Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Ballot Bowl
Aired January 26, 2008 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon and welcome to another round of CNN's BALLOT BOWL. I'm Candy Crowley reporting to you live from Columbia, South Carolina. This is your chance to hear these candidates, Republicans and Democrats, live and unfiltered, portions of their speeches. This is South Carolina, of course the center of the Democrat's political universe any way at least for this day. 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. that's how long South Carolinian voters have to go to those polls. We'll have a lot more of course about South Carolina. But right now, I want to go to my colleague Dana Bash who is in Miami, Florida knee deep in Republicans. Dana?
DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi Candy, we sure are. We are just three days away from the Republican primary here in the state of Florida that is going to give whoever wins 57 delegates. That is a huge, huge prize in this Republican race, where there really is no clear front-runner. And that has been one of the most exciting things about this Republican race to watch. Now in this state of Florida, the Republican candidates had been cris-crossing. They had been campaigning nonstop in what is really a diverse state, when you are talking about the Republican electorate. You have veterans. You have some Christian conservatives. You have a lot of snow birds from the north. So all of the candidates, whether it's John McCain, Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani, Mike Huckabee are trying to appeal to all of those particular Republican voters in order to win this prize of Florida. Now we are expecting a lot of interesting discussion and to hear from the Republican candidates on the stump in their own words throughout these couple of hours that we're bringing you this BALLOT BOWL. The game plan for the next hour, we'll tell you what we're going to see, we're going to see Mitt Romney who is preparing to speak in Lakeland, Florida. That is going to come up momentarily. Later this hour, we are also going to hear from John McCain. He is going to be in Sun City, Florida. That is going to be about three quarters of the way through the hour. We are hoping to bring you both of those candidates live. Both of those candidates, John McCain and Mitt Romney have been in an intense back and forth, particularly over the past 24 hours over which is going to be the best to lead the Republican Party and which is going to be the best to run against the Democrat in the general election. Those two men are vying for the top spot here. And we want to bring you, while we wait for Mitt Romney who is going to speak live momentarily, we want to bring you what he talked about to the voters earlier today in Lutz, Florida. He has of course been pushing this idea that he is the best person because of his experience in the private sector, because of his experience as Massachusetts governor. He is the best person to help turn around the economy. Let's listen to him earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) MITT ROMNEY, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am honored to be here and to have a chance to talk to you about something you care about very deeply and that's about what's happening in your economy and in our economy. Everybody is concerned right now, whether their savings plan is strong, their 401k is going to be good for retirees. People want to make sure that jobs are in place in this country and in Florida in particular. And right now, it's time for us to make sure that we keep our economy strong. Now I spent my life in the real economy. I know what it's like to have a job and I think it's helpful to have a president who knows what it's like to work in the real economy. I have commented that you have three people on the Democratic side, not to mention the two on our side, who are looking to run the largest enterprise in the world, the government of the United States, with trillions of dollars of revenue, millions of employees. They also want to help get the economy strong. And yet, they've never had a single day of working in the private economy. It helps to understand why jobs come and go, and I'll use that experience to grow our economy.
Over the last year, I have had the chance to go to a lot of states and to meet with a lot of people. And as I do that, I have a lot of town meetings where people get to ask me questions. And I began writing down the questions that are most frequently asked. And what surprised me was the things people are concerned about were the same things we were concerned about a couple of decades ago. And I realized that Washington is fundamentally broken. I bet it says that around here somewhere. If not, it should. Washington is broken. Washington promised a long time ago that they'd make sure social security was stable. But they haven't gotten that job done. They promised us that they'd rein in federal spending, but they haven't. They told us that they would live by high ethical standards, and they haven't. They told us that they would get us off of our dependence on foreign oil, but they haven't. They told us they'd get health care for us that's affordable but they haven't. They told us they'd solve the problem of illegal immigration, but they haven't. Wow, there it comes. Now together we can build a Washington, maybe not all collectively, but you can help me build a Washington and we can build together and we could finally get Washington to do the job that needs to be done. We need to get Washington to solve those problems that take advantage of our opportunities. And right now, one of those challenges is our fragile economy. And I put a plan out that will help our economy get going. One is to put more money in people's hands so that they buy more goods and create more jobs. That's the consumer side of things. The other is to help employers to make sure they are doing better so that they can hire more people.
