip Roy, who represents the area impacted. Meanwhile, here in Washington, D.C., President Trump is preparing to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House this evening to discuss a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and possibly a long-term agreement with Iran.
SPEAKER 01 :
Tonight, President Trump will host the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, for dinner, where they will discuss the positive developments taking place in the Middle East region. This will be a dinner to talk about Operation Midnight Hammer, which was incredibly successful to talk about peace in Gaza and ending that conflict, as well as many other topics of discussion in relation to Israel and the United States.
SPEAKER 06 :
That was White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt earlier today. Ahead of the meeting, evangelical leaders are reminding the administration that dividing the land of Israel must not be a part of any peace deal. Joining me later to discuss that concern is former Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann, now dean of the School of Government at Regent University. And what’s next on Capitol Hill now that the reconciliation bill is done? Texas Congressman Keith Self will join us with insights on the final bill and what Congress will turn to next. All of that and more on this Monday edition of Washington Watch. Right. As I mentioned, President Trump will be meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this evening in the White House. And the war in Gaza is expected to be the main subject of their discussion. On Friday, President Trump told reporters he was very optimistic that a ceasefire hostage deal between Israel and Hamas could be struck this week. But he acknowledged that the situation changes from day to day. The two sides still seem to have irreconcilable differences on how to bring the conflict to an end. Joining me now to discuss this and more, Congressman Keith Self, who serves on three House committees, including the Foreign Affairs Committee. He represents the third congressional district of Texas. Congressman, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us today.
SPEAKER 16 :
Thank you so much, Tony.
SPEAKER 06 :
Before we begin our discussion, I want to note how we are praying for the situation in Central Texas, which we’re going to be discussing with one of your colleagues, Chip Roy, coming up next. Your district is in the northeast region of Texas, but I’m sure all of Texas has been touched by this tragedy.
SPEAKER 16 :
And we are praying that they find the survivors. There must be more survivors out there. They will find them. We also praying for the families. This is a tragic loss. 82 people, dozens of children. This is almost incomprehensible, Tony, what happened down there. We’ve checked and they are getting supplies that they need, most of what they need. So that’s good. Continue to donate money and pray for the survivors that they will find.
SPEAKER 06 :
You know, it’s events like this that makes us realize how fragile life really is. We go about our activities day after day after day. But when something like this occurs, obviously these families are changed forever. But it also leaves a mark on those who are paying attention that we realize how fragile life is.
SPEAKER 16 :
Horrific to lose girls that age. You’re just not supposed to lose young children. It’s devastating.
SPEAKER 06 :
Congressman, last week you were on the program before the reconciliation bill passed. You were against the bill then, but the House Freedom Caucus secured some agreements from the Trump administration that didn’t change the bill, but did some things outside the bill that advanced some of the elements that were changed in the Senate. You ended up supporting the bill. Tell us why.
SPEAKER 16 :
Well, I supported the bill because we went through the permutations of the Senate, individual senators, and there was no way that we were going to get anything back from the Senate that would have been an improvement. It just was not going to happen. So therefore, we went outside the bill to make some requests. but things that might offset the damage that the Senate did to the bill. Because they inserted one simple paragraph that basically gutted the House provisions on the Green New Scam, for instance. So we got some things that I can’t yet talk about, agreement, and we will see how they work going forward, that there are more cost cutting across the federal government. Tony, there are lots of places to cut costs across the federal government, as you know. We simply tried to find those areas and get agreement that we will work on those going forward.
SPEAKER 06 :
You know, I just wanted to bring that up because there was a lot of the Capitol Hill media saying that the Freedom Caucus folded, did not get anything. And in the end, they just rolled over. I know that is not the case because I had many conversations. And I think the bill, I shouldn’t say the bill, the outcome was much better because the Freedom Caucus began to negotiate on the issue.
SPEAKER 16 :
Oh, absolutely. They started out with $300 billion, perhaps, in savings. $300 billion. What we got was a trillion and a half, well above that. So that’s the progress that the Freedom Caucus, with other conservatives, and I want to say only the Freedom Caucus, we had a group of conservatives that worked with us to make this happen. I will tell you, Jody Arrington, the chairman of the Budget Committee, is a warrior. My Texas colleague is a warrior.
SPEAKER 06 :
Yeah, and I know that, as you said, there’s some things you can’t talk about, but some of the social issues that were of concern that were taken out in the Senate were also going to be addressed. We look forward to that coming out in the public here in the very near future to see what the administration has agreed to. All right. I want to switch gears now. I want to talk about the president meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this evening. You know, Hamas has been the one turning down proposals, these peace proposals that have come to the table. But given what we saw happen with Iran and how Israel has crippled the Hamas military infrastructure, is the message getting through to Hamas that it’s time for them to bring this war to an end?
