What does Pelosi withholding articles from Senate mean for the impeachment process?

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What does Pelosi withholding articles from Senate mean for the impeachment process?

Reaction from former Whitewater independent counsel Robert Ray and Rep. Andy Biggs.

This is a rush transcript from "The Ingraham Angle," December 20, 2019. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

Laura Ingraham, host: I'm Laura Ingraham and this is a special edition of "The Ingraham Angle" tonight.

Nancy's impeachment furor and the subsequent flameout all occurred the same week a FISA court judge demanded info about FBI lawyer that was linked to Carter Page's warrant. Congressman Andy Biggs and former Whitewater independent counsel Robert Ray are here tonight to respond. Also, tonight, the failure of the 2020 Democrats to push back successfully against the president's roaring economy will be the story of next year's election and we're ready for it here at the Ingraham Angle. And tonight, Frank Luntz has details, he's going to explain it all. And the publication Christianity Today, which most of you have never heard of or heard of it tangentially -- well, it comes out for impeaching the president in an obvious attempt to goose its flagging sales and subscriptions. Ralph Reed is here exclusively tonight to deliver a fiery response.

Also, it wouldn't be Friday night without Raymond Arroyo. A Christmas themed folly examines a leftist freak out of merry proportions and which holiday song is number one? It just hit number one. And we also -- this cannot be true. Am I reading this? We speak exclusively to Santa. Wait a second. Oh, a mall Santa who was replaced for get this -- wearing a Trump 2020 hat in a private photo. But first, it's time to put House Democrats on trial for perpetrating a massive fraud on the American people. I started this conversation last night and tonight we're going to continue it. House Democrats not only wasted taxpayer dollars on an incredibly lengthy, tedious, boring, costly, bogus inquiry, but now Nancy Pelosi is withholding the articles of impeachment for political gain and to prevent the president's trial and likely acquittal in the Senate, that's her goal. Senator Richard Blumenthal, a liberal member of the Judiciary Committee, seems to have no idea that Mitch McConnell has all the leverage.

[BEGIN VIDEO CLIP]

Richard Blumenthal: This decision is indeed Nancy Pelosi's to make, and her position is fully understandable that she wants some assurance that there will be a full, fair, honest trial with witnesses and documents. There's a court of appeals here. It's the electorate, the court of public opinion.

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Laura Ingraham: Wait a second. He was basically the chief lawyer in my home state of Connecticut for a year after year after year.

State's attorney there. He doesn't know that the Constitution says that the Senate has the sole power of impeachment. Really? Nancy gets to call all the shots in the Senate. Does that apply the other way? Does Mitch get to call all the shots in the House? Because this whole thing would've come down a lot different. Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz has actually read the Constitution and he said, I can imagine nothing more unconstitutional than a House impeachment without sending it to the Senate. It would be as if a prosecutor decided he had insufficient evidence to get a conviction. So we went after an ordinary citizen and said, look, I'm just going to indict him, but I have no intention of bringing him to trial. Obviously, no judge would tolerate that. I said something similar last night, if you remember, on The [Ingraham] Angle, it's an abuse of the entire process. Senator Jeanne Shaheen seemed to side with the professor. Interesting. Over her own Democrat colleague.

[BEGIN VIDEO CLIP]

Jeanne Shaheen: I think we're all -- and the public is anxious to see how the process is going to unfold. They want to see a process that they believe is fair. And I think that this kind of maneuvering just further raises questions in the public about what's happening in Congress.

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Laura Ingraham: She's New Hampshire. Well, joining me now, Robert Ray, former Whitewater independent counsel, and Congressman Andy Biggs, House Judiciary Committee member. Robert, I want to start with you. There's been a lot of debate over what withholding the articles means legally, constitutionally. But does it expose this entire process as something of a fraud?

Robert Ray: It does, because it just reaffirms the fact that this is an entirely partisan effort by House Democrats. And it's absolutely clear from the Constitution that it requires instead a bipartisan effort in order for there to be any chance at removal of a president from office. And I think finally, it's ultimately -- just to be practical about this for one second -- it's about counting votes. The votes are not there. Not only are there not sufficient votes to constitute a two thirds majority as required by the Constitution to remove the president from office, the Democrats will not even be able to get a simple majority in the Senate. So what are we wasting our time for? This is over. Once the House acted, they're out of it. Then the process go entirely to the United States Senate. And Nancy Pelosi cannot dictate to the Senate what kind of procedure that she would like.

Yeah, when they say this was historic, Congressman Biggs -- this was a historic impeachment, I said it last night. I'm going to repeat it tonight for anyone who --missed it. It's historic because it was kind of -- it was an impeachment in name only because she didn't have the courage or the case or both to actually take it to where it's supposed to go. You have your managers named, you might be one of them, and the articles go that night. And I know Robert would agree with me that night they go to the Senate. Do you think she comes back from her Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa holiday break and folds and blames the Senate? Or does she say hold out for some type of concessions?

