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The Situation Room
New Call For House Speaker To Step Down; White House Says It Will Organize Conference To Discuss Growing Violence in America's Schools; Foley Scandal Has Drastically Changed Political Landscape in His District
Aired October 03, 2006 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you, Ali.
And to our viewers, you're in the SITUATION ROOM, where new pictures and information are arriving all the time. Standing by, CNN reporters across the United States and around the world to bring you today's top stories.
Happening now, a Capitol scandal spreads with a new call for the House speaker to step down. It's 4:00 p.m. here in Washington. Will Dennis Hastert pay the price for the Mark Foley fiasco? Brand new reports about more of Foley's instant messages are fueling the fire.
In the battle for Congress, is a GOP caught in the perfect storm? The Foley scandal comes amid a number of other political challenges for Republicans. We have new poll numbers this hour on Iraq, the president and the possible fallout on election day.
And shocking new details about the gunman in the Amish school shooting. Police say he told his wife he'd molested young girls two decades ago, and he may have planned to repeat the past before killing again.
Wolf Blitzer is off today. I'm John King.
You're in the SITUATION ROOM.
This hour, President Bush is standing by House Speaker Dennis Hastert even as the Mark Foley scandal gets more politically toxic. Hastert is ignoring a call for his resignation as speaker by the conservative newspaper the "Washington Times." The "Times" is joining some other conservative voices, in saying Hastert either ignored red flags about Foley's conduct or, as the newspaper put it, he was, quote, "grossly negligent."
New comments by the number two House Republican. Majority Leader John Boehner suggest a possible split within the GOP leadership. Boehner told a Cincinnati radio station the Foley manuscript, matter, excuse me, is Hastert's responsibility. And Boehner said he believes Foley is on his way to jail.
Former Congressman Foley remains in rehab and out of the public eye three days after he quit Congress. Today, more suggestive instant messages reportedly sent by Foley to a teenage boy have surfaced. Standing by is on this story, our senior political analyst Bill Schneider, but first here is our Congressional correspondent, Dana Bash with the latest -- Dana.
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, the speaker and his top aides have been on a major offensive all day long, trying to counter the charge that he simply didn't act soon enough to stop Mark Foley.
Now all day, we know that he has been on the telephone calling some of his colleagues, fellow members of the Republican party, Congressmen essentially making it clear to them, we are told, that he is not going to resign, no intention of resigning. And trying to reassure them, but he has also been calling in, John, to talk radio, trying to reassure rank and file conservatives, who we know are simply furious about, not only the Mark Foley scandal, but the way the Republican leadership allegedly handled it.
And so he's trying to calm some of their fury by talking about the fact that, A, that -- this has been his message today. A, repeating over and over that he personally thinks that Foley's behavior was repugnant, and also trying to make the case that this is political, that these are Democrats trying to stir this up in order to recapture the majority in Congress.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
REP. DENNIS HASTERT (R-IL), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: This is a political issue in itself, too. And what we've tried to do as the Republican party is make a better economy, protect this country against terrorism, and we've worked at it ever since 9/11, worked with the president on it. And there's some people that are trying to tear us down. We the insulation to protect this country and if they get to me, it looks like that, you know, they could affect our election as well.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
BASH: But if you're looking for some evidence of how under siege the Republican leadership in the House is today, and perhaps, how unclear many of them think it is, how this is all going to turn out, perhaps it's best to look at the comments of the Majority Leader, John Boehner.
First, this morning, he went on talk radio -- radio, I should say, in Cincinnati. And he appeared, according to one Republican I talked to today, simply throw House Speaker Dennis Hastert under the bus. He said that, that it is, in his corner, talking about the speaker, and it is his responsibility.
But later in the day, Congressman Boehner wrote a letter to the "Washington Times," trying to defend the leadership, at least the Republican leadership, in general and then tried to sort of join in the Republican leadership offensive. He suggested that not only that Democrats put this whole issue out there, but also that it was withheld until now, a month before the election. And he said that that is something that people should be looking at.
Here is what he said, quote, "If this evidence was withheld for political purposes one can only speculate as to how many additional children may have been endangered before this information was revealed."
So there's some pretty strong words from the House Majority Leader, essentially trying to throw it back to Democrats, while again, they are trying to figure out how this is going to turn out and defend themselves -- John.
KING: And Dana, those comments from the leadership, including the speaker, trying to boost his support, if you will, rally support for his handling of this. What about the Republican members of Congress? They're all fanned out across the country, the election little more than a month away. I assume they're hearing about this back home?
BASH: Big time. I spoke to several Congressmen and women who are home with their constituents and with voters. And as we speak, they simply say that they are being overwhelmed by what they're hearing from the folks back home. They say that this is simply something that people are furious about, both the question of Foley's conduct and, of course, the question of how their own Republican leadership dealt with it.
