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Glenn Beck

Presidential Race: None of the Above?; Is U.S. Repeating the Roman Empire`s Mistakes?; New York to Police AC Use by Businesses

Aired August 20, 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, break out the pitchforks. A new poll says the majority of Americans are unhappy with the choices of candidates and their parties. No. I don`t know about you, but I have absolutely no idea who I`m going to vote for this year.

Plus, Mexican drug gangs are crossing the border into America to kidnap U.S. citizens. We`ll talk to a special FBI agent on the fight to bring these scum bags to justice.

And finally, some common sense. New York and New Jersey, the governors introduce plans to slash their budgets by cutting senseless spending. Sounds smart to me, but for some reason, the clowns in their state legislatures aren`t buying this.

All this and more, tonight.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BECK: Hello, America.

Have you ever had one of those nights where you -- you know, you flip on the TV and two of your favorite shows are on at exactly the same time, and you`re like, "Aw." Or better yet. You know when you`re going to go to the movie and you walk up to the concession stand and you can`t decide between Raisinettes and the Goobers. And then you realize, crap, my wife`s not here. I`m going to buy them both.

Well, you take that feeling of overwhelming joy. Then you douse it with gasoline, light it on fire, run it through a wood chipper, bury it in your backyard, and then you start to come close to the understanding of how little excitement I feel for either of the two presidential candidates.

Here is "The Point" tonight. I have truly never, ever cared more about our country than I do right now. But I have also never cared less about our choices for who should be running it. And here`s how I got there.

I think most of us would all agree that we`re in a pivotal time in our country`s history. You know, and you see it on television every single night. I think most Americans feel it in their gut. They just know something is fundamentally wrong.

But what we can`t seem to agree on is which way to pivot. I mean, we`ve got some great choices, don`t we? One candidate is especially a socialist while the other one I would call a conservative socialist. He`s pro-life, but pro-global warming. He wants to keep the troops in Iraq but also keep our borders open. He wants to drill offshore, but not in Alaska. What the -- what?

That leaves me not only without any candidate, but also without any excitement whatsoever. It`s kind of like being back at the concession stand and they`re out of the Raisinettes and the Goobers, and your wife is with you, and all they`ve got there in the counter is raw eggplant and tofu.

So America, here is what you need to know tonight. If you feel like I do about this election, we are not alone. A new Zogby poll asked people to rank their excitement about our choices on a scale of one to five with one being not at all excited and five being -- the average answer, a very ambivalent three, which not coincidentally, is slightly less than the number of spokes on these pitchforks that I keep here in my studio.

Penn Jillette is an illusionist, actor, comedian, atheist, Nobel Peace Prize winner. How are you, sir?

PENN JILLETTE, ILLUSIONIST: I`m doing very well. But you spilled the stock home secret right at the top. We`ll pretend you didn`t say it.

BECK: Here is the -- here is the thing, man. We are being held hostage by -- by both parties. They are taking us to the same damn place.

JILLETTE: But you`re buying into it. You`re not part of the solution, Glenn. You`re part of the problem.

BECK: Then help me.

JILLETTE: You`re giving them that there`s only these two choices.

BECK: Oh, no, no, no, no. No, no.

JILLETTE: All the American people have to decide is they want a different choice and someone else can win.

BECK: Penn...

JILLETTE: Nowhere in the rules does it say it has to be one of those two.

BECK: Penn, I will tell you now. I mean, Jesus could come back before November, so I`m not making any promises, but I would bet almost everything I have at this point, there`s no way I`m going to vote for one of these two clowns. And I am going to vote. I will find a third party, but I haven`t found my guy yet. Have you?

JILLETTE: Well, you know, Bob Barr came to our show out here in Vegas the other night. And he was -- he was wonderful to talk to. And he was closer -- at least he actually wants smaller government.

BECK: Right.

JILLETTE: And maybe that`s all you need, and Ron Paul was also there with that.

BECK: Right. He may be -- he may be -- he may be the guy I end up voting for. I`m not a fan of some of the stuff that he does, but you know what? Look, I don`t need the perfect candidate. I just need somebody -- usually, in the last election, I was a one -- I was a one-point guy. I needed you to understand what the world was facing with Islamic terrorists.

But I can`t do it now. You`ve got Russia. You`ve got Iran. You`ve got Islamic radicals. You`re tainting the dollar. Our economy is on the edge. They`re talking about nationalizing our financial institutions, nationalizing transportation. GM and the big three, they`re too big to fail, as well. Free speech with a Fairness Doctrine being -- including being expanded to the Internet. And then nobody is doing anything on energy. Good God Almighty, where is somebody who is help us?

