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Glenn Beck

What`s Right with America?; Video Shows Guns Confiscated During New Orleans; Author of Political Thriller Discusses Book; Giuliani Weighs in on Energy Crisis, Elections; Celebrating the Spirit of America

Aired July 02, 2008 - 19:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLENN BECK, HOST (voice-over): Tonight, lots of people, including these guys, are talking about what`s wrong with America.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Crime is spreading.

BECK: Well, today, I`d like to spend a second telling you what`s right with America.

Plus, the NRA releases shocking video of guns being confiscated in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All of a sudden, boom. They got our rights.

BECK: A blatant violation of people`s rights, caught on tape. This you will not see anywhere else.

And Rudy Giuliani, America`s mayor, sits down to talk with me about McCain, Obama, the economy, and gas prices. It is a frank conversation with a man who tells it like it is. Don`t miss it.

All this and more tonight.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Well, hello, America. I read an article, a column in a newspaper in Philadelphia, "The Inquirer," that said today that we should put away our flags and cancel the parades and the fireworks, because America has sinned and we don`t deserve to celebrate our independence this year.

Well, "Inquirer," I guess there`s just two ways to look at America. You can either say she`s a failure and her best days are behind her and talk about that. Or you can talk about the things that she has done right, at least once a year. So America, here`s "The Point" tonight.

Let me be crazy and say it to mainstream media. We`re the greatest country on earth, and we should celebrate that every day, not just on the Fourth. And here`s how I got there.

OK, I talk about the economy a lot on this program. And our economy has had some tough times right now. But you know what? We made it through a depression; we`ve made it through wars, oil shocks, major terrorist attacks. And yet here we are, with an economy that just gets pummeled and pummeled and pummeled, and we`re still standing.

This economy is almost as big as the next four largest economies on earth combined. The state of California alone has an economy as large as the entire country of France.

Now, granted, it takes a lot longer to, you know, turn around an aircraft carrier than it does a dinghy, but the problem is not with the ship. The problem is with the ship`s captain, the pea-brains in Washington, and not the crew.

What`s right with America? Well, education. Everybody is going on about how bad it is. And yes, even I complain a lot about the nut-job, left-wing professors, but the truth is that our universities are ranked among the highest in the world. We have more students in college right now than China, India, and Japan combined.

What`s right with America? You don`t need to be an elite family name. You don`t need to be a Rockefeller and have that kind of wealth to get into those colleges. You just have to be smart enough and work hard for it. What a concept, huh?

What`s right with America? Well, how about the way we treat others? Americans with no help from our government gave a record $306 billion to charities last year alone. That`s relative to the size of our economy. That was 1,000 percent more than the French gave.

What`s right with America? It`s not just the rich who are generous. Two-thirds of families making under $100,000 a year gave to charity.

What`s right with America? Well, how about our supposed third-world health care system. We spend more on health care per person than Switzerland, Germany, Canada, or any other country you can think of. And it`s paying off. In 1900, the life expectancy was 50 years old and you were dead. A century later, it`s over 75.

What`s right with America? Those medical advancements are not just for the rich. They`re for everybody. In 1950, a rich person lived 15 years longer than a poor person. Today, Bill Gates could be expected to outlast the homeless guy in the gutter by four years. It`s getting better.

The list of things that we do right goes on and on and on.

But America, here is what you need to know tonight. Despite what some newspaper columnist wants, I`m going to celebrate America, not only on the Fourth of July, but every day. We don`t need change. We need perspective. I still hope for that. I`m going to bring in Jonah Goldberg, author of "Liberal Fascism" and editor of "National Review" online here in a second.

First, I`m going to show you something that Barack Obama says that goes right to the heart of this. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Generations from now, we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment where we began to provide care for the sick and get jobs for the jobless. This was the moment, this was the time when we came together to remake this great nation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: OK, Jonah, let me -- let me go to you and ask you, because I just saw a story with you that you wrote. To some, people thought that was very inspirational: "Yes, yes, that`s the way I feel." To me, I thought, don`t we already care for the sick?

JONAH GOLDBERG, AUTHOR, "LIBERAL FASCISM": Yes, there are all sorts of problems with that. I mean, first of all, I don`t want this country to be remade. You listen to Obama`s rhetoric, it`s a lot of revolutionary talk about how we need to make this country great, we need to remake this country as if what we have now is no good.

