1 00:00:17,559 --> 00:00:20,519 Speaker 1: And we are back with another edition of the Federalist 2 00:00:20,640 --> 00:00:24,120 Radio Hour. I'm Matt Kittle, senior Elections correspondent at the 3 00:00:24,160 --> 00:00:29,000 Federalist and your experienced Shirpa on today's quest for Knowledge. 4 00:00:29,359 --> 00:00:32,200 As always, you can email the show at radio at 5 00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:36,600 the Federalist dot com, follow us on x at FDR LST, 6 00:00:37,079 --> 00:00:40,119 make sure to subscribe wherever you download your podcast, and 7 00:00:40,320 --> 00:00:43,880 of course to the premium version of our website as well. 8 00:00:44,399 --> 00:00:50,159 Our guest today is Drew Thomas, author for Christ and Country, 9 00:00:50,240 --> 00:00:54,960 The Martyrdom of Charlie Kirk. In it, Drew asserts that 10 00:00:55,079 --> 00:00:59,159 the Left killed Charlie Kirk now with a single bullet, 11 00:00:59,640 --> 00:01:04,239 but with years of hatred, slander, and moral corruption that 12 00:01:04,359 --> 00:01:09,480 made his assassination inevitable. More So, Kirk's death was not 13 00:01:09,560 --> 00:01:12,719 an isolated act of violence, as we know, but the 14 00:01:12,760 --> 00:01:17,640 culmination of a toxic political movement that has gone mainstream, 15 00:01:17,680 --> 00:01:22,159 now fully embodied by the Democratic Party. Drew, thank you 16 00:01:22,200 --> 00:01:23,760 so much for joining us in this edition of the 17 00:01:23,799 --> 00:01:24,840 Federalist Radio Hour. 18 00:01:25,359 --> 00:01:27,079 Speaker 2: Oh thanks for having me. I've been looking forward to 19 00:01:27,079 --> 00:01:28,000 talking to you about this. 20 00:01:28,480 --> 00:01:34,120 Speaker 1: Yes, absolutely, this is in a year filled with big stories, 21 00:01:34,239 --> 00:01:38,319 this one was huge because I just think it took 22 00:01:38,359 --> 00:01:42,079 our collective breath away. I think it took the conservative 23 00:01:42,159 --> 00:01:45,599 movement's breath away. I think it took away the breath 24 00:01:45,640 --> 00:01:52,200 of those who knew Charlie Kirk and loved him, and 25 00:01:52,239 --> 00:01:56,120 even for some members of the left. Although I think 26 00:01:56,159 --> 00:01:59,640 what we learned in the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination 27 00:02:00,560 --> 00:02:05,319 is that we really are living in an assassination culture 28 00:02:06,599 --> 00:02:11,639 on the left. This was certainly quite an undertaking, because 29 00:02:12,360 --> 00:02:19,120 you know, you go from September tenth and you know, 30 00:02:19,280 --> 00:02:23,800 putting this all together now, I know that you've been, 31 00:02:24,479 --> 00:02:28,199 you know, looking into examining the life of Charlie Kirk, 32 00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:32,680 a conservative icon, but this really hits home on all 33 00:02:32,719 --> 00:02:33,560 of those points. 34 00:02:35,400 --> 00:02:38,439 Speaker 2: Yeah. I mean, I was Charlie's publicist last summer for 35 00:02:38,520 --> 00:02:42,120 Right Wing Revolution, but as I make clear in the book, 36 00:02:42,599 --> 00:02:44,800 I didn't know Charlie Kirk personally. You know, I've worked 37 00:02:44,800 --> 00:02:48,639 with a lot of famous people, Tulca Gabber, doctor Ben Carson, 38 00:02:49,960 --> 00:02:51,360 Carrie Lake, a lot of people, and a lot of 39 00:02:51,400 --> 00:02:53,280 these people I have talked to and I have met, 40 00:02:53,759 --> 00:02:56,199 and some of them, like Christina Bob is a you know, 41 00:02:56,199 --> 00:02:59,000 I consider her a friend. But Charlie was different because 42 00:02:59,000 --> 00:03:02,400 I didn't interact with him, and I think, like millions 43 00:03:02,439 --> 00:03:08,280 of other people, I was struggling to process why his 44 00:03:08,439 --> 00:03:11,159 death devastated me in the way that he did. I mean, 45 00:03:12,159 --> 00:03:13,800 you know, the older you get, the more people die. 46 00:03:13,840 --> 00:03:19,759 I'm thirty eight and no death I've experienced in my 47 00:03:19,879 --> 00:03:22,680 life affected me like this. And part of it was 48 00:03:22,840 --> 00:03:25,520 it hit so close to home. I've got two young 49 00:03:25,599 --> 00:03:28,479 kids who are basically Charlie's kids age and as a 50 00:03:28,560 --> 00:03:31,879 matter of fact, Matt I was the day Charlie Kirk died. 51 00:03:32,120 --> 00:03:33,840 You know, It's kind of like in the book, I 52 00:03:33,840 --> 00:03:35,879 have a chapter called nine ten is the New nine 53 00:03:35,919 --> 00:03:38,319 to eleven, and that's not the downplay nine to eleven. 54 00:03:38,919 --> 00:03:42,039 But you know, I remember where I was on nine 55 00:03:42,039 --> 00:03:43,599 to eleven. I was a freshman in high school, and 56 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:45,360 I think a lot of people probably remember where they 57 00:03:45,400 --> 00:03:47,319 were when they learned the news about Charlie Kirk. And 58 00:03:47,360 --> 00:03:52,039 for me, I did something I rarely do. I accompanied 59 00:03:52,080 --> 00:03:53,520 my wife to pick up our two and a half 60 00:03:53,599 --> 00:03:57,520 year old from preschool and we pulled into the parking 61 00:03:57,560 --> 00:04:01,800 lot and that's when I got the notification. And then 62 00:04:01,800 --> 00:04:03,719 as my wife went to retrieve our daughter, I was 63 00:04:04,120 --> 00:04:07,520 you refreshing news feeds. I was looking on X and 64 00:04:07,520 --> 00:04:10,240 then I came across the video and your gut, everyone's 65 00:04:10,240 --> 00:04:13,599 gut told them that it wasn't survivable. And as I 66 00:04:13,639 --> 00:04:17,279 was starting to process that, my wife is bringing my 67 00:04:17,360 --> 00:04:19,759 daughter towards the car, and my daughter's running towards me, 68 00:04:19,839 --> 00:04:22,040 and she's just her face is lit up with joy, 69 00:04:22,079 --> 00:04:26,360 Matt and she's just saying, Dad has in car. And 70 00:04:26,680 --> 00:04:29,439 I was just confronted with this duality. You know, here's 71 00:04:29,480 --> 00:04:32,439 my daughter that's so happy to see me, is so innocent, 72 00:04:33,040 --> 00:04:36,839 and someone else's little girl, Charlie's girl and son would 73 00:04:36,879 --> 00:04:40,120 never have that experience again. And then to see the 74 00:04:40,160 --> 00:04:44,680 celebrations by the left, the mockery, it reminded me of 75 00:04:44,759 --> 00:04:48,240 nine to eleven two. Because more shocking to me, I think, 76 00:04:48,639 --> 00:04:53,279 even than the tower's falling, was the jubilation in the 77 00:04:53,319 --> 00:04:56,759 streets in the Middle East by certain Muslims who were 78 00:04:57,120 --> 00:05:02,360 celebrating our collective pain. And I just realized, you know, 79 00:05:02,439 --> 00:05:08,199 this country, there's too much fear to confront the severity 80 00:05:08,279 --> 00:05:11,240 of the situation we have in the country, and we 81 00:05:11,319 --> 00:05:13,160 need to take it head on, and we need to 82 00:05:13,160 --> 00:05:16,160 call it out. We need to hold people accountable. And 83 00:05:16,600 --> 00:05:21,480 you know, these weren't jihadis celebrating over in Pakistan. They 84 00:05:21,480 --> 00:05:26,920 were leftists that were politicians, they were news anchors, they 85 00:05:26,920 --> 00:05:30,560 were people I went to high school with. That all 86 00:05:30,600 --> 00:05:34,920 showed such disregard for the life of a human being, 87 00:05:35,680 --> 00:05:38,560 a Christian, a father, a husband, and an inspiration of 88 00:05:38,600 --> 00:05:41,399 so many millions. And that's what really gave birth to 89 00:05:41,439 --> 00:05:41,920 this book. 90 00:05:43,079 --> 00:05:47,360 Speaker 1: Yeah, you're absolutely right. These weren't jihadist overseas. Some of 91 00:05:47,360 --> 00:05:51,439 them were jee hottiest here unfortunately, because we know what's 92 00:05:51,480 --> 00:05:56,240 happened with the unvetted immigration failures of the auto pen 93 00:05:56,360 --> 00:05:59,920 Biden era. All of that said, these were Americans. These 94 00:06:00,079 --> 00:06:02,079 were people you went to high school with. These were 95 00:06:02,120 --> 00:06:04,519 people you're on a Facebook feed with, and you're saying, 96 00:06:04,519 --> 00:06:09,240 I got these are teachers, these are