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CNN Live Today

Two Week Stretch; Train Attack on Tape; Buckeye Battleground

Aired October 19, 2004 - 10:59   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.


RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Here's a look at what's happening right now. Stories making news.
Just a short time ago, Al Jazeera TV aired footage of a charity director kidnapped earlier today in Iraq. We've been telling you about this. It is CARE International that is saying the head of its international operations in Iraq was abducted in Baghdad. Margaret Hassan -- or pardon me -- Margaret Hassan has joint British and Iraqi citizenship and has lived in Iraq for some 30 years.

British authorities today charged a hard-line Muslim cleric with 10 counts of soliciting to murder. Abu Hamsa al-Masri also faces additional charges, including four counts of inciting racial hatred. He's being held in south London, and the U.S. has filed a request to have him extradited, we understand.

Members of Congress are facing the same problems as the rest of the country when it comes to getting flu shots. Health officials on Capitol Hill usually order shots for lawmakers, staff members and employees, but this year they only got about half the number of doses. And they are giving them to people who are at high risk instead.

A judge has denied a request by former WorldCom CEO Bernie Ebbers to move his trial from Manhattan to Mississippi. The judge also delayed the start of the trial until January 17. Ebbers is charged with fraud and conspiracy and the collapse of Worldcom.

It is 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast, 8:00 a.m. on the West. From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Rick Sanchez.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Daryn Kagan.

Two weeks and counting. That's two weeks from today. The candidates are scrambling for battleground states today. Just 14 days stand between them and the American voter.

President Bush has three stops planned in Florida today. Senator Kerry has three different battleground states on his itinerary.

A fresh CBS-"New York Times" poll finds the candidates are dead even among registered voters nationwide. And just one percentage point separates them among likely voters. Perhaps more telling, President Bush's approval rating is well under the critical 50 percent mark, often a danger sign for an incumbent.

We're going to begin our campaign coverage with the Bush campaign. The president's bus tour is in Florida, taking him from St. Petersburg to Newport Richey and on to the villages.

Suzanne Malveaux is along for the ride this morning. She begins our coverage from St. Petersburg.

Good morning.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.

There is one number that the Bush camp takes some comfort in. And that is when you split up those numbers, you take a look that the polls, they show that the president is as much as 20 points ahead of Kerry when it comes to at least handling the war on terror, as being the one who would make the better commander in chief. That is something that they, of course, are trying to capitalize off of, essentially bringing home the message, making the case they believe Kerry has been inconsistent when it comes to Iraq, that he weak on the war on terror.

They are visiting two of the three counties today that he actually lost back four years ago. But they believe they can make up some lost ground.

What is also interesting to note when you listen to the president's words today is that he seems to be responding to some of Kerry's challenges, those challenges on issues that seem to be resonating with the voters. He talks about the future of Social Security. He says that it's solvent.

He talks about the debate of the draft. He says there will be no draft.

He even talks about the flu vaccine, saying that the most needy in the country will receive that. Another thing that the Bush campaign seems to notice gaining traction is social issues.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My opponent has a different point of view. He wants to maintain the status quo when it comes to Social Security. When you get to reforms we're talking about when it comes to Social Security, he just -- he (UNINTELLIGIBLE) that gives more authority and control to the individual.

On issue after issue, from Medicare without choices, to schools with less accountability, to higher taxes, he takes the side of more government control. There's a label for that. There's a word for that. It's called liberalism.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Now Daryn, some of the groups that seem to be standing out, particularly important for the Bush camp, that is the youth vote. Of course, they are concerned about the potential for a draft. The president addressing that earlier today. Also, of course, is seniors. They are the ones that are most concerned about Social Security -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Tell me a little bit more about the NASCAR tour that's going on. Not like we're looking to see the president or vice president behind the wheel.

MALVEAUX: No, but I wouldn't be surprised if we saw the next couple of weeks or so -- the president, interestingly enough, is going to return back to Florida late in the week. But we are told -- it's very interesting -- what's going to happen is these NASCAR celebrity drivers are going to be traveling around the country in those key battleground states, more than a dozen events in the next couple of days.

They are really trying to bring out the support of what are the "NASCAR dads." Those are the working class fathers who essentially vote and support Bush. They want to make sure that they bring along a couple of their friends as well -- Daryn.

KAGAN: All right. Suzanne Malveaux, thank you for that -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: All right. Now let's go over to the Kerry campaign.

The senator has stops planned today in Pennsylvania, Ohio, no surprise there. But he's also adding Iowa. All states that play in the November 2 election -- play principal roles, we should say.

