Bill O'Reilly: 'I Have More Power Than Anybody Other Than The President'

Bill O'Reilly made a rather bold declaration during a recent interview with Newsweek.

The Fox News host was promoting his new book (a historical thriller about the Lincoln assassination), and he clearly had the presidency on his mind, because he told interviewer Peter Boyer that he was almost as powerful as the holder of that office.

"I have more power than anybody other than the president, in the sense that I can get things changed, quickly," he said. "I don't have to go through the legislative process; I don't have to do any of that. I can just bring it to the people, and say, look, this has gotta be dealt with."

O'Reilly has a history of making grand statements about his reach. Who can forget, for instance, his prediction that his Super Bowl interview with President Obama would be the most watched in "the history of mankind"? Or his attempt to draft himself as the key negotiator in the debt ceiling crisis?

There a bunch of good nuggets in the Newsweek profile. For instance, O'Reilly says he "likes" Obama personally, and that he warned Glenn Beck not to turn into "Elmer Gantry" when the two went on tour together. But that "power" statement stands out. (Interestingly, it's a bit of a step back from a statement O'Reilly made in 2010, where he said definitively that he had "more power doing what I'm doing" than he would as president.)

It's certainly true that, as the nation's leading cable news host by some length, O'Reilly has a very large reach and influence. And the relative power of a television host versus, say, the Speaker of the House could be arguable, in a sort of sociological sense. Nevertheless, we are throwing the question open to you, the reader. Do you agree with O'Reilly's statement?

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Comments

[ausman98]

11:52 AM on 10/13/2011

He's also humble, grounded completely in reality and not egotistical by any measure.

[Fiona Mackenzie]

03:03 AM on 10/01/2011

I thought that was Rush Limbaugh....wasn't there some talk about the Republican candidates and Rush's anatomy? Or was that yesterday's news?

[freddsky]

03:33 AM on 09/24/2011

Bigger than Jesus, Rush, or Oprah? Hmmm.

[SpeedOfRight]

12:53 AM on 09/29/2011

Why?

[2AcesInTheHole]

02:45 PM on 09/22/2011

I think he's been infected by the "Think More Highly Of Myself Than I Should Virus" lol

[SpeedOfRight]

12:55 AM on 09/29/2011

why? I would like something more than lol.

[becky6075]

02:58 PM on 10/20/2011

... we're all lining up to give you anything and everything you'd like... and we all have time to sit here and explain ourselves to you when it was VERY FREAKING OBVIOUS what was being conveyed. Here - I'll help, just because you asked (even though you didn't even ask NICELY):

Article Summary: Bill O'Reilly thinks he has more power than he actually does simply because he has a camera pointed at him nearly 24/7.

Comment: I think he's been infected by the "Think More Highly Of Myself Than I Should Virus" lol

The comment simply states what the article already did, as an agreement. Bill O'Reilly thinks more of himself than he should, which was the main message of the article to begin with. **the fact that you need us to explain this to you means you should probably go to a website where you can figure out what is going on BEFORE posting your idiocy for the entire world to see.

[Mark Staudte]

02:44 PM on 09/22/2011

Is that what you told that one lady when you talked dirty to her over the phone?

[SpeedOfRight]

12:55 AM on 09/29/2011

What?

[Mark Staudte]

11:01 PM on 10/24/2011

O'Reilly was once accused of harassing a woman over the phone, and they settled out of court.

[2AcesInTheHole]

02:29 PM on 09/22/2011

THIS GUY IS A LEGEND IN HIS OWN MIND! LOL
HE THINKS HE' A MOHAMED ALI BUT WITH OUT THE CHARISMA. LOL
A MARTIN LUTHER KING WITH OUT THE APPROPRIATE DOGMA LOL
A JESUS CHRIST WITH OUT HOLINESS, LOL
A WALTER CRONKITE WITH OUT THE CREDITABILITY LOL
BUT WHAT HE REALLY IS , IS A ....................YOU FILL IN THE BLANK. LOL

[SpeedOfRight]

12:56 AM on 09/29/2011

Are you angry all caps? What the HELL?

