Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
North American Leaders Meet; Pennsylvania Voters Head for Polls; Oil Prices Hit New High; New Jersey Man Accused of Spying for Israel; Bank Teller Shot in Indianapolis
Aired April 22, 2008 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FELIPE CALDERON, PRESIDENT OF MEXICO (through translator): It is not my role to talk to the three candidates or pre-candidates to the presidency. I am very respectful of the domestic politics of this country. This is a decision that is solely in the hands of U.S. citizens.
And for that reason, I must respect that process completely. It is not my role to talk to any candidates or pre-candidates. All I would do is speak to the person who will eventually be the president of the United States, and we will speak openly and sincerely about the future of both of our countries, or in this case our three countries in the trilateral meetings that we hold.
But Mexico will have a respectful relationship with the next president of the United States, and we'll always seek the prosperity of our nations, knowing that, through free trade, we have a clear, open and respectful relationship among all our countries that will achieve prosperity.
If we want to solve common problems, if we want to solve problems like security, problems like immigration, problems like economic growth in the United States and in Mexico, we need to understand that, only to the extent that North America is more competitive as a region, only to that extent will we be able to successfully face our problems.
STEPHEN HARPER, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER (through translator): We have, in working with the current U.S. administration, we've had a very productive relationship with President Bush and his administration. And I trust that this will continue. They will continue with any other presidential candidates here in the United States.
Of course, it's the United States who needs to make a decision about this election. But I think that, in the end, Canada really is confident that the next president will also understand the importance of NAFTA and the importance of the commercial relationship between the United States and Canada.
And I must emphasize that for energy, security, the commercial relationship between our two countries is even more important today than it was 20 years ago. And I think this relationship will be even more important in the future.
(IN ENGLISH) We have a productive relationship with the current administration. And I anticipate Canada will have a very productive relationship with the next administration. Because I'm confident that, when the facts are looked at, any president, just as any prime minister of Canada, will quickly conclude how critically NAFTA and our North American, Canadian-American trade relations are to jobs and prosperity on both sides of our border.
And in particular the importance of energy security. That is a particularly critical part of the NAFTA arrangement. Canada is the biggest and most stable supplier of energy that's in the United States and the world. That energy security is more important now than it was 20 years ago when NAFTA was negotiated and will be even more important in the future.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Jose -- I'm sorry, Jaime Oberjero (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Microphone please.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Yes, good afternoon. I'd like to ask a domestic question but here from Mexico. President Calderon, I'd like to ask your ideas about the situation in our Congress and also...
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush, prime minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, and President of Mexico, Felipe Calderon, speaking with the press. Of course, they're holding a summit in New Orleans to talk about trade there. That summit is finishing today. They're taking questions. And of course, you heard what all of the men had to say about that.
We'll continue to follow this story. If they break any news in this, we'll bring it to you right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. You can finish watching this if you'd like. Go to our Web site, CNN.com.
Meantime, the CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.
Six long weeks -- make that six very long weeks -- after voters last went to the polls. The all-important Pennsylvania primary is finally here.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Hillary Clinton says Pennsylvania is the ticket to Pennsylvania Avenue. Barack Obama says he's the underdog. What they say tomorrow depends on what the voters say today.
Hi, there. I'm Brianna Keilar at CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.
LEMON: And she's back. Welcome back.
KEILAR: Thank you.
LEMON: It's good to see you. It's good to see you.
And I'm Don Lemon. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
All right. We start now, the first start of the CNN NEWSROOM. Really, some despicable news. It is a bank robbery. It is in Indianapolis. And the reason it's despicable is because the gunman is believed to have shot a pregnant teller in the lower stomach during this bank robbery. It happened this morning on the east side of Indianapolis.
Here's what police say. The teller was five months pregnant with twins. It was on alert that she was taken to the hospital and was in serious condition. The robbery happened. This is the bank, the Huntington Bank. Reportedly -- reported shortly after 9:30 this morning.
Police say the gunman jumped over the counter, shot the teller, fired another shot. He was running out of the bank with an unknown amount of cash. Police say the suspect jumped into the passenger side of a car to get away. And they think that there were more than one person involved. Obviously, someone in the driver's seat, not exactly sure how many people.
One customer, three employees were in the bank during the robbery. But again, this man shot a pregnant teller, five months pregnant with twins. We'll continue to update you. Again, he is still on the loose. We'll continue to update you here in the CNN NEWSROOM -- Brianna.
