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Early Election Day Indicators; President Bush's Impact; Crime Scene at Tom Kean Campaign Headquarters
Aired November 07, 2006 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Don Lemon.
It is your vote. And you may cast it in the humble setting of a firehouse or even a school gym, but it's impact could shake the halls of Congress and the tip -- and tip the balance of power on Capitol Hill. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives are up for grabs today. At least three dozen Republican-held seats are considered at risk.
PHILLIPS: Democrats are hoping to win at least 15 of those seats to regain control of the House, for the first time since 1994. Many, if not most, pundits say that's a good bet.
LEMON: The Senate may be a safer haven for Republicans. Seven GOP seats are considered vulnerable, and possibly two Democratic seats as well.
To take control, Democrats will have to hold on to those two seats and take six of the GOP seats. Many analysts believe that's a long shot, but it is possible.
PHILLIPS: CNN has deployed its correspondents and vast resources across the country, from New York, to Texas, to Montana. Buckle off up, as we kick off this Election Day coverage from the CNN NEWSROOM.
Campaign season in Missouri has seen a little bit of everything. That includes a celebrity TV ad that not only inflamed what was already a barn-burner of a Senate race. Democrat Claire McCaskill is in a showdown with Republican Incumbent Jim Talent.
Our Jonathan Freed is in Saint Louis.
Hey, Jonathan.
JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon, Kyra.
All of this was coming down to turnout. That's what everybody, the political watchers, both campaigns that we were talking to, when the race was the dead heat that this one is, that's what they were looking at today. And reports coming in from across the state are suggesting that turnout is very high today.
We're told that both candidates actually had to wait in line to vote at their polling places today. And that is significant, because every last vote that these candidates can get out could make or break the difference today.
The other aspect, the other thing that's been happening here, sort of a tandem campaign, which people have been focusing on pretty well as much as the Senate race is the whole question of whether or not the Constitution will be amended. It's a ballot initiative on stem cell research. That has been galvanizing people to come to the polls, as well.
Not clear, though, Kyra, once people get into the voting booth, if they're there mostly motivated by the stem cell issue, how that might affect their vote for the Senate race -- very close -- everybody excited here, waiting to see what happens -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, this isn't the first time that these candidates have been a close race, right?
FREED: Both of them have been in close races before, and each running for governor. They didn't run against east other, but in different years.
They're used to this kind of thing. And we were talking to both camps about that, asking about the -- the mind-set of the candidates, because this was going to be a squeaker -- everybody expecting to wait until the last votes are counted to see which way this one goes.
We're told, the candidates are cool; they're calm; they have seen it before.
We will see.
PHILLIPS: Jonathan Freed, we will be watching. Thanks.
LEMON: When it comes to national politics or lots of other things, for that matter, Montana sometimes gets overlooked -- but not this year.
That state has about 600,000 registered voters. And the two candidates for Senate have spent more than $12 million. That is 20 bucks per voter. Republican incumbent Conrad Burns is in the fight of his political life against Democrat Jon Tester.
And our Chris Lawrence is in Billings, Montanan, to tell us all about it.
Hey, Chris.
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Don.
You know, the last poll that was taken just before the election had Democrat Jon Tester leading incumbent Senator Conrad Burns among likely voters, 50 to 41 percent. But Burns said that Republicans would turn out on big numbers on Election Day and tip the balance in his favor.
Well, so far, we don't know exactly how everyone is voting. But the secretary of state says overall turnout is pretty high today.
And the voters themselves are kind of telling us exactly how divided this race is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I voted for Conrad Burns. I have known Conrad for a long, long time. And I believe he's necessary for the state of Montana.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's time for a change.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAWRENCE: Yes, time for a change -- since Burns has been in office for 18 years, that kind of gives you some indication that he voted for Jon Tester.
But there is no real one defining issue, like you have in some other states, where you have Iraq or stem cell. Here, you know, we talked to some people who said they voted for Burns because they're afraid that Tester will raise their taxes.
We voted -- we talked to some other people who said they voted for Tester because, you know, they just -- they feel like Iraq is a quagmire. They feel like that should have been settled a long time ago. There are a number of issues here that are driving the voters to the polls today -- Don.
LEMON: You have been keep -- keeping an eye on all this. Tell us about the voter turnout. How has it been so far, Chris?
LAWRENCE: It's been pretty high. The secretary of state says, so far, they -- they're having a very high turnout here.
Again, you have got a -- 646,000 registered voters. But, of those, one in six requested an early ballot. And most of those came in some time ago. So, this race was already well on its way to being decided before the polls even opened today.
LEMON: Chris Lawrence, Billings, Montana, thank you so much for your report.
PHILLIPS: In Tennessee, one candidate is trying to make history. Another is trying to help his party retain the seat now held by the Senate majority leader.
