"Time is of the essence": Why it is critical you understand the threat posed by ISIS before it is too late

There is a growing evil in the Middle East, as ISIS continues to expand their campaign of terror in Syria, Iraq, and beyond. People are dying and the threat to America is very real, and yet the larger population is just now starting to wake up to the possibility of a jihadist caliphate. Jay Sekulow joined Glenn to discuss the history of ISIS that no one knows, and the scary tactics they are using to spread their radical ideology across the region.

GLENN:  One of the bravest guys out there, and I think a guy who has done more good for this nation and for our values and really kind of an unsung hero to most Americans is Jay Sekulow, an ACLJ attorney, has a new e-book out called Rise of ISIS: A Threat We Can't Ignore, that really explains who those guys are and where they came from. Jay is on the phone with us now. How are you?

JAY: Thanks for having me.

GLENN: The president referred to those guys as a JV team, but they aren't a JV team and the president should have known they weren't a JV team a long time ago.

JAY: Right, because ISIS, did not come out of no wrote. They were part of -- they were AQI, al-Qaeda in Iraq. We have been tracking them for about two years through our office in Jerusalem. What happened was, Osama bin Laden and his lietuenats were so repulsed, if you can believe that, by the tactics of ISIS that they threw them out, and then eventually what happened was Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared himself the Caliph, set up the caliphate, and now goes by Caliph Ibrahim. Although, the President says this is not a war with Islam, tell that to Caliph Ibrahim and 40,000 of his soldiers.

The thing that's so significant here, what's so brazen about the president saying that this was the JV team, in actually, it is the exact opposite. This is now and has been for at least over a year and half, a standing army. They are not hiding in caves. They are not in the shadows. They are a standing, moving army that is bent on control of the what they call the Levant, the greater Middle East, which includes Israel, by the way, and they also have expectations, much broader than that, including here. So this idea this was the JV team was absurd in the beginning. We wrote Rise of ISIS: A Threat We Can't Ignore when I was at Oxford this summer, teaching on this topic, and I'll tell you what happened there.

One of the guys, professors, very leftist center, believes everybody can work it out, when it came to ISIS, though, [he] said this. This is a guy that said crush them. That was in July. It took the president until now to -- I call him the reluctant commander in chief, but this is a group that lethality is much more significant than al-Qaeda's ever was.

GLENN: So here's a thing. A lot of people -- the word Nazi is thrown around for a lot of things, and usually, it's just the seeds, usually it's like this is where -- this is how the Nazis began. This is the tactics the Nazis used at the very beginning. But these guys are actually very Nazi-like already, and unlike the Nazis that used to hide it, these guys aren't hiding it at all. They are way out in the open.

JAY: That's correct. Like I had 2o0 of my family members -- my grandparents' generation, my great aunts and uncles in Germany and Poland, wiped out in the Holocaust, so I am reluctant to use this analogy. I use it for three reasons. Number one, you just said it. The tactics are more brazen and open, not as lethality is not there yet, but potential lethality much greater. That's number one.

GLENN: Wait. Why do you say that?

JAY: Because they have something that the Nazis didn't have, because technology wasn't there. They have uranium. Uranium, a radioactive material, can create a dirty bomb or worse. So you could have this increased lethality. They don't have the mechanics of the Nazis yet, but look at their goals.

They are marking Christians in Iraq with a Nazarene, an N, which is the Arabic N, for Nazarene. Why are they doing that? It's the same tactic. Identify the people you want to destroy. Exactly what the Nazis did. Number three, they have clearly stated their position. They are not trying to create the superior race as the Nazis did. It is the superior religion, or in the name of religion. The same techniques same tactics, lethality is not as mechanical yet, but potentiality greater.

Like you said, they are open and brazen on this. We point it out in the book, you can't look at, Glenn, ISIS in just a vacuum. If you look at a map, you have ISIS coming from the east going west towards Israel. Then you have Hamas coming from the west towards Israel.