KEILAR: We're also getting some pictures right now live into us from Medley, Florida. You see these are fire crews there on the scene of an industrial fire. We only know a little information. But from what we can see in these pictures here, as the camera zooms in closer here, really -- I mean, these flames are being fed in just an amazing way. They're burning with such an intensity.
And this is at Titan Tarmac, an industrial facility in Medley, Florida. Fire crews there on the scene. This video coming to us from our affiliate, WSVN.
And we're hearing from them that there was a huge explosion there. And here's what I was talking about. These flames that are just burning so intensely at this industrial plant. We don't know how this fire started. Very few details available at this point. But again, an industrial fire at the Titan Tarmac facility in Medley, Florida.
We're going to continue to follow this and bring you any details as they come into the CNN NEWSROOM.
LEMON: All right. Finally, it is the day dozens of delegates, millions of votes and maybe the fate of the presidential battle, all at stake in Pennsylvania. We're now almost halfway through one of the most crucial contests of the campaign season.
Hillary Clinton needs a big win. Barack Obama, well, he wants to keep things close.
Let's go straight to Philadelphia and CNN's Jim Acosta. Jim is at a polling station.
And we're wondering, always on election day, primary day or whatever it is, we get calls about, oh, something's wrong. I'm wondering if you're hearing any problems at polling places in the Pennsylvania area?
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, John (sic), so far from what we're hearing from Pennsylvania election officials, things are running smoothly so far. As the day develops we may hear additional reports coming in that may indicate otherwise. But so far so good, from what we're hearing, so far up to this point.
The other thing that we're hearing anecdotally is that they are looking at what could be a record turnout in Pennsylvania. Officials this morning, as they opened the polling stations, were bracing for that with some 200,000 newly registered voters in this state, many of them energized by this hotly-contested race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
Both of those candidates were on the campaign trail earlier this morning. They both made pit stops at polling stations: Clinton here in the Philadelphia suburb of Conshohocken, Barack Obama out in Pittsburgh. Both of them going into their -- their rivals' bases of support, trying to peel off some last-minute undecided voters.
And speaking of the voters, we did some informal polling of a few voters as they were coming out of this polling station in Center City Philadelphia. And they told us where they stood. Many of them, we should note, for Barack Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I voted for Barack Obama. And why? I just feel like his policies, his attitude, his energy is what we need for this country at this time. I just feel like he's got a lot of positive things up his sleeve. And he's got a lot of support from a lot of different sides, you know, a lot of different aspects of age groups and ethnicity. So I feel like he's the stronger candidate for our country.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Probably going to end up voting for Obama.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why is that?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just feel like it's time for something new, time for a change. Someone who inspires young people. Not that either one of them wouldn't do a good job, but still don't like the idea of the last 20 years being split between two political families. It has a little bit too much of a dynastic tinge to it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think Senator Clinton has a very fine record. I came here from New York this year. I certainly know her as the state senator. She's had four (sic) years in the White House, though not as president. She certainly is familiar with the politics and with the way things are done. And I think she's honest.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Now one thing we should also mention is that there are scores of people coming in from out of state to try to influence those last-minute voters. Check this out.
Somebody drove up to this polling station just a little while ago in what he is referring to as Obama Mobile. In the back of this pick- up truck, which is pretty much adorned with all sorts of Barack Obama pictures and posters, in the back of that pick-up truck is a boxing ring with Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama going at it ala "Rocky." One, two, three, you name it.
And on the boxing gloves of the two different candidates in the ring, Hillary Clinton's boxing gloves say "promises"; Obama's boxing gloves say "change." Obviously, this was a Barack Obama supporter.
We should note that the polls close at 8:00 p.m. tonight. And both of these candidates are leaving nothing on the table. They're going after every last-minute undecided voter until these polls shut down, Don.
LEMON: That's a pretty funny sight.
ACOSTA: We had to laugh, too. I know.
LEMON: It's just amazing. All right. You're probably at my old polling station. You're at Center City right near, what, Broad Street, in that area?
ACOSTA: Broad and Lombard. That's right. We should mention we're in a Public Health Department building. So you may have crossed it from time to time.
LEMON: Yes. Absolutely. It was my old polling station. OK, good luck. We'll be checking back throughout the day. Thank you, Jim Acosta.
KEILAR: Gas prices still rising. The housing market still struggling. The dollar still weakening. And now we're learning that oil prices have hit yet another record, topping $119 a barrel. No wonder the economy is issue No. 1, and it's driving voters to the polls today.
