'The Five' on Justice Breyer's retirement, NYC crime

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'The Five' react to Supreme Court Justice Breyer's expected retirement

According to reports, Justice Stephen Breyer, 83, will step down from the Supreme Court

This is a rush transcript of "The Five" on January 26, 2022. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

JESSE WATTERS, FOX NEWS HOST: Hi, everybody. I'm Jesse Watters along with Judge Jeanine Pirro, Geraldo Rivera, Dana Perino, and Greg Gutfeld.

GREG GUTFELD, FOX NEWS CO-HOST: Yes.

DANA PERINO, FOX NEWS CO-HOST: Hello.

WATTERS: It's five o'clock in New York City, and this is THE FIVE.

Get ready for another heated Supreme Court battle. Liberal Justice Stephen Breyer will be retiring this summer at the end of the high court's current term. The huge news leaking out before Breyer could officially announce it himself.

Multiple sources tell Shannon Bream that the justice was surprised with how this played out. But President Biden and his White House claim, they don't know anything about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: There has been no announcement from Justice Breyer. Let him make whatever statement he is going to make and I'll be happy to talk about it later.

JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The president has stated and reiterated his commitment to nominating a black woman to the Supreme Court and certainly stands by that.

For today, again, I'm just not going to able to say anything about any specifics until of course Justice Breyer makes any announcement should he decide to make an announcement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATTERS (on camera): Democrats are looking to ramming through Joe Biden's eventual nominee and follow a similar timeline that Republicans used for Amy Coney Barrett. The White House confirming that Biden is looking at a woman of color to fill the role, while getting press on who he may pick.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Is there any scenario in which the president would select his Vice President Kamala Harris for the Supreme Court?

PSAKI: Again, I'm not going to speak to any considerations, preparations, list.

PETER DOOCY, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: We're just wondering hypothetically and theoretically, would someone who was an attorney general of the large state and who served with many key Senate votes be an attractive candidate to the president for an open Supreme Court seat?

PSAKI: I see what you did there, Peter, but the president has every intention as he said before of running for reelection, and for running for reelection with Vice President Harris on the ticket as his partner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WATTERS (on camera): So, what would motivate a leak right before Breyer announces possibly from the White House?

PERINO: Well, this is super high stakes and one of my favorite things to do is cover a Supreme Court nomination so I was quite excited today when I heard about this. Obviously, Breyer has had a very long career in the judiciary, not only in the Supreme Court but before. And so, this decision is such high stakes for any sort of president.

I think, you know, now there is reporting that says his decision to announce was imminent and that the White House may be jumped the gun by a hair or somebody at the White House did or maybe not the White House. I understand why, because they have a lot of work to do. You got to get everybody in line.

Now what do we report this morning on America's Newsroom? That Biden is losing in the polls, even with Democrats. So, what is one thing that they can focus the mind --

WATTERS: Yes.

PERINO: -- and that is a Supreme Court nomination. Now, because the filibuster rules change and you can get to a Supreme Court vote with 51 votes now. It's not as big a deal, but they only have 51 votes. Right? Fifty plus Kamala Harris.

WATTERS: Right.

PERINO: The White House has also said it's going to be a judge, the president had said on the campaign trail it's going to be a black woman. So, you can look at how many judges there are, and I would imagine probably you could figure out their names pretty quickly. That list will come and will narrow down.

Senator Schumer might not be the majority leader after the November midterms, so they had to do this right away. If they waited until the end of the term which was the end of June, that would've only given them four months and I think a lot of people including somebody like, even like Kyrsten Sinema or Joe Manchin could've said, you know what, we ought to wait.

WATTERS: Yes.

PERINO: We ought to wait and see. This way they can try to get it done right away.

WATTERS: And now I guess the nominee has to go through Manchin and Sinema a little bit. Right?

GUTFELD: Yes.

WATTERS: I mean, they hold a lot of cards.

GUTFELD: I'm with Dana. This is fantastic. I, you know, immediately you think, this is the best news Joe has ever heard because he needs a historical POC, right? Who is just hanging around driving him nuts right now? It's like he could unload the Lemon and the Lemon gets a promotion. I mean, that's amazing.

PERINO: Win-win.

GUTFELD: I don't know if he's going to do it because it's an obvious ploy. I think that Merrick Garland could come out and identify as --

WATTERS: Yes.

GUTFELD: -- a nonbinary person of color and see it become a historical first. But I'll tell you this. Whoever gets nominated, I'm going to say that that person be they male or female, or nonbinary, did something really bad to me. A long time ago. I'm not going to say what it is that they did to me.

WATTERS: Can you remember what they did?

(CROSSTALK)

JEANINE PIRRO, FOX NEWS HOST: High school? In high school?

GUTFELD: It might have been. You see I don't know yet. It might've been in college, it might have been like, you know, --

PIRRO: High school.

GUTFELD: -- it might have been in the gym. Who knows? But I'm going to tell you whatever I say it's going to be 100 percent true. It's disgusting and I would prefer if you guys just respect my privacy when this happens.

But the thing is, the question is, will the Republicans be as disgusting and partisan and vindictive --

GERALDO RIVERA, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT-AT-LARGE: Good point.

