Preborn Sponsor Appeals For Ultrasound Support And Choosing Life
Jenna Ellis We would like to take a moment to thank our sponsor, PreBorn. When a mother meets her baby on ultrasound and hears their heartbeat, it's a divine connection and the majority of the time she will choose life. But she can't do it without our help. Preborn needs us, the pro life community, to come alongside her. One ultrasound is just $28 and to donate, dial pound250 and say the keyword baby or visit preborn.com afr
Jenna Ellis Jenna Ellis in the Morning on American Family Radio.
Host Introduces The Show And Frames Election Accountability Discussion
Jenna Ellis I love talking about the things of God. Because of truth and the biblical worldview, the U.S. constitution obligates our government to preserve and protect the rights that our founders recognize come from God our creator, not our government. I believe that scripture in the Bible is very clear that God is the one that raised up each of you, and God has allowed us to be brought here to this specific moment in time.
Jenna Ellis This is Jenna Ellis in the Morning.
Ryan Helfenbein Good morning. It's Tuesday, November 10th. Welcome to Jenna Ellis in the Morning. I'm Rhyen Healthenbein filling in for Jenna while she's on vacation. So much to talk about today, including Texas. What happened and what will it look like under Democratic leadership as Texas Republicans still face the midterm fallout engaged just how serious this defeat is. All across the state, we'll take a deeper dive into some of the strategies that Democrats used in this election and how they attracted new voters and even swing voters in this election, even as there are many concerns about election integrity and potential, fraud with greater voter disparity in this election, some 20 million votes. When you look across the nation, I say we investigate and present the best evidence from the findings. But by most all counts, so far, this is real, and we do need to come to grips with it.
Deuteronomy's Call To Choose Life Connects Scripture And Civic Duty
But before we dive into all of that, I first want to go to Deuteronomy 30:19. The word of God says, I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore choose life that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice, and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob to give them. This was the most quoted, actually, of all the texts from the early writings of the founders. The most quoted text is the Bible, and the most quoted book was Deuteronomy. And when we go back to when our nation was founded, Christians didn't just see this as God's fulfillment in the days of, Moses. But they believed that it had relevance and bearing on our current times. And when you look at the political landscape and when you look at all the choices laid out in front of us in everyday life, we see everywhere blessing and cursing. The same is true for us today. Choose life that you may live. The Lord is our life and our length of days. How true is that? On this Tuesday morning.
Impeachment Filing And Trump Briefing Address Iran And Immigration
Now to the news. There was no shortage. Yesterday, outgoing Republican Congressman Thomas Massie reintroduced eight articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, including the war in Iran, claiming no formal declaration of Congress, saying there was no imminent threat, referencing the War Powers act of 1973, as well as the kidnapping of Venezuelan cartel President Nicolas Maduro, among other charges. There was a previous filing back in September, some of you may remember. It didn't go to vote, but a vote is expected to come on this filing within days. Massie has been a longtime critic of Trump, but also lost his primary when Kentucky voters were fed up with his grandstanding and taking his focus off the core issues conservatives were, concerned about in the state of Kentucky. Meanwhile, President Trump held his first post midterm press briefing with a surprise, appearance from the UFC CEO Dannah White. Trump posted on Truth Social last week that the job was available to White, but later said he was only kidding. At the conference, Trump addressed a number of questions on the m midterms, including Iran doubling down on the naval blockade, and he reiterated that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. He also said for clarification on a potential immigration deal with Democrats, as stated in his interview with Ross Douthat on 60 Minutes, there will be no amnesty. The president also walked back his more open tone from that interview. Going back to original form, he was definitely, entering that conference with some virility and strength.
Texas Election Defeat Raises Stakes For Republican Strategy And Leadership
Now, to bring some clarity to Texas, as we look at the postmortem of this election, and of course, we're looking at all states, we're looking at this thing nationally, Texas is critical. When you think about the electorate, when you think about the 40 electoral votes, that are up for grabs in 2028, there is no Republican strategy for winning the presidential election that doesn't go through Texas. When you look at the 312, votes that, electoral votes that President Trump secured in 2024, 40 of those votes come from Texas. He would not get to the critical 276 without Texas. So that's so very important. Democrats swept every statewide office, flipped the Governor's mansion and even won races all the way up and down the ballot that many people assumed Republicans would hold. Gina Hinojosa upset when for governor over grab Greg Abbott happened. And it was the first time we see a governor's race going back to Democrats. And the year was 1994 was the last time. And it was when Governor Bush, actually candidate, George W. Bush defeated Anne Richards, for that race. You look also at both James Tallarico and Gina Hinojosa's run. They ran as moderates, even though they're the most progressive wing of the Democratic Party in the state of Texas. And most people have heard of Talarico, but few know anything about the new governor elect. No one expected her to win her race. What matters is this Inosa campaign heavily on affordability, inflation and making life easier for working families. But if you looked at her record, so much of what she did in that state as, as a member of the legislature was completely radical.
Hinojosa Interview Shows Democrats Reframing Culture Wars Around Affordability
Before we go to any of that though, I want to go ahead and play this clip. This is from an interview with Dannah Rush at, Politico back in September, six weeks before the election. Roll the clip.
Gina Hinojosa Democratic elected leaders have been spending a lot of time responding to allegations in the culture war. And we have taken the bait. And look, I will always defend Texans who are being punched down upon by Greg Abbott or whomever. Right. We got to lift up Texans, not punch down. And because we spent so much time resp. Responding to culture war issues, people didn't know what else we stood for. And that's why this campaign has ah, been about really economic opportunity for Texans. This campaign is a back to basics. We're not doing the culture wars. We are talking about how we're going to deliver for Texans, how we're going to make life easier for working families. And so in that sense, I think that has to be the way forward for Democrats to focus on the economic issues and not take the bait when it comes to the culture wars. Because in Texas in 2026, that's all Greg Abbott's got. Yeah, I mean, to that point, one of your recent ads included the line, my pronouns are mom, Texan, and soon to be governor. Now that did draw some criticism from some LGBTQ advocates. But what were you trying to communicate with that?
Gina Hinojosa What I was trying to communicate is to both Greg Abbott and to the culture wars. You can shove it with your culture wars. He had just accused me of working with teachers to try to trans kids. It's just ridiculous. Right. It's an insult to teachers, first of all, who are working against the odds, against Greg Abbott, against the state, to provide a good education for our teachers, a quality education for our teachers. And so that was to say, look, we're not doing your culture wars.
Ryan Helfenbein Just upon reflection, Gina backed measures that expanded abortion access after the heartbeat law in Texas, supported gender ideology policies in schools and in medicine, and opposed common sense protections for women's sports and parental rights.
Texas Republican Nate Schatzline Blames Messaging And Lists Policy Priorities
On energy, remember, the oil and gas, industry is. Much of it is based in Texas. She aligned with the left's climate agenda rather than Texas oil. she is absolutely radical. Most people don't even know anything about her. No one expected her to win. And so joining, me now, is my good friend Nate Schatzline, who is the founder for Liberty and Justice, also advisor to Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Nate, welcome to the program. What are your thoughts about all of this?
Ryan Helfenbein You know, it's so great to be on with you, Rhyen. Everything you've said is what we were trying to get out, in the messaging, in the polls. You know, I served as a state representative for two sessions with Gina and with James, both of those sessions. And every single radical policy that was put forth in Texas was not just carried out by them, but they opposed every single one of the bills that we helped make a better economy in the state of Texas are pro business laws. You name it, they were on the back mic trying to destroy it. And it is ironic to me that they're saying, no more culture wars. When we banned the social transitioning of minors in Texas, I helped carry that bill across the finish line. It was James Talarico and Gina Hinojosa at the back mic trying to destroy it. But the reality is they won the messaging war over the last year during this campaign because they have just lied to voters about their record. Now, the irony of that, Rhyen, is that over the last 24 hours, as Bill filing has opened up in the state of Texas, we have seen those same Democrats talking about no more culture wars, putting forward bills to open up abortion for all stages. Of course, in the state of Texas, we have seen them come forward and say, hey, it is now going to be illegal to just have men and women's bathroom. It has to be all gender inclusive bathrooms. This is true. This same party that says it's about the economy that voted against every pro small business measure, that voted against every property tax. I mean, Gina voted against property tax, relief 40 different times since I've Been in the legislature. And so this is a psyop and we've got to win this back with the messaging war and we've got to do it quickly.
