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Ballot Bowl 2008

Barack Obama Campaigns in Nevada; McCain Hits Obama on Taxes; Biden on Attack Ads; Polls in Key Battleground States; Health Care Plans

Aired November 01, 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 CO-HOST: Welcome to CNN's BALLOT BOWL. I'm Suzanne Malveaux in Henderson, Nevada.
This is where Barack Obama just wrapped up a rally just moments ago. We are right next door to Las Vegas. And we are not only counting the days until Election Day, we're now counting the hours.

Just three days away from the time that voters are going to go to the polls, and this is really your chance to hear from these candidates, sometimes on tape, sometimes live, but always unfiltered from both sides, both of these candidates, a full-court press in the final days.

Joining me is my colleague, Dana Bash, who is in Virginia covering the McCain campaign.

Dana, I know it's hard to believe we've been on the road for about a year or so covering these candidates, and it is down to the wire now.

DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It really is. It is absolutely hard to believe, there's no question about it. And certainly, as you are, when we are traveling on the plane with McCain and the press corps, traveling on the bus, we're talking about it, and talking about a lot of interesting times we've had over the past year.

But you know, I am in Springfield, Virginia, right now, Suzanne. And as you know, because you've been here covering Barack Obama, this is quite unusual to be with a Republican candidate, covering a presidential race. But you know what? Virginia is incredibly competitive and it has historically been a safe Republican state.

But you can probably see behind me, they are breaking down, because John McCain was here not too long ago. And we're going to bring you what he said in just a minute. But first, we want to give everybody the game plan for this edition of BALLOT BOWL, at least this particular hour.

We are going to have John McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin. She is campaigning in the state of Florida. She's actually going to be live in Ocala, Florida. And when she begins, we are going to bring that to our viewers live.

For now, let's take it back over to you -- Suzanne. MALVEAUX: And Dana, we are looking at the state of Nevada, where Barack Obama is certainly hoping to capture the state. It went to George Bush the last couple of times around, but there is some exciting things, at least for the Obama campaign, that they are seeing.

One of them is that 600,000 people have already voted in this state through early voting. They think that could be as high as perhaps 60 percent of those likely voters. So they really want to keep the enthusiasm, the excitement to get people to the polls on Tuesday. And that is why we heard from Barack Obama talking about that they cannot let up for a single minute, a single day here, that they have got to try to get everybody to the polls because at this point it really is all about voter turnout.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I said three, maybe two. I just got two words for you today: three days. Three days.

(APPLAUSE)

After decades of broken politics in Washington, after eight years of failed policies from George W. Bush, after 21 months of a campaign that's taken us from the rocky coast of Maine to the sunshine of Nevada, we are three days away from change in the United States of America.

(APPLAUSE)

In three days, you can turn the page on policies that have put the greed and irresponsibility of Wall Street before the hard work and sacrifice of folks on Main Street. In three days, you can choose policies that invest in our middle class, create new jobs, grow this economy so that everybody has a chance to succeed, from the CEO to the secretary and the janitor, from the factory owner to the men and women on the factory floor.

In three days, you can put an end to the politics that would divide a nation just to win an election, that tries to pit region against region and city against town and Republican against Democrat, that asks us to fear at a time when we need to hope.

(APPLAUSE)

In three days, at this defining moment in history, you can give the country the change we need. And Nevada, that is why we're going to win this election right here in this state. Right here, in three days.

(APPLAUSE)

AUDIENCE: Yes, we can! Yes, we can! Yes, we can! Yes, we can! Yes, we can!

OBAMA: We began this journey in the depths of winter nearly two years ago on the steps of the old state capitol in Springfield, Illinois, where Abraham Lincoln once served. And back then, we didn't have much money, we didn't have many endorsements, we weren't given much of a chance by the pundits or in the polls. So we knew how steep our climb would be.

But you know what I knew? I knew that the size of our challenges had outgrown the smallness of our politics.

