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Glenn Beck

Arrogance Evidenced on the Campaign Trail; Supreme Court Upholds Sentence Against Illegal Alien Killer; Theologian Explains Black Liberation Theology

Aired March 26, 2008 - 19:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLENN BECK, HOST (voice-over): Tonight, more unbelievable arrogance on the campaign trail.

CHELSEA CLINTON, DAUGHTER OF HILLARY CLINTON: I do not think that`s any of your business.

BECK: Chelsea stunned while campaigning for her mother. Shouldn`t she have expected this? Please. Don`t start. She`s 27 and working for a hedge fund. She can handle it.

Plus, a victory for common sense and our own sovereignty. The Supreme Court has sided with Texas in the case of Jose Medellin, an illegal alien sentenced to death for the brutal rape and murder of two teens here in the U.S. Hopefully, this dirt bag will now get what he deserves.

And are we back in 1968? A group of hero vets barred from speaking at a Minnesota high school after parents put pressure on the principal. I thought you respected the soldiers, just not the mission.

All this and more coming up.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Well, hello, America. There`s cream and sugar. There`s peanut butter and jelly. And there`s politicians and arrogance. Some things just seem to belong together, don`t they?

Let`s start with the arrogance of the Clintons. First, we had eight years of Bill`s arrogant behavior in the White House. At least, you know, hey, he`s above everything. We saw Hillary`s arrogance this week as she made up a story of flying into Bosnia under make-believe gunfire. And now daughter Chelsea is finally earning her last name.

So here`s "The Point." Tonight, the arrogance of politicians is a trait that is out of control everywhere with all of them. And it seems tonight, in our first story, that it`s hereditary. And here`s how I got there.

For the last year, Chelsea Clinton has been aggressively campaigning for her mom. Now, she`s not some little 12-year-old going out and singing "The Star-Spangled Banner." She`s 27 years old. She should expect difficult questions to be asked, and she should be held accountable for her answers. After all, doesn`t Mommy want to run the free world?

Yesterday, she was in Indiana speaking to students at Butler University. And towards the end of the appearance, a male student said, "You think Mom`s credibility has been hurt at all with the Monica Lewinsky scandal?"

Here`s how Chelsea responded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: Wow. You`re the first person actually to ever ask me that question, in the -- I don`t know, maybe 70 college campuses that I have now been to. And I do not think that`s any of your business.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BECK: Wow. That says something about college campuses. Doesn`t it? None of your business?

You know, Chelsea, I`m sorry. I know you Clintons like to avoid questions or just, you know, make up answers, you know, whatever sounds best. But a high-profile member of your mom`s campaign, you, it is your job to answer questions. Everything is on the table. I mean, that one`s not hey, like, "Hey, did Daddy like it on floor?" This is something different.

Your mom blamed the scandal surrounding your dad`s affair as a vast right-wing conspiracy. Unless your dad was the creator of that conspiracy, she had it wrong. Did it hurt her credibility? A presidential candidate making statements like that is our business.

Now, another politician with arrogance to spare is the selfless man of the people, Barack Obama. He loves to sing the sad songs about the working man. You know, Sally Such-and-such (ph) who`s 12 years old and doesn`t have a face. Well, he wants all of us to tighten our belts, make sacrifices for those in need.

Hmm. Unfortunately for Obama, he just released his tax returns. And it looks like he doesn`t really practice what he preaches. What a surprise.

Over the course of seven years, with a combined salary that ranged from $240,000 to $1.6 million, the Obamas donated an average of less than 4 percent to charity, total. Some years, it was actually less than 1 percent.

For the single biggest charity check that he wrote, he made it out to -- to the black liberation theology pals over at Trinity Church for $27,500. So, I have to get this in my head and see if it works for you.

He says he doesn`t really listen to his church`s radical beliefs. But then he hands over a check for 27,000 grand. Would you do that? Because my ears would perk up after I handed them that big of a check.

Tonight, America, here`s what you need to know. Chelsea Clinton feels like she can clam up whenever it suits her. And she can`t. Barack Obama wants to -- wants to tell us what us to do. But do as he says not as he does. You know what? Shut the pie hole, both of you. Every candidate needs to realize that they work for us. The only way politicians get to put their wants and needs before ours is if we let them. Haven`t we let them long enough? Haven`t you had enough?

Michael Reagan is a radio talk show host and GOP strategist. Ramesh Ponnuru is a "TIME" columnist and senior editor for the "National Review."

