Hannity, Glick Debate Socialism

This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," May 1, 2009. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: Socialism 102. It's not the name of a college class that Larry Summers probably slept through. It is what is happening in this country, thanks to this administration and its first 102 days in office. Reckless spending, crippling deficits and bailouts that never seem to end. It's not a pretty picture. And who better to discuss all of this than FOX's own Alexis Glick.

How are you, good to see you.

ALEXIS GLICK, FOX BUSINESS NETWORK: It's wonderful to see — oh, am I getting the handshake before you beat me up?

HANNITY: I've never beaten you up. What does that mean? We've had ongoing battles.

GLICK: We've had very important conversations together.

• Video: Watch Sean's interview

HANNITY: All right. So now this week has been the first 100 days of Barack Obama. Early on, before he became president, I asked you a question. You're laughing. You're not allowed to laugh at my question. It didn't come out yet.

GLICK: I just want to make you blush before you say what I said, which is I did give him an A report card.

HANNITY: On the economy.

GLICK: On the economic team that he put together that was about 10 days after he met with his economic advisors and was elected.

HANNITY: Was Lawrence Summers awake or was he sleeping at the time? Did Tim Geithner actually pay his taxes since then?

GLICK: Wait a second. At the time we also thought we were going to see a lot more of Paul Volcker. And that's probably my biggest disappointment. We're not seeing a lot of Paul Volcker and he's one of the best Fed chairmen. So that's a disappointment. But on the Lawrence Summers and the Geithner front, yes, the jury is still out. But look at the market in the 100 days. Yes, we went to 12-year lows in early March, but we have re-climbed back to where we were before he was inaugurated.

HANNITY: The market doesn't mean anything to me — you're the first people to tell people don't look at the market unless you're in it for five or 10 years, right?

GLICK: OK, yes.

HANNITY: So we're not looking at the market. But this is the indicator that I'm looking at. The Congressional Budget Office says we're going to have $10 trillion in debt, we're stealing from our kids and grandkids, he's put ago huge down payment on nationalized health care, and we're going to be paying in 10 years, last point, I promise, $806 billion a year on interest alone if interest rates stay low.

GLICK: OK, listen. Bottom line is I have been a supporter of the president and a supporter of the economic team. Has my attitude changed because I'm really fearful of so much government intervention, so many trillions of dollars being thrown at the situation? Absolutely. Have I sort of recoiled on some of that? Yes. On the other hand, you cannot sit here and argue with me that he has not...

HANNITY: I can't, how could I? How could I possibly?

GLICK: ... accomplished a lot in the first 100 days.

HANNITY: That's the point. All right, you're right. I'm going to concede the point. I'm conceding the point.

GLICK: Oh. Go back to him. This is...

HANNITY: He has accomplished something that I never thought any American president would accomplish. He's literally taken us away from a capitalist economy to socialism.

GLICK: Let's not talk about socialism. Let's not talk socialism tonight. Let's talk about the economy.

HANNITY: Is this now a government takeover? Are we moving from the private economy to the...

GLICK: There is way too much government intervention. The free capital markets are not flowing. Yes, in exogenous cases the government has to step in and do things. The thing that scares me the most is that what we have in this country is overcapacity. In every area of this country. We have too many health care companies. We have too many homebuilders. We have too many people who have owned homes. So what we have to do is we have to see failure and mergers occur.

HANNITY: No, no, no. You're saying...

GLICK: You want to support all the financial institutions?

HANNITY: You're saying the American economy is zero gain. I'm saying there's no limit to the growth. We've never had this attitude, oh, there's too many of these companies, to many of this. The capitalist free market system will sort all of that out.

GLICK: I agree with you on that, but we're not allowing that to happen.

HANNITY: The reason is because there's too much government intervention.

GLICK: I agree with you on that.

HANNITY: And the government is taking too much on the economy. So you go from an A to an F, like I do.

GLICK: I'm still in the — I'm not in the F category.

HANNITY: A D?

GLICK: I would give it a C plus, B minus, because — wait a second. You said this is the long haul, right?

HANNITY: Yeah.

GLICK: So for 100 days, we need to now look at the next 100 days. You haven't factored any part of the stimulus package working its way into the system yet. Stress tests ...

HANNITY: I agree. I agree, short term success. I agree when you spend this amount of money — and CBO agrees with me, the Congressional Budget Office. The problem is, I used to be a builder. We're setting a foundation, and the foundation is on sand, and the sand is this belief that the government can solve all our economic problems. Here's the other part of the problem. You didn't address these numbers I'm throwing at you. $10 trillion, trillion, trillion dollars in debt, $806 billion billion billion on the interest debt alone. That's quadrupling our national debt.

This is where I say long-term socialism fails. Socialism is unsustainable. $634 billion for nationalized health care. Unsustainable. And now we're creating a new government entitlement that America is never going to be able to pay for. And so long term, are we setting ourselves up with the socialist economy for a disaster? That's my last question.

GLICK: I'm not on the socialist bandwagon, but I love you. But I do agree that this is going to be — see, they went back to you that time. But I do agree with you, this is unsustainable and we're not going to be able to pay for it. And the thing we've got to watch right now is...

HANNITY: Well, you gave him a C plus and it's unsustainable.

GLICK: But the — I think a lot of what you do when you're a new president, just like President Clinton in your first year in office is you promise that you're going to do X, Y and Z. You promise the world you're going to do 15 things. He's not going to be able to do all those things.

HANNITY: But he's spending the money. The money is going to be gone.

GLICK: Everything has not passed yet.

HANNITY: That bill is passing. We don't have any Republicans there. Arlen Specter left the party this week.

GLICK: So what's going to happen in mid-term elections?

HANNITY: I'm going to lead the revolution and there's going to be a peaceful transition of power.

GLICK: It's such a pleasure seeing you.

HANNITY: I love when our guest closes the segment. Alexis, thank very much.

GLICK: Thank you.

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