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New Hampshire Results: What We've Learned; OJ Futures Surge; Natalie Wood's Death Investigation; Campaign and Super PAC Ad Spending; Romney Wins Big in New Hampshire; Most Important Issues to New Hampshire Voters; GOP Race Moves to South Carolina; Iranian Nuclear Scientist Killed

Aired January 11, 2012 - 08:59   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Hello everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Kyra Phillips this morning.

All right. Let's dive right into politics again this hour and Mitt Romney's big win in New Hampshire. He cruises to a project first place finish with just about 40 percent of the vote but there's no rest for him or the rest of the pack now focusing their sites on South Carolina.

We're covering it all so let's start with where did the votes landed in New Hampshire. Romney came out on top with double-digit leads over Ron Paul and Jon Huntsman who took second and third. Newt Gingrich edged out Santorum for fourth by just a few hundred votes. And Rick Perry brings up the rear with just 1 percent. But Romney is keeping his eye on what's around the corner on the campaign trail.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you, New Hampshire. Tonight we made history. You know tonight we celebrate. Tomorrow we go back to work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Our Dana Bash is in Manchester. And Christine Romans is in the Election Center digging into who voted and why. And Peter Hamby is in South Carolina, the next stop in this grueling presidential primary.

So let's begin with Dana there in Manchester.

So, Romney's two for two. He won Iowa, he won New Hampshire. But this victory wasn't a surprise, not to most. He was expected to win. It's the size of his win that's really grabbing attention, however. Is it enough to get the party to finally rally behind him?

DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, that's probably not going to happen immediately because, as you mentioned, all of these other candidates are still in the race. But effectively, look, this was no question a huge win for Mitt Romney. You said certainly he was expected to win here because he was governor of a neighboring state, but the size of his win in terms of the overall number, but also the kind of voter that he got, namely the conservative voters in this state.

You know there was always a question of whether or not he could actually get those real conservatives. And according to the exit polls, he did that. He also defied history because if you look back, there has been no one who has not actually been sitting in the White House who has won Iowa and New Hampshire.

So that -- history shows you that he is in very, very good shape. And he is already looking towards his general -- a potential general election fight talking over and over about President Obama. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROMNEY: You've got almost two million people that have lost their jobs under this president. You have median income that's dropped by 10 percent over the last four years. You got 24 million people out of work or stopped looking for work. This is a -- this is a failed presidency.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: So, again, focusing on President Obama which he had done before. Now, look, this particular time in New Hampshire he's not leaving without some scars. He had some verbal missteps. He talked about some things that could potentially hurt him in the future, but by and large he is in a very, very good position coming out of the state of New Hampshire -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Also in a fairly decent position, Ron Paul. He did well here in North Carolina. He did well in Iowa. So how does this position him to be the real threat for Mitt Romney? It was Ron Paul who said, you know, he is nipping at Mitt Romney's heels.

BASH: That's right. Look, Ron Paul, his campaign, he has said is more of a movement. And there is no question that he is in this for the long haul. What does that mean? How long is the long haul? You know, who knows. It really depends largely on how much money he can raise.

But he is definitely feeling very good after his pretty strong second last night. And I had the chance to speak with him exclusively just last night, Fred, as we were getting the results knowing that he did come in second. And I asked him about that. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Are you not the buffer between Mitt Romney and the rest of the Republican candidates?

REP. RON PAUL (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I don't know what you want to call it but I know that we're next in line to him so I would say that we're the only ones really in the race with him. And we'll have to -- remains to be seen what turns out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, Fred, Ron Paul does not have the kind of organization and fervor in South Carolina that he did here in New Hampshire and certainly before this in Iowa. But he is going to compete there. He's heading there right now. He's going to have a rally at noon in South Carolina.

And he is going to put some money in television ads, and the mailing, and the kind of thing that they did here. And they're hoping that they get a bounce from their strong showing here that continues on in South Carolina and beyond.

WHITFIELD: All right, Dana, Jon Huntsman, he put all his eggs in one basket, so to speak, in New Hampshire hoping that spending all that time there would mean that he would finished stronger. But where does he go now and will he get the financial backing to keep going?

BASH: That's the question. Financial backing is the question. I mean, you know, money is what you need to survive. It is the oxygen of politics. He is going to keep going he says. He's going to continue into South Carolina. We talked to his campaign. They say that he does have some key supporters down there who could potentially help him keep going.

But I know you have Peter Hamby on after me. And he'll probably talk about the organization. Look, this was it. His eggs were all in this basket. Third was better than last which is what he was pulling for quite some time. But it's hard to see his campaign going much further than South Carolina but you know what, not going to make any predictions in this race because it has been such a rollercoaster ride.

