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Bob Dole Lies in State at U.S. Capitol Rotunda; Jobless Claims Hit a New 52-Year Low. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired December 09, 2021 - 10:30   ET

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

[10:30:05]

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: In a sense, Bob belongs here. He too was a giant of our history, and that's not hyperbole. It's real. Of wit and grace, of principle and persistence, of courage and conviction, I had the great honor of serving with Bob as many of you around this casket have. I served with him for 25 years. He did have great wit. They once asked him why in God's name did he vote to continue to fund Amtrak. He said Because if he didn't, Biden would stay overnight and cause more trouble. I commuted every day. It's a true story. He was the deciding vote.

Well, you know, Bob and I, like many of us here, we disagreed on a number of things but not on any of the fundamental things. We still found a way to work together. We genuinely respected one another as colleagues and as fellow Americans. It was real. It wasn't fake. And we became great friends because Bob deserves a final word, I'd like to read a portion of his final message that he left to the country that I hope we all listen to in the days and weeks and months to come. And I quote Bob Dole.

I cannot pretend that I have not been a loyal champion of my party but have always served my country best when I did it so first and foremost as an American where we prioritized principles over party, humanity over personal legacy. We do that, we accomplish far more as a nation. By leading with shared faith in each other, we become America at its best.

He went on to say, a beacon of hope, a source of comfort and crisis, a shield against those who threaten freedom, our nation has certainly faced periods of division. But at the end of the day, we've always found ways to come together. We can find that unity again. And the message said, end of message.

My fellow Americans, America has lost one of our greatest patriots. We may follow his wisdom, I hope, and his time of truth. But the truth of the matter is, as divided as we are, the only way forward for democracy is unity, consensus, the only way. May we follow his wisdom and his timeless truth and reach consensus on the basic fundamental principles we all agree on.

May God bless Bob Dole, may god bless America and may God protect our troops. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ladies and gentlemen, Staff Sergeant Ethan Greene, U.S. Army Chorus, accompanied by Mrs. Joanna Zoral (ph) Greene.

[10:35:00]

[10:40:00]

Ladies and gentlemen, please rise for the benediction delivered by Senate Chaplain Barry C. Black.

BARRY BLACK, SENAT CHAPLAIN: Let us pray. Great is your faithfulness, o God, our Father. So help us to see death as you see it, not at the end but the beginning, not a wall but a doorway, not a dark road but a path that leads to eternal light and life. Lord, we will miss the honorable Robert Joseph Dole, but we thank you for the blessed gift of memory. May our minds and hearts be filled with the wonderful recollections of his patriotism, courage, integrity and wit.

Continue to be for his beloved Elizabeth and precious Robin a refuge and strength. Now, bless us all and keep us, make your face shine upon us, and be gracious to us.

[10:45:03]

Lift the light of your countenance upon us and give us your shalom, your peace. We pray in the name of the one who said, I am the resurrection and the life. Amen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ladies and gentlemen, please remain at your seats until escorted to pay your respects by the sergeants at arms staff.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN NEWSROOM (voice over): The late Senator Dole lying in the Capitol rotunda there, that, his widow, Elizabeth Dole. Bob served 27 years in the Senate. Elizabeth Dole also former Senate herself. She served from North Carolina from 2003 to 2009. The late senator's daughter, Robin Dole, also paid her respects there.

We heard from Democratic and Republican leaders in the Senate, their words about the life and service of bob dole. Notable to hear President Joe Biden citing Dole's to his country as a lawmaker, as a wounded soldier in World War II, but also his bipartisanship. He said the only way forward for democracy is unity, perhaps, citing Bob Dole as an example of that, perhaps counter to some of the animus we see in politics of these times.

Mitch McConnell said that Bob Dole knew exactly where he came from, citing his depression-era roots, service in World War II, roots as a boy in Kansas, but focused on the future. Mitch McConnell, Erica, said of Bob Dole, he helped millions of Americans during his service in office.

ERICA HILL, CNN NEWSROOM (voice over): Absolutely. That was certainly a theme we heard about how, as you point out, Mitch McConnell said he never forgot where he came from, that he was also -- that he never lost his roots, Senator Schumer, saying he never hesitated to work across the aisle, and he was a champion of those whose lives were perhaps in some ways defined by trouble, but that it was so important that does not continue to define them. And that really can be seen in his legislative efforts and the number of his personal efforts as well, even in retirement, which was in name only, as Mitch McConnell said.

Also with us still, President Historian Richard Norton Smith, he was a speechwriter for Bob Dole, David Gergen with us, Manu Raju as well.

David, I wonder if I could start with you. We just saw Elizabeth Dole there, such a moving moment as you watch, as she laid her hand and then her head on the casket. You're very close with both of the Doles and they had a beautiful love story. I know she said in an interview she fell for his kindness, David. This was a partnership in so many ways, and I think that speaks to -- they both are, frankly, as people, and what really drove Bob Dole.

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST (voice over): Elizabeth Dole is a force in her own right. She not only served in the Senate, but she feels a major portion of the Red Cross. She did so many great things for this country. And it was an unusual relationship because she did bring out the soft side of Bob Dole, and many people didn't see his soft side in his public pronouncements, especially in the midst of political fights.