I think what we have now is pretty good. And that doesn`t mean that we can`t fix this problem. We can`t reform that problem. That`s what America is always about.

BECK: Right.

GOLDBERG: We`re constantly improving ourselves. We`re constantly asking what can we do better. That`s why we`re so much more productive, so much more efficient. But this revolutionary rhetoric that you get from Obama makes it sound as if we`re chopped liver. And so right now, that`s simply not true.

BECK: Hang on, Jonah, because a lot of people might say we`re nit- picking on this. But unfortunately, I know you know and I know history. This kind of rhetoric, when you say I want to remake America, this is exactly what FDR tried to do. He tried for universal health care. He actually tried to change the Bill of Rights, right or wrong?

GOLDBERG: Absolutely. He tried to replace the -- a traditional Bill of Rights, the one that`s in the Constitution, with an economic Bill of Rights, which promised all these things that the government was going to give you, rather than restrict it to things the government could do to you.

Also, when he says that, you know, for the first time America was going to take care of the sick and provide jobs for the jobless, he makes it sound as if the state isn`t doing something, then it`s not getting done.

BECK: Right.

GOLDBERG: But this country has lower unemployment rates today than all of those other European countries that are supposedly doing better than us, even though we`re, you know, our economy is in the tank right now. We still have an incredibly low unemployment rate.

BECK: Here`s a number that, actually, I find very disturbing. Scott Rasmussen has done a poll. And I`ve got to tell you, I asked to make sure this was right. I couldn`t believe this number. Only 29 percent of Democrats agree that the U.S. is truly a land of liberty and justice for all, compared with 72 percent of Republicans. What does that tell you?

GOLDBERG: It`s sad, but it`s actually not that surprising. Look, the more you look -- the more you look to the places like the United Nations as the answer, rather than to the American people as the answer, the more likely it is that you don`t think all that highly of the American people or the American nation.

And you look for -- and you think highly of these countries that sit outside and say that we`re a bad country, that say that we need to sort of follow their example in Europe or in Canada or whatever.

And when I say that, people say, "Oh, you`re saying that these people are unpatriotic." Well, to a certain extent I guess I am in the sense that, if you really think that Europe is a better model, if you think the United Nations is a source of redemption in the world and America is the problem, then I don`t see how you can avoid sayings there`s a certain lack of love of country involved in that -- in that mindset.

BECK: Jonah, let me switch gears here, because I saw John McCain on "Good Morning America" today, and I`ve got to -- I`ve got to tell you, he is the most unexciting candidate. I mean, really, he makes Bob Dole look electric, Joel Lieberman electric.

He was talking about his energy reform, the Lexington -- Lexington Project, which sounded interesting. But he didn`t make it sound like that. But he`s still against ANWR.

You went up to ANWR. Can you please set the record straight about what you saw in ANWR?

GOLDBERG: It`s a giant tidal pool of mosquito puddles. Let`s be fair. ANWR itself is this huge thing. It`s as big as South Carolina, right? The part where they want to drill is 2,000 acres, about the size of national airport in Washington, D.C. That`s where they want to drill. That is not where it`s beautiful. That is not where all the mountain ranges are. It`s an enormous swamp of mosquitoes and bogs. And that`s what`s up there. That`s where they want to drill.

And to say that you`re in favor of offshore drilling except off the shore of Alaska, where all the oil is, is really -- it`s a problematic thing.

I will say this in defense of John McCain, though. Look, I like the idea of a president who is just sort of Grandpa Munster, this cranky old guy who says, you know, "You kids get off my lawn." I don`t want to be inspired. I want -- I want a guy who wants to beat up our enemies and leave the rest alone.

BECK: All right. Jonah, thanks.

Now coming up, some unbelievable video that you`re not going to see anyplace else. Cops in New Orleans storming people`s homes, confiscating their weapons in the days after Hurricane Katrina. Stunning reminder of just how important it is to stay vigilant about our rights this Fourth of July week.

And a reminder: tonight`s show is brought to you by the Sleep Number Bed by Select Comfort. Sleep Number, it`s the bed that counts.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Coming up, my sit-down with America`s mayor, Rudy Giuliani. I`m going to talk to him about our growing crisis of confidence in the economy and politics and, as usual, the lack of real leadership in this country. His answers may actually surprise you. Don`t miss it. It`s coming up in "The Real Story."

