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Two Middle Eastern Men Stopped With Explosive Devices; Bomb School; Heroic Efforts of Minneapolis Firefighters
Aired August 05, 2007 - 22:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: We broke the story. Two Middle Eastern men stopped with explosive devices. Scary enough? What were they planning? We're on the inside and you're about to get the latest direct from the scene.
And going along with that, inside the struggle to stop al Qaeda from doing this to us here. I take you to bomb school, talk to you are nation's top minds. They know bombs. They know al Qaeda. They put the two together for us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you think I'm disagreeing with you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I don't know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you disagreeing with me?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let me once again say I understand my faith better than you do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Off the cuff, sick and tired of being asked about his faith. And abortion in our dog bone segment. Mitt Romney, unscripted, unplugged. You'll hear what you weren't supposed to. You tell him, Mitt.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This administration is one of the most secretive in every sense of the word.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: She should know, she's covered every president since JFK. Feisty, unafraid, maligned, she defends what she does and why she does it.
Talk about unafraid. We count down the top video picks of the day. And this one definitely makes the cut. Ow! Talk about getting thrown to the dogs. In, "Are You Kidding", somebody's making money having Fido get his just desserts off Michael. Vengeance is mine sayeth - you know the rest. NEWSROOM, next.
And hello again, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez. This is a story that started with all the elements that the fear of terrorism can conjure. It begins with police telling us that two young men of Middle Eastern descent were pulled over in a weekend traffic stop outside Charleston, South Carolina and found with explosives. Federal agents are called in. Then a few hours ago, right here, a clarification. Sort of.
Let's go to Venton Blandin now. He's in Charleston affiliate WCIV to try and make sense of all of this. You've been with us now over the past 24 hours, trying to put this story together. Here's what it seems we're dealing with now. You have police saying it appears that they have a bomb in their possession. You have federal agents saying no bomb, more like fireworks and by the way, no terrorism link. How do you reconcile these two?
VENTON BLANDIN, WCIV NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Well, I've been spending the past couple hours trying to do just that are, Rick. And we had something ready to go right before I went on for you guys, but I just confirmed with the Berkeley County Sheriff's office. They're still sticking same story. They believe that one bomb was found along with bomb making materials, as well as igniters, fuses, and other chemicals. And that's what they're sticking with.
But as for the FBI right now, their lips are sealed. They're pretty much sticking to everything that we're saying, even though the Berkeley County Sheriff's office isn't in control of this.
Now we do know there's a 21-year-old and a 24-year-old. They are the ones arrested. And they are remaining in jail right now. They're at the Berkeley County Sheriff's office. And they're going to be there because of what they've done.
Now we know that their car has been registered to Florida. And the reports say that they are college students. So we're trying to wait and talk with the FBI. I haven't been able to hear from them. I've made a few calls. And the Berkeley County Sheriff's office, they're saying that they're going to regroup with the FBI tomorrow because maybe some information has changed over the last few hours.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
BLANDIN: And maybe it hasn't, but they just don't know. They're going to try.
SANCHEZ: And federal - and listen, I've been talking to federal officials. And they say what they're trying to do nowadays more than in the past is share information, especially with the locals. It does sound from what you're saying that the Feds and the locals aren't talking to each other in this case. But if the Feds are saying there's no link to terrorism, we can pretty much take them at their word. That's their jurisdiction, correct?
BLANDIN: Yes, that is their jurisdiction. That pretty much is the case. I don't think I've ever called terrorism into this story in any way. And we do know the local police. Now I wouldn't say that they're pulling against each other. They're not playing if you go of war here, if you will. They're pretty much just trying to get the information out as much as possible. And I don't deal with the Feds on a daily basis, but I do deal with the local folks. And the local folks, believe it or not, they're watching your show. They've been watching all evening. They said pretty much you have this story. It's going. And you're accurate.
But since that came up, there may be something that they know. So they're taking it as a benefit of the doubt. And the captain with the sheriffs office, he says just say that we believe this right now. And we will regroup before the press conference tomorrow. And that's pretty much what we're waiting on because before the major developments today, that would have been the only thing we had to do go on at all, Rick, is that press conference tomorrow morning.
SANCHEZ: Venton Blandin, we thank you very much for bringing us up to date. If you get any other information on this story, as confusing as it may sound at times, we'll certainly appreciate it. And of course, in deference to the two men that I suppose we can call suspects according to the local police, we will continue to work to get that information about them.
Well, if federal agents and local police, as you were just hearing him describe, seemed edgy with dealing with stories like this one that we were just talking about, here's why. It's really just a matter of time, federal agents have told me before we in this country experience a suicide bombing. So how are they preparing for it? I traveled to Scottsdale, Arizona this week to try and sit down with the top minds in the business of bombs.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: You literally build bombs here.
