Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
Countdown to the Inauguration of the 44th President of the United States
Aired January 20, 2009 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Ken Blackwell for us this morning. Ken, thanks very much for joining us. Appreciate your thoughts this morning.
And we just want to give you another look at the mall here. There's the Washington Monument looking back toward the Lincoln Memorial, and here's our aerial view. This is an exclusive aerial view that we have for you this morning.
Just a minor little clarification, we've been referring to this as a blimp camera. Well, in a sense it's kind of a blimp. I mean, it doesn't have Goodyear written on the side of it but it's more of a balloon than an actual blimp, or it's a little blimp like you might see at a car dealership that announces that there's a great sale going on and we've attached a high definition camera to it, to give you an incredibly unique perspective here, where we got the Capitol building there on the right-hand side, the dome which has been spectacularly lit up all weekend now, looking forward to the inauguration.
The Washington Monument that spike there in the middle in the mall stretching in between, on which today there is expected to be an estimated two million people here for the inauguration. And that sea of people down there on the mall just an incredible sight today and right there in the thick of things is our -- oh, yes, yes, our Carol Costello is down there, of course, with those people.
And Carol, what's the scene like around you now?
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, my gosh, it's so cold, but everybody is so excited it doesn't even matter. You know, the JumboTrons just came on. You can see it over my right shoulder and a cheer went up from the crowd. They're just like excited to see anything happening down here. In fact, thousands and thousands of people are just milling around, trying to stay warm.
I'm here with my Memphis ladies and my one Virginia lady, but I'm going to talk to my Memphis ladies first because they're not used to this weather.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, not at all.
COSTELLO: So are you questioning your sanity?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, no, we're so excited to be here today.
COSTELLO: You guys had it planned for a long time. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, yes, we all turned 40 this past year and each month we did something special and this is the end of it. And what a way to celebrate.
COSTELLO: So what's the plan? Where are you going to sit?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, we're actually going to stay out and then we have to go to the Southern Inauguration Ball and we volunteered for that so we have to be over there like at 9:00 and then we're going to try to come back and go back. So we have a lot to do today.
COSTELLO: They're actually going to a ball and they had to bring their ball gowns down to the mall. They just wanted to come down here and freeze a little bit and feel the excitement. So as you can see, they're really crazy.
Come here, my Virginia lady!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hello Petersburg!
COSTELLO: Excellent. What time did your journey begin?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We started out about 2:30 this morning, going to the metro, caught the 4:00 metro, got here about an hour later and we've been fired up ever since!
COSTELLO: So are you going to sit below the JumboTron, is that your plan?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely. I'm all ready. I have five layers of clothes on. I'm just ready.
COSTELLO: OK. So when Barack Obama begins speaking at, gosh, after 11:30, after he's sworn in, what do you want to hear from him?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, I want to hear that there's still a vision that we're going to end the war, and that we're going to deal with this financial crisis. I'm excited.
COSTELLO: You all are.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
COSTELLO: So stay warm, huddle together and thanks for being here!
Back to you, John.
(CHEERING)
ROBERTS: All right, Carol Costello for us in the mall. And there's a shot of the White House, where Barack Obama will be moving in later on this afternoon. The Bushes will be moving out.
There are a whole slew of events that the incoming president will engage in this morning, one of the first will be to go to church. They'll be going to St. Johns Episcopal, which is right across Lafayette Park from the White House.
Traditionally, presidents have gone to that church. Bill Clinton used it as his main house of worship. George Bush went there a few times. Still some discussion as to which church Barack Obama will make his home parish. And he'll be going there in about an hour and 45 minutes' time.
Our Suzanne Malveaux is on the phone from outside of St. John's Episcopal and our chief White House correspondent Ed Henry is with us here on the platform.
First of all, let's go to Suzanne. And Suzanne, set the scene for us today at this pretty little church with a congregation of about thousand people.
VOICE OF SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. It's fondly known as the church of the presidents. That's because since James Madison every president has worshipped here at some point during his time at the White House. It even has some embroidered needlework contributed to each one of the presidents, and there's a specific pew for the president and his family.
It doesn't need a (INAUDIBLE). It's pew 54, and that's where Barack Obama and Michelle and the daughters, the family will be there in that pew for the service that's going to be about an hour long or so, and it is a tradition that the president goes and attends the private service before the kickoff, this formal inauguration ceremony.
This is the first thing that he'll be doing. He'll be leaving the Blair House about 8:20 or so, arriving here at St. John's, where we are.
ROBERTS: All right. Suzanne Malveaux outside of St. John's Episcopal this morning. Again, 8:45 is when the incoming president expected to go to church there at St. John's.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: What a gorgeous sky this morning. Look at that over the Capitol.
ROBERTS: Yes. Beautiful, isn't it?
So, our Ed Henry, chief White House correspondent is here with us, as we mentioned. And we're expecting the inaugural address which takes place immediately after the administration of the oath of office to be about 20 minutes in length.
You've been working your sources, Ed. Have you got some idea of the themes that the president-elect is going to touch on?
ED HENRY, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: We've been hearing for days now that there really is mostly going to be about trying to usher in a new era of responsibility. That the new president immediately wants to sort of talk about how there needs to be trust regained on Wall Street, in Washington. Obviously we've heard this theme of change throughout the whole campaign and now he's going to talk about sort of how he thinks we can get there. And there's also talk that he's going to try to push back on critics who are saying look, you just can't do this, that this is too much change at once and where is the money going to come from?
