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CNN Live Saturday

Interview With NPR's Ken Rudin

Aired January 31, 2004 - 12:11   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.


FREDERICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, to talk about this first multi-state show down, Ken Rudin of "National Public Radio" is joining me, now. He is the "NPR's" political editor he writes an online column for the network's "Political Junkie."
Good to see you, Ken.

KEN RUDIN, "NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO": Nice to see you.

WHITFIELD: All right. So, seven states up for grabs, here. We're talking about 269 delegates. It's really not just about South Carolina even though that seems to have been the focus of yet. This is certainly a primary day that can define the candidates who can stay in the race, isn't it.

RUDIN: Absolutely. I mean, what we saw in Iowa and New Hampshire, voters there got to see the candidates one-on-one because those are the only states at stake with seven states in one day, these candidates have to have the organization and the money and basically the drive to campaign in almost like a mini national primary, so once upon a time, there was seven candidates with one state, seven with another state, now it's seven states with seven candidates trying to make it work.

WHITFIELD: And there are states such as Arizona which are now saying, "We're not used to the candidates coming and giving real face time." They're seeing it in Arizona, they're seeing it, obviously, in Missouri with Gephardt no longer in the race. How important is this face time for a lot of the voters?

RUDIN: Well, extremely important, yet they're not getting the kind of attention that they got -- like Iowa and New Hampshire got, and Missouri reminds me of the kind of state -- Missouri was Dick Gephardt country. It was going to be Dick Gephardt's state from the beginning, once he dropped out -- it reminds of the dream I used to have when in high school and I'd walk into a classroom and suddenly -- oh, my god there's a test that day and I wasn't prepared for it. Missouri is like that, too. Because, oh, my god, this now a state that's up for grabs and John Kerry and the other candidates are trying to make it happen there.

WHITFIELD: All right, speaking of John Kerry, he's got the momentum after Iowa and New Hampshire, but some say he really is a fish out of water when we talk about the south or even the mid section of the country. How important is it for him to impress these voters in places like Missouri, South Carolina, Arizona? RUDIN: I think it's very important -- you know, we go back to the last so-called Massachusetts liberal who ran for president, Michael Dukakis, in 1988. Now, he won the nomination pretty handedly, but when he went to the South, and to Alabama, Louisiana, North Carolina, Virginia, all those states, he finished third in every state, just -- he won Florida, but every other state in the South finished third, and so the test is on John Kerry, if he's going to be a viable candidate against President Bush in November, if he's going to do well in the South, on Tuesday, starting in South Carolina and Oklahoma, it's a good test.

WHITFIELD: All right, and real quickly, Howard Dean is in Arizona. He's spent almost all of the $40 million. What does this say about his money management skills?

RUDIN: Well look, he though -- nobody knew him like they did in Iowa and New Hampshire. He thought he was going to win in both, when he didn't -- now he's not only scaling back his campaign operations, he now says that he may not win anything until Wisconsin on February 17.

WHITFIELD: And he doesn't mind.

RUDIN: Well, he should mind, but again that's 13 states in between now and the 17th, that could be tough for somebody who once was the frontrunner.

WHITFIELD: All right, Ken Rudin of "NPR," thanks very much. Good to see you.

RUDIN: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired January 31, 2004 - 12:11   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDERICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, to talk about this first multi-state show down, Ken Rudin of "National Public Radio" is joining me, now. He is the "NPR's" political editor he writes an online column for the network's "Political Junkie."
Good to see you, Ken.

KEN RUDIN, "NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO": Nice to see you.

WHITFIELD: All right. So, seven states up for grabs, here. We're talking about 269 delegates. It's really not just about South Carolina even though that seems to have been the focus of yet. This is certainly a primary day that can define the candidates who can stay in the race, isn't it.

RUDIN: Absolutely. I mean, what we saw in Iowa and New Hampshire, voters there got to see the candidates one-on-one because those are the only states at stake with seven states in one day, these candidates have to have the organization and the money and basically the drive to campaign in almost like a mini national primary, so once upon a time, there was seven candidates with one state, seven with another state, now it's seven states with seven candidates trying to make it work.

WHITFIELD: And there are states such as Arizona which are now saying, "We're not used to the candidates coming and giving real face time." They're seeing it in Arizona, they're seeing it, obviously, in Missouri with Gephardt no longer in the race. How important is this face time for a lot of the voters?

RUDIN: Well, extremely important, yet they're not getting the kind of attention that they got -- like Iowa and New Hampshire got, and Missouri reminds me of the kind of state -- Missouri was Dick Gephardt country. It was going to be Dick Gephardt's state from the beginning, once he dropped out -- it reminds of the dream I used to have when in high school and I'd walk into a classroom and suddenly -- oh, my god there's a test that day and I wasn't prepared for it. Missouri is like that, too. Because, oh, my god, this now a state that's up for grabs and John Kerry and the other candidates are trying to make it happen there.

WHITFIELD: All right, speaking of John Kerry, he's got the momentum after Iowa and New Hampshire, but some say he really is a fish out of water when we talk about the south or even the mid section of the country. How important is it for him to impress these voters in places like Missouri, South Carolina, Arizona? RUDIN: I think it's very important -- you know, we go back to the last so-called Massachusetts liberal who ran for president, Michael Dukakis, in 1988. Now, he won the nomination pretty handedly, but when he went to the South, and to Alabama, Louisiana, North Carolina, Virginia, all those states, he finished third in every state, just -- he won Florida, but every other state in the South finished third, and so the test is on John Kerry, if he's going to be a viable candidate against President Bush in November, if he's going to do well in the South, on Tuesday, starting in South Carolina and Oklahoma, it's a good test.

WHITFIELD: All right, and real quickly, Howard Dean is in Arizona. He's spent almost all of the $40 million. What does this say about his money management skills?

RUDIN: Well look, he though -- nobody knew him like they did in Iowa and New Hampshire. He thought he was going to win in both, when he didn't -- now he's not only scaling back his campaign operations, he now says that he may not win anything until Wisconsin on February 17.

WHITFIELD: And he doesn't mind.

RUDIN: Well, he should mind, but again that's 13 states in between now and the 17th, that could be tough for somebody who once was the frontrunner.

WHITFIELD: All right, Ken Rudin of "NPR," thanks very much. Good to see you.

RUDIN: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com