TONY MAY, ATF EXPLOSIVES EXPERT: Right. We take that evidence and we'll reconstruct the device based on what we find in the evidence. And this is a typical workshop that you construct a device.
SANCHEZ: When you say reconstruct evidence, you're taking something that was used and making something just like it so you can better understand it?
MAY: That is correct.
SANCHEZ: To understand how a simple pipe bomb works, it's important to look at after it's exploded. And that's what we have here. This is what's left of a bomb that's exploded.
This is the important part here, though. This is the shrapnel that can be extremely deadly. Let's look at one here before it explodes. There you see the activation device. And that's the pipe. Here may be a better example of it right there. This one has a fuse on it. And after this explodes with gunpowder inside, this is what's left. This is the shrapnel. It could be extremely deadly.
MAY: It is likely that we can see the type of bombings that we saw over in London, for example, on the bus system. We could see that type of an attack here. But the United States is doing everything it can, federal law enforcement, homeland security, state and local law enforcement is doing everything we can.
SANCHEZ: So your job is to stay ahead of these guys, whether it's the guy in Michigan or the guy in Afghanistan, to understand how he puts his bombs together, so you can realize in the future whether it was his signature or somebody else's signature?
MAY: Correct. We're learning everyday. I mean, every bomb we work, every bombing scene we work, every - when we gather the evidence, put that bomb back together, we learn. We learn from that bomber. We learn his techniques.
Incendiary devices have been around for years. The Molotov cocktail has been around for centuries. Simple device.
MAY: That's real neophyte stuff. Right. Moving down into your timing devices, watches, timers, anything that will provide a signal or work a switch.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: And boy, I'll tell you what, he knows his bombs. He's actually even had to dismantle them.
That's just a part of that story, just a taste. For the complete story, you can tune in of course to "AC 360", where we're preparing a more complete and explosive report.
Let's turn now to the Minnesota bridge collapse. First, a quick update on that mystery that we first told you about last night. Law enforcement now looking into the story of that man. See him right there, his head bobbing in the water. He's swimming up to the rubble. And the minutes after the bridge fell, we're told that just before he jumped in the water, he was walking around screaming something in the river bank, asking people frantically if they'd seen a red haired little girl with glasses that he was looking for and seemed to think that he would find her in the water.
This is still a mystery. We've made a lot of phone calls to a lot of officials there in Minneapolis with both the locals and Feds. We still don't know if he found her, if the girl was really missing or if she even really existed.
Earlier tonight, this was the scene in Minneapolis. More than 1400 people went to an interfaith prayer service at St. Mark's Cathedral there. The service featured readings and music by the church choir. Governor Tim Polenti (ph) told the audience we are here to begin the process of restoration. We're also here to begin the process of rebuilding.
As for the investigation itself, it's moving forward now, complete with laser mapping and computer modeling as well. And recovery efforts continue slow and steady at the scene of the disaster. We're also learning more and more about the heroic efforts of some of the city's firefighters, what they did, what they saw, what they had to deal with and the amazing stories. Here now with those stories, CNN's Ed Lavandera.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These are the firefighters of Minneapolis station 11, reliving the moment when they heard the words "engine 11 rescue 9 bridge collapse."
RAUL RAMOS, MINNEAPOLIS FIRE DEPT.: When we first heard it, we thought it was just maybe a walkway or a small portion, not the whole bridge.
ROB SAYERS, MINNEAPOLIS FIRE DEPT.: I turned around and looked at the rest of the crew members. And I said you guys, the whole bridge is gone.
RAYMOND SAMBRIO, MINNEAPOLIS FIRE DEPT.: There's almost like everyone was trying to just take in what had just happened and what they were witnessing.
JACKSON MILIKEN (ph), MINNEAPOLIS FIRE DEPT.: My name is Jackson Miliken (ph). I'm a Minneapolis firefighter, rescue 9, station 11. I was scared running under the last section of bridge section. I was like please don't fall, I don't want to get squashed.
RAMOS: It felt so surreal, you know, like you're in a nightmare or you know, a bad Stephen King movie or something. Raul Ramos, Minneapolis fire station 11.
SAYERS: My name is Robert Sayers. The sight of it literally took my breath away.
SAMBRIO: Raymond Sambrio, engine 11, station 11, Minneapolis fire. Even though we weren't moving slow, I know that we were moving at a very rapid pace. You still felt like you maybe weren't moving fast enough.
