- On Capitol Hill
are introducing new paidfamily leave legislation
and how one ministry is working
to help babies bornwith opioid addictions.
All this and more,tonight on Faith Nation.
(upbeat music)
The GOP call to repeal and replace,
revived by President Trump.
Welcome to Faith Nation, I'm John Jessup.
- And I'm Jenna Browder.
The President is calling on Republicans
to quash the Affordable Care Act.
This sudden move couldcost millions of people
to lose health insurance
if lawmakers don't haveanother plan in place.
- CBN White Housecorrespondent Ben Kennedy,
joins us with the details.
Ben, how is the President describing this?
- Well, John and Jenna,
President Trump callstriking down Obamacare
in the courts phase one.
He adds that a healthcare replacement plan
will be ready once the law is gone.
- Our message very simply,is it we're with you.
And the United States is goingto continue to stand with you
stand with your courageous husband
and stand with freedom-lovingpeople in Venezuela.
- [Ben] President Trumpmade a surprise turn
by reigniting the Obamacare debate.
- We're gonna be theparty of great health care
and the Democrats have let you down.
- [Ben] The first indication came Monday
when the Justice Department
agreed the Affordable CareAct is unconstitutional
and should be thrown out.
- Obamacare doesn't work.
It's too expensive
and you take a look ateverything with deductibles,
it's a disaster.
It's a disaster for our people,
we're not gonna allow it to go.
- I think what the Presidentis doing is actually wise,
which is focusing Republicans' attentions,
because if it does happen,
and Republicans aren'tready with anything,
that's when they're in trouble.
- Also in trouble could bethe nearly 13 million people
covered under Obamacare'sMedicaid expansion
and 52 million people withpre-existing conditions.
But the President says thismove does not mean Republicans
want to take away people's health care,
adding that the repeal and replace plan
would send grants to states
for them to run their ownhealth care insurance programs.
Trump's effort to repeal Obamacare
narrowly failed in thesenate back in 2017,
what needs to change topass this time around?
- I think people havea lot more information
and have spent a lot of time thinking
about what could havegone a lot better in 2017.
We have a plan that wouldlower health care costs
and improve people's choicesand make sure that we take care
of the most vulnerable among us,
people with pre-existing conditions.
- It sounds like someRepublicans aren't on board,
something Marie Fishpaw,of the Heritage Foundation,
hopes will change.
House Minority Leader KevinMcCarthy told President Trump
that his new healthcarepush makes no sense.
Do you agree?
- Well, I certainly think
that Republicans ran for a very long time
on addressing these problems
and I'd like to think thatthey'll be able to do so again.
- Protecting and strengthening healthcare
is why Democrats are here on day one.
- Democrats made healthcarea prime campaign issue
during the midterms andjust introduced a new bill
to strengthen the Affordable Care Act.
It would make more middleclass people eligible
for subsidies and even helplower-income recipients
already in the system.
And real quick, word off the top
that was Vice President MikePence talking about Venezuela.
Interim President, Juan Guaido,
his wife was here atthe White House today.
He was there with his support,
again, towards the Venezuelan people
but back to this story for just a bit,
the Democrat bill that they're proposing
would no doubt passed the House,
but not the Republican-controlled Senate.
As for the President's plan,
if it does in fact fail on Capitol Hill,
once again, it couldactually spell trouble
for Republicans in 2020.
Well, that's the latesthere at the White House,
Ben Kennedy, CBN News.
- Thanks, Ben.
The Trump administrationis calling on Russia
to end it support of Venezuelandictator Nicolas Maduro
and instead stand withInterim President Juan Guaido.
Today Vice President Pence,while meeting with Guaido's wife
said the arrival ofRussian troops in Venezuela
this past weekend wasquote, a provocation,
and that the Russian military
should leave Venezuela immediately
and it's also reaffirmedthe administration support
for Guaido's presidency.
- Our message very simplyis it we're with you.
And the United States
is going to continue to stand with you,
stand with your courageous husband
and stand with freedom-lovingpeople in Venezuela
until your (speaks in foreignlanguage) is restored.
- Guaido invoked the constitution
to assume the interimpresidency back in January,
a move affirmed by theVenezuelan legislature
saying Maduro's reelectionwas illegitimate.
- Well, what's being called a tense calm
is taking place alongthe Gaza Strip tonight
after days of rocket attacks
and airstrikes between Hamas and Israel.
