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Deadly Weekend in Iraq; Officer Killed in Alabama Shooting; Bone Fragments Discovered at Ground Zero; Bush Administration Considering Iraq Timetable

Aired October 23, 2006 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips, live at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.
DON LEMON, CO-HOST: And I'm Don Lemon.

Opening old wounds. Five years later, new anger at the site of the World Trade Center. How were remains missed, and will more be found?

PHILLIPS: The gloves are off. Nasty ads hit the airwaves in the Tennessee Senate race. Harold Ford versus Bob Corker, nothing's off limits.

LEMON: And these are victim I.D.'d. Where has this man been? How did relatives finally find him?

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

PHILLIPS: Well, it's the end of Ramadan. It's a time for feasting for Muslims across the world. But it's been a steady diet of violence for people in Iraq. CNN's Arwa Damon in Baghdad with the latest -- Arwa.

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, that's right. It has been a very deadly month for U.S. troops here and Iraqis alike. The U.S. military death count now at the highest that it has been all year. A total of 86 troops killed in October, 11 of those over a very deadly weekend.

Many of these deaths caused by roadside bombs and small arms fire. Many of them, as well, also in and around the capital of Baghdad. Many here are saying that the battle for all of Iraq will be happening in the streets of Baghdad itself.

The insurgents are only developing their techniques for attacking U.S. troops. The IEDs are becoming more sophisticated and deadly. The small arms fire even more accurate.

Meanwhile, the Iraqi security forces are searching for a number of police recruits who are believed to have been kidnapped after an attack that happened yesterday. The police recruits were traveling from Baghdad -- sorry from Baquba to Baghdad when their convoy was ambushed, a roadside bomb went off, and then an unknown number of gunmen opened fire. At least 11 recruits were killed, another 24 wounded. The wounded were evacuated to the hospital, and on the first day today -- today Iraq's Sunni population is celebrating. That is the celebration that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan. Twelve Iraqis killed in attacks in the capitol on this holy day -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And even within all that violence, we know how faithful the Iraqi civilians are. Are they celebrating more out in public, within the mosque, within their homes?

DAMON: Well, Kyra, Iraqis are very much staying indoors, or at least within the relative safety of their own neighborhoods. They are praying today, praying for peace, and praying is pretty much all that Iraqis can do here today to try to ensure at least a measure of security for themselves and for their families.

We are only seeing very few people out on the streets. This is normally a time when pretty much all of Baghdad's population is celebrating. That is again the Sunni population would be out on the streets. Children would be dressed in their holiday best. We see large family gatherings. This year everyone is staying in relative safety.

We did send a crew out to film at a playground inside just one of Baghdad's neighborhoods. That playground was actually filled with children. They felt relatively safe. But when asking why perhaps this is an indication of how complex the situation here is. They said that they felt relatively safe because their neighborhood was being secured by the Mehdi militia. That is, of course, the Shia militia that is loyal to radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Arwa Damon, live from Baghdad, thanks.

LEMON: Iraqi insurgents are staying on track. Will that force the Bush administration to change course? The "New York Times" says the U.S. is drafting a timetable for the Iraqi government to heal religious rifts and take on a bigger role in security. But the White House is taking issue with that story, and it's not using the word timetable.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN BARTLETT, WHITE HOUSE COUNSELOR: It is appropriate to have benchmarks and milestones. I think the story was a little bit overwritten by claiming that this was a news strategy. This is something that we've been working for months with the Iraqi government on, both on the security front and, as I mentioned earlier, on the political front.

Because it's important that the Iraqi government have very understandable goals for them to reach over the period of the coming months. And we've been negotiating with them to discuss what exactly those goals and milestones would look like.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Dan Bartlett also says the U.S. is changing tactics to adapt to the enemy. He told CBS, quote, "It's never been a stay the course strategy." President Bush has used the term "stay the course" throughout the war.

PHILLIPS: Different days, different country, similar problem. Permanent members of the United Nations Security Council are focusing on possible sanctions against Iran if it doesn't stop its uranium enrichment program.

But Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, says that his country won't back down even an inch in the face of threatened sanctions. Reuters news agency reports Tehran has, indeed, tested a second batch of centrifuges at its nuclear fuel plant. Emphasis on tested, and without any uranium gas.

