On today’s program: Greg Steube, U.S. Representative for the 17th District of Florida, responds to the tension over the Epstein files in Congress, Iran’s absurd conditions for a nuclear deal, and his legislation to protect Americans who believe in
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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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We all understand that the America First agenda and the American people are best served by putting an end to the Democrats’ sideshows, and that’s what we’re doing by not allowing the Rules Committee to continue with that nonsense this week.
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That was House Speaker Mike Johnson earlier today announcing that the House would adjourn until September as Republicans and Democrats continue to spar over the release of the Epstein files. Welcome to this July 22nd edition of Washington Watch. I’m your host, Tony Perkins. Here’s what’s coming up. Iran has once again defying global pressure despite the threat of sanctions. Tehran says it will not. It will not. abandon its pursuit of enriched uranium. And it’s vowing to retaliate if the UN Security Council reinstates snapback sanctions under the JCPOA.
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Our enrichment is so dear to us. We are ready to engage into negotiation to make sure that our enrichment is only for peaceful purposes. We are not ready to give up something which is now a question of a matter of dignity for the Iranian people, a matter of national pride.
SPEAKER 12 :
That was Iran’s foreign minister. We’ll talk about it. The National Children’s Hospital announced last week that it will no longer provide gender transition treatments, citing escalating legal and regulatory risk. Well, those risks may soon increase. Florida Congressman Greg Stubbe and Missouri Senator Josh Hawley have introduced a bill creating a private right of action against providers of chemical and surgical mutilation of minors. Congressman Greg Stubbe joins us with the details in just a moment. And this morning, FRC hosted Governor Yossi Dagan for a breakfast briefing with dozens of members of Congress, highlighting the case for Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria. Governor Dagan will join me in studio. And finally, first it was Big Bird. Now we’re told public safety is at risk because of congressional cuts to public broadcasting. That’s the claim from NPR CEO Catherine Moore. The Washington stand’s Suzanne Bowdy and Casey Harper join me to set the record straight. All of this and more coming up on this edition of Washington Watch. Last night, the House Rules Committee came to a complete standstill as House Republican leaders worked to contain rank and file Republicans and their Democratic allies, all clamoring for a floor vote to compel the publication of materials related to the late and infamous Jeffrey Epstein. Well, as a result, House leadership announced the House would adjourn early for the August break. But will the Epstein issue be waiting for them in September? Joining me now to talk about this and much more, Florida Congressman Greg Stubbe, who is a member of the House Intel Committee. Congressman Stubbe, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us. Yeah, good to see you, Tony. Surprised that the House is going to adjourn early and head home over the Epstein files?
SPEAKER 05 :
I mean, I’m not surprised because the calendar, this Congress has been so up in turmoil. Last week, we were supposed to be gone on Thursday. We stayed through the night. We were voting at one o’clock in the morning to get that appropriations bill out last week. All the while, this Epstein stuff has been around the peripheral of all these issues. I support making transparency and opening this up, but you have to be mindful of victims. There’s a lot of laws protecting the victims, even if those victims are now adults. there’s still protection for those victims and you have victims rights. So any release would have to take into consideration, not alluding to any of the victims of any of this case unless they want to willfully come forward. But you obviously haven’t seen that. So there’s going to be a lot of have to care that’s going to have to be given for the release of these files but i support it i don’t understand why i certainly don’t want to leave and give up uh cras that we could abolish biden era rules from his agency i think that’s important work for the american people and it’s sad to see us get sidetracked on something like this so let’s go back i mean i i wasn’t paying a whole lot of attention to this but i mean
SPEAKER 12 :
It has become probably more of an issue because of the transparency issue, and there was promises that it was going to be released. Attorney General Pam Bondi originally said she had a list of names on her desk, and then all of a sudden it doesn’t have a list. Can Congress, I mean, I know that we often see redacted documents released all the time. Is it not possible to release documentation with victims redacted and we’re only looking at the other facts in this case?
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, you can. But whatever we do in the House obviously has to go to the Senate as well. And there’s other I mean, I don’t know if there’s pieces of this that are classified. I don’t I don’t know what the situation is. It relates to that. If the bill comes to the floor to release Epstein files, I would support that. I would vote for that and then let the attorney general make the decision on what can legally be released and what cannot. be legally released. It seems as though the admin, like she’s filed a motion to unseal court records. Part of that is the challenge because you have records that have been sealed by courts. So she has to go through that process and unseal some of these records. The challenge at the House has been Democrats are filing motions and rules, amendments on previous question type bills that would then open up these rules and open up these bills for Democrat amendment on other issues. We saw that last week. where they could have amended anything they wanted on all of these different things that we were trying to get done. And obviously they have a nefarious type of intent to do that. And we have Republicans that obviously support opening the Epstein files that are voting with them on these things. So it makes votes very challenging. Right.
SPEAKER 12 :
So put the Democrats aside for a moment because they’re seizing on a political moment. I mean, because because if they wanted to, they had four years when Joe Biden had control of everything and they could have released these documents had they wanted to. But there was they they wouldn’t release any documents. I mean, we we saw the Republicans trying to get information about, you know, the laptop, Hunter Biden’s laptop, all this other information that they were sitting on. But I want to ask you this question. Put the Democrats aside. What are you hearing from your constituents? Are they concerned about transparency? Do they want to see what was in there? Do they think this information should be released?
