Skip to content 7/23/2026 Tony Reviews the Good and Bad from Capitol Hill, the Middle East, and Artificial Intelligence Jul 23 · 54 min ...more
7/23/2026 Tony Reviews the Good and Bad from Capitol Hill, the Middle East, and Artificial Intelligence
July 23, 2026 · 54 min
Today’s episode investigates positive movement in the House, including passage of Reconciliation 3.0 and movement to federally defund Planned Parenthood, Middle East developments, the Democrats’ position on abortion drugs, peculiar artificial intelligence news as one AI platform went rogue, social conservatives’ gathering in Washington, DC, and France develops a social media policy for children.
Series Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Audio July 23, 2026 · 54 min · Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Audio
Today’s episode investigates positive movement in the House, including passage of Reconciliation 3.0 and movement to federally defund Planned Parenthood, Middle East developments, the Democrats’ position on abortion drugs, peculiar artificial intelligence news as one AI platform went rogue, social conservatives’ gathering in Washington, DC, and France develops a social media policy for children. ...more Show the full description Show less Today’s episode investigates positive movement in the House, including passage of Reconciliation 3.0 and movement to federally defund Planned Parenthood, Middle East developments, the Democrats’ position on abortion drugs, peculiar artificial intelligence news as one AI platform went rogue, social conservatives’ gathering in Washington, DC, and France develops a social media policy for children.
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In this video 0:00 House Victories and Middle East Tensions9:00 Congressional Insights on Policy and Iran15:00 AI Dangers and National Security Risks24:00 Social Conservatism, Hope, and Godly Governance37:00 Social Media Bans and Parental Authority
House Victories 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 worldview. Washington Watch with Tony Perkins starts now.0:19 We're doing very well against the Islamic Republic of Iran. We're doing extremely well. They would like to do something, but I say they're not ready yet. They need more of the0:31 same. They're not ready yet. They had some evil intentions. We cannot let them have a nuclear weapon.0:38 How was president Donald Trump speaking to reporters earlier today about the situation with Iran. Welcome to this Thursday, July 23rd edition of Washington Watch. I'm Tony Perkins, your host. Thanks for joining us.0:49 Well, coming up, the US military has carried out 12 straight nights of strikes against Iranian the Iranian regime, and now president Trump is reportedly considering attacks bigger than the ones carried out1:01 during Operation Epic Fury. We'll discuss this and other Middle East developments with Pennsylvania congressman Scott Perry, a retired brigadier general. Speaking of attacks, there was an unprecedented cyber1:14 attack on an AI startup that was launched and executed autonomously by another AI platform. We'll discuss this with retired US army lieutenant colonel Bob Bagenis, a national
1:25 security analyst who served at the Pentagon. Plus, France this week banned the use of social media for children under the age of 15. Is this a positive development? We'll discuss it with our
1:37 panel from the Washington stand later. All of that and more straight ahead. Alright. Let's start right here in Washington. It's been
1:49 a, significant week for house Republicans as they successfully advanced a series of major legislative priorities. Joining us now to discuss this is Washington stand reporter Casey Harper. Alright, Casey.
2:02 Walk us through what the house accomplished this week.
2:04 Yeah. Thanks, Tony. So house Republicans, they narrowly passed a 95000000000 dollar budget framework yesterday that was aimed at funding US military actions in Iran and putting in, some of those election integrity
2:15 reforms president Trump has been, pushing for. Now that includes 73000000000 dollars for the conflict with Iran, 12000000000 in farmer aid, and 10000000000 for state election rules under the Save America Act,
2:27 which importantly requires voter IDs and proof of citizenship. Here's a clip of speaker Johnson.
2:33 Despite nearly every Democrat voting against everything I just read you, House Republicans delivered. That many of you like to say that major legislating can't happen in an election year. We just proved you
2:45 wrong. This week, we we we continue to deliver for the people, and we're gonna continue that streak all the way through the end of this year and into the next congress.
2:52 Now the house also passed the Stop Insider Trading Act, which prohibits members of congress and their families from purchasing stocks, Tony. So I have to imagine some lawmakers begrudgingly voted for that 1.
3:04 Alright. Let's shift to, some international news. The United States has signed a landmark nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia, but there's a caveat. Tell us about it.
