Skip to content 8/21/2025 Advancing Good and Godly Values When the Enemy Pushes Bold, New, and Old Tactics Aug 21 · 59 min ...more
8/21/2025 Advancing Good and Godly Values When the Enemy Pushes Bold, New, and Old Tactics
August 21, 2025 · 59 min
The ripple effect of the Russia/Ukraine war, a new method to combat illegal drugs, remembering Dr. James Dobson, how AI is used to manipulate truth, and Gen Z’s low score on the Bible and Church.
Series Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Video
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.
August 21, 2025 · 59 min · Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Video
The ripple effect of the Russia/Ukraine war, a new method to combat illegal drugs, remembering Dr. James Dobson, how AI is used to manipulate truth, and Gen Z’s low score on the Bible and Church. ...more Show the full description Show less The ripple effect of the Russia/Ukraine war, a new method to combat illegal drugs, remembering Dr. James Dobson, how AI is used to manipulate truth, and Gen Z’s low score on the Bible and Church.
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In this video 0:00 The Intersection of Faith, Family, and Freedom29:38 The Role of Church Engagement in Human Flourishing
The Intersection of Faith, Family, and Freedom 0:06 Welcome to the Washington Watch News Desk. I'm Casey Harper bringing you today's big stories. Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, is taking on what she calls the politicized intelligence community.0:18 Remember when 51 members of the intel community signed a letter just before the 20 20 election saying the Hunter Biden laptop was likely fake Russian disinformation? Well, it was real.0:30 And remember the allegations against president Donald Trump in his first term? The intel community said Trump worked with the Russians to steal the election. Now we know that was a hoax. But0:42 not only that, Tulsi Gabbard has released documents to back up an explosive claim. She says not only did the intel community get it wrong, they actually lied on purpose to hurt president Trump.0:54 There is irrefutable evidence that detail how president Obama and his national security team directed the creation of an intelligence community assessment that they knew was false.1:06 They knew it would promote this contrived narrative that Russia interfered in the 20 16 election to help president Trump win, selling it to the American people as though it were true. It wasn't.1:18 They worked with their partners in the media to promote this lie, ultimately to undermine the legitimacy of president Trump.1:25 Now Gabbard is doing something about it to, quote, root out deep state actors. Yesterday, she canceled security clearances for 37 people allegedly tied to the Russia hoax. And now1:37 she's announced she is cutting over 40 percent of her agency staff, which includes entire offices that she says, quote, politicize the intelligence the president sees. This is a massive change. Her
1:49 office takes the intelligence that comes from the intelligence community and translates it for the president. Oh, by the way, Gabbard said her cuts will save taxpayers about 700000000 dollars per year.
2:02 Meanwhile, down south, the long awaited and highly controversial plan to redistrict the Texas congressional map is about to pass. Democrats drew national attention when they fled the state to stop a vote
2:14 on the new map. Experts say that map would likely give Republicans 5 more seats in the house. But in California, Democrats have a plan of their own. First, they criticize Texas Republicans, now they're
2:26 copying them. The California plan redraws the congressional map to give 5 more seats to Democrats. Both of those plans could pass as early as today, but California voters will have to sign off on the
2:38 change this November. Democrats though have a nationwide problem of their own in the upcoming elections. Apparently, the strategy isn't working. Check out this map from the New York Times.
2:49 New voter registration data shows that dims are not doing well. Fewer democrats are registering to vote. There are 30 states that track voter registration by party. Well, Democrats are registering
3:01 to vote at a slower rate than Republicans in all 30 of them. That probably means bad news for next year's midterm elections. On top of that, a poll from the Wall Street Journal shows Democrats have their worst
3:13 favorability numbers in 3 decades. 63 percent of Americans have an unfavorable view of the Democratic party, a lot worse than Republicans. Normally, the incumbent party, which is a GOP right
3:25 now, takes losses in the midterms. It happened with Bush, Obama, and Trump, but that could change. Whether Democrats can turn things around before then remains to be seen. And
3:37 for our last story, Target's old CEO is out. He oversaw tough times for Target. The company faced ongoing boycotts as it doubled and tripled down on LGBT policies.
3:49 From pride month to transgender bathrooms to LGBT merchandise for kids, even chest binders for little girls. Parents weren't having it and Target sales have struggled. The boycott
4:01 worked. But even more recently, Target pared back some of their DEI policies along with several other major corporations. That move sparked a boycott amongst some on the left. Well, can
4:13 this new CEO win over Americans with some common sense policies? Only time will tell. And those are today's stories. I'm Casey Harper. You can dive deeper with the Washington Stand at washington
4:24 stand dot com. Better yet, download the Stand Firm mobile app where you can watch this and other news. Up next is Washington Watch with Jody Heiss, and we are back tomorrow with more stories
4:36 that matter.
