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Bush Calls on Russia to Cease Fighting; More Edwards Fallout; Attack on Americans in Beijing; Remembering Bernie Mac

Aired August 09, 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: Home state reaction to John Edwards' admission that he did have an affair.
And remembering Bernie Mac. Friends and fellow comedians talk about what Mac meant to them.

Hello again, everyone. And welcome back to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

An ancient monument in Beijing, the site of a shocking attack on two American tourists, family members of an Olympic coach. Officials say the victims were stabbed, one fatally by a Chinese man who then killed himself. Now is ITV's Geraint Vincent.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GERAINT VINCENT, ITN REPORTER (voice-over): In a wooden box, the man who left a murderous mark on the first day of the Olympics is carried away from Beijing's Drum Tower. 47-year-old Tang Yongming started wielding his knife shortly after midday. He killed a man, an American tourist, and seriously injured his female companion and their Chinese tour guide. Tang then took his own life by throwing himself off the second story of the tower. As the afternoon went on, it emerged that the tourists were relatives of the U.S. volleyball team coach.

DARRYL SIEBEL, U.S. OLYMPIC COMMITTEE SPOKESMAN: We have informed our men's indoor volleyball team as well as our women's team. The teams, as you might expect, are very close, and they're shocked.

VINCENT (on-camera): Attacks on foreigners are extremely rare in this city, both Chinese and American police are thought to be investigating this one. Unofficially, the police here are saying that the killer had psychological problems and the attacks he carried out here was completely random, but this is a family tragedy for the Americans in Beijing and a dreadful incident to their Olympic team to have to deal with on the first day of competition.

VINCENT (voice-over): So has done in China to make the hundreds and thousands of Olympic visitors welcome. If this was a random attack, it was a cruel and tragic coincidence. Geraint Vincent, ITV News, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Too sad. And sad here, too. A man who lived for laughter has died. Comedian Bernie Mac died this morning in a Chicago-area hospital. He had been admitted eight days ago to treat pneumonia. According to Mac's publicist, the illness was not related to the inflammatory lung disease of sarcoidosis which Mac had been suffering from for several years now. Earlier we spoke with his longtime friend and fellow comic Steve Harvey.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOICE OF STEVE HARVEY, COMEDIAN: Man, I know people are thinking, you know, about the comedy aspect. My heart goes out to his family, man, because I don't know if people really understood how good of a father Bernie Mac was, just how good of a family man Bernie Mac was and how he raised his kids the right way. My heart is breaking for those people more than anything. You know, I mean, we had a brotherhood we had formed because the kings of comedy did things that nobody else had ever done. But I try to take myself out of the equation when I think of moments like this. And the people who suffer most have got to be his family, man. That's a heartbreaker.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Well, among others shocked and saddened, Ocean's co-star George Clooney who issued this written statement, saying, "the world just got a little less funny. He will be dearly missed." Comedian Chris Rock said he appreciated Mac's friendship even more than his humor. Saying, "Bernie was one of the greatest friends a person could have. Losing him is like losing 12 people because he absolutely filled up any room that he was in. I'm going to miss the Mac Man."

Comedian Bernie Mac dying today at the age of 50. Bernie Mac is survived by his wife, daughter, and a grandchild.

Overseas, Russia speeds reinforcements toward Georgia today as Georgia's president pleads for a truce in clashes that have spread to a second separatist region of his country. Scenes of escalating terror gripping civilians. Russian Warplanes attack a Georgian city, used a staging area for Georgian ground troops. And Georgia claims the strikes have killed scores of civilians while Moscow says major ground fighting has left 2,000 dead. More now from CNN's Jill Dougherty.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Georgia's tiny breakaway region of South Ossetia was like a bomb waiting to explode. Finally it did. Georgia, launching a military offensive, it says is aimed at stopping the separatist region from seceding from Georgia. Russia sending in tanks to beef up Russian peacekeepers and it says protect civilians in South Ossetia who holds Russian passports.

As civilians flee the fighting, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili tells CNN, it's an invasion, and accuses Moscow of aggression and provocation.

PRES. MIKHAIL SAAKASHVILI, GEORGIA: It's about fundamental values that U.S. has always advocated for the rest of the world. It's about something that is dear to us, freedom, democracy, and you know, standing up for your own values and principles.

DOUGHERTY: Russian President Dmitry Medvedev claims his tanks are on the move in self-defense.

