i'm jamie colby for "strange inheritance." thanks so much for watching, and remember -- you can't take it with you. charles: at home, i appreciate you watching, now here is lou dobbs. lou: president-elect makes it clear his foreign policy focus is reducing russia's nuclear weapons and threats. >> if putin likes donald trump, guess what that is called an asset. lou: mr. trump proposing a withdrawal of sanctions against russia in exchange for a nuclear weapons reduction deal, pete hook city said that mr. trump is showing true leadership, he is joining us. also, while our troops take up positions in poland, russians are howling about surprise arrival of 300 u.s. marines in norway.

those marines are training and helping reenforce natoy northern most border with russia, we'll have details. and while there may be a lot fewer democrats as the trump inaugural this friday, there will certainly be more security than ever before. lou: good evening, president-elect trump firing back at outgoing cia director john brennan after presen -- brennan's interview on fac fox news sunday. >> mr. trump has to understand that absolving russia of various actions that it has taken in past number of years is a road he i think needs to be very careful about. moving down. lou: trump took aim at that patronizing brennan and obama

administration's failed foreign policy, saying outgoing cia chief brennan blasts president-elect trump on russia threat does not fully understand. oh, really? could not do much worse, just look at syria, red line, crimea, ukraine, and the build up of russian nukes, not good. was this the leaker of fake news? we'll take that up tonight. and joining me now, former michigan congressman chairman of house, intelligence committee, great to have you with us this something to watch, cia director about to leave office, talking in such a condescending and e insulting tone as if he knew what he was doing throughou throughout his term as leader of cia, which he did not. >> you are right, lou.

mike pompeo made this clear, he will set aside his partisan political hat and focus on what cia mission. is to inform policymakers, republicans and democrats so they can make decisions, john brennan's behavior, demeans the office of the director of the central intelligence agency. he needs to be providing analysis of more e foreign leaders and foreign objectives and motives, not providing to american people, his analysis, he is speaking for the intelligence community, his analysis of our president-elect. total uncalled for. lou: uncalled for and absurd coming from a man who is done everything including screw up vacant lots as head of the cia.

i mean, if he had some sort of extraordinary record but it is not respectable. it is -- >> astonishing. a failed record under john brennan, cia is a can be a phenomenal organization with great people at grassroot level, under his leadership, itbecame politicizes, they were wrong on russia, on syria and iran. lou: a very short list to find out what they are right about. >> right. u: horribling turn to president-elect. he is making it clear, he means to press ahead, with the prospect of a one-china policy revision. hmeans to press ahead with arms redirection agreements with russia if that this be negotiated and a intelligent and smart way if he puts it not like deals we're used to over past 8 years.

i really, respect about what donald trump is doing, is every motion that he is making, every initiative he is taking, is you know which may be met by some criticism, from the howling left wing media, the reality is there is great purpose and point to it, it is in and point of fact, in pursuit of a policy. >> it, other thing that really great here, is he is people in house and senate who'll pick up the baton and run with it donald trump set the vision they will rebuild our military, now senator john mccain, putting out an ambitious plan to do that donald trump is said i'm going to repeal and replace obamacare, rand paul, coming out over weekend, with a plan that do that. and so, the -- that is what a leader does, set the vision to

where we need to go, what he wants to accomplish, and then inspire people that are following him, to pick up the baton, and actually put in place the policies that make it happen. lou: he did something that i think, is now, expected of him, there was in midst of all of the thoughtful policy initiatives, he has described and took here, he also had a thinly valued suggestion for paul ryan for leadership of both senate and the house. which he addressed the issue of the contemp contempt rainous -- coni saying let's not get confused about the agenda and don't try to slowdown the president-elect's agenda, saying it straight forward, he made it clear, ryan talks about universal, if

you will, access to health care insurance, donald trump is talking about everyone, having insurance, and it is quite a different statement, quite a different perspective, and pursuit, what do you think the result will be? >> think it will be much closer to what donald trump wants. you know they have to work through details and differences, but you know donald trump has the major mega-phone, he is speaking for i think the american people. you know, he is being aggressive, he is going to want to get these things done, and you know, if the house or senate start moving in a very different direction, he will got on his twitter, have a press conference, go to a rally or whatever, he will i think he will have a lot of clout with congress. to get them to do what he wants them to do.

