By , ,
Published May 20, 2015
To watch "the memo" click here .
Hi, I'm Bill O'Reilly, reporting from Los Angeles. Thanks for watching us tonight.
Well, there he is, Mr. Courage, rich guy Kenneth Lay, taking the Fifth in front of Congress, hurting his country. The former Enron CEO is a disgrace, and a good example of how greed is to be confronted in America.
That's the subject of this evening's Talking Points memo.
If you have money, you have power. You can make your voice heard, and you can get away with all kinds of things. You can hire amoral lawyers who will manipulate the justice system, you can buy access to politicians, and you can abuse people who don't have as many assets as you do.
Kenneth Lay has done all of those things. But this time, he's not going to get away with it. His days of corrupt selfishness are coming to an end. Talking Points predicts he will go to jail.
But the real question is, will America learn anything from the Enron situation? Right now, Congress is deciding about campaign finance reform. The Shays-Meehan bill might well be unconstitutional because it does limit free speech in some political advertising. But the spirit of the law is just. Enron and other wealthy concerns have far too much access in Washington, access that you can't get.
It's all about money, of course. Right now, the government is considering $174 billion farm subsidy bill. That means you and I will be paying American farmers, some of whom are wealthy, like Ted Turner, big bucks to help them run their businesses. That money has been allegated because of people like Senators Leahy and Jeffords of Vermont, who stay in office by buying the votes of farmers and ranchers in their state.
Does the farm subsidy help you? That's just one example of thousands that illustrate an undeniable fact. Money influences how politicians vote. Wrong, wrong, wrong.
Talking Points will show no mercy to corrupt greed-heads like Kenneth Lay and venal politicians who take our money and spend it on dubious projects just to get themselves reelected. Put Lay in jail. Pass campaign finance reform.
That's the memo.
The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day
Time now for "The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day."
Convicted New York City mobster, Antonino Parlavecchio, is in trouble again. He's serving 14 years at Allenwood Federal Prison in Pennsylvania. And usually in cases like this, people smuggle things into the prison, but Mr. Parlavecchio has smuggled something out, sperm to his wife.
The case was broken when authorities arrested a prison guard who was bribed by Mr. Parlavecchio. And he told all. The sperm has now been confiscated by federal authorities. And that's pretty much all we need to know about this ridiculous story.
— You can watch Bill O'Reilly's Talking Points and "Most Ridiculous Item" weeknights at 8 & 11p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com
https://www.foxnews.com/story/confronting-greed-in-america