- [Announcer] Is there a dealto avoid another shutdown?
The latest from Capital Hill
on a plan that could passahead of the Friday deadline.
(footsteps crunching)Why some are wiling
to risk everything tomigrate to the United States.
And we'll break down someof the relationship myths
that could harm marriages.
All this and more tonight on Faith Nation.
(upbeat music)
- A tentative deal toavoid a second shutdown.
Welcome to Faith Nation.
I'm John Jessup.
- And I'm Jenna Browder.
The clock is ticking to get a deal
to the desk of the President
but lawmakers charged withhashing out an agreement
to avoid another shutdownsay they do have a plan.
- Well we now turn
to Capital Hill correspondentAbigail Robertson.
Abigail, break it down for us.
What's included in this deal?
- Now this bill has notofficially been released
but what we're hearing is thatit includes $1.375 billion
for some physical barrieron the southern border.
Now that is far less
than the $5 billion President Trump wants
and that is also lessthan the $1.6 billion
that Democrats were willing
to give the President in the fall.
Now we're also hearingthat it does not decrease
an amount of money that ICE can spend
on buying beds for the detention centers.
This was the big hangup over the weekend
that almost derailed this whole agreement.
Democrats were asking foran almost 20% decrease
in the amount of beds at detention centers
because they think that will decrease
the amount of people that ICE detains
but Republicans said no way,
that is absolute didnot want that to happen.
And Republicans, even thoughthis bill has not been out,
today they've come out pretty strongly
saying that they won that fight
and that that money will not be decreased
in the final product.
And so far we've seen leadership
and people who have seen the bill
on both sides of the aisle.
The majority are prettystrongly supportive
of what they see.
Neither side is really claiming
a huge victory in this agreement.
They say it was a give and take agreement.
But it seems like there's enough people
that are willing to support it
that it will pass the House and Senate
and make it to the President's desk.
- Abigail, tell us aboutthe group of negotiators
who have been working on this plan.
- Now this is a bipartisangroup made up of members
from the House and SenateAppropriations Committee.
There's 17 people on thisconference committee.
Some of them are from border districts
but these are negotiatorshere on Capital Hill.
They're appropriators, theydo a lot of deal making
with the other side of the aisle
to cut spending deals ona pretty regular basis.
And largely they've beenpretty widely praised
by their colleagues here on the Hill
for the work they've doneto come up with this product
even some would say against all odds
that they would come upwith any kind of compromise.
But a lot of lawmakers seem pretty pleased
with the work that theydid to work together
and come up with this negotiation.
Take a look at what SenatorJoe Manchin from West Virginia
had to say.
- I'm very proud of the committee
for the work they've done.
These are people who'vebeen around for a while
that understand theprocess of give and take
and they came up with the bestpossible solution, I think.
I think it's a start basically.
If you look in past two years
we spend about $1.6 billion
and that was always the question,
how much can we fiscallyspend in a period of time.
I believe in border security.
I think every Democratand Republican does.
They have different ways of coming at it
but this basically continues replacing
where it needs to be replaced.
- Now this was the group
that lawmakers really put their faith in
to come up with something
and avoid another government shutdown.
We will certainly see memberson both sides of the aisle
I imagine not vote for this bill
when it comes to the floorof the House and Senate
but it seems like itwill get enough support
from the majority oflawmakers to make it past.
- So you're saying lawmakersare pretty optimistic
up there on the Hill?
- Yes definitely, Senator Schumer
and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
today in their press conference,
they both seemed to think
that this is somethingthat will get passed
and hopefully President Trump will sign.
Now who knows whatPresident Trump will do.
In last December he changed his mind
after signaling to McConnell
that he would sign the billthat the Senate passed.
But they do seem pretty hopeful
that nobody wants to see a shutdown
and this is a solutionthat will prevent that.
Take a look what Majority LeaderMitch McConnell had to say.
- First of all I hope he signs the bill.
One of the things that happens around here
is you reach an agreement
and then the deal has toactually be put on paper.
And frequently there's a lotof elbowing back and forth
after the agreement is reached.
I told the President I thoughthe as well as all of us
ought to wait until we'veactually read the final deal.