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah. And from conservative circles, I think you’re absolutely seeing that, which is why if the Massey discharge comes to the floor, I would vote yes. If there is a resolution that comes to the floor to release these files, I would vote yes. I think the American people deserve transparency. And I think that’s what we in Congress should do. So I don’t understand that why we’re not going to a vote on this because just delaying it until september i don’t think like you said i don’t think this issue is going away i think we’re going to be dealing with this after the august recess maybe there will be more information released by doj at that point i assume so we’ve also heard today that they’re going to interview miss maxwell so there might be some information that they release from that so all of these things will happen by the time we get back but that’s not going to change the fact that Mr. Massey’s discharge petition will have cured and he can force a vote on that by just calling it up.
SPEAKER 12 :
So let me go back. You’re right. Miss Maxwell was there’s been word now that she will be brought to testify. Will that be an open? Will that be open to the public or is that going to be behind closed doors?
SPEAKER 05 :
So there’s two things going on. You got DOJ that is going to interview her for possible criminal issues as a witness, like she’s a witness to possible criminal activity. Then you have the oversight committee in the House that has voted to subpoena her. That could take place behind closed doors in the form of a deposition, or that could take place in an open forum. It would turn into a complete and utter circus if you had her in an open committee room. But certainly, if you brought her in in a deposition, which we’ve done countless times with different individuals, she’s under oath. You can ask her questions. But both sides have the opportunity to ask her those questions. So you’ve got two different things going on with her. One is on the DOJ side, and one is the congressional side. I don’t know Chair Comer’s plans. in the next month, maybe bringing her in as soon as possible now that the subpoena has been passed through the committee. I’m not sure what his plans are as far as timeline, but you got both DOJ now willing to talk to her and now you’ve got a subpoena from the oversight committee coming.
SPEAKER 12 :
Well, I mean, given where the public is at on this, I think a deposition behind closed doors in Congress would not resolve the angst that’s out there and demanding for transparency.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, but you could release the depo, which is just typical. You would release the deposition after the statements. The challenge with doing the open, every five-minute type hearing is that every member only has five minutes. Right, it’s a circus. Being a lawyer and putting my list. I CAN GO DOWN A LINE OF QUESTIONING FOR TWO HOURS IF I WANT TO. I CAN QUESTION HER FOR EIGHT HOURS IF I WANT TO. INSTEAD OF BEING IN A COMMITTEE TYPE ENVIRONMENT WHERE EACH MEMBER ONLY GETS FIVE MINUTES IN A SHORTENED PERIOD OF TIME, IT’S MUCH MORE DIFFICULT TO REALLY DIG IN TO CERTAIN SUBJECT MATTERS WHEN YOU HAVE THAT FIVE-MINUTE EVERY MEMBER TYPE THING. PEOPLE ARE JUST TRYING TO GET ON TV AND GET A CLIP. RIGHT. INSTEAD OF SITTING IN A DEPOSITION WITH LAWYERS AND WALKING THROUGH DEEP QUESTIONINGS ON SPECIFIC
SPEAKER 12 :
Well, I think if that is the route, and you’re absolutely right. I mean, I think the open hearings become more of a circus. It’s kind of a reality TV gone bad. But the public, I don’t know. You’re going to have to be very clear up front if this is done that the full transcript will be released, unedited transcript, because there’s just no trust, unfortunately, in government today because we’ve seen it even related to the Epstein where there’s elements of the footage of his jail cell that was edited, that people don’t trust what they’re seeing. So we’ve got to be very, very candid and transparent, and I think that’s what the angst is really all about.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, which is why I would support making all of it what you can legally make and disclose to the public. I don’t know why that hasn’t been done. Like you said, AG Bondi has talked about releasing specific items and then those items weren’t released. So you’re right, the American public is pretty frustrated at this point with the administration because they said they were going to declassify and make public a lot of this information and it hasn’t happened. So hopefully when we get back, we’ll get to vote on this. I think we should just get it out of the way now and move on with the business of the House so we can undo a lot of Biden-era administrative rules. But that’s where we’re at. And maybe in the next month or so, some of these depositions will occur.
SPEAKER 12 :
All right. Well, Congressman Stubbe, I want to move on here to something else. And that is you talked about the business of the House. The House was already down to very few legislative days when it comes to the end of the fiscal year. I know the House has been working on appropriations with a whole week now basically cut out from next week. Highly unlikely that the House is going to be able to advance the appropriations bills in time to meet that deadline.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, and then you’re going to have a real challenge because members like me voted for the last CR under the guise that this is just a short-term fix so that we have time to go through the appropriations process coming into the end of September. And now here we are coming into the end of September where more than likely the appropriations process will not be complete and you’re going to have to do another CR. I never voted for a CR until President Trump asked us to vote for this last one to give them time to do what they need to do. We’ve passed two appropriations bills on the House floor. I don’t even believe the Senate has started their process of going through the appropriations process. There’s nine more to go. There’s 11 of them. So it usually takes about a week per appropriations bill, and obviously only four weeks left when we get back from the recess. That makes that timeline very difficult to achieve. And then we’re gonna be backed into a corner with a CR. And then the decision as a lawmaker is going to be, do you vote for a continuing resolution to keep funding at the same levels it’s been since Nancy Pelosi? Or do you vote no against the CR and shut down the government? And both of those decisions obviously have implications and ramifications to it. I don’t want to see the government shut down. At the same time, I don’t think we should be continuing this level of spending that we have had because Washington has a spending problem. and we’re $37 trillion in debt. So that’s going to be the challenge at the end of September if we can’t get these appropriations bills across the finish line.
