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Delegate-Rich Texas; Interview With Clinton Supporter Sheila Jackson Lee; What's Next for Huckabee?

Aired March 04, 2008 - 11:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning again, everyone. You're with CNN.
I'm Tony Harris.

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.

Developments keep coming in to the CNN NEWSROOM on Tuesday, the 4th day of March.

Here's what's on the rundown.

Texas and Ohio our primary focus. Today's vote possibly key to the Democratic domination.

HARRIS: Ohio slapped around by messy winter weather. Will ice, snow, even flashfloods keep voters at home?

COLLINS: Is Hillary Clinton cooking up a Texas surprise? Our guests give us a flavor of the Lone Star fight.

Spicy, like the chili, in the NEWSROOM.

HARRIS: So here we go. Four top candidates, four primaries, no foregone conclusions. Right now voters are going to the polls in Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas and Vermont. By today's end we could have a much better idea of the choices you will have in November.

John McCain could clench the Republican nomination today. Mike Huckabee says he won't quit until someone gets enough confirmed delegates to claim the nomination.

According to CNN estimates, McCain has 1,047 total delegates. Based on our numbers, he needs 144 more to win the nomination.

Among the Democrats, Barack Obama has 1,378 total delegates. He leads Hillary Clinton by more than 100, but is still far from the 2,025 needed for the nomination.

So today, both are looking for wins for decidedly different reasons. Obama wants to extend his 11-state win streak. Clinton wants to derail his momentum and recapture the lead in the delegate count.

CNN crews have fanned out across the country and the political landscape. They're part of the best political team on television, and they're deployed, as you can see, in big numbers.

COLLINS: Let's begin with the top prize in today's contest, that's the delegate-rich state of Texas.

CNN's Ted Rowlands is at a polling station in Dallas.

Good morning to you, Ted.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.

Polls have been open for about three hours here in Texas. And we have seen a steady stream of people coming into a polling spot that we're at in Dallas, Texas.

The secretary of state is predicting record voter turnout. Early voting shattered any other primary turnout. And they expect the same to happen today.

We've been talking to voters. They're talking about the issues and the candidates. The issues range from the economy to health care to the war in Iraq.

Here's what a couple of voters told us here after they cast their vote.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I voted for Hillary.

ROWLANDS: Why?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's a woman. This country needs a woman. She's experienced. And I think she's tough enough and soft enough to be the first woman.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm 27. I never voted. And I came out for Barack Obama.

The first time, and he just excited me. I feel like that with him, you know, this country can change, and it's time for a change. We need a change. And so I feel that Obama can do it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROWLANDS: Both candidates really since Super Tuesday have spent a lot of time and a lot of money in the state of Texas and Ohio. The stakes very, very high today.

Here in Texas -- they like to do things a little differently in Texas, and in Texas it's not just a primary, it's a primary and a caucus. So people are being urged to not only come out, cast a primary vote, but then come back after the polls close at 7:00 local and participate in the caucusing.

It is going to be a very long night here in the state of Texas. But a lot is at stake. And people seem to be coming out. And as you said, the secretary of state says they plan to shatter all previous voting numbers this time around -- Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. We'll be watching through the long haul, too.

Ted Rowlands, thanks so much, live from Dallas this morning.

HARRIS: As far as delegates go, Texas is the biggest prize today for Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Clinton hoping to bring Obama's momentum to a screeching halt.

Joining me is Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, a big Clinton supporter. She represents a district centered in Houston.

Well, Congresswoman, great to see you.

You know, pundits are suggesting Hillary wins with Hispanics and urban centers and in south Texas, Obama wins in the big urban areas on the strength of African-American voters.

Do you evaluate this race for Texas in those terms?

REP. SHEILA JACKSON LEE (D), TEXAS: Well, I really evaluate it, Tony, in terms of voters, just plain old Texas voters, common sense voters.

You know, I just left Senator Clinton. We were at Henderson Elementary School here in Houston, Texas, with just an array of her supporters giving her the last-minute push and the last-minute urgent cry for, hang in there and stay the course.

We've been doing, I think, wonderfully over the last couple of days. She is on her second stride. I think this is the Texas surge.

We're just going after every vote. She'll be leaving Houston, going to Dallas. She was in Austin last night, she was in Beaumont. Voters are coming to her.