RAMOS: I kind of remember stumbling, going down the cliff a little bit, but your adrenaline is going. And you focus on what have you've got to do, but I had to focus in on getting in the water, and saving anybody in those cars that I could, and helping the people on the bridge.
SAMBRIO: At one point, there were chunks of cement starting to pop off of those pillars, those beams. And we thought that for sure that section was going to collapse.
SAYERS: I think about all the victims and their families, really. I was at home and saw the interview with Mr. Engerbritzen (ph), who lost his wife, and realized that there was a woman that we tried to resuscitate and were unable to do so. And when I tied the two together, realizing that that was his wife that we brought up the embankment, it was very tough emotionally.
MILIKEN (ph): At one point, my left leg just stops, just as I'm about to turn in and walk in on all this stuff. And my left leg just stops. And I -- it was fear. I didn't want to go in there. I didn't want to die.
SAMBRIO: There were broken jagged pieces of cement and twisted steel. And you had to be careful.
RAMOS: We seen a bunch of victims. We started helping loading them up to back of pickup trucks, ambulances.
MILIKEN (ph): There was one woman that had -- she was in the car with another passenger. And her foot, both of her legs were broken above the ankle. And when I mean broken, I mean at right angles. But I just looked her in the eye and I said I need your help to save our lives because we've got stuff that can fall on us at any second. I need your help to get you out. And she understood immediately.
RAMOS: You don't really think about being scared or you don't think about any dangers to yourself.
SAYERS: A couple of us firefighters have talked. And we've kind of looked at it as though it felt as though we were in a movie. But it wasn't, it wasn't a movie, it wasn't play, and it was all real.
SAMBRIO: It's a lifetime event, I would say. Absolutely.
LAVANDERA: These are the firefighters of station 11.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA: Now Rick, today was the first day that many of these firefighters had actually been back together since Wednesday night. A few them had some days off and -- to get some rest.
And so today, they said they've been spending a lot of time talking, trying to piece everything back together. They say you know, they lived that one little fraction, that one area that they were working on the bridge. So they've been amazed to get - be back together tonight. And as they share these stories of what happened, they say that each one of them is learning a lot about what the entire experience was like on Wednesday.
SANCHEZ: One of the biggest stories there in the Twin Cities in an awful long time. And they were right there smack in the middle of it. Ed Lavandera, thanks for bringing us up to date.
President Bush and Afghan President Hamid Karzai are halfway through their two day summit at Camp David tonight. High on the agenda, how to safely free those South Korean hostages missionaries we've been telling you about. The Taliban kidnapped them last month near Kabul. Well, tonight, there's new information about a phone conversation between one of the hostages and a Voice of America correspondent. Here's part of it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LIM HYUN-JOO, HOSTAGE: Please save us. We really want to go home. We all have people. We came here to help the people, but now we are ousted. I don't know how long we can survive. Also, if there is a war, we are really in danger.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: A private Afghan clinic did as the rebels instructed and dropped $1200 worth of antibiotics, painkillers, vitamin tablets and heart pills at a specific location in a desert area.
Well, in our Sunday spotlight tonight, always one of our favorite segments. She is a legend in the press room, no question. Too tough for her to ask any president. White House reporter Helen Thomas, she was tough on president. Now she's coming down being real tough on journalists as well.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HELEN THOMAS, HEARST NEWS SERVICE: I think that, you know, the reporters know in the aftermath of 9/11 were afraid to challenge the government, were afraid to be seen as un-American, unpatriotic. And as a consequence, they really let the country down. We went into a war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: There she is, Helen Thomas. She comes to celebrate her birthday with us on our Sunday Spotlight. Great guest. Much more from Helen Thomas in our Sunday Spotlight right here at about 10:30 Eastern. She does not mince words, that one.
Coming up, politics is a tough business. It's not all smiles and photo ops on the campaign trail. Example...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY: I don't like coming on the air and having you go after my church and me and my...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not going after you. You know, I agree with your church.
ROMNEY: I know, that's right. But I'm not running as a Mormon.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Mitt Romney talking about being a Mormon, defending his position, and talking about the flip-flopping thing again. Romney getting hot under the collar. That's ahead in dogbone politics.
Also, a journalist killed for a story. You've heard about it in Russia, Mexico, and other places, but this one happened right here in the United States.
First, take a look at this video. This is a man who flies 50 feet into the air and didn't exactly stick the landing. Why he lost the most important part. We'll tell you what it is, when we come back. Stay with us. There it goes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TIME STAMP: 2217:56
SANCHEZ: We welcome you back. This is one of your favorite segments on Sunday nights. This is where we count down the top video picks of the day.