[2AcesInTheHole]

01:47 PM on 09/22/2011

I just don't get these Crybaby Millionaires, they have more money that they could ever need, All the fame and far more than they deserve. But for some insane reason that is not apparent yet, they are not satisfied and staunchly refuse to moderate their vociferous antagonism against the Middle Class, soon to be poor and the less fortunate masses. This is demonic behavior that goes beyond the pail. And it is coming from a professed former middle class guy, who is supposedly looking out for YOU! LOL

[SpeedOfRight]

12:59 AM on 09/29/2011

Do you not know how to use capilisms it shows ignorance. Hard to take you seriously. The rich provide jobs and mine has been missing for two and half years.

[anneisanne]

02:47 PM on 10/01/2011

There's nothing like using "capilisms" to prove someone's ignorance.

[becky6075]

02:51 PM on 10/20/2011

I see - You just have nothing better to do than run your mouth (or fingers in this case)...

Suggestion for better use of your time - VOLUNTEER! Although you obviously have a stockpile of self-pity, and are stuck in your victim mentality - there are still people out there who are worse off than you... like those with no home or internet access as a very obvious example.

[EliteRule]

01:39 PM on 09/22/2011

"I have more power than anybody other than the president, in the sense that I can get things changed, quickly," he said. "I don't have to go through the legislative process; I don't have to do any of that. I can just bring it to the people, and say, look, this has gotta be dealt with."
Really Bill? How's that investigation into your wifes alleged affair going? You guys still seperated? Yeah I thought as much.

[virginiagomez4]

02:19 PM on 09/22/2011

ELITERULE: WHAT DOES YOUR STATEMENT HAVE TO DO WITH POLITICS??? WHO CARES ABOUT THIS WIFE'S ALLEGED AFFAIR?? I DON'T GIVE A RATS ASS; SO WHY SHOULD YOU??! JUST ANSWER THE QUESTION--ON THIS LIBERAL HUFFPOST!!

[EliteRule]

08:20 PM on 09/22/2011

1) My statement is related to the article. In particular I'm pulling one particular quote to make my point. The point being that he doesn't the kind of power that he thinks he does. "I can get things changed quickly" is a lie because he can't and furthermore, he gives no proof of it. What power and change is Bill talking about? 2) I don't really care about his wife but again, I brought up the situation to counter Bills claim that he has "power". 3) Why would there be a connection between you not caring and me not caring? "What does that have to do with politics?" or this conversation for that matter.

[zatonoichi]

01:35 PM on 09/22/2011

I think Billo is vastly overestimating himself. Sure, he can make a million ignorant morons salivate when he rings a bell, but is that really POWER?

[acbobbyb]

01:26 PM on 09/22/2011

not
sure who this person is....did he play on the old tv show....The Life of Orielly? He was pretty good on that if I remember correctly.















































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































9ftutt

[seedborgj66]

01:18 PM on 09/22/2011

If your base on the Huff was conservitive the pole would lean the other way. I venture to say that not many people to the right subscribe to the Huff and Puff.

[BobbyNCorpus]

01:06 PM on 09/22/2011

I think Bill must have kicked himself in the head when was kicking for his college team.

[Mechelle Gray]

12:43 PM on 09/22/2011

Have you noticed:

O'Really, Limbo, Culture, Handittome and all the others are NOBODIES. They're HATE SPEECH falls on "deaf ears".

[pocketnunu]

11:18 AM on 09/22/2011

If you don't like Bill O'Reilly, just change the channel or turn off the TV. That is the same as saying no. And no, O'Reilly does not have "more power than anybody other than the president." After all, you can turn off O'Reilly, or anyone else. But you can't turn off a sitting president unless he's removed from office or resigns. Otherwise he's there for 4 years.

[Mechelle Gray]

12:41 PM on 09/22/2011

So along your line of thinking, why don't you MOVE?

[Aimzee]

11:12 AM on 09/22/2011

What is with O'Reilly? Talk about delusions of grandeur. Isn't this a sign of mental illness?

[seedborgj66]

01:23 PM on 09/22/2011

If O'Reilly has a mental illness he must be a liberal/democrat.