One way of doing that, it sounds a little esoteric but it's this, it's to make capital expenditures deductible in the first year people buy them. Right now when you buy something, this guy's got to be the accountant. That's got to be the accountant over there. Right now if you buy something like this. Let's say you're a big airline and you buy one of these things. That's a big piece of capital. You buy it for, let's say, I don't know what they cost. Let's say a million dollars. You get to write it off on your taxes over probably 10 years or so. What I'd say is for anything bought this year and next year, you can write it off in the first year, which is a big incentive to buy one of these things. That will help move this -- yeah. And I'd also note that they have an incentive to buy capital equipment as well. That means people buying things, businesses buying from other businesses create more jobs. That will keep our economy strong in a time when it's fragile. But as you see, in order for America to remain strong, we have to have a strong economy. We all want a strong military. I want to make sure that we have more troops for our military. You see, during the Clinton years, we had this holiday from history where Clinton said that we were going to have a peace dividend. Well, we got a dividend. We did not get the peace. And he cut back our military by some 500,000 troops. And he also cut back our human intelligence capacity by 25 percent. I want to rebuild our military by at least 100,000 troops and better equipment. And better equipment and better care for our veterans when they come home. So we're going to strengthen our military. And I want to strengthen our families because there's a lot of kids here today. It's great to have a lot of kids. Strengthening families means for me making sure they have good schools to go to and that everybody has health care that's affordable and portable. Not government insurance. Not socialized medicine. Not Hillary care but free market insurance.
(END OF VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: That's Mitt Romney, the former governor from Massachusetts earlier today giving what he has been saying time and time again on the campaign trail here in Florida. His anti-Washington stump speech. And we're joined by my colleague Mary Snow who is in Sun City, Florida. She's waiting for John McCain to begin his event there later in the hour. Mary, you know what we have been seeing between Mitt Romney and John McCain over the past 24 hours or so has been quite interesting. John McCain in particular has been trying to distinguish himself saying he's a leader and Mitt Romney is a manager. Tell us about that.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Dana, certainly the language is really getting much sharper between these two rivals. And as you noted, Mitt Romney at this event earlier today trying to really hammer home the point that his private sector experience would best position him to help boost the economy. John McCain has been making the point that what is needed is leadership, not management. And kind of taking a swipe there at Mitt Romney as Mitt Romney repeatedly says that the United States does not need a Washington insider. So as we see, as we get closer to Tuesday's primary, certainly it is intensifying as we -- as this campaign heats up, and it's pretty tight.
BASH: It is. You know they're trying to distinguish themselves really with kind of different messages. But one of the things, as you know Mary, when you talk to Senator McCain's advisors, that they say he's going to try to do as he closes the deal here in Florida is try to play up his ability to be commander in chief. And he's been really, really aggressive, even starting last night and this morning against Mitt Romney on what John McCain actually thinks is an asset for him now. That is on the Iraq war. He's really been going after Mitt Romney and accusing him of being for kind of a Democratic plan on Iraq. What's going on there?
SNOW: Yeah, you know, one of John McCain's strong points, as he sees it, his military experience, the fact that he said that he questioned Donald Rumsfeld's strategy in Iraq and makes the point that he was a lone voice in supporting the surge. And he believes that now that violence in Iraq has been not escalating, that this is to his advantage. And in the last 24 hours, he has been talking about the fact that he is saying that Mitt Romney had supported withdrawing troops. And he's made this assertion a couple of times now. Mitt Romney strongly is denying that saying he never did so and he said that that is outright false statement by John McCain. And he also wanted an apology. That is just unfolding today. So that is one subject that is really intensifying as, again, as these two battle it out for Tuesday's primary.
