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Alternative Energy in Doubt; Early Voting; Palin Speaks in Nevada; ACORN Workers Target of Attacks; New Accusation of Voter Fraud

Aired October 21, 2008 - 12:00   ET

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

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And hello again, everyone. I'm Tony Harris. And here are the headlines for Tuesday, October 21st.
Showdown in the battleground states. A look at the candidates' strategies in the last lap of this election.

Plus, the economy in an election year. New polls out this hour about the key issues driving voters to the ballot box.

And the latest on the U.S. plans to leave Iraq.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

The last lap. Presidential candidates and their running mates hitting the battleground states. John McCain hopscotching across Pennsylvania. He is holding three rallies there today, then he takes his message to New Hampshire. His partner, Sarah Palin, is on the other side of the country. She's got a rally in Reno, Nevada this hour. We will bring that to you live. Later, Palin heads to Ohio.

Barack Obama, meanwhile, fighting for Florida. He and his wife, Michelle, have separate events there today. Then it is off to Virginia for the Democrat. And Joe Biden, this hour campaigning in Colorado. We've got that live for you as well. Can we squeeze it all in?

Now to Republican John McCain's fight for votes in the battleground state of Pennsylvania. I asked our Dana Bash about the significance of Pennsylvania and why John McCain is traversing the state all day today, kicking off in the city of Bensalem.

DANA BASH, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Tony, you know, it is really hard to overemphasize just how critical this state is now for John McCain. Aides say at this point, the way the map looks, he pretty much has to win Pennsylvania in order to have any shot at winning the White House. And you know, a Republican hasn't won here in 20 years, and right now CNN's poll of polls shows that McCain is 13 points down.

Now, this is the first of three stops that McCain has here in Pennsylvania, and at this particular stop, he tried to make the case that Obama says one thing to one crowd and something else to another.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I heard, maybe you did, too, that Senator Obama was showing some love to the devil rays down in Tampa Bay yesterday.

Now, I'm not dumb enough to get mixed up in a world series between swing states. But I think -- but I think I may have detected a little pattern with Senator Obama. It's pretty simple, really. When he's campaigning in Philadelphia, he roots for the Phyllis. Then when he's campaigning in Tampa Bay, he shows love to The Rays. It's kind of like the way he campaigns on tax cuts, but then votes for tax increases after he's elected. The way he says he backs the middle class, and then goes and attacks Joe the Plumber after Senator Obama's asked a tough question.

What's that all about?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, for the record, Obama didn't say he was going to back the Tampa Bay Rays, simply that he was going to show them some love. Now, with regard to Pennsylvania, what McCain aides are hoping is that his tax message is really taking hold here. This whole idea that he is impounding Obama on, that he is liberal, that he is somebody who would quote/unquote, "spread the wealth" and using Joe the Plumber over and over again in order to push that message.

But it really is a big, big steep hill for McCain to climb here. This county, Bucks County used to be heavily Republican. Now, there are more Democrats registered than Republicans. And -- well, this crowd was boisterous. Certainly boisterous. The fact of the matter is, there was plenty of empty space. Perhaps more people were expected to come -- Tony.

HARRIS: All right. Dana, thank you.

HARRIS: Our Suzanne Malveaux is covering the Obama campaign in Florida, and we will check in with her later in the hour. You know, the election is shaping up to be a real nail-biter. The latest polls show a nation divided. Our John Roberts explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Just 14 days left now in this election and this race is beginning to tighten up a little bit. Let's remind you of where we are with the electoral vote projections. Currently, Barack Obama with 277, John McCain with 174. If the election were to be held today, of course, 270 needed to win the White House. Let's take a look at presidential travel here. Our frame of reference. It's the results from the 2004 election.

John McCain yesterday was in Missouri. He was here in St. Charles, which is just outside of St. Louis, in northwestern suburb, of course. Missouri is a state that has picked successfully every president except one, 1904 on. The only time they made a mistake since then was 1956. So, John McCain would like to keep Missouri in the win column. As you can see, very much Republican territory. He was also here in Belton, Missouri, yesterday. And here's the reason why he's spending some time here. A latest poll, CNN Poll of Polls have John McCain two points ahead of Barack Obama in this Bellwether State. That's up actually just a little bit from our last poll of polls which had him ahead by one point.