SPEAKER 16 :
I doubt it, Tony. I doubt it. I understand they’re hoping to get 10 hostages released in the early part of any ceasefire. I doubt that. If they’re live hostages, maybe one, maybe two, but very few. Dead hostages, hopefully a few more. But look, this war could be over tomorrow if Hamas would do two things. Release the hostages and agree that they will not, they cannot govern Gaza. But look, Iran basically, none of their proxies stepped up for them. So I think Hamas is out on a limb now. But frankly, Hamas can survive through a ceasefire as long as they don’t give up all of their leverage, which is the hostages. So let’s look, Trump and Netanyahu have a very good relationship and they will come to some sort of agreement, I have no doubt. But there is a third party to this. Hamas. And if Hamas simply goes underground and survives, that could be a problem in the months going forward.
SPEAKER 06 :
And I did mention in your introduction, your retired army colonel, the situation in Iran, which was a air campaign taking out nuclear sites, much different than on the ground in Gaza. And so Israel has had a difficult time where you have Hamas basically integrated within the rest of the community. It’s hard to ferret them out. So there’s only so much that the Israeli people will endure in this conflict. I think Israel is having a hard time bringing Hamas and getting them out of Gaza.
SPEAKER 16 :
Well, they are. But I think the turning point may be the people of Gaza, the Palestinians, are turning against Hamas. I think that’s where the United States ought to make their best effort, to turn the people against Hamas. So Hamas is in the hundreds of miles of tunnels underneath Gaza. Let’s get the Palestinians to help us with Hamas.
SPEAKER 06 :
What role does the humanitarian aid play in that? I know that Israel has wanted to control that because Hamas has been using it and selling it. What role does that play of making – because I think when people get hungry and they don’t have the means of getting what they need to survive for their families, they’ll face Hamas.
SPEAKER 16 :
They should. Believe it or not, Hamas has taken most of the humanitarian aid over the years to build tunnels, to pour concrete, to build fortresses underground. So we need to make sure that any humanitarian aid going in gets to actual citizens on the ground and is not stolen by Hamas to rebuild their infrastructure.
SPEAKER 06 :
What does the Middle East look like after this is brought to a conclusion there with Hamas? Because we know now that there is the potential of the expansion of the Abraham Accords. This is not something we were looking at 18 months ago. The Middle East is a whole new situation.
SPEAKER 16 :
I believe that if Iran is truly brought to bear to heal, the Middle East would be even drastically different from what we see today. Abraham Accords would grow with numbers of Sunni Muslim nations. Iran would be down. We have Shia Iran governing two less countries. And if we can defeat the Houthis in Yemen, three less countries. I think this could be a totally different Middle East. If Iran agrees to forego their Hamas, Hezbollah, their support for them, This could be an entirely different Middle East from what we’re even seeing today, Tony. And this could be a monumental change.
SPEAKER 06 :
Where do you see Turkey factoring into the Middle East going forward?
SPEAKER 16 :
Well, as you know, I’m the chairman of the Europe Subcommittee on Foreign Affairs, so Turkey is a major issue for us today. Turkey has one of the largest armies in NATO. They participate in NATO operations, but they also keep an eye on Syria. They want to play a major role in the Middle East. I’m not sure which way Turkey is going to go. toward NATO, to be a solid NATO partner, or turn to the Middle East to try to be one of the major Muslim nations in the Middle East. I encourage Turkey to stick with NATO. They’re an important ally with a large army. But Syria, the power vacuum in Syria is an issue with Turkey. And if they go and try to be one of the big players in the Middle East, I think it will hurt their participation in NATO. I encourage Turkey to stay with NATO, and let’s get Turkey and Israel back on good terms, particularly vis-a-vis Syria, because the Russians still want to play in the Middle East. Now, they’ve moved some of their bases from Syria over to Libya, but we need to keep Russia out of the Middle East as much as we can.
SPEAKER 06 :
And America’s way forward is through diplomatic relations, economic development in the Middle East. Would you agree?
SPEAKER 16 :
Well, Economic development can be handled by the oil-rich states in the Middle East. I’m not for a lot of American taxpayer dollars going into the Middle East. We need to make sure that the Sunni Muslim nations that are so rich over there with oil and gas money, they lead the reconstruction efforts in the various areas, and they’re the ones that can return economic stability to the area.
SPEAKER 06 :
Congressman Keith Self, always great to see you. Thank you so much for joining us today. Thank you, Tony. And folks, I would encourage you to be a lot to pray about, as we talk about in this program a lot. But I would be praying, obviously, for the folks in Texas. And we’re going to be talking with Chip Roy. Just got notice he’s going to be a little delayed. So we’re going to talk to him a little bit later. Coming up next, we’re going to be talking with Congresswoman Michelle Bachman. But be praying for the folks in Texas, the families impacted. But also be praying as the president about to start his meeting. with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. We’re going to talk about that a little bit more next with former Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann, so don’t go away.
SPEAKER 17 :
A family is the oldest, most tested, and most reliable unit of society. It is divinely created and sustained. And yet, there are those who are always tampering with its values and structure. That’s why we need organizations like the Family Research Council that can effectively defend and strengthen the family.
