This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," July 3, 2020. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
JASON CHAFFETZ, FOX NEWS HOST: This is a FOX News alert.
Throughout the night, we'll take you live to South Dakota where President Trump is set to kick off a historic July 4th celebration at Mount Rushmore.
Welcome to the special edition of "Hannity". I'm Jason Chaffetz in for Sean.
Anti-Trump protesters were attempting to block access to Mount Rushmore. Some even reportedly park their vehicles in the middle of the street and removed the wheels to prevent anyone from getting through. Of course, the show will go on.
In just a moment, the president will board Marine One for a very special flyover ahead of his prepared remarks and a fireworks display.
Joining us now with more on the ground at Mount Rushmore is Jonathan Hunt - - Jonathan.
JONATHAN HUNT, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Good evening, Jason.
President Trump due to arrive here in a matter of minutes as you said via Marine One just a short time ago. We had a truly spectacular flight path here by Air Force One as the president headed into land at Ellsworth Air Force Base. This is obviously going to be an extraordinary night in terms of those visual moments. It will also be an extraordinary night by the time we get to President Trump's speech.
We understand, Jason, that the president is going to pay tribute to first responders, the police, and military, and to decry protesters who he will describe as a left-wing mob who have tried to destroy American history and are intent on continuing to do so.
Talking of protesters, there was a group of them on one of the approach roads, the main approach road. In fact, to Mount Rushmore earlier today, they were the anti-Trump protesters, also, members of the Lakota Sioux Tribe who believe, of course, this land belongs to them.
The National Guard about two members of the National Guard were sent in to break up that protest. We understand pepper spray was used at one point and we understand that the protests have largely been broken up now.
Those protesters will not catch a glimpse of President Trump anyway. He is not taking any roads here. As I say, he is due to arrive in the next few minutes by Marine One -- Jason.
CHAFFETZ: Jonathan Hunt on the ground in South Dakota -- thank you.
In case you were wondering, the left's hyper-partisan hatred of all things Trump doesn't take a pause on Independence Day. In a since deleted tweet, the official Democratic National Committee's Twitter account earlier this week accused the president of the United States of, quote, glorifying white supremacy, and, quote, by holding a celebration at Mount Rushmore.
Meanwhile, many in the media openly worried that a fireworks display could cause wildfires or contaminate local drinking water.
And after essentially cheering on massive demonstrations across the country for weeks, the folks at CNN are now calling the president's event at Mount Rushmore irresponsible because of the ongoing pandemic.
Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You have an event that is outdoors, 7,500 people are expected, face coverings not required. There will be no social distancing program in place. What would your level of concern be here?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, Kate, I'm highly concerned. This is beyond irresponsible. This is the behavior of a cult leader who was jumping off the cliff except he is jumping off into a safety net where he has protections around him.
People around him are being tested. He's being tested on a regular basis, while he asks his followers to jump off a cliff and to nothing. I mean, this is extremely dangerous behavior.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHAFFETZ: Like it or not, thousands are now gathered at Mount Rushmore where President Trump will soon deliver a speech. We're told his remarks will unapologetically highlight American greatness and call out those who hate the country and everything it represents.
Hours ago, he previewed his big speech. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're going to Mount Rushmore. Mount Rushmore is in great shape and it's going to be in great shape for centuries to come.
We are looking forward to it. I'll be making a speech there. I'll be seeing a lot of people, a lot of different people, and I think it'll be a fantastic evening.
The economy is doing very well. Our job number was the biggest number in history, in the history of our country, bigger even than last month by almost double. So a lot of good things are happening, a lot of very powerful things are happening, and our country is doing very well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHAFFETZ: Joining us now with reaction is senior legal advisor to Trump 2020, Jenna Ellis, along with Arizona Congressman Andy Biggs and civil rights attorney Leo Terrell.
Thank you all for joining us here on this wonderful Friday night.
I want to start with Leo. I want to start with you.
Is there anything wrong with Donald Trump visiting one of the great monuments we have in this country, in Mount Rushmore?
LEO TERRELL, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Yes, Jason, I am embarrassed. I mean, to answer your question, absolutely not.
To celebrate our independence, this is a great place for the president to celebrate our nation's birthday, but that tweet that the Democrat -- I want people to hear it. The Democratic Party calling it a white supremacy meeting, it's the race card at its highest level and that came from the Democratic Party. They knew it.
And if they want to find a racist, all they need to do is go back to Joe Biden insulting every African-American if you don't vote Democrat. And then, secondly, Kamala Harris calling Joe Biden a racist.
The bottom line is simply this. If you are a Democrat, you can be a racist. But the point here is you accuse the Republicans of being racist and there's no evidence of that whatsoever, it is embarrassing. And I'm embarrassed to be a Democrat tonight.
