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American Morning
Michelle Obama on Being Future First Lady; Joe Biden's Background; Gustav Tears Through Caribbean
Aired August 28, 2008 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: It's crossing the top of the hour and coming to you live from INVESCO Field at Mile High in Denver. Senator Barack Obama is going to close out the Democratic Convention tonight. He will accept the party's nomination for president, becoming the first African-American to be nominated by a major political party.
More than 70,000 people expected to show up tonight. And setting up seats for everyone was no easy feat. Take a look at this, time- lapse video of the convention production team installing the floor, the stage, the chairs, television production equipment, all in preparation for tonight's big speech.
Well, any concerns that the Democratic Party would splinter last night were quickly put to rest after a rousing old-style roll call of the states brought to a close by Senator Hillary Clinton.
Here's CNN's Jessica Yellin with that story.
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kiran, John, Democrats wake up happy this morning after a night that many here in Denver say brought the party together.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
YELLIN (voice-over): The night started with a show of unity when Hillary Clinton called for a unanimous vote for Obama.
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: I move Senator Barack Obama of Illinois be selected by this convention by acclamation as the nominee of the Democratic Party for president of the United States.
YELLIN: Later, her husband brought the crowd to its feet. He showed up his critics delivering an impassion endorsement of Obama, drawing parallels to his own candidacy 16 years ago.
WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Together we prevailed in a hard campaign in which the Republicans said I was too young and too inexperienced to be commander in chief.
(APPLAUSE)
Sound familiar? It didn't work in 1992 because we were on the right side of history. And it will not work in 2008 because Barack Obama is on the right side of history.
YELLIN: The theme of the night was national security. Vice presidential nominee Joseph Biden, a man with considerable foreign policy experience, stepped into the spotlight and hit Senator John McCain hard on foreign policy judgment.
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: As we gather here tonight our country's less secure and more isolated than it has been any time in recent history. The Bush foreign policy has dug us into a very deep hole with very few friends to help us climb out.
YELLIN: It was a crowd pleaser, propped only by the night's biggest surprise.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I just wanted to come out here for a little -- a little something to say.
YELLIN: The new nominee made it clear the party is putting old divisions to rest.
B. OBAMA: If I'm not mistaken, Hillary Clinton rocked the house last night.
YELLIN: A message this crowd seemed relieved to hear.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
YELLIN: The biggest challenge is next when Barack Obama addresses more than 75,000 people tonight with a speech that's supposed to woo undecideds, make skeptics believers and energize supporters for the rough fight ahead -- Kiran, John.
ROBERTS: CNN's Jessica Yellin reporting for us this morning. And CNN senior political correspondent Candy Crowley is here with me now live in INVESCO Field.
Good morning. We did this all for you. I hope you like it.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Thank you so much. It's lovely.
ROBERTS: There was a big question, Candy, earlier this week whether or not, Bill Clinton was going to do enough to try to unify the party and really illuminate Barack Obama as the party's leader. Seemed he did that and more last night.
CROWLEY: He did that. And what was interesting is the complaint by some Democrats after Hillary Clinton was -- she never said he is ready to be commander in chief. She never vouched for him in that way. And I tell you what, Bill Clinton vouched for him in that way several times.
I mean, he said he's ready to be president so many times, I thought, OK, one more time and it looked like he does protests too much. But I mean, it really was a very strong endorsement where they wanted that endorsement. He can be commander in chief because as you know, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden had, of course, questioned and said he wasn't ready for this. So they felt the need, and who better than President Clinton -- former President Clinton. ROBERTS: As far as Joe Biden's speech went last night, he did some pretty aggressive comparing and contrasting with John McCain, particularly when he said I'm a friend of John McCain's -- intimated me -- it pains me to do this but I've got to hammer him on these issues.
But he also got a really touchy feely. He makes the daily Amtrak commute from Washington up to Wilmington, and he goes by all these houses and he said he thought he knew what was going on at the kitchen table or imagined. Let's listen to what he said about that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: I can almost hear the conversation they're having at their kitchen tables after they put their kids to bed. Like millions in America, they're asking questions as -- as ordinary as they are profound, questions they never ever thought they would have to ask themselves.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: So some analysts suggested that this wasn't the most dynamic speech but it did seem to connect.
CROWLEY: It does. And this is why they hired Joe Biden. They want him to take this kitchen table issue -- gas prices, home mortgages, that kind of thing, to these working class areas. He speaks with authenticity. In many ways, Joe Biden grounds this ticket.
There's so much electricity around Barack Obama that, as you know, the Republicans are going after him as sort of an empty suit with great speeches. Joe Biden brings this ticket to where people live. And that's what he did last night.
