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Campbell Brown
Speculation Abounds as to Obama's Transition Team; Political Strategists Offer Advice On His First Moves
Aired November 05, 2008 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR, TRANSITION TO POWER: The big picture is clear, but some pretty important details are still fuzzy. This, the day after Americans elected Barack Obama the 44th president of the United States.
We want to welcome to viewers. I'm Wolf Blitzer at the CNN Election Center here in New York.
CAMPBELL BROWN, CNN ANCHOR, TRANSITION TO POWER: I'm Campbell Brown, and welcome back to the post election coverage, TRANSITION TO POWER.
Now, of course, comes the hard part. All of the campaigning the speech making and debating and fundraising and celebrating, now fade into history and they pale in comparison to the task ahead, leading a great nation out of great distress.
Priority number one, we have been talking about it to no end, no question, fixing the economy. It was issue number one for more than 6 in 10 of the voters who cast ballots yesterday. This hour, our panel of big thinkers will ponder what the election and this new administration will mean for us on the economy, for you and your money.
BLITZER: And the smart money predicted Barack Obama's victory. But how did he do it? John King is standing by live, he is going to join us with Obama's map to victory. A map that remains a work in progress right now, two states still too close to call. And the state of the United States Senate as well, Democrats have widened their majority, but the final ballots of power is a major unanswered question.
BROWN: We will talk about that as well, but it is not all about the numbers. Let's kick off the hour's coverage with one man's thoughts about the magnitude of what happened yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT: If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BROWN: It is no bull, campaigning is one thing, actually running the country is another. Here is a look at some of what Barack Obama promised America, and believe me, we are pledging to you now, we will hold the new administration accountable. We will track him on all of these issues.
At the top of the list, of course, middle-class tax cuts funded in part by letting the Bush tax cuts for the very wealthy expire. Obama also was an early advocate of a second economic stimulus package. He has not been the first candidate, or president, for that matter, to call for energy independence. Obama wants an all-inclusive approach from wind and solar to so-clean coal, and limited offshore drilling. His signature foreign policy promises what he calls a responsible end to the war in Iraq, coupled with a major new focus on Afghanistan.
In the debates, Obama called health care an American right, and he proposes a near universal employer-based system of coverage. The list goes on, but we will end with what may be the hardest promise to pull off, ending what the president-elect described last night as the partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics. We wish him nothing but luck and our pledge, no bias, no bull, we will be watching him to keep him accountable to you.
The most important thing any new president can do between election and inauguration is to hire the best people he can find. From all indications, president-elect is getting to it. With that, let's go the Candy Crowley. She is in Chicago.
And, Candy, talk to us about his day. What is he up to now?
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, he is behind closed doors talking to his transition team, doing things they don't really want to talk about at this point. But the fact of the matter is that the transition, at least the basics of it, and the structure of it, have already been put into place pre-election.
They have a huge building in Washington, D.C. where much of the nuts and bolts of that transition are going to take place, going through the billion resumes they are going to get from people who want to work for the administration as well. It is the kind of vetting that actually takes place in terms of reports and intelligence reports or FBI reports on people they might want to have come in for the big jobs, the Defense Department, State Department. They have transition offices set up inside the State Department, where presumably people will be in there taking a look at how it all works.
For Barack Obama? He will be here, of course, making those big decisions. One of the first ones will be chief of staff, the guy who going to run things in the White House. We know that Rahm Emanuel has been offered the job. Have not yet heard -- and I have one source who tells me that he believes that Rahm Emanuel, a congressman from Illinois, a hard-nosed legislator, will in fact take it. But there is a long way between what a source says and what Rahm Emanuel may decide. Nonetheless, they are moving forward. One of the things that Barack Obama understands he is really going to need is some bipartisan help. He did not get the magic 60 in the U.S. Senate. So he is going to have to deal with Republicans. One of the reasons why last night he reached out to the millions and millions of voters who voted for John McCain.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: For those Americans whose support I have yet to earn. I may not have won your vote tonight, but I hear your voices. I need your help. And I will be your president, too. And all of those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces, to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners in the world, our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared. In the new dawn of American leadership is at hand.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CROWLEY: And, of course, some of that bipartisan reach-out happened last night in what we are told was a gracious, yet must have been a very difficult phone call for John McCain to make to Barack Obama. We are told that in that phone call Obama said to McCain, I really am going to need your help. You are a leader on several issues. I hope we can work together.
