?On today’s program: Pete Ricketts, U.S. Senator for Nebraska, reacts to the current list of names to be nominated for posts in the second Trump administration and celebrates his state’s pro-life victories. Greg Lopez, U.S. Representative for
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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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I think in the first hundred days of the agenda, the first hundred days of the new Congress beginning in early January, we’ll be able to take the field and start putting points on the board early. And then we will develop the agenda as the time goes forward. And we will make President Trump, and I believe this next Congress, the most consequential of the modern era.
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That was House Speaker Mike Johnson. We’ll hear more from our conversation over the weekend about his plans for the first 100 days of the 119th Congress. Welcome to Washington Watch. I’m your host, Tony Perkins. Let me start by expressing my gratitude to the men and women who have donned the uniforms of our nation’s military. Thank you for your service on this Veterans Day. Thank you for keeping the sacred flame of liberty alive. Well, today, in honor of Veterans Day, we’ll be speaking with Texas Congressman Keith Self, a retired Army colonel. Congressman Self also serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. So we’re going to discuss both Veterans Day and the global geopolitical impact of the election of Donald Trump. On the topic of the first 100 days, President-elect Trump is already making key appointments, including New York Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, for a role at the United Nations as the ambassador. Now, that will open up a House leadership position. And this week, the House and Senate are both scheduled to select their leaders for the next Congress. Nebraska Senator Pete Ricketts will join us to talk about what lies ahead in the Senate and share insights into the secret sauce that led to the success of Nebraska’s Life Amendment last week. We’ll also be examining the significant shift among some key voting blocs, especially Hispanic voters from Democrat to Republican. What’s driving this change? We’ll discuss it with newly elected Congressman Greg Lopez of Colorado. Today, Family Research Council is announcing Operation Prayer Shield, a 10-week prayer initiative for our nation as we enter a very critical time. It requires our collective prayer for God’s divine protection and guidance for the incoming administration. From now until January 20th, we will prepare for the transition of leadership in our country as we, during this period, will face some, I think, some global challenges. And we also will be in the midst of a lame duck session of Congress starting tomorrow. So we believe that this season calls for a heightened spiritual vigilance, discernment, and unity. So I invite you to join us. And to do so, just text the word SHIELD, S-H-I-E-L-D, SHIELD to 67742. That’s 67742, SHIELD. And you’ll have access to daily prayer points, scripture, and a weekly live prayer conference call. Again, text SHIELD to 67742 and join us in praying for our nation at this critical juncture. All right, with Election Day in the rearview mirror, Republicans are looking ahead and charting a path forward for a GOP-led federal government. And on the minds of many is who President-elect Donald Trump will select for key roles in his new cabinet.
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I expect the president to make bold decisions. He has to come up with actually a 1,200 different appointees who get confirmed by the United States Senate. And I can tell you there are lots and lots of very qualified individuals who are going to be considered for cabinet posts and other posts in government. And the Senate is ready to take a look at each and every one of them.
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That was Wyoming Senator John Barrasso yesterday on Meet the Press. Already some announcements have been made, as I mentioned, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik as the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, former Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Tom Hoban as the border czar, and some other appointments. So what do these appointments so far tell us about the incoming cabinet and what might they signal to the rest of the nation today? and to the world for that matter. Joining me now to discuss this, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, who serves on three Senate committees, including the Committee on Foreign Relations. Senator Ricketts, welcome back to Washington Watch. Good to see you. Thank you very much. Thanks for having me on again. First of all, Senator, congratulations on winning your election to the United States Senate. Thank you very much. It was a team effort. Well, and you did it quite handedly. Let me ask you, first off, your thoughts on the appointments that President-elect Donald Trump has made thus far.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, so far, they’ve been absolutely fantastic with regard to what President Trump is doing. And I think not only is he picking really quality people that will do a great job of fighting for us, but it also demonstrates that his administration is going to be ready to hit the ground running when they come in. And that’s really important because, you know, we’re only guaranteed two years here. So we’ve got to move very, very fast to get his agenda done.
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So this afternoon, it was announced that former Congressman Lee Zeldin will be leading the EPA. You know, as a state, former governor of your state, I’m sure that that’s an entity that you want to see operate within the bounds of its constitutional authority and kind of maybe clip its wings a little bit.
SPEAKER 07 :
You’re absolutely correct there, Tony. You know, I sit on the Environment and Public Works Committee, which oversees the EPA. So I’ve seen firsthand how they have really been stretching beyond the bounds of the law what they are trying to do. Their tailpipe emissions, for example, require two thirds of all electric or all cars being sold in 2032 to be electric vehicles. And that is driving up costs for Americans. If you look just in general, the 5,000 regulations the Biden-Harris administration put in is adding $3,300 to the cost of every American household. We’ve got to unravel this. And that’s why I’m looking forward to having Lee Zeldin there. He’s going to be a great choice. We’ve got to get him confirmed quickly so we can start undoing the damage that the Biden-Harris administration has done over these last four years. The amount of overregulation is just burdening American households. It’s jamming a big government socialist agenda down our throats, and we’ve got to put an end to it.
