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Lou Dobbs This Week
Salmonella Outbreak; Race and Politics on the Campaign Trail
Aired July 19, 2008 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LOU DOBBS, HOST: Tonight: The Food and Drug Administration has no idea how to protect American consumers from salmonella and other food- borne illnesses. Two members from Congress join me who have some ideas.
And: Race and politics on the campaign trail, both presidential candidates are pandering to ethnocentric special groups. We'll have complete coverage of this different, unique presidential campaign. All of that and much more with an independent perspective, straight ahead here tonight.
ANNOUNCER: This is LOU DOBBS THIS WEEK: News, debate, and opinion. Here now: Lou Dobbs.
DOBBS: Good evening, everybody.
Senator Obama traveling overseas, is trying to convince skeptical voters he's tough enough to be commander-in-chief. Obama is making only a second visit to Iraq, his first visit to Afghanistan. Obama will also be visiting Europe. He's traveling with the evening news anchors of all three entertainment broadcasting networks.
And Senator McCain said it's remarkable that Obama announced his policies on Iraq and Afghanistan before leaving on a so-called fact- finding mission.
Candy Crowley has our report on the showdown over national security from the presidential campaign trail.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It is one of the brightest lines along the campaign trail, the candidate who thinks the Iraq war is a distraction from every threat the U.S. faces.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It should have been apparent to President Bush and Senator McCain -- the central front in the war on terror is not Iraq and it never was.
CROWLEY: The candidate who says winning in Iraq is central to meeting the threats the U.S. faces.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It is precisely the success of the surge in Iraq that shows us the way to succeed in Afghanistan.
CROWLEY: The debate over the U.S.' future in Iraq and beyond came just days before Barack Obama arrived in the Middle East.
Offering McCain an assist from the Oval Office President Bush suggested that Obama listen to military leaders on the ground there.
PRES. GEORGE .W. BUSH, UNITED STATES: There's a temptation to let the politics at home get in the way, you know, with the considered judgment of the commanders.
CROWLEY: New numbers suggest Obama needs to power up his foreign policy pitch. An ABC/"Washington Post" Poll found 72 percent of Americans think John McCain would be a good commander-in-chief for the military; 48 percent said that of Obama, an advantage McCain presses early and often.
MCCAIN: I know how to win wars.
CROWLEY: Also troubling for Obama, a vast majority of Americans are against the war but McCain has a slight edge when respondents were asked -- who do they trust more to handle Iraq.
OBAMA: George Bush and John McCain don't have a strategy for success in Iraq. They have a strategy for staying in Iraq. They say we couldn't leave when violence was up, and they now say that we can't leave when violence is down.
CROWLEY: The increase in U.S. troops that led to a decrease in the violence in Iraq has altered campaign dynamics. It gives McCain running room on an issue where he has mostly played defense. He notes Obama's opposition to the surge.
MCCAIN: Today, we know he was wrong. The surge has succeeded.
CROWLEY: Obama now concedes some surge success, and is trying to turn the discussion elsewhere.
OBAMA: The greatest threat to that security lies in the tribal regions of Pakistan, where terrorists train and insurgents strike into Afghanistan. We cannot tolerate a terrorist sanctuary. And as president, I will not.
CROWLEY: The message, Barack Obama is willing to use U.S. military muscle. McCain argues Pakistan, an ally in the war on terror, is not the place.
MCCAIN: In trying to sound tough, he's made it harder for the people whose support we most need to provide it. I won't bluster. And I won't make idle threats.
CROWLEY: The problem for McCain is that while he polls well as a potential commander-in-chief, polls also show the economy remains issue number one and there, Obama scores higher.
Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE) DOBBS: Well, the liberal media's love affair with Senator Obama has, at least, in the minds of many turned in an outright obsession. As we reported, all three network anchors will be accompanying Senator Obama on his tour of Europe and the Middle East. Not a single network anchor traveled with Senator McCain on any of his foreign trips over recent months. Howard Kurtz, host to CNN's RELIABLE SOURCES, has our report
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATIE COURIC, CBS ANCHOR: Barack Obama.
BRIAN WILLIAMS, NBC ANCHOR: Barack Obama.
CHARLIE GIBSON, ABC ANCHOR: Barack Obama.
HOWARD KURTZ, HOST, CNN'S RELIABLE SOURCES (voice-over): The three broadcast network anchors will travel half way around the world, lured by an offer of interviews with the candidate, with Katie Couric, Brian Williams and Charlie Gibson, each getting an exclusives on successive nights. That means -- the CBS, NBC, and ABC evening newscasts will do exactly what the Obama camp wants, use their big megaphones to certify their trip as a major campaign event.
The television chatter is already starting, including on CNN, which will also be all over the story.
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Obama will be headed for the Middle East and intends to show how much he knows about the threats the U.S. faces.
