The GOP Is Poised to Pass Tax Reform – but Will It Help?

Glenn was blunt about his feelings on the Senate Republicans’ plan for tax reform on today’s show: “This is an abomination, but I’ll take it.” If Republicans can’t give us something better, we’ll take what we can get, right?

Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) said at noon today that he would vote in favor of the tax reform plan, giving Republicans 50 votes to pass the legislation along with a tie-breaker vote from Vice President Mike Pence.

Want to learn more about the bill? Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) was on the show Thursday to talk about it, and you can listen here.

This article provided courtesy of TheBlaze.

GLENN: Bill O'Reilly from BillO'Reilly.com.

Let's switch to another worthless topic on -- on Congress. The tax bill. They now have 49 out of the 52 senators. Are they going to be able to pass this today?

BILL: Yes, they will. They'll make some other tweak to get one or two more on board. And, you know, it shouldn't be this hard. But, you know, again, you're dealing with a body that is not looking out for the folks, in my opinion. It's all about them.

And, you know, once you get into that zone, it's hard to get anything done --

GLENN: How can they be so myopic, where they are -- where they are getting these giant -- these giant breaks. And I'm for the business tax going down. I'm absolutely for it.

BILL: Yeah. Uh-huh.

GLENN: But then to not give the break to the average person is nuts! Is nuts!

BILL: Well, they are though in a sense that if you -- if you really analyze the bill, it does help the working class in America. I mean, it's not fantastic --

GLENN: It does help.

No.

BILL: But it's something. And then the thinking is -- the wisdom is that when you stimulate the economy to this extent and you mentioned it at the top of the hour, that there will be more jobs available for everybody. And then the market will drive salaries up, so that you will make money from this bill, not only by getting a tax cut, a little bit of one, but your opportunities will expand.

So I think that's the overall arch on it.

STU: The bottom line here too and no one is talking about this, the bottom 80 percent of families, currently pay 33 percent of all federal taxes and will get 37 percent of the tax cuts. They pay 33, would get 37 percent of the tax cut. The top one percent currently pays 37 percent of all the taxes, but would only get 18 percent of the tax cuts.

So they keep acting as if they're only giving money to the rich here. That's not true at all.

GLENN: Yeah, you're giving more --

BILL: Well, the big thing is the economy. That's the big thing. If you have a president who stimulates the economy to the extent that everybody wants to work and salaries go up, that's an effective administration, domestically. So that's what this is all about. Democrats, of course, don't want Trump to succeed. So they don't care how good the tax cut is or how good the tax bill is, they'll try to sabotage it.

GLENN: So the economy and the numbers, what is Trump thinking by just tweeting all this nonsense? This should have been a great week.

BILL: He doesn't think. He just doesn't think. I mean, that's the problem. I'm not a psychologist, and I'm not getting into that. But you're absolutely right. I have it said from the very beginning, it's about accomplishments, not feuds. You know, once in a while you can use a feud for a political advantage, and people will enjoy that. But not every day. You got two big accomplishments. The economy is on the move and you've hurt ISIS badly: That's what you should be tweeting about.

GLENN: Yeah. Tell me what you thought about the Pocahontas.

BILL: It's not a racial slur. It was inappropriate. The guys -- the Navajos in the White House didn't even know what he was talking. You see their faces, going, what did Pocahontas do that we were not aware of?

GLENN: I know.

BILL: Let's go back to Jamestown, what did she do? But, again, it's a stream of consciousness with our president. I mean, whatever pops into his mind, he says. Because that's what rich guys do, Beck. And, you know that, you're a rich guy. Whatever pops into your mind you say, that's what happens.

GLENN: Right. I was saying that when I was broke. And that may lead to me being broke again.

BILL: Yeah. But you weren't sober then. That was a whole different track.

GLENN: Yes. That's exactly right.

When we come back, we'll talk about Michael Flynn who has just been charged by the FBI with lying to the FBI. What does this mean to the Trump administration? Coming up.

(OUT AT 9:31AM)

GLENN: We're with Bill O'Reilly for BillO'Reilly.com. We got news this morning that the former national security adviser for Donald Trump, Michael Flynn, has pleaded guilty today to willfully and knowingly making false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements to the FBI about conversations with Russia's ambassador.