Michael, Chelsea, fair game this question?

MICHAEL REAGAN, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Oh, fair game. Any question is fair game when you`re on the campaign trail. I was out there many times, Glenn, as well as you know. And when you`re on a college campus, you expect everything and everything on a college campus...

BECK: Come on. You`re on a college campus, you should expect everything. But a progressive shouldn`t.

REAGAN: No, what I`m saying -- no, you`re right. But remember, everybody today now is an Obama backer. We`re no longer in love with Hillary.

BECK: Yes, I know.

REAGAN: We`re in love with Obama.

BECK: Yes.

REAGAN: So, everything`s changed. All of a sudden, Hillary is a liar, something we`ve called her for the last 15, 20 years. But now, all of a sudden it`s OK to call her a liar, because Obama is the latest love affair.

BECK: I know. Ramesh...

RAMESH PONNURU, "TIME" MAGAZINE: Yes.

BECK: ... a response to that. Is she fair game?

PONNURU: Well, you know, it`s not like the student asked her how she felt about her father`s adultery. She asked -- I mean, he asked whether her mother lost credibility. That`s a totally legitimate issue. How can that not be his business? I mean, that is so Clintonian, the idea that a public matter is somehow part of their private life and therefore off limits.

BECK: Here`s -- Michael, let me switch gears to Barack Obama. I don`t care what you give to charity. I happen to be a big believer in tithing. I believe in giving to charity. I believe the more you give the more you get back.

However, that`s what I believe. If you believe, you know what, all that cash is mine. Good for you. Welcome to America. But Barack Obama giving so little to charity. The hypocrisy of him going out and saying the rich people don`t care about the poor people...

REAGAN: And you`re surprised by this? I mean, all politicians seem that (ph). Isn`t it interesting that his donations to charity went up the closer he got to announcing he was going to run for president?

And last year he gave, what, $240,000 to charity last year? What was he doing last year? He announced he`s running for the presidency of the United States of America. It`s interesting. If he loses, he`ll go back to 1 percent.

BECK: Ramesh, I think the studies show that conservatives actually give more to charity than -- than liberals do.

PONNURU: That`s right.

BECK: So maybe he`s just being consistent here? Maybe he`s like I can`t find a -- I can`t find a program that will waste more money than the federal government. So I`ll start giving through higher taxes when I`m in office.

PONNURU: You know -- you know, Glenn, he`s always said that he believes in change, and change is what he gave to these charities.

No, I mean, actually, Arthur Brooks wrote a book last year, "Who Really Cares," which says that conservatives tend to give more than liberals. If you believe that the welfare state should help poor people, apparently, you don`t believe in -- tend to believe that you should do anything.

BECK: Well, I wonder if -- I wonder if Barack Obama just paid a lot more in income tax than he was -- than he had to. Because I mean, if you believe in the giant government -- and what kills me is none of these people from Hollywood would send in an extra check to the government. I can guarantee you. They could -- they could estimate what their taxes are.

You know, why did Barack Obama, if he believes in this giant state and paying higher taxes, why would he write off charitable giving? He`s trying to lower his income tax?

(CROSSTALK)

REAGAN: Maybe he`s trying to lower his income tax. It is interesting. He is acting just like a liberal socialist would act.

BECK: Yes.

REAGAN: He talks one game and plays another game. And people are now finding out more about Barack Obama. Thank God for "Saturday Night Live."

BECK: Do you -- do you guys believe that Barack Obama -- well, Hillary Clinton is being told you`ve got to have the Tonya Harding strategy. You`ve got to take this guy out. Club him at the knee and take him out. I mean, she`s got the ammunition to do it. Just with the preacher stuff and him giving a check for $27,500 to this radical theology. Will she take him out?

REAGAN: I mean, the last thing we need to see is Hillary Clinton in boxing ring boxing Tonya Harding for money later on in life. Come on. That`s just an ugly thing to even think about. I thought she was already doing that, Glenn. It`s not working.

BECK: I don`t think so. Ramesh, I don`t think she`s swinging hard.

PONNURU: Liberals are setting this up ac though it`s somehow unfair. It`s unfair to even quote...

BECK: I know.

PONNURU: ... what the Reverend Wright said. "The New York Times" news page have not quoted "God damn America" from the Reverend Wright to this date.

BECK: Well, I appreciate you bringing it to the air tonight. Thank you so much, sir.

