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Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees

Primary Night; Losing Track of Sex Offenders; Haiti Unrest: Marines Move In

Aired March 09, 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 (voice-over): How will tonight's Florida polls affect Kerry's VP shortlist and the Bush-Kerry contest next November?

A New role for Marines in Haiti. We'll tell you what it means for troops on the ground.

Missing since September. A softball coach and his underage player on the run. Tonight, we are on the lookout.

And remarkable New images from space. The farthest frontiers and strangest sights. Hubble's deepest look into the universe yet.

Disappeared: thousands of convicted sex offenders. How could the government lose track of them all?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: Live, from the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is ANDERSON COOPER 360.

COOPER: Hey, good evening. Welcome to 360.

U.S. Marines are on the verge of playing a bigger and potentially more dangerous role in Haiti. Word today that U.S. forces on the ground in Haiti will soon attempt to disarm rebels and anyone with an illegal weapon. A live report from Haiti in just a moment, but first, our top story.

It is primary night in Florida, Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. Senator John Kerry is, of course, is hoping to move closer to clinching the Democratic nomination and hoping in Florida, in particular, to send a message to the White House.

Senior political correspondent Candy Crowley is with the Kerry camp.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Another day, another photo-op or two, a shaken smile with one presumes actual voters in a Florida diner, and a hold and swing at the Little Big World Daycare Center.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Mr. Kerry. He's running to be president of the United States.

CROWLEY: John Kerry has done due diligence for the past several days, traveling Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida, at rallies and town halls, asking Democrats to support him in the primaries. But that's not what it is about anymore. This is what it's about.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If the president wants to have a debate a month on just one subject, and we go around the country, I think that would be a great idea. Let's go do it.

CROWLEY: It is about engaging George Bush early and often one way or the other.

KERRY: His stubborn leadership has led America steadily in the wrong direction.

CROWLEY: With Kerry's nomination all but assured, the primary states are pretty much backdrops now, places to warm up for a general election already boiling and, of course, places to look for cold cash.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: That was Candy Crowley reporting tonight.

Exit polls are telling us a lot about what voters now want, and in November may want, including who the vice president should be. Senior political analyst Bill Schneider joins us live from Washington.

Bill, are we learning, as you look at these exit polls, anything about a likely Bush-Kerry match-up?

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, these are only Democrats who are voting today in these states. And they are very partisan because they are coming out to vote in an election, the outcome of which is a foregone conclusion. But what we're finding in Florida is they are very optimistic.

A majority of these Democrats voting in Florida say they think it is very likely that John Kerry will beat George Bush in Florida, the state that, of course, held the balance of power and created the result of the 2000 election. A total of 86 percent believe it is very or somewhat likely that Kerry will beat Bush in Florida.

Now, you mention the vice presidency. We asked them, "Who is your choice among the possible vice presidents?" And here in Florida, you see the top choice is John Edwards.

What about Bob Graham? He's the home state guy. Edwards beats Graham, Florida's own senator, by better than two to one. A very strong showing for John Edwards.

Same thing happens in Louisiana, another state that voted today. The top choice for the vice presidency, 31 percent say John Edwards, followed by Hillary Clinton, another well-known Democratic senator.

What about the home state candidate, Mary Landrieu? She's been mentioned. She's third, at 22 percent.

So what I think we're seeing among these Democrats is John Edwards has established the following, certainly in the South. And most likely, we see him on Democrats all over the country.

COOPER: We'll see if it means anything come time to pick. Bill Schneider, thanks very much. We'll be checking in with you later.

A quick news note for you. Some earlier problems with electronic voting. An estimated 7,000 voters ended up casting ballots for candidates outside their districts last week in Orange County, California. That is according to the LA Times because the problem was caused by poll workers who gave voters incorrect computer access codes. The registrar of voters says he doesn't think the glitch affected any outcomes.

We turn now to a disturbing story about convicted sex offenders. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children today told CNN that 100,000 convicted sex offenders have not registered as sex offenders where they actually live.

How is this possible, you might ask? It's a good question. Really not clear what the answers are right now. They have literally, according to the states, disappeared.

CNN's Deborah Feyerick has been following the story. She reports now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sex offenders across the nation are failing to register with their local police, experts say. Something they're required to do under Megan's Law.

EDWARD FLYNN, MASS. SECRETARY OF PUBLIC SAFETY: Sex offenders are the one who most deeply cherish their anonymity and work hard to maintain it. There's nothing more difficult to do than to find someone who truly does want to be found.

FEYERICK: According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 400,000 sex offenders have registered, an estimated 100,000 have not. No one knows where they are or where they may be going. And once they disappear, officials agree finding them can be all but impossible.

BILL LOCKYER, CALIFORNIA ATTORNEY GENERAL: Unless someone local goes and checks on them, we don't know if they've just forgotten to update it, if they've moved somewhere else, if they're deported, or whatever.

FEYERICK: In New York State, officials have lost track of some 2,000 sex offenders. In California, some 22,000 convicted predators are unaccounted for.

Linda Ahearn heads up the group Parents for Megan's Law. She says part of the problem is sex offenders don't register before they're released from prison but after they get out.

LINDA AHEARN, PARENTS FOR MEGAN'S LAW: Using registration as an honor system is the fundamental flaw of Megan's Law.

FEYERICK: The original Megan's Law was sign in New Jersey 10 years ago and later adopt in some form by every other state. Sex offenders are supposed to check in with local authorities every year for 10 years. High-risk predators, every 90 days. But if they don't, and they haven't moved, there's no penalty.

ERNIE ALLEN, NCMEC: The primary weakness is that most states lack the resources and the people to really enforce it on a meaningful basis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK: A bill pending in the Senate would make failure to register a felony in all states, not just 23 states, as is now the case. In the words of one child expert, the situation as it exists is like trying to hold the ocean back with a broom -- Anderson.

COOPER: Just remarkable. I had no idea about this story. Just amazing. Thanks, Deborah Feyerick.

All right. Turning now to the intelligence mess over the war in Iraq, in a Senate hearing today, CIA Director George Tenet had to answer why he thought there was such a difference between what the Bush administration said was happening in pre-war Iraq and what the CIA had reported. Senator Ted Kennedy was asking the question. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. EDWARD KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: You can't have it both ways, can you, Mr. Tenet? You can't on the one hand just say, look, we never said that war was imminent, and then have these super-heated dialogue and rhetoric, which are semantically the same as imminent, and tell us here before the committee that you have no obligation to correct it? Or didn't even try?

GEORGE TENET, CIA DIRECTOR: Senator, I can tell you that I'm not going to sit here today and tell you what my interaction was and what I did or what I didn't do, except that you have to have the confidence to know that when I believed that somebody was misconstruing intelligence, I said something about it. I don't stand up in public and do it. I do my job the way I did it in two administrations.

And policymakers, you know, this is a tough road. Policymakers take data, they interpret threat. They assess risk. They put urgency behind it. And sometimes it doesn't uniquely comport with every word of an intelligence estimate.

KENNEDY: Well, Director, I'm not talking about parsing words.

TENET: No, sir. I understand that.

KENNEDY: We're talking about words that are basically warmongers. There's a big distinction, I think.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: And the debate continues.

Moving on to Haiti now, tonight, word that U.S. Marines are preparing to try and disarm anyone with an illegal weapon. CNN's Harris Whitbeck has the latest now from Port-au-Prince -- Harris.

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Anderson.

The commander of the U.S. Marine contingent in Port-au-Prince said today that officially as of tomorrow they will start helping the Haitian police in disarming any civilian who is caught running around with weapons they shouldn't be carrying. He did not specify that rebel groups involved in recent fighting in Haiti would be part of this disarmament program. But he did say that anyone found with weapons would be disarmed.

He also said that their mission would be both proactive and reactive. The implication there is that Marines and also members of the French, Chilean and soon Canadian armed forces participating in this peacekeeping mission here would be going on missions specifically to find illegal weapons.

Now, that's a huge task, as you know, Anderson. There are literally thousands and thousands of weapons floating around not only Port-au-Prince but other cities and towns in Haiti. So that is a very big task that they have ahead.

Meanwhile, as you know, there has been more violence today. Marines were involved in a shooting this morning. A vehicle approached a checkpoint at a high speed. It did not heed warnings to stop.

The Marines fired upon that vehicle, killing the driver of the car. One person that was in the car was injured and is now known to be in good condition -- Anderson.

COOPER: Still very dangerous on the ground there. Take care, Harris Whitbeck. Thanks.

We're following a number of developing stories right now "Cross Country" for you. Let's take a look.

Washington, D.C.: John Ashcroft out of surgery and doing OK. The attorney general is in guarded condition this evening after having his gallbladder removed. Ashcroft went to the hospital last Thursday after complaining of stomach pains. He is expected to recover fully.

At the White House: the 9/11 Commission can have more than an hour, maybe. Sources say the president may allow more than one hour of questioning by the leaders of the commission investigating the 9/11 attacks.

The president is under pressure to answer questions from the full panel. But so far, he has refused that. His spokesman said that much of the information the panel had requested had already been provided and that limiting the testimony of the president was justified.

