A Nation Transformed
The Numbers Behind America's Shifting Religious Landscape
Daily Update · August 17, 2026
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Show Notes
Episode summary:
Texas Governor Greg Abbott just stopped construction of a dedicated foot-washing station at DFW Airport — but is that really the issue, or just the symptom? In this episode of the Wilmington Standard Daily Update, we look past the headline to the numbers behind it: survey data on Sharia law attitudes among U.S. Muslims, and the dramatic growth of America's Muslim immigrant population since 1980. We ask what these trends mean for American culture, our immigration policy, and the Western principles this country was built on.
2. Key Moments
- 00:00 – Hook: Stopping one airport foot-washing station solves nothing
- 00:11 – Rep. Chip Roy's February hearing on Sharia law attitudes among U.S. Muslims
- 01:12 – The numbers: Muslim-majority immigration growth since 1980
- 01:53 – A Texas imam's warning about cultural change in America
- 02:26 – The policy fix: overhauling immigration and protecting American values
3. What You Can Do
Don't let this conversation end when the episode does. Share this episode with someone who needs to hear the numbers behind the headlines, and reach out to your congressional representatives to make your voice heard on immigration policy. Stay informed, stay engaged, and keep pushing for policies that protect the freedoms this country was built on.
Transcript

Stopping the construction of a foot-washing station in Texas solves nothing.
This is the Wilmington Standard Daily Update for Monday August 17, 2026.
According to the Epoch Times, Texas Governor Greg Abbot has put a stop to putting in dedicated foot-washing stations at the Dallas Fort Worth airport. The stations would have been used for Muslim travelers for ritual cleansing for prayer.
According to an opening statement given by Rep. Chip Roy from Texas at a hearing on Sharia-Free America in February of this year:
…a September 2024 survey discovered the following about United States Muslims: Fifty percent favored Sharia blasphemy law, making it illegal to show a picture or cartoon of Muhammad; 46 percent were in favor to form a Muslim political party; 39 percent supported broad application of Sharia in the United States; 33 percent wanted Islam declared as our national religion. A previous Pew study found 19 percent of American Muslims believed suicide bombing on behalf of Islam should be justified.
Representative Roy is correct when he says these results should be troubling to everybody. There is not one of these sentiments – save perhaps just forming a Muslim political party – that is not at complete odds with our Western ideology and political system.
And yet remarkably, we keep letting them into our country.
According to the Center of Immigration Studies, in 1980 America had a resident alien population of just over 513,000 people from Muslim-majority nations. In 2024, that number was over 4 million – representing a 702% increase. For naturalizations – those becoming American citizens – the number in 1980 of 10,530 was dwarfed by the 2024 number of 145,950 – a 1,286% increase.
Neither are they coming to be part of America. They are coming to change it. As one Texas Imam said:
Mamdani is victory. We didn't succeed to conquer Vienna by the sword for 200 years, and now it's 10 percent Muslims. We need to enlarge the Muslim population in America.
A great number of Muslims do want to live free – and come to our country to get away from the madness of their countries of birth. But we also need to understand that there is a very real threat to our Republic from this incredible influx of people from Muslim countries. We need to overhaul our immigration system to make it harder and more selective to get in – not easier. We need to make sure Sharia law – in any flavor – is outlawed everywhere across our country. We need to ban attempts to teach Arabic language and culture in our public schools.
And we need to remember that it is the tenets of Christianity – and no other religion – that are the building blocks of what makes us free.
For the Wilmington Standard, I’m Reuel Sample. Thanks for listening.
About Reuel Sample
Reuel Sample is the Editor-in-Chief of The Wilmington Standard. A graduate of Grove City College and Princeton Theological Seminary, he has served as both a Presbyterian Pastor and a Navy Chaplain. He is the product of a classical liberal arts education combined with real world experience in politics and business and conservative Christian worldview firmly rooted in the Reformed tradition. He is the host of several podcasts including the NHC GOP Podcast, the Pastor's Voice, and co-hosts the Nikki and Reuel Podcast Experience. An avid sailor, he has sailed around the world as a youth and to the Azores as a teen as well as extensive trips up and down the east coast of the United States. He is honored to be married to his wife Pam and makes his home in Wilmington, NC.