WHITFIELD: That's right. Anything can still happen. All right, thanks so much, Dana Bash there in Manchester.

All right. Let's turn to Christine Romans here in the Election Center.

Christine, you've been doffing through all the exit poll data. And there is a lot in which to dig. So what are the numbers telling us? And what is this about Romney's edge?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's talk a little bit about what it is that New Hampshire voters were looking for in their candidate. For the top candidate quality, 35 percent said, Fredricka, that they wanted someone who could beat President Obama. Twenty-six percent said they wanted experience, 22 percent character, 13 percent a true conservative.

You can see who won those categories. It was Mitt Romney with the ability to beat the president and his experience, character and true conservatism, that went to Ron Paul.

We also asked people as they were leaving the polling places what the most important issues were to them. And no surprise the top issue was the economy. In that category Mitt Romney came out with 45 percent of those who said that the economy was the top issue. It was Mitt Romney who took that category followed by Ron Paul and then Jon Huntsman.

When you look at the deficit, it's Mitt Romney with 34 percent, Ron Paul with 33 percent and Newt Gingrich with 12 percent.

And I want to come up here and take a look at where things started to get a little bit different. On abortion, on this particular issue, this is where Rick Santorum who did very, very well in Iowa, this is where he really rated, 44 percent of those who said that abortion was their top issue for their candidate, that was how that fell out. And then Paul and Romney there. And then finally on health care, it was kind of interesting, Fredricka, because we've heard a lot on the campaign trail from people who say, look, we want to repeal so-called Obama care.

The president's health care victory at the White House calls it. They want to repeal that. But that in Iowa and Here was only a few percentage points their top issue. It's not really rating so far among the people in Iowa and New Hampshire as one of their top issues overall health care.

WHITFIELD: All right, Christine, thanks so much for that breakdown.

All right, so next stop, South Carolina. And all six GOP candidates are holding events in the state there today starting with Newt Gingrich. He's holding a town hall in Rock Hill this hour. You're seeing the live pictures now. We're going to listen in to some of that as soon as it gets underway. But for some, it could be a make-or-break stake. Here's what Rick Perry told CNN's Piers Morgan.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RICK PERRY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: South Carolina is a winner-take-all state, and so winning here I can promise you wipes out the caucus victory and New Hampshire. So if Mitt's thinking he's got it in the bag, I think he's going to be in for a great surprise in South Carolina when he shows up here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Political reporter Peter Hamby is in Columbia, South Carolina.

So, Peter, South Carolina votes Saturday, the 21st. Is it a last chance for the rest of the Republican field to stop Mitt Romney?

PETER HAMBY, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: You know, there's been a lot of talk about whether this is a delegate race or momentum race. It really is though one of the last chances to stop Mitt Romney, frankly. This is the last state where it's kind of affordable to run a campaign and a lot of these candidates don't have the kind of money and resources that Romney has, you know, both to run TV ads and have political organizations in states like Florida and beyond, Arizona super Tuesday.

And frankly, this is a state that is more amenable to the messages of somebody like Newt Gingrich or Rick Santorum. The problem for those guys as we have been saying all morning, it's a divided field. And Mitt Romney doesn't need evangelicals to win. He doesn't need Tea Party activists to win.

He can win with those fiscal-minded voters. He can win on an electability message. He can win, you know, along the coast where there aren't, you know, tons of social conservatives. So he is the man to beat here. You know his numbers might slip a little bit under a flurry of attacks from his rivalries over the next 11 days. But certainly it could be the last chance for people like Rick Perry, Rick Santorum or Newt Gingrich -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: So we just heard from Rick Perry, you know, who spoke with Piers Morgan who says, you know, it's not in the bag just yet for Mitt Romney. So what does the Perry camp plan on doing, plan on saying in which to appeal to South Carolinian voters?

HAMBY: Yes, I've been with Governor Perry for the last week or so. He's been -- well, not a week, a few days. He took a break in Austin. But I've been out here for a week. You know Rick Perry is really hammering home this attack on Mitt Romney and his time at Bain Capital calling him a, you know, corporate predator, a vulture is what he called Bain Capital basically saying that Bain Capital bought out and took over two companies here in South Carolina and fired your friends and your neighbors here in South Carolina.

He's really trying to localize that message. He's going to try to kind of hammer this populous theme, kind of paint Mitt Romney as an elite, out of touch voter, I think -- excuse me, candidate. You're going to hear a lot of that. You might hear a lot of Romney-care attacks from Rick Perry. But this is Rick Perry's last stand. He has to win here, frankly, Fredricka, to advance in this nomination fight.

WHITFIELD: All right. Peter Hamby, thanks so much in Columbia, South Carolina.

