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Pakistan and Syria Claim U.S. Airstrikes; Obama Rallies Colorado Supporters; McCain Talks Taxes in Ohio; Hudson Family Pleas on MySpace

Aired October 26, 2008 - 18:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello everyone, I'm Don Lemon at the CNN NEWSROOM. No rest for the candidates, crisscrossing the country, honing in on the battleground states. They're speaking live and we will surely take you there.
Few clues this hour in a family tragedy. A 7-year-old boy still missing. Two people dead. An Oscar-winning actress takes her case to the Internet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It means so much to all of us, it's not just a house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: It is a sad sign of the times. A mother in tears, losing her home to foreclosure. But this time, there's a silver lining that will warm even the hardest heart. The news starts right now.

We begin this newscast with breaking news overseas. Two alleged cross border attacks today by the U.S. military, one reportedly was inside Pakistan. More on that in just a moment. But first, Syria claims U.S. helicopter gun ships flew from Iraq and attacked a Syrian farm, killing eight people. CNN's Cal Perry joins us now from Baghdad. And Cal, four of eight of those people are believed to be children?

CAL PERRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Don. This is all coming, we should stress, from the Syrian news agency, which is putting out these releases on behalf of the Syrian government. The U.S. military for its part is only saying that this incident is under investigation. What the Syrians are saying is about eight hours ago about 4:45 p.m. local time, along the Syrian/Iraqi border, five miles in the Syrian territory, eight people were killed by U.S. helicopters.

Now the Syrians have said consistently that their air space is being violated by the U.S. military, but they're putting up very strong statements saying "Syria condemns and denounces this act of aggression. We hold the American forces responsible for this aggression with all of its consequences."

We know that in Damascus, both the American Charge d'affair and the Iraqi Charge d'affair have been called in by the Syrian government. We understand that what they're being told is that Iraq and especially the Iraqi Charge d'affair is being told by the Syrians, Iraq will not be a staging ground for attacks on Syria.

Now this border is obviously very important for the region. It's about 600 kilometers long. The Syrians for their part say they're doing everything they can to secure the border, but with the current U.S. stations, they don't have all the equipment they need. The U.S. military for its part does not want to give the Syrians certain equipment. They believe that it could fall into the hands of terrorists. The Syrians obviously would disagree with this, Don.

LEMON: CNN's Cal Perry -- Cal, we appreciate your reporting.

Now to the alleged air strike in Pakistan. Our source is a person in the Pakistani military who did not want to be named. And according to that source, a missile strike possibly from an unmanned U.S. drone hit a village in south Waziristan, part of Pakistan's tribal border region. At least seven people may have been killed in the alleged attack. Just days ago, the Pakistani parliament condemned any incursion by foreign forces on Pakistani territory.

All right, we're talking 10 issues in 10 days. Really, 10 issues in nine days now, we're counting down to Election Day. Breaking down the issues you care about most and telling you what the presidential candidates want to do about them. The problems and the plans, from education to health care and homeland security as well. Today, we look at taxes, 10 issues, 10 days, only here on CNN.

And they're both talking about taxes, each of them. Barack Obama, John McCain, holding rallies right now. And there they are. McCain is in Ohio, Obama in Colorado, two battleground states that could make all the difference nine days from now when the votes are finally counted. We have reporters standing by at both of those events and we're going to start in Colorado where CNN's latest statewide poll of polls gives Barack Obama a seven-point lead, 50 percent to John McCain's 43 percent. CNN's Jessica Yellin is standing by for us in Ft. Collins. Hi, Jessica.

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Don. Well Barack Obama has wrapped up another one of his mega rallies here where he gave an enthusiastic call for voters to get out early and vote and once again hit on the issue that you have been talking about, the difference between his tax plan and John McCain's.

We've heard a lot about this lately, especially with Joe the Plumber on the scene and Barack Obama made the point that Joe the Plumber and most plumbers would get a tax cut under his proposal. He says that John McCain is focused on giving a tax cut to the wealthiest. Obama points out that his tax plans would return $500 to an average American and $1,000 to the average American family if they make less than $250,000.

He says he does propose rolling back George Bush's tax cuts but returning the nation to the levels of taxation under Bill Clinton, which he says was hardly socialism.

