Best of the Program | Guests: Winston Marshall & Amb. Sam Brownback | 5/13/26

Summary

The Glenn Beck Program: Best of the Program – May 13, 2026 Guests: Winston Marshall & Amb. Sam Brownback

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into the political and cultural crossroads currently facing the Western world, with a particular focus on the UK, US, and the growing authoritarian influence of China. Glenn Beck is joined by English musician and commentator Winston Marshall for a frank conversation about the state of British politics, free speech, and the monarchy, as well as former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback, who details the Chinese Communist Party’s war on faith. Throughout, Beck and his guests highlight the broader battle between populist movements and entrenched elites, the erosion of liberties in Western democracies, and the need for spiritual and political resilience.

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Key Discussions & Insights

1. The State of UK Politics, the Monarchy, and Populist Movements

Guest: Winston Marshall
[02:49 – 17:04]

• Defending the Monarchy:

  • Winston Marshall describes himself as a monarchist, arguing, "our liberties are protected by the monarchy" ([03:20] D).
  • Discussion centers on how the monarchy’s practical role has become largely ceremonial and is overshadowed by more recent political shifts.

• Elite vs. The People – Western Societal Strains:

  • Beck asserts the common thread running through Western politics is not about specific leaders, but "the people against an elitist government all over the Western world that has decided exactly how we're all going to live" ([04:59] A).
  • Marshall adds, "We're seeing the revolt of the people against the post-war elite" and credits Beck’s writing for insight on this trend ([05:56] D).

• Labour Politics & Targeting of Political Opponents:

  • Discussion of UK Labour leader Keir Starmer and his survival despite lacking widespread popular support ("four out of five people...did not vote for Keir Starmer" – [04:24] D).
  • Marshall accuses the current UK government of manufacturing external threats to distract from domestic failures, specifically highlighting bans on conservative American and European figures and the scapegoating of figures like Tommy Robinson ([06:34] D).

• Anti-Semitism in the UK:

  • Marshall says Starmer avoids confronting the real source of rising anti-Semitism—radical Islam—in favor of political expediency, noting, "it's now the worst anti-Semitism we've had since Jews were allowed back into the country by Oliver Cromwell in the 1650s" ([07:10] D).

• The King’s Role and Digital ID:

  • Discussion of conspiracy theories about King Charles III “kowtowing” to Muslims; Marshall argues, "[The King] is the sovereign of large populations of Muslims around the world. So he's in this very difficult position..." ([09:20] D).
  • Both Beck and Marshall vehemently oppose digital ID systems, likening them to a social credit score and an erosion of freedom reminiscent of China ([11:20] D).

• Nigel Farage and Populist Credentials:

  • Marshall defends Farage against allegations of selling out or being "a fascist," discussing his public sacrifices, his break from the Conservative Party over the Maastricht Treaty, and his advocacy against illegal immigration ([12:06] D).
  • Beck observes, "you're going to be called Hitler always to fight this, you have to be outspoken, you have to be tough, and you have to be tough skinned" ([14:14] A).

• Donald Trump, Leadership, and Resilience:

  • Beck recounts a conversation with Trump following an assassination attempt, quoting Trump’s mindset: "'Get up, get up. You're not afraid of these people...we are not going to bow down to this kind of stuff'" ([15:26] A).
  • Both agree that strong-willed, resilient leaders are essential in the fight against elite encroachment ([15:54] D).

Notable Quotes

• "We're seeing the revolt of the people against the post-war elite." – Winston Marshall ([05:56] D)
• "This isn't about Keir Starmer...this is the people against an elitist government all over the Western world..." – Glenn Beck ([04:59] A)
• "It's now the worst anti Semitism we've had in...370 years..." – Winston Marshall ([07:10] D)
• "We are not going to bow down to this kind of stuff." – Donald Trump via Glenn Beck ([15:26] A)

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2. U.S. Political Landscape, Redistricting & Trends

Guest: Stu (Glenn’s longtime collaborator)
[17:12 – 27:48]

• Redistricting Backfire for Democrats:

  • Stu highlights how left-wing efforts to redraw voting districts based on race have backfired, citing court decisions that struck down race-based districting and inadvertently handed seats to Republicans ([17:53] C).

• Virginia’s Electoral Maneuvers:

  • Explains how Democrats’ last-minute rule changes regarding early voting and redistricting in Virginia were thwarted by the courts, leading to further Republican gains ([17:53] C).

• Voter Attitudes and Party Overreach:

  • Beck probes whether backlash against Democratic overreach is causing voters to shift; Stu is skeptical, saying, “I don't think I've seen signs of any level yet of a left leaning voter saying, you know what, maybe our party is going a little too far.” ([22:22] C)

• California’s Republican Candidates:

  • Discussion of the surprising strength of Republican candidates like Spencer Pratt and Steve Hilton in Los Angeles and statewide, with commentary on their unique campaign styles and how they resonate with both conservatives and moderate voters ([24:12] C, [26:23] C).

