This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," December 30, 2016. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
KIMBERLY GUILFOYLE, GUEST HOST: Welcome to "Hannity." Russian president Vladimir Putin is responding to the Obama administration imposing sanctions on his country over allegations of hacking.
I'm Kimberly Guilfoyle, in tonight for Sean.
Putin released a statement earlier today that reads, in part, quote, "Although we have the right to retaliate, we will not resort to irresponsible kitchen diplomacy but will plan our further steps to restore Russia-U.S. relations based on the policies of the Trump administration."
And President-elect Donald Trump is reacting to Putin's statement by tweeting, quote, "Great move on delay by V. Putin. I always knew he was very smart."
Joining me now is former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. and Fox News contributor John Bolton. Ambassador, thanks for joining us this evening. Lots of developments even since yesterday when we spoke on this show. Let's get your thoughts.
JOHN BOLTON, FMR. U.S. AMB. TO U.N., FOX CONTRIBUTOR: Well, I think the Putin decision not to expel American diplomats has several aspects to it. Number one, it shows utter contempt for Barack Obama. It's saying to him, You're going to be history in three weeks, and I will reserve judgment on what I'm going to do until you're gone. Not that he hasn't said that he's not going to expel American diplomats. He's said he's putting it off.
But let's also be clear. This was -- this was staged. And remember, this is the land of the Potemkin village. So early in the day, Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov goes public with a recommendation to expel 35 American diplomats. Every Western news source in Moscow reports that it means they are going to be expelled, and then Vladimir Putin steps in and says, No, no, no, we won't expel 35 diplomats. And what's more, I'm inviting the children of American diplomatic personnel in Moscow to an Eastern Orthodox Christmas party. What a sweetheart.
Look, he is trying to maneuver to Russian's advantage. No mistake there. But he's also playing on a mistake I think we talked about last night that Obama made in pushing together both the cyber attack issue on the one hand, and the harassment of American personnel in Moscow on the other.
And he's trying to build the two of them together to get what I think he really wants. The most important concession he wants is no retaliation for the cyber attack. The sanctions are meaningless. The expulsion of diplomatic personnel is a temporary problem.
What he really worries about is America going on cyber offense in retaliation to what he apparently did during the election campaign. So this is -- this is still very much in play.
GUILFOYLE: It certainly is. And you bring up such an important point because he definitely doesn't want the focus to be on those cyber attacks. This is a way of sidestepping it. This is a man who's obviously, yes, very bright, KGB. He knows what his mission objectives are. He's very focused on the target, and he'll do whatever it takes to achieve it.
And even if that means cultivating this relationship with President-elect Donald Trump, he's going to do that. And as you said, it's very much, you know, showing disrespect for President Obama and his current administration in their last three week to say, That was a joke. You thought you were going to poke the cage of Russia, of Moscow, and it just didn't work.
BOLTON: Right. And I think it shows that they have thought through what's going on here in these last couple of months. They saw what Obama did to Israel in the Security Council resolution. They understand that Obama is in this period of opportunity really for him between the election and the transition. I'm
You know, not entirely sure that this is Obama just trying to vent his spleen on the incoming Trump administration. I have a feeling that part of this is that, you know, a lot of these you can't take in the middle of an election campaign, and our election campaigns now take almost a whole year. He thought Hillary was going to win.
GUILFOYLE: Yes, I think you're right.
BOLTON: And so a lot of this stuff was planned because he could do it, he could take the credit, he could take the heat. Hillary was not going to reverse any of it when she took office, so he could get his legacy in place and she would defend it.
Now he finds himself faced with Donald Trump being his successor, and all his plans are throw awry.
GUILFOYLE: No, you're right. He -- I think he made his decision to kind of wait on this and not do anything because it was predicated on a certain outcome of the election that they thought they had guaranteed, that they grossly underestimated the movement by President-elect Donald Trump and the people that came out in droves to support him.
But I just wonder also, you know, does this put President-elect Donald Trump in a bad position come January 20th? What is your advice, Ambassador, in terms of what he should do and how to handle Russia?
BOLTON: No, look, I don't think it puts him in a bad position. I think if Barack Obama really thinks he can box the new Trump administration in, he's sadly mistaken.
GUILFOYLE: Correct.
BOLTON: President-elect Trump is going to meet next week with intelligence officials to talk about what the facts are on the allegations of Russian efforts to meddle in the election, and he'll make up his mind accordingly.
I just think this is a graceless way for Obama to leave the White House, and virtually everything he did, with the exception of the Security Council resolution, or other things he may try to do internationally, can be reversed with the stroke of a pen or the action of Congress. So he may be active in the next three weeks, but it's really ultimately not going to have much impact.
GUILFOYLE: All right, Ambassador Bolton, always a pleasure. Thanks for being with us.
BOLTON: Thank you, Kimberly.
