Robert A. George: School violence, energy crisis and campaign finance reform

The Take Five Panel

Robert A. George is a panelist for CNN’s "Take 5" and the associate editorial page editor for the "New York Post." An adjunct fellow to the Center for New Black Leadership, George has held the position of director of coalitions for the Republican National Committee. George also writes a column for "National Review Online."

CNN Moderator: Welcome to CNN.com Robert George. We're pleased to have you with us today. What issues will you be tackling this week on Take 5?

Robert A. George: Good to be here! Thank you! The second edition of Take 5 will be tomorrow. We'll touch on school shootings, since there was another one in California this week. We'll be talking about the economy, and the California energy situation. We'll have Jay Carney talking about Russia, the changing Russia policy. We'll also have Danielle Crittenden talking about her views on why carrying guns is good for women. I'll be talking about Hillary Clinton, who is my Senator, since I live in NY. :) We may touch on campaign finance reform, but may wait until next week, to see if the bill passes, or what shape it's in.

MESSAGE BOARD School safety Power crisis Campaign finance reform     ON THE AIR Take Five

CNN Moderator: The nation has seen two school shootings in the last few weeks. Is this going to force the Bush administration to address gun control?

Robert A. George: I don't think so. Frankly, what was interesting in the last shooting, my feeling two weeks ago, you didn't have that immediate knee-jerk reaction calling for gun control. California is one of the strongest gun control states in the country, and there were at least a dozen or so gun laws on the books already that the young man broke.

The whole political climate on gun control has changed in the last year, especially since the election. Bush is not friendly on gun control. Also, I think even in the latter part of the election last year, you even saw Gore tempering his rhetoric on it as well, since he must have realized that nationwide, when you go into different areas and states, the reception on gun control is different wherever you go.

Question from chat room: Will training children to have character have any effect on what's been happening to our country recently?

Robert A. George: Well, it might, but then again, you have a question of what's your definition of character? It's like talking about religion in schools, people ask whose religion? Whose values? If we can form a consensus on good character, tolerance, respect, etc., that may have an impact, but if we can't form that consensus, nothing will get done.

Question from chat room: Robert George: Congrats on the new show! Do you think the energy crisis will go beyond California?

Robert A. George: Well, there's a great fear of that. Already, some of the other western states, the governor of Utah has registered his concern, Colorado as well. We had this great economic boom the last few years, but one unaddressed consequence is that energy consumption has increased because everyone has new electronic gadgets, computers and such. The Bush administration makes a point, and a valid one, that there was never any real plan come up with over the last several years to anticipate an energy crunch. I wouldn't be surprised if we see it across the country.

Robert A. George: I know New York is anticipating that we may have some power problems this summer.

Question from chat room: Why hasn't the government studied the use of replenishable sources of energy like soy bean oil, etc?

Robert A. George: Believe me when I say I'm not an energy expert. I usually need to resort to vitamins for an energy boost! That again reflects my earlier point, there has not been much of an energy policy as such for the last several years. The Bush administration is looking, on the oil side, of going into the Arctic for more oil. Vice President Cheney is heading the administration's master plan, which should be announced in the next few weeks. Replenishable energy may be on that list, but I"m not sure.

Question from chat room: Robert George..why is it that the eastern states that have gone through deregulation have been successful and California is having such a problem? Could it be the restrictions on the environment?

Robert A. George: Again, I'm not an expert, but I think California's problem was exacerbated because they only partly deregulated. They basically put a cap on how much the people buying power could charge per kilowatt there. So, as a result, the people purchasing the energy from the power producers, their costs are going way up, but there's only a certain amount they can pass along to the customers, so that creates the shortage, because the people buying the power are going bankrupt. The short answer is that it's definitely a regulatory issue, but not just connected to the environment.

CNN Moderator: After nearly a week of campaign finance reform debates, how would you describe the progress in those discussions?

Robert A. George: Right now, I think John McCain has to be happy with the way the bill is going through the Senate. The big controversial amendment which had to do with forcing unions to limit how much money they could spend on political activity was defeated, actually prevented from being voted on. If that had passed, most of the Democrats would have voted against it, and the entire bill would have died. Right now, it's on track for passage, which would mean the president would veto it. However, there were stories today, saying that Senator Don Nickles from Oklahoma was trying to craft a compromise. So, it may pass the Senate in its current form, or it may be changed. Right now, it looks like there will be some kind of change in the campaign finance laws, if the president doesn't veto the bill. And of course, it would still have to be debated in the House as well.

Question from chat room: What about the First Amendment issues in McCain's bill? Will they pass?

Robert A. George: Right now, it looks like they will, but that's one of the main sticklers that Republicans in general, but particularly Senator Mitch McConnell from Kentucky, are most concerned about. These provisions would seriously restrain the ability of third party groups from taking out "issue advocacy" commercials.

CNN Moderator: How do Hillary Clinton's New York constituents rate the early part of her term so far?

Robert A. George: I think there's been some disappointment, frankly. The departure of the Clintons from the White House turned out to be a complete and total fiasco. The negative publicity surrounding the pardons, White House gifts, and Bill Clinton's search for an office, severely damaged both Bill and Hillary's favorability ratings. And on top of that, just when everything was starting to die down, it was revealed this week that Hillary has rented office space for over $500,000, which is more than double what her fellow New York Senator, Charles Schumer, pays for his. That suggests that Mrs. Clinton has a politically tin ear.

Question from chat room: Do you feel that Bill and Hillary, use the media to keep in the limelight?

Robert A. George: The flip side of that is, do the media use Bill and Hillary? :) I think at this point, they'd be a lot of happier if they could be out of the limelight for a little bit, or had a more positive reflection coming through the media. But this is sort of a case of the chickens coming home to roost for them. When they were in power, they were able to use the media to their own advantage, but without the trappings of the White House, it's a lot harder to craft favorable coverage.

CNN Moderator: Do you have any final thoughts to share with us today?

Robert A. George: Well, I think it's a very interesting time politically, in terms of current events. There's a lot going on right now, with the economy in something of a downturn, and the energy crunch, and a new President on the scene. So, it's incumbent on everyone to pay close attention to how the Bush administration responds to these challenges in only his first three or four months in office. Everyone should also catch Take 5 every Saturday at 8:30 p.m. to see how the panel responds to these issues!

CNN Moderator: Thank you for joining us today, Robert George.

Robert A. George: Thank you for checking into the chat room! I look forward to doing it again soon!

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