Updated

This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," October 17, 2012. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY, GOP PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: The president's spending, the president's borrowing, will cost this nation to have to raise taxes on the American people. Not just on the high-end. A recent study has shown that people in the middle class will see $4,000 higher a year in taxes as a result of the spending and borrowing of this administration. I will not let that happen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: There you have it once again. Governor Romney came out swinging on the economy in the second presidential debate last nights, and it worked.

Joining me with reaction, Tea Party favorite, Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson. Senator, how are you? Good to see you.

SENATOR RON JOHNSON, R-WIS.: Nice to see you.

HANNITY: Are you enjoying Washington?

JOHNSON: Didn't do this to have fun. It's interesting, it's very important, Sean.

HANNITY: Just talking earlier, I think the president with his hundreds of millions of dollars that he spent demonizing Mitt Romney, you know, just was wasted, because then here come the debates.

People get to see Governor Romney. They're, like, he doesn't want dirty air and water. He seems like he really cares about his country. He's really serious about issues. He's very well informed. He obviously cares about kids with autism and Down's syndrome.

JOHNSON: Right.

HANNITY: That's one ever your points, you think Governor Romney -- you know a lot about him personally.

JOHNSON: Sure. Well, you know, you're right, that caricature that President Obama's spent hundreds of millions of dollars, you know, creating, it was shattered. I mean, went up in smoke on the first debate. I think last night just continued that momentum.

And you're right, I mean, Governor Romney is, first of all, a man of integrity, of intelligence. You know, actually has a plan. You know, what a concept, a plan. What I really liked about the second debate, the vice president's debate, when Paul told the story of that accident, that family.

I heard my own story when Governor Romney's brother came to town, Scott Romney, and as an employer this really resonated with me, because one of Governor Romney's partners, at Bain Capital came in, concerned about his 15-year-old daughter, who took a train down here to New York, and hadn't been seen for three days. What Governor Romney did was extraordinary. He didn't just take time off. He didn't say, well, take the time off, I'll hire you a private eye. He shuts down Bain Capital. He took the employees, I think 30 employees back then, brought them here to New York, set up a command center, printed 300,000 flyers, set up a grid pattern, and found that daughter.

Sean, that's an extraordinary example of leadership, of generosity, and that's the type of leadership we need in this country that we have to opportunity to elect.

HANNITY: I've heard that story, but not many other people have. Why do you think that is? Besides the liberal media.

JOHNSON: Because Governor Romney's modest. You know, he's not going to beat his chest and say, aren't I great? That's why I came on here to tell those stories. I'm hoping the last 21 days here, those stories -- there are dozens of them -- I hope those stories are told about Mitt Romney, because again, that just helps shatter that very false character that President Obama painted.

HANNITY: You know, one thing that has -- I've found fascinating, is that he took it to Obama.

JOHNSON: Yes.

HANNITY: -- in both of these debates. And he wasn't going relent and he was -- he just -- it was like a prosecuting attorney. He just tore him up and shredded what has been a horrible record in last four years.

JOHNSON: That's the disadvantage President Obama has. He has a record that's impossible to defend. The metric that I think sums it all up is the fact that median household income has declined by $4,500 during President Obama's recovery.

HANNITY: One in six Americans in poverty, 41 million on food stamps. These are things I say, but to say it face-to-face before 60-plus million Americans and the president, look him right in the eye, and eyeball him and say, your policies failed.

JOHNSON: And what's so sad, so sad, Sean, it didn't have to be that way. You know, President Obama came into office, and he had to make a choice. And he could have chosen to concentrate all of his efforts on growing the economy, which is what Mitt Romney is talking about, creating jobs. But instead he decided to grow government, which has grown our debt to unsustainable levels.

HANNITY: Want to know why that's true? I said this from the beginning. The president is radical, he hides it, and he's arrogant. The president was mad, you could see it. I thought it might turn into a hockey game last night, it was getting so personal.

JOHNSON: The other thing that I've seen, been there 21 months now, and let's face it, President Obama simply doesn't even know how to lead. When he came into office, he had total control. What did he say to Republicans? We won. We're really bipartisan, right? Now with divided government, unlike Mitt Romney who did in Massachusetts, he's unable to work with people.

HANNITY: Senator, good to see you. Thank you.

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