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The multifaceted world of politics and religion takes center stage in this discussion. Against the backdrop of President Trump’s latest executive orders on tariffs, learn about the historical context and prospective implications for the U.S. economy. Guest speakers offer their perspectives, highlighting both the anticipated challenges and opportunities these changes may bring. A special segment on the global status of religious freedom underscores the ongoing efforts to advocate for fundamental human rights in regions like Nigeria and Europe. Discover how spiritual and economic vectors are merging to shape today’s political narrative in this enlightening talk.
SPEAKER 11 :
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 12 :
Jobs and factories will come roaring back into our country, and you see it happening already. We will supercharge our domestic industrial base. We will pry open foreign markets and break down foreign trade barriers. And ultimately, more production at home will mean stronger competition and lower prices for consumers. This will be, indeed, the golden age of America.
SPEAKER 13 :
That was President Donald Trump yesterday at the rollout of his sweeping new tariffs policy that will raise tariffs on nearly all U.S. trading partners. Welcome to this Thursday, April 3rd edition of Washington Watch. Thanks for tuning in. Well, coming up, yesterday’s tariff announcement is dominating the news as speculation abounds as to its impact on the economy. First, we’ll examine the politics of the tariffs, who’s in, who’s out, with Indiana Congressman Marlon Stutzman. Then we’ll step back and discuss the historical purpose of tariffs and what impact President Trump’s sweeping application of the tariffs could have on the economy with Spencer Morrison, editor-in-chief of the National Economics Editorial. And the state of Georgia joined the majority of other southern states yesterday by passing a Religious Freedom Restoration Act that provides citizens of Georgia a greater ability to defend the public exercise of their religious beliefs.
SPEAKER 02 :
This is not controversial, friends. All we want is the basic right to protect our faith that we enjoy with respect to federal government intrusion, to protect us from cities, counties, and public universities and public schools. This is all we’re asking for.
SPEAKER 13 :
That was the sponsor of the bill, Georgia State Senator Ed Setzler. We’ll get more from Houston Gaines, vice chairman of the House Republican Caucus in Georgia. And speaking of religious freedom, FRC has a new report looking at government restrictions on prayer in Europe. Is prayer a crime there? Well, the study’s author, Ariel Del Turco, joins me later here on Washington Watch. And session seven of our God and Government series is now available on the StandFirm app in session seven. I discuss how Christians should approach public policy issues in a world where right and wrong have become increasingly subjective. If you don’t yet have the StandFirm app and you want access to the God and Government course, simply text the word course to 67742. That’s the word course to 67742. And our team will send you a link. Well, there has been a great deal of buzz in Washington and literally around the world following President Trump’s Liberation Day celebration, where he announced tariffs on a whole host of nations, both allies and adversaries alike. The tariffs are set to go into effect today. How will this affect Americans and their wallets? How will it affect trade relations? Here to discuss this and more, Congressman Marlon Stutzman, who serves on the House Committee on Financial Services and the Budget Committee. He represents the 3rd Congressional District of Indiana. Congressman Stutzman, welcome back to Washington Watch. Always great to see you.
SPEAKER 14 :
Great to see you, Tony. Thanks for having me on this afternoon.
SPEAKER 13 :
So, Marlon, as an entrepreneur, you have worked and built businesses in the manufacturing, agricultural and food services spaces. What’s your assessment first of President Trump’s Liberation Day policies and these new tariffs?
SPEAKER 14 :
You know, Tony, as you mentioned, coming from Indiana and being a businessman myself in both agriculture and manufacturing, we’ve seen many years go by where we know that the American manufacturer and producer is at a disadvantage compared to other countries in the world. And again, we don’t want a government like China. We don’t want a government that is gonna manipulate the currency and going to, of course, have low standards for labor and environment. But we’re America, and we are the most productive nation in the world in history. And the fact that we are seeing goods leaving the country. You know, there was a lot of discussion about free trade over the past several decades. Well, what that’s done, a lot of the manufacturing has left the country. It’s gone to places like China, Mexico and other parts of the world. And I was talking to a CEO from the RV industry, which is in northern Indiana, and said, you know, at the time it made sense because you could buy a lot of product material at a cheaper price from China, ship it here to the United States and build RVs and ship them down the road, and it was good for the consumer. But what’s happened is we’ve hollowed out our manufacturing, our factories. They don’t have the same ability and capability that we used to. And now we’ve built up China’s economy over the past several decades, and it’s now coming back to haunt us. And that’s what President Trump is simply doing, is that he’s going to level the playing field. China can play certain games in their market, but we’ve got to make sure that we look out for the American manufacture in the American economy by having a level playing field that’s good for Americans and is fair with our partners around the world.
SPEAKER 13 :
Congressman, you’re absolutely right. We’ve seen a lot of manufacturing. In my home state of Louisiana, we’ve seen this over the last couple of decades. Even when I was in office there, we saw manufacturing move to Mexico and other parts of the world where labor was cheaper. Are you concerned, though, that there’s going to be a lag time in terms of American manufacturing being able to get up and running and a rising cost of these cheap products that have been flooding our markets from China, Taiwan, Vietnam, and that the consumer already kind of pinched, given the Biden economy that we’ve been living under? Are you concerned about the impact in the short term upon the consumer?
