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Palin, Biden Prepare For Debate; Interview With Tennessee Congressman Zach Wamp; Undecided Female Voters Weigh in on Palin as VP
Aired October 02, 2008 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Coming at you right now: debating as a governor then.
GOV. SARAH PALIN (R-AK), VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Well, what I was driving at was exactly that, that there was gridlock.
SANCHEZ: Tonight, debating as a vice presidential candidate. Which Sarah Palin will we see?
These women are undecided voters and fired up about Palin.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not at all confident that she has what it takes to do this job.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I really liked her, and I like somebody that is going to stand for what they believe in.
SANCHEZ: There are new polls out. Virginia, Republican since 1964, turning blue?
Seven hundred billion of your tax dollars and growing, the Senate says yes. Will the House say no again? You will see it unfold during this hour.
Your comments unfiltered on Twitter, Facebook and more. Like nowhere else, your newscast begins now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Hello again, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez, 3:00 on the East Coast, and we are chock full.
Yes, two faces you are seeing behind me are the ones that so many Americans are going to be looking at.
But, before we do that, I want to show you something else first.
Roger, if you can, let's go to the shot of Capitol Hill, because this $700 billion deal is not done. And they are still debating it. It started with the House. It failed, went to the Senate last night. As you heard, they said yea. Now we're going to back to the House. And if they say nay again, some people are saying we're going to have very serious economic problems in this country. Come back to me, Roger. I want to do something for you now. Now, I can't help myself, especially with what happened last night with the Senate. I want to show you something. Stick with me here. You see this right here? I'm going to put up three pieces of paper. One, two, three, uno, dos, tres. This is how big that deal was, that bailout bill.
Roger, make this a little bigger, so they can see the entire desk. This -- let me grab this over here -- we have got 450 pieces of paper. See this right here, 450 pieces? That is how big the deal is now. How did it go from that to that? We are going to be talking about that, among other things.
But what people seem to be most interested in today, without a shadow of a doubt, is the big debate going on between Sarah Palin and Joe Biden. As a matter of fact, I asked about this earlier in the day. What do you want to talk about? What people are interested in is the Sarah Palin/Joe Biden debate.
Let's go to our Twitter board, if we possibly can. Before we do anything else, this is Twitter.com/ricksanchezCNN, the little slash in between.
Will Sears says: "Should it matter whether Sarah Palin has extensive foreign policy experience? After all, Obama doesn't."
Next question, I wanted you to see exactly how many people are excited about this conversation that they are having here. And this one goes to -- it looks like somebody was at my Twitter board.
Here we go. DailyDotCom: "I am hoping Alaska debate Palin will prove herself tonight and be ready for it."
That is not the only woman who has sent us a similar response, saying they are looking at this very, very carefully tonight. As a matter of fact, we're going to be talking to a group of real smart women who happen to be undecided voters at this point. And that is what they talk about as well.
Before we do anything else, let's go to CNN's Candy Crowley. She is standing by in Saint Louis, where this debate is going to be taking place.
Catch us up, if you would, Candy. Where are we now?
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, awaiting, as you know. Both of these candidates have been pretty much debate practiced out. Now, it is kind of the time that they kick back, try to get their Zen on, if you will, before they come to what is really proving to be a pretty critical debate, at least in terms of Sarah Palin, if not in terms of the general outcome of the election -- it remains to be seen and proven in fact that a vice presidential candidate can in some way sway an election.
We sort of saw that maybe with Lyndon Johnson, who was able to pull in Texas for JFK, but not since then have we seen a pivotal vice presidential candidate. But I have to tell you, I have never seen, we know this, walking up to a vice presidential debate this kind of anticipation.
SANCHEZ: I think we have got some pictures just moments ago that came in of Sarah Palin. She was getting off her airplane, arriving.
Roger, see if you can find those and turn those around while we have this conversation.
But, obviously, doesn't it seem, Candy, that all eyes are on her, and if they weren't before, they may be now as a result of the Katie Couric interviews, right?
CROWLEY: Well, she is certainly the pull here. She is lesser known of the two of them. She certainly would have been where the attention was even prior to all of these missteps through that three- day interview with Katie Couric or at least one that was aired for three days. I don't think it went on three days.
But, nonetheless, here, you're absolutely right, because here is the central question that Sarah Palin has to answer tonight. And that is, is she ready to be president should she be called on to do so? That is a huge burden. And there have been -- I think we have seen in the polls some increasing doubts about her, and tonight is her night to lay those to rest.
And I don't think anybody has thought that Joe Biden was not qualified. He certainly has lengthy years in Washington. The issue of his experience has not come up. In fact, he ran during the presidential primary as the man with the most experience.
So, yes, I think the pressure is a lot on her. It is not that there are not some pitfalls for Joe Biden, but, really, his entire mission has to be do no harm. So, if he can do that mission, then he has accomplished what he came here to do. For Sarah Palin, it is a different thing.
