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Glenn Beck
Why Are World Leaders Blind to Evil?; Florida Town Considers Strict Immigration Bill
Aired July 17, 2006 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: This Sunday at Southwest Airlines Arena in Beirut, it`s Hezbollah-Lapalooza, the most explosive rock festival to hit the Middle East since Jihad-stock. For tickets call the president of Iran or Ticketmaster. Hezbollah-Lapalooza, it will blow your mind.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GLENN BECK, HOST: Well, welcome back from the weekend.
The conflict in the Middle East is in its sixth bloody day. And as more Hezbollah rockets rain into the Israeli town of Haifa, all the brainiacs that can solve this, from Jacques Chirac to Kofi Annan, are offering their advice to Israel: stop defending yourself.
Israel has made an offer today: give us back the kidnapped soldiers, man, and we`ll stop. Hezbollah, still thinking about it.
So where is Hezbollah -- a terrorist organization that has seats in the Lebanese government -- getting all their weapons and training from? Hmm, would anyone guess Iran? Yes. It`s crazy. We know it; you know it; I know it. But the international community, not so much.
Vladimir Putin says that there is -- there is no evidence linking Iran or Syria to Hezbollah. Have you missed the $100 million a year checks to Hezbollah from Iran? Who`s doing this? Angry teens?
The president of Iran, Ahmadinejad, or as I like to call him, President Tom, compared Israel`s actions to those of the Nazis. That one, I spent all weekend just trying to figure out. I mean, first of all, President Tom, your argument might have a little more weight if, you know, you weren`t completely psychotic.
I mean, I`m not a Middle East expert, you know. I can barely read and write English. But evil`s pretty easy to spot. It`s like -- it`s like during World War II. You know, you ever see the Nazi uniforms? They`re all dressed in black with a skull and crossbones on their hat? I think if they would have handed that to me, I would have went, "I think I`m on the wrong side."
The same thing with Hezbollah. Look at their uniforms. Does that look evil to you? Either that or like a really weird Barney replacement. I`m not really sure.
Now a few years ago I went to Israel to gain a better understanding of the situation over there. And not only did I eat my weight in hummus, which I think I really did, I noticed a few things. And this is one of the most crucial things that I learned.
In the old city of Jerusalem, as you`re walking down the streets, it`s currently split up like a giant pie, and every religion has a slice of it. And as you go through the Jewish sectors of Israel, you`ll see that the minarets and the old mosques are all preserved. Nothing has been defaced; nothing`s been taken down.
When I went into the Muslim-controlled part of the city, to the room where Jesus held the last supper, here is the picture that I took. This is what I saw. If you notice, all of the traces of Christianity have been taken away and replaced by Arabic writing and imagery. It was in this room, that picture, that moment, as I had it in my camera, that I realized in this conflict, only one religion is trying to erase all of the other religions.
Here`s what else I do know today. Iran is the root of all of the problems that are going on right now in the Middle East. They`re orchestrating this to scare the G-8, to take away the focus away from their nuclear program.
Iran`s also trying to create a humanitarian crisis with the Lebanese that will turn the Lebanese people and the world against Israel. They`re also actively seeking the return of the Islamic messiah, right now. I`m talking like, they`d like to see him by Labor Day.
In a nutshell, the Islamic messiah, or "the mahdi" is a figure who Muslims believe will bring about a time of justice and peace and a unified Muslim world, the entire world under Islam and Islamic law just prior to final judgment. Let`s party! Or as the case may be, not.
I do know I`m not on board with that. I also know you can`t negotiate with nut jobs who, along with Meatloaf, are just praying for the end of time.
Here`s what I don`t know. How come people are so blind to see what`s really going on, man? Why do world leaders continue to turn a blind eye and look at this and say, "I can`t see this, unless it`s all about the almighty dollar or side deals." Sides are being chosen right now. I fear this is happening as we speak.
I also don`t know how people expect to make peace with out and out evil. It didn`t work before. It`s never worked. It`s not going to work this time.
With us now from Beirut is the Middle East analyst, Fawaz Gerges, to give us a handle on this. Fawaz, how can -- how can the world leaders miss the evil that we`re staring at the face?
FAWAZ GERGES, MIDDLE EAST ANALYST: Well, I don`t think they miss the picture. I think they lay the blame very squarely on not just Hezbollah but even on Syria and Iran.
Even though there are differences among the various members, and particularly between the Europeans and the Americans, I think there was a consensus that Hezbollah was responsible important the outbreak of the crisis and that Syria and Iran were behind it. This was the official statement of the G-8 summit in Russia.
BECK: But you have Putin coming out and saying, "Well, I want some proof here that Hezbollah and Syria and Iran are all working together."
