Skip to content 2/12/2026 Standing for Truth in a Shifting Culture and Preparing the Next Generation with a Biblical Worldview Feb 12 · 59 min ...more
2/12/2026 Standing for Truth in a Shifting Culture and Preparing the Next Generation with a Biblical Worldview
February 12, 2026 · 59 min
A look at Minnesota’s Many Problems, another government shutdown, the Save America Act, a Canadian trans-identifying school shooter, good teen discipleship, and FRC’s Amicus Brief on Abortion Drugs.
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.
February 12, 2026 · 59 min · Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Video
A look at Minnesota’s Many Problems, another government shutdown, the Save America Act, a Canadian trans-identifying school shooter, good teen discipleship, and FRC’s Amicus Brief on Abortion Drugs. ...more Show the full description Show less A look at Minnesota’s Many Problems, another government shutdown, the Save America Act, a Canadian trans-identifying school shooter, good teen discipleship, and FRC’s Amicus Brief on Abortion Drugs.
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In this video 0:00 Tragic Shooting and Immigration Surge Updates10:43 DHS Funding Standoff and Government Shutdown Impacts18:52 Gender Ideology's Deadly Consequences and Youth Engagement38:53 Battling Abortion Pills and Cultural Shifts
Tragic Shooting and Immigration Surge Updates 0:00 Hello. I'm Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council and host of Washington Watch. Thanks for tuning in. Every day, we offer a biblical perspective on the news as well as insightful interviews with elected0:11 leaders, newsmakers, and culture experts. We have a great program planned for you today, but first, get up to speed on the top headlines with Washington Stand's News Brief.0:27 Welcome to the Washington Stand News Brief. I'm Sarah Holliday with today's top stories. 1 of the deadliest school shootings in Canada's history unfolded yesterday. Reports0:38 suggest that the person responsible for this deadly shooting is an 18 year old girl with mental health issues. However, as police have since confirmed, the suspect, Jesse Von Rutzelar,0:51 is a biological male who identified as a transgender woman, but it is true that he was not mentally well. The key facts, disturbing facts of this case are that1:02 before the school shooting, Van Ruzelaar killed his mother and brother at home. He then went on and opened fire at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School before turning the gun on1:14 himself and pulling the trigger. In total, he killed at least 9 people including at least 5 children and injured up to 25 others. According to deputy commissioner Duane1:26 McDonald, Van Ruzilar had been detained under the local mental health act for an assessment on more than 1 occasion. He once even attended the school that he inflicted mass murder
1:37 upon, but dropped out 4 years ago. Authorities didn't share a motive behind the attack, so the investigations continue into this shooting, which stands as 1 of the deadliest
1:49 Canada has ever seen. Now here stateside, there's an update on the immigration front. After successfully deporting thousands of illegal immigrants, president Donald
2:01 Trump's borders are Tom Homan announced a significant drawdown of immigration enforcement agents in Minnesota is underway. He also proposed an outright end to the surge there.
2:14 With that and success that has been made arrests in public safety threats and other priorities since this surge operation began, as well as the unprecedented levels of coordination we have obtained from state officials
2:25 and local law enforcement, I have proposed and president Trump has concurred that this surge operation conclude. I'm not gonna remove everybody out of the safety of our officers, but
2:37 like I said, and and that operation Metro surge is ending. And in the next week, we're going deploy the officers here in detail back to the home stations or other areas the country are needed.
2:49 Under that operation, Trump had deployed about 3000 armed ICE agents to Minnesota by the end of January. There was a major emphasis in its biggest city Minneapolis as they sought to deport illegal immigrants.