This is the great conflict here. So Hamas, ISIS, same groups, different leadership, same techniques, ISIS, bigger. But if you put the number of standing troops with ISIS together with the standing troops of Hamas, you are approaching 60,000 troops. I'm calling them troops because they are an army. That is bigger than a lot of armies in the greater Middle East right now. This is unbelievable what could happen here.

GLENN: Here's where I'm really concerned, Jay, is they are very, very smart. They are going after openly, the west. They are using Sykes–Picot -- I mean, these really not dummies. They know their history, they know the history of the Middle East, far better than anybody else, and they are using the same kind of things. They are using Sykes–Picot, which goes back to Word War I. That's exactly what the Nazis did, using all the stuff that we in the League of Nations did after World War I and they had this grievance that they said and this is why we have to go get them. This is why we have all these problems, and these guys will actually be able to unite much of the Middle East for a long time, and unlike the Nazis, who had to hide what they were doing to the Jews and what they were doing to the Christians and the homosexuals, they had to hide those things to stop the shock and horror of their own population. These guys, it will actually work to their advantage to do it out in the open.

JAY: That's because it's their recruiting tool. When we see the things in the West, these beheadings, we are horrified, but what we need to understand and we point this out in the book, we are horrified, but that's their recruiting tool. That is what attracting U.S. citizens to join ISIS. The British have more jihadist Muslims that are now part -- Muslims of a -- English citizens, U.K., that are fighting for ISIS and fight for Her Majesty's Army. This is the Royal Army. So what's happened --

GLENN: Say that again. Say that stat again.

JAY: There are more Muslims fighting for ISIS from the U.K. than are fighting for Her Majesty's Armed Forces.

PAT: How many is that? Over 1,000 now?

JAY: Well, first report was over 500. I'm sure it's over 1,000 now. Let -- Turkey is the entry point for these soldiers. NATO ally. Our NATO ally is letting them through and arming them. The Turks do not want a strong Kurdistan. They don't want stong Kurds because it creates a problem for them on their border. So Glenn, you remember mentioning the Sykes–Picot. This is their retribution for Sykes–Picot and their retribution for the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. This is their reestablishment of the caliphate, which is reestablishing the jihadist empire. this is the mode and method in which they are doing it. The fact of the matter is -- then you have the president funding the moderate rebels. Who they are, I don't know yet. I would like them to come forward, but the concern is, the potential damage to the United States is great. We wrote this book while I was at Oxford. It is out now on Amazon, Barnes and Nobel and Apple iBooks, but it comes out in paperback in a couple weeks.

You have been sounding the alarm on this. The problem is, we've got to get the country understanding who the enemy is, because this is different than al Qaeda.

GLENN: What's amazing, the president won't do it. I did a special -- we are doing "For the Record" on ISIS, as you know, thank you for your help -- a special this week. Last week I did a special on Sykes–Picot and once you understand Sykes–Picot, ISIS just made a video, the end of Sykes–Picot. So it's clear. All you have to do is listen to these guys.

Let me go here. You remember when I first started talking about the reestablishment of the caliphate, and you know -- you

watched it, how many people -- everybody said I was insane, to the point that I thought, maybe I am. This can't be. This can't be, because nobody will talk about this. Why was I so alone on that, Jay? Why were the people, like you, who knew what was happening, where we were headed, why were we so alone?

JAY: Well, because people thought you, me, other -- the few of us that were talking about this, we were the extremists. We over-analyzed the data. I remember somebody said about what you were doing, what I was doing, that we were making assumptions that are not in reality. You had the head of the NSA saying that terrorism is a state of mind. So this whole world view -- this passes in my view, it passes Republican, Democrat. This is a world view, well, they can't be that evil. They really can't be that bad. They can't be that jihadist, but they are.

And the problem is, if you look at where they start and where they have gone, in this two and a half years or so they have been active, it's pretty amazing. They are out in the open, not hiding what they are doing. Bragging about it.

GLENN: We are talking to Jay Sekulow. He is putting out an e-book now, because time is of the essence. It is coming out as paperback in a couple weeks, but time is of the essence. You need to know who we are facing. I believe they are here already, but Rise of ISIS: A Threat We Can't Ignore.