Coming up, illegal alien Jose Medellin, he raped and murdered two young teens in Texas. It`s an unspeakable thing. White House actually went to bat for this dirt bag. I never thought I`d say this. Thank God for the Supreme Court.

Then, did Bear Stearns, did the bailout really avert economic Armageddon or just delay the final battle? We`re going to war-game the scenarios.

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Have you ever wondered what a killer asteroid from outer space would really be like? Yes. Me, neither. I don`t worry about things like that and global warming. I think about problems that are actually going to kill us all. Like for instance, how do with we pay for Social Security and Medicaid in -- I don`t know -- about 11 years? How do we stay solvent as a country? Details in tonight`s "Real Story" make blood shoot out of your eyes. Don`t miss it.

No, I believe that there`s some powerful forces inside our government. Boy, this is going to make me sound like a nut. They want America to become Mex-Ameri-Canada, one big multinational family. It`s the only answer I can come up with that explains all the things that are going on with our border.

I say, you know what, I`m going to roll dice with America. I think we can do it. I believe our national sovereignty is in jeopardy. But yesterday the Supreme Court helped us hold on to our sovereignty for a little bit longer. This is good news.

Back in 1993 Jose Medellin -- he is an illegal alien, which is not something anybody would print in the paper today. He was from Mexico. He led a gang of boys attack, rape and murder two teenaged girls in Houston. Medellin was arrested and found guilty. He was sentenced to death. I said God bless Texas.

Then, after Medellin was convicted, Mexico brought suit in the court of the United Nations, charging the U.S. with violating the -- the Vienna Convention. They claim that arrested foreign nationals, i.e. the illegal alien, be allowed to meet with an official from their home country. It`s a tool treasured by diplomats, especially ones trying to get away with murder. Mexico`s against capital punishment, you see, and they say that Medellin was denied his rights.

Damn. Too bad for him, huh?

I find it surprising and shameful that the Bush administration actually sided with Medellin and against the people of Texas. Thankfully, in a 6-3 decision yesterday, the Supreme Court ruled against Bush, Mexico and Medellin. Texas will get to carry out the will of its people. I say have fun in hell, Jose.

On the phone with me now is Randy Ertman. His daughter, Jennifer, was one of Medellin`s victims.

Randy, I know this is -- I was going to say, I know this feels like a victory to a lot of people. But for you, does it help ease anything at all?

RANDY ERTMAN, FATHER OF VICTIM: We feel a little bit more vindicated than we did before. And I mean, we lost everything else before the Supreme Court. We thought we`d lose this one. And for a change we won.

BECK: What does it -- what does it feel like, or what did it feel like to have the president of the United States come out and be on the side of the bad guy?

ERTMAN: What come to our mind was, we felt like we were back in court. And instead of having a defense attorney representing Medellin, it felt like the president was sitting there with him.

BECK: I don`t even know -- I don`t know how to put this. I don`t mean to be insensitive at all, Randy. And I know we`ve talked before. And I hope you know...

ERTMAN: You`re a good man, sir. So ask me anything you want (ph).

BECK: Losing your daughter had to be -- had to be tough. And I can`t even imagine it. But it -- how crazy is it to have gone through the last 15 years when you believe in our system, when you believe in our president, and you believe in our system of justice and everything else, and to have it all turned upside down through the U.N. and Mexico? How insane was that?

ERTMAN: We`ve been through five capital murder trials, and we`ve seen two of them get off of Death Row, because the Supreme Court voted that, if you were 17 years old and you committed capital murder, then you`re not a man. You`re not responsible for your actions. So, they were given life instead.

So after losing those two, we figured we`d lose this one. And the only way that we learned is -- I mean, we used to get angry. And you know, I would lash out.

But you learn you have, otherwise you`re going to lose your insanity, that the only thing you can do is be a strong husband to your wife and, if you`re a father, if you have other children, to be a good father. And you just have to become strong and move on, you know. You can`t allow it to pull you down, like. It took 15 years to learn that.

BECK: Randy, I have to thank you so much. And I know this fight isn`t done. And we`ll be with you, and we will continue to follow it.

Congratulations, people of Texas. It`s a win for you and a win for the people of America, as well.

Ted Cruz now, let`s turn to him. He`s a Texas solicitor general. He`s the guy who stood in front of the Supreme Court and argued this case. Ted, how did this even happen where George Bush is -- is talking about -- we should honor international court.

TED CRUZ, TEXAS SOLICITOR GENERAL: Well, it was an unfortunate turn of events. I think the president was very poorly advised in this particular regard.