He's also going after John McCain and his campaign tactics. This is what he had to say at a rally that took place earlier today in Denver. Let's listen. I'm sorry, I guess we don't have that sound bite, but Don, I'll tell you, Barack Obama is starting now to give what he's calling his closing message and that message is that he believes if he becomes president, the nation will be better off four years from now than it is today. Don?

LEMON: Jessica Yellin in Ft. Collins -- Jessica, thank you very much.

John McCain is holding his own battleground rally this hour. He's holding his second Ohio rally of the day in a state where our latest poll of polls shows him trailing Barack Obama by five points, 49 percent to 44 percent. Our Ed Henry is traveling now with that campaign and he joins us now from Zanesville. And as I understand, John McCain has taken the stage, Ed.

ED HENRY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. He just started speaking, Don, and it's all about the economy. He's talking about taxes. Ohio, a critical battleground, even more so than Colorado because no Republican has ever won the White House without carrying the Buckeye State. These 20 electoral votes, critical for John McCain. And in fact, he's talking right now about Barack Obama's tax plan. He's brought up Joe the Plumber. Let's listen in to John McCain.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My friends, tax and spend, tax and spend. We've already seen a preview of their plans. It's pretty simple and pretty familiar, as I said. Tax and spend. When Barney Frank, the chairman of -- you know what he said? He said we're going to, this is his words, "focus on an immediate increase in spending" and we should take him at his word. And then he says, "there are a lot of very rich people out there who we can tax."

It's safe to assume he's talking about you, because the Democrats voted for in their budget to increase taxes on individuals making $42,000 a year. And Senator Obama has voted 94 times for tax increases or against tax cuts. The rhetoric is nice. The record is terrible. It's of the most liberal senator in the United States Senate. And he earned it.

They think there are a lot of "very rich people" out there. Rich for Senator Obama and the Democratic Congress means change in your pocket. Barney Frank previewed more of the Democratic congressional agenda when he proposed cutting defense spending by a quarter, by one fourth, slashing defense funding, while our troops -- while our troops are at war and our ground forces are already too small.

At a time when Senator Joe Biden guarantees, guarantees, that's his words, there will be a crisis if Senator Obama is elected president. The Democrats' answer to the challenges we face is to lower our defenses and raise our taxes. That's not the vision I have for America. I want to strengthen our defenses and lower our taxes.

You know, the next president won't have time to get used to the office. We face many challenges here at home and many enemies abroad in this dangerous world. And while I'm at it, I want to tell you again, I will bring our troops home with victory and honor and not in defeat. They will come home with honor! They will come home with honor. And if Senator Obama had had his way, they would have come home in defeat and surrender and we would have been back. We'll never allow that to happen.

My friends, we can't spend the next four years as we have spent much of the last eight, hoping for our luck to change at home and abroad. We have to act. We need a new direction and we have to fight for it. I've been fighting for this country since I was 17-years-old and I have the scars to prove it. If I'm elected -- if I'm elected president, I will fight to shake up Washington and take America in a new direction from my first day in office to my last. I'm not afraid of the fight. I'm ready for it.

I'm not going to spend $750 billion of your money just bailing out the Wall Street bankers and brokers that got us into this mess. I'm going to make sure we take care of the working people who are devastated by the excesses, corruption and greed of Wall Street and Washington. And one of the first things we have to do here in Ohio and across America is keep people in their homes. Let's go out, let's buy these bad mortgages, give them a mortgage they can afford and stay in their home and realize the American dream.

They're not doing that now, my friends. We have got to keep people in their homes. That's what my first priority has got to be. I have a plan to hold the line on taxes and cut them to make America more competitive and create jobs here at home. We're going to double the child deduction for working families, we'll cut the capital gains tax, we'll cut business taxes to help taxes, to help create jobs and keep American businesses in America. Raising taxes makes a bad economy much worse. Keeping taxes low creates jobs. It keeps money in your hands and strengthens our economy.

If I'm elected president, I won't spend nearly a trillion dollars more of your money. Senator Obama will and he can't do that without raising your taxes or digging us further into debt. I'm going to make government live on a budget just like you do.

