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Reporter Struck During Violence in Kenya; Fugitive Marine's Truck Found; Bail Increased for O.J.; Romney Moves to Next Campaign Stop after Win
Aired January 16, 2008 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: The truck is with the cops, but the suspect still on the run. This hour, new and exclusive details on the fugitive Marine and the pregnant comrade he allegedly killed.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Talk about a bad call. O.J. Simpson gets an earful from a judge, and worse, over a voice mail that violated his bail.
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.
Up first this hour, violence flares again in Kenya as three days of opposition rallies get under way. And our own Zain Verjee was one of the people that was actually hurt today in the bloody clashes in Nairobi. This is how it happened.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Opposition supporters and security forces appear braced for another confrontation. On this side supporters of Raila Odinga saying that he is really the president. They want to march into Uhuru Park.
In Uhuru Park, if you take a look there, what you see is hundreds of police and paramilitary forces. They've just added another truck now in for reinforcements. They've been firing tear gas canisters at both supporters of the opposition, opposition leaders themselves and journalists, as well.
They are beginning to make their move, and it's very likely that, from the other side, they will start firing back.
Ow! Ow! They hit my arm.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you OK?
VERJEE: Yes. They shot me here in my back. Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They almost hit your head.
VERJEE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you OK?
VERJEE: Yes, it's OK. I'm standing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: I'll tell you what. They had us all nervous. Zain Verjee covering the violence right there in her homeland. She joins us now from Nairobi.
And Zain, we saw right there you and the other journalists actually being targeted, is what it looks like. Were you hit by a tear gas canister? Is that what happened?
VERJEE: Yes. We were just standing around. We were doing a few interviews. It was completely unprovoked, and I was hit by a tear gas canister that was fired directly from one of those guns. And it hit me squarely on one of my shoulder blades.
But what this does, Kyra, is that it really underscores the point of excessive police force and police brutality that we've been seeing all over the country. They've been firing tear gas, for example, on old women selling tomatoes. So the demonstrators that were out on the street really felt the brunt of the police today. And for me personally, it really does give you a sense of what that feels like and how sudden it can be.
But the demonstrators that were demonstrating, not only in the capital, Nairobi, but in Kisumu, in the western part of the country, in Mombasa at the coast, as well as in a town called Eldoret really felt the fierce brutality of police here -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: And this is your homeland, Zain. This is where you grew up. I remember when you were holed up in your home during the '82 coup. You had not seen violence like this since then. So here you were in the middle of it, you experienced it. Is this something that's just commonplace in Kenya now?
VERJEE: No, it's not. And that's the shocking thing about it, not only for me but to every single person in this country. And for many people around the world, Kenya, for years, has been a very stable country since we have independence from the British in 1963. Kenya is a developed country, a very progressive country. There is a very solid infrastructure here.
And really, the most shocking part about this is how this has degenerated and what we're seeing now on the streets. So many Kenyans are asking themselves, what on earth is going on and why can't our leaders just get it together and compromise? One side the opposition is accusing the government of rigging and stealing the election, but Kenyans are asking themselves, OK, but at what cost now?
Many of them say they're just fed up, and they want the government and the opposition to get on with it so that they can go about their daily lives and address the real issue in this country and in the rest of Africa, which is poverty -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: We thank you and respect you for what you're doing for us in bringing us this story. Zain Verjee live from Nairobi.
LEMON: Also glad that she's OK in all of this. Could have turned out much worse than it did.
Has Marine murder suspect Cesar Laurean been in North Carolina all along? The manhunt is refocused on the Raleigh area a day after Laurean's truck was found in a motel parking lot near the Raleigh- Durham Airport. Investigators are scouring the truck for evidence.
Laurean fled Camp Lejeune on Friday. Less than 24 hours later, police unearthed the remains of Lance Corporal Maria Lauterbach and her unborn baby from his backyard. Lauterbach had accused Laurean of rape and apparently suggested he was the baby's father. But yesterday, the Marines said there was more to the story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COL. R. GARY SOKOLOSKI, STAFF JUDGE ADVOCATE: She told the prosecutor that she no longer believed that the pregnancy was a result of the two incidents she reported as sexual assaults, the 26th of March and around the 11th of April.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Marine brass also took on criticism that they didn't keep an eye on Laurean or flag him to local police.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SOKOLOSKI: Between the 15th of December and the 11th of January, he had been at all the appointed places that were required, and he was at work when he was required to be, so there was no indication that he was a flight risk. He kept coming to work.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: When Laurean's truck turned up yesterday, police and FBI swamped that motel. A desk clerk says they gave her a list of possible aliases to check against her record. No luck there, but she had lots more information to share with Headline News's Nancy Grace.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NANCY GRACE, CNN ANCHOR: How close are you to the airport?