And it's putting them in an uncomfortable position for sure. For example, Congressman Jim Gerlach, who is running in a very tight race in the state of Pennsylvania, he last night canceled a fundraiser with the House Majority Leader John Boehner. His spokesman told me that it's simply because they thought it was not appropriate for him to comment this time where there are questions about the leadership of his party.
Also, another respected voice up here, Republican respected voice, Congressman Tom Davis of Virginia. He is also raising questions about his own leadership's defense of how they handled this. Essentially, what the leadership is saying is that the one e-mail they knew about was what they considered overly friendly.
Tom Davis is saying this about that defense, quote, "This message constituted a warning that the safety and well-being of page were at risk. More aggressive action should have been taken to determine the extent and propriety of Mr. Foley's conduct."
So that's an example of a couple of statements like that we're getting today, John. And you know, one other Republican in another tough race, Chris Chocola in Indiana, he put out a statement from his campaign yesterday also not -- certainly not calling for the speaker to resign, but perhaps coming mighty close to the line, saying that if the leadership of the Republican party knew about something that they didn't take up appropriately, then they will lose his support -- John.
KING: Dana Bash tracking this remarkable and fast and unfolding political story for us on Capitol Hill. Dana will be back for us a little later in this hour, along with our senior political correspondent Candy Crowley and will break down more of the political fallout.
Dana, thank you very much.
And President Bush said he was dismayed, shocked and disgusted to learn about what he calls Foley's unacceptable behavior. While campaigning for Republicans in California, Mr. Bush said the families of Congressional pages have a right to expect their children will be kept safe. But the president says he stands by House Speaker Dennis Hastert, and supports the speaker's call for a criminal investigation of Foley's conduct.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You know, I know Denny Hastert. I meet with him a lot. He is a father, teacher, coach, who cares about the children of this country. I know that he wants all the facts to come out. And he want to insure that these children out there on Capitol Hill are protected. I'm confident he will provide whatever leadership he can to law enforcement in this investigation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: President Bush there a bit earlier today in California. Now Dennis Hastert's future as speaker could depend in part on how the Foley investigation is playing out on conservative talk radio.
CNN's Peter Viles has been monitoring the airwaves, and says he's hearing mostly support for Speaker Hastert. Conservative activist Richard Viguerie is one of a few conservatives coming out swinging. He's calling for the resignation of any House leaders who knew of Foley's behavior and didn't take strong action.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD VIGUERIE, CONSERVATIVE ANALYST: Karl Rove famously said after the 2000 election, there were four million valued voters, the religious conservative voters that did not show up that they expecting to show up. And now after six years of getting little more than lip service, it's highly likely that many millions will not feel a need to turn out for this election.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Much more for you on the buzz on conservative talk radio about the Foley scandal, coming up for you next hour right here.
And there's new and disturbing information this afternoon about Congressman Foley's contacts with former pages. According to "ABC News," Foley allegedly took time during a House floor vote back in 2003 to engage in Internet sex with a former page.
This revelation goes behind the already disturbing e-mails and instant messages revealed the past week. ABC says its transcripts of those exchanges were provided by former pages. Again, much, much more on this new development, next hour here in THE SITUATION ROOM. Federal authorities have begun investigating Foley's trails of instant messages and e-mails. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales says the probe still is in the fact-finding stage. He spoke to CNN earlier today at an event in New Orleans.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALBERTO GONZALES, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY GENERAL: I find these reports regarding Congressman Foley deeply disturbing. We notified the speaker yesterday. The Department, investigators at the FBI, prosecutors at the Department of Justice are in the process now of gathering of facts to see what laws may have been broken.
The protection of our children from child predators has been a top priority of mine, and so, obviously, we consider these allegations very seriously. It's early in the process, and so please give us an opportunity to do our jobs to ensure that our children remain safe.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: The attorney general there on the legal investigations. Now politically some Republicans fear the Mark Foley scandal will be the final straw in their fight to keep control of Congress. The party already was feeling the weight of the Iraq war and the president's handling of the war. The political burden getting heavier in recent days because of controversy stirred by the publication of Bob Woodward's book "State of Denial."
Adding all this up for us our senior political analyst Bill Schneider -- Bill.
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: John, the Bob Woodward book, the Mark Foley scandal, are we seeing any impact in the polls?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER (voice-over): The last two weeks have not been good for congressional Republicans.
DAVID GERGEN, FORMER WHITE HOUSE ADVISER: I think that the -- for the Republicans in this campaign race, they were gaining momentum and they were gaining ground here over the last couple of weeks and now we've had a 1-2 punch. First with the Bob Woodward book and now with the Mark Foley scandal.
SCHNEIDER: A CNN poll taken this weekend shows President Bush's job approval rating is 39 percent, slightly lower than last week. But he's not on the ballot, Congress is. Only 42 percent of the public feels most members of the Congress deserve to be reelected.
