All Episodes
Previous Next
Jan. 29, 2023 - Huckabee Today
50:11
YOU Are Getting TOO SMART For THEM! Chad Robichaux, Rich Little, & MORE! | FULL EPISODE | Huckabee
| Copy link to current segment

Time Text
Tonight on Huckabee, former Fox News senior correspondent Rick Leventhal, master impressionist Rich Little.
Chad Robichaux shares his riveting story of saving Aziz.
Legendary Grammy award-winning group, Shenandoah.
That's Trey Corley and the Music City Connection. .
And I'm your announcer, Keith Bilbrey.
And now, here's Mike Huckabee!
And welcome, everybody. everybody.
We are so very glad you're here.
What a great show we have lined up for you tonight.
I promise you're going to have fun because we're going to have fun.
And that means we'll pass that on to you.
I don't know if you remember when then Speaker Nancy Pelosi refused to let Republicans that she didn't like even sit on certain House committees.
You remember that?
She banned Marjorie Taylor Greene from a seat on either the Budget or Education Committee.
And when she cranked up her committee to investigate the Capitol riot of January 6th of 2021, she rejected the Republicans that Kevin McCarthy had proposed, namely Congressman Jim Jordan and Congressman Jim Banks.
And she replaced them with Trump-hating Democrats in disguise, Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger.
Now that the Republicans have taken the House, Speaker Kevin McCarthy has announced that he feels quite comfortable in following the same rules that Pelosi installed and has made clear that Eric Swalwell, the congressman compromised by his relationship with a Chinese spy nicknamed Fang Fang, is not going to be on the intel committee.
And...
Adam Ant, you know, Adam Schiff, who repeatedly lied about having evidence of Donald Trump colluding with Russia, even though he never produced a single paragraph to back it up, he is not going to have a seat on the Intel Committee either.
Of course, immediately the Democrats in Congress started crying like eight-year-old girls not invited to the slumber party at the cool girl's house. - Yes.
And to that I say, try me a river.
There really is a reason that Swalwell and Schiff don't belong on the Intelligence Committee, starting with their own lack of intelligence when it came to knowing who really was colluding with the Russians.
Turns out it was an FBI agent named Charles McGonigal who had ironically worked to prove that President Trump colluded with Russia.
Follow that?
37 million bucks spent and no evidence of Trump ties to Russia were ever found.
But all the while, McGonigal was allegedly taking bribes from a Russian oligarch that he was supposed to be investigating.
Well, what do you know?
Another corrupt FBI agent guilty of the very thing that he was falsely accusing Donald Trump of doing.
McGonigal was arrested this week.
He could face several years in a federal prison if convicted.
And...
Do you get the impression that more and more when the left accuses someone of doing something, it's their cover for trying to hide what they themselves are actually doing?
I don't know if you remember, but it's like the Old Testament story of Haman, the evil government official who had gallows built to hang Mordecai the Jew.
But Haman ended up on those very gallows when the king realized that it was Haman who was the bad guy who had plotted against Queen Esther to have her and all the Jews killed.
Well, the pattern here is unmistakable.
When the left screams about something, it almost always seemed to distract attention from what they are doing.
An entire summer of riots in 2020 with multiple cities experiencing burned-down businesses, assaults on police stations and government buildings, and the torching of police cars was laughingly called a summer of love by some idiot parading as a public official in the Pacific Northwest.
And remember when the CNN reporter had the audacity to say that the flames of burning buildings and rioting directly behind him was a mostly peaceful protest?
When Hillary and disgraced former FBI Director James Comey accused Donald Trump of collusion with the Russians, it was in direct contradiction to the now-established evidence that we had FBI agents getting big bucks from Russian oligarchs and Hunter Biden arranging multi-million dollar business deals that not only enriched him, but his famous dad.
And when Joe Biden was calling Donald Trump irresponsible for keeping documents that were deemed declassified and kept in locked facilities that the Secret Service was protecting, it turns out that Joe Biden still had classified documents dating all the way back to his Senate days and had them strewn about in multiple locations, including in his not-at-all-secure garage where he parked his Corvette that son Hunter would drive at times.
So when you hear Joe Biden, Hillary, Adam Schiff, or pretty much anyone from CNN or MSNBC tell you that Trump or the Republicans are doing something nefarious, I say sit tight and just wait for the coming news that the howling left was merely covering up what they themselves were doing.