SPEAKER 12 :
I think the argument that Russ Vogt, OMB director, would say is that they can do the rescissions, which you saw, you passed through the House, Senate did. A little timid on the Senate side in terms of cutting, but I think they would advocate that that is the alternative. All right, Congressman, we’re up against a break. Greg, we’re going to come back. I want to talk about Iran. I want to talk about your legislation that would give those who have been taken advantage of by the gender mutilation factories that have popped up all across the country a right of recourse. We’re going to talk about that and more coming up right after the break. So folks, stay tuned, more Washington Watch still ahead. I do wanna encourage you to join us in standing with Pastor Luke Ashe. I talked about it yesterday, gonna talk about it more later, but text the word pastor to 67742.
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The family is the oldest, most tested, and most reliable unit of society. It is divinely created and sustained. And yet, there are those who are always tampering with its values and structure. That’s why we need organizations like the Family Research Council that can effectively defend and strengthen the family.
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Family Research Council began over 40 years ago, like all great movements of God, with prayer. Today, rooted in the heart of the nation’s capital, FRC continues to champion faith, family and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview.
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FRC is one of those bright lights that helps us focus on true north. And I shudder to think, had they not been here, that it could have been worse, worse, worse.
SPEAKER 10 :
The Family Research Council is key. It’s one of a handful of groups that I think will determine whether our children live in a country that enjoyed all of the freedom and all the opportunity that we enjoyed in this great land.
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It’s just a wonderful parachurch organization that doesn’t seek to take the place of the church, but it seeks to assist the family and the church as we try to move forward successfully, not in a defensive mode, but in an offensive mode as we seek to live our lives according to the Holy Scriptures.
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Welcome back to Washington Watch. I’m Tony Perkins, your host. Thanks for tuning in. Last Friday, Children’s National Hospital here in D.C. announced that they were ending so-called gender transition procedures for minors due to, quote, escalating legal and regulatory risk. Starting August the 30th, the hospital’s providers will cease writing prescriptions for so-called gender affirming medications. Children’s National is but the latest in a string of hospitals stepping back from providing these experimental but life altering so-called treatments for children. But what can Congress do to hurry this along and make sure that children are protected? Continuing my conversation with Congressman Greg Stubbe, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, as well as a permanent select committee on intelligence. He represents the 17th Congressional District of Florida. Congressman Stubbe, thanks for sticking with us through the break. All right. Before I get to the bill that you’ve introduced, I just want to get your response to to Iran’s foreign minister saying that they will not give up their pursuit of enriched uranium. I mean, after all the experience from the United States and Israel, they they’re not backing away.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, well, that’s a problem because Iran cannot be able to obtain a nuclear weapon. And if you enrich across a certain percent, you’re not using it for civilian purposes. You’re using it for nuclear ambitions from a offensive purpose, a military purpose. And the United States has said unequivocally, and this is a Republican and a Democrat position. Joe Biden said this. Obama said this. Clinton said this. America is not going to let Iran obtain a nuclear weapon. They chant death to America. They chant death to Israel. Israel is obviously not going to allow that to occur as well. So for them, after everything that has happened, after Trump bombed some of their nuclear facilities, for them to say they’re not going to give up enrichment is a challenging perspective for them to put themselves in. It puts themselves in a box where the rest of the world, other than China and Russia, Obviously don’t think that they should have a nuclear weapon and then puts us in a posture where we have to defend against if they take steps To enrich uranium further than what they’re doing or they take steps to put themselves on a path for a nuclear warhead now they admitted that the the bombing from the United States and Israel has done serious damage to their capabilities but
SPEAKER 12 :
In their communications regarding the snapback from the JCPOA and the United Nations Security Council putting sanctions back on them, they threatened retaliation. What are they capable of doing?
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, that’s a great question, and that’s a question that we on the Intelligence Committee have been asking our analysts for that type of information of, okay, what has been destroyed? What hasn’t been destroyed? What kind of timeline are we looking at for them to be able to recur some of these enrichment proceedings? What does that look like from a military perspective? What does that look like from a defensive perspective? I don’t know if anybody knows the answers to those questions, but obviously we have intel, they have intel, the Israelis have intel, and we’re going to make sure that the Israelis and ourselves are defended against any attacks if it gets to that point. But we should sanction them as much as possible. If we can cut them off economically, then you’re keeping them from being able to do a lot of the things that they can do because they don’t have the resources to do it. That’s what was so dangerous about the Biden regime was they opened up billions of dollars of revenue to Tehran based on a policy decision and releasing sanctions. All of those should be reinstituted as much as we possibly can to cut them off economically. And they financially won’t be able to do the type of things that they want to do.
SPEAKER 12 :
Well, I also think that could help facilitate a regime change as well.
