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CNN Saturday Morning News

Democrats Excited About New Leadership

Aired November 09, 2002 - 09:19   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.


COSTELLO: On to politics now. The shattered Democratic backboard from this week's Republican's slam-dunk is still hitting the ground. So let's take a closer look at Tuesday's election and look ahead to 2004.
For that, we turn to our senior political analyst, Bill Schneider, who is in our Washington bureau. Are you recovered from Tuesday?

BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Only barely.

COSTELLO: Only barely. Hey, it looks like Nancy Pelosi is going to be the minority leader for the Democrats. Both Republicans and Democrats dancing in the streets. Who has more reason to celebrate?

SCHNEIDER: Well, I think Democrats are celebrating the fact that they have new leadership. It's a woman, you can see her talking to the Democrats right here in the Democratic caucus.

There's still a bit of a contest with Harold Ford, an African- American congressman who represents a more moderate vision of the Democratic Party. But I think by picking Nancy Pelosi, the Democrats will say, We want to stay on the same course, she's already part of the House Democratic leadership.

There is no indication here that the Democrats are in any fundamental way changing Their position.

COSTELLO: Well, I was just going to ask you about that, because by choosing Pelosi, I mean, doesn't this mean the Democrats have chosen not to cooperate with President Bush?

SCHNEIDER: I don't think I'd go that far. But (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I believe they are saying, We don't believe we're wrong. We think that our positions are right. It didn't work in the election, maybe we didn't communicate them effectively, maybe we didn't have a messenger to carry our message, maybe we can package it better. But our -- we believe that our positions are fundamentally right.

That's what Democrats believe. You know, the vision of the Democratic Party is over the view that they didn't oppose President Bush vigorously enough, or that they should somehow shift positions and agree with him more.

Well, she represents, I think, the first position, which is what most House Democrats feel.

COSTELLO: Gotcha. So I know you're a betting man. So what issue do you think that the Democrats will latch onto?

SCHNEIDER: They'll latch onto prescription drug coverage, will probably be their best bet. They claim that they have a stronger program, a program that serves the needs of seniors, and that the Republican plan, which did pass the house but not the Senate, the Republican plan is phony and it won't give enough benefits.

I don't think they're going to put up a fight on homeland security any more because the message was loud and clear on that issue...

COSTELLO: Oh, yes!

SCHNEIDER: ... pass this department, and don't hold it up because of union objections. But on prescription drugs, Democrats have a stronger position.

COSTELLO: Yes, the homeland security issue was certainly big in Georgia.

And let's talk about Georgia politics for just a second.

SCHNEIDER: Oh, boy.

COSTELLO: The new governor, Sonny Perdue, a Republican, has convinced several state senators to switch parties from Democrat to Republican. I don't know, maybe I'm a little naive, but I have never heard of that before.

SCHNEIDER: Well, it happens every time Republicans have a big victory, and it's been happening in the South for 25 years. The South has been trending Republican. And those Democratic legislators, most of whom are very conservative, are -- felt increasingly out of place in the Democratic Party.

And the message here was, you better get on board, because the Republican train is picking up steam. They saw what was happening. It finally happened in Georgia, it's happened in the rest of the South already. Now finally in Georgia they have a Republican governor for the first time since Reconstruction.

COSTELLO: Oh, it's just amazing. And quickly, we want to talk about Mary Landrieu in Louisiana. How much money do you think the Republicans will spend to try and beat her?

SCHNEIDER: Oh, I think they're going to spend a lot. That's the icing on the cake. This is a primary that takes place on a Saturday in December. Turnout is likely to be light. She did come in first last Tuesday, but she didn't win because she didn't get 50 percent.

So if you combine all the Republican support, you could beat her in a low-turnout primary especially. I think Republicans are going to invest a lot of money not in a splashy campaign but in mobilizing turnout. And I'm not sure demobilized Democrats can match it.

COSTELLO: Oh, you got that right. Bill Schneider, thank you very much for your insight. We appreciate it, as always.