GUILFOYLE: All right, and here now with more reaction is the author of "Defeating Jihad: The Winnable War," Dr. Sebastian Gorka. Further developments since we last spoke. Unbelievable. What you make of this latest play by Putin and by Russia? Have they outmaneuvered Obama again?
SEBASTIAN GORKA, "DEFEATING JIHAD" AUTHOR: Look, I don't like to praise a former KGB colonel on the most popular cable channel in America, but it was a master stroke. I mean, really. He played the game, as the ambassador said, very, very smoothly with Lavrov, and then with tweets coming out of the Russian embassy in London, with photographs of a duckling as a lame duck Obama, and then this, Oh, we'll invite you to an Orthodox Christmas celebration -- he's basically said to the world, President Obama, you are completely irrelevant. And the truth is, he is.
This is a new age after November the 8th. The idea that he plays golf for eight years and now he decides to do something about Russia -- it's incredible. It's truly incredible. Why now after the invasion of the Ukraine, this is when he waits to do something because of an alleged hack of the DNC? He's made a laughingstock out of the White House.
GUILFOYLE: All right, let's talk about what President-elect Donald Trump should do now in the aftermath of this when he assumes office on the 20th because still some decisions will have to be made. Sanctions and further sanctions aren't off the table. That is something certainly that he could impose because we don't want Russia making a fool of the United States or trying to interfere in our U.S. presidential elections.
GORKA: Correct. Absolutely. But we have to be very cautious. I think the approach President-elect Trump has taken is the correct one. Let me see all the evidence, and once I am actually installed...
GUILFOYLE: Exactly.
GORKA: ... as the commander-in-chief, I can take measures. I've -- now, I-- Kimberly, I've read the unclassified FBI -- there's a joint FBI-DHS report on the attack, on the cyber attack, which is called "Grizzly Steppe." I read it today. It is incredibly specific in terms of there were two cyber hackers that in spring of 2015 and summer of 2016 went into the DNC computer network.
It's very specific. But part from that, what they did and what information was taken out is not revealed. So let's wait and see. We've got 21 days left. Then there will be some kind of measured response once the information is made available to the new president.
GUILFOYLE: Yes, I couldn't agree more, as a former prosecutor. You have to put the case together with all the facts, not speculation or hyperbole or innuendo, and make these choices based on a fact pattern that you feel confident about its veracity. And then you leave all options on the table in terms of how you will, in fact, you know, deal with it going forward -- a lot of complexity in terms of what's happened over the last, you know, few weeks in terms of our international position, also as you know, as it relates to Israel, another problematic area.
GORKA: Absolutely. Absolutely. And I think -- I've been trying to find the explanation for why he's doing these incredibly impetuous and dangerous things in the last three weeks, and I have to say I give the award to Ambassador Bolton. I think he's got it. The answer's correct.
The left thought they were going to win. They thought Hillary was going to be the next president. They now realize that their whole agenda, the next eight years of continuing to socially engineer America and undermine our reputation around the world -- that's not going to happen.
There's going to be a new sheriff in town called Donald Trump, and as a result, they've got three weeks left to cram it all in, whether it's attacking Israel, whether it's anything else. And that's why we have to be very, very vigilant. What else can we expect from the White House in the next 21 days?
GUILFOYLE: Absolutely. Dr. Gorka, always a pleasure. Thank you so much.
GORKA: Thanks.
GUILFOYLE: Also tonight, a Republican congressman is making headlines for his comments about Russian hacking. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. TRENT FRANKS, R-ARIZONA: I'm all for doing what's necessary to protect the election here. But there's no suggestion that Russia hacked into our voting systems or anything like that. They -- if anything, whatever they might have done, was to try to use information in a way that may have affected something that they believe was in their best interests. But the bottom line, if they succeeded -- if Russia succeeded in giving the American people information that was accurate, then they merely did what the media should have done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GUILFOYLE: Joining us now is the lawmaker you just said, Arizona congressman Trent Franks. Thank you so much for joining us, Congressman. So people consider that...
FRANKS: Thank you, Kimberly.
GUILFOYLE: ... to be pretty much a provocative comment, some accusing you of siding with Russia. You tell us what you meant.
FRANKS: Well, I mean, obviously, if you could see the whole interview, that would be somewhat helpful. But I would just suggest to you that I made it clear in that interview that anything that Russia did to compromise any of our systems should be met with the appropriate response. I even called Mr. Putin a KGB thug in the interview. So to suggest...
GUILFOYLE: But they didn't show that in all the clips. Right. Exactly.
FRANKS: Didn't show that. That's all right. That happens a lot. But I appreciate the opportunity to come here.
Unfortunately, you leave me with little to add from John Bolton, who I consider to be one of the greatest foreign policy experts in the world for America.
GUILFOYLE: Agree.
