ROBERTS: We're talking tonight about the planned Islamic community center and prayer space down on Park Place in Lower Manhattan, two blocks northeast of the Ground Zero site, another two blocks south of a mosque that's been in that area since 1970, before there even was a Twin Towers.
Sixty-eight percent of Americans surveyed by CNN/Opinion Research Corporation oppose it. In other polling, so does a smaller majority of New Yorkers. A narrow majority of Manhattanites say they support it.
Believe it or not, when the local community board voted on it, the result was 29-1 in favor, with 10 people abstaining.
It seems the farther you get from the location, the closer you get to election day, the hotter the opposition becomes. That's "Raw Politics" for you. And here to talk about all of that, political analyst Roland Martin, political contributor/GOP strategist Ed Rollins, and senior political analyst David Gergen.
Good evening to you all, gentlemen.
Roland, is this the sort of thing that Democrats want to be talking about right now, at a point where many people form their opinions of who they're going to vote for in November?
ROLAND MARTIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Of course not. And you're running for office. You don't want to be talking about what's happening in New York City in Lower Manhattan. You want to talk about what's happening on the ground, economic-wise, in Indiana, in Georgia, in Mississippi, Alabama, Idaho, California, or wherever you are.
So, frankly, if I'm a Democrat and somebody comes to me with that question, and I'm running for the U.S. Senate, I say, "Hey, go talk to Chuck Schumer. And go talk to, you know, the folks representing New York. I'm here talking about my district." ROBERTS: Well, if only Harry Reid had said that instead of what he said. So Harry Reid is another Democrat, David Gergen, who's distancing himself from the president. Do you believe, as time goes on, now that the White House has weighed in on what was a local issue, you'll see more Democrats looking to put some space between them and the president?
DAVID GERGEN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I think so, yes. There are a lot of Democrats that, of course, would like not to talk about this. Roland is right about that. It's a big national controversy, and you're running for a Washington office, you know, it seems to me it's totally legitimate for the press or their opponents to ask them, what do you think about this issue?
I think that, you know, it's like one of the issues you're going to have to deal with when you're in national life.
ROBERTS: And you were one of the notable quotables from the Sunday shows when you said, "This is the dumbest thing that any president has said or candidate has said since Michael Dukakis said it was OK to burn the flag."
ED ROLLINS, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: It's a similar issue, emotional issue. You can give an intellectual answer.
ROBERTS: Is it a defining moment for this president?
ROLLINS: It may be. It may very well be. There's going to be some seats lost over this issue, I think. It's going to energize our base. Yes, I think there will. I think you're down to where these seats are a couple hundred votes. I think people are distracted by they can't talk about the things they want to be talking about, as Roland said. And I think this is an issue that's not going to go away. It's going to get bigger as time goes on. And, you know, it shouldn't be, but I think it will.
ROBERTS: Do you agree, Roland? It's going to cost the Democrats some seats?
MARTIN: No. No. I think if you're sitting here voting, if you were in any other place in America and your district is broke, you've got people who are increasing number of Food Stamps, you've got school districts laying off hundreds of thousands of teachers. And you're actually going to say, "I'm going to vote for somebody based upon this issue," to me, that's nuts. You vote on what's happening where you are.
And I will also say this here. Democrats should get some spine and say, "You know what? I am sworn to uphold and protect the Constitution."
The president was strong on that on Friday. I think -- I think he blew it on Saturday by walking it back. Stay strong. Say it's about the Constitution. Because every member of Congress, they are supposed to stand up and protect the Constitution.
ROBERTS: David -- David, you've been here -- I'm not sure if you're nodding your head or shaking your head or a little bit of both.
GERGEN: Listen, I've been talking to people about is this a one- week story or is this going to be a lingering story, especially for President Obama? And I increasingly believe it may come back to haunt him over time. I thought at first it would be short.
But there was a quality about this that I think a lot of people concluded wasn't just about the merits of the issue, but there was a sense that this is another example of people thinking, "He doesn't understand me. He's not like me. He sees the world through different glasses than I do."
ROBERTS: Communication problem?
GERGEN: Well, it's -- I thought in Philadelphia during the campaign, that was a masterful speech because he gave voice to alternative perspectives and was respectful of them.
And in this situation, he stated one point of view, but for lots and lots of other people who oppose this, he showed no sympathy for what they're going through and why the public is...
MARTIN: David -- David, the one point of view is the Constitution.
GERGEN: That is not the only issue, Roland.
MARTIN: That's the one point of view.
(CROSSTALK)
ROLLINS: I don't think anybody is basically arguing about repealing the First Amendment. I think the critical thing here is, it's a judgment call. It was a bad judgment in the heart of the politics.
And where this president carries this party or sinks this party is on his approval ratings. And you go back to 1947...
ROBERTS: Which are not looking good.
ROLLINS: ... and they're 52 percent -- 42 percent today in the Gallup, back to the Nixon and Reagan levels now. If he drops another two or three points, which he clearly could -- and this is a defining -- could be a defining moment -- he's going to hurt his party. I say people are going to lose seats. The whole thing is about 3 percent or 4 percent out there.
And our base is energized already. And this is going to energize some conservatives, some Tea Party people.
ROBERTS: But the point has been made, though -- but the point has been made, Roland -- let's get you to speak to this -- that the GOP could also lose something over this, because they're trying, obviously, to get as many votes as they can. There's a large section of the Muslim population that presidential and, obviously, local candidates court in Dearborn, Michigan.
How are Muslims in this country going to feel about what the GOP are saying these days?
MARTIN: Well, obviously, frankly, people really haven't cared what they thought since 9/11, whether you're a moderate Muslim and folks have just blown them away and dismissed them and said they're absolutely irrelevant.
And so sure, if I've lobbying and you're Republicans, you're trying to lock up those freshman Democrats who won in conservative districts. And that's really who you're really targeting. But it is amazing to me, though, when you have folks on the right who have attacked this president by saying he's not one of us and doesn't understand our values. And when he does actually reinforce the Constitution, then it's a bad thing.
I get the whole political thing, but maybe -- but it is amazing how he's criticized for saying it is the constitutional right. That's pretty interesting.
GERGEN: It is not simply a constitutional issue. It has to do with the sensitivities and sensibilities of a lot of families who lost loved ones there for whom this is hallowed ground. And a lot of Americans are saying, basically, look, if they've got real problems with it, I would rather they'd move it somewhere else.
ROBERTS: We're not going to solve this tonight.
MARTIN: Hallowed ground? There's a mosque four blocks away. This is two blocks away. Wow!
ROBERTS: Roland Martin, David Gergen, Ed Rollins, thanks for coming up. Appreciate it.