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Saudi-Born Woman Seeks to Be First Such Person to Hold U.S. Elective Office

Aired April 12, 2004 - 13:33   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.


MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Latest developments at this hour. An Iraqi leader says Muslim clerics are putting out the word, no more abductions they say. A Governing Council member says that could lead to hostage releases later today. At last count insurgents are holding at least 13 civilians from China, Japan and the U.S.
In Spain, court officials tell CNN three more suspects in custody in Madrid and after the train bombing investigation, all of them from morocco. A judge already has charged 17 other suspects, most of them Moroccan, in the bombings that killed 190 last month.

Here at home, happier news. Hundreds of young people turned out today for the White House Easter Egg Roll. It was a slightly soggy setting. The president was out of town. But the kids seemed to enjoy the competition nonetheless, pushing colorful eggs with a spoon across the South Lawn.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: State assembly races don't often generate much excitement with their own district, let alone on the world stage but a woman who is running for a California state house seat from suburban Los Angeles is making news as far away as Saudi Arabia. She's Ferial Masry, and if she wins, she will be the first Saudi-born man or woman to hold elected office anywhere in America. She joins us from L.A. to talk about her campaign.

Nice to have you with us.

FERIAL MASRY (D), CALIF. ASSEMBLY CANDIDATE: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Well, first of all, Ferial, tell me, why are you running?

MASRY: Actually, I'm running for three reasons. One of the reason is as a Democrat in our area, we feel disfranchised. The people who are representing in our area are a very small group and they are very right wing and they are exclusive. And we feel we are not represented. And, actually, it's not just us as Democrats, independents and some of the moderate Republicans.

And we feel it is time to change and to get somebody who is really inclusive, have maturity and is ready to represent the area; especially our area with growth and also protecting public schools. We need transport in our area. We have the problem of health care and it's too expensive, and a lot of the county and city complaining about the budget. So we need somebody to present the problem and to really find a solution. And I think I can do that. So that's one of the reasons. The second reason is, as an Arab-American and Muslim, with the time we are living through now with the Patriot Act and terrorism, we feel that our community has been targeted unfairly and we feel like the Patriot Act was not fair.

And a lot of us run away from Middle East, coming here, away from the problem and find it just haunts us. And all the stereotypes I think affects our kids. So by running, I feel I am really giving hope, and making the community feel they're not marginalized. They are really -- can be part of the solution, not part of the problem.

PHILLIPS: Well, let's talk about your birthplace some more, and your culture, the fact that you are from Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has been a strong ally to the United States, however, when you look at 9/11, as you know, a number of the hijackers are from Saudi Arabia. Do you feel that Saudi Arabia is doing enough to fight terrorism?

MASRY: I think it's -- fighting terrorism is more than just Saudi Arabia. It's a problem, I think it has its root here in our policy here, the United States policy, and the governments in the Middle East. The problem is terrorism is a reaction of years of, you know, oppression in the Middle East. And then, as President Bush himself said, that sometimes we have the wrong policy supporting the wrong people.

And 9/11 is a result of a lot of things, a lot of oppression, a lot of disenfranchised people, people who feel unempowered, and then the Russians attacking Afghanistan and the result of the Afghanistan war. And don't forget, also, the result of our support for the Shah for a long time, and the revolution in Iran. All of this, we have to look at the roots of the problems.

It's not just Saudi Arabia or us. We can use weapons, we can use violence, but violence is going to breed violence. And I think the Middle East has to change. And I think there are two perceptions that have to change. Our perception towards solving the problem in the Middle East, we have to understand more Middle East.

And, second, the Middle East themselves, the people that are intellectual, the intelligentsia in the Middle East, they are moderate in the Middle East, they have to start coming with a vision that we have to stop their fighting, the oppression of the regimes and also the fundamentalists and the extremists who are really hijacking, Islam hijacking, you know, the people's hopes. And it's a lot of destruction going on in the Middle East and it's not going to benefit anybody. It's just going to create more and more problems. And we see the Iraqi problem is one of those. So I think...

PHILLIPS: Sorry. No, I didn't mean to cut you off. But you mentioned Iraq, and I want to get this in before we have to, unfortunately, wrap up the interview. But your son is active in the military, he's in the Army, your husband is in the Navy, you are against the war in Iraq. A bit of an interesting twist here. How do you put your family at ease but at the same time stay strong to your vision about being strong against the war?

MASRY: You see, working with the Army, the Army is a tool. The Army cannot decide anything. War is decided by politicians. So I cannot complain about the soldiers. Our soldiers are doing their job. The problem here is the politicians and that's why I'm against the war, against the politicians who took this country to war. It's a war of choice. It wasn't a necessary war and is going to create more problems.