BASH: That's right. The twin themes certainly going on right now of the economy and national security in particular, the Iraq war, which is coming back to the surface Mary. Thank you very much. We're actually going to go now to Mitt Romney. He is speaking live in Lakeland, Florida. Let's listen to him.
MITT ROMNEY, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: -- even though I spent a summer on a ranch, I'm no expert in agriculture. I like telling the story of when I first went out to the west to take the reins of the Olympic winter games. And I was in a place called Park City, Utah. And U went out walking beyond my home and there's a big agricultural area out there and I was walking along this road and I saw a lot of sheep grazing. And there was a rancher who was close to the fence and I came up to him and I said, you know what, I am feeling like I'm sort of sporty here today. If I can guess the exact number of sheep in your herd, could I have one? And he said, sure, take a guess.
I said 1,682. He said amazing. That's the exact number of sheep in my herd. So I picked up my animal and began walking away. He said wait a second, wait a second. If I can guess your name and what you're doing here in Utah, can I have my animal back. And I said, well, sure. He said you are that Romney fellow that came here from Boston to run the Olympic Games, right? I said, how did you know? He said, put down my dog, I'll tell you. So I'm no agriculture expert. But I -- but I know a great deal about enterprise, about free enterprise, about the business world. I spent my life in the free enterprise, the private sector world. I spent my life in business. And I've learned how tough it can be, how tight the margins can be, how when things are good you do just fine. How when things turn slightly bad you do very badly indeed. That's true for the entire economy frankly. Things can always be at a good even keel if they are growing 2, 3, 4 a year. It's terrific. But if they turn the other way and you shrink one or two percent a year it puts a lot of hardship on a lot of people. Folks lose their jobs, the value of their 401k or their investments that they count on for retirement can start to shrink. Life can be pretty difficult indeed. If things turn the other direction. That's why it's so important that a time like this we take action to keep from going over that tipping point. Because it will be bad across America for a lot of families, including families right here in Florida. And for that reason, I put forward an economic stimulus plan to keep us going. And to make sure that we don't go negative and we keep growing positively.
My plan has sort of equal features between short-term stimulus effects and long-term effects to keep growth going. But there's some things you'd appreciate, I'm sure. One is to make sure that, well, that we put some money back in the hands of consumers so they buy thing like Florida orange juice, right? And number two -- and other things. Yeah, and number two is to encourage businesses so they go out and hire more people and buy things and in particular capital equipment. That stimulates more jobs. And I have a special plan to help homeowners that might be fearful of losing their homes, having the FHA step in and guarantee some loans that they haven't guaranteed so far so we can keep people in their homes. I want to make sure our economy stays strong. Long-term, there are some things we have to do as well. One is making sure that we don't put bigger tax burdens on our businesses. I want to cut the tax rate almost in half on businesses and I want to cut the tax of individuals. And you see, I don't think it's fair that they tax you when you earn your money, tax you when you save your money and tax you when you die. So I want to kill the death tax once and for all. And for people getting started in life, I think my savings plan is interesting. You know, there are a number of babies in here today. There's about, a 1-month-old back there. A little boy back there, about a month old. And how old is this guy?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 7 months.
ROMNEY: Seven months here. Boy, he needs to grow some hair. He's got to hurry up, right? I've got a grandson exactly the same way. Just can't grow that hair yet. How old is that little boy?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 2 months.
ROMNEY: Two months. So now we can have a little -- that's green, when it's green, I don't.. It's a girl or a boy. It's a boy, two months. We have -- one, two, three, four boys. Is that a little boy back there or a little girl.
ROMNEY: Another boy, 7 months.
Boy, we've got a bunch of little ones here. These parents have to start thinking about college. I know it's the furthest thing from their mind right now, but they got to think about college. And my plan is pretty interesting when it comes to savings. And it's this. Of any age if you want to save money under my plan, you save your money and as long as you're not making more than $200,000 a year, that's 95 percent of us, the new tax rate on your savings, that's interest and dividends and capital gains, the new tax rate is zero. Let people save their money for whatever they'd like.
