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Search Unrelenting for Missing Soldiers; Congress Considers Iraq Options; New Jersey Wildfire Sparked by National Guard Flare; Yolanda King, Activist Daughter of MLK, Dies at 51.

Aired May 16, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now that I know it's my son, it's -- it's real. It's really real.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I believe in miracles, and I believe in prayer. And, you know, we need a miracle here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: In search of a miracle, families pray the Pentagon offers to pay for leads that pay off.

DON LEMON, CO-HOST: A new weapon in a life and death mission in Iraq: leave no soldier behind.

Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

PHILLIPS: And I'm Kyra Phillips. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

U.S. troops in Iraq, thousands of them determined not to leave a comrade behind. The search is intense and into a fifth day. And today, we know the names of those that they're looking for.

These four American service members, all men, all Army. The whereabouts of three are unknown. There are identification issues with the body of the fourth. They were in a small unit ambushed last weekend south of Baghdad.

We have much more to tell you about that search. U.S. and Iraqi forces have launched a relentless search for those three soldiers that are missing since that deadly attack on Saturday.

CNN's Arwa Damon is embedded with U.S. forces who are combing that area near Yusifiyah, Iraq. She joins us now by phone.

Arwa, bring us up to date.

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, as you were just mentioning, this search is intense, relentless, and it is exhausting. The men are out there literally 24 hours a day following any sort of lead they can find, asking the same questions over and over again to anyone who they come across, trying to search for any tidbit of information to lead them to these three missing soldiers. Now they have had some successes; some tips have led to additional information. Much of that -- much of that cannot actually be disclosed. They did find in some locations equipment that they believe belonged either to the soldiers who were kidnapped or perhaps were stolen from the site of the attack.

But I cannot overemphasize just how determined these men are to keep going. Like I was just mentioning, they are exhausted. The terrain out here is very rough, very rugged. It is incredibly deadly. Yet they all tell us that they are determined to keep going.

But really, you see the fatigue on their faces. They will tell you that they are tired. But they are driven by the very thing that you were mentioning, and that is the soldier's creed never to leave a man behind. And we have heard that time and time again.

But this attack has utterly devastated this unit. But as I have been saying over and over again, they're absolutely determined to find their men, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Arwa Damon embedded with the U.S. troops on the search for those missing soldiers. Arwa, we'll talk more. Thanks so much.

LEMON: Let's go straight to the Pentagon now and our correspondent there, Barbara Starr.

Barbara, what do you know?

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, as Arwa was saying at this hour as the search goes on, it really is whatever it takes to get the job done at this point.

The U.S. military is now offering a reward up to $200,000 to anyone who can give them information about this situation. They have dropped about 170,000 leaflets from helicopters flying overhead in the search area. We have obtained a photograph, a picture of one of them in Arabic. There's an English version, but they're only dropping the Arabic version, of course, asking people to call a tip line, promising confidentiality, asking for any information.

But, Don, there are also grim details beginning to come out about what was found at the attack site. According to officials we've spoken to with direct knowledge of the situation, when the rescue forces got there and found everyone gone, what they did find were some blood trails, one of those blood trails leading to a nearby building about 50 meters away. They found the body of one of the three killed -- U.S. soldiers killed in action. The body of one of those soldiers dragged off and in that building.

They also are finding evidence of just how preplanned, how vicious this attack was. They tell us that the concertina wire that surrounded the two American Humvees, where the eight soldiers had their watch point, that concertina wire was breached by the attackers. They're not saying exactly how. But apparently, breached, cut, perhaps. And there was an ensuing firefight. They do have evidence that the U.S. troops did try -- did fire back. The attackers apparently using fragmentation grenades and coming at the U.S. troops from multiple directions all around them at 4 a.m. in the morning while the U.S. troops were trying to watch this area and look for anybody who might be out there planting IEDs.

So very, very tough business, Don.

LEMON: So, Barbara, am I to understand that this was a sort of a tip-off to the military? If it was, what sort of tips are they getting?

STARR: Well, they are getting, they tell us, even today, a few days later, they are getting a lot of tips, a lot of help from the local people in the area.

Some of the tips, unfortunately, leading nowhere. Let's give you one example, what we have also learned is they had a tip that bodies could be found in a nearby canal. They drained the entire canal and found nothing.