SANCHEZ: Yes. There are actually a lot of traps here for both of them if they make a misstep, a miscue or just take the wrong turn in this thing. And I think that as much as anything else is what is going to make this debate so intriguing.
Candy Crowley, thanks so much for following that for us, great report.
Let's talk about something else. The president of the United States, take two. As you know, last week, he went before the nation a couple of times, and asked the House of Representatives to pass this most important recovery bill/rescue bill/, of course, what some people are calling it, a bailout bill, to which some take offense.
SANCHEZ: Here is the president again hoping that this time it will be the charm, and the House will pass it. Let's take that sound.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This issue has gone way beyond New York and Wall Street. This is an issue that is affecting hardworking people.
They are worried about their savings. They're worried about their jobs. They're worried about their houses. They're worried about their small businesses. And the House of Representatives must listen to these voices and get this bill passed, so we can get about the business of restoring confidence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: But here is the problem. Here is the problem the president has, even more so from his own party than from the Democrats, the opposing party. It has to do with congressmen from red states, guys who think their president in this case is wrong, guys who are hearing from their constituents: No way. We don't want you to pass this.
We found one such congressman. His name is Wamp. He is from Middle Tennessee. I showed you this report yesterday. It was a local report from the Middle Tennessee Valley. Here, I want you the catch up on this again. I want to show you some of the sound interviews from this congressman, Zach Wamp, that we showed you yesterday. And, then, on the other side, he's going to join us live. Here we go.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ZACH WAMP (R), TENNESSEE: Wall Street over the taxpayer, and man, that is just a very sour taste in my mouth from the very start. Get the government behind the regular guy. Turn this into -- instead of a top-down approach, how about a bottom-up approach? Let's put the money into the mortgages.
Sometimes, you have to go through a little pain to grow. And I think we have got to go through a little bit of a shakeout right now, because everybody continued to operate on this flawed notion that you can just keep borrowing and keep borrowing. And I am not going to try to convince the people that elect me that I am smarter than they are. They don't like this. And they want me to stand up for them. So, I am going to fight until we make this better on their behalf.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Our thanks to the WDEF for supplying us with that report.
And Congressman Zach Wamp is good enough to join us now.
Congressman, we saw that yesterday, caught my eye. I wanted our viewers to see it as well. I put it up while Chuck Schumer was joining us.
And I said, this is somebody who completely disagrees with you, who is really just the opposite of you. He had some interesting responses, saying that, essentially, they have now come up with a plan that identifies your questions, that answers them, that fills that void that you were raising. Is that true?
WAMP: To a certain degree, it is true. I think we fought all week long for the best possible agreement we could get.
We don't have a whole lot more time. I would hate to go into next week and see a real economic meltdown, because I was at home all week listening to just average middle-class people, some small business people that are going to have a really hard time paying their bills.
And I'm from the South, where you can't even get gasoline right now. You might have to drive to seven different gas stations in Chattanooga right now to find one that has gas. So, the anxiety level is very, very high. I think Monday's vote, the right vote that day was no. And I think we sent a loud message to Wall Street. We kind of shook the foundations. We woke everybody up.
But I think, when we go into tomorrow, if Monday was kind of a blue-collar vote, tomorrow is a probably red, white, and blue collar vote, because, to me, it is a gut check about our country, about globally, whether we can exert the kind of leadership next week we have to.
SANCHEZ: But what about your constituents?
WAMP: Yes.
SANCHEZ: There is going to be -- as you know, there are going to be many of them who still don't want you to pass this thing. If you go ahead and pass it or vote for it, as you seem to be intimating that you are going to do, as I listen to your response, what will you say to them?
WAMP: Well, that both choices really are terrible.
I mean, this is a bad precedent, an unprecedented intrusion of the public sector into the private sector. We are slipping toward socialism. But I will tell you, the options of not doing anything I think now I am afraid are worse. And both choices are really bad, but it is kind of a gut check.
The anxiety level is so high, there is not any money moving. And I am seeing our manufacturing sector dry up. Truckers can't put trucks on the road. Things are really, really bad. We have got a big investment in our hometown of Volkswagen with their major North American operations here.
I got two calls from Germany this week concerned about the U.S. economy. I think we have to lead. This is a crisis. It really is. I don't want to go into next week with the House not taking action. And if some of us don't change, this vote could go down tomorrow. And, if it does, I really hate to think of what's going to happen next week, Rick.
SANCHEZ: You know what is great about you, Congressman Wamp?
WAMP: What?
SANCHEZ: You seem to be the guy who is out there. And that is why we have you on. And that's why we're going to continue to have you on. You seem to speak for Middle America, the guys out there who are not necessarily trying to sound fancy or anything, maybe wearing a J.C. Penney suit. But you're ready to say it like it is. We're going to keep doing this.
We thank you, sir, for taking time to talk to us. That's great.
WAMP: Thank you, Rick.
SANCHEZ: What newspaper does Sarah Palin read, if any? And was this another one of those gotcha moments, as John McCain says, in another episode of her interviews with Katie Couric? We are going to have that for you just in a little bit.