I believed that Democrats and Republicans and people of every political stripe wanted new ideas and leadership, a new kind of politics. One that favors common sense over ideology, that focuses on the values we have in common as Americans. In other words, I had confidence in you, the American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And one of the things that voters are paying very close attention to is Barack Obama's economic plan and how that contrasts with John McCain. Nevada has the highest home foreclosure rate in the country, so a lot of people suffering here. Obviously they want to know what is going on, what are these candidates going to do to make their lives better, to keep them in their homes?

One of the things that the Obama campaign seems to be encouraged by is, when you look at least Clark County here, in the Las Vegas area, when you look at the breakdown of people who have already participated, who have already voted, we've got about 51 percent of them being Democrats, 32 percent being Republican. They feel that certainly does work in their favor.

So Barack Obama trying to get all those voters out here. And specifically, Dana, obviously both of these candidates talking about taxes, talking about home mortgages, talking about the bailout plan, trying to convince voters that they're the ones that are going to be able to fix it -- Dana.

BASH: That's exactly what we're hearing from John McCain as well. You're absolutely right, Suzanne.

And as I mentioned, John McCain was speaking here in northern Virginia. It certainly is, if you look historically, an unusual thing, at least in recent history, for a Republican to have to campaign in Virginia. In fact, a Republican hasn't won this state on a presidential level since -- excuse me, a Democrat hasn't once since 1964. But, you know, right now, the polls show John McCain trailing, and trailing big here.

And he really hasn't spent -- if you look at the context and the places he's been, he hasn't spent a lot of time in Virginia. His campaign headquarters are in northern Virginia. He actually has an apartment in northern Virginia, just outside of Washington. But with regard to his campaign schedule, again, not a lot of time here, and that has made a lot of Republicans in this Commonwealth of Virginia very, very nervous.

But he did come here just a short while ago and he did hit that issue of taxes. He has a little bit of a mouthful of an attack right now on Barack Obama. He calls him the redistributionist in chief.

Listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: As you know, as you well know, we've learned more about Senator Obama's real goals for our country over the last two weeks than we learned over the last two years. And that's only because "Joe the Plumber" asked him a question.

(APPLAUSE)

That's when Senator Obama revealed he wants to "spread the wealth around."

Now, Joe didn't ask Senator Obama to come to his house, and didn't ask to be famous, and he certainly didn't ask for the political attacks on him from the Obama campaign. Disgraceful.

Joe's dream is your dream -- to own a small business that will create jobs. And the attacks on him are an attack on small businesses all over this nation. We shouldn't stand for it.

(APPLAUSE)

Small businesses employ 84 percent of American jobs, and we need to support these small businesses. Taxing small businesses create jobs. Obama's plan will tax 50 percent of small business income. We can't let that happen in America, my friends, and I won't let it happen as president of the United States.

(APPLAUSE)

Now, Senator Obama is running to be redistributionist in chief. I'm running to be commander in chief.

(APPLAUSE)

Senator Obama's running to spread the wealth. I'm running to create more wealth.

(APPLAUSE)

Senator Obama's running to punish the successful. I'm running to make everyone successful.

(APPLAUSE)

You know what's interesting? He's made a lot of promises.

First, he said people making less than $250,000 would benefit from his plan. Then last weekend, he announced in an ad that if you're a family making less than $200,000 you'll benefit. This week, Senator Biden, the gift that keeps on giving, said tax relief should only go to middle class people making under $150,000. Just yesterday, Governor Bill Richardson said it applies to families making $120,000 a year.

You get the trend here? Huh? Huh? It's the classic liberal left tax and spend, redistribute the wealth.

My friends, that's interesting how their definition of rich has a way of creeping down. And Senator Obama voted 94 times for tax increases against tax cuts. And at this rate, it won't be long before Senator Obama is right back to his vote that Americans making just $42,000 should get a tax increase.

