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House Page Scandal Has Democrats On Attack; Donald Rumsfeld Lays Out Five-Year Assessment Of Afghanistan War; Despite U.N. Warning North Korea May Conduct Nuclear Test; U.S. Military Hunts Would-Be Killers In Baghdad; Foley Could Face Prosecution in Florida; Has Rehab Become Refuge For Famous Names In Trouble?

Aired October 07, 2006 - 13:59   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: "Now in the News," a former congressional page linked to the Mark Foley scandal is likely to talk to federal investigators next week. Foley quit Congress last week after reports of lurid e-mails he allegedly sent to former pages.
An all-clear today for most of the thousands of people in North Carolina who fled from a chemical fire. Firefighters have now gotten control of the blaze that broke out Thursday at a hazardous materials plant in Apex. About 16,000 people had to leave their homes.

A new food scare. An Iowa company is recalling 5,000 pounds of ground beef. It may be contaminated with the same strain of E. coli found in tainted spinach.

An aide to White House political guru Karl Rove has resigned because of her ties to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff. A White House spokesman says Susan Ralston did not want to be a distraction in the White House. Ralston was an administrative assistant to Abramoff before taking a similar job in Rove's office.

Baseball fans are mourning the death of a legend, Buck O'Neil. The first baseman and manager with the Kansas City Monarchs has died at the age of 94. That team, one of the story franchises of the Negro League. Just this summer, O'Neil battled in a minor league all-star contest, becoming the oldest man ever to appear in a professional game.

Welcome to the CNN NEWSROOM.

I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

Ahead this hour, the Mark Foley scandal. Could he go to jail or will his trip to rehab get him off the hook?

Also, the world waits to see if North Korea will launch a nuclear test this weekend.

And what's the best headset for your cool high-tech gear? We'll show you some of the options.

But first to our top story.

New players and political fallout this hour in the drama surrounding former congressman Mark Foley. A former page connected to the e-mail scandal could be telling his story to federal investigators as early as next week. Twenty-one-year-old Jordan Edmund has hired big-time Oklahoma lawyer Stephen Jones. Jones told CNN his client never had physical contact with Foley and warned against jumping to any conclusions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN JONES, ATTORNEY FOR FORMER PAGE: There's two or three statutes that might be applicable. But I don't know whether there's evidence of a crime yet that would justify prosecution. I think it's awfully early to draw those kinds of conclusions. I think it's better to trust the process.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: But with the midterm elections exactly one month from today, politicians can't afford to wait. The House page scandal has Democrats on the attack and some Republican candidates rushing for cover.

Our congressional correspondent, Dana Bash, has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): New York Congressman Tom Reynolds is in charge of getting Republicans elected to the House. In a tough year for Republicans, holding onto his own seat in Buffalo is a challenge. Now, he is a central player in the Mark Foley drama and he could lose.

REP. TOM REYNOLDS (R), NEW YORK: When I found out about this whole instance for the first time, in the spring of '06, I reported it to my supervisor, like anyone would in an office circumstance. I took it to the Speaker of the House.

BASH: Democrats say their internal polling shows Reynolds eight points behind his opponent.

Dozens of Republicans were already at risk of losing in November and while senior Republican officials hope the worst of the Foley scandal is now over, most admit there is damage.

VIN WEBER, REPUBLICAN CONSULTANT: I would say the panic is out of people's voices, but a deep-seated concern remains. I mean those members that have been polling regularly and were in that season where members of Congress are doing regular tracking polls have found a dip in Republican ratings across-the-board.

BASH: On the campaign trail, GOP candidates are seeking cover. Tom Kean, Jr., a Republican running for Senate in New Jersey, announced Hastert should resign as speaker.

TOM KEAN, JR. (R), SENATE CANDIDATE: Speaker Hastert is the head of the institution and it's happened on his watch. I think there should be an independent investigation by outsiders. BASH: GOP strategists say they are very concerned about the impact Foley will have in some of Indiana's conservative and highly competitive races. Republican Chris Chocola was already getting pounded for being part of an unpopular GOP Congress. He was one of the first to release a statement saying: "If leadership acted inappropriately, they will lose my support."

In Indiana's 9th District, Mike Sodrel's Democratic opponent just started airing this ad, raising questions about where his campaign money is coming from.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And $77,000 from the House leadership, who knew about but did nothing to stop sexual predator Congressman Foley.

BASH: Most Republican strategists say it's too early to know if the scandal will really help Democrats pick up the 15 seats needed to seize control of the House. But they also say this...

