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Bomb Parts on Board?; Man Tasered in Airport, Later Dies; Military's Gas Bill: The High Cost of War; Sin City Showdown
Aired November 15, 2007 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, everybody.
I'm Heidi Collins in New York today.
Watch events come into the NEWSROOM live on Thursday morning, November 15th.
Here's what's on the rundown.
Undercover agents smuggle bomb parts through airport screeners. Six years after 9/11, is airline travel more secure?
HARRIS: Police taser an agitated passenger at Vancouver's airport. The man dies.
COLLINS: And severe weather and rain rumble across the dry South, but it's hardly a drought-buster.
The stormy night -- in the NEWSROOM.
Just days before the holiday travel rush, frightening news about airport security. Investigators smuggle bomb-making materials past airport screeners. A House committee investigates next hour.
We want to go directly to live to Washington and homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve now.
Jeanne, how is the TSA responding to all of this?
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, TSA administrator Kip Hawley is going to go before a congressional committee in about an hour and will be asked to explain how this could happen, how GAO investigators got through TSA screening checkpoints with materials to make improvised explosive devices that could cause some damage if they were put together. GAO says they could cause severe damage to a plane and threaten the safety of passengers.
The GAO smuggled the components, liquids and detonators, by hiding them in carry-on language and on their bodies. In some cases, screeners simply missed them. In other cases, the screening procedures and screening machines just were not good enough to catch the prohibited items -- Heidi.
COLLINS: What do we expect, Jeanne Kip Hawley to say a little bit later on today?
MESERVE: He's going to say TSA has layers of security, not just screeners. He's going to say that TSA is deploying new screening machines and that the agency is doing its own testing to improve security.
CNN got an exclusive look at that. A simulated bomb was hidden in a carry-on bag. The suitcase is taken to a screening checkpoint and put through the x-ray machine, but in this instance, the screener did not catch the threat inside.
A trainer immediately points out his mistake.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TSA TESTER: What does this look like inside here?
TSA TESTER: Jumping out at you.
TSA TESTER: Exactly, so what do you have there?
TSA TESTER: We have an IED.
TSA TESTER: That's right. You just missed that one.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MESERVE: In another test, CNN watched the screener did catch a bomb component. TSA argues that by doing 2,500 of these tests a day at every airport in the country, they are improving screener performance, but that GAO study was done just last July -- Heidi.
COLLINS: All right, very good.
CNN's Jeanne Meserve on the story for us.
Thanks so much, Jeanne.
Bomb parts getting through airport security six years after 9/11, so how could this happen? Well, we're going to be talking with former homeland security official Clark Kent Ervin coming up next hour.
Also a reminder. CNN "Security Watch" keeps you up to date on safety. You can stay tuned day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
HARRIS: An agitated passenger tasered by authorities at the airport. The entire deadly encounter is caught on tape.
Terry Milewski from the CBC reports, but first we should warn you some of the images you're about to see may be disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TERRY MILEWSKI, REPORTER, CBC (voice over): The last moments of Robert Dziekanski captured by a bystander. It's 1:00 in the morning and he's holding a table at the door to the arrivals area of Vancouver airport.
He's exhausted, confused and breathing heavily. After arriving from Poland on his first-ever plane ride, he's been waiting 10 hours for his mother, who told him to wait in the baggage area, but she couldn't go in there, couldn't get a message to him, and finally went home after being told he never arrived.
A bystander tries to calm Dziekanski down, but he doesn't understand. Then he picks up a computer, throws it.
Then he throws a stool at the glass. A security man appears, but they can't communicate. Another bystander says we need an interpreter here. But the RCMP arrive, and before they get near Dziekanski, one officer asks another, "May I taser him?" And the answer is yes.
As the Mounties approach, a bystander tells him the man speaks no English. For a moment, the four Mounties try to talk to Dziekanski, but it's no good. He seems to shrug and move away, and that is when he is tasered with 50,000 volts of electricity.
He falls and is tasered again. The Mounties pile on top of him as he writhes and moans. At this point the man behind the camera becomes concerned.
PAUL PRITCHARD, BYSTANDER: Probably the most disturbing part is one of the officers uses his leg and his knee to pin his neck and his head against the ground.
MILEWSKI: Within moments, Dziekanski loses consciousness.
