In the wake of the Paris terror attacks, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly claimed that if the United States were to be attacked by ISIS while President Obama was still in office, he would go “down as the worst president in U.S. history.” But in 2004, O'Reilly argued that if al Qaeda struck America during President George W. Bush's watch, he would be “reelected in a heartbeat.”

On the November 18 edition of his show, O'Reilly criticized Obama for not attacking ISIS calling him “arrogant” and “passive.” O'Reilly claimed that Obama's lack of action will go down as an “unbelievable disaster,” and added that if America were to be attacked on his watch “he goes down as the worst president in U.S. history”:

BILL O'REILLY: He's arrogant. He doesn't think this is - this rises to any kind of a crisis. It's the way he believes. You know what's interesting about President Obama -- and Henry did cover the president for a few years for us -- he's not leaving any CYA room Henry. We get hit, he goes down as the worst president in U.S. history. No doubt

[...]

O'REILLY: If we get hit, we have a passive president who believes progress is being made and no one else believes that that I can see.

But in 2004, O'Reilly asserted that another terrorist attack on American soil by al Qaeda would all but ensure a re-election for George W. Bush during an interview with historian Andrew Apostolou:

O'REILLY: If al-Qaeda attacks here, President Bush is re-elected in a heartbeat, because Americans aren't...

APOSTOLOU: I agree, but they...

O'REILLY: ...won't surrender, they'll get angry.

APOSTOLOU: Yes, yes.

O'REILLLY: Unlike the Spanish. It's a different population.

APOSTOLOU: Exactly. Exactly.

O'REILLY: Yes. So if they're counting on that, Americans will come together...

APOSTOLOU: Absolutely.

O'REILLY: ...in any kind of attack on us. And we saw that after 9- 11. And I think they saw it, too, because now we're going to go to Pakistan right after Mr. Apostolou.