Donald Trump says America has to be 'less predictable'
Presidential candidate fires back at rivals and explains why he wrote his new book on 'Hannity'
This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," November 3, 2015. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
SEAN HANNITY, HOST: And welcome to "Hannity." Tonight, we've got brand-new GOP presidential poll numbers. Dr. Carson pulled ahead of Donald Trump in a new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll, 29 to 23 percent. They're followed by Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Jeb Bush. But in a brand-new Reuters poll today, Trump has a commanding lead with 31 percent of the vote versus Carson's 18 percent.
Now, that same poll also shows that Trump is the most trusted candidate on two key issues, the economy and dealing with foreign leaders.
Here with reaction, author of the brand-new book, "Crippled America: How to Make America Great Again," 2016 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is with us. Sir, how are you?
DONALD TRUMP, R-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Hi, Sean.
HANNITY: you know, I know we have a lot of polls out there. You're leading by 13 points in one, Carson in another by 6. I notice you're up by 20 in Florida. You're beating Hillary in Florida. You're up in Georgia by a lot, New Hampshire by a lot, South Carolina by a lot. What do you make of all this?
TRUMP: Well, I think, overall, we're just doing well. The one poll was a little bit negative, the Wall Street Journal poll, which I understand The Wall Street Journal's always negative, as far as I'm concerned. The Reuters poll I think was terrific, and I know it's very professionally done. They do an amazing job. And I would go with that poll every day.
And I think that we're up with just about every poll nationally. ABC/Washington Post was really strong. But maybe most importantly, we're up now in Iowa. The last two polls that came out, we're up in Iowa. And we had a little bit negative last week, and now we're up again in Iowa.
So I'm very happy because I went there twice last week. In New Hampshire, we're way up. I mean, in just about every -- Florida, we're way up. South Carolina, we're way, way up. I mean, that one is really up. And it's been great. You know, in Florida, if you look, I'm higher than Bush and Rubio put together.
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: I only...
HANNITY: Yes. You have a 20-point lead. You're beating Hillary there. You're winning in Georgia. You're winning in South Carolina, a big lead in New Hampshire.
Let me ask you about Iowa. The GOP establishment has telegraphed what they're planning to do to you, and that's spend a lot of money in negative ads. I understand the Club for Growth has been up there with negative ads questioning your conservatism. Do you think that played a part in what happened last week with the polls for Iowa?
TRUMP: I really don't know. I mean, Club for Growth -- they came up to my office. They asked me for $1 million. I said, No, thank you. I mean, I -- you know, I want to be, like, an intelligent person. I said, No, thank you, and then they started going negative. Had I given to them, I guarantee you they would have loved me. But they came up, they asked for a million dollars, and then they go negative.
I think people are wise to it. I don't think that has an impact. But look, anybody that who hits me, we're going to hit 10 times harder. So if, as an example, Bush or Rubio or any of them come out, we're going to just - - dollar for dollar, we're going to go after them. We have more money than anybody else by a factor of about a thousand. So we'll go after them the same way.
Actually, we're going to start some ads, I think, over the next two days, and certainly, in Iowa, we're going to start ads, and in New Hampshire and I think in South Carolina, too. So we're going to start advertising a little bit because so far, I was going to have spent $25 million by this time. I've spent nothing. I feel guilty because I've spent nothing because we haven't needed it. But we're going to start spending a little bit of money over the next three or four weeks.
HANNITY: Is your strategy, Mr. Trump -- is it going to be if they hit you with ads, and they're willing to spend tens of millions of dollars -- are you saying that you will respond with at least an equal amount of money, if not more?
TRUMP: Yes, we're going to respond. And so far, they have not hit me, and I'd rather have that from the standpoint that I think it's better for them. I think it's better for me. I think it's better for everybody.
If they hit me, though, I will hit them at least as hard and maybe double and triple as hard. So we'll see. But so far, they haven't. And I think really what the Republicans have to do is speak positively, not negatively. I think the negative ads are going to hurt the Republicans much more so than it's going to hurt me. I really believe it's going to be bad for a lot of people.
HANNITY: Earlier today, you called for Jeb Bush to get out of the race. You have been particularly hard on him. Why do you think he should get out?
