'Reagan' provides a 'powerful' reminder about American safety: Grover Norquist

LARRY: WE'RE GOING TO GO AROUND THE TABLE. MY FIRST DAY BACK, THIS HAS BEEN FUN. GROVER NORQUIST FOUNDER FOR AMERICANS FOR TAX REFORM AND COME ON RICH LOWRY, THE EDITOR OF NATIONAL REVIEW. PUT IT ALL UP THERE, AND WE HAVE THE GREAT HUGH HEWITT, WITH THE MOST LISTENED TO RADIO SHOW IN THE HISTORY OF RADIO SHOWS, HALL OF FAME NO QUESTION ABOUT IT. GROVER, YOU SAW, I WANT TO START WITH THE MOVIE "REAGAN." MY WIFE AND I WENT AND SAW IT FRIDAY NIGHT. RICH LOWRY IS ON SET HE SAID HE JUST SAW IT THIS AFTERNOON. I THOUGHT IT WAS VERY GOOD, VERY ACCURATE, VERY REAGAN. GROVER, THE LIBERAL CRITICS HATE IT. BUT ACTUALLY, IT'S BEATING EVERYTHING ON THE BOX OFFICE. WE WIN, THEY LOSE. THAT WAS THE KEY. TEAR DOWN THIS WALL, YOU TAKE IT FROM THERE, GROVER NORQUIST. >> MARK JOSEPH, THE PRODUCER, PUT TOGETHER A HOLLYWOOD QUALITY MOVIE ABOUT REAGAN'S STORY, AND IT WAS BASED ON A BOOK ABOUT REAGAN'S VICTORY IN THE COLD WAR BOTH ECONOMIC AND AMERICAN MILITARY. IT'S A POWERFUL REMINDER OF WHAT SERIOUS ECONOMIC GROWTH AND BEING SERIOUS ABOUT YOUR ENEMIES MAKES ALL AMERICANS SAFER. LARRY: THAT'S JUST GREAT, BECAUSE I'M SPEAKING TO RICH AND I WANT TO GET TO YOU IN A MINUTE. I MEAN, BASICALLY, IT'S THE CRUSADER, THROUGH THIS JOHN VOYGT CHARACTER OF THE KGB, BUT ULTIMATELY ABOUT HIS VICTORY AGAINST COMMUNISM BUT THERE'S ONE COOL SCENE A CABINET MEETING IN 1981 AND 198S AND REAGAN TURNS TO STOCKMAN, AND YOU SEE THIS GUY AND JUST STARTS RIPPING HIM TO PIECES. NOW, I CAN TELL YOU, AS SOMEONE THAT WAS THERE, THIS WAS HISTORICALLY CORRECT. >> YEAH, IT'S THE KEY PART WE SOMETIMES FORGET. HE IS OPTIMISTIC AND UPLIFTING, BUT YOU PUSHED HIM ON SOMETHING CLOSE TO HIS CORE. HE COULD PUSHBACK HARD, AND THAT SCENE GETS TO IT ON ECONOMIC POLICY AND THERE'S A WAR WITHIN THE ADMINISTRATION AS THERE USUALLY IS AND MOST ADMINISTRATIONS, BUT THEN ALSO, HE BROUGHT THIS JUST ADIMATE TIME THAT WE WERE GOING TO WIN THE COLD WAR. LARRY: YES. >> AND HE WAS WILLING TO NEGOTIATE. HE WAS WILLING TO BE AT THE TABLE SOMETIMES AND NOT BE AT THE TABLE OTHERS BUT HE'S ONE OF THE GREATEST STATESMEN IN AMERICAN HISTORY WINNING THIS TITANIC STRUGGLE. LARRY: HUGH HEWITT, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE SEEN IT. >> I HAVE NOT YET SEEN IT. THIS WEEK. LARRY: WE CAN'T RUIN IT BECAUSE YOU ALREADY KNOW THE STORY, BUT THERE'S A GREAT