ROBERTS: Kind of grounds him. We'll see how that works going forward. I can bet we're going to hear the word malarkey a lot as well. Candy Crowley, thanks very much.
Let's take a quick, sweeping look for you here at INVESCO Field at Mile High. This is the scene tonight of Barack Obama's acceptance speech as he accepts the nomination of the Democratic Party. You can see the delegation from South Carolina going to be sitting there.
He's got a little bit of a theater in the round there. The stage comes out on to the field. And then this interesting little piece of architecture here that looks like almost an ancient Greek temple, which has got Republicans sort of giving him a little bit of grief about.
But the Obama campaign pointing out that President Bush had columns in his 2004 acceptance speech in New York. Senator Obama is going to be the second presidential candidate to accept the nomination outdoors. Here's more in an "A.M. Extra" for you.
JFK did it first back in 1960 at the L.A. Coliseum in front of an estimated 80,000 people. INVESCO Field holds 76,000 people, not counting sits that could be put on the field. Obama's speech is also on the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech.
What would Michelle Obama do as first lady? The candidate's wife talks about her priorities in my one-on-one interview.
Biden's background.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Did anybody count on the utter incompetence of this administration?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Mary Snow goes beyond the resume and breaks down the could be VP's record.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The base of the Democratic Party is not happy about Joe Biden voting to authorize the war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Send the kids to college, how are we going to retire, Joe? You know, folks, that's the America that George Bush has left us, and that's the America that we'll continue to get if George -- excuse me, if John McCain is elected president of the United States of America. Freudian slip. Freudian slip.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: The Democrats' vice presidential nominee Senator Joe Biden last night, focusing on what he says are the anxieties of the working class, the economy. But his real forte, foreign policy. And parts of his record could prove awkward for Barack Obama.
CNN's Mary Snow joins me now with details on that.
Hey, Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there, Kiran.
You know, no doubt that his vast foreign policy experience is certainly an asset on the Obama ticket. But when it comes to Iraq, Senators Obama and Biden weren't in lock step on everything.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): When it comes to foreign policy experience, Senator Barack Obama has stressed judgment, citing his opposition to the Iraq war. He strongly criticized Senator Clinton during the primaries for her 2002 vote to authorize the war. Senator Joe Biden cast the same vote as Clinton, and that, says CNN political analyst, David Gergen, has brought critics.
DAVID GERGEN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: In the left, the base of the Democratic Party, is not happy about Joe Biden voting to authorize the war. And at the same time, the conservatives are going to come at him for voting against the surge.
SNOW: Biden was outspoken against the administration's Iraq policy and staunchly opposed the surge.
BIDEN: Did anybody count on the utter incompetence of this administration when they were giving the authority they were given.
SNOW: Biden's experience, which includes being the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has won him praise among foreign policy experts.
MICHAEL O'HANLON, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: He's creative. He's willing to put out new ideas and, I guess you could say, he's willing to be wrong at times.
SNOW: In 2006, Biden proposed a plan to divide Iraq into three separate regions, similar to what was done in Bosnia. But the Iraq plan failed to gain ground and Iraqi politicians are still critical of it. But --
O'HANLON: At that time, it was a very reasonable alternative to develop. And I think he used his position in the Congress very effectively to inject a new idea.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: And one foreign policy area where Biden and Obama are in sync is the need to build alliances around the world. Kiran, we heard Joe Biden talk about that last night. We also heard him frame his debate about judgment, saying whose judgment would you trust -- Barack Obama or John McCain.
CHETRY: Mary Snow, thanks.
SNOW: Sure.
CHETRY: Senator Biden was introduced last night by his son Bo, Delaware's Attorney General. Bo said he won't be able to make the campaign trail or be at his father's side in November. And the reason is because he's also a captain in a National Guard unit scheduled to ship out for Iraq in October.
Michelle's mission --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Have you got a signature issue that you'd like to make your own?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Her plan if she makes it to the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHELLE OBAMA, WIFE OF SEN. BARACK OBAMA: There's more that we need to do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: One-on-one with the woman who could be the next first lady. You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: A live shot this morning of INVESCO Field at Mile High where tonight Black Eyed Peas front-man Will.I.Am will be performing. He is expected to recreate the viral video "Yes We Can," which you might remember he produced after Senator Obama's win in New Hampshire.
75,000 people expected in the house tonight when Senator Obama formally accepts his party's nomination for president.
I had the chance to sit down one-on-one with Michelle Obama and asked her, "If she becomes first lady would she focus on a particular policy issue?"
