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>> Rick Green: Welcome to The Core with Walker Wildmon and Rick Green I'm Rick Green, America's constitution coach. And I'm actually going to take you to the Idaho state Capitol today. We were just there yesterday and man, we had an amazing time. And I'm telling you, it's going to give you hope to hear from these young people that are getting trained to lead this country back to our roots, lead this country forward to an even better way of governing with limited government, individual liberties, free enterprise, timeless truths, all the things that made the country great in the first place, but doing it effectively in the environment in which we live. So let's head out to the Idaho state capitol. I think it's our 15th year, maybe 16th year, but the guy I've got sitting next to me probably remembers this. Brady Smith is with me. One of our wonderful team members at Patriot Academy has been part of the Idaho Academy since it started, but initially came to Texas. Brady, thanks for coming on, man.
>> Brady Smith: That's right. I haven't been around that long.
>> Rick Green: That long. So we're sitting outside the house floor. They got a lot of young people in there. Some of them first time, in fact, a lot of them first time they've done anything like this. And you remember what that was like when you came to Texas. How old were you when you first came to Patriot Academy?
>> Brady Smith: 16 years old.
>> Rick Green: 16. How old are you today?
>> Brady Smith: Do we want to talk about that?
>> Rick Green: So it was more than 15 years ago.
>> Brady Smith: 15 years ago, yes.
>> Rick Green: Kids, now you're going to have grandkids coming to Patriot Academy at some point, but let's get the kids through first.
>> Brady Smith: That's the plan.
>> Rick Green: So this is. It's cool to be here. I love the Idaho capital First of all, because it's just compact, everything's nice, it's marvelous, gorgeous. It's just, you know, the committee rooms are closed. I love this place. But man, we've had a lot of young people come through here and have life changing experiences. Total. Tell our audience a little bit about how Patriot Academy affected you and then we'll talk about some of these students that are here this year.
>> Brady Smith: Yeah, Patriot Academy, when I first got involved, well, I first heard about it actually early, before I was able to attend. And I've been writing letters to the editor as just political nerd 16. Well, at 13. At 13 you're writing letters. Yeah, I'm making church and state arguments between me and adults who didn't know they were arguing with a kid. And I was having fun. My Brandice were a little panicked. I think about, like, what do we do with this? What do we created. Yeah. Dave Barton's newsletter. Like, okay, this, this is where we can kind of point this, this energy. So that's when I first attended at 16. And yeah, just got dumped right into the fire. Cause I showed up late, actually walked in on my first committee room committee meeting and they were like, all right, you're up to present. And I had no idea what I was doing, so. But yeah, as soon as I was into it, I was like this, this is where I'm supposed to be. This is where it's at. And yeah, just been so blessed to be able to be part of it ever since then, so.
>> Rick Green: So a lot of our listeners may have not ever been to a leadership Congress or even heard the Bartons and me talk about it on the program. Totally foreign to them, rather than me explaining it. What is a Patriot Academy? Leadership Congress.
>> Brady Smith: Leadership Congress is the most realistic simulated legislative session for students 16 and 25 years old. You get to actually come to a state capitol or to the Patriot Academy campus. You get to experience the life of a legislator. So you bring your own bill, you work it through the committee process, you get it on the House floor and debate it back and forth with your fellow legislators. And all the while we train the students in biblical worldview, the legislative process, communication skills. That's huge. A huge part of what we do. Yeah, all that from a biblical and a constitutional perspective.
>> Rick Green: And it's a pretty intense week. I mean, we don't give them much time to rest.
>> Brady Smith: Right? Exactly.
>> Speaker A: Yep.
>> Rick Green: The The Core in as soon as, like you said, you walked in on committee, boom, you're thrown into the fire.
>> Brady Smith: Well, and what's awesome too is it's not just us keeping them up, like getting them to do Stephen, I've. I've had students or we've had students who they stay up, you know, until 1, 2 in the morning talking about their bills with their roommates and stuff.
>> Rick Green: We do always tell them.
>> Brady Smith: We tell them, we tell them to
>> Rick Green: go to sleep, go back to your room because it's going to be a long day. But they never listen.
>> Brady Smith: They never listen.
>> Rick Green: Yeah, because it's fun. You know, that was one of the other cool things, I think that, that we created in this 26 years ago was just an environment where you can meet other young people that think about these things. Like you said, you were writing letters at 13, so you probably write when you got there. I found my people.
>> Brady Smith: I found my people. Yes, that's exactly what I felt. And like you said, it is fun. I think we've had a lot of people who've come from other program. So, you know, boys State and that sort of thing. And always the reaction is, oh, my goodness, I didn't know it could be this fun. Generally speaking, it's the sort of thing where it's not just dry politics and policy and that sort of thing. It's an actual. How do I apply this to my life?
>> Rick Green: Yeah, yeah, no doubt. And then we see huge changes. You know, I've had students come, you've watched it that were just so shy, never done any kind of public speaking, never Kadin up in front of a group, never really had this kind of social environment. And you're very scared when they came. And first of all, getting over that and having that success. Like I had a student in Delaware last week very similar to that, and it was just so cool to watch her overcome her fears. But then The The Core back second year and they're now they're kind of bold now they're very involved in third year, they're running the show. I mean, that process is really fun to watch.
>> Brady Smith: It's incredible, especially since a lot of our, A lot of the students that come, not all of them, we have a great mix of people, but a lot of it's a very conservative homeschool type, is listening to this radio program and they're, you know, maybe even on the sheltered side and they just didn't have that exposure. And it's a way to get that exposure and get that experience and get out of your shell in a very safe environment with people that are there to mentor you and help you and Corrie. And like you said, you come back second, third year, it's a whole different person. It's incredible to see.
