Rick Perry: Biden's policies are going to cost us
Former US Energy Secretary discusses rising gas prices on ‘Your World.’
This is a rush transcript from "Your World with Neil Cavuto" August 13, 2021. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KIRBY, PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY: No outcome has to be inevitable
here. I'm not going to speculate about surprise. We're obviously watching
this just like you're watching this, and seeing it happen in real time.
And it's deeply concerning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEIL CAVUTO, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: That might be an understatement, especially
when we now know that the Taliban, forgot about maybe being in the
outskirts of Kabul next week. Try this weekend in what has been a pattern
of taking a city almost one a day, Herat, then Ghazni, then Kandahar, the
second largest city that is all but in Taliban hands.
What happens now?
Welcome, everybody. I'm Neil Cavuto. And this is "Your World."
And what in the world has descended in the Middle East, particularly in
Afghanistan, where it has gone from what this country hoped would be a
peaceful pullout accomplished by the end of the month to one that's looking
like a frantic, almost Vietnam era rush out the door?
Let's go to Lucas Tomlinson, who's been following all of this from the
Pentagon -- Lucas.
LUCAS TOMLINSON, FOX NEWS PENTAGON PRODUCER: Neil, officials say that
Kabul is now surrounded, fighting taking place 30 miles outside of town.
Here's Pentagon press Secretary John Kirby moments ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIRBY: And they have, throughout this last few weeks, you have seen it for
yourself, taken over border crossings, taken over highways and major
intersections.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TOMLINSON: Kirby says the first U.S. Marines have landed in Kabul to
secure the airport and begun evacuating Americans from the embassy; 3,000
U.S. troops, including an Army infantry battalion, will arrive this
weekend.
A total of 8,000 U.S. troops are deploying not only to Afghanistan, but the
Middle East. The alert brigade from the 18th Airborne Corps, some 4,000
paratroopers, and the 82nd Airborne Division heading to Kuwait to be kept
in reserve, 1,000 troops going to Qatar to process visas of Afghan
interpreters.
The Taliban have now seized more than half of Afghanistan's 34 provincial
capitals. The U.S. has spent $85 billion, Neil, in the past 20 years to
build this Afghan army that has since crumbled. Top Pentagon brass wanted
to keep 2,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. But President Biden overruled his
generals.
After withdrawing 2, 500 U.S. troops in recent months, roughly the same
number are now going back to evacuate Americans.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOMLINSON: You have said the Afghan forces have the advantage? What proof
can you offer, as the Taliban have taken over now vast majorities of the
country and they have now surrounded Kabul?
KIRBY: That the Taliban have moved with the speed with which they have and
that the resistance that they have faced has been insufficient to stop
those, to check those advances, does not mean, Lucas, that the advantages
aren't still there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TOMLINSON: And embassy officials are currently destroying sensitive
information at the embassy as they prepare to evacuate and head to the
airport under the cover of the U.S. Marines -- Neil.
CAVUTO: Lucas Tomlinson, thank you.
Now to the White House and our Peter Doocy and what the president has been
saying or at least hinting of any of this. What have we heard from him?
Anything, Peter?
PETER DOOCY, FOX NEWS WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Nothing yet, Neil.
The commander in chief is keeping quiet about this order to send 3,000
American troops into Afghanistan on a mission that at the Pentagon briefing
earlier officials admitted does carry some risk of danger. Nothing on
camera or on paper since he left town this time yesterday.
And that's as some diplomats try to talk the Taliban into steering clear of
this American operation and leaving the embassy alone. That is according to
The New York Times. And that is -- we are also hearing our -- our colleague
Rich Edson at the State Department confirms that American staff are now
preparing documents to be destroyed so that they cannot be stolen by the
Taliban if the embassy falls.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NED PRICE, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: We are reducing our civilian
footprint to a core diplomatic presence.
And what that means is that we are going to continue to have a diplomatic
presence on the ground in Afghanistan. Our embassy remains open. We are
going to continue to be able to do the consular--
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DOOCY: A White House official tells us that the president gave the order
to send these troops in yesterday and that he stands by his decision to
order the drawdown in the spring, no reversal happening.
And that is curious to Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who says, if
President Biden truly has no regrets about his decision to withdraw, then
he is disconnected from reality when it comes to Afghanistan.
And just as we were coming to air, Neil, I heard from a senior White House
official who says the president is receiving regular briefings about this.
