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Aug. 4, 2024 - The Charlie Kirk Show
49:57
The Ten Commandments As The Bedrock of the West

Can you recite the Ten Commandments from memory? You should — because almost nothing is more important. In a speech at LEAD Wisconsin, Charlie gives a history lesson on the Ten Commandments, their role in the Bible, and how they serve as the foundation of all Western civilization.Support the show: http://www.charliekirk.com/supportSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Hey everybody, happy Sunday.
Can you name the Ten Commandments from memory?
What do the Ten Commandments mean?
It is the bedrock of Western society, the rules that should keep us free.
Most Americans don't know them, let alone know the significance of them.
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I want to talk about the Ten Commandments because I believe that, as a nation, we were once founded on these core ideas, these core beliefs, and we've deviated away from that.
Every civilization has a structure of which it's built upon, okay?
It has a form and has core ideas.
One of the great lies of what's happening in America right now Is that the people that have taken over this country, mostly Marxists and secularists, people that don't believe in God, they say that, well, we're just gonna let you to determine your own belief system, and live and let live, and we're not gonna tell you what is right or wrong.
They don't even believe that.
They're creating their own constellation of modern Ten Commandments.
So, we're gonna go through the Ten Commandments.
I'm gonna quiz you to see if you guys actually know all ten of them.
Things that are not always mentioned about the Ten Commandments.
And then we're going to kind of play around and try to, we don't have to get to ten, but what are the new Ten Commandments that we're living under?
Because there are things that are considered to be thou shalt nots within society today.
So, context of the Ten Commandments.
Exodus 20.
Moses and God's chosen people, the most unimpressive group of people ever created.
They were in Egypt.
They were slaves, constantly complaining.
God delivers them from Egypt.
They're in the desert.
Moses goes up to Mount Sinai and gets downloaded a moral app.
And Moses comes down from the mountain to deliver the news.
And what are God's chosen people doing?
They're having like a rave party, worshiping a golden calf.
And again, it's one of my favorite scriptures ever.
I think it's later in Exodus 20, Exodus 21.
He comes down from the mountain.
He says, Oh, what is this calf all about?
What does Aaron say?
Like, I don't know.
It's like we just threw the gold in the fire and out came a calf.
Like, yeah, one of the worst excuses ever in the history of humanity.
I hate when that happens and you throw gold in the fire and all of a sudden a golden calf emerges.
So, understand this, which is that the Ten Commandments, it's really more than ten, built all of Western civilization.
And it's more than that.
It's the Word of God and Bible-believing church-attending Christians that built the civilization.
But at least the Ten Commandments used to be displayed in all of our schools.
All of our courtrooms.
Back a hundred years ago, a majority of Americans could tell you the Ten Commandments from memory and what it would mean.
What percentage of Americans do you think could name two or three?
One percent?
I think that's probably... maybe.
You know, I do the test at churches, at churches, and not even all church attenders can... they can get to like six or seven, which is horrifying.
We'll get to questions in a second, okay?
So, but going even deeper and beyond that, the...
The Ten Commandments are not about trying to make life less enjoyable for us.
It's the opposite.
They're actually rules to set us free.
Set us free from our sinful and depraved and broken nature.
And so, the beauty of the Ten Commandments is that it starts with our relationship with God, and then there's a Bridge Commandment, which of course involves your parents.
We're going to talk extensively about that.
And then our relationship with our fellow man.
So, who wants to... Here's a real good pop quiz for you homeschoolers out there.
Who's homeschooled, by the way?
Yeah, okay, well there you go.
Alright, so then you should know this because I hold you to a higher standard.
By the way, homeschooling will save America, okay?
Homeschooling will save America.
What is... So, in Hebrew, it's actually the ten statements.
What is the first thing it says in Exodus 20 as the first statement?
Who wants to tell me?
Anybody?
Yes.
No, that's not right.
That's what's before that.
Anybody?
Yes?
There you go.
What's your name?
Payton?
Yeah, give it up.
That's very good.
I will repeat that.
That's very good.
Most churches, when I ask that question, can't get it.
It is very important.
Which is, remember, I am the Lord your God who delivered you out of the house of bondage of Egypt.
Before any of the Ten Commandments, It's a reminder, I, God, am giving you these.
This is not Moses' commandments.
They come from a divine source.
What is the importance of this?
The Ten Commandments are not suggestions for life.
They lose all zest and spice and applicability if you do not believe that they come from an eternal or a divine source.
Secondly, I am the Lord your God who delivered you out of the house of bondage of Egypt.
Our God is a God who loves liberty and hates totalitarianism and slavery.
He is framing it as a pro-liberty freedom statement.
I delivered you from slavery, now if you want to live free, here is what you must do.
Now, if you want to go back to slavery, and go back to being in an unfree state, start violating these things.
And by the way, we see that unfold all throughout the Old Testament.
We see it in human nature.
You go away from these ten things, you'll go back to the House of Bonded of Egypt.
And understand that it's not just that they were slaves, that Pharaoh in the book of Exodus, my favorite book of the Bible besides the book of John, by the way, is best compared to Hitler.
He literally said, kill all the firstborn sons.
Mass genocidal maniac.
