This is a rush transcript from “Hannity,” August 17, 2009. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
SEAN HANNITY, HOST: Americans around the country have been using the town hall meetings to voice their opposition to the Democrats’ health care bill. Now Katy Abram is just one of those Americans and she joined us right here last week and after she got up and told Senator Arlen Specter just why Americans are so angry, well, it didn’t take long for the liberal attack machine to go into full gear. Now they even took a shot at us for having Katy right here on this program.
Here’s alleged comedian Jon Stewart’s take on that event.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM “THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART”)
JON STEWART, HOST: One woman, one woman in Arlen Specter’s latest death match asked such an emotionally charged questioned she became Sean Hannity’s new Joe the Plumber.
KATY ABRAM, ATTENDED SEN. SPECTER TOWN HALL: This is about the systematic dismantling of this country. You have awakened sleeping giant. We are tired of this. This is why everybody in this room is so ticked off. I don’t want this country turning into Russia, turning into a socialized country.
STEWART: OK. Well, good for you. I think that’s incredibly hyperbolic fear but you got to voice — you got to voice your question in a calm way to your senator. You can’t argue with that.
HANNITY: Katy, were you happy with the answer you got from the senator today?
ABRAM: Honestly, after I asked the question I was so just — I don’t know. I didn’t hear half of what he said to be honest with you.
(LAUGHTER)
STEWART: Great. Welcome to FOX. Can you start on Monday?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANNITY: And that’s not all the left-wing blogosphere went in overdrive accusing Katy of everything from stupidity to racism. Now the blog White Noise Insanity argued, quote, “With a black man in the White House she’s just feeling like the founding fathers would be livid because they wanted white power to the end.”
• Video: Watch Sean’s interview
The Web site Crooks and Liars charged that, quote, “Abram isn’t a professional pundit, but when questioned it became clear that she is the poster child for the undereducated, under-informed mob that make up the right-wing town hall protesters.”
Lovely. I guess the tone in Washington really changed.
And joining me now to respond to all of this is Katy herself. Katy, you’re laughing. Now, there has been an onslaught. And this is why I wanted to have you back. You have been under fire from the second you took on Senator Specter. And it’s been personal. How bad has it gotten for you?
ABRAM: It’s been interesting. The people that have supported me far outweigh those who have been sending hate mail and everything. I just have to laugh seeing this because I haven’t seen this. I’ve been trying to kind of shield myself from it.
HANNITY: Which is smart, by the way.
ABRAM: Yes. Definitely. I’m like, OK. I’m undereducated and all these awful things. But you know what, like, I’ve had so many people say to me, you know, you need to keep saying what you’ve been saying. You’re speaking for me, you’re speaking from your heart.
The reason a lot of people don’t say anything is because they’re terrified this thing is going to happen to them. And honestly, bring it on. I don’t care because this is too important. This is bigger than me. This is bigger than my family. This is our country.
HANNITY: You know what’s amazing, though, I mean, one person, and I was very impressed when you got up there and you said I’m a stay-at-home mom. I have not been politically active my entire life. But the fact is you went there, it’s not an easy thing to do to speak in public. Were you nervous?
ABRAM: Yes.
HANNITY: And so when you said to me, for example, Jon Stewart is making fun, part of it is because you’re in the moment there and it’s sort of consumes you, no?
ABRAM: Well, that’s the thing. You know, here I am and Arlen Specter is right next to me, you see him on TV all the time. I’ve never met the man before and I’ve been thinking about this for, I guess, about two weeks maybe since I’ve gotten the invitation in the mail. And for whatever reason knowing that I was going to be able to hopefully go ask him a question just kept me up at night literally, like if I get the chance, what am I going to ask him, you know?
And then here’s the opportunity to do it and I got, you know, caught up in my question and then people were starting to cheer inside the room. I didn’t expect that. I was just going to ask my question, I was going go home, I was going to paint my living room and do other things.
HANNITY: And raise my kids.
ABRAM: And raise my kids.
HANNITY: Yes.
ABRAM: And, you know, it’s like I’ve been kind of thrown into this national spotlight and a few times I’ve questioned myself of whether or not to go through with this but my kids came home from them being away for a week and I hugged them and I was like, this is the reason why I have to do this. I don’t want them to have — to be paying for this for years and years. It’s just not worth it.
HANNITY: What do you make of — now we’ve watched all the politicians attacked, we see how Governor Palin is treated. We saw how George W. Bush is treated. This is the first time, though, American citizens are being attacked by a party.
Are you part of a mob? Are you a political terrorist? Do you like Tim McVeigh?
ABRAM: No.
HANNITY: Any sympathies towards the Nazi Party?
ABRAM: No. No.
HANNITY: No racist views in your life?
ABRAM: No.
HANNITY: No. What do you think when prominent Democrats have been making these charges?
ABRAM: I think it’s ridiculous. I’ve heard Nancy Pelosi saying about we’re a mob and swastikas and all that stuff. I’m sorry. I’m a stay-at- home mom. I take care of my kids. I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing.
And you’ve got these people that are in charge of the country calling the people of this country awful names.
HANNITY: Yes.
ABRAM: Awful names. I mean my original question to Arlen Specter was going to be, I want you to denounce what Nancy Pelosi has said about the people in this country. It’s ridiculous.
HANNITY: Yes.
ABRAM: It’s ridiculous.
HANNITY: As you, for example, we’re trying to spend a lot of time on this program to inform the American people. You’re dead on. There’s no hyperbolae here. This is socialism. The government is taking over our banks. The government is attempting to take over health care. Our financial institutions, they’re dictating pay and they’re spending worse than drunken sailors.
ABRAM: Yes.
HANNITY: So you’re seeing this all going on, tell me from your — you know, your heart and your perspective, you know, what you think — why do you think the country is heading down the wrong road?
ABRAM: I think the problem is this, Benjamin Franklin had said that compassion can be counterproductive. And I’m a compassionate person. You know, we give money to different charities, I volunteer at church, and what can happen is compassion — well, he said that compassion that allows a drunk to increase his drunkenness is counterproductive.
Compassion that allows weakness and dependence is counterproductive. And all these things that the government has been doing over the years, completely counterproductive. And it’s taking the drive out of people. I mean, if you have two hotdog stands, like my friend Karen told me this, she said if you have two hotdog stands, you got a $2 hotdog over here and a free hotdog over here, which line are you going to go to? I’m going to the free hotdog line.
HANNITY: I’m going to the $2 hotdog one so I don’t have to wait on line. That’s where I’m going.
(LAUGHTER)
ABRAM: But it’s easy and I don’t blame the American people for, you know, that take it — that use these programs because they’re there but when another one is implemented, once the government puts their fingers in everything, you can’t take that out.
HANNITY: Katie, I want to tell you, I think the reason you’ve been under fire is because what you said to Arlen Specter resonated and it was very effective. So congratulations.
ABRAM: Thank you.
HANNITY: Welcome, baptism by fire, welcome to the public arena and we appreciate you being here. Thanks for coming back.
ABRAM: Thanks for having me.
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