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Senator Ricketts, walk our viewers and listeners through that confirmation process, not just for former Congressman Zeldin, but just in general. How’s that going to unfold?
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, so what will happen is with President Trump’s nominees, they will go in front of the respective committees that they are – that have the oversight. And so there will be an opportunity for the candidate to be able to talk about what – They hope to do. There will also be questions from both Republicans and Democrats to that person. And then the committee will vote on that person to – we have to have majority votes to get them out of committee. The good news is with Republicans in charge of the Senate, we will have majorities in all those committees to be able to get that person put to the floor. And this is, again, where with the Republicans in charge of the Senate, we’ll be able to move very quickly on – President Trump’s nominees to get them confirmed as quickly as possible. You know, this is critical that we have those nominees, we get them done early. And it’s also one of the things where, you know, if you look at Chuck Schumer, he didn’t really have us there very often. I think we were only in session about, scheduled to be in session about 29 weeks this year out of the 52 weeks out of a year. So what I’ve encouraged all the leader candidates is that, hey, we got to work hard. You know, most Americans work Monday through Friday. You know, we ought to be thinking about the same sort of thing to be able to make sure we get President Trump’s agenda done.
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Now, because of a rule change a number of years back, it only requires 50 votes on the Senate, 51 votes on the Senate floor to move these nominees forward. So with 53, 54 Republicans, depending on how everything shakes out, that shouldn’t be a problem.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, and that’s one of the things that we’ve got to move forward on those judge candidates that you point out. So that’s going to be a key thing to move along as well. There is just a general process issue that all these candidates have to go through to take time, which is why it’s so important we get started as quickly as possible.
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Let me move to your home state of Nebraska. And as I do so, I want to point to the two initiatives that were on the ballot, two constitutional amendments, one to enshrine abortion into the Constitution. That failed. There was a provision to protect life. That did succeed in large part because of your leadership. And I just want to I want to point that out to our viewers and listeners that even as a as a senator focused on the federal issues in Washington, you leaned in very heavily in the state of Nebraska personally to help fund the effort as well as to to speak into it and use your resources. your leadership. We saw in the 10 states that had these on the ballot, those states that had leaders that would lean in and lead, the life position prevailed. And I just want to say thank you for that.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, thank you, Tony. I appreciate it. And certainly this is one that my mom also invested very heavily in, Marlene Ricketts. And it’s always a team effort, right? You always you only get it done because of that. But I do think you’re right when you look at what Ron DeSantis did in Florida or Dusty Johnson did in South Dakota. We also had my governor involved. We did a fly around the state in the last few days before the election. And we had Senator Deb Fischer on there. We had Adrian Smith and Mike Flood, two of our congressmen. So I think having publicly elected officials involved in this was one of the key steps. Two other key steps that we had were, one, that we had the pro-life work groups all working together. And so that took time to get the coalition working. But everybody just everybody pitched in and did a great job. Again, it’s a team effort. That was obviously very critical. And then one of the key things is we offered an alternative by giving people something to vote for. We saw what happened in Ohio where a red state voted to put this really, really radical pro-abortion language in their constitution that guarantees the fundamental right to abortion. What we did is really focus on, hey, let’s take that off the table by giving people something to vote for. And so we can contrast that with our initiative, which took our current state law and proposed to put that in the Constitution versus just telling people to vote no against a really, really bad one. And that was ultimately very successful where we got enough votes to block theirs out and ultimately kept them under 50 percent so that they couldn’t get theirs in the Constitution. So that was very good. And then finally, I just want to give a shout out. You know, it’s always a team effort. But we had six young student athletes from the University of Nebraska who stepped up and did some commercials for us. Very courageous, very principled, just wonderful Christian women. And it takes a lot of courage, especially at that age, to step up and say, hey, I’m going to call this out for what it is. And it was their commercial was just so impactful. I just got to give a shout out to, you know, we had a softball player, Jordy Ball, that was there. We had a volleyball player, Rebecca Alec, was there. So we had lots of great people who stepped up. But, you know, those young athletes, those young student athletes were really tremendously instrumental in helping us get the message out.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, you’re absolutely right. It’s always a team effort, but every team has a leader. And I just, again, want to underscore because we’ve seen in the last couple of years, we’ve seen a lot of Republicans back away from this issue. But every time they’ve embraced it because it comes from within, and you have a record on this as you were a governor for two terms there in Nebraska. When you believe in this, you don’t have a difficult time talking about it. And as a result, people will follow. That’s what leaders do. And so I appreciate you recognizing the others are part of the team. But I want it to be – we need more leaders, elected leaders who are not backing away from these issues. And I hope as we move into this new Congress, as we have new members coming in, new senators, new members of Congress, that – we will continue to embrace these moral and social issues, which are really the foundation for a nation to be great.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, absolutely. Our founders certainly recognized that we get to keep our republic if we have our religious values, that that was fundamental to the functioning of our republic. And that without them, we wouldn’t have that moral compass with which to guide us. So and certainly they meant for us to bring those to the public square. So I think it is important that we just continue to talk about these issues. We’ve got to win more hearts and minds. We’ve got a lot of work to do in the pro-life movement.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, Senator, again, grateful for your leadership. And thanks so much for joining us today. Look forward to seeing you again real soon.