Although other nations fear Iran seeks to develop nuclear weapons, Iran has said it only wants to meet its energy needs. A senior U.N. diplomat tells Reuters that Tehran remains a long way from the kind of capacity that would make it a true nuclear power.

LEMON: Well, let's head trait straight to the newsroom now and Betty Nguyen with a developing story happening in Alabama.

What's going on, Betty?

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, what we know so far, and not a lot of information has been given, but at this point, according to WBRC, out of Birmingham, Alabama, what you're seeing right now are officers surrounding an airfield -- an area in Fairfield, Alabama, which is not too far from Birmingham.

So far one of two police officers has died in a shooting. The surviving officer was shot in the leg. We don't know the circumstances, though. Here's what's questionable.

The circumstances of this shooting, we don't know exactly what has occurred there, but a search is on at this time for one suspect, at least. Another is in custody.

Again, one officer has been shot and died of those wounds. Another officer is shot or has been at least in the leg and is being treated for those injuries. One suspect in custody, another is on the loose and a search is under way.

But, again, we don't know the circumstances behind this shooting, what caused it to occur, but there is a high school and a college nearby. The Fairfield High School and Miles College both under a precautionary lockdown.

And as I talk about those suspects that police are searching for, at least one. They're believed to be looking for a black Caprice or a brown truck driven by at least one person involved in this shooting.

So, again, two officers shot, one killed. One suspect in custody and a search is on for the others involved in the shooting, which has taken place in Fairfield, Alabama, which is near Birmingham, Alabama. And as soon as we get much more information on this, we're going to bring it to you -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Betty.

LEMON: All right, Betty, thank you.

PHILLIPS: The mid-term elections are now just two weeks and one day away, and control of Congress remains very much up for grabs. Democrats need to pick up 15 seats to take control of the House, six seats to reclaim the Senate. Both houses of Congress under Republican control now for a dozen years.

Our new poll just out shows 56 percent of people surveyed think the GOP-controlled Congress has been a failure over those 12 years. Forty percent believe it's been a success. Now a whopping 85 percent of people surveyed by Opinion Research Corporation wish that Congress had gotten more accomplished this year, while only 13 percent are satisfied.

LEMON: We're talking weather and hurricanes. Our meteorologist, Rob Marciano, is live tracking everything happening from our weather center.

What's going on, Rob?

(WEATHER REPORT)

LEMON: We want you to be safe, of course, right, Rob?

ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You bet.

LEMON: All right. Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Sent packing. The government of Sudan gives the United Nations envoy three days to get out after he posted critical remarks on the Web. Jeff Koinange joins us in the NEWSROOM with the latest.

LEMON: Also ahead, not all the work going on at Ground Zero in New York is about rebuilding. We'll tell you what has sparked new anger about the families, ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Discovery at Ground Zero. Bone fragments believed to be from victims of the 9/11 attacks are unearthed more than five years later. As Laurie Evers with affiliate WNYW reports, a new search is on for even more as outraged families search for answers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHARLES WOLFE, WIFE KILLED ON 9/11: I think it's sickening. I think it's absolutely sickening.

LAURIE EVERS, WNYW CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): More fragments of remains were found over the weekend, bringing the total to more than 100 for the week. The surprising discovery stunned Charles Wolf, whose wife was killed in the terror attacks.

WOLFE: It destroyed our confidence in what the government tells us, whether it's the city or the state government. This Ground Zero here was supposed to have been cleaned out.

EVERS: Since ConEd workers first discovered remains in manholes on Tuesday, the city launched an intensified search for 9/11 victims, finding more in adjacent areas.

Searchers are collecting the bone fragments, that are then turned over to the medical examiner for DNA identification. To date, remains have not been found for more than 40 percent of the nearly 3,000 people killed that terrible day.

WOLFE: They have not made a priority out of finding the remains. They said, "We'll deal with the remains as we find them." In other words, rebuilding has come before finding the remains.

EVERS: Wolfe says family members want to be included in meetings and would like specially trained military search teams to join local workers. The city says it's doing everything it can and is taking extreme care, but construction at Ground Zero will continue.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: New York's mayor reemphasized this morning that construction will not shut down at the World Trade Center site, telling reporters, quote, "We have to build for the future."

