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In this episode of Washington Watch, host Tony Perkins dives into pressing global and national issues. We begin with White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt addressing the unrest in Iran, where new sanctions have been placed on Tehran as the U.S. keeps all options on the table. The episode also examines the rising protests in Minneapolis, highlighting the federal funding cut and potential military deployment. Furthermore, a pressing concern in Washington is the excessive screen time among children and their declining mental health, with a discussion on potential legislative interventions led by Senators Ted Cruz and Brian Schatz.
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from the heart of our nation’s capital in Washington, D.C., bringing compelling interviews, insightful analysis, taking you beyond the headlines and soundbites into conversations with our nation’s leaders and newsmakers, all from a biblical worldview. Washington Watch with Tony Perkins starts now.
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The truth is, only President Trump knows what he’s going to do, and a very, very small team of advisers are read into his thinking on that. And as I just told you, he continues to closely monitor the situation on the ground in Iran. And as we saw yesterday, he had heard that the killings and executions would stop. And we have seen 800 people. Their lives have been spared as a result of that. The president continues to closely monitor, but also keep all of his options on the table.
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That was White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt earlier today addressing the ongoing unrest in Iran. Welcome to this January 15th edition of Washington Watch. I’m your host, Tony Perkins. Thanks so much for tuning in. Well, coming up, the deadly protest over the economic and political conditions in Iran continues as reports suggest thousands have been killed. The U.S. has placed new sanctions on Tehran. As the White House says, all options are on the table. We’ll explore what those options might be with Jonathan Hessen, senior fellow at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security. Plus, Congressman Tim Walz, chairman of Wahlberg, chairman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, will join us to discuss Minneapolis protests and President Trump’s cutting off federal funding to sanctuary cities. Well, the growing protests against the federal presence in Minneapolis has prompted President Trump to threaten to invoke the Insurrection Act and deploy the military. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said he would challenge any such move in court. Joining me now is Washington Stand reporter Casey Harper. Casey, can you give us more context on what led to President Trump’s threats to deploy the military in Minneapolis?
SPEAKER 06 :
Sure, Tony. I mean, really, this all began with a several billion, some say $9 billion, some say $18 billion fraud investigation that was linked to the Somali migrant community largely and actually was exposed in part because of Somali whistleblowers. This led President Trump to send in a surge of federal agents for deportations, which sparked mass protests in Minneapolis, and then that fateful and unfortunate run-in where Renee Goode was fatally shot by an ICE officer after allegedly trying to run him over with her vehicle. That sparked major protests and now President Trump says that Minnesota officials have essentially lost control of the city and he warns he could even deploy troops under the Insurrection Act. Now these protests further intensified after we had unfortunately another ice shooting where a Venezuelan man allegedly attacked an ice officer with a shovel and was shot, though he was not killed. So, you know, there’s good news there. But it’s, of course, an already a powder keg situation. It’s just getting worse as local state and city Democrats accuse ICE of racial profiling, excessive force, and violating residents’ rights. Now, Minnesota has sued the federal government, and a judge is weighing whether to block ICE’s involvement, but it really does feel like a powder keg in Minneapolis, Tony.
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All right, we’ll explore that a little bit more later. Here in Washington, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, which is led by Senator Ted Cruz, they held a hearing this afternoon examining how excessive screen time, as on computers and phones, et cetera, and social media are affecting children’s mental health and their learning. Now, as lawmakers weigh new limits on tech use by minors, Casey, give us some of the highlights that came out of today’s hearing.
SPEAKER 06 :
Yeah, Tony. Well, mom always warned you not to sit too close to the television. And I think she’s been proven right. An iPad is no better. And there’s a lot of research coming out on this, which the lawmakers pointed to. And the research links, you know, heavy screen reuse to attention problems, poor learning outcomes, and even mental health issues. Here’s what Senator Cruz said today at the hearing.
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In 2023, one out of five children had a mental or behavioral problem diagnosis. We’ve also seen significant increases in child and teen suicide rates. Something is very wrong. And I don’t believe it is merely a coincidence, as our witnesses will discuss today, that these harms are rising alongside the early and excessive use of screens.
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Now, Senator Cruz and Senator Brian Schatz are advancing bipartisan legislation to restrict social media access for minors and curb the addictive nature of algorithms. Now, the committee also is questioning federal policies that promote digital devices in the classroom, questioning, you know, Tony, is there really evidence that putting an iPad in the classroom really helps kids?
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, that’s going to be very interesting, Casey, because a lot of these schools have gotten away from textbooks and they’ve gone to computers and iPads. Yeah, this is going to be very interesting. Turning to international news, as Iran’s Islamic regime continues to crack down on the protests, the U.S. has imposed sanctions on the country, which has really kind of tightened the economic vice that the country was already in with some of the sanctions. And, of course, it was those economic conditions that triggered this latest protest against the government. Casey, it would appear that the pressure that the Trump administration has been putting on the regime is working.