WEBER: We're close to the election and it's an election in which the Republicans have had a stiff wind in their face all along, so it's not good.

BASH (on camera): Some Republicans are making the case this might not have a major impact. GOP pollster David Winston says his new data shows virtually no nationwide change in how Americans intend to vote. But Republicans do worry that if conservatives stay home in just a few tight races over this on election day, it could help Democrats win the House.

Dana Bash, CNN, Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: More developments now in the political fallout from this scandal.

Sumi Das is in Washington with that -- Sumi.

SUMI DAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, years, not months, that's how long one current congressional staff member says Dennis Hastert's office knew about Foley's misconduct. According to an article in today's "Washington Post," that staff member says that Hastert's chief of staff, Scott Palmer, met with Mark Foley at the Capitol building to discuss complaints about Foley's behavior, and that that meeting took place long before November, 2005.

We do have a response from a spokesperson from Hastert's office. Ron Bonjean says, "The Standards Committee is investigating this matter and we are confident in its ability to determine the real facts."

Now, we have exactly one month to go before midterm elections. Those are taking place on November 7th. And in the weeks leading up to the elections, Democrats and their supporters are using the Foley issue to take to their advantage in radio and television ads. One such ad is being put out by the Labor Union, and it questions Tom Reynolds' actions and whether he should have done more after learning about complaints regarding Foley. Now Tom Reynolds is responding. And his tone is very apologetic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. TOM REYNOLDS (R), NEW YORK: I'm Tom Reynolds and I approved this message.

This spring I was told about odd but not explicit e-mails from Mark Foley. Even though I never saw the e-mails, I reported what I had been told.

I have since learned newspapers and the FBI had these e-mails for months and Foley lied about them. Later, worse e-mails were revealed. So I forced him to resign.

I'm disappointed I didn't catch his lies before. For that, I'm sorry.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DAS: And again, that ad just in to CNN. A direct response from Tom Reynolds to an ad that questions his actions in the wake of the Mark Foley scandal.

Now, a new poll suggests that Reynolds is trailing his Democratic challenger. His seat is one of several that's in play in this Foley fallout.

WHITFIELD: Well, Sumi, it will be interesting to see whether there are going to be similar ads coming out from other candidates with just a month now to go before Election Day.

Sumi Das...

DAS: I don't think that's the last one, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: ... thanks so much.

Well, for the latest on the Foley story and other political news, log on to CNN's "Political Ticker" at CNN.com/ticker.

Cuban leader Fidel Castro is reported to be dying of cancer. That according to TIME.com. U.S. intelligence sources tell the Web site Castro is unlikely to return to power.

Earlier in the NEWSROOM we spoke on the phone with TIME.com's Washington correspondent, Tim Burger.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIM BURGER, TIME.COM: What's going on now is that U.S. government has received more credible and more detailed reports than in the past about the Cuban dictator's health. And you put that together obviously with something you don't need intelligence reports to understand, which is that he's been sidelined and out of public view since the summer, and they say he won't even be out for a another couple of months.

So obviously something grave is going on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: That's Tim Burger of TIME.com.

Meantime, in the war on terror, an upbeat report from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. In today's "Washington Post," Rumsfeld laid out his five-year assessment of the war in Afghanistan. He also put in an appearance with the Bush family at a special event in Virginia.

Our White House correspondent, Elaine Quijano, joins us live now from the White House with more on those fronts -- Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon to you, Fredricka.

That's right, it was exactly five years ago today that President Bush made that sobering announcement at the start of Operation Enduring Freedom, ordering U.S. military strikes against al Qaeda and Taliban targets in Afghanistan. But the president today made no mention of that at an event in Newport News, Virginia, as he joined family members in christening a new carrier named after his father, George H. W. Bush.

Now, the president did acknowledge the U.S. troops serving in Afghanistan. Right now there are about 21,000.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who attended that ceremony, actually wrote an op-ed, as you noted, in "The Washington Post." He acknowledged challenges, but also said there are promising indicators.

He said, "Building a new nation is never a straight, steady climb upward. Today can sometimes can look worse than yesterday -- or even two months ago. What matters is the overall trajectory, where do things stand today when compared to what they were five years ago? In Afghanistan, the trajectory is a hopeful and promising one."

Now, Rumsfeld cites progress in building up the Afghan national army, the economy and the school system, though he does acknowledge that an increase in poppy production could be a destabilizing factor. He says that rising violence in southern Afghanistan is certainly very real, but he says that success will require a strong Afghan government.