Incumbents hope they can survive by keeping the campaign local. Fifty seven percent believe their own representative deserves to be reelected, but that's the lowest level of support for reelecting your member of Congress since 1994, the year Republicans overthrew the Democratic majority. Is the anger targeted at all incumbents? Not exactly. Asked whether most Democratic members of Congress deserved to be reelected, a majority says yes. Asked whether most Republicans deserve to be reelected, an even larger majority says no. Iraq is a major force driving voter anger. In his new book, author Bob Woodward charges that the Bush administration has not been honest with the American people about Iraq.
BOB WOODWARD, "STATE OF DENIAL": We have not been getting the straight story, unfortunately.
SCHNEIDER: The public agrees, 58 percent believe the Bush administration has deliberately misled them about how the war in Iraq is going.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHNEIDER: Republicans may have more money to help get out their vote, but Democrats have something that may turn out to be even more decisive, voter anger -- John.
KING: Bill Schneider for us on the watch as that anger grows, as people digest this Foley scandal. Bill, thank you very much and Bill Schneider and Dana Bash, of course, part of the best political team on television.
Now to the horror in Pennsylvania Amish country. President Bush says he is saddened and deeply concerned about yesterday's deadly schoolhouse shooting. The White House says it will organize a conference of education and law enforcement experts to discuss growing violence in America's schools. Today stunning new revelations about the latest classroom bloodshed.
CNN's Jason Carroll is reporting for us from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Police describe Charles Roberts as a deeply disturbed man and they cite the evidence that was left behind, including a suicide note left to his wife. In that note, he refers to something that happened nine years ago that his wife says he really never got over. That was the premature death of their baby daughter.
COL. JEFFREY MILLER, PA STATE POLICE COMMISSIONER: Roberts was angry with God for taking Elise, as outlined in his suicide note, stating that it had changed his life forever and that he was not the same since it happened. Roberts expressed hate towards himself and towards God.
CARROLL: Moments before the shooting, Roberts did have a conversation with his wife, where he admitted to molesting some of his own relatives 20 years ago. He said they were children between the ages of 3 and 5, that was the first time his wife had ever heard anything at all about that. He also mentioned in the suicide note that he left behind for her that he had a desire to do it again.
Police also found a checklist in his pickup truck. In that checklist there were things such as hardware, nails, chains, ammunition. He had 600 rounds of ammunition, firearms as well. There also seemed to be evidence that suggested that Roberts had a plan to try and molest some of the girls that he had taken hostage.
All of this, police say, is evidence that he wanted to keep some of these girls for as long as he could before he got caught. They also say he wasn't necessarily targeting the Amish, he was simply trying to target young girls -- John.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KING: Jason Carroll for us, a horrible, horrible story. Our Zain Verjee joins us now with a closer look at other stories making news, Zain.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN ANCHOR: The U.S. has a warning for North Korea. The Bush administration says that Pyongyang's planned nuclear test would pose an unacceptable threat to world peace and stability. The U.N. Security Council discussed the issue today and plans more talks tomorrow. Earlier today North Korea announced it would carry out the test to counter what it calls an extreme threat of nuclear war from the U.S.
The alleged hijacker of a Turkish airliner has surrendered in Brindisi, Italy. Authorities say the unarmed Turkish man hijacked the jet as it was going from Albania to Istanbul, Turkey today. It landed at a military airport in Brindisi. One hundred and thirteen passengers and crew were aboard. They have now been released. No injuries have been reported. Authorities say that the hijackers requested political asylum.
There's been more sectarian bloodshed in Iraq today. Bombings and attacks have killed at least 39 people. Sunni and Shia political leaders plan talks tomorrow on a new security plan to stop the violence. And the U.S. military death toll in Iraq continues to rise. It's now at 2,727. The U.S. military says seven soldiers were killed in Baghdad yesterday, 12 U.S. service members have died this month, John.
KING: Zain Verjee, Zain thank you very much. And time now for the Cafferty File. Jack joins us from New York. Hi Jack.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: How you doing John. Funny how things work out. Isn't it? President Bush can invade Iraq, lie about Weapons of Mass Destruction, spy on Americans without a warrant, change the Geneva Conventions and the War Powers act, hold detainees indefinitely with no access to a lawyer or a court or a trial. And after all of that it was still very much a tossup whether the Republicans stood to lose control of Congress in the upcoming midterm elections.
Then, all of a sudden, comes some instant messages from a degenerate Florida Congressman, Mark Foley, where he is making sexually inappropriate suggestions to a 16-year-old boy. Now it's not the first time a Congressman or a senator or a president or a governor has been found to have sexual proclivities that fall outside the generally accepted norm of human behavior in this country, but the 16- year-old Foley was hitting on was a congressional page, bingo.
