Return to Transcripts main page

Glenn Beck

Big Easy a Lost Cause?; Did Idaho Senator Hide Gay Behavior?; Castro Endorses Hillary-Obama

Aired August 29, 2007 - 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, two years since Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, and everybody`s still talking about rebuilding. I say don`t spend one thin dime. I`ll explain why.

Plus, the latest on Senator Larry Craig`s scandalous restroom arrest.

SEN. LARRY CRAIG (R), IDAHO: I am not gay.

BECK: But you are under investigation. The skanky details coming up.

And the million-dollar mutt. Leona Helmsley leaves millions to her pooch while family members are left in the doghouse. But he`s so cute!

All this and more, tonight.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Hello, America. Do not adjust your set, the truth coming your way. Possibly for the first time on Katrina.

It was two years ago that Hurricane Katrina ripped through New Orleans, and the gulf region. Thousands were left homeless, causing well over $150 billion in damages. And without question, Katrina is the worst national disaster in national history.

President Bush, Congress responded over $100 billion in aid to rebuild New Orleans. A lot of people, including me, think the president has blown it. Here`s the point tonight.

How much do I think should be spent rebuilding New Orleans? Zero. Nothing. Not a dime. And here`s how I got there.

Back in 2004, on the heels of Hurricane Ivan, a year before Katrina, I did my homework -- it`s not that hard to do -- and even me, a recovering alcoholic rodeo clown, could see that New Orleans was a disaster waiting to happen. Here`s a clip from that radio show September 14, 2004.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: A Category 5 hurricane will erase New Orleans from the map of the United States. The entire city will be gone. A Category 5 is not going to just take down the street signs; it`s going to bury the city in water. You will not be able to see the buildings under water.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: What you don`t understand was that was a year before Katrina. Was that not enough warning?

Maybe you`d be interested in an article from "Scientific American" called "Drowning New Orleans", that appeared four years before Katrina. It stated that a direct hit by a hurricane was, quote, "inevitable." The article outlines how New Orleans sits way below sea level in a great big bowl, bordered on three sides by water. It`s not that hard to figure out.

Now, the levees were designed to protect New Orleans. They were tragically under-engineered, and they still are. Even as we speak, the city continues to literally sink towards the seafloor.

The protection of the Mississippi Delta continues to wash away with the delta itself. It is disappearing by 25 to 30 square miles, an area the size of Manhattan, each and every year. That means that over two more acres will be gone by the time tonight`s show is over.

So tonight, here`s what you need to know. President Bush can propose to pledge another $1 billion or hundred gazillion dollars into rebuilding New Orleans. It doesn`t matter. You can`t change New Orleans` doomed geography. As hard as it may be hard to say, or maybe for you to hear, the Big Easy is a lost cause. And we`re throwing good money after bad.

And more importantly, we`re sending people back into a water hole death trap. That`s what New Orleans is. And it is as foolish as those misguided people in Malibu who continue to rebuild their homes on sliding mountains of mud. At the end of the day, Mother Nature always wins.

Now, the private sector, you know, if you want to go ahead and put New Orleans back together and risk your life in that process, none of my business. But when a dope like Mayor Ray Nagin wants to ship the poorest of the poor back into harm`s way and says we need to do it with my tax dollars and your tax dollars, it`s all my business. I`m all for compassion, but I`m out of tolerance for stupidity.

Now, it would be different if New Orleans were being built bulletproof for a Category 5 hurricane, like the one that just rocked Mexico just a week ago. But it`s not. New Orleans, the new levees, would be lucky to weather another Category 3, the exact same storm that destroyed it two years ago today.

Larry Lorenz, he is a journalism professor at the -- and the interim dean at Loyola University in New Orleans.

Larry, you say I couldn`t be more wrong.

LARRY LORENZ, JOURNALISM PROFESSOR/INTERIM DEAN, LOYOLA UNIVERSITY: You`re right. I don`t think you could be more wrong, except where President Bush is concerned. President Bush should deliver on his promises rather than making more empty promises.

BECK: You think a category -- we`re building walls for a city that -- a Category 5 is a one in six chance of happening to New Orleans. It`s only a matter of when, not if.

You think building levees and shipping people back into the city, these levees are only prepared for a Category 3, you think that`s a responsible thing to do to people?

LORENZ: I think the levees ought to be rebuilt. This -- you said this was a natural disaster, and to some extent it was. But it was also a man-made disaster. And the disaster has been made other the last 50, 60 years by the Corps of Engineers building dams, levees upriver.

