Skip to main content

tv   Piers Morgan Tonight  CNN  November 7, 2012 9:00pm-10:00pm EST

9:00 pm
that is it for us. thank you for watching. we'll see you one hour from now. piers morgan tonight starts now. >> good evening. you are looking live at the white house. where president is no doubtly celebrating a big win. there is a big agenda, tall order. why shouldn't he be in this speech last night? >> we are not as divided as our
9:01 pm
politics suggest. we are not as cynical as the pundits believe. >> on the other side of the i'll, the gop handles the changing reality in washington. meanwhile, breaking news tonight, the nor'easter bearing down on new york and new jersey tonight. new york city's death toll has risen tonight. we are live in one of the hardest hit areas. jo joining me now, top strategist, david axelrod. >> it was a great night to be in that room with that crowd and the sense of joy frankly and
9:02 pm
spoke to the young volunteers and staff. and it was a very movingen count counter. when was the moment that you thought we've got this it is all going to plan. >> when the vote started getting counted we knew quickly we have a fairly sophisticated model. we knew when we were hitting our targets and our folks were skilled and when we saw the votes coming in, in ohio and virginia, and then in florida, there was a sense that this could be an earlier evening than we thought. we looked at the demographics. pretty much across the board you
9:03 pm
had a good night on women, independence, younger people. african-americans, it was a pretty big sweeping area of people coming into vote again for you guys. were you pleased about the level of the turnout? and the breath of it. you know, the question that was being raised on the other side was whether the obama coalition that served him so well in 2008 would come out again and so one of the things that we saw early and before the polls closed just looking at the turnout was that we were getting strong turnout among the groups that you were talking about. and that was encouraging. >> why republicans lost, if you were putting your strategist hat on and looking at their campaign where do you think they lost it?
9:04 pm
>> i think the problem for their republican party is that they are so far to the right that they are way out of the ma mainstream. the positions that governor romney took on immigration reform and women's health issues and planned parenthood drove large numbers of voters away from them and on economics which is central to this election, they had a theory that frankly was not popular theory in the country which is that if we go back to tax cuts for the wealthy that would profit everyone. and then for romney himself, there were thing that is he did. the decision in the final week to try and litigate the auto bail out again in ohio had a negative impact. and perhaps beyond ohio. so, you know, in the final
9:05 pm
analysis, there are a lot of factors here, but in the short-term that was a bad decision. people are looking at what happened and saying that the senate remains with the democrats and the house remains with the republicans. how can we expect the washington machine that many see as being fractured to be re-energized and get stuff done. speaker said let's get some stuff going here. how much of the responsibility lays with him and speaker boehner? >> people want cooperation on both sides. >> the issue at hand will be the fiscal cliff and the president has put a proposal forward and it is incumbent on the speaker to say what they would be willing to do and not say it is not our responsibility.
9:06 pm
people expect everyone to live up to their responsibility and one thing that is clear as i moved around the country is that they are hungry for that cooperation. i hope that people will come with a renewed sense of cooperation. because it will take that to solve problems. you mentioned that not much has changed. actually what is interesting is that you have these superpacks spending billions of dollars to defeat democrats while the president was re-elected and one thing to me in this election is that the special interests and billionaires spent this money and got nowhere with it. and hopefully that will discourage the obscene spend that go we saw in this election
9:07 pm
because it plainly didn't work. second chance many people see to be bolder and braver than you were able to be in the first term. there are parallels to reagan and clinton who had first terms and successful economies for the second terms. are you hoping you are going to get the kind of economic security if not prosperity in this term that will allow you to do the thing that is barack obama when you sailed in on hope and change hoped he could do? >> piers i do believe the economy is ip pron proving. one of the reasons the economy is improving is that it was brave. it was not a popular decision at the time. it was brave to move forward on
9:08 pm
the recovery act. without that, we would have slid into a second great depression. it was brave to stand up the financial industry when it was on collapse. because he understand that we needed to move the economy forward. and now we are reaping the benefits of that. i believe that gives us a chance to move forward on a series of fronts and further strengthen our economy. we are not losing 800,000 jobs a month anymore. we are gaining them. and that foundation that has been laid it is a foundation on which we can build progress. >> one is i understand that the first person that the president called after knowing that he won was bill clinton, is that right? >> yes.
