Bill Clinton to the Rescue
COOPER: Well, what you're about to see isn't just "Raw Politics" -- the best we can tell it is unprecedented. Nothing quite like it has ever happened at the White House as far as we know. President Obama as you probably know is having a tough time selling Democrats on his tax deal with Republicans. So today after an afternoon meeting with former President Bill Clinton, the two walked into the White House briefing room. After saying he'd have to leave shortly to meet the First Lady, the President told the former president in so many words, sell it.</s>BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In my opinion, this is a good bill, and I hope that my fellow Democrats will support it. I thanked the Republican leaders for agreeing to -- to include things that were important to the President. There's never a perfect bipartisan bill in the eyes of a partisan. And we all see this differently. But I really believe this will be a significant net-plus for the country.</s>COOPER: Well, that was former President Clinton making his case for the tax deal looking like he didn't exactly need any help. Then a few moments later, this:</s>BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Here's what I'll say is I've been keeping the First Lady waiting for about half an hour, so I'm going to take off. But --</s>CLINTON: I don't want to make her mad. Please go.</s>OBAMA: You're in good hands. And Gibbs will call last question.</s>CLINTON: Yes help me. Thank you. Yes. Go ahead.</s>COOPER: So then it got really fascinating. The former president talk -- talking solo for about another 17 minutes or so, longer than the two had actually spent together at the podium. Now it was either a remarkable show of self-confidence for President Obama or a reminder of how much political trouble he's in, or both. In any case, for a lot of Democrats certainly it brought back strong memories of just how comfortable Bill Clinton was in the briefing room.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On the G-7, here about to head off, by the way, that's a very nice tie. I wish the American public could see that tie.</s>CLINTON: This was designed by a 12-year-old. It's a Save the Children tie. If it weren't a gift, I would give it to you.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't want it.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In the House --</s>CLINTON: You know what I'm really upset about? You got a honeymoon and I didn't. Thank you very much.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Quick question on health care?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. One more. It's Christmas, guys.</s>COOPER: Well, Bill Clinton back then. Joining me now: former Hillary Clinton campaign adviser, Maria Cardona; Erick Erickson, editor-in-chief for RedState.com; and senior political analyst, David Gergen. David, you worked in the White House for four administrations, you worked there for the Clinton administration. Can you ever remember a time when a sitting president and a former president show up in the briefing room and then one leaves and other kind of -- takes over?</s>DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: No, Anderson. I was there some 17 years ago when President Clinton wanted to get NAFTA passed and he had a rebellion in the Democratic Party and he called in all of the former presidents, four of them, and asked each one of them to speak briefly. But I can assure you he never let them have the podium alone.</s>COOPER: Was this a wise move in your opinion for -- for President Obama?</s>GERGEN: I think it -- you know, there's going to be a lot of hoop-tee-do about it, but I -- don't think he didn't do any harm. I -- I do think to go back to your earlier question I think, President Obama has a -- has a self-confidence and inner security that this wouldn't faze him at all. And I think he thinks, what's the big deal? But I -- you can tell Bill Clinton relished this. I mean, he -- I can only think of two presidents, Bill Clinton and Teddy Roosevelt, who would have enjoyed this as much as he did. And I -- I think he actually made what I think is a problem for Obama is that Bill Clinton makes a better argument for the compromise than President Obama did the other day.</s>COOPER: Maria, what about that? I mean, it was interesting and apparently at the back story, Press Secretary Gibbs heard them out in the hallway and was like, what are you guys up to? And -- and -- and basically that they kind of wanted to go into the briefing room and he -- and he said please give us five minutes, and got the -- the media around. Was it a wise thing?