No reports of casualties inthe latest round of fighting
although seven people wereinjured inside a house in Israel,
when a rocket from Gaza hit there.
Israel and Hamas have fought three wars
and had dozens of other fights
since the Islamic militant group
took control of Gaza back in 2007.
- Well, for more on thesituation in Israel,
as well as the recentrise in anti-Semitism
being seen here in theAmerican political system,
earlier today we sat down
with New York Times bestsellingauthor Joel Rosenberg.
- And living in Israel,we asked him what he makes
of the recent escalationwith Hamas, take a look.
- It's just a consistent sadness.
It really is the tragedy
of Israel having withdrawnfrom Gaza in 2005,
pulled all the settlersout, all the army out,
and said, here it is, there's Gaza,
you've asked for it, it's yours.
You've got beautiful beach-front property,
you've got massive amounts of natural gas
right off the coast.
The people of Gaza could be rich
and they've got this beautiful,they could have tourism,
it's a beautiful piece of land.
But they've let themselvesbecome controlled
by a terrorist organization, Hamas,
which is fired more than 15,000rockets and missiles at us
over the last number of years
and in more than 100 in the last few days.
So, it ultimatelydoesn't harm us too much.
Occasionally, you have some real damage,
but we've got rocketsystems to shoot them down.
But who's suffering most?
It's the Palestinians whoare under this slavery,
this tyranny of Hamas, andthey need to be liberated.
- Joe, President Trump endeddecades of foreign policy
by officially recognizingthe Golan Heights
as Israeli territory.
Can you talk a little bitabout the significance of that?
- Yeah, about time.
But good for him,
the President has donethe exact right thing.
Look, 52 years ago, in 1967,
the Syrians tried to annihilatethe Jewish people in Israel,
coming through the Golan Heights.
and Israel was able to push them back
and capture those Heights.
The Syrians tried again in 1973,
again, a war of annihilation
but those Heights gave us enough time
to bog down the Syrian tanks
and armored forces toget reserves up there.
And again, narrowly, wedefeated the Syrians in 1973.
There is no reason why a country
that's been engaged in genocideagainst its own people,
Syria, with the help of Iran,
which is threatening genocideagainst Israel, right,
wipe Israel off the map,
why would we give landback to these two regimes?
And so,
Israel said in 1981, I believe it was,
that this is ours and it's critical.
- Strategic.- Strategically critical
for our security.
We can't ever give it back.
You would think that Israel'sbest friend in the world,
United States, might haverecognized that need sooner
but I wasn't never aTrumper in the campaign
until the Thursday before the election,
and I told President Trump this.
But the reason I shifted
was I hoped that he would keephis conservative promises.
And my goodness, he has keptmore promises on pro-life issue
on pro-Israel than I never imagined.
And this is yet another,
and he deserves an enormousamount of credit for doing it.
- Joe, on the heels ofAPEC, both President Trump,
Democrats, Republicans,
everybody is talking about anti-Semitism.
How much of a problem is this?
- Well, it's particularly a problem
when you see numbersspiking around the country
and on campuses and so forth.
But it's worse of a problem
when the leadership of aparticular political party
doesn't have the moralclarity to crush it, right?
I commend Speaker Pelosiand Minority Leader Schumer
for having strong wordsagainst anti-Semitism.
But they couldn't condemnby name Congresswoman Omar
for her horrific remarks.
They wouldn't call her out,
they didn't stripper of theForeign Affairs Committee seat.
And so you're really in asense giving a pass to it.
That it means it's gonna grow.
- A quick follow up to that,
because we're seeing President Trump
and some Republicans really trying to use
the controversy there as awedge to court Jewish voters
to come to the Republican Party.
Now, it might not move the dial
so much here in the United States
but I wonder how Jews inIsrael view all of this.
- Well, the President asked me,
when I was in the OvalOffice a few weeks ago,
how is the Jerusalemdecision being received?
I said, You're the king of Israel.
I mean, right now,
Israelis overwhelminglylove President Trump.
They didn't know what they were gonna get
and now they're overjoyed.
I think the question is herein the United States actually.
Look, I'm Jewish, I'm from a Jewish family
that was Democrats going way back.