Senator Obama, for his money, is spending a lot of time in the Sunshine State down here in Florida. This is where early voting began yesterday. A lot of voters enthusiastic about the prospects for 2008, got out there and you can see the lines stretching around the polling places here. So, Senator Obama trying to get a little bit of a kick, spending some time in the Sunshine State while the early vote going on. Traveling this I-4 corridor. He was in Tampa yesterday, Orlando as well. A joint appearance with Senator Clinton. Today, he is in Lake Worth, in Palm Beach County, as well as Miami. And here's the reason why.

He's got a slim lead here. Three points. The latest CNN Poll of Polls has him ahead 49 percent to 46 percent. Those margins were a little higher in the last poll of polls. He was up by four. So things starting to tighten up there in the Sunshine State as well.

John McCain will be moving on to the State of Pennsylvania. He's got campaign appearances here Bensalem and Bucks County, as well Harrisburg and Pittsburgh. There are some people, though, who are a little confused, a little perplexed as to why Senator McCain is spending so much time here in the Keystone State, because if you take a look at the latest CNN Poll of Polls, Senator Obama is ahead by 13 points. Many people believe that that's just out of reach. That Senator McCain would be better off spending his time and his money in some other states, where he might have an easier time pulling back from Senator Obama.

So, John McCain will also be spending some time here in Ohio. He'll be here in Greene, a suburb of Cincinnati as well as Cincinnati proper. This is a state that George Bush won. It's a big state. Very important state with 20 electoral votes. Senator McCain would certainly like to put this one on the win column. In fact, he probably has to if he wants to win the White House. And here's the latest polling. Senator Obama ahead by three points. That's about where it was. So, things haven't really tightened up here in the State of Ohio, as they have in some other states.

But certainly it is beginning to tighten up nationwide. Just to remind you where we are with our latest CNN Poll of Polls, Barack Obama ahead now, 51 percent to 46 percent, that is a margin of plus five for Senator Obama. That margin had been plus 8 last week. So, things, Tony, as we get into the final two weeks of the campaign, certainly tightening up. A lot of people expected that they would. It's going to be an interesting race -- Tony.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: It will. John, appreciate it. Thank you.

And check out our "Political Ticker." For all the latest campaign news, just log on to cnnpolitics.com. Your source for all things political.

How is the economy impacting you? New CNN poll numbers this hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Eight minutes after the hour, everyone. Welcome back to the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Tony Harris.

Is it time for phase two of the economic stimulus package? What should be included?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: Do Americans think we're in a recession, and how will the economy affect the vote? New poll numbers out this hour. Bill Schneider is aboard the Election Express in Charleston, West Virginia.

Bill, good to see you again. What are Americans saying about the economy?

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, it is by far the number one issue. When we asked people how important is the economy to the vote you're going to cast in this year's presidential election? It is the only issue of about 12 tested. The only issue where more than half said it was extremely important to their vote.

In fact, that number has been growing. In January, 45 percent said the economy would be extremely important. In June, it was 58 percent. Now, it's 61 percent. What's the next most important issue? Exactly half, 50 percent say terrorism. Other issues, fewer than half say will be extremely important, including gas prices, which as we know have been going down, the war in Iraq, which is expected to be a dominant issue, 45 percent say that will be extremely important. Immigration, abortion, no. Fewer than one-third say those issues will be extremely important. So it's clearly the election is dominated by the economy.

HARRIS: And, bill, a pretty straightforward question here. Is the U.S. in a recession?

SCHNEIDER: If you ask the American people, three quarters say, yes, it is. Fewer than a quarter say the country is not in a recession. In fact, more than half say, or rather, half say it will last more than a year. A third of Americans say the recession is a serious recession, not a mild recession. And 41 percent, that's over four in ten, say that they think the United States is not just in a recession, but that there will be a depression in this country sometime in the next year. So the concern about the economy is very, very deep, indeed.

HARRIS: Yes. All right. Bill Schneider for us in West Virginia. The economy, and how you feel about it. The focus of our attention all day tomorrow right here on CNN.

