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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees

A Look at Wisconsin Primary; Hunting Osama

Aired February 17, 2004 - 19:00   ET

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

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


(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST: Tonight, the Wisconsin primary. Is this do or die for Howard Dean?

Combating Kerry. How the White House is getting ready to rumble.

Hunting Osama. Are there really new reasons to hope he will get caught?

Hell in Haiti. Anarchy spreads as exiled troops take up arms.

Gay marriage opponents seek help from California's courts.

A campus rocked by scandal. A female football player says she was raped at Colorado.

ANNOUNCER: Live from the CNN broadcast center in New York. This is ANDERSON COOPER 360.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Welcome to 360. A big night for politics. The polls close in Wisconsin in just two hours. 72 delegates at stake there and John Kerry is hoping his big mo doesn't slow. For Howard Dean this could be a make or break night though frankly, no one is sure what he may do. We're following the top contenders tonight. CNN's Kelly Wallace is with camp Kerry, senior political correspondent Candy Crowley is tracking Dean and Dan Lothian is with John Edwards. We begin with Kelly Wallace. Kelly, how confident is camp Kerry?

KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, fair to say the camp is cautiously optimistic. At this moment, Senator Kerry doing a round of local interviews with Wisconsin stations to try and get out the vote. A short time ago he was asked what he thinks if this turns out to be a tight race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think you can't run for president cherry-picking states, picking up a delegate here or there. You have to run for president nationally. I've been the only one in recent weeks doing that and proving an ability to win nationally. So that's what we're going to try to continue to do. Hope to do that here today. A win is a win. Then you move on to the next location. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: And the motto continues to be, it is taking nothing for granted.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE (voice-over): Shortly after sunrise, union workers rallying in Milwaukee for John Kerry but getting most fired up about President Bush.

JAMES P. HOFFA, TEAMSTERS' GENERAL PRESIDENT: John Kerry has one quality I think all of us know. He can beat George Bush!

WALLACE: These are the 19 unions, 5 million members strong that had originally backed Dick Gephardt but today, formally threw their support behind Kerry. The front-runner talking more and more like the general election campaign has already begun.

KERRY: This is not a conservative Republican administration. This is an extreme radical administration.

WALLACE: Getting out the vote, the goal now with Senator Ted Kennedy asking Wisconsin voters to do for Kerry what they did for his brother, John F. Kennedy in 1960. We asked the senator if he thought it were time for Kerry's rivals to step aside.

SEN. TED KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: As one that stayed in a long time myself in 1980, I'm not one to advise people to get out early but I think there is a sense of people coming together now behind the candidate.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: Tomorrow Senator Kennedy heads immediately to Ohio, one of the ten states holding contests two weeks from today on Super Tuesday and one of the states expected to be a key battle ground in the general election campaign -- Anderson.

COOPER: Thanks very much from camp Kerry. Joining us from Middleton, Wisconsin is Senator John Kerry himself. Senator Kerry, how confident are you tonight?

He will be here momentarily, we are told. Kelly Wallace reporting that they are cautiously optimistic about results tonight. The polls close in a little bit under two hours. John Kerry has been running hard all day. What you're seeing in the last few moments is him doing local TV interviews, trying to get out the vote because as we said, the polls continue to be open, and a lot of people, still, we're hearing, and we'll hear later on from our own analyst Bill Schneider, a lot of people still undecided up until the last few moments, the last several days of this campaign in Wisconsin.

It has been a hard fought campaign in Wisconsin. Howard Dean has really just staked a claim. Early on he had said it was do or die for him in Wisconsin. He said if he didn't win, he would leave the race. He reversed himself several days later. He has had trouble in the last several days.

We are joined now by Senator John Kerry in Middleton, Wisconsin.

Senator, how confident are you tonight of a win?

KERRY: Well, I'm not confident at all. What I am is cautiously hopeful and optimistic. I've been out working hard. I just came from downtown in Madison, outside the capitol, meeting voters.

And we really don't take anything for granted. You have to work for every vote. You have to go out and ask people, and that's exactly what I'm doing.

COOPER: Senator Kerry, I've heard you say: A win is a win. But how much do you have to win by tonight to really have it be a win that, sort of, propels you forward with momentum?

KERRY: Well, you know, you and others will make those decisions. Right now, the voters are still deciding who they may vote for. And I want to make it clear that I am the strongest candidate to take on George Bush.

Just today, I gather, he gave a speech on national security, calling himself a war president. We need a nominee of our party who has the ability to stand up to him and go to toe to toe and point out to Americans that we actually can fight a more effective war on terror, that I can make America safer than George Bush is making us today.

And I also know how to put people back to work. All over Wisconsin, people have lost jobs. People are worried about their health care. The president has no real plan. I do. And that's what's at stake in this race.

COOPER: Senator Kerry, how, as you look at people still going to the polls -- and as you said, the polls are still open there -- how concerned are you or your team about undecideds? There are a lot of people we're hearing who have not made up their minds, really, until the last couple of days and maybe even until they get into the poll room.

KERRY: Well, we're always concerned. I mean, that's exactly why I'm campaigning up until the last minute, because I want to continue to appeal to those people who may not have made up their minds.

I am the only candidate in this race who has a measurable, consistent, 35-year record of standing up against powerful interests in America, taking them on, making a difference in the lives of our country and -- life of our country, and the lives of our country men and women. And I think that I also bring the national security, foreign policy and military experience at a time when America is threatened by terror and where we are at war and we need leadership that knows how to bring other countries to our side.

I can do a better job then George Bush, of leading America to reconnect to its own ideals and values, win our friends and allies back, win respect and influence and do a better job of making America safe.

COOPER: You have portrayed yourself as a candidate against special interests. The White House has put out an ad on the Internet saying that basically you have been beholden to special interests. You have received more lobbying money than any other senator in the course of your history. You've now responded with an Internet ad painting Bush as receiving a lot of money from PACs.

Is this an issue that you're going to continue hammering?

KERRY: Yes, I am going to continue to hammer it. And what the White House is doing is actually almost laughable. I mean, I really do find it amusing. There is nobody who knows me in Washington and nobody who has followed this issue who doesn't realize that I've been one of the leading champions in the United States Congress for campaign finance reform and for changing the way money affects American politics.

I'm the only United States senator who has been elected four times, who voluntarily has refused to ever take, in any one of my races, one dime of political action committee special interest money. And the only reason you see a lobbyist who might have contributed to me is because I refuse to take the political action committee money.

So they've given to me individually as individual Americans. And the total of all of that is about 1 percent, 1 percent of all of the money that I've raised in my lifetime in American politics.

I'm proud that it's average Americans who have elected me. I'm proud that I've said no to the political action committee money.

And if you look at George Bush and his crowd, they are the world champions in terms of special interest giveaways -- the drug companies, the oil companies, Halliburton, the Enron scandal, the WorldCom scandal.

I mean, you start looking around at the creed of greed that this crony capitalism crowd has unleashed in America...

COOPER: Senator Kerry?

KERRY: ... and it tells an extraordinary story.

COOPER: Some tough words there. How tough is this campaign going to be? Already, these ads on the Internet by you, by the Bush re-election campaign, they're pretty tough, pretty nasty. Is this thing just going to get uglier and uglier?

KERRY: I responded to the Bush administration. Their first ad, the very first ad George Bush put up on TV that he took credit for as part of his campaign was a negative attack ad on me. And I've made it very clear: I will answer them.

Now, what I want to...

COOPER: Just to respond to that, though, Senator Kerry, the White House basically says or the election campaign says that for months now you and other Democrats have been targeting President Bush, have been saying nasty things, have been running a lot of ads. And they say...

KERRY: Well, if you consider...

COOPER: ... they're just responding to those.

KERRY: If you consider saying something nasty to be pointing out to Americans that the Bush administration took a Medicare bill for seniors and turned it into a $139 billion giveaway to the drug industry that forbids Medicare from even negotiating a bulk purchase price and forbids seniors for importing lower-cost drugs from Canada, if that's considered to nasty, then we're going to have a long campaign. Because that's an issue; that's exactly the kind of thing that Americans are upset about.

COOPER: Let's get back to the...

KERRY: There is nothing personal about that. That's exactly what they did.

COOPER: Let's get back to your fellow Democrats, though, for a second, if we could.

KERRY: Sure.

COOPER: I hate to interrupt. I know you're busy.

KERRY: No, I have time for you.

COOPER: Howard Dean, is it time for him to drop out of the race?

KERRY: That is not my decision. And I have great respect for what Howard Dean has done and accomplished in this race. It's simply not my decision to comment on any other candidate's choices at this point in time.

COOPER: His former chairman used to be very close to your campaign, has indicated that he would like to, in fact, join your campaign. Have you talked to him? We talked to him last night. Have you talked to him? Have you made overtures to him?

KERRY: Yes, some people in the campaign have chatted with him. I haven't had a chance to yet. But we obviously welcome everybody.

I mean, you know, you don't win the presidency by being exclusive. You have to be inclusive. And you try build as big a tent as possible.

I've been thrilled that Wes Clark has come on board, in what I thought was an extraordinarily gracious and generous way. Dick Gephardt, likewise, has come on board in a very classy statement and twice now has showed up at events with me.

Today, I was endorsed by the Alliance for Economic Justice. Later in the week, I'll be in Washington meeting with the AFL-CIO leaders.

I'm very pleased that we have a strong effort of uniting the party that is coming together. That's what you need to do to win.

And I'm not selectively picking one state or another to wage my campaign in. I'm waging my campaign all across the country in all of the states.

COOPER: If Howard Dean dropped out, would you be willing to debate John Edwards one on one?

KERRY: You know, I'll make decisions about where the campaign goes and where we head as we go down the road here. We have our own pretty intensive schedule over the course of the next days. And I'll just have to make decisions as we see.

We've got Dennis Kucinich and Al Sharpton and others in the race. And who knows what decisions anybody is going to make. I don't -- what we need to do is get the returns from Wisconsin tonight and then keep on moving and keep on campaigning. And I make no presumptions about anything.

COOPER: But if John Edwards does have a strong showing tonight, would you be willing to take him on one on one? I mean, I know there are other candidates out there. They're polling pretty low. They haven't really won many places thus far. You know, the focus seems to be on you and...

KERRY: Well, we'll make decisions after...

COOPER: ... on John Edwards.

KERRY: I'm not going to deal with any hypotheticals. We'll deal as we go down the road.

COOPER: All right.

It is good to talk to you, Senator Kerry. It's a big night for you.

KERRY: Thank you.