But first, this morning I got up, and I turned on "Good Morning America." Joe Horn, he`s the guy from Texas. Remember the guy who shot the burglars in his neighbor`s house in Texas. They had him on. It was an incredibly -- I thought it was an amazing interview on how they did everything they could to make this guy look like a madman vigilante. He`s not. You have a right to protect yourself. Originally in the Declaration of Independence, it was life, liberty, and property.

Well, the NRA has a video, because they were the first ones and the only ones to actually videotape guns being taken away from American citizens in New Orleans. You have never seen this video before.

Full disclosure. I am an NRA member, a lifetime member, and this video was shot by the NRA.

Watch and try to keep your mouth closed.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Police, open the door.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: M-15s or M-16s, they were pointing at us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They told us, "Put your hands up in the air."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They`re drawing down on me, and they let the looters run rampant for over a week? Are you kidding me?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I really thought they were going to kill me. I really did.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They didn`t care what your rights were. They were going to deny them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You`re letting the thugs get away with everything, and you`re coming to honest, good citizens and taking away their protection, and it is wrong. Wrong, wrong.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But still, the order had been given to police and National Guard to go house to house, often with guns drawn, to evacuate residents and confiscate their firearms.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No one will be able to be armed. We`re going to take all the weapons.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was a human drama with emotions and tensions running high. Patty Connie (ph) is still trying to recover physically and emotionally.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It really did a number on me.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: From the day police forced her from her home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was traumatic.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All of a sudden, they were banging on the front door, the side door, and the back door. And they said, "Let us in."

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Patty tried to explain, she was on dry land. She had plenty of food and water, and didn`t want to abandon her dog. But it didn`t matter.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You see six or eight police that look like linebackers pushing me in the corner, you`re in shock. I`m saying, "Look at all my food. I`ve got plenty of food." They kept pushing me back, pushing me back. And ended up like this.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Then, Patty showed them a small revolver she was carefully holding in the palm of her hand. A camera crew was there to capture what unfolded next.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I said, "It`s not even loaded." And I dropped it on the floor. Well, they punched me in the face. How could this happen in America?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You`re treated like a criminal, and you did nothing wrong. So your rights are really out the window.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Richard Steyer was in his friend`s fast-boat, trying to salvage his gun collection before the looters stole it, when they got stopped by a St. Tammany Parish sheriff`s boat.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And we had policemen tell us that that`s what they wanted us to do. But not the sheriff of St. Tammany. They just wanted to confiscate them from us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We felt like criminals at the time when they come up to us with M-16s or AR-15s, whatever it was, but there were four of them with rifles and holding on us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He said, "Be thankful we`re taking your guns here." Why should I be thankful? "Well, if they catch you with them on land, they`re going to take you straight to jail."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I felt like it was un-American and that we had been violated.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They took something from you. They stole something from you. That`s the only way to put it. They took something that they didn`t have a right to take.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The more I think about it, the madder I get.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Jim O`Shark`s (ph) home was badly damaged by Katrina. But when he tried to save his gun collection...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Most of them stored up top.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... it, too, was confiscated by law enforcement.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He had no jurisdiction here. You know, I`m a law- abiding citizen protecting myself and property. They had no right to take them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But the authorities didn`t stop there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What I feel is that we`re losing control of who we are as a nation.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Robert Zass (ph) was forced to evacuate when a tree destroyed both of his family`s homes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Loaded with dogs, kids, people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Then, as they were exiting through downtown, the unexpected happened.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These cops came out of nowhere and said stop, and asked if we had weapons in the car. I told them, "Yes, I do."

He said, "Get out of the vehicle." Had us all sit cross-legged in front while they searched the vehicle.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But Robert couldn`t believe what he watched police do next to his rifle and his friend`s pearl-handed revolver.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I saw them smash her gun, given to her by her grandma and grandpa, just against the curve. The other things that they busted up, the .22 rifle they busted up. These are police officers that went too far.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A break-down in law and order.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was mayhem. The police did not have control of the city anymore.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The safety net had snapped. Phone lines and cell towers were down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nine-one-one wasn`t answering the phone. The police department wasn`t answering their phone. You couldn`t find a policeman.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We had no police or military presence in this neighborhood whatsoever.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was just you and that constant feeling of hopelessness, of living in fear, knowing there was no easy way out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was so much gunfire around here at nighttime, you could smell it in your nose and taste it in your taste buds.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The post-Katrina world turned right and wrong on its head. Looters ruled the city for over a week, post-storm, without fear of law enforcement.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your rights were just done away with.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gil Buhl (ph), a commercial crabber, was asked by emergency personnel to help find a safe water route for a barge carrying supplies to get into New Orleans. Then suddenly, a sheriff`s boat with five officers onboard, armed with automatic rifles, sped toward them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They didn`t just have them pointed from their hip. They had them up at their shoulder and asked if we had any weapons onboard. I told them, yes, we had two weapons. They said, "Get in the back of the boat. Get your hands in the air. We`re coming aboard to search."