Also, there is a new John McCain ad that has just come out. It doesn't necessarily make Joe Biden look real good, if you know what I mean. Both of those when we come back. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: That is right. We have got a new way of communicating with this show.
You see that there at the bottom? You see that little crawl? I am trying to draw your attention to it. I know it is not that obvious, but you see those yellow letters that are running around right there that say great way of communication; thank you for truly connecting? That is a crawl. Thank you for the arrow, guys. That is a crawl that we are going to be running from now on instantly.
You are watching me, this newscast on CNN. You are reacting to it. You are texting on your cell phone to us. And we immediately run what you say there.
So, as you are watching me, you can also read what America is thinking and pining about this particular newscast. Something else I want you to see.
I told you a little while ago that Sarah Palin stories, the one that seems to really have a consensus that most people are excited about tonight and maybe more than the $700 billion deal.
Let's go over here to the Twitter, Twitter board number two now. We have got of them up now.
This is MySpace. Johnny B. Goode, give me a shot of that, if you could. That is that stuff that I put in blue over there. Thanks.
It is just interesting what they are saying tonight.
"In the debate tonight, I want to see Palin treated like a presidential candidate." I will just stop there.
What do you think that is trying to say? I will let you figure out. And I will come right back and we will talk about that.
Again, welcome back. One of the first things that I want to do now is we have invited one spokesperson from the John McCain campaign. That is Tucker Bounds. I understand he is running a little late and he's going to join us in just a little bit. We also have asked someone from the Obama campaign to join us. That is Stephanie Cutter. I understand she is already here.
So why we go ahead, Stephanie, and start with you?
First thing I want to do is to show what I guess is good news for your candidate. As a result of this economic situation that we have been in, and people can really just take it right back to the moment when we started talking about AIG, AIG.
Suddenly, some of these swing states start favoring Barack Obama, instead of John McCain. Let's put those up. Ready? This is the very latest poll released by CNN/"TIME" magazine/Opinion Research.
Florida, Obama 51, McCain 47, that is a switch. Minnesota, Obama now 54 to 43, unexpected. Remember, after the Republican Convention, it was McCain who was up there by a few points. Missouri, 49 to 48 Obama. Nevada, 51 to 47 Obama. And even Virginia -- and a lot of people would say this is a big surprise, because Virginia has consistently been Republican since something like 1964 and Barry Goldwater -- 53 to 44.
Your take. Don't gloat. What is going on here?
STEPHANIE CUTTER, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, I think that what we are seeing is that people are responding to Barack Obama's economic plan, his plan to rebuild the middle class and restore some fiscal sanity in Washington.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Is it really his economic...
CUTTER: Over the past couple...
SANCHEZ: Is it really -- I'm just going to stop you right there. Gosh, I hate to interrupt, but you just threw me a bone. Is it really his economic plan or is it just the fact that they are tying John McCain to George Bush and they say, my goodness, things are not working; we need a change; it doesn't matter who the guy is, as long as he has got a D after his name?
CUTTER: No.
You know, Rick, I think that a couple of different things are happening. One, people see that John McCain can't handle an economic crisis. Over the past two weeks, all we have seen is erratic behavior from John McCain.
Remember in the first day of the crisis what he said. He said the fundamentals of the economy were strong. Well, that is not what people were feeling on Main Street. And I think those people are reflected in the polling that you just went through.
The other thing they see is steady leadership from Barack Obama. He knew exactly how to handle this crisis. And he's got the economic plan that will prevent this type of crisis from happening again. It became clear over the past two, two-and-a-half weeks that not only did John McCain have the wrong plan in terms of fixing the economy, but he had a hand in bringing us to where we were, 26 years of being a -- quote, unquote -- in McCain's words, "fundamental deregulator."
And because of that deregulation, we have the Wall Street crisis today.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: Let me ask you this question about the debates between Senator McCain and Senator Obama.
A lot of folks on the left are mad at your candidate, because they say, you know what? He seemed too, too, mealy, didn't really go after him, agreed with John McCain much too much, didn't really say enough. We wanted him to be harder, firmer.
And, yet, there may be some indication that, as a result of whatever it is he did, it may have helped him. What do you say to people who are, you know, dye in the wool Democrats who didn't like the way he treated John McCain, because they let him off of the hook?
CUTTER: Right.
Well, first of all, that is not what we are hearing. Second of all, hands down, any independent analysis, Barack Obama won that debate. And he won that debate on John McCain's territory, foreign policy. Barack Obama commanded the foreign policy discussion from start to finish.
So, in terms of whether he let John McCain off of the hook, I think that he held him accountable for his record. And where he found opportunities to agree, he did. That is what the American people are looking for. They are looking for areas where people can come together and agree. And that is why we are seeing that reflected in the polls right now.
But make no mistake. This is not over. This is going to be a close race right up until the finish. That is what we are expecting. That is what we are fighting for. We are not taking anything for granted. We're taking this day by day.