So, sweetness and light today. We know that Washington has a way of dissolving into partisanship fairly quickly. I don't know a president in modern times who has not said I need bipartisanship. We need to change the tone in Washington. So it is a very big chore for Barack Obama.
BROWN: All right. Candy Crowley for us from Chicago. We will see how long the honeymoon lasts, Candy. Thank you.
Wolf.
BLITZER: Campbell, thank you.
Let's take a closer look right now to see how Barack Obama did this. It was by no means easy. He had a terrific strategy and excellent staff to help him put him over the top. It was not just over the top, but 270-271 or 280.
It was way over the top and rather impressive, John. How did he do it?
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF CORRESPONDENT: It was a sweeping victory. Wolf, we often beat up the politicians saying they are not keeping their promises, but what did Barack Obama promise at the beginning of this race? To stretch the map. Watch this. Here is Barack Obama's victory. Nationally, he is winning 53 percent, a clear majority, not since Jimmy Carter have the Democrats --
BLITZER: Let me just stop you right there.
KING: Sure.
BLITZER: Because in our final Poll of Polls here on CNN, we had it at about, what, 7 percent. And that is about right. So all of this ridiculing of these national polls, apparently we were pretty close.
KING: The numbers were about right. I think many people in the country would say we probably had 1,000 too many polls. But the numbers in the end - the numbers in the end were about right. But let's look. Remember what he said? He said he would stretch the map.
Barack Obama wins Florida. Barack Obama wins Virginia and North Carolina, we have not called yet, but he is slightly ahead right there. And Barack Obama said he would go compete out in the red states, that is Ohio and Indiana. He said he would bring the Democrats back out here in the fastest growing area of the country, the Southwest. Those are the circles.
Excuse me for stepping across.
This is what happened last night in America. That is what happened just four years ago. That is George W. Bush, that is Barack Obama. If you are a Republican and you remember this map, this is a sweeping George W. Bush, 51 percent, you are waking up today to a new map that says you are in trouble and the Democrats are ascended.
Here are a couple of reasons why, out here, the largest, the largest county down here, the second largest county here, and Barack Obama takes Nevada in part, Wolf, 60/40 in Clark County, that is where Las Vegas is, that 57-22 last year - four years ago, for the Democrats. The Latino vote, the Latino vote, out in the Southwest and the Mountain West is huge.
Let me come across and show you a couple of other areas here.
Look right down here. Republicans in Ohio today. Look at this and they see trouble. That is Hamilton County, that is Cincinnati, this is where George W. Bush won Ohio, four years ago. If you go back in time, you see that as Republican red, that is where George Bush won the state, pushing up a 6-point lead over John Kerry. And Barack Obama took it away from the Republicans yesterday.
One last place, Florida, always decisive in our politics. Again, this is four years ago. George W. Bush won the state of Florida by keeping the margins of the Democrats relatively low down here and by sweeping through the growing I-4 corridor from St. Petersburg across Orlando all the way out to the coast. Let's come fast forward to yesterday, look at all that blue.
Barack Obama is building a Democratic coalition. He said he would stretch the map. And on this day, you have to sustain it once you build it, Wolf, but on this day, he can look at a Democratic coalition and say, I told you so.
BLITZER: It is pretty impressive when you think about the history. Let's talk about the Senate, right now, because the balance of power has shifted in the Senate. At least five seats have been picked up by the Democrats, increasing their majority from 51 to 56 right now. If you assume the two independent senators Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Joe Lieberman of Connecticut stay with them. Sanders, I'm sure, will. Lieberman is sort of up in the air right now. But, Georgia, let's talk about Georgia, right now. This is where an incumbent Republican Saxby Chambliss, in order to get re-elected he had to get a majority, obviously, but he had to have over 50 percent to avoid a runoff.
KING: He did. And let's show you where we are. This is where we started the night last night. You are right at 51. This is where we are right now if you bring it up to date. These four races we have not called yet. That Georgia race is among them. The Democrats are guaranteed 56. The question is, can they get more? Let's go back and look at that race you are just talking about. And we come down here to the state of Georgia. Republicans carried the state, but let's switch over to the Senate race, right now. And here is the latest that we have on the numbers up here. The question now is -- as the latest numbers come in -- and this is 99 percent. I believe we have even updated numbers since then that say that Saxby Chambliss will have to face a runoff.