PRES. DMITRY MEDVEDEV, RUSSIA (through translator): Civilians are dying at the moment in South Ossetia, women, children and old men. And the majority of them are citizens of the Russian Federation. I, as president of the Russian Federation, am obliged according to the constitution and federal law to defend the lives and integrity of Russian citizens wherever they are.

DOUGHERTY: As fighting intensifies, Georgia charges Russian planes are bombing its territory. Both Russia and Georgia were part of the former Soviet Union. Moscow says Georgian forces killed Russian peacekeepers. The escalation is setting off alarm bells internationally. The U.S. says it's dispatching an envoy to Georgia.

ZALMAY KHALILZAD, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: We call on Russian forces to stop attack whether by aircraft, missiles, or ground combat forces.

DOUGHERTY: At the United Nations, Georgian and Russian representatives engaged in a heated debate.

VITALY CHURKIN, RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N. (through translator): Who would object to a cease-fire? Who would object to peace?

IKAKLI ALASANIA, GEORGIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N. (through translator): Are you ready to stop the fighter jets flying in the air who will soon be bombing my comrades in Georgia?

DOUGHERTY: The European Union urges both sides to declare a cease- fire. South Ossetia, one of two breakaway regions in Georgia, declared independence from Georgia, but the international community never recognized it. Now the conflict threatens to spin out of control with wider implications for Russia and the United States. Jill Dougherty, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And some more background information now about the region. Georgia was part of the Soviet Union until 1991. It is now a U.S. ally. South Ossetia declared its independence from Georgia in the early 1990s, but South Ossetia's independence is not internationally recognized.

Well, President Bush is so concerned about the fighting that he made a plea for peace from Beijing. We'll have more on what he said a little bit later.

And another person has died from yesterday's horrific bus crash near the Texas-Oklahoma border. That brings the death toll to 16. A group of Vietnamese Catholics were on an annual church bus trip. Police say the driver apparently lost control and hid a guardrail after an illegally rethreaded tire blew. A memorial service for the victims was held last night in Houston. Hundreds of people offered prayers in a special mass.

A family's outrage in New York. The mother of a 10-year-old girl is furious. Police allegedly handcuffed her daughter on a school bus. The girl admits she was misbehaving, but her family says she didn't do anything illegal and she's now traumatized by the very sight of police officers. Here now is CNN's Jim Acosta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Taniesha Pearson worries her daughter I'Mecca will never look at a police officer the same way again. Not after what I'Mecca says one uniformed New York Police officer did to her on her school bus last January.

I'MECCA PEARSON, 10 YEARS OLD: He put the handcuffs on me, slammed me down on the chair and put his knee in my back.

ACOSTA: I'Mecca admits she and her friends were acting up on the bus, but her mother says that's no excuse. When she tried to get an explanation from police and school officials, Taniesha) Pearson says she ran into a wall of silence. So last week I'Mecca's mother filed a lawsuit, seeking a million dollars in damages.

TANIESHA PEARSON, MOTHER: It hurts every day. You know, the fact that the police is who is here to protect us, and she is scared of them. She sees a police, she hides. She runs. It's ridiculous.

ACOSTA: The family's lawyer hopes to force police and school officials to set better ground rules for dealing with unruly children.

NORMAN SIEGEL, PEARSON FAMILY'S ATTORNEY: Our position is that absent criminal activity police should not be putting metal handcuffs on ten- year-olds.

ACOSTA: Jasmina Vasquez says a New York School Safety officer cuffed her five-year-old son Dennis after he threw a tantrum in class earlier this year.

JASMINA VASQUEZ, MOTHER OF 5-YEAR-OLD: I don't understand what my son could have possibly done to deserve to be handcuffed to a chair.

ACOSTA: Legal analyst Richard Herman says I'Mecca Pearson's case will be difficult to prove.

RICHARD HERMAN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: The issue is, we're only hearing one side of the facts or circumstances surrounding this.

ACOSTA: City officials aren't commenting on either alleged handcuffing case, citing the pending litigation. Taniesha Pearson hopes her case will help her daughter trust the men and women responsible for her daughter's safety.

TANIESHA PEARSON: Maybe one day, we're working on it.

