Morning Brief 2025-10-09

BOTTOM OF HOUR 1
GUEST: Daniel Keene
TOPIC: Keene, a Texas business owner, has had his life turned upside down after making a social media post criticizing H-1B visas.

TOP OF HOUR 2
GUEST: Carol Roth
TOPIC: The price of gold hits $4,000 an ounce — what does this signal?

BOTTOM OF HOUR 3
GUEST: Cheyenne Grace
TOPIC: Movie — "The Best Thing About Christmas"

News...

Stand with Voddie Baucham’s family in this time of loss
Beloved pastor and theologian Voddie Baucham has passed unexpectedly, leaving behind a powerful legacy of biblical faithfulness and truth. His wife, Bridget, now faces rebuilding their life in the U.S., and a fundraiser has been launched to support the family as they grieve and transition after his death.

Trump credits Blaze News for exposing funding behind left-wing violence
At a White House roundtable, the president thanked Blaze News reporters for highlighting billionaire Neville Roy Singham’s ties to radical left-wing groups and directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate.

Trump floats Antifa foreign terrorist organization designation in White House roundtable
“Would you like to see it done? You think it would help?” Trump asked of the FTO designation. “I’d be glad to do it. I think it’s the kind of thing I’d like to do. Does everybody agree? If you agree, I agree. Let’s get it done, OK? Let’s get it done. Marco, we’ll take care of it. ... Sounds good to me.”

Comey pleads not guilty to false statements charges, defense lawyer calls it ‘vindictive prosecution’
U.S. District Judge Michael Nachmanoff, a Biden-appointee, will be handling the case and the likely trial. The DOJ said that it would not be seeking Comey’s detention ahead of the trial, and the judge placed Comey on a personal recognizance bond.

Sen. Blackburn says Jack Smith should face prosecution after FBI spied on GOP senators
"[Smith] should be disbarred at the very least and should face the full extent of accountability under the law.”

Man fascinated with fire imagery is arrested in Palisades blaze, officials say
Jonathan Rinderknecht of Melbourne, Fla., had intentionally set a fire on New Year’s Day on a hiking trail in the Santa Monica Mountains. That small blaze rekindled disastrously a week later into the Palisades fire, killing 12 people and destroying 6,837 structures, most of them homes.

Son of missionaries accused of setting destructive Palisades fire
His landlord said he appeared “very intelligent” and told her that he had family in France and that he considered himself a Frenchman.

Suspect in Palisades fire linked to strange AI images, ChatGPT queries
Charging documents contained snippets of a conversation he had with ChatGPT, in which he reportedly said, “This just happened. Maybe like ... I don’t know, maybe like 3 months ago or something. Like, the realization of all this. I literally burnt the Bible that I had. It felt amazing. I felt so liberated.”

The left blamed deadly California fire on climate change. It was actually arson.
Democrats and major media outlets had blamed the fire on “climate change,” shattering the narrative pushed by figures like Gavin Newsom, Bernie Sanders, and CNN.

Government shutdown...

No, Obamacare premiums are not doubling
People with low, or no, out-of-pocket costs would see the highest percentage increases, which lends itself to partisan scaremongering. By Greene’s logic, if someone’s out-of-pocket cost went from $1 per month to $3 per month, their “premiums” would TRIPLE. In reality, it's $2.

Duffy warns ATC staffing issues have caused delays to skyrocket from 5% to 53% during shutdown
Duffy urged air traffic controllers to continue showing up for work as much as they can, even though they are not immediately being paid.

Nancy Pelosi can’t explain how GOP’s gov’t funding bill isn’t ‘clean’
“It’s not a clean CR, there’s no reason to go into that. The point is Democrats who created Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, all of that are now being asked ‘reject that so we can give a tax cut to the rich.’ We’re not doing it."

Politics...

Report: CBS, ABC, PBS shows fail to mention Jay Jones scandal once
NBC alone dedicated a mere 63 seconds to the Virginia attorney general candidates’ texts, Media Research Center’s study of major NBC, ABC, CBS, and PBS segments revealed.

AP says Democrat fetishizing assassinations of Republicans is actually a story about GOP pouncing
“Republicans are seizing on recently unearthed violent rhetoric from Virginia’s Democratic candidate for attorney general in a push to re-shape the state’s governor’s race — and tarnish the Democratic Party nationally — less than a month before Election Day.”