</s>MARIA CARDONA, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: I actually think it was a brilliant move. I mean, look. You have somebody who is absolutely comfortable behind the podium and you have a president, President Obama who as David said, I think has -- has an inner security that at the end of the day he's the President no matter what. And you're -- you're going to have somebody in Bill Clinton who is going to explain this in very simple language. Not only that, but you also have in him an incredibly important validator; somebody who presided over the greatest economic expansion in our generation and he did it by raising taxes on the rich. He's now telling America this is the tax deal that we need. I think it was a moment and an important one for President Obama and for President Clinton.</s>COOPER: Erick you actually think it was a bad idea, right?</s>ERICK ERICKSON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, I do. And first let me say that David's looking very sharp tonight.</s>COOPER: I was -- believe me -- that was going to be my last question, about what's David going to be doing tonight.</s>GERGEN: Absolutely.</s>ERICKSON: But and -- and you know, I don't mean to thread jag, but first can I say my hat's off to those people who are going to protest Fred Phelps. As a Christian that just disgusts me that he would do that. But --</s>COOPER: Well, I thought Susan and Ben, I though their attitude about it was really nice --</s>ERICKSON: God bless them, yes.</s>COOPER: -- making a big hoopla, of just about of kind of you know facing off against them.</s>ERICKSON: Amen to that. You know, well, on this situation, and I'm a big "24" fan and I remember season four when the acting President Logan had to hand over the -- the reins of power to -- to former president --</s>COOPER: So you saw shades of Kiefer Sutherland?</s>ERICKSON: Yes, yes, absolutely. Yes, he -- he was -- because he was inept when it came to handling terrorism. In this case, you know President Clinton does make a much more persuasive case on the economy. And all this is going to do is give fodder to late night hosts and to conservatives and even to progressives over Barack Obama and supposedly being the most articulate president having to hand this over --</s>COOPER: But you know -- but Erick, you don't think it -- it -- it helps for those, you know, liberal Democrats who are upset at President Obama, you don't think it kind of heals some of those wounds?</s>ERICKSON: No, I don't think so. It -- it makes them if nothing else, I would think feel like there's blood in the water. That he's having to abdicate to Bill Clinton because he can't do it himself, that would just embolden me if George Bush were to do something like this.</s>COOPER: David, do you think this can be interpreted as an abdication?</s>GERGEN: No, I don't. I -- I -- I think every president I've ever known looks for validation from outside, you know, elders in the country. You ask a Warren Buffett to come in and bless your economic plan and you ask a Bill Clinton if you're a Democrat to come in and -- and endorse your -- your -- your -- your tax cut plan. I -- I think he helps overall, but I do think -- I think it makes it people nostalgic for Clinton, though.</s>COOPER: So what happens to the deal now, David?</s>GERGEN: Well, I -- there's going to have to be a negotiation between the House and Senate Democrats to get this straightened out because they've got a bit of a mess on their hands in the House. I don't see how the House members, the Democrats can just sort of roll over because the Senate passes it. They -- they are standing on a principle. And I imagine the issue that's going to really get changed and challenged Anderson, is the estate tax. And -- and frankly, I think that the -- they did -- they were too generous on the estate tax. I do think instead of $5 million, it will be $3.5 million. That's what the consensus was going in. And I think it was -- it was a much better approach. So my hope is that they'll get that -- they get that done. I'd like to see them do something on the deficits but that's probably a bridge too far.</s>COOPER: What kind of a timetable Maria, do you think we're looking at?</s>CARDONA: I think that we're going to see Democrats coming together on this tax deal pretty quickly. They understand that there is a very short timeline. And at the end of the day what Democrats don't want and President Obama said this, President Clinton really underscored this today, is for taxes to go up on the middle class and working class families.</s>COOPER: So you don't think the rift is that deep right now among Democrats?</s>CARDONA: No, I -- I really don't. I think there is a lot of show in terms of the liberals, and I think that's OK. And I actually think at the end of the day this is going to remind people, in the long run, what the two parties actually stand for. That Republicans were willing to hold hostage the middle class tax cuts and the working class tax cuts for workers and that Democrats were fighting for the middle class and for the working class. And if it were not for Republicans, we would have gotten that. But also we have to remember, look at all these other tax credits that we got; extension of unemployment benefits. That is not something Anderson, that we would have seen reality if we had waited until January to get.