SPEAKER 06 :
Yeah, Tony. I mean, we’ve seen a sort of a stall, according to Iranian state media and others, on these executions, which were really troubling to the world. But to the Trump administration, he was calling on the Iranian government to stop the executions, as you mentioned earlier. What, maybe over 2,000, around 2,500 people killed. It’s hard to get reliable data out of Iran, especially when they’re shutting down texting and the internet. But those are the numbers we have. But now we have evidence or reports that they have paused those killings. Now, Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said that President Trump, he wants the violence to end, and he said the U.S. stands behind the Iranian people. Meanwhile, American ambassador to the U.N. today at the U.N. Security Council, he leveled some pretty targeted words at the regime. Here’s what he said a few moments ago.
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This is a regime that rules through oppression, through violence, and through intimidation, and has destabilized the Middle East for decades. Well, enough is enough. We all have a responsibility to support the Iranian people and to put an end to the regime’s neglect and oppression of the Iranian nation. Colleagues, let me be clear. President Trump is a man of action, not endless talk like we see at the United Nations. He has made it clear all options are on the table to stop the slaughter.
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So, Tony, we’ve seen some encouraging signs, but we’re not out of the woods yet in Iran.
SPEAKER 05 :
All right, Casey, thanks so much. We’ll talk with you a bit later. All right. I want to go. Let’s go back to the situation in Minneapolis and the issue of federal funding for the sanctuary cities. Joining me now is Congressman Tim Wahlberg, who chairs the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. He represents the 5th Congressional District of Michigan. Chairman Wahlberg, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for taking time to join us.
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Tony, good to be with you, and thanks for being a voice that talks about fact.
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Well, and that’s what we want. We want the newsmakers. We want those who know what is happening. I want to get your take on the president’s decision, which, quite frankly, I think should have been done a long time ago, to halt federal funds to states over their so-called sanctuary city policy starting February the 1st. I mean, it would appear to me these are cities helping people violate the law. Why would we send federal money to them?
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To the president’s defense, he’s attempted to do that, and radical judges who don’t understand the Constitution and really the rights of the three branches of government, starting out with Article I, the direct representative of the people being Congress, and then Article II. the president has that ability. And in fact, if he doesn’t carry out the needs and the wishes, desires, and the constitutional responsibility to care for the people and the taxpayers and their funds, that again, it’s not government dollars, it’s taxpayer dollars. When it’s abused by states like Minnesota and cities like Minneapolis and sanctuary cities like Los Angeles and Chicago, and doesn’t have the ability to say, we’re not going to send federal dollars to entities that are thumbing their nose at the law and at federal government and the taxpayers that… willingly or unwillingly give their their dollars in tax form to the federal government we have a problem and when you see what’s going on in minneapolis right now with a toy mayor who doesn’t have an idea of what this great government is about and tim walls who i came into congress with who is thumbing his nose at the federal government and in fact almost setting himself up in insurrection area. I think it’s time that the president does this. I support him strongly. And I just, you know, sadly, we’re going to have liberal judges who will try to stop that. But I think the president ought to keep going after it.
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I think people need to understand these sanctuary cities are designed to draw illegals into their cities. They are counted in the census, which affects the distribution of congressional seats. So they’re taking tax dollars, drawing people into their their states. But it has the effect or their cities or states. It has the effect of of of robbing other citizens in this country of fair representation.
SPEAKER 04 :
It certainly takes away our punch, our ability, the strength of actual citizens, whether they are born citizens or naturalized citizens, either one are legal, and yet we are being diminished by illegals or non-citizen immigrants in this nation and thus giving representation that comes from really the most liberals, liberal aspects of our government, because they can’t win without cheating. They can’t win without stacking the deck. They can’t win if they just have to count on real honest to goodness citizens at the ballot box. So it is a tragic action that’s taken place here in this so-called modern area of our country, and yet it is undermining everything that makes America what America is.
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Chairman Wahlberg, we’ve got about two minutes left. What prompted all of this was the massive fraud scandal in… Now, last week, under the jurisdiction of your committee, you sent letters to Governor Walz and to Minnesota’s AG, Keith Ellison, regarding the reports of improper payments and misuse of taxpayer dollars in Minnesota’s child care assistance program. Have you received any response from them?
SPEAKER 04 :
We have not as of yet. They still have a few more days relative to what we’ve asked. But I would not be surprised if they don’t respond. I served with both Governor Walz and Attorney General Ellison, and both of them are radical. Both of them do not want the oversight of the federal government. Both of them will stand in the way, but if they do, We have means by which we can compel or else demonstrate to the watching world that these are rogue leaders and going beyond what the rights, responsibilities and authority that they have. And so we’ll keep the pressure on and we’ll use every resource available to us.
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Do you have information to suggest that there is corruption in this program as well?
