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CNN Live Today
A Look at Some of the Best Editorial Cartoons for 2005; Predictions for 2006
Aired December 30, 2005 - 11:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Of all the things President Bush has said this year, what will Americans remember most? A nonprofit group that monitors language has an opinion about that. Global Monitor Language insists the most memorable presidential phrase of 2005 came just days after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf coast. President Bush, giving a job review of sorts to embattled FEMA director Michael Brown. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I want to thank you all for -- and, Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job. The FEMA director is working 24...
(APPLAUSE)
They're working 24 hours a day.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: We watched that live by the way here on CNN LIVE TODAY. That "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job quote, the winner of Global Language Monitors' 2005 Most Memorable Presidential Quotes, which brings us to this guy on my left.
Yes, you're on.
MIKE LUCKOVICH, EDITORIAL CARTOONIST: Oh, all right.
KAGAN: Good morning.
LUCKOVICH: Good morning.
One of the best jobs in the world, do you think it's fair to say?
LUCKOVICH: Mine or yours?
KAGAN: No, yours.
LUCKOVICH: Mine. Oh, yes, I do have a great job. I love every day coming in, it's just so exciting. I never know what I'm going to do. I start out with a blank sheet of paper. By the end of the day, I have something.
But my editor this year has cracked down on me. She says now I have to get in by noon. KAGAN: Oh, really? Oh, we're going to cry for you.
LUCKOVICH: It's tough. Hello.
KAGAN: Let me introduce Mike Luckovich, Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist for the Atlanta-Journal Constitution.
So 2006 is going to be a tough year for you.
LUCKOVICH: Yes, you know, it's going to require discipline.
KAGAN: Yes, by noon.
LUCKOVICH: Yes..
KAGAN: Well, whatever you've been doing has clearly been working, because award winning, and you really had some winners this year.
LUCKOVICH: Oh, thank you.
KAGAN: Let's look over some of -- you picked out some of your favorites.
LUCKOVICH: Yes, I did. The first one is on -- I like to do holiday theme-type cartoons. This was after Murtha, Representative Murtha, had criticized the war. So Cheney is saying -- he's written, "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, and you're an unpatriotic damn liar for questioning it. Dick Cheney."
KAGAN: Bah-humbug.
LUCKOVICH: Bah-humbug, yes.
KAGAN: Now let's move on, Harriet Miers.
LUCKOVICH: Now you know, this was one of the -- for the right and the left, we all came together to say what a crappy pick Harriet Miers was. And so I did this cartoon. I've got Bush at a podium, and he's saying, "And to those who say Harriet Miers isn't accomplished enough to have a paper trail." And you see she's got toilet paper...
KAGAN: You know, poor Harriet Miers. People should know better than to cross you, because...
LUCKOVICH: You know, I did. I must say, I felt a little bit ambivalent about drawing cartoons on her, because I felt like she was just sort of an innocent person thrown into...
KAGAN: She looks like a lovely lady, I have to say.
LUCKOVICH: She does. She seems like a very nice person.
KAGAN: And very smart.
LUCKOVICH: But of course, that didn't stop me. I mean, I did numerous cartoons on her.
KAGAN: And you make an interesting point. You said the right and left come together.
LUCKOVICH: Yes.
KAGAN: And you're so talented. You clearly, though, have a political point of view. I would say a little left.
LUCKOVICH: A little left, yes. And -- but you know, that's what an editorial cartoonist should be. We should be opinionated.
KAGAN: You have to have a point of view.
LUCKOVICH: Right, so what I try to do is get my points across using humor if possible, if possible.
KAGAN: OK, so with that in mind...
LUCKOVICH: With that in mind. Oh now, see, I'm Catholic. And it seems we have this new pope, he has something against gays. And so he wants to eliminate gay priests. So I drew a priest talking to another priest, and he's saying, as he looks down at his vestments. Does this make me look gay? When I go to church on Sundays...
KAGAN: How does that go over?
LUCKOVICH: Well, you know, actually, my monsignor at the church I attend, he was giving a sermon, and he said to some kid in the audience. This was a week or two ago. He was wearing his seasonal rose-colored vestments, and he asked the kid in the congregation. He said, well, what color are these? The kid said pink. And he said, no, don't say that, because Luckovich will have a field day.
KAGAN: So he is reading your things.
LUCKOVICH: And he takes it in pretty good stride.
KAGAN: OK, very good.
LUCKOVICH: Now this one.
KAGAN: This actually interesting because we have been talking about the NSA today.
