(00:00:02) NPR Network station kzs EFM in the Rochester area is beginning its second year of quality news and information broadcasting. Thanks go out to all members who support the MPR news and information network stations. He returned to KN o w in Minneapolis st. Paul in the Twin Cities now cloudy skies, 48 degrees winds Northwest gusting to 40. Coming up in just about a minute our live broadcast of the Gorbachev trip to Minnesota to stay with us. It's going to be rather a nippy afternoon for the president's trip to the Twin Cities area. The winds will be rather strong intermittent light rain will be tapering off and pretty much ending in a little while. Skies will clear partially later on today. The high should range somewhere between 50 and 55 degrees but winds will be out of the north northwest at 15 to 30 miles an hour and of course wind advisories are posted for area lakes the forecast for tonight clearing skies and the Low by morning rather nippy just in the upper 30s winds will be diminishing to 5 to 10 miles an hour by Daybreak. Then tomorrow should be a fairly nice day as you head back to work sunny skies warmer temperatures and a high reaching 65 to 70 degrees. The central daylight time is now exactly one o'clock. (00:01:39) Good afternoon, everybody. This is Bob Potter. Minnesota Public. Radio is canceling its regular Sunday afternoon schedule today. So we can provide live coverage of the historic trip to Minnesota by Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev from his arrival at the airport in about half an hour until his departure at around 8 o'clock tonight. We will be following the Soviet leaders visit Minnesota public radio's live coverage of president Gorbachev's (00:02:03) visit to the Twin Cities is made possible by the international public relations consulting firm of Padilla. Spear Beardsley, (00:02:11) a full team of MPR reporters (00:02:12) is in the field this afternoon at the places Gorbachev will stop at the governor's residence for lunch at the Radisson Hotel in Downtown Minneapolis for a meeting with Business Leaders (00:02:23) at a farm south of the Twin Cities and that Control Data headquarters in Bloomington. We'll bring you the Sounds and the color from (00:02:30) along the Gorbachev motorcade (00:02:31) route as it winds its way around the state capitol complex. Of course, it's certainly not Beyond imagination that President Gorbachev will make some casual comments here and there and if he does you certainly will hear them along the way during these seven hours of broadcasting will also have some other interesting special things for you to listen to John Patrick Dale from st. Olaf College in Evelyn David Heiser from the University of Minnesota (00:02:56) are with me here in the studio to provide some commentary and Analysis. Both our political scientists who specialty is the Soviet Union will have conversations with some key people allies lie, for example, the public relations man whose brainchild the Gorbachev trip to Minnesota was in the first place former vice president Walter Mondale will be chatting with Richard bore executive director of the Minnesota trade office with several representatives of dissidents Soviet republics and many other people too. We may even have an opportunity to open the telephone lines for Our reactions and your questions to Our Guest commentators and I think I can pretty much guarantee some surprises and things that nobody can predict that are just almost inevitable in seven hours of live radio. So as you go about your activities on this cloudy drizzly windy Sunday afternoon, take us along check in with us as often as you can we will be keeping you up-to-date for sure. Now it could occur to a healthy skeptic. I suppose that this whole trip is Much Ado About not a whole lot. It can be argued and has been by some of the newspaper columnist that Minnesota has been overcome by gorby Mania. They say we're making fools of ourselves to some extent with the t-shirts the road signs the hassle over the Vodka Billboards not to mention the hours of broadcasting and reams of newsprint that are being devoted to this visit and which one might point out no major speech by the guest of honor is scheduled. True is all that. Maybe there's also some history happening today. The Gorbachev tour of Minnesota is unique and particularly intriguing at this time when America's relationship with the old adversary is turning around today's visit may be mostly pageantry ceremony in pleasantries, but some real substance is not too terribly far beneath the surface it seems to us and we're going to try to focus on that during our broadcast today as well which leads me to introduce Our Guest commentators for this afternoon Evelyn David hyzer and John Patrick or Patty Dale as he likes to be called Evelyn is a political scientist at the University of Minnesota and Patti direct Soviet studies at st. Olaf College where he's also an assistant professor of political science folks welcome. Thank you so much and for coming and visiting with us today afternoon Patty, what do you think? First of all this Gorbachev trip to Minnesota is actually going to accomplish. I presume it's intended to intensify and deepen the economic relationship between the Midwest and the Soviet Union cargill's for example has been trading with the Soviet Union since the mid 1960s. The Soviet grain market is important to Midwest farmers and American agricultural technology is important to the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union has to do much to improve its agricultural performance. So this visit I think is an attempt to reassure American businessmen that it's okay to do business with the Soviet Union and to deepen and already existing relationship Evelyn. I think it's true that this is going to be mostly symbolic the actual events that we that we hear and see today but the symbolism make much difference today. Yes, it makes a great deal of difference Gorbachev though. Not on the political death's doorstep as many people in this country like to portray his problems in his home country at the present still needs to convey to the population the the picture of of a world leader and this is something that he's accomplished at the summit but he needs to present the picture of a world leader who's doing something meaningful for his population and he can best do that by pushing the economic issues. Some of that was done at the summit over the most favored nation status, but he can continue to work that line in his trip to Minnesota Evelyn David hyzer and Patty Dale Our Guest commentators and we'll be checking back with him and just a couple of minutes. Let's uh go out to the airport now for just a couple of seconds where Mike Mulcahy is one of the reporters standing. Awaiting the arrival of the Gorbachev aircraft Mike. What are you able to tell us out there at the moment? Well Bob, I think your weather forecast was correct. It's cold. (00:07:24) It's windy. It's raining a little bit. It's very gray out here as we wait at the Air Force Reserve Base for Gorbachev's plane to come we're expecting for planes possibly 52 land here. One of those planes will contain six limousines that Gorbachev will use on his tour here. One of the planes we should say has already landed that was scheduled to come in at about an hour ahead of time loaded with Soviet staff to prepare the way for the visit Gorbachev himself is expected to touch down at about 125. I think they're still on schedule. We haven't heard anything to the contrary yet at this point. Although he's not supposed to do much once he lands here the they're saying probably 10 minutes or less here. He's not expected to say anything. He's probably likely just to get into the motorcade and head off for the rest of his tour. First up Governor's Mansion. What's that band? I hear in the background there