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Trade & Health Care to Forefront as Candidates Battle in Ohio; State of the Black Union; B-2 Crash in Guam; Hidden Camera Exposes Bad Nanny

Aired February 23, 2008 - 16:59   ET

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


SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: And welcome back to CNN's BALLOT BOWL, obviously this is a chance for you the viewers to catch up on all the candidates, unscripted, essentially raw, coming in live events as you have not seen before. I am Suzanne Malveaux here in Akron, Ohio. And this is really where the Democrats are going at each other. They are taking each other apart.
We are hearing new language, new rhetoric today regarding advertisers and fliers distributed to voters in Ohio, Senator Clinton using language we have not heard before, essentially comparing Obama's tactics to those used by Republicans, an operative, Karl Rove, and saying, shame on you, Obama, taking on two ads that she says misrepresents her views when it comes to her health care plan as well as trade deals.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D-NY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Time and time again, you hear one thing in speeches and then you see a campaign that has the worst kind of tactics, reminiscent of the same sort of Republican attacks on Democrats. Well, I am here to say that it is not only wrong, but it is undermining core Democratic principles.

Since when do Democrats attack one another on universal health care? I thought we were trying to realize Harry Truman's dream. I thought this campaign finally gave us an opportunity to put together a coalition to achieve universal health care. That's what Senator Edwards and I fought for and talked about throughout the campaign. Just because Senator Obama chose not to present a universal health care plan does not give him the right to attack me because I did.

So let's have a real campaign. Enough with the speeches and the big rallies and then using tactics that are right out of Karl Rove's playbook. This is wrong, and every Democrat should be outraged because this is the kind of attack that not only undermines core Democratic values, but gives aid and comfort to the very special interests and their allies and the Republican Party who are against doing what we want to do for America.

So shame on you, Barack Obama. It is time you ran a campaign consistent with your messages in public. That's what I expect from you. Meet me in Ohio. Let's have a debate about your tactics and your behavior in this campaign. (END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: A very direct challenge to Senator Barack Obama. Barack Obama certainly not taking this lying down, but coming out fighting, saying that these are ads, these are fliers that have been sent to voters that are accurate, accurate about her health care plan, accurate about her position when it comes to NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement, that this is not something that they are accepting. They have these advertisements, these fliers out there and they are not backing down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What this mailer does is point out this difference that she, herself, surfaced, and describes what the mandate that she's calling for would mean, which is that the government would force you to buy health care. That's indisputable. So the notion that somehow we're engaging in nefarious tactics I think is pretty hard to swallow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Obviously both of these campaigns exchanging some rather harsh rhetoric today over those advertisements, a war of words that has really heated up as we get closer to that March 4th date, that critical date when those big states are at stake, Texas as well as Ohio. Now we know that Sean Callebs is in New Orleans, that's where he is joining us on the State of Black America.

Obviously a lot of these voters are looking at these two candidates, the positions that they're taking on critical issues when it comes to health care, when it comes to the economy. Give us a sense of what they're saying there. And I understand that all the candidates were invited, that there is some controversy over who will attend and who is not attending -- Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Suzanne, exactly. All very good points. Really what we have heard from the panels here at the State of the Black Union, really a who's who of African-Americans across the country, and everything from education to business politics as well as activists.

And what we have heard throughout the day here is it's all about the cause, not about the candidates. People here have been talking about such things as the mortgage crisis that has really affected people from coast to coast here in the United States. Also economic opportunity, crime, education, the kind of things you would expect to hear.

The challenge, they say, is to bring it from this room and get it out to the communities. And they really want to hear from the candidates to see how they could possibly do that. And yes indeed, there is a certain degree of controversy here because this event, of course, is sponsored, organized and led by Tavis Smiley, the talk show host. And he ideally wanted Barack Obama to attend. Suzanne, you're exactly right, you said all four major presidential candidates were invited. The only one who has said yes, she will be here, is Hillary Clinton. She's expected to be here within a half an hour. There has also been some very spirited rhetoric on that as well. Smiley talking to members of the various panels saying that there's a very sharp division not only among voters but also among the black caucus in Congress.