SPEAKER 05 :
regime change, new leadership, for them to realize that they’re going to have to come to the table and negotiate a peace treaty, a peace treaty that does not put them on the path for a nuclear weapon, a peace treaty that is a non-nuclear Iran, which is what the president wants, which is what Marco wants, which is what the world wants, frankly. Even other Arab nations don’t want Iran to have a nuclear weapon. So if it can bring them to the table to talk truly peace and have a peace agreement put in place that doesn’t allow them to get nuclear proliferation, then that would be a great step for them, America, our allies in the Middle East and the world.
SPEAKER 12 :
All right, Congressman Greg Stubbe, I want to move on to another topic. You were one of the first to address this gender issue. ideology craziness. You did it on the House floor and you had your Democratic colleagues come after you for addressing this issue. But earlier today, you introduced a bill addressing the medical centers that perform these so-called gender transition procedures on children. They’re experimental, using drugs and irreversible surgeries. But you are giving those who are taking advantage of an opportunity to fight back. And I think it’s going to send a message across America to those who are in this business.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, you’re going to see if this bill passes, you’re going to see hospitals refuse to do this type of procedure. You’re going to see medical professionals refuse to do any type of gender mutilation that has been going on in our country. I mean, think if you’re one of these minors that was talked into doing something like this, an irreversible physical surgery, and then you become 18 and you become an adult and you realize that you made a mistake and your parents who authorized this decision for you made a mistake and it’s irreversible. You can’t go back. So what our bill would do, myself and Senator Hawley, is allow for you to have a civil cause of action, a private right of cause of action against the doctors, the physicians, the hospitals, the health networks that allowed this to occur. You will see the behavior change very, very quickly if hospitals believe that they’re going to be held civilly liable for doing these type of things. Because Lord knows what a jury would award if a minor was convinced to do this type of surgery and it is irreversible. So I think you would see the behavior change. You already alluded to the fact that some of these hospitals are already changing their policy. I think a lot of that is because President Trump is in the White House. There’s different leadership in HHS and our health agencies. There’s different leadership in Congress. So the direction of the country obviously does not support this, unlike the Biden administration, and is going back to, frankly, things that are much more reasonable than allowing our minors to do these type of procedures.
SPEAKER 12 :
Yeah, I mean, and I’ve been talking with trial lawyers. I think they’ll be all over this when this passes. Very quickly, got about a minute left. You did another bill yesterday, restoring biological truth to the Workplace Act. This would affect actually a pastor in Baton Rouge, bivocational pastor, fired from the local library for refusing to use preferred pronouns. Your legislation would address that. I got about 45 seconds.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, and we’ve seen this in the education realm where teachers are, you know, because of their faith and their biblical values, refuse to refer to a young boy as a she and all these different issues that the far left has taken us to this. So this bill would address these issues and moving forward. And I really hope that the House can move on these two different pieces of legislation and we can send them to the Senate.
SPEAKER 12 :
Well, we’ll put them up on our website and encourage people to weigh in on it. As always, Greg, appreciate your leadership on these important issues. Anytime. Good to see you. All right, Congressman Greg Stubbe of Florida. Check out the website, TonyPerkins.com. All right, don’t go away. When we come back, the governor of Samaria joins me. Yossi Dagan, so don’t go away.
SPEAKER 08 :
The Center for Biblical Worldview’s all-day workshops delves into the formation of a worldview, what it is, how it’s formed, when it’s formed, what that means to them personally and their churches and communities.
SPEAKER 24 :
My hope for people when they come to these worldview workshops is that they will come away better equipped to engage the people and the ideas that they’re living with and around. And our goal is to give people more confidence in the gospel and the fact that what God said to us actually is true, actually is the path to happiness and human flourishing for all of us, but also more confidence in their ability to have these conversations and help lead other people to the truth.
SPEAKER 20 :
for Bible-believing Christians to know what God’s Word says on these issues and to learn how they can apply it to their lives. And we believe that the more Christians that we equip, that’s how we’ll change the nation.
SPEAKER 14 :
Hey, fam, listen, Pastor Sammy here at Lighthouse Church, and I cannot tell you how equipping, how empowering, how… incredibly educating this conference has been. And so I just want to encourage anybody that either has not been part of or is thinking about hosting this event, certainly to pastors, leaders, even CEOs for that matter. This conference is lights out. Stand behind it myself. I can’t commend it enough. We’re going to be talking about this for some time to come.
SPEAKER 19 :
The culture is kind of squeezing in on us as God’s people, forcing those of us with biblical views to change those views or to suppress those views. It’s forcing us to engage with issues that we’ve never had to engage with. And so what this teaches us is what those issues are, what the Bible says about those issues, and then how we can critically engage our culture on these things in a way that is committed to biblical principles.
SPEAKER 25 :
Visit frc.org slash worldview for more information.