JILLETTE: I know, and it`s -- you know, I always want to go back to - - you know, the Jerome Horowitz theory of government. You know, Jerome Horowitz, better known as Curly Howard of "The Three Stooges." Jerome Horowitz would be given a choice. Moe Howard would say pick two and hold out his fingers. And the Curly would pick two, and no matter which two fingers he picks, he`d always get poked in the eye.

As long as you pick two, you are Jerome Horowitz. You are Curly Howard.

BECK: All right. OK. The help me out on this. Because I hope to be sending somebody out to cover this convention with Ron Paul in Minneapolis.

JILLETTE: Yes.

BECK: Because I really -- I -- for the first time in my life, I am -- I am to the point where I cannot tell my children in 10 to 15 years from now -- you know, if we all survive -- that my fingerprints were on either two of these choices. I can`t do it.

But wait. When I -- when I read the blogs and everything else from, you know, the people who are, you know, involved with the Ron Paul convention and everything, I want to go and listen to those people. But there`s about 10 percent of that audience that scares the living bejesus out of me.

JILLETTE: And what`s the percentage of Obama and McCain people that scare the living bejesus out of you?

BECK: Obama people, 80 percent.

JILLETTE: OK.

BECK: McCain people, because, you know, they`re all like, they`re not really active. They`re just -- most of them are asleep, you know. They don`t really scare me.

JILLETTE: So -- so the Ron Paul people aren`t doing that bad, then, are they, with 10 percent nuts?

BECK: Crazy nuts.

JILLETTE: I know. I know. You`re going to have that.

BECK: Yes.

JILLETTE: But I mean, what`s your percentage of the general population. When you walk down to Starbucks to get your cappuccino, what percentage of people in that Starbucks do you consider to be dangerous, crazy people?

BECK: Dangerous, crazy? In Starbucks, 100 percent.

JILLETTE: OK.

BECK: Dunkin` Donuts, maybe 3 percent.

JILLETTE: Three percent. OK, so 10 percent is not -- is not that crazy. Not out of line.

BECK: Sure.

JILLETTE: OK, you`re going to have a few nuts. And I want to just tell you, Glenn, every night in the show in Vegas, people come up to me and talk to me about going on your show.

BECK: Yes.

JILLETTE: But I think to many people, you and I might be in that 10 percent.

BECK: Oh, no. Oh, no. The people...

JILLETTE: They say, you guys are nuts.

BECK: I know. I know. I walk into Starbucks and everybody is like, "I`m really uncomfortable now." I mean, I know my place in the world.

JILLETTE: OK, as long as you know that when you look at those blogger nuts, they`re looking right back at you. That`s all I`m saying.

So I think you have to go -- you know, the best thing about Obama was the lack of cynicism, the fact that I actually had friends -- in the last two elections, I didn`t have any friends who actually liked Kerry or Gore.

BECK: Right.

JILLETTE: They just hated Bush. It was an entire party about hate. With Obama, even though I don`t agree, there are at least people who actually like him. And that makes me happy because it`s a little less cynicism in the world. And I believe that`s always good.

BECK: But he`s -- but I hate to be a cynic -- I hate to be a cynic here, but have you listened to what he`s saying? I mean, I know you. You are a small-government guy. When you get down to the nuts and bolts of what he`s talking about, good God Almighty, it will -- you want to talk about change? Communism is a change.

JILLETTE: All I can say is a drowning man will grab a snake. I was just trying to find one little good thing about that. You don`t have to convince me that we should not go bigger government and more -- because when we get down to smaller government, you know, I`m going to want to go smaller than you.

When we actually get a libertarian in office and the whole thing goes smaller and smaller and smaller, you know, you and I end up having a discussion where you say to me, "Do you really want to get rid of public schools?"

BECK: Right.

JILLETTE: And I go, "Yes, Glenn, I really do.

BECK: Oh, no. Penn, I`m with you on that. I really am.

You know what? I`d like to have you back, because I`d like to have a conversation on this very thing again. But I think we just -- we just differ on how small the government. I`m a little -- I`m a little closer, I thing, to our Founding Fathers, at least some of them, who said just to the point before it collapses. I have a feeling you`re at the collapse point.

JILLETTE: You -- you and I will get to that point, and then I`ll argue for an anarchical capitalism. And I`ll probably lose. And that`s why.

BECK: OK. All right. Penn, thanks a lot.

Now, coming up, get ready, America, to pay more. Prices on every item soaring to levels we haven`t seen in nearly 30 years. And as usual, our leaders aren`t doing anything. Yes.

