Skip to content 2/16/2026 Gov’t Shutdown, California Abortion Funding, Israel’s sovereignty, and a Church Protest Penalty Feb 16 · 54 min ...more
2/16/2026 Gov’t Shutdown, California Abortion Funding, Israel’s sovereignty, and a Church Protest Penalty
February 16, 2026 · 54 min
Today on WW: Day 3 of the gov’t Shutdown; Israel to protect archeological sites; a proposed Alabama law would severely punish church service disrupters; California’s big payday for Planned Parenthood.
Series Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Audio
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February 16, 2026 · 54 min · Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Audio
Today on WW: Day 3 of the gov’t Shutdown; Israel to protect archeological sites; a proposed Alabama law would severely punish church service disrupters; California’s big payday for Planned Parenthood. ...more Show the full description Show less Today on WW: Day 3 of the gov’t Shutdown; Israel to protect archeological sites; a proposed Alabama law would severely punish church service disrupters; California’s big payday for Planned Parenthood.
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In this video 0:00 Government Shutdown Standoff and Middle East Tensions13:02 National Prayer, Biblical Foundation, and Israel's Heritage27:02 Protecting Churches and Advancing Pro-Life PoliciesComments No comments yet. Start the conversation.
Government Shutdown Standoff and Middle East Tensions 0:01 From the heart of our nation's capital in Washington, DC, bringing compelling interviews, insightful analysis, taking you beyond the headlines and sound bites into conversations with our nation's leaders and0:12 newsmakers, all from a biblical world view. Washington Watch with Tony Perkins starts0:18 now. They need to be reined in. They need to stop the violence. And the question that Americans are asking is why aren't Republicans going along with these common sense proposals? They're not crazy. They're not way out.0:30 They're what every police department in America does.0:33 That was senate minority leader Chuck Schumer commenting on the Democrat led partial government shutdown. Welcome to this February sixteenth edition of Washington Watch. I'm Tony Perkins, your host. Thanks so much for0:44 joining us. Well, coming out, the partial government shutdown moves into week 1 after weekend negotiations failed to secure a deal to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Now with congress in recess and no vote0:56 on the horizon, the stalemate deepens as both sides remain divided over key provisions. Maryland congressman Andy Harris will join us shortly. Plus, Eric Johnson, founder and president of1:08 Southeast Law Institute, will share his insights on Alabama's effort to make disrupting a church service a felony crime.1:22 Well, standoff between the White House and congressional Democrats over immigration enforcement reforms continues with no agreement in sight. Now today marks day 3 of the partial government
1:33 shutdown, which has forced thousands of federal workers deemed essential to work without pay. Joining me now is Washington Sand reporter Casey Harper who's been tracking all of today's stories.
1:45 Casey, no breakthrough over the weekend, so what's next?
1:49 Sure, Tony. I hope you deem me essential, but I don't know how long I could work without pay. It's not a fun predicament for many of these federal workers. And it all comes as Democrats are doubling down on their demands
1:59 to, you know, implement this list of reforms on ICE. Some say 10, some say 17 reforms for the agency. But, here's Democratic senate minority leader Chuck Schumer yesterday.
2:10 There's a simple answer to this. Republicans go along with this common sense these common sense proposals, and we'll fund the whole h a DHS bill, the whole Department of Homeland Security bill. We have a rogue
2:22 agency. Why don't we rein them in? That's what the American people are asking Republicans.
2:28 It's simple. Do everything we want, and the government reopens, Tony. Well, as of Saturday morning, because the that deal hasn't been accepted by Republicans, the shutdown has begun. And it's a little more complicated
2:38 than normal shutdowns because of previous funding, but a few takeaways are that TSA agents are gonna be working without pay and some border patrol, employees as well. Now air traffic controllers are gonna be
2:50 working with pay for now, but with t a TSA agents not getting paid, many of whom live paycheck to paycheck, that could lead to some backups at airports. And the further along that goes, experts predict there'll be more
3:02 and more trouble at those, airports. So you might wanna get to the airport a little bit earlier next week, Tony.
3:08 Well and this, you know, this comes right after the longest government shutdown, in in history. We're gonna talk a little bit more about that later because I think this is a bad way to do business as a government, and I
3:18 think it shows the division and, they they just it would it would suggest that we're not able to to to do business as a federal government. So it's something that's
3:30 gotta be fixed. Alright. Let's, let's shift to the Middle East. Tensions in Gaza have escalated after the Israeli military, launched some new air strikes on Sunday in response to ceasefire
3:42 violations. Casey, tell us what unfolded yesterday.