SPEAKER 03 :
Family Research Council began over 40 years ago, like all great movements of God, with prayer. Today, rooted in the heart of the nation’s capital, FRC continues to champion faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. FRC is one of those bright lights that helps us focus on true north. And I shudder to think, had they not been here, that it could have been worse, worse, worse.
SPEAKER 10 :
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.
SPEAKER 08 :
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.
SPEAKER 05 :
FRC is not going to be whooped. You know, we’re going to fight.
SPEAKER 06 :
We’re going to take a stand. And again, we don’t retreat. You will never see in front of this building here in Washington, D.C., a white flag fly. We will never step back. We will never surrender. And we will never be silent. Hello, friends, this is Tony Perkins. You know what? We just finished our 21 day family Bible challenge through the book of Matthew. And if you joined us, I pray that it has already borne fruit in your life and in your home as you place the Lord and his word at the center of your home. Now, our journey through the Bible doesn’t end here, though. The challenge was a part of our Stand on the Word Bible reading plan. And from here, we’re going to cover the rest of the New Testament. And now that we’ve finished the book of Matthew, let me ask you, would you consider joining us for the rest of the journey through the Word of God? In 10 to 15 minutes a day, you’ll see how the good news of Jesus transformed the lives of common people, people just like you and me, and how those same people transformed the known world through the power of the Holy Spirit. I invite you to continue the journey with me and discover the life enriching power of the Word of God. Visit FRC.org slash Bible for a reading plan. That’s FRC.org slash Bible to learn more. Welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for tuning in on this Monday. Be sure and download the Stand Firm app. That way you can have access to the Washington Stand. That is our news and commentary from a biblical perspective, as well as Washington Watch and my daily devotional, Stand on the Word. All that can be found on the Stand Firm app. Go to the App Store and download the Stand Firm app. Well, after hundreds of faith leaders across all 50 states signed on to an open letter last month calling President Trump to support Israel’s sovereignty, another was released ahead of the president’s meeting today with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Joining me now to discuss this is one of the leaders behind the two letters, former Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann, who serves on the board of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. She is also the dean of the Robertson School of of Government at Regent University and the chair of the FRC Board of Directors. Michelle, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining me.
SPEAKER 09 :
Thank you, Tony. Thank you for the great job that you and the FRC team are doing. It’s fantastic.
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, thank you. I appreciate that. Let me start with this. Have you received any response to the first open letter that you wrote?
SPEAKER 09 :
We have received response from within the administration. I won’t say the name of the individual, but we were told it was a great letter. And we hope that it will make it in front of the president of the United States. That would be the goal. And in front of the decision makers regarding the U.S.-Israeli relationship and the decisions that will be very important today and tomorrow that may be made.
SPEAKER 06 :
So let’s talk about that, because we’re talking about the president and the prime minister discussing peace in Gaza, a permanent peace situation there, talking about expanding the Abraham Accords. And some have suggested in the past, we’ve seen this over and over from both administrations, Republican and Democrat, that that often includes Israel giving up some land.
SPEAKER 09 :
That’s right. And that would be in violation of the Bible because, Tony, as you know, and as your viewers know, as they’re following with you on the Bible plan, the Bible is very clear on God’s peace plan for the nations regarding Israel and for individuals regarding Israel. And it’s very simple. It’s this. It’s we agree that God’s Jewish people have the right to live in the land that God gave them forever. That’s it. And so we are told to bless both individuals and nations. We are to bless Israel. And God’s plan is that the Jewish people live in fully all of the land that he gave them forever. So as we as nations publicly affirm that the Jewish people have the right to live in their land, and then we bless them. We might bless them with what they need to defend themselves, whether it’s munitions or whether it’s weaponry. But we bless them and we back them. That’s what the Bible calls us to do. No more. And so when nations… agree with the temptation to meddle in Israel’s affairs and then pressure Israel to divide their land or to remove the Jewish people from the land. The God of the Bible says that there will be swift judgment on nations that do that. And too many American presidents from both political parties have put pressure on Israel. So the crux of our letter, Tony, was to call on President Trump, who’s a very unique president and really one of the most pro-Israel presidents America’s ever had. We call on him to be the first president to follow the Bible’s plan for peace. which is to publicly state that America will stand with Israel and with the Jewish people’s right to their land and that we will choose to bless and not curse them. That’s it. That’s the plan. And so I hope that that’s what President Trump will do, because we saw something less than two weeks ago. There were articles written that President Trump may pressure Israel to divide the land when it comes to Judea, Samaria or regard in Gaza. That would not be what the Bible says. agrees with. And I would hope that the Trump administration would make decisions that are in alignment with the Word of God.
SPEAKER 06 :
And you’re very clear in the letter pointing out all of the unique things that President Trump has done, supporting Israel, moving the embassy to Jerusalem, recognizing the nation’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights. And also in the previous administration where the Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, they recognize those as not being illegal under international law. So you clearly recognize the good things the president has done. You’re just simply warning him of where other administrations have gone astray. And in particular, this appears to be in the expansion of the Abraham Accords, I think in part because you have countries like Qatar and Saudi Arabia, I think, leaning in and wanting to exchange recognition of Israel for the creation of a Palestinian state.