You talk about everybody wanted to believe that these guys weren't as bad, et cetera, but the president now comes out and says 'okay, I know I called them a JV team, I know I said nothing to worry about, they are not worse than al-Qaeda', but the same advisors that allowed him to say those things, they are the ones advising us now, they are the ones still in the State Department, still the ones in the Pentagon, the NSA and CIA. He hasn't changed anybody. If I'm the President of the United States and I have gotten it this wrong, I fire those people and say no hard feelings, guys. It was great. We had a great run, but I've got to start talking to the people who saw this one coming over the horizon. Is there anything that gives you any confidence that we are at all meaning what we say, that we have a clue at all anywhere, at any level?

JAY: No, because we pick the wrong side on every issue in the Middle East since the president's been in office. And you said -- what you just said is profound. That is the president had a narrative for the Middle East. It started with that speech in Cairo, where he says we are not a Jewish nation, we are a nation of principles. Whatever -- nation of citizens, whatever that means. The Nazis were a nation of citizens, so that's a ridiculous analogy, but he made this ridiculous analogy. None of it came out like he thought. Instead of changing your approach, this president basically doubles down on it. I'm listening to Samantha Powers and Susan Rice and these people at the NSA, and you are saying 'how come we know more than they do!'

GLENN: Can I ask you a question. Feel free not to answer this. Because this is me thinking out loud. Whenever I think

out loud, I get in trouble and everybody else around me --

PAT: We recommend that you don't --

GLENN: Just this think out. The president said two weeks ago that he wanted to organize the Middle East. That was his plan, to organize the Middle East. You know Sykes–Picot, I know Sykes–Picot, the Middle East knows Sykes–Picot. The Middle East believes this was the great -- the real tragedy, and quite honestly, the west behaved like barbarians. We lied. So we were wrong. Now that being said, he wants to right the wrongs of the past. What does -- what is ISIL and everybody else want to do? They've got to reorganize the Middle East. You have to get rid of all these dictators. So once you do that, then the whole meaning behind Sykes–Picot falls apart and you can't control that section of the world at all.

JAY: That's why they initially changed their name from ISIS -- to ISIL, which was the Levant, the greater Middle East. I don't think that's far-fetched -

GLENN: I'm not there yet. Hang on. So here's the president. He comes out. He's been for all those things that have destabilized the Middle East. Give George Bush a piece of this, too, but destabilize the Middle East. Then he goes in to Libya. Then he says he wants Assad. Assad is really the last real big pin to fall before you bet to people like Jordan. So we are arming these people, who are not going to fight ISIS. They are going to fight Assad. Are we got just helping them, by running arms to these rebels?

JAY: Glenn, I'm not only going to not distance myself from your comment, I think you're dead on. I have said this, I think Assad is a bad guy. He is bad. Does anybody believe that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, his war name, nom de guerre, does anyone believe the Caliph Ibrahim is better than Assad? I doubt it. No one does. If we were going to -- I'm not saying to do this, but you'd be better off funding Assad's army to take these guys out than you would be -- because listen, they are not throwing up Sykes–Picot just to make a historical point. They believe they were wrong, severely wrong. They were double handed, and they are trying to correct it. They blame us, so that puts the United States squarely in our -- in their sights.

GLENN: You are fantastic. We'll take to you again, have you on the show and Wednesday, 'For the Record', we have more details on the rise of ISIS and ISIL, at 8:00, Blaze TV. The new book, it is out as an ebook for urgent purposes. Please read this: Rise of ISIS: A Threat We Can't Ignore, by Jay Sekulow. Keep it up. Thank you so much.

JAY: Thanks.

Warning: 97% fear Gen Z’s beliefs could ignite political chaos

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In a republic forged on the anvil of liberty and self-reliance, where generations have fought to preserve free markets against the siren song of tyranny, Gen Z's alarming embrace of socialism amid housing crises and economic despair has sparked urgent alarm. But in a recent poll, Glenn asked the tough questions: Where do Gen Z's socialist sympathies come from—and what does it mean for America's future? Glenn asked, and you answered—hundreds weighed in on this volatile mix of youthful frustration and ideological peril.