Sobering news today, though, Fredricka. As the defense secretary's op-ed was making news today, from Afghanistan news that two journalists from Germany were actually killed in the northern part of that country, killed by gunfire. So even as Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld outlining what he sees as, again, promising indicators, certainly signs that there are challenges that lie ahead -- Fredricka. WHITFIELD: Elaine Quijano at the White House.

Thank you so much.

Well, will this be the weekend North Korea conducts a nuclear test? Despite a U.N. warning, there's no sign that Kim Jong-il will back down.

CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr has a report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): North Korea's leader, Kim Jong-il, happily waved to his military commanders as world pressure mounts for him to cancel plans to conduct his country's first nuclear test.

Pyongyang's announcement has thrown diplomatic efforts at the United Nations into a frenzy. If there is a nuclear detention, the world changes.

JOSEPH CIRINCIONE, CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS: This immediately affects the calculations of South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, all of whom might decide that they need to have their own independent nuclear arsenals, as well. If North Korea gets away with this, Iran would be encouraged to go forward.

STARR: Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill sounded ominous this week, saying: "North Korea can have a future or it can have these weapons. It cannot have both."

But the Bush administration is avoiding talk of a preemptive strike or a military response afterward.

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: That's -- it's a decision for the country. It's a decision for presidents.

STARR: There is plenty of U.S. firepower in the region -- 28,000 troops in South Korea and some 20 warships based out of Japan. Half a dozen B-52 bombers are in Guam.

But what is the target?

U.S. intelligence shows North Korea is preparing several sites for a potential test. But one intelligence analyst told CNN it's a game of nuclear Three Card Monte -- trying to force the CIA to guess which hole in the ground is the right one.

The first signs of a nuclear detonation will come from more than 100 underground monitoring stations around the world. Spy planes such as this nuclear sniffer are already flying overhead and satellites are trained on the region 24-7.

(on camera): But will the intelligence community be able to quickly tell what North Korea has done after a missile test?

Intelligence analysts tell CNN that little useful information was ever collected after North Korea's July missile test.

Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: An all-clear today for most of the thousands people in North Carolina who fled from a chemical fire. Firefighters have now gotten control of that blaze that broke out Thursday at a hazardous material plant in Apex. At least 16,000 people had to leave their homes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR KEITH WEATHERLY, APEX, NORTH CAROLINA: Overnight, the hazmat firefighters did extinguish the fire. And that was -- has -- we've always stated one of the first prerequisites for allowing reentry of our citizens. That has been confirmed by our fire chief, and we are ready to start now a reentry of our citizens into the areas previously evacuated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The plant stored a number of chemicals, including paint, household cleaners and detergents.

U.S. troops say it's like chasing ghosts. Follow along as they stalk an enemy who is very good at staying invisible.

Mark Foley is just the latest person caught up in a public scandal to seek refuge at a rehab. Our legal team will debate this strategy straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

And headphones going high tech to get to most out of your MP3 player, perhaps? Listen up on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Here's a look at some of the most popular stories on CNN.com.

Is North Korea marching toward a nuclear test? Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr's report is getting lots of hit.

And another top pick, a Marine's frank description of life in Iraq. The very revealing letters were initially sent to a small group of friends and family.

And many of you are also clicking on a report from Pennsylvania, how the Amish community is coping after this week's school shootings.

You can see all those reports and a lot more at CNN.com.

In Iraq, more than a dozen deaths are reported across the country today. The deadliest attack, a suicide bombing in Tal Afar in northern Iraq. The bomb exploded at an Iraqi army checkpoint, killing at least 14 people. In Baghdad, 15 bodies were found. All of them had bullet wounds and most showed signs of torture.

They can hear them, they just can't always see them -- U.S. troops tracking would-be killers through the streets of Baghdad.

CNN's Arwa Damon has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The troops call it chasing the ghosts of small arms fire. They used to laugh at these ghosts and their poorly aimed potshots. Now they take them very seriously.

Lieutenant Daniel Quinn and his men move with caution, still trying to engage the people. But these streets are both friendly and deadly. One minute a child is waving. The next --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got two rounds, same directions we heard that one round from.

DAMON: The ghosts fire shots, then fade away.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is not way to ID where it came from.