He's already met with the national security team too. He is still talking
about other things, his legislative agenda and COVID, while at Camp David,
but he is expected to receive regular briefings about this in the days
ahead while he remains at Camp David in Maryland -- Neil.
CAVUTO: Peter, thank you.
To Dave Sears, the retried Navy SEAL commander, a bestselling author of
"Smarter Not Harder."
Dave, very good to have you back, I'm sorry under these situations.
I'm just wondering. As someone who has sacrificed a lot for this country
and had so many good friends and buddies over the years who made the
ultimate sacrifice, we always come back to, was it worth it? Was it worth
it?
DAVE SEARS, FORMER U.S. NAVY SEAL COMMANDER: Yes, absolutely, without a
doubt.
So, I'm actually pretty disgusted when I see different politicians sit up,
whether it's on the Republican side or Democrat side, and start to try and
pull on the emotional heartstrings of our families and people who have
sacrificed.
In every spot around the world, sacrifices in the service always matter
regardless. I was in Venezuela in the early '90s. Because Venezuela is now
communist, is that (AUDIO GAP) their sacrifice is in vain?
No, it's not. When you serve honorably, it is always an honor. And that's
(AUDIO GAP) honored. Politicians, stop pulling on people's heartstrings.
That is completely disgusting and irresponsible.
CAVUTO: I admire you said that, Dave, because one of the things that's
lost in this argument is our 20-year presence in Afghanistan, you could
argue, prevented another attack on American soil.
So now the obvious question is, if the Taliban do take over Afghanistan,
are we vulnerable to another attack?
SEARS: I think we're all semi-vulnerable to another attack.
But the situation has changed. We're 20 years later. I would be, frankly,
much more concerned about the possible (AUDIO GAP) million people that are
able to walk across the border from 100 different countries.
You have safe havens that are in Palestine, in Libya, in Somalia, in Yemen,
in Syria. Afghanistan is (AUDIO GAP) unique environment. And to bring some
context to it, I would remind you that three I believe it was of the 9/11
hijackers underwent some training there.
But they all came (AUDIO GAP) Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and
Lebanon. And they didn't originate from flights (AUDIO GAP). They
originated in the United States. So, maybe we should take a little focus
and put that here and not use this (AUDIO GAP) if Afghanistan falls it's
going to be another 9/11.
I think, 20 years later, if (AUDIO GAP) taken care of that, some people
need to be held really accountable.
CAVUTO: We obviously bring all these troops in to help deal with the
exodus of American personnel from the country.
But the urgency of that and some of the frenetic, frantic nature of that,
is it going to tempt the Taliban to do something?
SEARS: I think it could without a doubt.
When you show weakness and a panic, then (AUDIO GAP) wants to take
advantage of that, if they can. I would not in any way, shape, or form
trust Taliban diplomatically. They are brutal, heartless savages who will
never (AUDIO GAP). There is no centralized command-and-control person to
negotiate with.
They understand one thing and one only. It's pure force. That, they
respect. And so you have to preempt anything they would do with very
extreme and sudden, fast (AUDIO GAP) in order to stop them in their tracks
(AUDIO GAP) will make them stop and think.
CAVUTO: Dave Sears, thank you very much, but more for your incredible
service to this country, the retired Navy SEAL commander.
A lot of people have been touching on this comparison to Vietnam and our
getting out of there and the embassy helicopter rescue and all of that
almost half-a-century ago.
Rebeccah Heinrichs with us right now, the Hudson Institute senior fellow.
There are some differences, though, Rebeccah, at least if I start knocking
the cobwebs out of my memory here, that the Vietcong did nothing to
interrupt that or disrupt that departure. They were confident we were soon
going to be out of there and let the Americans get out of there. There's a
different fear around the Taliban, that they're more vicious, they're
crazier, they're less calculated.
I'm just wondering what you think they would or could do or what you worry
about.
REBECCAH HEINRICHS, THE HUDSON INSTITUTE: Thanks, Neil.
The number one concern that I have right now is the safety of U.S. civilian
personnel that are still in country. There's much larger ramifications here
of what's going to happen to the -- to Afghanistan and the larger Middle
East, but, right now, I mean, it's a tenuous situation.
Your previous guest was just talking about that. So I think that's our
number one concern of what's going to happen. Is this going to be a
Benghazi situation, heaven forbid? We just got to get those U.S. personnel
and their families, whoever are still in the country, out of there as
quickly as possible.
