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Ballot Bowl 2008

Campaigns Trade Jabs; Hearing from the Candidates

Aired September 06, 2008 - 14:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR, BALLOT BOWL: Welcome to CNN's BALLET BOWL. I'm Suzanne Malveaux. here in Terre Haute, Indiana.
This is really your chance, in the next couple of hours, to hear from the candidates sometimes on tape, sometimes live, but always unfiltered. Now it is just less than two months away from election day. But who's counting? Actually, we are counting: 59 days away. To help us, joining in, in the next couple of hours, by colleague Bill Schneider, he is on the CNN Election Express out of Wisconsin. We'll get to him in a little bit. Also my co-host Mary Snow. She's in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with the Republicans.

Mary, obviously very exciting to see these candidates on road now, very little time before the election, a lot of voters very curious about their positions on various issues. We're actually in Indiana because this could be a chance, at least for the Democrats, in more than 70 years or so since Lyndon Johnson's victory to capture the state for a Democrat. That's why Barack Obama just wrapped up his speech here.

Mary, what are you hearing from the Republicans today?

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, we're in El Paso County, here in Colorado Springs. This is really considered the reddest red counties in Colorado. Here today what people are saying is that John McCain will have to win here in order to win the state. Thousands of people have turned out here today and talking with people in the crowd, you certainly sense the enthusiasm for Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

Both McCain and Palin are expected momentarily to begin speaking to this crowd. And of course here on BALLOT BOWL we'll bring that you live. But certainly they have been receiving warm welcomes along the campaign trail since yesterday. And the McCain camp has now decided to keep Sarah Palin on the campaign trail with John McCain for the next few days. She had been anticipated to go out solo starting Monday, but their stay is going to be extended a little bit into early next week as the campaign really builds -- or taps into these enthusiastic crowds.

And also what McCain aides are saying, or tell CNN, is that they're really trying to figure out the best way to deploy her. But certainly this is a state that Republicans and Democrats, as you know, have been eyeing and certainly the big fight here. People here are calling it real street fight in this election - Suzanne. MALVEAUX: And Mary, what's really fascinating about all of this, the last 19 months or so, we've heard Barack Obama's campaign really bring forward this idea of change. This is the change candidate. We've heard from John McCain, as well as Sarah Palin, just the last couple of days, 48 hours or so, since their convention, they've really in some ways tried to reinvent themselves, even co-op this message of change. Saying they're for reform, they're for change.

We're hearing from Barack Obama, and his campaign, saying look, this is our idea here. This is our message. Obviously they don't want this to be taken away from them. So there's a little bit of this a jockeying, this competition, over who really is going to bring about change. Because obviously that is what voters are responding to.

Let's take a listen to Barack Obama when he directly confronts John McCain and Palin over that very issue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Since the beginning of this campaign, we've been talking about change. Everywhere I go, we've been talking about change. That's been the theme of this campaign. We must be on to something because I notice now everybody is talking about change now. Everybody is talking about change.

So, John McCain, over the last couple of days, John McCain has said -- John McCain has said that change is coming. That's what he says. Now think about this. This is coming from the party that's been in charge for eight years. They've been running the show, been up in the White House . John McCain brags, "90 percent of the time I have voted with George Bush. He and I, we're right there. And suddenly, he's the change agent.

He says, "I'm going to take those lobbyists that their days of running Washington are over." Who's he going to tell? Is he going to tell his campaign chairman who's one of the biggest corporate lobbyists in Washington? Is he going to tell his campaign manager, who was one of the biggest corporate lobbyists in Washington? Is he going to tell all the folks who are running his campaign, who are the biggest corporate lobbyists in Washington? Who is it that he's going to tell that change is coming? I mean, come on. They must think you're stupid.

You know, I guess, maybe what they're saying is watch out George Bush, you know, except for economic policies, and tax policies, and energy policies, and health care policies, and education policies -- and Karl Rove's style of politics, except for all that, we're really going to bring change to Washington. We're going to shake things up. What are these guys talking about? You think we haven't been paying attention over the last eight years?

