'The Five' preview first presidential debate between Biden, Trump

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'The Five' preview first presidential debate between Biden, Trump

Democrat, Republican camps spar over debate ground rules ahead of Cleveland confrontation

This is a rush transcript from “The Five" September 29 2020. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

JESSE WATTERS, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Hello, everybody. I'm Jesse Watters, along with Juan Williams, Dana Perino, Greg Gutfeld, and Bret Baier. It is 5:00 in New York City and in Cleveland, and this is THE FIVE. It's the moment America has been waiting for. In just four hours from now, President Trump and Joe Biden will square off for the first time in Cleveland, the former VP arriving for the debate just a few moments ago. 

It's going to be must-see TV after the candidatestraded personal attacks on the campaign trail formonths. Both men looking to exploit the others perceived weak spots. The president is sure to bring up Hunter Biden, and the former VP is expected totalk about Trump's taxes. Biden just released his 2019 returns today. It's safe to say both sides are raring to go. 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's been on the debate stage so many times. And he is so good. He is so good. And I think Joe -- what Joe's going to is what Joe always does. He's going to speak directly to the American people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think Biden is a nasty enough guy. I mean, he said terrible things about thepresident. So the president has every right to take his head off if he wants. And he's very well prepared. I mean, he's much better prepared now than he was four years ago. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

WATTERS: If you thought the campaigns would put aside the insults and focus on policy, you'd bewrong. Both sides fighting over debate rules. TheTrump campaign calling for both candidates to bechecked for listening devices, and claims Biden's team asked for two breaks. The Biden camp callingthe ear checks idea absurd, and said they neverasked for breaks. 

And the Biden campaign is accusing Trump's teamof asking Chris Wallace to not mention the number of Americans who died of Coronavirus. The Trumpcampaign says that's a lie. Bret Baier, the ear device thing, is that common to be kind of gamed out before a debate? Has this ever happened before? 

BRET BAIER, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Not like this. I mean, there have been past debates where people were raising questions about it, Hillary Clinton, George W. Bush, but it was afterwards -- andphotographs. I don't think it's been like this in this pre-back and forth. It is a bit of a rebuttal from bothteams, both denying all things that the other teamsaid. It all goes away when both of these men step on the stage, and that is what people are waiting for. 

WATTERS: Dana, what's the vibe like there? What have you been hearing? What have you been seeing and smelling? Give us a little color.

GREG GUTFELD, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Smelling? 

DANA PERINO, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Smelling. I'm trying to think of what I'm smelling. We had a big rain last night, so it's nice and fresh here in Cleveland. I would say you can sort of feel theenergy, right? There is a palpable excitement. I do think it will be the most-watched presidential debate in American history, especially as the candidateswere flying in today. 

You could just feel it stepped up. So now, we are less than four hours away now. So everything is locked in. Like, the debate about a debate, you know, eargate or whatever you want to call this idea that Chris Wallace wouldn't bring up the Coronavirus deaths. Like, I think all of that immediately goes away. It melts on contact right as the two start at 9:00 p.m. 

And I think that President Trump and Biden, like, they know this is for all the marbles, so get ready, Jesse. 

WATTERS: I'm ready. I will be there at 9:00 waiting towatch. Juan, are you pumped up for tonight? 

JUAN WILLIAMS, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Well, yeah. I mean, this is exciting. You know, the first debate -- what do they say, Jesse? The first 30 minutes of thefirst debate really forms a lot of opinions out in thecountry. I know a lot of people say, you know, I think it's the Wall Street Journal, I think mentioned this yesterday, 70 percent of Americans say they've already made up their minds. 

The debate's not going to shift anything, but it does have potential to shift some, which is why I was just amazed. As you were saying in the open, Jesse, why is the president of the United States spending time talking about drug tests and transmitters in JoeBiden's head? I think he just wants to avoid having to talk about not paying taxes or paying less taxes than the average working American. 

You know, I mean, he wants to do everything toavoid that topic. And to me, it looks desperate. Theother part of it, I guess, he wants to avoid talking about Coronavirus, which is that whole thing about, you know, what Chris Wallace is allowed to ask. And, you know, I mean, today, we have increases in Coronavirus infection rates in 21 states, New York City seeing
-- New York State I should say seeing the rate now above 1,000. 