Bill, good to see you. Thank you, sir. President Bush says the economy still has a long way to go. So what does he think about a second stimulus package to help jump start the economy?

Here's White House correspondent Elaine Quijano.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just weeks before Election Day, President Bush defended his administration's handling of the financial crisis.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: People's attitudes are beginning to change from a period of intense concerns, and I would call it near panic, to being more relaxed and beginning to see the effects of the changes and the liquidity that are being pumped into the system. Now, we've got a long way to go.

QUIJANO: But the president made no mention of an idea gaining steam in Washington, passing a second economic stimulus package. For the first time, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke endorsed the idea Monday.

BEN BERNANKE, FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: Consideration of a fiscal package by the Congress at this juncture seems appropriate.

QUIJANO: Bernanke predicted a weak economy for months to come, a stark assessment underscoring how bleak the U.S.' economic picture is.

On CNN's "LATE EDITION," a top Bush economic adviser even used the word "recession."

ED LAZEAR, CHAIRMAN, COUNCIL OF ECONOMIC ADVISERS: We are seeing what I think anyone would characterize as a recession in certain parts of the country.

QUIJANO: Against that backdrop, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino told reporters aboard Air Force One the administration remains open-minded to all ideas, including a second stimulus deal. But she cautioned, any such bill needs to actually jump-start the economy.

Meantime, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said taxpayers should get their money back from the bailout plan and then some.

HENRY PAULSON, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: This is an investment, not an expenditure. And there's no reason to believe that this program will cost taxpayers anything.

QUIJANO (on camera): And as the cameras were being ushered out of that room in Louisiana, a reporter asked the president, "Do you support a second economic stimulus package?"

He didn't answer at first, then said, "look at the quotes from my press secretary, Dana Perino," a moment that seem to underscore how the President feels compelled to weigh in on the idea albeit cautiously. Elaine Quijano, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HARRIS: Well, expressing your financial fears at the ballot box. Tomorrow, we're focusing all day long on how your money problems may impact this election.

Are we getting close to a security agreement between the United States and Iraq, or is it all about to unravel? I'll get some answers from Baghdad.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: A possible problems with the U.S. plan to exit Iraq. Iraqi officials now objecting to a security deal that was set to be in its final stages. Our Phil Black is in Baghdad.

And Phil, good to talk to you. What is the latest on the agreement?

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is a significant setback to this Status of Forces Agreement or SOFO. Which it's hopeful to replace the current United Nation's mandate which has what allows U.S. Forces to be in this country. That mandate expires at the end of the year. The negotiating team from both sides have been thrashing this out for some time now. They've come up with a document, but this document has now been rejected unanimously by the cabinet of the Iraqi government.

This multiparty cabinet says that it's sending the document back with a list of concerns, and amendments that it wants changed. It says it's doing this to raise the agreement to a level that is nationally acceptable. What that means is they're trying to reshape this document into something that they believe has any chance whatsoever of passing through Iraq's parliament -- Tony.

HARRIS: Well, is this rejection of this agreement some kind of reflection of the massive protest that we saw from Iraqis on the streets of their country over the weekend?

BLACK: Certainly. We did see a big protest there. Tens of thousands over the weekend marching in objection to this agreement. Those marches and certainly the general feeling of objection towards this agreement are all based around one issue, and that is sovereignty. The Iraqis want back control of their country. They want to be calling the shots. And their objection to this is really expressed through two particular clauses in this agreement.

One is the issue of Iraqi legal jurisdiction. Iraq has been pushing for that jurisdiction to apply to all U.S. Forces under all circumstances. The document describes a compromised situation where they only get to prosecute or potentially prosecute U.S. Forces for alleged wrongdoing either off-duty or off-base. They're not happy about that. The second issue is, is the withdrawal. It outlines dates for withdrawal. All U.S. troops from towns, villages and cities by half way through next year. Troops gone from the country altogether by the end of 2011. They're happy with those dates, but what they don't like is the flexibility in the agreement which would allow both sides to say, we think the troops can stay here longer. They want -- just to be a hard deadline...

HARRIS: Got you.

BLACK: ...and they want to guarantee that the U.S. Forces will be out by then -- Tony.