How many of 300,000 Virginia early voters want to change their mind on Jay Jones but can’t?
In addition to calling on Jay Jones to drop out, Democrats should also end the nonsense of a months-long "election season."

Nancy Pelosi has unbelievable response to Democrat candidate who issued death wish against Republican
"I wish there would be enough fuss of all the times that people have said they were gonna put a bullet in my head right in public, in the public domain."

New poll shows 'deeply vulnerable' Kathy Hochul clinging to narrow lead in hypothetical Stefanik matchup
Stefanik is just 5 points behind Hochul, trailing 43% to 48%, according to the poll. But when voters learn about each candidate’s background, including Hochul’s endorsement of Zohran Mamdani, Stefanik erases that gap and takes an edge, 46.4% to 45.9%.

AOC gets shamed for violating cardinal rule of modern liberalism
After mocking Trump official Stephen Miller’s height, AOC backpedaled and declared her “love for the short king community,” claiming she was only talking about how “big or small someone is on the inside.”

New Jersey House hopeful warns of existential 'climate crisis' — after quietly selling off thousands of dollars’ worth of oil stocks
Democrat Rebecca Bennett began touting climate action one day after unloading as much as $211,000 in oil and gas holdings, disclosures show.

Economy...

Divided Fed officials saw 2 more interest rate cuts by the end of 2025, minutes show
Fed officials in September were strongly inclined to lower interest rates, with the only dispute seeming to be over how many cuts were coming, meeting minutes released Wednesday showed.

Immigration...

National Guard troops begin arriving in Chicago to help with crime despite governor's opposition
"These forces will protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other U.S. Government personnel who are performing federal functions, including the enforcement of federal law, and to protect federal property," Northern Command said in a statement.

Trump says Chicago mayor and Illinois governor ‘should be in jail’ over ICE violence
After Border Patrol agents were attacked in Chicago, the president blasted Mayor Brandon Johnson and Gov. JB Pritzker for obstructing law enforcement and refusing to back federal efforts to stop left-wing rioters targeting ICE.

Democrats can’t stop admitting their foot soldiers are out of control
In a moment of inconceivable stupidity or hubris, depending on how charitable you want to be, the NY Times published its “five lessons” for cities that have found themselves in Trump’s criminal crackdown crosshairs.

Appeals court restores Oregon National Guard to Trump's control, does not rule on deployment
A federal judge in Oregon has blocked the Trump administration twice so far from deploying National Guard troops to Portland amid heavy protests. The troops would have protected an ICE facility where protesters have clashed with agents.

Chip Roy introduces bill to bar sharia law adherents from entering or remaining in US
Following pro-Hamas rallies on the Oct. 7 anniversary, the Texas congressman unveiled the Preserving a Sharia-Free America Act, which would revoke visas and deport foreign nationals found to follow sharia law, calling it “incompatible with the American way of life.”

Reddit founder says website wouldn't exist if immigration law was enforced
“As the son of an undocumented immigrant ... it’s deeply personal: Reddit wouldn’t exist if ICE had come for her,” Ohanian self-importantly wrote — ignoring that Reddit was just another message board, hardly an original idea, and the internet would’ve simply filled the void with another one.

WAR news...

Senate votes down war powers resolution aimed at blocking Trump's boat strikes
Democrats forced a vote on the issue under the War Powers Act. In a 48-51 vote, the effort failed to garner enough support to move forward.

Trump admin gets UN to slash 'ineffective' peacekeeping force's US-funded budget
U.S. Ambassador Mike Waltz reached a deal with U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres to cut global peacekeeping troops by 25% and reduce the $6.7 billion budget by 15%, following the Trump administration’s decision to withhold billions until reforms were made.

Middle East...

Israel and Hamas agree to first phase of Trump’s plan to end Gaza war
The deal is expected to be signed in Egypt on Thursday at noon (6 a.m. ET).

Trump expects Israeli hostages to be released Monday after admin brokered breakthrough peace deal
“The big thing is hostages are going to be released, probably, our time would be, probably Monday,” Trump told Hannity.