And Mexican drug gangs have found a new way to raise capital: kidnap Americans for ransom. It`s all the rage. And if you think that`s scary, wait until you hear where our citizens are being taken from. Don`t miss tonight`s "Real Story," coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Coming up, Mexican drug lords have breached our southern border. New reports now indicate that gang members are crossing into U.S. soil and then returning back home with souvenirs. No, not like T-shirts of key chains. I`m talking American citizens. I`ll explain in tonight`s "Real Story."

First, I touched on something last night. There was a report out yesterday that wholesale prices were up nearly 10 percent last year. That`s the highest rate increase since 1981.

It may have gone over your head as much as it went over my mine. Wholesale prices are -- whatever. Here`s what it really means. Wholesale prices are basically the prices paid by the businesses for the stuff that they turn around and sell to us. When their prices rise, especially at a rate this fast, it`s only natural to think that the retail prices that we will pay will soon rise, as well.

If they don`t, then that means that those stores are taking on more of the costs themselves, which of course, will lead to lower profits, lower share prices, less tax revenue for the government, and then it all snowballs.

As I was thinking about this last night, you know -- I know, get a life -- I began to wonder how many people in America feel like I do when it comes to taxes? Right now, if some clown politician comes knocking at my door and says, "You know what? I need your support, higher taxes for this program or this program," I`m going to say, "Beat it, Jack. Go out in the parking lot and kick rocks, because I ain`t going to help you."

And not because I don`t want to help the poor or the sick or the elderly or the children. It`s because I don`t trust a single one of these damn politicians to safeguard my money. You know what? I trust Michael Moore to safeguard my dessert more than the politicians with my money. And I`m ain`t getting up from the table with Michael Moore and my pie.

My next guest says that one of the biggest deficits in this country that we have, may also be one the toughest to close: leadership deficit.

David Walker is the former comptroller general of the United States of America and currently the president and CEO of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation.

David, I was talking about this on the radio today, and I actually brought up your name. I think that we, most Americans may not be able to describe it. They may not be able to -- you know, they didn`t necessarily see, you know, Russia and the depth and all the ins and outs. But they feel something in their gut. We are in historical times. We are repeating the pattern of Rome, are we not?

DAVID WALKER, FORMER COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE U.S.: We are in many ways. You know, Rome lasted over 1,000 years. But it fell for a number of reasons, four of which resonate today: decline in moral values and political civility at home, fiscal irresponsibility by the central government, inability to control one`s borders, and a variety of other factors. I just gave you three.

And we need to -- we need to walk up and recognize reality. The fourth factor is, is over-confident (ph) and overextended military around the world. If those sound familiar, then we need to learn from history.

BECK: Am I wrong in my feeling -- I don`t think I`m alone -- in my feeling that if I could trust -- I am willing to do the tough things for America. I am willing to pay more in taxes, but I am not willing to pay more in taxes now because I don`t trust anyone. I`ll give them their money, and they`ll spend it on something else. This is what they always do. How do we close this gap?

WALKER: Well, Glenn, as you know, I`ve had the good fortune of going to over half the states, over 40 cities in the last two years doing town- hall meetings. America is starved for two things: truth and leadership. They`re willing to make some sacrifice, but they don`t trust the politicians in Washington.

My personal view is that, ultimately, we`re going to need more revenues, but I wouldn`t give Washington another dime in revenues unless and until we have tough statutory budget controls to make sure that they`ll act responsibly with our money. They expired in 2002, and Washington has been totally out of control since then.

BECK: We have a guest on tonight who`s going to talk about what`s going on in New York and New Jersey. Here they are raising taxes in New York and New Jersey. Two Democratic governors, two of them, are saying, "We`ve got to stop all this spending. Don`t raise taxes. Stop with the spending."

In New York, the spending has raised -- in the last ten years has gone up 71 percent. Who thinks this is a good idea?

How do you stop this trend? How do you do it?

WALKER: I think we have to re-impose these budget controls. There`s no question about it.

BECK: David, nobody is listening to the people. Why do you think I have pitch forks on my set? Nobody is listening to the people.

WALKER: Yes.

BECK: We talked about the governor, the borders and everything else.

WALKER: Well, we`re going to try some nontraditional tactics, meaning the Peterson foundation. We`ve got this film coming out. It`s debuting tomorrow night. We`re going to have aggressive Internet strategy. We`re looking at alternative means of communication, especially with regard to young people. Their future is being mortgaged.

BECK: Yes.

WALKER: They`re the ones that are going to pay the price and bear the burden. It`s the first three words in the Constitution that have to come alive, "We, the people."