SPEAKER 04 :
Absolutely. I mean, what we’re seeing simply from resources that come from an investigative journalist who has gone out. And in fact, last night I saw a report where he was showing pictures of transportation vehicles, vans, that were allegedly being used for seniors and childcare entities. All of those. In Minnesota, you have the benefit of being able to see if these vehicles have been moved, and they haven’t been moved. There’s snow all over them. There’s no tracks in the snow that they’ve been moved, and they don’t go to centers that are actually having children or seniors in them. So all of that gives strong indication… THAT THIS IS BOGUS.
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YEAH. YOU KNOW, YEAH. WELL, I’M GLAD YOU’RE LOOKING AT IT. I’M CERTAIN IT WON’T STOP WITH MINNEAPOLIS AND MINNESOTA. IT’S GOING TO BE OTHER STATES AS WELL. CONGRESSMAN TIM WALBERG, ALWAYS GREAT TO SEE YOU, MY FRIEND. THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US. LIKEWISE. THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WITH GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS. WHEN GOVERNMENT GETS OUT OF ITS LANE OF JURISDICTION, I mean, really, should the federal government be in the issue of child care? I mean, this is what happens when it takes over other responsibilities. All right, don’t go away. Coming back with more after this.
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The book of Hebrews says that the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Stand on the Word is Family Research Council’s journey through the living and active Word of God. Follow the plan with us. Spend 10 to 15 minutes a day reading God’s Word, and over the course of two years, discover that the Bible is one big story, a story of many words, pointing to the Word, the One who is the same yesterday, today, and forever, because the Word is alive, and His name is Jesus. Find our Bible reading plan and daily devotionals from Tony Perkins at frc.org slash Bible. Join us as we stand on the Word.
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At Family Research Council, we believe religious freedom is a fundamental human right that all governments must protect. For years, Islamist militants in Nigeria have targeted Christians and other religious minority groups with brutal violence. Since 2009, 52,000 Christians have been slaughtered. A staggering 89% of Christian martyrs in the world today are from Nigeria. The first Trump administration declared Nigeria a country of particular concern, a designation reserved for countries whose governments engage in or tolerate religious freedom violations. However, this designation of Nigeria was quickly reversed by the Biden administration. Following consistent calls from FRC President Tony Perkins and other religious leaders across the U.S., President Donald Trump has responded.
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Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands and thousands of Christians are being killed. I am hereby making Nigeria a country of particular concern.
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This is a huge step forward for the protection of Christians in Nigeria as well as religious freedom across the world. While this opens the door for the U.S. government to pressure Nigerian leaders to protect vulnerable Christians, it is only the beginning. We must continue to pray diligently, work strategically, and stand firm for the protection of religious liberty across the globe.
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Looking for a trusted source of news that shares your Christian values? Turn to The Washington Stand, your ultimate destination for informed, faith-centered reporting. Our dedicated team goes beyond the headlines, delivering stories that matter most to believers. From breaking events to cultural insights, we provide clear, compassionate coverage through a biblical lens. Discover news you can trust at the Washington Stand, where faith and facts meet every day.
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Welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for tuning in and making us part of your afternoon. The website is tonyperkins.com. Lots of resources there for you. You can also find us on the Stand Firm app. Go to the App Store and get the Stand Firm app. That way you can have Washington Watch no matter where you go. Also have access to our news and commentary from a biblical perspective and my morning devotion, Stand on the Word. All of that is found on the Stand Firm app. There’s growing concern that the conflict between the Syrian government and the Kurdish minority in Syria will escalate following new developments over the past few days. The Syrian government has accused the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces, or the SDF, of building up troops in the Aleppo area of northern Syria. Now, on Tuesday, Syrian government forces and U.S.-backed Kurdish-led SDF exchanged fire in eastern Aleppo. That clash followed Sunday’s declaration by the Syrian government that it had taken control over the areas, Aleppo previously, that were previously under the control of the SDF. So what does this mean for religious minorities in the area and for basic human rights? Joining me now to discuss this, and I think much more, Jonathan Hessen, a senior fellow at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security. He is also the editor-in-chief and lead host of the Jerusalem-based TV7 Israel. He previously served in the IDF and the Israeli Border Guard. Jonathan, welcome to the studios here in Washington. Thank you for having me, Tony. All right. We just happened to run into each other in Capitol Hill. We have some – actually several friends that we share in common. But Syria is increasingly a concern for a lot of members of Congress. Northeast Syria is a place where we saw religious freedom starting to take root, you know. Seven, eight years ago, increasingly Turkish forces coming over there. Now a new Syrian government. Give us the latest. Help people understand who’s wearing the white hats, who’s wearing the black hats, and where do things stand?
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Well, Syria is a very significant complexity to deal with, also from an Israeli perspective, but broadly speaking… It’s a neighbor. It is a neighbor. It is a neighbor with a regime right now in Damascus that does not control its territory. It does not really control its own people at times.
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Is that because it just does not have the capacity and the country is so fragmented?
