Can Obama-Clinton Unite the Dem. Party?

This is a rush transcript from "Hannity & Colmes," June 4, 2008. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

ALAN COLMES, CO-HOST: The big story tonight — Hillary Clinton's plans to suspend her campaign this Saturday and express her support for Barack Obama.

Joining us now with reaction is Clinton supporter, Pennsylvania governor, Ed Rendell.

Governor, welcome back to "Hannity & Colmes."

GOV. ED RENDELL (D-PA), CLINTON SUPPORTER: Hi, guys.

COLMES: Have you had any conversations with Senator Clinton about this? And has she told you anything about what she plans to do?

• Video: Watch Sean and Alan's interview

RENDELL: No, I've talked to a few people close to the campaign, and you've got it right. She's going to suspend the campaign. I'm not sure that she doesn't intend to have her delegates vote for her at the convention, but make no attempt to disrupt the outcome.

It is what it is, and Senator Obama has won. She's got to do the right thing, and she will, and I think she'll begin unifying the party. She'll be a good campaigner for Senator Obama whether she's on the ticket or not.

COLMES: Do you want her on the ticket?

RENDELL: I'd like to see her on the ticket, but I don't think it's likely to happen.

COLMES: Why do you think not?

RENDELL: There's just so much animosity built up over a year plus campaign, particularly among the staffs and the advisers, it's very difficult to go back. And I just don't see it happening.

The only way it will happen is if she and Senator Obama sit down together, spend some time together, and find out whether they can be compatible, whether she understands her role, whether he'll give her an important thing or things to do in the administration if they're successful.

If they can work all that out, I think it would be a ticket that would energize the Democrats even more than we're energized, and that's a pretty high level, and I think it would allay and give a comfort level to a lot of voters in places like Pennsylvania and Ohio and Michigan and Arkansas.

COLMES: One of the thing that's been talked about, if it's not going to be Hillary Clinton, perhaps a strong Hillary supporter to bring the 18 million votes, someone like yourself, for example, who is a big Hillary supporter, governor of an important state, you know, certainly VP material.

RENDELL: Well.

COLMES: Has that been an idea that you've even thought about or perhaps had any discussion about?

RENDELL: You know, it's interesting, guys, I became my own boss when I got elected district attorney at the age of 32. So for 32 years, except for my one year as DNC chair, I was my own boss. And my one year as DNC chair taught me I'm not good at working for somebody else.

So I don't think vice president would be appealing to me. Plus I don't think I've got the foreign policy and security credentials that I think Senator Obama needs in a running mate.

COLMES: Are you saying if asked you would not serve?

RENDELL: I would really try to talk him out of it. There are people who, I think, who could help us here in Pennsylvania, like Joe Biden, who, of course.

SEAN HANNITY, CO-HOST: Hey, Governor, the one number reason is you'd miss three or four or five cheesesteaks a week, and that's too much of a sacrifice for anybody.

RENDELL: And the Eagles and the Phillies, and everything else. Right.

HANNITY: Yes, exactly. That would be pretty tough. Governor, good to see you. Thanks for being with us.

The Politico — Barack Obama limps across the finish line. I want to ask you the same question I asked Lanny Davis. If we were starting this process over today, and the American people — the people of Des Moines, New Hampshire, South Carolina — if they knew about Reverend Wright, if they knew about Williams Ayers, if they knew about Father Pfleger, if they knew about — well, it was your state of Pennsylvania where he talked about bitter Americans — if they knew about this, do you think he would have won this nomination?

RENDELL: Let me add one other facts to that, because I think it's as important as some of the thing you raised, Sean. If they had seen the Hillary Clinton that evolved in March, April, and May, the strong populist with a good sense of humor who was comfortable in her own skin, I think Hillary Clinton would have stormed her way to the nomination.

HANNITY: I've give it — I will agree. She grew as a candidate. I think she grew tremendously. I think she got far more comfortable.

But you still didn't answer my question. If we knew everything about Barack Obama — remember, I first interviewed Reverend Wright in March of 2007. It didn't become an issue until March of 2008.

RENDELL: Right.

HANNITY: If everybody knew about that ahead of time in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, would he have won the nomination?

RENDELL: If people knew about those things and Hillary Clinton.

HANNITY: Yes.

RENDELL: . was the candidate she became.

HANNITY: No.

RENDELL: . I think he — she would have stormed to victory. Stormed to victory.

HANNITY: I agree with you. And that's an interesting position because if we look at the most recent exit polls in the latest states, the Democrats are saying — a majority of Democrats, Governor — that they don't find Barack Obama honest and trustworthy, that they believe he shares the views of Reverend Wright, and that a third of Democrats will vote for McCain.

That's starting out in a pretty frightening position, isn't it, for a Democrat?

RENDELL: There are clear warning signals, and Senator Obama has got a lot of work to do. But of course, if Senator Clinton have been the nominee, there would have been people who would have taken that same type of position vis-a-vis her candidacy and Senator McCain has the problem.

HANNITY: I would have been a lot easier on Senator Clinton.

RENDELL: Oh, I agree.

HANNITY: No.

RENDELL: Senator McCain.

COLMES: Oh, yes, yes, right.

RENDELL: Senator McCain has the problem with some of the right wing of his party. So everybody has liabilities, everybody has hurdles to meet.

HANNITY: Right.

RENDELL: But give Senator Obama some credit. He's a terrific campaigner, he's smart as a whip, and I think if he addresses the issues and stays on issue and stays on message, he'll win.

HANNITY: Do you really believe for 20 years he sat in that church and he didn't know the real Reverend Wright, the same guy he disinvited, or is there a level of dishonesty?

RENDELL: Now I think that he applied to Reverend Wright what we all apply to each other. And that's a balancing test. And he found that the good in Reverend Wright outweighed the things that he didn't agree with.

HANNITY: Boy, you're good. If I get in trouble, I'm calling you.

RENDELL: No, no. But I believe that's true.

HANNITY: No, I'm calling you. I think you can defend me pretty well. I think you would defend me.

RENDELL: Sean, I believe — I would defend you. That's exactly right. But I also believe people are complex.

HANNITY: All right. I got to run.

RENDELL: Nobody's all good, nobody's all bad.

HANNITY: Governor.

RENDELL: We weigh each other every day.

HANNITY: Tell Pat's and Geno's when I'm in town I'm going to both places. Thanks for being with us.

RENDELL: And hello to the Arizona (INAUDIBLE)

HANNITY: And no Swiss cheese either or whatever.

RENDELL: That's right. John Kerry.

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