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American Morning
Clinton Versus Obama: In Virtual Dead Heat; Super Tuesday: Final Push; Boosting the Economy: Washington Debates What to Do; N.Y. Giants Upset Patriots
Aired February 04, 2008 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: A new national poll just in. The Democrats too close to call.
Hail Mary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We always talk right through the commercials that we haven't seen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: The Clintons look to lock up an old friend over football. We're live with Governor Bill Richardson.
Plus, Giant surprise. New York spoils the Patriots' perfect season and prepares a Super Tuesday celebration. Live from Chicago and New York on this AMERICAN MORNING.
And good morning to you. Thanks for being with us. It's Monday, the fourth of February, from Manny's Deli in Chicago, Illinois, I'm John Roberts. And, Kiran, wondering this morning if the Giants winning the Super Bowl yesterday may sort of foretell what's going to happen in Super Tuesday tomorrow? Will somebody from New York win?
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, we'll see. And how about the underdog? If you could talk about underdog status at least from the Democrats, it's pretty much neck and neck.
ROBERTS: That's so true.
CHETRY: But perhaps it could be an underdog story like we're seeing on the Republican side. You know, bottom line, there was no getting to bed last night amidst all the cheering and screaming here, living in New York and the Giants' improbable victory last night. A lot of people are calling this the most exciting Super Bowl they've seen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Manning lobs it. Burress, alone. Touchdown, New York.
(END VIDEO CLIP) CHETRY: There it was. It certainly went down to the wire. It was only less than a minute to play. I think there were 35 seconds left on the clock when that pass came from Eli manning to Plaxico Burress. The New York Giants beating the New England Patriots, 17-14, winning Super Bowl XLII. There you see big brother Peyton clapping from one of the luxury boxes. It looked like New Year's Eve in Times Square last night. Tomorrow, the Giants will have their victory parade up Broadway. And there's a little bit of an informal victory parade last night in Times Square, John.
ROBERTS: Wow. It's just incredible. Amazing that they pulled that off. Who knew?
The presidential candidates have just 24 hours to win over voters in 22 states on Super Tuesday. Our CNN Opinion Research Corporation National Poll just out this morning has John McCain with 44 percent of the Republican vote, followed by Mitt Romney at 29 percent and Mike Huckabee with 18 percent.
Here's a look at an average of the five latest polls, McCain, 45, Romney, 24, and Huckabee, 17 percent.
CNN's Dana Bash is in Trenton, New Jersey, where Senator McCain is going to be campaigning today. And, Dana, he continues his outreach to conservatives, trying to say to them, hey, look it. I'm the safe bet here to be the nominee.
DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He absolutely is. It's quite interesting to watch him especially over the past couple of days over the weekend, John, because of the polls you just showed. The strategy is to sort of portray this air of confidence, of inevitability. He's focusing for the most part a lot more on the Democrats than he is on his Republican rivals. But he still understands his biggest weak spot, and that is with conservatives who simply don't trust him. That's why at every event, he did talk about the fact that he would appoint strict constructionists judges. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I will appoint judges that strictly interpret the constitution, the United States of America, and do not legislate from the bench. That's an important role for the next president of the United States to play.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BASH: Now that is essentially code, trying to explain to conservatives that he is one of them. That he will abide by some of the things that matter most to them, like the issue of judges. Meanwhile, as you know, John, Mitt Romney is trying to get at that whole weak spot of John McCain. That he really isn't a true conservative. That is what he would campaign extremely hard on all weekend saying essentially that John McCain is a liberal, that he is not one of you, to conservative voters, and that is why that they should vote for Mitt Romney, essentially to stop the John McCain train before it heads into the station, into the nomination -- John. ROBERTS: And John McCain is engaging in a rather bold move this morning against Mitt Romney, is he not, Dana?
BASH: He is. He's really trying to have this kind of in-your- face strategy today. It's kind of interesting. He's going to and he actually is right now in the state of Massachusetts. It's Mitt Romney's home state. He's campaigning there. He's raising money there. He and his aides say that they think that they could actually do pretty well there. When asked -- when Mitt Romney was asked about this, he said, you know, he could do what he wants but he didn't seem very happy. Listen to Mitt Romney.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You know, I don't know why he's campaigning in Massachusetts. There are 22 states going. You know, he can -- I guess he's spending like a day there. That's fine too. I expect that I'm going to win in Massachusetts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BASH: So, John McCain is trying to tweak Mitt Romney, if you listen to the tone there, it sounds like he was pretty successful. But I can tell you, John, that Mitt Romney's campaign aides, they say that they think that McCain is making a mistake, about 40 delegates, I should say, in Massachusetts, but the state of California, the biggest prize, that has 170. John McCain hasn't been there in several days. So you know what Mitt Romney is doing today? He is traveling across the country just for one event in California, and he's coming all the way back because he thinks that John McCain is making a mistake going to Massachusetts, not spending time today in California -- John.
ROBERTS: All right. Dana Bash for us this morning from Trenton, New Jersey. Dana, thanks.