In response to the anger expressed by some of the victims, the mayor praised the work of all those who carried out the initial searches.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, NEW YORK CITY: I think that they did everything they thought was appropriate at the time, as much as they could, and it's just a massive task where things are spread out for a large -- in a very large area. And the practical reality is you can't be every place.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And searchers, including forensic anthropologists, expect to examine at least 12 sites in the coming days.

PHILLIPS: Straight to the newsroom now. Betty Nguyen working details on another developing story -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Kyra, we've got some really remarkable pictures of a train derailment in Franklin, Massachusetts. Want to take a look at this.

What happened was a train hit a truck, which was stuck on the rail tracks this morning, injuring up to 20 people. All those people were, of course, on the commuter train, but none of the injuries, thank goodness, are described as critical or serious.

Here's what happened. This truck driver who was carrying construction equipment was stalled on the tracks. So he got out of the truck and was trying to wave down the train and tell the train stop before it actually hit that vehicle.

Well, apparently the train driver couldn't stop in time, so the train slammed into the truck, and the construction equipment on that truck swung around and slammed into the first coach section of the train.

What's not known is why the truck was stuck on the tracks.

Nonetheless, this caused quite an accident and then a train derailment. Twenty people, as I said, have been injured in this. None of them, though, luckily, have any serious injuries. But what a mess it is.

And again, the question here is why was that truck stuck on the tracks? A lot of explaining to do, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll track it. Thanks, Betty.

Well, he's one of the hottest names in Democratic politics right now, and everyone is asking him, what about '08? Illinois Senator Barack Obama says he's been giving their question some thought. His answer, straight ahead from the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: What you're looking at now is breast cancer. Surviving breast cancer. Does race make a difference? That's coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, race may be a factor in a woman's breast cancer prognosis. A new study shows that the type of cancer many black women get is more aggressive and harder to treat. They say the findings seem to contradict previous theories about higher death rates in black women. It's been thought the higher mortality rates were due to poor or late treatment.

LEMON: Well, there's a food recall to tell you about this morning. It's egg salad produced by Ballard's Farm Sausage, and it was sold in 17 states. You see them highlighted here in the yellow.

The company says tests show the egg salad may be contaminated with listeria. That's a bacteria that can cause serious or fatal infections in young children or elderly people. And it can also be harmful to pregnant women. The affected brands include Ballard's 12- ounce egg salad, Food City 12-ounce egg salad, and Value Time 11-ounce egg salad.

PHILLIPS: Now, all morning we've been talking about former Enron CEO, Jeffrey Skilling. He must face the music today. What could he face? What are the charges up against him and what's happened to all the others involved in the Enron scandal? You know his boss, Ken Lay, has already passed. He doesn't have to face the music any longer.

Susan Lisovicz live from the New York Stock Exchange to tell us what we can expect from this sentencing hearing -- Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra.

Well, the sentencing hearing for Jeffrey Skilling starts in Houston in less than an hour. Skilling, of course, was convicted in May on 19 counts of fraud, conspiracy, insider trading and lying to auditors for his role in the accounting scandal that led to Enron's collapse in 2001.

But before he learns his fate, he'll have to listen to at least 10 former Enron employees whose savings were wiped out by the company's bankruptcy. Kyra, there were 4,000 employees who lost their jobs when Enron imploded and, of course, billions of dollars in shareholder value were wiped out as a result.

PHILLIPS: And a lot of people still suffering from that, as well. Any predictions about the length of his sentence?

LISOVICZ: Kyra, Judge Simlake says he will rely on federal sentencing guidelines, which could mandate more than 20 years in prison. But the 52-year-old Skilling could face an even longer sentence, one that could really send him away for life.

Skilling has never admitted doing any wrongdoing or express remorse, like former chief financial officer Andrew Fastow, who got a reduced sentence for helping the government in its case against Skilling and others.

He is appealing his sentence. That could be one reason why. But he didn't endear himself, either, to co-workers or the community as former chairman Ken Lay did.

Ken Lay, of course, died before he was sentenced which prompted the judge to vacate his conviction last week. And we'll bring you news of the sentencing as soon as we get word this afternoon.

