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Page Turners: 'Balance of Power'

Aired October 31, 2003 - 15:13   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.


JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Best-selling novelist Richard North Patterson has turned his skills at weaving popular fiction to the hot political topics of gun control and legal reform. His newest book, published this month, is called "Balance of Power."
Richard North Patterson with me now from San Francisco.

And thank you for talking with me.

RICHARD NORTH PATTERSON, AUTHOR, "BALANCE OF POWER": Great to be with you, Judy.

WOODRUFF: First of all, you are known to be -- and you say this outright in the book -- an advocate of gun control. Did you write this book to get a message across, primarily?

PATTERSON: Yes.

It's this. Most people think of America's gun violence in terms of a tragedy, like the death of JFK. But since JFK was killed, we have lost more people to guns than we've lost in all the wars of the 20th century, over one million people. And that was the bloodiest century in our history.

So what I'm trying to get across, Judy, is this. There are sensible ways that we can keep kids from killing each other with guns and America from being the violent country that it is.

WOODRUFF: Do you think it is more effective to get that message across in a fictional account than through a whole lot of newscasts?

PATTERSON: I think so, yes.

If I give people characters to care about, in this case, the first lady of the United States and her new marriage to the president of the United States, and then show people how violence impacts on them through the murder of her mother, sister, and niece, there is an immediate social connection. And then I can ask them to think about why we kill each other at such a record rate in this country and what we can do to stop it.

WOODRUFF: You do say, Richard North Patterson, in the book that you did not talk to the NRA, the National Rifle Association, in preparing for the book. Do you think that the way you portray pro-gun rights organizations -- you call them the Sons of the Second Amendment.

PATTERSON: Yes, that's right.

WOODRUFF: Is a fair and -- a reasonably fair portrait?

PATTERSON: Oh, absolutely.

I did research. I interviewed over 200 people. And I tried to talk to Wayne LaPierre, but he refused to speak to me. He has become a book critic, because he has made it clear he doesn't like the book, but he won't debate me. So I have done everything I can to meet him privately and publicly. And if he doesn't want to, that is, I think, a tribute to the relative feebleness of their ideas.

WOODRUFF: Right now, in the presidential campaign, we have, among other things, candidate John Kerry criticizing Howard Dean for, in his words, flip-flopping on the gun issue. But, by and large, the gun issue really isn't a feature of this presidential campaign or the last one. Democrats seem to want to stay away from it. What do you think about that?

PATTERSON: Well, I think that's based on myth. I mean, they blame West Virginia and Tennessee and Gore's loss of them on guns. But the truth is, the battleground was Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, all strong gun states. Gore was for gun control. He won all three.

He lost West Virginia and Tennessee on cultural grounds, I think, and on environmental policy. And the NRA, which is very shrewd, even when they lose, came out and declared victory. So I think Democrats are buying something that really isn't true.

The truth, Judy, I think, is, demographically, the hunting culture is fading out. We have suburbanites and women, critical votes, who are voters for gun control. And Democrats just need to be clear. If Howard Dean think the NRA's going to help him, he's dreaming.

WOODRUFF: But that being the case, why are Democrats typically staying away from this issue?

PATTERSON: Well, the Democrats have been irresolute on a number of things lately.

But I think they bought a myth. And if you look at the facts, not only the Gore election, which Gore won, but in the Senate last year in 2002, the NRA gave money to seven candidates mostly. Five lost. They gave money to their 10 favorite House candidates. Seven lost. They endorsed six governors. Five lost. And then they go out and say: You can't beat us.

The truth is, they raise a lot of money by scaring their electorate. And then they give it to politicians, and so they do buy influence and access. But 85 percent of Americans are with us, in favor with commonsense gun measures. And let me be clear. We are not talking about confiscation. We're about keeping guns away from bad people. WOODRUFF: Well, we hear you loud and clear, Richard North Patterson, your views coming out loud and clear in the book, your latest book, "Balance of Power."

Thank you very much for talking with me.

PATTERSON: Thank you, Judy.

WOODRUFF: Appreciate it. Thank you.