Rep. Andy Biggs: You know, it's almost impossible to predict. I don't think the framers of this Constitution ever contemplated somebody who would abuse their powers so blatantly as to say, you know, we will impeach, but we're not going to transmit it so that that person gets a shot at a trial or a presentation even in this United States Senate. So, it's impossible to predict what she's going to do. It's quite frankly -- she's having a hissy fit here. She's decided that she doesn't like the way it's going. She's grabbing her ball and she's trying to go home. But she just can't do it after you've had the impeachment vote. It's absolutely outrageous. And I think people in her conference are going to start putting pressure on her to go forward, although some seem to be absolutely okay was never transmitting.

Laura Ingraham: Well, you know, it's funny how they, Robert, throw around terms like obstruction of Congress. Okay, you could make a case that she's obstructing Congress --

Robert Ray: I think you're right.

Laura Ingraham: This is kind of obstructing Congress, an abuse of process. Abuse of power, abuse of process, obstructing Congress. Nancy, you're guilty of what you're accusing the president of doing.

Robert Ray: I mean, that's exactly right. The shoe is now on the other foot. You know, my view -- I think ultimately is that I do think she will fold. She will not get witnesses. And I think Senator McConnell likely is to set a date when this trial is to begin and they either show up with their articles or not. You know, that's the bottom line. I think that's what's going to happen in January.

Laura Ingraham: Put up or shut up?

Robert Ray: Absolutely.

Laura Ingraham: Congressman Biggs, former Senator Jeff Flake -- whom I don't miss at all -- he's home from your home state of Arizona, had this to say about you and your colleagues, "The willingness of House Republicans to bend to the president's will has been an appalling spectacle. It will have long term ramifications for the country and the party to say nothing of individual reputations. This is a guy who had, what, an 18 percent approval rating in your home state. Your response?

Andy Biggs: Yeah. You know, I just can understand Jeff. And the reality is he's really irrelevant on the political scene anymore in Arizona and nationally. And, you know, as an individual, he's a good guy, but he is messed up politically. I'll just say it that way. And the fact of the matter is, he didn't read the transcripts that I read. He didn't see the closed-door hearings that I was prevented from seeing. He doesn't know firsthand what went on there. All he knows is he has disapprobation for this president, doesn't like him at all, hates him. And thus, he's going to come down on that conclusion every time.

Laura Ingraham: And Robert, for the second time this week, a FISA court judge is demanding the FBI answer for its malfeasance. Judge Rosemary Collyer, who's retiring early from this particular post, is asking for previous surveillance requests authored by the FBI lawyer, Kevin Clinesmith. He's the anti-Trump FBI guy who altered evidence in order to spy on Carter page. Now, Clinesmith has reportedly resigned. But Robert, this happened today. So how significant could this be?

Robert Ray: Laura, it's serious stuff. And I think the court is acting because it knows that if it doesn't start to show that it's prepared to take matters into its own hands and rein in the FBI, the Congress may well eliminate the court and there may be bipartisan support for that. So, the court does have this power. It has the power of contempt. It also has the power to make a determination to refer the conduct of that lawyer, both to the bar and also for criminal contempt proceedings back to the Department of Justice. And I expect that that's what you're likely to see happen.

Laura Ingraham: Well, I have to say, Congressman Biggs, I thought I could call -- like kind of telegraph every move here. But I didn't think that as outrageous as Maxine Waters has been in her commentary, I didn't quite think that after the impeachment vote, I thought, should I go home for the holidays and put it to rest. But she took it up a notch today. Watch.

[BEGIN VIDEO CLIP]

Maxine Waters: I was right that something was wrong with him, that he did not deserve to be president, but I came to those conclusions early and started the discussion. I wanted to sound the alarm. If he's exonerated by the Senate when they do the trial, he's going to get even worse. And I tell you and I will predict he's going to bring Putin into the White House for a meeting.

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Laura Ingraham: That's what he's going to do. Congressmen Biggs. They're going to be spooning in the Oval Office. This is how lunatic it's all become.

Andy Biggs: Yeah. You know, Maxine Waters, don't forget, she's been calling for impeachment. We had almost 100 of them had voted for impeachment before we ever had the Zelensky phone call.

Laura Ingraham: Impeach 45. Impeach 45.

[CROSSTALK]

Andy Biggs: Yeah. And she's also the one who advocated people to harass physically, verbally, people who supported President Trump, people in his cabinet. I offered a motion to censure for that. The reality is that she's unhinged on this and that's really unfortunate. But that's that's where we are. And she's not alone.

Laura Ingraham: Yeah. Well, if you think this is unjust, what happened to President Trump, you're a Russian asset, basically.

Andy Biggs: Yeah. Yeah.

