Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Clinton's Next Move; Severe Weather Rocks Indianapolis

Aired June 07, 2008 - 16:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Next in the NEWSROOM, thunderous applause for Hillary Clinton. One campaign ends, another takes on new life.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. HILLARY CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: An extraordinary race he has run. I endorse him and throw my full support behind him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So with one door closed and the other doors may open for her. What might history say about this moment? And the continuing campaign for the presidency.

Plus -- heavy flooding and extreme heat across the country. You're look at heavy weather in the form of a lot of rain, flooding in Indianapolis, live pictures right now. Thousands of people looking for relief from both extremes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIM MCKAY, DECEASED: They now said that there were 11 hostages. Two were killed in their rooms yesterday morning. Nine were killed at the airport tonight. They're all gone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: That was 1972 Munich Olympic Games. You don't have to be a sports fan to know that voice and that moment. Jim McKay, legendary broadcaster dead at the age of 86.

Hello everyone, I'm Fredricka Whitfield. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

After nearly a year and a half of speeches, debates, interviews, Senator Hillary Clinton has suspended her campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. Clinton exited the race before a crowd of supporters at the National Building Museum in Washington today. Among many points made a couple resounding ones, as she acknowledged that it had been a tough fight. She urged Democrats to remember the looming battle in November.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLINTON: The way to continue our fight now, to accomplish the goals for which we stand is to take our energy, our passion, our strength, and do all we can to help elect Barack Obama, the next president of the United States.

Today, as I suspend my campaign, I congratulate him on the victory he has won and the extraordinary race he has run. I endorse him and throw my full support behind him.

We cannot let this moment slip away. We have come too far and accomplished too much. Now, the journey ahead will not be easy. Some will say we can't do it, that it's too hard, we're just not up to the task. But for as long as America has existed, it has been the American way to reject can't-do claims and to choose instead to stretch the boundaries of the possible through hard work, determination, and a pioneering spirit.

It is this belief, this optimism that Senator Obama and I share and that has inspired so many millions of our supporters to make their voices heard. So today I am standing with Senator Obama to say: Yes, we can!

You can be so proud that, from now on, it will be unremarkable for a woman to win primary state victories -- unremarkable to have a woman in a close race to be our nominee, unremarkable to think that a woman can be the president of the United States. And that is truly remarkable, my friends.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Senator Obama meantime released the following statement shortly after Senator Clinton's exit. Here's part of it.

Quote, "She shattered barriers on behalf of my daughters and women everywhere, who now know that there are no limits to their dreams. And she inspired millions with her strength, her courage and unyielding commitment to the cause of working Americans. Our party and our country are stronger because of the work she has done throughout her life, and I'm a better candidate for having the privilege of competing with her in this campaign."

Remarks from Senator Obama. Obama is taking some downtime this weekend. Today, while Senator Clinton made her campaign exit, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee tried to make par. Obama spotted this morning in his home town of Chicago en route to the golf course. Last night, Senator Obama and his wife Michelle went out on the town for quote, "date night." Earlier in the day, he made a surprise appearance at an Olympic rally. All that yesterday. And Chicago is of course one of the four finalist cities vying for the 2016 Olympic Games.

Well Clinton's campaign exit adds to the speculation whether Obama will select her as his running mate. A CNN poll of registered Democrats suggests that Clinton has vice presidential viability. More than half believe Obama should make her his number two. But the support slips a little for men. Just more than half don't want her on the ticket, while 60 percent of Democratic women want her on the ticket.

Regardless of gender, three fourths of respondents feel Clinton should not pursue a V.P. rule if Senator Obama wants someone else as his running mate. The poll was commissioned two days after the Montana and South Dakota primaries.

Senator Clinton makes a convincing case for V.P. consideration by way of the party delegates in her pocket. She keeps them by suspending her campaign instead of actually dropping out. Drop outs must forfeit any delegates that they pick up by way of caucus or primary. And by the way, here is how the final delegate tally broke down. Take a look right here. Clinton with 1,926. Obama with 2,158 and cresting the delegate threshold for the party's nomination by just 40 delegates.