We showed the tape to retired superintendent Ron Foyle, a 33-year veteran of the Vancouver Police.
RON FOYLE, VANCOUVER POLICE DEPT. (RET.): I don't know why it ever became a police incident. It didn't seem that he made any threatening gestures toward them.
MILEWSKI: Before the video became public, the RCMP claimed that Dziekanski fought with them. Now that the video has been returned to its owner and he has made it public, the RCMP say it's not the whole story.
CORPORAL DALE CARR, RCMP: But it's only one piece of evidence and it's one person's view. It's through the viewfinder of one individual.
MILEWSKI: But for Dziekanski's mother, the video shows the taser is too dangerous.
ZOFIA CISOWSKI, DZIEKANSKI'S MOTHER: That way from taser, they should do something, because that is killer -- people killer. MILEWSKI (on camera): There will now be several investigations by the coroner, by the RCMP, by the RCMP Complaints Commission. And all of that will take many months. But for Robert Dziekanski's mother, the verdict is already in that her son died for nothing.
Terry Milewski, CBC News, Vancouver.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And next hour we will hear from a woman who witnessed what happened and actually tried to help the victim.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm facing to him and there is a glass door. I was trying just to come down, and he was -- he was quiet. He was asking for help.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: The disturbing images caught on camera. More on this story next hour in the NEWSROOM.
COLLINS: Picking up the pieces in Chile. It's about 24 hours now since a powerful earthquake rocked the country's north, killing at least two people and injuring dozens of others.
Hundreds of homes and buildings were destroyed. The government is now promising to deliver portable homes for those who are left homeless. The 7.7 magnitude quake was so strong it was felt on the other side of the continent in Brazil.
Was someone inside? That is the question this morning in Houston as searchers look for a possible victim in a building implosion.
The Crowne Plaza Hotel was demolished on Sunday, but just before it came crashing down, an outside door was seen closing. The door's closing captured on home video from across the street.
Dogs may have sniffed something yesterday. The recovery effort though is dangerous. Obviously, the debris very unstable. Still, police do not know if someone actually closed the door or if a gust of wind may have closed it.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: More cars than ever are safer to drive now. So that's some good news. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tested them. It says the number of unsafe vehicles tripled in the past year.
Thirty-four 2008 models rose to the top of its annual safest list. Ford's Volvo unit and Honda are riding high, claiming the most number of safe vehicles. Subaru and Hyundai have four on the list. And Toyota Tundra is the first pickup truck that made the grade.
HARRIS: Tonight's execution of a child killer put on hold by a federal court. Now what the parents of the young victim have to say.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Pakistan's slated to shift gears. A caretaker government is supposed to take over today. That's according to a recent promise from embattled president Pervez Musharraf. His term was due to end today, but President Musharraf remains in power because of a state of emergency he ordered.
The Pakistani leader says he has consulted with opposition parties on forming the caretaker government which would guide Pakistan toward parliamentary elections in January. Meanwhile, we are told two of Pakistan's former prime ministers, Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, are discussing forming an alliance against Musharraf.
HARRIS: Well, if you think your gas bill is high, consider the Pentagon's. What is the military doing to ease the pain?
Here is CNN's Barbara Starr.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice over): From Iraq to the high seas, every day the U.S. military guzzles 340,000 barrels of oil in the tanks, ships and planes it uses.
LAWRENCE KORB SR. CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS: If they were a country, they would be the 38th largest consumer of oil.
STARR: And with oil near $100 a barrel, the Pentagon estimates each $10-a-barrel increase in oil costs the military and the taxpayer an additional $1.3 billion a year. To pay the tab, money is sometimes borrowed from other vital military programs.
KORB: But if you look at it in total, you're getting close to $20 billion a year that the Pentagon has to spend on oil.
STARR: The biggest user? The Air Force. Last year, it spent $8 billion a year on fuel, more than half of the military's total energy bill.
The Pentagon is trying to go green just a bit. In September, the Air Force flew this B52 bomber using fuel made not from oil, but from coal.
At China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station in California, the Navy runs one of the largest geothermal power generating stations. And next month, this new solar power array will begin supplying nearly a third of the power for Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.
But with rising oil prices, energy savings are eaten up. In 2005, the military used 14 million barrels of oil less than what it used two years earlier, but paid $3 billion more for it.
