Guests: Carl Cameron, Tammy Bruce & John Rowley

Eric began Monday's program with a focus on Iowa, where new polls show Ron Paul with a slight lead over Mitt Romney. Fox News correspondent Carl Cameron reported the latest from the Hawkeye State. "The candidates are arriving here today," Cameron said, "for the last sprint that will take us through the caucuses on January 3rd. The thing to remember is that a record turnout would be about 120,000 caucus-goers, so in a multi-candidate field that means one of them could win with as few as 40,000 votes. Every poll suggests that more than half of the likely caucus-goers have not made up their minds, so the last-minute quest to find those needles in the Iowa haystacks will be ferocious." Cameron added some specifics regarding individual candidates. "Rick Santorum has a little bit of buzz because he's gotten the support of some prominent evangelical conservatives; Ron Paul has surged to the top of the polls, but whether he has the organization to sustain that is questionable; Mitt Romney has been steady in the low-20's for the duration of these polls and he could potentially pull off a win here; Newt Gingrich seems to be rapidly plummeting to a third-place position and he doesn't have much organization."

Eric asked Democratic strategist John Rowley and conservative radio talk show host Tammy Bruce about Newt Gingrich's decline after being pummeled by negative ads and news reports. "We want to see these people react under some pressure," Bruce said, "and what Newt Gingrich is experiencing with the Republicans and the media is nothing compared to what will happen in the general election with Obama and his gang. So this is a really good test - Americans love underdogs and if he really wants this he can make it work." Rowley pointed out that Ron Paul has also been the target of harsh scrutiny. "I would imagine that a lot of establishment Republicans around the country are weeping and gnashing their teeth at the specter of Ron Paul potentially winning Iowa and maybe becoming the Republican nominee."

Guests: Dick Harpootlian & Kellyanne Conway

President Obama and other Democrats continue to rail against wealthy Americans. Eric analyzed that strategy with Republican pollster Kellyanne Conway and Democratic strategist Dick Harpootlian. "Two out of three Americans believe the wealthiest ought to pay their fair share," Harpootlian declared. "Over the last three years people who make over a million dollars a year wrote off $22 billion in gambling losses and we all understand that's not equitable. The question is, is there a patriotic duty to support this country?" Conway accused the President's team of dividing Americans against one another. "This is a very easy and cheap way to score political points, but it's a terribly corrosive way to govern the country. We deserve a President who wants to represent all people, but this man has gone from 'hope and change' to consultant-fed sound bites. He's in full reelection mode and it's not going to work." Eric reported that "the top 5% pay 40% of all taxes and the top 10% pay somewhere around 70% of all taxes."

Guest: Mitt Romney

Eric introduced an encore of Bill's recent interview with GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney. Here are a few excerpts:

O'Reilly: What is the biggest thing you have been wrong about?
Romney: It's probably about the issue of abortion and life. I have always opposed abortion, but when I ran for office I thought, well, I can understand the idea of leaving the law the way it is. The Supreme Court has made its decision, and I'm just going to say I support the law. That was somewhat naïve because when I became governor a piece of legislation came to my desk that would redefine when life begins and authorize the creation of embryos for the purpose of experimentation. So I said, look, I am pro-life and I will defend the sanctity of life. I vetoed that bill ... When I was faced with signing a piece of legislation that would authorize the creation and killing of human life I could not possibly go along with that.
O'Reilly: Do you consider yourself a conservative thinker?
Romney: I am conservative and I've become more conservative over time.
O'Reilly: 'Romneycare' is not a conservative thing - the thought behind it is that government should get involved with people's health care. That's not a conservative position.
Romney: Actually, the idea came from conservatives at the Heritage Foundation and Newt Gingrich. The idea was that people who don't have insurance are given free care by government. I said, gosh, this is a problem - the premise that government owes these people doesn't make sense, personal responsibility makes more sense. People should take responsibility for getting their own insurance rather than showing up at the emergency room and expecting government to pay for them.
O'Reilly: A lot of conservatives don't trust you, they think you're a phony and you're just doing this to win the primary, then you'll go back to being that Massachusetts guy.
Romney: I had the same posture and the same views in my last presidential campaign four years ago and you can go back and look at my record as governor. I cut taxes 19 times, balanced the budget, and insisted on English immersion in our schools.

The conversation turned to Mitt Romney's assessment of President Obama.

O'Reilly: What's the matter with President Obama's leadership? What is he missing in the leadership component?
Romney: One, he's never been a leader before ... It's wonderful to be an author and editor, but I'm talking about leading an organization, growing something, hiring and firing people. He never had that experience and he never recognized that part of leadership is finding friends and allies across the aisle.
O'Reilly: Is he a socialist?
Romney: I prefer to use the term that he's just over his head.
O'Reilly: But you have to look at his economic plan, which is top down federal leadership. People say, listen, the guy's a socialist and he's going to wage class warfare against you if you get the nomination. Is he a socialist?
Romney: I consider him a big government liberal Democrat who thinks Europe got it right and we got it wrong. I think Europe got it wrong and I'll battle him on that day in and day out. I'm probably not going to be calling him names, I'll be calling him a failure.
O'Reilly: What happens if he wins again?
Romney: I think we hit a Greece-like wall. Before the end of his second term there's a very high risk that we would hit a financial crisis. It's also very possible that we would continue to see very high levels of unemployment. You would see industry and entrepreneurs decide to take their investment dollars to other nations. This President has put together the most anti-investment, anti-growth, and anti-job policies I've seen since Jimmy Carter.

Guests: Joey Jackson & Anita Kay

The Justice Department is vehemently opposed to state laws that would require voters to show photo IDs. Eric asked attorneys Anita Kay and Joey Jackson to expound on the issue. "There's all this talk about voter registration fraud," Jackson complained, "but point out the fraud! We need to make it easier for people to vote, not harder. These laws are meant to insure that Mr. Obama does not get reelected." Kay put forth a far different opinion. "This is intended to allow the right person to vote, and what is the big deal about having a photo ID? I don't know how a citizen in this country can get through life without a photo ID." The lawyers moved to former Senator John Edwards, who claims he has a "medical condition" and wants a delay in his trial on campaign finance abuse. "He'll be able to do it," Jackson predicted. "He's facing six felony counts and the consequences are severe. Give him some time and let him prepare adequately."

Guests: Len Berman & Kelly Saindon

Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow, a devout Christian, has been criticized for his open displays of faith. Bill recently spoke with one of those critics, attorney Kelly Saindon. "Excessive celebration is not allowed," Saindon said, "and I don't think he should be wasting people's time advancing his beliefs. He should be focusing on football, which is what he's paid to do." Sports reporter Len Berman pointed out that many other athletes put on far less tasteful displays after making a big play. "I'm not a fan of religion in sports, but I don't have a big problem with this. What's wrong with a guy putting a knee down? I think he's genuine, God bless him." Bill concluded that Tebow isn't imposing his beliefs on others: "His philosophy is to give praise to God for everything that goes well in his life because he believes that his talent was directly given by God. I don't know why anybody would be upset by that."

Monday's Patriot: Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Jerome Simpson, who performed a remarkable full front flip as he leaped over an opposing player and into the end zone.