I mean, this is like a crisis. And of course, our economy continues to suffer. So the president is going to have to address serious issues, not transmitters in Joe Biden's head. 

WATTERS: Something tells me that Greg Gutfeld might disagree slightly with that, Greg? 

GUTFELD: No, I agree with everything he just said. 

WATTERS: Oh, god. 

GUTFELD: We can go to break now. No, this is going to be war. And the only piece you're going to see is in Joe Biden's ear. And I know that Dana said this is for all the marbles. That is good for Joe because, you know, he needs them. He lost a lot of them. As for the whole idea of the earpiece controversy, Bret is right. It isn't new. 

Gore was accused. Hillary was accused. And Bill Clinton was accused of having a piece. But she was in the hotel room waiting for him to finish up. 
There's been a lot of criticism now about Joe for a huge, huge lie. You're not seeing it everywhere, but you're starting to see claiming that he got his education started at Delaware State, a historically black college. 

And Delaware State denies that he has ever been a student there. Joe's response was, as a black man, I find this attack incredibly racist. So I'm going towatch this. I'm not going to use a sports analogy. I'm going to use it as a -- let's call it a furniture-moving analogy. When I'm watching the debate, it's like watching two movers in your house moving your stuff out. 

And you're just kind of like always on edge that something is going to happen but you're not sure what it is, as they take grandma's urn and go down the stairs. And please don't spill it. And I'm not sure who I'm worried about. All I know is that feel -- I'm going to feel tremendous anxiety and unease andmy drinking game will help me through that. 

My drinking game has three steps, one, turn on theTV, two, start drinking, three, pass out. 

WATTERS: You know who I'm worried about, Greg? 

GUTFELD: Who? 

WATTERS: I'm worried about you. 

GUTFELD: You should be worried about me. America should be worried about me.

PERINO: Just don't move any furniture tonight, Greg. 

WATTERS: Let me ask you, Bret Baier. We saw theattacks (ph) thing dropped from The Times that Joe is coincidentally all over. And now, you're seeing a release from the director of national intelligence that said that Russian intelligence had picked up information that Hillary Clinton was trying to frame Donald Trump for being involved with Russia hacking and election interference. 

And that according to handwritten notes, Brennan, former CIA Director, actually briefed President Obama about this, late July 2016, and again briefed Jim Comey in September. Do you think that might come up in tonight's debate, because that seems pretty relevant to the whole Russia collusion narrative? 

WILLIAMS: Oh, god. 

(CROSSTALK) 

BAIER: I don't know if the president is going to go down that road. In that release, that DNI letter, is that it can't be vetted. And that they are, you know, not sure about the intel. So it is more setup to theJim Comey hearing with Lindsey Graham, I think, than anything else. Listen, the president's definitely going down the Russia road. 

I don't know if he's going to get this specific from this letter. But expect the first 30 minutes, Jesse, I think to be full of fireworks. 
Because if anything, President Trump knows that most eyeballs are going to be in the first 30, 40 minutes. And this is a guy who knows TV more than most.

WATTERS: He does, and we will be watching. 

(CROSSTALK) 

WILLIAMS: Maybe Jesse, -- Jesse, what about the$70,000 for his hair styling. I want to see his hair tonight. 

WATTERS: I'm sure the Fox News hair people did a great job. Maybe not
$72,000 worth, but they do a great job. I mean, look at mine, Juan. 

(CROSSTALK) 

PERINO: Yours looks pretty good. 

WILLIAMS: That is pretty good. 

(CROSSTALK) 

WATTERS: Yes. You know, let's stop talking about Greg's looks. It's giving him a big ego. Let's get ready for tonight's debate. Stop talking about hair. Up next, the partisan fight over the Supreme Court set to carry over to the debate stage. What we can expect, next. 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) 

WILLIAMS: A bitter partisan battle over the Supreme Court playing out in Washington, and it's expected to be a major point of contention on the debate stage tonight. President Trump's nominee, Judge Amy Coney Barrett, meeting with Republican senators today on Capitol Hill, so far six Democratic senators have said they will not sit down with her.

It comes as Democrats reportedly want to avoid another Kavanaugh-like situation. Jessie, let me ask you. I think the president anticipated that this nomination might help him in the presidential race. But so far, the polls don't show that. They showed two to one. In fact, Americans think the next president should be the one to make theappointment. So has this been a disappointment forthe president's team? 

