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Campbell Brown
Edwards Endorses Obama; John McCain Addresses Environmental Politics; House Republicans Struggle as Democrats Win Special Elections
Aired May 14, 2008 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAMPBELL BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, everyone.
We begin with late-breaking and important political news. It is an ELECTION CENTER alert. It is the answer to a question that Democrats have been asking for months now: Who will former presidential candidate John Edwards endorse?
Well, just a short while ago, he made his announcement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN EDWARDS (D), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There is one man. There is one man who knows and understands that this is a time for bold leadership. There is one man that knows how to create the change, the lasting change that you have to build from the ground up. There is one man who knows in his heart that it is time to create one America, not two. And that man is Barack Obama.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, John Edwards and I believe in a different America. Hillary Clinton believes in a different America. The Democratic Party believes in a different America, one America, where we rise and fall together as one people, and that's why we are going to take Washington by storm this November.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: And our Suzanne Malveaux is with the Obama campaign in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where Obama and Edwards just made the big announcement.
Suzanne, huge news, obviously. Tell us how this all came together. How long has it been in the works?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, I have been talking to people who actually were in on this secret. They were talking to Barack Obama, as well as John Edwards.
This is something that happened really within the last 24 hours. John Edwards and Barack Obama have been speaking on a regular basis, at least once a week for the last four months, when John Edwards first dropped out.
But a couple of things happened here, West Virginia being one of them. John Edwards did not believe that was particularly helpful. Looking at those numbers there, looking at the divisions, clearly, it looked like a lot of working-class, a lot of folks that were going for Hillary Clinton, that this was dividing the party, that John Edwards sat down, felt a great deal of respect for both of these candidates.
He had talked about this pledge fighting poverty. It is something that Barack Obama said that he would sign off on and has signed off on, cutting poverty in half in the next 10 years or so. This is something that both of the candidates took and accepted this pledge.
But, ultimately, John Edwards looked at the situation. He felt like things were getting too divisive, that he wanted to help Barack Obama. So, he picked up the phone yesterday. He made a phone call. He told him the news. People who have talked to Barack Obama today say that he was absolutely delighted. This is something that he's worked very, very hard for.
This is also something, Campbell, that we're going to see these two really hitting the pavement. They're going to be campaigning together, campaigning hard in the fall, we're told. And this is something that they're going to be talking about tonight, just how all the logistics are going to work out -- Campbell.
BROWN: All right. Suzanne Malveaux for us tonight -- Suzanne, thanks.
We should say the Edwards endorsement pretty much eclipsed all of today's headlines about Hillary Clinton's big win in West Virginia. Her win had seemed like it would keep her campaign alive, so will this end it?
We are going to go now to our political panel. We have got Democratic strategist Paul Begala, who is a Hillary Clinton supporter, Republican strategist Leslie Sanchez, a former adviser to President Bush, and CNN senior political analyst Gloria Borger, in here in the studio with me.
Gloria, let me start with you.
John Edwards waited a long time to do this. He dropped out in January, and he certainly could have endorsed a lot sooner, so, not exactly a profile encouraged to come out now, when it's pretty clear Obama is the nominee. But what was the thinking behind this?
GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I was just listening to what Suzanne was saying.
And my sources tell me that in fact this was a last-minute decision, as Suzanne reported, and that he saw the results in West Virginia. He felt that it was very divisive, very tough for the Democratic Party to unite after this. He didn't like all the talk about the fact that Barack Obama could not attract those working-class voters.
And, so, he decided to pick up the phone and call Obama. Now, Hillary Clinton has really been courting him. Lots of times over the last four months, there were lots of rumors that in fact he thought that Hillary Clinton was really talking about his issues more. She became the populist candidate.
BROWN: Certainly on health care, they were more aligned, the two of them.
BORGER: Absolutely. Absolutely, on health care. She began to talk about jobs. She began to talk about poverty. She really adopted his agenda. But, in the end, I think this was a political decision, Campbell. It was about deciding who's going to win this nomination and just trying to help push it along and get it over with.
BROWN: Paul, this must have been a disappointment for her, though, because they have worked together so closely and they have been in contact, as Gloria's reported and other people have reported, and talking a lot about the issues, and I think there was some thought in the Clinton camp that he was leaning her way.
PAUL BEGALA, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, I think so. I think certainly his wife, Elizabeth Edwards, who is a real force and quite an expert on health care, by the way, had pretty pointedly, I think, sided with Hillary in the debate between Hillary and Barack on whose health plan is actually moving toward affordable universal health care for all Americans.
And so, in that sense, on that issues, it's surprising. I think Gloria is exactly right. This is a political deal. I like John Edwards. I very much like what he campaigned on. I think it's very important for Democrats to actually talk about poor people and one America the way Edwards did through his whole campaign.
And yet I have got to say it's a load of hooey to say that somehow West Virginia was divisive. It was the one primary where there were no negative ads run. There was no campaigning. There were no attacks. Both Hillary and Barack Obama raised their game in West Virginia. They praised each other.