Michael. That is the University of Minnesota. Band Ensemble going to play a Shostakovich March when Gorbachev actually shows up. The band is headed for Leningrad and nine other Soviet cities later in June as part of a cultural exchange. So I guess they've got as good a reason as anybody to be here. Okay, Michael. Thank you very much Mike Mulcahy. Who's (00:08:34) who's out at Twin Cities International Airport, awaiting the arrival of the Gorbachev aircraft. Stephen Smith is going to be actually covering the motorcade route for the pool of reporters that are following Gorbachev and we will be checked checking with him in just a moment. Also Gary eichten who is up at the state capitol area Gary. It's a cold afternoon up there at the Capitol are much is any much of anybody around (00:08:59) just a handful of people Bob. They're probably oh I suppose 50 people clustered around waiting actually waiting for Gorbachev and interestingly enough. This is a this is officially declared ethnic American day in Minnesota long before mr. Gorbachev decided. The Minnesota so there was a celebration planned up here with people dressed up in their ethnic costumes and singing ethnic songs in the rest. Unfortunately the turnout for that event has been held on I think by the weather as well. There are some people here protesters from people with Latvian and Estonian Flags. No lithuanians that I can see I think because there's just a handful of lithuanians actually in the state of Minnesota earlier today. There were about 200 or so cambodians lay oceans clustered around on the mall of the state capitol imploring. Mr. Gorbachev to stop helping the Vietnamese and the Vietnamese out of their country. They have since March down John Ireland Boulevard in her now down around where the freeway overpass on John Ireland Boulevard, and I don't know if they're going to stay there or March back up here are any of you seen? (00:10:16) It sounds like it's cold and it sounds like it's also quite windy. Well, of course they did wet windy and wet the wind gusting up to 40 miles an hour out there. Have you seen signs of other crowds Gathering say along Summit Avenue or anything like (00:10:28) that? Haven't had a chance to get up Summit. But from what I can see on the steps here at the Capitol and you get a view all the way up past the cathedral. I don't see anybody. (00:10:37) I'll be there in okay. Well, thanks Gary. We'll be checking back with you to a little bit later on Gary. Eichten who's up on the steps of the Capitol chatting with us by cellular telephone this afternoon ten minutes past one o'clock live coverage of President Gorbachev s visit to Minnesota broadcast live today on these Minnesota Public Radio Stations the first stop that the governor that the that the president will make of course is that the airport then he gets off the plane and heads over to the Governor's Mansion for lunch reporters, Karen boros. And Catherine winter are on the porch of a residents across the street from the governor's mansion. What are you seeing over there? Ladies? (00:11:12) Well, Karen isn't here right now Bob. This is Katherine. Karen has gone. Down to talk to some of the people in the crowds there is not that much to see right here because the police have cordoned off this whole block and so the only people who are on the street right now are people who live here and press press people. There's a been some risers erected in front of the governor's house and there are pressed people on those risers no roof over them. Lots of umbrellas lots of soggy reporters and then they're our neighbors coming up and down the streets a lot of people seem to be having parties and then having people over to watch the president and the governor's motorcade arrived then from the vantage point on this porch. We can see down to one end of the street where crowds of people have here already started to gather some Brave folks with their umbrellas more than an (00:11:59) hour before the president is (00:12:01) expected at the other end of the street. I can't see from here, but can hear protesters chanting and Karen Burrows has been down there and we'll be back later to report on that at this point Bob. I can tell you we've been given them the menu for the day. Would you like to hear (00:12:14) one? I'd be I'd be delighted to hear it even though I've had my own lunch. I can always talk about food. Well, (00:12:19) it's not going to compare to this the press release that we were given says that the opening course will include a sorted can apes corn cakes with smoked salmon creme fraiche and caviar a combined salad and fish course comes after that and that will feature pecan breaded walleye with artichokes smoked tomatoes and local Garden (00:12:39) greens. The main course will be Wisconsin. I'm not sure I'm pronouncing this one right (00:12:43) Pro-V me veal that will be topped with Minnesota Morel sauce right in the middle of morel season accompanied by rice corn compote and then for dessert the Gorbachev's and guests. The press release says we'll eat minted sweet biscuits filled with whipped sweet and sour cream served with early summer berries and caramel sauce, and then there are a bunch of different wines listed and it it also goes on to explain that to Pillsbury and General Mills each contributed five thousand dollars toward that (00:13:08) lunch. Well, I wonder if they're not sure taking advantage of Gorbachev by stuffing it full of all that food then heading him down to the business meeting there. (00:13:15) Oil snooze off and they can give him some sort of hypnotic suggestions for trade with Minneapolis. (00:13:19) Absolutely, right Catherine exactly. How far away are you from the from the Mansion there were directly across the street bob. There are sort of (00:13:28) given the angle. There are sort of two houses right across the street and we're on the porch of one of them (00:13:32) are very gracious host. Diane Falmer has given us a whole corner of the porch here where we have a table pitched and (00:13:38) we're out of the rain some of the only press people out of the rain. We feel very (00:13:42) fortunate indeed. All right Catherine. Thank you much Catherine winter reporting live from right across the street from the governor's mansion where President Gorbachev and his wife and a bunch of other dignitaries will be having lunch. We expect them to arrive at the airport in about 10-15 minutes something like that. And apparently they'll be getting to the Governor's Mansion at around 2 o'clock kind of a late lunch for the garbage house. I would say since the course they gained in our when they left the Soviet Union this after this afternoon, Washington rather this afternoon. Okay, 13 minutes now past one o'clock. The Gorbachev visit to Minnesota is really the brainchild of allies lie. He's washington-based lobbyists and public relations consultant who's formerly the Washington correspondent for the st. Paul newspaper former, press secretary to vice president Walter Mondale former controlled data employee. He began pushing the Gorbachev visit last winter Al. Why did you think back then? It made sense for Gorbachev to come to Minnesota. Oh, Bob goes back to my having gone to the Soviet Union several times with Bill Norris the founder and now retired chairman of control data in the last three years and over the course of those visits. It became very clear that the Soviets need desperately need the things that Minnesota has to offer IE high technology. Shooters food processing and packaging technology Medical Science and Technology education all of the things that that the organizations and companies in Minnesota have in great abundance. And when I heard in January that mr. Gorbachev had expressed an interest in going around the country after this Summit meeting with President Bush said in the summer immediately, I thought well when I