On today’s program: Keith Self, U.S. Representative for Texas’s 3rd District, reacts to the Trump administration’s meeting with Vladimir Putin as the threat of sanctions looms and the latest on the Israel-Gaza war. Greg Steube, U.S. Representative
SPEAKER 21 :
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. Sitting in for Tony is today’s host, Jody Heiss.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, good afternoon. Hope you are having a great Wednesday. Welcome to this edition of Washington Watch. I am Jody Heiss, a senior fellow here at the Family Research Council and honored to be filling in this month for Tony. Coming up on this edition of Washington Watch, the U.S. Special Envoy, Steve Witkoff, met today with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as the Trump administration considers additional sanctions on Russia if a ceasefire deal is not struck by this Friday. That was Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier today, and I’ll discuss what we’re hearing so far as it relates to this four-hour long meeting that took place in Moscow. I’ll be joined in just a minute to discuss that by Texas Congressman Keith Self. And speaking of Russia, the Department of Justice has launched a grand jury investigation into the alleged Obama-era conspiracy known to many as the Russia Collusion Hoax, or some refer to it as the Russiagate Hoax. But nonetheless, I’ll be discussing this a little bit later in the program when I’m joined by Florida Congressman Greg Stubbe, who happens to be a member of the Intel Committee. And in other Washington news, President Trump has renewed his criticism against D.C. officials for their mishandling of crime in that city after a former Doge staffer was allegedly assaulted in an attempted carjacking.
SPEAKER 12 :
Somebody from Doge was very badly hurt last night. You saw that. A young man who was beat up by a bunch of thugs in D.C. And either they’re going to straighten their act out in terms of government and in terms of protection, or we’re going to have to federalize and run it the way it’s supposed to be run.
SPEAKER 10 :
That, of course, was President Trump speaking yesterday about that assault. So is it only a matter of time before we might see a federal takeover of D.C.? Well, I’ll be discussing this a little later in the program when I’m joined by Georgia Congressman Andrew Clyde. And then there’s some good news that we’ll be covering as we dive into the life issue. There’s a court ruling out of Colorado that allows pro-life medical professionals to provide women the option to reverse the effects of the abortion drug. And I’ll discuss that with ADF Senior Counsel Kevin Terrio. And then the end of Planned Parenthood, the end of Planned Parenthood in Louisiana. Big, big news. I’ll be discussing that with FRC’s Mary Zok. But even as we celebrate these victories of life, friends, let me just, before we get into all the continued program today, let me just remind you that abortions have been on the rise the last couple of years. We’ve dealt with that a lot on this program. Largely, that’s due because of the abortion drug. which is why we need the Trump administration to take action, and that’s why we’re asking you to join us to help take action. So let me just encourage you to text the word LIFE, L-I-F-E, to 67742 and join us in trying to deal with this abortion drug that continues to be trafficked across state lines. And then let me just also encourage you to go ahead now to get some more information and register for our upcoming Pray, Vote, Stand Summit. It’s going to be taking place October 17th and 18th this year in Chino Hills, California. I’ll be sharing a little bit more about that in the program. But for details, you can go now to PrayVoteStand.org and we encourage you to jump on board with that. It is going to be a powerful event. All right, let’s jump into our first topic for today. As I mentioned moments ago, the US Special Presidential Envoy for Peace Missions, Steve Witkoff, he met earlier today with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. And all of this, of course, is coming ahead of the Friday deadline that President Trump has set. But in a post on Truth Social, President Trump said that there was great progress made today in that meeting. He said that certainly he and his administration will be working toward an end to the Russia-Ukraine war in the days and weeks to come. But what might it take to get there? We’re here to discuss this and more as Congressman Keith Self, who served our country courageously for 25 years before retiring with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Today, he’s a member of several House committees, including the Foreign Affairs Committee, and he represents the 3rd Congressional District of Texas. Congressman Self, always an honor to have you on Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us.
SPEAKER 11 :
Great to be here, Jody. Thank you.
SPEAKER 10 :
You’re welcome. All right, let’s jump into this meeting. As we all know, it’s coming just a few days before a new deadline that President Trump has set, which shortened the previous 50-day deadline. So, yeah, was this a gutsy call for the president to change the deadline down to 10 days or so from 50?