FRANKS: I think he should have been secretary of state. And Sebastian Gorka -- I have to say something nice about him because he could sue me for-- successfully for plagiarism any time he wants to.
(LAUGHTER)
FRANKS: I think he's one of the most assiduous voices in the world on this subject of jihad.
But having said that, this situation is pretty straightforward. This president, when he came in, had the famous reset with Russia. I think he thought the entire cold war was just a giant misunderstanding. And he stood by and let Russia, as Sebastian Gorka mentioned, invade Ukraine even though we had an agreement with Ukraine to protect their territorial sovereignty.
He stood by and let -- even in spite of his red line in Syria, and let the Russians barrel bomb Aleppo and killing thousands of innocent women and children. And then all of a sudden, he finds his tongue...
GUILFOYLE: Right.
FRANKS: ... and does something he should have done early in his presidency and make it clear where we stand as a country, that we will not stand by and let Russian expansionism take over the world. But in the meantime, Vladimir Putin has mocked (ph) up the world with Barack Obama. It turns out he's not quite finished, it seems.
GUILFOYLE: Yes, and I understand your point. You're saying that the -- you know, mainstream media, the reporters, should have actually done their job and properly covered this election, properly covered the stories about Hillary Clinton, about her e-mails, about her deleting e-mails, about her server, all of the above. That is certainly true.
And as it relates to President Barack Obama, I think we find ourselves in this position because of his failed feckless foreign policy as it relates to Russia. There is no relationship of respect whatsoever there between Vladimir Putin and Barack Obama.
And now we find three weeks before we have a new president in office, this attempt to certainly try to box President-elect Donald Trump in and -- but it seems that Vladimir Putin did not fall for the bait that President Obama wished he did.
FRANKS: Well, again, I don't know how you could say that any better than you just said. This administration has weakened America across the eight years of the administration's existence, and we're going to be decades trying to clean up the mess.
I hope that Mr. Trump is up to it. I believe he is. I believe that we have a new day in America, and I just hope so desperately that we return to some of the great foundations that made our country the unipolar superpower of the world and the greatest country in the history of humanity.
If we do that, then we -- there's still time to make a better world.
GUILFOYLE: Oh, it's so true because the United States should not take a knee and be ashamed of being a superpower. Russia certainly isn't. And there's far-reaching implications here, as you know, as it relates to the Middle East, as well, and Syria and the complexities there and Russia's relationship with Iran.
But this is all going to fall squarely with President-elect Donald Trump. What advice would you give him going forward for January 20th about dealing with Russia?
FRANKS: Well, I think that he should do exactly what I believe he will do. He will look at the evidence and he will say simply to Russia, Listen, we as the United States of America, are not out to dominate or hurt anyone in this world, but we will always deal from a position of strength. We will act in our best interests. Our national security will be sure. Our arsenal of freedom will prevail in any circumstance. So it's best to be our friend because to be our enemy is not a healthy position to be in.
GUILFOYLE: Absolutely! United States -- best friend, worst enemy. I can relate to that.
FRANKS: Yes, ma'am.
GUILFOYLE: All right, thank you so much, Congressman.
FRANKS: Thank you.
GUILFOYLE: And coming up -- President Obama's last-minute moves before he leaves office appear to be putting President-elect Trump in a very tough spot. My co-host on "The Five," Eric Bolling, will be here next with reaction.
And later -- President Obama sanctioning Russia is part of a long list of foreign policy decisions President-elect Trump will have to deal with once he takes office. Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Peters will weigh in.
That and much more straight ahead on "Hannity."
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GUILFOYLE: Welcome back to "Hannity." President-elect Trump will be inaugurated in just 21 days. And a new report in The Hill is claiming, quote, "Nearing exit, Obama seeks to tie Trump's hands."
Joining me now with reaction is my co-host of "The Five," Eric Bolling. OK, so a lot of diplomatic relations in question here, our relationship with Russia, with just mere weeks until President-elect Donald Trump takes office. What's going on here with President Obama and his administration?
ERIC BOLLING, "THE FIVE" CO-HOST: (INAUDIBLE) three weeks from today, President-elect Donald Trump will raise his right hand, become President Donald Trump. And in those 21 days, three weeks, how many more initiatives will Barack Obama decide to throw out there?
Like you said earlier on "The Five," he's done more in the last two or three weeks than he's done in the last eight years. For political with the U.N. -- backing off the U.N. resolution, letting that pass, you know, sticking it to Israel and Donald Trump, the Russian sanctions that you talked about right here, toothless sanctions but Republicans jumped on board, which means he's going to make it harder for Donald Trump to make the decision to pull the sanctions if he wants to, if there's no evidence, or if he goes forward with it, that then he'll do it because there's evidence.
