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Glenn Beck
Former Miss America Favors Flag Burning Amendment; Self-Made Millionaire Serves in Army Reserves; Henry Winkler Discusses New Movie
Aired June 21, 2006 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANNOUNCER: Closed captioning for tonight`s episode of GLENN BECK is brought to you by Derek, the angry, bitter typist, looking for a different job since 1998.
GLENN BECK, HOST: All right. All right, you sick freaks, welcome to Cosmic Bowling Alley in Indiana Tech University, Fort Wayne. I lettered in duck pin bowling when I was in high school, and I`m just -- I`m fabulous! I also lettered -- no, no, please. I also lettered in garbage being thrown at me by teenagers.
One thing I didn`t do when I was in high school, in fact, I`ve never done in my whole life, set fire to an American flag. Nothing but hippie dirt bags do that, quite honestly, in my opinion. I think it`s a slap in the face of everything that America stands for.
However, with that being said, I really don`t agree with a constitutional amendment to ban it. I think you have a right to do it. I think you`re nuts if you do, but you have a right, don`t you?
The problem with this is, it puts me in a position where I find myself agreeing with Hillary Clinton and the ACLU, which makes me question my whole life, it really does.
When I moved into my new house when we moved up to the New York area to start this show, the first thing I did at my house was I got a flag pole, and I put it up. And that first Saturday, my son, Raphe, and I went out and we raised the flag. Now he may even not only be 2 yet, but I taught him as we raised it, that a flag doesn`t touch the ground.
If Michael Moore wants to set fire to his flag, I`m disgusted, but I`m usually disgusted by Michael Moore. He has every right, you know, to do it and be a giant tool, if that`s what he wants to. What the flag stands for is sacred, not the fabric.
Now, somebody who disagrees with me is Heather French Henry. She`s a former Miss America and founder of the Heather French Foundation for Veterans.
Heather, you think I`m a dirty hippie, don`t you?
HEATHER FRENCH HENRY, FOUNDER, HEATHER FRENCH FOUNDATION: I don`t think you`re a dirty hippie.
BECK: Come on, be honest.
HENRY: I certainly think that you`re a little misinformed when it comes to protecting our flag, because certainly the luxury that a few people have today is burning the flag today has only been the luxury since 1989.
So the amendment that we`re asking for is actually to restore the Constitution to where it was previously before 1989, before five Supreme Court justices took the majority of the people`s voice and silenced it by their vote, because certainly, this is an issue that is even larger than protecting the flag.
BECK: Right.
HENRY: It`s about democracy, what the flag truly stands for. And when 80 percent of Americans...
BECK: But it`s a symbol -- wait a minute...
HENRY: Eighty percent of Americans want the flag protected. Fifty states have resolutions wanting the flag protected. So a majority of the people have spoken, and that is what "we the people" mean. It means a majority.
BECK: Right. I get it. The majority of people want to do that, and if that`s what the majority of people want to do, you know, Jefferson said, you know, one of the nice things about a democracy is people can make a mistake and then restore it. And whichever way you look at it, whichever side of the argument you`re on in this, he`s right in this particular case. However...
HENRY: That`s right.
BECK: ... the flag, what the flag represents is sacred. To me, the flag is sacred, but when you, when you really want to speak out, what is the harm with setting the flag on fire? It does command attention.
HENRY: Well, it does command attention, and there are people who will use it for that. The harm is the very fabric of our nation, which is the men and women who have fought and died for this nation. If it drapes the coffin of a man or woman, a brave soldier of our country that has died, certainly it is not appropriate to burn.
And our forefathers knew there would be people in the future that would want to do this, which is why Thomas Jefferson said at every cost, it should be suppressed, the desecration of our flag should be suppressed at people doing that.
BECK: OK.
HENRY: And the ruling at the Supreme Court, Abraham Lincoln said that you should never let a fixed decision be given to the Supreme Court that was for the majority of the people, because people would cease to lead themselves.
BECK: Right, you said -- you said last week -- by the way, thank you for all of the hard work you`ve done with veterans.
HENRY: Thank you, I appreciate that.
BECK: I know you do a lot for veterans.
HENRY: We try.
BECK: You said last week that you believe the dollar bill is flying over the White House. Why, what do you mean by that?
HENRY: Well, certainly -- there are actually laws that protect the U.S. dollar from being burned, being cemented together, being mutilated. It`s actually under the United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
And if the dollar bill can be protected, for goodness sake, is nothing sacred in this country? So we should let the majority of the people speak for themselves. They want the flag protected.
BECK: Heather French Henry, thank you very much.
HENRY: Thank you.
BECK: Michael Smerconish, radio talk show host, he`s an attorney, which makes blood shoot out of my eyes. He`s also the author of "Muzzled: From T-Ball to Terrorism, True Stories That Should be Fiction". It`s a tremendous book; you should read it.