Well, if not the vice presidency, what's next for Senator Clinton? Let's go to CNN senior political analyst and adviser to four U.S. presidents, David Gergen. He's in my old stomping grounds of New Haven, Connecticut today. Not Yale, but New Haven. It's probably one in the same these days though, isn't it? It's good to see you, David.

DAVID GERGEN, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Good to see you.

WHITFIELD: All right, well while listening to the exit speech from Senator Clinton, did you hear anything that said, "I want to be Obama's running mate?"

GERGEN: No, and I think that's what helped make this one of the finest moments of her political public life. She gave a rousing speech in which she I think very properly talked with pride about the progress she's made and the way she has shattered ceilings, made it possible for young girls to dream that they too could become president.

This was -- I don't think there are any barriers now standing in the way of the next woman who might be a presidential candidate in terms of gender.

But it also very importantly for the Democratic Party and for Barack Obama, she gave her full and hearty support to him. Asked her supporters to join her. So I think that too the extent that there has been -- and there's been a big rift at the top of the Democratic Party. She went a long way to heal that rift at the top of the party. It's going to take a lot longer, of course, to heal the rift down in the ranks.

But I think she gave exactly the speech that she needed to today from her perspective and from his. And by the way, in terms of vice presidential hopes, if that's what she wishes for, I think she helped herself today because there are an awful lot of people on the Obama side who have been resentful toward her and have felt she harbored these continuing ambitions Tuesday night. And I think she dispelled that today.

The only reason it's apparently that's keeping her campaign suspended instead of totally closing it down is so that she preserves the legal right to continue raising money and pay off her debts. This is not a negotiating ploy apparently so much as it is a way to pay off her debts. And I think as long as that's the case, everyone will understand.

WHITFIELD: Right, and if she had dropped out, she wouldn't be allowed to still hold any kind of campaign or any kind of fundraising efforts as a former presidential candidate.

So she was both, in your view, gracious as well as generous. You know Hillary Clinton. You know the Clintons after having worked for them and with them. This had to be a tough moment for her too. I mean, it was four days after the Tuesday primary, four days in which we have not seen her publicly. How difficult a moment do you think this was for her personally?

GERGEN: Well, I must say to echo what I just said, I think nothing has immersed a campaign so much as the way she has left it. But I think she's probably been in the squirrel of events over the last few days, hasn't had much time for deep reflection. The loss is going to hit her hard here in the next few days. She is -- for all of her strength, and she showed enormous grit and determination in this campaign -- for all of her strength, she is also a vulnerable human being.

I've seen that side of her and I think she will take this hard in her own private way. I don't think you'll see much of that in public. But she, like her husband, is also a resourceful, resilient individual. So I think she'll bounce back over time. But it's going to take some time for her to absorb this. I think she's going to need some private time of her own, time to be with some friends, time to be with family. This is going to be -- now I saw her after health care, when that defeat occurred and that was very tough on her, but she bounced back.

WHITFIELD: I wonder, I obviously don't know her, but just kind of reading her body language, even when she just began that speech by saying, "This isn't the party I planned, but I sure like the company." There was a moment where she seemed even a little emotional, taking it in that all of these people were supportive of her, just like they had been while she was on the campaign trail.

GERGEN: Well, I think that's right and I'm sure that there's a wistfulness about this. And for an awful lot of people who came there, especially women. You know, she came so close. She came -- it was a wafer-thin victory by Senator Obama. She rallied there toward to the end, so there was a sense by millions of women in this country that this could be the break through. This could be the moment that they have long, long worked for and hoped for.

So of course there's going to be some sense of, wow, severe disappointment. But give her credit. After Tuesday night, what I think was a defiant speech, she really did sort of come back today. She rallied in a way that she deserved enormous credit for the gracefulness and the graciousness with which she has ended her race.

WHITFIELD: All right, David Gergen, thanks so much for joining us from New Haven. And of course, later on in the broadcast, we're going to talk some more about Hillary Clinton and what her exit means for the Obama campaign, as well as for the McCain campaign, coming up later on. David Gergen, thanks again.

