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Bomb Maker ID'd by U.S.; O'Donnell's Closing Argument; Countering Bad Voting Reputation; The Women's Vote; Life of a Tracker

Aired October 31, 2010 - 19:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: The next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM, of course, begins right now. I'm Don Lemon. Thanks for joining us.

Two explosive packages meant for the U.S. may have been made by the same man suspected of making the so-called underwear bomb last Christmas. That is according to U.S. investigators.

CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson has the very latest for us. He's going to join us live in just a moment, but first now his report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Everything about the bombs were made to look ordinary. Printers in boxes packaged with some random clothes; but inside the toner cartridge, more than enough of the powerful explosive PETN to down an airliner.

DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We believe that the device was designed to go off on the airplane. We cannot be sure about the timing, when that was meant to take place.

JANET NAPOLITANO, U.S. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: It has the hallmarks of al Qaeda, or AQAP. You know, they constantly are trying things to test our system.

ROBERTSON: And that man that U.S. officials say may have built it, Ibrahim Hassan al Asiri, a 28-year-old Saudi, thought to have made the underpants bomb for failed Christmas day airline attacker, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.

According to experts, the printer bombs are more sophisticated, using cell phone circuitry as part of the detonator.

JOHN BRENNAN, DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: They were self- contained, they were able to be detonated at a time of the terrorists' choosing.

ROBERTSON: But there is still much that is unclear. British and U.S. officials seem uncertain about exactly what the bomb maker planned, with conflicting information about how they might have been detonated.

TERESA MAY, BRITISH HOME SECRETARY: We do not believe that the perpetrators of the attack would have known the location of the device when it was planned to explode.

BRENNAN: They could have been detonated in the location where they were on the plane, or they could have been detonated when they reached their destination.

ROBERTSON: That the devices didn't reach their destination is thanks to a Saudi tip-off, detailing airway bill numbers on the packages.

NAPOLITANO: Here what happened is you had great information sharing from the Saudis. We were immediately able to work across the globe, as you said, to get these packages segregated.

ROBERTSON: But not before at least one of the bombs apparently made it on to a passenger flight. Qatar Airways says its planes carried one of the devices from Yemen to the Gulf, but later retracted the statement. Still, it remains very probable that a passenger plane carried one or both deadly printers from Yemen.

All of this has put Yemen firmly in the terror spotlight. A team from the U.S. Transportation Security Administration is going to Yemen to investigate further.

BRENNAN: I would say that the al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is the most active operational franchise right now of al Qaeda and that this is one that deserves a lot of our attention.

ROBERTSON: And right now it's getting it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Nic Robertson joins us now from London. Nic, this certainly raises the ante here, because we are hearing that these bombs were first carried aboard passenger flights.

ROBERTSON: And that's got to be a concern. Because there's normally very, very strict security, as we know, for passenger flights. And it appears that it's come as a shock to a lot of people that cargo should not be screened to the same degree when it's going on a passenger flight. It appears not to be the case here, Don.

LEMON: The two women arrested yesterday in S'ana (ph), now freed. What's going on?

ROBERTS: The father says they've been freed, we have yesterday to hear from government officials, but a lawyer representing the young woman, a student in S'ana, saying that she believes that it was a case of mistaken identity, that the woman's name or telephone number was put down, associated with these packages when they were mailed off. And that she's been somehow unwittingly taken into this.

So it appears at least for now that the Yemeni government is sort of ruling her out of the equation at the moment, Don.

LEMON: What about this new -- what is it, Ansari? What's his name? Asiri? ROBERTSON: Ibrahim Hassan al Asiri. This is a man who seemed or deemed to be one of the al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula top bomb makers at the moment. He's believed to have made the bomb that the underpants bomber used, but perhaps an insight into this man and the way that he thinks.

He's a 28-year-old, he gave an underpants bomb to his brother, a 23-year-old, and sent him off on a suicide mission to attack the deputy interior minister in Saudi Arabia. He did kill himself blowing up those explosives and injured the deputy interior minister in Saudi Arabia. So this gives you an insight into the man who's believed to be behind these bombs and the connection is the same time of explosives -- Don.

LEMON: Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson in London. Great reporting -- Nic thank you.

We turn now to politics and where the crunch time is coming for the campaign. It's getting down to the wire. This is just two days left until the elections. The Democrats are in serious trouble, and boy, do they know it. The Republicans seemingly in position to take the house and make a strong showing in the senate.

