Gorka: Trump understands the importance of using force
Deputy assistant to President Trump weighs in on 'Hannity'
This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," April 20, 2017. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
SEAN HANNITY, HOST: And this is a Fox News Alert. And we are broadcasting tonight from Jerusalem. We are in Israel. Now, my opening monologue coming up in the next segment.
But first, we have a lot of breaking news all over the world tonight. Now, North Korea -- now, through state-run media, they issued a new warning to the United States threatening to launch a, quote, "super-mighty" preemptive strike that would reduce America and South Korea to, quote, "ashes."
Joining us now with more on the rising tensions between the U.S. and North Korea, from the Pentagon, is our own Jennifer Griffin -- Jennifer.
JENNIFER GRIFFIN, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Sean, they are really in a watch and wait mode here at the Pentagon, no real developments on the peninsula today, but all eyes are on that nuclear site, where satellite images show the North Koreans have for the past three weeks been making preparations for what would be a sixth nuclear test.
We know from U.S. defense sources that water has been pumped out of that underground site, cables are seen going underground that are consistent with preparations for a nuclear test. And perhaps strangest of all, North Korean workers have been seen playing volleyball there, as though they are on stand-by.
The North Koreans are very angry that the U.S. and South Korea began a new joint military air exercise today that will last through April 28th. This is viewed by Pyongyang as a provocation and threat to the regime, and frankly, could be misunderstood with tensions so high in the region.
Separately, a senior U.S. defense official says they have seen a greater amount of bomber activity in China, but it is not clear what the so-called activity means. U.S. officials are not seeing more bomber flights, but think China has put its pilots on an increased alert status. U.S. officials tell us North Korea warned China about a possible nuclear test that would take place on April 20th, but that deadline seems to have passed. It is now April 21st in Pyongyang.
The next important anniversary for North Korea is April 25th, when some worry that Kim Jong-un will try to mark the founding of the North Korean army with either a nuclear test or another missile test. The U.S. and China are trying to prevent that -- Sean.
HANNITY: All right, Jennifer. Thank you tonight. We appreciate it.
And joining me now with the very latest on the continuing crisis in Syria, our own David Lee Miller, who is with us in Jerusalem tonight -- David.
DAVID LEE MILLER, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Sean, Israeli defense officials say that Syria has as much as three tons of chemical weapons, this despite a 2013 international agreement that it would give up its chemical weapons arsenal.
Syria denies any responsibility for a chemical weapons attack in the northern part of the country earlier this month that killed as many as 90 people, including dozens of children. The U.S., Israel and much of the international community says Syria is to blame. Israeli authorities believe Syrian military commanders ordered the attack and that Syrian president Bashar al Assad knew it was going to happen.
An international watchdog group, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which is investigating the incident, said results from four laboratories indicates the use of sarin gas or a sarin-like substance. The head of that organization says the analytical results obtained are incontrovertible.
Assad says political enemies are trying to frame his government for the use of these banned weapons. Syrian ally Russia supports the claim that a Syrian air strike hit a rebel weapons factory, which cause the carnage. Russian officials also question the legitimacy of tests that reveal the use of chemical weapons. The Russian military wants to know how those samples were collected and how the analysis could take place so quickly.
Meanwhile, France's foreign minister says that his country is soon going to produce proof in a matter of days that Syria was responsible for launching those chemical attacks.
And as a preventive measure, Syria has now moved all of its operational aircraft to an air base in that country that is under Russian control. That move is in response to a U.S. air strike that destroyed about two dozen Syrian jets. Pentagon officials say 59 Tomahawk missiles were fired at the Syria's Shayrat air base because it was used in the chemical weapons attack.
A senior U.S. defense official says Syria's decision to relocate its aircraft underscores -- quoting now -- "a clear sense of paranoia." The Russian base where the Syrian jets and helicopters have moved to is also used for Russian aircraft and has advanced air defense systems.
And lastly tonight, the president of Syria is now saying he wants the United Nations to intervene in this ongoing conflict, Bashar al Assad saying that he would like U.N. experts on the ground in his country. He says once they are there investigating the use of chemical weapons, he will see that the reports blaming Syria, he believes, will be proven to be -- quoting now, his words -- "all lies" -- Sean.