COOPER: And we appreciate you joining us. Thank you very much.

KERRY: Thanks a lot. Happy to be with you.

COOPER: All right, thanks. And as we said, polls close in about an hour and 45 minutes, a little bit more than that, about 47 minutes. It is going to be a very interesting night of politics indeed.

Moving on now to Howard Dean. He once suggested Wisconsin's primary was do or die. Now, he says that's not necessarily the case. And he was busy hitting the campaign trail today. That's some of the video there. CNN senior political correspondent Candy Crowley reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): People-powered Howard went person to person Tuesday, a Milwaukee diner for breakfast.

HOWARD DEAN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Can I have a little of that jam?

CROWLEY: A root beer factory in the afternoon. Chatting up voters as he awaits their verdict. Wisconsin has seemed a particularly lonely place for Dean. The crowds, save a final raucous one in Madison, have been smaller, quieter. He has kept on the trail even as staffers around him talk openly of leaving the campaign, and his campaign manager, make that former campaign manager, told reporters he will be helping John Kerry Wednesday if Dean loses as it seems he will.

Such is the state of the Dean campaign that election night's biggest question is not how he'll do in the polls, but whether he'll stay in the race.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: If you don't win today in Wisconsin, are you still in it?

DEAN: Yes.

HEMMER: Not getting out.

DEAN: How about that for clarity?

HEMMER: That is clarity.

CROWLEY: It may depend on your definition of "campaign." Dean has said if he loses Wisconsin, he will not be able to continue with a conventional campaign. But there is plenty of space between conventional and nothing at all.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CROWLEY: Anyone looking for an early unconventional Howard's end is going to have to wait. We are told by the campaign that while the candidate is going home to Burlington, as he has planned, there will be nothing tomorrow, and if they have anything to say on Thursday, they'll let us know -- Anderson.

COOPER: I'm sure they will. All right, Candy Crowley, thanks very much, Candy.

John Edwards has received endorsements by newspapers in Milwaukee, Madison, as well. Tonight he hopes his relentlessly upbeat campaign will get new life. Here is CNN's Dan Lothian.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Calling this a critical day in his campaign and sensing some new momentum. SEN. JOHN EDWARDS (D-NC), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We've had enormous energy and excitement around this campaign over the last several days.

LOTHIAN: Senator John Edwards urged students at the University of Wisconsin in Madison to make a difference with their votes.

EDWARDS: I need you to leave this place and continue to work, as all of us will, until the polls close today.

LOTHIAN: Earlier, Edwards was shaking hands and signing autographs at a Milwaukee diner.

EDWARDS: Nice to see you.

LOTHIAN: The campaign, hoping for an upset here, is already looking forward to super Tuesday, scheduling trips in the coming days to states impacted by the loss of manufacturing jobs.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LOTHIAN: Senator Edwards believes he's the candidate to challenge Senator Kerry, believes he could do very well in a two- person race -- Anderson.

COOPER: All right, Dan Lothian, thanks for that.

A lot of questions about undecided voters in Wisconsin. Right now, as we said, the polls are still open. How many pick their candidate when they hit the voting booth? For that, we go live to Atlanta and CNN's senior political analyst, Bill Schneider. Bill, good to see you tonight.

What do we know about these undecideds? Did they really make the last-minute decision once they're in the polls?

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, look, something is happening, it's happening in Wisconsin, it's happening suddenly and it could change the shape of this race, Anderson. It has been changing in the last few days.

Let's compare Kerry voters and Edwards voters. Look at Kerry voters. We asked them, when did you make up your mind, among those who voted in Wisconsin today? A majority of Kerry voters said they made up their minds before the last three days of this campaign. Most of them were with Kerry for some time.

Now, compare that with the Edwards voters. Dan Lothian talked about Edwards speaking of new momentum in the campaign. Well, look at these people. Three-quarters of the people who are voting for John Edwards in today's Wisconsin primary, three-quarters of them are new supporters. They only decided to support him within the last few days.

That is a phenomenal late surge that -- John Edwards, a vast majority of his supporters are new to his campaign. Something is happening to stimulate a lot of new support for this man in Wisconsin.

COOPER: I got to tell you, that graph that we have on the screen is just astounding. Seventy-five percent deciding within the last three days. What is it? I mean, he got two big endorsements from newspapers in two big cities there in Wisconsin. Is it his NAFTA stance, is it his sort of his upbeat message? Do we know what it is?

SCHNEIDER: Well, it seems to be a combination. One is the legitimacy conferred on him by his endorsement in Milwaukee and Madison by major newspapers in Wisconsin. Another is he's done something interesting. He's opened up an issue difference with his competitors in the campaign.

He's been generally very positive, but in the debate on Sunday just in the last couple of days he said that he challenged Dean and Kerry on the NAFTA issue, on the trade issue.

Wisconsin is a state that has suffered the loss of some 75,000 jobs in the last three years. What he's saying is, trade is a net job loser for the voters of Wisconsin. He said John Kerry voted for NAFTA, Howard Dean supported NAFTA. Edwards is saying he never supported NAFTA in North Carolina and he doesn't support it now. It is the first big issue difference we have seen in this campaign, Anderson.

COOPER: All right. We'll see if tonight is, in fact, the night of the undecideds. Bill Schneider, thanks for that.

The Republicans don't want all the attention tonight to be on the Democrats, certainly. Just hours ago, President Bush paid a visit to Fort Polk, a military base in Louisiana. Even Senator Kerry noted here just a few moments ago, the president addressed the troops as commander in chief, and as a candidate for reelection. CNN senior White House correspondent John King has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A pep talk for the troops and a defiant defense of his decision to go to war in Iraq.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We had a choice of our own, either take the word of a madman or take action to defend America and the world. Faced with that choice, I will defend America every time.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

KING: The president is both commander in chief and a candidate for reelection determined to use the power of incumbency, made-for-TV backdrops, and a focus on what the Bush team believes is a critical strength, leadership at a time of crisis.

BUSH: My resolve is the same as it was on the day when I walked in the rubble of the Twin Towers. I will not relent until this threat to America is removed. KING: Fort Polk is in Louisiana, one of the many military communities in the South where the White House believes Democratic front-runner John Kerry's Senate record on defense issues would prove a tough sell. It is a debate Vietnam veteran Kerry says he more than welcomes.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If he wants national security to be the key issue of this campaign, we do have three words for him we know he understands. Bring it on!

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: And John King joins us now at the White House. John, an event like this at Fort Polk today, I mean, is it designed to take some of the attention away from all the coverage of the Democrats tonight?

KING: Certainly is. Now, Anderson, the White House will say the president was simply saying thank you to the troops, including a solemn visit with some family members of those killed in Iraq. But this president's schedule is now carefully crafted. He's followed the Democrats into some of the key primary states. And now he's going into the South. Essentially the White House is saying, come here, Democrats, we think we can beat you here and we think we will beat you on military issues. The president realizes Senator Kerry is ahead in the polls. The campaign is taking shape. The Democrats are getting most of the attention. The president more and more is engaging personally as a candidate, and look for him very soon to spend a lot of money on TV ads as well.

COOPER: All right, a lot of money indeed. All right, John King, thanks for that.

Strategists on both sides of the political divide are sharpening their attacks. Later tonight, we're going to look at how the Bush camp will take on Kerry if he is fact the nominee. We'll talk to the press secretary of the Bush-Cheney campaign.

Coming up, we're following a number of developing stories right now cross country. In fact lets take a look.

Phoenix, Arizona; Ex-bishop convicted. Today this man, Thomas O'Brien found guilty of leaving the scene of an accident he was involved in. He could get nearly 4 years in prison. Now, O'Brien failed to stop and render aid to a jay walking pedestrian he struck and killed with his car last year.

Washington, D.C. The attorney general sued by one of his own. John Ashcroft is among parties name in a whistle blower lawsuit filed by a federal prosecutor in Detroit. Richard Convertino, that's his name, says his superiors interfered in a major terrorism case, compromised a confidential informant, exaggerated results in the war on terror. The Justice Department is not commenting.

Washington again on air tragedy's legacy. A new mandate will force Boeing and Airbus to retro-fit 3,800 jetliners with a new safety feature designed to prevent another TWA Flight 800 disaster. The system is designed to reduce the risk of explosion by pumping nitrogen enriched air in fuel tanks.

Denver, Colorado hanging up on telemarketers. A federal appeals court has upheld the governments do not call registry, calling it "A reasonable fit." The panel's decision overturns a lower court ruling that says the list violates free speech.

In New York City; A-Rod in pinstripes. The Yankee's introduced their newly acquired third baseman today, Alex Rodriguez. He appeared taken aback by the reception and said he was, quote, "Very, very happy to be here." Let's hope so.

That's a look at stories "Cross Country" tonight.

Will same sex marriages in San Francisco we stopped?

We are waiting for a court decision. Could come any minute now. Stay tuned for that. We'll also talk to San Francisco's mayor. We are going to take you there live.

Also ahead, violence and anarchy in the streets of Haiti. It is getting very, very dangerous there. We'll take you live to Port-au- Prince, France (sic).

And the University of Colorado rape scandal. One of the first female football players comes forward with a tale of terror. First, let's take a look inside the box -- the top stories on tonight's network news cast.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: A lot of developing stories tonight. Polls still open in Wisconsin, we're watching that closely. And in San Francisco, a decision on same-sex marriage expected any moment now. Dozens of couples are still continuing their rush to the altar, while several groups who oppose the marriages are in court right now trying to put an end to it all.

Let's get the latest from Miguel Marquez, live in San Francisco -- Migel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's not clear how soon that hearing will be over, and if that judge will even been able to rule today. Our report, CNN's reporter, David Mattingly is in the courtroom. They took 15 minute break a sort time ago, and he was able to get us information as to what's going on in that courtroom right now. The judge, a superior court judge, James Rosen said the most interesting thing all along. He basicly said that he was leaning toward ruling to allowing the city to continue granting marriage licenses for now. Saying that another hearing would be necessary somewhere down the road to settle the plaintiff's concerns as to whether or not it was legal for the city to do what it was doing and if it was legal for the mayor to instruct city employees to issue marriage licenses -- Anderson. COOPER: All right, a lot going on. We are monitoring the situation. Miguel Marquez, thanks for the coverage. We're also going to talk to San Francisco's mayor, Gavin Newsom, in a short time.

In Haiti now the political crisis gets worst. The violence is spreading. The United States is calling for an immediate end to the bloodshed. But Secretary of State Colin Powell rules out sending in troops to help embattled government forces.