CHRYSTIA FREELAND, FINANCIAL TIMES: The economy is in bad shape but, I think, that this trip by Obama is risky but brilliant.
KURTZ: Of course, it's always big news when a presumed presidential nominee travels abroad, right? Wrong. John McCain has taken three trips abroad to Europe, the Middle East, Canada, Colombia and Mexico in the last four months. No anchors tagged along. In fact, some broadcasting cable networks didn't even send correspondents on some of his trips.
The imbalance doesn't end there. Obama has received more than twice as much air time as McCain on the network evening newscasts since last month, although more coverage doesn't always mean positive coverage.
Obama, who's on the cover of "Newsweek" again this week has been on "Time" or "Newsweek's" cover a dozen times in the last three years. More than twice as often as McCain and in some venues, Obama and his wife Michelle on the cover of "Us Weekly," Obama and his family on "Access Hollywood," it's not even close.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
With Obama expected to draw a big crowds in Europe next week, McCain may struggle just to stay in the headlines. Now, journalists say much of this is driven by the novelty factor; Obama is a new player on the world stage while McCain has been making international trips for decades. But at what point does that become unfair? Lou?
DOBBS: Well, you're the expert. You tell me. I have never in my career, Howard, seen networks, magazine, newspapers -- just throw aside any protensive objectivity. They're in the tank, as far as I'm concern for Obama and they are trying to get deeper in that tank. What's your thought?
KURTZ: Well, I started fulminating about this two or three weeks ago when Senator McCain went to Mexico and Colombia and several news organizations, including CNN, did not even send a correspondent...
DOBBS: Right.
KURTZ: ... let alone an anchor because I know that when the Obama overseas trip came up, that everybody and his brother-in-law would be giving it this kind of coverage. I'm not saying it's all going to be favorable. But the sheer volume of it, and as you say, on magazines, on newspapers -- at some point the argument, the explanation, the rationale that well, he's a newer story, just doesn't hold water. We're supposed to be fair to both sides.
DOBBS: Yes, absolutely. At least, I'm an advocacy journalist, and proud of it. But the men and women of this craft who say they're -- especially the editors that you just mentioned, I mean, I can't even imagine how they can sleep at night. And as I say, the CBS News executive who said that the reason they're all going is because he's never been before is just -- it's laughable at this point.
KURTZ: Well, you know, Lou, some new executives and journalists tell me privately that one of the reasons that Obama is on all those magazine covers and entertainment shows and getting so much television news coverage is because he's good for ratings, he's good for circulation. The perception at least is that he's a bigger draw than McCain. Well, that may be the case, but, again, we're not supposed to have our thumb on the scale.
DOBBS: Absolutely. Well, Howard, thank you very much -- Howard Kurtz, "Washington Post," host of CNN's RELIABLE SOURCES. Thank you.
Up next, here, stunning new evidence that illegal aliens and other non-citizens are voting in our elections, imagine that. We'll have the special report that confirms what we have suspected for some time.
And, financial institutions responsible for our mortgage crisis preying on middle class Americans who are struggling to stay afloat.
We'll be right back with the "War on the Middle Class."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: There is startling new evidence tonight (AUDIO BREAK) our Democracy is at risk on a number of fronts including a new study showing that non-citizens, including illegal aliens are voting in our elections.
As Casey Wian reports, if is year's presidential election remains as close as it appears to be now -- this election could, in fact, be decided by fraud.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The number of non- citizens registered to vote in the United States may run into the tens of thousands, perhaps more. That's according to Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.
This report, written by a former member the Federal Election Commission, concludes that 2000 presidential election and many local elections have been decided within the margin of the number of non- citizens illegally registered to vote. It cites a 2005 Government Accountability Office report that one federal court district using voter registration list to find jurors was told by up to 3 percent of the people on that list, they were not citizens.
HANS VON SPAKOVSKY, HERITAGE FOUNDATION: I don't think that people who are not U.S. citizens should be making or helping to make decisions on who governs the country, who governs local communities, who governs the state.
WIAN: Part of the problem is with so-called "Motor Voter" laws where people applying for driver's licenses are also given voter registration forms at the same time. Non-citizens and in a few states, even illegal aliens are eligible for driver's licenses, but only U.S. citizens are eligible to vote, in state and federal elections.
Ten congressional Republicans are sponsoring a bill to mandate a warning on voter registration forms and at polling places that making a false claim of citizenship is a deportable offense.
REP. VIRGINIA BROWN-WAITE, (R) FLORIDA: Think about how close some of the elections are. We can't let the elections be determined by people who do not have the right to vote here.
WIAN: After all, President Bush won Florida in 2000 by fewer than 1,000 votes. Only Arizona requires voters to show proof of citizenship to cast their ballots. The Heritage Foundation says all states should follow Arizona's lead.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WIAN: But opponents say that would hurt voters who can't easily prove their citizenship. In fact, California Democratic Congressman Zoe Lofgren called the Heritage Foundation report -- part of an effort by Republicans to use what she says is so-called voter fraud to disenfranchise minority voters -- Lou.