(STOCK REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: A developing story in Alabama. Let's get the latest from Betty Nguyen -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Don, we'll take you straight to Fairfield, Alabama, where two police officers have been shot. You're looking live that scene there. Investigators along with other Fairfield police on the scene.

Here's what we know so far. Two officers arrived in this area. We don't know exactly what occurred there. That's the big unknown at this point. But both of them were shot; one was killed. The other was shot in the leg and is being treated for that injury.

But one suspect is in custody. A search is on for a second suspect. And in the meantime, near this area that you're looking at right now are two schools: the Fairfield High School and Miles College. Because of this ongoing search, both schools are in lock down at this moment.

And all we know about this possible suspect still on the loose is that he or she may be driving a black Caprice or a brown truck. And this according to our affiliates in the area.

But one more time, two officers shot in this shooting. Again, we don't know the circumstances surrounding that shooting. But one of the officers was killed. Another was shot in the leg and is being treated for that injury.

One suspect in custody and another on the loose. A search, as you can imagine, Don, is on at this hour. And, we, of course, will follow all of these developments and bring you the latest.

LEMON: All right. Betty Nguyen from the new newsroom, thank you very much.

NGUYEN: Sure.

PHILLIPS: In an Atlanta courtroom, plea deals in a case involving trade secrets and two bitter rivals in the soft drink industry.

Just a short time ago, guilty pleas from two men, Ibrahim Dimson and Edmund Duhaney. They were accused of plotting with a former secretary at the Coca-Cola company to steal trade secrets. Each man pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy. Authorities say they planned to sell the trade secrets to Coca-Cola's big rival, Pepsi.

Well, the former Coke secretary, Joy Williams, goes on trial next month.

LEMON: A timetable for Iraq. The Bush administration throws cold water on one report, but a change in strategy may be what nervous Republican office holders are looking for.

CNN's White House correspondent, Elaine Quijano, reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's been part of President Bush's Iraq mantra for months.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNTIED STATES: You can't win a war if you have an artificial timetable for withdrawal.

Many advocating an artificial timetable for withdrawing our troops are sincere. But I believe they're sincerely wrong.

QUIJANO: But the "New York Times", citing senior U.S. officials, reports that the Bush administration is drafting a timetable for the Iraqi government to address sectarian divisions and take on more of the country's security responsibilities.

A White House spokeswoman said this story is not accurate, adding that the administration is constantly developing new tactics to achieve its goal and that the administration had been coordinating with the Iraqis for months on a series of measures they can take to assume more control of their country.

With the violence in Iraq showing no signs of letting up and Republicans in Congress nervous about their re-election prospects in just over two weeks, the debate over what to do next in Iraq has intensified. Against that backdrop, the pressure for the White House to change course has come from both Democrats and Republicans.

SEN. ARLEN SPECTER (R), JUDICIARY CHAIRMAN: I don't believe that a shift in tactics ought to wait until after the election. There are too many casualties there. If we have a better course, we ought to adopt it sooner rather than later.

SEN. JACK REED (D), RHODE ISLAND: The strategy of the administration has failed. The strategy of clear build and hold has not worked. It's been clear, build and wait. And while we've waited without the resources to rebuild the Iraqi economy, the insurgents have snuck back in, the sectarian militias had snuck back in.

QUIJANO: One analyst suggests that with Democrats on the offensive over Iraq, the administration may be trying to throw vulnerable Republicans a political lifeline.

NORMAN ORNSTEIN, AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE: And this new announcement of sorts gives Republican candidates an ability to say they're for change without undercutting their own administration. Is politics a part of this? It always is.

QUIJANO (on camera): While the White House calls the "New York Times" story "overwritten," on Friday Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld acknowledged the U.S. is working with the Iraqi government to develop a set of, quote, "projections" as to when the U.S. can hand over various security responsibilities.

Elaine Quijano, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Mission terminated. The top man for the United Nations in Sudan is kicked out after he criticizes the government on his blog. Well, it's more bad news for Darfur, where 200,000 thousand people are already dead. Two million have fled their homes. And a brutal civil war shows no sign of ending.

CNN's Jeff Koinange joins us from Johannesburg. Hi, Jeff.

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN AFRICA CORRESPONDENT: Hey, there, Don.