The other thing that I would point out too, Neil, when we look at the
Saigon and what's going on right now in Kabul, Afghanistan, there's some
alarming things that are different.
The Taliban wasn't -- isn't nearly as supposed to be as strong as what the
North Vietnamese were at the time. And yet they are going through this
military campaign at a speed that makes them look much more powerful than
what the North Vietnamese were at the time.
So, this is a disaster. It's alarming. And it's disturbing that President
Biden hasn't spoken out more to provide some clear messaging or what the
American people should be thinking about for a way forward.
CAVUTO: You know, as recently just a few days ago -- I want to play this
back with you, Rebeccah -- John Kirby, the Pentagon spokesman, was telling
me that it was going to be in the Taliban's better interest to look at how
they look to the world and that they would behave accordingly.
This is just a few days ago, John Kirby. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIRBY: The Taliban continue to make advances on the ground. But what we
want to see is a political negotiated end to this war.
And we believe that that's still possible, but it is going to come down to
leadership, leadership in Afghanistan.
(CROSSTALK)
CAVUTO: How is that in the Taliban's interests to politically settle
something where they seem to have the upper hand?
KIRBY: Well, if the Taliban, as they claim, they want to have a say in
governance in Kabul and over the country, and if they want legitimacy for
that role in governance, they're going to need international community
support, and they're not going to get the international community support
if they try to find a purely military solution to this through brutality
and assassination and coercion.
CAVUTO: But if they end up winning and taking over Afghanistan, what would
they care, right?
KIRBY: Well, again, I can't speak for the Taliban, Neil. I wouldn't begin
to do that.
CAVUTO: Understood.
KIRBY: Impossible for me to get in their minds. But, again, if they want
good governance that has some level of legitimacy on the international
scale, they're going to have to get back at the table and help us get to a
negotiated settlement here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAVUTO: You know, Rebeccah, maybe it's just me. I understand what John is
saying.
But the fact of the matter is, I have rarely seen any signs of the Taliban
operating by Marquis of Queensbury rules or, for that matter, making good
on a plea by the American government to leave our embassy alone and don't
destroy it.
I think we have a different perception of the reality that is the Taliban.
What about you?
HEINRICHS: No, it's infuriating, actually, listening to that back and
forth that you just had with him, because it's just levels of delusion
here.
All the evidence points to the fact that the Taliban are still terrorists.
They do not care about human life and the dignity of human life. It's
ridiculous to even suggest that they do. They don't care about
international legitimacy. They are terrorists. They have continued to work
with Al Qaeda, despite this administration's insistence that they think
that they have distanced themselves from Al Qaeda.
I mean, this administration, you can say, listen, we -- it's 20 years, it's
time to get out of Afghanistan. But this -- the Biden administration did
not have a plan for securing U.S. personnel to get out of there. It didn't
have a plan for basing for continued counterterrorism operations, didn't
secure the armored vehicles and trucks and UAVs that we still had in
country that are now being overtaken by the Taliban.
This is a disaster of very serious proportions. And to hear this sort of
just continued delusion whenever he speaks and communicates to the American
people, the American people should be furious with the incompetency and the
continued dishonesty of this administration, especially on an issue so
grave, of which so much blood and treasure has been spent in this
particular region of the world.
CAVUTO: Rebeccah, thank you. We will see that sorts out.
But, again, we could be seeing the Taliban at Kabul's doorstep as soon as
this weekend. We will be monitoring that, as we will tomorrow morning in
our continued live coverage beginning at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time, what's at
stake in Afghanistan and how close the Taliban is right now to Kabul.
We will have more after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANGELA MARSDEN, OWNER, PINEAPPLE HILL SALOON & GRILL: They want us to be
the sheriff? And I'm supposed to, what, put a vaccine checker at the door?
And if somebody gets mad and punches my employee in the face, what do I do?
EDWARD GOMEZ, OWNER, DA NOI RESTAURANTS: It creates a big obstacle for us
now. And we're already struggling to begin with.
TYLER HOLLINGER, OWNER, FESTIVAL CAFE: The government should not be
forcing the private sector, small business, to do the policing that the
government should really be doing themselves.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAVUTO: All right, over the last week or so on both FOX News and FOX
Business, which, if you don't get, you should demand, but hopefully you get
it, and you have been demanding it and getting upset about what these
restaurant owners have to put up with and a lot of other business owners
where they're reinstating vaccination proof requirements.
