As seen on "The 700 Club," February 16: Despite camaraderie, key issues loom for Trump, Netanyahu; Strong chance Sessions will reposition Justice Dept. as religious freedom champion, and more.
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Welcome, folks.
We're delighted to have you with
us on this edition of "The 700
Club."
Lots of news today.
I want everybody in this
audience to get the game.
There's a game going
on in Washington.
You need to know
what the game is.
The Democrats as a
party don't really
exist anymore, because
they don't have any power
to speak of in Washington.
But what are they trying to do?
They're trying to
develop a narrative that
says the Republicans were
influenced in the last election
by the Russians,
and the Russians
were hacking into the Democrats.
The Russians were
throwing the election
because the Russians are
in charge of everything
and Trump is just nothing but
a Russian ploy, tool, and pawn.
Now, that's nonsense,
but they're saying that.
They're bringing
it out, and they
say, well, there's no evidence.
But nevertheless, we're going
to keep that narrative going.
Then if they can get somebody
in Washington to hold hearings,
then they can drag
this thing on month
after month after month
to discredit Trump.
While that's going on,
the intelligence people
who are buried deep into
the Treasury Department,
into the State Department,
into the Defense Department,
into the CIA, all
these people are
from Obama and for that
Bill Clinton and others.
They're going to try and do
what they can to destroy Trump.
And some of them have
broken the law already,
but that's the narrative.
And so I just pray that the
Republicans won't fall for it
and try to get, oh, we've
got to have a hearing
to find out the truth of
these Russian involvement.
The Russians, they didn't
influence our election.
They couldn't.
There's no way they
could have done it.
And so what is we
have a president,
but these Democrats
will not acknowledge
that he is a
legitimate president,
and they're going
to try everything
they can to destroy him.
In the meantime, God
Almighty is working
on behalf of our nation, and
on behalf of our president,
because America
is a great nation.
And we are the friend
of Israel, and we
are the friend of a lot of
people around the world.
We're the hope of
the world, and we
have a president who's
going to reassert
our authority in the world.
So we start with
America's relationship
with our strongest ally in the
Middle East, which is Israel.
And now, that so-called
two-state solution,
which was nothing but a
chimera, it has no validity.
There's no possibility
of it working,
and yet Secretary of State
after Secretary of State
invested his or her time in
trying to bring this about.
But now there seems to be a
different plan for negotiating
with the Palestinians,
and President Trump
is talking about a big deal.
And I think a big deal is fun.
I like that.
He's a deal maker.
Even now, Prime
Minister Netanyahu
mentioned the art of the
deal as he was standing
up there at the podium.
How about the news
conference, too?
With our reporter--
David Brody.
David Brody being singled out
by the President of the United
States for the first question
in that very important news
conference.
It was wonderful.
That became national
news and in of itself.
Of course.
Who are these people?
Well, that's who we are.
Wendy.
Well, the vice president--
I mean, the president
rather, President Trump
is also moving to appoint
a new national secretary
adviser to replace Mike Flynn
after the recent controversy
involving contacts with Russia.
And our David Brody brings
us the story from Washington.
Thank you.
Again, thank you.
DAVID BRODY: A
rekindled friendship
chased away any winter chill
at the White House Wednesday.
After years of tension with
the Obama administration,
Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu
sees President Trump
as a key partner.
I've known the
president and I've
known his family and his
team for a long time.
And there is no greater
supporter of the Jewish people
and the Jewish state than
President Donald Trump.
DAVID BRODY: But
there are key issues
to work through,
starting with how
to achieve peace between
Israel and the Palestinians.
As with any
successful negotiation,
both sides will have
to make compromises.
You know that, right?
DAVID BRODY: In common
that would no doubt anger
Palestinian leaders, Trump
said a two-state solution
isn't a requirement for peace.
So I'm looking at
two-state and one-state,
and I like the one
that both parties like.
I'm very happy with the
one that both parties like.
I can live with either one.
DAVID BRODY: Netanyahu maintains
Palestinians must recognize
Israel's right to
exist before any peace
plan can move forward.
You have to ask yourself,
why are Jews called Jews?
Well, the Chinese
are called Chinese
because they come from China.