Trump: Netanyahu told me everyone likes him now. I said, ‘More importantly, they are loving Israel again’
“The whole world came together, to be honest, so many countries that you wouldn’t have even thought of it, and they came together," Trump told Hannity.

Hostage families ask Trump for meeting to thank him personally
The families suggest Trump could deliver a public address in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, the locus of their activist movement, or could meet them privately “or any gathering that fits your schedule.”

'Peace finally feels obtainable': World welcomes imminent release of hostages, Gaza deal signing
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the "stakes had never been higher" for establishing a two-state solution.

‘Seemed almost impossible’: Praise for Trump pours in on news of Middle East peace deal
ABC News called it “a huge night,” Fox News’ Brit Hume said it “seemed almost impossible,” and even CNN’s Jake Tapper conceded the Israel-Hamas ceasefire marked significant progress — as praise poured in for President Trump’s role in brokering the deal.

Turkish involvement, Doha apology convinced Hamas to trust US will hold Israel back — official
Qatar’s ability in pushing the U.S. to extract an apology from Netanyahu over an attempted strike on the terror group’s leaders in Doha last month also went a long way in boosting Qatar’s stature in Hamas' eyes, as it weighed whether to place its trust in Trump that he could hold Jerusalem to the terms of the deal.

Gazans cheer news of ceasefire deal
"We finally feel like we’re getting a moment of respite."

Hamas must not win the peace with Israel
Sparing its commanders to live in luxury would reward mass murder, let them regroup the way Arafat did, and guarantee a moral victory that only invites more slaughter.

Entertainment...

Dolly Parton addresses serious illness rumors: ‘I ain’t dead yet!’
“Today is October the 8, and obviously, I’m here doing some commercials for the Grand Ole Opry. Before I got started, I wanted to say ... I know lately everybody thinks that I am sicker than I am. Do I look sick to you? I’m working hard here!”

Dolly Parton’s sister clears the air on singer’s health after asking for prayers
“I want to clear something up. I didn’t mean to scare anyone or make it sound so serious when asking for prayers for Dolly. She’s been a little under the weather, and I simply asked for prayers because I believe so strongly in the power of prayer. It was nothing more than a little sister asking for prayers for her big sister.”

Zach Bryan pushes back after anti-ICE song sparks backlash, says he’s not ‘radical’
After criticism over his new song “Bad News,” the country singer said the lyrics were meant to show love for America and unity, not division, adding that he’s “on neither of these radical sides” and was “just as confused as everyone else.”

Ridley Scott says most modern movies are ‘s**t’ and saved by CGI
The 87-year-old director slammed today’s film industry as “drowning in mediocrity,” arguing that digital effects prop up bad scripts and that only about 5% of movies made today are truly great.

Media...

Don't mess with Melania Trump
Melania Trump is doing her part to restore public faith in mainstream media by forcing journalists to atone for their lies. Over the past several weeks, Melania has obtained retractions and apologies from media outlets that published falsehoods about her ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

CNN: Paramount's David Ellison trying to shift CBS 'further' to the right
CNN analyst Sara Fischer said Paramount’s $150 million purchase of the Free Press proves CEO David Ellison wants to move CBS News “further to the right” after naming Bari Weiss editor in chief, as host Audie Cornish cited CBS staff calling the move “utterly depressing.”

LGBTQIA2S+...

Drag queen removed from Pride parade after allegedly having sex with 13-year-old boy he met on dating app
The man said it was too dark in his apartment to ascertain the boy's age.

Drag queens outraged after rainbow crosswalk is obliterated by Gov. DeSantis: 'Our pride is being erased'
"Our pride is getting erased just like that," said CC Glitzer, a drag queen. "It's very painful." Another drag queen said, "This represents blood, sweat, and tears. ... They might take this away, but they didn't take the love and memories we've built here."

Environment...

CNN to asthmatics — drop dead! Blames inhalers for climate change
CNN’s Health and Climate Unit claimed metered-dose inhalers “have the impact of half a million cars per year,” warning that people using them to breathe “may inadvertently be adding to the problem” and urged switching to more expensive inhalers with “fewer problematic propellants.”

AI...

1 in 5 high schoolers has had a romantic AI relationship or knows someone who has
"The more ways that a student reports that their school uses AI, the more likely they are to report things like, 'I know someone who considers AI to be a friend,' 'I know someone who considers AI to be a romantic partner.'"