When you have Iran sending out $100 million a year to Hezbollah, what more do you need? Do you need the -- do you need the checks that have been signed by Hezbollah shown to them or what?
GERGES: You know, I think -- I think the major difference is among the G-G-8 members does not really do with whether they agree with Hezbollah or not. I think the major differences has to do with the subsequent response by Israel.
As you know, the American position is that Israel has the right to defend its citizens, Israel has the right to use military force to protect its citizens and to deter Hezbollah. While the French and the Russians and the Spaniards and the British believe that Israel`s response has been disproportionate, that Israel should not really...
BECK: How -- let me ask you a question. I mean sitting here in America, I`ve got to tell you something, if Canada was rocking -- you know, lobbing rockets over or border and we had already given up part of New York to them and then they just continued to lob rockets at us, you know what I`d be saying to the U.N.? "Go to hell, guys. We`re going to bomb the bat snot out of them until we kill every last one that has a rocket."
That doesn`t mean I have anything against the Canadians, but if that was the case, that`s exactly what we`d be doing.
GERGES: But that would be counterproductive. That would...
BECK: It would stop the bombing.
GERGES: But you will turn -- you will turn the entire population against you. And let me just -- and I see -- and that`s exactly what Israel and President Bush believe.
What we need to understand is that you have about 60 percent of the Lebanese people who disagree vehemently with what Hezbollah did against Israel. The Lebanese government is one of the most pro-western governments in the entire region. President Bush himself is trying to salvage the Lebanese government. It`s a fragile political situation in Lebanon.
And what the Bush administration, what the European governments are afraid is that by punishing the entire Lebanese population Israel is turning Lebanese public opinion against -- I mean, western policies. In fact, Israel is undermining the very pro-western government that it would like to...
BECK: I understand -- I understand this. And I do. But what I...
GERGES: Do you see what I`m saying?
BECK: No, I absolutely do, but I think what`s happening here is -- is Iran is using Hezbollah to buy themselves time for, you know, for a bomb. They`re using Hezbollah to turn world opinion against Israel, because there is going to be a humanitarian crisis on the horizon because of this. It`s just inevitable.
They also used Hezbollah to flex their muscles and scare the leaders of the world, in Europe specifically, to say Iran -- we`re Iran. We have huge long arms, and if you think you can control this, you`re out of your mind, because we control the Middle East. That`s what`s happening.
So how do you solve it? How do you -- go ahead.
GERGES: You just answered -- you just answered, really, my question. My question is why would you punish the entire Lebanese population if Iran and Syria were behind the crisis, as you are suggesting and as the G-8 members are suggesting. This is really where the...
BECK: I will -- I`m a recovering alcoholic. I mean, I don`t even know how I have this job, quite honestly. I`m not a world -- I`m not a world game player here, but I am a thinker, and if you would agree with me that we should go after Iran, I`d be with you on that, Syria and Iran, but nobody thinks that`s a good idea.
GERGES: I think really this is where the paradigm is, where the problem is. The problem is bigger than Lebanon and Hezbollah. This is a region-wide crisis, and the danger lies in the fact that the more, the longer the crisis, I mean, continues and escalates, the more dangerous the situation becomes.
As you suggested, I fully agree. I think Iran is using Lebanon. It`s a proxy. It`s a war by proxy. And both Syria and Iran are using the crisis in Lebanon, and that`s why, to come back to the critical question here, why would you destroy the entire Lebanese population?
BECK: You know what? You and I -- you and I totally agree on one thing, Fawaz. I hate to cut you off, but we have to run. You and I agree on one thing. The Lebanese people are being used as pawns, and it is a tragedy what`s happening.
Unfortunately, we`ve got to name evil for what it is, and it`s evil. And it is coming from Iran.
Fawaz, thank you very much.
You know, the interesting thing to me that I see is how many people are over in the Middle East, whether you`re in Israel, you`re in Palestine, that are tourists? I mean if you`re working over in the Middle East, I get it. But you`re other there as a tourist? Right now just doesn`t seem -- how did you -- what -- was there an ad that you saw on TV in the middle of the night that said hey, maybe I should check this out?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Tired of that same old vacation? Then why not pack your bags and set sail for adventure? The adventure that is the Middle East. It`s a land filled with excitement where every day is a party. And you`re invited.
Why watch the escalating conflict on TV when you can get a front row seat? Why visit exotic old ruins when you could visit exotic new ruins?
In the Middle East your options are endless. See where gas actually comes from. Witness a riot firsthand or simply cozy up to an impromptu bonfire. And with so many people fleeing the region, that means more room for people like you, people lucky enough to have chosen the Middle East.
