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Glenn Beck

Making Sense of the State of the Union

Aired January 24, 2007 - 19:00   ET

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

GLENN BECK, HOST: All right. Coming up, we`re going to translate the president`s State of the Union speech from bull crap to English. It will be tough, but we`ll do it.
Plus, there`s a lot of great teachers out there. But tonight, I`m going to tell you how to fire your kid`s bad teacher, next.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Tonight`s episode is brought to you by subway hero Wesley Autrey. Wesley Autrey, making the most out of his 15 minutes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: The view was great. Wesley Autrey last night, I expected him to just look down at Bush and go, "Call me."

As I was watching the State of the Union address last night, I couldn`t help but think man, what I wouldn`t give for a second hour of "American Idol".

Here is the point tonight. Most of the president`s speech, as is the case with most of the State of the Union addresses, was complete and utter political bull crap, a waste of time. However, there were a few things that were important that we needed to hear. Unfortunately, I`m not sure that we all did hear them.

Here`s how I got there. Our crack team of researchers have analyzed Bush`s speech using state of the art technology, and we have come up with this pie chart. Yes, 12 percent clapping. That cost us $1.3 million. We bought it from the government`s new health care system that was proposed last night. It`s going to be great.

The political bull crap parts of the speech began right at the top, and they were just sprinkled throughout. I have absolutely no idea how these politicians look each other in the eye and say these things with a straight face. I mean, they know none of this stuff is ever going to get done.

For instance, let`s balance the budget and fix our schools. Yes. Yes, good luck with that.

The most irritating example of the bull crap section had to be the part on immigration, at least for me. I was screaming at the TV last night. I want you to pay close attention to Nancy Pelosi nod approvingly behind the president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Extending hope and opportunity in our country requires an immigration system worthy of America with laws that are fair and borders that are secure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: How agonizing. You know what? How dare you. Conservatives like me have been begging George Bush to do something on the border, to practically no avail, and Nancy Pelosi, yes, we need that.

You`re living in a state where they`re shutting down emergency rooms because you`re out of cash, yet you want to give free health care to illegal aliens? Stop it, both of you. Blood is about to shoot out of my eyes.

Stop preaching to me about the border security. You don`t mean it. We do. That`s why it`s in the bull crap section.

President also spoke about energy reform and ridding ourselves of foreign oil. Great, good idea. Sounds reasonable. So, why is it in the bull crap section? Well, let me just share with you a few words from people you might know and their State of the Union addresses.

First, Jimmy Carter: "The crisis in Iran and Afghanistan have dramatized a very important lesson. Our excessive dependence on foreign oil is a clear and present danger to our nation`s security."

How about Ronald Reagan? "We`ll continue the support of -- the support of research leading to the development of new technologies and more independence from foreign oil."

Bill Clinton: "I propose $6 billion in tax cuts and research and development to encourage innovation, renewable energy, full-efficient cars, high energy" blah, blah, blah, blah.

You know, as I was about to doze off last night, finally the president got to some important stuff, stuff that you could just feel by watching him, he believes. Namely, the situation in the Middle East, Iraq.

He defined it differently last night. One line that should resonate with every American, whether you`re a Democrat or Republican, was this line.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: And whatever you voted for, you did not vote for failure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: You know what? Let me tell you: one thing we`ve got to unite on is this. We cannot fail. Please, let`s start having a dialogue on how we win this war, not a dialogue on how not to lose.

So here`s what I know tonight. I know that last night, everybody heard what they wanted to hear. Unfortunately, I don`t think people-- I don`t think -- I don`t think people heard what they needed to hear.

What they needed to hear was this. Our country is generally strong. Our enemies are forming a strong alliance against us, and we must pull together. We cannot fail.

Here`s what I don`t know. At this point, can President Bush change a single person`s mind? He is what he is to his constituents and to his opponents. He may have beaten "American Idol" in the ratings last night, which is a shock to me. But there`s a difference between people actually hearing him and listening to him.

Jonathan Martin, he`s a senior political writer with "Politico".

Jonathan, was anybody actually listening last night to what President Bush said?

JONATHAN MARTIN, SENIOR POLITICAL WRITER, "THE POLITICO": Sure. He`s still the president, Glenn. And absolutely. He still commands the audience when he does give an address like this speech last night. And I think that he actually got some pretty good reviews.

His tone was fairly solid. I think he struck a very gracious note at the outset, recognizing Speaker Pelosi in the way that he did. So I think the president last night, given the challenges that he faces and given where he is in the polls, actually came off looking pretty good.