CHAFFETZ: Congressman Biggs, I want to go to you. You know, politicians of all sorts, every end of the political spectrum, they wrap themselves in the flag. They do things like visit Mount Rushmore.
I mean, we had Hillary Clinton visit Mount Rushmore. You had Barack Obama visit Mount Rushmore. You had Bernie Sanders visit Mount Rushmore. I never heard any of this from the Democrats.
And now, all of a sudden, this is some sort of white supremacy event?
REP. ANDY BIGGS (R-AZ): Yes. I mean, Donald Trump has had so much success and he's living in their heads.
I mean, you've got an iconic president going to an iconic monument, and he's going to give an iconic speech about how great America is, and all they've got for this is they're going to play the race card, they're going to yell and scream, and bellyache.
But the reality is, this what the president should be doing and if -- if we were in a rational time, I would say this is a time that he can emphasize a more perfect union and really -- and this would typify that as opposed to the division that they're trying to sow.
CHAFFETZ: Jenna, I've got to tell you, you were with the Trump campaign. When I was a member of Congress and Kristi Noem, who's now the governor of South Dakota, when she was serving in Congress, she told me about a meeting she had with Donald Trump when she very first went in there, Donald -- this is 2017, and she said she invited Donald Trump.
She said, when I become the governor of South Dakota, I want you to come here for Fourth of July. And she said it was amazing, have this great conversation with the president talking about hopefully when I become governor, you can come out.
Now, it's actually coming to fruition, and the Democrats are trying to change the reality of what actually happened and how that invitation even started.
JENNA ELLIS, SENIOR LEGAL ADVISOR TO THE TRUMP 2020 CAMPAIGN: Yes, they are.
And, you know, Jason, it's such an amazing honor to be here with the president, and I think we're going to hear from him a spirit of optimism and the generally the American spirit because, you know, truly, the truth on the founding of our country is not built upon perfect men, but that they served a perfect God, and that our American optimism and the opportunity we have for providence, for liberty, and truly prosperity is because of our founding principles and values.
President Trump is such a citizen president because he understands that, he is bringing in that spirit of optimism and opportunity back to Americans. I'm surrounded by thousands of people here who are so excited to be Trump supporters.
You know, as my dad and I were coming in today, we saw all of the flags, all of the Trump 2020.
If you get out of the swamp, you get out of the fake news media, you get out of Joe Biden's basement, you see that America loves President Trump because he has emboldened us with true and genuine leadership as the Republican Party, but even more as Americans because we're built on that eternal truth and that recognition that we're all created equal.
And it's only through that equality and prosperity that our principles and our rights have been endowed by God, our Creator, that then we can genuinely be so proud to be Americans.
And I'm proud of an American, standing in front of Mount Rushmore. This is not a symbol of white supremacy. This is a symbol of imperfect men who recognize the truth of God.
CHAFFETZ: Now, Jenna is there on the ground there in South Dakota.
But, Leo, but this is just but what seems like a daily string of the Democrats telling good old-fashioned Americans that what they do, what they believe in, their country and patriotism is wrong.
At what point do the Democrats overstep their bounds?
I think Americans are tired of being told that you can't love America and if you do, that there's something wrong with you.
TERRELL: I think you're absolutely right. I think you're going to see a shift in the polls because this Democratic rhetoric does not sell to the general public. What's wrong with loving God and country and putting America first?
Jason, I'm going to tell you the truth and I'm just going to be very honest -- the Democrats do not want the president to succeed. They will do everything in their power to defeat this president not because he's not accomplishing things. They are just power-hungry and they are using race, the most -- the most vile thing you can do, race, race, race, every day to portray Trump as a racist.
Donald Trump is not a racist, Democrats. He is not. You are. You need to stop playing the race card and give the American voters some policies and stop the race card. It's ridiculous.
CHAFFETZ: Now, Congressman, I guess part of what bothers me and a lot of Americans is the hypocrisy because like I said, when Clinton and Obama and Bernie Sanders, they all went and visited Mount Rushmore, and nobody said a peep. Nobody -- nobody ever even thought that this was part of, you know, being racist by going to Mount Rushmore, for goodness' sakes.
BIGGS: No. And, Jason, that's the biggest problem I've seen, the biggest exposure of the Democrats is that problem of hypocrisy that they have. I mean, you've got -- you've got everything from this allegation, so, yes, it's OK for Democrats to come but a Republican can't, and you start laying that down on a whole series of violations of what I would call moral code of the United States in our country. It's OK for the Democrats to violate that moral code, but if they're going to attack the president and the Republicans every way they can.