3:46 Sure. Things are heating up in the region. So in a statement yesterday, the Israeli military said that these latest air strikes were because several armed terrorists who they think came from these underground tunnels
3:56 that they're still trying to destroy, they were hiding under debris near Israeli troops well east of that yellow line of demarcation. So, actually, here's a clip from Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking
4:08 yesterday.
4:09 We, dismantled about 150 kilometers of 500 kilometers of tunnels. We have to complete the job. That means also that you can't hide weapons labs
4:21 or, other facilities that they use to rearm themselves, regroup, and reform, which they're trying to do. We're giving the president's plan a chance.
4:33 So in 1 of the airstrikes, the military, said that Ahmad Bayouq, who had breached a military base, was killed, and they showed a photo of him in Israeli territory really to justify that strike. The Israeli military also
4:45 reported killing 2 terrorists in northern Gaza on Saturday who they also say violated the ceasefire. Now as you know, Tony, this all comes after Hamas a top Hamas leader just last week said they're not gonna disarm and
4:56 that they are take pride in fighting Israel. So despite that, president Trump, said on true social that the new members of his board of peace are gonna have upcoming meeting where they're pledging more than 5000000000
5:08 dollars for reconstruction and important humanitarian efforts in Gaza. But right now it's not too peaceful, in that part of the world.
5:15 Well, Israel knows that they have to take care of Hamas or else there cannot be peace on their southern border. Alright, Casey. Thanks so much. We'll talk to you a little bit later. Alright. I wanna turn back to the
5:26 partial government shutdown and its effect on federal workers. What are the potential long term consequences of of what's becoming kind of a regular occurrence, government shutdowns? Joining me now to discuss this and
5:37 more, congressman Andy Harris. He is a member of, of the House Committee on Appropriations. He is also the chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, and he is from the state of Maryland. Congressman Harris, welcome back to
5:49 Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us.
5:51 Good to be with you, Tony.
5:53 So any, any daylight here that appears that an agreement might be reached? I know it's in the senate. The house has done its work. It's over in the senate, but what are you hearing?
6:03 Well, we're hearing nothing right now. Again, Chuck Schumer doubled down, you know, saying these are common sense, you know, as if a judicial warrant is common sense. That's not that's might be common sense for an
6:14 American citizen, but it's not the way you handle, detention and deportation of illegal aliens. So it's not common sense. And, again, you know, the these, these ICE officers are being
6:26 doxxed. Their families are being threatened. Yes. They have to keep face coverings as long as the Antifa type demonstrators are gonna dox them and their families. Again, if if the Antifa
6:37 demonstrators step back and say we're not gonna do that anymore, maybe we should consider it, but not until then. We're just not hearing that there's gonna be a resolution anytime soon. You know, all the workers got
6:47 paid, last Friday because it was a holiday weekend. So it'll be 2 weeks until the full force, you know, is felt. So for instance, the TSA officers will miss a paycheck about a week and a
6:59 half from now. And I think then the pressure begins to build for the Democrats to say enough is enough. You know, we we're gonna have to fund, the Department of Homeland Security.
7:09 Now I know the house is in recess as is the senate, but the speaker, told all the members before leaving that you're basically on a 48 hour notice that is if something does come back from the senate, the members will be
7:20 called back in to, to deal with that. Is that correct?
7:25 We were told that, but I tell you as you get into the middle of the week, they're not gonna call anybody back before the weekend, again, partly because all the workers got paid last Friday. So I suspect that if we have
7:36 any breakthrough, it would be next week, and hopefully before we hit the next payday at the end of next week.
7:42 You know, I I I, I I wanna step back for just a moment and ask you a question, doctor Harris. I mean, I completely acknowledge this is the Democrats they're they're posturing. This is political posturing because as we
7:53 talked about multiple times on this program, they're targeting ICE. They're fully funded under the 1 big beautiful bill, so it doesn't even affect that. It affects TSA workers. My concern I actually had this conversation
8:05 over the weekend with the speaker about number 1, I think these shutdowns show how divided our government is, how how divided our country is ideologically. But at a certain point,
8:17 you reach a dysfunction that it's gonna be very difficult. I'm concerned that good employees who we need, good people in the homeland security because we want our country to be secure, that if this
8:29 keeps occurring, that some of these folks are gonna look elsewhere. You have that concern?
