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Third Suspect in O.J. Simpson Case Claims Alleged Memorabilia Heist Was a Setup; Federal Reserve Considering Interest Rate Cut
Aired September 18, 2007 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Heidi Collins. Tony Harris has the day off today.
Lots of events coming into the NEWSROOM live on Tuesday morning. It is September 18. Here is what's on the rundown.
The O.J. Simpson case, a third suspect in custody today also claims the alleged memorabilia heist was a setup.
Another scrape for salad lovers, Dole recalling prepackaged lettuce this morning on E.coli fears.
And a political forum of persistent college student. Police pull out tasers, passionate about politics, in the NEWSROOM.
O.J. Simpson waking up in jail looking ahead to a court hearing that could set him free, but first, another arrest. CNN's Chris Lawrence has developments now in Las Vegas this morning.
Chris, Simpson is being held without bail. When does he actually go before a judge?
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right now, it's scheduled for tomorrow. The first judge who initially denied him bail right after his arrest said he did so because he considered O.J. Simpson a flight risk. Now O.J. Simpson's attorney says the opposite is true that if he was any other person he would already be out and he is going to ask the judge to release Simpson on his own recognizance with no bail whatsoever.
You mentioned a third suspect to turn himself in, police also expect a fourth man to turn himself in as early as today. That third man, when he did turn himself in, he had some of that stolen sports memorabilia and he turned over some autograph footballs and other things to investigators. Police had already recovered O.J. Simpson's Hall of Fame certificate, a Rolex watch, even the suit that he wore on the day that he was acquitted for murder. Heidi?
COLLINS: All right. Chris Lawrence is watching the developments for us for us out of Las Vegas this morning. It seems like there are a lot of them. We'll stay on top of it. Thank you, Chris.
Simpson is facing a new legal challenge from the family of Ron Goldman this morning as well. The Goldmans going to court today; they want the memorabilia at the center of this current case. It could help satisfy a civil judgment. Ron Goldman was killed alongside Simpson's ex-wife.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIM GOLDMAN, SISTER OF RON GOLDMAN: I think karma tapped him on the shoulder. And I think you know he has believed that he is above the law and that he dances to a different beat and that he doesn't have to live by the same set of rules that we do. And I hope that if he did do this I hope, in fact that he is held accountable for it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Although Simpson acquitted of the murders he lost a wrongful death suit in 1997. A court ordered Simpson to pay millions of dollars to the Goldmans and the family of Nicole Brown Simpson.
Nervous investors' cash strapped homeowners, concerns about the economy. The Fed taking notice today, considering an interest rate cut. Business correspondent Stephanie Elam fills us in this morning. Do we have to still keep our fingers crossed, Stephanie?
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, exactly. Because you know the Heidi (ph) Index I watch it even when I'm not chatting with you...
(CROSSTALK)
COLLINS: This is fabulous. Yes.
ELAM: So I keep my eyes on it. Yesterday we were off 39 points. We're still moving down, but a lot of people hanging on the sides of the markets right now because they don't know what is going to happen with the Fed. Many people do expect the Fed is going to go ahead and cut interest rates. The question is by how much.
Some people may be half a percentage point. Some people saying more likely a quarter of a percentage point. If they don't cut then we will see the markets react and it will take us away from the Heidi (ph) Index completely here. What we will be watching for though is what the Fed says as far as the policy. Moving forward, what comments are they giving us about where the economy is heading? Again, this will come out 2:15 Eastern Time today, of course we will be watching it right here on CNN, Heidi.
COLLINS: We will. Quickly, though, Stephanie, lay it out for the average consumer. If those rates are cut what exactly will it mean for you and I?
ELAM: Yes, that's a great question because a lot of people like why does this matter to me? Because this one is the one that directly affects consumers. This is the one if you're going out to get a car, if you're looking at home equity, if you're looking at your credit cards all of these are affected by this Fed funds rate as it's called.
So if you look at this it could affect that a little bit more quickly as far as you going to go get a car or your credit cards which may help spur some consumer spending which would be good for the market as well, so that's a good sign about it, but of course when you see a cut like this in the interest rate it usually takes about 12 to 18 months to work its way through the economy. So it is not usually a direct effect for us.