SPEAKER 14 :
Yes, absolutely. And, you know, We know for a fact that there’s going to be people that take advantage of the situation and speculation is going to be built into pricing that tariffs are going to hurt them. But I think one of the things that President Trump is going to do is he’s going to focus on, and Republicans, House and Senate, we’re going to focus on keeping taxes low. We’re set to see the largest tax increase in American history kick in at the end of this year. So we’re going to make sure that we make those tax rates either permanent or at least extended. Also, energy policy. President Trump has a strong energy policy plan that I believe will help keep energy prices low. And then deregulation. I mean, Tony, you and I see how big Washington, D.C. has become, and it’s built on the business of government in Washington, and it’s estimated over a trillion, $1.3 trillion in regulation, cost of regulations on the U.S. economy And so just watching President Trump cut regulation, cut bureaucracy, is also going to be a help to this transition. So, yes, there will be some moments where you’ll probably see some price increases, but I think we’ll hopefully see that settle out over the next six months. You know, here in Fort Wayne, Indiana, we just had an announcement by GM that they’re going to expand production of the trucks that they build right here in Northeast Indiana truck plant. So that’s already happening. There’s so many other announcements of investment from companies back in the United States because they want to avoid the tariffs, whether it’s in Mexico or any other part of the world.
SPEAKER 13 :
I think you’re absolutely right. Regulation has been a huge factor in driving up cost of doing business in the United States. I want to get to a piece of legislation you introduced last week about protecting the American beef industry. But before I do that, you mentioned the tax increase that’s coming if the 2017 tax cuts that were championed by President Trump last time are not extended. The Senate taking that up today, their budget resolution, they’re going to be into the weekend doing that. What’s the latest on the budget resolution coming out of the Senate, which sets the stage for the reconciliation of the budget?
SPEAKER 14 :
Yeah, well, we’ll see what they pass out of the Senate. You know, many of us are a little nervous right now from some of the numbers that we’re hearing. and what they’re actually going to cut. We had set the number at $2 trillion over 10 years. That’s $200 billion over a 10-year period, so $2 trillion over 10. And it looks like that number may be $300 billion over a 10-year period in the Senate. We’re far apart when it comes to those cuts. And again, I mean, we’re seeing this with the Doge team that is finding so much waste, fraud and abuse in all facets of government. And so I’m hopeful that Republicans will take this so seriously. We had several big voices coming into Congress over the past couple of weeks. Ray Dalio is a huge hedge fund guy from New York. came in this last week and was talking to some of us budget committee members and was asked, can we restructure our debt? What can we do? And his answer was that he didn’t think that those who held American debt would even be interested at all in restructuring debt because we haven’t done our part in cutting spending and making sure the economy is strong. So we’re headed towards a heart attack if we don’t do something very quickly. All the signs and symptoms are showing, they’re beeping red that we’ve got to do something very quickly.
SPEAKER 13 :
They’ve been beeping for decades, and we’ve just basically closed our eyes to those warning lights. So I’m grateful that there are those like you that, and the speaker is among them, in the ranks of Republicans that are saying we have to deal with this now. Let me go to the legislation you introduced, Protect American B-Fact, because that applies to what we’re talking about when it comes to unfair competition. Talk about that.
SPEAKER 14 :
Yeah. And, you know, I think this gives us a really good example. Sometimes, you know, we talk in the macro sense and we don’t quite understand, well, why do we need to raise tariffs on this particular country or another? Well, what’s happened here with Australia, Australian beef, of course, is a great brand. It’s a great product. We buy a lot of Australian beef here in the United States. But back in the early 2000s, Remember the cases of mad cow disease, Australia banned American beef from being shipped into Australia. They never opened that back up. And they’ve used that excuse for the last 20 years that we don’t have the proper protocols in place to ship beef from the United States to Australia. So, you know, if that’s, I mean, these are our friends and I love Australians. I love Australia as a country. They produce great products, they’re allies. But my belief is that it goes two ways. If we’re going to be friends and allies, that it should be good for both countries. And this is one particular example where they, of course, take a lot of pride in Australian beef, and they should. But the American farmer also shows a lot of pride and takes a lot of pride in the beef products that we produce here in the United States. And so I dropped the bill that would raise the tariffs on Australian Wagyu, which is a wonderful breed, a very tasty breed, one that’s growing in popularity, which originally comes from Japan. But this is an industry, about 50% of the Wagyu that’s consumed here in the United States comes from Australia. So we kind of took a rifle shot here and said, you know what, we’re going to go right after the breed that they are building rapidly. And they also have a currency advantage with them having about a 35% discount with their currency compared to the U.S. dollar. So they can enter into the American market much easier and cheaper. And so what’s happened is that the American restaurants and food buyers, they buy the Australian product because it’s cheaper, and it leaves the American producer at a disadvantage. And we’re building, again, the Australian beef industry rather than building the American industry.
