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>> Welcome to Today's Issues, offering a Christian response to the issues of the day. Here's your host, Tim Wildmon, president of the American Family Association.
>> Tim Wildmon: Hey, good morning everybody and welcome to Today's Issues on the American Family Radio Network. Thanks for listening to AFR on this Monday, May 18, 2026. Joining me in studio is Ed Battagliano. Good morning, brother Ed.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Good morning Tim.
>> Tim Wildmon: And Fred Jackson.
>> Fred Jackson: Hi there Tim.
>> Tim Wildmon: Your brother too, Fred. And we appreciate everybody listening to the show. Did you have a good weekend? Did you here? I did.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Had a good weekend. Went to saw you there. Went to the wedding of J.J. jasper's daughter, one of his many one. So that was, that was nice. And I will say this. The wedding was at 10:30 in the morning. Yeah, I liked it. Being in the morning.
>> Tim Wildmon: I did too because I didn't at first I thought, wow, this is I never heard of a wedding in the morning, but yeah. Why did you like it?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Well, because the rest of the day is free. I mean if you have a wedding like at 2 o', clock, then the whole day you're thinking about, we got what time we got to leave and then you know, two you get home,
>> Tim Wildmon: that's your daughter, whole day.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Right.
>> Tim Wildmon: Am I right?
>> Fred Jackson: That's right.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Fred Jackson: Ed didn't say it. If it's at 2 o', clock, the whole day's ruined.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, well, I shouldn't have said it like that. That was.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Listen, we, you may not should have said it, but we're all thinking it.
>> Tim Wildmon: But yeah, you have your wedding at 10:30 in the morning, you're done by noon, everybody's happy.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Everybody's happy.
>> Tim Wildmon: And they get away on their honeymoon early.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Early.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. So what's wrong with that? Who says a wedding has to be at 2 in the afternoon?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Right. That's what I'm saying.
>> Tim Wildmon: Even 5:30. So we want to thank the Jasper family. Thank the Jasper about everybody else.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah. And the Holloway holiday and yes, holiday.
>> Tim Wildmon: and the, and the Jaspers.
>> Fred Jackson: So send a note to all the wedding planners out there listening.
>> Ed Vitagliano: That's right.
>> Fred Jackson: Schedule the wedding, everybody.
>> Tim Wildmon: That Means the catering service has to get up at 4 in the morning. But other than that.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Well, it's not like they don't earn a pretty penny, so.
>> Tim Wildmon: But anyway.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, but anyway. Otherwise it was very, very good weekend.
>> Tim Wildmon: You know, Alison, I were talking that May is probably second only to December, maybe even first in terms of busyness, for people because you got weddings, you got graduation graduations, you've got a lot of people vacations, you've got
>> Ed Vitagliano: schools just ending up in terms of
>> Tim Wildmon: end of year school events.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yep.
>> Tim Wildmon: You got. We had dance recitals for a couple of our granddaughters on Saturday. Did you have, you have that going on?
>> Ed Vitagliano: There are awards days, baseball game where parents and grandparents.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, it is very busy, very busy time. So. anyway, we hope your May is eventful and non eventful at the same time.
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all right. I have a, A letter I wanted to read briefly and then we'll get to the news of the day. This came across my desk this morning. this is a listener. Dear folks, I, recently discovered AFR and wish to help with the donation. At 91 years old, I'm practically homebound. Oh, listen to this. Isn't this sweet? Now every night I can worship with your station, especially the old hymns I have loved since childhood. She listens a lot overnight, I guess because we don't play music during this show.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Right.
>> Tim Wildmon: you really, you really talking about AFR bring me so much joy. I have also written many songs and have a collection of musical instruments which I play with, not having formal musical training. Thank you so much for your station, Evelyn. And she says, P.S. i'm, also a prayer warrior and will often pray for you and your ministry. This is Evan evelyn in Lafayette, Louisiana. So isn't it.
>> Ed Vitagliano: That's,
>> Tim Wildmon: 91. She just discovered our station at 91 years of age.
>> Fred Jackson: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: so, all right, well, thank you Evelyn, for your kind words to praying for us and for your making a financial donation. you know, the best, really, way to spread the word about American Family Radio. If people want to know how can I help you is just word of mouth. Just tell somebody.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah. Or send an email to a friend or just anyone just tell about the app if they don't have a terrestrial radio station in their community. You know, everybody who listens has family members, friends, maybe church members who would want to know. And you'd be surprised how many people don't know about American Family Radio. So our listeners are the best right avenue, for us to get to get the word Out.
>> Tim Wildmon: I liken it to, you know, if you tell somebody about a restaurant.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: They're going to. That's a friend of yours. They're going to listen to what you have to say because they value your opinion. And they're going to go visit that restaurant sooner or later. Same thing. If you tell somebody that you know would appreciate knowing about American Family Radio. Tell them where we are on the Dow, help them download the app, whatever the case may be. Because, you're never as. As Evelyn, you're never too old to start listening.