SPEAKER 09 :
Well, that’s right. The Abraham Accords also were predicated. In other words, a premise was made that Israel, there’ll be an ongoing discussion about Israel’s boundaries. That’s in violation of the Bible. There is no discussion about Israel’s boundaries. Israel won Judea, Samaria under international law. Israel won Gaza under international law. This land belongs to Israel. This is not up for grabs. East Jerusalem isn’t up for grabs. There is no reason for Israel to have to divide their land or give up their land. One thing that was being proposed, Tony, is that President Trump was saying that four Arab countries would, quote, manage Gaza. That would be a disaster. Two of the countries that he mentioned would be Egypt and the United Arab Emirate. Just yesterday, an article came out that weapons were being smuggled through Egypt into Gaza. Well, that’s like the fox running the hen house. If Egypt is allowing or letting slip through weapons to go into Gaza. So we don’t want to see Egypt or the United Arab Emirate manage Gaza directly. And two other Arab nations, presumably one of those nations would be Qatar, which is the chief financer of terrorism in the world today. So this is very problematic, what we’ve been hearing. Also, another suggestion is that Israel would essentially be forced or pressured to recognize that someday down the road, there would be a two-state proposal. In other words, Israel’s land would have to be divided. That would be wrong. That would be against the word of God. And so really, again, Tony, the bottom line is the biblical peace plan that God has laid out, and that’s that the Jewish people live in their land and that nations bless the Jewish people as they choose to live in their land. President Trump did that recently when he helped Israel and Iran drop the most powerful bombs in the world short of a nuclear weapon. And we helped to bring peace to that region by that action. That was a very wise decision. I commend President Trump for that decision. And so President Trump is at the apex now. in so many ways in this administration with all the blessings that he’s brought to America and to Israel. So while America’s at the apex of blessing, I wouldn’t want to see a decision made that would put the United States in a position of judgment, biblical judgment.
SPEAKER 06 :
And we will pray to that end. Michelle, we’re out of time. Thanks for joining us as always. Folks, be praying for this meeting that’s coming up any moment. All right, stick with us. We’re back with more after this.
SPEAKER 14 :
The Center for Biblical Worldview’s all-day workshops delves into the formation of a worldview, what it is, how it’s formed, when it’s formed, what that means to them personally and their churches and communities.
SPEAKER 21 :
My hope for people when they come to these worldview workshops is that they will come away better equipped to engage the people and the ideas that they’re living with and around. And our goal is to give people more confidence in the gospel, in the fact that what God said to us actually is true, actually is the path to happiness and human flourishing for all of us, but also more confidence in their ability to have these conversations and help lead other people to the truth.
SPEAKER 02 :
for Bible-believing Christians to know what God’s Word says on these issues and to learn how they can apply it to their lives. And we believe that the more Christians that we equip, that’s how we’ll change the nation.
SPEAKER 13 :
Hey, fam, listen, Pastor Sammy here at Lighthouse Church, and I cannot tell you how equipping, how empowering, how… incredibly educating this conference has been. And so I just want to encourage anybody that either has not been part of or is thinking about hosting this event, certainly to pastors, leaders, even CEOs for that matter, this conference is lights out. I stand behind it myself. I can’t commend it enough. We’re going to be talking about this for some time to come.
SPEAKER 15 :
The culture is kind of squeezing in on us as God’s people, forcing those of us with biblical views to change those views or to suppress those views. It’s forcing us to engage with issues that we’ve never had to engage with. And so what this teaches us is what those issues are, what the Bible says about those issues, and then how we can critically engage our culture on these things in a way that is committed to biblical principle.
SPEAKER 18 :
Visit frc.org slash worldview for more information.
SPEAKER 06 :
We’ll go back to Washington, which, by the way, if you’d like to sign that letter, we’re going to give you one more opportunity to sign that letter to President Trump regarding Israel and encourage him not to divide the land to any form or fashion. Just text the word letter to 67742. That’s letter to 67742. And we’ll add your name to that. All right, the death toll in Texas continues to rise following the devastating flooding that swept through the Texas Hill Country region over the weekend. At least 94 bodies have been recovered across six counties, with Kerr County accounting for most of the deaths. Yesterday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott declared a day of prayer as search and rescue operations continued. Here now to discuss the latest, Texas Congressman Chip Roy, who represents the area in Texas hit the hardest by the devastating flooding. Chip, thanks for taking a moment to to join us.
SPEAKER 04 :
Thanks, Tony. Appreciate having me on.
