Guest: Brett Baier

"Last night Dick Morris said he believes Governor Romney will win easily in November; Talking Points dissents, I believe the vote will be very close. The wild card is Mitt Romney himself, who must convince skeptical voters that he's looking out for them. He has to do it in a very personal way, but that is not Governor Romney's style. He's a reserved man who is a traditional campaigner, saying the same things over and over. President Obama also repeats himself frequently, but the President does have the common touch and his speaking ability is convincing to many. Last time around John McCain did not have enough persuasive power to overcome the charismatic Obama, but now the President has a record and many believe it is weak. Can Mitt Romney exploit the shaky economy, rising gas prices, and out of control debt? He can expect no help from the media. Talk radio may help Governor Romney, but that's about it, so the Governor himself must defeat Barack Obama one-on-one. He certainly has enough ammunition as the USA is not in good shape. Nevertheless, President Obama has a devoted constituency - labor, African Americans, entitlement people, and he's working hard to convince women and Hispanics that he's their guy. Governor Romney must diminish the Obama coalition but can only do so by out-performing the President man-to-man."

The Factor welcomed Fox News anchor Bret Baier and asked him to analyze a new poll showing that 67% of Americans believe the country is on the wrong track. "If those numbers hold into the fall," Baier said, "President Obama is in for a long election night. Also in this poll Mitt Romney is up by two points, the first time he's been ahead since November in a head-to-head matchup with President Obama. It shows that even as this primary process comes to an end Mitt Romney does have some strengths. A lot of his supporters I'm talking to say they want Mitt Romney to come out and be forceful, the guy who came out in that debate in Florida after he was killed by Newt Gingrich in South Carolina." The Factor concurred with the majority opinion that America is not in great shape: "I'm not rooting for anybody and I have to take a skeptical view of both men, but I'm not comfortable with the direction the country is going in."

Guest: Laura Ingraham

The far-left group "Color of Change," founded by former Obama advisor Van Jones, is threatening corporations that have backed a certain conservative group. Radio talk show host Laura Ingraham elaborated on the organization and its tactics. "'Color of Change' gets huge influxes of money from George Soros," she reported, "and has ties to SEIU and MoveOn.org. There are all these tentacles connecting these organizations, and what they're designed to do is basically shut down conservative speech. This is an intimidation campaign - 'Color of Change' doesn't want free speech, they don't want any real debate." The Factor contended that folks on the left are better organized when it comes to intimidation: "I don't think there's any doubt that the far left not only doesn't want free speech, but they'll try to hurt you and your family if you dare to go against their ideology. This is what totalitarian regimes do."

Guests: Sybrina Fulton & Tracy Martin

George Zimmerman, accused of second degree murder in the Trayvon Martin case, appeared in a Florida courtroom Thursday. The Factor welcomed Trayvon's mother Sybrina Fulton, who affirmed her faith in the system. "We've wanted to have peaceful rallies and protests," she said, "and we're not supporting any violence or anything like that. I believe in the judicial system and I believe George Zimmerman can get a fair trial." Attorney Benjamin Crump, representing the Martin family, argued that the protests served their purpose. "The rallies and demonstrations were just to get him arrested and we feel that had that not happened, they were never going to arrest Zimmerman. This shouldn't be a racial issue, it should really be about justice." The Factor lauded Ms. Fulton for showing grace despite losing her son: "You and Trayvon's father have been magnificent, you've called for restraint. But others have whipped up emotion and I think Al Sharpton should apologize for some of the things he said."

Guest: Megyn Kelly

The Factor asked FNC anchor and attorney Megyn Kelly why George Zimmerman is not free on bail. "You don't get bail automatically when you are charged with second degree murder," Kelly explained. "His lawyer has to ask for a hearing where evidence will be presented pertaining to the case against him. Zimmerman's lawyer said that given the fervor surrounding the case right now, this is not the best time to ask for bail. He's going to ask for bond, but he's worried about his client's safety." Kelly theorized that the case against Zimmerman could conceivably be dismissed. "In Florida this may never get to a jury. They have the 'stand your ground' law and the defense will assert he did this in self-defense and the 'stand your ground' law applies. That gets decided by a judge, not a jury. If the judge is convinced that a 'preponderance of the evidence' shows that 'stand your ground' applies, he can throw the whole case out."

Guests: Janine Pirro & Gretchen Carlson

A portion of Jennifer Lopez' latest video, in which she writhes in a sultry and sexual manner, was aired on American Idol, which is watched by millions of young kids. The Factor invited comment from Culture Warriors Gretchen Carlson and Jeanine Pirro. "Jennifer Lopez said it was a 'good message,'" Carlson complained, "but I'm wondering how talking about making love when my 8-year-old is watching is a good message? This is provocative, it's all about hooking up. Would she let her young twins watch this?" Pirro agreed that showing part of the video at 8 PM was absolutely inappropriate. "I watched this several times but there is no message. This video is raw and wrong, it's a faux orgy! We're seeing a dangerous social unraveling of what once was unacceptable sexuality - it's starting to permeate all layers of television."

Guests: Cheryl Casone & Steve Doocy

Fox Business anchor Cheryl Casone, sitting in for Martha MacCallum, challenged Steve Doocy in another edition of the Great American News Quiz. Among the questions: "The Mary Tyler Moore Show won 29 Emmy awards, a record that was eventually bested by what other sitcom?" ... "What was the original title of the sitcom 'Friends' supposed to be?" Casone came back in the final round to tie the match, but wound up despondent when Doocy won the tiebreaker.

Dr. George Barrios, Williamsville, NY: "Jaunty does not go far enough to characterize the special prosecutor's attitude in the Trayvon Martin case. She should stick to the facts and not editorialize them."

Larue Kohl, Guntersville, AL: "Angela Corey was jaunty because she has already convicted George Zimmerman."

James Thompson, Mount Pleasant, SC: "All those who have already convicted Zimmerman have set back race relations with their railroading of George Zimmerman."

Wayne Osborne, Baltimore, MD: "I am black and a Christian. And I repudiate all those who spew inane, venomous rhetoric."

Thursday's Patriot: Masters champion Bubba Watson, who took part in a comical video to raise money for charity.