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American Morning

Cuomo Ends Bid to be Governor

Aired September 04, 2002 - 07:47   ET

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

PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Many people consider him an up-and- coming figure in national politics -- Andrew Cuomo. The former Clinton Cabinet secretary and son of New York's former governor was trying to follow in his father's footsteps, but his run came to an abrupt halt yesterday, when he bowed out of what was looking like a losing primary race with rival, Carl McCall.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDREW CUOMO, FORMER CANDIDATE: We need healing now maybe more than ever before, especially in the memory of 9/11. If we were to now spend $2 million this week on an acrimonious campaign, we would only guarantee a bloody and broke Democratic nominee, whoever won, and the ultimate success for Governor Pataki in November would be assured. Maybe we could win the battle, but we would lose the war, my friends.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAHN: With Cuomo out, McCall will now face incumbent George Pataki in November, who really leads in the money raising and in the polls so far. So what does Cuomo's decision mean for the party politics?

Senior analyst, Jeff Greenfield, joins us now.

Good morning.

JEFF GREENFIELD, CNN SENIOR ANALYST: Good morning.

ZAHN: So what's the deal? He just decided he couldn't win? He bowed out?

GREENFIELD: I think that's a large part of it. He is down 25 points in the polls or so. That's a pretty big clue.

But it's a little more than that, because it's more than just the fact that the polls showed that he had declined from what was once a substantial lead over State Comptroller McCall. The whole Democratic establishment was going with McCall, a very important endorsement by Senator Chuck Schumer, who cut a commercial for McCall.

And Hillary Clinton, the other New York Senator, of whom you may have heard officially neutral. But on Monday at the West Indies Parade in Brooklyn, she marched side by side with McCall, which is one of those Kremlin methodological things, who is standing next to who. That was a pretty good signal. And you know, supposedly, ex-President Clinton, who was at the withdrawal announcement, called Cuomo and said it's time to get out. And I think it helps him with his most serious problem if he has a political future.

ZAHN: So, which is?

GREENFIELD: That he was perceived, if I may quote Shakespeare, like Cassius, "with a lean and hungry look." He was seen as a guy who was not willing to wait his turn, too ruthless, too ambitious. So by falling on a sword and saying, I'm going to save you a week of negative campaigning, I'm going to save you a couple of million dollars, it was a gesture of saying I can be a good soldier.

ZAHN: And yet, any attempt to do that yesterday, it seems to me, was reversed in "The New York Times" today, when folks close to Carl McCall's campaign claimed that before he bowed out, Cuomo's campaign went to them and said that he wanted a role in Carl's campaign, and that he wanted...

GREENFIELD: And maybe...

ZAHN: ... some sort of public acknowledgment that the deal was brokered by Bill Clinton. That's pretty brazen, isn't it?

GREENFIELD: Well, it's an interesting tactic if you're that far behind, but it's not uncommon for, for instance, in presidential primaries for candidates who are trailing to say, I'll endorse you, but I want -- pick up my campaign debts, let me speak for you.

So I don't know that it's all that outrageous. But in any event, what the McCall campaign said is no guarantees, we certainly are not going to say we are going to endorse you in the future, but we'll say thanks, which is what happened.

ZAHN: What role did race play in any of this?

GREENFIELD: You know, race is one of those issues that's very uncomfortable for people to talk about, but if you're going to be honest about politics, it's there.

Last year in New York City, we had a Democratic primary that that just went over the top on race. The white, liberal Mark Green beat the Latino, Fernando Ferrer, amid charges of bitterness. Latino candidates sat on their hands on election day -- Latino officials, I should say...

ZAHN: Sure.

GREENFIELD: ... as well as African-Americans. And it's one of the reasons why Mark Green lost to Mike Bloomberg. There was a lot of fear that a hard-hitting, negative campaign by Cuomo against Carl McCall, particularly if it would have worked, would have absolutely divided the Democratic Party on racial lines.

As you said in the introduction, they're down about 10 to 1 in fundraising. Pataki has a huge lead in the polls. He's gotten the endorsement of some traditionally Democratic unions. They needed this kind of unity.

And there is a kind of -- if you feel like drama -- the idea of the son of the former governor, married to a Kennedy daughter, who comes into the race and overreaches, and now has taken -- tried to take the initiative to say, I'm really not this conniving, ambitious guy. I can play the good soldier who will leave the field and let the party unite.

ZAHN: Yes, but you wonder long term how that plays with the public.

GREENFIELD: Do you remember a fellow named Richard Nixon, who lost the governor's race in 1962, and bitterly left the stage, "you won't have Nixon to kick around anymore," and six years later, he was elected president of the United States? You just don't know where this is going to lead.

But I think if you're Andrew Cuomo, this was the right thing to do to preserve a political future.

ZAHN: I want to quickly close with something former President Bill Clinton had to say yesterday during this announcement -- let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There are some great virtues of being term limited out, one of which is that you can commit candor. So I will make you a prediction. I am the only person standing on this stage whose political career is over.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAHN: Oh, yes?

GREENFIELD: Hey, if I were Carl McCall, I'd ask Bill Clinton to run with me for lieutenant governor. He is really popular in New York State.

ZAHN: It's interesting to hear the response of the crowd. It was kind of a quiet sense of laughter there.

GREENFIELD: You know what?

ZAHN: They didn't sound so convinced. Is the guy coming back as mayor...

GREENFIELD: Well, I think...

ZAHN: .. or what will he...

(CROSSTALK)

GREENFIELD: If I'm Carl McCall, I'd say come run with me as your running mate. You know, lieutenant governor, not much to do, you can still give all your speeches for big money.

ZAHN: Let's see.

GREENFIELD: You heard it here first.

ZAHN: Yes, I know. You always get it first. Jeffrey Greenfield, thanks.

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