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Obama Makes it Ten in a Row; John McCain's Latest Battle; Satellite Shootout by U.S. Military; Several Vehicles Piled Up on Indiana's I-94; Bush Eases Africa's Fears of U.S. Military Expansion

Aired February 20, 2008 - 10:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right. A couple of breaking stories.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Whoa.

WHITFIELD: That we have for you right now. This is out of Indiana. Look the weather is certainly a factor. A 70-car pileup, huge. Still trying to determine what roadway this was taking place on but La Porte, Indiana, is the location you see right now in this live shot. You can see the crush of vehicles, large and small there.

Right there, so presumably on a highway perhaps and weather certainly being a factor. You can see the snow on the ground. It's clearly very cold. You heard from Rob Marciano earlier in his live reports of weather, just talking about the mid section of the country in the below zero kind of temperature. Tony is doing a quick search right here.

But a sizable pile up. We don't know anything about injuries thus far. The magnitude of vehicles piled up here. It's not like they look good.

HARRIS: Well, La Porte and Michigan City are the two impacted cities here. And this is the Indiana toll way, Fred. Pretty nasty as you can see there. Boy, vehicles under the overpass, tractor trailers, you got it twisted and mangled right there.

WHITFIELD: Yes, it's looking bad. And of course, you see a lot of people on the ground there, presumably some first responders there, trying to assess the situation. And perhaps even those who were uninjured. Who have emerged from their vehicles to kind of get a closer look. And we do understand that snow, this weather, is certainly a factor in this very ugly situation.

Rob Marciano has continued to watch the weather situation. He's going to give us an update as soon as he can, and of course if we get any more information on this 70-car pileup there in La Porte, Indiana. We'll be able to bring that to you.

In the meantime, the other big story we're following for you out of Louisville, Kentucky, look at live pictures right now of a high school there which is on lockdown. Fern Creek Traditional High School on lockdown because we understand from earlier reports from authorities on the ground there, as well as from our security analyst, Mike Brooks, one of the students brought a weapon to school. There may have been a fight earlier that took place there on the school's campus. This student brings in a gun, flashes it, shows it to some of the other students who do the right thing, which is tell the grown-ups there at school that somebody is in school with a gun. It's resulted in this lockdown now.

And for the first time, we're now seeing a lot more people kind of meandering outside the property. We saw a sweep being conducted of the parking lot earlier -- 1,200 students are at this school. No reports of any injuries.

Now, you see the armed officials there moving rather quickly to the building. They have had this school on lockdown as a result of hearing about a kid can a gun in the school. They want to make sure that everyone who is in the school is safe and sound. They've brought authorities from the other jurisdictions in addition to a complement the school security there.

But again, we don't know anything more about whether they have located the student. They do have the I.D. of the student who came to school with gun, but, again, the lockdown under way there in Louisville, Kentucky, at Fern Creek traditional high school. More information as we get it, Tony.

HARRIS: Man. All right. Also, in the news this morning, politics keeping up their winning ways. Barack Obama makes it 10 in a row. And John McCain marches toward the Republican nomination. Next the road to the White House runs through the critical states of Texas and Ohio on the Democratic.

Obama won Tuesday's Wisconsin primary and the Hawaii caucuses. He ran well among the white women and blue collar voters. Obama is rallying supporters in one of the next big battlegrounds and that's Texas.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is our moment. This is our time. And if you are willing to vote for me, if you are willing to stand with me, if you're willing to caucus for me, then I truly believe that we will not just win Texas, we will win this nomination. The change we seek is still months and miles away.

And we need the good people of Texas to help us get there. We will need you to fight for every delegate it takes to win this nomination. And if we win the nomination, if we are blessed and honored to win the nomination, then we're going to need your help to win the election in November.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: Hillary Clinton showing no signs of surrender. She didn't mention, didn't even mention her latest defeat during a speech in Ohio last night. Instead, she's positioning herself as the candidate with solutions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My opponent claims to stand up for workers. He often talks about the plight of the Maytag workers in his home state. But the union at that plant supports me, because when 1,600 jobs were being lost, they say he didn't do a thing to help.