And Jan Pronk, a great man, the kind of person that the United Nations needed in a place like Sudan, where the government is continuing its policy with impunity, as you well know, as a slow burning genocide. You mentioned the numbers right there. We got a chance to speak to Jan Pronk barely two weeks ago, and he was very outspoken in his remarks against the Sudanese government.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KOINANGE: The Sudanese government says that this -- the situation that's happening right now in Darfur is a ploy by the West to take over this country, an Islamic country.

JAN PRONK, EXPELLED U.N. ENVOY: Their line of reasoning is absurd. The plight of the people in Darfur is the making of the Sudanese. The people had been forgotten, neglected, marginalized.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOINANGE: And, Don, Jan Pronk had his own blog that he was continuing to write almost nightly, and this is probably what the Sudanese government took against him. They kicked him out, he's heading to New York as we speak.

LEMON: Jeff, here's what everyone wants to know. What happens now for the people there? Does this mean that Sudan has a free hand to do whatever it wants now that Pronk is out?

KOINANGE: No doubt about it. Now they've kicked out the most outspoken person on the ground. Imagine what's left. And so the African Union on the ground, they have literally no power. They can continue their campaign with impunity. They are sending soldiers into the Darfur area nightly because there is a curfew from dusk to dawn. You can just imagine the future for the people in Darfur is bleaker than ever -- Don.

LEMON: Yes, and we were hopeful that there were -- because we thought there were some signs of progress, because back in May, the government reached a peace deal back in May. But how did it all come to this since then?

KOINANGE: Right. It was a very fragile peace deal to begin with, Don. One of the so-called rubber groups did sign the deal and another one didn't. Since then, the group that didn't sign has now splintered into five little rebel groups, if you will. So it makes the situation even more riskier and nobody knows who to talk to on the ground right now. And the people who are suffering the most, the 2.5 million displaced people. And the campaigns of the Janjaweed, the Arab militia, going from village to village, that is continuing. You can just about bet that's not going to stop any time soon -- Don.

LEMON: All right, let's switch gears a little bit and go over to East Africa and talk about Malawi. Madonna's adoption of the baby from there. Now we're hearing that the dad said he thought she was just going to raise him for a little while and then he would be able to come back to him. This is a going to be big problem, I imagine, for international adoptions. KOINANGE: No doubt about it. Just imagine for a moment, people are saying, hey, if this can happen to Madonna, she's getting so much grief right now, what about the ordinary couple who just wants to adopt a baby from Africa? What's that going to do with them? You can just imagine how they're feeling right now.

At the end of the day it's a lose/lose situation. The kids on the ground will be completely disheartened, potential couples will think twice about adopting in Africa. At the end of the day, Don, this does not all go well at all. It's -- the publicity has been so negative. You can just imagine Madonna right now is probably having second thoughts. All she wanted to do was adopt a child. She seemed so sincere, and now this. Terrible, terrible turn of events. And the young toddler hasn't even taken his first steps. You can just imagine the amount of controversy it's generating and continues to generate.

LEMON: Yes, thank you, Jeff. You and I talked about this before on air. But, you know, just the need wasn't there. Not a lot of people were going out to adopt kids from Africa. And this may make it even worse. Thank you, Jeff Koinagne.

PHILLIPS: Well, it wasn't quite the Tennessee two-step, but Senate candidate Harold Ford and Bob Corker went chin to chin for the media in Memphis during a chance meeting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can never find you anywhere in the States.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, I was in Jackson last night. I saw your...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So tell me, what do you think about Iraq thing? I know you're here to talk about my family. I thought you made a promise right after that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no, no, I'm here to talk about you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: It's quite the tight race, coming up from the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Let's get back to the news room.

Betty Nguyen working details on a developing story in Alabama -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Yes, we've been following this for the past hour, Kyra. Here's what we know so far.

Search is on in Fairfield, Alabama, which is near Birmingham, Alabama. You're looking right now at video of the scene where two officers were shot earlier today. One officer was killed, the other shot in the leg and is being treated for those injuries.

Here's a live look of that scene. It appears to be in a residential neighborhood, but what we don't know is the circumstance surrounding this shooting. What we do know is one suspect is in custody, another on the loose. An intense manhunt is under way for that suspect. All we know, according to our affiliates in the Fairfield, Alabama, area, is that police are on the lookout for either a black Caprice or brown truck carrying that suspect involved in this shooting.