Please check with your air carrier before actual travel. Some airports may be experiencing slight delays or may no longer exist.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: All right. Coming up in a minute, we have a small town mayor who may have the best solution to illegal immigration. Don`t go anywhere. Be back in a flash.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: I think when Hezbollah actually hands you the uniform and you have a mask, you would say, "Wait a minute." I don`t think anybody -- no, I -- I`m sorry, I take that back. Yes, the Lone Ranger wore a mask. I apologize, Hezbollah. You might be on to something. Maybe you`re the good guys.
No, no, not a chance in hell.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: We`ll have more on the Middle East coming up in the next half hour, so don`t put the kids down. All the fun is just beginning.
Last Thursday, Hazleton, Pennsylvania, the city council did pass that illegal immigration relief act that we brought you here. And what this act is, it will deny license to any business that -- here`s the key word -- knowingly hires an illegal, fines landlords $1,000 if they knowingly rent to them and requires city documents to be in English only. What a wild concept that is.
Some people did oppose it. In fact the mayor, I think, had to come wearing a flak jacket, but now at least four other communities are considering similar legislation, two in California, and two in Florida. One is in Avon Park, Florida, population 8,800. It includes Mexicans, Haitians and Jamaicans. Mayor Tom Macklin wants to do what Hazleton did. He`s up -- his bill is up for final adoption next Monday night. The mayor is with us now.
Hello, cracker.
MAYOR TOM MACKLIN, AVON PARK, FLORIDA: Well, hello, Glenn. How are you this evening?
BECK: Very good. How are you, sir?
MACKLIN: Quite well. Thanks for having me on.
BECK: Good. I actually from Mike Verbiglia (ph) that I could call you cracker if I want to because I`m a cracker, you`re a cracker, you can call me a cracker, too.
MACKLIN: I`ve heard that bit.
BECK: Mayor, you heard about Hazleton`s bid, and you thought this is a good idea. I think we need this?
MACKLIN: Absolutely. In fact actually, the first time I heard it was on an interview that you were doing on your radio show with Lou Barletta.
BECK: Yes.
MACKLIN: And I felt like man, you know, he`s preaching to the choir now, because these are the same issues that we`ve been dealing with, attempting to deal with for years in Avon Park.
BECK: So what is -- what are the problems that you`re having that you feel like the government has just abandoned you on?
MACKLIN: Well, obviously, in the housing venue is our greatest problem right now, due to the fact that there isn`t any real migrant or illegal alien housing developments or, you know, residential neighborhoods have taken the brunt of all of the illegals coming in.
We have landlords that are renting to as many as 10, 15 and in some cases 20 illegals in a single-family home, and it`s causing, you know, tremendous trouble in our neighborhoods with the quality of life issues going downhill quick.
BECK: Do you have -- do you have those so-called jobs that Americans just won`t take? Do you have a lot of illegal immigrants that are working in companies?
MACKLIN: Yes, you know, Glenn, you know I hear a lot about the types of jobs that Americans won`t do, but I`ve never seen anything glamorous about somebody getting up in the morning and going and working in a sewer system or, you know, working on broken lines along those lines.
BECK: Right.
MACKLIN: So we`ve got a lot of jobs that Americans are more than willing to do for a fair wage.
BECK: Well, yes and thank you for bringing that up, because that`s something that drives me nuts. I mean, I`m sure you`ve been called a racist so far, haven`t you? Somebody called you a racist?
MACKLIN: Oh, absolutely.
BECK: Come on, my cracker.
MACKLIN: It`s all hate based. What can I say.
BECK: I know. But here`s the big -- the thing on this is isn`t it more racist to say that Mexicans should come in here and do a job for an outrageously illegal wage just so I can have cheap orange juice? Isn`t that more racist?
MACKLIN: Well, absolutely, and you know, in the conversations that I`ve had with people that have called the house and have spoken to me about it, they say, "You know, if it`s a situation where we can get rid of illegal aliens and have legal immigrants here, and I have to pay -- let`s just say in Florida`s situation -- $1 a glass more for a glass of orange juice" that they`d be willing to do it, because on the back side of it they see other associated costs that taxpayers incur that would go away.
BECK: Right.
MACKLIN: So, yes, there`s a number of opportunities, you know, for people to do these types of jobs, and I`ve even had somebody tell me this morning that, you know, well, these illegals, they`re just chasing the American dream.
And my answer to them is that no, they`re chasing an impossible dream, because when you come into this country with an illegal status, you have no further to climb economically than the absolute basement, and there`s no end to the number of people that will take advantage in exploiting that situation.
BECK: Mayor, thank you very much. Best of luck. We`ll check back with you next week to see if it passes.
MACKLIN: Thank you very much.
