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Glenn Beck

Are We Headed for Another Depression?; Rudy`s Campaign Takes a Downtown; Film Industry Too Political?

Aired November 13, 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, dire predictions for our nation`s economy. Could we be facing a recession worse than the 1930s? Have we finally come to a point where people may literally lose their shirts?

Plus, the Supreme Court could consider the most significant Second Amendment case in its modern history. Is our right to bear arms under fire?

And another "Inconvenient Segment," indoctrinating our kids. Do students get a little ideology mixed with English and algebra? Ben Stein tackles the insanity in his new film, "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed."

All this and more tonight.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Well, hello, America.

If this is the first time on this TV show, you should know three things right off the top. One, I`m a conservative, and this is an opinion show. Two, I say things that other people are smart enough not to say and, three, most of the time I pray that those things that I do say are wrong. And this is most certainly one of those times.

Let me ask you a question. Is it just me or do you have the feeling that our government has stopped answering and listening to the people? It`s not just the border; it`s not just the politicians; it`s not just the gun bans in D.C. and Chicago and New Orleans. It`s not just the move toward socialism. It`s just -- not just the out of control spending or the loss of sovereignty. It`s not just the child molesters or the war in Iraq or carbon taxes or oil prices.

It`s all of it. All of it. And America is fed up. Who is listening to you anymore?

Here`s "The Point" tonight. The powder keg of discontent that most Americans feel can only be ignited by two things: fear and hunger. And unfortunately, I believe we are far closer to that spark than most people are even willing to admit or believe. I hope I`m wrong, but here`s how I got there.

The national debt, just packed $9 trillion for the first time ever, and it took our country from George Washington all the way to Ronald Reagan to reach the first one trillion. Of course, the debt, largely owned by foreign countries like, let`s say, China, who when it`s in their best interest, will just get rid of that debt, collapse our economy and assume global dominance, all without ever firing a single shot. Never happened before in history.

That scenario, on top of everything from the housing recession to the dollar collapse, is what scares money manager Jim Melcher. He told "The New York Sun," quote, "I am worried about a recession, not a normal one, but a very bad one, the worst since the 1930s."

Jim is a Wall Streeter and a very successful Wall Streeter, so he didn`t want to say the actual words and ruin his credibility, so allow me. I`ve got no credibility. He`s talking about something on the scale of the Great Depression.

Meanwhile, despite the media`s indifference, our credit crisis is far from over. In the last two weeks alone, Citigroup came out and devalued another $11 billion in assets. Morgan Stanley wrote down another $6 billion. Bank of America just today wrote off $3 billion.

Wachovia and E*Trade have admitted to another billion dollars each. In E*Trade`s case, at least one analyst is concerned that nervous clients could be scared into closing their deposit accounts.

If I may translate again to English, I believe that`s called a run on the banks. I hope I`m wrong. It`s always triggered by fear, and it always leads to hunger.

So, America, here is what you need to know tonight. This is not about panic; it`s about information and preparation. Depressions cannot be predicted, so I`m not certainly not saying we`re headed for one. But mark my words, if you wait for fear and hunger to be your motivation to plan, then you`ll have waited far too long.

Something is happening. Something is coming. And if we`ve learned anything from history, it should be that, when it happens, our government will only make things worse.

Amity Schlaes, she`s a syndicated columnist for Bloomberg, the author of "The Forgotten Man" and a book every American should absolutely read. Don`t take it from just me.

Rudy Giuliani said that on my program about your book. I don`t know if you know that, Amity. You don`t believe a depression is coming. You believe we`re headed towards 1970s stagflation, right?

AMITY SCHLAES, AUTHOR, "THE FORGOTTEN MAN": That is correct. A depression, the beginning of the depression, was a deflation. There was not enough money around, literally. People made their own script, their own monopoly money, in towns across the country.

By contrast, we are awash in money currently. Maybe the problem is too much money that`s especially available to too many people. So it`s more like the `70s, where you have the government being a bit loose about the money, to put it in simple terms. And that, of course, leads to other trouble, including the dollar trouble that we`ve just seen.

BECK: But we also have something that we didn`t have in the 1970s, and in reading your book, which is all about what really happened in the depression. And America, it will open your eyes wide up and you will see, oh, my gosh, we`re doing al those things again.

What is different from the 1970s is we have all of these politicians saying we`re just going do more social programs.