WATTERS: I'm so glad you asked me about polls, Juan, because you walked right into it. I was going to tell you. 

GUTFELD: It's only the third day he's done the same poll. 

WATTERS: There's a poll out from a place -- I don't know if you've heard of it. It's called Harvard University, kind of a good school, not as good Trinity College, but it's up there. Harvard University did a poll and said that 53 percent of Americans says thepresident should nominate a Justice quickly and theSenate should take that person up quickly. 

And that includes 51 percent of independents. Also would like to push back on some more Democrat misinformation about Amy Coney Barrett. This is from Betsy McCaughey from The New York Post, theonly newspaper that I read every single morning. McCoy (ph), I'm sorry, Betsy. That is the correct pronunciation of her name. So this is what they're saying about this, that she's going to undo Obamacare, false. 

They said that she's going to join the other justices in the conservative majority. And she's just going totake a scalpel to the mandate. She is not going totake a bulldozer to the entire Obamacare legislation. Secondly, there is not going to be 12 million people that are going to get thrown off the healthcare roles. 

That 12 million refers to Medicaid, and the court has already ruled that states can opt out whether or not they want to expand Medicaid. Thirdly, and final point, because I know you guys love my wonky healthcare data, is that the allegation from Nancy Pelosi that 138 million people with pre- existing conditions are going to lose access to healthcare, also not true. 

Only six percent of Americans were affected by Obamacare. And the president just signed an executive order covering pre-existing conditions. Thank you. 

WILLIAMS: Well, we appreciate that. Thank you. 

WATTERS: You're welcome. 

WILLIAMS: Bret Baier, there were Senate debates last night in Maine, Montana, and Iowa, the focus in all three, the Supreme Court nomination, COVID-19, and healthcare. Is that a strong preview of what you expect tonight?

BAIER: Listen, we have the topics. But the Supreme Court is going to be part of this. Expect Joe Biden togo down the road of trying to paint a real-life consequence of Trump appointees on the Supreme Court when it comes to healthcare. As Jesse just mentioned, in what the Senate calls a filibuster, by the way, that is what Jesse just did. 

And the -- and expect Trump to tout how many judges and justices he's actually gotten through, living up to his promise in 2016 and what he was elected to do. So I think it's a dangerous prospect for Democrats to not meet with Judge Amy Coney Barrett. I think in some Senate races it's going tomake a difference, in Georgia, Montana, Iowa, North Carolina. It may help the Republicans there.

WILLIAMS: So Dana, in fact, this is the question I wanted to ask you. Do you think Democrats are making a mistake by not meeting with her, because they say they will attend the hearings? But they're going to -- it doesn't look like any of them are going to have a meeting with her. 

PERINO: I (Inaudible) the not meeting thing is little bit too -- it's a process point. And when you can't win an argument, right, you pound process. When you can't win an argument, you pound facts. That's also what Jesse was trying to do. I feel that when she starts to speak -- doing very well. When she starts to speak on her own behalf, I think all the not- meeting with her goes away. 

I don't think anyone really remembers that. She is her own best advocate. 
And those hearings aren't that far away. So I think this is just a thing for a couple of days. The other thing I point out as that there are many conservative legal scholars who believe that this lawsuit, the ACA Obamacare lawsuit that is going to be heard in theSupreme Court the week after the election, is not a very good one for the Republican position. 

That basically, they think that the justices will probably tank it. So I wouldn't -- I just wouldn't put all my eggs in that basket, although I know that theywill try to do that. Joe Biden definitely wants this discussion tonight and going forward to be about healthcare and the Coronavirus. 
President Trump's strong point will be talking about the economy and his record and judges. 

So all of those things will come up tonight, but let me just go back to this. As soon as she starts speaking for herself, I think a lot of this just goes away and you get right into the hearings and thesubstance of the issues, not the process. 

WILLIAMS: So Greg, what about just not meeting with her as payback for what the Republicans did toMerrick Garland for 10 months? 

GUTFELD: I think that's perfectly legitimate. I believe that this is not a bitter partisan battle, unless you want it to be. Nobody has to be involved in this. It's already over. This is as close as you get to a game of charades where everyone is actually acting out a Supreme Court battle, when we already know what's happening. One side is going to say this. 