ANNOUNCER: This is GLENN BECK.
BECK: All right. On tomorrow`s program we have got something special for you in the "what were they smoking" segment. And it happened in Houston, Texas.
There`s this guy comes to the airport. He`s on his way for a job interview in Atlanta. He is carrying a Koran. He is a Jordanian citizen, but when he goes through and he puts his bag down, `They say do you have a laptop, sir?"
And he says, "No, I don`t have a laptop."
Well, as he goes through the X-ray machine, he does have a laptop. In fact, he also has an alarm clock with a 9-volt battery taped to it. He also has bomb making materials in his bag. No explosives. He also has what some claim were hollowed out shoes.
They let him through. You won`t believe the rest of this story. Don`t miss it, tomorrow on the GLENN BECK program.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECK: Brian Whitman is a very good friend of mine. He does a radio program at KLSX in Los Angeles and WABC in New York, two stations I`m surprisingly not on. Third most listened to show in America yet -- how does that work without New York and Los Angeles?
There`s nobody else in the country, is there, Brian?
BRIAN WHITMAN, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: I`ll see if I can get to the bottom of that.
BECK: Right, would you?
WHITMAN: I`ll get you on both of these stations immediately.
BECK: Do me a favor. Get to the bottom of this one. How insane is Howard Dean?
WHITMAN: Well, how much time do we have, Glenn?
BECK: Wait, I`ve got to tell you, Brian and I have been good friends for -- I think you were like 13 and I was strangely older than you. And we shouldn`t probably go into that.
WHITMAN: It was an odd relationship at first.
BECK: It was. But we`ve been very good friends, and you are a flaming on fire liberal, and so when Brian says -- I got a note from Brian this morning -- "Howard Dean is out of his mind." That means something to me.
WHITMAN: It does mean something. Technically, this is my guy, I`m supposed to support this guy.
BECK: Right.
WHITMAN: But I think what Howard Dean said rings true. And think about it Glenn. If Al Gore had been elected in 2000...
BECK: Yes.
WHITMAN: Palestinian terrorists would have stopped hating Jews.
BECK: Right.
WHITMAN: Right?
BECK: I don`t know how that works, Howie, but...
WHITMAN: I don`t either. I`ve been thinking about it, trying to work that one out myself, but, look, this is a guy who`s a far-out guy in a job where you`re not supposed to be that far out. The DNC chair is supposed to be like a centrist, moderate, like kind of normal guy.
BECK: Yes.
WHITMAN: Who doesn`t say really weird things.
BECK: There is really a -- there is a fight for the soul of the Democratic Party right now, and I mean, I think it happened when they put Michael Moore in with -- with the other nut job, Jimmy Carter.
WHITMAN: I think you mean President Carter.
BECK: Yes. When they put those two together you could see there was a fight for the party right there. What`s happening with Joe Lieberman in Connecticut is -- I`m telling you, we`re going to spend -- if Joe Lieberman loses in the primary, he`ll come back and he`ll win in the general election as an independent. And that would destroy any chances of the Democrats winning anything.
WHITMAN: Glenn, I think you are right. My party every four years at our convention, we say we`re a big tent party and we have to mean that. I mean, you really have to mean that, so you have to accommodate a man with a great integrity, like Joe Lieberman who might have a view of the effort in Iraq different than the party establishment.
It`s really a sad day for my party if Joe Lieberman loses. I have sent him $100, which I`ve been watching the poll. It has not dramatically shifted the dynamic of the race. But I parted with a couple of bucks.
BECK: You know, Brian, you`re a reasonable guy. First, let me ask you this question, and then we`re going to come back to Joe Lieberman, if I have time. I want to ask you this question.
You and I are friends. We`ve been friends forever. You and I have such political differences, yet we`re -- we still get along. Do you really think the country is as divided as everybody on television and the DNC and RNC want to make us out to be?
WHITMAN: I certainly hope it`s not. I mean, there are -- there are people on the other side, such as yourself, who really get along with people on my side. Then there are guys like me who get along with guys like you. I think most of us in this country are somewhere in that vast middle, and we don`t take this stuff as seriously.
I mean, to have Howard Dean make a partisan issue out of -- against the backdrop of this historic violence is really...
BECK: I`ve only got -- I`ve only got about 20 seconds. Let me go back to my question. I can get along with a nut job like you.
WHITMAN: Thank you.
BECK: You know that what we`re facing right now, the worst thing you can do is get soft on defense, right?
WHITMAN: That`s exactly right. I mean, these threats need to be taken very, very seriously, and Israel takes them very seriously.
BECK: Yes. So should we. Brian, thanks a lot. See you again.
WHITMAN: Thanks, Glenn.
