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What Republicans And Democrats Should Be Grateful For; Bosnian War A Decade Ago; Political Turkeys Of The Year

Aired November 24, 2005 - 16:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: Happy Thanksgiving. And thanks for being with us in THE SITUATION ROOM. This Thanksgiving, we ask two political pros to give us their lists of what the Democratic and Republican parties should be thankful for this year. Bill Press is the author of "How the Republicans Stole Christmas," and Terry Jeffrey is the editor of "Human Events."

They join us to offer their holiday servings of political strategy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VELSHI: Bill Press, let's start with you. What are you most thankful for, for the Democrats?

BILL PRESS, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: First of all, I think Democrats have a lot more to be thankful for these days, this particular Thanksgiving, than Republicans do. Number one, I mean, start with Patrick Fitzgerald. I mean, I think all Americans ought to be thankful to Patrick Fitzgerald. He's done an incredible job in a very sophisticated manner, I think a very sensitive manner. The president even has praised the way he's conducted this investigation.

He's determined. He's steady. And I think he has proven to the top aides in the White House that the law of the gravity does apply to them, as well, and they have to be held accountable for their actions if they did anything illegal, and it looks like it.

VELSHI: Terry?

TERRY JEFFREY, "HUMAN EVENTS": Listen, I have no problem with Patrick Fitzgerald. I think he's a conscientious, honest guy. I think he's done a good job.

Two things I point out about him, though, is that the underlying crime he started out investigating, whether someone had illegally revealed the identity of a covert CIA person, didn't happen. Second thing we've now learned is that Bob Woodward, the famous reporter for the "Washington Post," apparently knew about the identity of Valerie Plame before Fitzgerald knew anybody knew. So...

PRESS: See, that's funny: I thought perjury was a crime. I guess I missed...

JEFFREY: Well, it is. So is obstruction of justice.

(CROSSTALK)

JEFFREY: Top of my list is an excellent lawyer, more than that, a judge, Sam Alito, who President Bush has named to the U.S. Supreme Court. Excellent choice. This guy's not only highly qualified, he showed in 15 years in the appellate court. He practices judicial restraint. I think he also has an originalist interpretation of the Constitution. For years to come, this guy's going to have a positive impact on our country by being an excellent Supreme Court justice.

PRESS: Well, I'll say this much: I think he's better than Harriet Miers, because he does have some judicial experience. And there's no doubt about it. He's a qualified lawyer.

I think he's out of the mainstream. I think he's too far to the right for most of the American people. I've got some real questions about where he stands on the right of privacy, which is important to all Americans, on the commerce clause of the Constitution.

But, you know, we'll find out in the hearings. And one thing I'm glad about, Senator Biden has said, if he doesn't match-up, the Democrats are willing to filibuster this guy. And I think they should; it's that important.

VELSHI: Democrats had trouble rallying around Supreme Court strategy, no trouble rallying around a strong voice for Democrats. Number two on your list?

PRESS: Number two on my list is Congressman John Murtha of Pennsylvania. I mean, first of all, he's a Vietnam vet. You know, he's 37 years in the military. In Congress, he was known as the best friend the Pentagon ever had, a big hawk, supported this war from the beginning.

This week, he came out said, "I've talked to some troops. I've been over there. This war isn't working. We have to bring the troops home."

I think he has dared go where most Republicans and Democrats, I might add, are not willing to go. But you know what he's really done? He's stirred up a national debate over the war in Iraq. And that is very, very important. Good for him.

JEFFREY: Well, I may have some differences with Congressman Murtha's exact prescriptions, but I think he's a great American, he's a great patriot. This is a guy who, at 34 years of age in 1966, reenlisted in the Marines, went to Vietnam, won two purple hearts and a bronze star.