Last night, Hillary said -- went on about what a great guy Barack is. Barack called Hillary. This has been the least divisive of all the primaries. And so, forgive me if I think he's kind of all wet about that. He's doing it for political reasons. And he has a right to. He's a politician.
BROWN: Well, let me ask you to comment on this, Leslie, because this goes to the issue of his base, or who you might define as John Edwards' base, are those white working-class voters that Gloria mentioned. And those are the people that Obama needs to reach.
I think that's what we saw in West Virginia, that he was not making a connection with this group.
LESLIE SANCHEZ, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: He did not make a connection because he didn't compete, and not aggressively. I think that's an interesting point...
(CROSSTALK)
BROWN: But it's been a problem for him not just in West Virginia, but other states as well.
SANCHEZ: Exactly. And that's exactly the momentum and the case that the Clinton campaign was making, that early on, especially states like Iowa, he goes through the whole laundry list, Virginia, Maryland, he was doing really well the working-class voters, and that shifted and you started to see this populist message rise and resonate with Hillary Clinton.
He did not compete. He shied away from West Virginia, a battleground state. I think there's a lot of press, a lot of nuance in that. And here comes John Edwards to save the day. Now, really, had he been competitive with his fight against poverty, and had that message resonated, he would still be in the race. So, let's not make this bigger than it is.
And don't forget his base is trial attorneys. He's not going to run away from that. That's really his constituency. As much as he tried to talk about two Americas, he's the wrong one.
(CROSSTALK)
BROWN: But, Paul, you don't think that he can help or potentially that Edwards would be able to help Obama with his problem demographic that we have talked about endlessly, white working-class voters?
BEGALA: I think if Senator Obama -- and I have been saying this for months -- if Senator Obama listens to the Edwards message and repeats it -- it's more the Edwards message than the Edwards endorsement.
Don't forget, in Pennsylvania, that nobody more beloved by working-class Pennsylvanians than Bob Casey, the new senator from Pennsylvania, a former client of mine, a dear friend of mine. Senator Casey endorsed Senator Obama, took him all across the state, and Hillary won a pretty sizable victory in Pennsylvania.
Endorsements by the person don't translate. But if Barack fine- tunes his message, the way Leslie was talking about -- Hillary has done better and better and better with those middle-class working voters. Why? Because she's gotten better. She's a better candidate now.
She's got a little bit of Edwards' populism folded into her message. I like would to see Barack fold...
(CROSSTALK)
BORGER: But, Paul, I think this is one of those endorsements that in fact will translate, only because there are 19 delegates that he's going to release, and they're very loyal to him. And they're probably going to go to Barack Obama now. So, this is one way you could say the cause and effect, and there it is.
BEGALA: That's a good point.
BROWN: Delegates, though, we should just, on the technicality, don't have to necessarily do what he says.
(CROSSTALK)
BORGER: They don't. But they're loyal to Edwards.
BROWN: But obviously would probably take his advice.
(CROSSTALK)
BROWN: Leslie, hold on. We have got to take a quick break. I'm going to come back.
I want to show you the Clinton campaign's reaction to the Edwards endorsement.
Campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe put out a one-line statement, saying, "We respect John Edwards, but, as the voters of West Virginia showed last night, this thing is far from over."
OK, guys, we're going to take a quick break here.
Is it really far from over? John Edwards says this is about party unity, as you heard. But since this is politics, we have also got to wonder, what does he get out all this? I will get some answers from the panel coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EDWARDS: This is our moment. This is our time to take down these walls, to close our divides, and build one America that we all believe in. If you want that, if you believe in that, then join me in helping send Barack Obama to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: John Edwards announcing his surprise endorsement of Barack Obama just a short time ago.
He says he wants party unity right now, but there are going to be those who wonder, well, what's in it for him?
I want to bring back three of America's most savvy observers of the political scene, Democratic strategist Paul Begala, who is a Clinton supporter, Republican strategist Leslie Sanchez, and senior political analyst Gloria Borger.
And, Gloria, I have got to ask you, he certainly has his poverty foundation, but there are going to be those who say, was a deal cut? Is there a job for John Edwards in a possible Obama administration?
BORGER: How dare you think that?
BROWN: Not me. It's people like Leslie and Paul.
(LAUGHTER)
BROWN: No. What do you think, really?
BORGER: Well, first of all, obviously, there was a lot of talk throughout these last months about the poverty agenda. You can be sure that's going to be front and center in whatever Democratic platform comes out of the convention.
Was a job discussed? I doubt overtly. However, it's clear to me that if John Edwards says he wants something, short of the vice presidency, which he's already said he doesn't want, I'm sure he would sort of be at the top of Obama's list, whatever that job should be, attorney general, for example. Who knows?
BROWN: But what about, Paul, Edwards as a possible V.P. pick? He could certainly help Obama with those white working-class voters we were just talking about. Do you see any way that that might happen?