SPEAKER 07 :
Great. Thanks very much for having me on.
SPEAKER 05 :
Absolutely. Senator Pete Ricketts of Nebraska. And again, it’s so encouraging when we have our leaders who will step forward and lead on these issues. And this is a part of our prayer as we move into this new Congress, because there’s been some stepping away from these fundamental core issues. And we’ve got to embrace them. And we need good leaders, especially counselors that are a part of the president’s cabinet, So join us in praying. Text the word SHIELD, Operation Prayer Shield. Text SHIELD to 67742 and join us in this effort. All right, coming up, Democrats are still trying to figure out how they lost as badly as they did on Election Day. And they have pushed away segments of voters that historically they had in their corner, including Hispanics. We’re going to talk with a new congressman after this.
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Download the new Stand Firm app for Apple and Android phones today and join a wonderful community of fellow believers. We’ve created a special place for you to access news from a biblical perspective, read and listen to daily devotionals, pray for current events and more. Share the Stand Firm app with your friends, family and church members and stand firm everywhere you go.
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Let’s not be discouraged. Don’t lose heart. Don’t lose the faith. Stand now strong because the Lord has given us the great privilege of living in a time when our choices matter, when our lives matter, when our courage matters. So let’s stand together and save this great country. God bless the United States of America.
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the american republic has a freedom like no other it has roots in the scriptures far more than any other heritage and if we as followers of jesus and conservatives don’t defend it who will
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Neutrality is not an option. There are many Christians who believe that if we just keep our heads down, if we just don’t say the wrong thing, that somehow we will come out of this unscathed. You’re naive if you think that, because what they want from us is not our silence. What they want from us is our submission.
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Part of the dilemma of Christianity in our generation is that we’ve relied a little too much on human wisdom and human reasoning, human strength, human resource, and we’ve relied too little on the power of God and God’s ability to open doors that we can’t open and do things that we couldn’t even hope to begin to do.
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This may not be an easy task, But we are living in a moment of challenge, but also a great opportunity. And we know always that we are not alone, that His Spirit empowers us and protects us, and that He can do the unimaginable. Dobbs, after all, was never supposed to have.
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Father, we thank you. You have entrusted us with this moment in history, and I pray that we would be found faithful, and that as a result of our faithfulness to you, that thousands, millions would come into the kingdom as they would experience the forgiveness of sin and the new life that is found only in Jesus Christ. Amen.
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Are you a Christian parent looking to raise a spiritual champion in today’s culture? Renowned author George Barna has written a new book, Raising Spiritual Champions. This book offers valuable insights based on extensive research conducted by George Barna, the Family Research Council, and Arizona Christian University. Learn how to help your children discern biblical truth and find compelling meaning and purpose. Don’t miss out on this essential resource for parents. Order your copy today.
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Welcome back to Washington Watch. Good to have you with us. Let me again invite you to join us in the prayer effort over the next 10 weeks. Operation Prayer Shield as we pray for the transition of power from one administration to the next. But also pray for incoming President Donald Trump that he would be surrounded by godly and wise counselors. To join us in this effort, simply text the word SHIELD to 67742. That’s SHIELD to 67742. Well, Election Day 2024 held many surprises, and among them was how Hispanic voters came out in force. Not for Democrats, like they have in the past, but for the GOP. When the dust settled, there was a 14-point swing in Trump’s share of Hispanic voters, according to an exit poll conducted by Edison Research. Some 46% of self-identified Hispanic voters picked Trump, up from 32% in the 2020 election. what’s driving this and what could this mean going forward? Here now to discuss this, Congressman Greg Lopez. He serves on the House Budget Committee as well as the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, represents the 4th Congressional District of Colorado. And he is a new member of Congress, just recently elected. Congressman Lopez, welcome to Washington Watch.
SPEAKER 01 :
Tony, welcome. Thank you for having me. It’s a pleasure to be on your show.
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So you are serving the remainder of former Representative Ken Buck’s term as he stepped down in March. You won a special election in June. You weren’t planning to run in November. However, you ended up replacing Lauren Boebert, who won Colorado’s fourth congressional district last Tuesday.
SPEAKER 01 :
Actually, you know, Lauren will be coming in and taking over on the 119th Congress. I will be stepping aside at the end of this year. So Lauren Boebert will be the congressional representative for Colorado’s Congressional District 4. I chose not to seek election in November. But, you know, I’ve been out there working hard, you know, talking to people in the district. And I’m so excited about what happened in the election, specifically with the Hispanic vote.
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Well, let’s talk about that Hispanic vote. What drove this shift?