SPEAKER 06 :
I know you sent me a text yesterday morning about the situation. It’s I mean, it’s really shaken the community to its core.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, I mean, obviously the whole nation has been caught up in the obvious heartbreaking situation with respect to the little girls at that camp. But in midst all of that tragedy, there’s a lot of heroism, a lot of great stories. people who have risked their lives, gave their lives to try to help these kids, help these little girls. You know, I think you’ve probably heard some of the stories. A woman named Jane Ragsdale, who was active in the Presbyterian Church in Kerrville, who was at one of the camps, camp director, who lost her life, I think, saving, we think, five kids. A guy named Dick Eastland, the guy who owned Camp Mystic, bought it in 1973, was considered a grandfather to so many of these kids. He gave his life trying to save three of the little girls. Unfortunately, all four of them were lost, but they had gone down there that night in the middle of those floods trying to do what they could. And so there’s been an outpouring of support from the community. You’re right, it has hit everybody at their core. Normally on 4th of July, I’m there. Tony, with my family, I’ve been going there for about a decade, listening to live Texas country music. It’s a venue that brings people from all over the state. These camps, there’s 18 of them up the Guadalupe, many of them faith-based. Camp Mystic being maybe one of the more well-known. And the last point I’ll make before you go to the next question, I don’t know if you saw the video of these girls when they were on the bus getting removed finally from Camp Mystic, singing a worship song, singing hymns. while they were driving out and watching the destruction. These are girls who’ve just lost siblings, lost loved ones, lost friends, singing hymns and keeping the faith as they left the camps. And that’s the real story here.
SPEAKER 06 :
The storm, of course, we in Louisiana, we’re very familiar with natural disasters, more hurricanes. Our flooding is not like your flooding with the raging waters there that took place. And many people, how did this happen? Well, it happened in the middle of the night, and the river rose over 20 feet within an hour.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, I mean, so to put it in perspective, everybody understand, the area 20 miles down from the camps where a lot of the lives were lost, down in Kerrville, it’s a little broader, a little wider, okay? That water there rose some 26 feet in a little over an hour, around an hour, because of the raging waters coming down. That occurred, as you note, the wee hours of the morning on July 4th, and it happened very quickly. Farther up, in Hunt near where Camp Mystic is located and the other camps, there’s a narrower area and that water rose very quickly. And so there was a story of a young man who unfortunately, he lost two of his daughters and he described he was hanging on trying to figure out how to get to his daughters. And he said the water was going up basically a foot per minute. That’s how quickly the water was coming up. It’s really hard to describe for people who don’t understand the terrain there. It’s limestone with a very thin amount of topsoil. And that you’re in a drought, water comes in 12, 14 inches, which nobody was really predicting. Now, the National Weather Service predicted flooding. They predicted heavy rains. And everybody needs to be attuned to that. But they weren’t saying 12 to 14 inches. And nobody really necessarily could. And so that hit. And then this is what happened at four to six o’clock in the morning on a holiday. There are things we could probably do better going forward. But the finger pointing and the politicizing of it is nonsense. Right. We need to focus on these healing families.
SPEAKER 06 :
So how many I know that there’s a lot of people that were from out of town that were along there. So we don’t know exactly how many may be missing. But what are the estimates of those that are still unaccounted for?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, I think right now we’re somewhere around 84, 85 official fatalities in that area in Kerr County. Just got an update a little bit ago. And I think I don’t exactly know the adult and child breakdown there. I think it’s maybe 60 or so adults and 25 kids, give or take maybe 58 adults. There’s 10 still missing children. I believe those are all children that are unidentified, I should say, that I think are affiliated with Camp Mystic. That’s not 100%. They’re still working through that. It’s difficult, right? And the identification gets tough, right? And so one of the hardest conversations I’ve ever had to have was being a part of a conversation with parents who still had missing children two nights ago and talking about collecting DNA to try to do the hard work of identifying kids. And so this is all gonna be something we’re gonna have to work through for a long period of time. But the prayer, Tony, has been extraordinary. The amount of faith, the amount of, support coming in, people across the aisle that have been reaching out to help. It is much far fewer in between the people who are politicizing it and being, you know, I think inappropriate. The vast majority of people I’m talking to are just wanting to help. We had 1,500 people in line trying to get signed up to be volunteers. We’ve had stuff pouring in from all over the country. There’s going to be benefit concerts coming up here in July and August already getting planned. The people of Texas are going to act fast, and they always do that regardless of who we’re talking about, and we’re deeply appreciative.
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, Chip, we’ll continue to pray. Our church was praying yesterday morning. And we can empathize with the families there in Texas and around that have been impacted. So we’ll continue to lift up the people of Texas and the families impacted by this tragedy.
SPEAKER 04 :
Thank you, Tony. That’s the most important thing. And it’s been noticed. And we know it’s having an effect and it’s working. Just watching how people are responding and reacting and getting strengthened by all the show of support from all over the country. So deeply appreciate that.
SPEAKER 06 :
All right, Congressman Chip Roy. Folks, stick with us. We’re back with more after this.
SPEAKER 22 :
Family Research Council is committed to advancing faith, family, and freedom from the East Coast to the West. So FRC is going to Southern California for this year’s Pray, Vote, Stand Summit, October 17th and 18th at Calvary Chapel Chino Hills. Join us for this powerful gathering of Christians desiring cultural renewal and spiritual revival. The Pray, Vote, Stand Summit brings together Christian leaders, issue experts, and government officials for a time of prayer, inspiration, and action. Together, we will seek God’s guidance for our nation and engage in meaningful discussions on the intersection of faith, government, and culture. If the spiritual foundations and the cultural walls of our nation are to be rebuilt, we all have a role to play. May we each find our place on the wall as we build for biblical truth. Register now at PrayVoteStand.org. That’s PrayVoteStand.org.