BASH: And that was Mitt Romney speaking in Lakeland, Florida, giving his pitch, particularly about the economy. The economy is the issue that Mitt Romney successfully won Michigan on. It is the issue that is now dominating, of course, in voters' minds. So it is the issue that he is talking about nonstop. There he was talking about his plan to try to stimulate the economy. That is the Republican race going on here in Florida. But while this is happening, there's actually voting going on up north in South Carolina. That's where my colleague Candy Crowley is in Columbia, South Carolina. Hey, candy. CROWLEY: Hi Dana. Thanks. All day long, yes, they are voting. A really interesting race here in South Carolina. They have been around most of them all week long. It has at times been bitter. It has always been tense. Coming up in this hour, you're going to hear from Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John Edwards, all in their own words. Raw, unedited portions of their speeches. Right now we also want to remind you that tonight, CNN will have all the election results with Wolf Blitzer and the team up in New York. So there's no reason for you not to stay tuned all day. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CROWLEY: Welcome back to CNN's Ballot Bowl. Mitt Romney right now in Lakeland, Florida, giving a speech. We continue to monitor that but right now, we want to bring you back here to South Carolina. You know, Election Day, which it is here in South Carolina, is always a little difficult for these candidates because they don't really want to give a speech, but they don't want to disappear entirely. So what do they do? Well, this morning, Barack Obama was at a local restaurant here in Columbia shaking hands, doing what most candidates do, biding their time until we see the results of those elections. What we also have is Hillary Clinton, herself visiting a Shoney's here in South Carolina. We've got some tape of that which we'll bring you shortly. Right now, we want to give you a little bit of Barack Obama. He was in Columbia last night and here's a portion of what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We were told -- we were told at the beginning of this campaign what we could not do. We were told that there was no way that we could not take PAC money and federal lobbyist money and somehow still finance this campaign. And yet, hundreds of thousands of people all across America in $25 increments and $50 increments have put the money into this campaign for us to compete from the bottom up, not the top down. We were told we couldn't build an organization of people from every walk of life, white and black and Asian and Hispanic. People from north and south and east and west, young and old. We were told that our politics was inalterably divided. And yet, look at this crowd here today. Look at the people behind me today. We are defying the conventional wisdom. We are creating a new politics in a new America. That's why I'm running for president of the United States of America.
We have been told by the cynics that you can't build change from the bottom up. But one of the things that I've learned as a community organizer is that it is the American people who are the true agents of change in this country. And that when they get ready for change, when they see that our economy is not working for ordinary people, when they see that the health care system is leaving too many people out, when they see that our education system, despite the slogans, is leaving millions of children behind, unable to compete in an international economy, then I recognize that the American people will stand up and they will say the time for change has come in South Carolina and all across America. And so now, here we are. On the brink of change. Here we are poised to make a little bit more history. Here we are at a moment where if people vote, if people vote their hearts and their dreams and their best instincts instead of their worst. If they vote with not just this generation in mind but future generations in mind, then I am absolutely convinced that we can win here in South Carolina, and we can win any place in the country.
I understand how this journey began. I understand how this journey began. A year ago, Michelle and I sat down and talked about the possibilities of me running for president. And I asked myself three things. First question was, could our family survive the rigors of a presidential campaign. And because my wife is exceptional, and because my wife is exceptional and my daughters are above average, we concluded that they would be ok. And they have been just fine. The second question was, could we win? And I have learned -- I have learned from my experiences working in Illinois as a state legislator and then as a candidate for the United States senate, that the American people are not as divided as our politics suggest. And that if we could communicate directly to people all across the country and give them some sense of a possibility, give them some sense of -- that we don't have to settle for what the cynics tell us we have to accept. That there was no reason why we could not win this election. It would be hard. We would be defying the odds, but we could do it. But the third question that I had to ask myself, and Michelle asked this repeatedly was, should we win? Should we win? Because we are in a moment today where ambition alone is not enough. It's not enough just to want to win. It's not enough for a political party and it's not enough for a candidate. The question is, should you win? Do you have some vision for the country that is desperately needed right now? And we prayed on that quite a long time. And eventually we said, you know, there is a vision that we might offer this country. And we don't know that the country will accept it, but we know that in our hearts, it's what we believe is necessary to create the kind of America that we want to raise our children in.