When I think about what we're really comparing in this election, you know, we can't just have speeches, we've got to have solutions, and we need those solutions for America. We've got to get America back in the solutions business, because while words matter, the best words in the world aren't enough unless you match them with action.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARRIS: On the delegate count, Obama leads Clinton 1,301 to 1,239. That's according to CNN estimates. It takes 2,025 to win the nomination.

In the Republican race, John McCain widened his delegate lead over Mike Huckabee with wins in Wisconsin and Washington state.

WHITFIELD: Veteran tactics. Here's CNN's Tom Foreman on John McCain's latest battle.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: War teaches that with enough time and space, many battles can be turned around and the fight between the Democratic contenders is clearly giving veteran warrior John McCain time to improve his position.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you. Thank you.

FOREMAN: McCain is benefiting in three key areas. First, money. Taking care of business. He's had money troubles from the start, and his campaign was broke by the time he won New Hampshire. Now, however, some of the party's biggest fund-raisers, including some from President Bush's campaign, are helping. McCain's team says they banked more than $7 million in January. The Democrats have much more.

MCCAIN: but we are a reaching a point where thanks to the Internet and fund-raisers, that we're at a higher comfort level.

FOREMAN: Second, McCain is consolidating his base. A week ago, conservatives were raging.

RUSH LIMBAUGH, RADIO TV TALK SHOW HOST: McCain will kill conservatism as, you know, a dominant force in the Republican party.

FOREMAN: But they are quieter now, following endorsements from some of the party's biggest names and the right words from the candidate.

TERRY JEFFREY, CONSERVATIVE COMMENTATOR: The best thing McCain has done in the last month was say this Sunday that he would not raise taxes. He needs clear commitments like that on other conservative issues.

FOREMAN: And third, the Democrats are attacking -- each other.

CARL BERNSTEIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I think there are many advantages the Republicans get in terms of Obama doing their work for them against Hillary and Hillary doing their work for them against Obama.

FOREMAN: McCain can use the help. Polls show him in a very tight race against either Democrat. But that's right now.

MCCAIN: Thank you. God bless you.

FOREMAN: And he's already shown once with enough time and space he can beat the odds.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: OK. Crucial contest ahead in the race for the White House. The next big showdown, Fred. The March 4th primaries in delegate-rich Ohio and Texas as well as Vermont and Rhode Island for the Democrats. There are 370 delegates at stake, 256 Republican delegates are up for grabs. And stay with CNN throughout the day. We have much more on the candidates as we look ahead to the March 4th contest. Join us for CNN "Ballot Bowl" at noon Eastern. Remember, CNN equals politics.

And didn't you just love this moment about an hour ago? A picture-perfect landing in Florida. You saw it live right here. Here's the replay. The space shuttle "Atlantis" landing safely after 13 days in space, a more than five billion-mile journey. The next shuttle mission is scheduled for March 11th, and that'll be space shuttle "in depth."

HARRIS: Well, the military gearing up to shoot down an out of control and potentially toxic satellite tonight. At least that's the plan. Maybe the plan is undergoing a little bit of a revision. CNN's Kathleen Koch at the Pentagon for us this morning.

Good morning, Kathleen.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony. That's very well put.

Right now, the a senior military official who just briefed reporters said weather conditions today are on this margin, He says it's not enough to say no, he said. But we're really watching to where it closely at this time. And basically, Tony, what we're talking about is this 5,000 pounds spy satellite, that is gradually in the process of tumbling to earth with a 1,000 pounds of rocket fuel, toxic rocket fuel still on board. And that's why the U.S. military wants to shoot it down. They were worried that if that rocket fuel crash to earth somewhere, it didn't burn out in the atmosphere and that it actually put toxic, potentially deadly fumes over an area, some two football fields wide.

So the plan right now whether it's today or anytime in the next nine or ten days is to try and shoot it down with a missile from a ship, which is in the sea, west of Hawaii. Shoot it down and when it's at a lower orbit, about 150 miles over the earth, before it re- enters the earth's atmosphere.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEOFF MORRELL, PENTAGON SPOKESMAN: We have a pretty wide aperture in which to take this shot, and I think that the commanders who are evaluating this are looking at all the conditions that could impact this to make sure that when we do take this shot it can be as successful as possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: Now, Morrell said a wide aperture, but actually according to this official, they have really one shot every day, a matter of seconds, and everything really has to fall into place and be perfect. They say the problem today right now is that the ship in the sea west of Hawaii, the Erie, the waves' height is just a little too dramatic for them. So, they're keeping an eye on it and it might be a no-go.

