Rudy Giuliani on Michael Cohen tape fallout, Mueller probe
Rudy Giuliani, attorney for President Trump, speaks out on 'Hannity' after Michael Cohen recordings are released.
This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," July 25, 2018. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS HOST: I'm dying. I'm -- so you just made my open really, really hard.
TUCKER CARLSON, FOX NEWS HOST, TUCKER CARLSON TONIGHT: I'm sorry. I couldn't help it.
(LAUGHTER)
HANNITY: I'm just -- I'm watching that segment and just laughing.
All right. Tucker, great show.
CARLSON: He's repulsive. Thanks, Sean.
HANNITY: We'll talk soon.
All right. Welcome to 'Hannity.'
This hour is chockfull of breaking news, incredible developments tonight. We'll bring it all to you.
Articles of impeachment have now been filed against the Deputy A.G. Rod Rosenstein. Now, the days of Rosenstein's obstruction may soon be coming to an end. We will have full coverage of this breaking news throughout the hour.
And first, another day, another scandalous, oh, the sky is falling. The earth is shattered. Days and days of breathless, peddling of lies by the mainstream media. We've got the best montage I think we've ever put together.
This time, America's professional Trump haters are spinning in circles over a totally insignificant audio recording between Michael Cohen and Donald Trump. It's clearly the media's anti-Trump meltdown du jour, but in moments, we'll show you how this tape is much ado about nothing.
Plus, we're going to take you on a very frightening journey tonight, you got a buckle up, you may want to warn the kids, through some of the worst examples of the destroy Trump media moving daily, crisis to crisis to crisis. We've got the tape, it's amazing.
And we'll do something you will not see in the mainstream media. We have amazing great news tonight on the economy and other news on the foreign policy front with the Trump administration. By the way, including strong new poll numbers, so much for all the media beat downs.
And, of course, we are expecting Friday, the quarterly, second quarter GDP numbers, it should make America proud. We're hoping for a major breakthrough, and we had one breakthrough today on the one of the biggest economic partners we have -- oh, there's no trade war. They said this guy was falling there too.
Free and fair trade on the horizon, huge concessions the president got today as it relates to the European Union and significant diplomatic progress under the leadership of the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Wow, what a beat-down he gave senators today, and we'll show you how he helped actually educate Democrats on the president's strong, sound, yes, tough on Russia policy.
We have a lot of real news to get to and tonight's breaking news full hour opening monologue.
(MUSIC)
HANNITY: We'll start with the one secret audio recording heard round the newsrooms all around the country, conspiracy TV MSNBC and CNN and all the likes of them.
Private conversation recorded between Michael Cohen and his client Donald Trump. Last night, it was released by Cohen's attorney, Lanny Davis. In spite of all the breathlessness in the reporting, the tape ambiguous, kind of hard to hear, reveals no groundbreaking new information.
Let's just play it for you ourselves.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
MICHAEL COHEN, FORMER TRUMP LAWYER: I need to open up a company for the transfer of all of that info regarding our friend David, you know, so that -- I'm going to do that right away. I've actually come up and I've spoken --
DONALD TRUMP, THEN-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Give it to me and --
COHEN: And I've spoken to Allen Weisselberg about how to set the whole thing up with --
TRUMP: So what do we have to pay for this?
COHEN: -- funding. Yes. And it's all the stuff --
TRUMP: I was thinking about that.
COHEN: All the stuff. Because here you never know where that company -- you never know what he's going to be --
TRUMP: Maybe he gets hit by a truck.
COHEN: Correct. So I'm all over that. And I spoke to Allen about it. When it comes time for the financing, which will be --
TRUMP: Wait a second, what financing?
COHEN: We'll have to pay him something --
TRUMP: Pay with cash.
COHEN: No, no, no, no. I got -- no, no, no.
TRUMP: Check --
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HANNITY: What you just heard amounts to nothing. It never happened. The contents of that tape provides literally no new information. Zero, zero significance here, no criminal law in question and what you just witnessed is something that occurs every single day at every major company in the country.
Crisis management to protect a brands image and reputation in this case, it's the Trump Organization.
But over on the destroyed Trump media, this was once again a daily earth- shattering scandal, that's going to bring down the president, except it's not.
Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALI VELSHI, MSNBC: We now have a secret audio recording that apparently shows Donald Trump discussing payments to bury a story about an alleged affair with a Playboy playmate, and the timing here is everything. The payments were discussed just before he won the election, think about that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There may be other issues here. There may be bank fraud, tax fraud, money laundering issues with the way they structured the payments, those kinds of issues in the end could be more dangerous and damaging than the campaign finance issue.
PAUL CALLAN, CNN: I think it's a very embarrassing and humiliating tape for the president and I think ironically, Giuliani says I can -- I can understand what's on this tape because I've listened to mob tapes. You know what the president is similar to a mob tape.