Republican Bob Corker is a former mayor who wants to succeed Bill Frist in the Senate. Democrat Harold Ford, well, he could be the first African-American ever popularly elected to the Senate from the South.
Joe Johns is in Memphis. He joins us now by phone -- Joe.
JOE JOHNS, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kyra. The voting is sort of being described right now as steady. I have to tell you, here in Tennessee, something like 860,000 people early-voted. So, everybody who didn't vote before now gets a -- gets a second chance.
We are in Memphis, started out the day at a polling place. The weather has been at least part of the story for us, overcast skies, some drizzle off and on. That could affect turnout, of course. And this is a vast state. This is a very big state, a lot of distance between east Tennessee and west Tennessee, as it were. So -- so, that rain moving through is a factor, perhaps.
A very tight race -- both sides looking at this with turnout as key. There were some reports this morning of problems with voting machines, glitches at least, but there were also reports at least some of those problems were fixed.
And we weren't able, of course, to get that picture this morning of either of the candidates voting, Bob Corker, the Republican from Chattanooga, or Harold Ford, the Democrat from here in Memphis. That's because both of those guys already early-voted.
And we're expecting to see returns on those early votes pretty early this evening after the polls close -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Now, just to talk a little bit about Harold Ford for a moment, if he does win, Joe, this -- he makes history.
JOHNS: Yes, you're right.
He makes history. He would be the first African-American from the South since Reconstruction to go to the United States Senate. That's a big deal, certainly, to a lot of people in the state. He has been very even with that. He hasn't worn it on his sleeve, as it were. I have asked him about it a couple times, really had to push him about it, to -- to get him to -- to say too much.
He sort of makes a joke. You know, he says black guys are undefeated in Tennessee, frankly, statewide. Neither have they won, and neither have they lost. So, there's that, but, yes, it would certainly be historical -- a lot of people seeing it as that. And, in some ways, perhaps, all the media attention here in Tennessee has gathered in no small part because it will sort of tell you something about progress in the South perhaps, considering the history below the Mason/Dixon Line.
PHILLIPS: Joe Johns, we will be watching. Thank you.
JOHNS: You bet.
LEMON: All eyes on Indiana? Well, there is no shortage of high- stakes high drama, potentially pivotal elections today. And the outcomes may be known before much of the nation sits down to dinner.
Here is CNN's Dana Bash.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Indiana, known for its cornfields and Hoosiers, this crossroads of America is not normally known as a political battleground. But this is not a normal election year.
Just ask veteran Indiana Democrat Birch Bayh.
BIRCH BAYH (D), FORMER INDIANA SENATOR: The number-one matter of concern is the war in Iraq. People are tired because we haven't been able to come up with a concrete plan.
BASH: Three Republican Indiana congressmen are among the most endangered in the country, Chris Chocola, John Hostettler and Mike Sodrel. And polls close here before most, 6:00 p.m. local, 7:00 Eastern, making Indiana a key early indicator of whether anti-war, anti-Washington sentiment will lead to a Democratic Congress.
(on camera): Being such an important barometer is an unusual role for a state normally forgotten in the national political debate, because it's just assumed this is solid Republican territory. Indiana hasn't voted for a Democratic president since 1964.
(voice over): Hostettler calls his Democratic challenger's comfortable lead in this red state proof that even conservatives are fed up with the war and more.
REP. JOHN HOSTETTLER (R), INDIANA: It is the result of three- and-a-half years of military conflict. It is the result of several years of neglect on our borders.
BRAD ELLSWORTH (D), INDIANA CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: I'm Brad Ellsworth. I'm running for Congress. Nice...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, you already have our vote.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much. I appreciate it. I will work hard for you.
BASH: Hostettler's Democratic opponent is the local sheriff, an anti-abortion, pro-gun Democrat. In fact, all three Democrats in range of unseating Indiana Republicans are socially conservative, perfect for these parts.
So, Republicans are pleading with voters to look at the big picture: Sending Democrats to Congress, no matter how conservative, would make liberal Nancy Pelosi speaker of the House. They say she would take your guns away and:
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Would bring amnesty to tens of millions of illegal aliens in our country.
BASH: Sodrel frames it as a threat to heartland values.
REP. MIKE SODREL (R), INDIANA: There's a cultural difference. It has less to do with Republicans and Democrats , as it does between people that live in Norman Rockwell's America and people that live in Nancy Pelosi's America.
BASH: In a place where church and a good harvest come first, warning that even a conservative Democrat threatens that way of life usually works -- but maybe not in a year where worries about Iraq run deep.
Dana Bash, CNN, Evansville, Indiana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: While you're voting, they will be watching, an army of federal observers deployed across the country to sites where the Justice Department foresees at least the potential for problems.
Some 850 observers, the most ever, are on the job in 69 jurisdictions across 22 states. Now, mechanical problems, bomb threats -- about the only voting-day glitch we haven't heard of yet is a wardrobe malfunction.
