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Published January 24, 2017
This is a RUSH transcript from "The O'Reilly Factor," December 14, 2015. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
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O'REILLY: Thanks for staying with us, I'm Bill O'Reilly. In the "Unresolved Problem" segment tonight, with the country very upset about Islamic terrorism, President Obama was forced to leave the White House today to visit the Pentagon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRES. BARACK OBAMA (D), UNITED STATES: Last month in November, we dropped more bombs on ISIL targets than any other month since this campaign started. We're also taking out ISIL leaders, commanders, and killers, one by one. The point is ISIL leaders cannot hide and our next message to them is simple, you are next.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'REILLY: Tough talk. Joining us now from Washington, another tough guy, Charles Krauthammer. Are you cynical about the President going to the Pentagon and saying all that?
CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER, SYNDICATED COLUMNIST: I'm never cynical enough on this issue. Look, the President was reading that like he was reading the phone book. You compared the passion that you hear in his voice when he talks about climate change, Trayvon Martin when he talked about the not admitting of Syrian refugees. His heart isn't in this. When he was asked about the fiasco with the millions of dollars spent training, Syrian rebels ending up with a total of nine, his defense was, well, you know, I didn't really want to do it in the first place. But I suppose what he was saying is my aides insisted I do it. So, I want to head and did it and it didn't work out. He's the guy who announced the doubling of our troop level in Afghanistan and in the same sentence he said we are leaving on a date certain. You know his heart isn't in it.
O'REILLY: I know.
KRAUTHAMMER: And to me, the problem and people hear it whenever he says the same way he talked about the war on terror, the war in Afghanistan you know he is only doing this grudgingly as a way to apiece public opinion.
O'REILLY: I wonder if anybody buys it, even if his own supporters buy it, I don't think the polls show that everybody thinks that he is just out to lunch on ISIS. And I don't think anybody is buying it anymore. But, you know, he doesn't usually go across the river to Virginia to the Pentagon. It's a 10-minute drive and there he is, a dog and pony show. I had to get it on the record.
KRAUTHAMMER: Let me just add one thing.
O'REILLY: Go ahead.
KRAUTHAMMER: The fact that he is resorting to all of these numbers. We're doing more here, more there.
O'REILLY: Yes, yes, yes, right.
KRAUTHAMMER: What was he doing for the last 16 months?
O'REILLY: Nothing. He was putting together a coalition of 65 nations that don't do anything, that's what he was doing. OK. Monmouth poll comes in, Monmouth College. I don't really trust the poll very small sample. But he's got Trump at 41 nationwide. So, I mean, it's conceivable that Trump will run against Hillary, is it not?
KRAUTHAMMER: Absolutely.
O'REILLY: And if Trump runs against Hillary, then politics as we know it is just upside down because every day who knows what's going to be said on Trump's -- Hillary probably do the ropey dopey. Remember the fight within Africa, where George Foreman was beating on Muhammad Ali and he just let Foreman punch himself out and do anything and then on the fifth round Ali comes back. Hillary is not going to reply in kind. But she is just going to go and scorch earth. And I mean, it would be an entertaining campaign.
KRAUTHAMMER: You mean the rumble in the jungle. Yes, I remember.
O'REILLY: What did I say?
KRAUTHAMMER: You had the right fight. I'm just telling you what Muhammad Ali.
O'REILLY: It was the rumble in the jungle. Okay.
KRAUTHAMMER: That's what Muhammad Ali called it.
O'REILLY: Right.
KRAUTHAMMER: I'm just filling in facts to give you some background.
O'REILLY: All right.
KRAUTHAMMER: Now, here's what I'm thinking. Yes, it would be interesting if it were a completely intro-Republican fight, it will not be. There is a very large constituency out there and you see it in the polls. Independents and Democrats who would never vote for Donald Trump. Now, perhaps he will be so persuasive that he will swing that. If he doesn't, this will be a less interesting election day than you would imagine. I think it would make the Goldwater result of 1964, look like a Republican victory.
O'REILLY: But if there is more terrorism, that helps Trump in the sense that people get angrier as I said in the talking points memo at the top. More fearful. He plays in to that. And Hillary Clinton really is running as Obama lite. I mean, if you like President Obama, I guess you are going to vote for Hillary Clinton. But if you don't, why would you vote for the woman, there is no discernible difference.
KRAUTHAMMER: Because you might be one of those inclined not to want to see Donald Trump with his finger on the nuclear button. Look, I think that Hillary is intrinsically weak candidate. Not trusted by the electorate who could in this year could easily be defeated by a half dozen Republicans. I don't think that she can be defeated by Donald Trump.
O'REILLY: And that's because of the coalition raid against Trump with Hispanics and Blacks and women and the Left in general which tops out at 20 percent. All of them together would overcome his appeal to white working men and women?
KRAUTHAMMER: Look, just looking at Hispanics, George W. in 2004 got 44 percent of the vote. Romney got 27 of the Hispanic vote. And it cost him. Trump is at about 11 percent of the Hispanic vote. If Romney had a problem, what Trump is looking at is a catastrophe. And you don't work your way out of that or talk your way out of that. I think that's where the weakness is. He has alienated a lot of groups. I still think he can win the nomination within the GOP. But when you go to the wider world and the wider constituencies, I don't think that he has a chance of winning. And I also think that there is a chance of a complete collapse on the part of Republicans that could jeopardize their hold on the Senate and in an extreme case, he even perhaps their hold on the House.
O'REILLY: All right. Now, I don't know if Trump supporters care about that because they are in the mood for an avenger and he certainly is that. So, that really is the -- that's the wild card whether Trump supporters are going to look it at the way you are in an analytical situation.
KRAUTHAMMER: That's what I'm doing. This is just pure analysis.
O'REILLY: OK.
KRAUTHAMMER: Completely devoid from personal emotion.
O'REILLY: Now, on that topic I want to show you something, Charles. I was out in Vegas earlier this month and this bumper sticker is floating around here. I think they have it right as far as where the ticket would be. What say you?
KRAUTHAMMER: Clearly Photoshopped.
O'REILLY: No, no, no, no, no.
KRAUTHAMMER: It's reversed and upside down. So I think you know, you ought to confess now before the --
O'REILLY: I think you might be carrying -- I think we could carry Nevada anyway, that was out there.
KRAUTHAMMER: Barely.
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