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American Morning
Race to White House Heads to Ohio and Texas; Oil Prices Spike and the Stocks Slide; Powerful Earthquake in Indonesia
Aired February 20, 2008 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: So here's how it shapes up on the big map. The states in dark blue are the one who went for Obama. Obama has won every contest since Super Tuesday including last night's primary in Wisconsin.
The states highlighted in light blue are for Hillary Clinton. Some bigger prizes, fewer contest. She is now backing on March 4th, especially Texas. Barack Obama was also in Houston. He's trying to put an end to that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The change we seek is still months and miles away. And we need the good people of Texas to help us get there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: So the key to victory for both Barack Obama and John McCain was scooping up support from people expected to go for their opponents. In Wisconsin, the exit polling shows that Obama and Clinton split the vote among women. Exactly 50 percent each. Obama won over white voters by a margin of 9 percentage points and getting more than 90 percent of black voters.
And John McCain took the conservative vote away from Mike Huckabee. 48 percent of those who called themselves conservative voted for McCain as opposed to 44 percent for Huckabee.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Also for the Republicans, McCain pulled off another sweep of his own. He added Wisconsin and Washington State. The list last night. All his wins today, highlighted in red there on that map. Mike Huckabee's, if we move to the next panel, highlighted in pink there. He has not racked up a win in a couple of weeks now since his surge in the south and remains back at 217 pledged delegates. This hasn't moved because they've been winner-take-all states.
Now, the race to the White House heads to Ohio and Texas. CNN's senior political correspondent, Candy Crowley is live in Houston for us this morning with a look at what's ahead, specifically for the Democrats.
Candy, you're a member of Hillary Clinton's campaign. How are you feeling this morning? CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: If you're a member of Hillary Clinton's campaign, you're feeling a lot of pressure at this point. 10-0, you can purse it any way want. It's a heck of a winning streak. You have to begin to question whether going into those big states, New York, New Jersey, California, all of which she won was all that good of an idea. The problem I think with the Clinton campaign, which has been said a number of times is, they didn't seem to have much of a ground game after Super Tuesday. They thought it would be wrapped up by then.
Meanwhile, Barack Obama has gone to all of these states. He's had people in place in some of them for a year or more. So that ground game has really paid off. So now, if you're the Clinton campaign, you're looking and saying, Ohio and Texas. What sticks? What's our main selling point here? I think you will find it is experience. If we look at those exit polls, we'll find that that is one place where she shines. People who want a candidate who they think is the most experienced, go for Hillary Clinton. So that has been her game plan from the beginning. Not sure she can mix it up now too much.
ROBERTS: She's certainly reaching out to part of her core constituency, which is union members. She was in Ohio last night after the contest there. They did not mention the losses in Wisconsin and Hawaii. But here's what she said in terms of reaching out to that union vote.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am proud to be a pro-labor candidate, because I always tell people, if you want to know how America got its great middle class, how we got fair wages, how we got benefits and a shot at the American dream, because of unions. Because they stood up, they spoke out, and they refused to back down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: So there she is reaching out to the union vote. But let's take a look at some of the exit polling from yesterday. Barack Obama cleaned her in all of the economic categories there. People making less than $50,000. Above $50,000, look at that, beat her in households with union members as well. So Candy, what is happening to her base?
CROWLEY: Well, it's going to him. I mean, that's the most simplistic answer. He has been able to drive home a couple of things. First, I think as you heard in his speech last night, he is giving some meat to the bones if you will. He has done that in smaller venues. But last night, he took advantage of the primetime. He took advantage of the fact that people were taking his entire speech. And he woe both the kind of rally Obama as well as the substance Obama in that.
So he's been able to convince voters that he and Hillary Clinton don't have that many policy differences. And in fact, about 90 percent of their plans are pretty much the same. What he has now been able to convince voters of, is if they want to -- if they want those changes to happen, they're going to need to change the way Washington does business, and that's his strong point.
So he has been pulling away from her base. I talked to a senior strategist last night at an Obama campaign and they said we are building this coalition state by state. We looked back at Virginia and Maryland where he began to eat into her base, and Wisconsin he did it even more.
ROBERTS: Well, as we know, two weeks until the next big contests and in politics that can be a lifetime. Anything could happen. Candy Crowley for us this morning. Candy, thanks.
CROWLEY: Sure.
ROBERTS: Kiran?
CHETRY: Well, he is mathematically eliminated, but last hour Mike Huckabee told us that he is staying in the race for the good of his party.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Not staying in the race hurts the GOP. It makes it like that we're so weak that we can't even have a debate and a discussion. If this party is so completely incapable of discussing the issues that matter deeply to Republicans, then I'm not its problem. Its problem is it doesn't have a message that it can run on. And it wants to just sort of circle the wagons and act like all is well. Well, it isn't all well. And anyone who thinks it is, is kidding themselves and is going to get clobbered in November.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Huckabee has not won a contest since February 9th but he says he still wants to deliver his message about issues important to him, like his opposition to abortion and a revised tax policy.