Let's go back now to Philly and our senior business correspondent, Ali Velshi. He is on the CNN Election Express.
Hi, Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Why do you get -- he gets to get all the fun stories, the little boxing gloves and all that. All I've got is doom and gloom, Brianna.
KEILAR: I know. I feel -- and it's...
VELSHI: Doom and gloom.
KEILAR: It's kind of like deja vu, with the read-in to this story, as well.
VELSHI: Yes. KEILAR: Take it away.
VELSHI: The only difference is the numbers are so starkly different.
Gas prices across this country, according to AAA, $3.51 a gallon for self-serve unleaded. You just talked about the dollar. It has now surpassed $1.60 to buy a euro. The dollar is the weakest it's ever been against the euro.
Oil prices, $119.86. You know, normally, Brianna, I've got my computers around me. I can give you an up-to-date price on oil. I can't even keep up with how quickly oil prices are rising.
Now, about 70 percent or more of the price of a gallon of gas is determined by the price of oil. So this affects everybody.
Now, in Pennsylvania there are some specific issues. And it's useful for everybody around the country to understand, when the candidates talk to Pennsylvanians, why it affects them. Things are a little different here in Pennsylvania.
The median price of a house in the United States, that's the price at which half of the homes that are sold are sold below that price, half are above. It's not an average. But the median in the United States is $207,000. Look at Pennsylvania. The median price of a home, only $168,000. So home prices are much lower in Pennsylvania than the national median.
Now, it's an older population. We've heard this already. Pennsylvania has the second oldest population in the country after Florida. As a result of that, a lot of people have paid for their homes. The foreclosure issue is not nearly as big in Pennsylvania as it is elsewhere.
One in 2,245 homes is in foreclosure, compared to the national average of one in 557. And just to give you some sense of it, some of the high states, the worst foreclosure states are about one in 60. That's about as high as it goes.
Now Pennsylvania also has some major, major companies headquartered here. Comcast is one of them.
I should tell you that the average income in Pennsylvania, lower than the national. Per capita income here about $38,000, $39,000 versus the national average of $46,000. So very specific economic issues in Pennsylvania that will affect the whole country -- Brianna.
KEILAR: Very interesting. Ali Velshi there for us in Philadelphia.
And you can tune in tonight for our coverage when the polls close. Until then if you're a political junkie, you want to go to CNNPolitics.com. It's really the place for you. You can check out our new interactive delegate counter game, where you can play real- time "What If" scenarios with delegates and super delegates. Basically, you become John King. I think it's what we say.
LEMON: Or Brianna Keilar. I've seen you on that Web site.
KEILAR: Where he has the -- I'm always on the Web site. But he does the fun thing with the big screen, and all the great -- he moves everything around. So you can check that out at CNN.com/politics.
LEMON: Or just pretend you're John King on your iPhone. Same difference.
He's accused of being a bigot, but he says he's telling the truth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. DOUGLAS BRUCE (R), COLORADO STATE REPRESENTATIVE: I don't think we need 5,000 more illiterate peasants in Colorado.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Representative Bruce, you are no...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: A Colorado state lawmaker is catching heat for what he said about immigrant farm workers. We'll tell you why he could lose his job.
KEILAR: And in New York state, a postal worker goes far beyond the call of duty. She is the reason this baby here is still alive.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Accused of spying for an ally. A New Jersey man who allegedly passed classified information to Israel is due in federal court this afternoon. Let's get more now from our justice correspondent, Kelli Arena in Washington.
Kelli, what's this all about?
KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, here's the headline. A U.S. Army veteran is charged with passing classified secrets to Israel. Ben Ami Kadish will appear in court, as you said, this afternoon, facing charges for crimes that he allegedly committed between 1979 and 1985 when he was working as a mechanical engineer at an Army research center in Dover, New Jersey.
Prosecutors say that Kadish actually took home secret documents from that facility, let an Israeli consulate worker take pictures of them.
Now, interestingly, the government says that it was the consulate employee who received information from convicted Pentagon spy Jonathan Pollard.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM CASEY, DEPUTY STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: Our standards are the same for any country. We treat seriously our obligations, all of us, as government officials to safeguard classified information, to safeguard national security information. And there is pretty much a zero-tolerance policy for anyone that would engage in sharing that information in an unauthorized way with anyone, including countries that are good friends and allies like Israel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ARENA: Those secret documents included information, according to the government, about nuclear weapons, the F-15 Spider jet and the Patriot missile defense system.