We're not going to let that happen, my friends. And we're not going to take money from one group of Americans, especially small businesses, and give it to another.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, that was John McCain speaking behind me just a short while ago here in Springfield, Virginia.

And you know, at this point, with just three days left, the key is to get out the vote and to do it in a big way. We have heard a lot this year about the Democrat, about Barack Obama, and his tremendous ground operation because of his tremendous amount of money and his organization, which, historically speaking, is quite unusual to hear that about the Democrat and not the Republican.

Well, here in Springfield, for the first time, frankly, we have actually witnessed the Republican machine and their ground operation. There's a tent that's not too far from here where the Republican organizers were trying to get these people who came to the rally -- as they were coming out, they were giving them door hangers, they were giving them maps, and they were trying to really get people to -- these volunteers, people who were clearly coming to these events and excited about John McCain, to get out and help get as many votes out as possible. Because that, again, Suzanne, is the name of the game.

But particularly where we are right now, in northern Virginia, this is an area that has grown so much. It's an area that, as you well know, has become increasingly Democratic. So as much Republican turnout in this particularly area, this is really what John McCain needs to come from behind. And if you look at the polls, just like a lot of other Republican states where he's playing defense, it's not going to be easy for him -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And Dana, Barack Obama's going to return to Virginia as well to just try to tweak it just a little bit and see if he can actually get Virginia. It would really be kind of an historic moment if that happens.

We also heard from his running mate, Joe Biden, earlier in the week, and he has talking about a sense of this being a different kind of campaign. We've seen both of the sides trying to portray themselves as above the fray, above politics as usual.

Joe Biden, in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on Thursday, was actually calling for John McCain's campaign to stop what is called robocalling, or these automated calls on the lines, attacking Barack Obama.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOSEPH BIDEN (D-DE), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: At the end of the day, if we want strengthen this country, if we want to bring back the middle class, if we want to restore our place in the world, there's one more important non-legislative, non-policy position that has to be decided upon and stuck to. And that is, Ladies and Gentlemen, we have to unite this country again.

It cannot remain red and blue. You cannot lead the world as a divided nation. You cannot restore this country dividing us based on north and south, and east and west, based on race or religion or anything else.

We can't do that. It cannot me done.

So folks, I know a lot of you in here are undecided. A lot of you are supporters.

To all your supporters we should understand, Barack Obama, when we were running separately, and now together, we meant what we've been saying for the past two years. When this election is over, even those who have issued scurrilous attacks on us, particularly on Barack, we've got to reach out to them. We've got to reach out and bring them in. We've got to heal this country.

(APPLAUSE)

And he means it. He means it.

Look, folks, I believe the reason why there's such vicious attacks on him now and these calls going into people's homes, and these so-called robocalls and the rest, there's a reason. It's always happened.

Whenever there are new ideas and new leaders, they're often met with new attacks, negative attacks, negative attacks built on lies. Lies that are the last resort of those who have nothing else to offer and want to maintain the status quo.

Folks, the tactics being used against Barack Obama right now have two purposes. And they're obvious.

One is to keep America divided, because that's the only way the status quo can be sustained. And the second thing is -- the second reason is, they don't want you to focus on the things that genuinely affect your life, because they know, as John McCain's campaign manager said a month ago, if the focus is on the economy, we lose. That's what they said.

So, folks, this is all designed to take our eye off the ball.

I know Barack Obama. I know him well. And I tell you one thing about this man, he has steel in his spine.

And Ladies and Gentlemen, Barack Obama -- Barack Obama can take five more days of these scurrilous attacks, but our country cannot take four more years of the Bush/McCain economic policy!

(APPLAUSE)

We cannot take four more years of the policies of attack and the policies of division! We must unite this country!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Joe Biden, like Barack Obama, calling for unity and trying to counter this portrayal from John McCain's camp that Barack Obama is risky and untested, or someone who in some ways foreign to folks, saying that he's somebody he knows and can be trusted.