BECK: Can I ask -- can I ask you a question? I have these Norman Rockwell prints in my -- in my house, from the old war bonds. You know, the you know, freedom of fear and everything else. And somebody came over. He was English. And he came over, and he said, "What are those from?"

And I said, "Those are World War II. They were selling war bonds."

Later I was thinking about it later. I was walking up the stairs in my hallway. And I was walking up the stairs, and I looked them, and I thought war bonds. Why after September 11, when Americans would have done anything, why don`t we sell war bonds any more? Why didn`t we do that?

WALKER: Well, first, we squandered a lot of opportunities after 9/11. And it would have been good to ask Americans to sacrifice in some way or contribute in some way. But the fact is there`s a big difference between now and World War II. We don`t save anymore.

BECK: Wouldn`t a -- but wouldn`t a war bond have been a way to get us to save again?

WALKER: Well, it would have been a way to redirect whatever savings and maybe save a little bit more. But what we need to do is, yes, people need to have more of a stake in our future, but we need to start saving more. And because we don`t...

BECK: Somebody -- somebody told me that sure, we don`t save anymore, but we`re -- we`re invested in our 401(k). We`re doing things that people didn`t before. What`s the difference there?

WALKER: Well, there`s a difference between whether or not you`re saving and what your wealth is. By savings, what we mean is to what extent are you not consuming what you earn today? If you`re putting money into a 401(k), that`s savings. All right? So we`re counting that as part of savings.

The problem that we have is too many Americans are following the bad example of the federal government. They`re spending more money than they make, charging their credit cards, taking out home equity loans, and mortgaging the future.

BECK: There`s -- I don`t know, because I know you`re a nonpartisan guy, so I don`t want to ask for names. But these politicians seem to be just stunned by Russia all of a sudden. They`re stunned by all of things coming in the world. They`re stunned that, all of a sudden, what, we have a budget shortfall? I mean, all of this stuff, they`re just stunned by it.

Do you see anyone who is a leader entering the horizon besides the people that can see over that horizon and see what`s coming and say, "I can lead"?

WALKER: Well, let me mention -- let me mention five people who are trying to exhibit some leadership on fiscal responsibility. Jim Cooper, who`s a Democrat from Tennessee. Frank Wolfe, who`s a Republican from northern Virginia. Senator Conrad from North Dakota. Senator Gregg from New Hampshire, Senator Voinovich from Ohio. They`re all trying to help to create a fiscal commission to help us deal with our $53 trillion hole. That`s leadership.

BECK: OK. America, see the movie. It`s "IOUSA." It`s opening tomorrow at select theaters and then everywhere on Friday.

Coming up, nanny state in action. New York City has passed a bill which will fine store owners for leaving their doors open while the AC is on. Yes, this is what they`re working on. Details coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: To those of us who take a more cautious approach on global warming compared to, let`s say, RFK Jr. or Al Gore, one of the main arguments has always been that any solution that you propose will always hurt business, and therefore, our economy.

Well, we`re now starting to see proof here in New York City. The city council -- wait until you hear what they`re working on -- the city council has recently passed a bill that would require some businesses to keep their doors shut while running the air conditioning.

Entrepreneur turned billionaire turned mayor turned anti-capitalist Michael Bloomberg is expected to sign the bill, even though many stores say it`s going to cost them a significant amount of their business.

New York City Councilman Charles Barron, a Democrat, who was just one of the eight council members to vote against this bill. Why did you vote against it?

CHARLES BARRON, NEW YORK CITY COUNCILMAN: Well, you know, it`s not to really help business or hurt business. I just don`t think that the arm of the legislative branch should reach that far to shut the doors on those who are trying to air condition their businesses.

And secondly, I think Con Edison is the problem with energy in New York City. And if we don`t want to do oversight on Con Edison, I don`t think the grids are going to be damaged by the air conditioning. This is a scapegoat approach not to do the real right thing. And that is oversight over Con Edison, that`s incompetent, and maximizes profits, raises our bills up.

And I`m not against a more socialistic practice in government to go ahead and take over Con Edison and utilities should be run by the government and be provided free for the people, not profit by Con Edison. So I voted against it, not because it`s going to hurt business, because I don`t think it`s going to hurt business one way or the other. Nor is it going to be a tremendous conservation of energy. It`s just a scapegoat measure to not deal with the real problem in New York City in energy and electricity, and that is the incompetence of Con Edison.

BECK: OK. Aren`t you the guys that were also working on the Dunkin` Donuts calorie count?

BARRON: No, listen, I wasn`t working on no Dunkin` Donuts.

BECK: Not you, but people on the...