The Japanese are called Japanese
because they come from Japan.
Well Jews are called Jews
because they come from Judea.
This is our ancestral homeland.
Jews are not foreign
colonialists in Judea.
DAVID BRODY: The
other thorny issue
is on so-called settlements.
In the West Bank, Netanyahu
has pushed forward.
But the White House
says that may not be
the best move for a peace deal.
It's a topic CBN
News asked about
at their joint news conference.
On the settlement issue,
are you both on the same page?
How do you exactly turn that
as it relates to the settlement
issue?
As far as
settlements, I'd like
to see you hold back on
settlements for a little bit.
We'll work something out.
But I would like to
see a deal be made.
I think a deal will be made.
Let's try it.
Doesn't sound too
optimistic, but that's--
[LAUGHTER]
He's a good negotiator.
That's the art of the deal.
DAVID BRODY: It also
provided the president
his first opportunity to address
the controversy concerning
fired national security
adviser Mike Flynn.
He didn't address
the timetable of what
he knew about his
campaign advisers
talking with Russian officials.
Instead, he blamed the media.
I think he's been
treated very, very
unfairly by the media.
As I call it, the fake
media, in many cases.
And I think it's
really a sad thing
that he was treated so badly.
I think in addition to
that, from intelligence,
papers are being leaked,
things are being leaked.
It's criminal
action, criminal act,
and it's been going on
for a long time before me.
But now it's really going on.
DAVID BRODY: The key question
remains whether the Trump
administration can begin to
plug these leaks so he can
move forward with his agenda.
Thanks, David.
It is astounding that the media
has got their noses bent out
of shape.
These are the media that said
that Trump was a fake, a phony,
he needed to get impeached.
You go down the line of
all the stuff he lied.
He did this.
And then they wonder
why they're not
given preferred treatment in
the White House briefing room.
MSNBC, ultra liberal,
CNN, extremely liberal.
And they're not getting
called on, and they get mad.
Why?
Because a guy named David Brody
representing the Christian
Broadcasting Network gets the
first question from Washington.
David, that's quite
a kudo, brother.
Well, I've got
to tell you, Pat,
when I was at the
White House yesterday,
I probably should brought
the smelling salts.
I could have handed them
out to the mainstream media
members that were probably
passed out a full frontal right
in front of me.
Yeah, it's a new
day in DC for sure,
and it was great
to be called on.
It's really been a
long time coming.
And we definitely
should be called on.
And why?
Well, because hello, we've got
important questions to ask.
And indeed, that was
what we did yesterday,
trying to weave in
Israel, the Iran deal
into that first question,
plus settlements,
plus Russia and Michael Flynn.
Hey Pat, I went for
the whole enchilada,
and I tried to do
what I could do.
Well, you did a great job.
Hey listen, this Iran thing,
is there some hidden thing
that the Obama administration
doesn't want anybody
to know about?
Was there something conceal that
now is going to come to light,
have you heard about?
Well keep your eye on
a guy named Ben Rhodes,
former Obama adviser,
high-ranking Obama adviser.
More may indeed come out here
in the near future about him.
He's a guy.
They labeled him, or at least
conservatives labeled him,
the pro-Iran wing of the White
House, a guy that was not
happy at all with the fact that
Michael Flynn, who of course is
a big staunch
supporter of Israel,
was the national
security adviser.
So there is some
speculation that he may
be behind some of these leaks.
The problem with
these leaks, Pat,
is that they're
sprouting up everywhere.
It could be Ben Rhodes.
But quite frankly, it's
not just Ben Rhodes.
Sources telling me
that some are coming--
yes-- within the White House,
folks that didn't necessarily--
were simpatico
with Michael Flynn.
So you've got that.
You've got the
bureaucracy leaks coming
from all over Washington,
and then within the Obama
administration, or the former
Obama administration as well.
David, I was talking to Drew
[INAUDIBLE] yesterday about how
you fire people.
It's not easy to
get rid of people.
I suppose that they can assign
them to a post in Alaska
or on the border of Mexico and
get them out of Washington.
They can do that under the
Civil Service Act, can't they?
Yeah.
Well apparently, that
would be an option.
