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CNN Live Saturday

Sneakheads Invade D.C. Area; Bush Daughters Hit Campaign Trail After Graduation; U.S. Troops Enter Kufa For First Time

Aired May 22, 2004 - 18:00   ET

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

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


CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: CNN SATURDAY is just ahead but first these headlines. Coalition forces have entered the town of Kufa in a major offensive in central Iraq. It is the stronghold of rebel Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadr. We are going to get the latest from Jane Arraf embedded with coalition forces there in just a moment.
Tornado warnings in the Midwest and east, which are getting drenched with more wet weather today. Last night severe storms unleashed a tornado in Iowa. It damaged nearly ever building in the town of Bradgate. Iowa's governor toured the destruction today. He said the worst damage he's seen in five years. That's all there since he's been in office.

Strong winds are hampering efforts of a wildfire in New Mexico. The lookout fire has burned more than 2,500 acres of grassland and Ponderosa pine. High temperature and low humidity levels are making it even more difficult for firefighters to bring the blaze under control.

Good evening. Welcome to CNN LIVE SATURDAY. I'm Carol Lin. Ahead this hour, graduation for the Bush twins. We are going to look at their plans for the summer. Will Jena and Barbara Bush take an active role in their dad's campaign?

And the mystery surrounding a small plane crash in Alabama last year. The NTSB says the plane collided in midair with something. And the family of the pilot who died says they are not giving up their investigation. More on this story straight ahead.

Wicked weather, though, tops our news this hour. At least six tornado warnings are in effect right now in the Midwest. And our Jacqui Jeras is going to have more on that in a moment, but first, look at this. Iowa has been under the gun since yesterday. A tornado destroyed almost all 50 homes in the town of Bradgate and hundreds of thousands of people lost power in West Virginia, Nebraska, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Let's get right to meteorologist Jacqui Jeras in the CNN weather center.

Jacqui, unbelievable, six, at least six tornado warnings.

JAQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, six warnings going on right now. We also have six watches in effect.

Yesterday, you know, Carol, we had almost 500 reports of severe weather across the country. The busiest day so far of 2004, and today we may be rivaling that once again. I want to show you the big views here because this covers such a large area of the country from Wyoming into parts of Colorado, across Nebraska, Kansas, extending across the Great Lakes and even a brand new severe thunderstorm watch just at the top of the hour not even plotting yet. It's going to cover parts of northwestern Pennsylvania up into upstate New York including the Lake Erie area. So another one coming in.

We have tornado warnings right now. It is lighting up across the state of Nebraska, in Red Willow County, in Thomas and Hooker Counties, also in Furnace Counties and McPherson Counties. And trained storm spotters have seen several funnel clouds with the McPherson County tornado. You want to take cover, get to the lowest level of your home, away from doors and windows.

And look at these clusters of thunderstorms. This is where two of the warnings are right now. We see some bright purple colors in there. That is indicative of very, very large hail. And we also may be seeing some very damaging winds associated with this as well.

Michigan also under the gun right now -- LaPierre County and also Standlack County. And that's this line of thunderstorms. Two different cells here pushing off to the east this time and also the entire area under a tornado watch and that does include Detroit, which may be seeing some rather strong thunderstorms later on this afternoon and evening.

The risk extends all the way across the Great Lakes into the Northeast as well. But our primary concern for rotation is, we think, where we're going to see the worst of the super cells will be across Nebraska. And this may move into Iowa, potentially some of the same areas that got hit hard yesterday, Carol. And also, we will see some very heavy rainfall. We have flooding problems all across this area as the ground is very, very saturated. Lots of record rainfall yesterday. Two plus inches on top of what they already have, so we have multiple factors going on tonight.

And just a little icing on the cake, Carol, we do have some winter storm watches in effect for parts of Montana.

LIN: Wow!

JERAS: So a little winter weather going on as well.

LIN: A lot action. All right. Jacqui, you're going to be with us throughout our primetime block to keep people posted. We're going to get pictures in throughout the night, so everybody stay tuned.

Thanks, Jacqui.

Well, right now we're going turn to Iraq. Our Jane Arraf has been embedded with a U.S. Army that is on a mission inside the city of Kufa in Iraq. She joins us now by telephone.

Jane, what is going on and what is the mission there?

JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Carol, U.S. forces have rolled into Kufa for the first time. More than 20 tanks and hundreds of troops have gone into the stronghold of radical Shia leader Muqtada al Sadr. The Italian commander said it's an effort to deny safe haven to the Mahdi militia, which the U.S. forces have been battling since they took control of Najaf and Kufa in April.

We have gone through darkened streets. There has been mortar fire and we have ended up here at a mosque on the north side of Kufa where U.S. Special Forces say they have found mortar tubes, rocket propelled grenade launchers, more than 2,000 rounds of ammunition and other explosives. U.S. Special Forces along with nearly created Iraqi special forces, they say, have gone into this mosque. There was fighting on the outskirts. At least two Mahdi militia members dead in what is the biggest operation yet, aimed at a show of force against the Mahdi militia members and first time U.S. forces have come into Kufa -- Carol.

LIN: Jane, are -- do they know where the rebel cleric -- Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadyr is and is one of their missions to go after him and arrest him?

ARRAF: It is apparently not, Carol. They're still treading quite lightly, as lightly as you can tread with 20 tanks and hundreds of troops. But they are not going in to arrest Muqtada al Sadr. That does not appear tonight the aim. The aim does appear to be to present a show of force and deny Mahdi militia the ability to remain in Kufa, and eventually Najaf -- to eventually allow the Iraqi police and civil defense forces to come in. We have to say eventually because there are not yet enough Iraqi police or civil defense to actually take control. This is very much a standoff. This is a major show of force by U.S. forces in the very place where Muqtada al Sadr is the strongest -- Carol.

LIN: All right. Thank you very much, Jane Arraf embedded with the U.S. Army on a mission in Kufa right now. She's going to be reporting with us throughout the night.

And of course, we're going to stay on Iraq because obviously a big topic on the president's mind. In fact, so much so he feels the need to say something to the American public, trying to ease the public's anxiety over what is happening in that country. So Monday night President Bush will deliver a primetime address to the nation. As CNN White House correspondent Dana Bash reports, many Republicans are looking for reassurance as well.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The president's Monday night speech is aimed at calming increasing fears Iraq has become a mission with no plan. Some Republicans say it's about time.

GLEN BOLGER, GOP POLLSTER: The president has the bully pulpit. People want to see some aggressive leadership. They want to know that he's got a plan.

BASH: Criticism of Mr. Bush's Iraq policy, even among supporters, is growing. A fresh swipe Saturday from an influential Republican, Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Richard Luger. "Our security depends not on clever decision-making about when to go it alone, but on careful maintenance of our relations with other countries that ensures the international community will be with us in a crisis," Senator Luger said at Tufts University.

And the few Republicans who did not support the war are becoming more outspoken.

REP. JOHN DUNCAN (R), TENNESSEE: It has been massive foreign aid, huge deficit spending, that's putting almost the entire burden of enforcing U.N. resolutions on our taxpayers.

BASH: Public support for the president's handling of Iraq has dropped some 16 points since the beginning of the year. His overall approval, the lowest to date.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The nation has added more than 1.1 million new jobs since last August.

BASH: Images of prisoner abuse and mounting casualties are frustrating White House attempts like Saturday's radio address to get improving economic news noticed.

BOLGER: People actually think the economy is getting worse and people think that jobs are being lost. And clearly that's not the case. A majority of Americans are negative. But it has happened so quickly in the last month that it is unprecedented.

BASH: Administration officials say while the president Monday will try to elevate the mood of the country, and they hope his political standing, he will, sources say, give some new specifics, a handful of steps on plans for Iraqi sovereignty and the American mission. Some say Mr. Bush needs to offer more, an endgame.

JOHN CIRINCIONE, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE: I think more and more Americans are asking for and are wanting a plan for how do we get out of Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BASH: Well, administration sources say not to look for an exit plan. They say the president will give some new details about what the U.S. military's role will be in Iraq after the Iraqis take control of the sovereignty of their country on June 30th -- Carol.

LIN: Dana, on a completely different topic, I heard the president fell off his bike this morning. Is he all right?

BASH: This afternoon, actually. He took a little spill. He's OK. We're told that he did fall off his bicycle. He was on the 16th of a 17 mile ride around his ranch here in Crawford. He suffered minor abrasions, we're told, on his chin, upper lip, nose, right hand and both knees. He was riding with his doctor, Dr. Richard Tubb, who treated him right there on the spot. And we're told that he was well enough to ride that last mile back home. And he also is going to Austin tonight to attend some celebrations for his daughter, Jenna Bush who, of course, graduated today. And we're also told that she actually did not attend...

LIN: All right. We lost the signal out of Crawford, Texas. But Dana was telling us about the wounded knee of President Bush and maybe a little wounded pride as well, falling off his bike this afternoon.

Well, in other political news, after a crowded primary season, Senator John Kerry has the Democratic field to himself now. So you think he couldn't wait to get the formal Democratic presidential nominee or nomination, but waiting may be a good strategy. Our senior political correspondent Candy Crowley explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Suppose they held a convention...

BUSH: I proudly accept your nomination.

AL GORE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: I accept your nomination.

CROWLEY: ...and suppose the nominee said, "Not now." John Kerry is thinking about it. "We are looking at this and many other options very seriously," his campaign says, "because we won't fight with one hand behind our back."

