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Bush Meets Schwarzenegger; Interview With Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn

Aired October 16, 2003 - 15:01   ET

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

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


CANDY CROWLEY, CNN ANCHOR: Arnold Schwarzenegger says California has no better friend in this town than President Bush. But Mr. Bush doesn't want the relationship to be one-sided. He's hoping the Republican's new golden boy will help his own chances in the Golden State.
CNN's Frank Buckley has more from California on today's Bush- Schwarzenegger meeting and what came out of it, if anything -- Frank.

FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Candy, as you know, in 2000, President Bush lost big here in California, despite spending a great deal of money trying to go after the voters here. He lost to Al Gore by more than a million votes in 2000.

His campaign advisers for 2004 are already saying that California is now in play following the election of a moderate Republican in the recall election, that moderate Republican governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger. As far as we know, during the half-hour meeting today, they didn't get that far into the nitty-gritty of 2004 or into anything else, for that matter.

We're told that it was a relationship-building sort of a meeting today.

Here's what President Bush had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We both love our country.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to be a fine and strong leader for California.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

BUSH: I'm proud to call him friend.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BUCKLEY: Now, during the campaign, Arnold Schwarzenegger often complained about the fact that California was spending too much of its tax money and not getting enough in return from the federal government. He said, after he was elected, that he intended to seek a lot of favors from President Bush. Today, during their half-hour meeting, it didn't appear as if Schwarzenegger went there. Just a few moments ago, he had a news conference and gave us his readout on the meeting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR-ELECT: I did not go in to present the president with any kind of detailed kind of requests or a laundry list of things. I thought that the first meeting ought to be just about getting to know one another and building a relationship of mutual trust and that we both are having the same goals, which is to help the state of California.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BUCKLEY: Whatever the outcome of today's meeting, I can tell you that Republicans here in California are very excited about the fact that this governor-elect is meeting with this sitting president. I talked to one GOP political consultant, who said that this recall election victory is like going from Siberia to being in an oasis -- Candy.

CROWLEY: Thanks so much, CNN's Frank Buckley in San Bernardino.

Schwarzenegger is making the transition to governor with help from Californians of both parties. Now we want to go to our Los Angeles bureau, where joining us is the mayor of Los Angeles, Democrat James Hahn, who is also a member of the transition team.

Did you ever think this would happen?

JAMES HAHN (D), MAYOR OF LOS ANGELES: Well, I think that -- Arnold Schwarzenegger is somebody I've known for a while. We worked together on after-school programs.

But nobody had ever thought a recall could happen in California. But we've had one. The people elected Arnold Schwarzenegger as the new governor of California. And I'm happy to work with him on the transition team as a Democrat. He's really put together a bipartisan team.

CROWLEY: Mayor Hahn, I wonder how difficult that is going to be, after what was a very bitter recall. And listening to Frank Buckley -- I don't know if you heard him -- talking about how Republicans are already talking about how Schwarzenegger will help the president's chance in California. This does not seem to be sort of helpful towards that bipartisan thing.

HAHN: Everybody wants Arnold Schwarzenegger to succeed. I think that's what we're all saying as part of the transition team. I think everybody in California wants the governor to succeed. You don't want failure, obviously, in California. We want our state to improve. We want Arnold to be able to do the things that he talked about, making this a better state. The chances of winning the state and putting it back in the Republican column in 2004 is a different situation. California is a strong Democratic state. For the most part, Democrats are the ones who win here in California. The exceptions are when you might have a Californian running like Ronald Reagan. But it's a Democratic state. I think it will help Republicans. But I think, right now, we're trying to put partisanship aside for a while, because California has some big problems.

CROWLEY: OK, so what does one do on a transition team in a transition that's never taken place before? What's your job? What have you done? What's going on?

HAHN: What I'm trying to do is to help put together a coalition of local government leaders to work with Governor Schwarzenegger about how we improve the relationship between state and local government. All of us in the transition team are kind of also being asked to be kind of part of a nomination committee to help fill out the staff, to identify key individuals that we can suggest to the governor and his team about who would be good to put on his staff there.

He doesn't have a lot of time here, maybe just three weeks, to put together a real government. And, usually, you have two or three months to do that. So we want to help him identify people who can, whether they're Democrat or Republican or independent, want to do what's best for California.

CROWLEY: We don't have much time left, but I want you to get as close to the truth as you can on this question. I understand you need to be bipartisan. California has big problems that need to be settled in a bipartisan way.

Is there no part of you that looks at this election, which was sold by outgoing Governor Gray Davis as a power grab, there's no part of you that remains just a little bit bitter and upset about that?

HAHN: I think the recall I was very much opposed to. And I was bitter about it, because it seemed like it was just spoiled grapes. But Arnold Schwarzenegger didn't have anything to do with getting this recall on the ballot.

And I think, when the opportunity presented itself, he took advantage of that opportunity. So I don't blame him for that. But there is a part of me, as -- you're right -- as a Democrat, I thought that this was not a fair way to go. It is, however, what happened. Arnold Schwarzenegger is our governor. I'm going to do everything I can to support him.

CROWLEY: Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

HAHN: Thank you.