BECK: Yes. No, I agree with you. I thought he looked really -- I thought he looked really good. I saw a difference. And maybe it was just me. I saw a difference between the first part of the speech, where he was talking about domestic issues.

MARTIN: Sure.

BECK: And when he moved to the Middle East. There`s something about this guy with the Middle East.

MARTIN: It`s a passion gap.

BECK: Yes. He feels it to his core. And there`s a disconnect elsewhere.

MARTIN: Well, certainly he realizes that his presidency, to a large degree, is staked on what happens in the Middle East. So he, of course, is going to be very much a passionate, fired up when it comes to talking about the road ahead in Iraq. So that is going to be a lot of where his heart certainly is.

That said, he did last night want to talk about domestic issues. He wanted to try and reach out and find some common ground with Democrats in the Congress on domestic issues. Now whether or not that can happen in the days and weeks ahead remains to be seen.

BECK: You know, I heard something and I`m sketchy on the details. I don`t even know where I heard it. But he`s going to some Democratic Caucus meeting?

MARTIN: That`s right.

BECK: What is that? And is that unusual for him to do that?

MARTIN: It actually is fairly unusual. Every year, Glenn, the Democrats and Republicans separately have what they call retreats that start out the congressional year. They`re usually in January or February.

The Democrats this year are having theirs done in Williamsburg. Actually, in a rare move, President Bush is himself going to go down there and visit with Democrats from the Congress. He was invited by Speaker Pelosi and actually by Rahm Emmanuel, as well, a very shrewd political player, who in some ways dared the president to come.

They invited him and said, you know, "We dare you, Mr. President." And he took the bait. And he`s going to go down there and rub elbow with his Democrats.

BECK: Good. Good. You know, the problem is, if it was a sincere -- and I`m not saying that it wasn`t. If it was a sincere invite, you know, that`s great. We`ve got to stop playing the games.

Although Claire McCaskill said -- and I thought it was a shocking moment of honesty. Said today that she was actually watching Carl Levin to figure out when to stand during the applaud. When should I clap, when should I stand?

MARTIN: Right.

BECK: It`s a giant game last night in the State of the Union, isn`t it?

MARTIN: There`s a lot of feeder, Glenn, that goes on. And for us political junkies, it`s a great spectacle to watch. It starts out with members of Congress arriving literally five to six hours before the speech begins, going down to the House floor and getting right on that center aisle.

Democrats and Republicans, I should add, so when the president does come out they can be the first to shake his hand and get about ten seconds of his attention.

BECK: That absolutely kills me.

MARTIN: And, I should add, ask for autographs afterwards.

BECK: I know.

MARTIN: It`s something else.

BECK: I`ve seen his enemies, you know the people -- the people like what`s his name from -- from Cleveland.

MARTIN: Dennis Kucinich was down there.

BECK: Right. All I could think of was Gollum. But he was down there.

MARTIN: Jesse Jackson, Jr., of course, form Chicago is down there as well.

BECK: It`s nuts. The other thing is, I -- if you`re looking at it as a game, I really want to -- I doubt this network would ever let me do it, but I would like to host the coverage of it next year. And I want to get the isolated feeds of Hillary Clinton, of Ted Kennedy, of John Kerry, because I -- maybe it`s just me. I was -- I spent more time watching Nancy Pelosi`s face than George Bush`s face last night.

MARTIN: Right. Sure.

BECK: Does that make me weird?

MARTIN: No, not at all. Look, I think invariably even the biggest policy wonks in the world, after about 20 minutes, they start watching the body language of Cheney and Pelosi. And certainly, those shots there, you know, in the audience of Ted Kennedy looking down at his notes or Senator Clinton looking tired, certainly neat to watch.

BECK: Jonathan, thank you very much.

Now I watched the speech last night. And I`ve got to tell you, I was mesmerized by Nancy Pelosi. You know, the clapping thing. The Democrats clap. Nancy stood up, Democrats stood up. It was almost like it was some sort of weird game.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nancy says clap your hands. Nancy says stand up. Nancy says stand up and look constipated. Now Nancy says fall asleep.

Now stand up. I didn`t say Nancy says. Sorry, Dick.

OK. Nancy says wiggle your head. Nancy says look really bored. Now Nancy says look like you`re better than everyone else. Hillary, I know exactly how you feel, girl.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: This is GLENN BECK.

BECK: Coming up, the president calls Iran and Syria to the mat for supporting terror on the same day President Tom threatens to end us again.

