I was one of the people shadow banned and blacklisted by Twitter

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Live from the Liberty University studio in Memphis, Tennessee. It's America's favorite gun-toting, Bible-clinging, deplorable American. That's us, that's right. I love this American ride. Todd Starnes.

Oh, yeah. And hello, America. Welcome to the Todd Starnes radio program. We are so happy to have you with us on a very busy News Friday here in the great place that we call home, the United States of America. Wow, folks, very happy to be back with you today.

I want you to go ahead and write down our telephone number. You will need this, 844-747-8868. That is a toll-free telephone number, 844-747-8868. And unlike the old days on Twitter, we do not visibly filter anybody that calls into this radio program. We are more than happy to debate conservatives, liberals, progressives, communists, you name it.

We're happy to take your calls on the Todd Starnes radio show.

So what do we now know about Twitter?

Well, over the past decade, and it really has been more than a decade, we have been telling you that Twitter was shadow banning us, that Twitter had blacklisted us. Twitter was silencing conservatives. And what did they tell us? The left told us that we were Looney Tunes. Big media, they dismissed all of the accusations against conservatives.

They said it's a poppycock. That's what they said. They told us, big tech told us that we wore tinfoil hats. They accused us of being conspiracy theorists. But now it turns out that we were right all along.

And it really doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this out. We have over 200,000 followers on our Twitter page. For at least seven or eight years, we barely got one or two new Twitter followers every year. I mean, it's just unheard of. It's just silly.

But the greater concern is that Twitter was silencing dissent. and they were doing it knowingly and they were lying about it.

Now, here's how they're going to try to get away with it. They're going to say that, well, we never shadow banned. And that's what they said. We never shadow banned anybody. We never censored anybody.

And that's because they're playing a little bit of word salad with us. They're telling us that this was really visibility filtering. That's what they're calling it. but but jack dorsey the former ceo of twitter has a big problem on his hands now he's out there now and yesterday people were praising jack dorsey uh as having seen the light and jack dorsey is saying oh we've got to get ahead of this we've got to release everything we've got to put it all out there but this is no good guy as a matter of fact the only reason jack dorsey is doing this is to CYA, but I'm not sure that's going to be enough. And here's the reason why.

Because Jack Dorsey, back in September of 2018, sat his buttocks in a chair in a House hearing committee and lied to Congress. And ladies and gentlemen, lying to Congress is a crime punishable by prison time. Cut number four. Are you censoring people? No.

Twitter shadow banning prominent Republicans. It's bad. Is that true? No. There you go.

He said that he never shadow banned, never censored. And now we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that that is simply not true. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, cut number five. These people are just liars. It's not complicated.

They're liars. They lie all the time. They have total contempt for the rest of us. They think they can break the rules and get away with it. They think they are somehow this elite that's above us and that we're too stupid to know what they're doing.

So there you go, ladies and gentlemen. It is a it's a pretty terrible thing that's happening. A pretty terrible thing that's happening. But here we are.

Now, we have a lot of questions, and there have to be a lot of investigations. First and foremost, we've got to make sure that Jack Dorsey is hauled before Congress and held accountable for the lies he spoke back in 2018. But more importantly, we need to know who else was shadow banned, who else was censored. Just a few moments ago, Elon Musk announced on Twitter that a number of candidates running for office were censored, were shadow banned, were blacklisted.

Now, that is a disturbing thing because that right there, ladies and gentlemen, is what we call election interference. But here's the broader issue. If it was this bad at Twitter, and we now know because we have all the goods, we have all the evidence, at least the evidence that wasn't deleted, if it was that bad on Twitter, can you imagine what they're doing to conservatives on Google and Facebook, YouTube, Instagram? Go down the list. You name it.

there has been an all-out assault on free speech in America. And these big tech companies have been targeting exclusively conservatives, people who believe in free speech, people who believe in religious liberty, people who believe, you know what, yeah, we got a couple of questions here. Why are you jabbing a needle into the arms of children, and now these kids are getting sick?

so hopefully Elon Musk and his team are going to release all this information the rollout of all of these twitter files has been up has been ridiculous I mean it's just nuts and they're playing it they're playing it for the crowds but this is a serious matter for our nation and it's not that they're it's not that they're blacklisting Todd Starnes that's not what makes this a matter of national security it's that they they interfered in our election process and that is criminal. As a matter of fact, some will argue that that is in fact treason. And my question to you is this, if in fact they can produce the evidence that Twitter interfered in our presidential elections, should these people be thrown in jail? What do you recommend they do with those people? 844-747-8868 is our toll-free telephone number.

That's 844-747-8868.

Now, we've got a lot of stories and information for you up on our website, ToddStearns.com. When we come back, we're going to be taking your calls. Also, I want to weigh in on this Brittany Griner story. She's back home in the U.S. of A.

And I will say this. I was very disappointed.

Well, you know what? I will save my disappointment for after the break. This is the Todd Stearns Show. I want to thank our friends at Epoch TV for sponsoring this show. Epoch TV is a censorship-free video platform with original news programs.

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So go to this website, watchepoch.com slash Todd, and subscribe. That's watchepoch.com slash Todd. All right, folks, welcome back to the Todd Stearns Radio program. Good to have you with us today. You know, I was watching this news coming out of Arizona with Kristen Sinema, and she's announcing that she is leaving the Democrat Party.

She is she's a white woman escaping the Democrat plantation. Cut number one, please. I've registered as an Arizona independent. I know some people might be a little bit surprised by this, but actually, I think it makes a lot of sense. You know, a growing number of Arizonans and people like me just don't feel like we fit neatly into one party's box or the other.

And so, like many across the state and the nation, I've decided to leave that partisan process. And so now she is going to be an independent. She's going to caucus with the Democrats, much like Angus King and also Bernie Sanders.

So they're all independents as well. You know, I say good for her, and there's been no doubt that she disagrees and stands in opposition to a lot of the policies of the Democrats. But I want to throw something out there. Do you think that we need to see more people on Capitol Hill, more people declare their independence from the political parties? Do you think it's time, have we reached that point in political history, in American history, where there's really not much difference right now?

I mean, just think about this. We're just hypothesizing here. There's really not that much difference between the Republicans and the Democrats, is there, when you really think about it? I mean, they're both for big government. Nobody wants to shrink government anymore.

The Republicans say they do, but they really don't. They talk about they want to cut spending talking about the Republicans, but they really don't. They spend as much money as the Democrats do, even more, as a matter of fact. And just yesterday, you had a number, a number of Republicans. As a matter of fact, I believe, was it 39 Republicans in the House of Representatives who actually stood up and sided with the Democrats on same-sex marriage?

They actually voted against religious liberty.

So at this point, there's really no major difference between the Republicans and the Democrats. I mean, the Republicans talk a great game, but in reality, once they get up there and they get their votes and they get your money, they really don't care a fly and flip about you.

So I'm just wondering, and just again speaking out loud here, but what if we were to have another political party, an incredibly strong political party, I don't know, an America First political party?

now the argument would be well yeah todd yeah but you know what at that point you're just handing it to the democrats you're just giving it to the democrats but isn't that what we are doing now and there is so much frustration so much anxiety with the republican party among our listing audience and i'm wondering even if we were to lose as a third party or maybe maybe there's a fourth party. Maybe all of you Democrats out there, you don't like the direction your party's going in, which is the progressive, you're going beyond the progressive part straight to communism. And I've got to believe that there are some Democrats out there who still love America. They still love capitalism. Their beliefs are wackadoodle, but at least they love America.

There's got to be some of you out there and you see the direction your party is going.

So maybe there's room for multiple parties in America. Why is it the Republicans and the Democrats should get the monopoly on the political parties? Have you really thought about this?

So, I mean, I respect Kristen Sinema. She's been siding with the Republicans on some of the big issues of the day, and especially when it comes to the border. And Kristen Sinema is a person who believes that we ought to be able to secure the border. but this story from last night many of you were were going about your business and the house of representatives passed the disrespect for marriage act and they did so with bipartisan support and we'll try to pull this audio a little bit later on but congresswoman vicki hartzler and grace maybe we can try and i mean maybe we can try and see if We can't get Congresswoman Hartzler on today. But I was watching Congresswoman Hartzler, and she was literally begging her colleagues on the floor of the House to reject this legislation.

This is a woman who's a good Christian woman. And, you know, it takes a lot to get a lawmaker rattled. One of the things politicians never like to do is show the emotion. They don't like to cry or lose their composure. That's just something you don't do.

So what happened yesterday on the floor of the House of Representatives was incredibly moving when she began weeping during her remarks. And she was begging, begging Republicans and Democrats to stand up and protect religious liberty. Not an attack on the gay community, but to protect religious liberty. Because we know that inside this legislation that the Republicans passed yesterday in the House of Representatives, we know that there are attacks on Christians and Christian business owners written into the fine print of the legislation, which is going to be signed by President Biden, by the way.

so Hartzler's up there on the floor of the house begging people protect religious liberty protect people of faith protect Americans who believe in the true meaning of marriage and why was she weeping why was she so emotional in that moment why was that well the answer is very simple because she knows that it's about to be open season on people of faith she knows that the Radical elements of the LGBT XYZ community are going to come after people of faith. And we know that because they've already done it. And I'm really surprised by some of the names on this list. Others I'm not. Kat Kamek is on the list from Florida.

