Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Day One for the Democrats; Obama in Dead Heat With McCain; Run for the Fallen; Biden's Economic Record
Aired August 25, 2008 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome back, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien in New York.
You're taking a look though inside the Pepsi Center in Denver, where they are getting ready for day one for the Democrats in less than three hours now. The Pepsi Center, Howard Dean's gavel, is going to really officially begin that 2008 convention, bring it to order, or what passes for order, I guess, in a party that is famously fractious, frankly.
There will be signs that 2008 is going to be a good year for the Democrats, but perhaps a challenging one for Barack Obama, especially if you take a look at some of those new polls. The polls show that the race with John McCain at this point is all tied up.
On the agenda tonight, former president Jimmy Carter; House Speaker Nancy Pelosi; Senator Claire McCaskill from the crucial swing state of Missouri; and also there'll be a special tribute to Senator Ted Kennedy. So he is now expected to make an appearance in person. That, of course, is a very rare thing ever since he's had his cancer surgery.
And then, finally tonight, Michelle Obama will be talking, and she'll be accompanied by a video message from her husband right after her speech.
So, all of these things building, really, towards Barack Obama's acceptance speech in Denver's INVESCO Field before a crowd that could, we are told, could top 75,000 people.
But first and foremost, let's focus on what's happening tonight.
And Michelle Obama, really cute pictures. You can see there, this is videotape from a little bit earlier today. She was rehearsing, checking out the podium. She had her daughters, Sasha and Malia, with her. Very precious to see a girl gravitate to the gavel and to quickly hop on the podium and test it out themselves.
Let's get right to Michelle Obama's chief of staff and senior Obama adviser. Stephanie Cutter joins us now from Denver.
Nice to see you. Thanks for talking with us.
STEPHANIE CUTTER, CHIEF OF STAFF FOR MICHELLE OBAMA: Hey there.
O'BRIEN: Let's talk a little bit about the pressure on Michelle Obama tonight. What does she have to do, do you think, to be successful?
CUTTER: Well, I think that she'll be successful in just talking about the Obama family. You know, there's nobody better than Michelle Obama to introduce Barack Obama to the American people, than the person who knows him best. She'll talk about who he is, his values, you know, why she believes that he'll be an extraordinary president. I think that by any measure, tonight will be an enormous success.
O'BRIEN: Does she have to also talk about herself? I mean, I don't have to tell you about some of that flap over the unpatriotic remarks, and that's certainly been a strategy for the Republican Party, to portray Michelle Obama as unpatriotic.
If you look at the favorability polls, they show that she has a 50 percent favorability rating, 32 percent unfavorable, which, I should mention, is significantly higher than Cindy McCain, frankly. But, is it important to talk about herself or is it important to talk about her husband?
CUTTER: Well, she'll talk about the Obama family. And you know, I just want to point out one thing.
In those polls that you just mentioned, most people that were polled say they don't know enough about Cindy McCain to have an opinion. So you know, Michelle's got very high favorables because she's out there talking about her husband Barack Obama and why she believes he'll be an extraordinary president. You'll hear that tonight.
You know, what you'll see is a warm, intelligent, funny woman who is a mother, a daughter, a wife, a public advocate. And all of those things will come across very clear tonight.
You know, her story really is the great American story. You know, the Republicans can attack her by taking some of her comments out of context, but that's not going to be possible tonight. The American people will see firsthand, you know, why Barack Obama loves this woman so much.
O'BRIEN: Party officials have said that there is some fighting and infighting. I mean, even though we've seen this joint statement that says people who say that there is problems don't know what they're talking about, but others have said, frankly, there are problems behind the scenes and that there is some disunity going into this.
Will Michelle Obama be talking about that at all, or confronting that in her speech tonight?
CUTTER: No, not at all. I mean, she really is here to talk about Barack Obama, her husband, and the Obama family.
You know, she will, and as she has mentioned on the campaign trail, and even tonight, the enormous impact people like Hillary Clinton have had on her own daughters in making them, you know, reach for bigger dreams than they could before. But in terms of whether this convention is unified or not unified, you know, I think at the end of the day, you're going to see a lot of happy people there in that audience cheering for the woman who is talking about the next president of the United States.
O'BRIEN: You're also Senator Ted Kennedy's spokesperson, and we now know that he's going to be attending tonight in person. That was really very much up in the air, certainly after his cancer surgery.