Our soldiers, I'm proud of them because they're doing their role. And my son is one of the people who went there and he went to Iraq. And I remember when he was going, I told him, I say, you're going there, you have to remember, I want you to represent America in its best. And I want you to be a good Muslim and Arab. And I want you to listen to a lot of unspoken words there because you're going from a culture which is 200 years old and you're going to civilization which is 7000 years old. You have to bring the best of each culture because you have the choice, and he's lucky because he represents two cultures here.

And I'm very proud of him because, if you go to his Web site and what he wrote about the war and what he wrote about the work he was doing there, he worked with women, he worked with children, he worked for education, building clinics. And he did a great job and that's why I was very proud of him.

And we, both of us actually shared a lot of times. The project he's doing, he sent me e-mail and asked me, mom, what can I do about this? I have to do this thing about women. What is your suggestion or advice? So when he was there, I felt like I was there with him sharing and giving my advice and understanding of the culture.

PHILLIPS: Well, Ferial Masry, I've got to tell you, we've got to get to the president, but I want to tell you that we're going to follow this race, the state assembly race. We appreciate your time today. We'll be watching you, the first Saudi-born man or woman to hold an elective office here in America, if indeed you win. Please stay in touch with us. We thank you for your time today.

MASRY: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: OK, Miles?

O'BRIEN: All right. And Kyra was just talking about the president, the president of the United States meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Crawford, Texas. We'll be giving you an excerpt of those remarks in just a few moments.

And then there's this, just call him "The Master."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHIL MICKELSON, MASTERS CHAMPION: I just had a feeling that I was going to knock the putt in.

(END VIDEO CLIP) O'BRIEN: The big win may have surprised everyone except the man now wearing the Green Jacket. More from him after the break.

Ah, the spring tradition of the Easter egg hunt, usually an event full of surprise and wonder. Plenty of people wondered about a surprise at this particular hunt. Stayed tuned. Something turned up more dangerous than the candy. We'll tell you about that.

And hey, kids, the "Mars Minute" is back, but it's more than Mars this time. This is a special day in space history. Twenty-three years ago and 43 years ago significant events happened. We'll tell you what they were after LIVE FROM... has a de-orbit burn. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: All right. Let's go to Crawford, Texas, right now. This is not a live picture, this is a taped feed of an event which happened just a little while ago, as the president along with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak briefed reporters. The big news came at the end when the president announced there will be a formal news conference at White House tomorrow night, primetime.

Let's listen to the rest.

(INTERRUPTED BY SPECIAL COVERAGE)

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 April 12, 2004 - 13:33   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Latest developments at this hour. An Iraqi leader says Muslim clerics are putting out the word, no more abductions they say. A Governing Council member says that could lead to hostage releases later today. At last count insurgents are holding at least 13 civilians from China, Japan and the U.S.
In Spain, court officials tell CNN three more suspects in custody in Madrid and after the train bombing investigation, all of them from morocco. A judge already has charged 17 other suspects, most of them Moroccan, in the bombings that killed 190 last month.

Here at home, happier news. Hundreds of young people turned out today for the White House Easter Egg Roll. It was a slightly soggy setting. The president was out of town. But the kids seemed to enjoy the competition nonetheless, pushing colorful eggs with a spoon across the South Lawn.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: State assembly races don't often generate much excitement with their own district, let alone on the world stage but a woman who is running for a California state house seat from suburban Los Angeles is making news as far away as Saudi Arabia. She's Ferial Masry, and if she wins, she will be the first Saudi-born man or woman to hold elected office anywhere in America. She joins us from L.A. to talk about her campaign.

Nice to have you with us.

FERIAL MASRY (D), CALIF. ASSEMBLY CANDIDATE: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Well, first of all, Ferial, tell me, why are you running?

MASRY: Actually, I'm running for three reasons. One of the reason is as a Democrat in our area, we feel disfranchised. The people who are representing in our area are a very small group and they are very right wing and they are exclusive. And we feel we are not represented. And, actually, it's not just us as Democrats, independents and some of the moderate Republicans.

And we feel it is time to change and to get somebody who is really inclusive, have maturity and is ready to represent the area; especially our area with growth and also protecting public schools. We need transport in our area. We have the problem of health care and it's too expensive, and a lot of the county and city complaining about the budget. So we need somebody to present the problem and to really find a solution. And I think I can do that. So that's one of the reasons. The second reason is, as an Arab-American and Muslim, with the time we are living through now with the Patriot Act and terrorism, we feel that our community has been targeted unfairly and we feel like the Patriot Act was not fair.

And a lot of us run away from Middle East, coming here, away from the problem and find it just haunts us. And all the stereotypes I think affects our kids. So by running, I feel I am really giving hope, and making the community feel they're not marginalized. They are really -- can be part of the solution, not part of the problem.

