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American Morning
Discussing the Final Presidential Debate; Bill O'Reilly in Sexual Harassment Lawsuit
Aired October 14, 2004 - 07:00 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.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The mainstream in American politics, you sit right on the far left bank.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Being lectured by the president on fiscal responsibility is a little bit like Tony Soprano talking to me about law and order in this country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Some nice jabs in the third presidential debate. So, who won this final round?
The vice president's wife takes extreme exception to one part of the debate. She says Senator Kerry is, quote, "not a good man."
Americans desperate for a flu shot and medical suppliers accused of lining their pockets. Some vaccines reportedly selling for 10 times the normal price.
And sexual harassment allegations against Bill O'Reilly, with lawsuits filed from both sides.
All this ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
COLLINS: Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins in for Soledad. Bill Hemmer is in Columbus, Ohio, this morning for us. Good morning to you, Bill.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Heidi, good morning. We're back here talking with undecided voters last night, watching the debate with them. Results of our survey group in a moment here.
We'll also talk about what is on everyone's mind today: Who won last night, and how does that change the campaign with 19 days to go, if at all? Also hearing from both campaigns today -- Matthew Dowd for the president, Debra DeShong for Senator Kerry.
We'll have a lot to cover the next three hours, and we will -- starting now. Back to Heidi now in New York -- Heidi?
COLLINS: All right. Great. Thanks so much, Bill. Also a little bit later on: How would you like to be raising triplets and quadruplets just a few years apart all under the same roof? It happenes. Sanjay, in fact, is going to introduce us to the Switt (ph) family -- parents with a huge task ahead of them. And boy, ain't that the truth? Cannot believe that.
All right, we're going to have that story a little bit later on. For now, though, we have Jack Cafferty this morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Heidi.
It was William Shakespeare who said, "Twas a tale told by an idiot full of sound and fury signifying nothing." When you hear that, do you think of the presidential debates, or perhaps was there something more there? We'll take a look in a couple of minutes.
COLLINS: Very good. Thanks so much, Jack.
Want to get to the news this hour. There is smoke rising above Baghdad. CNN reporter Brent Sadler says he heard two explosions near the area known as the Green Zone. No word yet on any casualties.
And a major battle overnight between U.S. forces and Iraqi insurgents in the city of Ramadi. The fighting trailing off just about two hours ago. At least eight people were killed there, more than a dozen others wounded.
Five days after the landmark election, the first votes are being counted this hour in Afghanistan. A senior election official says tallying has begun in centers across the country. The count was delayed by complaints of voting irregularity. Interim President Hamid Karzai expected to win, but final results will not be in until the end of the month.
Concerns over privacy after the Food and Drug Administration approves an implantable medical microchip. It is the size of a rice grain and inserted in the patient's arm. Researchers say it's a way to carry medical information in case of emergencies, but critics say the chip could be used to track people and put their medical confidentiality at risk.
And lots of action in the baseball playoffs last night. The Cardinals took a 10-7 series opening victory against the Houston Astros. The teams were tided until the sixth inning when St. Louis scored six runs off a (INAUDIBLE).
And Boston's Pedro Martinez couldn't hold off the Yankees. New York's 3-1 win means the Red Sox head to Boston down two games. Some people at least in these parts not so upset about that.
Back now to Bill after the third and final debate. Big night last night.
HEMMER: Yeah, it is a big night. Ready and waiting in Fenway Park, by the way, coming up later this week, Heidi. Nineteen days to go before Americans select the next president. Both candidates hoping to carry their messages forward after last night's final debate. Domestic issues again taking center stage with social security, and healthcare and abortion among the topics.
Who did better? A CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll snap poll taken right after that debate say 52 percent John Kerry won, 39 percent say the president won. If that holds, it would give Senator Kerry a third straight debate victory based on our polling.
Now, despite the early polls, both sides are claiming victory in their final faceoff. Let's start this morning with Kelly Wallace, who is live in Tempe, Arizona. Kelly, good morning there.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill.
Well, Kerry's advisors say the senator is now three for three and the one with the polls moving in his direction. No surprise, the Bush team sees it differently, saying the president did great last night and was the one on top of his game. Each candidate clearly last night trying to seal the deal and seize the lead.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): There was a lot riding on this night, and it showed from the opening handshake. Senator John Kerry hammering away at President Bush's record on jobs and the economy.
KERRY: Being lectured by the president on fiscal responsibility is a little bit like Tony Soprano talking to me about law and order in this country.
WALLACE: The president, for his part, trying to paint the senator as a tax-and-spend liberal.
BUSH: You know, there's a mainstream in American politics and you sit right on the far left bank. As a matter of fact, your record is such that Ted Kennedy, your colleague, is the conservative senator from Massachusetts.
WALLACE: It was a 90-minute duel mainly on domestic issue. Senator Kerry zeroing in on the middle class...
KERRY: I have a plan to cover all Americans. We're going to make it affordable and accessible.
