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November 18, 2008

Sen. James Inhofe on "Hannity & Colmes"

Hannity & Colmes

HANNITY: We have a lot of breaking news tonight. This just in to the FOX newsroom, and that is that Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska has lost to Senator Begich. This just breaking now as we come on the air here.

And in a lot of other breaking news, word comes that former deputy attorney general for the Clinton administration and senior legal advisor to Barack Obama, Eric Holder, is reportedly Obama's top choice now for attorney general.

Meanwhile earlier, on the Hill today, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson defended the bailout bill and reaffirmed that despite many criticisms. Well, is it all working? Let's take a look.

HANNITY: We have a lot of breaking news tonight. This just in to the FOX newsroom, and that is that Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska has lost to Senator Begich. This just breaking now as we come on the air here.

And in a lot of other breaking news, word comes that former deputy attorney general for the Clinton administration and senior legal advisor to Barack Obama, Eric Holder, is reportedly Obama's top choice now for attorney general.

Meanwhile earlier, on the Hill today, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson defended the bailout bill and reaffirmed that despite many criticisms. Well, is it all working? Let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY PAULSON, TREASURY SECRETARY: The way I look at where we are today is, I think, we've turned the corner in terms of stabilizing the system, preventing a collapse.

I think there's a lot of work that still needs to be done in terms of recovery of the financial system, getting it working again, getting it -- credit flowing again. I think this is going to be key to getting the economy going.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HANNITY: Now not everyone in Congress agrees with Paulson. Oklahoma senator James Inhofe has been very outspoken on this matter. He's asking Congress to freeze the bailout bill saying that the current approach is veering too far away from what was originally approved.

Oklahoma senator, James Inhofe, he joins us now.

Senator, thanks for being with us. First let's start with what's happening in Alaska tonight and that is that we're now reporting that Ted Stevens has lot that seat. We've got a 215-point lead for Norm Coleman but what seems like a lot of shenanigans going on in Minnesota right now, which means the Saxby Chambliss runoff on December 2nd is going to be very key so that the Democrats don't get the magic number of 60 in terms of a filibuster-proof Senate.

Your thoughts.

JAMES INHOFE (R), OKLAHOMA SENATOR: Well, first of all, it's not that magic on that number because we have some -- you know some Republicans that would go along with -- Democrats on some issues, unfortunately.

One thing about the Republicans, Democrats are disciplined. Republicans aren't. So it's going to be a problem. I'm sorry about Ted. You know he's -- had a lot of friends, and he's -- he kind of been there for a long time, but we kind of expected that, but I anticipate, I really do, that Norm Coleman will win this thing in Minnesota, and that Saxby Chambliss will.

And that's not going to really make that much of a change in the outcome. I mean we're back in a situation now where the Democrats have it all, so, you know, we'll have to wait it out for two years.

HANNITY: Well, I agree. You know and I -- I have my own suspicions here, and I know that they were able to work out an agreement with Senator Joe Lieberman. Those talk immediately after the election that there would be some punitive action against him and that they would remove him from his chairmanship.

That didn't take place, but I don't think for any altruistic reasons but for they said, all right, if we run the table and we win Stevens' seat and we unseat Coleman, and we can unseat Saxby Chambliss, we've got that magic number 60, so I think they did it to protect the chances of that.

Do you agree with my cynicism?

INHOFE: Yes, no, I agree with that. Yes. At that time they were --- 60 was everything at that time.

HANNITY: All right. Let's talk.

INHOFE: And they -- and they made some concessions that they wouldn't otherwise make.

HANNITY: Yes.

COLMES: Senator, you know, you would have been critical if the Democrats had kicked Lieberman out, I bet, and said they're not the big 10 party they purport to be, right?

INHOFE: Well, no, I would have loved -- I would have welcomed him aboard and been very excited about it, but nonetheless -- but let's keep in mind, you guys, that while he is right on some issues, some of the military issues, in many of the other issues, he's mostly with the Democrats.

COLMES: That's what (INAUDIBLE).

Let me ask you about Paulson, because -- do you like what he's done? Didn't he go to the House and to the Senate with one proposal and then did he bait and switch and change the game once he got the money?

INHOFE: That's exactly what happened. You see I was in on the whole thing. The first conference call was two weeks before the October 1st vote, and I was on that. At that time I've never heard a panic message like he was able to very persuasively tell us in the Senate.

I mean the whole world was going to drop off, and then -- another great depression, and it had to be $700 billion, and it had to be buying toxic assets. That was the only way to do this. And then I went back and I actually read this thing before voting against it and found out there are no oversight, there is nothing.

COLMES: Right.

INHOFE: Other than just whatever he wanted to do. He can do -- now when in history -- I asked the two smart guys that I'm talking to right now -- have you ever seen a situation where some guy who's unelected steps in, and he has all of this at his fingertips?

COLMES: Well, let me ask you. Is it legal? Is it legal what Paulson's doing?

INHOFE: No, I think it's legal. And we passed a bill allowing him to do it.

COLMES: But you allowed him to do one set of actions not the actions.

INHOFE: No, that's not true. No, that wasn't in the bill. The bill allowed him to do anything that he wanted to do. It's just the talk that went with it and said it was going to be a purchase of these assets, and that -- obviously didn't happen.

Now you know, what really bothers me, a lot of people talked about these big numbers and don't realize how big this is. I took the time to count. And there are 139 million tax paying families who file returns. If you do the math, that's $5,000 a family.

COLMES: Yes.

INHOFE: That's why this is such a big thing here, and to give all of that power to one person. My fear.

COLMES: We got about 10 seconds, sir. Go ahead.

INHOFE: Well, anyway, I've introduced legislation that would freeze this amount, and hopefully we can get it passed.

COLMES: All right. Appreciate your time. Thanks so much for coming on the program tonight.

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