JOHN KING, CNN: Which if you listen to this, again, it sounds like this is the weekly or the monthly Michael's here to figure out what we have to cover up meeting.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: These are the same people now who literally peddle day after day, crisis after crisis, it's like 24/7, the same people were pushing impeachment even before the president took office, the same people who were predicting the end of days or at least the end of Trump ever since he descended from that escalator in Trump Tower in 2015 and announced his candidacy to be the president. The same people who have literally gone through three major crises this week alone.
In order to show you how the mainstream corrupt media has literally turned into a real-life version of Chicken Little, we put together what's we're calling a mega montage of some of the worst moments. But get ready because the sky is falling every second of the day. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You better be ready for the fact that he may be leading the Republican ticket.
(LAUGHTER)
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC: I know you don't believe that, but I want to go on.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sorry to laugh.
MIKA BRZEZINSKI, MSNBC: I understand why so many people voted for him. I understand where you were coming from. I understand why you liked him, but this man is lying to you.
CARL BERNSTEIN, JOURNALIST: Donald Trump is a president with whom there is grave question about his fitness and ability to conduct the office of the president.
CHRIS MATTHEWS, MSNBC: I'll say it again, this Russian connection just keeps building and every time it builds and expands, you have to wonder if Trump himself isn't worried about what's swirling around under the covers.
JOE SCARBOROUGH, MSNBC: The entire world's watching and, of course, most importantly, Vladimir Putin's watching. It seemed like yesterday was his love note to Vladimir Putin.
ANDREA MITCHELL, MSNBC: It is certainly an unusual speech, a weird speech, rocket man, insulting Kim Jong-un.
MADONNA: Yes, I have thought an awful lot about blowing up the White House.
ROBERT DE NIRO, ACTOR: Of course I want to punch him in the face.
BRIAN STELTER, CNN: Sixteen tweets today to start the new year, some of them deeply disturbing. These are the messages from a person who is not well.
SUNNY HOSTIN, ABC: He said he's an excellent help, I mean Sanjay Gupta came out with like, not so sure about excellent health.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: President Trump is goading Kim Jong-un to test a nuclear missile again, to prove its reliability, to show him wrong.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN: The stormy saga takes a dramatic turn as the porn star speaks out on her alleged affair with citizen Trump.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Stormy Daniels.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Stormy Daniels' lawyer.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We haven't heard from him about the Stormy Daniels affair.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I guess he's a (EXPLETIVE DELETED) holer.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN: Is there a difference if the president said (EXPLETIVE DELETED) hole or (EXPLETIVE DELETED) house.
I want to read the definition of treason.
JOHN BRENNAN, FORMER CIA DIRECTOR: This was nothing short of treasonous.
DAN ABRAMS, CNN: The idea that the president would be revoking security clearance not based on wrongdoing, just based on words is shameful.
MAX BOOT, CNN: With any previous president, if you'd woken up to this all-caps tweet threatening war with Iran, you think he probably belongs in a padded cell, but with Trump, this is kind of business as normal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Just a tiny sampling. This is literally now every minute, every hour of every day, the media their friends on the left three years running, obsessing over the crisis of the second, totally ignoring the biggest issues that we the people are facing in this country and ignoring the massive success out of the Trump administration.
And if they can't weaponize the story against President Trump, they don't really seem interested at all in covering it. News is non-existent in this country on these so-called news channels.
Right here on this show, we have been sounding the alarm about the serious corruption, real corruption real abuse of power a real Russia scandal at the highest levels of the DOJ and the FBI. Over at the destroy Trump media, crickets.
And naturally, the media goes to great lengths to avoid talking about all the positive developments surrounding the country and the Trump administration. They won't want you to know about the huge successes out of the White House.
For the first time in years, we'll find out Friday America's GDP is seeing healthy real growth. Remember, it was just a short time ago, the Obama administration wanted Americans to accept our so-called new normal, like Jimmy Carter saying wear a sweater, a pathetic growth rate of 1 or 2 percent. Now, according to projections, our second quarter growth should be about 4 percent, maybe higher.
Add to that, we now have historic job growth, 2 million fewer people on food stamps, there were more jobs available than there are people on unemployment in the country and, oh, by the way the greatest labor participation rate in history. Wow, good news for the forgotten men and women, the ones that voted for President Trump even though the fix was in for Hillary and, of course, they covered up her crimes, and then they turned their sights on Trump and they even lied to FISA court judges, a massive accomplishment that you never hear about.
And, yesterday, the president tweeted this out. Our country is doing great, best financial numbers on the planet, great to have the USA winning again. And on Friday, we expect that full GDP report for the second quarter. We'll bring you those numbers as they become available.
But tonight, we have even more positive developments that you'll never hear in the media on the economic front, after months of negotiations and fear-mongering by the media, oh he's starting a trade war -- well, the president put fears of that wart with Europe to rest as he signed off on a significantly improved trade deal for American businesses free of tariffs, barriers and subsidies.