TRUMP: Well, I think I've been equally hard on Rubio. I think Rubio doesn't have it. If you look at his stance on immigration, he's very well. He was a member of the gang of eight, number one, and he wants essentially open borders. If you look at Rubio, he wants open borders. That's why I don't understand why he's doing as well as he's doing, which isn't that well, frankly. But he wants open borders, very weak on illegal immigration. He's totally pro-amnesty. And I think that Rubio is an overrated guy. I think I've hit him just as hard as Jeb.
Now, Jeb has just not materialized. You know, everyone thought, Oh, well, maybe he'd some day lead, but he is certainly not leading. He's dropping like a rock. And I really think that some -- I think Walker was very smart. He got out. Governor Walker got out of the race. He could have languished. He could have gone along for a long period of time, Sean, and you know, nothing would have happened. I don't think anything's going to happen positively for Jeb, and I think Rubio is overrated.
HANNITY: What about Dr. Carson? What do you make of him? He's become the person most competitive to you. What do you make of that? How do you interpret that? He's kind of soft-spoken. If anything, he's the anti-Trump. You know, you're very outspoken. You're very passionate. You fight hard. He's very soft-spoken, kind of the opposite of your personality. What do you make of his success up to this point?
TRUMP: We need a very strong, high-energy person to make new trade deals, to change things around the way this country is going. We are languishing. We are going down, Sean. I mean, I can't say it any stronger than that. We're going down. You look at what's happening, $19 trillion in debt, and all of the problems we have -- ISIS -- we can't beat ISIS. We can't win anything.
We don't win anymore. You know, we're a country that can't win anymore. We don't win anything! We don't win trade deals. We don't win militarily. We don't win any way. You look at the deal we made with Iran, where we give them $150 billion and we get nothing. We lost everything. We don't even get our prisoners back. Now they want to negotiate and they want 19 to 1. They want 19 prisoners, and maybe they'll give us some of them back. And they also announced that, We want other things besides that.
I mean, we are so laughed at throughout the world. And you can't have a low-energy person. Now, Dr. Carson is lower-energy than Jeb Bush. And I like him a lot, but he's not for dealing. He's not for making deals. The Chinese, I deal with them all the time. I have them as tenants. They buy apartments. I deal with them all the time. I made a great deal with them in the Bank of America building in San Francisco. I deal with them all the time.
They are ferocious people in terms of negotiating. They are ferocious, just like Iran, the Persians are great negotiators. We need the right people. I want to turn around the trade deals. I'm bringing in the best people in the world. I have to -- Carl Icahn and some of the greatest people in the world. We're going to turn it around.
HANNITY: You know...
TRUMP: But you know, Ben Carson can't do that. It's not his thing. He has no chance. And we have to do it. We have to make our country rich again before we can make it great again.
HANNITY: You know, Mr. Trump, I have been saying this. It is really a scary time when 95 million Americans out of the labor force, millions more in poverty and on food stamps, 50 million in poverty, 46 million on food stamps, median income down $5,000. This president will accumulate more debt than every other president before him combined.
You know, I was looking at your new book today, and my first impression -- because you -- I've interviewed you enough. I've asked you specifics about ISIS and Putin and foreign policy. I've asked you about health care. You told me health care savings accounts. I've asked you about choice in education and the economy and the 2nd Amendment.
All these questions I've asked you -- I got the impression -- and here's your new book -- that you wrote this book to answer people who have criticized you saying you're not specific because you lay out a lot of the things that you've been telling me in the interviews we've had together, where you get very specific.
Is this book in response to that criticism that you don't get specific, and this is your plan for the country?
TRUMP: I think it's really not, Sean. I think this. Our country maybe is too specific. We send 50 soldiers over to Syria, and we make an announcement, a presidential announcement that we are sending 50 soldiers. Those soldiers now are being sought after by the enemy. They're being targeted by the enemy. They know they're coming. We shouldn't be announcing that we're doing this. We should be less predictable. We're so predictable.
When President Obama announced that we're leaving Iraq -- we should have never been in Iraq, and I said that for many, many years. We should have never been in Iraq. But when he announced that we're leaving and a date -- we are going to leave by this date -- the enemy just sat back and waited until we left, and you see what's happened since then. It's a disaster. Iran is taking over Iraq. ISIS developed. All of this developed because of a certain guaranteed date.