9:09 pm
>> well there is no question about it. as he said to president clinton, he was the most valuable player in this campaign,ing and you know, we got a chance to spend some time with president clinton over the weekend. he campaigned his heart out. he believes that there were two choices here and one led us forward and one back. and he was very effective out there. there is a strong sense of gratitude and i think the president is looking forward to calling on president clinton in the future for advice council and assistance as we move this country forward. >> the biggest tragedy of the evening is that -- get to stay on. >> when i made the bet the bet was that if we lost minnesota --
9:10 pm
i did it with confidence that miss mus tash was going nowhere. i was confidence then and please thad i was right. sometimes you have to take a stand and i did on that one. >> well, courage has always been your strong point. congratulations on a brilliant campaign. it was a master class on how to win an election. well done. >> david axelrod a very, smart guy. >> with me now is bo biden you must be a happy guy tonight. >> i am. wonderful night. >> you were with the first family and your parents. what was the mood like as
9:11 pm
victory became a reality? >> it was an exciting night. as david said, it was exciting for all of us. we were in a different part of the hotel than the first family. i saw that we won iowa and i was interested in the fact that we won iowa. and then my 6-year-old son came and i told him that and he said no, daddy we won. i went back to start getting dressed. and he said we won. and that is how i found out fom my son >> how is your father about it? >> oh he was you know, over the moon. he was very, very happy. our entire family was we were all together. it was a great end to a great night and a great campaign. the key to the second term is
9:12 pm
how is he going to get bipartisan support to fix america's big problems. how are the names he should be sitting down with. what is the strategy here? i'm going to leave the strategy to david axelrod and my father. but i will say there is an opportunity here. when you have tea party favorites like congressman aikin in missouri being beaten so soundly and when you have mr. murdock being beaten so soundy. i think the fever has a potential to break. the tea party has been repudiated and i think you will see a number of republicans at
9:13 pm
least i hope good one that is are going to have the courage to stand up to the tea party caucus and they know it is not in the nation's interest to built a principle compromise starting with the fiscal cliff which needs to be dealt with over the next few week. >> what is your father's plan now? >> his plan is to get to work. he will be back in dc tomorrow. he is home here in wilmington tonight. they is a number of issues to tackle. immigration reform, energy policy. education and a whole host of issues that he is focused on. i think he has been an unsung hero.
9:14 pm
he must be feeling pretty proud isn't he? >> well, i think he is. i am. he played think important role in this campaign. the debate came at a time where there was a bit of a slide if you looked at some of the polls. he stopped that. i was very proud of him in that debate. i was proud of him in what he did over the last six or eight months. he was in the state of ohio dozens of times and spoke to the middle class about what this president has done and will do to continue to build this economy from the middle out and bottom up. i don't think there was a better spok spokesperson on behalf of the party and i was extremely prout proud of him. >> send him my best.
9:15 pm
there must be a thrilling time for you all. four more years, well done >> thank you. piers where is the economy headed and where are the republicans headed. why is mitt romney blew it. ? we'rwith questions fromtump sombing elections.kies do you know where your polling place is? maybe somewhere around my house. mine's just, right over that way. well you can find out exactly where it is using bing elections. it's a good day for politics. which way do you lean politically? conservative. republican. well, using the bing news selector you can find news from whichever way you lean. (together) social on this side, financial. which party is currently predicted to win a majority in the senate? the republicans? would you make a bet on that? no. are you chicken?
9:16 pm
one is for a clean, wedomestic energy future that puts us in control. our abundant natural gas is already saving us money, producing cleaner electricity, putting us to work here in america and supporting wind and solar. though all energy development comes with some risk, we're committed to safely and responsibly producing natural gas. it's not a dream. america's natural gas... putting us in control of our energy future, now.
