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Glenn's Show Prep

This is why Jim Gaffigan is one of Glenn’s favorite comedians

June 09, 2015
Staff

WRITER

Jim Gaffigan may be one of the funniest men in America. Not only does he manage to make hot pockets, bacon, and fatherhood hilarious, he stays funny without veering into politics. He’s got a new TV show starting in a couple weeks, and he joined Glenn on radio to discuss the show, McDonald’s ridiculous new McKale, and more.

Find out more about The Jim Gaffigan Show

GLENN: Jim Gaffigan is a funny man and comedian who has a problem with some -- some food items, we understand. But loves them Hot Pockets. John Gaffigan is with us now. Hello, John.

JIM: John?

[laughter]

GLENN: Do you miss the days when you had to get up early in the morning and do a radio interview with people who had no idea who you were?

JIM: Oh, my gosh, that's a great observation. Yeah. Well, you know, the whole thing is like doing this TV show, Glenn. It's way too much work. I know you're a colossal workaholic. But there's too much acting that occurs before 10:00 a.m. That's my whole thing. It's a TV show.

I had a pickup one time at 3:00 a.m. 3:00 a.m. I'm used to working for an hour a night where it's just me with a microphone. And I'm supposed to be cooperative with people at 4:30 in the morning? But...

GLENN: So, Jim, looking at your hourly wage then, I would say you're probably for the 15-dollar an hour for food workers?

JIM: Well, you know, I am someone who eats -- I probably singlehandedly kept McDonald's afloat in the past couple of months. But I most certainly -- I have worked in a fast food place. But, you know, I am for, you know, businesses making a profit. But I don't know. You know, it's like that's above my pay grade.

GLENN: Are you -- how do you feel about the kale announcement with McDonald's?

JIM: I felt like that was a sellout, you know. That's like us negotiating with ISIS.

GLENN: I mean --

JIM: Like, McDonald's, how dare you. How dare you betray -- you know what I mean? The kale thing. I appreciate the value of it being good for us. But that's not why we're going to McDonald's. All right. We're going to McDonald's because we really don't like ourselves. And we want a moment of happiness, Glenn. And we all know that. No one is going to McDonald's and then jogging, all right. We're going to McDonald's because we don't want to jog. Because -- because those fries are insane.

GLENN: When did you -- when did you -- because you really are one of my heroes. A, I mean this sincerely, you I believe are one of the funniest men in America. I would say the planet. But I don't speak other languages, so I don't know. But you're the funniest man in America now. And what I really admire, you're a hero of mine because you have just surrendered. You've just said, I'm going to be fat and lazy and I'm okay with that.

JIM: Yeah. Thank you for saying those -- but I think that there's a surrender, but there's also -- you know, my act and this show that is -- you know, you can download a free episode on i Tunes -- is all about an exploration of the id (phonetic). It's not how we should live. We don't want to -- we all want to lie in bed all day and eat bacon. But we can't. But that's romanticizing laziness and glut any is, you know -- it's the lesser of the sins. Right?

PAT: Right.

JIM: There's something about -- I'm not proposing that people consume the way I talk. You know, the funny thing is, people used to say. Gosh, you really talk. Your act, you sound like a morbidly obese person the way you joke about food. And now people come up to me and say, wow, you really joke a lot about food. Implying that I've gained a lot of weight.

But I don't know. Hopefully I'm romanticizing it. You know, when I wrote -- I do everything with my wife. And when we wrote Food: A Love Story, she was very insistent that we had a disclaimer in the beginning that said or more or less, this is no way to lead your life. I was like, I think you have to give people credit. They know I'm joking, you know.

GLENN: I have to tell you, Jim. You're crushing me. You are my hero up until about 45 seconds ago. I thought you did lay in bed all day and eat bacon.

JIM: I wish I could. I wish I could. But unfortunately, you know, I've got -- I've got a lot of kids. And I say a lot of kids because I don't know the real number because there's so many. I have a lot of kids, Glenn. I have an 11-year-old. A 9-year-old. A 6-year-old. A 3-year-old. A 2-year-old.