SPEAKER 11 :
Jody, I will tell you, I’m not sure why Putin has any… urgency to negotiate. I applaud President Trump in these efforts, but frankly, Putin thinks he’s winning this war. He has more people. He has an economy that is humming along. It’s a wartime economy. The people still generally support him as long as he doesn’t have another general conscription. He’s selling his oil. I’m not sure that Putin has any reason to actually make a deal.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, that’s a good point. And, you know, we’re all going to see it’s coming down to the wire with Friday coming. I found it very interesting today, Congressman, that President Trump actually imposed penalties over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for the first time today, while at the same time striking an optimistic note about the potential for progress. So what do you make of that move from President Trump?
SPEAKER 11 :
Well, President Trump is trying every tool in his toolbox to end this war, to bring Russia to the table, as you’ve said. But I think Putin’s fairly happy with where he is, and that is the problem. Because as long as he can sell his oil, then he can fund the war. He’s got enough people, he’s getting help from other nations. Again, I believe that it will take something pretty serious to bring Putin to the table seriously.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, that’s a good point about the oil. And that’s another interesting thing that we’re seeing. It seems shortly after the White House envoy, Steve Wyckoff, met with Putin today that Trump signed an order doubling tariffs on India to 50% because they are purchasing oil from Russia. And I think this certainly paves the way, at least of a warning for Trump penalties for other countries. What do you think of that?
SPEAKER 11 :
Well, China also buys a lot of Russian oil. So what do you do with China? He’s already trying everything he can to reach a tariff deal with China. So India and China are the two largest by population nations in the world. So Russia, as we know, is a gas station masquerading as a country. So if we could stop those two countries from buying Russian oil, we could have sanctions on them It would go a long way as long as we enforced the sanctions.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, that’s a good point. Enforcing the sanctions that makes me go back to a comparison of what we’re watching now with the Trump administration. The way he’s handling all this versus what we saw with the Biden administration, which quite frankly just seemed to me at least to be doing basically nothing that might provoke Russia or that Russia might be upset about. How do you draw a comparison between what we’re watching now under the Trump administration versus what we saw under Biden?
SPEAKER 11 :
Oh my goodness, across the world, across every domain, it is totally different. We see him engaged in so many areas, so many countries, with sanctions. He is working to, and I will tell you, my call with the Deputy Treasury Secretary, he’s working to bring manufacturing back to the United States, get a level playing field for the United States, In the short term, bring in some dollars. But what we need is a level playing field across the world. So we’ve got to cut off the third countries that China goes through. We’ve got to sanction the Russian oil. We’ve got to keep sanctions on the Iranian oil, because oil around the world is a major driver of economy and civilization.
SPEAKER 10 :
Absolutely. If I can, Congressman Self, I’d like to switch gears with you. Our time seems to be slipping away here rapidly, but another war is going on that we’re all aware of between Israel and Hamas. And tomorrow, Israel’s security cabinet is expected to convene to discuss expanding fighting in the Gaza Strip. What’s your take from what you’re hearing so far on these latest developments?
SPEAKER 11 :
Well, frankly, Jody, just as Putin thinks he’s winning in Ukraine, Hamas thinks they’re winning in Gaza. They have now made this a worldwide event. They are changing the perception, certainly in the EU. Eleven of the 27 nations have already recognized some mythical Palestinian state. Four more have said they will. So they are, again, very pleased with where they stand. They hold the hostages. Look, this could be over tomorrow if they surrender, and surrender every hostage alive and dead. But they’re not going to, because they think they’re winning on the world public perception stage.
SPEAKER 10 :
Wow. And as you mentioned with some of those countries you brought up, in some regard, I think they are. And I think that perhaps is just adding fuel to the fire, so to speak, for Israel to go ahead and deal with Gaza and take it back. You think they’re making the right move with that if that’s indeed what they decide to do tomorrow?
SPEAKER 11 :
I think they have to. This plan has been in the works for a while, but the hostages hold everything up. How do you deal with the hostages? You know they’re in the tunnels. You know they will kill them if you go in. One of the major public affairs motivations in Israel today is get the hostages out before you do that. So that’s what’s stopping or has been stopping Israel. But at some point, what do you do? Do you just allow Hamas to control the world stage and turn more and more countries against Israel? Or do you actually take control of Gaza and take the risk that you won’t be able to get all of the live hostages back?