SHERRIE JOINER, MICROTEL EMPLOYEE: We are about approximately a half of a mile from the airport.
GRACE: Do most of your guests have a flight to catch?
JOINER: Yes, ma'am. Most of our guests do stay here and park their car and fly out.
GRACE: Do you guys have a shuttle, like a van that takes people back and forth to the airport?
JOINER: Yes, ma'am, we do.
GRACE: How often does it leave?
JOINER: It leaves every 30 minutes in the mornings, and it -- we go to the airport as people call for a shuttle.
GRACE: OK. Can someone who's there at the Microtel, if it's not in the morning, still get a shuttle to the airport?
JOINER: Yes, ma'am.
GRACE: What, they just call the front desk and ask for it?
JOINER: They can come to the front desk and request a shuttle, yes, ma'am.
GRACE: Sherrie, do people just wait out front, or do they have -- and they get onto this shuttle, or do they have to have a reservation to get onto the shuttle?
JOINER: They do not have to have a reservation. They can just be in the lobby and request one.
GRACE: So anybody in the morning hours, essentially -- you said it leaves every hour?
JOINER: Yes, ma'am. Every 30 minutes.
GRACE: Every 30 minutes.
JOINER: In the morning they would have to have our -- to be on our shuttle list as the room number that needs to go to the airport.
GRACE: Could someone walk in from the parking lot and get into the group and get onto the bus?
JOINER: It is possible.
GRACE: OK. All right. Do you guys have cameras in your parking lot, security cameras?
JOINER: No, ma'am, we do not have cameras in the parking lot. Only at the exit doors.
GRACE: At the exit doors. Was the black vehicle parked anywhere near an exit door?
JOINER: It was actually parked on the back side of the hotel, right out of the back door. But it's not visible from the camera.
GRACE: What kind of I.D. is necessary to check into the Microtel.
JOINER: We do require driver's license upon checking in.
(END VIDEOTAPE) LEMON: Nancy will join us in the 3:30 Eastern hour right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
And this just in from the FBI. This is according to the FBI. CNN has learned a statement from them. And here's what they say.
They say, "At this point in time, we strongly suspect, but have not confirmed, that Cesar Laurean fled to Mexico." Again, that statement just in from the FBI regarding this suspect. Cesar Laurean, they believe, strongly suspect, but they have not confirmed, that he has fled to Mexico.
We're going to try to dig to find out exactly how they're getting that information. More on this case.
And also a little later this hour, at 1:30 Eastern, we'll hear from CNN's Randi Kaye about her exclusive interview with an ex- colleague of both Lauterbach and Laurean.
PHILLIPS: O.J. Simpson may be able to get out of jail but freedom won't be cheap. Simpson faced an angry judge in Las Vegas just a short time ago, and our CNN's Dan Simon was there, joins us live with the update.
I guess we should say the drama -- Dan.
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, hi, Kyra.
A really strong reprimand -- reprimand from the judge in this case, Judge Jackie Glass. She was none too pleased that Simpson reached out to one of the co-defendants in this case. Simpson and his defense acknowledging that he did so.
The prosecution came in here today. They say they wanted his bail raised to $1 million. The judge didn't quite go that far. It's now $250,000, doubled from $125,000.
And this time, an order for O.J. Simpson to get out of jail, he actually has to post some money. Before the bail bondsman cut him a break. He didn't have to put up a dime. But this time the judge is very serious about this. Take a look at some of what she had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUDGE JACKIE GLASS, CLARK COUNTY DISTRICT COURT: I don't know if it's just arrogance. I don't know if it's ignorance. But you've been locked up at the Clark County Detention Center since Friday because of either arrogance or ignorance, or both.
