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Tornadoes Strike Midwest; Barack Tops Polls in New Hampshire; GOP Candidates Vie for First; River Floods in Indiana

Aired January 08, 2008 - 13:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: Seven hours to go before the polls close in New Hampshire.
DON LEMON, CO-HOST: Seven more hours for voters to make their picks in the nation's first presidential primary and for the candidates to lure the undecideds to their side.

PHILLIPS: The best political team on television is with us every hour of the way. Joe Johns for the Democrats, Dana Bash covering the Republicans.

Good afternoon, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips.

LEMON: And I'm Don Lemon. Live at the CNN headquarters in Atlanta, you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

What began as a welcome warm-up in January gives way to rare tornadoes across the heartland. Take a look at this. Live pictures now coming in from Kenosha County. That's in Wisconsin. Look at that. Homes there flattened. These storms rolled through yesterday. And as our Chad Myers is going to tell us, killing several people: at least two people dead in southwest Missouri and homes blown off their foundations in Wisconsin there. That's new video just coming into the CNN NEWSROOM.

Chad Myers checking it all out for us.

Any new watches or warnings when it comes to that, and what should we be looking for, Chad?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Nowhere near this area are there watches and warnings, but there are watches now back into Arkansas, parts of Tennessee and in that whole area kind of centered around Memphis, from Little Rock to Memphis. That's the bogey for today.

But here are some -- we just turned this tape, because literally, this just came in. And you can really begin to see it. I believe this is near the town of Wheatland, and that would be west of Kenosha, west -- kind of southwest of Racine.

There's a couple houses here, maybe three houses in a row. This one hit pretty hard, but the one in the middle, over there by the cars, doesn't even exist anymore. And then the one just next door to that, completely fine.

So clearly a tornado, a small, maybe less than 50-yard or 100- yard wide tornado, doing a lot of damage to the shingles there but not doing the damage that the tornado did just next door. That's how picky this can be and how, basically, we know that this was not a wind event. A wind event would have done probably similar damage to all the homes.

When you have two houses that are still standing and one in the middle that's completely not standing, you know that that was a tornado event.

And that was the same what happened somewhere between 4:30 and 5:30. They started near Rockford in Illinois and moved across the Illinois-Wisconsin line and then across right back up into Racine. Then another round went down near Kenosha, and then another round developed again even farther south than that into Illinois.

Here are some live pictures again. Now, you have to understand, this is WLS. This is our affiliate in Chicago. And we're getting new pictures from Wisconsin. So it's a little bit of a distance there. And sometimes these pictures will break up, just as I talk, because the signal can't go back to the tower perfectly all the time because of the distance. But we appreciate WLS flying out there and giving us these devastating pictures.

Looks like there's a lot of people are there trying to help those people out. And so now is the time you know who your friends really are.

LEMON: Absolutely, Chad. When we were talking about this just during the cut, during our international hour here. We said that two people were left dead in southwest Missouri. We talked about that. And Kenosha County, Wisconsin, houses were flattened, cars blown off the road and people ran for their lives.

Again, they said it was a locomotive sound. At least a dozen -- more than a dozen injuries reported in Kenosha County.

MYERS: And in fact, in one spot, a tractor-trailer was blown off, and a train itself was completely blown off the tracks because of these tornadoes. It was actually more than one. These are kind of long tracks. Smaller tornadoes but on the ground a very long time.

LEMON: Yes. We're going to be talking about this more throughout afternoon. Chad, we appreciate your expertise.

MYERS: You're welcome.

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's turn to New Hampshire primary coverage now. Let's begin with Joe Johns live in Manchester.

Joe, Barack Obama's Democratic rivals have their sights set on him. And if the latest poll numbers hold true, it looks like they're going to have to catch up to him. Yes?

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well if he's running as strong as they say he's running, the next question obviously is what is the Hillary Clinton campaign going to do about it? The first thing, obviously, you do is you reach out to your donors and contributors and say, "Hold on. It's not over yet."

But then there comes a point when you've really got to figure out how much you're going to take off the gloves on a candidate like Barack Obama. They've done some of that, but an indicator of what's coming next came from former president Bill Clinton, the candidate's husband, who was appearing last night at an event in Hanover, New Hampshire.

He talked about Obama, saying, in his view, Obama's basically gotten a pass on his views on the Iraq war. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It is wrong that Senator Obama got to go through 15 debates trumpeting his superior judgment and how he has been against the war every year, enumerating the years, and never got asked one time -- not once -- well, how could you say that when you said in 2004 you didn't know how you would have voted on the resolution, you said in 2004 there was no difference between you and George Bush on the war, and you took that speech you're now running on off your Web site in 2004, and there is no difference in your voting record and Hillary's ever since.

