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American Morning
GOP Wins VA, NJ Governor Elections, Lose House Race in New York; Protest in Iran; President Obama's Half-Brother Speaks Out; Michael Steele Weighs in on GOP Victories; Some Officials Want Citizenship Question on Census Form; Hey Doc, Wrong Body Part!
Aired November 04, 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: Good Wednesday morning to you. It is the fourth of November. Thanks for joining us on the Most News in the Morning. I'm John Roberts.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Kiran Chetry. It's the fourth of November. It's also the day after, right? in this off-year elections. We have results for you. We're breaking them down in the next 15 minutes.
First, the Republican party seems to be alive and well. GOP candidates winning key governor races in Virginia and New Jersey last night handing a serious setback to the Democratic party. In a moment, our Candy Crowley joins us on the Republican renaissance that's reshaping the nation's political landscape.
ROBERTS: The President's half-brother has emerged in China, breaking his silence about his abusive father, a man who left President Obama when he was just 2 years old. How the election turned years of despair into hope for a long lost relative?
CHETRY: Plus, he was appointed by President Bush and kept on by President Obama. In part 3 of our series of presidential brain trust. We'll begin in inside look at the top man at the Pentagon and what it's like for Defense Chief Robert Gates to work for two presidents from two different parties during a time of war.
ROBERTS: We begin the hour though with the Republican renaissance. The GOP waking up with new life this morning celebrating critical wins in two key states, a victory in Virginia and a knock-out in New Jersey. Here are your governor's-elect this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTOPHER CHRISTIE, (R) GOVERNOR-ELECT, NEW JERSEY: This election tonight is not about me, and it's not about him, and candidly, it's not about many of you. This election was and is about the future of the state we love, the great state of New Jersey.
(APPLAUSE)
Because tomorrow together we begin to take back New Jersey.
(APPLAUSE) BOB MCDONNELL, (R) GOVERNOR-ELECT, VIRGINIA: Eight months ago I applied for the job of governor of Virginia. Tonight you have hired me. Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: To the numbers now behind the victories -- first to the commonwealth of Virginia where Republican Bob McDonnell staged a sweeping 18 point land slide win over Democrat Creigh Deeds, becoming the first GOP governor to win the state in eight years, and in New Jersey Chris Christie with a four point win over Democrat incumbent Jon Corzine.
New Jersey has not been run by a Republican in 12 years.
Our political correspondent Candy Crowley now on a sobering night for the Democrats and a resurrection of sorts for Republicans. Good morning to you.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. You know, we will be looking at these exit polls, looking for the broader meaning, but for this morning there's one truism in politics and it holds true here -- a win is a win is a win.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY: As it turns out the Republican party is not dead.
MCDONNELL: Tonight you have given me the title of governor of Virginia. But I pledge to you over the next four years action and results.
CROWLEY: With a big assist from independents, Republicans swept Virginia's three statewide races and knocked out an incumbent governor in New Jersey.
CHRISTIE: Starting tomorrow we are going to pick Trenton up and we're going it turn it upside down.
(APPLAUSE)
CROWLEY: White House aides said the president wasn't going to watch election returns. He probably slept better for that, because he was no bystander in these high profile Democratic defeats. He took one swing through Virginia, a state he won by six points, and made three trips to New Jersey, a state he won by more than 15.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We will not lose this election if all of you are as committed as you were last year.
CROWLEY: As it turns out, neither mojo nor voters are transferrable.
The brightest spot for Democrats was a Republican made disaster in a special election for U.S. Congress in upstate New York. A Democrat won that seat that's been held by Republicans for more than a century after a nasty struggle between a moderate Republican and a conservative paved the way. Note to the GOP -- fighting can be fatal.
But this adds up to depends on who does the math. The White House began to subtract itself before the polls closed.
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: We don't look at either of these gubernatorial race or the congressional race as something that portends a lot about for our legislative efforts going forward or political prospects in 2010.
CROWLEY: And history offers some shelter for the new administration. The party in the White House has lost both governor races in Virginia and New Jersey since 1989.
Still, the exit polls show voters top concern was the economy. The National Republican Senatorial Committee called the votes for reining in government spending and restoring fiscal responsibility.
In the end, the politics of the night are not all that complicated. The victors get bragging rights and energy. It's better to win. The Grand Old Party had a great old night, mostly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY: In the end the Democrats are looking at the numbers, because white this may not have been an election, a referendum on Barack Obama, certainly it does say something about the president.
It's a little bit like when we talk about polls and say they're a snapshot in time, well, these elections were a snapshot in time. It extrapolates too much to say it tells you something about 2010.
It does tell you about something right now, and that is that voters are worried about the economy and they took it out in the polls.
ROBERTS: What about New York's 23rd district, because that may tell us something about 2010. It was an off-year election to fill a vacant seat and Owens has to run again next year.
CROWLEY: The Republicans have to be very careful when -- most of this will play out in the primaries. We are going to see other races, and we know that the conservatives, the tea party Republicans or tea party conservatives have been emboldened by this. They won. What is that -- they won the battle and lost the war?