The White House responded and said, this was expected. Trump fired him for lying to Vice President Mike Pence. Of course, he lied to the FBI as well.

Bill, what does this mean?

BILL: I don't think it means very much. I mean, it means that CNN and MSNBC will have a full roster of hysteria. But, you know, Flynn was a guy who had a very nebulous -- word of the day nebulous, association with Turkey and Russia. Made money representing various things that they were doing.

And apparently, the inside story here, Beck, though, and that's why you have me on every week is apparently they made a deal with Flynn to plead guilty to lying to the FBI if they leave his son alone.

The son did work with the father. The younger Flynn was in kind of jeopardy. But I think the deal is, let the boy go. And I'll plead guilty. I think that's what happened.

GLENN: So does this move the case into the White House at all?

BILL: No. Because the White House did bail from Flynn fairly early. Because he did, as you pointed out, misled Pence. So unless Flynn has got some information, and nobody could possibly know that, that connects the president with Russia directly, it's probably going to die out fast.

STU: Bill, switching gears here a little bit, I did come across a little piece of an interview with you that I did find to be interesting this week. As you may have seen and remembered the Matt Lauer interview with you has been making the rounds quite a bit.

BILL: Yeah.

GLENN: I'm wondering, have you offered an interview for him on your show?

BILL: Nah. You know, everybody is caught up in the mass hysteria of all of these accusations. But I come back to the very simple thing, and what Americans should want is justice. They should want justice.

And nobody should be abused in the workplace. So when you keep your eye on that. And I think nobody would disagree with that. You can -- you can start to move through some of these things in a responsible way, unlike the press, which every headline is a conviction now.

So Lauer, who I've known forever, but I'm not a friend of his, what he did in my interview in September, with Killing England -- and people don't know that. But I was promoting the book. I was promoting Killing England. And I knew that NBC was telling Lauer, hey, you got to be tough on O'Reilly. You got to be ask him all -- I don't mind.

GLENN: Yeah. They did seven minutes on your firing and two on the book.

BILL: Yeah. And I didn't mind. All I wanted was my say. I went in there. And, you know, they did seven on that and two on the book. Fine, the book becomes number one. And I did what I had to do to promote the book. But as far as Lauer was concerned, I absolutely knew what he was going to do, what he was going to say. And if you looked at the interview, I answered the questions honestly. Now, he doesn't look good because all the while he was asking all those questions, he had to know that all this he has now admitted was in the background.

So how do you do that? I don't know. I don't know how do that. But that's him.

GLENN: So, Bill, you just said, you know, every accusation is a conviction now.

BILL: Yeah.

GLENN: Except when it comes -- except when it comes to Congress. That's not happening.

BILL: It is though. It is though.

Conyers is done, all right? He can -- he can -- his guy can say, I got to stay. He's finished, all right? And I expect he'll be out next week. And they'll say, his health is bad. I mean, that's what this is. And Franken is done.

STU: You think Franken is done?

GLENN: You think Franken is out?

BILL: He's out. Because the Senate Ethics Committee can't give him a pass. They can't. And they'll come back, Al, you know -- and I actually recused myself from Franken because I despised him so much. And I told my audience on BillO'Reilly.com, look, I'm not going to comment on what Franken allegedly did or did not do because I hate him. "Hate" is a bad word.

I despise him. He's a liar. All right?

GLENN: You hate the things he does.

BILL: I've known him forever, and he's the lowest of the low. You don't get lower than Al Franken. So I can't analyze what this situation is. But he has no future. He's done. And the ethics committee will come back, and there will be other people that will come in and say whatever they say.

GLENN: And so what about Roy Moore?

BILL: Now, that's a more interesting topic, Moore. Because I think Moore is going to win.

STU: I think so he is.

GLENN: I think he is too.

BILL: In December 12.

Now, is he going to win because he's the greatest guy?

No. He's going to win because the people in Alabama hate the press more than what he allegedly did. So that's what's happening.

GLENN: No, I don't think -- I think they're just willing to look away and say, I don't know what the story is because I hate the press so much.