Liz Cheney, the daughter of Dick, is on this list. And it really does make you wonder. Liz Cheney, who, by the way, here's how, if you want to know how evil this woman is, and again, I've had so many emotions about Liz Cheney. This woman has changed. She has become so infected with Trump derangement syndrome that her soul has literally rotted out of her body.

And I say this because she got elected. There was a significant issue when Liz Cheney first ran for the Congress. and the issue was about gay marriage. Her sister's a lesbian and she actually came out against her own sister in the congressional race threw her own sister under the bus. I mean, she could have said, you know what, I love my sister and I support her decisions, but you know what, she's not running for office, I am.

And this is none of our business. But she didn't do that. she actually used her own sister to get votes by coming out and denouncing gay marriage. But now all of a sudden she has had a change of heart. And just like all these other Republicans.

But the reality is she never really had a change of heart. She's always believed this. She hasn't evolved on anything. she's using she's using all of this to score cheap political points mike garcia from california on the list daryl isa from california on the list nancy mace and the list goes on and on and on elise stefanik who is in by the way republican leadership What did I tell you about Elise Stefanik? I told you she was a rhino.

And every person on this list who voted for the Disrespect for Marriage Act is a rhino. And we know that because the party platform of the Republican Party, the grand old party, defends traditional marriage.

Now, if they want to have that argument, and I have no doubt they will, probably sooner rather than later, and they want to jettison traditional marriage, if they want to jettison religious liberty, okay, fine, that's up to them. But ultimately, this was not this legislation that happened last night. It was not about gay marriage. This was not an attack on gay marriage. This was setting up the attacks on your church.

And I'm telling you, folks, the left is going to use the Internal Revenue Service to target every Christian ministry and organization and business in this country. And Vicki Hartzler knows that. She knows the persecution that is about to happen because of this.

So again, I'm wondering, 39 Republicans? You had 12 Republicans in the U.S. Senate vote with Democrats to pass this? Do you think we need new political parties in this country? 844-747-8868 that's our toll-free telephone number that's 844-747-8868 hey our website toddstarns.com we've got a lot of great stuff in the toddstarns store you got to check that out too we'll be right back america the biden administration has caused a financial crisis and they don't have a clue how to fix it folks our economy is in trouble and you need to take steps to protect yourself now if all your money is tied up in stocks, bonds, and traditional markets, you're vulnerable.

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Happy to have you with us today. 844-747-8868 is our toll-free telephone number. That's 844-747-8868.

Now, I want to go back to what happened last night. and this is a big deal. If the Republican Party is not going to stand up for your local church, your local synagogue, they're not going to stand up for you. We're dealing with some very bad, very evil people within the Republican Party.

So my question again, do we need to have a third party here? Is it time for all of the America First folks, all of the religious liberty folks, Is it time to just walk out and start over again? And that way, you're not worried about whether or not Kevin McCarthy is going to be able to do the right thing. You're not going to have to worry about the money you send a candidate going to support pro-abortion candidates. You're not going to have to worry about that anymore.

844-747-8868. That's our toll-free telephone number. That's 844-747-8868.

Let's go to the phones. Charles, North Carolina, what's on your mind? Hey, good afternoon, Todd. Todd, I'm just wondering if you kind of feel as betrayed as I do with what's been revealed with Elon Musk, with the behavior of our Republican members of the House and Senate. I mean, it's just demoralizing to those of us that have supported Republican candidates, have knocked on doors, have given money, have voted for them, only to find out, you know, that there really, there's not a dime's worth of difference on major issues between Republicans and Democrats.

I mean, Todd, remember that movie back in the 80s called Red Dawn where the United States was invaded? Remember that? I do remember that movie. Yeah, okay, yeah. It was a good movie, actually.

And we were having to fight for our survival. You know, it was a Russian-Cuban-Nicaraguan invasion.

Well, based on what Elon Musk has revealed with the collusion between big tech, with the government, the media, the Democratic Party, and everything that's been done to our country, it's almost like that we've been invaded and defeated. Maybe we don't have the body count, you know, but the net result is the same. We've lost control of our southern border. We've become a one-party state. The destruction that's being done to the economy, foreign policy, it's just humiliating.

And it's like, what do we do? And I just hope that Kevin McCarthy, if he's the Speaker of the House and Republicans coming in, will do something to hold these people accountable and not cave in and give us some type of remedy of what's being done. Look, Charles, that's going to have to happen. And look, you are right to feel the way you feel. And I think many Republicans, many conservatives who have been so supportive of the Republican Party, they have donated, they've given time, their resources, and they've been betrayed.

And there's no doubt that has happened.

So the question is, okay, how long do we allow this to happen? because this is not the first time this has happened. We've seen this ever since George H.W. Bush came into office when he said before the nation, he stood there and said, read my lips, no new taxes, and then he turned around and taxed us out the wazoo.

Well, at that point, Charles, that was the unraveling of the great Reagan coalition, the big tent that Reagan brought. You had all of these Reagan Democrats, and you had the blue-collar workers, and even the union guys were jumping on board because Reagan stood up for them. The same thing happened with Donald Trump. The problem is that you have the Democrats and big tech, big media lined up against Trump as well. If we had Twitter back when Reagan was around, I don't think Reagan ever would have been elected president.

No, absolutely not. And, you know, Donald Trump was just our mouthpiece, But the real enemy are people like me and you and, you know, people that believe in America first. And for years, they did everything they could, the Democrats, the media, to subvert the movement and to discredit Donald Trump. They came up with lie after lie after lie. And now, you know, instead of being called conspiracy theorists, you know, I want we to be we deserve an apology.

I mean, everything that's been revealed just validate and vindicate everything that you've been talking about and Rush Limbaugh talked about and all of us have been talking about over the years. And something has got to be done. And, I mean, maybe we need to adopt the strategy of some of the Democrats and take to the streets if we have to. But, you know, we're going to have to fight back in some form or fashion. We just can't continue to be steamrolled over and just accept the status quo.

I mean, Todd, I've called my senator, Tom Tillis. I've called Richard Burr. All I get is voicemails or form emails that they respond back to. But it's just disgusting what they are doing and how they betrayed the voters who put them in office. It is.

And, Charles, now the issue is and the question before us, what do we do? Do we just keep going down the same path or do we forge a new path? That's the question that every single one of us is going to have to address in the weeks and months coming forward. Charles, appreciate the telephone call. This is an interesting take here.

And understand this. The FBI, according to the documents that have already been released from Twitter, the FBI had weekly meetings with Twitter and Facebook to censor information on the run up to the 2020 presidential election. And just think about this. That means that Bill Barr and Christopher Wray were in on all of this. This had to have been authorized.

Do you really think for a minute that the FBI would be doing this without the approval of Bill Barr and Christopher Wray? These guys need to be hauled before Congress, and they need to be held accountable. Bill Barr needs to be asked, what did he know? When did he know? What did he know?

Jim Jordan is enraged. As a matter of fact, Jim Jordan says that ultimately Twitter was doing the same thing the FBI was doing. They were tagging people as targets. Just like the FBI did to the moms and dads that complained about their school boards. Folks, this is one of the greatest scandals in modern political history.

And it's unfolding right before our very eyes. Let's go to North Carolina WSIC, our great affiliate there. Ed on the line. Ed, what say you?

Well, first off, appreciate all you're doing. Give you a 30-second blurb here. Very quickly. American Christian veteran historian, 60 years old, we were taught that growing up in school, this is what communist countries did against their people to control everything they wanted, and we fought against that. And somewhere or other, we have forgotten that because it's not taught in schools, and now we're the victims of it.

Everyone's talking about what we need to do, or something needs to be done. My question, what can we really do, Todd, to change this around and get us back on track where we are a God people life country That it You know Ed that a great question and I going to do my best to try and answer this for you The House Freedom Caucus is the answer here. They have gone out on a limb, and they said, we're not going to support Kevin McCarthy as the next Speaker of the House. We're going to stand our ground here. We're going to be talking to Andy Biggs a little bit later in the program, and we're going to get the latest intel on that, but they say they've got the numbers to stop McCarthy from being speaker.

That has to happen. They've got to know that we the people are fed up. We're disgusted. You know what? There are 39 Republicans couldn't even stand up for religious liberty, and the Christians in this country, there are going to be 39 Republicans that would be willing to join the House Freedom Caucus and take a stand for freedom and liberty.

You would think that would be the case, but regardless even if it's just seven or eight we've got to hold our ground here and and this is the play if the house freedom caucus capitulates here i think it's over and at that point we got to find a new party that's that's what i think is going to have to happen uh but i'm telling you ed something has to change here we keep we keep doing the same thing and we're getting the same results Ed, appreciate the telephone call. 844-747-8868. That's our toll-free telephone number. That's 844-747-8868.

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This is from Corinne Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary and resident black lesbian immigrant. Cut number six, please. On a personal note, Brittany is more than an athlete, more than an Olympian. She is an important role model and inspiration to millions of Americans, particularly the LGBTQI plus Americans and women of color.

So let me explain this as best as I can. And we're going to get into the Brittany Griner story a little bit later, well, in the next hour. There's a lot of people have been wondering, what about Paul Whelan? where was he the the marine veteran why was he not part of the deal and by the way the guy's attorney says that the white house said no we're not going to let this guy be part of the deal and they were willing the russians were willing to trade the merchant of death victor bout for the u.s marine veteran but the biden administration said no and karen jean pierre actually gave us the real reason why here and here's what you need to understand for the democrats it's all about identity politics. That's all it's about, identity politics.

That's it. That's the only thing that matters to these people.