Bank of England warns of ‘sharp market correction’ if AI bubble bursts
The central bank becomes the latest in a long list of banks and investors to weigh in on whether an AI bubble is forming as markets tick into the fourth quarter.

An AI system with detailed diagnostic reasoning makes its case
Harvard researchers’ “Dr. CaBot” became the first artificial intelligence to publish a diagnosis in the New England Journal of Medicine’s Case Records, demonstrating how it reasons through complex medical cases step-by-step like an expert physician.

Sports...

Argentina soccer match relocated to Fort Lauderdale amid Chicago unrest
A friendly between Argentina and Puerto Rico, originally scheduled for next week in Chicago, has been relocated to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, amid the immigration crackdown in the city, sources told ESPN Argentina's Diego Monroig.

Ex-MLB draft pick sets flags on fire, tips over iconic busts after breaking into state capitol: Officials
A former Miami Marlins draft pick allegedly broke into the Washington State Capitol and set fire to several flags — including “Old Glory” — and toppled several iconic busts during his destructive rampage on Sunday night.

Oct. 9, 2009 - Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize… Nomination process ended 2 weeks after he was inaugurated… The thrill of Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize… Various awards of 'The Glenn Beck Program'… What is social justice?…

The Crisis of Meaning: Searching for truth and purpose

Mario Tama / Staff | Getty Images

Anxiety, anger, and chronic dissatisfaction signal a country searching for meaning. Without truth and purpose, politics becomes a dangerous substitute for identity.

We have built a world overflowing with noise, convenience, and endless choice, yet something essential has slipped out of reach. You can sense it in the restless mood of the country, the anxiety among young people who cannot explain why they feel empty, in the angry confusion that dominates our politics.

We have more wealth than any nation in history, but the heart of the culture feels strangely malnourished. Before we can debate debt or elections, we must confront the reality that we created a world of things, but not a world of purpose.

You cannot survive a crisis you refuse to name, and you cannot rebuild a world whose foundations you no longer understand.

What we are living through is not just economic or political dysfunction. It is the vacuum that appears when a civilization mistakes abundance for meaning.

Modern life is stuffed with everything except what the human soul actually needs. We built systems to make life faster, easier, and more efficient — and then wondered why those systems cannot teach our children who they are, why they matter, or what is worth living for.

We tell the next generation to chase success, influence, and wealth, turning childhood into branding. We ask kids what they want to do, not who they want to be. We build a world wired for dopamine rather than dignity, and then we wonder why so many people feel unmoored.

When everything is curated, optimized, and delivered at the push of a button, the question “what is my life for?” gets lost in the static.

The crisis beneath the headlines

It is not just the young who feel this crisis. Every part of our society is straining under the weight of meaninglessness.

Look at the debt cycle — the mathematical fate no civilization has ever escaped once it crosses a threshold that we seem to have already blown by. While ordinary families feel the pressure, our leaders respond with distraction, with denial, or by rewriting the very history that could have warned us.

You cannot survive a crisis you refuse to name, and you cannot rebuild a world whose foundations you no longer understand.

We have entered a cultural moment where the noise is so loud that it drowns out the simplest truths. We are living in a country that no longer knows how to hear itself think.

So people go searching. Some drift toward the false promise of socialism, some toward the empty thrill of rebellion. Some simply check out. When a culture forgets what gives life meaning, it becomes vulnerable to every ideology that offers a quick answer.

The quiet return of meaning

And yet, quietly, something else is happening. Beneath the frustration and cynicism, many Americans are recognizing that meaning does not come from what we own, but from what we honor. It does not rise from success, but from virtue. It does not emerge from noise, but from the small, sacred things that modern life has pushed to the margins — the home, the table, the duty you fulfill, the person you help when no one is watching.

The danger is assuming that this rediscovery happens on its own. It does not.

Reorientation requires intention. It requires rebuilding the habits and virtues that once held us together. It requires telling the truth about our history instead of rewriting it to fit today’s narratives. And it requires acknowledging what has been erased: that meaning is inseparable from God’s presence in a nation’s life.