SPEAKER 13 :
Yeah, that’s a great example, Marlon, of what the president’s trying to do overall with his tariff policy is just level the playing field. Now, I do hope we’re up against the break, but I talked about this yesterday. I do hope when we look at these tariffs with countries like China, North Korea and other Russia, other places that we consider other factors such as human rights issues and so forth, we look at these tariffs. Marlon Stutzman, I want to thank you for joining us. Always great to see you. Have a have a great weekend.
SPEAKER 14 :
Thank you, Tony. Great to be with you.
SPEAKER 13 :
All right. Indiana Congressman Marlon Stutzman. When we come back, we’re going to continue our conversation about the tariffs. What’s the history of them? How should they be used? What might be the effect? We’re going to unpack that more straight ahead. So don’t go away.
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At Family Research Council, we believe religious freedom is a fundamental human right that all governments must protect. That’s why FRC President Tony Perkins went to Capitol Hill to testify on behalf of persecuted Christians in Nigeria. Islamist terror groups target Christians and other religious minorities in Nigeria with brutal violence. Representative Chris Smith, who chaired the hearing, said 55,000 people have been killed and 21,000 abducted in the last five years alone. The congressman also stressed that 89% of Christians in the world who are martyred are from Nigeria.
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Yet the government of Nigeria has failed to make progress against religiously motivated persecution of Christians despite religious freedom being enshrined as an essential human right in their constitution.
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Tony Perkins called for the United States to send an unmistakable message.
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This is systematic religious violence. Nigeria must be redesignated a country of particular concern. The Biden administration’s removal of this designation was a reckless mistake that emboldened the very terrorists who are slaughtering Christians.
SPEAKER 10 :
Redesignating Nigeria will enable the U.S. government to pressure Nigerian leaders to protect vulnerable Christians.
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These are not just numbers. These are fathers, their mothers, their children, their families.
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Bishop Wilfred Anagabe risked his life to speak out, sharing firsthand accounts of the danger faced in his church district in central Nigeria.
SPEAKER 01 :
We live in fear because at any point it can be our turn to be killed. But to remain silent is to die twice. So I have chosen to speak.
SPEAKER 10 :
FRC is calling on President Trump to act now to promote religious freedom around the globe and speak up on behalf of Christians in Nigeria.
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Download the new Stand Firm app for Apple and Android phones today and 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 stand firm everywhere you go.
SPEAKER 04 :
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.
SPEAKER 13 :
Welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for joining us on this Thursday. Well, yesterday’s tariff-infused Liberation Day has come and gone, but many say a new trade war has just begun. After President Trump signed an executive action, an executive order establishing tariffs on over 180 countries, some of the intended targets like China and the EU have already expressed their intention to retaliate. What could this retaliation look like? How could it affect the American consumer? And will these tariffs have the desired effect that President Trump is looking for? Here to discuss this is Spencer Morrison, editor-in-chief of the National Economics Editorial and author of Reshore, How Tariffs Will Bring Our Jobs Home and Revive the American Dream, which released back in February of this year. Spencer, welcome to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for joining us. Thanks for having me on the show today, Tony. It’s a pleasure to be here. So let’s start with this, Spencer. Let’s look at the actual tariffs themselves. What are they and how do they work?
SPEAKER 03 :
I mean, the tariff, very simply, is a tax on imports that are coming into the United States. So what President Trump has done with his Liberation Day tariff push is he’s taken the sort of average tariff rate in each country and then cut it in half. And then he says, look, that’s what we’re going to charge if you want to bring your products into America. So he described them as sort of kind tariffs. They’re not entirely reciprocal. If they were reciprocal, they’d be double what they currently are. But the reason he’s done this, I believe, is to promote-it’s like an olive branch. What he’d like to do is promote fair and free trade with these other countries. So he says, look, you’ve got a couple of months to get your act together. You can either lower the tariffs so we can have fair trade. If you don’t, we’re going to raise them, and you’re going to suffer suffer the consequences of not playing ball.
SPEAKER 13 :
So how did we get to this place, Spencer, where we had all of these countries that had tariffs on American goods, and we were just kind of humming along here, making it inequitable for us to do business?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, I mean, it’s really an unbelievable story. So for the last 50 years, America’s politicians have been asleep at the wheel. We embraced this international free trade air quotes, free trade, starting in 1974. And ever since then, this country has run a large chronic trade deficit. You know, the cumulative value of this trade deficit since 1974, it’s $25 trillion. That’s almost a whole year of economic production in this nation. That’s money that has been spent abroad on consumable goods. And in exchange for that, because they didn’t give it to us for free, we had to pay for it by selling off assets like farmland, residential real estate, and debt. So this country has taken on enormous amounts of debt to pay for all of this. And it’s time to pay the piper.