Coming up, we're going to be speaking to another candidate who is still in, Congressman Ron Paul. He is going to be joining us in just a couple of minutes here on AMERICAN MORNING.
ROBERTS: Well, get ready for Super Tuesday part II. Tuesday, March 4th, Ohio and Texas, the big prizes. Rhode Island and Vermont, also in the mix. And I'll be heading down to Austin this morning for a Texas-size edition of CNN Election Center. That's tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern. And we will be live from Austin as well tomorrow on AMERICAN MORNING, as we preview the big showdown.
Obama and Clinton head to head tomorrow night from the University of Texas in Austin. That's tomorrow night, 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN. This could be a defining moment in this campaign here.
CHETRY: Sure could. Well, oil prices spike and the stocks slide. Overseas markets taking a hit this morning. Ali Velshi joins us now with a business update desk with his trusty barrel. You had to add another digit.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I did. In fact, $100.01, this is the -- first of all, the only time oil has ever settled above $100. We had oil hitting a $100 in December, but here it's above it. Just by a little. It went a little higher than that in yesterday's session. Pulled back a little bit. I think we're looking at oil right now around $99. It's a little bit higher than that right now. This is on news that because oil prices and gasoline prices have been as high as they have, OPEC says it sees oil demand actually shrinking, which would make sense.
Right now, gasoline prices in the United States, about an average of $3.05 a gallon. So that led speculators to say if demand for oil is dropping, then supply of oil must drop. OPEC is probably going to cut supply of oil at its next meeting in March.
Take a look at what oil has done since the beginning of year. It opened the year around $95 a barrel. That was an increase of about 70 percent in 2007. It dropped down a little bit. It dropped down about as low as $87 or so, in early February and then $13 more in the last week or so. So that's been the rush up in the price of oil. Unclear where it goes from now, but at $3.05 a gallon from gasoline, you can probably expect that's going to go all a little bit higher over the course of the next few days.
OPEC, unclear as to whether they'll cut production, because when you got prices like this, people do actually pull back from their gasoline and oil usage and that's not good if you're in the oil business.
Kiran?
CHETRY: Very true. All right, Ali Velshi, thank you.
ROBERTS: Coming up on eight minutes after the hour. Other stories new this morning. Our Veronica de la Cruz joins us now with that.
Good morning.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning to you both and good morning to all of you out there.
We begin this morning with some news just in to CNN. Space shuttle "Atlantis" is on its way home. Just minutes ago, the space shuttle "Atlantis" successfully fired its rockets slowing itself down just enough to begin the fall back to earth. It's scheduled to touchdown at the Kennedy Space Center at 9:07 a.m. Eastern. That's just about an hour from now. Stay tuned to CNN for live coverage.
We're also following breaking news overseas. Three people killed, 25 others injured in a powerful earthquake in Indonesia. The 7.5 magnitude quake hit off the coast of Sumatra overnight damaging several buildings. The quake hit about 200 miles southeast of Banda Aceh. The same region devastated by the 2004 tsunami. A CNN producer says that it could take until tomorrow for rescue crews to reach the town hit hardest by this morning's earthquake.
Well, President Bush is describing the opposition party's win in Pakistan as victory for the people. The president spoke out about the election just this morning from Ghana. The latest stop on his five- nation African tour. Reporters there asked them whether he thought the U.S. relationship with Pakistan would change.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Their friends with the United States and I certainly hope so. We need Pakistan is in for an ally. We've got common interests. We got interests in dealing with radicals who killed Benazir Bhutto.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DE LA CRUZ: The opposition party's massive parliamentary can force President Musharraf to leave or share power. Musharraf says he intends to serve out his term which ends in 2012.
Radical religious leader, Muqtada al-Sadr, is threatening to end a six month ceasefire and turn his powerful Mahdi Army militia loose in Iraq. Both the U.S. and Iraqi government say the ceasefire has helped reduce violence in Iraq. A spokesman for al-Sadr says if al- Sadr doesn't issue a statement extending the ceasefire by Saturday then it's off.
And the navy will make its first attempt to shoot done a dead satellite tonight. Check out this animation. Here is how it's going to work. The navy will fire a $10 million missile that it says will not have an explosive warhead. Instead, it will simply slam into the satellite at 22,000 miles per hour. The first shot comes tonight at 10:30 Eastern.
And there is another sight in the skies you might want to pay attention to. A total lunar eclipse tonight, the last one for almost three years. If you miss it, the next one isn't going to happen again until December 2010.
CHETRY: This could be a good one. They say you could also possibly see Saturn and the rings but weather might ruin it, because we're supposed to get snow.
DE LA CRUZ: And it's going to happen so late at night that we're not going to be awake.
ROBERTS: What about Friday?
CHETRY: I know, we got to ask Rob. I heard that if you're in the Midwest or along the east coast, then you might not see it.