3:13 Yeah. There's some concern about this deal. Now it's a commercial civil nuclear agreement with Saudi Arabia that lets Saudi Arabia enrich uranium and build nuclear reactors using US technology, but all without, the
3:24 snap UN inspections that we've seen for other countries. Now less than 24 hours after signing it, president Trump posted on true social that to get this deal, Saudi Arabia has to join the Abraham
3:36 Accords. Here's White House press secretary Carolyn Levitt speaking about it today.
3:42 He wants to see these countries sign the Abraham Accord. It was 1 of the most historic accomplishments of his 1st term, and it continues to be a long term goal of his to expand those accords to ultimately come to a place
3:53 where the Middle East can be, a peaceful and stable region. And, yes, this deal with Saudi Arabia, the energy deal is contingent on this condition as far as the president is concerned. So we'll continue to talk with our
4:04 Saudi counterparts to get the deal finalized and hopefully see them joining, Abraham Accords very soon.
4:10 Now Congress still has to review any deal in the details there, but it's really fueled some fears in Israel about a possible nuclear arms race in the Middle East. But prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not, commented
4:21 publicly yet, Tony.
4:23 Alright. That's 1 to watch. Yeah. Let's, turn out of the conflict with Iran, Casey. What are the latest developments there?
4:30 Well, in a post on True Social earlier today, which so much diplomacy is conducted now, president Trump said he would hold Iran accountable for any attacks by Yemen's Houthi militants. Now, of course, they're connected,
4:41 but it's an important development. And what all is also important is the Houthis are trying to shut down the Red Sea. They're using the southern port of Aden, to attack vessels in the Red Sea and disrupt trade routes
4:52 there. They've attacked 2 Saudi Arabian oil tankers in a military, operation trying to punish, gulf states to escalate this, the war without. Now meanwhile, Iran said it's continued to attack US
5:04 missile systems, weapons, and fuel storages in Jordan as well as US military post in Kuwait as we are now on day 12 of these consecutive strikes against Iran in this latest barrage of strikes,
5:16 Tony.
5:17 Alright. Thanks for the update, Casey. We'll see you later in the program. Thanks, Tony. Alright. I wanna go further now into the developments in the Middle East. Joining us now to discuss discuss them is congressman
5:26 Scott Perry, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, as well as a member of the permanent select committee on intelligence. He represents the 10th congressional district of Pennsylvania. He's also a combat
5:36 veteran who retired at the rank of brigadier general after nearly 40 years of military service. General Perry, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us.
5:45 Great to be with you, Tony. A lot of events occurring this week.
5:49 You're you're you're you're absolutely right. Let's start with before we get into what's happening in the Middle East, let's talk about what the house was able to accomplish this week.
5:59 Well, of course, 1 of the big things is, the authorization for, for paying for our military operations, you know, all the uniform services. That
6:11 that's a big 1. And, of course, generally speaking, now we have to do that without any help from Democrats. And then the biggest thing I think is the reconciliation framework that we sent, to the senate, of course,
6:23 which will tee up the Save America Act to go under reconciliation with 10000000000 dollars to implement it. And, so we expect the senate to get right on that and be able to pass that
6:35 under the provisions of reconciliation, which means you only need 50. We don't need any of these Democrats that don't want election integrity, and, and America can can start having some,
6:46 some trust in our electoral process. So those, I think, are the big news for the week. And, of course, the anti stock trading act, members of congress, unfortunately, so many of them just can't behave, and it
6:58 seems like they're more concerned with their portfolio than they are with the American people and the job at hand. And and, we wanna send a clear message that when you come to serve, service is about
7:10 sacrifice, and, it's not about what you can get. It's about what you can give. And if they they don't wanna be a part of that, well, then maybe you shouldn't be, looking for a job in congress, as an elected
7:22 official.
7:23 I wanna go back to the reconciliation 3.0, which, the the speaker was putting a lot of effort into and a lot of meetings went into this, a lot of consultation, agreements, give and take.
7:35 Now as you said, it goes to the senate, but it it appears that the senate is stuttering on whether or not they're gonna take it up.