ACOSTA: Jim Acosta, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. So many of us around the world are psyched about the Olympic Games, but it's always a family affair for the Whitfields. My dad is an Olympian. A little bit later, a special visit with him before he and I head for Beijing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN EDWARDS (D), FMR. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She was mad. She was angry. I think furious would be a good way to describe it, and it was painful for her. Hard and painful for her. But she responded exactly like the kind of woman she is. I mean, she forgave me and we went to work on it. I'm not saying she thought it was OK. I'm not saying that. But she did forgive me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Admissions and denials from former North Carolina senator and democratic presidential candidate John Edwards. Last night explaining to ABC's Bob Woodrow how his wife reacted to his extra marital indiscretion with a woman who worked for his presidential campaign. Well, today's new nugget, ABC is now reporting reaction from the family of Edwards' former mistress. They want him to take a paternity test for the child that he denies fathering. CNN's Brian Todd has the timeline of how Edwards was outed.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Under increasing pressure from a story that had gone beyond the tabloids to serious discussion among democratic party chiefs, the former presidential candidate admits he had an affair with a woman who had worked on his campaign. In a statement John Edwards says, he's ashamed and "in 2006 I made a serious error in judgment and conducted myself in a way that was disloyal to my family and to my core beliefs. I recognize my mistake and I told my wife that I had a liaison with another woman and I asked for her had forgiveness."

But Edwards denies he's the father of that woman's child and says he's willing to take a paternity test. During his presidential campaign this year, Edwards repeatedly denied that there was any truth to the story, initially calling it false and ridiculous. He issued another denial just two weeks ago.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Senator, question, when you were running for president, you flat-out denied having a relationship with this Rielle Hunter. Did you give me a truthful answer? Were you telling the truth then?

EDWARDS: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Has you or your campaign provided any financial support to Rielle Hunter and her young? Has you or anyone affiliated with your presidential campaign provided any financial help to them? EDWARDS: I have no idea what you're asking about. I've responded to consistently to these tabloid allegations by saying I don't respond to these lies. And you know that. You've covered me. And I stand by that.

TODD: The woman, Rielle Hunter, worked for Edwards as a freelancer making web videos. She told the program "Extra" that her troubles with Edwards were a life-altering experience.

RIELLE HUNTER, FORMER EDWARDS CAMPAIGN WORKER: One of the great things about John Edwards is that he's so open and willing to try new things and do things in new ways.

TODD: Edwards says his wife, Elizabeth, became aware of the relationship in 2006, not long after it began. Edwards tells ABC News that his wife's cancer was in remission when he began the affair. Elizabeth Edwards has since then developed an incurable form of cancer.

TODD (on-camera): Government records show John Edwards' political action committee paid a total of about $114,000 to Hunter's production company for website and internet services. CNN has tried for weeks to talk to Rielle Hunter about this story without success. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And Elizabeth Edwards, who is suffering from inoperable breast cancer, gave this response after her husband's marital indiscretion was publicly revealed, saying now from DailyKos.com, Mrs. Edwards says "our family has been through a lot. Some caused by nature, some caused by human weakness, and some, most recently, caused by the desire for sensationalism and profit without any regard for the human consequence."

The last sentence fair and obvious dig to the media and all that's been reported as of late. In the meantime, at the start of that ABC interview, John Edwards recalled his formative days growing up in North Carolina. Today hometown reaction to the scandal is decidedly mixed. Here now is CNN's Kathleen Koch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There we fresh vegetables and raw nerves at the farmer's market down the road from John and Elizabeth Edwards' Chapel Hill home as neighbors shared their disappointment over the news.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I felt sadness for him. I felt a lot of sadness for her. And I just felt it was heartbreaking.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was surprised, and disappointed mainly and felt sad for her.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My prayers are with her, and I hope that she knows that there are people out there who love her. And I hope that people also are there for John Edwards himself because he's going through his own struggles.

KOCH: Some were less forgiving.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hate to say it, but he picked his bed. Now he's got to lie in it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you know you're going to run for office, you know, keep it in your pants. It's just not a smart thing to do. It's ridiculous.

KOCH: Yes others wondered if the nation was overreacting.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it's an embarrassment. It's definitely an embarrassment. But he's human, you know. Live and let live.

KOCH (on-camera): John and Elizabeth Edwards have put out statements asking for privacy and haven't been seen leaving their home here. The former senator says he'll have no further comment on the affair.

KOCH (voice-over): Close friends of the Edwards say they're ready to move on.

JENNIFER PALMIERI, EDWARDS FAMILY FRIEND: I think they are relieved that they have - that Senator Edwards has done this and they've put these statements out. That They feel they have answered the questions that they need to.