And I agree with Bill. We have an important debate in this country going on about Iraq. I think there's been good news this week, especially out of Cairo. You see the Arab factions coming together, the Shiites and the Sunnis. I think we're headed towards a convergence of opinion. It's good for America in Iraq. PRESS: Quickly, the good news out of Cairo was that the Shiites, and the Kurds, and the Sunnis came together and said, "Americans, go home."

JEFFREY: But not immediately.

VELSHI: What the Democrats got in John Murtha was somebody who solidified and identified a position. The Republicans might want to be thankful for Michael Pence, who did the same thing.

JEFFREY: Yes, I agree. At a time when a lot of Republican leaders in Washington, D.C., starting with the president in the White House, the leadership in both the House and Senate, I think, walked away from the conservative principles of the Republican Party, yet Congressman Mike Pence of Indiana stepped forward.

He's the chairman of the Republican Study Committee. Along with 100 Republican conservatives, after Katrina, when everybody in Washington wanted to spend money hand over fist, he said, "No, we've got to pay for it with spending offsets."

They have now won. The House has passed a $50 billion budget cut thanks to Mike Pence and his conservatives. The public should be thankful for that.

PRESS: I have to say -- it may surprise you -- unfortunately, there are not enough guys like him, because I remember when the Republican Party was the party of fiscal responsibility. And now we've got the biggest deficits ever, the biggest federal budget ever, the biggest federal workforce ever, and these big, huge tax cuts.

Bush has been a colossal big spender, and not enough Republicans like mike Pence have been willing to say, "Mr. President, you are wrong, and you're out of control."

VELSHI: You've got a conservative as the number three person on your list that Democrats should be thankful for.

PRESS: Oh, gosh...

VELSHI: The vice president?

PRESS: You know, I get down on my knees every night and say, "Thank God for Dick Cheney." You know, he's like Lord Voldemort. You know, no one shall speak his name.

Every time it looks like the Bush administration might be getting a little kinder and gentler and willing to work with the other side, Cheney comes out, gives another slash-and-burn speech. You know, the vice president for torture, he's been called. He represents, I think, everything that's evil about the Bush administration.

JEFFREY: You know, I would note that earlier this week on this program, Congressman John Murtha was interviewed by Wolf Blitzer. And he had very nice words to say about Dick Cheney, as Cheney did to say about Murtha on Monday. I think what Murtha said, that Cheney is the guy who has spent a lot of time in public service (INAUDIBLE) country is true, but I would say that -- we're going to go to my last here?

PRESS: Well, let me just -- as some people have said, several members of Congress -- and I think Murtha is one of them -- they don't recognize a Dick Cheney that they once knew when he was in the Congress. As vice president, I just think he's spending too much time in his bunker, you know?

VELSHI: You've got -- in the spirit of Thanksgiving, you've got the last one.

JEFFREY: That's right. My last thing to be thankful for is the resilience of the American people.

You look at the history of this country in the last five years. We've had two hotly contested, very close presidential races, a recount. We had the September 11th attacks, a recession. We've had two wars, very tough going in Iraq, everybody admits.

Through all this, you have the American economy growing at 3.8 percent, 5 percent unemployment. And I think people of this country basically understand that we are a secure country, we preserved our liberty, our greatest traditions. And we're moving forward to better days in the United States of America.

PRESS: I join you in saluting the American people. We are resilient. I think the American people are also getting smarter: 34 percent approval now for President Bush. I think 60 percent say it was a mistake to go in Iraq in the first place, and 53 percent say bring the troops home now. The American people have it right.

VELSHI: Bill Press, Terry Jeffrey, happy Thanksgiving to you and your families.

JEFFREY: Glad to be here. Happy Thanksgiving.

PRESS: Happy Thanksgiving. Thanks, Ali.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELSHI: A possible Democratic presidential contender comes clean on our "Political Radar."

For decades, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has been saying that he was drafted as a pro baseball pitcher in 1966. But an "Albuquerque Journal" investigation found no record of Richardson ever being drafted by the Kansas City A's, who have since moved to Oakland, or by any other team.

