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The Situation Room
Will Republicans Emulate Arnold Schwarzenegger?; Bush Talks About Parallels Between Iraq and Vietnam; Republican Stick With Similar Leaders in Congress
Aired November 17, 2006 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks very much, Susan and to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM, where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Standing by, CNN reporters across the United States and around the world to bring you today's top stories.
Happening now, lessons from Vietnam for the U.S. mission in Iraq. It's 4:00 a.m. Saturday in Hanoi, where President Bush is acknowledging parallels between the two controversial wars. Are the latest killings and kidnappings in Iraq inviting more quagmire comparisons?
Also ahead, House Republicans stick with the leaders who got them where they are today, on the brink of losing control. It's 4:00 p.m. here in Washington. What message are GOP lawmakers sending with their leadership votes? I'll ask the newly elected Senate minority whip and comeback kid, senator Trent Lott.
And Arnold Schwarzenegger's new role as a role model. The Republicans in Congress might want to get some tips on reinventing themselves from the body builder, turned movie star, turned governor.
I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
First up this hour, Vietnam flashbacks and new marching orders in Iraq. Pentagon officials say some 57,000 U.S. troops will be sent to Iraq early next year as part of a routine rotation, they say, to keep the force level at about 140,000 to 150,000. There is nothing routine about the mission for many Americans who have soured on the war.
President Bush today is promising the U.S. will succeed in Iraq if it doesn't quit. He delivered his call for patience in Vietnam, where Americans fought, and ultimately lost, a divisive war more than three decades ago.
The president's choice to be his new defense secretary says Iraq will be his top priority when and if he is confirmed to replace Donald Rumsfeld. Robert Gates met today with senators who will begin considering his nomination on December 5th.
In Iraq another grim reminder of what Americans are up against. Coalition and Iraqi forces are continuing to hunt for five western security contractors abducted at a fake police checkpoint near Safuon (ph) yesterday. We'll have reports from Baghdad and Capital Hill shortly. First though, CNN's Elaine Quijano has more on the president's trip to Vietnam and the lessons for Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Within hours of arriving at Hanoi to attend an annual economic summit of Pacific rim nations, President Bush made clear he prefers to look ahead.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Vietnam is, you know, is an exciting place. It's a place with an enormous future.
QUIJANO (on camera): Yet he knows the symbolism of his visit here is rooted in both the past and present conflict.
BUSH: I thought a lot about what it was like, what my impressions of Vietnam were growing up and, you know, and here I am in this country today, and I guess my answer is it's very hopeful.
QUIJANO (voice-over): After lunch with Australia's prime minister, he raised the issue that will ultimately define his presidency, Iraq. When asked if Vietnam held lessons for the debate on Iraq, he answered yes.
BUSH: One lesson is that we tend to want there to be instant success in the world and the task in Iraq is going to take a while. We'll succeed, unless we quit.
QUIJANO: Quitting Vietnam still haunts the United States. And though the White House rejects comparisons, how to proceed in Iraq could haunt the U.S. for years to come.
Elaine Quijano, CNN, with the president in Hanoi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Back here in the United States, Vice President Dick Cheney is echoing the president's don't quit message in Iraq in even stronger language. Cheney delivers a speech tonight to the conservative legal group, the Federalist Society. The advanced text suggests the vice president is undaunted by the Republicans election defeat and voter anger about Iraq.
Here is an excerpt from the advanced text, "Some in our country may believe in good faith that retreating from Iraq would make America safer. Recent experience teaches the opposite lesson." Cheney goes on to say, "To get out before the job is done would convince the terrorists once again that free nations will change our policies, forsake our friends and abandon our interests whenever we are confronted with violence and blackmail." Strong words from the vice president.
The president's choice to chart the future of the Iraq mission is laying groundwork today for his confirmation hearings. Is Robert Gates giving senators any early signs of how he would be different than Donald Rumsfeld? Let's check in with our congressional correspondent Dana Bash, Dana.
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well Wolf, Robert Gates followed tradition here today and made the customary rounds to key senators who will play a role in his confirmation. He got a warm reception from Republicans and Democrats alike.
Gates' confirmation hearing is going to be on December 5th and it was pretty clear in listening to senators on both sides of the aisle that getting Robert Gates confirmed is a top priority, to do that as soon as possible. In fact, they should be pretty happy over at the White House to hear what the incoming majority leader Harry Reid had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), INCOMING MAJORITY LEADER: Unless something comes up toward the hearings, which I don't expect, he should be confirmed. The one thing he has going for him, I mentioned that to the secretary, is we want the change to take place very quickly. So it's to our interests to have this change at the head of the Defense Department as soon as possible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BASH: Now, you just heard Harry Reid give his explanation for why he wants to do this so fast and that is to have change at the top of the Pentagon as soon as possible. In fact, Democrats and Republicans are saying that up here, essentially one of their main reasons to get Robert Gates confirmed is anybody but Rumsfeld, and that is actually something I asked Mr. Gates about.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BASH: When we ask what is your best asset and we're told he's not Don Rumsfeld?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why don't we let time develop that, right, Robert?