Laura Ingraham: That's their argument. Robert, we raised an issue last night. I'm just so itching to get your opinion on this. In Andrew Jackson's case, when they took back the House and the Senate, his censure was ultimately expunged by the Senate. Could you see something happening here akin to that? Is it even possible under our Constitution that if the Republicans took back the House, they could expunge the impeachment of Nancy Pelosi and the gang? Next year, I mean, 2021. Is that possible under our constitution?

Robert Ray: And just to be clear, we're talking about Andrew Jackson not to be confused with Andrew Johnson, who is the --

Laura Ingraham: Oh, did I say Johnson? Excuse me. Jackson. Thank you, professor.

Robert Ray: No, no, you didn't, but for the viewers, I think it gets to be confusing. Anyway.

Laura Ingraham: Yes.

Robert Ray: Yes. Andrew Jackson was actually censored, and I would assume that it probably would take the action of both bodies. But yes, if the House turned Republican, the there could be a resolution to expunge the impeachment, it would go over to the Senate like any other resolution. And if it passed with a simple majority, yes, I believe that would be the power of the legislative branch to remove and expunge any taint that arises as the result of this entirely partisan House effort to impeach President Trump.

Laura Ingraham: OK. That's interesting. You can see people making that case -- candidates, House members in some of these swing districts, they're going to continue this impeachment odyssey and 2021, if you reelect them, if you if you allow them to retain the majority in the House, we can't let that happen. That's fascinating. I want to talk for a moment about what we think they're starting to do to John Durham, Congressman Biggs. He's a well-respected, of course, U.S. attorney, and now he's handling the investigation into FISA and beyond. And I want to read this to you. This is from The New York Times yesterday. "Durham is scrutinizing ex-CIA directors' role in Russian interference findings." And listen to this, "Durham's pursuit of Brennan's records is certain to add to accusations that Mr. Trump is using the Justice Department to go after his perceived enemies." Congressman Biggs, so, Jeff Lord pointed out in a column today, they're starting to do to Durham what they've tried to do unsuccessfully to Bill Barr.

Andy Biggs: Yeah. No, that is the Democrat way. And it's you know, if you can't beat them on the facts, they can't beat anybody on the facts. They're going to attack you personally. And the fact of the matter is, Durham has basically an independent hand here. He's not having meetings with President Trump. He's not having regular meetings that some coordination is going on. This is where the facts lead. The facts lead to Mr. Brennan, who is now changing his tune. He's starting to say, "Well, yeah, I kind of lied on this other stuff, and I didn't really handle this very well." But look for them to really try to lay the lumber to Mr. Durham as he gets closer and closer. Yeah, it's going to be brutal.

Laura Ingraham: Yeah. It's this it's like you hear smash and grab. This is smear and run. This is what the Democrats have been doing. Gentlemen, both of you have been phenomenal in explaining something that's very complicated to the American people for this last three months and really that whole year. Thank you so much. Merry Christmas to both of you.

Robert Ray: Merry Christmas, Laura.

Andy Biggs: Merry Christmas, Laura. Be well.

Laura Ingraham: All right. You take care. And now is a good time, I think, just to stop for a moment and to reflect on what President Trump was able to accomplish for the American people this week, even though he was facing this bogus impeachment. Think about this, among the results he's chalked up for you, okay, the House passed the USMCA, the big trade deal, despite Pelosi basically just squatting on it for over a year. Remember when renegotiating NAFTA was just a pipe dream? Obama promised to do it. He never did it. Well, Trump actually did it with Bob Lighthizer, an incredible team. The president also signed legislation to permanently fund historically black colleges and universities, something even Barack Obama couldn't get done.

And then there's today's big news. Federal and local law enforcement arresting nearly 100 top brutal MS-13 gang members in Long Island, the place where two years ago Trump promised to eradicate that vile criminal cartel. Now, officials are saying that these arrests -- or sweeping arrests have rendered MS-13 inoperable in that part of New York, Suffolk County. Well, those are real results.

I haven't even talked about where the stock market is, record numbers, the best economy in the last 20 years, and it's just over five days now. Trump can run on this in 2020. What on God's green earth do the Democrats have to offer? Now try as they might, the 2020 Dems do not have an answer for this booming economy. Now, this was painfully obvious during last night's Democrat debate.

[BEGIN VIDEO CLIP]

Judy Woodruff: What is your argument to the voter watching this debate tonight who may not like everything President Trump does, but they really like this economy, and they don't know why they should make a change?

Joe Biden: Well, I don't think they really do like the economy.

Bernie Sanders: We need an economy that works for working families, not just the one percent.

Elizabeth Warren: America's middle class is being hollowed out.

Pete Buttigieg: This economy is not working for most of us.

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Laura Ingraham: Now, they claim that the economy isn't working for everyone. [laughs] What economy are they looking at? The folks are being left behind? But I think Americans see what's really going on here. According to a new CNN poll -- it killed them to say this -- 76 percent see the economy as somewhat or very good, the highest rating in 20 years. I saw that at the airport today. It was awesome.