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, it is a risk for the hostages. I think risk, as you brought up on the perception of the world stage with what’s taking place right now, it looks to me like they’re going to have to make a decision. And I appreciate your expertise in giving your opinion there. In some other Middle East news, it was fascinating to see how Speaker Johnson took what I believe at least is an unprecedented trip this week to the West Bank, and he’s now calling on that term, West Bank, to no longer be used at the federal level, but instead use the term that it actually is, that would be Judea and Samaria. Are you very optimistic that we’re going to see the Trump administration and others follow suit with this?
SPEAKER 11 :
I am. I think things are moving in Judea and Samaria. It’s behind the scenes, but I think things are moving and we’ll see what happens there. But frankly, I believe that the sheikhs, the Muslim sheikhs in Judea and Samaria are tired of the PA, the Palestinian Authority. I think they are ready to be governed by Israel and secured by Israel. I think they’re ready. Let’s see what happens.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, there were many that went with House Speaker to Israel. There’s been a lot of CODEL taking place over there. But hats off to the Speaker and others for pushing for this. I think it’s a great move. It’s something that needs to take place. Thank you, Texas Congressman Keith Self. Always an honor to see you, my friend. We appreciate you coming on Washington Watch today and always.
SPEAKER 11 :
Thank you, Jody. Have a great day.
SPEAKER 10 :
You too. All right, friends, coming up, the DOJ has launched a grand jury investigation into the Russia collusion hoax. And we will be getting into the details of this after the break when I’ll be joined by Florida Congressman Greg Stubbe. So much to talk about on this critical issue. Don’t go anywhere. We’ll be back right after this break.
SPEAKER 06 :
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In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory. Family Research Council invites you to join our Stand on the Word Bible reading plan as we reflect upon the life of Jesus, the Word who dwelt among us. Come with us and discover the glory of the Word. Read the Gospels and witness the life-changing story of Jesus, His life, death, and resurrection. Come read how Jesus transformed the lives of common people and how those same people transformed the known world through the power of the Holy Spirit. Come with us for 10 to 15 minutes a day and read the entire New Testament before the new year. Find our Bible reading plan in daily devotionals from Tony Perkins at frc.org slash Bible. Join us and stand on the word.
SPEAKER 10 :
Good afternoon. Welcome back to Washington Watch. I’m Jody Heiss filling in for Tony. Thank you for being with us. All right. This week, Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly ordered a launch of a grand jury investigation into the alleged Obama era conspiracy to tie President Trump to Russia, specifically to the Russia collusion hoax. Well, this move comes about two weeks after the Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, referred a trove of documents to the Justice Department and the FBI for potential criminal referrals. So will the American people finally get to see the full scale of all of this? Well, joining me now to discuss this and more is Congressman Greg Stubbe. He’s a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. He represents the 17th Congressional District of the great state of Florida. Congressman Stubbe, great to see you. Welcome back to Washington Watch.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, good to see you. Thanks for having me.
SPEAKER 10 :
All right, so what do you make, at least of what’s been revealed so far, what’s been made public so far, what do you make of what you’re seeing?
SPEAKER 09 :
Well, treasonous activity that was going on at the highest levels of the government to try to undermine President Trump, and they utilized the intelligence apparatus to do exactly what they wanted to do, and that was lie to the American people and create this Russia collusion hoax that never occurred, and they used intelligence and the lie of intelligence. They fabricated intelligence to back up their plans and to then propagate that to the American people. I mean, if you do polls across America right now, there are still Democrats that believe that Trump colluded and conspired with Russia, and it was all made up. So thankfully, we now have an attorney general who’s investigating this, a DNI who sent this information to the attorney general. And American people, it’s been years and years of this. And the American people are hoping that there’s going to be some justice that’s going to come from this. Because we know that Comey was involved and Clapper was involved. And we know now Obama was involved. Is there going to be some justice for their actions of utilizing the intelligence apparatus of our country for political gain?
