TToday's Issues continues on AFR with your Host, Tim Wildmon, president of the American Family Association.
>> Tim Wildmon: Welcome to Today's Issues on the American Family Radio Network. Tim Wesley now, Steve Paisley Jordan joins us.
>> Steve Jordahl: Good morning, everybody.
>> Tim Wildmon: And Ray Pritchard. So Steve's rocking the. You got a loud paisley shirt on today.
>> Steve Jordahl: A brand new. I went and I told you a couple weeks ago I was getting a little tired of the paper, my closet. So, yeah, I went shopping, got some new paisley. And I gotta blame you for all this. I like it.
>> Tim Wildmon: I like it. I make one of those.
>> Wesley Wildmon: I'm gonna make you answer this question again, even though you've answered it before. You know, we're in summertime in July, Mississippi.
>> Tim Wildmon: I did put the long sleeve shirt.
>> Wesley Wildmon: On, go in and give our, Give our audience the answer. Yeah, it's 72 degrees, 70 degr inside.
>> Tim Wildmon: Hey, it's a nice shirt.
I've concluded that God's not the problem, he's a solution
>> Wesley Wildmon: Hey, I want to put, I want to put a bow on our last, segment where I think we can all agree on here and that, that I've always, I've concluded, over my years on.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yep.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Pondering that idea and studying the Bible.
>> Tim Wildmon: And then why bad things happen to.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Good people, so to speak, that God's not the problem. He's a solution to the problem. That's what I've concluded.
>> Tim Wildmon: Oh, that's good.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Not the problem. He's a solution.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. Amen.
JJ Jasper is traveling across Africa discussing what's happening in Nigeria
All right, well, listen, our colleague and friend JJ Jasper is on the other side of the world and we talked to him earlier this morning. We, the. Obviously the phone. And he agreed to join us to tell us what's. What's happening in Nigeria.
>> Steve Jordahl: Kenya.
>> Tim Wildmon: But he's also going to talk about Nigeria. He's going to go all over Africa.
>> Steve Jordahl: Discussing, J.J. jambo. Jambo.
A political uprising in Kenya has left some people dead and injured
a lot of stuff going on in Nairobi, Kenya. And I know you are in Nairobi visiting, or coming to bring your daughter who is working at a Christian school there in Kenya, bring her back. And, you were looking forward to a nice, wonderful vacation type experience with her. And it's turned into a little. Something a little more stressful. How you doing and what's going on there?
>> JJ Jasper: We're doing well, but a political uprising, they're very unhappy with their president and they want to oust him. and so, we heard the chatter. I heard them talking about it when I was in London on a layover. And people said, boy, you picked a bad time to go to Africa with how volatile it is. So we got here on Sunday night, Monday, Maddie had my daughter Maddie, a teacher at Rift Valley Academy in Kajabi, Kenya. Teacher, missionary. She had taken off work on Monday. We were going to take a couple of hours and go to a, to go to a safari. Well then we started hearing from all of the security Rift Valley has. They have great security. In fact, some of their security, it's the off duty people that are at the American Embassy and they have a guard, they've got razor wire, the entire campuses, fenced in. They've got German shepherd dogs. But the head of security reached out and they said that there is a planned insurrection. They're going to be blocking the roads. From our driver who we had hired, he was telling us the same thing. We were hearing it in the news. And then the head of security said it's too dangerous for you to try to drive back to the campus. And so then our driver put it in real candid terms. He said they're going to be blocking the roads with all these rocks and things and they're going to be throwing stones and then they'll set a few vehicles on fire and there's going to be gunfire. In fact there was somebody killed. we know of one, possibly more. So then we were stranded in Nairobi, for a couple of days. And then last night, you know, we were talking to the head of security, we're talking to our driver, he was calling people he knew in our plan. They said if we just slip out early in the morning, this morning, to leave at 4:00', clock, 4, 4:30 to get down the road in front of while the bad actors, while the protesters, the rioters were still sleeping. So we slipped out of, of a little town, Rong Don, Kenya, Africa. They're just a suburb of Nairobi and already we saw you know, burning tires, we saw rubble waist high. We had to zigzag around the rubble. It wasn't quite Black Hawk down, but it was absolutely Los Angeles ish. And so it's a little scary when you're from America and you're driving through some of that and just, you know, the driver told us just stay down to avoid a stray bullet. That's not what you want to hear when you're in an Uber. But he you know, but we did see a lot of police presence even at four in the morning and a lot of construction cleaning up some of the things that were across the road. So we made it safely. Two hour drive from Nairobi to Kajabi Kenya, two hours away. It's not a problem here. And, this campus, I got a chance to do some devotions with the kids. I've got to see where Maddie lives and serves. But for the whole nation, they really need our prayers. there really is. As I mentioned, we were driving around burning tires, seeing all this rubble, and, I don't know how many fatalities from.