Here's the president explaining all of this earlier today. Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We agreed today first of all to work together toward zero tariffs, zero non-tariff barriers and zero subsidies on non-auto industrial goods. Thank you.
We will also work to reduce barriers and increase trade and services, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, medical products as well as soybeans. Soybeans is a big deal. This will open markets for farmers and workers increase investment and lead to greater prosperity in both the United States and the European Union. It will also make trade fairer and more reciprocal, my favorite word, reciprocal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Well, if he didn't negotiate, that wouldn't have happened.
And the president pointed out today this deal will open markets for farmers in America, workers, increase investment lead to greater prosperity in both the U.S. and the European Union, win-win, also make trade fairer and more reciprocal as favorite word as he said. Great news for goods, services made right here in the United States, good for the American worker that was unemployed in the Obama years.
Despite the constant negativity coming from so much of the media and Democrats, you think they want the economy to grow and be prosperous? No, they want their power back. More and more Americans, you're seeing the truth with your own eyes.
We got a new poll out today. In spite of all the media hysteria, oh, look at "The Hills" poll. The president's approval rating is now higher than ever, nearly 50 percent. Oh by the way, same with Gallup, same with NBC/"Wall Street Journal". And on the world stage, the president has also seen progress which is good for our kids and grandkids.
The president's pick I think an excellent choice, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, hit the ground running. He's overseeing steady significant progress out of North Korea, China and, yes, we're being tougher on Russia than Obama ever dreamed of, because he was sending messages, tell Vladimir I have more flexibility after the election.
Well, today, the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, he testified on the hill and he explained to some of these dumb senators that the president's peace through strength strategy to counter the hostile actions of Vladimir Putin and the hostile regime of Russia, and what we're doing about it. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE: The United States calls on Russia to respect the principles to which it has long claimed to adhere and to end its occupation of Crimea, end of quote. I want to show this committee that the United States does not and will not recognize the Kremlin's purported annexation of Crimea. We stand together with allies, partners and the international community in our commitment to Ukraine and its territorial integrity. There will be no relief of Crimea-related sanctions until Russia returns control of the Crimean peninsula to Ukraine. This Crimea declaration formalizes United States policy of non-recognition.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Formalizes it. Oh, but they -- but I think there was somebody at NBC that actually suggested that the president was an agent of Russia. This is how insane so called news has gotten.
The secretary of state also helped Democratic senators -- that aren't really too bright some of them -- understand how under the leadership of the president the U.S. is actually leading from the front all over the world, not from behind. And we're not going on apology tours and we're not dropping $150 billion on the tarmac in cash and other currency to the mullahs of Iran that chant death to Israel and debt to America.
Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. ROBERT MENENDEZ, D—N.J.: Did he tell Putin that I'll release or ultimately relaxed sanctions?
POMPEO: Senator, what you need to conduct your role, your appropriate role, I will provide you today. That is United States policy with respect to the issues you request, you asked me about us policy with respects to sanctions, and I can confirm to that no commitment has been made to change those policies in any way.
Just so the facts are clear, the previous administration is the one that enabled Russia to have the capacity that they have in Syria today.
SEN. JEANNE SHAHEEN, D—N.H.: I'm not defending the previous administration, Mr. Secretary, I want this administration to continue doing what's working.
POMPEO: It's policy. This administration's policy you're advocating for the continuation of this administration's laws I think that's important for everyone to understand.
SEN. ED MARKEY, D—MASS.: North Korea still has chemical and biological weapons and brutalizes its own people, and again, there's no verifiable evidence that North Korea is denuclearization -- denuclearizing.
POMPEO: Senator --
MARKEY: So I am afraid then at this point, the United States -- the Trump administration is being taken for a ride.
POMPEO: Fear not, Senator. Fear not.
MARKEY: There's no evidence to the contrary.
POMPEO: Fear not, Senator.
MARKEY: There's no evidence.
POMPEO: Senator, fear not. May I --
MARKEY: Yes, please?
POMPEO: I guess you didn't ask a question, so --
MARKEY: No, that's all right, please --
POMPEO: Fear not. This administration has taken enormous lead constructive actions that have put us in a place that is far better, than in either of the two previous administrations, one Republican, one Democrat. We have put sanctions regime in place that is unequaled. We are continuing to enforce that sanctions regime.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: No missiles fired over Japan, dismantled nuclear test site, hostages turned home. We'll have the bodies of Americans killed in that war sent back, and we're talking about denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and no bribery.
Last but definitely not least tonight, some major breaking news out of the deep state. This is important. Moments ago, a group of 11 House Republicans have officially now introduced articles of impeachment against the Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, the guy that signed the last FISA warrant.
After months of obstructing what is congressional subpoenas and failing to comply with these subpoenas and inhibiting the important investigation and the FISA abuse, their Russia witch-hunt and so much more, Rod Rosenstein must now be held accountable. It's called congressional government oversight. It's called checks and balances, co-equal branches of government, and, yes, the United States Constitution, and it's time for Rod Rosenstein to be held accountable.
