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Join us in this episode of Washington Watch as host Tony Perkins engages with top stories ricocheting around the world. We begin with the precarious situation unfolding between Israel and Hamas, as they potentially recommit to a ceasefire amid a backdrop of continuous conflict. Then, tune into Vice President J.D. Vance’s recent visit to Israel as he attempts to shore up this fragile truce. Add to that, the government shutdown in the U.S. stretches into its fourth week, with political blame games over who is responsible.
SPEAKER 04 :
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.
SPEAKER 05 :
Let me say just a couple of words about the deceased hostages. I mean, one of the stations that I met with, one of the groups that’s working on this that I met with earlier, they actually have a photo of the 15 deceased hostages who are still in Gaza. It is a focus of everybody here to get those bodies back home to their families so that they can have a proper burial. Now, that said, this is difficult. This is not going to happen overnight.
SPEAKER 10 :
That was Vice President J.D. Vance today at the new Civilian Military Coordination Center in Israel, urging patience as cracks appear in the shaky ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Welcome to this October 21st edition of Washington Watch. I’m Tony Perkins, your host. Thanks for tuning in. Well, coming up on this edition, Israel and Hamas have recommitted to the U.S.-brokered ceasefire, but deadly attacks and repeated violations underscore how fragile peace in the Middle East remains. We’ll get the latest from CBN’s Middle East Bureau Chief Chris Mitchell from Israel. Also this evening, as the government shutdown stretches into its fourth week, President Trump hosted Senate Republicans at the White House today, where he said Chuck Schumer and the Democrats are holding the government hostage to appease the extremists in their party. Alabama Congressman Robert Adelholt joins us with the latest on the shutdown. Well, as I mentioned, Israel and Hamas have once again reaffirmed their commitment to the U.S.-brokered ceasefire. That comes even after a deadly flare-up in which Hamas terrorists killed two Israeli soldiers. With Hamas still armed and tensions running high, questions remain. Can this fragile truce really hold? Joining me now is Washington Stand reporter Casey Harper, who’s been following today’s top developments. Casey, Vice President J.D. Vance is in Israel working to reinforce the ceasefire in Gaza. What’s the latest from the ground there in Israel?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, that’s right, Tony. So the vice president visited actually a new civilian military coordination center in Israel today where he called that shaky ceasefire, quote, better than I expected. So Vance said the trip wasn’t just a rushed move last minute to save the peace deal, but that it was actually planned months ago.
SPEAKER 05 :
This is difficult. This is not gonna happen overnight. Some of these hostages are buried under thousands of pounds of rubble. Some of the hostages, nobody even knows where they are. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t work to get them, and that doesn’t mean we don’t have confidence that we will. It’s just a reason to counsel in favor of a little bit of patience. This is gonna take a little bit of time.
SPEAKER 03 :
Now on Sunday, Hamas terrorists actually killed two Israeli soldiers and, as Vance noted, have still failed to return the bodies of those deceased hostages, both of which are clear violations of the ceasefire. And that’s raised some serious doubts about whether they can actually move into the second phase of that agreement. Now to help monitor the situation, the U.S. has deployed 200 troops to southern Israel as part of the ongoing effort to support and verify the ceasefire terms. Jared Kushner said both sides are shifting to a kind of peacetime posture despite this continued violence, Tony.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, the history of these ceasefires between Israel and Hamas ever since Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007 is that they are short-lived. There have been actually five major wars or conflicts in that time period between Israel and Hamas. So it’s clear the only path to a more enduring peace is the removal of Hamas. So, Casey, what are some of the other international stories you’re tracking today?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, Tony. Well, in Europe, European leaders and Ukrainian President Zelensky are actually accusing Vladimir Putin of using these diplomatic talks to stall and continue the war against Ukraine. Now, these leaders are actually rejecting any plan for Ukraine to give up land for peace, which is an idea that President Trump recently floated. Now, that planned Trump-Putin summit in Budapest has actually been put on hold after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a recent conversation. Now Trump’s hesitation, this is important, Trump’s hesitation to provide Ukraine with those long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles are a major factor here as well and may be lessening the pressure on Putin to come to the table and make a deal.
SPEAKER 10 :
Thanks, Casey. Actually, we’re going to discuss that a little bit further with Peter Doran, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense and Democracies later in the program. I want to shift gears to the debate over the government shutdown. President Trump hosted Republican lawmakers today in the White House Rose Garden to discuss strategy. What’s their plan?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, Tony, we’re in the fourth week of the shutdown, and Senate Republicans had that important meeting with Trump at the White House. What we do know is that in a speech delivered before Republican lawmakers, President Trump, he’s not blaming Republicans. He’s blaming what he called the extreme radical left.