ROBERT GATES, DEFENSE SECRETARY NOMINEE: I think I'll let that one go.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BASH: Now, he might not have wanted to answer that question, but he will, of course, get a lot of very tough questions under oath from senators next month at his confirmation hearing. The biggest thing these senators, of course, are going to want to know is what he personally thinks about the Iraq strategy and how that strategy and policy in Iraq should be changed, if, in fact, he were to be the head man at the Pentagon.
Now, John Warner, the outgoing Republican chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said today what they hope to do is get Robert Gates in place at the Pentagon before some of the major reviews, that everybody in Washington is waiting for, come out, the Iraq Study Group Review, internal reviews at the Pentagon and perhaps even inside the White House. They hope that Robert Gates will be able to look at all of those with the president and the rest of his natural security team, to try to figure out the best way forward in Iraq, Wolf.
BLITZER: And you can be sure we will have extensive coverage of those confirmation committee before the Senate Armed Services Committee that begin December 5th. Dana, thanks for that.
Let's get an update now from Iraq on the kidnapping of those five western security contractors.
And joining us now, in Baghdad, our correspondent Arwa Damon. Very disturbing over the past 24 hours, these convoys being snatched, if you will. What is the latest information, Arwa, that we're getting?
ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, we have two separate incidents. The most recent happening today, where a British security convoy was attacked. The specific details are still unclear. What we do know is that one security contractor was wounded. Another British civilian was killed. Unclear if he worked for that security company or not.
Yesterday, we had the incident in which four U.S. contractors were kidnapped and one Austrian contractor was kidnapped. In that case their convoy approached a fake checkpoint where the local militia men were masquerading as Iraqi police. They kidnapped five and nine of their drivers. They released the drivers, but kept those five contractors. Again, four Americans and one Austria. There is right now a massive military operation under way, trying to rescue these victims, Wolf.
BLITZER: It looks like a pretty coordinated, sophisticated operation that some analysts are suggesting would almost certainly require inside information. What are you hearing there?
DAMON: Well, Wolf, it does seem to be very coordinated but, again, this is a method of operation that the insurgency, the armed groups that we're seeing operating in Iraq, have used quite often, posing as Iraqi security forces. In this case, these were known routes that these contractors, these convoys, use on a fairly regular basis and now we have two incidents in the vicinity of Basra, one which we are certain involved militia men posing as Iraqi security forces. The other one, that also seems to be highly likely the case, Wolf.
BLITZER: Arwa Damon, thanks very much.
Let's go to the power shift now here in Washington on Capitol Hill. A little over a week after Americans voted for change, House Republicans today voted, in large part, for the status quo. They will keep the same top leaders when they become the minority party in the 110th Congress. Our Congressional correspondent Andrea Koppel has more now on what is happening, what the message that's being sent up on the hill from the Republican side today. Andrea?
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, fresh from their defeat at the polls, 197 House Republicans today chose the men and women they hope will lead them back to the majority.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to earn our way back into the majority in two years.
KOPPEL (voice-over): This new team had a couple of old faces at the top of the roster. Ohio's John Boehner, the current majority leader, overwhelmingly defeated Indiana conservative Mike Pence to become his party's next minority leader. And Missouri's Roy Blunt, who is wrapping up his second term as the vote counting whip, also beat out his challenger, Arizona's John Shaddeg, to hold on to his job as minority whip in the 110th Congress. Both leaders pledged to work hard to return the GOP to the majority.
REP. ROY BLUNT (R), MINORITY WHIP-ELECT: In the last ten days, our conference has come together with an appreciation for the opportunity to redefine who we are, to provide the kind of alternatives that we want to provide to look toward the future, frankly to get rid of the bad habits that we may have developed in 12 years in the majority.
KOPPEL: Both Shaddeg and Pence are leaders of a group of over 100 House conservatives. They pushed rank and file to vote for a clean slate and campaigned on the premise their party had not just lost its majority, but that it had lost its way. Supporters said their defeat sent the wrong message.
REP. JEFF FLAKE (R), ARIZONA: It's just easier to move forward having people believe that you're serious about reform if you have new leadership.
KOPPEL: But other lawmakers who backed Boehner and Blunt said without House Speaker Dennis Hastert and former majority leader Tom Delay at the helm, it's already a different landscape.