We got a lot to get to tonight, a lot of reaction. Rudy Giuliani in a minute.
Joining us first with reaction is former U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, Joe diGenova, and Fox News contributor Sara Carter.
Sara, we'll start with you and the breaking news. I think Joe has a lot to say.
(LAUGHTER)
SARA CARTER, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Joe does have a lot to say.
One of the things that happened today, I think it was the straw that broke the camel's back, Sean, was the fact that when Meadows and Jordan went to meet with the DOJ and FBI, once again they refused to comply. They said they were in compliance with giving the documents over to Congress. There was I guess a lot of arguing back and forth. Jordan and Meadows said they weren't in compliance, that after nine months, they still didn't even know how many documents they needed to turn over to them.
There was another issue that came up which I thought was very interesting. The FBI did agree with Congressman Jordan that struck did not answer 90 percent of the questions that he could have answered that he took a very, very broad interpretation. This is Peter Strzok when he provided testimony, the FBI agent.
So, they are going to be calling Peter Strzok back to testify before Congress and hopefully he will be answering a lot of the questions that Congressman Jordan had asked him that he refused to answer.
HANNITY: Let me go to you, Joe. He was under oath and, you know, if you did have your past job, I don't think I would be under oath.
But more importantly, let's go to Rod Rosenstein. This is a guy -- he signed the fourth warrant which was the bulk of information was that phony Russian dossier paid for by Clinton.
They didn't tell the FISA court judges. They didn't verify the information. They didn't follow the law. They didn't follow up behind protocol.
And Rod Rosenstein signed the last one, the third renewal, the fourth, all together.
Your reaction?
JOE DIGENOVA, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Well, there's no doubt that Rod Rosenstein deserves everything that he's getting. Whether or not impeachment is the right way to go doesn't even matter anymore. Rosenstein remembered, didn't even read the final application he had people explain to him what was in it.
Rosenstein is the one responsible for the crisis that the president has faced in the Mueller probe. Without Rosenstein there is no Mueller probe. He did it purposely to avoid having to make difficult decisions in a political investigation. He should be ashamed of himself. He's getting precisely what he deserves.
But what's more important than that, Sean, is that you are watching a president of the United States who has astride the globe, and he is being assisted ably a secretary of state in full. We no longer have a namby-pamby foreign policy.
We have a secretary of state who today performed beyond any expectations any Americans could expect of a secretary of state. I was amazed at Pompeo's performance and I can tell you --
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: -- to say that.
DIGENOVA: -- the president is really pleased, especially because of the outrageous performance of the Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats in Aspen when he kissed the feet of Andrea Mitchell and criticized the president of the United States. Shame on Dan Coats.
HANNITY: I watched Pompeo today and I literally felt --
DIGENOVA: Fabulous, fabulous.
HANNITY: -- finally no apologies, finally strength. And he laid out all the things that the president -- NBC though I think reported that he's an agent of Russia. He's doing to Russia.
(LAUGHTER)
HANNITY: But the irony to here is, look, we cannot ignore -- I got to get your take on this FISA.
Listen, if I lied to a FISA judge or I lied to any judge, you couldn't get me out of jail as great an attorney as you are. If I did --
DIGENOVA: Sean --
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: -- you couldn't get me out of jail?
DIGENOVA: This case is over.
HANNITY: What?
DIGENOVA: Sean, this case is over. The FBI under Obama and the Department of Justice under Obama with John Carlin, the assistant attorney general for national security, lied to the FISA court, hid material information from the FISA court. It is an outrageous abuse of power and if Jeff Sessions and Rod Rosenstein have not begun a grand jury to investigate all the people involved in the phony dossier and everything involved on it, ultimately when Mueller is done, Rosenstein and Session should be fired.
This is a clear case of criminal law violation in the FISA application. It was clearly a fraud committed on the FISA court, and it is beyond belief that nothing publicly known has been done to hold accountable everybody involved in the signing of those applications in the FISA court.
HANNITY: Sara, real quick because we got a run. But you've been amazing on all of this.
CARTER: I couldn't agree more with, Joe. I just want to say really quick remember what they did leave out of the FISA was the fact that Bruce Ohr at the DOJ said that Christopher sealed would do anything to keep Donald Trump from being president, and I think that's all we need to say.
HANNITY: And they didn't say that Hillary paid for it.
CARTER: Absolutely.
HANNITY: And that these are unverified Russian lies.
CARTER: Right.
HANNITY: Robert Mueller, there's your Russia story. Go find it. We laid it on a platter for you.
Thank you all.
When we come back -- all right, the president's attorney, Rudy Giuliani, we have a live report up from Catherine Herridge on these articles of impeachment introduced, a ton of breaking news. Stay right there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HANNITY: Fox News alert: moments ago, Congressman Mark Meadows and Jim Jordan, along with nine co-sponsors now have introduced articles of impeachment against the Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
Here with a new update on this is Catherine Herridge in Washington.