COLLINS: All right. And my sixth grade English teacher is writing you and me and I should have said what does it mean for you and me. Sorry about that...
ELAM: And I'm sure they're happy you corrected yourself...
COLLINS: Yes. Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
COLLINS: All right. We will check back in with you a little bit later when it all happens. Thank you, Stephanie.
ELAM: Sounds good.
COLLINS: A series of deadly attacks in Baghdad today. At least 21 people are dead, more than 60 wounded. As many as four bomb attacks taking place in different parts of the Iraqi capital. At least two bombs targeting areas near the Iraqi interior ministry.
Federal prosecutor caught in an Internet sting. Police say John Atchison wanted sex with a 5-year-old Michigan girl. Michael Rosenfield of affiliate WXYZ has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHAEL ROSENFIELD, WXYZ REPORTER (voice-over): Fifty-three- year-old John David Roy Atchison, a top law enforcement official in Florida, under arrest in Detroit, accused of trying to have sex with whom he thought was a 5-year-old girl. Authorities say Atchison conversed over e-mail with an undercover detective whose online profile says she is a mother with young children who men could have sex with.
Atchison who is an assistant U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Florida allegedly began daily online chats with her telling her, he is, quote, "very much a family man". According to authorities he also wrote, quote, "I'm always gentle and loving, not to worry, I've done it plenty". After about two weeks of chats, a meeting was established and Atchison allegedly wrote the undercover detective to tell her daughter, quote, "You found her a sweet boyfriend who will bring her presents".
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: Atchison is a married man with children.
A passenger in a high-speed car crash gets a 30-day jail sentence. Twenty-seven-year-old Trevor Carney (ph) also got three years probation. He pleaded no contest for giving police false information. You may remember the story. The crash happened February 2006 in Malibu. Hardly anything was left of that Ferrari. By then you would not have known it was a Ferrari by those pictures. Police say it was doing 162 miles an hour. Carney (ph) had claimed he was a passenger and that the driver had fled into the hills. Another man admitted driving the car was sentenced last November to three years in prison.
Jacqui Jeras is joining us now with news of a major typhoon headed toward China. Is that right, Jacqui?
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yeah, it was a super typhoon. In fact it is only one mile an hour away from that. It has to be over 150 miles per hour. It is the equivalent of a category 4 storm. Its name is Wipha, kind of an interesting name there.
It is just north of Taiwan right now. We have got some pictures to show you of this incredible storm as they're getting ready. This is expected to make landfall along China's coast south of Shanghai as a category-4 storm and then weakening maybe down to a 2 or 1 as it moves toward Shanghai. There you can see some very rough surf. Of course, heavy rain and also those winds will be an incredible story here. They usually get maybe two to three typhoons in this area of China per year.
Back here at home we're watching an area of low pressure which is across parts of Florida. Cold front has stalled out at this time and has been bringing tremendous amounts of rainfall around St. Augustine in the Jacksonville area and as much as 8 to 10 inches has fallen and a few spots of flooding is going to be a big concern. There you can see the showers and thunderstorms around Daytona Beach and southward making their way onshore.
It is going to be a Lousy day at the beach and also a very high risk of rip currents. We'll have to watch that area because of that front just kind of sticks there. We could see low pressure develop along it. Some of the models are trying to do that. It could take on some tropical characteristics.
Across the upper Midwest showers and thunderstorms here. Some of them could be strong, possibly severe later on today from Minneapolis extending down towards Omaha, Nebraska. More cold air coming in back behind that cold front, another push of fall on the way. And boy, things have just been beautiful across the eastern two-thirds of the country the last couple of days.
Temperatures today are going to start to moderate a little bit. We're warming up a little bit more than we have been. Still good in the northeastern corridor but look at this, Chicago is back up to 86 degrees, also 86 in Kansas City, 90 in Memphis, so still feeling a little bit on the toasty side. That cold front advancing down towards Des Moines and into Kansas City for tomorrow -- Heidi.
COLLINS: I still think you deserve a golf clap though. I mean that is some beautiful weather...
JERAS: Isn't it great? I know! Love it! I wish I could be responsible!
COLLINS: I know. All right, Jacqui, thank you.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Police take a taser to a persistent student. Did he get a little too passionate about politics?
Also looking for the cause of another E.coli scare, bagged lettuce recalled in the United States and Canada.
