CBS Face the Nation - Transcript

CBS Face the Nation - Transcript

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

SCHIEFFER: And good morning again.

With us, Senator Dole, who's in the studio with us this morning, and Senator Schumer, who is in the studio with us this morning. And we should point out that the positions they have, both parties pick one senator each year--or for a four-year cycle--to be the chief fund-raiser for Senate candidates in their party, and--and to be in--in--in some ways the chief strategist for the senators, or people who are running in their party. And that brings us to--to Senator Schumer, and to Senator Dole, because that's the positions that they hold in their parties.

Well, let's set the stage about where this election is. At this point, going into this election, the Republicans in the Senate hold the majority. They have 55 seats, Democrats have 44. There is one Independent who votes to organize the Senate with the Democrats, so that's where we get the number 45. The important thing: the control of the Senate will go to the Democrats if
they can pick up another six seats. If Republicans can prevent them from doing that, they will hold a majority.

So let's just start with a softball, Senator Schumer.

Senator CHUCK SCHUMER (Democrat, New York; Chair, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee): We like those.

SCHIEFFER: Can the Democrats do that?

Sen. SCHUMER: Well, you know, I never would have said this a few months ago, Bob, but we are right on the edge of taking back the Senate. It's not a donedeal, it's hardly a certainty, but we are feeling very, very good. A couple of points that show that: The battleground states have shifted. It used to be Democratic readouts, like Pennsylvania and Ohio, now it's down in the border states: Virginia, Tennessee and Missouri.

And second, people really want change. And Republican candidates are--incumbents and non--are running away from George Bush. You know, the president says Democrats want to cut and run in Iraq. Well, Republican candidates want to cut and run when George Bush comes to town. They don't
want to be seen with him in public events, they like to sneak in the back door and get the fund-raising. And in fact, if you look at Republican candidate commercials, they're missing a four-letter word:

B-U-S-H. They're missing a 10-letter word: Republican. People want change, they don't want a
rubber-stamp Congress, it's helping us dramatically.

SCHIEFFER: Senator Dole?

Senator ELIZABETH DOLE (Republican, North Carolina; Chair, Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee): We're going to keep the majority in the United States Senate. And Chuck, I'll to put a wager on that. I think, you know...

Sen. SCHUMER: Oh, another one.

Sen. DOLE: ...we've talked about that before.

Sen. SCHUMER: Right.

Sen. DOLE: I think this time...

Sen. SCHUMER: It was a dinner, OK.

Sen. DOLE: ...we need to shake on that, OK. We're going to keep...

Sen. SCHUMER: We'll have a nice dinner, regardless.

Sen. DOLE: All right. But...

SCHIEFFER: So why are you going to keep the Senate?

Sen. DOLE: ...let--let me say first of all that obviously a midterm is a tougher term always. And when a president has been re-elected, that--that adds to it. So our candidates for a long time have understood that they've got to have strong campaigns, good teams, raise an enormous amount of money, good war chests. And they're running aggressive campaigns out there. Also, we have a number of excellent challengers who've stepped forward--Michael Steele, certainly, in the state of Maryland, Tom Kean in New Jersey, Mark Kennedy in Minnesota, Mike McGavick in the state of Washington, Michael Bouchard in Michigan--and they're running great races.

For example, you know, Chuck talks about the president. The president's name is not on the ballot. Now, he'd like to make it a referendum on national trends, but let me just say that Tom Kean, for example, is running on ethics in New Jersey. He is a person who is a reformer, he's tried--been working hard to get rid of pay-to-play in New Jersey. And his opponent is right now surrounded by a federal criminal investigation.

You look at the state of Minnesota, certainly Mark Kennedy, congressman, is running hard out there. Look at Maryland, and Michael Steele in Maryland is speaking about change in Washington. But his opponent, Ben Cardin, cannot say that. He's been in government for 40 years. Look at Michigan...

SCHIEFFER: So...

Sen. DOLE: ...the state of Michigan, which is...

SCHIEFFER: Before we run through these...

Sen. DOLE: Yeah.

SCHIEFFER: ...one by one, let me just ask you. Are you saying that Iraq is not the overriding issue here, that it is--in all these races it's local issues that count?

Sen. DOLE: The--I think that certainly local issues, the choice between two candidates, as Tip O'Neill used to say, is always very important. Let me say about Iraq, Bob, that first of all, you know, I'm from North Carolina, and we have a lot of troops from North Carolina who are over in Iraq. We have a number of military bases, and I'm just so darn proud of those young men and women and the job that they're doing, and I think Chuck would agree with me...

Sen. SCHUMER: Sure are.

Sen. DOLE: ...that we keep them in our thoughts and prayers.