>> Tim Wildmon: Well, yeah, jj.
>> JJ Jasper: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: Jj, Jasper, our friend and colleague joining us from, Kenya, where his daughter has been serving there. What's the name of the school?
>> JJ Jasper: It's Rift Valley Academy, an amazing, school.
>> Tim Wildmon: And so, he's J.J. and Maddie there. And so what. What. What is making. in fact, on NBC News, it says at least 10 killed and Nairobi, locked down as police.
>> JJ Jasper: Yeah, they were locking us down. They were telling everybody, don't travel, don't go anywhere.
>> Tim Wildmon: So when are you supposed to go there? When are you supposed to go the airport?
>> JJ Jasper: I think we're going to be in good shape. It's this weekend. And so they said. Our driver, who's a native, he said that, this happens. It was a scheduled uprising. he said that it happens for a couple of days. They just want to flex their muscles. It's the younger people, primarily. He told us there's a lot of corruption in the government, and the nationals are very unhappy with their president. So they just want to protest and riot, and then it just settles back down.
>> Steve Jordahl: I can tell you the history of it, if it's. If anyone's interested, but, there is a level 2 travel advisory from the State Department out right now for Kenya.
>> Wesley Wildmon: So.
>> Steve Jordahl: And that means to exercise increased caution, which, jj, I'm sure that you're already doing, given what you're seeing there, right?
>> JJ Jasper: M. Absolutely.
>> Steve Jordahl: Yeah.
>> JJ Jasper: And we wouldn't have. Look, I was traveling with my daughter. We weren't going to take any chances. And so whenever the driver and the head of security said, yes, that's your best plan, is to leave early in the morning. If we came up on any sketchy situation, turn around and go back. And so we were able to slip through. We didn't see anything. We saw a, massive police presence. Lots and lots of police. Four in the morning, their police, you know, just vehicles after vehicles, just clusters of police and construction crews clearing the debris. Like, we had to just go down one lane because the boulders and the rocks and the broken concrete, blocks were waist tied. But I've got to say, in my lifetime, I've never experienced anything like that. And it puts a you know, with us just celebrating the fourth of July and living in a safe, clean, wonderful country and not living in a third world country. Guys, we got a lot to be thankful for.
Tim wants you to talk about Nigeria. JJ Jasper says he's fine
>> Steve Jordahl: Hey, jj, Tim wants you to talk about Nigeria.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> JJ Jasper: Hey, look, he. He knew Nairobi. Nairobi, Nigeria.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, it's easy for an American to get, get these countries mixed up on in, in. In other parts of the world. All right, thanks. Take care. jj, be safe. We'll pray for you and Maddie and and we'll look forward to seeing when you get home.
>> JJ Jasper: Well, we're going to make it just fine. I'm posting some pics on Facebook. JJ Jasper official on Facebook. And, we really appreciate the prayers. I didn't say much about how volatile it was. I didn't want to get mama and church members and everybody too concerned. But we do appreciate your prayers and we're fine now. It's gonna settle down. We're gonna make it back to the airport, make it home safe and sound.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay?
Kenyan Christians, wonderful gospel is moved in big parts of Kenyan society
Thank you. That's J.J. jasper joining us. What was his Facebook page? J.J. jasper official.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Yep. J.J. jasper.
>> Tim Wildmon: Somebody got. Is there some J.J. jasper?