(END OF VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY: Barack Obama last night campaigning here in Columbia, South Carolina. As it happens, we have Suzanne Malveaux live in Columbia at Barack Obama headquarters. You know, Suzanne, listening to that speech and having him say, look, we'll win if you vote your heart and your hopes. Makes me want to ask, what do they expect here? Do they expect people will do that?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they certainly expect a large voter turnout. And that is really going to work in their favor. Look to counties like Richland, Charleston, Orangeburg. These areas where they have high African-American community turnout here. I mean, we do know that the democratic voters, 50 percent African- American. They are really counting on those communities to come out. He's done a lot of work regarding that. But he also has been working on a broad base as well. He's been working on those young voters at Clemson University, as well as Benedict College and all of these places where he's been trying to recruit new voters. He's also reaching out to independents. So they are hoping for a wide range, a broad range of support. But obviously, as well, the places where he has spent a great deal of time trying to court the African-American community, Candy. CROWLEY: Suzanne, people ask me all the time, what are the crowds like? What's the sense you get? I always hesitate to take too much from that. But when you are around with Barack Obama, are these political tourists kind of there sensing maybe history is in the making? Are they committed Obama voters? Give me a description?
MALVEAUX: Well, there's an incredible amount of enthusiasm. You know when you go to these rallies, people have the chance, fired up, ready to go. Obviously, for a lot of people, it's their first time participating in the process. I've spoken with other people as well. Elderly, African-Americans who feel that this is the realization of the civil rights movement. So there is a lot of sense of pride as well. And others, it's really a very personal decision. And there's a sense that people are torn here. Some believe they should go for Hillary Clinton because of her husband, as well as her own record when it comes to actually being involved in the civil rights movement. The kind of experience that she has in her past, as well as the fondness of her husband. And there are other people who feel like perhaps going with Barack Obama is much more an expression of the civil rights movement realized. So it's a very personal decision for a lot of people here.
CROWLEY: Suzanne Malveaux at Barack Obama headquarters here in Columbia, South Carolina. Thanks, Suzanne. You can't go away because coming up next on CNN's "Ballot Bowl," we've got Rudy Giuliani right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BASH: Welcome back to CNN's BALLOT BOWL. I'm Dana Bash in Miami, Florida where the primary here, the Republican primary is just three days away.
And one of the most fascinating stories about this Republican race here in the state of Florida has been that of Rudy Giuliani. Rudy Giuliani today has his 55th day of campaigning here in the Sunshine State. And yet, he is now vying for third place it looks like if you believe a slew of polls that have come out in the past couple of days.
Now, what Rudy Giuliani now is trying to do, even over the past few hours, is change his pitch. You heard us talking about the fact that John McCain and Mitt Romney are now talking about the fact that who is better, a leader versus a manager? Well, Rudy Giuliani earlier today in Sarasota, Florida, said if you want a leader and a manager, pick me.
Listen to him.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RUDY GIULIANI (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you very, very much. Thank you for that very kind introduction.
We can -- we can win it. And when I listen to what Mitt and John are debating about, it seems to me I'm the clear answer. John is questioning whether Mitt Romney is anything more than a manager, not a leader, saying that he doesn't have experience in national security, foreign policy. Mitt is questioning whether John has enough experience with the economy.
Simple reality is, I don't want to get into their fight, but the simple reality is I have experience in both areas. I was a mayor of a city that's the 17th largest economy in the world. It was in very bad shape when I took over and I turned it around, I helped turn it around and left behind an economy that -- where unemployment was cut in half, jobs increased by 450,000. Just a totally different economy, with using growth principles, the kind of grwoth principles that have to be used right now to turn around the American economy. Lower taxes, restrain on spending.
