Blog
LatestArticlesVideos
Radio
LivePodcastSerialsStations
TV
Podcasts
The Glenn Beck ProgramThe Glenn Beck PodcastThe Beck Story
Fine Art
Real Estate
More
AboutCharityBooksSponsorsShopContact
SEARCH
Live Radio

©2024 MERCURY RADIO ARTS.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY POLICY

Live

Glenn's Show Prep

Senate Campaigns Were Never Intended to Be National Elections

November 16, 2017
Staff

WRITER

After reports about his alleged predilection for teenagers, Roy Moore’s Alabama campaign is becoming a national issue. But ultimately, his Senate race is about persuading voters in his own state.

“It doesn’t matter what we think,” Glenn said on today’s show. “It only matters what the people of Alabama think.”

Glenn and Stu also talked about the basic principles of conservatism that Republicans are leaving behind because they simply want to “win.” When it comes to governing, Republicans have so far failed to keep their promises to repeal Obamacare, pass tax reform and fight for the average American. Where is their credibility now?

“I want to win elections … but I’m not going to pay any price to win elections,” Stu said.

This article provided courtesy of TheBlaze.

GLENN: You know, Stu just said to me, you know he's going to end up winning. I think he's going to.

STU: He probably will.

GLENN: I think he will. I think the people of -- of Alabama -- I mean, think of this, this is the reason why -- one of the reasons why our Founders made sure in the Constitution that all of the senators were -- were picked by the people in their state. And each senator was picked by the --

STU: The state legislature.

GLENN: Yeah. The state legislature. So we reversed that. With progressives, we reversed that. Why? To make every Senate campaign a national election.

Well, that's not what it was for. They were to make sure that they defend the state. It's changed everything. But also, it has involved all of us in something that we have nothing to do with it. We have -- we can sit here -- I can sit here in Texas. You can sit in Utah or California or New York, and we can all talk about this all day long. It doesn't matter what we think. It only matters what the people of Alabama think.

And I think the people -- I just have this feeling that -- remember how the Democrats dumped all of that money into the Georgia election?

STU: Yeah. Yeah.

GLENN: Okay. And they dumped it all and said, "This is going to be a big deal and everything." And what happened? The local people were like, you know what, screw all you people. Don't come into our town and tell us what to do.

I think that might happen in Alabama.

STU: Yeah. Sean Trende is an elections analysis, and we've had him on before. Really smart guy. Over at RealClearPolitics. He said this -- tell me this isn't exactly what's happening, not only now, but in past elections as well. And I think it's a really understandable response.

He says: I don't think you can underestimate the degree to which many conservatives have this attitude. A, we fought a battle over whether character counts, and we got our asses handed to us. And, B, liberal leaders always circle the wagons around their guys, and ours always cave.

GLENN: Yep.

STU: Both of those things I think individually are true. But to me, it adds up to something that we should try to resist.

GLENN: Yeah. Yes.

STU: An instinct we should try to fight against.

GLENN: We don't want to be -- we don't want to be them. Otherwise, you have no -- otherwise, you have no credibility. They don't have any credibility with us. They can't ever make any inroads with us because they have no credibility. You can't talk to me about, oh, how much you care about women, Hollywood, when you're -- when you're defending all of these monsters and hiding them. You can't do it. You can't preach to me about ethics and how women are, you know -- have powerful males over them. And even if it's consensual, it's not really consensual, and then defend Bill Clinton. You can't do it. But they do.

I don't want to be that person. I don't want to be that. I don't want to defend people who are doing things that, you know, are slimy. I don't want to -- I don't want to be that person.

STU: And I think the battle there is, people will say, well, look at what that gets you. It means you lose.

If that's what it gets me, that's what it gets me. I want to win elections. I want to -- sure, yes. That's all true. But I'm not going to pay any price to win elections.

GLENN: Let me ask you this: That's what it gets you. Okay. If we don't stand by our principles, if we don't stand by and say, "No, I don't care if this guy can win, he's got to have principles," where does that get you? First of all, we have no credibility. We now as Republicans -- and I'm not a Republican, thank God. But now the Republicans -- and I'm afraid too many churchgoers and too many religious people and just blanket conservatives, now have lost all credibility to be able to stand up and say, "Hey, this is wrong. Morally, this is wrong. What are we teaching our children?" You can't say that anymore.

