Nightline (ABC) - 2000-07-31 (Republican Convention)
Channel: malgent
Transcript
Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)
[0:01] July 31st, 2000.
[0:07] >> The Republicans launched their
[0:08] convention heralding inclusion and
[0:11] unity.
[0:13] >> We have much more work to do and a long
[0:15] way to go to bring the promise of
[0:17] America to every single American.
[0:23] >> There's the new mass media.com, cable,
[0:26] online competing with the old.
[0:30] >> This place, this process, I think will
[0:32] be changed by the internet. It lets
[0:35] everyone at their own screen
[0:38] experience it themselves. They may take
[0:40] away their own message.
[0:41] >> Diminishing TV coverage converges with
[0:44] the exploding internet presence.
[0:47] >> You really have lost sort of the public
[0:48] square in America, and I don't think any
[0:50] amount of internet connections can make
[0:52] up for that, at least not right now.
[0:53] >> Tonight,
[0:54] the GOP meets the new media in
[0:57] Philadelphia.
[1:03] >> From ABC News,
[1:08] this is Nightline.
[1:11] Reporting from Washington,
[1:13] Ted Koppel.
[1:16] In some respects, what's happening in
[1:18] Philadelphia these days is not so
[1:19] different from what happens whenever
[1:21] politicians and journalists get
[1:23] together. They have their agenda, we
[1:26] have ours. They thrive on maintaining
[1:28] the appearance of harmony, control, and
[1:30] predictability. We thrive on rooting out
[1:33] evidence of dissension, chaos, and the
[1:35] unpredictable.
[1:37] At the Republican convention in
[1:38] Philadelphia today, the politicians are
[1:41] winning.
[1:42] George W. Bush has not only sewed up the
[1:44] nomination, he's already taken his
[1:46] running mate for a trial run on the
[1:48] campaign trail. He's sandpapered the
[1:50] rough edges off the party platform, and
[1:53] may, in fact, already have picked his
[1:55] Secretary of State.
[1:57] Certainly, Colin Powell, who's hinted
[1:59] that he would like that job, only
[2:01] enhanced his standing within the party
[2:02] this evening. Four years ago at the
[2:04] Republican convention in San Diego,
[2:06] General Powell spelled out some of his
[2:08] differences with the party platform.
[2:11] Tonight, there was barely a hint that
[2:13] any such differences exist.
[2:16] A little later in this broadcast, my
[2:17] colleague Peter Jennings will have an
[2:19] exclusive interview with General Powell.
[2:22] Years ago, these conventions used to be
[2:24] the occasion on which factions within
[2:26] the political party battled for control.
[2:29] On this occasion, the battle was
[2:31] essentially over before the delegates
[2:33] even convened.
[2:34] And the substance of this event is not
[2:36] the only thing that has changed. Over
[2:38] the last 50 or some odd years, our role
[2:41] has changed, too.
[2:43] As Nightline correspondent Chris Bury
[2:45] reports now from Philadelphia, we in the
[2:47] media
[2:48] are not what we once were, either.
[3:01] >> In 1948 at the Republican convention
[3:04] here in Philadelphia, television was the
[3:07] tentative new kid on a media block then
[3:10] dominated by newsreels, newspapers, and
[3:13] radio.
[3:14] >> I congratulate
[3:16] Governor Dewey on his nomination.
[3:18] >> For the very first time, the speeches
[3:21] and the silliness of a political
[3:22] convention were broadcast live to nine
[3:25] cities. From that moment, when Thomas E.
[3:28] Dewey beat back four challengers,
[3:30] television and the conventions became
[3:32] joined at the hip. But that is beginning
[3:35] to change.
[3:36] >> Ask the Zubernick guys. They can give
[3:38] you all the real technical stuff.
[3:40] >> We're in an all webcast-driven uh era.
[3:43] >> 52 years later, another new kid has
[3:46] arrived to cover a very different kind
[3:48] of convention. These extravaganzas have
[3:51] long evolved from choosing the
[3:52] candidates to selling them, but now it's
[3:55] the internet players who are nudging the
[3:57] networks.
[3:58] >> 1948, television was in its infancy, and
[4:01] it was a great, bold experiment to try
[4:03] to actually carry this into American
[4:04] living rooms. Well, now you have the
[4:06] exploding technology of the internet
[4:08] uh doing what television used to do,
[4:10] which is covering it with enthusiasm,
[4:12] trying to find new ways and new
[4:13] technologies to carry the message of
[4:16] Philadelphia and later Los Angeles to
[4:18] people who are interested.