professors, and they're 97 00:06:09,279 --> 00:06:15,000 saying this, they're celebrating the death, the assassination of this 98 00:06:15,199 --> 00:06:18,680 young man. Okay. And I say that because I know 99 00:06:18,720 --> 00:06:21,279 a lot of our listeners are a little long in 100 00:06:21,279 --> 00:06:25,439 the tooth like yours. Truly, you know, I've been around 101 00:06:25,519 --> 00:06:29,399 the block several times as a fellow in my fifties, 102 00:06:30,160 --> 00:06:34,079 and it's the kind of stunning stuff that we have 103 00:06:34,199 --> 00:06:36,240 watched in this country over the years, a young man 104 00:06:36,319 --> 00:06:40,160 named John F. Kennedy, you know, who's shot right in 105 00:06:40,240 --> 00:06:44,160 front of us. And those images still remain with us, 106 00:06:44,199 --> 00:06:48,639 of course. And you go down the line of those assassinations, 107 00:06:48,680 --> 00:06:51,279 those very public assassinations, and you talk about your kids, 108 00:06:51,319 --> 00:06:55,519 your little ones, there's Charlie Kirk's little ones. The last 109 00:06:55,680 --> 00:07:00,000 image that they have of their father is this horror, 110 00:07:00,079 --> 00:07:06,040 a fine murder that is committed at a college where 111 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:13,879 Charlie Kirk is defending free speech, proselytizing for free speech, 112 00:07:14,600 --> 00:07:20,519 and for more importantly, I think his core beliefs, his 113 00:07:20,759 --> 00:07:26,839 faith in Jesus Christ, in God, in family, and in country. 114 00:07:27,279 --> 00:07:30,079 And that's really what your book comes down to. 115 00:07:31,959 --> 00:07:34,040 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's really you know, I mean, part of the 116 00:07:34,079 --> 00:07:41,639 book is just my own personal testimony related to my 117 00:07:41,720 --> 00:07:45,879 own transformation as a Christian husband and father because of 118 00:07:46,480 --> 00:07:49,680 Charlie Kirk's amazing life he lived and then obviously his death. 119 00:07:49,720 --> 00:07:55,199 And you know, Charlie Kirk was so unique because he 120 00:07:55,839 --> 00:08:01,319 sought debate, He relished walking into style environments and talking 121 00:08:01,360 --> 00:08:04,319 to people. Most people don't have that courage and conviction. 122 00:08:04,399 --> 00:08:07,800 And I asked myself, why why didn't I have. I mean, 123 00:08:07,839 --> 00:08:10,839 I'm not tepid. I you know, I have a podcast 124 00:08:10,839 --> 00:08:12,319 to go in shows like this and I talk about 125 00:08:12,319 --> 00:08:16,240 my beliefs. But there's still this fear that we have 126 00:08:16,360 --> 00:08:21,040 of that type of action that Charlie Kirk undertook. And 127 00:08:21,120 --> 00:08:23,240 where did it come from. It came from his Christian faith, 128 00:08:23,319 --> 00:08:28,079 plain and simple, and you know, he he It was 129 00:08:28,120 --> 00:08:32,679 just it was just remarkable to see the response after 130 00:08:32,720 --> 00:08:35,720 his death too. The the it was global. I mean, 131 00:08:35,759 --> 00:08:38,720 you had the Prime Minister of Italy, Georgia Maloney, you 132 00:08:38,799 --> 00:08:41,840 had others in South America, and you know, you don't 133 00:08:41,879 --> 00:08:46,399 see reactions like this of grief except in very rare cases, 134 00:08:46,440 --> 00:08:49,399 you know, maybe Ronald Reagan's funeral or you know, Billy 135 00:08:49,440 --> 00:08:53,919 Graham's crusades. And Charlie Kirk was important, obviously, he advised 136 00:08:53,919 --> 00:08:57,919 the president, advised you know, many politicians, but he wasn't 137 00:08:58,000 --> 00:09:01,799 in that level of power himself. And you know that's 138 00:09:01,840 --> 00:09:03,360 often the case with martyrs too. 139 00:09:05,200 --> 00:09:10,360 Speaker 1: Yeah, no doubt. Were you surprised at the vitriol though 140 00:09:10,559 --> 00:09:13,960 from the left. I mean, let's face it, it was 141 00:09:14,639 --> 00:09:19,000 a little more than a year before that President Donald 142 00:09:19,039 --> 00:09:24,279 Trump campaigning for a second term in office was shot 143 00:09:24,399 --> 00:09:29,360 in a field in Pennsylvania during a campaign visit. We 144 00:09:29,440 --> 00:09:34,600 have there's an interesting report that came out earlier this 145 00:09:34,679 --> 00:09:38,080 year from Rutgers and it was about how fifty five 146 00:09:38,200 --> 00:09:41,480 percent of those who identify as left leaning individuals believe 147 00:09:41,519 --> 00:09:47,320 that assassination of political figures on the right. Certainly fine, 148 00:09:48,360 --> 00:09:52,159 you know, at least at some level. But were you 149 00:09:52,320 --> 00:09:56,320 still were you surprised by what we saw the reaction 150 00:09:56,440 --> 00:09:57,159 from the left. 151 00:09:58,720 --> 00:10:01,559 Speaker 2: I'm always surprised, not prized at the same time, because 152 00:10:01,559 --> 00:10:06,200 you just have this hope that maybe the left will, 153 00:10:06,240 --> 00:10:09,480 you know, display some kind of decency, look in the 154 00:10:09,519 --> 00:10:13,679 mirror and accept some accountability, or at least just stay quiet. 155 00:10:15,200 --> 00:10:20,320 And they couldn't do that, and I just we have 156 00:10:20,399 --> 00:10:24,159 to confront this head on. I mean, the left today 157 00:10:25,480 --> 00:10:29,159 is not dissimilar from the radical left, is not dissimilar 158 00:10:29,159 --> 00:10:33,840 from radical Islam. You know, look, the Jihadis commit their 159 00:10:33,840 --> 00:10:36,159 acts of terrorism and murder in the name of religion. 160 00:10:37,240 --> 00:10:39,840 Radical leftist activists commit these acts of violence in the 161 00:10:39,879 --> 00:10:43,639 name of so called progress that is a religion unto itself. 162 00:10:44,200 --> 00:10:47,240 And Charlie Kirk, one of the things that made him 163 00:10:47,240 --> 00:10:50,080 so special was his ability to do an autopsy on 164 00:10:50,679 --> 00:10:53,879 this cultural decay, where it was coming from and fundamentally 165 00:10:53,960 --> 00:10:59,039 it came because let me say this first off, the left, 166 00:10:59,200 --> 00:11:02,360 all they do is propagandas and we've heard these lies 167 00:11:02,399 --> 00:11:06,200 for so long about you know, all episodes of extremist 168 00:11:06,279 --> 00:11:09,200 activity come from the rights. And they do this by 169 00:11:09,200 --> 00:11:12,600 cooking the books using the Anti Defamation League, excluding acts 170 00:11:12,679 --> 00:11:18,840 of prominent left wing terrorism and including obscure acts that 171 00:11:18,960 --> 00:11:21,799 don't have anything to do even with the ideology of 172 00:11:21,919 --> 00:11:29,000 conservatism or Maga or you know, Christianity, and you know, 173 00:11:29,080 --> 00:11:34,519 the the left, their rhetoric is leading to violence. You 174 00:11:34,519 --> 00:11:38,919 can draw a direct line. And you know, I just 175 00:11:39,200 --> 00:11:41,840 kept thinking of all these you know, similarities. But I 176 00:11:41,879 --> 00:11:43,679 mean to first to get back to Charlie and what 177 00:11:43,720 --> 00:11:47,840 his autopsy was. You know, really it's not it's not 178 00:11:47,919 --> 00:11:50,840 left versus rights so much anymore as it is the 179 00:11:50,840 --> 00:11:53,879 God fearing versus the godless, in my opinion, and that 180 00:11:53,960 --> 00:11:55,840 is to say that Charlie would talk about. Look, you 181 00:11:55,840 --> 00:11:59,360 know what makes us different, me different, the right conservatives 182 00:11:59,360 --> 00:12:04,080 different is our belief in a transcendent power. We believe 183 00:12:04,120 --> 00:12:08,120 in moral absolutes. We accept that this nation has a 184 00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:12,519 Christian Founding and that our freedoms flow from that. And 185 00:12:12,600 --> 00:12:16,200 on the left they despise God. It's like communism. I mean, 186 00:12:16,200 --> 00:12:22,399 it is Marxism at this point. And therefore everything is relative. 187 00:12:23,039 --> 00:12:27,080 And so to take one issue, Matt, you know, Charlie 188 00:12:27,120 --> 00:12:31,240 Kirk was a huge advocate of the unborn and it 189 00:12:31,799 --> 00:12:34,360 wasn't a there was no nuance in his position. I mean, 190 00:12:34,360 --> 00:12:37,679 it was the unborn has the right to live and 191 00:12:37,799 --> 00:12:41,799 be protected. And so the Left, as he would point 192 00:12:41,799 --> 00:12:44,639 out in these arguments and well debates with people on campus. 