SPEAKER 11 :
Jennifer, it’s so exciting to be here with you today talking about our new book, Embracing God’s Design. Who is actually going to benefit from reading this book in your view?
SPEAKER 23 :
There are so many different audiences that can benefit. The first one are counselors themselves, because we have some material in there where we really address the gender dysphoria diagnosis and what is wrong with it. We have information for people who are wanting to go back to embracing God’s design for their life.
SPEAKER 11 :
This is really magical to have the therapist and the individual who suffered come together and write about why this is happening and why we’re seeing this.
SPEAKER 23 :
And we brought all of that experience to the table. We want to see people walking in the fullness of who God has called them to be and not a false identity.
SPEAKER 16 :
Order today at embracethedesign.com.
SPEAKER 19 :
How should Christians think about the thorny issues shaping our culture? How should Christians address deceitful ideas like transgenderism, critical theory, or assisted suicide? How can Christians navigate raising children in a broken culture, the war on gender roles, or rebuilding our once great nation? Outstanding is a podcast from The Washington Stand dedicated to these critical conversations. Outstanding seeks to tear down what our corrupt culture lifts up with an aim to take every thought and every idea captive to the obedience of Christ. Whether policies or partisan politics, whether conflict in America or conflict abroad, join us and our guests as we examine the headlines through the lens of Scripture and explore how Christians can faithfully exalt Christ in all of life. Follow Outstanding on your favorite podcast app and look for new episodes each week.
SPEAKER 06 :
Welcome back to this Monday edition of Washington Watch. I encourage you to get the Stand Firm app. That way you can have Washington Watch with you no matter where you go. You can also have access to our news and commentary from a biblical perspective, the Washington Stand, not to mention my daily devotional, Stand on the Word. Find it at the App Store, Stand Firm. Our word for today comes from Luke chapter six. Blessed are you when men hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and cast out, your name is evil for the son of man’s sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy for indeed your reward is great in heaven. For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets. Jesus makes it clear when we’re rejected for his name, we are not to respond with resentment but with rejoicing. He then tells us how to respond to those who wrong us. But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. Wow. These are the characteristics of those who follow Christ, which are evident because they’re counter to our human nature. And they can only be achieved through the power of the Holy Spirit living in us as we are sanctified by the Spirit and by the Word. To find out more about our journey through the Bible, text BIBLE to 67742. Well, this past Independence Day weekend was one for the history books, not only with the signing of the one big beautiful bill, but as we were just talking about, the deadly floods in Texas. And those weren’t the only news items that created a stir. Here to discuss some of those other headlines is Suzanne Bowdy, editorial director and senior writer at The Washington Stand, and Casey Harper, managing editor of the broadcast of The Washington Stand. Suzanne, Casey, welcome back to Washington Watch. thanks johnny thanks all right um let me just you know we were just discussing the um with chip roy the flooding in texas it just seems like we get these natural disasters and of course louisiana we seem to be somewhat uh familiar with these but this tragic loss of life And Chip made reference to this, how people across the aisle. It’s one of those moments where it kind of brings back the humanity. It peels back all the political rhetoric and the hostility that we see in this city a lot. And it reminds us we’re all human beings.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yeah, I mean, I think it’s also that so many people are parents, too. And the first thing you think is, if my kid was in that water, I mean, I’d be among the bodies because I’d be diving in. And I think that’s the reaction. It’s one of the few things that unites us. Of course, plenty of people did make it political. And I’ve refrained online and Twitter from trying to retort back because it just felt a bad spirit on it. But there is a political angle to it, and we can talk about it. how FEMA money was misspent in the last administration and things like that. But I don’t think that’s what the focus should be now. It’s on the unity and coming together.
SPEAKER 06 :
I think you can look at those things after the fact. I think that now it’s the families that are suffering. And when we, nine years ago, we went through the floods in Louisiana. And we didn’t have near the loss of life that we saw here in Texas because it was a different type of flooding. But the families, their futures are completely altered forever. And it changes communities. Our communities still change from the flood with the devastation that took place. But it’s just… It is a time, I think as Christians, we need to pray, to empathize, but to be introspective of what really matters in life.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yeah, I mean, it’s true. It reminds me of Jesus’ parable about, where are you building your foundation? You know, obviously, it’s a metaphorical parable of the wind and the rain’s coming, but when tragedy strikes, whether it’s a flood or any other kind of thing, it reveals what’s under the surface. And if you have a deeper foundation to cling to, then you might be able to make it through something even as terrible as this. But if you don’t, I don’t know where you turn. I mean, you’re done. If you don’t have Jesus and something like that happens to your kids, it’s over.
SPEAKER 06 :
Even then, it can show up even then.