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: Ali Velshi with more on the issues -- Ali.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Were you -- were you counting me to bring that to you...
(LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: ... the wardrobe malfunction?
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: Yes.
Actually, I'm not there to rip the vest, so that would be an issue.
VELSHI: I appreciate that. How are you, Kyra?
PHILLIPS: I'm doing OK. Any more squirrels?
VELSHI: Did you vote, because...
PHILLIPS: Any -- any more rogue squirrels?
VELSHI: No, the squirrel -- we -- we stopped with the squirrels.
In fact, the early problems of the day seem to have gone. We are now getting a whole bunch of other things. Remember, we -- we talked earlier about Indiana extending their voting by two hours and 40 minutes because of some voting machine problems?
We now have a bit of that spreading around the country. Our friend Sean Callebs, who is in Denver, has looked at where -- where is there some voting going on. He says there's -- there's a lineup right now for some voting that is three or four city blocks long. And I think you're looking at that right now.
We have heard that the Democratic Party of -- of Colorado is filing for an extension, a two-hour extension. However, we have just been checking in with the board of electors, and have no word yet of that extension being granted.
We also have some other extensions. Cook County, outside -- in -- in -- Cook County in Illinois, we have a two-hour -- we have extensions at two precincts, although, for some reason, CNN can't get a reason out of the board of electors as to why they are extending it. You would think they would have to tell somebody.
In Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, we have got a two-hour extension -- or one-hour extension at one of the polls. We have been following a lot of complaints coming out of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. We have people on the ground in both places, trying to figure out exactly what is going on.
And, in Florida, in one county, you would think they would have figured this out. But at least 10 people got the wrong ballots. And, apparently, they have been told by the folks there that, ah, too bad. Nothing you can do about it. Once you voted on the wrong ballot, that is your ballot, and that's all there is to it.
We are getting a lot of issues about people not knowing about the new identification rules in their states. There are many states with new, more rigorous rules. So, please, if you haven't voted yet, take some I.D. with you. Take a picture I.D. Take something...
PHILLIPS: But, Ali, does it...
VELSHI: ... that has your address on it.
PHILLIPS: But it -- it varies from state to state...
VELSHI: Absolutely.
PHILLIPS: ... right? So, they can go on the...
VELSHI: Yes. Well, you know, you could -- you could check on -- online, if you have...
PHILLIPS: Right.
VELSHI: ... got that ability with you, the board of electors in your state or your secretary of state.
But, yes, if -- if you haven't had a chance to check, and, somehow, you are just hearing this because you're rushing off your plane and we're play -- are we playing in the airports?
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: Actually, we are in some airports.
VELSHI: Keep your I.D. with you. (LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: Well, you -- if you're not -- if you were at an airport, you had I.D. with you.
PHILLIPS: That's right. You usually do.
VELSHI: So, yes.
PHILLIPS: All right.
VELSHI: Lots -- lots of stuff going on. I mean, there are lots -- we're getting a lot of complaints.
And, you know, we're -- we're accepting them through CNN.com from I-Report, where we are hoping people will post some of the video or pictures that they have of -- of egregious things.
Like, if somebody is running away with a ballot box, or something like that, like...
(LAUGHTER)
VELSHI: ... take out the camera and click it.
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: Catch them in the act.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: ... we will put it on TV.
PHILLIPS: Hey...
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIPS: ... we have come a long way from the hanging chads, you know, the big...
VELSHI: I'm telling you.
PHILLIPS: ... thick microscopes, and trying to figure out the...
VELSHI: Yes. No, we got all sorts of things going on.
PHILLIPS: That's right. Technology, it -- it hurts and it helps, but at least we can be on top of everything, including all the issues.
Thanks, Ali.
VELSHI: Well, we're going to talk again in about 45 minutes, because we're going to look at those markets, and see how they're doing, too.
PHILLIPS: Sounds good.
All right.
VELSHI: All right?
PHILLIPS: We will talk in a bit.
VELSHI: OK.
PHILLIPS: Thanks, Ali.
LEMON: Frustrated and fed up -- American voters seem to want change. And judging by all the measures on the ballots, they may just get it -- a look at some of the ballot -- ballot battles ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Plan to vote your pocket -- pocketbook today? Well, some voters are casting ballots that could directly boost their incomes or save their homes.
CNN's Christine Romans reports on a banner year for ballot initiatives.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For proof American voters are frustrated, look no further than the sheer number of initiatives on the ballot this November.
JENNIE BOWSER, POLICY ANALYST, NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF STATE LEGISLATURES: I think that there is a frustration with government being expressed in this, both in terms of the numbers of measures on the ballot, and, then, also, a lot of them have a sort of reining-in- government flavor to them.