>> Ed Vitagliano: And it's a good spiritual meal, if you will. Listening to afr. You get all kinds of things at the buffet that we provide. Oh, I'm going to just keep going
>> Tim Wildmon: with the food metaphor. Everybody likes them. That's right. Anyway, what got me is she said at, 91 years old, she says, I'm practically homebound. But she listens to American Family Radio. So pray for everybody. Pray for Evelyn.
>> Ed Vitagliano: And Evelyn, if you're listening right now, God bless you. Thank you for listening, and thank you for that sweet letter.
>> Tim Wildmon: Amen. Handwritten letter.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, handwritten.
>> Tim Wildmon: Handwritten letter. She's got great handwriting. Better than me.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I agree.
>> Tim Wildmon: She's 91.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Way better than yours.
>> Tim Wildmon: 63. You agree with me. Are you agreeing? Criticizing my handwriting?
>> Ed Vitagliano: I don't even. I couldn't even pick yours out. I just thought I'd agree with you
>> Tim Wildmon: as long as we've known each other.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: matter of fact, I didn't see much of your handwriting either. Most of it's just emails and texts. Right. All right, Fred, what do you got for us this morning?
Thousands gathered on the National Mall this weekend for Christian rededication
>> Fred Jackson: Well, on the weekend in Washington, D.C. the National Mall in particular, there were thousands of people that gathered for what was called Rededication 2025. And it was a time. 20, 25, 20. Pardon me. rededication. 250 there.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I.
>> Fred Jackson: 250.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay.
>> Fred Jackson: All right. I jumped ahead there.
>> Tim Wildmon: I see what you did there.
>> Fred Jackson: Yes. But, thousands gathered there. And it was a time when, Christians celebrated, many interesting speakers, including the Vice President of the United States. was there J.D. Vance. This is what he had to say. Cut number three.
>> Ed Vitagliano: From William Bradford's own Pilgrim Proclamation in 1623 to the opening prayer of our first Continental Congress, to Lincoln's call for national thanksgiving in the midst of the Civil War, to this very gathering today. We have always been and still are a nation of prayer. And thank God for that. Jon Adams famously said that our Constitution was made only for a moral and Religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other. It was obvious to the founders that our faith was the ground upon. Upon which America stands. It was our very foundation as a people.
>> Fred Jackson: Now, as you might expect, there were some people who expressed concern. This was put on by the president's kind of faith advisors group that's there at the White House. Pastor Robert Jeffress is part of that group, and he was interviewed on Friday, On Friday, prior to the event, because he knew, and it did happen, that there was going to be these charges. Celebration of Christian nationalism, you know, and people mean that in a very derogatory way. Well, have a listen to what Pastor Jeffress had to say. He's pastor, of course, of First Baptist Dallas. Cut number four.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Whenever Christians get historical, the left gets hysterical. I think of Jon Jay, the first chief justice of the Supreme Court. He said, in this Christian nation, God has given us the privilege of choosing our leaders. In the 1800s, the Supreme Court over and over again talked about America as a Christian nation. A few years ago, two professors from the University of Houston did a study of 15,000 documents from our founding fathers to discover whom they quoted the most. They found overwhelmingly that our founding fathers quoted the Bible more than any other source. Ken Woodward, the author of that article, said historians are coming to realize that the Bible, perhaps even more than the Constitution itself, is our nation's founding document.
>> Fred Jackson: All right, there you have it.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Good. Excellent summary. It is Pastor Jeffress. He's, one of those pastors who understands the importance of the Christian faith not only to our founding, but to our survival as, as a nation. And, that's a, that's an excellent, summary. and, and, you know, wall builders, for example, they have even more detail in terms of the founding generation. You know, quotes and prayers and calls to national repentance. And our history is chock full of all that kind of evidence of the Christian foundations of this nation. but the secularists and the Supreme Court in the middle of the last century started trying to strip that away. And we have been paying in spades in terms of, moral and national cultural decay. It's been tragic.
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>> Tim Wildmon: What does spades mean?
>> Ed Vitagliano: In spades.
>> Tim Wildmon: Paying in spade. What does that mean?
>> Ed Vitagliano: I don't know. That's probably some card reference. Probably shouldn't have used that.
>> Tim Wildmon: But you said it.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, I don't know. That's a good question. I use expressions all the time that I don't know the origins of. And I see the look on your face. This is pure Mischief on your part.
>> Tim Wildmon: I just. I've heard that expression before, but I just don't know what it means. But spades is a card game.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: I don't want us to be accused of encouraging gambling. That's my only hesitancy about using spades. You want to look it up real quick?
>> Ed Vitagliano: I'm looking up. It says, in large amounts, to a very great degree.
>> Fred Jackson: Okay.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I'm trying to. Let's see. look for origin. Meaning origins.
>> Tim Wildmon: Take your time.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, well, you're the one that brought this up.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. And, I'll just whistle for our listeners. How about that? so, okay.
>> Ed Vitagliano: The idiom stems, by the way. So paying off in spades means that an effort, investment, or decision resulted in a substantial, overwhelming, or highly rewarding success. So I actually used it improperly because it seems to have a positive meaning. I was talking the opposite. But the idiom stems from the card game contract bridge, which was popular in the United States during the early 20th century. In bridge, spades are the highest ranking suit, meaning that holding or winning tricks with spades confers a significant point advantage and often guarantees victory.