Some election results from over the weekend. CNN projects that Mitt Romney has won Maine's Republican caucuses and its 18 delegates. Senator John McCain came in second in Maine with 21 percent. Ron Paul, third, with 19 percent. Mike Huckabee got six percent of the vote in Maine.
With the win in Maine, let's check on the delegate count now. John McCain leads with 97. Mitt Romney has 92. Huckabee comes in with 29, and Ron Paul has six delegates. Mitt Romney says the Republican presidential fight is becoming a two-person race, and he is losing conservative votes to Mike Huckabee. Does that mean he thinks Mike Huckabee should drop out? He responded by saying Romney should be the one to leave the race. Just minutes ago, we asked the former Arkansas governor about it. Here's what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, it's not surprising that Mitt Romney is now even taking two positions on whether I should stay in the race. He's taking two positions on everything else, from abortion to gun control, to Bush tax cuts to same-sex marriage. So now, he's taken a double position on whether or not I should stay in or get out. He's the only man I know who could play tennis by himself covering both sides of the court.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Huckabee said it was arrogant and presumptuous of Romney to think that voters will gravitate toward him if he leaves the race -- Kiran.
CHETRY: The Opinion Research Corporation National Poll just out this morning shows Barack Obama at 49 percent and Hilary Clinton at 46 percent. It's a tie when you factor in the margin of error. But if you average the five latest national polls, Hillary Clinton is still slightly ahead of Barack Obama, 45 to 43 percent. Still very tight there.
Barack Obama picked up another endorsement. The first lady of California, Maria Shriver, joining her cousin, Caroline Kennedy, as well as Oprah Winfrey and Michelle Obama. They were all at a rally in Los Angeles where she explained why she's supporting Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARIA SHRIVER, FIRST LADY OF CALIFORNIA: The more I thought about it, I thought, you know, if Barack Obama was a state, he'd be California. That's right. I mean -- I mean, think about it. Think about it. Diverse, open, smart, independent, bucks tradition, innovative, inspiring, dreamer, leader.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Shriver's husband, Arnold Schwarzenegger, the governor of the state, has endorsed Republican John McCain. He did that last week.
Senator Barack Obama will be Wolf Blitzer's guest today in "THE SITUATION ROOM." It begins 4:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.
And Hillary Clinton campaigns in New York and Connecticut today on the eve of Super Tuesday and she's making health care a major focus, telling voters in Minnesota that her plan for universal health care will mean the insurance companies won't determine who gets covered.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Seeing America where everyone has quality affordable health care, where every single person is part of a universal health care system. No exception. No excuses.
Because what I see is that we take what we know already works for members of Congress and federal employees. They have a good plan. They have over 250 options, and these are good options with mental health, dental and prevention. And we open that plan to any American who wants to participate to have more choices. (END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Also, Governor Richardson is being courted by the Clinton and Obama campaigns. In fact, he watched the Super Bowl last night with Bill Clinton. Is he ready to endorse his choice for president? Well, we're going to ask him. Governor Richardson is going to be joining us at 7:30 Eastern Time.
Well, here's the delegate count as it stacks up now for the Democrats. Hillary Clinton has 232. Barack Obama, 158, and John Edwards, who has suspended his campaign, has 26.
Meanwhile, our Alina Cho joins us now with more stories that have developed overnight. Hi.
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Kiran, good morning. Good morning, everybody.
New this morning, the Israeli military has launched an air strike in Gaza. It comes just hours after a suicide bomber killed at least one person and injured 11 others. It happened in southern Israel at a shopping mall, about 50 miles south of Jerusalem. Israeli police say there was a second suicide bomber, but police killed him before he could do anything.
In just a couple of hours, President Bush will unveil the nation's first ever $3 trillion budget. The plan would include more money for the military but cuts in more than 150 federal programs including Medicaid and Medicare. The budget projects a $400 billion deficit for this year and next. The Democratic-controlled Congress is promising to oppose the president's budget.
New details this morning about a deadly shooting in a shopping mall in suburban Chicago. Sources tell the "Chicago Tribune" there was, indeed, a sixth victim who was shot. She was left for dead but survived and even called 911. Now police had earlier said, there were five people killed in the Saturday shooting, but made no mention of the sixth survivor. Authorities say her description of the gunman who is still at large could lead to a sketch and hopefully an arrest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR EDWARD ZABROCKI, TINLEY PARK, ILLINOIS: The problem that we have experienced here in Tinley Park is not just in the park, but it's the entire region. All of our communities are concerned. Sadly, this is the commentary on our society that no community is immune to what can happen. A sad commentary that this has happened. This tragedy should not have happened in any town.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: "The Tribune" is also reporting one of the victim's relatives got word from authorities that the suspect fled with some valuables and about $200 in cash.
Striking writers are one step closer to a deal. They have reached an interim contract agreement with four New York-based independent filmmakers. The agreement appears to be another step toward ending the strike that is about to enter its fourth month. Over the weekend, there was word that writers and producers overcame major stumbling blocks including those over compensation for digital media. The next step -- formal talks between the two sides.
