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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees
Coverage of Democratic Convention
Aired July 27, 2004 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST: Good evening from Boston. I'm Anderson Cooper.
Tonight, the son of a Republican president, the widow of a Republican senator, addressing the convention tonight. Makes you wonder what's up with the Democrats.
360 starts now.
Kerry calls for action now on the 9/11 commission's recommendations. But who's trying to muzzle opposition to the Iraq war at the convention?
A picture is worth a thousand words. So who came up with this one? Republican attack dogs pounce on a photo, and Democrats bite back with an embarrassing photo of their own. Tonight, the raw politics of pictures.
Democrats say, Let Teresa be Teresa, but what's she going to say tonight on the podium? We'll talk live with Vanessa Kerry about her stepmom, her politics, and her willingness to say what's really on her mind.
Tonight, Teddy Kennedy goes prime time. His town, his night. But is the Kennedy clan still relevant to the party?
And a 360 exclusive, live one on one with U2's Bono, rock superstar turned political activist. But is this convention buying what he's selling?
ANNOUNCER: This is a special edition of ANDERSON COOPER 360, live from the Democratic National Convention in Boston.
COOPER: And welcome again to 360.
It is night two of the Democratic National Convention here in Boston, Mass. Last night, there was so much unity in the room, the same signs, the same messages, some (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it felt like a typical Republican convention. Glance at the list of speakers tonight, you could say the same thing. Ron Reagan, son of the most popular Republican president of our time, and Teresa Heinz Kerry, whose first husband was a Republican senator. Both address this body later tonight.
A lot to get you up to date on. Right now, John Kerry is making his way north. CNN's Frank Buckley reports on his day for us. Dana Bash is in Boston reporting on developments in the Democrats' position on Iraq, what you will and what you won't hear tonight about the war.
And our own Candy Crowley is standing by with a look at what to expect tonight. A good place to start, we think, Candy.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, last night you looked at the prime time lineup, and you saw it was all about going back. A trip down memory lane, Gore, Clinton, Carter. Tonight you look, and there's a little bit of the past and a little bit of the future, but mostly it's very intriguing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY (voice-over): If you like politics or juxtaposition, you'll love the Kerry-thon day two.
TERESA HEINZ KERRY, JOHN KERRY'S WIFE: No, you said something I didn't say. Now, shove it.
CROWLEY: It features the unscripted wife of the Democratic nominee, who has a script his campaign prays she'll stick to, and the son of a Republican president, whose presence means more to Democratic politics than his script.
ED GILLESPIE, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: Having seen Mr. Reagan over the past couple decades, I'm sure he'll be very comfortable at the Democratic convention, and I'm sure they'll welcome him there.
CROWLEY: You betcha they will. The son of one of the Republicans' most beloved presidents got prime time, baby. I mean, Hillary fans had to complain before she got a hot spot.
Also of prime concern, Barack Obama. Who, you ask? Well, that's why he got the keynote slot. The party wants you to know Barack Obama, probably the next senator from Illinois, charismatic, smooth, and on message for the Kerry-fest.
BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), SENATE CANDIDATE, KEYNOTE SPEAKER: This is a guy who has better prepared for the presidency than anybody I've ever seen. Enormously engaging, enormously caring, and enormously intelligent.
CROWLEY: While it boosts the profile of a rising star, the party will also embrace the legacy of a man in his own stratosphere among Democrats. It is Teddy Kennedy night Boston, the convention he never got is his for one evening.
Now, about that no Bush-bashing rule.
JIMMY CARTER, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We cannot lead if our leaders mislead.
CROWLEY: Democrats say, so far, so good, no Bush bashing. But the way Republicans count, there were two Bush bashes for every Kerry kudo Monday night. It all depends on what the definition of bashing is.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY: Further challenging that definition tonight is, of course, Howard dean. Howard Dean, one of the speakers. He, of course, made his career, at least in the presidential arena, with a lot of anti-Bush rhetoric. Aides say that he has toned it down a little, but you'll hear a little of it as well, Anderson.
COOPER: I'm sure we will. Candy Crowley, Thanks.
The man whose shadow is already visible here at the Democratic National Convention is nonetheless still some 300 miles outside Boston, campaigning his way north. And today a tactical move from the candidate, as he criticized the sitting president for not acting swiftly enough on the recommendations issued last week by the 9/11 commission.
A report on that now, John Kerry's day, from CNN's Frank Buckley.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The once Navy lieutenant John Kerry appeared before the battleship U.S.S. "Wisconsin" to make the case that now he should be the commander in chief.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Our beloved country never goes to war because it wants to. We go to war because we have to.
BUCKLEY: Senator Kerry also used the setting to prod President Bush to act on the recommendations of the 9/11 commission, suggesting he hasn't acted quickly enough.
KERRY: If I were president today, if I'd been president last week, I would have immediately said to the commission, Yes, we're going to implement those recommendations...
BUCKLEY: Kerry's criticism of Bush on a national security issue comes as polls continue to show more voters believe President Bush is better able to handle terrorism. Kerry, who was a swiftboat commander in Vietnam, decorated with Silver and Bronze Stars and three Purple Hearts, enlisted a fellow swiftboat skipper to try to assure voters he's up to the job.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is, in fact, a combat veteran, a strong, decisive leader...
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BUCKLEY: And back here live now in Philadelphia. You're looking at Senator Kerry as he just wraps up his final rally before moving on to Boston. We're in Philadelphia at the art museum. Even Senator Kerry's arrival in Boston tomorrow is designed to illustrate Senator Kerry's wartime experience. We were told today that he'll be arriving at Logan International Airport, then taking a boat into the city, accompanied by 13 of his swiftboat crewmates from Vietnam.
As we say tonight, this is the last stop in the battleground state of Pennsylvania before heading tomorrow to Boston, Anderson.
COOPER: It is all about the photo opportunity. Frank Buckley, thanks very much.
Kerry's running mate, John Edwards, is here in Boston. Here's a quick news note for you. Edwards and his family flew into Logan Airport this afternoon. His aides say that he is feeling fine after nursing a cold and raspy voice for the last couple of days. He will need that when he accepts the Democratic vice presidential nomination in the biggest speech of his political career.
No doubt one of the central issues of the fall campaign will be the war in Iraq. You'd think that would also be a central issue here, a place where Democrats, especially on their own platform, would take a stand in opposition. After all, opposition to the war is what energized many Democrats this election year. But as in most things, as in politics, there's a lot of gray, not just black and white.
Here's White House correspondent Dana Bash.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Like many delegates gathered in Boston, Sheila Blake believes the Iraq war never should have happened.
SHEILA BLAKE, DELEGATE: We're not any safer. We've created more terrorism, as far as I'm concerned.
BASH: In fact, a recent "New York Times"-CBS News poll says nine in 10 delegates here think war was a mistake.
GOV. BILL RICHARDSON (D), NEW MEXICO, CONVENTION CHAIRMAN: All those in favor say aye.
BASH: But the Democrats' platform, the official party position, does not say war in Iraq was the wrong call. Instead, it reads, quote, "People of good will disagree about whether America should have gone to war in Iraq."
AILEEN GUNTHER, DELEGATE: I myself would have stronger language as far as the platform goes.
BASH: Party officials concede there was healthy debate when they hammered out language earlier this month, and it's not over.
MARK WEPRIN, DELEGATE: We went in with the right intentions, I believe. Unfortunately, now that we're there, we can't turn our back on the people who are over there. BASH: Not surprisingly, they've settled largely on John Kerry's approach. Look for more international troops, train Iraqi forces, stabilize, don't withdraw.
RICH GOTTFRIEND, DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE PLATFORM COMMITTEE: The platform also has to appeal to a broad constituency. It can't simply represent my views or any other individual's views.
BASH: But the candidate that rallied the antiwar movement gave all this a shoulder shrug.
HOWARD DEAN (D), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is the seventh convention I've been to. I've long learned that platforms don't mean anything.
BASH: Republicans are trying to stoke what they call a split among Democrats.
SEN. NORM COLEMAN (R), MINNESOTA: I think the platform, by the way, reflects the wisdom of George Bush's policy and approach. It doesn't reflect the feelings of the folks on that floor.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: And the unspoken challenge for Democrats here, of course, is that both senators on the ticket voted for the war. But the platform is quite tough on the president, accusing him of exaggerating the threat and underestimating what was needed to win the peace in Iraq, Anderson.
COOPER: Dana Bash, thanks very much, live from the FleetCenter here in Boston.
360 next, Al Sharpton joins us live. Never afraid to speak his mind, certainly. Hear what he has to say about the war in Iraq, John Kerry, and the Democrats who disagree.
Plus, rock star activist Bono, a 360 exclusive. He's joining us live. He's going to be at the Republican convention as well, but the question is, is anyone listening to what he's selling?
Also tonight, the patriarch of a Democratic dynasty, Senator Edward Kennedy takes a major role tonight. We'll look at the power he and his family still hold over Democrats.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: And welcome back. We are live at the FleetCenter here Boston.
Probably safe to say that in a business where staying on message, on script is key, Reverend Al Sharpton is the king of the ad-libbers. In a series of debates before the primaries, he uniformly had the best one-liners by far, and consistently upstaged his Democratic rivals. He didn't get the votes, but he got an awful lot of attention.
Tomorrow, Reverend Sharpton will have a message and a script as he addresses the convention. We'll wonder if he'll stick with them this time.
Reverend Sharpton, thanks for being with us tonight.
I'm doing, I'm doing all right, I'm doing all right.
During the primaries, you focused a lot, and you talked a lot about wanting to bring your issues to the platform here, your issues to the table here. Are you disappointed that you're not hearing much opposition to the war in Iraq? Because that was something you spoke very strongly about.
REV. AL SHARPTON (D), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I think we changed the debate on that. You know, I came out against the war even before Dean, and...
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
SHARPTON: Absolutely. And I think that now we've seen Kerry and Edwards voted for the war that was supportive when we first started debating, now themselves saying they were misled and we shouldn't have gone in.
COOPER: You're not hearing it tonight, you're not hearing it here the convention floor. You're not, I mean, (UNINTELLIGIBLE), opposition to the war mobilized a lot of Democrats, but you're not really hearing it here.
SHARPTON: Well, again, we're only going on our second night. We don't know what we'll hear tonight. I think we did hear that from Jimmy Carter last night.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) hear that from you tomorrow night?