DOBBS: So, Congresswoman Lofgren is saying that it's OK to permit illegal aliens to vote, because what? I mean, I don't quite understand the argument.
WIAN: She says that the incidences of illegal aliens or non-citizens voting are relatively small in the words of Congresswoman Lofgren and many other Democrats, it's a much greater threat, they say that many Americans who are legally authorized to vote can't do it or wouldn't be able to do it if restrictions were tighter.
DOBBS: So, in other words, there should be no requirement whatsoever, because we are told anecdotally it would be difficult? I mean, that makes very little sense at best.
WIAN: And apparently, what they want is to make it easier for people to register to vote. They say that illegal aliens aren't going to risk being deported or being found out by registering to vote. But the evidence suggests that there have been many elections where non- citizens have been a factor.
DOBBS: These are the same folks, are they not, Casey, who said illegal aliens in this country are hiding in the shadows, et cetera, et cetera, even as they are lining up for work in communities all across the country. I mean, again, the American people are sitting here swallowing this nonsense whole, it's incredible. We're talking about 3 percent, 3 percent in one case, 3 percent of the population voting, 3 percent of those voter lists being non-citizens or illegal aliens. I mean, it's straightforward.
WIAN: And what's incredible about that is that of the court jurisdictions that they studied, that General Accountability Office studied, only one of those districts actually went back shared with the voter registration officials that "Hey, we've got all of these people who say they're non-citizens, they are on your voter registration lists." So, no one is doing anything about this problem, very few people are doing anything about this problem.
DOBBS: Well, the truth is, there's no one in this federal government is doing anything about it. State governments are overwhelmed and we rely on the honor system in this country for voter registration, and votes that are built (ph) on legitimate voter registration.
It's going to be an ugly, ugly -- potentially a very ugly election in terms of the fraud that is possible. And it has a huge impact, of course, well beyond simply the outcome of a presidential election. We wouldn't want to worry about a little thing like that, would we?
Casey, thank you very much -- Casey Wian.
Well, let's take a look at that. Illegal immigration and voting by illegal aliens are also having, well, something of an impact directly on elections, but also on how the 435 seats on our House of Representatives are divided among the various states. Those seats in Congress are allocated based on population data collected in the census every 10 years.
Now, the census does not distinguish between legal citizens and illegal aliens. That means that states with high illegal alien populations will be gaining seats at the expense of the states with fewer illegal aliens.
A recent study by the University of Connecticut finds that Arizona, Texas, and Florida will gain at least seven congressional seats after the 2010 census, solely because of growing illegal alien populations in those states. Michigan, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio and New York stand to lose seven seats because they don't have enough illegal aliens.
There's a resolution now before Congress that would require congressional seats be allocated based on the number of citizens living in a district, rather than total population, which of course, includes illegal aliens.
Up next, how trying to save money could hurt your credit rating and cost you money. Our special report on the latest abusive credit card practices and fees.
And what the Food and Drug Administration is now saying about the salmonella outbreak. We'll have the latest for you and we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: More and more of our middle class families are relying on their credit cards to pay for the most basic household expenses. Now, some banks and credit card companies are penalizing those very cardholders who are trying to save money and act responsibly.
Kitty Pilgrim reports tonight on the latest abusive tactics by those credit card companies.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KITTY PILGRIM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Credit card uses is soaring. In the month of May alone, Americans put another $8 billion on credit card usage was up by 7 percent. Some banks are now scanning credit card statements, looking for certain purchases they believe are associated with final distress.
RED GILLEN, CLENT CONSULTING: There's increasing debt. The banks are realizing this and there are increased provisions for credit lapses that, I think, are a result of people moving out of home equity loans and into their, basically, into their credit cards to finance their purchases.
PILGRIM: Some credit card companies are now setting up codes for purchases they see is potentially troubling. Experts say suddenly using a credit card to pay for food, utilities, or even doctor's bills may raise red flags to some (ph) banks.
ROBERT MANNING, ROCHESTER INST. TECH.: There's a very well-discussed case of a consumer who purchased retread tires and had his line of credit reduced because the credit card company felt that he was facing financial distress, substituting new tires with retread tires and was one step away from defaulting on his credit card.
PILGRIM: When bank see those indicators, they can trigger lower lines of credit or higher interest rates for future borrowing (ph). Consumer Federation of America says that is wrong.
TRAVIS PLUNKETT, CONSUMER FED. OF AMERICA: Creditors should rely on information about whether consumers pay their bills on time, what their credit history is, to make determinations about their credit worthiness, not whether they've recently used their credit card at a doctor's office or at a hospital
PILGRIM: Many banks will not reveal why their credit decisions are made.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PILGRIM: Some defend the practice saying banks are burdened by the mortgage lending and they have to protect themselves from bad credit risks. Personal bankruptcies are expected to double this year and the consumer is now viewed as a credit risk, no matter how good they have been about paying their bills on time, Lou.