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Search and then seize Buhl`s firearms. And when Buhl asked for a receipt, the officers flatly refused.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You`ve got a Second Amendment law on the books. And it was just total disregard for it. They violated my rights as far as search and seizure. They had no search warrant.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: It is truly unbelievable what happened in Louisiana. As we celebrate July 4, let`s make sure we celebrate all of our freedoms that are protected under our Constitution, Second Amendment.

Louisiana`s current governor, Bobby Jindal, is making sure this never happens again in his state. And with the Supreme Court decision last week, hopefully, we won`t see anything like this anywhere every again in this country.

If you want to see that NRA video again -- a reminder, we need to be vigilant about all our rights -- we`re going to put it in my free e-mail newsletter tomorrow. That is the first time that that has ever been seen on national television. You can sign up for it now at GlennBeck.com.

Coming up, you can`t miss this discussion with Rudy Giuliani. Does he have a shot at being John McCain`s No. 2 guy? I`ll ask him. And we`ll also talk about gas. Is anybody doing anything about it?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Well, I`ve already told you about a couple of great books this week, but with the Fourth of July right around the corner, I want to introduce you to one more novel to consider bringing with you to the beach.

The premise is pretty simple. We know the president of the United States can be a crook, an adulterer, an alleged war-monger, but how about a serial killer? I mean, why not?

Best-selling author Philip Margolin poses that question in his great summer read, "Executive Privilege."

Philip, the president is a serial killer, possibly?

PHILIP MARGOLIN, AUTHOR, "EXECUTIVE PRIVILEGE": Well, yes, and it started -- I started thinking about Nixon being a burglar and Clinton having all these problems with sex scandals. And I began to wonder what would be the worst thing that a president could do? So murder pops into your head right away.

And then I thought, what`s the worst kind of murder? And I thought serial murder. And then I asked myself, would it even be possible because, you know, the president has the Secret Service around him all the time? He`s under constant media scrutiny. And so that was a problem I put to myself. And...

BECK: Don`t give these guys any ideas. I hope you didn`t teach them how to do it.

Do you think -- do you think that the president could, because I have to tell you, I respect the office of the president of the United States. I think we`ve put some guys in there that, woo.

But the president is so isolated and has so much concentrated power now, do you think the president could ever, not necessarily a serial killer, but do you think he could ever get away with killing someone?

MARGOLIN: Well, that`s what I had to figure out in the book. And I actually got the idea in the mid-`90s. And it took me quite a while to work everything out.

BECK: I wonder what gave you that idea. Did you -- did you -- do you believe that he could?

MARGOLIN: I think it would be possible. I think it would be extremely difficult. And like I say, fiction always sort of pushes the envelope, and you can do stuff in a book that might not necessarily happen in real life, but I don`t like to put something in a book that couldn`t possibly happen.

BECK: Yes.

MARGOLIN: So the way I -- the way I set it up, I think it could -- it could occur.

BECK: And he`s a -- he`s a predator with women. Is that...

MARGOLIN: Yes. What...

BECK: You had this idea in the mid-`90s?

MARGOLIN: Yes, I`ve been thinking about it for quite a while. And I don`t like to write a -- write a book until I`ve got my ending.

BECK: yes.

MARGOLIN: And it took me quite a while to figure out the surprise ending. But basically, I`ve got two people on opposite sides of the continent who start to suspect what`s going on. One`s an ex-policewoman in Washington, D.C., who`s a private investigator. She gets a really simple assignment from a very powerful lawyer to follow this college coed around, and it`s the world`s most boring assignment until she takes some pictures of the president with the co-ed in a secret meeting.

BECK: In a completely unrelated question.