- Now we will likely see thetext of the bill tomorrow
because procedurally theyhave to get things in motion
to get it passed throughthe House and Senate
to make sure that the Presidenteven has time to sign it
by that Friday at midnight deadline
to avoid another government shutdown.
So it's looking like we optimistic,
cautious optimism here on theHill that we will avoid that.
Back to you, John and Jenna.
- Abigail Robertson on CapitalHill, race to the clock.
Well in a White Housecabinet meeting today
President Trump gave his initial reaction
to the tentative committee deal.
- It's always nice tonegotiate a little bit
but it's, so you know, whatever you get.
But I would hope thatthere won't be a shutdown.
I am extremely unhappy
with what the Democrats have given us.
- For more now we turn
to White House correspondent Ben Kennedy.
Ben, the President is still holding firm
to the border measures he's been pushing
since the very beginning evenbefore that first shutdown.
- Yeah John, you're right,
President Trump said bottomline the wall will get built.
The new deal Abigailwas just talking about
does not give him the exactwall funding he demanded.
It would provide about$1.3 billion for fencing
and other barriers for 55 miles.
Now that's a fraction of the 200 miles
Trump has been insisting on.
He just took a trip to the Lone Star State
in what is considered to be
his first campaign rally for 2020.
- I am very, very thrilled to be here.
- [Ben] President Trump
and former DemocraticCongressman Beto O'Rourke--
- You did good, El Paso!
- [Ben] Held dueling ralliesin Texas Monday night.
It's in El Paso he continued
making his case for a border wall.
- You know where it made a big difference?
Right here in El Paso.
- [Ben] But O'Rourke ispushing back on that claim
citing an El Paso Times report
which finds the city hadthe third lowest crime rate
among more than 30 citieswith similar populations
and those stats came two yearsbefore the wall was built.
- El Paso has been the safest city
in the United States of America
not in spite of the fact thatwe're a city of immigrants
but because we are a city of immigrants.
- [Ben] Trump's longsaid no wall, no deal.
The Commander-in-Chief even put
declaring a nationalemergency on the table
to lock in the money
but hopes lawmakers can strike a deal.
Today back at the White House
he got his first glanceat their latest efforts
and was not pleased.
- I have to study it.
I'm not happy about it.
Its not doing the trick butI'm adding things to it.
And when you add whatever I have to add
it's all gonna happenwhere we're gonna build
a beautiful, big, strong wall.
- Now President Trumpsaid he doesn't think
we are going to see a shutdown.
He must say yes, as Abbywas mentioning earlier,
to any agreement by lawmakersfor it to go through.
His signature is required
ahead of the deadline on midnight Friday
to avoid yet againanother partial shutdown.
John, Jenna.
- All right, Ben Kennedy,White House correspondent.
Thank you, Ben.
Well to the debate over abortion.
Republican lawmakersin Ohio are once again
proposing a pro-life bill
outlawing abortion aftera heartbeat is detected
but unlike in years pastthe state now has a governor
who says he will signthe measure into law.
The Heartbeat Bill was twice vetoed
by former Ohio Governor John Kasich
who said it would end incostly legal battles for Ohio.
But after new Governor Mike Dewine
voiced his support for the measure,
two Republicans introducedthe bill back into the House
with 50 co-sponsors joining in,
that which sets a majorityfor the Ohio House.
- Well Focus on the Familyis a leading pro-life voice
in the debate over abortion
and they're getting ready to make
a bold statement in New York Times Square
involving jumbotrons and live ultrasounds.
- Focus on the Familypresident Jim Daly joins us now
with a big announcement.
Jim, good to see you.
Thanks for joining us.
- It's great to be with you.
- Jim, tell us about this bold move.
This is going to rufflea few feathers, I think.
- I think it will
but we want to doeverything in good taste.
I think really what's happenedin New York and in Virginia
has prompted a response.
I mean these politicians
that have overreached in our opinion
when it comes to reshapingthe abortion debate,
allowing particularly in Virginia
where they're promoting infanticide.
Once a baby is born if it'snot viable outside the womb
or if it's severely handicapped
they're going to letthat baby sit on a table
and then the mother and physician decide
whether or not to let that baby live.
That's not the country we live in
and that's not the lawof the land, actually.
So we want to raise this issue up
and we're announcing May 4 in Times Square
we're going to do an event
and we want everybody to comeand participate if you can.