7:43 Well, Tony, you're you're not wrong about that. I mean, let's face it. The house has passed this 4, maybe 5 times now. I'm not even sure anymore. The senate has had multiple opportunities over the past year and
7:55 0.5 and just seems recalcitrant to do it. And while we certainly respect, the leader, John Thune, but he tells us they don't have the votes. But we don't wanna be told we don't have the votes. What we
8:07 wanna is to be shown that they have or don't have the votes. And the way to do that is to put it on the floor. Of course, we prefer the standing filibuster. But if they won't do that, then, okay, we don't love
8:18 that, but do it under reconciliation. But get it in front of these senators and force them to vote on it. We wanna see where they stand.
8:27 Right. You you won't know until there's a vote, until they have to they have to vote and you have a record, and then the American people can have a conversation with them.
8:36 That's exactly right.
8:37 Alright. I I wanna move to the Middle East. I wanna I wanna start 1st with what was announced, this nuclear agreement that was signed with Saudi Arabia. President Trump says it is,
8:49 totally subject to the kingdom joining the Abraham Accords. That's a condition that's been put on there. I that's 1 thing. I I just have some underlying concerns about allowing a country in the Middle
Congressional Insights on Policy and Iran
9:01 East, even though the United States will be involved with it, with your enriching uranium on their soil. I mean Right. Don't we have a problem right now with that with Iran?
9:12 Well, we certainly do. And I'm not sure, Tony, that it includes enrichment in terms that we're familiar with to weapons grade. It might just be the very low level, and
9:22 it might be That is that is true. That I wanna be very clear. That is true. It is it is for commercial use. However
9:28 Only.
9:29 You're right. Only. But the way it works right now is that the enrichment, they get the rods. They don't get the capability and the technology to enrich. That Right. Enables them to do things that if
9:41 they wanted to, they possibly could. Now it's another step, but it's a it's a break with what we've done in the past.
9:48 It certainly is. And, I think this is meant of of as well to put some more pressure on Iran. And and I would just say this, Tony. Look. I have my reservations and my concerns just like you
9:59 do. And just like everybody that's watched the the conflicts in the Middle East for decades upon decades. But I would also say that it's no mean feat to see it imposing the signing of
10:11 the Abraham Accords and having diplomatic relations with Israel at the same time. And and when you add that to the equation, it it it it I think it it
10:23 potentially evens out those concerns because it forces, the the Saudis and, of course, the the, the the the the folks that are adherent to
10:35 Islam to accept diplomatically, officially, their Israeli neighbors.
10:41 That that may be a bar too high. That may be a bar too high for them.
10:44 It it it may be, and I think we're gonna find out.
10:47 Now I I would I would also add to this that my concern about Saudi Arabia is Saudi Arabia has been on the state department's country of particular concern for a long time, for its intolerance
10:58 toward religious freedom and some of its human rights record. So I I just I'm I'm I'm concerned about the totality of Saudi Arabia. It's the 1 place that there there are 0 0 churches
11:10 there. There are no religions outside of Islam there. That is the home of the Islamic faith. I think this is something Congress needs to look, long and hard at before they would sign off on this.
11:23 Well, I I would also say this, Tony. I would like to see, Saudi Arabia clear the record, so to speak, and, and be very forthcoming about their alleged involvement in the 9
11:34 11 attacks Yes. In the United States of America. And I think that would go a long way to ease any concerns that we have. But I but you're you're right about look. Saudi Arabia has been changing in recent
11:46 years, but it is still very oppressive. They still behead people on a regular basis there. And so we have to be very, very careful, but the things are changing, and I think
11:58 the president wants to be at the forefront of that and and not only witness the change, but drive the change.
12:05 Well, I I'm I'm hopeful that, you in particular and your colleagues that are in the know and have an understanding of this will look at this, very thoroughly and, and give your input,
12:17 into any agreement that comes before congress. Alright. We just have a little over a minute left. I I wanna go to the president's comments today on the combat operations in Iran saying that,
12:28 we could be seeing strikes that would be bigger than the ones carried out during Operation Epic Fury. What do you think?