LUCKOVICH: Right, right. And you know, I was actually doing a freelance job for CBS, just a day or two ago. And I was drawing that logo, and I thought, oh, this is perfect. So I -- of course, I did this. It's a -- gentleman is reading the newspaper, government is spying on Americans, and the wife is looking at the TV screen, saying, geez, I hope this is CBS, the big eye.
KAGAN: Very good, and...
LUCKOVICH: Now moving on... KAGAN: Now this one probably, this next one, it might be hard. It might not translate. So really explain what those letters are made of.
LUCKOVICH: Yes, let me explain this, yes. You know, I knew that the 2,000th death in Iraq, American soldiers death in Iraq was coming up a couple months ago. And so I wanted to do something to commemorate that, to honor the soldiers, but I'm still not sure what the Iraq war is all about. So I did this cartoon where I took every American soldier that had been killed, and I wrote their names spelling out why.
KAGAN: Because to you, what your statement is, what's the point of the war?
LUCKOVICH: Right, right.
KAGAN: And you say you want to honor those that have lost their lives. But did you hear from anybody that was offended by that who believed that...
LUCKOVICH: Yes, I have heard -- I have a blog now. It's on AJC.com. And people get on there, my cartoon is posted. And people get on and they argue and they defend the cartoons. This cartoon generated all kinds of comments. It's still generating comments, both pro and con. You know, people in this country are very divided about the war and the reasons why we're there, and it's just reflected on my blog.
But again, you know, I have to get my point across, and hopefully it will make people think and discuss things.
KAGAN: It is your job to have a point of view, and you express it very creatively, and I know we love having you here in Atlanta.
LUCKOVICH: Thank you, Daryn.
KAGAN: Thanks for sharing, and we're going to come back and...
LUCKOVICH: I'm still working on this one.
KAGAN: Father Time, I think.
LUCKOVICH: Well, yes, yes. More to come, though.
KAGAN: OK, more to come. So stay tuned. Mike Luckovich will finish his on-the-spot cartoon for us here an CNN LIVE TODAY.
That's one thing we can tell you will happen. That's my prediction. OK, we have other predictions ahead. What else is in store for 2006? We're going to ask the Amazing Kreskin. Maybe he knows what you're drawing. He knows so much.
LUCKOVICH: I doubt it.
KAGAN: We're going to hear his predictions for the New Year and a look at what you're saying about the year that was. We're going to check in with Melissa Long at the dot-com desk.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA LONG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): As 2005 comes to a close, it's only natural to reflect. CNN.com asks, how will you remember the past year? Here's what some of you had to say. Tammy of Footville, Wisconsin says she will remember "2005 as the year of natural and manmade disasters -- tsunamis, earthquakes, hurricanes and war."
Vicki of Des Moines, Iowa, writes, in 2005, five of her family members died. "Together as a family we have survived, and through all these experiences it certainly has made us appreciate life much more."
David of Chester, Vermont sums up this time of year by writing, "The New Year will begin whether we are prepared or not. We have the perfect chance to make the coming year of good harmony and prosperity worldwide."
As you think about the past year, drop us a line. Logon to CNN.com to share your memories. Happy New Year.
For the dot-com desk, I'm Melissa Long.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Want to show you these pictures we're seeing here now at CNN. This is Woodridge, New Jersey, and apparently an accident involving a bus, a bus into an overpass. Not a lot of other information about what's taking place. Also, the affiliates, the local New Jersey affiliates reported only the bus driver onboard when this accident took place. His condition or her condition not known at this point.
We'll continue to monitor and get back to you after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: So any idea what's going to happen in 2006? I can't tell you, but the mentalist known as the Amazing Kreskin can. And he joins us live from New York with his predicts.
THE AMAZING KRESKIN, MENTALIST: Daryn, how are you?
KAGAN: I'm doing great.
KRESKIN: By the way, If I can borrow from President Bush, you're doing a heck of a job. That's all I can say, a heck of a job.
KAGAN: but that wouldn't be so good, because -- anyhow...
KRESKIN: I have to allude to something I found very fascinating. I thought it was extremely interestingly done, your discussion of the cookies and the computer situation. You know, I spend my -- I'm really not a fortune teller. I spend my life reading people's thoughts. This is my 14th year around New Year's on CNN.
I think that psychologists don't even want to talk about this. We're going to have to face the fact in the not-too-distant future in our thinking that, really, Daryn, we have no privacy left in our society. There is nothing. From the first mark in kindergarten to an indiscretion in school that may be reported, we can't erase it anymore. And you know, that's the first time in recorded history. Do we all want to think that way? I'm not so sure.