DAMON: The men move through the dusty trash-filled back alleys, hunting for clues, eyes scanning roof tops. Around them, life on the street seems to continue as normal. Some of the ghosts are just taking pot shots. Others, well-trained snipers, who is lay deadly traps. Another call, another ghost. Quinn's platoon responds to another unit's call for backup, just a short distance from the other incident.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shots, one wounded in action. They're still engaged.

DAMON: But by the time they arrive on site, the ghosts have slipped away.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was coming from this house.

DAMON: But no weapons were found in there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not yet. DAMON: This clearly nervous man is the only person in the house.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sound, here, yes.

DAMON: Upstairs, the men look for clues and possible escape routes.

(on camera): The soldier was shot on that street corner, took a bullet through the arm, was immediately medevaced. U.S. forces then searched this home and found shell casings littering the rooftop.

(voice-over): The Iraqi man is detained for questioning and gun powder tests.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If it was us up here, we would shoot, and then scurry down a couple roof tops before going down. And predetermine if one of these doors opens to get out.

DAMON: It seems the ghost shooter is long gone.

The Army says the wounded shoulder will recover. But the soldiers say every time they hit the streets, they roll the dice. And with each step, the stakes seem to go higher.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And tomorrow, insight from two retired generals. Their strategy on what should be done in Iraq. That's starting at 7:00 a.m. Eastern, with analysis throughout the day, right here on CNN.

Could former congressman Mark Foley face legal sanctions for his alleged behavior toward Capitol Hill pages? Our legal team takes up the case.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Well, talk about an uphill battle. That's what Florida state representative Joe Negron faces in his unexpected bid for Mark Foley's congressional seat on Capitol Hill. After Foley resigned over the congressional page sex scandal Negron was picked to run in his place. His opponent is Democrat Tim Mahoney.

CNN's Rusty Dornin is on the campaign trail with Negron in West Palm Beach. She joins us by phone.

And so one of the big challenges, Rusty, is while Mark Foley's name remains on the ballot, when people do cast their ballot it will be for the Republican, Negron. But do most voters understand that?

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, if they don't, the Republicans are going to be putting up signs in the polling places that tell voters that, that votes for Mark Foley will actually be for Joe Negron. Of course the Democrats protested, but the local state division of elections decided that that would be all right.

But, of course, Joe Negron right now, he doesn't have a Web site. He doesn't have any ads. He doesn't even have any signs up.

We went to the Republican headquarters in Port St. Lucie, which is about an hour north of West Palm Beach, and every other Republican candidate's sign is up except for Joe Negron's. He doesn't see it as a problem. He thinks by Monday or Tuesday they will have signs up.

Now, this is a man who is a state representative currently. And he also ran for attorney general earlier this year. So he already had a war chest, Fredricka, of about $600,000. So he can get up and running rather quickly.

WHITFIELD: But at the same time, make no mistake, it's been said that Tim Mahoney has already, you know, won quite a bit of support, or at least the polls are showing some sort of upsurge in his popularity as a result.

DORNIN: Well, it's interesting, because the only poll that's been done so far was done last weekend before Joe Negron was nominated. And Mahoney was really only three percentage points above an unnamed candidate.

So this has traditionally been a Republican district. And so, so far, it's going to be interesting to see if Mahoney can gain more ground or if Negron is going to begin catching up very quickly.

WHITFIELD: And so what is Mr. Negron's schedule look like over the next four weeks? He's really got to be visible all the time.

DORNIN: It's -- they're flying sort of, I must say, a little bit by the seat of their pants, of course, because they're getting up so quickly. It's -- from day to day, things are changing. But as I said, he does have some name recognition in the area because he's already a state representative.

So -- but he's hitting all the local senior citizens homes and shopping centers and, you know, things like that. Those are, of course, on his schedule this week.

Tim Mahoney, though, this weekend -- it was interesting. He ended up going to Oklahoma to see his daughter. And so he's not even campaigning this weekend.

WHITFIELD: Oh, interesting.

All right. Rusty Dornin thanks so much for taking this stop and the moment to give us a call while you were traveling with Mr. Negron there.

Well, ahead, in "Legal Briefs," is Mark Foley likely to face criminal charges for his alleged actions involving teenage pages?

And we've seen it happen so often, big name gets in trouble, big name goes to rehab. So how effective is that strategy in the world of public opinion?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Here's what's happening right now in the news. A former congressional page expects to be interviewed by federal agents next week in the Mark Foley case. Twenty-one year-old Jordan Edmund reportedly received sexually explicit e-mail from the former congressman.