</s>COOPER: Erick, I've been reading some blogs in which people are critical of Republicans for -- you know, on the one hand during the campaign saying, you know, the President is a Maoist or you know, a socialist but now it looks like there's deal making going on.</s>ERICKSON: Yes and very much so. And there are a lot of Republicans who -- who are upset and ironically had the Democrats not blown up in the House yesterday, a lot of the Republican tension over this deal would have never surfaced. And today you're seeing the Heritage Foundation Charles Krauthammer, Rush Limbaugh, myself and others out there and saying kill the deal, we can get something better in January. Largely these tensions would have been suppressed, had the Democrats not blown up yesterday --</s>COOPER: So you think the deal should be killed because, because from a Republican standpoint, what you -- you can get a better deal no -- no --</s>ERICKSON: I think -- I think the Republicans can get a better deal in January, but more so I think that -- with all this talk last week about taking the -- the bold (ph) Simpson deficit plan seriously for the Democrats and Republicans together to come in today in the Senate and now load it up with tax extensions that are in effect earmarks, bribes to various industries to keep them going as opposed to actually dealing with the issues in and of themselves, I think it's offensive.</s>COOPER: David, I saw you just nodding your head?</s>GERGEN: Yes, I was -- I -- I -- I think Erick's right on that last point. This thing is going to get Christmas treed, it -- it -- there has been -- the bill should have been accompanied by a commitment on -- a hard commitment on spending cuts down the road. And then -- and that's been a loss. But now to load it up I think is a -- a real mistake. And -- but I have to say, Erick, I think it's really important for a lot of small businesses to get some certainty on taxes not wait until sometime in the middle of next year to get the bill pass.</s>ERICKSON: Yes, the uncertainty -- I completely agree with that on the uncertainty issue.</s>COOPER: Very quickly, David, why -- why are you so dapper tonight?</s>GERGEN: It's sort of a reverse John King, right?</s>COOPER: Yes.</s>CARDONA: Anderson, can I add one thing here?</s>GERGEN: I'm here -- I'm here for a benefit for a hospital in Rochester.</s>COOPER: All right, cool. Yes, Maria. I'm sorry, quickly go ahead.</s>CARDONA: I think the other thing we have to keep in mind is that all of these tax issues, that the initiatives that Democrats got in this deal that exist in this deal that would not have existed in January are direct and immediate injections of capital into the economy which is exactly what we need right now. And that was underscored by President Clinton. It has been underscored by President Obama, and by all of the Democrats who are looking to get this done for workers and for middle class families.</s>COOPER: Well, let me -- let me bring in Erick on that. I mean, is this -- if this is a -- a stimulus in a -- in a sense to the economy, why not do it right now? I mean, doesn't that outweigh the -- the political value in your opinion of doing it later?</s>ERICKSON: Well, it's -- it's amazing that what the Democrats are trying to take credit for in the plan and particularly the pay roll tax holiday was first put forth by the Conservative American Enterprise Institute. The -- the business exemptions were first put forward by the Heritage Foundation. Then you have the income tax reform --</s>CARDONA: Then you should support it.</s>ERICKSON: -- but to say though -- to say that the unemployment benefits though, will somehow create jobs, no they won't. They're there because we're not creating jobs. And I think that's a fatuous argument from the Democrats to say that somehow unemployment benefits extensions will create jobs, when in fact ironically most people with unemployment benefits find their jobs within the last three weeks before their benefits run out.</s>COOPER: We're going to leave it there. Erick Erickson, Maria Cardona and David Gergen, I appreciate it very much. Up next, we're going to tell you about a real live --</s>CARDONA: Thanks Anderson.</s>COOPER: -- dissident who should have been there in person to collect this year's Nobel Peace Prize and why he couldn't be. Later, what Elizabeth Smart had to live through at the hands of her fanatic captor, justice today for her and her father. She's spoke out and we'll speak to her dad at length.</s>COOPER: And today again you said it's real. I mean, does it -- does it feel real?</s>ED SMART, FATHER OF ELIZABETH SMART: It is real. It does. It feels very real.