REP. MICHAEL BURGESS (R), TEXAS: We're going to be a different conference than we were the 109th Congress. Just by definition, we no longer occupy all the big chairs over in the building across the street. But I think leader Boehner is capable. Roy blunt certainly has the institutional knowledge and is a great vote counter.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KOPPEL: And, at the end of the day, it was those qualities, say Republican leadership aides, which made Boehner and Blunt the more attractive candidates. That and the fact that they visited about 300 districts over the last couple of years to campaign for members, many of whom returned to Washington this week, for the first time in 12 years, in the minority, unsure if they wanted yet another big change, Wolf.
BLITZER: Andrea Koppel, thanks very much for that. We want to thank not only Andrea but Dana Bash and Elaine Quijano. They are all part of the best political team on television.
And remember, for the latest political news at any time, check out the CNN political ticker. Just go to CNN.com/Ticker.
Jack Cafferty is with us with the Cafferty File -- Jack.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: I'm also part of that political team.
BLITZER: You are definitely part of the best political team on television, without a doubt, absolutely, positively.
CAFFERTY: Thank you. Just looking for a little help there.
BLITZER: OK.
CAFFERTY: After the Republicans got the stuffing knocked out of them in the mid terms last week, President Bush wanted to make nice. So he had these little sit-downs with Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, the new powers in Congress and talked about how they were all going to just get along. That tired old phrase bipartisanship was heard over and over again, as it always is after somebody gets dusted up at the ballot box.
Well, here is what has happened since then. Bush wants John Bolton confirmed as U.S. ambassador to the U.N. by the lame duck session of Congress. It ain't going to happen. Bush has resubmitted six formerly blocked judicial nominees to the federal appeal courts and he wants those confirmed by the lame duck session. It ain't going it happen.
And as proof that his arrogance was not lost in the election, he wants Congress to pass legislation legalizing the NSA spy program, the one that has already been ruled illegal by a federal judge. That's not going to happen, either. Great idea though, right? You do something illegal, you just get your toadies (ph) in Congress to pass a law saying that it's legal. Same thing they did with the violations of the Geneva Conventions.
Here is the question then, is there really such a thing as bipartisanship in Washington? E-mail your thoughts on that to CaffertyFile@CNN.com or go to CNN.com/CaffertyFile, Wolf.
BLITZER: We're going to find out very, very soon if there is, Jack. Thanks very much.
CAFFERTY: It doesn't exist.
BLITZER: We'll see. In a few weeks we'll get some initial indications.
And to our viewers, if you want to get a sneak preview of Jack's questions, plus an early read on the day's political news and what's ahead right here in THE SITUATION ROOM, you can sign up for our daily e-mail alert. Just go to CNN.com/SITUATIONROOM.
Coming up, he was one of the few rock stars for Republicans in last week's election. But is Arnold Schwarzenegger's move to the middle the way to go for the GOP as they march toward 2008?
Plus, the president in Vietnam right now, but talking about Iraq. Is this a smart strategy? I'll ask Donna Brazile and Terry Jeffrey in today's Strategy Session.
And later, he's the only Democrat so far to have officially taken the very first step toward a run for the White House. Outgoing Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack standing by to join us live, right here in THE SITUATION ROOM. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Let's check in with Carol Lin at the CNN Center for a quick look at some other important stories making news. Hi Carol.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, Wolf.
In North Carolina survivors of yesterday's devastating tornado are going through the rubble of what is left of their homes. At least eight people died when the twister slammed into a mobile home park in Riegelwood and four children are critically injured. The area has no tornado sirens. Divers will search a pond for additional victims. Three tornadoes also hit western North Carolina.
Also in the news, you may have noticed this year's Atlantic hurricane season has been a lot quieter than normal and hurricane experts say it's because of a late El Nino. They had predicted an above average season, with 17 named storms, including nine hurricanes. Well so far, there have been just nine named storms, the fewest since 1997. Five of the storms were hurricanes, but the season ends November 30th, pretty soon, coming up.
In the meantime, two former Enron executives are going to prison. They are getting sharply reduced sentences for helping prosecutors convict Enron's Kenneth Lay and Andy Fastow and Jeffrey Skilling. A federal judge today sentenced Michael Kopper to three years behind bars for money laundering and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. And Enron's former investor relations chief, Mark Koenig, received an 18- month sentence. He provided false financial reports to investors.
Well few newer homes are getting built. Housing construction plummeted last month to its lowest level in more than six years. Construction of new single family homes and apartments fell 14.6 percent. Now, one economist says builders are responding to the decline in housing sales and some analysts add the housing slump could last a couple more months, but others say declining mortgage rates might be enticing more buyers. We'll see what happens, Wolf.
BLITZER: I think you'll agree, and all of our viewers will agree, Carol, last year we had enough hurricanes to more than meet the quota. LIN: Oh yes.
BLITZER: It's a good thing this year turned out to be easier than many of the experts thought.
