Glenn Beck Program, February 2, 2011

Guest Host: Eric Bolling

Egypt

• In Egypt, protesters pro- and anti-government have been clashing all day.
• Eric showed a picture of Mohammed El Baradai and said that he thought he, El Baradai, might end up being a figurehead for the Muslim Brotherhood.  John McCain also shares this view.

Guests:

• Michael Scheuer, Former CIA Counter terrorism Analyst
• Dr Zuhdi Jasser, American Islamic Forum for Democracy
• Robert Spenser, Director of Jihad Watch

(Comments have been grouped by guest, and are not in the order presented.)

Michael

• He thinks the U.S. has lost credibility because we have come down on both sides.  Also, we have no power to affect events there.  So it would have been better to have not said anything at all.
• Right now there are only two entities that can provide government type services in Egypt, Mubarak and the existing bureaucracies and the Muslim Brotherhood.  The Brotherhood offers many social services in parallel with the government’s.  No matter who comes to power, the Brotherhood has to be part of it.
• Whatever replaces the current governments in Egypt and elsewhere in the region will not be as friendly towards Israel.

Dr Zuhdi

• We don’t know which way events in Egypt will go.  If the crowds disperse, Mubarak will round up those responsible.  We need to support those wanting democracy.  When asked who that is, he didn’t know.
• This upheaval has to happen.  Militant Islam is a product of these autocratic regimes.
• This process is going to take time.  Look at how much time and U.S. effort has gone into Iraq.  It may get worse before it gets better.
• We need to be in this for the long run.  The people in Egypt have not been educated on the principles of Jeffersonian democracy.  We have a habit of paying attention for two weeks and then moving on.

Robert

• There are no heroes in this story (from the American point of view).  President Obama has green-lighted the Muslim Brotherhood, which wants to destroy the American system and is very anti-Israel.  This will not end with a democratic rule.  It will be another Iran.
• The Brotherhood doesn’t have to lead these protests because they are in a position to exploit it.  The Brotherhood will win any election in Egypt.
• With Mubarak gone, Egypt will be hostile to Israel.  We need to stand by Israel as it is the only true democracy in the Middle East and which protects human rights.

Oil Prices

Eric showed a map of the Middle East and North Africa.  One third of the world’s oil is produced within a few hundred miles of Cairo.  The Strait of Hormoz handles 20 million barrels of oil per day.  Any disruption in the movement of oil will cause gasoline prices to skyrocket.

Guests

• John Hoffmeister, Former Head of Shell Oil
• Steve Moore, Senior Economic Writer for the Wall Street Journal

(Comments have been grouped by guest, and are not in the order presented.)

John

• The world consumes 85 million barrels per day. 
• The U.S. consumes 20 million barrels of oil per day.
• We’ve known about the choke points (Suez Canal, a pipeline across Egypt and the straits of Hormoz) and there are a number of scenarios of what will happen if they are closed.  Closing just the Strait of Hormoz alone could see the price of oil double (to $200 per barrel). 
• Stopping oil production in the Gulf of Mexico is unconscionable.
• There is a psychological component to oil prices.  If the US said it was going back to 10 million barrels per day of production like we did in the 1970s, it would calm the markets.
• High oil prices could kill a recovering economy.
• There are 250 million gasoline-powered cars on the road today.  Even if we hit one million electric cars by 2015, so what?

Steve

• All prices will go up if oil skyrockets.
• Unlike oil prices, the price of natural gas is declining.  But the Dept. of the Interior is preventing the increase in new gas exploitation.
• Oil price increases are like a tax applied by foreigners.  This administration is taking steps to prevent our use of oil.
• Even with electric cars, we still need to generate electricity to run them.

Health Care

• The Senate is to vote on repealing the Health Care law today. 
• The number of exemptions now exceeds 700 employers.
• 500 waivers were granted in December alone.
• 40% of the waivers have been given to unions.  Unions make up 7% of the working population.
• There are no guidelines on how waivers should be handled.

Guests

• Betsy McCoy, Former Lt Governor of New York
• Michael Cannon, CATO Institute

Betsy

• The health care law violates the Constitution and the Senators took an oath to protect the Constitution.
• Also, all Americans should be granted waivers, not just those politically connected.
• The administration is not treating people equally before the law.  It is corroding our system.

Michael

• The government workers union, SEIU has three waivers, even after supporting the law’s passage.
• Current waivers are for only one provision in the law. 
• There are numerous other provisions, which may need to have waivers applied.
• The U.S. district court ruled the entire law unconstitutional.

General Electric (GE)

• Between 2001 – 2009, General Electric lost 24,000 U.S. jobs.
• GE has 14,000 workers in China.
• GE to sink more than $2 billion into China to build relationships.
• President Obama selected GE’s CEO, Jeffrey Immelt to be the new Jobs Czar.  How is that going to be good for America?

Guest:  Christopher Horner, CEI Senior Fellow and Author of “Power Grab” (http://www.amazon.com/Power-Grab-Policies-Freedom-Bankrupt/dp/1596985992/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1296706437&sr=8-1 )

• The first waiver of California’s environmental regulations was given to a company using GE turbines.  That is crony capitalism.
• GE is the biggest firm lobbying in Washington.  Last year, it increased its lobbying budget by 49% to $39.3 million.
• What is wrong with the incandescent light bulb is that the profit margin is not a great as the new type bulbs.
• Eric showed a chart of companies and how much in taxes they paid as a percentage.
• Target                       37.2%
• Home Depot             35.4%
• Wal-Mart                 33.6%
• GE                            3.6%

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• The Supreme Court ruled in 2007 that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) could regulate anything, e.g., air, oxygen.  If they implement regulations to do that, it will affect everyone in this country that either produces or consumes energy.
• Prices will skyrocket for energy, affecting almost everything.
• It is an energy-rationing scheme.