National correspondent Kelly Wallace is joining us now from Wilkes-Barre. She's in eastern Pennsylvania.

Hi, Kelly.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Rick.

Well, as you can see behind me, people lining up, waiting for Senator Kerry. He should be here about two hours from now.

He really has sort of a two-fold strategy these days. Number one, keep hitting the nation hard on domestic issues. But also, going back to what Suzanne was talking about, trying to narrow that double- digit lead that the president has over the senator when it comes to who can better handle the war on terrorism.

Fair to say that Senator Kerry probably has an extra spring in his step after his beloved Red Sox defeated the New York Yankees in a game last night that went just almost six hours long. As the senator was leaving Orlando, Florida, he went up to talk to reporters, asking them if they watched the game, saying it was unbelievable.

Well, as the senator making his way here to Pennsylvania, his campaign releasing two new television ads. Both focusing on the issue of who can keep the U.S. safer. And in this latest ad, which you'll hear a portion of, the senator clearly going after the president when it comes to his handling of the war in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We see it for ourselves, the mess in Iraq created by George Bush. Over 1,000 U.S. soldiers killed. Kidnappings, Americans held hostage.

Bush sees nothing wrong. It's time for a fresh start. John Kerry has voted for the largest military and intelligence budget increases in our nation's history, endorsed by chairman of the joint chiefs under presidents Reagan and Clinton.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Now focusing on Pennsylvania. When we think of Pennsylvania and the swing areas, we often think of the suburbs of Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. But the senator coming here to Wilksbury, near Scranton.

President Bush was actually here just a couple of weeks ago. The reason is this an area filled with union workers, a large Catholic population. You have a lot of conservative Democrats who can be convinced if the circumstances are right to vote Republican. So swing voters, both campaigns, Rick, trying to win over in these final days.

SANCHEZ: Kelly, I'm sure you've noticed, but these polls lately have been all over the place. Kerry was down like eight points in one yesterday. In "The New York Times" poll today, he's only down one. Do Kerry's people think that their crowd, the people who will likely vote for him, are really being counted?

WALLACE: Well, you know, they do raise some questions about that, because they do think that they're winning the game when it comes to new registrations, new voters, and that those voters aren't necessarily being polled. Also, when it comes to young voters, the group 18 to 29, we know a lot of young voters often have cell phones and polling doesn't really take into account people with cell phones. And the Kerry campaign believes it has an advantage there.

But, Rick, what they are saying is they are looking at the polling in the key battleground states. They continue to feel that the trending in those crucial states moving in the senator's direction. But, of course, we won't know until November 2, right?

SANCHEZ: No, we certainly won't. Thanks so much. Kelly Wallace all over the Kerry campaign for us.

Now, CNN has a town hall forum. It's called "American Agenda." It's coming up in the next hour. Wolf Blitzer and Zain Verjee are going to take a look at the Bush foreign policy and the doctrine of preemptive strike 12 noon in the East, 9:00 a.m. out West. It's live, once again, from George Washington University.

KAGAN: The kidnapping of a charity director tops the latest news in the fight for Iraq. CARE International says its head of operations in Iraq was abducted in Baghdad this morning. Margaret Hassan has dual British and Iraqi citizenship. Prime Minister Tony Blair was asked about the kidnapping during a news conference a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We'll do whatever we can, obviously. This is -- this is someone who has actually lived in Iraq for 30 years. This is someone who is immensely respected, married to an Iraqi. Someone who is doing her level best to help the country.

And I think it shows you the type of people we're up against, that they would prepare somebody like this. Now, we don't -- we don't know which group it is. So there's really a limit at this stage to what I can say to you. But obviously we'll do whatever we possibly can.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: British officials, Iraqi authorities and the State Department are investigating that kidnapping.

A mortar attack north of Baghdad today killed four people and wounded dozens more. The Iraqi Defense Ministry says the attack targeted a National Guard base near the city of Taji. Coalition forces used helicopters to help evacuate the wounded. Insurgents have launched repeated attacks on police stations and National Guard posts in Iraq.

U.S. forces are putting up wanted posters of terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in and around Falluja and Baghdad. Officials believe people in those areas may have information on Zarqawi's whereabouts. The State Department is offering a $25 million reward for his death or capture. Zarqawi and his followers are linked to a wave of attack attacks, including suicide bombings, kidnappings and beheadings.