BEGALA: Yes, you know, we have seen this movie before, right? John Kerry picked John Edwards.
BROWN: A sequel.
BEGALA: And there were a lot of flaws with the Kerry/Edwards campaign. But one of them was that the running didn't do his job as an attack dog. That's his job. And John Edwards is basically a very sunny guy. He's a very upbeat guy.
BROWN: But he was more of an attack dog in this campaign primary than he was last time around, don't you think?
BEGALA: He was. And I think that was odd. I would rather he had attacked Dick Cheney a little bit more and Hillary and Barack a little bit less. I think he kind of had the timing wrong. The time to really be the attack dog was when you take on the Republicans. He was quite rough on Barack and on Hillary.
It's impressive that they have patched things up. I'm not so -- call me crazy. I'm not so cynical as to think this was a trade to be the attorney general, or the running mate or some job thing. I think -- we will know. We will know very soon.
Let's watch what Senator Obama says. If he begins to incorporate that more populist message into his public speeches, then we will know that the deal was just for the causes that John Edwards believes in. But if Obama post-Edwards sounds like Obama pre-Edwards, then maybe the message didn't get through.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: I think Paul raises a great point. He's got a couple of good things there.
One, it does make John Edwards relevant. That's such a key thing. That's the hubris of a political candidate. That's really like the thing they want to be in a presidential or any campaign.
But there was an interesting thing he talked about. What was that effect? We saw this play out before with the Kerry/Edwards ticket. If you look at a state like Pennsylvania, we just talked about Bob Casey could not deliver the Catholic vote for Barack Obama with that endorsement. And he couldn't deliver the state.
Particularly John Edwards in that state, where you have a lot of trial attorneys and people who believe those trial attorneys have run many of those doctors out of that state for practicing and delivering babies, this is very true. In a lot of focus groups, you get a lot of women who are very upset about that, a lot of people in general.
So, when you're going to talk about health care, you have got to look at the details of what these people are saying. It's a very fair debate. And I think it's a replay of 2004.
(CROSSTALK)
BROWN: Jump in, Paul.
BEGALA: Campbell, no, I actually want to pick up on a different point. Since I am the only guy on this panel, the token man on this panel...
BROWN: You're not a token, but go ahead.
(LAUGHTER)
BEGALA: ... I'm honored to be here, the thorn among the roses.
Something -- when you played -- in the very opening segment, you played a sound bite of Senator Edwards' speech today. He's such a good speaker. But there was something, as a former speechwriter for many years, there was something that caught my ear. He kept in his refrain saying, there is one man who can unite the party. There is one man who can bring fundamental change.
And I kept thinking to myself, there's only one man in the race. And note to Edwards' speechwriters, say candidate or Democrat or something.
BROWN: Right.
BEGALA: There's a little whiff of -- a little unconscious, subconscious whiff of sexism in there, or am I just overthinking this?
(CROSSTALK)
BROWN: All right, Gloria, yes, no?
BORGER: I don't think so. I actually noticed something else in the speech. He was speaking and suddenly he was interrupted with cheers about Obama. And he kind of looked around like, oh, I'm used to them saying Edwards.
And it was sort of this interesting, interesting moment for me, where he was giving this speech at a huge rally that wasn't his own. And I think that must be tough.
BROWN: You have to wonder, for all of them, I mean, what they're going through right now, even seeing Hillary Clinton today dialing it back and not being on the attack. It's hard to sort of -- to be in that secondary role now.
But let me ask you, Leslie. Edwards did make a point in his speech of also reaching out to Hillary Clinton. And when he did, there were a few boos from the crowd I think that you heard. But is this the beginning? Are we beginning to see more generally the coming together of the Democratic Party? Has the healing finally begun?
SANCHEZ: No, I don't think so. I think part of that is kind of conciliatory language. It's part of what you say when you're the front-runner and when you want to be the leader in the party. It's the right message. It's the right tone, to trying to say, come on board.
But you have to remember, people are very emotional about this. You can't deny that a lot of Clinton voters want to see this played out. And I think the McAuliffe statement was exactly to that point.
And I think Paul also raise an important point about, it looks like they made amends. It was Edwards who was talking about all the 100 different times that Barack Obama voted present to some of the most significant issues facing him as a state legislator, partial- birth abortion, parental notification, pornography next to schools.
Those are really critical issues. I have a hard time believing he thinks it's OK now. So, there's more to this relationship than meets the eye.
(CROSSTALK)
BROWN: All right, guys, hang on. You are going to stay with us, I know.
But I want to bring in our own John King, who is at the magic board, to show us just how the delegate count is shifting rapidly and to explain what we should make of all that.
That's when we come right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: Barack Obama may have lost big in West Virginia last night, but he won John Edwards' endorsement today, and that could be huge.
We want to get right to chief national correspondent John King, who is with us at the magic board.