SANCHEZ: All right. Thanks so much.
And, by the way, we should remind our viewers that Tucker Bounds from the McCain campaign is going to joining us in just a little bit.
Stephanie Cutter, always a pleasure. Thanks so much for being with us. We appreciate it.
CUTTER: Thanks, Rick. SANCHEZ: All right.
Here is the ad we that we're going to be showing you in just a little bit. This is a brand-new ad put out by the McCain camp about Joe Biden and maybe we should say Joe Biden's tendencies to sometimes talk when he shouldn't be talking.
We will continue with that discussion when we come back.
And, oh, Sarah Palin issue on "The View" today, we have got a clip. Wait until you see it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Just to let you know, you can text us. And your text, your instant message to us will be seen on that crawl with those little yellow letters you see right there at the bottom of the screen, just another way that we have come up to make this an interactive newscast, a truly interactive newscast.
Welcome back, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez.
There is a tape out there that many of you have not seen. It shows Sarah Palin actually in a debate in 2006, when she wanted to be the governor of the state of Alaska. She looks according to most people who have seen that tape very, very competent.
Then, of course, there is the Katie Couric interview. And these are the responses that we have been getting.
Let's go to the Twitter board, if we can.
Let's go in tight on that. Thank you, Johnny B. Goode.
"I think she's going to blow it tonight. The Couric interview. Palin will show up because there won't be a teleprompter."
So, everybody seems to talking about that and not the other side, to be fair, because most people have not seen the other side. To be fair, we will let you see the other side. We have got two clips of her during that debate back in 2006 in Alaska. We can get off of that. And I'm going to be sharing that with you in just a little bit.
Before we do anything, we have Tucker Bounds, who is joining us now. Tucker Bounds is with the John McCain campaign.
Before we go the him, I want to show you something. This is an ad that was just put out about an hour-and-a-half ago when we received it here at CNN. It is a McCain ad that seems to target Joe Biden. Let's look at it together.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, MCCAIN CAMPAIGN AD)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I'm John McCain, and I approve this message.
NARRATOR: What might Joe Biden say at tonight's debate? Anything is possible.
SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D-DE), VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I think I probably have a much higher I.Q. than you do.
What am I talking about?
NARRATOR: We know he has impeccable tact.
BIDEN: You cannot go to a 7/Eleven or Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking.
What am I talking about?
NARRATOR: Maybe he will send Hillary in his place.
BIDEN: Hillary Clinton is as qualified or more qualified than I am. It might have been a better pick than me.
What am I talking about?
NARRATOR: And what might he say about his vote to raise taxes on those making just $42,000 a year?
BIDEN: And it is time to be patriotic, time to jump in, time to be part of the deal.
BIDEN: Yes, what I am talking about?
NARRATOR: We know he would never embarrass himself.
BIDEN: Chuck -- stand up, Chuck. Let them see you. Oh, God love you, what am I talking about?
NARRATOR: Ready to gaffe? Yes. Ready to lead? No.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: We are joined now by a representative of the John McCain campaign. Tucker Bounds is good enough to join us.
Tucker, you there? Can you...
TUCKER BOUNDS, MCCAIN CAMPAIGN SPOKESMAN: Hi, Rick. How are you?
SANCHEZ: Good. I am glad. Everything worked out with your -- I see you are holding onto your ear piece there. You can hear me, right?
BOUNDS: Yes, I can hear you.
SANCHEZ: Beautiful.
Our viewers just saw that new ad that you all released about Joe Biden. What are you trying to say there? BOUNDS: Well, I think we are pointing to some very serious points, which is, we're going to have a spirited debate tonight about real issues. And Joe Biden has shown a propensity, just like his running mate, Barack Obama, to say whatever is politically expedient, oftentimes not exactly based in truth, also pointed to a vote that both of those candidates made in support of taxes for Americans making just $42,000 a year.
I think those are important points to make, when you consider that these are two candidates that are talking about running to represent the middle class, but their records don't actually show that they have stood up for the middle class when it counts most, in their paychecks.
SANCHEZ: Let me ask you a question about Sarah Palin. We are getting a lot of people who have been watching that Katie Couric interview who are very concerned, and -- and not from a partisan standpoint. In many cases, these are women who are Republicans who are concerned that finally the Republican Party has put up a woman and that she might let them down, and the only reason they are setting their expectation there is because of what they watched during the Katie Couric interview.
Don't respond to me. Respond to those women who are saying that.
BOUNDS: Well, I think that some of those are isolated incidents, too, Rick.
But also I want to point out that in the course of an hour- or two-long interview, there are some things that are going to be said that are not going to look as smooth as they should, but they're certainly based in some firm convictions. And those are convictions that are largely held by a large swathe of voters.
When you look at her record of reforming government in Alaska, her record at the civic level as a city mayor, moving to the oil and gas commission, then to the governor's office, making reforms, she is an expert on energy issues.