We begin with number 3, of course. And this is in Brazil. Remember that Tam airliner that went down not long ago. Sometime in the middle of July this happened. And it crashed into a building. The building was all but destroyed. Notice I said all but destroyed because they had to come back now.
Let's show them the picture of what they had to do. There it is, imploding. They finally had to get rid of it. But it's a good reason. They're going to put a memorial there, of course, in memory to those who - 200 souls who lost their lives on that Tam airliner back on July 17th.
Now video number two, this is something that happens about this time of year. It's a rite of passage if you played football. I played a little football, both high school and college football. And I've been involved in these types of situations many times. No harm, no foul, the coaches will say. In fact, sometimes they kind of want to see things like this because it's a way to get you pumped up for the upcoming season.
This is one of the first days of practice, getting ready for the big season. Of course, the St. Louis Rams -- and they just continue because after all, boys will be boys, won't they? Right.
Number one, look at this video. This is one that's being talked about by everyone who's seen it so far. And it's already starting to hit all the big blogs. This is one of the largest falls that we've seen. And we're going to take a look at it again. This is a skateboarder. His name is Jake Brown. He loses control while he's doing a quarter pipe.
Now if you notice, he's got no skateboard. Somewhere at the very top of the jump, he loses the skateboard. And that has to end up coming right back down to the ground. I mean, right there. See how it goes. And then when he hits the ground, his shoe falls off. Horrible.
Here's the good news. They took him to the hospital, but they checked him out and he's fine. And he says he wants to do it again. Folks, don't try this at home.
When we come back, Helen Thomas, celebrating her birthday with us here in the CNN NEWSROOM. And she's got some choice words for the White House press corps. We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
TIME STAMP: 2221:00
SANCHEZ: NEWSROOM. And she's got some choice words for the white house press corps. We'll be back.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY: Are you thinking I'm disagreeing with you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I don't know.
ROMNEY: Are you disagreeing with me? Let me once again say I understand my faith better than you do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Off the cuff, sick and tired of being asked about his faith and abortion. In our dog bone segment. Mitt Romney, unscripted, unplugged. You'll hear what you weren't supposed to. You tell 'em, Mitt.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THOMAS: This administration is one of the most secretive in every sense of the word.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: She should know. She's covered every president since JFK. Feisty, unafraid, maligned. She defends what she does and why she does it.
Talk about getting thrown to the dogs. In "Are You Kidding," somebody's making money having Fido get his just desserts off Michael. Vengeance is mine sayeth -- you know the rest. NEWSROOM, next.
And we welcome you back. I'm Rick Sanchez. A 19-year-old is expected to be in a California courtroom tomorrow afternoon accused of gunning down a reporter in broad daylight.
Now police say that the 19-year-old confessed to killing 57-year old Chauncey Bailey because he didn't like the stories that Bailey had been writing. Outraged yet, certainly if you're a journalist you would be or if you believe in free expression in this country. There's a lot more to this story, by the way.
Joining me now is a Martin Reynolds. He's a former colleague of Chauncey Bailey. We've been following this story because we found it particularly interesting that there might be this gang or this sect out there that's interestingly forming itself and doing perhaps other crimes, not just this one. And I understand, Martin, that Bailey had threats on his life now even before he was murdered. Is that right?
MARTIN REYNOLDS, MANAGING EDITOR, OAKLAND TRIBUNE: Well not -- I mean, he's - I mean, what journalist hasn't been threatened. He hasn't been -- to my knowledge, he wasn't necessarily threatened by this particular group, but there had been threats in the past by others and by folks at "The Oakland Post."
SANCHEZ: Well, let's talk about this particular group...
REYNOLDS: Sure.
SANCHEZ: ...because I think that's probably the most interesting part of the story. They owned a bakery. Apparently it's an organization they call themselves Muslims, and that's in no we way to disparage other members of the Muslim community there. But their father apparently was killed or a member who was part of this organization or since then, or had died, I should say.
REYNOLDS: Right.
SANCHEZ: And since then, they've almost been acting -- some person described it something I read as out of control. Is that correct?
REYNOLDS: Well, yes, I mean obviously the bakery was started in 1968 under the auspices of self-reliance and really actually a good thing and had had done a lot of good things in the community.
Myself, I had actually gone there quite a few times and had their quite tasty fish sandwiches. And then what happened was the patriarch of the family in 2003 came down with cancer. But before he passed away from cancer, but before that, had been accused of 27 molestation counts on young girls and was on trial for one of those count when he died.
SANCHEZ: So Chauncey Bailey - well, let's bring the viewers back to the story at hand. Chauncey Bailey is doing an investigation on that, on the story you were just in part describing.