CNN's Lucia Newman, has more now from Haiti.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LUCIA NEWMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In rebel controlled city Gonaive, once staunch followers of President Jean Bertrand Aristide celebrate what they see as his imminent resignation. The charred remains of the local police station show who is in control now. A rebel group whose leader says he's turned his guns against Aristide who he accuses of murdering his brother. And he is well armed.

BUTR MELAYER, GONAIVE REBEL LEADER: Today I'm going to see how many guns I have in my group because every day -- every day my people get guns. Every day. Every single day.

NEWMAN: The guns also come from across the border from the Dominican Republic, brought by exiled former paramilitary and army leaders. Tuesday night they overran the town of Hinche in Northern Eastern Haiti, torching the police station and killing three officer. Saying they are out gunned, the government is appealing for international help.

YVON KEPTUNE, HAITIAN PRIME MINISTER: We want real solidarity.

NEWMAN: While disenchanted with Aristide who many see as a despot, Washington is call fog a political solution to the crisis, amid fears more violence will trigger a flood of boat people to Florida.

JAMES FOLLEY, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO HAITI: We will not recognize any government in Haiti that comes to power by force of arms.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWMAN: Here in the capital the situation for now remains calm, but there is serious concern that unless the international community can put pressure on all sides to negotiate, the rebel leaders could very well make good on their vow to make their next target the capital -- Anderson.

COOPER: All right, Lucia Newman, stay safe there in Port-au- Prince. Things can very quickly.

We're tracking other stories around the globe right now, lets check the uplink. Tehran, Iran: political crisis worsens. Deputies hold a sit-in inside the parliament after reformist law makers sent a daring letter to Iran's supreme leader. They criticize him, something you don't really do in Iran. The supreme leader is backing the disqualification of some 2,400 reform candidates from Friday's parliamentary elections.

Northern Lebanon: former hostage returns. Terry Waite, remember him? He says he'd gladly meet with his kidnappers. He's back in Lebanon for the first time since his brutal four-year captivity ended in 1991. Hard to believe it's so long ago. He's on a humanitarian mission to the Palestinian refugee camps.

Paris, France now: grounded flights. Another major air strike as air controllers walk out, forcing most flights in and out of Paris to be canceled or delayed. They're fuming over management reorganization, plan that is could force many of them to relocate.

Kabul, Afghanistan: female police. That's right, berka or no berka, seven women have signed up to become the first female officers in Afghanistan in more than a decade.

Abnd in Central New Zealand, raging floods. Take a look at this, the worst in 100 years. Killed two people, devastated a countryside, sending people fleeing to hire ground. This old home went under as a placid stream suddenly turned into a raging torrent.

That's is a quick look at tonight's "Uplink."

A new bombshell has dropped in Boulder, Colorado. Still ahead an ex-football player gives a horrifying account of her tenure with the Buffaloes.

Also tonight, President Bush battling to keep his job. Find out his strategy for 2004. His campaign press secretary joins live. A night of politics, a lot of ahead. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: A remarkable story. The football program at the University of Colorado is facing new and perhaps even more troubling allegations than the ones we reported last month. You may remember we told you how three women say they were raped at so-called sex parties allegedly thrown to entice football recruits. Now a former place kicker for the Buffaloes, a woman, is telling "Sports Illustrated" she was harassed, groped and raped during her stint with the team. CNN's sports reporter Josie Burke has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOSIE BURKE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As a freshman kicker on the University of Colorado football team, Katie Hnida's gender made her a novelty and she alleges in this week's issue of "Sports Illustrated" magazine, a target as well. Hnida, now a student at the University of New Mexico says that during the 1999 season she was routinely harassed by her teammates. She also alleges that one player raped her at his apartment during the summer of 2000. In the "Sports Illustrated" article, Hnida is quoted as saying, "I told him no but he just kept going." She did not report the crime at the time. Today, she released a statement explaining why she's sharing her story now. It reads, in part, "I did this because I hope no one else will have to deal with the horrors I've endured over the past few years." In Colorado, on Tuesday, university officials from the school president to the football coach, reacted to the new allegations.

GARY BARNETT, UNIV. OF COLORADO FOOTBALL COACH: Since learning of these allegations, I've contacted male teammates of hers, female staff members who have worked with her to try to find out if there's something I missed or something somebody missed in this whole process and like I said in the statement, we've yet to find any evidence to date.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is a new allegation to us. We strongly encourage Katie to contact police officials to investigate what is a serious criminal charge.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURKE: Hnida did say in the statement that she released today that she has been in contact with Boulder county law enforcement officials and at this time, she doesn't plan to press any charges. Meanwhile, CU president Hoffman said today that because of the allegations, a new position has been created, that of special assistant. This person will act as a liaison between the athletic department and the office of the president and the office of the chancellor -- Anderson.

COOPER: Thanks for that. Unbelievable story.

Let's talk expectations for tomorrow night in Wisconsin -- excuse me, for tonight in Wisconsin. A big night of politics ahead. We have an hour and a half before the polls close there. It will be an interesting night. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: In the next half hour on 360 all eyes in Wisconsin. Less than an hour and a half before the polls close, could the race be tighter than expected? Wolf Blitzer and Joe Klein join us with the very latest.

Plus, President Bush's plan of attack. A look at his strategy for staying in the White House.

First, let's check our top stories in the "Reset."

San Francisco city hall is still granting marriage licenses right now to eager gay and lesbian couples. A judge today postponed until Friday action on a suit to block the licenses, he told the three groups opposing same-sex marriage to work together, get their papers in order but another judge hearing a similar case right now indicates he's leading toward letting the marriages continue for now. The decision could come any time. We're following closely. We're going to talk to the mayor in just a moment.

Redwood City, California. Evidence dealing with the electronic tracking of Scott Peterson will be admissible in his murder trial. A judge today ruled in the data from global positioning devices. Peterson, of course, is accused of killing his wife Laci and their unborn child.

Galveston, Texas. A top NASA administrator says the first space shuttle launch since the February 2003 Columbia disaster may not come until early next year. NASA had hoped for a launch date this fall.

New York. Two of the nation's biggest mobile phone companies to merge into the biggest. Cingular will buy AT&T Wireless for about $41 billion. That will leave Cingular with more subscribers than rival Verizon.

And Los Angeles. Comcast may not be buying Disney but Disney is buying the "Muppets." Kermit doesn't look too happy, maybe it's excited. You can't tell, it's a muppet. The Walt Disney company says it will purchase Kermit and Miss Piggy and the rest of the Muppet franchise from the Jim Henson company. The price has not been disclosed. That is a look at the "Reset" tonight.

Now the political drama in Wisconsin going on right now. Polls close in about an hour and 20 minutes. Let's talk expectations. Here in New York, Joe Klein at "TIME" magazine and in Washington, CNN's Wolf Blitzer. Wolf, Joe, appreciate you joining me. Joe, let me start with you, Joe. What is the best outcome for John Kerry? Obviously, a big win for him but does he want this to be a two-man race or does he want this thing to go on and on?

JOE KLEIN, "TIME" MAGAZINE: I think he doesn't want to take any chances. He wants it to be over. I saw him yesterday and he's tired at this point. He wants a couple days off. He won't have them if John Edwards proves to be a tough challenger tonight.

COOPER: Wolf, where does John Edwards need to finish in order to call tonight a victory, besides first place?

WOLF BLITZER, HOST, "WOLF BLITZER REPORTS": A lot of people don't think he'll finish in first place. But if he finishes a very serious second, he has done remarkably well for himself and positioned himself effectively for a two-man race, assuming Howard Dean does not do well in Wisconsin, irrespective of what Dean decides to do in the next day or two, whether he goes forward with a full-scale campaign or tries to change it into some sort of political movement to help other Democrats in Congress. John Edwards needs to do well in second place and get ready two weeks from today for Super Tuesday.

COOPER: Joe, what does John Kerry need to win? Is anything short of a double-digit win a problem for him?

KLEIN: Well, we can play these silly expectation games where we say...

COOPER: That's what we do. KLEIN: 10 percent, 12 percent would be a significant win or less than that won't be. The big question is, what will the people who would give John Edwards money consider to be a decent showing because at this point John Edwards is practically broke. To run on the Super Tuesday primaries here in New York, in California and other huge states, Ohio, you need lots and lots of money. So if the funders, if the people who would back Edwards think that it is a close thing tonight, then he's still in it. But I got to say, at this point, I don't see any faction in this party that can't live with John Kerry. To knock off a front-runner like this, you have to have some reason to do it and I don't see any reasons out there.

COOPER: Wolf Blitzer. Let's talk about Howard Dean. Can he stay in the race? I mean, at this point no one knows. What is the likelihood of him staying in the race until Super Tuesday?

BLITZER: I think there is a possibility he would do that even if he does show a dismal third in Wisconsin because he's trying to get some sort of movement going. He's trying to get some sort of political opportunity going, and to be a formal candidate for the presidency over the next two weeks gives him a platform from which he can go raise money and speak and participate in debates and have the standing from which to try to use that base that he has to exploit it for whatever political purposes he has down the road. Now, on the other hand, he's losing a lot of supporters. He's losing people and organizations, unions that have endorsed him...

COOPER: Well, he lost his campaign chairman just the other day.

BLITZER: Right. And he doesn't want to look overly foolish in the Quixotic hope for the presidency. He has got to make some tough decisions.

COOPER: He doesn't want to look like Don Quixote tilting at windmills here.

BLITZER: Right. And I've heard some of his close advisers give me two scenarios, very different scenarios for him to stay in or to leave.

COOPER: All right. Joe.

KLEIN: Well, it is hard to be a leader of a movement if you go out looking as foolish as he's going to look if he stays in after this, if he does as badly as people expect he's going to do tonight. This has been a terribly tough and embarrassing month for him, after being so high up and now so low down. I think that once he gets back home to Burlington and chills out for a little bit, I think he's going to find that getting out of this is the better part of valor.

COOPER: All right, Howard Dean chilling out. We'll see. Joe Klein, thanks very much, Wolf Blitzer as well. Coverage is going to continue all night got. Got an interesting night of politics ahead.

As the Democrats battle it, Republicans are talking strategy. The Bush-Cheney reelection team is focused on Democratic front-runner John Kerry, of course. Just moments ago, I spoke with Terry Holt, the press secretary for the president's reelection campaign. I started off by asking him what's their strategy against Kerry.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TERRY HOLT, PRESS SECRETARY, BUSH-CHENEY CAMPAIGN: Well, we think the president has been a strong and steady leader during dangerous and changing times. And we think the American people are going to want someone that they can count on, that makes decisions based on principles and that reflects the values of the American people.