So you need to be careful what you wish for. You want your person up there and they lose, this doesn't get them closer to their goals in Washington. So somehow the Republican Party has to work this out, and they'll spend the next couple of years doing it.
CHETRY: And if you're just new to that whole conversation, basically the Republican was forced out. The third party conservative candidate was really endorsed by a lot of big party names, and it was this little almost internal war. And guess what happened? The Democrat won.
CROWLEY: Walked right through, made an opening.
And the Republicans knew this sort of thing is possible. It could happen. Primaries are about this. But there was no primary here, so it played out in the actual race.
So what they're hoping is the primaries after those are over, whichever candidate, be more moderate or more conservative, what they're hoping is that after that then the Republicans can come together behind whoever gets nominated and it won't work out quite like the 23rd district in New York did.
ROBERTS: Great to see you this morning. We'll see you back next hour to be part of our political panel. Candy Crowley for us this morning.
Stay with us. By the way, later this hour we'll be joined live by Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele and Tim Kaine, the outgoing governor of Virginia and the Democratic National Committee Chairman. We'll get their take on last night's election results.
CHETRY: Democrats may be licking their wounds this morning, but party leaders are seizing on a victory, as we've been talking about, in New York's 23rd congressional district.
At stake was a House seat that's been held by the GOP since the civil war. Democrat Bill Owens defeated Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman, winning the special election. As we said, Owens was able to cash in on a split between moderate and conservative Republicans and emerge victorious.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL OWENS, (D) NEW YORK CONGRESSMAN-ELECT: When we began this journey a lot of people didn't give us much of a chance to get this done. They didn't think the people of upstate New York could put away their partisanship and all of the things that divide us in favor of finding common sense solutions to the challenges that unite us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Deborah Feyerick is live for us in Saranac Lake, New York. And Deb, as we've been talking about, this race underscored a deep division in the Republican Party. What about the day after? Lessons learned?
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A lot of lessons learned, and clearly this was a big one for the Democrats. But the bigger story here is what was going on within the Republican Party, a conservative Republican, an unknown, coming out of nowhere to catch the attention of party conservatives like Sarah Palin, Fred Thompson, Rush Limbaugh, the candidate Doug Hoffman getting more than 40 percent of the vote. Now had the moderate Republican who pulled out of the race just a couple days ago and who threw her support to the Democrats, had her name not been on the ballot, it's very likely that Doug Hoffman, the conservative would have done even better than he did because her name on that ballot ended up being the spoiler and shifted the race in favor of the Democrats.
I spoke to a journalist who covered politics in northern New York for more than 30 years. He tells me that he was surprised by the depth of anger within Republicans in this area, had not seen anything like it before, saying that the message of conservatives is, quote, "They want to take back this country."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL LONG, CHAIRMAN OF THE NEW YORK STATE CONSERVATIVE PARTY: This race has proven that people are rising up. There's a grassroots movement not only in this district but across the country. People are trying to get the attention of Washington. They want their country back.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FEYERICK: Now, there's a lot of intrigue and a lot of drama because the conservative attacks on the moderate candidate were relentless, so much so that political insiders told us the in fact the moderate really felt that she had been beaten up. She was in a position to throw her support to the Democrat.
And then Republicans came in and said that in fact she's the one who stabbed them in the back, that she's the one who lost this race for them. But they're the ones who are attacking her.
So there's a lot of drama and intrigue, and certainly it will be interesting to follow, but definitely a lot of lessons learned -- Kiran, John.
CHETRY: And they get to do it all again next year. That's the amazing part, right, because this was a special election.
FEYERICK: Fun, fun, fun.
(LAUGHTER)
CHETRY: Deborah Feyerick live for us in Saranac Lake, thanks -- John.
ROBERTS: While the GOP didn't pick up New York's 23rd District, at least not this year, there's still plenty for the party to celebrate. Let's break down some of the results.
We told but what happened in New Jersey and Virginia. That follows trends that have occurred in Virginia since 1977 when the party that doesn't hold power in the White House wins the governorship. It's been happening in New Jersey since 1989. Let's take a look at another independent who actually ran on the Republican ticket. Mayor Michael Bloomberg reelected now to a third term as mayor of New York, 51 percent to 46 percent for Bill Thompson.
The race was far closer than most people thought it was going to be, probably because Bill Thompson made a real issue out of the fact that Michael Bloomberg moved to get the rules changed. Mayors had been limited to two terms. He got the rules changed to opening it up to a third term. So that's potentially why that race was so close.
There was an interesting question on the ballot in Maine that sort of followed the battle of Prop 8 in California. You might remember California passed a law that allowed same-sex marriage. Prop 8 overturned that.
Well, the legislature in Maine had passed a same-sex marriage law. It went to a popular vote -- 53 percent of the voters rejected what the legislature had did. They approved question number one, which is, do you want to overturn the law on same-sex marriage, which continues an unbroken streak where every time that question has gone to the voters, they overturn what the legislature has done.