We have "The Best Political Team on Television" to explain how these races, no matter where they are, will affect you. President Barack Obama has delivered his final campaign speech before the elections, and it came in Ohio today. He and the vice president, Joe Biden, were both in Cleveland drumming up support for Governor Ted Strickland and for Democrats in general.

Democrats and Republicans both know that Mr. Obama is out trying to keep Ohio and Democratic candidates because the state will be crucial to his own re-election in 2012.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So at the federal level and the state level, we have been working hard. But, look, we understand we've got a long way to go. We've got a lot of work to do.

I know there are a lot of people out there who are still hurting. I know there are families, some of them still hanging by a thread. It keeps me up at night; it keeps Joe up at night. It keeps Ted up at night. That's what we're fighting to fix.

But you know what? The way to fix it is not to go back to what got us here. It's to move forward with the policies that are getting us out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: In the battle for the Senate, the magic number is ten. That's how many seats the Republicans must gain to take control.

Tea Party-backed Christine O'Donnell wants the open seat from Delaware. Democrat Chris Coons has a comfortable lead over her in the polls. But the nature of O'Donnell's upstart campaign has kept her in the national spot whether she wants it or not.

Our Kate Bolduan was at a rally for O'Donnell in Washington. Kate, what did she have to say?

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, Delaware's Republican candidate for Senate Christine O'Donnell, was out today trying to rally the troops ahead of Tuesday's midterm elections, trying to get people out to the polls. She was joined by the Tea Party Express as it continues its cross-country tour ahead of Tuesday's election.

O'Donnell was talking about lowering taxes, cutting federal spending, all of the talking points that she has promoted throughout her campaign.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINE O'DONNELL, (R), DELAWARE SENATORIAL CANDIDATE: So there is something that we could be doing, but we've got too many career politicians in Washington catering to the special interests, catering to what's going on in the backroom deals, catering to their obnoxious sense of entitlement and doing what they need to do to stay in office.

This Tuesday, we can tell them, no more.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: And O'Donnell attacked her opponent, Democrat Chris coons, for being a career politician, really emphasizing and promoting her position as a Washington outsider, a citizen politician, as she likes to say.

Still, she is behind in the polls, down by as much as 20 points in some polls, but a few polls do have her closing in, down by only ten points and it's momentum that O'Donnell is banking on to carry her through come Tuesday.

O'Donnell left the rally, saying she's confident she will win Tuesday evening. Vice President Biden will be in Delaware tomorrow to stump for Democratic candidates, including her opponent, Chris Coons -- Don.

LEMON: Just who will come out on top in Tuesday's midterm election? Well, Republicans hold a sizable lead in a lot of polls just days before the election. The latest CNN Opinion Research Corporation Poll shows likely voters' choice for congress is Republican by ten points. And the GOP got 52 percent while Democrats got just 42 percent.

You know some might say -- some surprising words from the chairman of the Republican National Committee that these were just two days before the midterm elections. It sounds like Michael Steele is backing off a bit from predicting a Republican takeover. Hear what he told our Candy Crowley coming up in just a bit here.

And we'll check in with our deputy political director, Paul Steinhauser, who will give us an idea of some of the key early races to watch on Tuesday night to determine how things are going.

And we want you to be part of this program, part of the conversation. Send us a message on Twitter or Facebook. Check out our blog, cnn.com/don and look for me on Four Square too, foursquare.com/donlemoncnn.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Halloween night over all over the country, and of course, no different there at the White House. We've seen some cute little nuggets go in, some princesses, little bumblebees, all kinds of things. You see some pumpkins and they're all going inside the White House to celebrate Halloween with the first family.

There you see the first family, the president and the first lady on the front lawn greeting people as they go inside. And they're going to have a little party in there in just a little bit. So we'll keep you posted on Halloween at the White House.

Let's talk more politics. Not quite as happy as what's going on at White House. The chairman of the Republican National Committee would love to see his party take over the house as of Tuesday. The GOP will have to win 39 seats to do it, but Michael Steele says even if the GOP comes up a little short of a majority, it's still a victory for the party.

Here's what Steele said on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION".

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL STEELE, CHAIRMAN, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE: We need 39. If we get 39 seats and take the majority, that's success. If we get 37 seats, that's success.