These kids are sent to Washington by their families to learn how our government operates. This kid got quite a lesson, didn't he? Because this was such a gross violation of the trust that American families place in their leaders to watch over and protect these kids while they are away from home, well, this is a long way from being your average run-of-the-mill sex scandal. Suddenly a few instant messages have the Republicans terrified. Here is the question, what effect will the Foley scandal have on Republican candidates in the midterm elections?
E-mail your thoughts to CaffertyFille@CNN.com or go to CNN.com/CaffertyFile. Sometimes, it's the seemingly little things that come along to bite you on the, well, you know, John.
KING: I think people understand this one, Jack. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out politically. Jack Cafferty, look forward to the answers, thank you, Jack.
And coming up, much more on the Foley scandal and what it means to votes. I will ask two experts, J.C. Watts and Bill Press, right here in today's Strategy Session.
Plus, Congressman Foley is gone, but the race is still very much on in his old district. And today, it took a strange turn. Our John Zarrella is alongside the CNN election express.
Plus, he's the top Republican in charge of reelecting House members, but now, thanks in part to the Foley scandal, Congressman Tom Reynolds may be in some campaign trouble of his own. Stick around. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KING: Now to Florida. The Mark Foley scandal and his resignation from Congress have drastically changed the political landscape in the district Foley represented for nearly six full terms. CNN's John Zarrella is covering the battle for Congress in the West Palm Beach Area, and you can see he's getting an assist from the CNN Election Express.
Hi, John.
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Big assist there behind me, yes. Glad to have the Election Express with us today.
I can tell you, John, that Mark Foley's long-time friend and attorney, David Roth, is planning to hold another news conference here right where we are in about an hour-and-a-half from now, and he promises some more details, some more information about the former Congressman Mark Foley, but he will not tell us what that is. We're all going to have to stay tuned for that. Meanwhile, the man, Joe Negron, who was named to replace Mark Foley got off his first day of his new campaign, and you're not going to believe where he was.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZARRELLA (voice-over): Joe Negron went to court Tuesday. It was an odd way to spend his first full day as the new Republican candidate for Florida's 16th congressional district. Negron was an alternate juror in a highly publicized murder case known here in Stuart, Florida as the "Salerno Strangler." Chosen to replace Mark Foley, Negron says this isn't such a bad way to start his run.
JOE NEGRON (R), FLORIDA CONG. CANDIDATE: I think my civic duty to this community is way more important than my campaign.
ZARRELLA: By the lunch break, the judge had released him from that duty. A good thing. Negron needs to start shaking hands pretty quickly. His opponent, Democrat Tim Mahoney, says his frontrunner status means people are finally paying attention to him and the issues.
TIM MAHONEY (D), FLORIDA CONG. CANDIDATE: I can now come out and talk about port security, which is something that's far more important than a political race, and I can get the press to come out and we can talk about issues that really matter to American people.
ZARRELLA: Mahoney has good reason to be encouraged. A poll over the weekend before Negron was named his opponent showed Mahoney leading. He held a three point advantage, 49-46 percent. Voters were told a vote for Foley goes to the new Republican candidate. A red district last week leaning blue this week.
This is not the first time a scandal has led to a candidate change in the final weeks before the election.
FORMER SENATOR ROBERT TORRICELLI (D), NEW JERSEY: I draw my career to the United States Congress to a close with a grateful heart.
ZARRELLA: Senator Robert Torricelli of New Jersey withdrew from the Senate race four years ago after accusations of accepting gifts from a campaign contributor. Senator Frank Lautenberg replaced him and won.
Texas Representative Tom DeLay announced after the primary that he would not seek reelection. DeLay had been hounded about connections to lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
FORMER REP. TOM DELAY (R), TEXAS: I wish to begin the end of my congressional career by publicly thanking, for the last time, as their representative, the people of the 22nd district of Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ZARRELLA: Now, Negron told us that, John, he is actually pretty buoyed by those numbers. He's buoyed by them because he believes that only being down by a couple of points when nobody even knew he was going to be in the race and nobody knew how it was all going to fall out is actually pretty good.
We'll see how some other polls start to shake out now that we know his name, and once he begins his campaign, which he says is going to start in earnest tomorrow -- John.
KING: John Zarrella for us. We will continue to watch. We'll see what Congressman Foley's attorney says a bit later. John Zarrella in what is now one of the most closely watched congressional races in the country. John, thank you very much.
And still ahead right here, the Mark Foley scandal isn't just playing out in Florida. It's also causing a ripple effect in New York, where Congressman Tom Reynolds is on the defensive.
Plus, we'll look at how the sensational allegations could impact the November elections across the country. Our Candy Crowley and Dana Bash weigh in. Stay right here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KING: Welcome back to THE SITUATION ROOM. Wolf Blitzer is off today. I'm John King in Washington.