MARGOLIN: Go ahead.

BECK: Are you disappointed that Hillary Clinton is not the candidate this time around?

MARGOLIN: I -- I think it`s really neat that the candidates could have either been a woman or an African-American.

BECK: One probably would have been better for book sales.

MARGOLIN: Oh, I don`t know. And I don`t actually write my books with that in mind.

BECK: Phillip, thank you very much. If you`d like to check out an except of "Executive Privilege," just sign up for my free e-mail newsletter at GlennBeck.com.

We`ll be back in a minute with Rudy Giuliani.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: How brave are politicians? Well, I can tell you how brave Rudy Giuliani is. He`s here on the set. I`m the kiss of death to politicians.

Welcome. How are you, sir?

RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Good to see you, Glenn. Happy Fourth.

BECK: To you, too. I am -- I spend most of my time screaming at the television now, looking at these politicians going -- we`re talking about faith and patriotism. Talk to me about gas prices and energy. Is there -- please tell me, is there -- is there going to be any difference in our energy policy, or is it just more of the same?

GIULIANI: I think there`s going to be a difference. I can speak, you know, much more for John McCain than I can for the other side, but I thought John has made some very clear statements about nuclear power.

BECK: yes.

GIULIANI: And how we have to expand it.

BECK: But can we -- I like you because you`re frank.

GIULIANI: Right.

BECK: So can we just -- I don`t know if I can even ask you to do this. Don`t be a Republican. OK. Just be a regular guy.

GIULIANI: OK. I`ll tell you what I think has to be done.

BECK: OK.

GIULIANI: I think we have to open up things that have been held back for 20 to 30 years.

BECK: OK.

GIULIANI: That`s the reason we`re in the spot that we`re in.

BECK: So ANWR, John McCain is not for.

GIULIANI: We should open that up.

BECK: OK.

GIULIANI: And we should do drilling offshore...

BECK: And oil.

GIULIANI: Which John has opened up. On a state by state basis.

BECK: And then he also goes with...

GIULIANI: Nuclear power. Nuclear power. France is 80 percent nuclear. We`re only 20 percent nuclear.

BECK: Yes.

GIULIANI: Makes no sense. China is building 40 new nuclear power plants. We`re way behind.

BECK: Did you see the story about China and the green sea, where they`re going to have the Olympics and they`re going out. All the algae that`s in the sea, did you see this? And they`re trying to clean it. They`re trying to clean it all up and they don`t know if they`re going to make it in time.

GIULIANI: Right.

BECK: It`s from toxic waste and dumping. And we`re the biggest polluters?

GIULIANI: And you look at -- you look at Cuba.

BECK: So who...

GIULIANI: Cuba is going to allow China to drill for oil within 80 miles of Florida. And Florida had a 300-mile limit. So in essence, we have China drilling for American oil.

BECK: So who...

GIULIANI: We have to open this up.

BECK: It`s insanity to me. Who would you rather have? Would you rather have China drilling off our shore or an American company?

GIULIANI: An American company would do it much more carefully. It would be regulated better. We`ve got to open up all these other things, as well. Hydrogen, hydroelectric.

BECK: All. OK, I really, truly believe that there is a great force in America that has hijacked the Democratic Party. I don`t even realize these people. These -- I mean, put a little star on their head, man. These are communists, some of them.

GIULIANI: Obama, Obama will be very much in the same straight jacket that we`ve been in for the last 20 to 30 years. Indicates no possibility of breaking beyond it.

BECK: You can`t -- the Democrats have been hijacked by the uber left and the environmentalists and socialists, and it is -- it`s crazy town. No nuclear energy, no drilling for anything.

It`s almost like, Rudy, please. Help me -- help -- look the camera in the eye and talk right to America and tell America how much trouble we`re in.

GIULIANI: We are in a lot of trouble if we don`t open everything up. And we`ve got to do it right now. And we`re probably ten years too late, but not too late. If we can do it now, we can catch up.

BECK: Do you sense -- I was talking to a friend this weekend, and I said, "I don`t know. Something in me says that we are at that place with China and India and us, and we`ve been in the lead, but we`re right close to that place to slip behind if we don`t react now. America doesn`t understand it, but we`re -- this is the pivot point.