Harold M. Lambert / Contributor | Getty Images

Where renewal begins

We have built a world without stillness, and then we wondered why no one can hear the questions that matter. Those questions remain, whether we acknowledge them or not. They do not disappear just because we drown them in entertainment or noise. They wait for us, and the longer we ignore them, the more disoriented we become.

Meaning is still available. It is found in rebuilding the smallest, most human spaces — the places that cannot be digitized, globalized, or automated. The home. The family. The community.

These are the daily virtues that do not trend on social media, but that hold a civilization upright. If we want to repair this country, we begin there, exactly where every durable civilization has always begun: one virtue at a time, one tradition at a time, one generation at a time.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

The Bubba Effect erupts as America’s power brokers go rogue

Gary Hershorn / Contributor | Getty Images

When institutions betray the public’s trust, the country splits, and the spiral is hard to stop.

Something drastic is happening in American life. Headlines that should leave us stunned barely register anymore. Stories that once would have united the country instead dissolve into silence or shrugs.

It is not apathy exactly. It is something deeper — a growing belief that the people in charge either cannot or will not fix what is broken.

When people feel ignored or betrayed, they will align with anyone who appears willing to fight on their behalf.

I call this response the Bubba effect. It describes what happens when institutions lose so much public trust that “Bubba,” the average American minding his own business, finally throws his hands up and says, “Fine. I will handle it myself.” Not because he wants to, but because the system that was supposed to protect him now feels indifferent, corrupt, or openly hostile.

The Bubba effect is not a political movement. It is a survival instinct.

What triggers the Bubba effect

We are watching the triggers unfold in real time. When members of Congress publicly encourage active duty troops to disregard orders from the commander in chief, that is not a political squabble. When a federal judge quietly rewrites the rules so one branch of government can secretly surveil another, that is not normal. That is how republics fall. Yet these stories glided across the news cycle without urgency, without consequence, without explanation.

When the American people see the leadership class shrug, they conclude — correctly — that no one is steering the ship.

This is how the Bubba effect spreads. It is not just individuals resisting authority. It is sheriffs refusing to enforce new policies, school boards ignoring state mandates, entire communities saying, “We do not believe you anymore.” It becomes institutional, cultural, national.

A country cracking from the inside

This effect can be seen in Dearborn, Michigan. In the rise of fringe voices like Nick Fuentes. In the Epstein scandal, where powerful people could not seem to locate a single accountable adult. These stories are different in content but identical in message: The system protects itself, not you.

When people feel ignored or betrayed, they will align with anyone who appears willing to fight on their behalf. That does not mean they suddenly agree with everything that person says. It means they feel abandoned by the institutions that were supposed to be trustworthy.

The Bubba effect is what fills that vacuum.

The dangers of a faithless system

A republic cannot survive without credibility. Congress cannot oversee intelligence agencies if it refuses to discipline its own members. The military cannot remain apolitical if its chain of command becomes optional. The judiciary cannot defend the Constitution while inventing loopholes that erase the separation of powers.

History shows that once a nation militarizes politics, normalizes constitutional shortcuts, or allows government agencies to operate without scrutiny, it does not return to equilibrium peacefully. Something will give.

The question is what — and when.

The responsibility now belongs to us

In a healthy country, this is where the media steps in. This is where universities, pastors, journalists, and cultural leaders pause the outrage machine and explain what is at stake. But today, too many see themselves not as guardians of the republic, but of ideology. Their first loyalty is to narrative, not truth.

The founders never trusted the press more than the public. They trusted citizens who understood their rights, lived their responsibilities, and demanded accountability. That is the antidote to the Bubba effect — not rage, but citizenship.

How to respond without breaking ourselves

Do not riot. Do not withdraw. Do not cheer on destruction just because you dislike the target. That is how nations lose themselves. Instead, demand transparency. Call your representatives. Insist on consequences. Refuse to normalize constitutional violations simply because “everyone does it.” If you expect nothing, you will get nothing.

Do not hand your voice to the loudest warrior simply because he is swinging a bat at the establishment. You do not beat corruption by joining a different version of it. You beat it by modeling the country you want to preserve: principled, accountable, rooted in truth.

Adam Gray / Stringer | Getty Images

Every republic reaches a moment when historians will later say, “That was the warning.” We are living in ours. But warnings are gifts if they are recognized. Institutions bend. People fail. The Constitution can recover — if enough Americans still know and cherish it.