SHARPTON: You're going to hear it from me, I'm sure you'll hear it from Howard Dean, I'm sure you're going to hear about the war from both our presidential and the vice presidential candidates. I'm very content that we have changed the debate. If I was not in those debates, I don't know if we'd have taken that issue on as early as we did.
COOPER: There's been a lot of, I guess, control, you could say, over what the messages every night are going to be. Have you vetted your speech with the Kerry folks?
SHARPTON: I've asked what the themes are, and I've tried to be consistent with those themes. No one has told me that I'm being edited or restrained. But I think that if you are part of trying to win, you want to be consistent with the message, and I intend to be consistent with that.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) here. I mean, we are told no Bush bashing. SHARPTON: No, I think what we're saying is that we don't want to have to be as ugly as they've been, and that we're not only anti-Bush, we are that, but we're also pro-Kerry, and we have reason to be pro- Kerry, and we want to lay that out to the American people over these four days.
COOPER: How many people really of the American people know what John Kerry's positions are? (UNINTELLIGIBLE) "Washington Post"-ABC News poll said 54 percent of the people, I think, said voters are unfamiliar with Kerry's positions. That's got to be a big concern.
SHARPTON: I think that you increase that over the period of time over convention, and that's why you have such huge media budgets and grass-roots organizing. The good news is that most Americans do know what Bush stands for, and many of them, and I feel by November most of them, will be voting to reject that.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Paul Begala keeps telling me, and I'm not sure I believe him, but I'd be interested to hear what you think. He keeps saying this is a referendum on the president, that it almost doesn't matter what John Kerry does, what John Kerry says, people are going to be going to the polls with President Bush in mind. Yes or no? You think that's...
SHARPTON: Well, I think you cannot unseat an incumbent without it being a referendum on him. I happen to think John Kerry has a lot of flussing (ph). But you clearly are talking about running against an incumbent. What was Bill Clinton? Bill Clinton was running against George Bush senior, who he unseated because of people's dissatisfaction. I don't care how good the opposition is, if people are satisfied with the incumbent, they will not vote against him.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Kerry have to do? Does he have to show himself to be tough on foreign policy, tough on security, that he can protect America's better than President Bush?
SHARPTON: He has to make Americans secure that he can do what Bush did not do. He has to show what he didn't do, and he has to make them very comfortable that I am capable, able, and competent to do what he didn't do. And I'm convinced he can do that.
COOPER: Yes, what are you going to be speaking about tomorrow night?
SHARPTON: I'm going to talk about the promise of America. I'm going to talk about why I think John Kerry, a man I've debated over 30 times, is the alternative to George Bush, and that all Americans can come together under his leadership.
COOPER: A lot of people say John Kerry is a great debater. You've gone against him. How do you think he'll stack up against President Bush?
SHARPTON: Oh, I don't think it will be a contest.
COOPER: Really? SHARPTON: I will tell you this, I tell you like I would say if we were in boxing, don't go against your popcorn. I think John Kerry will be very, very early to show who's the superior debater.
COOPER: Lot of people, though, said that about George Bush against Ann ,Richards and he, a lot of people said he did, they said he won those debates.
SHARPTON: Well, I think Bush was underestimated. I don't think John Kerry's going to underestimate him. I think John Kerry's very studious, and I think John Kerry has truth and righteousness on his side. It'll be hard for Bush to defend weapons that weren't there, and 3 million jobs that are lost. He's got a record that he's going to have to defend that in many ways are indefensible.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) righteousness on his side. Sounds like a reverend. Thanks very much, Reverend Sharpton.
SHARPTON: Get ready for tomorrow night.
COOPER: We'll be watching.
SHARPTON: Thank you.
COOPER: All right.
360 next, defining John Kerry. The American people tell pollsters they're still largely in the dark about where he stands. We just said, can he get his message across? We'll take you left and right with Paul Begala and Tucker Carlson.
Also tonight, 360 exclusive, Bono, rock star, political activist, joins us live. He's hitting Democratic and Republican conventions. Find out why this rock star is on a mission.
And a little later, Vanessa Kerry on her dad, on her stepmom, and the family's fight for the White House, live on 360.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: And you are live watching 360.
The rock superstar Bono about to join us live here in a few moments to talk about the issue he is pushing at this campaign as well as the Republican convention in just a few weeks. We'll talk to Bono live in just a few moments.
We really ought to retire the old expression about politicians putting their feet in their mouths. The stakes these days aren't so much about what's said as about what's seen. It's the photo gone wrong that really hurts. We should be talking not about foot-in-mouth but about head-in-helmet or head-in-shower-cap-looking-thing.
From CNN's Tom Foreman, here's a heaping helping of raw politics.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Democrats, the last thing they wanted, the first thing this morning was to wake up to a picture like this. NASA told him to wear the suit, but...
(on camera): What do you think of this picture of John Kerry?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's goofy. It's very, very goofy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's funny.
FOREMAN (voice-over): This is why campaigns scrutinize every public appearance. Dan Payne is a consultant who has worked with Kerry.
DAN PAYNE, DEMOCRATIC MEDIA CONSULTANT: Campaigns worry every day about what's going to be on the front page of the newspapers.
FOREMAN: He believes as long as candidates look comfortable, there is little risk. So Kerry rides motorcycles, plays hockey, makes a pitch, and even a dirtball gets good coverage.
PAYNE: Other candidates just simply can't get outside the normal business suit, and when you see them out of the normal business suit, they look weird no matter what they're doing.
FOREMAN: When Jimmy Carter was attacked in a boat by an angry aquatic rabbit, ridicule followed. When Gerald Ford, the most athletic president, stumbled, he became a klutz. And, of course, there was Michael Dukakis and the tank.
Republicans are e-mailing that picture to reporters with Kerry's picture close by.
(on camera): Why is that picture up there on the wall?
GILLESPIE: We thought it was a great picture.
FOREMAN (voice-over): The Democrats are retaliating by releasing odd pictures of George Bush, and an unflattering videotape.
(on camera): How much difference does any of this make?
PAYNE: You know, it's a story for today.
FOREMAN (voice-over): But with the voting still months away, the race is already coming down to a photo finish.
Tom Foreman, CNN, Boston.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: A lingering problem for John Kerry, a poll shows many voters still don't know what he stands for. Let's step into the "CROSSFIRE," talk about that and the photo with CNN's Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala.
Guys, thanks for being with us.
I got to start out with this photo. Paul, you worked on candidates' campaigns for a long time. Who thought of this?
PAUL BEGALA, CO-HOST, "CROSSFIRE": Somebody's got to prepare a resume, OK? I mean, I think what happened is that, you know, they took him into NASA. NASA has clean rooms where you do have to, you know, not mess up the equipment by carrying in germs or dust or whatever. The problem is, there was a photographer there.
COOPER: Yes, don't you say, OK, you're going to a clean room, you got to put on a hair net, don't have a photographer there?
BEGALA: Yes. Yes. I think it was a NASA photographer. The photos I saw in the paper had a little bitty, you know, credit line that said, NASA photographer. Well, ere's the question. Who controls NASA? You mentioned your candidate. Gee, senator, remember, NASA is controlled by the president of the United States...
(CROSSTALK)
TUCKER CARLSON, CO-HOST, "CROSSFIRE": You're totally wrong. Halliburton controls NASA, and that's what it comes down to.
BEGALA: You don't let a camera in, period. I know, I'm sure they were told, Well, it's just a NASA camera. It might have as well have been a CNN camera. I mean, it's, it's, it was a mistake.
Now, I did ask the -- just before we walked out, are some of the rapid response guys, David Ginsburg (ph) from the Kerry campaign. I said, How are you going to respond? He said, Well, we were going to release a photograph of Bush serving in the National Guard, but we couldn't find one. So he right away stuck the knife in.
COOPER: Is this, is this a whole lot of nothing, or is this actually a real issue, or just a sign that the reporters don't have anything to talk about?
CARLSON: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), well, it's a sign of all three. But it depends how they play it. I mean, the response shouldn't be, you know, Bush didn't serve in the National Guard as John Kerry was, you know, getting shot in Vietnam.
It ought to be, Yes, the candidate looks like a bit of a dork. You know, he's got a human side. Look, when you dress up like a human sperm, people are going to criticize you and mock you. That's OK. You ought to laugh and just go forward. Of course, it's not a big deal, except they make it one and they blame Halliburton for it.
(CROSSTALK)
COOPER: Let's talk about what may be a bigger issue, though. Fifty-four percent of voters say they don't know where John Kerry stands on issues. At this point in the campaign, is it a big problem?
BEGALA: If it's this point next week, yes. But that's what the convention is for. You know, a lot of people in the media whine and complain about the conventions. They're wrong. These are important moments for the candidates to introduce themselves and their agendas. Kerry has the spotlight on Thursday night. There will be no excuse for having 54 percent of Americans next Tuesday saying they don't know what he stands for.
COOPER: But having this sort of squeaky-clean convention where there's no Bush bashing, there's not a lot of talk about the war in Iraq, does that make sense, Tucker, to you?
CARLSON: Yes, it makes sense in the short term. I think the problem, I mean, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) betting they can win on the unpopularity of George W. Bush, and maybe they can, but he still needs a message. And I think he needs to articulate where we're going to go next in Iraq. The majority people in this room are against the war. The logical conclusion from that is, we ought to withdraw our troops fairly soon. Is John Kerry for that, and if not, why? I do think he needs to explain that, soon.
BEGALA: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I think that's why they dialed back on the Bush bashing, because they do know that Tucker's right, that they've got to put out their own message of what they stand for. The question is, can he do it in a short bite that people can digest the way my old boss, Bill Clinton, did here last night.
COOPER: We'll see that Thursday night.
Gentlemen, thanks very much. Tucker Carlson, Paul Begala, good to see you, as always.
BEGALA: Thank you.
COOPER: We just had Al Sharpton, often described as a rock star. We have a real rock star just up ahead. 360 next, an exclusive interview with U2's Bono, there he is live, rock (UNINTELLIGIBLE) star turned political activist, making an appearance at the two political conventions tonight.
Plus ahead, the Democratic Party's royal family, the Kennedys, their homecoming for the convention.
All that ahead. Stay with us. Bono in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: And welcome back to 360 for more coverage of the second night of the Democratic National Convention here at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts.