Joining me now, pollster Frank Luntz. Frank, great to see you. Now, running against an incumbent, that's never easy, but how difficult is it for Democrats who deny what voters clearly recognize as a hot economy? I think it's the best in my lifetime. And I, you know, I worked in the Reagan administration. I don't think it's -- I don't think we're going to have a better economy -- I can't imagine a better economy than we have right now ever.

Frank Luntz: Well, it's the best economy for African Americans. It's the best economy for Latino Americans. It's the best economy for 18 to 29 year olds. All the groups that tend to vote on the Democratic side of the fence are actually benefiting from this economy more than anyone else. But it's interesting, I did a down session last night, townhall for the L.A. Times -- and the viewers want to see if they can download the L.A. Times app. You can watch the entire focus group -- and Democrats think that it's not so good because of wages, because of costs, that it is more expensive, or seemingly more expensive, to live today, and that's the strategy that they're going to use against Donald Trump.

"It's not enough to have a good job. It's not enough to have a career,' they're going to say. That with the Democrats, "We're going to raise your wages. You're going to have more take home pay." But what they forget to acknowledge is that taxes are going to go up. And so, people are actually going to have less money in their pockets --

Laura Ingraham: Well, Frank, hold on a second.

Frank Luntz: -- It's made for all of these programs --

Laura Ingraham: Frank. Frank. Okay. Frank, I just want. I hear this and like my head is going to explode. Okay. If that's what the Democrats do, they have this magic potion where they're going to raise wages and then all the costs are going to go down, and there's going to be lollipops on the trees and chocolate -- you know, raining chocolate, then why didn't Obama do it in eight years?

Frank Luntz: Obama --

Laura Ingraham: He was the master politician, right? So, every time they say, "We'll do this," I say, "Why didn't Obama do it?"

Frank Luntz: So, here's my challenge to you.

Laura Ingraham: What's the answer?

Frank Luntz: So, here's my challenge, which is that you gave a listing of all the things that Donald Trump has done this week. You gave a listing of all the things he's done all year. The American people don't know some of this. The impeachment trial has actually gotten in the way of Donald Trump's communication. And the challenge for the Trump campaign is to shift it back to the quality of life, the standard of living, to the jobs, because that's what the public cares about. And if Trump can get that message out, then he gets reelected. If he doesn't get that message out, then he has a challenge.

Laura Ingraham: No, I just think it's the way people are living. I mean, you can tell them the economy is great. But I think it's the way they're living. But you're right. I mean, the new year, it's got to be all sunshine and roses. Frank, you asked a focus group of Democrat voters to describe Trump's supporters with one word. Here's what they said.

[BEGIN VIDEO CLIP]

Female Speaker: Stupid.

Female Speaker: Cruel.

Female Speaker: Ignorant.

Female Speaker: I'm sticking with ignorant.

Female Speaker: Ignorant.

Male Speaker: Misinformed.

Female Speaker: Racist.

Female Speaker: There it is.

Female Speaker: Against their own interest.

Female Speaker: Misguided.

Female Speaker: Ignorant.

Female Speaker: Uneducated.

Male Speaker: Uninformed.

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Laura Ingraham: Frank, the deplorables, yeah.

Frank Luntz: It's coming back.

Laura Ingraham: That's not going to go over well in middle America to hear that.

Frank Luntz: Well, this is why there's such a difference between the Republicans and the Democrats is that they have a different world view and that was about as negative as they got and I have to tell you I felt really bad because the divisions are real. The polarization is real. The success of this economy is real. The things that president have -- has done is real. But it's his job to communicate those successes.

Laura Ingraham: Well, I think the successes could be obvious but I think there are a lot of people out there who they just don't like what America represented in the past and don't really much like what America represents now and they want to remake America into a new, you know, new order. Frank, fascinating. We really appreciate it. Thanks so much. And coming up, a once prominent evangelical magazine calls for Trump's removal. We expose it next.

[COMMERCIAL BREAK]

[BEGIN VIDEO CLIP]

Mark Galli: When does his behavior, which is described as immoral accurately, rise to the level where he's no longer fit to serve office, and to me we crossed that line with the impeachment hearings?

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Laura Ingraham: That was a liberal editor and chief of Christianity Today explaining why he decided to make his publication irrelevant by calling for Trump's removal from office, though it was founded by Billy Graham in the 1950s, Christianity Today has actually been moving leftward for many years, 20 years. Now they're using democrat talking points on impeachment. The media is, of course, eating this up. It's so predictable it's almost boring. But are we really seeing an evangelical revolt against Trump? Joining me now exclusively Ralph Reed, chairman of the Faith and Freedom Coalition. Ralph, can you be an evangelical and support President Trump given as Mark Galli contested the president is of such questionable moral character blah, blah, blah?

