Skip to content 4/28/2026 The King of England’s U.S. Trip, the FACE Act, SPLC Investigation, and Corrupt Teachers Unions Apr 28 · 54 min ...more
4/28/2026 The King of England’s U.S. Trip, the FACE Act, SPLC Investigation, and Corrupt Teachers Unions
April 28, 2026 · 54 min
Today’s Washington Watch covers King Charles III’s first U.S. trip as the U.K monarch. We also explore the status of gerrymandering Virginia, the FACE Act, a Congressional investigation into the Southern Poverty Law Center, a Washington state court targeting a Christian Ministry, and alarming news about teachers’ unions that have spent an excess of $1 billion on left-leaning political activism.
Series Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Audio
Family Research Council is serving in the kingdom of God by championing faith, family, & freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview.
April 28, 2026 · 54 min · Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Audio
Today’s Washington Watch covers King Charles III’s first U.S. trip as the U.K monarch. We also explore the status of gerrymandering Virginia, the FACE Act, a Congressional investigation into the Southern Poverty Law Center, a Washington state court targeting a Christian Ministry, and alarming news about teachers’ unions that have spent an excess of $1 billion on left-leaning political activism. ...more Show the full description Show less Today’s Washington Watch covers King Charles III’s first U.S. trip as the U.K monarch. We also explore the status of gerrymandering Virginia, the FACE Act, a Congressional investigation into the Southern Poverty Law Center, a Washington state court targeting a Christian Ministry, and alarming news about teachers’ unions that have spent an excess of $1 billion on left-leaning political activism.
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In this video 0:00 King Charles' Historic Address to Congress27:03 Exposing FACE Act Weaponization and SPLC Fraud37:03 Court Rules for Lifewise Bible Classes in Schools46:42 Teachers Unions' $1B Radical Political Spending
King Charles' Historic Address to Congress 0:00 From the heart of our nation's capital in Washington, DC, bringing compelling interviews, insightful analysis, taking you beyond the headlines and soundbites into conversations with our nation's leaders and0:12 newsmakers, all from a biblical worldview. Sitting in for Tony is today's host, Jody Hice.0:19 Honoring the British king might seem an ironic beginning to our celebration of 250 years of American independence, but in fact, no tribute could0:30 be more appropriate. Before we ever proclaimed our independence, Americans carried within us the rarest of gifts, moral courage, and it came from a0:42 small but mighty kingdom from across the sea.0:48 That was president Trump earlier today speaking about King Charles' visit as America is celebrating 250 years of independence from Britain. Welcome to this1:00 Tuesday, April 20 eighth edition of Washington Watch. I'm your host today, Jody Heissen. Honored to be filling in for the amazing Tony Perkins. Thank you so much for joining us. Alright. Coming up1:12 today, King Charles the third became only the second British monarch to address the US Congress. We'll get a reaction to his speech from Virginia congressman Morgan Griffith in1:24 just a few moments. And then later, Peter McElvayna will join us to break down what all this means for the future of the United States and the UK alliance. Plus, congressman Chip Roy will join
1:36 us to take a closer look at the FACE Act and the investigation into the Southern Poverty Law Center. So all that and much more coming your way straight ahead.
1:52 King Charles the third is making history on Capitol Hill today during a 4 day state visit to the United States. He's now, as I mentioned, the second British monarch
2:04 ever to address the United States Congress. His speech was focused on renewing the special relationship between the US and the UK even as, global tensions with between
2:16 the 2 and political divisions are certainly testing that alliance. But the speech followed a very high profile oval office visit with president Trump where both leaders
2:28 emphasized, the need for unity and shared democratic values. And joining us now is Washington's Sam reporter, Casey Harper. Alright, Casey. Let's, jump into this 1 first.
2:40 What's the significance of the king's visit, and what was his basic message to congress?
2:47 Yeah. Thanks, Jody. It is significant. It's both historic, but also it comes at a significant political time. Of course, it's a midterm election year, but the relationship between the UK and the US has been been
2:58 strained. But regardless, King Charles was welcomed to the White House with, open arms and before Congress with a standing ovation. He addressed the joint meeting of congress where he spoke of our shared ties as
3:10 2 nations with a common heritage, which was in that clip that you played. Now he also reinforced the US UK alliance and gave praise to NATO, which is important because president Trump has criticized NATO and the UK
3:22 recently. In fact, we have a clip here of the monarch.