HANNITY: And David Lee Miller with us in Jerusalem tonight, thank you.
And earlier today at the United Nations Security Council, Ambassador Nikki Haley talked about the threat that Iran is posing to Israel and the rest of the Middle East.
Joining us now from New York is our own Rick Leventhal -- Rick.
RICK LEVENTHAL, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: And Sean, we spent the day at the United Nations, where U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley clearly not satisfied with the status quo, trying to shake up the Security Council during her one-month tenure as president. We saw it during the regularly scheduled quarterly debate on the Middle East, which of the past 17 years has focused on the Palestinian quest for an independent state, meeting that's become an Israeli-bashing session, according to the ambassador.
So she asked the 15 members of the council to focus instead on state- sponsored terrorism as the greater threat to peace and stability in the region, singling out Iran's support for Hezbollah, blamed for brutal attacks and instability in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and beyond.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NIKKI HALEY, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: If we are speaking honestly about conflict in the Middle East, we need to start with the chief culprit, Iran and its partner militia, Hezbollah. Iran and Hezbollah conspired together to destabilize the Middle East, and their actions are expanding.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let me state it clearly. There is one country which sows this dangerous chaos throughout the Middle East. Where there is terror, where there is death, where there is complete disregard for human life, there is Iran.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVENTHAL: Israel and the U.K. were among the supporters of Haley's directive. China, Russia and Iran, not surprisingly, all criticized it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GHOLAMALI KHOSHROO, IRANIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: By blaming all others but the occupier, the U.S. seeks to raise (ph) the question, rather than addressing it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVENTHAL: The session lasted more than six hours. And at least half a dozen speakers did expand beyond the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But there were no real surprises today, Sean. And Haley's tenure as president of the Security Council ends in 10 days -- Sean.
HANNITY: All right, Rick Leventhal in New York tonight, thank you.
And earlier today, President Trump -- he held a joint news conference with the Italian prime minister. And joining us now with the latest from the White House is our own John Roberts -- John.
JOHN ROBERTS, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: At a press conference this afternoon, Sean, the President Trump and the Italian prime minister, Paolo Gentiloni, took a couple of questions apiece, a grand total of four, which is a bit of a shame because there was so much to talk about today.
I got one of the questions and managed to ask a three-parter, so we did get some good ground covered today. I asked him about the suspected terrorist attack on the Champs Elysees in Paris, where a policeman was shot dead. To that, the president responded, quote, that he saw it just as he was coming in to the press conference, a terrible thing, look like another terrorist attack, what can you say to death in Paris. He saw it just as he was coming into the press conference. A terrible thing. Looks like another terrorist attack. What can you say? It just never ends.
Terrorism definitely was a big topic of conversation between the president and the Italian prime minister. They also spoke about North Korea, the USS Carl Vinson now steaming toward the Sea of Japan in a show of force, the president also saying he's very happy with the level of cooperation that he is getting now from China and the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, telling us that some very interesting things are happening at the moment that we'll hear about very soon.
You know, one of the big concerns has been that unlike his father, Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung, the grandmother, Kim Jong Un may not be the sort of leader you can reason with because a lot of people believe that may be mentally unstable and a person you can't negotiate with.
I asked the president about that. Here's what he told me.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: As far as North Korea's concerned, we are in very good shape. I can't ask you -- answer your question on stability. I hope the answer is a positive one, not a negative one. But hopefully, that will be something that gets taken care of.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Of course, because he is very close to the region, another big topic of conversation with the Italian prime minister was Iran and whether or not they're living up to the terms of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the JCPOA, the famous or infamous, rather, Iran deal. I asked the president about that today, particularly in light of the fact that his secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, a couple of days ago certified that Iran is in compliance with the terms of the JCPOA.
But there's a lot of suspicion here at the White House that Iran is at the very least playing fast and loose with the rules. And that's why the president has ordered an interagency review of whether the sanctions should be lifted or whether they should stay in place.