WALLACE: ... the president targeting his Republican base.
BUSH: It will be the largest increase in government healthcare ever.
WALLACE: It was the most personal of the three debates, especially on social issues like abortion, gay marriage, and religion. The president asked the role his faith plays in his policy.
BUSH: My faith is a very -- it's very personal. I pray for strength. I pray for wisdom. I pray for our troops in harm's way. I pray for my family. I pray for my little girls. But I am mindful in a free society people can worship if they want to or not.
WALLACE: And at the end of the debate, both men showing their softer side when asked about their wives.
BUSH: Not only she interested in me, I guess you could say it was love at first sight.
KERRY: Well, I guess the president and you and I are three examples of lucky people who married up -- and some would say maybe me more so than others. But I can take it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE (on camera): And that was a real moment in last night's debate. The showdown last night not nearly as negative as the last two faceoffs. These candidates very well aware this was their last time going before a television audience, estimated to be in the tens of millions, trying to alter the dynamics of this race -- Bill?
HEMMER: Kelly, thanks for that. Kelly Wallace in Tempe, Arizona.
Also back here in Central, Ohio, coming up several minutes from now, we'll let you know what we found out, our own personal focus group last night. You might be a bit surprised.
Less than three weeks to go -- we had 24 people in our audience last night -- still a number of them are undecided based on the results last night. And what you're watching on the screen are very interesting results where we could watch literally in realtime -- the women in yellow and the men in blue -- how they gauge the response and the reactions here in Columbus.
In the meantime, though, want to go back to Carlos Watson who is also in Tempe, Arizona. Carlos, good morning to you. And yesterday...
CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning.
HEMMER: ... we put together a bit of a report card that you're going to take us through today.
Let's start with Senator Kerry. You said, number one, don't fumble. And your grade for Senator Kerry was an A minus. What did he do right here, Carlos?
WATSON: You know, there were no major gaffs. We didn't see a stylistic gaff, like the first President Bush in 1992 when he looked at his watch, and we didn't see a substantive gaff, like in 1976 when Gerald Ford misstated a question in terms of Soviet domination. So, first and foremost, he did no harm. HEMMER: No gaffs. You say a tangible plan had to be offered, as well. Here you score a B minus. What did he not accomplish there, Carlos?
WATSON: You know, he talked about education and healthcare and some of the things he'd do there, but he didn't use anecdotes well, Bill. I thought one of the critical opportunities for him was not just to talk about these issues as though they were legislation, but really talk about them how they would affect a mom, a dad, a senior citizen, or a student. And he didn't quite pass that test. So, ultimately we give him a B minus.
HEMMER: The other thing you were pushing for the senator was a rhetorical question. Here you downgrade him significantly with a D.
WATSON: Yeah, I thought there was a big opportunity for him to, as Ronald Reagan did in 1980, kind of neatly sum up the question for this election with the question like, "Are you better off now than you were four years ago?"
I think it's a question that ideally would have hung in the minds, not only of voters but of the media. And obviously he didn't do that last night. There's not one pithy rhetorical question that we'll still be talking about years from now.
HEMMER: Ultimately, though, you score him a B overall. Why did he deserve that?
WATSON: Solid B. You know, he was clear. He was articulate. He walked through a variety of issues, as we have seen him do in the past two debates. He used statistics rather easily. And he wasn't afraid to counter some of the president's arguments.
So, a solid but not spectacular performance. I give him a B. I thought his first performance, by the way, in the first debate was his best of all the three.
HEMMER: Let's talk about the president. You said he needed to be -- to articulate his own thoughts and also to be clear. You score an A minus. Effective last night in your judgment?
WATSON: I thought the president was very articulate, very clear. You know, he had been criticized in the past by not always smoothing walking through the issues, for pausing for sometime, seeming to grimace. You didn't see any of that.
In fact, whether or not you agreed with him you had to give him significant credit for his use of statistics and how he walked through sometimes rather complex issues.
HEMMER: This time yesterday also you were hoping that you would hear an outline for a second term. In this category, a C. Why a C?
WATSON: You know, I thought particularly for a president who was running for a second term, he really had to outline strongly: Here's what I want to do. You saw Ronald Reagan do that in 1984. You saw Bill Clinton do that in 1996.
The president talked about it in the terms of education and social security reforms, particularly, but on the economy -- on jobs, jobs, jobs -- you didn't walk away with a clear and affirmative plan on what he'll do if he's re-elected.
HEMMER: All right. For grading the president in the must win category, you went with a C in this area. Then overall, you came to a B minus conclusion for the president. Sum that up, Carlos, now.
WATSON: The president didn't win and ultimately, therefore, he gets a C. Overall, I gave him a B minus.
Again, it was on OK performance on both sides, but he didn't come through in the way that I thought he ultimately could have. And hence, John Kerry won his third debate in a row.