And it`s time to substitute our teachers. Education needs a major overhaul. And I`ll tell you about one city that`s doing something about making sure educators make the grade. Firing teachers? Tonight`s "Real Story".

Plus, we`ll break from the serious confessions of a dangerous mind and "Galaxy Quest" actor Sam Rockwell is going to join us to give us the scoop from Sundance and his latest films. Don`t miss it, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: Show me the examples of when the government has done something better than the private sector.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: National defense.

BECK: Only because we`re not allowed to. You`re telling me that Ross Perot couldn`t defend Texas better than the United States government? We`d be broadcasting from the "Star Wars" space death star right now.

Wow, it`s weird. I`m looking at Ross Perot`s death star. It`s pretty cool. You know, the laser beam on this one, though, doesn`t come out of the center of it. It`s got two big satellite ears on each side.

Do you know what else? Do you remember in the death star in "Star Wars" how the government designed it with that one weird shaft that went to its only weakness? Private sector decided not to build it that way. It`s weird, isn`t it? Come on!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: As President Bush ran through the usual suspects of issues in last night`s State of the Union address, he took a brief break from the rhetoric to make one thing perfectly clear, Iran is supporting those that are killing Americans.

Now say what you want about the president. One thing he has been consistent on is his stance against those lending aid and comfort to terrorists. Last night, I don`t think he left a lot of room for confusion. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: Many are known to take direction from the regime in Iran, which is funding an army of terrorists like Hezbollah, a group second only to al Qaeda in the American lives it has taken.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: OK. Make no mistake about it. The many the president is referring to are terrorists.

Let`s go back a little bit. That was last night. On the speech aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln on May 1, 2003, President Bush said, and I quote, "Any person involved in committing or planning terrorist attacks against the American people becomes an enemy of this country and a target of American justice."

There is really no need to read between the lines on what happened last night.

Now factor in this little tidbit. Yesterday, with a meeting with a Syrian foreign minister and Iranian President Ahmadinejad, Ahmadinejad said that the United States and the Zionist regime of Israel will soon come to the end of their lives.

You don`t really have to be a foreign policy expert to see what Ahmadinejad has, you know, on his enemy list. Illicit starts with "I", Israel and ends with U.S.

If and when President Bush takes action against Iran or the terrorist organizations they`re supporting, you can`t say he didn`t warn us or that the psychopath running Iran wasn`t asking for it.

In our war on terror, we have to do more than not lose. This is a war, especially in relation to Iran, that we must win. In my opinion, when it comes to the president stopping Iran in their tracks, the question really isn`t if he`ll do it, but how and when.

Ilan Berman, V.P. of policy for the American Foreign Policy Council.

Ilan, the president, was he telling us last night that an attack -- that an attack on Iran is part of the future?

ILAN BERMAN, V.P. OF POLICY, AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY COUNCIL: Well, maybe. Certainly, that`s -- that`s one of several potential futures. But what I think was -- I took away most from the State of the Union yesterday was the degree to which he hammered home the point that he made a couple of weeks ago in his January 9 address, which is that Iraq is not a closed loop.

Lots of countries are meddling in Iraq and Iran is chief among them and the U.S., the measure of our success is determined not only by how we reconstruct Iraq, how we create stability there, but also how we deal with these foreign meddlers.

BECK: Yes. I was shocked last night. It was almost -- it was clear. And he`s not always clear when it comes to Iran. But he was very clear. It was cold almost. To me -- I`d love to hear your opinion on this -- it was almost as though he was setting up the Bush doctrine. Here`s the Bush doctrine. Here`s how they fit exactly. Was it just me that felt that way?

BERMAN: No. I think there was certainly an element of that.

But what I also noticed was that the way he talked about Iran was very nuanced. Look, President Bush knows that any sort of military reaction against Iran is going to be a huge enterprise after Iraq.

But he also knows that he`s already staked out a claim. He said that the U.S. and his administration will not tolerate a nuclear Iran. And that means that he needs a bipartisan consensus about the fact that Iran is part of the problem and that we might have to resort to force in order to solve it. And that`s why he`s framing Iran directly in the Iraq context.

BECK: OK. Now President Tom is sending messages all the time. We`re going to be destroyed. We`re going to end soon. You know, we`ll burn in the fires of the Islamic fury. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But we`re also sending -- and it was in the State of the Union. It was again kind of buried. We`re sending messages to him. We just sent a carrier group. We`re sending over Patriot missiles.

What exactly is that trying to tell President Ahmadinejad?

BERMAN: Well, that`s exactly what we`re trying to tell them. We`re trying to tell them that there are consequences for the type of behavior that he`s engaging in.