4:51 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 and
5:02 newsmakers, all from a biblical worldview. Sitting in for Tony is today's host, Jody Heiss.
5:09 We cannot give up. And we've got the Lord on our side. We can't forget that. We're not alone in this thing. The Lord has called us to a battle. He's called us to
5:21 fight with everything that we have. My job is just to be faithful and to hang in there, and I'm gonna do that as long as I've got a voice. And we're not gonna give up as long as I've got
5:32 breath in my body.
5:37 During an interview with Tony 2 years ago, doctor doctor Dobson went home to be with the lord today at the age of 89, and today, we will honor his life and
5:49 legacy. Welcome to this Thursday edition of Washington Watch. I'm Jody Heise filling in this month for Tony. We're glad to have you on board with us. I'll be joined by FRC's founding president, Jerry
6:01 Regier, as we remember doctor Dobson, who is a founder of the Family Research Council. Also on this edition of Washington Watch, we'll discuss some of the other latest developments in several
6:12 wars. Russia's war with Ukraine, Israel's war with Hamas, and the Trump administration's war against drug cartels. North Carolina congressman Greg Murphy will be joining me in a
6:24 moment for that discussion. And then here's a disturbing clip, a so called interview that former CNN correspondent Jim Acosta had with the AI generated
6:36 likeness of a Parkland school shooting victim, Joaquin Oliver.
6:41 Joaquin, I would like to know what your solution would be for gun violence.
6:48 Great question. I believe in a mix of stronger gun control laws, mental health support, and community engagement. We need to create safe spaces for conversations and connections, making sure everyone feels seen and
6:59 heard. It's about building a culture of kindness and understanding. What do you think about that?
7:04 I think that's a great idea, Joaquin.
7:06 Wow. That so called interview generated quite a backlash and with good reason. We'll discuss it later when I'm joined by Shane Wennings. He's the CEO of the National Men's Ministry,
7:18 Promise Keepers. And then lastly, new data has been released by the American Bible Society on US church engagement. What are the effects of church engagement and which generations are
7:30 the most engaged and which are the least engaged. Well, we'll unpack all of that with doctor John Plake. He's the chief innovative officer at the American Bible Society.
7:42 So as always, we've got a lot coming your way today, and I know you don't wanna miss any of it. But if by chance you do, you can always go back and catch it on our website, tony perkins dot com. I also wanna encourage
7:54 you to be praying for and to be planning to attend our upcoming event coming in, Chino Hills, California on October seventeenth and eighteenth, our pray vote stand summit. This is something
8:05 you certainly don't wanna miss. You can get information now by going to our website pray vote stand dot org. Alright. Now let's jump into our first news item for today. Earlier today,
8:18 Russia launched 1 of its biggest waves of air strikes on Ukraine, in weeks. It's the largest that they've done. And so all this is coming to,
8:30 debate the question as to how serious these 2 countries are when it comes to potentially a peace deal. I'm speaking to reporters today. Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky said that there's no sign
8:42 whatsoever from Moscow that they truly intend to engage in any substantive negotiations at all. And Russia, well, are they stalling? Well, joining me now to
8:54 discuss all of this and more is congressman Greg Murphy. He serves on several committees, including the ways in means committee. He represents the third congressional district of North Carolina. Doctor
9:06 Murphy, welcome back to Washington Watch. Great to have you.
9:09 Hey, Jody. Good to see you.
9:11 Okay. Well, let's start with this. There's a lot that I really wanna cover with you today, but let's let's start with Russia. The foreign minister there of Russia has said that, Putin is all ready
9:23 to make a deal, but he also says that any real deals for peace that depart from those that were set out by Russia back in 20 22 in Istanbul, that is totally hopeless. So what's your take
9:35 on what we're seeing? Where's all this headed?
9:39 You know, Jody, that really, was very shocking and depressing today to see what Russia did launching their greatest missile attack or 1 of the biggest offensive they've had since the war. When literally, good lord, just
9:49 a few days ago, Vladimir Putin came on American soil and talked to president Trump about peace. Look. You know, trying to give Putin a reason to stop the war because he has
10:01 no no reason to stop by his measures. He doesn't mind killing his own people or killing the North Koreans or specifically killing Ukrainians. And trying to get a piece on this is extremely difficult.
10:13 Why he would continue to press like he's doing right now, really, I think, try to push the Ukrainians to accept any deal just because they're continuing Russia's continuing its murderous ways. I don't
10:25 know. But, you know, the president wants something done sooner than later as does the entire world. And I'm hopeful that he'll be able to to see this to fruition.