GEOFF MORRELL, PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY: Rising oil prices will only make our efforts more expensive and increase the pressures in trying to make due with what little money we have at this point.
STARR (on camera): The week before the war began in Iraq back in 2003, the cost of oil was just under $40 a barrel. Now it's nearly $100 a barrel. The cost of all of this to Americans, about $124 billion.
Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Las Vegas, lost wages, a place where fortunes can change on the roll of a dice or maybe the turn of a phrase. Tonight it is center stage for Democrats gunning to be president.
CNN Chief National Correspondent John King is there.
John, good to see you.
All right, now...
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony.
HARRIS: ... you know, you're a keen observer of these things. Where is the real heat in this debate tonight? I mean, are we going to see some real separation on issues or are we going to be straining to hear the differences between the contenders?
KING: I think they're going to roast some marshmallows, Tony, sing a little Kumbaya. Look, there's a lot of heat -- a lot of heat in the Democratic race right now.
For the first time for about a year, all of the rivals have been trying to knock Hillary Clinton off her game. She is the overwhelming frontrunner, she has all the money, the experience, staff, she's experienced herself. Finally, they believe they have her back on her heels on the immigration issue, on the whole controversy that she first said she thought Governor Spitzer in New York was doing a good idea giving drivers' licenses to illegal immigrants. Now she says she wouldn't do that as president.
So they see a candidate who is being too cautious, too poll- tested, perhaps. They think they have her back on her heels. Even she says the last debate was not her best performance.
So look for a lot of fireworks incoming on Senator Clinton tonight on the immigration issue, on her stand on Iran and other issues. We're getting closer and closer to Iowa, Tony, so every debate has added importance. As the voters begin to tune in a little bit more and her rivals finally trying -- they think they have her wobbling a little bit. The question is, can they wrap it around?
HARRIS: Right. Hey, I've got to ask you, John, did Governor Spitzer do Hillary Clinton a little bit of a favor by pulling that license program off the table the day before the debate?
KING: Well, he did her a bit of a favor, but he is the one who started this mess to begin with, if you will.
HARRIS: Yes. Yes.
KING: Republicans think they have a huge issue here on immigration with conservative Independents, people who voted for the Democrats in the 2006 elections. The Republicans think they can use it in 2008 against the Democrats, but first the Democrats and Republicans are fighting amongst themselves on this issue. Watch what happens tonight.
Senator Clinton says she would not support giving drivers' licenses to illegal immigrants as president. Many of her rivals share that position, but Governor Richardson of New Mexico, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, they think illegal immigrants should get drivers' licenses. So the Democrats are having a policy fight even as they have a political fight over whether Mrs. Clinton's position is evolving because she's listening to voters or whether it's a political calculation.
HARRIS: Yes. This is terrific. Let's stay here for just a moment.
The top-tier candidates here -- let's talk about Obama, Clinton and Edwards -- where do they really stand on this whole idea of immigration? Is it build walls and fences first, or is it go after the employers with the notion being that if you dry up the jobs, you know, the illegal immigrants leave the country?
KING: This is why the fight over drivers' licenses is interesting, because for the most part, Democrats agree on the broad parameters of what they would call comprehensive immigration reform. They think President Bush and Republicans have put -- President Bush initially opposed the fence, remember.
HARRIS: Yes.
KING: So they think Republicans have put too much emphasis on the fence, too much emphasis on border security. The Democrats all say, yes, of course we would improve border security, but we also have to deal with the -- you know, whether it's 10 million or 12 million or 20 million illegal immigrants in this country, the Republicans favor a path to legal status or to citizenship, while the Republicans, of course, say no amnesty, border security first, then deal with everything else.
So there is broad agreement among the Democrats.
HARRIS: Yes.
KING: But with some disagreements that are getting more and more pointed, because you get closer to Election Day, you tend to highlight the disagreements more than you do celebrate your agreements.
HARRIS: Very good.
John King. John, happy you're there for us. Appreciate it. Good to see you.
KING: Thank you.
HARRIS: And again, be sure to tune in tonight for an America votes special. The Democrats debate hosted by Wolf Blitzer live in Las Vegas.
Don't miss Campbell Brown's CNN debut. They're part of the little best team on television.
It all kicks off at 8:00 Eastern.
And ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM, Wolf Blitzer sits down with us to talk about tonight's Sin City showdown.