HARRIS: Well, hang on just a second here for me, Phil. So, let's just say for the sake of this discussion there is no new SOFO agreement in place by the end of the year. Is the United States, to your knowledge, willing to seek an extension on the U.N. mandate?

BLACK: Can it do that? Yes. Does it want to do that? Well, almost certainly not. The U.S. officials are saying publicly at least, that this document is the one that they're stand by. They don't believe it needs to be changed and their emphasis is on getting it through the Iraqi political process. Quietly, they've told us that they are looking at a couple of fallback procedures, either a less official agreement or the potential of going back to the U.N. Security Council for a new mandate. It's not ideal.

The U.N. Security Council isn't the place that it once was. It would be bringing in a whole lot of opinions from a whole lot of other countries, including some that haven't been too friendly lately, like Russia -- Tony.

HARRIS: Like Russia. OK. Phil Black for us from Baghdad.

Phil, good to see you. Thank you.

So, let's get back to the election. Last week we told you about ACORN, an organization that has come under attack in recent weeks for alleged voter registration fraud. This week, their offices and some of their workers have become targets of attacks. Veronica De La Cruz joins us now with news from the Web.

And Veronica, what are you seeing?

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN INTERNET CORRESPONDENT: Well, Tony, word of these attacks started percolating on the Web. We're going to go and start with the McClatchy Web site. They are the ones who first reported the story saying that the day after McCain accused the organization of committing one of the greatest frauds in voter history, ACORN offices were broken into and workers were harassed.

And the article says a spokeswoman for the group claims a senior ACORN staffer in Cleveland received a death threat after appearing on television and says the threat was then traced back to a Facebook page with a McCain-Palin photo. The spokesperson also claims a female staffer in Rhode Island received a threatening call from someone who said words to the effect of "we know you get off work at 9:00," and then went on to mutter racial epithets.

And on the blog post on the "New York Times" this morning, Tony, claims that both the Boston and Seattle offices of the organization have been broken into and vandalized, and also provided these links to raise voicemail messages warning not for the faint of heart. And then on "The Huffington Post" this morning, claims that a man who is ranting about the ACORN organization punched a woman in the face while she was canvassing.

So, Tony, I was able to speak with ACORN, who had this to say. They said "Senator McCain should condemn acts of racism, distraction and threats of violence. But there is something more important that he could do to stem the atmosphere of fear and hatred. Back away from the false charging he's leveled against our organization. Senator McCain and his supporters know or could easily find out that their core charge against ACORN, that it has ever been involved in trying to help someone vote improperly is simply not true."

And then, Tony, I also spoke with Ben Porritt, who was a spokesperson for the McCain campaign for their reaction to these attacks. Here's what Ben had to say. He says, "There's no communications from the McCain campaign with the ACORN organization. And every opportunity Senator McCain has, he has condemned egregious examples of attacks on the campaign trail" -- Tony.

HARRIS: Wow. Boy, at least we can say 99 percent of the country is behaving honorably in this whole process. There are always a couple out there, though. Aren't there?

DE LA CRUZ: It's out there on the blogs. I'm just reporting what's on the blogs.

HARRIS: Yes. Veronica, appreciate it. Thank you.

Are some voters being registered to a political party without their knowledge? New accusations now of voter fraud.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK. I want to give you a look at the big board. New York Stock Exchange here, and the Dow, as you can see, is down 196 points. The fact is the Dow has been down most of the day. I would love to be able to squeeze in a market check here, but it's busy, busy, busy here in the NEWSROOM. You've got a Sarah Palin event coming up in Henderson, Nevada. But if we can squeeze to check in with Susan Lisovicz, we will certainly do that. The Nasdaq, the tech heavy Nasdaq, is down 50 points as well.

Record crowds are showing up at the polls across the country for early voting. People had to wait hours to cast ballots in several Florida counties yesterday. Florida Congressman Kendrick Meek said he was considering filing a lawsuit, here we go, to have additional voting machines put in place to accommodate the turn out.

Big crowds also turned out to vote early in Texas. So many that in Corpus Christi, the computers were overwhelmed causing the machines to freeze up for 15 minutes. Nationwide, about one-third of the voters are expected to vote early this year. That is up significantly from previous years.

