July 16, 2000: 'This Week': Interviews Bush
July 16, 2000 -- Republican presidential contender George W. Bush is getting closer to picking his running mate, but still refuses to divulge his list of candidates or the precise timing of his announcement.
“I haven’t ruled anybody out,” the Texas governor said this morning in an exclusive interview on ABCNEWS’ This Week.
Asked if he needed to pick an anti-abortion rights candidate to satisfy conservatives in the Republican Party, Bush said, “This is a pick that’s based on two very important criteria.”
The first, he said, is whether the prospective running mate could handle presidential duties. The second is “compatability.”
“Can we get along, can the person be added value,” Bush said.
Bush’s continued refusal to rule out an abortion-rights supporter could mean good news for either Gov. George Pataki of New York, with whom Bush had two meetings on Friday, or Gov. Tom Ridge of Pennsylvania, who made a public appearance with Bush on Thursday.
Both Pataki and Ridge favor abortion rights, although Pataki has drawn less criticism from conservatives for his views.
On Saturday, Bush met with Dick Cheney, the head of his vice-presidential selection process, for nearly three-and-a-half hours at the governor’s mansion in Austin. Neither man revealed any details about what they discussed, but both Bush campaign manager Joe Allbaugh and strategist Karl Rove participated in at least part of the meeting.
Previously, Bush has said that only three people — himself, his wife Laura, and Cheney — have known his thinking about choosing a vice-presidential candidate. So the presence of Allbaugh and Rove at the meeting could indicate that the selection process may be speeding up.
Bush himself said he had “two options” concerning the timing of a vice-presidential announcement, “one is at the convention and one is prior to the convention.”
Other names mentioned for the GOP ticket include Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating, former Republican presidential candidate Elizabeth Dole, and Sens. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, Fred Thompson of Tennesee, and John McCain of Arizona, Bush’s former rival for the GOP presidential nomination.
Bush Sees ‘Close Race’
Bush also said the vice-presidential candidate on the GOP ticket would not be used as an “attack dog,” and that his running mate would have a “clear and positive” message. However, the governor vowed to respond quickly to attacks from the Democratic candidate, Vice President Al Gore.
“I’m not going to let this man define me,” said Bush.
Bush himself got in a couple of jabs at Gore this morning, twice referring to Bill Bradley’s complaints that Gore had distorted facts and lied about his record during Democratic primary debates. Bush said Bradley made those comments “maybe with clear justification.” But the governor vowed that he would not let Gore get away with such tactics in debates this fall.
Bush also acknowledged that if Gore picked Sen. Bob Graham of Florida as his vice-presidential candidate, it could help Gore in a state where Bush holds a solid lead in the polls, but added, “it could be that I’m going to win regardless.”
Bush emphasized that despite his lead in national polls, he was not taking anything for granted.
“This is a close race, and I know it’s going to be a close race,” said Bush.
Defense of Death Penalty
In a wide-ranging interview, Bush also defended his position on the death penalty.
“We’re making sure that the innocence or guilt question is fully answered” in each case, Bush said, adding that every person executed under his watch has had “full access to the courts.”
When asked about existing laws that prevent the introduction of additional evidence into cases during the appeals process, Bush claimed he was sensitive to the issue by pointing to the stay of execution he granted convicted murderer Ricky Nolen McGinn in June, so that additional DNA tests could be performed on McGinn.
However, Bush avoided questions about potential new evidence in the case of Odell Barnes, executed in March.“I don’t remember the specifics of Odell Barnes,” Bush said.
Since Bush became governor in 1995, Texas has executed more people than any other state, and in recent months anti-death penalty leaders and activists have increased their calls for a national moratorium on executions.
Bush added, “If you ask me if we’ve ever executed an innocent person, my answer is, no, I don’t think so, I’ve reviewed every single case.”
Social Secuity Differences
Bush also plugged his own proposal to allow people to privately invest a portion of their own social security funds, something Gore has repeatedly called “risky.”
The only guarantee concerning social security, said Bush, “is that it’s going to be broke.” He argued that “a safe [private] return yields about twice of what the social security trust gets today.”
On NBC’s Meet the Press this morning, Gore continued his line of attack, saying Bush’s proposal “would be a catastrophe” if implemented.
Gore also vowed that if elected, he would not sign legislation cutting social security, saying he would “veto anything that has me dipping into social security or Medicare.”