A couple of other races to take a look at and pay particular attention to. This is the race for Atlanta mayor. If elected last night Mary Norwood would have been the first Caucasian to become mayor of Atlanta since 1973.
She did not get enough to avoid a runoff against State Senator Kasim Reed, so that's going to go to a runoff election. That will be held on December the 1st.
And the same thing happened here in Houston where controller Annise Parker who was the first openly gay candidate there in Houston didn't get enough to win convincingly over Gene Locke, the former city attorney. So that will go to a runoff election on December the 10th.
So while a lot were decided last night, there are some that we won't know about for another few weeks or so.
But as you head off to work this morning, remember you can check out all of the election results and hear from winners. Just go to CNNpolitics.com -- Kiran.
CHETRY: John, thanks.
Still ahead, we'll hear a story from President Obama's half brother who's speaking out about family abuse. John Vause is live after the break.
It's 11 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Welcome back to The Most News in the Morning.
Appointed by a Republican president, now serving under a Democratic president, and all during a time of war -- an inside look at the relationship between President Obama and Defense Secretary Robert Gates. That's ahead in our special series "The Presidential Brain Trust" -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, demonstrations are taking place across Iran right now. Witnesses say Iranian security forces are using batons and tear gas to break up anti-government demonstrations. Tens of thousands of people turning out for anti-American rallies marking 30 years since Islamic students took over the U.S. embassy in Iran.
Reza Sayah is live in Islamabad for us with the very latest on what's going on.
Good morning, Reza.
REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Kiran. Another dramatic day in Iran. After a nearly six-week absence in the streets, opposition supporters were out again demonstrating and once again clashing with security personnel right in front of the former U.S. embassy in Tehran. Remember, the Iranian government has banned the opposition movement from holding these types of rallies but what they've done very effectively is target and zero in on big calendar days -- big anniversary days where the government has sanctioned and authorized events and they essentially tried to hijack them and they tried to do it again today.
And today is one of the biggest days on the calendar in Iran, the 30-year anniversary of the takeover of the U.S. embassy. It was 1979 when supporters of Imam Khomeini (ph) stormed the U.S. embassy.
Today, tens of thousands of opposition supporters showed up but also showing up, tens of thousands of government supporters, riot police, security personnel. In recent months, that has been a recipe for violent clashes. Witnesses and sources on the ground telling us they saw dozens of clashes against today. One witness told us he hadn't seen this many security personnel in the past few months and it looks like for the most part this major show of force neutralized the opposition movement and what they were trying to do today, but also this was another statement by the opposition movement that they are still there and a force to be reckoned with -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Reza Sayah for us this morning in Islamabad. Thank you.
ROBERTS: President Obama hardly knew his father, but his half- brother grew up with him, and he's a man he says he came to fear. Mark Obama Ndesandjo introduced himself to the world yesterday, and like his famous half-brother, he is now also an author.
Our John Vause live for us all the way from Shanghai this morning. So, John, what's he saying?
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, John. Well, we met Mark Obama Ndesandjo a little earlier. He looks a bit like the president. He has some of the same mannerisms and he also says that he shares something else with Barack Obama. And that's an abusive dad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE (voice-over): He's an Obama you probably have never heard of. Mark Obama Ndesandjo, the president's half-brother. An engineer by trade, he lost his job in the U.S. seven years ago and moved to the booming city in Shenzhen in China's south, where he owns a small chain of restaurants, and as seen in this YouTube clip teaches piano to orphans.
MARK OBAMA NDESANDJO, PRESIDENT OBAMA'S HALF-BROTHER: In my own way, I have tried to make a difference.
VAUSE: After dodging the media for almost a year, he's speaking out now. For one, he's written a book, a semi-autobiographical story called "Nairobi to Shenzhen." And in that book he reveals that Barack Obama Sr., the father he shares with the president of the United States, was often drunk and physically abusive.
NDESANDJO: My father beats me. He beats my mother. You just do not do that. I shut these thoughts in the back of my mind for many years.
VAUSE: The years he struggled with that name, Obama. Few here ever knew about his famous family connection, but then something happened. A year ago as thousands gathered in Grant Park to celebrate his brother's victory, his own despair, he says, became hope.
NDESANDJO: I saw the millions of people who loved or supported my brother, Barack, and in the process in some weird way I came to terms with many things that I had shut out of my life including the Obama name.
VAUSE (on camera): And over the years Mark Obama says he's only met a few times with his brother but plans to catch up and introduce his new Chinese wife when President Obama makes his first official visit to China later this month.
(voice-over): Being a presidential brother is not easy. Think Billy Carter and Roger Clinton. Mark Obama says now he wants to live his life and tell his own story. Not have it told by others.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Now, there's virtually no mention of Barack Obama in this book. Just one small name at the very beginning where he says he gives thanks to a lot of people and one of them is just simply Barack -- John.
