Today's Issues continues on AFR with your host, Tim Wildman
>> Chris Woodward: Today's Issues continues on AFR with your host, Tim Wildmon, president of the American Family Association.
>> Tim Wildmon: Welcome back, everybody, to Today's Issues on the American Family Radio Network. We have added, another panelist with a one syllable name in keeping with our hiring standards here on this show. So I'm Tim with Ed, Fred and Ray, raised in Kansas City. Good morning again, Ray.
>> Tim Wildmon: Good morning, Tim.
>> Tim Wildmon: And three of us here in Tupelo. T, U P E L o right below 1 below on your map. that was, that was, that was J.J. corny right there.
>> Ed Vitagliano: It was. I, You got a chuckle at him.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. so. But now Chris Woodward's in studio. Good morning, Chris.
>> Chris Woodward: Say, I gotta say, I spent, a week with J.J. in a foreign country and that included a 12 hour flight going and coming. So I have a lot of JJ jokes.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Oh.
>> Chris Woodward: that I can now share.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Poor thing. Who, who is in charge of travel plan? Let me put you guys next to each other.
>> Chris Woodward: I got a PhD in JJ jokes. After that trip, there's a time to.
>> Tim Wildmon: I gotta tell you, you got to give the a. You got to give the guy a for memory.
>> Chris Woodward: Oh, yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Oh, yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: Jokes. Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I always say he's got a Rolodex. You bring up a topic, he's got more than one joke.
>> Chris Woodward: He does.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
Cracker Barrel has removed its Pride page, Fred Case says
All right, Fred, before the break, we were going to get to this story you're about to talk about. Yeah.
>> Fred Jackson: We reported, late yesterday that uncle, Hersch is now welcomed back on the porch at Cracker Barrel.
>> Tim Wildmon: Thank goodness he's come back. Fella was about to be booted, I tell you what. So unheard. So even though he's in just a drawing. Yes. Well, sorry for the drawing.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Well, I saw all kinds of memes showing Uncle Herschel in kind of a heavenly, setting with Aunt Jemima and. Right. Uncle Ben. Land the lakes.
>> Tim Wildmon: For those who don't know Cracker Barrel was going to change and still maybe, who knows where they're going to go with their image changing that they announced. But it all backfired terribly in the last few days. And so Uncle Herschel is the fella that you see on the Cracker Barrel that's leaning against the barrel. right. Leaning against the barrel or sitting near the barrel.
>> Ed Vitagliano: He's sitting in a rocker.
>> Tim Wildmon: He's kind of this, it's, it's been the signature of the Cracker Barrel restaurant chain. And so the idea that the geniuses Cracker Barrel marketing had was let's just take the old man off I guess he's old. what is he?
>> Ed Vitagliano: He's sitting in a chair. I'm not sure if it's a rocker.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay. Sitting in a rocker, which they have rocking chairs.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah. But he is leaning against a Cracker Barrel.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. A Cracker Barrel. So they were going to take him off and put him to.
>> Fred Jackson: Out, the pasture.
>> Tim Wildmon: Out to pasture. But he's. He's going to stay now, Fred. Is that what you're saying? Cracker Barrel announced this?
>> Fred Jackson: Yes, he's going to stay. However, if you go to Cracker Barrel's website, the news this morning is they've removed their Pride page. They had a Pride page at their.
>> Tim Wildmon: Website and their breakfast.
>> Fred Jackson: No, no. Cracker Barrels Pride page, which used to boast that the company was, quote, bringing the porch to Pride.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. Wow.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes.
>> Tim Wildmon: Is that not powerful?
>> Fred Jackson: Yes.
>> Tim Wildmon: There, that moves me. I tell you what, that gives me chills.
>> Ed Vitagliano: The chills that come right before.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Throwing up.
>> Tim Wildmon: So, so, so on that page, they got rid of their pride page. What were they doing with a Pride page anyway?
>> Fred Jackson: Well, amongst other things, they said on their pride page at Cracker Barrel, welcoming people has always been at the heart of who we are. When we take care of one another, we are able to even give better care of the people.
>> Tim Wildmon: You get better scrambled eggs.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Well, okay, can I just stop you right there?
>> Tim Wildmon: Just stop him right there.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I'm just gonna stop you right there. So their reason for having a Pride page.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Was so that everyone could feel welcome, At Cracker Barrel. So what do they have on their Christian page?
>> Fred Jackson: I don't think that's available.
>> Tim Wildmon: I bet there are a lot more.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Christians going to Cracker Barrel. What then? Pink haired lesbians. Why? Do you understand? Why did. Listen, I have nothing against pink hair or pink haired lesbians. Okay.