>> Rick Green: I can't claim your wedding, but we have had 47 weddings out of this thing, too. So it does. You know, you end up meeting that special person sometimes. So I joke with the kids about that a lot, but it's Terri weddings. Because it is, you know, sometimes hard to find people that share your values and are interested in this kind of Stephen, that doesn't mean everybody in this goes into politics. Right. Like, most of the students that come go into business or ministry or whatever. It's not politics. They vote and they're good citizens, but it doesn't become their main focus. You don't have to be political nerds like you and me.
>> Brady Smith: Exactly. And that's one of the cool things. But like I said, we're not just teaching politics. We're teaching them the legislative process. But it's more of a vehicle for teaching them leadership, which can be applied to any area of life, whatever you end up doing. And not only leadership, but also that communication skill side of things. And no matter what you do, no matter what avenue of life you Brice you have to learn to communicate. Whether it's marriage or kids or whatever, communication is so key. So these leadership skills that are being taught through the vehicle of the legislative process apply to you no matter what you do.
>> Rick Green: It reminds me of our amazing executive director for 11 or 12 years. Nathan was easy, would always say it's a leadership laboratory. So it's really like a lab that you're. You're putting students into to learn those leadership skills and be honed and sharpened.
>> Brady Smith: Yeah.
>> Rick Green: Okay, so let's talk about the students that are here now. We got 16 up to 25. They're on the floor. We can see them through the glass. They're debating bills. I mean, this is the actual Idaho house floor. This is where the real legislature meets every year.
>> Brady Smith: Yeah. It's just an incredible privilege that we get to do this. As state capitals around the country, Idaho is particularly gracious. They don't have security on the doors. You can bring in your pocket knife and stuff. It's an amazing capital. But Patriot academy leadership Congress, we built a reputation. The capitals know they can trust us to take good care of it and just gives you a little hint of the caliber and the quality of the people. These students that are here, they're the kind of people that you want leading this country.
>> Rick Green: Yeah, yeah. No doubt. The bills. So the topics that these students bring always. It always amazes me. I mean, there's Always the typical, I just want to ban abortion or I want to, you know, get rid of this tax or whatever. But, I mean, we've watched these students debate monetary policy. We've watched them debate health care. I mean, they get into some pretty Haidt stuff that sometimes I'm sitting back going, oh, I need. I think I need grok right now.
>> Brady Smith: Let me look this up really quick. Ayanna, 100%. And it's cool, too, the different perspectives, because a lot of times a student will bring a bill and, you know, I have. I didn't even know that was an issue. I didn't know that was something that was. And I. I feel like I'm pretty involved in this whole political sphere. And so, yeah, getting. Getting your eyes open to new stuff is always really exciting. And again, the caliber of these people, these students, they're.
>> Rick Green: They're.
>> Brady Smith: They're on top of it. It's amazing.
>> Rick Green: Well, we've got, you know, we do six or seven of these around the country in the summer. Are going to continue to add states. It's opportunity for. For people to get involved that want to make a difference. If they want to send a kid to patriot academy, it's patriotacademy.com, the Leadership Congress has happened throughout the summer. We still got a big one coming up last week of July. This is our last here in Idaho. As we sit today, this is our last regional academy. But we'll be at the Patriot Academy campus this summer at the end of July for the National Leadership Congress. So some of these students actually, that are here for the first time, we've still got a few slots. Brady, we need to go work on these kiddos and encourage them to see how spontaneous they are. That's what, two weeks? They got to pack fast and raise some scholarship money really, really quick. In fact, let's just make that the last thing. What would you say to Brandice about this being a place that. That. That would be a good place to send their student next summer if this July is obviously too late?
>> Brady Smith: Yeah, I mean, like I Stier. I've been involved in this for a long time, and I've seen so many lives changed. But I. Speaking from my own perspective, I would not be where I am today. I would not be who I am today without Patriot Academy. It has literally changed my life, the entire trajectory of my life. Give me so many skills, so much confidence, the. The network that I've built. I mean, if you want to set your kid up for success, even if they're not Interested in politics. Like I said, it's for, it's for anyone who's going to lead or who should lead, and that's everyone. It's for anyone who's going to communicate, and that's everyone. If, if you want to set your kid up for success, I highly recommend Patriot Academy's Leadership Congress. I don't think there's anything better that you could do for your kid during the summer.
>> Rick Green: Man, I'm glad we were recording. I'm going to use that in the future. Brady, that was great. Thank you so much for stepping off the floor and being a part of this. Go whip those young people into shape. We, you know, we, we are so thankful for the opportunity to do these Patriot Academies in actual state capitals across the country for the purpose of training up the next generation. And we've added now the Patriot Institute at the Patriot Academy campus. And one of the students who's been through both Leadership Congress and the Patriot Institute is with me here, helping to put on this particular Patriot Academy Leadership Congress. Rebecca Roberts, with me. Rebecca, thanks for coming on.
>> Rebecca Roberts: Absolutely. Thank you, Mr. Rick.
>> Rick Green: Well, this is your home state, so we're, we're back to your home state. You spent a year with us at the, at the campus in Constitution City, Texas. And I'm, if I remember right, this was your first capital to do a Leadership Congress, Right? Okay. So walk us through our audiences. You know, some of them are familiar with Patriot Academy because they're longtime law builders listeners. Others never heard of it before. I just had Brady Smith on and he was talking about his experience, so they've heard a little bit about how it works. What attracted you to the idea of in the middle of the summer, coming and dressing up and spending a few days at the state capitol?
>> Rebecca Roberts: Well, initially, when I first heard about it, I was interested in simply learning the process and meeting other young people that had similar passions to mine, who were interested in politics from a biblical perspective and who were interested in learning more about the founding of our country and really the Christian basis of it. But after my first time here, in my experience and really getting to know what Patriot Academy Leadership Congresses were, I really became attracted to the community in general and just the absolute passion these people have for excellence and to really learn the process and to pour into one another. And that has simply been an absolutely amazing experience that I have come back for every year.