And quite frankly, I think Leo is right. What happens is, they don't have any kind of policy initiatives to make this country a more perfect union. So what they're going to do is castigate everybody else and attack those who love this country, who believe that we are founded on greatness and that's where they're going to be. And that's the hypocrisy is how they live and choose to campaign and do everything that they condemn.
If you want to know what they're doing, look at what the Democrats are condemning us for. That's what they're doing, that's the hypocrisy, that's the evidence of hypocrisy.
CHAFFETZ: Now, Jenna, one of the things the president mentioned before he got on Air Force One this morning was the incredible jobs numbers that have come out in this economy, good news for the economy.
But some of these other networks, they didn't even cover this. They didn't even mention it. They wanted to just play on this idea that this was some sort of white supremacy event by going to Mount Rushmore.
ELLIS: You know, and, Jason, that's where it's all ridiculous that the left will shape the narrative in any way that they can to be anti-Trump. They don't want this economy to rebound. They don't want President Trump to succeed.
But we need to keep telling the truth, and the truth is that this president has built the greatest economy and the lowest unemployment and that's been for minorities, that's been for all Americans. And he has built it once, he is going to rebuild it again.
And, you know, we're pushing through a very difficult time in American history. That's why he is a wartime president, but he is going to push through in leadership, and we have had so many other things in our nation that we have had to push through with courage and with leadership. And the Democrats want to hold that, they want to always focus on the negative.
We have to reject the premise of their arguments and we have to push forward and truth which is that President Trump has built it once, he will build again and he is the only option for 2020 that will secure and protect our rights and liberties that are Founders recognized given by God, our Creator, not our government, and he understands it's the sole purpose of government to serve and protect those rights.
That is not what Joe Biden in the radical left stands for.
CHAFFETZ: Yes. No.
ELLIS: They want more power. They don't want to give you liberty and freedom.
CHAFFETZ: No, I do. I think -- I think the whole election is going to be about liberty and freedom and the economy. And I don't see that Joe Biden has any economic agenda, and if he does, he is hiding it awfully well there in his basement in Delaware.
Jenna Ellis, Leo Terrell, and Congressman Biggs, thank you so, so much for joining us.
You're looking at life pictures of protests in Keystone, South Dakota, that we're monitoring.
Coming up, more live coverage on the ground from Mount Rushmore.
Plus, Laura Logan and Joe Concha will weigh in on today's media, the unyielding partisan hatred of President Trump, as this special edition of "Hannity" continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHAFFETZ: Welcome back to this "Hannity's" special: Countdown to 2020.
We are awaiting a Marine One flyover of Mount Rushmore due to happen any second now. And when it comes to you, we're going to show you some live shots of that.
The president boarded Air Force One and took off, flew there to South Dakota, he is on the ground. Supposedly, they're about to board Marine One for another historic flyover of Mount Rushmore.
As President Trump was on his way to Mount Rushmore, the mainstream media mob suddenly decided that the iconic monument to four popular American presidents somehow was racist. The "Los Angeles Times" even published an op-ed asking if the monument will be canceled because of the creator's racist ties.
And fake news and CNN didn't even take Trump's jobs press conference and is downplaying the economy historic bounce back. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The bad news is that this is a snapshot that was essentially taken in mid-June. That's when the survey from the Labor Department was field and since then, of course, we have seen a huge spike, a resurgence of infections, and reclosing all of a lot of the very industries that seem to do a lot of rehiring.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHAFFETZ: Joining us now for a reaction, Lara Logan, the host of FOX Nation's "No Agenda with Lara Logan", and "The Hill's" media reporter, Joe Concha.
We appreciate you both joining us. Have some patience with us because of the president does take off from Marine One and flies over Mount Rushmore, we're going to go to that, but until we actually see those pictures, I want to talk to you about these subjects.
And I want to start with you, Lara, because you've watched this. You've studied this. You've seen how the media reacts to this.
How is it that "The New York Times" suddenly finds this as somehow some sort of racist white supremacist type of event?
LARA LOGAN, HOST OF "LARA LOGAN HAS NO AGENDA" NO FOX NATION: It's interesting. I've also lived it, right, because for more than 35 years, I've been a journalist and when I was working for 60 minutes, when I was working for CBS, I didn't really understand the nature of how -- you know, how critical it was if you stepped outside of the bubble and what it was like.
For example, journalists at FOX News, right, they don't get lifetime achievement awards, they don't get recognized by journalistic institutions, they are permanently under attack. And so, it gives you some interesting perspective.
And I don't look at what "The New York Times" is doing about Mount Rushmore, what "The Los Angeles Times" wrote out of the context of all the coverage of President Trump, and it's kind of interesting because these institutions before the, you know, either FOX News or talk radio, they used to be regarded by everyone as truth tellers and that is the space I like to occupy, that they are on the one side, the noble warriors for the truth.