It could soon be illegal for restaurants in Mississippi to serve people defined as obese. Obesity is a big problem in Mississippi. The state has ranked number one in the nation for obesity for the past three years. Critics say the government should not try to be the food police. It looks like there's a fat chance the bill will pass. Sponsors say the goal is simply to bring attention to the obesity epidemic.
And Phil Novak is literally half the man he used to be. Take a look at him there. Novak, a weight loss miracle. He used to weigh close to 400 pounds, 387 to be exact. He lost 192 pounds in the past two years by walking and dieting, doing a little running too. Novak says he got scared after he found out he can barely walk back to his seat at a football game, so he started exercising and spinning. He says he walked an hour a day and lost the first 100 pounds in seven months. Now, he runs 30 to 40 miles a week and checks in at 195 pounds.
You could barely recognize him when you see those two shots side by side.
CHETRY: I know. Good for him.
CHO: Yes.
CHETRY: He did it the old fashioned way.
CHO: He most certainly did. And he says the best part about it is when he sees people he hasn't seen in a long time, they don't even recognize him but for the Pittsburgh accent.
CHETRY: Wow. Wow. Good for him.
CHO: You bet.
CHETRY: I got to tell Sanjay about that. He'll be proud of him.
CHO: Yes, he will.
CHETRY: Thank, Alina.
CHO: You bet.
CHETRY: John?
ROBERTS: Thanks, Kiran. It's coming up on 13 minutes after the hour. The fans in New York City were going crazy last night, flooding Times Square after their New York Giants beat the New England Patriots, 17-14, to ruin New England's perfect season. This touchdown pass by Eli Manning to Plaxico Burress with just 35 seconds left, sealed the come-from-behind victory. Manning says that before that last drive, he knew they could win.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ELI MANNING, GIANTS QUARTERBACK: We believed in ourselves all year. And that position you want to be in, you want to have the ball in your hand, four minutes left, you go down, you got to score a touchdown. You know, that's where you want to be. A chance to win the game and, you know, so many big plays in that drive.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: David Tyree.
MANNING: David Tyree, that's all you've got to say. David Tyree, huge catch.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: And this is the catch he was talking about. An incredible grab by David Tyree who caught the ball. Watch this. Then balanced it on his helmet as he was falling. The play happened with a minute left in the game and helped prolong what turned out to be the game-winning touchdown drive.
Kiran, that was an unbelievable play. It looked like Manning was going to be on his backside. Somehow he managed to scoot around from the linebacker, tossed it out to Tyree. And look at this catch. Unbelievable.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: Yes. It almost looked like he was going up for --
ROBERTS: We got to check his gloves to make sure he doesn't have crazy glue on them.
CHETRY: He was looking for a rebound in a basketball game. I mean, he caught it literally over the back of his head. But, wow. It's magic in a bottle. You know, it just either happens or it doesn't. And everything seemed to happen in the last couple of minutes of the game yesterday. But, boy, an exciting one.
ROBERTS: And if they hadn't made that little one-yard drive either to get the first down, you know, could have gone the other way as well. That's incredible to just --
CHETRY: That was smart thinking, too. That was a rookie who knew exactly where he was, and he managed to get that and then drop out of bounds for the clock.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CHETRY: But a lot of good playing last night.
ROBERTS: Some amazing plays.
CHETRY: And I was by myself. I was thinking about you because I knew you said you'd be traveling. I was by myself, too, just eating a bowl of guacamole at the house. So don't feel bad.
Well, there's a new safety warning for parents. Why you may want to think twice before using baby shampoos, lotions and powders. Some of the same concerns over plastics and baby bottles. Could they apply to some of the lotions you're using on your babies? We're going to have details. Elizabeth Cohen joins us coming up.
Also, Google offers to help Yahoo fight off Microsoft's $44 billion takeover bid. We're going to have the latest on the battle over the Internet heavyweights.
And the father of a woman kidnapped in Afghanistan tries to understand why his daughter was taken.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm confused why my daughter would be taken because she's a gentle, caring and respectful person.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: We're going to hear more of a father's plea to get his daughter back when AMERICAN MORNING continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Less than 24 hours from now, polls start opening in Super Tuesday states with voters casting ballots in over 20 states. What are the key contests that the candidates are focusing on? Which ones are up for grabs? Our Chief national correspondent John King joins me now from Boston. And, John, first thing I got to say to you, my friend, condolences.
JOHN KING, CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You can talk politics in Boston this morning, John, not football.
ROBERTS: Hey, John, a couple of states to watch tomorrow with Super Tuesday? California and Missouri, why?
KING: Both huge states, John, and both critical in both the Democratic and the Republican races. Now, let's start with Missouri. That is a state that in the general election come November has picked the winner dating back all the way to the 1950s, and it is critical in the primary battlegrounds as well.
On the Democratic side, both Barack Obama and Senator Clinton hotly contesting a state that is viewed as a key national bellwether. And on the Republican side, it's important because we are going to see there if this momentum in the national polls for John McCain can translate into a state that on the ground is actually probably better suited to Mitt Romney or Mike Huckabee. A key test for Mike Huckabee is down in southern Missouri, the bible belt area of that state.