REYNOLDS: No, he was doing...
SANCHEZ: When suddenly, he dies. And now there's this 19-year- old boy, Claude, see if you can put that picture back up of the 19- year-old. This is the suspect. His name is DeVaughndre Broussard. There he is. He's telling police, yes, we did it. And we did it because we didn't like the kind of stories that he was doing. That seems outlandish.
REYNOLDS: Well, it is outlandish. And you know, Chauncey, we're not exactly sure what he was working on. We know that he was doing -- looking into a story on the finances of the bakery. And obviously, that had raised some concern. I guess Broussard had said he didn't like stories that Chauncey had done in the past.
You know, it's a very troubling situation when a journalist such as Chauncey, who is so synonymous with Oakland, so beloved in the community is going about the good work of being a watchdog, which is what journalists are supposed to be doing and is subject to this kind of violence.
And I'd like to quickly note that, you know, in no way is this group connected with the nation of Islam. As you mentioned at the top of this segment, it's a spinoff, it's a sect, sort of doing its own thing. And there's been some other violence connected with this group.
In example, and people aren't sure if this is connected, but there was even some concern that a shooting that occurred last night or the night before last at the house of a bookkeeper who had done books for the organization, police aren't sure whether that's connected, but it certainly is a scary coincidence, if it is one.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
REYNOLDS: So it's very upsetting, frankly.
SANCHEZ: Martin Reynolds, former colleague, in fact, of Chauncey Bailey, we thank you for taking time to share information and insight on the story. It's a story that we're going it stay on top of, by the way, we appreciate it.
REYNOLDS: My pleasure, thank you.
SANCHEZ: Coming up, this is one of the best known photos in the world, right? But no one has ever been able to nail down where that photo came from, until someone decided to do a little investigation and see if they could find out who the person was who's actually kissing the nurse, right? I'll have it for you.
Also this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THOMAS: This administration is one of the most secretive in every sense of the word.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: She's had a front row seat to history, decades of it. She's the grand dame of the White House press corps. She's Helen Thomas. She's our Sunday spotlight.
Next though, he is fed up and he's not going to take it anymore. Mitt Romney, getting heated, a biting edition of dog bone politics is coming up next right here in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Time now for a little segment...
SANCHEZ: Time now for a segment we call "Dogbone Politics." And tonight we're going to showing you Republican Mitt Romney like perhaps you've never ever seen him before, fired up, aggressive and trading verbal blows with an Iowa radio host, even during a commercial break, about how his Mormon faith affects his politics.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope we can do this and spend some quality time on the air rather than the sound bites.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I don't like coming on the air and having you go after me and my church and me and my...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not going after -- I agree with your church.
ROMNEY: I know, that's right. But, I'm not running as a Mormon. And I get a little tired of coming on a show like yours and having it all about Mormons.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: See, I don't mind it being about that.
ROMNEY: I do. I do.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I agree with the ethics of your church for Pete's sake.
ROMNEY: So do I. So do I.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Whoa! Normally so cool, Romney rarely raises his voice. He's usually very scripted, so say the pundits. Well, this a new side of Mitt Romney, obviously getting tired of discussing that issue about his faith and about his flip-flop when it comes to abortion rights.
Republican presidential candidate Tom Tancredo offered his bright idea about what to do with terrorism. Now get this, he said to keep radicals from launching a nuclear attack on U.S. soil, simply threaten retaliate by attacking all Islamic holy sites.
Uh, wait a minute, hasn't he heard all Muslims aren't terrorists?
Here's what Tancredo said: "if it is up to me, we are going to explain that an attack on this homeland...would be followed by an attack on the holy sites in Mecca and Medina." So, when it comes to senators who are for or against U.S. policy in Iraq, does it matter if they've actually been to Iraq? "The Hill" newspaper says at least 76 senators have made the trip over the last four years, but 18 senators have never been there at all. Both sides are using the trips to make their case. Some administration policy supporters question critics who stayed home, but one critic who hasn't been is Democrat Jim Webb. He calls the trips "a dog and pony show."
Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards may get expensive haircuts, but his wife a cheap date. John and Elizabeth Edwards spent their 30th wedding anniversary, not at a fancy French restaurant or an Outback Steak House, but at Wendy's, as in fast food. It's the campaign, um-hum. Yeah. Tell us it's a family tradition and apparently they're proud of it, sending us these romantic pictures. Haircut, $300, cheese burger, $3.
Coming up, what should have been a simple police call goes tragically wrong, it started with a call about a snake in a tree, it ended in a child's death. You won't believe this story.