SPEAKER 12 :
Welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for tuning in. All right, let me encourage you, if you have not yet downloaded the Stand Firm app, get the Stand Firm app. That way you can have access to Washington Watch no matter where you go. You can have access to our news and commentary from a biblical perspective, the Washington Stand, and my daily devotional, Stand on the Word. All of that can be found on the Stand Firm app. Go to the App Store, download the Stand Firm app. Well, as the search for a solution to the conflict in the Middle East continues, dozens of members of Congress this morning heard firsthand about the significance of Judea and Samaria, or as the legacy media and the United Nations calls it, the West Bank. Well, members of Congress gathered to hear firsthand why America must support Israel’s right to declare sovereignty over Judea and Samaria. And who better to make the case than the governor of Samaria? Joining me now in studio is Governor Yossi Dagan, who is the head of the Shamran Regional Council in Israel. Governor Dagan, welcome to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining me. Thank you very much. All right. Members of Congress this morning seem to understand the importance of Judea and Samaria, the biblical heartland.
SPEAKER 02 :
First of all, I must share with all friends that show us now our appreciation about what your personality, Tony, and your organization are doing. It’s so important for the State of Israel, for all the people in the State of Israel, and especially for the pioneers who built the Bible and Judea and Samaria. And first of all, thank you very much. We are very appreciative. I cannot imagine the situation of states and… United States of America and State of Israel without this strong relationship and without you. So God bless you.
SPEAKER 12 :
Thank you, Governor. I appreciate that. The the reality is Judea and Samaria really the heart of not just geographically, it’s the heart of Israel. But when we talk about what we read in our Bible, 80% of the events occurred in the area that you represent.
SPEAKER 02 :
You’re right. Judea and Samaria, first of all, is historical justice because God bring us opportunity to build again the Bible and exactly like you intend by the prophecy. Jeremiah, Amos, Yechezkel, and we are doing this. So sovereignty to the Bible and is recognize God. It say to God, thank you very much. We appreciate what the gift that you are bring us. And two, Like you told, Judea and Samaria mountains are the security belt of the State of Israel. Because between the Mediterranean and Jordan River, we have 43 miles. Samaria mountains, my region, are 34 miles from them. So all the State of Israel, so-called the Green Line, without the mountains, big mountains of Judea and Samaria, is just nine miles.
SPEAKER 12 :
So what’s important about this is that every time we hear this conversation about a two-state solution or proposal, every time there’s peace talked about, well, we’ve got to give a Palestinian state, they’re actually talking about cutting out the heart of Israel, Judea and Samaria, and turning that over to Palestinians.
SPEAKER 02 :
it’s not the justice for God. Because God bring us exactly like the prophecy story. Right, it’s happening. To build. Yes, and it’s happening now. Why disturb this? And two, October 7th, It’s a proof what is two-state solution. Because Gaza Strip, after we, we was stupid. And we evacuated and destroyed our communities and towns. In 2005. Yes. And Gaza Strip was a Palestinian state without IDF, without Jews. Judenrein, like in German. Judenrein, without Jews, just Muslims. their control, all the area. And one leader from the progressive told that after the evacuated of our communities, Gaza Strip will be the Singapore of the Middle East. So October 7, it’s Singapore of the Middle East. What happened that we created a Palestinian state? Just imagine October 7th with control of Palestinian authority, same Palestinian authority, on the mountains of Samaria.
SPEAKER 12 :
So Gaza Strip, about a seven-mile strip, and that became a launching pad for October the 7th for the terrorist activity that has engulfed the Middle East for the last 18 months. That, if you take Judea and Samaria, it’s 24 times larger than the Gaza Strip. And it’s right in the heart of Israel, not the southern sliver on the coast. I mean, the country would be indefensible.
SPEAKER 02 :
You’re right. And I must tell you… In October 7, the barbarians from Hamas, they were occupied 14 miles near Gaza Strip. And on the Green Line, under the mountains of Samaria, it’s not like the situation in the south near Gaza Strip. Nine miles under these mountains, and the Palestinian authorities, they have a strong army, so-called police. Unfortunately, the generals from IDF army, from another… Another government of the United States, not Trump, of course. They help them and educate them how to be professional soldiers, professional combats. They have units. It’s very strong, more from Gaza Strip. Just imagine the situation in October 7 with control of these barbarians on all the top of mountains.
SPEAKER 12 :
So what Israel is asking for, what you’re asking for as governor of Samaria, Prime Minister Netanyahu’s cabinet have asked for is the Knesset to declare sovereignty over that region. And so America, what you’re looking to America for is to say, Israel, you have the right to declare that sovereignty.
SPEAKER 02 :
We’ve got about 30 seconds. Yes, you’re right. First of all, it is responsible of the Israelis, our prime minister, our ministers. We need your help to educate people. to all the people in the world, and also the leaders here in the States, how it’s necessary to Israel, and because of this, how it’s necessary to the United States. Because we need help, because we are your envoy in the Islamic Middle East, and we need support in this issue, recognition for this issue. We can do this without, but with recognition for the United States, of course it’s better. Governor, we’ve got to go.
SPEAKER 12 :
We’re praying for the peace of Israel and working for it as well. Folks, stick with us. We’re back after this.
SPEAKER 13 :
Family Research Council is committed to advancing faith, family, and freedom from the East Coast to the West. So FRC is going to Southern California for this year’s Pray, Vote, Stand Summit, October 17th and 18th at Calvary Chapel, Chino Hills. Join us for this powerful gathering of Christians desiring cultural renewal and spiritual revival. The Pray, Vote, Stand Summit brings together Christian leaders, issue experts, and government officials for a time of prayer, inspiration, and action. Together, we will seek God’s guidance for our nation and engage in meaningful discussions on the intersection of faith, government, and culture. If the spiritual foundations and the cultural walls of our nation are to be rebuilt, we all have a role to play. May we each find our place on the wall as we build for biblical truth. Register now at PrayVoteStand.org. That’s PrayVoteStand.org.