And God delivered his people from that, because that is not his heart or his wish for his people.
That also applies to today's news cycle and today's time.
God does not want us to live in an unfree country.
His heart is for liberty.
Remember, where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
Okay.
Then, my friend over here, what's your name?
Johnny, what is technically... So most, in the Jewish tradition, they say the first commandment is actually, I am the Lord your God, who delivered you out of the house of bondage of Egypt.
But the... Anybody Catholic here?
Any Catholics?
Okay, we'll get into the fun.
I love Catholics, by the way.
As an evangelical Christian, I have a heart for Catholics.
I mean that.
But do you know that Protestants and Catholics have different Ten Commandments?
Anyone know that?
Yeah, that's right.
Not many people know that.
I actually discovered that by mistake, and I'll tell you why.
They're the same list, but they condensed them, and I'll tell you which one.
So what is then now the first commandment?
Note, thou shalt have no other gods before me.
This is very, very important.
When I say this to many audiences, they think this is the least applicable to today's time.
When in reality, it's the most applicable to today's time.
Whether it could be the God of social media, the God of self, the God of pleasure, the God of environmentalism.
That nothing should be higher than God in your life.
Now, that's a very, very difficult thing for us.
And that's why it is the first commandment.
You don't get the first commandment right, none of the other nine actually matter.
Now, I'd ask you what the second commandment is in Catholicism, which is different than... What is... Who wants to say the second commandment?
Yes.
Correct.
Yeah, that's right.
No idols, essentially.
So in Catholicism, they put number one and two together, and then they go to the next one.
And so, no craving it.
That's no idols?
No, you might say, oh, that one doesn't matter, that one's not... In America, we just had an entire month, Pride Month, Where more people would observe and worship the rainbow flag than the cross of Jesus.
A blatant and direct violation of the Second... I was gonna say Second Amendment, but no.
Second Commandment.
That too, but I love the Second Amendment.
We're not talking about that today, okay?
Who wants to say the Third Commandment?
Yes.
That's right.
Now the full... Who wants to get super extra bonus points?
What does it actually say?
Well, that's true.
Remember the Sabbath, but you said it was six days.
For six days you shall work, and the seventh day you shall rest.
Here's a fun trivia question.
Where do animals come up in the Ten Commandments?
Anybody?
Yes.
Yes, on the Sabbath, that's right.
Your animal gets a Sabbath.
Well, that's actually a later law, but you're right.
The animal does get rest, and also you shouldn't covet your neighbor's donkey or, you know.
So that's right.
We'll get to coveting, which is important.
That's later.
But why is this important?
So, I always get into these debates on these campuses of these animal rights activists.
That the Bible loves animals.
Does not prioritize animals and human beings on the same moral plane.
But God loves animals so much that even animals get a Sabbath.
That your animal gets to rest on the seventh day as well.
So I am a very, very committed Sabbath observer.
I'm actually writing a book on the Sabbath.
Who could tell me the Hebrew word for Sabbath?
It is... Shabbat.
What does it mean?
Stop.
Literally to stop.
It means to cease all activity.
And it is the longest standing celebration and it is the longest standing ordination of what?
What are we actually doing on the Sabbath?
Yes.
That's right.
It is every day, in Hebrew it is called the Kaddush in Judaism, which they will say every Friday night, they will say, Lord, you created the heavens and the earth.
If we as Christians don't honor the Sabbath, which I believe, by the way, is one of the most violated and disregarded, to our own detriment, commandments from the Lord, that every time we do this, we are saying, God, you created all of this.
I believe that honoring the Sabbath makes it easier To have no other gods before him.
That if you honor the Sabbath, I think the Sabbath is the commandment that unlocks all the other commandments.
That if you honor the Sabbath, then every single one of the commandments becomes easier and becomes more likely to actually occur and happen.
And, again, I could do a whole speech on the Sabbath.
Here's what I do, and I encourage you guys to do it.
The sooner you embrace a legit Sabbath in your life, the happier you will be, the more joyful you'll be, and the closer to God you'll be.
On Friday night, I turn off my phone.
On Sunday morning, I turn my phone off.
It's 36 hours.
It's only family, reading, and non-work activities.
And if I'm a pretty busy guy, as you know, three podcasts a day, national radio show, God has been really good to us, Turning Point USA, Turning Point Action.
If I'm able to shut off for 36 hours, you're able to shut off for 36 hours.
The sooner that you are able to do that, your life will be better.
And I can tell by the golf applause, you're like, well, I don't understand.
So, here's the thing.
Do you believe the Ten Commandments are from God?
If you believe, then he's commanding you to rest for a day.
As soon as you believe that it's from God, you'll take all the commandments differently.
If you think it's from a motivational speaker, then you'll think, oh, it's a nice suggestion.
Maybe I'll incorporate that once in a while.
When I turn off my phone and I rest, I decide to do it on, I believe the seventh day is Saturday.
I'm not a seventh-day Adventist.
I'm not.
But if you think it's Sunday, it's actually not my contention.
I think, here's my test.
For those of you that grow up in Christian homes, almost all of you, We wouldn't be outside.
We wouldn't be outside.