BLITZER: The updated numbers have him at 49.9 percent, which is about as close as possible to getting a majority, but not there. Jim Martin had about 46 percent. There was a third party candidate, as well who wound up with about 3 percent.
KING: So, let's assume they double and triple check those numbers and they decide they have to go forward with the runoff. At first glance you would say the Republican would be favored here, now that the presidential race is off the ballot, you are in the state of Georgia. The Republican should be favored there Saxby Chambliss. However, we were talking just before the program started, the question now is what is Barack Obama and the Democrats do? How many resources they want to pour into that? Will they make that a prestige post- election race? Something else to watch, along with Joe Lieberman. The drama of the Senate continues.
BLITZER: Yes, and we'll continue the discussion on Joe Lieberman later, John. Thanks very much.
The longest and most expensive presidential campaign is now finished. So are you glad it is all over? Let us know with a quick vote. Call 1-866-979-vote, or text yes or no to 94553. We will have the results ahead this hour.
Call it Barack Obama's five-point plan. They were the keys to victory last night. Consider it the secrets to the campaign success. We will reveal them in just a moment. Stay with us. The TRANSITION TO POWER continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Wow, those Chicago crowds, they came out in huge numbers to see history. Barack Obama came through for them convincing more than 63 million Americans to put their faith in him. Just four years after his debut on the national stage, it was amazing as we watched it all unfold. Tom Foreman now looks at how Barack Obama won the White House.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Wolf, I was last night standing in the crowd down on Times Square, very much like that. I think that was the question for a lot of people. Just a short time ago he was just a small player on the political scene. This sort of meteoric rise is rare in American politics. Obama owes a portion of his success to an old formula, right place, and right time. And one more thing, right strategy. He came up with a unique plan for capturing the presidency that often defied conventional wisdom.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
OBAMA: Thank you so much.
FOREMAN (voice over): Obama, himself, is not quite sure how he was chosen to address the 2004 Democratic convention. He was merely running for the U.S. Senate at the time, but he rocked the party.
OBAMA: There is not a liberal America and a conservative America, there is the United States of America. There is not a black America, and a white America, and Latino America and Asian America, but there is the United States of America.
FOREMAN: The momentum carried him into the Senate, and into the presidential race less than three years later.
OBAMA: I want to win that next battle, for better schools and better jobs and better health care for all.
FOREMAN: At the time, Hillary Clinton and John Edwards were both stronger contenders, but Obama broke with convention. Instead of chasing big donors, he launched an Internet campaign to collect millions of small donors. Instead of reaching solely for the Democratic left, he spoke directly to the disaffected middle, new voters, nonvoters, independents. And in the cornfield caucus they roared to life, swelling the ranks of the party and giving him Iowa.
The caucus states were key, because they allowed Obama's enthusiastic supporters to lobby other voters right at the moment of decision, and it worked. One by one, his opponents fell, until only Clinton remained.
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON, (D) NEW YORK: We are in this race because we believe America is worth fighting for.
FOREMAN: Obama kept winning in many caucus states and seizing large numbers of delegates even in big Democratic strongholds where she won. It was ultimately too much.
Against McCain, his game plan barely changed. Armed with unprecedented amounts of cash, Obama attacked everywhere, forcing McCain to defend in states that should have been reliably Republican and showing his strength with massive public spectacles that made Obama look like he was already the winner.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOREMAN: Yes, Obama had help, undeniably, the war and the economy hurt McCain, but Obama played those issues just right and always casting himself as the outsider and agent of change and that turned almost all of his weaknesses into strengths and in the process it rewrote the book on how you win a presidency -Wolf.
BLITZER: And he really had an amazing staff of the strategists.
FOREMAN: They kept their discipline.
BLITZER: Yes.
FOREMAN: Even when things got tough, they stuck to the plan and it paid off.
BLITZER: They knew what they were doing. Tom, thanks very much.
So among our experts, people who have actually run national campaigns, themselves, what do they think of Obama's winning strategy? We will check back with the group of political pros right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: And all of those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of the world, our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared. In the new dawn of American leadership is at hand.