Give me a break. This whole thing is the biggest fairytale I've ever seen.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNS: So right now, here in New Hampshire, reports of very large turnout, a lot of people going to the polls. As you know, that's the great equalizer. Everybody plans to try to get their voters out. But when you're talking about new voters, there could be a completely different thing. So excitement brewing here in New Hampshire today, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: No doubt. We'll be following it all with you, Joe Johns. Thanks.

LEMON: Now let's get into the Republican race. For John McCain and Mitt Romney, this primary could make or break their campaigns. Let's get straight to Nashua, New Hampshire and CNN's Dana Bash.

Dana, it looks like the fireworks are sparking on the Democratic side. Same thing happening on the Republican side?

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the same thing is happening. What really is happening is a mad dash by all of these candidates to get to as many polling places as possible.

I'm actually at a polling place, as you mentioned, in Nashua, New Hampshire. John McCain was here not too long ago, and he was absolutely crushed by supporters who were driven in here, many of whom came from around the state. Of course, John McCain is a favorite here in New Hampshire, to say the least, because of the time he had spent here, both in 2000 when he won and again this year and trying to build back up his campaign, which really had been faltering big-time since the summer.

Now he is certainly somebody who is banking on, really needs, not just a No. 2 here, Don. He needs a win in order for his campaign to be viable at all beyond the state of New Hampshire.

So certainly, he is exuding some confidence. He is a superstitious man, so he's trying to be careful not to say too much about that. But he -- at one polling place and we're going to see him later tonight at his headquarters.

Mitt Romney, for his part, he hit several polling places and talked pretty much at every stop to reporters -- not just voters but also reporters -- saying that he is increasingly confident. He says that he thinks he might win here.

He says that the reason for that is because, in the calls that his campaign, they were making last night -- and his campaign made a lot of calls, 78,000 calls to supporters and undecideds yesterday, he said just anecdotal evidence is that undecideds were coming his way. That is why he appears to think that he has a bit more of a spring in his step today.

But it's really unclear what is going to happen to him, if he doesn't come in No. 1, beyond New Hampshire. Because he is, of course, the former governor of the neighboring state. And he insists, though, if he doesn't do well here, he's not in for it. Listen to what he said earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm expecting to get No. 1 or No. 2 here. I know that at the end of the night, almost certainly I will have received more votes for president than anyone else on the Republican side, and so win or lose, we're going onto Michigan. And we're going to win some more primaries, and we're going to be able to win this nomination.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now that's the race between Mitt Romney and John McCain for No. 1. There's another very important thing to watch for, and that is who comes in No. 3 here. It is because we're looking to see if Mike Huckabee, the winner of the Iowa caucuses, can get any kind of bounce out of that, particularly in a state like New Hampshire, where they're a lot more interested in taxes and in getting government out of their lives than in things like religion or social issues. Those are the things that propelled his victory in Iowa.

So if he can eke out a No. 3 and surpass Rudy Giuliani, that could say something about Mike Huckabee's viability, certainly, but it also could say something about Rudy Giuliani.

Don, Rudy Giuliani had been campaigning here pretty aggressively in New Hampshire. He pulled some of his money out, and he has been focusing not here recently, because he hasn't been doing that well. He's been focusing on later states. And if he doesn't do that well here, it could be an indicator or perhaps put into question whether or not his strategy, his long-term strategy can be viable.

LEMON: Can be viable. And if it's going to pay off, as a matter of fact. OK, Dana Bash, thank you very much for that report.

PHILLIPS: And much more New Hampshire primary coverage for you from the best political team on TV. Coming up, New Hampshire Governor John Lynch live in the NEWSROOM. Which way will his state's undecided voters sway?

Plus, we'll go live to the polls and talk to the voters themselves.

And the buzz isn't just in the voting booths today; it's also on the blogs. We'll log on in the NEWSROOM.

And the New Hampshire primary live from the CNN election center, of course. Stay with us for a full night of updates, results as they happen from the best political team on television. Our special coverage begins at 8 Eastern.

And right now you can be a part of the best political team on television. If you're in New Hampshire, we want to know what it's like on the streets, in the cafes, in the voting booths. What are you talking about at home? Send us your video, pictures -- and pictures -- and/or pictures to CNNPolitics.com. We're going to feature some of your I-Reports in our special election coverage tonight.