bring them to Minnesota, that's the perfect place for him. There's a natural Affinity. There's geographical similarity. There's they're just a lot of reasons to do that. And in addition to the fact that companies like Control Data and Honeywell and others have long standing business interests with the Soviets. How is the idea of responded how they responded widely rejected initially, I guess. Well, I guess initially I should say that when I raised the idea with colleagues former colleagues and Control Data and and suggested that they get the business community in Minnesota to behind the invitation and I raised it with governor perpich and Dave spear. They responded very enthusiastically and so I wrote A two-page Letter of Invitation which the governor signed and we delivered to the Soviet Ambassador in Washington in late February initially. They responded with great interest. They said they would treat it with great seriousness. They sent the invitation on to Moscow which which is the procedure everything goes to Moscow where the decisions are made and they they indicated that there was great interest in it. Well about a month later in early April, mr. Shevardnadze the foreign minister their foreign minister came to Washington to meet with Secretary of State Baker to plan the initial the preliminary agenda for the summit and he said at that time that there is that because of all the various problems domestic problems and others that mr. Gorbachev had that he was not going to travel anywhere around the country after the summit. So I immediately notified everybody in Minnesota and I said, well nice try but forget it isn't going to happen and we'll let's invite him back at a later date when things have cooled down a bit. Well then about two weeks ago. A call from a reporter at the White House who said I understand. Mr. Gorbachev is going to Minnesota and you've been involved in it. And I said, well I was involved in it, but I don't think he's going and obviously obviously he chained he personally changed his mind again. You have to understand how decisions are made in the Soviet Union. It's a very big bureaucratic system and the decisions are made by the top people and I believe that Gorbachev himself personally decided that for whatever reasons that he wanted to extend his visit to the United States Beyond Washington, which is essentially which is really not it is something that is the for which the script is written several weeks in advance. They know pretty well what's going to happen at the summit. There aren't many surprises. I think what he really wanted to do and what he now has to do is turn all of his attentions and energies to to restructuring that economy, which is a basket case and what he wants to do is get access to American Capital American Technology and American management expertise, and I think he sees it here in Minnesota in abundance and I think he's These are two maybe to a lesser extent in California. But in many ways an argument could be made that this is the centerpiece now the centerpiece of his trip public relations consultant allies Lee who came up with the original idea of bringing President Gorbachev to Minnesota 17 minutes past one o'clock our live coverage of the Gorbachev trip continues go ahead and chat for a moment. Now with reporter Stephen Smith who will be covering the motorcade as a pool reporter this afternoon (00:18:40) Steven readings Robert hits the atmosphere is thick with jet fuel and the idling of dozens and dozens of automobiles. I'm in sort of a one of those airport limousine vans that is filled with pool of American reporters. Okay, there will be a pool of Soviet reporters as well and our job basically is to be ready for that moment and it's probably going to happen when Gorbachev jumps out of the out of his limousine unscheduled and starts shaking hands and hobnobbing with the folks. Now, there are different pools of reporters at different points along along his Schedule trip today and our mission and we've accepted it is to be ready just to jump out of the car and try and find out what he says to the regular (00:19:22) folk. Okay. So you're are you a now basically out at the airport? Is that (00:19:25) right? I'm sitting in a line of dozens of vehicles on the tarmac waiting for President Gorbachev to arrive and I have been and the rest of us have been instructed by the Secret Service that security is so tight here that if we attempt at all to stray away from our group without permission, we will be shot on sight. Oh my goodness. So I promise you I'm going to AB and (00:19:47) structions today. All right, you're going to be a good boy today. All right, Steven. Thanks. We'll check back with you little bit later on. I let me bring our commentators back in for just a moment Evelyn David hyzer and Patty Dale allies Lee made the comment at the end of my interview with him there that the Soviet economy is a basket case. Do you both agree with that Evelyn? It's not a basket case. It has problems, you know the stories we read in the Press aren't Create it out of thin air and there definitely are problems with the Soviet economy that Gorbachev wants to attack and I think one of the critical ways of attacking this is to reframe the methods of Soviet foreign trade. It's not just a matter of getting access to Capital and technology is the gentleman from Control Data was was talking about it's also a matter of forcing Soviet producers into the world economy where they'll have to compete and in the hopes that that that forced competition will increase efficiency. All right Patty. How do we how the Soviets do that? How do they accomplish that? The Soviet economy has to be exposed to the pressures of international competition, but it has to be but this exposure has to be controlled and gradual imagine one is seeking to motivator a donkey with a whip. Well a few Strokes tonight might get it going. Yeah. Hmm, and if you flog it to death, then you have a dead animal if the Soviet economy was instantly opened to all of the pressures of international economic competition, which would happen if the ruble was made convertible overnight. Then we would indeed have a dead economic animal. Hmm. So so there has to be control of this exposure to International economic pressures. Do you think that they can find some way of bringing the ruble into a convertible status on a gradual basis? It has I don't know exactly how you do that sounds kind of complicated one solution might be to have an international convertible Ruble and and another and then a second domestic Ruble with administered controlled exchange between the two I see Patty Dale and Evelyn David Heiser our commentators here on Minnesota public radio's our live coverage of the Gorbachev trip to Minnesota continues 21 minutes past one o'clock. The weather has not exactly turned out peachy keen for the Soviet president's trip. Nothing. So rare as a day in June is the old saying goes well, maybe for Gorbachev. This won't seem So bad. I was talking to a reporter from Radio Moscow. I think it was on early Friday morning. And she said that over there they were still wearing their parkas. So this may not seem too bad by Gorbachev standards. Although not as nice as it was in Washington. He is scheduled to be arriving at the airport within just a few minutes. Now as I understand it the second of three planes has now touched down Twin Cities International Airport. And when the third one comes in that will be the one carrying Gorbachev and his wife and presumably the other members of their immediate Entourage are reporters on the scene are Mike Mulcahy and Bruce McDonald. We have spoken with Gary eichten who's up at the state capitol watching the crowds there Catherine winter across the street from the governor's mansion where the Soviet president will be having lunch at around 2 o'clock or thereabouts