COLLINS: Delta and United aren't merging -- or are they? Why consolidation has the airlines buzzing.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Delta and United deny rumors of a possible merger between the airline giants, but talk of a potential union between the two just won't seem to let up.
Ali Velshi is here now "Minding Your Business."
OK. Well, I'm not sure. I just don't buy this one, but I understand how people are talking about it and really surprised that it ever even made it into the headlines in any way.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SR. BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: This was one of the strange stories that yesterday pushed really far into the headlines, almost sounding like a done deal. And those who follow the industry a little bit kind of know that that's -- airline consolidation is never a done deal. It's always a very long process. But there's a lot of talk of it because costs continue to be higher for the airlines. These days, it's fuel costs.
COLLINS: Yes.
VELSHI: Delta and United, if you look at the root system and the hub system of these two airlines -- and I think we've got a picture of this that we can show you -- they have hubs in different parts of the country and different strengths.
COLLINS: Yes.
VELSHI: So there are people who think that would make some sense.
COLLINS: Well, that's how they compete, though.
VELSHI: Well, this is the thing. So, you know, you know about this. This is one of those things that they've got to look for ways. Delta and United have both said they're interested in looking for ways to cut costs. A big so shareholder in both of those companies seem to have been floating this rumor yesterday that they are talking about merging, how much it would save them -- about $600 million a year is what they said. Delta's pilots got on board and said, yes, we'd actually would be interested in a deal.
Both airlines have told us it's not happening. Delta said there have been no talks with United regarding any type of consolidation transaction and there are no such ongoing discussions. That was the polite response. The other one we got was from United...
COLLINS: Yes.
VELSHI: ... which said in reference to this company that had been floating these rumors, "We do not respond to wholly inaccurate statements made be people who claim to have knowledge when they clearly do not."
COLLINS: Where did at all start?
VELSHI: Well, I think it's a very big shareholder. It's a hedge fund that invests in both of those companies who has said that they've done the study, they think a merger of these two airlines would make sense and would save a lot of money.
COLLINS: I'm sure they did.
VELSHI: And they sort of floated it out there to get people to comment on it, and a lot of analysts within sort of an hour yesterday were out there saying, yes, this is why this would work or this is why it wouldn't.
COLLINS: I was just shocked to see it, to be perfectly honest with you. In full disclosure, my husband is a pilot for United.
VELSHI: Right. So you know the story fairly well.
COLLINS: Well, you'd think. But, you know, sometimes you never know when you're even that close to it. But in all fairness, there is a lot of talk about consolidation.
VELSHI: Sure.
COLLINS: I would really question a consolidation or merger between the major three.
VELSHI: Right. What you'll probably see is a major airline and a slightly smaller airline.
COLLINS: Exactly.
VELSHI: But that talk is ongoing. Most of the airlines are admitting that they need to manage costs. And part of that is getting a little bit bigger and getting more economy of scale. Airline mergers are complicated things.
COLLINS: Oh yes.
VELSHI: Even if two airlines want to get together, or one wants to take another -- remember US Airways trying to take over Delta.
COLLINS: Yes.
VELSHI: It is a very complicated thing. We will be on that story. It will probably develop over the course of next year, but for the moment, no Delta and United.
COLLINS: No Delta and United. There would be an awful lot of paperwork on that one.
VELSHI: That's exactly right.
COLLINS: Ali Velshi "Minding Your Business."
Thanks, Ali. Good to see you.
VELSHI: Thank you.
HARRIS: Las Vegas, city of lost wages and now lost homes. The foreclosure crisis from the desert to your door.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: OK. Here we go. Bottom of the hour.
Welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris.
COLLINS: Hi there, Tony.
HARRIS: Hey.
COLLINS: I'm Heidi Collins.
HARRIS: Heidi, good to see you. Good morning.
COLLINS: Good morning to you.
And good morning, everybody. Coming to you from New York today. We're right around the corner.
We have the New York Stock Exchange and we are waiting on that opening bell. There it is for Thursday, November 15th. Lots of screaming and yelling there today. Yesterday, I want to let you know, Dow Jones industrial average went down about 76 points or so, rested at 13231 by the end of the trading day.