Richardson now says, after researching the matter, he's come to the conclusion that he was not drafted by the A's. As a star pitcher in high school and college, Richardson says he was told by scouts that he, quote, "would or could," end quote, be drafted, and so, in his mind, that meant he was. Richardson insists he never tried to embellish his days playing ball.

Coming up, 10 years after a peace treaty ended the war in Bosnia, some U.S. troops are still there. What lessons for Iraq can we learn from the crisis in Bosnia?

And later, she may be small but she's got a big appetite. You won't want to miss this holiday treat. Stay with us. You are in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: Well, on Thanksgiving, many Americans are discussing the situation in Iraq, perhaps around the dinner table, wondering when U.S. troops can come home and how the conflict there will ultimately end. So for some context, it's helpful to look back at the U.S. involvement in the Bosnian war a decade later.

Here's our national security correspondent, David Ensor -- David?

DAVID ENSOR, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Ali, you know, it's perhaps instructive, as we think of our troops celebrating, if you can call it the word, their Thanksgiving in Iraq right now to remember that, 10 years ago, when President Clinton prepared to send troops to Bosnia, 70 percent of the American public oppose the deployment. And Congress, under then-Speaker Gingrich, voted overwhelmingly to oppose the deployment as well, but the president went ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ENSOR (voice-over): Ten years after the peace deal that ended the war in Bosnia, there are still American troops on the ground there, just a couple of hundred, though, and thousands of Europeans doing the lion's share of the peace keeping. No casualties in years. Iraq should be so lucky.

Ten years ago, the deal-making peace was hammered out on a military base in Dayton, Ohio, between Muslims, Serbs and Croats. The American doing the diplomatic heavy-lifting was Richard Holbrooke, who sees two lessons for Bosnia, for Iraq, and the next one: Have a post- war plan ready and send in enough troops.

RICHARD HOLBROOKE, NEGOTIATOR, BOSNIA PEACE ACCORD: Going in heavy, often called the Powell Doctrine, was the correct thing to do.

ENSOR: Holbrooke says there was no military solution in Bosnia and there is none in Iraq today.

HOLBROOKE: Neither side could have won in Bosnia. They would have just gone on killing each other. And in Iraq, the Sunni rebels, the insurgents, the terrorists cannot win. They represent 20 percent of the people.

But a military victory over them, real military victory, is not really achievable. I don't know any serious people who have been there who think it is.

ENSOR: In Washington this week, three joint presidents of Bosnia visiting. A messy political solution, but it brought peace. Now, the Bush administration wants to convince the Bosnians to modernize their unwieldy government and to arrest two war criminals still on the loose, Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic. The Bush administration also sees lessons from Bosnia for Iraq.

NICHOLAS BURNS, UNDERSECRETARY OF STATE: So if there are lessons from Bosnia, I think those lessons are being applied in Iraq: The commitment of the Bush administration to stay and finish the job in Iraq; the patience that we have to have in dealing with extraordinarily complex situations on the ground, as we see in Iraq, and as we saw in Bosnia 10 years ago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ENSOR: A 10-year American military commitment in the Balkans then is bearing fruit. Anything resembling success in Iraq, many present and former officials say, could well require just as much patience as Bosnia did -- Ali?

VELSHI: David, Richard Holbrooke was saying that the political situation in Iraq can't be solved by the United States. And it seemed to be the same thing in Bosnia. The peace has been kept, but three presidents. Did they get anywhere out of this? Are we likely to see them come to some resolution?

ENSOR: Funny you should ask. This week, the U.S. tried to convince the Bosnians to go down to one president, to come up with a system where they pick somebody. They agreed to agree, but they couldn't quite get there. They just passed language saying they'll try, but they're not ready yet. So these things are slow, I guess.

VELSHI: Complicated, but better than bloodshed.

ENSOR: That's right.

VELSHI: David, thanks for joining us, David Ensor.