HEMMER: All right, 19 days ago. We'll see if that translates in the votes. And certainly, Carlos, travel safe out of Tempe, Arizona. We'll see you very soon. Carlos Watson there in the American southwest.
And once again last night in this debate, the issue of gay marriage and gay rights came up last night. And now, new controversy after Senator Kerry mentioned Vice President's Dick Cheney lesbian daughter Mary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KERRY: We're all God's children, Bob, and I think if you were to talk to Dick Cheney's daughter, who is a lesbian, she would tell you that she's being who she was. She's being who she was born as.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Now a quick and angry response from the vice president's wife Lynne from the campaign trail in Pennsylvania. Listen here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LYNNE CHENEY, VP CHENEY'S WIFE: I did have a chance to assess John Kerry once more. And you know, the only thing I could conclude is this is not a good man. This is not a good man. And of course, I'm speaking as a mom -- and a pretty indignant mom -- this is not a good man. What a cheap and tawdry political trick.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Those comments last night right around midnight in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. You might remember that Democratic Vice Presidential Candidate John Edwards brought up the same issue during his debate in the vice presidential side.
The vice president thanked Edwards at the time for his quote, unquote, "kind words." We'll talk more about this at the half hour. Get reaction from both campaigns on this. A lot more to talk about. Debates are over now. Nineteen days and counting. Back to Heidi now in New York with more there -- Heidi?
COLLINS: Yeah, and there was another question, Bill, from Bob Schieffer last night about this very thing: flu vaccines. With the shortage of flu vaccine this year, some vendors are seizing the opportunity to price gouge others. Long lines in Columbus, Georgia, yesterday and in other parts of the country full of people desperately seeking a shot.
A report by the American Society of Health System Pharmacists shows more than half of hospital pharmacy directors say they have been offered flu vaccines at four to 10 times the normal price. The same report indicates 75 percent of hospitals say they will not have enough of the vaccine to meet standards set by the Centers for Disease Control. The CDC calls this type of gouging immoral.
Also this morning, police in Colorado say more than 60 boxes of the flu vaccine were stolen from a pediatric office, enough to give shots to 620 children.
Time now for a check of the forecast. Chad Myers standing by to do that. Boy, that is extremely disturbing, and you are the guy that can tell us what sort of weather might kind of hamper the flu for all of us.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: All right, thanks so much for that, Chad.
Still to come this morning, time is running out to sway undecided voters. We've got a special look at a group of them from Ohio. Find out which way they're leaning now from Bill on the road in Ohio.
Plus, what about the candidates themselves? Insiders from both campaigns tell us why they think their man won.
Plus, a high profile case of he said, she said. Graphic allegations of sexual harassment against Bill O'Reilly. But the talk show host is fighting back. Stay with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: FOX News anchor Bill O'Reilly has filed suit against a New York City lawyer and a FOX News employee. O'Reilly says the two tried to extort $60 million in hush money to keep quiet about allegations of sexual harassment.
Jason Carroll has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the night of the last presidential debate, FOX News anchor Bill O'Reilly, politics would not be the first story in his show. BILL O'REILLY, HOST, "THE O'REILLY FACTOR": But there comes a time when enough's enough. And so, this morning I had to file a lawsuit against some people who are demanding $60 million where they will, quote, "punish me and FOX News."
CARROLL: Faced with sexual harassment allegations against him, O'Reilly said he had no choice but to file a complaint claiming extortion. This in response to allegations made by Andrea Mackris, an associate producer for "The O'Reilly Factor." Mackris' suit, filed after his boss and FOX News filed theirs, alleges on several occasions O'Reilly made sexually explicit comments to her.
BENEDICT MORELLI, MACKRIS' ATTORNEY: Suddenly, without provocation or warning, Mr. O'Reilly said to the plaintiff, Andrea Mackris, "and just use your vibrator to blow off steam."
"What?"
"You've got a vibrator, don't you? Every girl does."
CARROLL: Mackris spoke through her attorney, who alleged O'Reilly's inappropriate comments were made in person, over dinners, and over the phone. Mackris' complaint contains detailed quotes allegedly from O'Reilly.
O'Reilly's attorney says he will ask the attorney to turn over copies of any recorded conversations, certain there is nothing incriminating. Her attorney would not say if there were any tapes.
O'Reilly's accuser worked at FOX News from April 2000 until January 2004, during which time, according to her complaint, O'Reilly allegedly made several sexually inappropriate comments. Mackris left FOX News and took a higher-paying producer position at CNN, but in July 2004, she returned to "The O'Reilly Factor" working again for O'Reilly -- on condition, her complaint says, quote, "he no longer engaged in inappropriate conduct."
But Mackris alleges that conduct resumed. O'Reilly's attorney says, "none of the actions rise to the level of unlawful activity." O'Reilly says the suit is motivated by greed and politics.
MORELLI: Let me tell you, if it was politically motivated, I would have brought the lawsuit originally and not engaged in negotiations and discussions with their lawyers for the last two-plus weeks.