And also, I've had the safety and security of millions of people on my shoulders for quite some time. I have a lot of experience in that, both as a mayor and as the United States attorney. So, I would say to the people of Florida, you can get both in one candidate, and a candidate who really understands Florida from having spent so much time here.
One of the benefits of having spent so much time here is to listen to the people of Florida. Listen to their need for lower taxes, to help to inspire our tax reduction program, which would be the largest in American history. Being here in Florida is the reason I understand the need for a national catastrophic fund because people are having difficulties getting insurance for the homes they are presently living in and thousands and thousands of them are.
And there is a way to do it, so that they can get insurance, you can utilize the private market. There's federal money is going to come in if there's a catastrophe anyway. So, if there's a federal backstop in advance, there will be more insurance money to also come in. So, I see this as both a humane solution and a fiscally conservative solution.
Some of the other candidates, I think maybe not being here as often as I have, I don't think understand the issue as well as I do. I think if they did, they'd actually come around to my position.
QUESTION: You mention that if you get the Floridian vote on the 29th, that will give you the ability to go on and campaign in the rest of the country. What if you don't get the vote? Would you stay in the campaign?
GIULIANI: We're committed to this campaign. We're committed to winning. That's our objective. We can win in Florida. I'm not entertaining any other thought other than winning in Florida. It makes no sense to deal with hypotheticals and not winning. We've worked very hard to win in Florida and we expect to win in Florida.
QUESTION: Mr. Mayor, Senator Martinez ...
QUESTION: ...to name John McCain and Mitt Romney. Tonight, you definitely did. Why discuss them by name? Why contrast them by name tonight? GIULIANI: Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't. Some days I have used their names, some days I haven't. In this particular case, it would have been very hard to not use their names where I was trying to point out that one was pointing out a deficiency in the other. I would have had to say Mr. X said about Mr. Y. Mr. Y said about Mr. X and I would have gotten confused. So, it seemed easier to use their names.
I'm not buying into their criticisms of each other. I'm saying this is what they're saying about each other. In both of those areas, I have strengths. It seems to me, I'm the perfect candidate for Florida.
QUESTION: Why not be more direct?
QUESTION: You talked last night about how you can win all 50 states. Was the (INAUDIBLE) charges (ph) really go for Florida that much?
GIULIANI: I'm sorry.
QUESTION: You said tonight that you were the only one who can really win all 50 states among the ...
GIULIANI: I said I can be competitive in all 50 states. I don't believe I can win -- I don't believe anybody can win all 50 states.
QUESTION: But do you think it was right to really -- you put all your eggs in one basket, you're going for Florida.
GIULIANI: Oh, in Florida? Well, this is the strategy that would work for us. I mean, if you go back and analyze strengths, weaknesses, primaries, other primaries, this is the primary where we would have the best chance to lay out our ideas, get the best test of our ideas. I'm not uncomfortable with that at all.
And about as direct as I can be. I pointed out the criticism that one made of the other, and the criticism the other one made. What I tried to point out is in those two areas where they find deficiencies with each other, I have strength in both of those areas. I think that's about as direct you can be.
QUESTION: Are you saying that Romney and John McCain cannot compete as well as you can in all 50 states? Are you saying that they have weaknesses that you can make up for in the 50 states and that's the reason you should be the nominee?
GIULIANI: Well, you're on a different point then you're on (ph). What I was talking about was being able to handle both the economy and national security and safety. And it seems to me, I have had results and I've been tested and proven in both of those areas.
As far as running in all 50 states, it would be my objective to run in all 50 states. My party in the past, the last two, three, four elections, has basically run in roughly half the states, and I believe that that's one of the reasons why we're having some of the difficulties we have with House seats and Senate seats. It would be my objective to run in all 50 states, to be competitive in all 50 states. I did not say I would win all 50 states.
QUESTION: Why such an objective (ph) in the general election even though in the primaries, you've skipped the first four states?