SCHNEIDER: OK, sure.

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 November 9, 2002 - 09:19   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COSTELLO: On to politics now. The shattered Democratic backboard from this week's Republican's slam-dunk is still hitting the ground. So let's take a closer look at Tuesday's election and look ahead to 2004.
For that, we turn to our senior political analyst, Bill Schneider, who is in our Washington bureau. Are you recovered from Tuesday?

BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Only barely.

COSTELLO: Only barely. Hey, it looks like Nancy Pelosi is going to be the minority leader for the Democrats. Both Republicans and Democrats dancing in the streets. Who has more reason to celebrate?

SCHNEIDER: Well, I think Democrats are celebrating the fact that they have new leadership. It's a woman, you can see her talking to the Democrats right here in the Democratic caucus.

There's still a bit of a contest with Harold Ford, an African- American congressman who represents a more moderate vision of the Democratic Party. But I think by picking Nancy Pelosi, the Democrats will say, We want to stay on the same course, she's already part of the House Democratic leadership.

There is no indication here that the Democrats are in any fundamental way changing Their position.

COSTELLO: Well, I was just going to ask you about that, because by choosing Pelosi, I mean, doesn't this mean the Democrats have chosen not to cooperate with President Bush?

SCHNEIDER: I don't think I'd go that far. But (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I believe they are saying, We don't believe we're wrong. We think that our positions are right. It didn't work in the election, maybe we didn't communicate them effectively, maybe we didn't have a messenger to carry our message, maybe we can package it better. But our -- we believe that our positions are fundamentally right.

That's what Democrats believe. You know, the vision of the Democratic Party is over the view that they didn't oppose President Bush vigorously enough, or that they should somehow shift positions and agree with him more.

Well, she represents, I think, the first position, which is what most House Democrats feel.

COSTELLO: Gotcha. So I know you're a betting man. So what issue do you think that the Democrats will latch onto?

SCHNEIDER: They'll latch onto prescription drug coverage, will probably be their best bet. They claim that they have a stronger program, a program that serves the needs of seniors, and that the Republican plan, which did pass the house but not the Senate, the Republican plan is phony and it won't give enough benefits.

I don't think they're going to put up a fight on homeland security any more because the message was loud and clear on that issue...

COSTELLO: Oh, yes!

SCHNEIDER: ... pass this department, and don't hold it up because of union objections. But on prescription drugs, Democrats have a stronger position.

COSTELLO: Yes, the homeland security issue was certainly big in Georgia.

And let's talk about Georgia politics for just a second.

SCHNEIDER: Oh, boy.

COSTELLO: The new governor, Sonny Perdue, a Republican, has convinced several state senators to switch parties from Democrat to Republican. I don't know, maybe I'm a little naive, but I have never heard of that before.

SCHNEIDER: Well, it happens every time Republicans have a big victory, and it's been happening in the South for 25 years. The South has been trending Republican. And those Democratic legislators, most of whom are very conservative, are -- felt increasingly out of place in the Democratic Party.

And the message here was, you better get on board, because the Republican train is picking up steam. They saw what was happening. It finally happened in Georgia, it's happened in the rest of the South already. Now finally in Georgia they have a Republican governor for the first time since Reconstruction.

COSTELLO: Oh, it's just amazing. And quickly, we want to talk about Mary Landrieu in Louisiana. How much money do you think the Republicans will spend to try and beat her?

SCHNEIDER: Oh, I think they're going to spend a lot. That's the icing on the cake. This is a primary that takes place on a Saturday in December. Turnout is likely to be light. She did come in first last Tuesday, but she didn't win because she didn't get 50 percent.

So if you combine all the Republican support, you could beat her in a low-turnout primary especially. I think Republicans are going to invest a lot of money not in a splashy campaign but in mobilizing turnout. And I'm not sure demobilized Democrats can match it.

COSTELLO: Oh, you got that right. Bill Schneider, thank you very much for your insight. We appreciate it, as always.

SCHNEIDER: OK, sure.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com