BARRON: And I don`t see what that has to do with energy and Con Edison.

BECK: It has everything to do with...

BARRON: And stopping the world from blowing up and losing every -- I don`t see what that has to do with anything.

BECK: By keeping the doors opened or closed on businesses in New York is going to keep the world from blowing up?

BARRON: No, no, no, no, no. I`m saying that your Dunkin` Donuts issue is...

BECK: Here`s the thing. Dunkin` Donuts. New York City Council, you`ve been trying to get Dunkin` Donuts and McDonald`s to put calorie counts on their -- I mean, don`t you think that the nanny state is -- I`m not for a socialist group on the government. Don`t you think the nanny state is a little out of control?

BARRON: Well, we do much more than that. You know, we do a whole lot more than that. I think that the work of the city council, we`ve been one of the more progressive city councils in the country and passed some good legislation: living wage bills, predatory lending bills. So we`ve done some good work. I don`t want you to belittle us like all we do is put calories on things for fast foods.

BECK: I know. You know, I spend a lot of my time here in New York. I know you`re busy, busy, busy.

BARRON: Yes. We do a lot of good things. But I just think this is a far reach. If we want to get to the root of this problem, it`s Con Edison.

BECK: OK. Charles, thanks a lot.

Up next, "The Real Story," Americans kidnapped on U.S. soil and held for ransom in Mexico. And just when you think things went -- you started to go crazy, oh, no. Don`t go anywhere. It`s off the tracks, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Well, welcome to "The Real Story."

As you probably know, I kind of keep a close eye on the border with Mexico. I have covered illegal immigration, the drug gang killings, I`ve covered the assaults on our border agents. I have covered the border agents` lack of resources, the fact that we`re throwing them in jail. I`ve covered the spillover in violence which has now reached all the way up to Atlanta.

We`ve covered the kidnappings in Laredo, Texas and yet through all of this stuff, our government seems to be taking the same approach that China took with that national anthem girl, remember, just don`t look at the ugly truth and everything will be fine.

"The Real Story" is now ordinary Americans are being targeted in this war on our border. If it doesn`t wake our government up now, I`m telling you nothing will.

Mexican cartels now are kidnapping middle-class U.S. citizens, not just in Laredo. They`re doing it on our side of the border and bringing them back to Mexico in some sort of drug cartel easy pass sling.

This show pointed out over and over and over and over again that Americans were being kidnapped from Texas. They`re missing. Laredo ring a bell to anybody?

Now it`s getting worse. In San Diego last year, as many as 26 American citizens were kidnapped and brought to Mexico. This year, at least 30 Americans have been kidnapped there and taken to Mexico where they have been beaten, tortured, raped, or even killed.

Of course, Mexican officials say the increase in these kidnappings is a result of how successful we are as the Mexican government. We`re cracking down on these people and we`re forcing the cartels to take their business elsewhere, mainly to America.

U.S. custom officials in San Diego, big surprise, don`t have the resources to conduct checks on vehicles leaving for Mexico, so the Mexican custom officials, they don`t have the resources either. They check only 5 percent of incoming vehicles.

Strange how they -- the cars with the hostages held at gunpoint, never in that 5 percent. Mexican agents blame a lack of funds, but with some Mexican law enforcement officials suspected of aiding the drug cartels, no, that couldn`t be happening, and the military from Mexico holding up U.S. agents on our side of the border, I have a hunch that maybe, just maybe, something else may be going on.

Keith Slotter, special agent in charge of the FBI`s San Diego office, joins me now.

Keith, last time I was on this story, I spent months talking about the missing in Laredo. Can`t get anybody to move this or pay attention. And our government says all these people were involved in drugs.

How many of these people that are missing now in San Diego are involved in the drug trade?

KEITH SLOTTER, FBI SPECIAL AGENT IN CHARGE, SAN DIEGO: Well, it`s hard to say exactly how many are involved in the drug trade. Certainly a lot of this is emanating from the recent break up of the Arellano/Felix cartel. A lot of those folks have scattered, developed their own cells and they have found kidnapping in addition to drugs as being a solid money- making operation for them.

BECK: Now, I know you can`t say that -- none of these are involved in the drug trade, but will you agree with me that the vast majority of these are regular U.S. citizens snatched ought the streets?

SLOTTER: There are a lot of U.S. citizens that are being snatched whether it`s on this side of the border or down in the Tijuana area, yes. That`s what`s happening

BECK: Ok. What have we demanded from Mexico about rounding these people up and finding these people?