How important is it for him to be here tonight?
CUTTER: Well, you know, there is nobody who wanted to be here more than he did. He said that he wouldn't miss this for anything in the world. He's enormously humbled by the outpouring of support that the American people and people here today have shown him. So, he's looking forward to seeing this tribute.
O'BRIEN: Stephanie Cutter is a senior adviser for the Obama campaign, and also Ted Kennedy's spokesperson.
Which means you're a busy lady.
Thanks for talking with us. We certainly appreciate it.
CUTTER: Thanks, Soledad.
O'BRIEN: Coming up next, some new polling, and also more about those big challenges for Barack Obama. Bill Schneider will join us with that, with the polls.
That's straight ahead, right after this. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL)
O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody.
They're getting ready in Denver. The 2008 Democratic convention is about to begin. Barack Obama making history, the first African- American nominee from either major party. New polling today showing the ticket in a dead heat with John McCain, and providing some troubling news about Hillary Clinton's supporters inching away.
So, let's get to talk about that with CNN's Bill Schneider.
Bill, thanks for being with us.
Dead heat. Is that surprising to you at this point?
WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: It's surprising to a lot of people, and Democrats around here are asking, how can this be happening? Take a look at how people think things are going in the country right now.
President Bush, two-thirds of the voters -- more than that -- disapprove of the way he's handling the job. More than two-thirds say things are going badly in the country. The national economy even worse. Three-quarters say the national economy's in poor shape. Two- thirds oppose the war in Iraq.
If things are so bad and people are so angry, how can they be voting for the Republican candidate? Imagine if Bush were running for re-election. Imagine if Dick Cheney were running to succeed him. But they're not.
John McCain is. And when we ask people, "Do you think John McCain's policies would be the same as those of President Bush or would they be different?" People are split. They're divided, and that turns out to make an enormous difference, because if you think things are bad in the country, but you think John McCain's policies would be different from those of George Bush, you're voting for McCain.
And that's the line McCain is pushing, and exactly what the Democrats at this convention hope to dispel with all the speeches this week. They're going to try to argue McCain, Bush, same thing.
O'BRIEN: Yes, and you would think that if you were the change candidate and done very well on that message, you should be able to grab some of those people back.
How much of this that you're seeing in the polls is really because the Democrats are off message at this point?
SCHNEIDER: Well, a lot of it is because the election somehow over the summer has become a referendum on Barack Obama. You have people who haven't been seeing a lot of news about him. He's an interesting figure. John McCain has kept the focus on Obama, rather than himself or President Bush.
The purpose of this convention is to try to change that and make this about the status quo, make it about Obama's theme, change, and really make it a referendum on how things are going in the country. I think you're going to hear one major Democrat, possibly more, give a very impassioned speech on the subject, what George Bush has done to our country.
O'BRIEN: Bill Schneider for us.
Thank you, Bill.
That's our convention coverage for the moment. We're going to be back with the very latest in just about 20 minutes, and, of course, all throughout the day.
Reporting from New York, I'm Soledad O'Brien. Let's send it right back to Atlanta and CNN NEWSROOM after this short break.
(COMMERCIAL)
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: There goes the neighborhood. You'd think so. But this twister takes some surprising twists and turns. We're on the ground in Colorado.
In big parts of Florida, the ground is still under water. That's because of Fay, whose remnants are still on a rampage. Too young to die but old enough to kill? A teenage girl is captured. Iraqi police say a suicide bombing is thwarted. The girl says she's the victim.
Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Terrifying moments outside Denver on the eve of the Democratic convention. These are two of four tornadoes that touched down. Both look like they're about to swallow up the houses, but they didn't. The storms brought more than just an inch of hail though, and flash floods.
And finally, blue sky over Florida. But it will be a while before some folks can actually go back home, much less dry out.
Tropical Storm Fay dumped close to 30 inches of rain on some places. That storm is blamed for at least 13 deaths now in the Southeast.
And what's left of it is still causing a lot of problems. Plus, we have a new tropical storm that Chad Myers is going to tell us about right now.
(WEATHER)
PHILLIPS: Well, captured in Iraq, two key insurgents, including the suspected mastermind of the kidnapping of American journalist Jill Carroll. Carroll was seized in January of 2006 and freed unharmed about three months later.
The U.S. military says the insurgents were captured earlier this month in Baghdad. Both are said to be key members of al Qaeda in Iraq. The second suspect is believed to have been in charge of attack cells that carried out almost 300 bombings, killing more than 1,500 civilians.