Chicago now: it's official, overeating and no exercise can kill you. A new CDC study finds that poor diet and not exercising is now the number two preventable killer of Americans. Four hundred thousand deaths were caused in 2000 by being obese and not working out. The number one preventable killer, in case you're interested, using tobacco.

In Washington: planning a road trip for spring break, maybe? Well, bring a lot of cash. Retail gasoline prices are expected to hit a record high of about $1.83 per gallon soon. The Energy Department says it's because of tight global supplies. Officials say more increases are likely.

To LA now. It's not even spring, but it feels like summer. Hello?

California is in the middle of an early heat wave, with temperatures in Los Angeles hitting the 90s. San Francisco is pretty warm as well. It was 82 on Sunday, and that broke a record set in 1892.

Of course, things in the Northeast are looking up, too. Well, not looking so good. It's kind of rainy, kind of cold, high in the 30s, a little snow, a little rain. Just the sort of weather that kind of keeps us tough. That's what we like to say, here in New York, at least.

Anyway, that's a look at stories "Cross Country" for you tonight.

A softball coach on the run with a teen player. He's now on the FBI's most wanted list. And her family is just desperate for help.

Have you seen these two? The FBI want your help to track them down.

Plus, the business of body parts. How selling pieces of you can fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars for criminals.

And why are teens who pledge abstinence contracting STDs at the same rate as teens who don't pledge abstinence? There's a startling new study. We'll have results of that coming up.

First, let's take a look "Inside the Box" at the top stories on tonight's network newscasts.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: So do you remember the story of the Oregon softball coach who went missing with one of his players/ They disappeared back in September.

The media covered the story for a while, but you know how it is, how quickly we forget. The case is still not solved, however. The coach is now wanted by the FBI for the girl's disappearance, and they're hoping someone out there, perhaps you, have seen something.

CNN's Kimberly Osias has the update.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KIMBERLY OSIAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Gone, Michelle "Mimi" Smith without a trace. Authorities say it was almost six months ago when the Oregon state team left town with this man, 38- year-old Andrew James Garver.

SHERRY SMITH, MOTHER: It's a sick feeling in your stomach, and then what seems like whenever I get alone I break down.

OSIAS: Garver has been charged with custodial interference, not kidnapping, since police say the girl went willingly.

(on camera): Mimi was last seen here at Beaverton High School September 26. According to authorities, the sophomore gave a note to a friend, announcing her plans to run away.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think emotionally she is becoming very attached to him.

OSIAS (voice-over): Garver's own wife fears the two were sexually involved.

ANGELA GARVER, GARVER'S WIFE: They were very secretive. They would -- you know, she would go with him a lot of places. She would say things to me that I didn't even know, things that he would confide in her.

OSIAS: Various family members have told us they're not worried about the girl's safety. They just want her home.

MARK HYDE, BEAVERTON POLICE DEPT.: At some point, this young girl is going to say, what am I doing? I'm 15 years old, I'm with this 30-something year old man. There has to be something else out there.

OSIAS: The FBI is looking for Michelle "Mimi" Smith and Andrew James Garver. He is among their most wanted fugitives. Even if she went with him by choice, which most here believe, police tell us Garver could face time behind bars.

Kimberly Osias, CNN, Beaverton, Oregon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Well, if you have any information on the whereabouts of Smith and Garver, you should contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Their number is 800-843-5678. Or contact, of course, the FBI.

Moving on now. In the end, convicted D.C. Sniper John Allen Muhammad told the judge -- and I quote -- "You do what you have to do." Muhammad was in court today to be sentenced for the murder of Dean Harold Myers, one of 10 people killed in that month-long shooting spree back in 2002. The judge told Muhammad that he represented a continuing and serious threat to society, and then he sentenced him to death.

CNN's Jeanne Meserve was there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): John Muhammad told Judge LeRoy Millette, "I had nothing to do with this," referring to the simper shootings that claimed 10 lives in the Washington area. But the judge reaffirmed the jury's sentence of death, saying these offenses were so vile that they were almost beyond comprehension. More than 50 victim family members had gathered for the closing scene in this drama, and they were gratified.

SONIA WILLS, CONRAD JOHNSON'S MOTHER: Justice has been served today. I can go to my son's grave and wish him a happy birthday on Sunday. Conrad would have been 37.

MESERVE: Muhammad's attorneys had urged the judge to reduce his sentence to life in prison without parole. "He was not born evil, he is not a virus, he is not the devil," said Jonathan Shapiro, maintaining that Muhammad had once led a life of value and could again.

JONATHAN SHAPIRO, MUHAMMAD ATTORNEY: Nothing was solved today. And, in our view, more pain is inflicted.

MESERVE: But prosecutor Paul Ebert said Muhammad's lack of remorse for his horrible crimes made death the appropriate and the only appropriate sentence.

PAUL EBERT, PROSECUTOR: The counsel for defense says he sees no evil in his client. I can't agree with that. I see nothing but evil.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MESERVE: Muhammad's case will be automatically appealed to the Virginia State Supreme Court tomorrow. Final sentencing for the other man convicted of the sniper slayings, Lee Boyd Malvo -- Anderson.

COOPER: All right. Jeanne Meserve, thanks very much from Chesapeake.

We're tracking a number of developing stories around the globe right now. Let's check the "UpLink.".

In Iraq: Abu Abbas is dead. The Palestinian terrorist leader had died while in the custody of American forces. U.S. officials said he died of natural causes. Abbas was the mastermind behind the 1985 hijacking of the Achille Lauro cruise ship. Abbas was captured in Baghdad shortly after the U.S. invaded.

Islamabad, Pakistan: a successful test for a new long-range missile. The Pakistani military announced the launch today and said the ballistic rocket could hit targets more than 400 miles away. Both Pakistan and India are now capable of delivering nuclear weapons to most of each other's territories. But officials on both sides have recently worked to lower tensions between the two states.

London, England, now: release from Guantanamo, but detained in Great Britain. Five British citizens who were held at Gitmo by U.S. forces have been turned over the British government. The five are apparently not now considered a threat to U.S. forces.

In London: genetically altered corn gets government approval. It's controversial. The corn will be used in animal feed and is the first time the U.K. government will allow cultivation of a genetically altered crop. Environmental groups say they plan an immediate appeal.

And in Florence, Italy: Michelangelo's masterpiece is getting a bath. The Statue of David shown before his battle with Goliath is being cleaned with a solution designed to take away years of grease and grime. Some experts worry that the cleaning may harm the statue. Michelangelo finished the piece 500 years ago this year.

And that is tonight's "UpLink."

Teens that promise to be virgins. So why are they now contracting STDs? We'll take a closer look at an alarming new study.

Also tonight, selling human body parts. I know it's grizzly and gory, but a criminal investigation at UCLA and a $100 million business is under way. Find out why researchers are making some big money off the dead.

And a little bit later, travel back in time deep in the universe. Just amazing pictures. Hubble delivering these stunning pictures. We're going to give you a front-row tour of space when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: The topic right now is teens and sex. More specifically, teens who pledged not to have sex until they're married. According to a new study, these teens are getting sexually transmitted diseases at about the same rate as their non-pledging peers. How could that happen? Let's take a closer look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER (voice-over): Teenagers publicly promising to remain virgins until marriage with the so-called chastity pledge has been a big trend among young people since the 1990s.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You see a lot of moms and dads, and especially dads, come in with their daughters and buy (ph) them and present them to their daughters in some type of ceremony oftentimes associated with the church.

COOPER: Some teens wear their pledges on their fingers. Purity rings they call them. And remember when Britney Spears was a teen? She, too, pledged to remain a virgin until married. As it turns out, Britney couldn't keep her pledge. And neither can a lot of allegedly abstaining adolescents, according to an ongoing study examining the sex lives of 12,000 teens.

According to this sample, nearly nine out of 10 teens who took the chastity pledge say they have broken it. The study finds that pledgers do tend to have fewer sex partners before marriage than non- pledgers. But what is most surprising is that the pledges and non- pledgers have about the same rate of sexuality transmitted diseases.

Why? Well, it turns out the pledgers, when they do have sex, are less likely to use condoms. While the study will, no doubt, be hotly debated, the question remains, should kids get more lessons about safe sex, more lessons about abstinence, or more information about both?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Well, there's no doubt the debate goes on.

Coming up, the big business of body parts. Find out how much some researchers think you are worth.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: Let's take a look at our top stories in the "Reset." And we begin in Washington.

CIA chief George Tenet says White House policymakers added "a sense of urgency" to intelligence before the war in Iraq. He testified today before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Port-au-Prince, Haiti: disarming Haitians. U.S. Marines are going to go out with Haitian police starting tomorrow to try to disarm people. A Marine spokesman says he is counting to local media to make the point that people will be better off if they give up their guns. It's not going to be easy.

Istanbul: suicide attack. Two attackers stormed a messianic lodge in Turkey today, opening fire and setting off explosions, killing one person and wounding five. One attacker was killed, the other injured.

New Jersey: same-sex marriage ban. The state attorney general told city officials to stop issuing marriage licenses and performing same-sex ceremonies or face criminal charges. The deputy mayor of Asbury Park performed the state's first same-sex marriage on Monday.