10:34 Hard to get into Putin's brain, but you look at this and you have to kinda scratch your head thinking, what in the world is he doing? Like you said, just meeting with Trump the other day, and there seems to be great
10:45 progress. And then all of a sudden, you know, an enormous airstrike. At the same time, Putin is reportedly keen on China in the sense that it appears that they're gonna be
10:57 asking China to play a very important role in the security guarantees. What do you think of that? Any surprise there?
11:05 Yeah. No. You know, you look at the axis of Eli. You know, I I just came back from a long trip from overseas, and I watched the the movie Reagan, which if the viewers have not seen this, I would wholeheartedly recommend
11:16 everybody watching. Anyway, we talked about the axis of evil, and and truth be told, nothing's changed, since Reagan was president. You still have North Korea. You still have China, which once won world dom world
11:27 domination. Russia, you have a dictator that is, ruthless to the extent. And so just like in World War 2 when Mussolini and Hitler, got together, it's no different, now. Hit dictators tend
11:39 to migrate towards each other, and sadly enough, this is seemingly, repeating again today.
11:45 Well, that's a that's a good perspective. I and I I think there's there's a lot more perception there than most people really really thought to describe. Congressman Murphy, if I can
11:57 switch gears with you a little bit, let's jump over to Israel. It appears that they are now on the verge of seizing control of Gaza City, which they have certainly described as a terror stronghold
12:09 of Hamas. And Hamas says Israel's plans to attack Gaza City is just a blatant disregard for any efforts for a ceasefire and hostage release. But,
12:21 you know, I I look back in this and have to ask. It seems as though, and I like your opinion, that Hamas, they are the ones that have really not been serious about striking a deal. What what are your thoughts with this
12:33 whole thing?
12:33 No. I don't think so. You know, October seventh will go down as as not only, oh, a day in world history, obviously, that it was tragic, but really will still be solidified in the history of Judaism. You know,
12:45 I've been to Israel several times. You've been to Israel several times. The people just want peace in the region, and I think more and more their neighbors want that also. But when you have a terrorist group that wants
12:55 nothing more than to eliminate the Jewish people, I don't think they care about anything else. They sure haven't cared about, the people that live in Gaza that they've used as human shields, the hospitals, the schools,
13:06 etcetera. And so I think they're willing to, you know, literally go on to their, you know, their heaven if they, if they are martyred when they die and they're willing to take anybody with them. You know, Israel is
13:18 tough that, the the Hamas people have not been allowing in aid. There's been very difficult to get into it. It is a humanitarian crisis, but that at that point, it could all end in in
13:30 1 moment if Hamas would just surrender. And I think those who are pro Palestinian forget to say that, forget to push that, that if Hamas would just lay down their arms and come out and surrender, they are the ones who
13:41 started this this massacre. Things would change immediately. But they're not. So, you know, the Israeli Defense Force has every right to push its, push its offensive, to try to have some
13:53 type of security guarantees for its own country.
13:56 Yeah. And it's amazing how much the legacy media has just played into the the, doctrine, if you will, the mantra coming from Hamas. Let me let me play a clip for
14:08 you. This is of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu explaining during an interview with Skype, News what the goal is of going into Gaza City. Get
14:20 this, and I'd like to get your reaction.
14:22 My goal is not to occupy Gaza. It's to free Gaza. Freedom from Hamas' journey, free Israel and others from Hamas' terrorism, give, Gaza and Israel a different future. And I think
14:33 we're on we're close to doing it. It'll have to, of course, mean getting the last strongholds of Hamas. They shouldn't be there. Everybody understand that.
14:43 Your thoughts on that?
14:45 Yeah. I think it's true. I think he wants peace in the region. I think he wants peace for the Gazans, and I think that's what the whole world wants. But sadly enough, given the fact of the, you know, the bellicose
14:56 attack by, Hamas on October the seventh, they haven't shown any desire. And they've you know, multiple attempts to to, stop the conflict have all been pushed away by Hamas because they don't
15:08 want a a resolution to this. They literally want war, and they want the the destruction of the Jewish state. So given those terms, you know, Israel has to basically honestly, they have no choice. They have to go in and
15:20 take out Hamas wherever they are and, eliminate them from the face of the earth.
15:24 Yeah. And, again, the the media continues to try to spin all of that in spite of the reality that Israel has done more than any other country I'm aware of to get people out of harm's
15:36 way and all that. Let me let me switch gears 1 more time for you if I can, congressman Murphy. The Trump administration, they are now at war, if you will, against drug cartels. The United States
15:48 has now deployed 3 Aegis guided missile destroyers, down off the the shores of Venezuela, and the Trump administration has reportedly directed the military to prepare for lethal strikes against those
16:01 cartels, if necessary. Your take on on these developments?