Camp Kerry sees it as a matter of time and money. Once they are nominated, Kerry and George Bush are expected to take $75 million in federal funds, which will be all their campaigns will be allowed to spend. The Democrats convention is in late July, the Republicans almost five weeks later. Bottom line, John Kerry has to make $75 million last five week longs than George Bush. Put differently, George Bush has five weeks more to spend money he raised during the primary season. Says the Bush-Cheney team, "Only John Kerry could be for a nominating convention but be against the nomination."

While Kerry's campaign says it's serious about delaying his acceptance of the nomination, strategists also admit they leaked the news to highlight Kerry's hardy fund-raising numbers. Saturday, they plan to announce another successful Internet run, $10 million raised in 10 days.

Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: All right, lots of political maneuvering going on in the race for president. That's why we're going bring in our senior political correspondent and analyst Bill Schneider.

Hi there, Bill.

BILL SCHNEIDER, SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT AND ANALYST: Hi there.

LIN: What you to make of the strategy by John Kerry to possibly -- and we emphasize possibly -- delay his official acceptance of the nomination. Good money strategy?

SCHNEIDER: Well, he's trying to probably impress voters, Democrats and Republicans that the system isn't fair. George Bush gets to spend all the -- those tens of millions of dollars over $200 million that he's raised and Kerry can't do that after he accepts the nomination. So he says you know this system isn't fair. Both candidates are raising money hand over fist. It's a tightly competitive race. In a normal year, a candidate is eager to have a convention so he can get his hands on that federal money. But as Candy just reported, that money comes with spending limits. And these guys have so much money that they don't want to have any spending limits. They want to spend everything they've raised as much as possible as fast as possible without any limits. So Kerry is trying to say, you know the system isn't being fair to me.

LIN: Does that give -- doesn't that give the Republicans a little bit of fuel to accuse him of trying to bend the rules and you know shave the truth here and there and make it for his own convenience in his race?

SCHNEIDER: I don't think so because he can say the rules aren't fair. Each of us gets $75 million. That's how much each of us can spend. But he can spend it in two months. I have to make it last over three months. Is that fair? The rules aren't fair.

LIN: All right. So is there a downside at all to this strategy?

SCHNEIDER: Oh, sure. What if he gave -- as Candy said, what if there's a convention and there isn't any news at all. They don't even have a nominee at the end of the convention.

LIN: Yes. Why watch?

SCHNEIDER: Who gives the speech? You know who's going to watch? Who's going to cover it? Well, of course we'll cover it because it's a major event. John Kerry will be there. But won't it be interesting if the Democrats nominate him, he goes before the convention and he says, "Thank you for nominating me, I'll let you know."

(LAUGHTER)

LIN: In the meantime, President Bush is having a lot of problems with his poll numbers, more down today.

SCHNEIDER: That's right. His poll numbers have been going down. They've been in some polls -- last week's "Newsweek" poll getting perilously close to 40 percent, below 40 percent. He's kind of sunk. Even his own polling director said below 40 percent, he'd be impossible to re-elect. That's the way his father was in 1992. That's the way Jimmy Carter was when he ran -- when he was challenged by Ronald Reagan in 1980. So they're getting very worried and Republicans are getting very worried.

You know when a president is in trouble, two things happen. The opposition party starts to get a little reckless. And this week the leader of the Democrats in the house, Nancy Pelosi, made the charge, which outraged Republicans that the president's incompetence in Iraq has actually endangered the lives of American troops. And at the same time, the president's own party gets restless. They begin to say, wait a minute do we really want to go with this guy? Hi policy in Iraq is unpopular. So the president had to go up on Capitol Hill to reassure his own forces.

LIN: Right and he's talking about more domestic issues now. He doesn't want to talk about Iraq. He's focusing now on the economy. The numbers are picking up. The gas prices are also picking up, too.

SCHNEIDER: That's right. Look, if you're having trouble in one area, go to the other area, change the subject. Well, the president is now talking about the economy because the job situation has been pretty good, about a million jobs created this year although a lot have been part-time jobs.

The problem is -- and this is a real puzzle -- Americans don't seem to be buoyant or confident about the economy. The economic numbers haven't given them a great deal, a surge of optimism. We just can't find it. Well, there are gas prices that are surging. Health insurance costs are surging. And Americans are still worried.

LIN: All right, thank you very much. Bill Schneider, good to see you.

There are also new developments in the prisoner abuse scandal. The Pentagon is expanding its criminal probe of detainee deaths both in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the meantime, the Justice Department will investigate whether a civilian contractor played a role in the abuse. CNN's Elaine Quijano has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The emerging images tell one aspect of the detainees' story, and now death certificates reveal still more aspects of a picture that is far from complete. In a rare move, the Pentagon has released the death certificates of 23 detainees who died in U.S. custody in Iraq and Afghanistan, detainees whose deaths are part of ongoing investigations.

One lists Iraqi Major General Abed Mowhosh, the same general who the U.S. military said originally appeared to have died of natural causes. But on his death certificate, the cause of death, asphyxia due to smothering and chest compression. Another notes that Iraqi detainee, Naim Sadoon Hatah (ph) was found unresponsive at a U.S. detention facility. His cause of death, strangulation. And on detainee Manadel Al Jamadi (ph), whose nation of origin is listed as the USA, the cause of death, blunt force injuries complicated by compromised respiration.

Pentagon officials were unavailable for comment on the death certificates. The documents come at a time when the Defense Department is facing intense pressure over prisoner abuse.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How did it happen so long and so deep and we not know?

GEN. JOHN ABIZAID, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: Well, I think there are failures in people doing their duty, there are failures in systems. And we should have known and we should have uncovered it and taken action before it got to the point that it got to.

QUIJANO: The Pentagon now says 33 investigations are under way into the deaths of 37 detainees, 32 in Iraq and five in Afghanistan. That's eight more than previously reported. Eight deaths, according to the Pentagon, are listed as justified homicides that happened either as prisoners were trying to escape or as a result of prison disturbances.

(on camera): And CNN has learned the Justice Department has opened its own investigation into a civilian contractor whose case was referred by the Defense Department.

Elaine Quijano, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Parents in Connecticut try to get their kids to say cheese for photos that could be the most important pictures in their lives.

And what happened to this pilot? Federal investigators still don't know and neither does his family.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Connecticut this week became the first state in the nation to issue I.D. cards not only for parents, but for children as well. Our Alina Cho reports the cards could provide vital information to help find a missing kid fast.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't color the application.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The process may not be easy.

(on camera): Can you say cheese?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I don't want cheese.

CHO (voice-over): But parents agree it's worth the trouble.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's very sad and it's very scary and it worries me that something may potentially happen and I want to have that access to that information immediately.

CHO: This week, Connecticut became the first state in the nation to launch AMBER Alert child I.D. cards.

LT. GOV. JODI RELL, CONNECTICUT: Being quick is essential in successfully recovering an abducted child.

CHO: Signing is up free and easy. Parents fill out the form; get their children weighed and measured, and then the all important photo.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There you go. That's a beautiful smile.

CHO: The information is stored in a secure database that only police have access to, giving authorities a way to distribute the data within 10 minutes if a child is abducted.

LT. WAYNE RIOUX, CONNECTICUT STATE TROOPER, AMBER ALERT STATE COORDINATION: If you've noticed the AMBER alerts across the country, there's rarely a photograph immediately. The photograph comes hours later.

CHO: Parents also can carry around the wallet sized photo I.D.

RIOUX: That's the purpose of this, to make sure both parents have a card.

CHO: Allowing them call in the information if their child is lost during a trip.

(on camera): Police say parents of kidnapped children often don't have recent photos of their kids and many don't know their child's height or weight. Also when a child disappears, parents often panic and forget to tell police important details.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You'll be spending all kinds of time running around looking for the pictures, looking for this.

CHO (voice-over): More than 1,200 children already have been photographed. Hundreds more will sign up here, especially since police have set up shop at a local firehouse next to a ball field.

RIOUX: Today is going to be a very successful day and we're really kind of backed up here.

CHO (on camera): You're looking at a long day.

RIOUX: We're looking at a very long day, but it's worth it.

CHO: A home run.

Alina Cho, CNN, New Fairfield, Connecticut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Time now for some news around the world.

Madrid, Spain, royal celebrations for a fairytale wedding. Tens of thousands of people jammed the city to catch a glimpse of Prince Felipe and former television anchorwoman, Letizia Ortiz. They tied the knot in front of 1,400 guests and dignitaries. This is the country's first royal wedding in nearly a hundred years. New Delhi, India, the new prime minister, Manmohan Singh, has been sworn in at the presidential palace. He is an Oxford educated economist and the first premier from the minority Sikh religion. Singh was asked for the post after Sonia Ghandi declined it.

In the West Bank, a suicide bomber blew himself up near an Israeli checkpoint today. He was the only one who died. A paramedic at the scene says four Palestinians and an Israeli soldier were wounded.

In Gaza, an angry and emotional funeral for a 3-year-old Palestinian girl. Palestinians say she was shot and killed by Israeli forces. The Israeli military says it has no knowledge of the incident.

In Tuneness, the Arab League Summit opened today for a moment of silence for Palestinians killed in Gaza. But Libyan president, Moammar Gadhafi overshadowed the event by storming out. He said he's pulling out in protest all because the Arab League failed to consider his controversial proposal calling for a single Palestinian-Israeli state.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat addressed the summit via video phone. He condemned Israel but said progress could be made if Israel's occupation ended. Arafat also repeated his commitment to the U.S. backed road map for peace. A final statement by the League is expected tomorrow.

