Self-professed 'Hollywood Libtard' Discovers Common Ground With Conservatives

Glenn welcomed filmmaker Mark Duplass on radio today for an inspirational conversation. Duplass, like Glenn, is deeply concerned about the divide in our country and hopes to find common ground in charitable giving and service projects.

"Everybody likes to take care of sick children. Everybody believes that clean water systems installed in third world countries for relatively cheap that are sustainable are a good thing, you know. And so I said, what if I can just reach out a little bit and find some of these campaigns that maybe we could share and in the positive spirit of giving --- without yelling at each other, just focus on the giving --- maybe you might grow something," Duplass said.

The conversation left Glenn feeling inspired and hopeful.

"Mark, I have to tell you, I have been --- as the guys know and many of the listeners know on this program --- I have been searching for people like you for at least two years. And it's just a thrill to talk to you. Because I know you guys exist. I just know you exist. And to have the balls to stand up and to do what you're doing is remarkable, just remarkable. It's a real honor to talk to you," Glenn said.

Listen to this segment from The Glenn Beck Program:

GLENN: Mark Duplass, welcome to the program, sir.

MARK: How are you, sir? Thanks for having me.

GLENN: Very good.

First of all, let's just start with this. We're big fans. I didn't know Stu was a big fan of yours.

STU: Oh, The League is a tremendous, legendary show.

GLENN: And I've seen Blue Jay. And Pat actually saw parts of it as well. And it is -- I mean, it's just genius work. It's just genius work.

MARK: Thank you so much. Thank you very much.

GLENN: You're welcome.

So let's -- let's start here. First of all, the audience should know that this never happens. Mark calls in, and our producers talked to him a couple weeks ago. And he said, "Please don't promote anything of mine. Don't talk about anything of mine. I just really want to have a conversation about what's happening in the world." I just wanted you to know that that's the kind of character this guy has coming to the table.

You are a -- a Hollywood guy. You're obviously on the left. And unashamed of being on the left.

MARK: Yeah, I would go so far as to say I'm a self-professed semi-elitist Hollywood libtard. I'll go ahead and I'll take it, man.

(laughter)

GLENN: Okay. All right.

So -- so what are you -- what are you doing?

MARK: Okay. First of all, I don't really know. I'm jumping into some things without being fully educated about what these consequences are. But something in my -- something in my deep gut has been telling me that the divide we are experiencing right now politically is -- it's obviously -- it's gotten so incendiary and it's gotten so gridlocked that, quite frankly, it dovetails with something that, while I am not as politically astute and well read as most people who are having these conversations, I've made my whole life about relationships and about the healing of relationships, about going to therapy over relationships.

GLENN: Right.

MARK: I work with and sleep next to my wife every night. My brother and I run a business together. My parents and I live 2 miles from each other, and we see each other every Sunday. I know deeply what it's like to be close with people and how to work through issues.

And when I sense the way that people are communicating with each other, so gridlocked in their positions, just firing away with incendiary criticism, I thought to myself, "I think I know how to operate in this space a little bit, so I'm going to try to jump in and see what I have to offer."

PAT: That's great.

GLENN: So what do you have to offer, Mark?

MARK: Well, I guess the first thing that I noticed is that, you know, it feels like the country is in a terrible marriage right now of some sort, where you get to that point where you're just like, "You know what, I can't even have a civil conversation with you because I feel like I'm constantly under attack."

And, you know, look, I've been there in relationships before. I think everybody has to a certain degree. And, you know, my whole theory is like -- that movie and that book love story that came out in, like, 1970 I think did a terrible disservice to all relationships by propagating that quote, love means never having to say you're sorry, which to me is the worst thing you can possibly --

PAT: It's an amazing falsehood.

GLENN: Yeah, it really is.

PAT: It is.

MARK: To me -- to me, we're in the place where love means always having to say you're sorry, even at times you're pretty sure it's the other person's fault.

GLENN: Amen.

MARK: You need to kind of -- you need to just step up for a second and just say, "Hey, I probably did some of this. I'm sorry for that." And let the healing begin.

You know, my wife and I always joke, like when we get to that gridlocked place, we have to go to the lowest common denominator of connection. And that, for us, is we put on The Big Lebowski and we get a six-pack of beer and we sit next to each other and we just enjoy it. And we don't talk. And then the good vibes start to happen. And then slowly one of us says, "Hey, I'll order some Thai food." Let me do it. And then the other person says, "Oh, that was nice." And then the other person brings them the Thai food. And then literally, brick by brick, you get yourself back to the place of good feeling and communication.