Out in California, look, it is the biggest prize on Super Tuesday. There are two dozen states on the map in all. California is in both parties, the biggest prize when it comes to delegates. And because of the rules, it goes by congressional districts. So you essentially have 53 different races out in California. The candidates competing in 53 different congressional districts. It is one of the places where Hillary Clinton hopes to rack up a lot of delegates, but Barack Obama is suddenly competitive. A dead heat in the polls there. If Hillary Clinton is to be stopped on Super Tuesday, that's where it will happen.
And on the Republican side, both Mitt Romney and John McCain racing out there for last-minute events because they view the state is very competitive, too. If you're Mitt Romney and you're trying to stop John McCain's momentum, that is the place to do it with so many delegates at stake -- John.
ROBERTS: Another couple of states to watch, John, Georgia and Alabama. But specifically, for Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee, what are they doing down there?
KING: Well, number one, these states will give us a sense of how the night is going early on because Georgia in the east coast and Alabama on the Central time zone, will get the results early on. If you're Mike Huckabee, you won Iowa a month ago, you've been struggling since. If you're going to get back in the race, you need to do it in your native south. He needs the support of southern conservatives especially evangelicals. He needs to overcome the establishment shifting toward McCain and in some cases down there, Romney's organization.
So those are the two places to see if Huckabee will reassert itself. And they are also the two states on the Democratic side that look most like South Carolina. You will have a high percentage of African-Americans and if Senator Clinton is going to win some of the bigger states, Senator Obama needs to make up ground in the smaller states with a significant African-American population. So Georgia and Alabama, absolutely critical to Barack Obama -- John.
ROBERTS: John McCain has been saying, John, that after tomorrow evening, we may have a pretty clear idea of who the Republican nominee is. In the Democrat side, though, things are much more cloudy because as you've said, that they allocate those delegates proportionately. Is there a chance that this might not be determined by this primary process at all on the Democratic side?
KING: I think on both sides, John, we are going to see uncertainty. We certainly have uncertainty on the eve of Super Tuesday. Look just right here where I am in Massachusetts. John McCain is waking up here this morning. Many are questioning whether that's a wise move. He's trying to be in-your-face to Mitt Romney. Most believe Mitt Romney will carry his home state.
And some say if John McCain does not have a good night on Tuesday, he will have only himself to blame for spending 16 hours or so in Massachusetts that might have been better spent in some other battleground state. And also, the two U.S. senators and the governor here in Massachusetts are for Barack Obama. Well, guess what? Senator Hillary Clinton is coming to town today. She has the support of the Boston mayor. So there's so much at stake. The races are so close all the way across the country from east to west. Every one is trying to niche market, if you will, and pick up some delegates. And there are many who think, certainly on the Democratic side and maybe on the Republican side, we're going to wake up on Wednesday morning and say, hmm, still got a ways to go.
ROBERTS: All right. John King for us this morning in Boston. And again, John, condolences for what happened to the Patriots yesterday.
CNN is your home for the most political --
(CROSSTALK)
KING: They beat them up good.
ROBERTS: They didn't do too badly there.
CNN is your home for the most political coverage on Super Tuesday. Forty nonstop hours. It all kicks off right here on AMERICAN MORNING tomorrow at 6:00 a.m. Wednesday, we'll be live here on AMERICAN MORNING beginning at 5:00 a.m. with all of the late results from Super Tuesday -- Kiran.
CHETRY: That's right. We're pulling an all-nighter and coming on an hour early. It will be great.
Still ahead, is Governor Bill Richardson ready to choose sides in the Democratic race for president? Well, we're going to ask him about a possible endorsement and the critical Latino vote on Super Tuesday. He joins us in just a couple of minutes.
Also, we are in the peak of flu season in many, many states. And right now, close to a dozen states suffering what they're calling flu outbreaks. If you have not gotten a flu shot yet, is it too late to get one? And which states are getting hit hardest? Our medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen, is going to be joining us in a few minutes. She has an update for us coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Twenty-five minute past the hour now. Ali Velshi is "Minding Your Business." You're always turning his mike on.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Yes.
CHETRY: Go.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: This is new to me. I've been out of the studio for so long. Good morning.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: Right. You know, you use those on the CNN Election Express. VELSHI: On the bus. We're talking about the economic stimulus program. The Senate is going to be debating it this week. The whole thing moved very quickly so people haven't really had as much of a chance as they'd like to think about it. But I want to tell you that there are a bunch of people thinking that there are different ways to stimulate the economy.
The idea is you want to give people money so that they spend it and stimulate the economy. The way we're looking at is rebate check, but there are other ways as well, other proposals which include a refund off your tax cut basically, in addition to or separately from a rebate check. And there is a new proposal that's being discussed and that is giving people more jobless benefit, extending the benefits that people get if they're unemployed.