KOCH: Still there could be more questions as more details of the affair emerge.

Kathleen Koch, CNN, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: So who is this Rielle Hunter? More on John Edwards' former mistress.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's check in on our weather picture out there. Time to check in with Karen McGinnis. What have you got, Karen?

KAREN MCGINNIS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Oh, we've got several areas that are concerning us over the next 24 to 48 hours. In the Pacific northwest, what you are looking at is the radar showing some of those showers and thunderstorms moving from the south towards the north. But across Washington state and in Idaho, we're particularly concerned about this because these are going to be dry thunderstorms, and the lightning could produce some fire dangers once again.

Then we go to southern Arizona, and the rainfall here is a problem because it doesn't take much for those washes really to fill up. I used to live in Tucson, Arizona, and about this much would cause those raging dry washes to really start to roar once that rainfall comes down. Well, this is the area right around Tucson along interstate 10 and interstate 19, at that intersection. Also right near Flagstaff, Arizona, we're watching a cluster of thunderstorms there.

This is the other big story that we're watching. That's going to be very persistent rainfall in the central plains, in Nebraska and Kansas, extending into Missouri. Look at this axis of severe weather that we're anticipating from Lincoln to Kansas City, all the way down just to the north of Springfield but also into northern Arkansas. There are some estimates of three to six inches of rainfall certainly possible in the next 24 hours, at least according to computer models. And we've watched some strong winds move across the eastern sections of the lower portion of Michigan as this line of storms moves through. But also we looked earlier right around Chicago and saw some thunderstorms there. How about afternoon highs? Well in Dallas, 95 coming up for Sunday. The temperatures in the triple digits in the desert southwest. That's a look at your weather for now. Fred, back to you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Karen. Appreciate it.

All right. Here's a question for you. Would you spend money for some shut-eye? A new trendy spa treatment is selling sleep. Selling sleep to people who really need it. Judy Fortin explains in this week's "Health for Her."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JUDY FORTIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Getting enough sleep should be as easy as just closing your eyes, but for many Americans it's not that simple. About 40 million Americans suffer from chronic long-term sleep disorders each year. And an additional 20 million people have occasional problems sleeping. And this lack of shut-eye can have some dire consequences.

DAVID SCHULMAN, DIR., EMORY CLINIC SLEEP LABORATORY: There are studies out there which would suggest that people who sleep less over long periods of time are at much higher risk of car accidents and also some medical disorders like high blood pressure, potentially stroke and heart disease.

FORTIN: If you're part of that group, not getting that seven to nine hours of rest, most of us need to function well, the answer might be to buy some. That's right, a new spa trend offers about a dollar a minute nap therapy.

SUSAN VANYO, OWNER AND FOUNDER, REJUVENATE SPA: We have two types of ponds, of nap pods. And they are called the energy pod and the alpha pod. The alpha pod, it has more of a spa experience feel to it. You have aromas that are released. You have a heated vibration bed. You have a CD player. And the energy pod reclines you back, and you're in this wonderful seated chair that reclines, and you also have the headphones and the music that's piped in.

FORTIN: While not taking the country by storm, this new spa trend is finding some restless nap takers willing to shell out for some shutout time. TREMAYNE PERRY, CLIENT: It focuses you and your energy and your thoughts and mind. You know, you're not worried with the hustle and bustle of what's going on once you leave the doors.

FORTIN: Studies have shown that a nap, whether free or paid for is a good way to pump up a mid day energy slump. There are some other energy raising options, but they don't pack the same recharging wallop that comes with the appropriately titled power nap.

SCHULMAN: Some folks have sought alternative means to try to improve their function during the day by meditation, a brief break from work. And certainly while that may help the minds to focus, it's not going to improve your alertness as much as a nap would.

FORTIN: So forget the afternoon caffeine blast and cash in on grabbing that nap. Judy Fortin, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, wake up. Straight ahead, Olympians past and present in Beijing for the games. One of those special Olympians, you see any resemblance there? That's my dad. We're going to China.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Russia is speeding troop reinforcements toward Georgia as Georgia's president seeks a truce in clashes that have spread to a second region of his country. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin arrived near the front today. Russian officials say Georgian troops have killed several thousand people in a city at the center of the clashes. Georgia claims Russian air strikes are killing scores of civilians.