SANCHEZ: Spanish television today is showing chilling security camera footage of that March 11 train station attack in Madrid. This is particularly noteworthy because many would argue that that train attack cost the prime minister of Spain his job. CNN's Al Goodman is joining us from the capital city this morning with the latest on this.

What are we learning this morning, Al?

AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rick, this is apparently the first time the security video from the March 11 train bombings has been made public. It's been distributed by the state-run news agency, which tells CNN that they got a copy.

These were security cameras at the Atocha train station in the rush hour, morning hour of March 11. There were four trains hit by 10 different bombs, three of them at the Atocha station. And in the video that we're seeing here, at least two of the bombs are apparent with the deadly force.

There is no sound. That's apparently because it is a security camera at the Atocha train station.

And as you said, this election happened March 11 -- I'm sorry, the bombing happened March 11, just three days before Spain's national election. And many observers believe that that event changed the course of the election.

Until the March 11 bombing, the conservative government had been, according to all the polls, ready to score another victory to get a third term. And after the bombings, there were periods of days with large protests and a lot of accusation, in addition to a nation in grief. And the socialist government came out ahead and won that election. Of course, soon after it pulled Spain's troops out of Iraq, much to the dismay of Washington -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: Yes, that's interesting. Al Goodman, thanks so much for that report.

We'll stay with the video for just a minute. I wonder if we can rack that up again and show exactly what happened, because at that particular time there were some people who were leaving the train station.

There's the shot right there that starts it. And now it's followed by another one. That's the one that killed so many. This is from Telecinco, by the way. It's footage believed to have marked the very first public broadcast of this actual video. We'll continue to follow that story.

KAGAN: We go form those pictures to pictures we're just getting in from downtown Atlanta. We're getting word of a small plain crash in downtown Atlanta.

For those of you familiar with the area, it's very close to the Martin Luther King Center. Unusual for a small plane even to be in that area. It's not too far from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. However, you don't see a lot of small airports going in and out of that airport. They use other private airports around the area.

SANCHEZ: It does look like there's a whole lot of fire rescue officials on the scene there.

KAGAN: Yes. No word on injuries, who was on board, what could have caused the crash, or exactly what it crashed into. But we will work on that, getting more pictures. We have a crew on the way, and more information as well.

SANCHEZ: Fourteen days and counting. And our look at the battleground states moves into Ohio next. We're going to talk to one of the persons who knows so much about this road to the White House as it goes through his particular backyard.

KAGAN: And later, what does cement have to do with the Scott Peterson murder trial? It's taking center stage as the defense begins. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAGAN: An Ohio man has a court date on Friday on charges he filled out dozens of fictitious voter registration forms. Authorities say that 22-year-old Chad Staten (ph) used names like Mary Poppins and Michael Jackson on the applications. They say he was paid in crack cocaine. The people who allegedly hired Staten (ph) have not been charged yet. At least not yet.

SANCHEZ: Political experts agree the road to the White House runs right through Ohio. And we're continuing our weeklong look now at battleground states. Alan Johnson is a political reporter for the "Columbus Dispatch."

Hey, Mr. Johnson. Thanks so much for being with us.

ALAN JOHNSON, "COLUMBUS DISPATCH": Certainly. Good morning.

SANCHEZ: Let's look at what your "Columbus Dispatch" newspaper is reporting as far as its poll is concerned. It has Mr. Bush at 51 percent, it has Senator Kerry at 44 percent. Is that pretty much the pattern that you've been seeing there throughout the last couple of months?

JOHNSON: No, that is -- at this point, that is old news, unfortunately, because things change so quickly. It's much, much closer than that now. I think...

SANCHEZ: Really, as of when?

JOHNSON: As of the last couple weeks. That poll at this point is several weeks old. So the numbers have tightened considerably since then.

SANCHEZ: Well, thanks so much for bringing that to our attention.

JOHNSON: Certainly.

SANCHEZ: You know, your paper has this article I was reading this morning as I was going through the briefings. The Republicans are saying the Democrats are signing people up fraudulently. The Democrats are saying the Republicans are trying to stop people from voting.

What's going on here?

JOHNSON: Well, let's put it this way, those of us who are planning vacations right after the election no longer will be planning vacations because we're going to be around for a while. We've got a story in today's paper that talks about the secretary of state saying in the wrong precinct your vote may not count. We're changing the provisional ballot rules here at the last minute.

And it won't be the last time. This is, unfortunately, I'm afraid, going to be a lot of chaos in a very critical state.

SANCHEZ: Well, you know, I don't know if you heard Daryn's story. She read it just a little while ago...