lou: right, and you know, that winning thing. that he started to talk about from the outset, congress seems to like that winning thing. that is a powerful if you will, incentive to realign their perspectives with his. pete hoekstra thank you. >> than thank you, lou. lou: it is 4 days until donald trump will be inaugurated. homeland security secretary, johnson said they know of no credible threat targeting the inauguration ceremony and activity, law enforcement officials are taking special precautions as you would expect, catherine herridge with our report. >> neutrons we found in nuclear weapons. >> responsibility of bomb technicians during inauguration, are to identify anything that may be antic

closexplosive threat. >> this will filler out. reporter: fox news went inside fbi operation center in washington d.c. >> on inauguration day, every seat in here will be filled, the room will be full of activity. reporter: this is bureau's nerve center where focus is counterterrorism. >> we have shifted away from large overseas directed more complex type of terrorist attack, to the idea of the lone wolf. reporter: priority, moving intelligence on a second by second basis. it is led by secret service. >> a even a utility problem, lights go out, in one of the ballrooms for example, everyone gets word of that immediately. and we know who is going to respond to that. >> we'll have fbi

representatives in their command post, we can get out in front of things quickly so they don't mushroom. reporter: as scaffolding goes up, it is checked and double checked more than 28,000 security officials are protecting 100 square blocks from capitol to white house. 5,000 national guard troops on duty with 3,000 police officers. how much do you rely on this. >> >> very heavily.. reporter: fbi will use gps technology to map the location of agents, this monitor provides a bird's-eye view of the mall, drones are banned in d.c. air space. >> we do maintain capability to defect and defeat devices of that type. reporter: homeland security said there is no specific or credible threat, fbi and secret service, told fox news they are consa constantly

reevaluating intelligence. lou: we'll come to you live from our nation's capitol beginning thursday evening for all of the inauguration festivities, coverage of "lou dobbs tonight" begins at 7 p.m. eastern, we'll becoming right back here tonight, with much more stay with us. >> president-elect trump slamming german chancellor merkel's catastrophic open border policy. >> you see the problem that germany is having, i used to think that merkel is good, i think what is i happening in germany is horrendous. horrendo. lou: how many more deadly attacks will it take before germany tigh tightening its borders and protects its people. >> clinton cartel money

lou: fox news learned that clinton global initiative, is shutting down terminating 2 dozen employees, after the clinton loss in november, and

plagued by e-mail scandal, donations have started to dry up worldwide. the clinton global initiative known for annual conference of world leaders and hollywood elite, its doors we're told, will close to april 15. tax day. is there some since of humor about that? i don't know. or is the least irony. joining me now, michelle the host of michelle inves investigates on crtv.com. always welcome here, great to see you. >> thank you for having me back. lou: turn to what we knew would happen. without the influe influence on drive location, there is very little for clinton initiative to do, sudden there? >> no, these couple of dozen employees that were left were twiddle their thumbs because,

when there is no influence to peddle access for to know ors to gain there is nothing. my caveat is that these people never go away just likeliest win operation akorn there is a way they sneak back, they have new names with same old fashions, but there is a longer context, in why they are should the us down now, the two entities, clinton foundation, and global are now under investigation in the world, many governments that forked millions of dollars into their coffers, there are people, and officials say in germany, norway and new zealand that are now poking around, in criminal and financial investigations into them.