I don't trust them any more than I trust my grandkids when they've got sugar dripping from their lips and sticky residue on their hands.
And they tell me they absolutely did not get into the candy.
Rick Leventhal is a veteran news reporter who has been on the scene for some of the biggest stories of the last 35 years.
He spent 24 years at Fox News Channel, where he covered the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya.
And he was one of the first reporters at Ground Zero when the Twin Towers came down on 9-11.
He's got a brand new book out, just out this very week.
It's called Chasing Catastrophe, and he's here to tell us all about it.
Please welcome to the show a former colleague of mine from Fox News, Rick Leventhal.
There are few reporters that I know Who have been in the center of some of the biggest news stories of the past 35 years.
I'm glad you wrote the book because you were an eyewitness to some of the things that we all saw, read about, knew were happening, but you really were there.
I feel very privileged to have done what I did, to have been a witness to history on the front lines of so many incredible events.
Some of them were tragedies, but it was still...
An honor to be able to be there to report on it for the public, to boil it down and make it understandable for people and show them the best and worst of humanity when it was happening.
Rick, I remember on 9-11, all of us were tuned and glued to the television.
But I remember when the towers fell and you were there, one of the few reporters that had gotten in position that quickly, And I'll never forget seeing you covered in soot from head to toe, absolutely unrecognizable, just covered with the dust of what had just happened.
That must have been the most harrowing thing you ever covered.
Without question.
I have chills right now.
Being there that day, I've carried it with me every day since.
I had just picked up the microphone and my photographer, who was actually the engineer in the satellite truck, had just picked up the camera maybe 30 seconds before that first tower fell.
And so we were among the people who were running up Church Street to get away from this 200-foot tall smoke cloud and took refuge in his truck.
And after a few minutes, everything went dark and then...
Once we realized that it was probably safe to go outside, we did.
And there was that moon dust that you're talking about, covering everything.
And it was obviously the worst day of my life, and the most challenging thing I ever had to do, to stay calm and report on it.
How do you separate your own feelings?
You're supposed to be telling the rest of us what's happening, and to do it without coming apart emotionally.
And I'm not sure how you pull that off.
That's a great question.
I have no idea.
I mean, I had some sort of filter that I developed over the years of doing local news for 10 years.
And I would just separate myself from the harshness of it, from the worst of it, the reality of it, and just try to focus on the facts, what we knew and what I could report without reporting rumors or innuendo, trying to keep it as real as I could and just...
Just, you know, bring the facts to the public at the worst possible moment in my life.
You covered so many stories, some of which were human tragedies, others which were international tragedies.
You went to a lot of war zones right in the middle of the combat.
Was there ever a moment where you tried to sleep and you said, if I go to sleep, I may never wake up?
No, but there was a moment when I was in Libya when it was time to wake up, and there were bombs dropping all around us.
Gaddafi was attacking Benghazi, and I was in a hotel room trying to sleep, and I remember taking my pillow and putting it over my head to try and drown out the noise of all the bombs that were going off outside our hotel because I just was so desperate to get some sleep.
But I eventually woke up and...
We went to work, and we had to flee the city and come back hours later.
But, I mean, obviously there were a lot of dangerous moments, a lot of times that tested us.
Drove into an ambush in Iraq for 45 minutes, full-on firefight.
But, you know, I was surrounded by really brave Marines.
Now, was that the firefight that Hillary was in with you?
Absolutely the Marine.
But was that the firefight that Hillary was running away from the...
Never mind.
You know, she still tells that story that she was in the middle of...
But you really were.
No, I didn't see Hillary.
Okay, I just wanted to clarify that.
No.
But, you know, I don't think a lot of people understand that when you're a reporter, in order to get the story, you have to go into places that, frankly, none of us would ever want to go into.
Well, I wanted to go there.
I always had my hand up to be the first out the door to go and cover these things because it was in my blood.
I guess I was an adrenaline junkie, and I wanted to be where the action was.
And I loved it.
I did.
And I mean, I still sort of get that inkling once in a while, but it was nice to step away and spend time with my wife and not have to worry about every time the phone rang and I have to leave town for a day or a week or a month.
But the book is not just about tragedies.