So, Hillary wins West Virginia, still a big win for her, which is sort of being overshadowed by all this talk about the endorsement. But show us what that means in terms of delegates or what it could mean.
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, here's what West Virginia meant for Senator Clinton. She did pick up some ground, still well behind, if you look, at 1,885 -- this is rough. We're still allocating a few delegates. But she is here. She gain a little bit of ground, a net gain of about 12 delegates in West Virginia.
So, you think, OK, progress. She needs a lot more than that, but at least it was progress. However, let's assume for the sake of argument, let's come over here, that all 19 of John Edwards' delegates go to Barack Obama. We're checking in with every one of them. That's their call. They don't automatically call.
But let's assume they go that way. Well, then this is what happens right here. Then Barack Obama picks up those 19 delegates right there. That gets him, Campbell, look, 1,903. The finish line is 20,25. He's 122 delegates from the finish line. What does that mean?
He only needs, of these remaining delegates -- let me clear the screen -- see this? This is what's left in the remaining contests, 239 superdelegates, about 188 pledged delegates. Barack Obama needs 29 percent, fewer than three in 10, to get to the nomination. So, he doesn't even have to -- he doesn't have to win any remaining primaries.
If he gets some superdelegates and 30 percent, 40 percent of the pledged delegates, he's the Democratic nominee. So, Clinton had a big win last night, but the math is so stacked against her. She's keeping at it. She says she's not going to quit, but this math is pretty daunting.
BROWN: Right.
OK. So, with that in mind, take us to the general election. Assume he's the nominee. He's up against McCain. Where are his toughest battles likely to be?
KING: The biggest question in Democratic Party circles right now is, is West Virginia a fluke or does Barack Obama have a potentially fatal flaw with white working-class voters and with older voters? Remember, older voters are going to Senator Clinton as well. And they're the most reliable voters.
So, we would start here in the general election. These are the number of electoral votes Bush got last time. That would be John Kerry last time. What the McCain camp thinks is, if he still has a problem with white working-class voters, they can pick up Pennsylvania. They can do some business out here in Wisconsin and Minnesota. They can probably keep this area right here and hold firm. So, look at that map. John McCain is way out here now. And John McCain thinks there are some other places, too. But let's assume we start there.
But Obama says it's, forget about it. I am going to get Colorado with my new young voters. I can play out here in New Mexico. I can play out here in Nevada. That gets him closer, but he's not quite there. The key for Barack Obama, can he get African-American turnout way up? Maybe that would get him Virginia, might put Georgia into play.
Then look where we are. We're very close. We're just one state. Can Barack Obama get old people back on his side, elderly Americans? That would pitch Florida and that would turn the election. So, we're going to look, Campbell, at the end of this, if Barack Obama starts fixing his problems, and essentially eight or 10 or 12 states, and turn them either way, and you change the winner.
BROWN: All right, John, it's going to be an interesting time, isn't it? All right. Appreciate it.
Senator Hillary Clinton sat down with our very own Wolf Blitzer earlier today and she made it clear she is not going anywhere. She is staying in the race. She was firm, resolute, proud of her win in West Virginia last night. But one question did make Senator Clinton choke up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's one of the most incredibly gratifying experiences of my life, as a person and as a mother. You're going to make me get very emotional.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: And we're going to tell you what that was about and a lot more coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: As part of a renewed and even more intense media blitz today, Hillary Clinton sat down for interviews with several news networks. Her overall message, that she is still in it to win it. But she had much more to say in her interview today with our own Wolf Blitzer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Let me get your reaction to the current issue of "TIME" magazine which you've probably seen. You see a cover like this and it says "And the Winner Is...", and you get a little asterisk, you know, what do you think when you see something like this?
CLINTON: I think it's a great picture of Barack.
(LAUGHTER)
CLINTON: You know what I think is that this is the closest election we've ever had, that anybody can remember. Each of us has brought millions of new people into the process.
I think I have now been privileged to receive the votes of 17 million Americans. And that's pretty much the same as Senator Obama.
The delegate race remains close. We have contests yet to go. People have been trying to end it. And the voters just won't let it happen.
BLITZER: So you're staying in at least through May 31 and June 3...
CLINTON: That's right.
BLITZER: ... which is the last -- you're not going anywhere.
CLINTON: I'm not going anywhere, Wolf...
BLITZER: All right.
CLINTON: ... except to Kentucky and Oregon, and Montana, South Dakota, and Puerto Rico.
BLITZER: And these remaining states.
Let's talk about an issue that's come up in this campaign, the issue of race in the campaign. You were widely quoted in that "USA Today" interview.
There was just an "A.P." article posted that found how Senator Obama's support among working, hard-working Americans, white Americans is weakening again and how, you know, whites in both states who have not completed college were supporting me. "I have a much broader base to build a winning coalition on."
Now, your great friend and supporter Congressman Charlie Rangel said -- and I'm quoting now -- "It's the dumbest thing you could have said."