16:06 Yeah. You know, Jody, that's an entirely new level that's never been breached before, taking an offensive into another country on these, especially a country, you know, with that doesn't really
16:19 like the United States. That's a whole another level. I'm not sure really where I am with that. Sadly enough, we're losing a hundred thousand Americans every year to to drugs that are flowing in from this country.
16:30 China's played their hand with it. Central America and South America played their hand with it. You know, we have a president that, you know, is tired of messing around with a lot of these things. You don't do things
16:40 incrementally with Trump. You do things in broad strokes. I think that will have, you know, significant international ramifications. I I pray it would never come to this, but you have a president down there that
16:51 obviously he was indicted and, you know, by the United States. 15000000, I think, was the first bounty. 25000000 up to in the Biden administration. Now it's up to 50000000 on his head, because he is a
17:03 narco terrorist. And, you know, god, we we have to protect our own citizens, and that's what the president's trying to do.
17:09 Yeah. That's a bold, bold step to say the least. Yeah. Real quickly. We've only got about a minute or so left, but the news has come out that the Biden administration placed more than 11000
17:22 unaccompanied illegal, children, immigrant children with unvetted sponsors. Your take on that real quickly.
17:29 You know, Jody, I it's just believe me, if I could say a few explicit words, I'd love to say that, but but damn them for doing this. Taking the most vulnerable of children and giving them to people who most likely a
17:40 significant number of those individuals most likely now are being exploited in some way, either a slave labor or, in in sexual, cartels or something of sorts. But they didn't care. They just
17:52 literally wanted the border to come open, bring in people to hopefully vote for them for 1 day. So damn them for doing this. This is tragic. It is it is sad on those individuals, and who knows will if we'll ever get
18:04 those kids back.
18:05 Yeah. It's, you know, you you get these kind of stats coming back, and it is it's horrifying. 11000 Yeah. Children. We we Unconscious. Unconscious. It really is.
18:17 Congressman Greg Murphy of North Carolina, thank you so much for joining us today on Washington Watch. Greatly appreciate it.
18:23 Good to see you.
18:24 Likewise. Alright, friends. Coming up, we're gonna honor the life and legacy of doctor James Dobson. What a life. What a legacy. I wanna bring in a very, very special
18:36 guest who will do that for us. So you don't wanna go anywhere. Straight ahead. More coming your way. We'll be with you right after this break. Stay tuned.
18:56 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.
19:08 That's why we need organizations like the Family Research Council that can effectively defend and strengthen the family.
19:16 Family Research Council began over 40 years ago, like all great movements of God, with prayer. Today, rooted in the heart of the nation's capital, FRC continues to
19:27 champion faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview.
19:34 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.
19:44 The Family Research Council is key. It's 1 of a handful of groups that I think will determine whether our children live in a country that
19:56 enjoyed all of the freedom and all the opportunity that we enjoyed in this great land.
20:02 It's just a wonderful para church organization that doesn't seek to take the place of the church, but it seeks to assist the family and the church as we try to move forward
20:14 successfully, not in a defensive mode, but in an offensive mode as we seek to live our lives according to the holy scriptures.
20:22 FRC, is not gonna be whooped. You know, we're we're gonna fight. We're gonna take a stand. And, again, we don't retreat.
20:31 You will never see in front of this building here in Washington, DC, a white flag fly. We will never step back. We will never surrender, and we will never
20:43 be silent.
20:49 Few people have had the positive Christ honoring impact upon the family as doctor James Dobson. His legacy will be lasting. In every sphere
20:59 in which he engaged, he served the cause
21:01 of Christ and proclaimed God's faithfulness to his people. He brought to public policy a new focus on the timelessness of family. All of us at Family Research Council extend our sympathy
21:13 and prayers to the entire Dobson family. Doctor Dobson fought the good fight of faith, finished the course, and kept the faith. He leaves a legacy for his own family and millions of families
21:25 worldwide. Well done.
21:27 We cannot give up, and we've got the Lord on our side. We can't forget that. We're not alone in this thing. The Lord has called us to a battle. He's called us to fight
21:40 with everything that we have.