That just underscores how extensive this search is. They have questioned over 600 people. They are holding a number of people and they do believe it is possible, though not verified, some of those people being detained may have direct knowledge of the attack, Don.

LEMON: CNN's Barbara Starr. Thank you, Barbara.

PHILLIPS: A reminder now that the fight for Iraq is being fought beneath the U.S. Capitol dome, as well. That's where the money flow is turned up, down, or off. Senators today are voting on exactly that.

Let's bring in CNN congressional correspondent Dana Bash -- Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, today was a significant day in terms of the Iraq political debate. Because in the Senate, for the first time, we saw Republicans vote on a measure to directly challenge the president's Iraq policy.

What we saw is a measure again sponsored by and voted on by almost all of the Republican senators, which sets benchmarks for the Iraqi government but also says to the president, if the Iraqis don't meet those benchmarks, he must come to Congress and explain how he is going to revise his Iraq strategy.

Now, Republican leaders admitted that this is a way for them to express and show their frustration and growing impatience.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY), MINORITY LEADER: I've said it in the past, and I'll say it again. The Iraqi government is a big disappointment. They've not yet done anything that we've asked them to do on important domestic issues in Iraq: things like getting an oil pass, things like completing the de-Baathification process, things like having local elections. They haven't done any of those things.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: And you heard the focus there from the Republican leader, Mitch McConnell, on frustration with the Iraqi government. But this also does send a clear signal to Pennsylvania Avenue, to the president from Republicans, that they are also growing -- increasingly impatient with his strategy.

And they are making it clear -- you've heard it -- in terms of sound bites, in terms of discussions, public and private. But this is the first time they're making that clear with an actual vote on the Senate floor.

Now it didn't pass -- it didn't get the 60 votes it needed to pass, but it did get 52 votes.

There was another measure that is quite interesting, and that is -- that was on a Democratic measure, Kyra. That specifically says that U.S. troops should come home by next March and it would have cut off funding for the war. That, actually, from the Democrats' point of view, got a disappointing vote. It only got 29 votes in favor of that. Certainly, less than they had hoped for.

Because the point of these votes are symbolic. They are to try to set the stage, have a negotiating position for the very important talks that are going to begin, probably at the end of this week, to get a war funding bill to the president's desk by Memorial Day -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And it wasn't long ago that we heard from Democrats. They responded. Here's what Harry Reid had to say, Dana.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: We need to change the U.S. mission and begin the redeployment of U.S. troops. That's very clear. We Democrats remain committed to changing course in Iraq. And it's at the forefront of our agenda until it happens.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Of course, we'll continue to follow both Republicans and Democrats as they discuss the funding for the war in Iraq.

LEMON: And Kyra, how's this for a title: assistant to the president and deputy national security advisor for Iraq and Afghanistan policy and implementation. That's quite a long title. He doesn't have it yet, but Lieutenant General Douglas Lute has been tapped for that job. The Senate has to approve it.

Here's a little something about the man: West Point, Harvard, a combat tour, the first time around in Iraq, and more recently, he led forces in Kosovo, then spent two years at CentCom before taking his current job with the joint chief.

Exactly where and how this new position will fit into the chain of command is unclear right now.

Earlier, we asked our military analyst, Brigadier General James Marks, about how an officer junior to the war fighting commanders will fit into the chain of command.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIG. GEN. JAMES "SPIDER" MARKS (RET.), U.S. ARMY: Doug's a soldier. Dave Petraeus is a soldier. Admiral Fallon, they understand the deal. And also, Doug is not giving up his stars. Doug simply is going to be an interlocutor between the president, Mr. Hadley, and those combatant commanders to ensure that they get what they need.

So nobody is going to be reporting to anybody. He's essentially a facilitator to try to make it better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And that's not an outsider's opinion. General Marks and General Lute were West Point classmates and did serve together.

PHILLIPS: He would have been the most famous soldier in Iraq. But it turns out Britain's Prince Harry is staying home. Britain's top general says that Harry will not be deployed because of a number of specific threats against the third in line to the throne.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. RICHARD DANNATT, BRITISH ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF: Let me also make it quite clear that, as a professional soldier, Prince Harry himself will be extremely disappointed by this decision.