8:34 Yeah. That's absolutely right. That's why the House Freedom Caucus and Ron Johnson over in the senate are pushing so hard for either the, Shutdown Elimination Act or the Shutdown Fairness Act, something that doesn't
8:44 allow these shutdowns to occur where you have rolling continuing resolutions, maybe 2 weeks in duration, allowing you to to conduct these, negotiations but keeping government funded. I think Americans are gonna be
8:56 sick and tired of of of this, and I think that that's the solution. And I think we should, we should seriously consider putting that into law this year.
9:03 I think that's a great idea. I did talk to senator Johnson about that. That now doesn't that also, to create more of a pressure, doesn't it decrease the funding just slightly, or does that
9:15 keep this funding static?
9:18 Well, it depends on which on which approach you take. The bottom line is there are some approaches that say you should cut funding at 1 percent at every month or so. But but, 1 of the bills that he has was says, look.
9:29 All the workers are gonna go to work. They're gonna do their job, but no grants can go out because those are not funded. So that that might be the, again, the compromise that that leads to enough pressure to continue
9:41 a negotiation while you continue the basic functions of the government to go, completely unaffected in in the case of getting the need for a continuing resolution.
9:51 Is there any broader support? I mean, I know the Freedom Caucus is advancing this. Is there any broader support among the Republican conference for this measure?
10:02 Well, again, I don't know I don't know what's holding it up. We we we thought we had an agreement to attach it to 1 of the bills, the funding bills. I think that I think that once these shutdowns and, again, this is the
10:13 third 1 we've had in a short time frame. I I think the public is getting tired of, and we ought to listen to what the public wants.
10:20 What's the title of the bill again?
10:23 Well, it's either the shutdown, elimination act or the shutdown fairness act. And, again, they differ slightly in in what what's done, but the basic principle is no government functions are gonna are gonna stop except
10:35 perhaps, you know, the the funding of grants and and money's flowing out of the government, but not to workers. All the workers go to work. They do their job. And, again, that that's really what's essential. Now in this
10:46 case, about 90 percent of the Department of Homeland Security employees, for obvious reasons, are considered essential. So it's only a very small percent that are furloughed this week, but it should be none. The bottom
10:56 line is is, congress should be able to keep the government open and funded.
11:01 I I think, as you said, this becomes more frequent. That's what the American people, I I think, want. They want government to function and, you know, buy time for the parties to work out their differences. I think this
11:13 is a the the best solution would be for for the government to work effectively to get this done. But in lieu of that, when you've got people like Chuck Schumer and others determined to shut the government
11:24 down, this would be the best approach. Just keep it moving until the negotiations can arrive at, some consensus. Is your sense that not only is this affecting federal
11:36 workers, but is it also decreasing the trust and confidence that the American people have in the federal government?
11:45 I think what it does, it it erodes the trust and confidence as exists or may exist for Congress. This is congress's job to keep the good federal government funded. We we don't do
11:57 it. And, again, there are there are ways around it. Tony, we should look at that eliminate shutdown act, shutdown fairness act. We should, we should eliminate any shutdowns. Again, that's that should be the
12:08 job of congress, basic job of congress.
12:11 Well, on the heels of this, shutdown, I I I wanna do all I can to help advance that because I think it's, something that the these workers, these federal workers who are
12:23 keeping us safe I mean, this is 1 of the most vital agencies of the federal government, Department of Homeland Security, along with our nation's military. I mean, we should make sure that the they and their families
12:35 are compensated for the work they do. I mean, this is actually a kind of biblical concept, concept in Deuteronomy 24. You're not supposed to withhold wages for someone. So, doctor Harris, let us know how we
12:47 can help you. We certainly wanna help advance this common sense piece of legislation.
12:51 Thank you very much.
12:53 Alright. We'll see you next week when congress returns to
12:57 town. Thank you.