The book is about sort of how we got there, the behind-the-scenes stuff, some really fun stories and cool stuff that I've never told before, stories that we couldn't put on television because of the nature of the stories.
But I think people will appreciate the...
The message in those chapters.
You know, this had to be therapeutic to write a book about catastrophes that you have chased all over the world.
Yeah.
Was there a time in writing the book that you said, I needed to get that out of me?
For sure.
And, you know, I wouldn't have been able to write it if I didn't save all of my reporter notebooks.
You know, I've always been accused of being a pack rat, and I guess I am a little bit.
But I had hundreds and hundreds of these notebooks that I would bring on assignment with me.
And when I was done with them, I'd put them on a shelf or put them in a box.
And When I left Fox, I went through all these boxes and I had all of these new memories and stuff that I'd written down that I would have forgotten, but there they were.
And I just separated them into piles and was able to come up with all these different chapters, including the hurricane chapter, which was dozens of different storms that I chased.
You know, one of the things that I've always admired about you, and I mean this from my whole heart, you were a true journalist in a world where there aren't many.
And there were several guys at Fox.
I think of Steve Harrigan.
I think of...
Catherine, who's no longer at Fox.
She's at CBS now.
Catherine Herridge.
There were some journalists.
I had no idea what the politics that you had or some of these folks had.
I had no idea whether you were left, right, middle.
Totally didn't care because you never let that get into the way of your story.
But I don't see many people who have that professional ethic that you and a few folks had.
Why are we losing that?
What's happened to the field of genuine, authentic, I'm not sure, but I'm upset by it as well.
I see a lot of stories that are buried because of politics.
I see stuff that isn't being reported because of the nature of the story, because it's not meeting the agenda of the administration.
And I see people who are reporting their opinions and not the facts.
I never wanted to be that guy.
I always wanted to separate myself, my personal feelings, and just...
Be right down the middle and just tell people what was happening around me.
And that's one of the reasons I never wanted to cover politics, because I didn't want to get political.
You know, I wanted to cover what I consider to be real news.
Well, you did it.
You have done it as masterfully as anyone I've ever known.
And I think that this book is going to be a wonderful insight for people.
If they wonder, what does a reporter really do?
Well, Rick Leventhal takes you on a 35-year journey called Chasing Catastrophe.
And I hope that you will get it.
Rick, thank you for being here.
Thank you, Gary.
And for our audience, as I say, the book is called Chasing Catastrophe, 35 years covering wars, hurricanes, terror attacks, and other breaking news.
You'll get a behind-the-scenes look at the news business.
How do you get the book?
Pretty easy.
Just came out this week.
Let's make it a bestseller.
Here's what you do.
Go to Huckabee.tv.
We have a link to how to get the book as well as Rick's social media.
Right now, we hope Keith will help us avoid some catastrophe by simply telling us what we have coming up next.
Just the facts.
Coming up, Leslie King on surviving human trafficking.
And later, the king of impressionists, Rich Little, performs on Huckabee.
Go to MikeHuckabee.com and sign up for his free newsletter.
And follow @govmikehuckabee on Twitter.
And welcome back.
Since 2005, Leslie King and her organization called Sacred Beginnings have served more than 2,000 residents in transition homes and reached more than 20,000 people through street outreach, taking them away from the horrors of human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
Leslie is a survivor herself, and her story is one of courage, determination, and her care for the most vulnerable among us.
Please welcome to the show a remarkable lady, Leslie King.
Leslie, great having you here.
I want to roll back.
You were 15 years old and coerced into a life of prostitution.
Correct.
I mean, most of us can't imagine You were a kid.
A kid.
Yes.
How did you get trapped into that?
Was someone recruiting you?
Forcing you?
I was a 15-year-old runaway.
Had issues that I didn't know were issues.
And one day I was walking down the street and this guy pulled up and asked me why I was crying.
Took me out to eat.
And stroke up a conversation.
Then he started asking me different questions about my parents and my family and dropped me off and every day he would pick me up, take me out to eat and he just started Continued to ask me about my family, and then it's like a mind game.
And then he started twisting it, and it was like, well, if I was her parents, this wouldn't have happened, that wouldn't have happened.
And then the I love yous, and I'll take care of you, and nobody will ever hurt you again.
All of that came into play.
And it's so sad because those were lies.
He did hurt you.
Correct.
And trapped you into a life that ended up...