Catherine, what's going on?
CATHERINE HERRIDGE, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Sean. Good evening.
The articles of impeachment called out the deputy attorney general and alleged a conflict of interest. These heavily redacted records released over the weekend show Rosenstein signed off on the last surveillance warrant renewal in June 2017 for Trump campaign aide Carter Page.
These lawmakers say that's a big deal because their committees are investigating government surveillance abuse. Quote: Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein's failure to recuse himself in light of this inherent conflict of interest and failure to recommend the appointment of a second special counsel constitute dereliction of duty.
After lawmakers met with senior DOJ and FBI officials earlier today, reporters were told FBI agent Peter Strzok avoided too many questions during his recent congressional testimony and he will likely be recalled. The closed-door depositions from struck, and FBI lawyer Lisa Page identified records previously unknown to lawmakers about a file documenting FBI efforts to verify the controversial Trump dossier. Lawmakers questioned whether verification happened before the dossier was used by the FBI as evidence to secure the surveillance warrant.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE) in the FISA application?
REP. MARK MEADOWS, R—N.C., HOUSE FREEDOM CAUCUS CHAIRMAN: Well, I think that when you look at that, that's the key question that we're looking at these documents, when did it start, and I think those start dates could be problematic for some of the narratives that are out there right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HERRIDGE: Heading into the meeting today, Justice Department officials indicated to Fox News that they believe they have complied with the majority of congressional subpoenas. On the articles of impeachment tonight, there was no immediate response and in the last hour, Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein and Congressman Adam Schiff called the Republicans move deeply partisan, Sean.
HANNITY: Catherine Herridge in Washington, thank you for that report.
Now with us is the president's attorney, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Mr. Mayor, great to see you.
RUDY GIULIANI, PRESIDENT TRUMP'S ATTORNEY: Sean, good to see you.
HANNITY: All right. A lot of news. Let's get your reaction to Congressman Meadows, Jordan and more importantly, the fourth -- well, the third renewal, the fourth FISA warrant Rod Rosenstein signed off on.
GIULIANI: Rod Rosenstein is one of people in charge of this case. So, I'm not going to get involved in critiquing his conduct unless at the end we have to. I'm hopeful he's going to make the right decision.
I see the case falling apart. I see in front of my eyes what happened yesterday with the first of Cohen's tape, what happened today was the one with Chris Cuomo, which is not Cuomo's fault. It's his fault.
That one -- I mean, they've been saying all along, did the president know about it? Cohen says on the tape he didn't know about it. Did Cohen pay for it? Cohen said he paid for it.
Was it for the campaign or was it personal? Cohen says it was personal, over and over again, not just one. It's a two-hour tape.
And Cuomo, like a reporter, pressed him (ph) and he sticks with his story.
HANNITY: Why --
GIULIANI: Totally, totally with regard to that particular situation, once again, totally legitimate conduct.
HANNITY: From what we read, and this a two-hour conversation. But let's go back to last night for just a second. You have listened to that tape how many times and some say that the president said 'check.'
(CROSSTALK)
GIULIANI: I think 30. The president said I have it right here. I had the transcript. I have five people go over it and another five -- you got to listen to it four or five times which is when I talked about mafia tapes -- I didn't talk about this about mafia tapes. I said I'm an expert on tapes, I did 4,000 hours of men on tapes saying, hey, Racko (Ph), what are we going to do today?
HANNITY: My gosh. So we're going to put you in the next movie.
GIULIANI: Yes. I want for that. Donald Trump says don't pay with cash. Interruption. Cohen, no, no, no I got it. Check, no, no, no. And then very, very suspiciously he cuts the tape off because it's a very, very innocent very solid explanation.
Here's another reason it had to be checked. Before they talk about doing it by a corporation. How are they going to do cash with corporation doing $150,000.
HANNITY: It's impossible.
GIULIANI: Yes, impossible. You might as well sign up for jail.
HANNITY: Yes. Let's look at the big picture. The status, this has gone on. Look at the country is so divided. I have been very harsh in terms of -- I believe that a presidential election at the highest levels that the fix was in, that Hillary was guilty of obstruction in violating the Espionage Act and it was rigged.
I -- you see what we learned about the FISA warrants on Saturday night. They never verify the information, they never corroborated the information, they purposely withheld from the judges on four separate occasions that this was Hillary Clinton bought and paid for what turned out to be Russian lies. There's a Russia conspiracy here. There's a Russia thoughts.
GIULIANI: If you look at theoretically there, one of the things they were concerned about, to the president obstruct justice when he fired Comey? First of all, he has a right to do it in the article two. Secondly, he made it clear to Lester Holt he did it knowing that the investigation would continue so he couldn't obstruct it.
And thirdly, I have 15 reasons for doing this including the Horowitz that kind of outline for--
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: And one to say is Rod Rosenstein.