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So we need to take into account what happened in recent history. On the 27th of November of 24, we had a cessation of hostilities between Israel and Lebanon. The Iranian proxy Hezbollah was decapitated, of course, with a beeper operation that everybody is familiar with, as well as a walkie-talkie operation. that Israel executed, and ultimately also the demise of the leader of this Iranian proxy that has wreaked havoc, not just in Lebanon, but has really threatened Israel and its citizens for a very long time now. The moment the cessation of hostility took root, this organization was no longer capable of assisting the previous regime in Damascus, the Assad regime, and therefore this vacuum allowed Turkey to utilize both jihadist organizations, including an organization called HDS or Hayat Akhir Al Sham, Al-Qaeda, through and through, alongside its own proxies to push south and then take ultimately over Damascus. Now, those organizations are ultimately very fractured. They don’t have much in common other than being fundamentalist Muslim, jihadist in essence, and do at times also commit various massacres against minorities. They do not have any love lost to Christians, to Druze, to Jews, which we hear time and again, calls to take the sword towards Israel. So there is much of that taking place, naturally. There is a commitment by the Trump administration to Turkey and the Saudis to give this new regime a chance, nonetheless, irrespective of its tough past, as President Trump has mentioned a couple of times. and to try and rehabilitate this country into something that may bring about prosperity, that may bring about some sense of security, and then try and utilize that and the momentum injected in that in order to bring about regional prosperity. security, so to speak. Israel is not entirely on board. It’s very concerned post-October 7th that re-establishing the paradigm of October 6th prior to the atrocities committed against its citizens on its southern border may reoccur on other areas. So its new doctrine is a very important doctrine to ensure its own national security and that of its citizens. And at the same time, we see that Damascus is failing time and again to consolidate power over the minorities in Syria itself, particularly the Alawites along the coast, where on March 6 of last year, we saw a brutal massacre against the Alawites. Subsequently, we saw also in July, the 15th and 17th of July of last year, a brutal massacre against the Druze and Christians in southern Syria, where a brother in Christ, Pastor Meza, was also murdered brutally alongside 22 relatives of his on that place and the entire parish. I think he was actually an evangelical. who just, you know, came there to share the gospel and be with the people there on the ground, he was killed and every, or the majority of the members of his congregations were also killed.
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And that in part has driven a lot of alarm raised alarm among members of Congress who were concerned about the alleviation of the removal of the sanctions that the Trump administration wanted on Syria. They were hoping it would be kind of based on behavior or performance that these would be lifted, but they were lifted. But they’re watching it very carefully. The events of this last week, what does that tell us?
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So this is a recurring development. Now, the events in the north also have to do much with Turkey, which does not – there is somewhat of a consensus in Turkey that the borders imposed on it post-1923, after World War I, are not legitimate and should be altered. Well, there’s no secret Erdogan wants to reestablish the Ottoman Empire. Oh, absolutely, and he’s been very open about it. But when you see the developments on the ground, it basically backs much of those aspirations. And it’s being done gradually. It’s not a full force invasion right now. But every neighborhood, every town, every village, slowly but surely, there is an encroachment. And it’s in those areas where many of the religious minorities were living. They’re not going after their own people. That’s for sure. Right. And we’re seeing right now that the Kurds are being pushed back. And we will see more of this as time progresses, because this is a trend. This is not just a single situation. time event or atrocity being committed against civilians.
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All right, Jonathan, we’re up against a break, but I want to continue this conversation, so I know you’re going to stay with us to the next segment. Folks, very important we understand what is happening in the Middle East as it pertains not just to Israel and the effects it has there, but literally this has global implications, so stick with us.
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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 US 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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All right, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for, again, making us part of your afternoon. Continuing my conversation with Jonathan Hessen, senior fellow at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security. He is also editor-in-chief and lead host of the Jerusalem-based TV7 Israel. I previously served in the Israeli Defense Forces, that’s the IDF, and Israel’s Border Guard. Jonathan, thanks for sticking around here in the studio with us. All right, I want to jump right back into this to Syria because it’s very complex. I mean, it’s just – and then when you add all these different SDF and all this, it’s like an alphabet soup. Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys? And I use that in terms of human rights, religious freedom. Where are people safe in Syria and where are they not safe?
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Well, today, unfortunately, I must say there are no good guys. It’s all a matter of perspective. And when you really look down into the nuances of what’s happening on the ground, there is the old saying, there are no permanent friends, there are no permanent enemies, there are only permanent interests. And right now, that is the approach of various actors contending with the mix in Syria. Those are hardened people that have gone through… multiple atrocities over more than a decade since, you know, the Civil War broke out in 2011. And… But even beyond that, they had a dictator. They had a dictator.
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I mean, he was a dictator. At least they knew what they had. But they… It’s always been a country that’s had some, well, in modern times, a lot of challenges. Unlike Iran, which I hope we get a chance to talk about in a moment, they have a foundation that if that regime goes, I think the people have a chance there.