O'REILLY: Sixty million dollars. I really can't say anything else. I don't want to waste your time with this. The justice system has the case. We'll see what happens.
CARROLL (on camera): Mackris' attorney would not comment on FOX's claim he demanded $60 million hush money to prevent the filing of the sexual harassment lawsuit. He did say O'Reilly's extortion claim is without merit and that O'Reilly's behavior will be proven in court.
Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: O'Reilly has been with FOX News since 1996.
Back now to Bill.
HEMMER: All right, Heidi. In a moment here, more post-debate coverage from Columbus, Ohio. You know, Ohio is getting more attention than just about anyplace in this country. And this city is getting so much of it, too. Political ads just bombarding viewers here in Columbus every day. I will talk about that in a moment.
Also, Andy is back minding your business, telling us why the latest word on Apple's iPod is sweet music to the investor ear.
Back in a moment. We're on the road in Columbus, Ohio, on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: A preview now of the markets this morning, and Apple Computer should be pretty thrilled about its iPod. I think it's been thrilled for quite some time, actually. Andy Serwer, "Minding Your Business" this morning.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Good morning, Heidi.
Kind of a blow-out there at Cupertino, California, where Apple's headquartered. We'll get to that in a second.
Let's review the market action yesterday. Dow is down 74 points. High oil again the culprit, up at 54.06 -- near that record of $54.45. An oil explosion in Mexico yesterday. I mean, is this commodity snake bitten? I think it is. The Dow is getting near 10,000. I counted it up, about 40 times since 1999 the index has crossed 10,000 back and forth.
Purnomo Yusgiantoro, the head of OPEC, says the price of oil is not coming -- there's a picture of him.
COLLINS: There he is.
SERWER: Probably wondering what that guy looks like. There he is from Indonesia, the head of OPEC. Says the price of oil is not coming down anytime soon. Funny, Heidi, I just thought the other day he said it was going to go down.
COLLINS: Yeah, that's what I thought.
SERWER: That's kind of what happens when you're the head of OPEC.
Let's talk about Apple. It's all about the iPod. They announced that profits doubled there. Now, here's the salient figure -- in the latest quarter, they sold two million of these little jobs, up from 336 the previous year's quarter -- 336,000.
CAFFERTY: Yeah, that's amazing.
SERWER: So, it's just amazing. It is the hottest thing out there. And it is just going -- they are going to keep blowing these things out for Christmas season, as well, here. That -- believe that.
CAFFERTY: I got to get me one of those.
COLLINS: Yeah...
SERWER: I'd like to get...
CAFFERTY: Then I got to get somebody to show me how to work it.
SERWER: Plug it in...
COLLINS: Oh, it's very simple. A little bit of this -- that's it. That's all you got to do.
CAFFERTY: Yeah? That's all you got to do?
SERWER: I think it's going to take a while.
CAFFERTY: Yeah, it'll take a long time.
COLLINS: "Question of the Day," "Cafferty File" now from Jack.
CAFFERTY: Mercifully, Heidi, the debates were over. Since they were so restricted -- constipated, even, so as not to allow us to learn anything new about the substance -- we were sort of left to look at the style, and there wasn't a hell of a lot of that either.
I'm not sure there will be any memorable moments replayed on TV years from now, except maybe that satellite dish under President Bush's coat. And yet, they do seem to have had some sort of impact. Barring any unforeseen major event in the next couple of weeks, we the voters will be left to be numbed by the same tedious prattling that they've both been doing for months now.
Here's the question: Did the debates affect the way you're going to vote? At the end of the day, did any of this change your mind about anything? Am@cnn.com. And I'm just grateful that they're over.
SERWER: Yeah, so am I.
CAFFERTY: It's just awful.
SERWER: You stay up late and it gets very repetitive after a while.
CAFFERTY: The parties ought to be ashamed of themselves for the lack of anything worth watching that those...
COLLINS: Well, one analyst that...
CAFFERTY: ... just terrible.
COLLINS: ... I was reading this morning, yeah, said no strike- outs...
CAFFERTY: No nothing.
COLLINS: ... but no disasters.
CAFFERTY: Yeah, but I mean, they were so restricted that the rules were so tightened by the Democratic and Republican parties negotiating these things before they ever happened that there was literally no opportunity for anything spontaneous to happen and nothing did. And that's a shame. We're entitled to more than that, if you're listening you Democratic and Republican officials out there.
COLLINS: And I'm sure they are.
CAFFERTY: The debates were awful.
COLLINS: That's right. We're going to send it back now...
CAFFERTY: Just awful.
COLLINS: ... to Bill in Columbus, Ohio. I think the word he used, Bill, was constipated.
HEMMER: Yeah, we're listening.
The early numbers suggest John Kerry won that debate last night. We'll have a look at that.
Also, what do the campaigns say? We'll talk to insiders on both sides in a moment as we continue live here on AMERICAN MORNING after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired October 14, 2004 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The mainstream in American politics, you sit right on the far left bank.