SPEAKER 13 :
I mean, it’s puzzling, Spencer, as to how nobody paid attention to this and we just kind of let this trade deficit grow over time, especially when we look at countries like China. Now, I know this goes back a couple of decades or more back to the most favored nation status, that big debate over China where there was the argument being made that, well, we’re going to change the world by doing business with them. We’re going to change China. But what’s happened, we’ve just transferred a lot of jobs to China. We’ve not changed China. They’re still the repressive, tyrannical government that they were before.
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, I mean, there’s a lot of idealism that went into all of this. If you look at sort of the roots of international free trade, again, we’re saying free trade. It’s not actually free trade. But if you look at the roots of this, this is rooted in an internationalist agenda that dates back at least until the formation of the European Union and likely before that. So if you look back at the founding documents of the European Union, you have its architects like Robert Schuman, saying that what they’d like to do is make warfare materially impossible by integrating all of the economies in Europe, right? So if Germany relies on French steel and France relies on German coal, it would be impossible for those two countries to wage war. So that sort of agenda was transferred into the academy and into America’s elites. And it sort of permeated the culture after that point.
SPEAKER 13 :
So kind of like a global application of what Europe was doing.
SPEAKER 03 :
That’s exactly correct. So it was sort of tested in Europe, and then it was brought over to America. And that started, again, in the 1970s. And ever since then, we’ve been offshoring our critical industries to countries like China.
SPEAKER 13 :
And I think the wake-up call, at least a portion of it, came with COVID when we saw what China did and their control of the personal protective equipment and how we were reliant on them for pharmaceuticals and other material.
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, I think it’s unbelievable. I mean, we think about back to World War I and World War II. Those wars were won on the backs of American industry. At the time, we made all of the firearms, the syringes, all of the medical equipment. At the conclusion of World War II, America produced 50 percent of everything that was made on earth. America was the world’s factory. And today, that couldn’t be further from the truth. America barely makes anything. I mean, if you go to the store, try to find a fork that’s made in America, you’re not going to be able to find them.
SPEAKER 13 :
It is difficult because I refuse to buy things made in China because of their repression of religious minorities and their horrible human rights record. And it is difficult to find products not made in China. So let’s talk, you know, everybody’s, how’s it going to affect me? All right, that’s the bottom line. You’ve laid out a perfect illustration of, from a national perspective, it’s a national security issue, all of these other issues, jobs. But how’s it going to affect the average family? We just had about a minute left, about a minute left, and we’ll be going to another segment. But how’s this going to affect our viewers and listeners?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, I think everybody who’s watching this stands to benefit enormously from this tariff package. And the reason for that is because what these tariffs are going to do is they’re realigning the global trade networks away from You know, the capital interests that benefit from offshoring and in favor of the American workers. So what this is going to do is this is going to reshore factories to our country and all of the jobs that come with them. And when we have and I did the math on this and there’s an article that I’m publishing tomorrow. But if you look at the sort of potential for reshoring factories. as it’s reflected in the trade deficit. And then if you add on top of that, the fact that these reciprocal tariffs are going to open up new markets for American products, we’re probably looking at a potential of about 10 to 15 million brand new jobs. And these are going to be jobs that are concentrated in lucrative industries, jobs with health benefits, the sort of jobs that we can support families on, just like we used to.
SPEAKER 13 :
Right, right. Not just shepherding Chinese imported products in dollar stores. When we come back, I’m going to talk about the impact upon the GDP and if there’s going to be a lag time before we see this. All right, folks, don’t go away. We’re going to continue our conversation with Spencer on the other side of the break.
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Everything we do begins as an idea. Before there can be acts of courage, there must be the belief that some things are worth sacrificing for. Before there can be marriage, there is the idea that man should not be alone. Before there was freedom, there was the idea that individuals are created equal. It’s true that all ideas have consequences, but we’re less aware that all consequences are the fruit of ideas. Before there was murder, there was hate. Before there was a Holocaust, there was the belief by some people that other people are undesirable. Our beliefs determine our behavior, and our beliefs about life’s biggest questions determine our worldview. Where did I come from? Who decides what is right and wrong? What happens when I die? Our answers to these questions explain why people see the world so differently. Debates about abortion are really disagreements about where life gets its value. Debates over sexuality and gender and marriage are really disagreements about whether the rules are made by us or for us. What we think of as political debates are often much more than that. They are disagreements about the purpose of our lives and the source of truth. As Christians, our goal must be to think biblically about everything. Our goal is to help you see beyond red and blue, left and right, to see the battle of ideas at the root of it all. Our goal is to equip Christians with a biblical worldview and help them advance and defend the faith in their families, communities, and the public square. Cultural renewal doesn’t begin with campaigns and elections. It begins with individuals turning from lies to truth. but that won’t happen if people can’t recognize a lie and don’t believe truth exists. We want to help you see the spiritual war behind the political war, the truth claims behind the press release and the forest and the trees.