He has proved himself both at Sandhurst and in command of his troops during their training. I commend him for his determination and undoubted talent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Harry's dad, Prince Charles, says, "Prince Harry is very disappointed that he will not be able to go to Iraq with his troop" -- with his troops, rather -- "on this deployment, as he had hoped. He fully understands and accepts General Dannatt's difficult decision, and remains committed to his Army career."

Harry, 22 years old, is a tank commander. He's trained to lead a 12-man team.

LEMON: A New Jersey forest in flames. More than 13,500 acres have burned in less than 24 hours. Hundreds of homes are at risk, and it wasn't lightning that sparked this one.

Our senior correspondent, Allan Chernoff, joins us from the leading edge of this fire. It's in Warren Grove.

What can you tell us, Allan? ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, right now you're looking at a helicopter that is above the fire. They've had choppers all morning long and now into the afternoon, dropping hundreds and hundreds of gallons of water on top of the fire. That's only one technique, though, that they are using to try to control this fire, which is now extending more than 20 square miles.

The other factor that they're doing here is they're starting containment fires.

Let's move over here. And you can see the smoke over my shoulder there. Believe it or not, that's not the original fire. That's part of a containment fire that firefighters are setting -- little fires that they're setting to basically fight fire with fire.

They're setting the brush on fire. And let me tell you, that is very easy to do. But they're trying to eliminate all the fuel from this fire.

And it's very difficult to fight this fire. Because first of all, it's quite windy. The gust have been 20 miles an hour. The fire can spread. And it's also very dry. Have a look at the brush over here. And you can see just how dry it is. The ground also, virtually like a desert. We're not in the desert at all. But when water does hit, when the rain does come, it sinks right through. So the area is just ready to be lit up, to light up in flames.

So far, damage has not been all that bad. Five homes completely destroyed, 50 damaged somewhat, either by smoke or by the fire. And we only have two very minor injuries among the firefighters.

Still, everyone here is doing what they can to keep this fire under control.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT DREW LIEB, NEW JERSEY STATE POLICE: The forest to the west -- western side of the Garden State Parkway. If it does jump the parkway, which will be a major problem, the amount of the population is -- is much more significant on the eastern side of the parkway.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHERNOFF: Now, how did this all get started? Well, we're actually on a firing range. This area is where the New Jersey National Guard practice is. And yesterday, some F-16s were in the air, dropping flares. Typically, they burn out in the air. One of them did not. It fell all the way to the ground and ignited.

The New Jersey National Guard saying it believes -- it's not certain, but it believes that was probably the cause of this fire. And, in fact, representatives of the Air Force have gone to some shelters and are giving money to help people who have lost their home -- Don. LEMON: CNN's Allan Chernoff in Warren Grove. Thank you so much for that. And we're going to check in with our meteorologist, Reynolds Wolf, in just a bit. He's going to give us an update on the wildfires in New Jersey, as well as Florida and the weather throughout the country.

Firefighters in Florida and Georgia are still working around the clock, trying to beat back dozens of wildfires in those bone dry states. The largest is burning right along the border, nearly 400 square miles so far. More than 700 homes have been evacuated, some for a second time.

On the Florida side, the fire's about 50 percent contained. Less on the Georgia side.

We're even feeling the effects of that monster fire hundreds of miles away right here in Atlanta. Our director, Scott Riegert, captured these photos this morning right from his house. Check this out. It's not all haze. It's also smoke from those fires, brought here by the changing winds.

And Kyra, we could smell it when we walked out of our doors this morning.

PHILLIPS: Everybody was talking about that when they came into work.

Well, you do remember Ronald Reagan's 11th commandment: "Thou shalt not speak ill of a fellow Republican"? Some of Reagan's would- be successors don't either. A blow-by-blow account of the GOP debate, straight ahead.

LEMON: And it's not the size of the girl in the fight; it's the size of the fight in the girl. This girl might be dead today if she hadn't fought back. You will meet her.

And we'll remember Yolanda King. Some call her a princess of the civil rights movement. Today, the King family and many others are mourning her untimely death.

You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: It's 1:17 Eastern Time. Here are three of the stories that we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Yet another state is battling a monster wildfire: 2,500 homes have been evacuated in New Jersey about 25 miles -- 25 miles, rather, north of Atlantic City.

In Iraq, a new tactic in the hunt for three U.S. soldiers: a reward of up to $200,000 for information on the troops' whereabouts or kidnappers.