Aliens have invaded the United States. Aliens? The fishy kind. They may be beautiful, but they're hurting the local economy. That's what they look like.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: The North Carolina coast is a buzz over a rare great white shark sighting. Fishermen rolled their home video camera on this beast near Kill Devil Hills Thursday. The great white has been notorious since the 1970s when the book and the movie, "Jaws," portrayed it as a vicious maneater. But scientists insist the whites really aren't very dangerous. OK, if they say so. Yes, right.

Well, there's more fish trouble on East Coast. Two alien species have been found in the Potomac River and the Atlantic Ocean. Wildlife officials are trying to figure out how far the fish have spread and what if anything can be done about it. CNN's Kathleen Koch reports

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Posters dot dozens of Maryland marinas: the Northern Snakehead wanted dead or alive. New fears of if spreading after the three of the veracious Asian imports have been caught in the Potomac River. Less than two years ago, an inland pond had to be poisoned to kill an infestation there.

Brian Bielski pulled one in during a fishing tournament. BRIAN BIELSKI, FISHERMAN: I wasn't sure what it was. It looked like what's called the bow fin to me. Since we had these pieces of paper with the picture of it, both he and I looked at each other and said that looks like a snakehead.

KOCH: Now, that fish and others are being genetically tested by the Smithsonian Institution.

STEVE EARLY, MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL RESOURCES: Could they have come out of Crofton Pond? Did they all come from the same fish dealer perhaps? Right now, it's a shot in the dark.

KOCH: No posters yet about another finned invader on the North Carolina coast. Just a warning to any who may venture into waters 80 to 300 feet deep, to be aware of the venomous spines of a vine fish, which has just infested that area.

JONATHAN HARE, HOAA BIOLOGIST: People who may be scuba diving who may be attracted to watching these fish or trying to touch them and then also possibly people who are fishing, sort of hook and line fishing who might pull one up to the surface.

KOCH: The fish are the latest examples of the growing problem of alien species entering the United States and wreaking havoc on native ecosystems. The cost to the economy, an estimated $120 billion a year. Federal officials insist they are still making progress.

DEAN WILKINSON, INVASIVE SPECIES COORDINATOR, NOAA: One preventing, two detecting things early in the process will probably be much more effective and it'll ultimately cost the U.S. taxpayer less must be.

KOCH (on camera): The federal government last year did ban the importation of live snakeheads into the United States.

(voice-over): But that did nothing about the estimated 17,000 snakeheads imported live before the ban. Biologists think the lion fish was dumped from an aquarium into Florida waters, the Gulf Stream carrying its eggs northward to North Carolina. There's little they can do now except monitor the impact.

HARE: If there's a lot of them, it could be eating a fair amount of fish that -- fish and food that other fishes that are commercially important would eat otherwise.

KOCH: The toll in both cases still unclear as native species may again have to adjust to unwelcome intruders.

Kathleen Koch, CNN, Fort Washington, Maryland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: A small plane crash in Alabama a year and a half ago is still unsolved. The pilot's sister looks for answers. What are the red streaks on the part of his plane that was recovered? Why do federal investigators not know what happened? (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: More news in a moment, but first, here's a check of the hour's top stories. Kufa, Iraq is the latest hot spot in the battle between U.S. troops and forces loyal to radical Shiite cleric Mutaqda al Sadr. CNN's Jane Arraf is embedded with U.S. forces and reports hearing the sound of mortar fire and artillery rounds from both sides of the conflict.

Back in this country, firefighters in New Mexico are trying to get a handle on massive wildfire that's burned more than 2,500 acres. Strong winds today are making their job much more difficult. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Volunteers and prison inmates are helping clean up tornado damage across parts of Iowa. The small farming town of Bradgate, nearly ever building was damaged or destroyed by yesterday's storm. At least 15 people were injured.

It is a mystery as baffling as the disappearance of Amelia Earhart. More than a year ago a small plane plunged into an Alabama swamp killing its pilot. A recent report by the National Transportation Board only raises more questions about this aviation mystery. CNN's Jeanne Meserve reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From the muck and mud of a Mobile, Alabama marsh, Maura Wade excavates potential clues to her brother's plane crash more than a year and a half ago.

MAURA WADE, SISTER: This is Tommy's airplane.

MESERVE: A National Transportation Safety Board investigator concluded in an interim report that Tommy Presiosi's (ph) plane collided in flight with an unknown object. But what was it?

WADE: We simply don't know.

MESERVE: A Vietnam veteran and former New York City cop, Tommy Presiosi (ph) loved to fly.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Motor in one.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Motor in one.

MESERVE: The night of October 23, 2002, he was piloting this Cessna caravan full of freight. Visibility was poor; Presiosi (ph) was flying on instruments. But four minutes after takeoff from Mobile, Alabama, he went down in Big Batto Bay. Presiosi's (ph) last words to air traffic control, "I needed to deviate. I needed to deviate. I needed to deviate. I needed --."

WADE: He was saying I see something coming at me. And I know I'm going to die. And I want you to know what happened to me. MESERVE: The wreckage yielded two tantalizing clues. On some pieces, red streaks perhaps transferred from something the Cessna hit and embedded in one fragment, a small piece of anatomized aluminum of unknown origin, apparently not from Presiosi's (ph) plane. But searches that night and since have not turned up any other object or aircraft.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For it to not leave anything behind is really puzzling. It's really puzzling.

MESERVE: Speculation about what hit the Cessna has ranged from a terrorist missile to a drug smuggler's plane. Radar shows a Federal Express DC-10 was in the air that night. But it does not appear to cross paths with Presiosi's (ph) Cessna, which is 1,000 feet below and at least a mile away. But right before his final transmission, Presiosi (ph) tells the tower, "I got him above me right now." Presiosi (ph) could have been disoriented. But a lawyer for Presiosi's (ph) estate believes the two planes were closer than the radar indicates and postulates a whole new theory for the crash.

GREGORY BREEDLOVE, ATTORNEY FOR PILOT'S ESTATE: We believe that the most likely cause of this tragedy, of Tom's death, was weight vortices or wake turbulence.

MESERVE: Wake Turbulence, the tornado-like wind that comes off a plane's wings can cause aircraft behind to crash.

(on camera): But what accounts then for the red transfer marks? In an effort to determine if they came from a collision or something else like the crane that moved the debris, the NTSB is mapping the marks on a three dimensional drawing of the plane. The board has also retaken possession of the wreckage and will re-examine radar data.

(voice-over): Meanwhile, Maura Wade returns to the spot where her brother died.

WADE: I can't stop. I have to come out here. I feel at peace here when I'm here. When I'm not here, all I can think about is being here.

MESERVE: Here where the explanation for her brother's death could lie buried forever.

Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Big Batto Bay, Alabama.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: As we reported, the Midwest is getting pounded by more rough weather right now. Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is in the weather center with more details. That would be meteorologist. Let me emphasize the credentials.

JERAS: Yes. Last night it was Iowa, Carol, and tonight, their neighbors to the west, Nebraska, getting hit very hard. We've got warnings, tornado warnings, in Logan, Lincoln, Dawson, Furnace and Harling counties. And we were talking earlier in the hour about large hail we expected with some of these thunderstorms and now we have half dollar sized hail being reported in Wilsonville, which was in Furnace County earlier. So these thunderstorms are capable of very, very large hail.

And no ground truth right now, no reports of actual tornadoes touching down. However, one could come out of any of these clusters that we've been watching at any time. So this is really a very dangerous situation. And watches are in effect. Right now, things are looking quiet over towards Lincoln and Omaha, but we are expecting some firing to go on here within the next couple of hours.

Tornado warnings have expired now out of Michigan, but still a watch in effect. So be aware of that threat.

And look at all of these watches stacked up. We're talking from Nebraska all the way over to New York State. So this covers a very large portion of the country, many of these watches do not expire until late this evening, 10:00 or so. So this is going to be an ongoing event.

Not only do we have the threats of severe thunderstorms, but also flooding is going to be a possibility in many of these locations. The ground very, very saturated. For example, some parts of north central Iowa yesterday saw about four and a half inches of rainfall. So as these thunderstorms pull out of Nebraska, headed toward your neck of the woods, they could be dumping an additional two plus inches of rain.

Now, will we be done with this as we head into the latter part of your weekend? Not just yet. Unfortunately, we've had this frontal system, which has just stationary here and that has been the triggering point, the focal point of these thunderstorms and that's why it is so widespread and not just so localized for today and why it's going to be affecting millions of people here for today. A little bit of progress towards the east for your Sunday. So we're still going to be seeing the severe weather threat in many of these states, but I think they're going to be pushing a little bit farther on off to the east. But more tornadoes will be possible tomorrow -- Carol.

LIN: Oh, boy. All right. Thanks Jacqui.

Well, talk about dedicated to our cause. A young soldier who has already given his leg for his country trains to go back to Iraq.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: U.S. tanks and troops are thundering through the Iraqi city of Kufa tonight. That is the stronghold of radical cleric Muqtada al Sadr and his Mahdi militia. Military commanders say the operation is aimed at finding militia members and weapons. CNN's Jane Arraf says it's the first time that U.S. forces have entered Kufa since al Sadr began stirring up anti-American sentiment.

Meanwhile, insurgents have taken aim at one of Iraq's interim government leaders for the second time in five days. A suicide car bombing killed five people outside the deputy interior minister's home today. The dead included bodyguards and a neighbor. But the minister himself was not seriously wounded.