SPEAKER 09 :
Unfortunately, in a craven and pointless act of partisan spite, Chuck Schumer, who I’ve known for a long time, and the radical left Democrats are holding the entire federal government hostage to appease the extremists in their party. And they are extreme. We will not be extorted on this crazy plot of theirs. Chuck Schumer and the Senate Democrats need to vote for the clean bipartisan CR and reopen our government. It’s got to be reopened right now.
SPEAKER 03 :
Now, this is important because a big part of the Democrat strategy has been to pry a gap between Trump and Republicans, but Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Republicans say they’re committed to ending the shutdown, but not by just giving in to what they call the unreasonable, costly Democrat demands. Actually, here’s what Senator Thune had to say about it.
SPEAKER 18 :
This is the fourth week of the Democrat shutdown, but we are all here today because your Republican team in the Senate is unified. We are united. This is now the longest full shutdown in history. But everybody here has voted now 11 different times to open up the government. And we are going to keep voting to open up the government. And eventually, the Democrats, hopefully sooner or later, are going to come around.
SPEAKER 03 :
Now, as you might expect, Tony, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, he dismissed this meeting. He called it a pep rally. But the fact remains, with Democrats blocking that House pass bill to reopen the government, it’s really unclear where we go from here, Tony.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, speaking of pimp rallies, that’s what the Democrats had this weekend with the No Kings rally. We’re hearing reports of intentional arson at two churches in North Carolina. I mean, this is in keeping with what we’ve been tracking over the last couple of years, this increased hostility toward churches. What do we know about these two incidents?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, Tony, so there’s two churches in Cleveland County, which is about 40 miles west of Charlotte. And sheriff’s deputies say that there was actually fires set late Friday night on purpose. Now, the two churches, Tabernacle Baptist and Calvary Cross Baptist, were damaged in what deputies believe was arson. No arrests have been made, and they actually don’t have any suspects just yet. But as you may imagine, these fires have left that community with unanswered questions. But the spiritual leaders there, the pastors, have been clear. They’re not just praying for their community, but they’re praying for whoever is responsible, Tony.
SPEAKER 10 :
All right. Thanks, Casey. Appreciate the update on a number of stories. By the way, this is important for Family Research Council. We’ve been tracking this trend of attacks on churches over the last several years, and it’s a trend. In fact, we have a report, Hostility Against Churches report. We’re actually going to be joined later by North Carolina Congressman Mark Harris to talk about it. But now I want to go back to discuss the government shutdown, and we have someone in the inner circle on the House side, one of the appropriation leaders that knows what’s happening on Capitol Hill, Alabama Congressman Robert Adderholt. He’s a member of the House Appropriations Chair, the Values Action Team. He represents the 4th Congressional District of Alabama. Congressman Adderholt, welcome back to the program.
SPEAKER 16 :
Tony, it’s always good to be with you, and thanks for having me on.
SPEAKER 10 :
All right. Are we any closer to seeing the lights turn back on?
SPEAKER 16 :
Well, I know your viewers just saw that report. It sounds like it’s still in a holding pattern. You know, the House is not in session, as you know. The Senate is in session. They’re having every other day or so having a vote on opening up the government. And from the report, you saw there were Senator Thune is saying that they will continue to have the votes in the Senate. We have voted in the House. We voted to open the government. And we’ve sent it over the Senate, but they cannot get it through that 60-vote threshold. And most of your viewers know that even though the Republicans have a majority in the Senate, if you don’t have 60 to overcome the filibuster, then you can’t get the legislation through. So Let me just say it’s been a little bit misleading from some of my Democrat colleagues when they say that this is all on the Republicans because we have the House, the Senate, and the presidency. But the Senate doesn’t operate that way. The Senate operates on the 60-vote rule with the filibuster, and that’s why we cannot get movement on that appropriation bill to further the continuing resolution.
SPEAKER 10 :
Now, I know the Republicans in the House, while they’ve been back in their districts, there have been a number of calls as the leadership keeps the rank and file up to date. What’s the latest in terms of it? It appears the Republicans are remaining unified.
SPEAKER 16 :
Yes, I had a conference call with the speaker, with Leader Scalise, two of your good friends from Louisiana, and with Tom Emmer just this morning. And everything, it was very positive in the respect that we’re holding together. We have done our work, as I mentioned. The plan right now is we’ll be on a 48-hour notice. If something develops, all of us can get on a plane and be in Washington in 48 hours. And so it’s given a lot of us opportunities to talk about some of this in our districts, to actually attend events that normally we would not get to do. So there is a silver lining in all this that a lot of members of Congress have been able to be out in their districts when normally we’d be in Washington and to visit with our constituents and hear what’s on their mind. I mean, I can tell you, being in North Alabama, my constituents are very much behind what President Trump and what the Republicans are doing. They do not support the march that you saw across the country this past weekend. They don’t support the tactics of the Democrats. And so we’re holding strong.