GIULIANI: On the other hand, how does Hillary not get prosecuted for destroying tapes, lying at least three or four times, having people -- having people tell totally phony stories, false exculpatory statements, destruction of evidence. That's all evidence of intent, corrupt intent. And Mueller--
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: So let's go to--
GIULIANI: He reads that all the way as if he didn't exist.
HANNITY: You told Laura last night.
GIULIANI: Not Mueller. Excuse me.
HANNITY: I know. You got Comey.
GIULIANI: Comey.
HANNITY: Got it. You told Laura Ingraham last night that there are no more tapes on Donald Trump. Everyone is reporting that there's 12 tapes--
(CROSSTALK)
GIULIANI: Michael Avenatti was running around all weekend saying he said it on ABC. He actually said he got it from Cohen and I mean, he says it on TV, Dershowitz cross-examined him brilliantly and got him to say he got the tapes from Cohen and there were numerous tapes with President Trump.
Well, the government must be hiding them if that's the case and I assure you the Southern District of New York is not hiding evidence. In fact, I can't imagine.
HANNITY: Some of the best prosecutors came out of there. Some of the best- -
(CROSSTALK)
GIULIANI: I can't imagine they are shocked by this unbelievable assault on the attorney-client privilege, my God.
HANNITY: Yes. Let's--
(CROSSTALK)
GIULIANI: I've never heard of this.
HANNITY: America has been following this and I've been given very different narrative that is really -- everything we reported has come true. I wish some of it was wrong by the way. And I still say that the heroes in this are going to be FBI and CIA guys.
My question to you is, is this now coming to an end? Because you talked last night and I watch Alan Dershowitz after, that there won't be any talk about obstruction with the president, then is there going to be a subpoena fight? Is there are going to be any discussion about collusion and why would you ever allow him to talk to this group of people which I have very strongly criticized?
GIULIANI: Well, it's certainly as a big barrier. There's no reason to talk about obstruction because article two precludes obstruction. The defenses to obstruction were overwhelming including what I told you he's saying he will be -- can't the investigation would go on to Lester Holt. They conveniently leave that off whenever they play that tape, amazing what they do with tapes.
However, there is a narrow area which you and I both think that we might think about it and we are in discussion with a special counsel about it, it would all have to do with collusion so there is no perjury trap. It would all be done so we get this thing over with--
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: Why they don't believe that they could do it without setting a perjury trap. I just--
(CROSSTALK)
GIULIANI: Well, then they'll give up on the obstruction point, where there's no obstruction case. And what they're trying to set up is the president against Comey and they are going to believe Comey no matter the fact that Comey is probably one of the most incredible guys around.
HANNITY: Will this be done before the election?
GIULIANI: I believe it will. I think Mueller wants to get it over with before the election. I really believe that.
HANNITY: Good of the country.
GIULIANI: Yes.
HANNITY: Do you think he is a good man?
GIULIANI: I think he's OK, I think he's a good man. I think he's got some people around him that--
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: Andrew Weissmann is--
(CROSSTALK)
GIULIANI: -- including one with a record that's astoundingly bad.
HANNITY: I know the one you're talking about. Sir, Mr. Mayor, great to see you as always. Thank you.
When we come back, we will show you why John Brennan former CIA director deserves to get his security clearance revoked and much more, straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HANNITY: The White House announced this week that it was looking into stripping the security clearance from several Obama era officials. One of the people who may be losing his privilege is, yes, the only guy that voted for a communist for president. How he ever became the CIA director is a mystery, director John Brennan.
He is one of the biggest Trump haters out there, now a political hack for conspiracy theory TV where I guess he belongs. This is, now remember, the CIA protocol says if you want to keep your clearance, you've got to act like a modern-day CIA employee, you can't be doing stuff like this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRENNAN: I think he's afraid of the president of Russia.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why?
BRENNAN: Well, I think one can speculate as to why, that the Russians may have something on him personally. That they could always roll out and make his life more difficult.
Mr. Trump continues to have ignorance of facts, a willful disregard of them. Again, just to follow through on these campaign promises that really were very flawed.
I and so many other national security officials are speaking out because of the abnormal and aberrance behavior of Mr. Trump.
This is a very large and painful national kidney stone. The relief we feel afterward is going to be just exhilarating.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Here with reaction, he's the author of "Why We Fight: Recovering America's Will to Win" Fox News national security strategist, Dr. Sebastian Gorka, retired CIA senior intelligence officer Fox News contributor, Daniel Hoffman.
Daniel, let me start with you. You know John Brennan. The CIA we did put it up on the screen last night, yes, if you want your clearance you've got to act as though you a current the same way a current CIA employee would act. Is that the actions of a current CIA employee?
DANIEL HOFFMAN, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Not exactly. Let me just make two quick points, Sean. First of all, for the rank and file retired intelligence officers who retain a security clearance is because they have a job to do as a contractor back in the intelligence committee which requires the clearance.
