MSNBC "Race For The White House With David Gregory" - Transcript

Interview

MSNBC "Race For The White House With David Gregory" - Transcript

MR. GREGORY: The Senate is expected to vote sometime after 8:00 p.m. Eastern on that rescue package.

Joining me now from Capitol Hill with the latest on where the Democrats stand is Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota. Senator Klobuchar is a member of the Joint Economic Committee and is also a supporter of Senator Obama.

Senator, good to see you.

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: Good to be on, David.

MR. GREGORY: Sorry about those Twins, but that's what happens.

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: Oh, what a hard game last night.

MR. GREGORY: I know. (Laughs.)

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: I watched it at Thirsty Bernie's Sports Bar.

MR. GREGORY: Oh, good for you. All right, tell me where you are on this bill and how you think it's going to go.

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: Well, I think that there will be good support for this bill in the Senate. We all know that this is unpopular. I know, from the calls I've gotten, I know when I go home this weekend there isn't going to be a parade waiting for me. But we know it's the right thing to do.

Senator Obama gave a very good speech tonight explaining how the bill had been so vastly improved with a lot of his ideas and the ideas from the Democrats over that three-page bill we got from the Bush administration. We now have protection for taxpayers and we've got limits on executive pay. We have oversight of Paulson's activities. And we have taxpayers with the ability to see the upside in this. So there's been some major changes, with a lot of hard work to go on how we change the regulations of Wall Street that has basically been operating like a casino under this administration.

MR. GREGORY: Warren Buffett said that he thinks the taxpayers might make money off of this deal. When you go home to Minnesota, is that what you're telling people who are skeptical about this?

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: I don't start with that. I suppose it's a possibility. I tell them that my concern is that this really could roll into Main Street. We're already seeing tightening credit markets with student loans, with some of our private colleges in Minnesota, with car loans, with just difficulties all across the country. We're already starting to see the effect.

And the idea here is to stem the immediate crisis, but then to make the changes that Senator Obama has so well articulated about what needs to be done to stem what's been going on on Wall Street, something John McCain didn't do for the years he was chair of the Commerce Committee.

MR. GREGORY: There's a question, though, about whether the time frame for this is workable, where you have a year-long effort to buy up this bad debt. Is that nearly enough time for this to work its way through the system?

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: You know, this is a start, and I'm hopeful that it will be. I think our focus should not just be as we go into the next year on oversight and doing this right. It also should be on changing the regulations and then looking at the economic policy going forward.

One of the good things, David, about the Senate bill that wasn't in the House bill is we have those long-term incentives in place for renewable energy, wind and solar; something important to my state, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health Parity Bill. So there are things in the Senate bill that are important for the long term.

MR. GREGORY: I've got to ask you about tomorrow night's debate. And there are reports that Senator Biden has taken some advice from female colleagues in the Senate about how to debate Governor Sarah Palin. What do you think he has to keep in mind tomorrow night?

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: Well, I think, first of all, people have, you know, created all of these expectations about Sarah Palin. She's debated many times successfully in Alaska. There was an article today in the Christian Science Monitor by one of her opponents, a guy named Andrew Halcro, who ran as an independent. He talked about how she sort of charmed the audiences with her folksy stories and what he called her "glittering generalities."

You know, do I think this is what the people of America want now? No. But I don't think we should underestimate her abilities as a debater. And Senator Biden is very experienced in policy. He needs to emphasize that. But mostly he needs to show that stark contrast between the McCain-Palin policies and the change that he and Barack want to bring to Washington.

MR. GREGORY: Do you worry there are some pitfalls for him --

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: There's always pitfalls --

MR. GREGORY: -- just in his style?

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: -- in any debate.

MR. GREGORY: But just in his style?

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: You know, I think that he has shown -- I loved what he said after Barack and John McCain's debate, how he came on, tough fighter, went on and told it like it was. And, you know, people always say he talks a little long, but he has a lot to say. And I think that he will do well.

But I think the other thing to remember here, don't underestimate Sarah Palin. She's given good speeches. She knows how to deliver a one-liner. And all of this expectations game, people better remember she's been governor of a state and she's won debates before.

MR. GREGORY: More generally about the economy, we heard on the program tonight Tom DeLay, former Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill, saying Americans are not hearing what they want to hear on the economy from either one of these candidates, an issue that should benefit Barack Obama more than it appears to, despite the fact that we see some movement in the polls. What more would you like to see him do?

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: Well, I think, first of all, every time the American electorate turns away from ads about lipstick to the real issues in this campaign, Barack Obama shines as a leader. And I think he's doing what he needs to do. He has been a leader in this economic crisis. It was Barack Obama that suggested the increase to the FDIC insurance that we see in the bill today. It's Barack Obama that was willing to come out with his principles, all of which are reflected in the bill, which I believe is ultimately going to pass the Congress.

It's difficult. People are pissed off. I'm pissed off. These guys on Wall Street have made all this money, and then they, you know, leave us, the taxpayers, to figure this out. It's not a good situation. So the American people are mad, but Barack Obama's got the plan to get them out of this mess.

MR. GREGORY: Senator Klobuchar, thanks very much.

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: Thank you, David.

MR. GREGORY: Watch for the results of the vote tonight here on MSNBC.

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: And I'll see you at the debate. I'll be there tomorrow night. It should be good.

MR. GREGORY: All right. Good night, everybody.

SEN. KLOBUCHAR: Thank you.

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