SPEAKER 10 :
So what are you hoping to find out with all of this? I mean, you’ve got a law background. This seems to me a huge move by the DOJ. What are you thinking, hoping will come out of all of this?
SPEAKER 09 :
Well, Clapper, Brennan, Comey, those guys lied to Congress, but there’s a statute of limitations on that. So I’m sure they’re not investigating those crimes because they can’t bring those. But there’s not a statute of limitation as it relates to conspiring and a conspiracy to undermine the federal government. So I assume that’s the line, the legal thought argument that they’re going down. It’s being reported that they’re bringing a grand jury together to start looking through this evidence. And hopefully the grand jury will indict these individuals for a conspiracy to undermine the federal government. and the president of the United States. So there are a lot of conservatives across the country that have thought for far too long, why have all these people gotten away with this activity when we know that they were using the intelligence apparatus to get warrants from the FISA court, a secret court, to then surveil on members of the Trump campaign based on a lie. And so hopefully there’ll be some justice here soon.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, you probably know about as much as anyone on this whole issue of weaponization, and really that’s what you’re referring to, how these individuals weaponize the power of the federal government to go after political opponents, political enemies. Of course, you served on the select subcommittee on weaponization during the last Congress. To those who would accuse the Trump administration of weaponization now, what would you say to those people?
SPEAKER 09 :
I would say that they’re fabricating a lie and then trying to say that the Trump administration is doing what Democrats did to Republicans for years. He’s actually, the President and Attorney General Bondi and the current administration is actually administering justice on the weaponization that occurred from Democrats for years. From Joe Biden to Obama, Comey, Clapper, all of these individuals for years perpetuated these lies. And look what they put President Trump through, all the things they raided Mar-a-Lago, all the stuff that they put the president through, when all the while they were utilizing the federal government to go after their political opponent, which is, in my opinion, treasonous activity.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, I think that’s powerfully stated, Congressman Stubbe, how you just said this is not weaponization. This is justice for weaponization that took place under the previous administrations. And I think that’s a powerful way of looking at it. If I can’t switch gears with you, I know you also just, I believe last week, introduced a bill on the No Foreign Election Partnership Act. Election integrity is a key issue, a major issue. Tell us what your bill is all about and what it will accomplish.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, if you told most Americans that the Federal Elections Commission and different elections apparatus can work with foreign entities and international elections organizations, they would all scratch their head and wonder why. But that actually can happen right now. And so what my bill would do is prevent any foreign entanglements, any international organizations from working with any election supervisors, Any elections, FEC, FEC, any of those things at the federal level. Why would we have international organizations involved in our elections? This bill will stop it.
SPEAKER 10 :
How is it being received among your colleagues?
SPEAKER 09 :
Well, you know, we’ve just filed it. We’re moving through that process. I would think very favorably, obviously, on the Republican side. Hopefully we can get some bipartisan support for it. I wouldn’t think the Democrats want international organizations involved in their elections as well. But it’s a very political environment, as you know, up in Washington. But we’ll move through the process and hopefully we can get it through the House.
SPEAKER 10 :
You also joined Senator Dan Sullivan from Alaska introducing the Securing Academia from Foreign Entanglements Act, also known as the SAFE Act. Is that similar? What would that bill do?
SPEAKER 09 :
Well, this would prevent the Chinese Communist Party and other actors of the foreign entity list to not be involved in our higher education. So they wouldn’t be able to give money. The Chinese Communist Party wouldn’t be able to give money to all these universities in support of research and then send their individuals over to be a part of that research. We shouldn’t be sharing information with the Chinese Communist Party or the Russians or any other entity that doesn’t have our best interests in mind. And it’s been going on for far too long. So that bill will not allow the Chinese Communist parties or other listed countries to pay our higher education institutions and then receive money or receive information because of that.
SPEAKER 10 :
Powerful bills. We will definitely be keeping a pulse on both of these. Florida Congressman Greg Stubbe, always great to see you. Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule right now in the district to join us here on Washington Watch. We deeply appreciate it.
SPEAKER 09 :
Yeah, good to see you, Johnny.
SPEAKER 10 :
Thank you. All right, friends, coming up, President Trump’s renewed threat to federalize the District of Columbia. Is it only a matter of time before that happens? Well, we’ll be talking about it next when I’m joined by Georgia Congressman Andrew Clyde. So don’t go away. We’ll be back in just a moment.