It takes four carrier groups, four full carrier groups to wage a full- scale war. And it, I think, bears noting that right now we have half of that deployed in the Persian Gulf.

It doesn`t mean that we`re going to go to war with Iran tomorrow, but it`s quite clear that the administration is trying to telegraph in no uncertain terms to the Iranian president and to the Iranian regime itself, that it`s very, very serious.

BECK: May I ask you a highly speculative question for an outrageous answer? Did you ever watch "The West Wing?"

BERMAN: Absolutely.

BACK: OK. There was one episode right before Bartlett left where he -- he engaged in some very unpopular war and both candidates came and said what are you doing? You`re killing us. Now we`ve got to clean up the mess. And he said it has to be done.

You know what? I keep playing that scene over and over again. We`ve got two years of Bush. I don`t think he`s going to leave this mess for the next president. I don`t think he`ll leave Iran just kind of sitting out there. Do you?

BERMAN: Well, the real question, I think, is more than anything else, the timeline that Iran`s ayatollahs have. Because it`s quite clear that, because Iraq is unpopular, because there`s a lot of other issues pressing on the attention of the White House, the impetus for inertia is very great when it comes to Iran.

But the ayatollahs have very different ideas. They`re talking about regional domination. They`re talking about standing up as a spoiler for American strategy in the region. And quite honestly, I think it`s a fight that we can`t run away from, because they won`t let us.

BECK: OK. Thank you very much, Ilan. I appreciate it.

BERMAN: My pleasure.

BECK: And coming up in just a second, a little on "American Idol". Some laughs right around the corner. Hang on.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Last night`s State of the Union address might have been the most watched in history, believe it or not, thanks, of course, to the fact that it followed "American Idol."

I don`t know if you saw last night`s show. A whole lot of freaks that just can`t sing. But last night, something crazy happened: a freak who could sing. I like to call this guy "Castro chic." Surprise, surprise. Listen to this guy sing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): My head`s been wet with the midnight dew because I`ve been down on bended knee talking to the man from Galilee.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: A little pitchy for me. But Kim Caldwell, she`s the host of TV Guide`s "Idol Chat", actually, a former contestant herself.

What did you think -- what did you of Castro or Osama bin Laden? How are you?

KIM CALDWELL, HOST, TV GUIDE`S "IDOL CHAT": How are you doing? Good morning. Good night, whatever.

BECK: I`m good.

CALDWELL: Let`s talk about Jesus.

BECK: Yes.

CALDWELL: I think that he was absolutely amazing. And I was really surprised. I thought he was going to go in there and, like, pull some like chickens out of his back pocket and start juggling or tapping or something strange.

BECK: Yes.

CALDWELL: And he actually was really, really good.

BECK: How long before he -- do they shave him? I mean, take him right out back and shave him?

CALDWELL: This is what I think is going to be really interesting to see with him, is whether he`s going to do the makeover and, like, do the whole makeover, like Clay did, and have a total transformation.

BECK: Yes.

CALDWELL: Or whether he`s actually going to do the Taylor thing, like Taylor kept his gray hair and everybody wanted him to dye it.

BECK: Nobody wants him to keep that beard.

CALDWELL: It worked for Taylor.

BECK: Right.

CALDWELL: So you never know.

BECK: You were a contestant. How far did you go?

CALDWELL: What do you mean how far did I go?

BECK: Well, you can answer that any way you want.

CALDWELL: I was number seven.

BECK: You were number seven?

CALDWELL: I was number seven on season two.

BECK: Really?

CALDWELL: Well, I did a huge transformation too. You should see the outfit that I had.

BECK: We will see it next week now.

CALDWELL: NO, we will not. We will not, or I will not be coming back. It was horrible. But I did do kind of a cool transformation and did, like, the extensions and lost, like, way too much weight.

BECK: That`s too bad.

CALDWELL: Yes.

BECK: All right. So the other thing was there was this really kind of sad, poignant moment. Usually when these happen, it`s like oh, that guy is going to get on. He didn`t get on. But listen to this sad moment. What was this guy`s name, Chris McCain. Watch this.

CALDWELL: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTOPHER MCCAIN, TRIED OUT FOR "AMERICAN IDOL": My wife left me recently. I found out that she had been messing around, but, you know, I forgave her. And then she said she wanted to keep messing around. So, I told her to leave. I think, though, when I become the next "American Idol" she`s going to want me back, and I`m just not going to have it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: Yes.