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So Syrian people are amazing people. And there are also amongst them real believers who live there. And the Christian community is very vibrant there. including people who are from the Kurdish community minorities, the Sunni Muslim minorities, and others who converted to Christianity.
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Right, right.
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And those are the ones that Turkey came after up in the Northeast. Absolutely. And that is something very alarming. That is something that I know here in Washington, there is a focus on those individuals who are being persecuted. What…
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do the Christians, the believers and others there in Syria need to be able to have freedom? I mean, what has to happen there? Because it doesn’t appear the new president with his ties with HDS and it looks like strings from Turkey because they basically helped him get there. What needs to happen?
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Well, you know, what needs to happen is a great question. And that is something that was deliberated at length prior to the lifting of sanctions on the Damascus regime, since the Caesar Act was a point of leverage, significant leverage that the United States had over Damascus. and over Turkey and over Qatar and over the Saudis and others who wanted to see the rehabilitation of Syria within the scope of the new leadership in Damascus. The point, in fact, is that Damascus is not managing to assert its sovereignty over the entirety of the country, and it’s willing to commit atrocities to try and do so. Now, President Trump’s envoys are directly negotiating with Israel to try and find an accommodated solution for the South. There is ongoing efforts to find an accommodated solution between Damascus and the SDF, which has been the ground force for the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State for a better part of a decade now, fighting, sacrificing against those jihadis, many of whom are now integrated into the new government in Damascus. So you ask yourself, what are we going to do in such a complex environment? And if Damascus, this attempt to form there something viable does not succeed, does this mean another decade of civil war or two? 20 years of civil war? What is the day after? And where are we heading from here is something that needs to be asked, genuinely, because pumping prosperity into ideologically driven zealots, which is what Damascus essentially is.
SPEAKER 05 :
Without any infrastructure.
SPEAKER 11 :
Without checks or balances, right? Yeah. is only going to fuel more mayhem. And that is… And corruption. Well, corruption is an issue that this region is contending with daily.
SPEAKER 05 :
All right. We’re going to run out of time, Jonathan. How can people be praying for this situation? Give us three things to pray for.
SPEAKER 11 :
Well, I think the minorities in Syria are really hurting. Literally, their lives are… Their lives are on the line. If I take the southern government of Sueda, which Israel pledged to protect… There’s a lot of Druze there. A lot of Druze there, also Christians. There are roughly 50,000 believers living in Sueda who are under protection of the Druze and are also faced with the same atrocities committed against the Druze during the massacres that occurred in, again, July of last year, they are being choked into submission. So there is currently a blockade, and the regime there is not providing the necessary flow of humanitarian aid to contend with winter conditions that they’re experiencing right now. Pray for those people. Pray for breakthrough.
SPEAKER 05 :
And we have members of Congress working on that. That’s their big issue. They understand that situation.
SPEAKER 11 :
They understand that situation. They’re trying to get that humanitarian relief. But it’s an uphill battle. There are so many interests at play right now. And this is not high on the priority list, right? Number two. Number two, looking at the threats that are posed to the state of Israel. I truly believe, out of Syria, there are true threats festering on the border.
SPEAKER 05 :
Is this from the current government?
SPEAKER 11 :
It’s also from the current government, from Damascus, as well as other groups. Ten seconds. Three, pray for President Trump and for the administration that God grants them the discernment to really take the right decisions on this very complex issue moving forward.
SPEAKER 05 :
Jonathan, thank you. Folks, don’t go away.
SPEAKER 03 :
Should a Christian support Israel? That question has become one of the most emotionally charged issues of our time, both in the world and within the church. Family Research Council President Tony Perkins offers a clear biblical and prophetic answer. In his latest book, he examines Israel’s past, present, and future through the lens of scripture, revealing why support for Israel is not rooted in politics, partisanship, or cultural sentiment, but in the unchanging promises of God. Drawing from Genesis to Revelation, Tony Perkins demonstrates that the ultimate rationale for a Christian’s support for Israel is spiritual. Should a Christian support Israel invites believers to see beyond headlines and ideologies, returning to the foundation of God’s Word to understand His heart for His chosen people and the blessings that flow when we stand with what He has established forever. Text the word Israel to 67742 for more information.
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What is God’s role in government? What does the separation of church and state really mean? And how does morality shape a nation? President John Adams said our Constitution was made only for moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other. Join Family Research Council for God and Government, a powerful series that explores the connection between biblical principles and the American government, equipping you with truth to engage in today’s most pressing debates. We’ll uncover the foundations of our nation’s history and why it’s relevant for today. Join us to defend God’s plan for government because faith and freedom were never meant to be separate. You can view the course at prayvotestand.org slash godandgovernment or on the Stand Firm app.