And on the other side, the FOX News side, is where you have all the other crazy people, who either conspiracy theorists or they're alt-right, they're far right, or they're neo-Nazis, but in the sense, they are racists, right?
And so, that's the framework for the conversation. It's been building since President Trump was elected. It's been wielded as a weapon against anyone and what's remarkable to me about it as they were millions of people in this country, millions and millions of people who don't see it that way. And you will never see "The New York Times" or the "Los Angeles times" or any of these other publications ever give a voice to those people.
If they do, it's very small, it's very narrow and it's very patronizing. It's like why Ohio, rural Ohio voters might be thinking of voting for the crazy man, right? That's the kind of subtext.
And what is so interesting to me is as a journalist, I always try to say, well, OK, this is how some people see it in the country and this is how others see it. But what's happened is you got so many organizations from television, CNN, NBC, MSNBC, "The New York Times", you go into print, and all across the Internet, and it's just one view, one view, one view.
I mean, all of their reports on this president have been a critical, every single one. They don't do any other reporting that isn't. Ninety-nine percent --
CHAFFETZ: Laura --
LOGAN: -- of the people they hired to write editorials are against the president. So that's the context in which I view this.
CHAFFETZ: Lara, we are going to interrupt you here for a moment because you have President Trump there with the First Lady Melania Trump, you have Tiffany, we're told, his daughter, has also joined them on Marine One. They are in South Dakota.
This is a White House video in feed of the president as he is able to fly close right there in front of Mount Rushmore, great site for the president and I think good for the country to see the president visiting one of our great national monuments.
He will be back on the ground and when he does land back on the ground, FOX News will cover that live and you will hear his remarks right here on this network.
Joe, I want to go to you. You cover -- you write about this daily, about the bias in the media, and they even tried to tie it to Abraham Lincoln somehow, that he is somehow racist along the way, too. But what I see with the "Los Angeles Times" and so many others are doing, it seems so foreign to me. It really does.
JOE CONCHA, MEDIA REPORTER FOR THE HILL: Fifteen, Jason, presidents have visited Mount Rushmore, OK? Democrat, Republican. But when the 45th president actually visits Mount Rushmore during an election year, suddenly this is somehow a racist sort of event.
It's remarkable and to many Americans, to Lara's point, we see what's going on here, right? Within the corridors of New York and Washington, which is where national media is located, basically many, but not all in those corridors say that, OK, this is what's going on here or maybe Washington or Lincoln or Hans Christian Heg, those statues need to be taken down because somehow, they are racist.
But yet, here we go good with the president of the United States just doing a simple campaign event at Mount Rushmore, that's a racist event. I'm sorry. It's so transparent now what's going on here in terms of what we are going to see here during the 2020 election and we're only, what, 120 days away from election day as far as bias.
It's not even bias anymore, it's activism by many in media in terms of we need to get Joe Biden elected to get Donald Trump out and it's something that quite frankly I think the jig is up at this point as far as the American people, at least the objective ones, understanding what is going on here as far as coverage of this president and of his opponent which, by the way, never got any remotely, remotely tough questions during his so- called "press conference" a couple of days ago where he wasn't asked about, for instance, defending the police in New York City, $1 billion taken away, yet 46 percent of shootings are up in that city, can't ask him about that.
CHAFFETZ: Yes.
CONCHA: Can't ask him about the fact that in the Russia, a lot of Russia comments as far as that bounty on that story that's been highly disputed, but yet no one asked him, well, during your administration, Crimea was invaded and Russia went to war with Ukraine basically, yet your administration did nothing. Why should we take you seriously as far as Vladimir Putin?
You go as far as the questions towards Joe Biden and what the coverage is of Donald Trump and quite frankly, again, it's very, very apparent how this is going to go, but the American people get at this point, Jason.
CHAFFETZ: Joe and Laura, we do appreciate you, thank you so much for joining us here on this beautiful Friday night.
We want to go back down to the ground with the latest update of what's happening there at Mount Rushmore with our own Jonathan Hunt who is on the ground -- Jonathan.
HUNT: Hello, again, Jason. We just had a pretty extraordinary fly past by the presidential helicopter, Marine One, bringing President Trump here flanked by two Ospreys, an extraordinary site and it followed 45 minutes earlier than that of Air Force One as it came in right over Mount Rushmore here is the president headed towards Ellsworth Air Force Base where Air Force One landed.
And I have to tell you, Jason, as a new American citizen myself, it doesn't matter what your politics are. When you see Air Force One flying over Mount Rushmore, when you see Marine One flying over Mount Rushmore, it is an extraordinary site, and you can't help but be proud of the United States of America.