To Finland now: hot cup of health benefits. Researchers say drinking a lot of coffee might just keep people from developing adult on-set diabetes. They don't know why this is, but they said the benefits increase with the amount of coffee people drink.

All right. Who knows?

That's tonight's "Reset."

It is a pretty grizzly topic when you think about it, spare parts, spare human parts. We've been taking a look into the subject ever since news broke about a lawsuit against UCLA for allegedly selling body parts illegally for profit. Today the university suspended its operation apparently just before the state of California was going to shut them down. As a complicated story but one we've learned about, the practice., and it is a very big business, it turns out. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: It is a fast-growing industry reaping revenue in the hundreds of millions of dollars in a year all in the name of scientific research. It is not just hearts, livers and kidneys being sold, every single body tissue, small bones and fingernails fetch a huge price. For example, the director of the cadaver program at the Galveston branch of the University of Texas made more than $4,000 selling 232 fingernails and 35 toenails to a pharmaceutical company in Salt Lake City. According to the Orange County Register, skin, tendons, heart valves, veins and cornea are listed at about $110,000. Add bones and one cadaver could be worth $220, 000. It is illegal to profit from the sale of body parts, using middlemen in the transaction make it is easier to hide the profits. The buyers are usually pharmaceutical companies, medical instruments, biotech companies and private collector whose buy tissues research and training seminars. Ironicly families of the donors receive nothing and are unaware the bodies of their loved ones are being dissected for profit.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Just a remarkable story.

We wanted to learn more about this trade in bodies and a man who knows it well, Vidal Herrera. He headed the UCLA program when it was hit by scandal a decade ago.

I spoke to Herrera, the founder of 1-800-AUTOPSY, a short time ago and asked him if he was surprised to hear of this scandal?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VIDAL HERRERA, FMR. DIR., UCLA WILLED BODY PROGRAM: I was surprise and saddened to hear about this current incident. I heard last year on a few occasion that is body parts were being moved from Ucla. But again this happened recently. Shocking.

COOPER: Who is it who's trying to buy these body parts?

HERRERA: Well, it's usually the medical research companies who are desperate for fresh tissue. The only place they can acquire it is through the willed body program throughout the United States.

COOPER: So these companies are using tissue, they're using skulls, any toenails, fingernails, any pieces of body for various research, for various private research? HERRERA: Well it's for research and development. If you pick up the newspaper, you see the extreme makeover shows. These individual doctors need to practice. So, they usually go to seminars where the tissue is available for practicing purposes.

COOPER: And so, getting that tissue has become increasingly difficult because of the growing demand?

HERRERA: It has been difficult. It is going to get even a lot worse. I understand that they're doing away with cadaver anatomy courses throughout the United States.

COOPER: When you were running the willed body program, did you get calls from people looking for cadavers for body parts?

HERRERA: All the time. And to this day I still receive calls.

COOPER: And the people who are the technicians who are slicing off body parts basicly and shipping them around the country to the research groups, how much can they make?

HERRERA: Black market, it is a large industry. There was an individual last year here in Southern California, San Diego. He was sentenced 20 years. He was making hundreds of thousands of dollars.

COOPER: People think they're donating their body to a medical school, they don't really think that medical school is going to sell the body or cut it up and dole out the pieces for a price.

HERRERA: That is correct. I think people should be made aware of this, exactly, straight forward, what is being done with their loved ones.

COOPER: More than 800 corpses may have been mishandled at UCLA. How can a medical school lose track of that many corpses, not know this was going on. Because it was allegedly been going on for some eight years?

HERRERA: There should be no way they should lose track. People that are in charge, the immediate people and you know, somebody was arrested. They had to, you know, do something incorrect or hide it from the superiors.

COOPER: There are 154 willed body programs around the country. Describe the community, if you will.

I mean, is this a community where everyone kind of knows each other and you sort of know where you can maybe go to get some eyes or get a thigh bone or whatever it is you need?

HERRERA: Yes. It is a small community. It is a small network. Everybody knows everybody throughout the country. Of course, the researchers know somebody. If something is unavailable, you hear, they'll call someone else, we can refer them to other universities involved in the willed body programs.

COOPER: What can be done to prevent this from happening again, or can anything be done?

HERRERA: I think what they have to do is have one main facility that would incorporate all the various medical schools in, for instance, like Southern California, something similar to the medical examiners system where they are separate private entity. This way they can have complete control of all the bodies being received and, of course, released.

COOPER: All right. It is a frightening story. A lot of people didn't know about it.

Vidal Herrera, appreciate you joining us. Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Quick news note. In 1950, UCLA started the worlds first willed body program, revolutionizing the idea of donating ones body to science. There are now 154 such programs nationwide, 10 of them in California. An estimated 8,000 bodies are collected that way each year.

We have this just in to CNN. After tonight's contests in four states, they have given President Bush enough delegates to get the GOP nomination. Bush is expected to pass the 1255 number of delegates needed to clinch the nomination when polls close in Texas and Louisiana. Bush campaign spokesman says we are gratified by the support we received and look forward to the debates facing the issues of this country.

We continue with politics now, from body parts to body politics. Right now, primaries under way in four southern states as Senator John Kerry battles towards the nomination.

But have you noticed lately, the tit for tat attacks?

They seem to be heating up and well, speeding up. You can never be too fast or furious in the world of "Raw Politics."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER (voice-over): Monday, 1:05 p.m. Eastern time, Dallas, Texas, President Bush takes as jab at John Kerry.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My opponent clearly has strong beliefs, they just don't last very long.

1:20 p.m. Eastern time, Washington D.C. The Kerry camps send as two-page e-mail rebutting Bush's accusations. Welcome to the game of politics 2004 style. High speed, high stakes, tit for tat. The basic rule leave no attack unanswered. Remember what happened to Michael Dukakis in 1988? He plunged in the polls after failing to react to an ad accusing him of being soft on crime.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dukakis not only opposes the death penalty, he allowed first-degree murderers to have passes from prison. COOPER: In 1992, Clinton's war room perfected the art of rapid response. Today, candidates have ammunition at the ready. They spend thousands of dollars on press offices and opposition research. Some even send their own cameras to keep track of their opponents. And during debates, staffers inundate the media with their spin on issues, sometimes the spin even happens in realtime.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Governor Dean, before you sit down, I've just been handed a document. I think it came out of the press room that Senator Kerry's staff has been distributing some comments about what was said.

COOPER: Tit for tat. The game goes on in "Raw Politics."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Let's talk about the latest tit for the at exchange and strategy behind it. From Washington, Steve Elmendorf a top Kerry campaign adviser and Tucker Eskew, a senior Bush/Cheney campaign adviser.

Appreciate both of you joining us.

Tucker let me start off with you. How risky is it to let a fact go unanswered?

TUCKER ESKEW, BUSH CHENEY CAMPAIGN ADVISER: The facts are your friend if you've got a strong record, if you got case to make and if there is a clear choice in the country than you ought to put those facts forth. The president is starting to do that. The Democrats have selected a nominee, he's engaged. You know, he called Senator Kerry the night of his super Tuesday win and said he looked forward to a spirited campaign and that's they way it started.

COOPER: Is there a risk for the president of attacking too quickly too soon and sort of being seen as muddying the waters early on?

ESKEW: To the contrary. I think our opponent started September 3 of last year with $7 million in paid advertising, three quarters of which has been negative against President Bush. I think when we point out Senator Kerry's flip-flops or when we note that he tried to cut a billion and a half dollars out of our intelligence budget, we're beginning to engage in a debate. Spirited, yes, but very factual.

COOPER: Steven, campaigns poll to see how effective an attacker or counter attack is.

How quickly can you tell what sort of impact an attack is having?

STEVE ELMENDORF, KERRY CAMPAIGN ADVISER: Well, I guess I would agree with Tucker on one thin, which is we will respond with the facts. We don't need the poll to talk about the facts about John Kerry's record. When an attack machine comes after John Kerry's record, we're going to be ready right away to hit back and let people know what the truth is. COOPER: Steve, have you been surprised at how quickly the president has been responding or even taking on directly John Kerry?

Do you think it is early?

ELMENDORF: I'm surprised how quickly he has been mentioning him by name. It is the earliest an incumbent president has engaged in a campaign like this. And I think it's the sign of the weakness of this president and how worried he is about his opponent and what a tough campaign he will have.

COOPER: Tucker, yesterday the president basicly said John Kerry was aiming to gut the U.S. intelligence community back in 1995 by this bill taking away $1.5 billion.

Obviously, Kerry's side responded very quickly. Are we going to hear more about this?

Is this one particular example that we'll hear about?

ESKEW: We'll hear more about it until Senator Kerry answers the very serious charge, that two years after the first World Trade Center, two years after that, he proposed a billion and a half dollars, that's $300 million a year over five years in cuts to our critical infrastructure in intelligence.

(CROSSTALK)

ESKEW: We haven't heard an answer.

COOPER: I think you've already heard the answer because I have heard the answer which is basically that there was a lot of hanky panky going on on the NRO. They kind of hid a billion dollars, they built a building for $300 million. Have you not heard that?