Now, I know you're in Florida, Dana, and that's where Obama will return. And they are looking at some good numbers there. They are optimistic.

You remember back in 2004, there were about 40,000 more Republicans who had participated in the process voting early than Democrats. Well, now, at least the Obama camp says, it's reversed, about 200,000 more Democrats who have voted early. They are certainly hoping that that might make a difference this time around -- Dana.

BASH: That's right. And you talk to Republicans, you know, it's interesting how you get different stories from different sides here, Suzanne.

They say that they're excited about the fact that in terms of absentee ballots, it has shown a lot more of an uptick for Republicans than Democrats. So we'll see what happens on Election Day in Florida.

But, you know, you're talking about Joe -- as John McCain and Lindsey Graham would call him, "Joe the Biden" -- we hear a lot about Joe Biden at these Republican rallies. they call him the gift that keeps on giving. Obviously, he has been out there working extremely hard, as running mates do, for Barack Obama.

Well, Sarah Palin obviously has been doing exactly the same thing for John McCain. And one of the most striking dynamics of this election, particularly on the Republican side, has been the difference in crowd sizes that the man at the top of the Republican ticket, John McCain, has been getting, and Sarah Palin.

Here, where I am in Springfield, Virginia, he got maybe about 1,500 people. I think on average, Sarah Palin gets about nine, 10 times that at her rallies, which is why regardless of the controversy, regardless of the issues that she does have, if you look at all the polls with Independent voters and conservative Democrats, suburban voters, that Sarah Palin was put on the ticket in part to help lure, she still is a big, big draw for conservatives that John McCain also needs to come out for him.

So, listen to what Sarah Palin said in New Port Richey, Florida, to those supporters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. SARAH PALIN (R-AK), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Every few days, we're getting a new definition of what he calls the middle class, whose taxes he promises not to raise. It's so important that we pay attention to what he's saying here.

First, remember middle class was defined as those making under $250,000 a year. And then Joe Biden said a few days ago, no, it's those making above $150,000 a year. They'd be the ones hit with the higher taxes. And then just yesterday, Governor Bill Richardson, top surrogate for the Obama campaign, working hard to get Barack elected, he said Obama's tax plans would define middle class as $120,000 and under.

Now -- and that's a whole lot of Americans. And you know how many small businesses fit into that category? So many small businesses are going to be slammed with his tax increase.

So now, according to Bill Richardson, now we're down to less than half of the original income level. And just give it a little more time, and Barack Obama will be back to raising taxes on folks earning $42,000 a year, as he already supported.

So Obama calls this, of course, his idea of spreading the wealth. And Joe Biden calls higher taxes patriotic.

But good old "Joe the Plumber" there in Ohio, "Joe the Plumber" said to him it sounded like socialism. And now is not the time to experiment with that. And you've got to hand it to "Joe the Plumber." He accomplished something that none of the rest of us could accomplish. Media couldn't accomplish this either.

He got Barack Obama to finally state in plain language what these intentions were for the higher taxes. It's to take more of your hard- earned money and then dole it out according to a politician's priorities.

You know what that's going to do to the work ethic that we try to teach our children and the entrepreneurial spirit that created this country, made it the greatest country on earth? It's going to stifle it.

(APPLAUSE)

Our opponent's plan is just for more bigger government, and doggone it, government is the problem, not the solution. So John and I, we just have the complete opposite approach in all of this. The opposite commitment, which is so much better.

Instead of taking more of your hard-earned money and then spreading that out according to a politician's priorities, we're going to spread opportunities so that you can create new wealth. That's equal opportunity.

(APPLAUSE)

And we'll also keep our defining commitments to our senior citizens. Barack Obama goes around promising a new kind of politics, but then he comes here to Florida and he tries to exploit the fears and worries about Social Security and Medicare to our retirees, and that is the oldest and cheapest kind of politics there is. And that -- enough of that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: New Port Richey, Florida.