A new Israeli air strike in Gaza as Palestinian factions fight among themselves. Journalists are pinned down by the violence. The Palestinian president wants another cease-fire.

LEMON: Actress, activist, author and first daughter of the civil rights movement. Today, tributes are reserved for Yolanda King, the eldest child of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King.

Swell, she died suddenly last night, collapsing after a speech in California. She was just 51 years old. The cause of death is not clear, but relatives say it may have been heart related.

Throughout her life, Yolanda King championed her parents' dream of racial harmony, often taking the national stage, as she did, after her mother died just last year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YOLANDA KING, ACTRESS/ACTIVIST/AUTHOR: In the example of her life, our mother's radiant light, we stood in the sunshine of her being. We knew firsthand the enduring power of love. Her life -- expressed as artist, activist, mentor, champion of peace, freedom, and justice, mother and wife -- blazed with passion.

I often teased my mother that the Amazon and Trojan women had nothing on her. Not a thing. She did not just wear out her assistants; she rusted them out.

Mother's commitment to peace through loving action gave us so much energy. It gave her the energy to nurture us and to extend that love to include the world family.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: By her family, Yolanda King was known as Yoki. Funeral arrangements are pending today.

Yolanda King was on the board of the King Center right here in Atlanta, where the flags have been lowered to half staff. The Reverend Joseph Lowery, a close friend of the family, remembers her this way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REV. JOSEPH LOWERY, FAMILY FRIEND: She was a -- she was strong in spirit. And she embraced the movement in principle and in activism. Although she had chose her own channel. She liked -- she was in the arts.

LEMON: Yes.

LOWERY: She was an actress, a producer. And she chose that vehicle for -- for transmitting the message, which she adopted as her own, about justice and truth and brotherhood and peace.

LEMON: Yes.

LOWERY: And, so, she was a crusader for justice in the tradition of her family but in her own context. She was a charming person. I called her a princess because the daughter of kings is called a princess.

LEMON: Yes.

LOWERY: And she wore that mantle with dignity, with charm, and was an activist in her own way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Reverend Joseph Lowery.

And in a statement, the Reverend Al Sharpton remembered her this way: "Yolanda was a torch bearer for her parents and a committed activist in her own right. Yolanda never wavered from her commitment to nonviolent social change and justice for all, never shamed her parents or her co-activists. We will miss her greatly."

Reflections also are coming in at the King Center.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's just no words. There are no words. You know, apparently her mission and her time was up. And whatever it is that she was born to do in the world, she fulfilled her purpose, big-time, in such a profound way.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I needed to come down and just pay my respects to the King family, what they mean to me and my family. And to everybody's family, you know? And it's -- I'm shocked and I'm just stunned at the -- at the news this morning.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And from the White House, press secretary Tony Snow said President Bush and the first lady were sad to learn of Yolanda King's death and that their thoughts are with the King family today.

PHILLIPS: Recent rumor: their son was killed in Iraq. Present reality: he's now missing in action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now that I know it's my son, it's -- it's -- it's real. It's really real.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: A family on a roller coaster of emotions, straight ahead from the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Gas prices are at record levels now. And they show no signs of letting up. That's prompting two big consumer groups to take their complaints to Washington. Let's get the latest now from Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange.

Hi, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra. And they're about to testify at that hearing on Capitol Hill right now.

The Consumer Federation of America and Consumers Union want the government to provide greater oversight over oil industry practices and to enact policies that promote reduced oil consumption. Both groups say that, despite the record high gas prices, consumers aren't changing their driving habits very much at all.

Amazing when you consider that the average U.S. household is already spending $1,000 more per year on gas than it did just five years ago. Government stats show that gasoline demand is only now starting to level off.

This comes in sharp contrast to the reaction we saw the first time gas prices spiked above $3 a gallon following Hurricane Katrina. Back then, demand dropped more than 6 percent.

Drivers clearly are not happy about the higher prices today. But for the moment, they appear to be coughing it up, rather than cutting back -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: So why are consumers so complacent about higher gas prices?

LISOVICZ: Some analysts, Kyra, say that we have simply gotten used to more expensive gasoline. But when it comes to driving, a lot of us don't have much of a choice. So we're forced to cut back perhaps on other spending.

We saw some suggestions of that just yesterday when Wal-Mart, the 800-pound gorilla in retail, cut its quarterly earnings forecast. Many retailers say their sales are being hit by higher gas prices.