Well, U.S. ally Georgia has 2,000 troops in Iraq and is now asking Washington to fly them back home. For his part, President Bush is calling on Russia so cease and desist.

Here now is CNN's Elaine Quijano.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From the Olympics in Beijing, President Bush expressed deep concern for the fighting in Georgia.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The United States takes this matter very seriously.

QUIJANO: The violence give pits Georgia, a staunch U.S. ally, against Russia and separatists in the breakaway region of South Ossetia. But as the president noted, the attacks have spread outside that region, and pushed deeper into Georgian territory.

BUSH: They mark a dangerous escalation in the crisis. The violence is endangering regional peace.

QUIJANO: In a message meant to get Moscow's attention, the president voiced his support for Georgia.

BUSH: Georgia is a sovereign nation. And its territorial integrity must be respected. We have urged an immediate halt to the violence and a stand-down by all troops.

QUIJANO: The U.S. and Russia are already at odds over Georgia's push to join the NATO alliance. This new escalation heightening tensions further. Friday, during a pre-Olympic lunch in Beijing, President Bush discussed the fighting with Russia's former president and now prime minister, Vladimir Putin. Bush aides did not detail their conversation.

BUSH: We call for an end to the Russian bombings and a return by the parties to the status quo of August the 6th.

QUIJANO: The president also said the U.S. is working with European partners to launch international talks.

BUSH: Russia needs to support these efforts so that peace can be restored as quickly as possible.

QUIJANO (on camera): Aides say President Bush spoke by phone with the president of Russia and Georgia this weekend to reiterate his concern to both leaders.

Elaine Quijano, CNN, Beijing.

WHITFIELD: With less than a month before the party conventions, Republican John McCain is pounding the campaign trail and his Democratic rival, Barack Obama. In his weekly radio address, Senator McCain mocks his opponent on some key issues, accusing him of wanting to forfeit the war in Iraq just as America is finally winning.

Well, this hour, Senator McCain is addressing the Disabled American Veterans Convention in Las Vegas. Meantime, Senator Barack Obama is stepping off the campaign trail and onto the beach. He's taking a family vacation in his birthplace of Hawaii. Before he left, he delivered the Democratic radio address, blasting the Bush administration over the nation's deficit and the war in Iraq. He said that billions spent in Iraq could have paid for many projects in the U.S. and helped create jobs.

Well, after months of rumors and denials, former presidential candidate John Edwards has admitted to an affair with a woman named Rielle Hunter. Well, she had worked for Edwards' presidential as a documentary filmmaker.

CNN's Anderson Cooper has her story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): She has been called the mistress, the other woman, but who is Rielle Hunter? The woman who John Edwards says she had an affair with. We know the 42-year-old was hired by the Edwards campaign to produce documentaries. We know she's unmarried and she has a baby born in February. Last year, she told the television show "Extra" about how she met the senator in 2006.

RIELLE HUNTER, ALLEGED EDWARDS MISTRESS: It was a random meeting. He was in a business meeting in New York, and I was in the same place.

Meeting John Edwards was interesting, because he had -- in person, when you -- when I met him, he was very real and authentic, in my perception.

COOPER: David Perel from the National Enquirer says Hunter and Edwards had chemistry from the very start.

DAVID PEREL, NATIONAL ENQUIRER: They quickly became enamored with one another.

COOPER: IMDB lists Hunter as a writer, actress, and producer. She's the co-founder of Midline Groove Productions, a New Jersey-based production company.

Hunter traveled the country with Edwards, producing many documentaries called Webisodes, which were supposed to give voters a behind-the- scenes look at the real John Edwards.

JOHN EDWARDS (D), FMR. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: But for me, personally, I would rather be successful or unsuccessful based on who I really am, not based on some plastic Ken doll that you put up in front of audiences.

COOPER: She even traveled with him to Africa to highlight his campaign against poverty. She said she spent a lot of time with Edwards on that trip and called the experience life-altering.

HUNTER: One of the great things about John Edwards is that he's so open and willing to try new things.

He was very real and authentic. He was inspirational to me.

COOPER: The Edwards campaign paid her close to $115,000 allegedly for her work.

Little is known about Hunter's past. According to the National Enquirer, she's a Florida native who is born Lisa Druck. She lived in Los Angeles and then moved to New York in the 1980s where she changed her name to Rielle Hunter.