CALDWELL: Yes. Well -- we always need to -- well, we always need to remember is this is a singing competition. But first and foremost, it is a reality -- you know, it`s a reality show. It is.

BECK: And then he got...

CALDWELL: So of course, they`re going to show that guy, who is like stalking Paula.

BECK: Yes.

CALDWELL: And wants to be the next Idol because he thinks his wife will come back to him. You can`t do it for that reason. You`ve got to do it because, you know, you love singing.

BECK: Yes, I really don`t think his wife is really going to be coming back to him after the performance last night.

CALDWELL: Probably not, especially with his dance moves. I mean, they were just wrong.

BECK: Sundance Head.

CALDWELL: My favorite so far. Love him.

BECK: Not saying a lot.

CALDWELL: And actually, he`s from Houston. Work it out, Houston. And his dad used to be a big singer in Houston. And now he`s taken over. He`s Sundance Head.

And what I loved about him is that you didn`t really expect that voice to come out of him.

And secondly, at the end, you saw Simon say he blew -- he blew Taylor out of the water. Blew Taylor out of the water.

BECK: You know what?

CALDWELL: Simon has actually been taking hard core digs at Taylor throughout this competition.

BECK: Here`s the thing. We just need all of them sheared. That`s what we need.

Back with "The Real Story" in a second.

CALDWELL: We do need a razor.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: All right. Welcome to the "Real Story."

One of the lines that just popped out at me last night from the State of the Union address was this one. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And to further protect America against severe disruptions to our oil supply, I asked Congress to double the current capacity of the strategic petroleum reserve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: Wow, "severe disruptions"? What do you suppose that is? You know, I always tell you how George Bush, when he gives speeches, you know, he gives them in code worthy of a Navajo Windtalker? Well, this was definitely one of those, because the real story tonight is that "severe disruptions" doesn`t mean $3-a-gallon gas. It means we`re at war with some people who control a lot of oil.

Back up. History, 1975, President Ford created a strategic petroleum reserve after the Arab countries decided to stop shipping oil to anybody who supported Israel. Hey, wait a minute. That would be us. There`s nothing like a 400 percent price increase to finally make us start saving just a little bit of oil.

The reserve now currently holds 690 million barrels, which sounds pretty impressive, until you realize that would only last all of us 55 days, if we had to stop importing oil. But that`s assuming that we would actually use the reserve for our day-to-day life, which is not what it`s there for.

This is the "strategic" reserve. Last time I checked, fueling up the lawnmower, not very "strategic." It`s there to keep our critical infrastructure running, little things like F-16s and Abrams tanks. Yet every time the price of gas skyrockets, you`ll hear some slime ball politician screaming about opening up the reserve. And the president has, up to this day, said, "Ah, let me think about it. No."

Aside from 1975, when it was created, the other time a president ordered a huge increase was right after 9/11. This president directed that we add another 150 million barrels to it. We`re kind of like the guy who has declared bankruptcy twice before realizing we should probably put a little bit more money in the bank.

But fortunately, this president sees the future, doubling it a billion and a half barrels. He`s seeing a future that is very dangerous for us. This is not a short-term process. This is long term. This guy understands that it won`t be finished during his administration.

But that`s why we need to make sure our next president sees the reserve the same way this one does: not as a political cookie jar to use whenever gas gets a little pricey, but for when our planes must fly on a very, very rainy day.

All right. Next, one of the other themes last night in the speech was education reform. The president proposed the revolutionary idea of giving local leaders more flexibility to turn around their own flailing schools.

Now, I heard that, I thought, "Wait a minute, are you telling me that the local community and parents can do a better job than the U.S. government? Please, governments always do it the best. Have you been to the DMV lately and gotten your driver`s license? I mean, they`ve got that wait down to like two and a half hours!"

But the real story tonight, you can give those local leaders all the "flexibility" you want, but nothing really will get done until we fix -- ready? Not even sure I`m allowed to say this on national television -- until we fix the teachers` union. Am I still on the air?

Teachers, before you start sending loads of hate mail, all of it with perfect spelling and grammar and punctuation, hear me out. You know, I think, if you`re a good teacher, you`re going to agree with everything I`m about to say.

Teachers` tenure and union contracts stand against everything a free market system stands for. You know, you want to be able to reward the best teachers by paying them more, right? No. Sorry, current union contract doesn`t allow for that. How about firing the worst teachers every year and bring in new ones with fresh ideas? Yes, can`t do that one, either. No, got tenure.

Imagine if you ran a small business with those same rules. Why would your employees ever want to work harder when there`s no way to reward them or discipline them? It`s an invitation to mediocrity. It`s exactly what made the Soviet Union into what it is today.