Guests Debate Texas Results And Propose Tax Relief For Working Families
Ryan Helfenbein Absolutely. And by the way, I just want to say this, for anyone listening, people have put all this focus on the Paxton race with Talarico Paxton, basically morally disqualified moral failings. That's the cause of all of this statewide. And here's the reality. On the same election night in Tarrant County, Erica Lomac, a Democratic candidate that had, basically been charged with federal crime. She was, sentenced to over 60 months in a federal prison, for money laundering schemes. She was basically completely, disqualified from this race. She had to suspend her campaign. She was voted in, meaning that basically people, went, to the ballot box and voted Democrat and put this person in. Something is happening. And I don't think there's an easy explanation in any of this, but I agree that, many of the voters were gaslit on the affordability question and they completely ignored all the weirdness and wokeness of Talarico and Gina and everyone else.
Ryan Helfenbein Well, and I'll tell you this. You know, I know that seat very well, for the supposed, felon that has now won the Texas House. Because Brian, that was my seat in District 93. So it's. It's so funny. I represented that district for two sessions. And now to watch as a literal known felon wins that seat, which, by the way, they don't even know what to do in the Texas House right now because they can't technically swear her in because it would be illegal for her to represent the district. It was probably cause a special session. and we're gearing up to put someone there. That can just be common sense. But what you said is so important, right? They won this messaging war. Many of it was online psyops and, and really just walking away from the record that they have. But here's what we must have. We've got to have family tax cuts. We've got to have M and O property tax elimination. We've
Ryan Helfenbein got to
Ryan Helfenbein continue with our labor trade schools and school
Ryan Helfenbein choice
Ryan Helfenbein tax credits. we need an interest rate transfer bill so that we can restore the ability for young families to own property.
Ryan Helfenbein Nate, we gotta run. Nate, we gotta run. But thank you so much for joining. We really appreciate you. Pray for Texas everyone.
Program Break And Listener Support Appeal Before Returning To Election Coverage
You're listening to Jenna Ellis in the morning. We will be right back after this break.
Jenna Ellis M hi, I'm Jenna Ellis. Did you know that this content is listener Supported. Without people like you, this podcast would not exist. And that's why we need you. A generous monthly gift of any amount will help sustain American Family Radio and specifically this podcast podcast. Please consider becoming a monthly financial partner today by visiting afr.netforward/give. That's afr.netgive.
Jenna Ellis welcome back to Jenna Ellis in the Morning on American Family Radio.
Ryan Helfenbein Welcome back to Jenna Ellis in the Morning. I'm Rhyen Helfenbein filling in for Jenna while she's on vacation.
Host Examines Affordability Politics And Young Voters' Democratic Shift
Have you noticed the gas prices in this country all of a sudden, right after the election? They're falling everywhere. But here's the reality. Nothing has really changed. if you look at the situation with the naval blockade, it's still going in the Strait of Hormuz. there is not yet a resolution in Iran. there's a lot of questions about this. And what's very interesting is that so much of the issue, that was being raised by Democrats across the country, of course, was the issue of affordability and the cost of living. And this really brings into question the messaging strategy Democrats used and the voters that they reached before the election. Of course, rising costs, inflation, housing prices were leading concerns among Gen Z voters. but the reality is, and we've been saying this all along, you go back to Covid during the lockdowns, when people were furloughed, when companies weren't producing much. During that time, we printed 8 to 10 trillion dollars. I say we, but Democrats in charge, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and we expanded the money supply. More dollars, chasing fewer goods. That's actually what leads to inflation. And we don't often have economic, talks about supply and demand or any of this stuff. And most people are not learning it in schools. But Democrats made affordability central to their campaign messaging. And I'm going to roll a clip here in just a second, to break some of this down, But. Voters ages 18 to 29 supported Democratic House candidates 66% to 31%, a 35 point Democratic advantage. And in 2024, the Democratic advantage in the House was just 14 points. In 2024, AP vote cast found that 56% supported President Trump. This year, Circle's analysis found that 59% supported Democratic House candidates. White voters under age 30 also moved. They favored Trump in 2024, 54% to 44%. This year, they favored Democratic House candidates 61% to 36%. And so the question is, what's going on here? The youngest voters in the electorate are not party loyalists. And this is something that whether you're conservative, whether you are left leaning, you have to recognize you can't take these voters for granted. that means there is an enormous audience to persuade. If you want to reach that audience, you have to understand where they're getting the information. Now listen to Vanliere Jones. He explains how a coordinated online effort helped Democrats drive the affordability message.
Van Jones Describes Online Network Driving Democrats' Affordability Message
Let's go ahead and play that clip.
Van Jones Now it can be told. How did we win the narrative on affordability? Was it just these nice little Democrats out there running for office and going to. No, the Republicans never figured out what we were doing. There's something called the American Accountability Network. Tens of thousands of online humans, not bots, coordinated to make the affordability message a winning message. Online, 32.5 million, people hit on Instagram every day. 88 point, 8M. 88.8 million hit on Twitter every single day. And 185 million Facebook hits, every single day. And they never figured out the Republicans could not understand it wasn't bots, it was actual human beings. The most effective online organizing campaign, called the American Accountability Network, flew under the radar screen. Never been told. And they were talking about the issue, or
Van Jones they were saying, you need to elect Democrats to deal with this.
Van Jones Driving the kitchen table affordability message and tying that to Democrats on a positive and Republicans on a negative. The Republicans never figured out what we were doing. And what that meant was, everywhere you go, people were talking about affordability and they were talking about kitchen table issues. They couldn't get any traction on these cultural war issues anymore because we figured out how to get around all that. So it's not just all the door knocking that was done, which is amazing. It's not just our amazing candidate quality. We had something called the American Accountability Network. Don't get mad at me. I was given permission to reveal this. They never figured it out. And that network is going to continue to push for kitchen table issues and hold our Democratic lawmakers accountable.
Ryan Helfenbein Well, Democratic lawmakers definitely need to be held accountable. They are responsible for the affordability issue. And it's only going to get worse with this kind of leadership. And by the way, there was no candidate quality in this race. But messaging was one of the biggest strategies, going into this. And the same message that President Trump used so effectively in 2024 was hijacked and then used by Democrats. They moved away from woke and weirdness. And there was plenty of subject matter when it came to all of that.
Christian Collins Discusses Youth Voters And Conservative Coalition Divisions
But before we respond to more of This I want to bring in my friend Christian Collins, founder and president of the Texas Youth Summit. Christian, good morning. What are your thoughts, especially when it comes to the youth vote?