Now, listen, we need change, but let's be absolutely clear about what change is and is not. Change is not continuing the same tax policies of George Bush, giving tax breaks to companies that are shipping jobs overseas. Change is making sure those tax breaks go to companies that are investing right here in Terre Haute, right here in the United States of America.

Change is not saying that we made great economic progress under George Bush and then proposing tax cuts, $200 billion for corporations including $4 billion to ExxonMobil. Change is giving a tax cut to 95 percent of Americans. As I have proposed: 95 percent of the American people would get a tax cut under the Obama plan. And I wouldn't leave 100 million out like John McCain does because you deserve some relief from my gas prices and food prices. You need a little more money in your pockets.

Change is not a health care plan -- this is what John McCain's proposed, which says we're going to end the tax deduction for employers to give health care benefits to their employees, which means that employers will stop providing health care; and then giving you a $5,000 credit to buy your own health care, except it costs $12,000 to $14,000. I guess that is change, it's just not the kind of change we need.

Here's what change is: Saying to people who already have health insurance and employers who are providing it, we'll work to lower your premiums by up to $2,500 per family per year. And if you don't have health insurance you can get the same health care that members of Congress give themselves; and investing in prevention so people aren't going to the emergency room for treatable illnesses. And not waiting 20 years from now to do it, or 10 years from now to do it, but doing it by the end of my first term as president. That's the change that we need.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Barack Obama, here in Terre Haute, Indiana, obviously talking about the idea of change, the message of change. Going after John McCain and Sarah Palin for what he says, paraphrasing, if you will co-opting his message trying to appear as the change and reform candidates. He says, voters don't be fooled by all of this. Clearly, Barack Obama here in Indiana, a Republican stronghold, believes that perhaps he can capture this state which would make history. George Bush performed very well back in 2004, beating John Kerry by some 21 percentage points.

And, Mary Snow, obviously they are looking at this, looking at the record thinking they can perhaps make a dent. One of the themes that Obama is stressing here is that John McCain and Sarah Palin are essentially another George Bush, another Bush administration. That's what they're trying to convince voters. That is why they keep making those references and those links. What are you hearing and how are the McCain folks hitting back?

SNOW: Well, you know, Suzanne, one thing that we continually hear is the word "maverick". A word that was used in the 2000 campaign to describe Senator McCain, but once again, you hear it time and again on the campaign trail as the campaign is trying to make their message of change.

George Bush's name did come up here at this rally. This is all warming up to Senator McCain's appearance here. What people said was that John McCain must do better than George Bush did in 2004 in this town. They say it's really vital to win in this Republican area of Colorado in order to win this state. Certainly there is a real battle going on for this state.

One of the themes though, Suzanne, today, you know, since also several military bases around here, strong military population, one of the themes today -- just a few minutes ago, at this rally, one of the organizers announced that there had been flags left behind at Invesco Field, when the Democrats had their national convention.

Now, according to the campaign, there were about 12,000, they say a worker in Invesco Field brought flags to them that had been left in garbage bags, and left to be thrown out. They say the worker, who wants to remain anonymous, came to them with these flags. They had veterans here at this rally, handing them out.

You may expect -

(CHEERING)

I expect we could hear more about those flags in the course of this rally as the crowd anticipates Senator John McCain 's arrival here. I should also say we have contacted a Democratic official, who was involved in the convention in Denver to get their reaction, find out exactly what happened with those flags.

Meantime, many here are saying that they are enthusiastic about Sarah Palin. Some of the crowd I spoke with said they were supporting John McCain before this, but now they feel much more energized, she seems -- you see Sarah Palin signs here. Yesterday, she was in Wisconsin. While she was there, she has been taking aim at Senator Barack Obama and one particular area over Iraq. Let's take a listen to what Sarah Palin had to say yesterday in Cedarburg, Wisconsin.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARAH PALIN (R), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Good judgment in the commander in chief can make the difference between victory and defeat, between avoiding a crisis and inviting a catastrophe. And the best case point is the surge in Iraq, which Barack Obama opposed because he said it was doomed to fail. But just last night -

(CROWD JEERS)

Just last night, Senator Obama finally broke and brought himself to admit, what the rest of us have known for quite some time, and that's thanks to the skill and valor of our troops, the surge in Iraq has succeeded. Senator Obama said that the surge, quote, "Succeeded beyond our wildest dreams."