And the McCanns keeping the spotlight on their daughter, the parents of 4-year-old Madeleine make a new move to get their story out.
And a school hostage situation in upstate New York. But it's just a drill. Part of an FBI exercise to help fight domestic terrorism after a break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. Hi, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
A quake hunter goes deep into a dangerous stretch of ocean. Is another deadly tsunami on the way? We'll tell you what he found.
And snake bite. A man decides to show how safe his pet snake is by putting it in a place it should never go.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANNOUNCER: Breaking news, revealing developments. See for yourself in the CNN NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: New this morning, the college student who was tasered after refusing to go stop asking Senator John Kerry questions. Now Andrew Meyer headed to court facing charges of disturbing the peace and resisting police.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Get (EXPLETIVE DELETED) me man. I didn't do anything!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't tase me bro, don't tase me. I didn't do anything! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!
(CROSSTALK)
(SCREAMING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ow!
(SCREAMING)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why? Why are you doing that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Back up. Back up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why are you doing this?
(CROSSTALK)
(SCREAMING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What did I do?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Wow. The event started like this. Pretty calm. Kerry speaking to students at the University of Florida and then came the Q&A and things got ugly. Meyer hammering Kerry wanting to why he never contested the 2004 election and refusing to leave the mike.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll ask my question.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much. I'll ask my question.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have been talking for two hours (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Kerry's request to answer the questions were ignored. Police attempts to escort Meyer failed, then the scuffle and the tasering now under investigation.
Well hold the salad dressing. Fears of E.coli contamination fueling another lettuce recall. Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here now with news about the recall from Dole. I feel like this is a complete deja vu.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. Exactly. The reason why you feel that way is that since 1995, nine times there have been national outbreaks of E.coli in lettuce and spinach and so you have heard this before. Let's talk about the specifics of this one before we go into the bigger problem.
This is a recall as Heidi said, of a Dole product. It is a mixed bag of lettuce. It is called Dole's Hearts Delight salad. It is sold in the U.S. and in Canada. And what you want to look for is a best if used by date of September 19th, 2007. And then there are also certain production codes that you want to look for. They're listed up there. They are very similar.
The only difference is the A and the B at the end. So look for all of that. And that tells you that you do not want to buy these. Again what they found E.coli in them. What happened, Heidi, is that in Canada, authorities sort of do random testing in supermarkets. They found E.coli in one of these bags. And Dole says hey look, we tested -- you know we do our own testing off the farm and it looked fine. So, somewhere between the farm and the supermarket something must have gone wrong.
COLLINS: Went very wrong, yes. Well give us a little bit of a refresher course if you could. Remind us how the E.coli actually gets into the greens.
COHEN: Right. E.coli by definition comes from an animal and somehow can get into greens. For example, there have been times when animals have been running around agricultural crops and the animal contaminates those crops. And all it takes is contamination of let's say one head of lettuce. And then the way that these bags are made is that everything is mixed together, so you then contaminate an entire batch, but it comes from -- you can always trace it back to an animal, often an animal who has been running around in the fields.
COLLINS: Yeah. It usually seems to be the case. Last year, though I mean this is pretty serious. There were three deaths...
COHEN: Right.
COLLINS: Because of E.coli. How do you know that you have it or that you symptoms that need to be checked out because you could have it?
COHEN: Right. Now for healthy adults in a way you really wouldn't know if you had it because it looks like so many other illnesses. You have fever, you have vomiting, you have diarrhea. And so in many ways you wouldn't even know that you have it. But if there is a child or an older person or someone who has a weakened immune system and they have these symptoms and they have them for a day or two or if it just keeps going, again very intense nausea, abdominal cramping, diarrhea that is something you definitely want to bring to the attention of a doctor.
Again, the very old and very young and people who have weakened immune systems. This is not just any old food poisoning. I mean this disease can shut down people's kidneys. This is very serious stuff.
COLLINS: Yes, very serious. All right. Elizabeth, thank you for that. Appreciate it.
The president's nominee for attorney general making the rounds on Capitol Hill today. Michael Mukasey has already gotten a warm response from some Democrats. CNN congressional correspondent Dana Bash with more. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The president who places a premium on personal relationships stepped into the Rose Garden with a man he barely knows to replace his long time friend as attorney general.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Mike has experience in the Justice Department and private practice.