Jerry Lawson Rhyen, thank you so much for having me on. And it's quite peculiar just being in the situation here in Texas. Of course, it's been a red state for a long time, and now it's blue. It's, indicative of what's gone across the country where there's so many, states now, South Carolina that has a Democrat senator. And I think young people are a big part of that. I spent a lot of time on the college campuses, and one of the biggest issues I hear about is the issue of Israel. And Democrats have successfully tied that with the, I don't. Maybe the age 30 and under crowd that you were talking about. they tied that to, the affordability issue. And a lot of young people who, I think if you were to profile them, maybe look kind of conservative. they are very much against the war in Israel, with Iran, the situation there. they're very much against what's gone on with the Palestinian territory, and they feel like there's a genocide in Gaza and these things. I think Democrats have been very successful in getting their message across, and they feel, the affordability issue is directly tied to that. And so, I think what we've got to be able to do going forward, is navigate that foreign policy issue. one, two. I think we've got to be able to recognize that as conservatives, we are so divided. In 2024, we were all swimming in the same direction. But you have Candace Owen, who's so dead set on destroying Turning Point usa. you got Tucker Carlsen, who, pretty much talks about Trump all the time and wants to destroy President Trump. Alex Jones, same thing. And, you know, we're. We're divided as a. As a conservative movement, and we're very fractured. And I think the void of Charlie Kirk being gone, he's someone who could bring Ben Shapiro and Ted Cruz and Tucker Carlsen and Steve Bannon to the same conference, and they could all speak together. He's somebody who had his finger on the pulse, who could talk to President Trump on some of these conservative issues that young people are dealing with, and we don't have that now. And so, I think we've. We've got to raise up new leaders who can bring people together, bring, our coalition back together. And we all have to be messaging in the same direction. I think going Forward. And I think a lot of conservatives spend a lot of time on X. That's good. But that's kind of become a little bit of a bubble. And I think a lot of independent voters are on TikTok, they're on Instagram, they're on Facebook. If you're older,
Ryan Helfenbein you know, Charlie was my friend. He was your friend. we miss Charlie dearly. The assassination that happened on September 10, 2025. There is an element, it seems, at least for now, that in the conservative movement that is dead and that is the unification of that movement. That Charlie was brilliant. as much as he did in front of the camera and on college campuses at these various rallies and Turning Point events, as much as he did there, that was visible to the public eye. What many people miss is what Charlie did behind the scenes. So effectively he was able to get, Candace Owens and just as you stated, Tucker Carlsen and many others in the same tent. And the reality is keeping the crazy at bay. I mean, some people have said, ask me, you know, personally, you know, have these guys, some of these guys been all that, you know, been crazy this whole time? And it's. Well, the reality is, I mean, there's a lot of crazy, that's been going on for a long time. But Charlie was so effective at holding that at bay and getting people to focus on things that were much more important, for the future of this nation. And the dividing factor is that you're exactly right. There is a fracture going on within the Republican camp, within maga, Conservative Inc. All of it. Meanwhile, Democrats are running an offensive strategy, and they basically hijacked the message when it comes to Gen Z. You're on college campuses all the time. you host an annual youth summit as well, where you're bringing youth from all across the state. Just kind of like give us a window into how they are thinking because, there's a big change. And I think this is where Boomers and Xers are looking at this, saying, how can you flip your vote so easily? what would you say to all of that? Just to help explain to all of us and to the listeners? Explain to Gen Z.
Jerry Lawson Yeah. there's an element when you go on the college campuses. I do a lot of pick up the mic, prove me wrong type format conversations with young people on college campuses. And, I talk to people that obviously they look like they're far left. I mean, you could profile them and they have the hair color and so forth. they're into the Transgender stuff. That's obvious. The Communists, they're people that are very much for black liberation theology. And, they're all about DEI and they're black supremacist. I mean, effectively, you can put those in one category, but then there's another category of young people, who are, as I mentioned, very, frustrated just with the affordability issue. And those are the people that I think are. You've got to be able to win them back in some way going forward. And if we don't, I think we're in a, in a problematic position. And so I think who our messenger is in 2028 is very important. I think Ron DeSantis is running. It, looks like Ted Cruz is running. JD Vance is probably running. People are asking. Marco is running, but it seems as though he's not at moment. But I think that's. That's important, that we have somebody that can, that can unite our conservative movement in some regard. Maybe, not everybody, but just most everybody. And, you've got to be able to win independent voters. And I think we've lost a lot of the Latinos here in Texas especially. That's important. I think over 40% is. As far as I understand, we're Latino here now. And so all of South Texas was lost. President Trump won Latinos in 2024, but we were in a bad situation. Now, we've got to be able to get Latinos back. And I think, say what you want. I mean, I've been all about the deportations, but maybe we've had some people that just with how ICE has handled certain things, they've been frustrated with that and they've switched to the other side. So you've got to be able to win those voters. And when we're talking about young people, that's, who I'm talking about is those Latinos. Those, voters, are disenfranchised by the war, and they're wondering what kind of opportunities they're going to have in this country. Imagine, per se, just any youth, you go to college and you take out a student loan, to pay for college. And then the statistic is, after you get out of college, it's 55% of people are underemployed. Underemployed. And that doesn't change and doesn't get any better 10 years later. So imagine being 30 years old and underemployed, and you're not working in the career that you went to school for, and you're still paying back your student loans and some of them have to live with their parents until they're able. And then you got Republicans like I'm not criticizing, I'm just pointing out that she got a lot of backlash. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who talks about the 29 year old white kid who's playing video games at their parents house. Well the reason why they're in that situation perhaps is because the economy they don't feel has worked out for them and they don't have the same opportunities for the American dream that their parents had. And then they're flocking to people like Nick Fuentes. And Nick Fuentes is effectively the same as Hasan Piker. They're both pointing people toward the Democrat party. And so you got obvious leftists who are supporting Hasan Piker, but you got people that should be conservative who are supporting Nick Fuentes who's also supporting them toward the Democrat party for different reasons he says, but nevertheless it's still happening. And so that's the climate with the young people. And what we've got to be able to convey and just I'm diagnosing the situation but we've got to be able to convey that socialism, wherever it's tried throughout human history. You look at now in China, you look at Stalin and the Soviet Union, you look at Castro in Cuba, there's so many more I could list but it's brought exile, poverty. people have just been in dire situations and they've had to escape this Rockdale. Cruz, a mentor of mine, says the rafts from Cuba only go one way. There's never been anybody in Florida trying to get a raft to Cuba. Right. They're always getting away from that. And that's the situation is we've gotta be able to explain and convey correctly that throughout human history that socialism, wherever it's been tried, doesn't work. And we've got to be able to message that well and offer capitalism as a solution. And it employs so many people, it provides jobs and opportunities and the, the American dream, the American experiment is built off of this idea of free markets and capitalism. And we've got to be able to convey that well.
Ryan Helfenbein Yeah, so well said. Listen folks, don't punch down at Gen Z. They are the future and we've got to figure out how to win this next generation on the best ideas that will move this nation forward.
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Christian, thank you so much. I couldn't said it better. And folks, you're listening to Jenna Ellis in the morning. We'll be right back after this break.
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Host Invites Christians To Share The Gospel Through Christmas Traditions
Jenna Ellis welcome back to Jenna Ellis in the Morning on American Family Radio.
Ryan Helfenbein Welcome back to Jenna Ellis in the Morning. I'm Rhyen Helfenbein filling in for Jenna while she's on vacation. Hey, folks, Christmas is coming sooner than you think. And I know we haven't had Thanksgiving yet, and that holiday doesn't, it doesn't skip the other. But some of you have already started your Christmas shopping. Maybe you've put one tree up, two trees up, three trees up. We're a little late to it this year, but normally we have three trees up in our home. Means a lot of trips to Hobby Lobby. but, you go around the country and around the nation, holiday coffees are starting to show up. You know, we're off to the races. Christmas will be here soon. but before that shopping list gets longer and before we find ourselves wondering where December went, I want to talk about the opportunity we have as Christians. You know, so much of our calendar, in the western world, in the United States, it gives us these natural opportunities to talk about our faith. That's certainly true of, Thanksgiving. That's true at Easter where we talk about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And at Christmas, we talk about why Jesus came into this world. And if you think about it, people who would never walk into a church will hear songs about the birth of Jesus. They hear about Bethlehem, the angels and our Savior. Even Richard Dawkins, the most famous atheist, called himself a cultural Christian. He says he loves hymns and Christmas carols, and he hasn't become a believer. But he acknowledges an affection for the Christian culture around him. So that should tell you something about the reach of Christmas. But our opportunity is to do more than just to passively enjoy the atmosphere of this holiday. It's to help people understand the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Not simply that a baby was born in Bethlehem, but that God sent his one and only son to save sinners like you and me. So sometimes we make that, conversation more difficult and more complicated than it needs to be. Jerry Lawson, pastor of Enon Presbyterian church in Ackerman, Mississippi. He's a long time advocate of using AFA's Christmas buttons to start those conversations, giving them to church members, friends, and people he meets throughout the season.
Pastor Jerry Lawson Shares Christmas Buttons As Everyday Witnessing Tools
Jerry, welcome to the program. By the way, good morning to you. You've described these buttons as a conversation starter that opens the door to sharing the gospel. I want to hear your thoughts on all of this and explain to listeners what these are.