And now, to our special continuing series, "On The Front Lines." For certain soldiers in combat, suffering a serious battle wound might be seen as a ticket out of the war zone but one Army specialist is hoping to get back in the fight despite losing part of his leg. CNN's Gary Tuchman brings thus remarkable story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Army Specialist Garth Stewart has just graduated from a hand-to-hand combat class at Fort Benning, Georgia. And he's done it as an amputee. The Minnesota native was wounded in Iraq from a land mine. Now he's back on active duty and has volunteering to go back into combat.

SPEC. GARTH STEWART, U.S. ARMY: I've got to be diplomatic about this. I'm not necessarily singing the Army's praises. It doesn't have as much to do with that as it does maybe to do with preps, camaraderie, I feel with some of the people, specifically in my platoon, especially at the time I got injured.

TUCHMAN: It's exceedingly rare for an amputee to go back to war. But Stewart has received his medical clearance and could be redeployed with his unit in a matter of months.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He can literally do anything that you can with two legs, so there's no issues whatsoever.

TUCHMAN: Stewart served as base gunner in a mortar platoon.

STEWART: The rest of my platoon, without a doubt, at mortar skills, mortar gunning, I mean I ain't even bragging to say that.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Garth Stewart does say he plans to leave the Army when his term of enlistment is up in June of 2005. He hopes to go to college and then possibly become a philosopher.

Is there anything about it, though, going back to war, without a leg, that scares you?

STEWART: No. You're like 50 percent immune to land mines now.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Gary Tuchman, CNN, Fort Benning, Georgia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: 2004 is shaping up to be an interesting campaign year. And now the president's twin daughters will hit the campaign trail soon. Are the gloves off for the media?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: The run for president is going to be a family affair. President Bush and John Kerry will have their kids on the campaign trail. Our Brian Todd shows us what children add to the political picture.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I get more love here than I do at home.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The images at the very least draw attention and that's the point.

JOHN KERRY, DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My daughter, Vanessa Kerry.

TODD: The kids are out there and that's all right with the candidates. After years of being shielded from media coverage, the Bushes' 22-year-old twin daughters, Jenna and Barbara, have indicated they'll join their father's re-election campaign. The two are also profiled in a new article in "People" magazine and they'll appear in an interview and photo shoot in the august issue of "Vogue" magazine. A spokesman for First Lady Laura Bush tells CNN, "Their roles in the president's campaign are up to them and the decision to participate is entirely theirs." Observers see clear political benefit.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I do think that if they go out, in all likelihood, it will be a positive for the president. Right now, polls vary from week to week but he is having trouble with younger voters.

TODD: The Bush daughters have had issues regarding their image. Both pleaded no contest in 2001 in cases involving underaged possession of alcohol. The family has always asked the news media to respect the twins' privacy and family spokesmen say this stepping out does not mean a no holds barred approach to the daughters is appropriate. But at the same time, they acknowledge the roles for Barbara and Jenna are changing somewhat.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you very much.

TODD: For John Kerry's kids, the roles have long since changed. Kerry's stepson, Chris Heinz, left a prestigious job at a private equity firm in New York to join the Democratic senator's campaign. Chris' two brothers aren't as involved. But Kerry's biological daughters, 27-year-old Vanessa and 30-year-old Alexandria have been very active on the campaign trail.

Aside of having a candidates' kids on the campaign trial more than makes up for these occasional flourishes of potentially negative publicity.

BROWNSTEIN: Several candidates have shown over the years that children -- the children have played a role in helping to make them more of an approachable human humane figure for voters.

TODD (on camera): But one side note, on the balancing act that these children and their parents are engaged in, President and Mrs. Bush have decided not attend their daughter's college graduation ceremonies. They're spokesmen say they want the attention placed on graduates and their families and not on how long everyone would have to wait to go through metal detectors.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Well, in fact, Jenna Bush graduated from the University of Texas today. And her twin sister, Barbara, graduates from Yale on Monday. So what's ahead this summer for the girls and what role are they likely to play in their father's re-election campaign? As editor of "In Touch Weekly" in New York, Tom O'Neil keeps up with the bush twins.

You are a busy man, that being Tom. Hi, Tom.

TOM O'NEIL, EDITOR, "IN TOUCH WEEKLY": Hey, Carol, how are you?

LIN: I'm fine. What do you think they're going to be doing in the campaign, literally?

O'NEIL: Well, they're just going to be showing what a perfect family picture those Bushes portray because, remember the family issues are very important to the Bushes. Long-term Jenna wants to go into education. They both want to do some graduate work and they both want to get real jobs. But in the interim, they're going to hit the campaign trail and now they're going to be in the media's eye and they're going to be there at the age of 22, as adults.

LIN: Yes, but what does that mean?

O'NEIL: It means that the gloves are off. It means that everyone's been rather -- have given these kids some room since 2001 when they got in trouble. Remember, Jenna got in trouble twice. It's going to be a very different story, especially since considering where they went to school. Barbara went to Yale, which is a very private school in every way. Jodie Foster, right after she won an Academy Award, went there, and everybody just left her alone pretty much. And I mean, yes, Barbara went to Yale. And Jenna, at the University of Texas, mingled in with 50,000 other students. Now they're going to have that spotlight right on them.

LIN: Right. Right. But what are the reporters going to have to write about? I mean are these girls dating? Is that going to be an issue?

O'NEIL: I don't personally know if they're dating. I don't believe they are. But we're going to certainly find out. All these personal issues are going to come out now and they've been kept under wraps rather shrewdly so far.

LIN: What do you think they want to do, you know, after the campaign? Do they have any aspirations?

O'NEIL: Well, they're going to start up careers. As I said -- as I mentioned, Jenna wants to go into education. Barbara has done work with AIDS patients in the past. They want to make a difference in the charitable way in the world the same way that their parents have but I don't think they've quite figured out what they're going to be doing specifically yet.

LIN: Really? So what are you going to be watching for?

O'NEIL: To see if that wild child Jenna acts up again, you know, because you know 22 years old, you're not all that mature. You're an adult, technically speaking, but what if they say something, you know, crazy. This election is so close this year that...

LIN: Everything is going to be so scripted, Tom. You know these girls are not going to be allowed to open up their mouths around a microphone without it being totally written out and approved in advance.

O'NEIL: Well, remember Jimmy Carter and Amy Carter's -- her giving her daddy advice on nuclear fusion and how that backfired.

LIN: If you raise a smart kid, you know, you plant corn, you get corn. That's what a good friend of mine says.

O'NEIL: Yes.

LIN: All right, thanks so much, Tom. We'll see what happens with the girls.

Well, if you think Washington politics is stomach churning enough, these people, yes, have come to D.C. to cook up and eat cicadas. In a moment, we'll tell you why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: In the plains, Virginia, yes, it really is rocket science. More than 700 students are competing in the second annual Team America Rocketry Challenge. Their hand built models, those rockets, are supposed to reach 1,250 feet and then release two raw eggs back to the ground unbroken. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nickel 31, great meadow, you are cleared hot for flyover of Team America Rocketry Challenge 2004.

MICHAEL PEARCE, HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) rocketry and I just go after it. I even sleep with a sketching pad beside my bed. I've woken up in the middle of the night, had an inspiration, sketched it out and went back to sleep.

J.P. STEVENS, ROCKET CONTEST ORGANIZER: The contest is to design a two-stage rocket that carries two raw eggs to exactly 1,250 feet and then brings the eggs back to the ground.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At the second state, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) up in the rocket. It didn't fire, so it crashed. We've made it this far. You might look at this as a failure but I know from what I'm seeing this has been the most successful failure that we've ever had.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I come out here because these kids can give me advice. They know what's going on in all phases of their life. And it's just great to talk to them because they're thinking all the time and they're willing to share and they're enthusiastic.

PEARCE: The reason I'm here, I love aerospace. If it flies, count me in on it. Most guys sit around and think about women, I think about aircraft and rockets.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Shooting for the stars.

What to do with billions of cicadas that come out of the ground and blanket it once every 17 years? Well, in a Washington suburb, people are actually eating them. A D.C. country music radio station enticed dozens of adventurous chefs to a Fairfax, Virginia, mall parking lot today to compete in a cicada cook-off. An allegedly tasty dish of cicada fried rice featuring dozens of the red-eyed winged insects took first prize. The winner says he took the wings off because you don't have to eat the whole bug to enjoy it. And that's a relief. Tastes like chicken. No just kidding. I don't know.

That's it for us. "CAPITAL GANG" is up next and then at 8:00 Eastern, "CNN PRESENTS: THE GAP," 50 years after the Brown ruling. Tonight, CNN visits Shaker Heights, Ohio, an integrated community searching for answers and breaching taboos, asking how African- Americans may be undermining their own chances of success.

At 9:00 Eastern, Larry King talks to Cokie Roberts. And at 10:00 Eastern, please join me for "CNN SATURDAY NIGHT." Oregon lawyer, Brandon Mayfield, is no longer in custody but that does not mean that the cloud of suspicion has lifted. Law enforcement sources say the investigation into whether he played any role in the Spain bombings is still under way. Mayfield's family is outraged. They say he is being targeted because of his faith. Tonight you will hear from his brother. It's the family's first primetime interview. You will not want to miss it.

Right now, Mark Shields is with us to tell us what the gang has to offer.

Hi there, Mark.