Congressman Tom Reynolds is one of the Republicans now feeling the ripple effect of the Mark Foley scandal. Congressman Reynolds is on the defensive about what he knew and what he did in response to early questions about Mark Foley's behavior. And that is weighing not only on his own reelection bid, but on his job overseeing the Republican battle to keep control of the House.
Our Mary Snow is in New York with the latest -- Mary.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Congressman Tom Reynolds is feeling the repercussions in upstate New York. Reynolds will be getting some support from First Lady Laura Bush tomorrow on the campaign trail but the question is, will it be enough to quell the controversy now clouding his reelection?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW (voice-over): Surrounded by children at his Monday news conference, and dogged by criticism that he could have done more months ago to stop questionable e-mails between Florida Congressman Mark Foley and a teenage boy who worked as a page, Congressman Tom Reynolds of New York went on the defensive.
In his hometown district in upstate New York, he insisted he did all he could by informing House Speaker Dennis Hastert about the e- mails last spring, a conversation Hastert says he doesn't recall but doesn't deny.
REP. TOM REYNOLDS (R), NEW YORK: I did what most people would do in a workplace. I heard something, I took it to my supervisor. SNOW: At one point, a reporter asked if the children should step out of room, but Reynolds declined. Political observers say he was sending a message.
MARY ANN AKERS, ROLL CALL: Clearly, Tom Reynolds is struggling to make the point that he's an advocate for children, and that he was involved in no cover-up in trying to protect a Republican incumbent as opposed to protecting children.
SNOW: And now Reynolds has to protect himself politically. He is trying to win reelection against Democrat Jack Davis, plus he is the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee.
AKERS: His job as chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee is to maintain that majority, if not expand it. Now, he had a tough race before the Foley scandal, and now he is in real jeopardy of losing his seat.
Other observers aren't writing Reynolds off just yet.
PROF. JAMES CAMPBELL, SUNY BUFFALO: I think there's enough distance between Reynolds and the scandal that he'll be able to survive pretty well.
SNOW: But right now, the focus is on Reynolds' links to Foley. He dismissed suggestions that the NRCC should return $100,000 contribution made by Foley in July. Reynolds is also facing questions about his chief of staff Kirk Fordham who once worked for Foley.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SNOW: And John, at a campaign event earlier today Congressman Reynolds was asked about his chief of staff advising Mark Foley. Reynolds directed the questions to his chief of staff Kirk Fordham and we've been unable to reach Fordham today -- John.
KING: Mary Snow tracking a very interesting race for us. Mary, thank you very much.
And exactly five weeks before Election Day Mark Foley is threatening fellow Republicans some might only dream of. Let's talk more about the political impact of this scandal with our congressional correspondent Dana Bash and our senior political correspondent Candy Crowley.
Let me ask you each both quickly the threshold question today. Will Denny Hastert resign? Pressure from the "Washington Times." Pressure from some conservatives. Dana, you're on Capitol Hill. Let's start quickly with what you're hearing.
Any indications the speaker is going to go?
BASH: Right now, no, there really isn't and certainly the speaker's office is breathing a big sigh of relief from what they heard from the president today giving strong support to Speaker Hastert. You remember another Republican leader a few years ago, Senator Trent Lott didn't get that support at all when he was under fire. Obviously a very different matter but that is something that the speaker's office is very happy about.
He is being so incredibly aggressive, we are told, talking to members of Congress of his own party, going on talk radio, trying to really make the point that he's not going anywhere and according to him, he shouldn't.
KING: Candy, a debate within the party about whether that would help or actually even more hurt to have more turmoil, more recycling this?
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, exactly. I mean, here's the problem for Republicans and I've talked to a couple today who said, listen, if he leaves it's just another talking point for Democrats. You know? Even their speaker had to leave because, of course, he didn't protect children.
So as this plays out, look, as we all know out there for Republicans, it's every man for himself or woman. And what they're doing here is saying whatever they need to say within their districts. So, you know, this -- by keeping Denny Hastert where he is, certainly Republicans can start to put distance between themselves and even sort of warn if Hastert -- shows that Hastert should of gone further than he did the investigation that they then couldn't support him. So a lot of Republicans that I talked to didn't think it would be such a great idea for him to leave.
KING: Democrats obviously see an opening here and they were already feeling confident they could take back the House. I want you to listen both to a bit of a new ad, this is from Patty Wetterling, she is the Democratic candidate in Minnesota House race, Minnesota far removed from Mark Foley's district and far removed from Washington but she thinks maybe there is something to be gained here. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: It shocks the conscience. Congressional leaders have admitted covering up the predatory behavior of a congressman who used the Internet to molest children. For over a year they knowingly ignored the welfare of children to protect their own power. For 17 years Patty Wetterling has fought for tougher penalties against those who harm children. That is why she is demanding a criminal investigation and the immediate expulsion of any congressman involved in this crime and cover-up.