Former attorney general Maddox (ph) was there last evening. She has the support of the former land commissioner, Gary Murrow (ph), John Wiley Price (ph), a commissioner up in Dallas, Commissioner Sylvia Garcia (ph), Mario Vallegos (ph), and Carol Alvarado (ph).

HARRIS: Yes.

LEE: Her support is expanding, and we're going after every vote. It's a Texas surge.

HARRIS: Yes, but can you explain this to me? Can you explain -- because I don't know that I would have even thought of this happening before the primary season got under way -- can you explain the surge of African-American votes for Barack Obama seemingly in lockstep? I don't know that I saw that coming. I mean, this is still Hillary Clinton, wife to Bill Clinton, who, well, you know the rest of the story from there.

Did you see this coming and can you explain it? LEE: Well, first of all, Hillary Clinton stands on her own powerful record of civil rights leadership. And a litmus test given to her, she'll pass with flying colors on her belief and equality and opportunity for all. But, yes, I understand it.

We are between two historic opportunities. We just finished African-American History Month. We're now in Women's History Month.

We have a bounty of riches. Of course I feel the sense of deep emotionalism, commitment, the opportunity for an African-American to be elected president. And I respect that thought. But I also see a surge towards Senator Clinton because of her can-do, make it happen attitude.

She's a change maker. She has a balanced hand as it relates to national security. She is the one that can pick up the phone in the middle of the night. She is the one that can change the face of America with 80-some heads of state that she has a relationship with.

HARRIS: Yes.

LEE: So we respect -- and she has said to me both personally and publicly, I understand, but it's not going to stop her from reaching out to ministers.

HARRIS: Yes.

LEE: We had 21 ministers in Houston endorse Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. One of the chief leaders of our community, Pastor F. M. Williams (ph), moderator of over 150 churches, saying, I believe in you.

HARRIS: Yes.

LEE: That's good news.

HARRIS: Yes.

LEE: And she knows that that is the way she's going to win this campaign, because she respects the vote of the African-American community.

HARRIS: Congresswoman, are you under any pressure to switch your allegiance and to, as a superdelegate, to support Barack Obama?

LEE: Presidential politics is combative. We're in the politics of combat. And people are advocating for their candidate.

Of course my constituents have reached out to me. I have received their reaching out in the spirit that it is done.

We are fighting for our respective candidates. And what I say to them is that I believe in Senator Clinton's vision for America. I believe in the work she has done, the ability to do for Texas what Texas needs.

HARRIS: Yes.

LEE: And I think in saying that, they understand.

However, this race is not over. We know that we're not going into a brokered convention. We're all going to be together.

We're unified, Tony, behind a Democratic president in 2008. We have to take our country back.

Senator Clinton is a patriot. She's an American. She's a Democrat. She will do what is best for this country. Senator Obama will do what is best for this country. We will be unified.

HARRIS: Congresswoman, thanks for your time this morning.

LEE: Thanks for having me.

HARRIS: Good to see you.

LEE: I'm going out to vote.

HARRIS: All right. OK. Good to see you.

LEE: Going out to get a win, that's for sure, in Texas.

HARRIS: All right.

LEE: Good luck, Ohio.

HARRIS: We'll be watching tonight.

LEE: Good luck, Ohio.

COLLINS: John McCain seemingly bound for the November ballot, but what about Mike Huckabee, his Republican challenger who's defied so many pundits? Looking ahead now, CNN's Mary Snow is in Dallas this morning.

So, Mary, how is the GOP race shaping up there in Texas?

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Heidi, certainly Mike Huckabee is hoping that this will not be his last stand here in Texas, but certainly Senator John McCain is hoping that he will be able to clinch the nomination tonight with wins in four states, including, of course, the big contest here in Texas, Ohio, Vermont, then Rhode Island.

And Senator John McCain is on the campaign trail today in Texas. He's going to wind up the night here in Dallas, where he'll watch the primary results coming in.

And yesterday on the campaign trail you could really get the sense, of course, as we have been in several past days, that he is looking ahead to the general election. And he was asked about his hopes for tonight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Guardedly confident that we can get a sufficient number of delegates with victories in Vermont, Rhode Island, Ohio and Texas tomorrow, and move on to the general campaign. But I still respect Governor Huckabee's right to remain in this race for as long as he feels necessary to do so.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNOW: And while others have pressured Mike Huckabee to step aside, Senator McCain, as you just heard there, has repeatedly said he respect's Huckabee decision to stay in this race.