Jerry Lawson Well, Ron, it is a joy to be on the radio with you this morning, and, I've never met you down here and probably won't, but I'll see you up there. Because of that babe that was born in Bethlehem, in our community, starting back 26 years ago with Don Wilderman, I started passing out the Christmas buttons. And, in fact, the other day I went by, Ackerman Baptist Church. Danny Irvin is a dear friend of mine. And I said, I want to cause a controversy in your church. And he said, brother Jerry, go ahead. And I said, look, you got a church of hundreds. I'm going to give you a button, a package of 10 buttons. I want you to pass them out, and I want people to come up and demand to get buttons. And, he said, we can order buttons. So I try to cause controversy everywhere. I go with these buttons in churches.
Ryan Helfenbein Yeah, absolutely. And, and so, listen, Christmas, we need to put Christ back in Christmas. There was a war on Christmas many years ago. And look, I don't think culturally that's going away. what do you see as the opportunities at this season that Christians often overlook?
Jerry Lawson Well, for me, every morning when I get up and I'm talking 365 days a year, AFA has made all kinds of Christmas buttons, Easter Easter buttons, Linton buttons available. And, I put that button on that has Jesus on it, and I go out in the community. And it just. I know I've got Jesus with me. He's not only on my shirt, but he's in my heart, and I want to share him. There's so many people out there that so unhappy. And now after this election, you got some people celebrating and you got a lot of people grieving. I just like to go out and put a smile on people's face and give them a button.
Ryan Helfenbein Yeah, absolutely. Listen, and this is something where, you know, I want to encourage people sometimes, you know, we put the bumper sticker on the car. You know, the Christian bumper sticker, the ichthus fish. And we represent Christ wherever we go. By the way, if you put that on your car, Ladies and gentlemen, please drive safely. Drive well. Don't be a maniac. Represent Christ in the kingdom well. But when you wear the T shirt, when you wear the button, there is a message that goes with that. And we have a responsibility as Christians, as believers. This is not a responsibility relegated solely to our pastors, our deacons, in our churches. This is our responsibility. Anybody who bears the name of Christ, we have to represent him well. We carry his name wherever we go. And I love what you just said. This holiday season, man, it could not come quicker. for many of us who are in the blues of this election, I'm so grateful that Christmas is coming. It could not come soon enough because it does bring joy and a smile on my face. My wife, my children, we love Christmas. but there's a reason for that. And what's interesting is that there are many people who do not know the Lord, but are going to be listening to Christmas songs. They're going to be enjoying carols, the lights. The Christmas tree, which is itself. I mean, the history of that is a representation of the gospel. That evergreen tree, that is a tree that is perpetually green, even in the cold and the dead of winter. You go back to the history even of that and Martin Luther. so many things in our culture bear the name of Jesus. How easy it is for us to share the gospel. And then Brother Jerry, also, how easy it is for us as Christians to forget that we are the messengers.
Jerry Lawson Well, you're exactly right. I give buttons to people. And then I'll see them a few days later, and I'll ask them where their button's at, and they'll say, oh, I left it on the refrigerator. I left it on the dresser. And I tell them it's a whole lot easier to put it on your shirt than to take your dresser or your refrigerator with you. But if you're going to leave your Christmas button at the house, you've probably left Jesus at the house as well. And I like what you said, Ron. If you're going to put a Christian sticker on your car, drive like a Christian. And if you're going to put a Christian button on your shirt, then act like Christ.
Ryan Helfenbein Yeah. Amen. Amen. And so, you know, I want to be able to, you know, tell people about this, where to get these.
Listeners Encouraged To Wear Buttons And Share Scripture With Others
These AFA Christmas buttons come in packs of 10 with free shipping. The idea is simple. Wear one, share the others with friends, neighbors, people at church, or someone you meet while you're out Christmas shopping. and just for those who are listening, you can order, and wear them. you can go on resources.aca.net or by calling 1-877-927-4917. Brother Jerry, I wanted to ask you about this. Do you have a few favorite scripture or a favorite, way, in a kind of a gospel conversation that you might have with people? Do you have a go to passage that you use or maybe some verses that you use, that would help people, when sharing their faith?
Jerry Lawson Proverbs 11:25 says that he who brings a blessing will be blessed, and he who waters will be watered. When, when you're blessing other people. And I can tell you this from personal testimony, I mean, over my lifetime, when you're a blessing to others, God gives the blessing back and even more, so I want to live my life to be a blessing for others and doing so. I have joy in my heart every day and I just look forward to serving the Lord and being a blessing for others.
Ryan Helfenbein Amen. Amen. By the way, where you water? Years, ago, I remember, Pastor Rick Warren way out in California saying something along the lines of, you know, people often say, the grass is greener on the other side. No, the grass is greener where you water. And so we have to recognize, I mean, it goes back to Isaiah 55 and the word of God, that just as the rain falls from heaven and waters, the whole earth gives seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall it be with my word that goes forth, it will accomplish all the purposes for which God has sent it. And, by the way, that's a good one to memorize, for Christians, but just to recognize that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of Good things. All who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. And so I just want to encourage brothers and sisters, if you're listening, that passage is not for your pastor. That passage is for you.
Jerry Lawson Yes,
Ryan Helfenbein that pastor, is for you. It's for me. we use this radio broadcast not only to share, news and information and we don't want it to be all doom and gloom. the world has not ended today. And until Jesus returns, we need to occupy, and we need to advance and we need to proclaim the gospel which is life giving news, that Jesus Christ saves sinners.
Children And Christmas Witnessing Illustrate Joy And Enduring Christian Hope
And, and Christmas is such a blessed hope because it's a reminder of why Christ has come. Brother Jerry, you know, I do want to ask you this. Have you seen. This would be, you know who wears the buttons? Do you see kids wearing the buttons? is it all just grown adults or kids as well?
Jerry Lawson Children love the buttons. I had a grandmother. The other day I was passing out buttons and I ran out and there was one grandmother that was there I didn't have a button for. And I felt so bad I had to go back to the house. And I said, I'm going to see you in the next day or two and I'm going to give you a button. And she said, I look forward to it. So we were at the Friday night ball game and here she comes and I've got a button with a magnet on the back of it. And I go running over and hug her. And I said, I've got a button for you. And I realized, realized I made a mistake. She had five grandchildren with her and all five wanted that button. And, so I had to go get her a bag of buttons then. But, if you're going to pass out buttons, especially to grandmothers, make sure they don't have grandchildren with them. Kids love the buttons. I cut the little pin off the back of them and I put magnets on there so a child will not stick themselves.
Ryan Helfenbein Wow, good. And so, by the way, I have four kids, and they're all various ages. I've got teenagers. I've got, a daughter that is an elementary school age. And then I've got a toddler. And I'll just tell you, it's the sweet smiles of children that often warms and softens the heart of many people. And, young and old. And I'll just tell you, it's out of the mouth of babes that the Lord often reveals truth. And it's out of the mouth of babes that the Lord brings forth praise. And, children are a blessing and a heritage to the Lord, like arrows in the hands of a strong warrior. Right. They are so important not only for the future, but also for the present. And my kids amaze me oftentimes, in, their ability to articulate the message of the gospel and the hope of Jesus Christ. And often they do it so often, actually, every time, they do it with joy. Yes. There's not a meanness, when it comes to children. And so I think that's important for people to recognize, too, is that even in dark times, Brother Jerry, even in times where people say it's all ending, the Lord, his promises endure. the grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of God stands forever. And even in difficult times, even in trials and tribulations, we have to recognize that Jesus Christ has overcome the world. And that message is powerful. And so we need to share it with others.
Pastor Ends With Hopeful Witness And Final Preborn Life Appeal
we just got a couple more minutes, but do you have any other, Any other stories about these buttons, and how they have changed somebody's life?
Jerry Lawson Well, Ron, a few minutes ago you mentioned that, a lot of people, you look at them and it's doom and gloom. I don't care how bad it gets out there. If Christ is within you, you're going to blossom and you're going to bloom and you're going to produce fruit for the kingdom of God. And that's going to bring joy into your life, the light of God into your life. Even as dark as the world gets, you can walk in the light.
Ryan Helfenbein Yes. Amen. Brother Jerry, thank you so much. So well, well said. Thank you to all the listeners listening to Jenna Ellis in the morning. We'll be back tomorrow with more news. God.