GUTFELD: -- as the Dems were on basically every single nominee. And I don't believe two wrongs make a right, but boy, it's going to feel good. I rather have two wrongs, sometimes two wrongs are better than a right and, in this case, I think that I want an explosive hearing with corrupt lawyers, freaky shrinks, the return of Jessica or Julie Swetnick, got to get Avenatti on like a Zoom call from jail.

RIVERA: Great idea.

GUTFELD: With -- and I'm going to get my -- I'm going to go and get my handmaid costume out of storage and I'm going to wear it at the Supreme Court steps.

PERINO: After --

WATTERS: You know what, Greg, as much as we all want to see that I don't think that's going to happen. Geraldo, do you see this --

(CROSSTALK)

RIVERA: I do not --

WATTERS: -- happening the way it would have been if that had happened?

RIVERA: I do not. And I also call on Republicans right now to be gracious to the nominee. It's going to go through no matter what you do.

WATTERS: Gracious. Yes.

RIVERA: Be gracious, don't be like the Democrats, don't torture the nominee. I thought that Kamala Harris would be a great idea, it was the first name that jumped into my mind. She could be a terrific Supreme Court justice, an appointment for life. She's only in her 50s, she'd be there for 30 years.

PERINO: You think she'd be a good justice?

RIVERA: I think she'd be a terrific.

(CROSSTALK)

PIRRO: Would you think she has the mental --

GUTFELD: You thought she would be a good V.P.

PIRRO: You thought she has a mental acuity?

RIVERA: That was also true, but you know. But it's a role fit for her.

(CROSSTALK)

GUTFELD: A lifelong appointment.

PIRRO: No, the role does not fit for her.

RIVERA: It's not going to happen. You know, they've already put out the, you know, D.C. circuit judge, Brown Jackson, the South Carolina district judge, Michelle Childs. Leondra Kruger. All black women. It's interesting that it's definitely affirmative action, right? As they are considering the affirmative action, the seminal affirmative action case against Harvard and University of North Carolina. So, it is ironic.

PIRRO: Yes.

RIVERA: It is ironic, but I'm all for targeted, you know, there is no black woman on the court, why not do it. And the Republicans behave.

WATTERS: What about a Puerto Rican?

RIVERA: They have one.

WATTERS: He can have more. Why not more, Geraldo? All right, Judge Jeanine.

(CROSSTALK)

PIRRO: You know what?

RIVERA: She is my favorite judge.

WATTERS: She is?

RIVERA: Yes. Sotomayor.

PERINO: What?

PIRRO: When -- when --

RIVERA: Sotomayor.

PIRRO: Sotomayor she was the one who gave the disinformation on 100,000 (Inaudible) --

WATTERS: Yes.

GUTFELD: She is terrible, terrible.

RIVERA: But she makes great rice and beans.

WATTERS: Geraldo.

PERINO: Geraldo.

PIRRO: OK. That's the new --

WATTERS: That is not even true?

PIRRO: -- that's the new standard.

RIVERA: I made it up.

WATTERS: You made that up.

RIVERA: I made that up.

WATTERS: Man, thank God that wasn't me.

PIRRO: So here is the thing. There is -- this is a coming at such an opportune time for Joe Biden. The distraction is perfect for him.

PERINO: Yes.

PIRRO: His numbers are in the tank.

PERINO: Yes.

PIRRO: You know, now everybody knows Supreme Court hearing, --

PERINO: Yes.

PIRRO: -- nominee hearing --

PERINO: Yes.

PIRRO: -- we can get crazy. We can go lunatic.

RIVERA: Live TV.

PIRRO: And you know what, this is live TV, but I have to tell you, Geraldo, I'm tired of the Republicans, you know, playing by the mark of supreme bearer rules. I'm tired of that. I'm not saying you have to be an animal about it, but darn, let's just let people know that we have to slap in there too when we can do it. And not everybody is perfectly playing.

And not, and you know what --

RIVERA: You can get a Republican slap a black woman around? That's going to be great.

PIRRO: Come on, you know what I'm talking about. I'm talking about figuratively. What they did to Kavanaugh and what they did to Amy Coney Barrett, it was outrageous. And in the end what Americans want is a judge who is -- justice -- who is confident, who is smart and who is nonpolitical. We don't want politics in the United States Supreme Court.

And you know what, if you want to pick a woman of color that's fine. But just make sure that she is confident. And there are confident --

(CROSSTALK)

RIVERA: Well, these district court and circuit judge.

PIRRO: OK, you had your say, this is my turn.

RIVERA: I'm sorry.

PIRRO: OK. So right now, you've got confident judges, you've got Judge Jackson, you've got Justice Kruger, you got several of them who've already got Senate confirmation.

PERINO: Right.

PIRRO: So, it won't be that bad.

PERINO: Right.

PIRRO: And you're right, 50 plus one, that's all they need.

PERINO: And Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin have voted for every judicial nominee that Biden has put forward already.

PIRRO: All right.

WATTERS: And the judge says that the Republicans can play dirty, so there you go.

(CROSSTALK)

PIRRO: I need -- they need --

WATTERS: There you go. You've been given permission by Judge Jeanine.

PIRRO: They need to play -- they need to play --

(CROSSTALK)

RIVERA: Don't do it.

