T. Boone Pickens on $700B Bailout Plan

This is a rush transcript from "Your World With Neil Cavuto," September 24, 2008. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

NEIL CAVUTO, HOST: All right, we're told now we're only a couple of minutes away from Barack Obama making a statement to the media on a day that his opponent in this presidential election has opted to suspend his campaign to get back to Washington to hammer out a new rescue package for the financial industry.

At the same time, he said that he did not think it was a good idea to go ahead with Friday's presidential debate. We know that Senator Obama says it's perfectly fine to go ahead with it.

I want to get reaction right now on this and a lot of other things — we might interrupt him for what Senator Obama says — from Boone Pickens, the billionaire, of course, of energy fame and so much more.

Boone, what do think of this soap opera over this package, how it's developing?

T. BOONE PICKENS, FOUNDER & CHAIRMAN, BP CAPITAL: I think they ought to do it.

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CAVUTO: The package as it stands?

PICKENS: Well, I don't — I don't know the details. But I think, you know, Bernanke — Bernanke and Paulson, I think, two good men. And we have got a problem. I'm always big on leadership. I think these two guys can, you know, give it to them.

And I — and, of course, I'm being influenced by Warren Buffett.

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CAVUTO: Right.

Now, Warren Buffett went ahead and — and — and bought $5 billion worth of Goldman Sachs, I would imagine, Boone, on the idea that this deal goes through. If this deal does not go through — he hasn't said as much, but I imagine he pulls that interest.

I — what I'm wondering is, what do you think will be the financial fallout if this deal, it doesn't get done?

PICKENS: Oh, I think, if — if you don't do it, they're going to go let another one fail, like Lehman, and then the outcry is going to be too much, and they will have to go ahead and make a deal.

CAVUTO: What about the notion of adding more to the deal, rescue homeowners, put in waivers on executive pay, that sort of thing?

PICKENS: I don't — I don't — I don't know the details of the deal. I really don't. And I — you know, I — I see it, and...

CAVUTO: But do you worry that Congress just keeps adding and adding to it? That's been a fear in the markets.

PICKENS: Well, it is. And people are afraid. And they should be afraid.

CAVUTO: OK.

(CROSSTALK)

PICKENS: But I want to — I want to talk about energy.

CAVUTO: I know you do, and you have been patient, because you're lecturing me again.

But, now, I — you worry about energy. How can we craft anything on energy when we can't get this puppy out the door?

PICKENS: Well, look, if the energy is $700 billion a year, isn't it a coincidence that this bailout is $700 billion also? I don't know. It's...

CAVUTO: What are you — what are you saying?

PICKENS: The bailout is $700 billion this year.

CAVUTO: I know.

PICKENS: Energy is $700 billion every year.

CAVUTO: So, if you had your druthers, between the two, who and what would you fix first? Or do you — do we have the money to do both?

(CROSSTALK)

PICKENS: Well, you're not going to fix energy by bailing out. You're going to fix energy by using a domestic fuel, which will, gallon for gallon, reduce the imports.

Now, I have got one that fixes the economy.

CAVUTO: All right.

We're looking at an Obama aide, who's coming out here to set things up for him.

But, if you were either of these senators, McCain or Obama, what would you be telling the nation right now?

PICKENS: You know, I have already — I — I told you I didn't — I didn't know. I don't know the details.

I — I — I'm sorry. I can't help you. I really can't. I'm not...

CAVUTO: Now, what they're saying...

PICKENS: I'm not focused on that.

CAVUTO: What the markets are saying, when it comes to things like energy, when it comes to a financial rescue package, is that Washington is sort of fiddling while Rome is burning.

PICKENS: OK. On energy, I would like for both of them to come out and say they accepted the Pickens plan.

CAVUTO: Which would be looking for alternatives, particularly wind.

PICKENS: And solar and natural gas for...

CAVUTO: But you are for drilling.

PICKENS: I'm for drilling.

(CROSSTALK)

CAVUTO: Drill, baby, drill, but just realize there are other options, right?

PICKENS: I want everything American.

CAVUTO: OK. So, your position is very much like that of the combined position of Democrats and Republicans. So, we're closer to a deal, at least on that, than we are on this.

PICKENS: Could be. I met with the gang of 10, now a gang of 25, yesterday in Washington.

CAVUTO: Right.

PICKENS: And it was a very good meeting.

CAVUTO: OK.

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

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