That it basically is split right down the middle. So it's something that has certainly getting a lot of attention here. Smiley himself caught a certain degree of flack this past week for being openly harsh about Barack Obama not coming.

Now in his defense, Obama sent a letter to Smiley saying, look, I'm campaigning ahead of the critically important races going on in Texas and Ohio. And he's looking at the big prize, which of course is in November, not being in New Orleans in February -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And, Sean, I understand that Barack Obama also offered for his wife, Michelle, to be a surrogate to attend. And that was something that was rebuffed. Is that true?

CALLEBS: Yes, it was in the letter that he sent to Smiley. He said that, look, I want to send Michelle Obama to speak to the 6,000 or so people who registered to take part in the State of the Black Union, saying no one knows his passion for leading the country or his record better than his wife.

Now Smiley told me yesterday, we had a chance to chat with him, that he had never received any kind of offering from the Obama campaign to have Michelle Obama come here. But he said, even if he would have, he would have respectfully said no because what he wants to hear from are the candidates here, not their surrogates.

MALVEAUX: Sean, thank you so much. Sean Callebs in New Orleans, the State of Black America, obviously a lot of people looking forward to the comments that will be made there. And obviously somewhat of a controversy as well as whether or not it is important or even mandatory that these two candidates, Senator Clinton, Senator Barack Obama be there to address that group and that particular needs and issues that they are talking about today. Thanks again, Sean.

I want to go back to Jim Acosta in New York. I know you've been following all the Republicans and the race on that side -- Jim.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Suzanne. That's right. And we have some pretty critical contests coming up on March 4th, the Ohio Primary, Texas, Vermont, and Rhode Island. All of these contests are going to be extremely important to all of these campaigns. On the Democratic side obviously the Clinton campaign has mentioned that -- they haven't used the words make or break, but they know that they need to win Ohio and Texas because Barack Obama's campaign just has so much momentum right now.

But on the Republican side, John McCain does stand, if he can run the table, to clinch the nomination, and that is why we have heard from Mike Huckabee that he really views Texas as sort of his firewall, if you will. If he can somehow win Texas, then perhaps he can hang on by his fingernails in this contest.

But Suzanne, as you're watching all of this from Ohio today, you just have to wonder, after everything that happened in Ohio today, what will the fallout be in that state?

MALVEAUX: You know, it's hard to tell whether or not the voters are really going to take a lot of this back and forth seriously. I think what they are seeing is they're seeing very high emotions now. They are seeing some charges and countercharges. I think what they're getting to are character issues, whether or not you believe Barack Obama or Senator Clinton.

I think you can take it apart. You can parse the language, both of them turning to each other and saying that this is something that has definitely escalated here. But I think what the voters are looking for is that they are looking very concretely at the differences in their health care plans, whether or not it is mandated, as Senator Clinton is suggesting and proposing, whether it is not mandated as Senator Barack Obama.

Which one is best for those who have loved ones who are suffering from various diseases? We saw both of these candidates out here on the trail, Barack Obama addressing a medical facility where diabetes was the focus, a real problem for voters. So i think they're going to be looking at their specific -- the plans here, if not necessarily this kind of fighting back and forth, the same thing about their education plans, the same thing about Iraq. You're going to see those bread and butter issues that people are focusing on, not necessarily the fight here.

ACOSTA: Yes, and when you see Hillary Clinton hold up that flier, and it has that picture of that couple sitting around the kitchen table, it does evoke and resurrect that image and that feeling of those "Harry and Louise" ads. And you just have to wonder if Hillary Clinton is trying to say, why aren't people upset about these fliers in the way that they were upset about "Harry and Louise"?

So it will be interesting to see how all this breaks down in Ohio and Texas as we get closer to those primaries coming up on March 4th. But on the Republican side, there's plenty to be said over there as well. We'll hear from the Republicans coming up after the break, John McCain and Mike Huckabee coming up after the break. This is BALLOT BOWL on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ACOSTA: Welcome back to BALLOT BOWL on CNN. I'm Jim Acosta. And we want to bring in now Josh Levs who is down in Atlanta. He has been looking at this issue of health care which just sort of exploded on the Democratic side today between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama with Hillary Clinton using the words "shame on you, Barack Obama" talking about these mailers that have been going out in Ohio, which, as you were watching this -- and all of us were watching, she was holding up that flier that had the picture of "Harry and Louise," bringing back those memories of the "Harry and Louise" ads.