And by the way, gas prices have hit another record today. AAA says the national average for self serve regular is now $3.10, up a penny from yesterday.

(STOCK REPORT)

LISOVICZ: It's an essential feature in many kitchens, but one popular dishwasher brand could cause a fire. In the NEWSROOM next hour, details about a major product recall.

In the meantime, I throw it back to you, Kyra and Don.

PHILLIPS: All right. See you again in a little bit.

LEMON: In one corner, an 11-year-old girl. In the other corner, a 19-year-old man allegedly bent on abducting her. Details of how she fought back. You won't believe this one. And what happened since then? Straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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PHILLIPS: Hello everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips live from CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

LEMON: And I'm Don Lemon. Just imagine this, you're told your son's been killed in Iraq only to learn the report was wrong. Before you can enjoy your relief, your son goes missing in action.

PHILLIPS: That's the stunning chain of events for one California family. We'll hear from them right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Here's what we know this hour about the search for those three U.S. soldiers missing since Saturday's deadly attack outside Baghdad. The U.S. military is offering a $200,000 reward for any information that would lead to the three soldiers or leads to anyone who was involved in their possible abduction.

Military aircraft have dropped 150,000 leaflets across the area where the soldiers were attacked. The leaflets announced the award and include the number for a tip line. The military has investigated more than 140 tips so far and more than 600 people have been questioned. Three U.S. soldiers are missing now for a fifth day. Five of their comrades were killed, thousands more searching house to house. And their fate looks more grim with every hour they remain unaccounted for.

One of them is Joe Anzack. He's a 20-year-old PFC from Torrance, California. His family as you can imagine is an emotional wreck and not for the first time.

CNN's Chris Lawrence explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Three weeks ago, this family survived a horrible rumor, that their son had been killed in Iraq. Now they're living with the reality he is missing in action.

JOSEPH ANZACK, SR., FATHER OF MISSING U.S. SOLDIER: Now that I know it's my son -- it's real. It's really real.

THERESA ANZACK, MOTHER OF MISSING U.S. SOLDIER: I believe in miracles. I believe in prayer and, you know, we need a miracle here.

LAWRENCE: Army officials notified the parents Sunday, less than a month after someone -- no one knows who, started a rumor their son was dead. Friends asked about Anzack's funeral arrangements. His mom and dad received sympathy notes and students at Anzack's high school even put up a sign to honor him.

SCOTT MCDOWELL, PRINCIPAL, SOUTH HIGH SCHOOL: They were moved by what they thought was tragic news. They just put in loving memory, Joe Anzack, class of 2005. LAWRENCE: The rumor spread all the way back to Iraq where the soldier updated his MySpace page to say I'm not dead. Anzack was on the lookout for terrorists Saturday when his unit was ambushed south of Baghdad. Within a few weeks, his mother has gone from fear to relief to complete shock.

THERESA ANZACK: I was OK as long as I heard his voice. But this is different. This is real. They knocked on our door and...

LAWRENCE: In Iraq, where soldiers face danger and the threat of death every day, there's a fine line between rumor and reality. Chris Lawrence, CNN, Torrance, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: He would have been the most famous soldier in Iraq. But Britain's top general says Prince Harry won't be deployed to Iraq after all. CNN's Richard Quest is standing by for us with reaction from Buckingham palace. What exactly did they say, Richard?

RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, what they have basically said is that after a review of the decision taken just a couple of weeks ago to deploy Harry with the other 11 members of his battalion, that it is now simply too dangerous. The chief of the defense staff said that he'd been to Iraq. He had heard reports that insurgents were planning to target Harry and his battalion and that now he deemed that risk unacceptable.

I think, Don, what you have to bear in mind is it wasn't just a risk to the heir of the British throne, but there would have been a greater risk to the men under his command. It would have been in all shapes, forces, and sizes a disaster if anything can happen to any of those men and somebody had pointed the finger and said this would not have happened if Harry hadn't been there, Don.

LEMON: And Richard, I'm reading this in the wires here, saying you know what, this decision is going to make him extremely disappointed.

QUEST: Yes and the only acknowledgment -- I can read you the actual statement. And the -- the chief of staff says as a professional soldier, Prince Harry will be extremely disappointed. His soldiers will miss his leadership in Iraq. But, you know, the really interesting thing here, Don, is the absolute PR mess that the army and the (INAUDIBLE) have gotten themselves into. They can't really win on this one.