Again, two officers shot, one has been killed. The other shot in the leg and is being treated for those injuries. But one suspect in custody and the search is on, Kyra. We'll keep following it and bring more to you.

PHILLIPS: Sounds good. Thanks, Betty.

LEMON: Americans go to the polls in 15 days. The Democrats hope scandal and Iraq will help them in the midterms. Republicans point to the economy and the war on terror as reasons to avoid change. With control of the Senate up for grabs, mud is flying in Tennessee in one of the key races between former Chattanooga mayor Bob Corker and Congressman Harold Ford.

And looking ahead two years, there is a possibility of a new face in the race for the White House. Illinois Senator Barack Obama says he ill give the idea of a run some thought after midterm.

CNN political analyst Bay Buchanan and political consultant Julian Epstein are in the NEWSROOM to look at the latest political happenings.

Let's talk about what's happening in Tennessee. There have been some pretty nasty -- the debate last night was pretty, I thought, rambunctious. What did you think of it? Bay, we'll start with you.

BAY BUCHANAN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, you know, it's a very tight campaign down there. It's very tense, and of course there's going to be some tension. But I think it played out as one would expect it to and two weeks left in a dead heat.

LEMON: In a dead heat, you think so?

What about you, Mr. Epstein?

JULIAN EPSTEIN, POLITICAL CONSULTANT: Well, I think most of the polls that I've seen show have shown Ford is ahead. And I think what you see with the latest tactics in particular, this disgusting ad that the RNC is airing which is just intended to attack, personally Harold Ford, I think it's more evidence that Mr. Corker is a little bit desperate.

And really, I think, Republicans fear that they're going to lose this seat which they have traditionally held and which everybody thought that they would hold in Tennessee. And I think it's the kind of politics that are going to turn a lot of people off. I don't think it's going to work.

LEMON: And, Julian, we're going to get to those ads, but first we want to talk about this whole family issue because there is a fight between the families there, as you know. Ford has a long-time political family that goes back in Tennessee. His dad was a Congressman and spent a lot of time in Washington.

And people are saying he's really not from Tennessee. He hasn't spent much time there. Let's take a look at some of the debate last night to hear what they were saying on that topic.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. HAROLD FORD JR. (D), TENNESSEE SENATE CANDIDATE: I showed up in Memphis because you came into my city to attack my dad, my uncles, my family. Again, I'm the one running. What kind of a man attacks another man's family in the face of a campaign? I'll tell you the kind of man. His name is Bob Corker.

BOB CORKER (R), TENNESSEE SENATE CANDIDATE: I never said a negative word about his family. He came in, in almost a juvenile fashion and crashed a press conference on Friday. It has been called the Memphis meltdown and he just got through saying a load of non- proof. The fact of the matter is, we've been talking about the issues every single day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Did he or didn't he say that? And also of this whole crashing, this whole, you know, political thing, was that much ado about nothing, Bay?

BUCHANAN: You know, I think that what Ford did was, without question, immature. It was a childish ploy for publicity. His argument that he's attacking his family, all he's saying is -- look, Corker says I was raised here, I've lived my whole life here, I know what Tennessee is about. This other fellow, Ford, he's a dapper fellow, he was raised virtually in Washington, D.C.

That is a legitimate issue for the campaign. Let the people decide one way or the other. But for Ford to show up and to make this sound like an attack on his family is ridiculous.

LEMON: Well, Julian, does that mean -- if he really hasn't spent much time in Tennessee, does that really mean that he can't govern?

EPSTEIN: I think he has spent a lot of time in Tennessee. He has represented his district for close to a decade. I don't think there is much question about that. And, again, I think this is cheap shot. I think that Mr. Corker has attacked his family. I think the Republican National Committee has attacked his family. I think that they've tried to attack Ford personally. They've done everything but address the issues.

And what Harold Ford is saying -- and I think it was appropriate for him to confront him personally at the press conference, because Corker runs away from this point -- is don't attack my family, don't attack me, let's talk about Iraq. Let's talk about what the Republicans have or haven't done for this country after having six years of control.

And Mr. Corker seems to be ducking those issues and that's why I think this resorting to the politics of personal destruction on behalf of the Corker campaign and the Republican National Committee going to backfire.