SECTION, HOW REAGAN CLEANED THE COMMUNIST OUT OF THE SCREEN ACTOR'S GUILD. HE WAS PRESIDENT FIVE TIMES. JACK WARNER WAS HELPING HIM ALONG BUT REAGAN WAS RELENTLESS. HE WENT TO CONGRESS. I MEAN, THAT'S THE KIND OF BACKBONE THAT WE NEEDED TO. >> I HOPE THEY ARE SHOWING HIM THIS MOVIE, AND EVERY TIME I DRIVE INTO REAGAN AIRPORT IN D.C., I LOOK AT THE STATUE OF RONALD REAGAN AND I THANK GROVER NORQUIST FOR GETTING THAT STATUE PUT UP THERE AND I THINK ABOUT HIS DEPLOYMENT OF THE PARISHING TUNES AND THE CRUISE MISSILES TO EUROPE AND A DOMESTIC UPRISING, AS SERIOUS AS WE HAVE SEEN, FACE DOWN AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN PROTESTERS AND THE FIRST STEP, AND OTHER NONE WAS WALKING OUT OF THE DOOR. I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE MOVIE BUT WE HAD HOUSE GUESTS SO IT'S MID-WEEK FOR US. LARRY: PLENTY OF TIME. I HOPE WE HAVE SOMETHING UP ON THE FULL SCREEN THAT SHOWS THE PICTURE AND PICTURE OF DENNIS QUAID IN A COWBOY HAT WITH THE LOGO "REAGAN." THERE IT IS. YOU GET USED TO DENNIS QUAID AS REAGAN. IT'S A HARD THING TO DO AND MY FRIEND JOHN VOYGT DID A GREAT JOB. NOW GROVER NORQUIST YOU DON'T NEED A KGB AGENT. DIVIDENDS TAXES ARE GOING TO 44.6% TO IF YOU INVEST IN A CORPORATION, THEY ARE GOING TO JACK UP THE CORPORATE TAX. WE'LL HAVE A HIGHER CORPORATE TAX THAN CHINA, FOR HEAVEN SAKES, A LOT HIGHER AND INVESTORS WIND UP PAYING ABOUT 60% ON THE SO-CALLED EARNINGS OF A COMPANY. WELL WHAT'S THIS GOING TO DO TO THE ECONOMY, GROVER NORQUIST? >> WELL THE DEMOCRATS, BIDEN AND KAMALA HARRIS AND THE LEGISLATORS HAVE SAID THEY WANT TO TAKE THE CAPITAL GAINS TAX AFTER 44.6%, ADD THE STATE CAPITAL GAINS TAX AND YOU'RE AT 50 AND 60% IN SOME STATES. THE CORPORATE INCOME TAX INCREASE, THEY WANT TO TAKE UP TO 28% FEDERAL, HIGHER THAN CHINAS. SO WE'RE SUPPOSED TO COMPETE WITH CHINA WHILE WE'RE DAMAGED BY OUR OWN GOVERNMENT WITH HIGHER TAXES. ADD STATE TAXES, THE CORPORATE INCOME TAX, AND PENNSYLVANIA. IS IT 34%? WAY HIGHER THAN CHINA. WHY DO THAT TO VOTERS AND WORKERS IN PENNSYLVANIA AND IN MICHIGAN? UP TO 34% AND OUR FRIENDS IN WISCONSIN, 33% TREMENDOUS DAMAGE. LARRY: RIGHT IT'S UNBELIEVABLE AND BY THE WAY JUST AS A REMINDER TALKING ABOUT REAGAN. REAGAN CUT THE TOP TAX RATE TO 28%. OKAY? HE DID IT IN TWO TRANCHES. 