SPEAKER 01 :
I tell you, you know, for the last several years, I’ve been out here in Colorado talking to political pundits and talking to the communities. And what I realized, you know, I ran for governor out here in Colorado. And when I was traveling the state, you know, I noticed that the Democrat Party was totally ignoring the values of the Hispanic community, the values of faith. the values of family, the values of community and hardworking individuals. You know, they truly were destroying and tearing the fabric of our values. They were being disrespectful with all the issues that they were doing to attack our families, to undermine our children. And I think the Hispanic vote finally decided, you know what, we’re sick and tired of being invisible. We sometimes believe that our vote doesn’t matter. And the Democrat Party always believed that we would always hold on to that mantra that the Republicans are for the rich and the Democrats are for the poor. And they forgot that our community is thriving. We are becoming an economic influence. We have political power now. And so we decided that we need to find someone that will put people over politics. Too many politicians put politics over people. And the Hispanic community truly believes that government should always put people over politics. And I think that’s what you saw in this historic realignment of the Hispanic vote going to the Republican Party.
SPEAKER 05 :
So, Congressman, let me ask you this question. When you look at this shift, pretty significant shift, that where does the concern about law and order factor into that decision to back a party that wants to enforce the law at the border?
SPEAKER 01 :
But the Hispanic community, we’re strong in community. We want our children to have a safe street just like everybody else. And we as Americans do not want the border open. I’m here to tell you, Tony, that Hispanic Americans want the border closed. We want people to follow the law. We want them to get here legally, just like most Hispanics did. We don’t appreciate them cutting in line. We don’t appreciate the government saying, you can come and we’ll deal with it later. And I think the border itself was another disrespect to the Hispanic community to say, look, we came here the right way. We’ve worked hard. We’ve tried to build and integrate into our communities. And now you’re bringing in people that are just coming in very quickly. They’re getting all the benefits that a citizen gets. It’s really hard to tell the difference now between the benefits of a United States citizen and the benefits of a legal alien. And so the Hispanic community said, enough. We’re going to go with President Trump. He was closing down the border. He was making our community secure. It’s time to go back.
SPEAKER 05 :
Congressman Lopez, as you pointed out, the Hispanic community very strong on family. How do those issues factor into the shift from the party that made abortion until birth their top policy priority? How does that factor in?
SPEAKER 01 :
Look, it factors in a lot because, you know, when they try to tell our children that God makes mistakes, that a Hispanic boy, if he wants to be a girl, we can just call him a girl or vice versa. You know, when I talk to Hispanic community and I’m bilingual and I let them know that this is what they’re teaching in schools, they get very upset because we are strong believers in our Lord Jesus. We’re strong believers in what the Bible teaches us. And when the Democrat Party is trying to throw that out the window and trying to confuse our children, we don’t appreciate that. When they try to undermine the definition of marriage, you know, we also do not appreciate what they’re doing. When it comes to abortion, you know, we believe that every life is precious and every child is a gift. And when they tell us that it’s It’s healthcare, right? It’s women’s healthcare. We want them to realize that, you know what, it’s killing babies. That’s the truth. That’s really what it is. And so the Hispanic community is very strong. The Catholic Church in Colorado came against the initiative to bring abortion into the Constitution. Unfortunately, it passed here in Colorado, but there’s a lot of people here that are working against it into the future. But this is what really has shifted within the mindset of the Hispanic community is they realize they’re not teaching biblical values. They’re not talking about our faith and our family. They’re talking about everything else.
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Congressman Lopez, final question, 30 seconds. Is this alignment? Could it be permanent?
SPEAKER 01 :
But if the Republican Party does the right thing, look, for too long, the Republican Party has been ignoring the Hispanic vote because they always believed that it was going to go Democrat. Here we want the Republican Party has an opportunity to reach out into the Hispanic community. And that’s why I’m calling on President Trump to put a Hispanic person on his cabinet, a Hispanic man, a Hispanic woman onto the cabinet, because we helped them get there. It’s important for him to recognize that and allow us to be a part of the solution.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, Congressman Lopez, I want to thank you for being a part of our program today and speaking into this issue. Very important. Appreciate your insight and input. Look forward to talking to you real soon.
SPEAKER 01 :
You have a blessed day.
SPEAKER 05 :
You too. All right, folks, don’t go away when we come back. I’m going to share with you my conversation I had with House Speaker Mike Johnson over the weekend. That’s next.
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All of us are born with the desire to find truth and meaning. Where did I come from? What happens when I die? While our answers to these questions may divide us, we are united in our need for the freedom to answer life’s biggest questions and make life’s biggest decisions for ourselves. That’s why religious freedom matters for everyone. Religious freedom matters because the powerful have long wanted to control those who are less powerful. Religious freedom matters because the freedom of those who are different is often threatened by those who believe different is dangerous. Leah Sharibu, a Christian teenager in Nigeria, remains a captive of Boko Haram for her refusal to renounce her Christian faith. Chinese pastor Wang Yi is serving a nine-year sentence for speaking publicly against the Chinese government. In Pakistan, Asif Pervez is on death row for allegedly sending a blasphemous text message. All of this because people in power decided different is dangerous. at the Center for Religious Liberty at Family Research Council. We promote religious freedom for everyone because the only alternative is religious freedom for no one. We encourage Americans and the American government to engage and advocate for the persecuted. And they do. We work every day to bring good news to the afflicted, to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners. We do it because that’s what Jesus does. We work to give freedom to others because we ourselves have been set free.