Sunday is the Sabbath or that's fine like totally fine right no yes okay on
the day that your family says it's the Sabbath can you tell me that if I walked
in on the Sabbath or walked in on a different day would I be able to tell
the difference raise your hands if I'd be able to tell the difference okay what
would be different tell me yes you wouldn't be outside you live on a farm
or hobby phone Okay.
You're allowed to play on the Sabbath, to be clear.
You're just not allowed to work.
Okay?
It's not like thou shalt not have fun.
Okay?
Yes.
What would be different?
Tell me.
I'm curious.
If I come in.
And yes?
The other reason we would see me going to the bank, the grocery store,
the library, not a perfect example.
That's right.
No commerce.
No work will be done.
Yes.
That's a great answer.
That there would be no disparate parts.
Anybody else?
Yes.
Quieter, more resting.
So if you cannot, and again this is a good way to kind of challenge your parents a little bit, if I walked into your home and I could not tell the difference, then you're not honoring the Sabbath.
You are not.
In our home, it's a total difference, right? No work, no phone, I'm unreachable.
Okay, so I could do an entire hour-long monologue on the Sabbath, but I think we did that sufficiently.
What is the fourth commandment? Yes?
You skipped the third commandment.
I thought that Sabbath... the third is that... well, we might be rearranging the order, but yes.
The... you shall not take an ayment.
Yes, that's... yeah, I get three or four of them.
The order, I sometimes get confused.
You're right.
So this is very important.
That you shall not take the Lord's name in vain.
Thank you for that correction.
Actually, in Hebrew, it says you shall not carry the name's Lord in vain.
Now, again, not everybody shares this view.
Number one, you should never ever say, oh my, you should never say that, okay?
I believe that.
Is that the entirety of what that commandment is telling us?
What is the entirety of that?
Yes, yes ma'am.
Not blaspheming, you're right.
That's correct.
Who has not answered?
Yes.
That's very smart.
Yes.
So, thou shalt not carry the Lord's name in vain.
If you do evil in the name of God, that is a violation of that commandment.
So, think about it.
Think about giving religion a really bad name, or Christianity a bad name.
Where you walk around and you, let's say that you are a fornicator or you're doing something and you also say you are a Christian, you are carrying the name of God towards evil purposes.
And we could all think of examples of what that actually is.
And that means those of us that call ourselves Christians, that we must really believe it.
And that we should never do evil in the name of God.
Okay?
Next one.
Three, four, I think we're on five now?
Yes?
Are we on five?
Honor thy father and thy mother.
Honor thy father and thy mother, which is the first commandment of the Promise.
The most long-livered, land-loving guy.
Honor thy father and thy mother which is the first commandment of the promise.
You're right, but what is the full commandment? What does it say? Yes.
That you can live long in the Lord and the land of the Lord be God.
What's your name?
Ben.
Ben, that's very good. Give it up for Ben. That's a tough question. That's right.
So, honor your mother and father so that you may live long in the land of which I have given you.
You're right.
It's the only one of the Ten Commandments with a promise, and the only one of the Ten Commandments that involves your nation.
And you look at America today, that singular commandment is one of the reasons why this country is collapsing.
We are no longer a country where children are instructed to honor your parents.
Now, you might say, well, I don't get along with my parents.
It doesn't matter.
I would even say all the way up until, like, criminal abuse, that applies to you.
Now, what does it mean to honor one's parents?
To honor your parents, yeah, go ahead.
Take into account what they're saying. It doesn't mean like necessarily listen to them no matter what.
You should always take into account what they're saying.
Take into account what they're saying, yes.
It's not just obeying them, but it's taking that next step of like respecting them.
Respecting.
So let me give you a different way of thinking about it.
In Hebrew, the word to honor has the same word meaning to take heavily, with a lot of weight.
The word to curse, so if I were to curse my parents, is the same word for to take lightly.
So if you are to take your... You probably think of your best friend.
You probably take that relationship seriously.
So let me say it differently.
Honor your mother and father so that, take the relationship with your parents very seriously.
That's a different way of saying it, right?
Which is that, that's a big deal.
For example, when you guys, if you go off to college, which I do not recommend, but if you end up going off to college, calling your parents every single week.
Honoring them in all that you do.
Failure to do that means, If you cannot honor your earthly father, you will never be able to honor your heavenly father.
It is a test of whether or not you can actually honor the divine and the eternal father.
This is a beautiful thing because it's the last of the five commandments on the first tablet because it's a segue to all of the ten commandments between man.
Right?
Which is that if you... It kind of involves both.
Which is to have your earthly relationship and your eternal relationship.
Okay, what is the sixth commandment?
Again, this order isn't as important, but yes.
Do not murder.
Okay, so... We've done a really bad job of that in America, wouldn't you say?
A million abortions a year, every year.
Pretty bad job of that.
Now let's go deeper, because you're all smart.
Do not murder.
Okay, that's easy.
Is it okay to kill?
Who says yes, raise your hand.
Who says no, raise your hand.
Okay, a human being.
Okay, in war?
Okay, self-defense.
In Hebrew, there is a different word for murder and kill, just so we are clear.
And the word murder in Hebrew is never used for an animal.
The word murder is only used for human beings.
Now, what is the difference between murder and killing?