And Don, you may be wondering, what did he get for all his trouble? Well, apparently, he was not paid, according to prosecutors. He just did it because he wanted to help Israel.
LEMON: Well, I think what do you get, you get in trouble for all of his troubles.
ARENA: It's jail time, if you're convicted.
LEMON: Yes, right. Kelli Arena, thank you.
KEILAR: Drivers getting squeezed at the pumps. Another record high for gasoline and oil. So how do you save money? Well, you tell us in your e-mails, coming up in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I voted for Barack only because I liked his message more than I did Hillary, and Barack always seemed more positive than Hillary has come off over the past couple of weeks or so.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I voted for Hillary Clinton because -- I don't know. I just -- I agree with all the issues that she supports.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Barack Obama. I think the reason that most people are voting for Obama, they're just ready for a change and sort of tired of the same bodies in Washington.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm voting for Hillary Clinton. I have had a very difficult time with this. I've been making up my mind lots of different ways for weeks now. But at this point I feel like she is extremely well-qualified.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Topping our political ticker today, it is, of course, the Pennsylvania primary. Less than seven hours of voting remain in the state that could reshape the battle for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Hillary Clinton needs a big win over Barack Obama, the bigger the better here. And a new CNN poll of polls shows Clinton with a nine- percentage-point lead in Pennsylvania. This is a slight increase from the last poll that we saw. But seven percent of voters, they are still undecided.
CNN brings you live coverage until the results are in and beyond.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here we go. Look at this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hillary with a takedown, and it's all over for Barack Obama.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Yes, maybe this is how to decide the Democratic race, huh? Clinton and Obama on the mat. And no. That is not really them, Don.
LEMON: That's what's been happening already. Isn't it?
KEILAR: Figuratively speaking, let's say. This is a mock match. It was on WWE's "Monday Night Raw." The real Clinton and Obama did tape messages for the popular show, as did John McCain.
"Raw" is, of course, one of the top-rated shows on cable, with more than five million viewers every week.
The presumptive GOP nominee is not in Pennsylvania this afternoon. John McCain is next door in Youngstown, Ohio. This is part of a weeklong tour of impoverished areas that he says tend to get lost in the political mix.
McCain says a hard-hit industrial town like Youngstown can get back on its feet, just like his campaign did.
And all of the latest campaign news available at your fingertips. Check it out at CNNPolitics.com. We also have analysis there from the best political team on television -- CNNPolitics.com.
LEMON: Of course. A state lawmaker in Colorado crosses the line in the immigration debate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE: I would like to have the opportunity to stay at the microphone. Why? I don't think we need 5,000 more illiterate peasants in Colorado.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Representative Bruce, you are no longer...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, we'll tell you what happened and tell you what could happen next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Well, today's gas prices are more than another record. Even after adjusting for inflation, we're now paying more for gas than ever before. More for gas than ever before. I think this is the first time.
Susan Lisovicz joins us now on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange with the very latest.
Susan, we thought we were feeling the pinch. But then when you adjusted it for inflation, we weren't paying that much. But now it is a record in many ways.
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: "Comforting." And I put quotes around that, Don. That traders and analysts have been saying with oil's most recent climb, well, it's bad, but not as bad as last oil shock in the early '80s. Well, guess what? It is, and it's worse.
The Energy Department said that the most recent average cost of a gallon of regular unleaded is $3.51 a gallon. And that exceeds the highest prices that we saw in early 1981. And by the way, AAA and Lundberg already said we're at that point, and we haven't even gotten into the peak summer driving season -- Don.
LEMON: You know, we were talking about this yesterday, with Earth Day coming up and then with these prices. It may actually get people to curb -- Susan, I think your microphone is going out. Do you want to continue?
LISOVICZ: Can you hear me, Don?
LEMON: Yes, I can hear you now. But it's going in and out, just so you know. You know, this may be doing what the environmental movement could never do. It may actually curb people's, you know, habits and be better for the environment.
LISOVICZ: Well, you know, that's exactly right. I mean, this is the force of the market. I mean, what does it mean for me to my pocketbook right now?
And what you're seeing is people trying to cut back on their use of gasoline. And if you do own a big gas guzzler, guess what? It's really hard to unload it. Just yesterday, Don, you and I were talking about hybrid sales going through the roof. Well, it's really tough to sell a gas guzzler.
We have some statistics here that show that auction prices for SUVs down more than 15 percent from a year ago. Good luck if it's a Hummer, by the way.