Of course, this event is not without politics. We have the politics of coronavirus, of course. No social distancing here, very few people wearing masks here in the governor of South Dakota, Kristi Noem, will introduce President Trump later this evening saying that she does not think social distancing is necessary and she is not requiring anybody to wear a mask, although they are available if people want them.
You've also got the politics of the land here, the Lakota Sioux still believe that it belongs to them and they want it back. They have been out on the streets approaching Mount Rushmore with some other anti-Trump protesters this afternoon, brief clashes with National Guard troops, around two dozen as we understand it, members of the National Guard on scene there as well as obviously many other branches of law enforcement.
The protesters attacked them vehicles on the side of the road. As we understand it, they were eventually driven out of that road. They had hoped to get a glimpse of president Trump on those roads, obviously, that was never going to happen. He purely traveled here by air. And as we understand it, I believe according to my producer, Matt, he is on the ground here, Marine One, has indeed landed, the president is on the ground and we will be hearing from him later.
As well as the literal fireworks we will get, Jason, I think we're going to get some fireworks in his speech as well. The president we are told will decry what he will call a left-wing mob that is trying to destroy in his view and continues to try to destroy in his view American history. So, we're going to get fireworks from the president, and when he wraps up, we'll get fireworks over Mount Rushmore, right behind me here, Jason.
CHAFFETZ: Jonathan, thank you.
When the president does speak, you will hear that live here on FOX News. We do expect to see the pictures of President Trump's motorcade as he goes to the amphitheater at Mount Rushmore. That should happen shortly.
Now, the president tonight is poised to use his speech at the iconic memorial to appeal to silent majority and let common sense Americans across the country know that celebrating our great nation is nothing to be ashamed of, and to remind Americans that left-wing lawlessness we see ravaging our major cities isn't a move towards progress, but a decline towards anarchy and destruction, and it's why Joe Biden and the radical left must be defeated in November because Biden has surrendered to the most extreme elements of his party while he hides out in his basement and makes blunder after blunder.
Now, President Trump last night even challenged Biden to take a cognitive test, to prove he is up for the job, tweeting, quote, he cannot pass the test I aced. He should give it a try.
Joining me now for a reaction, former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, along with coauthor of the new book "They're Not Listening: How the Elites Created the National Populist Revolution", Ryan Girdusky. I'm sorry for not pronouncing your name right.
RYAN GIRDUSKY, AUTHOR, "THEY'RE NOT LISTENING": It's all right.
CHAFFETZ: And Texas congressional candidate Wesley Hunt. Thank you so much for joining us here tonight.
Wesley, I want to start with you. First of all, thank you for your service to your nation, I really -- we cannot thank you for your service in our United States military. But as you see things playing out in Mount Rushmore and some of the calls and the accusations that are out there, what runs through your mind?
WESLEY HUNT (R-TX), U.S. CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: Well, you know, the first thing that run through my mind is that Mount Rushmore has been here forever, and what I want to talk about is the idea of bringing our country together and those that want to call for the demise or the besmirching of Mount Rushmore only want to continue to divide our country further.
CHAFFETZ: Now, Pam, you are the former attorney general for the state of Florida. You worked tirelessly on a lot of these issues, but as you see what is happening out of Mount Rushmore, the allegations going out there, what runs through your mind?
PAM BONDI, FORMER FLORIDA ATTORNEY GENERAL: Well, the president is a law and order president. That -- what happened in Portland, what happened in Seattle will not happen in South Dakota. You know, the president is not going to let anything happen to any of our monuments, especially the shrine of democracy, Mount Rushmore.
So, the president is going to stand up to that. I love the crowd out there. I'm so excited. I spoke to the president yesterday and I know he's so excited to be there today with everyone in South Dakota.
It's going to be a great event, and that's what our country needs now, this independent state where he needs to show the country what he's doing to enhance all of our monuments, protect our monuments and as a law and order president and will continue to do that for the next four years and I'm so proud he's out there.
CHAFFETZ: You were looking live now at some pictures as we were just hearing from Pam Bondi, but this is a Marine One landing. The president will then be going on a motorcade to the actual event where he will be speaking, all of those comments given live here on FOX News.
We do believe the president was joined by Melania Trump, the first lady, as well as his daughter Tiffany, usually Secret Service aboard the plane, I don't know if there is any staff. It's a little different plane than we normally see, but as the president lands there at Mount Rushmore and this historic visit, we are going to cover it from wall to wall, so that you can see and experience all of this.
The president landed earlier at Ellsworth Air Force Base there in South Dakota. He was met by Senator Thune and Kristi Noem who was the governor of South Dakota. And I can tell you through personal experience and discussions I've had with Kristi Noem back in 2017, she invited the president that at some point if she became the governor of South Dakota, which she did in winning that election that she was going to invite him to come to Mount Rushmore, and we see that playing out here in 2020.