193 00:12:44,679 --> 00:12:49,679 You know, if if you're ten or twenty, whatever, doesn't 194 00:12:49,679 --> 00:12:53,639 matter how many weeks pregnant you are. You know, if 195 00:12:53,679 --> 00:12:57,960 a woman wants the baby, it's considered a viable you know, 196 00:12:58,360 --> 00:13:02,799 a human being worthy of protect life. If the woman 197 00:13:02,960 --> 00:13:05,679 doesn't want the baby, then it's just called the clump 198 00:13:05,720 --> 00:13:08,960 of cells and dismissed. And so if you understand and 199 00:13:09,000 --> 00:13:11,960 start with the abortion issue, you can begin to understand 200 00:13:12,279 --> 00:13:16,159 why the left is so predisposed to violence. It's not symmetrical. 201 00:13:16,200 --> 00:13:19,679 It's completely asymmetrical. It's all coming from the left and 202 00:13:20,360 --> 00:13:23,159 to the left. Charlie Kirk was simply a clump of cells, 203 00:13:23,679 --> 00:13:26,919 you know, So morality isn't based on absolutes. It's just 204 00:13:27,000 --> 00:13:31,679 based on whatever justifies the behavior that you want. And 205 00:13:31,679 --> 00:13:35,519 of course, as a Christian, we're called to call out sin. 206 00:13:36,080 --> 00:13:39,159 It's not that we don't love people love, you know, 207 00:13:39,279 --> 00:13:44,759 calling out sin, addressing it, not condoning it, is an 208 00:13:44,799 --> 00:13:46,960 act of love. That's what Jesus taught us to do. 209 00:13:47,039 --> 00:13:50,240 And that's what Charlie did. And the Left says those 210 00:13:50,399 --> 00:13:53,559 words are violence. And then when an actual act of 211 00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:56,679 violence takes the life, claims the life of Charlie Kirk, 212 00:13:57,679 --> 00:14:00,720 they would say that that was righteous, that it was 213 00:14:00,879 --> 00:14:06,399 good in the collective, because Charlie Kirk was an evil monster, Hitler, stalin, fascist, 214 00:14:06,480 --> 00:14:08,960 you know all those names, right, And I'm just sick 215 00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:11,120 and tired of seeing this in the country and there's 216 00:14:11,120 --> 00:14:12,480 no accountability whatsoever. 217 00:14:13,960 --> 00:14:18,679 Speaker 1: Yeah, And I think that it is amazing the impact 218 00:14:18,720 --> 00:14:24,919 that Charlie Kirk in his you know, just over thirty 219 00:14:24,960 --> 00:14:28,840 plus years of life on this planet, how he was 220 00:14:28,919 --> 00:14:32,960 able to connect, particularly with the young audience. That's why 221 00:14:33,240 --> 00:14:35,840 he concentrated so much on college campuses. He knew that's 222 00:14:35,879 --> 00:14:38,399 where the battle lines were being drawn. He knew that 223 00:14:38,679 --> 00:14:41,120 we had to start fresh in our college campuses because 224 00:14:41,639 --> 00:14:47,120 the right in this country had seeded influence to the 225 00:14:47,240 --> 00:14:50,919 left in our institutions of higher education, and this society 226 00:14:50,960 --> 00:14:56,159 is paying dearly for that. But do you think that 227 00:14:56,240 --> 00:15:04,200 the left's hatred, almost demonic hatred for Charlie Kirk had 228 00:15:04,279 --> 00:15:07,960 something to do with his appeal to an increasing number 229 00:15:08,039 --> 00:15:13,360 of young people who I think are longing for exactly 230 00:15:13,360 --> 00:15:14,960 what you talk about in your book. 231 00:15:15,399 --> 00:15:15,720 Speaker 3: You know. 232 00:15:17,159 --> 00:15:23,399 Speaker 1: More than just this vast void of you know, whatever 233 00:15:23,679 --> 00:15:29,279 feels good or you know the there is no truth. 234 00:15:29,840 --> 00:15:33,480 You know, you're speaking your truth, as as the left 235 00:15:33,600 --> 00:15:34,840 likes to say. 236 00:15:35,600 --> 00:15:39,240 Speaker 2: Well, in their view, if you aren't one of them, 237 00:15:39,679 --> 00:15:43,200 you're an enemy to be destroyed. Let me draw another 238 00:15:43,440 --> 00:15:47,399 parallel between radical Islam and the radical left. Both are 239 00:15:47,440 --> 00:15:54,519 ideologies that demand complete surrender. Their ideologies about complete domination. 240 00:15:55,799 --> 00:15:59,399 And this is the radical lens with which through which 241 00:15:59,440 --> 00:16:04,519 they view the world and their opponents. And of course 242 00:16:05,159 --> 00:16:08,759 they hated Charlie Kirk because he was effective. I mean, 243 00:16:08,919 --> 00:16:13,399 Charlie Kirk exposed you know, I mean, it's they're snake 244 00:16:13,399 --> 00:16:20,720 oil salesman. The left promises utopia but delivers their recruits 245 00:16:20,720 --> 00:16:25,960 into darkness. And they can never lead any of their 246 00:16:27,320 --> 00:16:32,000 you know, loyalists to actual peace and happiness, because it's 247 00:16:32,039 --> 00:16:36,159 not designed to do so. It's designed to create constant 248 00:16:36,279 --> 00:16:40,960 victims and outrage and stir up anger. They don't want 249 00:16:41,000 --> 00:16:43,120 peace and the soul. Peace from the soul comes from 250 00:16:43,919 --> 00:16:47,200 christ It comes from Christianity. It comes from belief in 251 00:16:47,279 --> 00:16:50,360 something greater than yourself. And they don't believe in anything 252 00:16:50,399 --> 00:16:53,639 greater themselves. The Left they are gods, right, this is 253 00:16:53,679 --> 00:16:56,879 how they view things. Charlie Kirk understood there is actually 254 00:16:56,919 --> 00:17:03,320 a God, and you know, there are bumpers up, you know, 255 00:17:03,480 --> 00:17:06,680 on you know what is acceptable and appropriate in terms 256 00:17:06,759 --> 00:17:11,160 of how we create a society and how we conduct ourselves. 257 00:17:11,759 --> 00:17:14,240 And Charlie Kirk would go to these young people and 258 00:17:14,279 --> 00:17:17,200 he would show them a better path. He would show 259 00:17:17,200 --> 00:17:20,400 them a path that would ultimately lead them to actual fulfillment. 260 00:17:20,680 --> 00:17:24,079 So you've got all these disillusioned, angry people who have 261 00:17:24,160 --> 00:17:26,720 been indoctrinated by the Left and told that, you know, 262 00:17:26,799 --> 00:17:30,400 this is the path to enlightenment. But they never feel enlightened, 263 00:17:30,599 --> 00:17:33,519 they never feel happy. And this in itself is a 264 00:17:33,599 --> 00:17:37,720 vicious cycle that eventually leads to violence because you get 265 00:17:37,759 --> 00:17:41,240 angrier and anger if if you're a farmer and you're 266 00:17:41,279 --> 00:17:44,839 sitting on a barren patch of soil, and every season 267 00:17:44,920 --> 00:17:49,200 you repeatedly try to plant in that soil. Over time, 268 00:17:49,240 --> 00:17:52,039 you're gonna become frustrated, and that frustration is going to 269 00:17:52,119 --> 00:17:55,599 lead to anger rage, and that's what's happening. And so 270 00:17:55,759 --> 00:17:58,519 Charlie Kirk had the antidote to all of that. Some 271 00:17:58,680 --> 00:18:01,880 of it, of course, was political in nature, in terms 272 00:18:01,920 --> 00:18:05,960 of policies you know, affecting the black community for example, 273 00:18:05,960 --> 00:18:11,400 that is keeping them victims, policies regarding the border, regarding 274 00:18:11,440 --> 00:18:15,359 the economy, things like this. But others were spiritual antidotes. 275 00:18:15,799 --> 00:18:18,559 And it was saying, hey, you know what, I'll tell 276 00:18:18,599 --> 00:18:21,000 you what brings you fulfillment. It's not what the left says, 277 00:18:22,200 --> 00:18:25,319 you know to women that you should, you know, pursue 278 00:18:25,319 --> 00:18:29,759 careers at the cost of family and children. No get married, 279 00:18:30,279 --> 00:18:34,920 have kids, raise a family. These these you know, historically 280 00:18:34,960 --> 00:18:38,079 throughout history, we know these things create stable societies. And 281 00:18:38,119 --> 00:18:40,119 the Left is tearing those things down, and it's not 282 00:18:40,200 --> 00:18:44,359 surprising that they lead to unrest and turmoil. So he 283 00:18:44,480 --> 00:18:48,119 was so he was such a genius and so articulate, 284 00:18:48,160 --> 00:18:51,960 and so studied, and honestly he was so compassionate that 285 00:18:52,960 --> 00:18:55,559 he was able to bring those people out of darkness. 