And Mike Huckabee is certainly putting a lot of faith in the state of Texas. He visited this polling station just a short time ago. And he is holding out hope that he will have an upset here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, we still are hoping for a Texas win here today. I know that a lot of people don't think that can happen, but we think in an election anything can happen.

We've been actively campaigning the last several days, vigorously in Texas. My opponent has been on vacation.

I think Texans are going to pay attention to that. But more importantly, I think they're paying attention to issues.

They know that there's only one candidate who supports a human life amendment, control of the borders, the fair tax, and has chief executive experience. I think voters are beginning to think, you know, this is a big election, and it's about the future not just for the Republican Party, but about our country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNOW: So what happens to Mike Huckabee if he does not do well here tonight? He says that he expects to watch the results here tonight in Dallas. He's going to go back to his home in Little Rock. And he says tomorrow is going to be what he calls a big planning day. That he's going to sit down with his aides and staff and take a look at the landscape to see where they go from here no matter what happens here tonight -- Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. CNN's Mary Snow in Dallas for us today.

Mary, thank you.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COLLINS: So who answered the White House phone at 3:00 a.m.? There's the Clinton ad, of course, but then there's what really happens in a crisis. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: For the presidential candidates, Ohio looms large with its windfall of delegates. But for voters, will ominous storm clouds be larger?

Keeping an eye on the weather and the turnout, CNN's Jim Acosta in Cleveland.

And Jim, I don't know if you have this, but we just received a bulletin here that Ohio -- you can stop me any time if you have this. Ohio's secretary of state...

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sure.

HARRIS: ... Jennifer Brunner, has filed a court order allowing Jefferson County, Ohio, voters to vote provisionally due to flooding. So already the weather having an impact. At least in one county.

ACOSTA: I hadn't heard that yet. But Jennifer Brunner, the secretary of state here, is vowing to stay on top of voting issues that do arise. And so the wires are keeping us up to speed at what's happening at some of these rural counties.

We're in Cuyahoga County, which as you know, Tony, has had its share of voting problems over the years. Back in 2004, they had those punch card ballots. There were long lines, sometimes 12-hour lines. So a lot of people felt like they did not have a chance to vote or had to wait a long time to do that.

So then they switched over to touch screens, which became very controversial in this state. And actually, last fall, there were problems with those touch screen machines.

So now what they've done is they've gone to these optical scan ballots. And I'm holding one here, and it's sort of like the S.A.T. test. You just fill in the circle and put it into the machine, and it's supposed to record your vote. And according to election officials, all should go, all should go smoothly, unlike what has happened in the past.

And that is exactly what Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama want to hear at this point. They know that this is a very important state, 141 delegates up for grabs.

And election officials are predicting record turnout. They're saying that some 52 percent of the registered voters in this state are going to show up to vote today. That is some 15 percent higher than the usual average.

And you mentioned the weather, Tony. The weather is also a factor. There's a wintry mix in the forecast for today. So we're going to have to keep our eyes on the skies and on the polls to see exactly just how the vote goes down here in Ohio -- Tony.

HARRIS: There he is, Jim Acosta for us in Cuyahoga County, Shaker Heights, I believe, exactly there in Ohio.

ACOSTA: That's right.

HARRIS: Jim good to see you. Thanks.

COLLINS: Another story we're keeping a close eye on today outside Seattle. Multimillion-dollar homes burned to the ground. Did a radical environmental group set those fires?

We want to go live now to Thelma Gutierrez. She's in Woodinville, Washington.

So, Thelma, boy, those pictures that we keep on seeing, just incredible flames. Do we know any more about the situation today and who may be responsible?

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Heidi, it's still early in the investigation, but the FBI says that they are investigating this case as a possible case of domestic terrorism.

Now, there are about a dozen federal agents, both ATF and FBI, who are down this very long driveway behind me. They're combing through the rubble of three luxury homes that burned to the ground, also two that were damaged.

They say that they believe the group, the ecoterrorist group ELF, may have torched these homes because they found a white sheet with the letters "ELF" spray-painted in red tied to a fence post at the entrance of the so-called Street of Dreams. Now, this is an area of multimillion-dollar homes that the marketer had marketed as environmentally friendly.