So in reality, black lesbian basketball player beats straight white U.S. Marine. If you're playing an identity politics card game, you're going to lose if you're the straight white guy every time. And throw in, by the way, if you love America.

So we're going to get into more of this in the next hour of the program. All right, let's go to the phones. Randy in Idaho. Randy, what's on your mind? Hi, Todd Starnes.

Appreciate your call. Taking my call. First-time caller. Really appreciate your show and what you do for the right. I really have a problem with millions of people that feel obligated to do the wrong thing in this country.

It just drives me up a wall. And being an Army veteran, I just can't believe there's that many people that are that negative or leftist. I just don't understand our voting. I just can't understand it So, John, I appreciate all that you do I really appreciate that you tell us the right truth That we want to hear and need to hear And I thank you to God and our nation That you do such a wonderful work I appreciate all that you do Well, you're kind to say that, Randy And we love having first-time callers which means that you have to be a second-time caller. What is it, as a military veteran, you mentioned the disrespect for the military.

What is it that concerns you with where we are right now in this country?

Well, you think about this last situation with the basketball player and the Marines. my goodness why are we changing or choosing a person that doesn't respect our country of course that's the leftist way right but over a marine that's been incarcerated over there for four years my goodness we should be hand over foot trying to get that guy out of there You know, Randy, this is – rarely do I agree with Dan Crenshaw, the congressman out of Texas. One day he's a rhino, the next day he's not. I can't figure the guy out. But he was really angered by all of this, and he said the message it sends that when push comes to shove, the Democrats are going to save the person who hates America.

But if you love America, you're going to stay in jail. You're going to stay in the Russian whatever camp they've got. And let me say this, Randy, and I want to be very clear here. I don't wish any American citizen, any of them, I wouldn't wish anybody would be stuck in a Russian prison. I mean, that's a horrible thing.

But the reality here is this. When you go to another country and you break their laws, no matter how stupid those laws might be, your passport is not a get-out-of-jail-free card. And that's a problem with a lot of these woke leftists like Brittany Griner and a lot of the alphabet crowd. They think they can go over there, and we saw this in Qatar during the soccer games, the soccer matches. They think they can go over there and flout their laws and not get in trouble for it.

So my recommendation is you travel to another country, follow the laws of the land, their country, their rules. It's very simple. But we're trying to change our laws here, Todd. It's just incredible what we have to deal with anymore. It's insane, Randy.

And, yeah, we talk a lot about those issues on this program, and we're going to keep doing that. And I still have hope. I have hope. Hope for America, Randy. I have one other point.

I bet in a WNBA game, they're going to bring this chick out in the middle of the court, and she's either going to get hurrahed or booed. I wonder which it'll be. Oh, she'll get cheered as they all take a knee and spit on the flag. That's what'll happen. That's who those people are.

And by the way, that's the only reason she's out there. And Corinne Jean-Pierre, she laid it out there. I appreciate her doing that, but the real reason that she got picked instead of the Marine is because she's a black lesbian basketball player who hates America and is on record hating America. Randy, got to run. God bless you, sir, and I hope you're doing well there in Idaho.

Let's go to Patty in North Carolina, WSIC. Hey, Patty, what's up? Hey, Todd. How is everything? How was your Thanksgiving?

Very nice, very nice. Thank you for asking.

Well, and I told you not to eat too much. You didn't eat too much. No, no, no. I paced myself. I paced myself.

Good for you. Hey, listen, I want to bring up the grinder thing. I am sick to my stomach over this. You know what? I just told Grace, it was either the whole enchilada or nobody goes.

Oh, well, I haven't heard that argument before. Everybody should have came home, not just one. everybody. There's two other guys over there. There's the wheeling guy and there's another guy over there, too.

There is, I believe, a school teacher, and we'll mention him in the next hour of the program, but you're right. And he, by the way, he got busted on a marijuana charge. Exactly. But again, Patty, Patty, Patty, he's a white guy. He's a white guy.

And you're going to But if he was a gay white guy, okay, but even gay white guy is not going to trump black lesbian. No, and you know what? It gets me sick that it's all, I'm sorry to say this, but it's not Joe Biden that is running the show here. He's just the puppet. It's people, it's Obama, it's Susan Rice, it's the whole, it's not even Joe Biden.

Joe Biden is just a mouthpiece. He stands up there. He says what he has to say. And he goes back to his little, you know, like the groundhog. That could be.

I mean, you know, that's a good point, Patty. And, you know, you hear the music. We've got to go to break here, Patty. Great hearing from you. But she has a point.

Maybe Biden isn't running the show. Maybe Biden didn't know anything about Brittany Griner. What do you mean? She's Lebanese. Why do they hit the Lebanese?

I don't know. Can I have some ice cream? I love ice cream. We'll be. This holiday season, Peloton's got a gift for you.

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All access membership separate. Offer ends December 25th. cannot be combined with other offers. See additional terms at OnePeloton.com. Live from the Liberty University studio in Memphis, Tennessee, it's America's conservative blowtorch.

That's us, that's right. I love this American ride. Todd Starnes. Oh, yeah. All right.

Well, hello, everybody. Welcome to the Todd Starnes radio program. Wait, no, yes. No, somebody sent me a text message. What are you doing on the radio?

You're supposed to be taking time off so you can finish writing your book. Yes, I know. But sometimes things happen.

So I'm filling in for the guest host who was supposed to be filling in for me. That's the way that goes sometimes. But it's very nice to be here with you, and we've got a lot going on. By the way, I've been getting a lot of notes from people. They saw an item in Talkers Magazine, which is sort of the talk radio trade industry trade publication.

And it is true that I was elected to the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters, a board of directors. It was very interesting, Grace Baker. A couple of things here. First of all, they counted all the votes in one day. Really?

There were not more votes than broadcasters. Really? Mm-hmm. And my opponent called to concede before I even knew the race was called. I'm shocked.

How efficient. I know. I didn't know that existed. I'm too young to remember a time. There you go.

So you're welcome, America. We do what we can do.

So I'm going to throw grace for a loop here. Don't turn your mic on, because we've got to go to our great guest coming up. We do have some exciting news, and we will talk more about this next week when I do get back into the rotation. We are going to Israel, and this has been in the planning stages for a long time, but we're going to be taking 100 of our listeners to Israel next year, next November. and this will be a religious and a political tour.

So we're going to hit all of the Holy Land sites. It's going to be incredible. We're also going to be given exclusive access to the Knesset.

So we're going to be talking with Israeli leaders and movers and shakers there. It's going to be a wonderful, wonderful time. And if you would like information on that or if you're interested in going, give Grace a quick call. We're going to get your information. 901-844-747-8868.

Again, 844-747-8868. If you are interested in joining us next November on our big trip to Israel, and we'll be telling you more about that coming up next week. I do want to go to the Patriot Mobile Newsmaker line, though, a good friend of this program, great American Patriot, our good friend, Congressman Barry Loudermilk. Congressman, Hope you're doing well today. Oh, I'm doing pretty good, Todd, other than a pretty heavy rain shower here in Georgia.

But other than that, we're doing pretty good. Yeah, we're building arcs here in Memphis. We haven't seen the sun in a good week.

So, my goodness. Congressman, we appreciate you coming on the phone line with us today. A lot happening. First, I would love to get your response, your reaction to Brittany Greiner being released and really traded for a man who is a very dangerous person who could end up killing Americans. Yeah, it's, you know, I'm happy that we were able to get an American back.

But I can't help but imagine that Ronald Reagan or Donald Trump would have agreed to that level of exchange. I mean, you have to look at what is in the best interest of America. And it's a really tough call when you have an American citizen who appears was being imprisoned for political reasons, you know, but at the same time, what was the offense that they were being held for? And I just feel like if we had somebody who was strong in the White House, if a deal was going to be made, it would have been made on different terms. NBC News reporting, and this is a very bizarre thing that's happened, but NBC News, within the past little while, reported that the U.S.

government had sought to have both Greiner and Whelan released as part of a swap with the Kremlin.

So we would have swapped those two for Victor Bout. But a U.S. official said Russia had treated Whelan differently because he is an accused spy, and the Kremlin gave the White House the choice of either Griner or Whelan or none. That report, after it was published, was amended and all of that was removed. But I suspect that the original story is the truth here, Congressman.

What is your reaction if, in fact, the White House was given a choice here? if if that is true then that is another area that i think there needs to be congressional investigation into um first of all uh wayland's been in there much longer on trumped up charges uh of spying you know veteran the there has to be prioritization when this happens and if If that story is true, which I'm kind of with you, I'm skeptical right now. A story comes out and is suppressed with what all is going on in mainstream media right now. I think this is something that we definitely need to dive into. We need to look into deeply and then hold the White House accountable.

If this is true, you have to give us the reason why that decision was made. And I think that I can't express the thoughts I'm having because this is the first I've heard of that from traveling yesterday that that that could have been given the option. And I would have definitely made a totally different decision if that was given. But it also tells you, is there not room for negotiation for both there? Because you're going to let someone who is definitely evil go back to Russia.

You better get something really big for that. Big time. And I think you could have gotten both. I think you're right. Congressman Barry Loudemount from Georgia's 11th Congressional District.

Congressman, another big story happening yesterday. 39 Republicans joined with Democrats in the House to pass the Disrespect for Marriage Act. Were you surprised to see so many of your Republican colleagues turning their back on people of faith? I really was surprised. We had fewer vote for it this time than last time.