Next, though, we're talking more politics. Mitt Romney, flip- flopper, as some have said, fair or unfair, one of our bloggers says so. Left versus right, when we come back, in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Blogging politics. Want to ask Mitt Romney about abortion and his faith? Hmm, you better expect a fight. This is a hot one on the blogs, tonight. Let's toss to Jane Hamsher now, she's FireDogLake.com. That's FireDogLake.com, in case you want to go there, have a conversation with her.
And then, Jim Garrity from the "National Review." Thanks to have both of you back, here.
You know, if there's one guy in this political arena -- thanks, appreciate that -- if there is one guy in this political area who is, I would say, extremely scripted or always appears to be scripted, and follows form, it's Mitt Romney. But, I'm going to let you look at something here where Mitt Romney looks totally unrehearsed, totally unscripted, and reacting in a very personal way. This is a radio station in Iowa. They start talking about abortion, and about him being a Mormon, and he seems like he's just had enough. Here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope we can do this and spend some quality time on the air rather than the sound bites.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I don't like coming on the air and having you go after me and my church and me and my...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not going after -- I agree with your church.
ROMNEY: I know, that's right. But, I'm not running as a Mormon. And I get a little tired of coming on a show like yours and having it all about Mormons.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: See, I don't mind it being about that.
ROMNEY: I do. I do.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I agree with the ethics of your church for Pete's sake.
ROMNEY: So do I. So do I.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: So, let me start and see what you guys think. Jane, Romney got problems, or is he finally looking like the candidate a lot of people want him to be?
JANE HAMSHER, FIREDOGLAKE.COM: I think he's got problems. I think he's very thin-skinned. I think he's really suffering from the fact that he has a history of being very pro-choice. He told NARAL that they needed a guy like him in Washington, D.C. and he's having to backpedal from that in order to run toward the Republican base in Iowa and that's a very difficult thing to do in the YouTube generation.
SANCHEZ: Are you saying he may be a flip-flopper?
HAMSHER: He's a little bit of a flip-flopper, I think, on this, and other issues -- Gay rights...
SANCHEZ: Oh, didn't they say that about John Kerry, though?
HAMSHER: I think they may have.
SANCHEZ: All right. Let's go to the other side. Jim, you know, what's interesting about this, here's a guy who's standing up for his religion, for his background and for what he believes in. And a lot of people, I think, are going to look at this videotape and say: hey, way to go, Mitt, good for you. You know, you're not scripted, you're real.
JIM GARRITY, NATIONAL REVIEW: Yeah, I was going to say, Rick, that's got to be the calmest tantrum I've ever seen in my life. I've never seen -- you know, I was afraid it was going to deploy the word "golly" at some point or something like that.
SANCHEZ: That's a Mormon tantrum.
GARRITY: That's Mormon for a word I can't say on CNN. It's -- religion's a very personal issue for a lot of folks. He's addressed it at various times during his career, but I think to a certain extent a lot of us just kind of have to, you know, take him at his word. His faith is his faith. And I'm not sure that it's really all of our business.
SANCHEZ: Yeah, but here's the point that Jane is making. And Jane, I don't want to speak for you, but I think the point that she's making is he may be a bit of an opportunist and he's to shake that. When he's running for the governorship of a Liberal state, he's pro- choice. When he's suddenly running for the Republican ticket, looking for Conservative voters, he's pro life. Which is it, people would ask, right?
Jane, first of all, is that what I hear you saying?
HAMSHER: That is what you're hearing me say...
SANCHEZ: And Jim, to that, you say what?
HAMSHER: I think all of the Republican candidates have a real problem because they're running to the Republican base right now. And the Republican base embraces positions that are very out of step with the American people. They're very pro-war, they're very pro-George Bush, they're anti-choice, and that's just not where the country is at. So, all of these candidates are stuck in the unenviable position of having to embrace George Bush, a very unpopular president, and a lot of other positions they're going to have to kind of try and shake off when they run in the general election. And the Democrats don't have that problem.
SANCHEZ: Let's give Jim a chance to respond here.
GARRITY: When did George Bush come into this conversation?
SANCHEZ: Jim, what she's saying is, they're wearing clothing that doesn't really fit.
GARRITY: I don't think there's anything to that. If you ask Mitt Romney he would say that he had this personal epiphany while he was studying the issue of stem cells and the idea of cloning embryos and it raised moral objections in his mind that, you know, moved him on this issue.
I don't think there's any doubt that he knows the constituency he's playing for. It's one of these things where he's pitching himself to Iowa voters. You know, he can point to Reagan, he can point to George H.W. Bush, he can point to all kinds of people who were pro-choice at one point in their careers, including Al Gore, at one point, he was pro-life at one point -- and then changed their minds later in their careers. So, he's in good company.
