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American Morning

Battle for California: Setting the Date

Aired September 23, 2003 - 07:16   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.


SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Now to California's anything-can- happen recall election. Let's take a look at the latest twist.
The man who started the recall is now urging voters to vote against it if there is more than one big-name Republican on the ballot.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. DARRELL ISSA (R), CALIFORNIA: When you vote, if there are still two major Republicans -- Tom McClintock and Arnold Schwarzenegger -- then I advise you to vote no on the recall.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Meanwhile, it's not quite clear when the recall vote will take place. We could learn the answer, however, in just a few hours.

Bob Franken is live for us in Los Angeles this morning.

Hey -- Bob. Good morning.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

Well, Darrell Issa is putting the cart before the recall, because we don't know for certain that it's going to occur, although most lawyers say that the conduct of the 9th Circuit expanded court hearing, the judges in that hearing leave little doubt in their minds that they're going to reverse the lower court panel -- or excuse me, the three-judge panel from last week. They will allow the recall to go forward, according to most legal experts.

Well, that, of course, is just speculation, based on the line of questioning, which pretty much preferred the position that the recall should go forward. The judges were pretty sharp in their questioning of those who said it should be delayed.

We're going to find out this morning shortly after the court opens, which is 8:30 Pacific Time, that would be 11:30 Eastern Time, a very, very lightning-fast ruling from these judges who will have had to have digested the arguments and the briefs and then voted in time for this to be released in the very early morning hours.

But, of course, there is a reason that they're operating so quickly, and that is, is that the election is supposed to go forward. And what Congressman Issa was talking about was the fact that the Tom McClintock-Arnold Schwarzenegger split has left the Republicans in a position that even if there is a recall, the Democrat, Cruz Bustamante, could become the winner simply because of that split.

Now, Bustamante was suffering a setback yesterday when a Sacramento County judge said that he would have to, in fact, return what is left of the millions of dollars he received from Indian gambling interests, Native-American gambling interests. But Bustamante said most of that money has already been spent on commercials. So, the judge can rule whatever he wants. There is not much he can really do to return the money.

But Bustamante has suffered a bit in the polls because of questions that have been raised about the way that he has used loopholes to raise that money.

All of that, of course, is about a recall election that is scheduled to occur October 7, just two weeks away, if it goes forward, and the judges today are going to have a lot to say about that.

I should point out one other thing, Soledad, and that is that when these judges rule, the losing side can be certain to go to the U.S. Supreme Court. Most of these same legal experts say that the Supreme Court, to use legal terminology, doesn't want to get near this with a 10-foot pole.

O'BRIEN: And I think the most important phrase today, if it goes forward. If, if, if. All right, Bob Franken, thanks, as always.

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 September 23, 2003 - 07:16   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Now to California's anything-can- happen recall election. Let's take a look at the latest twist.
The man who started the recall is now urging voters to vote against it if there is more than one big-name Republican on the ballot.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. DARRELL ISSA (R), CALIFORNIA: When you vote, if there are still two major Republicans -- Tom McClintock and Arnold Schwarzenegger -- then I advise you to vote no on the recall.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Meanwhile, it's not quite clear when the recall vote will take place. We could learn the answer, however, in just a few hours.

Bob Franken is live for us in Los Angeles this morning.

Hey -- Bob. Good morning.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

Well, Darrell Issa is putting the cart before the recall, because we don't know for certain that it's going to occur, although most lawyers say that the conduct of the 9th Circuit expanded court hearing, the judges in that hearing leave little doubt in their minds that they're going to reverse the lower court panel -- or excuse me, the three-judge panel from last week. They will allow the recall to go forward, according to most legal experts.

Well, that, of course, is just speculation, based on the line of questioning, which pretty much preferred the position that the recall should go forward. The judges were pretty sharp in their questioning of those who said it should be delayed.

We're going to find out this morning shortly after the court opens, which is 8:30 Pacific Time, that would be 11:30 Eastern Time, a very, very lightning-fast ruling from these judges who will have had to have digested the arguments and the briefs and then voted in time for this to be released in the very early morning hours.

But, of course, there is a reason that they're operating so quickly, and that is, is that the election is supposed to go forward. And what Congressman Issa was talking about was the fact that the Tom McClintock-Arnold Schwarzenegger split has left the Republicans in a position that even if there is a recall, the Democrat, Cruz Bustamante, could become the winner simply because of that split.

Now, Bustamante was suffering a setback yesterday when a Sacramento County judge said that he would have to, in fact, return what is left of the millions of dollars he received from Indian gambling interests, Native-American gambling interests. But Bustamante said most of that money has already been spent on commercials. So, the judge can rule whatever he wants. There is not much he can really do to return the money.

But Bustamante has suffered a bit in the polls because of questions that have been raised about the way that he has used loopholes to raise that money.

All of that, of course, is about a recall election that is scheduled to occur October 7, just two weeks away, if it goes forward, and the judges today are going to have a lot to say about that.

I should point out one other thing, Soledad, and that is that when these judges rule, the losing side can be certain to go to the U.S. Supreme Court. Most of these same legal experts say that the Supreme Court, to use legal terminology, doesn't want to get near this with a 10-foot pole.

O'BRIEN: And I think the most important phrase today, if it goes forward. If, if, if. All right, Bob Franken, thanks, as always.

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