Notable Quotes

• "You can redistrict...based on almost anything else. Right. Except race..." – Stu ([17:53] C)
• "[Spencer Pratt] has real credibility there." – Stu, on candidate’s authenticity after personal loss ([25:00] C)
• "He has a way of being able to bridge a gap, I think, to a California voter who is at least sensible." – Stu, on Steve Hilton ([26:23] C)

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3. China’s War on Faith & The New Authoritarianism

Guest: Samuel Brownback, former Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom
[27:48 – 41:50]

• Totalitarian Suppression of Religion:

  • Brownback describes China’s campaign as “a war with faith” and “war with God,” citing imprisonment and execution of religious leaders, forced organ harvesting, and ongoing genocides against Uyghurs, Tibetan Buddhists, and Falun Gong ([30:48] B, [32:32] B, [34:18] B).
  • Gives chilling details: “If you’re an opponent of the regime...at their desired time, they will kill you and harvest the organs. Kidneys, livers, eyes...this is so diabolical and evil.” ([32:32] B)

• The CCP’s Fear of Faith:

  • Brownback explains the government’s intolerance towards any higher power: “They can't tolerate any power that's higher than the government's. They will not tolerate it. They will suppress it. They will kill you. They will put you in prison.” ([30:48] B)
  • Beck contextualizes the spiritual battle, seeing it as one front in a broader global struggle between darkness and liberty ([30:22] A).

• The Role of the U.S. and International Pressure:

  • Brownback critiques the U.S. response and calls for moral clarity. "They [the CCP] fear religious freedom more than they fear our aircraft carriers or our nuclear weapons. This is their Achilles heel..." ([35:43] B)
  • Parallels drawn to Reagan’s ideological campaign against Soviet Union.

• Resilience of Underground Churches:

  • Despite oppression, Christianity is reportedly growing fastest in China and Iran. Brownback notes, "faith grows the most...when it’s under pressure and duress" ([37:13] B).

• Suppression of Faith in the West:

  • Brownback expresses serious concern about increasing efforts to "suffocate faith" in the UK and US by debanking and deplatforming religious organizations. “That suffocation move...is not they're not going to really throw you in jail...But most of it's just about taking the insurance away...debanking, de platforming.” ([39:31] B)

Notable Quotes

• "This is an evil regime, and they have killed more people. The Chinese Communist Party has killed more of their own people than any other regime in the history of mankind." – Sam Brownback ([32:32] B)
• “They [the CCP] fear religious freedom more than they fear our aircraft carriers or our nuclear weapons. That's...their Achilles heel.” – Sam Brownback ([35:43] B)
• “Faith grows the most...when it’s under pressure and duress.” – Sam Brownback ([37:13] B)
• “There was this effort in the west to suffocate faith...not going to really throw you in jail...but it's about taking the insurance away from crisis pregnancy centers.” – Sam Brownback ([39:31] B)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• UK Populism, the Monarchy, Starmer, Digital ID: [02:49 – 17:04]
• US Redistricting, Virginia/California Races: [17:12 – 27:48]
• China’s War on Faith, CCP Atrocities: [27:48 – 41:50]

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Tone and Takeaways

The episode is marked by spirited, candid conversation, unafraid to call out both left and right for failings, and deeply concerned about the erosion of Western liberties from both internal elites and external authoritarian regimes. The tone is one of urgency and warning, mixed with moments of appreciation for resilience, both in leaders (like Trump, Farage) and ordinary religious believers under oppression (especially in China).

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Memorable Moments & Quotes

• Marshall: "We're seeing the revolt of the people against the post-war elite." ([05:56])
• Beck (recounting Trump): "'Get up, get up. You're not afraid of these people...'" ([15:26])
• Brownback: “This is an evil regime...” ([32:32])
• Beck, on the global scale of elite overreach: “This isn't about Keir Starmer...this is the people against an elitist government all over the Western world...” ([04:59])

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Final Thought

This episode is an urgent call to recognize the global pattern of elite encroachment, the importance of strong-willed leadership, and the critical need to defend both civil and religious liberties against suppression, whether from homegrown governments or autocracies abroad.

Transcript

[A]

Making a grand reappearance on today's show is Stu. He has started his own thing with, you know, the, I like to call them betting markets. He doesn't like to call them that. He is looking at, you know, what people are laying their money down on when it comes to politics. And he has seen a big change in politics and the numbers are showing that maybe the Republicans are going to be okay.

[B]

Also.

[A]

Samuel Brownback is on with us talking about the, the evil of that is China. Winston Marshall is on. I love this guy. He is English. He actually tries to defend the King. It's cute, it really is. But talks about what we're facing, what all of the west is facing and what they're facing here in, in London. All this and so much more on today's podcast. Being prepared, always a good idea. But as somebody who tries to prepare, I've always been frustrated that nobody had the medical solution on preparedness until Jace Medical. They've just launched the Jace plus plus the Pocket Paramedic. You know, most people get their over the counter medical supplies and hope, you know, they never have to use them. But preparedness doesn't end with that. Supplies run low. When something actually happens, you don't want to be figuring out in real time how do I get my prescription medication. The JACE plus is a membership designed to help you stay ready over time. In fact, it was my idea the first time I met with the Jace Team Plus. With Jace plus membership you can get 15% off on all products on Jace.com, 50% off replenishment medications, free free shipping, insurance, plus so much more. And then there's the Pocket Paramedic. It's real time guidance for everyday injuries and situations. Live professionals one call away. It's about responsibility, self reliance. It's about Jace.com find out what's available to you now. Jace.com use the promo code free month for one month. Free. Hello America. You know we've been fighting every single day. We push back against the lies, the censorship, the nonsense of the mainstream media that they're trying to feed you. We work tirelessly to bring you the unfiltered truth because you deserve it. But to keep this fight going, we need you right now. Would you take a moment and rate and review the Glenn Beck podcast? Give us five stars and leave a comment. Because every single review helps us break through Big Tech's algorithm to reach more Americans who need to hear the truth. This isn't a podcast. This is a movement and you're part of it. A big Part of it. So if you believe in what we're doing, you want more people to wake up, help us push this podcast to the top rate, review, share together, we'll make a difference. And thanks for standing with us. Now, let's get to work.