DAVID PEREL, NATIONAL ENQUIRER: People who know her describe her as a nice person, somebody who's very touchy-feely, but somebody who has really lived not a dull life, let's say, and she is very fond of John Edwards.

COOPER: The author James McInerney told The New York Post he dated Hunter in the 1980s and said he based his book, "Story of My Life," about a hard-living, aspiring actress, on her.

KEN VOGEL, POLITICO: She gave an interview in which she described herself as a formerly hard-partying girl who had kind of seen the light and reformed her ways.

COOPER: Although Edwards has not admitted publicly to his affair, we still have not heard from Rielle Hunter, who, so far, hasn't confirmed or denied anything about the relationship.

Anderson Cooper, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, let's take a turn here and let's talk about the Olympic Games. And President Bush right there, a nice little dig there with Olympic champions there. Playing a little beach volleyball there before the real thing getting under way. And then from there Mr. Bush visited the U.S. softball team, I believe. Is that what's next? Player Laura Berg leaving a lasting impression, if you will, right there, that palm print, that's kind of her signature thing, that chalk. They had a good time out there, as is the president, there in Beijing.

OK. Well, today's best athletes aren't the only ones in Beijing for the 2008 Olympics, not just the president. Among the millions descending on the Chinese capital, champions of yesteryear. I happen to know one of them really well. That would be my dad, Mal Whitfield, an Olympic medalist from 1948 and '52. Well, just last week I went home to Washington to help him pack because soon we're off to Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Hello. Well, let me reintroduce you to my dad, Mal Whitfield, 1948 and '52 Olympic medalist, gold, silver, bronze. I first introduced you to "Marvelous Mal" a few years back when London became the host of the 2012 games.

Were you euphoric?

MAL WHITFIELD, OLYMPIC MEDALIST 1948, 1952: Oh, yes. I was quite pleased that the committee chose London.

WHITFIELD: Well, now it's you and me off to Beijing. Are you ready?

M. WHITFIELD: Oh, I've been ready. I haven't had a good night's sleep, I'll sleep on the plane.

WHITFIELD (voice-over): Clearly we're both over-the-top thrilled as we pack our bags for China. One reason?

M. WHITFIELD: What happens in the Olympic Games, it becomes a family of people, people meeting people from all over the world.

WHITFIELD: Together to celebrate and witness greatness, the other big reason for our excitement? You're looking at it.

M. WHITFIELD: For me, going to Beijing will be the most exciting experience I've ever had in my life. Why? Because personally I'm almost 84 years old, there is limited time I've spent in sports since I was 8 years old, so I wanted to be an Olympian. WHITFIELD: And after so many years, seeing other Olympians of his day, he doesn't know for sure who will be there, but hopes on Olympians like bronze long jumper Herb Douglas; Harrison Dillard, the only man to win gold as 100-meter sprinter and hurdler; gold medal diver, Dr. Sammy Lee, still both a cutup and pinup despite recent back surgery.

SAMUEL LEE, OLYMPIC MEDALIST 1948, 1952: Mal and I both being from Los Angeles, it's funny.

WHITFIELD: And still vividly reflective at age 88.

LEE: So-called experts who say that you're the wrong color or the wrong size, it inspires you to be tougher, and you're more dedicated.

WHITFIELD: Despite discrimination, segregation, the Depression and military draft during World War II, and the Korean War, they stayed on course to make Olympic history: Dr. Lee winning two golds in the 10- meter platform in 1948 and '52, and a bronze on springboard; in the same back-to-back games, dad collectively winning three golds, a silver and a bronze.

M. WHITFIELD: I ran three events, 800 meters, the 400 meters, and the 400-meter relays. I just overdid it, but it was all worth it.

WHITFIELD: Dad's weakened knees keeps this retired American diplomat in a wheelchair these days. It may not be easy, but we hope to traverse China with the same vigor and pace of our recent visit to Washington's World War II Memorial.

M. WHITFIELD: I feel very comfortable. I feel at home.

WHITFIELD: Being here conjured dad's memories of hard, inventive, dark of night training as an Olympic hopeful in between his flight missions as an U.S. Air Force sergeant based in Japan.

M. WHITFIELD: Don't deviate. There's no deviation in training.

WHITFIELD: A fighter then, and a fighter now, who says the constant shooting pain in his joints is already feeling healing power from the surprised-filled journey to Beijing. His only fear? Old friends don't recognize him.