A new food scare, an Iowa company is recalling 5,000 pounds of ground beef. It may be contaminated with the same strain of e. coli recently found in tainted spinach. Thousands of evacuated residents are turning to their homes in Apex, North Carolina. They left after a chemical fire broke out Thursday night at a plant that handles hazardous materials. The fire was put out early today.

A proud day for former President George Bush. He looked on as his daughter Doro christened a new carrier named in his honor, the USS George H.W. Bush. Also looking on, former President Bush's son, the current President Bush. How that for confusing?

Well, backing up to the Foley scandal. It involves a lot of names and threatens, potentially, a lot of careers from top to bottom.

Elaine Quijano is at the White House.

QUIJANO: Hello to you Fredricka.

We're just getting in. You'll have to bear with me here.

A poll out by "Newsweek", and this is -- we should always mention this is just one poll, but certainly one that attempts to take the pulse of Americans after the news after this Foley scandal has developed.

First off, it talks about the Americans feeling, as far as House Speaker Dennis Hastert, more than half of Americans, 52 percent, according to this "Newsweek" poll, including 29 percent of Republicans, believe that Dennis Hastert was aware that Congressman Mark Foley's inappropriate messages -- was aware of those messages and tried to cover it up. Only 24 percent say that he did not. Again, this is just one poll. The "Newsweek", poll, though, coming out right now.

The numbers are not so good either for President Bush. According to this poll by "Newsweek", his approval rating has now fallen to 33 percent, a record low for this particular "Newsweek" poll. A three- point drop from the August 24th to 25th poll.

So certainly bad news there. And all of this, of course, relevant because we are just a month away, Fredricka, as you know, from the Congressional midterm elections. Both parties vying to keep control or take control of Congress.

A majority of Americans though, 53 percent, that they would like to see Democrats take control of Congress in this year's elections. Only 35 percent saying that they would like the Republicans to keep control. Just a little bit more information on this survey, it was taken over two days, October 5th and 6th of this week, just a couple of days ago. The margin of error, plus or minus four percentage points.

But, Fredricka, these numbers certainly not encouraging, particularly for this White House. President Bush is just off of a West Coast campaign swing in which he tried to draw sharp distinctions between Republicans and Democrats over issues mostly centering around national security, but also taxes as well. The president, though, effectively drowned out by news of the Foley scandal and the continuing political fallout of that scandal, as well as continuing questions about the administration's handling of Iraq.

Of course, at the same time, Bob Woodward's new book, "State of Denial" is out, raising questions about how, in fact, the administration conducted the Iraq war. So all of that, certainly not welcome news as the administration takes a look at these numbers. We always hear the president say that he doesn't govern by poll numbers. But certainly this will be affecting their message at the very least -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD:: Elaine Quijano, thanks so much.

Well, everyone from President Bush to the man on the street has criticized former Congressman Mark Foley for allegedly sending suggestive e-mails to teenage pages. But even though such actions are unethical, are they also criminal? Just correspondent Kelli Arena looks at that very question.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The e-mails and instant messages sent by former Congressman Mark Foley may be disgusting but not necessarily illegal.

MARK RASCH, FMR. CYBER CRIMINAL PROSECUTOR: You know, as a general rule, we prosecute these kind of cases when there's real danger to the child. Mere speech probably doesn't rise to that level.

ARENA: Government sources say prosecutors are looking at the evidence, but still have not launched a full criminal investigation.

ALBERTO GONZALES, UNITED STATED ATTORNEY GENERAL: Let's get the facts before we make, you know, an announcement about possible crimes. That will be great.

ARENA: The law is by no means clear. First, it's not a federal crime to have sexually explicit conversations with children over the Internet. That's because the Supreme Court ruled in 2003 that it's free speech, protected by the Constitution.

To prove a crime, investigators would need more than just talk. They'd have to uncover evidence that Foley actually tried to get a minor to meet him for sex.

RASCH: You have to engage in some kind of an affirmative act towards meeting him, buying a plane ticket, arranging for a place to meet, something like that. And it has to be explicit.

ARENA: According to government sources, at least one former congressional page alleges Foley discussed the possibility of getting together to engage in a sexual act. We do not know whether he has the documentation to back up that claim.

But as shocking as that sounds, even that is an illegal slam dunk. The age of consent in D.C. is 16, and all of the pages in question were at least that old. If any of the pages were not in D.C. at the time of the e-mail exchanges, then state laws may apply, and in some places, the age of consent is higher.