I think that, Senator Obama, the surge has succeed in ways that nobody has anticipated. I guess when you turn out to be profoundly wrong on a vital national security issue, maybe it's comforting to pretend that everyone else was wrong, too. But I remember it a little differently. It seems that me there was one leader in Washington who did predict success, who refused to call retreat and risked his own career for the sake of the surge and victory in Iraq. And ladies and gentlemen, that man is standing right next to me, Senator John McCain.

(CROWD CHANTING) John McCain! John McCain! John McCain!

PALIN: Now, had America failed in Iraq, the consequences would be have been terrible and far reaching. If the United States military had suffered defeat at the hands of Al Qaeda in Iraq, our nation would be less safe today and millions of innocent people would have been left to a violence fate. That tragedy would have happened if Barack would have got his way and Congress had cut off funding for the surge. It did not happen because John McCain was right, he had the vision and the will to see the surge through to victory.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

So here's how I look at the choice that we face in this election. In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers. And then there are those, like john McCain, who use their career to promote change. Among politicians, there is the idealism of high-flown speech making with endless talk about great things. And then there is the idealism of leaders like John McCain who actually do great things.

Now Senator McCain has shown these qualities so clearly. And that's why he presents such a threat to politics as usual in Washington. And this is moment when principles and political independence, and all those good attributes that John McCain brings to this, they matter a lot more than just the party line. And this is a man who has always been there to serve his country and not just his party. A leader who's not looking for a fight, but he certainly isn't afraid of one.

John McCain doesn't run with the Washington herd and that is only one more reason to take the maverick of the Senate and put him in the White House.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

We're going to do that!

This is a moment that requires resolve and toughness and strength of heart in the American president and my running mate is a man who has shown those qualities in the darkest of places - and in the service to his country.

Our opponents have been going on lately about how they always, quote, "are fighting for you." But since Senator McCain won't say this on his own behalf, I want to tell you, squarely, plainly, there is only one man in this election who has ever really fought for you in places where winning means survival and defeat means death and that man is Senator John McCain!

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNOW: Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, yesterday in Cedarburg, Wisconsin. She and Senator John McCain campaigning there, leaving the Republican National Convention.

And. Suzanne, at this point, we've heard Sarah Palin talking about Senator John McCain's record. We've heard her take aim at Barack Obama. Also talking about her own record, as she introduces herself, continues to, to the country.

Exactly when though, we'll see Sarah Palin have a press conference, unclear at this point. Right now, there's no plans to do that. She had been expected to go on the campaign trail by herself on Monday. That's been pushed back a little bit. But we do know that she'll be going back to Alaska, at some point this week. She wants to see her son off before he heads to Iraq - Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And, Mary, just to show you -- and to show our viewers -- really how competitive it is between these two campaigns over that message of change, and whether or not that really resonates with voters, a lot of people say that's exactly what they want, change from the Bush administration. A spokesman sent me a text message on my Blackberry here essentially saying, reiterating, their campaign message from the McCain campaign saying Barack Obama's message is change. Our message is that McCain and Palin have the experience, strength and record of making change. Barack Obama is struggling with the fact that he has no record of reforming government and that's why he's vulnerable.

That coming from a campaign spokesman from the McCain side. It's obviously very clear, both of these camps paying very close attention to what the other candidate says, whether or not it's really resonating with voters. We're going to bring the viewers, you, live Palin as well as McCain out of Colorado Springs, Colorado, after this break. >

Also an update on Tropical Storm Hanna as well as Hurricane Ike. Stay with us, you're watching CNN's BALLOT BOWL.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWS BREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SNOW: Welcome back to BALLOT BOWL, a chance for you to hear directly from the presidential candidates. I'm Mary Snow in Colorado Springs. Right now, Senator John McCain and his running mate Alaska Governor Sarah Palin just arrived here. We're expecting them to take the stage momentarily at a rally that's drawn thousands.