BECK: By whom?

CRUZ: The State Department. The State Department pressed the president to do this, and he took their advice in this particular case. And the Supreme Court resoundingly rejected that position.

BECK: Now, when -- I`m sure the State Department was trying to make the case of, well, you know, we should play by the rules and we should -- we should make sure we honor international, the international court and abide by those rules. Does anybody abide by what we were being asked to abide by?

CRUZ: No. That`s one of the great ironies here, is Medellin was arguing that the U.S. should subject itself to the world court. But no other nation in the world does what he was asking the U.S. to do.

In any other country in the world, if you have a judgment from the world court, you can`t enforce it in the courts there. And the Supreme Court held exactly the same, which is the world court has no authority to bind the courts in the United States of America.

BECK: This is really good news. Is it over?

CRUZ: Hopefully. With capital litigation it`s hard to know for sure. But the U.S. Supreme Court rejected all of Medellin`s claims. The prosecutor in Houston has indicated they intend to go forward and set an execution date. And you know, you were just talking with Randy Ertman. I cannot imagine what he and his family...

BECK: Insult to injury. Can you imagine losing your daughter to a horrific crime like this, and the guy gets away -- you know, starts to get away with it? And then the president comes out. Oh, my gosh. I think I`d lose m mind.

CRUZ: Well, it`s dragged on for 15 years. It`s gone twice to the U.S. Supreme Court. Twice, Texas has won in the U.S. Supreme Court.

But the victory yesterday was the most important. Because the victory yesterday really answered those who would like to see America sovereignty undermined. Because what it said is the world court`s decision has no authority within our borders. The world court can`t bind U.S. citizens.

BECK: Thanks -- thanks very much, Ted. And thanks for all of your hard work in the Supreme Court.

I have to tell you. Remember -- remember who that advice was coming from, our own State Department.

Now, coming up, Barack Obama`s spiritual advisor opened our eyes to black liberation theology, and we should not close them. We`re going to dig deeper tonight into the beliefs of the man who just might be the next president of the United States.

And we`re going to go ahead and touch the third rail of politics: Social Security. The program`s trustees released their annual report yesterday. Nobody`s talking about it. The news ain`t good. We`ll talk about it. Hang onto your wallets. I`ll show you what`s coming.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Well, ever since the hateful racist words of Reverend Jeremiah Wright finally saw the cold light of day for just a brief second. We`ve been talking about it on this program and my radio program. We`ve also been talking about radical black liberation theology. I had never heard of it before.

What you need to know about its aggressive anti-white foundation. This is hate speech, pure and simple. I feel that if a potential president like Barack Obama was exposed to these beliefs for over a 20-year period and then supported it to the tune of one $27,500 check, said "Here you go, Rev," maybe we should understand it a bit. Seems Barack puts his money where his mouth isn`t. I`m not so sure.

Joining me now is Anthony B. Bradley. He is a research fellow at the Acton Institute and assistant professor of theology at Covenant Theological Seminaries in St. Louis.

Anthony, I asked you to write a series of essays for me, three essays, to be able to help understand what this theology is, because I had never heard of it before. And I`ve read all three of them, and they`re going out in the newsletter this week. And I think we can boil it down. So maybe you can hit on these three things quickly.

First, it reduces all -- all problems of the world to the white man. Right or wrong?

ANTHONY BRADLEY, ACTON INSTITUTE: Well, one of the things that happens in black liberation theology is that it actually reduces all sin to white racisms. It`s almost like Adam and Eve fell in the garden, they sinned, and then we leap-frog to white supremacy. So the starting point is always white racism.

And that`s exactly what you saw and heard in Jeremiah Wright`s anti- Clinton rant that we heard a couple of weeks ago.

BECK: OK. Now, we haven`t heard this from anybody in the Obama camp. I`ve never heard him say anything that I thought was racist. I mean, I thought he said some things that, you know, white people wouldn`t get away with, you know, about being the typical white person, et cetera, et cetera. But I don`t care. I`ve got a life.

The 1960s, however, we have heard some of this rhetoric spill out of his mouth. You say point No. 2 is that it`s all about black victimhood and ignoring progress. His wife said, you know, "I`ve never been proud of the United States. I can`t believe that it`s taken this long for us to make it." And poor us, blah, blah, blah. Instead of saying, look at what we`ve accomplished.