SPEAKER 05 :
Welcome back to Washington Watch. Good to have you with us on this Monday. All right. Following last week’s decisive win by now President-elect Donald Trump, I spoke with House Speaker Mike Johnson on our weekend program this week on The Hill. We dove into what the first 100 days of a unified government will look like. We also talked about the next two months of the transition period from the Biden administration to the Trump administration. Could the nation be at risk? Could our allies in the Middle East be at risk? Here’s our conversation. Mr. Speaker, you sent a letter to your colleagues this week, and in this you outlined the priorities in the new Congress based upon that mandate that you made reference to, secure borders, promote investment and opportunity through the tax code, energy dominance, reduce regulations, expand school choice, and end the woke agenda. What does that look like?
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Well, we have very detailed plans. In that letter, I summarized how I’ve been explaining this on the campaign trail for the last year, and that is with a simple football metaphor. In Louisiana, as you know, we explain everything in football and hurricane metaphors, and to me, that makes it easy to understand. Look, in the football metaphor, what you have to do to win the game is put points on the board. So back up further, how do you put points on the board? You have well-prepared players to take the field, and you have a well-designed playbook. And so we’ve, of course, known that formula for a long time. So for the last year, we’ve been working methodically behind the scenes to develop and design that playbook. And it is well-designed and well-thought. A lot of work and hours have gone into this. And so now, in the metaphor, President Trump will be the newly sworn head coach when he takes over as the president. And we will go in. I’ll be the quarterback. And we’ll sit down, look at that playbook. And we’ll run out and execute those plays with precision. So In the playbook, among the menu of options, and we’ll be working, of course, with our Senate Republican colleagues, they’re all dialed in on this as well. In that is the list of priorities that the American people care so much about, that we know intuitively, but that they also told us with their voices and their votes over the last year. We got to secure the border on day one, and we will. There’ll be an executive order to do that, followed by legislation that will seal and secure the border. And then we deal with the fallout of the madness that has ensued over the last four years with regard to all of that. And then we’ll turn to, as you said, I mentioned the tax code. Remember the tax cuts of the Trump administration, the first administration will expire this year unless we extend them. And so we’ve got to do that. And we have a lot of work to fine tune and ensure that we have the right conditions in the economy to spur on a pro-growth economy. And that’s what’s desperately needed right now to turn the economy around. So the other part of that you referenced is, that I said in my letter, is the regulatory reform. Energy policy is key to this. All these things work together To ensure the formula to move forward. So the bottom line is, I think in the first hundred days of the agenda, the first hundred days of the new Congress beginning in early January, we’ll be able to take the field and start putting points on the board early. And then we will develop the agenda as the time goes forward. And we will make President Trump, and I believe this next Congress, the most consequential of the modern era.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, if I can continue that metaphor, Mr. Speaker, this gives the Republicans the ball, allows them onto the field. But I think you even note in your letter, the game is far from won. This is just an opportunity to get on the field and win the game. And that’s one of the things I’ve been communicating to, especially to Christians across the country. You know, this election saves our freedom. so that we can use that freedom to preserve it for the next generation. So far from being resolved, this is when we roll up our sleeves and go to work. And I think your constituents, I think the conservatives across the country that helped create this majority need to know that the work is just beginning.
SPEAKER 15 :
Well, absolutely. I think that’s very well said. I mean, we have made it to the big game, and now we have to play the game for very important quarters, four years of the next administration. And you’ve got to leave it on the field in every single play. I mean, you have to have precision in what you do, and you have to have players who are prepared to do what it takes to get it done. I think we have those ingredients in place, and now we have to do it. I I’ve had so many friends over the last couple of days since the election congratulate us and say, oh, boy, do you finally get to get a nap? And I just laugh and I say, a nap? Are you kidding? Now the hard work really begins. So we’re ready for that. We’re all counting on a very aggressive work agenda. I’ve told all the members, the incumbents who are reelected and the new persons coming in. Get ready. Tell your spouses now this is not going to be leisure time. We have so much to do, and in relative terms, a small amount of time to do it. So we’ll be hard at work already.
SPEAKER 05 :
So let’s talk about the lame duck session of Congress that begins next week. Now, obviously, it doesn’t look as dangerous as it once looked like because I think this incoming administration has a mandate, so I don’t think Chuck Schumer is going to have a whole lot of room to fool around with. So, number one, what does the lame duck look like? And then number two, this transitional period of two and a half months, we are in a very volatile time internationally. I mean, the world’s on fire. Is the risk great during this time?
SPEAKER 15 :
The risk is great. We’re in a heightened threat environment. We have been for some time because of the lack of leadership from the White House. In fact, it was worse than a lack of leadership. It was the projection of weakness on the world stage. And as we’ve discussed so many times, that is what has inspired and put forward the aggression by our enemies. And so they are watching this. I think they’re Our enemies are very concerned and frightened, frankly, that President Trump beat Kamala Harris. I think they wanted more weakness in the White House, and they’re going to get the opposite. So you look at that, and you wonder what effect that has over the next couple of months. Look, I believe and hope and pray, of course, that our adversaries see this as a time where they need to be in retreat and not aggressing further, because they know that under the new commander-in-chief, a new sheriff’s in town, and we’re not going to put up with that. We’re going to project peace through strength again.
