The Inside Story on Trump's GOP Debate

Business mogul and author of the new book 'Time To Get Tough' talks tough stance on China and his upcoming GOP debate

This is a RUSH transcript from "The O'Reilly Factor," December 12, 2011. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

Watch "The O'Reilly Factor" weeknights at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. ET!

BILL O'REILLY, HOST: "Personal Story Segment" tonight, our pal Donald Trump has a new book out called "Time to Get Tough: Making America Number One Again". In that book, Mr. Trump wants the USA to kick some serious butt all over the place.

He joins us now from his lavish offices in New York City. All right? So who should we kick first and hardest? Who should we really go after?

DONALD TRUMP, AUTHOR, "TIME TO GET TOUGH": Bill, we have to take care of our country from the inside and we have to fight the people from the outside. If you look at what other countries are doing to us, it's an absolute outrage. Whether it's India or China or the OPEC nations or many, many others, South Korea; everybody is beating us and they are sapping our wealth, they are taking away our wealth. We are not going to be able to afford to do anything.

And then from the inside we are not cutting costs. This isn't about taxes. This is about cutting costs. They set up a super committee because we have no leadership in Obama -- like I mean zero leadership in Obama. They put a super committee and they fail and instead of talking about $4 trillion or $5 trillion, they are talking about 1.2 trillion and even that they can't solve.

So, I talked about it in the book. The book is doing great. You asked me to be on this show. I didn't ask to be on this show.

O'REILLY: Oh, you're always welcome on this show. You have got to lighten up, man. You have got to get a sense of humor.

TRUMP: Ok, Bill, I only say that because you are my friend. Is it ok that Barbara chose me to be one of her top ten?

O'REILLY: I mentioned that too, in the lead. You know what; Barbara choosing you as one of her top 10 most fascinating people totally destroys her credibility. That whole list is nothing now because you are on it.

TRUMP: I know. I was thinking -- I actually told her that. I know, I told her that.

O'REILLY: Trump, you're the most sensitive guy in the world. You want to kick somebody's butt but somebody makes fun of you and you are all over the place. Come on. You dish it out. You have to take it.

TRUMP: Ok. Fine. I don't think I'm that sensitive.

O'REILLY: You are sensitive, all right? Come on. How long have you known me? 35 years?

TRUMP: Too long. Too long.

O'REILLY: I know, it is too long. And look how you are aging.

Now if you were elected president, Trump, you would have to kick somebody's butt first. You can't kick all their butts at once. Who is the biggest offender? The biggest target, the person that really ticks you off the most? Who is it?

TRUMP: Well, what you would have to do is meet with the politicians, the Republicans and Democrats and start cutting costs but what I would do is meet with China. I would say.

O'REILLY: China number one. China number one.

TRUMP: I would say China number one. I would say OPEC probably number two. The OPEC nations. What they are doing with oil is unbelievable; over $100 a barrel in a bad economy. They monopolize what they are doing with oil. It's absolutely -- anywhere else it would be illegal.

O'REILLY: On the Chinese premier, ok? The guy you didn't want to go to the White House by the way and I'm still steamed at you for making fun at me when I got a White House dinner. I'm still mad.

All right. So you're here in your lavish New York studio and I'm in Beijing, all right? And you come in and you say to me, hey, you have to knock it off with the currency. You have got to do a quid pro quo on the import, exports. You have got to be fair in trade.

You know what I say to you? We are holding about $2 trillion in debt -- Chinese. If you give me a hard time, Trump, I'm going to sell it all. I'm going to flood the market. I'm going to bankrupt you right now. That's what I'm saying to you. And you say what?

TRUMP: We have all of the power. All of the chips are on our side. The trillion, it's actually $1.1 trillion that they have, forget it, that's peanuts compared to the overall economy. Now, what I would say very strongly, you don't start behaving, 25 percent tax on every item you sell in this country. 25 percent right now. By the way, based on what they are doing, it should be 41 percent.

O'REILLY: You're going to put Walmart out of business right there.

TRUMP: No, no. It went put anybody out of business. It will put China out of business. We have all the cards and chips. If that ever happened, they would have a depression the likes of which you have never seen. They cannot play that game. We can.

O'REILLY: All right. That's a good point. But people got hurt in the United States if that tariff went on. Ok. Let's put you --

TRUMP: Very little. And you know what else would happen, Bill? We would start producing our own products.

O'REILLY: Hopefully. But manufacturing here is gone because the labor costs are so cheap in China.

TRUMP: Yes. Because it goes to China.

O'REILLY: They don't pay them any money over there. That's what happens.

TRUMP: Excuse me. It goes because they manipulate their currency. Bill, it's going to China and other places and instead of having it in Alabama and Iowa and lots of good places in this country we are sending it overseas. It's horrible.

O'REILLY: I know that but they can make things cheaper because they don't pay their people anything. There are no unions over there.

TRUMP: That's not really the reason but that's ok.

O'REILLY: The debate -- ok. Newt Gingrich is showing up and Santorum is showing up. Are you going to show up to this debate? Is it going to happen?

TRUMP: I am going to show up. And maybe we will just have a chat. We might just discuss the world and we will discuss it with ourselves. I have a lot of respect for Newt because he came in and he said, you know what? I will do it immediately. He said immediately.

I must say I'm disappointed in Mitt Romney because he has been up to Trump Tower. We have great relationship. I think he is a nice guy. I was shocked he didn't do the debate because I think he should.

O'REILLY: Maybe he's just tired -- there's been 3,200 debates. He just might be sick of it. I don't think it's about you, do you?

TRUMP: You can't be tired at this point because you're coming down to the end of the line. This isn't the time to be tired. And frankly he really should have done this debate. I think it would have tremendous viewing.

But what I would say maybe we will just do a chat. Newt and I will talk about what has to be done.

O'REILLY: And you are going to ignore Santorum? You're going to just say get out of there?

TRUMP: No. He will be there. You know what?

O'REILLY: He'll be there.

TRUMP: He is not doing great in the polls -- let's put it this way -- but he did accept.

O'REILLY: No, but he's nice enough to show up. You have to ask him a few questions.

TRUMP: He did. You're right. And he has been very nice and very gracious and I would absolutely have him there.

O'REILLY: Buy Trump's book "Time to Get Tough". Anything else you want to say Don? Are you still a little sensitive? Or are we ok? Are we all right?

TRUMP: No, no, no. But I love. You know what; I love you when you're factual. And when you asked me to -- you know, you asked me to be in the program. I asked. And other than that, I love you, Bill.

O'REILLY: All right.

Content and Programming Copyright 2011 Fox News Network, Inc. Copyright 2011 Roll Call, Inc. All materials herein are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Roll Call. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content.