If Harry had gone to Iraq, he would have been seen by some as taking part in the occupation of that country. The decision now not to send him so late in the day reinforces the view that they can't even keep the British heir to the throne, third in line to the throne safe. The insurgents will use this as a PR, if you like, credit in the bank. And they will say, well, hang on -- if you can't keep Prince Harry safe, no one is safe.

LEMON: As usual, Richard Quest, we thank you very much for your reporting.

PHILLIPS: Lance Armstrong in the nation's capital. It's been three years since he started his Live Strong Foundation. What progress are we making in the fight against cancer? We'll tell you.

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PHILLIPS: Lance Armstrong is an inspiration to millions of people and not just because he's a seven-time winner of cycling's tour de France. He's also living proof that cancer can be defeated. Armstrong is in Washington today to support legislation on early cancer detection. Here's what he had to say on CNN's "American Morning."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LANCE ARMSTRONG, THE LANCE ARMSTRONG FOUNDATION: We always talk about the gap between what we know how to do and what we're actually doing. So in this country, we know, obviously we know how to screen people, we know how to treat people. We've invested the time and the money to cure people. But we're not providing that to the people that need it the most. And so for the United States of America, that's tragic. Again, if we have spent the time and the energy and the money to cure people or to invent things, then let's apply it. Let's give it to the people who need it.

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Back in January, post election, you wrote an editorial for cnn.com that was one of the most viewed things we've ever had on our Web site. We got a million hits. Here's what you said about our leaders. You said, quote, it's time to hold our leaders accountable. It remains to be seen if the change in power on Capitol Hill will affect the fight against cancer.

In two years, we'll elect a new president. We can't predict the actions of any of our elected officials, but we can say for sure that when it comes to cancer, their silence is unacceptable. You were lamenting the fact that they didn't make this a priority here in the election. Cancer funding has actually been cut. What's been happening since then?

ARMSTRONG: Cancer sort of comes and goes. And I think the way the media works in this country is that there are issues that come and go. If you remember a month ago you had Elizabeth Edwards and Tony Snow relapsing and cancer was a huge story. And then other issues come along, Virginia Tech and tornadoes and all these things and all of a sudden, people have forgot about the disease. But the moments that it's there, people are -- everybody is fearful that they're all going to get cancer. We know it's one of the biggest concerns of the American public.

ROBERTS: Killed 600,000 people a year. It doesn't discriminate.

ARMSTRONG: It's a huge bomb. To me, it's truly terror.

(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: The American Cancer Society says cancer in all its forms killed almost 600,000 Americans last year. Armstrong's foundation has dedicated today, live strong day.

Are long-term medications for adults suitable for teens, preteens? Well, a study by the nation's largest prescription benefits manager shows the number of girls taking drugs for Type II diabetes has almost tripled over the last five years and almost twice as many boys and girls are taking chronic medications for psychotic behavior and insomnia. Drugs that treat depression and ADHD however, leveled off or dropped over safety concerns. Experts say counseling and life style changes, diet, exercise, limiting caffeine might be better ways to treat the kids.

LEMON: This time the gathering wasn't so friendly. As a matter of fact, the gloves were off. The Republican presidential candidates held their second formal debate last night in South Carolina and things got a little testy. Here's a sample of the back and forth. .

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MITT ROMNEY, (R-MA) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My fear is that McCain-Kennedy would do to immigration what McCain-Feingold has done to campaign finance and money and politics and that's bad.

JOHN MCCAIN, (R-AZ) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I haven't changed my position on even numbered years or have changed because of the different offices that I may be running for.

REP. RON PAUL, (R-TX) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: They attack us because we've been over there. We've been bombing Iraq for 10 years.

RUDY GIULIANI, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That is an extraordinary statement as someone who lived through the attack of September 11 that we invited the attack because we were attacking Iraq. I don't think I've ever heard that before and I've heard some pretty absurd explanations for September 11.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. Let's bring in our political analyst Bill Schneider, Bill. Rudy Giuliani, if I can say that and others were talking tough about the war on terror last night. Is this the issue Republican candidates want to use, you think, to win the White House?

BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It certainly looks that way. They try to find virtually every question into a statement about 9/11, the war on terror. When they were asked about Iraq, just about all the candidates who answered, some exceptions, but the prevailing theme was we have to fight the war in Iraq because if we don't succeed over there, they're going to follow us home. They all said these terrorists are going to follow us home.

They're presenting themselves as the party that will best protect the country against future terrorist attacks, essentially saying they want to rerun their last great success on the national stage which was in 2004 when President Bush was re-elected because of his strength and resolve in the war on terror.

LEMON: The war on terror, wasn't that an issue even during the last presidential debates? I mean, it's the same thing, right?

SCHNEIDER: The last debate? Yeah. The debate in California -- no --

LEMON: The last presidential campaign is what I'm talking about. It was the war on terror. That was the overriding thing as well. It usually is the economy, stupid. For both these last two presidential elections, I think it's been the war on terror.

SCHNEIDER: Well, 2004, it certainly was. That's the first election after 2001 -- first presidential election after the 2001 attacks. It also dominated 2002. 2006 was slightly different because there the war in Iraq tended to overshadow other issues. There, the Democrats enjoyed a signal victory which is why the Democrats want to make the overriding issue a referendum next time on the war in Iraq.

LEMON: OK, let's get back to this time. There was one other memorable line from Governor Huckabee last night. We'll take a listen and we'll talk about it, Bill.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE HUCKABEE (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE:: We have a Congress that spent money like John Edwards at a beauty shop. It's high time --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: That was a great line. It was a great jab at the Democrats. But weren't most of the jabs last night about each other's conservative credentials?

SCHNEIDER: That's right. We're in South Carolina, which is a strongly conservative Republican party. Essentially the theme of the debate, aside from the war on terror, was challenging their conservative credentials. The moderators from Fox News did that. He raised questions about their conservatism. And some of the lesser known candidates like Tom Tancredo, Jim Gilmore, they raised questions about whether some of the candidates were actually liberals in disguise or had experienced a conversion on the road to Des Moines, Tancredo said, essentially saying that these aren't true blue conservatives or true red conservatives.

LEMON: You know what, let's switch gears a little bit because there were really rumblings about a third party try. I think we've done this poll before, but according to our latest CNN media research poll, only a small percentage of Democrats and Republicans Bill say they are very satisfied with the field of candidates. There's talk of Mayor Michael Bloomberg in New York starting a third party. Will that work?

SCHNEIDER: There is an audience for that because there are a lot of the Americans who are yearning for a candidate who can unite the country, who can bring the country together, who can deliver what George Bush promised way back in 1999 when he declared himself a candidate for president and said he wanted to be a uniter, not a divider. That's a promise he really has not delivered on.

So, some people like Michael Bloomberg and Chuck Hagel are talking about a third party. There's even a unity '08 Web site that talks about putting together a Republican and a Democrat that can unite the country. What do you need to run it through a third party campaign or an independent campaign? You need two things. You need money. Bloomberg's got that.

LEMON: He's got it.

SCHNEIDER: And you need an issue. That's what Chuck Hagel has. He's strongly critical of the Iraq war and he's a Republican. He probably wouldn't be able to win the Republican primary on that platform. But if he were to join an independent ticket, it could get interesting.

LEMON: Bill, I think I read something where Bloomberg said he might put up like $1 billion of his own money if he were to decide to take it seriously.

SCHNEIDER: That would do it. He's worth about $5 billion according to "Forbes" magazine. He can probably write a check the way Ross Perot could. That's what you need to run as an independent or a third party candidate. You need to essentially self-finance your campaign.

LEMON: Bill Schneider as always. Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, in one corner, an 11-year-old girl in the other, a 19-year old man allegedly bent on abducting her. Details on how she fought back and what happened since.

Bolt from the blue. Lightning comes dangerously close to two kids. We've got the amazing video right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: A Brooklyn sixth grader can thank mom's good advice and her own quick wits and courage for escaping an alleged attacker. (INAUDIBLE) has the story from our New York affiliate, WABC.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNKNOWN: WABC CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Walking hand in hand with her mother, Xochil Garcia has reason to smile. She escaped a would-be kidnapper who followed her into her apartment building on Ocean Avenue.

XOCHIL GARCIA, FOUGHT ATTACKER: When he touched me, he hit me against the window. He pushed me. So he grabbed my mouth and said don't scream. I couldn't bite him.

