>> FRESH OFF THE ANNOUNCEMENT
THAT HE WILL NOT RUN FOR
GOVERNOR OF WISCONSIN, WE GET
THE POLITICAL PANELIST BAND BACK
TOGETHER ON "HERE AND NOW."
REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST BILL
MCCOSHEN AUNITED STATES NOD THIS
WEEK HE IS TAKING A PASS ON
BEING A CANDIDATE IN 2022.
SO HE'S HERE ALONG WITH
DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST SCOT ROSS
AND WELCOME TO BOTH OF YOU.
>> GOOD TO BE BACK.
>> WELCOME.
>> SO, BILL, COME ON, THIS IS A
LOT MORE FUN THAN RUNNING FOR
GOVERNOR, IS IT NOT?
>> WELL, IT'S A LOT LESS
DANGEROUS, THAT'S FOR SURE.
>> SO, SCOT, WERE YOU SURPRISED
THAT BILL BOWED OUT?
>> YEAH.
I MEAN, I WOULD ASSUME HE'D GET
MORE TELEVISION IF HE WERE
RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR SO I WAS
SURPRISED ABOUT THAT FOR SURE.
BILL'S A GOOD GUY.
HE WOULD HAVE BROUGHT A LOT TO
THE FIELD.
I THINK HE WOULD HAVE BROUGHT
SOMETHING BADLY NEEDED TO THE
FIELD, A LITTLE BIT OF
MODERATION, LESS RADICALISM.
SO IT IS DEFINITELY BAD FOR THE
REPUBLICAN PARTY.
>> BILL, ONE THING YOU SAID THAT
STOOD OUT WAS THAT, QUOTE, HIS
STORY SAYS THE GOP NEEDS A
COMPETITIVE PRIMARY TO BEAT AN
INCUMBENT DEMOCRAT GOVERNOR IN
2022.
SO YOU THINK FORMER LIEUTENANT
GOVERNOR REBECCA KLEEFISCH NEEDS
SOME COMPETITION?
IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING?
>> I DO.
>> WHY?
>> BUT I DON'T WANT YOUR VIEWERS
TO MAKE IT THE WRONG WAY.
IT DOESN'T MEAN I'M AGAINST
REBECCA.
NOT AT ALL.
IN FACT, IN MY LIFETIME
REPUBLICANS HAVE ONLY DEFEATED
AN INCUMBENT DEMOCRATIC GOVERNOR
TWO TIMES, ONCE IN 1978 AFTER A
PRIMARY BETWEEN DREYFUSS AND
KASTEN.
DREYFUSS BEAT BEATED SCHRIEBER.
WE REMOVED THAT TAG.
THE SECOND TIME WAS TOMMY
THOMPSON IN 1986, WHO WON A
FIVE-WAY PRIMARY BEFORE
DEFEATING TONY EARL, NOT TO BE
CONFUSED WITH TONY EVERS.
SO IT'S HAPPENED TWICE IN MY
LIFE.
BOTH WERE AFTER A COMPETITIVE
PRIMARY ON THE GOP SIDE.
SO THERE IS NO PRECEDENT FOR
BEATING AN INCUMBENT DEMOCRAT
WITHOUT A PRIMARY.
DOESN'T MEAN IT COULDN'T HAPPEN.
>> BILL, I WANT TO BACK UP AND
GIVE YOU A BRIEF CHANCE TO TELL
US WHY YOU DIDN'T THROW YOUR HAT
IN THE RING.
>> YOU KNOW, IT CAME DOWN TO TWO
THINGS REALLY, FRED.
I HAVE BEEN ON SUCCESSFUL
STATEWIDE CAMPAIGN'S.
IN '90 I WAS CAMPAIGN DIRECTOR,
IN '94 CAMPAIGN MANAGER AND HE
WAS ELECTED TO A THIRD FOUR-YEAR
TERM.
I KNOW ABOUT STATEWIDE
GUBERNATORIAL CAMPAIGNS.
YOU NEED TWO THINGS.
YOU NEED TIME AND YOU NEED
MONEY.
I FELT PRETTY CONFIDENT ABOUT
THE FINANCIAL COMMITMENTS I HAD
FROM ACROSS THE STATE TO RUN A
COMPETITIVE CAMPAIGN.
BUT THE REALITY I RAN OUT OF
TIME.
THERE'S 417 DAYS UNTIL THE
GENERAL ELECTION, BUT THERE'S
ONLY 326 DAYS UNTIL THE PRIMARY
NEXT AUGUST 9.
AND REBECCA HAS A VERY BIG
HEADSTART IN THAT FRONT, HAS
BEEN ON THE STATEWIDE BALLOT
FIVE TIMES WITH SCOTT WALKER AND
SHE WON A PRIMARY IN 2010 TO GET
ON THAT TICKET AND SHE'S BEEN
WORKING THE CIRCUIT FOR TEN
YEARS.
SO I NEEDED MORE TIME.
THE SALE OF MY BUSINESS THROUGH
NO FAULT OF ANYONE TOOK LONGER
THAN I EXPECTED, BUT I'M EXCITED
TO JOIN STRATEGIES ON OCTOBER 1.
>> DO YOU THINK ALSO THAT
REBECCA KLEEFISCH NEEDS SOME
COMPETITION HERE?
>> I THINK REBECCA KLEEFISCH IS
RADICALLY WRONG FOR WISCONSIN.
SHE WAS SCOTT WALKER'S
LIEUTENANT, AND SHE CHAMPIONED A
FAR RIGHT AGENDA THAT ATTACKED
THE ABILITY OF YOU TO GET
AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE, THE
RIGHT OF WOMEN, THE RIGHTS OF
WORKERS AND BLACK AND BROWN
PEOPLE AND OF KIDS TO GET A
QUALITY PUBLIC EDUCATION.