WATTERS: To play dirty.

PIRRO: -- like they have a backbone and whatever goes with that.

WATTERS: All right.

PERINO: Look who's with them.

GUTFELD: I'm having an article published in the New Yorker, it will be written by Ronan Farrow.

WATTERS: Where did she touch you?

GUTFELD: I can't -- I'm going to show you on the doll.

WATTERS: I can't. We're going to do that in the break. Coming up, President Biden to finally address the crime wave as people get gunned down in hospitals.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GUTFELD (on camera): President Biden finally paying attention to out-of- control violence. He is coming to New York City next week to meet with Mayor Eric Adams to talk about gun crimes. It only took a surge and lawlessness and scenes like this to catch his eye.

Chaotic video shows a brazen suspect opening fire in a hospital emergency room. But I guess if you're going to get shot, that's a great place to get shot. You got to admit, you're already in the hospital.

The E.R. was thrown into lockdown and leaving the victim injured. Cops nabbing the shooter later on that night. Meanwhile actor Michael Rapaport, you remember him.

PERINO: I remember him, yes.

GUTFELD: -- left stunned after filming a shoplifter robbing a drugstore. Stunned.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL RAPAPORT, ACTOR: You, that -- this dude, I can't believe I'm seeing (muted). This (muted) guy just filled his two bags up with everything in Rite Aid right here at 80th and First Avenue. Just walking down the street like he's (muted) Gucci.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GUTFELD (on camera): I think we found the first or the only person left in New York who didn't know about this happening. I mean, how do you not know this is happening. It's every single day.

So, Judge, what drives me nuts about the stuff, it's always about combating gun crimes but never the gunman. It's like they have a biological resistance to criminalizing the criminal and instead, they put all this emphasis on this inanimate object which never solves the problem.

PIRRO: Well, that's because guns jump out on their own and decide who to shoot. They don't need a person behind them.

GUTFELD: Yes.

PIRRO: This is so stupid, it aggravates me.

WATTERS: S-t-o-o-p-i-d.

PIRRO: S-t-o-o-p-i-d.

WATTERS: Got it.

PIRRO: You've been listening. Good for you, Jesse.

WATTERS: I have.

PIRRO: Here's the bottom line. For Joe Biden to say he's going to come to New York and he is going to help us out with gun violence. This is a guy who was silent the whole year before when he was running for president, while they were burning down businesses, and everything was mass chaos, there were shootings going on. Not one word came out of his mouth. And they are saying no, he is not -- he is not in favor of defunding the police.

I've never heard him say we need to fund the police. And now he's going to come in and show us how it's done. No. We know how it's done. This is a political ploy, all it is as Democrats getting together saying, we're to be tough on crime.

New York State, by the way, has the gun possession is lower than in many states that have literally zero drive-by shootings. So, in -- they want to change the laws. The only laws you need to change are bail reform, giving judges the ability to have discretion to keep someone in jail, --

GUTFELD: Right.

PIRRO: -- and then you need to make sure that you follow through and clear these gun cases.

GUTFELD: Exactly, enforcement.

PIRRO: OK.

GUTFELD: Enforce the rules. How does -- I'm pounding the table, Dana. Our new table by the way that we haven't even mentioned. A brand-new table.

WATTERS: Beautiful.

GUTFELD: And also, interesting fact, Jesse did Pilates this morning.

PIRRO: You did?

GUTFELD: Yes. But let's stick --

(CROSSTALK)

RIVERA: On this table?

GUTFELD: Let's stick to the story at hand.

WATTERS: Are you talking to me?

GUTFELD: How does ending gun violence, Dana, stop the smash and grab shoplifting, the subway shoving, the random stabbings? They focus on one thing because they could somehow push it on to like the NRA or something? I don't --

PERINO: So, I was wondering today, so who called who? Did Eric Adams call in and say Joe Biden, would you please to New York --

RIVERA: No.

PERINO: -- and help me figure this out? Absolutely, it did not happen, right? So, what Joe Biden's team has realized is that crime is serious because they're looking at the polls.

GUTFELD: Right.

PERINO: They're seeing the media coverage and not just on Fox, it's everywhere. The crime is up and 81 percent of people said they were worried about crime. So, they realize we got to do something, so we've got the shining new penny up there in New York, let's go and deal with that and talk about guns.

But when we ask Jen Psaki on America's Newsroom about whether the president would take on liberal prosecutors, she's like, no. Like, no, like we're going to let them do their thing, but we can give money. Money is great. Like I'm sure that the cops would love more resources, that's great. That's not the issue.

One thing that would actually be helpful on the smash and grabs is to deal with the fact that all of these people can go and then resell it, resell all of those items online.

GUTFELD: Yes.

PERINO: With no penalty. So, there might be something there that the government could actually do. That would be helpful on that thing, but they have to be arrested, they can't -- they can't be misdemeanors when you're having a shop like that like this guy walking out the store.

GUTFELD: Yes. I still can't find out where they sell them online because I've been looking. Because, you know, its blades are really expensive. You know, Jesse, he was leave -- Rapaport was drugstore that is now closing for good because they can't keep up with the robberies which hurts elderly people like Rapaport who go there for their medication.

WATTERS: Elderly. He's your age.