But everything, again, has to fall into place. The satellite has to be in the right position. They want to do it during daylight so that they actually are able to get maybe a visual cue on did they hit it, what's falling to earth. They also want to make sure that in the three revolutions that this debris will make as they go around the earth, they each take 90 minutes, they want those to occur over water, Tony, so it's more likely that any debris that is remaining does just fall into an ocean.

HARRIS: You have to factor in the height of the waves before you launch this.

KOCH: It has to be that precise. Absolutely.

HARRIS: Wow.

KOCH: Amazing.

HARRIS: Kathleen Koch at the Pentagon for us. Kathleen, thank you.

KOCH: You bet.

WHITFILED: I want to take you straight to Columbus, Ohio. Riding the momentum after a series of wins, John McCain.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MCCAIN: Other outside money about working out. That's Washington double speak. I committed to public financing, he committed to public financing. It is not any more complicated than that. I hope he will keep his commitment to the American people. That's not transparency, nor is it keeping one's word to the American people to take public financing. I'll keep my word. I want him to keep his. If he's the nominee and I'm the nominee in the party -- of our respective parties. Questions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Senator, are you saying that he does not keep his word for public financing and will not sub finance?

MCCAIN: No. I'm saying that I will keep in commitment which I made in writing, that if the nominee of the Democratic party would take public financing I also would take public financing. I obviously, would have to re-evaluate if Senator Obama or Senator Clinton does not take that commitment, but I've made that commitment.

Senator Obama made that commitment. Senator Clinton didn't make that commitment. Senator Obama did make that commitment in right writing. I expect him to -- I think the American people would expect him to hold to that commitment, especially if we want to bring about change.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Senator, have you or our aide aides spoke within his aides in the last few days?

MCCAIN: there's nothing to talk about. What's there to talk about? We both made a commitment to take public financing. There's nothing to talk about. We either keep my word or we don't keep my word. I intend to keep my word to the American people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Senator, why would he accept public financing if he's showing all signs of being able to far out raise you?

MCCAIN: I don't know except -- I have no idea unless it has to do with one keeping one's commitment that one makes. I made commitments in the past that may not or may have or may have not have turned out to my benefit. It's all a matter of whether you keep your commitment or not when you make it.

That's what the American people are so cynical about us in Washington. They're cynical about people that put their name on a piece of paper and make a commitment and then don't keep it. That, in my view, I wouldn't do such a thing. Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What are you specifically referring to?

MCCAIN: The letter that he wrote and public statements that he made as well. There are signatures on a piece of paper, yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This campaign, got a commitment from the election commission saying that this was possible.

MCCAIN: Went to one of the public organizations. One of the public interest organizations. Yes. He wrote down that he would do it, yes. It's pretty clear. If that's not clear to you, that's fine. But it's very clear to me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just want to say he signed it. What specifically are you referring to?

MCCAIN: Yes, he did sign a piece of paper. That's what I'm referring to. Yes. It's public knowledge. It's in the public domain. I've forgotten exactly. It was to a public interest organization.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Senator McCain, in your speech, you talked about Barack Obama saying that he wants to get [ inaudible ] our ally Pakistan.

MCCAIN: I said bombing. My statement was bombing. I don't know if you received a text, but my statement that I made in my speech was that he suggested bombing Pakistan without their permission.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Regardless, if you go back and look at Barack Obama, what he was saying is not going after Pakistan but going after Al Qaeda targets within Pakistan. You know...

MCCAIN: That's still bombing Pakistan.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But there are some people in this administration who think that going unilaterally and not sort of being at the mercy of Musharraf might not be the worst idea.

MCCAIN: Well, the best idea is to not broadcast what you're going to do. That's naive. The first thing that you do is you make your plans and you carry out your operations as necessary for America's national security interest. You don't broadcast that you are going to bomb a country that is a sovereign nation and that you are dependent on the good will of the people of that country to help you in the war and the struggle against Taliban and the sanctuaries in which they hold.