BASH: Mike Mukasey is a respected former federal prosecutor and judge known for presiding over terror trials, not politics. Exactly the kind of attorney general Democrats demanded.
SEN CHUCK SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: The very nomination of Judge Mukasey, wherever it comes down at the end of the day, shows a change in attitude. And I think that is very, very good for the country.
BASH: Instead of attacking the president's pick as they had prepared to do, Democrats praised him. The not so subtle message? Mr. Bush chose someone Democrats recommended and it's a vivid sign of his political weakness.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Judge Mukasey is not a crony of the president. He is not a White House insider. That's a good sign.
BASH: Still, they cautioned there will be no coronation. The Senate judiciary chairman raised the possible of delaying confirmation hearings for Mukasey until the administration turns over information about fired federal prosecutors and warrantless wiretapping.
SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D), VERMONT: I stand ready to work with them in the coming weeks to get the material we need and then once that material is available, to find an appropriate time to schedule a hearing.
BASH (on camera): Democrats are eager to call this a case of the president bowing to political reality, but Congress' approval rating is incredibly low, too. And Democrats polite tone is a sign they also see the value in a time-out from partisan war fare.
Bash Dana Bash, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: The Hillary Clinton health plan, too hot? Too cold? Or just right? We'll check in with all sides in our "Reality Check".
Sports memorabilia and money. O.J. Simpson faces a new legal fight with the Goldmans.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Parents fighting back, looking to clear their names. Four-year-old Madeleine McCann has been missing since May. Her parents named formal suspects now by police. Gerry and Kate McCann have hired a former British government official as their spokesman. Today, he again maintained their innocence.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLARENCE MITCHELL, MCCANN FAMILY SPOKESMAN: I feel so strongly that they are the innocent victims of a heinous crime that I am prepared to forego my government career to assist them. Therefore, I wish to stress, most definitely, that from now on, I, in no way, speak on behalf of the British government. I will soon be representing Kate and Gerry as a private individual. One who believes utterly that they are entirely innocent of any involvement in the disappearance, let alone the death, of their daughter Madeleine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Mitchell says the McCanns would be happy to return to Portugal for more police interviews, if needed.
Much more on this unfolding investigation coming up tonight. Join Anderson Cooper at 10:00 p.m. Eastern. CNN goes inside the investigation. Once again that's "AC 360" tonight.
New developments in the investigation of a deadly plane crash in Thailand. Authorities suspect wind shear may have been a factor. Wind shear's sudden change in either wind speed or direction and they can destabilize a plane. The Associate Press reports half of the wind shear detection systems were not working at the time. Eighty-nine people died in Sunday's crash including five Americans. Some 41 people survived. Relatives are still arriving in Thailand to try to identify loved ones remains.
FBI anti-terrorism examining dangerous real-life scenarios trying to get an edge. CNN's Deborah Feyerick goes along for a view rarely seen by television cameras.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is where it ends. FBI SWAT teams converge on an elementary school 28 hours after the crisis begins. Students flee. It's a scenario the FBI doesn't usually let cameras in to see.
MARK MERSHON, ASSISTANT DIR. FBI NEW YORK: This is the single most ambitious field training exercise any FBI field office has ever undertaken.
FEYERICK: The training exercise starts here with a plastic dummy wearing military fatigues shot through the head.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
FEYERICK: A short distance away acting on a tip, FBI divers make their own discovery. This scenario may be pretend but what happens here has been taken from real cases. The pressure on for investigators to solve the crime before anyone else dies.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We found a body in the vehicle. FEYERICK (on camera): Near the car pulled from the lake divers also found a backpack and inside this tool which represents a weapon and printouts from an international skinhead group out of Canada. They also found a receipt for a storage company and it's this receipt that links the murder here to the murder back at the ravine. Because investigators there found a business card for the very same storage company in the pocket of the dead man. What does not suggest?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That suggests that we're dealing with some dangerous people.
FEYERICK (voice-over): Dangerous people in this exercise who turn out to be domestic terrorists. They go to retrieve a bomb hidden in a storage unit. I'm not allowed to show you the FBI surveillance techniques.
(on camera): The agents now have a beat on a possible suspect. It is critical to get the snipers and the assault teams into position.