Now, the banner said, "Built green? Nope, black." And the FBI now has that banner. They've sent it to a lab. And they're testing it for clues.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID GOMEZ, FBI: If you've ever watched "CSI" -- and I think most people have at some point in their life -- you know that law enforcement agencies, the FBI in particular, we heavily stress the forensics. That is, we're going to be looking for hairs and fibers. We're going to be looking for footprints, fingerprints, anything that is uniquely tied to that individual.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GUTIERREZ: Now, the FBI says that the ELF group has been hard to crack because they're not really a structured organization. They're more a group of individuals who espouse an ideology, and so they say they're looking into who may be involved in torching some of these homes. Over the years, ELF has claimed responsibility for torching SUV dealerships, also an apartment complex in San Diego, and many other unoccupied homes out here in the Washington area.

Back to you, Heidi. COLLINS: All right. Thelma Gutierrez, thanks so much for the update.

HARRIS: High-stakes primary -- Democrats jockeying for every vote. A closer look at the Texas factor in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Texas playing a starring role in today's primaries. Enthusiasm is high, turnout expected to be the same.

Here with a little Texas flavor, Wayne Slater of "The Dallas Morning News."

Wayne, thanks for being with us.

You actually say that Hillary Clinton could actually pull out a couple of surprises here. What do you mean by that?

WAYNE SLATER, "DALLAS MORNING NEWS": Well, I think she could. Really what I've watched in the last few days is sort of some momentum by Hillary Clinton. I look at the polls.

You know, I've watched her in south Texas, where she has to hold on to about two-thirds of the Hispanic vote. I see no evidence that she's losing that. And I think this ad, the ad about the telephone ringing at 3:00 in the morning...

COLLINS: The 3:00 a.m. ad.

SLATER: Right. I think that's working.

She's really targeting these swing women, women who have children in the suburbs and are asking the question, who do I really want to be in the Oval Office? I like both of these candidates.

I think that could be a difference. She might surprise people here in Texas, even though she's trailing in some polls.

COLLINS: What about this possible prospect that she could, in fact, win the popular vote but then overall lose the total delegates?

SLATER: I don't see how she can win the total delegates if you count both the pledged delegates that will come from the popular vote, as well as the caucuses, this odd Texas two-step process tomorrow night. I think it's a good chance that she could win the vote narrowly, although she could lose, and I think there's almost no way that she can get more caucus delegates.

And in the end, that really raises the question, even if she were to win Texas, she's going to continue to fall farther behind Barack Obama in the delegate toll. But I guess that's a war for another day.

COLLINS: Yes, I guess it is. But let's talk for a minute, because it is really interesting how they do things in Texas, and why they do them that way. SLATER: Well, this whole caucus deal, basically you have about two-thirds of the delegates will be decided largely on the basis of the popular vote today. But then everybody who votes has an opportunity to go to a caucus at night -- it's a school or firehouse or whatever -- and vote again. For about one-third of the delegates, it will be distributed that way.

Really, it was the product of a reform movement in the Democratic Party about 1988. They wanted to get more people involved in the party.

COLLINS: It's funny. You know, the idea of the Democrats, and now it could play such a major role in the ultimate Democratic nomination.

SLATER: Well, and it should. And the amazing thing is that nobody paid any attention to this process except for a few hard-shell Democrats who showed up at these caucuses.

COLLINS: Right.

SLATER: But this year it is close. Every vote counts, every delegate counts. So everybody is looking at this caucus process and saying, oh, my gosh, what is this all about?

COLLINS: Yes. We've also been talking a lot about early voting. It's been really a big deal this time around.

How do you think it's going to play in Texas particularly?

SLATER: Yes, and it really is a reflection of the excitement about this race. You've seen it in other primary and caucus states.

About over a million people have voted early. More people voted early on the Democratic side, early, than voted in the entire Democratic primary four years ago.

I think the indications are that it looks awfully good for Barack Obama in this early voting. You see really good turnouts in Houston and Dallas and Austin. Less so -- somewhat less so in south Texas.

Houston and Dallas and Austin are seen as -- with African- American populations and young populations -- as really good Obama territory. South Texas will be Hillary.

COLLINS: Yes, that may be possible. But I got to wonder about the Republican side now, too. And it's so fascinating. I heard one analyst say a little bit earlier today it seems like the Democrats are sort of beating each other up, while the Republicans could appear to be united with John McCain, the likely nominee, of course, Mike Huckabee going to disagree with that. We had him on the program a little bit earlier today. And, in fact, a lot of people do think Texas is fertile ground for Mike Huckabee.