In other words, you run a restaurant, run a business, you have got to make
sure that everyone who's in there has indeed been vaccinated.
Jonathan Turley with us right now, one of the greatest lawyers I know. I
don't know too, too many lawyers, but he is impressive.
(LAUGHTER)
CAVUTO: Jonathan, is it legal -- I'm kidding on that.
But is it legal? And are they liable if it's someone sneaks through who has
not been vaccinated?
JONATHAN TURLEY, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Well, this is going to be
intriguing, because, of course, the vaccine card itself is something that
is easy to replicate.
In fact, there is a serious problem of these falsified cards out there. I
mean, the cards you receive at Disney World are more reliable than these
sort of small cards with notations on them. So it'll be interesting as to
what is expected of these restaurants when someone flashes one of these
rather unremarkable cards at them.
But the other question is, to what extent will courts get involved? Courts
are very deferential in terms of these types of mandates. But there will be
people who obviously will object. Some people have medical conditions that
do not allow them to have a vaccine.
Are you going to accommodate those people? Some people have natural
antibodies because they have recovered from the virus. We have a law
professor who is currently challenging that because he was told by his
doctors not to get the vaccine, because he already has natural antibodies.
So, those are issues that may come up. But the most practical problem is
the one that you began with, Neil, which is, what's expected of these
restaurants? There are a ubiquitous number of ways to create this card.
People will be flashing them at doors. What's expected of a restaurant or a
bar?
CAVUTO: So, I will flip it around. Let's say, the restaurant owner says, I
can't be bothered with. The hell with it. I'm not the vaccine bouncer here.
I'm running a restaurant or a shop. I'm bedeviled by not having enough
workers, keeping up with higher price, all that. I do not have time for
this. I'm not going to do it.
What is what is their liability?
TURLEY: Well, they could find themselves in some serious trouble.
The expectation is that cities like New York and San Francisco are going to
back this up with some type of penalty. They already have this type of
requirement, obviously, for age when it comes to alcohol. And they are
going to be following that same program with vaccination.
But the expectation is that there's going to be a stick and not much of a
carrot being offered to these restaurants. The carrot, according to these
states, is, we won't shut everyone down again. But the stick presumably
will be you are going to have to be the gatekeepers in terms of who can go
into bars, who can go into restaurants.
And there's also this question that many people have raised, which is, is
this type of overwhelming rule necessary? The concern is that some people
have said, we need to make life as difficult as possible to get people to
take the vaccine, this type of coerced consent model.
And for myself, my family, we didn't need that. As soon as the vaccine
became available, we were happy to get it. But there are obviously many
people who don't want it. And, notably, President Biden said recently that
he doesn't think all of this coercion is going to change many minds.
So you're going to have rising tension. And these bars and restaurants are
going to be that front line. They have been designated the gatekeeper,
whether they like it or not.
CAVUTO: And they don't like it at all.
TURLEY: Right.
CAVUTO: Thank you very much, Jonathan Turley, on all of that.
By the way, we want to keep you updated. We have been telling you about the
tumult going on in Afghanistan, and now talk that the NATO allies in the
North Atlantic Council today are indeed consulting on this situation, going
on to say that: "NATO allies are deeply concerned about the high levels of
violence caused by the Taliban's offensive, including attacks on civilians,
targeted killings and reports of other serious human rights abuses. The
Taliban need to understand that they will not be recognized by the
international community if they take the country by force."
OK, now, this is the Taliban you're telling this to. You will not be
welcomed in the international community if you do what you appear to be
doing and keep doing it. I think it's safe to say that, after 20-plus
years, the Taliban doesn't care.
We will have more after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CAVUTO: More and more companies are pushing back you returning to the
office, some as late as into next year.
What's the implications of this for you and everyone you work with,
depending on where you're working with them?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CAVUTO: You like telecommuting or just not being in the office?
Well, apparently, a lot of your bosses, a lot more companies are saying
they're fine with this continuing, in some cases, for another month or so,
past the September promised return to work to as -- well, into 2022,
January, February, you name it.
Welcome back, everybody. I'm Neil Cavuto.
And focusing on companies that are now allowing their workers to keep doing
the virtual thing virtually, right, well, for months, maybe quite a few
months to come.
The implications of this was Scott Martin, Kimberly Foss, expert readers of
the financial and other markets.