Let's show what it means to be family,
what it means to be pro-life.
Come out to Times Square.
Part of it will have great speakers.
We're going to have music
but we're also goingto do a live ultrasound
of a third trimester baby.
And I'm telling you what,
with the 4D technology that we have
it looks like a one-year-old picture,
a baby of a one-year-old.
It's phenomenal and there is no way
a person's going to be ableto say that is not a child.
It is a child and wewant everybody to see it.
- Jim, why Times Square?
- Well that's the epicenterof everything, right?
I think if you talk toanybody in Manhattan
Times Square is where it all happens.
And so we're not shy about going there
and saying to GovernorCuomo and others let's look.
This isn't adversarial.
Let's just take a position.
Let's see what an ultrasound looks like.
I doubt that they have actually seen one.
And so to be able to dothat on the jumbo screen
to say here's a baby of athird trimester pregnancy.
Look at the definition.
These children areviable outside the womb.
These children are already fully human.
And for the world to see that
and to do it in such a way
that we can all peer into the womb
and see what that child looks like
developmentally and every other way,
what an awesome sight to see.
And then these politicians
will have to defend their position.
- Jim, the timing hereis pretty significant.
It seems the pro-life community
has an especially powerfulmegaphone right now.
- Well it does and I think again
it's because of that overreachin Virginia and New York.
Unfortunately there's sixor seven other states,
Colorado where I'm at is one of them too
that they've rewritten the legislation
or passed new bills to expand abortion
all on the basis that theSupreme Court has become
too conservative and itmight overturn Roe v. Wade.
Therefore we have tostrengthen our state laws
to allow abortion theterminating of a baby's life
right up until the birth canal.
I mean come on, everybody,this is not right.
It's immoral and I think only 13%
that of at least one poll that I saw,
only 13, 20% of citizens in the U.S.
believe that's appropriate.
So the people are on our side
when it comes to this restriction,
that abortion should nothappen in the third trimester
and we're ready to talk aboutit, be very upfront about it.
I'm not sure they are.
- Yeah Jim, you make a good point
that a lot of Americans,
they are very againstthis late-term abortion.
Republicans and Democratsdo not support it.
For that reason, will youdraw politics into this event?
- Well not intentionally.
I mean here's one of the debateswhen it comes to abortion.
We always talk about itbeing in the political sphere
but let's go back to Roe v. Wade in 1973.
This was a moral issue.
The courts made this decision
and that brought it intothe political sphere.
Before 1973, I think most people agreed
that abortion was immoral, it was wrong.
And they talk about not beingable to readdress that law.
Well lots of laws arelooked at more than once
and if the culture decidesthis is not appropriate
I think it's time for us to declare that.
And I would just say
to the Christian communityparticularly, this is not new.
There's nothing new under the sun.
This is ancient Rome once again
and Christians wereknown for saving babies
who were thrown out inthe garbage heaps to die.
That was their form of infanticide.
Some experts think that abortionwas also popular back then
and they used an herbalmedicine to induce labor early
so that the woman could abort her child.
This is right around the time of Jesus.
So this isn't anything new
but it was the Christianswho stood up and said no.
Everyone human is made in God's image
and we can't destroyinnocent human beings.
- [John] Well Jim--
- And I think we're at thatinflection point again.
- Jim, we're going to haveto leave it right there.
Thank you so much for joining us.
Jim Daly, President ofFocus on the Family.
- [Jim] Thank you.
- Looking for a betterlife in the United States.
Up next, the hard journey home
some Central Americanmigrants are willing to make
for the sake of a saferlife here in the states.
(upbeat music)
Well while the battleover our southern border
continues to play out here in Washington
some Central Americansliving in fear and poverty
are still desperate to escape.
- That's right, as JenniferWishon reports from Guatemala,
they're willing to riskthe hazardous journey
for a dream of living in America.
(footsteps crunching)
- [Jennifer] For many Central Americans
their journey to the U.S.begins on a path like this.
Tens of thousands leavethese bleak neighborhoods
with homes made of little more
than cardboard walls and dirt floors,
places where one of themost promising prospects
includes joining a violent gang.
Most everyone hoping toescape wants the same thing.
