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Fay the Rainmaker; Candidates Close to Announcing VP Choices; Russia Not Honoring Their Agreement to Leave Georgia; Meet the 85 Year Old Great-Grandmother Who Nabbed a Theif; The Search Continues in the Grand Canyon

Aired August 19, 2008 - 11:00   ET

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

HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: You're with CNN, I'm Heidi Collins. Tony Harris is off today. Developments keeps coming into the CNN NEWSROOM on this Tuesday, the 19th of August. Here's what's on the run down.
All eyes on Florida and Fay. But it's south Texas that goes under water. A storm without a name floods parts of the Rio Grande valley.

Suicide bombers try to attack a U.S. base in Afghanistan. We'll go live to the Pentagon.

Barack Obama apparently has decided on a running mate, but he's not telling. Yet. He's got a secret in the NEWSROOM.

Fay sweeps ashore weaker than expected but no less dangerous. The tropical storm has left scattered areas without power and there are reports of possible tornado damage in Palm Beach County that we're watching. Fay came ashore just before dawn at Camp Romano know in southwest Florida. Top sustained winds are still around 60 miles an hour, well below hurricane force, but it remains a major concern. In addition to the continuing threat of spinning off tornadoes, Fay could also dump as much as ten inches of rain across the Florida peninsula.

Many Floridians are watching Fay from the road. They are among the thousands of people who evacuated as the storm approached.

Sean Callebs has the view now from Punta Gorda, Florida.

Good morning to you, Sean.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi.

What Fay may lack in sheer power it's making up in lasting power. We've been buffeted by winds hour after hour, still steady rain coming down. The wind right now is coming in from the north, it's changed somewhat. We're getting one of those last bands of Fay blowing over this area.

You can see the bridge. This connects Punta Gorda with Port Charlotte across there. You can see these palm trees were protected by this hotel, also being blown around in the wind. Yesterday talking with people, would they stay, would they leave?

I was amazed at the saturation. I'm not talking about the water. I'm talking about all the coverage and how much people know nowadays about these storms. It was interesting hearing people say, with these upper level wind disturbances it will shred the hurricane. Once it gets over land it will lose its integrity. I think it will only have 50 to 60-mile-an-hour winds but I'm worry about the tornadoes once the storm, not hurricane, blows inland and that's exactly what we've seen.

But people here in Punta Gorda, Heidi, they know a lot about hurricane damage. 2004, Hurricane Charlie blowing through here, just decimating a number of mobile home parks. We talked to people who live in those parks today, the ones who have been rebuilt. They say, I'm either going to bat down the hatch and leave or I'm going to go to a more secure place. Really a lot of people heeding these warnings. They have heard about that possible tornado you talked about. They also are concerned in here that even though it isn't as bad as it could have been, they are worried about the possibility of tornadoes in this area. So really people heeding the advice, at least the ones we have talked to.

Heidi?

COLLINS: OK. Well, that's good news. We love it when they listen to warnings. Thanks so much. Sean Callebs from Punta Gorda, Florida, thank you.

Jacqui Jeras now tracking Fay in the Weather Center for us this morning.

Hi, Jacqui.

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hey there, Heidi.

You know, been watching this thing over the last couple of hours, in particular, and the funny thing that strikes me is that this storm looks better right now over land than it pretty much did during its entire life cycle.

So we're still holding steady. Our 11:00 advisory is in and tells us that Fay is still holding maximum sustained winds at 60 miles per hour. So that is really still packing a punch. You can see the center of circulation, it's about 30 miles now to the east of Ft. Myers and it's going to take its time moving and that's going to be one of our greatest concerns, that this is going to start to slow down in forward speed, and that means that flooding is going to be a great concern as well.

Check out some of the wind speeds. Now keep in mind these are sustained winds, and this doesn't mention the wind gusts which are well beyond that. Right now Ft. Myers at 22 miles an hour, 20 down there in Naples, West Palm Beach about 23 miles an hour, Ft. Lauderdale looking at 21. That's a pretty stiff wind and certainly at the minimum, going to blow your garbage cans around and any of your furniture if you didn't do that.

There you can see the eye of the storm. It really looks like an eye, doesn't it? The center of circulation, we've got a nice strong core still outside of this storm where some of the heavier showers and thunderstorms are. So the structure of this system still really remaining intact.

