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American Morning
More Kerry Wins
Aired February 11, 2004 - 07:01 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: Democratic presidential front- runner John Kerry is planning to actually take a couple of days off from the campaign trail after his victories last night in the Virginia and Tennessee primaries.
In Virginia, Kerry won 52 percent of the vote. Senator John Edwards was second with 27 percent, Wesley Clark a distant third with just 9 percent.
And it was much the same story in Tennessee, where Kerry took 41 percent of the vote. Edwards pulled in 26 percent, Clark, 23 percent.
So, what happens now after Kerry turned the southern showdown into a landslide?
CNN's Bob Franken is live for us this morning in Arlington, Virginia, with more on the fallout after the big night for John Kerry.
Hey, Bob, good morning.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
And we've watched the Democrat campaign parade now start a march on Wisconsin -- minus one marcher.
Were going to see Wesley Clark later today in Little Rock, Arkansas, which is his hometown, pull out of the race. He had another week of disappointing showings -- this time in the South, where he had hoped to make a stand. The stand did not happen, although John Edwards has said he is going to stay in the race, in spite of the fact that, as you pointed out, Soledad, it was quite the landslide, maybe a little bit overstated, but a very, very, very big victory for John Kerry.
This was John Kerry's chance to prove that he could make it in the South, and he did it in spades. He did extremely well, both in Virginia here and Tennessee.
So, now it's from the South to about as far north as you can go: Wisconsin. There, Howard Dean is waiting. He was going to make that his last stand, but he decided that win or lose he was not going to bow out of the race. He was going to continue.
But one man is bowing out. That's going to be the news of the day. From Little Rock, Arkansas, Wesley Clark is going to announce, as his campaign aides said last night, that he's decided to fold his tent and become a supporter as opposed to a candidate -- Soledad. O'BRIEN: Well, Bob -- excuse me -- first, obviously, we were having a little technical difficulty there with your piece, but a couple of quick questions for you. Wesley Clark, as you mentioned, is going to announce that he's getting out. So, how does that change the dynamics of the race for everybody else who's staying in?
FRANKEN: Well, John Edwards believes that that makes it closer to what he wants, and that's a one-on-one contest with John Kerry. Of course, it's actually two-on-one right now. Howard Dean is still in the race.
But what's happening is what everybody expected to happen. You're having a winnowing away of the field. Candidates are facing reality after a while -- the reality being that their contributions are drying up. And, ultimately, it's going to mean that there is one person who is going to be the designated fighter against President Bush. The Democrats are finding that this drama around these races has really enhanced the ability to possibly take on an incumbent president.
O'BRIEN: Bob Franken live for us in Arlington, Virginia, this morning. Bob, thanks..
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 February 11, 2004 - 07:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Democratic presidential front- runner John Kerry is planning to actually take a couple of days off from the campaign trail after his victories last night in the Virginia and Tennessee primaries.
In Virginia, Kerry won 52 percent of the vote. Senator John Edwards was second with 27 percent, Wesley Clark a distant third with just 9 percent.
And it was much the same story in Tennessee, where Kerry took 41 percent of the vote. Edwards pulled in 26 percent, Clark, 23 percent.
So, what happens now after Kerry turned the southern showdown into a landslide?
CNN's Bob Franken is live for us this morning in Arlington, Virginia, with more on the fallout after the big night for John Kerry.
Hey, Bob, good morning.
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
And we've watched the Democrat campaign parade now start a march on Wisconsin -- minus one marcher.
Were going to see Wesley Clark later today in Little Rock, Arkansas, which is his hometown, pull out of the race. He had another week of disappointing showings -- this time in the South, where he had hoped to make a stand. The stand did not happen, although John Edwards has said he is going to stay in the race, in spite of the fact that, as you pointed out, Soledad, it was quite the landslide, maybe a little bit overstated, but a very, very, very big victory for John Kerry.
This was John Kerry's chance to prove that he could make it in the South, and he did it in spades. He did extremely well, both in Virginia here and Tennessee.
So, now it's from the South to about as far north as you can go: Wisconsin. There, Howard Dean is waiting. He was going to make that his last stand, but he decided that win or lose he was not going to bow out of the race. He was going to continue.
But one man is bowing out. That's going to be the news of the day. From Little Rock, Arkansas, Wesley Clark is going to announce, as his campaign aides said last night, that he's decided to fold his tent and become a supporter as opposed to a candidate -- Soledad. O'BRIEN: Well, Bob -- excuse me -- first, obviously, we were having a little technical difficulty there with your piece, but a couple of quick questions for you. Wesley Clark, as you mentioned, is going to announce that he's getting out. So, how does that change the dynamics of the race for everybody else who's staying in?
FRANKEN: Well, John Edwards believes that that makes it closer to what he wants, and that's a one-on-one contest with John Kerry. Of course, it's actually two-on-one right now. Howard Dean is still in the race.
But what's happening is what everybody expected to happen. You're having a winnowing away of the field. Candidates are facing reality after a while -- the reality being that their contributions are drying up. And, ultimately, it's going to mean that there is one person who is going to be the designated fighter against President Bush. The Democrats are finding that this drama around these races has really enhanced the ability to possibly take on an incumbent president.
O'BRIEN: Bob Franken live for us in Arlington, Virginia, this morning. Bob, thanks..
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