A little bit of a flap here today at this rally. You may notice all the flags behind me. Before everything started it was announced, from the campaign, that these flags -- some of them anyway-- had been left behind at Invesco Field. The campaign said a worker brought flags to them after the Democratic convention. They claimed that had been left to be thrown out in the garbage.

Now we just got a response from the Democratic - a Democratic official with the convention who says this is a false story. Saying that those flag had never been intended to be thrown out. They had been bundled up and bagged to be put out for distribution at another event. They're saying this is not true. The worker that gave these flags apparently to the campaign saying he wanted to remain anonymous, but certainly a sea of flags waiting here among this crowd.

We're going to go to the event as soon as it starts, but in the meantime, wasn't to bring in Bill Schneider, who's been poring over the latest polls. Where do we stand as of today?

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Can you say close? There were three polls taken during the Republican convention last week, all of them show a close race. Our poll of polls which averages the three, puts Obama at 45 percent. John McCain at 42, and a rather impressive 13 percent of the voters undecided. That's one in eight American voters still hasn't made up his or her mind. A lot of voters out there waiting to see what develops in this campaign -- Mary?

SNOW: And Bill, how about Sarah Palin? How has she affected the polls? Any indication?

SCHNEIDER: Well, ABC News did a flash poll, that's an overnight poll the night she addressed the Republican convention, on Wednesday night. And they found that she got a mixed response; 50 percent of Americans have a favorable impression of Governor Palin; 37 percent unfavorable. But it is, as you might expect, a highly partisan response. Republicans are overwhelmingly pleased with Governor Palin as their vice presidential nominee, 85 percent have a favorable opinion of Governor Palin -- if you're a Republican.

Democrats not so much, just 24 percent favorable; 63 percent of Democrats do not like Governor Palin. The all important independents, those are the swing vote, 53 percent favorable, 34 unfavorable. So it's a very partisan response.

But the question hanging over Governor Palin does she have the kind of experience it takes to serve effectively as president, if that should that become necessary? Only 42 percent of the voters right now are prepared to say she does. And 50 percent say she does not.

We're waiting for her press conference when she'll answers about her preparedness to be president. Whether she's ready, what she knows about big international and national issues, but she's going to have to face that test with the press corps to convince voters that yes, she is ready to serve effectively as president - Mary.

SNOW: And, Bill, still unclear when that press conference is going to be. As you may be able to hear from behind me, the crowd gearing up. This rally is about to start. We're going to bring it to you live. We're going to take a quick break. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SNOW: And, Bill, still unclear when that press conference is going to be. As you may be able to hear from behind me, the crowd gearing up, this rally is about to start. We are going to bring it to you live. We're going to take a quick break. Stay with us. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SNOW: Welcome back to CNN. Alaska Governor Sarah Palin just came on the stage addressing this rally. Let's go to it live.

(BEGIN LIVE FEED, IN PROGRESS)

GOV. SARAH PALIN (R), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Colorado, it's going to be a hard-fought battle here. It's going to be a really tough battle here in Colorado, but we will win and we are counting on you to help.

What we'll do, we're going to take our case for reform to voters of every background in every party -- or no party at all -- and with your help, we're going to go to Washington and we're going to shake things up.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

John McCain is the guy who's been through a few tough fights and he has served America in good times and in bad. He knows what it takes to overcome great challenges. And he's the only man in this race who's got what it takes to lead our country.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

Maybe you all remember, it was just about year ago, when the war in Iraq looked very, very bad, and the consequence of failure would have been terrible, would have been absolutely terrible for our country. Defeat at the hands of Al Qaeda in Iraq would have left millions to a violent fate and left our own nation much less secure. Some in Washington said that all was lost in Iraq. There was no hope for victory.

