The Glenn Beck Program – Best of the Program | Guests: Sen. Ron Johnson & Liz Wheeler | 3/30/26

Date: March 30, 2026
Host: Glenn Beck (Mercury Radio Arts)
Featured Guest: Liz Wheeler

Episode Overview

This episode centers on current topics of cultural and political division in America and beyond, through Glenn Beck’s characteristic lens of storytelling and critical commentary. Key themes include religious discord amplified online, controversial legislative trends in the US, and the playbook behind so-called “color revolutions”—especially as seen in the UK’s “No Kings” protest and its relevance to U.S. politics. Liz Wheeler joins Glenn for a candid discussion on religious conflict, online outrage, and recent controversies involving access to holy sites in Jerusalem.

Main Discussion Points

1. Religious Discord and Online Outrage (00:00–16:02)

• Jerusalem Church Controversy

  • Glenn addresses widespread social media claims that Israeli authorities barred Catholics from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Palm Sunday, framing it as a symptom of broader outrage and misinformation.
  • Beck’s Argument: Israel closed all holy sites (not just Christian) due to Iranian missile threats, prioritizing safety for all religious groups.
    • “Did you hear about the Iranian missile fragment that nearly hit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher recently? Where were all of the public condemnations then?” (03:15)
  • Cites the universality of such precautions in wartime, including references to St. Paul’s Cathedral in WWII and Vatican closures during COVID.

• Papal Comments and Religious Division

  • Beck criticizes the Pope’s Palm Sunday message, which asserted that God doesn’t listen to prayers of those waging war, calling it divisive and biblically inaccurate.
    • “Bible is full of prayers from warriors about war. Full of it.” (04:45)
  • Expresses exhaustion at narratives driving wedges between religious groups and political coalitions:
    • “I’m tired of all the message and telling who to hate… There is a dark spiritual effort to tear Christians and Jews apart...” (07:10)

• Personal Reflections and Broader Message

  • Glenn shares the religious medallions he wears—both Protestant and Catholic—as symbols of unity.
  • Stresses the dangers of succumbing to anger and division perpetuated online and by ideological actors.
    • “The hate we create for one another will consume us right after it’s consumed our enemy.” (07:45)

2. Interview with Liz Wheeler: Faith, Outrage, and Nuance (08:00–16:02)

• Internet Drama vs. Real Life

  • Liz downplays the idea that most people harbor the online vitriol seen on platforms, arguing much of it is amplified drama.
    • “The Internet is addicted to drama… it doesn’t always reflect the reality of what normal people think.” (08:22)
  • Agrees that asking questions about access to worship sites is legitimate, but rejects claims of systematic Israeli discrimination and attributes incidents to government “incompetence” not malice.

• Outrage Dynamics Online

  • Glenn cites the comparison of social media reactions: 9,100 posts about shrapnel damage at the Church vs. 250,000+ posts about the alleged barring of the Cardinal.
    • “It is manufactured and it is pushed by the left and by, quite honestly, probably Iran and their allies to get everybody to separate themselves and hate each other.” (10:08)
  • Liz agrees both manipulation and “grain of truth” outrage overlap online. Communication failures, not religious bigotry, were at the heart of the latest Jerusalem incident.

• Balancing Security and Rights

  • Both note the complexity of balancing security (e.g., COVID, wartime restrictions) with religious liberty.
  • Liz explains the Catholic doctrine of papal infallibility, noting that Catholics are not required to agree with every papal comment, especially political ones.
    • “The Pope himself has no authority to unilaterally change Catholic beliefs… those comments were in his pastoral capacity.” (14:31)
    • “As much as I find it very annoying, it doesn't push me away from Catholicism… his church remains as it always was and always will be.” (15:21)

3. Oklahoma Bill: Human Remains as Fertilizer (16:02–approx. 26:00)

• Legislation Details

  • Oklahoma is considering a bill to legalize the conversion of human remains into plant fertilizer (“natural organic reduction”).
  • Beck critiques this as a dangerous step away from revered values toward cold efficiency and materialism.
    • “It’s a little dystopian… What is the body worth?” (17:30)
    • “Goodness equals what comes next… That means nothing is sacred and we're in for hard times.” (18:35)

• Moral, Historical, and Religious Context

  • Glenn connects the issue to wider trends of “progress” unmoored from fixed values, referencing Chesterton’s satirical warnings about blind worship of change.
    • “Once you accept the fact that the human body is merely biological matter, you strip it of meaning… Of course it can be composted.” (19:20)
  • Draws uncomfortable parallels to history—referencing Germany, China—and notes how societies obsessed with efficiency end up monstrous.