So the president expected to get off Marine One, and I want to go back to our guest as we watch the president get off of Marine One as they kind secure the aircraft there.
Ryan, I want to go to you. What's your take on -- hold on for just a moment. Let's just watch as President Trump gets off Marine One. Like he said, we expect him to get into a motorcade. We don't think that there is any sort of reception line at this point, that happened at Ellsworth Air Force Base, there is what I presume to be Secret Service, and I don't know who that person is who just got off the head of the president. There was the security detail, and --
Oh, that's Mark Meadows. Mark Meadows and his wife, the chief of staff from North Carolina. That was Mark Meadows and the woman in red there is Mark's wife.
So, Ryan, let's go to you. When you see all this playing out, all this silliness with a dull maxi with protests and calling it white supremacy and everything, what runs through your mind?
GIRDUSKY: Yes, thank you so much for having me. I think the main point is when you look at the far left and the tactics they're using right now to send their end, erase our history and really move our window, what they are doing right now is making a conversation about defunding the police acceptable and right now in New York city where I am, having the shootings go up 100 percent, mostly in communities of color, those that they pretend to care about.
And there's also something we are not talking about enough that this is an economic conversation. If you're poor in this country, if you're working class poor, whether you're white, brown, or black, they were two primary ways to get out of poverty, through the military or the police.
And I don't think that -- I think that by defunding police and by removing that opportunity, you are keeping people in poverty. It's something that Republicans need to champion at this time.
CHAFFETZ: Yes, I want to go back to Wesley, because you're running an election. I've never seen a national party do well by attacking law enforcement and ICE and everything else.
When you are on the ground there in Texas campaigning, what do you say about law enforcement?
HUNT: You know, right now, we need to mention that we support our law enforcement and make sure we work together and bring the people from the community with our law enforcement to ensure that we come to viable solutions that benefit both sides. And what I'm seeing right now particularly on the campaign trail in Houston, Texas, is also an assault on the oil and gas industry that we have got to protect.
And earlier, you were talking about the cognitive ability of Joe Biden, and Joe Biden and AOC and my opponent, Lizzie Fletcher, when you talk about what they would do to oil and gas industry here in Houston, combined with the idea of defunding the police, it is not what we want to see, and particularly in a time when we are talking about energy independence when tomorrow is our Independence Day, we have got to keep that together.
And my brother, my sister, my father, and I all fought to make sure that we kept our independence, and that's what today and tomorrow is about and I am glad the president is at Mount Rushmore to support that.
CHAFFETZ: Yes, the elections really are about the future.
Now, we are seeing another helicopter landed I will tell you that when they run these Marine helicopters, they will run three of them so was a little bit of a shell game, nobody knows exactly which helicopter the president is in. So what you saw with the chief of staff and what presumably was other staff getting out of that helicopter, we didn't see Donald Trump get out of that one.
He may very well be might in this helicopter, not quite sure because usually there are three and nobody knows exactly which one the president is in.
So if you do see the motorcade pulled up on it, that's generally the one the president's end, but at least we know Mark Meadows is safely on the ground, the president's chief of staff.
Pam, I want to go back to you, you're the attorney general. We have seen lawlessness, we have seen the riots, we have seen things that Democratic run governors and mayors do that I have never thought I'd ever see in this country, and they do it by just patting them on the back and saying, hey, it's OK, in the midst of a pandemic.
What do you think the president's message on law and order will be tonight?
BONDI: Well, exactly what it's been in. He is the president of law and order. You and I, Jason, we've both seen what he is done to strengthen tools for law enforcement, strengthen our military.
And going back to the cognitive skills of Joe Biden, if Joe Biden was in office, what would happen? He would delegate everything to AOCs of the world, and the left wing radical Democrat Party.
But as a lawyer and a career in law enforcement, it's the one thing that he cannot delegate some of the decision go to war. Joe Biden, and he is not competent to make that decision.
What does president Trump always practice? Peace through strength. No other sitting president has done what President Trump has done and what he will continue to do.
Could you imagine if Biden had been president these last three and a half years with everything that has happened in our world, President Trump has kept us out of wars, he's freed hostages, he's taken out some of the worst terrorists, and that cannot be delegated to other people.
That's why we need a leader like President Trump, exactly what we have, he is going to continue to do that to support our law enforcement, and I think it is such a huge statement that he is out at Mount Rushmore today. That's pretty amazing. He is out there at the shrine of democracy on the Fourth of July, and I think it is just a great statement by our president, and he is a fighter, and we are so blessed to have him as our commander in chief.
