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China and the Games; Russia Invades Georgia; Nicotine Gene? New Study Suggests Link

Aired August 08, 2008 - 14:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: The world spotlight shines on China. The greatest athletes in the world and thousands of fans kick off the 2008 summer games.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: A lifelong smoker after just one cigarette? The reason could be inside you. A new study finds that the urge for nicotine could be in the genes.

LEMON: And both sides say they don't like it. So why do both sides do it? We'll break down the exaggerations and the political distortions in the race for the White House.

Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live at our international desk here at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

KAYE: And I'm Randi Kaye, in for Kyra Phillips.

LEMON: OK, you've heard it before, but I'll say it: Let the games begin. And you know what I'm talking about. The 2008 games open in Beijing.

Look at that. That's the Bird's Nest right there.

We're looking at live pictures now. They're 12 hours -- 12 hours ahead of us. That would make it 2:01 a.m. in Beijing. Boy, that is spectacular. We want to talk about the games, because they have drawn an impressive list of celebrities and political leaders to China, including President Bush.

Now, Mr. Bush also used his visit to China to dedicate the new U.S. Embassy, accompanied by his father. During that ceremony today, Mr. Bush again criticized China's human rights policies, policies that have drawn fire in many parts of the world.

There was a demonstration outside the Chinese Embassy in Nepal today. Police there arrested more than 1,000 people.

Now, despite heavy security, there also have been a few small protests inside China. Chinese police broke up this demonstration in Tiananmen Square yesterday. Tiananmen Square was closed off in an apparent bid to head off additional demonstrations.

Now, this was the first time China has ever hosted the Olympics, ever hosted the Olympics. And today's opening ceremony, I guess you can call it a lavish production. And, you know, if we want to find out for sure if it's a lavish production, let's talk to our lavish sports leader standing by, Larry Smith.

You're like, what are you saying, Don?

Larry Smith has the Bird's Nest behind him.

Did you dress to match the Bird's Nest, my friend?

LARRY SMITH, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: You know, I didn't. Just by accident. The old blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while.

Yes, this was something else, Don, I tell you. You know, China wanted to come out and make a big splash, and they did that on the first night.

The largest opening ceremony ever, the most expensive. Thirty thousand fireworks were used, 15,000 performers as part of this.

As you're seeing some video, here are some people outside just watching this. And again, a great sense of pride for the 1.3 billion people here. Among the fireworks -- I mentioned that -- there was a series of 29 fireworks let off in a footprint pattern, footsteps leading from ancient Tiananmen Square, the historic site, all the way up to the ultra-modern Bird's Nest.

By the way, team USA looking really very dapper tonight in their blue blazer, white pants and white berets, as they were one of 204 countries -- that's a record -- that marched in to take part of this opening ceremonies. And by the way, in case you're wondering, Li Ning, the former three-time Olympic gold medallist from China, he was the one who lit the Olympic cauldron. He was raised up on a series of wires, appeared to be soaring through the air, all the way up until he lit the cauldron to, again, officially start the 29th Olympiad -- Don.

LEMON: Larry, I can't let you get away without asking about the air quality and pollution there. You've been there and you've observed it. Can you quickly tell us about what's been going on and what you've seen?

SMITH: Yes, I've been here since Monday night. I mean, the air quality, it is very thick. It is heavy and humid. I think staying hydrated by the athletes and anyone here will be a big factor.

The pollution, we'll see if it becomes an issue. But it's a fixed smog. Every single day -- I've been here since Monday night -- I've seen the sun three times for a total of 30 minutes in four days.

I mean, it's real. It's thick, and it doesn't go anywhere. Just stays there, even with the cars they've taken often the road.

LEMON: Yes. Larry Smith reporting from Beijing.

We look forward to more of your reports. Thank you, sir. And keep dressing like the Olympic events and facilities over there. We appreciate it very much. And you know, in the months leading up to the Olympics, Chinese officials have been talking a lot about pollution. They have taken steps to reduce Beijing's notorious pollution. How did they do it? We'll have a live report a little bit later on in the hour -- Randi.