GIULIANI: Yes. And everything you`ve got to count at least five to 20 years out. In other words, what you do now isn`t going to have an impact for four, five years at the very best. More likely, 10, 15, 20 years. You`ve got to start doing it now.

BECK: Please tell me John McCain has made your phone ring.

GIULIANI: John McCain will open...

BECK: No, no, no.

GIULIANI: Made my phone ring in the sense...

BECK: Called you for vice president. No, seriously. Come on. You were the guy -- you have the best -- you have the best health care. I was a Romney fan. You were No. 2 for me.

What was the thing that I really hated about Mitt Romney was his health care plan. You had the best health care plan. You understand taxes better than anybody else. I don`t think John McCain even understands taxes.

GIULIANI: John understands taxes.

BECK: Come on. Come on. If we don`t have -- if we don`t have somebody take on these taxes...

GIULIANI: He understands taxes very well. He`s been a senator a long time. Going back to the Reagan tax cuts, John understands taxes.

The reality is John will lower the corporate tax. He`s going to lower taxes. He`s going to keep them low. On the other side, we`re going to see a 20 to 30 percent increase in tax.

BECK: But he`s talking about cap and trade. That`s the biggest tax increase in business.

GIULIANI: But he`s now -- but he`s now talking about phasing it in.

BECK: Oh. Oh, I see.

GIULIANI: Phasing it in as we develop other alternatives. So let`s see if we can develop those other alternatives. What you`re looking for is perfection. This is what I tell people about.

BECK: NO. I`m not looking for anything. No.

GIULIANI: The reality is -- the reality is you have to compare John McCain to Barack Obama. Who will be better for this country? John McCain will be better for the country without any question. And we all have our pros and cons. There were things about me that you liked, things you didn`t like.

BECK: Rudy, I would have voted for you. I would have voted.

GIULIANI: There were things you really disagreed with, right?

BECK: Absolutely. I was not looking for perfection. I`m looking for somebody who doesn`t -- who at least sees the world the same way that I do, that understand this...

GIULIANI: I listen to you all the time. You see the world the same way John McCain does on how to deal with Islamic terrorists.

BECK: Yes.

GIULIANI: All right. Now you`re onto really big things. And that leads to a lot of other things. If you understand the threat of the Islamic terrorists...

BECK: Yes.

GIULIANI: And you understand it long-term, you understand the need for real urgency in our energy policy. I mean, beyond everything else, economics and everything else, we`ve got to get free of the domination of foreign oil from certain places.

BECK: Let me ask you this. Congress is so -- just tight and not moving. They`re just absolutely...

GIULIANI: They`re not until this election is over, probably, right?

BECK: Yes, yes, no. Nothing is moving. And yet the economy is moving.

GIULIANI: Right.

BECK: The world is moving. Oil prices are moving. And none of it is good. And I just realized today, we have talked -- we have people in Congress that are talking about nationalizing oil, health care, financial, the airlines, because it`s too important to fade...

GIULIANI: And protection.

BECK: Right. So what you`ve got is, if you nationalize, if you run into rescue these things, you have the government controlling banks, transportation, energy, and health care.

GIULIANI: See, all that you mentioned, the president is going to veto all that.

BECK: Yes.

GIULIANI: There are at least four vetoes. One after another.

BECK: Do you think because of inaction in Washington, problems get worse and worse? People can`t afford -- they can`t afford their heat to turn it on in November. Don`t you think this election is going to come down to the person who promises the most free stuff to them?

GIULIANI: No, I don`t think so.

BECK: I love you.

GIULIANI: I think that this election is going to be -- is going to be close. But I think it`s going to come down to who they think is the most experienced, the sounder leader.

I think Americans are crying out for leadership. And I think this is an election a lot like, to me, like 1980 with Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. Ideology is not going to determine it. Leadership is going to determine it. I think McCain offers leadership.

BECK: I think -- well, now maybe it was just somebody -- everybody liked Reagan and everybody...

GIULIANI: A lot of people voted for Ronald Reagan and didn`t agree completely with his ideology.

BECK: Right.

GIULIANI: They wanted a leader. They wanted a strong leader, a person who could make a decision. And I think John McCain can make a decision, and you`ll agree with 80 percent of them.

BECK: Can you -- can you -- do you believe you can win without the media on your side?

GIULIANI: Well, that`s a good question. A couple of -- Reagan did it. Bush did it.