KAGAN: I don't think so. Well, let's just keep this conversation between us private, just you and me today, OK?
KRESKIN: Sure. Sure.
KAGAN: First, let's look back on your predictions for 2005. Michael Jackson, a friend of yours.
KRESKIN: Well, I...
KAGAN: Go ahead.
KRESKIN: I felt very strong -- I've got to say something, When I predicted that woe be found not guilty, it wasn't because I felt as privately whether he was guilty or not guilty or involved in some indiscretions and so forth, but I -- this is the way I felt the jury was going to vote, and I felt this three months before the election -- I'm sorry, before the trial.
The crazy thing, there's very little known about this right now, so help me God if Michael Jackson goes through with this cockamie idea of suggesting in Las Vegas that he wants to do a magic show, and, Daryn, you heard me, you heard me, a magic show. I have another prediction, Michael Jackson is going to disappear faster than he wants to. I'm just not sure that's his area of skill. And I don't mean that negatively, but we've got to laugh about something.
KAGAN: You do. Even if he's a friend of yours. You consider him a friend?
KRESKIN: I don't know him very well.
KAGAN: Let's move on to 2006, Osama bin Laden. You think he's out there and he's going to stay out there?
KRESKIN: Three years i've said here on CNN that he would not be fond. And the way to understand this, all of you listening in, is imagine yourself in the Atlantic Ocean in a little row boat. You can't see any land. Now I've toured the Middle East five different years. If you saw the desert, you'd realize why I'm saying this, Daryn. He's not going to be captured and probably next year, for at least the next half of that year. It is really looking for a needle in a haystack.
KAGAN: This next one you have to explain to me here, because it involves cell phones and UFOs. KRESKIN: And UFOs. Well, now, wait a minute! Have you noticed, Daryn, and you're doing the news, you're on top of current events, you haven't heard a lot of UFO sightings in the past year and a half. Maybe occasionally here and there. There were cycles of sightings about three years ago in Canada. There was a tremendous amount of coverage and reports.
I said those two years we'd have next to no sightings because of one thing. Most people today -- or many people have phones where you can take pictures. And if you're with a group of friends, the press or the investigators are going to say, hey, why in the world didn't one of you take a picture. If you really saw a UFO, if you weren't hallucinating or unconsciously aware that it want there? Well, with all the area of terrorism, and the idea that we're being bugged and there's all kinds of pressures around us, I think the next kind of reports of UFOs are people claiming that they're hearing aliens talking to them on cell phones. If you think I'm crazy, no, I'm not crazy. If people can see aliens, why can't they hear them on cell phones?
KAGAN: So it will be, can you hear me now? Can you hear me now? Like the commercial.
KRESKIN: You know, this sounds like something that Mars, Daryn. I'll tell you something, you really are doing a heck of a job, a heck of a job.
KAGAN: OK, all right. Quickly, we have like just under a minute left. Three people in pop culture, Donald Trump. What's in store for him this year?
KRESKIN: This man, I've been around him. I've been at his home and so forth. He's on top of things. Don't be surprised if in the not too distant future he decides to do a TV series with a partner, and that's Martha Stewart. Can you imagine the two of them in a series?
KAGAN: Together? I don't think so.
KRESKIN: Let's take a bet on that.
KAGAN: OK, we'll have you back on that one.
Jennifer Aniston, what's in store for her?
KRESKIN: Are you talking about her expecting?
KAGAN: No.
KRESKIN: Are you talking about the child? Let's not go any further. Change the subject fast. Get me out of here. I'm in trouble.
KAGAN: OK, quickly -- Tom Hanks?
KRESKIN: I know he's changed his image with the new movie "The Da Vinci Code," and it's going to be highly controversial, but this man is going to continue to soar. There's really nothing negative I can say about him. I think he's going to have a new thrust on life and in the industry. By the way, the greatest desire -- the greatest tragedy and the greatest scandal is going to be in the music industry, when people are going to find with theater programs in which performers have 32 pieces of orchestra backing them up, that we are paying to hear not the singer, but an entire orchestra faking where they're not playing at all. And if that's the case, I want my money back.
KAGAN: Don't burst that bubble, too. There's so few things left to believe in.
But we'll have you back next December 31st.
KRESKIN: And by the way, I foresee that you'll continue to have the darndest remarks, even beating President Bush on the quotes.
Happy New Year.