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
M. OBAMA: I am not the policy person. I mean, my whole background has really been in program development and taking on issues like service. So, I don't see myself taking on a significant policy role. I think that if I can be a voice around a set of issues, work, family balance -- making sure that we're aware of the challenges that families are facing in this economy.
I think that's the role that I can play, giving people an ear to the president. Because when I hear these stories, believe me, you know, when I talk about my day, I'm going back to Barack and saying, did you know that I talked to a woman who put herself through school and is doing everything that she needs to, but is so in debt in terms of her loans that she can't support her family.
You know, those are the kind of stories that connect with me and when Barack hears those, it makes it real. It makes him understand why the policies he's fighting for will make a difference.
ROBERTS: We have seen you in private moments with him soccer games, for example. You playfully give him a bit of a hard time. You know, slap him around a little bit. Would you do that as first lady?
M. OBAMA: You know, I don't think that our lives as a family, you know, how we interact changes --
ROBERTS: No, I mean, would you do that on a level of -- counseling him as president or putting your two cents in? Would you get tough with him?
M. OBAMA: Well, you know, I don't know if tough is the word. But I definitely would, you know, let him know if I liked what he was doing or didn't. I mean, I think I've always done that. And I think that, you know, it's part of, you know, our relationship. We talk to each other about the things that we do and about the things that we care about. So, that would probably continue.
ROBERTS: A long and difficult primary process preceded this. And recent CNN Opinion Research Corporation Poll found that people who supported Hillary Clinton, 27 percent of them say they would support John McCain. It's actually an increase of 11 points since the end of June. What would you say to those people now heading into the general election campaign?
M. OBAMA: You know, I think Hillary Clinton said it best last night. There's a lot at stake. I think she gave a phenomenal speech and she has been a tremendous support to me and Barack. She's been on the campaign trail. I think she said it best. We don't have time to waste and we need a Democrat in the White House. We need somebody who can inspire people. And she is throwing her support behind Barack Obama because she knows he's going to be the person that can move this country.
And I think that the more that we say that, the more that we have our surrogates, the more people get to know us and get to know Barack and understand his policies and they see the contrast. I think those numbers will move.
But in addition, we're also pulling in an amazing number of new voters. I think probably for every voter who is a little concerned or anxious, I probably talked to a few who have never voted before, who have never registered before, who have never gotten involved in a political campaign. People who are -- lived in other countries and are getting their citizenship here because they feel a passion for this campaign.
So I think, you know, we're going to be pleasantly surprised by the impact of those new numbers, young voters, who have never gotten engaged before. So, you know, I think that we don't know and we haven't known, we haven't been able to predict this race because this has been a very different race. It's been a very -- this is a very different time in our country, when there's so much at stake. And I think people are reacting in ways that we haven't seen before. And I think that we'll see a lot of that excitement continue on through November.
ROBERTS: Michelle, it's great to catch up with you again.
M. OBAMA: Thank you.
ROBERTS: It's been a long time. We hope to see more of you over the next nine weeks.
M. OBAMA: All right. Thank you.
ROBERTS: Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: And just a little more insight into the type of person that she is. She was there in Curtis Park here in Denver for a community service morning where they were packing up care packages for military families. She gave a little bit of a speech. There were some military families in the audience. And as she worked the rope line, she gave out as many hugs as she did handshakes.
The superdelegate who tried to sell his vote for $20 million. Wait until you hear why and did he have any takers. And Joe Biden criticizing the GOP handling of Iraq and Iran last night, but did he offer anything new. We'll have the answers for you, straight ahead.
Show time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OPHRA WINFREY, BARACK OBAMA SUPPORTER: I feel that now is the time for me to use my voice --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Will the queen of daytime make a primetime appearance in Denver? Alina Cho looks at the Oprah/Obama connection.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Having Oprah Winfrey as a political friend is a very good thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
W. CLINTON: The Republicans said I was too young and too inexperienced to be commander in chief. Sound familiar? It didn't work in 1992 because we were on the right side of history. And it will not work in 2008 because Barack Obama is on the right side of history.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Well, former President Clinton saying that Barack Obama is on the right side of history. Having already made history last night, Obama is now looking to a key voting bloc to ensure more history come November. And next, the Latino vote. Our next guest once offered to sell his superdelegate vote for $20 million to help get more Latino voters out to the polls. California superdelegate Steven Ybarra joins me now.
Was it PR stunt? You weren't really looking to sell your vote but you never had any takers now, did you?
STEVEN YBARRA, OBAMA SUPPORTER: Well, I started about six years ago talking about the importance of the Latino vote and earmarking money for our efforts. The DNC earmarks money for African-American voters, for women voters, for young voters but they have never earmark money for Latino voters.