MARK SHIELDS, "THE CAPITAL GANG": Hello, Carol. Carol, senior adviser for the John Kerry presidential campaign, Tad Devine, joins the gang to look at the raid on Ahmed Chalabi, the political impact of higher gasoline prices and the Kerry-Nader summit. "THE CAPITAL GANG" will talk about that and much more right here next on CNN.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired May 22, 2004 - 18:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: CNN SATURDAY is just ahead but first these headlines. Coalition forces have entered the town of Kufa in a major offensive in central Iraq. It is the stronghold of rebel Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadr. We are going to get the latest from Jane Arraf embedded with coalition forces there in just a moment.
Tornado warnings in the Midwest and east, which are getting drenched with more wet weather today. Last night severe storms unleashed a tornado in Iowa. It damaged nearly ever building in the town of Bradgate. Iowa's governor toured the destruction today. He said the worst damage he's seen in five years. That's all there since he's been in office.

Strong winds are hampering efforts of a wildfire in New Mexico. The lookout fire has burned more than 2,500 acres of grassland and Ponderosa pine. High temperature and low humidity levels are making it even more difficult for firefighters to bring the blaze under control.

Good evening. Welcome to CNN LIVE SATURDAY. I'm Carol Lin. Ahead this hour, graduation for the Bush twins. We are going to look at their plans for the summer. Will Jena and Barbara Bush take an active role in their dad's campaign?

And the mystery surrounding a small plane crash in Alabama last year. The NTSB says the plane collided in midair with something. And the family of the pilot who died says they are not giving up their investigation. More on this story straight ahead.

Wicked weather, though, tops our news this hour. At least six tornado warnings are in effect right now in the Midwest. And our Jacqui Jeras is going to have more on that in a moment, but first, look at this. Iowa has been under the gun since yesterday. A tornado destroyed almost all 50 homes in the town of Bradgate and hundreds of thousands of people lost power in West Virginia, Nebraska, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Let's get right to meteorologist Jacqui Jeras in the CNN weather center.

Jacqui, unbelievable, six, at least six tornado warnings.

JAQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, six warnings going on right now. We also have six watches in effect.

Yesterday, you know, Carol, we had almost 500 reports of severe weather across the country. The busiest day so far of 2004, and today we may be rivaling that once again. I want to show you the big views here because this covers such a large area of the country from Wyoming into parts of Colorado, across Nebraska, Kansas, extending across the Great Lakes and even a brand new severe thunderstorm watch just at the top of the hour not even plotting yet. It's going to cover parts of northwestern Pennsylvania up into upstate New York including the Lake Erie area. So another one coming in.

We have tornado warnings right now. It is lighting up across the state of Nebraska, in Red Willow County, in Thomas and Hooker Counties, also in Furnace Counties and McPherson Counties. And trained storm spotters have seen several funnel clouds with the McPherson County tornado. You want to take cover, get to the lowest level of your home, away from doors and windows.

And look at these clusters of thunderstorms. This is where two of the warnings are right now. We see some bright purple colors in there. That is indicative of very, very large hail. And we also may be seeing some very damaging winds associated with this as well.

Michigan also under the gun right now -- LaPierre County and also Standlack County. And that's this line of thunderstorms. Two different cells here pushing off to the east this time and also the entire area under a tornado watch and that does include Detroit, which may be seeing some rather strong thunderstorms later on this afternoon and evening.

The risk extends all the way across the Great Lakes into the Northeast as well. But our primary concern for rotation is, we think, where we're going to see the worst of the super cells will be across Nebraska. And this may move into Iowa, potentially some of the same areas that got hit hard yesterday, Carol. And also, we will see some very heavy rainfall. We have flooding problems all across this area as the ground is very, very saturated. Lots of record rainfall yesterday. Two plus inches on top of what they already have, so we have multiple factors going on tonight.

And just a little icing on the cake, Carol, we do have some winter storm watches in effect for parts of Montana.

LIN: Wow!

JERAS: So a little winter weather going on as well.

LIN: A lot action. All right. Jacqui, you're going to be with us throughout our primetime block to keep people posted. We're going to get pictures in throughout the night, so everybody stay tuned.

Thanks, Jacqui.

Well, right now we're going turn to Iraq. Our Jane Arraf has been embedded with a U.S. Army that is on a mission inside the city of Kufa in Iraq. She joins us now by telephone.

Jane, what is going on and what is the mission there?

JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Carol, U.S. forces have rolled into Kufa for the first time. More than 20 tanks and hundreds of troops have gone into the stronghold of radical Shia leader Muqtada al Sadr. The Italian commander said it's an effort to deny safe haven to the Mahdi militia, which the U.S. forces have been battling since they took control of Najaf and Kufa in April.

We have gone through darkened streets. There has been mortar fire and we have ended up here at a mosque on the north side of Kufa where U.S. Special Forces say they have found mortar tubes, rocket propelled grenade launchers, more than 2,000 rounds of ammunition and other explosives. U.S. Special Forces along with nearly created Iraqi special forces, they say, have gone into this mosque. There was fighting on the outskirts. At least two Mahdi militia members dead in what is the biggest operation yet, aimed at a show of force against the Mahdi militia members and first time U.S. forces have come into Kufa -- Carol.

LIN: Jane, are -- do they know where the rebel cleric -- Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadyr is and is one of their missions to go after him and arrest him?

ARRAF: It is apparently not, Carol. They're still treading quite lightly, as lightly as you can tread with 20 tanks and hundreds of troops. But they are not going in to arrest Muqtada al Sadr. That does not appear tonight the aim. The aim does appear to be to present a show of force and deny Mahdi militia the ability to remain in Kufa, and eventually Najaf -- to eventually allow the Iraqi police and civil defense forces to come in. We have to say eventually because there are not yet enough Iraqi police or civil defense to actually take control. This is very much a standoff. This is a major show of force by U.S. forces in the very place where Muqtada al Sadr is the strongest -- Carol.

LIN: All right. Thank you very much, Jane Arraf embedded with the U.S. Army on a mission in Kufa right now. She's going to be reporting with us throughout the night.

And of course, we're going to stay on Iraq because obviously a big topic on the president's mind. In fact, so much so he feels the need to say something to the American public, trying to ease the public's anxiety over what is happening in that country. So Monday night President Bush will deliver a primetime address to the nation. As CNN White House correspondent Dana Bash reports, many Republicans are looking for reassurance as well.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The president's Monday night speech is aimed at calming increasing fears Iraq has become a mission with no plan. Some Republicans say it's about time.

GLEN BOLGER, GOP POLLSTER: The president has the bully pulpit. People want to see some aggressive leadership. They want to know that he's got a plan.

BASH: Criticism of Mr. Bush's Iraq policy, even among supporters, is growing. A fresh swipe Saturday from an influential Republican, Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Richard Luger. "Our security depends not on clever decision-making about when to go it alone, but on careful maintenance of our relations with other countries that ensures the international community will be with us in a crisis," Senator Luger said at Tufts University.

And the few Republicans who did not support the war are becoming more outspoken.

REP. JOHN DUNCAN (R), TENNESSEE: It has been massive foreign aid, huge deficit spending, that's putting almost the entire burden of enforcing U.N. resolutions on our taxpayers.

BASH: Public support for the president's handling of Iraq has dropped some 16 points since the beginning of the year. His overall approval, the lowest to date.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The nation has added more than 1.1 million new jobs since last August.

BASH: Images of prisoner abuse and mounting casualties are frustrating White House attempts like Saturday's radio address to get improving economic news noticed.

BOLGER: People actually think the economy is getting worse and people think that jobs are being lost. And clearly that's not the case. A majority of Americans are negative. But it has happened so quickly in the last month that it is unprecedented.

BASH: Administration officials say while the president Monday will try to elevate the mood of the country, and they hope his political standing, he will, sources say, give some new specifics, a handful of steps on plans for Iraqi sovereignty and the American mission. Some say Mr. Bush needs to offer more, an endgame.

JOHN CIRINCIONE, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE: I think more and more Americans are asking for and are wanting a plan for how do we get out of Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BASH: Well, administration sources say not to look for an exit plan. They say the president will give some new details about what the U.S. military's role will be in Iraq after the Iraqis take control of the sovereignty of their country on June 30th -- Carol.

LIN: Dana, on a completely different topic, I heard the president fell off his bike this morning. Is he all right?

BASH: This afternoon, actually. He took a little spill. He's OK. We're told that he did fall off his bicycle. He was on the 16th of a 17 mile ride around his ranch here in Crawford. He suffered minor abrasions, we're told, on his chin, upper lip, nose, right hand and both knees. He was riding with his doctor, Dr. Richard Tubb, who treated him right there on the spot. And we're told that he was well enough to ride that last mile back home. And he also is going to Austin tonight to attend some celebrations for his daughter, Jenna Bush who, of course, graduated today. And we're also told that she actually did not attend...

LIN: All right. We lost the signal out of Crawford, Texas. But Dana was telling us about the wounded knee of President Bush and maybe a little wounded pride as well, falling off his bike this afternoon.

Well, in other political news, after a crowded primary season, Senator John Kerry has the Democratic field to himself now. So you think he couldn't wait to get the formal Democratic presidential nominee or nomination, but waiting may be a good strategy. Our senior political correspondent Candy Crowley explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Suppose they held a convention...

BUSH: I proudly accept your nomination.

AL GORE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: I accept your nomination.

CROWLEY: ...and suppose the nominee said, "Not now." John Kerry is thinking about it. "We are looking at this and many other options very seriously," his campaign says, "because we won't fight with one hand behind our back."