DOBBS: Unbelievable. As banks are reporting what profits they have, are from those outrageously high rates and fees that they're putting on their credit card consumers.
PILGRIM: The people we talked to have said that the most blatant cases of this come from the small credit card companies but you're seeing it in the banking sector also.
DOBBS: Unbelievable and there should be no discussion. This is just a travesty. It should be stopped, ended, done with -- period.
Thank you very much, Kitty, what an amazing story.
Well, the Senate subcommittee on investigations today released a scathing report that accuses two foreign banks of helping wealthy Americans dodge taxes. The Senate report accuses a Swiss bank, UBS and LGT Bank of Liechtenstein of helping wealthy Americans evade billions of dollars in taxes, leaving hardworking middle class families, of course, to shoulder the tax burden.
Senator Carl Levin led that investigation. He said these "tax haven banks are engaged in economic warfare against the United States and the honest, hardworking American taxpayer is losing."
Now, Senator Levin had, I think, a very, very interesting idea. Senator Levin and his colleagues, Senator Norm Coleman, are calling for tough penalties on those tax haven banks, including barring those banks from doing business with American financial institutions. Now that seems like a straightforward response.
And this isn't, by the way, the first time UBS has been at the center of public controversy. Back in 1998, 10 years ago, UBS and Credit Suisse agreed to $1.25 billion settlement on a class action lawsuit filed by the families of holocaust victims. The bank prevented tens of thousands of victims of their holocaust victims and their families from accessing dormant World War II era accounts.
And in 2000, UBS admitted exploiting prisoners of Nazi concentration camps during World War II. UBS confirmed it on the factory where Nazi officers forced hundreds of Auschwitz prisoners to work. UBS, of course, was in the news last week when its vice chairman said that we have become "a nation of whiners," that's right, Phil Gramm.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) PHIL GRAMM, UBS VICE-CHAIRMAN: You've heard of mental depression, this is a mental recession. We have sort of become a nation of whiners.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DOBBS: Well, I'm not whining, and I hope senator, the former senator won't whine when we point out he championed the1999 deregulation of financial firms that some economists say contributed to our credit and mortgage crises.
After retiring from the Senate in 2002, Gramm became a lobbyist for UBS' investment banking division. Phil Gramm is now economic adviser to, of course, Senator John McCain. No whining, senator, no whining.
Up next: The salmonella outbreak is spreading. But health officials now say it's OK to eat tomatoes. Is it? We'll hear from two lawmakers who say they have what it takes to fix our broken food safety program.
Also, the two presidential candidates, this week, are trying to resolve problems that both have with the black community.
And, Senator Obama's overseas tour and the media circus that is so eagerly following him. Will this trip accomplish anything? I'll be talking about that and more with three of the best political analysts in the nation. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez here at the CNN Center in Atlanta. We'll take you back to Lou in just a little bit. What we do right now though is try and catch you up on some of the big headlines of the day.
Of course, John McCain is back in the news. He's weighing in on comments by Iraq's prime minister which appear to support Barack Obama's call for swift U.S. troop withdrawals in Iraq. McCain says that future withdrawal should be based on military conditions not on official time frame. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki surprised everybody today when he said the comments that Barack Obama and his 16-month plan is one he agrees with.
Al Maliki agreeing with Barack Obama's plan, part of it, by the way, release by the White House accidentally when they hit the "send" button. Now, John McCain is responding to this. We'll be all over the story, all its many details.
Also, surf's up. New video from North Carolina -- guess what? There's a tropical storm. He's growing stronger and getting closer to that area. That's what's going on there. Forecasters expect the storm's center to move along the Carolina coast tonight and tomorrow, dumping up to five inches of rain and packing winds of nearly 40 miles an hour.
Also this, we're following this gruesome story outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Police are investigating whether this woman, you're going to be seeing in this videotape in just a little bit, killed another woman, a pregnant woman and actually cut the baby out of her stomach, leaving her for dead and then passing the baby off as her own. Police are saying that she showed up at a hospital with a newborn who wasn't hers and claimed that she bought the baby. Her neighbors are speaking out. Take a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She would never like let you touch her stomach, pregnant women do things like that. They're happy because they're pregnant but she wouldn't let me do that at all and she just kept a distance from me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: By the way, we should also let you know that so far local police are telling us they haven't positively identified the deceased woman who had the baby all but ripped out of her, according to the. What a story. We'll be covering that for you tonight at 10:00 as well. I'm Rick Sanchez. Let's take you back to Lou.