Yes?
The difference between murder and killing is that murder has an intent on anger or revenge, and killing has an intent on stopping a threat.
Yep, that's, that's correct.
Here's how you know that it does not, it's not a prohibition on killing.
What is the only commandment, what is the only commandment, it's not of the Ten Commandments, it's like in Torah Levitical law, what is the only one that is in all five books of the Torah?
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.
That if you take a life, your life shall be taken.
It is the only one that appears in all five books of the Torah.
So we know God would not tell us to give the death penalty for murderers if thou shall not kill.
Murdering and killing are two completely different things.
That distinction in society is almost never made.
Okay.
Seventh commandment.
Where we at?
Yes, sir.
Do not steal.
I love this one.
We are all so guilty of stealing.
How often?
Anyone ever cheated on a test?
I pre-appreciated the mission.
You're all thieves.
Yeah, I did too.
No, but that is stealing something that is not your own.
How about taking a, this happens all the time in my industry, which is people that talk for a living, taking an idea or a concept that you did not come up with and not giving that person attribution.
That is a form of theft.
Happens all the time.
For example, I give Dennis Prager a lot of credit for almost all of these ideas, some of them that I'm diving deep into.
He helped me learn Hebrew.
So stealing is a very, very interesting commandment.
Because you can make an argument.
That stealing is actually almost every single one of the commandments between men.
Let's think about it.
What are you doing when you murder?
Stealing a life.
What are you doing when you commit adultery?
You're stealing a, you know, a relationship.
What are you doing when you tell a lie?
You're stealing trust.
Stealing and theft connects to almost every single one of the human-to-human relationships.
Okay, next commandment.
Who wants to tell me?
Yes.
The order is not as important.
Yes.
That I shall not commit adultery.
So, yes, very, this one, you might not think this one applies to you.
I'm going to tell a joke, I don't think you guys are going to get it, but that's okay.
So it's, so Moses goes up to the ten, this is not true, this is very heretical, okay?
Moses goes up to the ten commandments, comes down, he says, guys, good news, I got it down to ten.
Bad news, adultery stays.
So, it's a bad joke, sorry.
So, that's not my own, it's a rabbi who came up with it.
The point is that it's, why would you need a special commandment just against adultery?
What is this all about?
Anybody want to speculate?
Yes.
We're human beings.
Men have a certain nature to crave variety.
Yes.
That's exactly right.
So, this is where almost no one talks about this, is that the prohibition on adultery is the lifting up of the sacred union of marriage.
And that is, like, never talked about, right?
Is that God cares so much about male, female, Not just relations, but male-female marriage and matrimony is the word I'm looking for.
That a specific commandment is you shall not desecrate that union.
You shall not allow that to be forsaken.
Now we can get deep into in the New Testament where Jesus expands adultery Give false testimony.
not even lust after a woman with your heart and you're committing adultery and
every teenage boy in the country is therefore guilty of adultery okay and
that's okay that's you know Jesus forgives all and and saves those who
repent okay next commandment adultery what's what's the next one yes give
false testimony I love this now I had this super legalistic guy said that only
applies to a court of law Of course, that's nonsense.
Said differently, you shall not lie.
And this is one of the hardest.
I think we can all agree this is the one where we violate almost all the time.
Where God is a lover of truth because God is truth.
This commandment is a parallel and symmetrical to who God is.
Jesus is truth.
Jesus is God.
And therefore, you cannot honor God back to the first commandment.
if you do not tell the truth.
Finally, to covet, the Catholics will put covet into two commandments, believe it or not.
Nine or ten, they'll say, you shall not covet your neighbor's wife or covet your neighbor's donkey.
Love Catholics. I'm sorry. It's kind of a little bit of a cope for me.
I have a whole theory as to why. Yes?
So, I have been, I have understood that the reasoning for that
is that it orients your desires,
which in a way circles back to the first commandment. I am the Lord your God.
You should not, you should not covet your neighbor's wife or covet your neighbor's donkey.
You should not desire these things of your neighbors, and instead you should desire me as your God.
That's a beautiful explanation.
The answer was that it was about an orientation of desires.
I have a more cynical explanation, which is that in Catholicism, there's a lot of things that could flirt on idolatry, and they didn't want that to be its own commandment.
So, we could agree to disagree.
But anyway, that's my own interpretation.
And I say that as a lover of Catholics, and my wife was baptized Catholic, so was my mom and my grandma.
So anyway, I don't want to get too back into the Catholic-Protestant distinctions, but we both agree we shouldn't covet.
Every one of us covet in modern society.
The multi-trillion dollar corporate model is designed based on your covetedness.
If we do not covet, corporations would go bankrupt tomorrow.
Gotta have the new shoes.
Gotta have that next trip.
I gotta, I gotta, I gotta.
Social media is designed around you coveting.
And so, to covet, it's very, very interesting that in Judaism, they really struggle with this one.
We don't, as Christians, and I'll tell you why, it's a very important thing, which is that we as Christians are open to talking about how sin can be both internal and external.
We agree, right?
That you can sin alone in a room.
In Judaism, they don't believe that, believe it or not.
They believe that, really, sin is all action, and what happens on the inside is really not as important.