And I'm just wondering, Josh, as you're looking at the details of these two health care plans, who one is right on this?

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, I -- (INAUDIBLE) that's want I to do, is (INAUDIBLE) everybody (INAUDIBLE) show where exactly it's right and where it's wrong as much as we can. You know, this is a major issue in the Democratic race, it's one of the top issues to a great many Democratic voters, including in Texas and Ohio.

Here is what I'm going to do. This takes on a life of its own when there are claims on the Internet. Everybody on one side forwards things to their friends and other potential voters. I want to trace you through -- we're going to do a little surfing together to how you all can get really detailed facts. Along the way, I'm going to tell you some myself.

Let me turn around. I've got a camera here facing this computer. This right here, Politico has posted the item in question, what a lot of people have been receiving from the Obama campaign. And this here is the operative quote. It has a quote saying, "forcing those who cannot afford health insurance to buy it through mandates, punishing those who don't fall in line with fines."

I know it's tiny on your screen. That's what it says. Well, this quote that the Clinton campaign is upset over that Obama is using is actually from an opinion column in a student newspaper in Iowa which we found right here. This is it right here. So Hillary Clinton's campaign has posted something pretty extensive on what they call their "Fact Hub" where they include all sorts of links to different sites, different third party sources out there.

Barack Obama, quickly over here, I know it's tiny on your screen, just telling you, he right now on his "Fact Check" Web site is not talking about it. One place that we love to go here, factcheck.org. And I'm going to talk to you a little bit about that right now.

Let's pull up a quote that we've got from factcheck.org, because they have analyzed this pretty well. And they've given it their own analysis. Folks in the control room, do we have that right now? Do we? OK. There you go.

Clinton's plan does require everyone to have health insurance and there will be some kind of penalty for those who don't comply. And it says that is correct. But the Obama mailer leaves out any information on cost reduction measures and low-income help that Clinton's plan offers while it touts such measures found in his plan, some of which very closely mirror Clintons.

Short version here -- we are going to give you the basic idea. There are a lot of resources out there that get you the details. But to basically understand what this mailer is about, it is what happens in politics. There is cherry-picking going on. The Clinton campaign is saying it's simply not factual. And the way of summarizing what her plan is, leaving out anything she's going to do to make her plan affordable while saying he's going to do all these things to make his plan affordable, they are saying, is ultimately not the right thing to do, not a fair presentation of what it even is to create universal health care plan.

Now as we've been hearing often, and he is staying by it, I'm going to keep monitoring his site and see if he puts up anything right there, any new additional links or anything that he says shows that her complaints that are new today are somehow flawed, beyond the comments he gave to us before.

But I do encourage those people who are voters, and particularly in the states that have yet to vote, you're trying to decide, and this is one of the key issues on you -- it's the kind of thing that is complicated, especially in terms of the money and how it will be structured. But if you take five or 10 minutes, go to factcheck.org, it's one really good site. We also have more details for you at cnn.com. And see how the mailer itself compares to what the facts are out there.

So there you go, I mean, we're touching on it here and giving you that basic idea, some cherry-picked quotes, some information that can really be called into question in the way it is presenting her plan, but not absolutely everything is inherently false. There you go, how is that for a start, Jim?

ACOSTA: That is a good start, Josh. But it sounds like there's going to be a lot of fact-checking going on, a lot of charges being lobbed between these two campaigns over this over the coming days because of just the superheated rhetoric that came out of the Clinton campaign today to say "shame on you, Barack Obama" over some campaign fliers on health care. It basically sets the stage for that issue to be front and center in this upcoming debate between the two candidates coming up later on next week, and obviously for the Ohio primary.

But, Josh, thank you very much for taking a look at that. We appreciate it and telling our viewers where they can turn for the facts on that very important issue.