PATTY WETTERLING, (D) CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: I'm Patty Wetterling and I approve this message.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Candy Crowley, let's start with you. Democrats obviously see some advantage in their jumping on this one right away.
CROWLEY: Absolutely. I am going to go out a limb and say this has not been helpful to Republicans. I think that there is also some chance that Democrats can overplay their hand. But, obviously, you don't put a commercial out there, first of all, unless you're in a pretty tough race but second of all, unless you think it has some traction. Clearly, it has some traction. The problem for Republicans there's not a whole lot of time left to kind of get out from under here so they're sort of stuck discussing this with local reporters and constituents at a time when they would much be talking about the war on terror or the economy or whatever it happens to be.
KING: And Dana, we talked earlier about your reaction you're getting from people on the campaign trail. How do Republicans think deal with this, every local reporter is going to ask me about it, here is my answer. Pivot. What is the pivot?
BASH: You've seen today what they're trying to pivot to. For example, the speaker, the point he has been making in his phone calls and on talk radio if you let me get thrown under the bus so to speak you're just going to give the Democrats a win and this is exactly what they're trying to do. And remember, if Democrats get elected, he says they are going to raise your taxes and grow the government.
So that's the message that the speaker is trying to sort of lead by example with in his interviews today. But, you know, just as Candy was pointing out all politics definitely are local. And I did talk to several Republican lawmakers, candidates who are out there today, saying this is just unbelievable, really overwhelming what they are hearing.
And talking to Republicans here on Capitol Hill and even around town they say it's a circular firing squad and nobody knows how this is going to play out in terms of the leadership. Everybody is looking over their shoulder. It is really hard to explain the sense of anxiety that we're sensing from these Republicans here on Capitol Hill.
KING: We're short on time. I'll give you each a sentence or less. A week or so if you talked to Republicans they say things aren't great but we're feeling better maybe with our money advantage, just maybe we can hold on to the House. We should be able to hold on to the Senate. Is that their mood now, Dana?
BASH: You know, at this point, everybody is sort of going minute-by-minute to figure things out. But I can tell you I talked to one Republican who put it this way, Iraq is an abstraction. People don't really necessarily get that. This is about human beings, this is about parents and voters really get that. This is really, really bad for us.
KING: Candy Crowley gets the last word.
CROWLEY: It hasn't completely played out yet but the big mo, as George Bush, the dad used to say, has definitely been slammed down.
KING: The big mo, Candy Crowley, Dana Bash, two of the country's finest. Thank you both very much. And Mary Snow as well. Part of the best political team on television. The Internet communications between former Congressman Foley and a 16-year-old congressional page gained mass media attention following an ABC report last Thursday but this was not the first time they surfaced. Our Internet reporter Abbi Tatton is piecing together the digital trail -- Abbi.
ABBI TATTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, the e-mails were first posted on this anonymous site. "Stop Sex Predators."
On Sunday, September 24th, four days before the ABC report. Since that report, we found out that the e-mails were circulating. News organizations got a couple of them. Got them at the end of last year but didn't publish.
The liberal blogger John Aravosis said he got them a few months ago but could not confirm them and didn't put them on his site. And the liberal leaning "Washington Interest Group" got them in July, gave them to the FBI, and now they are on their Web site.
But as far as we can tell it's this mysterious blog that first posted the e-mails. So what do we know about it? Well, it certainly is not a well-established site. The first post ever appeared in July of this year. Only a few posts on it. Some of them gossiping mentioning Congressman Mark Foley himself.
We also know at the same time that the e-mails appeared on this site, there are a couple of mysterious comments on the widely read liberal blog "Daily Kos" alluding to the site, linking to it and also hinting at what Foley might be up to. At the time these were read online bloggers were skeptical about the authenticity of the e-mails.
Now that the story is out bloggers are asking questions about who was shopping the e-mails on line. Our e-mails to this site, John, were not returned.
KING: Our digital detective, Abbi Tatton, keeping track of all this online. Abbi, thank you very much.
And up next, in today's "Strategy Session" we will keep looking at the Foley scandal and what impact it might have on voters when they go to the ballot box just next month. I'll talk to J.C. Watts and Bill Press about whether Republicans are in danger, you might say in more danger of losing the Congress to the Democrats. Stay right here. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.
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KING: In today's "Strategy Session" how much will the fallout over the Mark Foley impact next month's midterm elections.
Joining me now at the table, CNN political analyst and former Republican congressman J.C. Watts along with radio talk show host Bill Press, former Democratic chairman of California and author of the widely sold book, "How the Republicans Sold Christmas."
BILL PRESS, TALK SHOW HOST: Thanks for the plug. KING: Any time. Any time.