It's just kind of a gray area.
So, to covet, therefore, is a battle within yourself to restrain your nature, okay?
Imagine if this country even had a little bit less of coveting, and I... Thou shall not covet, and the last thing I'll say on this, is the root of socialism.
You cannot have a socialistic society, you cannot have Bernie Sanders, or AOC, if you do not covet.
Why do the billionaires have so much?
Why do they have all this money?
I want that.
I want free health care.
Oh, and then they also have to go violate Do Not Steal.
Let's go take their stuff.
Socialism is a walking violation of two of the Ten Commandments and probably even more if you count the murder spree of the socialist history.
That is a short summary of the Ten Commandments.
I hope that you guys learned something new with that.
However, let's now try to speculate what are some of the commandments in today's America?
How about this?
Thou shall not be a racist.
Yeah?
Thou shall be nice under all circumstances unless you're talking to a Trump supporter.
Yes.
Boo, I like that a lot.
So, yeah, thou shall accept everyone's truth unless they're a conservative, right?
Yeah, so.
How about this one?
Live and let live.
What else?
Yes, that's really good.
You should act based on how other people feel.
Yes.
Yeah, thou shalt not assume someone's gender.
I like that.
Yes, sir.
Yeah, I like... No, this is very good.
Yes.
Yeah?
Yeah, that's a good one.
Yes, ma'am.
Thou shalt not be a victor.
Yeah, I like your name, by the way.
It's all throughout the book of Psalms.
Yes.
Selah.
Yes.
Yeah, that's right.
Who has not?
Yes.
Anyone who has not chimed in on this one?
Yes.
Yeah, my body, my choice.
That's good.
So let's kind of distill some of those.
So what you have to understand is that there is no such thing as eliminating your rules for life.
There is replacing.
Everybody lives by some sort of rules.
And the great lie is they'll tell you, oh no, we just have neutral rules.
We all agreed that these are actually the rules of society.
They're not written down yet, but they kind of are.
Love is love.
Diversity is our strength.
Trump is a Nazi.
It's kind of already written in.
And your goal should be to point people back to the Ten Commandments in all that we do as a way to organize society.
And here's the kicker, and then we'll do questions.
Why are the Ten Commandments so critical?
Because through the Ten Commandments, you realize you need Jesus.
The way to bring people to Jesus is not like this.
Here's how the modern gospel works.
If you give your life to Jesus, your stock portfolio will go up, better days are ahead, and you'll be healed from all your sickness.
You think I'm joking?
Eighty to ninety percent of modern churches are preaching this, I was gonna say a not-so-great word, um, garbage.
When in reality, revival requires repentance.
And repentance requires an acknowledgment that you are a sinner.
It requires a hot gospel that shows that you cannot live up to God's law.
We went through those Ten Commandments.
We violate, like, five out of ten on a daily basis, don't we?
And so society drifts from Jesus when you drift from the law, because people don't think they need Jesus, because that's no longer the law.
And they say, well, I don't need Jesus.
I'm master of my own life, and my body my choice, and I'm the most important thing in the world.
How's that working for America?
Not very good.
Yeah, not good.
Most depressed, most suicidal, most anxious, most alcohol-addicted generation in history.
We have more opioid deaths and more drug overdoses than ever before.
More murder, more arson, a million abortions every single year.
The evidence is all in.
But here's the tough part.
Restoring back to what we've talked about here.
It's gonna take a lot of work.
It's gonna take work for all of you, but I'm hopeful.
I think God... I will say this.
I know this might sound cheesy or cringe to some people.
I don't care.
I say it.
I have never been more convicted after I saw my friend and someone I hope to become president again.
Be two inches from having his brains blow out that God's not done with America.
I believe that more than I ever have, that God is not done with this country.
And that God is not done doing his work in this great republic.
Because you can't tell me that it was just like a thing of chance or whatever.
I mean, I literally saw him yesterday.
He's missing the top part of his ear.
I want you all just to look in the mirror tonight and measure the distance between the top of your ear and your brain.
God's not done with this country.
And there's a beautiful future ahead of all of us if we do the work and obey his commands.
Okay, let's do some questions, everybody, and then they'll end when they tell me to end.
Okay.
Who has not been some of the more... Who knows what the word loquacious means?
Anybody?
Loquacious.
I thought you guys were homeschooled.
Yes.
What?
Talkative!
Yes.
So who has not been the more loquacious?
Yes.
I have a great question.
I have a business pitch for you.
You have a business pitch for me?
Wow.
Uh, in 30 seconds?
Okay.
So, my company, I create digital business cards for people, and I created three custom ones for you.
So, right?
If you scan this to your phone, it brings up the digital business page, right?
And so, the thing with this is, I know you don't have a lot of time, you gotta get to things, right?
So, I obviously can't get your information now.
You scan it on here, my information is on here.
What do you scan?
A QR code?
Thank you.
Give it up for Ethan.
This is really good.
I love that.
Well, Ethan, I commend you.
That's terrific.
These two are for you.
These ones are like personal.
And this one is for your business.
Give it up for Ethan.
This is really good.
I love that.
So, you scan the card and the number and the email is mine.
And I can remotely change it.