Now, the reason you do that -- one economist from moodyseconomy.com (ph), for instance, says that for every dollar you spend on extending jobless benefits, the benefit to the economy is $1.64. That's what people spend in the economy. Whereas when you give them rebate checks, the benefit to the economy as he has calculated is only about $1.25. So there's more benefit, according to one economist, to giving jobless benefits.
Now, people who criticize that say basically, if you give people jobless benefits, you extend their jobless benefits, it basically extends the amount of time that they're unemployed. So while they'll spend it, they're not getting a job until later in the game. The Senate is going to be discussing it this week. It's probably worth paying attention to that and to what the candidates are saying about it so that you can make a decision as to which one you think is best for the economy.
CHETRY: It seems the only trouble with this is that everyone agrees on one thing, which is that this has to happen soon.
VELSHI: It has to happen soon.
CHETRY: Whatever it is.
VELSHI: Yes.
CHETRY: And it seems like the debate is far from over.
VELSHI: And the danger, of course, is if you give people this money and they don't spend it. Because people are very much in debt,...
CHETRY: Yes.
VELSHI: ... it's good for them to pay to pay their own debt down. It may not be great for the economy.
CHETRY: All right. Ali, thank you -- John.
ROBERTS: You're watching the "Most News in the Morning." His endorsement could give a big boost to Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama. So, is Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico ready to make an announcement? We'll ask him when he joins us in just a few minutes time here. See if we can get him to make some news.
And to learn what makes Barack Obama, we have to go back to his beginnings.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS (voice-over): What is the single most important quality he possesses based on your experience that qualifies him -- ?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In my experience, it is the quality to bring opposing forces together.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: We'll have that story and today's headlines when AMERICAN MORNING returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. Good morning this Monday, February 4th. I'm Kiran Chetry here in New York. Hey, John.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, good morning to you from Manny's Deli in Chicago, Illinois. I'm John Roberts this morning. This is exactly your type of place, Kiran. You would love it. Take a look here. Look at this. They're slicing the meat up. Corn beef sandwiches that are half the size of cows here. You would love this place. This is how they bill themselves.
At Manny's, you don't diet, you don't snack, you don't nosh. You come here to pile your tray high and eat like there's no tomorrow. In fact, they say the crowds here on Monday are a little smaller than normal because everybody is sort of repenting for what they ate over the weekend. If you eat a lot on the weekend, don't come here to Manny's early on a Monday morning and pig out again. It's too much. It's a great place. It's been here not exactly in this location but it's a Chicago institution since 1942. This is the place to come if you want to talk local politics and that's what we're doing this morning.
CHETRY: Talking local politics and don't forget, sample the corn beef hash. It's a staple of AMERICAN MORNING show. If they're slicing the corn beef fresh, you know it's got to be good. All right, John.
Well meanwhile on the eve of these critical Super Tuesday primaries, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are running neck and neck in the race for the democratic nomination. Enter Bill Richardson. The New Mexico governor's endorsement could give Clinton or Obama a big boost, potentially among Hispanic voters as well. Is Richardson ready to choose sides? The governor joins us now from Santa Fe, New Mexico. Hey, I love the goatee by the way. A different look?
GOV. BILL RICHARDSON (D), NEW MEXICO: Thank you. Since I got out of the race, I've been decompressing by being a governor and growing this beard. I know it doesn't look so good, but maybe it will get better.
CHETRY: Oh I think it suits you. Last time you were on the show, you said you weren't ready yet to endorse anybody or come out officially. Have you changed your mind?
RICHARDSON: No, I'm not ready yet. I have extremely high regard for both candidates. Last night, President Clinton and I got together to watch the Super Bowl here in New Mexico. It was basically two friends getting together, 25 year old friends. We enjoyed the game but not yet. I'm trying to decide. I have, as I said, enormous respect for both candidates. I know Senator Clinton well. I've gotten to know Senator Obama well. But you know Kiran, I've never felt that the endorsement of one politician towards another makes much difference, it's how they connect with voters. By the way, there are a lot of other Hispanic voters that are going to be casting their vote after Super Tuesday. So I'm going to focus on this in the next few days but I'm not ready to say anything. But if I do, I'll come back on your show.
CHETRY: Thank you and the invitation is always open. But at this point, you're not planning to make an endorsement on Super Tuesday of either of the two?
RICHARDSON: Right, at this point. Things can change. The good news it that I'm now a free man. I can do whatever I want. And, again, I'm not trying to be coy. I just want to focus on who's best for this country. Who's the most positive about America? Both candidates have exceptional qualities. With Senator Clinton, you get tremendous experience, tremendous knowledge. With Senator Obama, he's a transformative figure. As I've been talking on the phone lately, quite a bit, I get to know him better. I'm not quite ready yet.
CHETRY: I got you. You're getting calls from several people to sort of talk to you about these types of endorsements. Are you waiting to hear something out there? Is there something that you think needs to be discussed more that could perhaps sway you one way or the other?
RICHARDSON: No, I just want both candidates to get positive about the country. I want to talk about their vision of how they're going to improve the economy, how they're going to end the war, how we're going have energy independence and reduce global warming. I want the issues to come out more. There's been a little too much negativity, back biting. Hopefully now as we head into the 22 primaries on Tuesday, and the stretch, that the positive side of the issues come out. That's what I'm looking at. I want a positive vision for this country. I want both countries to stay positive.