BECK: Larry, what you`re doing is assigning blame. Let`s talk about reality here. Would you think it would be responsible if there was an apartment building built on the San Andreas Fault? Would you think it was a smart or responsible thing to do to pay for that apartment building to be built again to the same specs? Yes or no?

LORENZ: The -- there are plenty of apartment buildings built on the San Andreas Fault.

BECK: One that would collapse, Larry.

LORENZ: There are those in this country that are in dangerous situations that are being attacked by various kinds of bad weather all the time, and we build there. And we rebuild there. And we need to rebuild here.

BECK: We`re talking about when we -- when San Francisco -- when San Francisco is rebuilt after an earthquake, they don`t build it the same way. They build it stronger. We`re not doing that. It is completely...

LORENZ: We are building it -- we`re building it in a different way.

BECK: Really?

LORENZ: And we`re not just talking about rebuilding, the people of New Orleans are rebuilding here. And they`re doing a fine job of it.

BECK: I have to tell you, Larry...

LORENZ: This area is above sea level.

BECK: My kind of hysteria? People have been saying this since the 1950s. It`s only a matter of time, sir, and your kind of misconstrued, misplaced hometown pride is going to get people killed.

LORENZ: I`m not -- I don`t have hometown pride here. I`m not from New Orleans. I`ve lived here for a number of years. But this city is a historic American city. It is still part of the United States.

And it deserves the same kind of help that we would give to San Francisco in an earthquake, to the Midwest with flooding, to the Midwest harmed by tornados. That`s all we`re asking for is equal protection under the law.

BECK: Thank you very much, Larry.

Just because I don`t think that we should be sending people into their deaths in New Orleans, doesn`t mean I don`t think we should help protect those who are already there.

According to a story in the "New York Post", New Orleans has the highest murder rate in the entire first world. Did you get that? Higher than Rio, Detroit, Washington, Houston.

In its infinite wisdom, the first thing that New Orleans did with Mayor Ray Nagin in the aftermath of Katrina was to collect all of the guns. That`s a smart move, genius. The good guys turned them in; the bad guys didn`t. Now New Orleans is completely out of control with a recent string of brutal murders. That is -- that is tragic proof.

If you don`t figure out how to help responsible citizens protect and arm themselves, New Orleans is going to get more dangerous without a help of another hurricane, that I`m sure is not going to happen.

John Lott is the author of "Freedomnomics: Why Free Markets Work and Other Half-Baked Theories Don`t".

Let me just start with you here. I mean, we were talking to this guy. And they`re dooming people to -- they`re dooming their -- the people in New Orleans to a life of crime.

You`ve got 40 percent of fourth graders now that can`t pass and get into the fifth grade. A third of eighth graders failed their final exams for promotion to the next grade.

You`ve got a murder rate that is No. 1. Of all of the first world nations, you have a death rate climbing 50 percent. You have 80,000 squatters living there.

And you`ve got murders happening to people, where just this last weekend, rounded up seven family members in their yard. They`re just innocent people. Taking them in. These brutal thugs take them in, shoot all of them. Two of them die, just to rob them.

I say that we should start arming these citizens. What do you say?

JOHN LOTT, AUTHOR, "FREEDOMNOMICS": Well, I agree with you. It`s not a new problem in New Orleans. They`ve had a high murder rate for a number of years.

But I agree with you when the hurricane hit, the police were incredibly thinly stretched, were not even able to go and rescue all the people that were there.

And yet, their time was being diverted to going, collecting guns from law-abiding citizens. They weren`t able to respond to any type of emergency call for people being attacked by gangs. But somehow, the city thought that it was a useful use of police time to go and have them collect guns from people. But that was...

BECK: John, this is the wild -- you know what this is? This is the Wild West without taking the guns away from the bad guys.

Nagin, the police force, everybody completely out of control. They will not, and I believe because of political correctness, they will not prosecute these people. They`ll pull them up. And then Nagin will say, gee, they`re poor. They`re uneducated. What are they doing?

They`re killers. They`re robbers. That`s what you have to do. You`ve got to get them off the street.

LOTT: I agree. Deterrence matters. Higher arrest rates, longer prison sentences, the death penalty, all have been shown to have significant deterrent effects on crime. You make something more costly, people are less likely to go and do it. Criminals are no different from anybody else.