SPEAKER 10 :
Congressman Adderhall, I want to shift gears here. We’ve got about two and a half minutes left. I want to go to another hat that you wear. Not only are you an appropriator, but you’re a pro-life, pro-family member of Congress. In fact, you lead the Values Action Team in the House. That’s an entity that goes back a number of years, probably about 30, almost 30 years ago. FRC helped set that up. Yep. The issue of the approval of another abortion drug, a generic form of Mifeprestone, you’ve been leading an effort among your colleagues to speak out about that. Bring us up to date.
SPEAKER 16 :
Yeah, that was very disappointing, I’ll just be honest with you, coming out of the Trump administration. Of course, this was under the watch of the current Secretary of Health and Human Services. That caught us all by surprise. We were not expecting that. We’ve been trying to find out the back story, but we’re trying to have them to recall that decision because, as you know and your viewers know, The drug is not safe and it is whether it’s generic or whether it’s a non-generic drug, this performs an abortion. And it is very dangerous for the mother. And it is just something that is very puzzling to us. And we’re trying to get in the bottom of it. And members of Congress are coming out right and left in support of us trying to get the Department of Health and Human Services to pull this back. So I don’t know what happened over there at the Department of Health and Human Services, but this is not something that I think most people who voted for Donald Trump would have expected.
SPEAKER 10 :
I think you’re absolutely right. And speaking of those members coming out to ask questions about this, in fact, 51 senators led by Lindsey Graham have also sent a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services saying, hey, what’s going on here? And to the FDA. Congressman Robert Adderholt, always great to see you. Thank you so much for bringing us up to date. And thank you for your leadership on the values action items on Capitol Hill.
SPEAKER 16 :
Thank you, Tony, for your leadership with Value Action and your work because you’re an integral part of that. And we thank you for your work at Family Research Council. And we look forward to when the government gets back open to try to solve some more issues and try to stand for the family and for pro-life issues. So thanks very much.
SPEAKER 10 :
All right. Have a great day. Folks, we’ll talk more about that a little bit later. Hopefully I’ll get that in. But we’re coming up next. Mark Harris is going to be joining us, so don’t go away. 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 percent 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 land mass, 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 launch pad for terror. Today, only 21% 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.
SPEAKER 14 :
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SPEAKER 03 :
Download the new Stand Firm app for Apple and Android phones today. You can join a wonderful community of fellow believers. We’ve created a special place for you to access news from a biblical perspective. Read and listen to daily devotionals, pray for current events, and more. Share the Stand Firm app with your friends, family, and church members. And of course, Stand Firm wherever you go.
SPEAKER 10 :
This is Washington Watch. I’m your host, Tony Perkins. Thanks for tuning in on this Tuesday. And my thanks for Jody Heiss filling in for me yesterday. I was traveling back from California. By the way, if you did not, if you weren’t at the value voters are the pre-vote stand summit and you did not watch online, I encourage you to check out. various segments. They’re all broken up. You can see them on the Stand Firm app or on the YouTube channel. But I mention that because there was a really insightful conversation about the issue of mefaprestone, the abortion pill, and really the situation as it pertains to the sanctity of life presently. Most people are shocked to find out the abortion rates have actually gone up in the country. As Congressman Ederholt was just talking about, the Mifeprestone, the abortion drug, that’s the main driver. We have a petition that we’re going to be delivering to the administration very soon, and you can sign it. Thousands have already signed it. You can add your name to it. Text LIFE to 67742. That’s LIFE to 67742. Over the weekend, two churches in North Carolina’s Cleveland County were intentionally set on fire within an hour of each other. Now, thankfully, county sheriff’s office says the fires were spotted by citizens who quickly put the fires out before they could inflict major damage. But unfortunately, we’ve seen a spike in attacks like these on churches over the past several years, as documented in FRC’s annual report on hostility against churches in the United States. Now that we have an administration that has vowed to take action against such targeted attacks, could we see those figures go down? What’s driving this? We’re going to find out more about that. Joining me now to talk about this is Congressman Mark Harris, who serves As a pastor at First Baptist Church, he actually served as senior pastor at Charlotte’s First Baptist Church for over a decade before coming to Capitol Hill. He continues to pastor in North Carolina. He was a member of the FRC team, actually heading up our community impact effort and then our whole outreach to pastors. He represents the 8th Congressional District of North Carolina. Congressman Harris, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us.
