The Truth Comes Out...

To watch "The Memo" click here.

Hi, I'm Bill O'Reilly.  Thank you for watching us tonight.

Not always but many times, the truth does come out.  That is the subject of this evening's Talking Points Memo.

You may remember our report a few weeks ago about the daughters of Pat Roush, American citizens that had been held by their father in Saudi Arabia for almost two decades.  By putting pressure on the kingdom, we were able to interview the women in London along with the Associated Press.  The women also were interviewed by a U.S. State Department official alone.

Our assessment of the story was the women were brainwashed and this was based on their favorable comments about Usama bin Laden.  Well, The Wall Street Journal, among others, attacked us, accusing us of colluding with the Saudis, among other stupid things.

Last night [Sunday, September 29] 60 Minutes did another story on other American women being held in Saudi Arabia.  Like us, they interviewed Congressman Dan Burton, who's deeply involved in trying to win freedom for the women.  But while Mr. Burton's tone was skeptical of the brainwashing assessment with us, it had changed a little bit last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

O'REILLY:  We wanted to show the American people that even given the chance to come to America, given that they're not going to take it because they are brainwashed.

REP. DAN BURTON (R), INDIANA:  Well, now, I think that may be true and it may not be.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, 60 MINUTES, CBS)

BURTON:  Many of them over a period of time are either so terrified or so brainwashed that they don't know what to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

That's exactly what we said.  Talking Points once again stands behind our original story.  The Roush women, the evidence shows, are brainwashed and not likely to ever leave Saudi Arabia.  And some of the other American women over there are probably in the same boat, especially if they were kidnapped as little girls, as the Roush women were.

Reality is harsh and so is this story.  We completely understand and sympathize with the heartbreak Mrs. Roush is experiencing and regret that we had to bring her bad news.  We were hoping her daughters would take advantage of the worldwide spotlight and at least express a desire to visit their mom.  If that had happened, Saudi Arabia would have been in a very bad place.  We would have put enormous pressure on them.

But it didn't happen.  And it is our duty to report the truth.  We believe Congressman Burton knows what is really going on, and we hope The Wall Street Journal, which we respect, will rethink its position.

And that's The Memo.

The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day

Time now for "The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day."

Now we don't want to be mean, but things are getting a little tense over at our competitor, MSNBC.  TV Guide has an article this week saying that there are big ratings problems over there.

And, according to U.S. News & World Report, Chris Matthews said this about Phil Donahue.  Ready.  "He focuses too much on what's wrong with America.  If Donahue stays on the air, he could bring down the network."

Wow!  Now we don't believe everything we read, but things may be getting a little ridiculous at MSNBC.

You know, if Colmes [Hannity & Colmes co-anchor, Alan Colmes]ever said that about me...

— 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