Leading you to a very dark place for your work.
Correct.
Correct.
We hear terms like human trafficking, sexual exploitation.
Is there a difference?
And if so, what is that difference?
It's all the same.
You know, to me, there's no difference.
Selling of one's body is selling of one's body.
Whether it's prostitution, sexual exploitation, it's all the same, as far as I'm concerned.
Forced fraud or coercion.
You know, we hear about sex trafficking, little kids, very young, single digit age, eight, nine, ten year old kids from Mexico being brought across the border and they're trapped into a world of sex trafficking.
I don't think most people have any idea how prevalent this is.
This is not a small thing, a few people.
This is massive.
It is.
It is, especially here in the United States because they're coming across the border.
They're selling their children.
The sad thing is the younger they are, the more a person pays for them.
So when you found something special in your life, God changed your heart and your direction.
Was that an all of a sudden thing or did it take over a period of time?
It took over a period of time because...
There was a time I didn't believe in God because there was God.
Why was I biracial?
Why was I molested?
Why, why, why, why, why, why, why?
July 4th of 2000, I tried to commit suicide.
And with the last breath I had, I said, if there's a God in heaven, help me.
And He came.
And He came.
Wow.
If there ever was a desperate prayer, that was a desperate prayer, you crying out.
Yes, it was.
And you know...
My mom prayed for me.
My children prayed for me because I couldn't pray for myself.
Now, in the course of that, and this is something I had never thought about before, an FBI agent told me this, that sometimes people who have come out of trafficking have legal issues, felony convictions, because you've actually done things.
It was, you know, even though you were trapped into it.
So that happened to you.
Mm-hmm.
But what happened recently that really was pretty remarkable?
A couple days before Christmas, I was sitting in my office and the phone rang and I'm, hello, and it was like, Leslie, this is such and such from the governor's office.
And I was thinking, okay, here we go, because I was trying to get expungements.
That was the night.
Yeah.
And she told me how awesome the governor thought I was, and the governor granted me a pardon.
Oh, that's beautiful.
And I just could scream and throw my hands up to God.
So it was a full circle.
Yes.
Forgiven in heaven, and then absolved on earth, and now you're free to operate Sacred Beginnings Ministry.
Who are your clients?
Who is it that you are able to help the most?
We are the very first survivor-led peer-mentored program in the state of Michigan.
And we go back and assist others in getting out the lines.
That is beautiful.
So these are sometimes kids, right?
Sometimes adults, but sometimes just kids who live the life that you did and Sacred Beginnings is able to help get them out.
How many of them end up with legal issues as well as just...
Majority of all of us.
Majority of all of them.
We don't ever think about that.
We never hear that.
No, you don't.
And these girls probably maybe had given up any hope until your organization was able to find them.
In the darkness, there is no hope.
So I go back in the dark.
Me and my team, we go back in the dark.
Meet them right where they are.
We pray.
We hand them blessed bags.
And we love them right where they are until they're able to love themselves and come right on out.
You know, I think about that verse, you comfort others with the same comfort wherewith you have been comforted.
Amen.
And God is using it in a wonderful way.
If you want to learn more about Leslie's book, it's called When Angels Fight.
I love the title.
And her Sacred Beginnings Ministry, you can find it at Huckabee.tv.
You ought to head over there right now.
Thank you, Leslie.
God bless you.
Thank you.
Well, up next, a very special politician makes a surprise appearance.
And later, the man of a thousand voices, Rich Little, joins us.
That's coming up on Huckabee.
Huckabee.
Huckabee.
Welcome back, everybody.
You know, one of the great thrills of doing this show is just getting to hang out with some of the best musicians in America.
Of course, I'm talking about Trey Corley and the Music City Connection, our house band here on the Huckabee.
Thank you, sir.
Well, I don't know about you, but two months into winter, and I could use a break.
Fortunately, our concierge of all American towns found a great one very close to the most beautiful beaches on earth.
My wife and I live 20 minutes from this very special place for a few years.
So, Keith, tell us about Our Kind of Calum.
Well, get out your sunglasses and your sandals because we're heading to sunny Florida.
The Funiac Springs, to be exact.
This relatively young town of about 7,000 was established around Lake the Funiac in the 1880s by the Pensacola and Atlantic Railroad.
Now, Lake the Funiac is no ordinary lake.
