Wednesday, October 30, 2013
On The O'Reilly Factor...
Segment Summaries
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.
Talking Points Memo
The Deceit Factor
Guests: Eboni Williams & Kate Obenshain
"In order to bear false witness, a person has to know explicitly that what he or she is saying is not true, and the false statement has to benefit the speaker. We know that in 2010, President Obama said this: 'Any insurance that you currently have would be grandfathered in so you could keep it.' But millions of Americans will not be able to keep their health insurance plan. Was the President misinformed, or bearing false witness intentionally? It is important for responsible news agencies, and The Factor is in that category, to be very precise when lodging accusations. Did the President mislead the country? Absolutely. Did he know he was misleading the country? Maybe, most likely. Did he lie? Very possible, but the evidence is not conclusive. President Obama has a lot to lose - if he did indeed tell outright lies to the American people, he could be impeached. So why would the President risk that? That's a key question in this intense debate."

The Factor asked Democrat Eboni Williams and Republican Kate Obenshain about the President's veracity, of lack thereof. "We have heard from all these people about how their rates are going to skyrocket," Obenshain said, "and yet the President is sticking with the line that their premiums are going to be lower. He is digging in! He very intentionally went out there and said people could keep their insurance policies, even though the regulations made it clear that was not true. I think it was a lie, and he gets away again and again with this sort of thing." Williams, a supporter of the President, urged him to admit that his words were misleading. "Now is the proper time for President Obama to come clean with the American people and say, 'I did not use language that did not fully disclose what I meant.' He's not going to get around this."
Impact Segment
Congressional Grilling
Republican Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn, who was among those who interrogated HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius Wednesday, entered the No Spin Zone with her assessment of the hearing. "We saw a very defensive Secretary Sebelius," Blackburn said. "I think she and the President lack the ability to lead people, she didn't even know specifically who was in charge of spending hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer money. There didn't seem to be a consistency of how they briefed the President and kept him informed. The incompetence on every level is staggering!" The Factor directly asked Congresswoman Blackburn whether President Obama lied. "I think he bears part of the responsibility," she responded, "this is his signature piece of legislation. When it comes to 'if you like your plan, you can keep it,' that is proving to be a falsehood. Maybe he was not informed by his staff that what he was saying was incorrect."
Personal Story Segment
Toughest job in the country?
Guest: Dana Perino
Former White House spokesperson Dana Perino evaluated the recent performance of Jay Carney, who now holds that job. "He is basically the daily piņata for the administration right now," she observed. "This is not entirely his fault - as press secretary he has no assets, no resources, and he controls no budget. He can't say, let's fix this website or let's go do this in Syria. The only thing you have as a press secretary is your integrity. But he is quite patronizing, he is thin-skinned, and so is his boss. Right now he is defending the indefensible." The Factor was less charitable towards Carney: "In my opinion as a journalist, Jay Carney looks foolish every day. He dodges, he weaves, he doesn't answer, and if he were sitting here I could destroy him."
Factor Follow Up Segment
Killing Kennedy
Guest: Rob Lowe
Actor Rob Lowe, who plays JFK in the upcoming TV version of "Killing Kennedy," spoke about the movie and his role. "He is still so much in our consciousness," Lowe said of President Kennedy, "and everybody knows what he sounds like, so I spent hours and hours listening to every possible recording. What I got the most out of was his private phone calls and his dictations. We also know the tremendous amount of pain he was in, his medical records are now out. Playing a man in that kind of pain was a significant part of it." Lowe spoke about being involved in a project with Bill, not a favorite among the Hollywood set. "Even the most partisan person can't argue with the success of the book and how the audience has embraced it, this is a story the country needs to hear. There was a sort of magic about this and we all felt lucky to be part of telling this story." The Factor heaped praise on Lowe and on newcomer Will Rothhaar, who plays Lee Harvey Oswald: "He's phenomenal. Nobody has ever brought Lee Harvey Oswald into the consciousness before and this guy does it."
Miller Time Segment
Are Liberals Falling out of Love with Barack Obama?
Guest: Dennis Miller
The Factor asked Dennis Miller whether President Obama's liberal supporters are on the verge of abandoning their man. "Not in the least," Miller declared. "Politics right now is like that optical illusion test where you either see a Grecian urn or you see two people kissing. People will double down now, they will press their bet and say that they believe in this man more than ever. His most ardent devotees, the people who really believe in him, say Barack Obama doesn't know anything about this. His will be the first head they put on Mt. Rushmore with his eyes closed! I'll go along with his most ardent disciples and I'll deem the President to be perpetually out of the loop. He doesn't know anything about anything!"
Did You See That Segment
Disgraceful Display at Brown University
Guests: Martha MacCallum
When New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly went to speak at Brown University Tuesday, students shouted him down and forced him to leave without speaking. FNC anchor Martha MacCallum elaborated on the protest, which centered on New York's 'stop and frisk' policy. "This is one of the finest institutions in the country," she began, "and this is absolutely appalling. The university professes to be a place where they tolerate different viewpoints, but they knew this was coming. Students were calling Ray Kelly a 'terrorist,' but under him crime in New York City dropped to the lowest level in 50 years. Perhaps these students would prefer if more violent crimes were perpetrated. They lost the opportunity to actually learn something." The Factor blamed the Brown administration, especially the boss: "I lay this at the feet of Brown University President Christina Paxson. She has no control over this university, the dictum should have gone out that we are going to be respectful to Commissioner Kelly. This is a disgrace, there's no leadership at Brown or at other universities."
Tip Of The Day
Sage Advice for Young Folks
Since the Internet is forever, keep your clothes on, keep your dignity, keep your secrets, and don't do anything dumb that can come back to haunt you.