And it's not just gas prices, of course. You know, it's tighter credit, too, when you're trying to buy a car.
And if we want to look at more pain, let's look at what oil prices are doing today. I know you were talking to Ali just a few minutes ago. Brianna and Ali were talking about oil at another record high, up nearly $2. Just under $120 a barrel at its high today.
I was talking to an oil trader. He said it's not only the weak dollar. It's also these geopolitical concerns. There's fog in the Houston shipping channel. Nigeria is a big producer, problems there. The dollar is at a new record low against the euro. It's just a mess.
And today is the last day of the May contract, and that usually creates a lot of activity. We're seeing it, and we're seeing stock prices, meanwhile, decline.
Check it out. We're in the midst of earning season. It's really hurting airline stocks like the parent company of United Airlines. Right now down about 34 percent. The Dow is down 137 points. The NASDAQ is down 38 points.
It's just a day of pain all the way around, Don.
LEMON: All right, Susan, thank you very much.
LISOVICZ: You're welcome.
KEILAR: Well, you have been sending us e-mails about how you're saving money in this tough economy.
LEMON: Yes, certainly, and your ideas. Some of them, they run the gamut from drastic to cutting down on using plastic.
Here's what Cheryl from New Mexico writes: "I no longer shop online, and I don't use credit cards except in an extreme emergency. And that is almost never."
KEILAR: Larry is cutting back on using gas. He writes: "I live about five miles from work, and I have a scooter that gets about 110 miles per gallon. I used to get teased about using it, but look who's laughing now!"
LEMON: Right.
KEILAR: That's right, Larry, for sure.
LEMON: OK. Shiraz is trying a bunch of new things to save money. He sent us this list. Here's what he says: "Paying bills online, stuffing the washing machine before I run it, considering renting my home and moving in with friends to help with their mortgage. I gave up my home phone number, and I'm using samples of soap and shampoo."
Wow.
KEILAR: Shiraz is serious about this.
LEMON: He is serious about this. And, I'm sure, saving a lot of money. All right. Keep your e-mails coming. We have more ahead right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
KEILAR: It is 29 after the hour. And here are three of the stories that we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.
A massive manhunt going on right now in Indianapolis after just a terrible crime. Police there are looking for a man who shot a pregnant bank teller in the stomach during a robbery. The woman is five months pregnant. She's carrying twins. Police say she was alert when she was taken to the hospital.
DNA testing under way for a second day in Texas. Lab workers are taking more samples from the hundreds of children and mothers taken from that polygamous ranch more than two weeks ago. They're trying to sort out some very murky family relationships.
And fire fighters are battling a big industrial fire in Miami- Dade County right now. We are hearing reports there was an explosion at a tarmac America plant. No word on the cause.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon everybody. I'm T.J. Holmes on tour today, specifically the historically black college tour that CNN has been on this season. This is our last stop Clark, Atlanta University, yes, right here in the heart of Atlanta.
A lot of things on the minds of these young black Americans. One of the big things today at least, politics with the big primary coming up today in Pennsylvania. We'll be talking to the students about their views on politics and a whole lot more when the NEWSROOM continues.
LEMON: All right T.J., thanks and maybe one day they'll be on this list.
First, the new "Fortune" 500 list is all about the bottom line and we wanted to tell you something the rankings don't. See if you can guess what's coming (ph).
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Politics are as popular as the stock market here. In this election year, employees at this company have contributed more to political campaigns than any other. Who can the candidates thank for filling up their war chests? Find out after the break.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Which Fortune 500 companies have donated the most campaign cash? Employees of Goldman Sachs, the world's largest global investment bank. They've given more than $3 million to this year's presidential race, making it the most politically active company on this year's list. Most of the money has gone to the Democrats. This just into the CNN NEWSROOM. Police in Indianapolis have taken in two suspects, two high school students in the bank robbery this morning in which a pregnant teller was shot. This just in moments ago. This is from the Associated Press. The picture is courtesy of our affiliate in Indianapolis, Indiana, WISH or wish television.
The police chief there says they are waiting for permission from the students' parents before questioning them. They were picked up because they were seen entering Warren Central High School shortly before noon. The high school is near the Huntington bank in the city's east side where the robbery occurred about 9:30 this morning.
Again, police say the teller was five months pregnant with twins. She was alert when she was taken to the hospital. She is in serious to critical condition. Police say the gunman jumped over a counter and shot the teller. He fired off another shot as he was running out of the bank and then made off in a getaway car with someone else driving with an unknown amount of cash. Again, police have taken two high school students into custody and they are waiting to question them after they get permission from their parents. We'll update you.