BECK: Bye.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: The president at lunch talking to Tony Blair, and he didn`t know that his microphone was on, Tony Blair`s microphone was on. And after they had this conversation, somebody`s like -- and so Tony Blair looks down at the microphone and is like -- turns it off.
And he realized, "Oh, oh, what did we just say?" And they had a very frank conversation. And I`ve got to tell you, I like what he said. I like the fact that we -- I mean, how long did we pine for a guy that would actually speak frankly to us?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: I`m going to play the video here for you. I warn you, it`s George W. Bush, having lunch with Blair, and there`s graphic eating involved. I mean, the president`s talking with his mouth open. Shame on you, George. Barbara will be talking to you about it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: What about Kofi Annan? I don`t like the sequence of it. His attitude is basically cease- fire and everything else happens.
TONY BLAIR, PRIME MINISTER OF BRITAIN: I think thing that is really difficult is you can`t stop this unless you get this international presence agreed.
BUSH: See, the irony is what they need to do is get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing that this (bleep) and it`s over. I feel like telling Kofi to get on the phone with Assad and make something happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: I`ve got to tell you, the thing I liked about it is the cowboy diplomacy. George Bush is always accused of cowboy diplomacy. I`m from the West, so I`ve known a few cowboys, real cowboys. You can shake their hand; you don`t need a contract. You can look them in the eye, and when they say it`s going to be done, it`s going to be done.
George Bush seems to get it. And I also liked -- if you go back and look at the transcript, he also said, look, somebody`s got to speak frankly here, and if nobody else will, just have them ask me the question. I`m not afraid of answering that question. I thought it was great.
Now, the U.N. is sending in diplomats which -- I mean, that`s really - - I mean, is that really going to fix it? David Makovsky is tracking the developments in the Mideast for the Washington Institute.
Really, David, I mean, isn`t peace process at this point, you know, and talking about things, isn`t that kind of just almost a bad joke?
DAVID MAKOVSKY, WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY: Well, the key issue now is to try to nail down a new situation in southern Lebanon whereby, instead of Hezbollah policing the border with Iraq, and firing them at will, and destabilizing much of the region, you would have the Lebanese armed forces doing their duty and extend their sovereignty to the rest of the country.
They haven`t done it since 1975. I think now is a good time. The Syrians are out. The Israelis are out. The PLO militants are out. It`s now or never.
BECK: Yes, but you have a big player in now, and it`s Iran. I mean, Iran is the spookiest player possibly right now on Planet Earth.
I mean, I personally believe that they have orchestrated this whole thing to scare the G-8, to buy time until the end of August for their nuke. I don`t know what they`re waiting for in August, but they`ve said we want until the end of August to answer on the nuke. And I think they`re trying to intentionally create a humanitarian crisis in Lebanon so the world will turn against Israel. Does any of that make sense to you? And, if so, how do you solve that with talking?
MAKOVSKY: I agree with everything you just said, actually. I think they are trying to divert attention. And the point here is, where`s the rest of the world?
I mean, it was the G-8 that, frankly, put in motion two years ago the ouster of Syria from Lebanon, where they were forced to get their 40,000 troops out. And now, you know, you`ve got to put a CNN spotlight and other media spotlights on Syria and Iranian intransigence.
They don`t like it when everyone`s focused on them that way, and for the first time you`ve got the Saudis, believe it or not, working with Egyptians and the Jordanians actually condemning Hezbollah. This never happens in public.
BECK: Nobody really wants to even talk about it. The people down on the ground, the average citizen in Iran -- I`m sorry -- in Iraq this weekend coming out and saying, "Please, America, don`t leave. Iran is out of control."
The whole situation is starting to change, but you bring up, you know, the G-8 and Syria and -- I`m sorry, not Syria, but Saudi Arabia, et cetera, et cetera. Let`s look at these countries.
Do you believe that Russia, and China, and France -- we`re starting to see the beginnings of an axis, an allied power. Do you believe that the lines are starting to be drawn so, if it does turn into World War III, we know whose side everyone is on?
MAKOVSKY: Well, I wouldn`t use the words "World War III" yet. I think the key thing here is that the United States and France, which couldn`t even agree on what day of the week it was during the last several years, actually agreed on one thing, and that is Lebanon, that Lebanon should be for the Lebanese.
And that sense of transatlantic unit was actually translated in getting the Syrians out. You need that same set of grit and determination of the U.S. getting its allies, working together, in doing the same thing now about Hezbollah.
There`s a U.N. Security Council resolution on this. The Lebanese government has said they want to deploy in the south, but it`s an anomaly. It`s one of the only countries in the world that can`t deploy its troops in its own country. Now is the time for that to change, and it will only change if the world remains united.