>> Fred Jackson: However.
>> Ed Vitagliano: All right, all right. So what I'm saying is that's not really why they had a Pride page.
>> Tim Wildmon: No.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Is what I'm saying, they had a Pride page because they wanted everyone to know that they supported the lgbtq.
>> Tim Wildmon: They were being. They were being panda bears.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Exactly.
>> Tim Wildmon: They were pandering to the, to the woke crowd. And. Yeah. I thought the same thing you did. I thought, why do you have to tell people that you don't hate gay people. Yes. Or, that you're against gay. You have to. You mean you have to have your own page to express that we, we. We embrace gay and lesbian people to come to our restaurants and get biscuits and eggs too.
>> Ed Vitagliano: And if, if that is the, if that is the Case you want to let people know you don't hate gay people, does that mean that you hated gay people the day before you put.
Cracker Barrel put Pride page up to say LGBTQ are welcome in restaurants
>> Tim Wildmon: That Pride page up?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, it's the whole thing, silly. Yes. the whole thing, silly. We don't need any more Pride. You don't, you don't need to have a page dedicated to LGBTQ to say they're welcome in our restaurants. If you do. Like you're saying, ed. Well, are you saying they weren't welcome?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes.
>> Chris Woodward: Right.
>> Tim Wildmon: No, it's so stupid because when you go into Cracker Barrel or any restaurant in America, you don't sit down and they go, sir, or ma', am, or whatever you identify as.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes.
>> Tim Wildmon: before we get to your cheeseburger, I'm going to have to ask you your sexual orientation. Your sexual orientation. And if you're gay.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: You get no fries.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay. And there's the door.
>> Ed Vitagliano: No extra gray.
>> Tim Wildmon: Who does that?
>> Tim Wildmon: Try no biscuits.
>> Ed Vitagliano: No biscuits.
>> Fred Jackson: One of the things they use the page for was to unveil a line of rainbow colored rocking chairs.
>> Chris Woodward: Yeah.
>> Fred Jackson: I predict you will not see rainbow rocking chairs.
>> Tim Wildmon: This is backfired magnificently.
>> Chris Woodward: Right.
>> Ed Vitagliano: You know what, the, the logo change back.
Tim Ferriss: Human Rights Campaign pressured Cracker Barrel to change Pride page
Is one thing I was very surprised to hear this about the, about the Pride page because they will get slammed for this from the other side.
>> Chris Woodward: Yes, yes. One of the, one of the things that the Human Rights Campaign has long made companies and businesses do is things like this. So I'm wondering whether or not this was kind of pressure from, the Human Rights Campaign for Cracker Barrel and other companies with similar web pages, to do. Because you, like, you have to do some things, to get a good score from the hrc. So that way they don't say nasty things about you on social media and go after your shareholder meetings. And then to continue to get high scores, you have to continue doing these things.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right.
>> Tim Wildmon: So they. So Uncle Herschel's back.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, he is okay. With Pride.
>> Tim Wildmon: Pride page is gone.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's good.
>> Tim Wildmon: what about the menu? Menu's gonna stay.
>> Ed Vitagliano: It's gonna be the same wonderful menu that everyone has come to expect at Cracker Barrel.
>> Tim Wildmon: What about the decor? You know, there were some of these stores where they took down the old timey decor and the made of.
>> Tim Wildmon: Where did they do that? Have they done that or was that in the plan?
>> Fred Jackson: I've just seen pictures of it.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I don't know if it's across the country.
>> Chris Woodward: I think the decor change is still in place.
>> Ed Vitagliano: And that is coming to a Cracker Barrel near you.
>> Chris Woodward: Less clutter.
>> Tim Wildmon: I don't really care about that. Why do I. What? What? That a decor change in a restaurant is not inherently. It's not a, woke thing or not woke thing, seems to me.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay, Tim, but we got to draw the line, don't we, at that. The little, the little golf tee game that they.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes, they changed the wording on that.
>> Tim Wildmon: They were changed.
>> Tim Wildmon: Oh, you mean from. You're a egg, you're ignoramus. You're an ignoramus. Is that what he said.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Or something?
>> Tim Wildmon: To everybody.
>> Tim Wildmon: Everybody.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes. That's wrong.
>> Tim Wildmon: That's wrong.
>> Ed Vitagliano: That's what I said yesterday. I am all for putting the insults back on that pegboard game. You know what? Because it makes people want to improve them.
>> Chris Woodward: I actually have that app on my phone.
>> Ed Vitagliano: What I would have.
>> Tim Wildmon: What's that?
>> Ed Vitagliano: Oh, the game.