JOHNSON: Yes.

SANCHEZ: ... about this person, Mr. Staten (ph), I believe his name is.

JOHNSON: Right.

SANCHEZ: He is being charged with something related to votes and crack cocaine. But that's not the only thing coming out of your beloved area today.

Also, absentee ballots were sent out, and some of them, we understand, didn't have Senator Kerry's name on it. So who was on it, just Ralph Nader and George Bush?

JOHNSON: I'm not sure who was on it. I know Kerry was not.

It was some Cincinnati area ballots. And unfortunately, I think everything is going to be magnified. Every mistake that maybe wouldn't be such a big deal before is now going to be enormous mistake. And we're such a battleground state, everything is going to be really, really important.

SANCHEZ: Thanks so much. Alan Johnson, political reporter there with the "Columbus Dispatch," who works the streets to get us these stories. We appreciate your time.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: All right -- Daryn.

KAGAN: We want to go back to our breaking news. Not too far from here at CNN, downtown Atlanta, a small plane crashed. And we have our Mike Brooks on the scene. He's on the phone to tell us more -- Mike.

MIKE BROOKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn.

Well, it looks like a twin engine private aircraft with two people on board crashed into a commercial building on Edgewood Street in downtown Atlanta, just about two blocks away from the Martin Luther King Center. Fire department sources on the scene are telling me that there are two fatalities involved.

There was heavy fire involved. And I'm standing in front of the building right now, Daryn, and the whole front of the building was scorched. They have extinguished the fire. There is debris all over the area from the aircraft.

The conditions right now -- and when the airplane crashed it was a fairly low ceiling, Daryn, and in rain. So whatever the cause of it, FAA is going to be on the scene here momentarily, I'm told, and they'll start to begin their investigation, along with the National Transportation Safety Board. But right now, it looks like two people dead in a single engine plane crash here in downtown Atlanta -- Daryn. KAGAN: And Mike, we're getting word -- I don't know if you have the same information on the scene -- but this plane coming out of Peachtree-DeKalb Airport, a private airport in the northern part of the city, and was headed to Venice, Florida. Have you been able to gather anything on that?

BROOKS: Have not been able to gather anything on that right now. I've only been on the scene here just a few moments. And my sources were filling me in on exactly what we are seeing right now. But had not gotten that information. We'll go ahead and try to verify that for you also.

KAGAN: All right. Mike Brooks on the scene in downtown Atlanta. Thank you.

BROOKS: Thank you, Daryn.

SANCHEZ: What kind of an area is that?

KAGAN: That's a -- that's just few blocks from here. We'll have to take you down there. Just a couple blocks from Martin Luther King Center. That is the heart of downtown Atlanta.

SANCHEZ: There's a lot of people there then.

KAGAN: A lot of people. And just a few blocks in another direction would have been a high-rise.

SANCHEZ: Wow.

Well, other stories that we're going to follow on this day, coming up, a look at the issues taking center stage in the final days of the race for the White House. And stem cells, abortion, capital punishment, how social concerns are dividing our nation.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Looking at some live pictures from the helicopter, WSB, one of our local affiliates here in Atlanta, flying over downtown Atlanta. Actually, we had a better shot of it a little bit earlier.

SANCHEZ: There it is.

KAGAN: There you go, a tape from a site where a twin engine plane crashed in downtown Atlanta into an industrial building. Our Mike Brooks, who's on the scene, said that firefighters are telling him there were two fatalities. The plane, we're getting word, took out from Peachtree-DeKalb Airport, which is just north -- the northern part if Atlanta where a lot of private planes fly out of, and was headed to Venice, Florida. No word on identities or exactly what went wrong, but you can see...

SANCHEZ: Yes, the outline of the plane. You can actually see it right there. It seems to be a larger -- larger plane than we originally thought.

KAGAN: You can also see it's kind of a nasty day here in Atlanta.

SANCHEZ: Yes.

Jill Brown is standing by, in fact, to let us know.

Is there a chance that the weather may have played a part in this thing, given what you know, what you've been following? Oh, there we go. I imagine you could hear me, though, right?

(WEATHER REPORT)

SANCHEZ: And, of course, the National Transportation Safety Board will be out there investigating this situation to actually -- able to nail down at some point whether in fact the weather did play a key role in this thing.

KAGAN: The defense is resuming its efforts in the murder trial of Scott Peterson. Up next, how a story about cement is taking center stage in court.