BECK: And that`s a tough thing in today`s world. Who hates Hezbollah more, us or the Lebanese people?
MAKOVSKY: I think it might be a tie between -- you know, the American public, which has seen 241 of its Marines killed by Hezbollah, the Israelis who said that Hezbollah doesn`t want to even agree to Israel if it was the size of a phone booth in Tel Aviv, or the Lebanese people who believe that Hezbollah has been gumming up the works and preventing it from becoming a normal country without war, and enabling foreign investment and stability to take hold. It`s a three-way tie.
BECK: Great, David, thanks a lot. At least on this program, you, the viewer, I promise you, we will call evil evil, and Iran is evil, and Hezbollah and Hamas, evil.
Let`s go "Straight to Hill." Erica Hill, the anchor of "PRIME NEWS" on Headline.
How was your weekend, Erica?
ERICA HILL, CNN HEADLINE NEWS ANCHOR: I had really nice weekend. Thanks. How about you?
BECK: I had a good one. I had a good one. I was out at the Mall of America, believe it or not. I had a speech to give in Minneapolis.
HILL: A big place.
BECK: Yes, I mean, it has loop roller coasters...
HILL: Did you go on the roller coaster?
BECK: No, I didn`t. The kids wanted to, but, no, not going to.
HILL: I can`t. I`m afraid. I`ll throw up.
BECK: Then I had to do the last stage show in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where it was 120, the heat index on the ground. It was nightmarish. I stepped out of the theater -- I told the audience to get, you know, just a breath of fresh air at the intermission. There`s no fresh air left there.
HILL: No.
BECK: None. None whatsoever. All right, space shuttle came down today. Tell us about it.
HILL: Hey, this is great. Picture-perfect landing this morning at the Kennedy Space Center. Shuttle Discovery safely touched down just after 9:00 a.m. Eastern. It`s, of course, just the second flight since the Columbia disaster, when that shuttle disintegrated on reentry in February 2003, killing all seven astronauts on board.
Shuttle Commander Steven Lindsay said the team accomplished all their objectives, adding he thinks NASA is ready to start flying shuttles on a more regular basis. NASA`s focus, now on the Shuttle Atlantis. It`s scheduled to take off as early as next month.
BECK: We forget how amazing our space program really is.
HILL: It`s pretty incredible stuff. I don`t understand half of it.
BECK: I don`t understand all of it or any of it, so -- but that`s not a surprise to anyone in the audience that Erica`s probably smarter than me.
HILL: Come on.
BECK: All right.
HILL: So you were just talking about the heat in Tulsa. Heat across the country, coast to coast. And if you weren`t sweating today, you`re one of very few lucky ones.
This stifling heat wave -- the National Weather Service issuing excessive heat warnings now in a number of places, all the way from Las Vegas to New Jersey and Chicago. A heat wave killed 700 people there in `95, so they`re really being vigilant.
BECK: Global warming. I`m just saying it`s global warming. You know, I like this global climate change thing that we`re working on now. You remember when we were kids...
HILL: Keeps you on your toes.
BECK: You`re younger than I am, but when we were kids, everybody was saying, "Oh, global cooling. We`re all going to freeze to death." And I remember thinking, "So get a coat." And now it`s global -- you know, then it was global warming, and, you know, get the air conditioner working. Now it`s global climate change. I think that`s great, because it was too cold. Now, it`s going to be too hot.
HILL: Do you think we`re going to find some middle ground then, that`s your theory?
BECK: In 30 years, we`ll be San Diego. It`ll be sweetness.
HILL: I wouldn`t mind San Diego weather.
BECK: Just give it 30 years. I wouldn`t mind it at all.
HILL: I`m in.
BECK: I am, too.
HILL: All right. I`ll see you in La Jolla.
Well, actually, talking about California, this weather probably none of us want, but you might thing rain would be welcome forecast in Southern California. Firefighters, of course, battling wildfires in the Yucca Valley. But the heavy rains, it turns out, could pose a new threat, and that`s flash flooding.
BECK: I got to tell you, California is just so bizarre, but I watch this footage. And the first thought that came to my mind, as I saw this just over the weekend, I`m watching the fires. And I thought, "My gosh, the world is literally on fire." It doesn`t get any spookier than it is right now.
Erica, thanks. We`ll talk to you tomorrow.
HILL: See you tomorrow.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECK: A couple of guys right now, they`re walking across the country. And unlike that fat guy that did it, what, over springtime, these two are actually doing walking across the country, and they`re doing it for a great cause.
Adam Goodrich and Christopher Tapp left Seattle, Washington, on the 3rd of June, teaming up with a group called Operation Troop Appreciation, to raise awareness and support for our troops. Tonight they`ve made it to some place in Colorado.