Kimberly, the message from the companies is, it seems to be working for us
right now. We'd prefer in person. But now we have got these spikes in
cases, the uncertainty about masks and what to do. So keep doing what
you're doing.
What do you think?
KIMBERLY FOSS, EMPYRION WEALTH MANAGEMENT: Yes, it's just difficult, Neil.
I understand that they want to be safe, and they want to do the right
thing. But, at the same time, eventually, we have to go back to work,
because the bottom line is just the quality of work, the time it takes to
get things down.
I can tell you in my own practice, when we try to get software service, you
have got the lady on the other end trying to help us. But she's got the
Screaming Mimi in the background. And the bottom line is, it takes us four
phone calls, four phone calls to get what I could have done with one person
in the office focused on what our situation is, which then takes me more
time, takes my employees more time. It takes more cost.
I can't be as profitable. That's the end of the story. We need to make a
profit.
CAVUTO: OK, you sound like a workaholic. And we have got to talk about
that, because that's a separate issue for you.
(LAUGHTER)
CAVUTO: But let me get to you, Scott, all kidding aside.
These same companies are saying on the flip side of this, say, yes, we will
let you continue working from home, depending on where you work. We're
going to cut your pay. Google's already hinted at that, maybe pay cuts of
up to 10 to 15 percent, because you're not commuting. You're not as in
expensive a locale. And so why should they pay you that much?
What do you think of that?
SCOTT MARTIN, FOX BUSINESS CONTRIBUTOR: It's interesting, because that's
kind of been the dark side of this option of how much we care about you as
an employer. It's like, yes, you can do all this cool stuff, work from
home, work by the pool, take the dog out and do the conference calls on the
street.
CAVUTO: Right.
MARTIN: But, oh, by the way, you're going to get 30 percent less and we're
going to cut your other benefits too.
And that's the goofy part of this whole thing, and Kim touched on it,
getting back to the regular economy and the regular style of work. I mean,
Neil, we have got an office here of about 15 people, and we got about half
of those folks back in, I mean, myself included.
Like, think about when you're going to work on a daily basis. You're going
to the bar, to the restaurant, to the dry cleaners, yes, because, like,
this suit doesn't clean itself, by the way.
(LAUGHTER)
MARTIN: And that's usually in that order of which I'm doing things.
And you're not going out and spending money. You know what I mean. You're
not stopping it places along the way, where you're creating economic
activity. You're staying home. You're staying inside.
CAVUTO: That's right.
MARTIN: And you're not going out. And you're not generating kind of that
economic growth, that economic activity that we're so used to and that the
markets need, I believe, to stay at these levels.
CAVUTO: I look at the markets, though, Kimberly, and the Dow and S&P were
up again today. That makes four days in a row, a record for them.
So if they're panicking about it, they're not showing it. And I'm just
wondering whether it's their belief we will get through this, everything's
going to be fine. The earnings certainly have been fine through the
pandemic. They will get even better, the more, even if it's slowly, pull
out of the pandemic. And they just see everything half-glass-full.
Do you?
FOSS: Yes, I think that they're shrugging this Delta variant off.
And, by the way, Neil, this is not the only variant that's coming out,
right? They have got variants out to 2023. So, interesting how they know
that, but that's another subject.
CAVUTO: Sure. Thanks for reminding of us that, yes.
FOSS: But at the same time, we have got--
(LAUGHTER)
FOSS: Yes, just a little there, yes.
CAVUTO: Yes. Yes. That's right.
FOSS: Just you have got $4.5 trillion on the sidelines too, though, in
money market.
And money goes where it's best rewarded. And it is not getting rewarded in
money market accounts. So you are going to see more money committed to the
market. I think this is going to be a slight pullback, but you know what?
We pivot. That's what America does so great and entrepreneurs do so great.
They pivot.
They will figure out a way. If the front door is locked, we're going in the
side door or the little door in the basement. We're going to get in
somehow, some way. And that's what -- about capitalism and the investor.
CAVUTO: Got it.
Well, I'm going through the refrigerator door myself, but I understand what
you're getting at there with this migration that's going on.
(LAUGHTER)
CAVUTO: Guys, I want to thank you both very, very much.
In the meantime, here, not everything is hunky-dory. You probably discover
that when you go to the store and you see the higher prices or you go to
the gas station and you see the, well, dramatically higher prices.
And doesn't our Jeff Flock know that?