To those who would tear the world down, we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security, we support you. And to all of those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright, tonight we prove once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms, or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals, democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BROWN: Barack Obama, didn't just win last night, he stormed through some states Democrats had not won in ages. For their take on how he did it and what happens now, we want to check in with the best political team of experts around. Mark Halperin, Errol Louis joining us, Jeff Toobin joining us as well, Hilary Rosen, and Ed Rollins sticking around for a long, long day after what was a long, long night.
ED ROLLINS, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Well, I'm the token Republican, and there are not many of us left, especially in New York. I am not sure I am claiming much of the mantle anymore.
BROWN: Well, let's talk about what goes on going forward, Mark, the transition itself. Already underway there are meetings behind closed doors all day today. This is important. Getting this right is very important, because past president-elects had screwed it up. And they have paid seriously for it.
MARK HALPERIN, SR. POLITICAL ANALYST, "TIME": Obama has done a lot more planning behind the scenes than has been reported. John Podesta, who was Bill Clinton's last chief of staff, one of the smartest people in Washington, in either party, has been doing a lot of detailed planning. Obama knows how important this is. On any day, between now and inauguration day, if Obama was to lead the news he can. And I think his people are thinking about how to use that power. Which days do they choose to put their imprint on the day? President Bush will be working on the economy, a lame-duck Congress may. They have to pick their spots. We were talking before about whether he wants to play and if there is a runoff in the Georgia Senate race, and does he want to put his political capital there as an early test?
They have to use everyday. And the challenge, one of the many challenges is he is exhausted. His staff is exhausted. And there has to be a transition from the campaign staff to the newly named transition staff that will be named today.
BROWN: But he's kidding himself if he thinks he will get a break, certainly in terms of the attention, the spotlight on him, and if anything, it will only become more intense.
HALPERIN: If he chooses to lay low. I mean today, for instance, he is laying low. We're not seeing him talk. He can do that. The question again is how does he exercise the power? In the campaign, everyday is a battle. He has no opponent now. He has to pick his spots. Personnel is vital, but so is a legislative agenda. And so is controlling his image. He wants to go into January defined for all the American people not just the people who voted for him.
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Bill Clinton says that one mistake he made during his transition was concentrating too much on the Cabinet and not enough on the White House staff. There was all of this controversy about a Cabinet that looks like America, would there be the right number of women, minorities? I think Obama will learn from that and focus on the Wall Street staff, because that is really how the government works, not through the Cabinet members.
BROWN: Well, if you look at the Bush White House, too. The White House staff was far more powerful than any of the members of the Cabinet.
TOOBIN: And John Podesta, I think, knows that.
HILLARY ROSEN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: The other thing that Bill Clinton did not do was pay enough attention to the Congress. He assumed that because there was a Democratic Congress and a Democratic White House that they were going to do everything they wanted. And we remember that there was a little bit of a tussle at the beginning. Should we do a stimulus bill or deficit reduction bill, which is what he had originally wanted. Ultimately, Bill Clinton's relationships with Congress and whether they wanted to support his agenda ended up coloring a significant amount of his first term. We already saw Nancy Pelosi, this morning, almost make whether -- what the bigger picture is contingent on whether the Democrats will come back for a lame-duck session.
Barack Obama and his team are going to have a lot to say, with Nancy Pelosi behind closed doors, whether they want a lame-duck session. Whether they want Congress to be acting and giving the president another shot at potential vetoes, or whether they want to wait until there is a new Congress.
BROWN: Wait, right.
ROLLINS: Well, people are policy. The most important thing he can do right now is the personnel. The point you were making earlier. I remember with the Reagan administration, we were worried about the Cabinet posts and the Ford people who had been in town, the Nixon people came and they said, we don't want to be the Cabinet posts, we want to be the assistant secretary for policy. We said sure, you can have that job. Truth of the matter is the assistant secretary for policy turns out to be a very critical player in these administrations.
There is also a very limited number. You have about 600 presidential appointees that really matter. You have another 2,000 that are called schedule Cs, which are exempt from the civil service, so you don't have - and you have thousands and thousands of people who think they are part of this administration, and they are not going to be able to come in so you have to pick carefully, not get your process slowed down by the clearance process. You have to have a team in place in the next three, or four weeks.
You talk about the legislative agenda, if you won't have a legislative agenda, the Congress moves forward with hearings. They have appropriation and authorization. They have a staff of 39,000 people. They start to scheduling those hearings and you better have your bills, your agenda, know what you want to do, otherwise you get in trouble.