[C]

You're listening to the best of the Glenn Beck Program.

[A]

It's always good to see you, Glenn.

[D]

It's great to see you. Yeah, thanks for having me on your great show.

[A]

Excited to. Thank you. So, the King.

[D]

Well, I, you know, I have to warn you, I am a monarchist.

[A]

Yeah, I know you are and I know you are. And I, you know, there's, there's gonna be a problem. There's still hope for you there'.

[D]

No, but you see, you Americans, I understand, I understand that sort of your sense of conservatism is, is actually built on rebellion and against the monarchy. But you've got to understand for us, our liberties are protected by the monarchy.

[A]

Are they?

[D]

Yes.

[A]

Yeah, I saw what he was talking about.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

It's been about 300 years since the monarchy ever actually intervened to protect anyone, but.

[A]

Right.

[D]

Nevertheless, our tradition is that balance of king. Technically it's monarch aristocracy represented by the peers, although that's changed under Starmer. And then the Commons represented by the people. And we are governed by the people. Governed by the people.

[A]

I've got news for you. None of that's working for you right now.

[B]

None of that.

[A]

None of that's working for you. I mean, well, you look how the people are voting Starmer going to leave

[D]

Starmer, it looks like. I don't know how he's pulled this off because a day ago I thought that was it, he's finished. I think he's going to last it. And part of the reason is, is because there is no talent in the Labour Party to replace him. The best option is Wes street, frankly, you know, if he's suit that guy.

[A]

I listened to the BBC yesterday and they were talking about him as if, as if there's nothing to see here. This, you know, these elections, they don't mean anything. We've seen this before and I'm like, what are you people talking about? The people are clear on this.

[D]

Yeah, well, the BBC completely soaked up in the same ideology as the Uniparty as the Labour Party and frankly as the Conservative Party has been for the last 15 years. Remember with Keir Starmer, although he won with something like 35% of the vote, he actually had 20% of the electorate. So four out of five people in Britain who could vote two years ago, the 2024 election did not vote for Keir Starmer. Think about that. Even Kamala Harris had something like 48%. Right. But we are living in what America would be if Kamala had won.

[A]

And we are, and so is Canada and so is much of Europe. I mean, I think. And you know, I think we change everything once, all of us who are fighting for personal liberties and common sense, I think once we all understand, wait a minute, this isn't about Keir Sommer. This is not about Donald Trump. This isn't about, you know, any of the politics that every country is making about. They're making it about local politics. The elites are saying it's these people that are the problem. No, no, this is the people against an elitist government all over the Western world that has decided exactly how we're all going to live. And when the people in Germany understand and the people in England understand, the Germans are getting the same thing, we're getting the same thing, then all of a sudden we start to have real allies. Because then you have the, the population of every country going, wait a minute, we're in this together.

[D]

Yes, you're absolutely right. We're seeing the revolt of the people against the post war elite. You spelled it out beautifully in your book, actually, about the wef.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

And it's precisely that ideology that has been the big fight now in America, of course, with Trump, many of those battles are being won. But in Europe here, it's still, it's not all to play for, because I think the people are, are going to win eventually. But it's the last gasps of that elite, which is why actually Starmer has his trying to pivot and create new enemies. So your colleagues have been banned from coming to Britain.

[A]

You slip from. I don't know how I slip through.

[D]

Yeah, it's kind of remarkable. It's probably because you're a much bigger threat, because if they went for you, that would actually have political ramifications in the U.S. i suspect that's right.

[C]

But.

[D]

But there's two other Americans who've been banned. A Belgian has been a politician, Polish politician, member of the European Parliament. What Starmer's tried to do, and this is how he's saving himself here, is he's trying to create bogeymen. He's saying, okay, Tommy Robinson, and this march that's happening, the far right, I'm not the enemy.

[A]

They are.

[D]

They're the enemy. And if we can say, we can focus the attention on here, it's the same reason why he Banned Kanye west from coming over for antisemitism whilst not actually doing anything about anti Semitism, not actually calling out the problem, which is Islam. That's where it's coming from. And by the way, under Starmer, it's now the worst anti Semitism we've had in. Since Jews were allowed back into the country by Oliver Cromwell in the 1650s. So we're talking 370 years. Only once in that period has a Jew been killed for being a Jew. That was in the 1960s by some on the far right. We've had two Jews killed at the end of last year by a man whose first name was Jihad. And in the last month, we've had various synagogues fire bombed. We had two Jews stabbed in the neck in London. This is happening, and it's coming from a very specific place. Starmer. But he can't possibly say that because he needs that Muslim voter base. So he's pivoting away. He's saying people like Tommy Robinson, they're the real people. Like these trying to come into Europe, they're the real villains here. And that's how we need to.