LEMON: I tell you, we've got it all covered when it comes to politics but we also have it covered when it comes to weather. Take a look at these pictures coming in from Wisconsin, part of just a system that went through there.

Some were saying yesterday, some of the meteorologists were saying that this was a freak system and tornadoes going through. Our weather department -- I know, I just saw it come across the wires here -- getting some new information from the National Weather Service on these pictures and on this storm that happened in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Also not only in Wisconsin; it happened in Missouri, as well. Several people were killed and dozens more injured. We're going to follow that. Our Chad Myers will have it for you when we come back. He's working on it right there. There he is, Chad Myers.

Meantime, Kenya in crisis. The African nation is still reeling from election-related violence. We'll hear from our State Department correspondent, Zain Verjee, who grew up in Nairobi during some troubled times. And she'll tell us about a phone call White House hopeful Barack Obama made to his father's homeland.

PHILLIPS: And if you're a man and a worrywart, you better take notice. It might affect your heart.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: Take a look at this new video just into the CNN NEWSROOM. It's from our affiliate WTHR. We appreciate them for that. People who live along -- this is the Tippecanoe River, they're heading for higher ground today. They're worried a dam won't hold after storms dumped five inches of rain on that area of Indiana.

But some say roads were washed out there. Rescue crews are helping evacuate some folks. It's happening by boat.

Chad, just new information we're getting on the wires here.

MYERS: Yes.

LEMON: Over 150 people, I'm told, are staying in emergency shelters here. And they're preparing, if the rain continues, to raise the level of the Wabash River, Red Cross helping out. They're in trouble there.

MYERS: Yes, they really are. And that's the dam right there you see. I'm looking at it here now.

Now the rain is really over for that area, completely over. But this is the Tippecanoe River. And this area here, this Monticello, is really a resort community more than anything else. I mean, there are beautiful homes all along this river, and the town itself basically will support a lot of these resort areas.

This is right along the Tippecanoe River. And they're letting the water out here, it looks like, as fast as they can. And that's the problem; they can't slow it down, even though these reservoirs are supposed to be flood control projects. You can't let the water go over the top of the dam, and you can't let it get on the sides, out through the sluices either. So they're letting this water out as quickly, but yet as cautiously, as they can to not flood the town. And they don't want that. Obviously, they don't want to breach that dam there.

Still not up to the bridge here. Noticing here, there are still cars crossing this bridge. And that's a great sign. When the engineers don't believe that there's any problems with the structure of the bridge, they can still let cars go across.

As soon as you're getting -- and it's hard to see now, because it's gone to black, but as soon as you start to see the people stop using the bridges, that means they're afraid that the sides of the bridges are being washed away and so maybe the structure's not going to be complete. So they take people out, and they say, "No, you can't use that bridge anymore."

At least at this point in time, guys, they're still using it.

LEMON: Hey, Chad, do you see that dam there? Is that the dam we're looking at as you're talking about the water?

MYERS: That's the dam, yes, up by Francis Street, way up on the north side of town. And then this dam just goes back probably -- probably this lake is not more than ten miles long at the very, very -- at the very, very most.

This is Lake Shafer on the north side of the town.

LEMON: All right, Chad. That's our breaking news today. We'll take you to live pictures there, right there. That's the Tippecanoe. Correct? Am I correct?

MYERS: That is the Tippecanoe River, right. Lake Shafer. And then below that, you get a little bit farther to the south, you go through Norway then into Monticello, East Monticello and then you keep going down the river. And then Lake Freeman is actually south of there.

You can see the water standing in all of those farm fields and stuff. Obviously, a lot of this water is running off.

If you go north of there up where the water is obviously coming from, they had five to seven inches of rain last night in 24 hours. So the rain has to go somewhere. It's going in the rivers.

LEMON: Yes, you said the rain is over, which is good. But here's the important part of the story: 150 people don't have homes right now.

So thank you, Chad. We'll be checking back.

PHILLIPS: Well, a state in the spotlight today in the race for the White House. We're going to talk about the New Hampshire primary with Governor John Lynch.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: One-nineteen Eastern Time right now. Here's three of the stories we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.

New video out of Illinois, just a taste of the destruction caused by more than three dozen tornados that have swept across the nation's midsection last night. And it's not over yet. A reported tornado killed one person today in central Arkansas.

Miami police trying to find out who killed one of their own. Thirty-year-old off-duty detective James Walker was found shot to death in an unmarked patrol car. A Miami Police spokesperson says the car was so riddled with bullet holes it was made into Swiss cheese.