Let me make sure that you understand that, if you violate those rules, and anything like this happens in the future, it won't matter what Mr. Grasso and Mr. Galanter come in here and tell me. You'll be back, locked up, in the Clark County Detention Center.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SIMON: Well, bottom line: O.J. Simpson does get to leave this jail, but it's when he actually posts the bond. And it's really anybody's guess when he's going to do so.
But I think we got a real glimpse today, in terms of how things are going to be conducted in this court, in this trial, under this new judge, Judge Jackie Glass, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Yes. I've got to tell you, you've got to love that Judge Jackie Glass. Finally, the right judge for the right case. That is for sure. So what's the next step?
SIMON: Well, the next step is for O.J. Simpson to actually post the 15 percent. When he does so, he gets out of jail. And then, the trial, the trial's expected to start the first week of April, on April 7, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. Dan Simon, appreciate the report.
LEMON: Higher prices for food and gas, rising unemployment and that mortgage mess. Will it all add up to recession? Well, this hour, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are wrangling over ways to juice the economy. We'll hear from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi this hour.
We'll also look at a stock market slide in Asia, triggered by the turbulence here. And as always, we're watching Wall Street, which some have started calling "Fall Street."
PHILIPS: We're two weeks into the presidential voting season. Still, no candidate in either party can claim to be a solid front- runner.
Mitt Romney came through in his native Michigan yesterday, beating out John McCain after two runner-up finishes. And while Romney celebrated, the Democrats were holding a mostly civil debate in Nevada, the site of the caucuses on Saturday.
Mary Snow is traveling with the Romney campaign today. Before we hear from her, let's hear the candidate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Tonight proves that you can't tell an American that there's something they just can't do, because Americas can do whatever they set their hearts to. And tonight, tonight is a victory of optimism over Washington-style pessimism.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, that was last night, ancient history by political standards. Romney is already prepping for his next big event, Saturday's South Carolina primary.
And our Mary Snow is in Charleston, where Romney is holding a rally this hour. And I'm sure the sentiment is, "Whew!" MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And Michigan was so Tuesday, Don.
LEMON: Yes.
SNOW: Today is Wednesday, and everything is about South Carolina for the Republican candidates.
Mitt Romney needed that win in Michigan. And you know, you were just talking about the economy. That was the issue that really helped him, besides the fact that he is a native of Michigan. But this is going to be a very heated battle in South Carolina, a whole different set of circumstances.
Mitt Romney told reporters here this morning that he would actually be happy with a fourth-place finish, because he hasn't been concentrating as much on South Carolina.
Yes, the economy is a big issue here. But so is national security. And that is something that Senator John McCain has really been stressing. He came in second. After winning New Hampshire, was a bit of a disappointment. He said that he is vowing to fight on and win in South Carolina. He's been stressing his military record, and this is one of the reasons why, is because there's such a strong military population here in South Carolina.
Also, going to be heavily courting votes, Mike Huckabee. And he is courting votes from social conservatives. He has a large following among evangelicals. Today he had a private meeting with pastors. He's going to be speaking at a southern Baptist university later today. But he says his base is much broader than just evangelicals.
He's getting some stiff competition from Senator Fred Thompson, the former senator from Tennessee, who is really trying to make his name here in South Carolina. He believes that he will even further shake up the Republican race by winning here. That is his prediction. And he really has largely been concentrating on this state and is hoping to win.
Now as for what comes next, is Florida. Rudy Giuliani is really staking his claim in Florida and has been out of the spotlight. And one of the big headlines to come out of Michigan last night is the fact that Ron Paul actually placed higher than Rudy Giuliani in that contest.
So a lot -- a lot at stake and this is one of the races -- what makes it so interesting is that it is wide open. Mitt Romney here today is saying that he is OK with not placing first, because to him, it is all about delegates. And to that end, he plans to go out to Nevada for Saturday's caucuses. He's going to be campaigning out there. Republicans have largely ignored Nevada, so Mitt Romney is hoping to pick up delegates there and not really expecting to come in first here -- Don.
LEMON: OK. You know, and I tossed it to you, I said, "Whew!" I'm sure that's true; they were like, "Oh, my gosh, you know, a win." And confidence is important when it comes to the candidates. More than that, the campaign and getting momentum there.
Is there a different mood in the Romney camp today, now that he has one primary win under his belt, Mary?