Now, for him to have said that was a disgrace. When he said it, I couldn't believe it. But how about these 50 soldiers, these great soldiers -- and these are...
HANNITY: It's insane!
TRUMP: ... the top of the line -- these people go over there...
HANNITY: It's insane!
TRUMP: ... and he announces to the world that we're sending 50 young people over there -- I think it is absolutely disgraceful that he's doing that. And he's putting them at such risk. Now, so just let me -- I want to be much less -- this country has to be less predictable. We're totally predictable. He announces whatever we do. We're going to attack here, we're going to do that.
General Douglas MacArthur, General George Patton -- they wouldn't be talking to you and they wouldn't be talking to other people. They would be doing their job. They're not talking to the press. You know, they shoot first and they talk later. For us to be doing what we're doing as a country is absolutely insane!
Now, let me just -- just to finish, I wrote a book in 2000. I said that Usama bin Laden will come back into the United States. When one of your competitors heard that I said that in a book that was written a couple of years before the World Trade Center came down and that I had Usama bin Laden, that commentator, who's very respected even by you, said, Whoa, Trump wrote that Usama bin Laden -- it was called "The America We Deserve" -- that Usama bin Laden is coming back into the country, I can't believe he knew this!
I know a lot! I mean, I think -- you know, in a lot of the polls, I've gotten the highest marks on military and protection and nuclear, and by the way, by far the highest on the economy. I'm up in the 70s on the economy, in fact, so high that you'd almost say, Why do we even have to waste our time with doing what we're doing?
So no, I wrote this book because I wanted to say -- it's a tough title, "Crippled America," and it's a tough picture. It's the worst picture I've ever taken. It's, you know, a mean picture.
We need strength now. We don't need Ben Carson. He's a wonderful man. I like him a lot. But we don't need somebody that doesn't make a deal. He's never employed anybody, maybe a nurse. But I've employed tens of thousands of people. And I've employed, by the way, many thousands right now of Hispanics. They're incredible people.
But I've employed tens of thousands of people, made great deals. That's what we need right now in this country. We don't need low-energy, low-key people.
HANNITY: We'll take a break. We'll have more with Donald Trump right after this break -- the debate over debates and a preview on his appearance on "SNL."
Also tonight...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: And then it turns out they can't handle a bunch of CNBC moderators at a debate!
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Really? The most sensitive person of all time actually attacking Republican candidates about the questions that were unfair at the CNBC debate? Well, Donald Trump will respond.
Then later tonight, the one and only Mark Steyn. He'll weigh in on the GOP field and the latest polls.
Also, Geraldo and Sheriff David Clarke -- they'll square off over race relations, the comments of the president today and gun control as "Hannity" continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(NEWSBREAK)
HANNITY: Welcome back to "Hannity." So the president is now viciously mocking the 2016 Republican presidential candidates for complaining about the unfair moderators at the CNBC debate. Here's what he said last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: Have you noticed that every one of these candidates say, you know, Obama's weak. He's -- you know, people -- Putin's kicking sand in his face. When I talk to Putin...
(LAUGHTER)
OBAMA: ... he's going to straighten out.
(LAUGHTER)
OBAMA: Just looking at him, I mean, he's going to be...
(LAUGHTER)
OBAMA: And then it turns out they can't handle a bunch of CNBC moderators at a debate!
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: All right, back with reaction, the author of the brand-new book, "Crippled America: How to Make America Great Again," 2016 GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump.
I have never in my life witnessed a more whiny human being than this president! He whines about FOX News. He whines about talk radio. And it's embarrassing that Assad and Putin and the mullahs are kicking sand in our face! And I don't really think that's funny, especially giving the Iranians nuclear weapons.
But I wanted to get your take on it. To me, it wasn't that funny, considering the bad state of affairs he's created.
TRUMP: Well, it's very simple. First of all, the Republican candidates -- we almost bonded that day more than any other day. I mean, it was sort of amazing. We all almost came together because John Harwood was a disaster. I mean, he was so terrible, he probably ruined his career.
And I thought Becky and I thought Carl were absolutely fine, but I thought Harwood was terrible.