And in fact, we are waiting still for a live event with Sarah Palin in Ocala, Florida. And when that begins, we will definitely bring that to you live.

But meanwhile, we're going to take a quick break. And up next, we are going to get a look at this point, with just three days left, at what the state of the race is. And we're going to do that with our very own Bill Schneider, who will look at some of the polls in these key battleground states.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BASH: Welcome back to BALLOT BOWL.

What you're looking at is a live picture of voting. Voting is already happening in more than 30 states around the country.

No, a lot of the people in this country don't have to wait until Tuesday to vote. Some of them are already casting their ballots. And that is happening in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, actually one of the red states that John McCain hasn't gone to.

In fact, Barack Obama hasn't either. It's one of the red states that looks like pretty safely red for John McCain, one of those areas that he's not having to defend. But you still see there that people are eager to get their ballots cast and they're eager to vote no matter -- whether or not it's competitive.

Again, welcome back to BALLOT BOWL '08. I'm Dana Bash, coming to you today from Springfield, Virginia.

This is where John McCain had a rally not too long ago. He is currently in the air, heading to his next stop of Pennsylvania.

And speaking of those two states, let's bring out our own Bill Schneider to take a look at the state of play in those two states.

Bill, you are the guru of polls. You can give everybody a sense of where things stand. Particularly, I guess we should start where I am. I just want to tell you, I'm sure you've heard this, also, John McCain, the top brass in his campaign, they insist that there is still a healthy number of undecided voters, what they call late-breakers. And that is what the name of the game is right now for John McCain, to go to areas like this in northern Virginia, places like Pennsylvania, and try to convince those voters that Barack Obama isn't their guy.

Is there really that healthy of a number of those undecided voters, Bill?

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, they better hope so. Let's look at the latest Poll of Polls there in the state of Virginia and see where that stands.

In the latest Poll of Polls -- now, take a look very closely -- Obama 51, McCain 44. That is an Obama margin of 7 points. And look at that, 7 percent who are still unsure.

So, if every one of those 7 percent of the voters who are unsure now ends up making up his or her mind for John McCain, he would just eke out a tie. So he has to get all the unsure votes in order to catch up to Obama. And that 7 percent has been holding steady for the past week in Virginia.

Now, Virginia's a little difficult for McCain. Pennsylvania's a real reach. That's where he's going next. Take a look at the Poll of Polls in Pennsylvania.

There also, Obama is ahead, but by a larger margin. It's an 11- point lead, with 5 percent unsure. And even if all those unsure voters decided in the end to vote for McCain, that wouldn't even make up half the deficit he's facing right now in Pennsylvania.

He's hoping to change that. He is going to Pennsylvania. That's probably the one former John Kerry state that McCain and Palin hope they can grab and move into the Republican column, but it's an uphill fight.

BASH: It sure is. They hope and, in fact, they need. They need to do that.

Nobody inside the McCain campaign will tell you anything differently. And that's why John McCain is going back today, and he is going to be back again before Election Day, to that critical state of Pennsylvania, as his running mate.

Well, let's go out West, Bill, and take a look at a couple of the very important states out there that, again, John McCain seems to be having some trouble with.

SCHNEIDER: Well, Barack Obama is campaigning in Nevada, Colorado. Go West, young Democrat. There's electoral gold in them there hills. Apparently there is.

Take a look at Nevada. It's a small state, just five electoral votes, fast-growing. There you see Obama has a healthy 7-point lead, 7 percent undecided, but that's a pretty good margin. And we're putting Nevada in the lean Obama category. Bush carried it last time, but by only two points.

Colorado's a bigger state, 9 electoral votes. Nevada has only 5. In the Colorado vote right now, 7 points for Obama, which is where it's been for the last week or so. Again, that's a state we're putting in the lean Obama category.

The West has never been strong, particularly the interior West. The Rocky Mountain states have never been strong for Democrats. But this time, Nevada, Colorado seem to be inclined to vote for the Democrats. And Obama's going there to try to sew them up.