ROMANS: Like reining in eminent domain, on the ballot in a dozen states, a sharp rebuke of the growing trend of private property seized for local commercial development.
Also on the ballot in six states, a measure to raise the minimum wage from $5.15 an hour -- 23 states and the District of Columbia have already done so, despite overwhelming opposition from business groups, who call higher wages a job killer.
It's an attempt to blunt out-of-control corporate interests, and polls show broad support.
BOWSER: They were all polling in the 60, 70, even 80-percent range. So, if that holds true, then all of these will likely pass tomorrow.
ROMANS: It has the potential to energize Democratic voters.
KRISTINA WILFORE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, BALLOT INITIATIVES STRATEGY CENTER: If you look at the states that have this on the ballot, minimum wage is going to be a huge boost in some very close races.
ROMANS: Just as gay marriage bans could rally conservative voters in eight states, two, Virginia and Tennessee, with tight Senate races.
(on camera): The wedge issues may invigorate voters who otherwise would not have come to the polls.
But, for middle-class Americans, property rights and the minimum wage are the issues that hold more than just ideological value.
Christine Romans, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, more than 200 measures are in the ballots in 37 states.
Our senior legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, has read them all.
And, Jeffrey, is abortion among the most serious or most important of all these legal issues?
JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: You bet, Don.
South Dakota -- the South Dakota legislature, earlier this year, banned all abortion, clearly in violation of Roe v. Wade. They basically said: Look, we want to test Roe v. Wade. We -- we think the new Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade. We're passing a law that said abortion is illegal in South Dakota.
Supporters of abortion rights in South Dakota said: Oh, yeah? Let's go to the people on this.
So, they put a ballot initiative in front of the voters in South Dakota, saying, repeal this law, saying, let's go back to the status quo on abortion rights.
So, the issue of abortion rights is squarely before the voters of South Dakota -- very important decision to be made there.
LEMON: And, Jeffrey, also in South Dakota, this one caught my eye. What exactly is jail for judges?
TOOBIN: Jail for judges -- no wonder it caught your eye. It certainly caught a lot of judges' eyes.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: I will bet it did.
TOOBIN: Even Sandra Day O'Connor, when we interviewed her the other day, she certainly went out of her way to -- to denounce this idea.
Basically, it's an attempt by some people in California to remove the immunity from judges for their own decisions. In other words, judges, if this passes, could be sued, could conceivably even be prosecuted for the decisions they render.
The entire establishment in South Dakota is lined up against it, Democrat/Republican. But it feeds into a real populist resentment of some judges in some quarters. And, you know, we will see how it goes.
LEMON: And, Jeffrey, maybe -- maybe this is my own naivete, but I didn't -- I hadn't heard much of this issue in quite a while, since, like, you know, the '50s, '60s and '70s, when they were building interstates, and eminent domain was taking people's property. But, in 12 states, it's on the ballot again. What's going on here?
TOOBIN: Well, this all stems from a decision by the United States Supreme Court in 2005 , out of New London, Connecticut, where they said, the city of New London could take land from one private landowner and give it to a private developer to develop a shopping center, a parking lot, hotel.
And this inspired a lot of opposition among conservatives, especially, but also some liberals, who said, eminent domain should only be used for taking private property for clearly public use, a highway, a school, a hospital. And this notion of protecting private property from eminent domain has really caught on. A lot of legislatures have done it.
And 12 states are going to address it today. And it's very likely to pass there.
LEMON: Ah, we shall see.
Let's talk about something that has also been very controversial. We have seen Michael J. Fox campaign about it -- stem cell research on the ballot as well.
TOOBIN: In Missouri.
It's really been one of the hottest issues in one of the hottest states. Supporters of stem cell research are trying to amend the Constitution to say, stem cell research is going to be legal in Missouri. It's really, in many respects, a proxy for the abortion fight, because the opponents of stem cell research very much are the pro-life forces, who say life begins at -- at a very early embryonic stage, and we don't want to interfere in any way.
Stem cell research supporters, like Michael J. Fox, who did a very well-known commercial, said, look, this research is way too important. And it's very much bound up in that very hot Senate race between Claire McCaskill and Senator Talent there.
LEMON: Yes.
TOOBIN: So, we will see how that goes.
LEMON: And, so, Jeffrey, you have talked about this before. Conservatives have made it a little bit more I guess you can say difficult to vote. You have to have your I.D., and what have you. I don't know if it's two forms of I.D., exactly what -- what it states.
But that's causing some problems. Is it making it -- making it harder for people to vote?
TOOBIN: It is.
As Ali Velshi has been sort of keeping track of all day, there -- it used to be 11 states that had some sort of I.D. requirement. Now it's up to 24. These measures have very much been pushed by Republicans, who think that voter fraud is a big problem, and they want I.D. as a check on that.
Democrats have often said, this is an attempt to limit low-income black participation in the voting...