ERROL LOUIS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: He also has to make some decisions about how he is going to reconstruct his relationship with the press. This is a very tightly controlled, very disciplined operation. They really weren't very big at sharing a lot of information. That has to change. He has many of the people who were with him on the campaign plane are now going to become the White House correspondents. They have to start to be a little bit more forthcoming. They gave him a -- well, they gave him a --
BROWN: The Bush White House, we said that about them from the beginning.
(CROSS TALK)
LOUIS: And on their way out of town, one of their big weaknesses was they made enemies out of the press in a way that they didn't have to.
ROSEN: You thought that was a weakness, Errol?
HALPERIN: Well, you could make the argument that part of their undoing was they lost credibility with the public. We - people in our profession don't have very much credibility with the public. It takes a lot to start to look bad, when you treat us badly these days. We need to do a better job of holding Obama accountable. But thinking about the public interest, not about scoops and trying to embarrass him. And then, I think Errol is absolutely right. If you look at the landscape of what Obama faces, I think Congress will be relatively pliant. The international community in the beginning will be. I think Republicans will be pliant. I think the press is one of his biggest challenges where there does need to be a change in course or he may well have a problem.
BROWN: Do you agree with what Mark just said, that Republicans are going to give him a bit of a grace period as well?
ROLLINS: I go back to the point. All we are, is we are outside. We can throw rocks at the windows. We are not going to be part of the process for the foreseeable future. There will be certain - if he doesn't get 60 in the Senate, there will be a couple of moderate Republicans that will vote on some critical issues. But he doesn't need us for a long period of time.
HALPERIN: I think he's going to reach out to Republicans, I disagree -- that he doesn't need Republicans. He's going to learn from Bush's lessons. Even when he could pass bills with just Democrats, I think he's going to reach out to the moderate Republicans.
ROSEN: Let's remember that Bill Clinton passed that budget bill for the first time, with not a single Republican vote. And while it worked for the economy, it didn't necessarily help him with Republicans --
(CROSSTALK)
ROLLINS: It depends on the mood of the Republicans. If the Republicans decide we're going to draw a line in the sand, we're going to be a loyal opposition, House Republicans --
BROWN: Well, they haven't been loyal about anything since (INAUDIBLE) so far.
(CROSSTALK)
ROLLINS: It's a smaller group. When you get down to about 170, which has happened to us after Watergate, happened to us after Bush broke his tax pledge. Then it gets to be -- they have a litmus test. And the litmus test -- if you don't watch their line, if you become a statesmen, you basically face primary challenges.
BROWN: Go ahead, Jeff. TOOBIN: Three of the most important people in Washington are going to be Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins and Arlen Specter. The three -- last three moderate Republicans because --
ROLLINS: And John McCain.
TOOBIN: And John McCain? Really?
HALPERIN: But, I think the list's longer. You can pick up Chuck Hagel on some issues. Dick Lugar, Voinovich. If Smith wins, you can pick up Smith. Coleman, if he wins, you can pick off Coleman.
BROWN: Smith is campaigning on how he's going to cooperate with Obama.
TOOBIN: That's why at 60, I think we have perhaps, overemphasized too much.
HAPLERIN: You'd be better off with 58.
BROWN: All right, guys. We have to take a quick break. But we're going to have more with the panel. They're not going anywhere. Also ahead, exit polls. They reveal a lot of clues about who voted, why they voted the way they did. It is the mystery behind the ballots, a fascinating look at the exit polls when we come back in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Our quick vote question this hour, are you glad that the presidential campaign is over? You can cast your vote. Call 1- 866-979-VOTE or text yes or no to 94553. We'll have the results at the end of this hour.
Exit polls are like taking votes drilling down deeper and deeper for details. Such as, who cast ballots, what's important to them, and how they came to make their own decisions. Let's go back to Soledad O'Brien, she's at Voter Analysis for us.
Looking at some of these fascinating details. And what are you seeing, Soledad?
O'BRIEN: You know and sometimes it's really the numbers that tell the entire story. We want to take a closer look at the role of the independent voter. You've got some very interesting pie charts to share you. But, keep in the back of your mind the Sarah Palin question. The impact that she had on the McCain campaign.