Here's what the president had to say in response to my question about whether or not he thought Iran was actually cheating on that deal. Listen here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: They are not living up to the spirit of the agreement. I can tell you that. And we're analyzing it very, very carefully, and we'll have something to say about it in the not too distant future. But Iran has not lived up to the spirit of the agreement. And they have to do that. They have to do that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Of course, on the campaign trail, a lot of the Republican candidates, among them Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, said that one of the first things they would do as president on day one would be to rip up that deal.
President Trump was a little more circumspect about it, saying he didn't like the deal. He thought it was one of the worst things that had ever been negotiated, but that he would seek to change it.
There is some talk among some people here at the White House that maybe it is time to rip up that deal. But at the moment, it looks like it's going to stay in place, Sean, though clearly, the president very suspicious about what Iran is actually up to.
HANNITY: And coming up next from Jerusalem tonight here on "Hannity"...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Iran has not lived up to the spirit of the agreement. And they have to do that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: President Trump calling out the rogue regime in Tehran. The world is on edge tonight and needs American leadership now more than ever. Now, I'll explain why. My "Opening Monologue" is coming up next. And Dr. Sebastian Gorka will be here with reaction.
Then later tonight...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HALEY: While this council has paid too little attention to this growing menace, the United States will not. We're going to speak up about Iran and Hezbollah, and we're going to act against their lawlessness.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Ambassador Nikki Haley slamming Iran at the United Nations. Dore Gold will be in our studio here in Jerusalem coming up later.
That and more as we continue from Israel tonight.
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HANNITY: And welcome back to "Hannity." And we are in Jerusalem. We're in Israel tonight as the world is on edge due to growing threats from North Korea, Iran and terrorist groups in the Middle East. What the world needs now more than ever is bold, decisive American leadership. And that's tonight's "Monologue."
Now, President Trump is signaling to the world and America's enemies that the United States of America is back and that we will be leading from the front to deal with foreign policy challenges. Now, the commander-in-chief is also showing that he will not be repeating the mistakes of his predecessor when it comes to the rogue regimes in North Korea and Iran.
Now, earlier today, Pyongyang through state media threatened a, quote, "super-mighty preemptive strike" that will reduce America's military to ashes. Now, this comes as North Korea is now facing new pressure from President Trump over their country's nuclear ambitions and after Secretary of State Rex Tillerson announced yesterday that America is, in fact, conducting are a view of its policies towards Iran, including the disastrous Obama-era nuclear deal.
Well, earlier today, President Trump slammed Tehran for breaking the agreement. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: They are not living up to the spirit of the agreement, I can tell you that. And we're analyzing it very, very carefully, and we'll have something to say about it in the not too distant future. But Iran has not lived up to the spirit of the agreement, and they have to do that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Now, tonight, my message could not be more clear: These rogue regimes must never, ever be allowed to develop or acquire nuclear weapons. Now, letting them do so would put tens of millions of lives in immediate danger. North Korea, like we saw today, routinely threatens South Korea and America with their nuclear attacks. And the Iranians repeatedly call for the destruction of America, Israel, they say they want to wipe Israel off the map.
Now, President Trump is now being forced to face all of these threats after years of timid and completely naive appeasement policies of Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. For example, back in the 1990s, the Clinton administration, they struck a deal with the North Koreans, giving them $4 billion in energy aid in exchange for what they said was a promise that Pyongyang would eventually end their nuclear program.
You may remember that Bill Clinton was praising this agreement. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, OCT. 21, 1994)
THEN-PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON: This is a good deal for the United States. North Korea will freeze and then dismantle its nuclear program. South Korea and our other allies will be better protected. The entire world will be safer as we slow the spread of nuclear weapons.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Now, obviously, this deal was completely flawed. It didn't work because of the situation we now find ourselves in.
Then you have Barack Obama. Now, instead of learning from Clinton's massive mistake, well, he, in fact, secretly brokered a deal with Iran giving the number one state sponsor of terror $150 billion while still allowing them to spin their centrifuges.