M. WHITFIELD: As ugly as I am, they will remember the face and my laugh.

WHITFIELD: Weeks after his final surgery...

LEE: I am recuperating and the goal of going to Beijing has stimulating me to get healed fast.

WHITFIELD: And the prospect that these octogenarian Olympians meeting at the XXIX Olympiad inspires me. Let the games and our adventure begin.

(END VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: And this is indeed a lucky year for me in part because I get to join these '48ers, but also because Sammy Lee, well, he just celebrated his 88th birthday yesterday on 08/08, which is -- of course, 8 is the lucky Chinese number, pretty extraordinary.

All right. Straight ahead, stormy weather bringing play at the PGA Championship in Michigan to a screeching halt. Just before the rain moved in this afternoon, not so lucky for them, Andres Romero provided a little thunder of his own. The 27-year-old Argentina native tied a competitive course record with a 5 under 65, the best score there all week. And leader J.B. Holmes was just about to tee off when play was suspended due to weather.

Well, anthrax suspect Bruce Ivins is remembered by family and friends, and his attorney who questions the government's case against his client, well, CNN's exclusive interview straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. On to the campaign trail now and presumptive Republican nominee John McCain in Las Vegas talking to the convention of Disabled American Veterans. Let's listen in right now.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It will also fall to the next commander-in-chief to make good on the obligation our government accepts every time any man or woman enters the proud ranks of the United States military. And, again, when they receive their DD-214.

Those we depend on as troops should know when they become veterans that they can depend on us. The DAV has defined some of these obligations in your Stand Up for Veterans pledge. Though it's not my practice to sign pledges as a candidate, I will give you my word that as president I will see that these obligations are kept and I make that commitment to you today and tomorrow and yesterday and next week and when I'm president of the United States.

(APPLAUSE)

MCCAIN: Sacrifices made by veterans deserve to be memorialized in something more lasting than marble or bronze or in the fleeting effect of a politician's speeches. Your valor and devotion to duty have earned our country's abiding concern for your welfare.

And when our government forgets to honor our debts to you, it is a stain upon America's honor. The Walter Reed scandal was a disgrace unworthy of this nation. As Washington, Lincoln, and other great leaders reminded us, Americans who fought to defend this nation should always rank among the highest of national priorities.

WHITFIELD: All right. John McCain there on the campaign trail there in Las Vegas, making a stop, talking to the Disabled American Veterans. Meantime, his Democratic competitor taking a vacation -- a family vacation, this weekend in Hawaii. We wanted you to see what's going on in the campaign trail with John McCain there making his comments. All right. Meantime, just-released FBI records shed some fascinating light on the probe into the Kennedy assassination. According to the bureau's files on then-Congressman Gerald Ford, he secretly advised the FBI two fellow members of the Warren Commission doubted the FBI's lone gunman conclusion. Ford said they were not convinced about the trajectory of the shot that would have come from the Texas Schoolbook Depository.

WHITFIELD: Meantime, this weekend in Maryland there was a memorial for anthrax suspect Bruce Ivins. Family and friends talking about the scientist's humor, intelligence, and compassion. Meantime, Ivins' attorney continues to insist the government's case is full of holes.

CNN's Jeanne Meserve reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bruce Ivins sent this photo of himself investigating anthrax to friends and colleagues shortly after the anthrax attacks, attacks which the government says can be traced back genetically to a flask in Ivins' lab over which he had sole control.

Other researchers had access to that anthrax and in an exclusive television interview, Ivins' lawyer tells CNN he wants to know why they aren't suspects.

THOMAS DEGONIA, IVINS' ATTORNEY: Show us the evidence that allows us to eliminate these people. That's what we're saying. And that just has not happened.

MESERVE: The Justice Department will not show that evidence, but insists it looked at and eliminated every possible suspect but Ivins. A government official familiar with the case says Ivins took several hours off work on September 17th, 2001.

Investigators believe Ivins used that time to drive to Princeton, New Jersey, to mail two anthrax letters. It is another piece of circumstantial evidence the government believes makes a strong case against Ivins.

JEFFREY TAYLOR, U.S. ATTORNEY: It's compelling evidence and in our view is -- we are confident it would have helped us prove this case against Dr. Ivins beyond a reasonable doubt.

MESERVE: But Ivins' lawyer counters there is no concrete evidence to prove guilt.

