All right. Alex Castellanos, big story this week about Enron. It's a big business story, most people are saying.
I want to suggest to you it may be something more. Ken Lay, chairman of Enron, number one contributor by far to George W. Bush. Gave him over two million dollars plus the use of his corporate jet. Ken Lay, number one adviser to Dick Cheney in putting together the administration's energy plan. Ken Lay, of course, he put together his whole business under the lax rules and regulations in Texas under governor Bush. Ken Lay, considered seriously by George W. Bush to be commerce secretary.
And when California was hurting, had the energy crisis, and Governor Gray Davis was crying out that Dick Cheney and George Bush, saying, "you have to help us from Enron, that they are really screwing the consumers out here." Both Bush and Cheney says, "No,we are not going to touch Ken Lay."
And now Ken Lay has filed for the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history, screwing thousands of employees. Big political problem for the White House, wouldn't you say? Doesn't this make Whitewater look like small potatoes, Alex?
CASTELLANOS: Well, you found -- you found a Republican that spends money like a Democrat. Look. Maybe Republicans used electricity too and that contributed to the bankruptcy. He's from the same state and that's somehow a crime?
PRESS: No no no no no. No.
CASTELLANOS: Enron is a very big and bipartisan company that has employed lots of lobbyists in this town. Jack Quinn, Bennett Johnson, Democrats and Republicans. It's a shame that none of them could prevent the terrible failure of management that this company has.
But I'll tell you the one thing I think Republicans and Democrats do agree on is that if anybody in this company -- the executive -- made millions, keeping their stock, selling it at a high price and preventing pensioners from selling it, then you ought to hang them next to Osama Bin Laden. And there are laws for that and I'm sure this administration is going to enforce them. PRESS: Well, in fact, Ken Lay in fact did keep his billions while the -- while the employees lost their shirts. But you did mention -- I'm glad you mentioned the lobbyists. Enron's lobbyists. Because of course their most recent lobbyist is Marc Racicot, who is suddenly named by Bush as the Republican national chair. I mean, how could be so politically stupid as to name Enron's lobbyist...
CASTELLANOS: Just because he worked for Enron there's a connection there?
BILL: ...as the RNC chair?
CASTELLANOS: I think Governor Racicot also was a lobbyist for the recording industry. But that doesn't mean he can sing. Again, this is -- this company was represented by a lot of Democrats and Republicans. Governor Racicot is one of them.
But he's -- I tell you what, I'm glad you brought him up. Because he's a great choice for Republican chairman. We're very excited about that.
PRESS: Now, a K Street lobbyist as Republican chairman. This doesn't send a message that we'll do whatever big business wants?
CASTELLANOS: He's been a terrifically successful governor. I think the first time America got to see him was in the Florida recount when he was such an effective and articulate spokesman. He's close to the President. Shares a lot of the same values. Strong America. Strong families. You know, big payecks.
BILL: Oh, God.
CASTELLANOS: So we are very excited about him.
CARLSON: Now -- now, Paul Begala, you as a Democrat ought to be ashamed of yourself and all Democrats ought to be ashamed of themselves.
(CROSSTALK)
BILL: That's the second time on this show.
CARLSON: Two -- two in a growing list. Listen to this. Enron collapses, OK. Files for bankruptcy Sunday. Thousands -- many thousands out of work. Pensioners -- as was pointed out a moment ago -- without their pensions. Right before Christmas. This is a tragedy.
What do Democrats do? They make political hay out of it. They leverage the misery of the employees and stockholders of Enron for their own political gains. This is ambulance chasing and I hope you'll disavow it.
BEGALA: That's a good try. That's a new chapter in "Spin This." That's got to...
CARLSON: It's not a try. It's true. You're trying to make political hay out of the misery of Enron.
(CROSSTALK)
BEGALA: No, look. Here's...
CASTELLANOS: I owe Paul. He definitely -- he plugged the move first.
BEGALA: Here's the problem, is that Enron is a vast and far- flung empire. But one of its wholly-owned subsidiaries is the one that's going to pay the price, and it's called Bush, Inc. George W. Bush is bought and paid for by Enron. He has -- some of his top aides are stockholders in Enron -- which they should not have been while they were making energy policy on Enron.
PRESS: There's a guy named Karl Rove...
BEGALA: Dick Cheney met secretly -- my friend Karl Rove. I didn't want to throw his name out on national television.
Dick Cheney met privately with the CEO of Enron, Ken Lay. He won't tell us when, where or what they talked about. We have a whole situation where the -- the "Houston Chronicle" even said when the Bush energy plan was introduced that it looked like it was designed for Enron. It was very favorable for Enron.
CARLSON: Which I'm sure was -- I'm glad you pointed that out...
BEGALA: ...make policy for the people who give them money.
CARLSON: That -- that your friend Karl Rove met with people from Enron because it's not the only...
BEGALA: He owns stock in Enron.
CARLSON: Oh.
BEGALA: Yes.
CARLSON: Oh, we have a -- he owns stock. I mean, I'm sure you own stock in -- in some mutual funds.
CASTELLANOS: I and millions of other Americans.
BEGALA: Mutual funds -- mutual funds are exempted by the ethics laws. I have to live under those laws, unlike the Bush people.
CARLSON: You know a lot about ethics laws. I'm aware of that. But let me -- let me point this out. That -- who went to a Clinton coffee? Representatives of Enron. The first time I heard of Enron was at the White House in 1997 when the Enron guys were up there with Al Gore.
BEGALA: Who was the biggest donor... CARLSON: Who received money from them? Hold on, wait. Who received money from them? Sheila Jackson-Lee, Charlie Stenholm, Benson. Your pals from the Texas delegation. Democrats all. Are they in the scandal too?
BEGALA: Look, George W. Bush is the guy who is going to take the fall here. It is his father's cabinet officers who went on the board at Enron, it is his administration that is staffed by Enron from the Secretary of the Army to his -- his buddies who owned stock in it while they were making decisions on it.
Do you know what we need?
CARLSON: What?
BEGALA: Whitewater was a $200,000 land deal 20 years ago. The Republicans spent $50 million, hired hundreds of agents and IRS agents and FBI agents and accountants. We need an investigation and get to the bottom of it.
Maybe I'm completely wrong and Bush is completely clean and he needs to have his name cleared.
CARLSON: Weren't you the guy crying witch hunt five years ago?
BEGALA: Let's have a full -- this is a multi-billion dollar rip off and with George W. Bush at the center of it.
PRESS: This is real. Whitewater was nothing. (...)