>> Chris Woodward: Yeah, you can get, you can get the little triangle game as an app on your phone. And I do play it.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: How do you do? How do you do, Chris?
>> Chris Woodward: Not very well.
>> Tim Wildmon: Chris was on a 10 hour flight.
>> Chris Woodward: I had the guy leading against me the whole flight. I had to pass the time.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I'm just. Listen, I'm going to say something, Chris. it's going to sound initially hurtful. It hurtful.
>> Tim Wildmon: Hurt.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I have the greatest respect for you, but as game apps go, that one is pretty lame.
>> Tim Wildmon: The peg game on an app.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I do. I have it.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, like playing against the. Playing checkers against the computer.
>> Tim Wildmon: All right, Chris, let's. Let's move on.
>> Chris Woodward: Yes.
>> Ed Vitagliano: All right, well, are you done with Fred?
>> Tim Wildmon: I just want. I'm just. Uncle Herschel's back. Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Okay.
>> Tim Wildmon: I think we all can.
>> Chris Woodward: We're gonna let. Yes, we're gonna let Fred go to go grab us a table at the.
>> Tim Wildmon: Thank you, Fred, for your contribution.
>> Fred Jackson: Age over easy, please.
>> Chris Woodward: Yeah.
>> Tim Wildmon: All right, Chris, what's the next story?
Chinese doctor accused of trying to smuggle cancer research to China
>> Chris Woodward: Well, from time to time on this program, we talk about how, Chinese people, people from China.
>> Tim Wildmon: Be careful, Chris.
>> Chris Woodward: Yeah, they're. They're caught here breaking laws, and it may be part of some sort of espionage, some broader conspiracy, on the part of the Chinese Communist Party. And I, bring this in because this is the latest example, and this is the headline from Fox. Chinese doctor accused of attempting to smuggle cancer research from the US To China. the guy's name is Yoon hai Lee, a 35 year old employed by the MD Anderson Cancer center since 2022. he was Confronted at an airport by officers from U.S. customs and Border Protection on July 9. This is according to the Harris County District Attorney's Office. the office said the authorities working in connection with Homeland Security investigations, quote, found evidence Lee was attempting to take sensitive medical information abroad during an inspection of his belongings. they were able to detain him as he was trying to get on a flight to China. That intellectual property stays with us, the government says, so we can save lives. It has long been documented that a lot of people from China with ties to the Communist Party that runs China have been coming over here and, and taking our intellectual property from, from big corporations that we use for apps, to this incident, which involves cancer research.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Hey, Ray, let me, let me ask you a question here. do you trust Communists?
>> Tim Wildmon: No.
>> Tim Wildmon: No and no.
>> Ed Vitagliano: This is a perfect example of, of why we talked about this yesterday. And I don't speak for everyone. I criticize the President for suggesting that maybe, and it hasn't been done yet. To your point yesterday, Tim, in terms of letting these 600,000 Chinese students in, on, on visas, but it's a bad idea and this is proof. There is no, there is no telling how much intellectual property the Chinese have stolen over the last 30 years. 30 or 40 years. but they've stolen a lot and they've tried to reverse engineer a lot of stuff. I'm sure we've probably done that to some extent. If you can get an advantage over a competitor, you do that. but China has done it, ah, just forever.
>> Tim Wildmon: They've raised it, raised it to an.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Art form and letting more people into this country who would continue to do that. Listen, I'm sure they've tried to infiltrate, our, our access to our military technology. This is part of the reason why I think the Chinese government has been buying up land, buying up property around military bases. They're going to spy. They're going to try to watch and see everything that is flying around or driving around to see if they can, find out information and use it against us.
There is concern that China is spying on US military bases
>> Chris Woodward: Speaking of, spying, there is concern that China or maybe some other country, is spying on our US Military bases. And I say that based on a Daily Mail article. I'll share this on our Today's Issues Facebook page. But the Daily Mail is reporting, this, the headline is pentagon baffled by 8,000 mysterious UFO orbs hovering over US bases. More than 8,000 sightings across the US between December 2022 and in June of 2025 between the hours of 1am and 4am in states including New York, California and Arizona. Now remember the Chinese spy balloon that Biden and his administration let float across the US taking pictures of Lord knows what. this has caused a lot of people to wonder whether China or again some other country, that doesn't like us is possibly doing things in the wee hours of the morning to spy on us. Although some people may also be of the opinion that it's just government technology doing testing, and we're seeing basically our own guys doing things outside basis.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I have, I have my opinion is two possibilities here. And let me start off by just saying, and I know we, we probably don't want to talk about UFOs and aliens here for the rest of the program. You do?