BECK: Reagan, I`ve never seen -- come on. Have you ever seen -- have you ever seen the media -- seriously...

GIULIANI: I agree with you.

BECK: I know you do. Have you ever seen the media so in bed with -- I mean, just -- what was the thing this week with Barack Obama where he flipped -- oh, the FISA thing.

It was the worst thing ever. George Bush is a traitor to the country. He`s -- his shredding the Constitution. Now Obama -- now that Obama agrees with it, they`re saying he`s on a more pragmatic road.

GIULIANI: I thought `92 was a big disparity between the coverage of Clinton and the coverage of President Bush. And I thought that this one was about the same as that. I thought `80 was pretty bad...

BECK: Yes.

GIULIANI: ... between Carter and Reagan. Reagan was painted as some kind of a very dangerous figure.

BECK: Yes, yes, yes.

GIULIANI: We had to overcome it before. Republicans have had to overcome it before.

BECK: The green movement, the green movement. Do you buy -- you don`t buy into global warming, do you?

GIULIANI: Well, I do.

BECK: Wait.

GIULIANI: That there is global warming. But how do we deal with it? We deal with it as a long-term problem, not an immediate...

BECK: Do you believe -- do you believe that man is causing it? Or do you believe -- I believe global warming happens.

GIULIANI: I think there -- I think there is more evidence that man is contributing it to than not. And I think that we can deal with it over a long-term, rather than like -- not like it`s all going to happen in the next three or four years and it`s a catastrophe.

BECK: Do you think that there`s enough common-sense people where you can -- where you can...

GIULIANI: And I thought the cap and trade legislation that was on the floor of the Senate would have been a monstrosity.

BECK: Yes, yes.

GIULIANI: And it would have ruined our economy.

BECK: We can`t go offshore. We can`t get the coal. Environmentalists this week have said that they now want a study on the deserts for solar panels to see what the environmental impact would be. That is exactly what the environmentalists did to crush the wind power companies that had -- were ready to go with wind power. And these guys don`t want anything.

GIULIANI: The reality is, there are only two or three options right now. And we`re going to be led to them, and we`re going to have to do it.

Italy, for example, just approved opening up nuclear power. We`re going to have to do it.

BECK: Yes.

GIULIANI: I mean, we -- it`s going to happen. The faster it happens, the better off we`re going to be. We`re going to have to expand our reliance on nuclear power to get through this. Because if we don`t, we`re going to start slipping. We`re going to go down 20 percent to 15 percent. We`re going to have to go up to 25, 30 percent.

We`re going to have to drill more offshore. We`re going to have to open up ANWR. It`s going to happen because we`re not getting from here to utopia without a transition.

BECK: Really, VP, VP. Independent.

GIULIANI: And finally, the best way to deal with global warming is to realize that this is a long-term problem, and we should find alternatives. Clean coal, carbon sequestration is a great answer to global warming. It`s a great answer to energy independence.

We have more coal reserves in this country than they have oil reserves in Saudi Arabia. So let`s put a lot of money into that. Let`s do sensible things.

BECK: Mr. Mayor, thank you very much. And I know I said this to you off the air, but I would be remiss in not saying this for all Americans. This is the first time I`ve ever met you in person. Thank you for your leadership on 9/11. Thank you for, honestly, giving my family hope at that time.

GIULIANI: I had a lot of help. Really great supporters.

BECK: I know, thank you.

GIULIANI: Thank you.

BECK: Back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: You know, sometimes it`s so easy to get caught up in politics and the search for a new leader that you forget we already have one. And I mean President Bush or, you know, Congress. I mean, you.

It is the people of this country who are the real strength, and who give me hope for a brighter tomorrow in this country, not our politicians.

Since -- since when did America sit around and wait for somebody to come and lead and inspire us? From the pilgrims of yesterday to the pioneers today, we are the people who take the chances and all the risks, who make the unthinkable a reality.

Last Sunday, I was lucky enough to deliver that message in person to a giant crowd at America`s Freedom Festival in Utah. I wanted to share a little bit of that speech with you tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: We, as a nation, are facing tough times. If you listen to me, you know. You`re like, "Glenn, shut up. I get it."

Now that everybody is recognizing that the tough times are here, I bring you a new message. It`s not about the floods or the fires, or the twisters in Kansas. It`s not about the stock market being down. It`s not about the gas. It`s not about oil being up 700 percent. It`s none of those.