3:02 Homan had already made announcements in the last couple weeks about withdrawing ICE agents. Today's news marks a major winding down of the federal operation And with weeks worth of ongoing protests, we'll watch
3:14 to see if this helps in easing tensions in the state. Turning to the heart of Dixie, a new bill has been proposed that would make it a felony to intentionally interrupt a church
3:25 service. Alabama's legislation comes largely in response to the anti ice protest that recently shut down a church in Minnesota. Even though the rioters claimed they had a first amendment right
3:37 to disrupt the service, many others have been quick to state that certain places are off limits, like churches. The bill, which was sponsored by Republican state rep Greg Barnes, would turn these invasions
3:49 into a class c felony, meaning up to 10 years in prison for first timers with a mandatory 5 year minimum for repeat offenders. It targets deliberate chaos such as riots,
4:01 unlawful protests, harassment of worshipers, or blocking access to the church. As rep Barnes put it, no 1 has the right to disrupt a church service and infringe on their fellow citizens right to
4:13 worship freely. The bill has cleared committee and could reach the house floor soon. So, we'll keep watching this 1. And those are today's headlines. I'm Sarah Holliday. Dive
4:24 deeper with the Washington Stand, family research councils outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. Also, check out our long form conversations to the outstanding podcast. And for more stories that
4:36 matter, be sure to tune in to the Washington Sand News Brief tomorrow.
4:52 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
5:03 newsmakers, all from a biblical world view. Washington Watch with Tony Perkins starts
5:10 now. Democrats are never going to get their full wish list. That's not the way this works. Republicans, for example, will not agree to measures that make it impossible for
5:23 for law enforcement officers to do their jobs. But Democrats can build on the measures that Republicans have already agreed to if they actually engage in serious negotiations with the White House.
5:36 That was senate majority leader John Thune earlier today on the senate floor before senate Democrats blocked a motion to advance the house bill to fund to, fund the Department of Homeland Security. Welcome
5:48 to this February twelfth edition of Washington Watch. I'm Tony Perkins, your host. Thanks so much for tuning in. Well, coming up, an 18 year old gunman killed 8 people, including family members and students at a
5:59 school in Canada before taking his own life. Authorities say he had struggled with mental illness and began what is described as a gender transition process at 12 years of age. Doctor Jennifer
6:11 Valens, senior research fellow at the Family Research Council, joins us to discuss the deadly implications of gender transitions for children. Plus, Georgia congressman Buddy
6:23 Carter is here with the latest on the standoff between Democrats and the White House over funding for the Department of Homeland Security.
6:35 Well, today on Capitol Hill, lawmakers on the Senate Homeland Security Committee examined the recent massive immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota as well as the rampant fraud that has occurred in
6:47 the state. Joining me now is Washington stand reporter Casey Harper who has been tracking today's top stories. Casey, was that hearing as lively as yesterday's house judiciary committee hearing?
6:58 Lively is the word. Yeah. That maybe not quite as lively. Definitely heated though, Tony, on a pretty cold day in DC. And what we saw this hearing was leaders from different areas. We saw Minnesota leaders. We
7:10 saw federal, officials and heads of, relevant agencies, and then we saw the senators, talking about those 2 issues, the protests and ICE operations in Minneapolis, and then the fraud, they got it all started.
7:22 Republican senator Rand Paul made a point in saying that ICE has to regain the public's trust. There's a lot of points made today. Minnesota attorney general Keith Ellison, he told the committee that federal agencies are
7:34 refusing to cooperate with the state investigations into the shooting desk of those 2 Americans that were, you know, caught on camera and really went viral during ICE operations. He said that the feds have really pushed
7:45 them out of the investigations room. Republican senator Ron Johnson, he's firing back though. He says that, officials in Minnesota, local leaders, they're fueling the chaos, that has really taken over the streets of
7:55 Minneapolis. And our friend Republican senator Josh Hawley, he grilled Ellison on the what started all this in the first place, which is failing to address fraud in the state. Here's a clip.
8:06 Donations came on December twentieth.
8:08 Sir, it's
8:08 You met with them on December the eleventh. And on January twentieth, the FBI knocked over their headquarters.
8:14 No. No.
8:14 That's the sequence of events here.
8:16 No. It's not You've been right at
8:18 the center of this fraud. It's not
8:20 the sequence of events.
8:21 And you've been able to. And, sir The false statement. You should resign.
8:25 Okay. Maybe that was more lively than yesterday. I'll let you be the judge, Tony. But, definitely, more anger, more controversy, over Minneapolis today.
8:36 Well, also, we've learned today that the immigration surge in Minnesota is now coming to an end.