>> Tim Wildmon: Well, I'm sorry.
>> Fred Jackson: I,
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. But I appreciate the detailed answer.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: Well, you know, you know, for future reference, that you're, paying his page is actually a positive thing, right?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes. And just so you know.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Payback is coming to you.
>> Tim Wildmon: It will be. Because that's the Christian way, isn't it, Ed?
>> Ed Vitagliano: That's right. And it. And it probably won't pay off in spades.
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>> Tim Wildmon: All right, you're listening to today's issues on American Family Radio. Fred, what's your next story?
>> Fred Jackson: Well, you know, the NHL playoffs are on right now, so we want to dedicate the rest of the show. I'm only kidding, because that would be Ed and I talking.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah. And our teams are already out.
>> Fred Jackson: That's right. Yeah. Big game tonight, by the way.
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Anyway, but there is an interesting, sport, political sport going on right now, and it appears that the Republicans are winning the redistricting, battle. very interesting. The Supreme Court ruling just, a few weeks ago that basically said that, parties in power cannot use race to determine the parameters of a district. Well, that has set off a redistricting boom in various states. on Friday, the longtime Democratic, member of Congress, from the Memphis area, Steve Cohen, he quit because of a redistricting rule in the Memphis area. He's been a member of Congress for a long time. Remember, he appeared at a hearing eating a bucket of chicken Remember that one?
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Fred Jackson: Anyway, he's gone, and this is happening in various places. why?
>> Tim Wildmon: Because, his district is now going to be more Republican. Is that what you're saying?
>> Fred Jackson: Yes. A predominantly black district.
>> Tim Wildmon: He's a white guy, which.
>> Fred Jackson: He's a white guy which tends to vote Democrat.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Fred Jackson: But he, in this case, he's a white guy. Now the Democrats are, They're talking Jim Crow and that, you know, the Republicans are motivated by racism. But that. I wanted to mention that case because Steve Cohen is white now. He's Democrat.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Fred Jackson: All right. Well, there's, there's another aspect to this, by the way. South Carolina, they're in special session today. The governor there has called a special session, to deal with redistricting. And coming out of that session today in South Carolina, it could mean seven districts will favor all Republicans. so this is.
>> Tim Wildmon: Did the Democrats start this fight, though, with that Virginia situation, or was it already been going on before?
>> Fred Jackson: President Trump started this. Ah. And I think, one of his targets was Illinois, that there needs to be redistricting there. But you mentioned Virginia, and there's development on that story because we know what happened. The Virginia Supreme Court said the redistricting that the Democrats there wanted to do was illegal according to the Virginia Constitution. The Democrats took that to the United States Supreme Court. And as expected, the United States Supreme Court said, hey, your Supreme Court ruled according to your Constitution. Virginia. We're sticking with that decision. So, there's the win there, but there's also things going Republicans for the Republicans. Yes. but there's also some other matters going on politically we probably need to talk about on the weekend. Republican Senator from Louisiana, Senator Bill Cassidy went down to defeat in the primary there. And the main reason being is that Trump, ah, President Trump endorsed his opponents in that Republican primary. He does not like Bill Cassidy. President Trump, because Bill Cassidy voted to impeach Trump back there several years ago. Now, Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina was asked about this whole what happened with Bill Cassidy on the weekend, and this is what he had to say. Cut number 13.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Those who try to destroy Trump politically stand in the way of his agenda
>> Tim Wildmon: are going to lose.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Bill made a decision. Is it natural for a politician to go after people who try to destroy their political life? So Bill Cassidy's lost because he tried to destroy Trump.
>> Fred Jackson: And tomorrow in Kentucky, there is a Republican primary involving Congressman Thomas Massie also, who has been, people say, a, ah, thorn in the flesh to President Trump. President Trump has endorsed the competitors against Republican Congressman Thomas Massie. We'll wait and see what happens there.
>> Ed Vitagliano: you know, gerrymandering is Jerry who. Gerrymandering is kind of the term that's used to talk about redistricting and redrawing the lines of districts. That goes all the way back, I think to the late 1700s in this country, certainly the early 1800s. Gerrymandering, the name, a lot of our listeners know this, but comes from a, Massachusetts Governor Elbridge Gerry, who in 1812 redrew a district in Massachusetts, to favor his party. And it looked like a salamander, which is why in the newspapers it was called gerrymandering. That's where we get the name of that term. But this has been going on for a long time. It has changed somewhat because of the Voting Rights act of 1965, where gerrymandering was used to help create, at least one district in a state where the black population of that state primarily lived so that they would be guaranteed representation, in the state legislature. And so with the Supreme Court ruling, this is a, this is a big deal. This, you know, the Democrats, they're losing their minds over this. But the Supreme Court, I've not read the ruling, but from what I've read about it, the Supreme Court is basically saying the time when you can discriminate in the creation of districts on the basis of race is coming to an end. So, a lot of changes, happening. Kamala, Harris I saw over the weekend. I don't know if we're going to talk about what she said. There is an article on American Family News afn.net Kamala Harris was basically talking about all sorts of things that Democrats should do when they get in power. And that's in response to this. Gerrymandering. Gerrymandering. kerfuffle. Kerfuffle.
