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American Morning
Graham Takes On Bush in National Security Arena
Aired May 14, 2003 - 08:19 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.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Most pundits studying the 2004 presidential terrain say President Bush has a commanding hold on the issue of national security, especially after 9/11 and the Iraq war. But one Democrat is taking that idea on head on.
Our senior analyst, Jeff Greenfield, is here to explain that.
Well, it seems like this is going to be, indeed, quite a challenge, and a risky one.
JEFF GREENFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it's been a very tough issue in general for Democrats ever since the Vietnam War. But Florida Senator Bob Graham, who is a late entry into the Democratic presidential field, is doing just that. Yesterday on the Senate floor, Senator Graham pointed a finger of blame at the Bush administration's anti-terror campaign in the wake of those bombings in Saudi Arabia.
Here's part of what he had to say on the Senate floor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BOB GRAHAM (D-FL), INTELLIGENCE CHAIRMAN: It could have been avoided if you had actually crushed the basic infrastructure of al Qaeda.
That failure to act contributed to September the 11th and the failure to act today continues Americans in a vulnerable circumstance.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GREENFIELD: Now, this is part of an emerging theme for Senator Graham. On Sunday, Graham charged that the Bush administration was blocking the release of a report on what had happened on September 11 to cover up its own failures, he said. He said, "I think what they are shooting at is to cover the failures that occurred before September the 11th, even more so, the failure to utilize the information that we have gained to avoid a future September 11." He said that on CBS's "Face The Nation."
And, in fact, when Graham talks about his opposition to that Iraq war resolution that Congress passed last fall, he says it's because it wasn't tough enough, because the Iraqi war took America away from its real battle with global terror.
And Graham is pointing to the Saudi bombings as proof that he's right. WHITFIELD: And when you take on the president, you run the risk of being associated with being unpatriotic. This is really risky, isn't it?
GREENFIELD: It is politically risky, but it is definitely not unprecedented. Back in 1960, Senator John Kennedy ran against Vice President Nixon and he charged there was a missile gap between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. That gap seemed to disappear right after the election. In 1968, Richard Nixon used the Vietnam War stalemate as a specific argument for new leadership. And back in the last election in 2000, then Governor Bush, who was, after all, a candidate with no experience in national security, charged the Clinton administration with failing the military.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. GEORGE W. BUSH (R), TEXAS: Our military is low on parts, pay and morale. If called on by the commander-in-chief today, two entire divisions of the army would have to report not ready for duty, sir.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GREENFIELD: Now, Senator Graham can claim some credibility on the issue here. He was the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee. But as with so many other things, we just don't know how much 9/11 has changed this landscape and whether Bush's successful prosecution of the Iraq war, coupled with the arrest of so many of al Qaeda's leadership, will make Graham's charges less effective. And if you don't mind me being really grim, we don't know what it will mean if, god forbid, there is another catastrophic attack on American soil -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks a lot, Jeff.
GREENFIELD: OK.
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 May 14, 2003 - 08:19 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Most pundits studying the 2004 presidential terrain say President Bush has a commanding hold on the issue of national security, especially after 9/11 and the Iraq war. But one Democrat is taking that idea on head on.
Our senior analyst, Jeff Greenfield, is here to explain that.
Well, it seems like this is going to be, indeed, quite a challenge, and a risky one.
JEFF GREENFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it's been a very tough issue in general for Democrats ever since the Vietnam War. But Florida Senator Bob Graham, who is a late entry into the Democratic presidential field, is doing just that. Yesterday on the Senate floor, Senator Graham pointed a finger of blame at the Bush administration's anti-terror campaign in the wake of those bombings in Saudi Arabia.
Here's part of what he had to say on the Senate floor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BOB GRAHAM (D-FL), INTELLIGENCE CHAIRMAN: It could have been avoided if you had actually crushed the basic infrastructure of al Qaeda.
That failure to act contributed to September the 11th and the failure to act today continues Americans in a vulnerable circumstance.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GREENFIELD: Now, this is part of an emerging theme for Senator Graham. On Sunday, Graham charged that the Bush administration was blocking the release of a report on what had happened on September 11 to cover up its own failures, he said. He said, "I think what they are shooting at is to cover the failures that occurred before September the 11th, even more so, the failure to utilize the information that we have gained to avoid a future September 11." He said that on CBS's "Face The Nation."
And, in fact, when Graham talks about his opposition to that Iraq war resolution that Congress passed last fall, he says it's because it wasn't tough enough, because the Iraqi war took America away from its real battle with global terror.
And Graham is pointing to the Saudi bombings as proof that he's right. WHITFIELD: And when you take on the president, you run the risk of being associated with being unpatriotic. This is really risky, isn't it?
GREENFIELD: It is politically risky, but it is definitely not unprecedented. Back in 1960, Senator John Kennedy ran against Vice President Nixon and he charged there was a missile gap between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. That gap seemed to disappear right after the election. In 1968, Richard Nixon used the Vietnam War stalemate as a specific argument for new leadership. And back in the last election in 2000, then Governor Bush, who was, after all, a candidate with no experience in national security, charged the Clinton administration with failing the military.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. GEORGE W. BUSH (R), TEXAS: Our military is low on parts, pay and morale. If called on by the commander-in-chief today, two entire divisions of the army would have to report not ready for duty, sir.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GREENFIELD: Now, Senator Graham can claim some credibility on the issue here. He was the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee. But as with so many other things, we just don't know how much 9/11 has changed this landscape and whether Bush's successful prosecution of the Iraq war, coupled with the arrest of so many of al Qaeda's leadership, will make Graham's charges less effective. And if you don't mind me being really grim, we don't know what it will mean if, god forbid, there is another catastrophic attack on American soil -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks a lot, Jeff.
GREENFIELD: OK.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