Today, we're going to be talking a little bit more about those safe cars that we already mentioned. What it means for you if you happen to own one and your insurance. Interesting story there. And also Medicare, the enrollment period for a drug benefit that begins today. We we're going talk with Susan Lisovicz about that and look more at the numbers for you coming up in just a little bit here in the NEWSROOM.
HARRIS: Well, let's talk about frightening news about airport security this morning. Investigators able to smuggle bomb-making components past security checkpoints. The Government Accountability Office says the devices could cause severe damage to an airplane like what happens to this car. Investigators conducted undercover test at 19 airports across the country. The Government Accountability Offices says were able to smuggle bomb materials in their luggage and concealed on their bodies. The Transportation Security Admission says screening check points are just one part of a layered security system and the agency says it is working to improve screener accuracy. CNN was given access to testing where a screener misses a potential danger.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TSA TESTER: What does this look like inside here?
TSA TESTER: Jumpin' out of you.
TSA TESTER: So what do you have there.
TSA TESTER: We have an IED.
TSA TESTER: That's right. You just missed that one.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: OK and another reminder. House Committee is holding a hearing on the findings this morning. Bomb parts getting through airport security six years after 9/11? How could this happen? We talk with former Homeland Security Official Clark Kent Irvin, that's next hour.
COLLINS: The long awaited execution of a child killer had been set for 6:00 p.m. tonight in Florida, but the Supreme Court stepped in because of questions about the chemicals used by the state for lethal injection. Florida is now fighting to get the state overturned. CNN's Susan Candiotti explains the controversy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For Vicky and Junny-Rios Martinez, after waiting more than 16 years, death cannot come soon enough for Mark Dean Schwab. He killed their son.
JUNNY-RIOS MARTINEZ, VICTIM'S FATHER: Murder is against the law. And sooner later, if it's not tomorrow, it's his turn. He's next. And he's not going to walk away from it.
CANDIOTTI: Their son, Junny, was just 11 when Mark Dean Schwab kidnapped, raped, murdered him and stuffed his body in a foot locker. Last-minute defense appeals mainly over whether Florida's lethal cocktail used in executions amounts to cruel and inhumane punishment, could delay the execution. Not surprisingly, Judy's parents don't have much sympathy for that argument.
J. MARTINEZ: Is that this maggot targeted, kidnapped and murdered my son, and everyone seems to forget who the victim is here.
CANDIOTTI: The U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing a Kentucky lethal injection case and until then, as state executions in Texas, Arkansas, Missouri, and Virginia. Schwab is scheduled to be the first execution since Florida's Supreme Court lifted a one-year moratorium on lethal injections. They were put on hold after it took 34 minutes for killer Angel Diaz to die. The executioner missed a vein. A drug mix used in more than 30 states causes' paralysis. Death penalty opponents say it prevents inmates from expressing pain if there is a problem.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Veterinarians in this country will not use this drug mixture to put household pets to sleep because it creates too great a risk of unnecessary pain that is easily avoidable.
CANDIOTTI: For Junny's parents that debate is a symbol of a criminal justice system gone awry.
VICKY MARTINEZ, VICTIM'S MOTHER: As we have the greatest criminal justice system in the world. Victims have no justice. There is no justice system for victims.
CANDIOTTI: Mark Schwab, who looks like a kid himself, was out of prison only about a month on early release for sexual assault when he kidnapped, raped and murdered the boy. Schwab posed as a reporter and spent time at their home for more than three weeks before making his move. Juny's parents want to witness the execution, though it won't end their pain.
J. MARTINEZ: It's a life sentence.
V. MARTINEZ: We'll never have our son back. That's a life sentence that we serve without him.
CANDIOTTI: They plan a celebration this weekend at a park dedicated to their son, no matter what happens to his killer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: And CNN's Susan Candiotti is joining us live. Susan, I wonder, are the courts expected to intervene again in this case?
CANDIOTTI: Well, Heidi, now that the federal appeals court in Atlanta has cleared the way for the execution to proceed, the court, a final review of course is the U.S. Supreme Court. The defense could ask for a hearing at the lower court level in Atlanta, but more likely than not, the final say will come from the Supreme Court. I asked the victim's family whether they are going to make their way over to the prison here to wait for the execution. But, frankly, the father of the victim in this case said, "I've been let down so many times over the course of the last 16 years. I'm sure it's probably going to happen again."