So I started thinking, what is the lowest common denominator between, you know, conservatives? Between liberals. What is something that we can share without screaming?

And I thought to myself, well, what about charitable giving? I continually hear that conservatives actually give more to charity than -- than a lot of liberals do. And I know a lot of that is church-based. And everybody can get into an argument about that. But whatever. Put that away. Everybody likes to take care of sick children. Everybody believes that clean water systems installed in third world countries for relatively cheap that are sustainable are a good thing, you know.

And so I said, what if I can find some -- just reach out a little bit and find some of these campaigns that maybe we could share and in the positive spirit of giving, without yelling at each other, just focus on the giving, maybe you might grow something. I don't know. It's still early. It's all half-baked in my head, to be honest. But this is the pool I'm trying to step into at the moment.

GLENN: How does it make you feel that that is exactly the same pool that Glenn Beck stepped into? What does that say about you, Mark, really seriously?

PAT: That says you better not open up your Twitter account page.

(laughter)

MARK: I mean, it's phenomenal. I mean, honestly, this is like, all I am looking for right now is a connection point. And I have been -- I was so guilty in mid-November of like getting on Twitter and proselytizing about why I was right and finding new and interesting and multisyllabic ways to slam Trump, you know, which --

GLENN: See, another point in common.

(laughter)

MARK: Exactly. And so I look back, and I'm like, "Why am I doing this? This is at best further marginalizing us. And at worst, just losing half of my fans who don't even care about what I'm saying now." And I just started to think, "This doesn't feel like the right way. And deep in my gut, I know that when my brother and I get into emotional trouble or my wife and I, or my friends and I, or my parents do, that always the way forward is to, regardless of whether who started it, regardless of who was more unfair or who was louder with their words, I always know deep in my gut, I have to step forward first. I have to be the one. I would love it if someone else did it. But, you know what, who cares. Put that away. Be the one, step forward. And when you do that, it usually ends up working out pretty well.

So, you know, for me, the fact that you heard that and you reached out and said, you know, come on my program and let's talk about this. This is super exciting to me. Because I guess I'm in a bit of a fact-gathering mode. Like, I first started talking to people with the question of, if you held your nose and voted for Trump, I get you. I have nothing against that, honestly. Nobody has a favorite politician anymore. You know, we're too aware of the machinations. We read too much news. So if you just thought to yourself, "You know what, there's a Supreme Court justice coming up, long-term, I want to get a G.O.P. guy in there so that, you know, I will get the right appointee or I'm a one-issue voter, such as I'm a pro-life voter," I can understand that. But if you're on fire for Trump, if you're in love with the guy, tell me why. You know --

GLENN: We can't help you -- we can't help you with that, Mark. I don't know if you know anything about us at all, but we can't help you on that one.

MARK: Yeah, I do. And I do.

GLENN: Yeah, we feel exactly the same way.

MARK: No one -- no one is on fire for Trump. There are a couple of really frightening people on Twitter who are in love with Trump. But, by the way, there are just as many of those frightening people on the left. So that's not a party divide thing. There's always the outliers there.

So what I have learned, interestingly enough, in doing that, is no one is on fire.

There are, you know, tons of reasons. The last thing I want to be is be reductive in any way about a large group of people who may have voted for him. But I keep getting these really, I guess fascinating answers for me, which are sort of like, I felt hopeless. I felt like Obama left me behind. This guy was a hail Mary. I didn't know what he was going to do. He was an other. And I felt the lack of political jargon. I felt that his candor and just the feeling that he was being truthful and his words weren't well rehearsed, made them feel like he was like them. So they said, "I want to take a chance on him."

Okay. That, I can actually understand. You know, people saying, he's -- he's telling me he's going to bring jobs. No one is talking to me and saying that they're going to bring jobs. I'm choosing to believe him.

So okay. I can get behind that too. I can understand where you're coming from. So I guess the 30,000-foot view of it for me has been, you know, I live in Los Angeles. And I do live in a bubble. And as much as I tell myself, you know -- I open up my Twitter feed. I look at Fox News once a day to see what's happening. The truth is, I'm mostly hearing from people who are terrified of this man and it's a fear-based thing. And it's -- the rhetoric is incendiary. And most of the Trump supporters that I have talked to are so appreciative to have me come forward and not call them racists and not just start yelling at them about why they're wrong and why they're ruining the country. And when I do that, it's pretty tremendous the -- I guess I would say how easy it is to establish a connection.