>> Wesley Wildmon: No, I think he's got two accounts. So I think he's got the one he started originally and then one that he uses more for ministry. I guess. I'm not sure. I think that explains it. Right?
>> Tim Wildmon: You ever been to, Kenya? I have.
>> Tim Wildmon: I've been to Nigeria. Yeah, I've been to Kenya and everything. I have not seen it exactly like that, but the instability of. I was going to say Kenya, but let's face it, most of the, most of the governments m of Africa, very similar and been there when they told us stay inside and avoid this area and that area. Kenyan Christians, wonderful gospel is moved in big parts of Kenyan society, but it is politically unstable. And so, I'm glad to get that report from J.J. and come on back home.
>> Steve Jordahl: Yeah. All right, moving on.
Federal judge blocks Big Beautiful bill's defunding of Planned Parenthood
Next, let's talk about a new, federal judge who on Monday put a 14 day block on the Big Beautiful bill's defunding of, Planned Parenthood. It didn't defund it by name, but it did refuse to put any tax dollars towards abortion. And this judge, her name is Indira Talwani. She is an appointee of former president Barack Obama. She has put a 14 day injunction on that part of the Big beautiful bill.
>> Wesley Wildmon: What was her name again?
>> Steve Jordahl: Indira Talwani. TL T A L W a N I.
House Republicans passed a bill that defunded Planned Parenthood from taxpayer money
>> Tim Wildmon: All right, so, by the way, We've, I don't know that we mentioned this. Congratulations and thank you for the, House Republicans primarily. I don't know if there are any Democrats who voted for this, but I don't think so. And that included in the big beautiful bill, a first and that is the defunding, at least for a year of the largest abortion provider in America, Planned Parenthood.
>> Tim Wildmon: Now Planned Parenthood is an organization, they do do other things than abortion, but that's how they make their money. Okay. Is, they are the number one provider of abortion. They do more abortions than any other entity in the United States.
>> Wesley Wildmon: That's what they primarily do as a. Go ahead.
>> Tim Wildmon: And so, they also get money from the federal government. They have a lot of money. Like what, tens of millions or hundreds of millions?
>> Wesley Wildmon: I think it's hundreds of millions of.
>> Steve Jordahl: Yeah, multiple, multiple millions per year. And I. Sorry, I didn't look up the number.
>> Wesley Wildmon: I'll look it up. I'm pretty sure 700 million.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay, yes, I think you're right. So pro life people and people who are, I think fair minded have argued over over the years, this shouldn't be. So you can, if you want to advocate for abortion rights, go ahead, but don't use tax dollars to do actual abortions. This was the, the so called Hyde Amendment that existed for a long time and still exists, but it was, it was circumvented by a technicality that I can't explain nor would. And I would bore people to tears if I tried to. So just to say this, the big beautiful bill defunded Planned Parenthood or any organization that does abortions from taxpayer money. So that is worth celebrating.
Wesley Morris: This judge is way out of line on abortion issue
Okay, now here, this. But as has happened with President Trump in the last few months, some liberal judge steps in, federal judge steps in and says, no, I'll decide, what's constitutional and what's not. Not the legislature, not President Trump and the legislature. The legislative process was carried out as it is intended to do. And this one judge steps in and says, no, I think I want to protect the abortion industry. Now this is a temporary 14 day.
>> Steve Jordahl: block and that gives it time for courts to wade through some of the legal issues.
>> Tim Wildmon: But in my humble opinion, this judge has no to even stop this for two weeks. This is legislation.
>> Wesley Wildmon: That's right.
>> Tim Wildmon: This is codified law. This is not a executive order by the President which can change based on who other president is. This is a legislative, this is legislate legislative, statutory. So this judge is way out of line again and will be struck down ultimately by the Supreme Court if she needs to be. Is it a she.
>> Steve Jordahl: She.
>> Tim Wildmon: Go ahead, Wesley.
>> Wesley Wildmon: yes. However, one or two things needs to happen, because as you pointed out, this is distinguishably different than executive order. Like the one where Trump, was sending executive order to send illegal criminals, aliens that have invaded the country back to another. To a, country of our choosing, or however that was worded. That was held up in court for a time, and then it was later.