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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 05 :
I’m Tony Perkins, and this is Washington Watch. We obviously ran out of time there with Jonathan, but I do want to put an exclamation point on that call to prayer. Syria is in a lot of turmoil, and it’s an important country. Obviously, it’s a neighbor of Israel, and prayer point number two is pray for Israel, because there’s threats coming out of Syria. But there’s a number of believers and other religious minorities in Syria that are being persecuted. in kilt, and we need to pray for them. I know that a lot of folks really don’t like the foreign policy issues. You know, what does that have to do with us? As believers, number one, we need to be concerned about believers everywhere. But number two, this helps us understand the times, especially if we’re in the Word of God. And we begin to see the pieces coming into play. And the Middle East, you know, I know we like to think America is the center of the world. It’s really not. And it’s certainly not in God’s plan in terms of being at the center of activity. That would be the Middle East and it would be Israel. And so I’m bringing this to you so you’ll better understand kind of what’s happening in a very complex place with, I think, some very significant developments. Speaking of the word, our word for today comes from Genesis chapter 35. Then God said to Jacob, arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there and make an altar there to God who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esau, your brother. And Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, put away the foreign gods that are among you, purify yourselves, change your garments. Then Let us arise and go up to Bethel, and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me in the way which I have gone.” Here we find, I think, the source of the problem from the previous chapter where Jacob’s sons took retribution upon the people of Shechem. Until now, there is no evidence that Jacob experienced or exercised his spiritual leadership in his home. This is the first time we see Jacob preparing his family to encounter God. You know, it must be modeled, but it must also be taught. Spiritual leadership. Perhaps the destruction of Shechem could have been avoided had he been intentional in providing spiritual leadership to his family. To find out more about our journey through the Bible, text Bible to 67742. That’s Bible to 67742. All right, with all the pressing issues in our nation and around the world, it’s a challenge to hit on everything we want to talk about here on the program, but we try. We certainly try. Well, there were a few other items that we wanted to touch on today, so I’m going to turn now to today’s panel of FRC in-house experts to discuss them. With me now in studio is Suzanne Bowdy, Editorial Director and Senior Writer at The Washington Stan, Travis Weber, Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs. Here at the Family Research Council, Suzanne Travis, thanks so much for joining me. Thank you. Thanks, Tony. Okay. I want to start and touch on this earlier, the hearing in the Senate Commerce Committee on examining the impact of technology on America’s children. Suzanne, this is one of the few areas where there seems to be bipartisan agreement.
SPEAKER 13 :
Well, I think everyone understands that technology is both good and bad, good parts and bad parts to it. And we’ve had smartphones now long enough to realize that there are some real harms to children after a significant amount of time is spent on them. I feel like every week we’re seeing a new study that says, hey, if kids are on their phones or on social media, they’re going to suffer from anxiety, depression, their brains are actually changing, ADHD, obesity, sleeplessness.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, we used to just call that BAD. when I was a kid.
SPEAKER 13 :
And so there’s been this real global movement lately to put some guardrails up to protect children. We saw in Australia the age requirement that they put on for 16 years old to access social media. And now in the US Senate, Ted Cruz is saying, maybe we need to do that here. Let’s put an age requirement on of 13 and see what happens.
SPEAKER 05 :
I chuckled earlier. Casey made the comment, maybe your mom wasn’t wrong when she told you not to sit so close to the TV. Did your mom ever tell you that? I heard that all the time. But it brings up an important point. What happened to parents telling kids, you know, you don’t need to be on that device all the time. You don’t need to sit so close to the TV. So what happened to parental intervention? I mean, that’s a part of this. And I don’t think government regulation is the whole issue. But one of the aspects, Travis, that he was that was coming up in the committee that Senator Cruz was focused on was the algorithms to make this addictive that draws children in.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah, and it’s interesting to reflect on this, right? Because, Tony, it’s kind of, we should be reflecting on, can this be solved with government intervention and policy proposals? We’d say the right policy proposals are good to be helpful, not going to solve the full problem because it’s ultimately spiritual and cultural to your point about parents. Are they involved? What’s the approach they’re taking with their children? And we’re seeing this issue being magnified through AI. We’ve been, you know, the FRC filed a comment with the administration highlighting the impact of developing technology and AI on the human relationship as chatbots engage in relationships, fake relationships with people. People are drawn in by them. And so the dynamics that we’re discussing here, I think, are going to become even more of cause for concern. And Tony, I really think this is a time to draw people back to the grounding of the word, which we’re very focused on, but ultimately what God has ordained in terms of the family and the structures God has put in place to deal with things from the kingdom perspective.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, like number one, parents. But there’s another element to this. The social media platforms enjoy immunity. So when we talk about these algorithms and this addictive nature of what they’ve created, if a parent can’t take any action, if the platform leads to harm.
SPEAKER 13 :
Right. And there is a lot of harm. You’re talking about exposure to pornography, cyber bullying. You’re having kids with suicidal ideations, trafficking.