A strategic partner in the war on terror. That's what President Bush calls Turkey after meeting with the country's president today. Turkey has recently staged a string of air strikes in northern Iraq against Kurdish rebels, a group the U.S. considers a terrorist organization.

LEMON: Well, stocks have stayed flat. They've gone down. They've moved every way but up since the beginning of the year. Susan Lisovicz, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange to tell us what it means now and for the rest of 2008.

By the way, happy new year.

Hi, Susan.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Happy new year to you, Don. Welcome back. And I think Santa needed to bring me a flak jacket, because it has been a rough start to the year.

And you know, what we're seeing is really a mirror of what we saw yesterday where stocks tried to rally and really couldn't hold it. We had green arrows, and they turned red. Now we're kind of flat.

And you know, there's this whole thing called a January effect. Remarkably accurate barometer of where stocks will end up for the year. If you look at -- that is the S&P 500, the broadest of the three major averages.

If you look at what they did the first five days of the year, the first five days of this year have been real rough. And let's just take a look at the big boar right now. We're looking at losses. But they're minor. The Dow is down 10 points. The NASDAQ is on the plus side right now but has had seven straight consecutive declines. Some real rough going for the NASDAQ.

And by the way, something that's moving to the up side big-time is oil prices. Oil right now up $1.79 at $96.88 a barrel. We're expecting -- let me see -- the seventh weekly decline in inventories. We get those numbers out tomorrow morning, Don.

LEMON: You got me excited. You said something was moving. I thought the stocks were going up. But oil prices. OK.

LISOVICZ: We've got a few standouts here and there, but the -- the overall theme is down.

LEMON: I got to ask you, with all of this and, from what I've been reading, there's concerns, of course, by investors about recession. Talk to us about that.

LISOVICZ: Well, you know, it all started with the housing market, and then it spread to mortgages and the credit market on Wall Street. You know the drill.

And we got more bad news from the housing market today. Pending home sales turned lower in November, a reading that came in worse than expected. The National Association of Realtors, which conducts the survey, cut its price estimates for the current quarter to a more steep drop. It had been predicting modest price gains for 2008. Now it says those gains won't come until 2009.

Its economist points out so many folks out there are waiting till what they think is the bottom. And it's hard to tell when they'll jump in. And when we'll actually see price improvement.

One stock in that sector that's really taking a beating yet again is Countrywide Financial, which is the nation's largest mortgage lender. Its shares are down 20 -- 20 percent today, down 84 percent since the beginning of last year.

Countrywide facing a funding shortage. We've talked about it. Many -- many say that it will actually fall into bankruptcy. That would be terrible.

"The New York Times" is saying that, in addition to those woes, the company fabricated documents associated with a bankruptcy case in Pennsylvania. And obviously, that would not be good news. The whole threat of litigation -- an investigation would just be terrible indeed. And that stock continues to erode.

Right now, by the way though, the Dow has turned positive. Mr. Lemon, it's up four points. And in the next hour we're going to talk about something else that turned up, which is online spending for the holidays. It continues to see gains there.

Yes. Enjoy those big robust gains!

LEMON: Yes, very interesting. Up four points. At least it's up. All right, Susan, thank you.

LISOVICZ: See you in the next hour.

LEMON: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Her body was found in the forest. Now an awful closure in the disappearance of a young Georgia hiker.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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

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

Well, it's already getting exciting there in New Hampshire. We're getting word now, apparently there are reports that some of the polling places are running low on ballots in New Hampshire.

Good news is the voter turnout is high. The down side is, according to the secretary of state's office there, that they're having -- they're receiving a lot of phone calls that these polling places are getting low on ballots in certain locations, particularly Democratic ballots. Pretty interesting.

You know, New Hampshire and it's presidential primary are front and center today in the race for the White House. The state is no longer the staunch Republican bastion that it once was. And we're seeing this, even with this developing news about ballots.

A lot of changes have been taking place there. And the state's Democratic governor, John Lynch, joins us now live from Manchester.

And I know you're just getting word of this, too, Governor, because you've been doing a number of interviews. So what are you going to do about these ballots running low? And you're probably not surprised that you have had high turnout today.

GOV. JOHN LYNCH (D), NEW HAMPSHIRE: Well, the secretary of state has predicted a record turnout of 500,000 voters, which would eclipse a previous record of 396,000 set in 2000. We're seeing tremendous excitement, enthusiasm all over the state. So it's an important day for New Hampshire and for the country.