He's not going to get into the details like he would in a State of the Union Address. It's not a laundry list, as you know, but he wants to hit those broad themes to sort of talk about how, if we are going to get through these challenges, and he's obviously going to try to strike an optimistic tone and say he believes the country can. But if we're going to do it, there's going to need to be sacrifice across the board. That's something that President Bush has faced a lot of criticism for, not asking for enough sacrifice from the American people post-9/11. This can be interesting to see exactly how Barack Obama frames that.
ROBERTS: You know, remember after 9/11, people sort of mock him to say, well, what was the president's idea of sacrifice? You know, go shopping.
HENRY: Yes.
ROBERTS: So, all right.
HENRY: John McCain even mocked him on the campaign trail on that. I was at the White House late last night, just before midnight. It was interesting to see the lights just going down as this transition is happening.
Earlier in the evening, former President Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush were there. They had dinner with President Bush and the current first lady, and former President Bush actually came down to the briefing room as he's wanted to do as you know, and he was talking about how sort of wistful that he's been in and around the White House for a couple of decades now.
And he said, you know, the Bushes are moving on and it's difficult to do that, but he said they're going off to a happy life. And he even threw out the possibility, who knows who might be back. Jeb Bush might run for president someday. But just another reminder of this transition, the Bushes have been around the White House for a long, long time.
ROBERTS: They have.
HENRY: And it's a very dramatic transfer for them as a family but us as a nation as well.
CHETRY: Isn't it --
ROBERTS: Well, who knows, maybe they'll be back with Jeb, right?
CHETRY: Isn't it interesting also that the Clintons have as well and now you have Hillary Clinton as secretary of state and a lot of the people that were in Bill Clinton's White House, back in town again as well.
HENRY: Absolutely. Barack Obama spoke so much in the campaign about trying to turn the page in the sense from the Clinton years in the Democratic primaries, but it is true that a lot of the key people around Barack Obama now from Hillary Clinton to the incoming chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, the White House counsel Greg Craig. You name a whole line of people. A lot of Clinton insiders.
ROBERTS: Yes. It's kind of remarkable, isn't it, you know?
HENRY: It is.
ROBERTS: Change, change and no change.
HENRY: Change, but on the other hand, it is true that the Clinton people are sort of the foreign team. It was sort of like you'll remember when the Clintons came into the White House there were a lot of old Carter people.
ROBERTS: Right.
HENRY: People were saying oh, this is back to the '70s. But with Carter, that was the last Democratic White House.
CHETRY: Right.
HENRY: Those are the people that cut through their teeth. Warren Christopher was a young diplomat, all of a sudden he becomes secretary of state for Clinton.
ROBERTS: Yes.
HENRY: Same deal now. The Clinton people are the foreign (ph) team. They're going to be the Obama cabinet.
ROBERTS: They were almost a shadow government, weren't they?
HENRY: Absolutely.
CHETRY: And look at that beautiful shot once again, the sun's coming up and we have dramatic, dramatic, sweeping shots this morning to bring you from Washington, D.C., where it's 20 degrees outside and with the wind chill it feels about 10 degrees.
We're going to bring in our political panel right now. We have with us Democratic strategist Lisa Caputo in our Washington bureau along with Melissa Harris-Lacewell. She's an associate professor of politics in African-American studies at Princeton University, and in New York Republican strategist and CNN contributor Ed Rowlands.
Quickly, our producers are explaining the helicopter that we were just seeing is going to be carrying President Bush to the airport. So a lot happening today and we're all here at the front row seat at it.
ROBERTS: That's the helicopter. It's the white-topped helicopter which is known as Marine One any time he flies on it. CHETRY: Right.
ROBERTS: It won't be Marine One when he gets on it, though, because he will no longer be the president to the United States. It will probably be Marine Special Air Mission or something. And what happens is, after the oath of office is administered to Barack Obama, there's a little ceremony where the president, after the inaugural address, President Bush then leaves. He'll get on the chopper and he'll fly away and then they go inside the Capitol building for the traditional inaugural luncheon.
CHETRY: And you know that's interesting. Let's bring in Ed Rowlands as we talked about this as well. We talked a lot, of course, and duly so about Barack Obama today but what about President Bush as he prepares to fly off into the sunset, if you will?
What are some of the emotions associated with that, Ed? You've been at the forefront of that many times.
ED ROWLANDS, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: The emotions have to be extraordinary. This is a man who served his country as effectively as he possibly could and made a lot of tough decisions in the eight years, but his place on the national stage is pretty much over. He joins a very exclusive ex-presidents club obviously. But it's not -- it's not in the sense that the crowds there for the future and the crowds are for Barack Obama, who is going to inherit obviously a very tough time and a very aggressive period of legislation in order to try and fix those.
I remember fondly when Ronald Reagan passed the baton to Bush's father and Reagan in that very same helicopter, one like it, circled the city and there was a great sort of fondness for Reagan as he left. Unfortunately, President Bush doesn't have quite the fondness today and it's really about the hope for the future with Barack Obama I think is what is what people are looking forward to.
ROBERTS: Right. Lisa Caputo, if you could maybe elaborate on that, when we looked at the last transition to power here in the United States back in early 2001, George Bush was inheriting an economy that was beginning to slide into recession. Economists were unclear if it was actually in recession or not at that time, but there wasn't a whole lot else on his plate.