LOU DOBBS, CNN HOST: The Food and Drug Administration this week said it's OK to eat tomatoes again but three months into the Salmonella outbreak, federal agencies have no identified the source of the bacteria. This outbreak has sickened more than 1,200 people officially across 42 states. As many as 30,000 to 40,000 people have taken ill. Louise Schiavone has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LOUISE SCHIAVONE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): All clear, all tomatoes sold anywhere in the United States as of today.
VOICE OF DR. DAVID ACHESON, FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION: We are removing the tomato warning. As of today, FDA officials believe the consumers may now enjoy all types of fresh tomatoes available on the domestic market, without concern of becoming infected with Salmonella St. Paul bacteria.
SCHIAVONE: Still, not clear what cause the ongoing outbreak?
ACHESON: We still do not know where the original contamination point was and we're pursuing that as hard today as we were at the beginning.
SCHIAVONE: The count of confirmed cases was well beyond 1,200, across most states, Washington, D.C., and Canada, more than 200 have been hospitalized. New cases are being logged into the month of July. Better than 50 percent of the cases are documented along the U.S- Mexico border, although produce from Mexico so far has been cleared.
At the same time, however the FDA says field staff is still investigating a specific packer in Mexico, even as the FDA maintains contact with edgy Mexican officials. The Mexican embassy telling "Lou Dobbs Tonight," "not a single case of this strain of Salmonella has been registered in Mexico. Notwithstanding, Mexico is fully committed to the health of consumers in both our countries and will continue to work hand in hand with U.S. authorities to ensure food safety. The government's inability to explain the expanding outbreak has this influential senator suggesting it's time to take the F out of FDA and institute instead --
SEN. TOM HARKIN (D), AGRICULTURE COMTE. CHMN.: One single food safety entity that has jurisdiction over all food safety and they simply don't with have the wherewithal to do it.
SCHIAVONE: The nation's tomato farmers are relieved.
TOM NASSIF, PRES. WESTERN GROWERS: We would have preferred it that it had not occurred, that there had not been speculation that it was tomatoes until they actually had evidence that it was the carrier.
SCHIAVONE: But from farm to table, the industry could well lose a quarter of a billion dollars.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHIAVONE (on-camera): So now, Lou, the focus of suspicion currently rests on jalapeno and Serrano peppers which are not approved for people with health issues and with the mystery still unsolved and the range of suspicion touching on the key ingredients in salsa, Dr. Acheson tells CNN that the science "has not indicated that the outbreak has been linked commercially-produced salsa." As a result, Lou, they haven't been to any places that commercially produce that product. Lou.
DOBBS: Is anyone in that agency's leadership capable of intelligent thought and action. First, the said it's OK to eat tomatoes, at the same time acknowledging they don't know what the original source of it is, at least they're not saying and also they said they're not clearing tomatoes because there are still people sick, and becoming sick, but it's slowed down. I mean, it's almost impossible to make sense of what this agency is doing.
SCHIAVONE: Lou, it's just shocking. A couple of days ago, the FDA gave us a statement, and said we're not about to clear tomatoes, because we don't want to have these outbreaks still ongoing and have to then recall the tomatoes that we've cleared. Now, you know the pressure has been fantastic on the FDA. People from Mexico were here appealing to the U.S. government to clean the slate so they can sell their products. The Florida growers are up in arms. Growers everywhere are up in arms and they have been really bringing pressure to bear on officials in this government.
So they basically cried uncle, although they would tell you that they feel that it's now safe to eat these peppers, these tomatoes rather because the shelf life from April to now, of course, is non existent and so on, but it's just a jumbled investigation and a jumbled message.
DOBBS: Then why are people continuing to become sick?
SCHIAVONE: That's exactly right. That's the mystery, and there are no answers.
DOBSB: And who is the - who do they believe they have a duty to? The American people? The Western Growers Association, or the government of Mexico? This is absolutely outrageous!
SCHIAVNOE: Well for the record, Dr. Acheson said to me it was a decision based on the interests of the American people it was not a trade decision, that's what they're saying.
DOBBS: That's what they said. Fine. I cannot imagine why anyone in their right mind would eat a tomato given the ambiguity, the ambivalence, the contradiction and the inconsistency of everything they've said and done throughout this process, can you?
SCHIAVONE: Well, for myself, Lou, I still do eat tomatoes with you but you know but the point is, they just don't know. So I mean you're really at a point where you don't know what you're supposed to eat -
DOBBS: So let's put it this way -
SCHIAVONE: You're really at a point where you don't know what you're supposed to eat. You can't possibly not eat everything.
DOBBS: Well, if you're eating tomatoes, we're going to keep one camera on you. Louise Schiavone, thanks a lot, we appreciate it.
The congressional subcommittee on oversight and investigations held a hearing and Monday congressional investigators released a report finding at least six other countries and the European Union have far better food safety systems than the United States. The report was ordered by two of Congress's most vocal critics of our food safety programs and system, and its regulators. Joining me now from Capitol Hill, Congresswoman Rosa Delauro of Connecticut and Senator Richard Durbin of Illinois. Thank you both for being here.