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: And, Jeffrey, as you're talking now -- I want you to continue on -- but the governor in South Carolina even went to the polls...
TOOBIN: Yes.
LEMON: ... and didn't have his I.D. He couldn't vote.
TOOBIN: He -- he couldn't vote for a while. There he is, Governor Sanford. He has -- he was turned away, but he came back. So far, the problems, like the governor's, have been solved.
But, you know, as the evening stretches on, we're likely to see more controversy about this.
And -- but all I know is, I voted.
Did you vote, Don?
LEMON: Yes, I did.
(LAUGHTER)
TOOBIN: I voted. I did something -- I voted with my dog for the first time...
LEMON: Yes, I did vote.
TOOBIN: ... which was interesting.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: But I had to do absentee, because I'm not...
TOOBIN: Oh, you did?
(CROSSTALK)
TOOBIN: ... I voted this morning. LEMON: No, I'm not a residence here in Georgia yet, but soon will be.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: All right.
Always interesting to talk to you.
TOOBIN: OK, Don. See you later.
LEMON: Jeffrey Toobin, thank you.
PHILLIPS: President Bush's name isn't on the ballot today, but that doesn't mean he won't have an effect on the elections -- straight ahead in the NEWSROOM, what his sagging approval ratings could mean to his fellow Republicans -- our Candy Crowley with her unique insight.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: President Bush isn't running for anything today. And that might be a good thing for Republicans. The president's approval ratings have been on a downward spiral since shortly after the 2004 elections.
Our senior political correspondent, Candy Crowley, looks at the fall and the fallout.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Just after winning reelection by more than three million votes, President Bush's approval rating was 55 percent.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Let me put it to this way: I earned capital in the campaign, political capital, and now I intend to spend it.
CROWLEY: If he ever had capital, it vanished overnight, as independents, who helped reelect him, began to move away. That 55 percent approval in November of '04 is the high watermark of the Bush administration's second term.
The past two years have been a long, hard, mostly downward slog, tied inextricably to rising doubts about the war in Iraq, compounded by a hurricane named Katrina. He seemed removed from that disaster and clueless about the ongoing crisis.
BUSH: And, Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job.
CROWLEY: Katrina not only drowned New Orleans; it ate away at the underpinnings of a presidency already crumbling beneath the weight of the death toll in Iraq.
KEATING HOLLAND, CNN POLLING DIRECTOR: One of the big things that George Bush had working for him, even before 9/11, is that Americans saw him as a strong leader. After Katrina and the disaster that happened to New Orleans, most Americans did not see him as a strong leader. He lost it then. He never got it back.
CROWLEY: And there was the matter of trust. Four months after Katrina hit, 10 Marines died in Fallujah, and the president said what everybody already knew: There were no weapons of mass destruction.
BUSH: But much of the intelligence turned out to be wrong. As your president, I am responsible for the decision to go into Iraq.
CROWLEY: In the year after his reelection, the president's approval rating dropped 17 points. Two years later, on the eve of election 2006, he is down 20 points, the political toll of Iraq, Katrina, and Iraq.
DAN BALZ, "THE WASHINGTON POST": Well, we saw in 2004, on the Democratic side, there was a lot of anger at President Bush. What we're seeing in this election is that independents now, because of Iraq, I think, in large part, are suggesting that they're going to go Democratic in -- on Tuesday.
CROWLEY: Those independents who helped reelect George Bush seem to have vanished, along with his capital. And, if pre-election polls prove out, then, the president will not have taken this long, hard slog by himself. He will have taken his party with him.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: So, Candy Crowley, if, indeed, Bush's star is falling, whose is rising?
CROWLEY: Oh, lots of people, a lot of them in the Senate.
I mean, I just ask you to consider yesterday in Florida, when Charlie Crist, a Republican, who wants to be governor of Florida, Jeb Bush's seat, decided that he wouldn't go and stand beside the president who was campaigning down there, but he did go with John McCain. So, we are looking at '08 here.
From tomorrow on, you're going to hear a lot about who is running for president and who isn't running for president, who has people on the ground in Iowa and New Hampshire. We are already -- even if the president wasn't so down in the polls, we are already bordering on lame-duck territory for any president, who is serving his second term, because this is when, if not the country's attention, political pros and politicians, turn their attention to '08.
PHILLIPS: Let's talk about Iraq for a moment. Talking to some of our pundits in the last hour about this. Let's say Democrats win the House. Let's say they win the House and the Senate. You have a different majority here. That could -- some Republicans and Democrats are saying, well, that could mean more investigations, more hearings on Iraq, and therefore, could affect policy in Iraq, something may truly happen a lot quicker.