Amid early voting, we've been reporting about possible voter registration fraud in several states.

CNN's Ted Rowlands reports on accusations that a group is tricking people into registering as Republicans.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 25-year-old Mark Jacoby was arrested for allegedly lying about his own home address on two voter registration forms in order to do business in California. The charges against Jacoby are serious but have nothing to do with the outcome of an election yet. After his arrest, California's secretary of state was talking tough.

DEBRA BOWEN, CALIFORNIA SECRETARY OF STATE: This is serious. It is a felony to register falsely.

ROWLANDS: Jacoby runs a company which finds people at places like grocery stores to sign petitions or register to vote. According to the California Republican Party, Jacoby's company registered about 50,000 people for them this year, and was paid between $7 and $12 per person. Authorities say some of those people have complained that they were lied to, told they were signing petitions supporting tough laws against child molesters, not signing up to become a Republican. Jacoby hasn't been charged with wrongdoing related to those complaints.

JANE ROBISON, L.A. COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY SPOKESWOMAN: That investigation is ongoing by our office into allegations that his company allegedly signed people up, re-registered them unbeknownst to them.

ROWLANDS: But the California Republican Party is crying foul. They accuse the secretary of state of using this case to make headlines to deflect recent ACORN criticism against Democrats. The secretary of state denies that allegation. Some experts say both parties are blowing cases of voter registration fraud out of proportion.

RICHARD HASEN, LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL: People should stop with the hyperbole that, you know, we're going to have a stolen election, that fraud is rampant and that the fabric of our democracy is threatened. None of that is true. But nobody should worry about the integrity of our electoral process.

ROWLANDS (on camera): Jacoby is out on $50,000 bail. His attorney says he has done absolutely nothing wrong.

Ted Rowlands, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE) HARRIS: All right. You know, when gas prices are really high, we heard a lot about alternative energy sources. What's happening now? We'll get an energy fix when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HARRIS: OK, very quickly, let's take you to Reno, Nevada, right now. Republican Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin is speaking. Let's listen in.

All right. We are going to come back to this event in just a moment. Lee Greenwood is about to sing. When Sarah Palin begins her remarks, we'll take you back to Reno, Nevada.

You know, when we began our energy fix segment earlier in the year, the goal was to offer ways for people to cope with high prices. But over the past few months, oil prices have tumbled dramatically. So today Poppy Harlow will begin a two-part series looking at how the slide is affecting the search for alternative energy. She joins us from New York.

Poppy, good to see you.

And the fact is, the discussion is changing a bit, isn't it?

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: It's certainly changing. And, you know, a lot of people were even praying for cheaper gas and lower oil prices over the summer. Now they got what they wanted. And we have a whole other mess on our hands now that oil has tumbled more than $70 from that peak we saw in July. That in and of itself is an energy fix for all of us. But on the other hand, it's prompting corporations around the world to pull back on plans to invest in cleaner, renewable energy.

Yesterday, two Canadian companies postponed plans to expand their oil sands project in Alberta, Canada. Some analysts say that could become a trend because crude really needs to stay close to $100 a barrel for oil sands producers to actually make money on their investment.

Another problem, it take a while to crank out new technology when it comes to energy. And when we saw those energy prices spike earlier in the year, companies really committed to building winded farms, electric car, developing biofuel. But prices turned south right before those projects could maybe get funded or even completed.

And these are for-profit companies, Tony. A lot of them are public. They have to answer to their shareholders. And, in the end, they have to make money. That's the bottom line.

HARRIS: Well, you're talking about funding there. I'm curious about the credit crisis and what kind of an impact it is having on alternative energy?

HARLOW: A major impact. It's the lack of financing that's a big problem because a lot of these new technology projects require a huge up-front investment. Everyday investors simply are not as enthusiastic as they once were. That's what's happening now.

In the last quarter, an index, which is made up of renewable energy companies, fell 30 percent. That's more than three times the decline we saw on the S&P 500. So you can see how investors are feeling right now about these alternative energy companies.

Earlier this month, a German solar company canceled its IPO. Tesla Motor, that electric car company, is now delaying plans to roll out a cheaper version of its electric sedan. That's until, Tony, a government loan kicks in. So the money's just not out there right now.

