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Republican National Convention - Day 3

(The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation)

Republican National Convention - Day 3

Guest: Richard C. Harwood, Special to MSNBC

MSNBC-Will: Welcome back Mr. Harwood. By the way, we haven't really promoted anything of yours yet in these chats. I know your piece went up on the site today, if not yet, soon. I'll have the link for that. And I should mention that your organization has a site, http://www.theharwoodinstitute.org/ Ok, let's get started.

ASKMSNBC: guest-Katia says: Mr Harwood, can you tell me why people get so angry during the election time? Or are these Kind of people always angry?

MSNBC-Will: I'm thinking of a certain chat room I'm acquainted with. :)

Rich_Harwood: I think people are pretty ripped about a lot of things in America right now, despite all of the celebration over our robust economy. All of our research suggests that Americans think that something is wildly amiss right now in the country.

MSNBC-Will: That's not really reflected here at the convention, is it more indicated by the protests?

Rich_Harwood: Well, the Republicans are trying to put a civil, calm, and deliberate face on their goals. The most important goal for them is to be seen as being positive and constructive, and so far so good for them. The feelings of anger in the country are beneath the surface, talk to anyone for any length of time and they will begin to talk about the lack of civility in the country, our problem with race relations, the fact that corporations and politicians have too much power, that money is too much of a controlling force in our society.

MSNBC-Will: Let's use that to go last night's speech...

ASKMSNBC: mooch-guest says: How is it possible that John McCain can give that speech and not bring up campaign finance reform?

Rich_Harwood: McCain's bringing up campaign finance reform every chance he can, but for him, last night was not the right moment. I think for him, just like with Colin Powell on Monday night, it would have been good to let McCain bring up an issue on which Republicans disagree, like Powell did with affirmative action. It shows an honesty of difference. And an acknowledgement that there are issues to talk about.

ASKMSNBC: Jen_scott-guest says: Welcome Mr. Harwood... Glad to have you here

ASKMSNBC: guest-skeptic1 says: Is it just me or was McCain's speech laced with barbs towards Bush eg. Bush SR serving UNDER his grandfather and implying he was supporting Bush as a way to take one for the team

Rich_Harwood: There is a weird perception...some people think he totally sold out, and others think he was speaking in subliminals. I think the country has gotten too wound up in searching for subliminal messages, and it defeats, or undermines, anything that anyone says anymore. I think it was just a turn of phrase, and McCain probably could not have been more gracious. Maybe almost to a fault.

MSNBC-Will: Since we're going over last night....

ASKMSNBC: GreenM3 says: Impression of Rice speech?

MSNBC-Will: She was very compelling. (Will's 2 cents :) )

Rich_Harwood: I agree, she was compelling, and she's telling a story that some speechwriters didn't make up. I wish, though, that if she were going to speak about the Governor's foreign policy, that they would have said, that she and Mr. McCain would have said more than simple platitudes. I think people really want to know where he stands.

ASKMSNBC: Otis_the_Drunk-guest says: Where are the true american hero's? if these are the best 2 candidates the United States can come up with, we are in a world of doo..

Rich_Harwood: We are a nation in search of heroes. For now, I think, most of our heroes are people who do heroic things in ordinary life. One, because that's where many of our challenges exist, and two, because we have it seems a desire to rip, to tear down anyone who approaches hero status in this country nationally.

ASKMSNBC: scarlett-guest says: Will did you hear the one pol that accused McCain of blinking in Morse code while he gave his speech, sending the message that he didn't mean it?

Rich_Harwood: Go figure!

ASKMSNBC: scarlett-guest says: rich do you think the beltway pols are finally recognizing that middle american doesn't think like them?

Rich_Harwood: No, not really. LOL! I think it's going to take a LONG time for that to happen. Unfortunately.

ASKMSNBC: Dennis_the_Menace-gu says: Should Al Gore ask his boss to stay away from rediculing the Republicans while their Convention is in session?

ASKMSNBC: KenBz-guest says: Does Bill Clinton help or hurt Gore by his personal attacks on Bush, while the Republican convention is avoiding direct attacks on Democrats?

Rich_Harwood: Clearly the Democrats think they have to drive up Bush's negatives, but as high as those negatives could go, Gore is still going to have to present something about his vision, and until the American public hears what that vision is, this is not, I suspect, the kind of conduct most Americans want to see from their President.

MSNBC-Will: Let's talk about tonight's theme a little.... maintaining economic prosperity...

ASKMSNBC: LindaC-guest says: Prosperity should be given credit to Ronald Reagan who started it all and the Republican Congress (after 40 years of a Democrat Congress). I don't think much else needs to be said on this fact!!!

ASKMSNBC: Darth-guest says: When Republicans credit Reagan/Bush for today's economy, do they think that the S & L fiasco was the driving force behind our prosperity?

