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American Morning
Blair to Address Congress Later Today
Aired July 17, 2003 - 09:16 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: British Prime Minister Tony Blair, like the U.S. president, facing his own problems back at home over the Iraq war. Addressing Congress later today before going to the White House.
Dana Bash live from the front lawn with us this morning.
And Dana back with us now.
How far is Tony Blair willing to go today when he gets in front of Congress and defends the Iraq decision?
DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Bill.
When he goes before Congress, I'm told that he's not likely to get very specific about all the controversy over the prewar intelligence. He's likely to just sort of talk broadly about themes important to him, and, according to him, important to the United States, about staying the course in Iraq and Afghanistan and staying engaged in the Middle East.
But, of course, the controversy is ongoing about that prewar intelligence and it does pose a challenge to President Bush now more and more because the Democratic critics have become more and more vocal, much like Tony Blair has seen for months now back at home in Great Britain.
But this visit also comes at a time when the White House is determined to fight back more aggressively. White House officials tell CNN that they are going to take a more aggressive stance in attacking back the Democratic attackers for this one line, Democratic attackers who are saying that the president misled the country in terms of how he justified the war with Iraq. And Vice President Cheney, we are told, was on Capitol Hill yesterday, meeting with some House Republican leaders, talking about the situation, promising to get them some talking points so that they can help the White House in aggressively fighting back the criticism, although I am told that he admitted that the White House certainly could have handled the situation a little bit better -- Bill.
HEMMER: Dana Bash, thanks from the White House.
And when Tony Blair does appear in Congress, a different environment there as opposed to what we see in the House of Commons.
Ian Duncan Smith, a conservative leader in England, listen to part of what he had to say and the catcalls around it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IAN DUNCAN SMITH, BRITISH M.P.: Alistair Campbell and the prime minister have created a culture of deceit and spin at the heart of government. When will the prime minister realize until he sacks Campbell, nobody will believe a word he says anymore.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Sir Trevor McDonald is a journalist and well known anchor for ITN.
He's with us now.
Sir Trevor live in London.
We really appreciate your time.
Good to see you again, albeit by way of satellite.
How bad is it for the British prime minister?
SIR TREVOR MCDONALD, ITN ANCHOR: Well, it's pretty bad. The British prime minister has been having, as you heard from that clip from the House of Commons yesterday, he's been having a pretty tough time. Now, his own party has always tended to be a little fractious and prone to a lot of internecine battles.
But then, of course, there are all these questions about dodgy dossiers and about faulty intelligence. And, quite frankly, it's a problem about credibility. It's a problem about trust. Do people, do his party trust the prime minister anymore? Do they believe that what he said about Iraq and the reasons for going to war against Iraq, were they credible? And that's the problem. And there are pretty big problems.
HEMMER: Yes, well, listen, we know what's happening in this part of the world with the inquiries and the hearings, be it closed doors, sometimes public. We know what's happening in this country.
What's happening in British parliament right now, albeit inquiries and hearings?
MCDONALD: Well, that's a very good question because I think that is also one of the prime minister's problems. There is a basic problem of transparency. Now, you have a system of congressional inquiries or congressional hearings which have much more quasi judicial or judicial powers than we have.
The Senate hearings can subpoena people. They can make them appear. They are bound to come there and tell the truth as they know it. It's nothing like that here with the select committees we have in the British parliament.
People can come, more or less if they like. They usually turn up. But they can't be forced to say what they don't want to say. There's also another committee which reports directly to the prime minister and the prime minister can then decide how much of that information he decides to share with the general public.
There is this question, then, of how open it is, how transparent it is. And I think the prime minister's credibility and the sense of how far they can be trusted on issues suffer in these circumstances and perhaps a little more than they do in your system.
And, of course, on the question of these intelligence matters, the head of the CIA has said we should not have included that line from British intelligence in the president's speech. So you have, to some extent, come clean. And one of the perceptions here is that that is not the same thing we have seen on this side of the Atlantic.
HEMMER: When Tony Blair is in Congress today, Sir Trevor, there are reports in the "New York Times" indicating that he may talk about, in a sense, using the U.N. in a much more broad manner to help with the reconstruction efforts.
Are we going to start seeing the resurrection of the United Nations on the issue of Iraq starting today?
MCDONALD: Well, I think that Tony Blair is going to try very much to do that kind of thing. I mean he wants to get away from this issue of dodgy dossiers and faulty intelligence. And I think you are absolutely right, I think the feeling in Britain is that there is a need to internationalize the effort about Iraq a little more, and certainly bringing in the United Nations is one way of doing that.
I think that Tony Blair is also under pressure to raise the issue of two British detainees in Guantanamo Bay who are being held and the way these trials or these trials are being conducted or will be conducted, with a kind of military fashion, is not really to the liking of people who are accustomed to other trials in this country.
And I think the other thing that Tony Blair is going to try keep pressing the president on is the question of the Middle East, making sure that the pressure is kept up on both sides, the Israelis and the Palestinians, to try to push this road map for peace. I think this is what Tony Blair will have very much in mind.
HEMMER: Thanks for your thoughts.
Sir Trevor McDonald, ITN from London.