SLATER: Well, it is. He's not likely to win. We don't know that. Polls indicate that McCain is 2-1 ahead of him. Good social conservative, Christian conservatives here in Texas, a lot of those like Mike Huckabee. But it was interesting, I was with John McCain for two days last week traveling Texas, and he is framing this as a general election contest. He's talking as if he's already the nominee, in effect, and targeting, by and large, Barack Obama.

COLLINS: I guess that's what I would do, too, if I was in his situation. I'm sure that's what his advisers are telling him. Hey. Wayne Slater of "The Dallas Morning News." Appreciate your insight. Thanks so much.

SLATER: Great to be with you.

COLLINS: Thanks.

Good Tuesday -- it's Tuesday, right?

HARRIS: Yes.

COLLINS: Some sort of primary happening.

HARRIS: Something like that going on.

COLLINS: Good morning once again, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.

HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris. Now it's their turn, Vermont, used to the neighbors in New Hampshire grabbing the primary headlines. Not today.

Our Dan Lothian joins us from a polling station in Williston, Vermont.

Dan, good to see you. How's the turnout where you are, and what are the people there talking about?

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Tony, and good morning to you as well. Turnout very good here. In fact, it was quite crowded in the morning when they opened about 7:00. But we had there was sort of a tapering off a bit, but still that steady stream of folks coming in. You see, well, that's how it works in live television; you turn around and it dries up. People walking up here to sign in and then going behind the curtains here, about two dozen or so folks currently voting.

Tony, you were talking about how Vermont is not really used to being in the spotlight. You are so correct about that. Earlier we talked to a voter who came here and he told us a little bit more about that feeling. Here's what he had to say:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE MEASE, REGISTERED VOTER: We've always sort of watched New Hampshire have its heyday and we were sort of a second thought. So it's nice to have Vermont have a say in this.

(END VIDEO CLIP) LOTHIAN: Now voters here in Vermont do care about some of the same issues that you're hearing about across the country, health care, the economy, the environment. But the one thing we kept hearing time and time again, whether it's out on the streets in Burlington yesterday or here at this polling site, people are very concerned about the war in Iraq.

This is a liberal state. There's sort of this anti-war sentiment here. And as you talk to voters, what they want to see is a leader who can help get our troops out of Iraq. So that whole issue of the war in Iraq really driving a lot of folks to the polls today -- Tony.

HARRIS: Well, the activity is going to pick up. We're closing in on the noon hour, Eastern Time. And activity is going to pick up for you there, Dan.

Dan Lothian for us. It's great to see you. Thanks.

COLLINS: Rhode Island in play, too. It may be known as Hillary Clinton country, but Barack Obama is giving her a fierce fight there as well.

Our Deborah Feyerick has been talking with voters in Providence.

So, Deb, what are they saying?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's interesting, Heidi, because we met a lot of people who had switched their vote from Hillary Clinton to Obama. But we also started meeting now people who have switched from Obama to Hillary Clinton. And one woman told us that ultimately she felt the scrutiny Hillary Clinton was getting was really unfair. She thought it was too intense, too critical, and therefore she said that she decided to vote for Hillary, saying that her foreign policy stance was better.

So it was interesting, because we've seen such a back and forth. But that was one voter. The others have said they really wanted to talk about Barack Obama. Let me take a look. This is some of the line here that we're seeing here. This is how it's been really all day, this steady flow of people here at the Jewish community center in Providence.

Some people came early, about 7:00, 8:00 in the morning. I can tell you the line almost out this door here. You can see some of the folks they're casting their votes, and then they go. They get that vote recorded. I've got a ballot here. It's a Democratic ballot. Maybe a coincidence or not, but we haven't talked to many Republicans today.

Again, you can see that if people come here and they're undecided, they can vote for the uncommitted ticket. But this is what it's like, people very excited, very committed to casting their ballot today. And waiting to see how it all turns out by the end -- Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. And whenever the end is, all right. Deb Feyerick, appreciate that, coming from Providence, Rhode Island this morning.

HARRIS: Latino political clout, a look at how Spanish-language media is covering the presidential race. That's still ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Latino voters getting lot of attention this election year, especially in Texas. A new twist for you this morning. A look at how our Spanish-language network CNN Espanol is covering the story. Juan Carlos Lopez joins us now from Austin. And, Juan Carlos, good to see you.

First question, what are you hearing from Latino voters? What issues are they most concerned with this election cycle?