And you know, we -- there was no -- there's no anything there. We just bonded. And I think, frankly, they were the ones that looked bad, not the candidates. In fact, I got very high poll numbers from the debate. They were very complimentary towards me, and some other people in the debate.
But our president, you know, is talking about this. He's been a terrible president. Everything he does is wrong. The Iran deal is wrong. "Obama care" is wrong. The military is wrong. We can't do anything right! We're like the gang that couldn't shoot straight. We can't do anything right!
We bomb a hospital. Nobody knows what happened. Everything we do is wrong. It just doesn't work. The country's not working anymore. We're $19 trillion -- the country doesn't work anymore. But he's sort of OK, and I would say not great at, you know, delivering little quips like that.
HANNITY: Yes. Well, let me ask you then...
TRUMP: He was a great divider -- he, Sean, a great divider. I really thought the one thing he would be a cheerleader for the country. I didn't know. Maybe he doesn't have the experience, he probably wouldn't be -- who knows. But he's turned out to be an unbelievable divider, and even comments like that are very divisive comments. But the bottom line, he's been a terrible president!
HANNITY: Yes. You have said you were not going to do the CNBC (sic) I guess Universal (sic) debate that they had planned, that you will negotiate directly with the TV networks on debates. Where do you stand now as it relates to debates, moderators going forward? What is Donald Trump's plan?
TRUMP: Well, honestly, I don't even know why that was even said because I don't care. I mean, they give me a podium. They've asked me some very negative questions, including your Megyn. They've asked me very, very disgraceful questions, frankly. And last time with Harwood, the same thing happened. They were inappropriate questions.
And I take them and I do them and I do whatever I have to do, and it comes out just fine. So I don't really care. I like the idea of debates. I've done well in the debates, according to everybody, and according to the polls, I've led every debate, number one in every debate, which you know, and I couldn't say it unless I did. Even CNBC said the last debate, it was their debate, they said I won the debate.
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: So I like the debates...
HANNITY: Let me ask a very important question.
TRUMP: I like -- no, but I like the debates. I don't really care that much, I'll be honest. This is more of an issue for other people.
I do say this. The networks are making a fortune with the debates. I think they should give money to the wounded warriors and to the veterans. They are making a fortune.
HANNITY: I agree with that.
TRUMP: They used to have 2 million people watching. Now they're having 24 and 25 million people watching, even though it is because of Trump, but I won't say that.
HANNITY: Let me...
TRUMP: But they have 24, 25 million people watching, they should give some of the money to the wounded warriors and to the veterans.
HANNITY: Let's say you become president. Let's talk about the first 100 days. What would you do specifically on the economy? What would you do on health care, the borders? What would you do about Putin and this horrible Iranian deal? Walk me through those 100 days, how fast you think you could act and get on that path, as you say, to make America great?
TRUMP: Well, I'd do a lot of things very quickly. One good thing about executive orders is that the new president can go in and sign a new executive order and knock it out immediately. We can counter it immediately. And you don't have to go through Congress, you know? So his horrible order that he signed on illegal immigration, where people are just flowing into the country, horribly, without any checks or balances -- we don't even know who's coming in -- that would be ended immediately.
I would work immediately on "Obama care" repeal and replace, and we would do something terrific there. I would immediately get Carl Icahn and the greatest geniuses of negotiating, and we would work on Japan and China and Mexico because they're taking our job, and I want to bring our jobs back.
I'll save Social Security. I'll save Medicare. Ben Carson wants to get rid of Medicare. You can't get rid of Medicare. You know, Medicare's a program that works. There's fraud, there's abuse, there's waste, but you don't get rid of Medicare. You can't do that. People love Medicare. And it's unfair to them.
I'm going to fix it and make it better, but I'm not going to cut it. I will get rid of the fraud, the waste, the abuse, all of the problems, but we will have Medicare. When Carson wants to get rid of it, that's a disaster.
You look at Rubio at the border. If I'm not in -- you know, all of these people, including Ben Carson, are very, very weak on illegal immigration...
HANNITY: Listen, I...
TRUMP: And they're all for amnesty.
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: We better secure our border.