Where does it go from here? Well, here we go again. You know, Fay still consistently inconsistent on where it wants to go. Best estimate at this time is that we think it will continue to move northeasterly, start to pull up to the north. Then we've got what we call a high pressure ridge coming in from way up north, and that's going to start to push Fay back towards the west.

You know, unfortunately for a lot of people in the southeast, we've been looking for this storm to potentially be a drought buster, at least bring drought relief. Unfortunately, the most likely scenario right now I think is going to keep it more into South Georgia and northern parts of Florida.

Here you go for the flood watches in effect for four to eight inches very likely in all of the watch area. We already have some flood warnings in south Florida because we're getting a lot of urban flooding as a result of this. This is our computer model forecast showing you how much rain we're expecting. This is just in the next 24 hours. Notice much of the coastal areas here, particularly along the east coast, looking at a good three-plus inches. Daytona Beach looking at maybe four, five inches. Look at all of that offshore, Heidi. That big white blob we're talking 10 to 20 inches of rainfall that's if Fay stays on the set track. If it stays a little farther off to the west, that's a lot of water over northern Florida.

COLLINS: That's the trick, staying on track. That's for sure. Jacqui, we'll check back later on. Thank you.

Just awful weather as well in the Rio Grande Valley. Torrential downpours flooding streets in Roma, Texas. Look at that, 13 inches of rain, stalled cars, waterlogged homes. A sheriff's department spokesman says about 750 houses were flooded. Close to 250 people had to leave their homes. Authorities say they are not aware of any injuries this morning. Roma is in Star County. That's along the Texas/Mexico border. In the next hour, we'll check on the situation with an emergency management official actually in this hour, pardon me, emergency management from Star County.

On the campaign trail, the presidential candidates stumping in southern states today. Democrat Barack Obama started his day in Florida talking to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Convention in Orlando. Next stop for him, North Carolina where he'll hold a town hall meeting this evening at the state fairgrounds in Raleigh.

Republican Senator John McCain spoke to the VFW yesterday. Today, he is looking for votes in Louisiana, visiting an offshore oil platform near New Orleans. Later in the day, he will head to Texas.

Critical choices coming soon. We are getting word both presidential candidates close to naming their running mates. Barack Obama's announcement could come as early as tomorrow and John McCain's likely next week.

CNN's Candy Crowley is on VP watch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Barack Obama is within days of announcing his vice presidential choice. It will begin with a text message to supporters and sources say it will be followed by a series of events designed to roll into next week's convention with maximum excitement. Who he has picked is another matter.

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you, New Mexico!

CROWLEY: During veepweek a campaign stop is less about what's said than where it is. In veepweek, geography and choreography are clues.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The next president of the United States!

CROWLEY: Obama would love to put New Mexico in the Democratic column this fall and Bill Richardson, the governor standing there with Obama, might be able to deliver it. As it happens, Richardson also appeared on television over the weekend on behalf of Obama. During Veep season Sunday talk shows are widely viewed as tryouts. So along with Richardson last Sunday, Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana and Virginia Governor Tim Kaine. Just a couple of weeks ago, Bayh was all the talk when he campaigned with Obama. But later this week Obama is scheduled to campaign in Virginia. And much has been made of a counter-clue as well -- Joe Biden, currently gaining currency in the Veepstakes, has been uncharacteristically quiet.

Republican and campaign sources close to John McCain say there are plans in the works for John McCain to have a big blowout of his own, naming his VP pick a week from Friday, the day after the Democratic convention. Sources envision a series of events starting in Ohio. However, they caution, those plans are not in cement now and they could change.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm pleased to be here today in Cocoa Beach.

CROWLEY: McCain was talking to veterans in Florida, a state with 27 electoral votes, where the governor is Republican, Charlie Crist. Other clues, talking the talk last Sunday, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

GOV. MITT ROMNEY (R), FMR. MASSACHUSETTS GOVERNOR: I've got nothing for you on the VP sweepstakes. Anything in that regard ought to be directed to the McCain campaign.

CROWLEY: Also on the Sunday roster for McCain, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge, and the frequently mentioned Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty.

GOV. TIM PAWLENTY (R), MINNESOTA: I don't talk about the vice presidential stuff because I think it's mostly speculation. I just have stopped talk about it.

CROWLEY: He may be the only one.