BECK: So John, how many -- how many permits -- is this -- is this an area -- is this an area of the country that is -- that has a lot of gun owners? Or fewer gun owners?

LOTT: Louisiana has a large number of gun owners, generally. They don`t have a lot of people who have concealed handgun permits.

I guess I`d like to see the high fees that they have, and the training restrictions and other things that they have relax so that more people are going to be able to, when they move around New Orleans, are able to go and protect themselves.

Only about 1 percent of the citizens there have gotten permits to carry concealed handguns since the right to carry law in `96 was passed.

BECK: Thanks a lot, John, appreciate it.

LOTT: Thank you.

BECK: Coming up, Senator Larry Craig`s statement about his time in the men`s room raises one or two questions in my mind. Like, aren`t we a more open society than this? I mean, do you really have to be cruising the john at an airport? Answers are on the way.

Plus "The Washington Post" and other major papers pull a popular comic strip for poking fun at Islam. Was that the correct action or the politically correct overreaction? The "Real Story" tonight.

And before we go, a reminder that tonight`s show is brought to you by the Sleep Number Bed by Select Comfort. Find your sleep number tonight at a Select Comfort store near you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Coming up, President Bush says the entire Middle East soon will be threatened with nuclear holocaust if Iran gets the bomb. Will the world act before it`s too late? Find out in tonight`s "Real Story".

Now, for a guy who`s not gay, Idaho`s Republican senator went way out of his way yesterday to repeatedly tell us how gay he is not.

For the record, I`m not gay either, although I`ve never been arrested for lewd conduct in airport men`s room, or trying to cop a feel off an undercover cop in the next stall. And not only have I never been arrested for that, I`ve never pleaded guilty to it either.

Senator Larry Craig did. Now he`s had a change of heart, gotten a lawyer, figured out what happens, you know, in Minneapolis doesn`t always stay in Minneapolis.

Whether Craig is gay or not, however, is not the issue. I don`t really care. It`s whether or not he committed a crime, and according to police reports and the senator`s own plea of guilty, he did.

Not to split hairs here, but when you find a guy who`s trying to get some man-on-man action in the bathroom of an airport, doesn`t that set your gay radar off a little bit? I mean, isn`t it guy wanting to do sexual things with another guy one of the main criteria for being gay?

Believe it or not, in today`s world, no, not necessarily so. This according to my next guest, J.L. King. He`s the author of "On the Down Low", a journey into the lives of straight black men who sleep with men -- J.L.

J.L. KING, AUTHOR, "ON THE DOWN LOW": Hello, Glenn, how are you?

BECK: Good. I`m having a really hard time imaging a straight man having sex with men.

KING: You know, it`s funny that you say that, because I`ve traveled on the road talking about sexual behavior, sexual orientation. A lot of people want to call a person who has sex with men and women gay.

I have a lot of gay friends who are comfortable in their skin, who exclusively only have sex with other men. But you have a lot of men who are bisexual, and who don`t live a gay lifestyle, who don`t necessarily buy into the gay culture. They just enjoy having sex with men, and they hate being called gay.

BECK: OK. So you`re saying that -- well, first of all, let me ask you, is Craig -- did you believe him, that he didn`t do it? Or -- I mean, it seems very hard to believe.

KING: You know, he`s guilty. You know, and that`s not the first time. He just got caught. You know, a lot of times a man will try to continue to hide the fact that he likes having sex with men, until they get caught. And then they get caught.

BECK: See, this is the hard thing I have here, so to speak. I don`t understand how you can say, "I like having sex with men," and not be gay. Wait, wait, wait. Are you just saying that I -- if I said I like having sex with men, and I don`t women, that`s gay?

KING: That`s gay. There`s nothing wrong with being gay if you`re comfortable in your skin. But a lot of men are so afraid of being called faggot, queer, and all those other negative terms that come with that orientation. And a lot of men hate the fact that, when they do get caught, then they`re going to be considered being a sissy punk.

BECK: Here`s -- here`s the really -- this is the -- this is the biggest problem I have with this story, and this is the problem that I had with what`s his name, the governor of New Jersey.

KING: Right. Exactly.

BECK: I don`t care if you`re gay. I don`t care if you`re straight. You`re married. And whether you`re -- whether you`re a monogamous with -- or with a partner who happens to be the same sex, or you`re married in a traditional sense, you know what? You don`t cheat on them.