The other side is going to say that. It's entertaining, that's for sure. 
But you are not going to learn anything other than the politicians are blowhards. The one thing that you learn about this when they're talking about Obamacare is that once you introduce a giant program, no matter how awful it is, the Democrats in time will pretend like it's been there forever. 

And that it's amazing, when in fact, it was -- I don't know how many years ago, 10 years, 11 years, I can't remember. I was very young back then, foolish too. It is a massive disaster. It was terrible for everybody. 
People forget about the website. You lost your doctor. And yet, here we are. We're going oh my, god, even the media. The objective media is buying into this. 

Oh, are they going to get rid of Obamacare, as if they actually believe it's worth saving. No, it's time to actually look at healthcare at a different way. We have a lot of new, great stuff coming up. Telemedicine is a huge thing. And it's going to make medicine and health a lot cheaper. So let's not sit here and just act like, you know, we are losing something so incredibly valuable, even if we question the validity of it.

WILLIAMS: Well, I think it was 2010, just for your reference, you know, when you first heard of it. All right, but I think a lot of people do still like it, andwouldn't want to lose it in the middle of a pandemic. Anyway, coming up, the suburban vote, it's on theline. Why both candidates need to make a strong play for those crucial suburban voters at tonight's debate. 
That's next for you on THE FIVE. 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) 

BAIER: Welcome back, a live look at the scene here in Cleveland at the Cleveland Clinic, Case Western University. President Trump, Joe Biden will meet face to face for the first time just hours from now. Andthe candidates are sure to be courting suburban voters tonight. Winning that voting block could bekey to securing critical swing states. Our very own Martha MacCallum sat down with some suburban women here in Ohio. Take a look. 

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) 

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I'm pretty decided this time about who I want to vote for. I'm choosing Trump this time. 

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The single thing I want tosee the most in this election is a return to a sense of dignity and respect among the people that we elect to do the people's business. 

(END VIDEO CLIP) 

BAIER: And in another key swing state, Pennsylvania, a new poll out has president Joe Biden leading President Trump among those suburban voters by nine points overall. You can see men there giving the hat tip to President Trump like a couple points, women overwhelmingly for Biden in that poll. 
Greg, where do you think the suburban vote is? 

I've heard you talk about the concern about violence in a lot of these cities and what that means for that vote. 

GUTFELD: Yeah. I don't believe polls are news. And I think it's just basically taking the temperature. Andyou can take the temperature any different way. A stop sign, whoever is sighing at my answers. Themedia says that Trump is banking on fear andanxiety, but it's voter -- which voters can't speak their minds for fear of retribution? It's Trump voters. 

So who is stirring up the anxiety and fear? Prominent Democrats are the ones that have been doing that. And they know and they do this little extortion trick. It's going to get worse under Trump. So who is stoking fear? This is a big problem because there are two -- OK. There are two parties right now. There's a Republican and a Democratic Party. 

One is saying you cannot cooperate with the other. It's not the Republican Party. Trump will talk toanybody. We know that. It's the Democratic Party that is saying we cannot cooperate with them because it's a moral decision. 
Biden says that Trump is evil. They say that Trumpvoters are deplorable. 
What does this do for America? 

The only thing holding that holds people together from killing each other is something called cooperation. If you decide that you are no longer going to cooperate with people and you tell that. No wonder the streets are in chaos. And there's riots and there's looting. And come November, it's going to get worse. You have a leadership telling people that that's the way forward. Do not cooperate with people you disagree with. 

BAIER: Dana, Pennsylvania is a key state. I was just in south-western Pennsylvania and talked to a different bunch of different voters, including the heads of theDemocratic Party's in some of those counties. And, you know, there's all the talk about the hiddenTrump vote. Well, these Democrats there say theybelieve it because they have Democrats who will not say that they support Trump, even though they do. So we don't know what that means, what that shift means, but it's something.

PERINO: Well, it's not just a key state. It's thekeystone state, so to speak. And it's critical for bothof those candidates who try to get it. I think President Trump has had some problems in thesuburbs. You saw it in the 2018 midterms. You've seen it in some of these polls here. Greg could beright. I mean, maybe there's plenty that are just saying I'm just not going to say it. 

In fact, Bret Stephens of the New York Times wrote a column today that said meet a secret and a shy Trump voters, a lesbian women who said that coming out as a Trump voter is even harder than coming out as a lesbian, OK? That is how hard it is for some people to admit that they are going tovote for Trump. So that is there in the New York Times for everybody to see. 