BUCHANAN: Personal destruction is such an exaggeration.

LEMON: This is one of the nastier -- Bay, we'll let you get to it.

BUCHANAN: All right.

EPSTEIN: Well, let's look at the ad.

LEMON: This is really getting nasty. It got nasty and personal over the weekend, got nasty at the debates, but also it's been really nasty on television. Let's take a look at some of these ads.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When I die, Harold Ford will want me to pay taxes again.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ford is right, I do have too many guns.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I men Harold at the Playboy party.

FORD: Bob Corker has been going personal, after me, my family. If I had a dog, he would probably kick him, too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Why, guys? Why does it have to resort to this?

BUCHANAN: Listen, you know, negative ads are on constantly for one reason, Don, because they work. And so what you do is you run as much strong, negative ads as you can to bring the other guy down in a close race and at the same time, put a positive message out as best you can.

But the key here is some ads are being done -- in fact, the ones that are so negative, by the parties. They're not being done by the candidate, especially Corker. And so in the party -- and he has nothing to say about it, whatsoever. It's independent expenditure, in essence, and he has asked the national party to pull the ads himself.

LEMON: That's what I was going to say. He has every right to say pull it if it's too nasty.

BUCHANAN: And indeed he has. He thinks it's over the top, so he's asked to pull it. EPSTEIN: Except for the fact that the person in the RNC who is responsible for these ads actually happens to be traveling with him and I think there's a question of whether there is some illegal coordination there.

But I think more importantly here, this is personal attacks by Corker. The notion about the point about taking guns away, the National Rifle -- the NRA actually supports Ford and says he's had a very good record.

LEMON: All right, Julian, let's -- since -- as a matter of time here, let's switch gears here a little bit.

Still talking about politics, Barak Obama. I mean, you can't even have a sentence without talking about the guy. Everyone is talking about him. Here's what I want to know. He got a lot of criticism this weekend from a lot of the columnists.

Here's one that was in the "New York Times." Maureen Dowd in the "New York Times" said: "Obama never seems to take off his makeup these days as he pads from one soft perch to the next from Oprah to Meredith to Larry. The first black president of Harvard's Law Review is spending too much time in green rooms."

Do you guys agree with that?

BUCHANAN: I do. You know -- well, I do if, indeed -- he's selling a book, so what the heck, let him sell his book. But the key here is ...

LEMON: But he has been criticized. His -- the thing that the Republicans will say is that he does not have enough experience and that they would rather see him on Capitol Hill there putting some teeth in issues rather than out, you know, trying to get his book bought or making appearances on Oprah or on the "Today Show."

BUCHANAN: I would think Democrats would want that since there is this whole group of anti-Hillary crowd that is hoping that he will run now because they lost Mark Warner, the former governor of Virginia, as their last best hope to stop Hillary. So they're pushing for Obama. But if Obama wants to run, he best get back down here and start to gather himself a record, because right now all he is going to run on is the fact that he's a nice guy.

LEMON: Julian Epstein, is that fair?

EPSTEIN: I think that sometimes some people, sometimes Maureen Dowd, just has to find something to criticize about anybody who is doing well. He is absolutely -- and I think Republicans will admit this sometimes publicly, sometimes privately.

He is the most compelling figure in American politics today. He transcends all of the traditional partisanship, the old political paradigms. There is no question that he is absolutely the most compelling. I mean, if you go back through his history as a state senator, as a law professor, even back to the Harvard Law Review, he is a guy who was always able to speak to and work with the other side, the other political side of the aisle.

So I just think there's no question about this. The major question for Barack Obama, I think, is whether he is ready in 2008 to actually run. And that involves a lot of questions that are -- many of which are personal. But I think that there is no doubt that one day he will run and I fully expect that one day he will be president.

LEMON: All right. That's good to end on, but I would rather end on this note. Yes or no, do you think we'll see him on the ballot in '08, Bay?

BUCHANAN: I think it's possible, yes.

LEMON: Julian?

EPSTEIN: I don't know. I don't know. I would say no.

LEMON: All right, thank you, both of you.

Well, tonight on CNN, something you won't want to miss. As part of our "Broken Government" series this week, Ed Henry takes a closer look at the do nothing Congress. Coming up at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and it's something you'll see only on CNN.