CLINTON: Well, he's probably right.
BLITZER: Explain. He is? Well, explain.
CLINTON: Well, absolutely. Well, I was -- I was referencing an "A.P." article. And, you know, obviously, I have worked very hard to get the votes of everyone. And I have campaigned hard.
I understand that we've got to put together a broad coalition in order to win in the fall. We've got to get to that 270 electoral vote margin. And I know Senator Obama has worked hard to reach out to every community and constituency.
So I'm going to continue to do that. That's what I think is in the best interest of our party and that's how we will win in November.
BLITZER: At CNNPolitics.com, we invited people to submit a question to our I-Reporters. A couple came in that I want to play for you. Get your brief response. This was from someone named Billy Sutton (ph). He is a Clinton-supporter-turned-Obama-supporter. But watch this.
CLINTON: Mm-hmm.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Senator Clinton, I have a question for you. I was wondering, why do you believe that so many of your strongest Democratic supporters say that they would vote for Senator McCain over Senator Obama in the fall, if you were not to win the nomination?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: Well, I have heard that from both my supporters and Senator Obama's supporters.
BLITZER: Because the exit polls show that -- a big chunk of it.
CLINTON: Both his supporters and my supporters might stay home or not vote for the other, and I just have to say as strongly as I can, Billy, that that would be a terrible mistake. Anybody that has ever voted for me or voted for Barack has much more in common, in terms of what we want to see happen in our country and in the world, with the other than they do with John McCain.
So I'm going to work my heart out for whoever our nominee is. Obviously, I'm still hoping to be that nominee. But I'm going to do everything I can to make sure that anyone who supported me, the 17 million people who have voted for me, understand what a great error it would be not to vote for Senator McCain -- Senator Obama and against Senator McCain. And I know that Senator Obama has said he would do the same to campaign for me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: A bid for party unity, no matter who the nominee is. And listen to this next clip. This is when Wolf asks Senator Clinton about her daughter Chelsea's tireless work on the campaign trail.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: We have one final question, because we're out of time, and it involves your daughter, Chelsea.
I have been watching her since she was a little girl. She came to Washington back in '93, in the '92 campaign, and now she's a grown woman. And she's out there campaigning for you every single day. I think she's in Puerto Rico right now, and I know you talk to her every single day.
CLINTON: Right. Right.
BLITZER: And, you know, what goes through your mind when you -- when you have your own daughter out there, working as hard for you as she is?
CLINTON: Well, it's one of the most incredibly gratifying experiences of my life, as a person and as a mother. You're going to make me get very emotional. She is an exceptional person, and she's worked so hard, and she's done such a good job that I'm just filled with pride every time I look at her.
You know, obviously, you know, we are very close. We are in communication all the time. But, you know, she is doing this because she believes I'd be a good president, but also because she cares so much about our country's future. She did grow up in the White House. She knows what a difference a president makes. So she's doing it because she's my daughter, but she's doing it because, as she says, she's a young American who cares about our future.
BLITZER: And she's doing it because she loves you.
CLINTON: Absolutely.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Chelsea Clinton, a powerful campaign surrogate certainly, but more importantly, the daughter of who is making her mother very proud.
And turning to exit polling now from yesterday's Democratic primary in West Virginia. It raises four critical and difficult challenges for Barack Obama, and they involve the senator's trustworthiness, his values, Reverend Wright, whether voters will vote for him against John McCain. I'm going to ask the panel how he deals with those questions when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: With just five Democratic primaries left, yesterday's exit polling from West Virginia suggests Barack Obama has four major challenges with many Democrats. Roughly half of West Virginia Democrats say he's not honest and trustworthy, that he doesn't share their values, that he has the same views as his fiery former pastor, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, and about half say they won't vote for Obama come November.
So we want to dig into this with tonight's panel of top political observers. Democratic strategist Paul Begala, Republican strategist Leslie Sanchez, and CNN senior political analyst Gloria Borger.
And Gloria, let's look at the specifics of some of these numbers in these exit polls. Is Obama honest and trustworthy? Fifty-five percent said no. Does he share your values? Fifty-six percent said no. This is West Virginia.
BORGER: Right. BROWN: And how much of a problem is this?
BORGER: Well, you know, West Virginia was Barack Obama's worst nightmare, right? I mean, it does not have the voters that he's used to getting. So these are not his constituencies.
Having said that, I think you have to look at these numbers, and you say that Barack Obama has some work to do. A lot of American voters don't really know him well. They don't know who he is. He hasn't been on the national scene for very long.
They believe some things about him. There was a focus group the other day done by Peter Hart in which independent voters believed that he was a Muslim and not a Christian. So he's got a lot of work to do to introduce himself to the American people, to talk about his values. And I think that is where, by the way, John Edwards could help him out, and Hillary Clinton could help him out if he's the nominee.