But, in essence, the defense will be asking the Supreme Court to issue a stay in this case, while Supreme Court continues to review, begin the review process of that Kentucky case and it all has to do with a matter of lethal injection, whether it amounts to cruel and unusual punishment.
COLLINS: Yes, it's interesting. I've been reading a lot about this one, Susan. All about the chemicals and I wonder what it is that will be the proper mix to make everyone happy, if that is even remotely possible. All right, I know you'll be following it very closely.
CANDIOTTI: If it is possible.
COLLINS: Yes, absolutely.
CANDIOTTI: They do expect a decision obviously before 6:00 tonight.
COLLINS: OK. Very good. Susan, let us know. Thanks so much. Live from Stark, Florida today.
HARRIS: Bracing now. A powerful cyclone is closing in on Bangladesh and India. The cyclone is expected to make landfall tonight. Authorities are taking no chances and official in Bangladesh says some 3 million people, 3 million are being evacuated. Reynolds Wolf in the severe weather center. Hey, Reynolds, this cyclone expected to bring with it tidal surges as high as 20 feet?
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: You can't get there from here. That could be the feeling in much of Europe today. In Germany, a 3-day-old taxi strike has now extended to the rails. Most passenger trains are stopped, people piling onto buses or into their own cars. And that of course has created massive traffic jams. The outlook maybe a bit better. In France, though, more trains are running today and there is word of possible labor talks with the government. The government had earlier refused to negotiate. At issue, pension reforms including one plan that allows train drivers to retire as young as 50.
HARRIS: She promised to love and honor him but what about his new girlfriend?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You see him with this other woman and they are holding hands. I mean, I would think, you know, it must be hard to see that. Is it hard?
JUNE SCHNYDER, THOMAS' WIFE: In a way, but not totally, because i understand his condition.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: CNN's Gary Tuchman with an Alzheimer's love story.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: In this day and age it's pretty hard to believe, but a New York doctor is accused of reusing needles and syringes on his patients. Today, more than 600 of them are left wondering if they might be infected with HIV or hepatitis c. They have all received warnings from the Health Department. Notices went out after two of the patients came down with Hepatitis C. The Health Department says Dr. Harvey Finkelstein had been reusing for at least five years.
HARRIS: The nation's mortgage crisis won in every 200 homes and foreclosure. The problem is worse than Las Vegas. A city facing high stakes of a different kind. CNN personal finance editor Gerri Willis is there in Las Vegas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good afternoon. May Ace office supply may I help you?
GERRI WILLIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Roger Cook has lived in his Las Vegas home for 30 years but next month he could lose it.
ROGER COOK, LAS VEGAS HOMEOWNER: I've been here 30 years and 30 years, if you check my record and see that for the last 15 years I've never been late on payment up until recently.
WILLIS: Roger used equity in his home to start a small business, but the business hasn't been as successful as hoped and now he can no longer afford the monthly mortgage. Roger is one of nearly 17,000 homeowners caught in Nevada's foreclosure crisis. Realty Track which follows foreclosure data says 1 out of every 48 Las Vegas homes is in foreclosure. The fifth highest rate of any major city. As the real estate market boomed in the last few years, builders, out of town investors, and residents jumped to take advantage of what seemed like a sure bet, a soaring housing market in which prices nearly doubled in just three years. But the gamble didn't pay off for many.
MARK ZANDI, CHIEF ECONOMIST, ECONOMY.COM: The biggest economies is in recession because of the housing downturn. It's now so severe and there's so many people employed in housing related activities and they're losing their jobs that it's pushed the entire economy under.
WILLIS: And political watchers and economists alike think more voters may be looking for a change when they head to the polls.
ZANDI: The situation in places like Vegas, California, Arizona and Florida, parts of the northeast, industrial Midwest is indeed getting worse. I think this will become a very significant political item and could be at the very top of the agenda during the presidential election.
WILLIS: Roger Cook is working with Acorn. A non-profit trying to help him avoid foreclosure and even though he will need to find $9,000 to keep his house, he says he's not planning to move. COOK: I don't have any plans because I don't plan to lose the house. You know, like I say, we've been here 30 years and I just can't even imagine losing it. I can't even see it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS: As you can see, people here are already really excited about the presidential contest. You can see the placards behind me. It's right here in Las Vegas that one in every 48 homes are being foreclosed on. That is a very high rate. Combine that with the fact that oil prices are rising. Combine that with the fact that the dollar is losing value. You've got to think at the end of the day, that the economy is going to emerge as one of the most important issues in this campaign. And nowhere is it more important than right here in Nevada.