[A]

Are they that stupid, though? I mean, because you know how the left and the Islamist were the ones behind the revolution in Iran. And you know what happened to anybody who wasn't an Islamist? All of the Marxists, they were all killed or tortured or, you know, disappeared. It's not gonna work out. Well, the king keeps playing footsie with these people, and I'm like, they're not gonna. They're not gonna embrace you.

[D]

Do you think the King's playing footsie with them?

[A]

King Chuck?

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

Okay, I've got to address this, actually. Right. Because there's a popular rumor online that the king is a Muslim.

[A]

Actually, no, I don't believe that.

[D]

You don't believe that? No, but people think he's. He's kowtowing to them. Now, one thing to remember about the King is, firstly, he is a Christian. But secondly, Is he not a Christian?

[A]

No, I mean, I'm sure he is.

[D]

Okay, well, he's practicing.

[A]

I don't know.

[D]

He's the sovereign, the head of state of several countries around the world.

[A]

Right.

[D]

And some of those countries are Muslim majority countries. So he is the sovereign of large populations of Muslims around the world. So he's in this very difficult position where he's head of the English Christian Church.

[A]

I've never had a guest defend the King of England. You're first. It's great to hear it. It's great to hear It. It's refreshing, kind of. Well, who says I'm not open to hear other opinions?

[D]

There you go. Oh, dear. I hate it when I come off woke on all these shows because I'm not woke. This always happens when I speak to Americans. Conservative. No. Now, I really do not like what Starmer. Sorry. What His Majesty has said about some of this environment Green ideology staff. And I don't like the direction he's going there. I don't like it when these guys getting this domain of people get involved in politics. I think that is for the people and for the Commons. But nevertheless, he's in a difficult position where he's got to be the representative not just of England and of Great Britain, but also the Commonwealth and other realms around the world, and they're not Christians. So he's got to get that right. And that's a tricky one.

[A]

He's ahead of the Church of England, though.

[D]

That's correct. But it's a difficult balancing act.

[A]

Right, I can see your point on that. Let's talk about his digital id.

[D]

Yeah, I'm very displeased about this. Yeah, this is being now, just to be clear. So what he's reading out is being given to him by number 10, being given to him by the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer. So he doesn't really have a say. He could if he wanted to object to things that are going on. The last time that happened, I think, was literally over 300 years ago. So they don't object. The digital ID aspect. This is something I've been covering a lot on my show. It. It is a system that Tony Blair tried to bring in when he was Prime Minister back in the late 90s and they've also incorporated into tax now. So they. I, as a. I've run several businesses. I now have to have to sign up to this stuff. It's very difficult for me to resist and continue running my business.

[A]

That's the way they like it.

[D]

Exactly. And the problem, of course, is that you can see this playing out in China, is that you will end up with a social credit score system. If you think that this government is stopping people coming in to the country, what could they possibly do next? Not only that, they all think that Nigel Farage is a fascist. He's not a fascist, by the way. He's a pretty traditional conservative, as far as I can tell, who's gone against the elites as this started, this conversation. He has been the person in British politics who has stood against the globalized liberal elite.

[A]

It's Funny, because in America people look at Nigel Farage and say, I think, did he sell out? He's starting to get a little weak on.

[D]

Yeah, I think that. So this is a very online thing and it's quite curious actually, if you think about the council elections that we've just had around the country where reform, his party, formerly called the Brexit Party, just completely dominate. Even the Green Party who didn't perform as well. And the Green Party are far left Leninist, unapologetic communist group with an Islamo faction to them even they didn't do as well as projected. But Nigel's Reform Party did much better. And I think that possibly because this is online, people have forgotten how he's endeared himself to so much of the public and why he's so popular here on the ground. And partly that's because he's made tremendous self sacrifice. People say he's sold out. This is a guy in the early 90s who left the Conservative Party because they sold out and did and signed up for the eu. That was with the Maastricht treaty. And that's where even the Tories became the establishment, they became the globalist elite in that sense. They signed up to that ideology, rather would be a more accurate way of saying he said, you know what? No. And that's by the way, at the detriment of his own career. So he spent his whole life in his professional life outside of that bubble. He then has been calling out illegal immigration at tremendous self cost. And by that I mean he's been a bogey man in the same way that the media, they will do pictures of Trump with like a Hitler mustache and they say Hitler. They've been doing that to Nigel for decades. It's been a huge personal cost and social cost. And yet he was right. He was right to say that we've been invaded and that masses of people coming in at the detriment of the country and there are a few other characters who have been doing it. Seeing as you're speaking at Tommy Robinson's march, it's worth noting that he has been brilliant calling out the grooming gangs for decades before other people. Now Nigel is getting this flak and it's very strange for me to see this because he is someone who actually has really got the credentials against the elite in a way that few people do.