If last night was about the party's past, two ex-presidents, a one-time vice president who very nearly became commander in chief himself, a former first lady, tonight it's more about the Democratic president, present and about its future. Consider the names of some of the evening's featured speakers, Dean, Obama, Heinz Kerry, just to name a few. As lead singer of U2, Bono may be the biggest rock star on the planet. He's also a crusader in the war against AIDS. He has done an extraordinary amount of work on the issue. An estimated 38 million people, of course, are living with HIV. And every minute six die from the disease. Bono calls AIDS the greatest challenge facing the world, a challenge he believes is being, well, ignored, you might say, at the Democratic and Republican conventions. That is why he is vowing to appear at both, as in his a quote "nagging presence in sunglasses." True to form, Bono joins us now in sunglasses.
Thanks for being with us.
BONO: Thank you very much, I look very shady.
COOPER: Not too shady, it looks good. It's good not to be shady here. You wrote that you wince when you think you're rich Irish rock star, not even a rich American rock star. And you know that people wince when they hear some celebrities talking about issues. But even knowing that, you're still putting yourself out there, talking about HIV/AIDS in Africa, why?
BONO: Everybody has got their (UNINTELLIGIBLE). I'm just (UNINTELLIGIBLE) make it clear that at least in the half dozen Africans dying every day of a preventable, treatable disease is not a cause of an emergency. I mean, look, here we are, this incredible carnival here going on. Every constituency wants their box checked, you know, they want their issue mentioned.
But this isn't an issue, this is an emergency and it's not a constituency either because the people who are dying everyday of a preventable disease, they don't vote in America. And yet their lives will be shaped by the stuff that comes out in this convention here in Boston and the one in New York.
COOPER: What does it say about -- I mean, about us, about the media, about politicians that it takes a guy like you to pay attention when frankly, just to criticize ourselves, we wouldn't be talking about HIV AIDS in Africa if you weren't here tonight? What does that say about not only us but about politicians? You're meeting -- I mean, you're not just talking on the media about this. You're meeting behind the scenes with politicians around the world.
BONO: People are interested. This is John Kerry's town, Kerry's week here, and I have to tell you, he's been really, really good on this. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) best guy on this, and he's got brilliant people working on it. In 1999, he reached out across the aisle to (UNINTELLIGIBLE), and they brought in the first global AIDS bill. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) here. I want him to be banging on about it more than he is, yes, I do. President Bush has done some extraordinary (UNINTELLIGIBLE) in the last two years in Africa on AIDS. I want us to move faster, yes, I do, but I also have to give some credit where credit is due.
COOPER: Well, it seems like your -- in your commentaries -- and you wrote an op-ed, it was very well written, you're very non- partisan. I mean, you're not -- you're not throwing stones here at one party or the other. Why? I mean, some people say, well, that might be more effective.
BONO: No, it's not more effective. The people that I represent -- look, I'm an Irish rock star (ph), gagging me is quite hard. You know, keeping my mouth shut is quite hard. But I do so because I'm working for people whose voices aren't heard here and whose face you don't see. And you were talking about Malawi before we came on. You've been there. I've seen people (UNINTELLIGIBLE) die three in a bed there, two on top, one underneath. These are the people I work for.
And we need Congress to pass these bills. And you know, Senator Kerry (UNINTELLIGIBLE) $30 billion pledge on AIDS. That's fantastic, but the real boss in America is Congress. So we have to get Congress going. And we are going to use both sides of Congress. That's why I have to work both sides of the aisle, and the smart people, including John Kerry and -- know why I'm not going to be out carrying one of his placards.
COOPER: Do you think people care about this issue? I mean, you've been out, you spent a lot of time in Africa, I've been to those hospitals in Malawi where people are dying on plastic sheeting without even bed sheets, and the things you see are -- are indescribable. Is it that people don't know about it, or they don't care?
BONO: No, people -- if people know, as Harry Truman said, give America the facts -- give Americans the facts, and they'll do the right thing. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) do the right thing. What we (ph) have got to do is dramatize it better. This is not a burden. This is an extraordinary opportunity for America and Europe to redescribe ourselves in very dangerous times, very nervous times, with -- to the people in the south (ph), the people who live on less than $1 a day, below the equator. Those other two-thirds, you know, the third of the entire planet lives on less than $1 a day.
Give a chance to redescribe ourselves to them, by responding to the AIDS emergency and to the extreme poverty that it breeds. These AIDS drugs are great advertisements for us. I told President Bush, paint them red, white and blue. I told John Kerry, paint them red, white and blue. They're the best advertisements for America right now you're going to get, because where they go, it is going to change lives, transform communities.
COOPER: I'm a little skeptical always of celebrities talking about issues, but your work is really extraordinary. You're really walking the walk. And I appreciate you joining us.
BONO: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
COOPER: I appreciate that. Thank you very much. Bono.
All right. Well the big headliner tonight, Teresa Heinz Kerry. 360 next, a look at the candidate's wife, a prospective first lady, typically unspoken, unlike most wives on the stump. We'll talk to her stepdaughter Vanessa Kerry.
Plus, campaigning for her dad -- all about Vanessa Kerry, politics and family life. And Kerry and the Kennedys, powerful -- so there's Vanessa Kerry right there -- powerful support for the race in the White House. We'll talk about the patriarch of the Kennedy dynasty. All ahead - 360( is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Democratic Party insiders are weighing in on the convention tonight. John Kerry's political soul mates, a "National Journal" poll has found most insiders believe Kerry has more in common with Bill Clinton who got 20 votes, in a distant second, Al Gore with nine votes, Ted Kennedy followed with five votes, and there were four votes for none of the above. That's "National Journal" insider's poll.
That brings us to today's "Buzz". What do you think? Whom does John Kerry share the most in common with politically? Bill Clinton? Al Gore? Ted Kennedy or none of the above? Log on to cnn.com/360, cast your vote. We'll have results at the end of the program tonight.
In about three hours, John Kerry's wife Teresa will get to speak her mind in a speech as the delegates gather tonight inside the FleetCenter. She's already created a convention buzz after speaking out Sunday night at a gathering telling a Pittsburgh reporter to shove it. She says she has no regrets, her style, blunt, outspoken, perhaps might say not your typical political wife.
Here's CNN's Judy Woodruff.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TERESA HEINZ KERRY, SEN. KERRY'S WIFE: I speak from my heart, from my head and from my soul.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): And you never know what's going on come out. Her husband's aides can gnaw their nails but Teresa Heinz Kerry won't be reigned in.
HEINZ KERRY: I'm modern. I'm old-fashioned but I'm modern. I mean I don't have to wear stockings when it's hot.
WOODRUFF: Like another outspoken political wife...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh thank you all very much.
WOODRUFF: ... she gushes over her man on the stump.
HEINZ KERRY: Bighearted, generous, can-do, optimistic, wanting to share.
WOODRUFF: But unlike Hillary Clinton, she would not try to tackle policy in a Kerry administration. She says she'll have plenty on her plate without it.
Like doling out the ketchup money, since inheriting a philanthropic empire after the death of her first husband, the late Senator John Heinz.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think my wife speaks her mind appropriately.
WOODRUFF: John Kerry says his wife won't be restrained and many find her candor refreshing. Among her fans...
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: ... and she's very open and she's independent and she says what she thinks.
WOODRUFF: But to some Kerry supporters, Teresa is a distraction. Her Botox praising, cheating man-naming comments more damaging than endearing. They want to hear a little less from her.
HEINZ KERRY: Thank you, my husband, for coming.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Coming up next on 360, a family reunion for the Kennedys and we're going to talk live to Vanessa Kerry in just a moment here on 360(. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Yes. Joining me now to talk more about Teresa Heinz Kerry and of course her dad's campaign, her stepdaughter Vanessa Kerry. Thanks very much for being with us. Good to see you again.
VANESSA KERRY, SEN. KERRY'S DAUGHTER: It's a pleasure to be here. Thank you.
COOPER: What do you think your step mom is going to talk about? What are we going to hear from her tonight?
V. KERRY: You're going to hear a lot of things. You're going to hear I think sort of the common vision that she and my father share and why they were together. You're going to hear about my father from her perspective and you're going to hear about why this election matters.
COOPER: There are a lot of reporters who say they love talking to your step mom because they really never know what she's going to say and that she really speaks her mind, which they say a lot of potential first ladies don't do. Has there ever been a time personally when she has never spoken her mind to you that you kind of wish she hadn't?
V. KERRY: No actually. Teresa has always been a very wonderful listener and she's given me great advice through the years. I have been so grateful for her for her thoughts and frankly for her honesty.
COOPER: Do you think she gets a bad rap from some reporters? I mean this focus on this thing that happened Sunday night her telling somebody to shove it, do you think is that just reporters with nothing else to report?
V. KERRY: I think yes actually. I'm a little frustrated and saddened that we are trying to make this the controversy. We have much bigger issues we need to be talking about. We need to be talking about what's happening in our economy and the jobs that have been lost. We need to be talking about health care for all Americans. We need to be talking about investing in education and our kids, talking about making this country safer and more respected in the world and that's what this convention is about. It's a celebration of American values. Talking about making us stronger at home, safer you know in the world and more respected and that's what we need to be focusing on.
COOPER: There's a "Washington Post"/ABC News poll out that says 54 percent of Americans say they don't really know where your dad stands on the issues. How big of a concern is that to you personally at this point?
V. KERRY: None. Welcome to the convention...
COOPER: That's what this is all about...
V. KERRY: This is our introduction. You know this race is young and people have busy lives and people have a lot of things that they're focusing on...
COOPER: But a lot of...
(CROSSTALK)
COOPER: Tens of millions of dollars have been spent, I mean more money than ever in a presidential history and at this point 54 percent are saying they're kind of still not sure.
V. KERRY: I completely disagree, I'm sorry. I really think...
(CROSSTALK)
V. KERRY: You know I think we're at beginning and that's what this convention is about. It's a real introduction. And as life settles down and we get past Labor Day, people are going to paying -- I think you know people are going to have more time to be able to focus. It's the summer still...
COOPER: It's just begun...
V. KERRY: ... but I think this is just the beginning and I think people are going to love what they see.
COOPER: At end of the week, what do you want -- I mean Paul Begala keeps saying at the end of week Democrats have a to have a one or two sentence description of who your dad is and what he's about. What do you want that one or two sentence description to be?
V. KERRY: I have to be fair. I think we've got to be careful that we don't nip everything down to one or two sentences and... COOPER: ... sound bites.