In the '80s, I voted forGore, I voted for Dukakis,
I know, but I moved,
I began to think my values asan evangelical Jewish person,
do not fit with themodern Democratic Party.
And you're beginning tosee Democrats wonder,
most Democrats are, I'm sorry,most Jews are Democrats, 70%,
not because of the Israelissue, that had been bipartisan,
and I hope it remains,
they're Democratsbecause they're liberals.
They're pro-abortion,the pro gay marriage,
and some of them arepro-socials, not all of them,
but that other than that,
they thought they were safeon the Israel-Jewish side,
but now if the Democratic Partycan't slam down and say no,
we will not tolerateunder any circumstances,
anti-Semitism in our own party,
you are gonna have someDemocrats begin to say,
well, I'm not a big fan of Trump,
but maybe the Democratsare not where I should be.
And Howard Schultz mightbe the first to go, right?
He's already moved out of the party
into an independent status.
It's a fairly famous Jewish-Americanwho had been Democrat
and liberal for a long time,
but is not comfortable withthat party where it is now.
- Another question for you.
Many political observerspoint to the similarities
between President Trumpand Benjamin Netanyahu,
Prime Minister of Israel,both have bold agendas,
both are fighting against anardent and loud opposition
and both face criminal, not criminal,
but corruption charges and investigations.
Why do these two menseem to share such a bond
and have an affinity for one another?
- Well, that's a lot ofquestions are rolled into one.
They have an affinitybecause President Trump
actually has a deep love forIsrael and the Jewish people.
And there were a lot ofpeople during the campaign
and in Charlottesville wherethey said the President
was a closet anti-Semite.
It's absolutely ridiculous.
And the man's daughterIvanka, whom he adores,
converted to Orthodox Judaism.
The President clearly adoreshis son-in-law, Jared,
he's got Orthodox Jewish grandkids.
The man is not an anti-Semite,
he loves Israel and the Jewish people
and any Prime Minister of Israel,
I think he will get along very well with.
He's known Bibi Netanyahufor many years, decades.
So it's not surprising theyhave a similar worldview
in many areas.
I will say that as we comeup on the April 9 elections,
I will get home to Israelfrom this book tour,
from the Persian Gamble on April 9.
And I've gotta decide who to vote for.
I worked for BenjaminNetanyahu but I got an issue.
He's got three criminal indictments
on three entirelydifferent corruption cases.
It's not three indictments on one case,
it's three different cases.
His wife is also underindictment for a different case.
Now, even if you give himthe presumption of innocence,
which we should,
it's gonna take a lot of time
to work your way throughexonerating yourself.
And the question is,
when you are facingexistential threats from Iran,
and from Hezbollah, and fromSyria, and Russians and Hamas,
is it the right time tobe the Prime Minister
when you've been it for so long?
That's a big issue.
And there are some otherissues but certainly Netanyahu
is facing the biggestpolitical fight of his life.
- Well, Joel, thank youso much for joining us.
- Absolutely, it's greatto be with you guys.
- Come back.- Thank you, I appreciate it.
- Thanks, Joel.- Yeah, thanks.
- Well, new parents could be getting
some long-promised relief.
Today, Republican lawmakersunveiled a new plan
for paid family leave.
Capitol Hill correspondentAbigail Robertson
has more on what's includedin the new proposal, Abigail.
- Thanks Jenna.
This proposal is designedto allow new moms and dads
to draw from futureSocial Security benefits
while caring for a new baby.
- This was an issue that fiveyears ago was not discussed.
- [Abigail] Now, Republicanswant to make good
on helping growing families.
- We are the only, theonly industrialized country
that does not offerguaranteed paid family leave.
- [Abigail] The new plan drawson existing retirement funds
without creating a new government benefit.
- We have a lot of kids in Utah.
People are having babies in Utah.
- [Abigail] Utah's MittRomney is a co-sponsor.
- So it's something that doesn'tadd to the national debt.
We're not borrowing more money.
It also doesn't raise taxes.
- [Abigail] The proposal gives new parents
up to three months ofsocial security benefits,
which they would pay backby delaying retirement
for about six months per child.
- They can also pay back at a future time.
- [Abigail] Two parent households
can transfer those benefitsbetween mom and dad.
- The majority of homes withtwo parents both are working.
- [Abigail] It's an issueclose to the President
and his daughter.
- Paid leave is just good policy.