It's the roundest natural spring-fed lake in the United States, and it's a great place to hang around.
Gorgeous Victorian-area architecture fills street corners and neighborhoods in this historic, beautiful town that begs visitors to stay a while and enjoy the view.
In the mood for a classic American-style meal of burgers, fries, and a shake, we'll head on over to Ed's Restaurant, where they keep it simple and do it right.
There's really no time to enjoy this Florida town.
Perfect weather year-round complements the array of festivals and events held throughout the year.
In April, there's the annual Chautauqua Assembly.
It's fun and informative event that people have been coming to for over a hundred years.
And on the third Saturday every May, Defuniac Springs holds the unforgettable Lake Fest.
Classic car shows, fish fries, art festivals, and even holiday-themed events like the popular Christmas Reflections will make this event your new favorite tradition.
With Defuniac Springs as your base camp, Take advantage of a leisurely day trip to the beautiful Gulf of Mexico for an Emerald Coast getaway.
So much to see and do.
I mean, where else can you read a book checked out from the oldest library in the state while enjoying a hot dog from the oldest hot dog joint in the state?
Come on!
This quiet little old Florida town is a well-rounded community.
Get it?
Well-rounded?
Sometimes I just crack myself.
That's why Defuniac Springs, Florida is our Our big thanks to the Florida Chautauqua Assembly, Bill on the Road, and the city of Difuniac Springs.
You can learn more about this very beautiful and hospitable town and plan your visit by visiting huckabee.tv where we have all the links that you need.
Well, ladies and gentlemen, you know, we have a very special surprise guest for you tonight.
We don't even know how we managed to get him here.
And frankly, he probably doesn't know how he got here either.
But he's here.
So would you please give a big welcome to President Joe Biden.
*applause*
*laughter* Is my mask on?
Hey man!
Hey man!
You chumps out there!
My name is...
Happy birthday to me.
Happy birthday to me.
Happy birthday dear Joe.
Joe Biden.
Joe Biden.
I'm the big guy.
Joe Biden.
What the heck is this?
Classified document.
I wonder where it came from.
There's tar marks on here.
You know, a lot of people, a lot of people are worried about my health.
They're worried about my health.
Well, don't be worried about my health.
I'm in perfect health.
I'm in perfect health.
If you don't believe me, ask my doctor, Dr. Kevorkian.
I want you to know that President Harris and myself are doing an outstanding job as President and First Lady.
Now, don't laugh.
We're doing the work right now, the work right now of three people: Larry, Hurley, and Mo.
Before going, I'd like to read you a list of my accomplishments as president.
I kept my son out of prison.
Thank you.
Thank you, America.
Happy Easter.
Legendary impressionist Rich Little, everybody.
Thank you.
And he's gonna be with us after the break, so don't you dare go away.
We'll be right back with Rich Lentl.
Go to Huckabee.tv and get your very own Made in the USA Huckabee mugs, t-shirts, and more.
Music.
And we are back.
Please give a warm welcome to the master of celebrity impressions, Rich Little.
Thank you.
The last time, Rich, you were here, we had a snowstorm and we couldn't get an audience in here.
That's right.
And you were still gracious enough to perform without an audience.
It's got to be a little more fun with people reacting to what you're doing.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
That was tough.
But, you know, the band loved it.
Yeah, they did.
Yeah, they had to come.
We didn't give them the night off, despite the snow.
You know, you've been our guest more than any guest we've had on The Huckabee Show, and there's a reason for it, and that's because we love having you, and our audience, both at home and here in the theater, love having you.
Well, I love doing the show, and you're such a popular person.
I mean, everybody loves you, really.
Well, no, they don't.
You know, I'm having a little trouble, though, sleeping lately.
Have you got anything you could recommend me for sleeping?
Yeah, I'll talk to you after the show.
I'll give you some great hits on this.
Up until now, I've been listening to Joe Biden's speeches.
That may be as effective as relaxing.
Well, that's turned into a nightmare.
Oh my gosh.
How many impressions do you even do?
Do you have any idea?
If I was put to the test, probably about 50 or 60. Wow.
Do you have a favorite?
Well, I think my favorite is Ronald Reagan.
And...
Now...
I just love the man.
He was a wonderful guy with a great sense of humor.
Yeah.
He loved humor.
And every time I saw him, I had to tell him a joke, you know?