BRADLEY: Exactly. Sadly, many of these black liberation theologians are stuck in the 1960s. And this -- and this leads into this idea that blacks are perpetually victims and that they`re always being victims of white supremacy. And it completely ignores all of the evidence that points to progress in the black community.

You can look at Atlanta, for example, and see scores and scores of millionaires who are African-Americans.

BECK: All right. The third point, I guess, is Marxism and redistribution of wealth, and I would assume reparations fall into this category.

BRADLEY: Well, one of the things that happens, also, is that Marxism is seen as a vehicle to bring about justice, and we also know that that is nothing but government-forced wealth through distribution at the hands of people who didn`t earn their wealth. And so we`re trying to -- to find a way to wrap this up.

BECK: OK. Anthony, thank you so much.

Now, a reminder: he has been writing an exclusive series on black liberation theology for my free e-mail newsletter. Tomorrow`s edition focuses on how black liberation is really Marxist liberation. Plus, what does the church of Barack Obama, that is intended for 20 years, really preach? Find out in tomorrow`s newsletter. Sign up right now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: We`re going to get our "Real Story" segment in just a second. But right now, we are getting word from my newsroom that says scientists are tracking a large asteroid that appears to be heading towards Earth. Information is coming in right now. Initial reports say the impact will be around the year 2019 and the consequences could be "catastrophic."

The president has just released a statement. He will be speaking here in just a few minutes. Apparently his message is the threat is real, it is dire, and we have decided to let the next administration figure it out.

Let me ask you something -- first of all, there`s no asteroid headed our way. If that were real, would you be sharpening the end of your pitchfork and driving to Washington right now? Yes, of course you would. We`re going to let the next administration figure it out?

Here`s "The Real Story."

If there was an asteroid, we would take care of it. And there is an economic asteroid, and no one seems to care.

The Social Security and Medicare trustees -- and I use that term loosely because it has the word "trust" in the center -- released their annual report yesterday. The news isn`t really good.

This year, 2008, Medicare will pay out more in benefits than it takes in from taxes. Got it? The same thing happens to Social Security in 2017. That`s when the government will have to start paying back all the money it has stolen from the people from the Social Security lock box that doesn`t exist over the years, something that could be a little dicey considering the fact -- you might have heard this -- we`re out of money!

By 2019, Medicare becomes completely insolvent. And by 2041, Social Security runs dry.

Great. By most estimates, this is a $53 trillion asteroid.

Now, you find one person -- if you can find them, I`ll pay you -- that`s credible on either side of the aisle that disputes the size of this threat or how quickly it`s coming. In fact, most would say the dates and the figures I just gave you are conservative.

So, why is it no one`s doing anything about it? If there were a real asteroid, do you think we`d allow our leaders to keep passing the next buck to the next administration until we could actually see the flying rock in the sky? It`s getting closer and closer -- no.

We`re not only letting them get away with that, we`re letting them do something worse. We`re letting them actually go out into space, and they`re floating, going, I wonder if we could make the asteroid bigger?

I mean, they`re putting prescription drugs on. We`ve got billions in bailouts and rebate checks. This is damn -- no, I`m sorry, this is criminal negligence.

I don`t know who people think are going to fly in and swoop in from the sky to save us from this disaster, but that will happen when monkeys fly out of my butt. I`ve got news for you, it`s not going to be Congress swooping it in. It`s going to monkeys out of my butt.

The president is not going to do it. And believe me, Bruce Willis and Tommy Lee Jones, they`re going to be a little too old. They`ll be on that non-existent Social Security by then.

Like always, we have to save ourselves. And we have to start right now.

David Walker is the former comptroller of the United States. He`s now the president and CEO of Peter G. Peterson Foundation.

David, good to have you on the program.

Yesterday was a big day. Nobody in the media`s really talking about it.

In 2000, our liabilities were $20 trillion. Today, they`re $52 trillion. We`re not talking about earmarks. We`re not talking about the war. This is stuff that we have always had on the books that is growing out of control, and we have to stop it now.

DAVID WALKER, FMR. COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE U.S.: Well, first, thanks for your enthusiasm, Glenn. I wish more people were enthusiastic about it.

BECK: You bet.

WALKER: Yes, we`ve got a balance sheet problem. In the last seven years, the total liabilities in unfunded promises for Social Security and Medicare have mushroomed from $20 trillion to $53 trillion. They`re going up $2 trillion to $3 trillion a year.