PHILLIPS: Well, and this is interesting, too -- the report is that in certain locations, they're running particularly low on Democratic ballots.

And I came across this one quote in the "Christian Science Monitor" talking about your state. It said, "The Republican Party and New England's only red state may be going the way of the Old Man on the Mountain, the craggy icon of independence that crumbled a few years back in a rock slide."

What's going on?

LYNCH: Well, as I said, we are expecting 500,000 voters, 150,000 of whom will be independents. Now the secretary of state has also predicted of those 150,000 independents, 90,000 will choose Democratic ballots. So it's clear that more of the independents will be voting on the Democratic side than the Republican side.

PHILLIPS: Well, is it because the demographics in your state are changing? And why is that? I'm assuming it's Baby Boomers moving to that state, a number of other issues that they're finding attractive.

LYNCH: Well, I think it's that. But I don't really characterize New Hampshire as a red state or a blue state or a purple state. I mean, we're a state where we just try to work together to solve problems. We're a state where Republicans and Democrats come together to address the issues and the challenges facing New Hampshire. And I pride ourselves on the way we approach problems and bring people together in basically a bipartisan way.

PHILLIPS: Well, let's talk about the Republican side. Last time around New Hampshire picked McCain. And, in the polls now he is on top again. What is it about him that your state's voters like so much?

LYNCH: Well, I think we are a state where we pride ourselves on our independence. But I also think there's something else more fundamental about this election. As I travel around New Hampshire, voters tell me over and over again, the citizens tell me, that they like the way we work together, they like the way we address problems in a bipartisan way.

And at the same time, they are frustrated with Washington. Frustrated with the partisanship and the bickering and the polarization that happens in Washington. So I think this need for change is something that I've heard here in New Hampshire.

People want the elected officials in Washington to work together to solve problems. I think we're beginning to see the candidates across the board deliver messages that would resonate with the voters in this respect.

PHILLIPS: Well the Independents, I mean that's what propelled you to two victories as well -- that's sort of the wild card here. Correct?

LYNCH: Certainly. If 90,000 Independents vote on the Democratic side, 60,000 Independents vote on the Republican side, clearly the Independents will have a major impact on the elections on both sides.

PHILLIPS: Now your wife endorsed Hillary Clinton. You haven't endorsed anyone yet. Right?

LYNCH: That's correct. I have gone out of my way to meet with Republicans and Democratic candidates. I really wanted to be ambassador for New Hampshire and do everything that I could possibly do to preserve New Hampshire traditional's role as the first in the nation primary.

PHILLIPS: Governor, you speak like a politician. Governor John Lynch there from New Hampshire, appreciate your time today.

LYNCH: Okay, thanks for having me on.

PHILLIPS: You can see all the day's political news any time day or night at CNN.com/ticker. We are constantly updating it for you, and the latest from the candidates on the campaign trail and the New Hampshire primary live from the CNN election center. Stay with us for a full night of updates and results as they happen from the best political team on television, our special coverage begins at 8:00 eastern.

LEMON: CNN NEWSROOM is humming today especially the National Desk. Let's get over to our National Desk now, Betty Nguyen showing us what we are working on today. Hi, Betty. What do we have?

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Don. Yes, I'm here at the National Desk where you can see our assignment editors are hard at work with stories that are coming in to CNN from our hundreds of affiliates across the nation. They are getting new video, new information.

So, let's head straight to San Francisco, shall we, for the first story we have up for you today. It is indeed a sad story. Friends and family turned out for the memorial for the teenager killed by a Siberian tiger at the San Francisco Zoo on Christmas day. Remember that?

Well 17-year-old Carlos Souza, Jr. was remembered by many as a quote, "great kid" that would do anything out of the kindness of his heart. This story as you well know has drawn international attention and a lot of speculation. Some reports have painted the picture that the victims taunted the tiger which the surviving victims, their attorneys and even the police have denied.

Now we want to take you to Miami. In a strange string of events, look at this car right here. One police officer in the city has been found shot to death in his unmarked patrol car. Detective James Walker's car was so full of bullet holes, it's been compared to Swiss cheese. Police say they have no idea why Walker was even in that area.

But today he is no longer alive and an investigation is underway as to what exactly happened. Especially with some bullet holes in his unmarked vehicle. So, we are on top of that story, Don. As soon as we get more information, of course we'll bring it straight to you.

LEMON: All right, Betty Nguyen on top of things at our National Desk today. Betty, of course we appreciate that.