ROBERTS: I guess the White House is aware of this book. Do we know what they're saying about it?
VAUSE: Well, there's been nothing out of the White House just yet. I asked Mark about that whether the White House was aware of it. He said yes. He's been in contact with them. He's been in contact with Barack Obama, but that's pretty much it.
He's very coy about having anything to do with this family relationship. He is very determined to be known for himself. It seems he's come to China to try to reinvent himself, get away from that whole Obama clan if you like, John.
ROBERTS: Interesting story. John Vause for us in Shanghai this morning. John, thanks so much for that.
CHETRY: Still ahead, our series "The Presidential Brain Trust" continues. Robert Gates, the defense secretary who served under President Bush and now President Obama. Barbara Starr is going to have a look at what it's like for him.
Twenty minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning. It was a big night for the GOP. The governors' mansions in Virginia and New Jersey going from blue to red. Two states that President Obama carried just a year ago. Does it mean anything for 2010? We'll talk to DNC chairman and outgoing governor Tim Kaine of Virginia live at 7:30. But first, John has the GOP reaction.
ROBERTS: And joining us now from Washington is Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele.
Chairman Steele, great to see you this morning. So, I could right off the top...
MICHAEL STEELE, RNC CHAIRMAN: Hey, John, good to be with you.
ROBERTS: Right off the top the question to ask, you know you had some big gains last night in Virginia and New Jersey but did conservatives blow it in the 23rd district there in New York? I mean, that district has been sending Republicans to Congress since Ulysses S. Grant was president.
STEELE: Yes. Well, you know, it doesn't take away from what was a great night in New Jersey and in Virginia particularly in New Jersey where no one even gave us a snowball's chance to come close to beating Governor Corzine. And so, you know, hats off to the great effort to both Chris Christie and Bob McDonnell.
New York 23 is an example of what happens if you have a failed process, and there was a failed process there. The days of having a small group of individuals select candidates is over and should be over. I mean, an open primary process works best. You would have gotten a candidate that the people wanted in the first place instead of having this long drawn out drama.
Great Shakespearean theater at the end there but, you know, the bottom line is that the GOP last night became I think transcended in that it moved beyond the past of losses and no message and no meaning for the American people and I think yesterday we had two candidates who set some milestones for us, achieved some milestones in terms of the turnaround and now hopefully point the way to 2010 and beyond. ROBERTS: Now, we talk about Virginia and New Jersey in just a second. But I did want to ask you a couple more questions about New York's 23rd District. Did conservatives...
STEELE: Oh, sure.
ROBERTS: Did conservatives hijack that race because you had endorsed Dede Scozzafava?
STEELE: No. Come on.
ROBERTS: Pete Sessions had endorsed her. Newt Gingrich had endorsed her and suddenly Sarah Palin, Tim Pawlenty and others come in and say, no, we don't like her. She's too liberal. We want to go with Doug Hoffman.
STEELE: No. No one hijacked anything. But look, again, it was a failed process and the reality of it is those individuals that endorsed after the nominee was selected, the other candidates, that's their prerogative, that's their choice. But, you know, someone like Pete Sessions and Newt Gingrich and others understand and appreciate she's the Republican nominee.
ROBERTS: Yes.
STEELE: And they were supporting the Republican nominee. Whether they picked her or not is irrelevant. Whether they thought she should have been the nominee is irrelevant. She was -- my role as a national chairman is to support the nominees of the party. I don't get the luxury of picking and choosing who they are.
ROBERTS: So what does this say about next year in the midterm elections, you know, where you have some moderates who are facing off against more conservative candidates? Florida is one of those races. You've got Charlie Crist against Marco Rubio. Are you expecting that there is going to be another big fight?
STEELE: No, John. All it says is you've got a primary process and the best person chosen by the individuals in that race in Florida or elsewhere will win. And whoever that is, guess who's going to support them? Me? Because that's my job. I'm the national chairman. And so, you know, that's how it works here. I understand the drama and...
ROBERTS: And you don't mind if people say...
STEELE: What?
ROBERTS: You don't mind if people say we don't care what Michael Steele says, we're going to vote for our own candidate? We're going to go with our own candidate?
STEELE: Well, look, you know, if there's a primary and person A wins, and I support that person because they're the nominee and some other groups out there or individuals don't like the choice of the people, you know, from that primary process, again, that's their prerogative. That's the beauty of this country that we can still have a choice in these things even if it's not one that we like.
ROBERTS: Right. OK.
STEELE: You know, I can go somewhere else.
ROBERTS: All right. Let's take a look at New Jersey and Virginia. Big swing among independent voters there. Chris Christie wins independent 60-30 over Jon Corzine. McDonnell wins some 66-33 over Creigh Deeds in a state where President Obama when he was a candidate won independents 49-48. What happened with independent voters?
STEELE: Right.
ROBERTS: What were the issues that they were voting on?