GUTFELD: I think he's in the 70s.

WATTERS: Is he really in the 70s?

GUTFELD: I have no idea.

(CROSSTALK)

RIVERA: There's no way.

GUTFELD: But this only -- so my point is, these drugstores all they are doing is just closing.

PERINO: Right.

GUTFELD: Why don't they -- can they do something else to stop this?

WATTERS: Greg, the security guy that is standing there --

GUTFELD: Yes.

WATTERS: -- watch the guy leave with the goods.

GUTFELD: Yes.

PERINO: He's not allowed to touch him.

WATTERS: So why is he standing there with the security jacket on?

GUTFELD: It's incredible.

PERINO: Exactly.

WATTERS: Is he a mannequin? Is he a model?

GUTFELD: I know.

WATTERS: I mean, he's not -- it's false advertising.

RIVERA: It's all because of insurance.

WATTERS: If you're going to say that's security --

PERINO: Right.

WATTERS: -- if you can't do anything about it. And the hospital situation, this, you guys got to believe how bananas this is. The guy comes in to the E.R. for an asthma situation and he brings his mother.

GUTFELD: Right.

WATTERS: And he sees a guy across the E.R. and the guy gave him a dirty look, so he unloads like six rounds into this guy, and then runs out of the E.R. and leaves his mother there. Gets back to the apartment in the Bronx and then the sister calls 911 and says my brother is hearing voices and he's got a gun.

And they catch him because he signed his name --

PIRRO: He signed his name.

WATTERS: -- when he went into the E.R. And it turns out that the guy has been arrested, Greg, 15 times.

PERINO: Jesus.

WATTERS: For gun possession, narcotics, burglary, assault, you name it. And the guy that was shot for giving him a dirty look, was shot last year as well for giving someone else a dirty look. I swear to God.

(CROSSTALK)

RIVERA: He must have quite a look.

WATTERS: I swear to God he's got nasty look on his face.

PIRRO: Keep your (Inaudible) down.

WATTERS: But only -- only in New York, right?

GUTFELD: Meanwhile, Geraldo, we keep being told that Mayor Adams is going to be different but his proposal still sounds a lot like De Blasio.

RIVERA: No, he's bringing back plain clothes. He is really, I think reenergizing and enabling cops again. I think what disturbs you so much here, and I am similarly really outraged by it. A hospital is a place of curing.

PERINO: Yes.

RIVERA: And so where do you go when you're hurt? You go to the hospital. The hospital is, you know, wherever the chaos is in the world, when you go to the hospital you go in there to get better. So, to see someone bring that violence and imagine how traumatized all the other patients were there in the emergency room.

So, that and the fact that the drugstore in 80th and First Avenue, which is, you know, that's not the ghetto, that's the upper east side, that's were all the flight attendants live, a lot of the teachers live there.

GUTFELD: Flight attendants? How do you know about that?

(CROSSTALK)

PIRRO: Flight -- how do you know about that.

WATTERS: Stayed overnight for many times.

PIRRO: How do you know that?

GUTFELD: Yes. Yes.

WATTERS: It's like 15 minutes from La Guardia.

GUTFELD: You have to call it block (Ph) home.

RIVERA: So, to see -- to see a security guy basically be blind to that brazenness, breaks the rule. What's the rule? The rule is that you, society, civilization has certain norms. You know, you don't steal, you don't do all the other things in the 10 Commandments.

But to see that happen so brazenly --

GUTFELD: Yes.

RIVERA: -- with so little consequence is really outrageous. I think that what you need is a whole thing -- excuse me, Judge. I just want to say this one. You need a whole system of passive-aggressive law enforcement. Surveillance cameras on every corner, you know, everyone should get freerings.com from the government. Insurance company should not be allowed to encourage security to turn their backs on perpetrators. It's what they do to lower the premiums.

PIRRO: OK.

RIVERA: You know, I just think he has (Inaudible) --

(CROSSTALK)

PIRRO: All right. Let me tell you what the bottom line is here.

RIVERA: -- the rules. He's got to --

PIRRO: The bottom line is, that Alvin Bragg came in office and said he's not going to prosecute people who go --

PERINO: Right.

PIRRO: -- and hold up people with guns and AR-15s, and if they steal thousands of dollars of merchandise, I'm going to charge them for like stealing a DCD. That's where the problem is.

GUTFELD: All right.

PIRRO: Period.

GUTFELD: I still say the real crime and all of this, Jesse doing Pilates. We'll discuss that --

WATTERS: No, we won't.

GUTFELD: -- in details.

WATTERS: No, we won't.

GUTFELD: Straight ahead, shocking new details about the COVID cover-up that led back to Dr. Fauci.

PIRRO: What a shot.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PERINO (on camera): Some serious questions over whether Dr. Fauci and top U.S. health officials protected China at the expense of everyone else, like us in America. New documents obtained by special reports suggest Fauci and others hid key evidence from the public at the start of the pandemic. Bret Baier breaking it down here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRET BAIER, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: New internal communications from the National Institutes of Health obtained by Fox News show in the earliest days of the crisis, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the head of the agency's infectious diseases institute is warned that COVID may have leaked from a Chinese government run lab. The Wuhan Institute of Virology.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PERINO (on camera): The documents also show Fauci and scientists around the world worked to suppress the lab leak theory over fears that it would have set science and international harmony. That was the part that really bothered me.