9:17 pm
there's a health company that can help you stay that way. what's healthier than that? why they're always there to talk. i love you, james. don't you love me? i'm a robot. i know. i know you're a robot! but there's more in you than just circuits and wires! uhhh. (cries) a machine can't give you what a person can. that's why ally has knowledgeable people there for you, night and day. ally bank. your money needs an ally. starts with arthritis pain and a choice. take tylenol or take aleve, the #1 recommended pain reliever by orthopedic doctors.
9:18 pm
just two aleve can keep pain away all day. back to the news. what happened to your mate, mitt romney? >> he didn't get it done. >> why? >> you know, he didn't get the minorities and the women. so he had an issue with that population.
9:19 pm
i think he is a wonderful man but it is over. >> the president has to be commended for what a campaign. he came in now with a tough record and he didn't have to shave his mustache. >> his voice tone never changes. his analysis of where the republicans have gone wrong here pushing themselves so far out in the nominee race to the right it was almost impossible to come back. >> it is a tough place to be. >> i mean he is a hero and for
9:20 pm
this job if you like management you like what they did. if you think about the country's problems the fiscal cliff and the regulatory wall. it is important to knock it down if we are going to get the jobs back and the economy we need. if we can get the same inten intensity. i watched bahamas him making the speech. >> for some reason he was lackluster in his campaign. >> he got up for it. if we can get him up for it to
9:21 pm
deal with the republicans and go after his staff, is this a job creator or job killer? >> the republicans have to be less -- they have to be and less driven by the tea party members of the party. they have to bring themselves to the middle. and the president has to laso harry ried. day one was good. but the president if we could get his leadership the way he he motivates the campaign team and
9:22 pm
gives great speeches he is all over it. >> i thought the moment when he went to new jersey with chris chris tri wastie was a signific. the guy was doing what he should do. >> he had a job and he did it. he gave romney a lot of support. the cop tioptics. everyone is looking for a scapegoat today. it is the same way in football. >> would it have made a difference? >> i thought paul ryan was a big risk as a vp. without he have been more su
9:23 pm
successful if he had gone for somebody else? >> that is sectiond guessing i don't know. instead of getting 27% of the latino vote, you may have gotten 25 or 40. the facts are we didn't make it. he have a good person, smart guy. who would you like to see in 16 of all of the current candidates? >> i'll tell you, who is the kinder person? jeb bush?
9:24 pm
>> can i bush do it again? i don't know. >> maybe against a clinton. >> what i want more than anything is to bring this thing together. i want you to ask people about the regulatory wall. if we don't get natural gas and oil out there. we have a chance to make this the american century. if we have are the low cost energy producer in the world. america can have it. i've said before, this is the internet of this century now. it is a huge opportunity. we are in the first inning. >> well, great to talk to you. thank you for coming in. you volunteered yourself good to see you again. when we come back, latest from the storm zone and corey booker. and on the president's election win.
9:25 pm
humans -- even when we cross our t's and dot our i's, we still run into problems. namely, other humans. which is why, at liberty mutual insurance, auto policies come with new car replacement and accident forgiveness if you qualify. see what else comes standard at libertymutual.com. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? ♪... ♪...
9:26 pm
♪... choose the perfect hotel without bidding. we'rwith questions fromtump sombing elections.kies do you know where your polling place is? maybe somewhere around my house. mine's just, right over that way. well you can find out exactly where it is using bing elections. it's a good day for politics. which way do you lean politically? conservative. republican. well, using the bing news selector you can find news from whichever way you lean. (together) social on this side, financial. which party is currently predicted to win a majority in the senate? the republicans? would you make a bet on that? no. are you chicken? to compete on the global stage. what we need are people prepared for the careers of our new economy. by 2025 we could have 20 million jobs without enough college graduates to fill them. that's why at devry university,
9:27 pm
we're teaming up with companies like cisco to help make sure everyone is ready with the know-how we need for a new tomorrow. [ male announcer ] make sure america's ready. make sure you're ready. at devry.edu/knowhow. ♪
9:28 pm
and i was told to call my next of kin. at 33 years old, i was having a heart attack. now i'm on a bayer aspirin regimen. [ male announcer ] be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. i didn't know this could happen so young. take control, talk to your doctor.