Much appreciate it.
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 July 17, 2003 - 09:16 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: British Prime Minister Tony Blair, like the U.S. president, facing his own problems back at home over the Iraq war. Addressing Congress later today before going to the White House.
Dana Bash live from the front lawn with us this morning.
And Dana back with us now.
How far is Tony Blair willing to go today when he gets in front of Congress and defends the Iraq decision?
DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Bill.
When he goes before Congress, I'm told that he's not likely to get very specific about all the controversy over the prewar intelligence. He's likely to just sort of talk broadly about themes important to him, and, according to him, important to the United States, about staying the course in Iraq and Afghanistan and staying engaged in the Middle East.
But, of course, the controversy is ongoing about that prewar intelligence and it does pose a challenge to President Bush now more and more because the Democratic critics have become more and more vocal, much like Tony Blair has seen for months now back at home in Great Britain.
But this visit also comes at a time when the White House is determined to fight back more aggressively. White House officials tell CNN that they are going to take a more aggressive stance in attacking back the Democratic attackers for this one line, Democratic attackers who are saying that the president misled the country in terms of how he justified the war with Iraq. And Vice President Cheney, we are told, was on Capitol Hill yesterday, meeting with some House Republican leaders, talking about the situation, promising to get them some talking points so that they can help the White House in aggressively fighting back the criticism, although I am told that he admitted that the White House certainly could have handled the situation a little bit better -- Bill.
HEMMER: Dana Bash, thanks from the White House.
And when Tony Blair does appear in Congress, a different environment there as opposed to what we see in the House of Commons.
Ian Duncan Smith, a conservative leader in England, listen to part of what he had to say and the catcalls around it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
IAN DUNCAN SMITH, BRITISH M.P.: Alistair Campbell and the prime minister have created a culture of deceit and spin at the heart of government. When will the prime minister realize until he sacks Campbell, nobody will believe a word he says anymore.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Sir Trevor McDonald is a journalist and well known anchor for ITN.
He's with us now.
Sir Trevor live in London.
We really appreciate your time.
Good to see you again, albeit by way of satellite.
How bad is it for the British prime minister?
SIR TREVOR MCDONALD, ITN ANCHOR: Well, it's pretty bad. The British prime minister has been having, as you heard from that clip from the House of Commons yesterday, he's been having a pretty tough time. Now, his own party has always tended to be a little fractious and prone to a lot of internecine battles.
But then, of course, there are all these questions about dodgy dossiers and about faulty intelligence. And, quite frankly, it's a problem about credibility. It's a problem about trust. Do people, do his party trust the prime minister anymore? Do they believe that what he said about Iraq and the reasons for going to war against Iraq, were they credible? And that's the problem. And there are pretty big problems.
HEMMER: Yes, well, listen, we know what's happening in this part of the world with the inquiries and the hearings, be it closed doors, sometimes public. We know what's happening in this country.
What's happening in British parliament right now, albeit inquiries and hearings?
MCDONALD: Well, that's a very good question because I think that is also one of the prime minister's problems. There is a basic problem of transparency. Now, you have a system of congressional inquiries or congressional hearings which have much more quasi judicial or judicial powers than we have.
The Senate hearings can subpoena people. They can make them appear. They are bound to come there and tell the truth as they know it. It's nothing like that here with the select committees we have in the British parliament.
People can come, more or less if they like. They usually turn up. But they can't be forced to say what they don't want to say. There's also another committee which reports directly to the prime minister and the prime minister can then decide how much of that information he decides to share with the general public.
There is this question, then, of how open it is, how transparent it is. And I think the prime minister's credibility and the sense of how far they can be trusted on issues suffer in these circumstances and perhaps a little more than they do in your system.
And, of course, on the question of these intelligence matters, the head of the CIA has said we should not have included that line from British intelligence in the president's speech. So you have, to some extent, come clean. And one of the perceptions here is that that is not the same thing we have seen on this side of the Atlantic.
HEMMER: When Tony Blair is in Congress today, Sir Trevor, there are reports in the "New York Times" indicating that he may talk about, in a sense, using the U.N. in a much more broad manner to help with the reconstruction efforts.
Are we going to start seeing the resurrection of the United Nations on the issue of Iraq starting today?
MCDONALD: Well, I think that Tony Blair is going to try very much to do that kind of thing. I mean he wants to get away from this issue of dodgy dossiers and faulty intelligence. And I think you are absolutely right, I think the feeling in Britain is that there is a need to internationalize the effort about Iraq a little more, and certainly bringing in the United Nations is one way of doing that.
I think that Tony Blair is also under pressure to raise the issue of two British detainees in Guantanamo Bay who are being held and the way these trials or these trials are being conducted or will be conducted, with a kind of military fashion, is not really to the liking of people who are accustomed to other trials in this country.
And I think the other thing that Tony Blair is going to try keep pressing the president on is the question of the Middle East, making sure that the pressure is kept up on both sides, the Israelis and the Palestinians, to try to push this road map for peace. I think this is what Tony Blair will have very much in mind.
HEMMER: Thanks for your thoughts.
Sir Trevor McDonald, ITN from London.
Much appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