- A better future and for them to have
what I never had since my childhood.
- [Jennifer] Heidy GarciaBenitez left Hondurus
with her young daughter and toddler son.
(toddler sneezing)
Hondurus has one of theworld's highest murder rates.
The State Department cautions Americans
against traveling there.
Benitez's brother paid a coyote, or guide,
to take them through Guatemala and Mexico
to the U.S. border.
It was her first time leaving her country.
- He told me we were going to make a stop
here in Guatemala buthe just left me here.
He said he was going torun an errand downtown
and he never came back andhe didn't leave me any money.
- [Jennifer] It's thevictimizing of these migrants
seeking a better life
often discussed by PresidentTrump and other leaders.
- I never imagined this would happen.
I only had a bag with clothesfor myself and my children
and our documents, that's all.
- [Jennifer] She wasfortunate to end up here,
an immigration house in Guatemala City.
Juan Luis Carvajal Tejeda isa Catholic priest who runs it.
Each night as many as 30 people stay here.
It's a welcome refuge formigrants headed to the border
or back home after being deported.
- Some of them have alreadybeen robbed, abandoned.
They are in need.
It is the most basic humanneed to offer a safe place.
- This is a typical roomat the immigration house.
It has 10 beds.
Immigrants are allowed tostay here for about two weeks
and at this house the need is so great
they're hoping to add a third level.
Tejeda and his staff helped Olbina Suarez
get in touch with her sister
after the 23-year-old was caught
crossing the U.S. borderillegally and deported.
- The journey here was hard.
There was a stretch of desert
where we had no water, nothing to eat.
From there we got caught andthey took us to Immigration.
- [Jennifer] She hasaccess to a psychologist
at the immigration house.
Maria Reyes talked to migrantsabout their frustrations,
any traumas suffered on their journeys,
and tries to help get them
information or documents they need.
Given more than half ofGuatemala's population
lives in poverty
and it's children are amongthe world's most malnourished,
Reyes doesn't counsel against
trying to achieve a better life.
- We tell them andremind them of the risks.
Luckily they are alive
but will they be as fortunate this time?
We talk about those things,
the advantages and disadvantagesof making another attempt.
- [Jennifer] Reyes, Tejeda, andmany other Central Americans
compare this current migration to the U.S.
to that from Europe aroundthe birth of the nation.
They have a hard time understanding
why today's Americans
don't welcome Central American migrants
as Europeans were once embraced.
- Central America and Mexico have become
a cemetery for immigrants.
This is now a matter of life and death.
It is about guaranteeing life.
We are human beings.
We are not animals.
We are not dogs.
- [Jennifer] After her ordeal,
Suarez made a difficult decision.
- I don't plan to go backto the United States.
Now what I am going to do is work
and get ahead in life.
- [Jennifer] Benitez tells CBN News
she'll try to get a job in Guatemala
since she thinks it's safer than Honduras.
Then after making somemoney she'll try again
to get her family across the U.S. border.
- Thankfully God has not abandoned me.
He has not let go of my hand.
In the time I've been here in Guatemala
I have found good people whohave helped me with my children
and I thank God for this house.
- [Jennifer] No matterwhich path migrants choose,
Tejeda and his staff pray
they all eventually find their way.
- And Jennifer Wishonjoins us now for more.
Jennifer, knowing the immigrationdebate here in the U.S.,
what struck you most about Guatemala?
- Yeah, well first of all,
all of the people that I met in Guatemala
from the poorest of the poor
to those who you can tell arecertainly much better off,
they're all so lovely, so wonderful.
I mean I would go to some houses
and some of these peoplebarely had enough food
to feed their families
and by the time that Iwould leave after our visit
they insisted that Itake berries home with me
that they had gathered that morning.
So just incredibly lovely people.
- So Jennifer, forGuatemalans with relatives
in the United States whetherlegally or illegally,
how different, how much of a difference
do those ties make?
- Yeah, it's huge John.
You can look at a neighborhood if you will
and a lot of these houses, dirt floors,
cardboard with kind ofmud creating the walls,
that kind of thing.
And then you look at their neighbor
and they will have a cinder block house.
They will have linoleum on the floor
because they have a relative, a spouse,
usually a husband, a brother,
someone who is sendingthem money from the U.S.