CHAFFETZ: Yes, Mount Rushmore really is one of the gems of the nation and they are, the depiction of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln who perhaps was the greatest president this country has ever seen in the tumultuous times that he went through.
We are watching as, there we go, that is Marine One. Marine One is designated where the president is, joined by the first lady Melania Trump as they are getting off of Marine One, getting into the motorcade, going to then head over to the event and FOX News will carry it live all the comments and remarks by the president when he speaks there at Mount Rushmore.
So he is entering into the motorcade. It's a fairly short trip there to the actual amphitheater for the president will make his remarks, but the motorcade is underway and will be departing as he moves to where he will give his comments but like I said, FOX News will cover live.
We saw Mark Meadows get off the other Marine helicopter, but this being Marine One, the president will now make his way. He will be introduced by Kristi Noem who is the governor of South Dakota, the first woman to serve in that capacity, and somebody who has served the United States Congress prior to that, her and her husband Bryan, and they have three kids, two girls and a young man, they're all adults now, but they will be participating in that event as well.
So we thank you again for joining us, as President Trump has arrived at Mount Rushmore, and we look forward to bringing this up.
All right. Ryan, I want to ask you one more time, bringing in another question, so sorry that I slaughtered your last name. My apologies for that.
GIRDUSKY: Ryan Girdusky, it's no problem.
CHAFFETZ: Thank you. I got Chaffetz. Nobody pronounces my name properly. They slaughtered --
GIRDUSKY: My whole life, I get it.
CHAFFETZ: I get it too.
Listen, law and order is going to be central to this campaign and there could not be a bigger contrast between the left and the radical left and AOCs, and what Joe Biden brings to the table and what Donald Trump is saying with tough law and order. How do you think this will play out?
GIRDUSKY: As I write in my book, "They're Not Listening", law and order is central to not only just safety but also to prosperity. Without law and order, you cannot have a prosperous society.
And I think the two messages that Joe Biden is trying to give right now is that he is a moderate but he can get along with AOC. But what Joe is not telling people is he is trying to bring the economics of the eight years of Obama where the middle of this country, where eroded factories went overseas, the CCP and Chinese communist government got very wealthy, while Middle America got poor, the elites on the coast, and Silicon Valley and Wall Street got wealthy.
So he is presenting the economic argument of neo-liberalism which has failed Middle America for decades now and he's presenting the ultra radical far left thing on safety, on culture, on history, on immigration, which is a major issue right now.
I think that President Trump needs to highlight that. That his economic policies did not work in the cultural revolution they want to start for the next 30 years will not work.
We have a proud history. We're a proud country. I'm proud to be an American. It's really, really, really important, and, yes, we have, you know, sins of our past, but America has gone further and fought harder to right those wrongs than any other country in the world, and I'm really, really proud of that.
CHAFFETZ: Well said.
Ryan, Pam, and Wesley, thank you so much. And, again, Wesley, thank you for your service to our nation. We really do appreciate it, especially on this Fourth of July.
Coming up, we'll have the very latest from Ms. Maxwell and her case. One former Epstein associate believes she'll be very cooperative with federal investigators.
Stay tuned as this special edition of "Hannity" continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHAFFETZ: Welcome back to this special edition of "Hannity".
Jeffrey Epstein's closest confidant, Ghislaine Maxwell, is now facing decades behind bars if not life, but Epstein's former mentor and Ponzi scheme mastermind Steven Hoffenberg believes Maxwell will be naming names in exchange for a more favorable sentence.
And new tonight, a woman who says she was sexually assaulted by Ghislaine Maxwell dozens of times is telling fox news that she is willing to testify against Maxwell in the court stating that, quote, she is just as evil as Jeffrey Epstein, she is a rapist, end quote.
Joining us now with their reaction is FOX News contributor Tammy Bruce, along with author of "The Russia Hoax" and FOX News legal analyst Gregg Jarrett.
Thank you both for joining us tonight.
Tammy, when you hear this young woman who was now grown up, she's an adult now, but this young woman went through. What do you think is going to happen with her? And more importantly, is there going to be justice in this case?
TAMMY BRUCE, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Well, this is very compelling, of course, and just as a reminder to everyone, as we've seen in the past with people like Judge Kavanaugh, some people can make things up. That's what due process is for. That's what the justice is for, and we should keep that in mind.
Of course, Maxwell denies all of this occurred. At the same time, having my own experiences, I think that women in general can relate to the issue of domestic violence, to people being abusive, et cetera, and I think this is a dynamic where a lot of people at the same time can't imagine some of the things that this particular young woman is describing.
But I think we've got to realize -- and for me, this is important on the issue of gender stereotypes, especially as we move into the election season. We keep being told that women are better than everyone else, that women are better than men, that women do things differently, that we are better leaders, we can be trusted more.