GLENN: Talking to Mark Duplass. He is a film director and producer and actor and seemingly somebody who is really rooted in common sense. We'll continue our conversation here in just a second.

[break]

GLENN: So, Mark, let me tell you a little bit about my experience. Because we're on the same exact course.

I -- we -- we can see people on both sides that are in pain. And, quite honestly, we didn't take the time to really look or listen -- I should speak for me. Just convinced that I'm right and I know exactly what you're thinking. And it really wasn't what people were thinking.

And -- and by my actions and my words, I took half the country, the -- the left half, and just threw it away.

MARK: Yeah.

GLENN: And just assumed, well, no, you'll get it because it's right. And how stupid is that. And now, I'm trying to reach out to the left and doing the same thing. I'm doing work with Operation Underground Railroad which is freeing slaves and, you know, kids in sex slavery. And it's an amazing thing.

And so far, I've gotten Samantha Bee and Riaz Patel. And that's it.

(laughter)

And my audience is saying to me all the time, "Glenn, nobody on the left is going to do this. This is a worthless cause. It's not going to happen."

MARK: Yeah.

GLENN: I imagine that you're feeling the same way. Are you getting anybody on the right to join you and say things like I have? Yeah, I get it. I was wrong. I'm sorry for the things that I did. I'm not changing my -- I'm not changing my principles, but I certainly am apologizing for the things that I said that made people feel bad.

MARK: You know, the truth is, I think while you and I are coming from the same exact place, I really haven't asked that specific question of the right. And -- or of anyone who honestly doesn't agree with my political principles. And I don't even -- I almost feel like I don't even need that step right now.

I don't need the admittance of any wrong. I don't need the acknowledgment --

GLENN: No, no, hang on just a second.

I actually haven't -- I mean, I'm not really asking that. I would like to see that from the press, only because -- only because it would show that they get it.

MARK: Yeah.

GLENN: But I don't need that from people. But what I am asking is you want to join me on some projects, let's go work together. Let's -- you know, let's put our audiences together and go do a service project or something.

MARK: Yes.

GLENN: Is there anybody on the right that has responded to you in a positive way and said, "I get it?"

MARK: You know, so I went to speak with Steven Crowder who was really, really great. You know, like, I watched one of his shows. And, quite frankly, I was terrified. He's big. He's extremely intelligent. He's good-looking.

I was like, he might beat me up. I don't know what's going to happen. And he was very, very respectful.

And I talked a lot about, you know, charitable causes on his program. That is a place where I believed that we could, you know, cross the divide a little bit. And, you know, it was interesting because I think that, you know, I really respect him. But his motor, to a certain degree, is to engage in political debate. And I think that a lot of times when I reach across, our motors are set to debate.

GLENN: Yeah.

MARK: You know, and that is one thing that I have -- I'm trying to get good at disarming a bit so that I can just cut through on the bottom level a little bit more. Which is -- I mean, it's just kind of happening quite frankly naturally with you here because I think you and I happen to share -- I don't know what it is.

GLENN: I was the -- yeah, I grew up in an alcoholic family. And I was the one that said, "Hey, everybody, let's get along," quite honestly.

MARK: Yeah, I was like, it sounds like you had gotten beaten up a little bit in life. Sounds like you had been to therapy. You've been handed some sort of dose of humility. I've had that. I've dealt with depression and anxiety and artistic failure and all this stuff. And I just -- I feel weak in the world. And I am not certain that I am right anymore. And I want to share that with people.

GLENN: Yep. Yep.

MARK: Because not knowing creates intimacy in my opinion. And I can be bombastic at times. Like, I do feel like I know what I'm doing in the film industry. And I can go to a Sundance or South by Southwest and speak confidently about that. But when it comes to these bigger issues, I feel clueless. And I'm trying --

GLENN: I have to tell you -- I would hope that we all do. Because we all got us here. And none of it is working.

Hang on just a second. Back with Mark Duplass in just a second.

[break]

GLENN: Mark Duplass is with us. He's a self-described elitist, out-of-touch Hollywood libtard, which is pretty brutally honest. And welcome back to the -- welcome back to the program. A guy who said three months ago, I was tweeting things out, nasty things, about Donald Trump and his supporters. And I realized, what the hell am I doing?

Mark, can I take you to the movie Blue Jay for a second?

MARK: Please. Yeah.