[4:19] >> 52 years ago, the last time the
[4:21] Republicans visited this city, there was
[4:23] something lurking over the convention.
[4:26] >> David Borman, a former television news
[4:28] producer, now runs the pseudo online
[4:31] network, one of more than 50 internet
[4:33] companies cutting their teeth on
[4:35] politics. Like television in 1948, the
[4:38] internet players are strutting their
[4:40] technology as much as they are covering
[4:43] the convention.
[4:44] >> If you look over the convention hall
[4:45] right now, there's something new
[4:47] lurking. Little corner of the hall,
[4:50] pseudo AOL. The internet is hovering
[4:53] over this convention. It's a little
[4:55] wedge into the future. I don't think
[4:57] this replaces Dan or Tom or Peter or
[5:01] Ted. I think what this does is add in a
[5:03] whole other set of experiences.
[5:06] >> You two guys come with me right now. I
[5:08] want to show
[5:08] >> The old media, of course, are now
[5:10] increasingly part of the new media, too.
[5:13] The newspapers and the broadcast
[5:15] networks are polishing their online
[5:17] outlets here in Philadelphia. Sam
[5:20] Donaldson anchors a daily abcnews.com
[5:23] show from the convention.
[5:25] >> We get emails from all over the world.
[5:27] So, the reach is just tremendous. I say
[5:30] only half facetiously, there are six and
[5:32] a half billion people in this world, and
[5:35] eventually, I'm going to get every one
[5:36] of them.
[5:38] >> The emergence of this new media comes
[5:40] just as the broadcast networks are
[5:42] continuing to cut back convention
[5:44] coverage following a steady decline in
[5:46] audience ratings.
[5:48] >> The convention has changed in nature.
[5:49] There's no suspense. We know who the
[5:51] nominee is. All of the debate has been
[5:53] conveniently and entirely shoved aside
[5:55] to make sure that there's a harmonious
[5:57] television program which serves in
[5:59] effect as a pep rally for the parties.
[6:01] >> I know you won't, but don't push me.
[6:03] Take your hands off of me or else you
[6:04] can plan on arresting me.
[6:05] >> Once, of course, the conventions
[6:07] produced genuine tension and drama.
[6:09] >> As you can see
[6:12] >> I don't know what's going on with this
[6:14] These are security people apparently
[6:16] around Dan.
[6:18] And obviously getting roughed up.
[6:20] >> It made for exciting television, if not
[6:22] pretty politics. But since 1972, the
[6:25] primaries, not the conventions, have
[6:27] selected the nominees.
[6:29] >> There is a religious war going on in
[6:32] this country.
[6:33] >> And since 1992, when Pat Buchanan's
[6:35] speech so bitterly divided the
[6:37] Republicans, both parties have
[6:40] essentially turned their conventions
[6:41] into talk shows and Hollywood
[6:43] productions.
[6:45] >> My fellow rowdy Republicans.
[6:49] >> Just consider tonight, when the cable
[6:51] and internet audience heard from Hank
[6:53] Williams Jr. and the game show host Ben
[6:56] Stein.
[6:57] >> Network? Anyone? Anyone?
[7:00] Bueller?
[7:01] >> Still, party officials insist
[7:03] conventions serve a vital purpose that
[7:06] merits network television coverage.
[7:08] >> 22% of the people in this country make
[7:10] up their mind about how they're going to
[7:12] vote
[7:14] based on their observations of the
[7:15] conventions. So, the conventions are
[7:17] pretty darn important.
[7:19] Then the networks that have a
[7:21] publicly owned airway that's been
[7:24] licensed to them, I think thus have a
[7:26] responsibility to inform the people.
[7:29] >> The MTV Choose or Lose Street Team,
[7:31] please welcome them.
[7:34] >> But here in Philadelphia, it's clear
[7:36] that broadcasting is giving way not only
[7:39] to the internet, but also to
[7:40] narrowcasting.
[7:42] >> Gideon, I know you were at some of the
[7:43] protests yesterday, right?
[7:44] >> Right. I checked out the Unity 2000
[7:46] March.
[7:47] >> From MTV
[7:49] to Comedy Central
[7:53] to the Spanish language network
[7:55] Univision
[7:58] convention coverage is becoming
[8:00] increasingly fragmented. Each outlet
[8:03] targeting a highly specific slice of the
[8:05] audience.