SPEAKER 07 :
Hey, Tony, it’s great to be with you today. Thanks for having me.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, you serve on the House Judiciary Committee. seen and heard from some of the testimony about the weaponization of government toward citizens. You’ve seen the reports of the hostility toward pro-lifers and Christians. And then at the same time, we’ve seen this spike and it continues. What do you know about these particular incidents coming from your home state of not too far, actually, from your area?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, you’re right, Tony. And I think that the fact that there are assaults on Christians and on churches across America is real. And I think that we have to come to the place that we accept that very reality. And this particular situation that I’ve become aware of over the weekend, it was, as you said, in Cleveland County, two different churches. And thank the Lord that there were citizens that saw the flames and were able to stop and were able to help get it put out. It’s my understanding that there’s investigation going on. There’s no motives at this point that have been identified and no arrests that have been made. In fact, I reached out prior to coming on the program to my colleague, who’s the congressman in that particular district, which is the 14th congressional district where this occurred. And he indicated that the investigation continued. But at this point, they’ve not made any any arrests.
SPEAKER 10 :
Now, as I mentioned, you’re on the the you have oversight of the Justice Department on the Judiciary Committee. They have been making efforts to bring justice to these attacks on the houses of worship and pro-life facilities, the care pregnancy centers that have been targeted. Now, as I mentioned, that’s in sharp contrast from the last administration. What has your committee been hearing from the Department of Justice in terms of this commitment to protecting religious freedom and those institutions associated with it?
SPEAKER 07 :
One of the things that we heard from Kash Patel when we had the opportunity to have him in front of our committee was that he was very much aware of the weaponization of the Justice Department and how the things they had gotten involved in from spying and planting spies within the Catholic Church, putting pastors on watch lists and going after them. And one of the assurances that I asked him in that hearing that day Is, you know, how can I know that this is not going to happen to me as a person, a pastor that’s been engaged in this process, has been rather outspoken, was very involved in the marriage amendment fight in North Carolina, have been a pro-life advocate and all throughout my time serving in the Charlotte area. And I got the assurance from the director of the FBI that day himself that while he couldn’t assure me of what had happened in the past, they were continuing to investigate that. But I could be assured with this administration was not going to be involved in such activity as that. And I think we’re seeing that from the attorney general, Pam Bondi, as well. I think there’s a commitment now. We’re seeing that in FBI Director Patel. We’re seeing it in Attorney General Bondi. And I’m confident that we’re going to continue to see folks that are going to enforce the law and are not going to just turn and look the other way when pro-life advocates find themselves being attacked.
SPEAKER 10 :
Mark, let me step back for just a moment. As I mentioned earlier, you were with the Family Research Council for about a decade. You have been involved, as you just laid out, in a number of issues, leading pastors, churches to engage. But, you know, we didn’t see this level of hostility where they were attacking and burning and even sometimes having these shootings that are taking place. This is a reflection really of what Paul wrote about in 2 Thessalonians, the lawlessness, the spirit of the lawless one is already at work. What would you say, we got about a minute left, what would you say to pastors and Christians, knowing that right now we have a favorable administration, but the reality is we live in a fallen world where lawlessness is running rampant. What would you say to encourage them not to shrink back, not to be intimidated by this?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, one of the things that we’ve got to always remember that it was in Paul’s letter to Timothy that he reminded them that we are not granted a spirit of fear, but rather of a sound mind. And that we have got to be willing to be bold. One of the greatest things that I’ve I’ve seen in recent days that came out of Charlie Kirk’s funeral, if you think about it, was when Vice President Vance said that he had been a Christian for a number of years as a believer, but had always been sensitive about speaking and sharing about it. But then he went on to say that in the last two weeks, he had talked more about Jesus than he had in all of the previous years that he had been a believer and follower of Christ. I think it’s that kind of boldness that we’ve got to, as pastors, continue to encourage in our people. And furthermore, I’ve been saying to pastors over the last month that we’ve been praying for another great awakening. I think many of us are sensing something is different this time about what’s happening in our country. We need to be ready as pastors and churches.
SPEAKER 10 :
We’re going to leave it there, Mark. Folks, stick with us.
SPEAKER 08 :
The 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 04 :
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.
SPEAKER 01 :
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 12 :
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 15 :
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 13 :
FRC is not going to be whooped. You know, we’re going to fight. We’re going to take a stand. And again, we don’t retreat.
SPEAKER 10 :
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. All right. I’m Tony Perkins and this is Washington Watch. Thanks for tuning in. Unfortunately, when the segment ends, it ends. And so we lost the tail end of Congressman Harris’s comments. But we’ll have him back on again. It is something to be very prayerful about, these attacks on churches and be mindful of. You can actually find out more about the report that we do, the annual report just released about a month or so ago. It’s at TonyPerkins.com, Hostility Against Churches Report. All right. The proposed in-person meeting in Budapest between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin is reportedly no longer on the table. And there are no plans for the two to meet in the immediate future, according to multiple reports. Well, there have been no statements from either side on the reason for the course change. Remarks from Russia’s top diplomat just yesterday. hours before the news broke, suggests that there are still substantial differences between Washington and Moscow over how to end the war in Ukraine. Well, joining me now to discuss this is Peter Doran. He’s an adjunct senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and former president of the Center for European Policy Analysis. Peter, welcome to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us.