COOPER: Is it the economy or is it foreign policy?

HOLT: It's both. The global war on terror and the economy are the two big issues that dominate the political talk today, and dominate people's thinking even at their kitchen tables at home.

COOPER: What is John Kerry's biggest weakness as far as you see? I mean, you guys have already released a pretty tough ad on the Internet, citing John Kerry, the money he's received from special interests groups, from lobbyists. He's responded with a pretty tough ad in response. Is this really the way you're going to go?

HOLT: Well, I think we're going to compare the president's steady leadership with the decision by John Kerry to really shift with the political winds. We think the American people will want somebody that will be consistent and clear in what they say.

And let's face it, John Kerry's record of tax increases over the years, we don't think that will sit well with people when they think about the economy.

COOPER: But I don't get it. Maybe you can clear it up for me. On the one hand, you say he's consistently liberal. On the other hand, you say he's wishy-washy and flip-flopping. Which is it?

HOLT: Well, when he was -- during his years as a senator, he was consistently liberal. But since becoming a candidate and looking at what was politically popular today, he shifted his positions. And we think that whether you shift your positions or you are wrong on the issues, during this period of changing times in America, we think that people will want consistency.

COOPER: How concerned are you, though, about this Air -- whether it's the Air National Guard issue having legs, or but -- just in a side by side comparison between the president and John Kerry, if he is in fact the nominee, with his war record, how does that shape up?

HOLT: Well, it's not so much that John Kerry fought in Vietnam. We honor his service there. It is his anti-war stance. Every day since he came back from Vietnam, his cuts in defense spending over the 90s. He voted to cut $1.6 billion out of intelligence funding even after the World Trade Center was bombed. So we think that those are positions that are wrong for America and that they should be examined during this campaign. COOPER: How tough is this campaign going to get? I mean, you know, I've seen both these ads on the Internet. Albeit they are just Internet ads at this point, but they're pretty tough and it's very early in the race.

HOLT: Well, it is. We're coming out of a very angry and frankly reckless period. The Democratic primary has been very tough. But we think that ultimately this is going to be a very close race, and that the American people expect a serious campaign about the issues. So I think you can expect that we'll have a very open debate about the issues over the next eight months.

COOPER: Does that mean the gloves are off?

HOLT: No. I think that we're going to really focus on the issues that matter most to the American people. They don't want a lot of distractions. They know this is a serious decision. And I think the president is committed to laying out his vision for America, a forward-looking vision. And we're going to stick to that. But we obviously think that a comparison is appropriate.

COOPER: All right, Terry Holt, appreciate you joining us. Thank you.

HOLT: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Well, tonight, the same-sex marriage debate. We are awaiting a court decision in San Francisco. Frankly, it could come at any moment now. We're going to have a live interview with Mayor Gavin Newsom just ahead.

Plus, just moments ago I spoke with Democratic front-runner John Kerry. You're going to hear from the man, coming up. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: Back to one of our other top stories tonight besides politics. The debate over same-sex marriages and the man who started this whole controversy, San Francisco's mayor, Gavin Newsom, joins me now live. Mayor Newsom, thanks for being with us.

CNN's Miguel Marquez reporting just a short time ago, the judge in the second hearing is, apparently, leaning toward letting the marriages continue until constitutional issues are worked out. One, I want to get your reaction. And two, your sense of where will this finally end?

MAYOR GAVIN NEWSOM (D), SAN FRANCISCO: Yeah, I don't know where it will finally end. And it's hard to predict what happens. But I am told literally any minute now the judge will make a determination. So I don't even want to speculate.

Bottom line is, what we're trying to do is the right thing. What we're trying to do is uphold the oath of office that I accepted, to bear true faith and allegiance to the constitution of the state of California and the United States. And that's what I think we're doing, and that's certainly what we did once again here today in San Francisco.

COOPER: And Mayor Newsom, I know you say -- and we are awaiting this decision, you say any second. And if it comes, we'll bring it to your audience. We'll get your reaction to it. You say this is a battle over discrimination, you're standing up against what you perceive as discrimination.

NEWSOM: Yes.

COOPER: The section of California's Family Code says this, "only marriage between a man and woman is valid or recognized in California." Whether you agree with this or not, do you agree that that is the law?

NEWSOM: Well, I mean, that's for those that are currently debating in court to determine. The bottom line is, my read of the Constitution, I would argue any objective analysis. And I challenge people, and I mean this, to read their Constitution. The equal protection clause does not allow me to discriminate. And I think on any basic objective analysis, what we're doing as it relates to marriage is utterly discriminatory, as it relates to the rights, privileges and obligations like, for example, my wife and I have with one another. That's simply not extended to same-sex couples. That's my oath of office. That's my...

COOPER: But you would agree -- but you would agree -- I mean, you are a very intelligent man. You would agree that technically, you are in violation of the California law, whether you think it's right or wrong, whether you think you are upholding another law, higher law, you are in violation of the California law, are you not?

NEWSOM: Yeah, well, the court -- we are right now discussing that in court, and the city attorney is making the case for San Francisco, and the actions that we took are fair, the actions we took are appropriate.

The bottom line is, if you know something is wrong, you can either sit back and wait and talk about the way the world should be and theorize about it and wait a year or two, five, 10, 15, 20 years, as we did with interracial marriages in this country, until we finally came to our senses in 1967. Or we can do the right thing, stand on principle and say, we don't accept discrimination, that we stand on principle that everybody should be treated fairly and equally. And that's what we're trying to do here in San Francisco, were's standing on principle.

COOPER: And Mayor Newsom, as you were speaking, we were looking at pictures of same-sex couples hugging, kissing, people who have just been married in your city. A lot of people, though, see those pictures and are revolted by those pictures, or simply don't want to see them. And there are those who say that what you're doing in San Francisco is going to ignite a backlash and in fact maybe hurt the movement for ultimate same-sex marriage. Do you have any concerns that perhaps you're pushing things too far too fast?

NEWSOM: No. I don't think this country has moved fast enough on the subject. These are the same arguments you use when Protestants couldn't marrying Catholics. The same arguments that were used...

COOPER: I'm sorry, I would not jump in like this. We have breaking news just to report, and it relates directly to what you're saying. I'm reading it directly. A second San Francisco judge has delayed taking action on whether to block same-sex weddings. The judge told the plaintiffs they would likely succeed on the merits but couldn't accept their proposed court order because of a punctuation error. Your reaction.

NEWSOM: We'll continue to do what we've done in an appropriate way. 2,600 plus couples have gotten certificates of marriage that allow the same rights and obligations, that again, straight couples have been afforded for generations. And we'll continue to do that in an appropriate manner in San Francisco until such times the court determines it is inappropriate for us to do so. Now, this is the third date that we've been (UNINTELLIGIBLE) -- third determination by a judge, one last week, one this morning and now this latest decision that will allow us to move forward, and I'm pleased to hear that.

COOPER: Very briefly, court day -- final court today now or next court date is Friday. You are going to continue marrying gay and lesbian couples until then?

NEWSOM: We'll continue to do the right thing. We'll continue to no longer discriminate because of their sexual orientation. And I'm proud to stand on that principle and will fight hard to do the right thing and change minds and more importantly change hearts. When people read the constitution, read it in an objective way, they'll determine what we're doing is appropriate and is right.

COOPER: Mayor, Gavin Newsom, we appreciate you joining us. We know it's been busy day for you. Again, I just want to reiterate, the Associated Press is reporting -- what I read earlier. From the Associated Press, they are reporting that a second San Francisco judge has delayed taking any action on whether to block same-sex weddings. The judge told the plaintiffs they would likely succeed on the merits but, he could not accept their proposed order because of a punctuation error. There's another court day set for Friday, we'll be watching closely.

Politics 2004. A flashback to the '60s. Presidential candidate John Edwards and others talking of the future and paying homage to a hero of the past.

Big night politics ahead. Polls close in Wisconsin in about an hour and 10 minutes.

John Kerry on his campaign, we just spoke here live moments ago. If you missed it, you are going hear what he said just a few seconds.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: Now the big political drama in Wisconsin tonight. Just moments ago I spoke with front-runner, John Kerry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KERRY: What the White House is doing is actually almost laughable. I mean, I really do find it amusing. There is nobody who knows me in Washington, and nobody who has followed this issue who doesn't realize that I've been one of the leading champions in the United States Congress for campaign finance reform and for changing the way money affects American politics. I'm the only United States senator who has been elected four times who voluntarily has refused to ever take in any of my one races one dime of Political Action Committee Special Interest Money. And the only reason you see a lobbyist do money contributed to me is because I refused to take the Political Action Committee Money.

So, they've given to me individually as individual Americans. And the total of that is about 1 percent, 1 percent of all the money that I've raised in my lifetime in American politics. I'm proud that it's average American whose have elected me. I'm proud that I've said no to the Political Action Committee Money. And if you look at George Bush and his crowd, they are the world champions in terms of special interest giveaways, the drug company, the oil companies, Halliburton, the Enron scandal, the WorldCom scandal. I mean, you start looking around at the cede of greed that this cronie capitalism crowd has unleashed in America, and it tells an extraordinary story.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Part of my interview with Senator Kerry moments ago.

Stick with CNN throughout the night for live coverage of poll results from Wisconsin. Polls close in an hour and four minutes.

Next, will words spoken of the '60 echo as voters head for the booth tonight? Why some candidates hope so. Just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: So do you like your politics raw, served up fresh out of the field, maybe with a little bit dirt still on the roots. If you take the campaign that way, you have a whole different view. For instance to judge by the following farm fresh snippets from the campaign trail these days. It seems that John Edwards, John Kerry and Howard Dean don't simply want to be president, they want to be the same president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN EDWARDS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: John Kennedy came into office at one of the times of greatest racial division in our history. He believed everything was possible. And he gave the American people what they were hungry for, hope. KERRY: I came in, I'm sure, challenged as many of you here in this room were by the call to action of President Kennedy and the notion that politics can be a noble profession.

HOWARD DEAN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm tired of being divided by religion. We want our country back, the country we had under John F. Kennedy.

COOPER (voice-over): Wait a minute, though. Unless you get the impression that invoking JFK is a no lose proposition, remember 1988.

LLOYD BENTSEN (D), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy. I knew Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Tough line, didn't work. All right, got a long night of politics ahead in an hour. The polls close in Wisconsin. Our coverage on CNN continues all evening long. I'm Anderson Cooper, thanks very much for watching "360." Paula Zahn starts right now.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired February 17, 2004 - 19:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST: Tonight, the Wisconsin primary. Is this do or die for Howard Dean?