So Thursday, January 19th, just days before the South Carolina primary, the GOP contenders debate the issues. The Southern Republican Presidential debate right here on CNN. It's next Thursday, January 19th, 8:00 Eastern Time.

And now to a story making headlines around the world. An Iranian nuclear scientist has reportedly been killed in a bomb blast in Tehran. It's the latest in a series of deadly attacks against nuclear scientists in that country.

CNN's Zain Verjee joins us now live from London.

So, Zain, what are the details of this attack and who is believed to be responsible?

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Good morning, Fredricka. Iran is pointing the finger squarely at Israel for this bomb attack and the death of this nuclear scientist. Iran is saying this is the work of the Zionists. The details that we've learned is that this was some kind of a motor bike attack, Fred. And essentially someone on a motor bike just drove by a car and then put a magnetic bomb underneath it of this nuclear scientist and it exploded killing him and wounding at least two other people.

This man was a really important man in Iran because he was actually a supervisor. His name was Mustafa Roshan of the Natanz Uranium Enrichment facility. Now that's an important site for the U.S. to keep its eyes on because it's said to have something like 8,000 centrifuges in operation. And the reason we care about it is because the U.S. believes Iran is using this program to build a nuclear weapon.

This isn't the first time a nuclear scientist has been killed, Fred. There are a couple in the last two years have died the same way -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. And Zain, and still talking about Iran and other interests here. Another American rescue of Iranian mariners. The second one in a week. What are the details, do we know, about this?

VERJEE: I know, right. This is like diplomacy on the high seas. It seems to be working there where there's more goodwill intentions out there. But yes, that's right. Early on Tuesday the U.S. Coast Guard rescued six Iranian mariners that were in real trouble somewhere on the north side of the Persian Gulf.

And basically what happened was, was that this Iranian vessel, it was -- it was kind of like a dow actually, and it started flooding. And these guys were in real danger. And the U.S. came and helped them out. And in fact, the owner of the vessel says without your help, we were dead. Thank you.

The government also from the Iranian Foreign Ministry have this to say. The minister spokesperson said, "Rescuing Iranian sailors by the U.S. was a humanitarian act and we well come such acts. The Iranian Navy also engages in such rescue operations. It is the responsibility of all nations to rescue nationals from other countries from pirates." Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Sort of a backhanded compliment on that one, huh?

VERJEE: Yes, sort of. A little slap as well saying you're obliged to, you know, under international law.

WHITFIELD: All right. Zain Verjee, thanks so much.

All right. Mitt Romney makes history with back-to-back wins in Iowa and New Hampshire. Now the question is can anyone or anything stop the GOP frontrunner. We'll talk about that and other topics from the trail with radio talk show host Paul Wescott. That's next. And things get very testy at Indiana statehouse. Why voters' anger boils over.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's dictatorship.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: American lives have been lost.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Checking stories cross-country now.

An Orange County father is convicted of throwing his son off a tour boat in August. Sloan Briles was sentenced to three years of probation and two treatment programs. Briles originally claimed he and his son were just having fun, but later pleaded guilty to child abuse and endangerment.

Bakersfield police said a driver's steering wheel actually kept him from getting impaled. A metal pipe shot through his windshield as he drove down a freeway. The steering wheel deflected it and he was treated for minor injuries.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The voters of Indiana will remember. It's dictatorship.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: An Indiana House committee's vote on proposed right to work legislation meets with loud objections from protesters there. Right to work means employees cannot be required to pay for union representation costs. The committee approved the Republican-backed bill without any changes and sent it onto the full House of Representatives.

All right. Mitt Romney is celebrating a convincing win in the New Hampshire primary and the other candidates are putting their own spins on the results.

Well, we want to go beyond the spins to find the real takeaway from New Hampshire. Here to do that is Paul Wescott who hosts the morning show at WGIR in Manchester.

So, Paul, what are your listeners saying today?

PAUL WESCOTT, TALK RADIO HOST: Well, you know, honestly, I would say the big story is about process. We all knew Mitt Romney was going to do extraordinarily well in New Hampshire. The fact that he got close to 40 percent, that was the number of people were saying that would be an extraordinary win, he came close enough, that was understood.

But, really what they're talking about today is the fact that, you know what, the New Hampshire primary kind of turned into a nationalized type of spectacle, in which you had so many debates. You had so many other national platforms for these candidates to work on that they somewhat ignored that retail style of politics we're so used to.

WHITFIELD: So, wait a minute. Do you -- are you saying that people didn't like that? That kind of stood in the way of them having kind of person-to-person contact with some of the candidates? They were missing that?

WESCOTT: Oh, yes. I mean, in the state of New Hampshire, it is all about going to the house parties. It's all about going to town hall meetings, getting to meet these candidates. And I know -- I spoke to one of the older New Hampshire voters here in the Granite State. She said to me, listen, I usually get to meet them five or six times. It was only once or twice this time around.