SLOTTER: Well, we`ve been working closely with the Mexican authorities to try to do that. And President Calderon has recently called for tougher standards in Mexico, for stiffer penalties, especially when police officers are in involved; longer sentences for those, especially when the crimes are egregious, when minors are being kidnapped and that sort of thing.

So that`s what we`re trying to build toward.

BECK: One kidnap victim said that it was like an easy pass. Driving up to the Mexican border and there`s one lane that is completely empty, and the border guards see the car and says come on, and they go right there. Said it was an easy pass system. Felt that the border agents on the Mexican side were in on it. Anything that shows that that`s true?

SLOTTER: Well, corruption on the border is always an issue. The bottom line is that when you`ve got individuals, if they`re kidnapped in this country or whatever it may be, the southbound lanes, in general, are going to be easier to get through than the northbound lanes are. So on that instance, when you`re moving southbound from the U.S. to Mexico, it`s an easier route to take regardless of what it is you`re trying to accomplish.

BECK: It`s my understanding we`re working closely, not with the Mexican government, but also closely with the kidnappers. Is that true?

SLOTTER: With the kidnappers how do you mean?

BECK: I understand -- it`s my understanding we`re working closely with the kidnappers as far as negotiating with them, you know, working with them to be able to release the hostages.

SLOTTER: Oh, absolutely. That`s going to be the number one priority. When we`re involved, our goal is first and foremost, get the victim back safely. We`re going to be working closely with the victims` family.

BECK: Got that. But the second part of that is, get the kidnappers. How many of these guys -- either with the FBI or the Mexican government -- how many of these guys who have kidnapped American citizens are in jail?

SLOTTER: Actually, I don`t know the exact numbers on that. It is difficult when you`re dealing with two nations cross border, the U.S. And Mexico, working together, deciding where these folks are going to be prosecuted; if you can find and capture them, whether it`s going to be a Mexican or American courtroom.

BECK: Can you give me a guess?

SLOTTER: As to the number?

BECK: Yes.

SLOTTER: No, I really don`t have -- I really couldn`t even give a guess as to the numbers.

BECK: All right, Keith. Thanks a lot. I appreciate your time, sir.

Never mind.

Common sense may not prevail on our own border, but let`s give the economy a whirl, shall we?

In the economy, the golden rule is you can`t spend more than you take in. You know, kind of like a 16-year-old at the mall with her mom`s credit card. Government officials JUST don`t seem to understand the concept of "Stop Spending."

Let`s look at New York and New Jersey right now. The economies are a microcosm of our federal economy. The state of New York is now facing a $6.4 billion deficit and a three-year combined deficit of $26 billion. New Jersey is operating on a $1.7 billion deficit.

What have the governors of these two states done? Well, remember, the two governors are both Democrats. Amazingly, they did not hike taxes. Instead, they proposed massive spending cuts, realizing that no amount of taxes can ever stop the bloated spending habits of the clowns that are running these states and this country.

"The Real Story" is instead of toeing the line these two governors have chosen common sense. Now, their citizens, I believe, will reward them for it. Why? A new survey is out from Sienna College that found 80 percent of voters favored spending cuts over tax hikes.

As a result, Patterson is currently enjoying his highest approval rating. Corzine has 55 percent favorability rating. Of course, since these pesky interests of the people are not in line with the parties` interest, Corzine and Patterson are now facing intense opposition from their state legislatures.

New York Democrats said Patterson was overreacting to the budget problem. Really? How many times have you heard a Democrat say that in Washington?

They also said that they can wait until October to re-examine the problem. Wait a minute, what`s going on October?

In November, aren`t there elections? If you waited until October, then you wouldn`t get anything done before the election and then you wouldn`t be blamed for anything.

Patterson didn`t let up. He unilaterally cut about $630 million from the budget and got the legislature to ahead and make further cuts, although they`re still $200 million short of the figure that he`s asked for.

Meanwhile, despite having numerous proposals blocked, New Jersey`s Corzine has cut spending by $600 million and reduced the overall budget by almost $3 billion.

Washington, take notice. It is guts and common sense. Those two things go a lot further than pandering and ideology.

Let me tell you, for myself, this is one conservative, I don`t give a flying crap if you`re a donkey or an elephant. Congratulations to two Democratic governors for having the stones to do the right thing.

James Tedisco, he is the New York assembly minority leader. He joins me now. James, Democrats get it?

JAMES TEDISCO, (D) NY STATE ASSEMBLY MINORITY LEADER: Absolutely. When you`ve got a governor, he may be a Democrat, but he`s listening to our conference, the Republicans and the people of New York State; as you said 80 percent of which have said we don`t need any more taxes in New York State. We don`t have a revenue problem. We have a spending problem.