Secondly, there's no evidence that John Brennan or Jim Clapper has revealed classified information. In fact, they have like, willfully spoken untruths not based on intelligence. Jim Clapper claims that the Russians tilted the election to Donald Trump, not true.
And absolutely contradicts the intelligence that was produced and resulted in the January 2017--
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: He has lied.
HOFFMAN: -- the DNI said over which Clapper presided. Brennan claims that Putin could blackmail Trump, same thing. There is no evidence to support that claim. So they're both being irresponsible even though they're not exactly, you know, revealing classified information.
HANNITY: Dr. Gorka, I know you have a thing or two to say on this.
SEBASTIAN GORKA, FOX NEWS NATIONAL SECURITY STRATEGIST: I have three things to say, Sean. Number one, since the CIA was created in 1947, not one former CIA director has behaved as disgracefully as John Brennan. The idea that within months of leaving office you are attacking the sitting president, calling him treasonous and accusing him of committing high crimes and misdemeanors is absolutely outrageous.
Secondly, you mention it in your introduction -- how is it that John Brennan even got a job at the CIA when he admitted to voting for the communist party at the height of the Cold War when the Soviet Union had 25,000 nuclear warheads aimed at this country and when it was committed to our destruction.
I would like to find an investigation as to why he was employed by the CIA, let alone become its director.
And lastly, Daniel, let me expand upon what Daniel said. There are only two reasons after you retire from government service at his level that you should maintain a security clearance.
Number one, you are actively involved in a current government project as a contractor, John Brennan isn't. Secondly, your advice is requested by your successors so that the new CIA director can listen to you.
This administration does not want John Brennan's advice, therefore, the president should strip him of his security clearance right now, Sean.
HANNITY: Well said. How do you get to call yourself NBC News and have people under that banner suggesting that without any evidence, the president may be an agent of Russia, an agent, and that he is compromised when the president has been 10 times stronger, Daniel Hoffman, against Russia than Mister apologize for America and bribe the mullahs of Iran with American dollars in cash.
HOFFMAN: John Brennan later walk that back, pulls back--
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: OK.
HOFFMAN: But the damage was done, Sean.
HANNITY: Yes.
HOFFMAN: Because a lot of our allies who share intelligence with us heard him. And they assume that base on the fact that John Brennan has that security clearance he might know something.
Same with our sources in Russia who might worry about their safety because John Brennan is claiming that the president could be blackmailed by Vladimir Putin.
Brennan needed to have taken the Hippocratic Oath of doing no harm to our national security when he exercised his right to free speech.
HANNITY: Dr. Gorka.
GORKA: Every time John Brennan spins these insinuations, he is doing Vladimir Putin's dirty work. That's who John Brennan is today. He is undermining America.
HANNITY: Well said. Thank you both. When we come back, they are back. Jesse Watters, Jessica Tarlov we'll find out whose world it is on Meghan McCain takedown of Joy Behar in her defense of socialism, powerful moment. You don't want to miss it, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HANNITY: All right. Things got very heated, shocking, on 'The View' yesterday, Joy Behar and Meghan McCain got into a debate over socialism and Democrats rising star Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and this is what happened, take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOY BEHAR, CO-HOST, ABC: Isn't Democratic socialist and very close to liberalism, I mean.
MEGHAN MCCAIN, CO-HOST, ABC: No.
BEHAR: I mean, think about it for a second, Medicare, social security, garbage collection, the post office, the library--
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I agree with you.
MCCAIN: I hope Democrats do run a Democratic socialist.
(CROSSTALK)
BEHAR: You hope that we win.
MCCAIN: No, because I think you will lose spectacularly, and then I'll look forward to election when I finally get to sell (Inaudible) Hold yourself. He ends up running a radical.
The problem with socialism in the words of Margaret Thatcher, at a certain point you run out of spending other people's money.
Every Democratic socialist who is going on TV saying that it's good it needs to start paying 90 percent in taxes on your tax forms--
(APPLAUSE)
BEHAR: But you're just naming--
MCCAIN: No, on your tax forms I think you should start paying the amount of taxes that every socialist in this country thinks he needs to. Because if you think the government is so good at spending money, look at the (Inaudible). It's dangerous.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Boom. Meghan McCain. The only thing missing was Jeanine Pirro being thrown off the show. It would have been a perfect show. All right.
It's his world and we live in it, he's got two shows, the co-host of 'The Five,' Jesse Watters, and Waters World and waters everything. And Jessica Tarlov who was the reigning champion and lost your -- all right.
So this is the Democrat agenda for 2018. They want to impeach Donald Trump but they don't want to say it, they want their crumbs back. We'll get to that in a second. That's what Meghan McCain was talking about.
They want open borders and to get rid of ICE, they want to keep Obamacare - - it's been a great success. And on top of all of that we've got a party that literally wants to stop investigations into corruption. Why do you explain to Americans, why they should give their crumbs to Nancy Pelosi and Elizabeth Warren and Joy Behar?
JESSICA TARLOV, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: In donations money? Because they are actually when Democrats getting tough.