lou: with that going on, it looks like 2017 will be year of the investigation. >> yes. lou: there are so many -- so much about so many of these scandals that we yet don't know. it is going to be an interesting balancing act on what president-elect decides will go forward, and what will be, if you will consigned to dust bin as history. one thing we do know, angela merck sel merkel is making choices easy in europe, she has taken it upon herself to become a problem for donald trump and his administration she not unlike john brennan, very pat patronizing tones and terms talking to this president-elect, and his administration, as if they needed very direct and pointed council to get through the

month. these people are becoming just simply pro pos -- preposterous. >> yes, and unhinged. in the case of merkel, not only political suicide but national suicide of the country, if there is one animating principle that donald trump has clearly gotten across, and echoed, a sentiment, that the majority of americans, who supported him and put him in offers, agree up on know, it is that, national sovereignty matters, unfortunately, europe realized that too late. and even merc merkel herself is trying to did a whiplash of a 180 on policies that are causing crime rates to eplode in her country, a rape refugee crisis. that is mind bo boggling and cancerous spread of jihad by

her own hand. >> inviting a million so-called refugees, into her country. without preparation, without a way in should aculture eigh 8 -- ate. and talking to donald trump you have to be careful with this talk about trade. as if -- the rest of the world or donald trump were unaware that there 1/4 trillion dollar trade surplus for germany, which runs a mercantilist economy and has a rounded defact ofacto orbsin organization working for germany and merkel. there is a brazen absurd, sense of entitlement on part of failed leaders in government and europe.

>> these transtationa national elites like though many american elites lack self awareness in grand canyon size amount, the lectures, and arrogance, that you nailed, lou dobbs, among these people, not going to sway donald trump one bit, thank god for that i think his response and his rejoinder to merkel or any other of the clueless european open borders, elites has to behind -- mind your own business. lou: michelle, i will ask you this, i know you are supporting donald trump throughout, did you think at this point, less than 4 days to his inauguration, and taking the oath of office, did you think he would be doing this much and this well. >> i don't think evening hav -- i don't think that i could

have anticipated it, i have to say along my way i have had doubts and questions, i don't agree on everything, but on issues that matter most to me that we've talked about for upwards of 20 years now, immigration and national security and sovereignty, he maintained a laser focus, i have been absolutely pleased with what he has done so far, i hope he maintains that commitment to american sovereignty, and american economy and american workers at every stage of the wage spectrum. lou: it takes a genius of a donald trump, to come up with #american first. incorporated all that. michelle, i keep trying. i appreciate it. >> you keep going, lou. lou: we're getting there. >> we are it will be a fabulous week, as long as i've covered politics, i have never seen anything like this, strap on your seat belts, we're in

for a hell of a ride the next 4 years. >> i am looking forward to it than thank you, michelle. >> take care. lou: michelle malkin . >> president obama transferring 10 more prisoners from gitmo to oh, man in his -- oman in his final days in the white house. the government of oman confirms that move, 45 prisoners remain at guantanamo bay, down from 242 when president obama took office. a few days to go. vote on our poll, do you believe that donald trump is already proven he is a stronger leader than president obama in 8 years? of service? cast your vote on twitter @lou dobbs, we'd like to hear from you, follow me on twitter, and

instagram, on wall street, stocks were closed for martin luther king holiday, and international monetary fund boosting its forecast for u.s. economicki growth. guess why? something to to with donald trump on his proposal on cutting taxes and spending. >> a new study finds 8th wealthiest people have has much wealth as bottom half of poorest globally. the men, most important american, combined net worth, equal to wealth of 3.6 billion people around the world. a reminder to listen to my report three times a day coast-to-coast on the salem radio network. >> up next, president-elect trump promised to make great deals for the american people. >> we're not going to be the stupid people any more, folks.

i have been -- studying some of the deals they are horrible, they are inconceivable. lou: mr. trump is delivering, that is subject of my commentary next. stay with us, we'll be [burke] at farmers, we've seen almost everything, so we know how to cover almost anything. even a rodent ride-along. [dad] alright, buddy, don't forget anything! [kid] i won't, dad... [captain rod] happy tuesday morning! captain rod here. it's pretty hairy out on the interstate.traffic is literally crawling, but there is some movement on the eastside overpass. getting word of another collision. [burke] it happened. december 14th, 2015. and we covered it. talk to farmers. we know a thing or two because we've seen a thing or two. ♪ we are farmers. bum-pa-dum, bum-bum-bum-bum ♪

lou: a few thoughts now on what strong looks and sounds like, what it can all accomplish. president-elect trump doesn't take the oath of office until friday, but he's already outmaneuvering republican and democratic leadership in both the house and the senate, trump telling "the washington post" he's wrapping up an obamacare replacement plan that will include, quote, insurance for everybody. senator rand paul, congressman tom price with their versions of what the president-elect is calling for. trump also saying he will target the pharmaceutical industry over drug prices in which drug companies will be competing if he has his way for government bids for their drugs.