HENRY: OK, you can hear John McCain there. This is essentially the closing argument here in Ohio for John McCain. Three points, first of all, charging again that Barack Obama will raise taxes. Second, charging that Obama is not ready to be commander in chief. And third, a little bit of new element, John McCain now saying look, if Barack Obama wins with a Democratic Congress, Democrats are going to run the entire government.

So that's going to be something we're going to hear a lot in the final nine days. And I should also explain Don that the lights are sort of out there on stage, you see. There were some jokes about it before from Lindsey Graham saying we need to buy new air conditioning, there's a power problem here. Obviously, the McCain camp hoping that's not a metaphor for this campaign, the lights going out here tonight, Don.

LEMON: Ed, it doesn't seem like he's letting that stop him. So maybe the lower lights and the more intimate mood might be helping his spirits there. But one interesting thing I picked up on, this is just a nuance, small. He said, "if I'm elected president," not "when." I usually hear the candidate say "when I'm elected." And I usually hear the candidates say "when I'm elected president." Should we be reading anything into that?

HENRY: Probably not too much. It's interesting that you picked up on that, maybe a little bit of a slip. I think today earlier on a Sunday morning talk show, John McCain made clear, he used Newt Rockne, the former Notre Dame coach about giving your all and said he was going to close this as a fighter. He thinks he's coming back in the national polls and John McCain, despite that slip-up, is insisting he's still going to win this.

LEMON: One more point that is probably a little bit more -- that is a little bit more serious than that. He says "I have spent my life fighting for this country and I've got the wounds to prove it," and that -- a rousing applause from that crowd, who are obviously very proud of John McCain and his war hero status.

HENRY: Don, you're absolutely right. What's interesting, today is the 41st anniversary of John McCain's plane being shot down in Vietnam, 41st anniversary today. That was mentioned a few moments ago. And you're absolutely right, big response from this crowd. It is still one of the qualities, one of the characteristics that John McCain has, one of the best things he can present obviously to the voters, his lifetime of service and obviously in the military and serving as a prisoner of war, obviously a very, very dark period in his life but something he's presented to the voters a lot in this campaign, Don.

LEMON: Ed Henry, thank you very much. Nine days till Election Day and it appears John McCain has energized -- has a lot of energy today out on the campaign trail. We appreciate your reporting. We'll get back live to the senator if he makes any news. We want to hear what you're talking about tonight. What is on your mind? Log on to Twitter, onto Facebook, MySpace or iReport.com and tell me what you're thinking. We'll get your comments on, we promise. We'll get some of your comments on. We love hearing from our viewers.

Also, is your right to vote safe this year? A lot of people are asking that question. There have been computer glitches, there's voter fraud going on, at least allegations of it. It is all possible. An expert will weigh in on that.

Plus, the devastating scene of watching your foreclosed home sold at auction and then this story, it is heartwarming. An angel walks right into the room to help.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We're getting new developments in tonight in the family tragedy surrounding Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Hudson. Well two days after her mother and brother were shot, found shot to death in their Chicago home, police are canvassing the South Side, that neighborhood, in search of Hudson's missing nephew. Aaron Baskerville of CLTV has more on this. AARON BASKERVILLE, CLTV CORRESPONDENT: Seven-year-old Julien King has been missing now for two days and everyone here at this church is thinking about him and the rest of Jennifer Hudson's family. So far the investigation continues with no sign of that little boy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BASKERVILLE (voice-over): Chicago police are holding a roll call on Halsted Street in Englewood, handing out flyers to businesses and residents in the area, looking for missing 7-year-old Julien King. Investigators now say 27-year-old William Balfour is out of the custody of Chicago police and now in the hands of the Illinois Department of Corrections, for violation of parole on an unrelated case. Apparently, attempted murder charges, charges he was convicted on in 1999.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's all I'm going to say, he's no longer in Chicago police custody.

BASKERVILLE: Balfour is the stepfather of the 7-year-old and the estranged husband of Jennifer Hudson's sister. He is still considered a person of interest in the ongoing investigation by Chicago police. On Friday, Hudson's mother and brother, 57-year-old Darnell Donerson and 29-year-old Jason Hudson were found shot to death in their Englewood home.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'll be honest with you guys, I don't think that guy in the police station has this kid. Someone else is involved in this. If you are watching this and you're involved in this and you know where that kid is, just drop the kid off, man.