So it's really remarkablehow much of a difference
that makes in someone's life.
- And I would imagine that's incentive
for people to want tocome across the border
to provide that supportfor their families.
- Absolutely, absolutely,and it's not at all strange
for a Guatemalan to wake up and realize
that one to a dozen oftheir neighbors have left
to try to get into the U.S.
I mean it's very normal.
They don't think anything about it.
It's just what you try to do to get ahead.
- [John] Right.
- Jennifer, I'm wondering
what the Guatemalans you talked to,
what they think about thewhole immigration debate
playing out here in the United States.
- Well they told me,
I had several ask mewhy don't you want us.
Why doesn't the U.S. want us?
Why is this a problem?
And they can't understand why this beacon,
this rich nation thatprovides so much opportunity
won't open our doors to them.
And so they don't understand the expenses,
that everyone in theU.S. has to be educated,
I mean all of the things thatwe debate in this country,
right, they don't understand that.
They just see opportunityon one side of a border
and despair on the other side.
And they just can't understandwhy we won't let them in.
So it is a disconnect
but again what they haveto turn to is very bleak
and I saw that firsthand.
I saw the extreme poverty.
I saw the malnutrition.
And I saw if you want to get ahead
you're gonna have to probably join a gang
especially if you're a young male
and it's just, it's areally sad situation.
- Jennifer, we appreciateyour solid reporting
and thank you for your time.
- Thank you.
Coming up, how some relationship myths
could actually end upharming your marriages.
(upbeat music)
Well every February 7 through 14
marks National Marriage Week.
Time to focus on how the institution
impacts culture and strengthens marriages.
- As Paul Strand explains,
experts say to buildrelationships that last
couples can't just buy intothe so-called marriage myths.
- Heading for the marriage altar
can certainly be romanticand all lovey-dovey
and you're thinking marriageis going to be a big plus
and have lots of benefits for you
but that kind of attitudecan actually harm
the chances of your marriagethriving and even surviving.
As the head of Marriage Savers,
Michael McManus has worked for decades
to make marital bonds strong nationwide.
That's also helped him learn about myths
that weaken those bonds.
For National Marriage Week,
this columnist wanted to sharethose to a larger audience.
First, myth one: Love is whatholds a marriage together.
McManus says no, it's a sacred pledge
that provides the glue.
- Commitment to thevows that are being said
by billions of people over 2000 years
that I will neither leaveyou nor forsake you.
- [Paul] And that's meant to be permanent
no matter the emotions of the moment.
Then there's the myth, love is a feeling.
- [Michael] It's adecision to give of oneself
to the other person
which is not a feeling, it's a decision.
It's an act of the will.
- [Paul] Many believe this one.
I can change my mate.
- We can't change anybody but ourselves.
But changed people change people.
- [Paul] A related one: Idon't need to change much.
- [Michael] No majorreconstruction is needed.
We're all sinful people.
- [Paul] One toxic modern myth:
By shacking up you canroad-test the marriage.
This particularly matters
because only 400,000 coupleswere shacking up in 1960
but over 60 years that has surged,
reaching 8.5 million lastyear, most headed for failure.
- Only 1.5 million got married.
What happened to the other seven million?
They broke up.
And those who marry after living together
are more likely to divorce.
- [Paul] McManus encourageschurches and older couples
to do what they can to encourageyoung people to get married
and especially to armthem with useful reality
rather than useless myths.
- Churches that practice helping couples
build lifelong marriages
can virtually eliminatedivorce in their congregation.
That's pretty exciting.
- Looking at your marriagewith hard, cold realism
may not seem all that romantic
but it gives yourmarriage the best chances
of making it through the long haul.
Paul Strand, CBN News, reportingfrom Potomac, Maryland.
- [Jenna] And for morefrom Paul you can check out
the CBN News Daily Rundown podcast.
Today he tells host Caitlin Burke
tips to help make marriagessurvive and thrive.
And you can find The Daily Rundown
on your favorite podcastplatform or go to CBNNews.com
and click on the show tabto listen and subscribe.
- Are you going to tune in?
- I probably should.
What about you?
- There's a lot to learn.
Yep, well that's going to doit for tonight's Faith Nation.
- Have a great evening.
(upbeat music)