ROBERTS: Well, at any rate, it's past your bedtime.
DE LA CRUZ: Yes, exactly. We're going to be asleep so it doesn't really matter for all.
ROBERTS: Veronica, thanks.
It's called the gap year. Taking a year, as Prince William did to serve the world before starting college. Now, the gap year is formally coming to America. We'll explain just ahead.
And he is in a distant third in the delegates, but a rock star on the web. Why Ron Paul is carrying on his bid for president. We'll ask him live ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Houston, 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 are willing to caucus for me, then I truly believe that we will not just win Texas, we will win this nomination.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Senator Barack Obama, riding high last night after rolling up two more states.
On the Republican side, Congressman Ron Paul has been electrifying the crowds wherever he goes, but after another finish last night in the mid-single digits, the question remains how long will he remain in the race for the GOP presidential nomination.
Congressman Paul joins me to talk about that and issues emerging in the race as well as issues emerging Fidel Castro announcing his resignation yesterday.
Congressman Paul, good to see you. So question, after finishing with seven percent in Washington, five percent in Wisconsin, how long do you stay in the race?
REP. RON PAUL (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I stay in as long as my supporters want me to. You know, I was very reluctant to enter the race. Didn't expect the whole lot to come of it. I thought it would last for a month or two. But to my amazement, you know, we literally got hundreds of thousands of supporters and many, many millions of dollars. And it's still very enthusiastic.
And I say, as long as the number of volunteers continue to grow and the money comes in and the primary is out there and they want me to be involve, I'm going to stay involved because I think the message is very important and the goal of politicking is to get as many delegates and as many votes as possible and we're still doing that.
ROBERTS: So you and I talked to for a little while, I think it was in South Carolina. It was so long ago now with so many primaries ago. But really, what this is all about for you and you were suggesting it's more about a movement than anything. Grover Norquist from Americans for Tax Reform said recently quote, "I believe Ron Paul's campaign could be a flash in the pan or the beginning of a lasting contribution to the Goldwater-Reagan movement."
The suggestion is that -- well, let say you will not win the nomination, you could be paving the way for the next person. So which do you think it's going to be? Is it going to be a flash in the pan or will this be the beginning of a movement?
PAUL: Well, I don't think there's any choice on my part. I don't think I could stop the movement if I tried. But if I encourage it, it is going to continue because the subject comes up all the time. And when I finish a rally, like the other day at the University of North Texas, with 1400 people there, and I tell them this is just the beginning because they are young people, and they want to hear this, and they want change.
They hear others talking about change. But they know, there's no change with the other candidates. It's the same old stuff that gets over and over again. There's no difference for the other candidates. Nobody is serious about the constitution. And so, when they hear this message, they know it's going to take a while. And I think the analogy of turning around an aircraft area, it takes time. You don't turn on a dime and people can expect us to do that. But I do believe there is something very significant going on as I travel around the country. I sense it.
ROBERTS: When we talked a few weeks ago, you said you hope to attract some light minor candidates to run for Congress in November. Perhaps, create a little Ron Paul blocker coalition, whatever you want to call it. The constitutional list or whatever. You get a sense that you're attracting some people who might want to run.
PAUL: I think, there's no doubt about it. I think, one of my problems now is I'm being overwhelmed with individuals who want to and then I have the responsibility -- I have the responsibility of trying to sort it out because we are capable of raising funds.
So it is a responsibility that will be, you know, a significant one for me, to make sure I help the candidates that are true believers and not people who are just wanting to be in Congress or something. We want true believers because we think we need to turn this country around because the way its going is not satisfying. Young people know it. They're bearing the burden of this, whether it's a foreign policy or the fiscal irresponsibility. They know what's wrong and they want something done about it.
ROBERTS: Let me switch gears here if I could, congressman, and take you back to a moment during the debate in Miami in December. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL: I believe we're at a time where we ought to talk to Cuba and trade and travel to Cuba. (END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: That wasn't a particularly popular line that you had there. And particularly with John McCain, but after Castro announced his resignation yesterday, you've reiterated your call to lift the embargo on Cuba. Why?
PAUL: You know, just quickly, after I left there, although I was booed for that, I went outdoors and we had hundreds of young Cuban- Americans who were absolutely with me. No. This is a wonderful opportunity. There's been several of us in Congress arguing this for years.
Sanctions don't work. Sanctions are -- the first step towards war and confrontation. Just think how much better when -- now that we trade in Vietnam. We couldn't accomplish in war what we accomplish with peace. So we should have been trading with the Cubans for a long time and that would undermine communism. So I say, the sooner we get back to normal relations with Cuba, the better it is for both of us.
ROBERTS: But what do you say to people who say the only way to deal with the Castro brothers is to put the squeeze on them.
PAUL: Well, it didn't work. They've had their chance. Almost 50 years, it hasn't work. It didn't undermine Castro one bit. He always solidified his power. So the worst thing has gotten Cuba. He said, see, it's the Americans fault. No. Trade is the answer. The founders argue this. All free traders good.
