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CNN Sunday Morning

Bush Set to Address Nation Tomorrow

Aired October 06, 2002 - 07:19   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.


RUDI BAKHTIAR, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush says war on Iraq may be unavoidable, and tomorrow he will take his case to the American people in prime-time. Joining us now to talk about what the president needs to accomplish tomorrow night, CNN political analyst Ron Brownstein of "The Los Angeles Times." Hello, Mr. Brownstein.
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning.

BAKHTIAR: Tell me, what is President Bush hoping to accomplish tomorrow night?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, I think he really has to bring the public up to where the political system is. It's kind of a reversal of roles. There is not much question that the president is going to get the votes he needs in Congress for the resolution authorizing him to use force against Saddam Hussein in Iraq. It's clear that the support in both parties is sufficient for that.

But, you know, public opinion in the polls has been more ambivalent. On the headline question, yes, most people say they support moving militarily against Iraq if necessary, but there is a great deal of ambivalence about doing it without support from allies or the United Nations, and I think the president has to make a case to the public about why this needs to be done, and why it needs to be done unilaterally, or virtually unilaterally, if it comes to that.

BAKHTIAR: Is this speech really for the American people, or is it supposedly for the U.N. to hear, or for Iraq to hear, or some other reason for giving this speech tomorrow night?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, you know, as I said, at this point, he looks pretty strong in terms of the vote in Congress. That's obviously the precipitating event, the vote's coming up this week on the compromised resolution that they unveiled a few days ago to give him authority to use force in Iraq. That really has solidified it for him, in the sense that he has virtual complete support among Republicans, and probably about half of Democrats in both chambers, I would guess, support it. So he's looking at a pretty overwhelming vote.

What has been a little more, as I said, ambivalent is where the public is, and I think the president wants to give a strong statement that moves the public, and probably, as you suggest, also sends a signal to the United Nations, where the negotiations have been much tougher going.

BAKHTIAR: Does he have the support he needs from the American people, to go to war with Iraq? And if not, what does he need to do to get that support?

BROWNSTEIN: You know, I think post-9/11, there is a lot of deference in the public toward the commander-in-chief on issues of national security, and if he says this is something that is essential to prevent or reduce the risk of future attacks, I think the public will be there in the end. That's what's really changed in the security debate after 9/11. You have a lot of Democrats who probably don't agree with the president that Iraq is the kind of imminent threat that he presents it as, but they are less willing to take the risk that they are wrong after 9/11. The consequences of being wrong at this point seem so much higher, and I think that the reflex at this point, if in doubt, take him out, and that's what you're seeing in the congressional reaction.

BAKHTIAR: So give me a little synopsis of what you think he's going to say tomorrow night.

BROWNSTEIN: Well, I think he's going to repeat the message that he has before, about cataloguing the previous sins of Saddam Hussein, and also making the case that the risk is unacceptable of allowing him to develop weapons of mass destruction, because of this new element that we've seen in the last year, the risk they could be provided at some point in the future to a terrorist group that could use them on American soil. That is the strongest argument, because in many ways, the strongest argument of the critics is that a war in Iraq could divert from the overall war on terror. I think Bush wants to show that the two are inter-linked.

BAKHTIAR: OK, thank you, Ron Brownstein of the "Los Angeles Times." I know you have a flight to catch, and we appreciate you for joining us this morning.

BROWNSTEIN: 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 October 6, 2002 - 07:19   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RUDI BAKHTIAR, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush says war on Iraq may be unavoidable, and tomorrow he will take his case to the American people in prime-time. Joining us now to talk about what the president needs to accomplish tomorrow night, CNN political analyst Ron Brownstein of "The Los Angeles Times." Hello, Mr. Brownstein.
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning.

BAKHTIAR: Tell me, what is President Bush hoping to accomplish tomorrow night?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, I think he really has to bring the public up to where the political system is. It's kind of a reversal of roles. There is not much question that the president is going to get the votes he needs in Congress for the resolution authorizing him to use force against Saddam Hussein in Iraq. It's clear that the support in both parties is sufficient for that.

But, you know, public opinion in the polls has been more ambivalent. On the headline question, yes, most people say they support moving militarily against Iraq if necessary, but there is a great deal of ambivalence about doing it without support from allies or the United Nations, and I think the president has to make a case to the public about why this needs to be done, and why it needs to be done unilaterally, or virtually unilaterally, if it comes to that.

BAKHTIAR: Is this speech really for the American people, or is it supposedly for the U.N. to hear, or for Iraq to hear, or some other reason for giving this speech tomorrow night?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, you know, as I said, at this point, he looks pretty strong in terms of the vote in Congress. That's obviously the precipitating event, the vote's coming up this week on the compromised resolution that they unveiled a few days ago to give him authority to use force in Iraq. That really has solidified it for him, in the sense that he has virtual complete support among Republicans, and probably about half of Democrats in both chambers, I would guess, support it. So he's looking at a pretty overwhelming vote.

What has been a little more, as I said, ambivalent is where the public is, and I think the president wants to give a strong statement that moves the public, and probably, as you suggest, also sends a signal to the United Nations, where the negotiations have been much tougher going.

BAKHTIAR: Does he have the support he needs from the American people, to go to war with Iraq? And if not, what does he need to do to get that support?

BROWNSTEIN: You know, I think post-9/11, there is a lot of deference in the public toward the commander-in-chief on issues of national security, and if he says this is something that is essential to prevent or reduce the risk of future attacks, I think the public will be there in the end. That's what's really changed in the security debate after 9/11. You have a lot of Democrats who probably don't agree with the president that Iraq is the kind of imminent threat that he presents it as, but they are less willing to take the risk that they are wrong after 9/11. The consequences of being wrong at this point seem so much higher, and I think that the reflex at this point, if in doubt, take him out, and that's what you're seeing in the congressional reaction.

BAKHTIAR: So give me a little synopsis of what you think he's going to say tomorrow night.

BROWNSTEIN: Well, I think he's going to repeat the message that he has before, about cataloguing the previous sins of Saddam Hussein, and also making the case that the risk is unacceptable of allowing him to develop weapons of mass destruction, because of this new element that we've seen in the last year, the risk they could be provided at some point in the future to a terrorist group that could use them on American soil. That is the strongest argument, because in many ways, the strongest argument of the critics is that a war in Iraq could divert from the overall war on terror. I think Bush wants to show that the two are inter-linked.

BAKHTIAR: OK, thank you, Ron Brownstein of the "Los Angeles Times." I know you have a flight to catch, and we appreciate you for joining us this morning.

BROWNSTEIN: 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