So, the first thing you do is you don't tell people what you're going to do. You make plans, and you work with the other country that is your ally and friend, which Pakistan is. You don't broadcast and say you're going to bomb a country without their permission or without consulting them. It's just the fundamentals of the conduct of national security policy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Republican John McCain there offering some clarification on his thoughts of some of his opponents including that of Democrat Barack Obama. And if you want to continue to hear John McCain there out of Columbus, Ohio, you can watch it on CNN.com.

HARRIS: Well, we want to take you back now to -- I guess this is an Indiana toll way. This is between La Porte and Michigan City. Sergeant Ann Wojus of the Indiana state police is on the line with us. Sergeant, we're looking at some pretty dramatic pictures of a huge pileup, some 70 vehicles involved. If you would, take a moment to describe what you're dealing with here.

VOICE OF SGT. ANN WOJUS, INDIANA STATE POLICE: Well, it's not on the toll road. It is on I-94, and it's involving about 11 semis and 10 to 15 cars right now.

HARRIS: Ten to 15 vehicles. All right.

WOJUS: We're talking about 22 to 25 vehicles.

HARRIS: Where the heck did we get 70 vehicles from? All right. So, give me the numbers again, 11 semis and 10 or so other vehicles.

WOJUS: Ten to 15 cars.

HARRIS: OK, 10 to 15 cars. Well, thank you for that. Do we know what caused this? Was this weather related in any way?

WOJUS: It was weather related. At the time, we were having a white there, and of course the road is extremely slick.

HARRIS: Yes. Any injuries to report? I mean ...

WOJUS: Just minor injuries. Nothing life-threatening.

HARRIS: Are you kidding me? We're looking at these dramatic pictures and you're telling me that you can only report minor injuries, nothing even critical at this point?

WOJUS: Nothing critical.

HARRIS: Well, that is amazing. I can't imagine -- can you give us any kind of an idea of what kind of a backup on I-94 you're faced with right now?

WOJUS: Well, we have closed the interstate and we are diverting traffic off at the 40-mile mark or so we're going to have about six miles of I-94 closed westbound.

HARRIS: And I can't imagine you would be able to give me any kind of an estimate as to when you'll be able to clear this. Not as bad as we initially thought in terms of the vehicle, but still a lot on your hands.

WOJUS: Right. We have a couple semi trailers that are split open, so, of course, we'll have to offload those. It'll probably be closed for the better part of the day.

HARRIS: All right. Sergeant, we appreciate your time, as we recap and circle back on this story. Look, 11 tractor-trailers, 10 to 15 cars involved in this. It's still a pretty massive accident scene there on I-94. It's going to take some time to clear this up, at least a six-mile backup there right now. We will continue to keep an eye on this. And I guess the best news this all of this, no serious injuries to report. Pretty dramatic scene, though.

WHITFIELD: It really is, indeed. Weather is bad. That you heard from the sergeant there, was a factor. Rob Marciano is in the weather center. So, La Porte, Indiana, you can see the snow on the ground.

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Slick.

WHITFIELD: Are we talking the roads may have had a little bit of that black ice, elements like that?

MARCIANO: Yes. Those pictures pretty much tell it. The roads just look slick from that angle, especially that overpass. So we've got snow, we've got slush, and temperatures, guys, that are in the teens. So, you're going -- if you have any slush, it's going to freeze to the roadways pretty quickly. Even salt's not going to do a whole lot of good. So, safe to say that this stretch of roadway has been treacherous due to weather. It is right along the lake. Here it is on the radar.

Here's 94, La Porte, kind of stretches into Forest Lake towards Michigan City and you can see the blotches of white coming off the lake, lake-effect snows from the bitterly cold air rolling off the relatively warm lake, Lake Michigan. Most of the heavier snows are to the north, but it just doesn't take much to get those roads slick and those tractor-trailers going, boy, just a mess there.