KAYE: Don, with the world's attention focused on Beijing, fighting has erupted in the South Ossetia region of the Republic of Georgia. The area has been in dispute since the fall of the Soviet Union.

President Bush and Russian President Putin discussed the issue today in Beijing. And the U.S. has called for an end to the fighting. But Russian troops and Georgian forces are already engaged in fierce battles. Russia's ambassador to the U.N. says his country is working to end the fighting, but Georgia's president says his country is under attack.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRES. MIKHAIL SAAKASHVILI, GEORGIA: My country is in self- defense against Russian aggression. Russian troops invaded Georgia. Russian troops are fighting against Georgian troops in self-defense, troops. And Russia (INAUDIBLE) Georgia.

Now, this is the worst nightmare one can encounter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VITALY CHURKIN, RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR TO U.N.: We'll continue to do everything possible or imaginable in order to stop the bloodshed, to prevent further casualties, especially among the peaceful civilian population, and to bring the parties back to the negotiating table.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Today's violence raises fears of a potentially wider war between Russia and the Republic of Georgia.

CNN's Matthew Chance is in Moscow with the latest on today's fighting.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, dramatic developments in the breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia, with Russian tanks and troops now making their way into the territory. Georgia's president says his country's under attack. Russia's Defense Ministry said the forces are meant to reinforce Russian peacekeepers that are based in the province.

Well, Russia's Defense Ministry confirms that at least 10 of its peacekeepers have been killed and at least 30 others injured in an artillery raid on their barracks. There are also reports of fierce fighting in and around the main town in South Ossetia, Tskhinvali. The Georgian forces say they're in control, but rebel leaders say their fighters are pushing back the Georgian army. They say there are high casualties.

Well, Georgian officials also say that four Russian aircraft have been shot down following a day of intense military action by Georgian forces on rebel positions in the mountainous region of South Ossetia. A bid by Georgia to take control of the separatist region, which is supported by Moscow and which broke away from Georgian rule shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s.

Now this volatile region is once again on the brink of war.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Barack Obama and John McCain quickly condemned Russia's invasion of its neighbor. In a state Obama said, "All sides should enter into direct talks on behalf of stability in Georgia and the United States. The United Nations Security Council and the international community should fully support a peaceful resolution to this crisis."

McCain said, "The U.S. should immediately convene an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council to call on Russia to reverse course. The U.S. should immediately work with the EU and the OSCE" -- that's the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe -- to put diplomatic pressure on Russia to reverse this perilous course that it has chosen."

LEMON: We're hearing that a blown tire may have caused the deadly crash in Sherman, Texas. It happened shortly after midnight.

A bus carrying members of a Vietnamese church group careened off a highway overpass and plunged down a ravine. At least 13 passengers are dead, nearly 50 more are in the hospital. They were taking an annual pilgrimage to Carthage, Missouri.

Now, the driver survived and reportedly is talking to police. Federal safety inspectors are on their way.

KAYE: Detroit's mayor has spent much of this day answering charges in one court or another. Last hour, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was arraigned on federal counts of assaulting or obstructing a police officer. He appeared via video screen.

The magistrate entered a not guilty plea on his behalf, then set bail at $25,000. Hours earlier, a circuit judge ruled Kilpatrick could get out of jail if he posted a $50,000 cash bond and agreed to wear an electronic tracking device. That appearance and jail time stemmed from his arrest yesterday for violating bond in yet another case involving perjury, obstruction of justice, and misconduct of office.

LEMON: Heavy rains spell tragedy in central New Hampshire. A 7- year-old girl is dead after her family's car was swept downstream at a campground in Ashland. The flash floods overnight also washed away roads and damaged homes and businesses in several towns.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LEMON: Some smokers say they were hooked from their first puff. A new study gives credence to that.