[8:06] >> If there's an area that you want to be
[8:07] plugged into, you're sort of being
[8:08] super-served as opposed to just taking a
[8:10] slice of the general mainstream pie.
[8:13] >> We reach an audience that in our voting
[8:16] age, they're 18 to 35. They're young.
[8:19] They have what's known as uh
[8:22] expendable income.
[8:23] >> How are the parties coping with these
[8:25] new kids on the block? The Republicans
[8:28] provide their own video feed to any
[8:30] internet site that wants it. But they
[8:32] know the number of eyeballs in this new
[8:34] audience still does not compare to the
[8:37] 17 million or so expected to watch on
[8:39] network television.
[8:41] >> They're trying to adapt to this brave
[8:42] new world. They're having some success
[8:43] with it, but it's not the same in terms
[8:45] of reaching the mass audience. When you
[8:47] don't have the major broadcast networks
[8:50] covering all but the nominee's speech,
[8:52] you really have lost sort of the public
[8:54] square in America. And I don't think any
[8:56] amount of internet connections can make
[8:57] up for that, at least not right now.
[8:59] >> That is exactly why, of course, the
[9:01] Republicans have put their marquee names
[9:04] like Colin Powell tonight and John
[9:06] McCain tomorrow in the primetime slots
[9:09] still covered by some of the major
[9:11] broadcast networks. The suspense may be
[9:13] long gone and the drama certainly
[9:16] lacking, but the political parties have
[9:18] learned one important lesson since 1948.
[9:21] And that is the business of modern
[9:23] conventions is show business. Ted.
[9:27] >> Chris, thank you very much. When we come
[9:28] back, tomorrow's edition, a preview of
[9:31] the morning's New York Times.
[9:40] >> This is ABC News Nightline, brought to
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[10:25] Have you ever looked at someone and
[10:26] said, "Check her out. She looks loyal."
[10:29] Or, "Wow, look at the morals on that
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[10:32] No, love at first sight is based on
[10:35] something else.
[10:37] Sight.
[10:38] >> I see you, baby.
[10:40] Shaking that thing.
[10:41] >> The 2000 Mitsubishi Eclipse, nicely
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[10:46] You'll even love what's on the inside.
[10:52] >> Tomorrow, how the gambling industry gets
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[11:01] News Tonight.
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[12:07] >> Throughout our coverage of this
[12:08] convention and the upcoming Democratic
[12:10] Convention in Los Angeles, we'll be
[12:12] introducing a new segment in which
[12:14] senior correspondents from The New York
[12:16] Times will give Nightline viewers an
[12:18] early look at front-page political
[12:20] stories in tomorrow's edition. Joining
[12:23] me tonight, Washington Bureau Chief
[12:25] Michael Oreskes and Chief Correspondent
[12:27] R.W. Apple. Mike, what are we going to
[12:29] see reflected on the front page of the
[12:31] Times tomorrow? Any news at all?
[12:33] >> Well, of course, the Bush camp has done
[12:35] a very successful job, as you hinted
[12:37] earlier in the broadcast, of creating a
[12:40] news-free environment here in
[12:41] Philadelphia.
[12:43] No hair is out of place. It's all very
[12:45] neat and tidy, and their simple messages
[12:48] are what they want to focus on. One of
[12:50] the things we've done in tomorrow's
[12:51] paper to try to break through that a
[12:52] little bit is we've twinned two stories
[12:55] at the top of the front page. One of
[12:57] them looks at the festivities here in
[12:59] the hall, General Powell's speech, Laura
[13:01] Bush's quite good performance here this
[13:04] evening. And the other one, right across
[13:06] the top of the front page, looks at the
[13:08] platform that the Republican Party
[13:10] adopted, the real substance of the
[13:12] party. And the juxtaposition between
[13:14] those two, the very moderate, neatly
[13:17] burnished image of the party as
[13:19] presented in prime-time TV tonight, and
[13:22] the somewhat more hard-edged platform,
[13:24] where, for For
[13:26] abortion rights are rejected and uh a
[13:30] number of other tough very conservative
[13:32] positions are taken
[13:34] and George Bush has done a bit of a
[13:35] Texas two-step to make sure that both
[13:37] get across and we've tried to present
[13:39] both and in between straddling them all
[13:41] will be R.W. Apple with his news
[13:43] analysis on the history of political
[13:45] conventions.
[13:46] >> Johnny Apple,
[13:47] you you look at what you see here now
[13:50] and what you see reflected you you posit
[13:53] is possibly a function of a country that
[13:56] is doing well, an economy that is doing
[13:58] well and therefore you don't see a lot
[14:00] of anger, hostility or hard edged issues
[14:03] being debated. You think that's forever?