GLENN: You know what's causing that. Right?

You can't stop it.

JIM: Jesus caused it. No, I know what causes it. But, you know, I have to make some money.

GLENN: May I ask you a question. I read your book. What is it? Dad is Fat, which I just thought was hysterical. But the thought where you talk about the tarp was not enough over the living room at the birthing of your child at home. I wondered why someone would actually -- I mean, when there are modern hospitals, why you would birth a child at home.

JIM: Well, you know, this is right in your wheelhouse, Glenn. The home birth thing is real. It's -- it's -- we've been kind of brainwashed. And understandably. I understand your point of view that home birth is kind of like having someone inexperienced fix an airplane you're about to fly on. It sounds dangerous.

GLENN: No. It's not that it's dangerous. It's just the clean-up. And I'm a very, very big believer in, if I'm in pain, I must be in Cuba. I want medicine. I don't want pain.

JIM: Yeah. Oh, yeah. It's not like I had the kids. You know, my wife. I was sitting -- I was on more medication than her. But I think that -- look, we're human beings. We've been having -- I can't believe I'm talking about home birth. But we've been having babies for a long time. And there is -- there's been this -- I think this -- you know, it's -- that's how it used to be. You know, I'm from the Midwest. You know, my grandparents weren't born in a hospital probably. And so it's -- it's not something that we have been doing. There's less germs in your house than in a hospital. But now I sound like the home birth --

GLENN: No, I just want to know. Because there is a side of you, Jim. Not the stage side of you. There is a side of you -- my mother was born on the kitchen table. And my grandfather used to tell us all the time while we were eating. It didn't work for me.

JIM: Yeah.

GLENN: But there is a side of you that is a serious guy. And somewhat really odd.

JIM: Yeah. Well, thank you.

GLENN: You're welcome.

JIM: No, I'm a very misanthropic optimist. I think that I am -- you know, it's like -- you know, I'm kind of -- I think of myself as, you know, somebody that -- of our childhood. It seems like there was this time when like somebody could be kind of Catholic and cynical and they could be all these things and also open-hearted and stuff like that. I don't know. Anyway, what I'm saying is, I'm a great guy.

[laughter]

No, I think of myself, yeah, I'm definitely -- I mean, Glenn, I go on stage and make strangers laugh. There's nothing normal about that, you know what I mean?

GLENN: What's it like to be -- because I'm at the opposite end of the spectrum. I'm either loved or I'm absolutely hated. I think you're either loved or they just haven't seen you yet. What's it like to be universally loved? Tell me your sob story. Tell me the bad times.

JIM: That's very nice again. But here's the thing, I think there's also something about I serve as -- because I saw this even in the kind of rise in some of my popularity. There was all these anti-Bush comedians. There were the blue-collar guys that were kind of attacked for, you know -- I don't know what they were attacked for. And then there was me talking about muffins. You know what I mean? And so I'm the beneficiary of not -- not engaging -- well, it's what you do. Your job is to question things. Right?

From your point of view. And so what my -- I deal with the minutia. I think people come to my show as a break from --

GLENN: Oh, yeah.

JIM: You know what I mean?

PAT: No doubt about it.

JIM: Let me be clear. I've been doing stand up for a long time. I'm a pale blond guy where if I talk about things political, the audience tightens up.

GLENN: Yeah, I don't want you to. We've talked about this when you asked, you know, if I would be on your first episode. And I told the guys, I said, everybody is on this episode. He has everybody. Because we didn't want to know. And I don't want to know your political views. I don't want to know anything about you. Because you really are -- you're unspoiled. There's not many things we can go to anymore -- and where I can sit next to Rachel Maddow and the two of us could just laugh our faces off. That's really needed in America.

JIM: Well, thank you.

PAT: Plus, it's really hard to be funny and not dirty. And to be funny about muffins and Hot Pockets and kale is hard. What you do, Jim, is probably the toughest comedy in the country.