Michael, did you ever set fire to anything to affirm your First Amendment rights?
MICHAEL SMERCONISH, AUTHOR, "MUZZLED": Not as far as I know.
Hey, Glenn, let me get this straight. It`s bad enough that I have to come on the program in support of the hippie dirt bags. And now you`re going to make me argue with Miss America? I mean, next week, I guess...
BECK: Well, you know what? You know what`s really sad is losing to someone who won a position where you get a crown. I think that`s what just happened to me.
SMERCONISH: Your office called. They want me to come on and bike race against Lance Armstrong next week? I`m not sure if I`m available.
BECK: So if you feel the same way I do, we`re both conservatives, Michael, and you feel the same way I do, that you should be able to have this right. As disgusting as it is, you should have that right.
SMERCONISH: Correct. I think that, for example, on D-Day, the men who stormed those cliffs at Dover did so, so that people, unfortunately, would have the right to express themselves, including burning the flag.
And you know what else? That expression about the horse has left the barn when it comes to flag desecration -- do you want to see real flag desecration? Come over to my house on the Fourth of July when I`m flipping burgers, because my expanding middle is going to be draped in my bathing suit that has an American flag on it.
BECK: All right.
SMERCONISH: I mean, we have an American flag...
BECK: Hold on. Wait a minute. We have a photo?
SMERCONISH: Huh?
BECK: This is disturbing. We have a photo...
SMERCONISH: You can`t show that clip.
BECK: That`s not a photo! That`s not -- like that`s Smerconish, right!
You know what the problem here is, Michael, is this is yet another attempt, I believe, for those in Congress to say, "Hey, I care about American values just like you." And all they`re doing is wrapping themselves in the flag, and there is nothing that drives me crazy more than people who wrap themselves in the flag.
Isn`t that right, Kevin?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, that`s right, Glenn.
BECK: That`s right. Drives me out -- drives me out of my mind! They`re just trying to win a vote. Well, here`s an idea, why don`t you fix immigration? Why don`t you worry about opening up some-- some fields so we can have oil? Why don`t you finish winning the war, and then we`ll get back to this issue, don`t you think?
SMERCONISH: I think absolutely, that these are a series of votes in the Congress so that you can stand up and you can say, "My opponent, he represents burning the American flag." You`re absolutely right, Glenn, get onto the real business at hand.
BECK: Yes. I`ve got to tell you, Michael, it`s going to keep me up at night. I mean, honestly, I don`t know if I`m going to be able to sleep that I am in a position -- I find myself in a strange position where I agree with the ACLU, and I might -- I might hang myself later tonight.
SMERCONISH: You know what they say about...
BECK: Goodnight.
SMERCONISH: Thank you.
BECK: We`ll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: They just did a study of 14- to 29-year-old Americans. Fifty- nine percent of 14- to 29-year-old Americans, get this, say the American dream is to be famous. Yes, frightening, isn`t it? We`re all doomed. That`s frightening. That the American dream is now to be famous.
I got news for you, fame is a byproduct, not a goal. People don`t understand that. They`re like, "Give me a plate of cow sphincters, I`ll eat it and I`ll be famous."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: On every stop of our road trip, we have met some amazing people. I call them real Americans. Here in Fort Wayne, a special soldier. He has a wife, three kids, and a thriving business and still takes time to serve his country.
But there`s something else about this guy that makes his simple story into an extraordinary one.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BECK (voice-over): This is Dennis Witte, a dad, a businessman, a soldier, a man with clear priorities.
DENNIS WITTE, SENIOR MASTER SERGEANT, NATIONAL GUARD: I serve my God, I serve my country, and I serve my family. And they are so closely intertwined.
BECK: Dennis joined the Air Force when he was just 19 years old. Twenty years later, he`s still doing it. Now he`s in the Reserves as a senior master sergeant in the Air National Guard. He supervises mechanic work on fighter jets, and he takes his job very seriously.
WITTE: That`s the sound of freedom.
BECK: His story may sound like countless others serving their country, but Dennis Witte is different because he`s a self-made multi- millionaire.
WITTE: All right, Dave, I`ve checked. I think you`re doing just fine.
BECK: He didn`t have to be here, but he is.
WITTE: This is just something that I have to do. I don`t believe I could sit at home knowing what our country is going through and faced with at this point in time, being an able body, physically able to serve and defend our country.
BECK: Dennis is in the restaurant franchise business. He made his first million when he was 38 years old.
WITTE: Business is very good.
BECK: He started with one restaurant in July 2001. Business was booming. He was just about to open his second restaurant, and then September 11.
WITTE: I was -- it`s emotional, so, I don`t know that it will ever change. I can remember so vividly. I knew, I knew, I knew what it was, without question. And I remember looking at my wife, and I grabbed her hand and I said they`ve got to get the fighter jets up because this is an attack.
BECK: Within just a few hours, Dennis had left his new business and his family to serve his country.