3:25 Drawing on these values and traditions time and again, our 2 countries have always found ways to come together. And by jove, mister speaker, when we have found that way to
3:37 agree, what great change is brought about, not just for the benefit of our peoples, but of all peoples.
3:47 President Trump also spoke earlier today where he struck a similar tone and tied this visit to America's 200 and fiftieth birthday, and he really emphasized our our shared roots with the British Empire. And I can
3:58 confirm, Jody, nobody got tarred or feathered today. I had my eye out for red coats on the streets in DC, but didn't spot any.
4:05 No redcoats, but I tell you, the accent is amazing. It just makes you listen. It's it's it's wonderful. Casey, if I can, let me, turn to another story coming out of DC. What do we know
4:17 about the new criminal case that's involving former FBI director James Comey?
4:23 Yeah. This is a a big 1. Jody Comey has been indicted, though we don't have the formal charges yet. Here's a clip from acting attorney general Todd Blanch.
4:32 Today, a grand jury sitting in the Eastern District of North Carolina returned an indictment against James Comey on 2 counts. The first count is an honor about May fifteenth of last
4:44 year. He knowingly and will inflict bodily harm upon the president of the United States. Count 2, same day, May fifteenth 20
4:55 25, that the defendant,
4:57 James Comey, knowingly and willfully
4:58 transmitting in interstate commerce, a communication that contained a threat to kill the president of the United States. Both of these counts carry a maximum term of imprisonment
5:10 of of 10 years.
5:11 So we
5:11 do have, the the
5:12 charges there. It's unclear if that list is gonna grow or
5:12 if that's the full case. Now, charges there. It's unclear if that list is gonna grow or if that's the full case. Now we know that this comes from that 20 25 social media post, which was very controversial. If you can
5:23 remember it, it featured those eggshells arranged as 86 47. Of course, 47 is a reference to president Trump, the 40 seventh president. And 86 is slang for get rid of, cancel, throw away,
5:35 depending on the context. Now Trump allies immediately viewed that as a coded reference targeting the president who, of course, has survived multiple assassination attempts. And they said that a top law enforcement,
5:46 officer like Comey should have known better. Now he's defending himself. He said he only intended this as a political message, not a violent threat, and he deleted it after the backlash. But there's a long history here
5:57 with Comey and the president. You remember that president Trump called Comey a dirty cop. So it'll be interesting to see how this case unfolds, Jody.
6:06 Well, thank you so much, Casey, for, bringing this to us, and I'm sure you'll be keeping a pulse on it. We appreciate it very much. Alright. Let's turn our attention now to Capitol Hill and discuss some of the latest
6:17 activities taking place there. Joining me now is congressman Morgan Griffith. He is the vice chairman of the all important House Rules Committee. He represents the ninth congressional district of
6:28 Virginia. Congressman Griffith, always great to see you, my friend. Welcome back to Washington Watch.
6:34 Always good to be with you.
6:37 Alright. Let's, begin if we can with the visit by King Charles. I wanted to get your thoughts on his address today to congress and and then beyond that a little bit, the state of the US UK
6:49 relations as we enter into our 200 and fiftieth anniversary?
6:54 Yeah. I thought that the king did a nice job. He talked about a lot of things that bring us together. He did mention a few things where there may be some disagreement, but he was mostly talking about, things that unite
7:05 us, like our our combined heritage with rights of individuals dating back to the Magna Carta and the common the English common law. And, so I thought it was a very good speech, and I thought it was very positive for
7:17 our relationship with the UK.
7:20 I I think it is. It's gonna be, interesting to see how we go forward from here with some of the tension. If I can, congressman, let me let me turn the attention. You serve on the all important rules committee. You're, of
7:32 course, the vice chairman there. And you you guys are looking at a lot of different measures right now, including FISA, the, Foreign Intelligence, Accountability Act, as well as the
7:43 senate's budget resolution. What what are some of the discussions that you're having that you can share with us that are important right now?
7:53 Well, there's no question the Democrats are in the process, and we're we're still meeting as I talk with you. And the Democrats are offering amendment after amendment after amendment, trying to make sure that they
8:03 embarrass, Republicans in every way they can. I mean, you know, we're we're against, children. We're against, mom and apple pie. Whatever they can throw out there to say that they're for it and we're
8:15 against it. It doesn't really matter what. And, it's both the farm bill, the the FISA. I mean, you name it. And they're just throwing everything, that they can get out there in the hopes that they can defeat 1 of us at
8:26 the polls. And, you know, hopefully, they won't be able to, but we've had to take some tough votes. And we've also had to, do some things that, you know, you might not wanna do. But sometimes you gotta do what you gotta
8:37 do to defeat the Democrats' overall purpose, which is just to defeat Republican bills and to defeat Republicans in November's elections.