BASKERVILLE: At Progressive Baptist Church in Hainesville, the congregation is prying for the safe return of missing 7-year-old Julien King, the boy known as "Juice Box," the nephew of Academy Award winning actress Jennifer Hudson. Several members of her family attend the church. It held a reception for Hudson before she received her Oscar.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're praying for the Hudson family that everything will work out well. We're just waiting to hear from the entire family. But right now the church is just praying.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BASKERVILLE: Balfour has not been charged with any crime. Apparently police are trying to use his cell phone records to track his whereabouts on Friday. The FBI has been called in to assist. In Hainesville, Aaron Baskerville, CLTV News.

LEMON: If you know anything about that case, please call authorities. As a matter of fact, at the bottom of the hour, Jennifer Hudson's family is speaking out about this terrible tragedy. We will hear what they have to say and what she has to say as well.

Let's move on now and talk about the weather. It's not even winter yet, but some of you might be putting on your winter coats starting tomorrow. Jacqui Jeras is going to tell us where. Where, Jacqui?

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hey, Don. Well starting tonight, some people are going to need it if you're planning on heading out on a Sunday night. But arctic high pressure starting to grip the nation's midsection. We're talking the first hard freeze in the end of the growing season, if anything is still growing out there, for many. And this storm is on the move and will be impacting more than just the Midwest. Find out who else is involved. Detroit, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: You've surely seen the best political team on television covering the race for the White House, you've seen that all year for at least two years now since these people have been running for president. But there's also another team working overtime to cover this election and we appreciate them as well. It's our CNN i- Reporters. Take a look at this.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SINGING)

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LEMON: That film was submitted by Kat Edmonson. She's just one of our 20 finalists, I should say. Tonight, we'll introduce you to the winning film. That announcement coming at 11:00 p.m. Eastern right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. The winner gets a trip to Washington, D.C. during the week of the presidential inauguration. Go online to i-Report.com to watch all of the films and submit your own i-Reports.

The mercury is dropping and it probably is not going to be as cold as it will be in Washington during the inauguration, Jacqui Jeras, but in the midsection today, there is a hard freeze right?

(WEATHER REPORT)

LEMON: The family of an emerging superstar reaches out to her fans as tragedy strikes. A message on Jennifer Hudson's MySpace page that she wants you to see.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: I'm Don Lemon at the CNN world headquarters here in Atlanta. If you're just tuning in to us, here are the headlines for you. The person who viciously attacked a TV anchor woman in Little Rock, Arkansas, could now face murder charges. Twenty-six-year-old Anne Pressly died yesterday of those injuries. She was found severely beaten in her home last Monday after failing show up for work. Police have not named a suspect. They believe Pressly was attacked during a burglary.

In Chicago, police are handing out flyers, hoping to get a lead on the whereabouts of actress Jennifer Hudson's young nephew. Seven- year-old Julien King has been missing from the home where Hudson's mother and brother were found shot to death on Friday. The family of the Oscar winning actress has even turned to her MySpace site to get the word out about the missing boy. Our Josh Levs has been looking into this angle and Josh, in this day and age you can't count out the Internet and those social networking sites. They could turn up clues on that.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, it's huge, it's huge. There have been cases in America and obviously they're going to use everything they can. Look, you don't need me yapping. The picture are going to tell the story here. Let's zoom in. I want you to see this -- I'm not even at her page yet. This is MySpace.com. This is in the main MySpace in general. MySpace.com, leading with a picture of her.

If you click on it, it brings you to her blog at MySpace, her MySpace page. It says right here, "thank you all" -- I'm going to scroll down a little bit because I want everyone to see the message from the Hudson family that has now been posted. I'll read it to you.

"Thank you all for your prayers and your calls. Please keep praying for our family and that we get Julien King back home safely. If anyone has information about his whereabouts, please contact the authorities immediately." Then they go on to say, "here's a picture of Julien, what he was last wearing. Once again, thank you for all being there for us during this tough time."