12:58 Alright. Doctor Andy Harris of, of of Maryland. You know, it it it really is concerning when these become more frequent. And and I'm not saying that we should
National Prayer, Biblical Foundation, and Israel's Heritage
13:10 compromise for the sake of compromise. It's just it's a symptom of a very divided government. And if you look at the margin that the house speaker is now working with, it's basically
13:21 0. He has to get every single Republican on board to pass any piece of legislation out of the house. No. It's it's it's unprecedented, but that's
13:33 reflective of where our nation is. We are that divided. So it's certainly something we need to be praying about. We need to pray for unity, and we don't get unity by compromising fundamental truths. That's how we got
13:45 to to a place that we're so divided over. So be praying and then vote for those who align with biblical truth because we have elections coming up. Alright. Don't go away. We're coming back with more Washington Watch
13:57 right after this break. You see, America has freedom for a purpose. The question is, are we living by that purpose today?
14:09 See, the founders understood we as a nation would be accountable to God for what he had granted to us. They sought freedom for a purpose, and that freedom was given to
14:21 us as a nation for that same purpose to serve God, to honor him, and to live as a people under his authority.
14:31 At the 20 26 National Gathering for Prayer and Repentance in Washington DC, members of congress, state leaders, evangelical leaders, and intercessors from across the nation
14:43 united as 1 voice in prayer.
14:46 Heavenly father, thank you so much for this gathering. We do repent, and we ask for your continued favor and blessing over our nation even when we don't deserve it.
14:55 I thank you that because of the shed blood and the glorious righteousness of your son, Jesus Christ, a sinner such as myself can boldly approach your throne.
15:07 You said that you helped the humble, and we're asking just now that you would help us, Lord.
15:27 We pray that you humble us, help us to follow after you with all our hearts so that we can see righteousness exalted in this nation and this nation restored to you. We know this not by our power. It's not by our
15:39 might. It is by your spirit.
15:41 Freedom has a name. His name is Jesus. And freedom has a purpose. It is to honor and glorify you. We pray that we would return to that purpose.
16:00 Amen. The book of Hebrews says that the word of God is living and active, sharper than any 2 edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow,
16:12 and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Stand on the word is family research council's journey through the living and active active word of God. Follow the plan
16:24 with us. Spend 10 to 15 minutes a day reading God's word. And over the course of 2 years, discover that the Bible is 1 big story, a story of many words pointing
16:36 to the word. The 1 who is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Because the word is alive and his name is Jesus. Find our bible reading plan and daily devotionals
16:48 from Tony Perkins at f r c dot o r g slash bible. Join us as we stand on the word.
17:04 Welcome back to Washington Watch. Good to have you with us on this Monday. The website is tony perkins dot com. Alright. This week, we're gonna be at the National Religious Broadcasters in Nashville. In fact, they'll be
17:14 heading out this evening, and we'll be broadcasting there later this week, so be sure and tune in. We'll have a lot of special guests on the program. A week ago, the Israeli government took a historic step to
17:26 strengthen control over archaeological and environmental oversight in Judea and Samaria. Now this is the area often called the West Bank, but it is heart it is the heart of Israel. It
17:38 is the the the the central to their identity and to their history. Now they've created a new civilian authority to protect Jewish heritage sites and prevent further
17:49 destruction. I've talked about this before, but last time I was in Israel, I was at, Joshua's altar, which is in an area of Palestinian control, and they have, actually bulldozed part of this historic
18:01 site because this action follows decades of looting, unauthorized construction, and, as I mentioned, damage to many of these sites in Judea and Samaria. Now Israeli officials say the move is
18:13 essential to halt the systematic erasure of Jewish history, while critics warn it expands Israel's authority in the so called West Bank. Well, in a parallel step, the government
18:25 has authorized the first land registration process in the territory since 19 67. Now that's when Jordan was in control, and then after the 67 war, Israel has
18:37 been in control of that area. Joining me now to discuss this and more, doctor David Wernsner. He is a senior analyst for Middle East policy at the Center for Security Policy.
18:49 Doctor Wirmsner, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks so much for joining us.
18:54 Oh, thanks for having me. It's an honor, pleasure.
18:57 Now this comes even after president Donald Trump has made repeated comments that he does not want to see Israel annex more of this area. Technically, this is not annexation, but they are
19:09 increasing their control over this area that the international community wants to take from them.
