Fox News Network
September 18, 2008

HANNITY: And welcome back to "Hannity & Colmes." Now a lot was revealed was during our cable exclusive interview with Governor Sarah Palin.

Joining us now with reaction is the author of the brand-new book, "Drill Here, Drill Now, Pay Less," former speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich.

I have a bumper sticker that says that. It was a good idea to turn it into a book. Well, first of all, let's get your reaction to Governor Palin.

Now we've run well over an hour of the interview with her. Your thoughts?

NEWT GINGRICH, AUTHOR, "DRILL HERE, DRILL NOW, PAY LESS": Well, I want to turn the tables on you, Sean.

HANNITY: Oh, boy.

GINGRICH: You were there in the room. You -- I'm serious. I think the audience will be interested. You were in the room. You were up close. You watched her without a break.

What's your summary judgment of the person that you got to have that kind of a close interview with and that kind of a chance to really test her and ask her, I thought, a very wide range of questions?

HANNITY: I don't think there was anything that we didn't hit. I'm giving you my honest answer. Look, I've interviewed a lot of people, Mr. Speaker. I've interviewed presidents. I've interviewed vice presidents, secretary of state, secretary of defense. I've interviewed you when you were speaker of the House.

If I had to come up with one word I'd say authentic. I mean, there is -- there is a certain authenticity that, frankly, is refreshing compared to a lot of other people that I've interviewed in the political world. That...

GINGRICH: That's my first reaction. As you know, we've talked about this before. But listening to her tonight with you, when you -- when you ask her about our heroes and she talked about Reagan with great affection.

But then she also talked about Lady Thatcher, and I think it's interesting for a number of our friends who assume that, if you come from Wasilla, you can't be very sophisticated. She was pretty vividly aware of who Margaret Thatcher was, and it made an impact on her as a young woman, watching and growing up in high school and college.

HANNITY: And she talked with specificity about Lincoln, and acknowledged -- she's also very quick to answer. Seemed to -- you know, very comfortable, No. 1, doing interviews, obviously very articulate and had thought deeply about a lot of these issues.

The question is, I was at one point thinking why wasn't she on the national scene and radar sooner? Now, you were the first person to bring her to my attention, in full honesty, a while ago.

GINGRICH: You know, I was very struck. The other night I watched Greta's interview with her husband, and I watched scenes from way back, I think, in 1996 when she was younger. I think she was still a city councilwoman at that point. And they're sort of home movies of him winning a race, and she's totally engaged, totally energetic. The person we see today.

What I was struck with again tonight, listening to you go through the interview, which I thought covered a terrific amount of ground last night and tonight, she -- she speaks to you as quickly as she would if she were in her kitchen having coffee with you. This is who she is. She's comfortable with being herself.

She doesn't have to think about her cue cards, and her handlers and her memories. And she's going to have strengths and weaknesses like that, and she's going to make mistakes, but you're consistently going to get the authentic Sarah Palin. And I think the reason she didn't rise faster, candidly, is she's risen pretty darned fast. I mean, here she is, four years as a city councilwoman, four years as mayor, two years as chairman of the energy commission, beats the incumbent Republican governor, a year and a half as governor, and she's the vice-presidential nominee. I think that's a pretty rapid ride.

COLMES: Mr. Speaker, welcome back to our show. I thought -- it was very interesting when Sean asked about how certain women's groups do not support her, and many women may not support her.

And I thought her answer was very telling when she said this is not gender based. And she's all those wonderful things you said: engaging, likeable, certainly articulate, can answer questions. But does that make her the best choice to be vice president of the United States?

And there are genuine issue differences between Sarah Palin and between people like myself, who don't want to see the country go in the direction where she wants to take it?

GINGRICH: Let me...

COLMES: I'm glad you find that so amusing. I'm glad you -- I'm glad I could make you laugh, Hannity and Gingrich. Sounds like a great idea for a show, "Hannity & Gingrich."

GINGRICH: No, we're both trying out to get on the comedy channel.

But listen. First of all, obviously, I would never expect you to vote for her. The most I'd ask is that you respect that she's an intelligent person...

COLMES: Sure. Sure.

GINGRICH: ... with whom you disagree very deeply. But the reason I'm laughing is how can you have a candidate you're supporting who picks Joe Biden?

And you're asking about the best choice?

COLMES: Joe Biden you don't think is capable of assuming, if he had to, the responsibility of being president of the United States?

GINGRICH: No.

COLMES: He doesn't have the skill set to do it?

GINGRICH: That's not the question -- that's not the question you asked me. You asked me if she was the best possible choice. You couldn't possibly look at Joe Biden

and compare him to Hillary Clinton, to take an example, who got 18 million votes, and suggest to me Joe Biden was a better choice?

COLMES: I would have loved Hillary -- to have Hillary at the top of the ticket. I was a Hillary supporter. However, I'm very comfortable with Obama/Biden.

We've got to take a break here.

And I think it's a better ticket, the more experienced, better direction for the country. I'm glad I can make you laugh, Mr. Speaker. I'm glad I'm doing standup for you.

GINGRICH: All right.

(CROSSTALK)

HANNITY: I'm enjoying it.

COLMES: Alan, we're here all week. Tip your waitresses.