In Baghdad, a suspected suicide bomber is caught before she can blow herself up. That's right, "she," and she's only 15 years old.
In this police video, she's being searched and says that her husband was present when several women made her wear a vest filled with explosives. Police say she took them to the house where she said that suicide belts were being made. They found another vest, but the house was deserted. That girl claims that she was duped.
A major blow for the coalition government of Pakistan. Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif withdrew his party today. He blames the coalition for failing to restore the judges ousted by former president Pervez Musharraf. Musharraf resigned a week ago before he could be impeached.
The coalition's collapse could help the party of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto tighten its hold on power, but Sharif is standing in the way. He's named a retired judge to run against Bhutto's widower and political successor in next month's presidential election.
In Russia, both houses of parliament voted unanimously today to recognize independence for Georgia's two breakaway regions. The speaker of the lower chamber says the regions have always been and will remain part of Russia's strategic interest. Russia's president still has to approve. And earlier this month, Russian troops invaded Georgia after Georgia tried to reassert control on one of those regions just south in Ossetia.
Vice President Cheney will travel to the region a week from tomorrow. A White House spokesperson says that he'll reiterate U.S. commitment to Georgia in talks with Georgia's president. Cheney also plans to visit two other former Soviet republics and Italy.
What a difference a year makes. More and more Americans think the economy is in bad shape, really bad shape, but we're going to crunch the numbers in this crisis of confidence.
And crossing the finish line at Arlington National Cemetery. A cross-country run to honor fallen soldiers comes to an end.
(COMMERCIAL)
PHILLIPS: Gas prices dropping again, partly due to a drop in demand. AAA says the average price for a gallon of regular is around $3.68. That's about 43 cents off the record high that AAA reported in mid-July. Only people in Alaska and Hawaii are still paying $4 or more for regular unleaded, believe it or not.
Now, also dropping is your confidence in the economy. A new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll says that 75 percent of Americans think the economy is in very poor or somewhat poor condition. Now, compare that to a year ago, when just 43 percent felt the same way. Today, just a quarter of Americans rate the economy as somewhat or very good.
(BUSINESS REPORT)
PHILLIPS: Well, running for our troops. Hear more about a group that decided to honor fallen soldiers just one mile at a time.
(COMMERCIAL)
PHILLIPS: Eight inmates busted out of jail in New Mexico last night. Seven are still on the loose, and police say the men used handmade tools to actually cut a hole in the roof of the Curry County detention center in Clovis.
Police captured one of them overnight. And take a good look at these mug shots that we got of them. These are the other ones that are still on the lam.
Edward Salas, on your lower left, he's serving life for killing a 10-year-old boy. Larry McClendon's awaiting trial in a murder case. The rest of them, all suspects in other violent crimes.
Iraq's prime minister says that U.S. and Iraqi negotiators have agreed that there will be no foreign troops on Iraqi soil after 2011. In fact, Nuri al-Maliki says that any agreement on the future of U.S. troops in his country must include a specific timeline for withdrawal, or there's no deal. White House spokesperson Tony Fratto said that nothing is written in stone just yet, but he believes that Baghdad and Washington can reach a mutual agreement.
A cross-country tribute to U.S. war dead in Iraq has come to an end outside Washington. The runners tell us all about their remarkable journey.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ready, set, go.
(APPLAUSE)
JON BELLONA, FOUNDER, RUN FOR THE FALLEN: This is the start of Run for the Fallen, which is a 72-day memorial run beginning here at Painted Rocks, Fort Irwin, and taking us 4,000 miles, through 13 states, and ending at Arlington National Cemetery on Sunday, August 24th. The inspiration really came from knowing my best friend and Hamilton College roommate, 1st Lieutenant Michael Jay Cleary (ph).
Our main mission is to run one mile for every service member killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom. At the end of each mile, we'll be placing an American flag and a service member placard in remembrance of a fallen soldier.
ERIN KAVANAUGH, FIANCE KILLED IN IRAQ: To have, you know, the freedom to run from one end of the country to the other is pretty spectacular.
ERIC JANES, RAN ACROSS THE U.S.: As I realize that I'm running for, like, somebody's child, or somebody's friend, or somebody's sister, or somebody's brother, that like, I can run four more miles, I can run two more miles. It's OK. I can get through that.