KAGAN: To you, too. To the Amazing Kreskin. You are amazing. Hope you have an amazing 2006.
KRESKIN: Thank you.
KAGAN: Thank you.
Well, let the party begin. You can ring in the new year right here on CNN tomorrow night. Our own Anderson Cooper will be in Times Square with all of the New Year's Eve action. If previous years are any indication, it's going to be fun.
Let's rewind and take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): New Year's Eve in Times Square. You never know quite what to expect. I mean, sure, you're going to see people with the funny hats and the noisemakers, but for our coverage, we like to add spice, sometimes even some old spice.
(on camera): Who have you got with you?
HUGH HEFNER, PLAYBOY FOUNDER: Well, I've got the girlfriends with me.
COOPER (voice-over): On New Year's Eve we bring you women of substance on both coasts, from Hef's playmates in L.A. to Zarrella's drag queens in Key West.
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Up there in that red high heel descending down here onto the street.
COOPER: We're not sure when the drag queen drop became a tradition exactly, but that's what's great about tradition. Doesn't matter why it started or how it ends.
(on camera): That apparently is a drag performer who looks like she's about to drop, even if the shoe isn't.
(voice-over): We've always had great musical guests. Last year, Jerry Jeff joined us in true country style.
(on camera): What are you leaning on there, Jerry Jeff?
JERRY JEFF, MUSICIAN: I'm leaning on this mechanical bull.
COOPER (voice-over): Celine Dion even treated us to a multitude of hand signals, a couple songs and a prayer for peace.
CELINE DION, SINGER: And peace around the world.
COOPER: Even the naked cowboy strummed a few cords, and taught us an important mind-over-body lesson.
UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT: How do you not get cold? We need to know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I pretend that I'm not cold, and it works.
COOPER: How then do I stay war? Well, in 2003 I went for the suit and tie. Last year, for some reason, I decided to try to look like Mister Rogers. Then the night took an ugly turn.
(on camera): You can hear the lasts shred of dignity just being stripped away right there. This year, we'll have all the hoopla and confetti from New York and Florida and appearances and performances by Kool and the Gang, Brooks and Dunn, the John Mayer trio, the Barenaked Ladies, Harry Connick Jr. and the incomparable James Brown.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And you can bring it in right here, the new year, live on CNN with Anderson Cooper. Our New Year's Eve coverage begins Saturday night, 11:00 p.m. Eastern. And Anderson's going to keep going. He'll go live until 1:00 a.m. on the East Coast in order to bring in the New Year with everyone in the Central time zone as well. We're back after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: Our final couple minutes here we're going to spend with Mike Luckovich, the political cartoonist from "The Atlanta-Journal Constitution." You say your cartoons spark discussion. We're getting e-mail from one of our viewers, Gary Alfereda (ph). He does not like your why cartoon.
LUCKOVICH: What?
KAGAN: Yes, he said he lost a close family friend in the Georgia National Guard in Iraq, and he said that you said that you're honoring with the why, by putting all of those names. He says that he is offended. So what do you say to people who...
LUCKOVICH: Well, I don't know, I just think that -- you know, I guess it depends on your perspective. I think putting troops into battle where you don't -- where the objective isn't clear and not having enough troops to get the job done, and then having the main reasons for the war evaporate, WMD and the 9/11 Saddam connection, to me, it's putting the troops into a bad situation.
KAGAN: You didn't mean to offend the person or families.
LUCKOVICH: No. No.
KAGAN: Thanks to Gary Alfereda. We do try to provide some balance.
LUCKOVICH: Right, exactly.
KAGAN: And like you said, you did spark discussion.
LUCKOVICH: There has been all kinds.
KAGAN: Twenty seconds left. Show us the cartoon you created for us.
LUCKOVICH: OK, now of course, this was, you know, done right here with nothing going on.
KAGAN: Right, 20 seconds.
LUCKOVICH: OK, 20 seconds. OK, we've got Father time 2005. He's looking at the New Year's baby, 2006, and he's saying oh, crap, he's Britney spears baby, as you say he's got a whip in his hand, and a margarita and a baby thong.
KAGAN: Very funny.
Mike, thank you. Happy New Year.
LUCKOVICH: Thank you, Daryn.
KAGAN: It's always fun to have you along.
LUCKOVICH: Thanks for having me.
KAGAN: And hopefully we'll see you in the next year.
LUCKOVICH: Perfect.
KAGAN: I'm Daryn Kagan with Mike Luckovich. International news is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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