I, as a small business owner, I want to open another branch of my business, another -- another line of my business. I`m not sure I want to spend that money right now, because I`m not sure what the government is going to do in the future, which is exactly, according to your book, what took that depression and made it a couple of years to ten years.

SCHLAES: Yes. Well, what matters is the relative competitiveness of the United States. And we may be thinking about our social contract, helping with houses, very domestically, but international markets are saying, "Let`s come into the U.S. It`s going to be less competitive. It is not improving its competitive position."

Nothing but tax increases are coming to the U.S. You don`t get an impression from any candidate that there really will be the ability to hold the line.

So the market, the international markets and certainly the currency markets are calling on our election already, and they`re saying bigger government to come. We have less faith in that.

BECK: OK, with that being said, 70 percent of our GDP is based on our spending. That`s yet president said, "Hey, you want to do something after 9/11 to help out the country? Go buy a sweater, go buy a car. Go spend your money. Go to the mall." Seventy percent.

If people hold onto their money or business starts to go downhill, and you know, we just have this -- it`s a snowball. How do you not go into depression when your GDP is 70 percent based on me spending dollars or you spending dollars?

SCHLAES: First of all, you take the measures that show a responsible economy, such as you make it clear that you will not guarantee homes if the interest rate goes up. People took those mortgages. It`s not the job of the FHA or the Fed to be responsible for that.

The market people, homeowners are getting mixed signals. You still have a feeling that they think Washington is going to come in on that white horse and rescue all these homeowners. It would be nice if they could. They can`t. There are too many loans out there. That signal alone will put the economy on a calmer footing.

BECK: OK. Amity, thank you very much.

And again, America. I`m not kidding you. "The Forgotten Man," you must read it. It is a tremendous book.

Now on this morning, my radio program, the next guest told me that he believes we`re not only already in a recession, but that we`re also headed towards a hyperinflationary depression. Kind of a technical term. If I may translate it to dummies like me. That`s when $100 bills are used for toilet paper, I believe.

If he`s right, if we already are in a recession, then how come the government numbers don`t confirm that? John Williams is an economist and publisher of "The Shadow Government Statistics" newsletter. He consults for Fortune 500 companies, et cetera, et cetera.

Let`s just start there. If we`re really in a recession, how come none of the numbers that you see come out from the government reflect it?

JOHN WILLIAMS, ECONOMIST: Well, actually, some of the numbers do. The GDP, which is what most people will follow to determine whether or not the economy is in recession, is the number that`s been gimmicked over time. They`ve changed the methodologies over the decades to build in upside biases so that now it`s very difficult to actually report a -- report a recession. It overstates economic growth by about 3 percent as it is.

BECK: And we actually changed the way we were -- we were looking at inflation. It was set up right after the depression, right, this system? And the way we measured it, we changed it, what? Ten, 15 years ago?

WILLIAMS: In that range, there have been changes, particularly with inflation. And as the GDP`s reported, it`s adjusted for inflation. It measures things so that you`re not -- not seeing growth due to inflation.

BECK: OK.

WILLIAMS: And so if you understate inflation, the result is you overstate growth.

BECK: OK. But you -- John, you said today, and this is quite a statement, that we are heading for a depression worse than the 1930s. I`m a guy who says look out, but I don`t go that far. I mean -- in what world does that happen?

WILLIAMS: Well, we`re already in an inflationary depression. We`re beyond stagflation. Stagflation meaning a stagnant economy and inflation. And you can see the downturn in the housing and durable goods orders and a number of leading indicators to economic activity.

But the economy itself is in a broad, structural change. What`s happened really goes back decades to the `70s, when you started to see a shift in our trade patterns and our trade policies, with the trade deficit getting so large over the years and the export over manufacturing base offshore.

What`s happened is a lot of good-paying jobs have just disappeared. The end result is that, back in the `70s, you had a household where, commonly, the man worked. The wife stayed at home with the children. Now you may have two or three people trying to make ends meet, and they still can`t make ends meet.

Average household income is not keeping up with inflation, and unless income keeps up with inflation, you have no chance of sustainable economic growth.

As you mentioned, the consumer accounts for 70 percent of the GDP. And if you take inflation out of his income and his income`s falling, consumption has to fall long-term. The only way you can boost it is through expansion of debt or liquidation of savings. And that`s been expanded to -- so much in the savings...

BECK: John -- really. None of this is good news.

WILLIAMS: No, it`s...

BECK: No, no, no. No, I don`t want to listen anymore. I can`t take it. John, thank you very much. I appreciate it.