JIM: Well, thanks. I just kind of do what I do. I will say that if there is some negative -- I mean, there's nothing sexy about what I do. So --

GLENN: I mean, you're not scooping up the chicks afterwards, I'm sure.

JIM: No. And there's nothing -- and I'm grateful so that I can call in and I'm so grateful that you participated in the show. But there's nothing -- like, I'm never going to be on the cover of GQ. And that's fine. But there's -- there's also -- I'm like -- I had this joke -- my wife wouldn't let me do it. I wanted to call -- because the accusation that gets leveled at me is that I'm mainstream. So Republicans and Democrats both like my stuff. So some people say, oh, it's too mainstream. It's not niche enough. I wanted to call my tour [foreign language] which is French for mainstream. You know, but that's not that bad.

[laughter]

STU: Because in the show, the first episode, the Jim Gaffigan show, you have to get on i Tunes, it's a great show -- even with all your trying to stay away from controversy, you kind of get pulled into something on the show that kind of stems from a real incident. Right?

JIM: Yeah. Actually they're sampling different episodes. But the one that Glenn is in and that was on my website was inspired by the fact, I'm Catholic. And my wife is Shiite Catholic.

[laughter]

And that's very rare in the entertainment industry. It's like, look, I spent 15 years as an atheist. So it's like, I understand that like there is a somewhat of a disconnect of being this comedian. This cynical comedian to be a person of faith. So that was kind of inspired. It was actually inspired by when I wrote that book Dad is Fat. There was a Washington Post article that kind of identified me as the leader of a new Catholic evangelicalism. And I was like -- that was some of the -- the -- you know -- and I love the idea of being outed as a Christian in this day and age.

GLENN: It's a different world. Jim, we want to hit your tour. You can find out all about his tour on JimGaffigan.com. I want to thank you for not coming really anywhere close to you so we can see you. So we have to travel now.

JIM: I was just in Dallas.

GLENN: I was out of town that day. You didn't call, okay.

STU: You were supposed to schedule --

JIM: I know. I was very selfish.

GLENN: My children came. And they liked it. But big, fat dad had to be in another state.

JIM: You were probably publishing two books.

STU: Do you see a serious issue in the world of comedy, Jim, of that because you deal with this in the episode that Glenn is in which is you were outed as a hero of the Christian comedian movement. Then the entire world turns on you in one second because of something else you did and then all of a sudden you're the vicious enemy of all things religious. I feel like it's actually a real thing you're playing off here which is a constant search for outrage. Every time a comedian says anything, there's one side or the other that will come after them and try to attack them.

GLENN: Comedian, shut up.

PAT: Isn't it ruining comedy?

JIM: Yeah. I think there is something very interesting -- you know what I think it is? I think everybody really wants to look smart. And the way we can look smart is to identify mistakes people have made. And in social media, it's really easy to say, you spelled that word wrong. Or that -- you know, if you read that sentence wrong, it can -- you can be characterizing -- it can be characterized as homophobic. Look, words are important. But I also think that we're kind of getting away from like the bigger picture kind of stuff of, you know -- again, it's not -- it's not my wheelhouse. But, you know, there is this kind of outrage police that exists. And I think that it's important. I mean, obviously we don't want horrible things to happen. And things we -- things that rational or enlightened (phonetic) -- but those things that -- we're losing some of our sense of humor. You know, I'm glad that I'm married now because I can't imagine being flirtatious in this day and age. Maybe because I was so bad at it. But I remember having that thought, I wouldn't want to try to be flirtatious with a woman at a bar. I think that 15 years ago, you could kind of make a moron out of yourself and it wouldn't be the end of the day. But now, if you do that, it could be really ugly. And, you know, you wouldn't want, you know, to make someone uncomfortable. But I think now people are instructed to be more uncomfortable when we should let things kind of slide off our back like they used to.

GLENN: Jim Gaffigan. He has the Jim Gaffigan Show on i Tunes. And it is really, really funny. Worth watching. If you've never seen him before in person, grab a ticket. You will laugh all night. Truly, truly one of the funniest men in America today. Jim Gaffigan at JimGaffigan.com. Jim, thank you so much for including us in the show. We'd love to have you back. It's rare that we get a chance to really laugh hard and our audience loves you and we love you. And you're welcome here any time.