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Being lectured by the president on fiscal responsibility is a little bit like Tony Soprano talking to me about law and order in this country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Some nice jabs in the third presidential debate. So, who won this final round?
The vice president's wife takes extreme exception to one part of the debate. She says Senator Kerry is, quote, "not a good man."
Americans desperate for a flu shot and medical suppliers accused of lining their pockets. Some vaccines reportedly selling for 10 times the normal price.
And sexual harassment allegations against Bill O'Reilly, with lawsuits filed from both sides.
All this ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
ANNOUNCER: From the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is AMERICAN MORNING with Bill Hemmer and Soledad O'Brien.
COLLINS: Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins in for Soledad. Bill Hemmer is in Columbus, Ohio, this morning for us. Good morning to you, Bill.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Heidi, good morning. We're back here talking with undecided voters last night, watching the debate with them. Results of our survey group in a moment here.
We'll also talk about what is on everyone's mind today: Who won last night, and how does that change the campaign with 19 days to go, if at all? Also hearing from both campaigns today -- Matthew Dowd for the president, Debra DeShong for Senator Kerry.
We'll have a lot to cover the next three hours, and we will -- starting now. Back to Heidi now in New York -- Heidi?
COLLINS: All right. Great. Thanks so much, Bill. Also a little bit later on: How would you like to be raising triplets and quadruplets just a few years apart all under the same roof? It happenes. Sanjay, in fact, is going to introduce us to the Switt (ph) family -- parents with a huge task ahead of them. And boy, ain't that the truth? Cannot believe that.
All right, we're going to have that story a little bit later on. For now, though, we have Jack Cafferty this morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks, Heidi.
It was William Shakespeare who said, "Twas a tale told by an idiot full of sound and fury signifying nothing." When you hear that, do you think of the presidential debates, or perhaps was there something more there? We'll take a look in a couple of minutes.
COLLINS: Very good. Thanks so much, Jack.
Want to get to the news this hour. There is smoke rising above Baghdad. CNN reporter Brent Sadler says he heard two explosions near the area known as the Green Zone. No word yet on any casualties.
And a major battle overnight between U.S. forces and Iraqi insurgents in the city of Ramadi. The fighting trailing off just about two hours ago. At least eight people were killed there, more than a dozen others wounded.
Five days after the landmark election, the first votes are being counted this hour in Afghanistan. A senior election official says tallying has begun in centers across the country. The count was delayed by complaints of voting irregularity. Interim President Hamid Karzai expected to win, but final results will not be in until the end of the month.
Concerns over privacy after the Food and Drug Administration approves an implantable medical microchip. It is the size of a rice grain and inserted in the patient's arm. Researchers say it's a way to carry medical information in case of emergencies, but critics say the chip could be used to track people and put their medical confidentiality at risk.
And lots of action in the baseball playoffs last night. The Cardinals took a 10-7 series opening victory against the Houston Astros. The teams were tided until the sixth inning when St. Louis scored six runs off a (INAUDIBLE).
And Boston's Pedro Martinez couldn't hold off the Yankees. New York's 3-1 win means the Red Sox head to Boston down two games. Some people at least in these parts not so upset about that.
Back now to Bill after the third and final debate. Big night last night.
HEMMER: Yeah, it is a big night. Ready and waiting in Fenway Park, by the way, coming up later this week, Heidi. Nineteen days to go before Americans select the next president. Both candidates hoping to carry their messages forward after last night's final debate. Domestic issues again taking center stage with social security, and healthcare and abortion among the topics.
Who did better? A CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll snap poll taken right after that debate say 52 percent John Kerry won, 39 percent say the president won. If that holds, it would give Senator Kerry a third straight debate victory based on our polling.
Now, despite the early polls, both sides are claiming victory in their final faceoff. Let's start this morning with Kelly Wallace, who is live in Tempe, Arizona. Kelly, good morning there.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Bill.
Well, Kerry's advisors say the senator is now three for three and the one with the polls moving in his direction. No surprise, the Bush team sees it differently, saying the president did great last night and was the one on top of his game. Each candidate clearly last night trying to seal the deal and seize the lead.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): There was a lot riding on this night, and it showed from the opening handshake. Senator John Kerry hammering away at President Bush's record on jobs and the economy.
KERRY: Being lectured by the president on fiscal responsibility is a little bit like Tony Soprano talking to me about law and order in this country.
WALLACE: The president, for his part, trying to paint the senator as a tax-and-spend liberal.
BUSH: You know, there's a mainstream in American politics and you sit right on the far left bank. As a matter of fact, your record is such that Ted Kennedy, your colleague, is the conservative senator from Massachusetts.
WALLACE: It was a 90-minute duel mainly on domestic issue. Senator Kerry zeroing in on the middle class...
KERRY: I have a plan to cover all Americans. We're going to make it affordable and accessible.