JUAN CARLOS LOPEZ, CNN EN ESPANOL CORRESPONDENT: Tony, good to talk to you, too.

Interesting, the issues are separate. Immigration and the debate on immigration reform is what has people motivated to take part in the political process. But the issues for Latino voters aren't very different from other voters. It's the economy, education, health care, the war in Iraq. That's what they're concerned about.

But every person we ask, what is the issue, what are you concerned about, they say immigration reform.

HARRIS: Immigration reform. When that is the issue, which of the Democratic candidates are Latinos likely to side with?

LOPEZ: Well, what we've been hearing in Texas is that older Latinos prefer Hillary Clinton; younger Latinos are looking at Barack Obama. And it's interesting that there was a big gap between the candidates. A preference for Hillary Clinton was very clear. But as the Obama campaign has been investing in TV ads and media ads in this state, the gap has closed, and it's going to be a close call.

HARRIS: So are you anticipating a big Latino turnout in Texas today?

LOPEZ: Yes, we've seen it. We've seen it in other states. We anticipate it to happen. In Texas it's 36 percent of the population is Latino, 20 percent of the electorate. People are motivated. There are differences between the south Texas and the north of the state. But Latinos will participate.

And people -- one thing about Latino voters, Tony, they vote for a candidate not really for a party. This time around they seem to be heading towards Democrats, but a lot of Latinos like John McCain.

HARRIS: I got to ask you one final question. How does this election cycle compare to others you've covered? Has there ever been this much attention paid to Latino voters?

LOPEZ: There was attention in the general elections, paid to Latinos in the general elections, not in the primary process. And it happened this year. Beginning of the year, we were asking what are you doing to go after Latinos? There wasn't much done because they considered the Latinos didn't get involved in the primaries. But we saw in Nevada where Latinos were 12 percent of the electorate, there were 15 percent of those who took part in the caucuses.

So, Latinos are motivated and we've seen it in Texas. We see it, right now, they're going heavily after the Latino vote because according to people we've been speaking to and experts we've been speaking to, the Latino vote in Texas could define who wins among the Democrats.

HARRIS: Wow.

LOPEZ: People are telling us it won't be really if Hillary Clinton loses to Barack Obama because they think her edge over Obama with the Hispanic population in Texas is still very high. The question is the margins. And they believe that Nevada gave Hillary Clinton the big three and they don't -- they're not sure that it can happen here.

HARRIS: Yes, Juan Carlos Lopez with our sister network, CNN En Espanol. Juan Carlos, great to see you, thanks.

COLLINS: Tough economic ties taking a toll on many Ohio voters. It's even forcing some to say good-bye to a loved one.

Here's CNN's Susan Roesgen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN ROESGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In Dayton, Ohio, it has come to this. Times are so tough for some people that even the family pet is a luxury they can no longer afford.

MARK KUMPF, DAYTON ANIMAL SHELTER: The gentleman we had literally had nothing left. He -- his house was foreclosed upon. He couldn't cover the utilities, couldn't cover the bills. And he made the right decision for the pet.

ROESGEN (on camera): A busy animal shelter is just the latest sign of an economy in trouble. When the auto industry started to shrink here, so did the number of jobs.

(voice-over): In the last seven years, Ohio has lost 23 percent of its manufacturing jobs. Many companies that rely on exports are doing well, but unemployment is rising. In Ohio, it's 5.5 percent, well above the national rate of 4.9 percent.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't have any pasta right now. But we'll give you a couple of cans of sauce.

ROESGEN: At the Dayton Food Pantry, the associate director calls it the perfect storm, the perfect storm of need.

LINDA ROEPKEN, DAYTON FOOD BANK: People who were donors don't have as much money to donate. In fact, some of those people who were donors are now recipients.

ROESGEN: Another factor is the foreclosure rate. The number of Ohioans filing for foreclosure has gone up 88 percent in one year. And often when homeowners are forced to leave, they don't take their pets with them. The National Humane Society warns of pet abandonment growing not just here, but across the country. In the end, this could be the face that haunts a voter in Dayton and many others as well.

Susan Roesgen, CNN, Dayton, Ohio.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: A big pay back from a company that once claimed to help fight off colds.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: So, here's a question, what are you, the voters, actually thinking about all of this? Well, CNN has combined a number of recent polls and crunched the numbers for our so-called "Poll of Polls."