9:29 pm
what new york and new jersey did not need another storm nine days after hurricane sandy. rob, looks pretty cold over there. tell me what it is like. >> well, it is cold and it is snowing. little over a week ago when sandy came through the water from the so snan would have been up and over my shoulders. the houses aren't gone but damage all around. a lot of the homes have debris that is pulled out. these guys delivered hot soup. the folks are staying put. the reason is some of their stuff got looted. cold, dangerous night ahead.
9:30 pm
briefly already seeing record sn snowfall totals. winter storm warnings are posted. so it is incredible to see this snow fall a week after a hurricane came roaring through this area. not what we need and certainly the folks seeing it go down as it goes down on the branchs and power lines. rob, thank you very much indeed. >> corey booker, your area was affected you as well. tell me what your view is as well. it is mother nature's one-two punch. as i was coming in here, i
9:31 pm
continue to see the fact that we haven't recovered. i have 25,000 people without power. this dgoing to be a brutal ten day stretch for this region. >> it certainly has. it must be very hard for them. let's turn to the election. big night last night for president obama. what are you most pleased about? >> a lot of it was relief. there was a lot of gains that i saw four people in my city. this whole obamacare has been tortured. those who were being denied by big insurance companies are going to be cuovered we have to
9:32 pm
invest so waking up and knowing that i have a president that is committed to pell grants. because before, you were in campaigning mode for him. he has come back in. this is it for him. you can push the envelope for him. what do you want to see him going harder at? >> this is going to be tough to hold it together. this is going to test the national resolve the leadership. the president did responsible things by putting up solid plans. and that is going to be the test. i don't want to go off the air without saying that other things are happening in the area that are encouraging. if you look at what happens in america, number one the first
9:33 pm
time ever you see people are recognizing you and my created by the same god we are of all americans should have equal protection under the law. i view the pot thing saying enough is enough we are locking up so many people. think about this, we have the land of the free but we lockup more people wasting resources from our country. and people saying there has to be another way to do things. as i look at the whole country i get encouraged that this country is becoming more robust and more enlightened about how to lower taxpayor dollars. what i do think is crucial though is this whole bipartisan thing. i was encouraged by chris
9:34 pm
christie's relationship with the president. he could have ignored the president and played politics but he didn't. that kind of leadership is desperate in washington. people want to see republicans and his top people coming together. i think the american public will be unforgiving and rightly so if we get to february and we have gone over another cliff. >> the debt ceiling alone cost more than the attacks on 9/11. >> it was pathetic. >> what happened then is what happened less people visiting his parks during that period. >> it hurt the economy. i'm proud to be in new jersey where our folks are -- you don't have the extremes. >> i'm worried about a congress
9:35 pm
losing bike we ining people who far to the right to keep their offices. this is terrible for our country. i'm look for us to go back to having guys like reagan and tip o'neill who reach across the aisle. i think we have the right president for that but we need the leadership coming out of congress that is going to bring our nation together. most of us are not out on the margin. most of us, we actually have so much more in common than we do apart. >> that is so true. great to see i. best of luck on the ground. appreciate you coming in. coming up, the women's vote. how the republican party lost the battle. head to head.
9:36 pm
we'rwith questions fromtump sombing elections.kies do you know where your polling place is? maybe somewhere around my house. mine's just, right over that way. well you can find out exactly where it is using bing elections. it's a good day for politics. which way do you lean politically? conservative. republican. well, using the bing news selector you can find news from whichever way you lean. (together) social on this side, financial. which party is currently predicted to win a majority in the senate? the republicans? would you make a bet on that? no. are you chicken?
9:37 pm
a short word that's a tall order. up your game. up the ante. and if you stumble, you get back up. up isn't easy, and we ought to know. we're in the business of up. everyday delta flies a quarter of million people while investing billions improving everything from booking to baggage claim. we're raising the bar on flying and tomorrow we will up it yet again.