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Preborn Sponsor Appeals For Ultrasound Support And Choosing Life
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Jenna Ellis Jenna Ellis in the Morning on American Family Radio.
Host Introduces The Show And Frames Election Accountability Discussion
Jenna Ellis I love talking about the things of God. Because of truth and the biblical worldview, the U.S. constitution obligates our government to preserve and protect the rights that our founders recognize come from God our creator, not our government. I believe that scripture in the Bible is very clear that God is the one that raised up each of you, and God has allowed us to be brought here to this specific moment in time.
Jenna Ellis This is Jenna Ellis in the Morning.
Ryan Helfenbein Good morning. It's Tuesday, November 10th. Welcome to Jenna Ellis in the Morning. I'm Rhyen Healthenbein filling in for Jenna while she's on vacation. So much to talk about today, including Texas. What happened and what will it look like under Democratic leadership as Texas Republicans still face the midterm fallout engaged just how serious this defeat is. All across the state, we'll take a deeper dive into some of the strategies that Democrats used in this election and how they attracted new voters and even swing voters in this election, even as there are many concerns about election integrity and potential, fraud with greater voter disparity in this election, some 20 million votes. When you look across the nation, I say we investigate and present the best evidence from the findings. But by most all counts, so far, this is real, and we do need to come to grips with it.
Deuteronomy's Call To Choose Life Connects Scripture And Civic Duty
But before we dive into all of that, I first want to go to Deuteronomy 30:19. The word of God says, I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore choose life that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice, and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob to give them. This was the most quoted, actually, of all the texts from the early writings of the founders. The most quoted text is the Bible, and the most quoted book was Deuteronomy. And when we go back to when our nation was founded, Christians didn't just see this as God's fulfillment in the days of, Moses. But they believed that it had relevance and bearing on our current times. And when you look at the political landscape and when you look at all the choices laid out in front of us in everyday life, we see everywhere blessing and cursing. The same is true for us today. Choose life that you may live. The Lord is our life and our length of days. How true is that? On this Tuesday morning.
Impeachment Filing And Trump Briefing Address Iran And Immigration
Now to the news. There was no shortage. Yesterday, outgoing Republican Congressman Thomas Massie reintroduced eight articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, including the war in Iran, claiming no formal declaration of Congress, saying there was no imminent threat, referencing the War Powers act of 1973, as well as the kidnapping of Venezuelan cartel President Nicolas Maduro, among other charges. There was a previous filing back in September, some of you may remember. It didn't go to vote, but a vote is expected to come on this filing within days. Massie has been a longtime critic of Trump, but also lost his primary when Kentucky voters were fed up with his grandstanding and taking his focus off the core issues conservatives were, concerned about in the state of Kentucky. Meanwhile, President Trump held his first post midterm press briefing with a surprise, appearance from the UFC CEO Dannah White. Trump posted on Truth Social last week that the job was available to White, but later said he was only kidding. At the conference, Trump addressed a number of questions on the m midterms, including Iran doubling down on the naval blockade, and he reiterated that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. He also said for clarification on a potential immigration deal with Democrats, as stated in his interview with Ross Douthat on 60 Minutes, there will be no amnesty. The president also walked back his more open tone from that interview. Going back to original form, he was definitely, entering that conference with some virility and strength.
Texas Election Defeat Raises Stakes For Republican Strategy And Leadership
Now, to bring some clarity to Texas, as we look at the postmortem of this election, and of course, we're looking at all states, we're looking at this thing nationally, Texas is critical. When you think about the electorate, when you think about the 40 electoral votes, that are up for grabs in 2028, there is no Republican strategy for winning the presidential election that doesn't go through Texas. When you look at the 312, votes that, electoral votes that President Trump secured in 2024, 40 of those votes come from Texas. He would not get to the critical 276 without Texas. So that's so very important. Democrats swept every statewide office, flipped the Governor's mansion and even won races all the way up and down the ballot that many people assumed Republicans would hold. Gina Hinojosa upset when for governor over grab Greg Abbott happened. And it was the first time we see a governor's race going back to Democrats. And the year was 1994 was the last time. And it was when Governor Bush, actually candidate, George W. Bush defeated Anne Richards, for that race. You look also at both James Tallarico and Gina Hinojosa's run. They ran as moderates, even though they're the most progressive wing of the Democratic Party in the state of Texas. And most people have heard of Talarico, but few know anything about the new governor elect. No one expected her to win her race. What matters is this Inosa campaign heavily on affordability, inflation and making life easier for working families. But if you looked at her record, so much of what she did in that state as, as a member of the legislature was completely radical.
Hinojosa Interview Shows Democrats Reframing Culture Wars Around Affordability
Before we go to any of that though, I want to go ahead and play this clip. This is from an interview with Dannah Rush at, Politico back in September, six weeks before the election. Roll the clip.
Gina Hinojosa Democratic elected leaders have been spending a lot of time responding to allegations in the culture war. And we have taken the bait. And look, I will always defend Texans who are being punched down upon by Greg Abbott or whomever. Right. We got to lift up Texans, not punch down. And because we spent so much time resp. Responding to culture war issues, people didn't know what else we stood for. And that's why this campaign has ah, been about really economic opportunity for Texans. This campaign is a back to basics. We're not doing the culture wars. We are talking about how we're going to deliver for Texans, how we're going to make life easier for working families. And so in that sense, I think that has to be the way forward for Democrats to focus on the economic issues and not take the bait when it comes to the culture wars. Because in Texas in 2026, that's all Greg Abbott's got. Yeah, I mean, to that point, one of your recent ads included the line, my pronouns are mom, Texan, and soon to be governor. Now that did draw some criticism from some LGBTQ advocates. But what were you trying to communicate with that?
Gina Hinojosa What I was trying to communicate is to both Greg Abbott and to the culture wars. You can shove it with your culture wars. He had just accused me of working with teachers to try to trans kids. It's just ridiculous. Right. It's an insult to teachers, first of all, who are working against the odds, against Greg Abbott, against the state, to provide a good education for our teachers, a quality education for our teachers. And so that was to say, look, we're not doing your culture wars.
Ryan Helfenbein Just upon reflection, Gina backed measures that expanded abortion access after the heartbeat law in Texas, supported gender ideology policies in schools and in medicine, and opposed common sense protections for women's sports and parental rights.
Texas Republican Nate Schatzline Blames Messaging And Lists Policy Priorities
On energy, remember, the oil and gas, industry is. Much of it is based in Texas. She aligned with the left's climate agenda rather than Texas oil. she is absolutely radical. Most people don't even know anything about her. No one expected her to win. And so joining, me now, is my good friend Nate Schatzline, who is the founder for Liberty and Justice, also advisor to Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Nate, welcome to the program. What are your thoughts about all of this?
Ryan Helfenbein You know, it's so great to be on with you, Rhyen. Everything you've said is what we were trying to get out, in the messaging, in the polls. You know, I served as a state representative for two sessions with Gina and with James, both of those sessions. And every single radical policy that was put forth in Texas was not just carried out by them, but they opposed every single one of the bills that we helped make a better economy in the state of Texas are pro business laws. You name it, they were on the back mic trying to destroy it. And it is ironic to me that they're saying, no more culture wars. When we banned the social transitioning of minors in Texas, I helped carry that bill across the finish line. It was James Talarico and Gina Hinojosa at the back mic trying to destroy it. But the reality is they won the messaging war over the last year during this campaign because they have just lied to voters about their record. Now, the irony of that, Rhyen, is that over the last 24 hours, as Bill filing has opened up in the state of Texas, we have seen those same Democrats talking about no more culture wars, putting forward bills to open up abortion for all stages. Of course, in the state of Texas, we have seen them come forward and say, hey, it is now going to be illegal to just have men and women's bathroom. It has to be all gender inclusive bathrooms. This is true. This same party that says it's about the economy that voted against every pro small business measure, that voted against every property tax. I mean, Gina voted against property tax, relief 40 different times since I've Been in the legislature. And so this is a psyop and we've got to win this back with the messaging war and we've got to do it quickly.