TRUMP: And I will tell you there's nobody that has my attitude on creating the border. And I will build a wall, and Mexico will pay for the wall. Sean, they're going to pay for it because they're making a fortune. We give them billions of dollars. People don't know this. We give them billions of dollars, and we have a trade imbalance with Mexico, $45 billion a year!
HANNITY: All right, we...
TRUMP: A wall is peanuts. No politician is going to make them do that, but I will.
HANNITY: "Saturday Night Live" -- you excited?
TRUMP: And that's just a few of the things.
HANNITY: How's...
TRUMP: Yes, I am...
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: Have you looked at what is going to happen?
TRUMP: Well, right after I finish with you, I'm going over to see Lorne Michaels and the people at "Saturday Night Live," and we're going to start working on it. And we had fun. I did it 11 years ago. "The Apprentice" was number one, and they asked me to do it. I did it 11 yeas ago. So here we are 11 years later for a different reason, I guess, I'm doing it this time. But it'll be a lot of fun.
HANNITY: All right, Mr. Trump, as always, thank you for your time. We appreciate it.
TRUMP: Thank you. Thank you very much, Sean.
HANNITY: And coming up, the one and only Mark Steyn is here to weigh in on the Republican field.
Then later tonight...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: I am very proud that my presidency can help to galvanize and mobilize America on behalf of issues of racial disparity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: So the president opens up about how he thinks he impacted race relations in America. Has he made things better or worse? We'll check in with Geraldo Rivera and Sheriff David Clarke. They go head to head on that issues and much more straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HANNITY: Welcome back to "Hannity." With the Iowa caucuses only 90 days away, the 2016 Republican presidential candidates -- they're out in full force on the campaign trail. Here with reaction, author of the brand- new book "A Disgrace to the Profession," our friend, Mark Steyn, is back with us.
Sir, you know, at the end of the day, Trump keeps shining! He's winning in Georgia. He's winning by 20 points in Florida. He's winning by double digits in New Hampshire. Do you think he sustains this?
MARK STEYN, "A DISGRACE TO THE PROFESSION" AUTHOR: Right.
HANNITY: What would you advise him to do to sustain it?
STEYN: Well, he doesn't need advice from me. I mean, he's sustained this for -- pretty much since he got in the race. Everyone thought it was just going to be like one of these Herman Cain flash in the pans. It's not like 2012 at all.
This sustained lead by Trump and by Carson in second place -- people now say, Oh, the race is shaking up because Jeb has plummeted from 9 percent to 5 percent, or whatever it is. But realistically, if you look at Iowa, for example, the margin of error comes in in sixth place. In other words, most Republican candidates are below the margin of error.
This is shaking out in Iowa and in New Hampshire to be basically Trump and Carson at the top consistently for months on end.
HANNITY: Now a new second tier has really emerged, and that's Marco Rubio, and in two polls in Iowa today, it's Ted Cruz in third place.
STEYN: Right.
HANNITY: What do you make of their rise? I think it's directly related to this horrific CNBC debate, but -- I think the candidates did great. I think the moderators were atrocious. But they have now emerged as the next tier.
STEYN: Oh, yes, Ted Cruz is being rewarded because contrary to what President Obama said, it's not that they couldn't handle the moderators at all. It's the fact that Ted Cruz and Chris Christie handled them very well. They basically picked up their podiums and smashed them over the head of those...
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: Wasn't that great? Didn't you enjoy that? I loved every minute of that!
STEYN: I loved every minute of it, too. And you know, people talk about the Marco Rubio thing with Jeb Bush. To my mind, Jeb Bush was more damaged by the fantasy football thing because he played along with those twerp moderators.
(LAUGHTER)
STEYN: He played along. He tried to be Mr. Regular Guy giving a fantasy football answer. And then Chris Christie barged in and said, To hell with this. This is how you answer...
HANNITY: Listen...
STEYN: ... some stupid question about fantasy football from these sneering twerps nobody's ever heard of. And I think that was pathetic for Bush. Basically, Christie said, Bush is a loser. This is how you answer a question like this. And I think that damaged him as much as the Marco Rubio thing.
HANNITY: Four candidates -- we got to be real here, Ted Cruz got it started. I think that that answer will be taught in journalism school for years as to what not to do unless you want to get your head handed to you.
STEYN: Right.