and then we can go on to the business beating a little bit later on this afternoon. My understanding now is that the arrival has been delayed by a just a little bit. So I think that that of course is not a surprise. Development they left Washington about two hours ago. The flight normally takes about two and a half hours by a commercial airliner presumably the private Soviet jet could get in a little bit more quickly than that, but they also have those red is strong northwesterly winds, which might be slowing things down just a little while when we started planning Minnesota public radio's coverage of the Gorbachev visit. We knew we'd come across some interesting and little known facts one of those little-known stories emerge during a recent conversation. I had with Walter Mondale to former vice president who's now an attorney in private practice in Minneapolis, the story concerns an emergency shipment of flour organized by Minnesota. Grain Miller's to help Stave off starvation in the Soviet Union that incident and other thoughts were on mondale's mind when I visited him late this week at his office in Downtown Minneapolis. Let me ask you first of all what you think Minnesota stands to gain from the Gorbachev visit on Sunday boy. There's a lot number one is international recognition. One of the things that often mystifies me I do a lot of international legal work and that is that people only have a vague idea where the Twin Cities is and Minnesota you'd be surprised it it we lose a lot from that. We won't have to worry about that anymore and not just where we are. But the special qualities that this state has or probably no more internationally oriented state or region in the union than ours high technology agriculture all that. So I think we get recognized in a very strong and powerful way. The other thing I was thinking about yesterday is our region is now and will for the next couple days get the best education on Soviet history and current events of any people on earth. And this got to have a tremendous Civic value to us. Our politics are going to be better informed. It makes us better American citizens. I wonder what your views are on why Gorbachev decided to come here. There have been a lot of theories about it like to hear yours. Well, I think he is interested in a lot of the qualities and strengths that we have are the biggest business single business in America. Buying and selling from the Soviet Union is Cargill supercomputers from Minnesota. Particularly Control Data have been Central to their development for 25 years. So you've got agriculture. You've got Health. You've got high technology. You've got Transportation. You've got everything here and I believe as he looked around that interested in the next thing is I believe that he wanted to do something different. He's a good showman if he'd gone to New York gone to La you know, the usual stops. I think it'd been ho-hum. But he is smart. He said let's go someplace fresh different interesting and see a different part of America and I believe that's what's attracting attention. Let's talk about the Practical aspects of the meeting that will be taking place between the businesses utilities. He's planning to defect and he just heard about our high quality of living here possibility do as far as the Practical aspects of the meeting between the Business Leaders and the agricultural leaders and Gorbachev is concerned. Is there anything that can come out of that as a result of his personal presence that could not have happened had the contacts gone on at lower or different levels? I think so, although it's very hard to answer that question. But I think there's a lot of Minnesota Upper Midwest Business Leaders that are thinking of doing something in the Soviet Union now that weren't thinking about it two weeks ago. I believe that his introduction on the ground face to face meeting and talking will impress him about the strength of the economy in this region and no doubt. There will be letters past and comments made that will help lead to business. Oh I Think there'll be a quickened pace of business between our region and Soviet Union as a result will be a lot of PR. There's been a lot of hoopla about this. Do you think they'll be some substances? Well, I think so. Although you have to you know, substance doesn't take place quite that way it will be. Oh, I've got a couple of letters here that people have given me one from the University of Minnesota medical school where they want to go over there and do some really exciting things and trying to bring Better Health Care and training over there in the whole faculty at the University of Minnesota Medical School signed on I'm going to try to give that letter to him personally and say you should really read this that that sort of thing could be not just business but other kinds of human contact also if I get time which are won't I know I'm going to repeat two things Harrison Salsbury called me yesterday. You know the wonderful historian writer journalist. He's from Minnesota and I think he's aching to come out here. But he said there's two things you ought to remind people number one. The the most popular memorized children's poem is Hiawatha. He said there's something about the way that fits the rhythm of the Russian language that it is known by every child and every one who ever was a child and he said you really ought to have Raisa go over and take a look at that. Well, that's what the other thing. He told me was that that the that the Russians remember Minneapolis because in nineteen eighteen ninety, there was a horrible drought massive starvation and death in the food-producing regions of the Crimea Crimea. And the Minneapolis grain Association the Grain Millers and so on put together a worldwide relief effort and at their own cost sent a tremendous amount of flour over there and saved thousands of lives. He said that's long since been forgotten here. But in Russia, he said they'll always bring it up and it was right here in the Twin Cities with that happen. What do you think Gorbachev gets out of this for his own domestic political consumption. Well, I'm sure all this has been gone over but he's in tough shape back home economies in terrible shape is biggest Nemesis with just elected president of the Republic of Russia. The biggest of all the Republic's it's got most of the wealth and he said let's pull out an effect. They kind of remind you of some of the proposals and Iron Range. They said let's set up a separate Union State, but he serious about it crime all we've heard. All that but he is in bad shape back home. I think this helps Elevate his stature. They see him. So well received in the United States. It can help but how much it helps. I don't know right. Now. What I'm hoping for is that in this last day of the serious part of this Summit that he and Bush can make some breakthroughs on the central questions. I think that'll help him more than anything else if we could go ahead, you know, and make a breakthrough unconventional arms so he could cut his military budget by billions of dollars and put that money into his economy. That would be that would be very popular. Do you think he'll Grant Independence to the to the baltics and if not should the people here in Minnesota, press him on that should Governor perpich, press in the Business Leaders yourself. I think that should be made clear. It's clear that Lithuania was stolen. It's never intended to be a part of the Soviet Union. He's admitted as much they've allowed under him the history that shows this sellout for he was sold (00:32:12) to (00:32:15) will stolen and something's happening on it. Just before he left. He said that to the Lithuanian leader that this could be worked out to permit Independence within two years whether that's men or not. I'm sure that our hope that our Administration is pressing on