JIM: Thanks so much. I really appreciate it.

GLENN: God bless. JimGaffigan.com.

Is the U.N. plotting to control 30% of U.S. land by 2030?

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

A reliable conservative senator faces cancellation for listening to voters. But the real threat to public lands comes from the last president’s backdoor globalist agenda.

Something ugly is unfolding on social media, and most people aren’t seeing it clearly. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) — one of the most constitutionally grounded conservatives in Washington — is under fire for a housing provision he first proposed in 2022.

You wouldn’t know that from scrolling through X. According to the latest online frenzy, Lee wants to sell off national parks, bulldoze public lands, gut hunting and fishing rights, and hand America’s wilderness to Amazon, BlackRock, and the Chinese Communist Party. None of that is true.

Lee’s bill would have protected against the massive land-grab that’s already under way — courtesy of the Biden administration.

I covered this last month. Since then, the backlash has grown into something like a political witch hunt — not just from the left but from the right. Even Donald Trump Jr., someone I typically agree with, has attacked Lee’s proposal. He’s not alone.

Time to look at the facts the media refuses to cover about Lee’s federal land plan.

What Lee actually proposed

Over the weekend, Lee announced that he would withdraw the federal land sale provision from his housing bill. He said the decision was in response to “a tremendous amount of misinformation — and in some cases, outright lies,” but also acknowledged that many Americans brought forward sincere, thoughtful concerns.

Because of the strict rules surrounding the budget reconciliation process, Lee couldn’t secure legally enforceable protections to ensure that the land would be made available “only to American families — not to China, not to BlackRock, and not to any foreign interests.” Without those safeguards, he chose to walk it back.

That’s not selling out. That’s leadership.

It's what the legislative process is supposed to look like: A senator proposes a bill, the people respond, and the lawmaker listens. That was once known as representative democracy. These days, it gets you labeled a globalist sellout.

The Biden land-grab

To many Americans, “public land” brings to mind open spaces for hunting, fishing, hiking, and recreation. But that’s not what Sen. Mike Lee’s bill targeted.

His proposal would have protected against the real land-grab already under way — the one pushed by the Biden administration.

In 2021, Biden launched a plan to “conserve” 30% of America’s lands and waters by 2030. This effort follows the United Nations-backed “30 by 30” initiative, which seeks to place one-third of all land and water under government control.

Ask yourself: Is the U.N. focused on preserving your right to hunt and fish? Or are radical environmentalists exploiting climate fears to restrict your access to American land?

  Smith Collection/Gado / Contributor | Getty Images

As it stands, the federal government already owns 640 million acres — nearly one-third of the entire country. At this rate, the government will hit that 30% benchmark with ease. But it doesn’t end there. The next phase is already in play: the “50 by 50” agenda.

That brings me to a piece of legislation most Americans haven’t even heard of: the Sustains Act.

Passed in 2023, the law allows the federal government to accept private funding from organizations, such as BlackRock or the Bill Gates Foundation, to support “conservation programs.” In practice, the law enables wealthy elites to buy influence over how American land is used and managed.

Moreover, the government doesn’t even need the landowner’s permission to declare that your property contributes to “pollination,” or “photosynthesis,” or “air quality” — and then regulate it accordingly. You could wake up one morning and find out that the land you own no longer belongs to you in any meaningful sense.

Where was the outrage then? Where were the online crusaders when private capital and federal bureaucrats teamed up to quietly erode private property rights across America?

American families pay the price

The real danger isn’t in Mike Lee’s attempt to offer more housing near population centers — land that would be limited, clarified, and safeguarded in the final bill. The real threat is the creeping partnership between unelected global elites and our own government, a partnership designed to consolidate land, control rural development, and keep Americans penned in so-called “15-minute cities.”