SANCHEZ: We're live from California. And that's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired October 19, 2004 - 10:59   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Here's a look at what's happening right now. Stories making news.
Just a short time ago, Al Jazeera TV aired footage of a charity director kidnapped earlier today in Iraq. We've been telling you about this. It is CARE International that is saying the head of its international operations in Iraq was abducted in Baghdad. Margaret Hassan -- or pardon me -- Margaret Hassan has joint British and Iraqi citizenship and has lived in Iraq for some 30 years.

British authorities today charged a hard-line Muslim cleric with 10 counts of soliciting to murder. Abu Hamsa al-Masri also faces additional charges, including four counts of inciting racial hatred. He's being held in south London, and the U.S. has filed a request to have him extradited, we understand.

Members of Congress are facing the same problems as the rest of the country when it comes to getting flu shots. Health officials on Capitol Hill usually order shots for lawmakers, staff members and employees, but this year they only got about half the number of doses. And they are giving them to people who are at high risk instead.

A judge has denied a request by former WorldCom CEO Bernie Ebbers to move his trial from Manhattan to Mississippi. The judge also delayed the start of the trial until January 17. Ebbers is charged with fraud and conspiracy and the collapse of Worldcom.

It is 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast, 8:00 a.m. on the West. From the CNN Center in Atlanta, I'm Rick Sanchez.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Daryn Kagan.

Two weeks and counting. That's two weeks from today. The candidates are scrambling for battleground states today. Just 14 days stand between them and the American voter.

President Bush has three stops planned in Florida today. Senator Kerry has three different battleground states on his itinerary.

A fresh CBS-"New York Times" poll finds the candidates are dead even among registered voters nationwide. And just one percentage point separates them among likely voters. Perhaps more telling, President Bush's approval rating is well under the critical 50 percent mark, often a danger sign for an incumbent.

We're going to begin our campaign coverage with the Bush campaign. The president's bus tour is in Florida, taking him from St. Petersburg to Newport Richey and on to the villages.

Suzanne Malveaux is along for the ride this morning. She begins our coverage from St. Petersburg.

Good morning.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.

There is one number that the Bush camp takes some comfort in. And that is when you split up those numbers, you take a look that the polls, they show that the president is as much as 20 points ahead of Kerry when it comes to at least handling the war on terror, as being the one who would make the better commander in chief. That is something that they, of course, are trying to capitalize off of, essentially bringing home the message, making the case they believe Kerry has been inconsistent when it comes to Iraq, that he weak on the war on terror.

They are visiting two of the three counties today that he actually lost back four years ago. But they believe they can make up some lost ground.

What is also interesting to note when you listen to the president's words today is that he seems to be responding to some of Kerry's challenges, those challenges on issues that seem to be resonating with the voters. He talks about the future of Social Security. He says that it's solvent.

He talks about the debate of the draft. He says there will be no draft.

He even talks about the flu vaccine, saying that the most needy in the country will receive that. Another thing that the Bush campaign seems to notice gaining traction is social issues.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My opponent has a different point of view. He wants to maintain the status quo when it comes to Social Security. When you get to reforms we're talking about when it comes to Social Security, he just -- he (UNINTELLIGIBLE) that gives more authority and control to the individual.

On issue after issue, from Medicare without choices, to schools with less accountability, to higher taxes, he takes the side of more government control. There's a label for that. There's a word for that. It's called liberalism.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Now Daryn, some of the groups that seem to be standing out, particularly important for the Bush camp, that is the youth vote. Of course, they are concerned about the potential for a draft. The president addressing that earlier today. Also, of course, is seniors. They are the ones that are most concerned about Social Security -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Tell me a little bit more about the NASCAR tour that's going on. Not like we're looking to see the president or vice president behind the wheel.

MALVEAUX: No, but I wouldn't be surprised if we saw the next couple of weeks or so -- the president, interestingly enough, is going to return back to Florida late in the week. But we are told -- it's very interesting -- what's going to happen is these NASCAR celebrity drivers are going to be traveling around the country in those key battleground states, more than a dozen events in the next couple of days.

They are really trying to bring out the support of what are the "NASCAR dads." Those are the working class fathers who essentially vote and support Bush. They want to make sure that they bring along a couple of their friends as well -- Daryn.

KAGAN: All right. Suzanne Malveaux, thank you for that -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: All right. Now let's go over to the Kerry campaign.

The senator has stops planned today in Pennsylvania, Ohio, no surprise there. But he's also adding Iowa. All states that play in the November 2 election -- play principal roles, we should say.