Barack Obama assumes the presidency with two wars, an economy that's in tatters, a global economy that is falling, increased competition from China, Russia and other places around the world. Just how difficult will it be for him to be able to get up and get running and get his hands around all of these pressing issues?
LISA CAPUTO, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, you know, John, he's already been up and running in so many respects. He's had his staff out all over the place. They've been up on Capitol Hill.
He's been extraordinary, I think, and somewhat unprecedented in his outreach to the other side of the aisle. Really quite extraordinary, the bipartisanship that he is trying to show, even reaching out to conservative journalists, which I think is a very smart move on his part, and I don't recall doing that, certainly during the Clinton years. So when you have your chief of staff giving out his own personal cell phone number and really staying in very close contact with members of Congress...
CHETRY: Right.
CAPUTO: ... you can see he's really working it already, and he knows he's got a huge full plate and they'll all be hitting the ground running.
CHETRY: Right.
And Melissa, let me bring you in here as well. Boy, the pictures speak for themselves but you see the elation on the faces of so many people. When Jim Acosta was talking to us live a few moments ago, he was surrounded by people waving flags and chanting "yes we can." And there you see it again. Just the sheer joy and happiness and jubilation at this time.
What do you think people that are here today are going to take away from this? What are the stories they're going to tell their children and their grandchildren about today?
MELISSA HARRIS-LACEWELL, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF POLITICS IN AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDIES, PRINCETON UNIVERSITY: Well, there are going to be as many stories as there are people standing out there on the mall. There will be literally millions of stories. There will be instantaneous friendships that will form from standing next to one another.
In this technological age, people will be able to stand there and exchange e-mails and text messages. There will be multiple millions of people who are listening and waiting for the phone calls and the texts, so this is an astonishing thing. But more than anything, I think it demonstrates that it turns out Americans wanted to actually govern their country.
I mean part of this is about the personality and the charisma of Barack Obama, but so much of this is also simply about the notion that American people are once again in charge of the American government. We kept being told by our current leadership that they do not govern by focus group, but I think what this group of gathered citizens is hoping is that maybe this president will, in fact, govern by the will of the people. It's very, very, very exciting.
ROBERTS: Melissa, thanks very much. Stand by, folks, because we want to come back to you but right now, it's 13 minutes after the hour. A little less than five hours to go until Barack Obama is sworn in.
I want to go to the Russell Rotunda, which is just across the other side of the Capitol building on the Senate side where we find the incoming press secretary for the Obama administration. Robert Gibbs is joining us. Robert, it's good to see you. Congratulations, by the way, on your appointment. First time I've had the opportunity to say that to you in person.
ROBERT GIBBS, INCOMING WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Thank you.
ROBERTS: And we want to check in with you because we heard that the theme of the inaugural address some 20 minutes in length is expected to be a lot about responsibility. Can you elaborate on that?
GIBBS: Sure.
ROBERTS: You know, what kind of responsibility will the president be asking Americans to take on? What kind of sacrifice will he be asking them to take on?
GIBBS: Well, John, I think he's going to lay out a lot of the challenges and the problems that we face as a country, but he'll also remind this group today and Americans and really people throughout the world that Americans faced great challenges before. We've risen together as one country and one people to address those challenges and make future generations have a better place to live.
He'll talk about responsibility particularly a greater responsibility in the actions of our government and particularly greater responsibility by financial institutions, some of whose actions have got us into this economic mess that we're in right now. So I think all of those are themes that you'll hear throughout this speech, as you said, about 20 minutes in length.
CHETRY: And Robert, Kiran Chetry here as well. Great to talk to you this morning.
GIBBS: Nice to see you.
CHETRY: There was a lot of talk though about the fact that Barack Obama is going to articulate the notion of personal sacrifice, that there are personal sacrifices to be made. Now many who are already serving in the military going two and three tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan would say, we're certainly sacrificing as our nation fights two wars.
GIBBS: Right.
CHETRY: But what about the average person? What are some of the things all of us need to be mindful of that may be asked of us in these unprecedented tough economic times?
GIBBS: Well, he's actually going to talk particularly about the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform. He was at Walter Reed yesterday visiting troops that have been wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Look, I think all of us as citizens have a role to play. We have to get involved in our government. We have to step up, be involved, take part in what's going on. You know, he's going to, to use a phrase, ask people to do more than they're doing now, to step up and be part of changing this country for the better. I think it's a challenge that, you know, millions accepted during this campaign and I think millions more will accept it today, to move this country in a better direction.
ROBERTS: And Robert, of course, this administration will want to move quickly to put its stamp on governance in this country and one of the first things you're expected to do, issue a number of economic orders. One of them may be to turn back the Bush abortion policy that he signed as one of his first executive orders in 2001, another one to close down Guantanamo Bay. How quickly can we expect to see that executive order on Guantanamo Bay?
GIBBS: Well, look, I think all of the things that you mentioned could happen later on in the week. I think today really is a day to set about the challenges that we face, and to give some hope and optimism that as Americans, we always meet those challenges. I think that's what you'll see the focus on today. There's a -- I think a celebration that's obviously muted given the economic times that we're in, but I think President Obama will remind people that there are better days ahead for this country.
ROBERTS: Will we see that Guantanamo Bay executive order by the end of this week, would you expect?
GIBBS: You know, John, I don't want to get ahead of the president on this, but I would stay tuned for some announcements later in the week, sure.