And if you ran your business like that, I guarantee you`d be bankrupt within a month. Well, our schools are essentially bankrupt. You know, there`s a monopoly going on. There`s no competitor ready to come in and clean up the mess.

In New York City, a teacher putting in just three years of service is eligible for -- ready for this? -- lifetime tenure. Now, the union is going to come back and say, "Yes, but, Glenn, they don`t just hand it to you. There`s a review process after those three years." Uh-huh, uh-huh. Yes, Department of Education says that 99 percent of teachers who get through the first three years get the lifetime tenure. I can imagine how thorough and tough that review process must be.

In Bergen County, New Jersey, there are 10,000 teachers. Take a wild guess how may had been fired through the tenure process over a 10-year period. Try zero. Not even one. And it`s because the absolutely ridiculous amount of time and money it takes to fire a tenured teacher, even when the case is open and shut.

For example, New York City, they found out that a teacher was sending sexual e-mails to a 16-year-old student. They had the e-mail, the teacher confessed, and guess what? It took six years and thousands of dollars before he could actually be fired. And even though he wasn`t teaching during that time, he still took home his entire six-year salary of $350,000. Now, why did it take six years to sort that out?

Take a look at this. It`s a flow chart. This is showing all of the steps New York schools actually have to go through to be able to fire a teacher. It`s one hearing and conference after another, and it`s all governed by over 200 pages of union contract. This is an embarrassment; this is criminal.

Thankfully, someone besides this rodeo clown actually seems to agree. New York Mayor Bloomberg announced last week a new initiative to reform that city`s tenure process. In an announcement that came as quite a shock to the head of the teachers` union, he said, "Enough is enough."

Joel Klein, chancellor of the New York City Department of Education, Chancellor, you`ve got one of the toughest jobs in America. What exactly are you guys trying to do now, because you`re not really going to get rid of tenure, because I don`t think you can? What is it you`re doing exactly?

JOEL KLEIN, CHANCELLOR, NYC DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION: Well, what we`re doing, Glenn, is making sure that tenure decisions are thorough, are careful, because precisely what you said. We are making a long-term, lifetime commitment to our teachers. And the teaching force in our city is the most critical element in the work that we`re doing.

And we want to make sure that, when we have a tenure decision, which is after three years that a teacher has been with us, we look at student achievement, we look at the evaluations of the teacher, and we make a careful, thoughtful decision.

BECK: Chancellor, I mean, look -- teachers, I`ve had teachers that have changed my life. I have a lot of respect for teachers, especially with everything they have to go through right now. I mean, they`re practically policemen and nurses and everything else, parents, in many cases. So I`m not coming down on teachers.

I just, for the life of me, don`t understand how you could work some place for three years and then nobody is able to fire you. What is the purpose of tenure?

KLEIN: Well, it`s an interesting question. You know, in my view, teachers changed my life. I went to public schools in the city of New York. And they`ve been wonderful. But I do think it`s a strange process where, after three years, you get a lifetime commitment.

That`s the law in the state of New York. That`s the law we`ve operated under. It`s a law that, I think, is worthy of further reflection. That being said...

BECK: That was the greatest politically correct statement I think I`ve heard today. God bless you. "I think it`s one worthy of reconsidering." Or what did you say, further examination?

KLEIN: Further reflection.

BECK: That`s great.

KLEIN: But I think also highlights, Glenn, exactly what we`re talking about, which is why it`s so important that, after three years, we look at the entire record, we make sure we do a careful analysis. In the past, 99 percent of the people who were in the system for three years would just move forward, and I think we can do a better job.

BECK: But, Chancellor, again, when does common sense play a role? I just talked about the story with the teacher who was writing sexual e- mails. He admitted to it. Took six years to fire this guy.

KLEIN: That`s nuts, isn`t it?

BECK: It`s beyond nuts.

KLEIN: It`s absolutely nuts.

BECK: It`s beyond nuts. When does the union ever step -- because, look, I think the idea behind tenure is to not throw people out, just to, you know, make sure that it`s a fair work environment, et cetera, et cetera. That`s fine. I`m all for that. But come on, man, the teacher union is defending this guy and dragging it out for six years. When does common sense play a role?

KLEIN: Well, you and I are on the same page. And it`s not just common sense; it`s how about what`s right for kids? You know, just as the teacher can change the life of a kid, a poor teacher can really undermine a kids` learning.

