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American Morning

Tonight President Bush Will Focus on War and Economy

Aired January 29, 2002 - 07:08   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.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Up front this morning, the president's State of the Union. The stakes are high and so are his approval ratings right now. And tonight when President Bush addresses a joint session of Congress and the nation, his focus will be on the war and the economy.

And Kelly Wallace joins us now from the White House.

So, Kelly, among other things the president might address is Enron one of them?

KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Paula, you will not hear President Bush use the word Enron in his speech. That we are pretty much certain of. But you will hear him allude to sort of the current situation, talking about the need to address whether there should be new disclosure requirements ore new regulations to better protect shareholders and employees when it comes to their 401Ks and their pensions.

This, of course, one issue certainly facing this administration in its second year. Some polls have shown that most Americans believe the administration may not be as forthcoming as it should be about its ties with Enron.

But as we heard Vice President Dick Cheney say in his interview yesterday with my colleague, John King, this administration says there is absolutely no allegation that anyone here committed any wrongdoing whatsoever.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Nobody's got a charge to make. Nobody did anything wrong. Enron didn't receive any special treatment. They were treated and dealt with just like a lot of other energy companies were that we talked to during this process. But the suggestion that somehow something improper occurred here simply is invalid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Still, Paula, just as the president will be delivering his first State of the Union address, the stage is set for a real clash between the White House and Congress' investigative arm, the General Accounting Office. The GAO is trying to get records from the vice president's energy task force, including some meetings which were held with Enron executives. The White House is saying absolutely no way will it give up those meeting notes or any other information whatsoever. White House officials say principles are at stake. The vice president and the president should be able to get advice in private to develop policy.

The GAO, Paula, says it will decide this week whether to file suit against the White House. If it does, it will be the first time in its history that it has ever sued the federal government -- Paula.

ZAHN: And even if that happens, Kelly, is that likely to change the administration's position?

WALLACE: Absolutely not. You heard the vice president say categorically no way will the administration turn over lists of who this administration met with, when they met with these folks and what was discussed. They're really holding onto principle. The vice president says this is really not just about this administration, but future administrations. So a major clash could be coming this way -- Paula.

ZAHN: Very quickly, also, the contentious issue about the detainees and the rift within the administration. Bring us up to date on that.

WALLACE: Yes, there's a disagreement really not over the detainees in terms of whether they should be classified as prisoners of war. Administration officials say the detainees will definitely be classified as prisoners of war. The question is should those detainees, should the Geneva Conventions apply to those detainees? Some people in the administration think absolutely not. Others think yes, the Geneva Conventions should apply. But the treatment, we're told, will still be the same regardless if those accords apply or not -- Paula.

ZAHN: All right, Kelly Wallace, thanks for the update and the preview of the speech to come later this evening.

WALLACE: Sure.

ZAHN: You've got a long day ahead.

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