The irony is the people who claim they believe in free trade and all these trade agreements are the ones who are the strongest for all of thee sanctions. At such hypocrisy with those free traders who want sanctions but claim they need free trade. It doesn't make any sense to me.
ROBERTS: Always interesting to talk to you. Congressman Paul, thanks very much for joining us this morning. Good luck there in Texas and Ohio on the 4th.
PAUL: Thank you, John.
ROBERTS: All right. We'll talk to you again soon.
Kiran?
CHETRY: You know, last time we check in with our viewers this morning, they seem to agree with Congressman Ron Paul. We ask the "Quick Vote" Should the United States lift its embargo on Cuba? Right now, 81 percent of you saying yes, 19 percent saying no. Still time to cast your vote and weigh in -- cnn.com/am. We'll continue to tally your votes throughout the morning.
Still ahead. It's a hidden danger in nearly every kitchen in America. Find out what's being announced today that could save a life in your home. Our Greg Hunter has an important update and he's looking out for you. And Prince William and Harry did it, now your kids may be able to do it too. It's called a gap year between high school and college. How does it work? It's coming to America. We'll explain, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
CHETRY: How does it work? It's coming to America. We'll explain, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KIRSTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is a disassembly line at the Wongpanit recycling center in Northern Thailand. The steady stream of garbage is handled by 200 staff, sifting and sorting, meticulously removing labels from a host of household products. There are more than 80 operations like it in Thailand, all headed by Somthai Wongcharoen, who sees the world's waste problem as a business opportunity.
SOMTHAI WONGCHAROEN (through translator): It's a challenging business. That's because people take garbage out and throw it away. They're throwing away money. I think of garbage as value, as gold.
STOUT: From used car engines to dilapidated television sets, virtually every piece of garbage is given value. The company is paid for each of these bottles. They're among the 250 tons of garbage processed at this plant every day. By reversing the supply and demand equation, this business helps deal with the growing ecological impact of modern consumerism.
It's an arduous job but an important one for the company, as component parts such as copper and gold are valuable raw materials for manufacturers. These materials will be reborn into new products. With it, unearthing more profit for the company.
Kirstie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Something new from Stanford University today. Announcing it will no longer charge tuition to students whose families earn less than $100,000 a year. Also, families who earn less than $60,000, those kids also get free room and board. A year at Stanford costs $35,000. A new study out today says that Stanford can afford to offer those free rides. It raised $830 million last year to be the top fundraising college in the country.
You know, there's something else new that's coming to certain college students. It's called the gap year. It's taking a year off between high school and college to travel and serve the world.
Now, you may remember seeing Prince William and Prince Harry traveling all around the globe for their respected gap years. The gap year now is formally coming across the pond. Princeton University announcing that it's allowing its students to take a gap year and Princeton is going to be footing the bill.
CNN contributor Polly Labarre has been talking with the folks at Princeton about the program and why they're doing it. What are they -- I mean, it's costing them money. So, clearly they think there is going to be a benefit.
POLLY LABARRE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they've noticed that the gap year is increasingly popular. This isn't the age of putting your backpack and bumming around for good in Nepal for a year. It's really about for Princeton, how do we give these high-powered high school students a break?
They've been amassing college credits and, you know, burning the candles on both ends, one. And then two, how do we incorporate through other parties, which is give them international experience and, two, imbue them with a service ethics.
So, the program is one year abroad, based on a social service experience for up to 10 percent of incoming freshman class. And I think they'll run a pilot as early as 2009.
CHETRY: And so do you have to apply to this just as you apply to college?
LABARRE: Yes, you do. In fact, I talked to the Provost about this. And the thing that's great about this is that it will be a need blind program. So they actually will provide financial aid. You won't have to pay tuition and then very important thing about this is that your priority cannot be to get ahead on your academic work.
This is not study abroad. This is experience working at an NGO, working on a farm, helping out in an environmental program and it's specifically not a resume builder. It's really about taking a break, getting some seasoning.
CHETRY: And how does it sync up with employers who are thinking about recruiting and training?
LABARRE: Sure. This tracks to what's going on in the business world. Employers are increasing, looking for people who have diversity of experience. They're trying to be good global citizens and they want to hire good global citizens. So, if you've had an experience like this, it's a real boon and then employers are trying to create programs like this to give a gap year in your career.
CHETRY: Pretty neat. I love it. I wish they offered one when I was going to school. And it's also neat to see that some of these colleges, especially these high-end universities are also trying to take some of the financial burden off the people.
Stanford, just the latest school to say, hey, if you make under a certain amount of money, you can come here for free.
LABARRE: And this is -- the dice are tumbling. I mean, the dominoes are falling because you're seeing lots of schools doing this. Hey, look, we're competing for the best talent, just like employers and were going to figure any way to get them in, if we can.