As we scroll down, we're going to see some photos of him. And Don, these are the photos that we have seen that have been submitted to the public. And then you see some messages from people. Let's just take a look at one of the top ones here. "I'm truly sorry and hope you can go on with your life and your family. You're in my prayers. Keep doing what you're doing."

Now this is not the only way to let her know that you're thinking of her. At i-Report.com, some people are doing that right here. And let me show you an example. This is one from someone who is going by griffin1. If we scroll down a little bit, should be able to get there. Griffin1 writing us over here. There you go. Talking about the latest in the search, saying "we will keep her in our prayers."

There's also one really beautiful message that came to us from an i-Reporter. Let's go to the graphic. I put this together here. It came to us from Suzanne Africa Engo. It says, "Jennifer Hudson, I am so sorry to hear about the brutal death of your family. My thoughts as and prayers go out to you. Stay strong. All my love and affection, Suzanne Africa Engo."

And we invite you if you want to send your thoughts to her, the family, or what you think about this whole situation, iReport.com. Feel free to send videos or photos or just your stories, your thoughts. Obviously we're going to keep sharing them with people here.

And while I'm up here, I cannot let you go without letting me know we are following this story very closely, 24/7. All the latest details are continuously up, CNN.com. And Don, I don't know if you've seen them, but some of these photos are just so powerful. You could stare at them for a while. Obviously we are all feeling these heart wrenching emotions for this family. Everyone praying that that child is brought home safely.

LEMON: And that's Jennifer Hudson's sister right there. I was just looking through some of the social networking sites that we use here at CNN, Twitter, MySpace and all of those things. I have to tell you Josh, I came here from Chicago and so someone called me to give me a tip on this. I mean, not even 30 seconds later I got a Twitter message saying is the Hudson story true? So like I said, you can't count out the Internet and these social networking Web sites because word spreads fast and they might actually get some information.

LEVS: Anything can be the key. You know, seeing the picture on TV, they're seeing him here online. Obviously, hoping everyone keeps an eye out for this child.

LEMON: Would you know her official MySpace page?

LEVS: All you need to do right now is go to MySpace.com and can click on it. But when you're there, it's one of the celebrity ones and it will take you through from there. You go to "Celebrities" and apparently she is one of the top celebrities everybody is clicking now on that celebrity blog.

LEMON: If you go here to CNN.com, to iReport, we'll get some of that I'm sure. Thank you so much, we really appreciate that. Once again, we want to show you Julien King's picture. An Amber Alert remains in effect for the 7-year-old boy. He's 7-years-old, he's 4'11", 130 pounds and police are also searching for a white Chevy Suburban. The Illinois license plate number is this. It is X584859. If you have any information, please call police or any law enforcement agency in the Chicago area.

All right, we're in the last leg of a very long race for not just for the new president, it could mean that Democrats win enough seats in the Senate on November 4th to forge a filibuster proof majority. Our Kate Bolduan follows the powerful GOP senators who have suddenly found themselves in rough re-election bids.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), KENTUCKY: Let's go out there and get them.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Senate's top Republican Mitch McConnell, along with another big Republican name, Senator Elizabeth Dole.

SEN. ELIZABETH DOLE (R), NORTH CAROLINA: How are you all?

BOLDUAN: Both locked in tight races. They are two examples of why Senate Democrats are talking 60, the potential to dominate the Senate with a virtual filibuster proof majority. It would maximize their ability to push through a Democratic agenda. SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: We're feeling very good that we're going to pick up a successful amount of the large number of seats and have a successful election. As for 60, it is possible.

BOLDUAN: With just days left before the election, Senate Republicans know they still face a long road ahead.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a tough election atmosphere for Republicans. That's just as honest as I can put it.

BOLDUAN: Neither party has won such broad power of the Senate for three decades. But this year Democrats are buoyed by an unpopular Republican president and a struggling economy.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With every day they get closer, there are races that are competitive now that weren't competitive a month ago.

BOLDUAN: Jennifer Duffy tracks Senate races for the nonpartisan "Cook's Political Report." She predicts Democrats will score a net gain of between seven and nine Republican seats in states ranging from Oregon to New Hampshire. Why is that important? Right now with the help of two Independents, Democrats hold a slight voting majority of 51. If Democrats pick up nine seats, it could push them over the top.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think 60 is a psychological number. It would strike a psychological blow to Republicans. They may not need that many to get a lot of their legislative agenda through.