[14:06] >> No, I don't think it's necessarily
[14:08] forever. Uh
[14:10] a good swinging depression would change
[14:13] a lot of a lot of that. But at the
[14:15] moment or a war would change a lot of
[14:18] that. But at the moment the polls and
[14:20] the focus groups tell the politicians
[14:23] that Americans are not interested in
[14:25] partisan debate, in conflict, in the
[14:29] stuff of politics.
[14:31] Uh
[14:33] that has led them to just wipe that sort
[14:37] of conflict out.
[14:39] They believe that uh
[14:43] times have changed since 1948. In 1948
[14:46] you'll recall
[14:48] Harry Truman
[14:50] was nominated by a convention that split
[14:52] wide open. Hubert Humphrey made his
[14:55] famous declaration about civil rights,
[14:58] carried the convention with him.
[15:00] A lot of the southerners walked out and
[15:02] started the Dixie Crap Party
[15:04] and which nominated Strom Thurmond of
[15:06] all people for president.
[15:09] >> Michael Rasky, let me come back to you
[15:10] for a moment and and talk to you about
[15:12] something else that I know is is going
[15:14] to be reflected on the front page of the
[15:15] Times tomorrow and that's what's going
[15:16] on behind the scenes
[15:18] with a hell of a a of fundraising.
[15:20] Fundraising for what and by whom?
[15:24] >> Ted, it's quite right that political
[15:26] conventions no longer do what they used
[15:28] to do, which is nominate candidates for
[15:30] president, but they do a lot of other
[15:31] big political work. And one of the big
[15:33] things happening at this convention and
[15:35] again and will happen in Los Angeles for
[15:37] the Democrats is fundraising big time,
[15:39] lots of money, millions of dollars being
[15:42] gathered by candidates from Bush himself
[15:45] to candidates for House and Senate for
[15:48] local offices around the country. One
[15:50] interesting phenomenon is that the Bush
[15:52] camp has really given virtually no time
[15:54] in prime time to House and Senate
[15:57] candidates despite the very tough
[15:59] battles for control of both the House of
[16:00] Representatives and the Senate. But off
[16:02] stage, those House and Senate candidates
[16:05] are busy raising money and doing lots of
[16:07] politics. For example, one one
[16:09] interesting fight going on is between
[16:11] two Republicans, Michael Oxley and Billy
[16:13] Tauzin, two members of the House
[16:15] Commerce Committee, both of whom would
[16:17] like to be chairman of the House
[16:19] Commerce Committee in the next Congress.
[16:21] They're both holding major fundraisers
[16:23] here this week, one tonight, another
[16:25] tomorrow night. And what they're going
[16:27] to do with that money is give it to
[16:29] other members of the House of
[16:30] Representatives hoping to curry favor
[16:32] with them and hoping they will then vote
[16:34] in the new Congress to make them
[16:36] chairman.
[16:36] >> Johnny, in the minute or so that we have
[16:38] left, is it your impression that this
[16:40] the sense of togetherness, of oneness
[16:44] is going to survive the campaign?
[16:47] >> Oh, I don't think I don't think so at
[16:49] all. But I think it's important even
[16:51] before we leave here to remember two
[16:54] things.
[16:55] First, for all of their belief
[16:58] that
[16:59] this is what the American public wants.
[17:01] They say that over and over again. They
[17:03] need to explain in that case two things.
[17:08] Conventions full of harmony don't get
[17:11] watched on television.
[17:13] Ratings go down.
[17:15] Second,
[17:17] all of the sweetness and light, all of
[17:19] this issueless politics
[17:22] has contributed at least in some part to
[17:25] the steady decline of participation
[17:28] in
[17:30] the general election in the fall.
[17:32] >> So, you're saying So, you're saying in
[17:33] order to get a voting public out there,
[17:35] we have to have a hostile convention?
[17:36] >> You don't have a hostile have to have a
[17:38] hostile convention, but you have to
[17:40] present some substance and engage the
[17:42] issues.
[17:44] >> As they say, time will tell. Gentlemen,
[17:45] I I hope to see you or some of your
[17:47] colleagues again tomorrow night. Many
[17:49] thanks to you.
[17:50] >> Cheers.
[17:50] >> In a moment, an interview my colleague
[17:52] Peter Jennings just conducted with
[17:54] tonight's featured speaker, General
[17:56] Colin Powell.