REP. ROSA DELAURO (D), CONNECTICUT: Thank you.
DOBBS: Congresswoman, let me ask you, how is it that the United States with the FDA, the CDC, after this many years, after September 11th, we apparently have agencies that have literally no clue as to the origin of the Salmonella outbreak.
DELAURO: Well, the fact is, Lou, is that the federal government has walked away from its responsibility of ensuring and protecting our food supply. Each day we have a new outbreak. We have a different product, a different pathogen and a different agency that does the investigation. The results are the same. The American public's health is at risk and farmers face tremendous losses. The GAO as you pointed out did do a study. They offer us some ideas about how to reform our system, and they've identified from other countries three critical components that could help to ensure food safety system, traceability, better coordination between the federal state, and local public health agencies, and mandatory recall.
And as a matter of fact, those are the components that Senator Durbin and I have in our bill to the Safe Food Act which would have single food safety agency to address this issue and we what we would do is to have better coordination of research, of investigations, and overall safety of the food supply.
DOBBS: Senator Durbin, your - Safe Food Act that you in the Senate and obviously Congresswoman Delauro have introduced here, I mean, how soon can this be into effect? How soon do you expect its passage, and the improvement in our food safety system as a result?
SEN. RICHARD DURBIN, SENATE MAJORITY WHIP: Let's be honest. It's not likely to happen this year.
DOBBS: Yes.
DURBIN: We're near an election, a change in administration. The president is not going to go forward with an initiative. It takes presidential leadership, but I can guarantee, whoever the next president may be and I have my favorite in the race, we're going to go to the president and say you're going to do this for the safety of the food on the tables of families across America.
DOBBS: Senator Durbin, what in the world must -- surely you know what people are thinking as they listen to Senator Durbin say we're not going to be able to get to it this year, when thousands, arguably 30,000 to 40,000 Americans have been sickened in this outbreak. The FDA hasn't got a clue what it's doing and you're being honest, I understand that and straightforward and for that, I commend you, but the Congress is so broken that it can't move to protect the American people right now?
DURBIN: Well, Lou, I want to tell you, Congressman Delauro and I have been fighting this battle for a long, long time. And every time there is a serious food contamination or illness that goes around, people get interested in food safety. We're going to keep this battle going but we need a president who is willing to show leadership. You really have to tackle 15 different federal agencies, scores of committees, lobbyist, special interest groups that don't want change. The American people deserve this. They need a better food safety system.
DELAURO: The senator is right, Lou. And we are looking at a real change in attitude here on Capitol Hill, because there is less confidence in our food system, and many of our colleagues are coming aboard to say that you know, a single food agency that's focused directly on food safety and nothing else is a direction to go in, but this is top-down issue, not a bottom-up. We need a president, and we need agency heads who believe that this is a direction that we ought to be going in.
DOBBS: Well, congresswoman, we thank you very much for being with us, Congresswoman Delauro. Thank you very much, Senator Durbin. Thank you, sir. Appreciate it and compliments to you both for introducing a legislation desperately needed. Thank you both.
DELAURO: Thank you.
DOBBS: Coming up next, a group on identity politics, how important is race in this presidential campaign? We'll have that special report and more. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DOBBS: Senators Obama and McCain both say they'll try to heal racial divisions in this country. They gave speeches to the NAACP this past week. But as Candy Crowley reports, both Obama and McCain find it difficult to end the influence of race on presidential politics.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: John McCain went before the NAACP and recognized the obvious. Barack Obama is making history.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Of course, I would prefer his success not to continue quite as long as he hopes. But it does make you and me proud to know the country I've loved and served all my life still a work in progress and always improving.
CROWLEY: But a "New York Times-" CBS poll shows despite Obama's already historic run, Americans still see things in black and white. 59 percent of blacks describe race relations as generally bad in this country. Only 34 percent of whites say that. What's more, only half of black respondents think an Obama presidency would change race relations.
RON WALTERS, AFRICAN AMERICAN LEADERSHIP CTR.: It lends some credence to the fact that even if Barack Obama is the nominee of the party or even if he wins the presidency, it's not going to have profound effect upon race relations in the United States.
CROWLEY: And while Obama battles McCain to become leader of the western world, the poll also found 64 percent of blacks think whites have a better chance of getting ahead. Just 35 percent of whites thought that. It goes on with blacks more likely than whites to see Obama as caring about the problems of people like them, and more likely to describe him as patriotic. Whites are more likely to see Obama as a politician who says what he thinks people want to hear. The truth is blacks have voted democratic for decades. No democratic presidential nominee has won the white vote since the early '70s. These things take time.
