Who Is Bill O'Reilly Talking About?

“If you challenge [him], he's in your face. If you point out his failures, he denies them. If you disagree with him on anything, you're a moron.”

“He loves power. He believes he is good for the nation.”

For frequent viewers of Bill O'Reilly's show, the above descriptions, from the November 29 O'Reilly Factor, call to mind one person: Bill O'Reilly.

Here's O'Reilly getting in the face of Jeremy Glick, the son of a 9-11 victim who challenged O'Reilly on his pro-war views. O'Reilly called Glick's views “a bunch of crap” and repeatedly told him to “shut up.”

Here's O'Reilly repeatedly denying his lies about the purported success of a “boycott” he led against France (initially, by apparently inventing a publication called the Paris Business Review).

And here's O'Reilly suggesting that those who disagree with him are “moron[s].”

“Good for the nation”? O'Reilly wrote a book titled Culture Warrior. He clearly thinks he's on the right side of that war.

But O'Reilly wasn't having a moment of introspection. He was attacking retiring Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA). A case of projection rather than introspection?:

O'Reilly also used Frank's announcement to celebrate his confrontation with the congressman over Frank's role in overseeing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. O'Reilly joined his “straight news” colleagues on Fox in falsely suggesting that Frank opposed reforming those entities.

Full transcript below the jump.

O'REILLY: As for Barney Frank, his departure from national politics is more significant for the country. As The Wall Street Journal pointed out today, Mr. Frank is the face of American liberalism, an indignant man who believes he has a copyright on compassion. If you challenge Frank, he's in your face. If you point out his failures, he denies them. If you disagree with him on anything, you're a moron.

So, I decided to take Frank on. He clearly he did not tell the truth about his oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and I called him on it. You can see the exchange on the Net. If you missed it, it is intense. But I had to call Mr. Frank out. It had to be done. The congressman says he's not running again for personal reasons, and again, he doesn't like to be challenged on that.

[begin video clip]

SAVANNAH GUTHRIE (co-host of NBC's Today): For those who think that maybe this is a signal that you don't think the Democrats are going to win back control of the House in 2012, your response would be what?

[video break]

FRANK: So, no, this doesn't mean we're not going to take back the House. And in fact, I think we're likely to win this seat again. I don't know. Did you think I would serve till I was 106? I mean, I'm 71 years old. The question is, I have decided not to serve until three months before my 75th birthday. I guess I don't understand why that is so hard for people to grasp.

[end video clip]

O'REILLY: We get it, Barney. You're tired, you're cranky, you want out. Good luck.

But truthfully, if the Democrats were riding high, Barney Frank would most likely run again. He loves power. He believes he is good for the nation.

Here's what I believe. Barney Frank is sincere in wanting to help the less fortunate, but his big-spending policies don't work. And because he is unwilling to understand economics, his tenure in the House has harmed the country.

Also, Mr. Frank does not hold the high ground. It is much more humane to look out for all the folks, to demand fiscal responsibility so all Americans can prosper. The left believes that the USA should be in business to help the downtrodden at the expense of everyone else. That's why doctrinaire liberalism is not successful. The way you do help the unemployed and the ill-educated is to create widespread prosperity so they can hitch a ride on it and work their way up. Giving people stuff is a recipe for failure. We've seen it over and over. But if you tell Barney Frank that, you're a bad person.

America does not owe anyone a living. Barney never got that. But we wish him well anyway.