19:18 Well, yes. You know, president Trump is in part, I think, relating it to the idea that either the Saudis won't may may be on the verge of making peace and also that it could
19:29 complicate our relations with, supposed allies like like Qatar and Turkey. Now that is changing. Qatar and Turkey are not acting like allies, really, especially not
19:41 vis a vis Israel. And the Saudis are distancing themselves more from the peace process or from making peace with Israel. So some of the overarching reasons for Israeli,
19:53 the self, self restraint on this issue are are, from the Israeli point of view, beginning to go away. But there's something else going on too, which is, you know, it really is buried very heavily, not deeply,
20:05 very it's it's intertwined very heavily with what you teed up at the beginning. Lots of activities were going on by the Palestinian Authority that were very dangerous. First of all was the destruction
20:17 of archaeological sites. And, if if anybody's ever been to the West Bank, there are, fairly dense Palestinian towns, but very few of them. And much of the
20:29 area is empty. And in some of those areas are some of these incredibly important archaeological sites. You mentioned Joshua's altar, which from everything we're hearing is not only
20:42 really Joshua's altar, but they're beginning to find some incredible things in that area. We have Shiloh, we have Sebastian, we have a number of Bethel. You you just leaf through the bible and this is
20:53 this is the heartland. So there there are going to be archaeological sites everywhere and they are being destroyed. And what's disturbing is these are not in the middle of urban areas that need that space to
21:05 expand. Again, most of the areas that they choose these sites because they know that it puts a dagger in the heart of Jewish and Christian history, and essentially
21:17 begins to erase Jewish and Christian history in the area. Then we have the issue of illegal construction. There's massive illegal construction going on by the Palestinian Authority,
21:29 which is really a strategic battleground. Geography is that is the heartland, the strategic core of Israel. And where you put buildings, where you put cities, where you put corridors,
21:41 really is what dominates the land. And the Palestinians have been building like crazy while the Israelis for the last 20 years have again and again and again been in essentially a settlement freeze. So
21:53 this battleground is fought by 1 side. That plus the fact that it was obsolete. There was a Jordanian law that was passed in 19 53 that stripped previous Jewish
22:05 landowners of their rights and was really designed to, block any non Muslim from acquiring or holding any land, let alone selling it to a non
22:16 Muslim. And that will
22:19 Doctor Warrens, I wanna go back to something you said about erasing, you know, Jewish and Christian history. Yes. That is a part of the history, but it's also more about the identity and the connection with the land. Is
22:31 it not?
22:32 Oh, absolutely. The this is the cradle of Christianity and the cradle of Judaism. You erase you erase that. What you do is essentially
22:44 then you turn around and you excuse me.
22:47 Yes.
22:48 And you start getting into the very issue, that the Palestinians go, which they say, listen. The Jews really don't belong to this land. The Christians really don't belong here.
22:58 That's the goal.
22:59 Some land from step from day 1. So but to say that, they have to erase your identity.
23:04 Right. Right.
23:05 Part of their overall war.
23:07 And this is a form it's a form of cultural genocide, is what this is. But it's not but it's not just the Palestinians. This has been aided by the international community and in particular, the United Nations. I mean, for
23:18 instance, you know, I I was there, just, last year. About about 6 months ago, I was there. And most of the time I spent in Judea and Samaria, all the sites that you just mentioned. 1 I went to was Hebron,
23:31 which is the the ancient city that, Abraham bought the field of Megpila to bury his wife, Sarah. UNESCO, in 2017,
23:44 designated the Cave of the Patriarchs, where the Patriarchs and Matriarchs are buried, as a Palestinian World Heritage Site, utilizing the Arabic name and completely
23:56 eliminating the the historic reference to the Jewish people.
24:07 Absolutely. And with that, the origins of Christianity and Judaism. So, yes, you're right. Hebron, they've renamed El Khalil, and they've called it a Palestinian site even though there were no Palestinians there
24:18 that made it a historic site. You have the Temple Mount itself where there was some destruction going on over the last 20, 30 years. And they also UNESCO also lead
24:31 also labeled that, including the western wall, the retaining wall of the temple. They labeled that a Palestinian patronage site.
24:39 It's it's incredible what's happening, and but, fortunately, Israel is is taking steps to push back. Doctor Wormsmer, we're out of time. I wanna thank you for joining us. Appreciate your insights. He was an
24:51 adviser to, the former, vice president, Dick Cheney, who was big on Israel. Alright. Don't go away. We're back after this.
25:04 The family is the oldest, most tested, and most reliable unit of society. It is divinely created and sustained. And yet, there are those who are always tampering with its values and structure.
25:17 That's why we need organizations like the Family Research Council that can effectively defend and strengthen the family.
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25:43 FRC is 1 of those bright lights that helps us focus on true north. And I shudder to think had they not been here that it could have been worse, worse, worse.
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