Let's talk about something else happening in this country. A trail of grim clues scattered around north Georgia. A man in custody now finally a body. Missing hiker Meredith Emerson was found dead last night in a remote forest. But even as her family gets some answers, questions mount about the man charged in this case.

We have the very latest for us from CNN's Rusty Dornin. This has captured everyone here in Georgia and the Atlanta area, but really the country. This -- it seems very creepy.

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It does, and it's also frightening I think for many women like myself who hike in the woods and that sort of thing. In the beginning it seemed as though this Gary Michael Hilton was rather uncooperative with authorities in terms of trying to find anything out anything about where Emerson might be.

And then after they found the body, the authorities said that after his court hearing where he was standing up to charges of kidnapping with intent to commit bodily harm, for some reason he had a change of heart, he decided to tell authorities.

Not only tell them, he led them personally to the spot out in the woods, which is in Dawson Woods a state park, about an hour away from where she had vanished or where she had been hiking on that New Year's Day. Now they won't say anything else about it, they won't say what condition her body was in, how far inside the park it was, anything.

The autopsy is going on today. And her family is going to be speaking out later this afternoon and have some kind of statement.

LEMON: Just sitting here watching the news locally -- I know we've carried it here nationally on CNN, I mean just heartbreaking listening to the family. I think it was the uncle or someone last night, said you have no idea what we lost.

DORNIN: The agony. And of course, now there are people in other states asking the same question.

LEMON: Yes, the links to other crimes. Is that a possibility?

DORNIN: Well, they are talking about it. It is too early in the investigation to really know for sure, but North Carolina's talking about the elderly couple, they were both hiking on a trail, she'd been bludgeoned to death. ATM video shows a man in a yellow jacket. Well, Hilton was seen talking to Emerson on the trail that New Year's Day wearing a yellow jacket. Now, that yellow jacket you see there apparently did belong to John Bryant, the man who they believe is dead. North Carolina authorities are not saying if there is a link or not, but they are talking.

Now Florida is asking about a homicide in early December. But, the thing there is that she wasn't hiking. Cheryl Dunlap apparently had a flat tire on her way to the library, she disappeared and then her body was found in a forest in Florida, the Appalachicola Forest later -- about two weeks later.

And also a man was seen at an ATM wearing some kind of mask and a shirt unrecognizable. So, they are looking into that but no one is willing to say whether there is a link at this time. They really have to take a lot more -- look at forensic evidence.

LEMON: And even the possibility, wow, is just scary. OK, Rusty on top of this story. Thank you very much for that. We have something else, too, for our friends -- from our friends at CNN.com and truTV we've teamed up to bring you the best crime and justice coverage available anywhere. Check it out, click onto CNN.com/crime for the very latest.

PHILLIPS: Was Kenya's presidential election was rigged? That's what a U.S. enjoy says. Unexpected help to end the crisis may come from the U.S. campaign trail. Which American presidential hopeful is reaching out?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Presidential hopeful Barack Obama is trying to diffuse tensions over Kenya's disputed election. He reportedly plans to call Kenya's president and phone the opposition leader yesterday. Obama's father was Kenyan and all this comes as the chief U.S. envoy to Africa confirms that there was cheating.

Our Zain Verjee looks at the impact of the violence in Nairobi.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: I've come to one of the places here in Kenya that have been completely burned to the ground after the riot. This used to be a really vibrant place where loads of Kenyans would get together, they would have drinks and hang out, basically. This used to be a bar, Kenyans after work gathered traditionally for a Tusker beer and a food here called nyama choma, which is a kind of barbecued meat.

This used to be a butchery. And this looks like it was a newspaper stand. You can still see the remnants of the burned-out pieces of magazines and newspapers that used to be here. Kenya is filled with open-air markets like this. They're all over the country.

They're usually jam-packed with people here buying and selling their goods, apples, oranges, bananas, shoes, clothes, anything under the sun, literally. But as you can see, for the large part, there is nobody here. They're too afraid to come and sell their goods. Simply because of the violence that's been going on.

Also the different ethnic groups here are afraid that they'll be targeted. Only a handful of people have come to sell their wares, like clothes and jackets. And this lady here is just hoping that someone will buy something. Mama [ speaking foreign language ] I'll buy one today. So, at least I'll be good for business.

That is Nairobi's central business district and just across from it is a Uhuru Park. If you will, it's kind of like Nairobi's central park. Uhuru means independence, and a lot of political rallies have been held in Uhuru Park.