Coming up, Joe Biden making headlines after saying the patriotic thing for Americans to do is pay more taxes. Newt Gingrich weighs in on those comments, coming up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D-DE), VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We want to take money and put it back in the pocket of middle-class people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Anybody making over $250,000 is going to paying more.

BIDEN: You've got it. It's time to be patriotic, take -- time to jump in, time to be part of the deal, time to help get America out of the rut.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLMES: That was Joe Biden earlier this morning, defending Barack Obama's plan to hike taxes on wealthier Americans. He's since taken a lot of heat for calling the measure patriotic.

We now continue with Newt Gingrich. His book, "Drill Here, Drill Now, Pay Less," available in bookstores. Where else are you going to get it?

Look, Joe Biden is saying if you have the ability to pay, you should pay. How is that wrong? To pay for bridges, schools, the very things we need, the infrastructure of the country? That's not patriotic.
 

GINGRICH: Well, first of all, every once in a while when you listen to Joe Biden, you know why he used to like Neil Kinnick's speeches, because in his heart, Joe Biden

is a good English socialist.

COLMES: Oh, come on.

GINGRICH: The fact is, Alan -- Now, look, let me -- look -- take what he said today. Do you think Biden thinks the poor are not patriotic?

COLMES: That's not what he said at all.

GINGRICH: ... No. Is he not going to offer them a chance to pay taxes? I don't think so.

COLMES: But he's not saying...

GINGRICH: Now, wait a second. Does he not think that the middle class is patriotic? I mean, the idea that Biden decides that, if he raises your taxes, you should patriotically pay him more money to subsidize the government he believes in...

COLMES: That's not -- that's not true. I don't think that's a fair assessment of what he said. He said the richer people can -- you can rescind the Bush tax cuts on the rich, and having those people contribute to the treasury is a patriotic thing to do. Do you disagree with that?

GINGRICH: By the way, Alan -- Alan, first of all, don't use the word "contribute" and "Joe Biden" in the same interview (ph), because there's no evidence that Joe Biden

has contributed very much to anybody.

Second, you don't contribute to the U.S. Treasury. You are taxed. It's coercion. It's compulsive.

COLMES: So there should be no taxes?

GINGRICH: No. I'm just saying that I think for Biden to decide that his desire to rip off people and take their money should not be disguised as their patriotism when, in fact, it's about his desire for bigger government.

HANNITY: Mr. Speaker, first of all, I thought we weren't supposed to question people's patriotism in this campaign.

And by the way, he made, in the last nine years, $2.5 million, and Mr. Generous gave just a little over $3,000 in nine years. That's all he gave in charitable contributions. All right.

I want to roll this tape, because this issue of the banking issues have come up. And the McCain campaign, rightly so, is hitting back hard on the associates of Barack Obama. Let's roll this tape.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Obama has no background in economics. Who advises him? The Post says it's Franklin Raines for advice on mortgage and housing policy. Shocking.

Under Raines, Fannie Mae committed extensive financial fraud. Raines made millions; Fannie Mae collapsed. Taxpayers? Stuck with the bill.

Barack Obama. Bad advice. Bad instincts. Not ready to lead.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: Mr. Speaker, Raines was the head of Fannie Mae. He was also the director of the OMB under Clinton. He made over $90 million with Fannie Mae.

Then he also has his other friend, Jim Johnson, who was a top executive at Lehman Brothers. He, too, used to be an executive at Fannie Mae. He, too, made tens of millions of dollars.

Both these men, top economic advisors, and then he's going to attack John McCain on the issue of the banking crisis? Your thoughts?

GINGRICH: Well, Barack Obama was the second largest recipient of money from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac right after Senator Chris Dodd. He was the second largest recipient of money from Lehman Brothers right after Senator Clinton. He clearly is tied into crony capitalism.

I'm shocked, in retrospect, that Franklin Raines wasn't required to pay back almost all of his salary, because there were so many fundamental mistakes made and so much money lost and so many fines paid when he was there.

Another Clinton appointee, by the way, made $75 million in the same period, while the fact is in that period that Fannie Mae was cheating the taxpayers, failing to do its job.

HANNITY: Mr. Speaker, stay right there. When we come back, we're going to get your reaction to comments that Michelle Obama made about Governor Palin.

You do not want to miss these comments.

More with Speaker Gingrich in just a minute. Straight ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE OBAMA, WIFE OF BARACK OBAMA: We have an obligation now to pay attention, because we may decide to do something that is different from Barack Obama. But we should decide that based on our self-interests and what we think is best. People should make -- shouldn't make a decision this time based on "I like that guy," or, you know, "She's cute." You know, this isn't -- and I'm talking about me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: Mr. Speaker, Barack Obama attacked me for bringing up that Michelle Obama said America is a downright mean country in 2008. Your reaction to that comment about "don't vote for somebody because they're cute"?
GINGRICH: Well, listen, I wanted to say that I'm not going to take umbrage at that. If she thinks that Governor Palin is cute -- and remember, Governor Palin is a real governor, has been a real mayor, was a real city councilwoman. So I'll take Michelle Obama's statement that here's a very competent professional woman who's smart, and Michelle Obama thinks she's cute. Works for me.

HANNITY: Well, but Barack Obama was mad at me, took a shot at me. I'm not allowed to bring up...

COLMES: Aww. Want me to talk to him for you? Get him to lay off you?

HANNITY: Mr. Speaker, good to see you. Thank you for being with us. Appreciate it.