ESKEW: But that's not what the charge is. The charge is that Senator Kerry, unilaterally, if I may, proposed a billion and a half in cuts and got not a single senator. He's talking about another set of votes apparently because the 1.5 billion took a meat ax to intelligence and in fact you couldn't find a senator to support him on that. Two Democrats, Senators Inoway (ph) and Dikinsini (ph), very respected Democrats, took the floor to attack Senator Kerry on that. He hasn't responded to that.

COOPER: All right. Steve, let me ask you. Senator Kerry, the other day, said that some foreign leaders want him to be the president. Are we going to hear more about that? He came under some flak from it.

ELMENDORF: Can I respond to that intelligence charge?

COOPER: I knew you would.

ELMENDORF: You know, I think it is interesting that the administration that presided over the worst intelligence failure in our history is now attacking John Kerry on his votes on the intelligence budget. It is also interesting that Republicans who are constantly talking about fiscal conservativism and talking about how we have to be good with the taxpayers' money are using as spending more money on defense programs or intelligence programs. It is sort of their standard for whether or not you are pro defense or pro intelligence. We're for spending the taxpayer's money wisely and we're not going to be for every billion dollars that everybody wants to throw at the defense budget.

COOPER: Steve, you've got to quickly answer my question. Are we going to hear more about these foreign leaders who allegedly want John Kerry to be president?

ELMENDORF: I don't think there's any secret that there are a lot of people out in the world who have been disappointed with the outreach of George Bush prior to the Iraq war and disappointed with the leadership he's shown around the world.

COOPER: Tucker, you've been in this game a long time. Is this going to just be a tough, nasty race? It started early. It is personal early. Are you at all surprised by it?

ESKEW: No. I think we'll stick to the facts here. We hope the Kerry campaign will. Unfortunately, in espousing a number of conspiracy theories such as foreign leaders, such as the U.S. might have kidnapped the president of Haiti. He had unnamed sources who said that. He had unnamed sources who said we might have been in cahoots with the United Kingdom to delay a deal with Libya on nuclear agreements. These unnamed sources.

The last time a bad John Kerry theory had so many unnamed people around it, it was that proposal to cut a billion and a half dollars out of intelligence funding. He can't get people around him on his big ideas. I think there are few accomplishments -- we'll put up a strong record of steady leadership and tough times against that record. I think it will be a spirited campaign.

COOPER: Steve, same question to you. Are you surprised at the tone of this thing so early, so personal?

ELMENDORF: You know, the stakes are very big here. We think the American people want a change in leadership. We think they are unhappy with 3 million lost jobs, 2 million people losing healthcare. We think that they're ready for a tough, but fair, campaign where we're going to lay out the issues on why this president needs to be replaced.

COOPER: We're going to have to leave it there. Steve Elmendorf, appreciate it, and Tucker Eskew, as you as well. Thank you very much. Good to have you on the program.

A lot of political attention will be on Florida this year. Let's put what happened in 2000 in some perspective for a moment. The vote in Florida was so close that it took a month to declare a winner. Before Florida was declared, Al Gore led in the electoral college with 266 votes to Bush's 246 votes. When Bush was declared the winner of Florida by 537 votes, he picked up 25 electoral votes which gave him the presidency. The polls are still open in Florida now.

Free man walking. The tough road to freedom for a man wrongly convicted.

Later on, space like you have never seen it before. The Hubble telescope bringing back amazing images from the universe. Stay tuned. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: So we've all heard of DNA evidence being used to challenge convictions. That has resulted in a growing number of people who have been freed from prison. Increasingly what we're hearing is that many of the newly exonerated are getting very little help in their transition into a new life. CNN's Frank Buckley has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Calvin Willis (ph) tries to enjoy every day of his life after 22 years in this prison for a crime Willis always maintained he didn't commit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It took them 22 years to correct that mistake. Now, all I'm asking about is what you're going to do about it.

BUCKLEY: How should he be compensated for the life he missed, for his children growing up without him?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just kept on going. I kept my head up.

BUCKLEY: Willis is telling his story to the very community that sent him to prison, Shreveport, Louisiana, where he was convicted of aggravated rape.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the house where the rape occurred.

BUCKLEY: Two decades later, testing of the DNA found at the scene caused prosecutors to drop the charges. Willis went free. There were press conferences and promises of a life regained. What happens to guys like Calvin Willis when they walk away from prison?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: First of all, the press goes away very quickly and the problems set in very quickly.

BUCKLEY: Lola Vollen heads the Life After Exoneration Program in Berkeley, California. She says Calvin Willis and the growing population of DNA and otherwise exonerated prisoners need not just compensation, but help in dealing with everything from depression to dialing a cell phone.

LOLA VOLLEN, LIFE AFTER EXONERATION: They are entering a world that is very new and different for them, and they're entering virtually naked. They have no money, no skills. They have no place to live. BUCKLEY: Vollen is behind Willis. But many of the more than 350 other people in her databank who've been exonerated are struggling when they should be reveling in a freedom that was once wrongfully taken away. Frank Buckley, CNN, Berkeley, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: A quick flashback for you. The first person in the U.S. to be exonerated through DNA testing, Gary Dotson (ph) was his name, he was convicted in 1979 of kidnapping and rape. He spent six years behind bars when his accuser came forward to say she had concocted her rape allegation. Dotson was freed from prison and DNA tests eventually corroborated the woman's story. Last year Dotson was granted a full pardon by then Governor George Ryan.

Coming up. The deepest pictures of space yet. Just ahead, the Hubble telescope reveals stunning images of the universe.

The "Current." O.J. Simpson back in the news accused of something new. Be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: All right. Time to check on pop news in "The Current." O.J. Simpson is being sued by Direct TV for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars of service by unscrambling its signal. His lawyers deny it insisting Simpson has never owned any pirating equipment in his life except maybe perhaps a knife.

The number of cosmetic plastic surgeries in the U.S. continue to soar. Up 32 percent. Botox use is up as well. There were a record 2.8 million Botox injections last year. It is, of course, assumed that half of those injections went directly into the head of David Gest.

And Menudo fans, your prayers are answered. The group that put the 'oy' in boy band is being reborn. Producers say they will hold open auditions for a new Menudo. Ever since he heard the news, Greg, the 360 audio tech has been practicing in the makeup room. Sadly, Greg is not in the 10 to 14 age range producers are looking for. Frankly, none of us here have the courage to tell him. Greg, the audio tech.

Time to boldly go where no one has gone before, much like Greg, to a stunning new image taken by the Hubble space telescope. It is the deepest view ever of the galaxies, the universe as we have never seen it before. Miles O'Brien shows us the pictures and a look at what the future could hold for the Hubble.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Take a look back, way back in time. It is the universe as we have never seen it, young, odd-shaped galaxies growing, exploding, devouring each other, a tough neighborhood captured by the Hubble space telescope. But it could be Hubble's last big hit. A shuttle mission to make repairs, add two new instruments and extend Hubble's life should have been underway about now but in January, NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe canceled all future shuttle missions to the telescope, leaving Hubble to deteriorate and ultimately expire in orbit in two to four years.

SEAN O'KEEFE, NASA ADMINISTRATOR: I would rather it not be this way but I think it is the only responsible thing to do.

O'BRIEN: O'Keefe's decision comes in the wake of the Columbia accident in February 2003. The accident board told NASA future shuttle flights not headed to the international space station and safe harbor must adhere to a more rigorous set of standards.

O'KEEFE: You either comply with the recommendations of the Columbia accident investigation board report or you do the Hubble servicing mission. One or the other. You can't do both.

O'BRIEN: But many astronomers and engineers beg to differ.

ROBERT ZUBRIN, PRESIDENT, MARS SOCIETY: If we give up Hubble out of fear, we give up the human exploration of space. In the human exploration of space, cowardice is not an option.

O'BRIEN: Astronomers say there is plenty more science for Hubble to do and the telescope would be ten times more powerful if shuttle astronauts could spend some time under the hood. Miles O'Brien, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Well, just ahead on the "Nth Degree," Alistair Cooke at 95 signing off from America. Plus tomorrow, soaring gas prices poised to hit a record high. Who is to blame? What impact this is going to have on your pocket book. We'll take a closer look. That's tomorrow. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: Tonight, taking dedication to the "Nth Degree." Alistair Cooke has written his last letter home. Every week for 58 years now Cooke has been broadcasting a 15-minute long "Letter from America" to his native England for the BBC. He's 95 now. And after 2,869 letters from America, Cooke has decided that's enough. 58 years is a remarkable run. Let's put it in perspective. The second World War came and went and there was Cooke. The Cold War came and went and there was Cooke.

Soviet Union disappeared, 12 American presidents were elected, man walked on the moon, the typewriter gave way to the computer, the 20th century gave way to the 21st, we went wireless, digital, .com, nuts and all that time there was Cooke. Filing his polished, insightful, witty letters trying to make sense of this wonderfully inexplicable country. Doesn't seem nearly enough after 58 years of letters from America and decades as the face of masterpiece theater and a dozen books just to say thanks to Alistair Cooke but we do. Thank you, Mr. Cooke. I'm Anderson Cooper. Coming up next, "PAULA ZAHN NOW."