SPEAKER 18 :
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SPEAKER 10 :
Thank you for joining us today on Washington Watch. Welcome back. I’m Jody Heiss filling in for Tony. Thank you so much for joining us. Yesterday, President Trump renewed his criticism against Washington, D.C. officials for their mishandling of crime in that city as after a former Doge staffer was allegedly assaulted in an attempted carjacking. And we played a clip earlier to begin the program, but the president threatened a federal takeover of Washington, D.C., if they don’t get their act together quickly. Well, is it only a matter of time before this happens? Well, joining me now to discuss this is Congressman Andrew Clyde, who is among those on Capitol Hill who are critical of the D.C. home rule. which actually moved the D.C. away from direct federal control. He represents the 9th Congressional District of the great state of Georgia, and he joins me now by phone. Congressman Clyde, welcome to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us.
SPEAKER 17 :
Jody, it’s great to be with you on Washington Watch. Thank you for having me on.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, it’s a privilege indeed. I know you’ve got a lot of plates spinning and you’re on the road, so thank you for taking time out of your schedule. You have been one who for years now have been on top of this issue with what’s happening in Washington DC and the lack of oversight and control. Give us your assessment of DC’s overall handling of crime in the city.
SPEAKER 17 :
Well, I’ll tell you I’m incredibly disappointed as is the president and as literally I think every person in our nation should be disappointed by what we’re seeing in our capital city. You know, Article 1, Section 8, Clause 17 of our Constitution is so absolutely spot on when our founding fathers said that Congress shall have the power to exercise exclusive, exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever over such district. You know, over the years, federal city over Washington, D.C., Congress will have that authority. And the crime that is currently happening in our city is totally out of control. And we have seen it get worse and worse under this Democrat administration. You know, the city has been 95% Democrat for a very long time. And we have seen the results of it. We’ve seen a massive increase in crime. We’ve seen homelessness. I was just, you know, down Pennsylvania Avenue, and you see homelessness all down Pennsylvania Avenue. This city is a disgrace, literally, to be the shining city on a hill of liberty to the entire world, the way it’s run. And I think it’s time that Congress take it back.
SPEAKER 10 :
So let me ask you this. I referenced it introducing you, but the home rule, tell us a little bit about that because it does go directly against the Constitution that you just referenced.
SPEAKER 17 :
Well, you know, home rule basically sets Washington, D.C. aside and says that you know, the city council and the mayor, they can make the laws in Washington, D.C., and that Congress has the authority to overrule those laws, but we have a limited time in which to do it. I believe it’s 60 legislative days, or what D.C. has done becomes permanent law. Well, you know, that’s backwards. Congress should be the one, you know, approving every law, and if Congress doesn’t approve it, then it should be null and void. But that’s not the way the home rule statute in 1973 was written. And so I think that’s a huge mistake. And I think we need a legislative fix to that. And if we don’t do that, as the president said, he’s going to take executive action. And he has authority to take executive action over this city because, you know, everyone who comes to this city from all the districts throughout the entire United States should be able to come here and enjoy the amazing things that have been built and the amazing history of our government by the people, and do so safely. And they’re not able to do that right now. To quote one of the senior members on Capitol Hill, outside the Capitol Hill complex itself, the Capitol and the office buildings there, House and Senate, the Library of Congress, it’s a wild, wild west. outside that little domain right there.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, let me ask you this, because you referred to this, and I’d like some clarification a little bit. As I understand it, the president cannot federalize the district exclusively through executive order. It would take an act of Congress to take it back. But he does have some authority in certain areas. Is that correct?
SPEAKER 17 :
Yes, he does. He has a lot of authority in this city. Thankfully, we now have a United States attorney here in the city, Judge Jeanne Perreault, that was confirmed. And before that, we had a Biden administration, United States attorney that literally confirmed would not prosecute violent crime against the citizens here. And, you know, the quote, you know, teenagers that do adult type crimes, they just walk. And in fact, the city council, even back in 2023, they passed the revised criminal codec, which would have eliminated all mandatory minimum sentences all mandatory minimum sentences for violent crime except for number one first degree murder um but everything other than that so rape carjacking second degree murder you know home invasion uh you know what what uh brutal mugging and beating what happened to that that uh that young kid that the president uh tweeted the picture of you know i mean if people see that picture That’s terrible. You know, for teenagers, a gang of teenagers to do that to another individual, you know, especially when he’s trying to protect the lady that they’re trying to carjack her car.