STEELE: Well, I think it's very clear independent voters, you know, you go back to 2008, they were won by Barack Obama, the Democrats, very cleanly. But this was a two to one switch last night and what it said was those issues that matter to those independent voters were not being addressed or were being addressed in a way that independents didn't appreciate. And the fact that both Christie and McDonnell were able to translate their message in such a way that people appreciated where they were going, how they intended to lead I think made the difference here.
Being able -- I mean, the independent voter today is the keystone. Everyone is focused on what they're thinking and how they are approaching some of these issues whether it's health care or transportation. And if you don't have a message for them, if you don't have something to say, they'll let you know by going with the other team or staying out of it all together.
Last night, they came home to the GOP. They supported our nominees for governor in both states because they had a message that translated well for them...
ROBERTS: Right.
STEELE: ... that spoke to some of their concerns.
ROBERTS: Do you think this really means anything for next year's midterm election? You know, we've been pointing out all morning that in Virginia since 1977 the party that doesn't hold power in the White House has won the off-year election in the governor's race the following year.
STEELE: Yes.
ROBERTS: That's the case in New Jersey since 1989. Is this just business as usual or do you think it does portend something for next year?
STEELE: No, I think -- I don't know yet. And I guess, you know, John, there's going to be a little bit more analysis of those trends again, looking at those independent voters, looking at younger voters and other groups of individuals who voted yesterday. So I'm not -- I'm not so quick to say oh, yes, this portends great things for the GOP next year.
We still have a lot of work to do. We have a party that again is reconnecting with the American people. We're trying to lay out alternative perspectives and views on a host of issues that are impacting small businesses and families. And as we make those arguments, I think we'll be in a better position to appreciate the move that we've made off of last night going into 2010.
Last night was an example of what happens when elected officials and others don't pay attention and don't listen to what people out there are saying. We're listening and we're paying attention at the GOP, and we're going to build off last night and hopefully bring some more victories home next year.
ROBERTS: Michael Steele, great to talk to you this morning.
STEELE: All right, John.
ROBERTS: All right. We'll see you again soon.
CHETRY: So we had a chance to hear from the GOP. Up next, we're going to get the Democratic perspective of how this election, this off-year election went. We're going to be speaking with governor of Virginia, Tim Kaine, just ahead.
It's 29 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Thirty minutes now after the hour. And checking now on our top stories.
Sick days for swine flu. A key lawmaker saying if you don't get regular sick days at work and if your boss asks you to stay home, you should be guaranteed five days of paid sick leave. The House Education and Labor Committee chairman George Miller says his measure would protect about 50 million workers with no paid sick leave many of whom work in the food industry.
CHETRY: Gold prices are at a record high this morning after India bought close to $7 billion of the precious metal from the International Monetary Fund. The rally came despite a slightly stronger U.S. dollar. Gold and other commodities that are priced in dollars usually go down when the dollar goes up.
ROBERTS: More bang for your beer. "USA Today" says more states are moving to allow higher alcohol content in beer. Some as high, listen to this, as 16 percent. The average beer that you have at the bar is a little under five percent. Brewers say it's a matter of taste with restrictions forcing them to use fewer sugar. Mothers Against Drunk Driving says it's important for labels to remind people that these beers will get you drunk and drunk faster.
A bipartisan cabinet was one of President Obama's campaign promises, and he kept his word when he announced President Bush's Defense Secretary Robert Gates would stay on the job at the Pentagon. Our Barbara Starr has got a look at his relationship with their commander in chief and in part three of our series, "The Presidential Brain Trust."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERT GATES, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: I'm deeply honored that the president-elect has asked me to continue as secretary of defense.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At the beginning they were a political odd couple.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I, Barack Hussein Obama.
STARR: A new Democratic president who campaigned against Washington business as usual keeping a veteran insider who had been serving under Republican President Bush. Defense Secretary Robert Gates now one of President Obama's closest advisers. He has given credibility to a president who lacked national security credentials. Gates commands the power to tell others to button it when it comes to the classified review of Afghanistan.
GATES: It is imperative that all of us taking part in these deliberations, civilians and military alike, provide our best advice to the president candidly but privately.
STARR: It's vintage Gates. The former CIA chief puts a premium on loyalty and discretion. The White House has noticed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he is exactly at the center. He has been I think a big surprise to Obama. They thought it was a political astute move to keep him on. I think they were surprised at the bond that developed between Obama and Gates. The respect that Gates quickly won from Obama.
STARR (on camera): One of the places Bob Gates have been the most effective is here on Capitol Hill where his straight shooter reputation has helped him convince Congress to go along with everything from cutting expensive weapons programs to giving the president enough time to decide on war strategy.
(voice-over) One plus for Gates. He's not running for office or his next job.
GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: When you take the political calculation out of it, more people are willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and say he's staying on because he wants to do the right thing.
STARR: The ultimate test of Bob Gates' influence will come on the issue of Afghanistan. He's been silent on his advice to the president but he has made it known his opposition to sending more troops has eased. One vulnerability, Gates seems unable to mask, his emotions about the troops. After seeing remains return to Dover Air Force base, he found it hard to talk.