BlackRock buying entire neighborhoods and pricing out regular families isn’t by accident. It’s part of a larger strategy to centralize populations into manageable zones, where cars are unnecessary, rural living is unaffordable, and every facet of life is tracked, regulated, and optimized.

That’s the real agenda. And it’s already happening , and Mike Lee’s bill would have been an effort to ensure that you — not BlackRock, not China — get first dibs.

I live in a town of 451 people. Even here, in the middle of nowhere, housing is unaffordable. The American dream of owning a patch of land is slipping away, not because of one proposal from a constitutional conservative, but because global powers and their political allies are already devouring it.

Divide and conquer

This controversy isn’t really about Mike Lee. It’s about whether we, as a nation, are still capable of having honest debates about public policy — or whether the online mob now controls the narrative. It’s about whether conservatives will focus on facts or fall into the trap of friendly fire and circular firing squads.

More importantly, it’s about whether we’ll recognize the real land-grab happening in our country — and have the courage to fight back before it’s too late.


This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

URGENT: FIVE steps to CONTROL AI before it's too late!

MANAURE QUINTERO / Contributor | Getty Images

By now, many of us are familiar with AI and its potential benefits and threats. However, unless you're a tech tycoon, it can feel like you have little influence over the future of artificial intelligence.

For years, Glenn has warned about the dangers of rapidly developing AI technologies that have taken the world by storm.

He acknowledges their significant benefits but emphasizes the need to establish proper boundaries and ethics now, while we still have control. But since most people aren’t Silicon Valley tech leaders making the decisions, how can they help keep AI in check?

Recently, Glenn interviewed Tristan Harris, a tech ethicist deeply concerned about the potential harm of unchecked AI, to discuss its societal implications. Harris highlighted a concerning new piece of legislation proposed by Texas Senator Ted Cruz. This legislation proposes a state-level moratorium on AI regulation, meaning only the federal government could regulate AI. Harris noted that there’s currently no Federal plan for regulating AI. Until the federal government establishes a plan, tech companies would have nearly free rein with their AI. And we all know how slowly the federal government moves.

  

This is where you come in. Tristan Harris shared with Glenn the top five actions you should urge your representatives to take regarding AI, including opposing the moratorium until a concrete plan is in place. Now is your chance to influence the future of AI. Contact your senator and congressman today and share these five crucial steps they must take to keep AI in check:

Ban engagement-optimized AI companions for kids

Create legislation that will prevent AI from being designed to maximize addiction, sexualization, flattery, and attachment disorders, and to protect young people’s mental health and ability to form real-life friendships.

Establish basic liability laws

Companies need to be held accountable when their products cause real-world harm.

Pass increased whistleblower protections

Protect concerned technologists working inside the AI labs from facing untenable pressures and threats that prevent them from warning the public when the AI rollout is unsafe or crosses dangerous red lines.

Prevent AI from having legal rights

Enact laws so AIs don’t have protected speech or have their own bank accounts, making sure our legal system works for human interests over AI interests.

Oppose the state moratorium on AI 

Call your congressman or Senator Cruz’s office, and demand they oppose the state moratorium on AI without a plan for how we will set guardrails for this technology.

Glenn: Only Trump dared to deliver on decades of empty promises

Tasos Katopodis / Stringer | Getty Images

The Islamic regime has been killing Americans since 1979. Now Trump’s response proves we’re no longer playing defense — we’re finally hitting back.

The United States has taken direct military action against Iran’s nuclear program. Whatever you think of the strike, it’s over. It’s happened. And now, we have to predict what happens next. I want to help you understand the gravity of this situation: what happened, what it means, and what might come next. To that end, we need to begin with a little history.

Since 1979, Iran has been at war with us — even if we refused to call it that.

We are either on the verge of a remarkable strategic victory or a devastating global escalation. Time will tell.

It began with the hostage crisis, when 66 Americans were seized and 52 were held for over a year by the radical Islamic regime. Four years later, 17 more Americans were murdered in the U.S. Embassy bombing in Beirut, followed by 241 Marines in the Beirut barracks bombing.