But what surprised me about it is because there's some, I look at the list, they've been openly that they were pro-gay or they have family members that are, and so some didn't surprise me. But what did surprise me is that we didn't all hold together because of the lack of protections for religious liberty in that bill. They were inadequate. They were so narrowly focused that unless you are an organized church, you have no religious protections. If you are a Christian business owner and you want to hold to your convictions, the protection is not there.

And so there were some that have voted for this when it first passed the House that did not vote for it this time, and it was because of the lack of religious liberty protections. And so I was very shocked and very surprised that we had 39 of our folks vote for this without protection for conscience for religious liberty. And that was my argument, and we've been making this on the program for quite a while now. This is really not about gay marriage. The Supreme Court settled that issue.

This is about protecting religious liberty, and the fact that Chip Roy's amendment and Mike Lee's amendment in the House and the Senate, respectively, were rejected, that tells me that ultimately this is not about gay marriage. This is about finding a way to shut down and silence the churches and the Christian ministries in America. That's what concerned me here. You and I both. I mean, I'm one of these, and I may be in the minority out there, but I don't think government should be involved in marriage, period.

This is totally a biblical institution. It should be left to the church, but we are in a position to where the government has inserted itself. But that should be a state issue, not a federal issue. And if you're going to do this, then you have to protect constitutional rights, which the freedom of religion, the freedom of speech, your freedom to engage in commerce are all constitutionally protected rights. Marriage does not rise to that level.

Right.

So this is the argument I have. We're sworn as members of Congress to uphold the Constitution, regardless of what our personal preference is. And to me, this was a constitutional issue that anyone who has taken an oath of office to the Constitution should have voted against that bill. Congressman, I'm curious. We're going to have Andy Biggs on in just a little while.

And the topic of speakership and leadership in the House of Representatives. Scott Perry, chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, says they do not have the votes. McCarthy does not have the votes to be speaker of the House. Where are you falling out on all of this?

well this is we're in a very interesting time right now because uh you know conservatives even the freedom caucus is split on this i've been supporting uh kevin as speaker and i will vote for him on the floor and uh people are looking at it from a different angle um and it may be you know personal interaction that they've had in the past um and andy scott perry they're all good close friends of mine uh and uh we differ on this i mean marjorie taylor green she's supporting uh this kevin for speaker this is one of those that you're never going when someone who is in the same conservative arena i am to the level of conservatism that i hold is likely not going to get elected speaker because quite frankly the moderates within in our conference, they're not going to vote for them. When I look at Kevin, because I've been serving with him for eight years now, he is the most conservative of any of the Republican speakers that we have. But what I see in Kevin is he has opened up to the conservatives in Congress more than any of the other speakers have. He has gone out and put conservatives into positions of leadership, like Jim Jordan on Judiciary, Mark Meadows, before he went to the White House, he was the ranking Republican on government oversight. And so it isn't always to me just what are the conservative, you know, how does the person rank up on conservative values to me, but are they open to give me and my voice a seat at the table to actually influence legislation to influence what's going forward.

And I feel like Kevin has done that. We're never going to find a perfect candidate. And we're looking at, you know, 86% of the conference in our vote has said we'd like to see Kevin. But, you know, we'll see where it goes from here. Like I said, most of those folks, they're good friends of mine, and we work very closely together.

But this is one of those that I think we really need to work out before we get to the floor on January third, because the last thing we want is a scenario to where a very moderate ends up as a speaker, or worst case, that Democrats could finagle themselves into, at least it would be temporary, I hope, that a Democrat could slip in and become Speaker with a slim Republican majority.

Well, we know that Scott Perry's put out a list of demands that look very, you know, I think those are good, solid demands. And let's see how the negotiations – it's all about negotiation at this point, and we'll see how that works out. Congressman, we've got to leave it there. We are late for a break, but we really do appreciate your time today and hope you and the family have a great Merry Christmas. And, Todd, I hope you have a Merry Christmas as well.

And, hey, folks, let's just keep praying for this country and do everything we can to take it back. All right, Congressman Barry Loudermilk from Georgia's 11th Congressional District. He is supporting Kevin McCarthy in his bid to be the next Speaker of the House. We do have to take a break here, folks. When we come back, we're going to your phone calls on this question.

Did the Biden administration make the right choice here, picking Brittany Griner over the U.S. Marine, picking a woman who hates America over a U.S. Marine veteran? 844-747-8868 toll free telephone number that's 844-747-8868 this is the Todd Stern Show this holiday season Peloton's got a gift for you right now get up to $200 off accessories with the purchase of a Peloton Shred accessories like non-sleep grip resistance bands a heart rate monitor yoga blocks and more take your workout to the next level with Peloton motivation that moves you hurry this limited time offer ends December 27th 25th. Visit OnePeloton.com to learn more.

All access memberships separate. Offer ends December 25th. Cannot be combined with other offers. See additional terms at OnePeloton.com. While we're celebrating Brittany's return home today, we have also continued to be in touch with the Whelan family for whom this news brings mixed emotions.

In recent weeks, it became clear that while Russians were willing to reach an agreement to secure Brittany's release, they continue to treat Paul Whelan differently given the nature of the totally illegitimate charges they have levied against Paul. Unfortunately, the choice became to either bring Brittany home or no one. As the President said this morning, he will never stop working to secure Paul's release and return home, and he will not give up. On a personal note, Brittany is more than an athlete, more than an Olympian. She is an important role model and inspiration to millions of Americans, particularly the LGBTQI plus Americans and women of color.

She should never have been detained by Russia. And we are, I am deeply proud of the work that the president has done, this administration has done to get her home.

So again, this, the only reason she was, she was traded is because she checks off a lot of boxes in the identity politics world. That is the Democrat Party. That's what this is really all about. Let's go to the phones here. 844-747-8868.

Arnie on the line, WDUN, our great affiliate in Georgia. Hey, Arnie, what's on your mind? Oh, it's just the same thing on the Brittney Griner, Todd. I fully believe that the one or none scenario is actually true, because I heard the same story on the news yesterday, And that's something that Vladimir Putin could use against Joe Biden to make him look a little bit worse than what he already does, which is kind of hard to do. And my other point was, and people can take it for what it's worth, Joe Biden, in the very least, hired a better negotiating team than Barack Obama did.

because he was able to trade one for a black lesbian basketball player, whereas Barack Obama had to trade five al-Qaeda terrorists for one deserter. As you look at that contest, he did a little bit better than Barack Obama did. Arnie, that is a fair assessment of where we're at with this. But I think we all know that when push comes to shove, as Biden has already demonstrated, he is willing to leave military members behind. Very much so.

Yeah. All right.

Arnie, appreciate that call, and thank you for listening. We're going to get to more of your calls after this break coming up here. But what does this say about our country that we willing to leave a member of the Marine Corps a Marine Corps veteran behind on again trumped up charges Now you heard Corinne Jean and she got a point Yeah, these were ludicrous charges, but it doesn't matter because that's the law of Russia, the law of their land, not ours, their land.

So if you're going to go over there and you're going to break their laws, then you know what? You get what's coming to you. You should have at least done your homework to make sure you understood what was right and what was wrong. And by the way, they do the same thing in New York City. You show up there and you've got a gun and you're not registered in New York, they're going to throw your butt in jail.

How many Georgia and Southern tourists have had that happen to them? We've told those stories a lot over the years. All right, 844-747-8868. By the way, it is Open Line Friday, so whatever you want to talk about today, we're going to do it. This holiday season, Peloton's got a gift for you.

Right now, get up to $200 off accessories with the purchase of a Peloton Shred. Accessories like non-sleep grip resistance bands, a heart rate monitor, yoga blocks, and more. Take your workout to the next level with Peloton, motivation that moves you. Hurry, this limited time offer ends December 25th. Visit OnePeloton.com to learn more.

All access memberships separate. Offer ends December 25th. Cannot be combined with other offers. See additional terms at OnePeloton.com. for an Olympic champion and we can't get our Marine back?

She fit the narrative. He didn't. Does it surprise me that he's leaving military behind? No, just look back to Afghanistan. It's a great point that Brian from Georgia raises on our Shout Out app.

Can't say that fast. The Shout Out app, by the way, you say, how do I do that? I would love to be able to do something like that. It's very simple. All you have to do is go to our website, ToddStars.com.

Look at our live show blog. We've got a little link there, and you'll be able to download our app for 24 hours of conservative talk radio. A lot of other guys besides me. We've got Sebastian Gorka, Rita Cosby, Lars Larson, all sorts of good American patriots that you'll be able to listen to with our app. All right, let's go to the phones here.

Cliff in Salem, Oregon, KYKN, our awesome affiliate there. Hey, Cliff, what's on your mind?

Well, I just wanted to mention that we witnessed Biden surrender his second time. He surrendered in Afghanistan, and he just surrendered to Putin and left the Marine there. You know what? It's a great point, Cliff. When push comes to shove, this administration, they're going to save the LGBT alphabet crowd, but the military, they're on their own.

I mean, that's the lesson here. Yep, yep.

Well, I like the term surrender because I think he's done it twice now. Look, I think that's a fair thing. Yeah. I've got one more topic question. Your screener didn't know if I should mention, but can I bring one more?

Real quick, real quick.

Okay, I think the RINOs, McConnell and his RINOs, help fund the Democrat donors. It seems to me like all of these trillion-dollar packages that they helped the Democrats pass, that money is pushed out to the Democratic donors who turn around and funnel it part of it right back.