SANCHEZ: And people have a right to change their minds. Man, I wanted him to be able to talk about Barack Obama and the situation that he's going through, but there's never enough time with us. I mean, because the three of us are passionate about politics and we get going. You guys are great. Jane Hamsher from FireDogLake.com, Jim Garrity from the "National Review," good reading. Thanks, guys. I appreciate it.
Coming up next, we stay with the political theme. We talk politics with the lady. This lady knows her stuff. Veteran White House reporter Helen Thomas in our "Sunday Spotlight." JFK to George W., she has seen it all and she does tell. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: We welcome you back to the CNN NEWSROOM, I'm Rick Sanchez. No one who's ever covered the White House has been more talked about, good and bad at times. But the woman who is tonight's "Sunday Spotlight," Helen Thomas may be the embodiment of journalism in its purest form, in many way. But if you ask any of the nine presidents that she's covered, the woman is also a real pain in the presidential derriere.
She says that's a good thing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
In your recent book, you write about how we in the media may have actually dropped the ball in the run-up to the war.
HELEN THOMAS, HEARST NEWS SERVICE: Right, exactly. I do think that. I think that the reporters, you know, in the aftermath of 9/11 were afraid to challenge the government, were afraid to be seen as un- American, unpatriotic, and as a consequence, they really let the country down, we went into a war for which there was no cause and it was totally unnecessary and we're 4-1/2 years into a war now that is illegal, immoral, and unconscionable.
SANCHEZ: And your argument is if we had asked the right questions before we went to war, we maybe wouldn't be in the situation we're in now?
THOMAS: My feeling is that if the press had really piled on as they should have in asking why, give us the proof, what do you mean and so forth, there might have been a way to stop this administration from forging ahead to a total debacle.
SANCHEZ: You were there. Did you ask enough of the hard questions or do you look back on your own experience and wish you had asked harder questions?
THOMAS: No. I asked very tough questions. In fact, they stood out like a sore thumb.
Your decision to invade Iraq has caused the deaths of thousands of Americans and Iraqis. Wounds (ph) of Americans and Iraqis for a lifetime. Every reason given, publicly at least, has turned out not to be true. My question is why did you really want to go to war?
SANCHEZ: This is probably the question that you asked a lot because, well, longevity means a lot. You've been covering presidents since John F. Kennedy. How does this administration compare to other administrations you've covered from the vantage point of a journalist looking for information?
THOMAS: All the administrations covered have been secretive, goes with the turf. Every presidential candidate promises an open administration, the moment they set foot in the White House, the Oval Office, oh, the iron curtain comes down and everything I think belongs in the public domain becomes their private preserve. But this administration is one of the most secretive, in every sense of the word, but for the time of day.
SANCHEZ: How difficult has it made it for you?
THOMAS: Well, it isn't the question of me, it's a question of for all reporters who are trying inform the American people and the world.
SANCHEZ: Helen, thanks so much for being with us. We certainly appreciate you joining us tonight on our "Sunday Spotlight."
THOMAS: Thank you very much.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: As I told you earlier, happy birthday. I know he looks a little bit like Uncle Fester in a Popeye suit holding a picture. Until you look at what the picture is. See that? It's one of the most famous photos in American history. No one's been ever been able to figure out who the guy was. Well, we may be able to have an idea now. We're going to tell you if that's really him, next.
Have you ever asked your boss for a raise? Well, he might have said no, but at least he didn't kill you. It's the kind of case that will make you say: you've got to be kidding! That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: We welcome you back. We're back here in "B" control to try and bring you up to date on some of the big news that we're getting in the business world. In fact, this came to us just moments ago. Former chairman of Home Depot is taking over at Chrysler, this is according to a report in the "Wall Street Journal."
Bob Nardelli, you might recall him, he was going to take over the top spot just days after a privately held situation when Capital Management took ever the automaker. Nardelli left Home Depot in January amid criticism over a hug salary package and the company's lagging stock prices. Nardelli has his work cut out for him, though, all three U.S. automakers saw double digit sales declines in July. Chrysler sales fell more than 37 percent last month.
Now the headlines in our "You Got to be Kidding Me" segment, tonight. First, a deadly and tragic mistake. It's a 911 call goes that goes out in Mobile, Oklahoma. The complaint, there's a snake in the tree. Police officers arrive and decide to shoot the snake out of the tree, not a smart thing to do, wouldn't you say? Why? Well one of the bullets ricocheted and hit a 5-year-old boy. The 5-year-old boy has died and the family tonight is devastated.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACK TRACY, BOY'S GRANDFATHER: I wish it was me. You know, he shot my grandson right here beside me. I couldn't bring him back.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Hard to believe, isn't it? The officer has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome an internal investigation. And many in the community were asking, what were you thinking?