BECK: Right. Here`s the thing ...

TEDISCO: They don`t know that golden rule.

BECK: I know. We were talking about this just a few minutes ago. You know, I`ll pay more in taxes. I`m not giving you clowns another dime until you show me you that can cut your spending. We need to work together a bit. And none of these people understand that it is a spending problem.

I mean, it`s like a crack dealer, every time the IRS comes to town, take more money to give to the politicians to spend. New York, how much has spending increases in New York in the last ten years, percentage, do you know?

TEDISCO: You`re absolutely right. In ten years, they have increased spending in New York by 71 percent; $52 billion of increased spending.

Be mindful of the fact, Glen, that if we just stayed at the rate of inflation, we would have saved $30 billion. We wouldn`t have a $6.5 billion deficit. We would have a $23.5 billion surplus. Three out of the four leaders are supporting a Democrat, David Patterson, and the people of New York State.

There`s only one man who wants to continue to rearrange the chairs on the deck of the Titanic and he also wants to drop the anchor right on the iceberg right now. That speaker, Sheldon Silver, who said, as you said, why don`t we wait three or four or five months and see if that economy turns itself around.

That`s like Arnold Schwarzenegger in California with the wild fires saying, why don`t we wait for rain to put those wild fires out. Don`t worry about your houses burning down. It boggles the mind. He actually passed a $2.7 billion tax increase, income tax increase, yesterday when the governor was asking us to come back and cut $600 million.

BECK: Didn`t they also -- hasn`t been there about $2 million spent now on ads against the governor?

TEDISCO: Oh, yes.

BECK: All special interest, it`s all unions and health care, right?

TEDISCO: Very important point. The last governor, as you know, Governor Spitzer said I`m going to hold the line on spending, I`m going to hold the line on taxes, I`m going stand up to special interest groups. When all that money starts being spent on ads in radio and TV, he crumbled. He folded like a cheap suit.

This governor has not folded like a cheap suit. He has stood up to the special interest groups.

BECK: This governor is probably not making it with $5,000 an hour hookers.

James thanks a lot.

TEDISCO: That could be the thing.

BECK: That`s tonight`s "Real Story."

Coming up, why it is imperative that your children question everything they learn at college or IN high school, anywhere. That`s tonight`s edition of our week-long "Life on Campus" series and it`s coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Our colleges and universities have been hijacked by the liberal ideology, and too often, they have a radical, radical agenda and an unchecked forum for expressing it. So while the aging hippie professors would like us to believe that thinking left is always right, it`s just not the case with all teachers or students.

But what is it like to be a conservative student and I don`t just mean an ideology, I mean in lifestyle as well. What is it like when the vast majority of the campus is smoking dope or having sex or wearing Obama t- shirts, made out of hemp?

It`s more in our week-long series, "Life on Campus" and I`m joined again by Robert George, a former professor of jurisprudence and director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University.

I have to tell you, professor, you gave me a book or you told me to read a book called "I Am Charlotte Simmons." I just finished it because it took me a long time to read because I`m a dad; Holy mother of everything good and sacred. Please tell me that that kind of atmosphere is really what our universities are like now.

ROBERT GEORGE, DIRECTOR, JAMES MADISON PROGRAM: Well, Glenn, I wish I could tell you it`s not like that, but in most places, the hook-up culture is flourishing. It`s a bad culture, a culture of promiscuity.

Students aren`t responsible for creating that culture in many cases. They just happen to show up on the scene and there it is and students want to conform and they want to be liked. And they don`t want to stand out as square or not with it, so too many students actually fall into the culture.

Again, it`s not everyone. And some students are fighting back. Here at Princeton, we`ve got a society of student organization that is devoted to making the intellectual argument for traditional morality and against the hook-up culture.

BECK: I believe I`m the only person that could ever say this. He`s smarter than I am, but I`m actually hipper. He used the word "square," not cool anymore.

GEORGE: You`re a hip guy, Glenn.

BECK: Sure, I mean look at me. Who didn`t know that?

You know, it`s a culture now on campus that preaches, I think, up is down, left is right. And for instance, one thing I learned too late in life, unfortunately, ten commandments or living by a set of rules is not oppressive and doesn`t shackle you. It actually frees you.

But it doesn`t seem to be the message that our kids are getting in any other universities. They think freedom is just, do whatever you want.

GEORGE: That`s the fault of us who are adults and us who are in charge of universities and those who are professors and administrators. We have to return to the idea, we have to get our grasp again of the idea that morality is liberating. There`s no worse form of slavery than slavery to one`s own passions and desires.