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[19:42] >> abcnews.com
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[20:53] >> Just after he completed his address to
[20:55] convention delegates tonight, General
[20:57] Colin Powell sat down with my colleague,
[20:59] Peter Jennings.
[21:01] >> This is the second convention in a row
[21:03] in which you've been given such a
[21:04] prominent position to speak and for the
[21:06] second time in a row you felt the need
[21:08] to chastise your party. Why is that?
[21:10] >> Challenge them really, because I don't
[21:11] think we've done enough. I think that
[21:14] um minorities do need more choice in the
[21:17] political world of today. I don't think
[21:20] it's sound for us as a party to simply
[21:22] say, "Well, we're not going to make the
[21:24] effort to go get them because they are
[21:26] all going to vote Democratic." Not
[21:27] necessarily. If you show them how the
[21:29] Republican Party and the Republican
[21:31] Party agenda can help them educate their
[21:33] youngsters, get a home, get access to
[21:36] loans, bring wealth into their community
[21:38] through jobs and economic development, I
[21:40] think you can get those votes, but you
[21:42] have to be sensitive to their concerns,
[21:44] and you have to be sensitive to to some
[21:47] of the imagery that we have portrayed as
[21:49] a party over the last 30 years from the
[21:51] days of our Southern strategy.
[21:53] And I am deeply impressed in what
[21:55] Governor Bush has done in Texas by
[21:57] reaching out to minorities, not saying,
[21:58] "I'm coming to you because you're black
[22:00] or you're or you're Hispanic," but just
[22:02] making sure that he creates programs,
[22:03] programs that you heard about
[22:05] >> But minus the reference to abortion
[22:06] which got you booed 4 years ago, this is
[22:08] pretty much exactly the same speech that
[22:10] you made 4 years ago.
[22:11] >> quite the contrary.
[22:13] >> Pretty much the same speech on
[22:14] inclusion, pretty much the same speech
[22:15] on affirmative action. Did you
[22:17] >> need reminding so vigorously?
[22:19] >> I think the whole country needs
[22:20] reminding, but especially the
[22:21] Republicans.
[22:22] >> How much how much progress has the party
[22:23] made?
[22:24] >> I think the party has made quite a bit
[22:25] of progress. You've seen a number of
[22:28] black and other
[22:30] minority leaders and spokespeople here
[22:32] during the course of this convention. I
[22:34] think for me to be able to take this
[22:37] message directly to Governor Bush, and
[22:38] he and I talked about it earlier today,
[22:40] and tell him,
[22:42] "George, what you're doing in Texas, and
[22:44] the way you're starting to get people to
[22:45] respond to you in Texas, that's the
[22:47] message that has to be taken to the
[22:48] national level, and we really have to
[22:50] have the rest of the party join you in
[22:52] this." And he fully supports that, and I
[22:55] think we'll see some progress.
[22:56] >> Do you ever feel used by the Republican
[22:57] Party?
[22:58] >> No, I don't ever feel used. If I felt
[22:59] used by the Republican Party, I wouldn't
[23:00] let that happen.
[23:01] >> Most famous black man in America,
[23:03] probably, and they always put you in the
[23:04] front row.
[23:06] >> Only black famous black man in America.
[23:07] >> Well, the most Perhaps the most Perhaps
[23:09] the Did I say only? I meant most. I
[23:11] apologize. Most famous black Most famous
[23:13] black man in America, probably. And they
[23:16] push you into the front position all the
[23:17] time.
[23:18] Do you ever feel that maybe this is the
[23:20] professional wing of the party trying to
[23:22] use you?
[23:22] >> No, because if I didn't wish to be
[23:24] pushed in the front row, I wouldn't be
[23:26] in the front row. But one of the
[23:28] beauties of being a Republican and a
[23:30] black Republican is that I can give a
[23:33] message to the Republican Party and to
[23:35] the American people and and nudge my
[23:37] party and push my party in a direction
[23:39] which will give black Americans more
[23:41] choice than they currently have now.
[23:43] Um for me to you know say well I'm not
[23:45] going to do that because I don't like
[23:47] every all policies that are within the
[23:49] party, I don't think would be the best
[23:51] use of of my energy and my time and my
[23:53] ability to talk to Americans.