KEILAR: We want to update you on another developing story, this one coming to us from Florida. What we are hearing from Miami-Dade fire rescue. A 14-story rock melting machine is currently on fire. This is at the Tarmac America plant in Medley, Florida. These pictures coming to us from our affiliate out of Miami, WSVN.
Medley is just northeast or pardon me, northwest of Miami and many workers at this plant, 1,000 workers that have been evacuated from the site according to Miami-Dade fire and rescue. There was an explosion that did happen, but there were no injuries reported so far, at least. Hazardous materials units as well as fire crews there on site. They were called to the scene because some concern that there may be some unknown hazardous chemicals at this plant or on this machine.
Again, a 14-story rock melting machine on fire there in Medley, Florida. We are going to continue to monitor this story and bring you any updates here in the CNN NEWSROOM.
LEMON: After weeks, weeks, weeks of buildup and build up and buildup, we are almost halfway through one of the most crucial contests of the campaign season, the Pennsylvania primary. Hillary Clinton needs a win over Barack Obama. The latest Pennsylvania poll of polls shows her with a nine percentage point lead but seven percent of voters are still undecided. I say that slowly because this is another big buildup.
So where do both camps stand and where are they heading?
Let's bring in Mr. Mark Halperin. He's our senior political analyst for "Time" magazine and Dave Davies, senior writer for the "Philadelphia Daily News."
Good to see both of you. Thanks for being here. Can we breathe now? Are we getting close to a point where we can breathe Dave?
DAVE DAVIES, SR. WRITER, "PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS": Another 12 hours. I'll be looking forward to the circus moving on.
LEMON: Dave, you are in Philadelphia, which is my hometown there and I remember you from there. What has the mood been like in Pennsylvania, because at this point, they are playing a very big role, maybe bigger than normal in the election process. Tell us about the feeling there on the street.
DAVIES: Pennsylvania's primary historically has come so late that it didn't matter. This year it does and there is a lot of feeling that that is important. I think what really motivates the passion you see is the followers for Obama and Hillary Clinton are really energized and they really believe in these people. When you go to their rallies or events or get into conversations, people feel passionately abut this and some people don't know what to think.
LEMON: Mark, I got to ask you this, yesterday, I think I remember reading a poll yesterday and it appears that Hillary Clinton has increased her margin ever so slightly, increased her lead above Barack Obama.
Is that because of the ads or is there a trend there that we can look at? Can we pin this on anything?
MARK HALPERIN, SR. POLITICAL ANALYST, "TIME": Nope. I think the polls are all over the place. The polls are all over the place and there's lots going on. There is television advertising. There's the candidates' events. There's the news coverage. What's been great about this primary is, I think we all to remember, why do some people at least celebrate Iowa and New Hampshire? Because the candidates spend a lot of time there talking to real people, understanding the states.
I don't know what caused the polls to move around if they have. But I do know that those candidates have had to treat Pennsylvania in a much different way than they have in modern history, maybe ever, in actually thinking about the state.
LEMON: And working harder, right?
HALPERIN: Absolutely.
LEMON: Let me ask you this, Mr. Davies. Again, you are there. You've seen this negative campaigning. I'm sure you've seen it on television. You've probably seen some ads or what have you. Do you think that this campaigning is paying off, especially the negative side to it?
DAVIES: Your question was what about the negative campaigning Don?
LEMON: Is it paying off for Hillary Clinton? Is it paying off for Barack Obama?
DAVIES: It's a fascinating question. You haven't seen a lot of movement in the polls over the last few days. For five weeks, these guys were civil and relatively positive in their messages. And Hillary opened up with a negative ad. Barack responded and now they are practically swinging pool cues at each other for the last five days. And both camps, I assume do overnight polling and if they felt that their negative ads were undermining their own base, they wouldn't be. Seems to cancel itself out as far as I can see.
LEMON: Or their wrestling? If we can get that wrestling video back we'll put it up. They are wrestling instead of pool cues. Let's take a look. It seems like before every primary and especially when it's a really tight one, we see the candidates going on popular television shows or comedy shows. I'm wondering if this helps at all. Let's take a look and then we'll talk about it, guys.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D-NY) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He should try to win this state, which he's been doing because he knows he hasn't won any big state except his own. And I think that's important for Democrats. Who's won t the big states? Who's been there to put together the electoral map that we need to win in the fall?