Now, take a look at Obama promising this back in 2015, a deal that he said would prevent Iran from ever getting a nuclear weapon. I don't buy it. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, APRIL 2, 2015)
THEN-PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Today, the United States, together with our allies and partners, has reached a historic understanding with Iran, which if fully implemented, will prevent it from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
This framework would cut off every pathway that Iran could take to develop a nuclear weapon. Iran will face strict limitations on its program, and Iran has also agreed to the most robust and intrusive inspections and transparency regime ever negotiated for any nuclear program in history.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Oh, that's sort of like saying that the line in the sand, the red line in the sand, stopped Assad from ever using chemical weapons again. Didn't work.
Now, we've been saying it for years on this program and the Secretary of State Tillerson, he is now making it clear that Iran nuclear deal does nothing to stop Iran from ever developing a nuclear weapon. Now, Tehran is also testing ballistic missiles which could one day potentially carry a nuclear warhead, maybe even to the continental United States.
Now President Trump understands that when dealing with countries like North Korea and Iran, you've got to speak from a position of strength because any time weakness is shown, well, they will exploit it to their own advantage.
Now if you want a perfect example of why America needs to lead from the front of the world's stage to combat these many threats, all you have to do is take a look at Israel. Now Israel shares a border with Lebanon, which is the home of the terrorist group Hezbollah, and Syria, which is engaged in a brutal civil war and where ISIS, of course, is headquartered. Now, it's next door to Iraq, where the Islamic State controls large portions of land, and that's close to Iran, a country that calls for Israel's destruction.
Now unlike America, by the way, Israel is not protected by thousands of miles of oceans. This country is, in fact, surrounded by enemies and complete chaos. That's why it is so critically important to listen to the warning of Israeli leaders, because they see and deal with these threats up close and personal every single day.
Here with reaction is the deputy assistant to President Trump. Dr. Sebastian Gorka is with us. Dr. Gorka, you see the world and all that's going on tonight, not a good situation. Your reaction to what's going on in North Korea, your reaction to Iran, the threat that now engulfs this region of the world, and of course, Syria.
SEBASTIAN GORKA, DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT: I think you indicated in your monologue what changed. The bad actors will always be out there. In the last eight years, they've been mollified, they've been assisted, they've been facilitated by the foreign policy of the Obama White House that simply created vacuums around the world for two reasons, Sean.
Number one, the people that made the decisions believed America was the problem. And secondly, they thought that all use of force is bad.
That has changed. Donald Trump understands as the commander-in-chief, as the president that bad actors often only understand one thing, the use of force. Secondly, he believes in America. and his whole administration does. So we're not going to allow people that define themselves according to values that are antithetical to the founding of this nation. We're not going to let get away with what they got away with during the last eight years.
HANNITY: All right, Dr. Gorka, this is really important because we have a history now of getting a lot wrong here. Let's start with $4 billion that President Clinton gave to North Korea. And he got empty promise they'd never develop nuclear weapons. They got the money, they developed the weapons. We had Susan Rice, we had John Kerry, we had President Obama all saying their red line in the sand in Syria would prevent them from ever getting or using chemical weapons again. That proved to be false.
Now, what is the likelihood that the $150 billion that Obama gave Iran and the right to spin centrifuges without real inspections -- what does that turn into? Does that turn into the number one state sponsor of terror in the world getting $150 billion and getting nuclear weapons? Is that what's going to happen?
GORKA: Even Secretary Kerry admitted that some of that money will probably end up being used for terrorist attacks. That's why we're not going to follow these policies.
It's very, very important to understand that President Trump is a pragmatist, and he understands what President Reagan said. When you deal with dictatorships, when you deal with authoritarian regimes, you cannot trust them. That's because they're dictatorships. That's because they're authoritarian regimes. Remember the Gipper's great phrase, "Trust but verify." That's the kind of attitude we're going to have today, and nobody's going to treat us the way the Obama White House was treated.
HANNITY: He certainly inherited a mess. There's no doubt about it. Those appeasement policies are coming back to haunt us. Dr. Gorka, thank you for being with us.
GORKA: Thank you, Sean.
Up next from Israel tonight on "Hannity"...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HALEY: While this council has paid too little attention to this growing menace, the United States will not. We're going to speak up about Iran and Hezbollah, and we're going to act against their lawlessness.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: That was U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley earlier today talking about the threats that are posed by the rogue nation of Iran. When we come back, Dore Gold is here with us here in Jerusalem.