Candy Crowley, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Quickly want to get you some new pictures that we have in to the CNN NEWSROOM from other affiliate in Oklahoma City, KOCO. We are looking at Canadian County. There you can see it for yourself, a whole lot of rain. We've been talking about it a little bit this morning in Texas and Oklahoma. These are some of the first pictures coming in. We want to make sure to get them out to you. Again, the Oklahoma City area, Canadian County, if you happen to be familiar with it, you can see the damage there. Boy, oh, boy, it does not look pretty.

We'll take a moment and get over to Jacqui Jeras to talk a little bit more about this. And the problem, Jacqui, is it came down so fast and furious all at the same time.

JERAS: Yeah. We had a lot of rain in this area. We've got a disturbance here that's just been kind of sitting and spinning for a while that's brought down torrential downpours. We've also had extensive flooding going on in Texas as well. Flash flood watches and warnings have been issued and unfortunately the rain isn't going to let up anytime soon.

Believe it or not, this is part of the system that brought all of the heavy rain and cold snow into parts of Colorado last week. It was a system that we thought would help maybe steer Fay a little bit. Unfortunately, it just kind of got stuck in its place. That's why we're seeing so much rain in this area.

There you can see some of that flood water. Now, I understand that there's some river flooding going on in the northern Canadian River, and that's in Oklahoma City. They are forecasting the flooding to continue here, but they think it will be minor flooding and much of this hopefully will stay agricultural and stay out of the city.

Heidi?

COLLINS: All right. Very good, Jacqui. We know you're watching it closely. Appreciate that.

On to this now. NATO says Russia is not keeping its word. The group's ministers held an emergency meeting on the South Ossetia crisis this morning. They said Russia is not adhering to the cease- fire with Georgia and it won't be business as usual until it does.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, SECRETARY OF STATE: This document is a very clear statement that this alliance, NATO, having come so far after the end of the cold war and the collapse of the Soviet Union in achieving a Europe that is whole, free, and at peace, is not going to permit a new line to be drawn in Europe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: Russia and Georgia today swapped prisoners. We want to show you this video we have in. The prisoners had been captured in the brief conflict. That exchange is part of the cease-fire agreement.

And there is word just out of Georgia, Russian troops have taken more prisoners as well as some heavy U.S. equipment.

CNN's Barbara Starr is standing at the Pentagon with more on this.

What's happening with this, Barbara?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well Heidi, still a bit of a confusing picture. I have to tell you, Pentagon officials say they have seen almost no evidence so far today of Russian troops withdrawing from Georgia and there is some indication of just the opposite.

There are now pictures coming out of the port city of Poti in Georgia that do indeed show Russian troops driving away in American military equipment. That is a picture of some of the prisoners being taken. But this is U.S.-origin equipment you see now, U.S. humvees. This is somewhat an old vehicle. No one is really sure. Maybe the Georgians themselves were operating that one.

In a minute you'll see a tan-colored desert armored humvee vehicle, the type that are used in Iraq, being driven away from this Georgian port city by Russian troops. Now, some of this equipment was in the port waiting to be loaded up and returned back to the United States, the U.S. troops had been in Georgia on a training exercise.

So there's a good deal of concern about what exactly the Russian forces are up to in Poti. Also, U.S. officials say there's some indication that Russian troops have basically stolen some U.S. military supplies of food also in that port waiting to be loaded up and come back home, concerned about those 20 Georgian soldiers blindfolded and being driven away. So still a very tense situation all around between Georgia, Russia, and the United States, Heidi.

COLLINS: An awful lot going on, Barbara. Also, this U.S. base in Afghanistan that was attacked, what do we know about that at this point?

STARR: One of two very major attacks in Afghanistan over the last day or so, Heidi. A place called Camp Salerno, out in the east near the Pakistani border, for the second time this week, a major attack. This time U.S. and coalition troops killed six of seven suicide bombers trying to attack the camp through front gate.

Of course, earlier ten French troops killed east of Kabul when they were ambushed by a dozens of Taliban on the road there. That was a four-hour firefight between the French and insurgent forces. A good deal of concern emerging about these large scale attacks and the extent to which the insurgents are watching the coalition troops very closely and planning and staging these attacks, Heidi.

COLLINS: All right. CNN's Barbara Starr coming to us this morning from the Pentagon. I know you've got a lot to follow today. Barbara, thank you.