CHETRY: Interesting, the field poll in California and democratic likely voters, it shows among the Hispanic voters, Hillary Clinton with a clear lead, 59 percent to 19 percent. Why do you think that there is that big of a gap, that Barack Obama may be having some trouble connecting with the Latino voters? RICHARDSON: Well, right now, Obama has a lot of momentum. I would say younger Latino voters are relating to Obama while middle aged, older Latinos, they know the loyalty of the Clintons to the Hispanic community, the record of President Clinton which was very good, the fact that they've been around longer and Latino voters are loyal. But, you know, this myth that African-American voters and Latino voters don't mesh is exactly that. It's a total myth. What I think you'll see is that statistic is going to tighten among Latino voters. But, you know, Latinos are very independent. They're not in one party, necessarily. They don't just care about immigration and civil rights. They care about the war. They care about the economy. They care about mainstream issues. And any politician or party that puts them in a box and just relates to them as Latino voters and not as regular American mainstream voters, is going to lose a lot of votes.
CHETRY: Governor Bill Richardson, thank you so much for joining us this morning. Great to talk to you again.
RICHARDSON: Thank you.
CHETRY: It also brings us to our Quick Vote question of the morning. We talked about this one. Would there be a possible dream ticket? This was first brought up seriously at the last debate between Clinton and Obama. Got a lot of applause. Regardless of who wins the nomination, should Clinton and Obama become a running mate? Well right now, 63 percent of you saying yes, 37 percent saying no. Cast your vote, CNN.com/am, and we'll continue to update the votes throughout the morning. How about that one, John?
ROBERTS: People like that idea of the dream team there and the democratic race.
We're here in Chicago where both democratic front-runners have deep roots. In the last hour, we showed you Hillary Clinton, Chicago. She grew up in suburban Park Ridge. Barack Obama's political career began on the south side of Chicago. It was his adoptive home. I went back to his home neighborhood to see where Obama became Obama.
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BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It was in these neighborhoods that I received the best education that I ever had.
ROBERTS: Whenever his experience is called into question, Barack Obama often refers to the time that he was a community organizer here in Altgeld Gardens, a public housing project on Chicago's south side.
Barack Obama says that the best education he had was right here in the neighborhoods.
EMIL JONES, PRESIDENT ILLINOIS SENATE: He worked for a lot of grass root people.
Emil Jones is the president of the Illinois senate. He met Obama when he first moved to Chicago in 1985. ROBERTS: What's the single most important quality he possesses based on your experience?
JONES: The quality of bringing opposing forces together, those on the opposite end of the spectrum to be able to sit down and talk and say, hey, we can come together.
ROBERTS: Obama knew little about the landscape, but learned quickly, helping tenants take on landlords over asbestos, organizing job trading programs, helping fill potholes, and put up stop signs.
JERRY KELLMAN, FORMER COMMUNITY ORGANIZER: He came in idealistic, he left idealistic but he wasn't practical when he got here. After three years, he became practical and found the way to fuse the two.
ROBERTS: Lack of experience, it seems, was never much of a problem for Obama, community organizing, state or national politics.
PAUL GREEN, ROOSEVELT UNIVERSITY: Obama is different. He doesn't come from a ward organization. Unlike other successful African American politicians, he doesn't have a long history working for other candidates. He's barely unwrapped. Yet, he is going for the highest office in the land.
ROBERTS: In Illinois, he was the outsider who became a home-town hero. Can he repeat that success in contests across the land on Tuesday?
GREEN: The oldest line of politics not how good you are, it's how lucky you are and fate has been smiling at Barack Obama at least for the last six, seven years.
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ROBERTS: Obama served eight years in the state senate here.
While CNN is your home for the most political coverage on Super Tuesday, 21 contests for the republican, 22 for the democrats. 40 nonstop hours of coverage, it ALL kicks off here on AMERICAN MORNING at 6:00 here and Wednesday, we'll be up bright and early at 5:00 a.m. eastern to bring you all of the results of Super Tuesday.
The weather could play a big part for the turnout in tomorrow's primaries. Let's head to Reynolds Wolf who is in today for Rob Marciano. What's it looking like, Reynolds?
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It does not look all that good for a good part of the nation, John. Take a look right behind me. We've got this very complex storm system that's going to be marching from the west to the east. As it does so, it will tap in to a lot of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico. We could see some widespread severe weather in parts of the Ohio Valley, Tennessee Valley. We're talking about the potential of some damaging winds, some tornados, maybe even a bit of flash flooding. Bad conditions. A big day for turning out the vote. Something else we're seeing this morning, some scattered showers, snow showers, a little bit of rain, even some sleet moving into parts of the Corn Belt into Iowa, Des Moines, certainly an icy morning for you. Cedar Rapids, same story. And back in New York, you may see a touch of snowfall today but just a little bit. Kiran will be happy filing some snow flakes possible in Central Park. For the most part, switching to rainfall as all of this moisture goes from west to east.