(CROSSTALK)
SANCHEZ: But, Tucker, if she was an expert...
BOUNDS: And she has a strong...
(CROSSTALK)
BOUNDS: ... in social issues that are strong to a number of Americans.
I think taking a few sound bites or parsing some words from a few outside critics is dangerous today, because they are going to see a candidate tonight, she is very talented and she has a strong record.
SANCHEZ: That's fair. And you know what? You are absolutely right. And anybody who looks at that will say, there is a record of achievement there.
The question is, if you have that breadth and depth of experience, why doesn't it come out when someone asks you what seem to be simple journalistic questions?
In fact, there's another example of that. It has to do with her being asked which newspapers and magazines she reads. It is a new clip that people seem to be talking about. We will share it with you. We will get your response.
Tucker Bounds from the McCain campaign, stay with us.
And your responses on Twitter.com, MySpace, and Facebook. Stay with us. We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: And we welcome you back. I'm Rick Sanchez here at the world headquarters of CNN.
Let me direct your attention.
Johnny B. Goode, if you could, I want to see that picture of this thing again, because, again, it's the big conversation that people are talking about. Go on in there.
Kevinchu, look how he ends his statement. He says, referring to Palin: "the mistress of the general non-answer."
Here's why some people may be intimating that. Go ahead and lose that if you can. It's because of a series of interviews that she's done with Katie Couric. But I want to be fair. I'm going to show you one of those clips that people have been seeing and then I want to show you the best of Sarah Palin.
This is her, as well, in a debate in 2006 when she became the governor of her state. Let's start first, though, Roger, if we can, with the Katie Couric asking her about a Supreme Court case that she can recall or mention.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATIE COURIC, CBS EVENING NEWS: What other Supreme Court decisions do you disagree with?
PALIN: Well, there's -- of course, in the great history of America, there have been rulings that there's never going to be absolute consensus by every American. And there are those issues, again, like Roe v. Wade where I believe that are best held on a state level and addressed there.
So, you know, going through this history of America, there would be others. But...
COURIC: Can you think of any?
PALIN: I would think of any, again, that could best be dealt with on a more local level.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: The word most people have used to describe that is rambling.
Now I want to show you another example. This is Sarah Palin in 2006 at a gubernatorial debate, where she seemed -- watch -- very concise, very cogent talking about a complicated issue.
I want you to see this one now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, ALASKA GOVERNOR'S DEBATE, NOVEMBER 2006)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If your daughter were pregnant or your son was involved in a pregnancy, what would your reaction to it -- I mean if it was before marriage and or anything like that -- what would your reaction and advice be to him or her?
PALIN: Again, I would choose life. And I'm quite confident here that you're going to be asking my opponent those same scenarios.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I will. But if your daughter had been raped, would that be something you would feel...
PALIN: Again, I would choose life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: A very difficult topic. She handles it very well, seems confident and gives a very short answer and doesn't get herself in trouble.
The obvious question, Tucker Bounds, to you -- and I'm sure you're expecting it -- is which Sarah Palin will show up tonight?
BOUNDS: Well, I think that the Sarah Palin that we've all come to know is going to show up here tonight. And I think what's most important is that these debate settings, unlike an impromptu interview, allow a candidate to talk about their record, allow the candidate to talk about their past and their life experience and how those things can translate into the type of public service that Americans expect and need right now.
I think she has a unique story to tell, because Governor Palin has reformed government. Like you know, she's made some serious changes (INAUDIBLE)...
SANCHEZ: Are you saying you're going to keep her away...
BOUNDS: ...issues like energy.
SANCHEZ: Are you saying you're going to keep her away from complicated issues and just talk about her life story?
Is that what you mean? BOUNDS: No. Rick, Rick, energy is certainly a complicated issue. She's going to talk about a variety of complicated issues. She talks about complicated issues -- running a state where you manage $10 billion and oversee thousands of employees and take on those issues that present themselves to voters and residents there in Alaska, there are a lot of complicated issues. Certainly more complicated than I face in a spin room. Certainly more than a lot of journalists face, I think...
SANCHEZ: That's fair.
BOUNDS: ...when you're trying to negotiate one of the largest -- when you're trying, Rick, when you're trying to negotiate one of the largest infrastructural projects in American history and the $40 billion pipeline that takes natural gas from Alaska down to the lower 48, those are complicated issues surrounding all sorts of things she's taken on.
SANCHEZ: Tucker Bounds, you represent yourself well.
Thank you, sir, for taking the time to talk to us.
Hey, listen, I'm sorry about the audio problem there at the beginning, but it looks like we got it fixed, right?
All right, Tucker.
Apparently it's back.
All right, we're going to continue with our conversation about the story that everybody wants to talk about today, including all the comments that you're sending to us. Hold on, Johnny. We're going to get to that in just a minute.
But first, let me tell you that there's another clip out there, this one having to do with Sarah Palin being asked which newspapers or which magazines that she reads. And it's one a lot of people are talking about, including the ladies on "The View."