BROWN: You know, Paul, in terms of the work he has to do, he has been doing a bit of an image makeover these days. He's been wearing, for example, his American flag pin, which wouldn't be a big deal, except that he had made such a point of explaining why he wasn't going to wear one. Then recently, the campaign sent out a flyer touting Christian values, you know, with a cross in the background, spelling out exactly what -- or spell out, if you will, for us exactly what you think they are trying to do here and whether it will work.
BEGALA: Well, it won't work unless it's authentic and I don't know Senator Obama well, but I know him well enough to tell you it is authentic. He's a person of real faith. You can read his books. You could see how he conducts his life and the remarkable journey he's had and the family he's built.
He's clearly a person of faith, and he's a man who first grew up without a father and without a faith. And so, it came to that faith in a very, very powerful way as an adult and he's expressing that on the campaign trail.
Again, I didn't vote for him in the primaries, but I think that he needs to do as Gloria says, he needs to out and show that. Part of the problem is that Democrats in the past have been very reluctant to show their spirituality.
I think Bill Clinton was certainly open about it. Jimmy Carter was open about it, but a whole lot of Democrats like Senator Kerry, who is a very faithful person, very strong religious faith, didn't like talking about it and closed up about it.
I think Senator Obama is more comfortable opening up. Now, I think he has work to do, but I don't think it's mission impossible at all. I think people -- if he goes out there and shows that side of himself, we'll see that those religious values he has resonate with the political values he has, of unity, but also of caring about the poor, of empowerment.
I mean, so much of the Christian message. Jesus said I come to preach good news to the poor. And I think Senator Obama can match up with that very, very well. If I were advising him, I'd say you're doing exactly the right thing on this.
BROWN: Well, Leslie, let me throw another number at you. One of the scariest numbers possibly of the night may have been that 51 percent of voters, I think that's right, out of West Virginia again, said that Obama shares the views of Reverend Wright, even though he's publicly denounced Wright several times now. Wright's pretty much been out of the news for the last few weeks. Why is this issue still hung on so much? And what else can he do to make it go away?
SANCHEZ: Well, Reverend Wright has contributed to that problem, and I would say Hillary Clinton, that's one of the successes of this campaign is she's managed to raise not only her own negatives, but Barack Obama's as well. That's just a fair point.
I think, you know, what's interesting, he starts his campaign by saying, he is a very charismatic orator, very charismatic, likable candidate who says, you know, you can put your ideas and your hopes upon him. But at the same time, a lot of people didn't know what he was. I called him at one point the Etch-A-Sketch candidate, because you could turn it all over and he was something else.
BROWN: Right.
SANCHEZ: This Reverend Wright issue is one of those issues that haunts people. I don't think he spent enough time in West Virginia to really downplay those concerns and that's the bigger point, they don't know him.
And in the point about the cross and kind of that ad, it reminds me of the Huckabee ad. There was a lot of questions, you know. There was an ad where it looked like there was a cross and it was a window pane.
BROWN: Yes.
SANCHEZ: Are these efforts politically motivated? That's what causes trouble among independents or swing voters because why is he doing it now?
(CROSSTALK)
BROWN: If they don't do it to compensate.
OK, guys, hold on. We are going to talk to the panel once more a little bit later, but I bet you're not going to recognize this next guy. He is very important, though. Take a look.
What he's just done has just about every Republican on Capitol Hill worried, and we're going to tell you why coming up in just a minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: You know, we've been focused on the presidential race for months now. But in November, one-third of the U.S. Senate and every seat in the House of Representatives will also be up for grabs. And something that happened last night in a reliably Republican part of northern Mississippi says a lot about the mood of the country right now. A lot about Barack Obama, and a lot about Republican prospects this fall.
Here now, David Mattingly.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The energy here is electric and a huge shock to Republicans.
TRAVIS CHILDERS (D), MISSISSIPPI CONGRESSMAN-ELECT: They can have all the big guns. I'll take you anytime.
MATTINGLY: Mississippi Democrat Travis Childers rocketed from a county clerk's office to the U.S. Congress and turned one of the reddest districts in the country a new shade of blue, and he did it with a message ripped right out of the GOP playbook.
REP. ROY BLUNT (R), MINORITY WHIP: You had him talking about cutting taxes, having less spending, being pro-gun and pro-life. That's the guy that won.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, CAMPAIGN AD)
NARRATOR: Travis Childers endorsed by liberal Barack Obama.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MATTINGLY: Republicans tried to link the conservative Childers to Barack Obama. Many believe this TV ad tried to push racial buttons.
OBAMA: They ran ads with my face on it. They were trying to do every trick in the book to try to scare folks in Mississippi. And it didn't work.
MATTINGLY (on-camera): Did you feel like at any time that you might have been running against Barack Obama in this race?
CHILDERS: I felt more like I was running against the president and the vice president and many others.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): In fact, Vice president Cheney flew here Monday, the day before the election, and tried to link Childers to House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, but that didn't work either.