CROWLEY: Well, look, if you take the president and Donald Rumsfeld at this point at their word, they are tied to this policy in Iraq. Not to say that they won't change it. But this is a president who is like trying to move a freighter, trying to turn a freighter around here. If he is on course for something and he believes it's right, no amount of political pressure tends to move him. Having said that, there begins to be, at this point, especially if they lose tonight, Republican pressure. He may respond better to that, that sort of look we got to look to '08, that kind of thing.
But in terms of what can they actually do, if the Democrats control Congress, they have got a major platform. They can control the agenda. They can have these investigations, they can apply pressure that way. But the only real effect they can have is to cut off money for the war. I can assure you, they will not do that. This is a party that has long been seen as weak on defense. They think they've made progress on that. They are not now going to turn around and cut off funds for the war in Iraq.
PHILLIPS: Candy Crowley, are you rested up for tonight.
CROWLEY: I am, I am. I slept late this morning, except for the fire alarm that went off at 7:15.
PHILLIPS: Oh, that's not good. All right, you'll be a busy woman. We'll talk again tomorrow. Thanks Candy.
LEMON: Let's head straight to the NEWSROOM now with a developing story from Iraq. T.J., what's going on?
HOLMES: Another deadly incident in Iraq. We're hearing about a suicide bomber in Baghdad, a Shiite neighborhood in northwest Baghdad where 17 people have been killed and another 20 or so injured. Again, this was at a coffee shop in northwest Baghdad, a Shiite neighborhood. You'll remember that a curfew had been in place since -- before, actually, Saddam Hussein's sentencing came down on Sunday. That was put in place, just was lifted today. That curfew, people were allowed to go back out into the street, for vehicle traffic to get back out there and almost immediately, we're seeing this attack.
Again, in a Shiite neighborhood, at least 17 killed, over 20 injured in what we're being told is a suicide attack in northwest Baghdad in a Shiite neighborhood. So again, the curfew lifted, and as soon as we see the curfew lifted it seems like the violence kicks right back up. Something else to keep an eye on there in Iraq, that situation has been a violent one and as we say, today is Election Day, a lot of people going to the polls thinking about Iraq. So, here we go again today.
LEMON: Right.
HOLMES: Here we go again.
LEMON: All right T.J. Thank you very much for that sir.
An open Senate seat in Maryland. One of the big races that could change the balance of power in Washington. PHILLIPS: Plus, battle in the Buckeye State. Another big race to watch in the fight to control the U.S. Senate. We're live in Ohio with the latest, coming up in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: The primaries were trying experience for some in Maryland and electronic voting machines were the reason. No major problems reported today but the day is not over yet and our Brian Todd joins us once again -- Brian, excuse me is it Bowie or Bowie?
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's Bowie, Maryland.
LEMON: Bowie, Maryland.
TODD: You're right, the day is not over, yet. Right, the day is not over yet. About four hours, a little more than four hours until the polls closed. No major problems as you mentioned. Here today it's gone fairly smoothly. One voting machine behind me did freeze up a couple times and that has been a problem throughout the primary season here and during this election cycle on Election Day. Another problem, the electronic polling books -- those were essentially voter registration rolls -- malfunctioned on primary day, but not a problem today. But these problems are all emblematic of a system still working out its kinks.
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TODD (voice-over): Touch screen or optical scan. How you vote? How its counted? A huge issue in this election because of the problem some of these machines have presented in recent cycles. Listen to how one expert compares this equipment to machines that handle much more volume.
KENNETH GROSS, ELECTION LAW ATTORNEY: It still amazing me that the machines are freezing up on Election Day but I've never gotten more than the exact amount of $20 bills that I've asked for when I put my card in the ATM machine.
TODD: There are a few companies that make electronic voting machines. Experts tell CNN many of the problems are the result of simple technical breakdowns, but activists also charge that those companies don't adequately secure the machines, making them vulnerable to hackers and they say there's little oversight on the manufacturing.
CHELLIE PINGREE, COMMON CAUSE: We're already worried about the audit ability standards, about our inability to get access to what the proprietary codes are. In a sense, nobody knows and nobody regulates what goes on in these machines.
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TODD: But the companies that make these machines continue to insist that their systems are accurate and secure. Also experts tell us there is no widespread evidence of tampering of these machines. Part of the big problem, human error. A lot of the experts who monitor these things tell us, especially in Maryland, in the primary, on primary day in September, some poll workers forgot to bring the electronic access cards to get into the electronic voting machines. Others forgot to remove the memory cards that actually would enable them to tally up the votes more accurately. Election officials tell us those problems have been corrected but Don, still something they're watching for.
LEMON: Yes, you can expect some problems. Nobody is perfect. let's talk about the -- you got two hotly contested races in Maryland. Republicans trying to hold on to the statehouse and Democrats trying to hold on to the U.S. Senate seat. How has the turnout been for this?
