"On Monday I had to make a decision. Which story was more important - Vice President Cheney failing to disclose a shooting accident in a timely manner, or Vice President Gore in Saudi Arabia accusing the USA of abusing Arabs on American soil. Call me crazy, but I chose the Gore story, believing that his explosive accusations in the Middle East could hurt America in the war on terror. The Cheney story was unfortunate for the man accidentally shot, but who else was affected? No one! If the story had any implications other than the poor man getting hurt, I would have been all over Cheney. Of course, Cheney should have known that the anti-Bush press would make a big deal out of this. Some of our competitors are spending hours talking about this Cheney misfire, which seems absurd. And the Al Gore speech in Saudi Arabia was almost totally ignored by the elite media, which says a lot."

Fox News Video: FoxNews.com

Two newspaper veterans joined The Factor to debate the media's coverage of the stories. Columnist Clarence Page argued that the Cheney shooting incident is more significant. "Both stories deserved to be covered, but what the current vice president does is more important. This looks like one more cover-up in an administration that's had too many cover-ups. Our job is to ask questions, and the administration's job is to answer them." Washington Times reporter Bill Sammon agreed that Cheney should have disclosed the shooting, but accused his colleagues of over-reacting. "The press is treating this like it's World War III. They're letting all their pent-up frustrations with this administration come pouring into the briefing room. This is why America hates the mainstream media." The Factor reiterated that the Cheney story is not of national significance. "What is the big deal about an accident in south Texas? Cheney was foolish not to disclose this, but it's not a big story."

39-year old Joseph Smith, convicted of kidnapping and murdering 11-year old Carlie Brucia in 2003, is about to be sentenced. Smith apologized to the Brucia family and partly blamed his severe drug problems. The Factor reminded viewers that Carlie's murder could have been prevented had Judge Harry Rapkin imprisoned Smith for violating probation prior to the killing. "This judge had a history of letting people walk out the courtroom door. You don't put walking time bombs out on the streets of Florida, and that's the bottom line here. This didn't have to happen." Attorney Michelle Suskauer defended the judge and blamed the system. "It's easy to point the finger at Judge Rapkin, but he is a public servant who was on the bench for 13 years. Joseph Smith was on probation for a non-violent offense, and we don't have enough jail space to lock up every person who is on probation for a drug offense."

Also in Florida, 20-year old Shawn Strawser is scheduled to be released from prison next week. He was convicted of forcing four girls, aged 7 to 10, to perform oral sex on him - prosecutors asked for 49 years, but Judge Marc Gold sentenced him to just 15 months. Strawser's attorney Jeffrey Voluck claimed the sentence was entirely appropriate. "We had expert testimony from respected psychologists, and Shawn Strawser is not likely to be a sexual predator. The little girls are going to do just fine as they grow up, although I don't minimize what they went for." The Factor called the sentence far too light. "We don't know what Strawser will do, but we do know four little girls had their childhood taken away from them in an awful way by this individual, who only serves 15 months. I don't think that's enough. If your client had done that today, he would have gotten 25 years because of Jessica's Law."

Soldiers and sailors have always had high divorce rates, and the number has increased dramatically during the war on terror. Psychologist John Van Epp runs a program for young military men and women, urging them to be patient. "Singles in the military are isolated and lonely, and there's pressure on them to settle down. A lot of single people get married right before they are deployed to a war zone. We're trying to give them tools to use wisdom and slow down when forming a relationship." The Factor pointed out that war and marriage are frequently incompatible. "I know how you change when you're in a war zone. When you marry someone and they go to war, they're not the same person you married. There's nothing any program can do to change that."

Syndicated radio host Laura Ingraham, just back from a visit to Iraq, provided her insights into the situation there. "Security is really a problem - just traveling eight miles took hours because of all the security. The insurgents know that terrorizes people and can do tremendous damage to the economy." The Factor questioned whether the terrorists can be defeated. "Any fair-minded person knows that our military has done terrific work over there, but I don't know if we can ever win the fight because you can't root out people who are just going to blow up bombs." But Ingraham expressed deep optimistic about Iraq's prospects. "I witnessed the utter professionalism of our military and the bravery of the Iraqi military. If we can continue to turn over more battle space to the Iraqis, that is good for the country. I'm confident the overwhelming majority of the Iraqi people are committed to this. If the American people can be patient, I think we can be successful."

Fox News Video: FoxNews.com

Some Factor viewers have been chosen to "Bloviate with Bill" on the topic of their choice, and on Tuesday 50-year old Ruth White stepped up the plate. White, who had three children before being married, disagreed with Bill's contention that out-of-wedlock births are a recipe for poverty. "It was hard for me," White admitted, "but there are many other women like me whose children went to college and got married. Most of the women you talk about who have children with gang members and are third-generation welfare, I don't know them." The Factor commended White for her strength and perseverance, citing her as the exception that proves the rule. "Your three children all got married, but not every woman is as strong as you. Being a single mother doubles the risk of delinquency, and I don't want other young women to get into that situation - I want all Americans to succeed."

Richard Belisle, East Lansing, MI: "I never thought the day would come when I would agree with Bill O'Reilly because I am a member of the far-left. But, yes, Al Gore's comments were inappropriate."

Imad Khanafer, San Francisco, CA: "As an Arab-American, I have never been abused in this country and I don't know of any other Arabs who have been. America has every right to arrest anyone connected with terrorism."

Fred Lacker, Sun City West, AZ: "O'Reilly, what happened to fair and balanced? You spent ten minutes knocking Gore and only a few seconds laughing at Cheney."

Bill Loss, Japan: "I am in the Navy over here and have a question about the Cheney situation: Isn't there anything more important to report?"