The Glenn Beck Program

Episode: "The Most Insane Deep-State Revolt You've Never Heard Of"

Guests: Peter Schweizer & Darren Beattie
Date: August 26, 2025
Host: Glenn Beck
Podcast Network: Blaze Podcast Network

Episode Overview

This episode of The Glenn Beck Program tackles a spectrum of pressing and often controversial American cultural and political topics. Glenn Beck, with guests Peter Schweizer and Darren Beattie, explores the recurring theme of "deep-state" operations, governmental overreach, and the covert intersections of politics, national security, and foreign influence. The show also dives deep into current debates on physical fitness standards, the perils of transgender medicalization for youth, and the fundamental underpinnings of American values—juxtaposing stories of tragedy with messages of optimism and civic duty.

Throughout, Beck’s signature blend of storytelling and analysis offers both comic relief and critical perspective, making complex issues accessible but thought-provoking.

Key Topics & Discussion Points

1. Department of Defense vs. Department of War

• [05:00–18:00]
  Beck examines Trump's recent suggestion to return the Department of Defense to its historical name, the Department of War. He provides historical context, referencing how America went from a reactive, war-footed stance to a permanent standing military establishment after WWII:

  “Every word tells you something about what a man believes about himself. So do we need a Department of Defense or Department of War?”
  — Glenn Beck [17:15]

• Discussion Points:

  • The implications of naming and language on national identity
  • Eisenhower’s warning about the military-industrial complex
  • Trump’s and Reagan’s respective anti-war but strength-based policies
  • The U.S. as a nation that should remember what ‘war’ actually means

2. Fitness Standards: Then vs. Now

• [19:00–41:00]
  A blend of comedy and social commentary as Glenn and Stu bemoan the shocking difficulty of both past and proposed presidential fitness tests—citing examples from JFK’s era and making fun of their own physical limitations:

  “I bet I could do three [pull-ups].”
  — Glenn Beck [22:30]

  “With proper form? … No, you could not.”
  — Stu [22:56]

• Key Insights:

  • Comparison of JFK’s brutal fitness benchmarks vs. current proposals
  • Broader lament about the decline of average American physical standards
  • Humorous self-deprecation and generational anecdotes

3. Deep-State Revelations: U.S. Institute of Peace & Taliban Payments

• [46:00–67:20] Beck introduces Darren Beattie, who details his efforts to uncover astonishing deep-state machinations:

  • Hostile takeover of the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP)
  • Alleged payments to a former Taliban member
  • USIP lamenting the collapse of the opium trade post-Taliban resurgence

  “The question is, what the heck is an organization like this doing having an individual who is a former Taliban member on their payroll?”
  — Darren Beattie [59:45]

  “UCIP was almost a cutout of a cutout. A fourth of its money actually came from USAID, which is itself a cutout.”
  — Darren Beattie [64:40]

• Memorable Moments:

  • Colorful recounting of "barricading offices, loaded guns, data deletions, and hostage moments" during the USIP shakeup
  • Beattie promises massive document dumps for public transparency

4. Chinese Influence: Students & Land Purchases

• [68:16–78:15]
  Peter Schweizer raises alarms over China’s infiltration through student visas and land purchases:

  “The students that come to the United States are screened for their political views. Their families are screened for their political views. So when they are here, they are functionaries of the Chinese government.”
  — Peter Schweizer [69:20]

  “Of the 20 military installations our team checked at random, all 20 have Chinese-owned land adjacent to them.”
  — Peter Schweizer [74:14]

• Key Points:

  • Vast majority of Chinese students in US study hard sciences; risk of espionage and political operations
  • Alarming pattern of Chinese land purchases near critical military bases
  • Little to no effective national regulation or oversight
  • Reference to Gavin Newsom vetoing bipartisan anti-foreign land bills

5. Exposing Medicalized Childhood Transition: Claire’s Story

• [90:39–104:42]
  Interview with Claire—a detransitioned young woman—on gender-affirming care and its lasting physical and psychological consequences. Claire’s mother was pressured by medical authorities to greenlight interventions beginning at age 14:

