CARVILLE:   Welcome back to CROSSFIRE. The U.S. unemployment rate hit six percent this week, and then it went a little higher, as Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill and the president's chief economic adviser, Larry Lindsey, were asked to resign. In the CROSSFIRE, New York Democratic Congressman Charlie Rangel and California Republican Congressman David Dreier. 
CARLSON:   All right, Congressman Rangel, trying to get specific ideas out of you. Couldn't do that. Can I get specific... 
RANGEL:   I tried to give them to you. 
CARLSON:   I know, but it didn't work. The draft is not necessarily an economic plan. 
RANGEL:   Well, I just wanted to throw that in there to let you know if we're going to war and we got to have a tax cut policy, that we need to take into consideration all of these things. You know, it's not who's going to be named to replace them. Does the president give us a sense of fairness with the sacrifice that our country is making? 
DREIER:   Charlie, Tucker wants to ask you a question. 
CARLSON:   But the very -- right. But he does have to appoint a treasury secretary. And I'd like to know who you think he ought to appoint? 
RANGEL:   I'm concerned with the plan and not the man. And so it doesn't really make any difference who it is. It is abundantly clear that O'Neill couldn't get along with the White House or the Republicans. But he never had a plan except for tax cuts. We Democrats want to work with somebody, anybody that we can cooperate... 
DREIER:   Charlie, you have made a great point here in focusing on the future rather than simply focusing on personalities here. And I think that's a very good positive development on your part there, Charlie. Because... 
RANGEL:   It's not   on me. There is no room for me to kick O'Neill around. Republicans have done a great job at it. 
DREIER:   Let me just tell you something. These -- Paul O'Neill and Larry Lindsey are dedicated public servants. They stepped forward. And it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that after a midterm election there are changes made. 
RANGEL:   You kicked them overboard and you know it. Come on. 
DREIER:   We're happy to have you involved in an economic growth plan. And I will tell you, there are a lot of names out there that people are talking about.  
CARVILLE:   If anybody mentions it, this is a $20 bill. I'll give it to you. Just throw out some names. And if you get one of them right, you get $20. Give us three. 
DREIER:   Well, I'll tell you, Jerry Parsky (ph), my fellow Californian is one name. John Taylor (ph), whose son is here with me. 
CARVILLE:   If it's right you get it. 
DREIER:   How's that? 
CARLSON:   What about Senator John Breaux, Congressman? What do you think of that? Would he be... 
RANGEL:   I am so serious that I really think the substance of the plan is far more important than the personality. And that was one of the things. I think that O'Neill was a very bright man, but he could not communicate to us exactly which direction he wanted to take the country. 
CARVILLE:   How do you expect O'Neill to communicate, when Ari Fleischer tells us the president doesn't have an economic plan? Why blame O'Neill? 
CARLSON:   And that's why we need somebody who can communicate. 
CARVILLE:   It's the error (ph) not the  . 
CARLSON:   Wait, hold on. May I suggest someone who not only has the firmest possible grasp on international finance, but also the ability to communicate back to the American people. I want both of your takes on this. I'm nominating Lou Dobbs of CNN. A veteran broadcaster. 
CARVILLE:   Actually, I misspoke. It was the Indian (ph) not  . 
RANGEL:   I wish somebody would... 
DREIER:   There are plenty of names out there. My former colleague in the House, Bill Archer, is another name that's mentioned. I think that there are a lot of very... 
CARVILLE:   Charlie, if you get one of them right you get 20 bucks. 
DREIER:   I'm still waiting for it. 
CARVILLE:   When he appoints somebody. You can't get it by just  . Charlie, you got any other? 
RANGEL:   The country's going down the economic tubes. We got more and more people unemployed. I think we deserve better than to be talking about a name. The president should be doing something for these people now before they lose their homes, lose their kids and school. 
DREIER:   I mean as Tucker pointed out, Charlie, we're offering the ideas and the proposals here, and you really haven't thrown anything out. 
CARVILLE:   I know the economic policy in this administration has been high deficits and high tariffs. If we go back to the Clinton policy of lower deficits and lower tariffs, who could fill that thing? 
DREIER:   That is absolute baloney, James. 
CARVILLE:   That's what they're know for, high deficits and high tariffs. 
DREIER:   Let me just say something. We had a Republican Congress during that period of time, and also we've got to realize those two points that we made. The downturn began... 
CARLSON:   One at a time. One at a time. 
CARVILLE:   ... legislation since World War II was passed. That was the Clinton budget in 1993, that if more than anything else... 
DREIER:   It had nothing to do with the economic growth. It was the Reagan tax cuts in the 1980s. You know darn well... 
CARVILLE:   Oh, come on.   said in my life. When that passed, every one of you guys said it was going to be a failure, this would never work. It was the most explosive growth we've ever had. 
CARLSON:   OK, hold on. Mr. Rangel, we're almost out of time. Quickly, give me one quality you think the new treasury secretary ought to have. What's the most important personal quality this guy can have? 
RANGEL:   The ability to come up with a plan and to communicate it to the Congress and the American people. 
CARLSON:   OK. Charlie Rangel in New York, thank you very much. David Dreier here in Washington, thank you. Coming up, a   actress goes before a judge. Details next in a CNN "News Alert." And then, we'll head down to Louisiana, where the last Senate race of the season is underway and looking promising. We'll be right back.    Next up, an update on the last day of the Louisiana Senate race. We'll also talk with two of the strategists which helped make the Landrieu/Terrell contest wonderfully cruel and savage. We'll be right back.