And I feel like some Democrats are trying to, you know, broadcast that message loud and clear. But one thing -- you know, there's all this talk about thesuburban vote. And I know there are a lot more suburban voters than rural voters. But Joe Biden's problems with rural voters is probably even stronger than that of President Trump's problem with suburban voters. 

That is a lock. And I think this is all part of a political realignment that we are living through. And it's one of the reasons I also believe President Trump will try to constantly turn back to the economy so he can talk about what he accomplished, and also try todraw the contrast to say if Joe Biden becomes your president. 

This recovery that we are currently in, coming out of the Coronavirus recession will stop. And you will bein the back where you were during the Obama years with everything stagnant and nothing moving forward. 

BAIER: Juan, in the debate tonight, obviously, part of this is the fireworks that we're going to see, but it's also talking to the American people about what each presidency would look like.

WILLIAMS: Exactly, right. I think one of the real agendas for both candidates is to give the voters a sense of what their vision is for the future. In thecase of President Trump, what's his agenda for a second term, or in the case of Joe Biden, is he a man that has a vision of something more than just being not Donald Trump? 

Now, I will say that in terms of this law and order message that President Trump has been pushing, it doesn't seem to move the numbers. I mean, so it seems like it's been a waste of time on the campaigntrail and a waste of ad money. 

And especially when you're talking about suburban women, and just to be direct, we're talking about white suburban women. So he has tried this, not only in terms of law and order, but also in saying -- trying to push the fear button, oh, you're -- thesuburbs will be taken apart, you know that we're going to have more middle-income housing, minorities will come in to the people he calls housewives. 

Well, you know what, it just hasn't worked? It's no, there's no evidence anywhere, Pennsylvania or anywhere else, that suburban white women have said, oh, gee, I'm thinking differently now.

BAIER: Jesse, bring it home here.

WATTERS: Well, I think that waits to be seen what Juan is saying. We'll find out on November 3rd. But the suburban vote is not monolithic. It's still thesame rules apply. Republicans vote Republican, Democrats vote Democrat, and independents are up for grabs. 

It's really more about the education gap. The more advanced degrees you have in the suburbs, themore likely you are to vote for Joe Biden. Trump's competitive with college-educated and does very well with high school diplomas. He does very well in the excerpts. You know, the place is kind of in between the suburbs and the rural areas, and those areas are really undercounted by pollsters. 

But Trump is getting traction in the suburbs on twomajor issues. People living in the suburbs are more economically minded. They're definitely afraid of taxation. One of the reasons they're in the suburbs, they're not living in the city. And I totally disagree with Juan. They are very upset with this zoning regulation where you can force densely populated low- income housing into your community and local municipalities don't have a say about that. 

This no cash bail situation that Biden has signed on to with Bernie Sanders in the manifesto, they're very against that and they don't want the drugs, thecrime, and the gangs coming into their communities.

BAIER: Listen, everybody wants to see President Trump and Joe Biden on the stage behind me, but Greg's monologue is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GUTFELD: Yes, he was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize again, through their dime a dozen trinkets, so useless. They threw it with Obama just for brushing his teeth. But it's Trump's third and it's for something new yet again. Australian law professors, they have them there, nominated him for the Trump doctrine a mix of common sense and national interests, keeping us from "endless wars" and therefore killing thousands of young Americans. 

It is funny to be nominated three times not formaking liberals feel good but for real stuff. Middle East peace reducing our military footprint while expanding our capabilities, beating ISIS, confusing pacifists and generals alike. It reveals that contrastbetween most leaders and Trump. It's the eloquent statesman who sends kids to die versus theobnoxious ruffian who keeps your kids at home. 

No one denies Trump's personality. He'll never win a prize for his mostly peaceful press conferences. But that argument is four years old, which is why thepeople still crying about it. It seems like they're four years old. 
Still, we no joke and handle a room, he could shake hands, smile those bright white teeth, his hair plugs blowing in the breeze. He can talk wistfully about those who sacrifice their lives and give you the bad news from his basement bedroom, then go back into hiding. 

We won't lose sleep over Biden's tweets. But some of us might lose sleep over worse things if you know he'd sent it the army again and again. It's worth asking the candidates tonight, what's a bigger worry, mean tweets or a wasteful never-ending war. Trumpproduced the tweets, Biden supported the war. We know the media's answer to that, but what's yours? 