Guests Debate Texas Results And Propose Tax Relief For Working Families
Ryan Helfenbein Absolutely. And by the way, I just want to say this, for anyone listening, people have put all this focus on the Paxton race with Talarico Paxton, basically morally disqualified moral failings. That's the cause of all of this statewide. And here's the reality. On the same election night in Tarrant County, Erica Lomac, a Democratic candidate that had, basically been charged with federal crime. She was, sentenced to over 60 months in a federal prison, for money laundering schemes. She was basically completely, disqualified from this race. She had to suspend her campaign. She was voted in, meaning that basically people, went, to the ballot box and voted Democrat and put this person in. Something is happening. And I don't think there's an easy explanation in any of this, but I agree that, many of the voters were gaslit on the affordability question and they completely ignored all the weirdness and wokeness of Talarico and Gina and everyone else.
Ryan Helfenbein Well, and I'll tell you this. You know, I know that seat very well, for the supposed, felon that has now won the Texas House. Because Brian, that was my seat in District 93. So it's. It's so funny. I represented that district for two sessions. And now to watch as a literal known felon wins that seat, which, by the way, they don't even know what to do in the Texas House right now because they can't technically swear her in because it would be illegal for her to represent the district. It was probably cause a special session. and we're gearing up to put someone there. That can just be common sense. But what you said is so important, right? They won this messaging war. Many of it was online psyops and, and really just walking away from the record that they have. But here's what we must have. We've got to have family tax cuts. We've got to have M and O property tax elimination. We've
Ryan Helfenbein got to
Ryan Helfenbein continue with our labor trade schools and school
Ryan Helfenbein choice
Ryan Helfenbein tax credits. we need an interest rate transfer bill so that we can restore the ability for young families to own property.
Ryan Helfenbein Nate, we gotta run. Nate, we gotta run. But thank you so much for joining. We really appreciate you. Pray for Texas everyone.
Program Break And Listener Support Appeal Before Returning To Election Coverage
You're listening to Jenna Ellis in the morning. We will be right back after this break.
Jenna Ellis M hi, I'm Jenna Ellis. Did you know that this content is listener Supported. Without people like you, this podcast would not exist. And that's why we need you. A generous monthly gift of any amount will help sustain American Family Radio and specifically this podcast podcast. Please consider becoming a monthly financial partner today by visiting afr.netforward/give. That's afr.netgive.
Jenna Ellis welcome back to Jenna Ellis in the Morning on American Family Radio.
Ryan Helfenbein Welcome back to Jenna Ellis in the Morning. I'm Rhyen Helfenbein filling in for Jenna while she's on vacation.
Host Examines Affordability Politics And Young Voters' Democratic Shift
Have you noticed the gas prices in this country all of a sudden, right after the election? They're falling everywhere. But here's the reality. Nothing has really changed. if you look at the situation with the naval blockade, it's still going in the Strait of Hormuz. there is not yet a resolution in Iran. there's a lot of questions about this. And what's very interesting is that so much of the issue, that was being raised by Democrats across the country, of course, was the issue of affordability and the cost of living. And this really brings into question the messaging strategy Democrats used and the voters that they reached before the election. Of course, rising costs, inflation, housing prices were leading concerns among Gen Z voters. but the reality is, and we've been saying this all along, you go back to Covid during the lockdowns, when people were furloughed, when companies weren't producing much. During that time, we printed 8 to 10 trillion dollars. I say we, but Democrats in charge, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and we expanded the money supply. More dollars, chasing fewer goods. That's actually what leads to inflation. And we don't often have economic, talks about supply and demand or any of this stuff. And most people are not learning it in schools. But Democrats made affordability central to their campaign messaging. And I'm going to roll a clip here in just a second, to break some of this down, But. Voters ages 18 to 29 supported Democratic House candidates 66% to 31%, a 35 point Democratic advantage. And in 2024, the Democratic advantage in the House was just 14 points. In 2024, AP vote cast found that 56% supported President Trump. This year, Circle's analysis found that 59% supported Democratic House candidates. White voters under age 30 also moved. They favored Trump in 2024, 54% to 44%. This year, they favored Democratic House candidates 61% to 36%. And so the question is, what's going on here? The youngest voters in the electorate are not party loyalists. And this is something that whether you're conservative, whether you are left leaning, you have to recognize you can't take these voters for granted. that means there is an enormous audience to persuade. If you want to reach that audience, you have to understand where they're getting the information. Now listen to Vanliere Jones. He explains how a coordinated online effort helped Democrats drive the affordability message.
Van Jones Describes Online Network Driving Democrats' Affordability Message
Let's go ahead and play that clip.
Van Jones Now it can be told. How did we win the narrative on affordability? Was it just these nice little Democrats out there running for office and going to. No, the Republicans never figured out what we were doing. There's something called the American Accountability Network. Tens of thousands of online humans, not bots, coordinated to make the affordability message a winning message. Online, 32.5 million, people hit on Instagram every day. 88 point, 8M. 88.8 million hit on Twitter every single day. And 185 million Facebook hits, every single day. And they never figured out the Republicans could not understand it wasn't bots, it was actual human beings. The most effective online organizing campaign, called the American Accountability Network, flew under the radar screen. Never been told. And they were talking about the issue, or
Van Jones they were saying, you need to elect Democrats to deal with this.
Van Jones Driving the kitchen table affordability message and tying that to Democrats on a positive and Republicans on a negative. The Republicans never figured out what we were doing. And what that meant was, everywhere you go, people were talking about affordability and they were talking about kitchen table issues. They couldn't get any traction on these cultural war issues anymore because we figured out how to get around all that. So it's not just all the door knocking that was done, which is amazing. It's not just our amazing candidate quality. We had something called the American Accountability Network. Don't get mad at me. I was given permission to reveal this. They never figured it out. And that network is going to continue to push for kitchen table issues and hold our Democratic lawmakers accountable.
Ryan Helfenbein Well, Democratic lawmakers definitely need to be held accountable. They are responsible for the affordability issue. And it's only going to get worse with this kind of leadership. And by the way, there was no candidate quality in this race. But messaging was one of the biggest strategies, going into this. And the same message that President Trump used so effectively in 2024 was hijacked and then used by Democrats. They moved away from woke and weirdness. And there was plenty of subject matter when it came to all of that.
Christian Collins Discusses Youth Voters And Conservative Coalition Divisions
But before we respond to more of This I want to bring in my friend Christian Collins, founder and president of the Texas Youth Summit. Christian, good morning. What are your thoughts, especially when it comes to the youth vote?
Jerry Lawson Rhyen, thank you so much for having me on. And it's quite peculiar just being in the situation here in Texas. Of course, it's been a red state for a long time, and now it's blue. It's, indicative of what's gone across the country where there's so many, states now, South Carolina that has a Democrat senator. And I think young people are a big part of that. I spent a lot of time on the college campuses, and one of the biggest issues I hear about is the issue of Israel. And Democrats have successfully tied that with the, I don't. Maybe the age 30 and under crowd that you were talking about. they tied that to, the affordability issue. And a lot of young people who, I think if you were to profile them, maybe look kind of conservative. they are very much against the war in Israel, with Iran, the situation there. they're very much against what's gone on with the Palestinian territory, and they feel like there's a genocide in Gaza and these things. I think Democrats have been very successful in getting their message across, and they feel, the affordability issue is directly tied to that. And so, I think what we've got to be able to do going forward, is navigate that foreign policy issue. one, two. I think we've got to be able to recognize that as conservatives, we are so divided. In 2024, we were all swimming in the same direction. But you have Candace Owen, who's so dead set on destroying Turning Point usa. you got Tucker Carlsen, who, pretty much talks about Trump all the time and wants to destroy President Trump. Alex Jones, same thing. And, you know, we're. We're divided as a. As a conservative movement, and we're very fractured. And I think the void of Charlie Kirk being gone, he's someone who could bring Ben Shapiro and Ted Cruz and Tucker Carlsen and Steve Bannon to the same conference, and they could all speak together. He's somebody who had his finger on the pulse, who could talk to President Trump on some of these conservative issues that young people are dealing with, and we don't have that now. And so, I think we've. We've got to raise up new leaders who can bring people together, bring, our coalition back together. And we all have to be messaging in the same direction. I think going Forward. And I think a lot of conservatives spend a lot of time on X. That's good. But that's kind of become a little bit of a bubble. And I think a lot of independent voters are on TikTok, they're on Instagram, they're on Facebook. If you're older,
Ryan Helfenbein you know, Charlie was my friend. He was your friend. we miss Charlie dearly. The assassination that happened on September 10, 2025. There is an element, it seems, at least for now, that in the conservative movement that is dead and that is the unification of that movement. That Charlie was brilliant. as much as he did in front of the camera and on college campuses at these various rallies and Turning Point events, as much as he did there, that was visible to the public eye. What many people miss is what Charlie did behind the scenes. So effectively he was able to get, Candace Owens and just as you stated, Tucker Carlsen and many others in the same tent. And the reality is keeping the crazy at bay. I mean, some people have said, ask me, you know, personally, you know, have these guys, some of these guys been all that, you know, been crazy this whole time? And it's. Well, the reality is, I mean, there's a lot of crazy, that's been going on for a long time. But Charlie was so effective at holding that at bay and getting people to focus on things that were much more important, for the future of this nation. And the dividing factor is that you're exactly right. There is a fracture going on within the Republican camp, within maga, Conservative Inc. All of it. Meanwhile, Democrats are running an offensive strategy, and they basically hijacked the message when it comes to Gen Z. You're on college campuses all the time. you host an annual youth summit as well, where you're bringing youth from all across the state. Just kind of like give us a window into how they are thinking because, there's a big change. And I think this is where Boomers and Xers are looking at this, saying, how can you flip your vote so easily? what would you say to all of that? Just to help explain to all of us and to the listeners? Explain to Gen Z.