PIRRO: Yes.

GUTFELD: Yes.

PERINO: Like why don't just be transparent.

GUTFELD: Yes. We covered, and this has been out there. The biggest problem here is the experts that are scolding us on masks, mandates, and risk assessment, are the ones who risked billions of lives on this questionable science that led to millions of deaths. Fauci should probably resign and get a lawyer, no wonder Fauci was quivering whenever anybody brought up China because the paper trail doesn't just involve Chinese scientists. It involves American scientists too.

Think about that class action litigation when you're talking about 12 million people dead, you can bankrupt the country. That's trillions in settlements if you want to do it. So, somebody has to go to jail, if you're arresting non-vaxxed people in Applebee's, somebody should be paying the price for this. Which is now becoming a Holocaust. Right?

So now we know the experts who -- well, it's over six million dead, I'm talking about numbers. We know -- we know why the experts ridiculed the other experts who are calling this out early on, it's because they didn't want to pass off China, lose funding or go to prison. And prison should be on the table for all of these people because they took a gamble on a dangerous concept.

It wasn't deliberate, the leak wasn't deliberate, right? Because the semblance of an action that had this kind of risk is negligent manslaughter. They killed millions of people, and we're not even trying to investigate.

PIRRO: But it's like any other crime.

GUTFELD: Right.

PIRRO: It's not the underlying crime that is so easy to identify.

GUTFELD: Yes.

PIRRO: It is the cover-up. And now we have the cover-up where we have all of these doctors smeared from Oxford and Harvard, and Stanford, they'll all smeared by Fauci and his gang. Fauci and his gang then end up giving up money to all of these people, $9 million worth of grants through the NIH to people that worked with them on clarifying or amending what they thought was a case.

But here -- the bottom line on this thing is that science should be about debate, it should be about criticism, it should be receptive to skepticism. I mean, that's what science is all about. So, you get together with people and you test different theories.

These guys are dictators, they got together and said, you know what, whether we're responsible or not, we're going to cover it up, and you know, the hell with science. And that's what they said. He should not be in that position. I'll get one better and say he should be fired.

GUTFELD: Yes.

PIRRO: The guy has got $10 million in drugs. He makes $450,000. He's been there 50 years. He never had us ready for the pandemic in the first place when he said in 2017, there's going to be a pandemic that will hit this country.

PERINO: Geraldo?

GUTFELD: He knew it.

RIVERA: I always liked Fauci because he's not a politician.

PIRRO: He isn't?

RIVERA: But let me just -- let me say this.

WATTERS: Geraldo.

RIVERA: Everybody in the world knows that the -- it's called the Wuhan virus for a reason, because it was started in Wuhan. It started in a -- within a mile of the lab where they were investigating viruses. I mean, it does not take a rocket science or virology scientist to tell us that it's probably from the lab. The question is what's the relevance of the origin right now?

Now, the fact that the Chinese might be culpable, we'll catch them eventually, although they scrubbed the market, they scrubbed everything, they probably killed the interns in the lab who probably walked out with this stuff on their shoe one day.

You know, we're fighting the consequences of the -- of the worldwide infection. Now, I don't -- I don't believe that this is such a big, momentous revelation that they knew.

GUTFELD: But Geraldo, we're arresting people because they're not wearing masks.

RIVERA: But what's the crime, Greg?

GUTFELD: They killed millions of people.

WATTERS: Geraldo --

PIRRO: How about jailing people for going to work?

RIVERA: Causation is improbable.

WATTERS: Geraldo, Fauci and his team of scientists funded gain of function research in Wuhan. The Wuhan lab was sloppy.

RIVERA: America funded it.

GUTFELD: Yes.

WATTERS: OK, American taxpayers funded it.

PIRRO: Yes, through the NIH.

WATTERS: And it was sloppy, and it leaked, and it created mass chaos, and now people are dead. All he had to say was when we all knew that it was gain of function that escaped, sorry, this is on us.

PERINO: Right.

RIVERA: But did more people die --

WATTERS: And then you fall on your sword and you resign? No, because, you know what, Geraldo --

RIVERA: But did more people die as a result of it?

WATTERS: -- they're still doing gain of function research and that's the thing.

RIVERA: I hope that's not -- I hope that's not true.

WATTERS: Gain-of-function research was not something the entire scientific community thought was a good idea. It was a small cabal of people including Fauci backed by big Pharma, and they were doing it. And because big pharma likes that risky stuff because you can get ahead on vaccines and it gives you an advantage.

Now, it blew up and big pharma profited, but no one else profited. Everybody else lost a lot including their life. And that's what we want, accountability, so this never happens again.

RIVERA: As outrageous as that is, it doesn't point to criminal culpability.

WATTERS: It's reckless, negligent homicide.

RIVERA: You can fire him, but you can't arrest him.

PIRRO: You can more than fire him. Because if he was aware of, and his 40 years of experience show that he is knowledgeable, he is funding gain of function, he's smart enough to know not to admit it, that his consciousness of guilt --

WATTERS: Yes. And he fudged the paperwork.

