Will the Latest Recount Lead to Two Slates of Florida Electors?
GENE RANDALL, CNN ANCHOR: Back now to our top story. What else? The presidential campaign and the battle for Florida. These are recount pictures for Osceola and Leon County, Florida. With me is our senior political analyst Bill Schneider. Bill, what are the chances that what's happened over the past 24 hours will even complicate further the job of the next president?</s>WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: It could happen if the vote count isn't completed by Tuesday and then the legislature appoints a slate of Bush electors. If the recount goes on, it could end up with a slate of Gore electors, and you could have competing slates. And then we get the nightmare scenario because it goes before a divided Congress, which has to accept one or the other or maybe neither one.</s>RANDALL: Former Republican Congressman Vin Weber sat in that seat a few minutes ago and said congressional leaders in this critical time will have to know they must live with the words they utter. Well, the House Republican Whip Tom DeLay called the action of the Florida Supreme Court yesterday an act of aggression.</s>SCHNEIDER: Very strong words. Very bitter words. And we're hearing those words from a lot of Republican activists around the country. Intemperate, I might say. Well, they do feel that the election is being stolen. They use that word quite a lot. You see it on the signs. It's being stolen from them. Republicans are angry about this. Democrats have been frustrated. They feel as if they honestly won the vote, but they're willing to abide by the vote count, you know, and -- and if the vote count goes for Bush, I think that would settle the matter. If it goes for Gore, I think Republicans are very angry and they would challenge the legitimacy of even a Gore presidency.</s>RANDALL: On the one hand, Bill, you have legitimacy, which is usually conferred by the votes of the electoral college. On the other hand, you have the practical reality of the power a president must have to push his agenda. Now how does either Al Gore or George W. Bush, given all that's happened, achieve that kind of mandate for action?</s>SCHNEIDER: Well, the mandate has been dissipated by the Florida recount. I mean, there is no real strong mandate. Everyone knows this election was too close to call. But I think, at some point, there has to be -- we should be -- we hope there will be an act of the candidates really moving together and the losing candidate declaring that the -- the winner is a legitimate candidate, "He's my president," "He's our president," "He's America's president," "We must all support the president." That kind of gesture is very important. And I was just speaking to one of our producers who said maybe they should -- both candidates should go to Florida to thank the people of Florida for their perseverance, for their -- for going through this ordeal knowing how painful it was for them and for the country, something to establish a sense that everyone recognizes the legitimacy of the new president because that's going to be very tough.</s>RANDALL: And, Bill, finally, back to what you said at first, and that is you see only one clear way out of this, and that is something that happens very quickly.</s>SCHNEIDER: Yeah. Well, actually, two clear ways. One is what happens quickly. If Gore -- if the co -- if the recount is pretty conclusive and shows Gore the winner, then I think the legislature has no choice. They certify the Gore electors and Gore -- Republicans won't like it, but Gore will be the president. The other is if the recount shows Bush the winner, then I think Gore has already said so be it. He will accept him as the winner, but it really has to happen by Tuesday because, once we hit Tuesday and there's no really conclusive recount, then you really do have competing slates of electors and a legal battle royale.</s>RANDALL: Meanwhile, we have more material for "Saturday Night Live."</s>SCHNEIDER: That we do.</s>RANDALL: Bill, thanks very much. And we will be back in just a moment.