HARRIS: We said that this is a two-part series that you've embarked on. What's up tap for tomorrow, Poppy?

HARLOW: Right. So tomorrow -- now we know what the challenges. Tomorrow we're going to talk about what the future of alternative energy looks like. The candidates talk about it all the time. We're going to address whether there is a future at this point. And, also, you can get all your energy fixes right there on our web page. We'll have more for you tomorrow, Tony.

HARRIS: Outstanding. All right, Poppy, thank you.

You know, as we think about an energy fix and falling oil prices, we're thinking about heating oil as well. And it's starting to turn a bit chillier, if you haven't noticed. Let's check in now with Chad Myers.

Chad, good to see you, sir.

(WEATHER REPORT)

HARRIS: All right. Our I-Reporter are actually voting early and sending in their I-Reports as they go to the polls to vote early in many states around the country. Boy, early voting is now available in every state around the country. Let's take a trip down to cnn.com I- Report desk and check in with Tyson Wheatley.

Tyson, good to see you.

TYSON WHEATLEY, CNN.COM: Good to see you.

HARRIS: And some of our I-Reporters, this is kind of cool, are sending in I-Reports of their experience.

WHEATLEY: Yes, that's right, Tony. I mean we have polling stations, early voting all across the country, as you mentioned. And, you know, a report that came out recently suggesting that up to a third of voters this year might actually do some absentee or early poll voting.

HARRIS: That's right.

WHEATLEY: And we have some examples that I want to show you. This first -- let's go to a video. This first one comes to us out of Hollywood, California. Take a look at it.

So this comes to us from Ryan Basilio of Hollywood, California. He shot this video as he was filing his absentee ballot yesterday. And he plans to mail it in today. You know, what's cool about this video is, he walks us through the ballot process. He's explaining, through hand written signs, how he was voting and why. And at the end he writes, you know, it doesn't really matter if you vote early, it just matters that you vote. He encourages everyone to go out and let their voice be heard. He voted for Barack Obama, but against California's proposition 8, which is a proposed ban on same-sex marriage.

HARRIS: Yes. Are you inviting more folks to send in more of these I-Reports? It looks pretty cool.

WHEATLEY: Yes, we are actually. You know, if you come here to ireport.com/desk, we are inviting people today. We're getting early polling from all across the country. From Florida, from Las Vegas area. And we want people to go and tell us about it, you know? So, yes.

Actually let's go to this example.

HARRIS: You've got another example for us?

WHEATLEY: Yes, I got another example out of Indiana I want to show you. This comes to us from Leslie Jones McCloud. And she took these pictures out of early voting out of Crown Point, Indiana. And, you know, what's interesting here is that this is actually -- there's a legal battle happening right now out of northwest Indiana over some early voting satellite sites where local Republicans are claiming that the system invites fraud and phony regulations. So -- and actually there's an Indiana supreme court judge in expected to decide on this as early as today. So we'll see how that plays out.

HARRIS: Well, let's hope we get some more of those I-Reports. That's good stuff that folks are bringing us their experience.

All right, Tyson, good to see you. We'll see you tomorrow.

Let's take you now to Reno, Nevada, and Sarah Palin.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

GOV. SARAH PALIN, (R) VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That have cropped up recently in the press. And it is not mean-spirited and it is not negative campaigning to talk about someone's record, their plans, their associations or recent comments that they've made. So let's get right into it.

First, did you hear that Senator Biden said at a fund-raiser on Sunday, he guaranteed that if Barack Obama is elected that we will face an international crisis within the first six months of their administration. He told the Democrat donors to mark his words, it will happen. That there were at least four or five scenarios that would place our country at risk in an Obama administration. I guess we've got say, well, thanks for the warning, Joe. So he didn't specify what those four or five scenarios will be, but precludes, just have to go to the Obama foreign policy agenda to find out what maybe this would be.

First, our opponent wants to sit down with the world's worst dictators, with no preconditions. He's proposing to meet with a regime in Tehran that vows to wipe Israel off the earth. Now, let's call that crisis scenario number one. OK.

Now, Senator Obama, too, having advocated sending our U.S. military into Pakistan without the approval of the Pakistani government. Invading the sovereign territory of a troubled partner in the war against terrorism. We've got to call that scenario number two. OK.