And coming up after the break here on BALLOT BOWL on CNN, we're going to take a look at the Republican side where the rhetoric has not been so superheated actually between John McCain and Mike Huckabee. Their campaign has been rather gentlemanly between the two of them over the last several weeks. But there is something to be heard from them on both sides. And we'll hear that coming up after the break here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ACOSTA: Welcome back to BALLOT BOWL on CNN. I'm Jim Acosta. And we've been hearing all afternoon, the fight that has broken out between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama on the issue of health care, and we should note that there is something to be said on the Republican side about where the candidates stand on this issue, and so let's go to some sound that we have from Mike Huckabee and John McCain on the issue of health care.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think there's going to be a great debate between -- if I win our nomination, between myself and the Democrats on a variety of issues, higher taxes, lower taxes, bigger government, smaller government, national security, et cetera.

One of them is going to be on health care. Because both the Democrats want to have basically a government takeover of the health care system. I think the problem in America is not the quality of health care. The quality of health care is the best in the world. The problem with health care in America, as we all know, is the inflation associated with it.

A few weeks ago the front page of USA Today said inflation -- you know, Medicaid was over 10 percent last year. When you have double- digit inflation in anything, my friends, whether it be food, whether it be housing, whatever it is, then it's going to become unaffordable over time.

So we want to put the decisions in the hands of the family. And by the way, I'm not going to mandate that every American have health insurance, but I'm going to make it affordable and available. The first thing is to give every American family a $5,000 refundable tax credit to go across state lines and have the health insurance of their choice.

MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Health care in this country is upside down because it's based on an intervention system. It needs to be preventive. I led the only state in the country that saw a reversal of childhood obesity because what we decided was that you can't wait until a problem is in its catastrophic stage and then ever find enough money to fix it.

You have got to deal with it at the prevention level. And that's true not only for children, but for adults, 80 percent of the $2 trillion in health care expenditures we have in this country are spent toward chronic disease. We really don't have a health care crisis in America. What we have is a health crisis. And if we deal with the health of Americans, we can more than adequately afford the health care so that people can access the system.

But if we don't change the model from an intervention-based to a prevention-based, simply trying to provide increasing levels of coverage for an increasingly sick and diseased population will absolutely bankrupt this country.

I'll give you a couple of figures. We spend right at 17 percent of our gross domestic product on health care. No other nation on earth spends more than 10.5 percent. That's Switzerland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: So there are the Republican candidates on the critical issue of health care, Mike Huckabee and John McCain. And speaking of health care, Tony Harris is down in Atlanta.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, sir!

ACOSTA: He has got more on this issue and looking awful healthy right now.

HARRIS: Thank you, Jim. And you are as well, sir. This story comes down to location, location, location when we talk about health. Farmers markets, green space, and good places to walk, just some of the criteria that went into naming Cooking Light's "20th Healthiest Cities in America." Did where you live make the list? Here is our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a list you want your city to be on, but the bar is high when it comes to determining the healthiest metro areas in the United States. For the editors of Cooking Light, the Pacific Northwest is leading the country.

PHILLIP RHODES, SR. EDITOR, COOKING LIGHT: Seattle did come very close with Portland, but there were a couple of areas in which it really excelled.

GUPTA: So what did the magazine consider when it gave Seattle and Portland the top spots?

RHODES: Does it have parkland? Does it have places to exercise? Are they well-maintained? Is there access to fresh ingredients, fresh foods, farmers markets?

GUPTA: This access to healthy food is a critical component for cutting obesity and overweight numbers in any city. Washington, D.C., is on board with that. The abundance of farm fresh foods plus a pedestrian friendly attitude placed the capital on the list at number three.

A relatively healthy population and nicely maintained parks earned Minneapolis a spot in number four. And Cooking Light noted the great cuisine of San Francisco, the fifth-place finisher.

Cities that didn't make the list should follow this advice.

RHODES: I would encourage someone to really examine what tools exist. What people really need are tools.