Then came the Khobar Towers bombing in 1996, which killed 19 more U.S. airmen. Iran had its fingerprints all over it.

In Iraq and Afghanistan, Iranian-backed proxies killed hundreds of American soldiers. From 2001 to 2020 in Afghanistan and 2003 to 2011 in Iraq, Iran supplied IEDs and tactical support.

The Iranians have plotted assassinations and kidnappings on U.S. soil — in 2011, 2021, and again in 2024 — and yet we’ve never really responded.

The precedent for U.S. retaliation has always been present, but no president has chosen to pull the trigger until this past weekend. President Donald Trump struck decisively. And what our military pulled off this weekend was nothing short of extraordinary.

Operation Midnight Hammer

The strike was reportedly called Operation Midnight Hammer. It involved as many as 175 U.S. aircraft, including 12 B-2 stealth bombers — out of just 19 in our entire arsenal. Those bombers are among the most complex machines in the world, and they were kept mission-ready by some of the finest mechanics on the planet.

   USAF / Handout | Getty Images

To throw off Iranian radar and intelligence, some bombers flew west toward Guam — classic misdirection. The rest flew east, toward the real targets.

As the B-2s approached Iranian airspace, U.S. submarines launched dozens of Tomahawk missiles at Iran’s fortified nuclear facilities. Minutes later, the bombers dropped 14 MOPs — massive ordnance penetrators — each designed to drill deep into the earth and destroy underground bunkers. These bombs are the size of an F-16 and cost millions of dollars apiece. They are so accurate, I’ve been told they can hit the top of a soda can from 15,000 feet.

They were built for this mission — and we’ve been rehearsing this run for 15 years.

If the satellite imagery is accurate — and if what my sources tell me is true — the targeted nuclear sites were utterly destroyed. We’ll likely rely on the Israelis to confirm that on the ground.

This was a master class in strategy, execution, and deterrence. And it proved that only the United States could carry out a strike like this. I am very proud of our military, what we are capable of doing, and what we can accomplish.

What comes next

We don’t yet know how Iran will respond, but many of the possibilities are troubling. The Iranians could target U.S. forces across the Middle East. On Monday, Tehran launched 20 missiles at U.S. bases in Qatar, Syria, and Kuwait, to no effect. God forbid, they could also unleash Hezbollah or other terrorist proxies to strike here at home — and they just might.

Iran has also threatened to shut down the Strait of Hormuz — the artery through which nearly a fifth of the world’s oil flows. On Sunday, Iran’s parliament voted to begin the process. If the Supreme Council and the ayatollah give the go-ahead, we could see oil prices spike to $150 or even $200 a barrel.

That would be catastrophic.

The 2008 financial collapse was pushed over the edge when oil hit $130. Western economies — including ours — simply cannot sustain oil above $120 for long. If this conflict escalates and the Strait is closed, the global economy could unravel.

The strike also raises questions about regime stability. Will it spark an uprising, or will the Islamic regime respond with a brutal crackdown on dissidents?

Early signs aren’t hopeful. Reports suggest hundreds of arrests over the weekend and at least one dissident executed on charges of spying for Israel. The regime’s infamous morality police, the Gasht-e Ershad, are back on the streets. Every phone, every vehicle — monitored. The U.S. embassy in Qatar issued a shelter-in-place warning for Americans.

Russia and China both condemned the strike. On Monday, a senior Iranian official flew to Moscow to meet with Vladimir Putin. That meeting should alarm anyone paying attention. Their alliance continues to deepen — and that’s a serious concern.

Now we pray

We are either on the verge of a remarkable strategic victory or a devastating global escalation. Time will tell. But either way, President Trump didn’t start this. He inherited it — and he took decisive action.

The difference is, he did what they all said they would do. He didn’t send pallets of cash in the dead of night. He didn’t sign another failed treaty.

He acted. Now, we pray. For peace, for wisdom, and for the strength to meet whatever comes next.