SPEAKER 20 :
It’s unbearable.
SPEAKER 06 :
Tonight, actually right now, I think President Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are meeting to discuss a permanent peace agreement or winding down the war in Gaza. Also, we’re expecting a wide range of issues to be discussed, including expansion of the Some are concerned. You heard we had former Congressman Michelle Bachmann on discussing in the past that’s always resulted in Israel having to promise to give up land or to somehow trade land for peace. Something different has happened this time where we actually have – family leaders in Judea and Samaria, in Hebron in particular, which is in Judea, saying, hey, we don’t want to be a part of the Palestinian Authority. We want to join the Abraham Accords. This is a game changer, I think.
SPEAKER 05 :
It is, and I think we’re at a really unique time in history right now. You have Trump as this ultimate peacemaker. You also have Israel finally being able to attack and expose some of the really corrupt regimes that have been leading places like Gaza and the Palestinian state. You have Iran, all of these people who are repressing their own nation. And we’re starting to peel back the layers and see what’s actually going on. And this movement sort of of these five shakes that you talked about in Hebron, very significant in that they’re saying, you know, the Palestinian Authority has been awful for a long time. You know, they’ve taxed us. They don’t understand our traditions. They don’t actually care what the people think. They’ve just ruled with an iron fist. And we want out. And we see this opportunity with Trump at the helm to finally make this change. And what they’re proposing is truly groundbreaking. I mean, they’re saying we will – basically secede from the Palestinian Authority, break off, form their own emirate, so this little tiny pocket would not be holding to the PA, and then join the Abraham Accords.
SPEAKER 06 :
Yeah, what’s interesting is that’s really how the Middle East functioned for Right. Millennia, really. I mean, it was just tribes, families. In fact, last year I met with one of these sheikhs, and they were – I didn’t know how they were going to get this off the ground because it was so dangerous for them even to meet with us because of the Palestinian Authority. But it’s gotten so – repressive for the people, and the corruption is so bad that they’re willing to take these risks. And it is interesting that the family structure, and it is tight, but in the Arab community, the family structure is tighter than these political organizations.
SPEAKER 05 :
Right, and I think everyone agrees that at this point, this two-state solution, as everybody’s been calling it, is dead, and they’re looking for a way to actually get out. They acknowledge this.
SPEAKER 06 :
They have signed a letter pledging peace and full recognition of Israel as a Jewish state. is unheard of because none of the other countries would recognize. That’s what the Abraham Accords were, recognizing Israel’s right to exist. They’re saying, hey, we know that a two-state solution is not possible, especially after October the 7th. They’re making the argument that we’ve made that here’s a landmass about 24 times the size of Gaza in the heart of Israel. Who would be dumb enough to allow a Palestinian state in the heart of their country?
SPEAKER 20 :
it’s true. I mean, I love your point about the families being so strong, even when the political breaks down, because that’s really, you know, faith, family, freedom. We show that, you know, if families can stick together, we can weather a lot of political things. Also, another point on this is it’s really refreshing to see some honesty in an area of the world filled with propaganda and just constant lying about our enemies are evil and we’re the best and, you know, constant lying about Israel, And, you know, Iran saying they won the war after being totally decimated is kind of laughable lying. But to see someone in this part of Palestine saying, actually, the Palestinian Authority has been terrible to us. I mean, you think about the things that they’re guilty of. They steal foreign aid. They steal most of the foreign aid. You know, we don’t really know the percentages because of the way it works there. But all this foreign aid that’s been pouring in, they take it, they use it to buy weapons, to fuel terrorism.
SPEAKER 06 :
Right. They pay the terrorists. It’s pay to slay. They’re continuing to indoctrinate the children to hate Jews. And it’s had a consequence. It works? Well, it works, but it also depresses the economy. There’s no jobs. The sheikhs recognize that there’s no place for our people to work. We need Israel. We want this relationship. We’ve seen the same thing in Ariel in Samaria. where it is the manufacturing that comes in oftentimes by Jewish companies, but they employ the Arabs, and they like it because they have an income and they can provide for their family. So I think part of it, it’s gotten so bad that the people, like what we’re hoping will happen in Iran, will rise up against this imposed regime, in this case the Palestinian Authority, that’s been put upon the people by the Oslo Accords.
SPEAKER 05 :
But I’m also interested now, you’ve talked a lot on the show about Judea and Samaria. What is that? I mean, the backdrop of this is also so interesting, because here we are talking about, you know, Michele Bachmann saying, don’t cede this land. And here are these guys from this land saying, we want to join the Abraham Accords.
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, it’s interesting, Hebron is where the cave of Machpelah is actually at that Abraham bought to bury Sarah. So it’s actually one of the areas in Scripture, one of four areas in Scripture that we actually have a recorded deed of the land being purchased there in Hebron. And so when I was actually there last time I was in Hebron, a few months ago and met with the mayor there. And there was some discussion about the, it’s bifurcated where you have a small Jewish community there, but it’s basically the city is run by the Palestinians. But these families could quickly and I think more effectively govern. Now, It’s going to be a little complicated in how does Israel absorb them? What kind of status do they have as citizens?