BILL: I think it's more emotional than that. I think it's -- there is a -- if you look at the polling on it, okay? The majority of Alabama is not people who are going to vote for Moore. And, by the way, I would not vote for Moore. I would not cast a ballot for the man. But the majority of people who are going to vote in the election, all right? They say that the press is despicable and we don't trust them.

So that's the -- you know, people rationalize their actions. That's the rationalization. We don't know what he did.

You know, but the press is dishonest. So we're going to give him the benefit of the doubt. So then he'll get in there. And I think the Senate will bushwhack him. And then the governor of Alabama eventually will have to appoint somebody to take his place. I think that's how it's going to come down.

GLENN: You think the Senate is going to bushwhack him?

BILL: I think so. Because the Republican Party can't be tied to him. You see, they can't be tied to Roy Moore, and that's what the Democrats will do next year in --

GLENN: But we're already tied -- we're already tied to -- to Donald Trump. And if you believe the press reports, sources in the White House say that he's now saying that that -- excuse me. That Access Hollywood tape was fraudulent.

BILL: Okay. Then we get back to stream of consciousness. I don't take any of that seriously. I don't take any of that seriously.

But I will tell you this, I'm going to make a prediction here on the Glenn Beck Program. I wish I had the English accent to do it, but I don't.

After this tax reform thing gets passed, the press is going to then pivot into attacking Trump on the women accusations. That's going to be the next thing. Because they can't go into 2018 with a roaring economy, all right? And a pretty good accomplishment on Trump's resume. They've got to take him down personally. So you're going to see hysteria develop, coming up. And that's what's going to happen.

GLENN: So how do we -- because I think we're sending. And I don't know what message we're setting. And I've struggled with this. I mean, Bill, you and I have talked about this off the air with your situation. And I've pressed you up against the wall, saying, I don't want to defend a bad guy. Tell me the decision. And I've had to make tough choices, in my own life, you know, here. But I think we're all doing this throughout.

And I don't know what message we're sending. But I do believe the stories about Donald Trump. And I do believe he has that kind of attitude.

So what -- what is this -- what -- by saying, you know what, the president is off-limits. Or, you know, Al Franken is off-limits or whatever, what does this mean to us in 20 years? Because I think we're here because we said character didn't matter in the '90s.

BILL: Well, look, I know where you're coming from on this, but I think you've got to be careful. I know of a tape, an audiotape that I hope becomes public very soon, because there are at least three crimes on the tape that an anti-Trump person is offering money to someone to allege stuff against Donald Trump. That tape exists. All right?

And you got to be careful about this kind of stuff. Because there is very -- there are black ops, what they call in the CIA, going on, to ruin people that George Soros, Media Matters, Color of Change don't like. You know that. You know it. Don't discount that. Don't discount it.

GLENN: Well, see, that's why --

BILL: I don't know what Donald Trump did or did not do. I do know the American people elected him. But I know what's coming. I do know what's coming.

GLENN: So that's kind of where I'm at. Is, you know, we will say, you know, I'll give the person in politics the benefit of the doubt because I don't know -- because politics is so slimy, that I don't know what the truth is here.

BILL: That's right. And you can't know the truth. So, therefore, you can't form judgments. You've got to be -- if you're fair-minded, very circumspect on it, and very cautious.

STU: What's the appropriate way to look at these, Bill? Because I have struggled with this. These things come out, and we're forced to try to make without a court case, without a real accusation, without a charge being filed. We have to try to sit here and analyze through the media and random reports.

BILL: Yeah, but you can't because the media will never tell you the truth. And they're going to hang you in the headline, whoever you are. If you think this is going to stop, it's not. Next week, there will be five other people. Then once you get into the campaign season in 2018, almost everybody who runs is going to be slime in some way with this kind of stuff. It's just too easy to do. It's so easy to do.

GLENN: Look, I saw --

BILL: Americans have got to be aware that this thing is pretty much out of control right now.

GLENN: I saw the thing with Garrison Keillor. And if what Garrison Keillor says is true -- and, look, I mean, I think Garrison Keillor is talented.