GUPTA: But access is only half the battle. The rest of course is up to you.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: OK. The "CNN Heroes" campaign has been getting some great submissions. This week's "CNN Hero" is a chef from Baltimore, Maryland, my hometown, who is serving up second chances. His name is Galen Sampson. And in a city with a significant crime and drug problem, he's turning lives around one by one in his kitchen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GALEN SAMPSON, "SERVING UP SECOND CHANCES": Baltimore, although it has gone through a renaissance, many parts have been completely neglected. There's a lot of despair, there's no hope. And it just sort of is a downward spiral.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was a heroin addict, never held a job because of my drug addiction. I was homeless for quite a few years and after a while you just feel like you are alone. That made me want to give up. But with Galen, I have another chance to make it.

SAMPSON: I am Galen Sampson, and I'm hoping people find the tools to rebuild their lives.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Galen Sampson is a five-star chef.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: His cooking, I guess it speaks for itself.

SAMPSON: In the hotel where I worked, with our employees, I saw all of these struggles and difficulties that people were having with addiction, with the criminal justice system, I had always dreamt of having my own restaurant. We decided that part of our restaurant would be a training program.

The name of the program is "Chefs in the Making." It gives our people in transition paid jobs. It also allows us to give them hands on real-time instruction.

So push down, slicing forward, pull back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can learn a lot being in this kitchen. It's fast-paced. It's hard work, but I like what I do.

SAMPSON: If you can do the job and you can perform, you're going to move up. And that's what we hope to instill in our apprentices.

A lot of people think they're crazy. We've pretty much put everything that we have into this project. It's a risk. But see what our apprentices have been able to do here has been very rewarding. We have developed a good, strong, tight-knit family and I think setting a foundation for something good.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ten years from now I see myself owning a home, maybe owning my own business. I don't know what the future is going to hold, but I'm looking forward to it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: OK. If you know someone who deserves to be a "CNN Hero," tell us about them at cnn.com/heroes. You never know, you could see your hero right here on CNN. Back to BALLOT BOWL in just a few minutes after the day's news headlines. And a hidden camera story that will give many parents nightmares.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TONY HARRIS, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: Hello again everyone. I'm Tony Harris. More "BALLOT BOWL" is coming up, but first a quick look at some other headlines.

The U.S. Air Force is investigating its second crash in the last three days. A billion-dollar B-2 stealth bomber went down earlier today on the island of Guam just after take off from the Anderson Air Force Base. Air Force officials say both pilots bailed out safely and are okay. Air Force officials say it's the first ever crash of a B-2.

Friends and family members laid to rest the eighth grade victim of a school shooting in Oxnard, California. Lawrence King was buried yesterday. Prosecutors charged his classmate with premeditated hate crime for the shooting. King reportedly told friends he was gay.

Japan has launched a satellite to give faster Internet service than DSL and residential cable. The experimental satellite is a joint venture between the Japan Aerospace Exploration Industry and Mitsubishi Heavy Industry. If successful, the first service would be available in the Asia-Pacific region.

The northeast is a bit under the weather. Check out New York City. People there are coping with up to nine inches of snow that fell on Friday. It turned roads and sidewalks into slush. More than 1,000 flights were canceled there yesterday. Roads turned treacherous in Pennsylvania when snow turned to sleet and then freezing rain. Lots of airline delays there as well. In Boston, no luck for passengers cramming a train to get through the snow. The train, as you can see here, derailed. They have to find another way home.

Let's get a look at all the weather. Jacqui Jeras in the severe weather center.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Incredible pictures we got from that northeastern storm. The good news is that one is out of here now. Now we're looking at a new one in the Pacific.

(WEATHER REPORT)

JERAS: As soon as we get more information on that story, we'll bring it to you.

HARRIS: Thank you very much.

A North Carolina mother of twins had her suspicions about the babysitter. A hidden nanny camera caught an eye full.

Amanda Lamb with Raleigh affiliate WRAL has today's "Tech Effect" report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LINDSEY ADDISON, MOTHER OF TWINS: You were jumping. AMANDA LAMB, RALEIGH AFFILIATE WRAL (voice-over): 7-month-old twins, Bryce and Gavin, were born three months premature. But now they're thriving.

Last month their mother, Lindsey Addison, went back to work at Sass. She posted an ad online. After interviewing six candidates, she hired a nanny with glowing references.