SPEAKER 17 :
Thanks for having me.
SPEAKER 10 :
So it sounded like President Trump was on a roll, that he was going to have a peace kind of negotiated between Russia and Ukraine. A little shaky meeting on Friday with the Ukrainian President Zelensky. Now it looks like nothing’s going to happen. It looks like we’re status quo.
SPEAKER 17 :
Well, let’s recall President Trump has a hot hand right now. He’s been on a roll. He has been solving some of the hardest wars and conflicts around the world. But the easiest war that he thought would be able to be cinched up very quickly has turned into the hardest piece to make. Here’s the problem. We are seeing a clear pattern from Vladimir Putin. President Trump will have a very good call with Putin. It seems like the prospect for peace is on the table. And then once the diplomats get down to the nitty gritty, get down to the details, Putin says, nope, I want my maximalist demands. And right now that demand includes the destruction of Ukraine as a country. Obviously, that’s not something President Zelensky cans stomach.
SPEAKER 10 :
So how does this play out then? I mean, this is back and forth. We’ve had a number of meetings, number of phone calls. And as you’ve pointed out, it almost looks like Vladimir Putin is kind of like Hamas just buying time.
SPEAKER 17 :
Well, that’s right. The end to this conflict has a very clear equation. What needs to happen is that President Trump needs to draw a line. He needs to say no more and use the economic power of the United States to squeeze Putin’s oil revenue. We have that ability. Let’s recall that there are many countries around the world that continue to buy oil from Russia. Think about Europe right now. Hungary, Austria, Slovakia, they are funding this war by buying Russian oil. And at the same time, the European Union is sending Ukraine weapons. So the Europeans are essentially playing both sides here. That’s got to stop. President Trump can drop secondary sanctions on countries that buy this oil.
SPEAKER 10 :
And Lindsey Graham, Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, actually has been advocating for that for some time. He has a bill that he’s introduced in the Senate to do just that. We know that that works. That’s what was used a number of years ago to bring Iran to the negotiating table when we squeezed their oil revenue through these secondary sanctions. So why, what are we waiting for?
SPEAKER 17 :
Well, I think President Trump has given Vladimir Putin every possible offer and every possible opportunity to accept the easy way out of this conflict, essentially saying both sides can declare victory and stop the fighting now. That would look similar to the North Korean war. But Vladimir Putin doesn’t want to stop. He wants to go all the way. And that’s why President Trump must make good on his promise of peace through strength. does that strength include tomahawk missiles for ukraine i hope it should but let’s also recall those tomahawk missiles yes they can strike deep inside of russian territory yes they can hit military targets like russian oil refineries but they’re not a silver bullet no single weapon system is going to produce an end to this war this war ends when vladimir putin no longer has the money to pay for this war to pay for recruiting new soldiers And that’s where our secondary sanctions and America’s economic might must come into play in order to create peace finally.
SPEAKER 10 :
And Peter, isn’t there a economic benefit for the United States by squeezing Russian oil? Doesn’t that create a demand for U.S. oil?
SPEAKER 17 :
Absolutely. In fact, President Trump has been very clear on this. In order to demonstrate American economic might, we need to drill more. We need to produce our own oil, our own natural gas, and when we can, sell it to other countries. So what President Trump is setting up here is a win-win-win, a win for the U.S. economy, a win for the Ukrainians, and frankly, a win for Europeans who will live in a safer neighborhood. The main obstacle to peace right now is not Vladimir Zelensky. It’s not the Ukrainians. It’s Vladimir Putin and his Russian military. That’s where the focus should be in order to create an end to this conflict.
SPEAKER 10 :
Peter Doran, just a little less than a minute left. How long does this drag on before President Trump puts the squeeze on Russia in terms of the oil?
SPEAKER 17 :
Well, it should have happened weeks ago. President Trump has already said he was prepared to do this. Secretary Besant and the Treasury Department are on the line of scrimmage. They are ready to pull the trigger. It needs a go-ahead from President Trump. And I think what we’ve seen from the Russians over the last 24 hours is that they’re clearly not ready for peace. They’re clearly not ready to deal. That’s why President Trump must absolutely make good on his threat and pull the trigger on secondary sanctions.
SPEAKER 10 :
All right, Peter Doran, I want to thank you for joining us. Great insight. And thanks so much for sharing it with us today. Thank you very much. Another topic to pray about. The world is on fire. It really is. And be great. A lot of those Ukrainian churches that have been overrun by the Russians as they’ve occupied that territory, you need to be praying for them as well. All right, don’t go away. We’re going to go to Israel next.