12:38 Well, I I think that that's likely Iran is recalcitrant as you know, Tony, and it's very difficult to find a diplomatic solution with, with a negotiating partner, so to speak, that
12:49 doesn't mind committing suicide, which is what Iran the people the leadership Iran, you know, that that they look to go home to Allah as martyrs. And so I think, we've got, unfortunately,
13:02 a way to go here, and the president's gonna use the overwhelming force. And and the calculus might change as well. It might include more than just, air delivery, of bombs and
13:13 munitions. I I I think the calculus might be changing, and I think you're seeing some reporting and considerations of that. What that looks like particularly is unknown at this time, but I think Iran has run out
13:25 of options now. And, and and we're gonna see the finality of it. It might take a little longer than we like, but I think the president is kinda done. We're trying to find a diplomatic solution with, under the
13:37 current circumstances.
13:39 Well, it has to be brought to a resolution, and that resolution is to ensure ensure that they do not have the capabilities of nuclear weapons and our ally Israel being protected. Congressman Scott Perry, always great to,
13:50 have you on the program. Appreciate your insight and understanding of the issues.
13:55 Thank you, Tony. God bless you.
13:56 Alright. Stick with us, folks. We're back after this.
14:02 1 nation under God. America's undeniable foundation of faith.
14:12 Before America was exceptional, America was prayerful. Just as Paul urged Timothy, 1st of all, that prayer, intercession, and thanksgiving be made for all people,
14:24 our founding fathers understood deeply the command to be devoted to prayer. This great American experiment began as a mighty appeal to heaven, petitioning the lord
14:36 of heaven's armies to intervene for the righteous cause of liberty. As war began to sweep across the colonies, the Continental Congress called days of fasting and prayer in their
14:47 fight against the British. The lord answered and the colonies prevailed. Yet in spite of victory, our founding fathers knew that dependence on god and prayer was not to be forgotten.
AI Dangers and National Security Risks
15:00 With countless challenges facing our young nation, John Adams declared national days of solemn humiliation, fasting, and prayer to directly address the many trials and call
15:12 on Americans to seek mercy and restoration. Years later, in 1 of America's darkest hours, Abraham Lincoln stood upon this unshakable foundation by
15:23 calling the nation to repentance, declaring it is the duty of nations as well as of men to confess their sins in humble sorrow and to recognize that those nations
15:35 only are blessed whose god is the lord. We have seen the hand of god answer prayers again and again as our nation has turned to him. However, the wise warning of Ronald
15:47 Reagan still stands. If we ever forget that we are 1 nation under god, we will be a nation gone under. Through war, uncertainty, and turning points in history, many of our
15:59 leaders have known where to turn. And now, it's our turn. We echo the call of George Washington 250 years ago, humbly to supplicate the mercy of almighty god, that
16:10 it would please him to pardon all our manifold sins and transgressions, and finally establish the peace and freedom of America upon a solid and lasting foundation,
16:23 the undeniable foundation of faith.
16:29 Looking for a trusted source of news that shares your Christian values? Turn to the Washington stand, your ultimate destination for informed faith centered reporting. Our dedicated team goes beyond the headlines,
16:42 delivering stories that matter most to believers. From breaking events to cultural insights, we provide clear, compassionate coverage through a biblical lens. Discover news you can trust at the Washington stand
16:54 where faith and facts meet every day.
17:02 Welcome back to Washington. Watch. The website is tony perkins dot com. Resources there for you from each of our segments, information about our guest. Also, I would encourage you if you've not yet downloaded the Stand
17:14 Firm app, go to the App Store, download the Stand Firm app. That way you'll have Washington watch with you and the resources that come along with it wherever you go. Alright. OpenAI, the creator of Chat
17:26 GPT, has been investigating an unprecedented cyberattack on an AI startup that was driven from end to end by AI, meaning that the
17:37 AI, the artificial intelligence, acted on its own. It was autonomous. On Tuesday, OpenAI disclosed how 2 of its AI models exceeded their intended boundaries and pursued an
17:49 unauthorized course of action, successfully hacking into AI startup Hugging Face. Hugging Face CEO, Clem DeLong, called it an attack unlike
18:01 anything we've seen before. And the incident is rightfully raising concerns. Are we getting dangerously close to seeing some sci fi scenarios becoming reality?