it won't be simple, and it is the right thing to do for health care and pharmaceutical consumers no matter how difficult it turns out to be. all of this as he demands congressional leaders move at his quicker natural pace, not their traditionally glacial pace to repeal and replace obamacare and to do everything else on his agenda. of course, trump outmaneuvered the house earlier this month after he slammed a proposed move to cut the office of congressional ethics. he reasserted rational priorities for the republicans in the house, and that resulted in a reversal by the house republicans. but congress not the only ones being outmaneuvered and being led now by donald trump. the president-elect laying out a specific deal with russia indicating he could lift sanctions if putin agrees and signs on to a nuclear arms reduction agreement. and china could be next. trump says he can't commit to

the one china policy, something beijing says is utterly nonnegotiable. don't look now, but it's being negotiated in public. but beijing will likely find out that they haven't got much choice in the case. we'll see how that works out. but one thing is sure, you know, the previous administration talked about hope and change. donald trump is just about change, and there's a lot of hope in that. he's setting the terms and the conditions when it comes to making deals with world leaders, congress and business. and i believe that's a great thing for all americans and america. and that's what that election was all about, right? our quotation of the evening, this one from coach john wooden, not necessarily about politics or politicians, but it's something i thought you might find interesting, worth considering. talent is god given. be humble. fame is man given. be grateful.

conceit is self-given. be careful. we're coming right back with much more. stay with us. president-elect trump and the left-wing national media were never really meant to get along. >> the corporate media in our country is no longer involved in journalism. i'm not going to give you a question. you are fake news. lou: we'll take up the president-elect's war against fake news with howard kurtz. he joins us next. and this spear fisherman is in hostile territory, and we'll show you his terrifying, up up-close encounter with an apex predator of the sea up next in the video. a lot more liberty mutual stood with me when i was too busy with the kids to get a repair estimate. liberty did what? yeah, with liberty mutual all i needed to do to get an estimate was snap a photo of the damage and voila! voila! (sigh) i wish my insurance company had that...

wait! hold it... hold it boys... there's supposed to be three of you... where's your brother? where's your brother? hey, where's charlie? charlie?! you can leave worry behind when liberty stands with you. liberty stands with you™ liberty mutual insurance

lou: the left-wing national media descending into panic after learning the trump team may limit their west wing access. white house press secretary sean spicer offered some insight about their decision on fox and friends earlier today. >> we're trying to look at ways to increase the accessibility, because there's such a huge demand and excitement to cover our trump administration, that we are looking at those options. there are some logistical hurdles, and be we're trying to walk through the options, the possibilities. lou: and joining me now, host of "media buzz" on the fox news channel, howie kurtz. great to have you with us.

i thought sean did a wonderful job of not even a hint of a smile as he contemplated making -- [laughter] the white house press corps so large it couldn't fit in the west wing. you know, this is,s this is remarkable stuff. how -- should they panic now? >> well, you know, there is another side to this argument. i thought sean, when i interviewed him on sunday, made a very good case for we want to let in talk radio people and bloggers, and the press room is relatively small, and we need a bigger space. but, you know, the press corps there, including fox news, radio reporters, wire service reporters, can do their job better if they have that prime real estate because they have access to the press staff, they see important people coming and going -- lou: can i raise my hand just a bit? >> yes. lou: we just witnessed the press take a complete pass over eight years on barack obama. they've had proximity and every opportunity. they did not challenge, they did not probe, they did not reveal much of anything from what was supposed to be, said the president, the most open and