Well, could be Cliff. And the reason I'm upset with McCarthy is he hasn't really governed even in the minority. He hasn't led the caucus as a conservative. and we know for a fact that he was out there campaigning against conservatives on the campaign trail there are a few other reasons i'm not i'm not ready to share those just yet but i have some serious serious issues with kevin mccarthy cliff appreciate that call sir god bless you god bless all of our great listeners out there in salem uh oregon you guys are in enemy territory out there interesting story from cnbc gen zers are coming home for the holidays which is a good thing but how are they getting there well they're coming home on mommy and daddy's dime this is according to a study grace why are you laughing i'm just laughing because this is very typical of gen z i feel like they can't even afford a plane ticket. They're moochers.

Yeah. That's what they are. They're choosing careers that don't make any money. You know what? Back in the day, if you didn't have any money to come home to see mommy or daddy, you know what you would do?

You'd put them on a Greyhound bus for like $10. Or you got to hitch, put that thumb out there. Not today, Todd. I would never do that. Especially not in Memphis.

You'd get shot. But anyway, the Greyhound bus, yes. If it came down to that and I was trying to go see my parents, I'd take the Greyhound bus. May I just say something here? Given the choice, Greyhound bus, hitchhiking, I think you're safe for hitchhiking.

Really? I think so. I would have thought the bus. But I've never been on a Greyhound, so I'm not speaking from experience. I was coming back from a long assignment.

And the flight got diverted from – we were supposed to land in LaGuardia. and instead we got diverted to philadelphia and it was it was horrible weather so they the the plane the airports got shut down they took us all to the amtrak station amtrak shut down and made it over to the greyhound station and it looked like a the bar scene out of star wars with everybody on drugs oh no booze the whole nine yards i'm just glad we made it there in one piece Wow. Me too. That's horrible. Anyway, travel demand has surged this year, and not everybody can afford the Sky High tab.

I'm reading from CNBC's story here. Along with rising costs for hotels and rental cars, travelers can expect to pay up to 39% more for a round-trip flight around Christmas. I believe that.

So about half of Gen Z plan to travel home this holiday season. only half well the other half might be you know they hate their parents i was gonna say they're woke yeah or they don't i was gonna say they didn't celebrate christmas oh lord so 41 of that half of gen z going home will rely on parents or family members to pay for their travel accommodations man i don't know if that was your kid what would you do i guess you'd really you know it's probably the only children that this is mainly occurring with because you know only children as a general rule tend to be a little more coddled don't you think kyle i'll give you gas money to come to christmas all right well hey now that's a lot of money ten bucks uh ten bucks might not get you there downtown memphis to you know the suburbs uh maybe maybe one in ten say they won't travel home for the holidays because their parents can't afford it that's sad that is sad but i'm talking about the moochers the cheap say they don't they don't save their money and they can't get home for you know because they're out boozing it up i was gonna say starbucks but that too they're out starbucking it up stop starbucking it up you children come back on the lattes oh so my question is though would a parent really would a parent really say sorry you're on your own yeah that too that's what i'm saying has anybody done that i feel like especially if it's an only child it's only kid, like you're going to pay for them to get home. But hold on, this is fascinating.

So it turns out that it's not just travel. They're saying that inflation is making it hard for the kids to pay for the food, cell phone plans, auto insurance, and about half of parents with a child over 18 provide them with at least some financial support. Is that true? And again, I think that's, Don't you think that's partially like career choices?

So Riley, our college guy, told us that he works like we don't pay him squat. Maybe we should give him a few dollars. But he told his parents, don't want any money from you. You did a great job raising me. I'm on my own now.

And he's paying his way through college and working all these jobs.

Well, that's what I was going to say. Don't you think half of that, the whole not being able to afford stuff, is from college debt? It's got to be. Parents are shelling out roughly $1,000 a month on average for little Billy and Susie. Whoa!

$1,000 a month. You know, honestly, and I know this is horrible for kids to think about, but you are really better off not living in the dorms, just living at home, and taking advantage of free rent, free room and board, and start saving your money so you can get out there and land safely out there. In-state tuition. You don't have to go across the country. In-state tuition.

Community college. That, too. Or just go right into the workforce. That, too. Trade school.

That's it. So, anyway, of all the U.S. adults planning to travel, 79% are now changing their plans due to inflation. Is that true? I think more people are driving out there, though.

I'd believe that. I see that. I'm curious. There's got to be somebody in the audience. Have you actually said, sorry, son, you should have saved your nickels and dimes.

That's right. All I want for Christmas is to go home. We'll FedEx you your presents. Enjoy Waffle House on Christmas morning. That's horrible.

That's a delicious breakfast on Christmas morning. Yeah, but you'd be like the only one in there. You know, if they just had biscuits, that would be the perfect kind of, I'm not a big toast guy. Meaning they're biscuits all over. the way but i love this you and and i'm very odd about my hash browns they have great hash browns i don't like anything in the hash browns i just like my hash browns hash brown no ketchup please for example and they're giving examples of how to get home so you got to find a bargain and i'm telling you hitchhiking is what about a bicycle merlo could pull me on a sled what about a bicycle that too you know you're like one of those little motorized scooters that they'll run over you at Shelby Farms with?

Yes, they will. That's a good example. May I ask a question? And I don't mean to stir things up here, but that got me to thinking about something. What's wrong with all the bikers in America, the cyclists?

What's wrong with you people? Seriously, it's like... We gave you your own lane! You get your own lane, but that's not good enough.

So you still got to ride in, like, the car lane. But beyond that, it's what they do to pedestrians when we're like on the Wolf River, you know, the greenway and you're trying to have a nice leisurely walk and the next thing you know they're literally pushing you aside because they're blasting through going 40 miles an hour i know i'll be walking sweet little merlo and then i hear like two feet behind me on your left i'm like you gotta i don't know you need like a beep beep or something because then i'm like jumping into the grass trying to avoid them because it'll be like a pair of them and they pick up the whole road but they're always the victims always the victims these people whether it's you know autumn it's the automobiles or it's pedestrians. We have to get out of it. We always have to get out of their way. That's true.

Yeah, no. We get out of their way. They don't. Yeah, they are. They're not the nicest people in the world.

They're serious. It's like a club, like a secret. Like, well, I won't say a cult, but a club. Wow.

So Grace Baker says cycling is a cult. No. I love it. I said not a cult, but like a very exclusive club. They worship that great spoke in the sky.

Schwinn.

Well, there's like special bike lingo and, you know, I think it's very exclusive. I mean, they'll yell at you. They're really bad and very aggressive in New York and New York City. Oh, yeah. They had to crack down in Central Park.

And the problem is so, you know, the cyclists rule the park.

So you can't just, you know, there's not a safe space for pedestrians because they'll weave in and out. And, you know, it's like they're training for something. I'm like, okay, dude, you're like 50. You're not going to make the Olympic team. Have you noticed, Todd, at Shelby Farms, the local park here in Memphis, they built like a bike lane around the lake.

But they don't use it. They never use it. I'm like, you've got a whole lane up there. You know what I'm talking about. They terrorize the pedestrians.

They got to take up the whole space. I mean, it'll be always a group of them. If it was just one, sometimes it's just one. But have you noticed they travel in packs? The herds.

So it'll be like on your left. And you're like, OK, there goes one. Oh, another one. Two, three, four. You're like, okay.

And Merlo, you know, I'm trying to hold. She's like wants to chase after the bike. And I'm like, honey, you're never going to catch him. I appreciate it, but no. My Uncle Jerry, who I write about in my books, had a dog like that.

But they would let the dog loose. Oh, no. And so one day the dog actually, there was a motorcyclist who actually used to terrorize the dog in the neighborhood. And finally one day the dog took off and actually caught the motorcycle. No.

And the problem was he bit, I guess he bit the tire, and so the dog kind of took it. The dog survived. The motorcyclist got banged up, but you know what? He never terrorized the dog again. Oh, I bet he didn't.

I'm just saying. I got off on a tangent there, but anyway. Oh, you know what's worse, the gluten-free cyclist. Come on. They've got an attitude.

They've got an attitude. I'm just telling you. All right.

This is terrible. Are you the parent who tells your kid, stay home? We're not sending you cash. 844-747-8868. That's 844-747-8868.

You know nobody is going to admit to this, Grace. I mean, they can't admit to it. I mean, right? I don't know. Hey, look, I've got to tell you about our good friends over at Newsmax.

Eric Bolling has been exposing Twitter's war on President Trump, and these latest revelations are just insane. He's going to be talking about it tonight on Newsmax. Eric Bolling, The Balance. And by the way, make sure you vote in Newsmax's urgent poll. Do you want Donald Trump or Ron DeSantis as your candidate in 2024?

Newsmax wants to know what you think. You can vote in the Newsmax poll. Trump versus DeSantis. Text the word skip to 39747. That's skip to 39747.

Folks, I watch Newsmax all the time now, and you should too. It really is an incredible conservative news network. Text skip to 39747 and switch to Newsmax today. This holiday season, Peloton's got a gift for you. Right now, get up to $200 off accessories with the purchase of a Peloton Shred.

Accessories like non-sleep grip resistance bands, a heart rate monitor, yoga blocks, and more. Take your workout to the next level with Peloton, motivation that moves you. Hurry, this limited time offer ends December 25th. Visit OnePeloton.com to learn more. All access memberships separate.

Offer ends December 25th. Cannot be combined with other offers. See additional terms at OnePeloton.com. I'd like to have a conversation with you, ladies and gentlemen, about butt plugs and dildos. This story on ToddStarts.com.