How is that going to affect your travel? Well, in New York, you're going to see some delays. We anticipate delays upwards of an hour at all the metro airports in New York. For Atlanta, about an hour or so. In Chicago, same story, due to that fog. That's the latest on your forecast. Send it right back to you.
ROBERTS: Reynolds, I've got a quick question for you. What's the weather looking like for Tennessee tomorrow?
WOLF: Tennessee tomorrow is going to be rough early. Scattered showers as we get to the mid morning hours to the afternoon. We could see some strong thunderstorms, maybe tornado, an area of big concern for us.
ROBERTS: All right, be there tomorrow morning so we'll have to get out of dodge early and back to New York. Thanks.
WOLF: You bet.
ROBERTS: Let's take it back to New York. Here's Kiran.
CHETRY: Flu season is in full swing. Wide outbreaks report in 11 states and a new strain starting to emerge. Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is with me here in New York to tell us which states are being hit the hardest. Thanks for being with us. First of all, how bad is this year's flu season?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It has not been that unusual. It has not broken any records in either direction. It's not the most mild, but it's also not the most severe. Let's take a look at a map the CDC does every year of flu activity. What we're finding is that six states have what they call wide-spread activity including two Super Tuesday states, New York and New Jersey. So it will be interesting to see if that has any impact at all on voter turnout. Who knows?
But one of the first questions that people ask when they think about the flu is, gosh, how do I know if I have the flu? Maybe I have a cold. We're going to tell you how you know if you have the flu. If you have symptoms like a high fever that doesn't go away, a terrible headache, all of the cold stuff too, the cough, the sore throat, the stuff fist nose accompanied by vomiting and diarrhea, it's a good chance you have the flu. People say you had the flu this weekend. You probably wouldn't have the flu for a weekend. It's a serious illness. It's not some little annoying bug. It kills 36,000 people every year and puts 200,000 people in the hospital.
CHETRY: So if you did take those preventative measure and get a flu shot this year, did you pretty much avoid it?
COHEN: It worked pretty well. What we were told is that it covered most everything -- not 100 percent, but that it worked pretty well this year.
CHETRY: If you didn't, Tamiflu has been something that's been popular once you actually get it. How does that work?
COHEN: Once you actually get some symptoms of the flu, the first thing you want to do is you want to go see your doctor because Tamiflu is out there for the flu. But you really have to take it in the first 24 to 48 hours of feeling symptoms. And you know what? A lot of people don't get to the doctor that quickly.
Now Tamiflu doesn't cover anybody. If you get there in time, sometimes it just misses. The strains don't match up well. Sometimes it just doesn't work. But most of the time it does if you get there in time.
CHETRY: All right. Good news. You're going to come back in about an hour. We're going to talk about some ingredients that are in some popular baby lotions that may be harmful to your child.
COHEN: Right and it doesn't have to be on the label. So this is something you need to hear about from us to know about it.
CHETRY: All right. We'll be listening for that now. Thanks, Elizabeth. John?
ROBERTS: Coming up on 60 minutes to the top of the hour, Kiran. The family of an American aide worker being held in Afghanistan is pleading with her captors to let her go. Cyd Mizell was kidnapped in Kandahar on January the 26th. Her father, George, says he does not know why his daughter was kidnapped.
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GEORGE MIZELL, FATHER OF CYD MIZELL: I'm confused why my daughter would be taken because she's a gentle, caring and respectful person. When we talked to Cyd, she tells us about the friends she's made and the kindness that's been shown to her and her desire to help them. To those people who are holding our daughter, please let Cyd come home. Each day that passes without knowing about Cyd is difficult for our family and friends.
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ROBRETS: Mizell was in Afghanistan with the Asian Rural Life Development Foundation. She had been working on projects to help women and families generate income.
The U.S. Embassy is urging all American citizens to get out of Chad immediately as the violence continues. They're relocated operations and personnel to the Gymea Airport and is temporarily unable to receive phone calls. Thousands of refugees are leaving the cities and hundreds of citizens have already fled to neighboring Cameroon. Forces are pulling back from the capital of Chad in central Africa. CNN's Nic Robertson is on his way into Chad. He is reporting that the government of Chad and federal forces may be organizing for a new battle. Kiran?
CHETRY: All right. Still ahead John, racy ads causing trouble for one store. We'll tell you why police came after the manager coming up.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Manning lobs it. Touchdown, New York.
CHETRY: That was pretty much it in the last few seconds of the game. Millions of people tuned in to watch the Super Bowl last night, not just for the competition on the field, but also for the competition among the advertisers. Veronica De La Cruz has been watching the web this morning gauging the reaction to the Super Bowl commercials. All in all, not so super?