KAVANAUGH: We have a lot of legs out here to help us run those miles for those men and women.
BELLONA: Run for the Fallen is a living memorial. It is not just dedicated to more than the 4,000 brave men and women who gave their lives, but to the families, loved ones, and active duty who currently are in harm's way. Today we've come over 10 million steps to be here at the doorstep of the most sacred place in America, Arlington National Cemetery.
KAVANAUGH: My fiance, 1st Lieutenant Michael J. Cleary, who was killed in Iraq. And there's not a day that goes by that you don't think of him.
BELLONA: We must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. (END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Turning back to politics, the economy is issue #1 for most voters. So what does Joe Biden bring to the Democratic ticket?
CNN's Christine Romans reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Senator Joe Biden's forte -- foreign policy, not the economy. But he's more average Joe than millionaire senator.
SEN. JOE BIDEN (D), DELAWARE: My net worth is $70,000 to $150,000. That's what happens when you get elected at 29. I couldn't afford to stay in the Congress for minimum wage, but if I get a second job, I'd do it.
ROMANS: He has voted to raise the minimum wage. He was an early supporter of NAFTA. More recently, he voted against CAFTA, the Central American Free Trade Agreement, trade deals unpopular in potential swing states, where they're blamed for lost factory jobs. But economic clout, many say, is more critical now for the McCain camp.
JOHN GEER, VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY: It is McCain who really needs to get somebody on his ticket who has really economic credentials. Because of the situation with the economy, you know, Obama's just going to have a real edge there. He can talk about, you know, the inflation rate, he can talk about the debt, because all these things have been accrued under a Republican administration.
ROMANS: If there is a hallmark of Biden's economic record, it is as a representative of the corporate interests in his home state of Delaware. Three years ago, Biden sided with the credit card industry to make it harder for people to file for bankruptcy. He voted with Senator John McCain and against Senator Barack Obama.
(on camera): The challenge for this ticket is convincing Americans it has a solution to a housing crisis, a $9 trillion national debt, growing budget and trade surpluses, 40 million people without health insurance, and skyrocketing food and gas prices.
Christine Romans, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Live pictures now of Denver's Pepsi Center on kickoff day of the Democratic convention. Barack Obama is two days away from officially making history, and the best political team on television will be there every step of the way.
(COMMERCIAL)
O'BRIEN: Welcome back, everybody. I'm Soledad O'Brien with the very latest as we count down to the opening gavel of the 2008 Democratic convention.
Barack Obama and Joe Biden, that's the ticket. Already a few surprises, though, as we take a look inside Denver's Pepsi Center.
Senator Obama is now expected to address delegates tonight by way of video hookup, and in what's expected to be a very emotional moment. An ailing Ted Kennedy will make a rare, personal appearance.
No shortage of other developments, as well.
Is Bill Clinton miffed about his role? Are Hillary supporters turning their backs on Senator Obama? What do the latest poll numbers mean?
Let's cover it all with GOP consultant and CNN contributor Alex Castellanos. And also at the CNN Grill in Denver, Democratic strategist and former John Kerry adviser Michael Meehan.
Michael, let's start with you, if we can.
Give me a sense of lessons learned from '04 that need to be applied to '08, and fast.
MICHAEL MEEHAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, in fact, you need to respond to every charge that comes along. And August is an important month to do so.
But what's really important is to make sure you tell the full story, both of the character of Barack Obama and Joe Biden, as well as the issues that they care about and believe in.
O'BRIEN: To some degree, there's some of the momentum that was, Alex, in the campaign, that seems to have frittered out. What do you think is the biggest cause of that?
ALEX CASTELLANOS, GOP CONSULTANT: Well, the August doldrums -- I think Barack Obama got this nomination, and then he ran out of script. He told us he was the candidate of change, but then he couldn't tell us what that change was. And the reason is, that's when he ran into the national Democratic establishment in Washington.
They don't want change. You know, Bill Clinton said the era of big government is over. Well, it's really not for the Democrats in Washington. And so, they don't want to take money and power out of Washington and put it in the pockets of the American people; they'd rather make that economy, the government economy, bigger and better, not your economy. So, he kind of ran out of script.
He could have stood up to that. He could have stood up and been real change, but he didn't confront it. He kind of went along.
O'BRIEN: Well, we'll see what happens over the next couple days, since we're just -- haven't even kicked it off officially yet.