Yesterday was deja vu all over again, as Yogi Berra used to say. I mean, it was nothing new. I mean, the treasury secretary said that, you know, Medicare and Social Security are unsustainable in their present form. I said that in 1990.

BECK: Yes. Well, I mean, here`s the thing -- the solution that they outlined yesterday was, today, today, if you were going to do something -- which they`re not -- we would have to increase Medicare taxes on the individual by 122 percent and Social Security tax on the individual by 26 percent. You know what? I don`t think either one of those things are going to be done.

You recommend it`s time for a third party.

WALKER: Well, there`s no question that the system in Washington right now is badly broken. The people don`t have confidence.

You know, I have been in 26 states in the last two and a half years doing town hall meetings. I was in Pittsburgh yesterday, had 450 to 500 people talking about these issues. The people are ahead of the politicians. The politicians need to start earning their pay.

BECK: You know what, David? The people are always ahead of the politicians. Our founding fathers knew this, that people would lead. That`s why "We the people" are in the first part of it.

The thing that gets me is, we`re also a different kind of people. I would pay my fair share. I would pay more if it meant that my kids were going to be secure, if it meant a better tomorrow. But I don`t trust a single one of these weasels when they say we`re going to raise tax to actually fix anything. They`re still talking about growing it bigger and bigger and bigger.

WALKER: Well, Glenn, you make a good point. There is a lack of confidence in Washington right now. There`s also a mistrust as to, if they ended up sending more money to Washington, how sure can they be assured it just won`t be squandered?

That`s why we need to bring back very tough statutory budged controls so we can make sure that we`ll do something positive with any additional revenues. But frankly, we`ve got a tremendous amount of waste in Washington right now that we`re not taking seriously enough.

BECK: I mean, I asked you to write an article for my magazine, "Fusion," and asked you to explain it in, you know, simple terms.

I mean, you`re the guy who ran the -- I mean, you did the books for Washington, and you said that there are four things that we`re missing. We have deficits in the four things, and the last one is trust. And I believe you`re absolutely right.

How do we get it back?

WALKER: The first three words in the Constitution which are the most important have to come alive, and you said them... "We the people."

The people have to understand that in order for a democracy to function effectively, people need to be informed and involved. People need to demand that their elected officials are focused on issues that threaten the future of our country and our families. And we need to make sure the next president is going to make this a priority and not make a bunch more unfunded promises, because that $53 trillion hole we`re still digging.

BECK: David, thank you very much.

And please, check out the article that David wrote for us. This is a man of real integrity that left his job to go back into the private sector because he couldn`t take it anymore.

All right.

For almost a year now, I have been warning you that an extraordinary event could lead to a complete meltdown in our financial system. All along the way people are like, oh, that guy`s crazy. Oh, we`re immune from anything like that. Our institutions are too big. Oh, America`s too important to fail.

Really?

Well, here`s "The Real Story" tonight.

Those critics were only half right. Well, according to our government, some firms are apparently to important to fail.

The critics were wrong about a complete meltdown. Not only can it happen, it almost did happen. And it was happening and you didn`t even know about it because nobody on television was telling you the truth.

It happened in the last couple of weeks, right before the Federal Reserve used a Great Depression-era procedure to bail out Bear Stearns. We were looking right, straight into the abyss and virtually nobody knew it.

Contrary to what the government would like you to believe, they didn`t just rescue Bear to save one securities firm that made some bad decisions, they rescued them to save our entire financial system. Bear isn`t just Bear. Everyone and everything in our economy is now interconnected like a spider web that we`ve been talking about for a year here.

Bear has deals with Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, a host of other hedge funds that you`ve probably never heard of and I`ve never heard of. If Bear went under, how many firms would have followed? How many banks would have gone down? How many people sitting at home right now would have run to their bank to get the cash out?

Would the Dow have crashed? What about the Asian markets?

Covering up how close we really came to the edge serves no one except those who want to keep you in the dark about how fragile our system really is and still is. You know, but just like not teaching the Holocaust, or banning the video of the twin towers coming down on 9/11, you apparently are just too fragile to see. Pretending that something didn`t happen only makes it more likely to happen again.

Bob O`Brien is a stocks editor at Barron`s Online.

Bob, welcome to the program.

BOB O`BRIEN, STOCKS EDITOR, BARRON`S ONLINE: Thank you, Glenn.

BECK: I have to tell you, have we -- have we passed the big cataclysmic event? I mean, if the Fed didn`t do what they did, which was historic in its nature, we would have seen a complete economic collapse? Right or wrong?