PHILLIPS: Well, let's talk about your birthplace some more, and your culture, the fact that you are from Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has been a strong ally to the United States, however, when you look at 9/11, as you know, a number of the hijackers are from Saudi Arabia. Do you feel that Saudi Arabia is doing enough to fight terrorism?

MASRY: I think it's -- fighting terrorism is more than just Saudi Arabia. It's a problem, I think it has its root here in our policy here, the United States policy, and the governments in the Middle East. The problem is terrorism is a reaction of years of, you know, oppression in the Middle East. And then, as President Bush himself said, that sometimes we have the wrong policy supporting the wrong people.

And 9/11 is a result of a lot of things, a lot of oppression, a lot of disenfranchised people, people who feel unempowered, and then the Russians attacking Afghanistan and the result of the Afghanistan war. And don't forget, also, the result of our support for the Shah for a long time, and the revolution in Iran. All of this, we have to look at the roots of the problems.

It's not just Saudi Arabia or us. We can use weapons, we can use violence, but violence is going to breed violence. And I think the Middle East has to change. And I think there are two perceptions that have to change. Our perception towards solving the problem in the Middle East, we have to understand more Middle East.

And, second, the Middle East themselves, the people that are intellectual, the intelligentsia in the Middle East, they are moderate in the Middle East, they have to start coming with a vision that we have to stop their fighting, the oppression of the regimes and also the fundamentalists and the extremists who are really hijacking, Islam hijacking, you know, the people's hopes. And it's a lot of destruction going on in the Middle East and it's not going to benefit anybody. It's just going to create more and more problems. And we see the Iraqi problem is one of those. So I think...

PHILLIPS: Sorry. No, I didn't mean to cut you off. But you mentioned Iraq, and I want to get this in before we have to, unfortunately, wrap up the interview. But your son is active in the military, he's in the Army, your husband is in the Navy, you are against the war in Iraq. A bit of an interesting twist here. How do you put your family at ease but at the same time stay strong to your vision about being strong against the war?

MASRY: You see, working with the Army, the Army is a tool. The Army cannot decide anything. War is decided by politicians. So I cannot complain about the soldiers. Our soldiers are doing their job. The problem here is the politicians and that's why I'm against the war, against the politicians who took this country to war. It's a war of choice. It wasn't a necessary war and is going to create more problems.

Our soldiers, I'm proud of them because they're doing their role. And my son is one of the people who went there and he went to Iraq. And I remember when he was going, I told him, I say, you're going there, you have to remember, I want you to represent America in its best. And I want you to be a good Muslim and Arab. And I want you to listen to a lot of unspoken words there because you're going from a culture which is 200 years old and you're going to civilization which is 7000 years old. You have to bring the best of each culture because you have the choice, and he's lucky because he represents two cultures here.

And I'm very proud of him because, if you go to his Web site and what he wrote about the war and what he wrote about the work he was doing there, he worked with women, he worked with children, he worked for education, building clinics. And he did a great job and that's why I was very proud of him.

And we, both of us actually shared a lot of times. The project he's doing, he sent me e-mail and asked me, mom, what can I do about this? I have to do this thing about women. What is your suggestion or advice? So when he was there, I felt like I was there with him sharing and giving my advice and understanding of the culture.

PHILLIPS: Well, Ferial Masry, I've got to tell you, we've got to get to the president, but I want to tell you that we're going to follow this race, the state assembly race. We appreciate your time today. We'll be watching you, the first Saudi-born man or woman to hold an elective office here in America, if indeed you win. Please stay in touch with us. We thank you for your time today.

MASRY: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: OK, Miles?

O'BRIEN: All right. And Kyra was just talking about the president, the president of the United States meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Crawford, Texas. We'll be giving you an excerpt of those remarks in just a few moments.

And then there's this, just call him "The Master."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHIL MICKELSON, MASTERS CHAMPION: I just had a feeling that I was going to knock the putt in.

(END VIDEO CLIP) O'BRIEN: The big win may have surprised everyone except the man now wearing the Green Jacket. More from him after the break.

Ah, the spring tradition of the Easter egg hunt, usually an event full of surprise and wonder. Plenty of people wondered about a surprise at this particular hunt. Stayed tuned. Something turned up more dangerous than the candy. We'll tell you about that.

And hey, kids, the "Mars Minute" is back, but it's more than Mars this time. This is a special day in space history. Twenty-three years ago and 43 years ago significant events happened. We'll tell you what they were after LIVE FROM... has a de-orbit burn. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: All right. Let's go to Crawford, Texas, right now. This is not a live picture, this is a taped feed of an event which happened just a little while ago, as the president along with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak briefed reporters. The big news came at the end when the president announced there will be a formal news conference at White House tomorrow night, primetime.

Let's listen to the rest.

(INTERRUPTED BY SPECIAL COVERAGE)

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