LIN: Yes, nice and quiet. We like it.
BLITZER: Let's hope it stays like that until the end of this month, few more days left of the hurricane season. Carol Lin will be back with you shortly.
And coming up, the newly reelected House Republican leaders are vowing to earn their way back into the majority. Will a back to the future outlook help them come back from defeat? Donna Brazile and Terry Jeffrey, they are standing by for our Strategy Session. And they will consider the president's Vietnam flashback as well. Did he give Iraq war critics any new ammunition today in Hanoi? Stay with us, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Welcome back to THE SITUATION ROOM. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Washington. No one has ever accused Arnold Schwarzenegger of being boring. On election day, the California governor proved he knows how to play to his audience and now his political survival instincts may give other defeated Republicans something to get excited about.
Our senior political analyst Bill Schneider is in California. He is joining us now from L.A. What is the latest there with the governor, Bill?
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, you know, unlike most Republicans, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger did very well this year and his success carries a message for his fellow Republicans.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER (voice-over): What do Republicans do now? To paraphrase some famous advice, go west old party, and follow the example of one Republican who had a very good year. Arnold Schwarzenegger is an actor. In three years as governor, he has played three different roles. Call it the three faces of Arnold.
He started out as a moderate in 2004, campaigning side-by-side with Democrats to rescue the state budget.
GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R) CALIFORNIA: Up and down the state we are campaigning together. When have you seen that the last time?
SCHNEIDER: Schwarzenegger won. Then he moved to the right, picking fights with the Democratic legislature and public employee unions.
SCHWARZENEGGER: This is a battle of the special interest versus the children's interests. SCHNEIDER: He called a special election to force a showdown with his opponents. He lost. He got the message.
SCHWARZENEGGER: I should have also listened to my wife, who said, I mean, don't do this.
SCHNEIDER: This year, Californians saw Arnold's third face. He's become, sort of, a liberal. He shifted positions.
SCHWARZENEGGER: When I ran for governor, I said that we could not afford an increase in the minimum wage, unless the economy bounced back. Well, the economy has bounced back.
SCHNEIDER: He signed the most far-reaching program in the country to combat global warming.
SCHWARZENEGGER: This is only the beginning, because by 2050 we will reduce emissions by another 80 percent.
SCHNEIDER: Look what happened in two states on election day. In Pennsylvania, Senator Rick Santorum embraced a deeply conservative philosophy and never wavered. He went down. Santorum lost the center. Independents voted overwhelmingly for the Democrat.
In California, Schwarzenegger carried independent voters handily. He reclaimed the center. Schwarzenegger did two things President Bush has never done. He flatly acknowledged his mistakes, and he changed course.
SCHWARZENEGGER: I have absorbed my defeat and I have learned my lesson.
SCHNEIDER: Schwarzenegger is now thriving. President Bush has already become a lame duck.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER: In their leadership election today, House Republicans decisively rejected conservative insurgents. They seem to have made the same calculation as California governor Schwarzenegger, moving to the right is now way reclaim the center, Wolf.
BLITZER: Bill Schneider, thanks, good report. Let's get some more on it in our strategy session. Right now our CNN political analyst and Democratic strategist Donna Brazile and Terry Jeffrey, the editor of "Human Events." You got to believe, Donna, that if Arnold Schwarzenegger had been born in the United States -- presumably, a two-term governor from California, a blue state like that, an enormous comeback that he had, he would be running for president right now.
DONNA BRAZILE, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well there's no question. California's is electorally rich. Look, what Arnold learned is what Bill Clinton tried to teach everybody, is that you can't govern from the left or the right, but you must govern down the middle, and clearly that was his recipe for success. BLITZER: Since he wasn't born in the United States, he is not eligible to run for president, but what do you make of this phenomenon of Arnold Schwarzenegger?
TERRY JEFFREY, EDITOR, "HUMAN EVENTS": Well, California, my home state, is a state that went from being a conservative state when Ronald Reagan was governor, to being a deeply liberal state now. And Bill Schneider tried to make the comparison between Rick Santorum and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The fact is Rick Santorum lost to Bob Casey Jr., a pro life Democrat. I think it's possible that Bob Casey is more conservative than Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the sort of liberal cultural ethic that plays for Arnold Schwarzenegger in California would never play to Republican voters in other places. You want to see a...
BLITZER: Well in Ohio Mike DeWine lost to Sherrod Brown, who is a very liberal guy.
JEFFREY: Well that's right. This was a horrible year for Republicans in Ohio Wolf, in part because they had a Republican governor who pled no contest to ethics charges. Bob Ney actually plead guilty to corruption in Ohio. Two years ago, Bush took Ohio. There was a marriage amendment on the ballot. It took 65 percent of the vote. If that marriage amendment hadn't been on the ballot in 2004, George Bush would not be president today.