KING: Exactly.

BECK: I think these guys are endangering the lives of their wives, or their partners, and that puts you into a whole different category.

KING: In more ways than one. Even if their woman does not get infected with an HIV or STD, the emotional damage would destroy her.

BECK: Now, you did this.

KING: Yes.

BECK: You were living this life. You were going to airport bathrooms, which I hear is much more common...

KING: No, I never went to an airport bathroom.

BECK: OK.

KING: I knew a lot of men who go to airport bathrooms, gyms and public parks.

BECK: OK. OK.

KING: I never stooped that low to satisfy my need. But I did cheat on my wife.

BECK: OK.

KING: And she did not know. And I was wrong.

BECK: OK.

KING: It was not her fault; it was my fault. And just like the senator, I tried to blame everybody but accept my own responsibility. And he needs to accept the fact that he`s wrong, he`s guilty, he`s -- loves having sex with men and to let his family go. And let them make a choice if they want to be with him or not.

BECK: This is -- this is in airports from coast to coast.

KING: Yes.

BECK: I can`t believe how many phone calls I`ve gotten on this today saying, oh, my gosh. I didn`t have any idea. This is really out of control, is it not?

KING: Oh, my gosh. It happens every day, all day.

BECK: Anybody -- anybody trying to do anything, trying to stop this?

KING: How can -- you know, when you have a sexual addiction, that`s a position...

BECK: But this is happening to guys doing this to women in bathrooms, it`s harassment. I got a lot of people who are not interested in this culture that said they were hit on. This is sexual harassment.

Airport, you know, the airplanes that would be pulling into those particular tarmacs with those bathrooms, I`ve got to tell you, if it was happening with women, they`d be shut down on lawsuits.

J.L., I`d love to pick this up with you again. I`m sorry. I just got the cue that we`re out of time.

KING: Any time.

BECK: Thank you.

Coming up, Fidel Castro declares Clinton-Obama the winning ticket for the 2008 election. Do you remember -- do you remember the time when an endorsement from a ruthless dictator was a bad thing? Oh, those were the days.

President Bush says Iran`s pursuit of atomic weapons threatens to put the entire region under a threat of nuclear holocaust. Scary thought, real possibility. The latest around the corner.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Now, I`m guessing it`s probably not the endorsement that either candidate was looking for, but it seems Cuban dictator Fidel Castro cannot deny the, quote, "seemingly invincible ticket of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in 2008."

I don`t know. Maybe it`s just me. Do you remember a time when an endorsement from Castro would have killed a campaign faster than the good old-fashioned Dean scream? Oh, those really were the days.

Dan Patrick, Texas state senator, now talk show host for KSEV-FM in Houston.

Dan, an endorsement from Castro?

DAN PATRICK, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: You know, Glenn, this is -- this reminds me of what the military is saying. Supposedly, Chelsea Clinton was in Afghanistan and asked one of the soldiers what are the three things that concerned them the most, and the soldier said, "Osama, Obama and yo mama." So I have a sense that...

BECK: I don`t -- I don`t believe that. I think that was just a joke.

PATRICK: I don`t think that really happened. But it could have. It could have.

BECK: Sure.

PATRICK: This is the best day that Rudy and Fred, if he gets in the race, and Mitt and the rest of the Republicans running for president have had in a long time.

Because seriously, Glenn, in -- you know, in the nation, Cubans only represent less than a percent of the population. But in Florida, the state of hanging chads, and a state that, with Ohio or West Virginia, could determine the next election, they`re about 5 percent of the electorate.

And I don`t think the Cuban population, in Miami, is really going to go out and actively work for someone that Fidel Castro thinks would be a good president.

BECK: So let me ask you this, Dan. Because you know, I agree with you on Florida, but what`s happened to us where we don`t call China "Red China" anymore? Or that we don`t -- that communism is such a joke and socialism is so acceptable now? Just whatever. What happened to us?

PATRICK: Well, I don`t know who "we" is. Because I don`t think that applies to you. It doesn`t apply to me. I don`t think it applies to most Americans. I think that this is like when the terrorists kind of came out, you know, before the Bush election in support of the Democrats. It may have given Bush a few points.

I mean, this is -- I don`t think it`s a joke. I think that it underscores what our enemies -- and Fidel Castro is an enemy -- I think this underscores who they would like to see in the White House. And they don`t want to see a conservative in the White House or a Republican.