GIULIANI: Well, some of those states where we did not compete as heavily in the primaries are states where I think I would do rather well in a general election. It has to do with a whole group of how people assess different views, where you have different constituencies. And it's very complicated, but in some of those states, I would probably be a pretty strong general election candidate, maybe not as strong of a primary candidate.
QUESTION: With all the effort that you did put into Florida, are you satisfied with the results?
GIULIANI: We haven't had a result yet. I'll tell you on Tuesday.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: There, you heard former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani defending and explaining his unorthodox strategy to try to get the Republican nomination, and that has been to not compete heavily in the early contest states of Iowa, New Hampshire, at least withdraw from those states after he did spend some time and money in those states. But really focus on this state where I am, the Sunshine State of Florida.
It is something that has become even more controversial because of the fact that despite spending a lot of time here, having the stage to himself, he has plummeted in the polls recently. He is actually doing worse, not better with Florida voters. So, there you see him try to rearrange his pitch a bit, try to say that he is a better fit for Florida than the frontrunners here. And they are John McCain and Mitt Romney. And that is Rudy Giuliani from earlier today.
We're actually going to have a live event from Rudy Giuliani later an this afternoon, about 4:00. He will be speaking live from Orlando. We're also waiting for John McCain. He is going to be speaking in just a few minutes from Sun City, Florida.
What you're watching is "BALLOT BOWL," CNN's way to try to get you these candidates unfiltered and raw. We're going to have a lot more of that ahead. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CROWLEY: We are continuing with CNN's BALLOT BOWL. What we have here in Columbia, South Carolina, is voting going on in a very exciting race. Up next, we're going to have Hillary Rodham Clinton in a speech she recently gave in Charleston, South Carolina. Don't go away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CROWLEY: Welcome back to CNN's BALLOT BOWL, a kind of two-state affair here this afternoon. We have the Republicans running around this weekend in Florida awaiting their Tuesday primary there, a very important one for all of them. And here in Columbia, South Carolina, and throughout this state, the voters are voting. A Democratic primary, their first test of the south.
We're waiting right now for John McCain to show up in Sun City. We will, of course, as we bring you live and taped unfiltered speeches, at least portions of them, from these candidates. So, we are watching for John McCain.
Right now here in Charleston, all these Democrats are waiting for those results to begin coming in, which of course, won't be until 7:00 this evening when those polls close. They are all still in the state at this point, reluctant to give speeches. It doesn't mean that they aren't visible.
Hillary Rodham Clinton out this morning. As usual, she is at a restaurant as most of these candidates do. They also go to polling places. She was at a Shoney's this morning here in Columbia.
What we want to do right now, though is take you back to last night down in Charleston where Hillary Clinton did give a speech.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When I was elected to the Senate, people said, well, she'll never work with Republicans and Republicans will never work with her. But of course, they didn't know me, did they? Because I believe that public service and public office is a trust. And you are supposed to get up every day, not thinking about yourself, but thinking about the people you serve, the people who gave you the chance and the honor to do so.
So, I began to work immediately to cross party lines, to find common ground wherever I could. Now I did think, however, that I had gotten over being outraged about anything the Bush administration did. You know, when they first began back in 2001, I don't know about you, but I used to yell at my TV screen. And I figured, well, that's silly. I'm in the United States Senate. I shouldn't be doing that.
So, I kind of gradually just got over it. It was sort of hard to believe a lot that happened. You know, when the vice president shot that guy in the face, I thought, who could write this? But then, a few months ago, it happened to me again. I read that the Pentagon was trying to take back the signing bonuses that wounded soldiers had received when they signed up. You see, with our all-volunteer military, we have to recruit young people. And it's challenging these days with everything going on in Iraq.
And so, people were given signing bonuses. And then they went off to Iraq or Afghanistan or somewhere else and in the line of duty were injured and wounded. And there they were in the hospital bed. And somebody from the Pentagon shows up and said, you know, we gave you that signing bonus, but you can't fulfill your contract. I mean, that is so contrary to our values as Americans.