KAYE: More fallout today from the case of the Maryland mayor whose home was raided by a S.W.A.T. Team. Pressure is rising on local police to explain their actions.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Addiction at first puff? A study just released this afternoon suggests there could be a genetic link to cigarette addiction.

CNN Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us now with more.

So it could be in the genes?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It could be in the genes, because have you ever known people, they can smoke a cigarette and maybe not smoke another one for days or weeks?

KAYE: Yes. Or ever.

COHEN: Or ever. Kind of take it or leave it. But then there are other people who, from that first puff, have got to have their cigarettes. In fact, sometimes even wake up in the middle of the night craving a cigarette.

Well, what these researchers found is that the folks who smoke -- who get addicted to cigarette smoking are 50 percent more likely to have a certain gene. So much more likely to have a certain gene.

And they call this gene the triple whammy gene. It makes you more likely to start smoking. It makes you more likely to get addicted to cigarettes. And makes you more likely to get lung cancer.

KAYE: With so many smokers out there, is there any way to know how many people have this gene?

COHEN: They think that one out of five of us, just in the general population, that one out of five have this genetic variation. That's a lot of people. And so that may explain why cigarette smoking is so addictive.

KAYE: So if you know that you might be getting it genetically, can this also actually help people quit maybe?

COHEN: Well, what they're hoping in the future is that, when someone walks into a doctor's office and says, "I want to stop smoking," that if they can test them and they have this gene, that they would immediately start them out with the full round, with everything they can do.

They wouldn't just give them a patch. They would give them a patch and therapy, and put them on an antidepressant, because that's been found to help people stop smoking. They wouldn't sort of monkey around with just one of those things. They would do everything if they knew that they had that gene.

KAYE: And you and I, we know we don't have the gene.

COHEN: Right, because we...

KAYE: We've never smoked.

COHEN: Never interested, never did it. Not.

KAYE: It wasn't our thing.

COHEN: It wasn't our thing. That's a good thing.

KAYE: We're happy about that.

COHEN: That's right.

KAYE: All right, Elizabeth. Thanks so much.

COHEN: Thanks.

LEMON: John McCain's visit to the heart of the Midwest tops our "Political Ticker."

A short time ago, the Republican candidate stopped off at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, and he talked to voters about economic issues. Here's some of what McCain said in his own words.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We must achieve energy independence. I have a plan to do so. And it's all of the above.

I call it the Lexington Project. It's got to be wind, tide, solar, nuclear. Nuclear power has to be part of any solution.

(APPLAUSE)

And my friends, we're a long way from the ocean, but we've got to drill offshore and we've got to drill now. Drill now.

(APPLAUSE)

My opponent doesn't want nuclear power. He doesn't want us to drill offshore. And the other day he mentioned that what we need to do is inflate our tires.

My friends, I'm all in favor of inflating our tires. Don't get me wrong. But that's a public service announcement. It's not an energy policy.

(APPLAUSE)

So we're having fun in this campaign, my friends. And I want you to have fun, too. I want you to enjoy this campaign. I want you to ask Senator Obama to come to the town hall meetings with me and come here to Iowa.

And we'll stand here together. We'll stand here together and answer your questions and listen to your comments and hear your concerns.

America's hurting right now. I don't have to tell you that. And we've got a lot of work to do.

And I want to tell you, I will reach across the isle and I'll work with the Democrats. I will work with them to help America, because I'll put my country first and I'll put America first.

(APPLAUSE)

So let me just end up -- I've had the great honor, as I've been walking around here and meeting people and saying hello, to run into our great men and women who have served in our military. And that includes the Iowa Guard and Reserve.

Thank you for their service. Thank you for all of our veterans.

Thank you for what you've done in Iraq. Thank you for what you've done in Afghanistan. Thank you for your service to our country.

I'm honored -- I'm honored to know that the bravest and best and most professional military is the one we have today. And they have served and they have sacrificed.