28% AND DURING THE COURSE OF REAGAN'S BOOM, FROM LATE 82 THROUGH 89, EARLY 90 THE AMERICAN ECONOMY GREW AT 5.5% AFTER INFLATION FOR ALL THOSE YEARS. RICH LOWRY, YOU THINK THE COMING DEBATE, I'M SWITCHING GEARS LIKE CRAZY HERE. I LOVED YOUR PIECE IN THE NEW YORK TIMES. YOU THINK THE COMING DEBATE, TRUMP VS. HARRIS, HARRIS GOT CHARACTER PROBLEM. YOU FLIP FLOP ALL AROUND YOU HAVE A CHARACTER PROBLEM. I THINK PRESIDENTIAL RACES ARE ALWAYS ABOUT CHARACTER, SUIT ABILITY FOR THE OFFICE SO YES TRUMP NEEDS TO MAKE THE POLICY CASE AGAINST HER ABSOLUTELY BUT ALL NEEDS TO CONNECT TO A DEEPER CASE SHE'S WEAK, SHE'S PHONY, SHE DOESN'T REALLY CARE. THAT'S WHAT DEMOCRATS DID TO MITT ROMNEY IN 2012. HIT HIM HARD ON POLICY BUT WENT TO THE CASE HE'S A CAPITALIST OUT OF TOUCH AND DOESN'T CARE ABOUT PEOPLE SO HE WAS DISQUALIFIED SO PRESIDENTIAL RACES ARE WON BY DISQUALIFYING THE OTHER PERSON AND TRUMP NEEDS TO BE FOCUSED ON DOING TO HER. LARRY: HUGH LEWITT, WE BROKE A LITTLE NEWS BECAUSE MR. TRUMP WILL SPEAK THURSDAY BEFORE THE NEW YORK ECONOMIC CLUB. I EXPECT THAT TO BE HARD-HITTING AND IT BRIDGES TO THE DEBATE, BUT FEEL FREE. GIVE THEM SOME DEBATE ADVISOR SOME NEW YORK ECONOMIC CLUB ADVICE MR. HEWITT. >> LET ME FOCUS ON THE DEBATE BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW ECONOMICS THE WAY YOU DO OR FOREIGN AFFAIRS BUT I DO KNOW HOW TO DO DEBATES AND WHAT THE FORMER PRESIDENT OUGHT TO DO IS NOTHING WHEN SHE IS SPEAKING. SHE CAN NOT COMMUNICATE. A GREAT COMMUNICATOR HAD THAT GIFT. NOT BEEN LUCKY TO WORK FOR NIXON, REAGAN, INTERVIEWED DONALD TRUMP A LOT OF TIMES. EACH OF THOSE MEN HAD DIFFERENT SKILLSETS BUT THEY WERE ALL HAD A SKILLSET. I DON'T THINK VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS HAS THE MINIMUM SKILLSET NECESSARY TO BE PRESIDENT AND SHE WILL DEMONSTRATE THAT IF HE SIMPLY STANDS THERE AND LETS HER BABBLE FOR 90 SECONDS OR CUT IT OFF AND DOES NOT RISE TO ANY BAIT, NO MATTER HOW JUICY IT LOOK, NO MATTER HOW MUCH HE IS TEMPTED. SAY NOTHING ABOUT HER. SHE CAN NOT WIN ON HER OWN SPEECH. IN FACT I SHE SHE'S PEAKED. LARRY: I AGREE WITH YOU. I AGREE WITH YOU. OFF THE RECORD A LOT OF US HAVE SAID THAT TO HIM AND I THINK HE'S IMPROVED HIS GAME. I TOTALLY AGREE. BY THE WAY, SORRY WE DON'T HAVE THE CLIP AGAIN RONALD REAGAN WHO WAS A FABULOUS DEBATER. I WILL NOT MAKE MY OPPONENTS RELATIVE YOUTH AND INEXPERIENCE A POLITICAL ISSUE IN THIS RACE WITH WALTER MONDALE. THE CROWD ERUPTED IN LATTER AND THAT WAS IT. THANK YOU EVER SO MUCH, HUGH HEWITT AND RICH LOWRY AND GROVER NORQUIST, IT WAS ALL OF