You've got to see the clip and the reaction that it caused.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: And we welcome you back.
I want to show you another example now of what I was talking about. This is Sarah Palin, as many would say, at her best. She's at a gubernatorial debate handling herself very well. A moment ago I gave you an example of Sarah Palin being cogent, concise. Now I want to give you an example of Sarah Palin dealing with -- with, as Tucker Bounds says, is a very complicated issue and explaining it while she's in the middle of the debate.
Here it is. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, ALASKA GOVERNOR'S DEBATE, NOVEMBER 2006)
PALIN: The significance here is this is Alaska's project. This will be a project that unites Alaskans. It's our next economic lifeline.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: All right. There she is talking about that pipeline.
Joining us now is Andrew Halcro. He ran for governor of Alaska as an Independent and was actually there in that debate. He was one of the guys in the room. You saw it firsthand.
Why are we getting one impression of her when she does interviews and does seem to ramble and then I show the viewers that, where she seems quite capable of being a very good debater?
ANDREW HALCRO, DEBATED PALIN (I), FMR. ALASKA GOVERNOR CANDIDATE: Well, Rick, I think you have to realize that the debate that you're looking at -- the clips you're showing where she's very decisive, you know, those were sound bites that were crafted after nine months on the campaign trail. Those were issues that had been basically hashed and rehashed from January through when that debate happened in the end of October.
So I think it's dramatically -- in defense of Governor Palin, it's dramatically different to be on the campaign trail talking about the natural gas pipeline or her position on pro-life over a nine month period and being thrown into, arguably, you know, a much larger scale and issues that she was unaware of.
SANCHEZ: So what was her talent?
Why did she beat you guys?
HALCRO: Why did she win?
SANCHEZ: Yes. I mean...
HALCRO: I'm still trying to figure that out, Rick. I mean...
SANCHEZ: We are, too.
HALCRO: ...I have to tell you that, you know, she's very gifted. I mean I have a high level of respect for her. She has qualities that a lot of politicians would absolutely kill for -- the ability to take the focus off public policy and put it on public relations.
We would have debates and I would walk off of the stage toward the end of the general campaign and I would walk off of the stage with my Democratic opponent, who was a two-term former governor, very well- respected. And we would just look at each other and shake our heads and say, you know, this isn't about public policy, this is about populism. And she has a tremendous gift for broad brush strokes, glittering generalities and really selling platitudes that are beyond the stretch of the imagination.
SANCHEZ: Well, then let me ask you this. And you can probably answer this question better than most of us or anybody else that we can look at now, including Joe Biden.
By the way, have you had a conversation with Joe Biden?
HALCRO: I have not.
SANCHEZ: OK. How do you expect that she will do tonight in this not gubernatorial debate, but the president -- vice presidential debate?
HALCRO: Well, I think you're either going to see one of two Governor Palins show up. You're going to see -- the first version would be a completely reborn, reworked Sarah Palin that spent three days in Sedona absorbing and being able to recite domestic and foreign policies, which would be great. The second version is going to be more of the same. You're going to see somebody who shows up, who talks in broad brush strokes, who talks in platitudes and who spends most of the evening kind of going on the offensive against Obama and Biden and being an advocate for John McCain.
SANCHEZ: Hey, thanks so much.
HALCRO: Yes.
SANCHEZ: Andrew Halcro.
That's, you know, you're sharing with us something that most people can't share, because they don't have the experience of it. So you've been a perfect guest.
By the way, let's go to our Twitter board, if we can.
Johnny B. Good, see if you can give us a shot. We're going to show what mile high soap box says. I bet you this guy is from Denver. He says: "I think the Alaska debate Sarah Palin is the one that will show up tonight." He says, "She should be prepared."
That's why so many people are going to be watching this.
By the way, there is one more clip we want to show you. This is Sarah Palin being asked by Katie Couric about which newspapers she reads or which magazine she reads. It's the newest clip. We'll share it with you, when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: All right. There we go with your questions. We're now scrolling -- right under me, you see it right there? -- all the text messages that you're sending to me during this newscast.
I'm Rick Sanchez, by the way.
Thanks so much. We're here at the World Headquarters of CNN preparing for a couple of things.
First of all, the $700 billion deal that's being done in your nation's capital. As soon as we get word that there is any one of these Congressmen coming out to talk about where they are in the process -- not expected to be complete probably until tomorrow, when it goes to the president -- we will break in and share that with you.
But before we do that, I want you to see something now on the other big story that everyone is talking about, and that is Sarah Palin. The latest clip to be released by CBS News and her interview with Katie Couric.
This one, Katie Couric asks her which magazines or newspapers she reads on a regular basis.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PALIN: All of them, any of them that have -- have been in front of me over all these years. I have a vast...
COURIC: Can you name a few?