BRAZILE: With the Bush conservatives no longer in vogue I can understand why conservatives are trying to recruit Democrats to join their ranks, but the truth is Bob Casey, John Tester, Jim Webb, they are what I call bread and butter Democrats, blue dogs who ran on a platform to raise the minimum wage, lower prescription drug prices and yes, change the course in Iraq. So we claim them in the Democratic Party. They are not conservatives.
BLITZER: Let's talk a little bit about the House Republican leadership. They elected their new leadership today, but guess what, the new leadership looks very much like the old leadership in the House of Representatives. There was a conservative challenge and those conservatives really didn't get very far.
JEFFREY: Well, you know, this was a big mistake by the House Republicans, I believe, Wolf. There are some issues that John Boehner is good on. He's a good pro-lifer, but he is a big government Republican. I think it is emblematic of the fact that under President Bush the Republican Party has become a big government party nationally. We now have two big government parties. The Republican Party eventually is going to have to get back to its limited government vision. I believe it will, because that's where the Republicans out in the country are. The House leadership election was a mistake for the Republicans.
BLITZER: What do you think?
BRAZILE: Well Mr. Blunt said that they had a couple bad habits... BLITZER: He's minority whip. He was the majority whip, now will be the minority whip.
BRAZILE: And the Democrats will help the Republicans break the bad habits of excessive spending and, of course, a do nothing Congress. So this is a good week for Democrats. We have put behind all of our intramural squabbles and now we are prepared to lead.
BLITZER: Can the Republicans in they year 2006, in the aftermath of this debacle for them, do what the Democrats did -- Bill Clinton did after 1994, when they suffered an even worse electoral disaster?
JEFFREY: Well, you know, I hope they don't do it. Because what Bill Clinton did after 1994 was he moved right. He signed the Welfare Reform Bill, for example, right before the 1996 convention, angered a bunch of liberals. I do believe...
BLITZER: He worked to balance the budget.
JEFFREY: Right, he worked with Newt Gingrich and the Republican Congress reigned in spending under Bill Clinton, a Democratic president. I do believe President Clinton is going to emulate Bush. He is going to move left and I hope that conservatives in the House and Senate are able to stop him from moving too far left.
I believe it would be disastrous for the Republican Party to follow George Bush to the left. I think the Congress, the Republicans in Congress, have to distinguish themselves from Bush, if they want to take back the majority in 2008.
BLITZER: But it looks like the Republicans in the House, at least, by the election today, are not listening to Terry. They're going ahead, and they're going with people who want to work very closely with the White House.
BRAZILE: Well, look, there's no question that they elevated Tom DeLay's, you know, proteges in the House. And I don't know if that's good or bad for the Republicans.
But what it is, it's good for Democrats, because Democrats will be unified, and Democrats will be prepared to put their 100-hour agenda before this Republican, the Republican minority. And I hope they buy some of these proposals that we're trying to sell to the American people.
BLITZER: Here is the president today in Hanoi, of all places, in Vietnam, speaking out about the situation in Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: We will get the job done. We will continue to help this Maliki government meet the aspirations of the Iraqi people. We're not leaving until this job is done, until Iraq can govern, sustain and defend itself.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BLITZER: He stood next to the Australian prime minister, John Howard, a very close ally and friend.
But the symbolism of speaking about Iraq, Terry, in Vietnam, 30 years ago, bringing back all those memories, making the comparisons to Iraq right now, it's just driving home to a lot of people out there the notion that maybe Iraq has turned out to be another Vietnam.
JEFFREY: Well, I hate to say it, Wolf, but I think that public perception is there.
But this is what people should think about. The real disaster in Vietnam came in 1975, after the Democrats picked up huge seats in Congress, after Watergate and the '74 election.
The first thing the big Democratic majority did was pull out all aid from the South Vietnam government. That is when they collapsed. That when we -- that's when we had total disaster in Southeast Asia. That is what we cannot allow to have happen in the Persian Gulf, starting in Baghdad.
BLITZER: Well, the comparisons to Vietnam, it only further complicates the president's mission right now.
BRAZILE: Well, there's no question. Terry is right about the perception that the president is over there urging the American people to be patient.
Well, the American people have lost their patience with change the course. They have lost their patience with no exit strategy. What the American people said last week is that they want a change of course in Iraq.
And, hopefully, the Iraqi Study Group will come up with recommendations this president will accept.
BLITZER: If you looked at those 10 members of the Iraq Study Group, this bipartisan commission that the president put together months ago, led by James Baker and Lee Hamilton, the former Democratic congressman, if you look at the five Democrats and the five Republicans, they are al basically from the realist school of foreign policy, as opposed to the idealist, or the neoconservatives, school of foreign policy.
You know they are going to call for a significant change.