>> Rick Green: How many years now that you've been through the academy?
>> Rebecca Roberts: This is my fourth year and my fifth academy.
>> Janessa polk: All right.
>> Rick Green: Okay. So what was the difference between coming to Idaho capital and then going to the national Leadership Congress or even then the full year at the Patriot Institute.
>> Rebecca Roberts: Wildly different experiences, but each so amazing in their own way. With Idaho. What I really appreciate about this regional is it is smaller, but that gives you much more time for one on one with your mentees and with talking with leadership and you really get a lot more time to learn and pour into the other people here and really get to know the process on a much deeper level.
>> Rick Green: Yeah.
>> Rebecca Roberts: At nationals where it's much larger. I think this last year we had 140 people there. Yeah, it was really amazing. But we got to see a much more intense and really get to see, if you will, a more realistic representation because of the huge diverse perspectives and viewpoints that were coming in and just the different angles that were being taken on bills. It felt very, very real as compared to what I've seen in real life congresses.
>> Rick Green: Yes.
>> Rebecca Roberts: And then compared to the one month intensive, which is kind of my stepping
>> Rick Green: stone from Congress went from three day regional to one week national to one month intensive.
>> Rebecca Roberts: Yeah, Just walked up the ladder. But that was also amazing because we threw in so many other things which ultimately became part of our one year program. We threw in some of The The Core the practical hands on learning how to run maintenance on vehicles, building things around the campus. That was an absolute joy.
>> Rick Green: Some real life skills.
>> Rebecca Roberts: Yes. Along with some of the underlying foundational things that are referenced here, but that we don't have time to get into at the three day or the one week congresses, like apologetics and like philosophy and worldview and more in depth public speaking communication. And of course we just expanded on all of that and more at the one year.
>> Brady Smith: I love it.
>> Rick Green: I love it. You said use the word real several times. What is it like to be in the real capital, like on the real floor, in the real committees? I mean, y' all are living the life of a legislator. And thankfully the legislators here in the Capitol have been willing to let us use their facility. How much more what's that like just to be in those rooms even?
>> Rebecca Roberts: It is so amazing. Now, I may be a little bit biased because I am from Idaho and I have only been to the Idaho capital before, but from everybody I've talked to it in my personal experience, it is one of the most beautiful state capitols I have ever visited.
>> Rick Green: Well, you weren't sitting here a few minutes ago. I said the same thing as a Texan, so you're not wrong. And I was talking about how beautiful your capital is.
>> Rebecca Roberts: Wonderful.
>> Rick Green: Honestly, you can Go back and listen to the program and. No, I'm being truthful.
>> Rebecca Roberts: Perfect. But yes, it's just such an amazing building. It has so much historical weight. We just heard from the president of the Idaho Family Policy center about a lot of the founding of our Idaho Constitution and Idaho State and a lot of the debates that were held and just to know the history behind the people that have sat in this room and gone before us and who have passed laws here.
>> Rick Green: That was Lane, right? So good. I love listening to him.
>> Rebecca Roberts: Amazing presentation. But just know the weight of history that has been done here and just the. The significance of this building. So beautiful. And to know that we're sitting in the same seats where the actual legislators sit is pretty amazing. Pretty cool.
>> Rick Green: Okay. That might intimidate some. They may be like, oh, I don't know if I want to be, you know, thrown into that mix, or. Brady and Rebecca both have talked about speaking and communication, that sort of thing. I've never done anything like that. What do you say to a young person that's listening right now or parent that's thinking, I don't know, that might be too much for them because a lot of students get intimidated because they're not actually here. It's hard to describe everything, so sometimes it could sound like, wow, I just wouldn't fit into that.
>> Rebecca Roberts: Assell, my first year when I came, I was actually 15, so I was a year under the usual age limit. So I was very intimidated.
>> Rick Green: I didn't make exceptions for you for a long time because you.
>> Rebecca Roberts: You have indeed.
>> Rick Green: Ayanna Sower go ahead.
>> Rebecca Roberts: I didn't mean to interrupt you, but I was very. I was already very shy, very intimidated by many of these. These similar public speaking related things. So I was very intimidated and very afraid that I would be a little bit behind the curve, if you will.
>> Brady Smith: Yeah.
>> Rebecca Roberts: However, coming here, and like I said, one of the things I love about the smaller Congress is the intentionality that the senators, The The Core experienced alumni, the leadership took to bring the freshmen up to speed and to show them around and make sure that they have. They know what they're doing and things are very clear. They are very, very intentional about making sure that you can feel as confident as you can.
>> Rick Green: Quick break, folks. We're at the Idaho State Capitol for Patriot Academy. We'll be right back. You're listening to At the The Core walking off
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>> Rick Green: We're back here on At the Core with Walker Wildmon and Rick Green RICK greener, America's Constitution Coach we're at the Idaho State Capitol. We're doing Patriot Academy's Leadership Congress. We do these across the nation and state capitals. Gives us a chance to raise up young people for the next generation, equipping them to be leaders in whatever area they're going into. You know, they may go into business, politics, entertainment, arts, ministry, you know, whatever it might be. We want them to be good citizens. We want them to know how the constitutional republic works. And this gives them a chance to be on the House floor in the committee rooms, learning how the process works, but also learn how to influence it, how to testify in committees back home in their states, how to influence what's going on in their communities, and then just how to be good leaders. It's a great, great opportunity. We've been doing it 26 years. For more information, go to patriotacademy.com patriotacademy.com all of our regionals are coming to a close, but the National Leadership Congress takes place in just a couple of weeks at the Patriot Academy campus in Constitution City, Texas. And we do have a couple of slots left. It's nearly full. That's going to be July 26th through August 1st. So if you'd like to attend that, go to the website today and get your application in. If you'd like to sponsor a student, please consider doing that. Making a [email protected] let's get back into our interview with Rebecca Roberts, right outside the House floor, talking about what it's like for students when The The Core to the state Capitol, to the academy, because sometimes they're very intimidated. And you know, there's some you're in the Capitol. I mean, it's obviously intimidating. But what we want to do is teach them and train them. And we want them to know we're coming alongside them. We're with them. And so we make a real concentrated effort to be it's a team effort and to make them not comfortable because we want them to seek discomfort. But to make them competent and make them confident.
