Palin Talks Tough on 'Occupy' Movement and Obama's Reluctance to Step In

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What Did Occupy's 'Day of Action' Accomplish? Part 1

Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin reacts to protests

This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," November 17, 2011. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: And sending the defiant message that they refuse to be shut down or shut up, the left-wing "Occupy" protesters, they took on the streets and subways and cities all across the country today in what they call a mass "day of action."

Here in New York City, more than 1,000 demonstrators rallied near the Stock Exchange chanting "All day, all week, shut down Wall Street." Another huge group gathered at their former home base at Zucotti Park where protestors clashed with police, causing serious destruction, trying to lift barricades. At least 200 people were arrested. Seven New York City police officers were injured in the violence. Five of them when a protester threw an acidic liquid in their faces.

But it wasn't just the Big Apple. From Los Angeles to Washington, the "Occupy" left-wing lunatics were out in full force all over the country today, marching to mark the two month anniversary of their movement's beginning.

But what did today actually accomplish besides mass disorder, if anything? And here now with reaction, former Alaska Governor, Fox News contributor Sarah Palin. Governor, welcome back to the program. Thanks for being with us.

SARAH PALIN, FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: Thank you.

HANNITY: All right. We see the violence there, one police officer I think had 20 stitches and a gash, things thrown in their face. You see the violence. This is really just a culmination, though. We have seen rape, we have seen arson, destruction of property, sex, masturbation in public, defecating in public, anti-Semitism, anti-American rhetoric, drugs, open-air drugs markets. Well, what do you make of this and the Democratic Party support for this?

PALIN: It is amazing that President Obama, Vice President Biden and former Speaker Pelosi along with many other Democrats have actually embraced this movement and actually, you know, patted these folks on their back as they have engaged in these -- some really atrocious activities. I think it speaks to what part of that mission is on the left, and that is disruption, it is distraction. It's very misguided and these are folks who are ill-informed, not understanding really who and what it is that they should be protesting. If they truly want free men and free markets in this country, then they should be, you know, making their voices known at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and letting Barack Obama know that they disagree with the crony capitalism that he has been so engaged in and allowed to perpetuate. These folks are misguided and I think it's just atrocious what is going on.

HANNITY: Well, I got to tell you. And the things -- the president put his seal of approval on this, Nancy Pelosi thanked God for them. In many ways, do you see the connection between the president's rhetoric, in other words class warfare rhetoric, and what they are saying? Do you think in many ways he has inspired them? Because I believe he has.

PALIN: Well, he has. And this is perhaps what Barack Obama is still not understanding, that the office of the presidency, he has power within his words and what he speaks and what he chooses to embrace and engage in is quite powerful and quite effecting on our culture. Here this is really getting out of control, this "Occupy Wall Street," these shenanigans. And yet Barack Obama has not taken the time to reign these folks in, these people that he has encouraged. And you know, I think that that is quite, quite unfortunate, and yet, Sean, think about it. He has taken the time to lecture Americans for using rhetoric that has been accepted and used throughout the history of the English language. He will get up behind his platform and he will lecture us on the words that we should or shouldn't use, and yet he cannot see it within himself to take these actions to actually quash some of this actual violence. It's not just words and rhetoric that these people are using, but it's actual violence that Barack Obama has not decided to try to quash.

HANNITY: And, you know, Maxine Waters have told the Tea Party and conservatives that they, you know, could go straight to hell -- and actually said, well, this is life, this is what happens. Now the left was looking so hard for the Tea Party movement to do or to say something that they thought crossed the line. They didn't find it for the most part. The Tea Party police themselves, they were peaceful, they cleaned up after themselves, and yet all these examples, and still they are backing them. Nobody has the courage, the moral courage to stand up and say, you know, what? This movement has gotten out of control, the violence has got to stop, the rhetoric, the anti-Semitism, the anti-Americanism that is expressed has got to stop. Do you think this becomes a big campaign issue?

PALIN: Well, it could become a campaign issue. Because the hypocrisy here is just so glaring and that hypocrisy of course touches many aspects of our government and our culture. And that class warfare that Barack Obama is perpetuating, via his endorsement of the "Occupy Wall Street" protesters is quite significant. But as for a campaign issue, yes, I wish candidates would start talking more about the class warfare that President Obama does perpetuate and more importantly, that they start talking about what the solutions are, what they can do about it, what these candidates can do about it. They start talking about the crony capitalism that is a part of this White House and this Congress today and how it is that they commit to reform, how they commit to cleaning up the graft, the corruption and the waste in government.

HANNITY: You know, we had earlier in the week on this program Peter Schweizer and he wrote a new book, "Throw Them All Out." And what he describes in the book is, for example, all the millions of dollars that Congress is making on insider trading. For anyone of us out here, that if we are involved with insider trading, we go to jail. It's legal for Congress. Or the initial public offerings that Nancy Pelosi got, or while John Kerry is writing health care bills, he's investing in companies that would be beneficiaries of the bills that he's writing. Solyndra, the green energy scam. Why aren't these very same people that are against crony capitalism, against the billions of dollars that these guys are wasting and the millions they are making for themselves? Where is the anger against them?

PALIN: Right. Well for shame they are not angry at what is going on. What is going on in our country right now is very, very significant, it's very important. It's much more important than the distractions that the media and Barack Obama and his cronies want Americans to engage in, distractions in terms of gaffes or mistakes that potential -- the presidents, these candidates in the GOP primary have made. What is going on in this country is this recognition finally, though, and a lot of it is thanks to Peter Schweizer, whom I work with, and he is somebody who works with me and my pack, his book "Throw Them All Out." What he is revealing is the graft, the corruption. He is allowing Americans to realize that we are at a tipping point. We are going bankrupt. We can no longer afford this unethical, expensive, atrocious activity that we see there in Congress where they exempt themselves from the laws that the rest of us have to adhere to.

HANNITY: It's unbelievable.

PALIN: Now, Barack Obama is the leader of the pack, Sean, and this is why it is so important that these 2012 elections that things change, that not only the presidency changes hands, but those in the House, those 33 seats in the Senate that are up for grabs, that we get people in there who are committed to not just American exceptionalism but ethics being brought back into our government. That the waste and the corruption end. These 2012 elections are paramount as this country faces the tipping point.

HANNITY: Yes. I think you are absolutely right. And otherwise, we continue the decline that I don't know if we will survive.

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