Louisiana has a Republican primary runoff tomorrow, Fred Epstein says
>> Tim Wildmon: Well, so in, to review, in Louisiana, Bill Cassidy, the incumbent is out and now the two. Because there was a three person primary, Republican primary on Saturday. Was it Saturday? Saturday. And he came in third. So the top two vote getters, I, don't have their names in front of me, but they will be, they will be vying for the Republican nomination. And most of the time in Louisiana, if you were in the Republican nomination statewide, you win, you win election. they do occasionally have a Democrat statewide. but you've been trending Republican red state, if you will. Louisiana. But yeah. Thomas Massie, the congressman from Kentucky, is it tomorrow? Tomorrow he Has a runoff or a primary challenger that President Trump recruited to challenge him, ah, Ed Gowering, ah, a retired Navy seal. Anyway, Trump said about Massey, he's a quote, nut job. It ah, will go down as a worst Republican Congressman. I just can't stand this guy. Trump said, we've got to get rid of this loser, end quote. So I don't think that Thomas, Massie will be getting a Christmas card from the White House. again Trump just ruthless in his personal, attacks on people which I find non presidential. But that ship assailed because Trump's going to go after. He went after. Was it. How do you pronounce the Congress, Lauren, Boebert. Boebert. So Boebert, the congresswoman from Colorado, the Republican. She has been a, you know, she and Trump were very tight. I mean she's a big fan of his and maga, you know, a, ah, leader and everything like that. Well now she went to campaign for Massey over the weekend because they're friends, they're both in Congress and they're both ideologically aligned. And because she went and campaigned for Massey, Trump went after her,
>> Ed Vitagliano: called her weak minded.
>> Tim Wildmon: Called her weak minded. That's Trump's go to criticism is not,
>> Ed Vitagliano: not as bad as bird brain.
>> Tim Wildmon: Oh, you mean, oh, Haley.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, Haley Dickey.
>> Tim Wildmon: Haley Birdbrain. Yeah, kick your bird brain, Haley. So, but you know, Trump, he just he'll call you every name under the sun, but he really loves to denigrate somebody's intelligence that's, that's his go to.
>> Ed Vitagliano: What, what do you think, Fred? Is there any. I mean the Cassidy thing was kind of a, it was to me wasn't as big of a shock because Senator Cassidy voted to impeach the president. Yeah, that's, that's going to be hard to come back from. Massey is very popular in Kentucky. Cassidy was kind of an odd fit, it always seemed to me, for Louisiana. But Massey, he's pretty popular.
>> Tim Wildmon: He's a congressman in a certain district that he's won several times.
>> Ed Vitagliano: So any, any idea what polls are saying in terms. I know we'll find out tomorrow, but to me it's a little bit more of a long shot for Thomas Massie to get beat.
>> Fred Jackson: Massey's very confident. Yeah, he's saying the money's been rolling in like crazy since Trump endorsed his competitor. So I saw a bit of an interview with him on the weekend and he's very confident that he is going to win this primary. But we'll wait and see.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Anyway, that's. So that's tomorrow. So by tomorrow night sometime, we probably should.
>> Tim Wildmon: Thomas Massey. I haven't. I followed his career some. I don't know him personally, but I know people who've. I mean, he was a champion of conservative values and probably still says he is. I'm sure he does. He's also called a libertarian. He's, and he's. Anyway, he is a person, who has spoken out against President Trump from time to time and not voted with the Republicans, his colleagues.
>> Ed Vitagliano: He's, he's kind of a fiscal hawk, isn't he? I mean, he doesn't like a lot
>> Tim Wildmon: of big bloated spending. Yeah. Yeah. So I, I don't, he, he's not, as pro is. I don't think he's pro.
>> Ed Vitagliano: He's also pushed to release the Epstein files. He's pushed that hard. And, the Trump administration seems a little hesitant.
>> Tim Wildmon: anyway, we'll see what happens. That's tomorrow in Kentucky. We'll be back momentarily. Stay with us.
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>> Ed Vitagliano: We would like to take a moment to thank our sponsor, PreBorn. When the 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 they can't do it without our help. Preborn needs us, the pro life community, to come alongside them. One ultrasound is just $28. To donate, dial pound250 and say the keyword baby or visit preborn.com afr the AFR app is a powerful tool, but it does have limitations. You can't use it to change the oil in your vehicle or get rid of carpet stains. They won't walk the dog, won't pick up the dry cleaning or take the kids to practice. But while you're doing those things, you can listen to your favorite AFR content through the app on your phone, smart device, or Roku. Just go to your app store or visit afr.net listen to AFR wherever you go with the AFR app.
Tim, Ed and Fred discuss school memories on American Family Radio
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live. But Christ lives in me. The life that I now live in this body. I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20American Family Radio this is today's issues. Email your comments to commentsfr.net Past broadcasts of today's issues are available for listening and viewing in the [email protected] now back to more of today's Issues.