SPEAKER 05 :
That was my conversation with House Speaker Mike Johnson during our weekend program this week on The Hill. But right now you’re tuned in to Washington Watch. And after the break, I’ll be joined by Texas Congressman Keith Self to talk about the importance of Veterans Day as well as the global geopolitical impact of Donald Trump’s election. That’s next. Don’t go away. More Washington Watch straight ahead.
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Jesus said in John 15, these things I’ve spoken to you, that my joy may remain in you and that your joy may be full. In 2024, in these divided and uncertain times, how can this be possible? By abiding in him through his word. At Family Research Council, we want to help you do that, which is the reason for the Stand on the Word Bible reading plan. In just 10 to 15 minutes each day, you will have read the entire Bible in just two years. But more importantly, you will be abiding in him daily. Find our Bible reading plan at frc.org slash Bible. And join Tony Perkins each weekday for a 10-minute devotional inspired by the daily reading and designed to encourage you on this journey through the Bible. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. And remember, the grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.
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Everything we do begins as an idea. Before there can be acts of courage, there must be the belief that some things are worth sacrificing for. Before there can be marriage, there is the idea that man should not be alone. Before there was freedom, there was the idea that individuals are created equal. It’s true that all ideas have consequences, but we’re less aware that all consequences are the fruit of ideas. Before there was murder, there was hate. Before there was a Holocaust, there was the belief by some people that other people are undesirable. Our beliefs determine our behavior, and our beliefs about life’s biggest questions determine our worldview. Where did I come from? Who decides what is right and wrong? What happens when I die? Our answers to these questions explain why people see the world so differently. Debates about abortion are really disagreements about where life gets its value. Debates over sexuality and gender and marriage are really disagreements about whether the rules are made by us or for us. What we think of as political debates are often much more than that. They’re disagreements about the purpose of our lives and the source of truth. As Christians, our goal must be to think biblically about everything. Our goal is to help you see beyond red and blue, left and right, to see the battle of ideas at the root of it all. Our goal is to equip Christians with a biblical worldview and help them advance and defend the faith in their families, communities, and the public square. Cultural renewal doesn’t begin with campaigns and elections. It begins with individuals turning from lies to truth. But that won’t happen if people can’t recognize a lie and don’t believe truth exists. We want to help you see the spiritual war behind the political war, the truth claims behind the press release, and the forest and the trees.
SPEAKER 05 :
Welcome back to Washington Watch. Again, as we celebrate Veterans Day, I want to thank all of our veterans for their service to our country. I had the privilege of Saturday night being at an event sponsored by Lighthouse Baptist Church in Holland, Michigan. Pastor Bart Spencer. It was a great event honoring veterans. I was a keynote speaker at this banquet with hundreds of veterans, including about a half dozen World War II veterans. Amazing. It was a great night. And one of the original Rosie the Riveters, you might have to Google that to remember what that was, but one of the women who worked in the plants taking the place of men, she is 99 years old. It was a great, great night. So, again, to all those men and women who have donned the uniform of our military, thank you. Thank you for keeping the sacred flame of liberty alive. Our word for today comes from Amos chapter 8, verse 11. Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord God, that I will send a famine on the land, not a famine of bread nor thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. You know what? If you don’t, if you won’t hear, eventually you can’t hear. There is a danger in ignoring the word of the Lord. America has been saturated with the gospel and the truth of God’s word, but increasingly over the last 60 years, we’ve refused to hear pushing it out of our public discourse and dialogue. There comes a point that God will say to a nation, have it your way. Recall in 1 Samuel chapter 3, the boy Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli, and the word of the Lord was rare in those days. There was no widespread revelation. Why was it rare? They had a priest, they had religion, but Eli did not listen and respond to the word of the Lord. If we want to hear the Lord speak, we must listen with open hearts and willing spirits. Let’s make it a priority to seek his voice in our lives daily so we never experience a famine of his word. To find out more about our journey through the Bible, text Bible to 67742. That’s Bible to 67742. The state of Qatar announced Saturday that it was hitting the pause button on its efforts to mediate between Israel and Hamas due to the lack of willingness and seriousness of the two parties. Meanwhile, Israel faces a deadline this Wednesday imposed by the Biden administration that says that if they do not increase the amount of humanitarian aid going into Gaza, they could lose military financing from the U.S., With more than two months before the new administration steps into the White House, how might the situation continue to unfold in the Middle East and elsewhere? And how might the new administration approach it differently? Joining me now to discuss this and more, Congressman Keith Self, who served our country for 25 years before retiring at the rank of lieutenant colonel. During his service, he deployed to Grenada. Bosnia, Afghanistan, Qatar for Operation Iraqi Freedom. Today is a member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee and the Foreign Affairs Committee. He represents the 3rd Congressional District of Texas. Congressman Self, welcome back to the program.
