Skip to content 1/14/2026 Multi-faceted Abortion Concerns, Global Instabilities, Especially Regarding Persecuted Christians Jan 14 · 59 min ...more
1/14/2026 Multi-faceted Abortion Concerns, Global Instabilities, Especially Regarding Persecuted Christians
January 14, 2026 · 59 min
TODAY: Raising awareness on abortion drug harms and abortion funding; U.S.-Greenland negotiations; Syria and Iran incivilities; childcare fraud in Minnesota; persecuted Christians around the world.
Series Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Video January 14, 2026 · 59 min · Washington Watch with Tony Perkins - Video
TODAY: Raising awareness on abortion drug harms and abortion funding; U.S.-Greenland negotiations; Syria and Iran incivilities; childcare fraud in Minnesota; persecuted Christians around the world. ...more Show the full description Show less TODAY: Raising awareness on abortion drug harms and abortion funding; U.S.-Greenland negotiations; Syria and Iran incivilities; childcare fraud in Minnesota; persecuted Christians around the world.
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In this video 0:00 News Roundup and Chemical Abortion Concerns18:24 International Unrest and Christian Persecution38:51 Defending Life Principles in Politics
News Roundup and Chemical Abortion Concerns 0:00 Hello. I'm Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council and host of Washington Watch. Thanks for tuning in. Everyday, 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. The United Kingdom is considering banning Elon Musk's social media platform, X. There have0:38 been reports of the XAI chatbot, Grok, generating sexual images of both women and children with some having been posted on X. Apparently,0:50 Grok later apologized and blamed it on quote, lapses in safeguards. But the UK says Grock is generating illegal, nonconsensual, intimate images and1:02 child sexual abuse material. An investigation is underway and here is what British prime minister said about it.1:10 The actions of Crock and x are disgusting, and they're shameful. Yeah. And and frankly, the decision to then turn this into a premium service is horrific, and we're1:22 absolutely determined to take action here. We've made it clear that x has to act, but if not, Ofcom has our full backing, and we'll introduce and are introducing legislation.1:33 The story doesn't end there. The US has caught wind of the potential ban. During an interview with GB News, undersecretary of state Sarah b Rogers claimed a ban would likely constitute as
1:45 censorship and a violation of free speech.
1:49 Trying to conflate speech and violence is something that advocates of censorship have done for a long time. If the UK bans x, it won't be the first country to do so. Russia bans x. Venezuela bans x.
2:01 Iran bans x. Free societies generally don't. Already laws against revenge porn and there are already laws against defamation. I think cautious regulation is the best approach here. But when
2:13 you're in a new technological frontier, sometimes there's a temptation to just enact a flurry of new technological regulations designed to put that technological innovation back in the bottle.
2:23 Other lawmakers have defended x. Florida rep Anna Paulina Luna, for example, announced legislation she's crafting to impose sanctions on the UK if it was to ban x. Although,
2:35 it's unlikely that it would gain traction. Back home, immigration related chaos continues. Anti ICE protests have been occurring since the start of the second Trump
2:47 administration. Last week, they intensified after a woman was shot by an agent after allegedly trying to run him over with her car. Now with protests running rampant and agents
2:59 facing consistent harassment, president Donald Trump is threatening to withhold federal funds from so called sanctuary cities and their states if they don't start complying.
3:10 Traditionally, starting February first, we're not making any payments to sanctuary cities. We're states having sanctuary cities because they do everything possible to protect criminals at the expense
3:22 of American citizens, and it breeds fraud and crime and all of the other problems that come. So we're not making any payment to anybody that supports sanctuary cities.
3:33 Exactly which funds will be cut off remain unclear. When asked about it later, Trump only said, you'll see it'll be significant. The Department of Justice has over 30 cities,
3:44 counties, and states on its list of those who have have impeded ICE agents from doing their job. Meanwhile, the Center for Immigration Studies has listed over 100. Finally, Greenland is the
3:56 talk of the town or rather the talk of the world. China, Germany, France, and several others have weighed in on who gets to purchase or not purchase the Denmark territory.