This is the place where the government has also been really tense simply because they don't want the opposition to unite and rally over here. So, what they've done, as you can see is that they've deployed what are know here as the paramilitary general service unit. They're armed with shields and batons as well. In some instances many of them have been armed as well, just to keep people out.

The reason that Nairobi hasn't really been touched in this area by any of the violence is simply because the GSU and other forces have been spread out and they've reamed the city not to allow any violence to happen. So a lot of the destruction, a lot of the damage that we've seen is actually on the outskirts of Nairobi, and beyond.

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PHILLIPS: Zain joins us now, live from Nairobi where she grew up. And it has not always been a democracy as you grew up there, right, Zain?

VERJEE: Right, that's exactly right, Kyra. We were never really allowed to speak openly about politics, at all. There was only one television channel and that was state-run TV. Whenever the president's motorcade came by, we had to stop our cars and get out and pay our respects and there was only one party and one president to vote for and that was the real issue. It was very exciting in Kenya when we had multi-party democracy in the mid '90s. And that's why this election, Kyra, was such a big deal, because there was finally free speech and a close election -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: You also told me about 1982 where had you to lock yourself in a room during a coup. Did that -- can you compare that to the violence now?

VERJEE: Well, that was really the last time we saw that kind of violence in Kenya, was that failed coup attempt to overthrow the then- president Daniel arap Moi back in 1982. I was 8-years-old and I distinctly remember hearing gunshots for about three days outside our home. There was a lot of looting, particularly in the residential areas. So what my parents and my brother and I did is that we locked ourselves in a room and put a closet behind the door and just stayed there for about three days before we went out. But it was just as bad then as it was now.

PHILLIPS: Wow. You're seeing it all these years later up close and personal. Let me ask you about Barack Obama. Apparently he either called or is getting ready to call the president of Kenya and he also reached out to the opposition leader as well about the chaos. Tell me about that.

VERJEE: He is, he is. He says he's getting ready to call the president of Kenya. That was actually according to the opposition leader's spokesman who I just talked to a short while ago. What the spokesman told me was that he had a conversation with the opposition leader here, Ralia Odinga that lasted a few minutes.

And he said basically that Obama expressed serious concerns about the outcome of the elections here and Obama himself made a statement a few hours later, and essentially said that the opposition leader and the president need to get together. They need to meet and resolve these issues, and even a photo op like that is going to send a really powerful message to Kenyans that want to see their leaders sort out this major disaster. And one more interesting nugget I got from the spokesman, Kyra. He says that Barack Obama's father is also Raila Odinga's uncle. So they are from the same tribe, but that was something we learned that was pretty interesting.

PHILLIPS: That is interesting. We'll follow up on that. Zain Verjee, great work from your home area there. Appreciate it.

VERJEE: Thanks Kyra.

LEMON: No surprise that when you worry your blood pressure shoots right up. Guess what else goes up? Our medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, joins us next in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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LEMON: I got a couple questions for you. Are you always worried about something, intent to keep things bottled up inside? No? OK, well a new study shows that may not be wise, or healthy, at least for us men. Why for us men? Elizabeth Cohen, our medical correspondent -- wait a minute. Why for men?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well the study was done on men, but probably the results, what they found in the study, probably pertains to women as well. And what they say makes a lot of sense, sort of intuitively. That it is not a good idea to keep things bottled up inside.

What these researchers in South Carolina did is they looked at more than 700 men and they saw who was the most anxious and stressed out and they found that the men who were the most anxious and stressed out, were 30 to 40 percent more likely to have a heart attack. So, the lesson from this is pretty clear. If you are a stressed-out and anxious and worried, you got to do something about it.

Some people like to talk to friends, some people like to talk to a therapist, other people like to do deep yoga breathing, other people take drugs -- prescription drugs, I mean. So, there are lots of options. But you don't want to just not do anything. It is sort of similar to having high cholesterol or high blood pressure. You just can't let that happen.

LEMON: I don't know, I mean this is just sort off the cuff here, but maybe it is the way we're raised, men aren't supposed to express themselves, women express themselves.

COHEN: That's true. That's true.

LEMON: They cry, they de-stress and all of that.

COHEN: Sure.

LEMON: OK, so intuitively we know that all this anxiety can probably cause some problems. But physiologically, what's the connection here? Why does this happen?

COHEN: Well you know, when you are stressed out or anxious, you maybe can even feel your heart beating faster. It actually sends your heart rate up, anxiety also can send your blood pressure up. But what a lot of people don't know is that there are things called stress hormones. So when you get stressed out your hormone levels can get way out of whack and your hormones affect your heart. So, it really does have a definite physical effect.