PALIN: I have a vast variety of sources that we get our news. Alaska isn't a foreign country, where it's kind of suggested and it seems like, wow, how could you keep in touch with the rest of what Washington, D.C. may be thinking and doing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Well, as you might imagine, this is a topic that's being talked about at dinner tables all over the country. People talking about it at work. And people are talking about it consistently on "The View" on ABC.
And here is that conversation after they watched that clip that you just saw.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOY BEHAR, CO-HOST, "THE VIEW": I mean come on, you can't come up with "The Moose News?"
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, but I think that...
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ...Sarah Palin -- can I say, Sarah Palin, she was -- she has been crammed with so much. And when you've got so much stuff floating around in your head, sometimes it's hard to come up with a magazine.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That was about someone from the media asking her to give an endorsement for magazines and newspapers. And she decided not to -- neither to endorse certain publications nor...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't agree with you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ...nor put (INAUDIBLE).
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think that was a wise move on her vote (ph).
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What is she supposed to say?
I read the "New York Times," which slams me every single day.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Or I read "The Wall Street Journal" and...
(CROSSTALK)
WHOOPI GOLDBERG, CO-HOST, "THE VIEW": If someone asked you...
(CROSSTALK)
GOLDBERG: If someone asks you what do you read, what's in Alaska -- and Alaska is not the end of the Earth and she could have talked about reading the Alaskan papers, which are (INAUDIBLE)...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "The Wasilla Gazette."
GOLDBERG: No. Not "The Wasilla Gazette."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think she (INAUDIBLE)...
GOLDBERG: ...which is actually a really good newspaper.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
GOLDBERG: But there are -- she is the governor of the State of Alaska. And I know that Alaskans get their news from television and magazines and stuff. And so she could have come up with something else.
And it was a gaffe. It was a little bit of a gaffe...
BEHAR: It was a gaffe.
(CROSSTALK)
GOLDBERG: And maybe...
(CROSSTALK)
GOLDBERG: And maybe she was just nervous, because this was not some bozo coming to talk to her. This was Katie Couric, another woman. And it's one of the things that people have said, she doesn't like to talk to women.
Well, I don't think that's necessarily true. I think Katie asked her a question that sort of caught her off guard.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: There is no question that people in the United States are talking about this vice presidential debate tonight. And they're also talking about it not only in the United States, but in Latin America, as well.
And for that, let's go over to Glenda Umana now, who is joining us.
We check in with CNN En Espanol everyday to see what the hot topic is there.
And I bet you, Glenda. Gracias. (INAUDIBLE)
GLENDA UMANA, CNN EN ESPANOL: (SPEAKING SPANISH)
SANCHEZ: Good. I bet you that you guys are talking about this, as well, on your newscast today, is that right?
UMANA: Oh, yes. Oh, yes. Certainly. We have been talking about it all day for many days. Latino voters, let me tell you, Rick, are no different from any other voter. They want to know more about Sarah Palin and about Joe Biden.
Also, let me tell you of the Pew Center put out a study today showing Hispanics and immigrants have been especially hard-hit by the economic crisis. So, of course, the economy is issue number one for them.
SANCHEZ: Yes, and that...
UMANA: They want to know exactly what Palin and Biden have to say about the crisis.
SANCHEZ: Yes. They're going to be looking at it with that very keen ear, as you reported to us yesterday -- less money going to Mexico.
Glenda, (SPEAKING SPANISH).
UMANA: Chiao.
SANCHEZ: Thanks so much for being with us.
We always like checking in with you.
We're going to be right back in just a little bit with more on the closing bell. And we have assembled four smart, independent- thinking women. And what do you think they talk about?
Sarah Palin.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: All right. We've got two boards up for you now. We've got The Crawl, that tells you what you think. We also have a board over here, which is Facebook.
Let's go to our Facebook board first.
Jerry, if you can go in into that blue right there, you're going to see that Sam has just written to us and says: "She seems to stumble not on got you questions, but on gimme questions. The newspaper and magazine question would have been a non-issue if she had just named one and moved on."
All right, Jerry, go over to the next board now. Go over there to the Twitter board, if you would. Pan left, as they say.
And Camille says to us: "The bar has been set so low, she's got nowhere to go but up."
That is from Twitter.com, by the way.
Joining us now is Melinda Henneberger. She has written a book and it's about women in politics. It's called If They Would Only Listen to Us."
That's a great title for a book.
Thanks so much for being with us, Melinda.
MELINDA HENNENBERGER, AUTHOR, "IF THEY ONLY LISTENED TO US": Thank you.
SANCHEZ: Has the Obama campaign or his supporters or, for that matter, the media been sexist toward Sarah Palin?
HENNENBERGER: Maybe. But I don't think that has done anything but help her. I mean I think that whenever it looks like Katie Couric or anybody else is beating up on Sarah Palin, I think that that is only a plus for her. Because she really is a turn out the base candidate more than a candidate who was ever intended to capture those swing voters.
SANCHEZ: But...
HENNENBERGER: So I think for her base, you know, the perception that she's being treated unfairly only helps her.