GATES: I went to the back of the plane by myself. And I spent time with each of the transfer cases. I think I'll stop there.
STARR: How long will Gates now stay on the job?
GATES: There's an old saying about the one-year mark in Washington. For the first six months you wonder how the hell you got here.
For the next six months you wonder how the hell the rest of them got here. And I might add that after nearly three years you start wondering how the hell you're still here.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STARR: And back at the Pentagon this morning, still waiting for that decision about what to do about Afghanistan and the question is if the war does go badly, how much of the blame will Bob Gates take? John, Kiran.
ROBERTS: Barbara Starr for us this morning, outside the Pentagon. Barbara, thanks so much.
Tomorrow in our special series, "The Presidential Brain Trust," she's a longtime friend of the first family and probably knows them better than anyone in the White House inner circle. The CNN Washington team has an in-depth look at President Obama's senior adviser, Valerie Jared. That's tomorrow on the most news in the morning.
What a difference a year makes. This morning the Republican Party celebrating big victories in two key governors races but even on the big night for the GOP, the Democrats did pick up yet another House seat. We spoke to RNC chairman Michael Steele just a few minutes ago and now joining us on the democratic side is Virginia Governor and DNC chairman Tim Kaine. Governor Kaine, great to have you with us this morning. Thanks.
GOV. TIM KAINE (D), VIRGINIA: Kiran, great to be back.
CHETRY: Let's talk about Virginia first of all. What happened to the Democrats in Virginia?
KAINE: Well, obviously, you know, five years ago the notions that the Republicans would win a race in Virginia was hardly news. It would have been like the sun coming up tomorrow. We've won a lot of races. But it didn't go our way last night.
Kiran, for 36 years in Virginia the party that wins the White House then loses the governorship the next year and our candidate, Creigh Deeds, a fantastic state senator. It was a rematch. He ran four years ago against Bob McDonnell for attorney general and lost. And so when he became our nominee this year, everybody viewed him as the underdog. We've been winning some races with the underdogs but we were not able to prevail last night.
Got to give credit to Bob, and Creigh has been a great state senator. But we were not just able to overcome the advantages that statewide office holding had given Bob McDonnell for the last four years.
CHETRY: And Governor Kaine, we just heard from RNC chair Michael Steele, and he says that GOP victories particularly in Virginia are actually the voters' rejection of liberal tax and spend policies that Washington Democrats are trying to force on Americans. Those are his words.
Do you agree that it had to do with what was going on in Washington and some of the concerns about spending?
KAINE: I really don't, Kiran. I think that Michael may have changed his positions from last night. Last night we were together on "LARRY KING," and he said that it was not a referendum at all on President Obama. President Obama actually remains very popular in Virginia with strong job approval numbers. Better than a year ago when he was elected. And the same holds true in New Jersey.
Exit polls show in New Jersey and Virginia both the voters approve of the way President Obama is handling the most difficult economic situation that the nation has been through since the 1930s but again a rematch race is always tough. We've got a trend, a 36- year trend that was kind of blowing at us.
What we were really interested in last night, obviously, was the race you mentioned, the congressional race in New York where the Republican candidate...
CHETRY: Right.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: I want to get to that in one second. Because I do want to bring that up. But first of all, let's get back to the president's approval ratings quickly. Because you did mention...
KAINE: Yes.
CHETRY: ... that he had strong approval ratings. But we actually have seen though a big drop. Back in February, he had a 67 percent approval rating. CNN's latest poll has him at 54 percent. And the big areas of concern or weak spots, I guess, for the president have been the handling of the war in Afghanistan and the handling of the economy.
So, the question is how much of these Democratic losses are a referendum on the job, the White House, the administration is doing right now on those two key issues.
KAINE: Well, in exit polls in both Virginia and New Jersey, strong majorities of citizens said their vote was based on local issues and was not at all connected with their views of the president. When they were asked then about their views of the president in exit polls in both states, they had good things to say about their approval of the way he was handling his job.
You are right that the president had honeymoon numbers right after inauguration day. Those honeymoon numbers never last. But he is more popular today among the American public than he was on election day last year when he won that historic race.
And in Virginia, the most recent poll that I've seen huge sample sized poll had his approval rating with Virginia voters at 57 percent which is very, very strong. So I think you just need to read these as local races with local concerns. That's traditionally been the way these two races have gone in the years after the presidential race but the president is quite popular in both New Jersey and Virginia.
CHETRY: Well, in New Jersey also Republican Chris Christie won 60 percent of independents. In your state of Virginia, the GOP candidate winning 66 percent of independents. And a year ago, Barack Obama as the candidate won the independents in both of those states. Why do you think that independents who heavily favored Candidate Obama went for the GOP this time around?