Congressman Watts, I want to begin with you because you've been there. You've been in the leadership meetings. When something unexpected happens, it throws your game book, see you later, bye. Let's put up a map as we talk. Twenty two seats according to the CNN projections in play now and these are seats that are either held by Republicans or open seats we think are now either tossups or leaning toward the Democrat. Already difficult environment for the Republican Party. This makes it a lot worse, doesn't it?
J.C. WATTS, FORMER CONGRESSMAN: It does make it tough, John. And I think we had kind of gone Republicans and had kind of gone from awful to bad and now the last four days we're flirting with awful again.
And I think the speaker is doing the right thing today. I think he's been very aggressive with the press and trying to communicate with the American people to tell them actually happened. I think when you're in times like this, you can't over-communicate. And so he is having, I think, an internal P.R. problem with members, there are reports that he's calling members. He is also doing a lot of press today.
It's pretty abnormal to see Denny Hastert doing the kind of press that we've seen him doing today, but nevertheless, I think if -- it's the right thing to do to talk to the American people, let them know what happened.
KING: Take me back to your days as a state party chairman. You have an event like this and the question is who does it turn out, who does it keep home? What's your assessment?
PRESS: I think the first thing you got to do is you admit this was dead wrong and anybody who had anything to do with it on dead wrong and just clean house.
And I have heard some conservatives -- I heard Bay Buchanan yesterday say that. David Bossey (ph) yesterday and Michael Reagan yesterday say that there are others that are trying to cover up and I'm afraid that Denny Hastert is still involved in the cover-up.
What Mark Foley did was so repugnant but the fact five Republicans, three in the leadership, who knew about this five months ago, six months ago, maybe as much as a year ago and did nothing I think is worse than anything and for Hastert to go out there and I heard him today on Rush Limbaugh's show trying to change the subject and talk about Democrats are going to raise taxes.
He's got a problem that he's not dealing with which is this apparent cover-up on the part of Republican leadership.
KING: Let's talk about that. A strong term to say apparent cover-up. And let's be clear. The leadership knew about one e-mail exchange in which then Congressman Foley did ask a young man to send him a picture. That's a red flag to anyone who understands sexual crimes, the Internet, sex crimes, those kinds of things. That's a red flag.
They don't know about the more graphic sexually explicit messages we've learned about since then. But let's talk about that one thing, J.C. Watts. You're in the Republican leadership. Someone comes to you and we know the congressman asked for a photograph.
Now John Shimkus was head of the page board. He went with the clerk to Congressman Foley and they said, don't do it again. He didn't tell the Democrats, he didn't bring in any attorneys and he didn't say Mark even if I accept your answer you have to go see a counselor.
WATTS: John, I think the mistake in all of that -- and I don't believe it was a cover-up but I do believe the mistake in that was not bringing in a Democrat to make this a nonpartisan issue because now it looks very much like a partisan issue.
But I work with Denny Hastert. You know, if this was some of the guys in our leadership, I could kind of kind of buy off on Bill's theory to a degree but Denny Hastert, as you know, he is a regular order kind of speaker. He probably went to John Shimkus and said, John, we're hearing this, look into this, see what you find.
John comes back and says overfriendly e-mails. The speaker went on about his business. Everybody admits the speaker did not know about the graphic pictures and all that stuff until last Friday. He came out last Friday and said it's the first time I saw it. What's a cover-up about that?
KING: The default was to take Congressman Foley at his word. That was their default judgment. He said he wasn't doing anything wrong, he was overly friendly. They said stop it. Shouldn't the default have been, these are 16-year-old kids.
WATTS: John, let me tell you -- I think that I can buy that because let me tell you where I'm from, a 52-year-old single guy calling a 16 kid and e-mailing a 16-year-old young man and especially in times like today, it's not a good thing. But nevertheless, I still think it's a stretch and I think it's unfair to the speaker to say that it was a cover-up.
PRESS: If it was not a cover-up, I don't know what it was. They knew about this. Let me tell you something. Here is Dennis Hastert who is former teacher, who is a former coach. It should have sent red flags all over the place for a guy who knows 16 year olds.
We're not talking politics here, we're talking pedophilia. That's what we're talking about. And the fact that he saw this, saw evidence of it, asking for a photograph and remember something else. The page himself when he sent these to Congressman Rodney Alexander's staff he described them as "sick, sick, sick, sick."
That should have told Denny Hastert that this was more than just overly friendly e-mail.
WATTS: But also the parents ... PRESS: They did nothing. That was the cover-up.
WATTS: It's my understanding as well that the parents didn't want to take it any further.
PRESS: No excuse.
WATTS: No, John, but I'm saying we have to respect their rights as well.
KING: I don't want to interrupt anyone in mid sentence because it's a very serious issue.
WATTS: That's right. It is.
KING: Both the politics of it and the personal investigation of it. We'll discuss more of this in the days and weeks ahead. We're out of time here for today. J.C. Watts, Bill Press, thank you very much.