SNOW: Yes, certainly relief. And you know, people behind the scenes were saying this was a much-needed win, because he really had staked his campaign on winning both New Hampshire and Iowa. And when he lost both of those states, he kept saying he was going to keep going nationally, but he needed a large win.
He won Wyoming, but he was really banking on Michigan. And, had he not won that state last night, things would look very differently today perhaps.
LEMON: All right. Thank you. And a very beautiful southern landscape behind you, the river there and the bridge. Thank you, Mary Snow, for joining us.
SNOW: Very pretty down here! Sure.
LEMON: Yes, all right. Thank you very much for that.
And time is winding down and the race is heating up. For the freshest polls, the latest fights, the political ticker blog and more, check out cnnpolitics.com.
PHILLIPS: In a suburb of Atlanta two off-duty police officers gunned down in an apparent ambush. An intense search under way right now for the killers. We're awaiting a news conference.
LEMON: And we've all got to eat to stay alive, but some of us go to extremes to lose weight. So what are the dangers of fasting? We'll find out straight ahead, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Well, they have found his truck, but there is still no sign of Marine Corporal -- the Marine corporal accused of killing his pregnant colleague. That is a picture there of Cesar Laurean.
And this just in to the CNN NEWSROOM. According to the FBI -- this is a quote from them -- they say, "At this point in time, we strongly suspect but have not confirmed that Cesar Laurean fled to Mexico."
The truck registered to Corporal Cesar Laurean was located at a motel near the Raleigh-Durham Airport. He is charged with first degree murder in the death of Marine Lance Corporal Maria Lauterbach. The FBI telling us they strongly suspect he has fled to Mexico. Details to come in the CNN NEWSROOM.
PHILLIPS: And we're going to have an inside look at the Marine murder case from someone who knew the victim and the suspect. CNN's Randi Kaye got an exclusive interview.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: One twenty-three Eastern Time right now. Here are some of the other stories that we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.
In suburban Atlanta an intense manhunt under way right now after two off-duty police officers were shot and killed overnight. Police are looking for at least two suspects. Neighboring schools are on lockdown. The police chief says that both officers, quote, "didn't have chance" in the ambush attack.
It will cost O.J. Simpson twice the amount of money to stay out of jail. A Las Vegas judge doubled Simpson's bail to $250,000 after deciding the former NFL star did violate the terms of his previous bail arrangement. Simpson awaits an April 7th trial on a litany of charges, stemming from a confrontation with sports memorabilia dealers back in September.
Princess Diana's former butler testifies for a third day in the inquest into her 1997 death. Today, Paul Burrell says that Diana did not want to marry Dodi Fayed, whose father believes Diana and her son were murdered because of royal disapproval of the relationship.
LEMON: Well, don't look now, but there may be some signs of life on Wall Street. Susan Lisovicz is on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange with the very latest on that.
Hello to you.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, but the pulse, Don, is so faint. The Dow right now is up one point. And we will take that as -- just a very faint sign of life.
You know, after you have the kind of ten trading days we've had in this new year, you would look for some kind of rebound. And we're still not seeing it. One of the reasons why, Don, is the news we got out of Intel, the world's biggest chipmaker.
It posted a more than 50-percent rise in its quarterly earnings, but its sales fell just a little bit short of estimates. And its outlook for this quarter is conservative. Not surprisingly, because of the slowing economy.
Well, when you think about what Intel does and how many customers it serves -- chips are in just about everything these days -- you're seeing a big -- seeing a lot of pressure in the tech sector.
But we do have a bright spot. I should mention it. It's coming from another beaten-down area, and that is financials. JPMorgan posted its earnings, and, yes, it was a lot of red ink posted to investments, tied to mortgages. But it did post some earnings. And the fact that it could post earnings -- that is, profit -- in a tough environment is a sign of relief. And that stock is up about 4 percent. And that is helping the Dow.
(STOCK REPORT)
LEMON: It's a relief though, Susan, that oil is down, but we have seen profound changes as a result of record-high cruel [SIC] -- crude. Is that right?
LISOVICZ: Oh, you can see it loudly and clearly, not only on Wall Street, but what we're hearing out of Detroit, but also what you're seeing on the streets.