BASH: Well, he certainly is. And as you well know, Bill, those two states have been trending Democratic with regards to the statewide races, whether it's the senators or the governors mansions. Those have become increasingly Democrat. That's why the Democrats had their convention in Denver, Colorado.

So it will be very interesting to see whether or not Democrats can really turn the colors of those states from red to blue on the presidential level.

SCHNEIDER: Yes.

BASH: Bill, thank you very much. We'll definitely be checking back with you.

And up next, we're going to take a break, but up next, we're going to talk about an issue, a very important issue to pretty much every single American, every single voter. And that is the issue of health care. We're going to look at Barack Obama and what he's saying about that on the stump.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Welcome back to CNN's BALLOT BOWL.

I'm Suzanne Malveaux, in Henderson, Nevada. This is where Barack Obama spoke just about the last hour or so. His motorcade just pulling away from the site moments ago.

He was talking about his economic plan, but they're also focusing on health care and how his plan differs from John McCain. Earlier in the week, we saw him in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and that is where he went after McCain's plan. They believed that they had an opening to take a look at his plan and a perceived weakness, they believe.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: To be fair, there is one thing he'll change, and that's called our health care system. But he won't change it in a good way.

John McCain's health care plan would tax your health care benefits for the first time in history. Independent studies say that under his plan, at least 20 million Americans would lose their employer-based insurance that they currently rely on. People would be forced to buy health care coverage in the individual market. For all of this, he'd only give your family a $5,000 tax credit when the average plan costs over $12,000.

Now, Senator McCain doesn't like to talk about his plan all that much, but this morning we were offered a stunning bit of straight talk, an October surprise from his top economic adviser, who actually said that the health insurance people currently get from their employer is -- and I quote -- "way better than the health care they'd be getting if John McCain were president."

Now, this is the point I've been making since Senator McCain unveiled his plan. It took until the last seven days of the election for his campaign to finally admit the truth, but better late than never.

And the truth is, John McCain's health care plan is radical, it is unaffordable. It's not the change we need right now. And that's why you need to vote this election.

(APPLAUSE)

Listen -- look, we have tried it John McCain's way. It's not as if he's come up with a bunch of new ideas. We've seen how it works.

We've seen what happened over the last eight years, because his way is George Bush's way. And over the last eight years, it has not worked. And those are just the facts. I don't think anybody can dispute it.

And deep down, even Senator McCain knows that, which is why his campaign said, and I quote, "If we keep on talking about the economy, we're going to lose." That's why I keep on talking about the economy.

(APPLAUSE)

And that's why he keeps on -- he keeps on calling me every name in the book, because that's how you play the game in Washington. If you can't beat your opponent's ideas, you distort those ideas. You make some of them up. You don't have a record to run on when you paint your opponent as someone people should run away from. You make big elections about small things.

Now, Virginia, we're here to say, not this time. Not this year. Not when there's so much at stake.

(APPLAUSE)

John McCain might be worried about losing an election. I'm worried about Americans losing their homes and their jobs and their life savings. (END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Barack Obama, attacking John McCain over his health care plan.

Now, coming up next on CNN's BALLOT BOWL, we're going to hear from Sarah Palin in a live event rallying her supporters in Florida, so stay with us after this very quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BASH: I'm Dana Bash in Springfield, Virginia. And you're watching BALLOT BOWL.

It is our chance, your chance to hear from the candidates on the campaign trail unfiltered. We are waiting for a live rally from Sarah Palin, John McCain's running mate. And we'll also hear from John McCain at the top of the hour.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BASH: Welcome back to BALLOT BOWL '08. I'm Dana Bash in Springfield, Virginia.

You know, in traveling around with John McCain in the final days of this campaign, what his aides have been telling us and what John McCain has really been displaying on the stump, is an urgent need to try to get the attention of those undecided voters who are still out there in many of these battleground states.