8:43 Yeah. That's right. A lot of big news out of Minneapolis today. So borders are Tom Hohman. He held a much anticipated press conference this morning where he said ICE agents are leaving Minneapolis. Here's a clip.
8:55 With that and success that has been made arresting public safety threats and other priorities since this search operation began, as well as the unprecedented levels of coordination we have obtained from state officials
9:06 and local law enforcement, I have proposed, and president Trump has concurred, that this surge operation conclude.
9:14 Now Homan did say there's still gonna be some ICE agents in the state, but it's gonna be a far cry from the 3000 federal agents that surged into Minneapolis off after those widespread reports of fraud. And he also made
9:25 clear that if these agents find any, illegal immigrants, they are going to take the enforcement action and process them accordingly. Now he also took time to really dispel what's become a Democrat talking point, and he
9:36 said, hey. We haven't been, you know, raiding hospitals, schools, and churches to deport people, which is 1 of the things that's become the center of debate on Capitol Hill and held up government funding, really. Now
9:47 Minnesota governor Tim Walz, for his part, he said he would happily pack the bags of ICE agents leaving the state, which is kind of interesting because all this controversy has really swept under the rug a lot of his
9:58 role in the fraud that has been dominating his state for many years.
10:02 Casey, I I heard that Tom Holman said that these ICE agents would go back to their home stations or be deployed elsewhere. Any indication that there may be another ISERD
10:14 somewhere else?
10:15 I think it's very, very possible once things, cool down a little bit. You've actually if you've been following this, as I know you have, they've been going city by city and state by state. So Minneapolis, there was a a
10:26 news hook to get them in there, but it was just the latest in a string of cities. And and also with the National Guard deployments that they've been considering, some cities have pushed back on that. Some, like, 10 in
10:34 Tennessee welcomed it. But I don't think that Minneapolis is the last that we're gonna see of this.
10:39 Alright. Casey, Harper, thanks so much for, joining us. Alright. So what happens tonight at midnight when the funding for the Department of Homeland Security expires
DHS Funding Standoff and Government Shutdown Impacts
10:50 as senate Democrats are unable to reach an agreement with the White House over continuing the funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Joining me now by phone to give us the latest is congressman Buddy Carter who
11:02 serves on the House Budget Committee and the Committee on Energy and Commerce. He represents the first congressional district of Georgia. Congressman Carter, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thanks for, joining us.
11:15 Well, thank you for having me, Tony. It's always a pleasure.
11:18 So the, Department of Homeland Security shutdown is all but certain. The, bill from the house did not advance. The Democrats blocked it. What are you
11:30 hearing, and what is this, shut down going to affect?
11:36 Well, the shutdown is gonna affect, first of all, obviously, it's gonna affect ICE. And and I support ICE. And ICE is doing their job. They they have been charged with the mission of removing
11:48 criminal illegal immigrants, and that is what they're doing. But it's also gonna have an impact on other programs as well, not the least of which is FEMA. And right now, after the winter storm that we've just
12:00 experienced, people need FEMA. And FEMA is is now not going to be appropriated. It's not gonna be funded. And here we have people without power as a result of this winter storm. They're
12:12 not gonna get the help that they need. Not only that, but others that are gonna be impacted. TSA, the coast guard. Those are important programs in our country. Yet, Chuck Schumer and John Ossoff and the Democrats
12:24 are putting illegal criminal immigrants ahead of American citizens who need these services.
12:31 So so how quickly will, citizens begin to feel the the the shutdown?
12:39 Well, they'll be able to fill it pretty quick. And and when DHS shuts down, and that should be probably at midnight tonight, then you'll see the impact. First of all, FEMA is gonna be impacted immediately.
12:52 TSA will continue because they are a service that's that's essential. But, but the coast guard and then the coast guard, but these they're not gonna get paid. And and, you know,
13:04 here we have here we have Americans who are working, who are not getting paid, providing the essential services. And yet, again, Chuck Schumer, John Ossoff, and the Democrats are putting
13:16 criminal illegal immigrants ahead of these American workers who are doing their job.
13:23 There there does not
13:23 appear to be a resolution on the horizon because both
13:24 the House and the Senate, will have will because both the house and the senate, will have will be on recess, next week. If the senate does not move anything tonight,
13:36 you know, this this there's likely not to be, will not be a resolution next week. So we may be looking at the following week before there's even conversations about it.