The result is they keep losing elections. And you know the definition of insanity and so are your listeners. The plan is that all throughout the meetings I will continue to say give us a budget, give us a plan.
ROBERTS: And you were looking for $20 million. And it just so happened that this week the Democratic National Committee and the Obama campaign announced that Hispanic Voter Outreach Program totaling some $20 million. They said it had nothing to do with me.
YBARRA: Clearly had nothing to do with me, Mr. Roberts. You know, I mean, I had no part in this whatsoever. Of course, when (INAUDIBLE) made the presentation on the Latino vote yesterday with his $20 million, he said -- of course, Steven Ybarra has been talking about this for years. So, I don't know. You know, you can do the math on that part.
ROBERTS: Are you satisfied with the amount of money now? Are you satisfied with the plan that they've got?
YBARRA: I'm satisfied with the plan. We're about $20 million short of what we really need to be doing. We need to be spending between $5 million and $6 million a year on this population every year for the last four years just to maintain being even. We've gone from 79 percent Democratic vote to 63 percent Democratic vote in the last 12 years.
ROBERTS: Right.
YBARRA: And the result is, is that the Republicans win.
ROBERTS: And President Bush won the Latino vote in 2004. John Kerry lost. Barack Obama right now polling about 66 percent than John McCain's 33 percent, is that enough, do you think to take Senator Obama over the top?
YBARRA: No, no. He's got to have 70 percent to go over the top. If you're at 66 percent, you know, you're half a quart shy of being full. This is the one percent race. This is a race about Nevada. It's a race about Reno, Nevada. It's a race about Pueblo (ph), Arizona. It's a race about Homestead, Florida. And it's a race about Taos, New Mexico.
ROBERTS: Key setters of Hispanic voters that could turn the entire results of the state.
YBARRA: Yes. The Mexican-American voter is the key in this election. We're the key for a lot of reasons. You know, the Puerto Rican voters in New York are going to carry New York. But we have a whole series of different issues that people don't take a look at. Fortunately now we got Joe Biden on there because he's Catholic. He's going to make a big difference in terms of our vote. It's the same kind of thing that he will be able to go to our Lady of Guadalupe Church for the next 58 days. So, that's going to be helpful.
ROBERTS: Well, even if it had nothing to do with you, Steven, it looks like they're getting out there and they try to court the Hispanic --
YBARRA: I'm happy with the outcome. I'm very, very happy with the outcome.
ROBERTS: Always important on both sides of the political fence to get as many people out to vote as possible. Steven, it's great to talk to you.
YBARRA: My pleasure, sir. Thank you very much.
ROBERTS: Thanks for dropping by.
YBARRA: Yes, bye, bye.
ROBERTS: Crossing the half hour now, we're coming to you live this morning from INVESCO Field at Mile High in Denver. Senator Barack Obama will close out the Democratic Convention tonight. Will he accept the party's nomination for president? Becoming the first African-American to be nominated by a major political party. More than 70,000 people expected to show up tonight.
And making room for everyone was no easy feat. And moving the production facility wasn't easy either. Here's some time-lapse photography of the production crew installing the floor, the stage, the chairs, all of the television equipment, all in preparation for tonight's big speech.
And it's pretty safe to say, Kiran, that there are a lot of people here in INVESCO Field who haven't slept for a couple of days.
CHETRY: I was going to say that may be time-lapse but that's probably how fast they felt they were moving in real time as they scrambled to do that within just a couple of hours when a set-up like that could normally take weeks. I'm speaking about the camera crews and members of the media that had to quickly shift from Pepsi Center over to INVESCO Field for tonight's big speech.
Well, last night it was his number two. Senator Joe Biden accepting the vice presidential nomination in front of a cheering convention. Biden used his speech to talk up the party platform and to tear down rival John McCain.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BIDEN: Barack Obama knows that any country that out teaches us today will out-compete us tomorrow. That's why he'll invest in the next generation of teachers, and why he'll make college more affordable. That's the change we need.
Barack Obama will bring down health care costs by $2,500 for the average family, and, at long last, deliver affordable, accessible health care for every Americans.
Now, after six long years, the administration and the Iraqi government are on the verge of setting a date to bring our troops home. John McCain was wrong. And Barack Obama was right.
Again -- again, and again, on the most important national security issues of our time, John McCain was wrong, and Barack Obama has been proven right.
These are extraordinary times. This is an extraordinary election. The American people are ready. I'm ready. Barack Obama is ready. This is his time. This is our time. This is America's time.