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







Aired October 31, 2003 - 15:13   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JUDY WOODRUFF, CNN ANCHOR: Best-selling novelist Richard North Patterson has turned his skills at weaving popular fiction to the hot political topics of gun control and legal reform. His newest book, published this month, is called "Balance of Power."
Richard North Patterson with me now from San Francisco.

And thank you for talking with me.

RICHARD NORTH PATTERSON, AUTHOR, "BALANCE OF POWER": Great to be with you, Judy.

WOODRUFF: First of all, you are known to be -- and you say this outright in the book -- an advocate of gun control. Did you write this book to get a message across, primarily?

PATTERSON: Yes.

It's this. Most people think of America's gun violence in terms of a tragedy, like the death of JFK. But since JFK was killed, we have lost more people to guns than we've lost in all the wars of the 20th century, over one million people. And that was the bloodiest century in our history.

So what I'm trying to get across, Judy, is this. There are sensible ways that we can keep kids from killing each other with guns and America from being the violent country that it is.

WOODRUFF: Do you think it is more effective to get that message across in a fictional account than through a whole lot of newscasts?

PATTERSON: I think so, yes.

If I give people characters to care about, in this case, the first lady of the United States and her new marriage to the president of the United States, and then show people how violence impacts on them through the murder of her mother, sister, and niece, there is an immediate social connection. And then I can ask them to think about why we kill each other at such a record rate in this country and what we can do to stop it.

WOODRUFF: You do say, Richard North Patterson, in the book that you did not talk to the NRA, the National Rifle Association, in preparing for the book. Do you think that the way you portray pro-gun rights organizations -- you call them the Sons of the Second Amendment.

PATTERSON: Yes, that's right.

WOODRUFF: Is a fair and -- a reasonably fair portrait?

PATTERSON: Oh, absolutely.

I did research. I interviewed over 200 people. And I tried to talk to Wayne LaPierre, but he refused to speak to me. He has become a book critic, because he has made it clear he doesn't like the book, but he won't debate me. So I have done everything I can to meet him privately and publicly. And if he doesn't want to, that is, I think, a tribute to the relative feebleness of their ideas.

WOODRUFF: Right now, in the presidential campaign, we have, among other things, candidate John Kerry criticizing Howard Dean for, in his words, flip-flopping on the gun issue. But, by and large, the gun issue really isn't a feature of this presidential campaign or the last one. Democrats seem to want to stay away from it. What do you think about that?

PATTERSON: Well, I think that's based on myth. I mean, they blame West Virginia and Tennessee and Gore's loss of them on guns. But the truth is, the battleground was Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, all strong gun states. Gore was for gun control. He won all three.

He lost West Virginia and Tennessee on cultural grounds, I think, and on environmental policy. And the NRA, which is very shrewd, even when they lose, came out and declared victory. So I think Democrats are buying something that really isn't true.

The truth, Judy, I think, is, demographically, the hunting culture is fading out. We have suburbanites and women, critical votes, who are voters for gun control. And Democrats just need to be clear. If Howard Dean think the NRA's going to help him, he's dreaming.

WOODRUFF: But that being the case, why are Democrats typically staying away from this issue?

PATTERSON: Well, the Democrats have been irresolute on a number of things lately.

But I think they bought a myth. And if you look at the facts, not only the Gore election, which Gore won, but in the Senate last year in 2002, the NRA gave money to seven candidates mostly. Five lost. They gave money to their 10 favorite House candidates. Seven lost. They endorsed six governors. Five lost. And then they go out and say: You can't beat us.

The truth is, they raise a lot of money by scaring their electorate. And then they give it to politicians, and so they do buy influence and access. But 85 percent of Americans are with us, in favor with commonsense gun measures. And let me be clear. We are not talking about confiscation. We're about keeping guns away from bad people. WOODRUFF: Well, we hear you loud and clear, Richard North Patterson, your views coming out loud and clear in the book, your latest book, "Balance of Power."

Thank you very much for talking with me.

PATTERSON: Thank you, Judy.

WOODRUFF: Appreciate it. 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