STU: Ugh. Insufferable.

GLENN: I know. I'm a rare bird on this. I think he's talented. But he stands for almost everything that I stand against.

However, that being said, if what he says is true, it's insane to fire him. Was insanity. Because it's --

BILL: Absolutely. So, I mean, look, I'm not going to get into my situation, but I've told you and I've told everybody in this country, I've mistreated no one. Okay? And that -- there's no deviation from that.

And so, you know, you go on, but am I angry? I'm angry through the roof about this whole injustice in the media.

GLENN: So the question --

BILL: The media drives this stuff. But if there's evidence that you see, like a picture -- Al Franken -- or a police report -- Weinstein -- sure, that evidence has to be taken into account.

But if there isn't, it's just like Garrison Keillor saying I touched somebody on the back and now I lost my job, you know, you got to take that seriously, even if you don't like the guy.

STU: So you said before, Bill, you wouldn't vote for Moore. What was your decision-making process?

BILL: Right. I just don't think the guy is a problem solver. He's a pure ideologue, all right? Who has put forward a platform that I just don't think represents the country. And I don't know what he did or didn't do. I just don't know.

GLENN: So you're not making it on the charges?

BILL: No. But he sputtered around. He sputtered around it. "Sputtered" is a good word.

But when I see Gloria Allred involved in trying to get him, then I go, yeah, okay. Look at this.

STU: Yeah, you roll your eyes.

GLENN: Okay. Bill O'Reilly, thank you very much.

BILL: Can I say one more thing before you guys go to the British woman?

GLENN: Oh, jeez. Yeah, go ahead.

BILL: BillO'Reilly.com has an unbelievable Christmas promotion, and Glenn Beck needs this. If you buy three gift certificates for premium membership, Beck, you get four free books. That's seven gifts. So you can give your gifts to your staff, take care of everybody on BillO'Reilly.com.

GLENN: But there's 12 days of Christmas. There's 12 days of Christmas. It still leaves me wanting the pipers and the maids a milking.

BILL: Well, then do six, six gift certificates at BillO'Reilly.com, and then you'll get eight books. That's 14. Then you've outdone your 12 days of Christmas.

GLENN: I don't know six people that like Bill O'Reilly.

Without civic action, America faces collapse

JEFF KOWALSKY / Contributor | Getty Images

Every vote, jury duty, and act of engagement is civics in action, not theory. The republic survives only when citizens embrace responsibility.

I slept through high school civics class. I memorized the three branches of government, promptly forgot them, and never thought of that word again. Civics seemed abstract, disconnected from real life. And yet, it is critical to maintaining our republic.

Civics is not a class. It is a responsibility. A set of habits, disciplines, and values that make a country possible. Without it, no country survives.

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Civics happens every time you speak freely, worship openly, question your government, serve on a jury, or cast a ballot. It’s not a theory or just another entry in a textbook. It’s action — the acts we perform every day to be a positive force in society.

Many of us recoil at “civic responsibility.” “I pay my taxes. I follow the law. I do my civic duty.” That’s not civics. That’s a scam, in my opinion.

Taking up the torch

The founders knew a republic could never run on autopilot. And yet, that’s exactly what we do now. We assume it will work, then complain when it doesn’t. Meanwhile, the people steering the country are driving it straight into a mountain — and they know it.

Our founders gave us tools: separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism, elections. But they also warned us: It won’t work unless we are educated, engaged, and moral.

Are we educated, engaged, and moral? Most Americans cannot even define a republic, never mind “keep one,” as Benjamin Franklin urged us to do after the Constitutional Convention.

We fought and died for the republic. Gaining it was the easy part. Keeping it is hard. And keeping it is done through civics.

Start small and local

In our homes, civics means teaching our children the Constitution, our history, and that liberty is not license — it is the space to do what is right. In our communities, civics means volunteering, showing up, knowing your sheriff, attending school board meetings, and understanding the laws you live under. When necessary, it means challenging them.

How involved are you in your local community? Most people would admit: not really.

Civics is learned in practice. And it starts small. Be honest in your business dealings. Speak respectfully in disagreement. Vote in every election, not just the presidential ones. Model citizenship for your children. Liberty is passed down by teaching and example.