SPEAKER 11 :
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory. Family Research Council invites you to join our Stand on the Word Bible reading plan as we reflect upon the life of Jesus, the Word who dwelt among us. Come with us and discover the glory of the Word. Read the Gospels and witness the life-changing story of Jesus, His life, death, and resurrection. Come read how Jesus transformed the lives of common people and how those same people transformed the known world through the power of the Holy Spirit. Come with us for 10 to 15 minutes a day and read the entire New Testament before the new year. Find our Bible reading plan in daily devotionals from Tony Perkins at frc.org slash Bible. Join us in Stand on the Word.
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Three years ago, the Supreme Court issued its historic Dobbs decision, a ruling that overturned Roe versus Wade, which for nearly 50 years imposed abortion on demand, silencing voters and bypassing the democratic process across the country. The Dobbs decision was a huge step forward against abortion, but it didn’t outright ban it. It returned the power to the people. Now, 29 states have laws on the books protecting life. However, there’s a catch. Abortion numbers since Dobbs have actually gone up with an increase of 12% since 2020, climbing from 930,000 to over 1 million in each of the most recent years. So how can this be? The answer is simple. The abortion drug. Today, over 60% of U.S. abortions involve abortion drugs, many of these without medical oversight. In 2021, the Biden administration quietly removed bare minimum longstanding safety protocols for the abortion drug that have existed for 20 years to protect women from life-threatening risks and ensuring informed consent. The Biden DOJ then declared that they would not enforce the Comstock Act, which prevents the mailing of anything that causes an abortion. This is not only illegal, but also dangerous. A study shows nearly 11% of women who take the abortion drug end up in the emergency room with serious complications. Unless the Trump administration reverses these reckless Biden-era policies, pro-life laws will remain largely symbolic. Without a full review and repeal of Mifepristone, unborn lives will remain in grave danger and pregnant mothers will remain at risk. Let’s stand for life and end this mail-order abortion drug pipeline. Sign the petition urging the Trump administration to take action at frc.org slash stop chemical abortion.
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Welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for tuning in. Let me encourage you to get the Stand Firm app. That way you can watch or listen, whichever you prefer, to Washington Watch no matter where you might be in the world. Also, you’ll have access to the Washington Stand, our news and commentary from a biblical perspective, as well as my daily devotional, Stand on the Word. All of that and a lot more is found on the Stand Firm app. So go to the App Store and get the Stand Firm app. Our word for today comes from Romans 10. In Romans chapter 10, Paul explains what it means to become a child of the promise and be adopted into the family of God. Salvation is not earned by works or inherited by birthright. It comes through faith in Christ, Paul. Paul writes this. He said, the word is near you. It’s in your mouth and in your heart. That is the word of faith, which we preach. That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For whoever believes on him will not be put to shame. He goes on to say, For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. To confess Jesus as Lord is to acknowledge his authority over your life. To believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead is to trust fully in his victory over sin and death. Out of that genuine faith, the heart speaks and salvation is born. To find out more about our journey through the Bible, text Bible to 67742. That’s Bible to 67742. Vice President J.D. Vance arrived in Israel today for a three-day visit to check in on how the implementation of President Trump’s 20-point peace plan is progressing. Now, his visit comes after fighting broke out between Israel and Hamas, prompting concern over the fragile nature of the ceasefire. But Vice President Vance cautioned the press not to get hysterical. He said, we are in a very good place.
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Every time something bad happens and every time that there’s an act of violence, there’s this inclination to say, oh, this is the end of the ceasefire. This is the end of the peace plan. It’s not the end. It is, in fact, exactly how this is going to have to happen when you have people who hate each other, who have been fighting against each other for a very long time. We are doing very well. We are in a very good place. We’re going to have to keep working on it. But I think we have the team to do exactly that.
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So are we in a very good place? Joining me now to discuss this is Middle East Bureau Chief Chris Mitchell. He is with CBN News. Chris, thanks so much for joining us. Great to be with you again, Tony. All right, let’s start with the basics. What’s the situation right now in Israel as it pertains to this ceasefire?
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Well, right now, the main focus is on the visit of J.D. Vance. You know, he spoke at this center, which is where some of the troops will monitor the ceasefire. He’s also coming here to Jerusalem, staying at the King David. You know where that is, not too far actually away from our bureau. So the focus right now is his statements about the status of the ceasefire, where we go from here, as well as you saw Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner alongside him as he was speaking. So that’s the big news. They’ll be meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu as well, And just to see where this ceasefire goes, it has been problematic since the very beginning. But as J.D. Vance said, you know, we’re going to expect bumps on the road. And we’re seeing and experiencing those bumps as we speak.