V. KERRY: I think sound bites have gone down from -- up to 30 seconds down to 15 in the last few years, so that matters to me.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
V. KERRY: But...
COOPER: Not at cable news...
V. KERRY: ... I think the one or two sentences...
(CROSSTALK)
V. KERRY: ... are that the man has enormous integrity, that he is extremely passionate. He is responsible and that he is a very decisive and strong leader who will make this country better and really, I think, speak to an optimism that will help the country rise to new heights.
COOPER: Would it would surprise you -- you've been on this campaign trail for a long time and you've been in the trenches. What has surprised you most that you've learned that you maybe didn't anticipate?
V. KERRY: One thing that I've been -- you know, one thing I think I've learned is the amazing -- it's more that I've seen things about my father get reinforced. I mean I was never involved in politics. I saw my dad and had quiet conversations and I had a chance to, you know, have 11:00 p.m. phone conversations with him and really talk about what he's thinking and feeling and I've gotten to see in his core how much he cares about what's happening and how much he wants to see every American have opportunity. And I want to see, you know I think that for me, I see him take that to a bigger level and it just -- it's been a reaffirmation and I think this country is beginning to see that. They're learning about him and they're going to see it a lot more.
COOPER: We've now seen Jen and Barbara Bush going on the campaign trail. You said you've been on the campaign trail - (UNINTELLIGIBLE) you've been on the campaign trail. What do you think you bring to the campaign trail? What would the Kerry campaign not have if they didn't have you?
V. KERRY: I would not put words in the mouth of the Kerry campaign...
COOPER: ... what do you bring to the table?
V. KERRY: We just love to spend time together. We get the laughs. We get to have a good time. But I think we get to be another set of eyes and ears. We have a chance to move in a way that my dad maybe can't. We get to talk to a lot of extra people and then we all gather together, we sit around a table, and we share what we've seen and heard and I think that's important. COOPER: Vanessa Kerry, it's always great talk to you. Thanks for being with us. Have a great time this week.
V. KERRY: Thank you.
COOPER: All right. Well time now for "The Buzz". Earlier we asked you whom does John Kerry share the most in common with politically? Bill Clinton? Al Gore? Ted Kennedy or none of the above?
More than 56,000 of you have voted. The majority say Ted Kennedy, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) 35 percent of the vote, while 28 percent say none of the above. Certainly not a scientific poll, but it is your "Buzz" and we appreciate you voting.
And finally tonight, taking sponsorship to "The Nth Degree". Corporate underwriting is so common now that we really don't notice it anymore, just take a look. This place will replace the old Boston Garden ought to be called the new Boston Garden. It isn't, though. It's called a FleetCenter instead because Fleet made a bundle for what are called naming rights. And why not?
Lance Armstrong has got a sponsor, a sponsor to pay for most of the television we watch. New York City is now talking about auctioning off naming rights to famous subway stops. It's the American way, so why not political parties? No question they can use the money. The fundraisers would haven't to turn our voters upside down every year to shake loose the pocket change and we should get used to it.
Suppose the people you're looking at right now were members of say the Nike Democratic Party or Snapple or Xerox or Home Depot Democrats. Suppose in August in New York there's a gathering not just for the plain old GOP, but of the GlaxoSmithKline GOP or the MRP, the Microsoft Republican Party. Viagra sponsors NASCAR races, why not Floridacrats (ph) and (UNINTELLIGIBLE). You never know.
360( next, Edward Kennedy, Howard Dean, Richard Gephardt, Ron Reagan and Teresa Heinz Kerry step up to the podium. Special coverage of the Democratic National Convention back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Thanks for joining us on our special campaign coverage on 360(. CNN's live coverage continues right now, however, with Wolf Blitzer, Judy Woodruff and Jeff Greenfield standing by to take you through the next hours -- Wolf.
WOLF BLITZER, CO-HOST: Thanks very much, Anderson. We'll see you back here tomorrow. Lots happening here at the Democratic National Convention at the FleetCenter in Boston. This is what we're standing by for tonight. The agenda full with Ted Kennedy, a major speech from him, that's coming up shortly.
It will be followed by Howard Dean. He's going to be speaking, the former Democratic presidential candidate and then the keynote address, a young star in the Democratic Party Barack Obama, he's running for the Senate from Illinois. Ron Reagan will be speak during the 10:00 hour, speaking about stem-cell research and then the wife of John Kerry, Teresa Heinz Kerry. She'll be speaking during that hour as well, and we'll have musical performances here at the FleetCenter. A lot happening -- this night only just beginning.
ANNOUNCER: "America Votes 2004". This is CNN's live coverage of the Democratic National Convention.
BLITZER: Thanks very much for joining us. Day two of the Democratic National Convention. There will be four days all altogether.
Hello, I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting with my colleagues Judy Woodruff and Jeff Greenfield. We're standing by for the National Anthem, but then Ted Kennedy, the senior senator from Massachusetts will be speaking, a favorite among these Democrats.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CO-HOST: He is, Ted Kennedy beloved among these Democrats. He's known as Mr. Liberal by the Republicans, but he is John Kerry's senior senator from the state of Massachusetts. Wolf, what we're going to see tonight is Democrats trying to paint a fuller picture of who John Kerry is, what he stands for, what the issues are that are important to him and to this Democratic Party.
JEFF GREENFIELD, CO-HOST: Wolf, I think we can say like the strip in the old motel, that this convention has been sanitized for their protection -- the protection of the Democrats. Ted Kennedy famous with delivering red meat speeches at past convention, an interesting question, will he be delivering red meat or tofu - Wolf.
BLITZER: But whenever he speaks here he's always well received.
GREENFIELD: The crowd loves him. Howard Dean, the man (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Democrats also speaking. Red meat or tofu? That's what I'm looking for Wolf.
BLITZER: All right. The first item, though, on the agenda is the National Anthem. In fact, the National Anthem going to be coming now from Arizona. We're going to stand up for the National Anthem, as everyone else is standing up here. National Anthem will be sung by Michael Enis (ph) and Alisha Childs (ph), Native Americans from Arizona.
(MUSIC)
(APPLAUSE)
BLITZER: Just want to be precise, Michael Enis (ph) and Alisha Childs (ph) from the traditional Tohono Indian Nation in Arizona, singing in the traditional language of this Native American group.
Jeff Greenfield, how many times have you heard the National Anthem sung and I hope I'm pronouncing it right, Tohono O'odham.
GREENFIELD: Actually, possibly in 1968 at a Navajo reservation, but that's the only time I can think of. You can see already what the Democratic Party is doing. The coat of many colors all united behind the theme of patriotism. And if I can make one more point, the stretch of this convention is amazing. You realize when Ted Kennedy entered the Senate, tonight's keynote speaker Barack Obama was 15 months old. There's a range from past and present and they hope the future (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
BLITZER: Teddy Kennedy, we're getting ready for this senator to speak. The Kennedy legacy very, very felt especially here in Boston.
WOODRUFF: There's no legacy in this country really, Wolf, unless maybe it's the Bush family legacy, like the Kennedy legacy. A former president shot down, lost his life at the very height of his career. A brother, Bobby Kennedy, assassinated five years later. Teddy Kennedy went on to carry the torch, but what Teddy Kennedy has really become is one of the most -- one of the senators in this country most celebrated for being able to get work done in the United States.
BLITZER: How important was Senator Kennedy, Jeff, in getting the nomination for John Kerry?
GREENFIELD: Critical. He gave John Kerry at a critical point in his campaign his chief of staff, Mary Beth Cahill, his campaign manager who turned the campaign around. In Iowa where Democrats are very liberal, Ted Kennedy worked tirelessly on his behalf. And what's interesting about that is they were periods in the past when JFK, John Forbes Kerry and EMK, Ted Kennedy, were not the best of colleagues.
Those bumps cleared up about 10 years ago and I think without Ted Kennedy, John Kerry wouldn't be here tonight and remember, also if we're talking about legacy, the first convention Ted Kennedy addressed that I remember was 1968 paying tribute to his fallen brother. The other side of that legacy we also know is 35 years almost to the day that Ted Kennedy had to go on TV and explain (UNINTELLIGIBLE) to the people of Massachusetts, which probably kept him from the White House.
BLITZER: All right, let's go to the Massachusetts delegation and our correspondent John King is there. You've spent a lot of time covering Senator Kennedy. This is going to be an important speech for him John.
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An important speech for Senator Kennedy, Wolf, an important night for the Massachusetts delegation. They get to double dip, if you will. Tonight they hear from their senior senator as they prepare to nominate their senator for president.
As Jeff just noted, Senator Kennedy, once a candidate for president, one has aspirations for the White House, now a critical advisor, if you will, to the Kerry campaign, Senator Kennedy, because he will play any role as possible in the fall campaign. Remember, months ago he angered many Democrats, worked with President Bush on education, worked for a while with President Bush on Medicare.
Some of his fellow liberals did not like that. Senator Kennedy has no apologies, but he does say he has a sour taste, if you will, for that experience. He says he will now work vigorously to defeat President Bush. And we should also note, Senator Kennedy, of course, one of the prominent liberals, perhaps the premiere liberal now in the party, rivaled maybe by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton right now.
It was 24 years ago he gave his own famous speech to the Democratic National Convention in which he said his hopes for the presidencies that passed, he had failed to rustle the nomination from President Carter in 1980. The dream will never die was the ending line, the closing line of Senator Kennedy's speech back then 24 years ago. So the Massachusetts delegation will be (UNINTELLIGIBLE) tonight and again, look for Senator Kennedy to play a very prominent role in the fall campaign and look for the Bush campaign to try to make (UNINTELLIGIBLE) as well.
The joke in the Bush campaign is that Senator Kennedy is the conservative senator from Massachusetts and that John Kerry is even more liberal - Wolf.
BLITZER: And Judy, there is some truth to that. Take a look at the "National Journal". In their rankings they do have Senator Kerry more liberal than Senator Kennedy.
WOODRUFF: That's right. They have not always agreed. In fact, Wolf, most famously they disagreed over the war in Iraq. John Kerry voted with George W. Bush to authorize the use of force in Iraq. Senator Ted Kennedy argued vigorously against it. In fact, he disagreed with his own son, the congressman from the state of Rhode Island. But John Kerry and Ted Kennedy over the years have pretty much agreed on the larger issues of the day.
