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Morning News

Election 2000 Political Debate: Wisconsin Voters React on 620 WTMJ's 'Midday With Charlie Sykes'

Aired October 4, 2000 - 11:09 a.m. ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

ANDRIA HALL, CNN ANCHOR: We've gotten the perspective from a professional debate watcher, but what about the average American and average voter? Well, now it's their turn to speak.

CNN's Jeff Flock is in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at WTMJ. The radio station's popular midday talk show is taking calls from all over the metro Milwaukee area. And Jeff Flock has the opportunity to listen to them.

Hey, Jeff.

JEFF FLOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, we've got our ear to the ground, or perhaps to the radio speaker this morning. This is the Charlie Sykes show, and topic one today is, of course, the debate. I am told -- Charlie told me earlier that the phone lines were lit up even before they gave the number out this morning, which is somewhat uncommon.

First, to let you know where it stands here in Wisconsin, the numbers at least two weeks ago, before the debate certainly, and the last poll, showed Gore with a slight lead, 43-48; Nader 4. Nader believed to be, in this state, perhaps in a position to take some votes away from Gore and perhaps tip this in a close race to Bush.

So we're here at WTMJ. We're going to listen in on Charlie Sykes. As you can perhaps see on the screen there, a number of callers with opinions about what took place last night. Let's listen:

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know, I'm insulted because if you look at the facts and you start listening to what they're really saying, do we want another person who we don't even know is truthful in office?

CHARLIE SYKES, HOST, "MIDDAY WITH CHARLIE SYKES": Well, why were you undecided before last night? And what happened last night that changed your mind?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The continual play of thinking that women are going to buy into this, I love my wife. He had to throw that in there real quick whenever he would be so rude and keep interrupting or acting that way. I didn't like the way he acted...

SYKES: OK, thanks for the...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... with the sighing and the -- if I acted that way, I would have got smacked, you know?

SYKES: All right, thanks for the call.

Let's go to West Bend. Mike, you're on 620 WTMJ.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good morning.

SYKES: Good morning, Mike.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm on the line. I'm leaning towards Bush. Here's the bottom line: I want to know what the middle class is? I want somebody to say to me, hey, you make 60 grand a year, this is how much we're going to give you back. That's what I want to know. I don't care about Yugoslavia, I don't care about the abortion pill. I care about my money.

SYKES: OK, so the tax issue is the one that's going to decide how you vote.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. And I'm going towards Bush, but what scares you about the Republicans, I live in a state with a tax-and- spend Republican governor. So, you know, you don't know which way to go.

SYKES: All right, thanks for the call. Appreciate it.

Peter on a car phone, you're on 620 WTMJ.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good morning, Charlie.

SYKES: Good morning, Peter.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think George Bush hit it off the wall. I think he missed a couple opportunities. When Al Gore started talking about education and he was so adamant that, oh, we've got to have all this stuff, I thought that was perfect timing for Bush to have said, why haven't you done any of that? You feel so strong about it, what are you waiting for? You know, I thought Bush looked presidential. I think Bush is grounded. I think he's a very secure person, and he's not caught up in this unbelievable big brother attitude that Al Gore displayed last night. It scared me. I mean, honestly, if Al Gore gets in, I think this could be one of the -- this is the most important...

SYKES: You would be a hard-core Bush supporter. Did this -- everybody talks about firing-up debates. Were you more fired up as a result of listening to this?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. I'm writing a check today to the Republican National Committee, something I haven't done yet. And I'm more fired up that I feel even stronger against Al Gore.

SYKES: OK, thanks for the call.

Let's go to a cell phone. Ryan, you're on 620 WTMJ. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, good morning. Listen, I got to tell you, I was a little honored and maybe a little offended as a Republican that Al Gore -- here they complain about the rats and the subliminal stuff. If you would have watched that debate with the sound down, it looked like a Ronald Reagan impostor.

SYKES: You're the second person to make that point.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, he was made up to look like Ronald Reagan.

SYKES: He was made up to look like something. Maybe Malibu Ken, I'm not sure.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, you know, I got to tell you, I did hear an interview with the lady who did his makeup on another station in Chicago, and she said she was told to make him look distinguished. She wouldn't come out and say it, but, I mean, there was something behind that. He moved his shoulder, his head, everything was to look like Ronald Reagan. I think, here's a guys, you talk about phony, he'll do anything to win.