According to our calculations, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are locked in a statistical dead heat in Texas. The key may be the seven percent of voters who say they are undecided or unsure as you see there. Our "Poll of Polls" shows Clinton with a single-digit lead in Ohio. She boasts 49 percent to Obama's 42 percent. Nine percent of the voters there say they are on the fence.

Among the Republicans, John McCain holds a sizable lead over Mike Huckabee in Texas. A total of 12 percent of the voters fall either into the Ron Paul camp or are unsure of who to support. In Ohio, McCain's lead is even more one-sided. Our "Poll of Polls" show him with 57 percent of the support. That's more than twice that of Huckabee.

HARRIS: Hope Now is the Bush administration's plan to help struggling homeowners. And now, we have some numbers to go along with it.

Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange with details. And Susan, are we putting a little meat on the bone here?

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

COLLINS: It claimed to help fight off colds. Now, it's having to pay cold hard cash. The herbal supplement company Airborne paying more than $23 million to settle a class action lawsuit for false advertising.

A nutritionist at the Center of Science and Public Interest calls Airborne an over-priced, run-of-the-mill vitamin pill that's been cleverly but deceptively marketed. The company isn't admitting any wrongdoing. If you bought the product, look for ads coming up in major magazines about how you can get your money back. The nation's largest beef recall now includes Heinz Boston Market Lasagna with Meat Sauce in a 12.5 ounce carton. Some 40,000 cases of it now being recalled. You can contact the company at 1-800-488-0050 if you have any questions.

Turns out a vendor used some ground beef from Westland Hallmark, that's the California company that recalled 143 million pounds of beef last month after the Humane Society released a video. It shows cattle that are unable to stand, being prodded and carried by forklift to slaughter.

HARRIS: Now, the weather, as stormy as the campaigning, Ohio gets ice, snow, maybe even floods. Will it dampen voter turnout?

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COLLINS: Explosions coming in rapid succession. A Navy war college in Pakistan hit by a suicide bomber. It leaves four people killed, 15 wounded. An army official telling CNN security officers tried to stop the bomber from going on the college grounds in Lahore. He then rammed his car into another vehicle in a campus parking lot. That set off a chain reaction of explosions. The attack came as Pakistan's president held security talks with the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff.

HARRIS: Suicide attack in Afghanistan, a government building targeted. Officials say the bomber detonated a van packed with explosives after a guard tried to stop him at the gate. The guard was killed, two other officers and four civilians wounded.

It's the second attack on the government in as many days. A blast at a military base yesterday killed two NATO affiliated soldiers and wounded more than 20 more.

COLLINS: The story behind the Clinton campaign commercial. What really happens when a crisis call comes into the White House?

CNN's Barbara Starr explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It started with a Hillary Clinton campaign commercial.

ANNOUNCER: There's a phone in the White House and it's ringing.

STARR: Not to be out done, Barack Obama fired back.

ANNOUNCER: In a dangerous world, it's judgment that matters.

STARR: Both candidates claiming they're the right choice to answer that White House phone when the toughest decisions have to be made, when the U.S. is under attack or when troops have to be ordered into action. Former CIA director John McLaughlin has seen it happen firsthand. JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Almost always, it was the White House chief of staff or the national security adviser who would be responsible for waking up the president.

STARR (on camera): If the phone rings in the middle of the night at the White House, it's probably already been ringing here first at the National Military Command Center deep inside the Pentagon. This is the place where word of a crisis often comes first.

(voice-over): In a crisis, the defense secretary, the chairman of the joint chiefs, and the CIA director most likely are already awake preparing options for the president. Many of the recent crises have involved al Qaeda, the attack on the USS Cole in 2000, the bombing of the U.S. embassies in East Africa in 1998.

But no person assumes the Oval Office without many weeks of briefings about the nation's deepest secrets.

MCLAUGHLIN: Even in the period before a president raises his or her right hand, he or she will have had -- and this is true in the upcoming case, I assume, a couple of months of national security briefings.

STARR: The commercials may be dramatic, but the country's biggest crisis, of course, the 9/11 attacks, happened in the morning. And as we saw on 9/11, the biggest challenge for any president is to make sure in a crisis, everyone is talking and the dots are connected.

Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: CNN NEWSROOM continues just one hour from now.

HARRIS: "BALLOT BOWL" is next. I'm Tony Harris.

COLLINS: I'm Heidi Collins. See you tomorrow, everybody.

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