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Aired July 27, 2004 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST: Good evening from Boston. I'm Anderson Cooper.
Tonight, the son of a Republican president, the widow of a Republican senator, addressing the convention tonight. Makes you wonder what's up with the Democrats.
360 starts now.
Kerry calls for action now on the 9/11 commission's recommendations. But who's trying to muzzle opposition to the Iraq war at the convention?
A picture is worth a thousand words. So who came up with this one? Republican attack dogs pounce on a photo, and Democrats bite back with an embarrassing photo of their own. Tonight, the raw politics of pictures.
Democrats say, Let Teresa be Teresa, but what's she going to say tonight on the podium? We'll talk live with Vanessa Kerry about her stepmom, her politics, and her willingness to say what's really on her mind.
Tonight, Teddy Kennedy goes prime time. His town, his night. But is the Kennedy clan still relevant to the party?
And a 360 exclusive, live one on one with U2's Bono, rock superstar turned political activist. But is this convention buying what he's selling?
ANNOUNCER: This is a special edition of ANDERSON COOPER 360, live from the Democratic National Convention in Boston.
COOPER: And welcome again to 360.
It is night two of the Democratic National Convention here in Boston, Mass. Last night, there was so much unity in the room, the same signs, the same messages, some (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it felt like a typical Republican convention. Glance at the list of speakers tonight, you could say the same thing. Ron Reagan, son of the most popular Republican president of our time, and Teresa Heinz Kerry, whose first husband was a Republican senator. Both address this body later tonight.
A lot to get you up to date on. Right now, John Kerry is making his way north. CNN's Frank Buckley reports on his day for us. Dana Bash is in Boston reporting on developments in the Democrats' position on Iraq, what you will and what you won't hear tonight about the war.
And our own Candy Crowley is standing by with a look at what to expect tonight. A good place to start, we think, Candy.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, last night you looked at the prime time lineup, and you saw it was all about going back. A trip down memory lane, Gore, Clinton, Carter. Tonight you look, and there's a little bit of the past and a little bit of the future, but mostly it's very intriguing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY (voice-over): If you like politics or juxtaposition, you'll love the Kerry-thon day two.
TERESA HEINZ KERRY, JOHN KERRY'S WIFE: No, you said something I didn't say. Now, shove it.
CROWLEY: It features the unscripted wife of the Democratic nominee, who has a script his campaign prays she'll stick to, and the son of a Republican president, whose presence means more to Democratic politics than his script.
ED GILLESPIE, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: Having seen Mr. Reagan over the past couple decades, I'm sure he'll be very comfortable at the Democratic convention, and I'm sure they'll welcome him there.
CROWLEY: You betcha they will. The son of one of the Republicans' most beloved presidents got prime time, baby. I mean, Hillary fans had to complain before she got a hot spot.
Also of prime concern, Barack Obama. Who, you ask? Well, that's why he got the keynote slot. The party wants you to know Barack Obama, probably the next senator from Illinois, charismatic, smooth, and on message for the Kerry-fest.
BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), SENATE CANDIDATE, KEYNOTE SPEAKER: This is a guy who has better prepared for the presidency than anybody I've ever seen. Enormously engaging, enormously caring, and enormously intelligent.
CROWLEY: While it boosts the profile of a rising star, the party will also embrace the legacy of a man in his own stratosphere among Democrats. It is Teddy Kennedy night Boston, the convention he never got is his for one evening.
Now, about that no Bush-bashing rule.
JIMMY CARTER, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We cannot lead if our leaders mislead.
CROWLEY: Democrats say, so far, so good, no Bush bashing. But the way Republicans count, there were two Bush bashes for every Kerry kudo Monday night. It all depends on what the definition of bashing is.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY: Further challenging that definition tonight is, of course, Howard dean. Howard Dean, one of the speakers. He, of course, made his career, at least in the presidential arena, with a lot of anti-Bush rhetoric. Aides say that he has toned it down a little, but you'll hear a little of it as well, Anderson.
COOPER: I'm sure we will. Candy Crowley, Thanks.
The man whose shadow is already visible here at the Democratic National Convention is nonetheless still some 300 miles outside Boston, campaigning his way north. And today a tactical move from the candidate, as he criticized the sitting president for not acting swiftly enough on the recommendations issued last week by the 9/11 commission.
A report on that now, John Kerry's day, from CNN's Frank Buckley.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The once Navy lieutenant John Kerry appeared before the battleship U.S.S. "Wisconsin" to make the case that now he should be the commander in chief.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Our beloved country never goes to war because it wants to. We go to war because we have to.
BUCKLEY: Senator Kerry also used the setting to prod President Bush to act on the recommendations of the 9/11 commission, suggesting he hasn't acted quickly enough.
KERRY: If I were president today, if I'd been president last week, I would have immediately said to the commission, Yes, we're going to implement those recommendations...
BUCKLEY: Kerry's criticism of Bush on a national security issue comes as polls continue to show more voters believe President Bush is better able to handle terrorism. Kerry, who was a swiftboat commander in Vietnam, decorated with Silver and Bronze Stars and three Purple Hearts, enlisted a fellow swiftboat skipper to try to assure voters he's up to the job.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is, in fact, a combat veteran, a strong, decisive leader...
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BUCKLEY: And back here live now in Philadelphia. You're looking at Senator Kerry as he just wraps up his final rally before moving on to Boston. We're in Philadelphia at the art museum. Even Senator Kerry's arrival in Boston tomorrow is designed to illustrate Senator Kerry's wartime experience. We were told today that he'll be arriving at Logan International Airport, then taking a boat into the city, accompanied by 13 of his swiftboat crewmates from Vietnam.
As we say tonight, this is the last stop in the battleground state of Pennsylvania before heading tomorrow to Boston, Anderson.
COOPER: It is all about the photo opportunity. Frank Buckley, thanks very much.
Kerry's running mate, John Edwards, is here in Boston. Here's a quick news note for you. Edwards and his family flew into Logan Airport this afternoon. His aides say that he is feeling fine after nursing a cold and raspy voice for the last couple of days. He will need that when he accepts the Democratic vice presidential nomination in the biggest speech of his political career.
No doubt one of the central issues of the fall campaign will be the war in Iraq. You'd think that would also be a central issue here, a place where Democrats, especially on their own platform, would take a stand in opposition. After all, opposition to the war is what energized many Democrats this election year. But as in most things, as in politics, there's a lot of gray, not just black and white.
Here's White House correspondent Dana Bash.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Like many delegates gathered in Boston, Sheila Blake believes the Iraq war never should have happened.
SHEILA BLAKE, DELEGATE: We're not any safer. We've created more terrorism, as far as I'm concerned.
BASH: In fact, a recent "New York Times"-CBS News poll says nine in 10 delegates here think war was a mistake.
GOV. BILL RICHARDSON (D), NEW MEXICO, CONVENTION CHAIRMAN: All those in favor say aye.
BASH: But the Democrats' platform, the official party position, does not say war in Iraq was the wrong call. Instead, it reads, quote, "People of good will disagree about whether America should have gone to war in Iraq."
AILEEN GUNTHER, DELEGATE: I myself would have stronger language as far as the platform goes.
BASH: Party officials concede there was healthy debate when they hammered out language earlier this month, and it's not over.
MARK WEPRIN, DELEGATE: We went in with the right intentions, I believe. Unfortunately, now that we're there, we can't turn our back on the people who are over there. BASH: Not surprisingly, they've settled largely on John Kerry's approach. Look for more international troops, train Iraqi forces, stabilize, don't withdraw.
RICH GOTTFRIEND, DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE PLATFORM COMMITTEE: The platform also has to appeal to a broad constituency. It can't simply represent my views or any other individual's views.
BASH: But the candidate that rallied the antiwar movement gave all this a shoulder shrug.
HOWARD DEAN (D), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is the seventh convention I've been to. I've long learned that platforms don't mean anything.
BASH: Republicans are trying to stoke what they call a split among Democrats.
SEN. NORM COLEMAN (R), MINNESOTA: I think the platform, by the way, reflects the wisdom of George Bush's policy and approach. It doesn't reflect the feelings of the folks on that floor.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: And the unspoken challenge for Democrats here, of course, is that both senators on the ticket voted for the war. But the platform is quite tough on the president, accusing him of exaggerating the threat and underestimating what was needed to win the peace in Iraq, Anderson.
COOPER: Dana Bash, thanks very much, live from the FleetCenter here in Boston.
360 next, Al Sharpton joins us live. Never afraid to speak his mind, certainly. Hear what he has to say about the war in Iraq, John Kerry, and the Democrats who disagree.
Plus, rock star activist Bono, a 360 exclusive. He's joining us live. He's going to be at the Republican convention as well, but the question is, is anyone listening to what he's selling?
Also tonight, the patriarch of a Democratic dynasty, Senator Edward Kennedy takes a major role tonight. We'll look at the power he and his family still hold over Democrats.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: And welcome back. We are live at the FleetCenter here Boston.
Probably safe to say that in a business where staying on message, on script is key, Reverend Al Sharpton is the king of the ad-libbers. In a series of debates before the primaries, he uniformly had the best one-liners by far, and consistently upstaged his Democratic rivals. He didn't get the votes, but he got an awful lot of attention.
Tomorrow, Reverend Sharpton will have a message and a script as he addresses the convention. We'll wonder if he'll stick with them this time.
Reverend Sharpton, thanks for being with us tonight.
I'm doing, I'm doing all right, I'm doing all right.
During the primaries, you focused a lot, and you talked a lot about wanting to bring your issues to the platform here, your issues to the table here. Are you disappointed that you're not hearing much opposition to the war in Iraq? Because that was something you spoke very strongly about.
REV. AL SHARPTON (D), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I think we changed the debate on that. You know, I came out against the war even before Dean, and...
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
SHARPTON: Absolutely. And I think that now we've seen Kerry and Edwards voted for the war that was supportive when we first started debating, now themselves saying they were misled and we shouldn't have gone in.
COOPER: You're not hearing it tonight, you're not hearing it here the convention floor. You're not, I mean, (UNINTELLIGIBLE), opposition to the war mobilized a lot of Democrats, but you're not really hearing it here.
SHARPTON: Well, again, we're only going on our second night. We don't know what we'll hear tonight. I think we did hear that from Jimmy Carter last night.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) hear that from you tomorrow night?