Ralph Reed: You know, I think they may want to change the name of the magazine to Christianity Yesterday because you can't imagine a publication more out of step with the faith community that it once represented. Laura, President Trump received 81 percent of the votes of evangelicals four years ago. The highest ever recorded. His job approval, according to a recent poll by my organization, Faith and Freedom Coalition, among U.S. evangelicals stands at 83 percent. That's an historic high and 99 percent of conservative evangelicals, according to the Public Religion Research Institute, oppose impeachment and I don't know this editor. He's got one foot out the door. He's leaving on January 3rd, so this is sort of a, you know, kind of a parting shot by him. I don't know what impeachment hearings he's been watching. I mean, the one fact witness, the only fact witness, Ambassador Gordon Sondland, admitted that no one told him that the aid was being withheld in exchange for investigations, admitted that it was all –

Laura Ingraham: Well, I want to get back to the evangelical –

[CROSSTALK]

--- yeah, I mean, I'm not -- I mean, this is supposed to be a publication about saving souls, I would imagine.

Ralph Reed: Right.

Laura Ingraham: Right?

But he decided to make it all about politics, which okay, if you're going to do that you ought to get it right and you're right, he got it wrong. But the media are laughing this up, Ralph, for obvious reasons.

Ralph Reed: Sure.

Laura Ingraham: Check out what Chuck -- Chuck Todd said today with historian John Meacham.

[BEGIN VIDEO CLIP]

Chuck Todd: President Trump essentially said look what I've done for you. It was hey, this is transactional.

John Meacham: That's exactly right. It's a sense of, you know, they've rejected the psalmist advice, put not thy trust in princes. What you have to ask if you're an evangelical activist in America today is are judges worth it.

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Laura Ingraham: Are judges worth it? So, in other words you have to be -- the person has to be pure and perfect in order for an evangelical voter to support that person. I don't think Mark Galli said that about any number of liberal politicians.

Ralph Reed: Yeah. My reading of scripture is that we're supposed to render honor to whom is due honor, custom to whom custom, and when you have a leader like Donald Trump who is the most pro-life president in our lifetimes, who is the most pro-religious freedom president in our lifetimes, suspending enforcement of the Johnson Amendment so our churches are no longer persecuted and harassed ending the conscience mandates under which the Obama administration dragged the little sisters of the poor and hobby lobby into courts. The most pro-Israel president in American history.

Laura Ingraham: No, it's not even close.

Ralph Reed: Moving our –

Laura Ingraham: It's not even close.

Ralph Reed: It's not even close and then for them to say that it's transactional for us to support that moral good.

Laura Ingraham: That's insulting.

Ralph Reed: Is insulting to our faith and our good judgment.

Laura Ingraham: Yeah. Ralph, thank you so much for being on tonight. Merry Christmas. Have a wonderful time with your family. Happy New Year and it's Friday and you know what that means, Friday Follies with Raymond Arroyo. We have a special edition tonight.

[COMMERCIAL BREAK]

Laura Ingraham: It's Friday, and that means it's time for Friday Folly. Is a Supreme Court justice to merry? A 25-year-old holiday tune hits number one, and Raymond has a Christmas special. Joining us with all the details. Raymond Arroyo, Fox News contributor. All right, Raymond. Justice Neil Gorsuch, who I know a little bit, is a fantastic guy, an amazing justice, great pick. He showed up on Fox & Friends this week to promote his book and then all hell broke loose. What happened?

Raymond Arroyo: He uttered the holiday greeting Laura that dare not speak its name. Watch.

[being video clip]

Ainsley Earhardt: Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. Good morning to you.

Neil Gorsuch: Merry Christmas.

Ainsley Earhardt: Merry Christmas. I love that you say that.

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Robert Arroyo: Oh, Laura. Heads exploded when Gorsuch said that. Amy Vanderpool, a Playboy writer, tweeted, "Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch just appeared on Fox & Friends this morning, making a point to parrot the Merry Christmas talking point of the GOP. Now, how is Merry Christmas a GOP talking point?

Laura Ingraham: I'll take it.

Robert Arroyo: I have liberal friends. They use Merry Christmas. I didn't know that Edmund Burke and Reagan were sitting around crafting Merry Christmas. I thought that predated all of them, but I guess not.

Laura Ingraham: You forgot Nancy yesterday saying whatever holiday you celebrate, I celebrate Kwanzaa and Hanukkah and the grace of our lord.

Robert Arroyo: -- a very serious about devout Catholic.

Laura Ingraham: She got them all in.

Robert Arroyo: And the journalists were also outraged that Gorsuch appeared on Fox & Friends-. CNN Brian Stelter growls, "How is it appropriate for a Supreme Court justice to try to goose sales of his three-month-old book by chatting on one of the most partisan shows on TV?"

Laura Ingraham: Okay, let me just say this. First of all, is it Stelter or Stetler?