Last week Addison installed a hidden camera to keep tabs on her children. She could check in on them from her work computer.

ADDISON: I started to see things that I didn't like.

LAMB: In one video clip, the nanny leaves Gavin unattended on the couch. He falls down and struggles. She ignores him.

ADDISON: I'm screaming at my desk, pick him up, pick him up, pick him up. She proceeds to look at him and continue doing whatever she was doing. That went on for six minutes.

LAMB: Addison eventually rushed home.

ADDISON: That's when I said enough is enough. I'm coming home.

LAMB: Addison told the nanny she had been taped and asked her to leave.

ADDISON: She couldn't get out of the house fast enough.

LAMB: Then she called police and started reviewing what the camera recorded. At one point, the nanny is so consumed with television she allows Bryce to fall off her chest onto the couch.

ADDISON: She doesn't pick him up right away. His head is buried on the side of the couch.

LAMB: A few seconds later she's dangling him by his feet.

ADDISON: That's when she flips him upside down.

LAMB: Another time she carries Gavin under her arm like a football.

ADDISON: She carries him around the corner. He nearly hit his head on the banister.

LAMB: What really got to Addison is how she continually moved the twins by grabbing their clothing.

ADDISON: Picked them up like bails of hay, like puppies or kittens, with no care as to how she was doing it and sling them on the sofa.

LAMB: Addison only wishes she had gotten the camera earlier. She wants other parents to know the technology is easy to use and in her opinion worth every penny. ADDISON: I probably never would have suspected, never would have known, and she would still be here had I not had the camera. And it scares me to think what could have happened to my children.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Man. We're thinking the same thing. Police watched the video, too. They said the nanny's actions didn't rise to the level of a crime. They did meet with her, though and suggested she should consider another line of work.

I'll have another news update at the top of the hour. Until then, more of CNN's "BALLOT BOWL '08" after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN NEWS ANCHOR: Welcome back to "BALLOT BOWL '08." I'm in New York City. I'm Jim Acosta, covering the Republican side of the race for the presidency.

My colleague, Suzanne Malveaux is in Ohio covering the Democratic side.

While it has been a very fascinating day on the Democratic side during the day to day, this evening it's going to get interesting tonight as John McCain is addressing a GOP governor's dinner down in Washington. And Mike Huckabee is making a guest appearance on "Saturday Night Live." So we'll see what the former governor from Arkansas has up his sleeve for "Saturday Night Live."

Suzanne, as we're looking forward to March 4th, it's very interesting how this race is shaping up. A lot of people didn't think we would be going this long in terms of it being a real race for the nomination on both sides.

On the Republican side and the Democratic side, it's two different stories, but looking at March 4th we have Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont. It's really those two big states of Texas and Ohio that are very important right now.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Big prizes. You're right, nobody expected it would go this long. The Clinton campaign acknowledging that, saying that they thought that perhaps it would be wrapped up by Super Tuesday. Clearly, this is every delegate counts, anyone's race essential, anyone's win.

I want to give you the delegate count number here needed to win 2025. Here is the breakdown, Barack Obama for now pledge delegates 1,158. Superdelegates 161. Total, 1,319 delegates. Now, if you go to Senator Hillary Clinton, pledge delegates, 1,016, superdelegates 234, bringing that to a total of 1,250 delegates.

So a lot of people on both sides think this is going to come down to those superdelegates, that you're going to see these contests, this competition in the next couple weeks here, those big states that you mentioned, but that that may not resolve this, this may go on and on and on. It may come down to those superdelegates.

There's a lot of jockeying here, a lot of back and forth. We have seen words exchanged today, pretty harsh rhetoric, if you will. We haven't seen that kind of tone that we've heard today. It's only really reflective of what is happening here. And that is a very tight race, a lot of passion, trying to win every single voter, every single delegate.

I know one of the things that we're looking for is Senator Clinton who is going to be in New Orleans, she's going to be addressing the forum, the state of black America. That is where Sean Callebs is.

Sean, I know controversy for both of these candidates, but clearly a very captive audience, an important constituency and really important issues -- Sean?