WITTE: I dropped everything for everything, really. This is -- this is my country. It`s my country, and it`s my children`s country, and it`s your country. And we were under attack.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We were very Christian-based family, and you know, we believe that we have a duty. We have a duty to God, the way we live our lives. We have a duty to our country.
BECK: Dennis` wife, Heidi, has stood by his side through all of this. She says the hardest part is explaining to their three children why their dad has to leave.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just tell them, you know, Daddy`s doing what he wants to do, and this is protecting our country, protecting our rights, and our freedom.
WITTE: How`s it going?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good.
WITTE: What`s new?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nothing.
BECK: It wasn`t the only time Dennis was called to serve his country. The past year, he was called again. This time, to Iraq.
WITTE: When I talked to my wife about it right away, so that she had plenty of time to prepare, but the timing was a little odd for us, because Christmas was coming. We didn`t leave until January, so we decided not to talk to our children about it until after Christmas.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn`t really want the kids to be worried about this, especially at that time of the year. And if it was our last Christmas together, certainly, we would want it to be something that was joyous and not sad.
BECK: When Dennis left, his kids understood exactly why he had to go. But that didn`t really make it easier for them.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was really weird because we`d only have one parent. I`m really used to being around my dad. A lot.
BECK: And the experience in Iraq for Dennis was unforgettable.
WITTE: It was pretty intense, you know, some long days, living in tents, being mortared daily.
BECK: But he came home. And he says the next time his country calls, he`ll be there again, to protect his country and the ideals of the American dream, a thing that he has experienced first-hand.
WITTE: I grew up in a small little farm town. No college. Below medium income, not necessarily very supportive family. A lot of things, a lot of things going against me.
BECK: He grew up in a time of fear in America. It was the Cold War.
WITTE: I remember growing up with a father who really seemed to enjoy that environment. He enjoyed that situation. He liked, I believe, he liked the idea that we could be under attack any minute.
BECK: But Dennis says he actually owes a lot to his father.
WITTE: I know when I joined the Air Force, my father was very upset about that, because he`d always been very really anti-U.S. And I wonder if he`s ever thought about, because of all that, maybe he`s the one who actually, you know, pushed that into me.
BECK: Whatever it was, Dennis has overcome adversity to achieve something wonderful in his own life: a successful business and a beautiful family.
WITTE: Only because of the opportunities in this free country have I been able to accomplish what I`ve accomplished, and I want my children and their children to have the same opportunities, and I believe it`s my -- it`s my duty to protect that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BECK: Dennis, what a pleasure, sir to shake your hand.
Thank you.
BECK: Thank you for your service to your country and also for raising a great, great family. I know your wife and kids are here watching you.
I think it says an awful lot about you, you know, some of the guys from 122nd are here, and they said, so why did you pick Dennis? I mean, why are you doing a feature on him? And Kristen, who did the piece -- well, you know, because he`s a multi-million year. And they all said, "What?" They had absolutely no idea, which I think says a lot about your character. You`re either a really good guy or just stingy as hell, one of the two.
Tell me about growing up. You said your dad was somebody that might even enjoy the idea that we might be attacked at any time. What do you mean by that?
WITTE: I just remember so many times having conversations in my house where -- fearful conversations about, you know, the missiles that may be pointed at our country.
BECK: Right.
WITTE: And how easy it would be for Russia to strike us and how we probably wouldn`t be able to defend or sustain an attack like that, and it.
BECK: So you grew up in an anti-U.S. home, anti-military home. Where was the turning point?
WITTE: You know, I`m not real sure, but I -- when I reflect on that now, I think that maybe because I was afraid so much when I was young, that somebody was going to take those freedoms away from me, that somewhere, that`s where it really began to cultivate, and when I became old enough and able enough, I said no, they`re not going to take that from me, not if I can help it. And that`s what I think perhaps started it.
BECK: How did you get the appreciation for the freedoms and what we have here with somebody who was bashing them?
WITTE: You know, it`s difficult to explain. I just know that the appreciation I have today is because of all the opportunities that I have.
BECK: That`s amazing. With an exception, I had a very supportive dad, but with the exception of that, I grew up in a relatively poor family, didn`t have a college education. I`m doing well for myself. You`re doing well for yourself. And it`s amazing to me the opportunities that this country will provide if you just never give up, if you just never give up.
Now, you joined, and you`re serving, and you are lucky enough to have great business partners, apparently, that will allow you to go and serve. Tell me about your business partners.
WITTE: I have two business partners, and they -- they`re very supportive. They know -- they`ve known all along. We`ve been together for about ten years, and they`ve known all along really, really where the inside passion lies for me, but they also understand that they wouldn`t be able to accomplish the things that they have either.
BECK: What do you think you`re teaching your kids by -- by doing this?