So, there is certainly a higher standard for meeting the candidates that didn't happen.

WHITFIELD: So then given that, the explanation behind Romney's big win because people there felt like they were more familiar with him, because he's from neighboring Massachusetts?

WESCOTT: Yes. Absolutely. It's that and the fact that he's run before. We saw that with George H.W. Bush who had won before and lost. John McCain run before and lost.

New Hampshire voters like that with Republicans. They like to see somebody who's run before, who's lost and who's willing to come back. And somebody that's quite frankly they've gotten to know very well. And Mitt Romney is that guy.

WHITFIELD: Well, didn't they have the opportunity to get to know Jon Huntsman? I mean, he spent so much time if not most of his time there in New Hampshire doing just that, going door to door, being in the coffee shops, having town hall meetings, so that people could understand who he was.

What happened?

WESCOTT: Well, now, this is the beautiful part of it. This is a testament to the retail politics side of it working, and the fact that Jon Huntsman did go door to do, 160-plus events all around the state. And he was able to pull off 17 percent of the vote. Whereas, you look at him nationally he's nowhere near that number.

So, it shows that. He used advertising, but it was within the state. It was retail within the state. It shows that that actually worked.

WHITFIELD: OK. So the style of campaigning very different in New Hampshire, the primary very different, and the issues very different in New Hampshire versus that of South Carolina. So how do you see these races sizing up? How would you compare what is likely to happen in South Carolina with that primary and what just happened in New Hampshire?

WESCOTT: You know, I had an interesting caller who had moved from South Carolina to New Hampshire saying that there are so many northeastern transplants in South Carolina at this point. People from Ohio, and the West Coast. There's a lot of people.

So, you're going to see a bit of a different electorate especially this time around as the baby boomers from New England, the Northeast, are retiring. They go down there. It's not going to necessarily be driven by those Christian conservative voters.

And when you look at that, you might say, well, Mitt Romney if he wins, I wouldn't be as shocked this time. And I totally agree with that analysis.

WHITFIELD: Paul Wescott with WGIR -- thanks so much for being up with us this morning.

WESCOTT: You got it. Any time, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Stay with CNN for the best political coverage on television.

Tonight, 6:00 Eastern Time, John King has a one-on-one interview with Rick Perry.

And tonight at 9:00 Eastern, Piers Morgan sits down with Newt Gingrich.

On Wall Street, orange juice surges after the FDA says it's testing imported oranges for traces of illegal pesticides. Will it affect the price of your morning juice? We're going to find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Members of Britain's royal family get loaded down with gifts every time they make an official visit overseas. And some of the items that they get are, shall we say, unique.

CNN's Zain Verjee joins us now live from London with the official gift list which has just been released, Zain.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hi, Fred.

You should be able to answer this question. What do you get someone who has everything, right?

WHITFIELD: Big old question mark.

VERJEE: You have that problem. It's a good problem to have, right?

Well, this gift list, the royal one has come out. And these are gifts given by government officials and other state representatives around the world to the royal family.

So, Prince William has been given gifts when he was in Australia and New Zealand of things like baseball caps. A little bit of aboriginal art work, as well as some carved and inscribed fragments of buildings in Christchurch where they had the terrible earthquake. He's also received black hoodies. Mosquito traps.

Kate has been given fascinators -- you know, those cool hats. They've both been getting whisky, wine, and lots of champagne.

On the U.S. trip, the gifts they got were kind of low key. I was a little disappointed.

WHITFIELD: Oh.

VERJEE: Drinks coasters, a bread board. And a copy of the "Chicago Daily Sun and Times" newspaper. Anyway, that's what they got.

Charles and Camilla got the best stuff. Camel saddle from Morocco. Weapons and daggers from Kuwait. A set of Zulu spears from South Africa.

The main thing is none of these royal gifts can actually be sold. The royals can decide to give them good causes like hospitals or hospices. They can wear them but they can't have them forever. A lot of the stuff goes into storage where it's kept in trust for the nation.

So, you'll be happy to know that the U.S. bread board is being held in trust of this nation.

WHITFIELD: Well, that is good to know. I'm sure just touring that storage house --

VERJEE: (INAUDIBLE)

WHITFIELD: Yes, touring one day that storage house with all of these, you know, gifts would be, would be a fascinating story in and of itself.

All right. Zain Verjee, thanks so much. Appreciate that -- from London.

(MUSIC)

WHITFIELD: All right. Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange where she has been watching orange juice prices surge because of possible safety concerns. Alison, what's going on?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, I would say don't be too worried about these safety concerns, Fredricka, because most orange juice that's on store shelves and in your refrigerator is OK because it comes from Florida.