[10:50:00]

But she brought something special out in him, and I think it made a big difference in their relationship. It was a longstanding relationship.

And she too, Elizabeth Dole -- I'm from North Carolina. She's from North Carolina. She was well-known in that state as a person who really cared, and she went out of her way to look out for people in the rural communities. She was a stalwart in her own way. I think it's such an unusual relationship and yet it's one in which everyone can take a lot of pride that it worked so well.

SCIUTTO (voice over): Yes. They were married for 46 years minus a day, Bob Dole dying the day before their 46th wedding anniversary.

If I could share briefly just a personal story, Bob Dole is one of the first people I met in Washington after college. I was working for a show that interviewed a number of lawmakers. And I won't name all of them, but Bob Dole is the only one who arrived along without an entourage and arrived early. And he said, well, it was a nice day. I figured I'd just walk over from the Capitol.

Richard Norton Smith, you knew far better than me. Can you describe his humanity and his humility?

RICHARD NORTON SMITH, FORMER DIRECTOR, ROBERT J. DOLE INSTITUTE OF POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS (voice over): Oh, gosh. Well, we talked a little bit about his upbringing. As long as he lived, he carried a picture of his mother in a shirt pocket, close to his heart. Her name was Bina Dole. And Bina Dole told him as a boy, Pat never can do anything. If you want to trace the origins of his can-do approach to politics and so much of his life in confronting so much of the adversity from boyhood through and after the war, and, yes, politically -- by the way, one thing we haven't mentioned, you know, his post-political life, he was anything but retired. And part of his legacy we'll see tomorrow after the service at Washington Cathedral.

There is to be a public ceremony at the World War II memorial. And, of course, it was Bob Dole who took the lead at the request of Bill Clinton, another great example of bipartisanship, in raising the funds to build that extraordinary shrine to the 16 million citizen soldiers, Bob Dole included, who fought the Nazi menace.

I think back to something he said in accepting his nomination in 1996, and it was certainly an occasion by the political opinion polls, which are anything but encouraging. He described himself as the most optimistic man in America. I think that was true then. I think it was true right up until he ended his life, and I think we saw that reflected in this morning's ceremony.

HILL (voice over): Manu, you're there on the Hill. So much talk this morning about that quest for bipartisanship, for getting the job done, and how things are different this morning. As Jim pointed out, President Biden saying, the only way forward is unity. May we follow his wisdom, he said. How much is that a discussion on Capitol Hill right now and since we learned of Bob Dole's passing?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): I mean, there's so much talk about, that but there's so little action towards that regard. I mean, it's hearing this, was a harkening back to a time that just doesn't exist as much anymore, 1996, when he left. It was a much different time than the politics that we've seen particularly over the last several years, over the last several months. And the call for consensus is something that both parties recognize needs to be accomplished, but how do they get there is another question.

And there's just so few people in American politics right now who could sort of get this kind of bipartisan response, the bipartisan outpouring of support, of love, of showing that, you know, this is someone who touched them and someone who had such a profound impact on them. I can think of just a few people, not many, who would generate this kind of response in their passing. The call by the leaders that it's time to get some consensus, come together, perhaps they can learn something from his time. But they are reflecting on a time that, sadly, in a lot of ways, doesn't exist anymore.

SCIUTTO: As you said earlier, the eulogy for a man, the eulogy for a time. Beginning at noon, public viewing begin there in the Capitol rotunda. It will go until 8:00 tonight. The casket -- the late Senator Dole's casket will remain in the rotunda overnight.

[10:55:00]

As we said earlier, 12 U.S. presidents have received that honor of lying in state at the U.S. Capitol, a number of senators, the last senator, John McCain.

Richard Norton Smith, David Gergen, Manu Raju, thanks so much to all of you for sharing your recollections of the late senator. And thanks to all of you. Stay with us. We're going to take a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCIUTTO: New data shows that last week's jobless claims were the lowest recorded in the country since 1969.

HILL: That's a long time. CNN's Matt Egan joining s us now. So, Matt, when we take a look at those numbers, what do they tell us about the state of the economic recovery?

I'm not sure if Matt can hear us.

SCIUTTO: He's not hearing there. But we should note as the numbers say, the lowest since 1969. And you can see that steady drop over the last several months going back to September 2020. Of course, they jumped during the height of the pandemic when we saw shutdowns. And the last couple weeks, Erica, it's notable, you have to go back to the late '60s.

Sorry, we have got Matt back now. Matt, fit this into the larger economic picture briefly.

MATT EGAN, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: Well, clearly, the economy is doing really well, even if most Americans don't notice it because of inflation. The jobs market is just booming. Unemployment claims down to the lowest level since 1969.

You know, workers have all the leverage right now because there's a near-record number of job openings in the United States, Americans are quitting their jobs at pace that we've never seen before. So, of course, in that environment, companies have to hold on to the workers that they do have because they can't find new ones.

Now, seasonal effects could be playing a little bit of a role here. Numbers tend to be noisy towards the end of the year.

[11:00:02]

But even if you look at the four-week moving average, this is the lowest level we've seen since just before COVID. Clearly, Jim and Erica, this is good news.