Keep in mind -- I mean we've got to keep this thing in context here. We were a party out of power. We were a party that on the covers of magazine around this country were called an endangered species. We were going to be regionalized, marginalized to the lower, you know, portions of the political spectrum. We have battled our way back here.

So to have the kind of night that we're anticipating on Tuesday is not just a blessing, but it comes from the hard work of our candidates out there, engaging with the people.

So as the national chairman, you know, I've told our folks around the country, we're at 38 seats. Now let's get to 39. And anything that we do that evening is going to be a great success, given where we started this journey a year and a half ago.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, you better believe the Republicans are certainly happy with the trend of these elections. And if the numbers hold, they'll have plenty to celebrate on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning and going into the next year or two. But we want to give you an exact idea of how voters are leaning. So let's bring in our deputy political director, Mr. Paul Steinhauser, who is not celebrating Halloween at the White House. He is celebrating Halloween at the cnnpolitics.com desk in Washington.

So, Paul, before the break, we showed the latest poll, what likely voters are saying they'll choose, Republicans over Democrats by 10 percent. So break down the numbers for us. What's the trend here?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Well, first of all, that ten-point advantage for Republicans, Don, that's comparable to what the Democrats had in 2006 when they won back Congress and what the Republicans had in 1994 when they stormed back and won Congress.

Let's take that number, though, and break it down by independent voters. Remember, independent voters went for the Democrats in '06 and '08, helped them win those elections. Check it out right now -- likely choice for congress, among only independent voters, and look at that, 55 percent saying they would vote for the Republican candidate, 32 percent saying they would vote for the generic Democrat in their district. That is a very big advantage, Don, for the Republicans, and that's a tough, tough number for the Democrats to swallow.

LEMON: And that's on par with -- correct me if I'm wrong -- what the Democrats were seeing for the midterms in 2006?

STEINHAUSER: Yes. It's just basically a mirror image.

LEMON: Ok. If there is a Republican wave, Paul, a victory on Tuesday, where will we see it first?

STEINHAUSER: We're going to see it first in the states where the polls close first -- those that close at either 7:00 or 7:30 eastern. We have a map that we've made up for you that shows some of these states.

Let's start right where you are in Georgia; that is one of the states that closes at 7:00. And if the polls do close -- I mean, when the polls do close there, Jim Marshall, Democratic congressman from Georgia, if he goes down, that could be the sign that there's a big wave. Also, Democratic congressman Barron Hill in Indiana, Bill Chandler in Kentucky, and Gerry Connolly in Virginia; keep your eyes on those three gentleman. If they go down early, there could be a wave that goes across the country.

What about the senate? Let's talk about West Virginia; polls close there at 7:30. That's that open senate seat right now that used to belong to Senator Byrd of West Virginia. If the Republicans win back that seat, Don, they may have a good shot. They have a good shot at possibly winning back those ten seats they need in the senate to reclaim the chamber -- Don.

LEMON: Paul Steinhauser, thank you very much. Happy Halloween to you.

You know, in Tuesday's election, ten women will appear on the ballot for governor, and almost 150 are running for a seat in the U.S. Congress. While those numbers are up, it begs the question will women voters support women candidates? Some answers, coming up.

Plus, a hostage situation turns deadly. The details have been unfolding from inside an Iraqi church all afternoon. We'll have the very latest for you next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Time now to check top stories. At least 37 people were killed in Baghdad today when Iraqi security forces stormed a Catholic Church where gunmen were holding worshippers hostage. Another 57 were injured. The casualties included at least seven hostages plus Iraqi security forces and kidnappers.

Some of the worshippers managed to escape. They say the gunmen burst into the church just as evening services were getting under way.

A chaotic scene in the main square of Istanbul, Turkey, today; you're listening to police gunfire. This is from amateur video shot at the scene.

An apparent suicide bomber blew himself up while attempting to get into a police car. Another unexploded bomb was found on his body. Thirty-two people were injured in the blast, including 15 police officers.

Security was extra tight on the streets of the nation's capital today for the annual Marine Corps marathon. 30,000 hearty souls hit the pavement from Arlington, Virginia, to Washington and back. Security was boosted after someone fired shots at military buildings in recent weeks, including the National Museum of the Marine Corps where today's marathon ended.