And, my friends, we are winning in Iraq. And we have succeeded. And we will bring our troops home, but we'll bring them home with honor and victory, and not in defeat.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Well, Barack Obama is taking some time off from the rigors of campaigning. He is starting a weeklong vacation in Hawaii.

The Democratic candidate is scheduled to arrive in his native state just a few hours from now. While in Hawaii, he'll visit his sister and grandmother, who still live there.

And make sure you check out our "Political Ticker" for all the latest campaign news. Just log on to CNNPolitics.com. It's your source for all things political.

KAYE: The situation is continuing to unfold in the breakaway region of Ossetia. We've been watching this all day. We have some breaking news now for you. The area of Georgia, where Ossetia is, has been under attack by Russia all day. And the situation seems to be getting worse. So much worse, that the U.S. military apparently is considering evacuations of U.S. citizens.

We want to get right to Barbara Starr at the Pentagon to bring us up to date on that -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Randi, let's clarify the situation for everybody. The U.S. military very much, very firmly staying on the sidelines of this situation, but watching very carefully as the violence does appear to be escalating.

Now, what two U.S. military officials tell CNN is the Pentagon and the European command in Germany are very quietly, indeed, reviewing evacuation plans for the 2,000 Americans now in the Republic of Georgia. They have not been asked yet to conduct an evacuation. That would be a request from the U.S. ambassador through the State Department, on to the Pentagon.

But, you know, the U.S. military engages in what it likes to call prudent planning. It doesn't like to wait around until something happens. So they are looking at the plans, seeing what would need to be done if that request was to come through diplomatic channels.

At this point, they say they have no requests. But the fact that they are looking at it and planning just in case, gives everyone a very clear indication of just how seriously the U.S. is now taking this situation -- Randi.

KAYE: All right. Our Barbara Starr.

And we should point out that the U.S. currently has about 130 Defense Department civilian employees there, and military personnel as well. And very important to point out, all personnel, apparently, are currently accounted for, according to the Pentagon.

We will continue to update you on that situation.

Who is stretching the truth more in the race for the White House, John McCain or Barack Obama? We'll hear what Ken Vogel with Politico has to say.

(BUSINESS REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Welcome back everyone, good to see you. I'm Randi Kaye.

LEMON: And it's good to see you Randi Kaye. I'm Don Lemon live here at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

KAYE: Checking the time for you, it is 2:30 and here are some of the stories we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM. A date is set for opening statements in the Atlanta courthouse shooting trial, September 22nd. Brian Nichols is accused of killing a judge and three other people.

A Florida man is still being held on charges he threatened to assassinate Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. Raymond Geizel's girlfriend says Geizel may have been joking but never talked seriously about hurting anyone.

A woman accused of kidnapping five young survivors of hurricane Katrina made her first court appearance today in Houston. Rhonda Tavey's bond was set at 50 thousand dollars.

LEMON: Federal agents have launched an investigation into a harrowing story we told you about yesterday. The mayor of a D.C. suburb, minding his business at home when a S.W.A.T. team entered, guns blazing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON (voice-over): His home has been patched up, but the mayor of Berwyn Heights, Maryland tells CNN the damage done to his family may be irreparable.

MAYOR CHEYE CALVO, BERWYN HEIGHTS, MARYLAND: We lost our family dogs. We did it at the hands of sheriff deputies bursting through our front door, rifles blazing.

LEMON: It all started when Mayor Cheye Calvo says he took a package addressed to his wife in from his doorstep last Tuesday. He placed it on the kitchen table and went upstairs, then all hell broke loose.

CALVO: Suddenly, there was an explosion. The door just flew open. I heard gunfire shoot off. I was in my boxer shorts literally when I was brought downstairs at gunpoint, bound and forced to kneel on the floor.

LEMON: Turns out, that package was 32 pounds of marijuana that a police dog had sniffed out at a shipping facility. Officers posing as delivery men dropped the package at Calvo's front door while the S.W.A.T. team waited. After they burst in, Calvo says his mother-in- law was roughed up and the family dogs executed. Didn't you tell them, hey, I'm the mayor?