You not only have lost that. But you also have -- well, let's talk about Texas. We're for small government, right? Did we get that? Are we getting a giant tax cut?

No. Because the guy -- the guy who we elected doesn't really believe in that stuff. He's not a champion of that stuff. He just wins.

Well, he'll take a win. But it's not really a win. Not for conservatives. Not for small government. Not for low tax people. That's not a win.

How about -- give me the audio of the guy from the Pentagon? This is the new guy representing the DOD.

STU: Oh, yeah. Yeah. This is the Trump nominee for the DOD.

GLENN: Okay. So here's a guy that Trump is putting in, at the DOD -- now, he's talking about guns. This is our champion. Listen.

VOICE: I'd also like to -- and I may get in trouble with other members of the committee, to say, you know, how insane it is that the United States of America, a civilian can go out and buy a fully semiautomatic assault rifle, like an AR-15, which apparently was the weapon that was used. I think that's an issue, not so much for this committee, but elsewhere.

GLENN: Wait. What?

STU: Huh. Wait. What?

GLENN: This is the guy that Trump is appointing? What? That's not good.

And if you don't think that we are not entering a time where there is massacre after massacre, and instead of going after, one, the laws that have loopholes and closing all of those loopholes, two, making sure that the law is actually enforced every time, three, we go and examine the message health in this country, and four, we look at domestic violence. That's what's happening in our country.

Now, we're doing the same thing with guns that we are doing now with radicalized Islam. We are looking for any other reason, other than their religious belief. We're looking for, what did we do? What can we do? Maybe we should have grandma go through an anal cavity search at the airport. Instead of saying, no, it is the religious belief of these crazy people, that believe they have a right to enslave people that don't agree with them and kill people that they deem infidels. That's the problem.

But we're looking at every other place. And we're going to do the same thing with guns. A battle is coming -- and I'm telling you, if Donald Trump can appoint that guy in the Department of Defense, he thinks that's okay to have a guy who says, "Semiautomatics, I mean, how can you possibly have a semiautomatic?"

STU: It's insane that a regular person could go buy -- how could we let regulars go into stores and buy things like that?

GLENN: What is that? What is that? So did you really win? Because you've lost all credibility. All credibility. You can no longer say, we have the high moral ground. We're America in the Middle East. That's what -- that's what conservatives are now. We're America in the Middle East. We talk a good game. But we don't actually stand for anything.

We get in, our guys, we'll just accept everything.

STU: And, look, there are costs to some of these things. Sometimes standing on these values does have costs. You could lose elections. You know, there's -- a very defensible with Roy Moore is if you don't believe these people. If you go through this and say, I don't believe any of them, and here's my reasons why, that's a defensible position. If you believe them, but eh, I just want to win, that's not a defensible position to me. But, I mean, you make your own decisions. I think if you look at it though -- we talked to Johnnie Moore yesterday, you brought up the Middle East. We talked to Johnnie Moore yesterday. Look at what people will sacrifice for their principles around the world. He told the story about a family who had a letter sent to him by a terrorist, that basically threatened their lives.

GLENN: Didn't basically. Said, we will behead you, unless you convert.

STU: And they wrote back --

GLENN: I'm sorry. Crucify you.

STU: Wrote back to the terrorist -- now, I can't imagine wanting to respond to that mail. And said, you know what, we're never going to convert. And actually, you can come kill us, but please don't kill us through crucifixion, because we're not worthy of that punishment, because that's really about Jesus and it's a little bit above us. So please don't kill us that way. But kill us any way you need to. Come on over whenever you need to. Because they were so dedicated to their faith. They were willing to give up that cost. And were like, eh. I don't know. An Alabama Senate seat. I can't -- it's too much. It's too much.

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.

Could China OWN our National Parks?

Jonathan Newton / Contributor | Getty Images

The left’s idea of stewardship involves bulldozing bison and barring access. Lee’s vision puts conservation back in the hands of the people.