ROBERTS: All right. Robert Gibbs for us, the incoming press secretary. We'll be seeing a lot of you, Robert, in the next couple of years, at the very least there at the podium in the press briefing room at the White House. It will be an interesting time. Thanks very much for joining us this morning.
GIBBS: Thanks, guys.
CHETRY: All right, so again, you've been having a chance to look at these crowds that we've been showing you and our wonderful pictures coming to us from cameras situated all over the District of Columbia this morning.
There is a shot of the west front of the Capitol where we're standing, a bird's-eye view. And again there now down on the national mall, another shot of as the sun comes up here in Washington, as the wind chills make it feel about 10 degrees.
ROBERTS: It's actually lower now, they're saying eight degrees.
CHETRY: Eight degrees. I feel it. Thought it was just me. But yes, and the actual temperature has dropped by about five degrees since we started at 5:00 a.m. It's now 19 degrees out here, but it's not stopping people from turning out and we're getting a better picture of just how many people are out here on the mall.
Everyone wanting to capture it. Even our own Ed Henry sitting next to me is taking pictures of this on his BlackBerry as we speak.
You've been around a long time and clearly this is something that you are seeing for the first time as well. Really historic today.
HENRY: Candy Crowley, but never seen a crowd quite this early. I mean, I was just about (INAUDIBLE) hour and a half ago in Pennsylvania Avenue southeast on Capitol Hill.
ROBERTS: Apparently we've got a little problem with your microphone, so we'll get back to you on that.
We'll take a quick break. We'll be right back after this. Special coverage of the inauguration of the 44th president of the United States at CNN. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: It certainly is a beautiful day here as we count down to inauguration. We're now four hours, 37 minutes away from the official transition of power.
It is a cold, brisk day here in Washington, D.C. Nineteen degrees, the temperature steadily dropping from earlier. With the wind chill, it's about eight degrees but it's not stopping the crowds of people from getting an early start, whether they walked, took this metro, bicycles, they found a way to be here and already the National Mall is filling up as you can see from the people there.
And another gorgeous shot and a shot to show you just how many people are already here. They're expecting record crowds, of course. John and I were talking earlier, though, if the early arrivals are any indication, they might break the records they were looking at. They were thinking about two million.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CHETRY: May be more.
ROBERTS: We're looking back her. We're looking west actually along the mall, probably at about, oh, Seventh Street I would think, then to the Washington Monument. The Lincoln Memorial behind that. And look at the number of people who are already beginning to crowd around the Washington Monument area. That was supposed to be sort of the maximum western point of a large crowd, and they're already there already and there's still a little less than five hours to go before the inauguration.
People just, you know, thronging to the mall here. So I would expect that that whole area is going to get filled up. And you can see the density of the crowd already.
CHETRY: Yes.
ROBERTS: So it's quite possible they could put at least two million people in there if not more in sort of the buffer zone areas that are along this strip, the sides of the mall by the museums there. So --
CHETRY: Yes. They've got the huge JumboTrons up and working. People are going to be able to see and hear Barack Obama from those.
Our own Jim Acosta is actually in the thick of it. He is in the crowds and he is giving us a view and a feel of what it's like to actually be down there with all the people gathered for this historic day.
Hey, Jim.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kiran. Here we go again.
You know, the sun is coming over the Capitol right now. If that does not get your heart stirring, you better check your pulse, you may not have one.
Earlier we called this something like Barackstock. It's more like Brrrr-ackstock (ph) because it's a little cold down here. But when you have a couple hundred people gathered all around you, you can stay warm.
There are thousands of people already lined up on the mall right now. I would venture to say tens of thousands, probably getting to the range of hundreds of thousands when you see these shots down here on the mall. And while we're getting jostled around here a little bit, just one security note, we can mention that many of the paths and barricades are still in good shape.
You can make your way down here, if you can just get through the crowds and the security. So if something were to happen, there are pathways to exit the scene here, we just want to mention that.
I wanted to pick up on something that you were just talking about a few moments ago with Robert Gibbs. I talked to David Axelrod yesterday, the senior adviser to Barack Obama, whose office will be right next to the Oval Office. And he said, yes, Barack Obama will be calling for an air of responsibility but he'll also be calling for some patience from the American people today because there are so many problems to deal with right now. The American people will have to show some patience that these problems can be solved over a period of time here. They won't be solved right away.
But having said all of that, talk of responsibility and patience may not match the enthusiasm in the crowd down here. It is just unbelievable.
I'm standing right now with a woman who came all the way from south Georgia. And ma'am, I just want to ask you, what does this moment mean to you right now?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, it's just awesome. I can't believe I'm here. It's just outstanding. I'm just so excited!
ACOSTA: Why did you come all this way?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I came so I could see all the people and hopefully I'll get an eye of Barack. I want to see Barack.
ACOSTA: You want to see Barack. Very good.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm from North Carolina.
ACOSTA: From North Carolina. And why are you here, ma'm?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, change, hope, faith, moving forward.
ACOSTA: Change, hope, faith, moving forward. And, you know, John and Kiran, one thing that we've noticed all morning is that those aren't political terms -- hope, faith, moving forward, change. Those are American ideals that really just stand the test of time.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's right.
ACOSTA: And we're seeing such an enthusiasm down here in these crowds and excitement, that it really does make you feel proud to be an American today, whether you're a Democrat or Republican, to see these scores of African-Americans from all over the country come down here to see the swearing in of the first African-American president of the United States, it gets you right in the heart, guys, gets you right in the heart.