that. I think we ought to say that's a good move. We hope that can take place because I don't think we can let our human rights concerns be totally muffled. What is this whole thing to do for governor perpich politically? Well, I think if you if you call the governor said you can have your choice you can have a mountain of gold or you can have garbage our visit. He made the right choice. I just think it's a ten strike for him. Well it last much Beyond say the dfl convention next week. I mean, obviously this is giving him a good deal of help in his fight against my catch but will people remember in November it shows how little you know about politics the great motto and politics is oh Lord get me through this day. It'll get them through this day. Thank you very much for vice president Walter Mondale. It is 28 minutes before two o'clock. Minnesota Public. Radio is live coverage of president Mikhail Gorbachev's visit to the Twin Cities is made possible by the international public relations consulting firm of Padilla spear Beardsley. Well, the Soviet president's plane has been delayed on arrival to Twin Cities international airport by just a few minutes. We expect that arrival within about 5 or 10 minutes something like that. And as soon as signs appear that the plane is coming we're going to switch out to the airport visit with Mike Mulcahy who's on the scene out there. Meanwhile reporter crystalline is standing by he joins us via cellular telephone this afternoon Chris. Where are you? (00:34:02) I'm on the street right in front of the Radisson Plaza Hotel in Downtown Minneapolis is side of the business being later this afternoon. (00:34:09) All right, what's going on down there right now (00:34:10) Chris. We're from Catherine a lot of police so far. The only Spectators have moved. Long very quickly back into buildings just to scoped it out and moved along the police are preparing the next few minutes to seal off the street in front of the hotel about a block on either side of the hotel. So people are going to be able to get closer than about about a block to the Radisson small aesthetic glitch. Just developing here. They several of the u.s. Soviet and Minnesota flags are blowing in the wind in front of the hotel of actually shredded during the last hour and that hotel staff are on ladders right now trying to replace those as best they can. (00:34:56) All right, Chris. Do you think the the weather is sort of putting a damper on people's Spirits down there in terms of public up public appearances. (00:35:04) It sure looks like it. I said a lot of folks have come by very quickly pointed their heads into the wind and struggled with the doors and the building's trying to get in it. It's really like a gale down here. So I think there are people waiting in the skyways and the in whatever Wings they can find but the streets are pretty quiet right now. All (00:35:20) right, Chris very good, Chris. Reporting from Downtown Minneapolis the Radisson Plaza Hotel Site of the meeting. The President Gorbachev will have with Business Leaders from around the area a little bit later on today the rough schedule called for Gorbachev to arrive just about this time his arrival being delayed by a few minutes out of the airport. Then he'll be going on to the governor's residence on Summit Avenue for lunch arriving there. I'll probably a half an hour or so from the time. He leaves the airport then at around 3:30 or so the schedule calls for a motorcade tore down Summit Avenue and around the Capital Area and then down I-94 Downtown Minneapolis. That is the point at which they'll go to the Radisson Plaza Hotel for the meeting with business and agricultural leaders. Then after that they go down to Farmington and the farm home of Richard and Cecilia brand getting to the farm around of quarter to 7:00 or so taking a walking tour of the farm and then heading back to the Twin Cities onto the Control Data headquarters building in Bloomington and around I'm 30 years old viewing a computer display then going back to the airport taking off for San Francisco to around 8 o'clock or a little bit after that this evening. It's now about 25 minutes before two o'clock. Shall we slip out to the airport for just a second and check in with Mike Mulcahy and see if there's any indication that that plane is any closer to Landing Michael. Well, we don't know yet Bob. The last word we had was 138 138. Well, (00:36:47) so two planes have already landed as we said before a Soviet plane came in about an hour ago at with some Soviet staff people another plane has landed that's an American plane presumably folks from the state department some Soviet members of the press some others. They've all come in and now everyone is awaiting the arrival of Gorbachev. There are about a hundred Spectators here most of them in uniform most of the Air Force personnel from the base here because security was very tight. They swept the area with dogs and just about anything you can imagine we even had a little problem getting in we can Echo what Steve Let's add a little earlier. We were also informed that if we left the the pack of reporters we couldn't up wounded my goodness that best I can. Yeah. Yeah. Now the governor should say President Gorbachev will be greeted by 24 people when he arrives at the airport, including the governor and mrs. Perpich lieutenant governor Marlene Johnson, the Congressional Delegation number of other state officials legislative leaders. So there are some dignitaries on hand here. There is a plane coming out and coming here. Now, some people are pointing to it. I don't know if that's garbage off or not. I'm standing here with Bruce McDonald who's a Bruce any other word done and when the plane will come in know if that could be at though. It's 138 or coming up on it. Now, (00:38:06) we have not seen a lot of (00:38:08) air traffic here for obvious reasons in the last o half hour or so and the only planes really that have landed I (00:38:13) think we're the official plane so far. That's the word that we have two here two gentlemen is that that is indeed the Soviet president's plane. That is It is coming in. The reason the reason I know that you should you all should understand that is because there's a basically a raw video feed being provided of all these all these events and were able to watch that on a television monitor here, which show you guys on the scene are I guess far enough away from the actual event. So that's a little bit more difficult for you to (00:38:42) see I should say Bob we are far away in terms of that. We aren't going to be far away when the plane actually lands. It's going to come right in front of us and it could be pretty loud. If based on the experience of the last two that came in. I think you'll be able to hear us but we might have to shout a little bit. All right. Also, I should say here the scene is similar to some of the other sites that the people have described. They've brought in some big flatbed trucks and put the Press up on those the TV Camera still photographers. There are some press people down on the tarmac actually waiting. There are Soviet and American flags here the big banner the logo. (00:39:15) Well, that's either an airplane or a pretty strong wind. I hear in the (00:39:17) background that is indeed an aeroflot airplane and it's just touch the ground. (00:39:22) It's just come down. It's going to circle out (00:39:24) toward us now and perhaps not very good coincidence here. It's begun to rain once again, and so the weather is taking a perhaps a temporary turn for the (00:39:34) worse. Tell me. Is there any indication there any microphone setup? Does it look like Gorbachev for the governor or anybody's going to actually step forward and say anything at this point. There was a (00:39:44) possibility of that. Although some of the sound people here told us that it's very