CALVO: I did and they didn't actually believe me. They told a detective that I was crazy until he told local police.

LEMON: Calvo says Prince George's county police never told local Berwyn Heights Police that they were investigating a drug delivery scheme. Traffickers deliver drugs to unsuspecting homeowners hoping to intercept the package before the homeowner discovers it.

CALVO: My mother-in-law was bound laying in the kitchen and then I noticed my two dead dogs.

LEMON: Prince George's County Police say deputies did the right thing.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

VOICE OF SHARON TAYLOR, PRINCE GEORGE'S CO. POLICE: The community is damaged by the continuous drug trafficking. We don't want any of our operations to result in the injury or loss of anybody and certainly not animals.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

LEMON: Calvo is asking for a federal civil rights investigation and is still waiting for police to clear him and his family of any wrongdoing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: The FBI has responded to the mayor's request. The agency has opened a civil rights investigation into that raid.

KAYE: More internal problems in a major cog on the war in terror in Pakistan. Former Prime Minister Sharif is backing a push to oust U.S. ally Pervez Musharraf. Sharif led his party back into the ruling cabinet in a show of solidarity with pro impeachment forces. Until the matter is settled, Pakistan is headed for lots of uncertainty. Some are suggesting Musharraf should resign as president to share the country grief.

LEMON: A double disaster in the Czech Republic. A bridge under construction collapses into the path of a passenger train. The Czech news agency tells us at least six people were killed and 41 injured when the train from Poland derailed. The train was traveling to Prague. Many of the passengers were headed to an Aaron Maiden concert.

KAYE: Blunders, gaffes and distortions, they're part of every presidential race. How do Barack Obama and John McCain stack up this time around? Joining us now from Washington, Ken Vogel, senior reporter for Politico. Good to see you again, Ken.

KEN VOGEL, SENIOR REPORTER, POLITICO: Great to be with you Randi.

KAYE: Let's just start at the top here, how distorted are some of these comments that we've seen this campaign season?

VOGEL: Both these candidates have made gaffes as you've mentioned. And both have also really worked hard to seize on the other's gaffe. It's a damaging story line for one candidate or the other to become known as the one who really doesn't get it, who stumbles, or even worse, who exaggerates. Let's not forget how the Bush campaign in 2000 used this idea that Al Gore said he created the internet to really paint him as an exaggerator. Of course he never said that so that's where we come in, trying to set the record straight, we the media, with these exaggerations and gaffes.

KAYE: Well let's try and set the record straight on a few of the issues. One of them is this gas tax holiday which got a lot of attention a while back. McCain has said and did say that the gas tax holiday would cost about as much as that bridge to nowhere in Alaska. Let's listen to what he said and then we'll talk about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCCAIN: The fascinating thing to me, special interests in Washington greeted that proposal as the end of western civilization as we know it. I mean you can't believe it. We might not be able to construct that $233 million bridge to nowhere in Alaska.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: All right, Ken. What do you say? Is that true? Are they equal in cost?

VOGEL: In a couple of other instances, he has actually said that they are equal in cost. The way he would pay for the gas tax holiday would be to eliminate pork barrel projects like that. That's way off base. A gas tax holiday, the IRS has estimated eliminating the gas tax for the summer would cost the federal treasury $9 billion. A bridge to nowhere, the federal share of that was 200 million.

Most earmarks or pork barrel projects cost substantially less. That was John McCain inflating two things that work for him, cutting pork barrel spending in government ways and his push for the gas tax in a way that is misleading.

KAYE: Let's get to one more here. The 100 years in Iraq. McCain took a lot of heat from Barack Obama on this. Let's listen to what Barack Obama had to say about McCain certainly suggesting that that's what he wanted to do, spend 100 years in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D-IL) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We are bogged down in a war that John McCain now suggests might go on for another 100 years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Now, let's get your reaction to what McCain actually said. He actually said, "I don't think Americans are concerned if we're there for 100 years or 1,000 years or 10,000 years. What they care about is the sacrifice of our most precious treasure, that's American blood." He told that to CBS's "Face the Nation" in January. So a little built of a gaffe, a little bit of a distortion here.

