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| All content taken from The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News Channel. Each weeknight by 6 PM EST a preview of that evening's show will be posted and then updated with additional information the following weekday by noon EST.
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| "There was no doubt after 9/11 that the Bush administration had to reply with force - the logical target was the Taliban in Afghanistan, who gave Al Qaeda free rein to launch their terror attacks. The Taliban were quickly overthrown and the USA celebrated a great victory. But eight years later, things are not so great and President Obama owns the war, which he calls 'a war of necessity.' There are plenty of questions about how the president is waging the war; he is still deciding whether to send the 40,000 additional troops requested by his hand-picked commander Stanley McChrystal. If Obama does not send the forces there will be a major controversy, and if things get worse President Obama will be blamed. Part of the problem is his left-wing base - people like Vice President Biden and Speaker Pelosi are not committed to more troops. According to the latest Fox News poll, 50% of Americans do not believe the president is doing what it takes to win in Afghanistan. After eight years things should be much better, but now is not the time to surrender. NATO is impotent and it once again falls to the United States to keep the world safe from Al Qaeda and the Taliban. We'll see if President Obama is up to the task." |
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| Political strategist Dick Morris joined The Factor with his analysis of President Obama's Afghanistan conundrum. "He was elected as an anti-war president," Morris said, "so if he sends extra troops the left is going to absolutely go ballistic, and if he doesn't there will be a bad outcome and that will also be on his doorstep. He's in a very tough position, but I think he's going to send the extra troops." Morris suggested that President Obama is particularly exposed on his left flank. "We're still in Iraq, we're still in Afghanistan, we're still in Guantanamo, he won't pass cap-and-trade, and he may not pass health care with a public option. This guy is vulnerable to a primary challenge from the left." The Factor added that "nine months into President Obama's term, it looks like there is no win on the horizon." |
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| The Factor continued on Afghanistan with Medea Benjamin of the anti-war group Code Pink. "We don't think sending 40,000 new troops is the answer," Benjamin stated, "and we don't think there is a military solution. In fact, we think the presence of U.S. troops is the best recruiting tool the Taliban has - we'd be a lot better off if we provided financial incentives for people not to join the Taliban. Let's put our money into education and health care and raising people out of poverty." The Factor forcefully challenged Benjamin's prescription: "You feel you know more about winning a war than General McChrystal! He is certain that more troops is the answer, so why should I take your expertise over his? And if the Taliban comes back, they're going to brutalize women to the worst extent we've ever seen." |
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| Al Franken won his Senate race by just 312 votes in Minnesota, where ACORN registered some 43,000 new voters prior to the election. The Factor was joined by Minnesota Congresswoman Michelle Bachman, who is demanding an investigation of ACORN. "In state after state," Bachman declared, "there were phony registrations put in, so it's important to take a look. ACORN received taxpayer money in Minnesota, and I want to make sure there is a full review and audit of how that money was spent. The question is whether any taxpayer money was used for election purposes, which would clearly be illegal." The Factor also called for an audit of ACORN's Minnesota activities: "I don't have any hard evidence, but if there isn't an audit there will always be a cloud that ACORN threw that election to Franken." |
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| This weekend President Obama will address the Human Rights Campaign, a homosexual organization, but some other gays will be outside protesting the president's appearance. The Factor welcomed gay rights activist Wayne Besen, who outlined his disenchantment with the president. "President Obama did a good job delivering hope," Besen said, "but now it's time to deliver change. We've been patient, but there are a lot of indignities we face every day, everything from being able to get fired from our jobs to being thrown out of the military. Obama can change that and we're simply holding him to his promises. If Barack Obama does not transcend 'politics as usual,' he is not going to win re-election." The Factor argued that President Obama will not spend his political capital on gay issues. "He is on record as saying he supports traditional marriage and he is a politician who has to pick and choose his battles. He's going to take on gay issues in the middle of health care and Afghanistan? He'll never do that." |
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| On FNC's 13th birthday, The Factor asked Dennis Miller why the network is reviled by many self-proclaimed progressives. "They don't watch it," Miller responded. "Whenever I find someone who doesn't dig you, invariably they say they would never give you the satisfaction of watching. It's animus abstentious. And the hatred from TV critics is this: How much self-loathing do you have to have to become a TV critic to begin with? You have to sit at home in your undies and watch something you hate!" Miller also theorized why FNC is so popular with viewers. "Cable news is like a long straightaway. On the left lane, MSNBC has gone so far out that even Magellan and OnStar can't locate them; CNN is like the old faded yellow line down the middle; Fox is in the right lane, but you still have rubber on the road. And Roger Ailes is an absolute genius at hiring women who are beautiful, but even smarter than they are beautiful." |
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| In this week's "Did You See That," FNC's Jane Skinner viewed video of a young man who was severely injured when his bungee cord broke as he leaped into a river. "Researchers studied the brains of risk-takers," Skinner reported, "and they found that they get higher levels of dopamine, the chemical that makes you feel good, and people actually get addicted to it." Skinner then watched tape of some students who appeared on CNN to sing a song praising President Obama's health care reform. "These are junior high students," Skinner said, "and it's important to point out that this is a private school. As long as they're not breaking the law they can do whatever they want." |
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