And later tonight, Ann Coulter refusing to back down after a speech in Berkeley, California, was canceled after security concerns. By the way, they have now reversed themselves. She'll respond.
That and more tonight on "Hannity" as we continue from Jerusalem.
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(NEWSBREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HALEY: If we are speaking honestly, about conflict in the Middle East, we need to start with the chief culprit, Iran and its partner militia, Hezbollah. Iran and Hezbollah conspire together to destabilize the Middle East, and their actions are expanding. For decades, they have committed terrorist acts across the region.
While this council has paid too little attention to this growing menace, the United States will not. We're going to speak up about Iran and Hezbollah, and we're going to act against their lawlessness.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: All right, that was the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, during today's U.N. Security Council meeting strongly criticizing the role that the Iranians are playing in the continuing conflict here in the Middle East.
And yesterday the secretary of state, Rex Tillerson -- he warned about an unchecked Iran. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REX TILLERSON, SECRETARY OF STATE: Iran is the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism and is responsible for intensifying multiple conflicts and undermining U.S. interests in countries' such as Syrian, Yemen, Iraq and Lebanon and continuing to support attacks against Israel. An unchecked Iran has the potential to travel the same path as North Korea and take the world along with it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Joining us now with reaction is the president of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. He is also the former director general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and former U.N. Ambassador Dore Gold. Good to see you.
DORE GOLD, PRESIDENT, JERUSALEM CENTER FOR PUBLIC AFFAIRS: Good to see you, Sean.
HANNITY: Good to be back in your home country. Let's get your reaction. Once again the United Nations, constantly anti-American, anti-Semitic on display again today. Nikki Haley tried to drive the discussion back to the number one state sponsor of terror, the Iranians. Hezbollah, they're fomenting of all these proxy wars. Your reaction?
GOLD: It's clear if you want to create order in the world, security in the world, you have to distinguish between those who are attacking and those defending. And the U.N. confuses it. They attack Israel, which is defending itself, and they ignore the aggression of Iran which is attacking not just Israel but all the countries of the region.
HANNITY: Fomenting terror and fighting proxy wars one after another.
GOLD: And their terror has reached back in 2011 the United States. Your capital, Washington, D.C., they teamed up with a Mexican drug cartel.
HANNITY: Also killing American soldiers during the Iraq war as well.
All right, Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the PLO, is going to be meeting with President Trump. I would think that for any peace deal he doesn't recognize Israel's right to exist. We still know that terrorists are rewarded with honor and families are given rewards if, in fact, their family members are killed killing Israelis. How do you begin a discussion about peace when that is their stated policy?
GOLD: You had an American hero named Taylor Force who was in Jaffa, next to Tel Aviv walking along. The man had fought in Afghanistan. He was a West Point graduate. He fought in Iraq. And he was killed by Palestinian terrorists. Those killers were praised by the Palestinian Authority. They were rewarded. The families of the terrorists were rewarded by the Palestinian authority. There's Palestinian law which requires the Palestinian Authority to give money to them.
HANNITY: So Abbas is going to meet with the president. Palestinian law requires them to give money if they kill Israelis.
GOLD: Correct.
HANNITY: Pretty insane. Now, recently Abbas also said after an Israeli was killed something to the effect that it's a good thing to see Israeli bloodshed. What was the exact quote?
GOLD: There was a quote he mentioned about blood in Jerusalem because we had all these knifings going on in Jerusalem.
HANNITY: Right.
GOLD: And he was praising the blood that was spilled. This has to stop.
HANNITY: Are you upset that the president is even meeting with this guy?
GOLD: The United States is a global power. We understand that. But there are two things that have to come out of this meeting. One, the Palestinians have to stop giving money to the families of terrorists who engage in terrorism. And two, they have to change the law.