So, let's take a look first by party ID. So, this is the electorate as a whole, broken down by people who self-identify. 39 percent as Democrats, 32 percent Republican, 29 percent Independent. That is a really important, critical number. Watch that number.
Now, let's take a closer look at the vote that Barack Obama got, what it was made up of. It was made up of, no surprise there, 66 percent Democrats voting for him. Independents, 28 percent. So, over a quarter of his vote came from Independents. And 6 percent, those were Republicans that Barack Obama would talk about trying to reach across the aisle to get their vote.
And if you break it down even further, take a look at the Independents overall, 52 percent went for Barack Obama. John McCain got 44 percent of the vote. So, if you look at this number right here, this 44 percent, could this number have been higher if in fact, for vice presidential pick, he hadn't picked Sarah Palin, who was clearly an effort to reach out to the base. But picked somebody else who may have raised this number.
Because if you look back at some of those other numbers that I showed you in earlier graphs, that was a huge, huge number. A third of the electorate was the Independents. So, I think that people are going to start breaking down these numbers and really assessing, not only what happened last night, but where the Republican Party goes now -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Soledad. Thanks very much. We're going to check back with you later.
Sarah Barracuda. Her ticket took an electoral beating last night. Today, Governor Sarah Palin is offering up her first thoughts about what happened. To us, it doesn't feel like the end of the Palin plotline. We'll tell you what's going on. She spoke to our own Dana Bash.
Stay with us. The Transition to Power continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Senator Obama and I have had and argued our differences. And he has prevailed. No doubt many of those differences remain. These are difficult times for our country. And I pledge to him tonight to do all in my power to help him lead us through the many challenges we face.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Senator John McCain talking about the presidential campaign last night. A very, very gracious concession speech. His running mate Governor Sarah Palin spoke this morning with our own Dana Bash, who's joining us now live from Phoenix.
Dana, how did that conversation go?
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, it was quite interesting, Wolf. She was literally hanging out in the lobby of the Arizona Biltmore, where we were and where the event last night -- the McCain event took place.
And I called for her to come over and she walked right over. It was quite interesting, perhaps quite telling of what we've seen over the past couple of weeks. A Sarah Palin that seems eager to have her own voice out and get her side of any story out there. But what I asked her was about 2012, the kind of the obvious question about her future. She didn't really ask the first time and then I asked a follow-up question.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BASH: You're notably not ruling out 2012?
GOV. SARAH PALIN (R), ALASKA: Well, you know, right now I cannot even imagine running for national office in 2012. And I say that though of course, coming on the heels of an outcome that I did not anticipate and had not hoped for.
But, this being a chapter now that it is closed and realizing that it is a time to unite. And all Americans need to get together and help with this new administration being ushered in. Policies that have got to help the nation to keep us secure. It is a time for all of us to work together. So, having said that, 2012 sounds so far off that I can't even imagine what I'd be doing then.
BASH: One more question about the election that just ended yesterday. If you look at some of the polls and you talk to some of the people who are really crunching the numbers, and specifically, who voted what way and who sort of was swayed one way or another. Independent voters, suburban voters, some of the people -- women, people who the campaign thought you would be able to help, actually looked at your presence on the ticket and said I'm going to vote the other way.
What do you make of that?
PALIN: Well, you know, I don't think that anyone should give Sarah Palin that much credit that I would trump an economic woeful time in this nation that occurred two months ago. That my presence on the ticket would trump the economic crisis that America found itself in a couple of months ago and attribute John McCain's loss to me.
But now, having said that, if I cost John McCain even one vote, I am sorry about that. Because John McCain, I believe is the American hero. I had believed that it was his time. He, being so full of courage and wisdom and experience. That valor that he just embodies. I believe he would have been the best pick. But, that is not the Americans' choice at this time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: And Dana, I know you also spoke to her about all of the reports of tension inside of the McCain/Palin camp.
What did she say?
BASH: That's right. And it is very real tension in talking to McCain aides about what has been going on between some people inside McCain's staff. And certainly now things that John McCain himself is very aware of -- a tension between them and Sarah Palin. So, I asked about that and what we had been told about the way she was behaving. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BASH: Now that this is over, when you think back and hear words like, diva or going rogue, that we were told about frankly, because of some tension between you and some of the people who John McCain worked for, some of the people who helped to get you on the ticket.
Can you tell us a little bit more now that this is over, about some of the tension?