GERGEN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: And now another big story we seem to be following here. Now look at this, very severe weather, this in Indianapolis. Incredible flooding. Later on we're going to be joined by Karen Maginnis who will talk about the extreme on the other end. It's very hot in other parts of the country. Right here particularly in Indianapolis, a lot of flooding after days of rain. Just take a look right there, which that appears to be maybe a used car or car dealership lot before the zoom in. And you can see the depths of the water seemingly at the rooftops of some of the parked cars in that lot to the right.

Flooding as you see right there at the bottom of the graphic up to 10 inches of rain in some parts of central Indiana over the last few days. Take a look right there, it is pretty nasty. And we also understand that the Coast Guard is assisting in the operation to try to get people out of their homes and into boats like you see right there in those images.

You have seen these kinds of images before of people standing on their rooftops, just waiting for somebody with a boat or perhaps a helicopter to come by to try to assist. This is new video that we're just now getting in. This is a situation in Indianapolis as a result of severe flooding. Karen Maginnis will be joining us a little bit later on to talk about the weather in some parts of the country very extreme, very wet, and in other places very hot.

All right, back to politics. Coming up, what went wrong with the Clinton campaign? We take a look at what was billed as a sure shot to the White House, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Thousands of Hillary Clinton supporters packed the hall at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., for her farewell speech. Many were emotional and visibly disappointed to witness the end of the hard-fought and historic campaign. Joining us now, CNN radio reporter Bob Constantini. He was at the speech there in Washington. Bob, good to see you.

BOB CONSTANTINI, CNN RADIO REPORTER: Hello, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right so her speech, part exit, good-bye, thank you, a part my commitment to public service is ever lasting and part Democrats let's unite, let's support Barack Obama. Effective?

CONSTANTINI: Very effective, really, this valedictory speech that she gave today because she made it quite clear to her supporters even though some of them booed once in a while, but she made it very clear that she wants them to get behind Barack Obama.

Even you know, I'd say about 10, 15 percent of the crowd might have booed every time she mentioned we need to support Barack Obama, you know. But she also went on at length and David Gergen mentioned this a short time ago. She said it was remarkable, it will no longer be remarkable to think that a woman could win a major party's nomination, to think a woman could sit in the Oval Office.

And I noticed one of the things I came away with at this speech was that a number of people brought children there, especially young girls, to this event to hear how Hillary Clinton closed off her campaign. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: So it was very historical on several levels. She underscores that but when you mentioned the boos, that was pretty remarkable, as well, because while there were people there who were in great support of Hillary Clinton, it was quite surprising, I thought, to see there were a lot of folks whose arms were folded, who didn't seem receptive to the idea of supporting the other Democrat. Let's take a listen now at one of those moments during her speech.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: We will live in a stronger America and that is why we have to help elect Barack Obama, our president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right so take a look here, Bob, we're talking about, you know there were a lot of folks who were applauding at that moment, but it seemed like many more who were not.

So if it's that difficult for Hillary Clinton to say, hey, those of you who have been supporting me, you need to support Barack Obama, then what does that say about this Democratic Party really indeed being united?

CONSTANTINI: Well, I'd say about 10, maybe 15 percent of the audience was booing when she made those repeated comments about getting behind Barack Obama.

So, it's -- you know, if you take a look at that and think about that percentage, that is not as bad as you might expect. We've seen polls that indicate that some maybe 40, 50 percent of her supporters might not vote or might back John McCain, if she weren't the nominee.

Well she's trying to chip away at that, needless to say. I think she did a pretty good job of that today by making it clear that she supports Barack Obama.

But, you know, again, a number of people, and of course this is the other aspect of it, a number of the people who are leaving, a number of her supporters, were almost insistent she be on the ticket with Barack Obama. And, frankly, of course it would have been in politic for her to really address that issue today or be very forthright about it.

WHITFIELD: So I wonder by witnessing a moment like where this was this reticence throughout that museum hall, I wonder if the Republicans, John McCain's campaign would seize upon that and say this is our opening to try to get those once Hillary supporters.

CONSTANTINI: It might give them a little bit of hope, that's for sure. But time heals all wounds, as they say. There's a significant amount of time, as we've seen with this campaign season, because every single day we've been hearing about it so much, but there's a significant amount of time between now and November.