But the FDA is going ahead and testing oranges that are imported from Brazil anyway. They're looking for fungicide. That's the stuff that's sprayed on citrus trees to control mold. Now, keep in mind that stuff is not used here, but other countries do use it.

So, here's where the problem comes from -- an unidentified juice company found low levels of fungicide in its juices and its competitors' juices. So, the FDA said it's going to go ahead and take a look at these imports.

But what it does say is that the levels of fungicide that have been found are not a safety risk. At this point, it's not pulling orange juice from store shelves but once again, it is testing imported oranges to see if there is anything there, if there's a health risk.

As far as the money goes with orange juice, orange juice futures are actually traded as a commodity just like oil or gold. Yesterday, the price hit a 34-year high. Prices of orange juice futures are rising again today.

And if those prices, Fredricka, stay high, we could see the price of O.J. at the supermarket go higher too.

WHITFIELD: Of course.

KOSIK: And just in case, you're wondering, rentals of trading places, they skyrocketed on this news. Yesterday, everybody wanted to see Randolph and Mortimer Duke corner the market of O.J. futures. You remember "Trading Places," right?

WHITFIELD: Yes, I do. Of course.

KOSIK: Eddie Murphy.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

KOSIK: OK, classic.

WHITFIELD: I remember seeing it.

All right. Let's talk about the other numbers on Wall Street now. How are they looking?

KOSIK: OK. We're about three minutes from the opening bell. Yesterday, the Dow close the at its highest level since July.

This morning, we are expecting a slightly lower open. That's after economic growth in Germany actually went in reverse in the final quarter of last year. Germany was being hit, of course, by the effects of the European debt crisis.

Later today, we're going to get a reading from the Federal Reserve on how the U.S. economy is doing. And we'll bring that to you -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Looking forward to that. Thanks so much.

KOSIK: Sure.

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's talk politics one more time. Ron Paul says his campaign is nibbling at Mitt Romney's heels. Coming up, we'll talk about his strong second place finish last night in New Hampshire.

We'll also talk about what happens if Paul doesn't get the nomination. Could he be a third-party candidate?

And detectives in Los Angeles are speaking about the reopened investigation into the death of movie legend Natalie Wood. That is straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Back to presidential politics.

So, he may have finished fourth in the New Hampshire primary yesterday, but Newt Gingrich now stumping in Rock Hill, South Carolina, says this is a defining moment. The South Carolina, that's two Saturdays from now.

Let's listen to what he's saying.

NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Bubbles (ph)? This is Bubble?

OK, this is like Bubbles suit. There you go.

Let me, I really have been trying for the last month and a half to figure out how to communicate clearly what is at stake. I think this is the most important election in our lifetime.

(APPLAUSE)

GINGRICH: I don't think it's just important because we need to somehow beat Barack Obama although it's very, very important.

(APPLAUSE)

GINGRICH: So, beating him isn't enough. You have a bipartisan establishment that has been running this country, that has made it a gigantic mess. You have bureaucracies out of control.

Judges who think they can be dictators. You have systems around this country. You have laws that don't work.

So we've got to change not just Obama, we have to change the entire direction of the United States of America to get it back on track and that is our obligation to these young people.

(APPLAUSE)

GINGRICH: I've been at this -- since my dad was stationed in the Army in France in 1958, I spent 53 years, I'm going to share that with you.

You can go back to your parents now. Thank you for coming up. Thank you again.

(APPLAUSE)

GINGRICH: OK.

Doesn't that put a face on it? This is about the country of children and grandchildren. As you know, we have two grandchildren, Maggie and Robert who said they're my primary debate coaches.

And, you know, that's why we're running. We're running because I'm really worried about the America they're going to inherit. I'm worried that the disastrous policies that we now have in our establishment are so profoundly wrong.

I'll tell you one of the places that really helped me personalize this in the last week. We had a debate the other night and folks were going on and on and on in the media about gay rights, and this and that. It was at least a 15-minute excursion on contraception which I thought was really, truly bizarre.

I don't know about you all, but in terms of the presidency of the United States and the crises we're faced with, that happens to rank number 682 on the list.

(APPLAUSE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Newt Gingrich there in Rock Hill, South Carolina. He believes that South Carolina's going to be a pivotal state, especially as it pertains to him in the race. Even though he finished fourth in New Hampshire primaries.

Political director Mark Preston with me now.

Let's talk about Newt Gingrich. And, you know, he's spelling out right there that he thinks that the current policies are disastrous. He believes it's time that -- it's time to change it and he's the man in which to change it.

But how does he enter South Carolina? Is he at a great disadvantage because he finished so poorly in both Iowa and New Hampshire?

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Yes. He certainly enters South Carolina wounded. He calls himself a son of the South. You know, he is from Georgia. He considers Georgia his home even though he lives up in Virginia and has for very many years.