And then the domestic policy of the oil and gas, permanent ban on oil and gas drilling in certain places in Alaska, in the Arctic and off -- offshore-- it's insane what he's trying to do! He's got this scorched earth exit policy from the White House!
Let -- the only thing that President Obama should do for President-elect Donald Trump now for the next three weeks is make sure that the transition is smooth.
GUILFOYLE: OK, and Bolling, what is this about? It seems a little like sour grapes. Is President Obama trying to also capitulate to his constituency to appease them, to the people that are upset, the people that say, Oh, he didn't do enough to help deliver the Oval to Hillary Clinton, all of this happening -- if he had an idea that, in fact, that the Russians were trying to interfere in the United States presidential election and he knew about that before, why didn't he do anything then? It seems that some in his party and with the Clintons are upset with him, so now he's showing that he's trying to flex (ph) to Russia.
GUILFOYLE: You know, look, so he came out, President Obama came out -- and by the way, he's a very effective surrogate for Hillary Clinton -- saying, if you vote...
GUILFOYLE: And so was his wife.
BOLLING: And Michelle...
GUILFOYLE: Michelle Obama.
BOLLING: ... absolutely. I think Michelle was probably here -- his -- her most important surrogate. Barack Obama was the second most -- but came out and said, A vote for Hillary Clinton is a vote for my legacy. Well, he lost, and so now he's looking to -- as she is -- he's looking to blame anyone, blame the voting booths, blame alt-right, blame -- blame the Russians, blame the Russians again.
And now think of what he gets to do. With the U.N. resolution, he gets to take a shot at Bibi Netanyahu and Donald Trump all at once, two birds with one stone there. And this one, blame -- blame Vladimir Putin -- that's -- that and then also take a shot at Donald Trump, another two birds with one stone. He's killing four birds with two stones.
GUILFOYLE: Yes, and the problem is, like you talked about -- and Kellyanne Conway said this last night on "Hannity" -- you know, is this some kind of situation where perhaps they're trying to, you know, box in -- and she was referencing The New York Times article saying that this might be a little bit of kind of political shenanigans on part of the (ph) President Obama, like you mentioned, to try to force a play and some kind of showdown between Putin and Donald Trump, making it very difficult for him to make his own independent, autonomous decision when he, in fact, takes office.
BOLLING: Yes, and what happened is Vladimir Putin said, No, no. I'm not biting on this. Nice try, Barack Obama. We'll wait until you're gone. And Donald Trump said, Hey, good move, smart move. I knew you were smart.
So they'll work it out.
And by the way, if Russia did tamper and if they were cyber-hacking, they will be reprimanded. They will be sanctioned severely but by Donald Trump, not by outgoing President Barack Obama.
This is all politics because what -- the three initiatives that we just talked about...
GUILFOYLE: Yes.
BOLLING: ... none of them really have any teeth. The sanctions don't have a lot of teeth. The U.N. resolution is just a U.N. resolution at the end of the day. And the third one being the oil and gas initiative, the regulation that he put out. Donald Trump day one can repeal all three of those things right away...
GUILFOYLE: Absolutely.
BOLLING: ... immediately, if he wanted to. So what he's doing -- Barack Obama is doing is he's throwing a bunch of stuff out there in the last couple of weeks.
GUILFOYLE: That's what I'm saying it looks like to me, so that impotent rage...
BOLLING: Yes.
GUILFOYLE: ... but it's not really something that is, in fact, accomplishing anything, but it's more kind of the bravado and whatnot. And by the way, we all -- we both agree that, in fact, for sure Russia should not be interfering in any way in U.S. presidential elections or any of our government affairs. That being said, there is no in a sense (ph) or direct evidence of hacking at the polls or in terms of the voting machines, and no Russians voted illegally in the election.
BOLLING: But for some reason, liberals think if you say, Hey, hold on, let's wait and see...
GUILFOYLE: Yes.
BOLLING: ... and let Donald Trump make the decision, you're somehow on board with the Russians. No, not at all. Not at all.
GUILFOYLE: Unbelievable.
BOLLING: False narrative.
GUILFOYLE: Well, so it's a lot of developments coming here at the end of the year in terms of our diplomatic relations with Russia, but it looks like, you know, Vladimir Putin is not taking the bait and he is going to deal directly with the new president-elect. I think it looks like he's done dealing with the current administration.
So but you and I are not done dealing because we're going to be together again -- reunited, right -- New Year's Eve!
BOLLING: We are, New Year's Eve, right here in Times Square, about a block-and-a-half from here. KG, last year, we had a great time. We did very, very well.
GUILFOYLE: We sure did.
BOLLING: We loved it. But we're on the rooftop of the Knickerbocker, and if you remember, we walked around that crowd. We had so much energy in the crowd prior to the show. We said, Why don't we just do the show right from the crowd, right from -- in the middle of Times Square? And we're setting up shop right in the middle of the crowd. So you got to watch it. We have a -- we're going to have a blast.