TODD: Well, the turnout, according to Governor Robert Ehrlich, who I spoke to a couple of hours ago -- he says it's been relatively light here in Maryland and he says that's due to the -- again connected to the electronic voting issue. He and other politicians in the state encouraged voters to vote absentee and use provisional ballots. So, he says that the voter turnout is a little bit light.
But, those two races as you mentioned very, very tight. This is turning into a battleground state for the Senate. The Democrats didn't expect this to be contentious, it has become that because of the efforts of Lt. Governor Michael Steele, a Republican who has run an energetic campaign. He's climbed back into the race, it's going to be very tight tonight, along with the governor's race.
LEMON: All right. Brian Todd in Bowie, Maryland, thank you very much for that.
PHILLIPS: New Jersey is one of the states where Democrats are having to defend a Senate seat. Republican Tom Kean is challenging incumbent Robert Menendez, who was appointed not elected to replace Jon Corzine when Corzine was elected governor. Allan Chernoff is in Mountainside, New Jersey, where we understand there have been some breaking developments. Bring us up to date, Allan.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, this has been a very nasty campaign for senator, both sides throwing accusations at each other. And now this. On Election Day, Tom Kean campaign headquarters, a crime scene. Here is what happened, 4:45 this morning one staffer was still working inside. He tried to leave but discovered that this front door actually had a lock and chain on it. He called the police. He tried to leave through a back entrance.
Then at 7:00, an employee of the Door Featured Service (ph), a local wire service here, a news wire service, arrived, tried to get in, saw that the lock and chain was still on the door, also saw that three side doors had keys jammed into the lock. She couldn't get in, called the police. The police arrived shortly later and cut the chain, opening up the door. So the police confirm all of this happened. Now, the Kean campaign manager says the Menendez camp is behind this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) EVAN KOZLOW, KEAN CAMPAIGN MANAGER: Clearly, the Menendez campaign and their supporters have used these type of tactics throughout the campaign. Whether it was with criminal inmates who were brought out to disrupt press conferences, people who tried to storm into our office over the weekend. These are the people of tactics that a party boss employs a Hudson County and the people of New Jersey tonight I think are going to say no to these type of tactics.
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CHERNOFF: The Menendez camp says, of course, we had nothing to do with this and they say this is a ridiculous publicity stunt. They even compare it to Britney Spears getting married in Vegas at 3:00 in the morning. Kyra, do you get the feeling that maybe we're back in high school here? Police say this is all under investigation.
PHILLIPS: A little mud-slinging going on, a little dirty politics. Hey, what can you expect? But the political makeup of New Jersey, tell me a little bit more of that.
CHERNOFF: Sure. Of course, it's very interesting that we do have Tom Kean challenging, giving the real challenge here for Robert Menendez because in New Jersey, voters have not elected a Republican senator since 1972.
So this race is very interesting. You might think that we have a very blue state, very Democratic, but the truth is, if you look at this map of the congressional districts of New York, it's actually pretty well split. It even looks like it's dominated by Republicans. There are 13 congressional districts in New Jersey. Seven seats are held by Democrats, six by Republicans.
It just looks very red because these are the less populous areas. The Democrats predominant in the areas closer to New York City and also to Philadelphia. So we do have a pretty tight breakdown here in New Jersey. So Kean certainly does have a decent shot, although we should point out that Menendez has been leading narrowly in the polls. Kyra?
PHILLIPS: All right Allan Chernoff, thanks. Well, glued to the tube for election coverage? Add CNN Pipeline to your plans. Watch the winners, track the losers with live feeds and live blogger reaction. Campaign coverage you won't find anyplace else, go to CNN.com/Pipeline.
LEMON: Oh, the rain, the flooding, what a soggy mess. Weather plays a role at the polls. That's coming up straight ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.
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PHILLIPS: You go, YouTube. The Internet video phenomenon has been named invention of the year by "Time" magazine. Where else can you watch bloopers, mad political ads, busty blondes and "Borat." And I'm not just blathering. Those are really some of today's most viewed clips and all of it is free, for users that is.
Google just bought the whole site for more than $1.5 billion. And speaking of corporate ties, well we point out "Time" magazine is a corporate sibling of CNN. YouTube is already an Internet powerhouse. Now it may be going old school. Susan Lisovicz, a regular YouTube watcher. Joining us live from the New York Stock Exchange, you're always the one saying, Kyra, you've got to click onto this, you've got to click onto that. You keep me YouTube informed.
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LEMON: Problems at the polls. Our Ali Velshi is keeping tabs on precincts around the nation. We'll check with him ahead in the CNN NEWSROOM.
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LEMON: Well, the rain is easing but the rivers are still rising and that means a mess for people in western Washington state. More on the record flooding from reporter Michelle Millman of our Seattle affiliate, KIRO.