21:52 Welcome back to Washington Watch. Thank you so much for joining us today. I'm Jody Heise filling in for Tony and a great honor to do so. As I noted at the top of the hour, doctor
22:04 James Dobson, certainly 1 of America's most
22:17 God touched so so many lives, strengthened so many countless numbers of families. Mine is 1 of them. Probably many of you watching
22:29 and listening right now have been touched by his life as well. But you may not know this, that it was doctor Dobson who is 1 of the founders of the Family Research Council, and he also had his
22:41 hands very much involved in bringing Tony to FRC 22 years ago. In fact, that was 22 years ago this week. So we here at FRC wanna honor doctor James Dobson today
22:53 and celebrate both his life and his legacy. And to help me do that right now is FRC's very first president, founding president, Jerry Regier. Jerry, welcome to Washington Watch.
23:05 Thank you, Jody. Great to be with you.
23:07 Well, it's great to be with you, and we have so much deep love and appreciation for you and the role that you had here at FRC and continue to have. But you also had a very special
23:19 relationship with doctor Dobson. Why don't you share with us some of your experiences, some of your interactions with him?
23:26 Thank you, Jody. Yes. Doctor Dobson was just an amazing person. And even as I saw the pictures that you just put up with him, with world leaders and Christian leaders,
23:39 he never lost his personal touch with, his friends and those that that, he helped mentor, I being 1 of those. I remember making that phone call
23:50 in 19 79 to a person I didn't know at the time and, just, had a wonderful conversation with him. He then came to Washington
24:03 and really helped put some wheels on the vision that I had shared with him for FRC. And, so I can't say enough about, the way that he has
24:14 mentored me. And, even after I left FRC, continued to write personal notes and was just such an encouraging, encouraging person
24:27 in addition to him being the megaphone for the family for generations.
24:33 Yeah. I think that personal touch is a great part to bring up. I I certainly did not have the relationship with him that you and Tony and so many others had, but I, of course, was able
24:44 to be with him, on a number of occasions. And every single time, he made you feel like you were the only person on the planet. I mean, he looked at you in the eye and just that personal touch. I'm so grateful you
24:56 brought that up. And what would you you have to say about his influence? You touched on a little bit about but his influence on you and even broader, his influence on our nation.
25:09 Well, his influence on me was just phenomenal. I'll start there. We went on a skiing trip with he and Shirley, slept on the highway sofa in his
25:20 home, And, so he mentored me very much so. I remember Jody the first time he put me on the radio. I was in my thirties and was really just a
25:32 country boy. I didn't know all the the ways things happened. And, after the interview, he effusively thanked me for being on, and and,
25:44 and I my response was thank you. He stopped the show and rerecorded. He said, Jerry, you need to, be a little more thankful for,
25:57 being there. And so I learned how to even respond to somebody else. So so he was he was a mentor. And, and in terms of just,
26:10 the broader nation, he brought FRC to life by initially putting a plug in on his film series. You you might remember
26:21 his film series, which went to churches and big auditoriums around the nation and around the world. And so he was he was just such
26:33 a leader. When I first met him, Jody, he probably had 4 people in his office helping him. And so I just saw how much impact he had as his ministry
26:45 grew, and, his influence went way, way beyond even his radio program, particularly in even in public policy, and that's where family research came in.
26:57 He he was so passionate about strengthening the family, about reenergizing the institution of marriage, about pro life causes.
27:08 And, and so he influenced not only those causes, but he also influenced so many young leaders like myself who then went on to,
27:20 have large organizations themselves. And he gladly and readily shared that stage which, with those of us he mentored. So, he is a gentleman.
27:32 Is there anything that few people would know about doctor Dobson that you wish more people actually did know?
27:42 Well, I probably would say just, again, his personal touch. I mean, we we drove in the car with him to that skiing vacation for about 5 hours, and he
27:54 was well read. He he loved to discuss astronomy, of all things. He loved to read about, the stars. And and,
28:07 he and my wife in particular, because she has an interest in that, had a great conversation as we drove along. He, he also, loved his
28:19 wife, Shirley, and, people would would guess that, but, they wouldn't necessarily have seen that in action. And, so I think I think just
28:30 his personal touch, even though he became a mega, celebrity in the Christian world, He still had time to write personal notes, to call,
28:43 and that just always amazed me. And, and so he was an influence way beyond the big crowds, also the small ones.
28:52 And so far ahead of his time. We only got about 30 seconds before I have to wind down. Is there any 1 thing that he said to you that just forever has gone with you?
29:04 Well, I think the thing that's forever gone with me was a letter he wrote me, and and he just talked to, in the letter
29:16 about the prayer meeting that we had initially for, the family research division and the research council. And he he he made the comment that
29:28 that's where our hearts were knit together.
29:30 And Jerry, I gotta wrap it up there. That's awesome. Jerry Regier, Air Force's founding president. Thank you for joining us today.Show more
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