What Will Bush-McCain Meeting Bring?
WOODRUFF: As we mentioned earlier, former presidential candidate John McCain is set to meet with George W. Bush tomorrow in Pittsburgh. And, as you might expect, there will be a heavy media presence. Howard Kurtz of CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES" has an inside view on the media's fascination with the Arizona senator.</s>KURTZ (voice-over): When John McCain sits down with George W. Bush in Pittsburgh tomorrow to discuss a formal endorsement, he'll have plenty of reporters in tow. It's like that wherever the Arizona senator goes. It happened when McCain went to New York to campaign for Rudy Giuliani. It happened when McCain went to South Carolina to denounce the Confederate flag. And it happened when McCain visited his old prison cell in Vietnam, his eighth trip back to Vietnam, by the way, literally a made-for-TV extravaganza paid for by NBC and "Today." Wait a minute, didn't this guy lose the presidential election? Let's face it, most journalists consider John McCain a fascinating character. He gave them access, and they provided plenty of good press during those doughnut-filled rides on the Straight Talk Express. So faced with a race between Bush and Gore, neither one exactly Mr. Excitement, they're doing their best to keep the McCain story alive. When McCain went to Hanoi, many of the old regulars were there: Howard Fineman, Jay Carney, Roger Simon, Jake Tapper, Tucker Carlson.</s>TUCKER CARLSON, "WEEKLY STANDARD": I think a lot of reporters went to Vietnam with McCain because it was a lot more interesting than staying home and writing Social Security stories. I think part of it is just a hangover from the primaries. I mean, it all ended so abruptly on March 7th that there was a sense, what do we do now? What do we cover? And so I think a certain momentum carried reporters forward. It just seemed natural to keep following McCain around.</s>KURTZ: And the talk shows can't get enough of McCain. Even Hollywood's interested: A movie version of McCain's bestselling book is in the works. Other losing presidential candidates have attracted their share of attention by making life difficult for the nominee: Pat Buchanan in '92, Jesse Jackson in '88. But McCain says he doesn't want anything, certainly not to be Bush's running mate, and is just trying to nudge the Texas governor on campaign finance reform. Some less-than-charitable observers say McCain is a grandstander who refuses to give up the spotlight.</s>ROBERT NOVAK, "CHICAGO SUN-TIMES": He's a pain. He's a pain in the neck, because he is the sorest loser I have ever seen in politics. He got beat badly for the nomination. He just won't endorse. He keeps hanging around.</s>KURTZ: McCain aides say that if their man didn't sell magazines or pull in the ratings, the press would have moved on long ago. (on camera): With money from his Straight Talk PAC, the senator plans to spend the fall stumping the country for Republican congressional candidates, and you can bet that the press won't be far behind. McCain may have abandoned his favorite bus, but he still knows how to take journalists for a ride. This is Howard Kurtz of CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES."</s>WOODRUFF: Well, joining us now to talk more about John McCain, his impact and tomorrow's meeting, David Broder of The Washington Post and Jay Carney of "TIME" magazine. And Jay, you were justified by Howard Kurtz as one of the old regulars who did go to Vietnam with Senator McCain. What is the fascination that he holds for reporters?</s>JAY CARNEY, "CNN & TIME" CORRESPONDENT: Well, Howie's right, and I plead guilty maybe not to being an old regular, but certainly to continuing to be interested in John McCain. You know, McCain is a good story. He was a good story during his presidential run and he continues to be a good story, in part because losers sometimes matter in American politics. And John McCain may have lost the primary, but he still continues to be a significant political figure in this campaign, as we can tell by the importance of this meeting tomorrow with Governor Bush, the Republican nominee, and by the importance that Bush and his people attach to it. McCain was voted for -- a number of people voted and a lot of people voted for John McCain in the primaries, millions of people, and those voters may be significant and important in determining who becomes the next president of the United States. So McCain's important.</s>WOODRUFF: David Broder, how do you explain this connection, ongoing connection between the press and McCain?</s>DAVID BRODER, "WASHINGTON POST": Well, I think what Jay says is certainly part of it, Judy. But let me give you a geezer perspective on this. I think that for the younger generation of reporters, John McCain may be the first presidential candidate who actually acts as if he enjoys having them around. People of my generation had that kind of relationship with Hubert Humphrey, with Barry Goldwater and with a great many others. But in the last 10 years or so, the relationship has become so tense, the suspicions on both sides. The candidates' handlers didn't trust the press; the press assumed that anything a candidate told them was probably a lie. This was the first time I think for many of the younger reporters that they actually felt that they could have a human relationship with a presidential candidate.</s>WOODRUFF: Well, David, as somebody who's been around as long about as long as you have -- you're certainly not a geezer -- but I can certainly accent your description of the relationship between the press and the number of candidates. Getting back to this meeting tomorrow, Jay, is something -- is anything going to be resolved by this? I mean, for example, are they going to be able to put to bed once and for all the notion that John McCain doesn't want to be on the ticket?</s>CARNEY: I think so. Governor Bush still believes that it's possible that John McCain could say yes to a request to be on the ticket with him, but all indications are that that's not going to happen. McCain's been pretty categorical about not wanting. What's going on tomorrow, however, is that Bush will ask the senator if he wants to be considered, and that's more of a gesture of respect from the governor to the senator of saying that matter, you would matter on the ticket for me. Would you consider it? And this is the opportunity for McCain to say categorically no, which I expect he will say.</s>WOODRUFF: And David Broder, if that's what he says, does that put it to rest?</s>BRODER: Yes, I think it certainly will, because it's not in the interest of either of these men to keep this fiction going. It is a fiction. I don't think Bush really wants McCain as his running mate, and I'm very certain that McCain does not want to be in the No. 2 place on that ticket. So I think tomorrow's should put a fork in that part of the story.</s>WOODRUFF: Jay Carney, what about McCain's role, though, beyond tomorrow, through the convention and in the fall campaign? What sort of a role are we looking at here?</s>CARNEY: Well, John McCain will do several things. First of all, tomorrow, we can expect a very warm atmosphere, I think, surrounding their meeting and the media availability afterwards. And this will begin the process that Governor Bush wants very badly, which is a reconciliation between the two, and an indication from John McCain that he will do what he can to help George W. Bush get elected. McCain will then play the role from now through November of a major political figure out campaigning for other Republicans, which will help Republicans, they hope, hold on to the House and Senate, as well as help George W. Bush get elected. And McCain by doing that will repair some of the strained relationships he has within the party, and perhaps position himself, if George W. Bush loses in November, to be the heir apparent or the front-runner for the nomination in 2004.</s>WOODRUFF: David, can John McCain make a difference in the outcome of this election?</s>BRODER: Well, of course he can, because, as Jay has said, he has developed a real following in the country, and it's very much in his, McCain's interests to be seen as a loyal supporter of this ticket. When I talked to Governor Bush in Washington a couple of weeks ago, he made the point that he will praise McCain and thank McCain for all that McCain is planning to do to help Republican candidates around the country. And then as John King said in the earlier piece, he will move as quickly as he can to the areas where they have substantial agreement, on Social Security, on budget reforms. And he pointed out to me, Governor Bush did, that even in the area of campaign finance, they agreed on the paycheck protection, the requirement that individually union members be allowed to sign off on the use of dues money for politics, and on knocking out soft money from corporations and unions. They still have a couple of big areas of disagreement about individual soft money gifts and about the size of the tax cut.</s>WOODRUFF: But those things we won't be hearing much about tomorrow presumably. All right, David Broder, Jay Carney, thank you both. And when we return, battling for a seat under the Capitol dome: Charlie Cook looks at some key Senate races of campaign 2000.