SPEAKER 06 :
Great to be here, Tony. Thank you.
SPEAKER 05 :
First of all, happy Veterans Day. Thank you for your service to our nation.
SPEAKER 06 :
Thank you. Thank you.
SPEAKER 05 :
Let me—before we jump into the political, the geopolitical, let’s talk about this day, that we recognize veterans. Why is it important that we pause and we take that opportunity, this opportunity, to thank those who have donned the uniform and served our nation?
SPEAKER 06 :
Because we want to speak English, not German, Japanese or Chinese. Yeah, the perfect perspective of family in my district. Friday, I spoke at a veterans event. A family came up to me afterwards, and they said, it’s good to know you’re a veteran. We thought you were just a congressman. That’s a perfect perspective. Our veterans deserve respect and honor, and today’s the day to give it to them.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, those that put on uniform deserve respect, even when they have it on. And a lot of that is driven by the policies that an administration puts in place. Do you see, and I know this is a rhetorical question, but do you see a change coming in terms of the way we treat our nation’s military?
SPEAKER 06 :
Oh, that’s not a rhetorical question at all, Tony. It will change because we have recruiting problems. People are demoralized in the military. Our chaplains don’t have the support they needed. In fact, they were punished for acts of conscience during COVID period, which we have tried to correct. A change is coming. And we must return our military to the lethal force that we need to back up our diplomacy, our deterrence around the world. Change is coming, Tony.
SPEAKER 05 :
So we have, in this lame duck session of Congress, we will be passing, and that starts tomorrow, we will have the National Defense Authorization Act. Do you see that taking on any new twist or turn given the election results?
SPEAKER 06 :
I don’t know about this year, because I’m very concerned about the lame duck session that you talk about, because people who do not support President Trump, people who resigned, didn’t win their election, didn’t win their primary, they have no skin in the game anymore. And they will want to spend a lot of money. They will want to continue the Pelosi-Schumer policies. I am very concerned about this, Tony. We have got to go back and take a strong stand so that we don’t tie the hands of President Trump when he takes office.
SPEAKER 05 :
So do you think there are some within the ranks of Republicans who are not coming back that might join with Democrats to do that?
SPEAKER 06 :
Absolutely, absolutely. I believe that that is entirely possible. That’s why the conservative forces in Congress must be very strong to say that, listen, the people have spoken, that the election was a dynamic mandate, geographically Gender, ethnically, it was a mandate across the board, and we have got to respond that way. We’ve now got to produce. The voters have spoken. Now it’s up to Congress to produce.
SPEAKER 05 :
Also this week, as Congress returns tomorrow, there will be the leadership elections for the 119th Congress. Do you see much of a shift there, or do you think we’re going to see the same team leading forward?
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, of course, Elise Stefanik has been nominated as the U.N. ambassador, so she is already with that race. Other than that, I think we’ll see pretty much the same. I believe there’s a race for the policy chair in the conference. But I think pretty much we will see the faces will remain the same, with the exception of Elise Stefanik.
SPEAKER 05 :
She’s got a pretty significant post. She’s number four in the leadership string. Who is stepping forward to pursue that position?
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, there have been a couple. Lisa McLean, Kat Kamek. I think that Barry Moore is considering it. So there will be probably several that will run for that position. They’ve only got two days to line up support. So it’s going to be a fast campaign for them.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, those are the good kind of campaigns because the pain doesn’t last very long. You get it over with. Let’s turn back, Congressman Self, to the Middle East. An Israeli official told the Times of Israel that Israel is more optimistic about its chances for a hostage deal with Donald Trump in the White House. Do you anticipate movement there soon?
SPEAKER 06 :
Yeah, I believe it’s happening already. Qatar expelling Hamas leadership is the first step. I think that people are going to start preparing for a Trump presidency, and I think they’re going to start weighing their options even now and making moves so that they will not be behind the eight ball when President Trump takes office. We’ve seen it in several areas. Hamas, the day after the election, said, well, maybe we better call an end to this pretty quick.
SPEAKER 05 :
And I did pick up on that. I saw that one of the was unidentified leader in Hamas saying, yes, we want to bring this to resolution. I think that’s a positive development. What do you see happening in Ukraine with that situation there?
SPEAKER 06 :
It depends on who the president nominates as the Secretary of Defense. I believe that President Trump will want to end it quickly. I believe that he will get the two parties to the negotiating table fairly quickly. And I think what you’re going to see on the sidelines is the NATO response to President Trump. That will be an interesting sideline to the Russia-Ukraine negotiations. But I believe we will get to negotiations very fast.
SPEAKER 05 :
Do you have a favorite that you would like to see in the Secretary of Defense, having obviously a vested interest in the Department of Defense?
SPEAKER 06 :
All I want is a man that will reestablish the credibility of the United States around the world, the ability to back up, deter our adversaries, to back up a strong State Department who will do the diplomacy knowing that they have a strong, capable, lethal military standing behind them should it be necessary.
SPEAKER 05 :
Congressman Self, you know, the Biden administration, they know the clock is ticking. And do you see the possibility of the Biden administration trying to tie the hands of the Trump administration by pushing for some type of, you know, half-baked deal in the Middle East before time runs out?