WITTE: That, you know, no sacrifice is too great for the freedoms we have today. That`s what I think I`m teaching them. And I hope they understand, and I believe they do understand that somebody has to stand up, somebody has to defend our freedom. And perhaps even advance freedom around the world.
BECK: And how much of a role does God play in this? Is it intertwined for you?
WITTE: I would say all my adult life. When I was able to structure the goal sets in my life. You know, faith, freedom and family are all really intertwined together, they are.
BECK: Dennis, pleasure. Thank you for your service, sir.
WITTE: Thank you.
BECK: And everybody at 122nd.
WITTE: Thank you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECK: All right. Welcome back to Fort Wayne. We`ve been on the road now for our Midlife Crisis Tour, and one of our affiliates is in Indianapolis, Indiana. Today we`re in Fort Wayne, but Abdul Hakim is here from WXNT-1430AM.
Abdul Hakim Shabazz, how are you, sir?
ABDUL HAKIM SHABAZZ, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Glenn, good to see you again.
BECK: Good to see you.
SHABAZZ: Looking good.
BECK: Thank you, thank you.
You are talking a lot on the radio about how we are selling -- how we are selling our toll roads overseas. Tell me the story.
SHABAZZ: Here`s what`s going on. It`s not really a sale so much as it is a lease.
BECK: OK.
SHABAZZ: And the definition will become clear later. Indiana, as you probably notice from driving around this place, has really crappy roads.
BECK: OK.
SHABAZZ: And so the governor, Mitch Daniels, actually used to be Bush`s budget director, decide, "Hey, you know what? Maybe if we do something with the toll roads, we can fund all our road projects." It came with a side-note called "Major Moves", which is a Hank Williams tune. The main thing associated with country music always makes me juts a little nervous.
BECK: Right.
SHABAZZ: Particularly when it`s not Johnny Cash or anything like that.
BECK: I don`t even know what that means. But I`ll go with you. All right.
SHABAZZ: But you`re laughing. Sure. I`ll go with it, sure.
So what he decided to do was lease the toll roads to a Spanish- Australian conglomerate, Marquis Sentra (ph), so at the end of the month, Indiana gets a check for $3.8 billion.
BECK: I like those kind of checks.
SHABAZZ: And yes, the money goes to fix the roads and build all the infrastructure and the whole nine yards.
BECK: And the problem is?
SHABAZZ: Some people don`t like foreigners running the toll road...
BECK: I`m telling you, Canada, it`s happening. They`re coming for our roads! It`s happening, people are coming over and then they`re taking our roads. I don`t understand what the problem would be. I mean, other than, don`t we have anybody who wants to invest -- you know, isn`t there some weird road conglomerate that`s American that we could...
SHABAZZ: No, not really.
BECK: No?
SHABAZZ: Because the company also did the Chicago Skyway, which is about another couple miles from here. They leased that for $1.8 billion. Indiana`s getting $3.8 billion. They send a big, fat check at end of the month and everybody was wondering about, what if we go to war with Australia or the Spanish?
BECK: It`s coming.
SHABAZZ: The last time we went to war with Spain, we got Cuba and Puerto Rico out of it.
BECK: Right.
SHABAZZ: We gave Cuba back. If the Australians are going to bomb a road, what are they going to bomb when they pay $4 billion for it?
BECK: What are they going to do, are they going to come take in the middle of the night, yank our roads away from underneath us?
SHABAZZ: No, just throw you Vegemite sandwiches and the...
BECK: Man, that`s crazy! Although this week, yes, they did take the U.S. Open from us. I think we should notice the pattern here from Australia.
SHABAZZ: It`s a big, giant conspiracy is what it really is.
BECK: Yes, so is this going to go through?
SHABAZZ: Probably going to go through. Actually, since you pay us lawyers, us lawyers are involved now...
BECK: Geez, you`re a lawyer?
SHABAZZ: Yes.
BECK: I liked you up until now.
SHABAZZ: Every time I take Viagra, I grow taller. It`s in court now. People are challenging saying it violates the Constitution. I sat in the court hearing for like an hour and a half, and it was like law school all over again. Of course, the court seemed suspicious at the Supreme Court level. So it probably -- I believe it will probably end up going through.
BECK: Right. I mean, this is not the port deal. With the ports, I mean, I thought that thing was a Trojan horse all the way, as well. That was just political maneuvering, as well. Because if you really cared about the ports, you would have cared about China having some of our ports, as well.
SHABAZZ: Yes. You could make that argument. I tend to take a little bit of a different approach on the whole port deal. I mean, if you`re going to trust the president, the war on terrorism and all the other stuff, why do you think he would put us in jeopardy with the whole port thing and Dubai?
BECK: Right.
SHABAZZ: Six on one hand, half a dozen on the other.
BECK: Thank you so much, sir, good to have you.
SHABAZZ: Looking great. Thank you for having me on.
BECK: Thank you.