(voice-over): The snipers dressed in dilly (ph) suits vanish around a house in the woods, hostages inside.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Help!
FEYERICK: The mock terrorists demand to speak with an FBI boss. Tensions run high.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want (UNINTELLIGIBLE) out here.
FEYERICK (on camera): The negotiations have been going on for more than six hours. One woman and two children have been released in exchange for food, cigarettes, and insulin. But negotiations are about to break down.
(voice-over): One of the hostages in this drill is killed. Agents uncover the ultimate plot. The mock terror group plants bombs in a school. Time is running out.
JIM GAGLIANO, FBI CRISIS MGMT. COORDINATOR: As soon as something happens at a school it changes everything because you're not going sit there and do a risk assessment. You're going to go in and you're going to stop harm being done to children.
FEYERICK: It's now or never.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
FEYERICK: This time, it's a game, one that ends well.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The ultimate objective for us is to prevent the next terrorist act in the United States and for all of us to go home safely at the end of the day.
FEYERICK: From mistakes, lessons learned and in these future agents hope, lives saved.
Deborah Feyerick, CNN, West Point, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: CNN "Security Watch" keeps you up-to-date on safety. Stay tuned day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
O.J. Simpson in jail waiting for the legal machine to crank up, he has got company today. Another suspect now in custody in the alleged armed robbery.
Will the Fed take a butter knife or a meat cleaver to a key interest rate? A rate cut, why they anticipated and in just a few hours why your wallet will be smiling.
A cleaner way to travel. Japan debuts the first world's first hybrid train. Come along for a ride.
And the need for speed. An anniversary for the German Autobahn. Fulfilling driver's dreams for 75 years. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Heidi Collins.
Tony Harris is off today.
O.J. Simpson waking up in jail and looking ahead to tomorrow. Simpson is due if in court for a hearing that could allow him to be released on bond. Right now, he's being held because a judge says he is a flight risk.
Las Vegas police say Simpson was among an armed group of men who burst into a hotel room demanding the return of his sports memorabilia. Simpson says there was no guns and there was no robbery. He says he just wanted his stuff back.
Last night on CNN's "LARRY KING," we heard from an alleged victim in the case.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "LARRY KING LIVE")
ALFRED BEARDSLEY, ALLEGED VICTIM: You know, this was a very small room in this seedy hotel that Riccio was staying at. And I only saw one. This guy came over and ordered me at gunpoint to pack the items up in the boxes we brought them in. I refused. And I was sitting in a chair and I was told to get the F up, get the F up. And I did get up. (END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: We've also heard from one of the alleged robbers. Walter Alexander was also a guest of Larry King last night. He faces charges almost identical to O.J. Simpson's.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "LARRY KING LIVE" WALTER ALEXANDER, ARRESTED IN ALLEGED SIMPSON ROBBERY: We've been friends for many years. Since he wrote the book, I didn't really consider myself his friend. Another situation happened where he proved not to be a friend in May. And I haven't really considered myself his friend in some time. But I was just there for the wedding.
I believe he was set up. I believe the whole thing was a setup. You see it was taped. You know, I believe that it was a setup. It's very obvious that Thomas Riccio, you know, had intentions to set O.J. Up and that's what happened. You know, unfortunately, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and now I'm in the middle of this mess. And I hate that it happened.
You know, he was very accurate in the fact that he said he saw one gun, you know?
ROBERT RENTZER, ATTY. FOR WALTER ALEXANDER: I think you can leave it at that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: That was Alexander's attorney reigning in his client.
Alexander has been released without bail.
Taking another crack at health care reform -- Senator Hillary Clinton has a new plan.
CNN's senior political analyst, Bill Schneider, takes a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST (voice-over): Physicians are taught, first do no harm. Hillary Clinton seems to have learned the same lesson from her earlier experience with health care reform.
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: We will do no harm to the parts of our system that are working.
SCHNEIDER: Her earlier plan collided with an inescapable reality. In January of 1994, 80 percent of Americans said they were satisfied with their health care and 69 percent were satisfied with their health insurance. They wanted some kind of assurance that they could keep what they had and liked.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM TV AD)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The problem is they don't get it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHNEIDER: Instead, after watching the Harry and Louise ads, they feared the government was threatening to take it away from them. Clinton's new plan starts with the assurance, if you like what you have, you can keep it.
