"It is now a daily occurrence, hard-left groups telling Barack Obama he must do their bidding because they supported him. Today it was the New York Times on illegal immigration, an issue that has lost some steam in the face of the financial panic. Last week Ecuadorian Marcello Lucero was beaten to death on Long Island, allegedly by seven high school students. Authorities are calling it a 'hate crime,' and the Times used that murder to demonize Suffolk County executive Steve Levy, who has led a crackdown on illegal immigration. What the New York Times wants Barack Obama to do is grant every illegal alien in this country amnesty. There is a solution to illegal immigration, and Barack Obama should embrace it. First, stop illegal crossings at the border; Second, mandate that all illegals register with the federal government; Third, heavily fine companies that hire people with bogus Social Security numbers; Finally, evaluate aliens on a case-by-case basis for green cards. Talking Points believes most reasonable people would accept that, and we hope President Obama will do the right thing. Finally, we send our condolences to the family of Marcello Lucero, who was in this country legally. But we must note that thousands of American citizens have been killed by illegal aliens, and we can not find one New York Times editorial condemning that. Not one!"

News Link: NYT demagogues illegal immigrant murder

Ohio official Helen Jones-Kelley, who pried into the files of Joe "the Plumber" Wurzelbacher, has been suspended with pay. The Factor asked legal experts Megyn Kelly and Lis Wiehl about Jones-Kelley's misconduct. "While on the taxpayers' dime," Kelly explained, "she used her facilities to promote the Obama campaign and she offered to provide the campaign with a list of seventeen potential donors. But I don't think she's going to be prosecuted." Wiehl argued that Jones-Kelley may face criminal charges. "She had been warned by the governor's office not to get involved in the campaign. There could be a misuse of office misdemeanor charge, and if the prosecutor doesn't go after this, then it's the prosecutor on the line."

News Link: Joe the Plumber snooper suspended

What is Sarah Palin's future in the Republican Party? Fox News analyst Karl Rove said that depends on how she handles herself in the near future. "The polls right now don't matter," Rove declared, "what really matters is what happens over the next two years. Republicans are going to look at Palin, Jindal, Romney, Huckabee, and others, and they're going to ask who can help the party get off the mat. All of them have to go places and speak out on behalf of the party, so Sarah Palin has the chance to demonstrate that she has heft and gravitas." The Factor suggested that Governor Palin needs to matriculate in the political version of grad school. "She has star power, she is ambitious, and she is not going away. But there are serious questions about her knowledge of the world and her ability to deal with problems. She's got to get a Ph.D. in the world over the next two years."

As part of a PBS special, The Factor went toe-to-toe with veteran newsman and media observer Marvin Kalb. Some excerpts:

Kalb: Do you think it is good journalism for one network like Fox to be regarded as the right-wing network and MSNBC to be seen as the left-wing?
O'Reilly: If you watch Fox News hard news coverage, it's not conservative, it's down the line. So do I have a problem with Fox News and its reportage? I have no problem.
Kalb: Do you have a problem with the reportage of MSNBC?
O'Reilly: They don't do any reporting.

Kalb: When the Iraq war started, why were you for it?
O'Reilly: Because I believed the intelligence that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.
Kalb: Did you see the intelligence?
O'Reilly: We talked to people in British intelligence, Egyptian intelligence, and Jordanian intelligence to confirm what United States intelligence was putting out. If Tony Blair, Hosni Mubarak, and the Jordanian guys are saying the same thing, who am I to say it's bull?
Kalb: Do you feel now that you were lied to?
O'Reilly: No, it was a mistake. It wasn't a lie, it was a mistake.

Kalb: Do you believe that a president who avoided military service himself should be sending men and women to fight in what are being called wars of choice?
O'Reilly: Are you talking about Bill Clinton?
Kalb: No.
O'Reilly: Who are you talking about?
Kalb: I'm talking about George W. Bush.
O'Reilly: He was in the National Guard.
Kalb: You're doing very well, but you're not answering the question.
O'Reilly: It was another left-wing question. You wanted to hit Bush, but I hit you with Clinton.
Kalb: What you have just done is a classic O'Reilly.
O'Reilly: Of course, I'm right.

The Washington Post has admitted that its coverage was slanted toward Barack Obama. But John Meacham, editor of the Post's sister publication Newsweek, wasn't ready to make the same confession. "Obama got the coverage he got," Meacham told The Factor, "in part because he was a completely new face. But we're always learning." Meacham also theorized that John McCain was almost destined to lose. "The biggest mistake he made was running in a year when the market collapsed, and I don't think there was anything he could have done. Choosing Governor Palin was a mistake because it lost some moderates and independents, but it didn't really matter once September hit." The Factor argued that McCain's great mistake was muzzling Sarah Palin. "If McCain had let Palin loose instead of trying to control everything she did, I think you would have a different assessment."

Legal wizards Megyn Kelly and Lis Wiehl returned to analyze two other cases. One involved an Arizona man who was shot by police after he threatened his 3-year-old child. "Clearly this guy was out of his mind in some way," Kelly said. "He threatened to 'pile-drive' his 3-year-old into the ground, he had blood on his shirt, and these cops had no choice but to do what they did." In another Arizona horror story, an 8-year old boy was arrested for shooting and killing his father and another man. "He had been spanked the night before," Wiehl reported, "but that was it. He'll either be tried as a juvenile or he can be tried for premeditated, first-degree murder. This would be a real jump to try this kid for premeditated murder at eight-years-old."

News Link: Man in scary standoff with 3-year-old

News Link: Prosecutors: 8-year-old methodically shot dad

Juliet Huddy challenged Steve Doocy in The Great American Culture Quiz, this one focusing on The Wizard of Oz. The Factor asked five questions, including these: "What was Dorothy's last name?" ... "Who did Dorothy meet first on the Yellow Brick Road?" ... "Who played the Wizard of Oz?" The rivals finished the match in a deadlock, but Doocy - proving that he indeed has a brain - won the tie-breaker and bragging rights. The entire GACQ is here on BillOReilly.com under "Fun Stuff."

Tuesday's Patriot: Barack Obama, who exhibited his humorous side during a just-released 2005 roast of Rahm Emanuel. And the Pinhead: Madonna, who issued orders that her children have to follow strict Kabbalah rules when they visit their dad.

News Link: Video flashback: Obama roasts Rahm Emmanuel

News Link: Madonna's 12 rules for sons' visits to Guy

Lt. Col. Josh Johnson, Dixon, CA: "It's interesting to see liberal elitists like Phil Donahue wiggle in their seats trying to justify how freedom applies only to Americans. It's selective morality."

Bob Northrop, Rockville, MD: "We want to help wounded vets but somehow Donahue always wraps it up with an anti-American message."

Edward Augustine, Birmingham, AL: "The Heidi Klum commercial is great to watch. Please do not be priggish!"

Veronica Jarocki, Coral Springs, FL: "Commercials like Klum's make my job as a Middle School teacher that much harder."

Jessica Madoc-Jones, Groton, MA: "Bill, that commercial is more tasteful than some of the Viagra stuff."