SHARPTON: You're going to hear it from me, I'm sure you'll hear it from Howard Dean, I'm sure you're going to hear about the war from both our presidential and the vice presidential candidates. I'm very content that we have changed the debate. If I was not in those debates, I don't know if we'd have taken that issue on as early as we did.
COOPER: There's been a lot of, I guess, control, you could say, over what the messages every night are going to be. Have you vetted your speech with the Kerry folks?
SHARPTON: I've asked what the themes are, and I've tried to be consistent with those themes. No one has told me that I'm being edited or restrained. But I think that if you are part of trying to win, you want to be consistent with the message, and I intend to be consistent with that.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) here. I mean, we are told no Bush bashing. SHARPTON: No, I think what we're saying is that we don't want to have to be as ugly as they've been, and that we're not only anti-Bush, we are that, but we're also pro-Kerry, and we have reason to be pro- Kerry, and we want to lay that out to the American people over these four days.
COOPER: How many people really of the American people know what John Kerry's positions are? (UNINTELLIGIBLE) "Washington Post"-ABC News poll said 54 percent of the people, I think, said voters are unfamiliar with Kerry's positions. That's got to be a big concern.
SHARPTON: I think that you increase that over the period of time over convention, and that's why you have such huge media budgets and grass-roots organizing. The good news is that most Americans do know what Bush stands for, and many of them, and I feel by November most of them, will be voting to reject that.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Paul Begala keeps telling me, and I'm not sure I believe him, but I'd be interested to hear what you think. He keeps saying this is a referendum on the president, that it almost doesn't matter what John Kerry does, what John Kerry says, people are going to be going to the polls with President Bush in mind. Yes or no? You think that's...
SHARPTON: Well, I think you cannot unseat an incumbent without it being a referendum on him. I happen to think John Kerry has a lot of flussing (ph). But you clearly are talking about running against an incumbent. What was Bill Clinton? Bill Clinton was running against George Bush senior, who he unseated because of people's dissatisfaction. I don't care how good the opposition is, if people are satisfied with the incumbent, they will not vote against him.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Kerry have to do? Does he have to show himself to be tough on foreign policy, tough on security, that he can protect America's better than President Bush?
SHARPTON: He has to make Americans secure that he can do what Bush did not do. He has to show what he didn't do, and he has to make them very comfortable that I am capable, able, and competent to do what he didn't do. And I'm convinced he can do that.
COOPER: Yes, what are you going to be speaking about tomorrow night?
SHARPTON: I'm going to talk about the promise of America. I'm going to talk about why I think John Kerry, a man I've debated over 30 times, is the alternative to George Bush, and that all Americans can come together under his leadership.
COOPER: A lot of people say John Kerry is a great debater. You've gone against him. How do you think he'll stack up against President Bush?
SHARPTON: Oh, I don't think it will be a contest.
COOPER: Really? SHARPTON: I will tell you this, I tell you like I would say if we were in boxing, don't go against your popcorn. I think John Kerry will be very, very early to show who's the superior debater.
COOPER: Lot of people, though, said that about George Bush against Ann ,Richards and he, a lot of people said he did, they said he won those debates.
SHARPTON: Well, I think Bush was underestimated. I don't think John Kerry's going to underestimate him. I think John Kerry's very studious, and I think John Kerry has truth and righteousness on his side. It'll be hard for Bush to defend weapons that weren't there, and 3 million jobs that are lost. He's got a record that he's going to have to defend that in many ways are indefensible.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) righteousness on his side. Sounds like a reverend. Thanks very much, Reverend Sharpton.
SHARPTON: Get ready for tomorrow night.
COOPER: We'll be watching.
SHARPTON: Thank you.
COOPER: All right.
360 next, defining John Kerry. The American people tell pollsters they're still largely in the dark about where he stands. We just said, can he get his message across? We'll take you left and right with Paul Begala and Tucker Carlson.
Also tonight, 360 exclusive, Bono, rock star, political activist, joins us live. He's hitting Democratic and Republican conventions. Find out why this rock star is on a mission.
And a little later, Vanessa Kerry on her dad, on her stepmom, and the family's fight for the White House, live on 360.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: And you are live watching 360.
The rock superstar Bono about to join us live here in a few moments to talk about the issue he is pushing at this campaign as well as the Republican convention in just a few weeks. We'll talk to Bono live in just a few moments.
We really ought to retire the old expression about politicians putting their feet in their mouths. The stakes these days aren't so much about what's said as about what's seen. It's the photo gone wrong that really hurts. We should be talking not about foot-in-mouth but about head-in-helmet or head-in-shower-cap-looking-thing.
From CNN's Tom Foreman, here's a heaping helping of raw politics.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Democrats, the last thing they wanted, the first thing this morning was to wake up to a picture like this. NASA told him to wear the suit, but...
(on camera): What do you think of this picture of John Kerry?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's goofy. It's very, very goofy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's funny.
FOREMAN (voice-over): This is why campaigns scrutinize every public appearance. Dan Payne is a consultant who has worked with Kerry.
DAN PAYNE, DEMOCRATIC MEDIA CONSULTANT: Campaigns worry every day about what's going to be on the front page of the newspapers.
FOREMAN: He believes as long as candidates look comfortable, there is little risk. So Kerry rides motorcycles, plays hockey, makes a pitch, and even a dirtball gets good coverage.
PAYNE: Other candidates just simply can't get outside the normal business suit, and when you see them out of the normal business suit, they look weird no matter what they're doing.
FOREMAN: When Jimmy Carter was attacked in a boat by an angry aquatic rabbit, ridicule followed. When Gerald Ford, the most athletic president, stumbled, he became a klutz. And, of course, there was Michael Dukakis and the tank.
Republicans are e-mailing that picture to reporters with Kerry's picture close by.
(on camera): Why is that picture up there on the wall?
GILLESPIE: We thought it was a great picture.
FOREMAN (voice-over): The Democrats are retaliating by releasing odd pictures of George Bush, and an unflattering videotape.
(on camera): How much difference does any of this make?
PAYNE: You know, it's a story for today.
FOREMAN (voice-over): But with the voting still months away, the race is already coming down to a photo finish.
Tom Foreman, CNN, Boston.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: A lingering problem for John Kerry, a poll shows many voters still don't know what he stands for. Let's step into the "CROSSFIRE," talk about that and the photo with CNN's Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala.
Guys, thanks for being with us.
I got to start out with this photo. Paul, you worked on candidates' campaigns for a long time. Who thought of this?
PAUL BEGALA, CO-HOST, "CROSSFIRE": Somebody's got to prepare a resume, OK? I mean, I think what happened is that, you know, they took him into NASA. NASA has clean rooms where you do have to, you know, not mess up the equipment by carrying in germs or dust or whatever. The problem is, there was a photographer there.
COOPER: Yes, don't you say, OK, you're going to a clean room, you got to put on a hair net, don't have a photographer there?
BEGALA: Yes. Yes. I think it was a NASA photographer. The photos I saw in the paper had a little bitty, you know, credit line that said, NASA photographer. Well, ere's the question. Who controls NASA? You mentioned your candidate. Gee, senator, remember, NASA is controlled by the president of the United States...
(CROSSTALK)
TUCKER CARLSON, CO-HOST, "CROSSFIRE": You're totally wrong. Halliburton controls NASA, and that's what it comes down to.
BEGALA: You don't let a camera in, period. I know, I'm sure they were told, Well, it's just a NASA camera. It might have as well have been a CNN camera. I mean, it's, it's, it was a mistake.
Now, I did ask the -- just before we walked out, are some of the rapid response guys, David Ginsburg (ph) from the Kerry campaign. I said, How are you going to respond? He said, Well, we were going to release a photograph of Bush serving in the National Guard, but we couldn't find one. So he right away stuck the knife in.
COOPER: Is this, is this a whole lot of nothing, or is this actually a real issue, or just a sign that the reporters don't have anything to talk about?
CARLSON: (UNINTELLIGIBLE), well, it's a sign of all three. But it depends how they play it. I mean, the response shouldn't be, you know, Bush didn't serve in the National Guard as John Kerry was, you know, getting shot in Vietnam.
It ought to be, Yes, the candidate looks like a bit of a dork. You know, he's got a human side. Look, when you dress up like a human sperm, people are going to criticize you and mock you. That's OK. You ought to laugh and just go forward. Of course, it's not a big deal, except they make it one and they blame Halliburton for it.
(CROSSTALK)
COOPER: Let's talk about what may be a bigger issue, though. Fifty-four percent of voters say they don't know where John Kerry stands on issues. At this point in the campaign, is it a big problem?
BEGALA: If it's this point next week, yes. But that's what the convention is for. You know, a lot of people in the media whine and complain about the conventions. They're wrong. These are important moments for the candidates to introduce themselves and their agendas. Kerry has the spotlight on Thursday night. There will be no excuse for having 54 percent of Americans next Tuesday saying they don't know what he stands for.
COOPER: But having this sort of squeaky-clean convention where there's no Bush bashing, there's not a lot of talk about the war in Iraq, does that make sense, Tucker, to you?
CARLSON: Yes, it makes sense in the short term. I think the problem, I mean, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) betting they can win on the unpopularity of George W. Bush, and maybe they can, but he still needs a message. And I think he needs to articulate where we're going to go next in Iraq. The majority people in this room are against the war. The logical conclusion from that is, we ought to withdraw our troops fairly soon. Is John Kerry for that, and if not, why? I do think he needs to explain that, soon.
BEGALA: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I think that's why they dialed back on the Bush bashing, because they do know that Tucker's right, that they've got to put out their own message of what they stand for. The question is, can he do it in a short bite that people can digest the way my old boss, Bill Clinton, did here last night.
COOPER: We'll see that Thursday night.
Gentlemen, thanks very much. Tucker Carlson, Paul Begala, good to see you, as always.
BEGALA: Thank you.
COOPER: We just had Al Sharpton, often described as a rock star. We have a real rock star just up ahead. 360 next, an exclusive interview with U2's Bono, there he is live, rock (UNINTELLIGIBLE) star turned political activist, making an appearance at the two political conventions tonight.
Plus ahead, the Democratic Party's royal family, the Kennedys, their homecoming for the convention.
All that ahead. Stay with us. Bono in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: And welcome back to 360 for more coverage of the second night of the Democratic National Convention here at the FleetCenter in Boston, Massachusetts.
