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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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| "The surveillance situation is very confusing, but vitally important for every American. Here is the headline: The U.S. government is building a 1,000,000 square foot complex in Utah that will house phone call and email data taken from Americans and foreigners alike. Also, a leaker named Edward Snowden gave information to a London newspaper saying the U.S. is taking information from tech companies in order to fight the war on terror. We really don't know exactly what the government is doing. Phone calls and emails to and from American citizens are being scrutinized; it's a massive intrusion and it affects all of us. What could happen, and what has happened, is that corrupt government officials have put out private data illegally. We saw that in the IRS hearings last week - a pro-traditional marriage organization had data leaked to its enemies, allegedly by an IRS official. In the case of emails, you have actual words on paper that people have said in private. If that information is being stored in Utah, that's flat-out unconstitutional. So this is one big mess, and ideologically it's absolutely chaos. Supporters of the NSA surveillance program include Senator John McCain, Senator Diane Feinstein, Republican Karl Rove and Democrat Kirsten Powers. Opposed are Glenn Beck, Michael Moore, Rush Limbaugh, and Al Gore. Some liberals are surprised that President Obama is behind the program, but the President wants a powerful federal government that runs nearly everything, so this is consistent. Here's what I think: The war on terror requires aggressive federal surveillance. Storing phone call data is questionable, but I think it's permissible under the Constitution. But seizing actual words of Americans said in private, unless there's probable cause, is clearly unconstitutional. I'm very tough on national security, but this is dangerous. One more thing: All this government intrusion didn't stop those Boston bombers, did it?" |
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Guests: Karl Rove
The Factor welcomed FNC analyst Karl Rove, a supporter of the NSA's surveillance program. "The phone record program keeps a data base of phone calls," Rove explained, "which records what number was called on what day and for how long. This data base can not be accessed unless there is evidence of a tie to terrorism that justifies a warrant from a federal judge. The other program is called PRISM and it involves the communications of someone who is not a U.S. citizen. In essence, this is a way for us to look at the electronic communication of bad guys that flows through U.S. networks. There is no confiscation of emails or video chats from U.S. citizens. The law prohibits the targeting of U.S. citizens or anyone in the U.S." Nevertheless, The Factor insisted that "we the people are owed a very specific explanation and we are going to demand that." |
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Guests: Juan Williams and Mary Katharine Ham
Mary Katharine Ham and Juan Williams entered the arena with their thoughts on government data collection. "Even if these rules are in place," Ham warned, "how confident can we be that they are not being violated, especially when this is all secret? If there are 5-million 'secret' or 'top secret' clearances, what are the chances that every single person is operating exactly according to the law?" Williams contended that the program has many safeguards to protect ordinary citizens. "You don't trust government and this is an extension of the conservative line that this is more government overreach. You're saying that not only do you not trust President Obama, but you don't trust the Republicans and Democrats who run the intelligence committees and you don't trust the federal judges on the FISA court. You don't trust anybody!" In response, The Factor raised the specter of the IRS: "You had federal officials working for the IRS illegally mining information about conservative groups and giving it to their opponents, and you're telling me I should trust the federal government! What are you, Bambi?" |
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Guests: Brit Hume
As mentioned in the Talking Points Memo, the NSA surveillance program has made for some strange ideological bedfellows. The Factor asked Fox News analyst Brit Hume to sort it all out. "As far as we know," he began, "if the program is used legally we are all pretty safe in terms of the privacy of our communication. But the worrisome thing is that when the government has this much data there is the possibility that it could be illegally accessed and used for improper purposes. The leaker of this information suggests that this can happen and that he was able to access all this information, but I'm skeptical of him. The most alarming thing about this program is that this guy got a security clearance! He's a guy with limited education and he doesn't seem like the kind of person who would qualify for a high security clearance." |
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Guests: Bernie Goldberg
There was riveting testimony last week from conservative groups who claim they were targeted by the IRS. The Factor asked FNC's Bernie Goldberg to assess the mainstream coverage of the Congressional hearings. "There are some things we should all be able to agree upon," Goldberg said, "and one of them is that the role of the press is to keep an eye on the abuses of government. When Americans testify before Congress about the abuses of the IRS, that's a legitimate news story, but television news either ignored the story entirely or gave it only a few minutes. It's a safe bet that if we had a Republican in the White House, the networks would have been all over the story. If the networks were covering this story and Benghazi honestly, President Obama's approval ratings would be at least 20 points lower!" |
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Guests: Dennis Miller
Dennis Miller, in a rare Monday appearance, opined on the decision by organizers of the Miss World pageant to eschew bikinis in the swimsuit competition. "Don't you love that the most close-minded people in the world, Muslims, are now making the calls on an open-minded world? And if you don't go along with it, you're deemed to be closed-minded! How in the world did that happen? They won't be happy until they replace the bikini with a 'Hurt Locker' suit. And Miss Congeniality is out the door, too, as far as these people are concerned. They could probably stand to ogle a chick in a bikini a little more, maybe they'd be less uptight." |
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David Fields, Greeneville, TN: "It seems Megyn Kelly is having trouble comprehending that wicked people will use any federal data to harm their enemies."
Dick Meyer, Charlotte, NC: "Bill, just remember the next time a terror attack kills people, some will say the government is not doing enough to protect us."
Molly Persinger, IN: "Bill, you are right that the potential for blackmail is enormous. Government spying will affect everybody."
Adam Rathgaber, LaCrosse, WI: "Now I know what Verizon's 'Share Everything Plan' is." |
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| The movie version of "Killing Lincoln" is now out on DVD and Blu-ray, as is "Kennedy's Last Days," an adaptation of "Killing Kennedy" aimed at kids. |
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