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The partial government shutdown is over, but difficult negotiations over homeland security funding continue on Capitol Hill. When Congress approved the final government funding bills, it passed a temporary, two-week extension for homeland security. Democrats are demanding changes to how ICE enforces the nation’s immigration laws. The two parties have until next Friday to reach an agreement. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries warned that Democrats would not support any more stopgap funding without substantial change. House Speaker Mike Johnson said he expects an agreement to be made.

America’s 250th is coming fast, and the louder the debate gets, the more we need receipts instead of clichés. We dig into the evidence behind the nation’s uncommon durability—from the University of Chicago’s findings on constitutional lifespans to Donald Lutz’s landmark study mapping who the Founders actually quoted. Montesquieu, Blackstone, and Locke mattered, but the Bible surfaced as the most cited source, shaping the moral vocabulary of liberty, justice, human dignity, and limited government that still anchors our civic life.

We connect those influences to vivid moments: the First Continental Congress opening with extended prayer, letters between Adams and Jefferson that acknowledge doctrinal questions yet affirm the unifying “general principles of Christianity,” and Alice Baldwin’s documentation of sermons that anticipated the Declaration’s claims years before 1776. Rather than a sanitized tale, this is a grounded picture of how public virtue, preached in pulpits and practiced in communities, became the cultural scaffolding for a constitution that has far outlasted the global average.

As we look toward the semiquincentennial, we make a clear case: righteousness isn’t a slogan; it’s civic infrastructure. If freedom is to remain strong, leaders and citizens need the habits and principles that once formed a self-governing people. Join us as we outline practical ways to recover those foundations, equip your conversations with credible sources, and invite your representatives to engage with these ideas. If this resonates, subscribe, share the episode with a friend, and leave a review telling us which insight you’ll bring into your next civic conversation.

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Top News Stories Feb 04, 2026 – 05:00 AM CST

Today's Bible verse: Galatians 3:26-27

Matt and Lisa Jacobson share some simple and effective ideas for showing love to your kids.  You may say the words “I love you” all the time, but do your kids know how much you LIKE them? Parents need to be intentional about spending time, showing affection, and respecting their children.

Receive 100 Ways to Love Your Daughter, 100 Ways to Love Your Son -- or a bundle of both -- plus an audio download of the broadcast "Simple Ways to Show Your Child Love" for your donation of any amount!

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President Trump said he and Colombian President Gusatvo Petro held friendly talks in the Oval Office. Just a few weeks after calling Petro “a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States,” Donald Trump welcomed his counterpart to the White House. After two hours of talks focused on drug trafficking, the president said he thought Petro was “terrific” and the Colombian leader said they both came away “with a positive and optimistic view.”