BOLDUAN: Both Senate campaign committees are now running ads using the number.

SEN. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON (D), NEW YORK: Al Franken could very well be that 60th vote.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kay Hagan. If she wins, they get a blank check.

BOLDUAN: Analysts say the reality is Senate Republicans are just trying to minimize their losses this year. They're defending almost twice as many seats as Democrats and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has far outraised its Republican counterpart. Kate Bolduan, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: From Democrats forging a filibuster proof Congress to what will actually happen on Election Day. We've been hearing a lot about glitches and possible voter fraud or even voter registration fraud.

Joining us now is columnist for the "Wall Street Journal," John Fund. He's also the author of "Stealing Elections: How Voter Fraud Threatens Our Democracy." John, thanks for joining us. It's good to have you back. I promised you I would have you back because you have some really great information here. Just here in Atlanta, John, I saw one of the local television stations teasing one of their sweeps pieces, you know what I mean? And their big push was, they have hundreds of people, hundreds of dead voters registered and they're wondering if these voters are going to show up at the polls. Is that a real concern?

JOHN FUND, COLUMNIST, WALL STREET JOURNAL: Well, most of them obviously aren't a concern. But the potential for someone to go in, especially in the state that doesn't have an I.D. law -- Georgia does have one -- is there, the potential to cast a fraudulent vote.

Even more serious, the "Ft. Lauderdale Sun Sentinel" in Florida, found that there are 40,000 felons who are ineligible to vote who are on the voting rolls and 5,000 of them have recently voted in the past election. So voter fraud doesn't have to be a large number of people because remember, Florida, for example, in 2000 was won by 537 votes. In a close election, it can make a difference.

LEMON: What I meant by that is it someone -- how do I put this, on the inside, just showing up and using the dead people as their names or how does that work?

FUND: This was pioneered in Chicago.

LEMON: Yes, I know that very well.

FUND: The Daley Machine called it representation without respiration. And the way the former clerk of Chicago James Laski told me it was done is, you basically would have people in the neighborhood come in and with the connivance of the election officials in some places, and in some cases not, they would simply pretend to be that person. And sometimes they would go from precinct to precinct and pretend to be different dead people.

LEMON: Yes, yes, I remember that well. OK so listen, we -- we have evolved beyond the point, moved beyond the point that we're not going to see a repeat of 2000, are we? In your book, you don't seem too optimistic about that.

FUND: Well, I think clearly Obama is the favorite right now. But remember in the Democratic primaries against Clinton, he almost always got the final percentage of the vote that he had of the last poll. Right now he's at 49 or 50 percent. This could still be a close election. If it is a close election, we could see Florida style meltdowns in which we turn Election Day into election month in several states. It could be Virginia, could be Colorado, could be Ohio. Remember, it doesn't have to be a margin of victory now to win. It has to be beyond the margin of litigation.

LEMON: John, I just have a few seconds here left. And you may want to get something in. I'm just looking at your votes here that we talked about. Do you want to talk about provisional ballots or motor laws? Do you foresee any big problems that we need to discuss here right now?

FUND: If a state is close enough, 5,000 votes and that decides the presidency, there may be more than that number of provisional ballots which have to be counted after the election. That could be an incredible source for lawsuits and disputes. That's how this election could be delayed and go into overtime.

LEMON: All right, John Fund, appreciate it. If you hear anything, have anymore information, e-mail me, I'll get you back on, sir.

FUND: Thank you.

LEMON: Thank you very much. If you have trouble at the polls, call the CNN voter hotline. It is a way that you can help us track the problems that you report on Election Day about real trouble in real time. Call us at 1-877-462-6608. Again, 877-462-6608. We're keeping them honest all the way through the election and beyond, the best political team on television here.

A stranger helps a woman down on her luck.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It means so much to all of us. It's not just a house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: A random act of kindness at a foreclosure auction.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: OK, it's Sunday. Chances are some of you may have gone to church this morning, most of you are going this evening. And if you're around the house, not paying attention, pay attention to this story. It's going to make you feel good and you're going to believe in the human spirit after you see this. In this business that we're in, that I'm in, we hear a lot of bad news, especially in these tough economic times.