The president and first lady welcomed D.C. children and military families for a Halloween celebration at the White House this evening. You saw some of it here live on CNN. The kids were invited to trick or treat across from the white lawn. Treats included cookies, fruit, and White House boxes of M&Ms. Military families were invited to continue the celebration tonight inside the executive mansion.

You know, they could be called the generation B for burdened; college kids who face few job prospects and lots of personal debt. With so much on the line, young voters still have a reputation for not voting.

But on my road trip this week -- this past week to listen to the voters, I found many students were just as interested in the ballot as the books.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: How are you guys doing?

STUDENTS: Great. LEMON: Yes. Now, where were you guys -- you guys were doing -- what were you doing, the let's go what?

STUDENTS: TOL.

STUDENTS: BDO.

STUDENTS: TOL.

STUDENTS: BDO.

STUDENTS: TOL.

STUDENTS: BDO.

LEMON: Ok. Ok. Wow.

Ok. So listen, Ali Velshi said that there wasn't the same optimism or same spirit focus on the 2008 election as this one. Is he right? Are you guys plugged into this? Are you as interested?

STUDENTS: Yes.

LEMON: Yes, you are.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm just as excited. I voted first time 2008 and I voted again in Michigan absentee and just as excited. Go Democrats.

LEMON: What's at the top of your mind when it comes into -- this guy's a Republican sitting right next to him. When he goes Democrats, he goes no. Why'd you do that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, I think this country is having a lot of problems right now and a lot of it is the way that the government's being run. It's inefficient. They're not treating their money like we have to treat our own, you know, especially students at a time like this.

LEMON: The biggest issue going into an election for you guys, what?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The economy.

LEMON: Why the economy?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's kind of struggling right now and I just would like to get a job after I get out of college.

LEMON: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

LEMON: And one young lady over here said jobs?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Definitely. We're going to school for no reason sometimes because there's no jobs available for us.

LEMON: So that will affect your decision when you go vote?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Definitely.

LEMON: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

LEMON: And you were talking -- what's the biggest issue for you, you said?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's also the economy and the jobs issue, is big.

LEMON: You had an opinion as we were speaking earlier. You said something about diversity?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I feel the Democratic Party tolerates diversity more than the Republican Party.

LEMON: Why is that? Explain that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just -- that's just my own opinion. It's also, it's the candidates.

LEMON: And you had a strong opinion about that as well.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, the Republicans have nominated a lot of candidates that turn young people, young minorities off. Like the guy in Kentucky, the guy in Colorado. So a lot of the Democrats are being positive and a lot of Republicans are just turnoffs.

LEMON: And, obviously, as a Republican, you take issue with that. And whether it's real or perceived, that's a perception that the Republican Party has an issue when it comes to diversity and drawing in diverse people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean obviously, the chairman of the Republican Party is an African-American. You have great other minority Republicans like Eric Cantor, who's serving right now who is a Jewish American. And I disagree and I think that's a lot of the negative campaigning and stereotypes that go on, is they try to label the Republican Party as standing against diversity and I think that's completely false.

LEMON: Speaking about, he said negativity, what do you think -- how many of you are turned off by all the negative campaigning and ads? Why are you turned off by it? Why is it an issue for you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's just like if you can't make your point proven like saying what you like, you shouldn't put people down. Like if that's the only way you can win then you don't deserve to win.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. LEMON: How important is it do you think that this is for the 2012 election, depends on whether or not Ted Strickland, the governor, gets back a Democratic governor. What do you think?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Even though when you look at negativity campaigns throughout the country, it also plays here as a state, because the state of Ohio is a battleground state, which could give momentum to either party, whoever gets the electoral votes for this state.

LEMON: Whoever gets the electoral -- go ahead and finish.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whoever gets the electoral votes would actually get the momentum to be able to win the 2012 election.

LEMON: Yes. You're sitting here nodding your head. What's your issue going into Tuesday?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think my biggest issue is the jobs. I was laid off and decided to come back to school, so coming back to school, I really want to make sure that the extra loans that I'm taking out from my undergrad plus the graduate are going to be an investment in myself that I'm going to be able to pay back.

LEMON: Raise your hand if you have an issue that we haven't spoken about that's important to you going into this election? That you haven't spoken about, you haven't had a chance. What's yours?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have no idea.

LEMON: What about you, since you pointed them out?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I really focus on politics. I'm here to focus on school. That's why I'm here.