RIVERA: So, you believe that he was manipulating virus --

PIRRO: Yes, manipulating the virus --

RIVERA: Oh, I spilled it. Don't tell mom.

PIRRO: He's manipulating the virus -- he's manipulating the virus so that they can get an advance on medicine and he can make more money in addition to the $10 million he's made from the big pharma.

PERINO: And in the meantime, China gets off basically scot-free and is about to host the Olympics.

GUTFELD: No.

PERINO: Up next, parents exploding on Virginia school officials trying to keep their kids masked up. We'll tell you more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RIVERA: A bare-knuckle brawl breaking out in Virginia schools as districts defy Governor Glenn Youngkin's order letting parents choose whether their kids, their own kids need to wear a mask. School board members getting an earful from upset parents and students.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is time to quit hiding behind our children and asking them to sacrifice their youth for your fear. Enough is enough.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yesterday my daughter refused her mask upon entrance into the school and she wasn't officially segregated until 1:00. You know what she said to me when I picked her up after school? I guess COVID only comes out after 1:00 p.m., mom.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We segregated from all the other students who are wearing masks. We are told to use different bathrooms and we are told when we can and cannot go to the bathroom or go get water.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIVERA: COVID has been so disruptive, Judge. I mean, is this helping -- are these parents helping?

PIRRO: Which parents?

RIVERA: The parents that are raising the issue and making it so dramatic.

GUTFELD: They should stay out of it, right, Geraldo?

RIVERA: The children who were traumatized.

GUTFELD: They should stay out of it. It's just the kids.

PIRRO: OK. Let's make it clear.

RIVERA: If there's an edict that says wear a mask, wear a mask.

PIRRO: No. The governor was elected. He issued an executive order. You know, even Biden lost in the Supreme Court. I know it was because of OSHA and employers with more than 100 employees. I mean, a school has more than 100 kids. Where did these school boards come up with an idea that these kids need to be masked?

You know what, they're losing precious years. We're traumatizing them and they're defying the governor's orders. I don't know what's going on with these school boards. I don't know why they are so dictatorial. They're totalitarian. They want to run things.

RIVERA: Aren't they elected by the community?

PIRRO: Well, let me tell you right now. There's three recalls in one state I think in California, three recalls right now. And now the school boards that want to sue the state of California -- State of Virginia. This is over.

RIVERA: My point is that these kids have been jerked all over the place. I mean, is this helping? Are the parents, in their emotional involvement -- you know, when you have a kid in junior high, a sixth-grader, is it the kid who's making the judgment call or is that the parents influence them, are they all over them, you know, this is -- this is wrong, this is right.

WATTERS: You're acting like they're shooting bazookas at the school board, Geraldo. They just went up to the mic and said this is BS. And that's perfectly legitimate. The school board is defying the parents and the governor. That's not how the power hierarchy works in the Commonwealth, which I love, the Commonwealth. How did they get that name?

So, the question is, the science says -- I know you like to follow the science --

RIVERA: Of course.

WATTERS: -- actually masking these kids for endless hours all day long is worse than the COVID situation, all right.

GUTFELD: Yes.

WATTERS: It is worse.

RIVERA: Says Jesse.

WATTERS: Says science, Geraldo.

RIVERA: Says Jesse.

WATTERS: Says science, Geraldo. If you disagree with me, you disagree with science, all right.

RIVERA: OK.

WATTERS: And so, the situation is -- how long does this have to go, until there's one case count, two case counts? They're going to keep doing this until they can --

PIRRO: Forever.

WATTERS: Right. It's forever pandemic. And I don't -- I want to see faces - - I want to see their beautiful faces and they want to breath.

RIVERA: But Dana, but these kids -- these kids, Dana, are being ping-ponged and it's dreadful.

PERINO: But they're -- also, for what? They're not -- they're not following the science, meaning the people who want to keep them masked. Just for a prop? You like the Atlantic? Here's the --

RIVERA: I do.

PERINO: -- case against masks at school. I'll pass that on for reading for later. Here's the other thing.

RIVERA: I accept service.

PERINO: You know how Liberals love Northern European countries?

WATTERS: Oh, yes.

PERINO: Did you know that the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, and Sweden do not recommend elementary-aged children mask anywhere in society, including shops and transit.

WATTERS: Those reckless socialists.

PERINO: Right. Can you believe that? Who's actually following the science here? Let's just follow the science. The masks aren't working. There's kids that haven't ever seen their teachers' face for two years.

RIVERA: But the science, with due respect to both of you, isn't really the issue. The issue is --

PERINO: Why?

PIRRO: What is the issue?

RIVERA: The issue is --

PERINO: How you feel about it?

RIVERA: -- parents' militancy involvement on both sides.

PIRRO: No, teachers.

WATTERS: No, there was no militancy.

RIVERA: On both sides.

WATTERS: There was none.

RIVERA: Greg, and I submit that the --

GUTFELD: You do?

RIVERA: -- school boards are creating a situation of conflict and turmoil that is exacerbating the self-destructive, you know, phenomenon from COVID, the kids being locked up and all the rest of it. And now they want to go to school, and the parents are on one side or the other side. It's like the civil war all over.

PERINO: Civil war.