SANCHEZ: But isn't that a double-edged sword? If that's the perception, yes. But if women are real excited about having a female candidate representing them and then they feel, as some women have told me that I've been interviewing in the last 24 hours, that they're not being represented well, isn't that actually worse?
HENNENBERGER: Well, I don't think -- I think one thing that Sarah Palin really has shown is that there's a real hunger among conservative women to see a woman in the White House. You know, there was some doubt about that. I think that that question has really been answered.
I don't think that women across the ideological spectrum support Sarah Palin, but that was never going to happen.
So, sure, she has brought out a lot of strong feelings among women, both pro and con. But I really do think that she is still a net help to the campaign...
SANCHEZ: And
HENNENBERGER: ...because she really -- there are a lot of particularly religious conservative voters who might have stayed home and not turned out for John McCain.
SANCHEZ: You make a good point. The book is called "If They Would Only Listen to Us" by Melinda Hennenberger.
Thanks again, Melinda, for being with us.
HENNENBERGER: Thanks.
SANCHEZ: By the way, when we come back, that panel I promised you. We have assembled four real strong, independent-thinking women who are undecided. They're not sure who they're going to vote for. But we're going to ask them the newest information out and they gravitate right to the Palin issue. We'll let you hear them out.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Let's go to New York -- or Washington, to talk to Wolf Blitzer today.
What are you are working on today -- Wolf?
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: I'm in New York at the CNN Election Center, Rick. We've got a lot going on here in "THE SITUATION ROOM."
We're only a few hours away from the first and only debate between the two candidates for vice president, Sarah Palin and Joe Biden. The two candidates couldn't be much more different.
But what will happen tonight? All eyes on St. Louis right now. And the best political team on television will be covering all the angles.
The bailout bill passed in the Senate today has quite a few extras, some pork projects -- more than $100 billion worth. So where is all that money going?
You're going to see right here in "THE SITUATION ROOM."
Also, Warren Buffett in a CNN interview. He says had he an idea this morning on how to handle the financial crisis. He shares it with us. Plus this -- why he's comparing the money meltdown to Pearl Harbor.
All that, Rick, and a lot more, coming up in a special "SITUATION ROOM" -- back to you, Rick.
SANCHEZ: We look forward to it, Wolf.
What are undecided voters -- women voters -- saying? That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: And the Dow is down right now 357 points. Women who haven't yet made up their mind -- they are tonight's League of First Time Voters.
Here we go.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DIANE WILKES, UNDECIDED VOTER: It makes me angry because I think either, one, he put her there to take advantage of the ignorance that some women have, because they will vote for her simply because she's a woman, which is scary. Or, two, he thought that, you know, she might be the best woman for the job, which makes me question his capability to surround himself with people who are going to help him run this country.
SANCHEZ: Why?
Do you not think she's the best woman for the job?
WILKES: Based on what I've seen so far, I'm not at all confident that she has what it takes to do this job.
REBECCA BURNOS, UNDECIDED VOTER: She is a good counter balance to his sometimes fiery nature.
SHARLENE BOWEN, UNDECIDED VOTER: Honestly, I mean she was refreshing to me. I really liked her. And I like somebody that's going to stand for what they believe in, they're going to stand behind what they believe in, they're not going to let people sway them.
SANCHEZ: But did you watch the interview with Katie Couric?
BOWEN: Yes. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
SANCHEZ: What did you think of that?
BOWEN: And, of course, I feel like that she -- other people have made blunders and have made mistakes. But she is...
SANCHEZ: Was she nervous?
BOWEN: Probably. But I think she is just getting hit so hard. And they're just looking for anything they can, so they didn't know much about her.
ELIZABETH SCOTT, UNDECIDED VOTER: You look at the Katie Couric interview and you look at every time the media has gotten a hold of her and asked her a question, she can't manage to put a sentence together. I -- I can't respect that. I feel like she's doing a disservice to women in general.
SANCHEZ: How many here think that, actually, she can hurt or has hurt John McCain?
BURNOS: For kind of sending her out there and they're saying this is your woman. This is who you should vote for because you're a woman, too. And she can't put a sentence together.
BOWEN: I think that people are going to attack her. I think people are going to try to find things wrong, you know, with her and why she wouldn't be the best person for the job. And I'm not saying she is the best person. That's why I'm undecided. I don't know.
SANCHEZ: Raise your hand if you think that she will help John McCain -- having her by his side will help John McCain's candidacy. Raise your hand.
BURNOS: I definitely think it will.
BOWEN: I think so.
BURNOS: I think there are a lot of the women that will choose to vote for him because of her, because maybe they were undecided and then they saw a woman.
BOWEN: She is going to attract voters. She's got sons that are in the military. She's got that where they can relate to her. She has, of course, the Down Syndrome child. People with special needs children are going to relate to her. She's a mother. She's a working mother.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Undecided voters on the Sarah Palin issue.
Let's go over to Wolf Blitzer now.
He's going to take us right into "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- Wolf.
