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TRANSCRIPT
| TIME | SPEAKER | TEXT |
|---|---|---|
| 00:00:33 |
|
Good evening from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. I'm Gwen Ifill of "The Newshour"... |
| 00:01:50 |
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(To Sen. Biden.) Nice to meet you. |
| 00:01:51 |
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(To Gov. Palin.) Take care tonight. |
| 00:01:52 |
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(To Sen. Biden.) Hey, can I call you Joe? |
| 00:01:53 |
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(To Gov. Palin.) You can call me Joe. |
| 00:01:54 |
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(To Sen. Biden.) Okay. Thanks. |
| 00:01:55 |
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(To Gov. Palin.) Thank you. |
| 00:01:56 |
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(To Sen. Biden.) Thank you. (To Ms. Ifill.) Thank you, Gwen. Thank you. Thank you. Thank... |
| 00:02:08 |
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Welcome to you both. As we had determined by a coin toss, the first question will go to Senator... |
| 00:02:21 |
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(Laughs.) |
| 00:02:22 |
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-- the Senate decided to pass it and the House is wrestling it -- with it still tonight. As... |
| 00:02:33 |
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Let me begin by thank you, Gwen, for hosting this. And Governor, it's a pleasure to meet you,... |
| 00:04:07 |
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Thank you, Senator. Governor Palin? |
| 00:04:10 |
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Thank you, Gwen. And I thank the commission also. I appreciate this privilege of being able... |
| 00:05:44 |
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You both would like to be vice president. Senator Biden, how, as vice president, would you work... |
| 00:05:54 |
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Well, that's what I've done my whole career, Gwen, on very, very controversial issues, from... |
| 00:06:21 |
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You may if you like. |
| 00:06:22 |
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Yeah. Well, you know, until two weeks ago, it was two Mondays ago John McCain said at 9:00 in... |
| 00:06:52 |
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Governor Palin, you may respond. |
| 00:06:55 |
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John McCain, in referring to the fundamental of our economy being strong, he was talking to... |
| 00:08:10 |
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Governor, Senator, neither of you really answered that last question about what you would do... |
| 00:08:36 |
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Darn right it was the predator lenders, who tried to talk Americans into thinking that it was... |
| 00:09:58 |
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Senator. |
| 00:09:59 |
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Well, Gwen, two years ago, Barack Obama warned about the subprime mortgage crisis. John McCain... |
| 00:11:30 |
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Governor, please, if you want to respond to what he said about Senator McCain's comments about... |
| 00:11:33 |
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I'd -- I'd like to respond about the tax increases. And you know, we -- we can speak in agreement... |
| 00:12:41 |
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Senator? |
| 00:12:42 |
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The charge is absolutely not true. Barack Obama did not vote to raise taxes. The vote... |
| 00:13:24 |
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Would you like to have an opportunity to answer that before we move on? |
| 00:13:25 |
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Oh, I'm still on the tax thing, because I want to correct you on that again. And I want to let... |
| 00:14:09 |
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Okay, our time is up here. |
| 00:14:10 |
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Okay. |
| 00:14:11 |
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I'm going to move on to the next question. Senator Biden, you want to talk about taxes, let's... |
| 00:14:15 |
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Good. |
| 00:14:16 |
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You have proposed raising taxes on people who earn over $250,000 a year. The question for you... |
| 00:14:43 |
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Well, Gwen, where I come from, it's called fairness, just simple fairness. The middle class... |
| 00:16:08 |
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Governor? |
| 00:16:09 |
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I do take issue with some of the principle there with that redistribution-of-wealth principle... |
| 00:17:16 |
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Governor, are you interested in defending Senator McCain's health care plan? |
| 00:17:21 |
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I am, because he's got a good health care plan that is detailed, and I want to give you a couple... |
| 00:17:15 |
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All right. |
| 00:18:21 |
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Thank you, Governor. Senator? |
| 00:18:22 |
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Gwen, I don't know where to start. We don't call a redistribution in my neighborhood... |
| 00:19:56 |
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Thank you, Senator. Now -- (laughter) -- I want to get -- try to get you both to answer a question... |
| 00:20:18 |
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Well, the one thing we may have to slow down is a commitment we made to double foreign assistance.... |
| 00:21:51 |
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Governor? Governor? |
| 00:21:52 |