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I personally do not believe these are extraterrestrial. okay. I just don't, I don't believe that we have people visit, beings visiting from other planets. So that leaves me with two possibilities in my mind. Not an expert on this, but nerd alert. I have read about this almost my whole life since I was in junior high school. Read a lot of Christian books on this. You could, you could call me an expert if you wanted. You'd be wrong. But I think either this is human in origin, probably our own technology. I think that's why these are spotted for the most part between 1am and 4am Mostly it's around US military basis bases. I think we have all kinds of technology that would seem like science fiction, or the other option is it is metaphysical, slash spiritual. I'm not a real big, multi dimension, multi universe person. but I would say that it might be possible that it is, metaphysical. and here's why. Because some of the people who spot this, they take videos of it, the speed at which these things move, yet do not break the sound barrier. I mean this is stuff that should create a sonic boom. Some, some of these are spotted hitting the ocean, going into the ocean, leaving no splashes. You cannot break the laws of physics and be a physical, specimen.
>> Tim Wildmon: Well, Ed, okay a question or two here. Just make sure I understood what he's already said.
>> Tim Wildmon: He's an expert, so is he using? I would just.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I was kidding.
>> Tim Wildmon: Nerd alert.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yes, I like that.
>> Tim Wildmon: Nerd.
>> Tim Wildmon: I like that.
Ed: I do not believe UFOs are extraterrestrials
Okay, so you said you're saying you don't think it's not aliens, right?
>> Ed Vitagliano: I do not believe it's alien.
>> Tim Wildmon: But you said it might be metaphysical.
>> Tim Wildmon: What is.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, discussion.
>> Tim Wildmon: What does that word mean?
>> Ed Vitagliano: It means demonic.
>> Tim Wildmon: Gotcha.
>> Ed Vitagliano: But we experts try to use large sounding words to increase the. The amount of impressive.
>> Tim Wildmon: What's demonic, the orbs, the.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Any of this kind of UFO phenomenon, for tons of demons are out.
>> Tim Wildmon: There flying around in space.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Well, let me just. Let me just say when you look in the book the Old Testament, what's interesting about angelic beings sometimes, or what's called creatures around the throne, sometimes they're described by Ezekiel or, and.
>> Tim Wildmon: And those is the great example.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Says this creature looked like burnished bronze.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right, Right.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Okay. Look like shiny metal. All right. And so I say, well, if angels look like that, could demons imitate that kind of appearance? And I just. Just a quick idea here. This, is not, you know, this is not just my idea. Lots of people have said this, including non Christians, that the. The appearances of these kinds of phenomena mimic the technological advancement, or lack of it, of the people who see the stuff. So it used to be. Now you're going to laugh, but it used to be fairies. It used to be little people. It used to be leprechauns. We talk about that. And you know what's fascinating is people would be, kidnapped. You can read all kinds of stories from people in the Middle Ages who were kidnapped by the little people, fairies, etc. I know it's funny sounding. And they would have. Missing.
>> Tim Wildmon: I just like to hear you say fairies. They would have fairies has a double meaning.
>> Ed Vitagliano: The consequences. The consequences of their interaction with these fairies and other little people are the same as people who have had contact with and have been absconded with by quote, unquote, aliens.
>> Tim Wildmon: This is why you tune into today's issues.
>> Tim Wildmon: You have here.
>> Tim Wildmon: You will not hear other places.
>> Ed Vitagliano: This is the same thing that Galileo faced when he took his expertise. Okay, I know one last.
>> Tim Wildmon: Always the problem.
>> Ed Vitagliano: One last thing is because our technology has increased, fairies won't do. Tim. There, I said it again. So you have to substitute the phenomenon and the explanation for it, and you have to leave little people behind.
>> Tim Wildmon: So you're. You're saying leprechauns aren't real?
>> Ed Vitagliano: I'm saying leprechauns aren't real.
>> Tim Wildmon: Oh, Ed, did you just compare yourself to Galileo, though? The Galileo of our generation, ladies and gentlemen. He'll be appreciated in 100 years.
>> Ed Vitagliano: all right, listen, I obviously. you can't. You can't. You can't speak truth. You can't speak truth on a.
>> Tim Wildmon: On.
>> Ed Vitagliano: With a panel like this, a bunch.
>> Tim Wildmon: Of naysayers, it's hard to have a It's hard to have a, serious.
>> Chris Woodward: Conversation about a, if the Lord Terries one day, like Ed's grandkids, my kids, Brent's kids, they're all going to work here, and there's going to be like a painting of Ed on the wall looking up at the stars.
>> Tim Wildmon: You know, Galileo. The Galileo.