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Without question, Suzanne. I think this day has been characterized by members of the panel talking about an addenda, ideals, if you will. What we're hearing the folks here talk about items that are good for black America. Tavis Smiley, the organizer says what is good for black America is good for America as a whole.

Smiley invited all four candidates to attend the symposium. Only Hillary Clinton indicated she would come. She was supposed to be here some time ago. Still no sign.

We had a chance of talking with a number of people taking part in the symposium, what they thought about this controversy. Should Barack Obama have attended? Here is what they had to say.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Personally, I don't think it's much of an issue because as of right now, Barack Obama is probably giving us the best alternative to what we've had. Personally, I'm standing behind him 100 percent.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't think he was trying to slight us. He was trying to deal with the reality of his schedules and all. And I feel that Hillary, who is kind of not been doing so well in the last polls, felt the need to be here so that she could improve her chances in reaching a wider audience.

CALLEBS: The ideas that we heard everybody talk about, everything from education to environmental issues, employment opportunities, crime, just a kind of laundry list that you would expect folks to talk about.

What they're saying over and over, Suzanne, it's not about the candidates. It's about the cause. It's about the ideas. It's about the agenda. Hillary Clinton is supposed to be here. A lot of activity. A lot of people interested in what she has to say. And we'll be here until she shows up later on -- Suzanne?

MALVEAUX: Okay, Sean, thank you so much. We know you'll be there. We'll be keeping an eye for what she has to say, a very important constituency there in New Orleans.

We also want to bring our viewers up to date. We are actually going to be replaying that Thursday debate out of Austin, Senator Clinton and Obama going head to head, one-on-one, talking about a number of the issues, healthcare, economy, all those hot button issues, quite an interesting and exciting debate. We'll re-air that 8:00 eastern.

I'm turning it back over to my colleague Jim Acosta in New York who is focusing on the Republicans -- Jim?

ACOSTA: That's right, Suzanne.

You might wonder I'm in New York. The reason the, tonight of all places Mike Huckabee is not exactly campaigning, but is making an appearance tonight on "Saturday Night Live". A lot of people will be watching to see just exactly what Mike Huckabee plans on doing tonight on SNL. The writers are back from their long protracted strike. So the writers have certainly had their time on their hands.

And another big question as to what will happen tonight on the big show is who will play Barack Obama? So we hope to have answers to those questions coming up after the break, this is "BALLOT BOWL" on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ACOSTA: Back to "BALLOT BOWL '08." I'm Jim Acosta in New York where in just six and one-half hours from now, it will be live from New York, it's "Saturday Night." Mike Huckabee won't be guest hosting tonight. That's Tina Fey who was a big part of the writers strike. She was one of the leaders out there of the writers, trying to get them back to work.

Mike Huckabee is expected to make an appearance on the show. It will be interesting to see what he has to say and what he has up his sleeve. He's never short for a one-liner out on the campaign trail. And with writers on hand to help him out, it should be interesting.

But the other big question for SNL tonight is who will play Barack Obama? That has been -- despite all this time, the folks at "Saturday Night Live" have had over these last several months, they have not been able to come up with, at least not until this point, somebody to play Barack Obama. And while there are some -- I guess some talks going on behind the scenes as to who will do this, we still have not officially heard who it will be. That will be one of the cliff hangers at the show.

Jeanne Moos has been taking a look at this. Here is her unique take on the subject.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Will the fake Obama please stand up?

(SINGING AND MUSIC)

(CROSSTALK)

MOOS: Calling all Obamas, your dream gig is up for grabs. "Saturday Night Live" needs to find an Obama fast.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ACTRESS: Who is that under there?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MOOS: The real Obama is the only one to ever appear on the show. Now with the writers strike over, they need an impersonator who can go the distance.

It's tough for Keenan Thompson, the only black male actor on the SNL staff, to play lanky Obama since Thompson has been big enough to play in "Fat Albert".

Contactmusic.com reported that Thompson was trying to lose 60 pounds so he could play Obama.

There are a few I'm posters out there. For instance, the star of "Baracula," a musical about a young Barack Obama's run-in with vampires.