And I still think most Americans think that red is still red and communism is not good. And I think you`re right. I don`t think either one likes this endorsement.

What I really think this sets up, though, Glenn, is I go around the state of Texas and talk to people around the country. There is this thinking that this is the ticket. And I`m not so sure. I think Barack Obama has really hurt himself...

BECK: Yes.

PATRICK: ... with his naivete on international affairs. You know, attacking Pakistan whether they want us in there or not, not using nuclear weapons, sitting down, you know, to have tea with our enemy.

And does America really want a V.P. a heartbeat away from the president that is that naive?

And so Hillary has a problem. If she doesn`t put him on the ticket, she alienates the African-American voters in America. If she does put him on the ticket, it will make some people sit back and think, is this going too far?

I mean, it`s one thing making fun of Dan Quayle because he couldn`t spell potato. He was really qualified, and he was ridiculed by the media. It`s another thing to have what appears to be someone who is totally naive about how to deal with terror as vice president of the United States.

BECK: Dan, I appreciate it. Thank you very much for your time, sir.

PATRICK: Thanks, Glenn.

BECK: Just one more thing, America. He also said that Jimmy Carter was the best president we ever had. And Hillary and Obama are really not his first choice. Al Gore would be his first choice.

Iran`s race for a nuclear weapon, really going to lead to a nuclear holocaust? Someone seems to think so. Find out who, in tonight`s "Real Story", coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Do you remember Leona Helmsley, that really spooky rich lady from New York? She just left $12 million to her dog. And a couple of her grandkids got zip. Details on this wild will, coming up in just a sec.

But first, welcome to the "Real Story." After the popular cartoon "Opus" was held out of some newspapers, including the "Washington Post" last Sunday, some people tried to say that inappropriate sexual innuendo was to blame. No, the "Real Story" story is this comic strip was censured because it dared to poke fun at what has become the third rail in the media, radical Islam. If you go online and read the entire cartoon, you can do it for yourself, just know in advance, it`s not exactly worthy of riots. And, you know, I`m talking the car-burning type, not comedy.

In fact, the same comic strip has poked fun at liberals, evolutionists, feminists, ACLU lawyers, Kennedy Democrats, French people, manly women, and Jerry Falwell all within the last couple of weeks and all without an ounce of controversy until now. I guess the good news is that we have yet to see any Danish-like protests here in America, which should tell us about American Muslims. They`re good, right-thinking Americans.

But the bad news is, the censoring of this cartoon tells us something about the spineless weasels who run some of our media. I understand that everybody feels like they are walking on eggshells right now when it comes to Islamic extremism, but that has got to stop. America has a tradition of using comedy to come together and heal, 9/11, Iraq, Katrina, some of the greatest tragedies in modern history are now part of nightly stand-up routines, as they should be.

When we all stop laughing because important issues become off-limits, then we quickly reach a place where freedom of the press and freedom of speech aren`t used to defend why we say something anymore, but rather why we censor it. And that doesn`t solve anything.

Brent Bozell, he is the president of Media Research Center. Brent, why was this strip -- are they afraid of special interest groups boycotting them? Are they afraid of riots? Why do you suppose this was stripped out of the paper?

BRENT BOZELL, MEDIA RESEARCH CENTER: They`re afraid of radical Islamists is the answer. There is nothing here that has to do with being respectful toward religion. The "Washington Post" has a rich history of ridiculing religion. You know, this is a country that was based supposedly on Judeo-Christian principles. It`s a Christian country. And "Washington Post" on a regular basis takes shots at Christians and makes fun and ridicules Catholics in its cartoon strips. That`s OK. But now you`ve got a radical Islamist movement that has vowed to destroy the United States, and the "Washington Post" believes that you`ve got to be very sensitive toward them. Their sense of priorities is just amazing.

BECK: You know what I was amazed at? This is the "Post." And correct me if I`m wrong, this is the newspaper that called the Christians "poor, uneducated, and easily to command types," right?

BOZELL: Exactly. Yes. If you talk to any social conservative, he or she will tell you that, on a regular basis, the "Washington Post" ridicules and insults Christians. Now, this is a comic strip. And, by the way, it wasn`t all that funny to begin with as a comic strip. It`s not against Muslims; it`s against radical Islamists. And suddenly the "Washington Post" has standards.