ROBERTS: Yes, certainly does, the celebration of an incredible new chapter in American history.
CROWD: Yes, we can!
ROBERTS: You know, the uniqueness of the peaceful transition of power which has endured throughout the life of this nation is one thing but then to take this incredible leap forward is yet another.
Jim Acosta on the mall this morning. Jim, thanks so much.
Let's get a little more perspective on this, trying to leave some of the politics out of it. The former mayor of New York City, also a former presidential candidate himself, Rudy Giuliani, is in the studio in New York this morning.
Mr. Mayor, when you look at the crowds here on the mall and you think of these stories that these people bring with them, coming here to witness this incredible piece of history in American culture, you know, is this an event today for the very least that transcends politics?
RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER NEW YORK MAYOR: Without any question, this is one of the -- I think great events of this very early century in which America has made a leap forward of significant proportions. And it's interesting, John, but I believe that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. predicted at the time that he died that it would be about 40 years before there would be an African-American president and just about right. As he was prophetic in other things, it may very well be that he was prophetic in this as well.
ROBERTS: Well, certainly I mean, you know, exactly 40 years, '68 to 2008.
GIULIANI: Yes.
ROBERTS: What do you think this means for the country going forward, Mr. Mayor?
GIULIANI: Well, I think it means that people will feel much more an involvement in politics which is a wonderful thing. I think it has brought just the sheer numbers of people, whether it's two million or more, the sheer numbers of people that have showed up, the amount of interest that this has generated in politics is a wonderful thing and it will stay with these young people all throughout their lives, the way John Kennedy did that for a lot of young people, brought them into politics.
It may be a revival of interest in government, interest in politics which I think will be really good for the country. And, of course, you know, the president now faces some of the most difficult challenges that any new president will face and we're all very hopeful that he handles them, you know, very effectively.
CHETRY: The bipartisan ball that took place yesterday, the bipartisan dinner, where not only was John McCain the guest of honor but Barack Obama talked about how his once campaign rival is somebody that he's turned to for advice, specifically about Iraq and Afghanistan, among other things. What will the Republican role be in the Obama administration, if you will, or with Obama in the White House? Where does that leave the GOP?
GIULIANI: Well, first of all, I should say that I was very impressed with the president-elect, soon to be the president, doing that for John. John is a very close friend of mine and I believe he has an enormously big role to play in government, a very constructive role, which he's always done. And John was probably the most bipartisan member of the Senate, Republican or Democrat, so to get him involved is going to help to bring a lot of Republicans along. I think the president elect, the president soon to be, all of us realize we're in a time we don't have room for fighting right now. We got an economic crisis of vast proportions. We have a war going on, two wars going on that we have to win.
This is a time in which we think as Americans and then you know, when we get everything settled again I'm sure we'll go back to being adherence of our different points of view which we should be. But right now this is really a time to think as Americans and I think the President-elect has really captured that spirit.
ROBERTS: All right. Well, certainly when we look at the number of people down there on the mall, everybody is embracing that spirit today.
GIULIANI: Every American should be proud today, every American, no matter what party you belong to -
ROBERTS: All right.
GIULIANI: Every American should be very proud.
ROBERTS: Mayor Rudy Giuliani, thanks for sharing your thoughts for us this morning.
GIULIANI: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Good to see you. All right. Take care.
CHETRY: Good to see you, as always. Well we've got the best political team on television as well standing by. We have CNN's Candy Crowley right here with us, also CNN contributors Robert Zimmerman and republican analyst Leslie Sanchez, Tara Wall as well of the "Washington Times." Welcome, everyone.
Candy has been sitting out here shivering right along with us this morning. As you look out over the crowd over the mall and you've covered so many of these, what do you think?
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: I think it's an amazing time. You know, when you watch over decades, this is always an impressive time. I mean, coming here at 4:00 a.m. this morning, looking up at the lit Capitol, just the wow factor is amazing. You add on to it that it's not just the peaceful transfer of power this time. It's the peaceful transfer into real history here.
If nothing else, if he walks into office and doesn't do a thing, he has made history here. Now, of course we expect him to do lots of things. It's easier to sort of overstate today, simply because it really is about the history and the grandeur and what this country is really about. Tomorrow the rubber meets the road.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CROWLEY: And we have to remember that, but for today, it's about history and tomorrow, people are going to begin looking at him, saying OK, Mr. President, you know, black, white, whatever, now it's time to get the country going.
ROBERTS: A look at some of the massive security apparatus here. All those police down there on the streets near the Capitol and along the side of the Mall there, obviously staged there for crowd control. Not needed at this point because the crowd has been incredibly well- behaved but if you look back west along the Mall and you see the number of people that are jammed in there, all the way to the Washington Monument, nothing but awe-inspiring the number of people who have come out here to voice their support for a uniquely American tradition.
Tara Wall, where are your thoughts running this morning? You're a republican. Tell us what you think about this transition of power between a republican president and the incoming democratic president.
TARA WALL, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well actually - my thoughts have been all over the place, from being a resident of the district and looking at the crowds and the way they've been handled to of course this, you know, this historic moment that's unfolding really before our eyes.
I think that you know, we hear so much about Dr. King's speech, the "I have a dream" speech. And he talked about you know getting to the mountain top. He didn't get there with us but he said we would get there. But at the same time there are other speeches that you know that you think about Dr. King has said and one of the speeches that are very poignant where he talks about you want to be great, wonderful, and he's got this voice that just gives you shivers really, but with greatness comes service.
