Transcript for the Piece Audio version of Backstage At The State of the Union-2007

SUGGESTED HOST INTRO
The pageantry of the State of The Union address is carefully orchestrated ? President George W. Bush standing before a full House chamber acknowledging the applause. What the national audience doesn?t see is the mayhem unfolding just a few short feet away outside the chamber. Benjamin Shaw was in the thick of it on Capitol Hill.

Security is high tonight in the capitol. Streets around the building are closed. Dogs sweep the area sniffing for explosives and men in what look like space suits from the movie 2001 huddle in a back room readying for the worst.
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Where are you headed?
Getting into the Capitol is never easy, but on the night of the State of the Union Address the building becomes a fortress.
One room inside the stronghold becomes the nerve center ? at least for the press and lawmakers trying to get their own messages out to the nation.
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Ambient of stat hall?
Statuary Hall ? The Old House Chamber ? is a room filled with statues and on most days groups of tourists. But tonight it?s packed wall to wall with TV cameras, lights and reporters.
Lawmakers, Celebrities, Supreme Court Justices everyone but the President passes through this room ? feet from the House chamber - to get in to hear the speech? and reporters try to catch them as they pass.
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Can I talk to you?can ask you?
It?s the political red carpet.
Of course there are always the stragglers?Such as Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer of New York.
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I?m always late? that?s me?
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SMALL TV Intro
As the President begins his speech reporters huddle around small TV?s.
One flight down, the president?s words echo off the stone walls of the Capitol Basement. In this room - called The Crypt ? a sea of legislative staff members dressed in black suits watch wide screen TV?s and mark up print versions of the speech.
As the President wrapped up his remarks, Democratic Representative Earl Blumenauer from Portland, Oregon heads for the bright lights and TV cameras in Statuary hall.
His press assistant hands him a paper with a big black heading ?Democratic Talking Points??
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Talking points? if you need talking points after listening to this thing. Sheesh!
Chris Shays a moderate republican from Connecticut stops to answer questions. But before he or Blumenauer can get in front of the cameras?
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That?s really funny, the power just went out?
It couldn?t have happened at a worse moment!

Camera crews are scrambling to get extra power cords out and lights as lawmakers file into the room.
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We?re on battery? all of stat hall has lost power. I didn?t do that did I? All I did was step on this?
A couple minutes later power was back, a blown fuse had been replaced.
And the mad rush is back on. Lawmakers head from tri-pod to microphone to tri-pod, lining up 6 deep to talk to reporters, anxious to throw their own light on the president?s speech.
Benjamin Shaw, Capitol News Connection, Washington.