IN ORDER TO TRY TO WIN THIS
PRIMARY, SHE HAS COME UP WITH
THE ANTI- ANTIVACCINE COVID DENS
AND VICTORY DENIERS.
THIS IS THE WRONG WAY FOR
WISCONSIN.
GOVERNOR EVERS HAS DONE WHAT HE
NEEDED TO DO.
HE HAS PUT WISCONSIN BACK ON
TRACK.
CONTINUES TO DELIVER FOR THE
PEOPLE OF WISCONSIN.
HIS INVESTMENTS HE MADE IN
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND
INFRASTRUCTURE AND IN HEALTH
CARE ARE ALL PAYING DIVIDENDS
FOR WISCONSIN.
WE ARE AMONGST THE LOWEST
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE AFTER COVID
AND WE HAVE LOST FAR LESS JOBS
THAN OUR NEIGHBORS.
>> I WANT TO JUMP IN AND ASK
BILL, DOES SCOTT WALKER CAMPAIGN
FOR HIS FORMER LIEUTENANT
GOVERNOR IN THIS RACE?
>> HE ENDORSED HER ON DAY ONE
AND HIS SON ALEX IS GOING TO BE
THE CAMPAIGN MANAGER.
THIS IS A RISKY MOVE, I THINK,
BY THE KLEEFISCH TEAM.
I THINK SHE NEEDED A LITTLE BIT
OF DAYLIGHT BETWEEN SHE AND
FORMER GOVERNOR SCOTT WALKER.
SHE NEEDED TO BE HER OWN PERSON.
AND TYING HERSELF COMPLETELY TO
WALKER IF THERE IS NO PRIMARY
MEANS SHE OWNS EVERYTHING HE DID
WHILE HE WAS GOVERNOR.
WHILE THOSE OF US ON THE RIGHT
THINK HE DID A LOT OF GOOD
THINGS, A LOT OF PEOPLE ON THE
LEFT DIDN'T THINK HE DID A LOT
OF GOOD INKS THIS.
-- THINGS.
IT FIRES UP THE LEFT.
SHE SHOULD HAVE HAD DISTANCE SO
SHE COULD BE HER OWN PERSON.
<!32768> BILL, YOU YOURSELF ARE
CAST AS A MODERATE REPUBLICAN.
WHAT DO YOU THINK THE WISCONSIN
ELECTORATE IS LOOKING FOR?
>> I'M NOT SURE THAT'S A FAIR
CHARACTERIZATION.
I CONSIDER MYSELF A
CONSERVATIVE.
TO SOME I'M CLOSER TO THE MIDDLE
OF THE SPECTRUM THAN THE FAR
RIGHT.
I THINK REPUBLICANS WANT
SOMEBODY WHO CAN WIN, NUMBER
ONE.
AND NUMBER TWO, I THINK THEY
WANT SOMEBODY WHO CAN DO THE JOB
IF THEY DO WIN THE ELECTION.
THAT WAS THE LANE I WAS GOING TO
TRY AND RUN UP, IS I HAD BEEN IN
THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE FOR SIX
YEARS, SERVED IN ALL THE TOP
POSITION.
I'D BEEN COMMERCE SECRETARY FOR
SIX YEARS.
BEEN ON THE INSIDE FOR TEN YEARS
IN THE TOP POSITIONS AND I KNOW
HOW TO RUN A GOVERNOR.
>> SCOT, I'M SORRY, I JUST WANT
TO GET SCOT IN AND ASK HIM WHAT
HE THINKS THE WISCONSIN
ELECTORATE IS LOOKING FOR.
>> PEOPLE WHO MAKE GOOD ON THEIR
PROMISES.
WITH ALL THE NOISE ON THE RIGHT,
WITH REPUBLICANS STANDING IN THE
WAY OF THE COMMON SENSE,
SCIENCE-BASED SOLUTIONS THAT
GOVERNOR EVERS HAS WORKED TO PUT
FORTH TO MAKE US GET THROUGH
THIS PANDEMIC WITH OUR
LIVELIHOODS STILL INTACT AND
WITH OUR HEALTH STILL INTACT.
I THINK THAT'S WHAT THEY'RE
LOOKING FOR.
REBECCA KLEEFISCH -- IF SCOTT
WALKER DOESN'T CAMPAIGN WITH
HER, DEMOCRATS WILL MAKE SURE
THAT THOSE TWO ARE TIED TOGETHER
BECAUSE SCOTT WALKER IS
INCREDIBLY POLARIZING AND
DEMOCRATS WILL RUN OUT TO
UNELECT HIM AGAIN WITH HIS
LIEUTENANT ON THE TICKET,
ABSOLUTELY WITHOUT A DOUBT.
BUT, AGAIN, REBECCA KLEEFISCH
HAS LEARNED FROM SCOTT WALKER.
SHE LEARNED FROM THE MASTER.
SHE HAS BEEN CAMPAIGNING
ILLEGALLY USING A TAX EXEMPT
NONPROFIT TO CAMPAIGN FOR
GOVERNOR, WHICH IS AGAINST THE
LAWS OF THE STATE OF WISCONSIN
WHEN IT COMES TO CAMPAIGNS AND
AGAINST THE IRS LAWS WHEN IT
COMES TO NONPROFITS.
>> WE HAVE OUT OF TIME.
WE NEED TO LEAVE IT THERE.
WE ARE SO THRILLED THAT YOU ARE
BACK ON THIS PANEL FOR US ON
THIS PROGRAM.
SCOT ROSS, BILL MCCOSHEN, THANKS
VERY MUCH.
>> GOOD TO