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: No, no, no.
TARLOV: Why they should take that thousand dollars and give it to the Democrats?
HANNITY: Well, $2,000 were significant amount of money for the real families. Yes, why they should give it back?
TARLOV: Well, there are new reports that wages haven't actually been increasing but I guess that the tax cuts were a big bonus for the Republican side. They should give it to the Democrats because our agenda will benefit middle and lower class Americans. And that's not what's going on here.
HANNITY: So you want every American who has a tax cut to be taxed again, you want it back.
TARLOV: No. That's not what's going to happen. First of all, the mega rich are the ones that you two are getting taxed. I'm not even going to get that.
HANNITY: You have no idea how much Jesse gets paid.
JESSE WATTERS, FOX NEWS HOST: Whatever it is it's not enough.
TARLOV: Hey.
WATTERS: I want to say this. So you want to bring Venezuela to America, I think that's terrible. Because in Venezuela, human beings are taking dog medicine. There is famine. It is the murder capital of the world. I think if you want to bring socialism to America you hate America because it's going to destroy America, and politically it's suicide to become socialists.
It puts you guys in 1994, you went way left and you went way left in 2010. Both times Republicans swept through the House, massive gains. If you guys want to kill yourselves I'm going to sit back and watch.
TARLOV: Well, in 2010, you guys went way right and you took a lot of House's seats, 66 I think. We only need 23 to take control. The Dems socialist movement right now there only 42 of these candidates in contention nationwide. This is in the mainstream Chuck Schumer, Nancy Pelosi. They're not Democrat socialist, Bernie Sanders is.
HANNITY: No.
TARLOV: No? No. They talk about it all the time.
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: How about -- wait, Meghan McCain had a really good idea.
TARLOV: There was some mainstream Dems conference in Ohio.
HANNITY: Meghan McCain had a really good idea, I like it.
TARLOV: Ninety percent?
HANNITY: No. We're going to put the -- we'll call it the Joy Behar, Jessica Tarlov box.
WATTERS: Yes.
HANNITY: Pay as much as you think you should pay but leave the rest of Americans alone, families that are struggling to pay for their cars and their mortgages and send their kids to a private school because the public school sucks, et cetera.
TARLOV: I think--
(CROSSTALK)
WATTERS: You know what the truth is, Sean, they can't afford any of these policies, they're not very good at math. You know how much free health care costs? Thirty trillion dollars and they want to add free housing at free college on top of that. You can raise everybody's taxes to 90 percent, that isn't going to make a dent in the cost of those programs.
TARLOV: Yes. But this is what I'm saying, and when I return to what I said just two seconds ago. This is in the Democrat mainstream. When you look at what Bernie is advocating versus Hillary, she made the same point, you sound like Hillary Clinton, Jesse Waters. Because she said how are we going to pay for that?
(CROSSTALK)
WATTERS: A lot (Inaudible) up then.
TARLOV: How did you take my awesome line and make it even better?
HANNITY: That is a great line.
TARLOV: Jesse Watters, you sound like Hillary Clinton, I win for that.
HANNITY: I'm sorry. But the comeback beat the line. The comeback killed it.
TARLOV: The validity of my argument, though, should be, Jesse--
(CROSSTALK)
WATTERS: (Inaudible).
TARLOV: Yes, there it is.
WATTERS: OK.
TARLOV: Dems socialists are not the majority. We're not indeed--
(CROSSTALK)
HANNITY: Hey, could you name one positive agenda item for the Democrats besides the five items I mentioned?
TARLOV: Yes. Our tax plan is a lot better.
(CROSSTALK)
WATTERS: Raising taxes.
HANNITY: Raising taxes.
TARLOV: Yes, on you.
HANNITY: Don't change. All right. Ready?
TARLOV: All right.
HANNITY: Watters World.
WATTERS: There it is.
HANNITY: All right. When we come back, Rush Limbaugh, a really great words about the president's critics in the media constantly, breathlessly trying to take it down every second, every minute of every day.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HANNITY: All right. The great Rush Limbaugh has such a great take on the continuous failure of the media to just destroy and delegitimize the president you voted for. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUSH LIMBAUGH, TALK SHOW HOST: One of these things these clowns at CNN, and the drive by is not getting, that is that every phony blockbuster story about Trump, everyone of these things that doesn't anywhere. Every one of these things that doesn't get rid of Donald Trump inoculates him. From the next one.
And every inoculation then lessens the credibility of the media and all of this I think ends up helping Trump. They have figured this out. They still think they can get rid of Republican presidents. They are not going to give up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: Such a good point. Every second, every minute, every hour of every day, they can't help themselves. Rush is right. They're inoculating Trump.
We'll always be fair and balanced. We're not the destroy-Trump media. We always thank you for being with us and we hope you'll tune in tomorrow night along with the breaking news, Roseanne Barr will join us. You don't want to miss it. Let not your heart be troubled.
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