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






Mayor James Hahn>


Aired October 16, 2003 - 15:01   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN ANCHOR: Arnold Schwarzenegger says California has no better friend in this town than President Bush. But Mr. Bush doesn't want the relationship to be one-sided. He's hoping the Republican's new golden boy will help his own chances in the Golden State.
CNN's Frank Buckley has more from California on today's Bush- Schwarzenegger meeting and what came out of it, if anything -- Frank.

FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Candy, as you know, in 2000, President Bush lost big here in California, despite spending a great deal of money trying to go after the voters here. He lost to Al Gore by more than a million votes in 2000.

His campaign advisers for 2004 are already saying that California is now in play following the election of a moderate Republican in the recall election, that moderate Republican governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger. As far as we know, during the half-hour meeting today, they didn't get that far into the nitty-gritty of 2004 or into anything else, for that matter.

We're told that it was a relationship-building sort of a meeting today.

Here's what President Bush had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We both love our country.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to be a fine and strong leader for California.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

BUSH: I'm proud to call him friend.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BUCKLEY: Now, during the campaign, Arnold Schwarzenegger often complained about the fact that California was spending too much of its tax money and not getting enough in return from the federal government. He said, after he was elected, that he intended to seek a lot of favors from President Bush. Today, during their half-hour meeting, it didn't appear as if Schwarzenegger went there. Just a few moments ago, he had a news conference and gave us his readout on the meeting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR-ELECT: I did not go in to present the president with any kind of detailed kind of requests or a laundry list of things. I thought that the first meeting ought to be just about getting to know one another and building a relationship of mutual trust and that we both are having the same goals, which is to help the state of California.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BUCKLEY: Whatever the outcome of today's meeting, I can tell you that Republicans here in California are very excited about the fact that this governor-elect is meeting with this sitting president. I talked to one GOP political consultant, who said that this recall election victory is like going from Siberia to being in an oasis -- Candy.

CROWLEY: Thanks so much, CNN's Frank Buckley in San Bernardino.

Schwarzenegger is making the transition to governor with help from Californians of both parties. Now we want to go to our Los Angeles bureau, where joining us is the mayor of Los Angeles, Democrat James Hahn, who is also a member of the transition team.

Did you ever think this would happen?

JAMES HAHN (D), MAYOR OF LOS ANGELES: Well, I think that -- Arnold Schwarzenegger is somebody I've known for a while. We worked together on after-school programs.

But nobody had ever thought a recall could happen in California. But we've had one. The people elected Arnold Schwarzenegger as the new governor of California. And I'm happy to work with him on the transition team as a Democrat. He's really put together a bipartisan team.

CROWLEY: Mayor Hahn, I wonder how difficult that is going to be, after what was a very bitter recall. And listening to Frank Buckley -- I don't know if you heard him -- talking about how Republicans are already talking about how Schwarzenegger will help the president's chance in California. This does not seem to be sort of helpful towards that bipartisan thing.

HAHN: Everybody wants Arnold Schwarzenegger to succeed. I think that's what we're all saying as part of the transition team. I think everybody in California wants the governor to succeed. You don't want failure, obviously, in California. We want our state to improve. We want Arnold to be able to do the things that he talked about, making this a better state. The chances of winning the state and putting it back in the Republican column in 2004 is a different situation. California is a strong Democratic state. For the most part, Democrats are the ones who win here in California. The exceptions are when you might have a Californian running like Ronald Reagan. But it's a Democratic state. I think it will help Republicans. But I think, right now, we're trying to put partisanship aside for a while, because California has some big problems.

CROWLEY: OK, so what does one do on a transition team in a transition that's never taken place before? What's your job? What have you done? What's going on?

HAHN: What I'm trying to do is to help put together a coalition of local government leaders to work with Governor Schwarzenegger about how we improve the relationship between state and local government. All of us in the transition team are kind of also being asked to be kind of part of a nomination committee to help fill out the staff, to identify key individuals that we can suggest to the governor and his team about who would be good to put on his staff there.

He doesn't have a lot of time here, maybe just three weeks, to put together a real government. And, usually, you have two or three months to do that. So we want to help him identify people who can, whether they're Democrat or Republican or independent, want to do what's best for California.

CROWLEY: We don't have much time left, but I want you to get as close to the truth as you can on this question. I understand you need to be bipartisan. California has big problems that need to be settled in a bipartisan way.

Is there no part of you that looks at this election, which was sold by outgoing Governor Gray Davis as a power grab, there's no part of you that remains just a little bit bitter and upset about that?

HAHN: I think the recall I was very much opposed to. And I was bitter about it, because it seemed like it was just spoiled grapes. But Arnold Schwarzenegger didn't have anything to do with getting this recall on the ballot.

And I think, when the opportunity presented itself, he took advantage of that opportunity. So I don't blame him for that. But there is a part of me, as -- you're right -- as a Democrat, I thought that this was not a fair way to go. It is, however, what happened. Arnold Schwarzenegger is our governor. I'm going to do everything I can to support him.

CROWLEY: Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

HAHN: Thank you.

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






Mayor James Hahn>