You light up my life
News anchor engages in mutual masturbation with GOP 'values' maven. Warning: do not read if you have a weak stomach.
WOLF "WETNAP" BLITZER: At the White House today, President Bush has been meeting with security experts about the Patriot Act and his push for a long-term extension of the anti-terror law. The former education secretary, Bill Bennett, was in that meeting in his current role as chairman of the Americans for Victory Over Terrorism. Bill Bennett is with us now. He's wearing yet another new hat. We're happy to welcome him here at CNN as a regular CNN contributor, a participant in our "Strategy Sessions" here in THE SITUATION ROOM. Bill Bennett, welcome to CNN. Smoochies!!
WILLIAM BENNETT, DRUNKEN GAMBLER AND WH TOWELBOY: Glad to be here. Good to be aboard.
BLITZER: Before we talk about what happened at the White House, let's bash John Kerry and his announcement to filibuster the nomination of Samuel Alito.
BENNETT: I just heard it, trying to absorb it, trying to think of what the motivations could be. And the only thing I can think of is this is positioning for the Democratic nomination down the road, in '08. And I think he's trying to step to the front of the line. I think this is the wrong way to go, because I think most of the American people think Alito ought to be confirmed, seems like a reasonable guy. He's conservative, sure, but, you know, we elected a conservative president.
BLITZER: We sure did! Hem. If the Democrats though are divided on this idea of a filibuster, that could embarrass the party, albeit, as you say, it might strengthen Kerry with the base of the party that's very much opposed to Alito.
BENNETT: It might strengthen him with the base, but if he calls for it and nothing happens, it could weaken him.
BLITZER: Because it shows ...
BENNETT: Yes, it shows he's not powerful enough. He's not potent. He's not a leader.
BLITZER: Speaking of potent leaders, let's talk about your meeting with the president. You were there with others who were invited in. What was that about, and just how awesome is he?
BENNETT: It was about national security. It was about the Patriot Act. It was about the NSA. The president spoke. He was very, very earnest, very serious. He talked about the lethality -- he used that word several times -- the lethality of the enemy and his pledge to defend the American people, that he, the president, will defend the American people.
BLITZER: Gosh!
BENNETT: Yes.
BLITZER: Did you emerge smarter in any way? If that's even possible?
BENNETT: Yes, I did. And I can't tell you all the stuff -- some of the stuff I learned, but -- because he wanted it to be off the record.
BLITZER: Oooooh! You're special! Top-secret! Just like James Bond! He's so dreamy. Just like you and the president...
BENNETT: He was speaking very, very freely. But what was clear to me was the president's clear sense of conviction about this. He said there are a lot of issues, and this is the most important one, the protection of the American people.
It was put very well. One thing I can repeat. He said, you know, nothing has changed since 9/11, in terms of people's interest in attacking this country, except they haven't succeeded in going it again. And there's no reason that we should back off on the measures that have kept us safe. He said, I am deadly serious about this. And I will take this all the way. I would've creamed myself if I wasn't such a moral, upstanding republican.
BLITZER (READING SCRIPT): Are you completely comfortable with these wiretaps without warrants?
BENNETT: I am. I am because of presidential power, presidential authority. My own view here is that people have tended to think that because it is a legal issue, that only the courts have legal authority. People forget because of the teaching of Constitutional law, the way it's taught today, Wolf, that the president is an officer of the Constitution. He has a responsibility to execute the law. He is to take the law and execute the law in many occasions.
BLITZER: Listen to what that so-called Republican Senator Arlen Specter said the other day. Listen to this.
SEN. ARLEN SPECTER, BuzzFlash's hypocrite of the week: The initial claim to authority, from the resolution to authorize the use of force, I think is very, very thin. If the president had asked for authority in the Patriot Act, we would have had a determination, as to whether Congress wanted to give it to him. But to say that there was congressional intent in the resolution for force, I think is a stretch. (END VIDEO CLIP)
BENNETT: That's an issue of whether the president has that authority statutorily from that statute. My argument is that the president has it constitutionally. It's not Congress' to give him.