[A]

I have to tell you, I like him and I like Tommy, but I'm not from England, so I don't, I don't know, you know, I follow it. You Know, passing and I know I trust my gut and I'm pretty, you know, pretty good on my gut. But I don't know, I mean, I like Nigel. I don't see anybody else. I mean, to be able to fight this, you have to, you're going to be called Hitler always to fight this, you have to be outspoken, you have to be tough, and you have to be tough skinned. I mean, Donald Trump is the, I think he's the only one that could have lasted in America. He's the only one that could have put up with all of this and still fought back and won.

[D]

Yeah, I think America needed a bull like him, someone that could actually would thrive off the attacks and because no other individual, because if you think of every single attack from the beginning, Russia, hoax, all of this all the way through when he was out, they were trying to get him in the four year period. They'd just been relentlessly. I just don't know another human being who could have.

[A]

I have to tell you, excuse the audience, excuse me for telling the story again, but Brit needs to hear this. I talked to the President privately and I said, what was going through your mind when you were laying on the ground and Butler and Secret Service were on top of you and you're bleeding?

[D]

Three times they've tried to kill him.

[A]

Right? Okay. He's on the ground, he's bleeding. He knows he's been shot. He can hear the other gunshots. He knows what's. It's chaos around him. They're going to try to kill him. Do you know what he told me? I said, what is, what are you, what were you thinking at the time? Get up, get up. You're not afraid of these people. You want to be the President of the United States, Represent the United States. We're not afraid. Holy cow. Yeah. And you can't fake that at that moment. That's why he stood up and fight.

[D]

Yes.

[A]

Representing the United States. We are not going to bow down to this kind of stuff.

[D]

Absolutely true leadership and that, that every nation needs that kind of thing, particularly the west needs it. And I'm very grateful. The American has showed leadership where European leaders and elites have really failed and they're actually pivoting away. I know you've been talking about China. They're going the wrong direction.

[A]

I think if Trump loses in 28, well, Trump's not going to run. But if we don't have somebody like Trump and if we lose Congress and the Senate and we lose this vision that he's working on, I think we turn right back to where you are today. We turn on a dime.

[D]

There's going to be a struggle now. This is not easy. This is going to be a fight, really, for the rest of our lives. I don't think that the elites are going to go out with a lot outlast breath.

[A]

He told me at one point, I need 12 years. Not me, he said, but to fix this, he said, I need my four years, and we have to have two people or two terms following me that are on the same path. He said, I think we can kill it in 12 years, but we can't in four.

[D]

Well, Rubio's been extremely promising.

[A]

He's amazing.

[D]

I'm incredibly impressed by the guy.

[C]

You're streaming the Best of Glenn Beck. To hear more of this interview and others, download the full show podcasts wherever you get podcasts.

[A]

Stu, how are you? My man?

[C]

Glenn, good to see you, my man. How are you?

[A]

Very good, very good. I wanted to get you on today because I've been reading your articles, watching your stuff, and you are. You have some good news. I wanted to bring you on when you had good news, because when it comes to election time, a lot of times you're really a drag. You're right. You're right. You're always accurate, but you're a drag today.

[C]

You call me. Yeah, you call me the little black rain cloud for almost 30 years. And that was. It was a nice way to be known. I appreciated it so much. But, yeah, no, there actually is some pretty good.

[A]

You're not today. So tell me.

[C]

Yeah, yeah. So basically, you know, it's funny because these things are. They originate with the left being the left. Right. Like, they're constantly doing things to try to take advantage of their situations. And they did this a couple of different times. One was when it came to trying to expand the Voter Rights act to the maximum levels possible. So they kept harassing these states to change their districts over and over and over again so that they could get more majority minority districts. Right? These are districts where the majority of the voters are minorities. And they will, in theory, I guess the assumption is minorities just vote for their own skin colors so they will elect other minorities. That's basically the very cynical way Democrats looked at it for years and years and years and years. And they got courts to back them up for a long period of time. Then, of course, this goes to. Eventually this happens in Louisiana and Louisiana, they wind up challenging this. It goes all the way to the Supreme Court. And the Supreme Court says what I think is Pretty obvious here, which is it's not supposed to be done by skin color. It's supposed to be the exact opposite of that. We're supposed to do, really, almost any other thing. Glenn, you can redistrict. You draw a line based on almost anything else. Right. Except race, which is hilarious because it's the one thing they kept trying to put in. So they tried this, and the Supreme Court wound up saying, I know you covered this, but it's like they wound up saying, look, you can't just draw these lines based on race. You can use it as kind of one thing in a recipe if you really want to, but you can't just draw these racial lines. They're not gonna hold. So they didn't hold. And this wound up burning the Democrats in a big way that it could wind up getting a bunch of seats to go from Republicans to Democrats, because now these states in the south who have been doing this for years, have to redraw these districts to align with what the Supreme Court said, which is we shouldn't draw voting lines based on skin color. So that's part number one. Part number two is the Virginia situation. Virginia, they wind up trying to do the same type of thing. The left went in and they said, well, we're gonna keep pushing and pushing and pushing and pushing and pushing. And they decided to try to make it, basically. So in this purplish state, there were no Republicans to be seen anywhere. They pushed this as far as they could go. And this is something that we caught pretty early on when looking at this race the way that they had designed this. Glenn, there are rules in Virginia, and they have this rule where basically, if you're going to screw with the Constitution and you're going to screw with the way these lines are drawn in their system, you have the original legislative vote, and then you have to have a, you know, basically a. Another vote by the people to say, hey, we want to throw these bums out. If they change the rules, we don't like that. We should have the opportunity to throw these bums out. So they did do that, sort of. They got the vote done immediately before the election and then forced everything through and said, look at us, we're great. We're going to push back against all these evil Republicans and get all these seats back. For the Democrats, the problem is, once again, because the left has been the left for so long, they had opened up early voting for such a long period of time that even though they got this vote done right before the election, the Republicans pointed Out. Hey, wait a minute. 40% of our population has already voted before you tried to do this, so this one doesn't count. You didn't check off what you needed to do in the state. So the Virginia Supreme Court came in and said, yeah, you know, again, you guys pushed it too far. You bent the rules, that didn't work out. And so Republicans are able to gain even more seats because of that situation, which is really changing the whole tenor of the race.