Combating Kerry. How the White House is getting ready to rumble.

Hunting Osama. Are there really new reasons to hope he will get caught?

Hell in Haiti. Anarchy spreads as exiled troops take up arms.

Gay marriage opponents seek help from California's courts.

A campus rocked by scandal. A female football player says she was raped at Colorado.

ANNOUNCER: Live from the CNN broadcast center in New York. This is ANDERSON COOPER 360.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Welcome to 360. A big night for politics. The polls close in Wisconsin in just two hours. 72 delegates at stake there and John Kerry is hoping his big mo doesn't slow. For Howard Dean this could be a make or break night though frankly, no one is sure what he may do. We're following the top contenders tonight. CNN's Kelly Wallace is with camp Kerry, senior political correspondent Candy Crowley is tracking Dean and Dan Lothian is with John Edwards. We begin with Kelly Wallace. Kelly, how confident is camp Kerry?

KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, fair to say the camp is cautiously optimistic. At this moment, Senator Kerry doing a round of local interviews with Wisconsin stations to try and get out the vote. A short time ago he was asked what he thinks if this turns out to be a tight race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think you can't run for president cherry-picking states, picking up a delegate here or there. You have to run for president nationally. I've been the only one in recent weeks doing that and proving an ability to win nationally. So that's what we're going to try to continue to do. Hope to do that here today. A win is a win. Then you move on to the next location. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: And the motto continues to be, it is taking nothing for granted.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE (voice-over): Shortly after sunrise, union workers rallying in Milwaukee for John Kerry but getting most fired up about President Bush.

JAMES P. HOFFA, TEAMSTERS' GENERAL PRESIDENT: John Kerry has one quality I think all of us know. He can beat George Bush!

WALLACE: These are the 19 unions, 5 million members strong that had originally backed Dick Gephardt but today, formally threw their support behind Kerry. The front-runner talking more and more like the general election campaign has already begun.

KERRY: This is not a conservative Republican administration. This is an extreme radical administration.

WALLACE: Getting out the vote, the goal now with Senator Ted Kennedy asking Wisconsin voters to do for Kerry what they did for his brother, John F. Kennedy in 1960. We asked the senator if he thought it were time for Kerry's rivals to step aside.

SEN. TED KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: As one that stayed in a long time myself in 1980, I'm not one to advise people to get out early but I think there is a sense of people coming together now behind the candidate.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: Tomorrow Senator Kennedy heads immediately to Ohio, one of the ten states holding contests two weeks from today on Super Tuesday and one of the states expected to be a key battle ground in the general election campaign -- Anderson.

COOPER: Thanks very much from camp Kerry. Joining us from Middleton, Wisconsin is Senator John Kerry himself. Senator Kerry, how confident are you tonight?

He will be here momentarily, we are told. Kelly Wallace reporting that they are cautiously optimistic about results tonight. The polls close in a little bit under two hours. John Kerry has been running hard all day. What you're seeing in the last few moments is him doing local TV interviews, trying to get out the vote because as we said, the polls continue to be open, and a lot of people, still, we're hearing, and we'll hear later on from our own analyst Bill Schneider, a lot of people still undecided up until the last few moments, the last several days of this campaign in Wisconsin.

It has been a hard fought campaign in Wisconsin. Howard Dean has really just staked a claim. Early on he had said it was do or die for him in Wisconsin. He said if he didn't win, he would leave the race. He reversed himself several days later. He has had trouble in the last several days.

We are joined now by Senator John Kerry in Middleton, Wisconsin.

Senator, how confident are you tonight of a win?

KERRY: Well, I'm not confident at all. What I am is cautiously hopeful and optimistic. I've been out working hard. I just came from downtown in Madison, outside the capitol, meeting voters.

And we really don't take anything for granted. You have to work for every vote. You have to go out and ask people, and that's exactly what I'm doing.

COOPER: Senator Kerry, I've heard you say: A win is a win. But how much do you have to win by tonight to really have it be a win that, sort of, propels you forward with momentum?

KERRY: Well, you know, you and others will make those decisions. Right now, the voters are still deciding who they may vote for. And I want to make it clear that I am the strongest candidate to take on George Bush.

Just today, I gather, he gave a speech on national security, calling himself a war president. We need a nominee of our party who has the ability to stand up to him and go to toe to toe and point out to Americans that we actually can fight a more effective war on terror, that I can make America safer than George Bush is making us today.

And I also know how to put people back to work. All over Wisconsin, people have lost jobs. People are worried about their health care. The president has no real plan. I do. And that's what's at stake in this race.

COOPER: Senator Kerry, how, as you look at people still going to the polls -- and as you said, the polls are still open there -- how concerned are you or your team about undecideds? There are a lot of people we're hearing who have not made up their minds, really, until the last couple of days and maybe even until they get into the poll room.

KERRY: Well, we're always concerned. I mean, that's exactly why I'm campaigning up until the last minute, because I want to continue to appeal to those people who may not have made up their minds.

I am the only candidate in this race who has a measurable, consistent, 35-year record of standing up against powerful interests in America, taking them on, making a difference in the lives of our country and -- life of our country, and the lives of our country men and women. And I think that I also bring the national security, foreign policy and military experience at a time when America is threatened by terror and where we are at war and we need leadership that knows how to bring other countries to our side.

I can do a better job then George Bush, of leading America to reconnect to its own ideals and values, win our friends and allies back, win respect and influence and do a better job of making America safe.

COOPER: You have portrayed yourself as a candidate against special interests. The White House has put out an ad on the Internet saying that basically you have been beholden to special interests. You have received more lobbying money than any other senator in the course of your history. You've now responded with an Internet ad painting Bush as receiving a lot of money from PACs.

Is this an issue that you're going to continue hammering?

KERRY: Yes, I am going to continue to hammer it. And what the White House is doing is actually almost laughable. I mean, I really do find it amusing. There is nobody who knows me in Washington and nobody who has followed this issue who doesn't realize that I've been one of the leading champions in the United States Congress for campaign finance reform and for changing the way money affects American politics.

I'm the only United States senator who has been elected four times, who voluntarily has refused to ever take, in any one of my races, one dime of political action committee special interest money. And the only reason you see a lobbyist who might have contributed to me is because I refuse to take the political action committee money.

So they've given to me individually as individual Americans. And the total of all of that is about 1 percent, 1 percent of all of the money that I've raised in my lifetime in American politics.

I'm proud that it's average Americans who have elected me. I'm proud that I've said no to the political action committee money.

And if you look at George Bush and his crowd, they are the world champions in terms of special interest giveaways -- the drug companies, the oil companies, Halliburton, the Enron scandal, the WorldCom scandal.

I mean, you start looking around at the creed of greed that this crony capitalism crowd has unleashed in America...

COOPER: Senator Kerry?

KERRY: ... and it tells an extraordinary story.

COOPER: Some tough words there. How tough is this campaign going to be? Already, these ads on the Internet by you, by the Bush re-election campaign, they're pretty tough, pretty nasty. Is this thing just going to get uglier and uglier?

KERRY: I responded to the Bush administration. Their first ad, the very first ad George Bush put up on TV that he took credit for as part of his campaign was a negative attack ad on me. And I've made it very clear: I will answer them.

Now, what I want to...

COOPER: Just to respond to that, though, Senator Kerry, the White House basically says or the election campaign says that for months now you and other Democrats have been targeting President Bush, have been saying nasty things, have been running a lot of ads. And they say...

KERRY: Well, if you consider...

COOPER: ... they're just responding to those.

KERRY: If you consider saying something nasty to be pointing out to Americans that the Bush administration took a Medicare bill for seniors and turned it into a $139 billion giveaway to the drug industry that forbids Medicare from even negotiating a bulk purchase price and forbids seniors for importing lower-cost drugs from Canada, if that's considered to nasty, then we're going to have a long campaign. Because that's an issue; that's exactly the kind of thing that Americans are upset about.

COOPER: Let's get back to the...

KERRY: There is nothing personal about that. That's exactly what they did.

COOPER: Let's get back to your fellow Democrats, though, for a second, if we could.

KERRY: Sure.

COOPER: I hate to interrupt. I know you're busy.

KERRY: No, I have time for you.

COOPER: Howard Dean, is it time for him to drop out of the race?

KERRY: That is not my decision. And I have great respect for what Howard Dean has done and accomplished in this race. It's simply not my decision to comment on any other candidate's choices at this point in time.

COOPER: His former chairman used to be very close to your campaign, has indicated that he would like to, in fact, join your campaign. Have you talked to him? We talked to him last night. Have you talked to him? Have you made overtures to him?

KERRY: Yes, some people in the campaign have chatted with him. I haven't had a chance to yet. But we obviously welcome everybody.

I mean, you know, you don't win the presidency by being exclusive. You have to be inclusive. And you try build as big a tent as possible.

I've been thrilled that Wes Clark has come on board, in what I thought was an extraordinarily gracious and generous way. Dick Gephardt, likewise, has come on board in a very classy statement and twice now has showed up at events with me.

Today, I was endorsed by the Alliance for Economic Justice. Later in the week, I'll be in Washington meeting with the AFL-CIO leaders.

I'm very pleased that we have a strong effort of uniting the party that is coming together. That's what you need to do to win.

And I'm not selectively picking one state or another to wage my campaign in. I'm waging my campaign all across the country in all of the states.

COOPER: If Howard Dean dropped out, would you be willing to debate John Edwards one on one?

KERRY: You know, I'll make decisions about where the campaign goes and where we head as we go down the road here. We have our own pretty intensive schedule over the course of the next days. And I'll just have to make decisions as we see.

We've got Dennis Kucinich and Al Sharpton and others in the race. And who knows what decisions anybody is going to make. I don't -- what we need to do is get the returns from Wisconsin tonight and then keep on moving and keep on campaigning. And I make no presumptions about anything.

COOPER: But if John Edwards does have a strong showing tonight, would you be willing to take him on one on one? I mean, I know there are other candidates out there. They're polling pretty low. They haven't really won many places thus far. You know, the focus seems to be on you and...

KERRY: Well, we'll make decisions after...

COOPER: ... on John Edwards.

KERRY: I'm not going to deal with any hypotheticals. We'll deal as we go down the road.

COOPER: All right.

It is good to talk to you, Senator Kerry. It's a big night for you.

KERRY: Thank you.

COOPER: And we appreciate you joining us. Thank you very much.

KERRY: Thanks a lot. Happy to be with you.