Headed home from the bank. A mugger chokes this elderly woman in the elevator and takes her cash. Police need your help now finding him.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: It was supposed to be a fun trip to the Grand Canyon, but it didn't exactly turn out that way. Flood victims telling us their stories today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: We want to show you a mugging suspect in New York. Maybe you can help. New York police released this video of the man heading into a Brooklyn apartment building. Police say he may be preying on the elderly and they need your help in catching him.

Watch this now. The suspect in an elevator. That's 85-year-old Lillian Fran getting off the elevator at her apartment building, grabbed from behind and choked. She apparently blacked out and falls to the floor. The attacker made off with $900. He also ran off with her cane. If you know anything about it, New York police are asking you to call.

Army commanders at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma, defending themselves. "USA Today" reporting the army failed to treat mold in the barracks for recovering wounded soldiers. The top general at Ft. Sill denies the army took its time at fixing the problem.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. PETER VANGJEL, FT. SILL COMMANDING OFFICER: The implication that we don't care about our soldiers or that the concerns for their go unheeded for months is simply not true.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: The commanding general say disciplinary actions are being considered against a captain who ordered soldiers not to talk publicly about the mold.

It was supposed to be an adventure, but visitors and rafters at the Grand Canyon didn't expect a flood to put their lives in danger. There are nearly a dozen people are still missing after a flash flood over the weekend. Searchers out again today.

CNN's Chris Lawrence has been following this story. He talks to some of the people who were rescued. He reports now from Peach Springs, Arizona.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Of the hundreds of people rescued from the Grand Canyon, this story may be the most frightening.

CEDAR HEMMINGS, RESCUED FROM CANYON: We thought, you know, the river would come down, we'd be fine. But then middle of the night --

LAWRENCE: Cedar Hemmings was one of 16 men on a rafting trip down the canyon. They had tied down their rafts to go hiking Saturday when the rain suddenly came pouring down.

HEMMINGS: Then 15 minutes the first flash happened, and we knew the boats were gone.

LAWRENCE: A flash flood so intense it flushed all five rafts down the river. That's terrifying. No food, no supplies, and then no light. Right then and there the group decides not to try to climb out of the canyon.

HEMMINGS: It's dark. We have limited light. You know, the safest place for us is going to be at the river.

LAWRENCE: So the group scrambles up to a small alcove just above the rushing water.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We huddled up together in the dirt and, you know, slept the best we could.

LAWRENCE: It's pitch black. They're on a rocky ledge, and then the Redlands dam breaks.

HEMMINGS: You're laying there half asleep in the rocks and you hear this huge freight train wall of water moving towards you in the dark. You have no idea how big it is.

LAWRENCE: Or how long it would last. It wasn't until Sunday afternoon that helicopters found all 16 and airlifted them out. The group says it stayed alive by staying calm, believing the ledge was high enough to stay above water but still close to where the rescue teams would be searching.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, Peach Springs, Arizona.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: Want to give you another look at what's happening in Canadian County, Oklahoma. This is basically the Oklahoma City area. You're looking at some new video from our affiliate there KOCO. Some rescues have had to take place because of this massive amount of rain that's come into the area of Texas and Oklahoma, actually, using zodiac boats to get people out of their homes. Some people have been evacuating, as you can see. Other people a little bit more stubborn and staying in their homes. If you do have power in the area, listen to the warnings for the specific area that you're in. Once again, video coming in from the Oklahoma City area, people using rescue boats to get residents out safely. We'll stay on top of that story for you. Back in a moment here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: They took it to be healthy, but did it make people sick? A popular diet supplement under scrutiny this morning. CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here with more.

What's this about?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: This is about a drink, as you said, people took it to get healthy. Now there's reports according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution that at least 197 people are sick. These are products called Total Body, tropical orange, peach nectar. There are various flavors, and the FDA tested these products after the complaints that people were sick and found hazardous amounts of a mineral called selenium.

We did reach out to Total Body and two other companies that are involved in litigation that has happened since, and the lawyers for Total Body said that the company depends on the people who make it to make it correctly. You can see now the company is voluntarily recalling many lots of this and saying, talk to your doctor if you drank any of this product. A second company Tex American Food Blending is in litigation. They won't talk, and a third company Right Enrichment, which also involved in the manufacturing of this product, they deny the claims and they vigorously defend what they did to make this product. But the FDA said, we analyzed it. Hazardous amounts of selenium.