Grace, I'm sorry. Are you weeping internally? Are you crying? Good thing it's Friday. I can't handle more of this.

True. This is a private school in Chicago. Project Veritas has undercover video of the Dean of Students at Francis W. Parker School. I reached out to the school, and I finally got through to somebody's voicemail.

I said, hello, my name is Todd Stearns with the Todd Stearns Show. I hope you're doing well today. I just need to confirm if, in fact, you are providing children with butt plugs and diltos. And I provided my telephone number and asked them to call me back. Nobody called me back.

That's unfortunate.

So according to Project Veritas and their exclusive audio they have and the interview, Joseph Bruno is the dean of students, and he told Project Veritas that during Pride Week, that's the LGBT Alphabet People Pride Week, that the LGBTQ Plus Health Center comes into the classroom and passes around these two items. You say, Todd, why are you even saying these words on the road? Why would you do that? Because you need to know. these are the items that these children were exposed to.

The teacher went on to say, the dean of students went on to say, that the LGBTQIA Health Center talked to the children about queer sex using lube versus using spit. This is all in the video, which, by the way, you can see on my website at toddstarns.com. The school administrator claimed the educational practice is one of the reasons he enjoys his job. Quote, the kids are just playing with them, looking at them. They're like, how does this butt plug work?

How do we do this? How do we do that? That's a really cool part of my job. This man should be in jail. He should not be in the classroom.

He should be in jail. Bruno said he also invited a drag queen to the show or to the school. Quote, we had a drag queen come in, pass out cookies and brownies and do photos. God only knows what was in those cookies.

So what did the school do? Did the school fire this guy? Did they call the cops to come in and haul this guy out of the school in shame? No, they're defending the teacher. As a matter of fact, the school released a statement to mommies and daddies saying that the dean of students was targeted by a right-wing fringe group of individuals that seeks to undermine and manipulate diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging work.

So what does that mean?

Well, it means very simply that this school is indoctrinating the children that attend there. And these parents have to be the biggest morons of all, because they're actually spending thousands of dollars so that their children can be indoctrinated, so their children can be brainwashed. And it is a despicable thing. I don't like saying those words on the radio, but these are the words that they're using when they talk to the kids. and you need to know this.

We're not sugarcoating stuff on this radio program. We just don't do it. And I hope that you reach out to Francis W. Parker School in Chicago, Illinois, and ask them why the Dean of Students is not in jail right now. The Dean of Students named Joseph Bruno.

844-747-8868. This is the Todd Stern Show. We'll be right back, America. Since 1981, Unbound has connected people like you with families worldwide on their self-directed paths out of poverty. A brighter future is possible for these families when we all walk together.

Sponsor a child today, and you'll help a family take the first steps on their path. Change their future in just one click. Start walking with your new friend today at unbound.org slash walk. Live from the Liberty University studio in Memphis, Tennessee, it's common sense conservative commentary from Todd Starnes. Love this American ride.

Alright. Hello, everybody. Hour three of the big show underway on this Friday. I am Todd Starnes, your host.

So honored that you have chosen to hang out with us, noon to 3 Eastern. I know there are a lot of choices out there, but you guys have picked us and we are incredibly grateful for that.

Well, over 130 radio stations around the nation carry this program and we're happy that you are here. with us. Write down our telephone number. You're going to need this if you want to call in 844-747-8868. Did Biden do the right thing when he traded the merchant of death, Victor Bout, one of the most heinous arms dealers in the world, for Brittany Griner, the black lesbian WNBA star?

844-747-8868 is our telephone number. I want to go to the Patriot Mobile Newsmaker line right now. Good friend of this program from the beautiful state of Arizona, represents the 5th Congressional District down there, Andy Biggs. Congressman, good to have you with us. Hey, Todd, good to be with you.

Congressman, first, right out of the gate, I want to get your reaction to the release of, or the trade, rather, of Brittany Griner for the Merchant of Death. You know, good for her for getting to come home, but bad trade for the United States and the world and the safety of the world. And to leave a Marine behind, this is just pretty consistent with this administration to leave our troops behind. And that's part of what's driving me and feeling pretty bad about this. But, I mean, this administration continues, and the Obama administration made bad deals for Bo Bergdahl.

They just are willing to do anything for a political ploy, even if it might cause danger and hazard and damage to people all over the world. Congressman, I think it goes to show again that this administration is showing a weakness on the world stage. And what message does this send now to every other nation in the world that we will negotiate and we're going to make a bad deal? That's all I can see here. And, you know, there is another American over there who is being held on similar charges that Brittany Griner was.

And to your point, yes, good for her. I mean, we don't want anybody held over there. But the reality is to leave someone behind, and the reporting is that there may have been an opportunity to get the Marine out and the U.S. declined. Those are very troubling reports.

Yeah, that's right. And I want to go back to your point, because I think it is the most important point to take away from all of this, is that the Biden administration continues to embolden bad actors on the world stage because we are so weak. We project weakness. The difference between this and the previous administration is the projection of strength. When you project strength, the rest of the world recognizes that, and they get in better shape.

There's more peace. There's more stability in the world. And you know what would help us? Would it be if we were energy independent? If we were energy independent and not trying to get Russian oil in here or anywhere from anywhere else, we could have leveraged that.

But they gave away the leverage point because they have some mad, crazy Green New Deal theology that they worship at. And so it basically weakens the United States domestically, internationally, and that brings less stability to the world. Congressman, I want to move right along to the speakership race. Mark Levin going after you, and it's pretty nasty stuff, and we've called Levin out for this on this program. But he's called you a phony, a fake, and a fraud.

I want to get your reaction to his nastiness.

Well, you know, to be honest with you, Todd, I live in a world where I laugh at that. It's over the top. It's untrue, of course. And he's actually said worse than that about me. Yeah, I was trying to be nice.

I didn't want to go full bore on you. But, you know, hey, look, he's got his First Amendment rights to express his opinion.

Now, some of it is defamatory. I mean, there's nobody in Congress or who observes Congress that would say Biggs is a phony conservative. There's nobody who would say that. And so anybody who watches that and hears what he's saying says, well, you know, hey, there's either something wrong with Mr. Levin.

And I kind of feel bad for him because I think whatever is going on with him is so utterly personal. And as far as I know, I've never done anything or said anything that would be slight to him personally. But, I mean, the reality is it's so over the top. It's visceral. It's emotional.

It has nothing to do with the speaker's race at all, in my opinion. But he did raise one thing, and I wanted to ask you about this. He says that you voted for Tom Emers against Jim Banks. Did you do that, and if so, why? Yeah, well, so here's the reality, and I tried to be very kind to Mr.

Banks because I got elected at the same time Jim did, and I like him. I like the guy. But between Emmers and Banks, I can tell you Emmers has never misled me, or I'm trying to be as diplomatic as you were. Let me put it this way. When Tom tells me something, I know it's the truth.

And that is important to me. Has Banks not done that? I want to be diplomatic enough to say that whenever he speaks to me, I know he's telling me the truth.

Okay, I got you. I see where you're coming from on that. It's really amazing to see how people are surrounding Kevin McCarthy when many of these same people have been criticizing him for years for not being conservative. But now all of a sudden, if he doesn't get elected speakership, the threat is, oh, Liz Cheney, or you could have some rhinos join the Democrats. I mean, it's just insane to think that now the House Freedom Caucus is not conservative.

I mean, that's what they're trying to say. Yeah, I mean, I find it really interesting because Kevin has been at the apex of the Republican Party in Congress for 12 years. When he was the floor leader, majority leader, he got budgets through not with Republican votes but with Democrat votes. I mean, look, the reality is the people who I campaign for and I go all over the country, they'll say, look, please don't give us McConnell or McCarthy.

Well, and now you have some of these conservative outlets that the people go to. Excuse me, they're influencers. And they're and they're saying, well, yeah, Biggs is not conservative. Freedom Congress is not conservative. These guys are going to cost them.

So here's the deal. If you really think that there's going to be chaos in January 3rd and you acknowledge that Mr. McCarthy does not have the votes, why don't you say to him, hey, Mr. McCarthy, why don't you step down and let's see if we can find someone else in a center-right conservative conference that could lead us, that everybody would rally behind and go forward and avoid whatever chaos you think is going to happen. I personally don't think there's going to be a great deal of chaos and the agenda.

I mean now Mr McCarthy saying hey if you don elect me we not going to get the Republican agenda through And I want to say well wait a second What agenda did you put out I put out a plan a year ago It includes a listing of legislation, et cetera. What is your plan? And what's your agenda? And I'm not – I just – I think we need to have a change. And I think the American people need a change.

But we're not going to ever get it. But if we can't do it now, when are we going to ever make the change in leadership? That's what we've been asking for a long time here on this radio program, and that's why we support a new candidate for Speaker of the House. I'm with you. I don't think Kevin McCarthy is that leader.

My question, final question, how many votes, how many folks are not going to be voting? You guys have been running the numbers. What are we looking at here? Does he have the votes? He does not have the votes today.

I don't think he's going to have the votes then. I mean, and he's well short. He is well short. The numbers that I have are somewhere north of 20 are not going to vote for Mr. McCarthy.

And that means if he would realize that, we could go to an alternative candidate. I mean, I'm not going to have the votes either. I'm a realist. I'd love to have the votes. I'm not going to get there.

but we could get somebody that is a consensus candidate, and that's where we should be moving. All right, good stuff.