Jeff.
JEFF FLOCK, FOX BUSINESS NETWORK CORRESPONDENT: You know when the prices
are spiking at the gas station, Neil? Because that's when the electric
charging stations start filling up.
The latest from, well, I would say the gas station, but maybe from the
fueling station, when we come back, just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CAVUTO: You know, if you think about this whole inflation thing, it really
started with gas, right? Gas, oil prices, they started skyrocketing and
everything else followed suit.
And at least when it comes to the gas thing, it is not really easing up.
Jeff Flock in Philadelphia with much more on that.
Hey, Jeff.
FLOCK: I come to you, Neil, from the newest station, gas station, I call
it, in Philadelphia. This is the Wawa here just fairly near the airport.
But I tell you, the gas pumps are nowhere near as busy sometimes as these
Tesla superchargers. Just so happens right now nobody's at them, but gas a
whole lot more expensive than electric right now. Take a look at the
numbers. We're at $3.19 for the average gallon of regular. It's held steady
for the past year -- past year -- past week, I should say.
But that's about $1 more than it was a year ago this time. Yes, people not
too happy if you have got a gas-powered vehicle. Our folks that FOX Digital
talked to folks in Arlington, Virginia. Here's what they had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Steep. And it's just making it harder to afford.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It kind of sucks. And it makes traveling a lot
harder. And that's something that a lot of people have been, like, waiting
to do.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Inflation is really affecting us. And I don't like it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FLOCK: Going to grab this.
Ah, yes, no surprise doesn't like it. Well, maybe they do like if they are
into electric vehicles. The Biden climate agenda, that would be -- and I
quote -- the agenda now. By 2026, average MPGs for gas-powered vehicles, 52
miles to the gallon. Sounds crazy for an average. And, by 2030, half of the
vehicles, half of all vehicles sold expected to be E.V.s.
At least, that's what the president would like. I know you're going to talk
to Rick Perry in just a moment, as we watch another Tesla vehicle pull up
here to charge up. I was going to say gas up. I suspect Mr. Perry might not
be as thrilled with the climate agenda from Mr. Biden. But I guess we will
let him speak for himself, sir.
CAVUTO: Indeed, we shall.
Jeff, thank you very, very much, Jeff Flock following all that.
And, indeed, with us now, the aforementioned former energy secretary of the
United States, longtime governor of the state of Texas, Rick Perry.
Secretary, good to have you.
RICK PERRY, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF ENERGY: Thank you. It's good to be
with you, Neil.
CAVUTO: Prices are up more than a buck a gallon since you left office. And
now we're seeing them continuing to rise.
The administration's view is, it's about demand and an improving economy.
They are a little curious about the timing of some of these hikes, when gas
was going one way after oil was briefly dropping.
That aside, what do you think is to blame for this gas spike?
PERRY: Was this isn't rocket science, so to speak.
When you stop the pipeline across the country, when you let the Russians
have their pipeline, when you have countries that are controlling a
substantial amount of the crude that don't necessarily think that much of
the United States, then you're going to see gasoline prices, fuel prices
all across the board going up.
And so we're seeing exactly what you would expect when you have a supply
and demand. We had become energy-independent. America was selling our
products all over the world, liquefied natural gas into Europe, giving the
Europeans real freedom from the Russians.
And that's all been turned on its head because of the left's desire to stop
hydraulic fracturing and directional drilling. And this energy
independence, we don't like that if we're a woke leftist. So Joe Biden's
doing exactly what he said he would do. And it's going to cost people who
voted for him substantially.
I would suggest some folks may not have been thinking about this very long
term. But just like we're seeing this debacle in Afghanistan, we should
have seen this coming with this administration. They shoot first and ask
questions later.
And the American people are who are getting hit with a lot of these
bullets.
CAVUTO: But yet they have reached out to OPEC to try to boost production,
to do the one thing we were doing here.
Now, some of your Republican colleagues have said that's hypocrisy. What do
you think?
PERRY: It's just stunning.
When you think about the -- not all of the countries in OPEC are our sworn
enemies. But when you think about Iran, and what they have said that they
will do to the United States, to Israel, to our allies around the world,
and you're empowering them and begging them, it appears, to please produce
more, it kind of reminds me of what we saw the Biden administration doing
with the Taliban.
Please don't -- don't tear up our embassy, and we will give you some
foreign aid. What a weakness that we see out of this administration day in
and day out, not in foreign policy, but also in domestic policy right here.