Coming up, Mitt Romney has a commanding lead in both Iowa and New Hampshire. What about the rest of the country? Romney versus Giuliani? I will tell you why this primary season is going to be unlike anything you`ve ever seen before.

And residents of the District of Columbia may take their fight to legally own handguns all of the way to the Supreme Court. "The Real Story" behind what this could mean to everybody who`s not living in the nation`s capital, coming up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: You`ve probably heard that 50 percent of marriages end in divorce. Well, that statistic is an absolute lie. Find out the truth on page 33 of "An Inconvenient Book" by Glenn beck. Order your copy now on GlennBeck.com.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: Have you ever -- have you ever had somebody come up to you and you say, "Hey, how are you doing?"

And they go, "Fine." But the way they say "fine" makes you realize they`re not really fine at all? Kind of the feeling some people are getting now with Rudy Giuliani and his campaign for president.

According to today`s "New York Sun," Giuliani has dispatched his top advisers to tell everybody how fine he is, how his campaign is stronger than ever as he heads into the primary season. Truth is, many people, according to "The Sun," feel Giuliani is far from fine.

Mitt Romney has already widened his commanding lead in Iowa and New Hampshire. Some leading polling experts agree that the numbers could -- could indicate that, although Giuliani is still comfortably ahead, in delegate-rich states like New York, New Jersey and California, he`s way ahead. That could be a race by early Romney victories if they happen.

Could it be that Mitt Romney has spent more money on campaign ads than, you know, other primary candidates, in fact, any other primary candidate in history?

Well, could be part of it. We`ll ask him tomorrow in our extensive interview with Mitt Romney tomorrow night.

Today, Giuliani. The sun, is it setting on Giuliani, or is he putting himself in a position to become the comeback kid?

Amy Holmes is a CNN political analyst.

Amy, how are you?

AMY HOLMES, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Very well. How are you doing?

BECK: I`m good. Tell me about -- there`s two strategies here. Rudy Giuliani says, "I`m going clean house in Florida and California and New York."

Romney is saying, "I`m going do it the old-fashioned way, and I`m going to go to New Hampshire and Iowa and South Carolina and Michigan."

Which strategy do you think wins in the end?

HOLMES: Well, Glenn, that`s the $64,000 question, and each campaign is betting the farm on their strategy.

Romney, early on knew that he had to raise his name I.D. and he had to spend money in those early primary states so that he could gain momentum, gain steam and head towards the nomination.

Look, Kerry came from behind, won Iowa, wiped out Howard Dean to became the Democrats` nominee. But Giuliani`s betting that he can skip Iowa, skip New Hampshire...

BECK: Amy...

HOLMES: ... make a huge comeback, but it`s risky.

BECK: Amy, I know it not 64, but I`ve got $2. That wasn`t an answer to the question. Which one do you think is going to pay off?

HOLMES: Oh, that`s such a tough answer.

BECK: Two dollars. It`s on the line. Two whole dollars.

HOLMES: Two whole dollars.

BECK: You ask, I could upgrade to a euro, if you like.

HOLMES: If I could get an entire euro?

BECK: Yes.

HOLMES: I would bet that Giuliani, using the Clinton playbook, which is if he can show a strong second-place finish in New Hampshire.

BECK: Yes.

HOLMES: New Hampshire. Keep -- keep expectations low, exceed expectations by doing well in New Hampshire, not necessarily winning. Remember, Clinton did not win New Hampshire in 1992. Come back strong in the south.

I think Giuliani with his high national name I.D. and, really, the love and affection that the voters have for Giuliani, may win in the end.

BECK: Yes. He`s got to -- but he does have to finish second, because he can spin it as, "Hey, I didn`t even spend any time or any money there and look at me."

HOLMES: Right. And Romney was the governor next door. He had the hometown advantage. He can spin that, but he`s going to have to spin hard.

BECK: Who`s side do you think the media will be on? Because I think the media is going to play a big role when these numbers start rolling out. Whose -- whose side is the media going to be on?

HOLMES: Think the media is going to be on the side of the winner. They love a news story and if it`s that Mitt Romney is besting, you know, Rudy Giuliani, America`s mayor, that`s going to be huge headlines. He`s going to be on the cover of "Newsweek" and "TIME."

He`s going to be on the front page of "The New York Times" for winning New Hampshire, because then it shows that this is a real race. It`s really competitive. And Giuliani, you know, he`s nowhere near walking away with it.