And what John McCain's aides say that he's trying to do is sew seeds of doubt about Barack Obama. They realize that this election is a change election, and it is going to be very hard to convince people to stick with the Republicans, who are not really sure. So they say that their best chance still is to convince people that Barack Obama isn't really the change that they want or need.

He's been doing it on two fronts. One is the economy, saying that Barack Obama is too liberal on taxes, but the other is still on national security. It certainly doesn't rank as high on voters' minds as the economy, but John McCain still, and his campaign, they still think it is still his biggest asset. So over and over, during these final rallies, he is trying to remind people -- or at least try to convince people, is probably a better way to put it, that Barack Obama is untested, and McCain says that he is.

Listen to what he says.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCCAIN: In his four years in the Senate, two of them spent running for president, Barack Obama has displayed some impressive qualities. But the question is whether this is a man who has what it takes to protect America from Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda, and other grave threats in the world. And he has given you no reason to answer in the affirmative.

Senator Joe Biden has a way of straying off message and stumbling on the truth.

(APPLAUSE)

And his most recent warning bears close attention. He cautioned us. In fact, he guaranteed his listeners -- at some fund-raisers by the way -- that because he is untested, Barack Obama would only invite an international crisis. And we know well what one of those crises could be -- the success of the Iranian regime in its program of acquiring nuclear weapons. If such a thing were to happen, our troubles of today would dramatically escalate as a nuclear-armed Iran threatened Israel or sparked an uncontrollable nuclear arms race across the region.

In the same way, my opponent assumes far more good than is warranted from Kim Jong-il, the tyrant of North Korea, Hugo Chavez, the leader of Venezuela, who wishes to export instability to neighboring countries. And, of course, the Castro brothers, who have given Cuba 50 years worth of socialist misery and are still at it.

In each case, Senator Obama presents his plan for direct talks as if no one before it ever considered that. He seems unaware that more talk has been tried many times to no avail and that our adversaries recognize such gestures as a sign of weakness.

They will draw similar assumptions from the plans already proposed by the chairman of the House Finance Committee, Congressman Barney Frank, to cut defense spending by 25 percent, even with our troops engaged in two wars. And with a force in need of rebuilding, we're getting only a glimpse of what one party rule would look like under Obama, Pelosi and Reid.

Apparently, it starts with lowering our defenses and raising our taxes. Our national security is dependent on our economic security, and the plans of a Democratic-dominated Washington would harm both.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: That's John McCain speaking in Tampa, Florida, this past week about the issue of national security, trying to inject that back into the dialogue of this campaign. And also, doing something that he has been doing more and more as the election gets closer and as his chances look steeper and steeper, and that is warning voters about one-party rule, Democratic rule, from Congress to the White House, if Barack Obama were to be elected. So that is certainly a line that we are hearing at every single one of these stops.

And John McCain is now on his way to Pennsylvania. He's going to have a rally there soon.

And we're actually going to see him tonight in New York. He's going to be "Live from Saturday Night." That's right, on "Saturday Night Live" tonight. It's going to be a last-minute cameo appearance for him, and it's something that actually he has not done this election year, which is kind of surprising, because it seems like everybody else has. Certainly John McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin, did that a couple of weeks ago.

And, in fact, speaking of Sarah Palin, we are waiting for a live event from Sarah Palin. She is going to be coming up very shortly in Ocala, Florida. And when that starts, we're going to bring it to you live.

In the meantime, we're going to take a quick break. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CANDY CROWLEY, CO-HOST: Good afternoon from Pueblo, Colorado. I'm Candy Crowley, coming to you live.

In just a couple of hours, Barack Obama will be here. Of course, going through Colorado, a very important state. Right now, he is just about wheels up from Las Vegas.

He has been campaigning in Nevada, another one of those interior West states that he very much would like to have. And, of course, Obama cannot be everywhere at the same time, so he has hauled in some very high-priced talent.