So I think we do need a little more common sense. I think under Mayor Bloomberg`s leadership, we`re bringing a lot more common sense to the school system, and this reform, frankly, I think, will help us move it forward.

BECK: I don`t want to put words in your mouth here. And I`ll let you skate on this one, because you`ve been a good guy. You couldn`t break up the teachers` union if you wanted to -- or not the teachers` union, but tenure. You couldn`t get rid of tenure if you wanted to.

KLEIN: Well, certainly, I think what I`d like to see is a tenure process that is more effective, more efficient. And like you`re saying, I mean, six years for a guy who admitted to sexual abuse is nuts. And I think we need to make sensible reforms.

The basic notion that before you terminate a teacher, after you grant them tenure, that they should have reasonable due process, I agree with. But it shouldn`t be a full-blown trial like it is in a criminal case.

BECK: Right. Right. Chancellor, thanks a lot.

And that is the "Real Story" tonight. If you`d like to read more about this or if you`ve found a real story of your own, please tell us about it. Go to glennbeck.com and click on the "Real Story" button.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: All right. If you like movies about superheroes, aliens, lasers, then Sundance probably is not the best place for you. But the annual film festival founded by Robert Redford years ago under way right now in Utah. And for some reason, the stars actually are willing to talk to us.

Now, it could be that we`ve convinced them that I host "Access Hollywood," but maybe not. Sam Rockwell gained critical acclaim for his role in movies like "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind." He has now currently not one, but two movies at Sundance, "Snow Angels" and "Joshua." And here is a look at "Joshua."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAM ROCKWELL, ACTOR: OK. Hey, hey, hey, hey, what are you doing? What are you doing?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In Egypt, when they embalm people like pharaohs, they broke the nose and removed the brain through the opening.

ROCKWELL: Josh, that`s...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They drain the body of all its fluid on a special stone slab.

ROCKWELL: Josh, Josh, Josh, Josh, why are you doing that? Why -- don`t.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This guarantees him a glorious afterlife.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: OK, Sam, that`s freaking me out, man. What is it with the -- what is wrong with you people? We`re already freaked out enough. We don`t need to go into a movie theater and be freaked out. What is this movie about?

ROCKWELL: Well, it`s about a creepy kid, you know.

BECK: I got that.

ROCKWELL: It`s about a creepy kid, and these parents, and how they sort of -- the mother is dealing with postpartum depression, and the father is just trying to make ends meet, and they have a strange child.

BECK: Sam, I mean, gosh, I don`t want to get into politics here at all.

ROCKWELL: Yes?

BECK: I want you to know, I`m a big fan of yours.

ROCKWELL: Thank you. Thank you.

BECK: Is there a ray of sunshine in any of the movies coming out at Sundance?

ROCKWELL: Is there a ray of sunshine? How do you mean? Do you mean --when you say politically, do you mean any optimistic...

BECK: No, no, I don`t want to talk politics.

ROCKWELL: OK, OK.

BECK: Yes, optimistically, is there anything that`s happy? Is there a toe-tapper coming?

ROCKWELL: You know, I think there`s a few of those. But my two movies, the movies that I`m in are not that.

BECK: Not so much?

ROCKWELL: Yes. They`re...

BECK: Which one are you most proud of?

ROCKWELL: I`m really proud of both of them. I mean, they`re apples and oranges. One`s kind of a genre horror film, and the other one is a drama, you know, not unlike "Ordinary People" or "The Ice Storm" or something.

BECK: Can you go back and make, just to balance things out, a little, "Galaxy Quest"? Is there a possibility of...

ROCKWELL: Yes.

BECK: Because you know what? I`ve got to tell you, I don`t know what other people think of "Galaxy Quest."

ROCKWELL: I loved the movie.

BECK: Oh, it`s great. And you were just the highlight of it. You were so great in that movie.

ROCKWELL: Well, thank you. I bump into a lot of my cast members a lot from that. And, you know, we always -- I don`t think it made enough money to have a sequel, but a lot of people, I think, would like a sequel, you know? It has a cult following.

BECK: Because you were in "Galaxy Quest," you were also in "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy."

ROCKWELL: Yes. Alan Rickman was in that, too.

BECK: Great, great movie. Let me talk a little science here with you just a second. Hollywood in Mormon, Utah, is that like matter and anti- matter? Is there a possibility that the entire universe disappears some time this week?

ROCKWELL: Yes, it`s an oxymoron. No, it`s pretty severe scene over here. It`s pretty intense, lot of dehydration, lot of people. And a lot of talking heads. But it`s fun, you know? It`s a lot of fun, too.