SPEAKER 05 :
And you can do nothing. Right.
SPEAKER 13 :
Parents are powerless unless they shut it off. And that’s an option now. And I think more parents are taking it.
SPEAKER 05 :
That’s one option. But I also think if it’s something the government should do is make them accountable where people can sue them and take them to court.
SPEAKER 08 :
The corporations have incredible power these days, whether it’s these corporations are talking about. We’ve seen this in terms of the effort to go after Pornhub and its money and entrenchment in that industry. We’ve referenced gambling, the power of the corporations behind gambling.
SPEAKER 05 :
And now online. Using the same addictive, I mean, gambling’s already addictive, but you add to that the online nature of these algorithms, and I mean, it’s through the roof.
SPEAKER 08 :
Pharmaceutical industry, these are all very powerful industries, right? And some are more clearly into nefarious, wrong, harmful activity. But either case, they’re all powerful industries that have their own interests.
SPEAKER 05 :
This is where I like the trial lawyers. Because I know back when I was in office, trial lawyers are only the bad guys because they’re going after business. But you know what? Big business is a problem. There are a lot of Christian trial lawyers out there, and we need them. We need them to be able to go and hold these people accountable.
SPEAKER 08 :
I mean, Tony, I saw this when practicing law, like cases are often different from each other. You have to look at each case. And, you know, there’s an element of justice here when we think about it because we’re referencing business and corporations. Really, from God’s perspective, we want justice. And when the world and business departs from justice, it is no longer on the side of God.
SPEAKER 05 :
That is God’s primary focus throughout the Old Testament, the issue of justice when it comes to how people are treated. Yeah. It is central to any government is that the people have justice.
SPEAKER 08 :
Whether it’s in business, civil government, media, entertainment, any other sphere of society, God sees all of it, and people are going to have to give account.
SPEAKER 05 :
And by the way, I’ll give a plug for our God and Government course. That’s a central theme in our God and Government course found on the Stand for a Map. All right, I’m going to go to another topic. Was that a shameless plug?
SPEAKER 04 :
Appropriate.
SPEAKER 05 :
All right. Let’s move to another topic. Yesterday, we were talking about the life issue, but we did not get into the appropriations bills that have been making their way through, which is actually a good thing. It’s extraordinary. Because for the first couple of decades, we’re now doing funding the way, or we’re almost doing funding the way it should be with appropriations bills. But there’s some problems. with some of those Susie.
SPEAKER 13 :
There are some problems and unfortunately Democrats are not in power but one way that they’re getting their agenda through is by slipping in these earmarks that we know because we’ve combed through these appropriations bills that advance their agenda on things like abortion and LGBT issues and I want to give a shout out to our GA team they went through a lot of the bills that are before Congress now in the Senate and what they found is shocking what they found is hundreds of millions of dollars going to groups that either carry out abortion or that have an LGBT woke ideology or who are in favor of gender transitions even for minors. We’re talking about $60 million right now in current appropriations bills in the Senate that would go to groups, hospitals, organizations that promote abortion. We’re talking about $32 million that would go to hospitals, organizations that promote gender transitions.
SPEAKER 05 :
Is this coming out of the Senate or the House?
SPEAKER 13 :
This is the Senate right now. Now, I will say the House has done an incredible job. And honestly, the fact that we’re even talking about Congress doing appropriations bills is extraordinary. I mean, the fact that this is newsworthy shows you how dysfunctional Congress has become.
SPEAKER 05 :
I mean, it’s been a couple of decades.
SPEAKER 13 :
It’s been 30 years since we’ve had regular order. And for those who don’t know what regular order is, it means that literally you’re writing the bills, you’re having hearings, you’re having debates, you’re conversations you’re amending the bills you’re passing them as opposed to like we’re down to the wire let’s bundle all these bills together let’s pass them in the dead of night nobody’s read them they’re full of waste they’re full of these earmarks like this and and and it’s a disaster for the american people that’s how you get to 38 trillion dollars right exactly so so our team has been vigilant there’s a there’s a lot still to do but but i do want to commend john thune and mike johnson who have spearheaded an extraordinary return to normalcy where governing is concerned. The House has passed 75% of its appropriations bills, eight out of the 12. Now, there’s still a lot of work to be done. Unfortunately, we’re looking at them saving the hardest ones for last, and they’re down to the wire again in terms of a government shutdown, which would happen January 30th, and now the Senate’s on a 10-day recess. So there is work to do, but we have seen real, real progress with this leadership.