  “No one is born in the wrong body. You don’t become your true self by cutting off pieces of yourself.”
  — Claire [98:34]

• Highlights:

  • Medical community’s alleged dismissal of previous trauma, bullying, and psychological factors
  • Lack of informed consent regarding permanent side effects
  • Pressures on parents: “When you’re sitting in front of a mandated reporter… telling you that you’re killing [your child], it would take a lot of prior knowledge… to just overlook that.” [102:11]
  • FTC now investigating deceptive practices in pediatric gender medicine

6. Crime, Mental Illness, and Societal Decay

• [110:13–124:30] Beck shares the tragic murder of a young Ukrainian immigrant in Charlotte by a mentally ill, repeat offender—tying the event to broader systemic failures and the need to address both crime and mental health humanely yet firmly.

  “It’s inhumane to the people who live there… and it is inhuman to not recognize the struggle of sanity that so many of our fellow beings are going through on our streets right now.”
  — Glenn Beck [113:40]

7. Hope & The Good in America

• [117:30–124:30]
  In a heartfelt closing, Beck insists the daily news cycle doesn’t represent who Americans truly are.

  “What you focus on is what you feed. And if you believe we’re finished, then you will behave as if it’s true. But if you remember that the light still outnumbers the darkness, you will rise, you will fight, you will build.”
  — Glenn Beck [117:30]

8. Pop Culture as Bellwether: Snoop Dogg & Disney

• [124:34–126:25] A surprising nod to Snoop Dogg’s candid podcast reaction to on-screen same-sex parenting in a children’s movie—used to highlight how regular Americans, regardless of politics, crave innocent content for their children:

  “Oh crap, I didn’t come in for this crap. I just came in to watch the gosh darn movie. It screwed me up... I’m, like, scared to go to the movies now.”
  — Snoop Dogg, as quoted by Stu [125:15]

  “That’s the way… to win people over and… also keep hope. That’s the average person—that’s Snoop Dogg.”
  — Glenn Beck [126:25]

Memorable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• “I think I’m actually for the Department of War. I think it’s the right thing to do. It shows strength externally, and it reminds us—most importantly, internally—it is war.”
  — Glenn Beck [17:06]

• “UCIP was almost a cutout of a cutout. A fourth of its money actually came from USAID... a very intricate setup.”
  — Darren Beattie [64:40]

• “There’s a million stories like it. You most likely see it on your own streets. Why do we have to stop this craziness on our streets? It’s inhumane.”
  — Glenn Beck [113:40]

• “No one is born in the wrong body. You don’t become your true self by cutting off pieces of yourself.”
  — Claire [98:34]

Important Timestamps

• [05:00] — Department of Defense/War discussion begins
• [19:00] — Presidential fitness standards, self-deprecating comedy
• [46:00–49:14] — Introduction of State/NGO “deep-state” topic
• [57:33–67:28] — Darren Beattie exposes NGOs, Taliban, data deletions
• [68:16–78:20] — Peter Schweizer on China’s infiltration
• [90:39–104:42] — Detransition story with Claire, medical accountability
• [110:13–124:30] — Crime, mental illness, hope
• [124:34–126:25] — Snoop Dogg & pop culture, American normalcy

Summary & Takeaways

• The show deftly weaves humor with grave concerns about American institutions, from the military’s place in civil society, to covert government operations and foreign influence.
• It features first-person testimony about the medicalization of childhood gender transition, amplifying warnings about medical, social, and parental pressures.
• Discussions of crime and mental illness are punctuated with calls for both compassion and societal responsibility.
• Despite the serious nature throughout, Beck continually reminds listeners to focus on the inherent goodness in their communities and to be agents of positive change, not despair.
• Lighthearted segments on presidential fitness and pop culture provide needed levity, while the final message is one of balance—engage civically, keep hope, and know that “most people are still good.”

For in-depth context on any specific feature segment, refer to the provided timestamps.