All right, Dana, he's got -- he got three nominations for three separate reasons, two peace deals, theTrump doctrine. Could he be the greatest president in the history of the universe?

PERINO: He could be. He could be. We will see. History will tell. History will tell. You know, I don't think tonight in the -- in the buckets of topics, foreign policy won't come up. But I bet Joe Bidenmaybe will try to possibly bring up climate change and try to make that one. But one of these debates will focus on foreign policy.

And remember what Secretary Gates said, he believed that Joe Biden had been wrong on every single foreign policy issue for the last 30 years. You know, he wrote in his book. Like, that -- it is there. And I do think that the contrast is quite stark. So, I look forward to the opportunity for them to actually have that discussion because I think President Trump has some very good accomplishments that he can take off. 

GUTFELD: That's a good point. You know, Bret, if you go -- if you remember, Biden didn't want to take out Osama bin Laden and Trump took out Soleimani, took out ISIS, took out that other dude -- 

WATTERS: Baghdadi.

GUTFELD: Baghdadi. So, it's -- yes, forget that guy's name. He's dead.

BAIER: Listen, he's got a -- President Trump has a foreign policy record, as Dana said, to run on. It's not going to be in this debate. It doesn't seem unless one of the candidates brings it up. And then, it's a follow-up but it's not in the buckets that Chris is focused on. But he has a tale to tell. And it's actually tough, I think, for the Biden folks to say, look at what happened with Israel, UAE, and Bahrain and say, that's not a good thing. In fact, Biden put out a statement saying it was. 

GUTFELD: Yes. Juan, are you now going to admit that you're wrong about Trump? He's got three Nobel Peace prizes; you don't have any.

WILLIAMS: No, I'm working on it. I'm working on it. Wait a minute, he doesn't have three. He has three nominations, Greg. Anybody can be nominated.

GUTFELD: That's what I said. I think I saidnomination. I said nomination, right?

WILLIAMS: I thought you said he had three Nobel Prize. Anyway, anybody can be nominated. I mean, the difference here is Obama was nominated andwon it. That's the big deal. He won it.

PERINO: But even he admitted that was an aspiration. 

WILLIAMS: Well, that was what I was going to say. And even Obama didn't make a big deal out of it. He's pretty humble about it. He didn't go out campaigning and advertising, I was nominated. That sounds pretty weak to me. 

GUTFELD: The media does it for him, Juan. 

PERINO: Right. 

GUTFELD: The media does it for him. 

WILLIAMS: Oh, no, I think if you won, I think I'd do it for you.

GUTFELD: Well, I appreciate that.

PERINO: I'm going to nominate Greg next week. 

GUTFELD: I do a lot of good -- 

WILLIAMS: You're welcome. But I'm saying, boy, that looks weak, you know. 
The guy says he's nominated. Anybody can benominated.

GUTFELD: Well, you know what, it's nice to bethought of as bringing peace to the world, right, Jesse?

WATTERS: It's true. I mean, the President, I think, before he was president, was nominated for eight Emmy Awards, and he got zero. So, hopefully, he does a little bit better with the Nobel Peace prizes. But if you're an intellectually honest liberal, I know that's a little bit of an oxymoron, but if you are, you have to admit that Trump's foreign policy has been successful. 

You know, the North Koreans have not tested a nuclear device or an ICBM in three years. We have Space Force; we have peace deals. ISIS annihilated, the two top terrorists taken out, China's been ostracized, the Iranians are isolated. I mean, this is really good stuff. 

Susan Rice is out there complaining about our allies, our allies. Who, who she talking about, the Brits, theIndians, the South Koreans, the Japanese, theIsraelis? It seems like we have a very nice alliance system. And President Trump, despite being called this big renegade that's going to create a nuclear holocaust, has done the exact opposite.

GUTFELD: All right, we got to go -- 

BAIER: Foreign policy probably isn't going to come, but China will whether it's Hunter Biden or President Trump talking about China, that's going to come up tonight. I got to go, guys.

GUTFELD: You know, Bret, I know you got to go. I was just going to say goodbye to you. Goodbye, Bret. Be safe. I'll be seeing you later. Prepare well, my friend. Up next, our final thoughts and predictions for tonight's debate.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PERINO: So, have you heard there's a presidential debate tonight, and now it's just over three hours away. So, tomorrow, we will not do more predictions. Tomorrow, we will give you our reaction. But now, we're going to give you one more round of predictions and final thoughts about tonight. 
Jesse, let's start with you.