Samuel Corum / Stringer | Getty Images

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Start with yourself. Study the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and state laws. Study, act, serve, question, and teach. Only then can we hope to save the republic. The next election will not fix us. The nation will rise or fall based on how each of us lives civics every day.

Civics isn’t a class. It’s the way we protect freedom, empower our communities, and pass down liberty to the next generation.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

'Rage against the dying of the light': Charlie Kirk lived that mandate

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Kirk’s tragic death challenges us to rise above fear and anger, to rebuild bridges where others build walls, and to fight for the America he believed in.

I’ve only felt this weight once before. It was 2001, just as my radio show was about to begin. The World Trade Center fell, and I was called to speak immediately. I spent the day and night by my bedside, praying for words that could meet the moment.

Yesterday, I found myself in the same position. September 11, 2025. The assassination of Charlie Kirk. A friend. A warrior for truth.

Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins.

Moments like this make words feel inadequate. Yet sometimes, words from another time speak directly to our own. In 1947, Dylan Thomas, watching his father slip toward death, penned lines that now resonate far beyond his own grief:

Do not go gentle into that good night. / Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Thomas was pleading for his father to resist the impending darkness of death. But those words have become a mandate for all of us: Do not surrender. Do not bow to shadows. Even when the battle feels unwinnable.

Charlie Kirk lived that mandate. He knew the cost of speaking unpopular truths. He knew the fury of those who sought to silence him. And yet he pressed on. In his life, he embodied a defiance rooted not in anger, but in principle.

Picking up his torch

Washington, Jefferson, Adams — our history was started by men who raged against an empire, knowing the gallows might await. Lincoln raged against slavery. Martin Luther King Jr. raged against segregation. Every generation faces a call to resist surrender.

It is our turn. Charlie’s violent death feels like a knockout punch. Yet if his life meant anything, it means this: Silence in the face of darkness is not an option.

He did not go gently. He spoke. He challenged. He stood. And now, the mantle falls to us. To me. To you. To every American.

We cannot drift into the shadows. We cannot sit quietly while freedom fades. This is our moment to rage — not with hatred, not with vengeance, but with courage. Rage against lies, against apathy, against the despair that tells us to do nothing. Because there is always something you can do.

Even small acts — defiance, faith, kindness — are light in the darkness. Reaching out to those who mourn. Speaking truth in a world drowning in deceit. These are the flames that hold back the night. Charlie carried that torch. He laid it down yesterday. It is ours to pick up.

The light may dim, but it always does before dawn. Commit today: I will not sleep as freedom fades. I will not retreat as darkness encroaches. I will not be silent as evil forces claim dominion. I have no king but Christ. And I know whom I serve, as did Charlie.

Two turning points, decades apart

On Wednesday, the world changed again. Two tragedies, separated by decades, bound by the same question: Who are we? Is this worth saving? What kind of people will we choose to be?

Imagine a world where more of us choose to be peacemakers. Not passive, not silent, but builders of bridges where others erect walls. Respect and listening transform even the bitterest of foes. Charlie Kirk embodied this principle.

He did not strike the weak; he challenged the powerful. He reached across divides of politics, culture, and faith. He changed hearts. He sparked healing. And healing is what our nation needs.

At the center of all this is one truth: Every person is a child of God, deserving of dignity. Change will not happen in Washington or on social media. It begins at home, where loneliness and isolation threaten our souls. Family is the antidote. Imperfect, yes — but still the strongest source of stability and meaning.

Mark Wilson / Staff | Getty Images

Forgiveness, fidelity, faithfulness, and honor are not dusty words. They are the foundation of civilization. Strong families produce strong citizens. And today, Charlie’s family mourns. They must become our family too. We must stand as guardians of his legacy, shining examples of the courage he lived by.

A time for courage

I knew Charlie. I know how he would want us to respond: Multiply his courage. Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins. Out of darkness, great and glorious things will sprout — but we must be worthy of them.

