‘Meet the Press’ transcript for Oct. 21, 2007

MS. O’BEIRNE:  Well, Mike Huckabee, as you well know, is a former Baptist minister, and that was his flock, Tim, and it showed.  Mitt Romney is making inroads among that constituency, and I think that was reflected in the overall vote, including those voting on Internet.  Rudy Giuliani, I don’t think that reflects how he may have helped himself by going to the Value Voters Summit and making the kind of speech he did.  Colleagues of mine who were there said that he was very respectfully received, and their analysis was he may not have helped himself all that much with respect to the primary, but he may have made himself more acceptable on the part of those voters for the general.

MR. RUSSERT:  Let me show you a bite from Rudy Giuliani.  Doris Kearns Goodwin, you will recognize some of this language.  Let’s watch.

(Videotape)

MR. GIULIANI:  Please know this, you have absolutely nothing to fear from me. Yeah, I find it difficult understanding those who try to make me out and activist for liberal causes.

(End videotape)

MR. RUSSERT:  Who’s pro-abortion rights, pro-gay rights, pro-stem cell research, pro-gun control, but doesn’t want to be portrayed as a liberal activist.  But you have nothing to fear, but...

MS. GOODWIN:  But fear itself.  But, you know, the other thing he said that was so interesting is, “You may—I may not always agree with you, you may not always agree with me, I don’t always agree with myself.” You know, again, that ability to just speak to them straight.  I think you’re right, Kate, he did himself a good deed by that.  Because mainly what he has to avoid is a third party coming into the fold.  And if they’re not sure about that, and they came out of that meeting not being sure, you know, I think the correct question is they always keep saying that, you know, you can’t have a moderate to beat a liberal.  You can’t have a moderate Giuliani to beat Hillary.  But I don’t think that’s true historically.  I mean, Eisenhower was a moderate, he beat Stevenson.  Nixon ran as a moderate, and he beat McGovern.  Dukakis lost to George Bush Sr., who was a moderate.  So I think these evangelical conservatives and the Republican right wing have to figure out if they really want to win, do they want a moderate, or do they—they don’t...

MS. O’BEIRNE:  You know, well...

MS. GOODWIN:  Well, what?  You know them better than me.

MS. O’BEIRNE:  ...the challenge—the reason why the base is so discomforted by Rudy Giuliani—one thing he does benefit from, I think, is some number of them say, “Look, he doesn’t share our values, but he shares our enemies.” And that’s gone a long way, I think, in reassuring many conservatives about Rudy Giuliani, that there’s something in common there.

MS. GOODWIN:  We hate together.

MS. O’BEIRNE:  Republicans have won five out of the last seven presidential elections with a coalition—building from a coalition of economic, social and national security conservatives, and then reaching out to independents.  That has been a successful formula.  Rudy Giuliani is looking to change that formula, somehow put together a coalition with far fewer social and cultural conservatives and think he can make it up somehow.  That is, in a, in a dicey year for Republicans, that is a risky strategy, and that’s where a lot of this...

MR. RUSSERT:  But he thinks he can...

MS. O’BEIRNE:  ...nervousness comes from.

MR. RUSSERT:  ...put, put in place states like Pennsylvania and Michigan and New Jersey, states that have traditionally gone Democratic.  He believes, because of his social and cultural issues and his emphasis on the terror issue, he can make those blue states red.

MS. O’BEIRNE:  Exactly.  I, I, I don’t see the evidence of that.  As recently as, as 2006--look at Pennsylvania, when Bob Casey Jr.  ran against Rick Santorum; when the cultural, the social issues—in this case, abortion—was negated because it was a pro-life Democrat running against Rick Santorum, look what happened.  An awful lot of people who had voted for Rick Santorum in the past went back to voting for the Democrat.  An awful lot of evangelicals and ethnic Catholics are voting on cultural and social issues with the Republicans, not necessarily national security and economic issues.  And in all those polls that showed Rudy Giuliani’s strong against Hillary Clinton, John McCain is equally strong against Hillary Clinton.  Both benefit from being the best-known Republicans in the field, I think.

MR. RUSSERT:  Ten seconds.

MS. WOODRUFF:  And, Tim, right now he benefits, frankly, because the Christian conservative vote, a quarter of the Republican base, is divided. And they’re divided Thompson, Romney and, and Huckabee.

MS. O’BEIRNE:  Mm-hmm.