Jerry Lawson Yeah. there's an element when you go on the college campuses. I do a lot of pick up the mic, prove me wrong type format conversations with young people on college campuses. And, I talk to people that obviously they look like they're far left. I mean, you could profile them and they have the hair color and so forth. they're into the Transgender stuff. That's obvious. The Communists, they're people that are very much for black liberation theology. And, they're all about DEI and they're black supremacist. I mean, effectively, you can put those in one category, but then there's another category of young people, who are, as I mentioned, very, frustrated just with the affordability issue. And those are the people that I think are. You've got to be able to win them back in some way going forward. And if we don't, I think we're in a, in a problematic position. And so I think who our messenger is in 2028 is very important. I think Ron DeSantis is running. It, looks like Ted Cruz is running. JD Vance is probably running. People are asking. Marco is running, but it seems as though he's not at moment. But I think that's. That's important, that we have somebody that can, that can unite our conservative movement in some regard. Maybe, not everybody, but just most everybody. And, you've got to be able to win independent voters. And I think we've lost a lot of the Latinos here in Texas especially. That's important. I think over 40% is. As far as I understand, we're Latino here now. And so all of South Texas was lost. President Trump won Latinos in 2024, but we were in a bad situation. Now, we've got to be able to get Latinos back. And I think, say what you want. I mean, I've been all about the deportations, but maybe we've had some people that just with how ICE has handled certain things, they've been frustrated with that and they've switched to the other side. So you've got to be able to win those voters. And when we're talking about young people, that's, who I'm talking about is those Latinos. Those, voters, are disenfranchised by the war, and they're wondering what kind of opportunities they're going to have in this country. Imagine, per se, just any youth, you go to college and you take out a student loan, to pay for college. And then the statistic is, after you get out of college, it's 55% of people are underemployed. Underemployed. And that doesn't change and doesn't get any better 10 years later. So imagine being 30 years old and underemployed, and you're not working in the career that you went to school for, and you're still paying back your student loans and some of them have to live with their parents until they're able. And then you got Republicans like I'm not criticizing, I'm just pointing out that she got a lot of backlash. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who talks about the 29 year old white kid who's playing video games at their parents house. Well the reason why they're in that situation perhaps is because the economy they don't feel has worked out for them and they don't have the same opportunities for the American dream that their parents had. And then they're flocking to people like Nick Fuentes. And Nick Fuentes is effectively the same as Hasan Piker. They're both pointing people toward the Democrat party. And so you got obvious leftists who are supporting Hasan Piker, but you got people that should be conservative who are supporting Nick Fuentes who's also supporting them toward the Democrat party for different reasons he says, but nevertheless it's still happening. And so that's the climate with the young people. And what we've got to be able to convey and just I'm diagnosing the situation but we've got to be able to convey that socialism, wherever it's tried throughout human history. You look at now in China, you look at Stalin and the Soviet Union, you look at Castro in Cuba, there's so many more I could list but it's brought exile, poverty. people have just been in dire situations and they've had to escape this Rockdale. Cruz, a mentor of mine, says the rafts from Cuba only go one way. There's never been anybody in Florida trying to get a raft to Cuba. Right. They're always getting away from that. And that's the situation is we've gotta be able to explain and convey correctly that throughout human history that socialism, wherever it's been tried, doesn't work. And we've got to be able to message that well and offer capitalism as a solution. And it employs so many people, it provides jobs and opportunities and the, the American dream, the American experiment is built off of this idea of free markets and capitalism. And we've got to be able to convey that well.
Ryan Helfenbein Yeah, so well said. Listen folks, don't punch down at Gen Z. They are the future and we've got to figure out how to win this next generation on the best ideas that will move this nation forward.
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Host Invites Christians To Share The Gospel Through Christmas Traditions
Jenna Ellis welcome back to Jenna Ellis in the Morning on American Family Radio.
Ryan Helfenbein Welcome back to Jenna Ellis in the Morning. I'm Rhyen Helfenbein filling in for Jenna while she's on vacation. Hey, folks, Christmas is coming sooner than you think. And I know we haven't had Thanksgiving yet, and that holiday doesn't, it doesn't skip the other. But some of you have already started your Christmas shopping. Maybe you've put one tree up, two trees up, three trees up. We're a little late to it this year, but normally we have three trees up in our home. Means a lot of trips to Hobby Lobby. but, you go around the country and around the nation, holiday coffees are starting to show up. You know, we're off to the races. Christmas will be here soon. but before that shopping list gets longer and before we find ourselves wondering where December went, I want to talk about the opportunity we have as Christians. You know, so much of our calendar, in the western world, in the United States, it gives us these natural opportunities to talk about our faith. That's certainly true of, Thanksgiving. That's true at Easter where we talk about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And at Christmas, we talk about why Jesus came into this world. And if you think about it, people who would never walk into a church will hear songs about the birth of Jesus. They hear about Bethlehem, the angels and our Savior. Even Richard Dawkins, the most famous atheist, called himself a cultural Christian. He says he loves hymns and Christmas carols, and he hasn't become a believer. But he acknowledges an affection for the Christian culture around him. So that should tell you something about the reach of Christmas. But our opportunity is to do more than just to passively enjoy the atmosphere of this holiday. It's to help people understand the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Not simply that a baby was born in Bethlehem, but that God sent his one and only son to save sinners like you and me. So sometimes we make that, conversation more difficult and more complicated than it needs to be. Jerry Lawson, pastor of Enon Presbyterian church in Ackerman, Mississippi. He's a long time advocate of using AFA's Christmas buttons to start those conversations, giving them to church members, friends, and people he meets throughout the season.
Pastor Jerry Lawson Shares Christmas Buttons As Everyday Witnessing Tools
Jerry, welcome to the program. By the way, good morning to you. You've described these buttons as a conversation starter that opens the door to sharing the gospel. I want to hear your thoughts on all of this and explain to listeners what these are.
Jerry Lawson Well, Ron, it is a joy to be on the radio with you this morning, and, I've never met you down here and probably won't, but I'll see you up there. Because of that babe that was born in Bethlehem, in our community, starting back 26 years ago with Don Wilderman, I started passing out the Christmas buttons. And, in fact, the other day I went by, Ackerman Baptist Church. Danny Irvin is a dear friend of mine. And I said, I want to cause a controversy in your church. And he said, brother Jerry, go ahead. And I said, look, you got a church of hundreds. I'm going to give you a button, a package of 10 buttons. I want you to pass them out, and I want people to come up and demand to get buttons. And, he said, we can order buttons. So I try to cause controversy everywhere. I go with these buttons in churches.