transparent administration in history. good lord, howie, what did i miss there? >> i'm not going to paint it with quite so broad a brush, lou. there was some good reporting -- lou: i didn't say there wasn't good reporting. >> right, yeah. lou: but they sure didn't scrutinize this administration, they did -- they gave this president a pass, for crying out loud. i mean -- >> well, most -- lou: we've got to be honest about that, come on. >> most white house reporters are not the ones doing the investigative digging. they're doing live shots all day and trying to cover the president, whoever the president is. all i'm saying is, look, the trump people can do whatever they want. there is a -- lou: we would never say anything like whiny press corps, not on this show. [laughter] i would like to show you, a quote with which you're very familiar from white house correspondents association president jeff mason, if we could put that up, please. he said talking about this business of moving the press out

of there, we object strenuously to any move that would shield a president and his advisers from the scrutiny of an on-site white house press corps. you know, the last eight years just invalidated that statement, that assertion, and strenuous hi? strenuously? why would president trump give a darn about how strenuously the white house press corps, what are they going to do, go negative on him, howie? [laughter] give me a break. >> well, given the relatively low opinion in which the president-elect holds the press corps in general -- lou: and vice versa. >> -- i'm sure he would shed zero tears in the press corpses has to relocate somewhere else on the white house compound. it's almost like an initial skirmish to see who has the upper hand in this continuing warfare or between the two sides, lou. lou: and this, as you wrote about on foxnews.com, this idea, this herd-like sort of coa lessens around the -- coalescence around the idea that

donald trump somehow has messed up the transition, has blown it, how in the world could that even, i mean, how could this herd -- which is so carefully follows presidents and presidents-elect -- get such a screwed-up and wrong opinion? >> because journalists are addicted to polls, and the polls do show that president-elect trump has the lower rating for his transition than bush did, than obama did, than clinton did. but here's the reason. usually during a new transition, the president picks a white house staff, picks some cabinet members, goes on vacation, doesn't do much and, therefore, there's a honeymoon effect. president-elect trump has done the opposite, he's been on twitter, he's denounced the media, when you do that, when you spend political capital, it means you're not going to have the ratings, but he is getting things done and laying down some markers for after he takes over on friday, lou. lou: when you talk about laying down markers, he has policy initiatives well underway, well

formed and putting forward ideas, you know, original ideas, howie. original ideas. when was or the last time we heard one of those emanating from washington, d.c.? >> well, also the thing about the poll ratings, it was a close election, or it's a divided country so, obviously some people, particularly some democrats haven't yet accepted donald trump's going to be the 45th president. lou: well, you know, i don't know a soul who really thinks the little darlings are going to be better informed if we pat them on their daffodil heads. it's time to maybe, you know, i don't know, steel themselves for life's occasional reversals. [laughter] while the rest of us cheer on what looks like the new era of this great republic. howard kurtz, thank you, sir, as always. appreciate it. >> good to see you, lou. lou: please roll the video. a bull shark living up to its name. watch as the shark emerges from the dark ocean abyss and charges a man spear or fishing off the coast of australia.

they do this a lot in australia. charge from the abyss, i mean. the diver fires a spear directly into the shark's mouth before escaping to the surface unharmed. not the shark, the diver. i think, i think we've had about enough of that, don't you? well, mankind, one, shark, zip. up next, the incoming press secretary says the president-elect's goal is health care for all. >> his goal is to get health care, that is his goal x he's going to fight tooth and nail to make sure he gets it and uses his skill set as a successful businessman to drive costs down, to create more plan options and doctor options. finish. lou: ed rollins, michael goodwin join me here next. stay with us, we'll be right back. and we're going to talk about sean spicer's shirt. that's bold, that's fresh, that's bright. [vo] quickbooks introduces rodney.

he has a new business teaching lessons. rodney wanted to know how his business was doing... ...so he got quickbooks. it organizes all his accounts, so he knows where he stands. ahhh...that's a profit. way to grow, rodney! visit quickbooks.com. won't replace the full value of your totaled new car. the guy says you picked the wrong insurance plan. no, i picked the wrong insurance company. with liberty mutual new car replacement™, you won't have to worry about replacing your car because you'll get the full value back including depreciation. and if you have more than one liberty mutual policy,

you qualify for a multi-policy discount, saving you money on your car and home coverage. call for a free quote today. liberty stands with you™. liberty mutual insurance.