KAINE: Well, we're going to have to scratch our head a little bit on that one, Kiran. Because, again, on independents, the recent polling that I have seen -- "The Washington Post" did a poll a couple of days ago that showed the president's favorability among independents nationally at 55 percent. Now, he won 52 percent of independents votes last year. So that means today again he is north of where he was last year in terms of favorability among independents.
So why he remains strong with independents and the two gubernatorial candidates had trouble, that's something that we'll have to take a look at. But when asked about the president, independents still approve of the way that he is handling this most difficult economy since the 1930s.
We're seeing GDP growing again for in a robust way for the first time in nearly two years and other economic trends beginning to move the right way. The rate of job losses is being cut. We didn't get into this problem overnight. And we're not going to climb out overnight. But I think independents and the mass of American voters understand this president is leading us to a better place.
CHETRY: All right. I said we would get back to it. So let's talk about the 23rd congressional race.
KAINE: Absolutely.
CHETRY: This was a special election. It was a bright spot for the Democrats. But then we got to go right back to the table next year because this was a special election, they got to run again. So how are some of the lessons learned?
KAINE: So it's an interesting one. You know, I think it may be more kind of a (INAUDIBLE) of things to come, Kiran. New York 23. I mean, here you have a situation where the Republicans rally behind a nominee. Michael Steele and others with the party support the nominee. They invest a million dollars nearly in the nominee but then a right wing candidate supported by radio talk show hosts and kind of the extreme side of the party chase the nominee out. That nominee then turns around and endorses the Democratic candidate, Bill Owens, who wins. Becoming the first Democrat to hold that seat in over 100 years.
CHETRY: Right.
KAINE: And the reason that I say this...
CHETRY: You don't think the GOP is going to make that same mistake again come next year when they run a candidate against Bill Owens.
KAINE: We're already are seeing the Bill Owens race, you know, they try to figure that out. But we already are seeing the Republican party kind of making that mistake going into 2010 because you have extremely vigorous Republican primaries going on in Florida and Texas.
Just in the last couple of days, you have seen a war of words between Tim Pawlenty and Olympia Snowe. You saw Arlen Spector chased out of his party earlier this year. The Republicans are kind of marginalizing themselves by hanging a label on the party that moderates aren't welcome and the more that happens and we see it happening going into 2010, the more independents will realize that their natural home is supporting Democratic candidates.
So I think the vote last night in the New York 23 is not the beginning we saw with Arlen Spector but the continuation of a trend that is likely to have some real significance going into next year's mid terms.
CHETRY: All right. Well, we'll be watching that for sure. Governor Tim Kaine, great to get your perspective this morning. Thanks for being with us.
KAINE: Thanks, Kiran.
ROBERTS: So very soon people are going to get questionnaires for the 2010 census and there are people fanning out across the country knocking on doors asking people questions those who haven't filled out their forms. And one of the questions is causing particular controversy. What is the question and why is it such a hot button issue?
Carol Costello is looking into it, coming right up for us. It's 43 minutes after the hour.
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ROBERTS: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.
It is a once in a decade event. The federal government spending billions of dollars to get a head count for America. The 2010 Census should be arriving in mailboxes by March.
CHETRY: That's right. It's a straightforward questionnaire, but one group of lawmakers would like to add just one more question to the form, and as Carol Costello reports, that's where things get complicated.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a few months, the 2010 Census form will arrive by mail at every US household. It will ask how many people are living in this house? And what is the person's sex, age? What it wouldn't ask is this: Are you a US citizen?
Republican Senator David Vitter says it should. He's pushing an amendment to force the Census Bureau to add that question to the 2010 Census.
SEN. DAVID VITTER (R), LOUISIANA: It simply says, sure, count everybody but ask if this person is a citizen or a non-citizen. So we simply know what we're dealing with.
COSTELLO: The Constitution says the government must count the whole number of persons in each state. It's important the census get an accurate count because it determines how many lawmakers represent each state. Vitter, who represents Louisiana, says his state is projected to lose one of its seven seats in the House of Representatives after the 2010 Census. He says it's because Louisiana has few illegal immigrants and states like California have a lot. He says that's not fair.
VITTER: We don't put the population of France into the count or the population of Brazil, so why would we factor in non-citizens in determining how many US house members every state gets?
COSTELLO: Some democratic lawmakers say Vitter's effort is unconstitutional and immoral.
REP. BARBARA LEE (D), CALIFORNIA: But we cannot allow lawmakers to use divisive tactics to scare people into not participating in the 2010 Census.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's 1920, and Census time in the United States.
COSTELLO: Counting all people has long been a struggle for the U.S. Census Bureau. Many minorities, legal and illegal, mistrust the government. This urging minorities to participate came out in the old newsreel days.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) citizens of Japanese extraction, and somewhere else, (INAUDIBLE) Chinese population is added to the total. Looks like this little fellow would be a bit happier in Hong Kong.
ROBERT GROVES, DIRECTOR, U.S. CENSUS BUREAU: A lot of the forms are already...
COSTELLO: Dr. Robert Groves heads up the U.S. Census Bureau.