>> Tim Wildmon: Hey, welcome back, everybody. To today's issues on the American Family Radio Network. Tim, Ed and Fred, thanks for listening to afr. We hope you're having a nice Monday morning and, school's about out for everybody. college graduation, high school graduation, end of year school programs.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yep.
>> Tim Wildmon: For people like me was see if you passed, you know, see if you made the next grade.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Really?
>> Fred Jackson: I'm kidding.
>> Tim Wildmon: No, I wasn't that bad off, but I've, I got accused by my parents of not, quote, applying myself. And, I had to learn what that was.
>> Ed Vitagliano: You asked them to define it?
>> Tim Wildmon: No, I had the ability. I just wasn't executing the, You had to find it within myself. You ever done that before? It's kind of like Star Wars.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Is it?
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. Fred, how'd you do in school? Were you a good. You're an ab student. Were you there?
>> Fred Jackson: There were subjects that I liked and subjects that I didn't like.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, me too. I was like that.
>> Fred Jackson: Well, I think the worst course I was telling somebody about this, was calculus. I was taking. I was taking a science degree. This was at Gordon College in Massachusetts.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Okay.
>> Tim Wildmon: Oh, this is college calculus.
>> Fred Jackson: College calculus. I could not wait for that to be over. And I squeaked by. Barely.
>> Tim Wildmon: You know, I had that in astronaut school.
>> Fred Jackson: Okay.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Calculus in astronaut school.
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Man, you have had such a varied life. Let me just tell you what my high school career was like.
>> Tim Wildmon: Please do.
>> Ed Vitagliano: All right, so, I finished 11th in my class out of Hampton at an all boys Catholic High School. 165 or whatever.
>> Tim Wildmon: That's.
>> Ed Vitagliano: And my dad said, yeah, yeah. I wasn't top 10, you failure.
>> Tim Wildmon: Kidding. He said that? No, I knew your dad.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah. He said, well, it wasn't top 10, was it?
>> Tim Wildmon: Number 11 out of 165.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: Just not good enough, was it?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah. Would have been nice of your top
>> Fred Jackson: 10, but you're not bitter.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I'm not bitter,
>> Tim Wildmon: but just let me just give the end of the story to that one. Your dad was. Your dad and you had a wonderful.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Oh, yeah, no, my dad was great.
>> Fred Jackson: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: But he. He might.
>> Tim Wildmon: At that time, he wasn't a believer, right?
>> Ed Vitagliano: No, none of us. He was very, My dad actually had a pretty extraordinary life. He, just quick, just overhead. So he really had a hard time finding himself, after he got out of high school, got in a lot of fights, started drinking, and my grandfather said, get it together or else. My dad joined the Marines, and he was in the marines for five years. So by the time he got out, he decided, I am going to Apply myself and went to college and I mean, so he was in his early 20s when he started and became an engineer.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: So he was a marine and an engineer and worked for some big firms and worked. He was very, you know, very successful as a, he was a project manager working on the MX missile and the Patriot missile system.
>> Tim Wildmon: Wow.
>> Ed Vitagliano: And so he was always you, no excuses kind of guy.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: So he was a great father, loving dad.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I, I just remember, I joke around with those kind of things. But, but he, he was strict and he forced, always forced his kids to do their best. Didn't take any excuses. There's nothing wrong with that, so.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right. No, absolutely not.
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All right. You're listening to today's issues on American Family Radio. Next story.
>> Fred Jackson: Fred, been a couple of years since I've been to an air show, but boy, I really appreciate the skills of the pilots, especially these very high speed fighter jets, et cetera, et cetera. we have a video on our news, site right now, afn.net of an accident at an air show at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho Yesterday. It involved two Navy F18 aircraft. It's not clear from the video what they were attempting to do. They were very, flying very close to each other when they touched somehow something went wrong, which of course at that point they're low, they're fairly slow and that can be disastrous. But the miracle in all of this, and we're happy to report there were two pilots in each of the aircraft. All four punched out successfully. And as I say, they weren't at that high an altitude. But we are able to report that they are going to be okay. And it was amazing and it was caught on video. And as I say, you can go to our website and see it. But, praise the Lord for that. There was. This comes just a week or so after another incident at an Air Force training base in Columbus, Mississippi when, two young men, I'm assuming it was two young men, were out on a training mission and something went wrong. We don't know went wrong, but they also punched out successfully and they're in good shape. So, you know, after a while, sometimes we take for granted the skills of these people, these men and women especially, who fly the fighter jets. And we're happy to report two incidents now. Everybody punched out. There is special training for that.
>> Tim Wildmon: And this wasn't the Blue Angels or the, what's the other one famous Thunderbirds. Thunderbirds.
>> Fred Jackson: Thunderbirds of the Air Force Blue Angels are the Navy.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, but it wasn't those. It was. No, sir, Probably. But yeah. If you look at the video, these planes touch in midair. They're jets.
>> Fred Jackson: Fighter jets.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Fred Jackson: F18s.
