The Factor Rundown
Laura Ingraham
Want KILLING REAGAN Free?
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The future of the GOP
"In all my years of warning GOP moderates, I'm certain this Senate immigration deal is the worst thing they've ever done. It's not good for the country, it's not good for the poor, it's not good for any of the principles they claim to support. The more time folks have to read this mess, the more we learn how it doesn't do what it claims. Like the fact that border agents don't really have to be hired until 2017, and it gives Janet Napolitano the discretion to nix any part of the border fence. The bill is stuffed with pork to appease Senators who are last minute holdouts; it's totally shady and shameful. This week the GOP should have focused on the Edward Snowden debacle, which underscores Obama's complete inability to deal with China or Russia. But instead, the GOP will continue infuriating its own base and hurting the wage earning prospects for Americans with this toxic immigration bill. I don't see how the GOP coalition can continue on this path because the priorities of working people are either ignored or openly dismissed. To all the Republicans who support this bill, you are writing your own political obituary!"
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The latest on the Trayvon Martin murder trial
Guest: Judge Alex Ferrer
The trial of George Zimmerman, charged with murdering Trayvon Martin, began Monday with opening arguments. Laura was joined by Judge Alex Ferrer, who watched the proceedings. "It was a powerful beginning to the case," he said. "The prosecution got up there and made a really powerful opening statement, they took the jury right to the scene of the crime and used very strong language that they say came right from George Zimmerman's mouth. Then the defense got up and gave an opening statement that dragged on for three hours. Perhaps it was a strategy to hit on every single point to get the jury's attention, but it was a completely different feel between the prosecution's opening statement and the opening statement of the defense."
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NSA update
Guest: Former federal prosecutor Marc Mukasey
Edward Snowden, who disclosed classified information about government surveillance, reportedly left Hong Kong for Moscow over the weekend and may be ultimately headed for Ecuador. Laura analyzed the case with former federal prosecutor Mark Mukasey. "The best laid extradition plans can go awry," Mukasey stated. "I've extradited hundreds of people and this process can be laden with paperwork and jammed up for years. But in a case like this you would think they would streamline it because it's an urgent case - this guy has violated the Espionage Act." Laura theorized that China and Russia are thumbing their noses at President Obama: "China and Russia know he's important to us but they have no interest in rushing this along, they want to find out what this guy knows. This says a lot about how other countries view us."
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More on the NSA
Guests: Juan Williams Mary Katharine
Laura continued on the Snowden story with FNC's Juan Williams and Mary Katharine Ham. "When it comes to Snowden himself," Ham opined, "I'm sort of in the middle. The larger point is that it reveals an ineptitude that makes me concerned about what is going on at the NSA and how they're able to deal with all this information. Where's the payoff on all this 'smart power' we've been engaged in for all these years?" Williams eagerly answered Ham's question. "That high-tech surveillance information has been protecting us from terrorism. Edward Snowden is like a gnat at a summer picnic - he's irritating, but let's not confuse him with the fact that we have all this surveillance." Laura reiterated that the U.S. has been deeply embarrassed by this incident, saying, "We've spent hundreds of billions of dollars on this high tech security equipment, but we don't even know if Snowden is in Russia."
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Paula Deen controversy
Guests: Steve Adubado & Bishop Harry Jackson
Celebrity chef Paula Deen has been fired by The Food Network after admitting that she had used racial slurs in the past. Laura asked media analyst Steve Adubato and Bishop Harry Jackson to analyze the incident. "Paula Deen didn't handle this well from a media point of view," Adubato stated. "She didn't show up for a scheduled interview on a major network and then she did 'hostage videos' in which she tried to defend herself. She looked terrible and didn't come across very well. The sponsors and the network said they don't want any part of this." Jackson argued that this episode could provide a lesson in race relations. "I believe we could challenge Paula Deen to donate money to various programs and do shows on heritage. I think there's a redemptive side to this and the church could lead the way."
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Immigration update
Guest: Frank Sharry
Laura welcomed Frank Sherry, whose America's Voice organization is lobbying for immigration reform and wants some form of legalization for illegal immigrants already here. "The guts of this bill," Sherry claimed, "is the most massive expansion of immigration enforcement in history. There's a doubling of the Border Patrol, a doubling of fencing, and a mandatory e-verify system. This is something you should be celebrating, it's designed to get Republican support and also provides a path to citizenship. What's not to like?" Laura answered Sherry's rhetorical question thusly: "You know a lot of this stuff that we're hearing will never get done. And all this pork was inserted into the bill to get the support of Senators who were on the fence."
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Professor controversy
Guests: Kirsten Powers and Kate Obenshain
Florida Atlantic University suspended instructor Deandre Poole back in March after he told his students to write 'Jesus' on a piece of paper and stomp on it. Laura introduced Bill's segment on the topic with Democrat Kirsten Powers and Republican Kate Obenshain. "This is just stupid," Powers said at the time, "and it's a really bad advertisement for liberalism. I consider myself a liberal, but this is not the kind of behavior most liberals would endorse." Obenshain theorized that the FAU outrage is merely the tip of an ideological iceberg. "The problem is more institutional-wide in our colleges, and this sort of liberal activism is protected by the university structure and these absurd campus speech codes and diversity policies." Despite Poole's outrageous behavior, Laura lamented that the instructor, who is also a Democratic Party official, has just been reinstated by Florida Atlantic.
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Dangerous stunt
Guest: Dr. Keith Ablow
As millions watched on live TV Sunday evening, tightrope walker Nik Wallenda crossed a portion of the Grand Canyon on a 2" thick cable. Laura asked psychologist Keith Ablow to analyze our fascination with death-defying stunts. "People are looking for real risk," he said, "which is why extreme fighting is crushing boxing as a sport. People want to see real courage and real possible peril. Why? Because we're all addicted to Facebook and the Internet and other things that make us less alive and less grounded in our own sense of self. This guy crossed the Grand Canyon for real, there was no faking it. He could really die!" Laura added a theory of her own: "A lot of people feel like they're walking on a tightrope in their lives, they feel like if they make the wrong step financially they could lose it all."
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