>> Tim Wildmon: That was an executive order.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Executive order. I'm just saying. I'm making sure we understand the difference here, because I agree with you. There's a big difference. That's Trump making an executive order pretty much himself by the stroke of a pen. Okay. Only now we've already covered and assumed that that's his duties because he's the. Because he, as a president, is responsible for protecting our country. But that was what was held up in court. However, this is one that, as. As you pointed out, it's been passed through and signed.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right.
>> Wesley Wildmon: By, by the. By both committees. Like it's Houses.
>> Tim Wildmon: Both.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Both houses. And so this is not something that just essentially one person did.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right.
>> Wesley Wildmon: and so all that to say to make the point that one or two things needs to happen. One, she needs to just be completely ignored. Completely ignored. Or number two, the option two is that when this does go to the Supreme Court and she is ruled to be wrong, there needs to be. She needs. There needs to be a consequence.
>> Tim Wildmon: I agree.
>> Wesley Wildmon: One of the two things, because you can't just.
>> Tim Wildmon: I know. Need to be. She needs to be impeached. but anyway, there's.
>> Steve Jordahl: There's nothing about the fact that it is a law passed by Congress that precludes the Supreme Court or a federal court from taking up a case. A controversy can be one that Congress passed. Congress could not pass a law, for example, that said, we're going to reinstate slavery.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Right.
>> Steve Jordahl: Because that would run afoul of the 15th Amendment, plus a whole lot of other things. So,
>> Tim Wildmon: Oh, yeah, there is judicial review for a valid reason, but this is not one of them. This is a discretionary spending of money. There's nothing constitutional about it, or unconstitutional about it. There's nowhere in the Constitution does it say, and thus it will be required of the United States federal government to fund Planned Parenthood.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yep.
>> Tim Wildmon: No, no, there's nothing like that.
>> Wesley Wildmon: I got our answer to it's just north of 3 million 3. Sorry. It's just north of $300 million. Well, in taxpayer money that's primarily goes through Medicaid to fund abortions.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. So, good for the Republican, in the House and the Senate and President Trump. This one bad on this judge.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Yeah, yeah.
IRS says churches can endorse political candidates to their congregants
>> Tim Wildmon: Next story.
>> Steve Jordahl: All right, well, we got some good news. depending on who the administration is, the federal government, argues for or against the same thing. Now, the IRS said on Monday that churches and other houses of worship can endorse political candidates to their congregations. It's now. Okay, Ray, if you're the pastor of a church in Kansas City there for you to say, we got a, come upcoming election and you need to elect Joe Brown to the, as the governor of this state because the other candidate is bad for.
>> Tim Wildmon: Or you can say, look, we want this person on the school board. Right? Just your people. Vote for, vote for Mary Smith to be on the school board or somebody to be a trustee.
>> Wesley Wildmon: That's right.
>> Tim Wildmon: of a city, basically any elected official. Churches. Let me say this. Churches have been moving in that direction for a long time and there are some churches where the pastors have been doing this for a long time. And I think the IRS has recognized, recognized this and said we're just, we're not going to try to police this anymore.
>> Steve Jordahl: What the IRS said is the agency said that if a house of worship endorsed a candidate to its congregants, the IRS would view that not as a campaigning but as a private matter, like a family discussion concerning candidates. I thought that was an interesting.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay, does that mean, that's a slippery slope right there, isn't it, Steve? I mean, I get it, I get it. What a pastor says to his congregation on Sunday morning. Okay, fine, but what if that as nearly all services are live streamed today, right. Or post it on the Internet. So what happens in the church house isn't going to necessarily stay there.
>> Steve Jordahl: Alliance Defending Freedom, years ago tried to bait the IRS into enforcing what's known as the Johnson Amendment, which is the one, the amendment that says that you're not supposed to be able to use churches for political or nonprofits for political means, churches specifically. And so they did what they called the Pulpit Project and they actually had pastors, they signed up dozens of them every year on a certain date to preach a sermon, trying their best to run afoul of whatever this Johnson Amendment was to try to get because they wanted this. They knew that it was an unconstitutional ban. They wanted it to go through the courts and have the court rule it such. The IRS never bit. They never once came after these pastors who were going and doing exactly what, the. The, They're now allowed to do.