And I think that is the biggest thing that Barack Obama going forward is going to have to keep in mind, that he is serving a country. I do believe the outgoing president understood that and I believe to a certain degree Barack Obama understands that, but that you know he is serving the people in the people's house, with the people's resources, and that the goal is to be a good steward of the people's resources going forward.
And so I think as this mantle is handed over, that's one thing that can be passed over is the ideal of civility one. I think that's one thing that has also transformed and transcended into this next presidency. Both men of civility but also this idea of being a servant and being a good servant of the people and the people's money.
ROBERTS: Right.
CHETRY: Let's let Robert Zimmerman weigh in and we'll hear from Leslie Sanchez as well. Robert, as you see these pictures and you see these record crowds, what are you thinking?
ROBERT ZIMMERMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, it's truly inspiring. And as Candy pointed out, this really is a tribute to Barack Obama, but it's also a celebration of our democracy. Two million people coming together, two million people strong. They're not going to be able to see the events clearly.
They may not even hear it all clearly but they want to be there together to honor this moment and to be a part of this historic moment, and it's also important to remember, while we talk about change and celebrate change, it's important to remember that the great historical achievement of this transition of power that's taking place.
It began in 1800 when John Adams lost the presidency to Thomas Jefferson and changed the history of the world by giving the power of the majesty of the presidency, the power of the military, and the treasury over to the president of the people at that time, Thomas Jefferson. That moment changed the world and really gave birth to our democratic institutions.
ROBERTS: And Leslie Sanchez, earlier today we were talking with Ken Blackwell, the former secretary of state for Ohio, who is also a candidate for Republican National Committee chairman, and he was suggesting that this takes us into the realm of a post-racial America, not quite there, obviously, but certainly a few steps along the road. You know, how are you feeling about all of that? Will America wake up tomorrow with a different sensibility when it comes to race relations?
LESLIE SANCHEZ, REPUBLICAN ANALYST: I think so. Many individuals have already started that process. It think not only by these iconic images and this really historic election, but also just the sense of pageantry and what this means for the country. You know it's interesting because Barack Obama, while we said he was that blank slate, upon him you had your dreams and your aspirations in what you thought this country could be, and you think about the excitement of all of these individuals to come out there and brave the cold, to be part of something.
But you also think of all the well-wishes that go to somebody like him as a young leader. Because he's about four hours to be the loneliest - one of the loneliest man in the world and all the obligations and pressure placed upon him. And so I think it's an exciting time and we are making progress.
CHETRY: Candy, I want to ask you. This is also a time when this transition happens that last-minute things happen and new executive orders. We talked about the lifting of that Mexico City order, if you will, and not being able to fund abortion, when we give U.S. money to international organizations. But then also President Bush pardoning Ramos and Campion (ph), those were the very controversial case of the border agents who shot somebody, a drug runner, and these are the types of things that happened in the closing days of one presidency and the opening days of another. What are the political implications?
CROWLEY: Well, I mean, what's interesting is, every time you have a change of party, they tend to undo each other's executive orders -
CHETRY: Right.
CROWLEY: So this is a sort of a rite of passage, as they go into office. I think you'll see some ethics, some executive orders that have to do with ethics. They do ten to use those executive orders to sort of begin to take charge. OK, I'm the chief executive, and here you go. I'm going to do the following three or four things. It's just a way to send a signal of what it means to sit in that Oval Office and be the president. I think one of the things that presidents do find out very quickly is the office is not quite as powerful as they thought it was.
Maybe Barack Obama learned a little bit of that early when he began to grapple with the Senate and the House on stimulus, a learning curve.
ROBERTS: Yes, that's because the house we're sitting in front of here, there are 535 people who all want to have their voice as well. Robert, hold that thought. We'll come back to you a little bit later on. We got to take a quick break here right now.
37 minutes after the hour. You're watching continuing coverage of the inauguration of the 44th president of the United States. Special edition of AMERICAN MORNING on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: A shot looking down the Mall from the Lincoln Memorial across the Reflecting Pool to the Washington Monument and tucked in behind it the Capitol Building and there are just hundreds of thousands of people out there on the Mall right now, more and more arriving by the minute. Look at them coming into the gates there. We can easily exceed the projected maximum number of people expected, which was 2.1 million. So keep a close eye on that and see how it goes.
CHETRY: Yes.
ROBERTS: And the reason why there's a blank spot there, that is an area for ticket holders, so what you're seeing there is the general admission. It's almost like a rock concert, you can call it Barackstock, as Jim Acosta was mentioning earlier.
CHETRY: Barack-a-palooza.
ROBERTS: Barack-a-palooza, Barackstock, whatever you want to call it. So that area there is that's actually the silver ticket area. So people will be starting to fill that up with ticket holders but with general admission, you better get there. It's like the infield at Pimlico.
CHETRY: It really is.
ROBERTS: Get there early.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: And people did. People were leaving our hotel at about 3:00 a.m. and already people were starting to make their way here. And again now, they're just letting people. They're starting to open up that up. The security check points and people are starting to stream into that area as well. So certainly a busy day as the transition of power, the countdown is on, we're about four hours, 15 minutes away right now.
And you know, elected officials from cross the United States are gathering here in Washington. They're here to witness Barack Obama's inauguration but also to look ahead to the new administration and what lies ahead for their cities as well and joining us discuss this day, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. Thanks for being with us this morning.
