GERALDINE FERRARO on Leher News HR—Clinton advocate: [&other news] [View All]

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GERALDINE FERRARO on Leher News HR—Clinton advocate:

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/white_house/jan-june08/demdiscuss_03-05.html

………Experience, electability debated

JIM LEHRER: Well, Geraldine Ferraro, let's be very specific here for a moment. The issue that the exit polls and the pundits say that really caused it to go the way it did, particularly in Ohio and also in Texas for Hillary Clinton, was this 3 o'clock in the morning thing, that she was ready to get that call as president and Barack Obama was not.

Do you agree that that's a legitimate issue and that's something that will not rub things too raw, if the two of them continue to debate that?

GERALDINE FERRARO: I think that was more of an issue where it was run in Texas than it was in Ohio. In Ohio, I understand that the main issue was the economy, and that's because things are such a disaster there.

You have people who are really concerned about how they're going to feed their families, where jobs are going, who can create jobs. And it was based on the substance of her stands on these various issues that they went out and voted for her.

And it was interesting to see where they did these exit polls that a lot of little, old ladies like me were voting for Hillary because we've seen all this. We have looked at who can get things done.

And to be quite frank, I mean, I can give -- I will give Barack Obama, you know, absolute praise for the best political campaign I have ever seen run. But this is not about process anymore; this is about who can be the leader.

And even his remarks on all the television shows this morning -- and I watched quite a few this morning -- was on process, counting the delegates, whether or not we can win, if the caucuses are here.

There are no caucuses in November. Can we win in November? Can he win in the large states where they're out counting votes in elections? That's an important issue.

And can he stand up? He can laugh about, you know, her experience. I happen to have been in Geneva as part of the Human Rights Commission during the first part of the Clinton administration. I was in Beijing with her. I have been involved in a whole bunch of NDI programs. I'm on its board.

I've seen her involvement in 82 countries that she visited. You know, you don't have to negotiate treaties in order to get experience. None of us did in the House or in the Senate. We had experience before we ever would embark on something like this.Florida presents a dilemma

JIM LEHRER: Geraldine Ferraro, do you see a scenario that has Hillary Clinton winning this nomination?

GERALDINE FERRARO: Absolutely. I was really rather surprised that Senator Bradley went into an attack negative mode, because that really wasn't his style when we served together in the Congress and he was in the Senate. And I will not do the same thing.

But let me just say to you that I feel very, very strongly, as does Leo, that there are lots of votes out there that should and will be counted.
You know, this whole situation with Florida and Michigan, I can't -- if I were an attorney representing Michigan, I'd just say, "Hey, listen, you're in deep trouble. I can't see how I could move the delegates to accept your position that you should be there when you violated the DNC rules."

But Florida is another instance. Florida, on the other hand, has had a situation where the date of the election was set by a Republican governor, a Republican state legislature. They had no choice: Either go to the polls and vote or don't go at all.

You have that right taken away from you because it's done by a Republican governor in violation of Democratic Party rules. And it was done so that Florida and the Republican Party would really be focused on in a way different from hanging chads (inaudible) four years ago and be in a position where they would become real players in the Republican Party, as they were with Rudy Giuliani dropping out and John McCain being endorsed by the governor.

So I think Florida really has a legitimate argument for being seated. In addition to that, both candidates appeared on the ballot, and neither one of those candidates appeared at any time or campaigned.

And I say that, as a Floridian part-time, I offered to go out and do a fundraiser for Hillary over the Christmas holidays when I was down at my home. And they said, "Don't do it. Don't do it. We're not allowed to campaign. We're not doing anything. We're not coming into the state."

So I know they didn't do that. That was an even playing field for both of them. And so that state, I would argue, with the delegates for them to be seated.

But that's what super-delegates -- I was part of the Hunt Commission that created those super-delegates in 1982. They are meant to be independent.

The unfortunate thing is that they're not supposed to make the decision on their political future, which is what Senator Bradley raised before. And he's right. Some of these people have had primaries against them or they're worried about it and they're getting pressure.

It was interesting to watch Congressman Cleaver from Missouri the other day say, "How come only African-American members of Congress are getting these kinds of pressures? How come nobody is pressuring John Kerry and Ted Kennedy?"

And, by the way, the co-chair of the Obama campaign, Governor Patrick, and now Patrick Kennedy in Rhode Island, where your state, you represent half of that state, where the state goes 58 percent-42 percent? You know…….

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080306/ap_on_el_pr/democrats;_ylt=An7KhbYqxwyESUrcSITVXZOs0NUE


Clinton sees new race; Obama talks tough

By DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent Thu Mar 6, 1:37 AM ET

WASHINGTON - Hillary Rodham Clinton declared Wednesday that her primary victories in Ohio, Texas and Rhode Island had reordered the Democratic presidential race in her favor. …..

One day after his worst showing in a month, Obama blamed negative attacks by the former first lady for his defeats and quickly made good on a promise to sharpen his criticism of her.

……..
The two states' governors, Republican Charlie Crist in Florida and Democrat Jennifer Granholm in Michigan, issued a joint statement calling on party officials "to resolve this matter and to ensure that the voters ... are full participants in the formal selection of their parties' nominees."
……..

The former first lady said McCain's ascension meant Democratic primary voters were looking at the race through a new lens. "It is now about who is strongest against the Republican nominee, John McCain," she said on CNN. "You know, people who voted a month ago didn't know who the Republican nominee was going to be.

"They didn't perhaps factor in that it will be about national security," she said of the fall campaign.