It does not take a majority. Twenty percent of the country — awake, educated, and courageous — can reset the system. It has happened before. It can happen again.

Wake up. Stand up. Demand integrity — from leaders, from institutions, and from yourself. Because the Bubba effect will not end until Americans reclaim the duty that has always belonged to them: preserving the republic for the next generation.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Warning: Stop letting TikTok activists think for you

Spencer Platt / Staff | Getty Images

Bad-faith attacks on Israel and AIPAC warp every debate. Real answers emerge only when people set aside scripts and ask what serves America’s long-term interests.

The search for truth has always required something very much in short supply these days: honesty. Not performative questions, not scripted outrage, not whatever happens to be trending on TikTok, but real curiosity.

Some issues, often focused on foreign aid, AIPAC, or Israel, have become hotbeds of debate and disagreement. Before we jump into those debates, however, we must return to a simpler, more important issue: honest questioning. Without it, nothing in these debates matters.

Ask questions because you want the truth, not because you want a target.

The phrase “just asking questions” has re-entered the zeitgeist, and that’s fine. We should always question power. But too many of those questions feel preloaded with someone else’s answer. If the goal is truth, then the questions should come from a sincere desire to understand, not from a hunt for a villain.

Honest desire for truth is the only foundation that can support a real conversation about these issues.

Truth-seeking is real work

Right now, plenty of people are not seeking the truth at all. They are repeating something they heard from a politician on cable news or from a stranger on TikTok who has never opened a history book. That is not a search for answers. That is simply outsourcing your own thought.

If you want the truth, you need to work for it. You cannot treat the world like a Marvel movie where the good guy appears in a cape and the villain hisses on command. Real life does not give you a neat script with the moral wrapped up in two hours.

But that is how people are approaching politics now. They want the oppressed and the oppressor, the heroic underdog and the cartoon villain. They embrace this fantastical framing because it is easier than wrestling with reality.

This framing took root in the 1960s when the left rebuilt its worldview around colonizers and the colonized. Overnight, Zionism was recast as imperialism. Suddenly, every conflict had to fit the same script. Today’s young activists are just recycling the same narrative with updated graphics. Everything becomes a morality play. No nuance, no context, just the comforting clarity of heroes and villains.

Bad-faith questions

This same mindset is fueling the sudden obsession with Israel, and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee in particular. You hear it from members of Congress and activists alike: AIPAC pulls the strings, AIPAC controls the government, AIPAC should register as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The questions are dramatic, but are they being asked in good faith?

FARA is clear. The standard is whether an individual or group acts under the direction or control of a foreign government. AIPAC simply does not qualify.

Here is a detail conveniently left out of these arguments: Dozens of domestic organizations — Armenian, Cuban, Irish, Turkish — lobby Congress on behalf of other countries. None of them registers under FARA because — like AIPAC — they are independent, domestic organizations.

If someone has a sincere problem with the structure of foreign lobbying, fair enough. Let us have that conversation. But singling out AIPAC alone is not a search for truth. It is bias dressed up as bravery.

Anadolu / Contributor | Getty Images

If someone wants to question foreign aid to Israel, fine. Let’s have that debate. But let’s ask the right questions. The issue is not the size of the package but whether the aid advances our interests. What does the United States gain? Does the investment strengthen our position in the region? How does it compare to what we give other nations? And do we examine those countries with the same intensity?

The real target

These questions reflect good-faith scrutiny. But narrowing the entire argument to one country or one dollar amount misses the larger problem. If someone objects to the way America handles foreign aid, the target is not Israel. The target is the system itself — an entrenched bureaucracy, poor transparency, and decades-old commitments that have never been re-examined. Those problems run through programs around the world.

If you want answers, you need to broaden the lens. You have to be willing to put aside the movie script and confront reality. You have to hold yourself to a simple rule: Ask questions because you want the truth, not because you want a target.

That is the only way this country ever gets clarity on foreign aid, influence, alliances, and our place in the world. Questioning is not just allowed. It is essential. But only if it is honest.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

A nation unravels when its shared culture is the first thing to go

Spencer Platt / Staff | Getty Images

Texas now hosts Quran-first academies, Sharia-compliant housing schemes, and rapidly multiplying mosques — all part of a movement building a self-contained society apart from the country around it.