And they said that there was no hope for the candidate who had said he would rather lose an election than see his country lose a war.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

But the pollsters and the pundits, they forgot one thing when they wrote him off, they forgot the caliber of the man himself. And that's the determination and resolve and sheer guts of Senator John McCain.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

But the voters knew better. The voters did know better and maybe that's because they realized that there is a time for politics and there is a time for leadership. There's a time to campaign and a time to put our country first.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

John McCain is the man who wore his uniform for this country for 22 years and he refused to break faith with our troops in Iraq, who have now brought victory within sight. (APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

I'll tell you, as the mother of one of those troops that is exactly the kind of man I want as commander in chief.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

The other day, our opponent finally admitted what we've known all along and that's, thanks to the skill and valor of our great troops, the surge in Iraq has worked.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

Our opponent said the surge, quote, "Has succeeded in a way that nobody anticipated." But it was anticipated. There was one leader in Washington who knew that we could win and he refused to call retreat, and he risked his own career for the sake of victory. And ladies and gentlemen, he's standing right next to me, Senator John McCain!

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

Here's how I look at the choice that we face in this election: In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers and then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS) Among politicians, there is the idealism of high-flown speech making with endless talk about great things. And then there is the idealism of leaders like John McCain, who actually do great things.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

Senator John McCain has shown this quality so clearly and that's why he presents such a threat to business as usual in Washington . This is the moment when principle and political independence, and those things that we need in this country to change, all about reform, it all matters a lot more than just a party line. And this is a man who has always been there to serve his country, not just his party. He's a leader, who's not looking for a fight, but he sure isn't afraid of one either.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

John McCain doesn't run with the Washington herd. He's willing to shake things up in Washington and that's only one more reason to take the maverick of the senate and put him in the White House!

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

You know, the choices that presidential nominees make for running mate, they say a lot about them. And when our opponent made his choice, he went for a fine man, decent man, Senator Biden can claim many chairmanships across many, many years in Washington, and certainly many friends in the Washington establishment, but even those admirers would not be able to call him an agent of change. Senator McCain has called the two of us a team of mavericks. He knows -- John McCain knows that we've done some shaking up in Alaska.

And as governor, I took on the old politics as usual in Juneau. I had to stand up to the special interests, and the lobbyists, and big oil companies, and the good old boys network. And true reform, though it is so hard to achieve -- it really is tough -- but in short order with the support of our citizens, we put the government of our state back on the side of the people. And I came to office -- I came to office promising major ethics reform to end the culture of self- dealing up there. And today, that ethics reform is the law.

And while I was at it, we got rid of a few things in the governor's office that I didn't think our citizens should be paying for. Like that luxury jet. It was a little bit over the top. So I put it on eBay. And I love to drive myself to work. And you might have heard we did lay off the governor's personal chef, though I did do admit with that one, my kids aren't starving, but they sure do miss her.

I came to office promising to control spending, too. By request, if possible, but by veto if necessary, hundreds of millions of dollars of vetoes later -- and Senator McCain, too, promises to use that power of veto in defense of the public interest.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

As a chief executive, I can assure you that it works. This is a moment, see, it's a moment that requires that kind of toughness and strength in the heart of the American president. And my running mate is a man who has shown those qualities in the darkest of places and in the service to his country. A man with such strength of heart, understands people. And the problems we're all facing these days. He understands what to do about job losses and high energy prices and mortgage failures. The problems faced by hard working, middle class Americans -- all of us. And that's why John McCain has been calling for years to reform things and cut bureaucracy, even at the lending agencies that our government supports.

The fact is that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- they've gotten too big and too expensive to the taxpayers. The McCain/Palin administration will make them smaller and smarter and more effective for home owners who need help.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

Our opponents have been going on lately about how they always, quote, "fight for you." But Senator McCain, he's not going to say this on his own behalf, he's got to let me say this, he won't. There is only one man in this election who has ever really fought for you and that man is John McCain!

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

It is. It is. It's a long way from the fear and the pain and the squalor of a 4 x 6 cell in Hanoi to the oval office. But with your help, that is the journey that he will have made. Colorado, it's going to be with your help. It's the journey of an upright and honorable man -- the kind of fellow whose name you'll find on war memorials in small towns all across this great country, only he was among those who came home -- to the most powerful office on earth.

This man would bring the compassion that comes from having once been powerless, and the wisdom that comes even to the captives by the grace of God; and the special confidence of those who have seen evil and have seen how evil is overcome. And I love the story, I love the story of his fellow prisoner of war, a man named Tom Moe of Lancaster, Ohio. Tom recalls looking through a pinhole in his cell door as Lieutenant Commander John McCain was led down the hallway by the guards day after day after day. As the story goes, when McCain shuffled back from torturous interrogations, he would turn toward Moe's door and flash a grin and his thumbs up, as if to say, we're going to pull through this.