DEGONIA: No e-mails, no electronic writings planning this, plotting this, nothing like that was ever found in his home and you would have expected, as I think has been reported, that these spores flew everywhere, that at least a single spore would have been found somewhere in a vehicle, in a home, but absolutely none of that has been found.

MESERVE (on-camera): Degonia says Ivins suffered from depression and committed suicide because of the pressure of the investigation, not because he was guilty.

Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Top of the hour, much more of the NEWSROOM at this time with Rick Sanchez, who is with me right now for a little preview of what is straight ahead.

Hello.

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: A lot of great stories on this day. As a matter of fact, you know, you wake up and you hear about the Bernie Mac story and you're interested. And you want to know about the disease and you want to know the specifics. The other obvious story that everybody seems to be talking about is the Edwards story.

And then the Russian foreign minister is going to be joining us today, the Russian foreign minister is going to join me. We're going to be having a very in-depth discussion about what Russia's role is in this invasion, as it's being called by Georgian officials, of their country. I mean, at what point do the sovereignty rights stop when you're dealing with these two countries?

And here's the part of it that I think most Americans who have a -- you know, are a little long in the teeth would say. When you hear the words "Russia invades," no matter what comes after that, you know, it's interesting and you want to know what's going on geopolitically in that part of the world.

WHITFIELD: Yes. And it's interesting too, because, I mean, Georgia, a U.S. ally, but a lot of folks are still a little confused, Americans in particular, about why is this struggle taking place? Why the conflict? So it will be interesting to hear even the foreign minister's take because the Georgian president has one thing to say and the Russians have another.

SANCHEZ: And whose side are we on in this one? I mean, the world has gotten so confusing. Here's another thing that's confusing. Speaking of communist countries where it's common for them to spy on someone, something, or another nation, we are getting word tonight...

WHITFIELD: China?

SANCHEZ: No. The NRA. The NRA allegedly sent a mole to basically get into organizations who are pro-gun rights. And how did they do it and who is the woman who did it? She tells her story. We're going to be talking about that tonight, which is something you don't usually hear about in this great democracy of ours. But apparently it happens from time to time as well.

Now the NRA is saying, look, we nothing to say, we have nothing to do with this. But obviously we're going to be asking a lot of questions.

WHITFIELD: We'll be watching and you'll be informing us. Thanks so much, Rick. Always good to see you. SANCHEZ: Always so good to be with you.

WHITFIELD: Always good to see you. All right. Thanks, Rick.

All right. Well, a breathtaking discovery changes the landscape. Much more ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, the discover of thousands of endangered gorillas in Africa delighted and surprised scientists. How could so many of these primates exist without anyone knowing?

CNN's Rusty Dornin reports on the wildlife story of the week.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was a three-day trek through forbidding swamp and jungles into some of the most remote areas of equatorial Africa. The discovery by researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society in the northern Congo Republic stunned not only primatologists, but the world.

These are some of the photos taken on that trip. Researchers now estimate there are 125,000 lowland gorillas in this area, more than double the number thought to exist in all of Africa. But how did that many gorillas elude the experts?

First, it's an area nearly the size of West Virginia, 18,000 square miles.

JILLIAN MILLER, THE GORILLA ORGANIZATION: It is vast. It is uncharted, great areas of it are uncharted. It's almost as big as the Amazon, it's second only to the Amazon. And these gorillas are in a particularly swampy area. So it may be that local people knew about these animals, but visitors just don't go to those places.

DORNIN: Gorillas make nests before they sleep at night. Survey teams counted the number of nests, but the threats facing this endangered species are numerous. Wars and the Ebola virus have wiped out thousands. Habitat destruction means hunters can get much of closer to the animals.

MILLER: The logging companies come in. They build roads and as soon as they build roads, their trucks are coming in and out and the trucks go out with commercially hunted meat which is then sold in the major towns. This is what we call bush meat.

DORNIN: Despite this amazing discovery, experts say the future for gorillas is still at best uncertain, although there may be a lot more isolated pockets of the primates in central Africa. Primatologists hope this discovery may mobilize more researchers to go out and find them.

Rusty Dornin, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Gosh, some beautiful images there. Well, perhaps you'd like to help protect the gorillas in their natural habitat. Visit our "Impact Your World" page. There's more information, plus links to groups trying to help. It's all at cnn.com/impact.

I'm Fredricka Whitfield, thanks for joining me this past couple of hours. Rick Sanchez is up next with more of the CNN NEWSROOM.