GUILFOYLE: And it's pretty exciting because we'll be able to take the viewers right there. It's almost like a virtual reality. We'll bring it down to the streets, where everyone wants to be, everybody's bucket list, New Year's Eve in the center of Times Square to see the ball drop. And we're going to be right by (INAUDIBLE) the NASDAQ down there with Kennedy and Jesse.
BOLLING: Yes. Yes.
GUILFOYLE: (INAUDIBLE) is going to be on. Phil Keating always has some kind of situation...
BOLLING: Something's going on from (ph) Florida, right?
GUILFOYLE: In Florida!
(LAUGHTER)
GUILFOYLE: Exactly! So...
BOLLING: And you just kind of hope everything works out. It's always watchable. And then we have -- we have people spread out around the country, but I think the real energy is going to be when we're walking around, talking to people in the crowd.
GUILFOYLE: Absolutely. Rick Leventhal will be down there, so. So you know what?
BOLLING: (INAUDIBLE) and you'll have some escorts. You'll have -- there'll be NYPD. They're fantastic. They take care of their KG when she gets down there.
GUILFOYLE: They sure do, God bless them! I'm looking to stay cozy with the men in blue. And the women, too. I'll give hugs to everyone.
(LAUGHTER)
GUILFOYLE: It'll be good. So listen, find someone for you to get cozy with at home, get cozy with Eric Bolling and I. We're super-excited about it. So be sure to tune in tomorrow night, our all-American New Year's Eve coverage! We'll be live in Times Square, and like I said, Kennedy and Jesse Watters and get the party started at 8:00 PM Eastern. Then Bolling and I come and take over big league at 10:00 PM. You don't want to miss it. Trust me.
But first, coming up next on "Hannity," President Obama sanctioning Russia (INAUDIBLE) foreign policy decisions President-elect Trump will have to deal with once he takes office. Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Peters is here next with reaction.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GUILFOYLE: Welcome back to "Hannity." Some are second-guessing the timing of President Obama's decision to punish Russia with sanctions, but this isn't the only questionable foreign policy decision that has happened over the past eight years. Aside from the administration supporting the anti- Israel U.N. resolution last week, the White House has also freed terrorists from Gitmo, struck a nuclear deal with Iran and failed to act when Bashar al Assad crossed President Obama's red line in Syria.
Joining me now for reaction is FOX News strategic analyst Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Peters. Thank you for joining us tonight, Colonel. Unbelievable, when you look back at the failed foreign policy of this administration certainly putting America in a weaker national security position.
LT. COL. RALPH PETERS, U.S. ARMY (RET.), FOX STRATEGIC ANALYST: Well, Kimberly, without the least exaggeration, we can say that President Obama has been the worst foreign policy president in our entire history, whether you look at the Middle East, North Africa, the South China Sea, North Korea, Venezuela, or his triumph in Cuba. It's just been one disastrous decision or non-decision after another. And we'll be paying for it for a very long time.
GUILFOYLE: Well, it's problematic because now we have President Donald Trump, president-elect, going to be in a position on January 20th where he's got to deal with Russia. President Obama appears to have tried to and failed to box him into a one-on-one tete-a-tete with Vladimir Putin.
We have a mess that he's made that I think really is his "He built it" legacy in Syria, which is one of the worst humanitarian crises that we've seen in our lifetime, unbelievable inability to even react and make good decisions, and then has done everything but pretty much destroy our relationship with a key ally, a key democratic ally in the Mideast that we need in Israel!
PETERS: Well, indeed. And I think the litany of failures that you just went through goes back to a flaw in Obama's character that's always been there even before he was president. President Hamlet, forever wringing his hands, and to be or not to be -- he can't make up his mind. We saw it in Syria where he couldn't make up his mind in that first year when a small initiative on the part of the U.S. would have left us with a much better world. We wouldn't have half a million dead. You saw it with so many other initiatives, and now you just saw it with his lame, utterly ineffective imposition of new sanctions on Russia.
And I have to say I disagree with those who say that on the new sanctions he was trying to box in president Trump. If he had been trying to box in president Trump he would have done far more. He would have hit the Russian economy, which is Putin's one weak point. The Russian economy is in a shambles. But instead what he did do, what he always does. Obama goes for rhetorical flourishes and cosmetic gestures. And these sanctions, even calling them sanctions is to overdignify them, they were minor tactical matters with no strategic relevance whatsoever. Once again on his way out the door Obama is the still the 98-pound weakling among world leaders.
GUILFOYLE: It's unbelievable. And let's talk a little bit about how Vladimir Putin responded. He did not expel any U.S. diplomats. In fact he sort of said, that's all you got, and made a mockery, made it look like a very weak attempt, an irrelevant attempt on behalf of President Barack Obama.