And he'd write it down, too.
And one time he did impressions for me.
Did he do an impression of you?
Reagan did an impression of Truman Capote.
Ronald Reagan did an impression of Truman Capote.
And he turned to me and he said, Rich, I like to do Truman Capote, but unfortunately I don't have any lines to say.
I don't have any jokes.
And so I gave him one.
I said, I've got one you can use in my act.
Oh, I wouldn't want to do that.
I said, no, please.
So he got a Secret Service man over, and he got a pen, and he wrote this joke down on the back of the Secret Service man.
And here's what it was.
My name is Truman Capote.
You know, a lot of people think that I wrote in cold blood, but that's not true.
Actually, I wrote in ink.
Reagan wrote that down.
He loved that.
That sounded exactly like Truman Capote.
If I were interviewing Ronald Reagan and I asked this question, when do you believe that a person should be legally proclaimed deceased?
When the brain stops functioning or when the heart stops beating?
Oh, I would have to say when the heart stops beating.
Good Lord, if we determined that by the brain stops functioning, we would wipe out half the Democratic Party.
Some of the great actors of Hollywood, they had such distinctive voices.
And I'm thinking today, I don't necessarily...
No, that many younger, up-and-coming actors that are as distinct a voice as, let's say, Jimmy Stewart or James Cagan.
That's very true, Governor.
You have to pick somebody that has just something different in their voice, you know.
A lot of people sound the same.
So, like Dr. Phil is an example, who is easy to do because he's so larger than life.
I know.
I know that you know that I know.
And if you knew that, then we both would know if we knew it all, when we knew it, if we knew it at all.
That is dead-on perfect.
What about Jimmy Stewart?
Well, Jim one time said to me, Rich, you do me so good that you're better at doing me than I am.
A matter of fact, Richard, you do me so good that I was hoping when I passed away, they should have buried you.
You know, one of the things I remember you telling me...
That there were times when actors could no longer maybe read their lines and they actually ask you to dub lines in a movie because you were able to carry out the voice and nobody ever knew the difference.
Yes, if somebody passed away or they had laryngitis, they would call on me.
And I've done it for a number of people.
I did a Christmas special one time as Gene Kelly...
And I did the whole Christmas special with that little voice of his, you know, that high voice that Gene Kelly had.
And nobody knew the difference.
But you didn't have to dance.
Didn't have to dance.
Yeah, just talk.
And I saw it, and nobody knew it was me doing that.
Really?
So it was an uncredited movie role, I guess.
I did Tony Curtis for a movie once, too.
Okay.
He did a movie in Europe, and they didn't pay him.
And he got so fed up, he said, I'm just going to walk off the picture.
And they said, oh no, the money's coming.
You know, same old story, but it never came.
And so he left.
And they didn't have a finish to the movie, and they needed his voice.
And so they came to me to do it.
And I did it.
I did my Tony Curtis for these people, this movie.
And I talk like this.
Younger lies the castle of me fodder.
And I did Tony Curtis.
And I phoned up Tony and I said, Tony, I just dubbed you for a film.
You didn't do that, did you?
And I said, yeah.
They didn't pay me.
Did you get your money up front?
I said, yeah, I got money before I did it.
Good.
You owe me half of it.
See, I love some of the voices of these great actors from the past.
Did you ever do Humphrey Bogart?
I know you had to.
Humphrey Bogart.
Yeah.
My name is Sam Spade.
I was working a murder case out in Brentwood.
A woman had been found dead in a bathtub full of cornflakes and milk.
Well, I was...
rather unusual, but I went over all the clues and I looked at all the evidence and I came to the conclusion that it must be a serial killer.
I was so wondering where that was going.
Oh, Rich.
I like a joke where you don't know where it's going.
Well, I didn't know where that one was going.
Sometimes I don't either, but...
You've been with us, and I hope that you will continue to keep the record as our most invited guest.
Anytime you want me to come back, I'm available.
If next week you're available, come on back.
Next week, I'm available.
Okay, there you go.
Hey, if you want to keep up with Rich Little, and if you want to get his autobiography...
As well, getting tickets to see him at the Tropicana in Vegas.
Simply head to Huckabee.tv.
We will hook you up how to get tickets to his show the next time you go to Vegas or make a special trip just to see Rich Little.
It would be worth it.