CHETRY: Very exciting. All right, Polly Labarre, good to see you. Thanks.
LABARRE: Nice to see you.
CHETRY: John?
ROBERTS: Well, if you to take a gap year, maybe you want to try doing this.
Off he goes into the wild blue yonder. CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta getting ready for a ride with the legendary Blue Angels. Can he handle the maneuvers? What about the seven G-Forces? Sanjay, joins us live, coming up.
And a fire in the sky. Light streaks and what looks like an explosion triggers calls to 911. We'll show you what it was just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), 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)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN, ANCHOR: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. 8:30 here on the East Coast. Hillary Clinton,, you know, still trying to rally her supporters after some tough losses yesterday in the primaries and the one caucus.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN, ANCHOR: She's got a lot of work to do in the next couple of weeks. The question this morning, is there anything stopping him? Ten states in a row now for Senator Barack Obama after a landslide win in Hawaii that came in early this morning. 100 percent of the precincts there now reporting. Take a look at the chart, Obama picking up a decisive 76 percent of vote. Hillary Clinton got about 24 percent.
Here's how it shapes up on the big map. Hillary Clinton states are highlighted in light blue. The dark blue states are for Obama. Obama now has 1,301 total delegates. Hillary Clinton, 1,239. Needed to win, 2,025. Obama is picking up voters though to be behind Clinton. In Wisconsin, he won every age group under 60. He won among whites and blacks. He won white working class voters and now he's banking on one of the biggest of the prizes left in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Change we seek is still months and miles away, and we need the good people of Texas to help us get there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Texas is one of four states holding presidential primaries on March 4th. Ohio also on the table. Hillary Clinton's presidential hopes hang on that big date. Our Jessica Yellin is live for us in one of those upcoming battlegrounds. She's in Ohio, in the city of Youngstown and looking at the exit polling from last night and how people voted, Jessica, what does that tell us what might happen there in two weeks' time?
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN, CORRESPONDENT: It's very troubling news for the Clinton campaign. It has to be, John, because the voters that Senator Clinton lost in Wisconsin are the very voters she's hoping to win here in Ohio. And Ohio, as she has said, is a must-win state for her. It's these blue collar voters who tend to respond to her message about healthcare reform, about offering policy solutions but in addition to all those demographics you just said that Barack Obama won, many of which Senator Clinton has won in states past. She also won the people who considered the economy their number one concern and also health care their number one concern. These are the same voters that she's going after in Ohio. These industrial area voters who have lost jobs, who are down at the heels, who need a little bit of economic uplift and Senator Clinton has been trying to appeal to them with this message that she has solutions and not just promises.
Clearly that did not connect in a big way in Wisconsin and the campaign has to find some way to retool or do something to make it work here in Ohio, because as she has said if it doesn't happen in Ohio and Texas, really it doesn't happen for her campaign at all. John.
ROBERTS: A lot of people are saying it would be difficult for her to continue if she doesn't win and win big in Texas and Ohio. So, what can she do in the next two weeks to try to turn things around? You said she needs to retool. She's done that a couple of times and still hasn't caught fire?
YELLIN: Well, she is hitting hard on her economic message. Last night for example, instead of giving a speech in which she conceded Wisconsin and congratulated Barack Obama, she did neither of those things. She didn't even mention Wisconsin. She focused hard on her economic message. She hit hard on NAFTA, for example, at how NAFTA has to be reformed. Now, of course, that's an issue that resonates with folks who lost manufacturing jobs in the U.S. to other people overseas. And then, of course, going more negative. Pointing out what she insists are Barack Obama's flaws, and then just saturating the airwaves and being all over the place meeting voters.
It she's not in Ohio, her husband and her daughter will be. If she's not in Texas? Her husband and her daughter will be. There will be a Clinton in Texas and Ohio every day between now and March 4th, you can bet on that. They just have to hope also that somehow Barack Obama stumbles.
ROBERTS: All right. We'll see what happens, two weeks can be a long time in this game. Jessica Yellin for us this morning in Youngstown, Ohio. Jessica, thanks -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, John McCain is saying he will be the Republican nominee after racking up two more wins taking Wisconsin and Washington state. With the GOP nomination nearly secured, McCain started to take aim at Barack Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I will fight every moment of every day in this campaign to make sure Americans are not deceived by an eloquent but empty call for change.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: McCain also said he's not the youngest candidate but he's the most experienced. Well, he can win every delegate left on the board and still be sure of the nomination. Last hour though, Mike Huckabee told us he is staying in the race for the good of his party.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Not staying in the race hurts the GOP, it makes it like we're so weak that we can't even have a debate and a discussion. If this party is so completely incapable of discussing the issues that matter deeply to Republicans then I'm not its problem. Its problem is it does have a message that it can run on and it wants to just sort of circle the wagons and act like all is well. Well, it isn't all well and anyone who thinks it is, is kidding themselves and is going to get clobbered in November.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Huckabee has not won a contest since February 9th but he says he wants to deliver his message about issues important it him, like his opposition to abortion and also revising our tax policy.