WALTERS: You have to look at American culture and the fact that it's been 400 years for these kind of racial attitudes to develop, racial behaviors to materialize and you're certainly not going to wipe that out with just someone being elected to any office in the United States.
CROWLEY: Making history does not change history. Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.
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DOBBS: Up next, Senator Obama going overseas trying to convince voters he'll stand up for U.S. interests globally. We'll be talking about that and much more. I'll be joined by three of the best political analysts in the country and a reminder to please join me on the radio, Monday through Friday for "The Lou Dobbs show, go to loudobsradio.com to find your local listings. That's loudobbsbradio.com. We'll be right back.
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DOBBS: Joining me now, three of the best political analysts in the country and CNN contributors all, Ed Rollins, former White House political director, former campaign chairman Mike Huckabee republican strategist, syndicated columnist, Miguel Perez and Errol Louis, columnist, "New York Daily News" and host of the morning show on WWRL here in New York. Good to have you all here.
Miguel, let's start with this, the adventure in the Middle east and Europe for Barack Obama, what do you think?
MIGUEL PEREZ, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I think it's trial and error for him. He could do great and he could really collapse.
DOBBS: He's got three network anchors traveling with him. He's going to have, it's going to be a media circus and no one seems to want to accompany John McCain. What's the deal? You see a little media bias?
PEREZ: Oh definitely. There's definitely media bias. All the polls, all the studies that have been done show that you know, extremely much more coverage for Obama than for McCain. It's going to be hard for McCain to keep up with whatever's going on with Europe and the Middle East. He's hoping to concentrate on domestic issues while Obama is away but he's going to have to respond to some of the things that Obama is saying out there from here.
DOBBS: What do you think, Errol?
ERROL LOUIS, 'NEW YORK DAILY NEWS": Well, the drama and the staging of the Obama trip which the press is playing into, I think, is really what's driving all of this. You know, the appearance before the Brandenburg Gate and the sort of a redo of Kennedy's famous appearance there or Reagan's appearance as well. You know, all throughout the campaign what you find is the media really responds to that. I mean, look, if you have 2,000 members of the press corps, it's dwindled a little bit but not much, following a candidate around. It is really all about staging and his team is very, very good at it. I mean, Reagan has benefited from the same kind of knack.
DOBBS: You and I both know they can stage until they went blind. The fact is, the international media weren't in the tank for Barack Obama they wouldn't be there.
LOUIS: Well, you know, he's - I think it can backfire on him frankly. You know, some of the biggest mistakes he's made have come when he took for granted that everybody in the press would kind of spin things in his direction.
DOBBS: Ed.
ED ROLLINS, FMR. HUCKABEE CAMPAIGN MGR.: We're at a point where Barack Obama has had great settings in the past. And he's had some great speeches in the past. We're now looking for substance. Country is looking for substance. And I think on this trip if it's not substance and it's all style, with the cameraman and everyone else following, I think he'll look much shorter in stature than he starts the trip. The thing that scared me the most about his trip, I read the "New York Times," he has 300 national security foreign advisers which means he has a mini state department traveling. What you need is one or two good smart people giving you good counsel, not 300 giving you all kinds of conflicting things.
DOBBS: Let me take you back to the days that James Baker, Brent Scowcroft, ((inaudible)) I don't know but you would probably argue with that as a republican. But, you know some smart people.
ROLLINS: Absolutely, you don't need, you need the best and the brightest around you. You don't need thousands and I think what he has now is he is trying to cover every base. And you look at that list, you know, every past administration, and there is different view points. You need some - he's got to basically hit some triples and some doubles and a home run for this trip. Otherwise he's going to come out looking like he's not -
DOBBS: Well, right now. The polls are showing something very interesting. And that is, that in spite of all of the national media's fervor and deep unabiding passion for Barack Obama it isn't shared by the country. The man is in a dead heat with a 71-year-old fellow that the national media wants to reject as too old and out of touch. And also because of his links of course to George W. Bush, to an economy that is struggling at best. What's going on, Miguel? Is the national media really this far out of touch with the mood and the temperature of the people?
MIGUEL PEREZ, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Absolutely I think so. But at the same time, it's not just the media. It's like the reaction that Obama is going to go to Europe. That is a two-edged sword. If he is too popular in France, the American people may not like that.
DOBBS: I think that - I don't know, I think the French can be forgiven a lot was they watched the romance between Sarkozy and Carla. I mean, you know, I think much is being forgiven, don't you?
PEREZ: Yes, absolutely forgiven but at the same time if he goes over there and he turns out that he, you know, and it is expected. Right now this is what everybody is expecting that Obama is going to be so well received in Europe that it might actually turn off American voters.
DOBBS: Well, one of the things that I believe, and it's all I can say is I believe, because we don't have right now, but I think we're getting it - empirical objective evidence that is turning off American voters as all this playing and pandering to ethnocentric groups, whether it be a La Raza, or the ((inaudible)) or the NACCP. I'm just curious about were you amused that Barack Obama bought in to the line the La Raza line that La Raza means "the people" instead of "the race."