PETERS: Indeed. And Ambassador Bolton and I were just talking about this in the green room. We both agree that the west underestimates Vladimir Putin time and time again. Since 1999 we've been underestimating Putin. The guy is ruthless, vindictive, hates America. He's extremely capable. He'll do anything to get his way. He has a long term strategic vision.
And what I do worry about is that when he becomes president Mr. Trump is going to be so much on his plate that if he goes for a hasty deal with Vladimir Putin, it could turn into easily the equivalent of Obama's Iran deal. Putin wants everything and he wants to give nothing. And Putin is the ultimate master of the art of the deal.
I think the president-elect when he's inaugurated, he needs to be very, very, very, very careful with Vladimir Putin. We saw today, Putin dangled a little bait with how he handled the sanctions issue, and president-elect, he fell for it. He tweeted again how great Putin is. Putin is not great. Putin is evil. He is our enemy. Kimberly, he's not our enemy because we want him to be. He's our enemy because he hates us and everything we stand for and he wants revenge for the collapse of the Soviet Union.
GUILFOYLE: This is the problem. Nobody should ever underestimate Russia or Vladimir Putin. When you think about him, KGB, that's it. That should tell you everything you need to know, and you're right. He does have strategic long term vision. He does want to kiss you on the mouth and knife you in the back. Make no mistake about it.
But I do believe that president-elect Trump will deal with him in a very different way that President Barack Obama. This is going to be a completely different situation than what we've been seeing for the past eight years. And certainly no one wants Russia interfering in U.S. elections, presidential elections, or any of that. But today we saw the reaction. President-elect Trump said, OK, I know he's a smart guy. I don't think anybody is in dispute that Vladimir Putin is smart.
PETERS: When you deal with Vladimir Putin you must deal from a position of strength. And every deal has to be transactional. If he wants something, we got to get something, and he's got to pay first cash on the barrel head. Otherwise he will just eat us alive.
Again, I want President Trump to be a great president because I want him to succeed because I want America to succeed. But I'm an old Russia hand. I've been watching Vladimir Putin since the beginning, and Vladimir Putin eats people. He eats them alive. He eats them before breakfast. He humiliated two U.S. presidents in a row, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, who thought they could deal with him. So just be very, very careful. Don't rush into a comprehensive new deal with Russia, a fresh start. We don't need a fresh start with Russia. Russia needs us. It needs a fresh start with us. And Putin wants us to look away from what he did in Ukraine, from the seizure of Crimea, from the massacre in Syria, from the destruction of Russian democracy, from his attacks on our election, and they were -- and all of the intelligence agencies agree they did it. And so he wants us to wipe that slate clean.
GUILFOYLE: Certainly, right.
PETERS: And all he's going to give us is a fresh start? No way.
GUILFOYLE: If you're keeping both eyes on Russia, that's still not even good enough. I agree with you 100 percent. All right, Colonel Peters, thank you so much for being with us tonight.
PETERS: Happy New Year, and as the Russians would say, "s novym godom."
GUILFOYLE: To you as well.
And coming up, Bill Clinton suggested, quote, "angry white men" helped elect Trump in November, but FOX News contributor Deroy Murdock is shooting down those claims. He's here next along with Reverend Darrell Scott and Doug Schoen.
And later --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, R-PRESIDENT-ELECT: We will build a great wall and we will stop illegal immigration for once and for all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GUILFOYLE: President-elect Trump is vowing to build a border wall, this as a stunning The New York Times report uncovers that some department of homeland security employees and contract workers accepted millions of dollars in bribes to allow drugs and illegal immigrants to cross into the country. Dr. Sebastian Gorka will be back with reaction along with Sheriff Paul Babeu. That and much more as "Hannity" continues.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We will heal our divisions and unify our very, very divided country. When Americans are unified, there is nothing we cannot do.
My message today is for all Americans from all parties, all beliefs, all races, all walks of life, whether you are African-American, Hispanic- American, Asian-American, we're all American, and we're all united by one shared destiny.
(APPLAUSE)
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GUILFOYLE: And that was president-elect Donald Trump on his thank you tour, promising to unite the country and serve all Americans. But while the president-elect was touting a positive message, former president Bill Clinton was spewing the same old tired divisive rhetoric of the past, telling a local newspaper that Trump, quote, "doesn't know much. One thing he does know is how to get angry white men to vote for him."
Well, one of my next guests, Fox News contributor Deroy Murdock, just challenged those comments from the former president in a brilliant op-ed titled, quote, "Beyond Angry White Men." Deroy wrote, "Trump won by appealing to all races, genders, and education levels." And Deroy joins us now along with Trump transition team executive committee member Reverend Darrell Scott and Fox News contributor Doug Schoen. This is what I call an A-team lineup. Guys, thanks so much for being here with me tonight.