13:47 Well, you're exactly right. And and and again, that is that's Chuck Schumer, John Ossoff, and the Democrats putting criminal illegal immigrants ahead of American citizens. And, yes, this could
13:59 last a while. Now we have been put on 48 hour notice. The speaker said be ready that, we may need to call you in within in 48 hours. And certainly, if we need to do that, we will. But
14:11 you make a good point. The Synodis is scheduled to be out. Number of members are, you know, we have plans. We have lives outside of, outside of Congress. And they have they
14:23 have plans. And and certainly, we will fulfill our obligations. Don't get me wrong. But at the same time, it's gonna be difficult to get everybody back at once. When these scatter across the United States, it's it's
14:34 difficult. And yet, again, here we have John Allsoff, Chuck Schumer, and the Democrats paying no attention whatsoever to the American citizens, instead putting
14:46 criminal illegal immigrants ahead of, of American citizens. And let's face it, this is nothing more than defund the police all over again. That's exactly what it is. Defund the police.
14:59 Now I understand in in anticipation of hopefully reaching some type of resolution, the, the house speaker, I I believe canceled the, congressional overseas trips.
15:12 Yes. I I understand that. And, you know, that and and again, we as members of Congress, we understand we're willing to do our part. But this is just an another example
15:24 of Chuck Schumer, John Ossoff, and the Democrats putting the criminal illegal immigrants ahead of American citizens, ahead of members of Congress, ahead of of everyone. And just because
15:36 they're trying to protect them. And and look, Tom Homan, you you you've just reported then and that there's gonna be a drawdown of the forces in Minnesota. The surge is gonna
15:48 end. We've agreed to provide body cams for the ICE agents. We're trying to negotiate in good faith, and yet the Democrats don't want to do that.
15:58 Congressman McCarter, let me let me step back for a moment and ask a bigger question here because we just had another shutdown. End of the year, we had a a a long longest shutdown in, in American history, but these are
16:10 becoming more frequent. Is this another just symptom of a, of a congress and a nation that is divided?
16:21 I would submit to you that it is, and it's unfortunate because, you know, the government shouldn't shut down. There are a number of people who are proposing that we pass legislation that says the government can't shut
16:32 down. I'm not sure, you know, the devil's in the details on something, of that magnitude. But again, this is deployed. And and thank you for mentioning the shutdown back in the fall.
16:44 Let's don't forget that for 42 days, the government was shut down, the longest shutdown in the history of our country. And why? Because Chuck Schumer, John Ossoff, and the Democrats, once again, they were
16:56 trying at that time to get health care benefits for illegal immigrants. And we're not gonna do that. We're simply not gonna do that. They failed to do it, yet they shut the government down for that long of a
17:08 period of time making people suffer, making our troops not get paid, our tie our SNAP, our our beneficiaries in those programs, those very important programs. They didn't
17:20 give them a WIC program. All of those suffered as a result of the Democrats' selfishness trying to defund the police and once again, putting illegal criminal immigrants ahead of the American
17:31 people.
17:33 Alright. Congressman Buddy Carter, we're gonna leave it there. I wanna thank you for taking time to, to join us. Always great to, to hear from you.
17:43 Thank you very much.
17:44 Alright. Congressman Buddy Carter of, Georgia. You know, it is we're seeing this more frequently, these the government shutdowns because the 2 sides can't
17:56 come together, and it's so narrowly divided. I mean, when you look at the, the the makeup of the house where the speaker now has almost no vote, he has 1 vote.
18:08 And and we we saw that play out this week on a number of issues. It is, the the the both parties are divided within themselves, the country's divided. A lot of division.
18:20 You know, we need to be praying that, that our nation can find common ground again. And here's where I think we find the common ground. It's on truth. That's why it's so important that we
18:32 we stand for truth, and that begins with biblical truth. And that's why the news and information that comes from Washington Watch and the Washington Stand is based on that biblical truth. Alright.
18:44 When we come back, we've got more Washington watch, so don't
18:51 go away.Show more
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