Camp Kerry sees it as a matter of time and money. Once they are nominated, Kerry and George Bush are expected to take $75 million in federal funds, which will be all their campaigns will be allowed to spend. The Democrats convention is in late July, the Republicans almost five weeks later. Bottom line, John Kerry has to make $75 million last five week longs than George Bush. Put differently, George Bush has five weeks more to spend money he raised during the primary season. Says the Bush-Cheney team, "Only John Kerry could be for a nominating convention but be against the nomination."

While Kerry's campaign says it's serious about delaying his acceptance of the nomination, strategists also admit they leaked the news to highlight Kerry's hardy fund-raising numbers. Saturday, they plan to announce another successful Internet run, $10 million raised in 10 days.

Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: All right, lots of political maneuvering going on in the race for president. That's why we're going bring in our senior political correspondent and analyst Bill Schneider.

Hi there, Bill.

BILL SCHNEIDER, SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT AND ANALYST: Hi there.

LIN: What you to make of the strategy by John Kerry to possibly -- and we emphasize possibly -- delay his official acceptance of the nomination. Good money strategy?

SCHNEIDER: Well, he's trying to probably impress voters, Democrats and Republicans that the system isn't fair. George Bush gets to spend all the -- those tens of millions of dollars over $200 million that he's raised and Kerry can't do that after he accepts the nomination. So he says you know this system isn't fair. Both candidates are raising money hand over fist. It's a tightly competitive race. In a normal year, a candidate is eager to have a convention so he can get his hands on that federal money. But as Candy just reported, that money comes with spending limits. And these guys have so much money that they don't want to have any spending limits. They want to spend everything they've raised as much as possible as fast as possible without any limits. So Kerry is trying to say, you know the system isn't being fair to me.

LIN: Does that give -- doesn't that give the Republicans a little bit of fuel to accuse him of trying to bend the rules and you know shave the truth here and there and make it for his own convenience in his race?

SCHNEIDER: I don't think so because he can say the rules aren't fair. Each of us gets $75 million. That's how much each of us can spend. But he can spend it in two months. I have to make it last over three months. Is that fair? The rules aren't fair.

LIN: All right. So is there a downside at all to this strategy?

SCHNEIDER: Oh, sure. What if he gave -- as Candy said, what if there's a convention and there isn't any news at all. They don't even have a nominee at the end of the convention.

LIN: Yes. Why watch?

SCHNEIDER: Who gives the speech? You know who's going to watch? Who's going to cover it? Well, of course we'll cover it because it's a major event. John Kerry will be there. But won't it be interesting if the Democrats nominate him, he goes before the convention and he says, "Thank you for nominating me, I'll let you know."

(LAUGHTER)

LIN: In the meantime, President Bush is having a lot of problems with his poll numbers, more down today.

SCHNEIDER: That's right. His poll numbers have been going down. They've been in some polls -- last week's "Newsweek" poll getting perilously close to 40 percent, below 40 percent. He's kind of sunk. Even his own polling director said below 40 percent, he'd be impossible to re-elect. That's the way his father was in 1992. That's the way Jimmy Carter was when he ran -- when he was challenged by Ronald Reagan in 1980. So they're getting very worried and Republicans are getting very worried.

You know when a president is in trouble, two things happen. The opposition party starts to get a little reckless. And this week the leader of the Democrats in the house, Nancy Pelosi, made the charge, which outraged Republicans that the president's incompetence in Iraq has actually endangered the lives of American troops. And at the same time, the president's own party gets restless. They begin to say, wait a minute do we really want to go with this guy? Hi policy in Iraq is unpopular. So the president had to go up on Capitol Hill to reassure his own forces.

LIN: Right and he's talking about more domestic issues now. He doesn't want to talk about Iraq. He's focusing now on the economy. The numbers are picking up. The gas prices are also picking up, too.

SCHNEIDER: That's right. Look, if you're having trouble in one area, go to the other area, change the subject. Well, the president is now talking about the economy because the job situation has been pretty good, about a million jobs created this year although a lot have been part-time jobs.

The problem is -- and this is a real puzzle -- Americans don't seem to be buoyant or confident about the economy. The economic numbers haven't given them a great deal, a surge of optimism. We just can't find it. Well, there are gas prices that are surging. Health insurance costs are surging. And Americans are still worried.

LIN: All right, thank you very much. Bill Schneider, good to see you.

There are also new developments in the prisoner abuse scandal. The Pentagon is expanding its criminal probe of detainee deaths both in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the meantime, the Justice Department will investigate whether a civilian contractor played a role in the abuse. CNN's Elaine Quijano has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The emerging images tell one aspect of the detainees' story, and now death certificates reveal still more aspects of a picture that is far from complete. In a rare move, the Pentagon has released the death certificates of 23 detainees who died in U.S. custody in Iraq and Afghanistan, detainees whose deaths are part of ongoing investigations.

One lists Iraqi Major General Abed Mowhosh, the same general who the U.S. military said originally appeared to have died of natural causes. But on his death certificate, the cause of death, asphyxia due to smothering and chest compression. Another notes that Iraqi detainee, Naim Sadoon Hatah (ph) was found unresponsive at a U.S. detention facility. His cause of death, strangulation. And on detainee Manadel Al Jamadi (ph), whose nation of origin is listed as the USA, the cause of death, blunt force injuries complicated by compromised respiration.

Pentagon officials were unavailable for comment on the death certificates. The documents come at a time when the Defense Department is facing intense pressure over prisoner abuse.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How did it happen so long and so deep and we not know?

GEN. JOHN ABIZAID, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: Well, I think there are failures in people doing their duty, there are failures in systems. And we should have known and we should have uncovered it and taken action before it got to the point that it got to.

QUIJANO: The Pentagon now says 33 investigations are under way into the deaths of 37 detainees, 32 in Iraq and five in Afghanistan. That's eight more than previously reported. Eight deaths, according to the Pentagon, are listed as justified homicides that happened either as prisoners were trying to escape or as a result of prison disturbances.

(on camera): And CNN has learned the Justice Department has opened its own investigation into a civilian contractor whose case was referred by the Defense Department.

Elaine Quijano, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Parents in Connecticut try to get their kids to say cheese for photos that could be the most important pictures in their lives.

And what happened to this pilot? Federal investigators still don't know and neither does his family.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: Connecticut this week became the first state in the nation to issue I.D. cards not only for parents, but for children as well. Our Alina Cho reports the cards could provide vital information to help find a missing kid fast.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't color the application.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The process may not be easy.

(on camera): Can you say cheese?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I don't want cheese.

CHO (voice-over): But parents agree it's worth the trouble.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's very sad and it's very scary and it worries me that something may potentially happen and I want to have that access to that information immediately.

CHO: This week, Connecticut became the first state in the nation to launch AMBER Alert child I.D. cards.

LT. GOV. JODI RELL, CONNECTICUT: Being quick is essential in successfully recovering an abducted child.

CHO: Signing is up free and easy. Parents fill out the form; get their children weighed and measured, and then the all important photo.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There you go. That's a beautiful smile.

CHO: The information is stored in a secure database that only police have access to, giving authorities a way to distribute the data within 10 minutes if a child is abducted.

LT. WAYNE RIOUX, CONNECTICUT STATE TROOPER, AMBER ALERT STATE COORDINATION: If you've noticed the AMBER alerts across the country, there's rarely a photograph immediately. The photograph comes hours later.

CHO: Parents also can carry around the wallet sized photo I.D.

RIOUX: That's the purpose of this, to make sure both parents have a card.

CHO: Allowing them call in the information if their child is lost during a trip.

(on camera): Police say parents of kidnapped children often don't have recent photos of their kids and many don't know their child's height or weight. Also when a child disappears, parents often panic and forget to tell police important details.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You'll be spending all kinds of time running around looking for the pictures, looking for this.

CHO (voice-over): More than 1,200 children already have been photographed. Hundreds more will sign up here, especially since police have set up shop at a local firehouse next to a ball field.

RIOUX: Today is going to be a very successful day and we're really kind of backed up here.

CHO (on camera): You're looking at a long day.

RIOUX: We're looking at a very long day, but it's worth it.

CHO: A home run.

Alina Cho, CNN, New Fairfield, Connecticut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Time now for some news around the world.

Madrid, Spain, royal celebrations for a fairytale wedding. Tens of thousands of people jammed the city to catch a glimpse of Prince Felipe and former television anchorwoman, Letizia Ortiz. They tied the knot in front of 1,400 guests and dignitaries. This is the country's first royal wedding in nearly a hundred years. New Delhi, India, the new prime minister, Manmohan Singh, has been sworn in at the presidential palace. He is an Oxford educated economist and the first premier from the minority Sikh religion. Singh was asked for the post after Sonia Ghandi declined it.

In the West Bank, a suicide bomber blew himself up near an Israeli checkpoint today. He was the only one who died. A paramedic at the scene says four Palestinians and an Israeli soldier were wounded.

In Gaza, an angry and emotional funeral for a 3-year-old Palestinian girl. Palestinians say she was shot and killed by Israeli forces. The Israeli military says it has no knowledge of the incident.

In Tuneness, the Arab League Summit opened today for a moment of silence for Palestinians killed in Gaza. But Libyan president, Moammar Gadhafi overshadowed the event by storming out. He said he's pulling out in protest all because the Arab League failed to consider his controversial proposal calling for a single Palestinian-Israeli state.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat addressed the summit via video phone. He condemned Israel but said progress could be made if Israel's occupation ended. Arafat also repeated his commitment to the U.S. backed road map for peace. A final statement by the League is expected tomorrow.