Adam Goodrich, where exactly are you tonight?
ADAM GOODRICH, OPERATION TROOP APPRECIATION: Right now, we`re in Denver, Colorado, actually.
BECK: OK, great. Great town. You crossed the Rocky Mountains by foot. What`s that like?
GOODRICH: Yes. Well, actually, once we got into Idaho, we had a tough time with interstates. Well, out of Idaho, I should say, into Wyoming. And we had a tough time with interstates. We booked a few rides. We got to the Rockies mostly that way.
Coming down to Denver was actually -- we drove down, because we`re walking from Cheyenne into Nebraska...
BECK: Well, this isn`t the walk across the country. This is a hitchhike across the country. It`s really starting to lose its luster here.
GOODRICH: No, no, not at all. What it was is some places you can, and some places you cannot walk. And Wyoming is where Chris` family is from, and so we`ve walked about -- it`s true, we did take a couple of rides, but a bridge here, a river there...
BECK: I will tell you that if I -- because I often think of, you know, the people who cross this country, and they were pioneers and everything else. And I think to myself, I would have hit the first hill and I would have been like, "Yes, you guys go on without me. I`m sleeping right here."
GOODRICH: Yes, we`ve spent some time climbing hills. The air gets thin.
BECK: Joining me now from Pittsburgh is a woman who`s been helping Adam and Chris make all of this happen. Her name is Monica Orluk. She`s from Operation Troop Appreciation.
Monica, what exactly is this?
MONICA ORLUK, OPERATION TROOP APPRECIATION: Well, this is a walk for appreciation...
BECK: No, no, I mean your organization. What is...
ORLUK: Oh, our organization. We grant wishes to soldiers.
BECK: Like what?
ORLUK: We send any item that a soldier requests of us. It could be Under Armor brand clothing, or musical instruments, or sports equipment, DVD players, Xbox machines, PlayStation units. Basically, we get a request from a unit that`s been deployed -- it could be Afghanistan or Iraq or anywhere else in the world for that matter -- and then we hold fundraising efforts and do our best to fulfill that wish and get those items to our troops as quickly as possible.
BECK: Monica, I have to tell you, you know, I did some homework on Operation Troop Appreciation. You`ve affected 12,000 troops all around the world, in the Middle East and everywhere else, and I just think it`s just tremendous. You must hear all kinds of things from the troops.
ORLUK: We do. The most gratifying part of my job or my role with Operation Troop Appreciation is hearing a soldier say, "You`re why I`m doing this. It`s people like you. And it`s the American people out there who are so giving that, you know, spur me on from day to day to keep doing what I`m doing."
BECK: So, Adam, why are you doing -- why did you decide to do this? What drew you to this?
GOODRICH: Well, the first thing that came to mind when we decided to do this walk with troops, the men and women fighting, we just thought this was the best thing...
(CROSSTALK)
BECK: I mean, but you`re from Seattle. Don`t get me wrong. I grew up in Seattle. And there`s just -- I mean, you try to get all of the water out of your head after a while. I mean, there`s not a lot of support for what`s happening in the Middle East in Seattle.
GOODRICH: No, actually, well, we`re not from Seattle. Actually, I`m originally from Boston. We`re living in Florida. We`re walking home right now.
BECK: Oh, you`re from Florida. Oh, that`s full of hatemongers down there.
GOODRICH: But that`s the point of the walk. That`s the point of the walk. We`re trying to raise some more morale. We`re trying to raise as much awareness for the men and women fighting over there. We do take a lot of things for granted, definitely, and...
BECK: Have you met any troops along the way? Have you seen any of the Armed Forces?
GOODRICH: Just this morning we met with three of them from Ft. Carson just south of here. Amazing.
BECK: What was their reaction?
GOODRICH: Their reaction was -- I mean, we had questions for them. They had questions for us. It was just an utmost pleasure to meet these folks. And it`s really fulfilling to know that they, you know, appreciate what we`re doing, and we obviously appreciate everything they do, the sacrifices they make day to day. It`s amazing.
BECK: Monica, a lot of people, I don`t think they really think about this, but a lot of these members of our military, you know, they`re not the rich among us. You know, I had a guy on the show, I don`t know, a couple of weeks ago who, you know, went and enlisted, and he`s serving his country. He`s a multimillionaire.
But most of the times they`re people that are just on the edge and the fringe financially of our society, and they don`t have a lot of money to be able to get anything. I mean, just being able to get, you know, a musical instrument would be a big deal. You`re almost this -- I mean, the Operation Troop Appreciation really is kind of like a foster parent, in a way.