Robert Arroyo: I think it's Stetler.

Laura Ingraham: Is it Stelter, and I'm not doing it on purpose. You know, there are certain things that I just it's a maybe dyslexic thing. I don't know. Then Susan Hennessy, CNN national security analyst, tweeted, "I don't object to Gorsuch promoting his book, but appearing on Fox & Friends and not news programs on other networks is a bad look."

Robert Arroyo: Well, apparently, these CNN employees don't watch their own network, Laura. This is Neil Gorsuch from a September appearance on CNN. There he is. So he was on their network a few months ago. He went there first. I guess, appearing on partisan shows don't apply to other Supremes either. Remember when Sotomayor showed up to push her book on Stephen Colbert's show? No complaint there. So just so you understand the rules, should you talk to your friends at the Supreme Court? Gorsuch must avoid partisan shows and no Merry Christmas, only merry impeachments, I guess.

Laura Ingraham: Didn't RBG the notorious -- didn't she go after Trump pretty hard? Nobody had a problem with that.

Robert Arroyo: You bring her up. Remember they ran that whole RGB documentary on CNN. Wall to wall. It was special. There she is. Look, doing her lifts. And that was no problem. No problem. Is she partisan? Is she appearing on a partisan network? The good news is she didn't say Merry Christmas at any point during her --

Laura Ingraham: Oh, my goodness. Well, what else?

Robert Arroyo: Well, speaking of Christmas. It only took twenty-five years, but this song, Laura finally hit number one on the Billboard chart this week.

[music]

Robert Arroyo: I chose this just for you law, because I know how attached you are to Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas is You. It was number one this week, thanks to the annual spike in the streaming purchases it receives during the holidays. She also relentlessly promotes it. She's promoted related films, animated specials, concerts --

Laura Ingraham: Good for her. She's a businesswoman.

Robert Arroyo: She also never tires of telling how she came to write this classic song.

[being video clip]

Mariah Carey: I was living in this house when I was in upstate New York. Actually, I put on It's a Wonderful Life downstairs. You can hear it throughout the house. And I went into this little -- like this small room and there is a little keyboard in there and I started playing. I'm a terrible piano player, right? Sometimes will be a happy accident.

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Robert Arroyo: Happy accident? What she didn't tell you is she was also at the keyboard with Walter Afanasieff.

Laura Ingraham: I was going to say -- That's her songwriting partner who -- he told The Wall Street Journal I don't know what she's talking about. I co-wrote the song and get 50 percent of the proceeds.

Laura Ingraham: Can I say something? This is what a lot of famous performers do. Taylor Swift, sorry. Their co-writers, they have co-writing credit.

Robert Arroyo: Like Johnny Carson writing his theme music with --

Laura Ingraham: You know what I really liked about Mariah Carey? One of her first big hits, this is 20 years ago, she does does that thing when some performers that I admire their singing ability, but they apparently enhance their singing ability by doing that rain --

Robert Arroyo: Well, that's when you can't hit the notes.

[CROSSTALK]

Robert Arroyo: Do you know the last holiday song to hit number one on Billboard's chart list? The last holiday song.

Laura Ingraham: Bruce Springsteen.

Robert Arroyo: No. It was the Chipmunk song.

[music]

Robert Arroyo: 1958, Laura. I thought you would surely say Bing Crosby, White Christmas, which is the perennial best-selling Christmas --

Laura Ingraham: The one I like, the one I used to like when I was little, and I still don't understand how they did it was little and I still --

Raymond Arroyo: Yes.

Laura Ingraham: -- don't understand how they did it was the Jingle Bells dogs barking.

Raymond Arroyo: Oh, my God.

Laura Ingraham: That -- it's amazing how dogs can actually hit the note. Oh, wait. They're telling me that they weren't real dogs.

Raymond Arroyo: They weren't real dogs.

Laura Ingraham: Oh.

Raymond Arroyo: Those weren't real chipmunks either, Laura.

Laura Ingraham: I catch on fast. Well, when you're little, you think, "Wow, they're -- "

Raymond Arroyo: We've got to go on to the probably the most important thing in this segment.

Laura Ingraham: All right. With Christmas coming fast, you have a new special on Fox Nation, I understand, that we mentioned briefly several times last week.

Raymond Arroyo: One time.

Laura Ingraham: So why are we promoting this again?

Raymond Arroyo: Well, because the good folks at Fox Nation want people to know about it.

Laura Ingraham: Oh, my God. Talk about --

Raymond Arroyo: And it's a wonderful --

Laura Ingraham: You're worse than Justin Gorsuch.

Raymond Arroyo: Christmas time. No, I'm worse than Mariah Carey.

Laura Ingraham: It is.

Raymond Arroyo: Christmas time I'm in New Orleans [laughs] is sort of my love letter to the city I love.

Laura Ingraham: Oh, my God, we've mentioned New Orleans again.