MERLE BLACK, SOUTHERN POLITICAL EXPERT: That type of district would be considered one of the safest Republican seats in the entire country. So it's a huge loss to the Republicans, and it may be an indication that they're in for a really terrible year.
MATTINGLY: It's the second time in two weeks Republicans lost an open seat in the south. Tom Cole, whose job is to help the GOP win congressional races, warned candidates to be prepared to fight Democrats running as conservatives.
MATTINGLY (on-camera): The next challenge Cole describes is reaching the voters that he says are pessimistic about the direction of the country and the party. It may be the biggest lesson learned here in Mississippi. He says if Republicans want to win, they have to show voters something new, and they have to do it fast.
JIM HERRIN, CHMN., MISS. REPUBLICAN PARTY: We will just simply not allow the Democrat to run on Republican principles and say that party makes no difference.
MATTINGLY ((voice-over): And even in victory, Childers seemed to distance himself when Obama offered this pat on the back for bringing about real change.
He sees a lot of national significance in this.
CHILDERS: Oh, well, he's a national figure. I'm not.
MATTINGLY: And the fight is hardly over. Remember, this was a special election. Childers, the winner, is only guaranteed six months in office. And yet both parties spent a million each here before they have at it again for the November general election.
David Mattingly, CNN, Booneville, Mississippi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN: In a moment, we'll have the latest on the killer earthquake in China. This is just some of the stunning new video showing the moment that the earth began to shake. We're going to have more on that when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: Even after Hillary Clinton's landslide victory in West Virginia, Barack Obama still leads the official CNN delegate count. He's got 1,600 pledged delegates, 284 superdelegates, for a total of 1,884. Clinton's got 1,445 pledged delegates, 273 superdelegates, a total of 1,718. Obama now needs 142 delegates to clinch the nomination.
Still ahead, John McCain explores environmental politics. I'm going to look at the stagecraft behind his back to nature trip.
But first, Tom Foreman's joining me now with "The Briefing" -- Tom.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Campbell. We begin with new video of the China earthquake as it happened. A tourist shot these amazing pictures of the moment the quake hit in southern China. The official death toll is now close to 15,000. Thousands more are still trapped in the rubble. In one city alone, more than 30,000 people are described as missing or out of reach.
On Capitol Hill, actor Dennis Quaid emotionally told a House Committee how his newborn twins nearly died from an overdose of the blood thinner heparin. Quaid wants Congress to let him sue the drug manufacturer. Under current law, drug makers cannot be sued in state court over any product that is FDA approved.
And Jim McGreevey takes the stand in his divorce trial. The former New Jersey governor who resigned after an alleged affair with a male staff member testified he and wife Dina agreed to co-write a book about their split-up. Then they had a fight so she then vowed to write her own book. Dina Matos McGreevey is seeking damages saying she was duped into marrying a gay man.
There's the news, Campbell, and that's quite a divorce case.
BROWN: Salty stuff, Tom. Thank you.
There is much more politics ahead tonight. "LARRY KING LIVE" is coming up at the top of the hour. John King sitting in for Larry King. John, what do you have?
KING: Campbell, much more on what is the talk of the political world today. John Edwards, of course, endorsing Barack Obama. Two men who know a thing or two about the peaks and valleys of running for president will tell us what they think. Michael Dukakis and Bill Bradley, among the guests right her on "LARRY KING LIVE" at the top of the hour, Campbell.
BROWN: OK, John, we'll see you then. Thanks.
And when we come back, John McCain stumps for the green vote. His campaign can control everything except one thing -- the weather. "Stagecraft" just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: John McCain has been going green this week, making stops to point out what he calls his long-standing significant, deep differences with President Bush on the environment. And it takes some interesting campaign stagecraft to make his point.
Tom Foreman is back with me now. And Tom, just how is John McCain showing us that he cares about the environment?
FOREMAN: Well, if you're a political animal in Washington, D.C. and you're going to talk about how good you'll be for the environment, what better thing to do than go 2,700 miles away to Washington State, a key election battleground at the Cedar River Watershed, a beautiful place.
The problem is, when McCain headed out here for a photo op, though, the environment was just not cooperating. It didn't just rain on his parade, it poured. Look at this.
He ended up being hemmed up for the longest time out here on this porch of this building they rented there, with people jammed all along the edges there. There's Dana Bash standing right over there. And there were stuck here for the longest time. They paid about $2,000 for this property to do this, but this wasn't what they really wanted even though they stood there. They needed him out with trees and moss and the Cascade Mountains in the background.
So he gets off the porch and he goes walking around a little bit. Now you can see, even with all the rain falling over here, getting a little bit closer, Campbell, to what they're after.
BROWN: And definitely, Tom, the moment that you want to ditch that senatorial suit and tie, I'm assuming.
FOREMAN: Yes.
BROWN: He looks pretty good in the outfit.
FOREMAN: Yes, they got that part right. And notice that in all of his appearances when you see this happen. Look, check, got the outdoor jacket. Check, got the jeans. Check, got the sneakers. Check, got the baseball cap.