It is that all is well. And we will make it. As long as we look at ourselves and ask ourselves the question, "Who are we?" in a time when America is begging for a leader. In a time where America is shouting out, "Where is the leader? When will he step forward?" I am here to tell you, you are the leader. The leader we seek, the leader we need, is you. It always has been.

We cannot continue down buying into the lies that somehow or another this country isn`t a special place, that we aren`t a special people. We are this country`s next great dispensations pioneers. We are the ones that are going to take us into a new place beyond your wildest imaginations. It will be hard. It will be rough. But, oh, we will have this tale to tell. We just have to be who we really are.

People ask me all the time, "Glenn, I get it. I know we`re in trouble. Where`s the hope?" The hope is found in just waking up. The hope is in the recognition of who we truly are, not who we`ve allowed ourselves to become. All we have to do is remember. All we have to do is remember and celebrate, and wake each other up.

Let`s start talking about the things that are great instead of talking and debating and arguing about illegal immigration. While we do that, let`s remember one thing: people are dying in the desert to have a small piece of what we take for granted every day.

How could it be a place -- how could it be a place not worth fighting for? How could it be a place that`s oh, so terrible, if people will give their lives just for a small piece in the shadow? It is a blessed land.

The Founding Fathers gave us a map out of anything. They were magnificent and divinely inspired. This week, we celebrate the signing of the Declaration, the group of men gathered in Philadelphia to sign what they knew was their death warrant. They knew if their name were on that document, they would be killed. But each one of them stepped up and signed it. Signed it.

We are the United States of America. We can solve any problem. Not in Washington. Here. Here. The answer never comes from Washington. That`s the answer.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: We already have our next leader. It`s you. And don`t ever let the media or the government try to convince you otherwise. We need to mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honors, again.

By the way, if 20 hours a week of me on radio and television delivering that message is leaving you wanting more, then you can join me Thursday, July 17, as I do my first ever live HD broadcast to 350 movie theaters across the country. I promise not to sweat as much as I did in that last clip.

The show is called "Beck `08: Unelectable." And it is comedy. It will leave you understanding exactly why I would never, ever, ever be president of the United States. Here`s a hint. I`m way too honest.

Again, that`s July 17 in theaters everywhere. Get your tickets now at GlennBeck.com.

Back in a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Well, it`s Fourth of July week, and I`m feeling pretty patriotic. In fact, when I went through the Drudge Report this morning and that giant golden EIB (ph) microphone was on the page with the headline "Limbaugh signs through 2016: $400 million deal shatters broadcast records," I broke into Kate Smith`s version of "God Bless America."

(singing) God bless America.

(speaking) Why? Well, there`s a new profile "New York Times" magazine of Rush, which shockingly contains 8,000 words and spends very little time trashing him. I don`t know what happened. This is possibly a sign of the apocalypse. I don`t know. You`ll have to check that out yourself.

It goes through his life, his career, his opinions, and it actually was an interesting read.

But one part caught my eye. And a lot of people can take it as a negative. Maybe they meant it as a negative. But that strikes me as not only a fundamental misunderstanding of Rush Limbaugh`s life but also, bigger, a fundamental misunderstanding of America.

The line that they bolded in the -- in the "New York Times" was Limbaugh was a failure almost as long as he has been a success. It went on to talk about his struggles through school and early on in his career. But most important thing to understand is that the failure wasn`t a failure at all. Failure isn`t just an important element in most success. It is absolutely essential in success.

I say, as a failure who is quite accomplished in his ability to fail over and over and over and over again, that`s the truth. It`s not just about personal stories. It is the conservative philosophy, what I believe this country was founded on and why we are so misguided today.

I believe so strongly in the importance of letting people fail. The power of failure is the most motivating factor that we have as human beings. The fear of it is the center, is the creator of ideas. The true mother of all invention.

Rush took his career failures. He decided to bet on himself one more time: "What did I learn from those failures?" He took a job at Sacramento, and he decided to do things his way, from what he learned from those failures. And he unapologetically stated his opinions, made fun of people in Washington and single-handedly created an industry that saved the AM radio band.

In following his dreams and understanding the power of failure, he went from $12,000 a year to $50 million a year. God bless America. Only in America. God bless capitalism. And God bless the freedom to succeed and to fail. It`s essential.

From New York, good night, America.

END