Aliens have invaded the United States. Aliens? The fishy kind. They may be beautiful, but they're hurting the local economy. That's what they look like.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: The North Carolina coast is a buzz over a rare great white shark sighting. Fishermen rolled their home video camera on this beast near Kill Devil Hills Thursday. The great white has been notorious since the 1970s when the book and the movie, "Jaws," portrayed it as a vicious maneater. But scientists insist the whites really aren't very dangerous. OK, if they say so. Yes, right.

Well, there's more fish trouble on East Coast. Two alien species have been found in the Potomac River and the Atlantic Ocean. Wildlife officials are trying to figure out how far the fish have spread and what if anything can be done about it. CNN's Kathleen Koch reports

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Posters dot dozens of Maryland marinas: the Northern Snakehead wanted dead or alive. New fears of if spreading after the three of the veracious Asian imports have been caught in the Potomac River. Less than two years ago, an inland pond had to be poisoned to kill an infestation there.

Brian Bielski pulled one in during a fishing tournament. BRIAN BIELSKI, FISHERMAN: I wasn't sure what it was. It looked like what's called the bow fin to me. Since we had these pieces of paper with the picture of it, both he and I looked at each other and said that looks like a snakehead.

KOCH: Now, that fish and others are being genetically tested by the Smithsonian Institution.

STEVE EARLY, MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL RESOURCES: Could they have come out of Crofton Pond? Did they all come from the same fish dealer perhaps? Right now, it's a shot in the dark.

KOCH: No posters yet about another finned invader on the North Carolina coast. Just a warning to any who may venture into waters 80 to 300 feet deep, to be aware of the venomous spines of a vine fish, which has just infested that area.

JONATHAN HARE, HOAA BIOLOGIST: People who may be scuba diving who may be attracted to watching these fish or trying to touch them and then also possibly people who are fishing, sort of hook and line fishing who might pull one up to the surface.

KOCH: The fish are the latest examples of the growing problem of alien species entering the United States and wreaking havoc on native ecosystems. The cost to the economy, an estimated $120 billion a year. Federal officials insist they are still making progress.

DEAN WILKINSON, INVASIVE SPECIES COORDINATOR, NOAA: One preventing, two detecting things early in the process will probably be much more effective and it'll ultimately cost the U.S. taxpayer less must be.

KOCH (on camera): The federal government last year did ban the importation of live snakeheads into the United States.

(voice-over): But that did nothing about the estimated 17,000 snakeheads imported live before the ban. Biologists think the lion fish was dumped from an aquarium into Florida waters, the Gulf Stream carrying its eggs northward to North Carolina. There's little they can do now except monitor the impact.

HARE: If there's a lot of them, it could be eating a fair amount of fish that -- fish and food that other fishes that are commercially important would eat otherwise.

KOCH: The toll in both cases still unclear as native species may again have to adjust to unwelcome intruders.

Kathleen Koch, CNN, Fort Washington, Maryland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: A small plane crash in Alabama a year and a half ago is still unsolved. The pilot's sister looks for answers. What are the red streaks on the part of his plane that was recovered? Why do federal investigators not know what happened? (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: More news in a moment, but first, here's a check of the hour's top stories. Kufa, Iraq is the latest hot spot in the battle between U.S. troops and forces loyal to radical Shiite cleric Mutaqda al Sadr. CNN's Jane Arraf is embedded with U.S. forces and reports hearing the sound of mortar fire and artillery rounds from both sides of the conflict.

Back in this country, firefighters in New Mexico are trying to get a handle on massive wildfire that's burned more than 2,500 acres. Strong winds today are making their job much more difficult. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Volunteers and prison inmates are helping clean up tornado damage across parts of Iowa. The small farming town of Bradgate, nearly ever building was damaged or destroyed by yesterday's storm. At least 15 people were injured.

It is a mystery as baffling as the disappearance of Amelia Earhart. More than a year ago a small plane plunged into an Alabama swamp killing its pilot. A recent report by the National Transportation Board only raises more questions about this aviation mystery. CNN's Jeanne Meserve reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From the muck and mud of a Mobile, Alabama marsh, Maura Wade excavates potential clues to her brother's plane crash more than a year and a half ago.

MAURA WADE, SISTER: This is Tommy's airplane.

MESERVE: A National Transportation Safety Board investigator concluded in an interim report that Tommy Presiosi's (ph) plane collided in flight with an unknown object. But what was it?

WADE: We simply don't know.

MESERVE: A Vietnam veteran and former New York City cop, Tommy Presiosi (ph) loved to fly.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Motor in one.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Motor in one.

MESERVE: The night of October 23, 2002, he was piloting this Cessna caravan full of freight. Visibility was poor; Presiosi (ph) was flying on instruments. But four minutes after takeoff from Mobile, Alabama, he went down in Big Batto Bay. Presiosi's (ph) last words to air traffic control, "I needed to deviate. I needed to deviate. I needed to deviate. I needed --."

WADE: He was saying I see something coming at me. And I know I'm going to die. And I want you to know what happened to me. MESERVE: The wreckage yielded two tantalizing clues. On some pieces, red streaks perhaps transferred from something the Cessna hit and embedded in one fragment, a small piece of anatomized aluminum of unknown origin, apparently not from Presiosi's (ph) plane. But searches that night and since have not turned up any other object or aircraft.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For it to not leave anything behind is really puzzling. It's really puzzling.

MESERVE: Speculation about what hit the Cessna has ranged from a terrorist missile to a drug smuggler's plane. Radar shows a Federal Express DC-10 was in the air that night. But it does not appear to cross paths with Presiosi's (ph) Cessna, which is 1,000 feet below and at least a mile away. But right before his final transmission, Presiosi (ph) tells the tower, "I got him above me right now." Presiosi (ph) could have been disoriented. But a lawyer for Presiosi's (ph) estate believes the two planes were closer than the radar indicates and postulates a whole new theory for the crash.

GREGORY BREEDLOVE, ATTORNEY FOR PILOT'S ESTATE: We believe that the most likely cause of this tragedy, of Tom's death, was weight vortices or wake turbulence.

MESERVE: Wake Turbulence, the tornado-like wind that comes off a plane's wings can cause aircraft behind to crash.

(on camera): But what accounts then for the red transfer marks? In an effort to determine if they came from a collision or something else like the crane that moved the debris, the NTSB is mapping the marks on a three dimensional drawing of the plane. The board has also retaken possession of the wreckage and will re-examine radar data.

(voice-over): Meanwhile, Maura Wade returns to the spot where her brother died.

WADE: I can't stop. I have to come out here. I feel at peace here when I'm here. When I'm not here, all I can think about is being here.

MESERVE: Here where the explanation for her brother's death could lie buried forever.

Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Big Batto Bay, Alabama.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: As we reported, the Midwest is getting pounded by more rough weather right now. Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is in the weather center with more details. That would be meteorologist. Let me emphasize the credentials.

JERAS: Yes. Last night it was Iowa, Carol, and tonight, their neighbors to the west, Nebraska, getting hit very hard. We've got warnings, tornado warnings, in Logan, Lincoln, Dawson, Furnace and Harling counties. And we were talking earlier in the hour about large hail we expected with some of these thunderstorms and now we have half dollar sized hail being reported in Wilsonville, which was in Furnace County earlier. So these thunderstorms are capable of very, very large hail.

And no ground truth right now, no reports of actual tornadoes touching down. However, one could come out of any of these clusters that we've been watching at any time. So this is really a very dangerous situation. And watches are in effect. Right now, things are looking quiet over towards Lincoln and Omaha, but we are expecting some firing to go on here within the next couple of hours.

Tornado warnings have expired now out of Michigan, but still a watch in effect. So be aware of that threat.

And look at all of these watches stacked up. We're talking from Nebraska all the way over to New York State. So this covers a very large portion of the country, many of these watches do not expire until late this evening, 10:00 or so. So this is going to be an ongoing event.

Not only do we have the threats of severe thunderstorms, but also flooding is going to be a possibility in many of these locations. The ground very, very saturated. For example, some parts of north central Iowa yesterday saw about four and a half inches of rainfall. So as these thunderstorms pull out of Nebraska, headed toward your neck of the woods, they could be dumping an additional two plus inches of rain.

Now, will we be done with this as we head into the latter part of your weekend? Not just yet. Unfortunately, we've had this frontal system, which has just stationary here and that has been the triggering point, the focal point of these thunderstorms and that's why it is so widespread and not just so localized for today and why it's going to be affecting millions of people here for today. A little bit of progress towards the east for your Sunday. So we're still going to be seeing the severe weather threat in many of these states, but I think they're going to be pushing a little bit farther on off to the east. But more tornadoes will be possible tomorrow -- Carol.

LIN: Oh, boy. All right. Thanks Jacqui.

Well, talk about dedicated to our cause. A young soldier who has already given his leg for his country trains to go back to Iraq.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: U.S. tanks and troops are thundering through the Iraqi city of Kufa tonight. That is the stronghold of radical cleric Muqtada al Sadr and his Mahdi militia. Military commanders say the operation is aimed at finding militia members and weapons. CNN's Jane Arraf says it's the first time that U.S. forces have entered Kufa since al Sadr began stirring up anti-American sentiment.

Meanwhile, insurgents have taken aim at one of Iraq's interim government leaders for the second time in five days. A suicide car bombing killed five people outside the deputy interior minister's home today. The dead included bodyguards and a neighbor. But the minister himself was not seriously wounded.