HANNITY: Let me show to our audience here. We have got the mother of a killed Palestinian terrorist celebrating, quote, "martyrdom" by throwing out candy and even pulled out a knife and threatened her own attack on Israel. And then we'll show you a clip of a preschool girl holding a knife saying she wants to, quote, "stab a Jew." Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (FOREIGN LANGUAGE): I did not cry, and I am angry that he didn't take me with him. Muhammad should have taken me to be martyred with him. We regret nothing. We are proud of him. I'd like to offer you candy to celebrate Muhammad's martyrdom. As for me, I am concealing this weapon for Israel. Watch out, Israel, watch out.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (FOREIGN LANGUAGE): I want to stab a Jew.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (FOREIGN LANGUAGE): Why do you want to stab the Jew?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (FOREIGN LANGUAGE): Because he stole our land.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (FOREIGN LANGUAGE): They stole our land. With what do you want to stab them?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (FOREIGN LANGUAGE): With a knife.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (FOREIGN LANGUAGE): Oh, you're so strong. Allah willing, my dear.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: All right, so, Dore, by law, the PLO by law has to give that mother of a terrorist money.
GOLD: Correct.
HANNITY: All right, the head of the PLO is going to meet the president. Now, talk about indoctrination. That is a preschool girl talking about, again, I will use "stabbing Jews."
GOLD: Yes.
HANNITY: How do you make peace with people that don't recognize your right to exist, indoctrinate their children this way, and give money by law to families of those that kill.
GOLD: You just can't come to Washington and go to Camp David or someplace and sign a peace treaty. You have to change. This is going to take time. We're ready to work with the Palestinians to make things better. But this is intolerable.
HANNITY: Doesn't the law have to be changed first? Stop rewarding those that kill innocent Israelis. Don't you have to first recognize Israel's right to exist before can you even begin a conversation?
GOLD: You know, in welfare in the United States, a welfare program, you determine the amount of money somebody gets according to their need. Here you determine the amount of money Palestinian families get by the number of Israelis that are killed. This is ridiculous. This has to change. It can't continue.
HANNITY: They continue to indoctrinate, they continue to reward terror and they don't recognize your right to exist. I hope when the president does meet with Abbas, those questions come up because we have a lot more tape. We are going to have the prime minister on the program tomorrow and I will be showing a lot more of this tape to our audience. Dore, good to see you sir.
GOLD: Thank you.
HANNITY: Appreciate it.
And also coming up tonight, U.C. Berkeley has now reversed its decision. They will now let Ann Coulter finally speak at this liberal campus, the so- called home of freedom of speech. Ann is here tonight exclusively with reaction.
And then later, my tour of a market in Tel Aviv that was rocked last year by a terror attack. That and more as we continue from Jerusalem. We're in Israel tonight.
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HANNITY: Welcome back to "Hannity." As we continue broadcasting, we are in Jerusalem. We are in Israel tonight. But back in America, well, we have seen freedom of speech under assault. But conservative author, Ann Coulter, well, she appears to have scored a huge victory in her battle with U.C. Berkeley. According to the Washington Post Coulter's speech on the liberal campus which was cancelled yesterday over security concerns has now been rescheduled for May the 2nd.
Joining us now, the author of the bestselling book "In Trump We Trust, E Pluribus Awesome," Ann Coulter. I have known you for all these years. One of the things I have always loved about you is your courage. The fact that you are insane enough to want to go out there in the first place speaks volumes about you, and that you confront these liberals on campuses all the time. What is your reaction to, a, being cancelled, and, b, being rescheduled?
ANN COULTER, COLUMNIST: Well, I think Berkeley just -- for one thing, they are so completely insulated. Obviously they were stung by all these lefties around the country saying, well, no, even though you are a university campus and you seemed to have abandoned all constitutional rights or concept of free speech, you have to let people speak. You can't discriminate against them on the basis of viewpoint.
No, you cannot impose arbitrary and harassing restrictions on the exercise of a constitutional right. I don't happen to be available on May 2nd. Moreover, there are a lot of great reporters in San Francisco. I think they might want to ask Janet Napolitano this. Is she willing to have, even if this were possible, to pay the hundreds of thousands of dollars in rescheduled, rebooked hotel rooms, flights for me, my security, my guests. Is Vicente Fox required to reschedule randomly?