>> Rebecca Roberts: They're guiding you through this process every step of the way. And that is just a really beautiful, amazing thing that I love about Idaho particularly.
>> Rick Green: I think that's something that people need to get a hold of. When you come to something like this. This is not a competition where people are going to try to run you down or. Or defeat you. Even your fellow students are pulling for you. They want you to do better. And of course, it's staff. And now you see that as one of the mentors that's actually mentoring this next. This next group. It's an environment where everybody's wanting you to do well. Yes, it's true. Iron sharpening. I mean, for the purpose of improvement.
>> Rebecca Roberts: It is a beautiful environment to succeed in and especially to fail in, because we are all. We're all here with the same thing. We've all been there, we've all had a bill not make it to the floor. We've all been too afraid at some point or forgotten what we were supposed to say. But we've also pulled through, overcame, and now have the amazing opportunity to pour in and to help that next freshman and that next first year representative to overcome those same fears. And it's really beautiful.
>> Rick Green: I think I'm watching you. You're 18 and you're already now on the mentoring side of this. Not you're still being mentored by older students and. And staff, but. But you're getting to give back. You're getting to coach these younger students as The The Core in, or even older students that are first timers that I do.
>> Rebecca Roberts: It's pretty amazing. In fact, I think my mentee is up there right now giving her house joint.
>> Rick Green: So you need to get out of here and get up there and help her maybe. All right.
>> Rebecca Roberts: But she's done a really good job, so I'm very proud of her and just really blessed I've been able to pour into all these freshmen and young students.
>> Rick Green: Well, Rebecca, we're super proud of you, super excited to have you on the team and look forward to the rest of this leadership Congress. Thanks for taking some time.
>> Janessa polk: Absolutely.
>> Rebecca Roberts: Thanks, Mr. Rick.
>> Rick Green: Great group of kids. Incredible team putting this thing on. I'll tell you now that we're doing these all over the country and our schedule's so crazy and Patriot Academy is doing so much, I have a hard time making it to all these programs, certainly not for the full three days in these regionals. And part of what gives me peace is that we have an amazing Patriot Academy team that Puts these on. And our Leadership Congress coordinators here with us, Janessa Polk, who started here in Idaho. So, Janessa, thank you for coming on the Wallblowers program.
>> Janessa polk: Thank you, Mr. Rick. It is a pleasure to be here. This is definitely my favorite Leadership Congress. Obviously, it's my home state. Plus it is the most beautiful capital in the country as far as I'm concerned.
>> Rick Green: Now, our listeners don't know this, but you and Rebecca and Brady had no idea the other ones were being interviewed or what they said. And I started the interview with Brady talking about how beautiful the Capitol was. Then Rebecca talked about how beautiful the Capitol was. And so we didn't set this up. Listeners, just so you know, it is a gorgeous.
>> Janessa polk: We're all just trying to drive it home to Rick that the Texas Capitol is the second most beautiful capital.
>> Rick Green: Well, I can't go that far. Can't go that far. But you know what's so cool about this one? I was mentioning this to Brady and you as the coordinator, obviously recognize this. I love the layout. It's so easy to get the students from committee to floor to the auditorium where we're doing. I just love beautiful logistics.
>> Janessa polk: Becomes a Brice Yeah.
>> Rick Green: Okay, now remind me, your first time, did you come to regional here or Nationals?
>> Janessa polk: Regional. First here. 2021.
>> Rick Green: Okay, so you did start here at this Capitol. Okay. What's it like to have started here as a student and now you're running the Leadership Congress.
>> Janessa polk: Oh, my gosh. You see God's hand in everything. It is so full circle. It was especially full circle for me last year because that was the first year I was helping to run as a coordinator for Leadership Congress. And it was made me emotional more than once to walk in here realizing how much God has done in five years. But it's even more this year because it's now six years since I attended here as a student on the age gap level. I was 25.
>> Rick Green: That was the last year you came in.
>> Janessa polk: That was the last year. And my story with Patriot Academy is everything I got to do with Patriot Academy from that point was always one step ahead. One more door open. One more last year with Patriot Catherine One more last year with. And here I am, and I'm here and I love it and I don't know when it's in and I hope it doesn't end soon at all. And just knowing that God can take you so far in six years that I have no idea how to guess ahead just to be excited for the adventure. One of the things Brady talked about in our devotional today is that history plus patience equals faith. And how my story with Patriot Academy is the same way to rely on the history that God has brought me this far, to have patience that one door at a time needed to be opened, not my whole life story be opened at the same time. And truly, I have faith in him moving forward because of how he has been faithful to me in the past.
>> Rick Green: It's been beautiful to watch for sure. And you become an integral part of the team. A lot of people don't understand why we in the nonprofit world, especially a program like this, we put in so many hours, we worked so hard for so little pay, but. But the reward is what we're getting to watch right now. These students out here on the house floor talk about that a little bit. Just the privilege and the joy of watching these young people come in here scared to death sometimes right off the bat. And then at the end, just the joy as they receive their certificate and their torch and all that. It's awesome to watch the difference it makes in their lives.