The results paint a stark picture of distrust in the system. A whopping 79% of you affirm that Gen Z's socialist sympathies stem from real economic gripes, like sky-high housing costs and a rigged game tilted toward the elite and corporations—defying the argument that it's just youthful naivety. Even more telling, 97% believe this trend arises from a glaring educational void on socialism's bloody historical track record, where failed regimes have crushed freedoms under the boot of big government. And 97% see these poll findings as a harbinger of deepening generational rifts, potentially fueling political chaos and authoritarian overreach if left unchecked.

Your verdict underscores a moral imperative: America's soul hangs on reclaiming timeless values like self-reliance and liberty. This feedback amplifies your concerns, sending a clear message to the powers that be.

Want to make your voice heard? Check out more polls HERE.

Without civic action, America faces collapse

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Every vote, jury duty, and act of engagement is civics in action, not theory. The republic survives only when citizens embrace responsibility.

I slept through high school civics class. I memorized the three branches of government, promptly forgot them, and never thought of that word again. Civics seemed abstract, disconnected from real life. And yet, it is critical to maintaining our republic.

Civics is not a class. It is a responsibility. A set of habits, disciplines, and values that make a country possible. Without it, no country survives.

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Civics happens every time you speak freely, worship openly, question your government, serve on a jury, or cast a ballot. It’s not a theory or just another entry in a textbook. It’s action — the acts we perform every day to be a positive force in society.

Many of us recoil at “civic responsibility.” “I pay my taxes. I follow the law. I do my civic duty.” That’s not civics. That’s a scam, in my opinion.

Taking up the torch

The founders knew a republic could never run on autopilot. And yet, that’s exactly what we do now. We assume it will work, then complain when it doesn’t. Meanwhile, the people steering the country are driving it straight into a mountain — and they know it.

Our founders gave us tools: separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism, elections. But they also warned us: It won’t work unless we are educated, engaged, and moral.

Are we educated, engaged, and moral? Most Americans cannot even define a republic, never mind “keep one,” as Benjamin Franklin urged us to do after the Constitutional Convention.

We fought and died for the republic. Gaining it was the easy part. Keeping it is hard. And keeping it is done through civics.

Start small and local

In our homes, civics means teaching our children the Constitution, our history, and that liberty is not license — it is the space to do what is right. In our communities, civics means volunteering, showing up, knowing your sheriff, attending school board meetings, and understanding the laws you live under. When necessary, it means challenging them.

How involved are you in your local community? Most people would admit: not really.

Civics is learned in practice. And it starts small. Be honest in your business dealings. Speak respectfully in disagreement. Vote in every election, not just the presidential ones. Model citizenship for your children. Liberty is passed down by teaching and example.

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We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Start with yourself. Study the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and state laws. Study, act, serve, question, and teach. Only then can we hope to save the republic. The next election will not fix us. The nation will rise or fall based on how each of us lives civics every day.

Civics isn’t a class. It’s the way we protect freedom, empower our communities, and pass down liberty to the next generation.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

'Rage against the dying of the light': Charlie Kirk lived that mandate

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Kirk’s tragic death challenges us to rise above fear and anger, to rebuild bridges where others build walls, and to fight for the America he believed in.

I’ve only felt this weight once before. It was 2001, just as my radio show was about to begin. The World Trade Center fell, and I was called to speak immediately. I spent the day and night by my bedside, praying for words that could meet the moment.

Yesterday, I found myself in the same position. September 11, 2025. The assassination of Charlie Kirk. A friend. A warrior for truth.

Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins.

Moments like this make words feel inadequate. Yet sometimes, words from another time speak directly to our own. In 1947, Dylan Thomas, watching his father slip toward death, penned lines that now resonate far beyond his own grief:

Do not go gentle into that good night. / Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Thomas was pleading for his father to resist the impending darkness of death. But those words have become a mandate for all of us: Do not surrender. Do not bow to shadows. Even when the battle feels unwinnable.