When they cancelled originally they said they would reschedule for September. Now they just pick another date out of the hat. None of this has to do with security. After acceding to all of their requirements, which were also arbitrary and silly, and they claimed it was on the basis of safety, I suggested two measures that actually would allow free speech to exist on Berkeley, if they wanted it to. And that was, one thing, to announce that any students caught engaging in violence, mayhem, or disrupting an invited speaker's speech would be expelled. And number two, to have a little talk with the Berkeley chief of police who is allowing these Rodney King riots to go on whenever a conservative speaker speaks.
This is a forum -- it is anarchy when you are only enforcing the law in order to allow liberals to speak. But, no, we'll let these masked rioters show up with weapons and start -- I mean, they are all little beta males. Btu with a weapon even a beta male can do damage, especially to a 99-pound girl. To have them stepping in, those private individuals, according to courts, are acting under color of state law. And for the police to refuse to protect even offensive speech. And by the way, I'm the author of 12 "New York Times" bestsellers. This has damaged my reputation for them to be acting like I'm David Duke out there. But courts have found even somebody out burning an American flag, the police cannot stand by and let skinheads beat them up. That is viewpoint discrimination. And they are all liable.
HANNITY: Let me ask you this. I in a sense know that if you did go out to speak there would be that group of people, probably the loudest, that would try and shut you down, which has happened to you in the past.
COULTER: Not in this country.
HANNITY: And this is supposed the home of the free speech movement.
COULTER: I guess it's ironic that it's the home of the free speech movement. But no, in any public space, American citizens have constitutional rights. And just note, I have never been shut down from speaking anywhere in this country. This will be a first. This is, you know, California. It's public space. These polite liberals who have paeans to spree speech, no, they are enabling the fascist thugs showing up with weapons and wearing masks. It's against the law to conspire to violate someone's constitutional rights wearing a mask. The police chief or someone representing the police was asked about that at a press conference today. He seemed to be unaware of the law. It's quite shocking how the police are conspiring with the fascist thugs. How the Berkeley administration is conspiring with the fascist thugs.
These are the people who were against Trump. These are the people who are behind, you know, Princeton putting out a pamphlet on what pronouns can be used and young -- young men being falsely accused of rape by these witches on college campuses. This is what the opposition is. They may sit back in their classrooms and act as if, oh, no, we love free speech and we so respect the constitution. No, they are enabling these fascist thugs.
HANNITY: They're full of it. All right, Ann Coulter, thanks for being with us.
I got a tour earlier today in the market of Tel Aviv that was rocked by a terror attack just one year ago. Now two Palestinian gunmen opened fire. They killed four innocent people and injured many others. That's coming up next as we continue from Jerusalem tonight, "Hannity" on the road.
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HANNITY: Welcome back to "Hannity." And we are broadcasting tonight from Jerusalem. We are in Israel where, of course, the people of this country live under the constant threat of terrorism. Now, last year in the city of Tel Aviv, two Palestinian terrorists opened fire in a crowded market, killing four innocent people, wounding 16 others. Earlier today, I visited the site of this brutal attack with Prime Minister Netanyahu's spokesman David Keyes and the president of the Jerusalem center for public affairs, Dore Gold. And I asked them about the dangers surrounded every single day surrounded by a lot of the enemies. Take look.
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HANNITY: One of the things that's coming up is the president will be meeting with Abbas, and maybe for my edification, the audience edification, Abbas claims he wants peace. What does he really say in public? What is the public persona versus the truth that maybe that would help the president?
GOLD: Unfortunately now there is something going on which is simply outrageous that President Trump can change. Mahmoud Abbas is allowing a system to grow that is rewarding those who engage in terrorism, rewarding their families. You got a young kid, you know, Ahmed, and he goes ahead and he shoots an Israeli. He will get payments from the Palestinian authority. He has a guaranteed job in the future. And if he kills somebody, there's more money.
HANNITY: That's going on today.
GOLD: That is going on today.
HANNITY: If you kill an Israeli you get money.
GOLD: You get money.
HANNITY: Your family gets money.
GOLD: And it's Palestinian law.
So I have two very simple messages for Mr. Abbas. Stop the payments and change the law. He should not leave Washington without having made that commitment. The real stumbling block for making peace is the culture of hatred that the Palestinian Authority has built.