Raymond Arroyo: It's more than that. It explores the rituals, the music, the food. And what is sprang up from this unique culture.

Laura Ingraham: And what does --

Raymond Arroyo: Don't cut me off.

Laura Ingraham: -- Drew Brees eat at Christmas? That's the next thing.

Raymond Arroyo: Drew Brees? No, that's going to be the Mardi Gras special. It's also inflected with some sizzling jazz takes of Christmas classics by the NOLA players, a super band of some of the best musicians, including members of the Marcellus family. Here's a little sample.

[jazz music playing]

[BEGIN VIDEO CLIP]

Male Speaker: New Orleans at Christmas time is friends and family. But there's another "f," food. So that's another reason I keep coming back home.

Male Speaker: They always talk about New Orleans being the only indigenous urban cuisine left, and a lot of it has to do with commonality of religion that brought a lot of inner marriages. And so, people would share the recipes and shared traditions and it culminates. And so the basis of this culture takes place around that family table.

Male Speaker: No other city ever in the history of this world has seven distinct nations coming together to create what we call the mixture, the Creoles, the Creoles of New Orleans. Forget about. There's nothing like it.

Raymond Arroyo: There is a communal spirit of inclusion all over New Orleans.

Male Speaker: You're one of the family. You're adopted.

[END VIDEO CLIP]

Laura Ingraham: All right. Christmas Time in New Orleans.

Raymond Arroyo: Christmas Time in New Orleans. And everybody can see it. It's available at Fox Nation.com.

Laura Ingraham: What kind of cut are you getting on --

Raymond Arroyo: I don't get -- I don't get that much cut. Oh, and --

Laura Ingraham: [laughs]

Raymond Arroyo: -- the soundtrack is available on --

Laura Ingraham: Wait a second. Look at you with that picture. All right, Raymond, thanks. [laughs]

Raymond Arroyo: Goodbye, everyone. We'll see you next week. And I'm filling in for Laura on Monday because she's incapable of filling in for herself. [laughs]

Laura Ingraham: Okay. Bye. Coming up, a longtime mall Santa Claus gets replaced for taking a private photo in a Trump 2020 hat. You cannot make this up. We're going to hear directly from Kris Kringle when we return.

[COMMERCIAL BREAK]

Laura Ingraham: How many of you remember taking your kids to the mall or being a kid and being taken to the mall to meet Santa? It's kind of a rite of passage for all of us at Christmas time. Well, that's why I was more than a little shocked to hear that a mall Santa in Georgia was replaced for a sin of wearing a MAGA hat. Joining me now is Frank Skinner, the former mall Santa of many, many years at Waycross Shopping Center in Waycross, Georgia. He was replaced after this photo of him, which I think is adorable, wearing a MAGA hat in a Santa suit circulated on his personal Facebook page.

Frank, I'm looking at this, and by the way, you're incredibly cute in that Santa outfit, I've got to say. That -- just you can't just -- you can't help but smile when you look at Frank, okay?

Frank Skinner: [laughs]

Laura Ingraham: So, I'm looking at you, I'm looking at you in this photo, and I'm thinking, "Really? I mean, okay, yeah. I guess you shouldn't have posted it on your personal Facebook page." But why did people get so upset?

Frank Skinner: It's about politics is what it boils down to. This was taken on a whim because I have a lot of Trump's supporters that come on my page. And I just thought for a little bit of humor to go ahead and have my Trump hat on dressed while I was in a Santa suit. And I want to make it clear, I did not do this around any children. In fact, really, there was nobody really around other than me and the camera girl. And then we got the picture less than two minutes, and then at that, I went home, I looked at my phone camera, and I said, "Yeah, I think this would be cute to put on my page."

Laura Ingraham: You know what I've got to say? I think liberals have -- used to be funny. I mean, real liberals are funny, okay? They have great sense of humor.

Frank Skinner: Right.

Laura Ingraham: Best comics over the many decades, liberals. They've lost all sense of humor. I mean, honestly, they don't care that you're in the MAGA hat. They hate Trump, so they want --

Frank Skinner: That's about right.

Laura Ingraham: -- to make your life miserable.

Frank Skinner: Yeah.

Laura Ingraham: And this is what the mall manager, James White, said. He said, "We were not aware it happened. It was done completely without our knowledge." You might have thought you robbed a bank there, Santa.

Frank Skinner: [laughs]

Laura Ingraham: "It's safe to say he will not be wearing this hat around here. Our kids are our focus. We put a lot of hard work into this." Again, I know you apologized for this on your Facebook page, Santa. But why? Why even apologize? You didn't do anything wrong. It was your personal page. I mean, it's -- I mean, I would have just told them to, you know -- a lump of coal in their stocking.