MAYOR GAVIN NEWSOM, SAN FRANCISCO: Good morning. Nice to be here.
ROBERTS: Good morning.
NEWSOM: Nice to be here.
ROBERTS: Good to see you. CHETRY: Thanks for coming out to the wind chill of eight degrees with no gloves this morning.
NEWSOM: Don't mention how warm it is -
CHETRY: In San Francisco.
NEWSOM: Yes, San Francisco weather.
CHETRY: Why did you decide to come out, besides the fact that you wanted to witness history?
NEWSOM: Well, two reasons. We have the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the backdrop of that requires the opportunity of gives us the opportunity to meet with a lot of the new administration. And we've been waiting for this for years regardless of party. We felt we've been on the defense as mayors across the country. And now hopefully we're part of the implementation strategy. So all of the prose and poetry of a campaign is not just rhetoric. We can actually implement and manifest some of the ideals that have been discussed for so long now.
ROBERTS: Well, how different is this administration or the incoming administration from the previous administration? Obviously you're a democrat, he's a democrat -
NEWSOM: Yes.
ROBERTS: It's (inaudible) that way. But have you noticed that there is partisan politics as you said, aside, a difference between the Bush administration and the incoming Obama administration?
NEWSOM: Well, what's remarkable to me, you got plenty of ideology right behind us, Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. but when it comes to mayors, you don't care if you're a democrat, or republican, green party, independent, you want your garbage picked up, you want things to work, buses are right now time. That means all mayors across this country, regardless the east, north, south, west, we're all in this together and we recognize the same opportunities and the same burdens.
So as a consequence of that, we've been looking for partnerships in Washington, D.C. and that's been difficult in the last couple of years. So it's not just the democratic president that gives optimism. It's about we think that we have an activist president and wants to solve some of the issues of health care, the economy and the environment. We want to be partners in that.
ROBERTS: And certainly somebody who knows a lot about cities, too, from his background.
NEWSOM: That's the remarkable thing, you got a guy who is a community organizer. A lot has been said about that. But from our perspective that's what it's all about and someone who has come from the bottom up, that's going to be a big help for the cities.
CHETRY: We're talking about record numbers of unemployment, no city's immune for sure, not even San Francisco.
NEWSOM: No.
CHETRY: As we look ahead to the debate over the stimulus package, and how that will effect, when you as a mayor come to Washington, what are you telling this administration on how you would use that money, and how you would use money coming to you to help turn this economy around?
NEWSOM: Just make sure the money's flexible and not categorized and make sure you get most of that stimulus down into the cities and the students, not suck in the states in the bureaucracy and that's the biggest message we're trying to send as mayors across this country.
But look, you see that unemployment rate goes up, it means more people without health insurance, more people falling below the poverty line. That's real life reality for mayors across this country and it's reconciling that so issues of health care, issues of modernizing, education, the opportunity to deal substantively with our returning veterans and not making the mistakes we made after Vietnam. Those are issues top of mind for us and San Francisco and I think across the country.
ROBERTS: You don't have a polar exhibit somewhere up your sleeve, do you?
NEWSOM: No. You're kidding huh?
ROBERTS: When you look out over the Mall there back to where, you know, west toward the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial in the background, what are you think about this morning?
NEWSOM: Just a tremendous amount of spirit, and pride and optimism, almost intangible. It is a feeling of renewal and rebirth, and also pride.
CHETRY: Right.
NEWSOM: I don't feel defensive. I feel liberated in so many respects and I hear more republicans say the same thing.
CHETRY: I got to ask you one quick question before we go about the situation, you've become really the face of advocacy for gay marriage, I mean, --
NEWSOM: Yes.
CHETRY: In San Francisco and other places.
NEWSOM: Yes.
Rick Warren also raised the ire of many gay rights advocates by saying that he did not believe that a gay marriage should be allowed (inaudible) in your state. He's giving the invocation today, what do you think about that? NEWSOM: I didn't mind that he had a different point of view. Good people can disagree on this. I mind much about some of his comments, equating gay marriage to incest and polygamy and pedophilia. I didn't think that was right, and I didn't think that was appropriate, and that being said, you know, it was disappointing that he was picked but I know Rick Warren and actually admire and respect him for a lot of other reasons.
So I appreciate it on one level why President Obama chose him. But that was not one of the best choices from my humble perspective but at the same time I think it's an opportunity for us to engage in a more substantive battle and an opportunity for the president to demonstrate his policy on the campaign in terms of equality for all Americans, not just on the basis of color of skin or gender but sexual orientation.
ROBERTS: Mayor Gavin Newsom, good to see you this morning.
NEWSOM: Thank you.
ROBERTS: Thanks for dropping by. Enjoy the inaugurations. 46 minutes after the hour. We'll have more of our continuing coverage in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Ten minutes to the top of the hour. We're back with more live coverage, special edition of AMERICAN MORNING, the inauguration of the 44th president. A shot down there of the Mall, of the tens of thousands, mark that hundreds of thousands of people who have come here for this historic event.
There is the Smithsonian Castle, behind the Washington Monument off to the right and from one end of the Mall to the other, there they are, all those people have come to watch Barack Obama be inaugurated and take the oath of office, and become the 44th president of the United States. Down in the middle of all those people are Carol Costello this morning. And Carol, I've never seen anything like this and I've been covering Washington for an awfully long time. It's just extraordinary.