Under his Article II powers, the president has the authority, indeed, the responsibility to defend the people of the United States. I don't think he needs to get that from Congress. What's interesting is that although a number of critics, mostly Democrats, but as you point out, a few Republicans, who they said they're not sure about it, they don't agree with the president's use of it.
No one has moved to curtail his authority. People have been jumping all over themselves, Wolf, saying "If the president needs this, fine, we'll give it to him." And it is interesting, why hasn't anybody stepped forward and said, "Well, if he needs it and we don't think he has it now, we'll introduce legislation to give it to him," because they'd lose the political advantage.
BLITZER: Everybody should support our president! OK, here's where we tell the Demonrats and the liberal media to just shut up already about those hypothetical comments you made that were taken out of context. You were reported as saying that if you go ahead and abort all black babies, there will be a reduction in crime. It caused a huge stir. Since this is the first time you're joining me here on CNN, I want you to explain to our viewers what you were thinking because I've known you were many years. I know you're not a racist. And I just want our viewers to have an understanding of what you were saying.
BENNETT: Well this was -- first, I want to thank CNN for looking past this canard, or through this canard and taking me on. But I've had a number of controversies in my life and some of them, frankly deserved. This one was not deserved.
I was dealing with a hypothetical, talking about lowering crime rate by aborting babies in the black community. And that this was a hypothetical. Obviously it was a matter that had been under discussion in articles and newspapers and in some discussions and books.
But I brought it up as a hypothetical to point out how noxious it was. After having brought up the hypothetical, I said of course that would be a reprehensible and impossible thing to do, direct quote.
Well some of the media that replayed it played the hypothetical, but they didn't play my condemnation of the hypothetical. I'm a college professor, old college professor, I use hypotheticals.
And sometimes you bring up an extreme or ridiculous position in order to show how absurd it is. That was the point of it. So, it was based on a distortion. But more than that, Wolf, it was the whole thing, as it went on, was based on a distortion of my life.
I appreciate what you say about me. I went to Mississippi in 1997, I taught, I taught Martin Luther King letter from a Birmingham jail. I've been committed to civil rights and all anybody has to do is look at my life, my record and the work that we still do.
BLITZER: Bill Bennett, you are a hero. Welcome to CNN. I just love that you'll be spending a lot of time here in THE SITUATION ROOM. Kisses!!!
BENNETT: Thank you very much, great place to be.
BLITZER: Thank you very much. (OFFCAMERA) Ahhhhhh! Tissues, please?
WILLIAM BENNETT, DRUNKEN GAMBLER AND WH TOWELBOY: Glad to be here. Good to be aboard.
BLITZER: Before we talk about what happened at the White House, let's bash John Kerry and his announcement to filibuster the nomination of Samuel Alito.
BENNETT: I just heard it, trying to absorb it, trying to think of what the motivations could be. And the only thing I can think of is this is positioning for the Democratic nomination down the road, in '08. And I think he's trying to step to the front of the line. I think this is the wrong way to go, because I think most of the American people think Alito ought to be confirmed, seems like a reasonable guy. He's conservative, sure, but, you know, we elected a conservative president.
BLITZER: We sure did! Hem. If the Democrats though are divided on this idea of a filibuster, that could embarrass the party, albeit, as you say, it might strengthen Kerry with the base of the party that's very much opposed to Alito.
BENNETT: It might strengthen him with the base, but if he calls for it and nothing happens, it could weaken him.
BLITZER: Because it shows ...
BENNETT: Yes, it shows he's not powerful enough. He's not potent. He's not a leader.
BLITZER: Speaking of potent leaders, let's talk about your meeting with the president. You were there with others who were invited in. What was that about, and just how awesome is he?
BENNETT: It was about national security. It was about the Patriot Act. It was about the NSA. The president spoke. He was very, very earnest, very serious. He talked about the lethality -- he used that word several times -- the lethality of the enemy and his pledge to defend the American people, that he, the president, will defend the American people.
BLITZER: Gosh!
BENNETT: Yes.
BLITZER: Did you emerge smarter in any way? If that's even possible?
BENNETT: Yes, I did. And I can't tell you all the stuff -- some of the stuff I learned, but -- because he wanted it to be off the record.
BLITZER: Oooooh! You're special! Top-secret! Just like James Bond! He's so dreamy. Just like you and the president...