Tony?
HARRIS: Gerri, boy, it seems like yesterday I can remember all the stories on the housing boom out there. So, I guess the question is with all of these foreclosures, what is happening to these communities?
WILLIS: Well, you probably heard the numbers. People who live in communities with homes that are in foreclosure, they're losing $5,000 on the value of their home even if they are paying their mortgage each and every month faithfully. But here's what happens in these communities, Tony. These homes, they fall into disrepair, maintenance becomes an issue. You can even have problems with criminal element coming in, setting up house in these abandoned homes. You don't want that to happen. But it can be a problem for folks who are in the middle of this foreclosure crisis.
Tony?
HARRIS: Gerri, let's look ahead. You're back with us next hour. What is coming up in top tips?
WILLIS: Well, we want to talk a little bit about what you do if you're in one of these neighborhoods when your home is in foreclosure. How can you save your house, how can you boost your value when others are going down.
HARRIS: CNN personal finance editor Gerri Willis with us this morning. Gerri, great to see you. Thanks.
COLLINS: Husband, family man, and crocodile hunter. Remembering Steve Irwin. A new statue unveiled today.
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GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Live in an Alzheimer's group home in Las Vegas and they like each other a lot.
My name is Gary. You're Josephine. Hi, Josephine.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
TUCHMAN: And you're Thomas. Hello, Thomas. 80-year-old Josephine does most of the talking.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, thank you.
TUCHMAN: We asked the owner of the group home about Thomas.
CHRIS TAM, LAS VEGAS ALZHEIMER AND MEMORY CARE: He kissed everybody. He say good-bye and then, you know, he just -- he likes to be touched. He likes to joke with our people but he cannot even speak, you know.
TUCHMAN: Josephine is behind you. That is his girlfriend?
TAM: Oh, Josephine, right here, yes.
TUCHMAN: But there's another woman in Thomas' life.
TAM: Well, hello, hi.
TUCHMAN: His bride of 54 years. The woman, who takes care of him, is devoted to him and still loves him.
JUNE SCHNYDER, THOMAS' WIFE: Keeping him calm.
TUCHMAN: Her name is June and she regularly visits her husband who no longer knows who she is. You see him with this other woman and they are holding hands. I mean, I would think, you know, it must be hard to see that. Is it hard?
J. SCHNYDER: In a way, but not totally, because I understand his condition and if he can find someone to make him laugh or talk to, that's fine.
TUCHMAN: This is the husband of former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. He, too, is an Alzheimer's patient who is romancing a fellow patient.
DR. GAIL SALTZ, WEILL-CORNELL SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: Because Alzheimer's affects once judgment and memory, finding someone else isn't the same as actually betraying or stepping out on your spouse whom you know, who you remember, and who you made a commitment to.
TUCHMAN: Do you talk, Thomas?
THOMAS SCHNYDER, ALZHEIMER PATIENT: Yes.
TUCHMAN: Oh, there you go. OK, well it's nice talking to you. Do you like living here?
T. SCHNYDER: Yes.
TUCHMAN: And do you like being with Josephine? T. SCHNYDER: Yes.
TUCHMAN: June gets nostalgic. What was your wedding like?
J. SCHNYDER: Beautiful.
TUCHMAN: She has not forgotten the word she uttered in 1953, to take her husband in sickness and in health.
Here is what I think. That you're very generous and very unselfish. Isn't that what love is all about?
J. SCHNYDER: Oh, yes, yes.
TUCHMAN: The Schnyder's have had a good life and raised two healthy children but now Thomas has two ladies in his life. Gary Tuchman, CNN, Las Vegas.
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COLLINS: The Democrats spar tonight in Las Vegas. Senator Hillary Clinton leading the pack. Here now, CNN's Bill Schneider part of the "Best Political Team On Television."
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BILL SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Who's got the edge in the Nevada democratic race? We asked a Nevada congresswoman.
SHELLEY BERKLEY, REPRESENTATIVE (D) NEVADA: I know that Hillary is ahead 2-1.