The showers in Indianapolis to Dayton, Ohio. A little pulse of energy moving across the Ohio River Valley. We have snow advisories in effect for Cincinnati eastwards today, a couple more inches of snow possible and they're watching a more significant weather system, a winter storm watch in effect for maybe some ice across the mid south and into the mid Mississippi River Valley.

San Francisco to San Diego got a little bit of rain and mountain snow all associated with a couple of systems, one of which is spinning up into the gulf of Alaska. Here's Hawaii. We mentioned that missile launch for tonight has been postponed due to big waves. The boat's somewhere out here. They're going to launch it from, due to that big storm.

This time of year, the north shore of Hawaii, that's when the guys try to catch the big waves. Well, it's not good, apparently, for launching missiles that you want to try to hit a satellite on. Just another celestial note, guys. Total lunar eclipse visible by everybody who has a clear peek at the sky tonight. Starts at about 8:40 and it peaks during the 10:00 hour Eastern time. Back to you, guys.

WHITFIELD: I'm going to try and watch.

HARRIS: You are not.

WHITFIELD: I am.

HARRIS: Are you really? MARCIANO: You want to be a journalist, you want to report the news as it happens, you better stay up and watch it.

WHITFIELD: 10:00. I can handle that.

HARRIS: I just want it on TiVo. Is that too much to ask?

WHITFIELD: Oh, well. You can get that here.

MARCIANO: We'll probably run it here tomorrow morning.

HARRIS: Yes. Send me an I-Report.

WHITFIELD: Love that I-Report. All right. Thank you, Rob.

All right. President Bush in Ghana. Find out what he says about military plans for that continent. Straight ahead on the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: President Bush easing African concerns about U.S. military expansion on the continent. The President is in Ghana, and our Ed Henry is also there live from Accra.

And Ed, great to see you. I'm curious about those concerns. What did the president say, and where did those concerns come from?

ED HENRY, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, there's been a lot of talk within the continent that the U.S. has planned to vastly expand U.S. military options here on the ground so Mr. Bush wanted to dispel those concerns. He also was bearing gifts. He brought some $350 million to deal with neglected tropical diseases like hook worm. He also brought $17 million in U.S. aid to deal with malaria. Malaria is a deadly disease that kills a child here in the continent about every 30 seconds. It's something he's talked about throughout his six-day tour.

But on that U.S. military question, Mr. Bush used a little Texas flavor to try to reassure people here on the ground that U.S. military is not going to set up bases here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I know there's rumors in Ghana. All Bush is coming to do is try to convince you to put a big military base here. That's baloney. Or as we say in Texas, that's bull.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: Now, that may just be a technical thing, though, because, in fact, the U.S. military does already have a presence here with the African command that's been set up by the U.S. Africom as it's known. The stated purpose is to have U.S. military personnel here on the ground to oversee aid and development programs, making sure that U.S. taxpayer money is used wisely, but also for the war on terror to keep some eyes and ears out for extremism here.

And on another important development with the war on terror, today we got Mr. Bush's first reaction to those critical parliamentary elections in Pakistan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: I appreciate the fact that President Musharraf has done exactly that which he said he was going to do. He said he'd hold elections. He said he would get rid of his emergency law. And so, it's now time for the newly elected folks to show up and form their government. And the question then is will they be friends of the United States. And I certainly hope so. We need Pakistan as an important ally.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY: Now, what you see there is Mr. Bush trying to put a best face on the fact that those election results really providing a drubbing for his close friend and ally, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf. So, Mr. Bush trying to turn it around and saying while results maybe were not good for Musharraf personally, he still thinks broadly speaking it's good for the war on terror because there were free and fair elections, something that a lot of people in recent weeks didn't think was going to happen. Tony.

HARRIS: And there he is CNN's Ed Henry traveling with the President in Ghana. Great to see you. Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Nearing retirement but still far from your savings goals? Well, if you own a home, you do have options. Our Gerri Willis has all you need to know about reverse mortgages. Hi.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Hi, Fredricka. Good to see you.

WHITFIELD: Good to see you, too.

WILLIS: Well, you know this is one of those things that people never understand but reverse mortgages are exactly what they sound like, instead of paying the bank, the bank pays you. It's the type of loan where you convert your equity into cash.