VOGEL: Absolutely. Barack Obama is purposefully distorting what John McCain said and what he has said many times. Which is that he would be ok with a continued presence of U.S. military forces in Iraq as long as it was sort of peace time presence, like in South Korea or in Germany. That's far from 100 years' war. But because of the way McCain put it, it was immediately seized on, not just not by Obama but also by moveon.org which quickly put up an ad suggesting that John McCain wanted a 100-year war in Iraq.

KAYE: You know there are just so many of these, but I think we only have time for one more. John McCain suggesting that Barack Obama wants to attack and bomb Pakistan. He's calling him naive for broadcasting that he actually wants to bomb Pakistan. Let's hear what Obama actually said and we'll talk more about that on the other side.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: There are terrorists holed up in those mountains who murdered 3,000 Americans. They are plotting to strike again. It was a terrible mistake to fail to act when we had a chance to take out an al Qaeda leadership meeting in 2005. If we had actionable intelligence about high valued terrorist targets and President Musharraf will not act, we will.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Does that sound to you -- it certainly sounded that way to John McCain that Barack Obama wants to bomb Pakistan?

VOGEL: I think it's pretty clear Randi and it's probably pretty clear to most of your viewers, that in fact that's not what he's saying at all. He's saying rather that if he had actionable intelligence about high value terrorists and Musharraf, Pakistan's president did not help that the U.S. would go in after these terrorists ourselves. That's clearly different. But McCain has a purpose here. What he wants to do is show that Barack Obama is naive and not as experienced on military affairs and foreign policy. He tried to do so there by distorting what Obama actually said.

KAYE: All right, Ken Vogel. I think we should have you on every day to sort of help us set our viewers straight on what they're really saying among all this distortion that's out there. You are very helpful in sorting it out for us. Thanks so much.

VOGEL: Happy to do it. Thank you.

LEMON: You came up with a segment that we could use every day. Cutting through the muck, right?

KAYE: Yes, there's plenty of it. I think we might have to add another hour to the NEWSROOM for that.

LEMON: I'm sure Wolf wouldn't mind. All right, from boom to bust. 9,000 people looking for work. One of the country's biggest job fairs.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: No more dancing around a touchy issue for Republican candidate John McCain. The senator's campaign says it has invited Vice President Dick Cheney to speak at the party's national convention. Earlier, there had been some talk that Cheney might not be invited. The vice president's office says it's likely he will speak at the convention's first night that is September 1st. But it hasn't been decided yet.

LEMON: Obviously, trying to find a job in this economy could have you feeling like you're in way over your head. As Chris Lawrence shows us, it's especially tough in Arizona, where there are simply no jobs available for certain fields.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Look at the numbers as they rush into the job fair. A couple hundred employers, 9,000 people looking for work. Carla Valenzuela was let go in April after 20 years with Arizona state government. She thought she was secure.

Back in the day, it used to be that way. But no job is safe now.

LAWRENCE: We follow Carla from one booth to another.

CARLA VALENZUELA, LOOKING FOR WORK: I was with the department of education for six years.

LAWRENCE: And another.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Carla, I will hold on to this.

VALENZUELA: Ok.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We'll take a look at it, we'll review it.

VALENZEULA: Ok.

LAWRENCE: This is hard. Sometimes humiliating. But she makes no excuses.

VALENZUELA: I'm so sorry. I lost my job because he didn't like me, she didn't like me, you can't do that. You've got to pull yourself up by your boot straps and go out and look for a job.

LAWRENCE: Nationally there are between one and two million more people out of work now compared to this point last year. Arizona's unemployment rate is at its highest in four years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The forecasts are in the shredder.

