The Daily Signal - Hope and Principles After Defeat: Virginia Students Stand for Freedom

Episode Date: November 7, 2025

In the wake of the historic election results in Virginia many conservatives that I know are downhearted, disillusioned and depressed. Fingers begin to feel like pointing and to extrapolate on the old expression that “victory has many parents, but defeat is an orphan,” I’ll add that defeat does seem to have many cousins telling them where they went wrong. However, not to sound like a Pollyanna but the Bill of Rights is still there, Virginia’s Bill of Rights is still there and though we redouble our commitment to cover any attempt to violate the most sacred of America’s codes, “shall not be infringed.” We need to know the good in the world. Today, so many of my friends are looking for positive things in the Conservative world. To reinforce the belief that the future is still filled with American Exceptionalism. It is with that in mind I share with you a conversation with two Virginian High School students boldly standing up for founding principles from their Turning Point USA chapter at Western Albemarle High School, Noah Coffin and Ollie Woodrow. Keep Up With The Daily Signal   Sign up for our email newsletters:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ https://www.dailysignal.com/email⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠     Subscribe to our other shows:    The Tony Kinnett Cast: ⁠https://megaphone.link/THEDAILYSIGNAL2284199939⁠ The Signal Sitdown: ⁠https://megaphone.link/THEDAILYSIGNAL2026390376⁠   Problematic Women:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠https://megaphone.link/THEDAILYSIGNAL7765680741⁠   Victor Davis Hanson: ⁠https://megaphone.link/THEDAILYSIGNAL9809784327⁠     Follow The Daily Signal:    X:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠https://x.com/intent/user?screen_name=DailySignal⁠ Instagram:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ https://www.instagram.com/thedailysignal/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Facebook:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ https://www.facebook.com/TheDailySignalNews/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  Truth Social:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ https://truthsocial.com/@DailySignal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  YouTube:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/dailysignal?sub_confirmation=1⁠    Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform and never miss an episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At Desjardin, we speak business. We speak equipment modernization. We're fluent in data digitization and expansion into foreign markets. And we can talk all day about streamlining manufacturing processes. Because at Desjardin business, we speak the same language you do. Business. So join the more than 400,000 Canadian entrepreneurs who already count on us. And contact Desjardin today.

We'd love to talk, business. At Capital One, we're more than just a credit card company. We're people just like you who believe in the power of yes. Yes to new opportunities. Yes to second chances. Yes to a fresh start. That's why we've helped over 4 million Canadians get access to a credit card. Because at Capital One, we say yes, so you don't have to hear another no.

What will you do with your yes? Get the yes you've been waiting for at Capital One.ca.ca. Terms and conditions apply. for listening to this bonus episode of the Daily Signal podcast. I'm your host, Joe Thomas, Virginia correspondent for The Daily Signal. Before we dive into today's interview, I want to thank you for tuning in today. If you're a first time listener, The Daily Signal, brings you fact-based reporting and conservative commentary on politics, policy, and culture. And I hope you join our band of regular listeners to our podcast. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and also take a moment. to rate and review us wherever you get your podcast, you can find additional content at DailySignal.com. Now, let's get started with today's conversation right after this. One of the largest Turning Point USA chapters in high school, which is a heretofore forgotten part of the Turning Point USA movement, is right here in Virginia in Western Albemarle County,

what a lot of my friends call the belly of the beast. Noah and Ali, thank you guys for taking a couple of minutes out with us and you're holding an amazing event here with the family foundation and one of our local crisis pregnancy centers as well talk about what the last few months have been like since the assassination of charlie kirk because it seems like you guys have been able to where a lot of negativity has come into the movement you guys have been able to marshal a real positive movement. Right. It's a tragedy. Out of everyone, Ollie and I know.

But we're experiencing a spiritual and a political revival right now. What we're experiencing is like never anything before. And like we talked about on stage, what man intends for evil, God intends for good. God is working through this. He's working through chapters like ours. And you can see we started with, what, 3,000 chapters before? Now there's 126,000.