JEFFREY: Right. I think there's going to be a lot more emphasis on the political element of how we are going to solve the situation in Iraq, less on the military. I think that's why Gates is going into Defense, because he won't interfere.
He will participate in the overall strategy. And, quite frankly, I think the elections drove a spike through President Bush's neo- Wilsonian, "Let's spread democracy around the world," interventionist foreign policy. I think you are going to see my party, the Republicans, going back to a realistic foreign policy, the more traditional party -- policy of the Republican Party.
BLITZER: The Brent Scowcroft-James Baker...
JEFFREY: No, you know, old-time realist policy. Let's look out for our national interests first. Scowcroft, I think, is a realist, absolutely.
BLITZER: Well...
BRAZILE: Pragmatists.
BLITZER: Wrap it up, because we're out of time.
BRAZILE: No question. This is a group of pragmatists, who, I believe, will come up with some -- with some recommendations that both the president and the Democratic majority will be able to agree on.
BLITZER: Our Brian Todd is working on a piece -- you will see it coming up here in THE SITUATION ROOM -- precisely on this subject.
Donna, Terry, thanks very much for coming in.
JEFFREY: Thank you.
BLITZER: And up next: In the early race for the White House, who is winning the early competition to reach out to voters online? Our Internet reporters are checking the virtual campaign trail.
And, in our next hour, the secret to Senator Trent Lott's success. He's back in the Republican leadership, but his party, it's looking at swoons. What does he hope to accomplish? Trent Lott right here in THE SITUATION ROOM, that's coming up.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Now to the race for the White House.
It's just 10 days after the midterms, and, already, five presidential hopefuls are testing the water for a possible bid in '08, and more are on the way, and they haven't hesitated to reach out online.
Our Internet reporter, Jacki Schechner, is standing by with details -- Jacki.
JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: Wolf, outgoing Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack has officially announced he is a Democratic candidate for the presidential bid in 2008.
With that comes an official presidential Web site. And he's using it to -- quote -- "meet new supporters online." And what does that mean? It means setting up social networking pages on sites like MySpace.com, Facebook.com, flickr.com, the group photo blog. He has even got a channel on YouTube.com, where he is posting videos. Now, his campaign admits to us that he is new to the social networking community. But he is no stranger to the liberal blogosphere. He has been posting on Daily Kos.com, the top liberal blog, since October of 2005. And he did attend the yearly Kos Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada, this past June.
Now, former North Carolina Senator John Edwards is also known for being very tech savvy. And we often consider him a possible presidential candidate in '08. He also has pages on MySpace.com, Facebook.com, flickr, and YouTube.
And when he interview with Wolf yesterday, he said to keep an eye on his Web site, OneAmericaCommittee.com, where he said that you would find -- quote -- "some new and interesting things in the next couple of weeks.
Speaking of interesting online, Republican Senator John McCain has announced that he is testing the waters, having set up an exploratory committee for an '08 presidential bid. This Web site is pretty slick for an exploratory committee. You can donate. You can send in your resume. And you can -- you can even watch this video of a speech that McCain made last night, laying out his GOP agenda, and garnering some support -- Wolf.
BLITZER: This is only the beginning of the future online in politics.
SCHECHNER: Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
BLITZER: We're going to be watching.
Jacki, thank you for that.
Coming up: He's got his eyes on the White House, as Jacki just pointed out. But does Tom Vilsack have a good shot at the job? The outgoing Democratic governor of Iowa standing by to join us live, right here in THE SITUATION ROOM, in the next hour.
And even politicians aren't immune to the frenzy to get hold of the new PlayStation 3 video game system. We will tell you what is going on.
Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: The never-ending election tops today's "Political Radar."
It has been 10 days since Americans went to the polls, and six House races are still too close to call. Right now, the Democrats control 232 seats. Republicans control 197. That's a pickup of 29 seats for the Democrats. The remaining races are all currently Republican-controlled, which means none of the Democrats running for reelection this year lost, none.
The remaining races feature some prominent incumbents, fighting right now for their political lives.
In Ohio, Congresswoman Deborah Pryce, a member of the Republican leadership, has a 3,500-vote lead over Democratic challenger Mary Jo Kilroy. Another GOP incumbent in Ohio, Congresswoman Jean Schmidt, is ahead of her Democratic challenger, Victoria Wulsin, by fewer than 3,000 votes.
The counting of thousands of provisional ballots in both Ohio races means it could be a while before either contest is called.
In New Mexico, Republican incumbent Heather Wilson is ahead of Democratic challenger and State Attorney General Patricia Madrid. Wilson leads by just over 1,000 votes.