Unrest: Marines Move In>


Aired March 9, 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 (voice-over): How will tonight's Florida polls affect Kerry's VP shortlist and the Bush-Kerry contest next November?

A New role for Marines in Haiti. We'll tell you what it means for troops on the ground.

Missing since September. A softball coach and his underage player on the run. Tonight, we are on the lookout.

And remarkable New images from space. The farthest frontiers and strangest sights. Hubble's deepest look into the universe yet.

Disappeared: thousands of convicted sex offenders. How could the government lose track of them all?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: Live, from the CNN Broadcast Center in New York, this is ANDERSON COOPER 360.

COOPER: Hey, good evening. Welcome to 360.

U.S. Marines are on the verge of playing a bigger and potentially more dangerous role in Haiti. Word today that U.S. forces on the ground in Haiti will soon attempt to disarm rebels and anyone with an illegal weapon. A live report from Haiti in just a moment, but first, our top story.

It is primary night in Florida, Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi. Senator John Kerry is, of course, is hoping to move closer to clinching the Democratic nomination and hoping in Florida, in particular, to send a message to the White House.

Senior political correspondent Candy Crowley is with the Kerry camp.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Another day, another photo-op or two, a shaken smile with one presumes actual voters in a Florida diner, and a hold and swing at the Little Big World Daycare Center.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is Mr. Kerry. He's running to be president of the United States.

CROWLEY: John Kerry has done due diligence for the past several days, traveling Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida, at rallies and town halls, asking Democrats to support him in the primaries. But that's not what it is about anymore. This is what it's about.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If the president wants to have a debate a month on just one subject, and we go around the country, I think that would be a great idea. Let's go do it.

CROWLEY: It is about engaging George Bush early and often one way or the other.

KERRY: His stubborn leadership has led America steadily in the wrong direction.

CROWLEY: With Kerry's nomination all but assured, the primary states are pretty much backdrops now, places to warm up for a general election already boiling and, of course, places to look for cold cash.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: That was Candy Crowley reporting tonight.

Exit polls are telling us a lot about what voters now want, and in November may want, including who the vice president should be. Senior political analyst Bill Schneider joins us live from Washington.

Bill, are we learning, as you look at these exit polls, anything about a likely Bush-Kerry match-up?

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, these are only Democrats who are voting today in these states. And they are very partisan because they are coming out to vote in an election, the outcome of which is a foregone conclusion. But what we're finding in Florida is they are very optimistic.

A majority of these Democrats voting in Florida say they think it is very likely that John Kerry will beat George Bush in Florida, the state that, of course, held the balance of power and created the result of the 2000 election. A total of 86 percent believe it is very or somewhat likely that Kerry will beat Bush in Florida.

Now, you mention the vice presidency. We asked them, "Who is your choice among the possible vice presidents?" And here in Florida, you see the top choice is John Edwards.

What about Bob Graham? He's the home state guy. Edwards beats Graham, Florida's own senator, by better than two to one. A very strong showing for John Edwards.

Same thing happens in Louisiana, another state that voted today. The top choice for the vice presidency, 31 percent say John Edwards, followed by Hillary Clinton, another well-known Democratic senator.

What about the home state candidate, Mary Landrieu? She's been mentioned. She's third, at 22 percent.

So what I think we're seeing among these Democrats is John Edwards has established the following, certainly in the South. And most likely, we see him on Democrats all over the country.

COOPER: We'll see if it means anything come time to pick. Bill Schneider, thanks very much. We'll be checking in with you later.

A quick news note for you. Some earlier problems with electronic voting. An estimated 7,000 voters ended up casting ballots for candidates outside their districts last week in Orange County, California. That is according to the LA Times because the problem was caused by poll workers who gave voters incorrect computer access codes. The registrar of voters says he doesn't think the glitch affected any outcomes.

We turn now to a disturbing story about convicted sex offenders. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children today told CNN that 100,000 convicted sex offenders have not registered as sex offenders where they actually live.

How is this possible, you might ask? It's a good question. Really not clear what the answers are right now. They have literally, according to the states, disappeared.

CNN's Deborah Feyerick has been following the story. She reports now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sex offenders across the nation are failing to register with their local police, experts say. Something they're required to do under Megan's Law.

EDWARD FLYNN, MASS. SECRETARY OF PUBLIC SAFETY: Sex offenders are the one who most deeply cherish their anonymity and work hard to maintain it. There's nothing more difficult to do than to find someone who truly does want to be found.

FEYERICK: According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 400,000 sex offenders have registered, an estimated 100,000 have not. No one knows where they are or where they may be going. And once they disappear, officials agree finding them can be all but impossible.

BILL LOCKYER, CALIFORNIA ATTORNEY GENERAL: Unless someone local goes and checks on them, we don't know if they've just forgotten to update it, if they've moved somewhere else, if they're deported, or whatever.

FEYERICK: In New York State, officials have lost track of some 2,000 sex offenders. In California, some 22,000 convicted predators are unaccounted for.

Linda Ahearn heads up the group Parents for Megan's Law. She says part of the problem is sex offenders don't register before they're released from prison but after they get out.

LINDA AHEARN, PARENTS FOR MEGAN'S LAW: Using registration as an honor system is the fundamental flaw of Megan's Law.

FEYERICK: The original Megan's Law was sign in New Jersey 10 years ago and later adopt in some form by every other state. Sex offenders are supposed to check in with local authorities every year for 10 years. High-risk predators, every 90 days. But if they don't, and they haven't moved, there's no penalty.

ERNIE ALLEN, NCMEC: The primary weakness is that most states lack the resources and the people to really enforce it on a meaningful basis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK: A bill pending in the Senate would make failure to register a felony in all states, not just 23 states, as is now the case. In the words of one child expert, the situation as it exists is like trying to hold the ocean back with a broom -- Anderson.

COOPER: Just remarkable. I had no idea about this story. Just amazing. Thanks, Deborah Feyerick.

All right. Turning now to the intelligence mess over the war in Iraq, in a Senate hearing today, CIA Director George Tenet had to answer why he thought there was such a difference between what the Bush administration said was happening in pre-war Iraq and what the CIA had reported. Senator Ted Kennedy was asking the question. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. EDWARD KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: You can't have it both ways, can you, Mr. Tenet? You can't on the one hand just say, look, we never said that war was imminent, and then have these super-heated dialogue and rhetoric, which are semantically the same as imminent, and tell us here before the committee that you have no obligation to correct it? Or didn't even try?

GEORGE TENET, CIA DIRECTOR: Senator, I can tell you that I'm not going to sit here today and tell you what my interaction was and what I did or what I didn't do, except that you have to have the confidence to know that when I believed that somebody was misconstruing intelligence, I said something about it. I don't stand up in public and do it. I do my job the way I did it in two administrations.

And policymakers, you know, this is a tough road. Policymakers take data, they interpret threat. They assess risk. They put urgency behind it. And sometimes it doesn't uniquely comport with every word of an intelligence estimate.

KENNEDY: Well, Director, I'm not talking about parsing words.

TENET: No, sir. I understand that.

KENNEDY: We're talking about words that are basically warmongers. There's a big distinction, I think.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COOPER: And the debate continues.

Moving on to Haiti now, tonight, word that U.S. Marines are preparing to try and disarm anyone with an illegal weapon. CNN's Harris Whitbeck has the latest now from Port-au-Prince -- Harris.

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Anderson.

The commander of the U.S. Marine contingent in Port-au-Prince said today that officially as of tomorrow they will start helping the Haitian police in disarming any civilian who is caught running around with weapons they shouldn't be carrying. He did not specify that rebel groups involved in recent fighting in Haiti would be part of this disarmament program. But he did say that anyone found with weapons would be disarmed.

He also said that their mission would be both proactive and reactive. The implication there is that Marines and also members of the French, Chilean and soon Canadian armed forces participating in this peacekeeping mission here would be going on missions specifically to find illegal weapons.

Now, that's a huge task, as you know, Anderson. There are literally thousands and thousands of weapons floating around not only Port-au-Prince but other cities and towns in Haiti. So that is a very big task that they have ahead.

Meanwhile, as you know, there has been more violence today. Marines were involved in a shooting this morning. A vehicle approached a checkpoint at a high speed. It did not heed warnings to stop.

The Marines fired upon that vehicle, killing the driver of the car. One person that was in the car was injured and is now known to be in good condition -- Anderson.

COOPER: Still very dangerous on the ground there. Take care, Harris Whitbeck. Thanks.

We're following a number of developing stories right now "Cross Country" for you. Let's take a look.

Washington, D.C.: John Ashcroft out of surgery and doing OK. The attorney general is in guarded condition this evening after having his gallbladder removed. Ashcroft went to the hospital last Thursday after complaining of stomach pains. He is expected to recover fully.

At the White House: the 9/11 Commission can have more than an hour, maybe. Sources say the president may allow more than one hour of questioning by the leaders of the commission investigating the 9/11 attacks.

The president is under pressure to answer questions from the full panel. But so far, he has refused that. His spokesman said that much of the information the panel had requested had already been provided and that limiting the testimony of the president was justified.