LEMON: A lot of people are saying that. Sometimes, you know, like we live in a vacuum on television and people who are not plugged in, but not everybody's focused on the election.

You have to focus on school, but you have to be concerned that once you spend all this money, whether or not you'll be able to pay it back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, as of like jobs and what not, I know that they're really scarce, but I'm going to school really just I want to focus on school. I feel like politics is just going to take my mind off the books.

LEMON: Yes. Any first-time voters here? Who're first-time voters? Who's -- are you all of you guys eligible to vote? How many of you guys are going to vote. Raise your hands.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: As you can see, a lot of hands went up, and it looked like about 80 percent of the students there said that they were going to vote this coming Tuesday.

A suspect in the terror plot to send bombs and packages bound for the U.S. Investigators say they have identified the suspected bomb maker, but are investigators any closer to finding him?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: U.S. authorities believe al Qaeda is behind the plot to send explosive packages from Yemen to the United States.

CNN's Mohammed Jamjoom tells me why Yemen has become such fertile ground for the terror group -- Mohammed.

MOHAMMED JAMJOOM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, let me try to set the scene as to why Yemen has become such fertile ground for al Qaeda. Yemen is the poorest country in the Middle East. The borders to Yemen are quite poor. It's very easy for militants to get in and to get out of the country to smuggle weapons in and out whenever they want.

Add to that all the other problems in Yemen. Let me give you a picture here. Now, in the country's south, you have a separatist movement that's really destabilizing the country. In the country's north, you have a rebellion that's going on. That's something that the Yemeni forces are having to deal with as well. You also have very deep poverty.

Now as far as Al Qaeda there, Yemeni officials put the number of active Al Qaeda members in Yemen at about 400. That doesn't sound like a lot, but the fact is, Yemen has a very weak central government. Now, I spent several weeks there recently and I can tell you that Yemeni officials are expressing grave concern about the problem of Al Qaeda now.

Al Qaeda there in the past several months has been reinvigorated. They've adapted. They've learned from the mistakes of Al Qaeda in Iraq and other places in the Middle East. They've started a new type of insurgency. They're going directly after government targets. And that's really raising concern, not only among the regional neighbors, but among the international community.

All the partners of Yemen in their fight against terror are afraid that if Yemen doesn't get this problem under control, that Yemen may become a failed state. And when we spoke to officials there, they said that they need the help of the international community in fighting Al Qaeda. That's a real shift in tone from what they were saying before. Before they had said they would get this under control, they might need some help, but it would be fine, they would eradicate Al Qaeda.

Now they're saying, they really need help otherwise they could become a failed state and if that happens, that doesn't help Yemen, it doesn't help the international community. It's a problem for everybody -- Don.

LEMON: Mohammed, thank you. This failed plot also raises questions about the crash of the UPS jet last September in Dubai. CNN's Candy Crowley today asked deputy national security adviser John Brennan about it today on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN ANCHOR: Is this particular threat now over? This incident and does it make you want to take a look at that UPS plane crash in Dubai in early September?

JOHN BRENNAN, DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Well, some very good work was done, both overseas as well as here in the United States, to find those two packages and to make sure that those devices were made inert. Very close and strong partnership there. So we don't know whether or not that's the extent of it, so we're going to continue to pursue all possible leads in the event that there are some other devices that are out there.

The crash of the one plane off of Dubai, we are looking very carefully at that, working with the NTSB and others to make sure that we understand the cause of that crash, and so right now we're making sure that we look at possible other events or other developments that might have some relationship with the most recent packages that we've discovered.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: That was the deputy national security adviser, John Brennan, speaking today on CNN's "State of the Union" with Candy Crowley.

In Tuesday's election, 10 women will appear on the ballot for governor and more than 150 are running for a seat in the House or the Senate. While those numbers are up, it begs the question, will women voters support women candidates? We'll look at that, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: OK. Sharron Angle, Carly Fiorina, and Christine O'Donnell, some of the most high-profile and most controversial candidates, frankly, running this year are women. But will they be able to sway the female vote?

Joining me to talk about all of this is Maru Gonzalez. She is an educator and a Democrat who supports President Barack Obama. She is in Boston. And with me right here in Atlanta is Orit Sklar, a graduate of George Tech and a conservative activist. I'll start with you here. So does it make, will women vote for women?