But here is a story that will make you believe in the kindness of others. It is a Texas woman who lost everything to foreclosure. She's getting another chance thanks to a complete stranger. Take a look at Monika Diaz's report. She's from our affiliate WFAA in Dallas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 45, 47. Are you sure? Profit is not a bad word.

MONICA DIAZ, WFAA REPORTER: It's the misfortune of others that lured hundreds of people to this foreclosure auction at the Dallas Convention Center. They came looking for a deal. Tracy came to find closure.

TRACY ORR, FORECLOSED HOMEOWNER: It means so much to all of us. It is not just a house.

DIAZ: A mother in tears. Devastated by foreclosure.

ORR: I do fairly well in my house. This is my family. They have been through so much with me. Helping me with the house and everything else.

DIAZ: Tracy took a seat in the sea of investors, bargain hunters and strangers to say good-bye to her home. In this fast-paced intense energetic event, her sadness didn't go unnoticed.

MARILYN MOCK, BOUGHT FORECLOSED HOME: She was crying. I just asked her what she was upset about. You know, she lost her house.

DIAZ: Tracy's home in Pottsboro, just west of Dennison, #73 finally came up. And Marilyn Mock from (inaudible) raised her hand. There isn't even a picture of the property in the auction book.

MOCK: Well I just kept asking her, you know, is it worth it? She said yes. So, you know, it went again. I said is it worth it? She said yes. So, I did take her word.

DIAZ: On her word, bid after bid, Marilyn kept going.

ORR: She said she was telling me she was doing it for me and then she had it.

DIAZ: A second chance from a stranger.

MOCK: And that way they can - she can move right back into it. And so wherever Pottsboro is.

DIAZ: A random act of kindness in a housing crisis but for some a bailout is out of reach. Marilyn stepped in despite the risk.

MOCK: Because people need to help each other. That's all there is to it.

DIAZ: Tracy never thought her lonely journey down the road of foreclosure would end in the arms of a stranger. One that promise to bring her back home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She knows how blest she had been (INAUDIBLE). Nobody has ever done anything like this for me before. And I just hope I can repay the favor.

DIAZ: In Dallas, Monika Diaz, Channel 8 News.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: We have a little caveat, something to tell you. We have to tell you that the deal isn't complete yet. Fannie Mae has to approve the purchase first. But for now, Tracy Orr has something that she didn't have before, she has new hope. She's on the phone now along with her guardian angel, Marilyn Mock. Hello to both of you.

ORR: Hello.

MOCK: Hello.

LEMON: That report made some people in our news room cry and I have to admit, it almost made me cry, but I can't do it here on television. Marilyn, you're an amazing woman, why did you do it?

MOCK: Well, I try to help everybody I can and I was just in that situation where I was -- I could help so I did it. Most people would have done the same thing.

LEMON: Do you believe that, really?

MOCK: Yeah.

LEMON: Why? Why is that?

MOCK: Because I would say most people, if -- like if somebody is hit on the road, a stranger always stops and helps. They don't have to but they do. Somebody is always there to try to help. A lot of these places don't get covered. I don't know, they just caught me, I guess.

LEMON: You were there to help your son -- your son was selling his home --

MOCK: No, he was buying a house.

LEMON: He was buying a house and you just happened to see Terry (sic) next to you and she pointed to her home-- I mean Tracy. Tracy, what do you think of Marilyn?

ORR: Oh, my god, there's no words to describe what she did. I mean a perfect stranger, just to up and do that. And I don't agree with her that anybody would have done it. Yeah, I don't think that just anybody would have done it but she has restored my faith in good people and acts of kindness. And I just hope within my lifetime I'll be able to repay the gratitude.

LEMON: Has this renewed your faith in people?

ORR: Oh, god, yes. And God and in people and in faith in general. She has done more than purchased my home back for me. She has opened my heart and my eyes and, like I said, I hope I can pass it along.

LEMON: Tracy Orr, we wish you the very best of luck. And thank you so much. We're so glad you got your home back, at least are able to keep it.

ORR: Thank you, and thank you to Marilyn.

LEMON: And Marilyn, thank you.