To Georgia now, where earlier this week, this guy was in charge, ran his own car dealership. Tonight he's an accused killer and you're not going to believe what police say happened to him. Two employees asked for a pay raise, it wasn't the first time, they'd been asking for quite a while for a pay raise. Authorities say the owner snapped and shot them dead.
Beautiful on the outside, but if what police say is true, horrible things happened inside those doors you see, right there. A Port St. Lucie woman is charged tonight with fraudulently adopting 11 children from four agencies in New York City, investigators say. She scored $2 million and treated the kids worse than prisoners. They say that they often were even handcuffed. No school, no doctors, no dentists and they were barely fed.
And score one for animal lovers. Want to throw Mike Vick to the dogs? Well, for eight Burks here's your chance. It's a chew toy modeled after the NFL quarterback and his felony dogfighting charges. It's going to be offered on-line come Tuesday. Nothing like business with a bite, right? But hey, we're told a portion of the proceeds is going to be donated to animal shelter.
Jacqui Jeras has been following the flight tracker for us, that's where we check for you what the weather will be like tomorrow if you from have to travel or go anywhere, like I am going to do. Here's Jacqui.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, Rick, we had lots of travel trouble today in San Francisco and Chicago and those will be two cities to watch tomorrow as well, but the big corridor of concern, that's the northeast with showers and thunderstorms prevalent here, some could be strong with hail and strong winds, expected from New York City on up towards the Boston area, down into the mid-Atlantic states, Philadelphia expecting to see some delays as a result of that.
Across the nation's midsection, across the Great Lakes, looking for delays in Chicago and Minneapolis. Minneapolis, your storms could be severe, particularly afternoon and early evening hours.
Well, smooth sailing across the southeastern corridor, really looking good for travel, but that's if you can stand the heat. The heat index across much of the southeast reaching at least 100 and that's going to last for several days. The weather cooling down across parts of the West especially into coastal areas, but the clouds providing a nice layer for you in San Francisco and that's why we had the delays today, expecting to see a good 15 to 30 minute delay, again, in the morning -- Rick.
SANCHEZ: Hmm, all right, thanks a lot Jacqui. Coming up, a 62-year-old question -- who is the sailor in the famous picture that swept the nation off its feet. Not to mention the nurse. Modern day forensics might bring us an answer. This is one you don't want to miss. But is it really him? We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: All right, time now for our "Kicker" and a good one it is. This is the photograph that captured the jubilation of the entire nation: A sailor kissing a nurse at the end of World War II. Remember that? Well, for decades the identity of this person was a mystery, until now. Stephanie Waddian with CNN's Houston affiliate W -- pardon me -- KTRK has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEPHANIE GUADIAN, KTRK REPORTER: Houston's Glenn McDuffie was in Times Square when he found out World War II had come to an end. Reason enough for the sailor to celebrate.
LOIS GIBSON, HOUSTON POLICE: He lost it, he was jumping around, whooping and hollering and this girl just put her arms out like this, wide open and she had great big full lips and he just came over to her and kissed her.
GUADIAN: For years, people have wondered about the mysterious sailor. Who is he? Where is he now? Questions Lois Gibson says she has answered. As a forensic artist for the Houston police department, Gibson is a pro at identification.
GIBSON: Your bones, once you reach maturity, they stay the same, the skin just goes south. So, it's the bones in the skull are the same.
GUADIAN: After numerous measurements, including his wrists, knuckles, forehead and ears, Gibson is certain, Houston resident, Glenn McDuffie is the mysterious sailor in the famous "Life" magazine photograph. A claim he has made for years.
GIBSON: The hairline, he lost hair, he's older. Give him a break, of course he did. The ears, they eyebrows, the little wrinkles that are starting, here are here too.
GUADIAN: There were other clues, as well.
GIBSON: And when he talked to me, he's the only the only one that knows the names -- full names of these other two sailors.
GUADIAN: Gibson says she always wondered why this sailors arms seemed hooked in an odd manor.
McDuffie had the answer. He saw a photographer heading his way and moved his hands so the nurse's face would show.
GIBSON: Glenn McDuffie kissed the nurse. Glenn McDuffie is the suave that kissed the nurse that celebrated that the war was over. (END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Way to go, Glenn. We finally found you. That was Stephanie Waddian, again, with CNN affiliate WKTRK in Houston.
Thanks a lot for being with us tonight. I'm Rick Sanchez; we'll see you tomorrow at 8:00.
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