COSTELLO: There is certainly a feeling of euphoria down here, John. And to keep warm, the secret is to get as many people around you as possible. And that's what all of us are doing right now. These are student ambassadors from all across the country. There are elementary school students and they're just hoping against hope to get one glimpse of Barack Obama.
Let's start with you, Morgan. When you see Barack Obama, if you get to see him today, how will you react?
MORGAN, ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENT: I will go crazy.
COSTELLO: You said before you'd scream.
MORGAN: Yes. COSTELLO: How about you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, I'm just so excited. I can't believe we're going to see history being made like this.
COSTELLO: Do you guys have a plan to get close to the parade route to see him?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean, we're just going to try as best we can to get as close.
COSTELLO: How are you going to try to as close as you can to him?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: By pushing through the crowds and trying to maybe look at the screen or something.
COSTELLO: The JumboTron is probably the best but Maddie come on over here. She's from Canton, Ohio, which is my hometown so we must talk to Maddie. Come here, Maddie. What is your plan to get close to the parade route?
MADDIE, ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENT: Well being polite and say excuse and probably going to push you like I got to see Barack Obama.
COSTELLO: So basically, you're saying, excuse me, just get out of my way?
MADDIE: Yes.
COSTELLO: Good luck with that! Because I don't think people are going to let you through. So what are you doing between now and 11:30 when the swearing in takes place?
MADDIE: We'll probably be like watching, taking pictures and talking to each other and being here and being like, I hope my parents are watching, yes.
COSTELLO: I hope so, too. Because they should have Tivoed this. I'll tell you what, John. The crowd is very peaceful down here. There is really a mood of euphoria. Everyone is being very patient and, really, everyone is huddling together to keep warm. They are talking. People are eager to be on camera. They want to share their feelings of the day. Truly, an extraordinary event.
ROBERTS: Certainly, lots of number, Carol. And it's really true. Because I found this over the weekend, the number of different places that I visited whether it was the Frederick Douglass House, over in Anacostia, you know tracing the birth of the civil rights movement, to talking to people who were coming down for the concert that we had one concert.
Everybody has got a reason to be here. Everybody has got a story behind that reason to be here. And it really is quite extraordinary. They're not just here because they want to watch somebody be inaugurated as president. They want to be here because it really means something to them personally. We'll be hearing from a lot of those people throughout the morning.
And we'll also be hearing from our Christiane Amanpour in just a second. She's got has the results of a fascinating poll taken worldwide on people's views of America and how those views might change with Barack Obama becoming the 44th president of the United States.
We will take a quick break and we will be right back with Christiane right after this. Six minutes to the top of the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: The countdown is on, guys. 4:03:09. The crowd is only growing and getting more hyped and more excited about the inauguration ceremonies that are set to get under way just hours from now. A very exciting time down here on the Mall. No doubt about it. There is a lot of energy, despite the fact that we are dealing with some record cold here. About eight degrees with a wind chill and dropping since we started broadcasting this morning.
I want to give a quick hello to our international viewers as well. We are simulcasting on CNN-i. People around the world will be watching as Barack Obama and the transition of power takes place here in Washington, D.C. and you know, music is going to be a big part of this inaugural celebration.
ROBERTS: Oh, absolutely.
CHETRY: So many young people and so many of them supported Barack Obama and you know, hip-hop has been represented in a strong way as well. Actor and rapper Bow Wow performed with the kids inaugural ball last night. He joins us this morning. Glad to say that you're warm and toasting in our D.C. bureau this morning.
Bow Wow, great to talk to you. What was it like last night when you performed and when you had a chance to talk to people what were they telling you about the excitement leading up to today's inauguration?
BOW WOW, ACTOR/RAPPER: Thanks for having me. Man, it was a blessing to be able to be here and be a part of all the festivities and not only that, but to be here to witness history. You know, I was the only hip-hop artist to perform last night. I had an opportunity to meet Mrs. Obama, the First Lady, and her kids as well. So it was just a real beautiful situation.
All in all, I had a lot of fun to rock the house. So it was for the military families and the kids. So you know I'm just happy to be here.
ROBERTS: You know, Bow Wow, we should point out too that this was the first time that you had the opportunity to vote. You were too young to vote the last time around. And as we look at the faces out there on the mall, black, white, Asian, from literally every corner of the Globe coming here to America to enjoy the American life and now, celebrating the inauguration of the first African-American president. You had a hand in electing him. What are your thoughts when you look out there and you see all of those people who are here to celebrate in such grand fashion?
BOW WOW: Man, it's beautiful. It's a beautiful situation. It just shows us how far we've come to witness this. I'm watching right now on the screen below me. Just to see the different races, the different faces. Just everything. This is a very beautiful situation. And like I said, man, I'm just happy to be here, to actually be witnessing this happen.
This is something I can be able to tell my children when I have kids and they can pass it on. It's beautiful, man. Because this is what the world needs right now. We need peace and we need to come together and this is the only way to get things done is if we work with one another and if we stick together. So as long as we do this, I think we'll be OK. We can make this country, we can make the world a better place.
ROBERTS: All right.
CHETRY: You know, the last time we talked to you, you were really undertaking something quite extraordinary as well. You were trying to help with get out the vote campaign. You were helping to energize young people. And boy, I mean, when you look around you down here and we've bumped into so many young people, this was one of the most important things that they are doing in their life is to get down here, to be here. A lot of them said not only because they wanted to be able to vote and they wanted to be able to vote for Barack Obama, but they wanted to tell their children, they were here on this historic day.