And my fellow Americans, that is the kind of man America needs to see us through the next four years!

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

He is the only great man in this race, the only man ready to serve as our 44th president. And I am honored to get to introduce to you, the next president of the United States, John S. McCain!

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you very much! Thank you very much! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you. Thank you so much.

Thank you for being here. Those flags look great! Thank you!

Thank you so much. And can I say what an honor it is for me to be in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The home -- the home of one of the finest institutions in the world, the United States Air Force Academy.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

As a graduate of another institution, I want to tell you how much I respect and love and admire the men and women who have left that institution and served our nation with courage and bravery and sacrifice all over the world. I know Colorado Springs and America is proud of the United States Air Force Academy. Thank you.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

And I also remind my fellow Americans and you that some of our great Olympic champions spent years and years right here training and becoming world's champions. One of them was a young man named Henry Cejudo, an Olympic champion wrestler who trained here in Colorado Springs and made us all proud. The son of illegal immigrants, that made us all proud to be Americans.

May I also say, before I go any further, I know you know -- but say hello again to the person the people in Arizona used to say why isn't she the candidate? Cindy McCain. She did a great job. Could I be -- tell you -- I honestly cannot tell you, I'm happy to be introduced by Governor Sarah Palin, but I can't wait to introduce her to the big spenders in Washington , D.C. I can't wait! I can't wait!

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

CROWD CHANTING: Sarah! Sarah! Sarah! Sarah! Sarah! Sarah! Sarah! Sarah! Sarah!

You're going to get to know her.

SNOW: There have you, Senator John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin here in Colorado Springs. We're going to continue to monitor their speech at this rally where thousands have gathered. We did hear from Governor Palin, who mentioned Senator Joe Biden, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, calling him a decent man, but saying that he was not an agent of change. And this is a new line for her on the campaign trail.

We are going to be hearing on the Democratic side from Senator Joe Biden, who's campaigning today in his home state of Pennsylvania, we all know by now he was born in Scranton. We're going to go to Pennsylvania right after this break. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Welcome back to CNN's BALLOT BOWL. I'm Suzanne Malveaux here in Terre Haute, Indiana. We're going to give you more of John McCain out of Colorado Springs, Colorado, but I want to bring you back to the Democrat s as well. Joe Biden, earlier in the week, on Friday, out of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, talking about the new job numbers that came out. There were 84,000 jobs lost in the month of August, a five-year high. The Obama team, Biden and Obama, clearly making a case here that they believe it's the Republican Party that has been remiss when it comes to the economy. That it's the Bush administration and Republicans, and by association John McCain, who's been responsible for a lot of the problems that they've had, the housing crises, the energy crises.

Let's take a listen to Joe Biden making that case.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. JOE BIDEN (D), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Ladies and gentlemen, today -- today, this is why Ed is such an incredible governor. They announced the unemployment figures nationwide, for the eighth month in a row, Americans have lost jobs. We have lost 604,000 jobs in America just this calendar year.

We're in a position where we had 84,000 lost jobs -- shattered dream, broken homes -- that occurred as a consequence of this loss of work just in the month of August. We now have 6.1 percent of the American workforce idle. And you know what that means. When a man or woman loses their job, they not only lose their income, they lose their sense of dignity, they lose who they are. That's how we identify ourselves. That's how we're brought up.

That's how in my neighborhood and yours, you're identified. You're identified by your willingness to work hard, your willingness to do the right thing. Your willingness to show up every day and provide for your family. So it's not merely a lost job. It's a lost sense of identity that occurs. And I don't think my Republican friends -- this ain't your father's Republican Party, by the way. This is a different Republican Party.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

So, folks, when I listen -- when I listened to the parts of the Republican convention I could hear -- because I was traveling, a lot of time I was in the air -- I went from all the way from Battle Creek, Michigan, back to Pittsburgh to Scranton, down to the west coast of Florida -- East Coast of Florida, then on the West Coast, then back up into North Carolina and into Virginia - excuse me - into Virginia and then into D.C. -- so I've been on the road. No complaints -- I've been on the road and haven't been able to see all that I wanted to see.