18:13 Joining us now to discuss this is retired US army lieutenant colonel Bob McGinnis, a national security analyst who has served at the Pentagon. He's currently a senior fellow for National Security Family Research Council
18:25 and author of 15 books, including 1 released this month titled The Final Algorithm, When Artificial Intelligence Meets the End of Days. Colonel McGinnis, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks for joining us.
18:37 Oh, thank you, Tony.
18:38 Alright. What do you make of this autonomous attack by 1 AI platform on another?
18:48 Not surprised at all, Tony. What happened here basically is that, OpenAI, you know, put these 2 algorithms, basically, AIs to
19:00 test, and they didn't put it in constraints. They it escaped the containment. It accessed, the public Internet, which it didn't expect.
19:12 And as you indicated, it, you know, found that, hugging face, which is in the AI library, basically, had the information. It went over there, stole credentials, took that
19:23 information, and answered the question. Now, you know, Tony, this is, you know, like a simple, I suppose, analogy. A student is locked in a classroom,
19:36 to take an exam. Rather than solving that problem inside the classroom, the student picked the lock to the classroom door, went over to the teacher's office, found the answer sheet, and then
19:48 turned in the answers to the teacher. Now that's precisely what happened. The problem is it's a failure of containment and control, and this is a very serious issue.
20:01 Give us the bigger concern here because if it can do it in that scenario that you just laid out, just kinda going to get the answers out of the library, it can go get something out of the safe that would be more deadly.
20:14 Yeah. Of course, this is not conscious. This is, you know, not malicious necessarily. It's an algorithm. It's it's not human. But if it's given the right objective and given
20:25 access to tools and it's not supervised properly, then it's going to do some things that perhaps we don't want it to do. Now my concern, the real larger danger here,
20:37 is that our adversaries, the Chinese, the Russians, and organized crime, and you you name whoever else, If they have access to these tools, to this AI, they can go
20:49 after our infrastructure. They can go after our banks, after our government. You name it. They can go after because everything today is tethered to the Internet. So, this is not about sci
21:01 fi, superintelligence and monsters. It's a real thing, and we have to be concerned about it. And I will tell you, just yesterday, I was, you know, attending a US energy
21:13 department, Genesis mission briefing. And the government's serious about this stuff, but we have to accelerate our efforts because things are getting out of
21:25 hand.
21:26 So so, colonel, how quickly is the technology advancing?
21:34 Oh, I would say about 10 times faster than we thought it would a year ago. Every day, Tony, as I look at, what's happening in the cyber world and the AI world, things
21:46 are just radically transforming. Unfortunately, we are not testing the models nearly enough, and, of course, we're allowing them access to public Internets
21:58 and to passwords, and we have eigenic systems. In other words, they're they have very little instruction. They're just let loose. And we're doing it on the battlefield, and we're doing it across
22:10 most systems that we operate in this world today. So, this has got to come under control. Now I know there are a number of members of congress that are talking about laws. The administration is working
22:22 on a host of things, but I would argue we're a decade behind where we ought to be.
22:28 When you look at the rapid development of the technology and not all of those that are working on this have a strong and this is where the the ethics of this, the the the the the moral anchor that we once had
22:39 as a society that kind of guided our policy and our activity and our technology is is really no longer there. But it's moving so rapidly to create the defenses against the new waves
22:51 of technology is becoming almost impossible. I mean, at some point, we're gonna we're the the advances are gonna outpace our ability to defend against malicious efforts.
23:03 No. I I think that's true, Tony. And regrettably, you know, we are really behind, and so we have to really focus. I know that, president Trump's effort in the Genesis
23:15 mission is very similar to the Apollo project, very similar to the Manhattan projects. Those were all of government efforts to tackle what is essentially a very critical,
23:26 mission. This is 1 about the survival, I would argue, of the United States because in the wrong hands, this stuff can transform the direction of, humanity. And so
23:38 it's that's serious.
23:40 It it it also I mean, it it takes all of the advantages that we have of our military, of our infrastructure because the technology can quickly level the playing field. Can it not?
23:52 Oh, absolutely. I it could cripple our electric grid. It could cut off our water, all communications, empty our bank accounts, you know, bring down our satellites.Show more
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