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN INTERNET CORRESPONDENT: The people being critical of the ads. They're expensive, $2.7 million advertisers are spending and ad experts say it was one of the most interactive super bowls to date. Advertisers sending commercials to their websites after their commercials aired. And also places for viewers to vote for their favorite commercial. Look on-line. AOL has been hosting the super Sunday ad polls. So far, take a look. The results of the polls look like this. The number one spot -- what do you think? You know? The Budweiser Rocky commercial where a Dalmatian trains a beer-hauling Clydesdale to the theme music of "Rocky" playing in the background.
CHETRY: I love the Clydesdales.
Every year, you can count on them.
DE LA CRUZ: They have to make an appearance.
Number two, the Bridgestone commercial which features a screaming squirrel. Also, lots of other screaming animals. You just have to laugh at that one.
I think so too. The message here, our tires are so good that you'll be able to swerve out of the way.
Number three, the Coke commercial featuring the battle of the hot air balloons. It shows the Underdog and Stewie balloons fighting with each other.
CHETRY: This was really neat how they were able to give you the different points of view from inside the building what it's like to see that huge balloon coming at you.
DE LA CRUZ: Isn't it nuts?
CHETRY: Then in the end, good old Charlie Brown wins.
DE LA CRUZ: He swoops in to take the coat.
CHETRY: This shot I love. Just standing there in Manhattan and, boom.
DE LA CRUZ: Like the shot from the seventh floor as well, right?
CHETRY: Right. Look at that. I thought that was pretty cool.
DE LA CRUZ: Anyways, those are all of the commercials. That's where they stand right now. And if you're too busy to watch the commercials, you're focused on the game, you can log onto AOL.com. Also, they're on You Tube.
CHETRY: Of course. Sounds good. All right. Thanks a lot, Veronica.
Meanwhile, the manager of an Abercrombie and Finch store in Virginia is in trouble with the law for some racy photos in the store windows. This is from Virginia Beach, citing the store manager for misdemeanor obscenity and he confiscated the pictures. They show young men without their shirts and there you can see what's been fuzzed out in that one, their pants hanging low. The store was warned to take the photos down after the customers complained. Abercrombie and Finch has a history of risque ads. They had to pull the catalog in 2003 after receiving so many complaints about some of the pictures. John?
ROBERTS: Kiran, the race is on to find missing skiers near Lake Tahoe. Rescuers dealing with new snow and plunging temperatures there. We'll have the latest on the search coming up.
Plus, four states of the American southwest could swing the election. Our Ed Lavendera is talking to voters in the four corners today.
ED LAVENDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: From this very spot, a presidential candidate could reach out to four states and 29 electoral votes, ten in Arizona, five in New Mexico, nine in Colorado, and five more in Utah.
ROBERTS: What issues do voters think are important there and what are they looking for in a president? We'll find out from the four corners ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
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ROBERTS: Coming up on five minutes to the top of the hour. Ali Velshi "Minding Your Business" this morning. News about Yahoo! And Google. Good morning, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. How are you? We are hearing from Google this will morning after a big deal that was announced -- wasn't announced, Microsoft announced it was going for Yahoo! on Friday for $44.6 billion. While they didn't mention anything about Google in the press release, this really was all about Google. So Google coming out this morning saying, watch out, everybody, this is going to be dangerous putting Microsoft and Yahoo! together.
Google is definitely trying to get regulators in particular, the government in particular to take a look at this deal saying Microsoft has a bad habit or has had a habit in the past doing things that weren't that competitive. Here's what Google said on the posting on its website, "Could a combination of the two, Microsoft and Google, take advantage of a PC software monopoly to unfairly limit the ability of consumers to freely access competitors' e-mail, IM and web based services?"
Google's chairman made a call to Yahoo!'s CEO to discuss this potential deal. Yahoo! has not said they're going for this deal. They're considering it. The Department of Justice on Friday said they'd like to take a close look at this proposal to see that it's all fair. Not without hurdles but a lot of investors thought it was a good deal, pushing up Yahoo! Stock price to where Microsoft was offering, $31 a share for this deal. Be worth watching. This will affect not only investors but pretty much everybody who uses Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo!
ROBERTS: All right. Good to know you'll be watching it for us. Ali Velshi for us this morning. Ali, thanks. Kiran?
CHETRY: A health warning for parents that infants could be exposed to a toxic chemical through commonly used baby lotions, powders, and shampoos. We'll get the story from medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen about what parents need to know.
Also, Kevin Everett would have liked to have played but describing what was a catastrophic injury in the first game of the year. The Buffalo Bill's tight end is happy to be walking around again, our one-on-one with Everett coming up on AMERICAN MORNING.
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ROBERTS: Giant upset. A Super Bowl for the ages. The underdogs of New York take down undefeated New England on their way to a Super Bowl Tuesday hometown party.
Super showdown, a new national poll just in, Obama and Clinton, too close to call. McCain, Romney and don't count out Huckabee, the most politics in the morning.
Plus, where it all began.
Barack Obama says that the best education he ever had was right here in this neighborhood.
The crossroads the democrats' great rivalry. What made Obama Obama? And digging up Hillary's heartland roots?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She came from a very conservative home.
ROBERTS: Live from Chicago and New York on this AMERICAN MORNING.
And good Monday morning to you. Thanks for joining us.
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