SPEAKER 13 :
Welcome back to Washington Watch. If you don’t have the Stand Firm app, I encourage you to go to the App Store and get the Stand Firm app where you can watch Washington Watch, no matter where you are. You also have access to our news and commentary from a biblical perspective, the Washington Stand, and my daily devotional, Stand on the Word. You can find it all at Stand Firm, Stand Firm app. All right, we’re continuing our conversation with Spencer Morrison, editor-in-chief of the National Economics Editorial and author of Reshore, How Tariffs Will Bring Our Jobs Home and Revive the American Dream. which released back in February. Spencer, thanks for sticking around. All right. A few questions I want to get to in this segment. So will this spark a trade war, these tariffs, or are we going to see a tit for tat?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, there’s really two options for foreign nations to respond to these tariffs. They could respond by raising tariffs of their own. But you have to remember, the tariffs that President Trump has instituted are only half of the average rate anyways. So I don’t think that’s going to be a very productive way of handling things. The other and probably more likely option is that these countries are simply going to do the math. They’re going to realize that America is the biggest consumer market on planet Earth. And their economies need us far more than we need them. And as a result, I think a lot of countries are going to come to the table and they’re going to say, look, we want access to your market and we’re ready to play ball. So what I expect is that a lot of countries are going to open up their markets to American goods. And that’s going to help create millions and millions of new jobs by opening up billions of potential consumers for our products. So I think. That’s the most likely outcome.
SPEAKER 13 :
I’m not an expert on this, but I would agree with you from a standpoint. I think it was it was a very smart move to only go halfway and not meet them at a reciprocal level, because you’re right. Why would they want to raise it? Because that’s only going to allow President Trump to to possibly raise the tariffs here higher. So let’s talk about I asked this of Congressman Stutzman earlier, but. So I agree. This is going to spur manufacturing growth in the United States. It’s going to bring a lot of that back, as you’ve talked about in your book, back onto American shores. But is there a lag time that in the meantime, the American economy is going to be, maybe the consumer is going to be pinched a bit. There’s a startup for manufacturing. First, you’ve got a lot of these plants aren’t there anymore. You’ve got to build the plants, but you also have to train the workers. So is there a lag time before we see the impact of this?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, again, I think it’s important to put this in context. This whole process of offshoring and the race to the bottom, it started in 1974. We’ve been at this for over 50 years. So to think that any president, no matter how competent they are, is going to be able to solve this overnight in the space of a few months is crazy talk. It took us half a century to get here. It’s going to take some time to adjust. And yeah, so I think there’s going to be some short-term pain. But it’s also important to remember that The economy is an organic system. It’s not like a mechanical system like a washing machine where input in and you get the output you’re expecting. Organic systems like the human body or like society or the economy respond to stressors in different ways. And typically a stressor creates a positive strengthening response. So I think we’re going to see some short-term pain. And that’s okay because we’re going to emerge on the other end stronger than ever before.
SPEAKER 13 :
And might this spur a new era of entrepreneurs that meet those needs that are created through this process?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, I think that’s entirely likely. I mean, you have to remember, right now American companies and small businesses are competing directly with governments, right? I mean, foreign companies that are competing in America are are not just foreign companies. They’re arms of the Chinese government. They’re backed by the German banks. So it’s really what we’re dealing with is asymmetrical competition, where American free enterprise is competing directly with foreign governments for market share. So it’s not free, not free whatsoever. So I think there’s a very good chance that American entrepreneurs are going to rise to the occasion. Right now, they’re being pushed out of the market by the government. tariffs are going to level the playing field and, you know, we’ll rise to the occasion, as we always do.
SPEAKER 13 :
And I think, you know, as I see it, in this lag time for the big companies to set up these big manufacturing, just as we’ve seen a lot of small businesses step into kind of niche markets, specialty markets, I think you could see a lot of entrepreneurs that would step into that area. Do you see this as having an impact on our GDP growth?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, I think absolutely. The reality is that the trade deficit is the reflection of America’s displaced economic production. So reducing the trade deficit by definition is going to increase the GDP. It’s actually one side. It’s both sides of the equation. You can’t shrink the deficit without increasing GDP. So, I mean, that’s simply going to happen. But one point that I’d really like to stress before the end of our segment, because I know we’re running out of time, is that these tariffs, it’s about so much more than economics. This is a statement to the world and it’s a statement to the American people. that America is no longer going to be worshiping the golden calf of free trade. America has value beyond cheap goods and the pursuit of luxury and reckless consumption. Tariffs are going to do amazing things to reshore our industrial base so that we can defend this country. They’re going to provide jobs to ordinary people who didn’t go to college that they can support and build families on. And it’s going to bring wealth into all of these dilapidated communities. I mean, you drive through small towns and It’s painful to see the effects of offshoring and job loss, but those factories come back. The communities come back to life. It’s going to be great for our society and great for our people.
SPEAKER 13 :
Spencer, theoretically, I agree with you. I hope you’re right. I think there’s a deeper issue when you talk about cheap products and consumerism. There’s a spiritual component here as well that has to be addressed from my perspective because we’ve lost our way. Exactly. And it’s all about consuming and not giving and creating. Spencer, great conversation. Thanks so much for joining us. Thanks so much. God bless you. All right, folks, don’t go away. We’re back with more Washington Watch on the other side of the break.