And it's deja vu in Florida, where the race to -- the race to replace Congresswoman Katherine Harris went to a recount. Harris gave up the seat for a failed Senate campaign -- she, of course, no stranger to recounts, having served as secretary of state during the 2000 Florida recount. Right now, the Republican who is trying to succeed Harris is ahead of his challenger by just 400 votes.
Former Senator and possible presidential hopeful John Edwards is facing fallout today involving Wal-Mart and the new PlayStation 3. Edwards is acknowledging that a volunteer member of his staff asked Wal-Mart to help get the hot new Sony video game system for the Edwards family. Edwards has been critical of the nation's largest retailer, accusing Wal-Mart of not treating its employees fairly.
The PlayStation incident gave Wal-Mart an opportunity to fire back at Edwards, claiming he wasn't willing to wait his turn to get the coveted PS3. But Edwards says he never asked the staffer to approach Wal-Mart, and that the staffer shouldn't have contacted the retailer and used his name.
And, remember, for the latest political news at any time, check out our Political Ticker. Simply go to CNN.com/ticker.
Up next: the criminal investigation into the Mark Foley congressional page scandal. What kind of charges could Foley face in Florida? We have been investigating online.
And could Iran and Syria be part of the solution to the violence in Iraq? We will have the latest on the controversial idea, and whether it's moving forward right now -- all that coming up in the next hour, right here in THE SITUATION ROOM.
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BLITZER: Here's a look at some of the "Hot Shots" coming in from our friends over at the Associated Press, pictures likely to be in your hometown newspapers tomorrow.
In northern Germany, police arrest Moroccan Mounir El Motassadeq. He's a friend of the 9/11 suicide pilots. A German court convicted him of accessory to murder for his role. He faces up to 15 years in prison.
Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh speaks today in Gaza City. One official says Palestinian hope to end Western and aid boycotts and resume peace talks with Israel.
Indonesian students protest against President Bush's upcoming visit.
And family rivalry in Grand Rapids, Michigan -- from left to right, Sam, Charlie , and Cocoa (ph). NCAA football heats up tomorrow, when big 10 rivals, number one, Ohio, number two, Michigan, square off in Columbus. We will be watching.
And that's today's "Hot Shots," some of the pictures often worth 1,000 words.
Let's check back with Carol for another quick look at some other important stories making news.
I know you're going to be watching that Ohio-Michigan game tomorrow, like a lost us, right, Carol?
LIN: Oh, you can bet on it, Wolf. Of course, I will be working here, so I might have to fit it in between the news.
In the meantime, we do have some news out of Iraq. Iraq's government is clarifying today that it has issued an investigation warrant, and not arrest warrant, for the top Sunni Arab leader Harith al-Dhari. The government says it want to check security files linked to him. But Sunni Arabs are still outraged. The influential Association of Muslim Scholars urge Sunni politicians to resign from the Iraqi government in protest. Al-Dhari had strongly criticized the Shiite-dominated government.
And wearing burqas in certain areas could become illegal in the Netherlands. Citing security concerns, the Dutch cabinet today adopted a plan to ban the head-to-toe burqas and other clothing that covers the face in public places. Burqas are worn by some Muslim women. The proposal now goes to the Dutch parliament for a vote.
Now, football fans are mourning the death of former University of Michigan head coach Bo Schembechler. He collapsed while taping a TV show this morning, and died at a hospital in suburban Detroit. The seven-time big 10 coach of the year led Michigan's Wolverines to 194 victories. They play archrival Ohio State tomorrow. Bo Schembechler was 77 years old.
Now, here's something you need to know, if you're among the thousands of people traveling by air this Thanksgiving holiday. You can carry three-ounce containers of liquids or gels aboard airplanes with you. But the items must be in a one-quart clear Ziplock bag. And it's one bag per passenger. The TSA calls this the 3-1-1 rule for carry-ons.
Wolf, I have to say a tougher situation for women than for men, I think, on the carry-on issue. Liquids and gels are part of a woman's life...
(LAUGHTER)
LIN: ... in that makeup bag.
BLITZER: They took my toothpaste and my eye cleaner the other day when I flew.
LIN: You?
BLITZER: Yes. They took it.
LIN: Didn't they know who you were?
BLITZER: They knew exactly who I was. They didn't care.
(LAUGHTER)
BLITZER: They took the eye cleaner. They took my toothpaste.
That's life in the fast lane.
LIN: It is.
BLITZER: Carol, thanks very much for that.
Today, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement says it will file charges against former Congressman Mark Foley, if it finds -- quote -- "credible information" a criminal act may have occurred. Foley resigned last September, after his e-mail to a male teenage congressional page came to light.
His attorney has categorically denied Foley ever engaged in sexual activity with a minor.
Standing by for a little bit more context, our senior Internet producer and legal analyst Alex Wellen.
What kind of laws exist -- exist in Florida, specifically -- to deal with this issue?