Chicago now: it's official, overeating and no exercise can kill you. A new CDC study finds that poor diet and not exercising is now the number two preventable killer of Americans. Four hundred thousand deaths were caused in 2000 by being obese and not working out. The number one preventable killer, in case you're interested, using tobacco.

In Washington: planning a road trip for spring break, maybe? Well, bring a lot of cash. Retail gasoline prices are expected to hit a record high of about $1.83 per gallon soon. The Energy Department says it's because of tight global supplies. Officials say more increases are likely.

To LA now. It's not even spring, but it feels like summer. Hello?

California is in the middle of an early heat wave, with temperatures in Los Angeles hitting the 90s. San Francisco is pretty warm as well. It was 82 on Sunday, and that broke a record set in 1892.

Of course, things in the Northeast are looking up, too. Well, not looking so good. It's kind of rainy, kind of cold, high in the 30s, a little snow, a little rain. Just the sort of weather that kind of keeps us tough. That's what we like to say, here in New York, at least.

Anyway, that's a look at stories "Cross Country" for you tonight.

A softball coach on the run with a teen player. He's now on the FBI's most wanted list. And her family is just desperate for help.

Have you seen these two? The FBI want your help to track them down.

Plus, the business of body parts. How selling pieces of you can fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars for criminals.

And why are teens who pledge abstinence contracting STDs at the same rate as teens who don't pledge abstinence? There's a startling new study. We'll have results of that coming up.

First, let's take a look "Inside the Box" at the top stories on tonight's network newscasts.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: So do you remember the story of the Oregon softball coach who went missing with one of his players/ They disappeared back in September.

The media covered the story for a while, but you know how it is, how quickly we forget. The case is still not solved, however. The coach is now wanted by the FBI for the girl's disappearance, and they're hoping someone out there, perhaps you, have seen something.

CNN's Kimberly Osias has the update.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KIMBERLY OSIAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Gone, Michelle "Mimi" Smith without a trace. Authorities say it was almost six months ago when the Oregon state team left town with this man, 38- year-old Andrew James Garver.

SHERRY SMITH, MOTHER: It's a sick feeling in your stomach, and then what seems like whenever I get alone I break down.

OSIAS: Garver has been charged with custodial interference, not kidnapping, since police say the girl went willingly.

(on camera): Mimi was last seen here at Beaverton High School September 26. According to authorities, the sophomore gave a note to a friend, announcing her plans to run away.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think emotionally she is becoming very attached to him.

OSIAS (voice-over): Garver's own wife fears the two were sexually involved.

ANGELA GARVER, GARVER'S WIFE: They were very secretive. They would -- you know, she would go with him a lot of places. She would say things to me that I didn't even know, things that he would confide in her.

OSIAS: Various family members have told us they're not worried about the girl's safety. They just want her home.

MARK HYDE, BEAVERTON POLICE DEPT.: At some point, this young girl is going to say, what am I doing? I'm 15 years old, I'm with this 30-something year old man. There has to be something else out there.

OSIAS: The FBI is looking for Michelle "Mimi" Smith and Andrew James Garver. He is among their most wanted fugitives. Even if she went with him by choice, which most here believe, police tell us Garver could face time behind bars.

Kimberly Osias, CNN, Beaverton, Oregon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Well, if you have any information on the whereabouts of Smith and Garver, you should contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Their number is 800-843-5678. Or contact, of course, the FBI.

Moving on now. In the end, convicted D.C. Sniper John Allen Muhammad told the judge -- and I quote -- "You do what you have to do." Muhammad was in court today to be sentenced for the murder of Dean Harold Myers, one of 10 people killed in that month-long shooting spree back in 2002. The judge told Muhammad that he represented a continuing and serious threat to society, and then he sentenced him to death.

CNN's Jeanne Meserve was there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): John Muhammad told Judge LeRoy Millette, "I had nothing to do with this," referring to the simper shootings that claimed 10 lives in the Washington area. But the judge reaffirmed the jury's sentence of death, saying these offenses were so vile that they were almost beyond comprehension. More than 50 victim family members had gathered for the closing scene in this drama, and they were gratified.

SONIA WILLS, CONRAD JOHNSON'S MOTHER: Justice has been served today. I can go to my son's grave and wish him a happy birthday on Sunday. Conrad would have been 37.

MESERVE: Muhammad's attorneys had urged the judge to reduce his sentence to life in prison without parole. "He was not born evil, he is not a virus, he is not the devil," said Jonathan Shapiro, maintaining that Muhammad had once led a life of value and could again.

JONATHAN SHAPIRO, MUHAMMAD ATTORNEY: Nothing was solved today. And, in our view, more pain is inflicted.

MESERVE: But prosecutor Paul Ebert said Muhammad's lack of remorse for his horrible crimes made death the appropriate and the only appropriate sentence.

PAUL EBERT, PROSECUTOR: The counsel for defense says he sees no evil in his client. I can't agree with that. I see nothing but evil.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MESERVE: Muhammad's case will be automatically appealed to the Virginia State Supreme Court tomorrow. Final sentencing for the other man convicted of the sniper slayings, Lee Boyd Malvo -- Anderson.

COOPER: All right. Jeanne Meserve, thanks very much from Chesapeake.

We're tracking a number of developing stories around the globe right now. Let's check the "UpLink.".

In Iraq: Abu Abbas is dead. The Palestinian terrorist leader had died while in the custody of American forces. U.S. officials said he died of natural causes. Abbas was the mastermind behind the 1985 hijacking of the Achille Lauro cruise ship. Abbas was captured in Baghdad shortly after the U.S. invaded.

Islamabad, Pakistan: a successful test for a new long-range missile. The Pakistani military announced the launch today and said the ballistic rocket could hit targets more than 400 miles away. Both Pakistan and India are now capable of delivering nuclear weapons to most of each other's territories. But officials on both sides have recently worked to lower tensions between the two states.

London, England, now: release from Guantanamo, but detained in Great Britain. Five British citizens who were held at Gitmo by U.S. forces have been turned over the British government. The five are apparently not now considered a threat to U.S. forces.

In London: genetically altered corn gets government approval. It's controversial. The corn will be used in animal feed and is the first time the U.K. government will allow cultivation of a genetically altered crop. Environmental groups say they plan an immediate appeal.

And in Florence, Italy: Michelangelo's masterpiece is getting a bath. The Statue of David shown before his battle with Goliath is being cleaned with a solution designed to take away years of grease and grime. Some experts worry that the cleaning may harm the statue. Michelangelo finished the piece 500 years ago this year.

And that is tonight's "UpLink."

Teens that promise to be virgins. So why are they now contracting STDs? We'll take a closer look at an alarming new study.

Also tonight, selling human body parts. I know it's grizzly and gory, but a criminal investigation at UCLA and a $100 million business is under way. Find out why researchers are making some big money off the dead.

And a little bit later, travel back in time deep in the universe. Just amazing pictures. Hubble delivering these stunning pictures. We're going to give you a front-row tour of space when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: The topic right now is teens and sex. More specifically, teens who pledged not to have sex until they're married. According to a new study, these teens are getting sexually transmitted diseases at about the same rate as their non-pledging peers. How could that happen? Let's take a closer look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER (voice-over): Teenagers publicly promising to remain virgins until marriage with the so-called chastity pledge has been a big trend among young people since the 1990s.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You see a lot of moms and dads, and especially dads, come in with their daughters and buy (ph) them and present them to their daughters in some type of ceremony oftentimes associated with the church.

COOPER: Some teens wear their pledges on their fingers. Purity rings they call them. And remember when Britney Spears was a teen? She, too, pledged to remain a virgin until married. As it turns out, Britney couldn't keep her pledge. And neither can a lot of allegedly abstaining adolescents, according to an ongoing study examining the sex lives of 12,000 teens.

According to this sample, nearly nine out of 10 teens who took the chastity pledge say they have broken it. The study finds that pledgers do tend to have fewer sex partners before marriage than non- pledgers. But what is most surprising is that the pledges and non- pledgers have about the same rate of sexuality transmitted diseases.

Why? Well, it turns out the pledgers, when they do have sex, are less likely to use condoms. While the study will, no doubt, be hotly debated, the question remains, should kids get more lessons about safe sex, more lessons about abstinence, or more information about both?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Well, there's no doubt the debate goes on.

Coming up, the big business of body parts. Find out how much some researchers think you are worth.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: Let's take a look at our top stories in the "Reset." And we begin in Washington.

CIA chief George Tenet says White House policymakers added "a sense of urgency" to intelligence before the war in Iraq. He testified today before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Port-au-Prince, Haiti: disarming Haitians. U.S. Marines are going to go out with Haitian police starting tomorrow to try to disarm people. A Marine spokesman says he is counting to local media to make the point that people will be better off if they give up their guns. It's not going to be easy.

Istanbul: suicide attack. Two attackers stormed a messianic lodge in Turkey today, opening fire and setting off explosions, killing one person and wounding five. One attacker was killed, the other injured.

New Jersey: same-sex marriage ban. The state attorney general told city officials to stop issuing marriage licenses and performing same-sex ceremonies or face criminal charges. The deputy mayor of Asbury Park performed the state's first same-sex marriage on Monday.

