No Spin Zone
The O'Reilly Factor
Monday, June 6, 2005
The truth about Gitmo Bay
"The detainee abuse story is being used to undermine the war on terror. Over the weekend Senator Joseph Biden joined the abuse chorus and called for the shutting down of Guantanamo Bay. It's amazing to me that he and others actually believe that closing down Gitmo would accomplish anything. The entire Gitmo situation has been driven by the anti-Bush press and the far-left human rights organization. As Talking Points has mentioned, there have been abuses, but not many. A Pentagon report found that there have been 28,000 interrogations at Gitmo over the past three years, and only five cases of Koran abuse. You can't fight a war on terror when every small mistake is magnified into a page 1 scandal."


Arrests in connection with missing girl
Guest: Candice DeLong, former FBI profiler

Two men have been arrested in Aruba in connection with the disappearance of 18-year old Natalee Holloway, the Alabama girl who vanished there last week. Three other Aruba men have been identified as "persons of interest." Former FBI profiler Candice DeLong explained that having five possible suspects makes it more likely to learn the truth. "The more, the better for solving a crime like this. In a group, there's always one strong leader, and others who are going along with it. Those are the ones who are going to rat out the leader." The Factor noted that the suspects are allegedly drug dealers, "We're talking about bad people, which leads me to believe that the chances of this poor woman being alive are not strong."
Jackson jury in deliberations
Guest: Attorney Debra Opri

Michael Jackson was briefly hospitalized this weekend, but family attorney Debra Opri told The Factor he is not seriously ill. "Michael loses weight when he is under stress, but he is fine and reports to the contrary are ill-founded." Opri said Jackson's attorney "is livid ... about these reports." He thinks it is not appropriate that there is this media feeding frenzy about Michael's health - the story is that the jury is deliberating." The Factor sympathized with Jackson's family for being in the center of a media circus. "I know it's a zoo, and I understand how dishonest many in the press are. It's going to be stunning out there when the verdict is read, no matter what it is."
Former professor on trial
Guest: Michael Fechter, Tampa Tribune

The Factor, in an interview right after the 9/11 attacks, played a large role in exposing the alleged terrorist ties of Sami Al-Arian, a former professor at the University of South Florida. Al-Arian's is now on trial, charged with 53 counts of helping terrorists. Tampa reporter Michael Fechter explained that Al-Arian's attorney is arguing the case on free speech rights. "His lawyer said you have the right to be a member of an organization that may be violent as long as you don't engage in anything that furthers that violence. He seemed to be acknowledging the fact that Al-Arian belonged to Palestinian Islamic Jihad." The Factor contended that even if Al-Arian didn't commit violence himself, he could still be convicted. "What could sentence this man to life in prison is if he raised money for this terrorist organization. They have all kinds of audio tape of this guy, and it'll be interesting when they play that."
Illegal immigrants & crime
Guests: Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley & law professor Ruth Wedgwood

A Denver detective was recently murdered, and the leading suspect is an illegal immigrant who fled to Mexico. The Mexican government won't return him for trial because he would face the death penalty. "Mexico has the right under a treaty to not extradite their own citizens," explained law professor Ruth Wedgwood. "But they have a good faith a duty to prosecute the guy in Mexico." Los Angeles DA Steve Cooley argued that this situation is far too common. "We have thousands of cases where people have been murdered on our soil, but we aren't able to get justice for their families because they have fled to Mexico. We think it's the responsibility of our federal authorities to demand extradition." The Factor argued that secure borders would make it harder for suspected criminals to escape prosecution. "Isn't it interesting that these thugs can commit a heinous crime and whip back to Mexico with no problem? If our borders were secure they couldn't do that. This whole border situation makes me ill."
Newt & Hillary team up on healthcare
Guest: Fox News contributor Newt Gingrich

Senator Hillary Clinton and former Speaker Newt Gingrich have been cooperating on health care issues, and some political observers accuse Senator Clinton of using the alliance to demonstrate her moderation. Gingrich told The Factor they are simply working for the public good. "There are things that can be done with electronic health record-keeping that are not liberal or conservative that we think will save between 20- and 50-thousand lives a year. Sometimes politicians do something just because they think it's right." The Factor applauded Gingrich for this initiative, but again criticized Senator Clinton for avoiding tough issues. "Her strategy is to move to the center and not answer questions about anything. She won't answer about Iraq, about entitlements, about the border. She's going to run on her name and all the money."
Parent prosecuted for spanking
Guests: Parent Jason Klein & minister Rev. Russ Hylton

Jason Klein was arrested for paddling his 13-year old son after discovering that the boy drank alcohol. "I gave him four swats on the bottom with a paddle," Klein told The Factor. "I have used that discipline method before, but it's not the only discipline method I've used. My son is 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds, and I don't think I went over the line." The Factor pointed out that Klein was tried and acquitted. "The jury decided that you didn't act violently. I'm not advocating any kind of corporal punishment, and we hope none of this happens again."
Viewers sound off
Factor Words of the Day
Many of you voiced strong opinions about the segment with Rachel Rogers, who objects to military recruiters in her son's high school. Some excerpts:

Gary Scheer, Chicago, IL: "If there were more moms like her around, maybe we would have fewer terrorists and wars."

Janis Collins, Long Beach, CA: "That woman should thank God for my son and his fellow Marines for protecting us against people who would kill us."

Cpt. Ryan McReight, Colorado Springs, CO: "Bill, that woman should thank my parents. They don't view our defense as a problem somebody else should take care of."

Steffany Rubin, New York, NY: "Bill, I think you are a bully. A perfect example is the Rachel Rogers interview. You owe her an apology."

Maj. Larry Gowen, Papillon, NE: "Mr. O'Reilly, you handled the situation perfectly; pointing out the mother's flawed thinking, while sparing her any real embarrassment."

Book Mentions
Check out the books mentioned during this show.
Never Call Retreat: Lee and Grant: The Final Victory
by Newt Gingrich

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