ORIT SKLAR, CONSERVATIVE ACTIVIST: Women are going to consider the fact that there are female candidates running, but ultimately at the end of the day, they are going to look at which candidate better represents them, which candidate has a better platform and a better vision for their local government, for their state, for their country that is going to affect them and their family. LEMON: Just like if there's a Hispanic candidate, there's an African- American candidate, if there's a candidate who kind of looks like you, you think, you may have an advantage with the voter who look like you are - you know, that you may see it, if you're looking to vote for someone, you may say, "oh, well, that person is an African-American, I'll pay attention to them, if that person is a woman, but that's not necessarily the deciding factor, is it?

SKLAR: Everyone can make up their own minds as to who they're going to vote for. There can be a number of factors but ultimately if you ask people to look beyond the surface, to really evaluate candidates on the major issues. When we have out-of-control spending, we have a health care law that's going to raise premiums. When we have limited choice in terms of education and runaway debt, I really think women are considering all of these factors when they consider who they're going to vote for.

LEMON: OK. Maru, here's a poll that CNN put out this morning, it says 49 percent of women say that they'll vote for the generic Democrat in their district. 45 percent of the women say they'll vote for the generic Republican in their district. So traditionally, there is an indication, polls indicate that women support Democratic candidates. Why is that?

MARU GONZALEZ, DEMOCRAT: Absolutely. And I don't think this is a coincidence. I mean, if you look at the Democratic platform, democrats historically have supported reproductive rights for women. They've supported health care access for women. They've supported gender equity in terms of pay for women. They've supported LGBT rights, which also supports women in that a lot of sexism is manifested in anti-LGBT bias, so I don't think it's a coincidence that you've had 25 female senators out of 38 in the history of congress are female and far and away females support Democratic candidates, because Democratic candidates speak for women.

LEMON: Yes. So I was reading a poll, you know, female support Democratic candidates, but do women vote for other women? Because we've heard that before, we heard it in the midterms in 2006, we heard it in 2008, that women, partially catty, are the comments that were made out on the campaign trail. That's so five years ago, her hair that was made by Carly Fiorina. There are people who say that women for the most part won't support other women. What's going on?

GONZALEZ: Well, I certainly think that women support other women, but I don't necessarily think women vote according to gender lines. And if you look at a lot of the prominent Republican candidates, like Sharron Angle, like Christine O'Donnell, like Sarah Palin when she ran in 2008, they are far and away supported by white male Republicans.

I heard the other day if white male - if only white male Republicans could vote, Sarah Palin could very well be president in 2012. So I think women are looking at the issues and they're looking at which candidates support rights for women. And right now, a lot of the Republican candidates for governor, I have to say, although they are women, they are anti-women in their policies and platforms.

LEMON: Orit, she's disagreeing. Go ahead.

SKLAR: If you're a conservative woman and you don't espouse the liberal ideology, then you're anti-woman. This is all we've heard from feminists everywhere -

LEMON: You hear about things like reproductive rights, how is that - you know, you hear about reproductive rights and rights for women for certain things, that doesn't go against an issue that a woman would want to be in charge of her own body?

SKLAR: I think women care about life. And we see the women who are running around the country. You have Meg Whitman, Carly Fiorina, Christine O'Donnell, Sharron Angle. Sharron Angle is going to take out the Senate majority leader. This is extremely significant and women's groups that claim to be nonpartisan should be supportive of the women who are running on the Republican ticket.

But what we see is women are advancing in business and we see that they are more concerned, more than ever about the economy. And come Tuesday we are going to see a historic shift towards the Republican Party in terms of the women's vote, and it might not be the majority, but it's about incremental steps.

LEMON: Let me get back to Maru and give you the final thing to say, but we talked a little about the catty factor and you agree there is that when it comes to looking at women.

SKLAR: Men are catty as well. It's not all about women. We have to look at all the candidates and all of what they're saying. And people should hold everyone accountable for that. But let's look beyond those types of sound bites and let's make it about the issues and let's talk about the economy.

GONZALEZ: Right.

LEMON: Go ahead, Maru.

GONZALEZ: I completely agree that we need to make it about the issues, but when you talk about cattiness and when you talk about the sexist rhetoric that's been coming out of these elections, you have to look at these female Republican candidates who have some of the things that they've been saying, that their opponents need to "man up." Christine O'Donnell telling Mike Castle that he needed to put his man pants on. I mean, I think this sexist rhetoric is very troubling, especially coming from women candidates.