BECK: You know what I find amazing? When I was reading this story, and please tell me this isn`t true, that the editors of the comic page -- I mean, boy, wouldn`t you kill yourself if that was on your business card -- the editors of the comic page actually took this in advance to staffers who were Muslim and said, "Are you offended by this?" Is that true?

BOZELL: I`ve heard the same thing. It is impossible for me to believe -- although I suspect it`s probably true...

BECK: I`ve heard it from more than one source.

BOZELL: You know, can you imagine for a second the "Washington Post" taking a comic strip to a Christian or to a Catholic when they do a comic strip that desecrates a vision of the sacred heart of Jesus and running that by Catholics and asking them if they`re offended by it? The day they do that will be the day that pigs fly.

BECK: Well, I wonder if there`s going to be any anti-Mormon Mitt Romney comics in the...

BOZELL: But it`s OK. It`s OK to do that. Just don`t go after the people who have sworn to destroy this country because you might offend them.

BECK: Thank you very much, Brent.

BOZELL: Thanks.

BECK: By the way, do you expect any kind of fallout, Brent, from, you know -- we had to wait, I think, four months from the Muslim community in Europe. Do you think there`s any fallout, anybody going to use this?

BOZELL: No, it`s going to make matters worse, because the next time somebody tries to do it, they`re going to say, look what we did to the "Washington Post," and we can break you, too.

BECK: Great. Thanks a lot, Brent.

Now, I`m getting 30 seconds of your attention on Iraq. I know that`s tough, man. I`m so sick of hearing about Iraq. But this is important. The holy city of Karbala in Iraq has forced officials to order a million people to leave the city. Now, that`s easy to write off just another instance of Iraq`s fighting Americans, or Al Qaeda fighting Iraqis, or Muslims fighting Christians, or Sunnis fighting Shias. But the real story is that Karbala has been evacuated because radical Shiites are fighting other radical Shiites.

What so many people don`t understand about radical Islam is that these people are on a mission to annihilate everybody who doesn`t agree with them, not just me or you or Christians or Jews or Europeans or Westerners, but everybody, including other Muslims who are from their own sect who aren`t radical enough. This is proof of it.

You want a taste of what Iraq would look like if we leave? Karbala is it. And the conductor that would happily orchestrate the killing fields once we`re all gone will be Iran President Ahmadinejad. Now, this guy has finally been honest about his intentions. If people would only pay attention, they`d hear it. Quote, "The political power of the occupiers is collapsing rapidly. Soon we will see a huge power vacuum in the region. Of course, we are prepared to fill the gap," end quote.

If you take this man at his word -- and call me crazy -- oh, and people do -- you`ve got to understand that he is telling exactly what will happen if we leave Iraq. Fortunately, I believe President Bush does take this nut job at his word, which is probably why you heard him come out with uncommonly strong language this week on Iran. In his speech to veterans, Mr. Bush said that if Iran obtains nuclear weapons, the entire region would be under the threat of, quote, "nuclear holocaust," end quote. Now, that`s the line that got all the headlines, but it was actually the next line that was the most important. He said, "We will confront this danger before it`s too late," end quote.

May I translate Bush-speak into English? Iran will be stopped one way or another before Bush leaves office.

As every Democrat already knows, that`s 489 days away and counting. Dore Gold is a former Israeli ambassador to the U.N. and author of the book "The Fight for Jerusalem."

Dore, do you believe what I`ve just said about Bush, he`s going to confront this before he leaves?

DORE GOLD, FORMER ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: I think what`s becoming clear right now is that Iran has region-wide ambitions. And it`s almost as though Ahmadinejad has decided to reveal them. You mentioned the one statement he said about coming into Iraq and being the dominant power, but we`re seeing evidence of Iranian political expressions vis-a-vis Bahrain, which they view as an Iranian province. And just at the end of July, it was disclosed that there was a meeting of Hezbollah with Kuwaiti Shiites to talk about creating a kind of state within a state among Kuwaiti Shiites who are 30 percent of the population. Iran is on a roll.

BECK: Do you believe this is why Saudi Arabia has now put 35,000 security troops around their oil fields, 35,000? I think for our entire border, what do we have, 15,000? Thirty-five thousand people around their oil fields. Is that why, Saudi Arabia just senses and knows, "Here it comes"?