>> Janessa polk: Well, just even today, it's crazy. And even last night there was a freshman student who was on the edge of panic because of the amount of realistic simulation that we have here. And she was just trying to work through it in a high stress and getting to talk her off the ledge, as it were, of being stressful and realize that this is a place to learn, it is realistic on purpose. That's by design. But in there, the ability to learn and see God's hand in the learning is so high. And just getting as another student who I just got a chance to encourage him as he's stepping forth and world changing. His organization was built through and inspired by Patriot Academy statesman youth. And I got to talk with him and he says thank you so much for being encouragement. Thank you so much for bringing jet fuel to who I am. And I was like turning around to him and this is jet fuel to me. It is as much jet fuel to me as it is to you. This is so much more worth. We only have one life to live for Christ. And spending it doing mundane nine to five things is not my idea of living my one life for Christ. It is to live for joy. It is to bring that light bulb moment on for students. And I get to do that every single day. I don't care what I get paid. I would honestly work here if I didn't get paid. I really would. I've learned so much here in getting to pour joy and pour the light bulb light of Christ into these students and get every opportunity to present the gospel and encourage them and to give them their identity in Christ is my joy. The logistics and the simulation is just the bonus, but we use the process to teach the process, and in the middle, we share the gospel every single waking.
>> Rick Green: Mom, Brady and I were just talking about the process, really, and all of these. And kind of the window dressing is what our, you know, wonderful executive director for years, Nathan Macias, used to say. It's a leadership laboratory. And so that's really what all of that just is kind of the. It's what gets them here. But then it's. It's giving God. Giving opportunities for moments of inspiration that God gives them and then with each other, I mean, all of those things. So that's kind of why we can deal with. I know you and the team got stuck in an airport last weekend. I got stuck in an airport. I mean, the travel's been crazy for all of us. Part of the adventure. Yeah, it's part of the adventure. No sleep. But it's well, well worth it to get to see these students, The, The. The laboratory that we're talking about here for people to be able to envision this. I mean, we're on the real house floor right now. These students are using the real microphones. We've got a speaker up there at the. At the dais that is. Is using the exact same phrases. It's just like a real session. People often come into our. I want to say fake. Our simulation, and they say, wow, the legislators in this state are young because it feels so real. They actually, actually think it's the real session going on. How important is that? You think to. They're kind of having that epiphany moment. You know what? I can be a leader. I can make a difference. I can impact what's going on. Maybe not become a legislator, but maybe become a legislator. But there's something about sitting in the real Cheri using the real microphones, going through this debate that something. Suddenly the switch flips and you go, maybe I could do something like this. Does that make sense? I don't know if that was a long question. It wasn't a good setup.
>> Janessa polk: No, but I know what you mean, because I've been there, done that. I was a student here first. I walked away after those three days. In fact, it was probably sooner into three days, 20, 21. When I came, I walked away thinking, I feel so empowered. I could literally go talk to anybody on the planet. Now that is a little bit of an Overachiever, and I'm probably way too optimistic, but I felt that. I felt like I was fully equipped to go, literally talk to anybody on the planet and get my point across and at least have a decent conversation without quivering in my boots. Doing it and being able to not be able to speak or convey an idea, it is extremely empowering. And being here in a professional standpoint where there's high standards, young people, they love it when the bar is raised. So raise the bar. They love it, and they don't even know they love it until they have a bar to meet, and then they meet that bar, and then they exceed it. For instance, you spoke of our speaker. That's actually my younger brother, my youngest brother that I recruited to get to be here. He is now speaker of the House, standing up on that dais right now because I recruited him to say this is an empowering, equipping place where the. The bar is high. And he ate that up. Even from the professional dress code to the logistics to literally being in this beautiful capital, the bar is high in everything they do, and it's with their Brice So it's positive peer pressure all the way. It's positive, powerful peer pressure that leaves you equipped and empowered.
>> Rick Green: I love that. That's actually a good thing to leave it on today because we often say seek discomfort. I've heard a lot of students say, you pushed me out of my comfort zone to make me try something, and I improved as a result of it. And really, what you're saying to even, you know, the Brandice that are listening right now, the students that are listening, even if you don't get a chance to come to a leadership congress, raise the bar. You know, set those. Set those high goals. Don't, don't. Don't sell this generation short. Right. You know, they. They are, I think, God's.
>> Janessa polk: You're doing them a disfavor by setting low bars.
>> Rick Green: There's a remnant here that is rising if we'll give them the challenge to do so. Janessa Poe, God bless you. Thank you for coming on Appelo to show.
>> Janessa polk: Thank you so much, and I appreciate the interview. This has been a real pleasure. Thank you.
>> Rick Green: All right, folks, go to patriotacademy.com it's too late to go to any of the regionals this year. Do we have. Actually, Janessa's here. I can ask. Do we have any slots left for nationals?
>> Janessa polk: We are very, very close to full. We're about to cap it. So if you want to apply for nationals, needs to be today.
>> Rebecca Roberts: All Right.
>> Rick Green: Go to the website right now. Patriotacademy.com National Leadership Congress is the last week of July, July 26 through August 1, and if not, then next year, we start looking at next summer. We'll probably not have those dates up until November or so, but for nationals,
>> Janessa polk: it's always the last week of July,
>> Rick Green: first week of August for that one now, and you can do [email protected] check it out. Okay, let's jump into an interview I did just a couple of days ago with Chad Conley, David Barton, and Tim Barton about Lindsey Graham, of course, Chad. The loss of Lindsey Graham in the last 48 hours and a lot of political scrambling. But we want to first take a few minutes to just talk about the impact he had not only on South Carolina, your home state, but on the country.
