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American Morning

Interview With Barbara Boxer

Aired January 21, 2004 - 08:09   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: The president emphasized the positive in last night's speech. He was upbeat on national security and bullish on the economy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In the last three years, adversity has also revealed the fundamental strengths of the American economy. We have come through recession and terrorist attack and corporate scandals and the uncertainties of war. And because you acted to stimulate our economy with tax relief, this economy is strong and growing stronger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: The Democrats point to nearly three million jobs lost during the Bush presidency, plus tax cuts they say are mainly for the wealthy and a war that has resulted in more than 500 American deaths.

Joining us this morning, Senator Barbara Boxer, Democrat out of California, with reaction to the president's address.

Nice to see you, Senator Boxer.

SEN. BARBARA BOXER (D-CF), FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: Nice to see you.

O'BRIEN: Thanks for being with us.

Rate his speech for me.

How do you think he did?

BOXER: Well, he was very confident, I thought. You know, it was interesting, he said the state of the union is confident and strong. I think the president feels confident and he feels strong.

But I hate to tell him, I think there's a lot of anxiety out there. I think the state of the union, in many ways, is quite anxious, anxious about jobs, anxious about health care, anxious about educating their kids, anxious about the fact that he's rolling back environmental laws every day and the rest...

O'BRIEN: You're listing all these domestic issues.

BOXER: Yes, and...

O'BRIEN: You're not listing...

BOXER: Yes, I am.

O'BRIEN: ... what he spent the bulk of the time talking about in this speech, two thirds of it.

BOXER: Right.

O'BRIEN: ... national security.

BOXER: Well, that's the point. It took him 35 minutes, Soledad, to get to the kitchen table issues that most Americans talk about every day. And the first part of his speech was really about the past. And I wouldn't say he's defensive about it, because he believes in it. But he was defending. It was almost like he had listened to John Kerry and the others and he was defending the past actions. And I just think most Americans want us to look forward.

I had a very interesting conversation once with Ann Richards. You know Ann Richards, the former governor of Texas, beaten by George Bush. And once I said to her, how did you lose that race, you were 70 percent popular? She said I talked too much about my past accomplishments and people wanted to hear about the future.

O'BRIEN: You don't think that's going to resonate with the viewing and eventually the voting public, talking about the laundry list of things that the president would say he's done well?

BOXER: First of all, it's his view and not everyone agrees with it. But -- and he has a right to say it. But he defended the status quo. And in my home state of California, people want change here. They don't think we're doing as well as we should. They are anxious and nervous. And I don't think he dealt...

O'BRIEN: The president might say, to argue that, though, don't change horses in the middle of the race, especially when we're at war. And to sort of anyone, any voter who's on the fence, he might say, you know, regardless of how you feel about who's running exactly, do you really want, at a time of war, to change things up? Is that harder for the Democrats?

BOXER: Soledad, this is a very different time. The war against terrorism is going to be with us, sadly, for a very long time. Does that make the case that we ought to have a dictator forever because we're going to have a war on terrorism for a long time?

It's a different time now. But I still think, in the sense of looking forward, the president didn't really do that. We've got deficits as far as the eye can see. Frankly, this administration, it took them almost six minutes to turn around surpluses as far as the eye can see. They have stolen from the Social Security Trust Fund, the Medicare Trust Fund, just when the baby boomers are going to start retiring. He didn't address that. He didn't talk...

O'BRIEN: But he did point out the areas in which the economy was improving. I mean he had a laundry list of things that were up side, except...

BOXER: Well, laundry lists...

O'BRIEN: ... granted, when it came to jobs.

BOXER: I've got to tell you this, laundry lists don't work, in my view, in a great State of the Union speech. This one was well delivered. But laundry lists are not what the American people want. They really want to be inspired about what's the future hold?

Now, we've lost, as you've pointed out, three million jobs. And what he's talking about now is a new immigration plan that won't take care of a problem we have now with people who've given their blood, sweat and tears and getting them on a path of citizenship. He talked about a whole new program where all an employer has to do is say I can't find an American for this job and people can come from Romania and anywhere in the world and take those good paying jobs away.

I just think that's going to fall flat and at a time when we're very concerned about good jobs.

You have CNN here with Lou Dobbs talking all the time about the exporting of American jobs. And he really didn't address it at all, except to say now we're going to not only export them, we're going to have people come in here and take them away.

So I just think he missed the chance to speak to the future. That's what I think.

O'BRIEN: Senator Barbara Boxer, nice to have you.

Thanks for being with us this morning.

We appreciate it.

BOXER: It's so great to be here.