Right now, Keith Bilbrey is going to impersonate an announcer, and he'll tell us what's coming up next.
Well, coming up, a historic story of escaping the Taliban.
And later, country supergroup Shenandoah debuts their new single on Huckabee.
Tune in to Huckabee next week for iconic Pat Boone and an awe-inspiring musical performance by Todd Tillman.
Thank you.
And welcome back, everybody.
Chad Robichaux's new book is titled Saving Aziz.
It is the story of the Afghan interpreter who joined him on over 100 dangerous marine missions and then the fight to save him and his family from the Taliban after the botched pullout.
It is an honor to welcome back Chad Robichaux and Aziz.
Welcome, both of you.
Thank you.
So glad to have you both.
Chad, I want to start.
How many tours did you do in Afghanistan and all?
So I was a Force Recon Marine.
I was assigned a JSOC, Joint Special Operations Command Task Force, and I did eight deployments to Afghanistan as an advanced force operator, doing all the clandestine logistics to get on target.
So when you heard that we were pulling out of Afghanistan, immediate reaction?
My immediate reaction was it was going to be a disaster to do that and leave the most strategic place in the globe between Iraq, Iran, Russia, and China.
Although my most severe concern was my friend.
Aziz did eight deployments with me in Afghanistan.
He was my friend.
He saved my life multiple times.
I'm close to his family.
I was there when his kids were born.
So leaving my friend behind was something I knew I couldn't let happen.
You know, a lot of us heard the stories of Afghan interpreters who deployed with our own troops Translated, protected, gave source information, helped risk their lives for you.
I mean, there's no way that he could have done this without risking his life and being targeted for helping the Americans.
So when it became clear that we were going to just leave these folks behind, people that had been promised that they would be able to get to the United States with their families, you had to have been not just frustrated, but angry.
I was angry.
I was scared for my friend because his life's important to me.
His wife and six kids' life's important to me.
And I knew if the government wasn't going to do the right thing, then I knew I could call in friends that would get behind me and help me do the right thing, and it was to go and get him.
So you just, by this time you're a civilian.
Yes.
And you're calling up some of your former military buddies and saying, we're going to go get some of those guys that helped us.
That's right.
I mean, where do you start doing something like that?
Well, I have a lot of great friends from the special operations community.
I had a lot of experience to do this kind of thing.
And we put together a team of about 12 of us.
And as we were preparing to go get a Z's, we realized that the mission was bigger.
That more people, Americans, other interpreters, women and children would need help.
And we're all very strong people of faith, and we felt God burn our heart to do something bigger.
And we simply made a decision to be obedient to that calling, say yes, and then we watched God perform a miracle to allow us not only to save Aziz and his wife and six kids, but 17,000 other people.
17,000.
Wow.
Aziz, when you heard that the Americans were pulling out, did at first you say, oh, well, they'll come get me and then we'll go out with them.
Was that your thought or did you think they were gonna leave you there?
Well, to be honest with you, at first I didn't take it serious because I was really counting on the Afghan National Army, the police, the special forces, the zero units that were trained by the US military equipped with lots of heavy machine guns, ammunitions.
But unfortunately, since the country collapsed politically from the top leadership, And that was the time that I was really struggling and anxiety kicked in, nervousness, depression.
I was becoming weaker and weaker from inside.
Although Chad was making jokes with me and he would read a prayer from the Bible over me through the phone and tell me that he is holding prayers for me in the churches.
And still there was a fear of that I will be left behind.
I didn't believe that it would happen that quick because there was a limited amount of time.
We didn't have enough time and everything happened overnight and I had no other place to go.
My relatives turned their face at me, my parents, my siblings, everyone told me that you're not coming to my house.
It's your call.
You did it.
Now you handle it.
So all I had was to bow on my knees and pray.
And I prayed in the name of Jesus.
And he answered and he sent my brother.
Wow.
I mean, what a great, amazing story of this guy who did not forget you, but it had to be terrifying for you and your family.
And what did you do?
Just hunker down in your home and hope Chad shows up here pretty soon?
Actually, the first few nights when the bad guys captured the 33 provinces of Afghanistan, only the capital was remaining.
So I had these AKs and pistols and some grenades and ammunitions.
I distributed my gun in different corners of the house.
I told my wife, if they come from this angle, you're shooting from this angle.