SCHNEIDER: Close? Hillary Clinton leads Barack Obama by a little more than 2-1 in Nevada. The CNN poll conducted by the Opinion Research Corporation shows the New York senator with majority support in the silver state. That's better than she's doing in the two states that vote before Nevada. "The New York Times" CBS news poll shows a virtual three-way tie in Iowa. Clinton, John Edwards, and Obama are within a few points of each in the lead-off state. Clinton is clearly ahead in New Hampshire but still short of her Nevada majority. What's driving the Clinton vote? One word -- electability.
Nevada Democrats choose Clinton as having far and away the best chance of beating the republican ticket next year. Iowa and New Hampshire Democrats also give her the edge on electability. What gives her that edge? Experience.
BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: I'm here because I believe that Hillary is the best qualified person, best suited to this time, any non-incumbent I've had a chance to vote for in 40 years as a voter.
SCHNEIDER: Nevada Democrats appear to agree. They see Clinton as the most qualified candidate to be commander-in-chief. Obama is running as the candidate of change but in Nevada, Clinton has the edge on change. What about the heat she has taken for not being clear on the issues?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In the course of three minutes, I heard Senator Clinton say two different things.
SCHNEIDER: Nevada Democrats don't share that view. Where is Clinton weakest? Likability where she has a narrower lead among Nevada Democrats and honesty where she stands out even less.
It's not mainly personal qualities that's putting Hillary Clinton over with Democrats. It's the view that she is experienced and she's a winner. Bill Schneider, CNN, Las Vegas.
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COLLINS: And just another quick reminder. Be sure to tune in tonight for an America vote special. "The Democrats Debate" hosted by Wolf Blitzer live in Las Vegas. Don't miss Campbell Brown's CNN debut. They're part of "The Best Political Team On Television." It all kicks off at 8:00 eastern.
And ahead right here in the CNN NEWSROOM, Wolf Blitzer is going to sit down and talk with us a little bit about tonight's sin city showdown, so look forward to that.
COLLINS: Talking medical news now. If you thought acne was just a condition for teens. Think again. It is the most common skin disorder in the country affecting nearly 50 million Americans, many of them adults. Here's CNN's medical correspondent Judy Fortin.
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JUDY FORTIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's like a bad dream. 51-year- old Narva Simmons has been battling a condition she thought was over when she was a teen.
NARVA SIMMONS (ph), ACNE PATIENT: One day I just woke up and had major acne.
FORTIN: Surprisingly, Narva is not alone. Acne usually begins at puberty but don't be fooled. The condition isn't restricted to any age group and adult acne is on the rise and cases are significantly higher in women. It usually appears on the face. But can also pop up on the arms, legs, buttocks and torso. Contrary to popular belief, acne is not caused by poor hygiene or by eating certain foods.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Basically, people's skin doesn't process oil quite normally and so they get breakouts.
FORTIN: In your 30s, those outbreaks are typically caused by hormonal changes, both estrogen and testosterone. In women, it's often related to childbirth or stopping the pill.
SIMMONS: In my late 30s, I would have like one bump here, one bump here, and, you know, would go to the store and get a little antiseptic to put on and it would clear up. FORTIN: The earlier you start to treat your acne, the better. Wash affected areas at least twice a day with mild soap and warm water. Don't scrub. That can irritate your skin and make acne worse.
SIMMONS: In my mid-40s, there's huge acne breakout. Not a clear spot on my face. And it was like big acne. I mean, acne to the point that I didn't want to come outside.
FORTIN: In your 40s, add stress to the mix. Oils from cosmetics, even sun damage.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They get blackheads which they haven't had in 20 years. They get what are called Millia which are little white cysts around their eye lids and on their forehead and that seem to be related to sun damage from years ago.
FORTIN: By 50, you're back to hormonal changes as the main culprit. Menopause can wreak havoc on your skin. Some acne will clear up without treatment, but there are plenty of topical creams and lotions that can do the trick. Antibiotics are often used and in unresponsive or severe cases like, Narva's, the drug Accutane could be prescribed. Severe cases can lead to permanent scarring so see a dermatologist early if your acne doesn't respond to over-the-counter medication. Judy Fortin, CNN, Atlanta.
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COLLINS: The police can be there before the paint is dry. One community's hard line of graffiti with a high tech twist.
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