lou: joining me now, veteran of ten presidential campaigns, ed rollins, pulitzer prize-winning columnist for the new york post, michael goodwin. gentlemen, thanks for being here. >> my pleasure. lou: this is really remarkable.

obamacare, the president-elect making it very clear the way it's going to be, talking about essentially simultaneous repeal and replacement. he is driving policy. he is talking about the outlines of a deal with russia in which sanctions could be withdrawn and a new future created for the russian/u.s. alliance. >> i've worked for four presidents and been around probably another two when they've been inaugurated and gone through the transition, and i teach a course on the presidency. no president in modern times has had an aggressive agenda. he's driven this agenda, he's driven his agenda. not everyone is clear on the policy, but they know there's going to be change, and i think that's the policy details will be worked out, and i think it's just tremendous. >> look, and it is amazing how fast he is moving. as ed said, really during the transition a lot of things have taken shape that has never happened before.

i mean, we're at this point normally in a transition we're still getting appointments, we're still getting nominees' names for the first time. i mean, we're way down the road on that, and i particularly like the jobs stuff. i think that is the most important thing. to the extent that these companies are coming forth talking about creating jobs, it's creating optimism about the economy. and so much of the economy is about looking forward, how do people feel about it. right now they have felt very glum. suddenly there's a dose of optimism. i think that's the west thing that -- best thing that's happened. lou: the pessimism, i think, the dour faces you see are in washington, d.c. amongst lobbyists. [laughter] the president is taking on these issues, working with ceos and engaging them, not stepping back and then dealing with third parties like the business round table or the chamber of commerce. >> right. lou: but appealing to the leaders of the country. >> well, he's setting an agenda. it's traditionally presidents

react to outside forces and what have you. he is setting an agenda, and congress can either go along with him or fight him. he's very pro-with -- pro-business, and what he's going to be measured on four years from now is has he created jobs and is it a better environment for workers. lou: he's being judged right now, every day, just being nitpicked, you know, across the board for everything he does even though he's doing amazingly, as howie kurtz and i were just discussing. there's this idea growing up in the national press where somehow he's missed an opportunity with his transition. finish it's the most mindless piece of herd mentality, pseudo-journalism i've ever heard. john brennan, the c irk a director -- cia director, going after the president-elect, giving him advice, talking like he is some sort of big shot, global thinker with a successful track record would be the envy of the world. this guy has screwed up, as i

said earlier, he screwed up even the vacant lots he's encountered. >> egg, look, lou, this is so typical of what's been happening in this transition. every time trump does something different or unorthodox, the headlines scream, oh, my god, he's changing things as though things are absolutely perfect right now, and any change could only be for the worse. actually, many of us think any change could only be for the better. lou: you know what's clear is most of the national political reporters, white house press corps included, are not used to encountering original thinking in any form. they're used to toesfied -- to the ossified power structure, the political orthodoxies of both pears, and here now a few days away president donald j. trump. >> well, the bottom line for many, many years the national media tried to set an agenda, this is a president who's going to set the agenda. they can write about it, but they can't set it anymore. lou: and they may be writing

about it from some distance -- [laughter] >> that's right. well, and also he's setting an agenda, but he's also setting an example for government, i think, across the country. people everywhere in government are going to change. politics is going to change if he is successful at implementing this agenda. lou: the direction of the country, which is what the vote was all about on november 8th of last year. the direction is now a new, a new one, and that's, we're getting what we asked for. >> we'll all benefit. lou: the system's working. [laughter] democracy's working, the remix is working. michael goodwin, ed rollins, appreciate it, as always. >> thank you. lou: americans mourning the loss of a true hero, the incredible pilot and great american gene cernan today died surrounded by his family. cernan was the second american to walk in space and the last of only a dozen men to walk on the moon. gene cernan was 82 years old.