9:38 pm
9:39 pm
plaus praus
9:40 pm
>> ip in the end it was president that had the majority of the support. want to bring in our guests. welcome back to you both. >> thank you piers. we talked in the last few months about this. ip the end, women rejected mitt romney in quite large numbers. how much of that was due to the tone that he adopted? what do you put the blame down to for the loss of support for women? >> actually piers. president obama carried women by 13 points in 2008 and his margin was down two points. that is unuse wall trend line. all increased their margins by 7
9:41 pm
to 8 points and obama went the other way. >> hang, on. he is still 11% ahead of mitt romney. so which over way the spin the apple cart. >> i don't want to spin anything. >> he carried men. in fact the real jgender gap e exists but no one wants to talk about that. >> he got hammered. >> all i'm saying is that women tend to favor democrats and men tend to favor republican ares. >> what happened yesterday is that women favored a successful president by slim digits and barack obama carried unmarried women. and mitt romney carried white
9:42 pm
women barack obama carried not white women. but on the broader question, three quick things, one is go to where the woman awomen are. the idea that women are going to click onto the adds to the tup of $1 billion is foolish and insulting to women. and there was never a good response about obamacare and about benghazi and a failure to communicate against this war on women. >> let me bring in cecile here, you have had a good run there. so, it was a convincing victory and there is no doubt that women were more attracted to him and what he stood for than they were mitt romney. >> big time. this was a great night for women and women's health. the gender gap was 18 points
9:43 pm
yesterday. and i think the other thing we saw was rejection of mitt romney's policies and promises to get rid of planned parenthood. but in addition to that, we saw the candidates who should have been elected richard murdock were defeated because of their extreme positions on women. women showed they would not vote for men who would take away their rights and. >> why did scott brown lose? and let's not be a commercial for our interests here tonight. wait, where in the cnn exit polls was what you just described? was it number two, three or four? >> hang on. let's face the facts here, todd
9:44 pm
akin, they lost because of their outpowerings issues that women thought were offensive. what mitt romney should have done is cut them off at the head. they told todd akin to get out of the race. >> mitt romney told him to get out of the race. but why are we talking about two people who lost in the sen ate. i didn't hear president obama thank planned parenthood for his victory saying when i get back to washington i'm going to make sure that this war on women continues. yes, we want to work together, but it is crazy to pretent that women random polls -- >> look, i think it was so clear last night. and kellyanne can keep speaking.
9:45 pm
but the only thing that mitt romney did, he took extreme positions of overturning rowe and what was clear to me, when it was clear that mitt romney was going down in defeat, he ran millions of dollars of adds trying to convince women that he was not that extreme on women's health issues. >> where is that in the exit polls? >> i think we can agree on this? >> thanks to last night there are now 20. >> very exciting. it is exciting. i think we saw heidi highcamp in north dakota. that is a state where republicans should have easily won. she is a breast cancer survivor
9:46 pm
and that was actually, she appealed to women and men about the need for women's preventive care. mitt romney continued to be dismissive his entire campaign saying any issues that women were concerned about were small and irrelevant. >> where in god's name did he say that? can i see that quote please? >> i was on with you on a panel where you said women didn't care about women's health issues -- >> i didn't say that back it up. you want to pretend that the word abortion means women health because you are scared to say the word abortion. stop pretend iing about the wor abortion. can he talk about heidi, he is
9:47 pm
not for what is led to the north dack -- >> as opposed to quote abortion? >> ladies we have to leave it there. there is a nice simmering tension between you. >> i want to be truthful. thanks. >> next, does president obama's victory mean the nation is moving to the left? but mr. single miles can't join his friends because he's getting hit with blackouts. shame on you. now he's stuck in a miniature nightmare. oh, thank you. but, with the capital one venture card... you can fly any airline, any flight, any time. double miles you can actually use. what's in your wallet? alec jr? it was a gift.
9:48 pm
9:49 pm
tomato, obviously. haha. there's more than that though, there's a kick to it. wahlalalalallala! smooth, but crisp. it's kind of like drinking a food that's a drink, or a drink that's a food, woooooh! [ male announcer ] taste it and describe the indescribable. could've had a v8.