You can find look-alikes looking for work online. Ron Butler got a break simulating a break dancing contest with Hillary. Impersonators say it's not easy being Barack. He's not clumsy, doesn't mispronounce things.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ACTRESS: We are ready for sex change in the White House?

ACTOR: I don't know about that.

ACTRESS: The face of the next president -- excuse me, sir, will be a feminine face...

ACTOR: Thank you, I do think I have some feminine features.

ACTRESS: An actual female with all the fully functioning organs of a female.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WYATT CENAC, COMEDIAN: It's a shame he's not a stupid man, because it would make doing an impression of him a lot easier.

MOOS: Even when comedians make fun of Obama, it's usually for things to tend to make him look good. For instance, showing everyone swooning over him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ACTRESS: Can I get a hug?

ACTOR: Just a small one, a little hug.

ACTRESS: He smells like caramel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MOOS: Impersonators have to make due with a few measly gestures.

CENAC: He gesticulates a lot with his hands.

OBAMA: Live from New York, it's "Saturday Night."

MOOS: We won't find out until Saturday night who will play Obama. It should be someone who can convincingly say, "Yes, we can," from day one.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: And that is what the folks at SNL are saying right now, yes, we can, we can find someone to play Barack Obama. And we'll see how that pans out later on tonight.

But I want to bring back my colleague, Suzanne Malveaux who has heard a few Barack Obama speeches over the last several months here and probably has an idea, maybe, who could play Barack Obama on SNL tonight.

Suzanne, would you care to venture a guess?

MALVEAUX: I don't know. Perhaps my brother. He's a comedian. He would be pretty good. I could volunteer him. I can see that happening.

ACOSTA: It took several years for somebody to really come out with a good George W. Bush impersonation. It takes time. You've got to give these people some time to catch up with all this. I feel bad for poor Keenan Thompson who says he has to lose 60 pounds. Maybe that's why Mike Huckabee is on the show tonight. I don't know.

MALVEAUX: That's a pretty rough assignment there.

ACOSTA: Exactly. Suzanne, obviously you've been out in Akron, Ohio, all afternoon waiting for Barack Obama. The crowd is building up there. It looks like it might be one of those big Barack Obama crowds. This has been a very interesting day. We sort of expected all this to be a fairly quiet weekend respectively.

MALVEAUX: Jim, it certainly wasn't a quiet day at all. It all started with the Hillary Clinton attack on Barack Obama. And he came firing back over the ads and whether or not he misrepresented her views on healthcare as well as NAFTA, free trade, really important issues to a lot of the voters here. I want you to take a look at the audience. This is very typical of a lot of the rallies that you see here, very mixed crowd in terms of racial diversity, very different ages, young, old, a lot of people who have come. They've been here for hours, several thousand people. They've lined up outside the building. A lot of enthusiasm, a lot of excitement.

I'm not even sure they really know the controversy over these ads. This is something that has played out obviously between the two campaigns on television, over the internet. A lot of people here are just coming for the first time to listen to him speak up close and personal. A lot of people talking about how they really -- this election has really captivated and motivated them to get involved. That is something very different.

As you know, here in Akron, as well as many other places in Ohio, this is a very important place for Barack Obama as well as Senator Clinton. Both of them campaigning very, very hard here as well as Texas, and leading up to two weeks from now, that march 4th, those key contests.

Obviously, they are not going to stop -- they're going from one rally to another to another as they see this en thus and excitement building. They're hoping the momentum will stay in his corner -- Jim?

ACOSTA: Thanks, Suzanne, very much. Rest up. Get well and have a good night. Good to see you again.

MALVEAUX: Good to see you too.

ACOSTA: And you know, that is it for this edition of "BALLOT BOWL."

We should mention, down in Louisiana, Tavis Smiley is introducing Hillary Clinton right now. She's expected to address the state of black America conference that is happening down there. That is expected to happen at any moment. And we will have that for you tomorrow on "BALLOT BOWL" at 2:00 p.m. eastern. Stay tuned for that. Come back to us tomorrow at that time for more "BALLOT BOWL."

Coming up next on CNN, Tom Foreman has "This Week in Politics." Thanks for watching. This has been "BALLOT BOWL" on CNN.

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