286 00:18:55,599 --> 00:18:57,440 And that's taking away from the left's ranks, and they 287 00:18:57,440 --> 00:19:03,559 couldn't abide it. Pay it off, Pay it off now. 288 00:19:03,720 --> 00:19:06,480 Speaker 3: The watch Dout on Wall Street podcast with Chris Markowski. 289 00:19:06,599 --> 00:19:09,440 Every day Chris helps unpack the connection between politics and 290 00:19:09,480 --> 00:19:11,720 the economy and how it affects your wallet. If you 291 00:19:11,759 --> 00:19:14,680 have thousands of dollars of credit card debt, you cannot 292 00:19:14,680 --> 00:19:17,440 start investing until you pay it off. There is no 293 00:19:17,599 --> 00:19:21,000 financial advisor that is cheaper than your credit cards interest rate. 294 00:19:21,079 --> 00:19:23,359 With all that debt, whether it's happening in DC or 295 00:19:23,359 --> 00:19:25,920 down on Wall Street, it's affecting you financially. Be informed. 296 00:19:26,000 --> 00:19:27,839 Check out the Watch Dot on Wall Street podcast with 297 00:19:27,920 --> 00:19:31,079 Chris Markowski on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. 298 00:19:34,279 --> 00:19:39,359 Speaker 1: He tirelessly fought for the First Amendment and the right 299 00:19:39,440 --> 00:19:41,920 to speak, which had been closed down in so many quarters. 300 00:19:41,960 --> 00:19:45,839 Still in so many ways is closed down. And you 301 00:19:45,880 --> 00:19:50,000 know it's not just here you think about This week, 302 00:19:51,119 --> 00:19:57,000 a Christian woman, pro life Catholic who had silently prayed 303 00:19:57,880 --> 00:20:01,079 in the streets across the street from an abortion clinic 304 00:20:01,359 --> 00:20:08,079 was arrested and charged with violating the speech cop laws 305 00:20:08,440 --> 00:20:11,759 over there. She'd been down this road before. I mean, 306 00:20:12,119 --> 00:20:14,240 you know, we look at that and we say, my goodness, 307 00:20:13,839 --> 00:20:18,440 that's the United Kingdom. How could that happen? Well, that 308 00:20:18,559 --> 00:20:23,000 has happened here, That is happening here. It's a little 309 00:20:23,000 --> 00:20:27,240 better time for Christians in America than it had been, 310 00:20:28,079 --> 00:20:34,480 but it's a grave concern all around. And Charlie really 311 00:20:34,599 --> 00:20:39,319 wanted to carry that banner to say, you don't have 312 00:20:39,559 --> 00:20:43,079 to be afraid to be a Christian, you don't have 313 00:20:43,200 --> 00:20:47,160 to be embarrassed about being a Christian. But that's what 314 00:20:47,200 --> 00:20:50,319 we see so much in this society. Well, I don't 315 00:20:50,359 --> 00:20:55,920 want to offend anybody. Charlie wasn't about protecting people's feelings. 316 00:20:55,960 --> 00:20:58,759 But what do you think about those who described him 317 00:20:59,559 --> 00:21:03,559 and cagorized him as a racist for taking on some 318 00:21:04,359 --> 00:21:07,000 very difficult truths that they didn't want to hear. 319 00:21:08,359 --> 00:21:10,279 Speaker 2: He wasn't a racist. He was the opposite of that. 320 00:21:10,480 --> 00:21:14,759 You know. He looked at the black communities that are 321 00:21:14,759 --> 00:21:17,599 being afflicted by the social policies of the last you know, 322 00:21:17,680 --> 00:21:20,960 sixty seventy years, and he wanted them to have success. 323 00:21:21,440 --> 00:21:23,599 And he knew that the current structure and what the 324 00:21:23,680 --> 00:21:25,799 left had done and the Democrat Party had done to 325 00:21:25,880 --> 00:21:30,119 the black community had destroyed it. It's not conjecture, it's 326 00:21:30,240 --> 00:21:35,799 just statistical. There's evidence of it. It's objective fact. The 327 00:21:36,079 --> 00:21:39,880 black family has just been destroyed by left wing policies, 328 00:21:39,960 --> 00:21:44,960 these social policies and welfare. And you combine that with 329 00:21:45,200 --> 00:21:47,200 I mean welfare one, as he would explain, you know, 330 00:21:47,240 --> 00:21:50,400 I mean, it's not designed to get you out of poverty. 331 00:21:50,440 --> 00:21:53,279 It's designed to keep you in poverty, to discourage you 332 00:21:53,319 --> 00:21:57,079 from improving your circumstances. And of course all of these 333 00:21:57,119 --> 00:22:01,359 beliefs come from Christian faith. We're all made in the 334 00:22:01,359 --> 00:22:07,839 image of God. Race is irrelevant, and you know that 335 00:22:07,920 --> 00:22:10,400 message was misconstrued. You know, one of the big things 336 00:22:10,400 --> 00:22:13,720 he attacked him on was, you know, he didn't quite 337 00:22:14,079 --> 00:22:15,960 do the full rush Limbaugh, which is, you know, pointing 338 00:22:15,960 --> 00:22:18,200 out the absurd with the absurd, as he would say. 339 00:22:18,759 --> 00:22:23,319 But when you had the DEI hires, and I had 340 00:22:23,400 --> 00:22:26,160 I knew pilots on Southwest and other airlines that were 341 00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:28,680 telling me, man, hey, if I were to tell you 342 00:22:28,720 --> 00:22:31,240 what's going on in these cockpits, you would never get 343 00:22:31,240 --> 00:22:35,279 on a plane again because you were lowering the standards for, 344 00:22:35,279 --> 00:22:39,400 for example, minorities, so that would include black pilots. In 345 00:22:39,559 --> 00:22:42,680 order to increase the number of black pilots, it should 346 00:22:42,720 --> 00:22:45,359 be based on excellence. Now you're denigrating black people as 347 00:22:45,359 --> 00:22:48,079 well by doing that, because the message is, you know, hey, 348 00:22:48,440 --> 00:22:51,039 if you're black, you're not smart enough. You're not the 349 00:22:51,119 --> 00:22:54,160 equal of this other candidate who happens to be white, 350 00:22:54,160 --> 00:22:56,759 for example, So we're going to lower the standards to 351 00:22:56,799 --> 00:23:01,279 permit you entry. That doesn't inspire one, any black individual 352 00:23:01,359 --> 00:23:09,200 to strive for excellence. It excuses the opposite, settling, and furthermore, 353 00:23:09,240 --> 00:23:14,200 it raises suspicion. So the obvious out outcome of that 354 00:23:14,359 --> 00:23:18,359 is that it creates actually racism because if it's known 355 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:22,640 that you're hiring black pilots on lower standards because of diversity, 356 00:23:22,640 --> 00:23:26,519 equity inclusion initiatives, if any person, including a black person, 357 00:23:26,559 --> 00:23:28,680 walks on a plane and they see a black pilot, 358 00:23:28,920 --> 00:23:30,559 you're going to think. And Charlie said something to this 359 00:23:30,599 --> 00:23:33,559 effect like, wow, I don't want to be on this plane. 360 00:23:34,279 --> 00:23:37,279 He wasn't being racist, the left or the racist, and 361 00:23:37,319 --> 00:23:38,640 he was calling them out. 362 00:23:39,640 --> 00:23:43,200 Speaker 1: Yeah, no doubt about it. And we have seen unfortunately, 363 00:23:43,279 --> 00:23:47,720 whether the left or people who just don't want to 364 00:23:47,880 --> 00:23:52,799 rock the boat, don't fully understand we have seen equity 365 00:23:53,200 --> 00:23:57,359 kill people in this country. And Charlie said, wait a minute, 366 00:23:57,440 --> 00:24:02,200 let's let's consider that. Let's consider what walking away from 367 00:24:02,720 --> 00:24:09,240 merit based hiring, merit based recruiting, all of that that does. 368 00:24:11,559 --> 00:24:15,599 When did you obviously the book came out of the 369 00:24:15,640 --> 00:24:19,000 events of September tenth, But have you been thinking about 370 00:24:19,000 --> 00:24:22,400 this book for a while or did it really just 371 00:24:23,279 --> 00:24:27,000 strike you as you mentioned before, and you began the 372 00:24:27,039 --> 00:24:29,319 writing soon thereafter. 