Charlie Kirk lived that mandate. He knew the cost of speaking unpopular truths. He knew the fury of those who sought to silence him. And yet he pressed on. In his life, he embodied a defiance rooted not in anger, but in principle.

Picking up his torch

Washington, Jefferson, Adams — our history was started by men who raged against an empire, knowing the gallows might await. Lincoln raged against slavery. Martin Luther King Jr. raged against segregation. Every generation faces a call to resist surrender.

It is our turn. Charlie’s violent death feels like a knockout punch. Yet if his life meant anything, it means this: Silence in the face of darkness is not an option.

He did not go gently. He spoke. He challenged. He stood. And now, the mantle falls to us. To me. To you. To every American.

We cannot drift into the shadows. We cannot sit quietly while freedom fades. This is our moment to rage — not with hatred, not with vengeance, but with courage. Rage against lies, against apathy, against the despair that tells us to do nothing. Because there is always something you can do.

Even small acts — defiance, faith, kindness — are light in the darkness. Reaching out to those who mourn. Speaking truth in a world drowning in deceit. These are the flames that hold back the night. Charlie carried that torch. He laid it down yesterday. It is ours to pick up.

The light may dim, but it always does before dawn. Commit today: I will not sleep as freedom fades. I will not retreat as darkness encroaches. I will not be silent as evil forces claim dominion. I have no king but Christ. And I know whom I serve, as did Charlie.

Two turning points, decades apart

On Wednesday, the world changed again. Two tragedies, separated by decades, bound by the same question: Who are we? Is this worth saving? What kind of people will we choose to be?

Imagine a world where more of us choose to be peacemakers. Not passive, not silent, but builders of bridges where others erect walls. Respect and listening transform even the bitterest of foes. Charlie Kirk embodied this principle.

He did not strike the weak; he challenged the powerful. He reached across divides of politics, culture, and faith. He changed hearts. He sparked healing. And healing is what our nation needs.

At the center of all this is one truth: Every person is a child of God, deserving of dignity. Change will not happen in Washington or on social media. It begins at home, where loneliness and isolation threaten our souls. Family is the antidote. Imperfect, yes — but still the strongest source of stability and meaning.

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Forgiveness, fidelity, faithfulness, and honor are not dusty words. They are the foundation of civilization. Strong families produce strong citizens. And today, Charlie’s family mourns. They must become our family too. We must stand as guardians of his legacy, shining examples of the courage he lived by.

A time for courage

I knew Charlie. I know how he would want us to respond: Multiply his courage. Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins. Out of darkness, great and glorious things will sprout — but we must be worthy of them.

Charlie Kirk lived defiantly. He stood in truth. He changed the world. And now, his torch is in our hands. Rage, not in violence, but in unwavering pursuit of truth and goodness. Rage against the dying of the light.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Glenn Beck is once again calling on his loyal listeners and viewers to come together and channel the same unity and purpose that defined the historic 9-12 Project. That movement, born in the wake of national challenges, brought millions together to revive core values of faith, hope, and charity.

Glenn created the original 9-12 Project in early 2009 to bring Americans back to where they were in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. In those moments, we weren't Democrats and Republicans, conservative or liberal, Red States or Blue States, we were united as one, as America. The original 9-12 Project aimed to root America back in the founding principles of this country that united us during those darkest of days.

This new initiative draws directly from that legacy, focusing on supporting the family of Charlie Kirk in these dark days following his tragic murder.

The revival of the 9-12 Project aims to secure the long-term well-being of Charlie Kirk's wife and children. All donations will go straight to meeting their immediate and future needs. If the family deems the funds surplus to their requirements, Charlie's wife has the option to redirect them toward the vital work of Turning Point USA.

This campaign is more than just financial support—it's a profound gesture of appreciation for Kirk's tireless dedication to the cause of liberty. It embodies the unbreakable bond of our community, proving that when we stand united, we can make a real difference.
Glenn Beck invites you to join this effort. Show your solidarity by donating today and honoring Charlie Kirk and his family in this meaningful way.

You can learn more about the 9-12 Project and donate HERE