Newt Gingrich needs to come into South Carolina and he needs the help from this outside interest group, the super PAC that is planning to spend several million to try to damage Mitt Romney as much as possible. But he's going to be very careful because for our viewers who recall, Newt Gingrich has talked about being above the fray and not firing all of the anger internally at his rivalries, but at Barack Obama.

However, he's allowing the super PAC to do so.

WHITFIELD: However, that was short lived, wasn't it, because he has been revealing a mean streak as it pertains to his fellow candidates. In fact, if we have that clip where there's a South Carolina ad that was just rolled out.

And, by the way, you talk about those super PACs. He also just got an injection of about $5 million from a Las Vegas casino owner. So, he has the money in which to roll out whatever kind of ads that he wants to.

Apparently, these ads when we get it cued up apparently kind of shows that kind of mean streak, the gloves are off. In fact, here we have it. Let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NARRATOR: What happened after Massachusetts moderate Mitt Romney changed his position from pro-abortion to pro-life? He governed pro-abortion. Romney appointed a pro-abortion judge, expanded access to abortion pills, put Planned Parenthood on a state medical board but failed to put a pro-life group on the same board.

And Romney signed government-mandated health care with taxpayer- funded abortions. Massachusetts moderate Mitt Romney, he can't be trusted.

GINGRICH: I'm Newt Gingrich and I --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. His target clearly the front-runner.

PRESTON: Yes. I mean, you might as well have been called the Massachusetts liberal, a Ted Kennedy liberal in that ad.

And, clearly, Newt Gingrich sees that this is his last chance right now to try to win the nomination. But that's for everybody at this point. Mitt Romney is on such a roll right now, coming out of Iowa, now coming out very strong out of New Hampshire, heading down to South Carolina.

If Newt Gingrich or Rick Perry or Rick Santorum have any chance of trying to win this nomination, they have to stop him in South Carolina.

WHITFIELD: Let's talk about Ron Paul. He did well in New Hampshire. He did fairly well in Iowa as well. He's already saying that he's nipping at the heels of Mitt Romney.

Might he be appealing though in South Carolina? Very different electorate.

PRESTON: A different electorate. And, quite frankly, is he appealing beyond the scope of support that he already has? I mean, the fact of the matter is he's always going to get 10 or 12 percent. But the GOP establishment is not behind him. Not that he wants them to. And the mainstream Republicans aren't behind him because there are -- some of his views specifically on foreign policy that people cannot seem to embrace.

Now, it was interesting last night after he came in second place, which is a very respectable second place, his campaign came out and said that Ron Paul is the conservative alternative to Mitt Romney and asked all the other campaigns to back him.

WHITFIELD: Could he potentially be a third-party candidate? If he does not do well, if he doesn't get the nomination, might he say, I'm still in?

PRESTON: Well, he hasn't ruled it out, and he has run as a libertarian presidential nominee several years ago. The problem if he does do that -- look, it could come down to his son, because his son Rand Paul is a Tea Party favorite. He's a Kentucky senator, and his top surrogate on the campaign trail.

If Ron Paul, Fred, decides to run a third-party bid, and his son backs him, down the road, does that hurt his son's political prospects?

WHITFIELD: And real quickly, yes or no, or do or die for Rick Perry in South Carolina?

PRESTON: No question. Yes.

WHITFIELD: All right. Maria Preston, thanks so much. Appreciate that.

PRESTON: Thanks.

WHITFIELD: All right. We'll talk more about the battle ahead in South Carolina. Things really could get ugly there. Newt Gingrich has already pulled the gloves off as you saw in that one ad. We'll show you what might else be up his sleeve.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With the ukulele, you don't feel like you need hours and hours of practice. You can just pick it up for the first time. You know, take your finger and do this. You know?

Just have fun with it. It just feels good. Everything feels right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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WHITFIELD: All right. One of Hollywood's biggest mysteries tops our entertainment headlines. It's the tragic drowning of movie star Natalie Wood more than 30 years ago.

"Showbiz Tonight" host A.J. Hammer joins us on the latest into the reinvestigation into wood's death -- A.J.

A.J. HAMMER, HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Well, Fred, this is a story that people started buzzing about recently when authorities re- opened their investigation into Natalie Wood's death. Two months ago, after they were contacted by people who claimed that they had additional information about this case.

But we've just spoken with the L.A. sheriff's department as new reports started to swirl around. They're telling CNN they have not discovered any new information that changes this case in any way.

Los Angeles sheriff's department spokesperson tells CNN the investigation does remain open. They are still following up on leads. Maybe, maybe they're going to still discover some kind of a smoking gun.