up next, a new study finds that christians in america have declined dramatically under president obama. what's driving the ship? pastor robert jeffers joins me next. we'll take that up. stay with us. ♪ ♪ and the wolf huffed and puffed... like you do sometimes, grandpa? well, when you have copd, it can be hard to breathe. it can be hard to get air out, which can make it hard to get air in. so i talked to my doctor. she said... symbicort could help you breathe better, starting within 5 minutes. symbicort doesn't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. symbicort helps provide significant improvement of your lung function. symbicort is for copd, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. it should not be taken more than twice a day. symbicort contains formoterol. medicines like formoterol increase the risk of death from asthma problems. symbicort may increase your risk of lung infections, osteoporosis, and some eye problems. you should tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it.

symbicort could mean a day with better breathing. watch out, piggies! (child giggles) symbicort. breathe better starting within 5 minutes. get symbicort free for up to one year. visit saveonsymbicort.com today to learn more.

so we know how to cover almost alanything.ything, even mer-mutts. (1940s aqua music)

(burke) and we covered it, february third, twenty-sixteen. talk to farmers. we know a thing or two because we've seen a thing or two. ♪ we are farmers. bum-pa-dum, bum-bum-bum-bum ♪ ♪ ♪ lou: in our online poll, we asked you is the left utterly

contemptibility for even pretending they can delegitimize the trump presidency? 95% of you said, yes. joining me now of first baptist church in dallas, texas, pastor robert jeffers. i wanted to hear the word texas, not because i had any doubt i knew where dallas was. great to have you with us, pastor. >> thanks, lou. lou: let's talk about these polls, and i want to start with one on christianity, if we may have that full screen. christians falling from 78 to 71% of the adult population under president obama. 78 to 71%. your thoughts about why and just your, the emotional reaction to that. >> yeah. look, there are a lot of things to blame barack obama for. i'm not sure this is one of them. i think what is going on, lou, is as our country becomes increasingly secular, i think atheists feel more comfortable

to come out of the closet, if you will, and tell pollsters what they really believe instead of what people think they should believe. lou: so you think it's just a change in social, a social tone, culture -- >> yes. lou: and this is the other poll that's just come out, and that is pew research actually supporting what you're saying, identifying as atheists, agnostic or nothing in particular totaled 16% of the population back in 2007, now that's 31%. >> yeah. i don't think the real numbers have changed. i don't think the real numbers have changed -- lou: really? >> the reported numbers have changed. what i want to make clear is what i do blame barack obama for for the last eight years has been his marginalization and vilification of conservative christians. i mean, to barack obama if you believe in traditional marriage, you're a homophobe. if you believe in men shouldn't go into women's bathrooms and showers, you're a bigot. if you believe that the unborn

have a right to life, you must hate women. the good news is thevillety case of conservative christians by the president of the united states is coming to an end to this friday with the inauguration of donald j. trump. lou: you're expecting big things for the reversal of secularization in this country as a result, and is that correct? >> well, i believe that what we're going to see is a lack of demonization of conservative christians by the president. look, i've known donald trump now for two years. i consider him a friend. i'm not under any illusion that he believes like i do on every issue. but at least he respects the views of conservative christians and doesn't demonize them and feel like they have an important place in society, and most of all, he believes they have the right to the free exercise of our religious beliefs. lou: i don't think there's any doubt in many people's minds, at

least, that over the course of these last eight years there has been, it seems, a suffocation attempt underway at least trying to take the very breath out of religion in this country and that that's going to change markedly. pastor, it's great to -- >> well, thank you, lou. lou: thanks, pastor. appreciate you being with us and wrapping so quickly as we run out of time here. thanks so much. that's it for us tonight. thanks for being with us. tomorrow, general jack keane, randy evans, katrina pierson. that's here tomorrow, we hope you will join us. good night from new york. ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ charles: at home, i appreciate you watching, now here is lou dobbs. lou: president-elect makes it clear his foreign policy focus is reducing russia's nuclear weapons and threats. >> if putin likes donald trump, guess what that is called an asset. lou: mr. trump proposing a withdrawal of sanctions against russia in exchange for a nuclear weapons reduction deal, pete hook city said that mr. trump is showing true leadership, he is joining us. also, while our troops take up positions in poland, russians are howling about surprise arrival of 300 u.s. marines in