LINDA BLUMBERG, URBAN INSTITUTE: What she's trying to do is to use the existing administrative structures that we have in place for providing insurance coverage and not build new ones.
SCHNEIDER: The idea is to expand the system so it covers everyone.
BLUMBERG: This is all about redistribution when you are giving insurance coverage to individuals who can't otherwise afford it.
SCHNEIDER: Redistribution?
Uh-oh.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's raising taxes as opposed to holding taxes level, and that's not the right course for solving our health care problems.
SCHNEIDER: Some of the money for subsidies to the poor will come from the rich.
CLINTON: I will pay for some of it by rolling back part of President Bush's fiscally irresponsible tax breaks for the highest income Americans.
SCHNEIDER: But middle income Americans who felt threatened in 1994 are now being promised greater choice, including the choice to keep what they have.
(on camera): Critics on the right complain her plan goes too far. Critics on the left complain it doesn't go far enough. The Clinton campaign says she feels perfectly comfortable in the middle.
Bill Schneider, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COLLINS: And don't forget about this. You did it once. Now it's time for history to repeat itself. Go to CNN.com/YouTubedebates and post your questions for the Republican presidential candidates. The debate Wednesday, November 28th. Your voice will be heard only on CNN, your home for politics.
We want to take a moment to check on the weather situation now.
Jacqui Jeras is watching some storms for us -- actually, some flooding in Florida, right -- Jacqui.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: Hybrid car technology on a bigger scale now is powering a passenger train.
But at what cost?
Take a look at this from CNN's Kyung Lah.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the bucolic hills of central Japan, a quiet sensation is drawing flocks of fascinated fans. That's the sound this man wonders if he'll hear, as he witnesses a one of a kind train whiz by. You are looking at the world's first hybrid train in motion. It may look like any ordinary passenger train, but what powers it is vastly different. Conductor Makato Yamasaki (ph) is behind the controls today. If you look at his screen closely, you'll see the engine works with electricity and gas -- built with a similar technology that runs the hybrid car.
He says he's half excited and half anxious to operate this new train, especially as fans crowd around on the other side of the glass to watch the technology in action.
This passenger says he traveled hours just for this train ride because it's the world's first.
(on camera): As a passenger, the train doesn't feel all that different. It's very subtle. Engineers say it isn't until you take a closer look at the technology that you actually see the difference.
(voice-over): East Japan Railway Company engineer Tetsuo Omura shows us what's different in the hybrid train. Rechargeable batteries sit below and above the passenger car. Those gray boxes on the roof are giant lithium batteries that charge as the train runs. A new type of engine helps slash harmful emissions by 60 percent. The diesel engine kicks into gear when battery power drops and during higher speed acceleration. Together, the new hybrid uses 10 percent less diesel fuel than conventional trains. Right now, this train is expensive to make -- 60 percent more costly to build. While not perfect, say the railway's engineers, it's a start.
Omura says job one is to operate three test trains successfully. And if it's a success, the technology could one day spread around the globe. Omura calls his part a small contribution to improving the environment. Passengers who simply call it the newest, coolest thing, so far also approve.
"Cars are shifting to hybrids," says this fan. "Trains got to do that, too."
For two years, a hybrid train will move quietly in the country as engineers watch its development, hoping this technology will one day rock modern transportation into a greener world.
Kyung Lah, CNN, Kuomi, Japan.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COLLINS: Ah, traffic.
Who doesn't love it?
The absolute worst cities to drive in, still ahead. We'll give you the list.
And a rowdy college Q&A, an outspoken student, police armed with tasers -- a frightening mix. We'll tell you the story coming up. Listen to this.
(VIDEO CLIP, COURTESY CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY)
COLLINS: More on that in just a few moments.
Meanwhile, a quake hunter goes deep into the dangerous stretch of ocean.
Is another deadly tsunami on the way?
We're going to tell you what he found.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: A geologist puts his life on the line in an earthquake zone looking for signs of the next big one.
CNN's Hugh Riminton reports.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
HUGH RIMINTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Smack on the equator -- don't be fooled by this scenery. This is the deadliest stretch of ocean in the world.
JOHN GALETZKA, CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY: Everywhere up and down the coast it's just stripped down to bedrock.