>> Chad Conley: You know, no doubt about it. It's a huge hole for not just the state, but the nation and, and. And our friends in Israel, the Middle East. You know, I've spent a lot of time with Lindsay, and it's amazing what he did behind the scenes that nobody knew Rick, He. I think he's the unsung hero. The Abraham Accords. I mean, that guy, from humble beginnings, he was brought up in his house, which was above a liquor store. Very blue collar, rural South Carolina, little tiny town. To becoming a congressman who helped lead impeachment hearings, to becoming a US Senator and sitting with kings and sheikhs and prime ministers discussing the direction of geopolitics. It's an amazing thing. This is a huge hole for South Carolina and for the nation. And let's face it, for conservatives, this was gonna be the guy who was gonna be Judiciary chairman in the next Senate, in all likelihood. So big holes to fill, Allie. Just really big shoes to fill. Yeah.
>> Rick Green: And his impact on so many key issues, I mean, he's been right there at the forefront of so many different things over the last couple of decades. And of course, Chad, you saw the, you know, the whole South Carolina side of that as well. So what he represented for your state. But like you said, the stuff that he was doing behind the scenes to help President Trump and so many of the things in the Middle East. And, you know, look, there's been times I criticized Lindsey, just like there's been times I've criticized, you know, President Trump or maybe even you, Chad. I don't know. I criticize Tim more than I do David, but, you know, no, seriously, I mean, you know, we're honest brokers here, and so we Stand by principles and so sometimes we disagree on where those things could go. So all of that said, though, just a phenomenal, phenomenal career and impact. How does. How does First South Carolina look at filling that gap? And then what does it mean for the Senate? We've got the SAVE Act. Every vote Candace Right now, my understanding is he was in favor of the SAVE act and, And. And going forward with it without the. Without the filibuster. So what does that do? There's just so much happening so fast right now.
>> Chad Conley: There's so much to unpack in it. And Lindsey, I don't know if y' all saw President Trump's statement, and he was emotional. I mean, he was good friends. Lindsey's favorite line the last few years was after Trump put his cell phone out there when they run against each other for president. And then Lindsey did a really funny ad about it. They became friends, and Lindsey said, we found common ground. I like him and he Lexie him. And so we found that we had common ground together. And so they became fast friends. And I would say Lindsey became one of his most stalwart supporters in all things Trump. He was pushing us an America first agenda, a President Trump agenda. It leaves a big question mark in South Carolina. So the governor gets to appoint someone who becomes basically a placeholder until the next senator is elected. But let me read you this ramp. This is fast. So filing opens for the Senate seat. The statute. The statute is a 7, 1150. It opens the second Tuesday after the trigger, either a resignation or a death of a sitting, duly elected member. Filing opens July 21st. That's a week from Tuesday. Y' all closes the following week.
>> David Barton: Chad, hang on just a second. I don't know of any other state that would have people filing within two weeks of the death of an incumbent. That's got to be the fastest in the nation. I mean, when you say that, it just. It amazes me that they. You don't even hardly have time to bury. And look, look to see what he did before. You've already got people filing, which means the campaign is already going. That's crazy. So two weeks after the death. Wow.
>> Chad Conley: And the primary is August 11th, and the runoff is August 25th. So what had happened was, like, when Tim Scott replaced Jim Dement, I was chairman. Then I got like, an hour notice before Jim Dement's press conference. He called and said, hey, I'm resigning. There's no scandal. Whoa, whoa, whoa. What do you mean you're resigning? And so the governor appointed Tim Scott. I'm sure he worked with Jim Dement in that case, because Jim was resigning and then Tim went ahead and ran for the seat when that election, this election's happening fast. So either a placeholder doesn't want to run, but it could Hoppen that somebody becomes a placeholder who does want to run. And then there's a, there's a, there's a primary and people could run. Listen, Allie, I was on the phone by 6:30am this morning talking to my Patti Drew McKissick, the state party Cheri talking about the statute and how does the party handle this, but also the ripple effect that what you just mentioned, David, this is a big deal. And then Rick went into the questions of the SAVE Act. We've got the issue of the razor thin margins in the Senate and the House because some of the people who would run for this and would fit well and would be good for the issues that we care about. I'm not sure we can afford to lose them in the U.S. house. I think it would bring up another special election that would trigger another set of ripple effects.
>> Rick Green: Quick break. We'll be right back on that.
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>> Announcer: at afr.net now back to At the The Core on American Family Radio.
>> Rick Green: Welcome back At the with Walker Wildmon and Rick Green. I'm Rick Green America's Constitution coach We're jumping right back in with Chad Conley, David Barton and Tim Barton talking about the Lexie of Lindsey Graham.
>> Chad Conley: I don't know if you heard Trump. Trump said that one of the last conversations they had last night, maybe within the hour of when Lindsey passed, was about the SAVE Act. So it was on Lindsay's mind. That guy was on top of everything.
>> Tim Barton: Hey, Chad. So just to help bring in some people to this, who are some of the congressmen or women from South Carolina that you think, even though, as you mentioned, we wouldn't want to lose them in the House, but maybe that's someone that could be a good senator. Who are some of the people you see already in Congress or maybe even state Senate? Who are some of the names that you expect to see those. Those names be thrown in the hat for the seat?