Now, these mortgages are designed for people who are retired 62 and older and you can get this cash in a couple ways, either you get it all in a lump sum or a monthly payment or a line of credit that you can tap. Now, the loan doesn't need to be repaid if you continue to live in the house, but if you move, the debt must be repaid with interest.

And, of course, if you die, your heirs can elect to sell the house to repay the loan, but remember, you're going to be responsible for property taxes while you're living in it and any home repairs. The amount you can borrow depends on your age, the current interest rate, and the appraised value of your home -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: So, you need to consider your candidacy. What do you mean?

WILLIS: Well, look, the older you are, the more likely you are to benefit from a reverse mortgage. First, you'll probably have built up more equity in your house and lenders calculate the payout based on your age, your expected life span. Reverse mortgages are most beneficial if you own the home or have only a small amount left to pay on the original mortgage that can be paid off at closing. They're also good for folks who want to remain in their homes for the long term. Now, if you're looking to move in a couple years, maybe two or three years, forget about it. This is not for you.

WHITFIELD: All right. And so, what are the downsides?

WILLIS: Well, there are fees and there are lots of fees. Fees on what they call home equity conversion mortgages can be high. The total is typically about five percent of the home's value, and remember, a reverse mortgage is a loan with rising debt, falling equity. So if you get a lot of cash over the years, there will be little, if anything, to give to your children.

WHITFIELD: So, you really need to do your homework.

WILLIS: Right. Reverse mortgages while there are only 1 percent of the mortgage market, are on the rise because boomers are retiring that didn't save enough. There are a lot of nuances you should consider before getting one of these things. In fact, they require you have counseling to buy the product.

Contact the housing counseling clearing house at 800-569-4287 to find the lender in your area, and be wary of lenders that try to sell you a product while you're buying this like long-term care or annuities. To get an on-line guide, I can't emphasize this enough to reverse mortgages, go to aarp.org. And they've got a great online guide that will explain any questions you have.

And if you have questions on other financial topics, send them to us at toptips@CNN.com. We'd love to hear from you.

WHITFIELD: All right, great advice. Of course, reverse mortgages, great for some candidates, not so good for others.

WILLIS: That's right.

WHITFIELD: I like that. Bottom line, do your homework.

Gerri Willis, thanks so much.

WILLIS: Thank you, Fred.

HARRIS: And welcome back, everyone, to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.

WHITFIELD: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Heidi Collins.

HARRIS: Overseas for a moment now. Parts of western Indonesia on edge after a powerful earthquake today. At least three people are dead and more than two dozen hurt. The magnitude 7.5 quake was centered on an island, the island of Simeulue. That's about 195 miles south-southeast of Banda Aceh, where an earthquake-driven a tsunami earthquake killed tens of thousands in 2004. A local tsunami watch issued after today's quake today has been canceled. Still, disasters workers say they're unable to get into the hardest-hit areas.

Here at home, can Clinton stop Obama's surge? Is Huckabee hurting McCain? We will talk presidential politics with strategists from each party, in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The screams of children, the sight of a school bus on its side. Motorists become rescuers. The bus was carrying 28 students, kindergarteners to high schoolers. It was hit by a van and then collided with a pickup in rural Minnesota. Four students were killed. At least 14 people were hurt.

Reporter Joe Fryer of affiliate KARE has the story of one woman who stopped to help.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAREN MAHLUM, HELPED RESCUE STUDENTS: All of a sudden, there was, like, this big cloud of dust.

JOE FRYER, KARE REPORTER (voice-over): To Karen Mahlum it looked like a tornado at first.

MAHLUM: After the dust settled a little bit, then I could see, like, there was metal flying around.

FRYER: But after seeing a school bus on its side, she quickly called 911, knowing this could be worse.

MAHLUM: The bus driver was hollering, "I need help, I need help, help me, I've got to get the kids off the bus."

FRYER: The driver quickly handed kids to her through an escape hatch on the roof.

MAHLUM: It was just one kid after another, just him handing them and me taking them and putting them, like, on the ground so they could go into the ditch.

FRYER: Those kids were not seriously injured, she said, but they were young. And some did not have coats.