But I tell you, it's not so much what I heard in the Republican convention, when you heard John speak last night, or not so much what I heard when I heard part of what the governor had to say, the vice presidential candidate -- it's what I didn't hear.

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

The silence, the silence of the Republican Party was deafening. It was deafening on jobs, on health care, on environment, on all the things that matter to the people in the neighborhoods I grew up in, deafening!

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

Ladies and gentlemen, their America is not the America I live in. They see something different than I see. Ladies and gentlemen, literally those of you --I can't swear to you because I didn't see every bit of every speech but I asked my staff to check, do you any of you recall either candidate on the Republican ticket utter the phrase middle class?

AUDIENCE: No!

BIDEN: Did any of you hear them utter the phrase health care, and how we're going to help?

AUDIENCE: No!

BIDEN: Did you hear them talk about aid to get kids to college?

AUDIENCE: No!

BIDEN: Did you hear them talk about aid to education?

AUDIENCE: No!

BIDEN: Did you hear them putting more cops on the street to make us safer?

AUDIENCE: No!

BIDEN: I didn't hear a thing -- a thing -- about any of the things that matter to the lives of the people in my hometown of Scranton, the neighborhood of Delaware called Claymont, where I was brought up and went to grade school and high school, the area of Wilmington that I live in.

Ladies and gentlemen, Rick Davis, John's campaign manager said two days of the convention -- and I heard this -- he said this election is not about issues. That's what he said. And everything I saw at the convention demonstrated that. It was about how well placed and boy, she is good, how a left jab can be stuck pretty nice. It's about how Barack Obama is such a bad guy. It's about how, in fact -- how, in fact, they got great quips, man, they're like the kids you know when you went to school and you're very proud of the new belt you had or the shoes you had there was always one kid in the class who would say "oh are they your brother's?" Remember that kid? That's just reminded me of it. Oh, I love your dress, was that your mother's? You know what I'm talking about. What do you talk about when you have nothing to say? What do you talk about when you cannot explain the last eight years of failure?

(APPLAUSE, CHEERS)

MALVEAUX: Joe Biden talking about the economy. Obviously both of these campaigns competing fiercely for voters' attention and for the support over issue number one. That is the economy. Many people struggling, the Democrat s talking about a plan to cut taxes for 95 percent of families. Also talking about some $50 billion in state funds to help with struggling states, when it comes to repairing bridges and constructing highways and providing education, aid, that type of thing. The Democrat s putting forth Obama's plan. McCain also putting forth his own plan.

We're going to give you much, much more after this quick break. McCain out of Colorado Springs, Colorado. And once again, Barack Obama out of Indiana. Stay with, you're watching BALLOT BOWL.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Welcome back to CNN's BALLOT BOWL. I'm Suzanne Malveaux out of Terre Haute , Indiana. This is your chance, the viewers, to really get to know the candidates up and close. Sometimes they are live, sometimes they are on tape, but they are always unfiltered. This a chance, obviously, less than two months away from election day but who's counting. We are actually counting. 59 days away. Joining me in this next hour to watch all of this, my colleague Bill Schneider on the CNN Election Express. He's in Wisconsin, we'll get to him in a little bit, but also my co-host, Mary Snow. She's in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with the Republican.

Mary, obviously, lot of excitement, a lot of attention that is being paid to these two candidates at this critical time. What are you seeing? SNOW: Well, Suzanne, and a lot of attention being paid to Senator John McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin. This is a very conservative area where we are in Colorado, but the Republicans here know that it is going to be a fight. Some referring to it as a dogfight.

Now this rally just wound up, people are trying to make their way to see Senator McCain and Sarah Palin for jet, their going to be going to Albuquerque, New Mexico, is their next stop in this final sprint, as you said,59 days campaigning together. Yesterday, today, they're going to stay together for a few more days. It was the first plan, but they're diverting from that a little bit.