GLENN: In that movie, which honestly is brilliant. Unlike anything that I have seen. It perfectly captures an uncomfortable conversation between two people. It -- it is perfect in its unrequited love. I mean, it's just a brilliant film.

But in it -- and I don't want to spoil it for anybody, but I'm going to, you find out that the woman, when she was a teenager, had an abortion of your baby, as you played the male role. When you're both teenagers. And you said horrible things to each other. And the whole relationship broke apart. And it's obvious you two still love each other 25 years later.

MARK: That's right.

GLENN: That is -- as I watched that film, I watched it, and I thought, that is a great pro-life movie. But it is also -- you could say it's a pro-choice movie because she made the decision. And she has dealt with the consequences of that decision. But it was her decision to make. Yada, yada.

You could look at that movie, and it was no straw man on either side. And so many -- and I'm going to pull out my own side. So many Christian movies -- I can say this about the left. But let me say it about the right. So many Christian movies make anyone who was playing the character of the woman in your movie look like the most evil witch imaginable. And so there's no honesty.

And I really think that that's all that people are looking for, is I'm not a monster. You're not a monster. Can't we just come together and talk about this? I don't want to live this way anymore.

MARK: Look, I hope you're right. I hope there is a rising tide for this. And I'm willing to bet a bunch of money on it. And that's kind of what my mission is right now, is to create these sort of bipartisan, nonpartisan, whatever you want to call it, charitable giving campaigns.

I spend a lot of time reaching out to a lot of my supporters on Twitter, a lot of Steven Crowder's and even some of your fans when they found out I was coming here. And I said, "Look, what are the causes that we can all agree on?" And it was really fascinating. Because, again, a lot of conservatives like to give to their churches. A lot of liberals feel like, "Oh, I'm not sure about that." They're skeptical of religion. And I was like, "Okay. Fine. Look, we're not going to argue here. We're going to look for the baseline stuff," you know.

And, you know, really, education for kids, sick kids, highly efficient giving programs, clean water systems, you know, that was really good. And then I found out some blind spots of my own, which were great. I got my own education. A lot of conservatives said, why don't you guy ever talk about veterans? What is it?

And I said, "You know what, it's really weird. I do give a lot of charitable giving. And I don't often think about veterans." And I think it's tied to this defensiveness that the left has that we spend too much, quote, unquote, on the military. So that it often gets grouped into that. And you forget like, oh, Jesus, these are the people who have served, and we need to take care of them.

And so I got a little education on that front. And, likewise, I was able to, you know, speak with some of my conservative fan bases who would say, you know what, America first, man. We got to take care of our people at home. What are you doing reaching out, you know, across these borders? Like, we're struggling here.

And I would say, but, yeah, for like 80 cents, we can install a clean water system in the third world.

GLENN: I know.

MARK: Like -- and then we don't have to be there every day fixing it. It's done. We led the horse to water, and it's done. And they say, "Oh, well, that makes total sense." So it's like, great. I learned something. You learned something. Here we are.

GLENN: I just hired two full-time psychiatrists for a shelter for kids that had been used in the sex slave trade, two full-time doctors for $400 a month in Thailand. I mean, come on.

MARK: Wow.

GLENN: Jeez.

MARK: You got it. So my challenge is -- and I'm challenging the left mostly right now amongst my friends is saying, guys, you were ready to pay a lot of taxes. You voted for a woman who was going to tax you. And you're going to save a lot of money next year. Congratulations. Now, you already signed that money away with your vote. So what I want you to do is take that, whatever your differential is, if you're in that top tax bracket and you're saving 8 percent, I want you to take a large chunk of that and I want you to come with me and put some money down. And we're going to reach out and say, "Hey, everybody come join us?" You know, match us dollar for dollar.

I did this once. I put in $10,000. All my fans came together. They matched me dollar for dollar. We made it to 20. I reached out to Google. I guilted them, and I said, "You know, I'll take a picture with you, and you match that other 20. And we'll turn it into 40 grand."

GLENN: It's weird. Because I did the same thing with Google, and I said, "I won't take a picture with you."

STU: And it worked.

GLENN: It worked. It was great.

MARK: And it was perfect!

GLENN: Yeah.

MARK: So I'm ready to stretch this idea out. And, you know, I'm developing one for some foster care programs, which has been a really easy thing that everybody agrees on, you know, left, right. And try and -- look, I'm not above going to Wells Fargo and saying, "Hey, guys, you're looking pretty bad right now. You want to put up some money. I'll shake your hand and take a picture with you if you give me a bunch to match."