Back in a second.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: Four basic food groups that I like to stick to on the road, and I think most doctors would agree, you need sausage, cheese, cream -- that can be in just cream form or whipped cream -- and Twizzlers, just for the energy. It`s almost like B-12. In fact, Twizzlers probably have a lot of B-12 in them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: No, it`s true! I`m all hepped up on Twizzlers now.
Welcome back. Fort Wayne, Indiana, we`re at the Cosmic Bowling Lanes here at the Student Union at Indiana Tech. We`re on -- I don`t even know - - day 1,400, it feels like, of our midlife crisis tour.
For some reason or another, somebody in New York said, "Hey, I know what we should do. We should have Brian Sack, the public viewer, travel with Glenn." It`s been a nightmare. Now, he`s here to snoop into my family tree and, quite honestly, disparage my reputation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN SACK, PUBLIC VIEWER: I`m here in beautiful Fort Wayne, Indiana, home, they claim, to the world`s second-largest genealogy center. The first is in Salt Lake City and run by masons, or Mormons, or something.
While I`m here with nothing better to do, I figured, why not dig a little dirt up on Glenn Beck and see if maybe he`s a tiny bit French, shall we?
I need to get some genealogy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Third floor, sir.
SACK: Thank you.
(voice-over): I met up with this guy, Kurt Witcher. He`s the director of the genealogy center. He`s been working here for almost 30 years.
(on camera): How many books do you have here, anyway?
KURT WITCHER, GENEALOGIST: We have just about 335,000.
SACK: Really? Wow.
Now, I come in here and I want to dig up research on Glenn. What do I need to know, really, to get started?
WITCHER: Well, Glenn`s name?
SACK: Glenn Beck.
WITCHER: Birth date and place?
SACK: No idea.
WITCHER: His father`s name?
SACK: Don`t know.
WITCHER: Birth place?
SACK: Nope.
WITCHER: Marriage place?
SACK: No idea.
WITCHER: Marriage date?
SACK: Nope.
WITCHER: Mother`s name?
SACK: Nope.
WITCHER: Maiden name?
SACK: Uh-uh. I`m going to call and check.
Hey, it`s Brian Sack with the GLENN BECK show, Sack, Beck. I`ll hold.
Can you tell me where Glenn`s from? Nebraska?
(voice-over): Yes, America, Glenn is from Nebraska. Kurt and I took that nugget straight to his magical computer.
(on camera): Now, I can use this telephone to look up information on Glenn?
WITCHER: Well, it`s a computer.
SACK: Computer. Can I type in keywords, like brash and pink sweater, pasty, balding, and maybe come up with some more information on Glenn?
WITCHER: I need more geographic and chronological information as opposed to personal attributes.
SACK: Can you promise me, for $50, that I can make his great-grandpa an illegal from Mexico?
WITCHER: No, I can`t.
SACK: A hundred?
(voice-over): Ethical Kurt wouldn`t help me, but said with a little research, anything was possible. I got right to work.
(on camera): Look, I`m not from here, so I don`t know if you can recommend like a bar or like a pub.
Hi. Trying anything -- no, no, no, no. I was doing the researching, on the Google.
WITCHER: And you found some things?
SACK: I didn`t.
WITCHER: Well, I found a few things.
SACK: Oh.
WITCHER: Seems like Nebraska is a piece of it.
SACK (voice-over): But still no mention of France.
WITCHER: He`s got a lot of early ancestors...
SACK (on camera): A lot of Pennsylvanians?
WITCHER: ... in Pennsylvania. Which, being fairly German, even Glenn, the two N`s is fairly German...
SACK: So maybe he`s Amish.
WITCHER: Haven`t found any Mennonite or Amish, but a possibility.
SACK: Apple butter, they make that stuff?
WITCHER: Yes.
SACK (voice-over): But still no mention of France.
(on camera): Now, there`s someone here named Mary Poppin.
WITCHER: Yes.
SACK: That`s funny.
(voice-over): But what isn`t funny: still no France. Le France.
(on camera): So if there`s no French, is there any Mexican, maybe illegal immigrant Honduran, I`ll take Ecuadorian, anything?
WITCHER: We have no (INAUDIBLE) America at this point.
SACK: No Equatorial Guinea? Congo?
WITCHER: No, nope.
SACK (voice-over): I was getting nowhere fast but decided to follow a lead I created myself.
(on camera): Is there any chance there`s been some inbreeding?
WITCHER: We don`t have any evidence of that.
SACK (voice-over): No kissing cousins, no French, no illegal immigrants, but suddenly Kurt reveals an exciting prospect.
WITCHER: He probably has an ancestor who died at Andersonville during the Civil War.
SACK (on camera): Really? And so what side was he on?
(CROSSTALK)
WITCHER: We believe that he was on the Union side.
SACK: Really?
WITCHER: Yes.
SACK: Just can`t get anywhere with this.
