Press - From the left: a life in the crossfire

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For Milo, Prairie, Willow, Django, and Silas: In a life full of wonders, you are the greatest of all!

FROM THE LEFT, IM BILL PRESS.

For six exciting, rousing, and altogether fun years, I had the joy of saying that every night on CNN, followed by, From the right, Im Bob Novakor Pat Buchanan, or Mary Matalin, or Tucker Carlsonannouncing the end of that days edition of Crossfire .

I had a good run on Crossfire . As I learned in a number of jobs along the way, six years is a long time for television. I think I did a solid job, judging from both the kudos I received from the left and the hate mail from the right. And no wonder. I had the worlds best coach: the president of the United States!

In February 1996, a few weeks before actually landing the job, I was in Washington for a third round of auditions for Crossfire when I got a call from my good friend Susie Tompkins Buell from Bolinas. She was in town to attend a lunch for major donors at the White House. Since I was still, at that time, chair of the California Democratic Party, I made a quick call to Deputy Chief of Staff Harold Ickes and landed myself an invitation.

After lunch in the State Dining Room, Susie and I lined up with other guests to greet President Clinton in the Blue Room. Susie and I had both met the president several times before. In fact, Susie and her husband, Mark, were among his biggest supporters and fund-raisers in California, and, as state chair, I was part of his entourage almost every time he came to the Golden Statewhich occurred so often, we joked with him about his being eligible to vote in California.

When our turn came, Susie and I each gave Clinton a big hug and extended very special greetings from West Marin County, where we both have homes.

Clinton was in a particularly good mood, so after a little back-and-forth banter, I said, Mr. President, Ill bet you dont know why Im in Washington today.

He looked puzzled and said, No, whys that?

I told him I was trying out for a job on Crossfire .

He asked, You mean, youre a guest on Crossfire tonight?

And I explained, Oh, no. Im actually auditioning to be the shows new cohost on the left.

At which point, Clinton grabbed my arm, pulled me to the side, brought his face up close to mine, and gave me my marching orders: Let me just tell you one thing, he told me, wagging his finger in my face. Dont take no shit!

And I didnt. Not that day. And, once I got the job, not any day for the next six years, starting with my debut as Crossfire s new host on the left: February 26, 1996.

My challenge that night was defending normalization of relations with Cuba. This was just two days after Cuban MiGs had shot down two civilian aircraft belonging to the Miami-based organization Brothers to the Rescue, killing all four on board. Via satellite from Miami, arguing that this was an act of war, which demanded a military response by the United States, was the notorious Jorge Mas Canosa. As founder of the Cuban-American National Foundation, under both Republican and Democratic presidents, he had single-handedly dictated U.S.-Cuba policy for the last thirty years. No Republican or Democratic president dared oppose him.

Especially given the timing of the incident and the death of four Brothers volunteers, it was a tough argument to make and a good introduction to the challenges Crossfire would offer for the next six years. I thought Id held my own, but was shaken upon leaving the studio to receive a phone message from a close Los Angeles liberal friend, Hollywood producer Stephen Rivers.

I cant believe it, said Rivers. Your very first day on Crossfire and you defend fucking Fidel Castro! I realized right then and there that I was in for a wild ride.

Crossfire , which started with the launch of CNN in 1982, was the first and best of Americas political debate shows. And, to my mind, canceling the original Crossfire was one of the dumbest decisions ever made in cable television.

I say that not just because I was cohost on the left. I was only there for six out of the shows twenty-two years, and I had moved on before the ax finally fell. I say that simply because its true. No other show could compete with Crossfire then. And no other political show today is as good or compelling, nor offers the same spontaneity and passion.

For me, Crossfire was the latest adventure in an ever-changing career, catapulting me from Switzerland to San Francisco; from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C.; from a decade in the seminary to the California governors office; from leading the most populous states Democratic Party to cohosting the most popular debate program on national television.

Some peoples professional lives may proceed in a relatively straight line from start to finish. Mine never did. Instead, Ive zigzagged in what were often totally opposite directions: first stepping outside the world for ten years to study for the Catholic priesthood; then diving back into politics as volunteer, campaign manager, and, ultimately, statewide candidate myself; taking time out again to serve in government as legislative aide, department head, and adviser to the California governor; and, finally, jumping into the world of media, from local political commentator to host of four national TV and radio shows.

Maybe the weirdest part is that I ended up on the left at all. Yes, I proudly admit, Im a bleeding-heart liberal: pro-choice, pro-environment, progun control, proaffirmative action, pro-immigrant, progay rights, and pro-union. Also anti-war, antideath penalty, anti-discrimination, and anti-vouchers. And yes, a card-carrying member of the ACLU.

But by birthright, I probably should have ended up on the other side of the tracks.

After all, I grew up in a Republican stronghold, south of the Mason-Dixon line. Both my parents were Republicans. In my small town, segregation was the rule. Blacksalthough we routinely used the N-word instead, without acknowledging there was anything wrong with itshopped in their own stores, worshiped in their own churches, and walked a mile outside of town to attend their own school.

As kids, we had rock fights with black kids in the streets. And as Catholics, we were vehemently anti-abortion, anti-divorce, anti-sex outside of marriage, and anti-homosexuality. We didnt use the term gay . We, Im ashamed to admit, called them queers and faggots and considered LGBTQ Americans mentally ill.

Lets face it. Given where I came from and what I was taught in school, I should probably have ended up a Trump voter.

Some of my family and friends back then likely wonder: What went wrong? Where and how, along the way, did I veer off the tracks?

A better question is: What went right? Or, more to the point, what went left? How did I escape the clutches of conservatism and end up a flaming lefty, let alone the chair of the California Democratic Party, liberal cohost of CNNs Crossfire and The Spin Room , liberal counterpuncher on MSNBCs Buchanan & Press , and nationally syndicated liberal morning radio talk show host?