I mean, it's perpetuating the stereotype that to be female is to be weak and that having any sort of feminine qualities does not make one a strong candidate. And I reject that notion and I think all women should.

LEMON: Maru Gonzalez is going to be the last word. Thank you very much. Orit Sklar, we appreciate it.

GONZALEZ: Thank you, Don. LEMON: Very interesting talk. Thanks.

You know, for months CNN has traveled the country profiling the Tea Party movement, the most powerful and controversial political force this election season. Coming up, we'll preview what we caught on tape in our special documentary, it's called "Boiling Point: Inside the Tea Party."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: You know, over the past few months, CNN has traveled across the country, visiting small towns and big cities to get an up close look at Tea Party movement. It is a political force to be reckoned with this election season. And tonight we'll show you what was caught on tape. Political producer Shannon Travis hosts a special one-hour documentary in just a few minutes at 8:00 p.m. Eastern here on CNN. Here's a preview of "Boiling Point: Inside the Tea Party."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today is the kickoff of the fourth tour of the Tea Party Express. And where are they kicking it off at? Sarah Palin, she's the headliner for today's event. This is essentially her political base. I mean, she is the darling of the movement, in terms of getting the message out, Sarah Palin can do it like no other.

SARAH PALIN (R), FMR. VICE PRES. CANDIDATE: Hey, politicians who are in office today, you - some of you need to man up. The big wigs within the machine, they're driving me crazy, because they're too chicken to come out and support the Tea Party candidates! Now, old glory has never flown higher or prouder than where you have put her, Tea Party patriots!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sarah! Sarah! Sarah!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Governor, what if the Tea Party movement winds up splitting the Republican Party in two? Who do you stand with?

PALIN: You know, I don't think that it will. Because I think more of the machine within the GOP is going to understand that this "we the people" message is rising and it's resonating throughout with independents, with hard-core conservatives, with moderates. Because it's just so full of common sense and time-tested truth that could put the economy on the right track, that heaven forbid that the GOP message strays from this message, if so, the GOP is through.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: "Boiling Point: Inside the Tea Party" begins at top of the hour at 8:00 p.m. Eastern again right here on CNN.

Surviving in schools, it may not seem like a big deal to many of us, but for millions of students who get bullied, it is a terrifying experience. We'll hear how a high school junior responded to some vicious threats.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We all know that kids get bullied and a CNN poll last month shows month shows more than a third of teens say they have been ridiculed or threatened. But one Pennsylvania student and his mother are fighting back.

Our education contributor Steve Perry has the story in tonight's "Perry's Principles."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEVE PERRY, CNN EDUCATION CONTRIBUTOR (voice-over): For some bullying victims like 16-year-old Joey Kemmerling , school must be survived.

JOEY KEMMERLING, HIGH SCHOOL JUNIOR: We don't go to school to get an education. We go to school to make it through the day without being killed or without being to the point where we feel the need to kill ourselves.

PERRY: Joey's trouble started in middle school when word got out that he was gay.

(on camera): So what did the kids do to you?

KEMMERLING: A lot. A lot of threats. One kid said that he wanted to light me on fire, like the faggot I was.

PERRY: The child was not reprimanded?

KEMMERLING: The child was not suspended. The child was not given anything other than a talking to, and then sent back to class.

PERRY: If I'm your son's principal, and this has happened, what can I do to help you as a mom feel like I'm doing my job.

JOYCE MUNDY, JOEY'S MOTHER/EDUCATOR: Teachers need to be trained, or be given permission in their classrooms to simply, succinctly address intolerant comments and behaviors.

PERRY (voice-over): Joyce Mundy is Pennsylvania's 2010 middle school principal of the year. She's also Joey's mom. Together they're teaching current and future educators how to stop bullying.

MUNDY: The culture in schools doesn't really change until the whole school community takes it on.

PERRY: Joey has created a Facebook page where everyone can share stories and lend support to those being bullied.

KEMMERLING: The messages are all the same. Schools across America do not know how to deal with the issue of bullying.

PERRY: But Joey and his mom are hoping that will change.

KEMMERLING: There is a part of me that is dead, and I don't want any other child to have to deal with that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Looking for a slip of the tongue or a policy flip-flop, that's how some political activists spend their days, their entire days all week. We'll introduce you to a tracker, certainly one of this season's most unusual political animals when we come back.