GOLD: The real threat to these countries in the Persian Gulf is not the Iranian air force. It`s subversion. The majority, or almost the majority, about 50 percent of the oil-producing area, the eastern province of Saudi Arabia, is made up of Saudi Shiites, who for years have been rather quiet. But the Iranians are trying to drum up the resentment of Shiites to their Sunni masters. And it can be anticipated that the Ahmadinejad and his Revolutionary Guards will attempt to create havoc in the Saudi oil fields in the years ahead.

BECK: You know, I talked to Benjamin Netanyahu about this, and people on the street will say, "Glenn, you`re crazy." He verified this. Here you are, a former ambassador from the U.N. And what people don`t understand or don`t take seriously is the end of days scenario that Ahmadinejad and the ayatollah have in mind. They don`t understand -- you know, Christians and Jews, they all look for an end of day scenario at some point, but this sect wants it to happen.

GOLD: You`re absolutely correct, Glenn. What you have in Iran today, Shiism has always looked forward to the return of the 12th descendant of Ali, the son in law of Muhammad, who they think is the head -- the rightful head of the Islamic community. The hidden imam, the 12th imam, according to Ahmadinejad and the people who support his sect of Shiism, can be accelerated. It can push a fast-forward button and bring him into appearing in about two years` time. That is what makes his view of Shiite Islam so dangerous, because they believe only an Armageddon and a great deal of violence will produce this result.

BECK: And when they call us, the United States, the great Satan, what they mean is the anti-Christ. They believe the anti-Christ is alive and well, and it`s not a person. It is us.

The other thing I wanted to touch base with you is I think people don`t understand that us leaving would create more terrorists, and that`s counterintuitive. Democrats are now saying that we`re creating more terrorists by being there. How would leaving create more terrorists?

GOLD: Well, I don`t want to make a suggestion as an Israeli what the United States should do in Iraq. They`re your troops. However, I will say this: Whether you leave in three months or in three years, you have to understand that withdrawal engenders jihadism. Al Qaeda was formed in 1989 when the Soviets were defeated in Afghanistan and withdrew. When Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip, Hamas won the Palestinian elections and Al Qaeda went into Gaza. You have to understand that is the dynamic of radical Islam.

BECK: Ambassador, thank you very much. That is the "Real Story" tonight. And if you`d like to read more about the latest from Iran or if you`ve found a "Real Story" of your own, please tell us about it. Visit glennbeck.com and click on "The Real Story" button.

Coming up, they called her the queen of mean. For one lucky dog, she was a dream come true. Leona Helmsley`s fortune is going to her dog. It`s crazy, and it`s coming up.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: This is the one thing that our government does better than anybody else, is provide good, hard laughs, better than any comedian, better than anybody on television, just provide laughs.

BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I did not have sexual relations with that woman.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You`re working hard to put food on your family.

SEN. LARRY CRAIG (R), IDAHO: I am not gay. I never have been gay.

BUSH: Brownie, you`re doing a heck of a job.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: All right, quick update on a story that we first brought you last week about two men the FBI looking for in question, in connection with suspicious activity aboard Seattle ferry boats earlier this summer. They released this picture of the men, and over 200 tips have come in, in the last couple of weeks. None of them have panned out. That led the FBI to appeal to the public once again for help, and they`ve released additional details in the process.

It turns out that, in addition to taking pictures of restricted areas, the two men reportedly were seen pacing off different areas of the boat, including the cargo hold. It looks or appears as though they were trying to measure distances.

Again, all of this may be nothing more than a coincidence, but the only way we`ll figure this out is if we find these men. I wonder if the "Seattle P.I." will finally publish the pictures. If you have any information, please call the FBI.

Now to a story about bureaucracy in action that will make your head spin. It will make you rethink the idea of health insurance provided by the government. You know the old saying that "good fences make for good neighbors"? In California -- easily our craziest state -- not necessarily the case.

Fifty-one-year-old Francisco Linares has been sentenced now to six months in jail for building a 180-foot-long fence on his property. He`s there now joining us from California.

Francisco, this is the fence behind you?

FRANCISCO LINARES, FENCE OWNER: Yes, sir.

BECK: OK. You built this fence because the city wouldn`t, correct? Tell me the story.

LINARES: Correct. When I finished improving my property or building my property back in 2003, I called the city to repair the fence, you know, after we moved in the construction fence that was in front of it. And the city says, well, no, that fence is in your property, and it`s closer to your home, so you`re supposed to be responsible to fix that fence yourself. We fixed the other fence on the other side of the horse trail. So I went over, and I got the specifications on, you know, how to build a fence and stuff like that.