This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Globalize the Intifada? Why Mamdani’s plan spells DOOM for America

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

If New Yorkers hand City Hall to Zohran Mamdani, they’re not voting for change. They’re opening the door to an alliance of socialism, Islamism, and chaos.

It only took 25 years for New York City to go from the resilient, flag-waving pride following the 9/11 attacks to a political fever dream. To quote Michael Malice, “I'm old enough to remember when New Yorkers endured 9/11 instead of voting for it.”

Malice is talking about Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist assemblyman from Queens now eyeing the mayor’s office. Mamdani, a 33-year-old state representative emerging from relative political obscurity, is now receiving substantial funding for his mayoral campaign from the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

CAIR has a long and concerning history, including being born out of the Muslim Brotherhood and named an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation terror funding case. Why would the group have dropped $100,000 into a PAC backing Mamdani’s campaign?

Mamdani blends political Islam with Marxist economics — two ideologies that have left tens of millions dead in the 20th century alone.

Perhaps CAIR has a vested interest in Mamdani’s call to “globalize the intifada.” That’s not a call for peaceful protest. Intifada refers to historic uprisings of Muslims against what they call the “Israeli occupation of Palestine.” Suicide bombings and street violence are part of the playbook. So when Mamdani says he wants to “globalize” that, who exactly is the enemy in this global scenario? Because it sure sounds like he's saying America is the new Israel, and anyone who supports Western democracy is the new Zionist.

Mamdani tried to clean up his language by citing the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, which once used “intifada” in an Arabic-language article to describe the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. So now he’s comparing Palestinians to Jewish victims of the Nazis? If that doesn’t twist your stomach into knots, you’re not paying attention.

If you’re “globalizing” an intifada, and positioning Israel — and now America — as the Nazis, that’s not a cry for human rights. That’s a call for chaos and violence.

Rising Islamism

But hey, this is New York. Faculty members at Columbia University — where Mamdani’s own father once worked — signed a letter defending students who supported Hamas after October 7. They also contributed to Mamdani’s mayoral campaign. And his father? He blamed Ronald Reagan and the religious right for inspiring Islamic terrorism, as if the roots of 9/11 grew in Washington, not the caves of Tora Bora.

   Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

 

This isn’t about Islam as a faith. We should distinguish between Islam and Islamism. Islam is a religion followed peacefully by millions. Islamism is something entirely different — an ideology that seeks to merge mosque and state, impose Sharia law, and destroy secular liberal democracies from within. Islamism isn’t about prayer and fasting. It’s about power.

Criticizing Islamism is not Islamophobia. It is not an attack on peaceful Muslims. In fact, Muslims are often its first victims.

Islamism is misogynistic, theocratic, violent, and supremacist. It’s hostile to free speech, religious pluralism, gay rights, secularism — even to moderate Muslims. Yet somehow, the progressive left — the same left that claims to fight for feminism, LGBTQ rights, and free expression — finds itself defending candidates like Mamdani. You can’t make this stuff up.

Blending the worst ideologies

And if that weren’t enough, Mamdani also identifies as a Democratic Socialist. He blends political Islam with Marxist economics — two ideologies that have left tens of millions dead in the 20th century alone. But don’t worry, New York. I’m sure this time socialism will totally work. Just like it always didn’t.

If you’re a business owner, a parent, a person who’s saved anything, or just someone who values sanity: Get out. I’m serious. If Mamdani becomes mayor, as seems likely, then New York City will become a case study in what happens when you marry ideological extremism with political power. And it won’t be pretty.

This is about more than one mayoral race. It’s about the future of Western liberalism. It’s about drawing a bright line between faith and fanaticism, between healthy pluralism and authoritarian dogma.

Call out radicalism

We must call out political Islam the same way we call out white nationalism or any other supremacist ideology. When someone chants “globalize the intifada,” that should send a chill down your spine — whether you’re Jewish, Christian, Muslim, atheist, or anything in between.

The left may try to shame you into silence with words like “Islamophobia,” but the record is worn out. The grooves are shallow. The American people see what’s happening. And we’re not buying it.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.