COLLINS: We should back up probably because I have to say I have no idea what selenium is.

COHEN: Selenium is a mineral that's found in meat, it's found in Brazil nuts, some kinds of fish. In amounts that are found nationally it's not a problem. But when it gets too high, it can cause serious problems. Let me list some of the serious problems; significant hair loss, nausea, cramps, joint pain, fingernail changes. A small amount is good, large amount not so good.

COLLINS: It is naturally occurring, but you can't double and triple and quadruple doses.

COHEN: Right.

COLLINS: The people who are sick, will they get better? Is this some sort of chronic condition they have now?

COHEN: No. According to the federal officials who commented on this, they say it goes away. You feel sick and then it goes away. Some of the folks who have been sick, they say this hasn't necessarily happened in this way before. What are the long-term implications of this illness?

COLLINS: Of course, nobody knows that.

COHEN: Nobody knows for sure. COLLINS: When you take a supplement out there on the market, this is sort of the age-old question, who does regulate that?

COHEN: Well, they are regulated by the FDA, but a lot of people will tell you they're not regulated as strictly as drugs. They don't have to go through the same approval process. When there's a problem, the problems don't get reported in the same way that problems from a drug would get reported. So to some extent you are kind of taking things into your own hands when you use these supplements.

COLLINS: No question. All right. CNN medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen, thank you.

To get your daily dose of health news online, you can logon to our web site. There you will find the latest medical news, a health library and information on diet and fitness. That address CNN.com/health.

Countdown to the VP picks this hour. We're taking a look at John McCain's top prospects.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Emergency officials warn south Floridians to stay inside when Tropical Storm Fay came ashore. Here is some jaw-dropping video now of one thrill-seeker who didn't take Fay's threat seriously enough.

(VIDEO CLIP)

Boy, every time I see that it makes me cringe. A 26-year-old man is in critical condition now after a mighty gust slammed him into the beach. He was actually strapped into a harness on that kite board and wasn't able to free himself before a second gust came and lunched him into the side of a nearby building. Witnesses say that fierce winds may have been kicked up by a forming waterspout in the area.

(WEATHER REPORT)

Want to get this just in to the CNN NEWSROOM, out to you now. We are learning that former Vice President Al Gore has accepted a speaking role at the Democratic National Convention. It's going to happen on the final night of the convention. Of course, he'll be appearing on the same stage that Barack Obama will officially then receive the party's presidential nomination.

Not sure what he'll say in his speech of course, or, at exactly what time he will give it. But we do know and we have been reporting there's going to be a lot of people there at INVESCO field. They're expecting the crowd to be something like 70,000 or so. So, once again, former Vice President Al Gore has accepted a speaking role at the Democratic National Convention.

Republican presidential candidate John McCain looking for votes in Louisiana today. He is visiting an offshore oil rig platform. Yesterday he talked to the VFW convention in Florida.

Let's listen to what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I suppose from my opponent's vantage point, veterans concerns are just one more issue to be spun, or worked to advantage. This would explain why he also has taken liberties with my position on the GI bill.

In its initial version, the bill failed to address the No. 1 education request that I've heard from career service members and their families. The freedom to transfer their benefits to a spouse or a child. The bill also did nothing to retain the young officer and enlisted leaders who form the backbone of our all-volunteer force.

As a political proposition, it would have been much easier for me to have just signed on to what I considered flawed legislation. But the people of Arizona and all of America expect more from their representatives than that. And instead, I sought a better bill. And I'm proud to say that the result is a law that better serves our military, better serves military families and better serves the interests of our family.

With less than three months to go before the election, a lot of people are still trying to square Senator Obama's varying positions on the surge in Iraq. First he opposed the surge and confidently predicted that it would fail. Then he tried to prevent funding for the troops who carried out the surge.

Not content to merely predict failure in Iraq, my opponent tried to legislate failure. This was back when supporting America's efforts in Iraq entailed serious political risk. It was a clarifying moment. It was a moment when political self-interest and the national interest parted ways. For my part, with so much in the balance, my friends, it was an easy call. As I said at the time -- I would rather lose an election than lose a war.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: We're bringing you the candidates in their own words. In the NEWSROOM a little bit later on, you will hear from Barack Obama.

John McCain is thinking about naming his running mate after the Democratic convention ends next week.

CNN's Josh Levs is on the VP watch.