ORLUK: Well, that`s the first time I`ve heard it put that way, but it really does fit. You know, we realize that deployment can be a burden, not only on the troops that are serving, but on their families.
BECK: Right.
ORLUK: And while families make every attempt to send care packages and needed items to the troops every day, we try to go one step above and really send wish list items, you know, just as you said, a musical instrument.
BECK: Right.
ORLUK: There are a lot of musicians who are also soldiers, but you can`t take your equipment over when you get deployed. So if we can ship some of that equipment and a unit has the benefit and the joy of music while they`re deployed, well, when they come home, they leave those instruments there for the next unit that comes in.
BECK: Yes, that`s great. I...
ORLUK: So they pay it forward, and there`s no better way to touch people than to pay it forward. So, you know, these are people we`re trying to help, and they`re going out of their way to help the guys that come in and replace them.
BECK: And I want to say one other thing. There`s a lot of people who are deployed, and the businesses struggle when they`re gone, and I appreciate all of those businesses that hold things together.
I know that, Adam, your employer is actually helping you on this. I see your t-shirt, it`s Best Western. And good job, Best Western, they`re actually putting the guys up as they travel across the country.
We also want to update you tonight on Operation Helmet. This is a campaign to raise money to provide life-saving protective liners for the helmets of our troops that they use in Iraq.
Since our story earlier this month, your response has been absolutely overwhelming. At $70 a pledge, Operation Helmet has shipped another 5,000 kits to Iraq and Afghanistan. That`s 16,000 and counting.
But we also have a lot of e-mails like this one, a drill sergeant in Ft. Knox who wanted us to know, quote, "The Army now issues a helmet replacing the one you had on your show that has padding like the upgrade kits. The new helmet is called the ACH Advanced Combat Helmet. Thanks for looking out for the troops."
You bet. It is good to hear. But Operation Helmet is still shipping kits to the Marines and anyone else who needs them. Here`s the Web address, if you`d like some more information, you want to help. It`s OperationHelmet.org, OperationHelmet.org.
By the way, the man who started Operation Helmet, Bob Meaders, his grandson, Justin, in Iraq. Two weeks ago, Justin was injured by an IED. Good news. He`s recovering at the hospital at Al-Assad airbase. He`s going to be fine. Bob told us that Justin suffered no head injuries, thanks to the upgrade kit that somebody, maybe you, sent out.
Coming up tomorrow on the show, it`s the Axis of Evil Dating Game. Don`t miss it. We`ll see if we can eliminate at least one of these guys.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECK: You know, there was a time that I thought there could be some scare tactics involved in the global warming debate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM BROKAW, FORMER HOST, "NBC NIGHTLY NEWS" (voice-over): This may be the future of our planet. The skyscrapers of downtown New York City stand in 80 feet of water. Its famous subway system, submerged.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BECK: You know, it`s really good to see cooler heads prevailing here, isn`t it? Now, every time I talk about global warming, I get lots of fun hate mail, like this one.
David writes in, "Glenn, global warming is real. Open up your eyes. Talk to scientists from all over the world. The proof is there. Turn off your television and read."
Panic! Actually, I do agree that global warming is real. I`m just not sure how much man has to do with it. You know, the global temperature has risen about 0.6 degrees Celsius in the last hundred years or so.
But despite all of the media attention, global warming isn`t exactly on the tip of everybody`s tongue, I mean, at least not to the level that Al Gore should be on the cover of "Entertainment Weekly," being called a "movie star."
When asked to prioritize 19 of the most pressing issues facing us in a new Pew Research poll, global warming was rated 19th out of 19 by Republicans. Well, that`s because they`re all hatemongers. Yes, yes. Even Democrats ranked it 14th out of 19. A collection of U.N. ambassadors did a similar thing, prioritizing climate change at number 27 out of 40.
But here`s the definitive global warming statistic that comes from the July 3rd issue of "Forbes" magazine that you got to remember to be able to tell your friends: "China burned 1.9 billion metric tons of coal in 2004. By 2020, predicts the China Coal Industry Development Research Center, it will burn 2.9 billion tons a year. That increment alone will send as much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as three billion Ford Expeditions, each driven 15,000 miles a year."
Let me restate that, just in case you missed it. Just the increase of one country`s burning of one fuel emits as much CO-2 as three billion Ford Expeditions. What does that tell you? That despite our good intentions, our cute little hybrids aren`t really going to make that much difference in the big picture.
It`s important strategically to get out of the oil business so we don`t have to deal with the nut bags like the leaders of Iran, but only a worldwide marriage of science and capitalism will truly change things. Well, either that or more hot pictures of Al Gore like this. I mean, that`s -- oh, yes, baby. Oh.
See you tomorrow, you sick freak.
END