WATTERS: The President's a great communicator and he's a master P.R. guy. 
So, of the millions and millions of people who follow him on social media,
77 percent of them approve of his performance, andthose are about half Democrats and independents. 

And that's why when he does these State of theUnion Addresses or these Coronavirus briefings, people pay attention and his numbers go up. Andit's also the reason why CNN and a lot of the other networks, they've censored him. they don't air therallies, they cut away from the briefings, and theycensor him on social media. 

So, this is an opportunity tonight, for the president for 90 minutes to be unfiltered by the mainstream media. You'll see him in a contrast with Joe Biden. He'll be speaking directly to the American people. And I think the American people will listen and will like what they hear.

PERINO: What's interesting, Juan, I mean, this will also be the first time that a lot of people in America will have heard from Joe Biden during this campaign. 

WILLIAMS: Why do you say that, Dana? 

PERINO: Well, because I think that you'll have about 100 million people watching. For the very limited events that Biden has done, except for theconvention, I'll set that aside, there hasn't been much communication from the Biden campaign.

WILLIAMS: Well, I disagree. I think that -- in fact, I think the reason he's doing so well right now is that his strategy through social media, the Convention and the like have paid off for him. But I think tonight, the people -- the people are going to bepaying attention with a new focus because we haven't seen Biden and Trump on the same stage. This is new, this is different, so it's going to get more attention. 

I think the President's strategy is always to create the kind of circus Jesse was talking about. So, I guess he will make all kinds of allegations andcharges. We'll see how Biden reacts. If Biden is to besuccessful, he can't take the bait. He has to come across a steady, a strong alternative to the way theTrump plays ball.

PERINO: President Trump is really good with a quip. He is witty. He likes to get a laugh. But Greg, there's fewer people in the hall tonight around I think 100 people and the audience, so it might -- I don't know. I don't know how it will land if he is able to make one of those jokes. We might laugh at home, but I don't know how well the reaction will be there in thehall.

GUTFELD: Well, I think that the contrast to what Juan was saying is, you know, Trump talks trash, but Joe's words are these moral condemnations. And that's where I think you're going to see the battle take off because if somebody is going to call you a racist, or that you got blood on your hands, or you told people to inject bleach, those are -- those aren't like making fun of somebody heights, or making fun of somebody looks. You're actually impugning them. 

You're putting -- those are what you call fighting words. And if I were in a debate where somebody had called me a racist or had said I had blood on my hands, I would fight them. So, I think there's going to be -- I think that's -- that would have -- 

WATTERS: You get then, Gutfeld. 

GUTFELD: I will. I'm like a pitbull. 

WILLIAMS: Wow.

GUTFELD: But I predict -- this is my big prediction, that I will be live- chatting the debate. I will not be on Twitter so that's going to be unfiltered. Andlast but not least, if Joe does fine, that'll be his first and last debate. If he actually does pretty good on it, he won't do another. He'll treat it like Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, you know. And when he gets tohalf a million, or he's going to go like, well, I really don't need to go to the million. 

PERINO: He's out. 

GUTFELD: I think I'll just stop here. That's my prediction. 

PERINO: I don't know. If he -- if this -- when this debate starts, Jesse, I might have to call Tucker Carlson and say that I won the bet because there was a prediction by Tucker that this debate wouldn't happen.

WATTERS: Yes, you were -- and I think Gutfeld saidJoe wasn't going to debate. So, Gutfeld, you have about three hours until that comes through.

GUTFELD: I did. I got to fly to Ohio and kidnap him.

WATTERS: We'll see.

PERINO: So, I don't know. I'll let Tucker slide on that because he wasn't the only one who thought that. But -- so, we're going to have the debate. 
It's happening in just about three hours. 

GUTFELD: What are you wearing?

PERINO: And we have "ONE MORE THING" up next.

WATTERS: What did he say?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WATTERS: It's time now for "ONE MORE THING." Dana?

PERINO: Well, hello. And I want to tell you that you can join tonight's debate with our exclusive Fox News Democracy 2020 Live experience. So, you get real time facts and analysis of the night's biggest moments on your phone or computer while you're watching debate on T.V. And also, you can follow Gutfeld on his thing. 