The American people, Neil, are going to pay the price for this, everything,
whether it's food, whether--
CAVUTO: But this infrastructure package, then, to that point, Secretary,
19 Republicans voted for that infrastructure-only package.
And that was despite a zinger from Donald Trump that this thing was a
waste, it was just propping up -- Donald Trump -- that Mitch McConnell was
caving.
What did you think of that?
PERRY: Well, there were probably some things that were decent in that
piece of legislation, but, overall, it is a mess.
It is a piece of legislation that's going to cost future generations tons
and tons of money. I would suggest those Republicans need to repent for
what they did on voting for that. That was not in the country's best short-
term or long-term interests. And I would suggest to them that, politically,
it wasn't very wise either.
CAVUTO: Speaking of politically, if I could end on this, now, I'm just
curious.
Donald Trump seems to be laying the groundwork for another presidential
run. I could be wrong, but, certainly, a lot of the signs are there.
If he runs, are you going to support him?
PERRY: Well, that's a long way down the road.
We have got 2022. And I really appreciate what he's doing, helping us take
back the House and certainly take back the Senate. Let's get that done
first, and then we will take a look at 2024.
CAVUTO: How about you? Are you interested in the job?
PERRY: You know, today was 10 years to the day when I walked on the stage
in Charleston, South Carolina, to start my bid in 2011.
And so thank you for reminding me of a very uniquely--
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
PERRY: -- and humbling experience as well.
So, I'm pretty sure that my days in elected public office is over. I hope
to be helping keep this country free and liberty still at the top of our --
the top of our pyramid, so to speak, and helping young men and women who
believe greatly in this country and will sacrifice for it, just like I did
with my friend Josh -- or -- excuse me -- Jake Ellzey, who's headed up to
D.C. to be a United States congressman.
Jake's going to do a fabulous job for America.
CAVUTO: All right, we will follow you closely, Governor, Secretary, no
matter what.
For now, I will put you down as a maybe on that, Rick Perry, the former
energy secretary of these United States.
(LAUGHTER)
CAVUTO: I didn't realize it was 10 years ago today.
(CROSSTALK)
CAVUTO: All right.
We are following other developments going on right now in Florida, for
example. They got a storm heading their way. I'm not talking all the
political storm over masks or anything. I'm talking about a genuine
depression, a storm, whatever you want to call it, that threatens so far it
looks like the western part of the state.
Phil Keating with more on Fred.
Hey, Phil.
PHIL KEATING, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Neil. Good afternoon.
This time tomorrow, all of the Florida Keys should be quite rainy and
decent wind, but, for now, it's just a little bit of a breeze. It's dry, no
rain, perfect time to get your boats out of the water now, while it is
still dry.
At this public vote ramp in Marathon, it has been one boat trailer at a
time to get their boats out. So, the line of trucks and trailers here most
of the day has been about two hours' long. Most of these people came down
here for a week of lobster season and are heading back to the mainland
before the weather worsens.
The entire Florida Keys right now is under a tropical storm warning. The
Miami and Fort Lauderdale area is no longer in the cone of concern, but,
still, with three to seven inches of rain possible throughout the weekend,
several sandbagging stations have been set up for those worried about
flooding, especially in the usual low-lying spots.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRANCIS SUAREZ (R), MAYOR OF MIAMI, FLORIDA: As a precaution, the city of
Miami has partially activated the Emergency Operations Center to keep a
close eye on its development.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEATING: All day long, it's been raining on eastern and central Cuba, as
well as the Bahamas.
Currently, the storm is blowing 35 mile-an-hour winds. Here's what happened
Wednesday on Hispaniola. The storm is a rainmaker, causing street flooding
in a lot of places. But, as the storm gets back into the Florida Straits
tonight, it is expected to restrengthen to a tropical storm with 45-mile-
an-hour winds and then move northwest towards Key West and then up the
coast of Florida through the weekend.
Everybody in the Florida Keys living on their boats out there on Florida
Bay -- and that's a lot of people -- they are being encouraged right now to
get off the boats for the weekend, get onto land just to ride it out.
And, Neil, that is your Florida Keys omen for this Friday the 13th -- back
to you.
CAVUTO: All right, thank you, my friend, very much for that.