4:08 The main concern, America wants control over it, and some are not too thrilled about the prospect. Trump claimed the US needs Greenland for national security purposes, stating that anything less than
4:20 Greenland being in the hands of the US is unacceptable. Yet both Greenland and Denmark say the island is not for sale with several prominent EU countries backing Denmark. Even so, Trump
4:32 has yet to show any signs of backing down. And those are today's headlines. I'm Sarah Holliday. For more stories that matter, be sure to tune in to the Washington Stand 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 now.
5:10 We can simply fix this if we had the courage to do it. So what are all of us telling the administration? You've been a great pro life president, mister president, but it's now time
5:22 to deal with this issue.
5:24 That was South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham earlier today at a press conference organized by Family Research Council on Capitol Hill addressing the FDA's handling of the abortion drug, mifepristone. Welcome
5:36 to this January fourteenth edition of Washington Watch. I'm Tony Perkins, your host. Thanks for making us part of your day. Well, coming up, a hearing was held earlier today before the Senate Health,
5:48 Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee examining chemical abortions. Lawmakers warned that the current federal policy undermines state laws and puts women's health at risk. Later,
5:59 Louisiana senator Bill Cassidy, who also participated in our press conference and chairs the health committee, will join us to discuss the hearing. Plus, earlier today, Open Doors released its latest world watch
6:11 list identifying the 50 countries where Christians faced faced the most severe persecution. For the first time since 2017, Syria has surged back
6:23 into the top 10. Ryan Brown, CEO of Open Doors USA, will join us to explain what their on the ground research reveals.
6:37 Louisiana
6:40 Louisiana attorney general Liz Murrell today testified before the Senate Health education, labor, and pensions committee warning that the Biden era policy allowing abortion pills to
6:52 be distributed by mail continues to undermine state laws that protect unborn children, and these policies put women at risk. That, she testified
7:04 that the FDA's rollback of in person safeguards has contributed to illegal drug distribution and serious medical complications. Joining me now is Washington stand reporter Casey
7:15 Harper. Casey, what other, issues were discussed at the hearing regarding the abortion pills that are being shipped by mail?
7:23 Yeah. Thanks, Tony. I mean, top of the list in the in the items today is safety, not just for the unborn child who, of course, is reliably killed by the pill, but also for women who often face health complications. Now
7:34 this is a big reason why Louisiana is pushing the FDA to reverse this Biden era decision and reinstate a simple in person doctor's visit if you're gonna get a a pill like this that could lead to health
7:46 complications. Here's what Murl said during the hearing today.
7:50 The Biden administration and its pro abortion partners had long been planning to circumvent Dobbs. After Dobbs, the Biden FDA promptly announced that it would remove the in person
8:01 dispensing requirement for abortion pills, thereby authorizing mifepristone to be shipped nationwide by mail. This was not a medically informed decision, but a purely political
8:13 1. It was not even a legal 1 because federal law prohibits distribution by mail.
8:19 Now Murrow went on to argue that this policy makes state abortion bans unenforceable and it actually violates federal law, including the Comstock Act. She also said that mail order abortion drugs increase medical
8:31 risks because there's a lack of oversight and and thousands of women are actually getting this pill without ever having to see a doctor or a doctor for a follow-up appointment, which was required just a few years ago.
8:42 Now her state lose, is accusing out of state doctors, and actually has indicted some for enabling a legal distribution of the drugs in the states where abortion is banned. And after this hearing, of course,
8:53 Tony, you know the FRC held this Capitol Hill press conference with senator Lindsey Graham, many other lawmakers, and Louisiana and Ohio attorneys general, where pro life leaders just made a clear point. The DOJ
9:05 and the HHS should stop abortion drug shipments across state lines, and the FDA should suspend mifepristone over safety and these many legal concerns.