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LEMON: So her name is Kelly Maher. And Kelly wants conservative candidates to win in Colorado, so she spends every day infiltrating Democratic campaign events armed with a video camera. She's hoping to catch the candidates in a contradiction or embarrassing moment. She's call a tracker. CNN's Gary Tuchman went along to see how she spends her days.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Kelly Maher is a one- woman torpedo effort. Her goal -

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We show up here -

TUCHMAN: Demolish certain political candidacies using the candidates own words against them.

The 27-year-old is about to videotape Colorado Democratic Senate Michael Bennett's speech, listening for ammunition, a policy flip- flop, a slip of the tongue. Anything she can get to pull the votes away from Bennett. Maher supports his opponent, Republican Ken Buck and is what is known in political circles as a tracker.

KELLY MAHER, CONSERVATIVE ACTIVIST: I am a conservative. I am overtly conservative. I don't hide it.

TUCHMAN: Maher prefers to call herself a video opinion web columnist. She is paid by conservative investors. She puts her videos and observations on a web site called WhoSaidYouSaid.com. Republicans and Democrats are both using people like Maher. And they look for controversy and often confrontation. Watch this Bennett aide.

MAHER: Can I get the shot?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't want to talk to you.

TUCHMAN: The aide is standing in front of Maher's camera. It's not accidental.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How are things going?

MAHER: Things are good, but I'd like to film Senator Bennett, if that's OK?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What have you been up to?

MAHER: Well, WhoSaidYouSaid. I'm assuming you've seen it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is it about?

MAHER: It's a video-based blog. Could I film the senator, is that OK?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was like, actually just wanting to catch up with you.

MAHER: Well, that's sweet. Maybe we can do it after he's done speaking?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

TUCHMAN: She does end up videotaping the senator and hopes there are moments like this one she has put on her web site, an episode she believes was embarrassing to Bennett. When someone attending asked him this, "can you balance a checkbook?"

MICHAEL BENNETT (D), COLORADO SENATE CANDIDATE: Sure.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you spend more than you bring in, what happens?

TUCHMAN: Maher thinks the delay in answering the question is telling.

MAHER: I hate it when people use the word "gotcha." Because really what it's about is about finding those unscripted moments where politicians tell you what they really think.

TUCHMAN: Her day consists of driving around the state with her Boston terrier keeping her company and dropping in on candidates she wants to lose.

(on camera): Even if she wanted to be low key, would be hard for Kelly Maher, standing 6'2" tall in here heels, she stands out. When you arrive with her in an event in one of her political opponents, you get the sense that she's as welcome as a case of malaria.

MAHER: I'm Kelly Maher with WhoSaidYouSaid.com. I was wondering if we could come in and film this event?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. Sorry. This is a private one.

MAHER: Private one? So are you allowing media?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sorry.

MAHER: I don't want to be that everybody dislikes or I walk in a room and everybody just - oh, she's here. I've never been that person before.

TUCHMAN: But you are now.

MAHER: Yes.

TUCHMAN: Does it make you nervous having a tracker come to each of your events?

BENNETT: No. I think that when you're in this line of work you need to expect anything you say is going to be said all over the internet and all over across the world. That's just part of the job now.

MAHER: We're very careful. We don't take people out of context. But I do disagree with policy decisions.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): So it's off to still another campaign event. Kelly Maher is ready to make another Democrat a star on her web site.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Denver.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: All right. So listen, there's probably some trick or treaters knocking on your door. Did you dress up? I just tweeted. Did you dress up? Well, a lot of people dressed up at the White House. Look at that. Very interesting. There's Frankenstein and Dracula. Look at all the little kitties out there on the White House lawn.

Is there any sound to this? Can we hear it? There you got. They had a lot of fun. With seven schools from D.C. area, four from Virginia, three from Maryland. They all gathered there at the White House. Here's what they got. A bunch of treats at the White House. M&Ms, sourdough butter cookie and they were dried fruit. If you want to know what I went out, I went as a stagehand. I went as David Nunez. Show them my costume back here in the studio. What do you think? How do I look? Is it realistic? OK, get out of here. Happy Halloween.

I'm Don Lemon at the CNN World headquarters in Atlanta. CNN's special documentary "Boiling Point: Inside the Tea Party" starts right now.