But once again, this is going
to be a problem, Pat, going
forward, because Trump came
here to drain the swamp,
and the swamp is large.
And that means that you
just don't get a free pass.
Or excuse me, you don't
just get this idea
that you can just go ahead and
be a federal worker forever.
There are some real
inherent issues with that.
Obama criticized
Mitt Romney, who
said he thought Russia
was a big problem,
and they laughed
at him, and said
he didn't know what
he's talking about.
But the truth is now, they have
made Russia front and center.
And there's this narrative going
around that this is collusion,
and that they need to
have all sorts of hearings
to discover what the plot is.
What do you hear about all that?
Well you're
absolutely right, Pat.
It is somewhat of
a double standard
here, because indeed,
the president and many
of his advisers had kind of
even laughed off at the time
this whole idea about Russia
being this geopolitical force,
as Mitt Romney talked about.
And now, they're the
ones peddling that Russia
is responsible for everything.
So it is kind of interesting.
I will say this.
Look for congressman Jason
Chaffetz to be in the news
quite a bit.
He's the head of the House
Ethics Reform Committee
on Capitol Hill.
He's going to be, in
essence, the top cop here.
As a Republican, watch for him.
If he decides to go forward with
some of these investigations
into Russia and the
Trump administration,
he'll be on the hot seat
by a lot of conservatives
for even bringing it up.
But there is a sense that he
will do potentially something
here.
And here's the thing.
And you know, Pat.
You've got Lindsay Graham,
and John McCain, and Lisa
Murkowski, and Susan Collins,
and a bunch of the moderates
playing live on Broadway
on Capitol Hill,
and they want to have
their voices heard.
So this Trump
administration could
be in for some rocky
times ahead, especially
on Capitol Hill
with Republicans.
McCain kind of makes me sick.
It looks like he
is determined to be
the voice of the opposition
in the Republican Party
to everything Trump wants to do.
What is it with him?
Well, I've got to tell you.
One of the things which John
McCain and one of the reasons
that he did not, dot dot dot,
become president of the United
States is he had a problem
with the real true conservative
portion of the base, because
he has played the establishment
card.
He has played the bipartisan
card up on Capitol Hill.
It's worked for longevity
in his district,
but it didn't work for becoming
president of the United States.
And beyond that, I
think what you're
seeing with John McCain
is someone who really
embodies the whole Washington
bureaucratic establishment
in DC.
Very well respected
up on the Hill.
But when it comes to this idea
of establishment politicians,
John McCain would pretty
much be the poster boy
for establishment
politicians in this country.
I don't think there's
any question about it.
And he wears that with a
badge of honor, by the way.
If I said that to
him, he'd say, well,
that's right, because that's
all about bipartisanship
and being a statesman.
We hear that a lot up
here on Capitol Hill.
If he sticks a knife in
the back of this wonderful
president we've
got-- last question.
Robert Howard, admiral, a
SEAL's SEAL, a man's man.
He looks like a great guy.
He's going to be the
replacement for Flynn.
Is that the idea?
That's the sense
at this point.
That's right.
He is a former US Navy SEAL,
was in central command, US
central command under General
James Mattis at the time,
went to MIT.
I mean, he checks
all of the boxes.
And one of the interesting
parts of his story,
if indeed he becomes
national security advisor,
he actually grew up in Iran.
He actually went to school.
He's American obviously, but he
did go to high school in Iran.
And he's actually
fluent in Persian.
So there's your
little tip of the day.
There's your trivia
tip of the day, Pat.
Fluent in Persian.
You keep it up, David.
Appreciate your work.
David Brody, our
Washington correspondent
who's doing a fabulous job for
you and for all of us at CBN.
Well, our CBN News Middle East
Bureau Chief Chris Mitchell
is with us now from Jerusalem.
And Chris, the thought
was that Netanyahu really
didn't want to go gung-ho
on building all those houses
and settlements,
and that Trump was
doing him a favor
against the hard liners.
Is there any truth
to any of that?
I think there is, Pat.
When Trump leaned over
to Netanyahu and said,
let's go a bit slower
on the settlements, that
was sort of a political
bone for Netanyahu,
because he's been
getting a lot of pressure
from the right, Education
Minister Naftali
bennett among them, who want
to annex parts of the West
Bank, Judea, and
Samaria, or they
want to even expand
the whole West Bank.