MAHLUM: They were definitely shook up. They just had sisters or friends or, you know, the ones who complained about that their arms hurt, or they kind of just had to just wait because there were just too many people that were hurt worse.

FRYER: Some of the worst, Karen says, were the older kids in the back of the bus. MAHLUM: They weren't responsive or they weren't moving. And just as I was doing that, then the first ambulance came and actually got the door open and went in to tend to those kids.

FRYER: From this point on, there wasn't much more this registered nurse could do.

MAHLUM: You just do what you have to do at the moment.

FRYER: Karen Mahlum thoughts are now with the kids she tried so hard to help.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And classes at the Lakeview school are canceled today, but grief counselors are on hand. We'll find out more about the crash investigation in a news conference scheduled for this afternoon.

Dangerous stoves. Is there one in your house? We'll tell you what Sears plans to do for millions of customers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Well, there was the airport way down there, but the plane kept going up. Were the pilots dozing on the job?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A hazard in your home and you probably don't even realize it. Free-standing stoves can actually tip over. Now a multimillion-dollar fix.

Here's CNN's Greg Hunter.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GREG HUNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Consumer advocates say stoves that tip over have been linked to more than 100 deaths and injuries. CNN has learned that Sears has settled a class-action lawsuit that will pay to install anti-tip safety brackets or provide other reimbursements for qualified customers. Sears has agreed to notify almost four million customer who may have Sears stoves dating back to 2000. One consumer group estimates fixing the problem could cost sears $545 million.

JOAN CLAYBROOK, PUBIC CITIZEN: This agreement by Sears and the lawyers for the consumer is a real deal. This is a fantastic deal for a lawsuit to make this headway and to get the protection for the consumer.

HUNTER: For three years, Sears also agreed to install brackets on all new stoves for free. Sears told CNN, quote: The parties dispute many aspects of the case, including the value on this settlement, which Sears estimates to be a small fraction of what plaintiff's counsel estimates." Sears also told us that customers can visit www.searsrangesettlement.com for more information.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTER: It's important to point out that it's not just Sears-- brand stoves that can tip over. It's almost any stove that doesn't have the safety bracket installed. That bracket comes with a new stove by the manufacturer.

Now, putting the brackets on the stoves is currently not required by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Consumer groups have argued for years that these brackets should be installed mandatorily, but a CPSC spokeswoman told us, "We believe that voluntary standards are working" -- Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: Wow. And I never realized this was a hazard, something that we need to worry about. So, meantime, you've got this settlement. Can you just get money instead of the anti-tip bracket installed?

HUNTER: Sure. If you have a stove, of course that's 2000 or later, by Sears, yes, you can get a gift certificate if you need a new stove, a coupon for another stove.

I was talking to Joan Claybrook yesterday, and she was actually telling me this was really a deal as well, because you get 50 bucks, get a new stove and they're required for the next three years to put those brackets on. So, it's a deal.

WHITFIELD: Yes. Wow. And it's the bottom line for safety, too.

HUNTER: That's right.

WHITFIELD: I'm sorry -- go ahead.

HUNTER: You can find out more on CNN.com/Americanmorning.

WHITFIELD: Perfect. Greg Hunter, thanks so much, from New York.

HARRIS: Fred, the plane just kept going, right on past the airport. Did the pilots fall asleep?

WHITFIELD: What were the passengers thinking.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, what a concept: cutting the high cost of college. Stanford becoming the latest elite school to give students and their families a break. The "San Francisco Chronicle" reports the university will no longer charge tuition to students when their families earn less than $100,000 a year. If the families earn less than $60,000 a year, students will get a totally free ride.

HARRIS: Whoah.

WHITFIELD: No room and board fees, either -- remarkable. Harvard recently announced families earning as much as $180,000 a year would pay no more than 10 percent of that income on tuition fees. Harvard already gives free tuition to students from families earning less than $60,000.

So, how is this possible? Check out the endowments. Harvard, $35 billion.

HARRIS: Whoa.

WHITFIELD: Stanford, $17 billion. That's what you call giving back.

HARRIS: Got it. You know, at a -- yes.

WHITFIELD: Big time.

HARRIS: Yes, big time.

