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CNN Live Event/Special

Interview With Romney Senior Campaign Adviser Beth Myers

Aired August 11, 2012 - 10:02   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Let's bring in our chief political analyst, Gloria Borger.

Gloria, you have done something else that no one else has managed to do. You had a chance to sit down, last Tuesday, with Beth Myers who is really in charge of this selection committee for Mitt Romney who would be the vice presidential running mate.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: That's right. I sat down with Beth Myers, and she would only let me get in a couple of questions about the vice presidential selection because, of course, at that point, she knew, presumably, who the choice would be, but we did not. So I asked her general questions about what this tells us about the way Mitt Romney makes decisions.

Let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BORGER: You've been very involved --

BETH MYERS, ROMNEY CAMPAIGN SENIOR ADVISER: Yes.

BORGER: -- in the vetting and the process of choosing a vice presidential running mate, which is very, very important. It's the first chance people get to look at how a president makes decisions. So what is it about the process of choosing a vice president, what does that tell us about how Mitt Romney makes decisions?

MYERS: Well, that's something I've learned working with him as chief of staff in the -- at the governor's office for four years. There is a way -- he's very methodical in making his decisions and what he wants is a couple things.

First of all, he wants all the information. And we went -- we went about a very thorough process in making we have a lot of information about a broad group. He also doesn't like to rule anything out until he has to. So, you know, the first swath was broad. We got a good cut of information about a lot of people.

He then narrowed it down and we got even more information. We got personal information from each of the potential candidates. And at that point, again, we had some attorneys look through and go through everybody's record to make sure that there was -- you know, I didn't want to miss anything about them. And then Mitt took these candidate dossiers and he thought about them. He read all of them, word for word. I had talked with each of the candidates personally. He had obviously been campaigning with a lot of the folks that he was considering.

And -- and he read the dossiers. We narrowed it down once again. And did an even a more deep dive on them and then gave them the final product, and he's thinking about it now.

BORGER: Does he solicit your advice --

MYERS: He solicits the advice of a small group of his advisers, but then he asks, I think, everybody he meets, you know, what's your thought on this?

BORGER: And he listens?

MYERS: He listens.

I mean, he asks -- sort of the people you wouldn't think that he'd ask about it. He talks to, you know -- he calls friends from all walks of his life. All across the country. Wanting to know what they think. He listens to that.

And then he is -- but I haven't told him -- I have not shared with my opinion because I think it's important that I'm the objective --

BORGER: So it's his comfort level with someone --

MYERS: Yes.

BORGER: -- and his feeling that person is qualified to be --

MYERS: Yes.

BORGER: -- president?

MYERS: Yes. Yes, absolutely.

I mean, obviously, his first qualification is that the person is qualified to be the president. And perceived to be qualified to be president.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Good interview, Gloria.