I mean, it's really profound in the types of automobiles that consumers are buying when they are buying big-ticket items. And you know, given these high gas prices and concerns about the environment, it's putting a lot of pressure on the famed V-8 engine. I wouldn't be surprised, Don, if you had one of those engines in your -- in your garage.
One time, American cars and truck makers used to boast about the power of the V-8. And at the Detroit Auto Show, V-8 is now a niche product. I am told, however, that the Chrysler still has its V-8 Hemi, but it's being paired with hybrid technology.
You know, you put me under the hood of a car, I -- you know, I start to lose it a little bit, Don. But the V-8 engine is something that is changing, as well.
In the next hour, we're going to be talking about this new issue for employers, some of whom are -- are penalizing unhealthy employees. I want to talk about the legal ramifications of that. That's in the next hour.
LEMON: Yes. It seems to be happening more and more. OK, Susan, we'll check back with you. Thank you.
LISOVICZ: You're welcome.
PHILLIPS: A Red Sea resort, the end of the road for President Bush's tour of the Middle East before heading home. Mr. Bush sat down for talks with Egypt's president. We're going to tell you what they discussed.
LEMON: Also, Kyra, more on the manhunt for Marine Corporal Cesar Laurean, wanted in the murder of a fellow Marine, Maria Lauterbach. We'll hear from CNN's Randi Kaye about her exclusive interview with an ex-colleague of both Lauterbach and Laurean.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Hello, I'm Don Lemon. Live at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.
PHILLIPS: I'm Kyra Phillips. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
LEMON: Developing news happening right here in the Atlanta area. I turn to my colleague Fredricka Whitfield with the very latest on that. Fred?
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, the search intensifies for two people believed to have gunned down two police officers. Dekalb County police officers who were uniformed but off duty working security at an apartment complex there. You are looking at pictures of the crime scene.
According to eyewitness accounts and according to the police department, these two officers were investigating a suspicious person there at complex when somehow they got in the middle of some trouble and they were gunned down. One of the officers was dead upon arrival, the other officer died at the hospital. The police chief, Terrell Bolton, moments ago described exactly why their search for the suspects is unrelenting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF TERRELL BOLTON, DEKALB, COUNTY GA. POLICE: Children are fatherless. Hearing the screams of the widows that are without husbands now, a sound you never want to hear. Today I submit to you, the citizens of Dekalb County, the men and women of the Dekalb County Police Department, this is a must-solve crime.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: A must-solve crime according to the police chief there. The two police officers have been identified. Ricky Bryant Jr., he's the father of five. He's been on the force just two years. And Eric Barker on the force just four years and also the father of three children. That's the latest from the news desk here, Don.
LEMON: All right, Fred. Thank you very much for that.
PHILLIPS: President Bush on his way home from his eight-day tour of the Middle East. His last stop was Egypt. Iraq, Lebanon and the Israel Palestine conflict were all on the table.
Here's CNN White House correspondent, Ed Henry.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Bush used the stunning backdrop of Sharm El Sheikh which Egypt bills as the city of peace to cap his first Middle East trip in office. Flanked by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Mr. Bush declared he was returning home full of hope even though little, if any, progress was made on the actual stumbling blocks dividing Israelis and Palestinians.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: When I say I'm coming back to stay engaged, I mean it. When I say I'm optimistic we can get a deal done, I mean what I'm saying.
HENRY: The most significant development was that after seven years of a somewhat hands-off role in the peace process, the president is showing a sense of urgency. The most revealing moment of the trip spoken almost accidentally.
BUSH: I'm not a timetable person. Actually, I am on a timetable -- got 12 months.
HENRY: With the president bluntly stating his motivation of wanting a deal before leaving office, the deadline could help by prodding Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to make tough compromises.
MAHMOUD ABBAS, PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY PRESIDENT: We start with you a new year, hoping that this will be the year for the creation of peace.
HENRY: The president's engagement was visible in other ways. Normally on these trips he's all business, rarely seeing the sights. This time, he lingered eight days, hamming it up with a sword in Bahrain, kissing leaders and holding their hands and waving another sword in Saudi Arabia. Solemn moments, too, at the holocaust memorial in Israel and walking in the footsteps of Jesus along the Sea of Galilee.
There are many obstacles, because old habits die hard in this region, from the constant violence, to the fact that one day after the president delivered his speech urging the spread of freedom, we landed in Saudi Arabia, a closed society nowhere close to democracy.