Well, coming up, are they on or off again? We've got the definitive word on the marriage of Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey. It's the top story on CNN.com, if that puzzles anyone as much as it puzzles me.

And the turkeys that everybody's clucking about, which political figures embarrassed themselves above and beyond the call of duty? Our Bill Schneider will name names right here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: On this Thanksgiving, the year so far has not been gravy for a number of political figures. So pull up a chair with us. It's time for Bill Schneider to talk turkey.

BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, you know, Ali, Thanksgiving is a day when we observe many honored traditions. And one of them is our political turkeys of the year.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) SCHNEIDER (voice-over): It seems like every day is Turkey Day in politics, another chance for politicians to do something foolish. Just look at who made our list of this year's political turkeys of the year.

Turkey number five: The Turkeynator. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger picked fights with nurses, teachers, firefighters and legislators. He called a special election to show them who's boss. And guess what happened? They kicked his butt.

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: I should have also listened to my wife, who said to me, "Don't do this."

SCHNEIDER: Turkey four: Pat Robertson called down the wrath of God upon the voters of Dover, Pennsylvania. Why? Because they voted out the school board that had mandated the teaching of intelligent design as an alternative to evolution.

PAT ROBERTSON, CHRISTIAN BROADCASTER: If there is a disaster in your area, don't turn to God. You just rejected him from your city.

SCHNEIDER: That was a few months after Robertson called on the U.S. to take out Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. Ayatollahs issued fatwas. Pat Robertson issues "Patwas."

Turkey three: In 2004, Mayor Randy Kelly of St. Paul, Minnesota, made his choice.

MAYOR RANDY KELLY (D), ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA: This November, George W. Bush has my endorsement for president of the United States.

SCHNEIDER: The only problem? Kelly's a Democrat, and John Kerry took 73 percent of the vote in St. Paul last year. So this year, St. Paul voters made their choice. They threw Kelly out of office by a margin of better than two to one. Nearly two-thirds of St. Paul voters said Kelly's endorsement of Bush influenced their decision.

Turkey two: In a crisis, political leaders are supposed to sound like they're in control of the situation, even if they're not. Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco did not sound very reassuring during Hurricane Katrina, or even three months later.

GOV. KATHLEEN BLANCO (D), LOUISIANA: You know, here in Louisiana, we feel like we are citizens of the United States who are nearly forgotten. It is a very frustrating thing. People are weary.

SCHNEIDER: The governor angered many voters by ordering huge budget cuts. "Time" magazine called Governor Blanco's cautious and deliberate approach a liability and rated her one of the nation's worst governors.

We'll let the president introduce the turkey of the year.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job. SCHNEIDER: Michael Brown, failed congressional candidate, ousted commissioner of the International Arabian Horses Association, self- styled "fashion god," and clueless federal emergency management director.

MICHAEL BROWN, FORMER FEMA DIRECTOR: The federal government did not even know about the convention center people until today.

SCHNEIDER: How's that again?

BROWN: I misspoke on Thursday when I said, you know, we were just learning about it. What I meant was, we were learning about it 24 hours earlier.

SCHNEIDER: "Can I quit now? Can I come home?" Brown wrote to his deputy the morning of the hurricane. The answer is: Yes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCHNEIDER: Stick around tomorrow. We'll be serving leftovers. But today, it's time to answer my annual Thanksgiving question: What three national disasters would happen if you dropped the Thanksgiving platter? Answer: The downfall of turkey, the breakup of china, and the overthrow of grease. So be careful.

VELSHI: And that's a perfect way to lead in to what we're doing next. Bill, good to see you.

SCHNEIDER: Nice to see you.

VELSHI: She's small in size, but she is living large. How does a 100-pound woman keep out-eating her competitors? We're going to find out, when we serve up the situation online. And next hour, we'll look at that.