COSTELLO (on camera): But would you object to that question on the 2010 Census form?
GROVES: We can't do a Census with that question.
COSTELLO (voice-over): Not because he necessarily objects to it but because 425 million 2010 Census forms have already been printed up. Groves says Senator Vitter's request comes too late.
GROVES: My problem is we have an April 1, 2010 Census date. We can't meet that deadline with a change in the questionnaire.
COSTELLO: Still, the senator is not giving up, even if it will cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars to add that simple question: Are you a U.S. citizen?
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Senator Vitter has talked with constitutional scholars about this issue because, as I told you, the constitution says the government is to count the whole number of persons in each state. It doesn't say anything about those citizens being a US citizen.
But Senator Vitter says the Founding Fathers' intent was to count citizens and he's willing to make a move to change the constitution to make that clear - John, Kiran.
ROBERTS: So Carol, how - how much would it cost to reprint all of those?
COSTELLO: Some estimates up to a billion dollars. The whole Census itself is going to cost $15 billion this year. That's the most expensive US Census in history.
ROBERTS: Is Vitter proposing where he would find the money?
COSTELLO: No, he's not. But he says, you know, if we spend - if we're already spending $15 billion, what's almost a billion dollars more? Although he says it would cost less than that, but it would be into the hundreds of millions of dollars.
ROBERTS: OK. Carol Costello for us this morning. Carol, thanks so much.
What do you think of the idea of adding the question, "Are you a US citizen?" to the 2010 Census now that you know how much it would cost? Go to our blog at cnn.com/amfix and let us know how you feel.
CHETRY: Well, our top stories are just minutes away, including a gruesome discovery in Cleveland, more bodies found in the home of a convicted rapist. Our Susan Candiotti is monitoring the situation with the police. ROBERTS: Plus, the GOP sweep in the White House. How should President Obama take the Republican wins in Virginia and New Jersey? We're live with some answers.
CHETRY: Also some inspiration for you this morning. Now is the time to make your dreams come true. The pastor of America's largest church, Joel Osteen joins us live and says that despite all the bad things happening in the world, you have to seize the day. He'll tell you the secret to doing it in the next hour of the Most News in the Morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Welcome back to the Most News in the Morning.
Right now at hospitals across the country, people are being prepped for surgery and data shows before the day is over five or six patients will have had the wrong parts removed, cut into or treated. They're called wrong site surgeries and they happen coast to coast. Rhode Island Hospital has seen some screw ups lately. The last one happened just a week and a half ago. State health officials have hit the hospital with a big fine and what seems to be an unprecedented punishment, mandatory video cameras in the operating room.
Let's bring in our senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen. Elizabeth, all of the publicity over medical mistakes, all of the precautions that ORs take and it's still happening. What's going on here?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, isn't it amazing? It is incredible and just awful that this is still happening and unfortunately, in Rhode Island it's happening, well, quite a bit. There's the incident that you mentioned, and then there's some other incidents.
Here are just two of the things that have happened in Rhode Island recently. In the year 2000, a surgeon operated on the wrong child. They gave a child a tonsillectomy when they were supposed to get an eye surgery because they confused that child with another patient. And then in 2001, holes were drilled on the wrong side of a patient's head because someone put a CT scan in a light box backwards.
So those are just two of the things that have gone wrong and it's just - it's -- what's so important is that when you're in the hospital, the doctors are supposed to take a time-out. They're supposed to take a few minutes before the operation and say, let's all agree, what's the name of this patient and what are they here for - John.
ROBERTS: You know, just personal experience, I had a shoulder operated on last year and the doctor signed it, they put a line around my arm with an arrow toward the shoulder that said "yes." I mean, they're taking precautions here, so how does this happen, and what can patients do to try to minimize the risk that something's going to go out of control? COHEN: I mean, John, that's what's supposed to happen, so they did the right thing. But for example in Rhode Island, the surgeries were supposed to take - take place on certain fingers and the surgeon signed the wrist instead of the fingers, which is how the mistake was made.
So, let's take a look at what you can do in order to try to make your surgery safer. For example, what you can do is you can mark your body. If you're having surgery on your right knee, write yes right here and write no right there and tell everyone you see, the surgery is on my right knee this morning. Also, schedule wisely. You're better off, I'm told, to have a surgery early in the morning when the surgeons are fresher and earlier in the week when they haven't had a long week. And also, be 100 percent informed.
Take a look at this. This is a Web site that has graphs that has grades, basically, for patient safety. This is federal government data that shows you one bar is bad - that means that hospital's not doing very well for that type of surgery - and three or four bars means that they're doing much better. So you can take a look. And if you go to the amFIX Web site you can find the Web site where we have these graphs and other information about how you can be an empowered surgical patient.
ROBERTS: That is really, really good information. Elizabeth Cohen for us this morning. Elizabeth, thanks so much.
COHEN: Thanks.
CHETRY: Well, the morning after the elections - why it matters, why you should care. We have our top stories coming up in 90 seconds.
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