SPEAKER 05 :
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 13-part series that equips you with biblical truth to engage in today’s most pressing debates, from the Ten Commandments in classrooms to the immigration crisis of America. we’ll uncover the foundations of our nation’s history and why it’s relevant for today. Defend God’s plan for government because faith and freedom were never meant to be separate. New episodes available each Monday. To view the series on the Stand Firm app, text COURSE to 67742.
SPEAKER 06 :
The world is hurting, streets are filled with crime, families are broken, sin is celebrated, and God is mocked. Everywhere we look, the wages of our sin are on full display. As Christians, we know that surrender to God’s will is the solution to our biggest problems, but not everyone agrees. Even in church, we hear people say the most important thing is to be tolerant, that we shouldn’t impose a morality on other people, and that loving our neighbor means celebrating what they do. But you can’t do that. It’s not that you don’t love your neighbor. You do. But you care about God’s opinion more than your neighbor’s opinion, and this makes you different. In fact, sometimes it makes you feel alone, like you’re the only one. But there is good news. You are not alone, not even close. Research has found that there are 59 million American adults who are a lot like you. There are millions of people around the country who are born again, deeply committed to practicing their faith, and believe the Bible is the reliable Word of God. But that’s not all. They’re also engaged in our government. They’re voters. They’re more likely to be involved in their community, and they’re making a difference in elections. The problem is that a lot of them feel alone, too. We want to change that. FRC wants to connect these 59 million Americans to speak the truth together, no matter the cost. If you want to learn more about this group and what it means to be a spiritually active, governance-engaged conservative, or if you want to find out if you are one of these sage cons yourself, go to frc.org slash sagecon and take the quiz to find out. The world is hurting, and we have the solution. We can’t do it alone, but we can do it if we work together. That’s what we’re working toward every day. Join us. Go to FRC.org slash S-A-G-E-C-O-N, SageCon, to learn more. That’s S-A-G-E-C-O-N, SageCon, to learn more.
SPEAKER 13 :
I’m Tony Perkins, and this is Washington Watch, and we’re glad you’ve tuned in. Well, our word for today comes from Ezekiel 21, where God instructs the prophet to cry and wail over the impending judgment on Jerusalem. And he has given it to be polished that it will be handled. The sword is sharpened, and it is polished to be given into the hand of the slayer. Cry and wail, son of man, for it will be against my people, against the princes of Israel. Terrors, including the sword, will be against my people. Therefore, strike your thigh.” The message is clear, the grief is so great you must wail. God opened his message to Ezekiel saying this, sigh therefore son of man with a breaking heart and sigh with bitterness before their eyes. When our hearts are broken by what breaks the heart of God, namely the rejection of his word and his ways, we align with his heart. That grief doesn’t paralyze us, it fuels both our intercession and our action on behalf of others. We weep not without hope, but with purpose, calling people back to the God they’ve forsaken. To find out more about our journey through the Bible, text BIBLE to 67742. That’s BIBLE to 67742. Yesterday, the Georgia Religious Freedom Restoration Act, SB 36, passed out of the State House of Representatives. When enacted, this bill will elevate religious freedom in Georgia from its current status, little protection, to a level comparable with freedom of speech. In other words, it will ensure that Christians and individuals of other faiths can live out and express their beliefs openly in public and not be at risk of prosecution by the state. What can states learn from what Georgia and others have done? Well, here now to discuss this, State Representative Houston Gaines. He’s the Vice Chairman of the House Republican Caucus in Georgia and a key member of the team that got this legislation through the process. Vice Chairman Gaines, welcome to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for joining us. Thank you for having me. All right, so this legislation has passed both chambers, and I understand the governor is going to sign it. Is that correct?
SPEAKER 08 :
Yes, sir, it did. It was a great day yesterday as the House gave final passage to the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. And as you mentioned, this has been something that we’ve worked on for many years here in the General Assembly. And certainly want to thank the governor, who, as you mentioned, is planning to sign this legislation. Senator Ed Setzler carried this in the Senate and Representative Tyler Paul Smith, who carried this measure in the House. And certainly Speaker Burns, Lieutenant Governor Jones, this was a team effort to get this important bill over the finish line. It has Georgia joining many, many other states that have already passed this measure that protects individuals and citizens and ensures our religious beliefs have the same protection as our other First Amendment rights. And so this measure is, to me, common sense. Interesting how the left has tried to take this as some really far-fetched idea when Bill Clinton signed this exact same bill into law in the 90s, and Barack Obama as a state senator in Illinois voted for this. It’s common sense. I’m glad we got it done, and it’s a great step forward for Georgia.
SPEAKER 13 :
Vice Chairman, I was having a conversation last week with Senator Stetzler, the author of the bill, and a little puzzled that it took Georgia this long because I think you’re just one of two southern states that does not have a RFRA. His explanation was, you know, we really haven’t had a problem until now in religious freedom being under assault. How so in Georgia? What are you seeing?