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So how would you describe the atmosphere right now? Calm, tense, or just kind of waiting for the next move?
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Well, I would say after the release of the living hostages… a great deal of relief after two years of just holding their breath, waiting for the living hostages to be released. Also, anxiousness about the remains of the deceased hostages. I think about 15 have yet to still be returned to their loved ones here in Israel. I think the feeling is that Hamas is actually stalling and using some psychological warfare emotional warfare against the people of Israel. That’s another issue. But I would say anxiousness about how this ceasefire is going to go. I think the main thing, Tony, is what happens with Hamas. They filled the vacuum in Gaza immediately. They got on the streets. They started executing people in public. They are doing vigilante justice right now, enforcing their rule and taking over the aid once again. So I think the question is, who and how can Hamas be taken care of and obliterated, as President Trump has said, if they don’t disarm voluntarily? I don’t think anybody here expects Hamas to disarm voluntarily. And the other thing is that Hamas is seemingly looking at this ceasefire in a much different way than people here maybe in Israel or the United States. They are thinking this is what they call a hodna, that maybe there would be a five-year peace while they regroup, reorganize, rearm, so they can once again rejoin the fight.
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But that would be consistent with what has happened in the past. I mean, when you go back and you look at the history of Israel since its founding in 1948, there’s been probably 20 different wars or conflicts that they’ve been involved in. And going back the last quarter of a century, most of those have been with Gaza and in Hamas since 2008 when they took over in 2007. And so we’ve had these periods of ceasefires, peace agreements. And they’ve maintained for a while, but then they’ve been broken when hostility broke back out, once again broke out. So that’s kind of the history there, is it not?
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Yeah, it is. And in fact, you listed a lot of those battles between Israel and Hamas in your op-ed about managing the peace. What the hope is, and I think this is part of the 20-point plan by President Trump, is that this would be an attempt to finally disarm and de-radicalize and de-militarize the Gaza Strip. That is the plan anyway. Enacting that is very problematic because Israel, you know, militarily had surrounded the Gaza City, the last major stronghold of Hamas, and then the ceasefire came in, the release of the living hostages, which was, as I said, a huge relief and an answer to prayer for many people here in Israel and literally around the world. However, that did leave a vacuum right now that Hamas has filled and how to get that Hamas out of the equation.
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I mean, that’s certainly the most immediate need. And that’s a part of the agreement, that they’re going to be disarmed, they’re going to be removed, they’re not going to be a part of the government going forward. But it doesn’t look like they got that far down in the peace agreement because they’re holding on. And I’m all for this. And as you said, I wrote a commentary about that. Folks, you can see it at Tony Perkins dot com. But the reality is we need to work for peace. And I applaud the Trump administration for working for that peace. But I think we have to go in with eyes wide open. I don’t think we’re going to achieve permanent peace. And that’s what I write. The only one that’s going to establish permanent peace is the Prince of Peace. Because if you go back prior to Hamas having control of Gaza, we had the Intifada. We had two of those. And that was coming out of Judea and Samaria. And we’ve released a lot of these, not we, I should say, part of this agreement, the Israelis have released these murderers and terrorists into Judea and Samaria.
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Yeah, exactly. That first intifada was the late 80s, the early 90s. The second one started in 2000. We lived through that one for four years. It was a horrific time of terror attacks in and around Jerusalem and throughout Israel. So it’s unlikely that this leopard will change its spots. And as you said, many of the Palestinians that were released in some of these hostage deals, the most notoriety one, the infamous one, you could say, was when Gilad Shalit, one soldier, was for, I think, 1,027 Palestinian prisoners. The main one was Yahya As-Sinwar became the head of Hamas and masterminded October 7th. In this particular hostage release were about 2,000 or maybe more Palestinian prisoners released. Historically, they have gone back to terror attacks and gone and tried to— you know, kill and maim Israelis and Jews. And one other thing, Tony, the possibility of even the Palestinian Authority be part of a post-war Gaza really has a lot of Israelis concerned, because supposedly it would be the Palestinian Authority with reforms, but even Prime Minister Netanyahu said in his speech to the UN General Assembly, that seems very, very doubtful.
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So, Chris Mitchell, what are you hearing from Israeli officials? Do they believe that this truce will hold, or do they view this as more of a tactical pause before a renewed conflict?