Clearly, if she were to be the vice presidential nominee, that would soothe a lot of hard feelings. But of course, that's something that has yet to be worked out. Still, there's plenty of time for Barack Obama, perhaps, to win over some of those who have been quite upset with the way this whole thing has turned out.

WHITFIELD: All right, CNN Radio's Bob Constantini. Thanks so much, appreciate it, from Washington.

And of course if you missed some of Senator Clinton's comments live earlier today, we're going to replay some of it for you. Her exit speech and her comments about presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama in a few minutes. That's coming up at 4:30 Eastern.

Senator John McCain has no campaign events planned today. A new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll, however, shows that the presumptive Republican nominee in a statistical tie with Barack Obama in the general election. More than a thousand Americans were surveyed after Obama became the presumptive Democratic nominee and McCain is deploying dozens of staffers in two battleground states. He's also expanding advertising in some of the most competitive states.

Also another big story today. Live pictures right there, the proof of this severe weather in the form of major flooding in Indianapolis. In fact, rescues are also under way this hour in Indiana while intense heat is baking other parts of the country, mostly in Northeast. More on these weather extremes, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, parts of Indiana under water today. You're looking at live pictures right now, rescue efforts that have been under way. Flooding there so bad that scuba teams are being used to rescue people from their swamped homes or getting people from their rooftops and more or less right there, presumably a rescue being carried out right there with the use of an airboat.

Just look at the height of the water there, by just looking at those parked vehicles. Ten inches of rain after about four days of rain. It's been a real mess in that state. At the same time that system hit Missouri, as well, streets there flooded. And strong winds knocked out electricity to tens of thousands of people there. Parts of Minnesota in pieces after at least one tornado ripped through yesterday. Several homes and a turkey farm were destroyed. Luckily, no one was seriously hurt.

And if you want to help out the tornado victims in particular, please go to Impact Your World, the Web page there. You'll find links to people and organizations that are stepping in to help. That's at CNN.com/Impact.

Let's check in with Karen Maginnis. Boy, it is a really rough ride for so many people in the Midwest. But we're also talking about folks out in the East who are dealing with some incredible temperatures. Did I understand that some Atlantic states are dealing with triple digit temperatures?

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: That's right, take cover. That is certainly encouraged and certainly don't put your life or anybody else's in jeopardy, as a result. Meantime, we're also receiving some i-Reports and we'd love to receive more, particularly those of you who are in the Indiana area to get some idea of exactly what you're going through with this ten inches plus of rain that's accumulated over the past few days.

All right, well burning to be bronze. Medical experts report an alarming increase in skin cancer among young people in particular. And they're pointing the finger at tanning beds.

CNN's Judy Fortin has today's Health for Her report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JUDY FORTIN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Our obsession with having a year-round healthy glow is anything but healthy, especially for young women. But don't blame it all on the sun. Dermatologists are targeting indoor agents of tanning, namely, tanning beds.

DR. RUTLEDGE FORNEY, DERMATOLOGIST: The problem with tanning beds is that your entire body gets tanned. It gets tanned very quickly. It's much more intense than outside. It's cool, so you don't have the disadvantage of getting hot. And it's easy and it's quick.

FORTIN: And despite industry claims that these beds are safe, doctors disagree.

FORNEY: We are seeing epidemic of melanoma in people in their 20s. They are showing up in places they could only be affected by a tanning bed, buttocks, areas that just typically wouldn't see sun on a regular basis. But there's no question that young people, especially young women in their late teens and 20s are having many more melanomas.

FORTIN: Melanoma is the most deadly of skin cancers according to the American Cancer Society which says, over 60,000 new cases will be diagnosed this year. It's numbers like these that have prompted the American Academy of Dermatology to come out with a new campaign against indoor tanning, called indoor tanning is out.

AMERICAN ACADEMY OF DERMATOLOGY: One in five Americans develop skin cancer.

One person dies from melanoma every hour.

I don't want to be one of them. I don't want to be one of them.

FORNEY: One thing the tanning bed does is that they -- people never have a rest from UV radiation. It's just like not having a rest from x-rays or cigarette smoke or any other known carcinogen. Your body doesn't have time to recover from it.

FORTIN: Many doctors advise patients to avoid the dangers of tanning beds by spraying on or rubbing on products that produce that healthy glow. Whatever you can do to avoid roasting it on.