COOPER: All right, thanks. And as we said, polls close in about an hour and 45 minutes, a little bit more than that, about 47 minutes. It is going to be a very interesting night of politics indeed.

Moving on now to Howard Dean. He once suggested Wisconsin's primary was do or die. Now, he says that's not necessarily the case. And he was busy hitting the campaign trail today. That's some of the video there. CNN senior political correspondent Candy Crowley reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): People-powered Howard went person to person Tuesday, a Milwaukee diner for breakfast.

HOWARD DEAN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Can I have a little of that jam?

CROWLEY: A root beer factory in the afternoon. Chatting up voters as he awaits their verdict. Wisconsin has seemed a particularly lonely place for Dean. The crowds, save a final raucous one in Madison, have been smaller, quieter. He has kept on the trail even as staffers around him talk openly of leaving the campaign, and his campaign manager, make that former campaign manager, told reporters he will be helping John Kerry Wednesday if Dean loses as it seems he will.

Such is the state of the Dean campaign that election night's biggest question is not how he'll do in the polls, but whether he'll stay in the race.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: If you don't win today in Wisconsin, are you still in it?

DEAN: Yes.

HEMMER: Not getting out.

DEAN: How about that for clarity?

HEMMER: That is clarity.

CROWLEY: It may depend on your definition of "campaign." Dean has said if he loses Wisconsin, he will not be able to continue with a conventional campaign. But there is plenty of space between conventional and nothing at all.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CROWLEY: Anyone looking for an early unconventional Howard's end is going to have to wait. We are told by the campaign that while the candidate is going home to Burlington, as he has planned, there will be nothing tomorrow, and if they have anything to say on Thursday, they'll let us know -- Anderson.

COOPER: I'm sure they will. All right, Candy Crowley, thanks very much, Candy.

John Edwards has received endorsements by newspapers in Milwaukee, Madison, as well. Tonight he hopes his relentlessly upbeat campaign will get new life. Here is CNN's Dan Lothian.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Calling this a critical day in his campaign and sensing some new momentum. SEN. JOHN EDWARDS (D-NC), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We've had enormous energy and excitement around this campaign over the last several days.

LOTHIAN: Senator John Edwards urged students at the University of Wisconsin in Madison to make a difference with their votes.

EDWARDS: I need you to leave this place and continue to work, as all of us will, until the polls close today.

LOTHIAN: Earlier, Edwards was shaking hands and signing autographs at a Milwaukee diner.

EDWARDS: Nice to see you.

LOTHIAN: The campaign, hoping for an upset here, is already looking forward to super Tuesday, scheduling trips in the coming days to states impacted by the loss of manufacturing jobs.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LOTHIAN: Senator Edwards believes he's the candidate to challenge Senator Kerry, believes he could do very well in a two- person race -- Anderson.

COOPER: All right, Dan Lothian, thanks for that.

A lot of questions about undecided voters in Wisconsin. Right now, as we said, the polls are still open. How many pick their candidate when they hit the voting booth? For that, we go live to Atlanta and CNN's senior political analyst, Bill Schneider. Bill, good to see you tonight.

What do we know about these undecideds? Did they really make the last-minute decision once they're in the polls?

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, look, something is happening, it's happening in Wisconsin, it's happening suddenly and it could change the shape of this race, Anderson. It has been changing in the last few days.

Let's compare Kerry voters and Edwards voters. Look at Kerry voters. We asked them, when did you make up your mind, among those who voted in Wisconsin today? A majority of Kerry voters said they made up their minds before the last three days of this campaign. Most of them were with Kerry for some time.

Now, compare that with the Edwards voters. Dan Lothian talked about Edwards speaking of new momentum in the campaign. Well, look at these people. Three-quarters of the people who are voting for John Edwards in today's Wisconsin primary, three-quarters of them are new supporters. They only decided to support him within the last few days.

That is a phenomenal late surge that -- John Edwards, a vast majority of his supporters are new to his campaign. Something is happening to stimulate a lot of new support for this man in Wisconsin.

COOPER: I got to tell you, that graph that we have on the screen is just astounding. Seventy-five percent deciding within the last three days. What is it? I mean, he got two big endorsements from newspapers in two big cities there in Wisconsin. Is it his NAFTA stance, is it his sort of his upbeat message? Do we know what it is?

SCHNEIDER: Well, it seems to be a combination. One is the legitimacy conferred on him by his endorsement in Milwaukee and Madison by major newspapers in Wisconsin. Another is he's done something interesting. He's opened up an issue difference with his competitors in the campaign.

He's been generally very positive, but in the debate on Sunday just in the last couple of days he said that he challenged Dean and Kerry on the NAFTA issue, on the trade issue.

Wisconsin is a state that has suffered the loss of some 75,000 jobs in the last three years. What he's saying is, trade is a net job loser for the voters of Wisconsin. He said John Kerry voted for NAFTA, Howard Dean supported NAFTA. Edwards is saying he never supported NAFTA in North Carolina and he doesn't support it now. It is the first big issue difference we have seen in this campaign, Anderson.

COOPER: All right. We'll see if tonight is, in fact, the night of the undecideds. Bill Schneider, thanks for that.

The Republicans don't want all the attention tonight to be on the Democrats, certainly. Just hours ago, President Bush paid a visit to Fort Polk, a military base in Louisiana. Even Senator Kerry noted here just a few moments ago, the president addressed the troops as commander in chief, and as a candidate for reelection. CNN senior White House correspondent John King has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A pep talk for the troops and a defiant defense of his decision to go to war in Iraq.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We had a choice of our own, either take the word of a madman or take action to defend America and the world. Faced with that choice, I will defend America every time.

(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

KING: The president is both commander in chief and a candidate for reelection determined to use the power of incumbency, made-for-TV backdrops, and a focus on what the Bush team believes is a critical strength, leadership at a time of crisis.

BUSH: My resolve is the same as it was on the day when I walked in the rubble of the Twin Towers. I will not relent until this threat to America is removed. KING: Fort Polk is in Louisiana, one of the many military communities in the South where the White House believes Democratic front-runner John Kerry's Senate record on defense issues would prove a tough sell. It is a debate Vietnam veteran Kerry says he more than welcomes.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If he wants national security to be the key issue of this campaign, we do have three words for him we know he understands. Bring it on!

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: And John King joins us now at the White House. John, an event like this at Fort Polk today, I mean, is it designed to take some of the attention away from all the coverage of the Democrats tonight?

KING: Certainly is. Now, Anderson, the White House will say the president was simply saying thank you to the troops, including a solemn visit with some family members of those killed in Iraq. But this president's schedule is now carefully crafted. He's followed the Democrats into some of the key primary states. And now he's going into the South. Essentially the White House is saying, come here, Democrats, we think we can beat you here and we think we will beat you on military issues. The president realizes Senator Kerry is ahead in the polls. The campaign is taking shape. The Democrats are getting most of the attention. The president more and more is engaging personally as a candidate, and look for him very soon to spend a lot of money on TV ads as well.

COOPER: All right, a lot of money indeed. All right, John King, thanks for that.

Strategists on both sides of the political divide are sharpening their attacks. Later tonight, we're going to look at how the Bush camp will take on Kerry if he is fact the nominee. We'll talk to the press secretary of the Bush-Cheney campaign.

Coming up, we're following a number of developing stories right now cross country. In fact lets take a look.

Phoenix, Arizona; Ex-bishop convicted. Today this man, Thomas O'Brien found guilty of leaving the scene of an accident he was involved in. He could get nearly 4 years in prison. Now, O'Brien failed to stop and render aid to a jay walking pedestrian he struck and killed with his car last year.

Washington, D.C. The attorney general sued by one of his own. John Ashcroft is among parties name in a whistle blower lawsuit filed by a federal prosecutor in Detroit. Richard Convertino, that's his name, says his superiors interfered in a major terrorism case, compromised a confidential informant, exaggerated results in the war on terror. The Justice Department is not commenting.

Washington again on air tragedy's legacy. A new mandate will force Boeing and Airbus to retro-fit 3,800 jetliners with a new safety feature designed to prevent another TWA Flight 800 disaster. The system is designed to reduce the risk of explosion by pumping nitrogen enriched air in fuel tanks.

Denver, Colorado hanging up on telemarketers. A federal appeals court has upheld the governments do not call registry, calling it "A reasonable fit." The panel's decision overturns a lower court ruling that says the list violates free speech.

In New York City; A-Rod in pinstripes. The Yankee's introduced their newly acquired third baseman today, Alex Rodriguez. He appeared taken aback by the reception and said he was, quote, "Very, very happy to be here." Let's hope so.

That's a look at stories "Cross Country" tonight.

Will same sex marriages in San Francisco we stopped?

We are waiting for a court decision. Could come any minute now. Stay tuned for that. We'll also talk to San Francisco's mayor. We are going to take you there live.

Also ahead, violence and anarchy in the streets of Haiti. It is getting very, very dangerous there. We'll take you live to Port-au- Prince, France (sic).

And the University of Colorado rape scandal. One of the first female football players comes forward with a tale of terror. First, let's take a look inside the box -- the top stories on tonight's network news cast.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: A lot of developing stories tonight. Polls still open in Wisconsin, we're watching that closely. And in San Francisco, a decision on same-sex marriage expected any moment now. Dozens of couples are still continuing their rush to the altar, while several groups who oppose the marriages are in court right now trying to put an end to it all.

Let's get the latest from Miguel Marquez, live in San Francisco -- Migel.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's not clear how soon that hearing will be over, and if that judge will even been able to rule today. Our report, CNN's reporter, David Mattingly is in the courtroom. They took 15 minute break a sort time ago, and he was able to get us information as to what's going on in that courtroom right now. The judge, a superior court judge, James Rosen said the most interesting thing all along. He basicly said that he was leaning toward ruling to allowing the city to continue granting marriage licenses for now. Saying that another hearing would be necessary somewhere down the road to settle the plaintiff's concerns as to whether or not it was legal for the city to do what it was doing and if it was legal for the mayor to instruct city employees to issue marriage licenses -- Anderson. COOPER: All right, a lot going on. We are monitoring the situation. Miguel Marquez, thanks for the coverage. We're also going to talk to San Francisco's mayor, Gavin Newsom, in a short time.

In Haiti now the political crisis gets worst. The violence is spreading. The United States is calling for an immediate end to the bloodshed. But Secretary of State Colin Powell rules out sending in troops to help embattled government forces.