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There is no doubt that Senator Clinton has done me a favor. She has put me through the paces. This has been like spring training. And so should I get the nomination, I think everything is going to be old news by October.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Barack Obama on "The Daily Show," Hillary Clinton last night on "LARRY KING." I'm wondering if this pays off at all, especially when it comes to younger viewer who tend to tune to those types of shows? Either one of you.
DAVIES: If they do, well I think it helps. These are two candidates that don't differ a lot on the basic issues about the economy and health care. And so people are judging them on their individual leadership characteristics. So if they look smart and funny and self-effacing and credible, it helps.
LEMON: It takes some of the tension off them. Real quickly Mark, I'm up against a break here so I want to ask you real quickly about this. Barack Obama says this is going to be over by October. Many of the issues that he doesn't find important, some of the issues that keep coming up in debates and people are talking about as part of the campaign commercials, he says this is not important stuff.
But are the voters finding this important and maybe he's not?
HALPERIN: It's a big multi-channeled universe we live in now. There is room for all of this stuff. The candidates, both of them, you got to say, working very hard to fill up a lot of the day part. It's hard to turn on the TV without seeing them and that's the way they want to do it. It's the only way to do it. To run for president, you got to reach everybody.
LEMON: All right, Mark Halperin and Dave Davies, I appreciate it, guys. Thank you. Good luck all day today. You can breathe in 12 hours, as Dave said.
KEILAR: The race for the White House has a lot of young Americans fired up. As part of our ongoing conversations with black America, our T.J. Holmes is listening to students at Clark Atlanta University.
T.J., what are they saying?
HOLMES: They've got plenty to say and let's hear what a couple of them have to say. Like you said, at Clark Atlanta University where our historically black college tour continues. Bringing black America to these campuses and letting them know what we are doing later on with our documentaries about the whole black America and bring them into this conversation.
Let me bring these two into this conversation. I've got (INAUDIBLE) the political science major and I've got Brandon over here as well. Both a business administration major, both of them had actually interned for local congressman here John Lewis and also worked for state senators at the state legislature, political science major.
Do you think that what you are hearing from the candidates are addressing really the needs of black Americans, also young black Americans, somebody like yourself?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Currently honestly I don't. I wish that Obama for one being a younger candidate, I wish that he would address our issues because I know for me being a college student, college tuition is a major issue. We hear snippets here and there. But I think it should be one of the forefront issues in election.
HOLMES: Him specifically? You wish he would address it more?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Him being the person I plan on voting for. Also McCain and also the other side of the candidates for the Republican party. I wish he would address the issue more, too.
HOLMES: Brandon let me ask you, this will be your second go around. Are you hearing what you need to hear from these candidates and like she was saying, not really about addressing the needs of young Americans and young black Americans.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would definitely have to disagree with her. I'm a huge supporter of Hillary Clinton. I believe that the Clintons upheld the black people for numerous years and I think I'm a realist and I think America has to be real. And I think that we need to go off with experience base rather than just the hope of change. Hillary Clinton has the experience, has the diplomatic power to create social change in America, whereas Barack Obama doesn't. HOLMES: Surely you know Barack Obama has gotten overwhelming support from young people, also overwhelming support from black Americans. You are one that's not really going that route. Why do you think so many of your students here, your fellow students and some of your fellow black Americans are going towards Obama when you see it a different way?
Not to take anything away from Barack Obama. He is a great orator. He speaks very well pertaining to the change of America in the future, but Hillary Clinton brings experience. We've seen her work and we've seen her progress in the Senate in New York. We definitely need to go with Hillary Clinton.
HOLMES: I didn't know we were going to turn into a little debate here, but we've got Obama on this side. We got Clinton on this side. While he's talking about your candidate here, but Obama wasn't always your candidate actually. You actually liked John Edwards in the beginning. Why did you end up going over to Obama?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think Obama, he's one of the few candidates who has our number. Growing up in a mixed racial environment, then going to Harvard University where you're among the elite and then working as a social activist in Chicago, there in the city. He is one of the few candidates that meets every socioeconomic and every age group in America.
HOLMES: My man over here says experience. We'll continue this debate in just a second. Again (INAUDIBLE) a political science major, a sophomore here. She's got a little while before she hits the job market. And then Brandon over here as well, business administration, actually plans on going into law enforcement, a future Secret Service agent here and maybe a politician down the road. So the future of this country standing here and all around me here at Clark Atlanta University.