>> Tim Wildmon: I'm so. But. So they were doing a, What would you call that?
>> Fred Jackson: They're doing a presentation.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah. These were Growlers, though, right? Growlers. Growlers.
>> Fred Jackson: 18 growlers.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Okay. So jamming and.
>> Tim Wildmon: You know what? I'm. It's. Thank God they were all able to eject and land safely. But when, you look at the picture, you're going how they not killed or at least harmed when the planes collide.
>> Fred Jackson: Oh, I know. and the fact that you've got four. Four people ejecting from these jets and they didn't hit any of the debris on the way out. That was amazing. That's.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Well, I've never been to an air show. You have? Yes, because you were a pilot. So you. You have a. You enjoy this kind of thing.
>> Tim Wildmon: I've been to the Blue Angels, too.
>> Ed Vitagliano: You have?
Tim: Fred, sometimes fighter jets sneak up on spectators during air shows
Well, then let me ask you both when, So this is just something I just have wondered, because these things sometimes do happen. When they do all their demonstrations. They are not flying directly over the crowd, right?
>> Tim Wildmon: That's right.
>> Fred Jackson: They. They work very hard to avoid maneuvers where they are in close contact with each other. Now, sometimes if you're in a crowd,
>> Ed Vitagliano: I mean over the crowd, that's the spectators. Because these two Growlers, did not crash on the people.
>> Fred Jackson: No, they were in front of the crowd. Now, we have to qualify that because sometimes if you've gone to air shows, part. Part of the air show is that you're standing looking in front of you at what's going on, but one of the fighter jets come, sneaks up behind you, really, and flies very low and fast over you.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Fred Jackson: Scares everybody.
>> Tim Wildmon: It's unavoidable. You're gonna, you know, to, evade all the people watching the show all the time in terms of not being overhead, above him. But, yeah, I think they do try to, you know, have a big open field as far as. When they do go through their, their maneuvers and everything like that. It's really fascinating to. To go in person and see, the, At least what I saw, the Blue Angels. I can't remember how long that's been. They came to Tupelo, but they go all over the country.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Right.
>> Fred Jackson: You know, have shows you can get. Go to their website and you can find out where they're going to do
>> Tim Wildmon: Shows you know, what you can do, too, if you're on, if you're vacationing on the Gulf Coast.
>> Fred Jackson: Yes.
>> Tim Wildmon: They're, they're, they're based out of Pensacola.
>> Fred Jackson: The Blue Angels.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. Yeah. And so up and down. I don't know how far they go. Maybe they go to Fort Walton beach or Gulf Shores, but, there's a, you know, probably 50 mile radius there that they go, and they. You can look, you can see them.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Well, my wife. My wife and I have been to the Orange beach area, Fort Morgan, on a couple of occasions for vacation, and we will see fighter jets coming down the coast. Now, I don't know, you know, if they're coming out of Pensacola or they're, you know, probably going somewhere else.
>> Tim Wildmon: Well, you've got a couple of Air Force bases. You got Elgin Air Force Base down there, and you've got, Keesler in Biloxi.
>> Fred Jackson: Keesler and Biloxi. Yes.
>> Tim Wildmon: So anyway, yeah, a lot of military.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: But I'm talking about the Blue Angels. You can see them train for free.
>> Fred Jackson: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Oh, I wouldn't mind seeing that.
>> Fred Jackson: If you ever watch some of the videos, you can get the. You can really appreciate when they're flying formation, close.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Fred Jackson: I mean, we're just talking a couple of feet between them.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: It's incredible.
>> Fred Jackson: And, you know, if you got one on top, got one underneath on either side. These guys, they're really good.
>> Ed Vitagliano: The documentary once where this US fighter jet and this Russian MiG were above each other, one was upside down.
>> Fred Jackson: Was this Top Gun?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, I think it was Thom Cruise there.
>> Fred Jackson: And they connected somehow.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes. They had a, had a momentary, you know, international moments together.
>> Tim Wildmon: You're listening to the radio program Today's Issues on the American Family Radio Network. I'm Tim with Ed and Fred, and we, thank you for listening to AFR. the good news is those four. There were four pilots, in these two planes. Two planes, four pilots, ah, this show in Idaho. And they, they all ejected safely and nobody was hurt on the ground from the planes crashing.
>> Fred Jackson: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: so, thanks God everybody's okay. But you can, if you want to watch this video of this, it's really fascinating to watch. Again, nobody was killed or hurt, but where can they watch it? Afn.net afn.net Yep, that's our website.
>> Fred Jackson: Yes.
>> Tim Wildmon: For our news service, afn.net. next story. Fred?
Former CIA station chief Dan Hoffman on what we've done against Iran
>> Fred Jackson: Well, the clock is ticking, we are told. The latest from, President Trump on what's next for Iran and, what clock's ticking. I'm not sure. I guess it would be the clock, President Trump's clock is ticking and a lot of people are just wondering. Okay, now for the last three, four weeks we, you know, ceasefire in negotiations. There have been some encounters in the Strait of Hormuz between our blockade which has continued. there was a drone attack on UAE nuclear power plant, last night. so President Trump keeps saying that time is going to run out when the ceasefire ends and something has to be done unless we get an acceptable agreement from the Iranians. Former CIA station chief Dan Hoffman on what we've done and what we still need to do in Iran to bring about some kind of settlement. Finally cut number eight. Yeah, I think we're at an inflection point right now. And look, the United States military has done significant damage to Iran's drone capabilities, their ballistic missile sites as well as their nuclear program.