SCHIEFFER: Well...

Sen. DOLE: Now, yes, Iraq is of concern, no question about it. And I think that--that here, you know, people agree that perhaps, for example, the--the--the Baker Iraq Study Group...

SCHIEFFER: Mm-hmm.

Sen. DOLE: ...will have some additional options or observations which could be useful. I worked for Jim Baker for a number of years in the White House.

SCHIEFFER: Well, let's--before we--we'll talk about Baker in a minute.

Sen. DOLE: Yes.

SCHIEFFER: Let's just go back to Senator Schumer here. Do you think the election is about Iraq? Because Senator Dole is saying it must be about a lot of things.

Sen. SCHUMER: Let me tell you what it's...

SCHIEFFER: Maybe Iraq is a concern.

Sen. SCHUMER: Right. What it's about, Bob, is people want change. People are not happy with the direction America's going, and they're certainly not happy in Iraq. An overwhelming majority of people--Democrats, Republicans, Independents--don't like it. The president says `Stay the course' and no one see what it's all about. For the first time, Bob, foreign policy led by Iraq have become a Democratic strong point. And again, it's shown. Our candidates are talking about these issues, they're running commercials talking about their view and the need for change in Iraq, not just in Democratic strongholds like New Jersey and Rhode Island, but in places like Tennessee and Virginia. The Republican candidates twist themselves in a pretzel, because they know people want change, but when asked, `Well, what are we going to do in Iraq?' one of them said, `Well, there's a secret plan. Can't tell you about it, but it's secret.' Another compared it to "The Lord of the Rings." Well, we're not going to have wizards be solving this problem in Iraq. So Iraq is a problem, but so are domestic policies.

SCHIEFFER: Well, let's just run through...

Sen. DOLE: Bob, Bob...

SCHIEFFER: Yes.

Sen. DOLE: ...if I could just say here--I think this is a very important point. Voting for Democrats, or having Democrats take--take over the Senate is not going to fix the--the issue in Iraq. That's not going to--to happen. What it will do, if the Democrats were to--to take over the Senate, it will
weaken our security. Because Democrats have--have opposed the Patriot Act, which is a very important tool in fighting the global war against terror. They--they have voted against the missile defense system, which is so important in protecting us from rogue nations. And they've voted--they've also opposed the terrorist surveillance program. So I think it's very clear between these two parties which one will provide the stronger tools to fight this global war against terror. And I just have to say, if you--I'm--I'm going to take a...

SCHIEFFER: Are you saying it would be dangerous if Democrats won?

Sen. DOLE: I'm saying that if the Democrats were to take over the United States Senate, it will weaken our economy, it will weaken our security and it will weaken our shared values. So if you want to see your taxes increase, then vote for Democrats.

SCHIEFFER: What is shared values? What does shared values mean?

Sen. DOLE: And shared values means that they would be pushing judges who, instead of interpreting the law and the--and the Constitution would be, if they don't like a law, they just change it. They'd be making law from the bench. And so it does impact our shared values as well as, you know, as,
again...

SCHIEFFER: Well, let me--some of the...

Sen. DOLE: ...if you want to weaken the tools that we use to fight this war against terror, then that's exactly what the Democrats have done.

Sen. SCHUMER: Let me--let me just say, Bob...

SCHIEFFER: Will it make us weaker, Senator...

Sen. SCHUMER: Yeah. From one end of the country to the other, people want change. This stay-the-course policy that the president has advocated and the Republican Congress has rubber-stamped, it's just not good enough. And people everywhere are asking for change. We Democrats have a plan on Iraq, we would like it to be--next year to be a year of transition where we redeploy our
troops, move them out of harm's way, and instead of policing this civil war--more Americans died in October than in any month this year--we would rather focus on four things: counterterrorism, which is a real danger to us, not the civil war in Iraq, force protection, logistics and training.

And Americans want change. The Democrats--here's the problem for Elizabeth and the Republicans: You can have a foreign policy that is both strong and smart. Yes, they've shown strength; they haven't shown smarts. And the policy is one big mess, everyone knows it. Today, they're all huddling in theWhite House talking about change, then the White House--then some spokesperson
comes out...

Sen. DOLE: Bob...

Sen. SCHUMER: ...and says, `No, no, no, we're not talking about change.'

Sen. DOLE: No.

Sen. SCHUMER: They are just tied in a knot. And instead of listening to other voices and--they're not. And the Republican Congress, instead of trying to figure out where we're--where--what we're doing right and what we're doing wrong, just says, `Yes, yes, yes, yes' to everything President Bush says.

Sen. DOLE: This is...