Charlie Kirk lived defiantly. He stood in truth. He changed the world. And now, his torch is in our hands. Rage, not in violence, but in unwavering pursuit of truth and goodness. Rage against the dying of the light.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Glenn Beck is once again calling on his loyal listeners and viewers to come together and channel the same unity and purpose that defined the historic 9-12 Project. That movement, born in the wake of national challenges, brought millions together to revive core values of faith, hope, and charity.

Glenn created the original 9-12 Project in early 2009 to bring Americans back to where they were in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. In those moments, we weren't Democrats and Republicans, conservative or liberal, Red States or Blue States, we were united as one, as America. The original 9-12 Project aimed to root America back in the founding principles of this country that united us during those darkest of days.

This new initiative draws directly from that legacy, focusing on supporting the family of Charlie Kirk in these dark days following his tragic murder.

The revival of the 9-12 Project aims to secure the long-term well-being of Charlie Kirk's wife and children. All donations will go straight to meeting their immediate and future needs. If the family deems the funds surplus to their requirements, Charlie's wife has the option to redirect them toward the vital work of Turning Point USA.

This campaign is more than just financial support—it's a profound gesture of appreciation for Kirk's tireless dedication to the cause of liberty. It embodies the unbreakable bond of our community, proving that when we stand united, we can make a real difference.
Glenn Beck invites you to join this effort. Show your solidarity by donating today and honoring Charlie Kirk and his family in this meaningful way.

You can learn more about the 9-12 Project and donate HERE

The critical difference: Rights from the Creator, not the state

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When politicians claim that rights flow from the state, they pave the way for tyranny.

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) recently delivered a lecture that should alarm every American. During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, he argued that believing rights come from a Creator rather than government is the same belief held by Iran’s theocratic regime.

Kaine claimed that the principles underpinning Iran’s dictatorship — the same regime that persecutes Sunnis, Jews, Christians, and other minorities — are also the principles enshrined in our Declaration of Independence.

In America, rights belong to the individual. In Iran, rights serve the state.

That claim exposes either a profound misunderstanding or a reckless indifference to America’s founding. Rights do not come from government. They never did. They come from the Creator, as the Declaration of Independence proclaims without qualification. Jefferson didn’t hedge. Rights are unalienable — built into every human being.

This foundation stands worlds apart from Iran. Its leaders invoke God but grant rights only through clerical interpretation. Freedom of speech, property, religion, and even life itself depend on obedience to the ruling clerics. Step outside their dictates, and those so-called rights vanish.

This is not a trivial difference. It is the essence of liberty versus tyranny. In America, rights belong to the individual. The government’s role is to secure them, not define them. In Iran, rights serve the state. They empower rulers, not the people.

From Muhammad to Marx

The same confusion applies to Marxist regimes. The Soviet Union’s constitutions promised citizens rights — work, health care, education, freedom of speech — but always with fine print. If you spoke out against the party, those rights evaporated. If you practiced religion openly, you were charged with treason. Property and voting were allowed as long as they were filtered and controlled by the state — and could be revoked at any moment. Rights were conditional, granted through obedience.

Kaine seems to be advocating a similar approach — whether consciously or not. By claiming that natural rights are somehow comparable to sharia law, he ignores the critical distinction between inherent rights and conditional privileges. He dismisses the very principle that made America a beacon of freedom.

Jefferson and the founders understood this clearly. “We are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights,” they wrote. No government, no cleric, no king can revoke them. They exist by virtue of humanity itself. The government exists to protect them, not ration them.

This is not a theological quibble. It is the entire basis of our government. Confuse the source of rights, and tyranny hides behind piety or ideology. The people are disempowered. Clerics, bureaucrats, or politicians become arbiters of what rights citizens may enjoy.

John Greim / Contributor | Getty Images

Gifts from God, not the state

Kaine’s statement reflects either a profound ignorance of this principle or an ideological bias that favors state power over individual liberty. Either way, Americans must recognize the danger. Understanding the origin of rights is not academic — it is the difference between freedom and submission, between the American experiment and theocratic or totalitarian rule.

Rights are not gifts from the state. They are gifts from God, secured by reason, protected by law, and defended by the people. Every American must understand this. Because when rights come from government instead of the Creator, freedom disappears.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.