Investigators continue to interview former pages and others who knew Foley, including his former chief of staff, Kirk Fordham.

TIMOTHY HEAPHY, ATTORNEY FOR KIRK FORDHAM: He'll continue to be completely forthcoming. But because there's an ongoing investigation, he can't comment any further.

ARENA: And discussions continue regarding access to Foley's computer and other files in his Capitol Hill office.

(on camera): But even that isn't straight forward. Now that Foley is no longer a member of Congress, one of the issues is who owns that computer and who can give consent for a search.

Kelli Arena, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD:: Interesting stuff. Let's see what our legal experts have to say about this. Avery Friedman is a civil rights attorney and law professor. Good to see you.

AVERY FRIEDMAN: Hi Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And Richard Herman is New York criminal defense attorney. Good to see you as well, Richard.

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Good afternoon, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Richard, let me begin with you.

So, is that right, in that piece? So, unless Foley is actually initiated a meeting or actually met with any of these young pages, no crime may have taken place?

HERMAN: Well, Fred, the federal statute would certainly indicate that he would have had to have engaged in one overt act, either meeting with one of these pages, having pictures sent over the Internet, something -- or physical touching. That would do it. That would be a slam dunk on the federal statute.

But the Florida state statute, the age of consent is 18. And the Florida state statute may not require an overt act. And I think that's where, if there's going to be criminal charges, I think from the state of Florida, they're going to be levied from that state. But there are a whole host of jurisdictional issues, whether the e-mail was sent from Florida or D.C., where the recipients of the e-mails were. So there are a lot of complex issues, jurisdictional and constitutional in this case.

WHITFIELD: Wow, that's a lot of stuff. So we're talking about an investigation that reaches weeks, months, perhaps, in order to determine whether any of these factors are involved.

HERMAN: Absolutely. Absolutely, Fred.

WHITFIELD:: All right.

Avery, how do you see it? Do you see that there are any glaring crimes that may have been committed here, just by simply having this kind of inappropriate action over the Internet with a minor?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Well, Kelli Arena's package actually nailed the key legal issue from a constitutional perspective, and that is, that in 2003, this bantering, almost voyeuristic bantering is really speech and nothing more.

However, there are actually several Florida statutes that apply, one that deals with seduction and incitement of -- if you're over 24 and the individual on the other line is under 18, that can result in a felony, and we're dealing with up to 30 years.

There's another statute that also deals with sending harmful material, and that's a felony. And a person convicted is looking up to five years. But I think the important thing to mention right now is that we're just at the beginning.

WHITFIELD: Wow.

FRIEDMAN: What happens this coming week is going to be, number one, we're going to have an interview with law enforcement ...

WHITFIELD: Yes.

FRIEDMAN: ...with the first page. Secondly, the battle over who owns the computers, I don't think is a battle. I think those were computers that were in Congress. Whether Foley resigned or not I don't think has anything to do with it. They were computers in the House and I think they've been seized and I think it's going to present additional evidence on whether or not we're going to exfoliate this guy.

WHITFIELD: Oh, you kill me. All right, so how much does it matter as to whether any of the pages or their families want or want not to pursue this? Because we already know -- earlier reports indicated that the 16-year-old at the time, the family was told about some inappropriate conversations, but the family didn't want to pursue anything.

HERMAN: Well, Fred, you're going to need -- some of these pages are going to have to step up and testify and produce their computers and have to verify the authenticity of the correspondence with Foley. So if these pages do not participate in that, it's not going to happen.

But there are -- again, there are a whole -- there are statute of limitations issues here. There are a lot of problems but, clearly, this was absolutely vintage grooming behavior by this guy. And as this investigation goes on and on, put your seat belts on because like Avery said, it's far from over.

FRIEDMAN: Explain what grooming is, Richard. I mean, yes, you're right, but a lot of people don't know what that is.

HERMAN: Well, it's basically teasing, flirtatious behavior by an adult against a youngster or someone underage, trying to excite them sexually. That's what it is. And when it goes on and on, it builds confidence in the person doing it. Foley's looking to go after these kids to build confidence in them and then ultimately set up the event. This happens all the time.

WHITFIELD: OK, and then after all that interaction, fast forward to last week. Mark Foley checks himself into rehab after resigning from Congress. His attorney comes out and says he's dealing with a whole host of personal problems from being abused as a young person to being gay to needing some sort of help with his alcoholism. We're going to talk about all that coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Jim Buckmaster got his job at Craigslist when he posted his resume on the Web site. Hired as lead programmer, he went on to become the company's CEO in 2000.