God bless America and may God protect our troops. Thank you very much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: And after his speech Barack Obama came out on stage to greet the delegates. And this was his first appearance at the convention. People were very excited about that. You know, we just saw Joe Biden hitting his rival hard on national security issues. But what did Biden offer last night in terms of foreign policy? Here to help us take a critical look is CNN's Baghdad correspondent Michael Ware. He just got back as well from the Republic of Georgia and gives us his perspective.
Thanks for being with us. You know, it's interesting because there are things that just sort of become a roll off the tongue as you're covering the conventions and the debates and really the race in itself. And a lot of people have said these foreign policy credentials of Joe Biden, how is that playing though with some of the foreign leaders that you've talk to in terms of whether or not he has the right ideas for big things like Iran and Iraq?
MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, ideas are not -- their relative value of his policies are not, is at least one thing that I know that assuages foreign leaders and foreign governments. They know Joe Biden. He's a known quantity to them. So agree, disagree with an American policy is assisting say a particular nation, it doesn't matter. At least they know what they're getting. They know that they can engage.
CHETRY: They don't want any surprises.
WARE: Well, I'm sure Senator Biden or Vice president Biden should that happen will always have a surprise or two up his sleeve. But nonetheless, he's a known player, he's been around the block, and he's someone that people can confidently feel they can engage with. And like I bumped into him in Pakistan, in Baghdad --
CHETRY: He's been around.
WARE: -- and in Georgia, so he's been around almost as much as we have.
CHETRY: Two interesting things though. He loudly criticized Bush's foreign policy in Iraq. He was against the surge.
WARE: Yes.
CHETRY: And he also was for -- he put forth this plan of partitioning Iraq. Those are two things that haven't really turned out to be something that Iraq was into, either partitioning or drawing down troops at a time they felt they needed more.
WARE: Right. So he's always had his view of what should happen in Iraq. Now, some of his policies, you could eagerly debate. And like last night in his speech, I guess a political convention is not the place where you expect to hear detail, but I was struck by the fact that there was nothing with regard to the foreign policy issues that was new or gave us any more sense of where this ticket will be going. I mean, to say that, yes, Senator Obama was right and McCain was wrong, Obama was right and McCain was wrong. But then not to say, well, here is something new.
For example, saying I would love to hear, right, we're going to draw down our troops but we know that that has made Iran stronger, that we know that we have terrified our Arab allies and we know that we left the Sunnis vulnerable in Iraq, who we've built into a militia and now, once we leave, we'll make them more vulnerable again to al Qaeda. But this is how we'll manage that. That's what we didn't hear.
CHETRY: You want to hear more answers, more details about what happens after the withdrawal takes place.
WARE: Absolutely. Right. The focus is on getting the boys home. And look, who can blame anyone. But no one is talking about the consequences and no one is talking about how we'll fix that. So there's a price tag to bringing the boys home. Let's hear them talk about how we're going to pay that.
CHETRY: All right. Michael Ware, great to see you, always. Thanks.
WARE: So early. Thank you, Kiran.
CHETRY: It's not early. It's 8:30 East Coast.
WARE: It doesn't feel like it
CHETRY: We're more than two and a half hours. Michael, thanks.
WARE: Thank you.
CHETRY: He's a night owl. What can you do?
Well, John McCain meantime has chosen his running mate. He's expected to announce his choice tomorrow morning. But if Republicans decide to upstage Barack Obama they could reveal who it is sometime tonight. CNN's Ed Henry takes a look at McCain's short list which includes a former bitter rival.
ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: John, Kiran, John McCain is expected to announce his VP selection Friday. And Mitt Romney was saying all the right things in his last public tryout for the job.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Governor Mitt Romney.
HENRY (voice-over): Mitt Romney in the key swing state of Nevada, auditioning to be John McCain's running mate.
MITT ROMNEY (R), FMR. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We would all agree a few months ago about what the direction of our party ought to be but we sure agree now that, that John McCain needs to be the next president of the United States.
HENRY: He deflected questions about the job during an interview with CNN. But sure sounded like someone comfortable with being number two.
ROMNEY: I'm campaigning across the country to help John McCain get elected. My turn is over. I'm anticipating continuing to work for Senator McCain and his ticket until November and a victory, I sure hope. And so this is about him. It's not about me.
HENRY: Based on the reception he received from conservatives here, it's easy to see why he's high on McCain's short list. As a former businessman, he could complement McCain's national security credentials.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's really good on economic issues. I think he would be a strong vice presidential candidate.
HENRY: With the election so tight, McCain advisers privately say it's tantalizing to consider, Romney might deliver the 17 electoral votes of Michigan where his late father served as governor. But in the Republican primaries, McCain and Romney were bitter rivals.
ROMNEY: He voted twice against the Bush tax cuts. Only two Republicans did that.