373 00:24:30,279 --> 00:24:32,319 Speaker 2: So I haven't even explained this to anyone before in 374 00:24:32,359 --> 00:24:35,240 an interview. But actually, so I wrote a book in August, 375 00:24:35,799 --> 00:24:38,079 you know, my wife and took the kids down to 376 00:24:38,119 --> 00:24:41,480 see Grandma, and I was left a bachelor for a 377 00:24:41,519 --> 00:24:44,400 couple of weeks, actually, and I did what any thirty 378 00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:47,039 eight year old guy who has kids would do in 379 00:24:47,039 --> 00:24:50,680 that situation. I spent all my time writing a book. 380 00:24:50,680 --> 00:24:53,400 And that book was on that was that was on 381 00:24:53,440 --> 00:24:57,480 Trump Russia collusion, based on the declassified documents, and that 382 00:24:57,519 --> 00:24:58,960 was very important to mean that's going to come out 383 00:24:59,000 --> 00:25:03,240 in March. I actual actually sidelined that book after Charlie 384 00:25:03,279 --> 00:25:08,839 was killed because I thought this one was more important 385 00:25:10,039 --> 00:25:12,960 because I wanted to address and let me be clear 386 00:25:12,960 --> 00:25:17,559 about something too. I'm really I don't want to say disparaged, 387 00:25:18,720 --> 00:25:25,119 but I'm really disappointed in what the conservative movement has 388 00:25:25,240 --> 00:25:28,400 kind of done in the three months since Charlie Kirk's assassination. 389 00:25:28,599 --> 00:25:30,640 And what I mean by that is there was a 390 00:25:30,680 --> 00:25:35,160 fragile window after he was murdered to have serious conversations 391 00:25:35,160 --> 00:25:38,960 that we avoid in this country, mainly related to left 392 00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:42,119 wing violence in this country and that ideology that is 393 00:25:42,440 --> 00:25:45,079 brewing it. I mean, you had a copycat attack a 394 00:25:45,079 --> 00:25:48,200 week after Charlie Kirk's assassination in Dallas, a guy that 395 00:25:48,319 --> 00:25:50,640 tried to take out ICE agents, and you know ICE 396 00:25:50,720 --> 00:25:52,200 is being demonized as well, so you can see the 397 00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:55,279 connection between a rhetoric and violence on the left. And 398 00:25:55,319 --> 00:25:57,519 we didn't have many of those conversations. In fact, we 399 00:25:57,680 --> 00:26:01,759 really didn't have those conversations at any national level. People 400 00:26:01,759 --> 00:26:04,759 were peddling conspiracy theories, they were trying to tear down 401 00:26:04,839 --> 00:26:09,200 Charlie Kirk's legacy, and it was really disgusting to me. 402 00:26:10,000 --> 00:26:12,680 And that was happening even after I wrote the book. 403 00:26:12,759 --> 00:26:15,720 It was really coming to fruition. So kind of the 404 00:26:15,759 --> 00:26:18,240 silver lining and the decision to just really go hard 405 00:26:18,279 --> 00:26:22,240 on this book and talk about these issues was that 406 00:26:22,559 --> 00:26:25,279 I think this book offers a course correction that says, look, 407 00:26:25,559 --> 00:26:28,799 let's refocus on Charlie's legacy and what we need to 408 00:26:28,839 --> 00:26:31,160 do to pick up the slack. You know, there's a 409 00:26:31,200 --> 00:26:33,599 lot of rope hanging out there now because he was 410 00:26:33,599 --> 00:26:35,759 such a giant and no one can replace him, but 411 00:26:36,519 --> 00:26:39,599 we can emulate his example and the example of Christ 412 00:26:39,680 --> 00:26:42,359 as well, which is what Charlie did his best to emulate, 413 00:26:42,680 --> 00:26:46,079 especially in the later years of his life, and we 414 00:26:46,119 --> 00:26:48,240 need to learn from his example and pursue it. We 415 00:26:48,240 --> 00:26:50,920 need to become bold and courageous. We need to put 416 00:26:51,319 --> 00:26:54,559 our faith first and from that we'll have conviction. And 417 00:26:54,920 --> 00:26:58,400 you know, Charlie Kirk wasn't always Charlie Kirk Matt. He 418 00:26:58,480 --> 00:27:01,640 became Charlie Kirk because he had a hunger for truth, 419 00:27:01,640 --> 00:27:05,119 a hunger for self improvement. And you know, a lot 420 00:27:05,160 --> 00:27:08,960 of us don't spend that amount of time on ourselves 421 00:27:09,079 --> 00:27:13,920 and have clear goals and objectives like he did. So 422 00:27:13,920 --> 00:27:15,920 so no, I mean, and I didn't, you know, I 423 00:27:15,920 --> 00:27:19,079 didn't intend to write a book right away. I just found, 424 00:27:19,119 --> 00:27:21,759 like I wrote a book the day Charlie Kirk died, 425 00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:24,240 which is in the book, that became kind of the 426 00:27:24,240 --> 00:27:25,759 first chapter of the book, And that was just me 427 00:27:25,799 --> 00:27:27,599 wrestling with what I said at the beginning of the show, 428 00:27:27,680 --> 00:27:30,920 like this devastation I was feeling in the tears, I 429 00:27:30,960 --> 00:27:33,759 was crying and I don't cry, and trying to process 430 00:27:33,799 --> 00:27:38,039 all that. And from that grief, you know, I articulated 431 00:27:38,039 --> 00:27:40,480 what a lot of people felt, millions of people who 432 00:27:40,480 --> 00:27:43,920 didn't know Charlie either personally. And then I felt like 433 00:27:43,960 --> 00:27:47,680 an obligation to address these issues that we need to 434 00:27:47,720 --> 00:27:50,279 talk about. A reckoning hasn't come, but it needs to come. 435 00:27:52,279 --> 00:27:55,559 Speaker 1: Indeed, our guest today is Drew Thomas, author of for 436 00:27:55,640 --> 00:28:00,519 Christ and Country, The Martyrdom of Charlie Kirk, the other book, 437 00:28:00,599 --> 00:28:03,200 by the way, as well, sounds fascinating. I hope you 438 00:28:03,240 --> 00:28:05,119 know you have a standing invitation to come back and 439 00:28:05,160 --> 00:28:08,079 talk to us, because, as you probably well know, the 440 00:28:08,079 --> 00:28:11,599 Federalist has been very interested and has spent a good 441 00:28:11,599 --> 00:28:16,480 deal of time writing about the whole Russia collusion hoax 442 00:28:16,920 --> 00:28:19,440 and all of that. We're getting a better picture of that, 443 00:28:20,839 --> 00:28:27,119 but I think that issue kind of feeds into everything 444 00:28:27,160 --> 00:28:31,559 that we are experiencing with the modern left is that 445 00:28:32,000 --> 00:28:38,039 the truth is relative once again, and that lies can 446 00:28:38,119 --> 00:28:43,279 be used justifiably to further the truth that they want 447 00:28:43,559 --> 00:28:47,680 in the burning down and the recreation of a republic 448 00:28:48,279 --> 00:28:54,200 that many unfortunately loathe. And that's where we have been 449 00:28:54,359 --> 00:28:57,720 for some time. And that's why I think twenty twenty 450 00:28:57,759 --> 00:29:01,599 four happened the way that it did, because they're clearly, 451 00:29:02,440 --> 00:29:10,400 truly is a disaffection with what a lot of Americans 452 00:29:10,400 --> 00:29:14,200 have experienced over the last several years, the whole idea 453 00:29:14,319 --> 00:29:19,720 that this is an inherently racist nation, that it is 454 00:29:20,119 --> 00:29:24,400 systemically racist, and if you're white, you are automatically racist, 455 00:29:24,480 --> 00:29:27,359 and there there's nothing you can do about that, and 456 00:29:27,519 --> 00:29:31,519 we need to find ways to stop that. You know, 457 00:29:32,400 --> 00:29:36,279 oppression is the big word, and you know a lot 458 00:29:36,319 --> 00:29:39,319 of people are feeling oppressed about all of that in 459 00:29:39,680 --> 00:29:43,160 that mentality, and so I think you're right. I really 460 00:29:43,200 --> 00:29:50,720 do drew that we had an opportunity in after Charlie's death, 461 00:29:51,160 --> 00:29:55,640 and I think you remember the memorial service and the 462 00:29:55,799 --> 00:29:59,640 you know, the thousands who turned out in the messages 463 00:29:59,680 --> 00:30:02,079 that we you were hearing across the country, and then 464 00:30:02,119 --> 00:30:04,720 it just went away and all of a sudden I 465 00:30:04,759 --> 00:30:09,319 think about, there's a government shutdown, you know, basically right 466 00:30:09,359 --> 00:30:12,079 around the corner, which there always is, and it's just 467 00:30:12,359 --> 00:30:16,799 back to normal. Why is that? Why can't we sustain 468 00:30:17,519 --> 00:30:21,359 on the conservative side of things something that was just 469 00:30:21,599 --> 00:30:26,079 so fundamentally altering in our lives. 