SPEAKER 15 :
Right.
SPEAKER 17 :
I mean, it’s…
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, Congressman Clyde, we’re going to have to end it there. Thank you so much for your leadership on this area literally for years now. And thanks for joining us on Washington Watch. All right, friends, coming up, some good news on the life issue, but also a reminder of challenges. Stay tuned.
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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 15 :
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 19 :
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.
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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.
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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.
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How should Christians think about the thorny issues shaping our culture? How should Christians address deceitful ideas like transgenderism, critical theory, or assisted suicide? How can Christians navigate raising children in a broken culture, the war on gender roles, or rebuilding our once great nation? Outstanding is a podcast from The Washington Stand dedicated to these critical conversations. Outstanding seeks to tear down what our corrupt culture lifts up with an aim to take every thought and every idea captive to the obedience of Christ. Whether policies or partisan politics, whether conflict in America or conflict abroad, join us and our guests as we examine the headlines through the lens of Scripture and explore how Christians can faithfully exalt Christ in all of life. Follow Outstanding on your favorite podcast app and look for new episodes each week.
SPEAKER 10 :
You’re tuning in to Washington Watch. I’m Jody Heiss filling in today for Tony. Thank you so much for being a part of the program. Before we get into this last segment, I want to go a little bit further into encouraging you, FRC like-minded believers, to come join us for this year’s PrayVote Stand Summit. It’s going to be taking place on October 17th and 18th in Chino Hills, California. For those of you who have been to this in the past, you know how powerful, how life-changing this event is. For those of you who have not participated, this is pretty hard to describe. There will be Christian leaders, experts on issues that are facing our country, government leaders, much inspiration, times of prayer, opportunities for action. So look, if you’ve not already registered, I encourage you to do so today. You can learn more by going to PrayVoteStand.org, and we encourage you to do that, PrayVoteStand.org. All right, over the past weekend, There were a number of really, really good stories that came out on the life issue, and we want to hit on a couple of them now in this final segment. Among them was an order by a Colorado district court that permanently, permanently blocked a state law that prevented pro-life medical professionals from providing women the option for abortion pill reversal. You heard that right. The option to reverse the effects of the abortion drug. Well, joining me now to discuss this is Kevin Theriault. He’s a senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom. Kevin, welcome back to Washington Watch. It’s great to have you.
SPEAKER 07 :
Thanks, Jody. It’s good to be back with you.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well look, I know you’re not a doctor. You’re one of the best attorneys in the world, but not a doctor. But before we get into the background of the case specifically, Kevin, can you tell us a little bit more about the abortion pill reversal?
SPEAKER 07 :
Sure, so Colorado enacted a law that prohibits abortion pill reversal. It prohibits religious doctors from saving lives by offering women the chance to, after they’ve taken the first abortion drug, to take progesterone, which blocks the effects of that first abortion drugs and actually can keep the baby alive. So if they take that pill in between the first abortion drug, which is mifepristone, and the second one, which is misoprostol, there’s about a 65% chance that that baby will live.
SPEAKER 10 :
Wow, OK, so with that information, let’s go back to the case itself. Little bit of background if you would fill us in and this is great news that just came out. So kind of fill us in on the history here.