HENRY: That question of chemistry is a big reason other contenders are still in the hunt for the veep slot, including 47-year- old Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty.
GOV. TIM PAWLENTY (R), MINNESOTA: Well, you see the difference between John McCain and Barack Obama it's not even a close call. HENRY: With two Senate insiders now on the Democratic ticket, McCain could benefit with a fresh-faced outsider. But Pawlenty could be too new as Republicans stress experience. McCain could highlight his maverick image and win some independents by tapping Joe Lieberman or Tom Ridge. Both of whom support abortion rights. But conservatives would be furious, which is why all eyes are back on Romney, who is trying to show he hit it off with McCain during a weekend together.
ROMNEY: I didn't realize he is such a great barbecue chef. I didn't know that he also, you know, just is with his family all the time, loves being with his kids. He had his two daughters and one of his sons who is on leave from the military there. He was a proud father. He could not get enough of his son.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY: Democrats say if Romney gets the nod, they'll make a big deal out of his wealth. But when I asked him how many homes he owns, Romney said four. "One less than John Kerry." So it's clear, he's ready to turn this around on Democrats. John, Kiran.
CHETRY: Ed Henry for us. Thanks.
And don't forget, live coverage of the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota, kicks off here on AMERICAN MORNING on Monday.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY (voice-over): On alert -
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody is panicking.
CHETRY: Tracking a killer storm as it churns toward the gulf.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're not trying to panic anyone but everybody should look at their plans and prepare.
CHETRY: The latest on Gustav. You're watching the most news in the morning.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Breaking news this morning. At least 23 are dead after Gustav tears through the Caribbean. This is new video. The damage left behind in Haiti. The hurricane triggered landslides and flooding wiping out homes before weakening into a tropical storm. Forecasters though say that Gustav could strike the gulf coast of the United States next week. Residents of New Orleans are preparing today on the eve of hurricane Katrina's third anniversary while Governor Bobby Jindal says his state is prepared. New Orleans's Mayor Ray Nagin is concerned about the levees.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR RAY NAGIN (D), NEW ORLEANS: Well, we are ready to evacuate. Now, the big question is, what shape are our levees in? After all the work that the corps of engineers has done, is it going to be sufficient enough to handle what is projected to be a category three? Right now it's poised and pointed toward the water.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Mayor Ray Nagin of New Orleans. Our Rob Marciano is tracking the storm from the hurricane center in Atlanta.
Rob, I was looking at the advisories overnight. And it looked like bad news for New Orleans. The track was taking as almost the same path as Hurricane Katrina. But the latest advisory, things are looking a little better.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN, METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Things are changing with each advisory, hour by hour. And the actual storm itself has shifted to the south a little bit. So keep in mind when we show you that three- to five-day track, there's a huge margin of error. So it's really important not to concentrate on any particular line. But right now, what we're concentrating on is this thing intensifying. Winds have jumped to 70 miles an hour.
So this is going to be a hurricane here in the next couple of hours. There's not much doubt about that. Here's the forecast track scooting across Jamaica. Cat one, cat one probably through tomorrow morning. Maybe through Saturday morning and getting into the Yucatan Channel and up into the Gulf of Mexico here Monday morning sometime. Likely as a major hurricane. At the very least it will be a cat two. And then what it does after that, we just don't know. It could go into the Florida panhandle. It could go into the upper Texas coastline. Obviously New Orleans is kind of in the middle of that cone.
But the margin of error, three- to five-day range is more like 300 miles. So keep that in mind. There's a little bit of silver lining there, John. We don't quite know exactly where it's going five days out. We'll try to get rid of it by then. But right now it's looking pretty strong.
ROBERTS: Yes. If it moves further westward, good news for New Orleans but good news for New Orleans is bad news for somebody else.
Rob, thanks so much for that.
MARCIANO: All right.
ROBERTS: Joe Biden seems to have big blue collar appeal but can he really relate? Former Congressman Ben Jones, "Cooter" from the "Dukes of Hazard" on how to win over the working class vote.
CHETRY: Roll call.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Barack Obama.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Barack Obama.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Jeanne Moos dives into the crowd for another unconventional moment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Barack Obama.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
W. CLINTON: Hillary told us in no uncertain terms that she is going to do everything she can to elect Barack Obama. That makes two of us. Actually, that makes 18 million of us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: There it was, the former president leave no doubt about the Clinton family's commitment to the Democratic nominee. And Barack Obama's choice of Joe Biden as his running mate could also help connect him with white working class voters. At least that's what they're hoping, who heavily favored Hillary Clinton during the primary.
Joining us now from Charlottesville, Virginia, Ben "Cooter" Jones, former Georgia congressman and author of "Red Neck Boy, the Promised Land" and of course Cooter from the "Dukes of Hazard."