8:45 Well, certainly, 1 of the really important issues that you you brought up is FISA. What is going to happen if the House Republicans are unable to
8:57 come together on FISA. What happens then?
9:00 Well, it's a 7 0 2 secondtion, and theoretically, it could go dark. I think we'll probably reach some resolution before we get there, but but it is an it is an issue that we have to deal with and
9:13 we have
9:13 to look at. So what about the, senate, budget resolution that's being received right now in the house? What do you think the future of that is?
9:22 I think it has a pretty good chance. It's fairly narrowly drawn, but we'll we'll have to see. A lot depends on what we get done on everything, and it's people are looking at all of this as kind of a a package
9:34 deal. So we'll see how we come out of these, various bills, but I think the budget's gonna be fine.
9:39 Wow. Well, that's encouraging to hear. What about the DHS funding? I mean, that's that's been a battle for a long, long time now. What do you think is, the future of that? Potentially,
9:51 before leaving town this week, any chance of getting that funded?
9:55 I don't know that we get that resolved this week, because the the budget that the senate has sent over is step 1. They think that's enough, but we had a deal with the senate, back in December, Jan early January, and
10:07 they decided to change the deal. And so here we are. So their deal now is we'll do reconciliation, part 2. And as a part of that, the house is supposed to pass, you
10:19 know, whatever the senate wants on DHS, and, ICE funding. That's that's part of the problem is we wanna make sure that they're actually gonna do their end of the
10:30 deal. But to get there, we have to pass this budget resolution first. So we'll do this, and hopefully the senate can act fairly quickly on getting their part of the reconciliation done, working with us, and we can get
10:41 this thing finished.
10:44 How much more pressure is added to the whole process when you have, what took place, over the weekend, another
11:01 Yeah. There's no question that adds, some,
11:06 Yeah. There's no question that adds, some, time pressures that we need to get done. Right now, the president's able to supplement some of this, but we'll have to get it
11:17 done, fairly quickly and within the next couple weeks in order to make sure we don't have any lapses.
11:24 Real quickly before I let you go, I wanted to get your take on the latest developments on Virginia's jandamary gerrymandering. I can get it out in a moment.
11:37 The gerrymandering taking place in Virginia. This is just an absolute mess that that's going on there, and you certainly are tied up right in the middle of it all. I wanted to
11:49 get your opinion as to what's going on in the Supreme Court decision there. Give us the latest there.
11:55 Well, the latest is Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Monday. And then today, they refused a Democrat motion to lift the stay on the certification of the election results from last
12:07 Tuesday. I'm not sure you can read a whole lot into that, but it does indicate that they have, significant questions and that they are debating, the issue very seriously because they don't want the state board to certify
12:19 the election. If the process getting to the election was invalid because it was unconstitutional or illegal, I think and I hope they will get to the point where they realize that was wrong and and the process
12:30 was wrong and that they will strike this. But, we'll have to wait and see. But today's ruling was was somewhat hopeful.
12:40 So do do you does this go beyond, at some point, the state supreme court? You think this is an issue that eventually it'll make it to the US supreme court?
12:50 I do not. Now there may be other issues. There's a case out of Fairfax that may have some federal overlay, but most of this is about the process in in Virginia under the Virginia constitution and the Virginia
13:02 law. So I don't see it going to the federal, court system at all. It could, I suppose, but I haven't seen an argument that that I would think was appropriate for that at this time.
13:13 Well, whether it, whatever happens from Virginia, this is certainly creating what appears to be a domino effect across the country that that we are have not seen the last of,
13:25 and we'll certainly be keeping an eye on it. As always, congressman Morgan Griffith, thank you so much for joining us on Washington Watch. Always great to see you on my end. Appreciate you coming on. Alrighty.
13:37 Appreciate it.
13:37 Alright. Coming up next, we're gonna go further into this week's visit to the US by King Charles the third. But when we come back, we are going to get a perspective from a British
13:49 as to what does this mean for them and what does it mean for the US and UK relations. So stay with us. Much more coming your way here on Washington Watch.
14:00 I think all people really need to have this type of education.