JIM BUCKMASTER, CEO, CRAIGSLIST INC.: The most important thing for a leader or CEO is that they sincerely believe in what they're doing. They believe in it 100 percent and they'll give their all. And that will rub off on people around them.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With more than 10 million hits to the Web site each month, Buckmaster believes the community of Craigslist comes first.

BUCKMASTER: It's pretty simple. It's to do the best we can by our users.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: With his career wrecked by scandal, Mark Foley is taking a familiar road to recovery, having entered a treatment center for alcoholism. But has rehab become a refuge for famous names in trouble?

Here's CNN's Ted Rowlands.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As Mark Foley rides out the storm in rehab, a storm he created by allegedly sending sexual messages to teenage boys, his lawyer is blaming alcohol for the former congressman's behavior.

ROTH: He is absolutely, positively not a pedophile.

ROWLANDS: Over the years, it's been a familiar drill. When the going gets tough, politicians and celebrities go to rehab. Just this year, Ohio Congressman Bob Ney checked into rehab for alcoholism after admitting he accepted inappropriate gifts and Rhode Island Congressman Patrick Kennedy retreated to a clinic after crashing his car on Capitol Hill.

REP. PATRICK KENNEDY (D), RHODE ISLAND: That's not even excuse for what happened Wednesday evening. But it is a reality of fighting a chronic condition for which I'm taking full responsibility.

ROWLANDS: Mel Gibson blamed the booze after his drunken anti- Semitic tirade and checked in for treatment as did TV personality Pat O'Brien, who went into rehab after his sexual phone messages were leaked to the media.

HARVEY LEVIN, MANAGING EDITOR, TMZ.COM: What rehab does is it creates the safe haven for the celebrity. He basically has this kind of, this past to be able to do what he needs to do to for four or six or eight weeks and hopefully, for him there will be another scandal and people will be off his case.

ROWLANDS: Politicians going to rehab after getting in trouble is nothing new. More than 10 years ago, Oregon Senator Bob Packwood apologized for his behavior and checked into rehab after more than a dozen women accused him of sexual harassment.

You can even go back more than 25 years to Arkansas Congressman Wilbur Mills.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What was it like when you first had to admit to yourself that you were an alcoholic?

WILBUR MILLS, FMR. U.S. CONGRESSMAN: Oh, it was devastating. I had become the lowest thing that God ever let live.

ROWLANDS: Mills ran into trouble after he was caught with this exotic dancer, Fanny Fox, that caused an uproar on Capitol Hill. Mills checked himself in for treatment and retired two years later.

While skeptics may think that treatment is a copout, experts say alcohol and drugs can truly cause some people to do outrageous things.

DR. DREW PINSKY, ADDICTION SPECIALIST: Things they do when they're intoxicated, when they're in their disease, are shameful. They feel awful about it up. When they sober up, they look at it and can't believe they've done some of those things.

DAVID ROTH, MARK FOLEY'S ATTORNEY: Mark has been admitted into an alcoholism, substance abuse and mental health facility as an in- patient and we anticipate that he will be there a minimum of 30 days and possibly, if not probably, longer.

ROWLANDS (on camera): Medical experts say rehab should last as long as it takes for somebody to start responding to treatment. But when it comes to politicians, or celebrities in trouble, some people think that rehab lasts as long as it takes for a story to go away.

Ted Rowlands, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And so our legal guys have not gone away. Here they are again, Avery Friedman and Richard Herman, joining us to talk more about this.

So, Avery, what's the real objective here? Aside from the fact that some who really have a problem are seeking to get help by going into rehab, but is the bottom line really already trying to build the defense just in case there is an appearance in court?

FRIEDMAN: Well, of course. I mean, this is -- for politicians, this is what law enforcement refers to as the Marion Barry syndrome.

WHITFIELD: Oh, no.

FRIEDMAN: As soon as you catch them, they either get religion or they go into rehab. And, you know what? Pardon my cynicism, but for a guy that wrote the exploited children law -- he's a smart guy. And he knows what he's doing. He knew how far to go. So I'm gay, I'm drunk, I'm going to go into rehab and everything is going to be just fine.

WHITFIELD: So Richard is this how you see it, kind of tainting the potential jury pool if it comes to that?

HERMAN: Fred, this is not going to be a defense for him. If anything, it'll be used in mitigation if charges are brought against him. But, Avery hit it. He was a co-chair of the Congressional Missing and Exploited Children's Caucus.