UNKNOWN: The man, who stood at 6'2" dragged her back down the stairs to the lobby Then Xochil made her move.

GARCIA: He looked at my wrist. He was holding my wrist pretty tight. He loosened a little bit. So I -- I took advantage of that and cut loose and ran outside. That's when I -- I buzzed my brother and told him to come downstairs.

UNKNOWN: That's when her brother and two neighbors sprang into action.

TIMOTHY ISAAC, NEIGHBOR: It was a natural reaction. You saw the way she was shaking and crying. I got a little sister and a little niece. It struck a nerve with me. It could have been one of them was standing out here.

UNKNOWN: They held the suspect down until police arrived. Her family is proud and relieved.

HERIBERTO RODRIGUEZ, STEPFATHER: She alerted neighbors and they responded and they were able to capture the guy before he really got away. So that helped a lot also.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: That's not the end of the story. Ahead in the NEWSROOM, we're going to actually talk live with Xochil Garcia and her step dad to find out exactly what has happened since.

LEMON: I can't wait for you to talk to her. You're going to talk to her ...

PHILLIPS: I hope my 11-year-old is that strong and that fierce at that age, that's for sure.

LEMON: I couldn't bite him. She said --

PHILLIPS: She said she's growing her nails long now so she's able to scratch better if it ever were to happen again.

LEMON: Good for Xochil. Can't wait for that one.

Bolt from the blue, lightning comes dangerously close to two kids. We've got the amazing video straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.

PHILLIPS: Plus CBS' Bob Schieffer in a place you've probably never seen him before.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB SCHIEFFER, CBS: They wrote me some lines, taught me a style, drew a happy face on the script where I should smile and the key demographics just went right off the charts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: He got on his ropers and his tight Wranglers, the honky tonk news man and he wasn't the only Washington journalist singing a different tune. That story straight ahead from the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: "Meet the Press" the musical. White House spokesman Tony Snow and CBS newsman Bob Schieffer, well, they square off on stage in a beltway battle of the bands. CNN's Jeanne Moos makes the most of it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): You know his face.

BOB SCHIEFFER, CBS: We'll be back on "face the nation."

MOOS: How about face the music?

SCHIEFFER: Baby baby I'll try to do better wouldn't need to pour the beer all over my sweater

MOOS: And you'll only see this guy playing off the press.

TONY SNOW, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: You know that that's not going to happen.

MOOS: Now look what he's playing.

SNOW: They call it honky tonk meets the White House wonk -- he's the wonk. And he's the honky tonk singing anchorman.

SCHIEFFER: They wrote me some lines and taught me a style and drew a happy face on the script where I should smile and the key demographics just went right off the chart

MOOS: It was the battle of the bands at a fundraiser for the National Press Club. The government versus the press. The two sure seemed friendly. But whose stuff is hotter? Tony Snow showed up in a shirt adorned with the White House logo, while CBS newsman Bob Schieffer dressed cowboy from head to toe and everywhere in between. He even accessorized with a cow bell.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Stravinsky of the cow bell.

MOOS: A guy like this must have his groupies.

SCHIEFFER: Unfortunately, some of my groupies were in walkers.

SNOW: We wouldn't do this if we weren't hams.

MOOS: Tony Snow played the guitar. He played the sax and he earned the nickname, Tony Jethro Tull Snow for his flute. The good news is, he didn't do what Ron Burgundy did in "Anchorman."

"ANCHORMAN" FROM DREAMWORKS PICTURES: Oh, that's baby making music, that's what that is.

MOOS: OK, so this wasn't that explosive. There was a vote by applause when the two bands finished.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tony Snow and beats working.

MOOS: Tony Snow's band won, a crawling king snake trophy, but it was close. Schieffer's band, by the way, has a CD called "Road Kill Stew." Schieffer autographed a joke can of it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have our own line of food.

SNOW: Most fun as I've ever had on stage.

SCHIEFFER: I can't remember when I had more fun.

MOOS: Sure looked happier facing the crowd than he does facing the nation. Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Bob Schieffer looks pretty sexy in a cowboy hat. Giddyup (ph)

LEMON: Do you think so? It's always good to see Tony Snow looking good. Seems like he's doing well.

PHILLIPS: He's obviously recovering without a problem.

LEMON: Saw that anchor man Santiago.

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