SPEAKER 07 :
It is Colorado’s pro abortion lobby pressured the legislature to enact this ridiculous law that prohibits doctors from saving lives by offering abortion pill reversal to women who changed their minds about their pregnancy. And really what it does is it interferes with a woman’s right to choose life and to continue her pregnancy. We joined a lawsuit that was filed by our friends over at Beckett Fund on behalf of Chelsea Minnick, who’s a nurse practitioner in Castle Rock. And a complaint was filed against her with the nursing board saying that she violated this new law. And so we asked the court to intervene. And just this past Friday, the court entered a great decision saying this law violates her rights as well as
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, it’s really amazing to me, Kevin, as I understand it, and tell me if I’m wrong here, but is it true that doctors and nurses were not only prohibited from providing this APR, but they were barred from even providing information on this whole process to patients? Is that true?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, the statute in the preamble of the statute, it basically says, no, it says outright that providing advertising about or offering this simply offering it to patients is unethical. And with the court held, though, in this, which was a great a great and another great holding in the decision was that that. preamble part of the statute has no effect. And so the law does not prohibit nurse practitioners like Chelsea Minnick and other medical professionals from advertising that they offer abortion pill reversal.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, when you look at the whole situation here, the efficacy of the reversal process may be debated, but as I understand it, it’s a safe process. And when you consider the dangers that are associated with the abortion drug, it feels like there’s no other explanation for this law other than just a clear bias trying to force people towards abortion rather than choosing life. Is that… kind of a proper way to look at this?
SPEAKER 07 :
Absolutely. The proponents of the law that we’re pressuring the legislature to enact it are blatant abortionists that are anti-Presidency Center, anti-pro-life, and they just do not like anything that even hints at the fact that some women change their minds and regret their abortion. um they want to be they wanted to be this thing like taking tylenol and it simply isn’t and it’s interesting to note that the court said that um that the taking progesterone which is what is used to reverse the effects of the uh or block the effects of the first abortion drug you know there’s no other restriction on progesterone doctors use it all the time during pregnancy to prohibit preterm birth for premenstrual syndrome, that kind of thing. And Colorado didn’t restrict use of progesterone for that at all. Just this use, which is used to save lives, and according to our clients, religious convictions.
SPEAKER 10 :
Wow, interesting. All right, final question. So what does the court decision from Friday do exactly?
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, the court decision puts a permanent hold on the law and prohibits prohibits the state of Colorado from enforcing against our clients. It also holds that it violates the freedom of religion of our clients. So it sets a the first president that I’m aware of that says that abortion pill reversal offered by people who have religious conviction to to offer it and to save lives is protected by the United States Constitution.
SPEAKER 10 :
Wow. Thank you so much, ADF Senior Counsel Kevin Theriault. Great work for you and all the team. And thank you so much for joining us on Washington Watch.
SPEAKER 07 :
Thanks for having me on, Jody.
SPEAKER 10 :
You bet. All right. We’ve got some more good news that have come out the last couple of days on this life issue. The announcement by Planned Parenthood that it is going to cease all operations in Louisiana on September 30th. They’re going to be closing their clinics in Baton Rouge as well as New Orleans. So great news. But there is a sobering aspect to all of this that we need to keep in mind. While the great news is that Planned Parenthood is closing in Louisiana, the truth is that abortions nationwide, including in Louisiana… continue to be on the rise. This has been taking place ever since the Supreme Court’s decision, Roe v. Wade. And what has been fueling the rise in abortions is the abortion drug, which, quite frankly, the previous administration under Joe Biden, they paved the way for all of this. But as we frequently have noted, the Trump administration can turn all this around. So here now to continue this conversation is Mary Zock. She’s the director of the Center for Human Dignity here at the Family Research Council. Mary, welcome back to Washington Watch. Great to have you.
SPEAKER 03 :
It’s an honor to be here, Jody.
SPEAKER 10 :
OK, so for those who may be unaware, remind us about how the Biden administration did. As I just referenced, they literally flooded the market, so to speak, by removing so many of the necessary safeguards around this dangerous abortion drug.
SPEAKER 03 :
They did. They used the COVID pandemic as an excuse to remove the in person dispensing requirement for Mifepristone. requiring a woman to meet with a healthcare professional in person increased her risk of obtaining COVID. And therefore, that requirement had to be removed for the entire pandemic. But following that, they removed the actual REM. So there is no longer an in-person dispensing requirement for this drug. And after they did that, the Biden administration’s Department of Justice issued an opinion that the Comstock Act, which clearly states that An abortion-inducing drug cannot be sent through the mail. They issued an opinion that said that they would enforce that as narrowly as possible, meaning basically not at all.