[23:55] And so I had several thousand people out
[23:57] there tonight. I had lots of people
[23:59] watching. And the message that I wanted
[24:01] to give to them and the message that I
[24:02] wanted to give to the party leaders is
[24:04] that if you're going to do this, you got
[24:05] to do it every day. You got to do it all
[24:07] the time. I've spoken out about the Bob
[24:10] Jones University. I've spoken out about
[24:11] the flag in South Carolina. Those are
[24:13] not the kinds of things we should be
[24:14] doing.
[24:15] >> How badly did that incident at Bob Jones
[24:16] University and the failure of the
[24:18] governor to commit himself on the flag
[24:20] in South Carolina
[24:22] hurt him?
[24:23] >> Uh I think it hurt him. I think it hurt
[24:25] him nationally as well as hurting him
[24:27] within the minority community and I
[24:28] called him and talked to him about it.
[24:30] >> Did you have a good conversation?
[24:31] >> Uh I think it it will linger, uh but I
[24:33] think you start you slowly get over it.
[24:35] When you do things like go before the
[24:37] NAACP convention and speak to them,
[24:39] which our candidate did not do in 1996.
[24:42] If you recall, Bob Dole said, "I think
[24:44] they're setting me up." Well, that's
[24:45] what we got to get rid of. Don't expect
[24:47] to be cheered to the rafters, but even
[24:49] if you're booed, you got to go. You got
[24:51] to go where we are. You got to reach out
[24:53] into these communities and you've got to
[24:55] make your case to them.
[24:57] >> General Colin Powell speaking with Peter
[24:59] Jennings less than an hour ago. And
[25:02] joining us now live from the Republican
[25:04] convention, David Gergen, editor at
[25:06] large at U.S. News and World Report, and
[25:08] ABC News political analyst George
[25:10] Stephanopoulos, now in about his 19th
[25:12] hour. I saw you at 7:00 this morning on
[25:14] Good Morning America.
[25:16] Um
[25:17] I I want to take you back to something
[25:19] we haven't seen on this broadcast, but
[25:21] if you were watching ABC's coverage uh
[25:23] between 10:00 and 11:00, you would have
[25:25] seen George Bush making a a very brief
[25:29] introduction of General Powell in which
[25:31] he said somewhat mysteriously that he
[25:34] hoped his days of greatest service lay
[25:36] still ahead. Uh is that Secretary of
[25:39] State, George?
[25:40] >> Yeah, it's not so mysterious, Ted. I
[25:42] mean
[25:43] George W. Bush has made no secret that
[25:45] he would love to have Colin Powell serve
[25:47] as Secretary of State, and Colin Powell
[25:48] has hinted that maybe he would accept.
[25:50] You know, the Clinton uh team made
[25:52] overtures to uh General Powell uh back
[25:55] in 1994, and he refused them every time,
[25:58] but he is opening the door now. That
[26:00] would be a huge boon to George Bush.
[26:02] >> David Gergen, uh you also think that
[26:04] he's going to be tapped for something
[26:05] big, but not necessarily Secretary of
[26:07] State.
[26:08] >> Well, the obvious step would be to make
[26:10] him Secretary of State, and he and Dick
[26:11] Cheney would then form the center of
[26:13] gravity in a Bush administration on
[26:15] national security defense issues and
[26:17] foreign policy issues. But Ted, tonight,
[26:19] that speech, he said something very
[26:20] interesting. He talked about children.
[26:22] He said, "Improving the lives of
[26:23] children, that has become the mission of
[26:25] my life." It was a real passion. It's a
[26:28] deep passion in him now. So, you have to
[26:30] wonder after this whether he might be
[26:32] better as Secretary of Education than
[26:34] Secretary of State. I talked about it. I
[26:36] said, "Uh General Powell, you know, you
[26:37] really ought think about being domestic
[26:38] czar." He just laughed. But there is
[26:40] about him, Ted, something very deep. He
[26:42] really cares about this, and I I I
[26:44] think, frankly, he'd rather be out in
[26:46] the classrooms and changing schools in
[26:48] this country than working in Bosnia.
[26:50] >> If some political Rip Van Winkle had
[26:52] awakened tonight and someone had plopped
[26:54] him in front of the television set and
[26:56] had not told him or her
[26:59] whose political convention that was,
[27:01] George, do you think they might have
[27:03] been a little confused?
[27:04] >> Oh, I would I would guess so, Ted. You
[27:05] know, that before the warm-up acts for
[27:08] the speeches tonight were a rhythm and
[27:09] blues breakdancer, a club band from the
[27:12] East Village, and a gospel choir from
[27:14] South Philly. That is not your average
[27:17] Republican convention. It could have
[27:18] been Chicago 1996, the Democrats.