MSNBC-Will: contrasting perspectives.

Rich_Harwood: Look, we can keep talking forever about who should or should not get credit for this robust economy, I suspect there are a host of factors, some of which have nothing to do with who is sitting in the White House. I think the issue today is who do we believe can help the nation move forward economically, as well as in other areas, and that's I think what the discussion ought to focus on.

ASKMSNBC: explorer-guest says: Aren't words like 'vision' and 'values' just excuses for not being able to reach out and articulate positions?

MSNBC-Will: There are a few on the list with this theme.

Rich_Harwood: I think the words vision and values are empty and meaningless if someone cannot identify what they mean when they are speaking in those terms. The goal should not be to say "I'm going to talk about my vision and values" But to demonstrate one's vision and values. I do think people want to see that demonstration.

ASKMSNBC: FRAN-guest says: A tax cut is owed to us...government cannot continually increase taxes in hard times and not returning some in good times...This is just good business sense but the Clinton administration thinks all the government has to do is collect, spend, collect, spend without regard for us "stockholders"....A tax cut now please!

Rich_Harwood: Fran, this is something that I hear debated among Americans almost every day. There are those like you that want a tax cut, and there are those who believe that money should be invested in things like education and the environment. Until we have a real debate about that in this country, we will still be slinging slogans and empty rhetoric at one another, and we will get nowhere.

ASKMSNBC: scarlett-guest says: What are our chances with the GOP of having real tax reform - so that CPAs aren't required for filing?

Rich_Harwood: LOL! Well I sure would not like to have to use a CPA anymore! More seriously, I don't know. Part of the problem is that there is so much money passing hands in politics today that it's hard to generate genuine reform, of anything. And I think that's one of the great challenges we face right now.

MSNBC-Will: Although would you say the idea of a flat tax is growing in popularity?

Rich_Harwood: Not necessarily. I think people are increasingly wary of simple, "quick-fix" solutions. It really would have to be proven to folks that however we did the flat tax, or something like that, really made sense, and could be done in a fair and equitable way. What I hear in the country these days is people want to deal with some of the underlying concerns facing the country, for instance, how do we stay united amid great diversity, as opposed to taking on some of the debates of the 80s on taxes, and three strikes and you're out, and building more prisons, and things like that.

ASKMSNBC: SilentBlackGuy-guest says: Do the mislead voters that want the surplus refunded to them realize that things like disaster relief, medical assistance and any federal program they rely on now will be gone with the surplus?

Rich_Harwood: I don't think many of us, if any of us, have a clue of how those things are paid for. It all seems like funny money, and that's one of the reasons so many of us make claims on tax dollars.

ASKMSNBC: Bush_WIns-guest says: Isn't the real debate over who will control the money.... the Federal Government or the staqte and local authorities especially in the area of education?

Rich_Harwood: I think there is a real debate about not simply who controls the money when it comes to education, but really who will set our direction in educating our children. That's a huge debate, and it really needs to be aired out. Too often it simply is framed in terms of money, but I think we are talking about much deeper and important issues, like equity, fairness, who we might leave behind or not, who has the right ideas about what our kids should be learning, and those kinds of issues.

ASKMSNBC: Jeffrey-guest says: How will both Gore and/or Bush, if elected, appeal to their respective party's core constituents, since both have reached out, at least symbolically, to the extremes....?

Rich_Harwood: I'm not sure they have reached out to the extremes. I think they are both reaching out to core constituencies, but at the same time are trying to be more inclusive. But your question still holds; how will these guys balance their core constituencies while trying to be more inclusive? And I'm not sure, frankly, how they will handle that. Or how well they will handle it, really I should say.

ASKMSNBC: scarlett-guest says: Rich their are so many ways to run pilot programs to see how affective flat tax would be - someone needs to start trying.

Rich_Harwood: I think there are ways to run pilot projects, and it certainly can't hurt to try. Whether or not you can do it on a flat tax, we'd have to ask the experts.

ASKMSNBC: GreenM3 says: You keep referring to "Fair and Equal"...who will define these?

Rich_Harwood: We will. We the American public need to define those, and that happens through open debate over periods of time. And right now, too many politicians don't want to listen, and too many Americans don't want to engage. They have not engaged.

MSNBC-Will: We're coming close to the end, so let's take our usual question of your thoughts and expectations for tonight.

MSNBC-Will: Should Cheney feel any pressure or is he nestled in the mother's bosom?

Rich_Harwood: I think Cheney needs to deliver tonight, and help the American public understand why he's the right guy, and what he believes in. Not just to be a cheerleader for Governor Bush.

MSNBC-Will: We'll look for that, and talk about it with you tomorrow. Thanks very once again Mr. Harwood. Thanks for the questions and comments guys, keep em coming. Mickey Kaus will be here in an hour.

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