His lawyer in that meeting -- you know, less is always better, Fred -- in that press conference the other day, his lawyer said, when he wrote these e-mails, he was drunk, he was intoxicated and he was suffering from mental illness. And during this last week, we saw that some of those e-mails took place when he was on the very floor of Congress voting. Can you imagine this Congressman...

FRIEDMAN: Maybe he was drunk. He might have been drunk on the floor of Congress. I don't know.

HERMAN: ... mentally ill, drunk, voting for the welfare of the United States of America. It's incredible.

Whitfield: And so, what do we say about the other allegations, you know, according to his attorney, that perhaps he was molested by a clergyman when he was a young person. I mean, that's a pretty serious charge to play around with if you don't really mean it and if you can't stay by it.

FRIEDMAN: Well, in all fairness, I think, you know, this is going to be a factor. I mean, it's very difficult to explain this behavior. And I'm presuming that that representation about abuse is something -- in fact, what's interesting is the diocese in Palm Beach has asked the former congressman to come forward and identify who the abusers were. So I don't think that should be discounted. I think it's a serious matter.

And again, as we said in segment one, we have so far to go, Fredricka, in learning what the facts are here. So far to go.

WHITFIELD:: Richard?

HERMAN: Right. His lawyer said, I don't want to make excuses, except that my client is gay, he's suffering from mental illness and he's an alcoholic. Other than that, I mean, it's preposterous. It's only going to benefit him in sentencing if criminal charges are brought, it will not be a defense to any prosecution against him.

WHITFIELD:: All right. Richard Herman, Avery Friedman, thanks so much. And Avery you get the kudos for, you know, coining the phrase of the day. Exfoliate.

FRIEDMAN: I'll take it.

WHITFIELD: I'm not going to forget that one. All right gentlemen...

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD:: What's that?

HERMAN: Fred, I got censored on mine. I just want to let you know. I had a good one.

WHITFIELD: I know. OK. OK. We had to beep it?

HERMAN: Yes.

WHITFIELD: All right. Good to see you guys.

FRIEDMAN: Nice to see you. Take care.

HERMAN: Take care.

WHITFIELD:: Well, it doesn't matter if you have the greatest MP3 player around. If you can't hear what's being played, what difference does it make?

Straight ahead, tips for getting the most out of your music.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Well, now our technophile. CNN technology correspondent Daniel Sieberg will bend your ear with sound advice about headphones.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: If you're looking to buy a new pair of headphones, well, listen up because we've got a wide array of choices here to improve your sound quality and experience. And joining us is Brian Cooley, editor at large with CNET to talk about some of them.

Brian, the first here have a real iPod look to them.

BRIAN COOLEY, CNET EDITOR AT LARGE: Yes. They are both white ear buds. The first ones here are from Shure, a broadcast technology company, so they know good sound. The Shure E4Cs I have here are, they will be the best upgrade you've ever made to a portable. They sound unbelievable. Of course, they may cost more than your iPod. They cost $300. There are less expensive models.

SIEBERG: All right. Now about what with the Sony ones here. There's a little box in between, is this doing more with them?

COOLEY: These are white ear buds but they have this little gadget in the middle that is what does the noise cancellation technology. So these are white earbuds that cancel out a lot of ambient noise. So if you travel a lot with your iPod and are on planes a lot, these could be a great update.

SIEBERG: Yes, very handy. Very inexpensive, too, 65 bucks.

All right, these ones from Boise. They're pretty known for their audio devices.

COOLEY: Yes, this is the latest of a very famous headphone line called the QuietComforts. These are QuietComfort series 3, which just means a smaller cup and a more packable, small size. Still $300 but excellent quality.

SIEBERG: And finally, wireless is great for walking around the house. But is the sound quality okay with these ones?

COOLEY: Didn't used to be. And finally Pioneer got it right. This is the Pioneer Model 800 system. It uses this box attached to your stereo system or you entertainment receiver, and then these headphones receive a signal from it and the sound quality is excellent. It's also great for watching movies and home theater when you don't want to disturb the whole house, not just for listening to audio and music.

SIEBERG: Well you sounded great, Brian Cooley, thanks so much.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD:: Straight ahead, 4 p.m. in the NEWSROOM, immunizations aren't just for the young and the old anymore. Find out why all of us should consider them. A check of the day's headlines is next then "CNN PRESENTS."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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