HANNITY: But then Marco got on board. Then, you're right, then Christie got on board. And then Mike Huckabee said, We're all united here. And to me, it was -- the CNBC moderators lose, all the Republicans win, and they were far more substantive than what the moderators wanted. So that's a win for them, right?
STEYN: Yes. Absolutely. And that's why Obama was wrong on this. I mean, the interesting thing is, it would have been interesting to see whether Hillary Clinton and Lincoln Chafee or whatever other big shot is still in the Democrat race, could have handled those kind of questions.
Look, realistically, when -- it was interesting what Donald Trump was saying to you just now, about he's very relaxed about the debates. If Trump and Carson were to announce that they were through with the RNC and these arranged, stilted, artificial debates, and they going to debate on, you know, WZZZ AM...
HANNITY: How about right here? They're welcome...
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: And they'll be treated fairly and given a chance to answer.
STEYN: Yes.
HANNITY: Yes. All right, let me...
STEYN: Yes. They are bigger than CNBC. They're bigger than most of the people they are giving -- Trump is not wrong when he says he brings 20 million people to the table. Now, you don't bring 20 million people to the table and then listen to John Harwood. I wouldn't know John Harwood. I've never seen any of these people before.
(LAUGHTER)
STEYN: I wouldn't know John Harwood if he dropped on my head out of the sky. And they say are you just a comic book villain?
HANNITY: He may have ruined his career.
All right, this has been the year of the insurgent. This has been the year of the outsider.
STEYN: Right.
HANNITY: We are now, what, 90 days out of Iowa. Here's the important question. Do people at the end of the day, do they stay the course being the insurgent outsider year or do they get cold feet a little bit? I'm asking you to look in to your crystal ball.
STEYN: Well, that's the classic example of it is 2004 with the Democrats when they were all hot for Howard Dean and they thought John Kerry was just the establishment bore. And then on the eve of Iowa, they did get cold feet and went with the establishment bore, and Howard Dean did his famous "I have a scream" speech, and that was it.
But that's not what is happening this time. Trump and Carson have essentially taken over this thing, and there's like a shadow contest underneath where the senators and governors are jostling. But I think it's very unlikely that there's going to be a Howard Dean moment on the night of the Iowa caucus. These guys are going to be in there in the top three or four in both Iowa and New Hampshire, and it's hard to see, even with the surging -- supposedly surging crews and the supposedly surging Rubio.
HANNITY: They are surging. They've gone up a lot. They now have moved in -- there's a first tier and second tier. There's a solid second tier now and it's moving up.
STEYN: Oh, absolutely. But we forget how many of those other people -- there are 12 other people or whatever it is who are just doing nothing. We talk about Jeb Bush as if he's an important figure, but just on the numbers -- and he's important in all of the donors behind him and his brother and father were president, but there's actually very few real people willing to go to the polls in either Iowa or New Hampshire who want to pull the lever for Jeb Bush. And he's re-launched himself under this incredible -- what's this slogan? He's calling himself the "joyful tortoise"? The joyful tortoise? I think I went into a bar in Iowa called the Joyful Tortoise. That was a long night.
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: All right, Mark Steyn, thank you. Appreciate it.
And coming up next on this busy news night tonight here on "Hannity" --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: I am very proud that my presidency can help to galvanize and mobilize America on behalf of issues of racial disparity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: So the president talks about race relations during his time in the Oval Office. Has he made things better or worse? And then later tonight --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON, D-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This epidemic of gun violence knows no boundaries. Between 88 and 92 people a day are killed by guns.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Hillary pushing big time for gun control, and yesterday she met with the mothers of Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin. We'll check in with Geraldo Rivera and Sheriff David Clarke. They weigh in on both those topics and more tonight on "Hannity."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HANNITY: Welcome back to "Hannity." So as the president nears the end of his presidency, America seems to be more divided than ever. During an interview with NBC News the president said that he's very proud of the work that he's accomplished on issues related to race during his time in office. Really? Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: I am very proud that my presidency can help to galvanize and mobilize America on behalf of issues of racial disparity and racial injustice. But I do so hoping that my successor, who's not African- American, if he or she is not, that they'll be just as concerned as I am.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Here with reaction, Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke and FOX News Republican correspondent Geraldo Rivera. Really, the constitutional attorney president that said, oh, if I had a son he's look like Trayvon and rushed to judgment wrongly in that case, or in the Michael Brown case, or the Cambridge police case acted stupidly. Rushing to judgment, three time loser, wrong without having any facts, I would argue just the opposite of what he said is true.