National correspondent Kelly Wallace is joining us now from Wilkes-Barre. She's in eastern Pennsylvania.

Hi, Kelly.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Rick.

Well, as you can see behind me, people lining up, waiting for Senator Kerry. He should be here about two hours from now.

He really has sort of a two-fold strategy these days. Number one, keep hitting the nation hard on domestic issues. But also, going back to what Suzanne was talking about, trying to narrow that double- digit lead that the president has over the senator when it comes to who can better handle the war on terrorism.

Fair to say that Senator Kerry probably has an extra spring in his step after his beloved Red Sox defeated the New York Yankees in a game last night that went just almost six hours long. As the senator was leaving Orlando, Florida, he went up to talk to reporters, asking them if they watched the game, saying it was unbelievable.

Well, as the senator making his way here to Pennsylvania, his campaign releasing two new television ads. Both focusing on the issue of who can keep the U.S. safer. And in this latest ad, which you'll hear a portion of, the senator clearly going after the president when it comes to his handling of the war in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We see it for ourselves, the mess in Iraq created by George Bush. Over 1,000 U.S. soldiers killed. Kidnappings, Americans held hostage.

Bush sees nothing wrong. It's time for a fresh start. John Kerry has voted for the largest military and intelligence budget increases in our nation's history, endorsed by chairman of the joint chiefs under presidents Reagan and Clinton.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Now focusing on Pennsylvania. When we think of Pennsylvania and the swing areas, we often think of the suburbs of Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. But the senator coming here to Wilksbury, near Scranton.

President Bush was actually here just a couple of weeks ago. The reason is this an area filled with union workers, a large Catholic population. You have a lot of conservative Democrats who can be convinced if the circumstances are right to vote Republican. So swing voters, both campaigns, Rick, trying to win over in these final days.

SANCHEZ: Kelly, I'm sure you've noticed, but these polls lately have been all over the place. Kerry was down like eight points in one yesterday. In "The New York Times" poll today, he's only down one. Do Kerry's people think that their crowd, the people who will likely vote for him, are really being counted?

WALLACE: Well, you know, they do raise some questions about that, because they do think that they're winning the game when it comes to new registrations, new voters, and that those voters aren't necessarily being polled. Also, when it comes to young voters, the group 18 to 29, we know a lot of young voters often have cell phones and polling doesn't really take into account people with cell phones. And the Kerry campaign believes it has an advantage there.

But, Rick, what they are saying is they are looking at the polling in the key battleground states. They continue to feel that the trending in those crucial states moving in the senator's direction. But, of course, we won't know until November 2, right?

SANCHEZ: No, we certainly won't. Thanks so much. Kelly Wallace all over the Kerry campaign for us.

Now, CNN has a town hall forum. It's called "American Agenda." It's coming up in the next hour. Wolf Blitzer and Zain Verjee are going to take a look at the Bush foreign policy and the doctrine of preemptive strike 12 noon in the East, 9:00 a.m. out West. It's live, once again, from George Washington University.

KAGAN: The kidnapping of a charity director tops the latest news in the fight for Iraq. CARE International says its head of operations in Iraq was abducted in Baghdad this morning. Margaret Hassan has dual British and Iraqi citizenship. Prime Minister Tony Blair was asked about the kidnapping during a news conference a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We'll do whatever we can, obviously. This is -- this is someone who has actually lived in Iraq for 30 years. This is someone who is immensely respected, married to an Iraqi. Someone who is doing her level best to help the country.

And I think it shows you the type of people we're up against, that they would prepare somebody like this. Now, we don't -- we don't know which group it is. So there's really a limit at this stage to what I can say to you. But obviously we'll do whatever we possibly can.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: British officials, Iraqi authorities and the State Department are investigating that kidnapping.

A mortar attack north of Baghdad today killed four people and wounded dozens more. The Iraqi Defense Ministry says the attack targeted a National Guard base near the city of Taji. Coalition forces used helicopters to help evacuate the wounded. Insurgents have launched repeated attacks on police stations and National Guard posts in Iraq.

U.S. forces are putting up wanted posters of terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in and around Falluja and Baghdad. Officials believe people in those areas may have information on Zarqawi's whereabouts. The State Department is offering a $25 million reward for his death or capture. Zarqawi and his followers are linked to a wave of attack attacks, including suicide bombings, kidnappings and beheadings.

SANCHEZ: Spanish television today is showing chilling security camera footage of that March 11 train station attack in Madrid. This is particularly noteworthy because many would argue that that train attack cost the prime minister of Spain his job. CNN's Al Goodman is joining us from the capital city this morning with the latest on this.