WALLACE: ... the president targeting his Republican base.
BUSH: It will be the largest increase in government healthcare ever.
WALLACE: It was the most personal of the three debates, especially on social issues like abortion, gay marriage, and religion. The president asked the role his faith plays in his policy.
BUSH: My faith is a very -- it's very personal. I pray for strength. I pray for wisdom. I pray for our troops in harm's way. I pray for my family. I pray for my little girls. But I am mindful in a free society people can worship if they want to or not.
WALLACE: And at the end of the debate, both men showing their softer side when asked about their wives.
BUSH: Not only she interested in me, I guess you could say it was love at first sight.
KERRY: Well, I guess the president and you and I are three examples of lucky people who married up -- and some would say maybe me more so than others. But I can take it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WALLACE (on camera): And that was a real moment in last night's debate. The showdown last night not nearly as negative as the last two faceoffs. These candidates very well aware this was their last time going before a television audience, estimated to be in the tens of millions, trying to alter the dynamics of this race -- Bill?
HEMMER: Kelly, thanks for that. Kelly Wallace in Tempe, Arizona.
Also back here in Central, Ohio, coming up several minutes from now, we'll let you know what we found out, our own personal focus group last night. You might be a bit surprised.
Less than three weeks to go -- we had 24 people in our audience last night -- still a number of them are undecided based on the results last night. And what you're watching on the screen are very interesting results where we could watch literally in realtime -- the women in yellow and the men in blue -- how they gauge the response and the reactions here in Columbus.
In the meantime, though, want to go back to Carlos Watson who is also in Tempe, Arizona. Carlos, good morning to you. And yesterday...
CARLOS WATSON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning.
HEMMER: ... we put together a bit of a report card that you're going to take us through today.
Let's start with Senator Kerry. You said, number one, don't fumble. And your grade for Senator Kerry was an A minus. What did he do right here, Carlos?
WATSON: You know, there were no major gaffs. We didn't see a stylistic gaff, like the first President Bush in 1992 when he looked at his watch, and we didn't see a substantive gaff, like in 1976 when Gerald Ford misstated a question in terms of Soviet domination. So, first and foremost, he did no harm. HEMMER: No gaffs. You say a tangible plan had to be offered, as well. Here you score a B minus. What did he not accomplish there, Carlos?
WATSON: You know, he talked about education and healthcare and some of the things he'd do there, but he didn't use anecdotes well, Bill. I thought one of the critical opportunities for him was not just to talk about these issues as though they were legislation, but really talk about them how they would affect a mom, a dad, a senior citizen, or a student. And he didn't quite pass that test. So, ultimately we give him a B minus.
HEMMER: The other thing you were pushing for the senator was a rhetorical question. Here you downgrade him significantly with a D.
WATSON: Yeah, I thought there was a big opportunity for him to, as Ronald Reagan did in 1980, kind of neatly sum up the question for this election with the question like, "Are you better off now than you were four years ago?"
I think it's a question that ideally would have hung in the minds, not only of voters but of the media. And obviously he didn't do that last night. There's not one pithy rhetorical question that we'll still be talking about years from now.
HEMMER: Ultimately, though, you score him a B overall. Why did he deserve that?
WATSON: Solid B. You know, he was clear. He was articulate. He walked through a variety of issues, as we have seen him do in the past two debates. He used statistics rather easily. And he wasn't afraid to counter some of the president's arguments.
So, a solid but not spectacular performance. I give him a B. I thought his first performance, by the way, in the first debate was his best of all the three.
HEMMER: Let's talk about the president. You said he needed to be -- to articulate his own thoughts and also to be clear. You score an A minus. Effective last night in your judgment?
WATSON: I thought the president was very articulate, very clear. You know, he had been criticized in the past by not always smoothing walking through the issues, for pausing for sometime, seeming to grimace. You didn't see any of that.
In fact, whether or not you agreed with him you had to give him significant credit for his use of statistics and how he walked through sometimes rather complex issues.
HEMMER: This time yesterday also you were hoping that you would hear an outline for a second term. In this category, a C. Why a C?
WATSON: You know, I thought particularly for a president who was running for a second term, he really had to outline strongly: Here's what I want to do. You saw Ronald Reagan do that in 1984. You saw Bill Clinton do that in 1996.
The president talked about it in the terms of education and social security reforms, particularly, but on the economy -- on jobs, jobs, jobs -- you didn't walk away with a clear and affirmative plan on what he'll do if he's re-elected.
HEMMER: All right. For grading the president in the must win category, you went with a C in this area. Then overall, you came to a B minus conclusion for the president. Sum that up, Carlos, now.
WATSON: The president didn't win and ultimately, therefore, he gets a C. Overall, I gave him a B minus.
Again, it was on OK performance on both sides, but he didn't come through in the way that I thought he ultimately could have. And hence, John Kerry won his third debate in a row.