RIMINTON: John Galetzka was a U.S. Army Ranger. Now he is on another frontline. He's an earthquake geologist investigating the fault line that sparked the 2004 tsunami and in recent days, three more powerful quakes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, COURTESY CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY)
RIMINTON: This is video he shot on Friday.
GALETZKA: OK, experience an earthquake. Let's see. 6:50. This one is a lot stronger than last night. Yes. This is the big one. Yes, this is our big one. This is our big one.
Whoo-hoo. Oh, yes. Look at the boat shaking here. Yes. This is our big one.
RIMINTON: Moments later, he catches the panic onshore.
GALETZKA: You can see families evacuating to the -- to the hill about 200 meters behind Pelaleo (ph). OK. Earthquake time.
RIMINTON: The day before, another big quake, further away, but larger.
GALETZKA: Nice, long period waves. Look at the water here.
RIMINTON: For John Galetzka, this is where theory meets reality.
GALETZKA: I am just -- I feel like the luckiest man alive because, you know, to experience two events -- strong events -- within almost 12 hours, yes, it was about 12 hours. And you can almost hear the excitement in my voice. You know, like oh, my gosh, this is it, this is it.
RIMINTON: Galetzka is taking us on a journey to see the evidence he believes his team believes it's found showing another giant earthquake and possible tsunami are on their way.
(on camera): So this is one of the first ones you put in?
GALETZKA: That's right, back in August 2002.
RIMINTON: Wow! It gets a -- it a great view.
(voice-over): Galetzka has established a network of position markers linked by satellite that show a constant creep northeast among the islands on Indonesia's Indian Ocean frontier.
(on camera): These 30 measuring stations looking at this coastline are telling an ominous tale. Driven by the plate that is underneath the Indian Ocean, the Earth is flexing it is literally bending underneath our feet. The pressures already are enormous. The theories are, possibly quite soon, those pressures will become intolerable.
(voice-over): The implications are terrifying.
GALETZKA: Eventually, it's got to it's got to -- it's got to release in a -- in a giant earthquake.
RIMINTON: It could be a rare magnitude nine quake. The plates so tightly sprung, it will happen, he believes, sooner, rather than later.
(on camera): Do you worry, knowing what you know?
Do you worry for the people living along this coast?
GALETZKA: I absolutely do worry. I tell them to be prepared. I, myself, when I stay in Padang, I think about my -- my escape routes almost every moment.
RIMINTON: As he crisscrosses these islands searching for data, John Galetzka says his aim is to save lives. But he, more than anyone, knows the risks that one day he'll confront a wave out here -- a tsunami powerful enough to swallow islands.
GALETZKA: If we saw it, we would just head right into it, you know? I'd shake your hand and say...
RIMINTON (on camera): Good luck.
GALETZKA: ...good luck.
RIMINTON (voice-over): Hugh Riminton, CNN, off West Sumatra, Indonesia.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COLLINS: From the stock market to the housing market, the Fed ready to cut a critical interest rate?
Will it put money in your pocket?
And a guy and his pet reptile -- his rattlesnake makes him a rattle snack. OK, maybe he kind of asked for it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some people like to drive fast and people like to take risks like that. Me, being me, I put his head in my mouth. It felt like someone just like...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COLLINS: Hmm. Beers with a buddy and snake handling -- do not attempt at home.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Well, just in case you didn't know, you can catch our program, actually, a little special newscast for you that we record after our program from 9:00 until 12:00 every day. It's the CNN pod cast.
All you have to do is download it to your iPod there, CNN.com/podcast. We'll put something special for you that you won't see here.
Well, don't try this at home. A man who loves snakes got a bit too close.
Scott Burton of our Portland affiliate, KGW, explains.
And a warning now -- some of the images are pretty disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
MATT WILKENSON: It's actually kind of my own stupid fault.
SCOTT BURTON, KGW CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He's a snake guy.
WILKENSON: I felt comfortable with him and I think they could sense that. BURTON: The kind of guy who loves the scales and fears no thing.
WILKENSON: Their tails would be rattling and you'd reach your hand in the cage and they're more scared of you than you are them. And they wouldn't strike.
BURTON: For Matt Wilkenson, his relations were always rewarding.
