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American Morning

Pressure on White House

Aired February 19, 2004 - 07:13   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: Getting the unemployed back to work is a major issue Democrats are pushing in the campaign. President Bush responded less than two weeks ago by predicting that the economy would create 2.6 million jobs this year. But now, the White House appears to be backtracking from that forecast.
Senior White House correspondent John King at the White House this morning with more.

Hey -- John. Good morning.

JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Soledad.

Later today, the president will again be focusing on the economy here at the White House, offering what he believes is a robust outlook for the economy and jobs in the re-election year ahead. But what has the president in hot water is a prediction made in this report, published just 10 days ago, that the White House is now backing away from and, for this White House, creating yet another political storm.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KING (voice-over): In the Oval Office, no direct answer when asked if he stands by a prediction that the economy will create 2.6 million new jobs this year.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think the economy is growing, and I think it's going to get stronger.

KING: That upbeat prediction of 2.6 million new jobs is from a White House report issued just nine days ago. The treasury and commerce secretaries were first to distance themselves from the number, leading six Senate Democrats to write Mr. Bush asking for "a meaningful jobs prediction that all Americans, including your own cabinet, would find credible."

Mr. Bush's spokesman was reminded the election year report carried the president's signature and presumably his endorsement.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I mean you're trying to get in here to get me to answer questions that are trying to trap me into certain things.

KING: Democratic front-runner John Kerry says it is hardly the first time administration jobs predictions have failed the credibility test. KERRY: They promised in the first tax cut they'd create 500,000 jobs. They lost a million or more. In the next tax cut, they promised another 800,000 jobs. They lost another two million.

KING: The Iraq War is another credibility challenge.

BUSH: Saddam Hussein aids and protects terrorists, including members of al Qaeda.

KING: This scathing ad by a liberal group among the attacks suggesting the president hyped the evidence.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KING: Now, the White House chalks all this, all of the poll numbers, all of this talk of a credibility gap up to the Democratic campaign attacks. But some nervous Republicans say it's about time, past time some of them say, for the president to tap into his huge campaign war chest and begin countering the Democrats with some TV ads -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: With no banned weapons found in Iraq and, what I think is fair to call, inconsistent economic messages being sent from the White House as well, how worried do you think the administration is, all of this coming back in this election year?

KING: Well, they insist here at the White House at the Bush- Cheney campaign they are concerned, not worried. Outside of that circle, the closest circle of presidential advisers, more and more Republicans are a bit worried. No one denies that the president has not had a great beginning to the year here at the White House.

So, they do say he has yet to spend money on TV ads, and the Democrats have been hammering him, and the president has yet to campaign on a consistent almost daily basis. That will come in due order.

And this, Soledad, is the bottom line they say here at the White House, yes, things aren't going great right now, but if the polls in February were indicative of what happens in November, there would be Bob Dole and even Walter Mondale presidential libraries, and there are not.

O'BRIEN: Interesting point. John King, thanks for joining us this morning. 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 February 19, 2004 - 07:13   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Getting the unemployed back to work is a major issue Democrats are pushing in the campaign. President Bush responded less than two weeks ago by predicting that the economy would create 2.6 million jobs this year. But now, the White House appears to be backtracking from that forecast.
Senior White House correspondent John King at the White House this morning with more.

Hey -- John. Good morning.

JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Soledad.

Later today, the president will again be focusing on the economy here at the White House, offering what he believes is a robust outlook for the economy and jobs in the re-election year ahead. But what has the president in hot water is a prediction made in this report, published just 10 days ago, that the White House is now backing away from and, for this White House, creating yet another political storm.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KING (voice-over): In the Oval Office, no direct answer when asked if he stands by a prediction that the economy will create 2.6 million new jobs this year.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think the economy is growing, and I think it's going to get stronger.

KING: That upbeat prediction of 2.6 million new jobs is from a White House report issued just nine days ago. The treasury and commerce secretaries were first to distance themselves from the number, leading six Senate Democrats to write Mr. Bush asking for "a meaningful jobs prediction that all Americans, including your own cabinet, would find credible."

Mr. Bush's spokesman was reminded the election year report carried the president's signature and presumably his endorsement.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I mean you're trying to get in here to get me to answer questions that are trying to trap me into certain things.

KING: Democratic front-runner John Kerry says it is hardly the first time administration jobs predictions have failed the credibility test. KERRY: They promised in the first tax cut they'd create 500,000 jobs. They lost a million or more. In the next tax cut, they promised another 800,000 jobs. They lost another two million.

KING: The Iraq War is another credibility challenge.

BUSH: Saddam Hussein aids and protects terrorists, including members of al Qaeda.

KING: This scathing ad by a liberal group among the attacks suggesting the president hyped the evidence.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KING: Now, the White House chalks all this, all of the poll numbers, all of this talk of a credibility gap up to the Democratic campaign attacks. But some nervous Republicans say it's about time, past time some of them say, for the president to tap into his huge campaign war chest and begin countering the Democrats with some TV ads -- Soledad.

O'BRIEN: With no banned weapons found in Iraq and, what I think is fair to call, inconsistent economic messages being sent from the White House as well, how worried do you think the administration is, all of this coming back in this election year?

KING: Well, they insist here at the White House at the Bush- Cheney campaign they are concerned, not worried. Outside of that circle, the closest circle of presidential advisers, more and more Republicans are a bit worried. No one denies that the president has not had a great beginning to the year here at the White House.

So, they do say he has yet to spend money on TV ads, and the Democrats have been hammering him, and the president has yet to campaign on a consistent almost daily basis. That will come in due order.

And this, Soledad, is the bottom line they say here at the White House, yes, things aren't going great right now, but if the polls in February were indicative of what happens in November, there would be Bob Dole and even Walter Mondale presidential libraries, and there are not.

O'BRIEN: Interesting point. John King, thanks for joining us this morning. 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.