O`BRIEN: You`re absolutely right. This would look like the opening scenes of "The Terminator" movie where the machines are just basically chasing the humans across a barren landscape.

Everything would have been laid to rubble, and most of the financial system would have been completely unwound. And that would have had implications. As you mentioned, the Dow Industrial Average, overseas markets.

BECK: Right.

O`BRIEN: Basically the entire interconnected financial services.

BECK: I mean, it`s easy for everybody to say, oh, they hate rich people, but nobody seems to really hate the hedge funds, because, really, nobody even knows what hedge funds do. But if this would -- if Bear would have collapsed, Lehman probably would have been next. And then the hedge funds would have collapsed.

What would that have meant to the average person if these hedge funds go?

O`BRIEN: Well, eventually -- you k now, your pension has got an exposure to those hedge funds. If you`ve got some money socked away for retirement through a pension, pensions are big holders of some of these hedge funds, whether you know that or not. And if these guys had simply closed their doors, those are risky assets.

Those are the assets -- that`s not something that`s FDIC-insured the way your bank account is insured. Those hedge funds would have closed their doors, gone out of business, and everybody would have been left holding nothing.

BECK: OK. The biggest event, in my opinion -- correct me if I am wrong -- the biggest event since the Great Depression, probably the biggest financial event ever that was avoided. Why is it so far under the radar? And because it`s so far under the radar, are we passed it are we through it?

O`BRIEN: No, we`re not through it. I mean, one of the reasons why it`s under the radar is because you can`t make people sit here and listen to me talk about collateralized debt obligations and securitized subprime mortgages. Your audience would fall asleep, and I wouldn`t blame them. Some days I bore me.

However, we`re by no means out of the woods here. This is a market that`s going to continue to trade on event risk to event risk.

The next time that another bank comes out and says, you know what? We`ve got all this lousy stuff on our books that we`re going to have to take writedowns for, and we`re going to post a loss for the quarter, the financial system is going to be suspect again. The whole market`s going to go to the downside.

BECK: Thanks a lot, Bob.

By the way, they announced today that it looks like -- they`re estimating now that we have two times the amount of debt.

By the way, if you would like to read more about our $53 trillion asteroid that we were talking about just a few minutes ago that`s headed towards Earth -- that`s the one that will melt everything down -- check out my column at CNN.com tomorrow.

With our leaders abandoning us on this issue, it is up to us to hold them accountable and demand the truth from everybody. That is tomorrow, right on the front page of CNN.com.

Back in a second.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Well, sometimes it`s extremely difficult to pinpoint exactly when a debate from an issue has gone from rational to ridiculous. But really not so much with the war in Iraq. I can pinpoint it exactly. It was Monday.

Monday, Forest Lake, Minnesota, a group of war veterans scheduled to speak at a high school, when out of the blue, the school`s principal cancelled the event. His reason, he had gotten some calls from parents who threatened to protest over worries that the event would be political instead of educational.

Oh, I hope they played the Al Gore movie instead.

Are you kidding me? Is this really where we are now? Our kids can`t even listen to soldiers speak about their experiences?

I hope that the other parents out there in Minnesota -- you know, the ones who don`t want to shelters their kids from experiences of our heroes - - exercised their freedom of speech as well.

David Bellavia, he`s the co-founder of Vets for Freedom. He`s the -- that`s the group that organized the troop tour.

David, I`ve got to tell you, too political. You guys talk politics? Are you saying who to vote for? Or what to think about the war in this?

DAVID BELLAVIA, VETS FOR FREEDOM: You know, we do that sometimes. We do talk about how we feel about the war. We don`t tell people who to vote for or what to vote for.

But the absurdity about this is that it was prearranged that we were going into a high school. We have active duty Marines and soldiers, which means that we can`t talk about politics if we wanted to.

So, the whole thing was ridiculous. They knew what they were getting. And, Glenn, this is six e-mails that this guy buckled to. It`s not like a soccer riot broke out in his office.

BECK: It`s Minnesota. I mean, David, I love you, I respect you, but what are you thinking, man? It`s Minnesota.

(CROSSTALK)

BELLAVIA: I mean, you know what? I thought that, too. But what ended up happening was the people of Forest Lake came out.

And you know what? I found out that Minnesota isn`t all about the wackos that evidently write e-mails. You know, there are some patriotic Americans there, and they supported us.