GERALDO RIVERA, FOX NEWS SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: And I surprisingly maybe agree with you. I think the president has gotten involved in racial matters -- first, hello to you and the sheriff -- has gotten involved in racial matters only when the African-American person is portrayed as the victim, whether it's Trayvon Martin or Michael Brown or any of the others. He jumps in, and the classic NAACP, we are victims, woe is us, take care of the situation.
To me the president has failed most profoundly in the area of race relations. Why? Yes, there is a terrible problem with police brutality, but it pales in comparison to the ghetto civil war that's going on. This black on black violence is not to be ignored. It's not to be minimized. And I have never seen the president get engaged when it was an African- American killing another African-American or two gangs killing and an eight-year-old is killed.
HANNITY: Why years ago, Sheriff Clarke, didn't he get on a plane, Air Force One, go to Chicago, his own home city and town, and say something? You gave out statistics the last time you were on the program about police and shootings in the black community versus black-on-black crime. Do you remember those numbers?
SHERIFF DAVID CLARKE, MILWAUKEE COUNTY: Not off the top of my head. But I want to correct Geraldo on something he said about police brutality as it's being define. No, it's not a pervasive problem in America. Geraldo, you know better than that.
But as for President Obama, he is hallucinating if he thinks he has improved race relations in America. The polling shows otherwise. He's delusional if he really believes that.
Look, race relations have always been tenuous in America. Slavery and discrimination have left an ugly scar on the soul of America, but that scar has been healing over the years. President Obama came along with sandpaper, rubbed it raw, and then poured salt in it to inflame it for political gain. He doesn't believe that and neither does anybody else.
RIVERA: I think that's way too harsh, sheriff. I don't take a backseat to anybody when it comes to the thin blue line. I was at the funeral of Randolph Holmes. I wasn't working. I just went to show my support for those cops that I believe in with all my heart and soul. But you cannot deny that there are black moms out there who fear their child running into cops more than they fear their child running into crooks. Rightly or wrongly, there is enough evidence to suggest --
CLARKE: That's emotion, Geraldo. That is emotion. That's anecdotal. Show me who they are. Show me what they are engaged in. Let's have a reasonable conversation minus the emotion and the anecdotal claims that I'm always hearing about.
RIVERA: Well, when you talk about anecdote, I'm from Avenue C. I was a lawyer on the lower east side in the Bronx. When I give you anecdote, it's from personal eyewitness experience. I think that these problems are manageable. I think the president should do his best, his utmost in the last year in office to be the bridge between the black and blue communities. That's what we need.
HANNITY: But he hasn't been.
RIVERA: He hasn't been, and that has been his failing.
HANNITY: Sheriff?
CLARKE: Fine. Let's see the documented claims that we can look inside, drill down inside, peel the layers back, and see if there's any basis. All I'm hearing are anecdotal claims and claims based on emotion. This driving while black, this stuff that Mike Brown was a victim of police brutality, he was engaged in felonious conduct trying to disarm a law enforcement officer.
HANNITY: I think when the president rushes to judgment, like he did in these high-profile cases, he has created a narrative that hurts the community. But I've got to take a break. Stay right there. We'll have more with Geraldo and Sheriff Clarke right after the break.
But coming up next --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: This epidemic of gun violence knows no boundaries. Between 88 and 92 people a day are killed by guns.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Hillary Clinton touting her support for gun control. And just yesterday, she met with the mothers of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown. We'll explain next with Geraldo and Sheriff Clarke.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HANNITY: Welcome back to "Hannity." So Hillary touted her gun control policies yesterday during a fundraising trip to Chicago. She met with the families of victims of gun violence, and according to reports, the Democratic frontrunner also met the mothers of Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin. Yesterday the Clinton campaign also released a new ad focusing on gun control. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: This epidemic of gun violence knows no boundaries. Between 88 and 92 people a day are killed by guns. We're better than this. We need to close the loopholes and support universal background checks. How many people have to die before we actually act, before we come together as a nation?
