This is a RUSH transcript from "The O'Reilly Factor," October 28, 2010. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
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BILL O'REILLY, HOST: In the "Impact" segment tonight: Did you know that far-left bomb-thrower George Soros has visited the White House at least four times. For a guy identified with the radical left, that's kind of interesting.
Yesterday, the president actually met with five far-left Internet people at the White House, folks who have said extremely hateful things. For example, blogger Oliver Willis, who works for Media Matters, said on Ash Wednesday that "Religion, you are weird." That's a quote on Ash Wednesday. And then there is Barbara Morrill from the Daily Kos, who recently called Senator John McCain a nut job and formerly sane.
So the question is: Why would the president of the United States be associated with people like these? Joining us now from San Francisco, appropriately enough, Fox News analyst Joe Trippi.
Look, I'm not trying to gotcha on the president. I don't want the audience to think I'm trying to gotcha. It concerns me. So on the Stewart thing, we just heard Stewart call the president dude. I don't know if that's helpful. Is it?
JOE TRIPPI, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: It's helpful with a lot of young people who watch that show and who are among the people who work out there and go door to door and do things like that on Election Day. They did that for the president in 2008 and, frankly, are a little disappointed with him and needed to be re-energized. So I understand exactly why he went on that show.
O'REILLY: I know, but he needs the middle of the country to really come back to him and I don't -- I would say that traditional people, traditional independents, I don't know. But, far more serious -- go ahead.
TRIPPI: But, Bill, what I would say is, look, if you are -- if you have decided based on Obama's record that you are not going to be for Democrats this cycle -- and there is a lot of people who have decided that -- then he is not going to get them back in the last five days.
O'REILLY: He needs them in '12 and he needs to regain some kind of stature.
TRIPPI: He will need them in 2012 and my guess is they will go to work as soon as this election is over.
O'REILLY: OK, I think you are right about that, but here is what concerns me. I mean, look, George Soros is a very far-left guy. I mean, a committed guy to changing the whole system in America: economic system, social system. He has got big money behind legalization of marijuana in California. He just kicked $1.8 million into NPR. The guy's tentacles are everywhere. He is in the White House four times? You know…
TRIPPI: He also has some views on economics and the world, you know, the world global economy where he has done quite well in. And at least the White House is…
O'REILLY: Does that count the felony conviction that he had in France for manipulating the market over there? Look, George Soros is a dubious character.
TRIPPI: Well, then we can get into Jack Abramoff visiting the Bush White House.
O'REILLY: You can get into whatever you want, but I want to hold firm with four visits by George Soros, convicted felon, who is a far-left radical and that troubles me as an American citizen, not as a commentator on Fox News. I'm saying what is this guy doing in the White House? It doesn't help Barack Obama to be associated with him.
TRIPPI: And what I would say, Bill, is that Barack Obama, this White House is putting out exactly who they are meeting with, unlike the Bush White House.
O'REILLY: And that's a good point, but they are meeting with some dubious people.
TRIPPI: They had to be forced to tell us that Jack Abramoff…
O'REILLY: You're doing what a lot of people do. You are deflecting from my very simple question into something else. Let's stay with the current president and George Soros.
TRIPPI: Yes.
O'REILLY: Is it a wise thing for the president to be associated with this man?
TRIPPI: I think George Soros has views on the economy and other reasons that there would be reasons to meet with him, yes.
O'REILLY: OK.
TRIPPI: And I don't think it's shocking to anybody.
O'REILLY: How about the anti-religion bloggers and the people who call people like John McCain nut jobs. These people are given audience in the White House?
TRIPPI: Well, I mean, look, I think these bloggers are, again, the same thing, they are a media outlet to talk to activists out there that go out and work and go door to door.
O'REILLY: If you can reach an audience you want to reach then there's no standard at all. You just bring in anybody you want. If a Republican was doing that, I would be troubled.
TRIPPI: But, Bill, these aren't people that the president necessarily agrees with at all.
O'REILLY: He's sitting there for 45 minutes with these five people. If you look at what they have done, I mean, come on.
TRIPPI: No, but what I'm saying is he doesn't -- he sits down with a interview with you; he doesn't agree with you on it.
O'REILLY: Yes, but I'm kind of a mainstream guy at this point. Even Jon Stewart admits that.
TRIPPI: This is -- unfortunately or fortunately the new world is, you know, new media. The Internet blogs are a fixture of American politics and these are people who they hammered him on some of his positions.
O'REILLY: I know, but they are vicious, vicious people, you know? Vicious.
TRIPPI: The blogosphere is a place where people tend to vent, tend to overstate things. I'm not going to defend -- some of these bloggers wouldn't defend all the comments on their blogs.
O'REILLY: They traffic in this stuff. I don't know. All right, we appreciate your point of view. Thanks for coming on.
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