BECK: You know what I hear a lot from? People that say they like Romney, but they really like Huckabee. I hear a lot about a Romney- Huckabee ticket, that that would be a big -- a big selling point all across the country. Do you -- do you think that`s true or is it just whack jobs I`m talking to?

HOLMES: No, I could buy that with your two bucks and a euro. I think that with Mitt Romney.

BECK: No, no, no. Not two bucks and a euro. What do you think? I`m made of money?

HOLMES: I could see that ticket. I could see that it could be a Giuliani-Huckabee ticket. Huckabee could bring those red states, southern voters. He`d bring that down-home charm. Plus, he`s a former pastor. He can bring the evangelicals closer into the fold.

BECK: Yes.

HOLMES: I think Huckabee as a vice presidential -- you know, vice presidential candidate could be really strong for either Giuliani or Romney. Or, hey, we haven`t been talking about Thompson or McCain.

BECK: Yes. I don`t really want to talk about McCain, but that`s a different story.

Amy, thanks a lot.

HOLMES: Thanks for having me.

BECK: Don`t forget. Tomorrow night I`m going to be joined by presidential candidate Mitt Romney. We`ll take an in-depth look at his candidacy and the man behind it. You`re not going to see the fair questions and honest answers like these on most media outlets, so don`t miss out on a rare and candid conversation with the man who just might be our next president.

Coming up, another war movie, another box office bomb. Some say it`s because Americans are not intelligent enough to get these type of movies. I say it`s because the movies suck, and they make us look like the enemy. I`ll explain next.

And "An Inconvenient Segment" with a very convenient guest. Ben Stein will join me tonight to talk about the indoctrination of our kids in school. That`s coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Oh, my gosh! This is my favorite part of the program. Shameless plug time. I love it! Now how much would you pay?

My new book comes out next week. It`s "An Inconvenient Book," and all this week I`ve kind of giving you "Inconvenient Segments," a preview of what`s in it.

Today talking about chapter ten -- chapter ten, called "Sleepy Time: The Weekend Movie Rental." And quite honestly, this is the most selfish chapter. I`m so sick of, you know, renting Jane Austen bonnet movies for my wife, only to have her fall asleep ten minutes in, that I was desperate for a solution.

The one I find, that I state in the book, however, I don`t think Hollywood will take me up on, because they`re too busy pumping out anti-war movies like "Lions for Lambs" that nobody is going watch.

Michael Medved now is with us, syndicated talk radio host and movie guru.

Michael, I read the most amazing article on "Lions and Lambs" this weekend. It was a Hollywood insider that said, "We`re not sure if it`s the anti-war message. It could be Tom Cruise." I think -- a scientologist, an alien scientologist could jump up and down on "Oprah" in the middle of the movie, and it couldn`t have made it worse.

MICHAEL MEDVED, SYNDICATED TALK RADIO HOST: No, it couldn`t have made it worse. And what they aren`t acknowledging is that the reason that "Lions for Lambs" was such a big flop is it`s a lousy movie.

There`s a Web site called Box Office Mojo, where they get literally hundreds of thousands of people who see the movie rating it, giving it a letter grade. This got 60 percent "F" rating.

BECK: Wow.

MEDVED: I mean, people hated this thing, because it`s like listening to a lecture and you`re being lectured at by condescending, patronizing, supercilious, holier-than-thou losers.

BECK: You know, Michael, what is it going to take or will it ever -- will it ever change? Will Hollywood ever stop thinking that they have all of the answers and they`re right and we`re just dumb as a box of rocks?

MEDVED: Well, that`s the problem, is people in Hollywood don`t make movies for the public. And I know that sounds anomalous, but they don`t. They make them for each other, because when you`re in a position of a Robert Redford or a Tom Cruise, you don`t have to worry about money. You don`t have to worry about box office success. You`ve already got money.

So what do you worry about? Peer respect. You want people to look at you and treat you as more than an entertainer, as a serious artist who`s making a courageous statement.

And by the way, when a movie is rejected like this, now Tom Cruise can say, "Look how courageous I was."

BECK: That was very brave.

So what you`re saying is, if I may translate. It`s all about the chicks. It`s a guy still in high school trying to get chicks.

MEDVED: There is a great element of that, because in terms of producers, not the stars, but the producers who green-light a project. And this movie, "Lions for Lambs," was made in record time. But the people who green-light projects have one thing in common, which is they were all nerds in high school. It takes one to know one.