And coming up right here, unwanted campaign dollars. Republican lawmakers find there is a financial cost to the scandal surrounding former Congressman Foley. And next hour, I'll talk to a former congressional colleague of Mark Foley. What he thinks about the scandal now enveloping Capitol Hill.
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KING: More fallout from the Mark Foley instant message scandal on our political radar. At least seven Republican House incumbents confirm to CNN they are returning or will donate campaign donations they received from Foley's leadership political action committee, donate them to charity.
Ohio's Deborah Pryce (ph) received and is returning the biggest donation of $5,000. Senator Hillary Clinton is helping out a would be Democratic colleague in Virginia. She campaigned today for Senate candidate James Webb, calling him an independent voice to stand up to President Bush's Iraq policies.
Senator Clinton brushed aside the controversy over Webb's past comments opposing women in combat. The latest poll shows Webb tied with Republican incumbent George Allen. Senator Allen took a dramatic step last night, paying for two minutes of air time on TV stations across Virginia just before prime time. Allen's campaign says it wanted to shift attention away from questions about Allen's racial views to a more positive message.
Up next, does Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist thinks Dennis Hastert should resign over the Foley scandal? I'll ask him next hour.
And a banner day for Wall Street. The Dow sets one record and nearly breaks another. We will tell you why investors may be celebrating tonight.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KING: Right to our Zain Verjee for new developments on a tragic story you might remember from last year's hurricane season -- Zain.
VERJEE: John, the Associated Press is reporting that Global Limo Inc., the company that owned a bus that exploded during the Hurricane Rita evacuation has been found guilty of conspiring to falsify logs and poorly maintaining its fleet. The Associated Press also says that Global Limo was found guilty of failing to require drivers to fill out the inspection forms. You'll remember during the evacuation during Hurricane Rita, the bus exploded killing 23 elderly nursing home residents on. We'll bring you more information when we have it, John.
Let's take a look at some of the other news of the day.
It was a record day on Wall Street. Early tallies show the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed with its highest level ever at 11727. Now that breaks the former record of 11722 set in January 2000. Now analysts credit falling oil prices and a little earlier today, the Dow surged past its all-time trading high of 11750. It then retreated slightly.
The debate over immigration reached the Supreme Court today as the new term's first day of oral arguments got under way. The court heard from attorneys about whether immigrants convicted of state felonies can be deported if the same crime is a misdemeanor under federal law. A ruling is expected later this year.
And you may have to wait a little longer to board Airbus' flagship super jumbo jet. Airbus' parent company says the deliver of the A380 will be delayed at least until middle of the next year. Several airlines reportedly are considering canceling billions of dollars in orders because of this latest delay. The aircraft is nearly two years behind schedule -- John.
KING: Zain Verjee. Zain, thank you very much.
Still to come, will the Mark Foley scandal, will it cost Republicans control of Congress? Jack Cafferty wants to know what you think. He'll be back with "The Cafferty File." Stay with us.
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KING: And Jack Cafferty is back now with the "Cafferty File." Jack?
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: John, the question this hour is, "What effect will the Foley scandal have on Republican candidates -- I got a lot, a lot of mail.
Rod in Eugene, Oregon, "Considering Foley's sexuality was one of the worst-kept secrets in Washington and considering the fact that Republicans looked the other way and let him auction himself off to the pages, the entire House leadership should resign." I guess family values go out the window once you're elected.
Dave in Shell Beach, California. "I hope it has a profoundly negative effect on these dirt bags." He used a different word. We cleaned it up a little. "My fear is that since Bush can somehow still muster a 40 percent approval rating when he warrants a zero that die hard right wing loonies will simply turn a blind eye and vote for the party candidate, regardless. It boggles the mind but at this point it wouldn't surprise me. I've never wanted to be more wrong."
Chad in Bellingham, Washington. "Probably not a whole lot, but you can never predict the action of voters. Everyone at CNN was speculating about the October surprise a week ago, I suspect this is it."
Leann in Hayward, California. "What's next, the Republicans are imploding on a daily basis. Talk about your divine retribution."
Ruth in Honolulu writes, "Iraq, Abramoff and Foley will all contribute to the disintegration of the Bush Republican dominance and the new Democratic Congress will impeach Bush."
Al in Jacksonville, Florida writes, "Jack, when will you ever learn? This will have no effect whatsoever. The Republican fear machine will roll out a new al Qaeda tape or another British terror cell or we'll have to upgrade to code orange or mauve or whatever new color they're using these days. Anything to keep the American sheep -- oops, I mean people, voting red. Besides, why can't you just realize that it's really all Bill Clinton's fault?"
And H.M. in Clermont, Florida: "I guess GOP now means grope our pages" -- John.
KING: Thank you very much, Jack.
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