Let's talk about this. This is really unbelievable. The juxtaposition of the messaging of president-elect Donald Trump and now the reaction and the pettiness, it seems, of President Bill Clinton.
DEROY MURDOCK, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Absolutely. And I think the whole idea here is to delegitimize Trump's victory, basically to paint it as the result of a white supremacist campaign, and therefore let's shut down his entire agenda. And the fact is Trump won 62 percent of white male votes. If those were the only people voting you could say it was a white male victory. But he needed other people to get to a victor, which is what he won. He did this by winning one-third, almost one out of three Hispanic men, by winning eight percent of the black vote, that's two percent higher than Mitt Romney, by winning 52 percent of white women. And so there were a lot more people involved in this Trump victory, this victory coalition, than just white men which is what people like Bill Clinton would like to have you to believe.
GUILFOYLE: Reverend Scott, a pleasure to see you. I'll know we'll be together hosting a diversity event coming up at the inauguration. But what do you make of this? Why is it this pigeonholing, trying to paint this divisive rhetoric and put this on president-elect Donald Trump?
REV. DARRELL SCOTT, TRUMP TRANSITION TEAM EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEMBER: You know, Americans were angry, but it wasn't just white Americans. White, black, Latino, Asian, all Americans were angry, and that anger showed up at the polls because we were dissatisfied with the prior administration. I mean, Michael Cohen, the executive vice president special counsel to Donald Trump, my very best friend, Michael Cohen and I formed a national diversity coalition, and we have every ethnic group you can imagine that's a part of the coalition that are passionate in their support for Mr. Donald Trump. And we all came together as Americans.
You know, the other campaign is trying to once again divide us. But we came together as Americans united with a common cause, let's get this candidate elected so we can make America great again.
GUILFOYLE: For all of the communities and rebuild the infrastructure in communities that have been suffering under a liberal reign, Democratic mayors when you look at places like Chicago, et cetera. I think it was a compelling message, Reverend, when president-elect Trump went out there and said what do you have to lose? And it seems those communities did in fact respond.
Doug, great to see you. So what are we going do about the Clintons? When are they ever going to accept responsibility?
DOUG SCHOEN, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Look, clearly, Kimberly, this was a mistake by President Clinton. And it's ironic because I was involved in an integral in 1996, and our sole focus of that campaign was on the angry white men who Bill Clinton now said were the core of Donald Trump's constituency.
Bill Clinton unified the country. He and Secretary Clinton are recovering from a painful loss. But I do join with the reverend and my friend Deroy to say we've got to unify this country. What Donald Trump said is right. He's got relatively low approval ratings now because of a divisive campaign. We've got to be together to be able to do what Colonel Peters said, which is to take on the Russians and to fight the fight for America as a unified nation.
GUILFOYLE: You know, Doug, what would you advice be to president-elect Donald Trump about how he can go about doing this and accomplishing this task of unifying the country?
SCHOEN: Well, first he's got to continue to talk the way he is. Second, we need legislation like the initiative for the infrastructure which can bring in Democratic votes. We need bipartisan tax reform, bipartisan regulation reduction. We need an inclusive president who also helps the inner city, helps African-Americans and Hispanics. And if Donald Trump follows the good advice of the reverend, I think he'll be a long way to promoting and building a true diverse constituency.
GUILFOYLE: Most certainly. Reverend, thank you for being here tonight. Doug and Deroy, always a pleasure.
Coming up next right here on "Hannity."
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TRUMP: We will build a great wall and we will stop illegal immigration for once and for all.
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GUILFOYLE: President-elect Trump is promising to strengthen our southern border. This as a stunning New York Times report reveals that some department of homeland security employees have taken millions of dollars in bribes to allow drugs and people to pour into this country. Dr. Sebastian Gorka is back next along with Sheriff Paul Babeu. Stay with us.
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TRUMP: One of the greatest public safety threats remains open borders. I have a message for the drug dealers, the gang members, and the criminal cartels terrorizing our cities, our locations, our citizens -- your days are numbered. We're getting you out, and we're getting you out fast. We will build a great we will and stop illegal immigration for once and for all.
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GUILFOYLE: And that was president-elect Trump promising to end illegal immigration. But according to a bombshell New York Times report, the security of America's borders are being compromised by a serious threat from within. According to the report, quote, "Over the last 10 years, almost 200 employees and contract workers of the Department of Homeland Security have taken nearly $15 million in bribes while being paid to protect the nation's borders and enforce immigration laws."
Meanwhile Bloomberg Politics is now reporting that three Republican senators are working with Democrats to, quote, "shield about 750,000 young undocumented immigrants from deportation if Trump cancels a 2012 order from President Barack Obama that lets them stay in the U.S."