And a very important thing to remember is women are powerful and amazing and we are as capable of good as men are as well as bad. I think that that's going to be key when it comes to how she is viewed. I think part of it is going to be her defense that women sometimes use and that they are not capable of doing the things that they are being accused of and that will be the justice system will have the answer for that.
But I think a lot of people are very nervous right now because she does hold I would guess with what I've heard a great deal of information about a lot of powerful people, and we are going to have to see how this plays out but clearly this is going to go on for quite some time.
CHAFFETZ: Now, Gregg, glad that she has been captured in charge. Job number one for law enforcement right now is to keep her alive. What do you think is going to happen and play out in this case?
GREGG JARRETT, FOX NEWS LEGAL ANALYST: Well, she is in New Hampshire in the county jail there. She'll be transferred. She's not fighting extradition, so she will come down to New York, could be in the same place as Jeffrey Epstein and Metropolitan Correction Center which has undertaken needed reforms. She could be over at the detention center in Brooklyn. There are other locations.
She will be watched 24 hours a day by reliable people, multiple people. But I agree with Tammy, this was such a horrific, shocking, heart-wrenching interview of one of the victims. And it's just part of the witnesses and documentary evidence that will be presented against Ghislaine Maxwell.
She holds the secrets, so many secrets went to the grave with Jeffrey Epstein. She can implicate a great many people be at Wall Street figures for corporate America or politicians in Washington, she can answer the questions of who all was involved, how many victims are there, was there a cover-up by lawyers and accountants who paid off some of the alleged victims?
So she is the key to a lot of unanswered questions, and I agree that victims deserve their day in court. They deserve justice, and if any of the other witnesses are anything like the young woman that Bryan Llenas on a FOX News interview today, I watch the interview, she was compelling. She seemed quite credible.
I think most defense attorneys would sit on their hands and say no questions on cross-examination. The case against Ghislaine Maxwell is formidable.
CHAFFETZ: Yes. I hope the Department of Justice get this one right because they didn't get the other one right, they blew it last time.
I want to quickly get your comments on Mount Rushmore. I've only got about 30 seconds for each of you, but as you see this play out, what the president is doing, what comes to mind. What are your thoughts? Tammy, let's start with you.
BRUCE: Well, look, we just talked about some of the worst people on earth, right, and now we are looking at an event that celebrates the best people on earth, if you will. The president doing an incredible job and four presidents on Mount Rushmore who represent the establishment of the nation that still serves as a shining city on the hill for people who flee countries that want to be able to pursue their own American dream.
So this is an exciting thing to watch. It reminds people who we are, who started up this incredible experiment that has been beautiful and has saved lives for centuries now and will for centuries to come. Looking to what the Fourth of July is all about.
CHAFFETZ: Gregg, your thoughts?
JARRETT: Well, "The New York Times" complained, oh, gee, this is a memorial built on indigenous land. Well, the dupes at "The New York Times" don't realize every square foot of America was built on indigenous lands, but people are determined to destroy memorials and deface monuments and tear down statues, and it just reminds me of what Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York said a few days ago.
He said, look, we all make mistakes. We are all imperfect. If we're going to start tearing down statues of people who sinned, the only statues left will be of Jesus and his mother. It's a point well-taken.
CHAFFETZ: It is a point well-taken and this is going to be a great event. FOX News will carry the remarks by the president live as soon as he takes the stage.
Tammy and Gregg, thank you so much for joining us tonight.
More of this "Hannity" special right this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHAFFETZ: Welcome back to the special edition of "Hannity."
At this hour, we are awaiting President Trump's Independence Day remarks at Mount Rushmore.
But, unfortunately, that is all the time we have tonight for "Hannity." If you like tonight's show, I recommend both of my books. One is called "Power Grab: The Liberal Scheme to Undermine Trump, the GOP, and Our Republic". The other one is "The Deep State: How an Army of Bureaucrats Protected Barack Obama and is Working to Destroy the Trump Agenda."
Thank you for joining us tonight. As I'm sure you are all aware, tomorrow is the Fourth of July, Independence Day, one of my favorite holidays there is. Two hundred and forty-four years ago, the Declaration of Independence was signed, and in 122 days, we will decide the fate of our wonderful country.
The decision is up to you. That's the beauty of the United States of America. It's not up to somebody else, it's up to you.
I hope you celebrate the flag. I hope you pray. I hope you're grateful for the men and women who have served this nation and made this day possible. Don't let anybody ever get in the way of you, patriotism, and your love of country.
Stay safe this weekend. Enjoy time with your family and friends. Make sure you set your DVRs, so you never miss an episode of "Hannity."
"The Ingraham Angle" is next. Raymond Arroyo is up next.
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