BECK: You actually went. You had to go to American Legion and hold the event. And 250 kids from the school showed up.

They actually stood up and said, let me tell you about politics in school. Did they not?

O`BRIEN: Yes, they actually -- at the end they did a question and answer, and they stood up and said, you know, my teachers all the time tell us about how unjust this war is and how we`re only killing only Iraqi civilians. And they then drop the bomb and said they`re actually playing the Al Gore movie in their school, which...

BECK: They actually were playing it. That`s fantastic.

O`BRIEN: No, it is.

BECK: Yes. But that`s not political at all.

O`BRIEN: Not at all. Of course not.

BECK: No.

David, when I first saw this story, here`s the thing that I thought. I thought this proves that it`s bull crap that you`re for the troops, just against the war. Because here you have a group of heroes -- and I know what soldiers are like when they`re in uniform. They can`t say jack. They cannot say jack. They do not express opinions while in uniform.

So, this just shows that, no, no, no, they tie the war directly to heroes that are fighting in the war. And they want to shut it all down. Yes or no?

O`BRIEN: Glenn, if I was a Minnesota Twin, they would have fallen over themselves to talk to their kids. You bring your dad to school because you`re proud of what your dad does. And I`m sorry, but I`m unapologetically proud of my service to my nation and the guys that I served with.

BECK: Yes. I`ve got news for you -- well, I mean, what are you supposed -- you`ve met the people there in Minnesota. Do you think if it`s Bring Your Dad to Work Day and Chelsea Clinton were in class, do you think she could bring her dad to work, or would that be deemed too political?

O`BRIEN: Well, it depends if he had to dodge sniper fire on his way to Bosnia. But I guess what it really comes down to is, you know, it`s a magnet, whole ideology of supporting the troops. We want to support you, but if you tell us about what you actually do, hey, that`s too controversial.

BECK: Yes. Well, it`s not too controversial on this program.

Sir, when you come out towards New York, we`re going to have you and the heroes on the set here, and we`re going to spend some real time with you.

Thank you so much, David.

We`ll be back in just a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Apparently, there`s some sort of an election happening in November, and that`s why Rasmussen has a new poll out that shows 22 percent of Democrats believing that Hillary Clinton should just give up and drop out. Which makes sense. I mean, at this point, she basically has to hope that something like, you know, the superdelegates just all of a sudden go, oh my gosh, Barack Obama.

Maybe Hillary can prove that she can heal the blind and walk on water. You never know. Except when you know.

Amazingly, another 22 percent of Democrats think that Barack Obama should drop out. I don`t know if anybody`s realized this, but he`s actually winning at this point, by a virtually insurmountable margin, unless she tries to steal it, which -- well, let`s go on.

So, that`s ahead of us. And we have all of that fun in politics. But let`s take a momentary break here to tell you a story about Frank Milio and Carlos Underhill.

They figured, you know, what a better way to distracts themselves from the problems of the world than a little female attention. Huh? You know what I`m saying?

Only a couple of problems. One, they decided to pay for that female attention. Two, the females that paid turned out to be undercover cops. And, oh, yes, three, they`re both 93 years old.

Only in Florida.

Carlos Underhill said that he would pay $30 for sex. And then he promised that he would come back in a couple of hours to do the deed.

Police couldn`t charge him because they couldn`t prove that he would come back. And, I mean, a couple of hours? I`m not saying that it`s just enough time to go home, take one of those little blue pills and then come back, but I`m not not saying that either.

Frank Milio, he`s 93. He`ll be prosecuted after he tried to pay the $20 for sex.

Now, you might think that $20 is pretty low for a prostitute these days, especially after seeing Eliot Spitzer spend about a used Toyota Corolla to pay for Ashley Dupre per hour. But, remember, it`s Florida. It makes sense.

Remember how your grandfather used to send you a birthday card with a dime taped in the inside? You know, like that was a lot of money, and you`d go, huh? They were used to buying candy in a jar that said "Two a penny." OF course, to them, $20 would make sense for sex.

It`s still a creepy story. But, hey, if you can`t help grandpa, I say free grandpa. You know what I`m saying?

Don`t forget, our three-day series -- I don`t know what it means either -- a three-day series on the black liberation theology, which is the Barack Obama church philosophy in theology. It`s absolutely amazing. Tomorrow is the influences and similarities to Marxism.

Get it for free, grandpa, in our e-mail newsletter. Sign up now at glennbeck.com.

From New York, goodnight America.

END