HEMMER: All right, 19 days ago. We'll see if that translates in the votes. And certainly, Carlos, travel safe out of Tempe, Arizona. We'll see you very soon. Carlos Watson there in the American southwest.
And once again last night in this debate, the issue of gay marriage and gay rights came up last night. And now, new controversy after Senator Kerry mentioned Vice President's Dick Cheney lesbian daughter Mary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KERRY: We're all God's children, Bob, and I think if you were to talk to Dick Cheney's daughter, who is a lesbian, she would tell you that she's being who she was. She's being who she was born as.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Now a quick and angry response from the vice president's wife Lynne from the campaign trail in Pennsylvania. Listen here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LYNNE CHENEY, VP CHENEY'S WIFE: I did have a chance to assess John Kerry once more. And you know, the only thing I could conclude is this is not a good man. This is not a good man. And of course, I'm speaking as a mom -- and a pretty indignant mom -- this is not a good man. What a cheap and tawdry political trick.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Those comments last night right around midnight in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. You might remember that Democratic Vice Presidential Candidate John Edwards brought up the same issue during his debate in the vice presidential side.
The vice president thanked Edwards at the time for his quote, unquote, "kind words." We'll talk more about this at the half hour. Get reaction from both campaigns on this. A lot more to talk about. Debates are over now. Nineteen days and counting. Back to Heidi now in New York with more there -- Heidi?
COLLINS: Yeah, and there was another question, Bill, from Bob Schieffer last night about this very thing: flu vaccines. With the shortage of flu vaccine this year, some vendors are seizing the opportunity to price gouge others. Long lines in Columbus, Georgia, yesterday and in other parts of the country full of people desperately seeking a shot.
A report by the American Society of Health System Pharmacists shows more than half of hospital pharmacy directors say they have been offered flu vaccines at four to 10 times the normal price. The same report indicates 75 percent of hospitals say they will not have enough of the vaccine to meet standards set by the Centers for Disease Control. The CDC calls this type of gouging immoral.
Also this morning, police in Colorado say more than 60 boxes of the flu vaccine were stolen from a pediatric office, enough to give shots to 620 children.
Time now for a check of the forecast. Chad Myers standing by to do that. Boy, that is extremely disturbing, and you are the guy that can tell us what sort of weather might kind of hamper the flu for all of us.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: All right, thanks so much for that, Chad.
Still to come this morning, time is running out to sway undecided voters. We've got a special look at a group of them from Ohio. Find out which way they're leaning now from Bill on the road in Ohio.
Plus, what about the candidates themselves? Insiders from both campaigns tell us why they think their man won.
Plus, a high profile case of he said, she said. Graphic allegations of sexual harassment against Bill O'Reilly. But the talk show host is fighting back. Stay with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: FOX News anchor Bill O'Reilly has filed suit against a New York City lawyer and a FOX News employee. O'Reilly says the two tried to extort $60 million in hush money to keep quiet about allegations of sexual harassment.
Jason Carroll has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the night of the last presidential debate, FOX News anchor Bill O'Reilly, politics would not be the first story in his show. BILL O'REILLY, HOST, "THE O'REILLY FACTOR": But there comes a time when enough's enough. And so, this morning I had to file a lawsuit against some people who are demanding $60 million where they will, quote, "punish me and FOX News."
CARROLL: Faced with sexual harassment allegations against him, O'Reilly said he had no choice but to file a complaint claiming extortion. This in response to allegations made by Andrea Mackris, an associate producer for "The O'Reilly Factor." Mackris' suit, filed after his boss and FOX News filed theirs, alleges on several occasions O'Reilly made sexually explicit comments to her.
BENEDICT MORELLI, MACKRIS' ATTORNEY: Suddenly, without provocation or warning, Mr. O'Reilly said to the plaintiff, Andrea Mackris, "and just use your vibrator to blow off steam."
"What?"
"You've got a vibrator, don't you? Every girl does."
CARROLL: Mackris spoke through her attorney, who alleged O'Reilly's inappropriate comments were made in person, over dinners, and over the phone. Mackris' complaint contains detailed quotes allegedly from O'Reilly.
O'Reilly's attorney says he will ask the attorney to turn over copies of any recorded conversations, certain there is nothing incriminating. Her attorney would not say if there were any tapes.
O'Reilly's accuser worked at FOX News from April 2000 until January 2004, during which time, according to her complaint, O'Reilly allegedly made several sexually inappropriate comments. Mackris left FOX News and took a higher-paying producer position at CNN, but in July 2004, she returned to "The O'Reilly Factor" working again for O'Reilly -- on condition, her complaint says, quote, "he no longer engaged in inappropriate conduct."
But Mackris alleges that conduct resumed. O'Reilly's attorney says, "none of the actions rise to the level of unlawful activity." O'Reilly says the suit is motivated by greed and politics.
MORELLI: Let me tell you, if it was politically motivated, I would have brought the lawsuit originally and not engaged in negotiations and discussions with their lawyers for the last two-plus weeks.