(voice-over): Four hours later, and still Glenn`s pedigree chart was clean as a whistle, assuming whistles are clean.
(on camera): And so what`s the most remarkable thing in this whole pile of genealogy?
WITCHER: To be honest, one would have to say the most remarkable thing is that it`s very unremarkable. He`s a mix of a lot of different individuals who came from different places.
SACK: So he`s like a mutt?
WITCHER: That would be a way of describing it.
SACK: Mutt, mutt.
WITCHER: A nice mix of people from various parts of the country...
SACK: Like a mutt?
WITCHER: People from all over.
SACK: Very mutty.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BECK: Yes, there he is, Brian Sack. Welcome to the program. No, not so much. Brian?
SACK: Yes, sir.
BECK: Thank you. First of all, I`m not from Nebraska. I`m from the Seattle area.
SACK: No. Well, you got some Nebraska in there.
BECK: No, but you did a good job in there, seems very thorough.
SACK: We got some Nebraska. There`s some North Carolina, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Ohio, Montana. All your listeners. You`re related somehow to your listeners.
BECK: Right. OK, so what did you find out?
SACK: Well, I did a little digging, and, actually, after Kurt had gave up -- and he had found a lot of stuff, but I was determined to find more. And in fact, I wound up not going to Fort Wayne`s Pub, and I kept working through the night, and I found some more information...
BECK: Really?
SACK: Yes.
BECK: Yes, like?
SACK: And it`s very interessant.
BECK: There is no French blood in me.
SACK: Oh, no, no, I`m surprised you didn`t -- you understood tres interessant, did you? Perhaps you`re a petit peu fluent. So I found out that your great-grandfather and your mom`s cousin`s nephew`s side was a petit peu French.
BECK: Wait, wait, wait, how far away do we have to get?
SACK: Great-grandfather on your mom`s cousin`s nephew`s side. It was a petit peu Francais. And not just any little bit French. She was directly related to Louis XIV, who is the Sun King, or the Le Roi du Soleil, as you would call him.
BECK: Oh, no, not true.
SACK: That`s quite true.
(CROSSTALK)
SACK: And not only that, but Louis` dad was actually married to his sister, which actually I killed two birds with one stone.
BECK: You have French incest.
SACK: Yes. Yes, so it`s all here, and I`m quite proud of the information, and these facts cannot be disputed.
BECK: Really? May I just see the -- let me just see the...
SACK: Now, you don`t need -- I did a lot of research.
(CROSSTALK)
SACK: I did a lot of research.
BECK: It`s Griot`s Garage, car care for the perfectionist.
SACK: Genealogy is very intricate, and there`s a lot of stuff -- yes.
BECK: There`s nothing here.
SACK: No, no...
(CROSSTALK)
BECK: I stand by there`s nobody important in my family tree, nobody!
SACK: You need to look between the lines.
BECK: Nobody.
SACK: There`s a grill, and a grill leads you on a certain tangent, and you`ve got to find information. Genealogy`s hard.
BECK: You are such a loser.
SACK: I want to bowl.
BECK: You want to bowl?
SACK: I want to bowl. I don`t want to argue with you anymore.
BECK: I don`t -- OK.
SACK: Let`s settle this like men. I say you`re French.
BECK: You know, Brian, I get a lot of mail about you. People think - - oh, what the -- how could that -- wait a minute. Yes, yes. You know...
SACK: I went to the line...
(CROSSTALK)
BECK: ... you are a complete -- no, this isn`t right. All right, I cleared them.
SACK: I hurt my hand.
BECK: Congratulations.
(CROSSTALK)
SACK: It`s very cramped.
BECK: Yes, I know.
SACK: A lot of writing.
BECK: Get out of here. What a loser.
All right, let`s go "Straight to Hill" now, Erica Hill, the anchor of "PRIME NEWS" on Headline News.
Hi, Erica.
ERICA HILL, CNN HEADLINE NEWS ANCHOR: Hey, Glenn.
This Fourth of July, one person is going to have the ultimate display: four rare flags from the American Revolution. But they don`t come cheap. They recently sold at the Sotheby`s Auction for $17.4 million. That was far above the expected $4 to $10 million.
The buyer is anonymous, but we do know some stuff about the seller. It`s apparently a direct descendent of the British officer who captured those flags some 225 years ago.
Now, during the 18th century, flags like these were the primary targets on the battlefield. They were considered trophies of victory if captured. There are only 30 flags from this area that can still be accounted for, and these four are the only ones not in museums.
For all you meat lovers out there getting ready for that Fourth of July barbecue, maybe, it turns out it just may be in the genes. According to a study published by the Journal of Physiology and Behavior, children inherit their tastes for meat and fish. And the same, though, not true for veggies and sweets. Those are actually acquired tastes.
Researchers compared food preferences of identical and fraternal twins. The results suggest identical twins who share the same genes are also more likely to share preferences in food. Fraternal twins were less likely to have those similar likings.