But at this point, Woods' death is still officially an accident. Wood, of course, drowned all the way back in 1981. It was during a boating trip with her husband Robert Wagner and Christopher Walken.

The captain of the boat that they were on is now saying that he misled investigators back then. And now he says he believes that Wood died as a result of a fight that she had with Wagner.

The mystery, Fred, has endured for over 30 years now. And even if this case is closed, I am certain a lot of folks will believe there's something suspicious that happened that night because -- well, people love a good conspiracy theory, don't they?

WHITFIELD: Yes, they do.

And there's another star people are fascinated with, A.J., and that's Lindsay Lohan reportedly facing more legal problems. What now?

HAMMER: Yes, this time involving money. She's being targeted by the IRS.

So, Fred, the IRS is saying Lindsay did not pay her 2009 federal income taxes. So, they've obtained a lien on Lohan for more than 93,000 bucks.

And there are reports today that Lindsay is being sued by a paparazzo. It looks like a photographer is claiming that he was injured when a car that Lindsay is riding in crashed into his vehicle. The reports say that he's suing Lohan because the car was being driven by her assistant under Lindsay's direction.

So, Fred, once again, it is pile on Lindsay time.

WHITFIELD: OK. A.J., thanks so much. We're going to see you again.

Beyonce -- more Beyonce talk baby talk. The new baby has arrived home with some pretty unbelievable gifts. A.J. will give us a sneak peek and give us the scoop on that, and other showbiz headlines in the next hour in the CNN NEWSROOM.

All right. Back to politics, Newt Gingrich finished fourth last night in New Hampshire but he's looking for bigger finish in South Carolina. He's speaking there right now and hitting the airwaves hard as well, tearing into Mitt Romney, the front-runner. We'll talk about how ugly things are getting there.

Again live pictures from Rock Hill, South Carolina, and Newt Gingrich.

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WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right.

Let's look ahead to the next primary contest. South Carolina, specifically political ads and super PACs. Christine Romans is following the money trail.

So first off Christine let's look back at ad spending, particularly on a New Hampshire's primary.

ROMANS: Yes and there's a big money trail to follow quite frankly. When you look at the New Hampshire results, you can see that Romney really building on his performance from 2008 overall, really building on that performance. And Ron Paul coming in there too. When you -- when you add in the ad spending, the TV ad count, you can see that it is Paul and Romney overall here who are spending the money. They were spending the money and those were the two who did the best there.

Now I want to broaden it out and take a look at South Carolina. Because this is, of course, where we're going now and this is a different kind of story. This is Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney buying the most ad time. Gingrich focusing on the West but you add in Super PACs, add in Super PACs and it's a different story.

Look at that, Fredricka. This is what it looks like with Super PACs. This is Perry -- this is Perry supporters to be very precise buying an awful lot of time there. Now I want to broaden it out and just go one step further. I know you were talking about South Carolina here then.

But this is what Florida looks like with Super PACs. This is all Romney and Romney supporters. The only candidate in a position to be moving two states ahead both in ad buys and the ground game. You can see this is really an awful lot of saturation overall for Mitt Romney.

And I'll tell you something from this morning brand new, Paul Steinhauser reporting that the Restore Our Future Super PAC a pro Romney Super Pac just bought $3.4 million in a big ad buy there. So that's another big ad by just today to start Wednesday to promote Mitt Romney and his agenda Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: So these Super PACs, no limits. Hence the word super. ROMANS: Super super-duper big money. And it's really changing the game here and watching how it -- it will be very interesting to watch how it folds out. Because you know if I step back real quickly. Perry's Super PACs on behalf of Perry spent a lot of money in Iowa but it didn't do very much good, did it? So there you go.

WHITFIELD: Oh boy. All right. We'll keep checking and watching.

ROMANS: Sure.

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much Christine.

Ok so let's talk more, zoom in on South Carolina. Could it be the make or break place, particularly for Newt Gingrich's presidential bid? He is campaigning there right now, giving a speech his staff calls "a defining moment". At least the South Carolina primary they're calling as the defining moment.

He's hoping to win over Evangelical voters. A new ad is on television in South Carolina already slamming Mitt Romney over abortion in particular. David Brody is the chief political correspondent for the Christian Broadcast Network. So Gingrich reportedly, you know, got that $5 million new bucks from a Las Vegas casino owner.

Will that kind of Super PAC money help him be the leader in this fight as it pertains to that state in particular?

DAVID BRODY, CBN NEWS, CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I mean, he's got a lot of money down in South Carolina. We're seeing it with the abortion ad. we're about to see this 30 minute Bain Capital extravaganza as part of a Super PAC, which is obviously is separate from Gingrich, but it's going to help Gingrich's cause.