It's just absolutely amazing. It's a tragedy. It's terrible. And I think it speaks the amount of work we have to do on the culture here in America. But ultimately, God absolutely is using this for good. Well, and in high school, high school is such a time of insecurity, figuring out who you are in the first place. Talk about what it's like when you talk to kids in your classes

that want to join your movement, not so much to be a joiner, but to give themselves a place to find their own voice. No, it's really great because I feel like a lot of kids, these days they only hear from one side of the story. They hear from their parents or they hear from the news, all this stuff about like hating Trump, hating conservative ideas, how these things are devolving the country into fascism. But it's really great to just give these students another point of view. And a lot of students who join our club, Noah can tell you, they're not all staunch conservatives coming to our club.

We have people coming to our club who hate what we do, but they really just want to learn more. We have people who come, and they know nothing about politics, but they just want to get involved. And we are giving them a platform like they've never seen. before to do that. So we're really happy and we're really thankful for Turning Point for giving us this opportunity. Talk about that for a second. The narrative, even after

the assassination, the negative things that are still being said about Charlie, about Turning Point USA. Are you finding kids coming to see if it's true? And what's just their reaction when they see that it is? You know, I mean, obviously, we all know all the

comments made a lot, they're sick, they're disgusting. And so you have these students who see these, say, wow, there must be a war going on. This must be back and forward. This must be intense. They come to our meetings and they say, wait a second, this is peaceful. This is civil dialogue. Adults in D.C. can't do this. How come to do this? Well, our chapter's gotten really good at it. We have 180 students come peacefully, listen to speakers, ask questions, and hear the truth. And it's absolutely amazing. And it gives me hope from my generation to see these students behaving, acting themselves, carrying themselves with such poise that some adults elected officials can't do. Is that one of the things that has jinned up this negative attempts at Turning Point and the youth movement of conservatives

because they're afraid that Charlie was able to, in a few minutes, conversation, flip 13 years of indoctrination so easily and win over so many young people that the progressives, the Marxists, are deathly afraid of what could happen next? Yes, truly, they are scared. The left is terrified, and the devil is terrified, too. And what man intended for evil, what man intended to shut us down when they killed Charlie Kirk, they tried to do that because they were afraid.

They're afraid they're seeing the way that our generation we're waking up. We're not falling for their lives anymore, and they're terrified, and they tried to shut us down by killing Charlie Kirk, but that did not work. We're still here today. We're actually even more invigorated. We are more ready to go out and spread the word,

And people across the country are waking up and they're ready to start something. One of the most important parts of John Locke's philosophy is that we need elected officials who are empowered to defend the God-given rights that we have, not give them to us, but defend them. Is that an important message for the young people who are going to be the leaders? Not all that long from now. I'm looking at 25 and 30-year-olds who are going to be in Congress, who are going to be in state houses, very soon. I mean, you guys are getting ready to go off to school.

That importance of having elected officials, because a lot of folks will tell me, oh, you always make it about politics and about government. But these are the people who are supposed to be defending our God-given rights. Absolutely. And you're right. It is a lot of time about politics. But also, it's about stealing these values young. It's stealing the values.

The classic American values you're found on, Christianity, have a family. Love your wife. Love your kids. Put your family first, put God first. these values that have been lost, but these values that are chapter are seeking to instill in these kids now. And so when they grow up and they become politicians, they become businessmen, they become critical thinkers and leaders, they've grown up with these values. They've been surrounded by them, and so they're able to set a better example than some of the leaders we have right now. Well, it gives us great hope for the next 20 years or so.

Guys, thank you so much for taking a couple of minutes out. I know you have a packed barn here full of supporters here. Victoria Cobb is here from the Family Foundation. so many folks who are here to support what you guys do. Is it ever get like you have to look in the mirror and pinch yourself and say, wow, this is just getting existential? Yes, it is. It really is amazing how far we've come.

When we first started it, we thought we'd have a couple friends out there maybe to our meetings. But when we see 180 students piling into the room, it really is just shocking. And it's amazing. And we've really just seen God's hand moving through this. And we're really blessed and we're really lucky. And we're grateful to all the support we've received. Well, thank you for giving this. old man, a reason to get up every morning and have hope. Thank you guys. You have a great day.

Absolutely. You too. Thank you so much. That'll do it for today's show. Don't forget to hit that subscribe button so you never miss out on new episodes from The Daily Signal. Every weekday you can catch top news in 10 to keep up with the day's top headlines in just 10 minutes. And every weekday afternoon catch Victor Davis Hansen's thoughtful analysis for The Daily Signal. If you like what you hear on this show, Would you take a minute and leave us comment? We love hearing your feedback. Thanks again for being with us today.