[A]

So do you, do you think this is all just happening because of the redistricting or do. Are you also seeing any indication that people are kind of like, I'm tired of all of this, they're pushing it too far. What happened in Virginia, you know, even Spanberger coming in and saying, well, we're not going to redistrict and then immediately pushing for redistricting, that you're seeing any indication that Democrats are pushing things and pushing the American people too far to the left, or is that just wishful thinking?

[C]

You know, I don't want to be the little black rain cloud here. I think that, I don't think I've seen signs of any level yet of a left leaning voter saying, you know what, maybe our party is going a little too far. Where we did see signs of that. I think back in 2021, 2022, where you saw the whole, the George Floyd era, I think was filled with moments where Democrats said about even their own party, hey, I don't know, maybe having some police on the streets is a good idea. You know, there were things like that that did happen. I haven't seen that yet. With redistricting, the way this is being framed, I think in the left wing media, and honestly the mainstream media is this is just the Democrats trying to protect themselves. They're doing the best that they can against these evil Republicans. Donald Trump is very mean and they have to do this this one time. That was the pitch from Gavin Newsom in California. Right. These places had set up systems that were supposed to eliminate the exact type of activity that Democrats are currently engaging in. And they went to their own voters and said, hey, you know, sure, we have all these rules set up, but aren't the Republicans mean that kind of has been enough for a lot of them? I do think that there is a, you know, a situation where they do push this too far. They're gonna try to challenge all this stuff. They're going to try to go down this road a little bit farther. But they have a tough argument to make to the American people who I still think despite everything we see in the media, believe in things like skin color shouldn't matter. Believe in things like merit should matter. And, you know, the farther they go down to push against that, I think the wor it gets for them.

[A]

So tell me what you're seeing in Los Angeles and in the California vote. I mean, you seem to, at least in the primaries, for the very first time, you have Republicans doing really quite well in the polls.

[C]

Yeah, actually, it's true. There's a couple of really interesting things going on there. One is the Los Angeles mayoral election. I know you've been watching that with Spencer Pratt. He's been running a really interesting race with, like, really great ads and, and he's.

[B]

Ads.

[C]

You watch the debate and you're, you're just like, how could any human being think that this guy isn't the best of these three? I, I just thought, you know, you

[A]

know who he reminds me of, Stu, is. Oh, what's the politician up in Canada? Remember the apple eating guy where he's

[C]

just like, yes, I love him.

[A]

I love him. He reminds me a little of him where it's like, it's no sweat. I don't really. Whatever just answering to these people. Well, you're a moron. And eating a bite of an apple, I mean, it just, it seems too easy almost for him.

[C]

Yeah. And obviously he knows the media really well. You look at the ad that he ran where he's showing off the houses of his opponents and then zooms out of his house, which is now a trailer because his house burned to the ground. He has real credibility there. And honestly, and it's funny because sometimes a really positive thing can potentially wind up being a negative for you in your campaign. It's obviously really difficult to win as a Republican in Los Angeles. I'm not breaking news here. Donald Trump lost to Kamala Harris 70 to 26 in 2024 in Los Angeles in a race that obviously Trump won overall. So this is a very, there's a big uphill battle. The best path for Spencer Pratt to win is for him to win a race that looks something like, you know, Pratt, 37, and then the other two at 30 and 28 or something like that, or, you know, 35, 32, 30. Right. He just squeaks out and is able to kind of go forward. The problem with this right now is the, the last debate he did so well that it wound up just destroying one of the two opponents. And you wonder if the left is going to now unite around Karen Bass, who is A catastrophe as a mayor, but it does seem like the current path. But he's got a shot. He's got a shot.

[A]

How about Steve Hilton?