What are we learning this morning, Al?

AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rick, this is apparently the first time the security video from the March 11 train bombings has been made public. It's been distributed by the state-run news agency, which tells CNN that they got a copy.

These were security cameras at the Atocha train station in the rush hour, morning hour of March 11. There were four trains hit by 10 different bombs, three of them at the Atocha station. And in the video that we're seeing here, at least two of the bombs are apparent with the deadly force.

There is no sound. That's apparently because it is a security camera at the Atocha train station.

And as you said, this election happened March 11 -- I'm sorry, the bombing happened March 11, just three days before Spain's national election. And many observers believe that that event changed the course of the election.

Until the March 11 bombing, the conservative government had been, according to all the polls, ready to score another victory to get a third term. And after the bombings, there were periods of days with large protests and a lot of accusation, in addition to a nation in grief. And the socialist government came out ahead and won that election. Of course, soon after it pulled Spain's troops out of Iraq, much to the dismay of Washington -- Rick.

SANCHEZ: Yes, that's interesting. Al Goodman, thanks so much for that report.

We'll stay with the video for just a minute. I wonder if we can rack that up again and show exactly what happened, because at that particular time there were some people who were leaving the train station.

There's the shot right there that starts it. And now it's followed by another one. That's the one that killed so many. This is from Telecinco, by the way. It's footage believed to have marked the very first public broadcast of this actual video. We'll continue to follow that story.

KAGAN: We go form those pictures to pictures we're just getting in from downtown Atlanta. We're getting word of a small plain crash in downtown Atlanta.

For those of you familiar with the area, it's very close to the Martin Luther King Center. Unusual for a small plane even to be in that area. It's not too far from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. However, you don't see a lot of small airports going in and out of that airport. They use other private airports around the area.

SANCHEZ: It does look like there's a whole lot of fire rescue officials on the scene there.

KAGAN: Yes. No word on injuries, who was on board, what could have caused the crash, or exactly what it crashed into. But we will work on that, getting more pictures. We have a crew on the way, and more information as well.

SANCHEZ: Fourteen days and counting. And our look at the battleground states moves into Ohio next. We're going to talk to one of the persons who knows so much about this road to the White House as it goes through his particular backyard.

KAGAN: And later, what does cement have to do with the Scott Peterson murder trial? It's taking center stage as the defense begins. That's coming up.

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(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAGAN: An Ohio man has a court date on Friday on charges he filled out dozens of fictitious voter registration forms. Authorities say that 22-year-old Chad Staten (ph) used names like Mary Poppins and Michael Jackson on the applications. They say he was paid in crack cocaine. The people who allegedly hired Staten (ph) have not been charged yet. At least not yet.

SANCHEZ: Political experts agree the road to the White House runs right through Ohio. And we're continuing our weeklong look now at battleground states. Alan Johnson is a political reporter for the "Columbus Dispatch."

Hey, Mr. Johnson. Thanks so much for being with us.

ALAN JOHNSON, "COLUMBUS DISPATCH": Certainly. Good morning.

SANCHEZ: Let's look at what your "Columbus Dispatch" newspaper is reporting as far as its poll is concerned. It has Mr. Bush at 51 percent, it has Senator Kerry at 44 percent. Is that pretty much the pattern that you've been seeing there throughout the last couple of months?

JOHNSON: No, that is -- at this point, that is old news, unfortunately, because things change so quickly. It's much, much closer than that now. I think...

SANCHEZ: Really, as of when?

JOHNSON: As of the last couple weeks. That poll at this point is several weeks old. So the numbers have tightened considerably since then.

SANCHEZ: Well, thanks so much for bringing that to our attention.

JOHNSON: Certainly.

SANCHEZ: You know, your paper has this article I was reading this morning as I was going through the briefings. The Republicans are saying the Democrats are signing people up fraudulently. The Democrats are saying the Republicans are trying to stop people from voting.

What's going on here?

JOHNSON: Well, let's put it this way, those of us who are planning vacations right after the election no longer will be planning vacations because we're going to be around for a while. We've got a story in today's paper that talks about the secretary of state saying in the wrong precinct your vote may not count. We're changing the provisional ballot rules here at the last minute.

And it won't be the last time. This is, unfortunately, I'm afraid, going to be a lot of chaos in a very critical state.

SANCHEZ: Well, you know, I don't know if you heard Daryn's story. She read it just a little while ago...