SPEAKER 09 :
Jennifer, it’s so exciting to be here with you today talking about our new book, Embracing God’s Design. Who is actually going to benefit from reading this book in your view?
SPEAKER 03 :
There are so many different audiences that can benefit. The first one are counselors themselves, because we have some material in there where we really address the gender dysphoria diagnosis and what is wrong with it. We have information for people who are wanting to go back to embracing God’s design for their life.
SPEAKER 09 :
This is really magical to have the therapist and the individual who suffered come together and write about why this is happening and why we’re seeing this.
SPEAKER 03 :
And we brought all of that experience to the table. We want to see people walking in the fullness of who God has called them to be and not a false identity.
SPEAKER 06 :
Order today at embracethedesign.com.
SPEAKER 23 :
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 12 :
Welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks for tuning in. All right, our word for today, it comes from Luke chapter 24. Then he said to them, thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sin should be preached in his name to all nations beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these things. This is the mission of the church, our mission. Just as Jesus declared, we are to proclaim repentance and the forgiveness of sins in his name, beginning in our communities and extending to the nations. But Jesus didn’t just give us a mission. He gave us the means to fulfill it. The next verse says, Behold, I send you the promise of my Father upon you, but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with the power from on high. The promise is the Holy Spirit, God’s empowering presence for every believer. We cannot fulfill this mission in our own strength. But when we are filled with the Spirit, we become bold witnesses, faithful messengers, and living evidence of the gospel’s transforming power. To find out more about our journey through the Bible, text Bible to 67742. Well, Capitol Hill might get a little quieter after tomorrow as the lower chamber is breaking early for the August recess due to the continuing clamor for access to the Jeffrey Epstein files from Republican Congressman Thomas Massey and a cadre of Democrats. But rest assured, there will still be news, even if Congress is at a standstill. Joining me now to discuss some of this news is Washington Stan’s editorial director and senior writer, Suzanne Bowdy, as well as the managing editor for the broadcast, Casey Harper. Suzanne, Casey, welcome to Washington Watch. Thanks, Tony. All right, Suzanne, let me start with you. New Hampshire’s so-called Republican governor, Kelly Ayotte, who used to be in Congress, used to be a senator, recently showed her true colors regarding her trans extremism, which is really odd, given that this is a Democrat issue that they’re drowning in politically, and here you have a Republican grabbing hold of it. Tell us what she did.
SPEAKER 04 :
It’s inexplicable, really, because let me just set the scene for you in New Hampshire right now. They have a trifecta in the state house, in the state legislature and the governor’s mansion. They actually won more seats for the Republican Party last election. And so what Kelly Ayotte’s done is really shocking to me, especially because the Granite State voters are really behind this agenda to stop voting. uh, transing our kids essentially. And what was before her were a few really surprising bills. She signed 103 bills before the session ended, but she vetoed seven. And many of those were social conservative issues. For example, one of the bills that she vetoed would have kept biological men out of girls’ spaces. We’re talking about prisons. We’re talking about locker rooms. We’re talking about bathrooms. This is an issue that had 69% support, which frankly is low. I believe in a lot of States, some States it’s upward of 70 and 80. is new hampshire but it is new hampshire right she vetoed that she also vetoed a forum for parents to be able to complain about sexually explicit materials in the kids classrooms so this would have created an avenue for each school to open investigations if parents had a legitimate complaint about something pornographic or you know lgbt etc she said no these are overly broad bills she also rejected a bill that would have let parents opt into a very controversial government survey. I’m sure you’ve talked about it on the show before, the Youth Risk Behavioral Survey, which asked very invasive questions, leading questions about kids and their behavior. She said, no, we don’t want parents to opt in. We want to give as many answers as possible to this survey. It is baffling to me why when Republicans are truly dominating on this issue, I mean, Democrats are flailing, that she would lean into this. So why?
SPEAKER 12 :
Why is she doing it?
SPEAKER 04 :
I honestly don’t know.
SPEAKER 12 :
Now, her record in Congress was not that good.
SPEAKER 04 :
Right. I will say, as a senator, she was not our friend on things like Women in the Draft, the Employment Nondiscrimination Act, which was very LGBT-forward. She really, except for on a few life issues, was not our friend. But I don’t know why, particularly in New Hampshire, where this is like Congress for a governor. She runs every two years. And as we’ve learned from people like Terry McAuliffe, Parents do not take kindly to their, to their values and rights.
SPEAKER 12 :
Could this just be her ideological bent? I mean, maybe she’s just, is she bought into this agenda?
SPEAKER 04 :
It could be. And it could be that voters are going to find that out and vote her out.
SPEAKER 12 :
What’s interesting at the same time, the New York Times writing a piece recently about how the Democrats are, they’re at a loss as to how to get out of this. This transgender agenda has them boxed in and they’re underwater politically.