9:50 pm
9:51 pm
it doesn't matter who you are, or where you come from, or what you look like or who you love. it doesn't matter if you are black or white, hispanic or asian, native american, young, old, or rich or poor, abled, disabled, gay or straight, you can make it here in america if you are willing to try. >> president obama's victory ushered a new much more liberal america? a lot of people asking tonight. we have "the new york times" columnist frank bruney. welcome to you, both. it seems to what the president is saying there, it doesn't
9:52 pm
matter if you are black, white, hispanic, asian, native american, young, old, rich, poor. you can make it here. he is rying to revive that. is he capable of delivering the old american dream in a second term? >> no. he's not, and i think -- what the democrats need to do is what the president needs to do is to actually have a way forward and to talk turkey about the fact that it isn't going to be like it was anymore. i think where he succeeded, and are we a more liberal america? in a social, cultural way? unquestionably. that was the big point tonight. on gay marriage, pop initiatives. not a judicial decision, not a legislative decision. the people in maine, maryland, in washington state, saying, yeah, we're fine with this. with gay marriage. you see on the marijuana legalization in washington, colorado. i think the culture wars last
9:53 pm
night were won by the liberals and that's unquestionable. the politics, political economy issues, we are still very much split 50/50, and haven't figured it out. >> frank what we saw last night was a repudiation of the tea party faction of the republicans, the more extreme members of the tea party. not all extremists by any means, that more extreme right that was chased by the republican nominees this year. i think that got rejected last night. >> i think are you absolutely right. i heard you say earlier are we moving left as a country? i don't think we're moving left, but the republican party has been held hostage by the right. they are learning if they don't find a way to distance themselves from the rightward element, they will start losing a lot more elections and have a hard time of getting the presidency back. >> you see a total disconnect of
9:54 pm
marijuana being legalized. gay marriage being legalized. the first gay senator. on one level. and on the other level, have you republicans that want to try to reverse roe vs. wade. this is not the battleground that will ever get you to where the next election will be. >> it's really interesting to read as i did today, what the republicans are saying what's our problem? now, they understand that you can't go as they did from having a margin of 9% among hispanics for democrats eight years ago and 44% yesterday. you can't go from having -- in addition, 8% gender gap, 12% gender gap four years ago. 18% gender gap today. a real problem there. and you can't say, we have got to stick to our guns, wasn't conservative enough. there was a real, real problem if they allow, as frank said,
9:55 pm
this right wing tail to wag their dog. >> was it a maistake to go to paul ryan as the vp pick? is it the wrong message? another white guy with pretty far right social issues, certainly? with hindsight, monday morning quarterback, was it a mistake? should he have gone for a braver pick? a marco rubio, condoleezza rice? >> i don't know that paul ryan hurt him that much. there was a lot of atmosphere. paul ryan associated with the anti abortion position and then the other senate candidates came together that made the republican party said you look archaic and mean spirited. rubio and condoleezza rice. i wonder if the republican party will find and recruit candidates who have a darker skin color, rather than realizing there are
9:56 pm
certain policies and ways the party talks that alienate a lot of voters, no matter what the color of the skin or what the gender of the person they put on the ticket is. >> you look at the poll results and the idea that in four years' time they could fight another election with two white guys reasonably well off background, i don't know if that can supply. they have got to be more adventurous. kurt, frank, thank you very much. we'll be right back. >> thank you. [ male announcer ] when was the last time something made your jaw drop? campbell's has 24 new soups that will make it drop over, and over again. ♪ from jammin' jerk chicken, to creamy gouda bisque. see what's new from campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do. see what's ♪ew from campbell's. ♪
9:57 pm
hi dad. many years from now, when the subaru is theirs... hey. you missed a spot. ...i'll look back on this day and laugh. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. or that printing in color had to cost a fortune. nobody said an all-in-one had to be bulky. or that you had to print from your desk. at least, nobody said it to us.
9:58 pm
introducing the business smart inkjet all-in-one series from brother. easy to use, it's the ultimate combination of speed, small size, and low-cost printing.
9:59 pm