So you just call, contact me and I'll change all the information for you.
Well, Ethan, I commend you.
That's terrific.
Thank you.
I would, yeah, afterwards in the photo line.
Yeah, afterwards in the photo line.
I'd love to see how it works.
Thank you.
He's going somewhere, I'll tell you what.
That's... I love that.
He's got hunger.
I'll tell you.
That's a very important thing.
Ethan, you're... How old are you?
Yeah, that's a big deal.
First of all, to have this, the... I gotta watch my words.
The piece of anatomy that you would imagine to do that is pretty remarkable.
And that's a great rule.
When you're young, go up to people that you might want something from or that you might admire or whatever and ask for the order.
You literally have nothing to lose.
You're 17 or 18 years old.
And I learned this, you know, I was very blessed.
I spoke at the RNC last evening.
It was my third time speaking.
It was just amazing.
And literally 12 years ago, from this day, I was 18 years old at the RNC without a ticket, not able to get into the RNC.
Decided not to go to college.
12 years later, I'm giving a 9.30 p.m.
Eastern keynote address.
Only in America is a story like that possible.
And it's thanks to the glory of God, His mercy, His goodness.
And also, I was kind of like you.
I went up to every single person I could imagine.
And I did not have digital business cards, though.
I had old-fashioned ones.
So, pretty impressive.
That's a great... If you want to succeed in life, do that.
He was respectful, he was direct, and he was prepared.
He had a briefcase, which could have had something else in it, but...
So you're a little worried about that?
Yeah.
Ethan, you're special.
You're going somewhere.
Okay, yes.
Who has not asked a question?
Yes.
My loquacious friend.
Yeah.
What's the best way to convince your neighbors that voting for Trump doesn't exist?
Yeah, I mean, look, I'll be very honest.
Again, this is totally superficial.
But if you're an American man, and you don't, like, something in you doesn't get triggered, like, when you see him, like, pop up after getting shot, and, like, pump his fist up, like, you're a trans man, and, like, honestly, I mean that.
Like, there's something wrong with you.
I mean, I don't know about you, I saw that, and I was like, that is next level.
Like, something that got so activated in me.
He got shot, and he's up there, like, saying, fight, fight, fight.
I'm sorry, like, I just... God's not done with this country.
I know that might not be persuasive to your neighbors or whatever.
He's a Nazi!
Like, okay.
First of all, you don't believe that.
And I could prove... Here's actually an interesting answer.
So, the people that have been telling us that he's a Nazi for the last eight years, as soon as he got shot, they're like, I'm deeply praying for Donald Trump and that I hope he gets better.
Okay, which one is it actually?
Because if he was Hitler, you wouldn't be praying for him.
Like, if Hitler got shot, I'd be praying he died.
No, seriously.
Of course it's moral to kill Hitler.
He's the most evil person ever to live.
Oh, so which one is the lie?
Are you not praying for him?
Or that you don't believe that he's Hitler?
One of those two things is not true.
They both simultaneously can't be true.
So again, as far as people that say this nonsense, I am... Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control.
I'm working on patience and self-control.
Faithfulness, thank you.
Yeah, that too.
And so, I lose patience with people that are, like, gonna go vote for this brain-dead idiot that we have as president.
No, I'm sorry, like, I just, I have no patience for this anymore.
Our country's collapsing.
Our border's wide open.
Like, we're involved in two proxy wars to turn our back on Israel.
We're aborting a million babies every single year.
The president just got shot because of relaxed Secret Service requirements.
And I have to have people say I'm an undecided voter?
Really?
I'm sorry, I get a little bit aggressive, because what else do you need to see?
People can't afford groceries.
Young people can't own homes.
The fertility rate is collapsing.
And they're worried that Donald Trump is Hitler and he's a Nazi.
Yeah, I know that's not the most articulate answer, but I'm kind of in a different mode right now, where I saw someone who I've got to know so well walk in with a severed ear from a bullet that nearly killed him.
Like, I just... I'm sorry.
Like, that just kind of activates a different level in me.
So, yes.
Yes, ma'am.
Eagles!
Yeah.
I have a question.
So, would you ever consider becoming president?
Okay, she asked, would I consider becoming president?
First of all, I'm too young.
I am, I'm 30.
So, second of all, no, I don't want to be.
Let me tell you why yesterday was such a sigh of relief for me.
I have been pushing so hard, the shooties know this, and this guy's a God-fearing, good man, great father.
So amazing, J.D.
Vance.
And I've been pushing for him to become the vice president, half and part, so that I'm like, okay, I don't have to run for office.
He's such a good person that, like, I could take the next decade and keep on doing this.
And here's my true answer.
We reach millions of people every single day on social media.
We reach millions of people on Instagram, on TikTok, on podcasting, on all that stuff.
We have thousands of chapters.
I believe that the difference we are making outside of running for office is greater than just being, you know, a senator or some office holder.
I believe this is where God has called us to be.
I could not tell you the joy that I had last night and the gratitude to God where I was able to literally sit in a corner and kind of be a spectator and watch J.D.
and Trump and I just said, They got it.
Like, no, I meant that.
It's like, it doesn't need to be me.
Like, that's not how I am.