Sen. SCHUMER: And because people are unhappy--they're unhappy abroad with Iraq, they're unhappy at home because the middle class is squeezed--they don't want a rubber-stamp Congress that is just going to say--whenever President Bush says `Jump,' they say `How high?'

SCHIEFFER: OK. Well, let's let Senator Dole respond.

Sen. DOLE: Well, I--there--there--there are so many things that I'd like to respond to here, but just quickly let me say that--that there have constantly been adjustments, and tactics do change, because this is--this is a--it's an unconventional war, for goodness' sakes. This is a very serious matter, and
frankly, making a football out of sort of a political ball, football out of Iraq, I think, is--is not the right way to go at all. This is a very serious. It could...

SCHIEFFER: But--but--but, excuse me, didn't you just say...

Sen. SCHUMER: It's not a football; people are dying.

SCHIEFFER: ...it could make it more dangerous if Democrats. I mean, that's kind of...

Sen. DOLE: No, well, I'm just--that's...

SCHIEFFER: ...sort of political, isn't it?

Sen. DOLE: I--I think that that's just laying out the truth.

SCHIEFFER: OK.

Sen. DOLE: That's just simply laying out the record, that they have been against the terrorist surveillance act, against the missile defense system...

Sen. SCHUMER: You know...

Sen. DOLE: ...against the Patriot Act. But again, adjustments have been made. Talk of--right now, is of possible projection. You know, they're--they're--you--you have to adjust. You have to--to--to respond to--to the--to the fact that the terrorists, they shift, they change, and of course you have to make changes.

But Chuck mentions the economy. Let me, let me just say here that the economy is very strong. The fundamentals are very strong. Look at 6.6 million new jobs because of the tax cuts, which the Democrats would like to take away. They--they don't want to have permanent tax relief. There's 6.6 million new jobs. In terms of unemployment, it's at 4.6 percent. Home ownership is at record highs. It's a--it's a very positive view.

SCHIEFFER: Well, let's ask Senator Schumer.

Sen. DOLE: Yeah.

SCHIEFFER: What do you say about the economy?

Sen. SCHUMER: Here's what I say.

SCHIEFFER: Senator Dole says it's in pretty good shape here.

Sen. SCHUMER: Right. Well, the overall numbers are good. But if you look at the percentage of the wealth, the percentage of the income that's going to the top 1 percent, people making over 300, $400,000, it's huge.

And then, I would to say to Elizabeth and all my Republican colleagues, all my colleagues, go talk to average middle-class folks making 40, 50, $60,000 a year. They're worried about paying for tuition. And this Republican Congress eliminated a law I passed that would allow $4,000 of tuition to be deductible, and they gave the money to oil company tax breaks.

Sen. DOLE: And you--and you didn't vote for the trifecta, which had the tuition tax credit.

Sen. SCHUMER: They're talking about prescription--they're talking about--they're talking about prescription drugs, they're becoming more and more expensive. There's a doughnut hole there. Why? Because when the drug industry said, `We want the government to pay top dollar for drugs and not
negotiate with us,' they said, `Yes, sir.' They're talking about...

SCHIEFFER: All right. Now, just a minute.

Sen. DOLE: I must answer. I must answer.

SCHIEFFER: Let me just say--all right, we're going to say, you got--I'm going to give each of you 30 seconds to say why it's in--in--in America's interest for your party to control the Senate. I'm going to start right with you, Senator Dole.

Sen. DOLE: OK. Because the tax relief that's been provided will be continued, because we'll stay on offense in this global war against terror, because the prescription drugs that we were able to get through, which even The New York Times has said is--is overwhelmingly popular, as opposed to what Chuck just said. People are getting the drugs for much less. Because we are strong on the energy--alternative energy policies. We will continue to secure our borders, and we will move forward with judges who are going to interpret and not make laws...

SCHIEFFER: All right.

Sen. DOLE: ...from the bench.

SCHIEFFER: Time's up. Senator:

Sen. SCHUMER: I would say to the American people: We know we need change. Democrats, Independents, Republicans say we need change. We need change in Iraq, we need change in the rest of foreign policy, where North Korean policy isn't working, they're now nuclear. Iran is ready to get nuclear weapons. Even Afghanistan, which was supposed to be the one success, a good part of the
country's controlled by the Taliban.

I'd say here at home, the middle class needs real relief and we are not getting it when it comes to paying for college, when it pays for--when it comes to health care..

SCHIEFFER: Ding.

Sen. SCHUMER: ...when it comes to energy...

Sen. DOLE: That's it.

Sen. SCHUMER: ...give us a chance, we will...

SCHIEFFER: Time's up.

Sen. SCHUMER: ...present the change you need, not a rubber stamp.

SCHIEFFER: OK. All right. Thanks to both of you. Thanks very much.

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