STU: Oh, totally guilt them into it. That's a great approach. It works.

MARK: Let's see what we can do. You know, I don't know, it's not going to change the world. But maybe some positivity in it. And most importantly, I just -- I really want -- while I have the ear of people right now who probably a lot of them didn't vote like I did. And don't believe like I do, I just want you to know that my friends and I, when we gather for dinner, my elitist Hollywood libtard buddies, we're not all over here screaming how terrible you are. There are a few people on Twitter doing that. And, yes, they do believe that way. But, by the way, every day on Twitter, I'm getting people from the right screaming atrocities at me.

STU: Sure. So do we.

MARK: I'm not going to allow that to define all of you. Please do not allow that to define all of us. And know that we are interested. We are curious, we are trying to figure things out. And we're making that move.

GLENN: Mark, I have to tell you, I have been -- as the guys know and many of the listeners know on this program -- I have been searching for people like you for at least two years.

And it's just a -- it's a thrill to talk to you. Because I know you guys exist. I just know you exist. And to have the balls to stand up and to do what you're doing is remarkable. Just remarkable. It's a real honor to talk to you.

MARK: I appreciate it. I feel the same way. You know, hopefully you and I can link up on some things.

GLENN: So let's talk about that. What do we do?

MARK: You know, like I said, I'm starting a new campaign right now. It's in the early stages, that, you know, it's going to be targeted towards, you know, foster care. And my goal is to a few times a year, just basically say, here I am. I'm putting the money down first. And then get some of my people around me, who have enough extra cash -- thank God, I am grossly overpaid for what I do. I'm not going to apologize for it. But I'm going to use some of that stuff because I don't need it. And create some of that capital. And, again, just as you have said, I'm willing to be the first one to say I'm sorry. I'm willing to take the first step in. I'm looking for people who are willing to be first -- come on. Let's go --

GLENN: Okay. Let me do this. I'll match you dollar for dollar on what you're doing. You want to put up another ten grand or whatever, I'll match you on that.

MARK: Awesome.

GLENN: Will you -- because I -- and feel free to say no. Because I understand everyone's schedules. Are you willing to come to Africa with me?

STU: Oh.

GLENN: Are you willing to get on to a plane and go and bring awareness to the slave trade that is currently happening in Africa with Operation Underground Railroad? I won't hold you to your answer now because I want you to do your research and see what it's all about. But are you willing to --

MARK: You know, normally people ask me out for a milkshake first. And then to Africa.

PAT: And then --

STU: I don't care how many kids you wind up saving.

GLENN: If you want a milkshake, I can put one on the plane.

MARK: By the way -- by the way, I will 100 percent go to Africa with you because this is life. I mean, when Glenn Beck says come on my show and I'm going to bring you to Africa to do this and this time -- and the fact that you and I, on paper, technically I think should be screaming at each other right now if you look at our profile.

GLENN: I think so too.

MARK: And we're not. And we're agreeing. I feel like we owe it to ourselves to dive into this a little bit more. And, you know, at the very least, scream at each other in Africa.

STU: Oh, my God. I would totally watch the movie Glenn and Mark go to Africa.

GLENN: What are the odds that one of us is left in Africa?

(laughter)

STU: Great.

GLENN: Mark, it has truly been a privilege to talk to you. I think courage is contagious. And I -- I so commend you for what you're doing. I know the risk you're taking. I know the hits you're going to take from both sides. Believe me.

And I'm just -- it's -- I'm just thrilled. And let's stay in touch. And you tell me, and please come back on. And you tell me what you're doing. And I'll write the check. And I'll be in touch and tell you where to meet the plane. And we'll go save some kids.

MARK: That sounds great. Milkshakes, Africa, some charitable giving -- we start nice and easy, Glenn.

GLENN: Right. Start small. Africa today, Mars tomorrow.

STU: A bit of advice, Mark, fly separately.

MARK: Listen, I appreciate you guys being open and having me and letting me pontificate a little bit here, and I will for sure be in touch. And, you know, it's very -- it's very heartening to have a nice conversation like this. And I look forward to more.

GLENN: Likewise, thank you. Mark Duplass, thank you so much.

STU: He's awesome.

GLENN: He is great.

STU: Yeah.

JEFFY: That was great.

GLENN: And, you know what, Pat, same guy that you saw in the movie, Blue Jay, right?

PAT: Yeah, uh-huh.

GLENN: Just honest. Just this honest, raw, real guy.

PAT: Yeah.

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

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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

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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.