>> Chad Conley: So we just had a very competitive governor's race, right? And Nancy Mace, who's a sitting congressman in CD1 congressional district one. I'm certain she'll run. Ralph Norman, who finished third and endorsed the eventual winner, Alan Wilson, over the lieutenant governor. And he was close. Ralph was really close. His name is being mentioned. Ralph and Nancy would leave the House. Now there's somebody running for Ralph's seat that's unopposed. My friend Wes Clymer. He'll be the congressman from the 5th district. There's a competitive race. There's a lady named Jenny Honeycutt, who's a friend of mine in Charleston, who's the Republican nominee running for Nancy Mace's seat. So Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman are two sitting congressmen, but there's already a race there. The third one I'm hearing a lot about is Russell Fry. Russell was the county party chairman in Horry county when I was state party chairman. Great guy, total conservative. And here's the other thing. Trump loves him. He is a Trump guy. With Trump, was looking for somebody to run against Tom Rice. Russell was. Russell Fry has been kind of the guy who stepped into the fray and has been a conservative stronghold for Horry county and for the seventh Congressional District. Then you got to think that the lieutenant governor, Pamela Evatt, who just lost the governor's race, she had Trump's endorsement. She had the governor's endorsement, had a ton of money and lost the governor's race. I would expect her name. There's four names right there. Now, if you go to the placeholder, I think you're probably looking. I know Trey Gowdy's name's being pushed around. Trey doesn't want to do it, but he Loved Lindsey. They were golf player. They part played golf all the time. So that's five names I can think of and there's some others that are being bandied about. I'm not sure how serious.
>> Tim Barton: Now, Chad on air, I will not ask you who your favorite is.
>> Chad Conley: Thank you.
>> Tim Barton: Knowing that Lindsay was someone who believed in the right to life of the unborn. You mentioned he was a friend of Israel. Things that sometime to the conservative movement, not all conservatives are champions for traditional values or always biblical values. Not asking you to go on the spot necessarily for this, but how many of the people that are going to throw their hat in the ring, how many of them are good on the issues? Now again, Rick, you already mentioned we might have had disagreements with Lindsay at times in specific areas. People might have said, look, this guy Lexie or a little more than we do. Right. Not, not to digress. But when it comes to some of the traditional values, Chad, how many of these people are the same kind of traditional conservative that Lindsay was or is, do you see a reason to be concerned with some of these names that maybe they're not great on the life issue, maybe they're not great on Israel? Should Christians pay attention to some of these names that might be running for the Senate seat going forward?
>> Chad Conley: Christians should be very concerned. And I'll throw another name in there to continue the mix and confusion. But there are people talking about Nikki Haley may step in and run. So that's five right off the top of my head without really spending a lot of time. Listen, the last pastor meeting we did with Lindsay was right before his the runoff, the primary in June. And we had 45 pastors, had a great array. I think we had 15 denominations in the room that day. And there was one pastor in particular. And I'll answer your question, getting at it this way, Tim. One pastor that guys don't like the guy. But Lindsey comes in, he talks about I'm for unborn babies and for taking out terrorists. And the guy's like, I love this guy. And so he was right on that stuff. And of course, conservative judges, the Middle East, Israel, being a staunch supporter of Israel and life. Lindsay was right on those things, Tim. Of those five, I'll just say that two would be fantastic for us and things we care about. There are others in that mix that maybe not be as staunch, especially Israel and especially life, but those give me Paul's for the judges issue too. Yes, definite concern.
>> David Barton: So we're just reporting here based on the record of those five, which are the two that you think best conform to basically a conservative biblical worldview.
>> Chad Conley: Well, there's another piece here, too, David. They got to be liked by Trump. Right. And so I'm going to lead with that because unless you check the trump box, and that's going to be Russell Frye and Ralph Norman, I think would be the two that Trump would think would be the conservative champions, the America first types. I think that there's a lot of angst about the issues for some of the others, but I believe both Russell and Ralph would be staunch and I think Trey would, too. I just don't think Trey Gowdy has any interest in it whatsoever. I just don't see it. It.
>> Tim Barton: And Chad, just to clarify, we're not asking you to have a crystal ball. We're not asking to predict the future because obviously this is so fresh. You know, this just happened 24 hours. Yeah, 24 hours ago, whatever that was. It's. This is really, really raw. But you're someone who has been on the ground in South Carolina for a lot of years. You mentioned helping run the chairman of the state gop. You know, all of these players you are, are either friends with or it's a very small, not even a 1 degree separation, but like, you know them maybe just got your, your hangout buddies. So you are someone that can give us a lot of insight.
>> David Barton: I'm going to jump in. Chad, you gave us dates on, on trigger dates for how this happened. Give me week dates. How? How? From the time Lindsay died. How many weeks is it till. You got it? How many weeks till the election now?
>> Chad Conley: So this is quick. So what'll Hoppen is Henry McMaster, the governor, will probably appoint a replacement in the next few days, but the statute says the second Tuesday after the trigger. So Lindsey's death was Stuart So a week from Tuesday, which is July 21, filing opens. That's the second Tuesday after the trigger event. And then the filing closes the next Tuesday, the 28th, filings closed. The primary is August 11th. That's a Tuesday. And the runoff is August 25th.
>> Rick Green: So we're.
>> Chad Conley: What, what's that, 40 days, Allie. 40. About 40 days. The whole thing. So, but Henry Mack will have a replacement. He'll have an appointed replacement who'll be sworn in as a US Senator. I would think in a matter of a week, let's say.
>> David Barton: So that the primary is like in five or six weeks, but then it'll go to the general. They won't have an actual person until after the general. Okay, got it. So we, we're going all the way to November before we know for sure
>> Chad Conley: whoever wins this primary is going to be on our ballot instead of Lindsey Graham's name. So the guy just lost to Lindsey. Mark Lynch. I'm sure he runs too. There's six names off the top of my head now. He's a constitutional conservative Christian, no question. I met with Mark as well, but Lindsey won that thing going away. But let's think about it. It's going to take some money, it's going to take some name ID to win this. This, this could be a really intense, very, very short primary that hits and hits hard for the state.