GUTFELD: I actually -- I actually think this --

RIVERA: All right, a civil war, not the civil war.

GUTFELD: No, but I do -- I think that there's a point there that Geraldo just made. It is kind of like a civil war. Like, people don't really know what sparks certain kinds of things.

PERINO: Yes.

GUTFELD: You know, there were -- there were things that have started wars before. This is an interesting part, because it's a very intimate issue. You can't tell me what I'm going to put on my kid's face. You are not his parents. You're just some a-hole mask fascist who loves that dopamine rush when you get to yell at somebody and you can't relinquish your control.

We're in a different phase now. We can't be using the old science. We got the new science. There's research out there. This is hurting kids. The solution is obvious. Make it optional. That's the simplest thing they can do. And if they want to separate the kids, fine. But I'll tell you one thing. The kids without masks will be seen as ultimately cooler than the kids that have to walk around scared all the time because their parents are nuts.

It's time for you to regain that steering wheel, America. Life has changed but we still live life. We have to embrace risk assessment and get this -- get this out of the -- out of people like Geraldo.

RIVERA: I just had this --

GUTFELD: You don't want Geraldo run your life.

RIVERA: I just had this visual of Greg on an airplane making the same rant he just did, and being arrested, led off with his hands gaffer taped.

Ahead, good for the goose, good for the gander. After claiming they're all over President Trump, some of the media now claiming the press is being too tough on President Biden. Go figure.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PIRRO: Welcome back. Some in the liberal media now making excuses for the President's tanking poll numbers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, THE LATE SHOW: Because there is a whole lot of talk in the media, no offense, also MSNBC, about the agenda stalling. What do you make of his first year? And is he right to complain about the description?

JOY REID, HOST, MSNBC: I think in one sense Biden has a point. I think that the media -- you know, I like to say that, you know, the media does have two biases, right, change and conflict, right? So if we see change, we run toward that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PIRRO: And the Washington Post columnist complaining the media is stuck in Biden is a failure mode.

OK, Let's talk about your favorite person, Greg, Joy Reid.

GUTFELD: Who's that?

PIRRO: She says --

GUTFELD: It's Jesse.

PIRRO: Is it Jesse?

GUTFELD: Yes, he's my favorite person.

WATTERS: Yes, I am.

RIVERA: No. You know what, I'm going to ask him this, Greg, OK. She says that media, Republicans and Democrats, lay things at the feet of the President when they can't do anything about it. I doubt any president can reverse inflation. It's just not something they do.

GUTFELD: You know, I've said this like 19 times. If Joe had Trump's press, he'd already be gone, Hunter would be in jail. That's it. And if Trump had Joe's press, he'd already be on Mount Rushmore. He'd actually be four Trumps. They would get rid of every -- there would be four busts of Trump. If he had -- they are so soft on Joe because they realize he's incompetent.

But it is funny to watch liberal media interview the hard left media about how biased the media is. And they actually are in such a bubble. They can't see that they're soaking in it. They're like Madge, it's soaking in it. Remember that commercial?

PERINO: Yes.

PIRRO: OK, so -- but Dna, you know, this person from the Washington Post said that, you know, Biden has the opportunity to change the conversation. Vote -- they lost voting rights bill, they lost Build Back Better. It when caput. And you could hear the tectonic plates creak. The ground was shifting. Biden was moving on. As if that was a tough thing for him to do. Why doesn't -- why doesn't the press --

PERINO: Well, and then they shoved Breyer out the door. And now they have a Supreme Court nomination that they can focus on. I'm just kidding. I'm sure Breyer made his own decision in his place.

PIRRO: Oh, yes right.

(CROSSTALK)

PERINO: For somebody who works in Republican communications, it is funny to me every time that this happened with the Obama team and happen with the Hillary team. As soon as they get a little taste of what is reality, this is what conservative Republicans go through all the time with the media, and that's why Republican communicators are better because they have to try harder.

GUTFELD: There you go.

PIRRO: All right. And you know, one of the -- they had a truck going around Washington that said retire Breyer. We need an African American jurist, a female African-American jurist.

PERINO: That's right. The left push him out.

PIRRO: So -- yes, so, I think he was pushed out. What say you, Jesse?

WATTERS: Yes, I think they pushed him out. And --

RIVERA: Breyer?

WATTERS: Yes, I think they pushed Breyer out.

RIVERA: Well, after what happened with Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

WATTERS: Yes, they pushed him out early. But about this. I've never seen in my long, illustrious career in the media. I have never seen the media, not in total lockstep. They're always on the same page. They use the same phrases. They're our mob.

And so, to see them disjointed, and not really knowing how to cover the president and complaining about how their colleagues are covering the president, shows me that they don't want the truth to be told because they understand how influential mainstream media coverage is to the Democratic voter.

PERINO: Yes.

WATTERS: I mean, Geraldo, just a couple of segments ago said, oh, really? It was a conspiracy theory, Geraldo, and you and many other people don't really watch any other stations besides a CNN. They read the New York Times. And if the New York Times and if CNN is saying Biden's losses are piling up, Democrats are going to be pumped up.

PIRRO: OK.

RIVERA: Well, he's stereotyping me so I'll ignore everything he just said.

WATTERS: You never do that to anybody.