Judy Fortin, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And if you missed the Democratic drama, stick around, highlights of Hillary Clinton's speech, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: More live pictures right now with the folks in Indianapolis are dealing with high water after several days of heavy rain. The system dumped 10 inches and in some cases more than 10 inches over the last four days. And lots of rescues have been taking place, too as a result.

Today alone, people who have been trapped in their homes, folks in their rescue boats, as well as airboats have gone by and plus a number of people to safety. A number of counties are in a flash flooding emergency effect right now, Brown Johnson, Putnam, Owen, Shelby and Vigo Counties there.

Live pictures, again, you see the airboat right there as they kind of peruse these neighborhoods that are now been flooded with these rivers of water looking for folks to rescue. More information on that system as we get it.

All right. Senator Hillary Clinton, her presidential campaign at the end of a long and grueling road. She suspended her campaign during a speech in Washington earlier today. Clinton also endorsed Senator Barack Obama and urged her 18 million enthusiastic supporters to back his campaign.

Here are some of the highlights.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: Well, this isn't exactly the party I planned, but I sure like the company. To all those who voted for me and to whom I pledge my utmost, my commitment to you and to the progress we seek is unyielding. You have inspired and touched me with the stories of the joys and sorrows that make up the fabric of our lives.

And you have humbled me with your commitment to our country. Eighteen million of you, have from all walks of life, the way to continue our fight now, to accomplish the goals for which we stand, is to take our energy, our passion, our strength, and do all we can to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States.

Today, today, as I suspend my campaign, I congratulate him on the victory he has won and the extraordinary race he has run. I endorse him and throw my full support behind him! To those who are disappointed, that we couldn't go all the way, especially the young people who put so much into this campaign, it would break my heart if in falling short of my goal I in any way, discouraged any of you from pursuing yours. Always aim high, work hard, and care deeply about what you believe in.

And when you stumble, keep faith. And when you're knocked down, get right back up and never listen to anyone who says you can't or shouldn't go on. Life is too short. Time is too precious and the stakes are too high to dwell on what might have been. We have to work together for what still can be and that is why I will work my heart out to make sure that Senator Obama is our next president. And I hope and pray that all of you will join me in that effort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And more on Senator Hillary Clinton's history-making campaign, next hour.

And next, after this break, singer R. Kelly's child pornography trial, chock for of adult details. He is one of the topics for our legal panel when we convene in the NEWSROOM next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Time to talk to our legal experts about some of the week's top stories. Civil rights attorney Avery Friedman is in Cleveland joining us again this weekend. Good to see you.

AVERY FRIEDMAN, LAW PROFESSOR: Hi, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And New York criminal defense attorney Richard Herman joining us from New York, I guess, right?

FRIEDMAN: New York. We have matching ties.

WHITFIELD: Very nice. You're coordinating. Let's see how this goes, then, as we traipse around all these legal cases. I'm sure you guys will not be in total agreement. Let's begin with (INAUDIBLE) That would be boring right.

Let's begin with Grammy-award winning singer, R. Kelly, and this very adult matter in court, Richard, is the evidence stacking up against him? Salacious details coming out.

RICHARD HERMAN, LAW PROFESSOR: Fred at least celebrity high- profile trials, we've seen it in Robert Blake, in OJ Simpson, in Phil Spector, some or all these jurors just happen to fall in love with these defendants, it's incredible.

WHITFIELD: Because they feel like they know them. They know the public personas.

HERMAN: Exactly. The burden is a burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt on the prosecution. Some jurors are going to -- it's not going to be a conviction in this case.

FRIEDMAN: Hey, there's going to be a conviction and you want to know why? It's going to turn, Fredricka, on the Caterpillar mole and it's going to turn also on Lisa Van Alan, remember, there were three people in that sex video.

WHITFIELD: Yeah.

FRIEDMAN: She's number three. She was there with her fiance and what a proud moment it must have been for him. She testifies indeed that she was in there, even the defense experts aren't able to get anywhere. I think we're looking for a conviction.