Then he opposed the surge strategy that has finally brought victory in Iraq within sight. Our opponent has voted to cut off funding for our troops, leaving our young men and women at grave risk in the war zone. He wants to pull out leaving some 25 million Iraqis then at the mercy of an Iranian-supported Shiite extremist group and al Qaeda in Iraq by his own admission. This could mean our troops would have to go back to Iraq. That's crisis scenario number three.

And then after the Russian army invaded the nation of Georgia, Senator Obama's reaction was one of indecision and moral equivalence. The kind of response that would only encourage Russia's Putin to invade Ukraine next. That's crisis scenario number four.

But I guess the looming crisis that most worries the Obama campaign right now is Joe Biden's next speaking engagement. Let's call that crisis number five.

See, the real problem is that these warnings from Joe Biden are similar to his earlier assessment. Remember, throughout the primary, it wasn't that long ago, he said, Barack Obama wasn't up to the job. He's not ready to be president. He said, I quote, "the presidency is not something that lends itself to on the job training." The same Joe Biden said he would be honored to run on the ticket with John McCain because, he said, the country would be better off with John McCain.

And finally, then, here we have some common ground, because I do want a president, too, who spent 22 years in uniform defending our country, always putting his country first, fighting for you. I want a president who isn't afraid to use the word victory when he talks about the wars that America is fighting. I do want a president who is ready to lead on day one. I want a president with the experience and the judgment and the wisdom and the truthfulness to be able to meet the next international crisis, or, better yet, to avoid the next international crisis. I do want John McCain as our next commander in chief.

Nevada, you have such a great history of understanding our men and women in uniform and the mission there and the great respect and patriotism you have shown also. As Lee Greenwood was suggesting also, the men and women here in this group today, who should be honored, if you would do us the honor, raise your hand if you have served in the past or are serving today in uniform. We want to thank you guys!

Thank you. Thank you. We thank you.

And we do thank you for your service, for your sacrifice. Thank you for loving our country.

Nevada, this election is going to come right down to the wire. It's a close election. I know, though, that we can count on the residents of the battle-borne state to fight to the finish.

Nevada, are you ready to make John McCain the next president of the United States? Yes. Are you ready to help carry this state to victory? And are you ready to send us to Washington, D.C. to shake things up?

Thank you.

I know that here you, each and every one of you, you are here because you understand the stakes in this election. This is so important. This is about the future of America. And I say that as I look at these young kids in the audience. It's about their future. God bless you. It's about your future.

Our country is facing tough economic times right now. And now, more than ever, we need someone tough as president. We need a leader with experience and courage and good judgment and truthfulness. We need someone with a bold and free plan, with pragmatic, real solutions, a fair plan of actions to take this country in a new direction. We need John McCain.

John and I will help our families keep their homes, and help our retirees keep their savings. Those investments that they have worked so hard for and then they trusted other people to manage those dollars for them, we will help them keep those savings and investments. We'll help all of us to afford health care. And we're going to help our students pay those college tuition bills. We want you to get that education. Yes. Our plan will get this economy back on the right track. And we start by doing this, by bringing tax relief to every American and every business.

Here in Nevada, small business owners and the employees are the backbone of the economy. The backbone of this great state. How many of you in this crowd own a small business or work for a small business? You are the backbone.

See, this is the reflection you hear of who it is that makes this country great with entrepreneurial spirit that cannot be squashed. We're going to talk a little about that, about our opponent's plans to squash that. You are the backbone of this economy, small business owners and employees. We're going to let you keep more of what you earn and produce so that you can hire more people. That's how jobs are created.

John and I will lower your income taxes and we will double the child tax deduction for every family. And we'll cut the capital gains tax. And we'll cut business taxes. You know, right now the business tax in the U.S. is the second highest in the world. No wonder jobs are going elsewhere. We'll cut business taxes to help keep America businesses in America.

You know, when it comes to taxes, you have a real, clear choice on November 4th. And I want to talk about this for a minute because our opponent is not being candid with you all about his tax plans. And, again, it's not negative. It's not mean-spirited. We're going to keep doing this, calling someone out on their record and on their plans.