Next hour, a scare today at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. We're going to tell you about the balloon that went awry. You are in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: All right. We're back in THE SITUATION ROOM. Zain Verjee is with us from Atlanta. She has got a closer look at some other stories that are making news.

Hey, Zain.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hey, Ali.

The head of the United Nations Refugee Agency says thousands of earthquake survivors in Pakistan may not make it through the winter. The U.N. high commissioner for refugees, Antonio Guterres, visited the disaster zone today. He's urging local and international officials to prepare for what could be a flood of refugees from mountain villages when the frigid Himalayan winter hits. He added that, look, more than $5.8 billion have been pledged by donors and they have still yet to deliver on their promises.

Illinois authorities are trying to figure out what caused two freight trains to collide today. It happened just south of Chicago. Three crew members suffered minor injuries. And federal investigators are reviewing video to try and determine what caused yesterday's rush hour train crash.

At least 10 people were hurt when a commuter train slammed into cars that were stopped at a rail crossing in a Chicago suburb. The NTSB's acting chairman says that the accident may have happened because drivers were just rushing to get out of town for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. He says the initial investigation shows the train was traveling about 70 miles an hour when the engineer hit the brake about 450 feet before the crash, and that slowed the train to just 65 miles an hour.

Ali, I know you've been on edge for this, but the rumors are true. After months of tabloid speculation, pop stars Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey are calling it quits. The couple announced that they're splitting up after three years of marriage. They pair starred in the MTV reality show, "Newlyweds," and, in a joint statement, they say that the split is a mutual decision.

Something for you to think about this Thanksgiving Day. Ali, how much turkey can you eat in just 12 minutes?

VELSHI: I thought I was a big eater, but wow.

VERJEE: A Virginia woman managed. Look at this. Look at her. She managed to gobble four pounds, 3.1 ounces. That was good enough to win a turkey eating contest at a New York deli yesterday.

Her name is Sonya Thomas. And she took home $2,500. By the way, if you look at her, compared to these guys, I mean, she just weighs 100 pounds and she managed to put that down. She also says for this contest she took the name "Black Widow" because she likes to eliminate the males.

VELSHI: Look at her. Look at her! I mean, the other boys in the competition look like maybe they should be in the competition.

VERJEE: I know. I know. It's amazing. She's actually won something before. I think she ate something like 65 hard-boiled eggs in six minutes and 40 seconds. So, you know...

VELSHI: Yes, we have to look further into this, Zain. Good to see you.

Abbi Tatton has more on the champion -- has a little bit more on this champion of the turkey eating contest, with the situation online. Abbi, this is remarkable.

ABBI TATTON, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: I'm doing this, Ali, for you because you've been so fascinated with this story all day. This is Sonya Thomas's Web site. There's lots of details about what she can eat online. Sonya Thomas, a.k.a. the Black Widow, yes, because she likes to eliminate the men. She started competitive eating in 2003. She likes to beat out the men. And let's look at what she's done in some of these competitions.

Cheesecake: She can eat 11 pounds in nine minutes. Lobster, Maine lobster to be specific: 44 from the shell in 12 minutes. That's 11 pounds. Turducken -- I've had that explained to me. I'm still not...

VELSHI: That's turkey, duck and chicken, all in one.

TATTON: OK. I'm not really sure about that one. But anyway, over seven pounds in 12 minutes. Now, there's lots of information about her at the worldwide body that regulates these eating competitions. That's the International Federation of Competitive Eating.

Now, I was looking at yesterday's competition in particular. That was the Golden Palace Thanksgiving Invitational. And I wanted to point out that yesterday's event was dedicated to the people of England who do not have Thanksgiving. And for that, we're really touched.

VELSHI: So she'll eat for all of them. Abbi, thank you for doing that, because my continuing fascination with that demanded it. Abbi Tatton, with the situation online.

Well, it's 5:00 p.m. in Washington, and you're in THE SITUATION ROOM, where news and information from around the world arrive at one place at the same time.

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