[C]

Hilton, I saw you had him on. Yeah, he's again, you watched his debate. We paid close attention to that one on our show. Predictable with Stu, but we did. He was really good in that debate. And, you know, he has a lot of credibility. He has a way of being able to bridge a gap, I think, to a California voter who is at least sensible. And there are some there. You know, Glenn, we've been on in California for, I don't know, forever, since the beginning of the show. And every time we talk about California, we sometimes would generalize and say that they're all insane. And then there'd be people that would call up and say, wait a minute, no, I mean, I have lots of friends. I swear, we're not completely all like this. But, you know, Steve Hilton, I think, really appeals to not only those people on the conservative side, but also people who I think can just step back and say, okay, look, I might even be a little bit on the left. But, you know, I might not appreciate everything that, that Steve Hilton might stand for when it comes to certain policies, but at least the guy's speaking common sense. You know, he said on the stage, he's like, you know, you guys keep attacking us on immigration. He's like, I'm the only one up here who is an immigrant. That's. That's who I am. That's. That's. Actually, I'm the only one who has any credibility on this particular issue. He talked about that, and I thought he was. I thought he was solid. You're listening to the best of the Glenn Beck Podcast. Hear more of this interview and others with the full show podcast available wherever you get podcasts.

[A]

Welcome to the Glenn Beck Program. We're talking about China this hour. I'm going to get to some of the other things that are going on. The king just spoke here in Parliament. I'm in London this week. He just spoke in Parliament. He said some really, I think, very disturbing things about global warming. And also digital id. It is coming strong here in England. We'll get into that here in a minute. I'm reading a couple of books on China right now. And. And one of them kind of goes into how we just don't understand China at all because they've never had. They've never had any religion, they've never had any emperor at any time that has been about human individual rights. Never so it's not even part of their, as Melissa just said, not even part of their vocabulary to have these rights. And there is presidency is not a good guy. Not a good guy. And there is real persecution going on. And I have to tell you, I was in, I lived in New York for a while and I would pass these people who are on the streets, they Fulan Gong people, and I'd pass them and I'd see these horrible things that they were saying and I never stopped to really listen. And I feel horrible now because now I'm beginning to understand what the hell is going on in China. And it's Christians, it's Buddhist, it's Muslims, full on Gong. And anybody, anybody who wants to be religious and they are now passing out Bibles that change everything. They were replacing, just as they did in, in fascist Germany under Nazis replace the pictures of Christ on any altars with the picture of their dear leader. And one of the guys who really knows this is a former international religious freedom ambassador and former governor of Kansas, Samuel Brownback. Sam just put out a new book called China's War on Faith because they are waging a war on faith. And every American needs to understand that China is not our friend in any way. Sam, welcome to the program. How are you, sir?

[B]

I'm good, Glenn, and thank you for taking this topic on and being willing to talk about it. I think it's just so critical and I think we have just a real lack of understanding of what this is and how, how significant it is that's going on.

[A]

Sam, I have to tell you, I think that we are, we're in a spiritual battle. We are not battling, I mean, Ephesians, we're not battling flesh and bone. We are not even battling, you know, Republican, Democrat, we. There is a spiritual darkness. This is a spiritual battle on so many fronts. So tell me about how China is waging this war on faith.

[B]

Well, really, that's the COVID of the book. It's a big dragon with strings controlling people underneath. It is on the COVID of the book showcasing this war that China has with faith. You know, one of the guys that's, that we feature in the book is Peter Xu. He was considered at the time one of the original House churches leaders, the Billy Graham of China. He's here with us in Washington with the book rollout. And he said yesterday that China has been biting their time until they got strong, but now they are revealing their inner darkness and we must restrain this power of darkness. That's Peter Xu saying that. And I think that's what you're starting to see. They are strong now, but this is all. It's. They're at war with God. They are at war with all faith. They can't tolerate any power that's higher than the government's. They will not tolerate it. They will suppress it. They will kill you. They will put you in prison. The rest of Christian pastors now is the highest, I would argue, since Mao. And that's what Xi Jinping is doing now. And a lot. It's out of control. They want to control the place. They want to control other authoritarian regimes. And so they share their technology and ability to do it. It is a direct confrontation to the Western civilization system that's built on the Judeo Christian ethic of human dignity based on the individual created in the image of God.

[A]

So tell me, tell me. Give me examples of what they're doing that people don't know in China. Start there.

[B]

Well, most people don't know about the forced organ harvesting that you witnessed that the Falun Gong members would talk about. But they will. If you're an opponent of the regime, they take your blood type. They want to know who, what. What type of blood, what type of body you have. And then at their desired time, they will kill you and harvest the organs. Kidneys, livers, eyes. I did the forward for a book. Just recently asked out on killed to order where these would be situated on a timing basis. And, you know, this is so. Glenn, this is so diabolical and evil. It's hard for you or me to imagine a government even thinking of something like this. And yet they. They do it. And if China. And they. They denied, of course, and everything, actually, for a while, they didn't. They said, well, yeah, we did. For those who were having capital punishment, we thought this would be a good utilitarian thing to do, to go ahead and harvest the organs. But we don't do it anymore. Well, they do still do it. And they do it to Falun Gong members, they do it to Muslim Uyghurs, who all knows who else that they do it to. And that's something I don't think people can fathom the evil of this regime. This is an evil regime, and they have killed more people. The Chinese Communist Party has killed more of their own people than any other regime in the history of mankind. Let that one sink in.

[A]

If you count the forced abortions, the number is as many as 500 million.