Ryan Helfenbein Yeah, absolutely. And, and so, listen, Christmas, we need to put Christ back in Christmas. There was a war on Christmas many years ago. And look, I don't think culturally that's going away. what do you see as the opportunities at this season that Christians often overlook?
Jerry Lawson Well, for me, every morning when I get up and I'm talking 365 days a year, AFA has made all kinds of Christmas buttons, Easter Easter buttons, Linton buttons available. And, I put that button on that has Jesus on it, and I go out in the community. And it just. I know I've got Jesus with me. He's not only on my shirt, but he's in my heart, and I want to share him. There's so many people out there that so unhappy. And now after this election, you got some people celebrating and you got a lot of people grieving. I just like to go out and put a smile on people's face and give them a button.
Ryan Helfenbein Yeah, absolutely. Listen, and this is something where, you know, I want to encourage people sometimes, you know, we put the bumper sticker on the car. You know, the Christian bumper sticker, the ichthus fish. And we represent Christ wherever we go. By the way, if you put that on your car, Ladies and gentlemen, please drive safely. Drive well. Don't be a maniac. Represent Christ in the kingdom well. But when you wear the T shirt, when you wear the button, there is a message that goes with that. And we have a responsibility as Christians, as believers. This is not a responsibility relegated solely to our pastors, our deacons, in our churches. This is our responsibility. Anybody who bears the name of Christ, we have to represent him well. We carry his name wherever we go. And I love what you just said. This holiday season, man, it could not come quicker. for many of us who are in the blues of this election, I'm so grateful that Christmas is coming. It could not come soon enough because it does bring joy and a smile on my face. My wife, my children, we love Christmas. but there's a reason for that. And what's interesting is that there are many people who do not know the Lord, but are going to be listening to Christmas songs. They're going to be enjoying carols, the lights. The Christmas tree, which is itself. I mean, the history of that is a representation of the gospel. That evergreen tree, that is a tree that is perpetually green, even in the cold and the dead of winter. You go back to the history even of that and Martin Luther. so many things in our culture bear the name of Jesus. How easy it is for us to share the gospel. And then Brother Jerry, also, how easy it is for us as Christians to forget that we are the messengers.
Jerry Lawson Well, you're exactly right. I give buttons to people. And then I'll see them a few days later, and I'll ask them where their button's at, and they'll say, oh, I left it on the refrigerator. I left it on the dresser. And I tell them it's a whole lot easier to put it on your shirt than to take your dresser or your refrigerator with you. But if you're going to leave your Christmas button at the house, you've probably left Jesus at the house as well. And I like what you said, Ron. If you're going to put a Christian sticker on your car, drive like a Christian. And if you're going to put a Christian button on your shirt, then act like Christ.
Ryan Helfenbein Yeah. Amen. Amen. And so, you know, I want to be able to, you know, tell people about this, where to get these.
Listeners Encouraged To Wear Buttons And Share Scripture With Others
These AFA Christmas buttons come in packs of 10 with free shipping. The idea is simple. Wear one, share the others with friends, neighbors, people at church, or someone you meet while you're out Christmas shopping. and just for those who are listening, you can order, and wear them. you can go on resources.aca.net or by calling 1-877-927-4917. Brother Jerry, I wanted to ask you about this. Do you have a few favorite scripture or a favorite, way, in a kind of a gospel conversation that you might have with people? Do you have a go to passage that you use or maybe some verses that you use, that would help people, when sharing their faith?
Jerry Lawson Proverbs 11:25 says that he who brings a blessing will be blessed, and he who waters will be watered. When, when you're blessing other people. And I can tell you this from personal testimony, I mean, over my lifetime, when you're a blessing to others, God gives the blessing back and even more, so I want to live my life to be a blessing for others and doing so. I have joy in my heart every day and I just look forward to serving the Lord and being a blessing for others.
Ryan Helfenbein Amen. Amen. By the way, where you water? Years, ago, I remember, Pastor Rick Warren way out in California saying something along the lines of, you know, people often say, the grass is greener on the other side. No, the grass is greener where you water. And so we have to recognize, I mean, it goes back to Isaiah 55 and the word of God, that just as the rain falls from heaven and waters, the whole earth gives seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall it be with my word that goes forth, it will accomplish all the purposes for which God has sent it. And, by the way, that's a good one to memorize, for Christians, but just to recognize that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of Good things. All who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. And so I just want to encourage brothers and sisters, if you're listening, that passage is not for your pastor. That passage is for you.
Jerry Lawson Yes,
Ryan Helfenbein that pastor, is for you. It's for me. we use this radio broadcast not only to share, news and information and we don't want it to be all doom and gloom. the world has not ended today. And until Jesus returns, we need to occupy, and we need to advance and we need to proclaim the gospel which is life giving news, that Jesus Christ saves sinners.
Children And Christmas Witnessing Illustrate Joy And Enduring Christian Hope
And, and Christmas is such a blessed hope because it's a reminder of why Christ has come. Brother Jerry, you know, I do want to ask you this. Have you seen. This would be, you know who wears the buttons? Do you see kids wearing the buttons? is it all just grown adults or kids as well?
Jerry Lawson Children love the buttons. I had a grandmother. The other day I was passing out buttons and I ran out and there was one grandmother that was there I didn't have a button for. And I felt so bad I had to go back to the house. And I said, I'm going to see you in the next day or two and I'm going to give you a button. And she said, I look forward to it. So we were at the Friday night ball game and here she comes and I've got a button with a magnet on the back of it. And I go running over and hug her. And I said, I've got a button for you. And I realized, realized I made a mistake. She had five grandchildren with her and all five wanted that button. And, so I had to go get her a bag of buttons then. But, if you're going to pass out buttons, especially to grandmothers, make sure they don't have grandchildren with them. Kids love the buttons. I cut the little pin off the back of them and I put magnets on there so a child will not stick themselves.
Ryan Helfenbein Wow, good. And so, by the way, I have four kids, and they're all various ages. I've got teenagers. I've got, a daughter that is an elementary school age. And then I've got a toddler. And I'll just tell you, it's the sweet smiles of children that often warms and softens the heart of many people. And, young and old. And I'll just tell you, it's out of the mouth of babes that the Lord often reveals truth. And it's out of the mouth of babes that the Lord brings forth praise. And, children are a blessing and a heritage to the Lord, like arrows in the hands of a strong warrior. Right. They are so important not only for the future, but also for the present. And my kids amaze me oftentimes, in, their ability to articulate the message of the gospel and the hope of Jesus Christ. And often they do it so often, actually, every time, they do it with joy. Yes. There's not a meanness, when it comes to children. And so I think that's important for people to recognize, too, is that even in dark times, Brother Jerry, even in times where people say it's all ending, the Lord, his promises endure. the grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of God stands forever. And even in difficult times, even in trials and tribulations, we have to recognize that Jesus Christ has overcome the world. And that message is powerful. And so we need to share it with others.
Pastor Ends With Hopeful Witness And Final Preborn Life Appeal
we just got a couple more minutes, but do you have any other, Any other stories about these buttons, and how they have changed somebody's life?
Jerry Lawson Well, Ron, a few minutes ago you mentioned that, a lot of people, you look at them and it's doom and gloom. I don't care how bad it gets out there. If Christ is within you, you're going to blossom and you're going to bloom and you're going to produce fruit for the kingdom of God. And that's going to bring joy into your life, the light of God into your life. Even as dark as the world gets, you can walk in the light.
Ryan Helfenbein Yes. Amen. Brother Jerry, thank you so much. So well, well said. Thank you to all the listeners listening to Jenna Ellis in the morning. We'll be back tomorrow with more news. God.
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Filling in for Jenna Ellis, Ryan Helfenbein examines the political fallout from the midterm elections, with a focus on Texas and the Democratic campaign’s success in making affordability a kitchen-table issue. Guests Nate Schatzline and Christian Collins discuss what conservatives can learn from the results, how young and Latino voters are thinking about the economy and foreign policy, and why fractured messaging may be costing Republicans support.The conversation also turns from politics to faith and everyday witness. Pastor Jerry Lawson shares how a simple Christmas button can open the door to a meaningful conversation about Jesus, and why Christians should carry the hope of the Gospel into their communities throughout the holiday season.
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