So, four states are up for grabs on March 4th. Maybe you can call it super Tuesday part II. Ohio and Texas are the big prizes. Rhode Island and Vermont also in the mix.
ROBERTS: An early morning surprise in the Pacific northwest to tell you about. A meteor shower lit up the sky over eastern Washington, northern Idaho and even British Columbia early on Tuesday. A lot of people saw what happened, take a look at that and they called 911 to report it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi. I'm sorry to call I just saw something fall out of the sky. I'm not sure if it was a plane or was it just fireworks.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know what it was. It just caught my eye. A big flash of fireball coming down.
(END VIDEO CLIP) ROBERTS: No reports of damage or if the meteor actually hit the ground. If it did, there's no evidence of it so far. Our Rob Marciano joins us with a look at extreme weather from Atlanta. Rob, I guess a lot of times, those meteors look like they're coming to the ground but they're actually sort of skipping along inside the atmosphere and then burn up or blow up before they get anywhere near the ground?
ROB MARCIANO, CNN, METEOROLOGIST: Yes. They're so far away from you they just kind of go over the horizon but they're high enough where it's far enough away, to where it looked - maybe it did. It's pretty expansive out there in eastern Oregon and Washington. A lot of things happening in the sky from now to a couple nights ago. And then tonight, as you know, the navy is going to shoot down the spy satellite. Not sure whether or not you're going to be able to see it with the naked eye, but this puppy flying at 22,000 miles an hour. When they make a non-explosive hit on the satellite, which will be, you know, just over 100 miles off the ground as it starts to re-enter the atmosphere and hopefully burn up. It might take more than one shot at it.
But we'll have to see. 10:30 tonight Eastern time. What you will see with the naked eye across most of the U.S. if you're not inhibited by cloud cover will be the last total lunar eclipse for the next almost three years. It begins around 8:43 to reach totality at 10:01. Get this, a reddish hue once the shadow of the earth covers the moon and around 10:55, 10:51 p.m. Eastern time, East Coast here viewers will see it the best. West coasters, you'll get it towards the end once it gets to you. And again, the less cloud cover you have the better. It will be cold across parts of the Midwest as it has been the case and then also of a space note, there comes the Space Shuttle. It's coming in today, it's 9:07, just a matter of minutes away. All a go. De-orbit burn. It's reentering the atmosphere right now and the weather at Cape Kennedy looks good. Kiran and John, back to you.
ROBERTS: All right. Thanks, Rob. I know you'll keep an eye on that for us.
MARCIANO: OK.
CHETRY: Yes and hopefully we'll be able to check out the lunar eclipse as well. What do you say, around 10:00 tonight?
ROBERTS: Are you going to be awake?
CHETRY: No. But we'll get video of it.
ROBERTS: We'll show it to you tomorrow morning.
CHETRY: Absolutely, we will.
Well, still ahead. A hidden danger that could be right in your kitchen. What you need to know about how easily your stove can tip over. Greg Hunter has a follow-up to a story he first brought you. He's looking out for you. Also, he goes off into the wild blue yonder. Our doctor's up there. Dr. Sanjay Gupta getting ready for a legendary ride with the Blue Angels. So, will he be able to handle it? How about the G forces seven G forces. Sanjay joins us up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Twists and turns, diving and climbing, all while pulling seven G's. It's all in a day's work for the navy's Blue Angels flight demonstration team and our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta is getting ready for the ride of his life. He's getting set to fly like an angel this morning. How excited are you?
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN, CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I am very excited, Kiran. You know, you're hearing - I don't think you can hear that, but those are two engines on each of those planes, F-18 places. Each of them have about 16,000 pounds of thrust. So, I'm a little nervous as well, Kiran, going over 1,000 miles an hour through the sky and I'm nervous for a couple reasons.
One, these guys are really very cool and I was always sort of the geeky science kid. But also because I'm concerned about the vomit factor and I'm concerned about the pass out factor. Those two things are high on my list of concerns as well, Kiran. So nervous and excited.
CHETRY: You're right. A lot of things happen to your body when you're going that fast and you're looping around. Tell us about some of the things you have to be careful, to keep in mind while you're up there.
GUPTA: Well, you know, one thing about the blue angels and a lot of people may not know this, is they don't wear G suits or anti- gravitational suits. The reason being somehow that interferes with their precision flying, the suits expanding and contracting like that. But as you increase the G's, gravitational force on your body. Two G's means you have two times the force of gravity on your body and so forth. They can go up to seven-and-a-half G's, which is probably what they're going to go to with me today, they say. They're going to ask me first, they tell me as well, you can start to lose your vision, you can pass out. Your lungs start to collapse. The blood starts to pull in your legs and you have to try to do these exercises, breathing exercises and leg exercises to try and keep the blood up, in the upper part of your body, in your heart and in your brain, which are the two most important organs. So, it's sort of a constant battle between the exercises and the risk of passing out, Kiran.