BECK: From the city?

LINARES: Yes, I called the city. The city gave me specifications on the fence. I repaired the fence. Actually, this is a replacement fence, because there was an existing fence there before.

BECK: OK.

LINARES: And so I tore down the old one, put up the new one. And after I completed the fence, they said that the fence was -- that I actually placed the fence on their property, and they just wanted me to remove it.

BECK: OK. And you said what?

LINARES: And I told them, I said, well, I did agree with them to remove it after they took me to court. Actually, they never tried to work with me before they actually took me to court. They sent me a letter saying the fence is on city property. And I said, if it is in city property, it has always been in city property. The old one was there before, so it`s not my fault. You guys did not want to fix it because you said it was my responsibility, according to an ordinance that you guys have adopted back in 1980, which they actually did not provide me proof of that ordinance that make that fence my responsibility. But after I fixed it, they said that it was in city property, and they just...

BECK: OK, so how far away did you move it? You moved it a few feet, right?

LINARES: No, the fence was not moved at all. The fence was placed in the exact position that the old one was before. And I had to hire a private investigator, an engineering firm, and everything to verify that. And everything was verified. They admitted that the fence was exactly in the same place as the old one, but they couldn`t care less. They say that for me to remove it because they didn`t want it there.

BECK: So how much has this cost you? And now you`re looking at jail time?

LINARES: I`m looking at jail time, and this fence has cost me almost $50,000 now.

BECK: When do you know if you`re going to jail?

LINARES: September 10 I`m supposed to report -- I`m supposed to turn myself in. We have an appeal on the 6th of September at 8:00 in the Torrance courthouse.

BECK: Let me ask you this question. How excited are you for government health care? After this experience, how much do you want your kidney dialysis from this place? My gosh, man.

LINARES: I can`t believe it.

BECK: Thank you very much. And we`ll follow the story. And best of luck to you.

LINARES: Thank you very much.

BECK: You bet.

Up next, the winner of Leona Helmsley`s inheritance sweepstakes is -- wait for it -- yes, her dog. Trouble is his name. More on this dog`s $12 million payday after the break. Stick around.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Let me ask you this question. What would you do if you won $12 million in the lottery? I mean, other than donating 40 percent of it to pay for some senator to build a museum with her name on it or, I don`t know, a bridge, you know, to 50 people, or maybe a flight to a popular restroom stall. I personally would use that money to make more money, you know, like buying 12 million lottery tickets in next week`s lotto. But, hey, I`m not a financial adviser, but I am a thinker.

Now, Leona Helmsley went another direction. She`s queen of mean. Do you remember her? She controlled billions of dollars worth of wealth, and she decided to give $12 million to her dog, Trouble. Isn`t that great? The dog, who was known for being fed -- I`m not kidding you -- gourmet food, prepared by chefs, now guaranteed to live the rest of his life in the lap of luxury. And I mean, as much luxury as you can be in when you`re constantly licking yourself.

Trouble was the focus of a lawsuit from a former hand-feeding employee that said that the dog bit her so often it caused permanent nerve damage in her hand, but now this dog has the cash to fight off all those lawsuits and buy new servants to chomp on for years to come.

Worth mentioning that Helmsley gave the vast majority of her cash away to a charitable trust, but, you know, that could be worth billions of dollars. You know, there`s no fun in that detail. So instead let`s focus on the fact that the dog received $2 million more than two of her grandchildren, who each received $10 million, on the condition that they visit their father`s grave at least once a year and prove it every year by signing their name in a guestbook that will be permanently located at the grave site. And really nothing brings back good memories of dear, old dad than when you`re forced to visit his grave for eight figures. I love that.

Oh, and two other grandchildren received a little less: nothing. The dog rakes in $12 million. Leona`s grandson, Craig, granddaughter, Meegan, get a big, fat zip. In the will, it says she stiffed them for, quote, "reasons that are known to them." I`m ready for my close up, Mr. DeMille. She`s crazy.

I suppose known to them is, you know, the fact that grandma would rather spend $3 million on upkeep on her and her husband`s grave than give it to her grandchildren. But who am I to judge? Oh, I`m Glenn Beck. That`s what I do for a living.

Don`t forget. If you want to know what`s on tomorrow`s show or if you`d like a little more in-depth commentary on the news of the day, sign up for my free daily newsletter at glennbeck.com. From New York, good night, America.

END