O'REILLY: Sixty million dollars. I really can't say anything else. I don't want to waste your time with this. The justice system has the case. We'll see what happens.
CARROLL (on camera): Mackris' attorney would not comment on FOX's claim he demanded $60 million hush money to prevent the filing of the sexual harassment lawsuit. He did say O'Reilly's extortion claim is without merit and that O'Reilly's behavior will be proven in court.
Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: O'Reilly has been with FOX News since 1996.
Back now to Bill.
HEMMER: All right, Heidi. In a moment here, more post-debate coverage from Columbus, Ohio. You know, Ohio is getting more attention than just about anyplace in this country. And this city is getting so much of it, too. Political ads just bombarding viewers here in Columbus every day. I will talk about that in a moment.
Also, Andy is back minding your business, telling us why the latest word on Apple's iPod is sweet music to the investor ear.
Back in a moment. We're on the road in Columbus, Ohio, on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: A preview now of the markets this morning, and Apple Computer should be pretty thrilled about its iPod. I think it's been thrilled for quite some time, actually. Andy Serwer, "Minding Your Business" this morning.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Good morning, Heidi.
Kind of a blow-out there at Cupertino, California, where Apple's headquartered. We'll get to that in a second.
Let's review the market action yesterday. Dow is down 74 points. High oil again the culprit, up at 54.06 -- near that record of $54.45. An oil explosion in Mexico yesterday. I mean, is this commodity snake bitten? I think it is. The Dow is getting near 10,000. I counted it up, about 40 times since 1999 the index has crossed 10,000 back and forth.
Purnomo Yusgiantoro, the head of OPEC, says the price of oil is not coming -- there's a picture of him.
COLLINS: There he is.
SERWER: Probably wondering what that guy looks like. There he is from Indonesia, the head of OPEC. Says the price of oil is not coming down anytime soon. Funny, Heidi, I just thought the other day he said it was going to go down.
COLLINS: Yeah, that's what I thought.
SERWER: That's kind of what happens when you're the head of OPEC.
Let's talk about Apple. It's all about the iPod. They announced that profits doubled there. Now, here's the salient figure -- in the latest quarter, they sold two million of these little jobs, up from 336 the previous year's quarter -- 336,000.
CAFFERTY: Yeah, that's amazing.
SERWER: So, it's just amazing. It is the hottest thing out there. And it is just going -- they are going to keep blowing these things out for Christmas season, as well, here. That -- believe that.
CAFFERTY: I got to get me one of those.
COLLINS: Yeah...
SERWER: I'd like to get...
CAFFERTY: Then I got to get somebody to show me how to work it.
SERWER: Plug it in...
COLLINS: Oh, it's very simple. A little bit of this -- that's it. That's all you got to do.
CAFFERTY: Yeah? That's all you got to do?
SERWER: I think it's going to take a while.
CAFFERTY: Yeah, it'll take a long time.
COLLINS: "Question of the Day," "Cafferty File" now from Jack.
CAFFERTY: Mercifully, Heidi, the debates were over. Since they were so restricted -- constipated, even, so as not to allow us to learn anything new about the substance -- we were sort of left to look at the style, and there wasn't a hell of a lot of that either.
I'm not sure there will be any memorable moments replayed on TV years from now, except maybe that satellite dish under President Bush's coat. And yet, they do seem to have had some sort of impact. Barring any unforeseen major event in the next couple of weeks, we the voters will be left to be numbed by the same tedious prattling that they've both been doing for months now.
Here's the question: Did the debates affect the way you're going to vote? At the end of the day, did any of this change your mind about anything? Am@cnn.com. And I'm just grateful that they're over.
SERWER: Yeah, so am I.
CAFFERTY: It's just awful.
SERWER: You stay up late and it gets very repetitive after a while.
CAFFERTY: The parties ought to be ashamed of themselves for the lack of anything worth watching that those...
COLLINS: Well, one analyst that...
CAFFERTY: ... just terrible.
COLLINS: ... I was reading this morning, yeah, said no strike- outs...
CAFFERTY: No nothing.
COLLINS: ... but no disasters.
CAFFERTY: Yeah, but I mean, they were so restricted that the rules were so tightened by the Democratic and Republican parties negotiating these things before they ever happened that there was literally no opportunity for anything spontaneous to happen and nothing did. And that's a shame. We're entitled to more than that, if you're listening you Democratic and Republican officials out there.
COLLINS: And I'm sure they are.
CAFFERTY: The debates were awful.
COLLINS: That's right. We're going to send it back now...
CAFFERTY: Just awful.
COLLINS: ... to Bill in Columbus, Ohio. I think the word he used, Bill, was constipated.
HEMMER: Yeah, we're listening.
The early numbers suggest John Kerry won that debate last night. We'll have a look at that.
Also, what do the campaigns say? We'll talk to insiders on both sides in a moment as we continue live here on AMERICAN MORNING after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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