CHETRY: So, how do they do it? How are they used to doing that time and time again?
GUPTA: Well, you know, we spent some time with them and a couple things to make clear. These pilots ever athletes and they train their bodies as hard as they work their planes up in the air. They train their bodies in the gym. They really focus a lot on these exercises. Specifically you might not think about this, but leg exercises are very important because you're constantly twitching your leg muscles back and forth to force the blood up into your upper body. They also use this breathing technique. It's kind of like, if you say, hick, hick, kind of like that you're sort of allowing a little bit of pressure to build up in your cranial cavity and releasing some of that air. That really helps in terms of, again, keeping the blood in the brain. They don't want to pass out, obviously, before they can fly one of these planes they have to prove they can tolerate 7.5 G's for about 16 seconds. So that they're not going to pass out themselves as pilots. I, on the other hands, as a passenger. We'll show you some interesting video, let's just say that, by tomorrow, Kiran.
CHETRY: Maybe, maybe not. Are you going to be wearing that G suit yourself?
GUPTA: I'm not. I'm not going to be wearing the G suit. We are going to have a camera in the airplane. We're going to show you all that. We're going to - the pilot and I are going to be talking back and forth. I'm going to tell you exactly what we're doing and exactly as we're doing it. I'm going to tell you from a medical perspective, the impact that's having on my body.
CHETRY: All right. It will be interesting. I'm glad you're not jumping out of a perfectly good airplane but you are doing pulling seven G's. I'm sure your wife is thrilled this morning.
Sanjay, thanks.
GUPTA: Fingers crossed.
CHETRY: Yes, exactly. Double crossed. Thanks. John.
ROBERTS: He's not wearing a G suit, he's going to have a nice nap this morning.
An AMERICAN MORNING update for you this morning. We first warned you about the dangers of stoves tipping over. It can happen more easily than you think and it's already killed or hurt dozens of Americans. There's an announcement this morning aimed to protect families. And our Greg Hunter has got that for you. Looking out for you. Good morning, Greg.
GREG HUNTER, CNN, CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, John. Well, safety advocates say 95 percent of stoves don't have a simple bracket that could keep the appliance from falling over. But if you own a stove from Sears, that's about to change.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HUNTER (voice-over): Consumer advocates say stoves that tip over have been linked to more than 100 deaths and injuries. CNN has learned that Sears sell the 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 4 million customers who may have Sears stoves dating back to 2,000. One consumer group estimates fixing the problem could cost sears $545 million. JOAN CLAYBROOK, PUBLIC 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 the new stoves for free. Sears told CNN "the parties dispute many aspects of the case include 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. Almost any stove that doesn't have a safety bracket installed but putting brackets on stoves is currently not required by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Consumer groups argue that the devices should be mandatory but a CPSC spokesman told us, "we believe the voluntary standards are working." If want more information on that story, logon to cnn.com/AMERICAN MORNING.
ROBERTS: So, just to be clear. This is a bracket that is retrofitted to either the floor or the wall that the stove slips into? They're not actually changing the design of the appliance?
HUNTER: Not changing design but it comes with it. The manufacturer makes the bracket for the stoves. Installers just don't install it. You also have an option to get a coupon, which as Joan Claybrook what's that all about? Actually, that's a good deal because you get $50 off a new stove and the required to put the bracket in. And so, she was pretty excited about this. When she says something is a good deal, it's a good deal.
ROBERTS: I've know Joan for years. She wouldn't say it's a good deal if it's not.
HUNTER: That's right.
ROBERTS: Greg, thanks.
CNN NEWSROOM just minutes away now. Tony Harris at the CNN center with a look at what's ahead. Good morning, Tony.
TONY HARRIS, CNN, ANCHOR: Good morning, John. Good morning, everyone. Presidential politics on the NEWSROOM rundown for you this morning.
A Tuesday sweep fro John McCain. And Barack Obama, can they clean up in Texas and Ohio, we look ahead. Everyone is buckled in. Space Shuttle "Atlantis" to land in Florida. Oh, about 20 minutes from right now. The story unfolding live in the NEWSROOM and the plane misses the airport. A technical glitch or did both pilots fall asleep at the wheel. Wednesday in the NEWSROOM, we get started at the top of the hour minutes away. Right here on CNN. John, back to you.
ROBERTS: Tony looking forward to that. Thanks very much. Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. Thanks a lot. We're going to take quick shot now, this is Hunter College in New York, in New York City, and Hillary Clinton at a fund-raising event there. We see her standing next to, looks like Senator Charles Schumer of New York. She's going to be delivering a speech. Possibly talking more about her theme that she's banking on for Ohio and Texas, in this morning address and then she's heading to the lone star state. She's expected to get up to the podium any second now. So, there's a live look. We'll dip into a little bit of that when we come right back.