HENRY: But at every stop, President Bush was privately peppered with questions about the wide-open U.S. presidential election. Administration officials read that to mean, middle east leaders are very nervous about the uncertainty and are going to push to get a peace deal done while Mr. Bush is still in office.
Ed Henry, CNN, Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: So far we've had four republican presidential contests and three different winners. Mitt Romney won his native Michigan yesterday as we've been telling you. John McCain and Mike Huckabee also had victories under their belts. For Romney, Michigan was a must and last night he couldn't hide his excitement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Guess what they're doing in Washington? They're worrying, because they realize the lobbyists and the politicians realize that America now understands that Washington is broken and we're going to do something about it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: So who was the Republican front-runner? Is there a front-runner? Let's ask our panel of experts. Mr. Carl Bernstein on the left, Roland Martin, they are both CNN contributors. Roland's in the middle. Carrie Lukas, vice president of Independent Women's Voices -- Women's Voice.
Thank you very much for joining us. Carl, what's this win mean for Romney and the Republicans?
CARL BERNSTEIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: First of all, between watching the Bush segment and then watching Mitt Romney's speech, I thought I was watching Saturday Night Live. I mean it had that much reality to it in both cases. For Romney to sit there and talk about the politicians and the lobbyists, he is a politician. That's why he's running for president. That's why he ran for governor and was a governor.
And I think one of the reasons the Republicans are in such struggle, and that there is such identification with the democrats so far out this year is just because of things like that. You have to still look at McCain as the front-runner, because he's got some more substance to him and he has a message, a straight-talk message that has some more adherence. But they're in trouble.
LEMON: Does that mean they're in trouble that they've had four contests and three different winners?
BERNSTEIN: I think what it means, they're in trouble and both the anecdotal and I'm one who thinks polls are only a snapshot -- but there is no question, if you talk to Republican leaders in the party hierarchy, they know they're in trouble and people of this country, to a much greater extent in the past, are identifying ...
LEMON: I think Roland and Carrie want to get in.
ROLAND MARTIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Carrie, go right ahead.
CARRIE LUKAS, INDEPENDENT WOMEN'S VOICE: We think to need more careful. It is a long way off to the election. The campaign seems to have gone on for a long time already. We need to remember there is still a lot more information, eventually there is going to be a candidate that Republicans about going to rally behind.
I would be real careful before calling anybody a front-runner in the race for the GOP nomination. In Michigan it was important and it certainly was a boost for the Romney campaign. But I don't know that the victory in Michigan really translates into the rest of the country.
LEMON: Roland, does this give him a bounce, you think? Again, three winners in four, does this necessarily give Romney a bounce?
MARTIN: First, it gives him some sense of believability because remember, he poured a ton of money into Iowa, didn't win. He was the governor of Massachusetts. New Hampshire was a neighboring state, he didn't win. He needed to win one of the three states people expected him to win. This is the first time in 80 years we haven't seen someone running from the White House. Republicans have the White House. Typically there is a vice president who is running after a president.
We saw the Republicans this year remind me of the democrats in 1992. Remember, nobody wanted to run against George Bush 41st because he was so popular coming out of the Iraq war. So they are trying to find their footing at a point where you don't have a natural leader of the party as a result of who is sitting in the White House. That plays a huge role as to why this has not sorted it self-out as of yet.
LEMON: OK. Guys, I want to get to the Democrats. We've all been talking about the fight between the Democrats, Barack Obama, it's all been over race. They had last night a debate. Let's listen to that and I want your opinion on it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think that what's most important is that Senator Obama and I agree completely that neither race nor gender should be a part of this campaign.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We can't solve these challenges unless we can come together as a people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: OK. How can you have a contest with the first African- American who really has a chance of winning the nomination and running, and a woman and not talk about race and gender in this?
MARTIN: Well, Don, there is a difference between talking about race in terms of substantive material as opposed to some of the nonsense we've had back and forth. Andrew Cuomo shuck and jive comments, Bill Shaheen's whole deal, was he selling drugs, Bob Johnson's little -- whatever that was on Sunday. That's the problem.