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, they’ve painted themselves into a corner. It’s an 80-20 issue. Maybe in New Hampshire it’s 69. And the reason they can’t get out of it is they frame the entire argument in moral terms. So they’ve said those who oppose transgenderism are evil, they’re hateful, they’re not loving. And so they can’t back down because they’ll be hateful.
SPEAKER 12 :
So actually what that does then is it further enrages those who have concerns about this agenda because not only are they telling them, you know, you don’t have a right to protect your kids, but you’re a bigot because you want to protect your kids.
SPEAKER 04 :
But what’s also crazy is at the same time that she’s vetoing these bills, a Democratic governor in North Carolina, who is no social conservative, actually signed into law a Parents Protection Act. So now she looks even more radical than a Democratic governor in a purple state.
SPEAKER 12 :
Maybe he can read the polls a little better than she can.
SPEAKER 04 :
Right, right, absolutely.
SPEAKER 12 :
Not that that’s how we should be making our decisions.
SPEAKER 04 :
No, but when the truth and the polls align, we should pay attention.
SPEAKER 12 :
Well, let’s talk a little bit about how people are just kind of out of step with reality. We saw the CEO of NPR, Catherine Marr, who – this is comical. First, it was Big Bird that was going to be on the grill. Now it is – Now it’s public safety as a result of the Congress cutting funds to public broadcasting.
SPEAKER 15 :
Yeah, the public safety argument is sort of they’ve lost every other argument, and so they’re pulling this one out at the last minute. I mean, we’ve covered at the Washington stand at length the kind of ridiculous bias at PBS and NPR. It was just a propaganda shot. Even a former longtime editor at NPR, he surveyed the newsroom, and he found that there was 87 registered Democrats and zero Republicans. We’re not even talking 80-20 split here. It’s by and large entirely Democrat.
SPEAKER 12 :
That’s probably typical of most newsrooms. Right, but they don’t get federal money. I know, I know. So it’s just like, why do we want to subsidize another leftist media outlet when we can do that for free? Well, public safety, Tony. Yeah, well, so let’s talk about that public safety. We have a clip. Okay, we got a clip. Let’s play that clip.
SPEAKER 21 :
Many of the stations receive up to 70% of their funding through federal dollars across the country, often tribal areas, rural areas, 50%. These are areas that are exposed to extreme weather patterns like tornadoes, for example, in Florida along the hurricane coast, often at risk. We have seen estimates that as many as 80 stations could go dark, and almost all of these are stations that exist in these areas that otherwise have limited resources and limited access.
SPEAKER 12 :
All right, 50 years ago, all right, maybe so. But in the age of cable, the age of satellite, the age of the internet, and this, by the way, was the rationale that Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins gave for voting against the rescissions bill in the Senate last week.
SPEAKER 15 :
Right, but there’s two reasons this doesn’t really hold up. The first is internet access is ubiquitous, regardless of even poverty level. I was at Starbucks this weekend. Well, we’re underwriting it. The federal government is under it. I was at Starbucks this weekend, and I walked in. It didn’t bother me, but there’s two homeless people charging their smartphones and watching YouTube videos. And I just had this moment of, hey, there’s no limit to access to smartphones and the internet. And then the second thing is we have AM radio. FM can go 20 to 40 miles, but AM… In some cases, you know, thousands of miles.
SPEAKER 12 :
Let’s talk about that for just a moment. All right. Because there is a bill in Congress to deal with AM radios. That is not the point of our conversation here. But if Congress really was concerned about access in cases of emergency, the AM radio system has long been that vehicle by which when power goes out, you get the little transistor radio. I mean, I can tell you with hurricanes, we’ve used it a lot. the manufacturers of cars are taking the AM radios out. And so there is a save the AM radio bill in Congress, which we support, which would cost the federal government… Zero.
SPEAKER 04 :
Right. And it doesn’t have the media bias baggage that NPR and PBS and all those others.
SPEAKER 12 :
People can just tune in to whatever station they want to listen to during a time of national emergency or local crisis. I mean, it’s just this is where when you see stuff like this, like Catherine Marr, it’s just it’s a spin and it is not truthful in what we’re we’re hearing.
SPEAKER 15 :
Yeah, well, they always go to, every argument for them goes down to you hate people, you want to hurt them. The trans argument, you hate trans kids and you want them to die. If it goes down, you want to cut back on some of the things we’ve reported on, like drag queens reading children’s books to kids on PBS or NPR segments about queer ducks. I know you can check that one out right after we get off the air, Tony. Yeah, I know. Yeah, there’s a lot to learn there. Exactly. So, you know, they’re pushing these things out. But then when it gets attacked, they say, oh, they have to find out human safety. If you want to trim, you know, one dollar out of Medicaid, you want to kill poor people. If you want to trim one dollar out of Medicare, it’s always the same argument.
SPEAKER 12 :
But here’s what happened, and members said this on the program, that in particular, the rescissions bill in the Senate over PEPFAR, which is something that I’ve Pretty passionate about because it’s such a waste of money that even though they knew that trimming 400 million dollars out of 7.1 billion dollars was not going to affect the delivery of health and safety and life-saving Medicines they didn’t want to face the political threats of Democrats. So is by fear That’s why we have 37 trillion dollars in debt. They’re afraid to take any a principled, truthful stand out of fear politics.
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, the two biggest tools are the enemy, fear and accusation. Yeah. And it’s all accusation on this issue, and that’s why it’s so powerful.