I mean look, Gingrich is -- is the guy in South Carolina that clearly the Romney campaign is concerned about. Not just because he's got some of that leadership experience that we've talked about earlier, but also because he's running all of the negative ads. He's going hard against Romney in abortion. Santorum on the other hand, he'll do some of the negative stuff against Romney as well. But it won't be as much as Gingrich. Why? Because Santorum needs to see come across more in a positive way to show that he has presidential temper.

He's got a different audience that he's trying to attract. He wants to attract Evangelicals to make the case that he can be President of the United States. Newt Gingrich is going to go "nuclear" in South Carolina.

WHITFIELD: So Romney you know skated through New Hampshire. You say it is a very different beast there in South Carolina. We saw that Gingrich ad a bit earlier. Gloves are off. How grisly, how ugly do you think things potentially will get between all of the contenders?

BRODY: Well, I think it's going to be very ugly. You know I think part of the concern for Gingrich and Santorum and Perry. One of big issues here Fredricka is that they have all -- they're all trying to make the case as to why they're more electable than Mitt Romney. And it hasn't been going over very well.

The issue really for these candidates is they're probably going to have to start saying why Mitt Romney is not electable. And I think that may be more advantageous to their case.

You know Jon Huntsman started doing that here in New Hampshire where he started to say, look, Romney is gaffe prone. You heard this line about I like to fire people. Well we know it was taken out of context. But you know for Mitt Romney you just don't go around and saying I like to fire people when you have an issue already on that narrative. And so Huntsman was making a point that there is -- there are some gaffes that Romney does commit along the way.

If they can start to hammer that narrative on Romney that may be more effective.

WHITFIELD: So while the other contenders, you know, have to show or spell out why Romney is not electable. The pressure is on Romney to not have one single misstep to make it easier for them either.

BRODY: Yes. I mean he's going to have clearly to watch his missteps. Mitt will have to watch his missteps -- I like that. It's a tongue twister. But Mitt Romney, everybody talks about how he has a 25 percent problem Fredricka. Well, yes sure he does. Ok but you know what? So what? I mean, because Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, Rick Perry, they're all in the race, they're all kind of playing for the same team. Splitting up the points in a basketball game. Whereas Mitt Romney is the star scoring 60 points.

He's like the Kobe Bryant and then you've got three all-star on the other team but they're all splitting up the points divided in the time. It's a -- it's a real -- the numbers are good for Mitt Romney. If the pie changes -- in other words when some of these other candidates get out then and it becomes a two-man race, then we've got a different ball game on our hands.

WHITFIELD: All right David Brody thanks so much. Always good to see you. Appreciate that.

Meantime, still talking about Newt Gingrich and whether he blew a big opportunity in New Hampshire. We got a boost, he got rather a boost with the "Manchester Union Leader's" endorsement. Btu our guest next hour says Gingrich didn't follow it up with voters. We'll speak with the newspaper's editorial page editor.

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WHITFIELD: Welcome back.

It's time to fast forward to events happening later on today.

At noon eastern several human rights groups will protest the tenth anniversary of the Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba. The rally will be at Lafayette Park across from the White House.

At 2:30 p.m. Eastern time, alleged mob boss, James "Whitey" Bulger appears in court. He faces charges relating to 19 murders.

And a few minutes later, first lady Michelle Obama talks about the needs of military veterans and makes a major announcement on their medical care.

We're following lots of developments in the next hour of THE CNN NEWSROOM.

Let's check in with Dana Bash in Manchester, New Hampshire -- Dana.

BASH: Well, Fred, Mitt Romney didn't just win here, he won big. But that does not mean this Republican race for the Republican nomination is over. Far from it. We'll have more on that at the top of the hour.

ROMANS: And I'm Christine Romans here in the election center where I'm taking a look at all the exit polling. And I'm going to be able to tell you what people were voting for, what they want to see in their candidate, what the most important issues were for them with some surprising results. I'll have that for you at the top of the hour.

HAMBY: I'm Peter Hamby in Columbia, South Carolina, where conservative presidential candidates are scrambling to stop Mitt Romney before he wraps up the Republican nomination. More on that in just a few minutes.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, everybody.

Coming up in one of his final acts, outgoing Mississippi Governor, Haley Barbour handed out hundreds of pardons. But who he pardoned is making some people pretty angry.

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WHITFIELD: All right. Checking stories across country now.

Just outside Houston, clean-up is under way in Fort Bend County. A tornado peeled off roofs and knocked down fences yesterday but no one was seriously hurt.

In New York the Occupy Wall Street protesters return to the Zuccotti Park. About 300 protesters streamed in after the city caved in to complaints and removed the barricade.

And a painful confession in Pittsburgh, the mayor publicly struck Tim Tebow after the NFL quarterback led his Broncos to victory over the beloved hometown Steelers.