BECK: Michael, let me -- let me ask you this real quick, because I heard somebody say that no war movie would be successful right now. I don`t agree with that. I think something like "Lone Survivor," the story with Marcus Luttrell, I think that would make a great movie, and I think people would see it. Do you agree or disagree?

MEDVED: Without question. You`re right, Glenn. You`re a tremendous success in exposing the danger of Islamofascism, which you`ve done a great job on, by the way. Thank you for that.

That kind of movie they shows the terrorists as the bad guys.

BECK: Yes.

MEDVED: And shows some of the heroic work that our real-life military is doing every day to keep us safer. If people had a movie like that, where they could cheer and cheer the good and boo the bad, it would make money.

BECK: You know what? Maybe we can -- maybe we can get that film out of India or some place like that, but not from Hollywood.

All right. We`re going to go to the gun debate. Supreme Court considering taking your rights away? "The Real Story" next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Well, welcome to tonight`s "Real Story." After closed-door discussions and rumblings that it would come to a decision today, the Supreme Court is holding off its announcement on whether or not it will hear the first major second amendment case in almost 70 years.

They say the announcement could come now at the end of this month. But the real story is the outcome of the Supreme Court case would have a dramatic effect on your right as a gun owner, you know, assuming you own one, buy one, really.

It also has a major effect on American history. It will either be written or re-written in this case. Now, if you don`t happen to have a copy of the Constitution handy, good for you. You`re normal.

But let me refresh your memory. The second amendment quite simply and clearly states that the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. It seems strange to me that our nation`s capital, you know the place where they store that little piece of paper, with those words on it, refuses to understand that. That`s what the case is all about.

The District of Columbia has had a law on its books since 1976 that effectively bans almost everyone from keeping or carrying a handgun, even if you were able to get a permit. Listen to how crazy this is. Yet another law makes it illegal for you to move your gun even to another room in your own house without yet getting another license.

The bottom line is, this is craziness. You don`t have to own a gun, but it is undeniable that our founding fathers believed so strongly in your right to do so that they specifically included it in our most sacred of national documents. Neither side of the gun lobby has any idea how this Supreme Court case could play out, but they both think that at the very least, it will be heard and that`s why so many people are watching so closely. And tragically, there is so much freedom to lose.

Chris Cox is the chief lobbyist for the National Rifle Association. Full disclosure, I am a lifetime member and proud of it, Chris. Supreme Court heard this case or one similar to it in 1939. Supreme Court Justice Roberts has said that they really kind of danced around it and didn`t really address it. Any indication at all on which direction he would lean if he was going to say yeah, let`s define it?

CHRIS COX, CHIEF LOBBYIST, NRA: Well the `39 case, Glenn, as you mention, really did size up the second amendment. Now I`m not going try to guess what this court or any other court would do, but it is a very important issue and gun owners all over the country are paying close attention.

BECK: Because if they decide, if they really took it on and then didn`t sidestep it, they would have to answer the fundamental question, are gun rights for militia members or for citizens?

I personally think it`s very clear if you read the founding fathers words, but, you know, judges are quite honestly, not -- usually reading the founding fathers` words. Hopefully the Supreme Court is different. So, really that`s what will be decided if they take it on, right, individuals over militia?

COX: That`s exactly right. And this at its core is about self- defense. Do good people have a god-given right to defend themselves against bad people? In Washington, D.C., you don`t have that right and there`s no clear failure or indictment on the failure of gun control than Washington, D.C. It simply hasn`t worked so this is whether or not the second amendment protects you as an individual from making that choice of defending yourself against a criminal or being left defenseless.

BECK: Chris, any idea? I mean, I can imagine the ramification, any idea how this would play out, if the Supreme Court would ever come out and say people don`t have a right to own guns. It`s only for the militia. Turn your guns in or we`ll come collecting them door to door?

COX: That`s a very dangerous slope to go down, Glenn. We`ve already had cases in New York and Chicago where honest people use guns and self- defense and were arrested and prosecuted. So again, that`s why gun owners all over the country are hopeful that the Supreme Court will uphold the lower court`s decision that, yes, you do as an honest person you do have the right to own a gun.

We`re not talking about the right to carry in the district. We`re not talking about concealed weapons permits in the district and all we`re talking about is keeping a gun in your home for self-defense because Glenn, as you know, the worst-case scenario is when the door gets kicked in or glass breaks at 2:00 in the morning. The best law enforcement`s not going to be there. The politicians are certainly not going to be there. Paul Helmke and the Brady Campaign are not going to be there and it`s up to you and we believe the second amendment protects you as an individual, as a good, honest person to own a firearm for self-defense.