Frank Skinner: When this story got out, there were so many distortions about it. And I just felt really uncomfortable. Now, in fairness to my -- you know, to the manager, you know, he said, "Just lay low for a few days and let this thing blow over and maybe we can get you back in your suit,” but then when the story came out that –

Laura Ingraham: This is just –

Frank Skinner: --- I was replaced.

Laura Ingraham: Yeah.

Frank Skinner: Well, that gave the perception to the audience that I was fired. So, it was hard for me to digest and I thought to myself well, the only way this is going to get corrected, I've got to go on and try to straighten this story out and tell what exactly happened.

Laura Ingraham: Well, what happened? You're treating it like it's some kind of murder mystery here. You put on a MAGA hat, Santa, okay? You had a MAGA hat on for a minute or two. You took a photo. You put it on a personal Facebook page. It's not like all the children in the world are looking at Santa with a MAGA hat and big deal. I mean, it's been a pretty good year. You know, Trump did help with the economy, so you could make the argument. No, just kidding.

Frank Skinner: Oh, absolutely.

Laura Ingraham: It has been pretty good but I wouldn't have apologized. I think these people are humorless. They're -- it's the cancel culture. You weren't canceled, thank goodness, but are you afraid of going back to, you know, to the mall?

Frank Skinner: You know, in a way I am even though I have such, such great support from Waycross, I really do. But you know, you know for yourself there's always those out there that just want to create havoc.

Laura Ingraham: Oh, who cares? Yeah. They're not going to -- what are they going to do? Take your -- you know, try to, you know, bash up your sleigh? I mean, what are they going to do to you? They're not going to -- these people are –

Frank Skinner: well, I think they're –

Laura Ingraham: --- in like my parent's basement, you know, sending out tweets like in their underwear. I mean, those are people you have to worry about, Santa. I got your back.

Frank Skinner: Well, it's the safety reasons that I'm really more concerned about. The management has indeed has asked me -- he wants me to come back there's no doubt about that. I would've felt more comfortable when that statement came out that said I was replaced if that had been straightened out, you know, right quick that that, you know, that the matter is being taken care of as, you know, and we apologize for any, you know, if it's been offensive.

Laura Ingraham: What I have -- okay. As a lawyer, Santa, I have a question for you. I'm not calling you Frank, okay? I need to believe, too.

Frank Skinner: That's all right.

Laura Ingraham: Okay? I want to believe. So, is there a policy that you signed when you had your independent contract work to talk to the kids?

Frank Skinner: No. No, there wasn't.

Laura Ingraham: Was -- did you sign anything that said you couldn't wear a hat, or you couldn't wear anything other than your cap, your Santa cap?

Frank Skinner: No, but –

Laura Ingraham: Okay. So, I'd sue them.

Frank Skinner: But in fairness –

Laura Ingraham: I'd sue them all. I'm sorry. I'd sue them.

Frank Skinner: Let me just say this.

Laura Ingraham: They're hurting your 1st Amendment.

Frank Skinner: Right, but let me just say this in fairness, though. I understand as a Santa of 48 years that you don't mix politics with Santa with kids. That's the reason why –

Laura Ingraham: But you didn't do that.

Frank Skinner: --- I took the -- and I didn't do that. But yet that's the perception. It was like -- almost like they were saying I was wearing my hat all the time and that's just not true.

Laura Ingraham: These people are humorless. Frank, you're awesome and I'm -- 48 years, is that right?

Frank Skinner: Forty-eight years. Started back in 1971.

Laura Ingraham: Wow. Frank Skinner, a.k.a Santa Claus. Merry Christmas and you take care and have a happy New Year. And sick Donner on them next time if they give you any trouble. I heard Donner has a wicket bite. You take care, Santa.

Frank Skinner: Laura, thank you so much.

Laura Ingraham: A final year-end note when we return.

[COMMERCIAL BREAK]

Laura Ingraham: I know you're devastated to hear this but I'm going to be off for Christmas and New Year's but come on, be sure to still tune in every night in my stead. We have Raymond Arroyo and Jason Chaffetz. They're going to guest host for a few nights each. They're going to have an amazing series of shows. You're going to love it. And on Christmas Eve we actually present the best of Laura and Raymond on the road. I think this is actually disturbing that we're actually doing this on Christmas Eve, but we are. They're great highlights from our 2019 travels. You'll love it. I promise. Then on New Year's Day the best of my angles, ooh, they're devastating, provides a unique look at how 2019 progressed through the lens of yours truly, the monologues. I just want to thank all of you, all the Ingraham Angle fans out there from the bottom of my heart. It's been an incredible year, one for the record books really in politics, the culture, and clearly Fox News and this show. We have an incredible team. Everyone has to contribute, and they do. That's why we get on the air every night. It couldn't have been more exciting. Thank you. Everyone have an incredible Christmas. Hug your family. Have a wonderful time. Happy Hanukkah. A wonderful, happy, blessed, and healthy new year. Be sure to soak up as much of that family time as you can, and I'll see you in 2020.

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