SPEAKER 12 :
I want to go back. We’re just about five minutes left. Suzanne, I want to go back to the issue that Kelly Ayotte was running from. Congress is actually dealing with some of these issues, trying to address. We talked earlier with Congressman Greg Stubbe to really allow those who have been taken advantage of, lied to over this gender craze to to sue. So there’s a lot happening on that front. There seems to be like this. massive dose of common sense all of a sudden hit America.
SPEAKER 04 :
And we have to applaud Republicans, Donald Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson, for really putting a spotlight on these issues, because as you pointed out, the Stubbe bill, the one that you’re referring to, the restoring biological truth in the workplace, it shouldn’t be necessary. We have the Constitution. We have the First Amendment. We have the Civil Rights Act. But here they’re taking an extra step to say, look, if you’re in the workplace, people like Pastor Luke Ash, you shouldn’t be punished for acknowledging that there are two genders and that’s a biological reality and a moral and scriptural one as well.
SPEAKER 12 :
And not be forced to have to play along with this make-believe. And that’s what they want. It’s not that you just allow it to go on. They want you to participate in it. You have to be a part of their charade. And that is fundamentally wrong. And by the way, folks, let me, I know hundreds of you, I’ve already signed that petition. I’ll put it back up there for you again. Text the word PASTOR Pastor to 67742. This is regarding Luke Ash, the East Baton Rouge Parish Library, back at my home city of Baton Rouge. Actually, I live in Pride, but I don’t like to tell people I live in Pride because I feel like I have to repent. But it’s a community north of Baton Rouge. But text the word pastor to 67742 and you can sign this petition that will be delivered to the executive director of the library. Pastor Luke was fired for refusing. He didn’t he didn’t say anything to to anyone. He just would not agree to use. biologically incorrect pronouns. And so he didn’t line up with their DEI policy. And so he was fired. It is amazing how, again, text the word pastor to 67742, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Or else.
SPEAKER 04 :
Right. Yeah.
SPEAKER 12 :
It doesn’t work for anyone who doesn’t agree with him. There’s no inclusion. There’s no diversity. There’s no equity for those who don’t agree with him.
SPEAKER 04 :
And those who agree with them are the majority of the population. I mean, the people that are being retaliated against are the ones who share the majority view.
SPEAKER 12 :
The encouraging thing is that, you know, Four years ago, the trend was moving in the other direction. Very much so. But there were a few, you know, FRC taking policy positions. Then you had some courageous young women standing up that said, you know what, we’re just not going to play along with this game. It took a little while. But all of a sudden, it was like, yeah, yeah, the emperor doesn’t have any clothes. People began to admit that, you know, this is nonsense. It’s insanity. We can’t play along with it. But as I was even talking about yesterday on the program with Pastor Lewis, we’ve got to connect this back to where it all started. Redefinition of marriage, redefinition of human sexuality.
SPEAKER 04 :
And he took it back even farther.
SPEAKER 12 :
It does go back, and it goes back to, and that’s why I did the covenant marriage law back when I was in the legislature. It does go back to how we treat the institution of marriage. Because once we departed from God’s truth, this is where we end up.
SPEAKER 15 :
Yeah, when you untether from the truth, I mean, you can drift anywhere. Wherever the wind’s going to take you, that’s where you end up. So that’s why I’m not really surprised when the next ridiculous thing comes out from someone on the left, because when you’ve untethered, you’ll go anywhere.
SPEAKER 12 :
Well, it’s just like President Obama began this, Biden continued it. You should be able to marry the one you love. And then you have people, you know, furries and all these other things. I mean, it’s just, there’s no end. There’s no end to the nature of fallen man. And that’s why we need a redeemer. And that’s why Jesus came, so that we can be restored and sanctified into what God wanted us to be, to be free and to be able to have life and have it more abundantly. But you can’t do it chasing a lie. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father but by me. And we have an obligation as Christians to lovingly, but boldly and courageously proclaim that truth.
SPEAKER 04 :
And to stand with those who are. I mean, what’s so encouraging about Luke’s story is how many people have come around him and alongside him and said, we will fight with you. And I think that’s something as Christians we need to continue to do is to bolster those who are taking stands that are affecting their lives and their livelihoods in this
SPEAKER 12 :
Well, courage breeds courage. And we just need more people that know the truth and are willing to stand for the truth. That’s why when Joshua took over and the Lord said, be strong and courageous. And that wasn’t courage and strength needed to face the enemy. It was to obey the word of God. And that’s where we need our courage. Suzanne, Casey, thanks so much for joining me today.
SPEAKER 04 :
Thanks, Tony.
SPEAKER 12 :
All right. And folks, I do want to encourage you to weigh in on this. As Suzanne said, coming around Pastor Luke, you too can support him. Text the word pastor to six, seven, seven, four, two. That’s pastor to six, seven, seven, four, two. And sign that petition that’s going to be delivered to the executive director of the library. And this is, as I said before, this is not just a local issue. others this has become a national issue others other government entities that have bought into this dei woke agenda will take note all right until next time i leave you with the words of the apostle paul when you’ve prayed prepared and taken your stand by all means keep standing
SPEAKER 16 :
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 Tony Perkins dot com.