unlikely. They said that especially since the weather is bad that they imagine he'll be in and out as fast as possible. There is another crew of press down on the tarmac as we said that the pool press they might be able to get their microphones in and hear what's being said, but again, no way to tell at this point. I'm just (00:40:06) said about two dozen people there to greet him members of the Congressional Delegation and so on right? I understand that Senator boschwitz is actually on the flight. (00:40:14) That's what we've heard. Yes, huh? Although again we the plane is still taxiing out on the runways and they move some of those Portable stairway is now in place in front of the hangar here. And those we imagine will be moved up to the plane when it actually taxis over here. Mhm, 20 minutes before two o'clock. This has been a set of public radio's live coverage of President Gorbachev strip to the (00:40:37) Minneapolis st. Paul area this cloudy drizzly windy (00:40:41) cold Sunday afternoon before he left (00:40:44) Washington President Gorbachev held a joint news conference with President Bush the two of them to describe their Summit meeting as a success and also said they plan to meet on a regular (00:40:55) basis the leaders confirmed their (00:40:57) continuing impasse over the military shape of the unified Germany Gorbachev also warned Israel that he would consider suspending the issuance of exit permits for Soviet Jews. If they continue to be settled on the West Bank or in Gaza Bush added one other disagreement the kremlin's treatment of Lithuania and the other Baltic republics which are seeking independence from the Soviet Union (00:41:20) so there This lie has been some commentary already on the (00:41:25) closing moments of The Summit in Washington and President Gorbachev arriving now (00:41:30) at the Twin Cities International (00:41:32) Airport looks to me from what I see at that plane is taxiing up-and-coming pretty much to a halt here pretty quickly. And (00:41:38) again, it's behind another hanger now and we really can't see it at this point are waiting for it to swing around into our view. I wonder if President Gorbachev will be dressed for the weather here some of the earlier planes that came in some people look pretty chilly as they stepped off a lot of people stepped off and just suits and the women in dresses and you (00:41:58) couldn't stay out in this kind of weather for very long dressed (00:42:00) like that without getting very cold. Mike and I are here in raincoats and we're sharing a little bit certainly not the most inviting weather for visiting head of state like (00:42:10) this. Well, no, it isn't but not since certainly not as nice as it was in Washington either at least the day they had that that opening arrival ceremony. It was almost a Your perfect day and we have plenty of days like that in in June here in Minnesota. And you can just imagine that the national press will be carping mightily about the weather in Minnesota when they write their stories tomorrow. (00:42:34) Well, maybe some of the local press to Bob we'd ever (00:42:36) know. Well, that's possible. Although we should have enough sense to realize that this is Minnesota after all some of (00:42:41) the umbrellas are out now colorful umbrellas. There's a color guard waiting with the Soviet the American flag, the Minnesota flag. They're just waiting for the plane to taxi up as we say who is in that crowd out there Michael. Well, it's a little hard to tell from where I'm standing. It looks like any number of people security People Press people some of the military types we can see some of the Advance Team that set up the end about (00:43:10) the patient's what about the governor. Is he out there right now are I don't (00:43:13) see him at this point. I'm sure he's there somewhere probably sitting in a car keeping warm. I wouldn't blame him. They've closed off the hanger here. Well, they will walk in there. I noticed there was a microphone set up in there earlier. I would imagine for the for President Gorbachev to say something if he chooses although the word we've had is that he probably won't where's the motorcade Michael? I believe it's on the other side of the hanger from us when Stephen Smith described sitting in the motorcade with a number of cars lined up. We can't see that from here. So I'm imagining it's on the other side of the hanger here and they will go through the hanger and then out to the cars is there much of a crowd behind a fence anywhere where the (00:43:55) crowd of just ordinary (00:43:56) onlookers? No, not at all. This is a secured compound Bob and I don't believe that the general public was allowed anywhere near by so this is not really the place to see the president. If you want to in person we can see the plane now. It's moving in. It's going to get pretty loud here over the next few minutes. We imagine there it is. I definitely can hear it. What about that band? Are they going to are they going to be playing again here pretty soon. Well, they're supposed to crack up but we can't tell from here Bob a lot of things we can't tell from here. We're just Spectators like everybody else at this point. That's all right. We're on a series of Trucks with a bunch of photographers and other reporters here Bob so we can see we have a very good view of the plane is its taxing right in front of us. However, the dignitaries are a good hundred yards away from us and we can't recognize them there under umbrellas right now and it's a blue and white plane. It was a gray underbelly the Soviet flag prominently displayed on the tail section some Soviet writing their Bruce. Do you read that? Yeah. It's in the Cyrillic alphabet. Obviously. I can't I don't know what it says. Well, we've seen a lot of signs around here in the last few days with that script. Can you tell us Petty tail or the markings on the aircraft are interesting because they say Soviets key. So use the Soviet Union, this is the first time I've seen a Soviet presidential aircraft so marked presumably now the Soviet president has the equivalent of Air Force One in the past when God which of as General Secretary of the party or as president. In the in the weaker presidential role when he traveled abroad he traveled on an aeroflot Allina, but this aircraft is marked Soviets Kisa use the Soviet Union presumably it is the Soviet presidential aircraft the equivalent of Air Force One. Okay, do you from the from the looks of the aircraft? Can you tell is it similar to an American designed aircraft is (00:45:51) some sort similar like to a 737 or something. (00:45:54) It's much larger than a 737 because it has four engines mounted in pairs at the back. It reminds me of the British craft the vc10 that is no longer in service. And but I notice on there the words are afoot written very small right under the pilots window or something out up at the very very front which would imply that it it isn't a defunct owned Airline not a military airplane, which is like some legal diff and presumably they can use it for something other than presidential trips once Is it released from this particular Duty? I gather that they have that they brought in a Soviet. Limo for him a so-called zil. Is that correct? Again hard to see that Bob if it is here. It's on the other side of the hanger from us. Well, we can see are the two portable stairways. They're put on the back of some pickup trucks one is kind of a lime industrial green color. The other again is blue and white. There's a sign on one Pan Am welcomes president and mrs. Gorbachev. There's a corporate logo on the other one. The plane is moving up now and almost coming to a stop. I wonder if the stewardess is total Gorbachev to remain as in his seat until the captain has turned off the fasten seatbelt sign if I get the chance, I'll ask him Bob 14 minutes before two o'clock the