BECK: I mean, you`ve been in -- I think you`re probably -- up until "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind," you were probably one of those guys that everybody would see and go, "Oh, my gosh, I love you," but if you said the name, most people wouldn`t know you.

ROCKWELL: Yes.

BECK: Has that changed for you now?

ROCKWELL: "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" definitely changed things and for the better, you know? And I have George Clooney and Stephen Soderbergh to thank for that.

BECK: You`re kind of a -- correct me if I`m wrong, but you seem like a selective guy. You`re more into the art of the work than the bottom dollar. Am I wrong on that?

ROCKWELL: Yes, I try. You know, I hope that money is only part of the equation, you know? And I`ve done a lot of movies for no money this year. And it`s because they`re really good scripts.

BECK: Have you thought about maybe -- I mean, Gene Hackman just did a lot of movies. Some of them were good; some of them really sucked. But he was always good in them.

ROCKWELL: Yes. Well, he`s a great actor, you know? I mean, he was always good in them. That`s a good point, same thing with Michael Caine. You know, they`re prolific. And you`re not always going to get a home run, you know?

BECK: Yes.

ROCKWELL: Just do your work, like Gene Hackman. That`s a good example.

BECK: Sam, best of luck to you. And a big...

ROCKWELL: Hey, thanks.

BECK: ... a very big fan, and best of luck in the future.

ROCKWELL: Thanks a lot. Thanks a lot, Glenn.

BECK: You bet.

Now let`s check in with Nancy Grace, see what she`s got coming up on the show tonight -- Nancy?

NANCY GRACE, CNN HOST: Well, Glenn, tonight, Donald Trump does battle again. This time with a bunch of millionaires down in Palm Beach who told Trump he`s flying his American flag too high. That`s right: the American flag. Can you fly the American flag too high, Glenn? Let`s see now. The Supreme Court says you can definitely burn the American flag, but Palm Beach says you can`t fly it so high. And they`ve ordered it down.

And, Glenn, tonight, live to Tennessee, a Tennessee couple fight for a little Chinese baby they took in eight years ago. But before you judge, the Chinese mom would hide in a neighborhood gas station to watch the little girl go by on her bicycle or for a walk. They claim they never meant to give the girl up. So what should the judge do, Glenn?

BECK: Don`t forget. You can check out Nancy tonight at 8:00 and 10:00 Eastern here on Headline Prime.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: All right. Last night`s State of the Union, it featured one of my favorite things that politicians do. And that is point people out in the audience and say how great they are.

It is quite an effective way to break up your speech, because, I mean, we`ve got an incredibly short attention span. You know, you just can`t -- hang on. Something shiny, America. Wake back up. I can`t just stand here and just tell you about the news, you know, for 30 seconds straight. There`s got to be a banner that describes exactly what I`m talking about, a crawl at the bottom of the screen, or perhaps even some relevant video. Like this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Three weeks ago, Wesley Autrey was waiting at a Harlem subway station with his two little girls when he saw a man fall into the path of a train. With seconds to act, Wesley jumped onto the tracks, pulled the man into the space between the rails, and held him as the train passed right above their heads.

He insists he`s not a hero. He says we`ve got guys and girls overseas dying for us to have our freedoms, we have got to show each other some love. There is something wonderful about a country that produces a brave and humble man like Wesley Autrey.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: I love this. You know, here`s a guy who`s just living his life. He`s standing in a Harlem subway station three weeks ago, now he`s a personal guest of the president at the State of the Union. And in case you were wondering, this is the way you should celebrate a moment like that.

It`s like of you`re like between scoring the winning touchdown at the Super Bowl and going home with Jessica Alba. And you deserve to act that way. All the way through it, I really did think that he was just going to mouth the words, "Call me. Call me."

So does Wesley Autrey`s life go back to the way it was now? Or does everything change forever? Miles O`Brien asked Autrey just that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WESLEY AUTREY, SAVED MAN`S LIFE: I believe it`s going to be different in a real way.

MILES O`BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: How so?

AUTREY: Well, I think Oprah is going to be next.

M. O`BRIEN: Yes?

AUTREY: Yes. Oprah.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: What is that? Did you get a call from Oprah? I mean, I think if you`re on the phone with the president and your phone beeps and, you know, your caller ID says Oprah, you might click over. But you might not be going to the State of the Union anymore, but you`re going to be watching it on a brand new 61-inch plasma TV.

All right, you can e-mail me at GlennBeck@CNN.com. We`ll see you back here tomorrow, you sick, twisted freak. Good night.

END