If last night was about the party's past, two ex-presidents, a one-time vice president who very nearly became commander in chief himself, a former first lady, tonight it's more about the Democratic president, present and about its future. Consider the names of some of the evening's featured speakers, Dean, Obama, Heinz Kerry, just to name a few. As lead singer of U2, Bono may be the biggest rock star on the planet. He's also a crusader in the war against AIDS. He has done an extraordinary amount of work on the issue. An estimated 38 million people, of course, are living with HIV. And every minute six die from the disease. Bono calls AIDS the greatest challenge facing the world, a challenge he believes is being, well, ignored, you might say, at the Democratic and Republican conventions. That is why he is vowing to appear at both, as in his a quote "nagging presence in sunglasses." True to form, Bono joins us now in sunglasses.
Thanks for being with us.
BONO: Thank you very much, I look very shady.
COOPER: Not too shady, it looks good. It's good not to be shady here. You wrote that you wince when you think you're rich Irish rock star, not even a rich American rock star. And you know that people wince when they hear some celebrities talking about issues. But even knowing that, you're still putting yourself out there, talking about HIV/AIDS in Africa, why?
BONO: Everybody has got their (UNINTELLIGIBLE). I'm just (UNINTELLIGIBLE) make it clear that at least in the half dozen Africans dying every day of a preventable, treatable disease is not a cause of an emergency. I mean, look, here we are, this incredible carnival here going on. Every constituency wants their box checked, you know, they want their issue mentioned.
But this isn't an issue, this is an emergency and it's not a constituency either because the people who are dying everyday of a preventable disease, they don't vote in America. And yet their lives will be shaped by the stuff that comes out in this convention here in Boston and the one in New York.
COOPER: What does it say about -- I mean, about us, about the media, about politicians that it takes a guy like you to pay attention when frankly, just to criticize ourselves, we wouldn't be talking about HIV AIDS in Africa if you weren't here tonight? What does that say about not only us but about politicians? You're meeting -- I mean, you're not just talking on the media about this. You're meeting behind the scenes with politicians around the world.
BONO: People are interested. This is John Kerry's town, Kerry's week here, and I have to tell you, he's been really, really good on this. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) best guy on this, and he's got brilliant people working on it. In 1999, he reached out across the aisle to (UNINTELLIGIBLE), and they brought in the first global AIDS bill. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) here. I want him to be banging on about it more than he is, yes, I do. President Bush has done some extraordinary (UNINTELLIGIBLE) in the last two years in Africa on AIDS. I want us to move faster, yes, I do, but I also have to give some credit where credit is due.
COOPER: Well, it seems like your -- in your commentaries -- and you wrote an op-ed, it was very well written, you're very non- partisan. I mean, you're not -- you're not throwing stones here at one party or the other. Why? I mean, some people say, well, that might be more effective.
BONO: No, it's not more effective. The people that I represent -- look, I'm an Irish rock star (ph), gagging me is quite hard. You know, keeping my mouth shut is quite hard. But I do so because I'm working for people whose voices aren't heard here and whose face you don't see. And you were talking about Malawi before we came on. You've been there. I've seen people (UNINTELLIGIBLE) die three in a bed there, two on top, one underneath. These are the people I work for.
And we need Congress to pass these bills. And you know, Senator Kerry (UNINTELLIGIBLE) $30 billion pledge on AIDS. That's fantastic, but the real boss in America is Congress. So we have to get Congress going. And we are going to use both sides of Congress. That's why I have to work both sides of the aisle, and the smart people, including John Kerry and -- know why I'm not going to be out carrying one of his placards.
COOPER: Do you think people care about this issue? I mean, you've been out, you spent a lot of time in Africa, I've been to those hospitals in Malawi where people are dying on plastic sheeting without even bed sheets, and the things you see are -- are indescribable. Is it that people don't know about it, or they don't care?
BONO: No, people -- if people know, as Harry Truman said, give America the facts -- give Americans the facts, and they'll do the right thing. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) do the right thing. What we (ph) have got to do is dramatize it better. This is not a burden. This is an extraordinary opportunity for America and Europe to redescribe ourselves in very dangerous times, very nervous times, with -- to the people in the south (ph), the people who live on less than $1 a day, below the equator. Those other two-thirds, you know, the third of the entire planet lives on less than $1 a day.
Give a chance to redescribe ourselves to them, by responding to the AIDS emergency and to the extreme poverty that it breeds. These AIDS drugs are great advertisements for us. I told President Bush, paint them red, white and blue. I told John Kerry, paint them red, white and blue. They're the best advertisements for America right now you're going to get, because where they go, it is going to change lives, transform communities.
COOPER: I'm a little skeptical always of celebrities talking about issues, but your work is really extraordinary. You're really walking the walk. And I appreciate you joining us.
BONO: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
COOPER: I appreciate that. Thank you very much. Bono.
All right. Well the big headliner tonight, Teresa Heinz Kerry. 360 next, a look at the candidate's wife, a prospective first lady, typically unspoken, unlike most wives on the stump. We'll talk to her stepdaughter Vanessa Kerry.
Plus, campaigning for her dad -- all about Vanessa Kerry, politics and family life. And Kerry and the Kennedys, powerful -- so there's Vanessa Kerry right there -- powerful support for the race in the White House. We'll talk about the patriarch of the Kennedy dynasty. All ahead - 360( is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Democratic Party insiders are weighing in on the convention tonight. John Kerry's political soul mates, a "National Journal" poll has found most insiders believe Kerry has more in common with Bill Clinton who got 20 votes, in a distant second, Al Gore with nine votes, Ted Kennedy followed with five votes, and there were four votes for none of the above. That's "National Journal" insider's poll.
That brings us to today's "Buzz". What do you think? Whom does John Kerry share the most in common with politically? Bill Clinton? Al Gore? Ted Kennedy or none of the above? Log on to cnn.com/360, cast your vote. We'll have results at the end of the program tonight.
In about three hours, John Kerry's wife Teresa will get to speak her mind in a speech as the delegates gather tonight inside the FleetCenter. She's already created a convention buzz after speaking out Sunday night at a gathering telling a Pittsburgh reporter to shove it. She says she has no regrets, her style, blunt, outspoken, perhaps might say not your typical political wife.
Here's CNN's Judy Woodruff.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TERESA HEINZ KERRY, SEN. KERRY'S WIFE: I speak from my heart, from my head and from my soul.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): And you never know what's going on come out. Her husband's aides can gnaw their nails but Teresa Heinz Kerry won't be reigned in.
HEINZ KERRY: I'm modern. I'm old-fashioned but I'm modern. I mean I don't have to wear stockings when it's hot.
WOODRUFF: Like another outspoken political wife...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh thank you all very much.
WOODRUFF: ... she gushes over her man on the stump.
HEINZ KERRY: Bighearted, generous, can-do, optimistic, wanting to share.
WOODRUFF: But unlike Hillary Clinton, she would not try to tackle policy in a Kerry administration. She says she'll have plenty on her plate without it.
Like doling out the ketchup money, since inheriting a philanthropic empire after the death of her first husband, the late Senator John Heinz.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think my wife speaks her mind appropriately.
WOODRUFF: John Kerry says his wife won't be restrained and many find her candor refreshing. Among her fans...
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: ... and she's very open and she's independent and she says what she thinks.
WOODRUFF: But to some Kerry supporters, Teresa is a distraction. Her Botox praising, cheating man-naming comments more damaging than endearing. They want to hear a little less from her.
HEINZ KERRY: Thank you, my husband, for coming.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Coming up next on 360, a family reunion for the Kennedys and we're going to talk live to Vanessa Kerry in just a moment here on 360(. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Yes. Joining me now to talk more about Teresa Heinz Kerry and of course her dad's campaign, her stepdaughter Vanessa Kerry. Thanks very much for being with us. Good to see you again.
VANESSA KERRY, SEN. KERRY'S DAUGHTER: It's a pleasure to be here. Thank you.
COOPER: What do you think your step mom is going to talk about? What are we going to hear from her tonight?
V. KERRY: You're going to hear a lot of things. You're going to hear I think sort of the common vision that she and my father share and why they were together. You're going to hear about my father from her perspective and you're going to hear about why this election matters.
COOPER: There are a lot of reporters who say they love talking to your step mom because they really never know what she's going to say and that she really speaks her mind, which they say a lot of potential first ladies don't do. Has there ever been a time personally when she has never spoken her mind to you that you kind of wish she hadn't?
V. KERRY: No actually. Teresa has always been a very wonderful listener and she's given me great advice through the years. I have been so grateful for her for her thoughts and frankly for her honesty.
COOPER: Do you think she gets a bad rap from some reporters? I mean this focus on this thing that happened Sunday night her telling somebody to shove it, do you think is that just reporters with nothing else to report?
V. KERRY: I think yes actually. I'm a little frustrated and saddened that we are trying to make this the controversy. We have much bigger issues we need to be talking about. We need to be talking about what's happening in our economy and the jobs that have been lost. We need to be talking about health care for all Americans. We need to be talking about investing in education and our kids, talking about making this country safer and more respected in the world and that's what this convention is about. It's a celebration of American values. Talking about making us stronger at home, safer you know in the world and more respected and that's what we need to be focusing on.
COOPER: There's a "Washington Post"/ABC News poll out that says 54 percent of Americans say they don't really know where your dad stands on the issues. How big of a concern is that to you personally at this point?
V. KERRY: None. Welcome to the convention...
COOPER: That's what this is all about...
V. KERRY: This is our introduction. You know this race is young and people have busy lives and people have a lot of things that they're focusing on...
COOPER: But a lot of...
(CROSSTALK)
COOPER: Tens of millions of dollars have been spent, I mean more money than ever in a presidential history and at this point 54 percent are saying they're kind of still not sure.
V. KERRY: I completely disagree, I'm sorry. I really think...
(CROSSTALK)
V. KERRY: You know I think we're at beginning and that's what this convention is about. It's a real introduction. And as life settles down and we get past Labor Day, people are going to paying -- I think you know people are going to have more time to be able to focus. It's the summer still...
COOPER: It's just begun...
V. KERRY: ... but I think this is just the beginning and I think people are going to love what they see.
COOPER: At end of the week, what do you want -- I mean Paul Begala keeps saying at the end of week Democrats have a to have a one or two sentence description of who your dad is and what he's about. What do you want that one or two sentence description to be?
V. KERRY: I have to be fair. I think we've got to be careful that we don't nip everything down to one or two sentences and... COOPER: ... sound bites.