>> Ed Vitagliano: What we haven't done so far is change the regime's behavior. we have not induced them to begin negotiating in good faith over a
>> Fred Jackson: long term solution to what concerned us about the jcpoa and that is their nuclear program. The ah, stored highly enriched uranium that we need to gain access to
>> Ed Vitagliano: and remove from Iran their ballistic missile
>> Fred Jackson: program and their support to proxy terrorists.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Ultimately that's how the Trump administration's military
>> Fred Jackson: campaign against Iran will be judged. And of course Iran has disrupted the flow of traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
>> Ed Vitagliano: We also need to gain escalation dominance there.
>> Fred Jackson: Now Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, he's one of those that it seems he's saying enough of this ceasefire and talk. We need to do more cut nine.
>> Tim Wildmon: I think you can't get a coherent
>> Ed Vitagliano: answer from Iran because they can't be coherent. I think they're so disheveled now, they're so weakened. So weaken them further and you may get a deal later.
>> Tim Wildmon: But you're not going to get a
>> Ed Vitagliano: deal with, with this crowd until you hurt them more.
>> Fred Jackson: I'm assuming he means resume bombing.
>> Tim Wildmon: Oh yeah, Lindsay Graham.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Oh yeah, he is a hawk. He wants.
>> Tim Wildmon: Oh, he's a hawk on steroids.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, no, he is. Listen, I don't think that you're not going to get, I don't think you're going to get. I've said this before, I sound negative. You're not going to get regime change right now. You're not going to get a deal with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, who I think is, if anybody's in charge, it's the irgc. What Is that, that's the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Core. That's the kind of the, they do have a military in Iran, but they also have, it's not quite a militia, but the IRGC is the kind of military force that upholds the revolution that started in 1979. They're kind of like the Praetorian Guard, but they, from my reading, they're in 250 to 500,000 are a part of the IRGC. So they protect the revolution. So when people say, well, why don't the people just overthrow the government? Well, because there are all these trained, very well trained, very well armed and equipped, very, they're provided for. So they're going to be the last ones to see their lights get cut off. there's just no easy way to change that regime. This is a revolutionary mindset that runs this country. They're not going to stop, paying for terrorist organizations. Maybe if you hurt them badly enough, they might surrender the enriched uranium they have. But I think that's a long shot. And so I think my own personal opinion, I am not a foreign policy guy, or a military expert, but I think the Trump administration should cut their losses, claim victory in what they have managed to accomplish and then say we did our best and nobody else helped us except for Israel. So now it's time to go home. We'll watch and we may pound them again later. That's.
>> Tim Wildmon: Think that's going to happen?
>> Ed Vitagliano: you mean pound them again later?
>> Tim Wildmon: No, I do, I understand what you're saying, but do you think that chances of what you just described happening or you think we're going to just.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I think we'll bomb them again. Yeah, but I don't, I don't, I don't know what you're going to accomplish
>> Tim Wildmon: by it because what's left to bomb?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, I mean, you're going to have to, you're going to. If you want to destroy Iran, it's easy to do. Okay. They have storage facilities for all their oil. You can blow those up, you can blow up the refineries, you can you can blow all that stuff up. I, ah, still don't know. That would result in regime change, but it will devastate the economy and the average person in Iran. And I don't know what, what that will accomplish because I don't think that's going to get rid of the irgc. And that's the problem. These are radicals that are controlling the country and they're not making a deal with Trump. Or anyone else.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, well, we'll see what happens.
There was another girls track and field meet in California where a trans athlete won
Next story, Fred.
>> Fred Jackson: Well, this is a story that keeps repeating itself in certain, far left states. Let's talk about California, Oregon and Washington State. There was another girls track and field meet in California during the weekend. A trans athlete, won at least three jumping events there. The guy's name is a guy who says he's a girl, Ab Hernandez. And what was really disgusting when they were awarding the medals, they have a policy now in California where in this case the trans guy won the events, but the girl who came second got to stand on the top podium as well. And here's the thing, it's an admission that this girl would have won if this guy wasn't competing. But they're so politically correct they still allow the guy to stand there as the winner. And here's a montage of female, athletes. Montage of female athletes who are just really upset about this unfair competition.
>> Tim Wildmon: Cut 14 to have their own space, their own locker room, their own divisions.
>> Fred Jackson: And we work too hard for that
>> Tim Wildmon: to be just taken away without anyone saying anything about it.
>> Fred Jackson: It's just really disappointing to go into a competition knowing that you're already going to be beat by male.
>> Ed Vitagliano: So given the opportunity to have a fair competition is something that we've been
>> Fred Jackson: fighting for and I think that we should have.