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: As we continue with Milwaukee County Sheriff Deputy David Clarke, Fox News senior correspondent Geraldo Rivera. Sheriff, in the Trayvon Martin case there was one eyewitness that said they saw Trayvon on top of George Zimmerman grounding and pounding his head into cement, which led up to the shooting. In the case of Michael Brown, he robbed a store, he fought a cop for his gun, he charged a police officer. Why is Hillary meeting with those families? Do you think there's something wrong with that?
CLARKE: I think there's something terribly wrong. She's just pandering. Did she meet with the families of the four marines who were killed in Chattanooga, Tennessee, state side who were not allowed to have a firearm that may have saved their lives? Did she meet with the surviving members of the people from Fort Hood, who if they would have been allowed to be armed on a military base may have been able to shoot and kill in Nidal Hasan before he wiped out and killed servicemen? Of course not.
She meets with families of two individuals tragically killed, no doubt about that, but they were involved in criminal behavior, felonious behavior that led to their demise.
Look, this is a winning issue for Republicans if they would just get their arms around it and take ownership of it. Don't back off of this issue of gun control. Gun control has its roots in racism going back to the 1700s, Sean, when it was unlawful for a black person to possess a firearm to guard against mob lynchings and kidnappings. Steve Halbrook details this is his book "Let Every Man be Armed."
HANNITY: Gun deaths are skyrocketing in New York under this liberal mayor. You know what they did? They stopped, stop and frisk.
RIVERA: I'm with you guys on stop and frisk. But I just want to follow up on what the sheriff just said. What Hillary is doing has a political component. Substantively I am for universal background checks. I don't want to argue my position on the issue, but let me just talk politics. Remember what she has to do. First, she has to defeat Bernie Sanders who is a pro-gun guy from a rural state.
HANNITY: So she's pandering?
RIVERA: She's to the left. She's politicking.
HANNITY: Pandering?
RIVERA: So it makes sense to her there. And also in terms of politics, let's put aside sincerity for a second, is it important for Hillary Clinton to motivate and energize the black electorate. So by her reaching out to these families she shows that she's in their corner. I think political it makes sense all the sense in the world.
HANNITY: So pandering?
RIVERA: Politicking.
CLARKE: In terms of the tradition of arms, the fact is that slavery plus firearms meant freedom for black Americans, but we've been separated from that.
Look, I understand the politics for Mrs. Bill Clinton as well. But she will turn around after she wins the nomination, and she'll look into the camera and she'll talk to America and say she's one of the staunchest supporters of the Second Amendment.
RIVERA: I wouldn't hold my breath on that one, Sheriff.
HANNITY: All right, guys good to see you.
Coming up, our "Ask Sean" segment is next, and a very-important question of the day about the president and race, straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HANNITY: All right, time for the "Question of the Day." So do you think President Obama made race relations better or worse in this country? Just go to Facebook.com/SeanHannity, @SeanHannity on Twitter, let us know what you think. Time now for our "Ask Sean" segment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sean, question for you. What is the benefit to the left wing media for being so biased against the Republicans and the conservative party? What is their benefit? And what purpose does it serve them to be in bed with the Democrats and to be their lap dog? That is my question.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Great question. Simple answer, because they themselves are democratic socialists. They believe the propaganda that Republicans want dirty air and water and want to kick grandma, throw her over a cliff, and Republicans want old people and children to fend for themselves, and those evil one percenters are horrible. They want redistribution of the wealth. They are advocating for their political position so they're not fair, they're not balanced, they're not objective, and they don't even try to tell you the truth. That is my case.
Anyway if you have a question for me, just go to Twitter, us the #AskSean, send in the video, and we might put it on TV.
Before we go, quick programming note. Don't forget, tune in tomorrow night at 10:00 p.m. eastern. 2016 Republican presidential candidate Senator Ted Cruz who is now surging in the polls, and former governor Jeb Bush who is trying to hit the reset button, they're both here tomorrow night for the best election coverage, 10:00 eastern.
But that is all the time we have left this evening. We hope you'll set your DVR so you never miss an episode. We take attendance and it hurts our feelings if you're not here. Thanks for being with us. See you back here tomorrow night.
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