WHITFIELD: OK. We talk about the video, there's been some talk about whether there was some manipulation of the video so that, you know, the mole on his back that you see in a music video is that of the same of the evidence that is videotape --

HERMAN: The prosecution expert said, it's a mole. And the defense expert says, no, it's a bad tape. That's the expert testimony that goes to the jury.

FRIEDMAN: And the defense expert has no credentials on forensic video information. But I qualify it -- I agree it's going to go to judge. The judge will qualified it. The alleged victim says that's not me and half of her family says that's not me either.

WHITFIELD: And we're not talking about a six-year gap from when allegations first came about to now and you have to wonder when something takes think long, doesn't that kind of mean a flimsy case?

HERMAN: I think so.

FRIEDMAN: It shouldn't. The fact is that Lisa Van Alan, I think, in addition to getting freaky at the club, is the key witness in this case and that's going to do him in.

WHITFIELD: Let's talk about the polygamist case, because you know in Texas we say we're going to be talking about it for weeks and weeks and weeks and now you've got some young people who are returned to their home. Are we talking about Avery, this sect or these families potentially turning the tables on the jurisdiction saying, we're going to now pursue you in court because apparently you didn't have a solid case in the first place?

FRIEDMAN: You know what? I have to concede this.

WHITFIELD: What?

FRIEDMAN: Richard got it right. I missed the boat.

WHITFIELD: He sent me an e-mail. FRIEDMAN: I missed the boat. I wish he wouldn't have bragged about it. But here's the good news. I actually thought that the Texas Supreme Court might, for the first time, be legitimized old men pimping and pedophilia, but the fact is even three abused women -- or five -- simply weren't enough for the Supreme Court. It was the way they did it. The good news, bottom line, is the investigation is going on and I think the kids are going to be OK.

WHITFIELD: Richard, you got it right earlier. But now what? What about all of these cases? All of it quashed?

HERMAN: The supreme court said there was scant evidence to go in there and remove 470 children. You just can't do that, based on that evidence. But now what's going to happen is these cases are going to be investigated case by case.

FRIEDMAN: Right.

HERMAN: Boy, you know what? If they find it, these people should be prosecuted to the hilt. We agree on that one, if it existed there. And the investigation is done properly and thoroughly, then you take them out.

WHITFIELD: OK.

HERMAN: Also doing DNA tests and that's going to help.

WHITFIELD: Agreement has the pink tie today. It works. I like it. All right. Avery, Richard, thanks so much. Good to see you guys. Have a good weekend barring anything else that happens.

All right. Florida, four people are dead and two deputies are fighting for their lives after a shooting and a police pursuit in Tampa. Officers responding to gunfire at a home followed a car leaving the scene and when they were able to stop the car, a shootout then broke out. Two deputies were wounded and the driver was killed. At the home where it all started police found two bodies and a third person critically hurt. She later died at a hospital.

More than three months after the crash of a stealth bomber on Guam, the Air Force has released video of the accident and a ruling on it as to what exactly may have caused it. The B-2 was headed back to Whiteman Air Force base in Missouri when it went down. It is the first ever crash of a stealth bomber and according to the Air Force investigators, moisture in some sensors created bad readings. And that fooled the plane's computer and caused the stall. Both pilots ejected safely, just after the left wing actually hit the ground.

High above the earth "Discovery" astronauts are testing a new piece of equipment on the international space station. They're flexing a 33-foot robotic arm, part of a new Japanese lab called Kibo. The army won't do any heavy lifting until next year when the last section of the $1 billion lab is installed. But its deployment makes room for the astronauts to get ready for their third and final space walk and that's scheduled for tomorrow. And of course, you want to stick with us. Next hour, for more shuttle coverage, as our spaceman Miles O'Brien talks with the "Discovery" crew.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: What we noticed was, Garrett Reisman doing some swimming, I guess it was. Pass the microphone over to Garrett. I'm just curious about what strokes were those, anyway?

VOICE OF GARRETT REISMAN, DISCOVERY ASTRONAUT: I think it was a desperate attempt at a backstroke. I'm not really sure. I can tell you the swimming in air really doesn't work very well. And that was, you know, the concern coming in, because Ozzy (ph) and I were both scheduled for a lot of time in here. We're both a little vertically challenged.