A Texas-based company is breaking ground this summer on a housing development that bars registered sex offenders. Potential home buyers must undergo a criminal background check. And, if a resident is convicted of a sex crime while living there, they will be fined $1,500 every day until they move out.
Some critics think the idea will just push sex offenders further underground, making it more difficult for law enforcement to track them. The company, I&S Investment Group, says it`s just fighting sex offenders head-on. So all those lots in the first Texas development have sold; some 250 more are to be added this fall. There is also a development planned in Kansas.
And it turns out that where you live might have a lot to do with how much you weigh. Fitness experts at the annual American College of Sports Medicine meeting say to solve America`s obesity problem we`ve got to change the physical layout of our communities.
The bottom line here: We need to walk more and drive less. The experts at the meeting suggest the public demand more federal money for parks and bike paths. They say people will walk, Glenn, if they are given the opportunity.
That`s going to do it for now. Stay tuned. More of GLENN BECK straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECK: All right, when it comes to technology, I`ve got to be honest with you, I can barely work the light switch. I am a complete moron. This is serious. Is TiVo driving you nuts? If you record this show, it records three times a night and I can`t make it stop!
Here`s what I would like: a remote with just one button that just says "get her done." There is a new movie out Friday that takes that technology one step further. It`s universal remote. It actually controls the universe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADAM SANDLER, ACTOR: Are you playing some catch?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Actually, we`re playing some drop, because Ben hasn`t caught one yet.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Darn it!
SANDLER: Ah.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ah!
SANDLER: Oh. You`re making a Derek Jeter yourself, O`Doyle.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: "Click" reunites Adam Sandler with his co-star in the comedy "Waterboy" and "Little Nicky" a few years back. Henry Winkler now joins me from New York.
I got to tell you -- may I call you Henry?
HENRY WINKLER, ACTOR: You know what? I wish you would.
BECK: It`s a little weird. I`ve got to tell you, I can`t believe that I get an opportunity to meet Henry Winkler and I`m in a bowling alley. It`s just not right.
WINKLER: I flew to New York to be with you, and here you are in Indiana.
BECK: Yes, please.
WINKLER: Can I ask you a question? Could you please ask the people that are with you in the bowling alley -- can we have a show of hands of everyone who is going to this movie on Friday?
BECK: Who`s going to "Universal Remote"? Oh, wow. Wow.
WINKLER: It`s called "Click."
BECK: That`s good. Oh yes, "Click"! Yes, now let me ask you this question: Who`s going to "Click"? Nobody`s going to "Click." They`re all going to "Universal Remote."
I`m a putz. Henry, I don`t know if you know this, but I`m a total clown on TV, man. I know, I mean, they`re giving shows out at CNN like they`re candy.
WINKLER: Is that true?
BECK: If I can get a show, anyone -- oh yes, I got a show. Have you seen the show?
WINKLER: Yes, but I have to say -- I have to say, you are a very -- I don`t have a show anymore. Mine was cancelled. But the thing is that you`re very entertaining.
BECK: Thank you. Wow, that`s praise. And if you only meant that, that would mean an awful lot to me.
WINKLER: No, no, the thing is, I`m known for lying.
BECK: All right. And by the way, I`ve got to tell you, I absolutely loved you in "Arrested Development."
WINKLER: Thank you.
BECK: Just what a tremendous show. How bummed were you that that thing was cancelled?
WINKLER: Well, you know what? It was amazing, because I was asked to do one episode, and then I was invited to do eleven.
BECK: Well, you were great.
WINKLER: And the creator, Mitch Hurwitz, is brilliant.
BECK: I have to tell you, I don`t know -- there`s some crappy show on HBO. Does anybody know the name of that show that`s -- it just came out on HBO.
WINKLER: "Lucky Louie."
BECK: It`s some comedy -- it`s -- oh, have you seen that?
WINKLER: I have.
BECK: It`s the only show on television worse than my show, and that`s saying something. It`s just -- it`s horrible, and I don`t know how "Arrested Development" wasn`t picked up by somebody like HBO.
WINKLER: You know what? That is a very good question. It`s a question that so many people ask me, but all of the people that have asked me about "Arrested Development" are going to see "Click," starring Adam Sandler.
BECK: So now if you saw -- I mean, if you had, you know, a remote control, like they have in "Universal Control," or as you like to call it, "Click," what part of your life would you skip past?
WINKLER: You know what? The first thing I would do would -- I would end the war in Iraq. I`d just kind of click it.
BECK: Oh, no.
WINKLER: And the second thing I would do, I would mute Ann Coulter.
BECK: Really?
WINKLER: Yes.
BECK: Do we have to go down this road?
WINKLER: No.
BECK: I`ve made a policy on my show that I don`t -- you know, may I call you Henri?
WINKLER: Yes, you may.