Again, Brianna, our last stop at the historically black college tour, so it continues. We'll be checking in with you again here in a little bit about the economy, about the job prospects. We'll be talking to some of the students about entering this job market which we know right now the economy issue number one for a lot of people Brianna.
KEILAR: That's right. It may be the last stop on your tour. Not the end of the road though. You've got dozens more students there behind you to talk to you T.J. We'll check in with you a little bit.
HOLMES: All right.
LEMON: Drugs and drug ingredients from overseas. Are they safe? That question was key this morning on Capitol Hill. We'll hear from our medical correspondent, Judy Fortin about that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Foreign ingredients in prescription drugs, many in Congress are alarmed and not just about contaminated heparin. CNN medical correspondent, Judy Fortin, joins me now with the very latest on this, many concerned not just about heparin.
JUDY FORTIN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. There are a lot of concerns Don and the commissioner of the FDA spent two hours on the hot seat on Capitol Hill this morning, not just on the topic of the tainted blood thinner, heparin, but the FDA's overall weaknesses in the foreign drug inspection program.
Democratic Representative John Dingell of Michigan called the FDA's current inspection program, a quote, sorry mess and quote, intolerable situation. Dingell repeatedly grilled the commissioner on much money he would need to keep the American drug supply safe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JOHN DINGELL (D) MICHIGAN: How much money do you need to do the job that you have to have? Give me an answer to that question.
ANDREW VON ESCHENBACH, FDA COMMISSIONER: Well, sir, if you took the $45,000 for inspection and multiplied --
DINGELL: Commissioner, just tell me how much do you need? I'm rather tired of all this toe dancing. You cannot do your job. You are not doing your job. How much money do you need to do it?
VON ESCHENBACH: Mr. Chairman that, would require me to present --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FORTIN: Now Commissioner Von Eschenbach, went on to explain that it would cost $45,000 per inspection with 3,000 overseas facilities to inspect. The cost would be close to $135 million. In comparison, the FDA asked for just $13 million for inspections next year, quite a difference.
LEMON: Make sure (ph) you understand that the FDA released new information about the contaminated heparin. What did they find?
FORTIN: Just in the past 24 hours, we learned that the FDA now says contaminated shipments of the blood thinner heparin ended up in 11 countries including the United States. They now say they can link the 81 deaths in the U.S. and hundreds of illnesses to the contaminant found in the tainted heparin.
Heparin is sometimes given to patients following surgery and those on kidney dialysis to prevent clot formation. We learned that only Germany and the U.S. reported any adverse effects and the FDA thinks that it might be connected to those patient who got higher doses of heparin. It's important to point out however that this tainted heparin has been taken off the market for the last two months and the other supplier of heparin has not been connected to the tainted products.
LEMON: The government Accountability Office asked to look at some of the problems that the FDA has. Did they find anything with that?
FORTIN: Well, it's an ongoing investigation, but some interesting information today. The GAO is testifying at the hearing too today and they released testimony from their director of health care who found this, that the FDA may inspect eight percent of foreign drug establishments in a given year.
At that rate the GAO says that it would take more than 13 years to inspect each foreign establishment. And another interesting point, they are using inspectors who don't have translators with them. As they go into these foreign plants, they can't speak the language, thereby tainting the inspection, perhaps.
LEMON: Very important. Thank you.
FORTIN: You are welcome.
KEILAR: Chicago police targeting gun violence after dozens of shootings over the weekend. We'll talk with the police superintendent live.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEILAR: A Colorado law maker could face tough sanctions over his attack on immigrant workers. While debating a bill to ease up farm worker shortage, Representative Douglas Bruce was ordered to leave the podium after these comments.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE: I would like to have the opportunity to stay at the microphone. Why? I don't think we need 5,000 more illiterate peasants in Colorado.
KATHLEEN CURRY, COLORADO STATE HOUSE: Representative Bruce, you are no longer recognized in the well. The next hand I saw was Representative Giagos (ph). How dare you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Despite condemnation from other colleagues, Bruce is defending what he says.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE: We are bringing them here to do agricultural work on the land which is what the definition of a peasant is. Look it up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Well, the bill at issue would help immigrant workers get temporary visas. Now as for Bruce, his colleagues are considering whether to file an ethics complaint which could get him suspended, censured or even kicked out of the house.
LEMON: A postal worker catches a baby who fell from an upstairs window.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A special delivery. God knows what would have happened.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: That is a special delivery. Talk about being in the right place at the perfect time.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