So there was a concern that you could get stuck out in the middle, this module is so big and not be able to touch anything. And Ken (INAUDIBLE) over here decided to test that theory and we found out that you know, eventually you get sucked into a vent.

O'BRIEN: I guess you need one of those pendants, I'm floating and I can't get up or whatever something like that.

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, you don't want to miss that today, 5:00 Eastern time. Miles O'Brien talking to the crew there.

All right. Big problem facing the midsection of the country, bad weather in the form of big flooding. Karen Maginnis is in the weather center, live pictures right now, Karen.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: Meantime, it's a title going unclaimed for three decades. We'll preview Big Brown's run for the triple crown, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Long time and legendary sportscaster Jim McKay, has died. The eloquent voice for ABC sports may be best remembered for the dozen Olympic games that he covered, most notably the 1972 games in Munich as Israeli athletes were taken hostage and killed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCKAY: They've now said that there were 11 hostages, two were killed in their rooms yesterday morning, nine were killed at the airport tonight. They're all gone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: He won both a news and sports Emmy for that coverage, a first ever for a sportscaster. He also handled ABC's wide world of sports for 25 years with his best known line that lives on in American lexicon, the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. McKay passed away this morning at his home in Maryland from natural causes. He was 86.

Jim McKay loved horse racing. It was his favorite sport, he said. He died just hours before today's Belmont stakes where Big Brown will make a run at history. But there's another story at Belmont. It's about the son of the man riding Big Brown.

Our Ray D'alessio has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RAY D'ALESSIO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As Big Brown runs toward his destiny, Jacob Desormeaux walks slowly towards his. Jacob loves animals, particularly horses. And especially the one his father, hall of fame jockey Kent Desormeaux will try to ride to the triple crown.

KENT DESORMEAUX, BIG BROWN'S JOCKEY: He thinks he's going to be a jockey and wants me to bring Big Brown home so he can ride him around. He loves him.

D'ALESSIO: More important to Desormeaux and his wife Sonya is that Jacob sees Big Brown make history. While he still can see.

SONYA DESORMEAUX, KENT'S WIFE: (INAUDIBLE) is a degenerative eye disease and there's three different types, Jacob has the most severe, which is type onei. He has all five symptoms.

D'ALESSIO: Born deaf, Jacob is slowly going blind as well. He's undergone 16 surgeries in nine years and though he can now hear with the help of cochlear implants, there's no such hope for his fading sight.

K. DESORMEAUX: He started tripping on things. We're like you didn't see that Jacob? No. Now he's getting more of a tunnel vision.

S. DESORMEAUX: It's progressing since we found out about it a year and a half ago. But I think we're now also paying attention and noticing what it's doing and how quick it's moving.

D'ALESSIO: It may be moving quicker than Jake does. His balance, throw off by his condition. His brother Joshua helps as much as his parents but sometimes none of them are sure who is really helping who.

S. DESORMEAUX: He doesn't realize he has any issues at all whatsoever. He's just gets through the day better than we do.

K. DESORMEAUX: He's the happiest kid on earth. He's also the most resilient. If Big Brown's half as resilient as Jacob, they've got no chance.

D'ALESSIO: So even as the bright lights shine on Kent, the days grow darker for Jacob. But it is the glimmer in their son's eyes that keeps the glimmer of hope alive in his parents.

S. DESORMEAUX: The only thing that he knows that is Dad won the Preakness which meant he had no homework for a week at school and dad wins the Belmont then he doesn't have any homework for the rest of the school year.

K. DESORMEAUX: If the blindness takes over and it does become real, that's going to be one of those things on a bad day he's going to be able to remember that and hopefully it will enlighten him. I know that he'll be able to remember the smiles in everyone around him, the whole world of joy. It will be a world of joy that he'll never forget.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

D'ALESSIO: As mentioned, this will be Desormeaux' second attempt at winning the triple crown. The first cam back in 1998 aboard the horse Real Quiet when he lost the Belmont by a nose to Victory Gallop, an amazing race -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: I love that. That's great, another reason to root for Big Brown. Thanks so much, Ray. Appreciate it.

I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Rick Sanchez is up next with more on this big day of politics and more on the flooding of course in Indiana and rescues happening right now there next in the NEWSROOM.