BECK: I mean, it sounds like a little French here. Let me call you Henri.
WINKLER: Call me Henri.
BECK: I made a policy: I don`t care what people in Hollywood think, whether you`re for the war or against the war. I want to like you for the character that you play on television and movies.
WINKLER: OK. All right, you know what?
BECK: Does that make sense?
WINKLER: Absolutely. I`m not thinking anymore. I`m just going to answer your questions.
BECK: No, no, no, I don`t mean it that -- oh, now it`s turned ugly, hasn`t it?
WINKLER: I`m having a great time!
BECK: I get the name of your movie wrong like four times...
WINKLER: I don`t care.
BECK: ... and all of a sudden it gets ugly.
WINKLER: I don`t care, because, Bob, let me tell you something, I think you`re adorable.
(LAUGHTER)
BECK: I don`t think that`s -- OK. Let me see, what else do we have?
WINKLER: Hello?
BECK: You are actually -- you are one of the inventors of one of the biggest things in television. Everybody says -- like, for instance, this show a couple of weeks ago, I sang on the air, and that`s when we like to say we jumped the shark.
WINKLER: Right.
BECK: That actually comes from you.
WINKLER: Yes. And I am the only actor on American television, probably anywhere in the world, who has jumped the shark twice. I jumped the shark on "Happy Days," and then I jumped the shark on "Arrested Development."
BECK: I don`t remember that episode on "Arrested Development." Actually, the crowd, they knew you were on, they wanted to know if you actually did strap on the water skis and jump the shark?
WINKLER: I did everything but the jump. They wouldn`t let me do the jump, because you can`t do your own stunts, but I was a water ski instructor in camp.
BECK: Right. OK, good. That helps.
WINKLER: Thank you.
BECK: I guess.
WINKLER: Thank you.
BECK: You`re also -- your production company, real quick...
WINKLER: Yes.
BECK: You are a guy that just thinks that there should be more good quality shows, something the family can sit back and watch, and you`re actually one of the good guys in Hollywood...
WINKLER: Thank you, but you don`t care what I think. OK.
BECK: ... that is relating to families. No, not really, no, sorry to say. I think we`re done. OK!
WINKLER: Is that it?
BECK: Henry Winkler...
WINKLER: Oh my goodness.
BECK: I think that`s it.
WINKLER: Can we just say "Click" again?
BECK: "Click"! Go see "Click." It looks really great, it does. And I mean that from somewhere deep inside.
WINKLER: You know what? I feel it.
BECK: Henry Winkler, thank you so much, sir.
WINKLER: I feel it.
BECK: You`re the best.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I want to see everybody who wipes out. Wipe out! Everybody up, everybody up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: All right, it`s time for "Ask Glenn," where you can ask anything about anything and then I ramble on with an answer that`s both uninterrupted and unquestioned, which is the way us hatemongers like it.
Dan in Columbus writes, "Gee, Glenn, you`re always talking about the wonders of capitalism and how it works. It works for the `haves,` but it doesn`t work for the `have-nots`? Ask a black person in the slums if they think capitalism is such a wonderful thing."
You know what I like about this e-mail is the way you brought race right into it. That`s great. Poor way to argue a point, sure, but who am I to say? I`m a hatemonger.
You know, you can find some people who aren`t going to succeed in the world of capitalism. You can even find some individuals who won`t like it even if they do succeed. Michael Moore comes to mind.
But it`s the best system in the world. Look at the alternatives. Do you really want to screw with socialism? Even the relatively stable socialists like France and Germany have unemployment rates that are double ours.
How about the crazy fascism? Sure, worked well for Hitler and Mussolini. I look back on those years with such fondness. Eh, not so much.
Communism? Remember all the holidays with revolution in them? You know, from your high school history books? Well, advance to 2006. Now there are only five legitimate communist states on Earth. Tell me if you`d want to live in any of them. There`s beautiful China, tropical Laos, gorgeous Vietnam, bountiful Cuba -- which I hear is beautiful this time of year -- and, of course, the paradise that is North Korea. Ah, imagine stretching out on the beautiful North Korean shore next to Kim Jong Il in a beach towel. Oh, nothing like that real communist tan.
Here`s a little GLENN BECK rule for you. If you`re in a system with a government that kills 100 million people in 100 years, you`re going to have a hard time getting positive press. I`m just saying.
With capitalism, just like anything else, the media always focuses on the few people who buck the trend. You`re going to find the hard worker that gets laid off, the person who hasn`t slept with Paris Hilton -- he exists somewhere -- the lottery winner that doesn`t end their life hanging in a lonesome trailer.
Instead of looking at the people who live in the slums and don`t make it, maybe we should focus a little more on the ones who do make it. Capitalism allows for the biggest successes and the most incredible failures, just like me, five nights a week.
From Fort Wayne, we`ll see you tomorrow, you sick freaks.
END