470 00:30:27,079 --> 00:30:29,880 Speaker 2: Well, it's because a lot of people we thought were 471 00:30:29,920 --> 00:30:34,079 allies in the conservative movement have actually proven themselves to 472 00:30:34,119 --> 00:30:39,440 be saboteurs of the movement. And people know who I'm 473 00:30:39,480 --> 00:30:41,880 talking about. I don't even need to name their name. 474 00:30:41,880 --> 00:30:43,799 I'm not afraid to name their names, but people can 475 00:30:43,880 --> 00:30:46,880 just decide for themselves who these people are. But they 476 00:30:46,880 --> 00:30:58,240 were the ones that refused to accept that the killer 477 00:30:58,480 --> 00:31:02,799 was who the FB I and a rational mind could 478 00:31:02,880 --> 00:31:09,440 see was likely the killer based on evidence. You know, 479 00:31:09,720 --> 00:31:13,799 the son of you know, conservative Family Mormons, who was 480 00:31:13,799 --> 00:31:18,759 steeped in radical you know, leftist ideology, was dating a 481 00:31:18,920 --> 00:31:23,160 you know, trans person out a trans partner, and you know, 482 00:31:24,240 --> 00:31:26,000 I mean there was ample. You don't you don't have 483 00:31:26,039 --> 00:31:30,799 to even believe the FBI to Okham's razor. I mean, 484 00:31:30,839 --> 00:31:33,880 you know, I just I can't believe what they did 485 00:31:34,160 --> 00:31:36,599 to get Erica Kirk involved. And you know, I'll say 486 00:31:36,599 --> 00:31:38,279 her name. I don't care if written articles about it too, 487 00:31:38,279 --> 00:31:41,680 But you know, Candice in particular, you know, what she's 488 00:31:41,720 --> 00:31:46,680 done is just just so wrong. I mean, in all 489 00:31:46,720 --> 00:31:50,720 these insinuations and theories that she claims she'll bring receipts for, 490 00:31:50,759 --> 00:31:53,799 and the theory is changed by the hour, and each 491 00:31:53,839 --> 00:31:56,240 time she introduces a new theory, it's proof that she 492 00:31:56,440 --> 00:31:59,480 lied before. But she was pointing the finger at Erica 493 00:31:59,559 --> 00:32:02,480 Kirk and people around TPUSA. And there may very well 494 00:32:02,480 --> 00:32:05,319 be issues within TPUSA. I mean there's a power struggle 495 00:32:05,319 --> 00:32:07,200 probably in things like that, and I pray for them 496 00:32:07,200 --> 00:32:09,599 and I want them to have nothing but success. But 497 00:32:09,680 --> 00:32:12,400 the idea that, oh, the Jews killed Charlie Kirk, this 498 00:32:12,680 --> 00:32:16,799 rampant anti Semitism that is brewing in this country, where 499 00:32:16,839 --> 00:32:19,519 the Jews are behind every single thing that happens, I mean, 500 00:32:20,079 --> 00:32:23,640 we don't need this right now. It's a distraction. And 501 00:32:23,799 --> 00:32:26,640 the conversation could have been even from Candace, who claimed 502 00:32:26,640 --> 00:32:28,440 to have been such a great friend of Charlie's, which 503 00:32:28,480 --> 00:32:31,200 I know actually isn't true. Maybe at one point in 504 00:32:31,200 --> 00:32:35,240 her life, but you know, not later recently. You know, 505 00:32:35,359 --> 00:32:37,480 she loved Charlie Kirk, like she said to and was 506 00:32:37,519 --> 00:32:40,359 so upset by this. She should have talked about what 507 00:32:40,480 --> 00:32:45,440 Charlie stood for. She should have, you know, promoted his 508 00:32:45,599 --> 00:32:48,079 legacy by talking about the things that were important to him, 509 00:32:48,119 --> 00:32:53,599 and that didn't happen. And you know, I don't want 510 00:32:53,640 --> 00:32:55,799 to just reset to what it was before. I mean, 511 00:32:56,079 --> 00:33:01,160 I'm tired of this. I mean, look, Ran Paul's ribs 512 00:33:01,160 --> 00:33:04,920 were broken by a Democrat neighbor. You had a Bernie 513 00:33:04,960 --> 00:33:09,200 Sanders supporter who shot up a Congressional you know, Republican 514 00:33:09,240 --> 00:33:13,480 baseball team practicing and nearly killed Steve Scalise. You had 515 00:33:13,519 --> 00:33:16,200 a trans later who came out as trans individual who 516 00:33:16,200 --> 00:33:19,039 traveled all the way from California to Maryland with the 517 00:33:19,039 --> 00:33:22,359 intention of assassinating Justice Kavanaugh because of the Roe v. 518 00:33:22,480 --> 00:33:26,440 Wade a decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. You have 519 00:33:26,480 --> 00:33:30,039 a Trump assassination attempt. I mean, there are more examples. 520 00:33:30,039 --> 00:33:33,880 You have trans people that you know are targeting Christian 521 00:33:33,920 --> 00:33:37,119 schools and their manifestos. Matt, this is not hyperbole. It's 522 00:33:37,119 --> 00:33:39,440 in the book too, and it's I bring receipts. Things 523 00:33:39,440 --> 00:33:43,559 are cited. They're manifestos, like Audrey Hales in the Covenant 524 00:33:43,599 --> 00:33:46,599 case in Nashville. It reads like a Barack Obama speech, 525 00:33:46,920 --> 00:33:49,039 it reads like a Joe Biden speech, it reads like 526 00:33:49,200 --> 00:33:53,319 a cn N panel on you know, attacking white people. 527 00:33:54,240 --> 00:33:56,720 And I'm just fed up with it. And I don't 528 00:33:56,720 --> 00:34:01,200 know why enough people don't have the courage to address 529 00:34:01,240 --> 00:34:04,640 the left as they are. You know, I don't want 530 00:34:04,640 --> 00:34:09,159 to my girls to, you know, live in a country 531 00:34:09,960 --> 00:34:12,719 that tolerates this, and I'm not going to tolerate it. 532 00:34:12,760 --> 00:34:15,320 And the one thing that Charlie's Kirk death did for me, 533 00:34:15,360 --> 00:34:17,519 which I imagine people in your audience feel this way too, 534 00:34:17,719 --> 00:34:21,519 really it really killed the man I was too before 535 00:34:21,599 --> 00:34:24,400 Charlie's death and rebuilt a new me. And that's just 536 00:34:24,440 --> 00:34:29,159 somebody who I don't want to say takes things more seriously. 537 00:34:29,320 --> 00:34:34,159 I've taken things seriously in this country. But I have 538 00:34:34,239 --> 00:34:41,920 a new courage to really steady myself in scripture, to embrace, 539 00:34:42,719 --> 00:34:44,639 you know, what God has called me to be, and 540 00:34:44,679 --> 00:34:48,800 to let the residual fear of attacks from the left 541 00:34:48,960 --> 00:34:53,679 or the condemnation of man be more important to me 542 00:34:54,559 --> 00:34:57,599 than the applause of God. And I hope that that's 543 00:34:57,639 --> 00:35:00,320 the case for Christians in this country, because there's more 544 00:35:00,320 --> 00:35:02,280 than two hundred million of us that claim to be 545 00:35:02,360 --> 00:35:06,920 Christian in this country, and obviously many believe in something 546 00:35:06,960 --> 00:35:09,320 other than the Bible or woke churches and whatnot. But 547 00:35:09,920 --> 00:35:13,320 if we actually dug in and we're Bible based and 548 00:35:13,360 --> 00:35:16,880 lived our life authentically as Christians, we'd be an unstoppable force. 549 00:35:18,880 --> 00:35:23,559 Speaker 1: Yes, indeed, do you look over your shoulder a little 550 00:35:23,559 --> 00:35:27,199 more often in the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination. 