Far-Left Protestors Causing Problems

This is a rush transcript from "The O'Reilly Factor," November 2, 2007. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

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BILL O'REILLY, HOST:"Impact" segment tonight, as we mentioned, far-left protesters are roaming the country, causing all kinds of problems. And joining us now from Los Angeles, former Secret Service agent Ron Williams, who personally protected four presidents. And from Washington, Medea Benjamin, the co-founder of the anti-war group Code Pink.

The woman arrested for approaching Condoleezza Rice was from Code Pink. And you were arrested as well in that incident, weren't you, Ms. Benjamin? What happened?

MEDEA BENJAMIN, CODE PINK: Yes, Bill. I held up a peace sign like this. And it seems that that in America today is an arrestable offense.

O'REILLY: Were you in the room with Condoleezza Rice? Were you near this Desiree Fairooz? Were you in proximity to them?

BENJAMIN: Yes. I was sitting further back in the room.

O'REILLY: All right, so they took you into custody. And you spent how long in jail?

BENJAMIN: Well, I spent 30 hours in jail. And I have to go back and actually get a jury trial. So imagine all the waste of the government's resources.

O'REILLY: And you're getting charged with what? What are you being charged with?

BENJAMIN: Unlawful conduct.

O'REILLY: All right, now she is, this Desiree fairooz is charged with disorderly conduct, defacing government property, assault on a federal officer. She — these are felonies, I think.

BENJAMIN: No, these are misdemeanors.

O'REILLY: All misdemeanors.

BENJAMIN: Yes.

O'REILLY: If convicted, she could face 10 years in prison. Now.

BENJAMIN: That's not true.

O'REILLY: Well, that's what it says right here on the sheet. Maybe it's not, but the court date for her is December 5th. She could face up to 10 years in prison. That's what it says. Anyway.

BENJAMIN: No, they're misdemeanors.

O'REILLY: Anyway.

BENJAMIN: 180 days is the most.

O'REILLY: .do you believe that it was correct conduct for an American citizen to go up inches away from the Secretary of State's face with a bloody hand? Do you believe that was legitimate dissent?

BENJAMIN: I certainly do. I think it reflects the tremendous frustration we feel with the policies of Condoleezza Rice.

O'REILLY: But you would - so close, it was such a dangerous situation. Ms. Rice doesn't know who this woman is, doesn't know that she's Code Pink. I mean, this could have led to somebody getting seriously injured. And it could have been Ms. fairooz.

BENJAMIN: Well, I don't think so, Bill. In fact, Code Pink was written on Desiree's shirt. And if you looked at the face of Condoleezza Rice, you see that she was totally cool, did not feel threatened at all.

O'REILLY: She handled it well, but she was surprised. She was very surprised. And let me ask you.

BENJAMIN: Surprised, but not threatened.

O'REILLY: OK, but you think it's legitimate, Ms. Benjamin? Do you think what she did was legitimate?

BENJAMIN: Totally legitimate.

O'REILLY: OK, now Mr. Williams is a former Secret Service guy who supported - who actually protected four presidents. If you saw what Ms. Rice went through in a president, you could have harmed that woman, right? And it would have been certainly in your responsibility to do that?

RON WILLIAMS, FMR. SECRET SERVICE AGENT: Well, yes, that's true, Bill. I think that what Ms. fairooz did was absolutely, totally inappropriate, number one.

Number two, the charter of Code Pink back in 2002 indicates peaceful demonstrations against war. This is clearly a deviation from their original charter of assaultive type of behavior. That's number one.

Number two, one of the issues on the table is this kind of publicity that goes out when somebody comes up and gets — tries to assault the Secretary of State, one of our government officials like this, its spikes the threats of potential danger by marginal people who are mentally ill, who sit there and see that. And they want the publicity. They want to be that type of...

O'REILLY: All right, so what you're saying is that maybe Ms. Benjamin's intent to protest is OK, but the intensity of the protest that it just...

WILLIAMS: Well.

O'REILLY: ...drives other people to do terrible things? I think that we saw that in San Francisco with the nuts that went in on the Eucharist. And now we got a guy with a bomb on the steps.

WILLIAMS: Yes.

O'REILLY: And so what I think you're saying is absolutely correct.

WILLIAMS: I don't say that it's OK to protest in the manner in which Code Pink chose to protest. There are civil discourse ways to protest. If she wants to reference Martin Luther King's peaceful demonstration and the way he protested, he was very effective in advancing his cause. I think Code Pink has alienated law-abiding American citizens. And including me. I think it's ridiculous to think that they can come up with red paint and frighten and assault the Secretary of State in this country.

O'REILLY: OK. Now Medea.

WILLIAMS: That's not appropriate.

O'REILLY: What Mr. Williams is saying, I think, is reflected by the majority of Americans. Your group is not actually gaining support. They're gaining hatred. The people don't want this kind of — and let me point to Bill Maher and Bill Clinton and these people who are sympathetic to you, and who are now been shouted down. So I don't know where you think you're gaining here, Ms. Benjamin.

BENJAMIN: Well, Bill.

O'REILLY: Where are you gaining?

BENJAMIN: First of all, let's be clear. There was no assault. She showed corn syrup on her hands.

O'REILLY: Yes, but they didn't know that. She didn't know that.

BENJAMIN: She did not touch the Secretary of State. She did not bruise her. She did not cut her. Totally peaceful, non violent protest.

O'REILLY: Too close, too close, too close.

BENJAMIN: And let me say we are gaining lots of support, because we've had thousands of people after that action saying thank you, thank you, thank you. And I also want to be clear, Bill...

O'REILLY: Wow.

BENJAMIN: ...that if people like Clinton and — are against us, it's because we don't like the policies of the Democrats either. We want the Democrats to stand up. We want the Republicans..

O'REILLY: All right, I just don't - I don't think you're gaining.

BENJAMIN: .to stop funding this war.

O'REILLY: I understand what you want.

BENJAMIN: We represent, Bill, the majority of people in this country.

O'REILLY: I doubt it.

BENJAMIN: Well, we do.

O'REILLY: .I think that you're losing support. And I think that this kind of radicalism is not accepted by 95 percent of America.

BENJAMIN: Well.

O'REILLY: But anyway, maybe I'm wrong. Ms. Benjamin, Mr. Williams, thanks very much. We appreciate it.

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