[27:20] >> All right. We we still have Laura Bush
[27:22] to talk about, and we have to talk about
[27:24] whether the Republicans really mean it.
[27:25] Is this something that they're just
[27:27] doing for the convention, or is it
[27:29] something that they're going to take to
[27:30] the heart of the party itself? More with
[27:33] David Gergen and George Stephanopoulos
[27:35] in a moment.
[27:47] >> Joe leads an incredibly exciting life.
[27:50] >> We will give you $20 million.
[27:53] >> Only that, Zaram?
[27:54] >> Yes, yes, million of dollar.
[27:56] >> Joe is also living on borrowed time.
[27:59] >> Production.
[28:01] >> Two Swiss accounts.
[28:03] One in his name and one in mine.
[28:06] >> For the rest of us, Joe's Lexus is
[28:08] excitement enough.
[28:11] Introducing the new IS. It's
[28:13] sufficiently radical.
[28:15] >> My doctor said occasional personal
[28:17] dryness is natural. She recommended K-Y.
[28:21] I chose K-Y Silky. Nothing feels more
[28:23] natural. K-Y Silky with vitamin E, from
[28:27] the number one doctor recommended brand.
[28:31] >> We got 3 weeks to send four old geezers
[28:33] into space.
[28:33] >> First one to pass out buys the beer.
[28:35] >> I'm on a need-to-know basis.
[28:36] >> You don't need to know.
[28:38] >> Thank you, God.
[28:41] >> Space Cowboys, rated PG-13, starts this
[28:44] Friday.
[28:49] >> You got it.
[29:19] >> She would seem really depressed.
[29:21] >> so isolated. Wishes she was never born
[29:23] and
[29:24] >> So, I knew he had depression, but I
[29:25] didn't know it was that far.
[29:26] >> said something to me about killing
[29:28] himself.
[29:29] >> know what to do cuz I kind of thought,
[29:31] "Oh, he's going to be mad at me."
[29:32] >> Tell somebody. Tell an adult, counselor,
[29:35] parent, whatever.
[29:37] >> have been horrible for me if she never
[29:38] talked to me again, but I'd live with it
[29:40] cuz I know she'd be alive.
[29:42] >> Definitely worth getting help even if
[29:43] you think you're going to lose a
[29:45] friendship because it's better to lose
[29:46] the friendship than the actual friend.
[29:49] >> Professional hockey can be a rough
[29:50] sport, but the sports our kids play can
[29:53] be rough, too.
[29:55] Each year nearly a million children end
[29:57] up in emergency rooms with injuries that
[29:59] could have been prevented.
[30:02] That's why I'm teaming up with the
[30:03] National Safe Kids Campaign to help you
[30:05] get free information.
[30:07] Tips about keeping your kids safe while
[30:10] they play sports like basketball,
[30:11] soccer, and softball.
[30:14] The National Safe Kids Campaign.
[30:16] Together, we're helping keep kids safe.
[30:22] >> Back with David Gergen and George
[30:23] Stephanopoulos and oh, what a picture of
[30:25] moderation and inclusion we have seen
[30:27] tonight. Your buyer, David?
[30:29] >> Well, somebody walked out of that
[30:31] convention tonight head shaking come out
[30:32] to me and said, "I just went to a party
[30:33] of cross-dressers." And so,
[30:35] I guess it's easy to be cynical. And And
[30:37] of course, the people in the hall are
[30:38] much more conservative than the rhetoric
[30:40] we heard tonight. The New York Times
[30:41] survey found that one out of five people
[30:43] in the hall is a millionaire, one out of
[30:44] five belongs to the National Rifle
[30:46] Association. But that even so, there was
[30:48] a black fellow came out of that hall
[30:50] tonight, a delegate, who was who was had
[30:51] his eyes were moist. He didn't never had
[30:53] a night like this in Republican
[30:54] politics. And I think I think for the
[30:56] for an awful lot of people who have felt
[30:58] left out, this is a very, very important
[31:01] evening. It gave them hope that George
[31:03] W. Bush does represent a new voice in
[31:04] the Republican Party. And I think there
[31:06] are an awful lot of people have been
[31:07] looking for that, and they will they
[31:08] will find it very, very appealing. I
[31:10] think it was a very splendid night for
[31:12] Republicans.
[31:12] >> But are those the speeches, George, that
[31:14] we're going to be hearing between now
[31:16] and and the beginning of November? And
[31:18] and and if so, even will the speeches be
[31:20] enough to convince African-Americans, to
[31:23] convince other minorities, to convince
[31:24] women,
[31:25] uh that this is now possibly their
[31:27] party, too?