Wow, that was a long introduction. Thanks for being with us this morning.
BEN "COOTER" JONES, AUTHOR "RED NECK BOY, THE PROMISED LAND": Kiran, the Daisy Duke of CNN.
CHETRY: Well, that's a compliment coming from you. Let me ask you about Joe Biden's speech last night. What did you think? He did hearken back to his blue collar roots and talked a lot about that. Is that going to help Barack Obama in some of these rural parts?
JONES: Sure. Joe is a real guy and he's a real deal and people can recognize that, compare to him to somebody like Mitt Romney or John McCain, folks like that. You know, Joe Biden comes from working class folks, and people understand that. But the real job has to be done by Barack Obama. Now, and there's hard work that Biden can help in Pennsylvania and Ohio and Michigan where people really relate to him and his background. But I believe the entire south is in play. In fact, I know that. People down here are sick and tired of being taken for granted by the Republican Party. So they're wide open to what Barack Obama has to say. He needs to spend more time down here. And I think he'll come to love it and folks down here will come to really like him a lot.
Virginia, I know is in play. I'm sitting here in Charlottesville, Virginia, where the Democratic Party was born. We just elected two straight Democratic governors. And we're about to elect our second Democratic senator. So Virginia is in play.
And I believe also North Carolina and other places in the south are in play, not because of - you know, people in the south related to Franklin Roosevelt who was a Yankee blue blood and Jack Kennedy, North Carolina's support of Kennedy won for him the presidency. So it's what you say and what you mean.
CHETRY: Let me ask you about this, though. Here's the advice from as you were speaking of Virginia, former Virginia Governor Doug Wilder. He said, "I told them, go to the sticks. People there want to see you, touch you, hear you." Yet tonight he's going to be giving a speech in a humongous, humongous field with the columns, with the Greek column background there in front of 75,000 people. How does that help him touch and feel these voters?
JONES: Well, he could go down to Bristol Motor Speedway, 160,000 people in that beautiful stadium and they all come from the sticks. So, you know, I agree with Doug Wilder. He needs to get out in the country and he needs to relate to the culture of working people and spend a lot of time.
I believe he's there. I believe he understands all that. I believe it's just a matter of people getting to know him. And history is going to be made tonight. I think that tonight will be probably the highest ratings of any evening of a television, televised convention has ever gotten. And I think that politics is about emotion, too.
CHETRY: Right.
JONES: You know, emotion. Most important thing you can have. And this is visceral and people can feel it. You don't see people crying much anymore at these things. But this is all coming from the heart. As long as Barack Obama is coming from the heart, he'll be all right with blue collar people no matter what color they are.
CHETRY: And I want to ask you about this because you said you believe that the south is in play.
JONES: Absolutely:
CHETRY: Our CNN political team does paint a different picture. They really have the southern states in varying shades of red, meaning going GOP. Besides Florida, what do you think that Barack Obama needs to say tonight that will really reach out to some of those southern rural voters? JONES: Well, I think he needs to continue to talk about the things he's been talking about and to say what I just said. You know, that the Republican Party has been taking the south for granted and the south - the southern people are independent. We are thoughtful. And we are tolerant people. We're wide open to his message. I think that's what he needs to say. He needs to follow it up by spending a lot of time at those Nascar races. If I was him, I'd go every Sunday.
CHETRY: All right. Just out of curiosity, my producer and I were having a debate, do you prefer to be called Congressman Jones or Cooter?
JONES: It doesn't matter to me. I don't care what you call me as long as you don't call me late for supper.
CHETRY: Dinner.
JONES: Supper down here.
CHETRY: All right. Thanks for being -- that's right.
JONES: Thank you, Kiran.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS (voice-over): Show time.
WINFREY: I feel that now is the time for me to use my voice -
ROBERTS: Will the queen of daytime make a prime time appearance in Denver. Alina Cho looks at Oprah-Obama connection.
AMY HOLMES, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Having Oprah Winfrey as a political friend is a very good thing.
ROBERTS: You're watching the most news in the morning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Well, remember this love fest? Oprah going on record endorsing Obama? It was a first for her and it all could come full circle where she will be attending his history making acceptance speech tonight.
And of course, who wouldn't want a friend like Oprah? She's powerful. She's rich. She's influential and she comes with her own talk show. Alina Cho joins us now with a look at what kind of bump Obama could really get from Oprah.
Hey, Alina.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, good morning, Kiran.