MS. WOODRUFF:  And so if he’s got most of the rest of the 75 percent, and he can just have a chunk of that 25 percent, he may be in good shape.

MR. RUSSERT:  To be continued, ladies.  Judy Woodruff, Kate O’Beirne, Doris Kearns Goodwin and Sally Bedell Smith, “For Love of Politics, Bill and Hillary Clinton:  The White House Years,” thank you all.

MS. SMITH:  Thank you.

MS. WOODRUFF:  Thanks, Tim.

MR. RUSSERT:  Coming next, political humor, a long tradition here on MEET THE PRESS, we continue it today.  Get ready, America.  Comedy Central’s Stephen Colbert says he’s running for president, sort of.  What does he stand for? We’ll try to find out.  He’s here, only on MEET THE PRESS.

(Announcements)

MR. RUSSERT:  Comedy Central’s Stephen Colbert on 2,000--Decision 2008, after this brief station break.

(Announcements)

MR. RUSSERT:  And we are back.

Mr. Colbert, welcome.

MR. COLBERT:  Thank you.

MR. RUSSERT:  This is what the world watched on Tuesday night.

(Videotape)

MR. COLBERT:  Well, after nearly 15 minutes of soul searching, I have heard the call.  Nation, I shall seek the office of the president of the United States!  I am doing it.

(End videotape)

MR. RUSSERT:  We’re no—we know you’re doing it...

MR. COLBERT Yeah.

MR. RUSSERT:  ...but why are you doing it?

MR. COLBERT:  I’m doing it, Tim, because I think our country is facing unprecedented challenges in the future.  And I think that the junctures that we face are both critical and unforeseen, and the real challenge is how we will respond to these junctures, be they unprecedented or unforeseen, or, God help us, critical.

MR. RUSSERT:  You’ve thought this through.

MR. COLBERT:  That’s a generous estimation.  Thank you.

MR. RUSSERT:  The press reaction to your announcement has been mixed.  Here’s one headline.

MR. COLBERT:  OK.

MR. RUSSERT:  This was on Thursday.  “Electile Dysfunction:  Colbert Running For” president.

MR. COLBERT:  That’s good work.  That’s good work.

MR. RUSSERT:  Are they, are they questioning, shall we say, your stamina?

MR. COLBERT:  I don’t know.  I think a lot of people are asking whether—they say is this, is this real, you know?  And to which I would say to everybody, this is not a dream, OK?  You’re not going to wake up from this, OK?  I’m, I’m, I’m far realer than Sam Brownback, let me put it that way.

MR. RUSSERT:  Authenticity’s important to the voter.

MR. COLBERT:  Absolutely.  You got to, you got to convey to them that you mean what you say, and that you’ve put some thought into what you do.

MR. RUSSERT:  Many people in your family, and you used to be Colbert (pronounces it Colburt).

MR. COLBERT:  Right, yeah.

MR. RUSSERT:  You are now Colbert (pronounces it Colbare).

MR. COLBERT:  Yeah.

MR. RUSSERT:  I would be Russert (pronounces it Russare)?

MR. COLBERT:  Russert.  Russert (pronounces it Roosare).  Yeah.

MR. RUSSERT:  OK.

MR. COLBERT:  Mm-hmm.

MR. RUSSERT:  “Sesame Street.” There are two characters...

MR. COLBERT:  Is this...

MR. RUSSERT:  ...Ernie and...

MR. COLBERT:  And Bert.  Ernie and Bert.

MR. RUSSERT:  B-E-R-T.

MR. COLBERT:  Yes.

MR. RUSSERT:  Then why aren’t you Colbert?

MR. COLBERT:  Are you saying that I don’t have the right to drop the T in my name?  Are you saying that?  Last time I checked, this was America.  Or does that mean not a thing to you anymore?

MR. RUSSERT:  Then why not call him “Ber”?

MR. COLBERT:  Because that’s his choice.  You’ll have to ask him.  I dare you.

MR. RUSSERT:  Are you...

MR. COLBERT:  Ask him.  Right now.

MR. RUSSERT:  But why did you change your name?

MR. COLBERT:  I changed my name because I knew that there were people out there who, who needed T’s.

MR. RUSSERT:  Not comfortable in your own skin?

MR. COLBERT:  Oh, I’m extremely comfortable in my own skin.  I’m comfortable in other people’s skin.

MR. RUSSERT:  Why are you running only in South Carolina?

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