[31:29] >> It doesn't have to convince
[31:30] African-Americans and Hispanics, um that
[31:32] this is their party. He doesn't have to
[31:34] get a lot of that vote. He just has to
[31:35] cut into a little bit. What this was all
[31:37] about, what the speeches are about, are
[31:39] reaching out to these suburban voters
[31:40] and not scaring them. Letting them know
[31:42] that he's he's inclusive, and I think
[31:44] that this will go a long way to helping
[31:46] with that.
[31:47] >> Is this uh is this in fact the end of
[31:49] substantive conventions, or as Johnny
[31:52] Apple suggested earlier on, and and
[31:54] let's hope it doesn't take something as
[31:55] as drastic as a depression or a war, but
[31:58] if if things turn sour, are we likely to
[32:00] see ever again substantive conventions?
[32:03] >> Well, it's hard to know. You'd have to
[32:05] have a primary challenge, which which
[32:07] kind of um upset the incumbent in a way
[32:09] that brought a real contest at the
[32:10] convention. You can't see that right
[32:12] now. I I guess I'm not as as cynical
[32:14] though about the conventions. I think
[32:16] conventions have essentially become the
[32:18] platforms of the parties, and that the
[32:20] voters then hold the parties accountable
[32:22] for the message they send out of the
[32:24] conventions. When Bill Clinton moved
[32:25] away from his New Democrat message that
[32:27] he sent at his conventions, he was
[32:28] punished for it.
[32:30] >> David, we've got about 45 seconds left.
[32:32] Just a word or two, if you would, on on
[32:34] uh Laura Bush.
[32:35] >> Yeah, I I think that she will go away
[32:37] from here as the new fresh uh face of
[32:39] the Republican Party. It was a very very
[32:42] warm down-to-earth speech in which I
[32:44] think she was
[32:45] much more successful than anybody might
[32:46] have hoped. She did she accomplished two
[32:48] important goals tonight. She introduced
[32:50] herself to the American people and
[32:52] showed what kind of first lady she would
[32:54] be emphasizing education. And secondly,
[32:56] she bore witness to her husband very
[32:58] effectively.
[32:58] >> We we've got a few seconds left. I have
[33:00] to ask you about the presence of George
[33:01] Bush senior.
[33:04] Any any reflection on George Bush George
[33:07] W. Bush here reflection in the sense of
[33:09] is it a good or a bad thing to remind
[33:11] folks that dad was also president?
[33:13] >> Oh, you had to have his father there
[33:14] tonight. No question about that. I think
[33:16] what was most interesting about George
[33:17] Bush senior tonight is that he kind of
[33:19] took the gloves off and said if Bill
[33:21] Clinton doesn't stop attacking my son,
[33:23] I'm going to get out there and tell the
[33:23] country about Bill Clinton. There's a
[33:25] nuclear threat.
[33:26] >> a 30-day countdown though.
[33:29] Gentlemen, thanks very much. See you
[33:30] tomorrow night. Tomorrow morning Senator
[33:33] John McCain will be a guest on Good
[33:34] Morning America. Peter Jennings will
[33:36] have a complete wrap-up of the day's
[33:38] events on World News Tonight and of
[33:40] course ABC News coverage of day two of
[33:42] the Republican Convention including
[33:44] Senator McCain's speech will begin at
[33:47] 10:00 p.m. Eastern time.
[33:49] That's our report for tonight. I'm Ted
[33:51] Koppel in Washington. For all of us here
[33:53] at ABC News, good night.
[33:58] >> This has been a presentation of ABC
[34:00] News. More Americans get their news from
[34:03] ABC News
[34:06] than from any other source.
[34:09] >> The question was for half a million
[34:11] dollars. So she thought about it and
[34:13] thought about it and thought about it.
[34:15] >> How's my husband doing?
[34:16] >> He's decomposing.
[34:18] >> My answer is D. Palau.
[34:20] >> I don't know how to tell you this Katie,
[34:22] but the answer is Tonga.
[34:24] >> Sometimes it's better to walk away and
[34:26] only millionaire tomorrow 8:00 7:00
[34:27] Central on ABC.
[34:30] >> Watch Bob Miller at 5:00, 6:00 10:00
[34:32] p.m. only on News 2.
[34:37] >> This is a News 2 special report, the
[34:39] 2000 Republican convention