GUTFELD: You haven't done that in this show.

PIRRO: Go ahead.

RIVERA: In my experience, the media, when they're talking about liberals, are like house pets. They're like dogs, but good dogs, nice dogs. Until they sense weakness, then they turn into wolves. If they sense that the audiences lost -- that Biden has lost their crowd, then they -- he falls down, they're going to eat them.

PIRRO: Well, I think he did fall down. "ONE MORE THING" is up next.

WATTERS: Three times.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WATTERS: It's time now for "ONE MORE THING." Greg.

GUTFELD: Tonight's show is great. I got Emily Compagno, I got Joe DeVito, Kat, Tyrus. It's going to be great. We're going to talk about everything. Let's do this thing instead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GUTFELD: Animals are great. Animals are great. Animals are great.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GUTFELD: Boom. If you got to go to the bank, remember to have all your paperwork ready, your bank card, because I hate standing behind people that just don't know that there's a line behind them. But this fella came prepared. He waited patiently. He was -- I think he was depositing a few bones. No, that's what they call money, bones. Yes, yes, yes.

PERINO: They always have treats at the bank.

GUTFELD: Yes, they do. Like, sucks, lollipops. But you don't want to eat the lollipops, you know, anymore because you never know what's in them, Dana.

PERINO: You don't.

GUTFELD: But that was in St. Louis, Missouri, Missouri. Do you know the abbreviation for Missouri?

PERINO: MO?

GUTFELD: Yes.

WATTERS: All right.

RIVERA: What is the relevance of that?

GUTFELD: No relevance, Geraldo.

PERINO: No, but that's the point. Animals are great.

RIVERA: I thought I might have missed them. Because I've lost this step.

WATTERS: Dana.

PERINO: All right, let's talk about another puppy. That is Percy the Vizsla. So, last week, he had a situation. We got a call saying, have you ever noticed he wobbles when he's resting? I'm like, what are you talking about? No. Guess what? He got accidentally -- he ingested accidentally some sort of marijuana edible. He was very poisoned.

WATTERS: Sorry.

RIVERA: I thought I recognized that.

PERINO: So, he's very sick. He spent the night in the hospital, Jesse. Look at -- look at that poor little thing. It's very dangerous. It's happening all over. So, we talked to a veterinarian today. We're not going to play the sound bite. He basically said this is becoming very common.

There are things you can do. You can check out my Twitter feed to find out like exactly what you need to do if this happens to your dog. 765 percent increase in calls about this happening to dogs this year.

GUTFELD: The first thing you do is you play side one of Dark Side of the Moon.

PERINO: Does that make them makes him howl?

GUTFELD: That makes them happy.

PERINO: OK, got it.

WATTERS: All right, Jesse. That's me. National Spouses Day is today. So, we're going to celebrate Emma Watters. Here we are at Naples celebrating our anniversary there. That's Jesse Jr.

PERINO: Look at that, Junior.

PIRRO: Yes.

WATTERS: Beautiful wife --

GUTFELD: Are those professional photographs?

WATTERS: Indeed.

GUTFELD: Yes.

WATTERS: Those were our photographers for a wedding and we booked them again for our anniversary. So, Happy National Spouses Day. And I'm going to be doing the in between show-show right after THE FIVE. It's a Fox Facebook situation. And I'm going to be promoting "JESSE WATTERS PRIMETIME." And we got again another hot show. So, make sure to watch that tonight.

GUTFELD: On Facebook.

PIRRO: And who's on?

WATTERS: Geraldo. And Judge is on.

RIVERA: Oh, that's great. Oh, congratulations to both of you. Now, this edition of Geraldo news --

PERINO: About Geraldo.

RIVERA: --with Geraldo. So, we'll start on a woman who's not me. Watch as this free diver comes close to colliding with a curious baby whale.

PERINO: Oh, my word. Oh, no.

WATTERS: That's a baby?

RIVERA: Which reminded me of 25 years ago where I actually went with the mother.

PERINO: He touched it?

RIVERA: Yes, I've rode the back of the whale. See?

PERINO: What? Geraldo.

WATTERS: Wow, look at those legs.

PERINO: Geraldo. Is that allowed?

RIVERA: Yes, it was legal then. It's not legal now.

PERINO: Yes, that is not allowed.

PIRRO: Wow.

WATTERS: I want to be --

PIRRO: Swimming with the whales.

WATTERS: I want to have a career as long as you so I can show things like that.

RIVERA: Yes, isn't that cool.

PIRRO: OK, all right.

WATTERS: Judge.

PIRRO: So, we got 30 seconds. A woman creates an in-case-I-go-missing folder. And in that folder, she puts in her social media, dating site passwords, fingerprints, handwriting samples, her passport, dental medical records, tattoos, scars. She's so afraid that one day she's going to go missing, but she wants everyone to be prepared.

GUTFELD: What a depressing person.

PIRRO: She's cool crime fan for years and the folder gives her peace of mind.

WATTERS: All right. I know what I'm going to make Johnny do later.

GUTFELD: Oh, my God.

WATTERS: Make me a folder, Johnny.

PIRRO: I used to do that for little kids.

WATTERS: We got to go. "SPECIAL REPORT" is up next with Bret Baier.

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