JOHNSON: Yes.

SANCHEZ: ... about this person, Mr. Staten (ph), I believe his name is.

JOHNSON: Right.

SANCHEZ: He is being charged with something related to votes and crack cocaine. But that's not the only thing coming out of your beloved area today.

Also, absentee ballots were sent out, and some of them, we understand, didn't have Senator Kerry's name on it. So who was on it, just Ralph Nader and George Bush?

JOHNSON: I'm not sure who was on it. I know Kerry was not.

It was some Cincinnati area ballots. And unfortunately, I think everything is going to be magnified. Every mistake that maybe wouldn't be such a big deal before is now going to be enormous mistake. And we're such a battleground state, everything is going to be really, really important.

SANCHEZ: Thanks so much. Alan Johnson, political reporter there with the "Columbus Dispatch," who works the streets to get us these stories. We appreciate your time.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: All right -- Daryn.

KAGAN: We want to go back to our breaking news. Not too far from here at CNN, downtown Atlanta, a small plane crashed. And we have our Mike Brooks on the scene. He's on the phone to tell us more -- Mike.

MIKE BROOKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn.

Well, it looks like a twin engine private aircraft with two people on board crashed into a commercial building on Edgewood Street in downtown Atlanta, just about two blocks away from the Martin Luther King Center. Fire department sources on the scene are telling me that there are two fatalities involved.

There was heavy fire involved. And I'm standing in front of the building right now, Daryn, and the whole front of the building was scorched. They have extinguished the fire. There is debris all over the area from the aircraft.

The conditions right now -- and when the airplane crashed it was a fairly low ceiling, Daryn, and in rain. So whatever the cause of it, FAA is going to be on the scene here momentarily, I'm told, and they'll start to begin their investigation, along with the National Transportation Safety Board. But right now, it looks like two people dead in a single engine plane crash here in downtown Atlanta -- Daryn. KAGAN: And Mike, we're getting word -- I don't know if you have the same information on the scene -- but this plane coming out of Peachtree-DeKalb Airport, a private airport in the northern part of the city, and was headed to Venice, Florida. Have you been able to gather anything on that?

BROOKS: Have not been able to gather anything on that right now. I've only been on the scene here just a few moments. And my sources were filling me in on exactly what we are seeing right now. But had not gotten that information. We'll go ahead and try to verify that for you also.

KAGAN: All right. Mike Brooks on the scene in downtown Atlanta. Thank you.

BROOKS: Thank you, Daryn.

SANCHEZ: What kind of an area is that?

KAGAN: That's a -- that's just few blocks from here. We'll have to take you down there. Just a couple blocks from Martin Luther King Center. That is the heart of downtown Atlanta.

SANCHEZ: There's a lot of people there then.

KAGAN: A lot of people. And just a few blocks in another direction would have been a high-rise.

SANCHEZ: Wow.

Well, other stories that we're going to follow on this day, coming up, a look at the issues taking center stage in the final days of the race for the White House. And stem cells, abortion, capital punishment, how social concerns are dividing our nation.

Stay with us.

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KAGAN: Looking at some live pictures from the helicopter, WSB, one of our local affiliates here in Atlanta, flying over downtown Atlanta. Actually, we had a better shot of it a little bit earlier.

SANCHEZ: There it is.

KAGAN: There you go, a tape from a site where a twin engine plane crashed in downtown Atlanta into an industrial building. Our Mike Brooks, who's on the scene, said that firefighters are telling him there were two fatalities. The plane, we're getting word, took out from Peachtree-DeKalb Airport, which is just north -- the northern part if Atlanta where a lot of private planes fly out of, and was headed to Venice, Florida. No word on identities or exactly what went wrong, but you can see...

SANCHEZ: Yes, the outline of the plane. You can actually see it right there. It seems to be a larger -- larger plane than we originally thought.

KAGAN: You can also see it's kind of a nasty day here in Atlanta.

SANCHEZ: Yes.

Jill Brown is standing by, in fact, to let us know.

Is there a chance that the weather may have played a part in this thing, given what you know, what you've been following? Oh, there we go. I imagine you could hear me, though, right?

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SANCHEZ: And, of course, the National Transportation Safety Board will be out there investigating this situation to actually -- able to nail down at some point whether in fact the weather did play a key role in this thing.

KAGAN: The defense is resuming its efforts in the murder trial of Scott Peterson. Up next, how a story about cement is taking center stage in court.

SANCHEZ: We're live from California. And that's next.

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