Well, Congressman, we appreciate your frankness with us, and we'll be paying very close attention as we get closer to January. What a mess, and there is a way out. We just have to hope and pray that the Republican leadership sees that way out. Thanks. Thanks, Todd.

Merry Christmas to you. Merry Christmas, Congressman. Andy Biggs, ladies and gentlemen, from the great state of Arizona.

So there you go, the news nugget coming out of that interview. The number is now north of 20, the number of Republicans who oppose Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House. And we will see how that plays out. I want to go to the phones real quick here. We're going to work in, and by the way, it's Open Line Friday, so whatever you want to talk about, you can talk about.

Let's go to Memphis, Tennessee. Jerry on the line, KWAM, our flagship station. Hey, Jerry, how are you today? I'm doing fantastic on this overcast today, but my spirit is glowing on the inside. Todd, two Fridays ago, during this hour, a fellow from North Carolina called in and was basically ranting and raving about the people who had been arrested at the January 6th episode.

And I have never heard you say this, but apparently you are a big proponent of the big lie and felt like that these people should be not tried. And I just want to point out on that, just an hour after the phone call, The head of the Proud Boys was convicted by a jury of his peers for being a traitor of the country. And I think that there are 900 people who have been arrested. 500, I'm just generalizing, about 500 have either been pled.

So, Jerry, let me jump in here and address some of the things you've raised.

Now, I've been very clear about this from day one. Anybody who broke the law that day deserves whatever punishment comes their way. On the other side of the coin, if you've got police officers who are literally moving aside police barricades and unlocking and opening doors and welcoming people into the building, those people committed no crime whatsoever.

Now, I and there is a second or a third component to this. We now know that a number of FBI agents were involved in the planning and the execution of all of this. As a matter of fact, the FBI, one of their informants was, in fact, a vice president of the Proud Boys.

So they document what document can I refer to to verify that? You can Google it for yourself if you'd like to. But we talked about this, Jerry, we talked about this on the radio last week.

So this is public documentation of court records.

So we're not quoting a news story. These were actual court records. And my question is, okay, what involvement did the FBI have in the planning and the execution of what went down? And if, in fact, there was an FBI agent or an informant who knew all this was happening, why didn't the FBI intervene and stop it before it happened?

Well, he'll be arrested and tried just like everybody else. But 500 people have been tried and they have been deemed guilty by the area of their peers. All right.

So what's your point here? Why are you and I, where are we disagreeing? I'll tell you what the point is, is I see the year 2023. It's going to make 1969 look like a cakewalk. Why do you say that?

Because I don't think that the people who call who are in a zone of their own are going to be, I don't think they're aware that Donald Trump is going to be indicted by maybe seven indictments in the first part of the year. and I think that they're going to rise up they're going to get their AK-47s out of the closet and come out and the fact is they don't even know about all the problems he's got. Jerry Trump's got no problems they've he's been investigated out the wazoo uh ups up one side and down the other uh he's never been arrested never been charged lots of accusations thrown out there but Jerry at the end of the day this president has been exonerated by every single investigation that's It's been done. Every single one. Jerry, got to run.

We're late for a break here. Appreciate the call, though. And I'm not sure where Jerry and I are. I just don't get that. But the idea that you're going to have a bunch of conservatives and America First people rising up and taking to the streets.

No, no, no, no, no, no. The only people that do that are the Democrats and Black Lives Matter and Antifa and the alphabet people. 844-747-8868. Do you agree with Jerry that all you people are going to rise up? I don't.

Again, I say look at the average Trump supporter. I'm not sure many of them could have made it up half those stairs. On J6, I'm just saying. We're healthy eaters. We'll be right back.

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Are you looking for something to do this weekend? Look, you've got to trust me on this one.

So if you're in the Mid-South in the Memphis, Tennessee area, you've got to go check out the Singing Christmas Tree at Bellevue Baptist Church. This thing is amazing. How big is that tree? I mean, it's huge. What, 49 feet?

I can't. Kyle, I don't know. Oh, 44 feet tall. It's huge. That's tall.

It's deep and wide. It's a big-bottomed tree, and then it goes up from there. I don't know, Grace, that sounded weird. Todd, you just made this go completely off the rails. But it's a giant tree.

It's a ginormous, lit-up, beautiful tree. And it's full of people. They have little human beings in the tree. Yes. There's a cast of about 500 people, full orchestra, beautiful show, LED light panels.

Live animals. Live animals. I've got some photographs up on the website somewhere or the Facebook, social media. I got a sneak preview last night. And they had this one thing where they bring out a huge drum line.

And it's like 50 or 60 people drumming. It's pretty incredible. That's pretty cool. I was very impressed.

So anyway, tickets, very inexpensive. And you can get yourself some tickets by going, what is it? SingingChristmastree.org. BellevueSingingTree.org. BellevueSingingTree.org.

There you go. All right, very good.

So if you're looking for something fun to do, Grace Baker, when we come back, do you believe in UFOs, like alien people? Not really, except E.T.

Well, I've got a story for you coming up. It turns out E.T. may have made a pit stop in Memphis for some barbecue. I hope he went to Central Barbecue, my favorite place. I know.

Otherwise, he might have had a bad experience and, you know, the alien force is coming to invade. Bad barbecue. No, but apparently a commercial pilot flying over Memphis was watching a donut-shaped object moving in the air. I wonder if it was over Gibson's Donuts. That could have been the big sign, right?

They have a big O. It's a big white O. Can't miss it. Is that what it was? I don't know.

May the force be with you. We'll be right back, America. This holiday season, Peloton's got a gift for you. Right now, get up to $200 off accessories with the purchase of a Peloton Shred. Accessories like non-slip grip resistance bands, a heart rate monitor, yoga blocks, and more.

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Cannot be combined with other offers. See additional terms at OnePeloton.com. All right, folks, and we are gearing up for a big trip next November. That's in the year of our Lord, 2023. We're going to be taking a group of about 100 people over to the Holy Land for an incredible combo visit.

We're going to be hitting all of the Holy Land sites, and then we're going to be giving you exclusive access to the Knesset, to the Israeli government, meeting with a lot of their leaders, and you're going to love this trip. It's really going to be a unique once-in-a-lifetime moment. And if you would like information, give us a call, 844-747-8868. Again, that's 844-747-8868.

Well, yesterday, some very disappointing news from the House of Representatives passing the Disrespect for Marriage Act. And the really shocking part about all of this, 39 Republicans joining Democrats to pass this legislation. it now goes to President Biden for his signature. I want to go to the Patriot Mobile Newsmaker line. A good friend of ours, Jeremy Dice from First Liberty Institute, joins us.

Jeremy, hope you're doing well. Great, Todd. Thanks for having me.

So let's talk about where we are now. Getting your reaction from what happened yesterday, it had to have been a disappointment to see all those Republicans jump ship.

Well, it's a disappointment to see Congress making a law that punishes the free exercise of religion, regardless of which party is the one that's doing it. Look, this law is either completely unnecessary or it's simply a deceptive license to discriminate against religious Americans across the country. I think what's really going on here, though, is that Congress, or at least a faction of Congress, is attempting to coerce Americans to abandon their religious beliefs about marriage just because a few politicians decided to change theirs. That should never be the case. No one should change their religious beliefs about anything just because a few people in Washington said they have a difference of opinion.

Jeremy, for me, and again, the issue, the Supreme Court has already decided, Obergfeld, so the issue for me was the religious liberty component, and that's where my objections are. Again, when you look at Senator Mike Lee and his amendment, Chip Roy, his amendment, these were very common-sense approaches, and yet they were struck down. That tells me this is really not about marriage. This is about coming after people of faith. Yeah, I'm concerned that you may be right on that, Todd.

Look, I think what Congress has done here has been to inflame the culture wars by authorizing what we might call lawfare by the politically vindictive.

So those who want to engage in warfare by the court of law.

So even if religious Americans are successful in defending against these meritless lawsuits that are inevitably to follow, the very cost of fighting those lawsuits is going to quite literally take food out of the mouths of vulnerable children. is going to force abused women and children back into violent environments because these charities, these religious faith-based organizations, are simply going to have to be reallocating funds to file motions to dismiss against meritless lawsuits. But the Constitution is supposed to guarantee the free exercise of religion, but instead Congress has, under RFMA, they've forced religious charities to operate under a constant threat of lawsuit simply because of their core religious beliefs. That should never be the case in this country. No one should be punished for holding a faith-based view on marriage, even if that conflicts with the government's current preferred definition.

There have been some concerns, Jeremy, that this might open up the door for the IRS to come after people of faith. Are churches protected here from any sorts of attacks? Man, our first freedom deserves so much better than is being given in this bill.

Well, look, I think what my message to every pastor and church and religious leader in this country, as they look at what's to come here, my best advice to them is to be as religious as possible. We were told by Justice Kennedy in the Obergefell decision that if you have a religious belief about marriage, that you would be permitted to advocate according to those religious beliefs, that you would be able to advocate with, this is what he said, utmost sincere conviction that by divine precepts, same-sex marriage should not be condoned. That has not changed under this bill. You can still advocate for your religious beliefs in marriage. And my only advice to you is this, that if you begin to change your convictions based upon a few politicians in Washington, there's really no defense left for you.

But if you are going to remain committed and sort of dial your religious beliefs up to 11, if you're going to maintain your commitment to the God that you follow, especially if it's within the Judeo-Christian tradition, as many of them have it, then you're going to be the most protected in this country. But if you begin to feel that coercion coming and begin to change what your religious beliefs are, I can't defend you on that.