SPEAKER 05 :
So, Travis, how are we addressing these provisions, these earmarks that are coming out of the Senate because, you know, the Republicans don’t have really – well, there’s a couple of things in the Senate. Number one, they’re not all conservative in the Republican ranks, although most of them are pretty good. But then secondly, they’re having to contend with the Democrats in order to get something through.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah, so Tony, I think in this scenario that Suzanne’s talking about and what you’re raising, it’s very key. Obviously, we have to identify the concerning provisions, identify the ones that shouldn’t be in there. And then sometimes it’s interactions and engagement directly with the member and the office and their staff about our concerns and other groups’ concerns as well. and constituents’ concerns, who are looking at this and saying, we don’t like this being here. And then, Tony, sometimes these conversations go public and they become aware of what we’re concerned about. And that’s just the necessity of having 100 issues or more on the table. There’s a lot to keep track of and this is where our viewers and listeners play a part in this. Their voice is essential to help make sure that family values related issues are discussed and there’s enough attention put on them and they’re not dismissed or overridden by others who are going to make noise on their own issues.
SPEAKER 05 :
This is we don’t have time to do a whole class on this, but it’s important to understand how this process works. And, you know, I based on some of the comments, I actually do read some of the comments that come in on Facebook and else. And I know some people like to weigh in. And I love to hear from people, especially when they like what I have to say. But some are saying anytime we criticize the administration, you shouldn’t criticize the administration. Or you shouldn’t criticize the Republicans. Or others say, you know, you should just blow it all up. The process is if we’re silent about the bad things, you’re going to get more of it. If we raise the concerns, we have a chance to dial it back. Doesn’t mean it’s going to be perfect. We’re never going to have a perfect product coming out of this country, out of this city. But we can make it better. So our voices shape it. We’re not the only voice in the process, but we are a shaping voice. And so it’s important, as you said, Travis, that people speak about these things, weigh in on these things, make it clear it’s unacceptable. But at the end of the day… We’re going to try to get it as good as we can. And if it’s acceptable, we’ll accept some things.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah. I mean, Tony, I remember a couple of years ago is an instance of it was a provision regarding adoption and sort of something that people were not focused on much that would have affected the ease with which people could adopt children. And, you know, some in the Christian community around the U.S. all of a sudden got wind of it and started writing Congress and raising things publicly about their concern about it coming out. And the response of the members of Congress was basically like, we weren’t even – we weren’t aware that this was in there and or we did not know it was important to you, to the people raising it. They needed to hear from it. And there was no – it was no mark against the – It wasn’t a commentary about, oh, you shouldn’t be saying something publicly about your concern. That was necessary for them to become aware of it and address it. And they actually got it out and they fixed it.
SPEAKER 05 :
And because of a lot of the attention that was given last week to the Hyde Amendment, the administration seems to be walking that back a little bit. Of course, we have the abortion pill, the abortion drug that we talked about yesterday. We still have that petition that we’re going to take. So, folks, if you’d like to sign that petition, simply text LIFE to 67742. That’s the abortion pill, the drug that the FDA has set these – actually keeping in place the Biden-era policies. That’s got to stop, and we need to speak into that. All right, we just have a couple minutes left. Travis, today you were at an event hosted by one of our colleagues, senior fellow here, Bob Fu. He’s the founder and president of China Aid, which defends believers in China. Tell us quickly about that event.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah, so Bob Fu, senior fellow with FRC, and Tony, you mentioned his other role, but he’s trying to draw attention to what’s happening right now in Kazakhstan, a country not many may be aware of, but it’s a neighbor of China. So what’s happened there is you have ethnic Uyghurs who have They border the area of China where China has been persecuting the Uighurs and some of these individuals in Kazakhstan are protesting the CCP’s policies. Like many people here, concerned about the influence of the Chinese Communist Party and their long arm overseas, pursuing opponents, harassing them even in the US. Well, they’re harassing them in Kazakhstan and pressure the Kazakh government to prosecute these people for protesting. And they’re facing a possible 10-year jail sentence. So Bob is saying, this is an example of the CCP’s transnational repression. So we agree. We looked at that and said, this is right. We need to stand based on the word and what God says about us being created in his image and have everyone having the dignity, even those overlooked in other parts of the world, to stand up and raise their voice as a matter of their conscience. And we want to say to the Chinese government, that their coercion will not be tolerated.
SPEAKER 05 :
They’re doing the same thing here in this country.
SPEAKER 08 :
They’re doing the same thing. And the Kazakh government needs to stand up. And we’re trying to raise awareness of what’s happening. But, Tony, this comes from our Christian faith. God tells us what the human being and the human person is, and we all have dignity in his sight.
SPEAKER 05 :
The CCP is a bad organization. Suzanne, Travis got the last word. Travis, Suzanne, thanks for being with me. Folks, and thank you for joining us as well. And I leave you with the words of the Apostle Paul, who says, when you’ve done everything you can do, when you’ve prayed, prepared, and taken your stand, by all means, keep standing.
SPEAKER 15 :
Washington Watch with Tony Perkins is brought to you by Family Research Council. To support our efforts to advance faith, family, and freedom, please text GIVE to 67742. That’s GIVE to 67742. Portions of the show discussing candidates are brought to you by Family Research Council Action. For more information, please visit TonyPerkins.com.