Some say she is already worth a million votes for Obama during the primary season. Good morning, everybody. If you've been watching the Democratic Convention, you may have noticed all of the A-list celebrities who are there but many agree there is simply no one bigger than Oprah. She will be at INVESCO Field tonight when Obama gives his speech. There's no doubt about it, Oprah is an icon of influence but can she get voters to the polls?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: It was the first time Oprah Winfrey endorsed a political candidate.
WINFREY: I feel that now is the time for me to use my voice to say, if we're going to choose, and there's only one choice we get for president of the United states, and if you're going to choose, that choice ought to be Barack Obama.
CHO: And the Obama campaign knew her impact could be tremendous. Winfrey's enthusiastic support of Obama during the primaries played a big role in introducing voters, many of them her fans, to his cause. But as the campaign moved forward, Winfrey deliberately stepped out of the spotlight.
HOLMES: We've seen Barack Obama be very careful with those celebrity endorsements so that he comes across to the American people as a serious commander in chief.
CHO: But Oprah isn't just any celebrity. This is a woman who can convince her loyal fans what books to read. And what products to buy. The "O" effect. Two grad students tried to quantify it using a formula that looked at subscriptions to "O" magazine and sales of her book club. They compared the data with votes cast for Obama and claimed he may have gotten a boost of one million votes.
TIM MOORE, UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND: Statistically, we found an effect that is very unlikely to be random.
CHO: Not everyone agrees.
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: 1,015,559 votes, she brought to Barack Obama. Well, that's a little absurd. I mean, how do you get specific to that degree?
CHO: Buzz on the blogs is that Oprah has already arrived in Denver and she'll be at INVESCO Field tonight when Obama officially accepts the Democratic nomination. So how could she impact the campaign going forward?
HOLMES: She can generate interest and headlines. She can help you raise money. Having Oprah Winfrey as a political friend is a very good thing.
CHO: And if Oprah's successful in helping Obama win the White House, what then?
HOLMES: I can very well see Oprah Winfrey becoming more like a Bono figure lobbying Barack Obama for some of her pet causes. She has a daily talk show that's watched by millions of Americans and maybe some of his issues will become her issues, too.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHO: Oprah as Bono. Interesting thought. Now, Oprah will be attending the Obama speech tonight as a guest. Her reps say she won't be speaking and she won't be talking about future plans with Obama. For its the part, the Obama camp said any requests about Oprah, and whether she'll campaign with him going forward, Kiran, well those requests will have to go through her office.
But interesting to note as we were talking about earlier, when Oprah first endorsed Obama, there was a lot of talk that maybe she should have endorsed a woman instead, that she was a gender traitor, some said. But her real influence could be bringing people who night not otherwise go to political rallies, out to the polls perhaps. And if she can swing, one strategist says, the voter turnout by just one percent in key swing states, that's could swing an election and it could make a difference.
CHETRY: That's how tight it's going to be. So you're right, every vote certainly count.
Alina, great to see you. Thanks.
CHO: You bet.
CHETRY: Roll call.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Barack Obama.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Barack Obama.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Jeanne Moos dives into the crowd for another unconventional moment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Barack Obama.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: You're watching the "Most News in the Morning."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Live shot this morning of INVESCO Field in Denver where about 13 hours from now, Senator Barack Obama will take to the stage in which is being called the barackopoulis. This Greek temple like looking structure there at the end of the field to give his speech, accepting the nomination for the Democratic Party.
Well, love was in the thin air here in the mountain west where the Democratic delegates put Barack Obama over the top.
CNN's Jeanne Moos captures the magic in this un-conventional moment.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): During the roll call, his name rolled off tongues.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Barack Obama.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Barack Obama.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Barack Obama.
MOOS: When a blond head was spotted bobbing through the crowd, that's when the thrill factor went up a notch. Hillary Clinton made her way to the New York delegation and made her peace with Barack Obama.
H. CLINTON: Let's declare together in one voice, right here, right now, that Barack Obama is our candidate and he will be our president.
AUDIENCE: Hillary! Hillary! Hillary!
MOOS: And then nomination by acclamation was just a formality.
REP. NANCY PELOSI, HOUSE SPEAKER: Is there a second? Please say aye.
UNIDENTIFIED VOICES: Aye.
MOOS: It was Obama's over the top moment and what song did they play?
After playing the part of peacemaker, Hillary left the floor. There were some tears. Happy about Obama, sad for Hillary, both, who knows.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tried to get back to business. She got drowned out, no match for the Love Train. Tickets, please. The Obama-Biden ticket.
With an unconventional moment, I'm Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Another moment in our rich political history of these United States.
And thanks so much for joining us on this AMERICAN MORNING. Kiran and I will see you again tomorrow. Our convention continues now and here's Soledad O'Brien, in New York.