And you know why? It is in fairness to you, to the electorate, to have everyone understand what the choice is on November 4th. You have to really listen to our opponent's words. You have to hear what it is that he is saying because he is hiding his real agenda of redistributing your hard-earned money. He says -- he says that he's for a tax credit, which is when government takes your money, takes it away from you and gives it to someone else.

John McCain and I, we're for a real tax cut, which is when government just takes less of your earnings in the first place. This allows you to reinvest and to save and to make good choices according to your priorities. Ultimately this helps jobs be created and gets the economy back on the right track.

And, you know, I think we really need to hand it to old Joe the plumber, over there in Toledo, Ohio, recently. Because somehow he succeeded in doing something that the rest of us have not been able to do. And that is, he got our opponent to finally state his intentions in plain language.

Senator Obama finally says he wants to spread the wealth. Which, again, means government taking your money and dolling it out however a politician sees fit. Barack Obama calls it spreading the wealth. And Joe Biden calls higher taxes -- he calls that patriotic. But Joe the plumber said it sounded to him like socialism. And now is not the time to experiment with socialism.

So when he left Joe's neighborhood in Toledo, I don't think there -- our opponent was real pleased. It seems that their staged photo op got ruined by a real person's real question. Joe wanted more than a handshake and a campaign button. He wanted some answers. So he asked. He just simply asked a simple and straightforward question. And he spoke for so many Americans. And the Obama campaign did not appreciate that. And now they're investigating and attacking good, old Joe the plumber.

But a lot of folks around our country are starting to identify with Joe. Just the other day, in New Mexico, I saw a sign that said, Ed the dairy man. And at a rally for Senator McCain in Virginia, there was a man named Tito Munoz (ph) who owns a small construction business. We can call him Tito the builder. And here in this crowd, I saw some great placards already. We have Ann (ph) the engineer. We have Dave the cop. We have Jeffrey the hockey player. We've got another miner. We've got John the only Republican in my high school. Goodness. OK. So there are a lot of people around this nation identifying with Joe the plumber. So Tito, Tito the builder. He isn't pleased how the Obama campaign and its media friends have been roughening up Joe the plumber. He has a question of his own. And Barack Obama isn't going to like this one either. Tito wants to know, and I quote, "why the heck are you going after Joe the plumber?" "Joe the plumber has an idea. He has a future. He wants to be something else. Why is that so wrong?"

Tito is an immigrant from Colombia. And he also had this reminder for us. And his quote, he said, "everything is possible in America." He said, "I made it. Joe the plumber could make it even bigger than me. I was born in Colombia, but I was made in the USA!"

So Tito isn't the only -- yes.

CROWD: USA! USA! USA!

PALIN: So Tito isn't the only McCain supporter who feels that way. Again, signs reading Phil the brick layer, and Rose the teacher, and Corrina (ph) the nurse and others. I guess if you work hard and if you want to get ahead, and if you believe that America is the land of possibilities, and you don't want your dream dashed by the Obama tax increase, and if you don't like the way our opponents have treated a guy who just asked a simple question, then we're all Joe the plumber, too. Yes!

So do we have some Joe plumbers in the house today? We do. Thank you. Doesn't sound like you're supporting Barack, the wealth spreader in this election.

Nevada, that is because you understand. You understand that his plan to redistribute wealth will ultimately punish hard work. It discourages productivity. It will stifle the entrepreneurial spirit that made this the greatest country on earth.

You see, our opponent's plan is just more big government and big government -- that's the problem. That's not the solution. Instead of taking your hard-earned money and spreading your wealth, we want to spread opportunity so people like you and Joe can create new wealth and create new jobs.

So we're going to put government back on the side of the people. And we're going to confront the federal government's $10 trillion debt that they've run up. $10 trillion that we're expected to pass on to the next generation of Americans. No, that's not right. That's not fair. That will not happen on a John McCain watch. And we will impose a spending freeze to cover all but the most vital functions of government. We have to do this.

HARRIS: Republican Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin at a campaign stop in Reno, Nevada.

We're going to take a quick break and come back and wrap up this hour of CNN NEWSROOM and hand thing over to Kyra Phillips in just a moment.

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