MOCK: Well, that's what we're here for. God bless you.

LEMON: God bless both of you. We're glad we could get that bit of good news on our air. Thank you so much.

Well, this story, you know, we've been talking about the sign of the times and this is a sign of the times and this one goes right into what we were just talking about. Last weekend I rode alongside a repo man. As you can imagine, business is booming with them with the downturn in this economy. And while I was out there, while we were out there, I met a young woman and she called herself "Samone" (ph) then. I'm going to play a little bit of our conversation for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have never been this down on my luck. I have a college degree, and I can't find a job. And I'm a single mom. And I'm just so frustrated. I'm just frustrated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK, well I have to tell you that response to this woman's story was so overwhelming. Many of you wanted to help out from all over the world. We got e-mails from as far away as Hong Kong and beyond. I called her back, spent the afternoon with her. She was finally OK with telling me her real name and showing me her face and tonight you will meet her face to face and you will hear our entire conversation. Her name is Felicia Hopkins (ph). She has a 12-year- old daughter. We talked to her, as well. We'll have that for you right here in the NEWSROOM at 11:00 p.m.

Well, you know what? It is hard to believe that it was 25 years ago when the world first saw one of the most popular music videos of all time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL JACKSON, SINGER: (SINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Gosh, I was just a little tyke when that was out. Remember the Michael Jackson jacket, that leather jacket? Well, that's not Michael Jackson. A thriller record in the NEWSROOM. We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Time now for an interesting report we call "Edge of Discovery." Here's CNN's Frederik Pleitgen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Four billion. That's an estimate of how many trees are cut down every year for paper products. Gentlemen, put down your chain saws because the plastic logic e-reader is almost here.

RICHARD ARCHULETA, CEO PLASTIC LOGIC: The device is very thin, very light. It is about the size and weight of a pad of paper.

PLEITGEN: Due out next week, the e-reader says so long to all of those piles of paper.

ARCHULETA: It works by taking anything that you would normally print out or read on paper, like a newspaper or a magazine, and transfers them from either computer or wirelessly to the device so that you can read them.

PLEITGEN: At this one of a kind production facility in Dresden, Germany, Nanotech is saving Mother Nature where an environmentally friendly process creates the e-papers' unique flexible plastic design. And with the swipe of a thumb, Plastic Logic hopes to usher in a green reading revolution.

ARCHULETA: No more cutting down trees, mass production of paper, no big printing presses. And of course, no big trucks distributing the paper.

PLEITGEN: An estimated 1.7 billion people read one of these every day. If Plastic Logic has its way, selling a few e-readers might just save a few of these. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: OK, thanks, Frederik.

All right guys, come on, where were you 25 years ago when Michael Jackson's "Thriller" debuted on MTV?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACKSON: (SINGING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: You know you know the lyrics, you know the dance, too. All over the world today and at the same time, a gang of zombie dancers is trying to break a world record for the largest simultaneous "Thriller" dance-off. I think our, my EP Jennifer Bernstein could have done a good job. For her fourth grade roller skating party, she had a red faux glove, a bubble skirt and a leather jacket. She shouldn't have told me that. I said it on TV. She is telling me to wrap now. All right, our i-Reporters, CNN i-Reporters have been working overtime to cover this election. I-reporters like Mike Dennis who interviewed his grandmother, his great grandmother.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HELEN DENNIS, I-REPORT: I know who I am. I'm Helen Dennis. Helen Francis Money Freeman Dennis (ph). I've been voting ever since I was 18.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Wow, that's amazing. Well again, that film submitted by Mike Dennis of Philadelphia, just one of our 20 finalists. Tonight we'll introduce you to the winning film. That announcement coming up 11 p.m. Eastern right here in the CNN NEWRSOOM. You don't want to miss that.

OK, you know what? We are going to give you some of your feedback now. We talked about the woman who saved the house, right? SCB4P, this is from Twitter. I got it, guys. "I truly believe when people do nice things for others, they will pay it forward. That's a great report once again."

And then also this one from CRTCONSU says "Marilyn is an angel. My heart is full now. God is good. Back to work for me, Don. I'm crying for you. Beautiful."

We'll see you tonight at 11 p.m. Eastern. Have a good one.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)