9:16 Casey, the focus, being on that Biden era policy that remains in place under the Trump administration, which could be changed overnight if the administration wanted to do so. Appreciate that,
9:27 update, Casey. The chairman of the committee, Bill Cassidy, senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana will join us shortly for an in-depth discussion on this issue. Alright. Moving to international topics today, vice president
9:39 JD Vance and the secretary of state Marco Rubio met with officials from Greenland and Denmark. Now this following president Trump's recent statement on Truth Social that the US needs
9:51 Greenland. Casey, what from what I can tell, it does not appear that officials from Greenland and Denmark handed over any keys at the meeting today.
9:59 No. Definitely not. More like get out of our neighborhood or if the North Atlantic has an HOA, the US is in hot water right now. But, to the point of that meeting, the foreign ministers of Greenland and Denmark, they met
10:10 behind closed doors at a private meeting with VP Vance and Marco Rubio, secretary of state at the White House. Now American officials didn't make any statements after the meeting, which could be telling, but here's what
10:21 Danish foreign minister Lars Rasmussen said at the Danish embassy in Washington DC.
10:26 The president has made his view clear, and we have a different position. We, the Kingdom of Denmark, continue to believe that also the long
10:38 term security of Greenland can be ensured inside the current framework.
10:43 Now the morning before the meeting, the president made a true social post and made a point he's made often, which is the US needs Greenland for national security and that nay NATO should be leading the way for the US to
10:54 get it. He made the argument that NATO will be far more formidable and effective with Greenland in US hands. But so far, NATO definitely doesn't see it that way, Tony.
11:04 More, topic I wanna touch on. What's the latest out of Iran? Sure. So Iran is really still experiencing
11:11 a lot of the protests and chaos that we've been seeing coming out of the US or coming out of the country. President Trump said earlier today, he actually got news that the killing has stopped a day after he called on
11:21 Iranians to double down on their protests, though we have seen media reports that more executions are scheduled. Meanwhile, US officials said that they have withdrawn some of the personnel from some bases in the Middle
11:32 East, which some say could be a signal of coming military action. And this all comes as Iran's chief justice is calling for swift punishment for protest detainees. And the Trump administration
11:44 actually said they're suspending all visa processing for applicants of Iran along with 74 other countries. So a lot of turmoil centered out of this part of the world right now, Tony.
11:53 Yeah. It it appears that something could be, imminent. Casey, thanks so much for, for the update. We'll see you later in the program. Alright. I wanna go back to, today's senate help committee hearing on
12:05 exposing the dangers of chemical abortion drugs. Joining me now is the chair of that committee, Louisiana senator Bill Cassidy, who is also a medical doctor. Senator Cassidy, welcome to Washington Watch.
12:17 Thanks for joining us.
12:18 Hey, Tony. Good to be with you. It's been too long since I've seen you. When I saw you today, I said, who's the guy with the beard? You know what I'm saying? So
12:26 Well, it's wintertime. It's wintertime. Alright. Let's talk about, the hearing today. Now you joined us at the press conference. I'll get your thoughts on that in a moment. But, the focus of the health committee hearing
12:37 today.
12:38 Yeah. The focus of the health committee hearing is to make people aware that taking an abortion drug is not like taking a like taking a Tylenol. The other side of the issue, they want you to think
12:50 that. It is not. Related to that is how we need to go back to where we we have a requirement that if the patient wants a prescription, she needs to see a
13:01 doctor. That sounds so basic. There's complications for taking this medicine. There's some pregnant women that even if they want an abortion should not be taking this pill for their own health but without that
13:13 in person interview, we don't really know what's going on. And lastly, to put a human face on it. Several descriptions of women coerced into having abortions by somebody who
13:25 physically or emotionally were able to just bully them into doing something they didn't wanna do including an example of a young girl who wanted to have a gender reveal party.
13:37 And instead, her mother coerced her into having an, taking these pills. And instead of having a gender reveal party, she had a dead fetus.