Now if you want to talk about the unequal unemployment rate in terms of South Carolina and Michigan that's higher among African- Americans, talk about black men in jail, if you want to talk about the fact African-American women now lead HIV and AIDS cases, those are substantive conversations that deal with race. We've been hearing a bunch of nonsense.
LEMON: It is naive to think you'll have a black person and a woman running and you won't talk about it regardless of the way you talk about it. Carl, you're shaking your head.
BERNSTEIN: No, actually I agree with what Roland said. More important is what we saw from Hillary Clinton was the best and the worst of Hillary Clinton in the last couple weeks. Exactly what I wrote a whole book about, and that is to say, disingenuously, introducing -- she introduced the theme of race in a way that was really surprising given her stellar record on questions of race. She did it as a campaign tactic.
It is an old way of campaigning in which she takes no prisoners. We've seen it before. And then last night in the debate we saw her absolutely at her substantive best. There are two Hillary Clintons. We've seen them both and -- but she is going to have to show us more of the one we saw last night because she's lost a lot of ground --
LEMON: Carrie, I'm going to give you the final word. We've got about ten seconds here in talking about race and gender.
LUKAS: Sure. I think of course it is going to be a topic but it is in the best interest of the Democrats to move away from this identity politics and talk about more substantive issues because a lot of Americans are uncomfortable with this focus on just identity as the determining factor in a campaign.
LEMON: Carrie, Carl, Roland, we'll be seeing a lot of all of you in the next year. Thank you all for joining us.
BERNSTEIN: Thanks, Don.
Time is winding down and the race is heating up for the freshest polls, the latest fights, the political ticker blog and more, check out cnnpolitics.com.
PHILLIPS: An inside look at the marine murder case from someone who knew the victim and the suspect. CNN's Randi Kaye got an exclusive interview. We're going to hear from her.
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PHILLIPS: The FBI says it strongly suspects but doesn't know for sure that a marine sought in the murder after fellow marine has fled to Mexico. On the run since Friday, Marine Corporal Cesar Laurean is accused of murdering Lance Corporal Maria Lauterbach who was eight months pregnant as well. She and the baby were charred, their remains were found in Laurean's backyard. Lauterbach had been set to testify about rape allegations she made against Laurean.
CNN's Randi Kaye just talked to a former marine who is a good friend of Laurean's. Her exclusive interview airs tonight, on "ANDERSON COOPER 360," but she's here to fill us in now.
Randi, how well does this person know Cesar Laurean?
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Very well. We spent a couple of hours with her this morning and we promised her we wouldn't share her identity or show her face so we're not going to do that. But I can tell you that she knew both Laurean and Lauterbach, she worked with Laurean for about four years. She describes him as a really good guy, a really quiet guy who had a lot of friends, very social. They both have 18-month-old little girls. She said they used to talk a lot about diapers and sippy cups and which one of their daughters was crawling first.
She left the marines in December. She says this whole thing is so surreal, it is very hard for her to see one of her good friends on a wanted poster. She was there because she left in December, she was there when Lauterbach made these allegations of rape against Laurean. For the first time, we are actually getting details of the rape, when it happened, how it happened. She told me this morning that it happened last spring on the base inside Laurean's office. She said the two before had had consensual sex at least one time before, but this time there happened to be a verbal argument which led to this alleged rape.
We talked about how the marines handled it. Here's what she had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: What did Maria Lauterbach tell you about the rape?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When she first approached us in the spring, she approached for a protective order based on a rape allegation. She actually did not -- she spoke with our commanding officer at the time who has since changed in this entire situation. She had actually gotten out of the Marine Corps, the original commanding officer that had been in charge. She did not say much.
Her commander came if and told our commanding officer there was basically no basis to the allegation, that Cesar Laurean was a good marine and that of the two of them, his credibility was significantly higher and this really wasn't anything to hold him or charge him on.
KAYE: This is her commanding officer saying this?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This was her staff non-commissioned officer. Basically her biggest advocate, the person who would advocate for you basically called her a liar to her commanding officer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: Now we are also told Lauterbach told her on a second occasion she was considering withdrawing this allegation of rape because she simply felt no one believed her. Now this woman tells me that Lauterbach was scared of Laurean, even though the marines and the sheriff's department has told us that they were on a friendly basis even after these rape allegations had come out. But this woman tells us that she was scared of him. She'd actually been moved to work in a different building, she didn't want to be anywhere near him.