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Well, the nice thing about running with John McCain is I can assure you he doesn't tell one... |
| 00:23:26 |
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So, Governor, as vice president, there is nothing that you have promised as a candidate that... |
| 00:23:33 |
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There is not. And how long have I been at this, like five weeks? So there hasn't been a whole... |
| 00:23:59 |
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Senator. |
| 00:24:00 |
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(Chuckles.) Again -- let me -- let me -- let's talk about the tax breaks. Barack Obama -- Obama... |
| 00:25:16 |
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Next question, Governor Palin, still on the economy. Last year Congress passed a bill that would... |
| 00:25:30 |
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Yes, I would have. But here again, there have been so many changes in the conditions of our... |
| 00:26:34 |
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Senator Biden, you voted for this bankruptcy bill. Senator Obama voted against it. Some... |
| 00:26:44 |
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Well, mortgage holders didn't pay the price. Only 10 percent of the people who are -- have been... |
| 00:28:08 |
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Governor Palin, is that so? |
| 00:28:10 |
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That is not so, but because that's just a quick answer, I want to talk about, again, my record... |
| 00:29:34 |
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Governor, I'm happy to talk to you in this next section about energy issues. Let's talk about... |
| 00:29:47 |
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Yeah, well, as the nation's only Arctic state and being the governor of that state, Alaska feels... |
| 00:31:20 |
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Senator, what is true and what is false about the causes? |
| 00:31:24 |
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Well, I think it is man-made. I think it's clearly man-made. And look, this probably explains... |
| 00:32:59 |
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Let me clear something up. Senator McCain has said that he supports caps on carbon emissions.... |
| 00:33:09 |
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I have always supported it. That's a fact. |
| 00:33:10 |
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Well, clear it up for us, both of you, and start with Governor Palin. |
| 00:33:13 |
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Yes, Senator McCain does support this. The chant is "drill, baby drill," and that's what we... |
| 00:34:23 |
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We do need -- we do need to keep within our two minutes. |
| 00:34:25 |
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(Laughs.) |
| 00:34:26 |
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But I just want to ask you, do you support capping carbon emissions? |
| 00:34:29 |
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I do, I do. |
| 00:34:30 |
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Okay. And on the clean coal issue. |
| 00:34:31 |
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Absolutely, absolutely we do. We -- we've -- we call for setting hard targets, number one --... |
| 00:34:37 |
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Clean coal. On clean coal. |
| 00:34:38 |
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Oh, on clean coal. My record -- just take a look at the record. My record, for 25 years,... |
| 00:35:14 |
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The next -- |
| 00:35:15 |
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I don't know. But he voted 20 times against funding alternative energy systems. |
| 00:35:18 |
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The next round of -- pardon me -- the next round of questions starts with you, Senator Biden. |
| 00:35:22 |
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Sure. |
| 00:35:23 |
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Do you support, as they do in Alaska, granting same- sex benefits to couples? |
| 00:35:30 |
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Absolutely. Do I support granting same-sex benefits? Absolutely, positively. Look,... |
| 00:36:18 |
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Governor, would you support expanding that beyond Alaska to the rest of the nation? |
| 00:36:21 |
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Well, not if it goes closer and closer towards redefining the traditional definition of marriage... |
| 00:37:34 |
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Let's try to avoid nuance, Senator. |
| 00:37:36 |
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Let me be straight for -- |
| 00:37:37 |
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Do you support gay marriage? |
| 00:37:39 |
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No, Barack Obama nor I support redefining from a civil side what constitutes marriage. We do... |
| 00:38:08 |
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Is that what you said? |
| 00:38:10 |
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Your question to him was whether he supported gay marriage and my answer is the same as his... |
| 00:38:19 |
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Wonderful, you agree. On that note, let's move to foreign policy. (Laughter.) |
| 00:38:23 |
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Okay. |
| 00:38:24 |
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You both have sons who are in Iraq or on their way to Iraq. You, Governor Palin, have said that... |
| 00:38:38 |
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I am very thankful that we do have a good plan. And the surge and the counterinsurgency strategy... |
| 00:40:06 |
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Senator? |