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Well, I think they’re open-eyed, too, as well. When Hamas violated the ceasefire just a day or two ago, Prime Minister Netanyahu said, In the Knesset, they dropped 153 tons of bombs on Hamas infrastructure. I think they believe that the only way this will end is, and it’s likely the only force available right there on what’s called the yellow line in Gaza would be the idea, and to go in and finally eradicate Hamas. President Trump did say on Social just maybe a few hours ago that there are nations that they say are eager to go in and to disarm or obliterate Hamas. The concern, I think, here is who are those nations and what would their agenda be if they go in? And I would just say… Some people are concerned about Turkey and Qatar, that what are their ambitions in the Gaza Strip? Do they want to get a foothold there in some way, even when Hamas is no longer there?
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So how will Israelis respond to that? I mean, because I think there’s a very high likelihood that Turkey and Qatar will be involved.
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Well, I think there’s a lot of people here that are concerned. Qatar and Turkey are part of the Muslim Brotherhood. Hamas is part of the Muslim Brotherhood. Are they trying to enable Hamas to at least survive in some form during this ceasefire and this process of going into a post-war Gaza? I think that concerns a lot of people. Qatar had been funding Hamas for decades. Turkey has been hosting the leaders of Hamas, and they share a similar ideology, and that ideology is certainly anti-Israel. and wants to establish a worldwide caliphate. So that’s a big concern, I think, for some people here in Israel and around the world, for that matter.
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Chris, you mentioned the Prime Minister just announcing to Knesset or telling Knesset how the IDF had responded to these latest attacks by Hamas in Gaza. Are there, excuse me, are there divisions within Israel’s leadership between the cabinet and the IDF or intelligence officials on how to move forward or are they pretty much unified?
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Well, they may be a bit disunified. I know just today, Prime Minister Netanyahu fired his national security advisors, last name is Enigbe. And so I think there would be robust discussions, let me put it politely, within the cabinet. And I think those discussions have gone on throughout the war. You know, how do we proceed and what tactics do we use? What strategy do we use? So I think there’s probably something that has to be dealt with within the cabinet, within the IDF, and how they proceed. Some people may think, you know, we haven’t, Israel hasn’t responded forcefully enough to the violations by Hamas. But I’m sure there’s robust discussions going on behind the scenes.
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Now, the president has not set a timeline for his 20-point peace plan. I mean, there’s no, it didn’t come with a timeline. It actually sounds like phase one could take a while as, you know, Hamas still has to turn over the bodies of these deceased hostages. Does that mean that phase two can’t begin until phase one is complete? And how long are we looking at before Hamas is disarmed and there is a different government there in Gaza?
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Yeah, well, I think phase one and phase two are almost overlapping right now because phase one was the release of the living hostages, the deceased hostages and also the Palestinian prisoners and the return of some Palestinian bodies as well. But with the delay, with the return of the deceased bodies, it seems like this is. The end of phase one, but the beginning of phase two is certainly being discussed now. How do we disarm Hamas? How long that takes, Tony, is a great question. And I don’t know if anyone knows the answer to that, how the disarming of Hamas is going to be managed and finally decided. This is probably the main topic right now.
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How do we eliminate Hamas? Maybe the better question, Chris, is how long will the patience of the Israelis hold?
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, that’s a great question, too. Sure. How long are they going to allow this? Now, Hamas doesn’t pose a threat right now necessarily to Israeli communities in the south. They really have hardly any missiles left or ways to go ahead and attack Israelis. And that’s why during phase one, Israel withdrew to the yellow line that they’re establishing right now. So they still control 53 percent of the Gaza Strip. And so how long the patience will last is a good question. And where is the political will to go ahead and go back into Gaza City and take over and maybe eventually finally defeat Hamas, which was one of the main goals of the war from the very beginning?
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Chris Mitchell, just about 45 seconds left. I know we need to be praying for the peace of Jerusalem, the peace of Israel. What else do we need to be praying for?
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, I would say, Tony, extraordinary wisdom for the leaders and that the Lord would actually move on J.D. Vance and Kushner and Witkoff and Prime Minister Netanyahu, President Trump, just great wisdom to know how to manage this. These are, you know, momentous decisions. And it’s not just any country, Tony. It’s Israel. And Israel is the apple of God’s eye. You don’t want to miss it. You don’t want to make mistakes here in Israel. So I would just pray for extraordinary wisdom and that the Lord himself would kind of help manage this situation.
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Wise counsel, Chris Mitchell. We don’t want to get it wrong when it comes to Israel. Thanks so much for bringing us this firsthand perspective from Jerusalem. Always great to hear from you, Chris.
SPEAKER 06 :
Thanks, Tony. Great to be with you.
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And folks, I do want to encourage you to continue to pray because he is absolutely right. We can’t afford to get it wrong when it comes to Israel. History makes that abundantly clear. Until next time, I leave you with the encouraging words the Apostle Paul found in Ephesians 6, where he says, you’ve done everything you can do when you’ve prayed, when you’ve prepared, and when you’ve taken your stand. By all means, keep standing.
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