V. KERRY: I think sound bites have gone down from -- up to 30 seconds down to 15 in the last few years, so that matters to me.
COOPER: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
V. KERRY: But...
COOPER: Not at cable news...
V. KERRY: ... I think the one or two sentences...
(CROSSTALK)
V. KERRY: ... are that the man has enormous integrity, that he is extremely passionate. He is responsible and that he is a very decisive and strong leader who will make this country better and really, I think, speak to an optimism that will help the country rise to new heights.
COOPER: Would it would surprise you -- you've been on this campaign trail for a long time and you've been in the trenches. What has surprised you most that you've learned that you maybe didn't anticipate?
V. KERRY: One thing that I've been -- you know, one thing I think I've learned is the amazing -- it's more that I've seen things about my father get reinforced. I mean I was never involved in politics. I saw my dad and had quiet conversations and I had a chance to, you know, have 11:00 p.m. phone conversations with him and really talk about what he's thinking and feeling and I've gotten to see in his core how much he cares about what's happening and how much he wants to see every American have opportunity. And I want to see, you know I think that for me, I see him take that to a bigger level and it just -- it's been a reaffirmation and I think this country is beginning to see that. They're learning about him and they're going to see it a lot more.
COOPER: We've now seen Jen and Barbara Bush going on the campaign trail. You said you've been on the campaign trail - (UNINTELLIGIBLE) you've been on the campaign trail. What do you think you bring to the campaign trail? What would the Kerry campaign not have if they didn't have you?
V. KERRY: I would not put words in the mouth of the Kerry campaign...
COOPER: ... what do you bring to the table?
V. KERRY: We just love to spend time together. We get the laughs. We get to have a good time. But I think we get to be another set of eyes and ears. We have a chance to move in a way that my dad maybe can't. We get to talk to a lot of extra people and then we all gather together, we sit around a table, and we share what we've seen and heard and I think that's important. COOPER: Vanessa Kerry, it's always great talk to you. Thanks for being with us. Have a great time this week.
V. KERRY: Thank you.
COOPER: All right. Well time now for "The Buzz". Earlier we asked you whom does John Kerry share the most in common with politically? Bill Clinton? Al Gore? Ted Kennedy or none of the above?
More than 56,000 of you have voted. The majority say Ted Kennedy, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) 35 percent of the vote, while 28 percent say none of the above. Certainly not a scientific poll, but it is your "Buzz" and we appreciate you voting.
And finally tonight, taking sponsorship to "The Nth Degree". Corporate underwriting is so common now that we really don't notice it anymore, just take a look. This place will replace the old Boston Garden ought to be called the new Boston Garden. It isn't, though. It's called a FleetCenter instead because Fleet made a bundle for what are called naming rights. And why not?
Lance Armstrong has got a sponsor, a sponsor to pay for most of the television we watch. New York City is now talking about auctioning off naming rights to famous subway stops. It's the American way, so why not political parties? No question they can use the money. The fundraisers would haven't to turn our voters upside down every year to shake loose the pocket change and we should get used to it.
Suppose the people you're looking at right now were members of say the Nike Democratic Party or Snapple or Xerox or Home Depot Democrats. Suppose in August in New York there's a gathering not just for the plain old GOP, but of the GlaxoSmithKline GOP or the MRP, the Microsoft Republican Party. Viagra sponsors NASCAR races, why not Floridacrats (ph) and (UNINTELLIGIBLE). You never know.
360( next, Edward Kennedy, Howard Dean, Richard Gephardt, Ron Reagan and Teresa Heinz Kerry step up to the podium. Special coverage of the Democratic National Convention back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Thanks for joining us on our special campaign coverage on 360(. CNN's live coverage continues right now, however, with Wolf Blitzer, Judy Woodruff and Jeff Greenfield standing by to take you through the next hours -- Wolf.
WOLF BLITZER, CO-HOST: Thanks very much, Anderson. We'll see you back here tomorrow. Lots happening here at the Democratic National Convention at the FleetCenter in Boston. This is what we're standing by for tonight. The agenda full with Ted Kennedy, a major speech from him, that's coming up shortly.
It will be followed by Howard Dean. He's going to be speaking, the former Democratic presidential candidate and then the keynote address, a young star in the Democratic Party Barack Obama, he's running for the Senate from Illinois. Ron Reagan will be speak during the 10:00 hour, speaking about stem-cell research and then the wife of John Kerry, Teresa Heinz Kerry. She'll be speaking during that hour as well, and we'll have musical performances here at the FleetCenter. A lot happening -- this night only just beginning.
ANNOUNCER: "America Votes 2004". This is CNN's live coverage of the Democratic National Convention.
BLITZER: Thanks very much for joining us. Day two of the Democratic National Convention. There will be four days all altogether.
Hello, I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting with my colleagues Judy Woodruff and Jeff Greenfield. We're standing by for the National Anthem, but then Ted Kennedy, the senior senator from Massachusetts will be speaking, a favorite among these Democrats.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CO-HOST: He is, Ted Kennedy beloved among these Democrats. He's known as Mr. Liberal by the Republicans, but he is John Kerry's senior senator from the state of Massachusetts. Wolf, what we're going to see tonight is Democrats trying to paint a fuller picture of who John Kerry is, what he stands for, what the issues are that are important to him and to this Democratic Party.
JEFF GREENFIELD, CO-HOST: Wolf, I think we can say like the strip in the old motel, that this convention has been sanitized for their protection -- the protection of the Democrats. Ted Kennedy famous with delivering red meat speeches at past convention, an interesting question, will he be delivering red meat or tofu - Wolf.
BLITZER: But whenever he speaks here he's always well received.
GREENFIELD: The crowd loves him. Howard Dean, the man (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Democrats also speaking. Red meat or tofu? That's what I'm looking for Wolf.
BLITZER: All right. The first item, though, on the agenda is the National Anthem. In fact, the National Anthem going to be coming now from Arizona. We're going to stand up for the National Anthem, as everyone else is standing up here. National Anthem will be sung by Michael Enis (ph) and Alisha Childs (ph), Native Americans from Arizona.
(MUSIC)
(APPLAUSE)
BLITZER: Just want to be precise, Michael Enis (ph) and Alisha Childs (ph) from the traditional Tohono Indian Nation in Arizona, singing in the traditional language of this Native American group.
Jeff Greenfield, how many times have you heard the National Anthem sung and I hope I'm pronouncing it right, Tohono O'odham.
GREENFIELD: Actually, possibly in 1968 at a Navajo reservation, but that's the only time I can think of. You can see already what the Democratic Party is doing. The coat of many colors all united behind the theme of patriotism. And if I can make one more point, the stretch of this convention is amazing. You realize when Ted Kennedy entered the Senate, tonight's keynote speaker Barack Obama was 15 months old. There's a range from past and present and they hope the future (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
BLITZER: Teddy Kennedy, we're getting ready for this senator to speak. The Kennedy legacy very, very felt especially here in Boston.
WOODRUFF: There's no legacy in this country really, Wolf, unless maybe it's the Bush family legacy, like the Kennedy legacy. A former president shot down, lost his life at the very height of his career. A brother, Bobby Kennedy, assassinated five years later. Teddy Kennedy went on to carry the torch, but what Teddy Kennedy has really become is one of the most -- one of the senators in this country most celebrated for being able to get work done in the United States.
BLITZER: How important was Senator Kennedy, Jeff, in getting the nomination for John Kerry?
GREENFIELD: Critical. He gave John Kerry at a critical point in his campaign his chief of staff, Mary Beth Cahill, his campaign manager who turned the campaign around. In Iowa where Democrats are very liberal, Ted Kennedy worked tirelessly on his behalf. And what's interesting about that is they were periods in the past when JFK, John Forbes Kerry and EMK, Ted Kennedy, were not the best of colleagues.
Those bumps cleared up about 10 years ago and I think without Ted Kennedy, John Kerry wouldn't be here tonight and remember, also if we're talking about legacy, the first convention Ted Kennedy addressed that I remember was 1968 paying tribute to his fallen brother. The other side of that legacy we also know is 35 years almost to the day that Ted Kennedy had to go on TV and explain (UNINTELLIGIBLE) to the people of Massachusetts, which probably kept him from the White House.
BLITZER: All right, let's go to the Massachusetts delegation and our correspondent John King is there. You've spent a lot of time covering Senator Kennedy. This is going to be an important speech for him John.
JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An important speech for Senator Kennedy, Wolf, an important night for the Massachusetts delegation. They get to double dip, if you will. Tonight they hear from their senior senator as they prepare to nominate their senator for president.
As Jeff just noted, Senator Kennedy, once a candidate for president, one has aspirations for the White House, now a critical advisor, if you will, to the Kerry campaign, Senator Kennedy, because he will play any role as possible in the fall campaign. Remember, months ago he angered many Democrats, worked with President Bush on education, worked for a while with President Bush on Medicare.
Some of his fellow liberals did not like that. Senator Kennedy has no apologies, but he does say he has a sour taste, if you will, for that experience. He says he will now work vigorously to defeat President Bush. And we should also note, Senator Kennedy, of course, one of the prominent liberals, perhaps the premiere liberal now in the party, rivaled maybe by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton right now.
It was 24 years ago he gave his own famous speech to the Democratic National Convention in which he said his hopes for the presidencies that passed, he had failed to rustle the nomination from President Carter in 1980. The dream will never die was the ending line, the closing line of Senator Kennedy's speech back then 24 years ago. So the Massachusetts delegation will be (UNINTELLIGIBLE) tonight and again, look for Senator Kennedy to play a very prominent role in the fall campaign and look for the Bush campaign to try to make (UNINTELLIGIBLE) as well.
The joke in the Bush campaign is that Senator Kennedy is the conservative senator from Massachusetts and that John Kerry is even more liberal - Wolf.
BLITZER: And Judy, there is some truth to that. Take a look at the "National Journal". In their rankings they do have Senator Kerry more liberal than Senator Kennedy.
WOODRUFF: That's right. They have not always agreed. In fact, Wolf, most famously they disagreed over the war in Iraq. John Kerry voted with George W. Bush to authorize the use of force in Iraq. Senator Ted Kennedy argued vigorously against it. In fact, he disagreed with his own son, the congressman from the state of Rhode Island. But John Kerry and Ted Kennedy over the years have pretty much agreed on the larger issues of the day.
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