SPEAKER 10 :
Wow. So we have this great news coming out of Louisiana, and I don’t want to minimize that at all. The closing of Planned Parenthood is huge, and we are celebrating that. And also, by the way, there was a couple of other pro-life laws that went into effect in Louisiana, one that allows citizens of that state to literally sue out-of-state doctors who are sending abortion drugs into the state. And so we have, Mary, pro-life states like Louisiana, unquestionably, they’re doing their part in this continuing fight for life and against abortion drugs and so forth. But we’ve also discussed on this program a number of times that we’ve got blue states that are now using shield laws to protect abortionists. How do we deal with this and how can the Trump administration stop the flow of these abortion drugs that are being prescribed by pro-abortion doctors in blue states and then being sent in to pro-life states?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, this is something that we will likely see at some point reach its way to the Supreme Court. There’s a man in Texas who has filed a lawsuit against a California doctor for mailing the abortion drug Mifepristone to his girlfriend in Texas. We’ve seen cases in Louisiana where the abortion drug has been sent by an abortionist from New York. to Louisiana resulting in a woman needing to go to the emergency room. And that same abortionist sent that drug to a woman in Texas and it again resulted in that woman needing emergency care. This drug is dangerous and it can’t be sent through the mail. The Trump administration needs to, the Department of Justice needs to re-examine the opinion that the Biden administration issued on Comstock. The Trump administration has a wonderful reputation of being in favor of the rule of law. This is a law that is clearly stated. It is on the books, and it should be enforced. We can’t be dealing with a situation where the governor of New York says, we’ll do everything possible to ensure that abortionists here can send abortion drugs to states like Louisiana and Texas. This is not something that can continue to happen.
SPEAKER 10 :
Well, and let me just say, we’ve been asking over and over and over for our viewers and listeners to join us in this effort. And again, I want to thank you for all that you do to keep us informed on what’s going on with this issue and many others. But friends, you want to be a part of us encouraging the Trump administration to stand for life and try to stop these drugs. I simply text the word life. to 67742, LIFE to 67742, and you can join our efforts in what Mary is talking about right now. Mary, there’s some other life-related news. I’m sure you’re following this, but earlier this week, the Trump administration, frankly, made some pretty significant waves regarding his administration’s IVF policy. Can you tell us a little bit more about that?
SPEAKER 03 :
Certainly there was a leak from the Trump administration that said that the Trump administration will not be mandating that insurers recover, that insurers cover IVF. And this is great news because it tells us what most of us have known for a very long time, and that is that President Trump actually cares about the Constitution. To mandate that insurers cover IVF would be a violation of the freedom of religion of both businesses and of insurers who have an issue with the IVF process or with IVF completely. And so it’s a really big step to see that the Trump administration will not be requiring insurers to have mandated coverage of IVF.
SPEAKER 10 :
Yeah, that’s big. So remind us overall, Mary, some of the ethical concerns, moral concerns regarding IVF. Why is this a big deal?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, there’s a number that as pro-lifers that we think of immediately, the number of embryos that are frozen, the pre-implantation genetic testing that is eugenic and results in the destruction of life, the number of embryos that are discarded because they’re not used. The intentional separation of parents from their children through embryo, what is called embryo donation. Those are some of the issues that people frequently think of when they’re pro-life and approaching the IVF issue. But one that goes often unthought of is the issue of the fact that this does not actually address the issue of infertility and that IVF is actually subpar care for a woman or a couple that is struggling with infertility. There are better methods out there that actually address the root cause and get to the issue behind why that couple hasn’t been able to achieve pregnancy or hasn’t been able to carry a child to term.
SPEAKER 10 :
I think this is a huge area where we need a lot more education. I think there’s a lot of confusion out there, even within the pro-life community about IVF. And many look at this saying, oh, it’s a pro-life trying to have a baby. But there are major issues like what you just brought up that need to be discussed. And education needs to be brought forth of so many deep underlying issues that need to be resolved. So, Mary, again, I want to thank you so much for the incredible work you do at FRC and beyond on life issues and so many different things. Thank you for joining us today on Washington Watch.
SPEAKER 03 :
It’s an honor to be here.
SPEAKER 10 :
All right, friends, that wraps it up. This is your one-stop shop for current news of the day from a biblical worldview perspective. Thanks for joining us. We’ll be back tomorrow right here on Washington Watch.
SPEAKER 21 :
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.