PALIN: Well, I still -- it is absolutely false that there's been any tension, certainly from my part or my family's part. And in fact, my family who's surrounding me here, they know me. They know my values, what I stand for. They know my work ethic. They know that certainly there is absolutely no diva in me. In fact, we laugh about that criticism and if only people you know, come on up and travel with us to Alaska and see this diva lifestyle that I supposedly live or would demand. Because it's just false.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BASH: So there you hear Sarah Palin denying that there is tension. Particularly what we are hearing the tension has been about has been about that $150,000, now infamous shopping spree, paid for by the RNC. And whether or not, perhaps she and her family -- from the perspective of some McCain aides that we've talked to, Wolf, took advantage of the ability to do that.
Obviously, that is something that Sarah Palin denies. But, as for Palin and her future. Immediately, she is actually heading back to Anchorage. She said she's leaving this afternoon. And she will be, at least in the short term focusing back on her duties as governor of Alaska.
BLITZER: Well, let's not forget, she still is the governor of the state, as well.
All right, Dana. Thanks very much. Thanks for catching up with Governor Palin today.
The biggest moments in a very, very big night. And the balance of power in Congress over the next two years. Our panel looks back and ahead. When Transition to Power continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: Transition to Power. Obama getting ready to take over. The balance of power. Democrats gaining so many seats in Congress. So much to talk about. We've got our political panel back. With me now, Mark Halperin, Errol Lewis, Hilary Rosen, Jeff Toobin, Ed Rollins,
Guys, I'm going brain dead here, from lack of sleep. So if I forget your name because we've only been sitting together for a year now, forgive me.
TOOBIN: Obama won.
BROWN: OK, thank you. I knew -- it was on the tip of my tongue.
We were talking about transition. And Hilary, you got a e-mail recently. I know the Obama campaign is making some --
ROSEN: Obama campaign.
BROWN: See, I haven't made the transition, clearly.
ROSEN: President-elect Obama.
BROWN: President-elect Obama is making some progress.
ROSEN: Well, they've announced that what we've been talking about for the last 24 hours here. They've announced that John Podesta and Valerie Jarrett, and Pete Rouse will be the transition co-chairs. Pete Rouse is a lesser known figure, but equal -- very, very powerful in the Obama world. He was Senator Obama's chief of staff. And has effectively been operating as an internal chief of staff for the campaign all along.
BROWN: And just to tell people, Valerie Jarrett is a long-time friend --
ROSEN: Friend of both Obamas. Has been in the real estate business in Chicago. And was sort of --
BROWN: And John Podesta was a very big time familiar face of the Clinton administration, as well.
ROSEN: Former President Clinton's cheif of staff.
And they also announced a transition committee of mostly insiders. Mostly people who have really been with the Obama campaign since the beginning. And these are people who have been talking to him regularly about the kind of administration he wants, about how he would govern.
And Mark made the point earlier. This is a very well planned and well thought out transition. They've had you know, spider teams they've been calling it with each agency, multiple people, 15 people per agency reviewing all of the regulations and all of the policy analysis.
BROWN: Trying to get up to speed.
ROSEN: Getting up to speed, planning out what their early executive orders are going to be and what their early policy positions are going to be and who are the best people to fill these positions.
This is a very well informed team on two counts. One, they really know Barack Obama. And two, they really know the federal government.
HALPERIN: It's going to be red in Washington, and Chicago, like the Rosetta Stone. This is the first indication of who's all going to be on the inside in this changed world from campaign to transition.
And a lot of these people will serve in the government, as well. There are a lot of insiders, it's striking. It's a very diverse group. There are also Joe Biden people. Two of Joe Biden's longtime aides are also on there, which I think again, will be red for people as a sign that Biden wants his people, not just the Obama people shaping this government.
ROLLINS: One important change is taking place. Is they have now -- it used to be a very tedious process to get people cleared. To get security clearances, what have you. They've now had a system set in play because of the homeland security crisis and what have you. That a lot of these names have been already vetted and they can move very, very quickly on getting them the security to get people in there.
BROWN: Yes. There is an urgency because of some of the national security issues. Because of what's happening in the economy, that you don't have a lot of time to sit and sort of contemplate these things as --
TOOBIN: And President Bush to his credit, changed the law and changed how all of this works. That there is now a procedure in place that makes this transition a lot easier than it was for him, particularly because of the recount in 2001. But it just all previous presidencies.