SPEAKER 06 :
No, I don’t see that because the Biden administration have been surrogates, almost surrogates for the Iranian regime, which exports terror around the world. They’ve been allowing Iran to get away with murder, literally. They have allowed both Russia and Iran to sell their oil. to gather their reserves to execute their nefarious means. And so, no, I don’t see the Biden administration making a deal in the Middle East. Now, if they put more obstacles in the way of Israel, as you have suggested earlier, if they cut off support to Israel, that is a very serious move. And I recommend they do not do that. They do not want to take that step. That would not be in the interest of the United States of America.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, we’re coming down to that deadline. I think the if I’m and I think the the 13th may be the deadline. Oh, no. Actually, they wrote the letter on October 13th. I think the deadline is actually this Wednesday in which they said they’ve got to prove that they’re doing more in terms of humanitarian support. What action might Congress be able to take? to speak publicly about this if the Biden administration does cut off the aid to Israel.
SPEAKER 06 :
I think as soon as we get back, people are going to be coalescing around an action because we need to be vocal now. We don’t need to wait to be reactive. We need to be vocal now, once we get back into session, to coalesce around an idea of telling the Biden administration that’s not what the law says, that’s not what we have approved, allocated, and we do not want that to happen, and we don’t recommend that executive action against the will of Congress. which has supplied those weapon systems, those supplies, those material to Israel.
SPEAKER 05 :
So, Keith, what else do our listeners, our viewers need? What else do they need to be watching over the next few weeks in this lame duck session of Congress? What are you watching for? So what should we be watching for?
SPEAKER 06 :
You need to be watching for the spending levels. The omnibus or too many buses, that’s what I really recommend you pay attention to. What is the spending level? Because I know that people are going to want to tie President Trump’s hands by blowout spending and the omnibus bill, which will tie his hands for a long time. We want to get back to fiscal responsibility. He’s already got some of his excellent nominees saying we’re going to have to cut spending. We’re going to have to reduce the workforce. But if they tie his hands with a huge omnibus, that will be detrimental to our interests. Watch that carefully, Tony.
SPEAKER 05 :
All right. We definitely will. And speaking of money, I want to we’ve got a couple of minutes left. As I mentioned, you serve on the Veterans Affairs Committee. Well, earlier this month, it was announced that the committee would be launching a full scale investigation into the claim by VA leaders that they needed three billion dollars. That’s with a B, $3 billion immediately to close a budget gap or vets would lose their benefits at the start of fiscal year 2025. Instead, the VA reportedly has a surplus of $5.1 billion from 2024. What’s going on here?
SPEAKER 06 :
I’m not sure anybody knows, Tony. That is a great question. Basically, the VA leadership, the VA leadership lied to Congress. That is clear. So when we get back, and we’ve already started to peel back the onion through the committee and through the leadership of the VA, but when we get back, that will be one of the principal actions of the VA committee to try to find out exactly what happened. Why was that so wrong? Because an old saying, it’s hard to be that wrong without intention.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, I think we’ve seen a lot of that in this administration, this outgoing administration, where they have been way off on a number of issues. And you have to wonder if, in fact, it was intentional.
SPEAKER 06 :
Yeah, absolutely. I have no doubt it was intentional, because they asked for $15 billion originally, if you remember. We supplied the $3 billion. We had not done the $12 billion. And all of a sudden, they come back with this surplus. So again, this requires a lot of investigation, and it’s already started.
SPEAKER 05 :
Are you optimistic, speaking of dollars and cents, are you optimistic that under the Trump administration that we’re going to get federal spending under control?
SPEAKER 06 :
Only if we are able to do the things that Elon Musk is talking about, that some of his other nominees are talking about, if we can cut the federal workforce, if we can go back to the mission as indicated by the Constitution, directed by the Constitution, I am. But frankly, our track record is not very good on this, Tony. So regardless, and frankly, when you think back to the last time that the Republicans held the House, the Senate and the presidency, their record was not good.
SPEAKER 05 :
No.
SPEAKER 06 :
So that is something we must correct this time because the people that they we have to produce, Tony, we’ve got to do it now.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, you’re right. The Republicans record on this is just as bad oftentimes as the Democrats. Congressman Keith Self, always great to have you on the program. Thanks for taking time to join us today. Thank you, Tony. And, folks, all of those are reasons why we need to be praying. So I invite you to join us in the 10-week prayer initiative, Operation Prayer Shield, that we just announced today to pray for the incoming administration, the outgoing administration, this window in between that our nation would be protected, our friends and allies as well. This is a time for a lot of prayer. Well, a lot of foolishness could take place. Lame duck session of Congress. We need to be praying for the president that he gets the right team together, godly men and women that will provide godly counsel. Text the word SHIELD to 67742 and join us. All right, that’s all we have time for today. Thanks for joining us. Until next time, I leave you with the words of the Apostle Paul, who says you’ve done everything you can do when you’ve prayed, prepared, and taken your stand.
SPEAKER 02 :
By all means, keep standing. 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.