arrival of President Gorbachev the Twin Cities International Airport about 15 minutes behind schedule. Are you hear those engines spooling down now and the stairways are moving up some people guiding them into place. Now it'll be a little quieter. I think as the engines go off. We ask our commentators Patty and I want if they have any idea who who might be traveling with Gorbachev would typically travels with him. Well a varied group of (00:47:52) now presidential advisers. It used to be (00:47:55) members of the politburo and Secretariat other government or party officials as the as the president or general (00:48:01) secretary chose. (00:48:04) It's a big airplane. I wonder if it's filled mostly with people or if it's kind of like Air (00:48:08) Force One and is just logged off or blocked off into (00:48:12) sleeping quarters and office areas and that sort of thing Gorbachev has a substantial foreign policy staff of his own foreign policy was the first area that he took personal controller went back in 1986 if I can break in. Yes my tell you the doors to the plane are open. Now, the motorcade has moved up into place. There are a number of police agencies at the head of the motorcade Minneapolis st. Paul County Sheriff state trooper there now telling the motorcade to keep moving. Apparently. The limousine is farther back. I still may be Bruce you can see the dignitaries. I still don't see them moving into play. Yet now they're still behind a lot of the the crowd and a lot of the umbrellas at this point. No a foreman military Squad is moving into place with a red carpet. And in front of us is the Soviets, mr. And mrs. Gorbachev off the plane at the top of the stairway. There. They are some Applause here. Senator boschwitz is behind them. He's waving about halfway down the steps now. Mr. Gorbachev is in a dark suit. Mrs. Gorbachev is wearing kind of a purple outfit. Are they dressed for the weather doesn't look like it Gorbachev just adjusted his lapels a little bit. Now. They're moving the red carpet down in the dignitaries of approached. The band is playing. And they're still asking the motorcade to move down further Gorbachev is shaking hands with a bunch of people. I can see that I can't hear some of the sound I think from the pool feed that we're getting there's Governor purpose shaking hands now with Gorbachev. And the president saying hello to mrs. Perfect shoulder. Perfect. And it looks like some flowers are going to be presented here. Senator durenberger. Is there yes, Andy. They're exchanging some pleasantries that looks like a lot of pictures being snapped here Congressman Bill frenzel. Is there among the members of the Minnesota Congressional Delegation? This arrival ceremony should be relatively brief at which point they will get into the motorcade and head over to the governor's residence for lunch Congressman Bruce vento in the reception line can see mrs. Perpich is wearing bright yellow They're kind of moving around in the cars. Now. It looked to me like the perpetrators were not exactly dressed for the weather either. There's former vice president, Walter Mondale. A square which off makes his way rather quickly down this welcoming line and in Terry's to read him on arrival in Minnesota, then the governor and mrs. Perpich are already on the way back to their car. Mr. Gorbachev. Mrs. Gorbachev, apparently still shaking hands in their attorney general. Skip Humphrey shaking hands with President Gorbachev Senate majority to Roger mole. Looks like Dwayne Benson the minority leader house Speaker Bob banasik. So President Gorbachev is meeting all of the political luminaries in the state of Minnesota in this brief. And now he's coming to the end of the line. There's some more Applause from some of the military personnel who are also acting as Spectators here and at this point Mike, do you see the garbage Chiefs being actively waived? It's almost choreographed by someone who's standing in the front there and there's a number of Gorbachev's modeled after the Homer hankies of three years ago, and there's President Gorbachev. We have a clear view of him now. He's surrounded by security people. He's waving to the crowd and there might be an opportunity for him to make a comment here if you felt like it, but he's going up and shaking hands with some people in the crowd. Isn't he people with the garbage Chiefs now? That's the University of Minnesota concert Ensemble were listening to in the background. This is what they expected him to do. And here he is doing it. Not more than five minutes off the plane. Yes, he's not wasting any time pressing the flesh as they sometimes say. Live coverage of President Gorbachev strip to Minneapolis st. Paul pre-empting our regularly scheduled programming today on Minnesota Public Radio. We're going to stay with this throughout the afternoon afternoon. In fact until the garbage half plane takes off sometime tonight. Now, he's our San Francisco. He's moving down the crowd away is waving got a big smile on his face. Mrs. Gorbachev is waving his nodding the just a sea of cameras and people waving back even some of the press people are waving back now. He's moving away going back toward the cars these Zeal limousines. We've heard so much about heavily armored limousine. Oh, yes, there they are here. There are some 8 inches of Steel plating in the walls. I bet they'll get much gas mileage out of those babies all there. They are literally built like a tank. He's moving around and getting into the car now. End of the crowd is applauding again. It's a festive celebration even though as we said the general public is not have been allowed to see it other than on TV and listen to it over the airwaves and just about the time the piece of (00:54:01) music ends Gorbachev gets (00:54:03) in the in the motorcade. That was a propitious bit of timing there by Professor been prosciutto and the university concert band. I assume that he is the that he is the band leader out there this afternoon the limousine and the motorcade going to take off here momentarily one would anticipate for the Governor's (00:54:23) Mansion on Summit Avenue in st. Paul where (00:54:26) a lunch with Gorbachev and Governor Rudy governor and mrs. Rudy perpich and a number of other (00:54:33) folks is anticipated in about 25 minutes or so. I would suspect (00:54:38) shall we go off to the (00:54:39) governor's mansion go across the street there to Katherine winter. I was standing by well Catherine is there some are of anticipation now up on Summit Avenue. You took the words right out of my mouth Bob. There's definitely some heightened excitement. The crowds that we can see from here at the end of the street are growing. The there is going to be a bell ringing (00:54:57) ceremony when President Gorbachev and Governor per page get here and the bell ringers have already assembled in front of the gates to the governor's mansion and have been practicing which is really a delight with me now is Karen borrows who's come back from moving among the crowds and can she has had a better view of things and can probably let us know a little better what was going on down there Karen. Well Catherine at the (00:55:17) far end of the street here at Oxford and Summit. There are a number of people representing various Baltic states with flags and (00:55:26) Native costumes and that sort of thing (00:55:28) here to make their protest statement. And I also talked to a lot of the folks who you know who weren't (00:55:34) part of that agreement, but first here, let's hear what Bruce (00:55:38) Johnson of a Minneapolis had to say (00:55:40) about the reason that the Baltic people are Well, I'm sympathetic with the Baltic aspirations for the Imperial (00:55:48) Russia to go back out of the Baltic countries. (00:55:51) They unlawfully conquered the area in 1940 and they're unwilling to free the territory. Now