A liberation - the liberation that`s promised by a liberal arts education, when it`s done the right way, is liberation from slavery to self; the ability to exercise self-control. If people want to be self- governing in the sense of democracy, govern themselves in the democracy, they have to be able to govern themselves as individuals. Govern their own passions; that is, to live by a decent code of morality.

BECK: I have been trying -- I`m a self-educated guy. I`m a dope on most things. I`m trying to teach myself, I`m trying to learn how we got here and how we turn it back. Every time I learn something, I`m like, oh, crap. I have to learn the previous 20 years.

We`ve come to a place to where the Constitution isn`t set in stone. It doesn`t matter. We no longer study our founding fathers. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness was a good idea back then. It, too, is movable. And what we always believed in isn`t even taught anymore.

How do we -- how did we get here, and how do we get it back? Do we ever?

GEORGE: Well, yes, we do, and we do it simply by exercising our own best judgment, establishing programs at universities that will teach principles of the American founding, the principles of Western civilization. Not in an uncritical way; there were lots of things that were wrong in the past.

We mustn`t look back and think that everything that`s in the past was good. Slavery was in the past, segregation was in the past, but there were good things that we have now thrown over and we need to recover.

Not the bad things, we need to recover the good things. And to do that we just need to take the initiative and do it. That`s what we`re doing here at Princeton in the James Madison Program. It`s happening in other places, the (inaudible) Forum at Georgetown, the Alexander Hamilton Program at NYU. It`s happening at universities around the country, Glenn.

BECK: I`ve only got a couple of seconds left.

What`s the main thing, if you could tell parents, this is the main thing that you have to make sure your kids fight for, that they learn or they see, what would be the one piece of advice you would give to parents?

GEORGE: Always question why. When your professors put a proposition on the table, and I don`t care what it is, I don`t care whether it`s liberal or conservative, the spirit of liberal arts education is to ask why, what`s the reason?

The currency of academic discourse is arguments and reasons. If students will take those arguments and reasons to their professors, if they`ll demand accounts, reasons, explanations, arguments, they`re not going to be led astray by those professors. Those professors will be challenged to defend themselves. And that`s what students need to do.

BECK: I don`t want my kids learning what to think. I want them to learn how to think, how to ask questions.

GEORGE: That`s the job of the professor.

BECK: Thank you very much.

We`ll be back in just a minute.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BECK: Some have said that we`re turning into a nation of whiners. What does that mean? That we make too big of a deal out of everyday things and ignore the little itty bitty issues like trillions of dollars in mounting debt, for example.

Michael Phelps is getting his first whiff of this phenomenon since his eight gold medals and seven world records in Beijing, as health experts are now speaking out against the evil Phelps. Why? Because Michael Phelps is apparently in league with the devil himself. Yes, Tony the tiger. Phelps has signed a deal to appear on boxes of frosted flakes. Oh, the humanity!

A nutritionist from Mount Sinai Medical Center said she would rather see him promoting oatmeal. Well, maybe kids will eat oatmeal when you dump brown sugar and cinnamon on top. But then isn`t it the same as the sugary cereal? And I don`t know how many gold medals you have to win to make kids eat plain lousy oatmeal. It`s definitely more than eight.

The nutritionist was also quoted as saying she would not consider frosted flakes the food of an Olympian. What is the food of an Olympian? To be exact, three fried egg sandwiches with cheese, lettuce, tomato, fried onions and mayonnaise on top. Then a five-egg omelet, a bowl of grits, three slices of French toast with powdered sugar and a chocolate chip pancake. Not one, three. That`s what Phelps actually eats for breakfast every day. It seems to work for the champion.

If there`s any lesson to be learned here from the Phelpsian breakfast, it`s that exercise allows you to eat a whole lot of crap, you know, the stuff you like to eat. Think of this as a pro-exercise message. Of course, it`s also pro-parenting. Yeah. See, crazy idea.

It`s not really up to Kellogg`s to figure out what your kids should be eating. If General Mills is raising your children, well, then, you`re a lousy parent. That`s the problem, not the delicious frosting.

Despite what people like Michael Bloomberg think, all the trans-fat fast food, sugary cereal bans in the world are not going to stop kids from getting fat. That comes from parents who parent. Plus, if a talking tiger can`t get your kid to eat frosted flakes, then no one can.

Don`t forget. Tune in this Friday for a full hour special of "Life on Campus." If you`re a conservative looking to avoid the liberal line of fire on our universities, don`t miss this special. It is great; Friday night, 7:00 and 9:00.

From New York, good night, America.

I`m going to go eat a bunch of frosted flakes.

END