LAWRENCE: Some experts say the outlook is worse than economists predicted.

LEE MCPHETERS, ARIZONA STATE UNIV. ECONOMIST: What we are looking at now is at best no job growth at all.

LAWRENCE: Arizona was one of the top 10 states to buy a home. Now it nearly leads the nation in foreclosures. Economists say jobs in construction and manufacturing will continue to evaporate. But the state's tourism industry is still going strong. Health care is adding about 1,000 jobs a month.

VALENZUELA: Do you have any openings or anything at the moment?

LAWRENCE: As for Carla, she leaves with a few leads but no offers. She's one of 33,000 people who had jobs in Arizona last year and are now out of work. (on camera): Arizona has nearly 5 percent unemployment rate in flipping. That means 95 percent of the people who are physically able to work are working. That's small consolation to a lot of the folks here. But it does help put the problem in perspective. Chris Lawrence, CNN, Glendale Arizona.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Of course, the economy, it is "Issue #1." We'll bring you all the latest financial news week days at noon eastern. Information you need on the mortgage meltdown, the credit crunch and so much more Randi. "Issue #1" noon eastern right here on CNN.

KAYE: It has it all.

China calls what you're looking at haze. Yes, most of the rest of the world calls it pollution. How will it affect the Olympic athletes? We'll try to find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The summer games are under way in Beijing. But it's not just excitement that's in the air. China has some of the worst air pollution in the world. That's stirred serious concerns among athletes and those who are watching them perform. Details now from Mark Austin of ITN.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARK AUSTIN, ITN (voice-over): The dull, gray haze hangs over the Forbidden City. But for heaven's sake, don't mention the forbidden word, pollution. Because according to Olympic officials, this isn't toxic smog, just mist. Despite the evidence before us, the chairman of the IOC's medical committee insisted it's nothing at all to worry about. If you look at it, this gray mist hanging over Beijing. For all intents and purposes, it looks like pollution.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's not pollution, basically its humidity. This is evaporation for sure, oh yes.

AUSTIN: So you're sure that this will be safe?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely. For competing athletes, no doubt.

AUSTIN: The Chinese have half the number of cars on the road, closed factories and now blame the media for exaggerating the pollution problem here.

(on camera): But every day we've been in Beijing, we've been monitoring air pollution levels with our own piece of equipment. Here it is, this measures particular matter. The readings we got suggest that the athletes should be concerned because they show pollution levels much, much higher than a city like London, for instance. Just take a look at this. The World Health Organization say a safe reading of air quality should be around 50 micrograms of particular matter per cubic meter. Over four days in Beijing, we recorded an average reading of 207. The highest reading during this period was on Monday, 378. And a reading taken in London measured just 53 micrograms.

So did the American cyclists arriving in masks here have a point? One British athlete thinks it was all unnecessary.

KELLY SOTHERTON, BRITISH HEPTATHLETE: I think some of it is a little bit out of proportion. Though I think they're making a song and dance out of nothing.

AUSTIN: Maybe we should leave the last word to the expert who says everything is fine. Would you like to run a marathon in this?

ARNE LUNDQVIST, CHMN., IOC MEDICAL CMTE.: I wouldn't like to run a marathon at all.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta says it may be the spectators, not the athletes at greater risk in Beijing. The reason, pollutants thicken the blood and raise the danger of heart attacks or strokes for people at risk

KAYE: Air quality in Beijing, a big topic of discussion online. Our Veronica de la Cruz has been keeping track of all of it and she joins us now from New York to tell us what you found.

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We keep hearing about this pollution in Beijing. Is it really better quality, is it ok? One of our cnn.com producers he's there, he has been blogging his experiences. Randi, here's what he has to say, he says, "I'm amazed by the amount of gray choking the city.

I swear I can't see a quarter mile. And at times there's a smell surrounding me that reminds me of a bus station. I've only seen two people wearing masks to cover their mouths. Two members of the cleaning crew at one of the temple. I've been tempted to ask our guide if people are intentionally suffering to give visitors a better impression of their city. It is the worst smog that I have ever experienced." Again, that is Steve, he's one of our producers at cnn.com.