PEREZ: No, absolutely not. But La Raza means "the race." And I had a problem with the name of that organization forever.
DOBBS: It's incredible. When are we going to see this sort of break to recognize the rest of the American people who are not in any way identified. The reality is quite different. I don't believe black people are represented by the NACCP anymore than I believe that Hispanic Americans are recognized by LaRaza. When are we going to see this nonsense end?
LOUIS: Well, in the short term I think you're going to see it end as we get loser to the convention. This is the slowest media time of the year. A lot of people are on vacation. They're not really tracking this. They're doing both candidates, they're doing a little pocket pandering. Talking to people, you know - knowing.
DOBBS: Pocket pandering?
LOUIS: A phrase I made up.
DOBBS: I like that. I like that.
LOUIS: They're trying to set - you know, say something that they don't think the rest of the country is listening to. Slip a few voters in their pocket and kind of slip out and keep going. And they can get away with it now. It will all end around convention time.
DOBBS: We're going to talk about wholesale pandering in just a moment. We're going to leave that for Ed Rollins. We'll be right back with our political roundtable in one moment. Stay with us. We're coming right back. You don't want to miss wholesale pandering.
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DOBBS: We're back with Ed Rollins, Miguel Perez and Errol Louis. Ed, let me turn to you and ask you the pandering that's going on with ethnocentric, interest groups. With McCain talking about as well about being the biggest free market, free trader in the country. Whatever. I mean these two candidates can't seem to find much separation in terms of the voters. When they're supposed to be, McCain is supposed to be lagging way behind Obama.
ROLLINS: The truth of the matter is if the country had a do-over they would do-over. They have gone through this very long, tedious process and they have two candidates about to be nominated by both parties and they're having very serious doubts. Even democrats are having serious doubts about Obama as talented as he may be and I think certainly republicans you will find anywhere start having serious doubts.
DOBBS: So, this election is going to be about the lesser of lessers.
ROLLINS: And I think the polls are indicating and one of the reason it's so close is really about Obama. It's really about can this guy who is advocating change, who is he? What's the substance. He's going off to imitate Kennedy and Reagan, who obviously had certain credentials before they went before the German gate and asked for certain things. DOBBS: They were actually elected national office.
ROLLINS: And they knew something about the substance and they deserved to basically go there because there is a history. There is no history with this guy. And I think the bottom line here is that the reason it is a close race as opposed to a blowout which any other democrat might have had is that people are having serious doubts about this substance.
DOBBS: I thing there are plenty of doubts to go around between these two candidates if I may suggest. But one of the things that I think that will start to show up in these polls and I'm sensing it when I talk to, the viewers of this broadcast or listeners of my radio broadcast, that is there are some serious questions about the democratic party out of hand perfunctorily saying no drilling off shore. The sense is most Americans want to drill offshore. They want drill on Anwr. They want relief from the exorbitantly high gasoline prices, fuel prices, home heating oil prices. There is also a great disenchantment it seems to me with the quality of leadership whether it's in Congress or the White House. What does this mean for the outcome of the election
LOUIS: Well, I don't know if it changes it to tell you the truth. Unfortunately, because we have these two party system where people feel like at the end of the day even if they don't like the democratic Congress and that's what the polls all say. Popularity is below that of the president.
DOBBS: They hate the democratic Congress. They hate the republican president.
LOUIS: Right. But they like their particular congressman. I think that dynamic is going to play out as it often does. I think also in the end, there are people who are not necessarily ready to bolt their party. You know, and then it takes us back to the old question what will the independents do?
DOBBS: Well, and the independents are the fastest growing, as we know, the fastest growing registrants on the rolls in this country. Faster than democrats or republicans. Praise the Lord.
LOUIS: I hear Colorado just flipped. Independents are the biggest group now.
ROLLINS: They may not like our president. And not a question of getting to re-elect the president. Bottom line, independents are disaffected Democrats and disaffected Republicans. They're making a choice by becoming independents. Young people are becoming independents because the two parties aren't relevant in their lives.
One of the things we're seeing, Miguel, in the latest poll a disaffection if you will. We have seen enthusiasm quotient for Barack Obama, among young people drop by just about a third here. Recently. The implications?
PEREZ: The implications is that McCain has a shot. McCain has been surprising us throughout. From the very beginning. We wrote him off. And many, many times during t summer. Ad everybody who is writing him off is in for a surprise I think.
DOBBS: All right. Well, one of the things I am going to be thinking about over the course of the weekend of course is how do we do that redo? Sounds like a compelling idea, Ed.
Thank you very much, Ed, appreciate it, Errol, thank you very much, Miguel. And thank you for being with us. Join us here tomorrow. For all of us thank you for watching. Good night from New York.