So there was something it
helped him out politically here.
And I would say, Pat, I just add
the reaction here from Israel,
including Naftali Bennett,
the education minister,
he says it's a new era
in US-Israeli relations.
He said that actually
the Palestinian flag
had been taken down
from the White House,
and the Israeli flag put up.
On the left, Israeli politicians
are lamenting the fact
that the two-state solution
is seeing an alternative right
now.
And I was on the phone earlier
today with Michael Oren.
He's the deputy minister
of public policy.
And he was saying that he
lived through the Obama
administration for
four or five years,
so he knows how bad it can be.
And he said it's
a new era as well.
And let me just add, Pat.
When the Palestinian
reaction, Julie Stahl
was on the phone earlier today
as well with the PLO chief
negotiator, Saeb Erekat,
and he said, quoting,
"Abandonment of the
two-state solution
is going to spell disaster
on Palestinians and Israelis,
and on the region in
the bigger context."
So from the Palestinian
point of view,
it's probably a sad day for
them after yesterday's press
conference.
Chris, the President Trump
was talking about a big deal.
And for me, a big deal would
be you bring in Jordan,
you bring in Saudi Arabia,
you bring in Egypt, el-Sisi,
and you bring in Israel.
And at least for
that group, and you
suddenly have an
area-wide peace agreement.
Are they talking something
like that, do you think?
I think that's exactly what
they're talking about, Pat.
For years, the holy grail of the
Israeli-Palestinian diplomacy
has been the two-state solution.
And now that press conference
yesterday sort of abandoned
that.
And so I think they're looking
at it in a regional context,
a regional diplomacy.
And as I was listening
to the press conference
yesterday, Pat, these
are some of the things
I heard Trump say.
"We're going to make a big
deal, a bigger and better deal
than people in this
room, even understand.
It could take many,
many countries."
And that it refers to Jordan,
Saudi Arabia, the Gulf states
and Egypt would cover
a very large territory.
He says, "others players
at a very high level,"
so that would include all
of those states in oil.
And this is Mr. art of the
deal changing the parameters
of the Middle East peace.
Well, it's long overdue.
Well, last question.
Israel and the US need to be on
the same page in terms of Iran.
What are they looking to do?
We've got that Iranian
deal, but Trump
is sort of saying, well,
I want to preserve it.
Well, what do you think the
Israelis hope to have done?
Well, certainly that was
probably one of the main things
they talked about in
private yesterday.
And I think first
of all, they're
going to put Iran on notice.
And I think one example is that
the Trump administration has
already done that by
putting Iran on notice
after that ballistic missile
test just a few days ago.
I think that's one thing
they're going to do,
perhaps more sanctions.
I think Trump doesn't want
to necessarily abrogate
the whole Iranian
deal, but I think
we're going to see
increased sanctions,
we're going to see increased
holding Iran accountable.
I talked to one Middle
East expert earlier today,
and he said, look to Yemen.
That could be the
next confrontation
between the US and Iran.
But I think we're
going to also see, Pat,
maybe covert actions going on.
And one other thing
I'd like to add,
Pat, is you remember, I
remember in the Cold War days
when I was just a young
kid, Radio Free Europe.
And I would think they're
going to be talking directly
to the Iranian people.
Prime Minister Netanyahu did
that just a couple of weeks
ago, was sort of unprecedented.
And I think we're
going to see trying
to talk to the
Iranian opposition,
and also talk to
the Iranian people.
There are a lot of
Iranians inside Iran
that really detest
the Iranian mullahs
and what's going on in Tehran.
And I think they're
going to try to foment
part of that opposition.
You remember in 2009 when
really, President Obama
had his Ronald Reagan moment
that he could have spoken
to the millions of people
that came out in the street,
and yet he failed to do that.
I think we're going to see
Trump and perhaps Netanyahu
do the same.
Well, thank you Chris.
You're doing a great job.
Again, our reporter
in Jerusalem who
has his finger on the pulse,
his ear to the ground, and he's
bringing you the
up to date story.