So I teamed up with another Republican senator, this time from Alabama, and we passed a law through the Senate which is on its way to being signed by the president to prohibit the Pentagon from violating our fundamental values as Americans and doing anything like that to our young men and women in uniform.
(APPLAUSE)
CLINTON: But just like you've got to know how to find common ground, you have to know how to stand your ground because there are a lot of bad ideas floating around. Like I think privatizing Social Security is one of the worst ideas that's come down the pike in a really long time.
Can you imagine if your Social Security had been invested in the stock market in the last week? The hospitals in Charleston would have been filled with people with heart palpitations. You know, we need to have retirement security on top of Social Security, not instead of Social Security.
So, we've got to know which to do. Stand our ground and find common ground. That's what I will do if I'm given the chance to serve as your president because I know we can meet the goals that we set together. I believe we can roll up our sleeves and face the future with confidence and optimism.
But I can't do this without your help. I'm asking for your support tomorrow in this primary to give me a chance.
(APPLAUSE)
CLINTON: To give me a chance to go to work for you. You know, when I got to the Senate, there were people who said, well, wonder what kind of Senator she'll be because in the Senate, they like to say there are two kinds of senators: the show horses and the work horses. I said, well, count me in the latter category because I want to get things done. I'm not interested in publicity and more, you know, TV cameras. I want to produce results. And that's what I want to do as president.
I think we need a problem solver again. I think we need somebody who understands the way to make Washington work for us, how to fight against the special interests, the vested interest, the people who are always blocking the way. You know, they're the ones who say, we can't do anything. And I don't know when America became a can't do country. That's not the country that I know and love.
So,if you will help me tomorrow, I promise you, I will get up every day in the White House and go to work for you. I will do everything I can for you and your family, your jobs, your health care, your future. Let's make it clear that America is back. Let's have pride and progress in our country again. Please, help me make history! Thank you and God bless you!
(END VIDEOTAPE) CROWLEY: Hillary Clinton making her final argument down south last night in Charleston, South Carolina. She, of course, has been criticized by a lot of Democrats as being too partisan. Making the case here, she says that she can find common ground as well as stand her ground.
We want to bring in Jessica Yellin now who's at a polling place here in Columbia, South Carolina. So as long as you're there, Jessica, tell us what it's been like. Lots of people, few people?
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You know Candy, they're predicting record high turnout nationwide, but we have not seen it here. I'm at a polling place in Columbia, South Carolina. And it should be an area where you'd expect to see significant turnout. So far, it's been more of a trickle. But I have no idea if that's just one exception or representative of what's really happening statewide.
CROWLEY: You know Jessica, I know you have been out with John Edwards recently. Wondering about the mood of that campaign and also the strategy of that campaign. He has yet to win any of the contents we've had so far. Are they moving on or are they staking a lot here?
YELLIN: Well you know, you hear them say consistently that they are not dropping out, that they're pushing through all the way. I even had a conversation with Joe Trippi, one of his top advisers who said he sees a scenario in which if Clinton and Obama divide the vote very closely heading up to the convention, that Edwards could even come out of the convention the nominee if it's a completely contested affair. That he does not even need to win a state necessarily to become the victor in the end.
So, you know, it's maybe wishful thinking on their part, but they definitely have the -- more of an energy and an enthusiasm around them right now than I've seen in recent times. And certainly, they're very hopeful. This is his home state. And you know, he was born here at least. Won here four years ago, and they are hoping at least for a very strong second place finish tonight, Candy.
CROWLEY: Thanks, Jessica. Jessica Yellin at a polling place here in Columbia, South Carolina.
As South Carolinians vote in the Democratic primary, they have until 7:00 tonight. As we said, the BALLOT BOWL today is a two-state affair. And after the break, we're going to go back to Sun City where we expect to hear from John McCain. Be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BASH: Welcome back to CNN's BALLOT BOWL. I'm Dana Bash in Miami, Florida where we are waiting for John McCain to start speaking in Sun City, Florida. That is going to happen in just a few moments. And when that happens, we'll bring it to you live. Don't go away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxantshop.com