To Finland now: hot cup of health benefits. Researchers say drinking a lot of coffee might just keep people from developing adult on-set diabetes. They don't know why this is, but they said the benefits increase with the amount of coffee people drink.

All right. Who knows?

That's tonight's "Reset."

It is a pretty grizzly topic when you think about it, spare parts, spare human parts. We've been taking a look into the subject ever since news broke about a lawsuit against UCLA for allegedly selling body parts illegally for profit. Today the university suspended its operation apparently just before the state of California was going to shut them down. As a complicated story but one we've learned about, the practice., and it is a very big business, it turns out. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: It is a fast-growing industry reaping revenue in the hundreds of millions of dollars in a year all in the name of scientific research. It is not just hearts, livers and kidneys being sold, every single body tissue, small bones and fingernails fetch a huge price. For example, the director of the cadaver program at the Galveston branch of the University of Texas made more than $4,000 selling 232 fingernails and 35 toenails to a pharmaceutical company in Salt Lake City. According to the Orange County Register, skin, tendons, heart valves, veins and cornea are listed at about $110,000. Add bones and one cadaver could be worth $220, 000. It is illegal to profit from the sale of body parts, using middlemen in the transaction make it is easier to hide the profits. The buyers are usually pharmaceutical companies, medical instruments, biotech companies and private collector whose buy tissues research and training seminars. Ironicly families of the donors receive nothing and are unaware the bodies of their loved ones are being dissected for profit.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Just a remarkable story.

We wanted to learn more about this trade in bodies and a man who knows it well, Vidal Herrera. He headed the UCLA program when it was hit by scandal a decade ago.

I spoke to Herrera, the founder of 1-800-AUTOPSY, a short time ago and asked him if he was surprised to hear of this scandal?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VIDAL HERRERA, FMR. DIR., UCLA WILLED BODY PROGRAM: I was surprise and saddened to hear about this current incident. I heard last year on a few occasion that is body parts were being moved from Ucla. But again this happened recently. Shocking.

COOPER: Who is it who's trying to buy these body parts?

HERRERA: Well, it's usually the medical research companies who are desperate for fresh tissue. The only place they can acquire it is through the willed body program throughout the United States.

COOPER: So these companies are using tissue, they're using skulls, any toenails, fingernails, any pieces of body for various research, for various private research? HERRERA: Well it's for research and development. If you pick up the newspaper, you see the extreme makeover shows. These individual doctors need to practice. So, they usually go to seminars where the tissue is available for practicing purposes.

COOPER: And so, getting that tissue has become increasingly difficult because of the growing demand?

HERRERA: It has been difficult. It is going to get even a lot worse. I understand that they're doing away with cadaver anatomy courses throughout the United States.

COOPER: When you were running the willed body program, did you get calls from people looking for cadavers for body parts?

HERRERA: All the time. And to this day I still receive calls.

COOPER: And the people who are the technicians who are slicing off body parts basicly and shipping them around the country to the research groups, how much can they make?

HERRERA: Black market, it is a large industry. There was an individual last year here in Southern California, San Diego. He was sentenced 20 years. He was making hundreds of thousands of dollars.

COOPER: People think they're donating their body to a medical school, they don't really think that medical school is going to sell the body or cut it up and dole out the pieces for a price.

HERRERA: That is correct. I think people should be made aware of this, exactly, straight forward, what is being done with their loved ones.

COOPER: More than 800 corpses may have been mishandled at UCLA. How can a medical school lose track of that many corpses, not know this was going on. Because it was allegedly been going on for some eight years?

HERRERA: There should be no way they should lose track. People that are in charge, the immediate people and you know, somebody was arrested. They had to, you know, do something incorrect or hide it from the superiors.

COOPER: There are 154 willed body programs around the country. Describe the community, if you will.

I mean, is this a community where everyone kind of knows each other and you sort of know where you can maybe go to get some eyes or get a thigh bone or whatever it is you need?

HERRERA: Yes. It is a small community. It is a small network. Everybody knows everybody throughout the country. Of course, the researchers know somebody. If something is unavailable, you hear, they'll call someone else, we can refer them to other universities involved in the willed body programs.

COOPER: What can be done to prevent this from happening again, or can anything be done?

HERRERA: I think what they have to do is have one main facility that would incorporate all the various medical schools in, for instance, like Southern California, something similar to the medical examiners system where they are separate private entity. This way they can have complete control of all the bodies being received and, of course, released.

COOPER: All right. It is a frightening story. A lot of people didn't know about it.

Vidal Herrera, appreciate you joining us. Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Quick news note. In 1950, UCLA started the worlds first willed body program, revolutionizing the idea of donating ones body to science. There are now 154 such programs nationwide, 10 of them in California. An estimated 8,000 bodies are collected that way each year.

We have this just in to CNN. After tonight's contests in four states, they have given President Bush enough delegates to get the GOP nomination. Bush is expected to pass the 1255 number of delegates needed to clinch the nomination when polls close in Texas and Louisiana. Bush campaign spokesman says we are gratified by the support we received and look forward to the debates facing the issues of this country.

We continue with politics now, from body parts to body politics. Right now, primaries under way in four southern states as Senator John Kerry battles towards the nomination.

But have you noticed lately, the tit for tat attacks?

They seem to be heating up and well, speeding up. You can never be too fast or furious in the world of "Raw Politics."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER (voice-over): Monday, 1:05 p.m. Eastern time, Dallas, Texas, President Bush takes as jab at John Kerry.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My opponent clearly has strong beliefs, they just don't last very long.

1:20 p.m. Eastern time, Washington D.C. The Kerry camps send as two-page e-mail rebutting Bush's accusations. Welcome to the game of politics 2004 style. High speed, high stakes, tit for tat. The basic rule leave no attack unanswered. Remember what happened to Michael Dukakis in 1988? He plunged in the polls after failing to react to an ad accusing him of being soft on crime.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dukakis not only opposes the death penalty, he allowed first-degree murderers to have passes from prison. COOPER: In 1992, Clinton's war room perfected the art of rapid response. Today, candidates have ammunition at the ready. They spend thousands of dollars on press offices and opposition research. Some even send their own cameras to keep track of their opponents. And during debates, staffers inundate the media with their spin on issues, sometimes the spin even happens in realtime.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Governor Dean, before you sit down, I've just been handed a document. I think it came out of the press room that Senator Kerry's staff has been distributing some comments about what was said.

COOPER: Tit for tat. The game goes on in "Raw Politics."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Let's talk about the latest tit for the at exchange and strategy behind it. From Washington, Steve Elmendorf a top Kerry campaign adviser and Tucker Eskew, a senior Bush/Cheney campaign adviser.

Appreciate both of you joining us.

Tucker let me start off with you. How risky is it to let a fact go unanswered?

TUCKER ESKEW, BUSH CHENEY CAMPAIGN ADVISER: The facts are your friend if you've got a strong record, if you got case to make and if there is a clear choice in the country than you ought to put those facts forth. The president is starting to do that. The Democrats have selected a nominee, he's engaged. You know, he called Senator Kerry the night of his super Tuesday win and said he looked forward to a spirited campaign and that's they way it started.

COOPER: Is there a risk for the president of attacking too quickly too soon and sort of being seen as muddying the waters early on?

ESKEW: To the contrary. I think our opponent started September 3 of last year with $7 million in paid advertising, three quarters of which has been negative against President Bush. I think when we point out Senator Kerry's flip-flops or when we note that he tried to cut a billion and a half dollars out of our intelligence budget, we're beginning to engage in a debate. Spirited, yes, but very factual.

COOPER: Steven, campaigns poll to see how effective an attacker or counter attack is.

How quickly can you tell what sort of impact an attack is having?

STEVE ELMENDORF, KERRY CAMPAIGN ADVISER: Well, I guess I would agree with Tucker on one thin, which is we will respond with the facts. We don't need the poll to talk about the facts about John Kerry's record. When an attack machine comes after John Kerry's record, we're going to be ready right away to hit back and let people know what the truth is. COOPER: Steve, have you been surprised at how quickly the president has been responding or even taking on directly John Kerry?

Do you think it is early?

ELMENDORF: I'm surprised how quickly he has been mentioning him by name. It is the earliest an incumbent president has engaged in a campaign like this. And I think it's the sign of the weakness of this president and how worried he is about his opponent and what a tough campaign he will have.

COOPER: Tucker, yesterday the president basicly said John Kerry was aiming to gut the U.S. intelligence community back in 1995 by this bill taking away $1.5 billion.

Obviously, Kerry's side responded very quickly. Are we going to hear more about this?

Is this one particular example that we'll hear about?

ESKEW: We'll hear more about it until Senator Kerry answers the very serious charge, that two years after the first World Trade Center, two years after that, he proposed a billion and a half dollars, that's $300 million a year over five years in cuts to our critical infrastructure in intelligence.

(CROSSTALK)

ESKEW: We haven't heard an answer.

COOPER: I think you've already heard the answer because I have heard the answer which is basically that there was a lot of hanky panky going on on the NRO. They kind of hid a billion dollars, they built a building for $300 million. Have you not heard that?