551 00:35:29,559 --> 00:35:31,400 Speaker 2: I don't, but I could see myself doing that in 552 00:35:31,440 --> 00:35:36,000 the in the relatively near future. You know, I don't. 553 00:35:36,079 --> 00:35:41,000 I don't feel fear right now, and I you know, 554 00:35:41,119 --> 00:35:43,960 I don't. You know, I don't want people to be like, oh, 555 00:35:44,000 --> 00:35:47,679 you don't I you know, I don't want to die, 556 00:35:48,000 --> 00:35:50,920 you know. I mean, I I love my family so much, 557 00:35:51,199 --> 00:35:54,280 and I still, like, it's hard not to tear up 558 00:35:54,320 --> 00:35:58,360 thinking about Charlie's family and kids. But I think if 559 00:35:58,400 --> 00:36:01,159 you if you do what Charlie did and you really 560 00:36:01,199 --> 00:36:05,159 make your life faith centered, you don't fear it. You know. 561 00:36:05,199 --> 00:36:07,159 I don't think Charlie, you know, feared it. He didn't 562 00:36:07,159 --> 00:36:09,639 want to die, but he knew it was possible, and 563 00:36:09,639 --> 00:36:11,039 that's one of the things that makes him a martyr 564 00:36:11,079 --> 00:36:15,159 as well. But you know, I mean, I'll be honest 565 00:36:15,159 --> 00:36:20,920 with you right now, like I I've never been aj Rice, 566 00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:23,519 my boss at Publius. You know, he says I'm being 567 00:36:23,559 --> 00:36:27,840 hunted right now because Amazon's actually censored this book three 568 00:36:27,880 --> 00:36:29,920 times now. It's actually not available on Amazon. I mean, 569 00:36:29,920 --> 00:36:32,360 people can try and go buy it. I think it'll 570 00:36:32,400 --> 00:36:34,000 let you go buy and then it says, you know, 571 00:36:34,199 --> 00:36:35,920 can't shift to the address. But it doesn't matter what 572 00:36:35,960 --> 00:36:38,360 address you put in there, you can't buy it. I 573 00:36:38,360 --> 00:36:40,119 think the only place to buy it right now is 574 00:36:40,159 --> 00:36:43,320 on Target, and you know they're giving due. There's a 575 00:36:43,360 --> 00:36:45,480 whole other conversation we could have for an hour about 576 00:36:45,480 --> 00:36:51,639 what Amazon's claiming to be the reason. So yeah, yeah, 577 00:36:51,719 --> 00:36:54,519 well it's censorship. But what there's like, so I've been 578 00:36:54,559 --> 00:36:56,719 an author for a long time. I've written you know, 579 00:36:56,760 --> 00:37:00,840 four books, and they're saying and they can't prove any 580 00:37:00,880 --> 00:37:04,159 of this, they use models, but they're saying, oh, this 581 00:37:04,239 --> 00:37:08,760 is an AI book. And so now now, so you know, 582 00:37:08,800 --> 00:37:14,639 I wrote this book to you know, confront these issues 583 00:37:14,639 --> 00:37:17,440 they haven't been addressed, and now I find myself possibly 584 00:37:17,480 --> 00:37:21,239 having to split my time in future interviews addressing something 585 00:37:21,239 --> 00:37:23,760 I never thought about, which is backdoor censorship, which is 586 00:37:24,440 --> 00:37:27,559 you know, they can say that you know, something's you know, 587 00:37:28,360 --> 00:37:30,320 utilized AI, which is a new tool. By the way, 588 00:37:30,360 --> 00:37:33,519 you wouldn't penalize a mathematician for using a calculator. And 589 00:37:33,519 --> 00:37:35,559 I've written books before AI. This is the first time 590 00:37:35,639 --> 00:37:38,440 I used AI for research and you know, copy editing 591 00:37:38,480 --> 00:37:40,519 and things like that. It's a tool that writers are 592 00:37:40,519 --> 00:37:42,559 going to use. I mean, it's it's here, and so 593 00:37:42,960 --> 00:37:46,280 now I'm like a case study on you know, this 594 00:37:46,400 --> 00:37:48,960 whole thing. I mean, you've got Michelle Obama who wrote Becoming, 595 00:37:49,679 --> 00:37:52,280 and she didn't write Becoming. A ghostwriter wrote Becoming. You know, 596 00:37:52,360 --> 00:37:55,199 nobody cares, and so it's not true that this is 597 00:37:55,199 --> 00:37:58,000 an AI written book. But I'm not going to lie 598 00:37:58,039 --> 00:38:01,000 and say that I didn't utilize AI as a research assistant, 599 00:38:01,519 --> 00:38:03,920 and in the production of it, I did. But anybody 600 00:38:04,000 --> 00:38:05,960 can read the book and decide for themselves if it's 601 00:38:05,960 --> 00:38:08,280 an AI book, right, I mean, it's like the freem 602 00:38:08,519 --> 00:38:12,880 So anyway, that's that's what's going on. And you know, 603 00:38:13,000 --> 00:38:15,920 I don't know why the Charlie Kirk book in particular 604 00:38:16,039 --> 00:38:18,760 is being targeted like this. You know, my publisher's post 605 00:38:18,760 --> 00:38:21,400 Till Press. They've done a lot of big books, including 606 00:38:21,400 --> 00:38:24,280 two of Charlie kirk Kirk's books. And I'm an established 607 00:38:24,320 --> 00:38:27,079 author who've written you know, dozens of op eds before 608 00:38:27,079 --> 00:38:30,159 the advent of AI, So it's just kind of shocking. 609 00:38:30,199 --> 00:38:33,800 Now I'm like, wow, so first you know, so anyway, 610 00:38:33,880 --> 00:38:36,320 so this is where we are, just matt full transparency. Man, 611 00:38:36,400 --> 00:38:38,360 I've never experienced something like this in my life. It's 612 00:38:38,360 --> 00:38:40,079 really it's really tough. 613 00:38:40,880 --> 00:38:43,400 Speaker 1: But isn't it something that you're dealing with this? And 614 00:38:43,440 --> 00:38:46,280 this is what Charlie Kirk spent the deal of his 615 00:38:46,400 --> 00:38:49,239 life fighting the sort of censorship. I mean, we just 616 00:38:49,400 --> 00:38:54,119 came out of a period of just dark, dark, government 617 00:38:54,199 --> 00:38:57,400 driven censorship that I don't I don't think has fully 618 00:38:57,480 --> 00:38:59,679 been exposed. We know about the Twitter files, we know 619 00:38:59,719 --> 00:39:03,159 about out what was happening with the Biden administration and 620 00:39:03,239 --> 00:39:08,119 FAUCI and COVID. We know about publications like the Federalists 621 00:39:08,119 --> 00:39:15,639 that had been you know, absolutely attacked shut off from 622 00:39:16,079 --> 00:39:20,079 you know, the main distribution channels by these these you know, 623 00:39:21,280 --> 00:39:27,639 so called watchdogs of what is proper and appropriate content. 624 00:39:28,239 --> 00:39:30,400 So we've lived a lot, so none of this should 625 00:39:30,400 --> 00:39:35,599 come as a surprise. But are you concerned that what 626 00:39:35,760 --> 00:39:39,679 we have seen from some of our conservative leaders out there, 627 00:39:40,639 --> 00:39:44,320 especially as we watch the world of politics kind of 628 00:39:44,360 --> 00:39:48,719 retreat again, that we could lose the gains that we 629 00:39:48,800 --> 00:39:52,480 have in twenty twenty six because Charlie Kirk is gone, 630 00:39:53,360 --> 00:39:59,719 and who is filling the void of people like Charlie 631 00:39:59,800 --> 00:40:05,159 Kirk and who is really going to to inspire the 632 00:40:05,239 --> 00:40:08,800 conservative grassroots movement to say, hey, I know Trump's not 633 00:40:08,840 --> 00:40:11,519 on the ballot, but there's a lot at stake in 634 00:40:11,599 --> 00:40:12,320 twenty six. 635 00:40:13,760 --> 00:40:15,559 Speaker 2: Yeah, I think the solution right now is not to 636 00:40:15,639 --> 00:40:18,519 look for another leader like Charlie Kirk to kind of 637 00:40:18,519 --> 00:40:22,079 hold this movement together. I think that individuals need to 638 00:40:23,480 --> 00:40:25,599 operate a little bit more independently now. I think they 639 00:40:25,639 --> 00:40:28,679 need to look at themselves as leaders. You know, you're 640 00:40:28,679 --> 00:40:30,519 never going to replace Charlie. You're definitely not going to 641 00:40:30,800 --> 00:40:36,440 come close, you know, before midterms, And you know, people 642 00:40:36,519 --> 00:40:38,679 need to look at these midterm elections with the same 643 00:40:38,760 --> 00:40:41,760 importance they viewed the presidential election of twenty twenty four, 644 00:40:42,920 --> 00:40:46,199 because it's all on the line right now, and you know, 645 00:40:47,119 --> 00:40:50,480 you know, God blessed Donald Trump man, what a force 646 00:40:50,519 --> 00:40:53,440 in nature he is he's done so much good despite 647 00:40:53,480 --> 00:40:56,480 the fact that you know, we have these narrow majorities 648 00:40:56,519 --> 00:41:01,760 and the Senate won't confirm many of his his you know, choices. 649 00:41:01,920 --> 00:41:03,960 I mean, you know, a lot of the reason that 650 00:41:04,000 --> 00:41:06,400 people voted for Trump is they wanted accountability. The left 651 00:41:06,440 --> 00:41:10,159 calls it revenge. We want accountability, and you know we 652 00:41:10,280 --> 00:41:13,480 can't get it because you know, courts are you know, 653 00:41:13,599 --> 00:41:19,880 using loopool holes regarding you know, temporary uh, you know, 654 00:41:20,000 --> 00:41:22,559 placements of you know, whether it's Alena Haba or you 655 00:41:22,559 --> 00:41:27,239 know others out there, and you know, the Senate's not 656 00:41:27,280 --> 00:41:29,480 doing its job. I mean, you've got Marjorie Taylor Green 657 00:41:29,519 --> 00:41:31,679 who claims to be a hero but is not a hero. 658 00:41:31,880 --> 00:41:34,760 She's I can't even stick it out for her two 659 00:41:34,840 --> 00:41:37,760 year term here, and it's a heck of a time 660 00:41:37,760 --> 00:41:42,159 to jump ship. And I think that people need to 661 00:41:42,159 --> 00:41:44,639 get serious about what's at stake, because look, if the 662 00:41:44,719 --> 00:41:47,760 if the if the Democrats get the House, enjoy impeachment, 663 00:41:48,159 --> 00:41:53,760 you know, enjoy endless impeachment. God forbid they were to 664 00:41:53,800 --> 00:41:56,280 get the Senate. I mean, I don't think that's gonna happen. 