They also tell me that the sheriff and investigators have told us he wasn't considered a flight risk and he certainly wasn't considered a key suspect because of these alleged friendly terms that they were on. Investigators have also told us that this military protection order that Lauterbach had taken out against Laurean had expired, but after speaking with this woman, we learned otherwise.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She came in September when her original military protective order had expired asking if she could have, A, a copy of the original one, and, B, a second one put into place. And our commanding officer was on leave at the time and so that was taken care of with the battalion commander, Colonel Smith.
We got that taken care of. I came to find out that she wanted the original military protective order so she could have it on her person because her staff non-commissioned officer, her master gunnery sergeant, was basically saying that he would be within a thousand feet of her for work purposes despite that completely contradictory to the actual protective order.
KAYE: So tell me, she asked you to help her get a second ...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
KAYE: Military protective order. What did you do? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I did the paperwork and that's -- I was basically a glorified secretary. I did the paperwork and routed it to the appropriate authorities to have it signed, then passed back down.
KAYE: So she did have a second military protective order in place when she disappeared.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, she did.
KAYE: That was a current order.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
KAYE: You had written it yourself.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. I personally did it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: I also asked this woman if she knew if Laurean was the father of Lauterbach's baby. She said she didn't know. She told me she didn't even know Lauterbach was pregnant until she was about five months into her pregnancy. She told me that the marines do not require you, Kyra, to divulge who the father is of your baby even if you are living there on the base.
PHILLIPS: Could she shed any light on Laurean's survival skills, the fact that he's on the run now, why he would take off like he did?
KAYE: She said that he is a really good marine. Those were her words. Because they worked in the personnel department, you may find this funny, but she said he is an excellent typist, though I can shoot an M-16 and run really fast. But the most important thing she said the marines teach you is to adapt and overcome. She says that is what she believes he is working to do right now.
PHILLIPS: Randi Kaye, thanks for joining us. You can catch the whole interview tonight on "AC 360" starting at 10:00 p.m. Eastern.
LEMON: We've all got to eat to stay alive. But some of us go to extremes just to lose a few pounds. What are the dangers of fasting? We'll find out straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.
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LEMON: If you have vowed to lose some weight in '08, a lot of us have, and figure fasting is a way to do it? You may want to slow your roll just a little bit. Listen up. Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen has some advice. You know those five or so extra pounds you put on over the holidays? You want to take it off. I've been running every day, man.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: That's good, running every day is good.
LEMON: But fasting is not always the way to do it? COHEN: Fasting is not always the way to do it. It really is all the rage, you wouldn't believe this. I was chatting with an emergency room doctor, he said more and more we are seeing people come in dehydrated, exhausted, sometimes confused because they've been fasting.
If you look on the internet, you can see why it is all the rage. There are so many different sites that advocate fasting. One says that it will cleanse your body of toxins. We're talking about not eating for seven days. They said not eating for seven days cannot produce any harmful results. Oh, my goodness! Could that be true? Well, it turns out it is not necessarily true. In fact, if you fast, meaning if you go without food and some people go without food and drink for day after day after day, there can be serious medical consequences.
Let's take a look at what some of those are. You can get brittle nails, which is the least of it, fatigue, diarrhea and constipation, heart or gallbladder problems. You can even sometimes you can end up having seizures. So the bottom line here is if you're going to fast, use some common sense and listen to your body. If you start to feel not great, your body is trying to tell you something.
LEMON: Is it 80 percent of our body or something like that is water? So you've got to stay hydrated. Some people fast like one day. But is fasting always bad?
COHEN: It is not always bad when you figure that lots of religions, Jews, Muslims, Mormons, lots of people do short-term fasts and have been doing them for thousands of years. Obviously it is not entirely unsafe. Issue is that if you're going for more than a day, and if you are going without liquids, that's where it can be a problem.
LEMON: Always check with your doctor.
COHEN: Right. Of course.
LEMON: Thank you very much, Elizabeth.
PHILLIPS: A craving for popcorn leaves a Colorado man with a rare lung condition. Find out who he says is to blame. Right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Closing in for a closer look, a spacecraft named Messenger, things like never-before seen. Images of the planet Mercury. You're about to see them right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
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