PHILLIPS: Don, thanks.

Let's get straight back to the newsroom. Betty Nguyen working details on a developing story out of Pennsylvania now, concerning a mine -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Yes, a mine explosion in fact. This is in Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania. What we know so far is that this coal mine explosion happened this morning and it injured at least one worker, but according to Associated Press, one worker is dead at this hour.

Rescue efforts at the Buck Mountain Anthracite Mine occurred this morning and they have been taken over by the Mine Safety and Health Administration. To tell you a little bit about this particular coal mine, it's operated by R&D Coal Company and the Mine Safety and Health Administration has information about this explosion on its Web site, saying just a little bit of history about this R&D Coal Company, that an explosion occurred at the same mine back in 2004 injuring four workers.

Well, today, again, a coal mine explosion at the R&D Coal Company in Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania. It's injured at least one person according to CNN, but the Associated Press is, at this hour, reporting one person is dead.

Of course, we are checking on that and we'll bring you the latest developments, but a coal mine explosion and the rescue efforts, at least if there was anyone else in that mine are underway at this hour and we're checking to see if indeed, one person was killed in that explosion -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Betty, thanks. Straight ahead, don't call him Al. We know his real name, though. A man with amnesia goes public and is finally recognized by his loved ones. A strange story and a little bit of a twist too, straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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PHILLIPS: Well, people in the Lacrosse, Wisconsin were scared that a serial killer was targeting college kids. Eight college age men have been pulled out of a river around a town over the last nine years. But police say no one was being attacked, all were victims of too much booze and bad luck. City officials say the confluence of three colleges, three rivers and dirt cheap alcohol is to blame. The most recent victim, a University of Wisconsin basketball player pulled from the Mississippi River this month. Some want to reign in binge drinking, others want fences along the city's river walks.

LEMON: Putting a name to the face. After a month of mystery, a man suffering from amnesia has been identified by his family and it's apparently not the first time he suffered severe memory loss. CNN's Carol Lin has the latest developments.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): For weeks, he was simply known as "Al", a man without an identity and without a known past, a man without memory. He turned up in Denver where the earliest thing he recalls is waking up on a downtown sidewalk last month. What happened before that is a mystery.

JEFF INGRAM, AMNESIA VICTIM: I want my past. I want to know who I was or who I am.

LIN: Now police say the amnesia victim has a name. A woman in Olympia, Washington says he is Jeff Ingram, her fiance.

PENNY HANSEN, JEFF INGRAM'S FIANCE: My reaction is just excitement. I am so happy to know he's alive and well.

LIN: Police say his family recognized him when he made his TV appeal for help in his search for an identity. According to police, his fiance says he left Olympia September 6th to visit relatives in Canada and that was the last time she heard from him. Police say she reported him missing. Denver police say the focus now is getting them reunited.

VIRGINIA QUINONES, DETECTIVE, DENVER POLICE: The plan is as soon as we can, we plan on making the attempt to get him back to his girlfriend to maybe try to put the pieces of the puzzle together. And once he gets there, I'm sure that there will be some follow-up medical attention.

LIN: Police say his memory loss is no act. He's been diagnosed as suffering from a form of amnesia.

KENNY KLAUS, DENVER POLICE: His honesty about it. And I believe this was a medical condition. It wasn't an attempt to hide from anybody or anything going on.

LIN: Before he was identified, the man previously known as "Al" said he felt totally lost, totally alone, and very depressed. Police say he's now in a better state of mind.

QUINONES: And he really wanted me to express his total gratitude for everyone, the media, in getting his story out there to help him find his life. As we all know now, it was successful.

LIN: Carol Lin, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Sorry about that. Well an event to celebrate in Paradise, Pennsylvania. A woman who survived the shooting at the Amish school there has given birth and she has named her daughter after one of the girls who was killed, Naomi Rose. That women, identified only as Lydia, was released by the gunman along with three other women with babies and all of the boys. Police say he then tied up and shot 10 girls before killing himself. Five of the girls died. The school building had since been demolished.

LEMON: Feast and family reunions. That's the way most Muslims mark the end of Ramadan.

PHILLIPS: But the growing violence in Iraq has many people there setting fewer places at the table. We're going to take you to Baghdad, straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

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