>> Tim Wildmon: So, you know, Steve, black churches have been. I mean, they. They've been very active politically. I, I can remember now, this goes back. I was in seminary in Texas. So this takes us back a half a century to the 1970s. It was. It was early November 1976. I was in the third year at Dallas Seminary. And in the. In the town where I was serving as an assistant pastor somewhere, some little town outside of Dallas, there's a black Baptist church that our church had some sort of fellowship with. And the pastor said, ray, why don't you go preach for them? And I said, when he said, it's the Sunday, you know, first Sunday of November, I didn't think anything of it. And I went over there and. Sweetest, sweet congregation, friendly people. Pastor couldn't have been nicer. And great preaching environment. But I've never forgotten this before. I, Before I was going to get up and preach, this was when it was Jimmy Carter versus Gerald Ford, 76. And, the pastor got up and he looked at me, said, now you might not hear this, what I'm about to say in your church.
>> Steve Jordahl: I just.
>> Tim Wildmon: I kind of went, you know, fine. It's your church, brother. Say whatever you want to say. And he said now to the congregation of my people said, you know, we know Gerald Ford's a good man and all this, but he said, you ought to take your friend to the polling place. You got to go in there with him, and if you see they're about to vote for, for Gerald Ford, you need to go in there and take their hand and move it over. It's what he said to move it over and have him vote for Jimmy Carter.
>> Steve Jordahl: Well, that worked out well, huh?
>> Wesley Wildmon: no surprise. I've seen stuff like that many times.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, and, you know, it didn't even bother. Bother me. It was. It was his church. And I think the IRS is saying.
>> Steve Jordahl: It'Ll be interesting to see the next Democratic administration. If the IRS holds to this, it's a lawsuit that is being, adjudicated. So if there's a decision in, will probably, have some more staying power.
The Velvet Sundown is an AI band created with the support of artificial intelligence
Hey, I want to end with this. I have a new favorite band. It's called the Velvet Sundown. And they have a song out that is, It's trending. It's on Spotify. It's one of the top songs I just Want to play a little bit of it? This this is called Dust on the wind. Cut 15.
>> Tim Wildmon: Dust on the wind, Boots on the ground, Smoke in the sky.
>> Steve Jordahl: That is, that is the Velvet Sundown, which actually is an AI band. Nothing you heard there. The lyrics, the, the music, the.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Voice is real and, and it didn't generate from another person so to speak. It just generated from a.
>> Steve Jordahl: What they. This is how they describe themselves as a synthetic music project guided by human creative direction and composed voiced and visualized with the support of artificial intelligence. They got pictures of the band, they got a video out, the whole bit.
>> Tim Wildmon: Well are you saying that's ah. I mean you could listen to them on Spotify.
>> Steve Jordahl: More than a million people a month follow this band on Spotify.
>> Wesley Wildmon: So then who gets the revenue from that? Whoever created somebody.
>> Tim Wildmon: Somebody's racking it up.
>> Steve Jordahl: Somebody is. The It's interesting the, the comments under the the list here. They say this song brings back so many good memories of 100-11-1001010.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Well, you know, my generation is really, really pushed back on the fake stuff. Seriously. Yeah, that it's going to be. I'll be real interesting to see how they. How AIs handled amongst my generation for that reason.
>> Tim Wildmon: A little clip we heard. Yeah, good.
>> Tim Wildmon: I prefer Kansas. Dust in the Wind.
>> Steve Jordahl: I know I was. I know title is a little Derivative.
>> Wesley Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: Now as I've said, listen, if AI, ah, as fake as it may be, can cause Mississippi State to win a football national championship.
>> Tim Wildmon: Small price.
>> Tim Wildmon: I'm gonna go. I'm gonna go with that. Okay.
>> Tim Wildmon: I'm for it, whatever it takes.
>> Steve Jordahl: I'm running a story that says x. Say there's a 30 chance AI is going to kill us all.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay, we'll be back tomorrow. See you then.