- [Abigail] Ivanka Trump'spush for paid family leave
is a long-held priority.
- I'm also proud to be the first president
to include in my budget a plan
for nationwide paid family leave
so that every new parent has the chance
to bond with their newborn child.
(all clapping)- And her dad made it
one of his State of the Union highlights.
- I stood up and shouted yes
at President Trump'sState of the Union address
when he advocated for paid parental leave.
- [Abigail] Missouri Republican Ann Wagner
is working with HouseDemocrats on the bill.
- I see this as a bipartisan option.
- Now, there are threerepublican bills in Congress
geared towards paid family leave,
and at least one otherbill from Democrats.
But there's hope here on the Hill
that between these dueling bills,
lawmakers will finally find a compromise
to bring these families relief.
- All right, Abigail Robertsonfor us on Capitol Hill.
Thanks, Abigail.
- Thank you.
- [John] Coming up,
a look at new White House executive order
designed to protectAmerica's electrical grid.
- Well, the new executiveorder signed by President Trump
aims to protect America's electrical grid
against electromagnetic pulses.
- The White House says theorder is the first ever
to quote, establish a comprehensive policy
to improve resilience to EMPs.
For more, now we turn to the newest member
of our CBN News team,
National SecurityCorrespondent, Eric Philips.
Eric, not everyone isaware of the term EMPs.
What does that mean?
- Well, we don't want toget too scientific, right?
- Sure.- Too much into science.
But in short, EMP standsfor Electromagnetic Pulse.
Now, that really is just an intense burst
of electromagnetic radiation.
There are two ways thatthis can be caused.
One is through some typeof natural occurrence,
maybe a natural disasteror something like that.
But the second andreally more sinister way,
the one that has everyone concerned
and why the President signedthat executive order yesterday,
has to do with nuclear weapons
being detonated at high altitudes.
When that happens,
it can cause what we'reterming as an EMP attack.
And, that's the concernthat the White House has
and why they signed that executive order.
- Eric, what kind of dangercan they really cause?
Obviously, you've kind oflaid that out a little bit,
but explain a little bit more.
- Well, let's talk about firstof all, what it will not do.
This EMP attack, thisElectromagnetic Pulse attack,
will not kill people like instantly,
it's not like it happens andall of a sudden people die,
but what it will do is itwill send a burst of energy
that will attack everysingle electric circuit,
electric grid in our countryso we're talking about things
like computers failing, bankaccounts being inaccessible,
transportation systems cut off,
cities going completely black
because of no electricity whatsoever.
Think about fuel pumps, theinability to operate fuel pumps,
all those types of thingswould be instantly impacted
if in fact, this EMP attack occurs,
at least that's according to some experts.
But I want to add a caveat here.
And that is that some people are split,
some experts are split onexactly what would happen
if this EMP attack were to happen.
Some say that this is just,
like some sort of a conspiracy theory
that you would find in abad science fiction movie.
But others say that if anEMP attack actually happened,
it could kill up to 90%of the U.S. population.
Well, while the White Houseis not taking any chances,
as you can imagine.- Real quickly,
what does this executive order do then?
- So, it definitely is being touted
as the first ever comprehensive measure
to try to address this issue.
And so it does a few things.
One, it instructs federal agencies
to look at where theseEMP threats could be,
and to determine ways toguard against those threats.
And then two, the ideais to reduce uncertainty
and to mitigate orlessen potential impact.
So you've got agencies
like the White House SecurityCouncil, Homeland Security,
as well as the State Department
partnering with the private sector
to try to really accomplish this.
And the whole goal is to havesome sort of plan in place
to address this EMP threatwithin the next year.
- Eric Philips, we're happyto have you on the team.
- Glad to be here.- Thanks, Eric.
How one ministry is helpingmoms and their babies
recovering from opioidaddiction, when we come back.
(bright music)
Welcome back.
Purdue Pharma, the maker of Oxycontin
will pay the state ofOklahoma $270 million
to settle a lawsuit over its alleged role
in the nation's opioid crisis.
Much of the money will go
to fund a national opioid addiction center
at Oklahoma State University,
which will study addiction and treatment.
The company still faces some1,600 lawsuits from 35 states
and hundreds of municipalities.
The suits allege
Purdue aggressivelymarketed the painkiller,
contributing to a national crisis
of opiod addiction and overdose.