BECK: All right, thanks, Chris.

Now there`s another alleged pedophile in the news this week only this time it`s not a creepy man, but a creepy woman. Kelsey Peterson, there she is, the sixth grade teacher from Lexington, Nebraska, who authorities say was having sex with one of her 13-year-old students -- sixth grade.

To make matters worse the boy is also an illegal alien that we were educating and now he and his family are hiding from this nightmare back home in Mexico. Ready? Gets worse.

In order to get the boy to come back here to testify, U.S. authorities are now offering him and his whole family a victim visa. The real story is they can`t believe I`m saying this, in this case, it may be necessary.

I know, I`ve said is over and over again, this kind of visa is abused, it is rarely a good idea, but that goes to show you how my dad was indeed right when he told me at the dinner table over and over again, never say never.

This boy may have been victimized by his teacher, someone who could soon find herself as a registered sex offender. So far, Kelsey Peterson`s best defense, are you ready? Is that the boy is lying. Not about the sex, mind you, but about his age.

Her lawyer is claiming that the boy is really 16-years-old, not 13. Do I really live in a country where I need to make it clear to this woman that we don`t allow adults to have sex with kids who are 16 any more than we do allow them to have sex with kids that are 13?

We need Kelsey Peterson behind bars if she`s guilty, away from our kids and forever branded as a sex offender. Life is never about absolutes except absolutely this time. It`s about absolute priorities. I`m absolutely against illegal immigrants taking advantage of our system. I am absolutely against pedophiles taking advantage of our kid. But in this case, locking up a pedophile is a priority. Keeping our kids safe should always come first.

I`ll be back in 60 seconds to find out if this is really the best option we`re left with.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: All the right, we`re back talking victim visas with Jessica Vaughan. She`s the senior policy analyst for Washington D.C. based enter for Immigration Studies. Jessica, is this really the best we can do? Do we have to use this new visa?

JESSICA VAUGHAN, CTR FOR IMMIGRATION STUDIES: Well no, there already are law enforcement tools that can be used to provide incentives for victims of crime or witnesses or informants to cooperate with law enforcement. It doesn`t necessarily have to be a green card.

BECK: So then I hate to even ask this question because when it comes to the border and immigration, I don`t even want to answer the hear the answers anymore, why are we using this?

VAUGAHN: That`s a good question.

I`m not sure really that we`re getting all that much -- what the additional benefit is of giving someone a green card after they`ve cooperated with law enforcement.

BECK: Right.

VAUGHAN: Certainly we want to provide incentives, but I think there`s a qualitative difference in the types of cases that can be covered under this. Some are better than others.

BECK: Right, how about the incentive? I have four children. If one of my children is taken for, you know, romance weekends, I think I`d tell my kid, you`re going back to America and you`re going to testify because I want the dirt bag put behind bars. How about that as an incentive? Justice.

VAUGHAN: Justice, yes, that is an incentive although --

BECK: Too old-fashioned for America today?

VAUGHAN: Apparently a lot of people feel that we`re not doing enough to encourage immigrants who are victims of crime to come forward and participate in the prosecution of people. But again, does there really has to be a green card.

BECK: But, tell me I`m wrong here, it`s not just a green card. It`s what I like to call a V visa for Verizon. It`s the friends and family program. The family gets in, too, right?

VAUGHAN: That`s right. The immediate family members can qualify along with the victim.

BECK: Yeah.

VAUGAHN: Any abuse to a visa?

BECK: Oh, there could be because the way the statute`s written, it gives a list of crimes, but it says may include any of these crimes or attempts at any of these crimes. So, you know, if there were an attempted assault that took place or something like that, conceivably somebody could qualify.

BECK: OK. I appreciate it. Thank you very much. That is the "Real Story" tonight.

Coming up, he`s appeared on "Charles in Charge," "MacGyver," "Seinfeld" and now add GLENN BECK to the illustrious list. Yes, Ben Stein joins me for an inconvenient segment. Don`t miss it. It is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: You know, it used to be you could count on every family owning at least one book, the Holy Bible. Well, America, make room on the shelf for one more, yes, my brand new book "An Inconvenient Book" available now on GlennBeck.com. And while it may not be filled as quite as much wisdom as the good book, it`s this close.