SPEAKER 05 :
How do you manage all these little towns?
SPEAKER 06 :
But I wonder, you know, I was thinking about this as I was reading through it because this is all relatively new. If it couldn’t be treated as we treat like Indian reservations here in the United States where they have sovereign jurisdiction in their areas, but they’re not another country.
SPEAKER 05 :
Right. That’d be interesting.
SPEAKER 20 :
Yeah, we have like Puerto Rico, for instance. Actually, I think the effect – when you think about the effect it would have on the rest of Palestine, to me it’s reminiscent of something like Hong Kong where you have a whole country that has one way of thinking and then you have a pocket that adopts another way. And then the small minority pocket ends up sort of disproving the larger group.
SPEAKER 06 :
I think what the sheikhs would want – is the Israeli government to provide basic services, protection. They don’t want an army. They would probably prefer the Israeli police force. They don’t have infrastructure a lot of times. Actually, in Hebron, in some of these areas, they’re having to bring water in from the outside because they’re just – Anyway, it’s going to be very interesting to see how that plays out. I think we’re at a very unique period in time. It’s something that we need to be prayerful about as the expansion of the Abraham Accords, but as Michelle was talking about earlier, can’t be a trade land for peace. That’s proven to be ineffective.
SPEAKER 05 :
And I think you have a column about that on the Washington Stand right now.
SPEAKER 06 :
I do, actually. I wrote that.
SPEAKER 05 :
Tony Perkins, yeah. That’s right.
SPEAKER 06 :
You can go to the Washington Stand and see that and see what I’m thinking about that if you haven’t heard enough from me. All right, we’ve got a few minutes left. I want to talk a little bit more on domestic news. A day after the White House celebrated Independence Day and the signing of the reconciliation bill, Elon Musk had some news of his own to share that he is launching the America Party.
SPEAKER 05 :
I will say Elon is it’s sort of cute bless his heart he’s so new to politics I don’t think he knows what to do with all of his frustration now I’ve watched you through years be frustrated with the Republican Party I mean it could be I mean even as recently as last year now Right. So this is nothing new to those of us that have been in politics. And I think he just doesn’t know how to process it. So he’s like, let’s start a third party. Well, I’ve heard you over the years. You’ve been disgusted. You know, we’ve bantered about what do we do? But it’s not a viable solution. And in his case, who is going to join this party? The liberals don’t like him. He’s a traitor to the liberals. The MAGA crowd dislikes him. There might be a tiny sliver of Republicans that would go for it. But even then, Elon Musk, like SpaceX?
SPEAKER 06 :
I’m just not sure where he finds a constituency.
SPEAKER 05 :
Right.
SPEAKER 06 :
Because he’s – if I put him in any category, he’d be libertarian. There’s already a libertarian party. Right. Well, but they’re kind of – Yeah, he doesn’t fit the Libertarian Party. He really has a slice of the mega crowd, but the mega crowd’s not leaving. No. And they’re going to stick with him. The establishment, more the establishment. is not happy in the Republican Party, but they’re not going to go there either. So he has no constituency.
SPEAKER 05 :
And you need a significant ground game to get a party like that. It takes more than X. It’s a lot of paper. If he gets frustrated, who’s going to be running this party? If he’s like, well, I’m going to go back to Tesla and I’m going to go launch my rocket, who’s going to be in charge?
SPEAKER 06 :
I know that in the process, even when he was running Doge and when he first came in, I did not have these direct conversations, but those that did have those conversations with us shared with me. He just had no understanding of how government functioned, which was obvious by some of the statements that he made. and and government was designed by our founders to be slow and to be hard to change because that’s for our own protection now it’s gotten so bad because over years of neglect it has gotten way way out of whack but we we have to do the hard work of bringing it back and you know i think we have to work within the structure yes i i remain frustrated with the republican party But that’s why we’re here. We agitate. And just think if we weren’t agitating, if we weren’t pushing and prodding and telling them to do more, what it would really be like.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, look at what the House Freedom Caucus has done. There are elements of the Republican Party that have done a lot to move the needle.
SPEAKER 06 :
And the Freedom Caucus began in our conference room. Right. So, I mean, that’s how you move the process over time. Accountability, encouragement. It takes everybody kind of working together with a – Common vision of a nation that, as we see here, one nation under God, indivisible with justice and liberty for all. All right. We’re out of time. That flew by. Yes, it did. Suzanne Casey, thanks for joining me. Thanks, Tony. Folks, thank you for joining us as well. And by the way, you can still sign that letter if you do so quickly. Text the word LETTER to 67742. That’s LETTER to 67742. And check out the Washington Stand. You can go to thewashingtonstand.com or just get the Stand Firm app, and it’ll be right there on your news feed. Until next time, I leave you with the encouraging words of the Apostle Paul, found in Ephesians 6, where he says, you have done everything you could do, and you’ve prayed, prepared, and taken your stand. By all means, keep standing.
SPEAKER 24 :
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.