Guest:David Axelrod
"According to a new survey by the Gallup organization, President Obama has seriously divided the country. 79% of Democrats approve of the job Barack Obama is doing; just 9% of Republicans approve. According to Gallup, Mr. Obama is on pace to be the most polarizing president in history, surpassing George W. Bush. There are two main reasons for that. First, the economy, with take-home pay down 4% on the president's watch. And secondly, the jihad, a situation that is rapidly getting out of control. Over the weekend, Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, who retired last year as the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, said our strategy is 'clearly not working.' General Flynn was a top advisor to President Obama and joins former Secretaries of Defense Panetta and Gates in lamenting America's poor strategy to counter Muslim extremism. To be fair, some Americans do not believe General Flynn - they do not see a threat to our way of life from the jihadists. But most Americans do understand the threat. So Barack Obama, who once promised to unite the country, finds himself as a divider. Not good for America."

The Factor invited reaction from President Obama's longtime confidante and political adviser David Axelrod. "I certainly dismiss the notion that the president doesn't have a sense of urgency," Axelrod protested, "because any person who sits in that chair and is responsible for the lives of Americans has to feel a sense of urgency. Intelligence around the world was taken aback by the quick movements of ISIS, and President Obama said from the beginning that it will take a long time to defeat ISIS." Axelrod also defended his former boss's decision to bring up the Christian Crusades when warning about religious extremism. "I think he knew what he was saying, and his point is that a quarter of the world's population is Islamic and the vast majority of them have nothing to do with extremism. He wants to isolate the extremists." The Factor maintained that the administration has been totally ineffective against the terror threat: "Under the president's watch ISIS has gained thousands of miles of territory in Syria and Iraq. But Barack Obama doesn't believe that his policy is failing, he keeps looking away from the situation."

Guest:David Axelrod
Returning for a second segment, David Axelrod turned to domestic policy and President Obama's decision to align himself with Jeremiah Wright and Al Sharpton. "Reverend Wright was his minister," Axelrod said, "and he was an internationally recognized religious leader. The president criticized the things that Reverend Wright said and he then left that church. And Bill, you don't decide who leaders are. Al Sharpton is widely regarded as a leader in the African American community and the president respects his leadership in some areas." The Factor questioned the wisdom of cozying up to a racial arsonist: "I can't understand the Al Sharpton thing. There are so many other civil rights leaders who are not tax cheats and not polarizing." Axelrod also addressed President Obama's ongoing deficit spending. "The great recession was something the president walked into, it added trillions of dollars in debt. But as a percentage of the economy, the deficit is about a third of what it was when he took office."

Guest:Karl Rove
For another view, The Factor turned to former Bush adviser and Fox News analyst Karl Rove. "David Axelrod made a big point about not questioning people's motivations," Rove observed, "but it's President Obama who routinely questions the motives of people who disagree with him politically. He suggested that Republicans want to hurt poor people, and some of his allies have suggested that any political opposition is rooted in racism." Rove also took issue with President Obama's anti-terror strategy. "The president's policies aren't working. The number of deaths, the number of refugees, and all of these metrics are going in the wrong direction. President Obama says this is not an 'existential threat,' but what if there were a caliphate in the heart of the Middle East? How much danger would that be to the United States?"

Guests:Juan Williams & Mary Katharine Ham
During Sunday night's Grammy Awards, singer Pharrell used the now-discredited "hands up, don't shoot" pose. Juan Williams and Mary Katharine Ham opined on the incendiary gesture. "This has become a symbol for people who are legitimately critical of police behavior," Williams began. "Although we do not know that Michael Brown had his hands up, it has become the way that people talk about this. But I wish artists were just as critical about black-on-black violence and black family breakdown. I don't see them ever saying a thing about that!" Ham essentially gave Pharrell a pass on his political statement. "It is a false narrative, but I do understand what the artists are doing. As a conservative, I'm not surprised to find that the Grammys are filled with liberal political statements. I'm a grownup and I can deal with that."

Guest:Megyn Kelly
NBC News anchor Brian Williams is taking some time off after revelations that he embellished stories about his experiences in Iraq and perhaps elsewhere. The Factor asked Megyn Kelly to elaborate on the situation. "In the wake of his comments about Iraq," Kelly said, "people are looking at his other reporting. He claimed that his hotel in New Orleans during Katrina was overrun by gangs and he claimed there was a body floating face down outside the hotel. This is what it's come down to - everything is being analyzed. I defended him for a few nights, but then I took a hard look at all the statements he has made. There is no question that he was exaggerating from day one."

Guest:Jesse Watters
Jesse Watters paid a visit to the Gasparilla Pirate Festival in Tampa, where Americans come from across the country to dress up in buccaneer garb. Most of the wannabee pirates had absolutely no idea who Bowe Bergdahl is, nor were they familiar with that prison known as Gitmo. And as for ISIS and the Taliban, let's just say that the attendees were clueless. Apparently wearing an eye patch and brandishing a sword do not impart knowledge.

An honorable man or woman always tries to tell the truth.