And I told my older son that if they come from the other angle, you're using this as a checkpoint and you just pull the trigger, it's locked and loaded and just keep shooting.
And my older daughter and the same thing for myself.
I was living in a five-story concrete house.
I made these different checkpoints and I was anticipating using my military experience and I was getting my readiness.
But as soon as we noticed that the bad guys captured the whole capital as well, then I had to get out of my house Live inside a taxi with my six children.
My wife had an appendix operation.
Her wounds are infected.
Chad's buddies are inside the airport.
They are sending me the Google Maps to make it to the airport.
But we are not able to make it because there is Taliban checkpoints in the outer perimeter.
The middle perimeter is controlled by the Afghan ex-military guys.
And then inside there is US Marines.
And every time I attempt to make it inside the airport, They're shooting at me.
The Taliban are shooting at me.
Once I cross that checkpoint, then the zero units, the Afghan ex-military guys, they're shooting at me.
As soon as I pass them, then the U.S. military or these young Marines, they're shooting at me.
I'm like, hey, I'm a U.S. ally.
These are my documents.
I cannot show it to you.
My wife is, you know, she did the appendix operation.
Please let me to get in.
I worked for Chad Robertshow.
Do you know him?
Please Google him.
He's a famous man.
They're like, no, no, we don't know you.
Go.
You're not supposed to be here.
They're shooting and shooting.
And then finally, one day I quit because my wife is crying.
And I told Chad, it's not possible.
So Chad had to tell the team guys that they need to come outside the Constantino wire and find us in the crowd and escort us.
Your guys went in and got him.
I can only imagine when the two of you reconnected.
What an emotional moment that must have been for you, but for Aziz and his family.
What an incredible story.
And you tell it in the book, Saving Aziz.
If there ever was a story that needs to be a movie, this is it.
It's got to be.
And if you want to get the book Saving Aziz and more, if you go to Huckabee.tv, we will connect you to this amazing story of heroism and raw courage.
Right now, Keith has something to tell us that's really big coming up to close the show.
Well, it doesn't get much bigger than this!
the grammy winning group shenandoah performs the world broadcast premiere of their new single that's next on huckabee we are thrilled that tonight's musical guests are back for their third
They're a Grammy-winning country supergroup with 26 Billboard chart hits and five number ones, including the classic The Church on Cumberland Road, as well as Two Dozen Roses.
This weekend, they released their brand-new single.
It's called Revival from their upcoming album.
And keep an eye out for the Revival Tour starting real soon.
To find out a whole lot more, go to Huckabee.tv.
right now performing the world premiere broadcast of Revival.
Please give a big welcome to Shenandoah.
It's been a long year, can we all agree to It feels good to be back in Tennessee.
Ain't no place I'd rather be sitting next to you, next to me.
How you been?
Picking right up with some real old friends.
Been so long that you'd be a sin.
Here we are again.
We're having a revival.
Good Lord, hallelujah.
There's red dirt, no disciples.
Got spirits running to us.
It's around every missing.
It's a good conversation.
Yeah, we got this down home, hometown congregation.
Having a revival.
Revival, Revival, wherever Revival, Revival, Revival Six dreams by the fire you'll be Everybody's singing like a choir.
Another year old and wiser, but we ain't gonna act out.
No way!
How you feel?
Ain't it kind of nice and mud on the wheels?
All these trucks circled up in a few just like we used to do.
We're having a revival.
Good Lord, hallelujah.
He's red, there's no disciples.
Our spirit's running through us.
It's a rally we're missing.
It's a good conversation.
Yeah, we got this town, home, hometown congregation.
Having a revival.
Revival, revival, we're having a revival Revival, revival Ooh, ooh All this prodigal sun's all in town For some fun, we've been gone But we're back like we ain't never left Yeah, we're boots, scootin', dancin'
And clap in our hands like they're family, amen man, a feelin' best Having a revival Good Lord, hallelujah!
These red dirt road disciples got spirits running through us.
It's around here when we listen and tell that conversation.
Yeah, we got this down home, hometown congregation.
Having a revival, good Lord, hallelujah.
He's met there no disciples, got spirits running through us.
It's around every mission, it's healthy conversation.
Yeah, we got this town, home, hometown congregation.
Having a revival, revival, revival.
We're having a revival, revival, revival.
▲
Export Selection