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, you’re right. I mean, I think the stat is we’re one of the only state actually in the top 15 in which to do business that doesn’t have a RFRA law. And so, uh, and I believe it’s 39 other States already have, uh, something similar in place. And so I do think we were behind on this. I’m glad we caught up, got this bill passed and, uh, And so I think it was past time to get this bill done. And certainly Senator Setzler has been working on this for years and appreciate his great leadership to get this bill over the finish line as well.
SPEAKER 13 :
Vice Chairman Gaines, I want to ask you another question. You guys have been pretty busy in this legislative session. In fact, you’re so busy you forced the Democrats to walk out. They got tired yesterday. You were advancing legislation. I want to be very clear about this because I think our viewers and listeners will be shocked. But you had legislation that would outlaw state spending. on transgender treatments for prisoners, and the Democratic members of the House walked out in protest. Is that an overstatement, or is that what happened?
SPEAKER 08 :
No, it’s exactly what happened. It was unbelievable on a bill that, as you said, literally ensures that taxpayer money is not being used for criminals who are in our prisons. Taxpayer money for criminals for your tax dollars to pay for them to get sex change surgeries. And the Democrats walked out of the chamber in protest over this bill. Only four Democrats stayed in the chamber. Two of them actually voted for it and two voted against it. And I respect the members who actually had the courage to sit there and vote and appreciate the two Democrats who voted for it. But this is so common sense. I bet you 95 percent of people would agree with this measure. This is so common sense, literally not allowing prisoners to use your tax money to pay for their sex change surgeries. That’s about as common sense as it gets. And the Democrats literally walked out of the chamber in protest over this measure. This was yesterday all day in the chamber. We voted on Riffer. We voted on this measure. We passed a number of important bills this week, including yesterday the Riley Gaines Act that ensures boys aren’t competing in girls’ sports and that boys aren’t in girls’ locker rooms. in our state. It was a great week, but it showed the clear contrast between Georgia House Republicans and Georgia House Democrats. The Democrats are just out of line with the American people. And I think yesterday was a perfect example of why November went the way it did. It was a landslide because the Democrats are clearly out of touch with the American public and certainly with Georgia voters.
SPEAKER 13 :
Yeah, I normally don’t do this, but this is so twisted. I want to quote the House Democratic caucus chair, Tanya Miller of Atlanta, who, this is what she said when she walked out. She said, quote, what is going on with my colleagues that they’ve become obsessed with what is happening in transgender citizens’ pants and their underwear and their bedrooms and their medical robes? when they talk to their doctors, when they deal with their families, end quote. Well, I mean, if they’re asking you to pay for it, it becomes your issue. And that’s what you’re dealing with. And when you’re talking about criminals, I mean, when you have the working poor that don’t have access to certain things and you have people who have committed crimes and they’re in our prisons and you’re going to fund these elective surgeries, this is insane.
SPEAKER 08 :
It really was beyond insane to watch in person. I think our whole caucus sat there in amazement. Part of me wants to thank the Democrats for showing just how out of touch they are with the American public on this issue, because I can tell you again, this is a 90-10 issue, maybe 95-5 issue. This is not a Republican issue. This is just common sense. But again, your tax money shouldn’t be paying for criminals to get an elective sex chain surgery. It’s crazy.
SPEAKER 13 :
Representative Houston Gaines, I want to thank you for joining us. Congratulations to all of you for the great work you’ve done this week and especially for the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Look forward to seeing the governor sign that.
SPEAKER 08 :
Thank you so much. I appreciate it.
SPEAKER 13 :
All right. All right. I want to continue a conversation about religious freedom because I want you to understand that how important, like RFRA, this Religious Freedom Restoration Act. We have a national one, and then about 27, 20, maybe a little bit more, states have RFRAs, a state version of it. And people say, well, it’s really not that important. Why are we all worried about religious freedom and its protection? Well, I want to give you a glimpse of what is happening in Europe. And I tracked a lot of this when I was at the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. But we need to be grateful for our First Amendment protections of religious freedom and the freedom of speech. The Family Research Council is out with a new report, and it’s entitled, Is Prayer a Crime? Government Restrictions on Prayer in Europe. And here to highlight this report is the author, Ariel Del Turco. She is the director of the Center for Religious Freedoms. here at the Family Research Council. Ariel, welcome to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us.
SPEAKER 10 :
Thank you for having me.
SPEAKER 13 :
All right. I have to say, as I read through the report, this is shocking in how this is not prayer with a megaphone interrupting people. These are cases of silent prayer. Even one case where if you were in this restricted zone and you were praying in your house and you did it in front of a window, they could charge you with a crime.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, this report was inspired by Vice President J.D. Vance’s recent speech at the Munich Security Conference. And most of these addresses that are given at this conference are focused on external threats to European security and their way of life, like Russia or China. But J.D. Vance took the opportunity to highlight something that really needs to be revealed And that’s some of the crises that’s happening within Europe’s borders, this crisis of their identity, particularly around the free speech issue, really noting which way are they going to go. Are they going to look like Russia, which is happy to restrict free speech and freedom of religion, or are they going to hold on to their Western values? So we’ve documented over a dozen cases, mainly in the UK, but also in other countries in Europe, where prayer has been restricted and people have faced arrest, fines, or criminal charges simply for praying.