>> Ed Vitagliano: oh, I, I, I.
>> Tim Wildmon: All right. So, all right.
>> Ed Vitagliano: That, I'm just, I'm just giving the, the, the, the rough outline. Got you. of. I am, I am trying to write a book on this.
So Bigfoot, yes or no? No. Well, are you guys just going to mock me when I say no
>> Tim Wildmon: So Bigfoot, yes or no?
>> Ed Vitagliano: No.
>> Tim Wildmon: Okay.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Not, not as, not as a physical ape like creature.
>> Chris Woodward: Gotcha.
>> Tim Wildmon: But the, but the Loch Ness monster. Yes.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yes or no.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right.
>> Tim Wildmon: I, I doubt it.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah, yeah, but maybe I, I would, I would be more, I would be more. Well, are you guys just going to mock me when I say no?
>> Tim Wildmon: No, we're listening intently.
>> Ed Vitagliano: I'd be more open to a plesiosaur. then, yeah, I'd be more open to that than I would Bigfoot.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah, yeah. Please.
>> Tim Wildmon: You sore word up?
>> Tim Wildmon: No, he was a philosopher. If you go back, look, you know, he was our Aristotle, so Jesus.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Said, don't cast your pearls before swine. And I, I, that's the way I feel. I, I feel like you just called a swag. This has gone for me.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah.
>> Ed Vitagliano: comparing myself to Galileo.
>> Tim Wildmon: Right.
>> Ed Vitagliano: To calling my dear friends, you're the swine.
>> Tim Wildmon: You're listening to today's news. We're going to get back on track here, Chris. Are we though we got four minutes to recover?
>> Chris Woodward: Yes. Do I have time for a clip?
Virginia is having a gubernatorial election, and the Democrat wants to make sanctuary state
Okay, I'll make this set up quick. Virginia is a state to watch, and I say that because they're having a gubernatorial election. There are two people running for governor. One is a Democrat, Abigail Spanberger. She's running against Winsome Sears. Winsome Sears is currently the lieutenant governor of Virginia. She wants to be governor. And the reason I say Virginia is a, state to watch here is because the Democrat wants to make Virginia a sanctuary state. And that is an issue that Winsome Sears responded to this Morning on Fox.
>> Speaker F: Clip 8 I believe the first job of a governor is to keep the people in their state safe because, you know, I can't even begin to talk about education and why that matters and how it will help our children. I can't talk about, well, bringing jobs to Virginia if we're not safe, if the inventories aren't safe, if our children can't walk the street, if we're not locking up people who commit crimes. And see, this is what my opponent is telling us, what she really believes. She is not going to keep Virginia safe. Dana. Because of the results of what Governor Youngkin has, put forward in Executive Order 47, we are now partnering with ICE. We have our state police, who are helping to get the criminals who are illegally here gone. That's it. How can my opponent be against getting criminals off the street? But, of course, what we know is she has taken thousands of dollars for a pac. Wait for it. That is named D for Fund the Police Pack.
>> Chris Woodward: Now, for anybody out there that might think, well, you know, Winston Sears has a good shot here. Her and Glenn Young can get elected fairly, easily. So did the Republican, Attorney General. That being said, Abigail Spanberger is leading this race in most polls. So if she's elected.
>> Tim Wildmon: Close.
>> Chris Woodward: Probably, yeah. If she's elected, she may make, Virginia the next Illinois.
>> Tim Wildmon: Well, Virginia was trending blue, that is Democrat, before the, shocking upsets four years ago.
>> Chris Woodward: Right.
>> Tim Wildmon: By Winsome Sears. And I say shocking upsets. That's what some people would have called it. Anglin Youngkin and others, there was a. There was a ag. There.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Yeah.
>> Chris Woodward: Ah, Jason Mears.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yes. so. And they swept. They swept the election. so can't, it. Can this be. Are the Republicans on the comeback that will last more than one election cycle? That remains to be seen. But I really like Winsome Sears a lot. And, that was some great comments by her right there.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Plus Abigail, Spanberger, maybe. Maybe an alien.
>> Tim Wildmon: My thanks to, Chris Ray Galileo and Brent Creeley. Our producer, Fred Jackson, for his contributions. Alexander McFarlane, who joined Neil Alexander. Neil Alexander McFarland. and I'm Tim. And we thank you for listening to today's issues trivia.
>> Ed Vitagliano: Friday, tomorrow, tomorrow back.
>> Tim Wildmon: Yeah. So I'm sure he'll have a Holy Land question or two. Right. Since he's back from Israel. We'll see you tomorrow. Have a great afternoon. Keep listening day afar. Thank you.