I was like, if someone's better and someone's more equipped, I was just like so full of just incredible, like, gratitude that God put all that together.
I was like the happiest spectator fan that a human being could be at that moment.
So, yes.
Yes, ma'am.
Oh, that's a great question.
So this is Vote Early.
It is a campaign that we are trying to get conservatives and Republicans to entertain, not just voting on Election Day.
We believe Election Day is the last day of voting.
This is very, very, in Wisconsin it's a little bit more nuanced than this, but in Arizona in particular, 75% Of all voters, vote by mail.
And Republicans largely don't embrace this.
In Arizona, because of our lack of early voting, Carrie Lake should have become governor, and she didn't because we had widespread machine tabulation failures because of that.
And so we're trying to say, hey, it's better to go vote early than not vote at all.
And so it's part of a big campaign that we're doing here.
And every one of you, who here is 18, by the way?
Anyone?
You all get to be better registered to vote.
Okay?
Yes?
Yes?
Okay.
Good.
Every single one of you.
All right, yes.
Who has not asked a question?
Raise your hand.
You have not.
Yes.
It's a great question.
The question was, under Trump, we strengthened our relationship with Israel.
What are we doing right now?
I mean, Joe Biden is an awful president, and he's doing such damage.
We should obviously have Israel's back.
I've been so morally clear about that.
We should try to have the war be won as quickly as possible.
Look, it's also, allow Israel to be Israel, and Israel is a pretty amazing country.
Anyone ever been to Israel?
Oh, you should.
It's so amazing.
It changes your life.
It puts the Bible in reality.
It pops.
And Israel is a country that is allowed to have borders.
They actually have an increasing fertility rate.
Like, what concepts?
Like, we should actually bring those, you know, ideas back to America.
But yeah, right now, Joe Biden is trying to play both sides of the conflict.
Do you know that we're funding both Israel and Hamas right now?
Well, because Joe Biden is very worried about a couple hundred thousand Muslim voters spread across three states.
And so, it's sick, it's awful, but we have to have Israel's back.
That's exactly right.
Who has not asked a question?
Yes?
I'm going to jump, then you.
Yes, go ahead.
That's a great question.
So, do I think the Democrat Party will be able to recover their image five to ten years after Biden?
Not if I have anything to say about it, but we'll see.
Here's the exciting part, everybody.
When I first started speaking at LEAD four years ago, right guys?
Three, four years ago?
I think my first one?
Younger voters were tilting liberal.
We are seeing a massive resurgence of younger voters going the conservative direction, the likes of which could be an extinction event for the modern Democrat Party.
And especially young men, by the way.
Especially young men.
And so... Yeah, look, I...
These people are radicals.
They believe in things that are deeply unpopular.
We have to keep on educating people on that.
And yeah, I hope not is the answer.
I hope not.
Yes, sir.
That's a really good question.
So I've actually wrestled with this.
My friend Dennis Prager famously tells a story that he hated Jimmy Carter, but Jimmy Carter once came into his radio station and he stood up for the president because out of respect for the office of the presidency.
So it got me thinking.
I said, if I were, which it probably wouldn't happen, right?
They wouldn't let me near him.
But if I were to be in a room and Joe Biden would walk in, what would I do?
And I don't know the answer to that.
Because the answer should be, I respect the office of the presidency, and you should respect that's greater than him.
That's what the answer should be.
But I struggle with that, because I believe that he's a usurper in that role.
I think he's actively done treason against the United States.
And it's hard for me to respect that, even though the office deserves respect.
And I know what the answer should be.
Do I accept what he's doing as president?
Yes, he has legitimate authority, obviously.
But I don't believe that he's a legitimate president.
So.
Yes, yes ma'am.
We'll go there and then here.
Yes.
Have I watched Sound of Hope?
No, but I need to because I'm actually promoting it.
Actually, I've watched part of it.
They know I haven't finished the film yet.
The Angel Studios.
Did you like it?
You haven't watched it yet?
You and me both.
No, Sound of Hope is the parallel to Sound of Freedom.
Did you like it?
Okay.
Sound of Hope is the... it's a... there's a word they used for it that is connective to... it's a totally different story, but it's about foster care kids being brought in What would the Founding Fathers say about this country?
or other really less than desirable circumstances.
Wow.
So haven't watched it yet, but I watched part of it.
But don't tell the Harmon brothers from the Angel Studios.
They're going to be mad at me.
Yes, yes, ma'am.
What would the founding fathers say about this country?
Wow.
Yeah, they would be...
I think a couple things.
First of all, I think that they would be surprised—yeah, they're like, wait, Israel's a country?
Wait, what?
So, I think they would be deeply surprised at the fourth branch of government, which has come out of nowhere, which is unconstitutional—the FBI, the Department of Justice, the CIA, the EPA.
I do think, though, that there would be some shock, if they just woke up today, at how long the Constitution lasted.
And I think that they would be impressed with their own creation.
If you read their journals, they didn't know if this thing was going to last.
They hoped it would.
And that just goes to show the brilliance of the Constitution, because it was written to stand the test of time, not just written for the times.
Okay, two more questions of people that have not asked questions or commented.
Yes?
Have you not asked a question?
Okay, one, two, and then that's it.