SYKES: Yes, we all knew Ronald Reagan. Al Gore's no Ronald Reagan, whatever the makeup says -- looks like.

Mark from Bayview, you're on 620 WTMJ.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi, Charlie.

SYKES: Good morning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm glad to be the first one out of, what? seven or eight calls that you take that was in favor of Gore last night. I thought that Bush made three very huge mistakes. No. 1 was in the Social Security set-aside with private investments. He said that that money should, you know, you should be able to triple it in 10 years. I don't know of any investor that can triple it in 10 years, at least legally. Second of all was his gaff on foreign policy, suggesting that the Russians mediate, you know, getting Milosevic out of office after the election.

SYKES: And the third mistake?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not addressing the 1 percent making 30 percent of the return, getting 30 percent of the return.

SYKES: So that played to you. Now, you went into this as a Gore supporter?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Honestly, yes. I'm not going to say that...

SYKES: OK -- no, no, that's fair. I mean, so did this get you fired up? Were you -- are you more committed to your man today than you were 24 hours ago?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, and I'm more doubtful of Bush. And him raising issues of, you know, being a good person. You know, having been a former coke head, I don't know if he's the right person.

SYKES: All right, thanks for the call.

You know, it's fascinating that they keep bringing that up, but they don't actually have any evidence.

Holly from Heartland (ph), you're on 620 WTMJ.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Charlie.

SYKES: Good morning, Holly.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought that Bush looked very presidential and just looked like the person that I'd want to trust. What worries me is that he was not aggressive enough or clear enough on his thoughts.

SYKES: He was clearly not very aggressive in the beginning. But if he was aggressive, do you think that he would have turned off a lot of the swing voters, the female voters in the middle who don't want their politicians to be nasty, don't want them to be mean?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I don't think so. When he brought up -- when the question was asked about the character, I thought that he had some subtle things about, I'll hire an attorney general that will uphold the law, I won't rent out the Lincoln Bedroom. And even though people know that, I think that does need to be brought to the forefront at this point.

SYKES: All right, do you have any friends who are legitimately undecided? Do you know anyone that is undecided right now?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know some that are undecided, but they're swaying more towards Gore, which is disappointing.

SYKES: Why is that? What attracts them to Al Gore?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because I think that he has people snowballed and scared into believing that the Republicans will give away the money, they're afraid about the Medicare, and I think it's really because they don't understand it.

SYKES: OK, thanks for the call. Appreciate it very much.

John from Anomine Falls (ph), you're on 620 WTMJ.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, Charlie, one of your earlier callers...

FLOCK: As perhaps you can hear from listening to the calls, this show tends to attract a more conservative listenership. We kind of were warned about that coming in. I'm just looking at the screen behind me on what's coming up: a few more pro-Gore calls coming up.

Of course, we can report to you that the latest poll here has Gore up in Wisconsin, but clearly still very much a toss-up state. And we will keep our ear to the ground or wherever we need to have it this afternoon to continue to see how Wisconsin is reacting to this debate.

I'm Jeff Flock, CNN, reporting live from WTMJ in Milwaukee.

HALL: A lot of smart listeners there, a lot of astute observations, that audio board lit up there. And, of course, our e- mails lit up here, on fire here at CNN Center.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Indeed, you're right. And a lot of people have suggested that this race is not attracting a whole lot of attention from people out there, it is quite possible now, with the closeness of the race, that more people are being mobilized into taking an interest.

We have upwards of 400 e-mails just in the past 35 minutes. Going to read two: one pro-Bush, one pro-Gore.

First one up here: "I was appalled by the behavior of the vice president. As a mother, I try to teach my children to be courteous to others. The audible sighs and faces that the V.P. was making in the background while Bush was speaking was very rude and off-putting."

That's from Teri in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

Another one, Angelo out in L.A.: "Al Gore is clearly the man with the ability to take charge and be the next president of the United States. Where Bush was weak on the facts and not being assertive, Gore came through like a man with conviction, fortitude and knowledge."

Two different approaches there on last night, what we heard and saw on that debate.

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