• The Slippery Slope

  • Warns that redefining dignity in death leads to diminished dignity in life:
    • “You start blurring the lines between dignity and utility. You do it first in death, then eventually you do it in life.” (22:30)
  • Satirically references possible next steps—turning remains into plastic, “organ bags”—to underscore the loss of sacredness.

4. No Kings Protest (UK): Symbolism, Stupidity, and the “3.5% Rule” (approx. 27:00–42:31)

• Satirical Breakdown of the Protest

  • Glenn mockingly critiques anti-Trump “No Kings” protests in England, characterizing protesters as oblivious, given their literal monarchy.
    • “They’re there in England with kings that say no king, but they’re not referring to their monarch or their royal family, not protesting the man whose face is literally stamped on their money in a crown. No, no, no—they aimed it at an American.”
    • “Words don’t have meaning anymore… The slogans are now just costumes.” (31:00)
  • Highlights the performative aspect of modern protest, where “no kings” doesn’t question their own king, but targets foreign political figures.

• The “3.5% Rule” and Color Revolutions

  • Points to academic studies (esp. by Erica Chenoweth, Harvard) and activist strategy: revolutionary movements can succeed with active participation from only 3.5% of the populace.
  • Warns that left-wing organizers (such as Indivisible, led by Ezra Levin & Leah Greenberg) are deliberately using color revolution tactics in U.S. politics.
    • “If you get 3% of the population and you have them out on the streets and then you have social media just churn this stuff out, people think, I’m surrounded. And you’re not.” (37:05)

• Audio Montage from Protesters and Planners

  • Plays clips highlighting bizarre statements from demonstrators, using satire to underscore the lack of clarity or substance in their protest.
    • Protestor: “No death camps on Americans aisles.” (34:35)
    • Glenn: “You might be RFK Jr.’s sister. I don’t know. Listen to the voice... I mean, sometimes stupidity is so painful. And that was one of those moments.” (35:07)
  • Shares discussion among protest planners referencing color schemes (yellow & black), online “organic pickup,” and nonviolent resistance strategies (“Gene Sharp’s 198 methods”).
    • “So thinking about things that we’re seeing pop on the Internet, things that we’re seeing start to like, take off in places like Reddit—the color yellow, yellow and black have come up a lot...” (40:24, Organizer)

• Ultimate Warning: Engineered Revolution

  • Beck argues the “No Kings” movement is a manufactured, deliberate attempt at a “color revolution” to destabilize U.S. democracy—using crowd psychology and social media amplification, rather than organic movement.
    • “Don’t listen to the people on the streets. They’re useful idiots. They don’t have any idea what they’re doing… That’s not what the people who planned this and roped you into it, that’s not what they’re saying this is all about. Ah, morons.” (42:31)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Glenn Beck: “Did you hear about the Iranian missile fragment that nearly hit the Church of the Holy Sepulcher recently? Where were all of the public condemnations then?” (03:15)

• Liz Wheeler: “Catholics such as myself are not required to agree with [the Pope’s] political opinions… I wish the Pope was a wiser leader, but it also makes me so grateful to be Catholic, because his church remains as it always was and always will be, despite turmoil in the world or the sins of man.” (14:31, 15:21)

• On Oklahoma’s fertilizer bill: “It’s a little dystopian… Once a society decides, ah, it’s just material that we can process, could we make them… Could I make them into a plastic sippy cup? No. Why is that offensive to you? Because it was a human life. Is there nothing sacred?” (19:30, 22:10)

• On No Kings protests: “You’re not watching a movement. You are watching marketing. And all of you dopes who are out with their signs, you were the useful idiots.” (32:17)

• Erica Chenoweth (audio clip, Color Revolution theorist): “...If you went to like Gene Sharp’s list of 198 nonviolent methods is just one of those low hanging, easy access resources.” (40:45)

Key Timestamps

• 00:00 – 07:45: Glenn’s monologue on religious division, Jerusalem controversy, and weariness with outrage culture.
• 08:00 – 16:02: Interview with Liz Wheeler: Internet drama, Pope’s comments, balancing faith with frustration.
• 16:02 – 26:00: Oklahoma fertilizer bill—cultural, religious, and philosophical critique.
• 27:00 – 32:30: Satirical breakdown of the “No Kings” protest in London and the broader phenomenon of performative outrage.
• 34:35 – 35:38: Montage of protestor interviews—satire and commentary.
• 37:00 – 42:31: Exposé of color revolution tactics, the “3.5% rule,” activist strategies, and warnings about manufactured dissent.

Conclusion

Through a mix of satire, history, and pointed criticism, Glenn Beck delivers a warning against succumbing to outrage cycles engineered by activists and hostile actors. He and Liz Wheeler urge listeners to resist manipulation, remain united (especially across religious and political divides), and defend the sanctity of both their faith and American institutions.