I feel kind of like this is a bit of a Super Bowl kind of thing. We're all trying to figure out who's going to go with what team.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is. And you know what? You were asking earlier about Vegas and people betting on this.

COLLINS: Yes. Did you check it out? LEVS: At the end of this, I have kind of an answer for you that's closer than Vegas.

COLLINS: Oh, good.

LEVS: Let's go in on this screen because I know everyone's liking to see who some of these the top contenders are. We have it for you at CNN.com.

We're going to start off with Tom Ridge, former governor of Pennsylvania. Big pros for him. The GOP has not actually carried Pennsylvania for about 20 years in a presidential race. Also, his Homeland Security background. But, he as a pro-choice moderate which might ultimately not help McCain win over social conservatives.

I'm going to switch over to Mitt Romney now. He's obviously has his own battle for the presidency this year -- former governor of Massachusetts. Now, he has a strong business resume. Some people question whether McCain will be good on the economy. He could help sure that up. But, there is so much video out there on him attacking McCain, some questioning whether that would hurt a general election.

Let's skip over here. Let's go to Tim Pawlenty now. Getting a lot of attention these days. Now he -- Minnesota governor -- he's Barack Obama's age. A lot of focus on John McCain's age. Could this help balance out the ticket? Also, maybe he could help bring in Minnesota to the GOP side. But, even within Minnesota, a lot consider him polarizing. It's not clear he could help McCain get those 10 electoral votes.

And finally I'm going to show you this. Charlie Crist, Governor of Florida. Now, as we know, often lately presidential races can come down to Florida. If he could help McCain win Florida, that could be big. But, some social conservatives have a problem with him. He opposed federal intervention in the Terry Schiavo case. So, there are some of the dozen that we're focusing in on right now. You can learn more about all of them -- CNNpolitics.com

And now, how to bet on the veepstakes. Heidi, I know you're going to like this. I didn't know about this until recently. At CNN.com, we have this thing called Political Market where people are doing that right now. They're betting on who is going to win this thing. Now, it's virtual. You get 5,000 virtual dollars when you sign up. But, as of right now on the Democratic side, Kathleen Sebelius is edging out Joe Biden. People are guessing she's going to get it. And over here on the GOP side, Mitt Romney has a pretty strong lead over Tim Pawlenty.

Now, I'm not imaging that McCain and Obama are taking their cues from this, but Heidi, you never know.

COLLINS: Yes. You never know. And you're certainly not advocating betting, either. I thought that's what you were going to say.

LEVS: No, it's all virtual. No, it's like Monopoly money. My favorite kind.

COLLINS: Me too.

All right. Thank you, Josh.

LEVS: Thanks, Heidi.

COLLINS: CNN tomorrow night, two documentaries to tell you who our presidential candidates really are. These back-to-back specials go in depth like nothing you've ever seen before. Don't miss "Revealed," John McCain at 8:00 and Barack Obama at 9:30, only on CNN, your home for politics.

Gun loaded and cocked. Burglar halted in his tracks by an 85- year-old great-grandmother. You won't believe what she had him do next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Armed and dangerous. An 85-year-old woman is no easy mark for a would-be burglar.

Reporter Allen Jennings of affiliate WPXI has the story from Lake Lynn, Pennsylvania.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALAN JENNINGS, WPXI REPORTER (voice-over): Leda Smith, an 85- year-old great-grandmother discovered a side door of her house had been kicked in. She calmly grabbed her had loaded pistol to stop the intruder right in his tracks.

LEDA SMITH, STOPPED BURGLAR: Got my gun and I turned around and I said, you've had it. I took the gun and he turned around and walked away.

JENNINGS (on camera): So you pulled the hammer back.

SMITH: I was ready.

JENNINGS (voice-over): The intruder was caught red-handed in Leda's bedroom. He was attempting to steal her jewelry.

SMITH: I said, what are you doing in my house?

JENNINGS (on camera): This is -- you're pointed the gun at him.

SMITH: I had the gun on him then. Uh-huh. I had it on him before he turned around.

JENNINGS (voice-over): Trooper Brian Burden told us Leda Smith ordered the burglar to call 911 from the phone in her living room. Then she said, hand the phone to me. She told 911 to send the state police. And when they arrived, they were in for a little surprise.

TROOPER BRIAN BURDEN, PENNSYLVANIA STATE POLICE: She had him proned out on the floor, laying face down with his hands out.