| 00:40:07 |
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Gwen, with all due respect, I didn't hear a plan. Barack Obama's offered a clear plan: shift... |
| 00:41:32 |
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Governor? |
| 00:41:34 |
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Your plan is a white flag of surrender in Iraq, and that is not what our troops need to hear... |
| 00:42:33 |
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(Chuckles.) |
| 00:42:34 |
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You also said that Barack Obama was not ready to be commander in chief. And I know, again, that... |
| 00:43:04 |
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Senator Biden? |
| 00:43:05 |
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John McCain voted to cut off funding for the troops. Let me say that again. John McCain voted... |
| 00:44:11 |
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Let's move on to Iran and Pakistan. I'm curious about what you think. Starting with you,... |
| 00:44:22 |
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Well, they're both extremely, extremely dangerous. I always have focused -- as you know -- (chuckles)... |
| 00:45:57 |
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Governor, nuclear Pakistan -- unstable Pakistan, nuclear Iran -- which is the greater threat? |
| 00:46:03 |
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Both are extremely dangerous, of course. And as for who termed that central war on terror being... |
| 00:47:38 |
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Governor and Senator, I want you both to respond to this. Secretaries of State Baker, Kissinger,... |
| 00:47:55 |
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No. And Dr. Henry Kissinger especially, and I had a good conversation with him recently, and... |
| 00:48:49 |
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Senator? |
| 00:48:50 |
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Can I -- can I clarify this? That's just simply not true about Barack Obama. He did not say... |
| 00:50:19 |
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Governor, you mentioned Israel and your support for Israel. |
| 00:50:21 |
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Yeah. |
| 00:50:22 |
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What has this administration done right or wrong? This is the great lingering unresolved issue,... |
| 00:50:32 |
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A two-state solution is the solution. And Secretary Rice, having recently met with leaders on... |
| 00:51:40 |
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Senator? |
| 00:51:41 |
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Gwen, no one in the United States Senate has been a better friend to Israel than Joe Biden.... |
| 00:53:16 |
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Has this administration's policy been an abject failure, as the senator says, Governor? |
| 00:53:21 |
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No, I do not believe that it has been. But I'm so encouraged to know that we both love Israel,... |
| 00:54:28 |
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Just looking backwards, Senator? |
| 00:54:30 |
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Look, past is prologue, Gwen. The issue is, how different is John McCain's policy going to be... |
| 00:55:12 |
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Governor, on another issue, interventionism, nuclear weapons, what should be the trigger or... |
| 00:55:25 |
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Nuclear weaponry, of course, would be the be-all, end-all of just too many people and too many... |
| 00:56:09 |
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Certainly. |
| 00:56:10 |
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Okay. I'd like to just really quickly mention there too, that when you look back and you say... |
| 00:56:59 |
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Senator, you may talk about nuclear use, if you like, and also about Afghanistan. |
| 00:57:02 |
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I'll talk about both. With Afghanistan, facts matter, Gwen. The fact is that our commanding... |
| 00:58:58 |
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Governor? |
| 00:59:00 |
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Well, first, McClellan did not say definitively that the surge principles would not work in... |
| 00:59:42 |
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Senator? |
| 00:59:43 |
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Well, our commanding general did say that. The fact of the matter is that -- again, I'll just... |
| 01:00:25 |
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Senator, you have quite a record -- this is the next question here -- of being an interventionist.... |
| 01:00:43 |
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Well, I think the American public has a stomach for success. And my recommendations on Bosnia... |
| 01:02:22 |
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Thank you, Senator. Governor. |
| 01:02:24 |
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Oh, man, it's so obvious that I'm a Washington outside and someone just not used to the way... |
| 01:03:57 |
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Is there a line that should be drawn about when we decide to go in? |
| 01:04:01 |
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Absolutely, there is a line that should be drawn. |
| 01:04:03 |
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What is it? |
| 01:04:04 |
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The line that should be drawn is whether or not we, A, first of all, have the capacity to do... |
| 01:05:17 |
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Governor? |
| 01:05:19 |
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I beg to disagree with you again, here, on whether you supported Barack Obama or John McCain's... |