Chapter 8 is called "Education Through Indoctrination." It tells the tale of how our kids in college aren`t being taught, they`re being force- fed one liberal, socialist anti-American point of view one right after another.

You don`t have to take my word for it, Ben Stein is also the author of a new book "Real Stars" and he has a brand new documentary coming out called "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" that shows attempts by the scientific and university communities to push their agenda down the throats of our children. Ben, nice to meet you.

BEN STEIN, AUTHOR: Nice to meet you. I`ve been watching you with great glee.

BECK: You know what he said to me right before we went on the air, you thought that I was doing the parody of a conservative for awhile.

STEIN: Right, because you`re so conservative. You`re awfully good, awfully good.

BECK: Thank you very much. OK, tell me about what you found about indoctrination when it comes to God in our schools.

STEIN: Well this was for a documentary which as you say is called "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed." We were studying what our kids were taught about evolution, what they were taught about how life originated.

What we found is that if you question evolution, you have a good chance of losing tenure. You have a good chance of getting fired, losing a grant, you`re out of there.

And yet evolution and Darwinism do not explain an awful lot about life. Darwin said nothing about how life originated and Darwin had no idea how complicated the cell was. Darwin was never able to point to any clear evidence of any species that originated by evolution and there hasn`t been much progress in Darwinism since then. But we found that if you even question the established church of Darwinism, bang, you`re gone.

BECK: What about first cause or intelligent?

STEIN: Well, first cause is not -- it`s lightning striking a mud puddle. See, this is what the evolutionists say and by the way, they may be right. I`m not a scientist, they could be right. Evolutionists struck a mud puddle and out of that mud puddle came a fully-equipped Boeing 747.

Because a human cell, or plant cell or frog cell has hundreds of thousands of very complicated, moving parts all of which have to work together in exact synchronization with each other to build the cell, repair the cell and reproduce the cell.

Darwin thought it was just Jello inside the cell. No, very complicated. How that happened by lightning striking a mud puddle is a very good question. And if you ask that question, you better start looking for another job or have rich parents or something.

BECK: I have to tell you, a good friend of mine said because my daughter wants to go to Columbia University.

STEIN: I went to Columbia. It`s a great place.

BECK: I said you`ll never get on campus with me. Whatever you do, change your last name. Don`t ever say.

STEIN: There are plenty of people named Beck. She won`t have a problem.

BECK: She`ll have to go into the witness protection program.

STEIN: Right.

BECK: But a good friend of mine said you should send her, just make sure she`s armed against the professors so she knows she can hear both sides. I have no problem with hearing both sides. But they won`t ever present the other side.

STEIN: They won`t ever listen to other side and what I kept wondering when I was working on this documentary is if they`re so sure they`re right, what are they afraid of? If they`re so sure that their position is unassailable, let the other guy talk and then blow him out of the water and say, you fool, you didn`t know this, this and this.

BECK: Right.

STEIN: When I talk to people who are Darwinists or evolutionists and say, how did life begin, they don`t have an answer. They have an answer, but it`s a B.S. answer and it`s not an answer that would make sense to a small child. It`s not a real answer.

BECK: I know you were going to be on the radio program with me tomorrow and I want to talk about the economy tomorrow. I want to talk to you a little bit more about worst-case scenarios that you found in the vide. But real quick, you also wrote a book about the real stars.

STEIN: Well the "Real Stars." I live in Malibu part of the week. People say to me all of the time, what`s it like living near Barbra Streisand and Nick Nolte and Martin Sheen. They`re stars.

I say I don`t live near the real stars. The real stars are in Baghdad, Ramadi, Kirkuk, Mosul, Fallujah wearing body armor in 130-degree heat. They`re patrolling all over Afghanistan and they`re risking their lives moment by moment. They`re buried in section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery. They`re in the amputee ward, ward 67 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. They`re the real stars. The other ones that should have won the Nobel Peace Prize, they`re the ones who give up everything for us.

BECK: Ben, thank you very much.

STEIN: Thank you so much.

BECK: We`ll talk to you tomorrow.

OK, time now for the real America. We`re talking about real stars, brought to you this evening by CSX. I spent a lot of time talking about our troops, the importance of respecting real American values. Tonight, I am thrilled to bring you the story of an incredible woman who took those words to heart.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BECK (voice-over): it`s the kind of homecoming that a soldier dreams about. For Private Leah Murray, it`s a homecoming that want makes her want to go back to Iraq and continue serving her country.