Thank you.

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 January 21, 2004 - 08:09   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: The president emphasized the positive in last night's speech. He was upbeat on national security and bullish on the economy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In the last three years, adversity has also revealed the fundamental strengths of the American economy. We have come through recession and terrorist attack and corporate scandals and the uncertainties of war. And because you acted to stimulate our economy with tax relief, this economy is strong and growing stronger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: The Democrats point to nearly three million jobs lost during the Bush presidency, plus tax cuts they say are mainly for the wealthy and a war that has resulted in more than 500 American deaths.

Joining us this morning, Senator Barbara Boxer, Democrat out of California, with reaction to the president's address.

Nice to see you, Senator Boxer.

SEN. BARBARA BOXER (D-CF), FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: Nice to see you.

O'BRIEN: Thanks for being with us.

Rate his speech for me.

How do you think he did?

BOXER: Well, he was very confident, I thought. You know, it was interesting, he said the state of the union is confident and strong. I think the president feels confident and he feels strong.

But I hate to tell him, I think there's a lot of anxiety out there. I think the state of the union, in many ways, is quite anxious, anxious about jobs, anxious about health care, anxious about educating their kids, anxious about the fact that he's rolling back environmental laws every day and the rest...

O'BRIEN: You're listing all these domestic issues.

BOXER: Yes, and...

O'BRIEN: You're not listing...

BOXER: Yes, I am.

O'BRIEN: ... what he spent the bulk of the time talking about in this speech, two thirds of it.

BOXER: Right.

O'BRIEN: ... national security.

BOXER: Well, that's the point. It took him 35 minutes, Soledad, to get to the kitchen table issues that most Americans talk about every day. And the first part of his speech was really about the past. And I wouldn't say he's defensive about it, because he believes in it. But he was defending. It was almost like he had listened to John Kerry and the others and he was defending the past actions. And I just think most Americans want us to look forward.

I had a very interesting conversation once with Ann Richards. You know Ann Richards, the former governor of Texas, beaten by George Bush. And once I said to her, how did you lose that race, you were 70 percent popular? She said I talked too much about my past accomplishments and people wanted to hear about the future.

O'BRIEN: You don't think that's going to resonate with the viewing and eventually the voting public, talking about the laundry list of things that the president would say he's done well?

BOXER: First of all, it's his view and not everyone agrees with it. But -- and he has a right to say it. But he defended the status quo. And in my home state of California, people want change here. They don't think we're doing as well as we should. They are anxious and nervous. And I don't think he dealt...

O'BRIEN: The president might say, to argue that, though, don't change horses in the middle of the race, especially when we're at war. And to sort of anyone, any voter who's on the fence, he might say, you know, regardless of how you feel about who's running exactly, do you really want, at a time of war, to change things up? Is that harder for the Democrats?

BOXER: Soledad, this is a very different time. The war against terrorism is going to be with us, sadly, for a very long time. Does that make the case that we ought to have a dictator forever because we're going to have a war on terrorism for a long time?

It's a different time now. But I still think, in the sense of looking forward, the president didn't really do that. We've got deficits as far as the eye can see. Frankly, this administration, it took them almost six minutes to turn around surpluses as far as the eye can see. They have stolen from the Social Security Trust Fund, the Medicare Trust Fund, just when the baby boomers are going to start retiring. He didn't address that. He didn't talk...

O'BRIEN: But he did point out the areas in which the economy was improving. I mean he had a laundry list of things that were up side, except...

BOXER: Well, laundry lists...

O'BRIEN: ... granted, when it came to jobs.

BOXER: I've got to tell you this, laundry lists don't work, in my view, in a great State of the Union speech. This one was well delivered. But laundry lists are not what the American people want. They really want to be inspired about what's the future hold?

Now, we've lost, as you've pointed out, three million jobs. And what he's talking about now is a new immigration plan that won't take care of a problem we have now with people who've given their blood, sweat and tears and getting them on a path of citizenship. He talked about a whole new program where all an employer has to do is say I can't find an American for this job and people can come from Romania and anywhere in the world and take those good paying jobs away.

I just think that's going to fall flat and at a time when we're very concerned about good jobs.

You have CNN here with Lou Dobbs talking all the time about the exporting of American jobs. And he really didn't address it at all, except to say now we're going to not only export them, we're going to have people come in here and take them away.

So I just think he missed the chance to speak to the future. That's what I think.

O'BRIEN: Senator Barbara Boxer, nice to have you.

Thanks for being with us this morning.

We appreciate it.

BOXER: It's so great to be here.

Thank you.

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