HANNITY: Let's play a hypothetical game and ask this. If Abbas were to go and meet with the president, if he recognizes Israel's right to exist, if he stops making the payments to those that kill Israelis, if they get rid of these squares and statues honoring killers of Israelis, where do you begin the peace process from that point? Is that -- obviously that's got to be a basic simple starting point to get any negotiation moving forward, right?
GOLD: Well, first, you have to understand what are the vital interests of both sides.
HANNITY: Right.
And you look at those vital interests. Did you go do I have a bridgeable deal? Do I have a deal for the whole process? Or maybe I have to start with something more limited. The worst thing you can do to an American president is to put him into a process which is going to fail, which is going to be like two locomotives colliding. That's bad for the president. It's bad for the reputation of the United States.
HANNITY: Explain specifically, if President Trump is watching the show right now, the trap is what for him, and what does he need to understand and negotiate to get the outcome that would be beneficial for Israel, for the Palestinians, and for the world and the United States?
GOLD: First of all, I want President Trump to succeed. He deserves to succeed. We all deserve his success. But for that to happen, we have to design a process where we can work on the things that are bridgeable but not trying to, you know, throw a Hail Mary pass each time. And that's what's been happening. We've gone too far.
HANNITY: What's the Hail Mary, that they think they are going to do what?
GOLD: They think we are all going to meet on the White House lawn, shake hands, and end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
HANNITY: Not going to happen?
GOLD: There are conflicts that you can address, but sometimes the gaps are too wide.
HANNITY: Joining us now, David Keyes spokesman for Prime Minister Netanyahu. We are at the Sarona market. And it was in June of last year. This was a prime location. There was terror attack. Tell us what happened?
DAVID KEYES, PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU'S SPOKESPERSON: Right behind us a few tables back, two terrorists came in. They ordered brownies. They were dressed in suits. They tried to blend. Average people were sitting at these tables sipping coffee with their families. And they stood up and murdered four people in cold blood. What is it that drove these people to stand up and start shooting people? What is it that drives people in the streets to stab average Israelis?
HANNITY: We have video. I have played it on my TV show. I've played them on my radio show, the indoctrination of young children into hating Israel, hating Jews from a very young age.
KEYES: The prime minister spoke at the U.N. about a 13 year old boy, he called him Ali. He said imagine Ali wakes up in the morning and goes to soccer practice. But his soccer team is named after a man who murdered about 37 Israelis. On his way to school, he passes the Abu Sukar statue erected to a mass murderer who killed 15 people in Jerusalem. And when he gets to school, there's a Palestinian education ministry seminar honoring Baha Alyan who bordered a bus and stabbed three Israelis on a bus. And when he turns on television he sees President Abbas saying we welcome every drop of blood spilled in Jerusalem. That's a direct quote. And when he turns on Twitter or Facebook, he's going to see President Abbas' senior advisors, I will quote it for you in the original Arabic, it's something your viewers deserve to know. This advisor said "Wherever you find an Israeli, slit their throat."
Look, everyone in this region deserves to live in peace. And there is nobody who would ho want peace more than the Israeli people and the Israeli prime minister. Every time we had a partner for peace Israel has actually worked out peace deals which lasted decades in the case of Egypt and Jordan. Peace is actually attainable, but what it requires is, number one, a fundamental acceptance of the Jewish state.
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HANNITY: All right, when we come back, we need your help with the very important "Question of the Day" as we continue tonight. We are in Jerusalem, we are in Israel, and we'll continue.
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HANNITY: Welcome back to "Hannity" as we continue from Jerusalem. And it's time for our "Question of the Day." So how big a threat do you think North Korea and Iran is now to the world with all the news breaking out today? We want to hear from you. Go to Facebook.com/SeanHannity, @SeanHannity on Twitter, let us know what you think.
That's all the time we have left this evening. Quick programming note, we hope you'll tune in tomorrow night as we continue from Jerusalem, 10:00 p.m. eastern. My interview with the prime minster of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu, timely as ever. That's tomorrow night at 10:00. Thank you for being with us. We'll see you back here tomorrow from Israel. Thanks for being with us.
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