This is a rush transcript from "The Kelly File," December 8, 2014. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
MEGYN KELLY, HOST: Time Magazine releasing its top eight finalists for Person of the Year in 2014. So who's on the list? Piers Morgan. No, but he's here to talk about it. He's editor-at-large now at the Daily Mail. Piers, great to see you.
PIERS MORGAN, EDITOR-AT-LARGE DAILY MAIL: Before we get any further, let's just kill the elephant in the room right away. OK. So when you started at 9:00 and you were up against me I tweeted you saying, "Bring it, Megyn Kelly."
KELLY: Yeah, I was polite enough to ignore that.
MORGAN: And the mere fact I'm now a guest on the show indicates that you brought it. So congratulations.
KELLY: Thank you very much for being such a gracious loser. We appreciate it.
MORGAN: Well, temporary loser.
KELLY: Loser? Who said anything about loser?
MORGAN: Don't mention the L word. I've actually been watching your show.
KELLY: Have you?
MORGAN: I couldn't do it before. I was up against you.
KELLY: Now, we are your selection at 9:00 p.m.?
MORGAN: I agree with a lot of what you say, which is a quite disturbing revelation.
KELLY: Perhaps not the brand you expected when you spent too much time at the Huffington Post.
MORGAN: That may be true.
KELLY: All right, let's talk this Time Magazine thing. The protesters in Ferguson apparently are on the short list and one of the favorites to win. Are they your favorite to win?
MORGAN: They are. I didn't like the looters, the criminals, the thugs.
KELLY: What is it about arson that appeals to you?
MORGAN: No, not that. I think peaceful protest when it is executed properly as we've seen all around America, often is the only way actually to effect real change. And America has a massive problem right now with the justice system and the perception of it amongst the black community. And they have a damn good point.
You know, I was watching coverage earlier of Eric Garner's death. That man was just killed on the streets of New York in a chokehold. I don't care what definition they put of how he put his arm around, he was choked to death. That is unacceptable. In any noble country in the world, that policeman --
(CROSSTALK)
KELLY: You know what the response to that is. He was resisting arrest. Piers, if somebody stopped you on the streets of New York.
MORGAN: We've seen the video.
KELLY: You're doing something you shouldn't do -- I'm playing devil's advocate. You're doing you shouldn't do and you're under arrest, you would comply.
MORGAN: I agree with you.
KELLY: You'll submit. You'll say I'll sue you. I will see you in court.
MORGAN: I agree. And I have great respect for the NYPD.
(CROSSTALK)
KELLY: He didn't, that's the problem. These guys put their lives on the line.
MORGAN: But, Megyn, we've seen the video. And that man is not aggressively resisting arrest. And he is slammed to the floor.
KELLY: But they don't know that.
MORGAN: He repeatedly says I can't breathe, I can't breathe, I can't breathe. It is a harrowing video.
KELLY: I'm playing devil's advocate here.
(CROSSTALK)
KELLY: Let me ask you this. Because the Ferguson protesters get it -- here in New York, the protesters have been quiet and peaceful. In Ferguson, we saw arson, we saw stores looted. We saw terrible behavior.
(CROSSTALK)
KELLY: Burn this B down and so on. So if they wind up Person of the Year -- and there are other things like Ebola medical workers like the guy who brought it to New York, Kaci Hickox, who was all over (inaudible) before she got ruled OK.
(CROSSTALK)
MORGAN: Don't get me started on that, by the way.
KELLY: People are going to get upset.
MORGAN: Well, they may get upset. They should get upset. But everyone in America needs to wake up to the reality of the grand jury system and the way it is played out with the Michael Brown case and now with this case, Eric Garner. To me, it is unfathomable that these policemen have not at least had to face a proper jury.
KELLY: Piers, lecturing people on the American system does not usually go over well, but we appreciate you being here.
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
MORGAN: I haven't mentioned guns.
KELLY: Good luck. Great to see you.
MORGAN: Nice to see you.
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