And now, to our special continuing series, "On The Front Lines." For certain soldiers in combat, suffering a serious battle wound might be seen as a ticket out of the war zone but one Army specialist is hoping to get back in the fight despite losing part of his leg. CNN's Gary Tuchman brings thus remarkable story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Army Specialist Garth Stewart has just graduated from a hand-to-hand combat class at Fort Benning, Georgia. And he's done it as an amputee. The Minnesota native was wounded in Iraq from a land mine. Now he's back on active duty and has volunteering to go back into combat.

SPEC. GARTH STEWART, U.S. ARMY: I've got to be diplomatic about this. I'm not necessarily singing the Army's praises. It doesn't have as much to do with that as it does maybe to do with preps, camaraderie, I feel with some of the people, specifically in my platoon, especially at the time I got injured.

TUCHMAN: It's exceedingly rare for an amputee to go back to war. But Stewart has received his medical clearance and could be redeployed with his unit in a matter of months.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He can literally do anything that you can with two legs, so there's no issues whatsoever.

TUCHMAN: Stewart served as base gunner in a mortar platoon.

STEWART: The rest of my platoon, without a doubt, at mortar skills, mortar gunning, I mean I ain't even bragging to say that.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Garth Stewart does say he plans to leave the Army when his term of enlistment is up in June of 2005. He hopes to go to college and then possibly become a philosopher.

Is there anything about it, though, going back to war, without a leg, that scares you?

STEWART: No. You're like 50 percent immune to land mines now.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Gary Tuchman, CNN, Fort Benning, Georgia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: 2004 is shaping up to be an interesting campaign year. And now the president's twin daughters will hit the campaign trail soon. Are the gloves off for the media?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: The run for president is going to be a family affair. President Bush and John Kerry will have their kids on the campaign trail. Our Brian Todd shows us what children add to the political picture.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I get more love here than I do at home.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The images at the very least draw attention and that's the point.

JOHN KERRY, DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My daughter, Vanessa Kerry.

TODD: The kids are out there and that's all right with the candidates. After years of being shielded from media coverage, the Bushes' 22-year-old twin daughters, Jenna and Barbara, have indicated they'll join their father's re-election campaign. The two are also profiled in a new article in "People" magazine and they'll appear in an interview and photo shoot in the august issue of "Vogue" magazine. A spokesman for First Lady Laura Bush tells CNN, "Their roles in the president's campaign are up to them and the decision to participate is entirely theirs." Observers see clear political benefit.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: I do think that if they go out, in all likelihood, it will be a positive for the president. Right now, polls vary from week to week but he is having trouble with younger voters.

TODD: The Bush daughters have had issues regarding their image. Both pleaded no contest in 2001 in cases involving underaged possession of alcohol. The family has always asked the news media to respect the twins' privacy and family spokesmen say this stepping out does not mean a no holds barred approach to the daughters is appropriate. But at the same time, they acknowledge the roles for Barbara and Jenna are changing somewhat.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you very much.

TODD: For John Kerry's kids, the roles have long since changed. Kerry's stepson, Chris Heinz, left a prestigious job at a private equity firm in New York to join the Democratic senator's campaign. Chris' two brothers aren't as involved. But Kerry's biological daughters, 27-year-old Vanessa and 30-year-old Alexandria have been very active on the campaign trail.

Aside of having a candidates' kids on the campaign trial more than makes up for these occasional flourishes of potentially negative publicity.

BROWNSTEIN: Several candidates have shown over the years that children -- the children have played a role in helping to make them more of an approachable human humane figure for voters.

TODD (on camera): But one side note, on the balancing act that these children and their parents are engaged in, President and Mrs. Bush have decided not attend their daughter's college graduation ceremonies. They're spokesmen say they want the attention placed on graduates and their families and not on how long everyone would have to wait to go through metal detectors.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Well, in fact, Jenna Bush graduated from the University of Texas today. And her twin sister, Barbara, graduates from Yale on Monday. So what's ahead this summer for the girls and what role are they likely to play in their father's re-election campaign? As editor of "In Touch Weekly" in New York, Tom O'Neil keeps up with the bush twins.

You are a busy man, that being Tom. Hi, Tom.

TOM O'NEIL, EDITOR, "IN TOUCH WEEKLY": Hey, Carol, how are you?

LIN: I'm fine. What do you think they're going to be doing in the campaign, literally?

O'NEIL: Well, they're just going to be showing what a perfect family picture those Bushes portray because, remember the family issues are very important to the Bushes. Long-term Jenna wants to go into education. They both want to do some graduate work and they both want to get real jobs. But in the interim, they're going to hit the campaign trail and now they're going to be in the media's eye and they're going to be there at the age of 22, as adults.

LIN: Yes, but what does that mean?

O'NEIL: It means that the gloves are off. It means that everyone's been rather -- have given these kids some room since 2001 when they got in trouble. Remember, Jenna got in trouble twice. It's going to be a very different story, especially since considering where they went to school. Barbara went to Yale, which is a very private school in every way. Jodie Foster, right after she won an Academy Award, went there, and everybody just left her alone pretty much. And I mean, yes, Barbara went to Yale. And Jenna, at the University of Texas, mingled in with 50,000 other students. Now they're going to have that spotlight right on them.

LIN: Right. Right. But what are the reporters going to have to write about? I mean are these girls dating? Is that going to be an issue?

O'NEIL: I don't personally know if they're dating. I don't believe they are. But we're going to certainly find out. All these personal issues are going to come out now and they've been kept under wraps rather shrewdly so far.

LIN: What do you think they want to do, you know, after the campaign? Do they have any aspirations?

O'NEIL: Well, they're going to start up careers. As I said -- as I mentioned, Jenna wants to go into education. Barbara has done work with AIDS patients in the past. They want to make a difference in the charitable way in the world the same way that their parents have but I don't think they've quite figured out what they're going to be doing specifically yet.

LIN: Really? So what are you going to be watching for?

O'NEIL: To see if that wild child Jenna acts up again, you know, because you know 22 years old, you're not all that mature. You're an adult, technically speaking, but what if they say something, you know, crazy. This election is so close this year that...

LIN: Everything is going to be so scripted, Tom. You know these girls are not going to be allowed to open up their mouths around a microphone without it being totally written out and approved in advance.

O'NEIL: Well, remember Jimmy Carter and Amy Carter's -- her giving her daddy advice on nuclear fusion and how that backfired.

LIN: If you raise a smart kid, you know, you plant corn, you get corn. That's what a good friend of mine says.

O'NEIL: Yes.

LIN: All right, thanks so much, Tom. We'll see what happens with the girls.

Well, if you think Washington politics is stomach churning enough, these people, yes, have come to D.C. to cook up and eat cicadas. In a moment, we'll tell you why.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LIN: In the plains, Virginia, yes, it really is rocket science. More than 700 students are competing in the second annual Team America Rocketry Challenge. Their hand built models, those rockets, are supposed to reach 1,250 feet and then release two raw eggs back to the ground unbroken. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nickel 31, great meadow, you are cleared hot for flyover of Team America Rocketry Challenge 2004.

MICHAEL PEARCE, HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) rocketry and I just go after it. I even sleep with a sketching pad beside my bed. I've woken up in the middle of the night, had an inspiration, sketched it out and went back to sleep.

J.P. STEVENS, ROCKET CONTEST ORGANIZER: The contest is to design a two-stage rocket that carries two raw eggs to exactly 1,250 feet and then brings the eggs back to the ground.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: At the second state, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) up in the rocket. It didn't fire, so it crashed. We've made it this far. You might look at this as a failure but I know from what I'm seeing this has been the most successful failure that we've ever had.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I come out here because these kids can give me advice. They know what's going on in all phases of their life. And it's just great to talk to them because they're thinking all the time and they're willing to share and they're enthusiastic.

PEARCE: The reason I'm here, I love aerospace. If it flies, count me in on it. Most guys sit around and think about women, I think about aircraft and rockets.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LIN: Shooting for the stars.

What to do with billions of cicadas that come out of the ground and blanket it once every 17 years? Well, in a Washington suburb, people are actually eating them. A D.C. country music radio station enticed dozens of adventurous chefs to a Fairfax, Virginia, mall parking lot today to compete in a cicada cook-off. An allegedly tasty dish of cicada fried rice featuring dozens of the red-eyed winged insects took first prize. The winner says he took the wings off because you don't have to eat the whole bug to enjoy it. And that's a relief. Tastes like chicken. No just kidding. I don't know.

That's it for us. "CAPITAL GANG" is up next and then at 8:00 Eastern, "CNN PRESENTS: THE GAP," 50 years after the Brown ruling. Tonight, CNN visits Shaker Heights, Ohio, an integrated community searching for answers and breaching taboos, asking how African- Americans may be undermining their own chances of success.

At 9:00 Eastern, Larry King talks to Cokie Roberts. And at 10:00 Eastern, please join me for "CNN SATURDAY NIGHT." Oregon lawyer, Brandon Mayfield, is no longer in custody but that does not mean that the cloud of suspicion has lifted. Law enforcement sources say the investigation into whether he played any role in the Spain bombings is still under way. Mayfield's family is outraged. They say he is being targeted because of his faith. Tonight you will hear from his brother. It's the family's first primetime interview. You will not want to miss it.

Right now, Mark Shields is with us to tell us what the gang has to offer.

Hi there, Mark.

MARK SHIELDS, "THE CAPITAL GANG": Hello, Carol. Carol, senior adviser for the John Kerry presidential campaign, Tad Devine, joins the gang to look at the raid on Ahmed Chalabi, the political impact of higher gasoline prices and the Kerry-Nader summit. "THE CAPITAL GANG" will talk about that and much more right here next on CNN.

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