Yes, go ahead.
So yeah, first of all, that's a great question.
What is Trump's stance on abortion?
Let me tell you, I'm 100% pro-life.
I mean, I am like the biggest pro-life warrior you could imagine, and you should be too.
We cannot waver on the life issue even an inch, okay?
Even an inch, okay?
That's very important.
And I will say this while simultaneously defending Trump, which might seem difficult.
I'm gonna do both and I hope it will make sense.
So the first thing is this, is that I go on campuses in the most hostile, nasty environments defending life against the abortion laws.
And you should never give an inch on that.
Now let's talk, so that's, my job is not to run for office, right?
My job is to speak truth and moral clarity regardless the price of the consequence, okay?
I'm not here to win votes.
I get enough death threats, that's what Dan and Jonathan are here for, right?
It's fine, okay?
They want my family dead, all that stuff.
I'm not gonna waiver and you guys should never either.
Now let's go to the next category though.
It's politics.
Politics is the assumption of power given by the people to be able to then put forward laws and customs and regulations to then go after, hopefully, an improvement in society.
Politics is only possible if you are able to get political power, and you get political power through elections.
Now, you might say, but Charlie, it's bigger than just elections.
Well, I agree, but we're not going to save any babies if we don't win the presidency.
That is a fact.
We would not have reversed Roe versus Wade.
Simultaneously, Donald Trump is in a very difficult position.
He is more pro-life than people give him credit for.
I can say that both in private and in public.
He spoke at the March for Life.
He put three pro-life justices on the Supreme Court.
He defunded Planned Parenthood.
He was terrific on the issue.
George W. Bush never even spoke at the March for Life, for example.
First president to do so.
He's in a difficult position because we, as pro-life warriors, we also must have the humility to realize we are not in the majority of this country right now.
We are not.
That is tough.
And you might disagree, but we lose ballot referendums in Montana, in Kentucky, in Kansas.
We will get there, because we are going to be relentless in educating and opening people's eyes about the crime and the horror and the sins of the abortion industry.
We must now look at abortion the same way we looked at slavery, through a lens of incrementalism.
Slavery was not abolished overnight.
It was, well, first we're gonna make it illegal to buy new slaves.
Then we're gonna make it illegal to have slaves across states.
It was an incremental march through many decades that eventually led us through the abolition of slavery.
And you might say, well, my critics say, you're trying to compare slavery with abortion?
Yeah, abortion's even worse, actually, than slavery in certain ways.
It's the murder of an unborn, innocent life with no due process and no ability to be able for that baby to defend themselves.
So, Donald Trump has an issue.
He's running as a pro-life candidate in an environment where the country itself is not pro-life.
Including this state, by the way.
This state tends to be more pro-choice than pro-life.
So how do you navigate that?
His position has been this.
I will not back down or apologize for reversing Roe vs. Wade.
That's a big deal.
He did that in the debate.
Number two, we are a pro-life party.
Number three, temporarily, we need to let the states discuss this and send it back to the states and respect our Federalist consent to the governed model.
And number four, reminding people, as we are incrementalists, the Democrats are the extremists on this issue.
That they want post-birth abortion and they're okay with abortion after death.
And if you might say, but Charlie, I want him to call for a national abortion ban.
That is not going to happen in the next couple of years.
There is not political appetite for that.
There are not votes for that.
There is not even the consensus of the people to demand that yet.
So then politics is the art of the possible.
The art of the deal, the art of the possible.
And so President Trump understands that without winning the election, right, we get none of our stuff done, while simultaneously being very morally clear on abortion.
So here's how I'd say, he is a pro-life pragmatist, is what Donald Trump is.
I'm just like a pro-life warrior.
But I am willing to defend and advocate and campaign for the most pro-life president in American history, Donald Trump.
Yes, last question.
Great question.
So this is the last question.
How do you best combat liberal ideology in our institutions?
They hate the truth.
You must always speak the truth.
And if you can get through their most lethal weapon, name-calling, They're done.
All they have is, you're a racist, you're a bigot, you're a homophobe.
That's all they have.
If you can pierce through the name-calling, they have nothing left.
And that is the best way to defeat them.
Okay, I think we're going to do pictures really quick.
Is that right?
Guys, I do a podcast every day.
If you want to subscribe to it, great.
I don't know if you're allowed to have phones in your homeschooling world or not.
I don't know.
It's not offensive.
Honestly, you shouldn't have cell phones until you're 18, because they're awful for you.
Okay, it's fine.
You should have flip phones.
Cell phones are really bad for you.
We didn't have them growing up.
It was awesome.
It was a great life.
By the way, I love homeschooling because homeschooling is actually about developing the human being.
But if you have access to the technology, I do a show every single day.
I encourage you guys to subscribe to listen to it.
I love this group.
I see some familiar faces throughout the years.
I see you guys growing up.
It's amazing.
This is one of the most fun things.
I will be back next year if you'll have me.
And you guys are the future of this country.
Never give an inch.
Stay close to the Lord and his scriptures every single day and fight for this country in our best days ahead.
God bless, guys.
Thanks so much.
Thanks so much for listening, everybody.
Email us as always freedom at charliekirk.com.
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