| 01:06:07 |
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Thank you, Governor. Probably the biggest cliche about the vice presidency is that it's... |
| 01:06:33 |
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God forbid that it would ever happen. It would be a national tragedy of historic proportions,... |
| 01:08:00 |
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Governor. |
| 01:08:01 |
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And heaven forbid, yes, that that would ever happen, no matter how this ends up, that that would... |
| 01:09:36 |
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Can I respond? Look. |
| 01:09:37 |
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Please. |
| 01:09:38 |
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All you got to do is go down Union Street with me in Wilmington and go to Katy's (sp) Restaurant... |
| 01:10:29 |
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Governor? |
| 01:10:31 |
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Ah, say it ain't so, Joe. There you go again, pointing backwards again, though. |
| 01:10:34 |
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(Laughs.) |
| 01:10:35 |
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You prefaced your whole comment with "the Bush administration." Now, doggone it, let's look... |
| 01:11:59 |
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Everybody gets extra credit tonight. |
| 01:12:01 |
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(Laughs.) |
| 01:12:02 |
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We're going to move on to the next question. (Laughter.) Governor, you said in July that... |
| 01:12:16 |
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(Chuckles.) |
| 01:12:17 |
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But tell us now, looking forward, what it is that you think the vice presidency is worth now. |
| 01:12:22 |
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Okay. In my comment there, it was a lame attempt at a joke, and yours was a lame attempt at... |
| 01:12:31 |
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They didn't get yours or mine? Which one didn't they get? |
| 01:12:32 |
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They didn't mine either. They didn't mine either. No, no. (Laughter.) No, of course we... |
| 01:13:27 |
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Senator? |
| 01:13:28 |
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Gwen, I hope we'll get back to education, because I don't know any government program that John... |
| 01:14:45 |
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Governor, you mentioned a moment ago that the Constitution might give the vice president more... |
| 01:15:01 |
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Well, our Founding Fathers were very wise there in allowing through the Constitution much flexibility... |
| 01:15:51 |
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Vice presidents -- Cheney interpretation of the vice presidency? |
| 01:15:54 |
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Vice President Cheney's been the most dangerous vice president we've had probably in American... |
| 01:17:00 |
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Let's talk conventional wisdom for a moment. The conventional wisdom, Governor Palin, with you,... |
| 01:17:18 |
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My experience as an executive will be put to good use as a mayor and business owner and oil... |
| 01:18:56 |
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Senator? |
| 01:18:58 |
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You've been very kind, suggesting my only Achilles' heel is my lack of discipline. Others... |
| 01:20:32 |
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Governor? |
| 01:20:34 |
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People aren't looking for more of the same, they are looking for change. And John McCain has... |
| 01:22:05 |
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(Inaudible) -- very brief. Can I respond to that? Look. |
| 01:22:06 |
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Please. |
| 01:22:07 |
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Look, the maverick, let's talk about the maverick John McCain is. And again, I love him. He's... |
| 01:23:13 |
|
Final question tonight before your closing statements, starting with you, Senator Biden. Can... |
| 01:23:34 |
|
Yeah, I can. When I got to the United States Senate and went on the Judiciary Committee... |
| 01:24:42 |
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Governor? |
| 01:24:43 |
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There have been times where, as mayor and governor, we have passed budgets that I did not veto... |
| 01:25:43 |
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Let's come full circle. You both want to bring both sides together and you both talk about bipartisanship... |
| 01:25:55 |
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Well, again, I believe John McCain, were he here -- and this is a dangerous thing to say in... |
| 01:27:02 |
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Governor? |
| 01:27:03 |
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You do what I did as governor and you appoint people regardless of party affiliation -- Democrats,... |
| 01:28:12 |
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Governor Palin, you get the chance to make the first closing statement. |
| 01:28:14 |
|
Well again, Gwen, I do want to thank you and the commission. This is such an honor for me. And... |
| 01:29:50 |
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Thank you, Governor. Senator Biden? |
| 01:29:51 |
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Gwen, thank you for doing this and the commission. And Governor, it really was a pleasure getting... |
| 01:31:46 |
|
That ends tonight's debate. We want to thank the folks here at Washington University in St.... |
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