BROWN: All right, guys. We got to go. We're out of time. I can't believe. Three hours -- it went by like that.
Heck of a lesson to tell you about for students at a school in Harlem, living history through the presidential election. Randi Kaye paid them a visit this morning. She's going to join us live with their thoughts.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BROWN: Barack Obama isn't saying much today about his historic transition to power. But a high-powered member of the outgoing administration is.
CNN's Jeanne Meserve is joining us right now with that part of the story -- Jeanne.
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Campbell, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff says there is no specific credible evidence of any sory of threat to the homeland during this period. But he cautions that this is a time of vulnerability because people are moving in and out of jobs, they may get distracted. He terms this a period of heightened alert.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL CHERTOFF, SECY., DEPT. OF HOMELAND SECURITY: We're looking very carefully at anything that might be a vulnerability, recognizing that we can't -- you know, there's no guarantee. We can't guarantee against bad things happening. But again, this is about making sure that we are extra focused during a period of change which is naturally one in which sometimes there's an element of distraction.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MESERVE: Chertoff says he will be staying on the job until January 20th. He says, he does expect to meet with Obama transition officials within a matter of days. And they hope to hold a table top exercise with some of the designated homeland security replacements around the first of the year.
Campbell, back to you.
BROWN: All right. jeanne Meserve, for us from Washington.
Jeanne, appreciate it.
The atmosphere -- electric you could call it, last night in Harlem, And there was a little letdown this morning after. Randi Kaye is here with that story.
A great story to share.
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It really is. These kids were so excited. We went to this charter school in Harlem, to get some reaction this morning. And most of the students there, Campbell, are African-American. Some of them are Latino, as well. We talked to kids in the fifth to eighth grade. They actually held a mock election yesterday and 96 percent of the students there actually voted for Obama.
So, they were really excited about this election. They all also seemed to also understand the historical importance of the fact that Obama has won. And it's really given them some hope for their own futures, as well.
Listen to what some of them told me earlier this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just believe that Obama is the right choice. Because if we had another four years of McCain, and another four years of Republicans we'd just go into disaster.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want to tell my kids that I was there when Obama -- when the first African-American president became president.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's amazing that not too long ago we had -- African-Americans couldn't even vote and they were treated really badly and they were slaves. And now we have an African-American president.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To be honest, I don't really care if we have an African-American president, Because the real change I want where people can have a true shot at life.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel like I might want to run for president even though I know that sounds kind of crazy. Because I feel like I could -- change can happen and I think I can change people's lives.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Now, we also wanted to know of course, how the girls at the school felt about Sarah Palin not making it to the White House. Well, the kids don't hold back as you know.
One girl told us, she didn't think it would be long before another woman stepped into the role. But she said, maybe the next one, I'm quoting her here, "will be a little bit more prepared than Sarah Palin."
Also, some of the kids told us they were crying last night when Obama won. And that their parents were crying along with them.
BROWN: Oh, wow. So, what was it -- what did they say was the thing that they liked most about Obama?
KAYE: Well, they really liked the fact Campbell, that he is African-American. And they alsio have a lot of faith in Obama and the economy. They believe that he's actually going to help poor families and families without a lot of money will become middle-class. This school is in a low-income area. And it seems as though his message about the economy resonated with these kids who are of 9 to 13 years old.
BROWN: You see, we think they're not paying attention.
KAYE: Oh, they're watching.
BROWN: And they're absorbing it all.
KAYE: They're probably watching right now, absorbing even more.
BROWN: I hope they're watching right now. It's great.
Randi Kaye, that was fabulous. Thanks, appreciate it.
KAYE: Thank you.
BROWN: Earlier we asked you if you were glad this long, expensive and historic race is over. And here is the verdict in our quick vote. Well, actually I don't have the numbers. Oh, yes. Here we go. I've got 94 percent of you said yes. You're glad it's over. Only 6 percent are like me. We just wanted it to go on and on and on. What are we going to talk about now? The Transition to Power.
Thanks for watching this CNN special, Transition to Power. As we've been saying, this is a historic moment. You made it happen. It is also just the beginning of extreme challenges for our next president and for the country. CNN's complete coverage continues on air and online at CNN.com.
We want to go back right now to my colleague Wolf Blitzer, in "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- Wolf?