So my hope would be that the faithful Americans around the country, instead of changing what they believe because some politicians change what they believe, they double down on what they believe and say, we will not bend the knee to Washington, D.C. We are instead going to maintain our convictions that God has delivered to us. Jeremy Dice on the Patriot Mobile Newsmaker line. He is the host of the First Liberty Briefing, also special counsel for litigation and communications. Jeremy, from a very practical standpoint, can you give us an example of one of the things that we need to be looking out for?

How do you think these attacks are going to be coming at people of faith? You know, it's really hard to tell, but it's almost as if the Congress has unleashed a whole bunch of mosquitoes. And even if it's not going to kill you with one bite, it's going to be a pest.

So whether or not you are a faith-based charity that opens their shelter to women and men, but they do it with sex segregation, that could be a problem under this bill. And you'd have to fight off a meritless lawsuit. If you are a religious counselor and you counsel your marriages according to the dictates of your Christian beliefs, that marriage is between one man and one woman, you limit it to those.

Well, someone can file a lawsuit against you, and that lawsuit is going to be dismissed, or at least it should, but it's still going to require you to actually have to go into court and fight that. That's why I say, again, having to swat away all these mosquitoes, this lawfare that Congress has authorized here, is really unacceptable. It's just shocking to me that Congress has made a law that disrespects the free exercise of religion with this. Yeah, and you had Republicans, 12 in the Senate, and you had 39 in the House of Representatives that went along with this. That's got to be a tough thing for the religious liberty advocates to be having to deal with, knowing that the Republican Party is not necessarily a party that you can count on down the road.

It's a grave disappointment, but I do want to have Americans hear me in this to say that Congress, even in passing this law, has taken no action to reverse the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. That is still good law. Let me put that positively. The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution is still in place.

It is still a complete defense to this threat that Congress has passed. But the very fact that our elected officials would signal so virtuously with this law that they would put in jeopardy the very foundational freedom that we have on the First Amendment, I think speaks volumes as to where our political class is today and just how important it is for people of faith to be highly engaged every two to four years to make sure that their lawmakers, yes, the ones in your backyard, are actually reflecting what you and your fellow believers believe on a Sunday or throughout the week. All right, good stuff.

And as always, folks, if you find yourself under attack because of your beliefs, you want to reach out to the folks at First Liberty Institute. And we have their website up on our live show blog, so you'll be able to find that information there, firstliberty.org. That's firstliberty.org. All right, Jeremy, appreciate you coming on. Hope you and the whole family have a Merry Christmas.

Thanks, Todd. Same to you. All right, there you go. And they'll take good care of you, too. I trust it.

Look, I trust these guys. They're great. I got to go back to this crazy UFO story. I mean, this is weird, Grace Baker, because here in Memphis, Tennessee, we're just good church-going people. Oh, yeah.

Look, we don't have a beef with the alien people unless they're coming across our border. Oh, yeah. No way.

So anyway, I don't know why this is just now becoming news, but this was just posted. back in January there was a commercial pilot coming in for a landing I guess at Memphis International and he looked out over the horizon there and he saw and he snapped a photograph of it and there was a large round white colored donut shaped object moving about the sky 6.55pm January 31st 2022 What were you doing that day, Grace? I don't know. Do you remember what you were doing? I don't remember.

I wasn't looking at aliens. The witness indicated he was a commercial airline pilot flying over Memphis. Quote, the observation lasted five minutes, and it was a lighted moving object within the round white.

So there was a filling. This is very detailed.

So it really wasn't a donut. It was more like, you know, is it kolache? Is that what they call them at the Czechoslovakian bakeries in Dallas? I don't know. No, because a donut has no center, right?

So it's not a.

So there was a donut hole within the donut. No, because. Did you say that a cream filling? Because then that changes the whole makeup of this conversation. Right.

Exactly. And that's the whole point there. I don't think they're I don't think they're describing this correctly. The guy says there was a round white donut and there was a lighted moving object inside the donut.

So that would have been the cream filling.

So it can't be a donut hole because the donut holes are literally scooped out so there would not be much wiggle room. Oh, I see. I see. Anyway, this is a really creepy. According to this national UFO reporting center, Tennessee was rated 24th in U.S.

UFO sightings. What? I know. It ought to be like number one or two because we have a lot of great stuff for the aliens to see. We've got Beale Street.

That's true. We've got Graceland. We've got the Memphis Zoo. We've got Shelby Farms. They might want to see the bison herd.

That's true. But you know why the aliens aren't coming here? It's too dangerous. I was going to say the cyclists for one thing.

Well, they don't want to get shot up. That's true. they're hovering over I-240 and you're going to have a sniper take them out. Oh, yi-yi. Even the aliens get it.

That's true. Yeah, we don't want to invade that planet.

So I was going to say, we don't have any evidence that they went and took a stop at rendezvous or something, right? Or dropped Elvis off. Yeah. We don't know. That was a rumor back in the day is that Elvis got taken up by the aliens.

Oh, people were just reaching. You never know. I'm just saying, you know I'm right. You know I'm right.

Well, if it's 2 o'clock in the morning and the lights are on at Graceland, I'm just telling you. All right, we've got to take a break here. That's creepy. Martin in Nevada, we're going to get to your call. 844-747-8868 on this open line UFO Friday.

This holiday season, Peloton's got a gift for you. Right now, get up to $200 off accessories with the purchase of a Peloton Shred. accessories like non-sleep grip resistance bands a heart rate monitor yoga blocks and more take your workout to the next level with peloton motivation that moves you hurry this limited time offer ends december 25th visit onepeloton.com to learn more all access memberships separate offer ends december 25th cannot be combined with other offers see additional terms at onepeloton.com Our good friend Ross from VTalk Station, WTKF, over in Moorhead City, North Carolina, just sent me a text message. He says, Todd, do you think more aliens don't visit Earth because the ones that already have left a bad review? is there like a galactic yelp account and maybe can you imagine the aliens yeah that the uh that big one uh yeah three yeah three from the sun yeah just don't even go there they got great barbecue but uh they got some free coins living on that planet i don't know it's a good it's a good question ross so thank you for that by the way patriot mobile ladies and gentlemen.

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Now, listen up. If you give them my promo code, Todd, they're going to hook you up with Premier free activation, and they're going to throw in a free gift as well. PatriotMobile.com slash Todd. All right, Let's go to the phones here. Martin from Nevada listening to us on the Nevada Talk Network.

Martin, what's on your mind?

Well, Todd, just answer me this one question before I start my speech, which is not long. What does woke mean?

Well, woke does not mean awake. I can tell you that much.

Okay. That's funny.

Okay. It doesn't mean work either, does it? Oh, it does not. Forget it. We're all out of work in Nevada except for the casinos.

Okay, here's my speech. I didn't meet Bobby Kennedy. I was taking photographs of him in San Jose in the same park where two guys were hanged in the 30s for murder. And so it was creepy in a way. There was lighting.

Unreal was the lieutenant governor there at the time. He was behind and his wife was behind him. But the lighting was marginal. but I had 400 ASA film on the camera.

So they actually came out great. But I remember him looking at me, and then I said to myself, Bobby Kennedy looks like a candidate, and he was. He was running for the president. And he didn't win, of course. He was killed in Los Angeles.

And I thought he would have made a great president. But I also remember how JFK died. He was assassinated. The same thing with Bobby. I said two per two.

That's not good. And I decided at that time to leave the Democratic Party. But I didn't know where to go. I thought about the Republicans.

So I actually later joined the Republican Party. I was an NRA member for a while. And ever since I've had doubts, I was telling Grace about the House of Lords, which is where the prime minister of England has his little speech against the people in the House of Lords, what do you call it, the Tories and the other ones. And the point is, there's more, there's like a half a dozen parties in England. We have two in a country about ten times the size of England.

So I don't understand what's going on anymore in this country. And, you know, I would vote any party that comes up with a viable candidate. You know, look, Martin, that's an interesting point. And by the way, when you go back through American history, there have been political cycles where you have had more than one party. Of course, you think about the Whigs.

You think about, remember, Teddy Roosevelt and the Bull Moose Party. The Bull Moose Party actually had more votes. And I believe if history serves me correctly, they were the one party, not Democrat or Republican, that received the most votes. And, you know, had it not been for that. Yeah, he lost at the Electoral College.

I think that's how Roosevelt lost. But the point is, you're right. Roosevelt was a heck of a guy. But I will say, but then, you know, look at most, you know, your more recent history, Martin. You had Ross Perot, who actually, if Ross Perot had stayed in the game, if you remember, he was doing really well, dropped out, had a serious mental deficiency there with the VP guy, who was a great guy, but he was just way too old.

And as a result of that, you got Bill Clinton. I believe the first president elected without a majority of the vote.

So anyway, it's a good thought, though. More parties. You know, more parties. I'm all for it.

Well, you know, like I said, I was a Bobby Kennedy supporter. And after that, I went overseas and realized something was going on. And it wasn't good.

Well, Martin, we got a skedaddle here. We're about to literally run out of time.

So we appreciate you calling in. Look, we're going to talk more about this down the road, folks, because this is not going to go away. And maybe it is time to start thinking about establishing more political parties. All right, it's been a great week. Again, we're very excited about our trip to Israel.

We're going to be sharing a website next week with you, and we'd love for you to consider joining us. I want to thank Grace and Kyle. They've done a great job this week. Folks, if you're in Memphis, go see the Bellevue Baptist Church singing Christmas tree. and whatever you do, be sure to go to church this weekend.