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MICHELLE MILLMAN, KIRO AFFILIATE (on camera): I'm in the Snoqualmie River east of Seattle, Washington. And I'll tell you, this has been the site all day long. This river now raging at 60 1/2 feet. To give you some perspective, it was only at 46 feet one week ago. People stopping by to take a look at this river as it just keeps pouring down rain.
(voice-over): This is the situation across most of the Snoqualmie River Valley as dozens of local roads and even highways are shut down. This sign may read "This Way To Carnation," but you can't get there from here because the Snoqualmie River is now over the highway, leaving businesses flooded and farms inundated with flood waters.
(on camera): So where is home?
TOM WALSH, RESIDENT: Well, it's three-quarters of a mile down that road there.
MILLMAN (voice-over): Tom Walsh couldn't drive down southeast 39th Place this morning, so he rowed into town to pick up cigarettes and coffee. Heading home, he was a little worried about the strong current of the Snoqualmie.
WALSH: My neighbors are all standing back at home in the driveways wondering if I'm going to ever show up again.
STEVE RAY, RESIDENT: Definitely the worse it's ever been since I've lived here.
MILLMAN: Nearby, Steve Ray anxiously watched his property and his neighbor's, as well, thinking he was going to have to get out. RAY: This morning it was then going underneath the deck, through the backyard. It was going out that way. It's gone down about two inches now. It's over. We'll survive.
MILLMAN: Many animals in the area are now on higher ground, even if it is just a patch of grass. But down this flooded road, two dogs had to be left behind yesterday and their owner can only hope they're OK.
(on camera): And we know it could possibly be days before some of the roads around here are reopened. We have a couple of towns virtually cut off because of flooded roadways.
I'm Michelle Millman in Fall City, Washington, for CNN.
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LEMON: And the closing bell and a wrap of the action on Wall Street straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.
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PHILLIPS: Time now to check in with CNN's Wolf Blitzer standing by in the Sit Room in New York to tell us what's coming up at the top of the hour.
Hey, Wolf.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Kyra. Thanks very much.
It's November 7th, decision day. We're keeping tabs on what's happening across America on this election day. Our top reporters are fanned out across the country. Fifteen and six. Those are the numbers the Democrats need to change the balance of power, 15 seats in the House, six in the Senate. Will they get them? Our top analysts are standing by to weigh in.
Already some glitches and problems cropping up at precincts across the country. Could they keep your vote from being counted?
And I'll speak with the GOP pointman, RNC chairman Ken Mehlman. What does he have to say about the Republicans' chances of keeping control of Congress?
All that coming up right here in a special edition of the "SITUATION ROOM".
PHILLIPS: So I understand you're running for the Senate?
BLITZER: I am just running on a treadmill, 5.2 miles this morning in one hour. I had to get in shape for the marathon tonight. So I'm running, definitely, but I'm running on the treadmill.
PHILLIPS: OK. Running on the treadmill, but your executive producer, Sam Fice (ph), has a button that says "Wolf for Senate". So I want to know what your issues are. BLITZER: I have no issues. I'm not running for the Senate. It's a total lie.
PHILLIPS: Wolf Blitzer, that is why you would win because you always tell the truth.
BLITZER: Thank you.
PHILLIPS: You're welcome. Love you, Wolf.
LEMON: He was like, nothing, nope, not doing it.
PHILLIPS: Let's check in with Ali Velshi.
LEMON: Ali Velshi, hey, what's up?
Ali, you have any problems? You're at the problem desk.
ALI VELSHI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I've got to tell you, my biggest problem is that squirrel. You remember that squirrel we were talking about earlier in Oklahoma?
PHILLIPS: It got fried.
VELSHI: Yes, the little thing got fried. Squirrel in the name of democracy, let me tell you.
PHILLIPS: A little squirrel stew, there in Oklahoma.
VELSHI: You know was I'm watching right now? I'm just trying to keep my eye on the Dow at the moment. Believe it or not, all sorts of people say, you know, these markets don't like uncertainty, they don't like what's going on. What are they going to do if is there's a Democratic victory?
12,154. The record is 1,2076. This Dow is up 48 points today. It doesn't seem too worried about what happens on the markets today. So we will continue to watch that. I know you've been talking to Susan about that. And I'm going to continue to watch, as Don Lemon calls them, issues. I'm going to continue...
LEMON: Well, just when you said the problem desk, it just reminds me of when you were a kid...
PHILLIPS: Irregularity.
VELSHI: Irregularity.
LEMON: ... you sat at this desk because you'd been a bad boy, you're a problem kid.
VELSHI: Well, it's been lovely spending a little extra time with you guys today.
LEMON: Have fun.
PHILLIPS: See you tomorrow, Ali.
VELSHI: We will see you guys. You have a fantastic afternoon. That's it for the close. No more records today. 12,155, 50 point higher on the Dow Jones. Markets are all up across the board in anticipation of a big election night.
Let's take it over to New York, where Wolf Blitzer is standing by.
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