665 00:41:56,840 --> 00:42:00,400 But I always prefer to operate as an under dog. 666 00:42:02,280 --> 00:42:05,599 So I just if you know, yeah, all the Charlie 667 00:42:05,679 --> 00:42:08,679 Kirk stuff we've talked about so important, So is this 668 00:42:09,320 --> 00:42:12,920 you know, just please please, I just I beg people 669 00:42:12,920 --> 00:42:17,000 out there start thinking seriously about these midterms and treat 670 00:42:17,000 --> 00:42:20,280 it like a presidential election, because you know, this opportunity 671 00:42:20,320 --> 00:42:23,920 that we won for ourselves, that we fought for, doesn't 672 00:42:23,920 --> 00:42:26,480 come along very often. We earned this, we fought for this, 673 00:42:26,559 --> 00:42:28,920 and we will squander it if twenty twenty six is 674 00:42:28,960 --> 00:42:30,079 not defended. 675 00:42:31,000 --> 00:42:34,920 Speaker 1: All right, final question for you, because you know much 676 00:42:34,960 --> 00:42:40,639 of what you write about is not really politics. It's spirituality. 677 00:42:40,840 --> 00:42:47,599 It is core morality. It's the thing that I think 678 00:42:47,760 --> 00:42:50,760 has bound this country together for two hundred and fifty years, 679 00:42:50,760 --> 00:42:54,480 and it seems like it is absolutely tearing apart at 680 00:42:54,519 --> 00:42:58,719 the scenes. So, given what I thought was just a 681 00:42:58,800 --> 00:43:03,119 remarkable and miraculous time following Charlie Kirk's assassination, where you 682 00:43:03,159 --> 00:43:06,679 had so many people now rediscovering and asking where am 683 00:43:06,719 --> 00:43:09,519 I in my life? Where am I with my God? 684 00:43:09,599 --> 00:43:14,320 Where am I in you know, my path in life? 685 00:43:14,360 --> 00:43:16,400 And why do I feel so empty? So more and 686 00:43:16,440 --> 00:43:20,719 more people were turning to the Christian Church. To Christianity, 687 00:43:22,079 --> 00:43:30,039 is do you see that being sustained. Is that Charlie 688 00:43:30,119 --> 00:43:35,000 Kirk's maybe biggest legacy, all the people that he brought 689 00:43:35,039 --> 00:43:39,400 to at least thinking about God and what happens now 690 00:43:39,480 --> 00:43:44,480 to turning point us a particularly with folks like Candae 691 00:43:44,519 --> 00:43:46,679 Owens roiling the waters. 692 00:43:47,679 --> 00:43:49,639 Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I mean TPUSA is just going to be 693 00:43:49,639 --> 00:43:51,719 in a fight for a while, and you know, I 694 00:43:51,800 --> 00:43:56,519 just pray that everyone at TPUSA, you know, puts ego 695 00:43:56,559 --> 00:43:59,960 aside if that should come up or is coming up, 696 00:44:00,599 --> 00:44:03,639 and just really focus on the work that Charlie did. 697 00:44:03,679 --> 00:44:03,880 Speaker 1: You know. 698 00:44:03,920 --> 00:44:06,000 Speaker 2: It's just it's it's hard to keep an organization like 699 00:44:06,039 --> 00:44:08,079 that going because if you know people in the organization, 700 00:44:08,760 --> 00:44:10,480 it was it was Charlie, you know what I mean, 701 00:44:11,760 --> 00:44:14,840 And there's just no replacement for him. Uh, not like that. 702 00:44:16,039 --> 00:44:21,480 I think this is sustainable, you know, I just Bible 703 00:44:21,559 --> 00:44:27,840 sales people, you know, craving that thing that they couldn't 704 00:44:28,519 --> 00:44:30,679 identify that was missing from their life, which turns out 705 00:44:30,719 --> 00:44:35,719 to be faith and belief in God. Christianity. It's it's surging. 706 00:44:36,400 --> 00:44:38,800 And I'm a personal example that you know, I've been 707 00:44:38,800 --> 00:44:41,760 in christian my whole life, kind of an autopilot christian 708 00:44:41,760 --> 00:44:46,360 though at times and you know, I've changed since Charlie's death, 709 00:44:46,360 --> 00:44:48,639 and I haven't gone back to the person I was before. 710 00:44:48,679 --> 00:44:51,559 So I think that's testimony and I'm not the only person, 711 00:44:51,639 --> 00:44:54,960 you know, if that's happened to me. The next step, though, 712 00:44:55,039 --> 00:44:59,639 is activism. You know, it's just prepare yourselves to be 713 00:44:59,719 --> 00:45:03,960 in a cafe and for some atheists to just walk 714 00:45:04,039 --> 00:45:05,960 up to your table and want to learn about Jesus Christ. 715 00:45:05,960 --> 00:45:09,519 And if you can't talk intelligibly about that, you're not ready. 716 00:45:09,760 --> 00:45:11,880 You got work to do. And that's me. So I've 717 00:45:11,920 --> 00:45:14,239 been reading so much history of the Church and digging 718 00:45:14,280 --> 00:45:17,039 into my Bible, you know, and the Gospels and you know, 719 00:45:17,119 --> 00:45:20,119 really studying the history of them and mounting these you know, 720 00:45:20,119 --> 00:45:23,199 I love the apologetics right, the defense of Christianity, you know, 721 00:45:23,239 --> 00:45:26,000 which is and that's what I want to become. That's 722 00:45:26,039 --> 00:45:27,880 what this nation needs, and that's what we need of 723 00:45:28,000 --> 00:45:30,559 people listening if they're so inclined. 724 00:45:32,599 --> 00:45:38,199 Speaker 1: Yeah, it was a moment in time that I think 725 00:45:39,000 --> 00:45:45,639 we will remember as a marker, certainly September tenth, two 726 00:45:45,679 --> 00:45:49,280 thy twenty five. Where we go from here, of course, 727 00:45:50,079 --> 00:45:53,360 that remains to be seen. But I think Charlie Kirk 728 00:45:53,400 --> 00:45:58,400 planted good seeds in his life. He was a great 729 00:45:58,599 --> 00:46:04,559 communicator and anger, not only for this constitutional Republic, but 730 00:46:04,679 --> 00:46:09,199 for his Lord and savior, Jesus Christ. Yes, that is 731 00:46:10,280 --> 00:46:14,239 really where all of this hits the bone. 732 00:46:16,039 --> 00:46:19,079 Speaker 2: Amen, matt Amen. I mean, that's that's why he's so big. 733 00:46:19,119 --> 00:46:21,719 It's not because the politics, is because of his Christianity. 734 00:46:21,920 --> 00:46:23,960 That's what resonated so strong with me. It's not the 735 00:46:24,000 --> 00:46:27,480 other stuff. It's that he was a living example of 736 00:46:27,800 --> 00:46:31,079 what a Christian, including him, you know, strive to be 737 00:46:31,159 --> 00:46:34,880 and should strive to be. And I didn't say something 738 00:46:34,880 --> 00:46:36,880 matter earlier because it's like doom and gloom, like, oh 739 00:46:36,920 --> 00:46:38,639 I'm being censored, you can't get the book and all 740 00:46:38,639 --> 00:46:41,400 that sort of stuff. I mean, I think people are 741 00:46:41,480 --> 00:46:43,400 feeling this and it's swirling in their minds. But and 742 00:46:44,119 --> 00:46:46,480 if I think they can get the book at Target online, 743 00:46:46,480 --> 00:46:47,800 so we've got a target, you can get it, I 744 00:46:47,800 --> 00:46:49,000 think right now hopefully. 745 00:46:49,679 --> 00:46:54,800 Speaker 1: Yeah, well, very good. It's very compelling, and you know, 746 00:46:55,239 --> 00:46:57,880 we need to take a look at where we've been 747 00:46:57,920 --> 00:47:00,760 and where we're going, and as we like to say here, 748 00:47:01,159 --> 00:47:03,840 we need to be anxious for the fray. I'm about 749 00:47:03,880 --> 00:47:06,440 to do that again as a matter of fact. Thanks 750 00:47:06,480 --> 00:47:10,800 to my guest today, Drew Thomas, author of For Christ 751 00:47:10,960 --> 00:47:14,719 and Country, The Martyrdom of Charlie Kirk, you've been listening 752 00:47:14,719 --> 00:47:17,239 to another edition of The Federalist Radio Hour. I'm Matt 753 00:47:17,320 --> 00:47:21,119 Kittle's senior elections correspondent at The Federalist. We'll be back 754 00:47:21,159 --> 00:47:25,719 soon with more. Until then, stay lovers of freedom and 755 00:47:25,920 --> 00:47:27,320 anxious for the fray. 756 00:47:34,440 --> 00:47:40,079 Speaker 3: I heard the fame, voice, the reason, and then it 757 00:47:40,239 --> 00:47:45,599 faded away.