GUTFELD: Yes.

PERINO: Plus, you can read a react to live blogs from Fox News Insider in case you're not trivia knowledge. I mean, it's so fun because you're watching and participating. So just open the camera on your phone to scan the Q.R. code you see on your screen. And Jesse will explain the Q.R. code in a little bit.

And don't wait before the start of the debate. You know, just get this going early on. It starts at 8:00 p.m. Eastern tonight. So, scan in or log on and join us as you watch. We have a little extra time, so I get to do another plug. I can feel like very special. I want to talk about a book, and it debuted at number one today. It's not any book. It is Steve and Kathy Doocy's book. It is called Happy in a Hurry Cookbook by Steve and Kathy Doocy. It debuted at number one on Amazon today. 

Lots of fans, you know, Fox people are in this book, lots of good recipes, including my grandpa Perino. His simple -- 

GUTFELD: You're cooking him?

PERINO: -- ranch salad dressing is right here. No, they're going to make -- you can make his salad dressing which we had on the ranch like every meal. 

GUTFELD: Is it ranch?

PERINO: We didn't have a lot of variety, but we had a great salad dressing. 
It's all in this book. I've already ordered a bunch forfriends and family so I can't wait to give you three yours for Christmas.

WATTERS: I just can't believe Doocy's cookbook debuts at number one on Amazon. Wow. 

GUTFELD: Good time to cook.

WATTERS: The power of "FOX & FRIENDS." Also, thelive stream is sponsored by Absolut Vodka. I just want to let everybody know about that. Juan?

PERINO: Oh, I didn't know that.

WILLIAMS: OK, so, medical miracles can't beguaranteed. Everybody knows that. But people come here at the side of the debate tonight, theCleveland Clinic praying for good results and good news. So, take a look at this message carved in thesnow of February outside the Cleveland Clinic. 

Here's the backstory. Last year, Michelle Schambach was diagnosed with stage three brain tumor. TheGuatemalan resident came here last October forsurgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. By February, when she returned, her blood count was so low andher spirits they were sinking. That's when her daughter Dr. Marie Schambach decided to carve theValentine's Day message in the snow intended toboost her mom's spirit. 

As you can see, Dana and I are now seated here ahead of Tuesday night's debate, tonight's debate, but there's no debate -- there's no debate to be had about a medical miracle and the power of family love through a medical crisis. We wish her all thebest.

WATTERS: Oh, that's sweet.

PERINO: It's a pretty amazing place the Cleveland Clinic.

WATTERS: It sure is. Greg?

GUTFELD: All right, let's do this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GUTFELD: Animals are great. Animals are great. Animals are great. 

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GUTFELD: You know, animals are my stress ball. All right, take a look at this video. This is basically like me and my wife when she finds like a full empty bottle of wine in the trash and she's just staring at me. And then when she looks away, I run away, andthen she can't find me. 

I just got to wait until she turns her head, and then you just kind of wait a little bit, and actually, I was going over there to prepare where I'll be live chatting. See, I'm not on Twitter anymore doing this crap. Why make them money when this guy just gave $10 million to the dude who said that ACB was a racist for adopting to Haitian children, and he called a racist. He gets $10 million from Twitter. I'm gone. 

WATTERS: I don't know what Greg's doing with his little GGutter thing, but it's too much. It's too much. We've had it. Let's get into something different than animals in Greg's plugs. Let's get into plugs for Fox News swag. 

GUTFELD: Oh God. 

WATTERS: How about a stress ball? How about a stress ball, people? Fox News Democracy 2020, you feeling stress, you squeeze this ball, right, Gutfeld?

GUTFELD: Yes.

WATTERS: Squeeze it and you're stress goes away. 

GUTFELD: It's medically -- 

WATTERS: That's right. Also, we got a mug. Everybody likes coffee. You could throw back some coffee, perfect weight on the mug. And also, you got the hat here. Let's throw this there. 

GUTFELD: Oh, there you go. 

PERINO: Put it on. 

WATTERS: You know what, I asked to be already sized to my head. 

GUTFELD: Fire him. 

WATTERS: There we go. How does that look? It's pretty good. I look good in a hat. 

GUTFELD: Yes, you do. 

WATTERS: That's it for us tonight. Two hours of the special -- 

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