13:46 Senator, according to the ranking member of your committee, senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, today's hearing was not about protecting the health and well-being of women. He said it's about taking away the so called
13:58 right to an abortion. What he claims was a constitutional right abolished by the Dobbs decision. But the focus in large part was the fact that you have states that are trying to protect the unborn
14:09 and their mothers, and the abortion pill is undermining that right.
14:14 Yes. Of course, Senator Sanders had a lot of things wrong, and everything he said just there. But but but if we go back to the fact that this pill
14:26 is not just like taking a Tylenol. 1 out of 10 women by 1 account have serious symptoms and or side effects. And it's like this pill in which, of course, the child the
14:38 intent is for the child to lose his life, but in some cases the mother ends up in the hospital, but you can get it over the Internet without the doctor ever seeing you or actually seeing if you should
14:50 or should not take the pill. And that just brings us to that human story. Senator Sanders was trying to avoid that. He was trying to avoid the problem of people being coerced into taking these medications
15:02 and that's something that we who are pro life will not allow to be avoided.
15:07 Senator Cassidy, as I mentioned, you're a doctor. You've been a doctor for quite some time. In fact, we met many, many years ago when you were a teaching doctor k Long Hospital. Is there any
15:19 other drug that would have these types of, adverse side effects that would be treated like this 1 where they would just let it be sent through the mail? No questions asked?
15:30 I can't really think of 1. And particularly when it's so prone to be taken incorrectly. Let's just let's just take the the perspective of someone who's pro choice. This pill should only be
15:41 taken up to week 10 of pregnancy. After that, the FDA does not you shouldn't take it after week 10. And yet women apparently often do because
15:53 their pregnancy, they may not know they're pregnant. They may think they're week 10. Turns out they may be week 20. And and there's nothing to document that. This is this is something which borders on medical
16:05 malpractice, and and and I and I wish and I want the FDA to go back to the requirement that there has to
16:13 be an in person visit. The evidence I mean, from an just an objective view. The evidence appears to be overwhelming. Why is a Biden era policy still
16:25 in place 1 year after the Trump administration has come into power?
16:29 I don't know that. Secretary Kennedy or commissioner FDA commissioner, McCarrie, could reverse it. It's not complicated. They could reverse it. They've chosen not to. I don't know why they've not, but I'm
16:41 hoping the hearing today gives them a compelling reason to reverse it.
16:45 Well, then you doubled down on that as you participated in the, the press conference that, we organized with senator Lindsey Graham on this calling on the administration to take action now. Not not tomorrow, not next
16:56 year, but now.
16:58 Yes. And that is something which could be done now. And and by the way, let's go back to why. The human face of it. A woman who's 20 weeks who should not be taking this pill is taking this
17:09 pill because she gets it online over the Internet. And in some cases is coerced into taking it. We had stories today, Tony, of a lawsuit or a criminal suit in South Texas
17:21 where the husband or the boyfriend puts the pill in the woman's drink and then she won't drink it and so comes back later and when she's asleep, shoves it in her mouth and holds
17:33 it till it dissolves. Now that's what we're talking of. Right. We also had stories of the doctor in California who sends these pills, sending with it instructions. If if you have to
17:45 go to the emergency room, this is how you lie to cover up what you've done. Now to be sure, Louis a state like Louisiana does not prosecute the woman. So what he's really doing is protecting
17:57 himself. That's what he's really doing. And we should be about protecting the woman.
18:02 Absolutely. Senator Bill Cassidy, always great to see you. Thanks so much for, joining us. I appreciate you being at the press conference as well and for pressing in on this issue.
18:13 Thank you, Tony. Thanks for fighting the good fight, man.
18:16 Alright. Good to see us. Senator Bill Cassidy of, Louisiana. Alright. You can weigh in on this as well. Text the word life to 6 7 7 4 2. That's life to 6 7 7 4 2. And you can sign aShow more
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