>> Ed Vitagliano: This is, ah, the Ab Hernandez is the trans athlete and a trans woman, which means it's really a biological male. And this is just a weird kind of, situation in California because the, the, the law or the policy in the California Interscholastic Federation, I think, is that if a girl finishes in a girl's competition behind a trans athlete, she has to also be given an equal medal. You're just admitting that it's actually a man competing against these girls and he has an unfair advantage. It's a bizarre way to handle this issue instead of just doing what everybody expects. If I'm not mistaken, this Ab Hernandez has won three different events. Yes, I mean, blowing the doors off, so to speak, high jump, long jump, triple jump at this competition. These poor girls, they train hard just like anybody else. They have their dreams of finishing. And you go into this competition, you go, well, nobody's beating A.B. hernandez.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, you're right. It's completely and totally unfair. And I hope those girls continue to speak out and protest. But let's face it, California is a lost cause. they're a deep blue state and they're not changing. Right? So, the, any far left wacky Idea that the rest of the country says, what in the world besides maybe NewSong York? Well, what in the world they doing out there? Well, they, they're gonna, they're gonna continue to do it.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Wriley Gaines, who she. That wasn't one of the ones that. So Wriley Gaines set, Posted on X. If you have to create a shared podium for the boy competing in the girls event, you've already, already admitted, you know, he isn't a girl and that his participation is unfair. At that point, you're just seeking a public humiliation ritual for the girls. Good on Wriley Gaines, who has been just a champion defending girls rights in sports.
>> Tim Wildmon: You know, how can. I don't know how any reasonable person, and maybe that's the problem with these far lefties or not, can look at that and go, this is fair. You got a dude. You can tell he's a dude by his muscles and his bone structure and the way he just looks, broad shoulders compared to the girls.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Right?
>> Tim Wildmon: Compared to the girls. And you're going like, this is, this is not even close to being fair. And yet you're supposed to pretend like it is.
>> Ed Vitagliano: well, they are pretending. Just like, just like this guy's pretending to be a girl.
>> Fred Jackson: Right.
>> Ed Vitagliano: They're all pretending. This is normal.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right. And as we mentioned before, it isn't, it's any other pretending of, in society, being something you're not is rejected and rightfully so. You can't even have, quote, cultural appropriation. What they call it. If a white guy wears an Indian head piece. What do you call it?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Headdress.
>> Tim Wildmon: Headdress. He's called a racist. Your culture, your doing cultural approach, what they call it, you know, you're, you're mocking them. Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: You're taking their culture.
>> Tim Wildmon: But what was that video the other day somebody sent me? It was hilarious. It was a white guy and he had a Indian headdress up, and he was walking into an event. Do you remember this? And he said, I'm a, I'm identifying as a trans Indian or something like that.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Trans Indian something.
>> Tim Wildmon: Something like that. Anyway, why would you let. You know. They said, no, you're being disrespectful. He said, no, I'm not. I identify as a, as an Indian chief. And it was hilarious because it was, it was, it was proving the idiocy of the left. How can a, how can a male say, I'm a girl? And you're just supposed to accept that?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: Well, then if we can accept, if we can deny reality in that way, why can't a, Why can't I, you know, a man of European descent, say, I'm a. I'm an Indian chief. That's what I identify as. And then they go, no, you can't. You're not. It clearly you're not an Indian chief, dude.
>> Ed Vitagliano: You're white.
>> Tim Wildmon: You're. You're white. And so you go, well, so. But if I say I'm a girl and I'm a dude. Oh, yeah, you are. Yeah. I'm going to leave you the double standard. Yeah, that clearly exists.
to
All right. You're listening to today's issues. We got about a minute and a half left here on the program. Fred, you got any.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Well, just before the break. We got more time after this hour.
>> Tim Wildmon: My apologies. So, Fred, just see what happened
>> Fred Jackson: in Austin, Texas, the weekend.
>> Tim Wildmon: Tell me.
>> Fred Jackson: 15 and 17 year olds arrested. They hijacked cars and then opened fire on some people. 15 and 17 year olds in, Austin. In Austin, Texas. Four people injured there. But it reminded me of, Jeanine Pirro. She's now, what, the district attorney in D.C. yes. She had a news conference on Friday. And the connection to this Austin story is this. They've been having problems with young people, teens there, too, rioting, et cetera, et cetera. In D.C. in D.C. she said, here's what we're going to do. We're going to start to hold parents responsible for the behavior of their kids.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Well, that. Listen, I. I appreciate and applaud that line of reasoning. Some lefty judge is going to strike that down. These lefty judges, they don't. They don't want. They love chaos.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. All right, we're out of time for Fred. Just want to thank you for all the good news.
>> Fred Jackson: Anytime, Tim. Anytime.
>> Tim Wildmon: I just. I just.
>> Ed Vitagliano: And we just hope you get paid back in spades, Fred.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, Fred, Captain Sunshine Jackson with us today.
>> Fred Jackson: I'm staying with you.
>> Tim Wildmon: All right, we'll be back with Steve Paisley Jordal in a few minutes. Stay with us. The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.