JENNINGS (on camera): Well, did you make him do that?

SMITH: Yes.

JENNINGS: What did you say to him?

SMITH: I stood here behind the couch with the gun on him. I said, move. I said, lay down on the floor, turn your face away from me, put your arms out, spread your legs.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS: There you go. Love that story. Charges have now been filed against the 17-year-old suspect and an alleged accomplice.

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

COLLINS: John McCain took a swipe at his judgment. Today, Barack Obama, firing back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: Barack Obama reaching out to veterans today. The Democratic presidential candidate talked to the VFW Convention in Orlando this morning, hitting back at John McCain over the Iraq War and clarifying his own position.

Earlier, we heard from Senator McCain and now, Senator Obama and what he's saying.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: For the surge, I argued that the long-term solution in Iraq is political. The Iraqi government must reconcile its differences and take responsibility for its future. That holds true today.

We have lost over 1,000 American lives. We've spent hundreds of billions of dollars since the surge began. But Iraq's leaders still haven't made hard compromises or substantial investments in rebuilding their own country. The military is badly overstretched, a fact that has surely been noted in capitals around the world. And while we pay a heavy price in Iraq, Americans pay record prices at the pump. Iraq's government is sitting on a $79 billion budget surplus from windfall oil profits.

So let's be clear, our troops have completed every mission they've been given. They have created the political space for reconciliation. Now, it must be filled by an Iraqi government that reconciles its differences and spends its oil profits to meet the needs of its people. Iraqi inaction threatens the progress we've made and creates an opening for Iran and the special groups it supports.

It is time to press the Iraqis to take responsibility for their future. The best way to do that is a responsible redeployment. (APPLAUSE)

The best way to do that, I believe, is a responsible redeployment of our combat brigades, carried out in close consultation with commanders on the ground. We can safely redeploy at a pace that removes our combat brigades in 16 months. That would be well into 2010, seven years after the war began.

After this redeployment, we'll keep a residual force to target remnants of al-Qaeda, to protect our service members and diplomats, and to train Iraqi security forces if the Iraqis make political progress.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: From politics to weather now. In fact, we're getting in some i-Reports as Tropical Storm Fay moves through Florida. This one from Brian Bellino who lives in Tavernier, Florida. He took this video of the squall coming through from his boat in Islamorada.

This video from James Thompson in Key West, Florida, shot it yesterday when a seawall fell down near a resort. They're using shovels trying to unblock an area of the seawall that drains floodwaters and takes pressure off of it.

And Bobby Pate shot this video from his front porch in Lower Matecumbe. His high house is on the gulf side but he can see the Atlantic side from his porch. He estimates the palm trees are blowing in winds up to 60 miles per hour. Those are the actual speeds that we've been hearing and reporting here.

So when the weather becomes the news, remember to send us your i- Reports. Just go to ireport.com, or type ireport.com into your cell phone. But remember, please stay safe.

Michael Phelps jumps back into the pool, not for another gold medal, but for a cause close to his heart.

You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COLLINS: New challenge for multiple gold medal winner Michael Phelps, helping others get in to swim. The U.S. hero of the Beijing games told CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING," he's serious about swim safety.

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MICHAEL PHELPS, WON 8 GOLD MEDALS IN BEIJING: One of my goals growing up was always to change the sport of swimming. And, I watched Michael Jordan change the sport of basketball. And today, I just finished the last lap with Hilton's Swim to Beijing. And there was $100,000 raised for USA swimming to help kids become more water safe and -- I think, that's going to be something that is -- going to be something I'm going to be working on for the rest of my life. And I think that -- I can definitely change the sport and raise the bar. (END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: That fundraiser for USA swimming had people doing 6,250 laps in the Hilton Hotel pool. That's the number of miles between Los Angeles and Beijing. Pretty cool.

Remember Billie Jean King? Twelve Grand Slam tennis singles titles, former No. 1 player in the world -- 35 years ago this week, she was preparing for the tennis match of her life, the famous battle of the sexes against Bobby Riggs. King has written a new book about the amazing pressure of that match and about how she blazed the trail for women. She's in the NEWSROOM in the 2:00 hour, so make sure you don't miss that.

Meanwhile, CNN NEWSROOM does continues one hour from now.

"ISSUE #1" with Gerri Willis and Christine Romans starts right now.