ALEX WELLEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNET PRODUCER & CYBER CRIME ANALYST: They have a law that deals with this, using a computer to entice or attempting to entice a minor, or someone that you believe to be a minor -- and a minor is defined as under the age of 18 in Florida -- to engage in illegal activity.
What is illegal activity? Indecent exposure. Sending them material that is harmful.
And there is a law on the books in Florida that says that someone 24 years or older cannot have sexual relations with somebody who is 16 or 17.
BLITZER: So, there is something on the books in Florida?
WELLEN: You bet.
BLITZER: Presumably, that's at the heart...
WELLEN: Specifically with this issue.
BLITZER: That's at the heart of this investigation.
What about federal laws? Is -- can he be investigated, charged federally?
WELLEN: The federal laws -- as most cyber activities happen over state lines, there is a federal law that deals with enticement, encouraging a minor -- again, defined as someone under the age of 18 -- to engage in sexual relations.
Here is the interesting thing about that, Wolf. That law comes down, again, to the state of mind. So, even if someone isn't speaking to a minor, if they think they are, they might be in trouble.
BLITZER: Now, you're a legal expert. You're a lawyer. You have studied the whole issue of cyber-crime, if you will, very, very closely.
How difficult, in these kinds of investigations, would it be to retrieve the kind of information from that vast Internet system out there?
WELLEN: I am amazed, time after time. E-mails, of course, you could recover.
Here's the thing. If you write material on a computer, anything passing through a computer can be recovered, unless it's written over exactly.
So, the e-mails might be easy. Those instant messages, you can log them on either side of the conversation. But, just because they occurred on the computer, sometimes, they...
BLITZER: So...
WELLEN: ... can recover that information, even though nobody stored it on either side of that conversation.
BLITZER: So, the -- all the I.M.s, the instant messages...
WELLEN: That's right.
BLITZER: ... even if you don't save those I.M.s, law enforcement authorities, computer specialists, they can go find them?
WELLEN: It might not look that pretty, and they might have to piece it together. It might not be exactly the conversation they need.
But, if they know who is talking to whom, they look at the addresses, and where it's sent, they can very well piece this together. So, it's -- again, here is the thing to think about. If something passes through a computer, no matter what happens, frequently, that information can be recovered.
BLITZER: I was told recently every keystroke, they can actually recover, if they want to.
Thanks very much, Alex, for that.
Up next: the new calls for bipartisanship on Capitol Hill, a new reality or a post-election pipe dream? Jack Cafferty with your e- mail, that is coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Let's check back with Jack. He has got "The Cafferty File" -- Jack.
CAFFERTY: Thanks, Wolf.
This hour's question: Is there really such a thing as bipartisanship in Washington, D.C.?
We heard from Brent in Washington, who identifies himself as a former aide to the House Democratic chief deputy whip during the Reagan administration. He writes: "President Bush is the first president since Franklin Roosevelt in either party to have zero significant bipartisan relationships in Congress. He should have learned from Reagan, who had a respectful, professional relationship with Tip O'Neill, among others."
Doug writes from New York: "Bi what? Bush, along with fat gasbags like Rush Limbaugh, has divided this country more than it was in 1860."
That's when the Civil War started.
"No, bipartisanship cannot exist in this atmosphere."
Jerry writes from North Carolina: "Bipartisanship? The only time you get the two parties to agree is when they vote on adjournment."
Bill in New York: "You are the sole reason CNN is biased and left-leaning in its reporting. You take a simple question, and, before giving it out, for all of us to e-mail you responses, you go off on our president, even calling him arrogant. Great job framing the question. I will give you that much. I hope you're not doing the CNN polls, though."
I'm not, Bill.
Jim in Illinois: "Bipartisanship? Only when it comes to voting themselves a 10 percent pay raise, as our senators and representatives did yesterday here in Illinois."
And Tom writes: "A bumper sticker I saw yesterday says it best: 'I'll hug your elephant, if you kiss my donkey.'"
This weekend, on "IN THE MONEY," we will find out how the recent midterm elections, along with Michael J. Fox and the aforementioned Rush Limbaugh all combined to give stem cell research a huge boost -- and airline ticket prices through the roof, just in time for Thanksgiving.
"IN THE MONEY" airs Saturdays at 1:00, and Sundays at 3:00, Eastern Standard Time. And we invite you to join us for that -- Wolf.
BLITZER: And our viewers should, Jack. It's an excellent program. Check out Jack's weekend program. If you haven't, you should, 1:00 p.m...
CAFFERTY: Thank you.
BLITZER: ... on Saturdays, 3:00 p.m. Eastern on Sundays -- "IN THE MONEY," must-view TV on the weekends.
Jack...
CAFFERTY: You're a nice man.
BLITZER: ... we will get back to you in a moment.
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