BENNETT: He was speaking very, very freely. But what was clear to me was the president's clear sense of conviction about this. He said there are a lot of issues, and this is the most important one, the protection of the American people.
It was put very well. One thing I can repeat. He said, you know, nothing has changed since 9/11, in terms of people's interest in attacking this country, except they haven't succeeded in going it again. And there's no reason that we should back off on the measures that have kept us safe. He said, I am deadly serious about this. And I will take this all the way. I would've creamed myself if I wasn't such a moral, upstanding republican.
BLITZER (READING SCRIPT): Are you completely comfortable with these wiretaps without warrants?
BENNETT: I am. I am because of presidential power, presidential authority. My own view here is that people have tended to think that because it is a legal issue, that only the courts have legal authority. People forget because of the teaching of Constitutional law, the way it's taught today, Wolf, that the president is an officer of the Constitution. He has a responsibility to execute the law. He is to take the law and execute the law in many occasions.
BLITZER: Listen to what that so-called Republican Senator Arlen Specter said the other day. Listen to this.
SEN. ARLEN SPECTER, BuzzFlash's hypocrite of the week: The initial claim to authority, from the resolution to authorize the use of force, I think is very, very thin. If the president had asked for authority in the Patriot Act, we would have had a determination, as to whether Congress wanted to give it to him. But to say that there was congressional intent in the resolution for force, I think is a stretch. (END VIDEO CLIP)
BENNETT: That's an issue of whether the president has that authority statutorily from that statute. My argument is that the president has it constitutionally. It's not Congress' to give him.
Under his Article II powers, the president has the authority, indeed, the responsibility to defend the people of the United States. I don't think he needs to get that from Congress. What's interesting is that although a number of critics, mostly Democrats, but as you point out, a few Republicans, who they said they're not sure about it, they don't agree with the president's use of it.
No one has moved to curtail his authority. People have been jumping all over themselves, Wolf, saying "If the president needs this, fine, we'll give it to him." And it is interesting, why hasn't anybody stepped forward and said, "Well, if he needs it and we don't think he has it now, we'll introduce legislation to give it to him," because they'd lose the political advantage.
BLITZER: Everybody should support our president! OK, here's where we tell the Demonrats and the liberal media to just shut up already about those hypothetical comments you made that were taken out of context. You were reported as saying that if you go ahead and abort all black babies, there will be a reduction in crime. It caused a huge stir. Since this is the first time you're joining me here on CNN, I want you to explain to our viewers what you were thinking because I've known you were many years. I know you're not a racist. And I just want our viewers to have an understanding of what you were saying.
BENNETT: Well this was -- first, I want to thank CNN for looking past this canard, or through this canard and taking me on. But I've had a number of controversies in my life and some of them, frankly deserved. This one was not deserved.
I was dealing with a hypothetical, talking about lowering crime rate by aborting babies in the black community. And that this was a hypothetical. Obviously it was a matter that had been under discussion in articles and newspapers and in some discussions and books.
But I brought it up as a hypothetical to point out how noxious it was. After having brought up the hypothetical, I said of course that would be a reprehensible and impossible thing to do, direct quote.
Well some of the media that replayed it played the hypothetical, but they didn't play my condemnation of the hypothetical. I'm a college professor, old college professor, I use hypotheticals.
And sometimes you bring up an extreme or ridiculous position in order to show how absurd it is. That was the point of it. So, it was based on a distortion. But more than that, Wolf, it was the whole thing, as it went on, was based on a distortion of my life.
I appreciate what you say about me. I went to Mississippi in 1997, I taught, I taught Martin Luther King letter from a Birmingham jail. I've been committed to civil rights and all anybody has to do is look at my life, my record and the work that we still do.
BLITZER: Bill Bennett, you are a hero. Welcome to CNN. I just love that you'll be spending a lot of time here in THE SITUATION ROOM. Kisses!!!
BENNETT: Thank you very much, great place to be.
BLITZER: Thank you very much. (OFFCAMERA) Ahhhhhh! Tissues, please?
Gawd. I watched that last night and thought I was going to puke. I may yet.
"Mmmmmmmnnnn!"
*****
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