LEMON: All right, so we know about stress and anxiety. Are there are other emotions, too, that can cause heart attacks? I would imagine grief, possibly or a break up? I don't know.

COHEN: Grief of even more, depression. If it's a break-up, you're upset for a while but you move on. That's probably not as big of a deal. But depression that goes on and on, people like that, higher chance of them having a heart attack. Also people who are hostile, angry and don't do anything about it also puts you at a higher risk for a heart attack.

LEMON: So get it out.

COHEN: Get it out. Not on someone else but in a safe and healthy way.

LEMON: Yes, get it out. Do some deep breathing. Yoga, meditate, pray. Whatever it is.

COHEN: Something, right. Whatever you want to do.

LEMON: Sack (ph) someone out, just don't be mean. All right. And you can read more about this study and what it could mean for you on our Web site, just go to cnn.com/health.

Thanks, Elizabeth.

PHILLIPS: Are women ready for a woman in the White House? What some people are saying in New Hampshire may surprise you.

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PHILLIPS: Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton battling up to the last minute for women voters in New Hampshire. Who has the advantage?

CNN's Randi Kaye takes a look.

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RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Good friends Karen Giuliano (ph) and Allison Mundry (ph) were once both steadfast supporters of Hillary Clinton.

But listen to Karen now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm going to cast my vote for Obama.

KAYE (on camera): At what point did Hillary Clinton lose you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Fairly recently. She has decades of built- up, at least in my perception, decades of built-up political favors that she is going to have to pay back. Obama doesn't have that. He just doesn't operate that way.

KAYE (voice-over): To Karen, Barack Obama is the face of integrity.

Psychology professor Elizabeth Osoff (ph), who studies women's behavior, calls him the new bright and shiny.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Younger women and younger people in general tend to gravitate toward that which is new and novel.

KAYE: It's a generational thing. And it showed in Iowa, where women under 30 snubbed Clinton. Osoff says they haven't experienced sex discrimination, as their grandmothers did, so don't see the importance of electing a female president, or the rush. If it's not our time this time, then next time.

The latest CNN/WMUR New Hampshire presidential primary poll shows Obama leading Clinton by 2 percentage points among those women who say they will vote in the Democratic primary.

(on camera): Don't women want a female president?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think that there are some people out there who still think that that's not the right role for women. And I think some of those people are women.

KAYE (voice-over): Osoff says even women are more comfortable with women in traditional roles. Mrs. President just doesn't sit well.

Allison says experience, not gender, got her vote.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think Obama is a freshman. He needs to prove himself. He's made the freshman team. Hillary is already playing for varsity.

KAYE (on camera): Yet, Obama continues to woo women. Why? Women are relationship-oriented, and his message resonates. Women prefer someone who wants to bring people together, a candidate who wants everyone to get along.

(voice-over): So, what, if anything, can Clinton do to persuade women voters here? Experts suggest she be more candid, more spontaneous, less measured. More emotional moments like this at a New Hampshire coffee shop could serve her well.

H. CLINTON: I see what's happening. We have to reverse it.

Wait a minute. I'm going to respond to this.

KAYE: Should she continue to be more aggressive against Obama?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Some women will look at that and say, yes, look at her go. That's what we need to do. And other women are going to look at her and go, oh, I don't like that. It's a little too nasty. You know, I don't like it when they're nasty.

KAYE: Trailing in the polls, at this point, anything may be worth a try.

Randi Kaye, CNN, Manchester, New Hampshire.

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PHILLIPS: Next hour we're going to speak to our very own Candy Crowley, part of the best political team on television, about Hillary Clinton's image and her chances in New Hampshire and beyond.

And right now you can be part of the best political team on television if you're in New Hampshire. We want to know what it's like on the streets, in the cafes and in the voting booths. Send your video and your pictures to CNNpolitics.com. That's CNNpolitics, and we'll feature some of your iReports in our special election coverage. That will happen, of cours,e tonight.

LEMON: New Hampshire's is today's focal point for a would-be president, but the sitting president is concentrating on the Middle East. President Bush heads to the region today hoping to get a peace deal going between Israeli and Palestinian leaders. Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt are also on the itinerary. Mr. Bush is expected to press those countries to help keep Iran in line.

PHILLIPS: They're devastating enough in the summer. Now they're striking in the heart of winter. Tornados captured on video by CNN ireporters.

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