CNN's Lucia Newman, has more now from Haiti.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LUCIA NEWMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In rebel controlled city Gonaive, once staunch followers of President Jean Bertrand Aristide celebrate what they see as his imminent resignation. The charred remains of the local police station show who is in control now. A rebel group whose leader says he's turned his guns against Aristide who he accuses of murdering his brother. And he is well armed.

BUTR MELAYER, GONAIVE REBEL LEADER: Today I'm going to see how many guns I have in my group because every day -- every day my people get guns. Every day. Every single day.

NEWMAN: The guns also come from across the border from the Dominican Republic, brought by exiled former paramilitary and army leaders. Tuesday night they overran the town of Hinche in Northern Eastern Haiti, torching the police station and killing three officer. Saying they are out gunned, the government is appealing for international help.

YVON KEPTUNE, HAITIAN PRIME MINISTER: We want real solidarity.

NEWMAN: While disenchanted with Aristide who many see as a despot, Washington is call fog a political solution to the crisis, amid fears more violence will trigger a flood of boat people to Florida.

JAMES FOLLEY, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO HAITI: We will not recognize any government in Haiti that comes to power by force of arms.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWMAN: Here in the capital the situation for now remains calm, but there is serious concern that unless the international community can put pressure on all sides to negotiate, the rebel leaders could very well make good on their vow to make their next target the capital -- Anderson.

COOPER: All right, Lucia Newman, stay safe there in Port-au- Prince. Things can very quickly.

We're tracking other stories around the globe right now, lets check the uplink. Tehran, Iran: political crisis worsens. Deputies hold a sit-in inside the parliament after reformist law makers sent a daring letter to Iran's supreme leader. They criticize him, something you don't really do in Iran. The supreme leader is backing the disqualification of some 2,400 reform candidates from Friday's parliamentary elections.

Northern Lebanon: former hostage returns. Terry Waite, remember him? He says he'd gladly meet with his kidnappers. He's back in Lebanon for the first time since his brutal four-year captivity ended in 1991. Hard to believe it's so long ago. He's on a humanitarian mission to the Palestinian refugee camps.

Paris, France now: grounded flights. Another major air strike as air controllers walk out, forcing most flights in and out of Paris to be canceled or delayed. They're fuming over management reorganization, plan that is could force many of them to relocate.

Kabul, Afghanistan: female police. That's right, berka or no berka, seven women have signed up to become the first female officers in Afghanistan in more than a decade.

Abnd in Central New Zealand, raging floods. Take a look at this, the worst in 100 years. Killed two people, devastated a countryside, sending people fleeing to hire ground. This old home went under as a placid stream suddenly turned into a raging torrent.

That's is a quick look at tonight's "Uplink."

A new bombshell has dropped in Boulder, Colorado. Still ahead an ex-football player gives a horrifying account of her tenure with the Buffaloes.

Also tonight, President Bush battling to keep his job. Find out his strategy for 2004. His campaign press secretary joins live. A night of politics, a lot of ahead. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: A remarkable story. The football program at the University of Colorado is facing new and perhaps even more troubling allegations than the ones we reported last month. You may remember we told you how three women say they were raped at so-called sex parties allegedly thrown to entice football recruits. Now a former place kicker for the Buffaloes, a woman, is telling "Sports Illustrated" she was harassed, groped and raped during her stint with the team. CNN's sports reporter Josie Burke has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOSIE BURKE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As a freshman kicker on the University of Colorado football team, Katie Hnida's gender made her a novelty and she alleges in this week's issue of "Sports Illustrated" magazine, a target as well. Hnida, now a student at the University of New Mexico says that during the 1999 season she was routinely harassed by her teammates. She also alleges that one player raped her at his apartment during the summer of 2000. In the "Sports Illustrated" article, Hnida is quoted as saying, "I told him no but he just kept going." She did not report the crime at the time. Today, she released a statement explaining why she's sharing her story now. It reads, in part, "I did this because I hope no one else will have to deal with the horrors I've endured over the past few years." In Colorado, on Tuesday, university officials from the school president to the football coach, reacted to the new allegations.

GARY BARNETT, UNIV. OF COLORADO FOOTBALL COACH: Since learning of these allegations, I've contacted male teammates of hers, female staff members who have worked with her to try to find out if there's something I missed or something somebody missed in this whole process and like I said in the statement, we've yet to find any evidence to date.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is a new allegation to us. We strongly encourage Katie to contact police officials to investigate what is a serious criminal charge.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURKE: Hnida did say in the statement that she released today that she has been in contact with Boulder county law enforcement officials and at this time, she doesn't plan to press any charges. Meanwhile, CU president Hoffman said today that because of the allegations, a new position has been created, that of special assistant. This person will act as a liaison between the athletic department and the office of the president and the office of the chancellor -- Anderson.

COOPER: Thanks for that. Unbelievable story.

Let's talk expectations for tomorrow night in Wisconsin -- excuse me, for tonight in Wisconsin. A big night of politics ahead. We have an hour and a half before the polls close there. It will be an interesting night. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: In the next half hour on 360 all eyes in Wisconsin. Less than an hour and a half before the polls close, could the race be tighter than expected? Wolf Blitzer and Joe Klein join us with the very latest.

Plus, President Bush's plan of attack. A look at his strategy for staying in the White House.

First, let's check our top stories in the "Reset."

San Francisco city hall is still granting marriage licenses right now to eager gay and lesbian couples. A judge today postponed until Friday action on a suit to block the licenses, he told the three groups opposing same-sex marriage to work together, get their papers in order but another judge hearing a similar case right now indicates he's leading toward letting the marriages continue for now. The decision could come any time. We're following closely. We're going to talk to the mayor in just a moment.

Redwood City, California. Evidence dealing with the electronic tracking of Scott Peterson will be admissible in his murder trial. A judge today ruled in the data from global positioning devices. Peterson, of course, is accused of killing his wife Laci and their unborn child.

Galveston, Texas. A top NASA administrator says the first space shuttle launch since the February 2003 Columbia disaster may not come until early next year. NASA had hoped for a launch date this fall.

New York. Two of the nation's biggest mobile phone companies to merge into the biggest. Cingular will buy AT&T Wireless for about $41 billion. That will leave Cingular with more subscribers than rival Verizon.

And Los Angeles. Comcast may not be buying Disney but Disney is buying the "Muppets." Kermit doesn't look too happy, maybe it's excited. You can't tell, it's a muppet. The Walt Disney company says it will purchase Kermit and Miss Piggy and the rest of the Muppet franchise from the Jim Henson company. The price has not been disclosed. That is a look at the "Reset" tonight.

Now the political drama in Wisconsin going on right now. Polls close in about an hour and 20 minutes. Let's talk expectations. Here in New York, Joe Klein at "TIME" magazine and in Washington, CNN's Wolf Blitzer. Wolf, Joe, appreciate you joining me. Joe, let me start with you, Joe. What is the best outcome for John Kerry? Obviously, a big win for him but does he want this to be a two-man race or does he want this thing to go on and on?

JOE KLEIN, "TIME" MAGAZINE: I think he doesn't want to take any chances. He wants it to be over. I saw him yesterday and he's tired at this point. He wants a couple days off. He won't have them if John Edwards proves to be a tough challenger tonight.

COOPER: Wolf, where does John Edwards need to finish in order to call tonight a victory, besides first place?

WOLF BLITZER, HOST, "WOLF BLITZER REPORTS": A lot of people don't think he'll finish in first place. But if he finishes a very serious second, he has done remarkably well for himself and positioned himself effectively for a two-man race, assuming Howard Dean does not do well in Wisconsin, irrespective of what Dean decides to do in the next day or two, whether he goes forward with a full-scale campaign or tries to change it into some sort of political movement to help other Democrats in Congress. John Edwards needs to do well in second place and get ready two weeks from today for Super Tuesday.

COOPER: Joe, what does John Kerry need to win? Is anything short of a double-digit win a problem for him?

KLEIN: Well, we can play these silly expectation games where we say...

COOPER: That's what we do. KLEIN: 10 percent, 12 percent would be a significant win or less than that won't be. The big question is, what will the people who would give John Edwards money consider to be a decent showing because at this point John Edwards is practically broke. To run on the Super Tuesday primaries here in New York, in California and other huge states, Ohio, you need lots and lots of money. So if the funders, if the people who would back Edwards think that it is a close thing tonight, then he's still in it. But I got to say, at this point, I don't see any faction in this party that can't live with John Kerry. To knock off a front-runner like this, you have to have some reason to do it and I don't see any reasons out there.

COOPER: Wolf Blitzer. Let's talk about Howard Dean. Can he stay in the race? I mean, at this point no one knows. What is the likelihood of him staying in the race until Super Tuesday?

BLITZER: I think there is a possibility he would do that even if he does show a dismal third in Wisconsin because he's trying to get some sort of movement going. He's trying to get some sort of political opportunity going, and to be a formal candidate for the presidency over the next two weeks gives him a platform from which he can go raise money and speak and participate in debates and have the standing from which to try to use that base that he has to exploit it for whatever political purposes he has down the road. Now, on the other hand, he's losing a lot of supporters. He's losing people and organizations, unions that have endorsed him...

COOPER: Well, he lost his campaign chairman just the other day.

BLITZER: Right. And he doesn't want to look overly foolish in the Quixotic hope for the presidency. He has got to make some tough decisions.

COOPER: He doesn't want to look like Don Quixote tilting at windmills here.

BLITZER: Right. And I've heard some of his close advisers give me two scenarios, very different scenarios for him to stay in or to leave.

COOPER: All right. Joe.

KLEIN: Well, it is hard to be a leader of a movement if you go out looking as foolish as he's going to look if he stays in after this, if he does as badly as people expect he's going to do tonight. This has been a terribly tough and embarrassing month for him, after being so high up and now so low down. I think that once he gets back home to Burlington and chills out for a little bit, I think he's going to find that getting out of this is the better part of valor.

COOPER: All right, Howard Dean chilling out. We'll see. Joe Klein, thanks very much, Wolf Blitzer as well. Coverage is going to continue all night got. Got an interesting night of politics ahead.

As the Democrats battle it, Republicans are talking strategy. The Bush-Cheney reelection team is focused on Democratic front-runner John Kerry, of course. Just moments ago, I spoke with Terry Holt, the press secretary for the president's reelection campaign. I started off by asking him what's their strategy against Kerry.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TERRY HOLT, PRESS SECRETARY, BUSH-CHENEY CAMPAIGN: Well, we think the president has been a strong and steady leader during dangerous and changing times. And we think the American people are going to want someone that they can count on, that makes decisions based on principles and that reflects the values of the American people.