As you can imagine, there's been quite a reaction to Steve's blog. Julie E. says, I think China is quite naive to believe they can clear up their pollution for the Olympics with the idea that they'll shut factories or pollutants down for a while or only have certain cars on the roads for certain days. Ed Callahan says, "Air quality throughout the whole world is questionable. The amount of cases for asthma in the U.S. alone is staggering. This story is another reason we need new energy alternatives to manage our way of life."

And then Frankie S., he just got back from China. He says, "I was able to talk to countless people and the air quality was one topic that always came up. Not once did anybody even think of wearing a mask. They just don't think it's necessary. For everyone freaking out, it is a problem. But not one the government is going to be able to reverse in such a short period." If you would like to read Steve's blog, you can find it online at cnn.com in the sci tech section. Randi?

KAYE: Veronica, it makes all the bus smog and all that bus exhaust in New York doesn't look so bad after that, does it? I don't think so at least. All right, thank you, have a good weekend.

LEMON: Crazy eight weddings. A look at the mad dash to tie the knot on 8/8/08.

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LEMON: First it was stolen, then it was junk. Police in Topeka, Kansas say whoever stole this van apparently backed it into a gas meter causing it to burst into flames. Utility workers had to dig up the ground to turn off the gas. No one was hurt but the fire melted a nearby fiber optic line disrupting cable service to several customers.

KAYE: Today is August 8, 2008. One of the most popular wedding dates ever. As CNN's Richard Roth reports, some couples are taking the eight obsession to extremes.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You guys were supposed to try on your dress yesterday when you picked it up.

RICHARD ROTH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the eve of her wedding, Tina Xu is leaving nothing to chance. However, she and her groom Jai Wong left the selection of their wedding day, today, totally up to fortune.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right after we got engaged, we knew 8/8/08 was the day that we wanted to get married.

ROTH: In Chinese culture, eight is a lucky number.

TINA XU, BRIDE TO BE: The pronunciation to the number eight is very similar to the pronunciation for a word that means making a lot of money in Chinese.

ROTH: 8/8/08 is the most popular wedding date of the year, say wedding watchers such as theknot.com.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Over 22,000 couples plan to get married this Friday on 8/8/08. Typically for a Friday wedding in the summer, that number is more like 5,000. So couples have certainly taken to the date.

ROTH: The demand has forced wedding planners to tell people eight is too late.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We had to turn away more than 20 couples, unfortunately.

ROTH: Why 8/8/08? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: First of all, it's easy for him to remember. One number. Hopefully he won't forget it.

ROTH: China timed the start of the Olympic Games for the day of eights. Tina and Jai made sure to have eight courses at the rehearsal dinner.

XU: 8/8/08, it's lucky, it's special, it's kind of cute. It's a way that we celebrate our Chinese culture too. So we were very happy with it.

ROTH: And you'll have eight children?

XU: Maybe one.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll see about eight.

ROTH: They will not be staying here on their honeymoon.

Richard Roth, CNN, New York.

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LEMON: That was a good line, Richard.

Everyone knows high schools can be a scary place for some people. Get a load of this video from a surveillance camera at Asheville High School in North Carolina. Just before 3:00 a.m., a mysterious moving shadow. Some say it's a shape of a child. Is it a ghost? Maybe the ghost of some long ago student? A school spokesman won't say it is but he won't say it's not either.

KAYE: An annual pilgrimage to a Catholic festival ends in sorrow. A bus accident claims more than a dozen members of a Houston church.

LEMON: Worse about a widening conflict between Russia and Georgia. The pentagon plans for a possible evacuation of Americans just in case.

KAYE: When it comes to the White House race, is it possible for a candidate to get too much media coverage? Hello I'm Randi Kaye live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

LEMON: And I'm Don Lemon. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.