Meanwhile, the Spice Girls wraps up the reunion tour. Our Lola Ogunnaike got a chance to catch up with them at Madison Square Garden. One of those shoes, and she has a look at life on and off the stage for the Spice Girls.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Hey, it's a song that made them famous and helped them sell more than 50 million album, the Spice Girls. Several number one hits after a ten-year hiatus, the Spice Girls are back together, and they're touring the world. They're no longer girls. Many of them are moms. In fact all except Mel C is a mom, but motherhood is not slowing them down. Lola Ogunnaike spoke exclusively with the Spice Girls just moments before they hit the stage at Madison Square Garden.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LOLA OGUNNAIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Most of you are moms as well and should be calling you Spice Girls still?
SPICE GIRLS: Yes!
One more on the stage, we act like kids.
OGUNNAIKE: It's an act that their fans still love. Many of whom wearing training bras when the ladies last toured.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALES: We've been waiting for this forever. Really wanna, wanna, I wanna, really, really wanna.
SPICE GIRLS: If you want to be my lover, you have got to feel. That's the way it is.
OGUNNAIKE: Their show is still sack mix of glitter and girl power with hits like "Wannabe" spice up your life. And the ladies still look hot in their curve hugging Roberto Cavalli top costumes and five-inch stilettos.
SPICE GIRLS: I think as we collected it, we give them so much positivity. I think that's like catching.
OGUNNAIKE: And as for the catfight rumors.
SPICE GIRLS: We fight every day. Scratching and --
We respect each other and realize that collectively, you know, we all have something to bring to the part and we complement each other.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: How about that? What have they been up to the last ten years?
OGUNNAIKE: Well, they've been making babies, Kiran. They have seven babies between them. Mel C is the only one without a child and most of them released solo albums as well and Mel B was just on "Dancing with the Stars." She came this close to winning. Of course, Posh, is now a fashion icon. She's working on her fashion line. She's got the Posh bob. So, they've all gone on to do their own things individually but.
CHETRY: But when it comes to bringing down the house, better together than they are apart?
OGUNNAIKE: They are better together. I tell you , Madison Square Garden, it felt like one giant slumber party. I wanted to pull out my hair brush and just start singing along. Twenty-thousand people in the house. Feather boas, sequins, glitter, everywhere. Mothers were there with their daughters, young girls who were only 5 at the time could finally drive themselves to Madison Square Garden. So, they were just reliving between teens and tweens again. It was a great time.
CHETRY: How about it? I'm all for the Spice Girls reunion. I don't know about "Spice World" the movie, part two. I wish they just stay away from that?
OGUNNAIKE: We should stay away from that. But did you know there's another generation of Spice Boys coming up. Little Cruise Spice, he was Posh's youngest son. He was 3 years old. He brought the house down. He started break dancing out of nowhere during their song Mama. The bring all of their kids on stage. He brought the house down. He was doing back flips. He was doing headspins. So, move over Posh. It's all about the younger generation now.
CHETRY: Lola, thanks so much. Hey, John, speaking of the younger generation, you got your daughter tickets to this reunion tour. Don't tell her that your co-anchor actually loved them back in the day, the first time around. Makes me feel old.
ROBERTS: I didn't even get a best dad in the world button for doing that. They're going see them tomorrow night in Washington and she actually went and bought a whole new outfit go to the concert with. So, didn't get a hair brush though. And who drives to Madison Square Garden? Hello?
OGUNNAIKE: I don't know. But they can drive now. That's the point. They can drive now.
ROBERTS: Drive themselves to the subway. There you go. A quick look at what CNN NEWSROOM is working on now for the top of the hour.
TONY HARRIS, CNN, ANCHOR: See these stories in the CNN NEWSROOM. McCain and Obama look at Texas and Ohio after sweeping Tuesday's contest.
The Space Shuttle scheduled to land in Florida today.
The Pentagon planning to shoot down a dead spy satellite tonight.
Oil closes above $100 a barrel for the first time.
And did a cockpit crew fall asleep at wheel? NEWSROOM just minutes away at the top of the hour on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: A final check of this morning's "Quick Vote" before we leave you. We asked should the United States lift its embargo on Cuba. 82 percent of you saying yes. 18 percent saying no. To all of you who voted today, thanks very much.
ROBERTS: I'm headed for the airport. I'll be at Austin, Texas, tonight for CNN "Election Center" at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and then live from Austin tomorrow here on AMERICAN MORNING. So, I will see you then from there.
CHETRY: Safe flight. Smooth travel to you.
ROBERTS: Please.
CHETRY: We'll see you back here tomorrow and thanks so much for joining us on this AMERICAN MORNING.
ROBERTS: CNN NEWSROOM with Tony Harris and Fredricka Whitfield begins right now.
HARRIS: And good morning, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN, ANCHOR: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Heidi today. Watch events come into the NEWSROOM live this Wednesday, February 20th. Here's what's on the rundown.
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