[B]

Yes, and I'm not even counting the forced. I'm not even counting the forced abortions. In the when the statement I made. And then at the current time, they've got three genocides going on now as we speak. The Muslim Uyghurs that we had declared as a government the end of the first Trump administration. The Tibetan Buddhist that they've gone at hammer and Tong for decades now and doing a cultural genocide, but they've wiped out the many people. And of course, the Dalai Lama cannot return to his own home area, and the Chinese government wants to appoint his successor. And then Falun Gong, who they literally have decimated. And I think they fear the Falun Gong more than any religion because it's an indigenous Eastern religion. It's what grandma used to practice. And when they let it loose for seven years in China, where they said, okay, we'll let you guys practice this, it went from zero to 90 million adherents in seven years.

[A]

Oh, my God.

[B]

It freaked the Chinese government out. And they said, these guys are dangerous. And they went after him to eliminate, annihilate them, which is the definition of genocide, where you're trying to eliminate a whole group of people.

[A]

So, Sam, you've talked to the president about all of this stuff. He knows. What are you hoping when he sits down with Xi Jinping this week? What are you hoping we can get

[B]

out of this, Glenn? I think really both sides right now just want to calm the waters for a little bit and get the temperature down. I am. I am not expecting much. I really hope he does get, like, Pastor Ezra Jinn out of jail. Jimmy Lai, there's nine Catholic bishops that are detained, arrested. I would hope they would release them. I'm not expecting that. Honestly. I. I just think really, this meeting right now is just trying to about cool the waters down. But I think when they raise Taiwan, which is a no go for us, we should raise religious freedom with them, which is a no go for them, and just say, okay, you're gonna. You're gonna throw one out there that we don't like? Fine, we're gonna throw one out there you don't like. Because they fear religious freedom more than they fear our aircraft carriers or our nuclear weapons. That's. This is their Achilles heel, and we should go right in. Same way Ronald Reagan did at the Soviet Union. He traveled America talking about the godless commies before he was president and citing The Jewish refused NICs. And it undermined the regime, its authority, and it's all. And its legitimacy. And that's what we need to do with the ccp.

[A]

How are the underground churches in China? Are they still growing? They were growing, but then they got cracked down on them hard. Are they still growing?

[B]

Nobody really knows. But over the last few years, most people have been citing the fastest growing Christian churches in the world have been the last couple years, last five years. And get this, China and Iran, where the persecution is the greatest, but then that's where the faith grows the most, is when it's under pressure and duress. I used to say if people actually understood Christianity, they wouldn't oppress it and suppress it, they would subsidize it. If you want to really kill Christianity, subsidize really grows best under pressure.

[A]

I will tell you. I, I've talked to people who have escaped China, who were in prison in China for their faith. And their, their faith is enormous. But one of them has told me, you know, what we're all praying for in China. All the Christians are praying. What they're praying that the United States is going to fall into really hard times. And I was like, why, why wait? Why would you pray for that? And they're like, because you, you might remember who you are and you'll stand up and you'll start serving God because we need your help. I mean, that's, that's pretty amazing. Pretty amazing.

[B]

Yeah, it really does. I, the ones I've met, and many of them have been in jail multiple times and they, they call it Chinese seminary. It's just their faith is so beautiful and it's purified and there's a joy and a peace about him that you look at you, okay, that's the real deal. I've seen it. I, I, you've, you've been with Jesus. I can see it,

[A]

Sam. I mean, I'm in London this week. Last, last question for the last couple of minutes, but I'm in London and there is a real problem with freedom of speech here. And, you know, the, the keeper of the flame, the keeper of, the protector of the faith, you know, doesn't seem to be the strongest, you know, keeper of the faith here. How concerned are you on freedom of speech and, and where this is going with Christians in the uk?

[B]

I'm, I'm really concerned. So much so I, and where I was headed in the US really before President Trump came in, I got debanked. The group I helped form, National Committee for Religious Freedom. I mean, how more American can you be than that? And we got debanked. But there was this effort in the west to suffocate faith and the principles, the natural law principles that faith generally is around and from coming into society because they weren't seen as the current cultural norms. They were against what people wanted to do. And look, faith has always stood against things that are trending the wrong way or are evil in nature. And it's always been this voice against that. And people want to silence that voice by debanking, de platforming. And you see it more aggressively in Europe than we had seen it in the United States. But I've been deeply concerned about that. That suffocation move is what I call it. It's not they're not going to really throw you in jail, though they are in some places. But most of it's just about taking the insurance away from crisis pregnancy centers so that they, their board of directors don't have any coverage. And so if people well, I don't know that I want to go on there for that. I'll be out there with you. I'll contribute, but I'm not going to lead if I'm putting everything else on the line. So that's really the effort in the west and we've got to push back against and stand up against.

[A]

Sam, thank you so much. Thanks for all your work over the years and thank you for this new book, China's War on Faith by Sam Brownback. It is out now wherever you get your books. In it he talks about the high tech, the digital authoritarianism that China is now pushing out over in 80 countries. He calls them sinister new technology. Also the campaigns on physical torture and imprisonment of people on faith. These are all things that you need to know if you're if you want to prepare for the world that we are entering in and you want to be well informed so nothing slipping by you. You see the enemy in front of us. It's not just China. This is all over the world. Start here. China's War on Faith by Sam Brownback. Thanks, Sam. Appreciate it. Back in just a minute, Glenn.

[B]

Me?

[A]

You bet.

[B]

Nana.

[D]

Nana.