>> Tim Barton: Knowing South Carolina is a very red state, very strong red. With everything you do at Faith Wins, I think Rick, dad, all of us have had a chance to travel with you to do some speaking with Faith. Wind it in South Carolina is, is not, I don't think, one of the major target states you've had for Faith Wins for this fall. Does this, does this change anything? And I know like this is again, you've had 24, 48 hours only to process what's going on. Does this add more to your schedule with the fall for Faith Wins? Not that you've had any more time to give, but. But what, what impact does this have with all that you are already doing for Faith Wins?
>> Chad Conley: So I think the answer is that it's going to get a lot more tension. Let's face it. I think the Dems will see an opportunity here against the weaker opponent. But the person they're running is, is, you know, pro trans, pro LGBT plus plus plus plus pro, totally pro choice. Got a lot of problems. I've seen the early oppo file on Annie Andrews and she's not a friend. Anything the Bartons or the Greene or the Conleys Stand for believe in.
>> Tim Barton: So.
>> Chad Conley: But I do think they'll see an opportunity to throw a lot of money in here. The great thing is because we had an open governor's race, David, your dad and I talked about this. A senate race. We had some congressional races and we had a gambling consortium put a ton of money into the governor's race to try to win a seat. We spent a lot of time here from January to June. We proved our model, tim. We did 75 pastor meetings with over 1,000 pastors from 15 different denominations in those six months. So I now have pastors. You name the denomination and we did some tracking, we did some data tracking. We can prove our model. And when we talked about issues that related to Christian values, biblical values, we proved we can move the needle. In fact, our research showed that 10% of Christian voters, the most reliable voting block, 10% didn't rely on digital ads or television ads or mailers. You know what? They relied on their pastor. Now, you think about this. I'm taking this nationwide. I hadn't even told your dad. I haven't even put my research out because I'm putting into a form to share with you guys. And we need to talk about this. I think it is the difference maker in all these race and nationwide. And yes, I'm going to have you guys in my state as well. Already planned that because we're right beside Georgia. I think David's in Savannah. We're going to hop over into South Carolina. So yes, we're going to do that. But when you think about the margins, most of these races on and we're targeting, if Lord will and I can raise enough money, me, I'm going to have a dedicated pastor in 43 congressional seats or 43 congressional districts and seven U.S. senate places that we're going to focus on to run up The The Core If 10% of Christians rely on their pastor's advice and the margins in that, what, 3 or 4 or 5 or 6%, that's the difference. We can make the difference in every one of those races, Tim.
>> Tim Barton: And so for everybody listening, the reason we love guys like Chad Connolly, the reason we partner so much with them is because as Chad mentioned, there's a proven track record. And as you just heard, he said, if we have the money, here's the plan. And so I would encourage everybody right now, Faith Wins. Look up the organization Faith Wins. Go donate. Because just like we talk about what, what is happening with Patriot Academy and Wallbuilders, that the doors that God has opened, the things God is allowing us to do, the difference is being made. We talk about the undercurrent of revival happening all over. But one of the reasons that we partner with the people we partner with is because they are people that follow God that are working to make a difference in this nation. And honestly, with Faith Wins the last several months before the election, we don't schedule hardly anything for my dad. David Barton does not hardly speak for Wallbuilders. The last three months before an election, he speaks with Faith Wins. And he and Chad travel all over. Now, Rick and I will do some things with Chad anytime we have availability or if my dad can't make it. But for everybody listening, you need to go support Faith Wins where you can because we can show literal data over the last Several election cycles where it was because of Faith Wins being on the ground in some of those areas. That's why the Christian conservative won in, in many of those areas and races. Because what Chad is talking about is engaging pastors in that process. That is what caused so many of the Christians to turn out in those areas. Because when you engage the pastors, when pastors get on board, when pastors goes, man, I want to do something, I want to make a difference, you will see the, the needle shift on these races. And so what Chad is talking about, for everybody listening right now, whether you're listening via podcast or some radio station, because we're all over the place, we would encourage you go to Faith Wins and support this effort. This is seed sown into good soil when you are donating to Faith Win. So highly, highly encourage that. And, and Dad, I saw you waving a second ago. So let me yield the plug for why you. Everybody needs to donate to Faith Wins. And by the way, even the Bartons and the Greene we are people that we, we don't just encourage you to donate places. We are people that vote with our dollars. So we financially support Faith Wins as well. We ask you to do the same thing, dad, knowing we're low on time. Let me yield to you for another thought with Chad.
>> Chad Conley: Thanks, Tim. Appreciate you, brother.
>> David Barton: I'm going to promote Faith Wins in the same kind of way. And that Chad let's, let's he posts where these meetings are going to be. And so check that list. And if you live in that area or know pastors in that area, get them to the meetings. Because the Chad points that this is, this is huge stuff. Stuff.
>> David Barton: You know, way back with Barney years ago, we found that only 2.8% of pastors actually address the issues that are going on in the news. And so most pastors do not want to touch this at all. And when a pastor does, as chad pointed out, 10% of parishioners say, hey, we listen to our pastor on this. When you get that, you get a pastor talking, you, you raise turnout. Chad's got so many examples from six years ago turning to Virginia on its head in the right direction, all these things where pastors made the difference. So as Tim pointed out, this is a great place to sow seeds. But also check the list of where all these events are going to be. Chad, what we got 100 different pastors meetings between now and the end of the year or whatever. And, and check that list a lot. See where we're going to be and get pastors if you know if they're on your list, if you got friends there, if you got kids or in laws or anything else, get them to come to the those meetings.
>> Rick Green: Yeah, Chad, is is the best place to do [email protected] yeah, that's right. Faithwinds.org is the website you can actually get an event brought to your community. So check that [email protected] thanks so much for listening today. You've been listening to At the The Core
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>> JEff Chamblee: The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.
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