14:04 Well, I can tell you that it's been an amazing course period.
14:07 I think this course is a reminder that a biblical worldview should really impact everything. It impacts our government from the federal to the state to the local. It should impact what we're doing with our families and
14:18 with our work.
14:19 God and government is a video driven bible based training course from Family Research Council that explores the connection between biblical principles and American government. In
14:31 this 6 session video series, FRC president Tony Perkins equips participants with a practical understanding of civil government from a biblical world view.
14:42 I would encourage all people to take it. I almost wish I would have took it earlier that I could have taught my kids this.
14:48 I wish I had known these things when we were homeschooling because I think children and my adults now would just greatly be influenced by that information.
14:55 So I'm an attorney and for me, it gives me some direct practical knowledge of what I can do to try to impact my legal community to make better legislation, to try
15:07 to encourage legislators to make choices that have a biblical worldview, which is what we really want.
15:12 Any pastor would benefit from taking this course because we are dual citizens. Right? We are citizens of the kingdom of God, but we're also seated citizens of this great land and that that comes with responsibility. Even
15:23 as someone who has been involved in these types of issues for a while, you're learning little bits and pieces of new stuff all the time. But it's also approachable enough that newer people, younger people, high school,
15:33 college students, they can really glean something from this. So I would encourage everybody to take this course, whether it's the videos, whether it's doing it in person, bring your bible study group through it, bring
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15:49 View the course at f r c dot o r g slash god and government or on the stand firm app.
16:00 When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for 1 people To dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another.
16:07 And to assume among the powers of the earth
16:10 The separate and equal station to which the laws of nature
16:13 And of nature's God entitle them.
16:16 A decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes
16:21 which impel them to the separation.
16:23 We hold these truths to be self evident.
16:26 That all men are created equal.
16:28 That they're endowed by their creator. With certain unalienable rights. That among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men.
16:40 Deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. Happy 200 and fiftieth.
16:46 Happy 200 and fiftieth.
16:48 Happy 200 and fiftieth.
16:50 Happy 200 and fiftieth birthday, America. May God bless America.
17:03 Welcome back to Washington Watch. I am Jody Heiss. I'm honored today to be sitting in for Tony Perkins. Thank you for joining us. Alright. As I mentioned top of the show, King Charles the third became
17:15 the second British monarch to deliver remarks at the US Capitol. The first to do so, in fact, was his mom, the late Queen Elizabeth the second. She gave an address back in May of
17:27 19 91 when then president George h w Bush was in the White House. And like his mother, King Charles was here visiting America on a
17:39 very special milestone, our 200 and fiftieth year of independence. His mom, Queen Elizabeth, actually visited America for, our 2 hundredth anniversary back in 19
17:50 76. But in his remarks today, president Trump discussed the deep historical connections between the United States and the UK. He noted specifically,
18:02 among other things, how American patriots were shaped by British ideals of justice and liberty and moral courage. So what can be said about where the 2 nations are
18:14 now and the direction that they appear to be headed? Joining us now to discuss this is Peter McElvena. He's cofounder of Hearts of Oak, which is a freedom of speech alliance. It's
18:26 located in the UK. He also works in the office of the UK's House of Lords. Peter, great to have you back on Washington Watch. Thank you for joining us.
18:38 Great to be with you, Judy. And I'm here in Texas, which is why my usual background is not here, but always good to join you in the FRC audience.
18:46 Well, welcome to the United States, and, we're glad to have you again on Washington Watch. Let's start with the if you can just kinda give us a a perspective, if you will, a British perspective on this
18:58 week's visit by King Charles. How how significant is this, and what
19:05 does it mean?
19:07 Well, it is significant. And as you alluded to at the beginning of the the segment there, this is only the second visit of a head of state to the US. I
19:18 I I vividly remember queen Elizabeth the second visiting. I remember the engagement with your president, George w Bush. I was 14, but I I remember it very well,
19:31 strangely. And I I watched the speech today of King Charles to Capitol Hill, to Congress. It was about 30 minutes 30 35 minutes
19:43 or something that I remember the queen was a much shorter speech, whenever she gave the speech. And, certainly, it's it's exciting to think in the UK,
19:54 always ahead of state going to visit an ally. There is no greater ally that the UK have despite
20:08 the timeless relationship between the US and the UK, goes back many years. And King Charles, when he spoke, realized that, and I I watched this, just before
20:20 we come on air. And it was a intriguing speech in many ways. 1 of the 1 of the things I I noticed he talked about the for many
20:31 here and for myself, the Christian faith is an icon of inspiration. And, of course, King Charles is not a Christian. He didn't claim that that Christian faith was my Christian faith. It was the Christian
20:43 faith. And that is a a huge distinction, I think, between Queen Elizabeth who had a relationship with Jesus, who had her own personal faith and talked about that fairly regularly.