Joining me now to respond to some of the immigration challenged president- elect Trump will face on day one in office the author of "Defeating Jihad, The Winnable War," Dr. Sebastian Gorka, and Arizona Sheriff Paul Babeu. Thank you, gentlemen, for being here with me tonight. This is a very important issue, and as a former prosecutor in a sanctuary city of San Francisco, boy, do I get it. The borders are wide open. We have a huge problem, and it seems now, Dr. Gorka, that some of the corruption is coming from within.
DR. SEBASTIAN GORKA, AUTHOR, "DEFEATING JIHAD": It does. It's a very, very disturbing piece of news. The fact we should expect this. National security was not the priority of this administration currently in power, and in fact the demoralization of our CBP, our customs and border patrol and the other officers and agents inside DHS shouldn't surprise anyone.
This is why Donald Trump won the election. We do not have sovereignty of our own terror. Our land borders are open. And there are always the people inside any organization that will exploit that possibility to make money to allow free movement when they shouldn't.
I expect one thing. Come January 20th, the afternoon of January 20th, this is all going to change. Why? Because Donald Trump actually built his campaign on the wall and law and order. As a result he will have to for his own political survival show very serious advancement on those two issues as soon as he gets in office. So this is something most Americans can rest assured will be dealt with, and there will be visible signs of this improving very soon after the inauguration next month.
GUILFOYLE: All right, most certainly. And Sheriff Babeu, I mean, you're on the front lines of this immigration challenge of these open borders and what it does to these cities and the communities in the United States. What is your opinion on that?
SHERIFF PAUL BABEU, PINAL COUNTY, ARIZONA: It's music to my ears that Donald Trump coming in as our president, not just for me in law enforcement but for all Americans. We're going to finally put America first, our communities and our safety first to secure the border. Yes, this report is alarming that there's been 200 officials in past 10 years, but I want to remind people that the overwhelming majority of the men and women who protect and serve our country are good, decent patriots who would never allow this.
And so the failure is more the administration, all these other officials that have been appointed by Obama haven't done enough to vet backgrounds. We have members actually of the cartel that have infiltrated the ranks of these good men and women who are sworn to protect America. And so we have to do a better job of vetting, and also be proactive with internal investigations as we do in law enforcement across America.
And so we're going to see the priority of securing the border and then also targeting the 1 million to 2 million illegals -- of the 11 to 20 who are here, 1 million to 2 million are serious criminals, 74 percent of which have felony convictions. Donald Trump has said they're going to be targeted, they're going to be apprehended, and they're getting out of America for good.
GUILFOYLE: And we shouldn't apologize for that. We shouldn't apologize for it I'm telling you, because what you're talking about is exactly true. Nobody is talking about being mean and breaking apart families. We're talking about criminals and criminal recidivists, Dr. Gorka, that have come in here on American dime and continue to wreak havoc in our communities, and it's got to stop.
GORKA: Very simply, Kimberly, ask anybody. Do you lock the door to your home or apartment when you go to sleep at night? Who doesn't?
GUILFOYLE: Right.
GORKA: Who says come on in, anybody. Who leaves the front door open at midnight and says come in and take my money out of my purse, out of my pocketbook. That is what the administration has done, said borders are irrelevant. You can come here, you can steal, you can lie, you can cheat. You can be prosecuted for felonies and not be deported. That's outrageous. Which country says that is a good idea? No country says that, because what happens, you don't have a country left if you allow that to happen long enough. If criminals have a free reign and are kept in our system, then sooner or later the country will crumble.
GUILFOYLE: It's so true. Sheriff, you see it firsthand. Arizona has a problem with this. That's why you've been very vocal and outspoken on this issue.
BABEU: Yes. It's far worse than what the doctor just explained. I can tell you that President Obama has lead the largest prison break in American history, releasing tens and tens of thousands of convicted criminals who aren't American citizens not back to their country of origin but right into our communities. He refused to give the names of these individuals to us in law enforcement. He's released hundreds in my county in Arizona alone, even murderers and rapists. And so he did his cause no good. What he did is released the most violent criminals in the western hemisphere into American communities. Donald Trump is going to correct that and put our safety first. And this is going to be a new day. And so I am a sheriff. He's going to be the sheriff, the new sheriff in town for the country.
GUILFOYLE: Fantastic. Such an important topic. Look forward to having you both back again, Dr. Gorka and Sheriff Babeu, thank you so much.
GORKA: Happy New Year.
BABEU: Thank you, Kimberly.
GUILFOYLE: And coming up, more "Hannity" right after the break. Stay with us.
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GUILFOYLE: Welcome back to "Hannity." Unfortunately that is all the time we have left this evening. But before we go, a quick programming note. Be sure to tune in tomorrow night for our all American New Year's eve coverage. Kennedy and Jesse Watters kick things off at 8:00 p.m. And then Eric Bolling and I take over at 10:00 p.m. We're going to be live in Times Square to ring in 2017. We hope you will join us, and I hope you have a great night.
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