COOPER: Is it the economy or is it foreign policy?

HOLT: It's both. The global war on terror and the economy are the two big issues that dominate the political talk today, and dominate people's thinking even at their kitchen tables at home.

COOPER: What is John Kerry's biggest weakness as far as you see? I mean, you guys have already released a pretty tough ad on the Internet, citing John Kerry, the money he's received from special interests groups, from lobbyists. He's responded with a pretty tough ad in response. Is this really the way you're going to go?

HOLT: Well, I think we're going to compare the president's steady leadership with the decision by John Kerry to really shift with the political winds. We think the American people will want somebody that will be consistent and clear in what they say.

And let's face it, John Kerry's record of tax increases over the years, we don't think that will sit well with people when they think about the economy.

COOPER: But I don't get it. Maybe you can clear it up for me. On the one hand, you say he's consistently liberal. On the other hand, you say he's wishy-washy and flip-flopping. Which is it?

HOLT: Well, when he was -- during his years as a senator, he was consistently liberal. But since becoming a candidate and looking at what was politically popular today, he shifted his positions. And we think that whether you shift your positions or you are wrong on the issues, during this period of changing times in America, we think that people will want consistency.

COOPER: How concerned are you, though, about this Air -- whether it's the Air National Guard issue having legs, or but -- just in a side by side comparison between the president and John Kerry, if he is in fact the nominee, with his war record, how does that shape up?

HOLT: Well, it's not so much that John Kerry fought in Vietnam. We honor his service there. It is his anti-war stance. Every day since he came back from Vietnam, his cuts in defense spending over the 90s. He voted to cut $1.6 billion out of intelligence funding even after the World Trade Center was bombed. So we think that those are positions that are wrong for America and that they should be examined during this campaign. COOPER: How tough is this campaign going to get? I mean, you know, I've seen both these ads on the Internet. Albeit they are just Internet ads at this point, but they're pretty tough and it's very early in the race.

HOLT: Well, it is. We're coming out of a very angry and frankly reckless period. The Democratic primary has been very tough. But we think that ultimately this is going to be a very close race, and that the American people expect a serious campaign about the issues. So I think you can expect that we'll have a very open debate about the issues over the next eight months.

COOPER: Does that mean the gloves are off?

HOLT: No. I think that we're going to really focus on the issues that matter most to the American people. They don't want a lot of distractions. They know this is a serious decision. And I think the president is committed to laying out his vision for America, a forward-looking vision. And we're going to stick to that. But we obviously think that a comparison is appropriate.

COOPER: All right, Terry Holt, appreciate you joining us. Thank you.

HOLT: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Well, tonight, the same-sex marriage debate. We are awaiting a court decision in San Francisco. Frankly, it could come at any moment now. We're going to have a live interview with Mayor Gavin Newsom just ahead.

Plus, just moments ago I spoke with Democratic front-runner John Kerry. You're going to hear from the man, coming up. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: Back to one of our other top stories tonight besides politics. The debate over same-sex marriages and the man who started this whole controversy, San Francisco's mayor, Gavin Newsom, joins me now live. Mayor Newsom, thanks for being with us.

CNN's Miguel Marquez reporting just a short time ago, the judge in the second hearing is, apparently, leaning toward letting the marriages continue until constitutional issues are worked out. One, I want to get your reaction. And two, your sense of where will this finally end?

MAYOR GAVIN NEWSOM (D), SAN FRANCISCO: Yeah, I don't know where it will finally end. And it's hard to predict what happens. But I am told literally any minute now the judge will make a determination. So I don't even want to speculate.

Bottom line is, what we're trying to do is the right thing. What we're trying to do is uphold the oath of office that I accepted, to bear true faith and allegiance to the constitution of the state of California and the United States. And that's what I think we're doing, and that's certainly what we did once again here today in San Francisco.

COOPER: And Mayor Newsom, I know you say -- and we are awaiting this decision, you say any second. And if it comes, we'll bring it to your audience. We'll get your reaction to it. You say this is a battle over discrimination, you're standing up against what you perceive as discrimination.

NEWSOM: Yes.

COOPER: The section of California's Family Code says this, "only marriage between a man and woman is valid or recognized in California." Whether you agree with this or not, do you agree that that is the law?

NEWSOM: Well, I mean, that's for those that are currently debating in court to determine. The bottom line is, my read of the Constitution, I would argue any objective analysis. And I challenge people, and I mean this, to read their Constitution. The equal protection clause does not allow me to discriminate. And I think on any basic objective analysis, what we're doing as it relates to marriage is utterly discriminatory, as it relates to the rights, privileges and obligations like, for example, my wife and I have with one another. That's simply not extended to same-sex couples. That's my oath of office. That's my...

COOPER: But you would agree -- but you would agree -- I mean, you are a very intelligent man. You would agree that technically, you are in violation of the California law, whether you think it's right or wrong, whether you think you are upholding another law, higher law, you are in violation of the California law, are you not?

NEWSOM: Yeah, well, the court -- we are right now discussing that in court, and the city attorney is making the case for San Francisco, and the actions that we took are fair, the actions we took are appropriate.

The bottom line is, if you know something is wrong, you can either sit back and wait and talk about the way the world should be and theorize about it and wait a year or two, five, 10, 15, 20 years, as we did with interracial marriages in this country, until we finally came to our senses in 1967. Or we can do the right thing, stand on principle and say, we don't accept discrimination, that we stand on principle that everybody should be treated fairly and equally. And that's what we're trying to do here in San Francisco, were's standing on principle.

COOPER: And Mayor Newsom, as you were speaking, we were looking at pictures of same-sex couples hugging, kissing, people who have just been married in your city. A lot of people, though, see those pictures and are revolted by those pictures, or simply don't want to see them. And there are those who say that what you're doing in San Francisco is going to ignite a backlash and in fact maybe hurt the movement for ultimate same-sex marriage. Do you have any concerns that perhaps you're pushing things too far too fast?

NEWSOM: No. I don't think this country has moved fast enough on the subject. These are the same arguments you use when Protestants couldn't marrying Catholics. The same arguments that were used...

COOPER: I'm sorry, I would not jump in like this. We have breaking news just to report, and it relates directly to what you're saying. I'm reading it directly. A second San Francisco judge has delayed taking action on whether to block same-sex weddings. The judge told the plaintiffs they would likely succeed on the merits but couldn't accept their proposed court order because of a punctuation error. Your reaction.

NEWSOM: We'll continue to do what we've done in an appropriate way. 2,600 plus couples have gotten certificates of marriage that allow the same rights and obligations, that again, straight couples have been afforded for generations. And we'll continue to do that in an appropriate manner in San Francisco until such times the court determines it is inappropriate for us to do so. Now, this is the third date that we've been (UNINTELLIGIBLE) -- third determination by a judge, one last week, one this morning and now this latest decision that will allow us to move forward, and I'm pleased to hear that.

COOPER: Very briefly, court day -- final court today now or next court date is Friday. You are going to continue marrying gay and lesbian couples until then?

NEWSOM: We'll continue to do the right thing. We'll continue to no longer discriminate because of their sexual orientation. And I'm proud to stand on that principle and will fight hard to do the right thing and change minds and more importantly change hearts. When people read the constitution, read it in an objective way, they'll determine what we're doing is appropriate and is right.

COOPER: Mayor, Gavin Newsom, we appreciate you joining us. We know it's been busy day for you. Again, I just want to reiterate, the Associated Press is reporting -- what I read earlier. From the Associated Press, they are reporting that a second San Francisco judge has delayed taking any action on whether to block same-sex weddings. The judge told the plaintiffs they would likely succeed on the merits but, he could not accept their proposed order because of a punctuation error. There's another court day set for Friday, we'll be watching closely.

Politics 2004. A flashback to the '60s. Presidential candidate John Edwards and others talking of the future and paying homage to a hero of the past.

Big night politics ahead. Polls close in Wisconsin in about an hour and 10 minutes.

John Kerry on his campaign, we just spoke here live moments ago. If you missed it, you are going hear what he said just a few seconds.

We'll be right back.

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COOPER: Now the big political drama in Wisconsin tonight. Just moments ago I spoke with front-runner, John Kerry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KERRY: What the White House is doing is actually almost laughable. I mean, I really do find it amusing. There is nobody who knows me in Washington, and nobody who has followed this issue who doesn't realize that I've been one of the leading champions in the United States Congress for campaign finance reform and for changing the way money affects American politics. I'm the only United States senator who has been elected four times who voluntarily has refused to ever take in any of my one races one dime of Political Action Committee Special Interest Money. And the only reason you see a lobbyist do money contributed to me is because I refused to take the Political Action Committee Money.

So, they've given to me individually as individual Americans. And the total of that is about 1 percent, 1 percent of all the money that I've raised in my lifetime in American politics. I'm proud that it's average American whose have elected me. I'm proud that I've said no to the Political Action Committee Money. And if you look at George Bush and his crowd, they are the world champions in terms of special interest giveaways, the drug company, the oil companies, Halliburton, the Enron scandal, the WorldCom scandal. I mean, you start looking around at the cede of greed that this cronie capitalism crowd has unleashed in America, and it tells an extraordinary story.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: Part of my interview with Senator Kerry moments ago.

Stick with CNN throughout the night for live coverage of poll results from Wisconsin. Polls close in an hour and four minutes.

Next, will words spoken of the '60 echo as voters head for the booth tonight? Why some candidates hope so. Just a moment.

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COOPER: So do you like your politics raw, served up fresh out of the field, maybe with a little bit dirt still on the roots. If you take the campaign that way, you have a whole different view. For instance to judge by the following farm fresh snippets from the campaign trail these days. It seems that John Edwards, John Kerry and Howard Dean don't simply want to be president, they want to be the same president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN EDWARDS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: John Kennedy came into office at one of the times of greatest racial division in our history. He believed everything was possible. And he gave the American people what they were hungry for, hope. KERRY: I came in, I'm sure, challenged as many of you here in this room were by the call to action of President Kennedy and the notion that politics can be a noble profession.

HOWARD DEAN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm tired of being divided by religion. We want our country back, the country we had under John F. Kennedy.

COOPER (voice-over): Wait a minute, though. Unless you get the impression that invoking JFK is a no lose proposition, remember 1988.

LLOYD BENTSEN (D), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy. I knew Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Tough line, didn't work. All right, got a long night of politics ahead in an hour. The polls close in Wisconsin. Our coverage on CNN continues all evening long. I'm Anderson Cooper, thanks very much for watching "360." Paula Zahn starts right now.

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