LEAH MURRAY, PRIVATE FIRST CLASS, U.S. ARMY: You`re able to protect something, have somebody to look up to you, and set a good example. It makes me want to fight harder to come back home.

BECK: Murray is back in Pennsylvania on rest after receiving a Purple Heart for her service. She will deploy again soon. At home, Murray has the support of her family, her friends and her community. She exemplifies the true spirit of American values, something I talk about all of the time.

Lucky for me, Sharon Keyser was listening.

SHARON HYLAND KEYSER, FOUNDER, A HERO`S WELCOME: The day before my husband left to go back to Afghanistan, I heard Glenn talking on the radio about how our troops aren`t considered heroes anymore and what a shame, how did we ever get to this point? So I said, I was thinking to myself, Glenn, you could not be talking more about what I`m doing here in Philadelphia.

BECK: A Hero`s Welcome is the brainchild of Sharon Keyser. Her mission is simple. Welcome home our armed forces like the heroes they are.

In July, she quit her six-figure job to start the foundation. At the time, Sharon was on the fast track, racing up the corporate ladder. Yet inside, she felt like a failure.

KEYSER: I quit my job. I gave up a pretty nice paycheck and started this with my life savings, so that was very scary. I think that`s why it took me about a month to do because I was really hesitating over that.

BECK: Now just four months later, her dedication is paying off. Sharon is personalizing homecoming celebrations based on the passions of the individual soldiers. For some, it`s a ticker tape parade. For Private Murray it was more simple. Her passion is her car.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If it`s OK, we`d like to install this GPS for you as well.

BECK: Families get in touch with Sharon through her Web site. From there, she gets local donors involved to help with the welcome home celebration. She also gets local schools involved making sure all the students get a chance to meet a real hero.

The only problem she has now, topping what she`s done for other soldiers with a surprise welcome home for her own husband when he`s completed his tour of duty.

KEYSER: He loves the Philadelphia Eagles, so if that would be something where he got a chance to meet Donovan McNabb or any of the players, I think he`d pass out.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: I have a feeling we can make that happen. That`s tonight`s Real America, sponsored by CSX, How Tomorrow Moves.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: I have to tell you the last segment we just did, where I introduced you to Sharon Hyland Keyser was amazing to me. She is the founder of A Hero`s Welcome, and what`s so amazing to me, Sharon, welcome to the program, is that -- I mean, come on, man, I`m a joke.

You actually listened to something I said and it bothered you. You sent me the kindest letter this week, I just got. It says that what I was saying on the radio stuck with you and it wouldn`t let you sleep. What was it that I said?

KEYSER: Well, that we just were at a place right now, we`re at a crossroads right now where we have to go forward. We cannot take any steps backwards and we need to start making some positive changes in the way our next generation lives and this generation lives. So I decided that I got it and that instead of just focusing on what my salary looked like I need to focus what kind of contribution I made back to the community.

BECK: Wow! That is fantastic.

KEYSER: Thank you.

BECK: Yes, a conservative will actually do that. I`m assuming that I`m a conservative.

KEYSER: Yes, sir. I am.

BECK: Sharon, you had to redefine success. You went from a six- figure job to no job and you`re doing this because it`s the right thing to do. How did you redefine success and eat that?

KEYSER: Well, we eat macaroni and cheese because that`s pretty cheap. So that`s how I eat, but right now what I just redefine success by giving back to the community and mostly giving back to the veterans coming back from this war.

BECK: Are you happy?

KEYSER: I`ve been the most happy I`ve ever been in the last three months than I`ve been in my entire life.

BECK: I have to tell you, I was just thinking about this this last Sunday. I was in church and we were talking about self-help books and I thought, you know, self-help books are everywhere, but it`s always concentrating on you, how to improve you.

The best self-help book I`ve ever read, I hate to sound like a religious zealot though, it`s the Bible. It`s how you`re supposed to help somebody else and you think, oh, crap. I don`t want to do that stuff, but when you do help somebody, you change. You fundamentally change and you become happier.

KEYSER: I agree. I agree.

BECK: I`m just so proud of you and when your husband comes back you let me know and we`ll try to work out something a little special, you know what I`m saying?

KEYSER: Thank you very much. I appreciate it, Glenn.

BECK: Sharon, thank you.

Now quick program reminder. Tomorrow night, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney joins me right here to talk about politics, family and the issues that matter to you this coming election season. You don`t want to miss this interview and that is tomorrow night.

From New York, good night, America.

END