I want to bring in our Bill Schneider, some of our high-priced talent, to talk about Barack Obama and Bill Clinton -- Bill.

SCHNEIDER: OK. Live from New York, I am Bill Schneider.

And on Wednesday, Barack Obama was campaigning with that high- priced talent in Florida. That being Bill Clinton, who told the voters of Florida, remember when I was president? Happy days could be here again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There are four reasons that I can tell you in a way no one else can, because I've been there, and I want you to tell this to everybody. And they don't just have to be your neighbors, you know. You can e- mail people all over America.

There are all these exchanges going on where people who are still undecided are fessing up, at least on the Internet. And I want you to get on there and tell them there are four reasons they ought to be for Barack Obama.

The four things that really matter in a president are, number one, the philosophy. Number two, the policies. Number three, the ability to make a decision. And number four, the ability to execute that decision and make changes in people's lives.

(APPLAUSE)

So, I've been noticing this philosophical argument on television. You all been seeing that in this election? And Senator Obama asked me to say a word about it on the way up here.

He's got the right philosophy, which is America works from the ground up, not from the top down.

(APPLAUSE)

They talk about redistributing the wealth. They just presided over the biggest redistribution of wealth upward since the 1920s, and we all know how that ended.

In the last eight years, 90 percent of the gains went to 10 percent of the people, over 40 percent to one percent. Can you run a great democracy that way? I don't think so.

So don't tell me about redistribution. When I served you, you had more than five times as many jobs as you're going to get out of this crowd.

(APPLAUSE)

You had median family income across all racial lines going up. And now it's done. We pay down the debt, they double the national debt. So don't tell me about redistribution.

What Senator Obama has is a plan that works from the bottom up. If there's a strong middle class, and if poor folks can work their way into it and stay in it, there will be lots of millionaires and billionaires. I know we made more millionaires and billionaires than they did, but you just didn't know it because middle class incomes were rising and everybody had a good job.

And that's what Barack Obama will do again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHNEIDER: That was Bill Clinton in Florida, talking about the good old days. Soon, Barack Obama will be in Colorado to take about the good days to come.

That is where our Candy Crowley is -- Candy.

CROWLEY: Thanks, Bill.

We are wrapping up our first hour of Saturday's edition of BALLOT BOWL, but we have another hour coming up. And here's what we expect to hear from John McCain in Pennsylvania, where he has put a lot of stake.

Also, Sarah Palin in Florida, a very important state both in the Obama camp and the McCain camp.

So stick with us. The next hour of BALLOT BOWL right after this. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CANDY CROWLEY, CO-HOST: Good afternoon and welcome to CNN's BALLOT BOWL.

I'm Candy Crowley, coming to you live from Pueblo, Colorado, where in just a few hours, Barack Obama will be here to rally his troops and rally his supporters. This, his final swing through Colorado, one of the interior West states that he hopes to take next Tuesday.

Three more days -- we can literally count it in hours now -- before Election Day, and so very much at stake. This is your chance. For those of you who still haven't made up your minds, or those who are still wondering whether or not they cast the right ballot, or just want some validation of theirs, this is your chance to listen to these candidates in long form, raw, unfiltered, the way, really, we get to hear these candidates.

I want to bring in my colleagues.

First of all, Dana Bash, who is in Springfield, Virginia. She's been covering the McCain campaign for many, many months.

And Ed Henry, he at this point is in Pennsylvania.

And Ed, what are we going to see this next hour?

ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Candy, let me give you an idea. Our game plan is very simple this hour.

We're awaiting for John McCain to address a very large crowd here in Perkasie, Pennsylvania. He'll be doing that in the next few moments. And the game plan for Senator McCain himself is also straightforward.

He has to carry Pennsylvania. Those 21 electoral votes are crucial for him. Obviously, this has been a blue state carried by Democrats. The last time a Republican had it was George Bush's father in 1988.