Not the normal look, but they know that sells because that says I'm an outdoorsy kind of guy. Anyway, what happens out here is the rain just keeps on pouring down everywhere and they take off into the woods, because the PR flaks (ph) are trying to get the photographers positioned right. They're trying to get everybody where they want.
People rushing everywhere, you go over here, and you go over here, you go over here. I don't know who you are. They had people running through the woods, getting them behind trees. And then, finally, for all of that -- bingo. There it is.
BROWN: The shot.
FOREMAN: The image they were after. These pictures made it on to CNN's Web site, newspapers all over. It took a lot of stagecraft, Campbell, but it came out looking as easy as a walk in the woods.
BROWN: I've got to say, Tom, the photographers in the woods, that was like a scene out of "Star Wars."
FOREMAN: Oh, yes.
BROWN: Well done. Good stuff.
FOREMAN: If you're stuck on the truck and start drying your shoes out.
BROWN: All right. Tom Foreman with us tonight. Tom, thanks.
In just a moment, I'm going to ask our political panel if McCain really has enough green to make it pay off in November.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: As you heard, John McCain is showing his green side, hoping to grab the attention of independent voters. Is it likely to work? I am back with tonight's panel, Democratic strategist Paul Begala, Republican strategist Leslie Sanchez and CNN senior political analyst Gloria Borger.
Paul, as Tom Foreman just told us about John McCain, he's out on these wilderness tours, talking about the environment, working hard for those independents. Do you think any of this stuff is breaking through?
BEGALA: You know, I don't know. I don't really think so because it is just phony. It's what the environmental movement calls greenwashing, where corporations like ExxonMobil or politicians like John McCain try to pretend that they're friends of the environment, try to fool people.
A lot of it will depend on the Democrats answering it. A lot of it will also depend on the rigor of the media. You know, the press is very pro-McCain.
(CROSSTALK)
BROWN: But McCain does have --
BEGALA: And yet McCain has --
BROWN: ... a fairly decent record on the environment.
BEGALA: See, see. Here's an example.
BROWN: Look, I'm just saying if you're an environmentalist, if you're part of that community, and you compare his record to some other Republicans, you would definitely give him a higher rating, wouldn't you?
BEGALA: The nonpartisan, nonprofit League of Conservation Voters, which rates all the politicians in Washington gives John McCain a lifetime rating of 27.
BROWN: Paul --
BEGALA: They give Obama and Clinton a lifetime rating of 86. But we in the press, because we're in love with John McCain, we're so biased, we all say oh, he's so good on the environment.
(CROSSTALK)
BORGER: Paul --
I was in New Hampshire with John McCain in the winter when he was talking about global warming. So, you know, this is someone who's been talking about this for a while. Sure, it's a way for him to distance himself from Bush, but I don't think you can say that he doesn't believe it.
SANCHEZ: No.
BEGALA: I'd say he has a 27 rating. He talks the talk, but he doesn't walk the walk.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Look how much higher that is than other Republicans, Paul. But to be fair, I mean, don't you remember, I think it was 2000 when he was in the Red Rocks of Sedona, when he was announcing that. I know he and Cindy McCain were out there announcing, I think, their presidential run.
I mean, he's always been very conscious of the environment. I think he's been a contrarian to much of the Republican platform when people thought that Republicans didn't care about the environment. I think he stood his ground there, and he's got a platform moving forward and that's the distinct difference with his campaign.
BORGER: And, you know, it also helps not only with those independent voters but it helps with evangelical voters. This may be one area where John McCain and evangelical Christians can unite, and that is on the environment.
BROWN: And, Paul, go ahead. You get the last word. It has been an issue that you are hearing evangelicals talk about global warming certainly in a way that they hadn't before.
BEGALA: Yes, and evangelicals -- I don't know why I can't talk tonight. I haven't even had a beer yet, but the evangelicals believe in the commandment that says, Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor, right? That they shall not bear false witness. He's bearing false witness here.
SANCHEZ: No, Paul --
BEGALA: His campaign is run by lobbyists for oil companies. His campaign is chaired by lobbyists for the Saudi Arabian oil family.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: That's the same criticism that every PAC for Barack Obama that he had all these federal lobbyists and he was taking PAC money. I mean, let's --
BEGALA: This guy is an environmental fraud.
SANCHEZ: No, not at all. And also, politically these states in the west and the pacific northwest are very concerned about the environment. I'd add that the Hispanic vote, you know, like a lot of Hispanic voters look holistically at the environment and that's also going to be critical on top of mind for them.
BROWN: All right, guys. We got to end it there. But I want to thank our panel tonight, Paul Begala, Leslie Sanchez and Gloria Borger, who's here with us in New York, as always.
BROWN: Paul, go have that beer. That does it for us. That's it from the ELECTION CENTER.
"LARRY KING LIVE" with John King starts right now.