The media wants you to believe that Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) is trying to bulldoze Yellowstone and turn national parks into strip malls — that he’s calling for a reckless fire sale of America’s natural beauty to line developers’ pockets. That narrative is dishonest. It’s fearmongering, and, by the way, it’s wrong.

Here’s what’s really happening.

Private stewardship works. It’s local. It’s accountable. It’s incentivized.

The federal government currently owns 640 million acres of land — nearly 28% of all land in the United States. To put that into perspective, that’s more territory than France, Germany, Poland, and the United Kingdom combined.

Most of this land is west of the Mississippi River. That’s not a coincidence. In the American West, federal ownership isn’t just a bureaucratic technicality — it’s a stranglehold. States are suffocated. Locals are treated as tenants. Opportunities are choked off.

Meanwhile, people living east of the Mississippi — in places like Kentucky, Georgia, or Pennsylvania — might not even realize how little land their own states truly control. But the same policies that are plaguing the West could come for them next.

Lee isn’t proposing to auction off Yellowstone or pave over Yosemite. He’s talking about 3 million acres — that’s less than half of 1% of the federal estate. And this land isn’t your family’s favorite hiking trail. It’s remote, hard to access, and often mismanaged.

Failed management

Why was it mismanaged in the first place? Because the federal government is a terrible landlord.

Consider Yellowstone again. It’s home to the last remaining herd of genetically pure American bison — animals that haven’t been crossbred with cattle. Ranchers, myself included, would love the chance to help restore these majestic creatures on private land. But the federal government won’t allow it.

So what do they do when the herd gets too big?

They kill them. Bulldoze them into mass graves. That’s not conservation. That’s bureaucratic malpractice.

And don’t even get me started on bald eagles — majestic symbols of American freedom and a federally protected endangered species, now regularly slaughtered by wind turbines. I have pictures of piles of dead bald eagles. Where’s the outrage?

Biden’s federal land-grab

Some argue that states can’t afford to manage this land themselves. But if the states can’t afford it, how can Washington? We’re $35 trillion in debt. Entitlements are strained, infrastructure is crumbling, and the Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, and National Park Service are billions of dollars behind in basic maintenance. Roads, firebreaks, and trails are falling apart.

The Biden administration quietly embraced something called the “30 by 30” initiative, a plan to lock up 30% of all U.S. land and water under federal “conservation” by 2030. The real goal is 50% by 2050.

That entails half of the country being taken away from you, controlled not by the people who live there but by technocrats in D.C.

You think that won’t affect your ability to hunt, fish, graze cattle, or cut timber? Think again. It won’t be conservatives who stop you from building a cabin, raising cattle, or teaching your grandkids how to shoot a rifle. It’ll be the same radical environmentalists who treat land as sacred — unless it’s your truck, your deer stand, or your back yard.

Land as collateral

Moreover, the U.S. Treasury is considering putting federally owned land on the national balance sheet, listing your parks, forests, and hunting grounds as collateral.

What happens if America defaults on its debt?

David McNew / Stringer | Getty Images

Do you think our creditors won’t come calling? Imagine explaining to your kids that the lake you used to fish in is now under foreign ownership, that the forest you hunted in belongs to China.

This is not hypothetical. This is the logical conclusion of treating land like a piggy bank.

The American way

There’s a better way — and it’s the American way.

Let the people who live near the land steward it. Let ranchers, farmers, sportsmen, and local conservationists do what they’ve done for generations.

Did you know that 75% of America’s wetlands are on private land? Or that the most successful wildlife recoveries — whitetail deer, ducks, wild turkeys — didn’t come from Washington but from partnerships between private landowners and groups like Ducks Unlimited?

Private stewardship works. It’s local. It’s accountable. It’s incentivized. When you break it, you fix it. When you profit from the land, you protect it.

This is not about selling out. It’s about buying in — to freedom, to responsibility, to the principle of constitutional self-governance.

So when you hear the pundits cry foul over 3 million acres of federal land, remember: We don’t need Washington to protect our land. We need Washington to get out of the way.

Because this isn’t just about land. It’s about liberty. And once liberty is lost, it doesn’t come back easily.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.