20:55 And King Charles does not have that faith. So I would certainly, if I may ask for your viewers and listeners, Jody, to please pray for the king. Pray that
21:07 he encounters Christ, and has that monumental experience, of meeting Jesus. That that would be my call to your viewers.
21:18 That's, a great call and and well said. It was, impactful to me, the response he received from congress when he did talk about the importance of the Christian faith. If
21:30 you would, again, from a British perspective, how would you describe the relationship between the 2 countries?
21:40 Well, I think the UK still has TDS, Trump Syndrome. And the the debate in the British media just
21:51 days ago was should the king cancel his speech? And this was because of what is happening in Iran. This is because president Trump does what he believes is right,
22:04 for the US nation. And that that, I guess, difficult relationship between Keir Starmer, the British prime minister, and the American president.
22:16 It's common sense for that to be a difficult relationship because we in the UK have such a weak, weak prime minister, and you have such a strong leader in
22:27 president Trump. So it is so there is such a gap between the leadership that you have in the US and we have in the UK. And the UK realized that. There's a lot of debate over the prime minister
22:39 in the UK whether he should step down. And I think because of that, there was a a fear and a concern of the king going, a concern with our TDS that he he would endorse president
22:51 Trump. And I noticed he only referred to Trump once. Even when he referred to the attack, the assassination attempt on president Trump only days ago, he couldn't bring
23:03 himself to talk about that as an attack on president Trump. We talked about that as an attack on America, I believe, and said the UK would forever stand with US, but didn't call it out for what it
23:15 was, which is was an attack on the president Trump because he is seen as a as a danger to the left agenda and a champion of free speech and the freedoms that we all aspire
23:27 to. So I I don't know whether the US audience would have seen that. I think you maybe were more caught up in the pomp and ceremony, and the the situation of the king
23:39 and queen Camilla addressing congress. But I certainly as a Brit realized and noticed and took note that he didn't refer to president Trump personally in that attack. He referred
23:51 to to Trump later. And I think another part I noticed, he referred to Easter without any reference to Jesus. Now, Jody, how can you refer to Easter without reference to the death
24:02 and resurrection of Christ? That's what Easter is about. So those were some of the things I noticed, but, of course, I think that the king talked about his interfaith dialogue much more, than his
24:15 Christian faith. Despite that, the the speech went on very well. I saw Ted Cruz near the front clapping as many others. So
24:26 it is is good in 1 respect, I think, for the relationship between the UK and the US. Sadly, I wish that the king, would look to to Christ in some of those references,
24:42 Thank you so much, Peter Mechlivan, cofounder of Hearts of Oak. Always great to have you with us. Thank you for, joining us today. Coming up next, congressman Chip Roy
24:54 will join us to discuss the SPLC and other things, so stay with us.
25:01 For know that my redeemer lives. Job 19 25. Thou raised Jesus from the dead. Because it was impossible for death to keep hold on
25:13 him. Acts 2 24.
25:16 Join Family Research Council in standing on the word. Visit f r c dot org slash bible for free resources to help your family follow the way, Jesus, the risen savior of
25:28 the world.
25:32 1 nation under God, America's undeniable foundation of faith.
25:45 The United States Capitol, an iconic symbol of the American Republic, But few know that this building at the heart of our nation's government was once something more, the largest church
25:56 building in America. Since its inception and for decades following, several rooms throughout the capitol, including the house and senate chambers, were used to host church services weekly.
26:09 These services were filled with individuals from all levels of government. The attendance was so pervasive that often it was standing room only. Quote, going to the capitol on Sundays was then 1 of the
26:21 most common things in Washington, Margaret Bayard Smith. This practice was not merely accepted but encouraged. Quote, I consider it as 1 of my public duties as a representative
26:33 of the people to give my attendance every Sunday morning when divine service is performed in the hall. President John Quincy Adams. Housing worship at the center of our capital was a
26:45 living representation of the role that biblical principles played as a cornerstone of our nation's foundation of faith.Show more
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