ESKEW: But that's not what the charge is. The charge is that Senator Kerry, unilaterally, if I may, proposed a billion and a half in cuts and got not a single senator. He's talking about another set of votes apparently because the 1.5 billion took a meat ax to intelligence and in fact you couldn't find a senator to support him on that. Two Democrats, Senators Inoway (ph) and Dikinsini (ph), very respected Democrats, took the floor to attack Senator Kerry on that. He hasn't responded to that.

COOPER: All right. Steve, let me ask you. Senator Kerry, the other day, said that some foreign leaders want him to be the president. Are we going to hear more about that? He came under some flak from it.

ELMENDORF: Can I respond to that intelligence charge?

COOPER: I knew you would.

ELMENDORF: You know, I think it is interesting that the administration that presided over the worst intelligence failure in our history is now attacking John Kerry on his votes on the intelligence budget. It is also interesting that Republicans who are constantly talking about fiscal conservativism and talking about how we have to be good with the taxpayers' money are using as spending more money on defense programs or intelligence programs. It is sort of their standard for whether or not you are pro defense or pro intelligence. We're for spending the taxpayer's money wisely and we're not going to be for every billion dollars that everybody wants to throw at the defense budget.

COOPER: Steve, you've got to quickly answer my question. Are we going to hear more about these foreign leaders who allegedly want John Kerry to be president?

ELMENDORF: I don't think there's any secret that there are a lot of people out in the world who have been disappointed with the outreach of George Bush prior to the Iraq war and disappointed with the leadership he's shown around the world.

COOPER: Tucker, you've been in this game a long time. Is this going to just be a tough, nasty race? It started early. It is personal early. Are you at all surprised by it?

ESKEW: No. I think we'll stick to the facts here. We hope the Kerry campaign will. Unfortunately, in espousing a number of conspiracy theories such as foreign leaders, such as the U.S. might have kidnapped the president of Haiti. He had unnamed sources who said that. He had unnamed sources who said we might have been in cahoots with the United Kingdom to delay a deal with Libya on nuclear agreements. These unnamed sources.

The last time a bad John Kerry theory had so many unnamed people around it, it was that proposal to cut a billion and a half dollars out of intelligence funding. He can't get people around him on his big ideas. I think there are few accomplishments -- we'll put up a strong record of steady leadership and tough times against that record. I think it will be a spirited campaign.

COOPER: Steve, same question to you. Are you surprised at the tone of this thing so early, so personal?

ELMENDORF: You know, the stakes are very big here. We think the American people want a change in leadership. We think they are unhappy with 3 million lost jobs, 2 million people losing healthcare. We think that they're ready for a tough, but fair, campaign where we're going to lay out the issues on why this president needs to be replaced.

COOPER: We're going to have to leave it there. Steve Elmendorf, appreciate it, and Tucker Eskew, as you as well. Thank you very much. Good to have you on the program.

A lot of political attention will be on Florida this year. Let's put what happened in 2000 in some perspective for a moment. The vote in Florida was so close that it took a month to declare a winner. Before Florida was declared, Al Gore led in the electoral college with 266 votes to Bush's 246 votes. When Bush was declared the winner of Florida by 537 votes, he picked up 25 electoral votes which gave him the presidency. The polls are still open in Florida now.

Free man walking. The tough road to freedom for a man wrongly convicted.

Later on, space like you have never seen it before. The Hubble telescope bringing back amazing images from the universe. Stay tuned. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: So we've all heard of DNA evidence being used to challenge convictions. That has resulted in a growing number of people who have been freed from prison. Increasingly what we're hearing is that many of the newly exonerated are getting very little help in their transition into a new life. CNN's Frank Buckley has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Calvin Willis (ph) tries to enjoy every day of his life after 22 years in this prison for a crime Willis always maintained he didn't commit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It took them 22 years to correct that mistake. Now, all I'm asking about is what you're going to do about it.

BUCKLEY: How should he be compensated for the life he missed, for his children growing up without him?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just kept on going. I kept my head up.

BUCKLEY: Willis is telling his story to the very community that sent him to prison, Shreveport, Louisiana, where he was convicted of aggravated rape.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the house where the rape occurred.

BUCKLEY: Two decades later, testing of the DNA found at the scene caused prosecutors to drop the charges. Willis went free. There were press conferences and promises of a life regained. What happens to guys like Calvin Willis when they walk away from prison?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: First of all, the press goes away very quickly and the problems set in very quickly.

BUCKLEY: Lola Vollen heads the Life After Exoneration Program in Berkeley, California. She says Calvin Willis and the growing population of DNA and otherwise exonerated prisoners need not just compensation, but help in dealing with everything from depression to dialing a cell phone.

LOLA VOLLEN, LIFE AFTER EXONERATION: They are entering a world that is very new and different for them, and they're entering virtually naked. They have no money, no skills. They have no place to live. BUCKLEY: Vollen is behind Willis. But many of the more than 350 other people in her databank who've been exonerated are struggling when they should be reveling in a freedom that was once wrongfully taken away. Frank Buckley, CNN, Berkeley, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: A quick flashback for you. The first person in the U.S. to be exonerated through DNA testing, Gary Dotson (ph) was his name, he was convicted in 1979 of kidnapping and rape. He spent six years behind bars when his accuser came forward to say she had concocted her rape allegation. Dotson was freed from prison and DNA tests eventually corroborated the woman's story. Last year Dotson was granted a full pardon by then Governor George Ryan.

Coming up. The deepest pictures of space yet. Just ahead, the Hubble telescope reveals stunning images of the universe.

The "Current." O.J. Simpson back in the news accused of something new. Be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: All right. Time to check on pop news in "The Current." O.J. Simpson is being sued by Direct TV for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars of service by unscrambling its signal. His lawyers deny it insisting Simpson has never owned any pirating equipment in his life except maybe perhaps a knife.

The number of cosmetic plastic surgeries in the U.S. continue to soar. Up 32 percent. Botox use is up as well. There were a record 2.8 million Botox injections last year. It is, of course, assumed that half of those injections went directly into the head of David Gest.

And Menudo fans, your prayers are answered. The group that put the 'oy' in boy band is being reborn. Producers say they will hold open auditions for a new Menudo. Ever since he heard the news, Greg, the 360 audio tech has been practicing in the makeup room. Sadly, Greg is not in the 10 to 14 age range producers are looking for. Frankly, none of us here have the courage to tell him. Greg, the audio tech.

Time to boldly go where no one has gone before, much like Greg, to a stunning new image taken by the Hubble space telescope. It is the deepest view ever of the galaxies, the universe as we have never seen it before. Miles O'Brien shows us the pictures and a look at what the future could hold for the Hubble.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Take a look back, way back in time. It is the universe as we have never seen it, young, odd-shaped galaxies growing, exploding, devouring each other, a tough neighborhood captured by the Hubble space telescope. But it could be Hubble's last big hit. A shuttle mission to make repairs, add two new instruments and extend Hubble's life should have been underway about now but in January, NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe canceled all future shuttle missions to the telescope, leaving Hubble to deteriorate and ultimately expire in orbit in two to four years.

SEAN O'KEEFE, NASA ADMINISTRATOR: I would rather it not be this way but I think it is the only responsible thing to do.

O'BRIEN: O'Keefe's decision comes in the wake of the Columbia accident in February 2003. The accident board told NASA future shuttle flights not headed to the international space station and safe harbor must adhere to a more rigorous set of standards.

O'KEEFE: You either comply with the recommendations of the Columbia accident investigation board report or you do the Hubble servicing mission. One or the other. You can't do both.

O'BRIEN: But many astronomers and engineers beg to differ.

ROBERT ZUBRIN, PRESIDENT, MARS SOCIETY: If we give up Hubble out of fear, we give up the human exploration of space. In the human exploration of space, cowardice is not an option.

O'BRIEN: Astronomers say there is plenty more science for Hubble to do and the telescope would be ten times more powerful if shuttle astronauts could spend some time under the hood. Miles O'Brien, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Well, just ahead on the "Nth Degree," Alistair Cooke at 95 signing off from America. Plus tomorrow, soaring gas prices poised to hit a record high. Who is to blame? What impact this is going to have on your pocket book. We'll take a closer look. That's tomorrow. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: Tonight, taking dedication to the "Nth Degree." Alistair Cooke has written his last letter home. Every week for 58 years now Cooke has been broadcasting a 15-minute long "Letter from America" to his native England for the BBC. He's 95 now. And after 2,869 letters from America, Cooke has decided that's enough. 58 years is a remarkable run. Let's put it in perspective. The second World War came and went and there was Cooke. The Cold War came and went and there was Cooke.

Soviet Union disappeared, 12 American presidents were elected, man walked on the moon, the typewriter gave way to the computer, the 20th century gave way to the 21st, we went wireless, digital, .com, nuts and all that time there was Cooke. Filing his polished, insightful, witty letters trying to make sense of this wonderfully inexplicable country. Doesn't seem nearly enough after 58 years of letters from America and decades as the face of masterpiece theater and a dozen books just to say thanks to Alistair Cooke but we do. Thank you, Mr. Cooke. I'm Anderson Cooper. Coming up next, "PAULA ZAHN NOW."




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