It is time to talk honestly about what is happening inside America’s rapidly growing Muslim communities. In city after city, large pockets of newcomers are choosing to build insulated enclaves rather than enter the broader American culture.

That trend is accelerating, and the longer we ignore it, the harder it becomes to address.

As Texas goes, so goes America. And as America goes, so goes the free world.

America has always welcomed people of every faith and people from every corner of the world, but the deal has never changed: You come here and you join the American family. You are free to honor your traditions, keep your faith, but you must embrace the Constitution as the supreme law of the land. You melt into the shared culture that allows all of us to live side by side.

Across the country, this bargain is being rejected by Islamist communities that insist on building a parallel society with its own rules, its own boundaries, and its own vision for how life should be lived.

Texas illustrates the trend. The state now has roughly 330 mosques. At least 48 of them were built in just the last 24 months. The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex alone has around 200 Islamic centers. Houston has another hundred or so. Many of these communities have no interest in blending into American life.

This is not the same as past waves of immigration. Irish, Italian, Korean, Mexican, and every other group arrived with pride in their heritage. Still, they also raised American flags and wanted their children to be part of the country’s future. They became doctors, small-business owners, teachers, and soldiers. They wanted to be Americans.

What we are watching now is not the melting pot. It is isolation by design.

Parallel societies do not end well

More than 300 fundamentalist Islamic schools now operate full-time across the country. Many use Quran-first curricula that require students to spend hours memorizing religious texts before they ever reach math or science. In Dallas, Brighter Horizons Academy enrolls more than 1,700 students and draws federal support while operating on a social model that keeps children culturally isolated.

Then there is the Epic City project in Collin and Hunt counties — 402 acres originally designated only for Muslim buyers, with Sharia-compliant financing and a mega-mosque at the center. After public outcry and state investigations, the developers renamed it “The Meadows,” but a new sign does not erase the original intent. It is not a neighborhood. It is a parallel society.

Americans should not hesitate to say that parallel societies are dangerous. Europe tried this experiment, and the results could not be clearer. In Germany, France, and the United Kingdom, entire neighborhoods now operate under their own cultural rules, some openly hostile to Western norms. When citizens speak up, they are branded bigots for asserting a basic right: the ability to live safely in their own communities.

A crisis of confidence

While this separation widens, another crisis is unfolding at home. A recent Gallup survey shows that about 40% of American women ages 18 to 39 would leave the country permanently if given the chance. Nearly half of a rising generation — daughters, sisters, soon-to-be mothers — no longer believe this nation is worth building a future in.

And who shapes the worldview of young boys? Their mothers. If a mother no longer believes America is home, why would her child grow up ready to defend it?

As Texas goes, so goes America. And as America goes, so goes the free world. If we lose confidence in our own national identity at the same time that we allow separatist enclaves to spread unchecked, the outcome is predictable. Europe is already showing us what comes next: cultural fracture, political radicalization, and the slow death of national unity.

Brandon Bell / Staff | Getty Images

Stand up and tell the truth

America welcomes Muslims. America defends their right to worship freely. A Muslim who loves the Constitution, respects the rule of law, and wants to raise a family in peace is more than welcome in America.

But an Islamist movement that rejects assimilation, builds enclaves governed by its own religious framework, and treats American law as optional is not simply another participant in our melting pot. It is a direct challenge to it. If we refuse to call this problem out out of fear of being called names, we will bear the consequences.

Europe is already feeling those consequences — rising conflict and a political class too paralyzed to admit the obvious. When people feel their culture, safety, and freedoms slipping away, they will follow anyone who promises to defend them. History has shown that over and over again.

Stand up. Speak plainly. Be unafraid. You can practice any faith in this country, but the supremacy of the Constitution and the Judeo-Christian moral framework that shaped it is non-negotiable. It is what guarantees your freedom in the first place.

If you come here and honor that foundation, welcome. If you come here to undermine it, you do not belong here.

Wake up to what is unfolding before the consequences arrive. Because when a nation refuses to say what is true, the truth eventually forces its way in — and by then, it is always too late.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.