In the meantime, it's amazing what some in government will say when they
don't think they're on mic or being heard. The guy who found out the hard
way, and when it comes to the border -- after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CAVUTO: All right, it's scary at the border. That, we know.
What makes it surprising is when a top administration official confirms
it's scary as well.
To Jonathan Hunt in La Joya, Texas, with more -- Jonathan.
JONATHAN HUNT, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Neil, we obtained audio from a
private meeting between Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas that
happened yesterday with Border Patrol agents in which he acknowledged how
difficult the situation is here, something he had little choice but to do,
given that we continue to see migrants flooding across the border,
including in the blazing hot sun today.
Here now is Secretary Mayorkas to those Border Patrol agents. Listen.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, U.S. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: I know very well,
hearing from Chief Hastings and Chief Ortiz and others, how close we came
to breaking, how close we came to breaking here in this sector.
And it's our responsibility to make sure that never happens again, we don't
get that close again.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HUNT: And as you look at live pictures from our drone team, the secretary
then said something that no one in the Biden administration has ever said
about this crisis.
Listen again.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
MAYORKAS: If our border is our first line of defense, we're going to lose,
and this is unsustainable.
We can't continue like this. Our people in the field can't continue. And
our system isn't built for it.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HUNT: Border Patrol agents we have spoken to hear, Neil, agree this is
unsustainable, but they want more than words. They want action -- Neil.
CAVUTO: Jonathan Hunt, thank you very, very much.
When we come back, the story of the pop star whose pop apparently has
popped -- after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CAVUTO: Is Britney finally free of her dad?
Well, it's certainly looking that way, as Britney Spears' father, Jamie
Spears, has reportedly agreed to step down as conservator for her daughter.
This is something that Adam Streisand, my next guest, a trial attorney, was
pushing for, what, I think more than 13 years ago, Adam, right?
ADAM STREISAND, ATTORNEY: That's right.
Look, it's great news, but wait a minute, not so fast, because what he is
said is, he will step down after his accountings get approved for the past
few years. That could take months or even years.
I don't know that Britney's lawyer is going to be satisfied. That's why I'm
not sure we have heard the end of it. Of course, if you terminate the
conservatorship, that gets rid of Jamie, but we haven't seen a petition to
terminate the conservatorship yet.
CAVUTO: Now, someone else, in other words, could assume that role, but
that person would have to prove or, much as her father was trying to state
year after year, that she was incapable of handling her career, even her
life, herself.
But she seemed very composed, very with it, and, in at least the court of
public opinion, impressive. So what now?
STREISAND: Yes, well, look, I have heard people say, the strategy is get
rid of Jamie as conservator, and that will make it easier to terminate the
conservatorship.
But that's not true, because Jamie will always have the right to
participate. He will have the right to oppose the conservatorship, because
he's the father. So, he will always have the ability to be involved in this
conservatorship even if he's removed as conservator.
Now--
CAVUTO: Why does it make a difference that he's the father? She's a grown
woman now, I mean, obviously, and then some.
So what hold would he have on her?
STREISAND: Well, any family member or even a friend has the right to be
involved and say, hey, this person needs a conservatorship.
The problem here is, just as you alluded to a moment ago, I don't know
whether she's a candidate for conservatorship or not. I have no idea. But a
conservatorship can be maintained only if there's no other way to help her
function. And that just can't be the case here. And that's got to be the
focus.
I understand she's reluctant to get evaluated and all of that, but the
focus has to be on, hey, she can function. There are other ways to help her
despite depriving her of her civil rights.
CAVUTO: So, let me ask you real quick. I wish we had a lot more time,
Adam. We don't.
But I was startled -- and you had actually enlightened me to this -- that
these conservatorships are quite common, quite widespread across a variety
of people, all industries. If this thing is shot down, will other such
arrangements, you think, be shot down or questioned going forward?
STREISAND: You know, here's my concern, actually.
We have the saying that says bad facts make bad law. And my concern is
that, because this is a bad case -- and I really think this is a bad case -
- that there will be this temptation to overlegislate and take advantage of
the situation.
CAVUTO: Right.
STREISAND: And the thing is, people really need conservatorships.
But I just don't believe Britney does.
CAVUTO: Got it.
All right, Adam, great catching up with you. I apologize for the truncated
time.
Adam Streisand, the attorney who was among the first to get Jamie Spears
off his daughter's back. All right, so it appears that it's getting close,
but it's not a done deal.
That will do it.
Here comes "The Five."
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