we gave back Okinawa on the (00:55:59) other areas of Japan that we conquered (00:56:01) 1945 from the Japanese, but the Russian Empire doesn't seem to want to do that either with the Japanese territory north of the main islands of Japan or the Baltic republics or Moldavia the other areas in Eastern Europe. So I'm sympathetic to (00:56:17) that. It was Bruce Johnson as I say of Minneapolis who was part of that protest movement of this up the street here. I talked to any number of people who had gotten here quite early there were people who started assembling at the at the limited access spots where you can actually see the driveway or see the governor's mansion people were out here by ten o'clock this morning and have been sort of (00:56:39) shivering through the you know, the rain and under under the cloudy. Guys, if you (00:56:45) go down three can look back at the Mansion, you can see that that new patio that has been put out on the back is covered by an awning and it has transparent plastic sheeting down the side. So (00:56:56) perhaps they're going to do something out there. Hmm. (00:56:59) All right, Karen, very good. The motorcade has now begun to leave Twin Cities International Airport and they are certainly en route to the governor's mansion on Summit Avenue and we'll be checking back with you folks in just a little bit. It is now about four minutes before two o'clock. This is live coverage of President Gorbachev visit to Minnesota the programming on Minnesota Public Radio today is sponsored in part by John and Ruth Knutson on their 45th anniversary. Minnesota Public Radio is live coverage of president Mikhail Gorbachev visited. The Twin Cities is made possible by the international public relations consulting firm of Padilla spear Beardsley, and you're tuned in Minnesota Public Radio AM. Amber supported service This is K. No W Minneapolis-Saint Paul in the Twin Cities now cloudy skies, 48 degrees winds gusting to 30. Add about three minutes before one o'clock. If you are just joining us. We have canceled our regularly scheduled programming this afternoon so we can bring you live coverage of the Gorbachev trip to Minnesota. He has arrived at Minneapolis st. Paul International Airport. The motorcade is now en route to the governor's mansion in st. Paul from there. They'll be having lunch than taking a motorcade tore up Summit Avenue around John Ireland Boulevard the Capital Area heading on down towards Interstate 94 and on to the business meeting with leaders of business from around the area and around the United States for that matter at the Radisson Plaza Hotel will stay with our live coverage through the departure of the garbage of aircraft, which is expected at around 8 o'clock tonight. It could run a little bit later than that depending on what happens throughout the day here. The arrival was oh I guess about 15 minutes later than had been anticipated. So they may either make up the schedule along the way or they may leave just a little bit later. They've allowed a fair amount of time for lunch and one would think despite the the grandness of The menu that they could get through that in less than an hour, of course one wouldn't want to rush a thing like that would one we are going to check in here with Joe Kelly our reporter up in Duluth, Minnesota who has been visiting with some students from the University of Minnesota Duluth. Is that right? Joe? (00:59:12) No, but actually there are students from Duluth Central Public High School. All right there 11th graders. They're thorough planning to go to college from the looks of it, but they're not there yet. (00:59:21) And what are they? What do they think about all (00:59:23) this? Well, we've been sitting around watching the proceedings on television. There's only one TV station up here in Duluth. It's carrying it and it seems like generally there hasn't been quite the level of Interest here as there has been in the Twin Cities and you might expect that since mr. Gorbachev is not going to be elsewhere in the state outside the Twin Cities, but these students here are sitting around in the rec room of one of their home. So watching the TV do seem to have a great deal of interest in the in what's happening. They've been part of a world problems class this Academic Year, and it's been a pretty exciting. Year to be studying world problems according to them been given all the changes that are happening in Eastern Europe. They there is some level of not sure what the word is perhaps suspicion or uncertainty about the Gorbachev visit and the purpose of it. They're all in agreement that it's a good thing for Minnesota, but there's some skepticism about what what the significance of this visit to Minnesota is in the larger scale on the global scale and also is one of the students told me that she's a little bit worried about what the people in the Soviet Union might think with all the changes going on there this week with the Yeltsin being elected president of the Russian Republic and all the other political upheaval there the she thinks that perhaps the Soviet people might think that Gorbachev doesn't care as much about them as he does about visiting a relatively unknown state in the middle of the United States and then that might be a bad reflection on him politically when he gets back home. (01:00:58) That's an interesting angle on that. Thank you Joel. Okay, Joe Kelly reporting live from Duluth and Some students at the high school the Central High School there who are watching the Gorbachev trip on a television set their two o'clock is the time as our live coverage of the Gorbachev trip continues Stephen Smith. Who is the pool reporter for the motorcade joins us by cellular telephone. What's up Stephen? (01:01:21) Well, Robert we are now making her way off the air base here at the airport motorcade has more than 40 vehicles in it. According to officials here with the tour. There are about a dozen Vehicles up front that our security and various Advanced Vehicles. The Gorbachev limousine is said to be somewhere around number 13. There are six or seven of those Zealand think they're pronounced Zeal Limousines The Big Black Russian limousines that we're all familiar with by now and the rest are filled with security people. The governor's limousine is somewhere a few cars back apparently from the Gorbachev limousine. I am probably in car number 43 or I'm sorry 34th one way back here and I've got a long run to make if he does. Out to meet the folks and then behind me are more vehicles that have the welcoming committee that met with Gorbachev out on the tarmac and more security vehicles. And then I think taking up the rear is a busload of police and think I saw an empty see bus filled with police officers. So it's a long motor came. There are people here running alongside as we make our way onto Highway 62 there plenty of Spectators here and it's pretty exciting event for them. I think to be seeing this long motorcade with limousines passing (01:02:35) by Stephen of the of the news people there how many of them would you say are our foreign journalists and how many specifically Soviet (01:02:42) journalists as I understand it here in the motorcade itself bottle. Looks like I have to go here because Gorbachev getting out. I'll talk to you later. (01:02:50) Alright, well terrific Stephen Smith will get out and cover that little Opportunity by Gorbachev to meet with some people and we will probably be hearing from him a little bit later. He's the pool reporter you understand so he To share this with everybody and we can't get it any faster than anyone else can't even though he's our man there on the scene Bruce McDonald incidentally who's at the at the airport will now be going down to Control Data headquarters. He is going to be the pool reporter for radio in that particular event the time now 2 minutes past 2:00 o'clock.