SPEAKER 13 :
So it’s important to note that as this report, and this is the reason for the report, because people were dismissive of what the vice president had to say when he was there in Europe, these are not one-offs. I mean, this is a pattern. There’s a clear pattern that’s emerging. And it’s not just a lot of them do have to do with people that were silently praying outside of abortion clinics. Really. Looks like they are protecting these abortion clinics even more so than the Biden administration did, although it’s probably on par. But it goes beyond that. One case was Dr. Richard Scott, who was a practitioner at Bethesda Medical Center. And I guess this is in, is this in the UK? I think this was in the UK as well, where he was simply praying, offering to pray with his patients. And, I mean, he came under, was fined, actually, and forced to undergo counseling for offering to pray with his patients.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, this really shows what some of these European countries, especially their political leadership, value. Less and less they value religious freedom and the right even to pray. to pray with a patient who’s emotionally and physically hurting and might really welcome that spiritual and emotional support, or the right to pray even silently in your own head outside of an abortion clinic. Some of these woke values, the value to be protected from religion, is taken much more seriously by these political leaders than the very core human right to express your beliefs And to pray, whether that’s out loud, standing outside of an abortion facility, respectfully, or within your own head near an abortion facility. We’re seeing that abortion is taken much more seriously than free speech and religious freedom. And the State Department and Vice President Vance is absolutely right to be raising awareness about this. It’s deeply concerning.
SPEAKER 13 :
Yeah, I want I made reference to this, but I want to read this particulars of this. And by the way, folks, you can get a copy of this report at Tony Perkins dot com. It’s also available on the stand firm app. But this was in Scotland after Scotland passed the Abortion Services Act of twenty twenty four. Edinburgh residents received letters from the government stating this quote activities in a private place such as a house within the area between the protected premises and the boundary of a zone could be an offense if they can be seen or heard within the zone and are done intentionally or recklessly. Now, when asked by a BBC reporter if praying by your window in your home could be a crime under the buffer zone law, Scottish Parliament member Gillian McKay responded, that depends on who’s passing by the window. It’s just crazy.
SPEAKER 10 :
It’s insane. And we can take these rights for granted. We can take religious freedom for granted and think, well, as long as I’m not preaching on a street corner or causing a ruckus, they’re going to leave me alone. But when these countries no longer value religious freedom, when our government doesn’t want to protect religious freedom, we’re not going to be safe anywhere, including our own private spaces and homes.
SPEAKER 13 :
So this is, this report is very instructive. Number one, it shows that the vice president was correct in raising this issue. I know everybody, you know, hair on fire that he would say this, how, you know, unprofessional, how offensive. But the reality is it’s happening there. It should inform our foreign policy and how we deal with these countries. And so that’s number one. But number two, Ariel, I think it’s important that we understand how precious religious freedom is and why we need those protections like the Religious Freedom Restoration Act that ensures that we don’t become like Europe. And we could easily become that way because we were trending that way under the Biden administration.
SPEAKER 10 :
Absolutely, religious freedom is a right that needs our cultural support instead of, or not instead of, but in addition to our legal support. It really relies on the backbone of the American people to practice their faith and to do it in public and out loud, but also to value religious freedom. And we’re seeing the State Department really take human rights and religious freedom seriously as they start to interact with some of these European countries, including regarding trade. We saw the State Department just today say that they were monitoring one of the cases featured in our report and that it would be informing how They interact with the United Kingdom. So I think that’s really good news because these things matter.
SPEAKER 13 :
Ariel, we just have about 30 seconds left. I know we hit all the high points, but is there anything else that you would like to share about the report?
SPEAKER 10 :
No, you can find it online at frc.org. prayer in Europe or the other locations you mentioned, Tony. But yeah, I think this is very instructive for how Americans should protect religious freedom at home and the State Department and President Trump should be speaking about religious freedom abroad. So I’m happy to see them doing that.
SPEAKER 13 :
Well, great work. Thanks for the report and thanks for joining us today, Ariel.
SPEAKER 10 :
Thank you.
SPEAKER 13 :
And folks, I do encourage you to take a look at this because it does put into perspective why we have to protect religious freedom here at home. All right, out of time for today. Until next time, I leave you once again with the encouraging words of the Apostle Paul, who says when you’ve done everything you can do and you’ve prayed, prepared, and taken your stand, by all means, keep standing.
SPEAKER 11 :
Washington Watch with Tony Perkins is brought to you by Family Research Council and is entirely listener supported. Portions of the show discussing candidates are brought to you by Family Research Council Action. For more information on anything you heard today or to find out how you can partner with us in our ongoing efforts to promote faith, family and freedom, visit TonyPerkins.com.