- Well, in the U.S., every half hour
a baby is born already addicted to drugs
because their mother is hooked on opioids.
- Lorie Johnson brings usthe story of one ministry
working to help babiesborn into addiction.
- [Lorie] Each day hospital workers
deal with babies born addicted to opioids.
- They often are very, very, um,
inconsolable, is probablythe best way to describe it.
- [Lorie] It can take around two weeks
to wean these tiny victims off the drug.
then hospitals discharge the babies
even though they stillfeel the after effects.
- Most of the time thatbabies still go home with mom.
- Provided she promises to stay clean.
A new mom who's withdrawingtaking care of a difficult baby
who's also withdrawing, toooften breaks under the pressure
and falls into a dangerous relapse.
- I believe unless thepeople of faith stand up,
the opioid crisis is gonnacontinue to overtake us.
- [Lorie] That's why Christiancounselor Dawn Hennessy
started Angel Arms, a ministryhelping both moms and babies
recovering from addiction.
- I believe, honestly, thatGod has called the people,
his kingdom people, tosave the lost, the broken,
the orphans, the widows.
- [Lorie] Here at Angel Arms,
these volunteer snugglersfocus on the little victims.
- We love them.
We do pray for them.
And sometimes they justneed to be held really tight
when they're
shaky, belly aches, coughing,
spitting up a lot.
- [Lorie] Thanks to medicaltraining and help from above,
they can help with the extreme agitation
suffered by the babies.
- Well, today while his stomachwas giving him a hard time,
I was just whispering thename of Jesus in his ear.
And yeah, I do pray overhim while I'm holding him
(sniffles) but the nameof Jesus is powerful.
- [Lorie] Snugglers also give mom a break
so other volunteers can focus on her.
- There's a lot of hope,
there's a lot of people I've worked with
that have come out into recovery now.
And there's a lot of childrenthat we've been able to help.
- [Lorie] Kathy Shively'saddiction began as many do,
trying to ease the pain.
- I have three dental implants.
So the pain from the dental implants
caused me to be prescribedlots of pain medication.
So opiates became an addiction.
- [Lorie] She brings little Connor here
because these snugglers soothhim in a way no one else can.
- It's overwhelming forfamily to watch an NAS baby
because there are timeswhen he's just so fuzzy
and there's nothing that they could do.
I've had to leave jobs and come home.
- [Lorie] In addition to child care,
Angel Arms, provides free baby supplies,
helps moms find housing
and pursues anything thatwill promote stability.
- And I really felt trapped.
And I think that the heroin addiction,
that's a good description of it,
you just feel trappedand you can't get out.
Until you have somebody comealong your side to help you.
- [Lorie] In order for her child
to receive care at Angel arms,
mom must get regularChristian counseling here.
- What I tell my staff,
is you need to see themthrough the eyes of Jesus
as broken people that need love.
So we have actually experienced
whole families coming to know Jesus
just because of a little baby.
- When I come here, itbrings me encouragement.
If I need to cry, they hear me cry.
If I need to know what the next step is,
they guide me in the next step.
- [Lorie] Angel Arms never charges a fee
because outside donorshelp fund the ministry.
- We just rely on what God gives us
and so far it's worked (chuckles).
- [Lorie] And as itgrows, so does the need.
- We have police officers calling us,
we have drug court here in Pennsylvania,
so we have judges calling us,attorneys, social workers.
We had people from West Virginia,Ohio, Maryland calling us.
- [Lorie] Fortunately,
other faith groups are calling as well.
- I do tell churchesbefore we work with them,
are you ready for the least of these
to come into your congregation
and are you ready to putyour arms around them
and love them?
- And Hennessy plans to expand
because she knows help is needed
beyond regular working hours.
This large home was donated to Angel Arms.
Once it's renovated, it'll beused as a residential program
where people can stayovernight for weeks at a time.
They're praying God willprovide the resources
for the big renovation.
So while the opioid epidemic rages on,
ministries like Angel Arms
work to break the generationalcurse of addiction.
Lorie Johnson, CBN News.
- You know, the opioid crisis is so huge
it's gonna take a societal effort.
So it's great to see thechurch and ministry stepping up
doing their part.- Really stepping up.
Yeah, amazing story.- Yeah.
Well, that's gonna do itfor tonight's Faith Nation.
- Have a great evening.(bright music)