WILKENSON: And some people like to drive fast and people like to take risks like that.
BURTON: Some people like to test fate and challenge conventional wisdom to put Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnakes where they don't belong.
WILKENSON: Me being me, I put his head in my mouth.
BURTON: It was, of course, after a few beers with a few friends. But, yes, into his mouth went his pet rattler. And, yes, you know, what happens next.
WILKENSON: At first, it felt like someone just gave me a shot in my mouth and then they had to cut one.
BURTON: Within seconds, the fun was suddenly not funny.
WILKENSON: I mean your arm falls asleep and it's like a painful fall asleep. It was like that, but 10 times stronger, and it was just my whole body.
BURTON: Wilkenson was dying. His tongue swelled to fill his mouth. His throat swelled and cut off his airway.
WILKENSON: They said that I had enough venom in me to kill between 12 and 15 people.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Does it hurt?
WILKENSON: Um-hmm.
BURTON: He was losing his life as he arrived at OHSU.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you have an obstructed airway and you can't breathe, you'll die in about seven minutes.
BURTON: Quick thinking doctors inserted a breathing tube in his throat for air, injected anti-venom to combat the toxins. They placed Wilkenson in a medical coma for three days.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now, if he had taken longer to get to the hospital, he probably would have basically died of asphyxiation.
BURTON: Miraculously, it all worked. Today, three weeks past and Matt Wilkenson is not only alive, but doing well. The whole in his throat is healing and he's on path toward a full recovery.
WILKENSON: They were constricted.
BURTON: He's still a snake guy, but he's learned his lesson.
WILKENSON: I still love snakes, but I'll take a little more care in handling them.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COLLINS: The snake you saw in the story is not the one that bit Matt. He no longer has that one.
The Goldman family in court this morning. They want the sports memorabilia at the heart of the new O.J. Simpson criminal case.
And the need for speed -- an anniversary for the German Autobahn, fulfilling drivers' dreams for 75 years.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: A driver's dream turning 75 years old now.
CNN's Frederik Pleitgen takes us for a sentimental spin on the German Autobahn.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
FREDERICK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): To many Germans, this is what freedom is all about.
(on camera): The German Autobahn has no general speed limit. Drivers can go as fast as they want, as long as they drive safely. And even with no speed limit, there's not more accidents on the German Autobahn than on highways in other countries.
(voice-over): This year, the Autobahn turns 75 -- one of the first highway systems in the world and a legend before it was even built. Hitler portrayed himself as the father of the Autobahn -- the largest civilian labor program in Nazi Germany -- a big propaganda lie, says Erhard Schuetz, author of the book "Mythos ReichsAutobahn".
ERHARD SCHUETZ, AUTHOR: There are a lot of myths created by the Nazis about Hitler as the creator of the Autobahn. But he wasn't, in no sense.
PLEITGEN: These are pictures of the first Autobahn, completed in 1932, one year before Hitler took power. And this is the real father of the Autobahn, Konrad Adenauer, then mayor of the city of Cologne, later the first chancellor of post-war Germany.
The Autobahn never had any military significance to the Nazis. Heavy tanks would have crushed the thin road pavement. With its many panoramic views, the highway system was a propaganda tool to show Germans and tourists the beauty of the country and Germany's technological sophistication.
And not only did Hitler falsely claim to be the inventor of the Autobahn, he also imposed a speed limit.
SCHUETZ: Afterwards, the Americans came and freed Germany. They took the speed limit on and then they set it beside.
PLEITGEN: So it wasn't Hitler, but a mayor who invented the Autobahn. And it was the American military command that got rid of the speed limit on this legendary road -- freedom many Germans cherish and one they say they hope they will never have to give up.
Frederik Pleitgen, CNN, on the German Autobahn.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COLLINS: Good morning, everybody.
I'm Heidi Collins.
Tony Harris is off today.
Stay informed all day right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Here's what's on the rundown.
A fourth arrest expected today in the O.J. Simpson case. One defendant calls the sports memorabilia dustup a setup.
Private security teams under fire in Iraq, just like U.S. troops. Civilians caught in the crossfire. We'll look at the Blackwater controversy.
And he wanted answers from a politician. Instead, this college student got tasered. He's heading to court.
This is Tuesday, September 18th.
You are in the NEWSROOM.
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