You know, it wasn't your typical trip. The plane approached the airport and kept right on going. Did the pilot fall asleep? Gary Sprinkle -- is that really his name? Gary Sprinkle with KITV ...

WHITFIELD: And in Hawaii.

HARRIS: ...in Hawaii.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY SPRINKLE, KITV REPORTER (voice-over): Go flight 1002 took off from Honolulu at 9:20 a.m. last Wednesday. It was scheduled to land in Hilo on the big island at 10:05 a.m., but it didn't. The plane reportedly flew beyond Hilo for several miles and was apparently out of contact with air-traffic controllers for more than 20 minutes.

Did the pilots put the plane on autopilot and fall asleep?

VOICE OF IAN GREGOR, FAA SPOKESMAN: I can confirm that the FAA is investigating whether the pilots and co-pilot of a February 13th Go Airlines flight fell asleep while the aircraft was in the air between Honolulu and Hilo.

SPRINKLE: Go airlines will only say they "are aware of the incident and an internal investigation is underway."

How can a commercial aircraft flying at 21,000 feet completely miss its mark and continue flying out to sea? A pilot told KITV one possibility is the crew could have had a radio problem and were unable to receive their assignment by air-traffic controllers and stayed on the course they were assigned to until communications were restored.

The final straw may well be in the cockpit voice recorder, which will indicate if the pilots were sleeping when they should have been talking.

(END VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: Oh, boy, all right. Well, at least they were still in the air. That's all I got to say.

HARRIS: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Hillary Clinton looks at Texas and Ohio to rescue her campaign.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Only one of us is ready on day one to be commander in chief, ready to manage our economy, and ready to defeat the Republicans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Hitting Barack Obama where it hurts in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: So, Barack Obama may write a new chapter in American history, but Jeanne Moos found he's already rewriting the dictionary.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While Senators Clinton and Obama argue about the importance of ...

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Just words, just words.

MOOS: ...guess who's become a word, lots of words?

CHRIS WILSON, REPORTER, SLATE MAGAZINE: I really like "Obamazon" which would be an ardent female Obama supporter.

MOOS: Or "Baracklamation:" anything that Barack says.

WILSON: Obamatose, which would be a deep slumber dreaming of Obama.

MOOS: We're going to have nightmares if this keeps up. Barackie-Talkie, means of communication for all Obama staffers.

OK, these are made-up words, appearing on slate.coms and Encyclopedia Baracktannica. But a language expert who calls himself "chief word analyst" is dead serious when he says ...

VOICE OF UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Obama has become an English language word.

MOOS: Here at the Global Language Monitor, they track words, using special software that counts how frequently they appear in global media.

VOICE OF UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The No. 1 use of Obama as a word now is Obama-mania, OK? The second is Obama-rama.

MOOS: Not since the word "Nixonian" has a potentially presidential name entered the lexicon with such frequency. We're being "Obamafied." They even come out of Obama's own mouth, for instance, to describe Republicans who support him.

OBAMA: So we call them "Obamakins."

MOOS: On Slate, they range from animal: "Baracker Spaniel," a canine Obama supporter, to vegetable.

WILSON: We had "Baraccoli," a favorite vegetable of an Obama supporter.

MOOS: Quit groaning.

WILSON: There's definitely a groan factor here.

MOOS: You can even sponsor a llama at an animal shelter named Barack O'Llama."

While most of the words being created are complimentary, like "Barackstar," there are ones that could be insulting, like "Obamination." But when it comes to word count ...

VOICE OF UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Obama has become the magical word.

MOOS: And when the magic fades, well, "New York Times" columnist David Brooks already has a term for that.

(on camera): OCS ...

(voice-over): "Obama Comedown Syndrome." We're already hitting "Barack bottom" and there are months to go 'til the election.

OBAMA: I'll rename the tenth month of the year "Barack-tober."

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: That's just silly, all right.

Good morning again, everyone. You're with CNN, you're informed. I'm Tony Harris.

WHITFIELD: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Heidi is off today.

Developments keep coming into the CNN NEWSROOM this February 20th. Here's what's on the rundown.

Barack Obama wins again. Can Hillary Clinton get back in the game? We ask our guests from Politico.com.

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