Michael, let me ask you a question about some of this discord, which, frankly, both the Obama campaign and the Clinton camp say, oh, it doesn't exist, and anyone who says it does is completely and utterly wrong. And yet, the next breath, someone else will say, yes, it's true, there is this discord between the Clinton camps and the Barack Obama camps.
Can it be overcome? Can it be overcome easily? And can it be overcome quick enough to turn some of the poll numbers around?
MEEHAN: Well, I think it can be done quick enough. There's two important constituencies at a convention. The activists will fill the hall tonight to listen to Michelle Obama and Ted Kennedy. Those are the people that, for the next 10 weeks, will go out and run the campaign. It takes the convention for us Democrats to get back together, see each other eye to eye. You're on the other side during the primary -- you know, give each other a hug and let's get going and pull it together to get the nominee into the White House. That's what happens at the Democratic conventions. This is the latest we've ever had one, the last week of August. So it's taking a little bit longer because that's the way the calendars work.
But the voters also will see, in Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, that she's a full-throated supporter of Barack Obama, and that's the beginning of bringing together voters who supported her during the primary season into the general election -- 35 million people voted in the Democratic primary. We had a very exciting 19-month Democratic campaign.
O'BRIEN: Let me stop you there. We now know that there's this whole behind the scenes negotiation about giving some votes in the presidential nomination role call. We'll talk more about it in a moment. But as you say, I keep hearing she's fully behind Barack Obama, and yet, one of the headlines that we start talking about is this news about her role in the role call, and it kind of, intentionally or not -- and I'm going to guess intentionally -- shifts focus, I mean, doesn't it? It can't be accidental, right?
MEEHAN: Well, I think people who are Hillary Clinton delegates spent a lot of money and worked very hard for her to come here, and if they want to cast their vote, then they can cast their vote, and that's going to show the kind of support and sometimes life-long commitment to a historic first lady and a historic candidate.
O'BRIEN: Right.
MEEHAN: But I think what you're going to see through the course of this week is the transition to the full-throated campaign and the general election, and that's what we're going to get accomplished here in Denver.
O'BRIEN: Alex Castellanos, if I had to ask you to turn to the other side, if you will, and advise the Obama campaign, what would your advice be?
CASTELLANOS: Make nice with Hillary, and that's going to be almost impossible to do. I think the specter of Hillary Clinton hangs over this convention like Glenn Close with a knife in "Fatal Attraction." She's just not happy. And yes, of course, she's going to do the right thing. Of course, she's going to embrace him. Of course, she's going to flip- flop and give a great speech, but the problem is, everyone in America has seen her not mean it. It is much harder -- we've seen this whole week, she's dragged it out, she's put the spotlight on herself and Bill Clinton -- and it's much harder to undo that. So, she's made the wound deeper. She's going to try to heal it in a night, but we know that she's conflicted about it.
O'BRIEN: Alex Castellanos and Michael Meehan, I thank you both for talking with us. We're going to continue our coverage.
Up next, the man who literally wrote the book on Hillary Clinton, Carl Bernstein, when our coverage continues on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
O'BRIEN: Democrats getting their act together tonight. A very open question, though, is can they do it fast enough? The rundown features everyone from the former president, Jimmy Carter, and Ted Kennedy, who could not get along in the 1980 convention, virtual army of Hillary Clinton supporters, some of whom, they say, will not come to terms with Barack Obama.
Let's talk about how it's all going to play out with CNN political analyst, Carl Bernstein. He is the author of "Woman in Charge: The Life of Hillary Rodham Clinton." Now out in paperback, I might add.
We've been talking about this deal about negotiating for votes in the presidential nomination role call, which sounds to me like they're still negotiating -- as much as both sides have put up this joint statement saying there is no infighting, and anybody who says the opposite is wrong --
(CROSSTALK)
CARL BERNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: There's been plenty of fighting going on for weeks.
O'BRIEN: So what's it about? First explain the first part. What is that?
BERNSTEIN: Oh, well there are a lot of hurt feelings. And also, the Clintons themselves are not a monolith, nor are their supporters. Hillary and Bill Clinton have somewhat different interests. They don't always agree on things. Bill Clinton is feeling very hurt and very angry and very petulant about, among other things, how he's been perceived in the election. He comes out of this the real loser.
Hillary has come out of this a winner. And yet, she still obviously feels hurt she hasn't won and that she and her supporters deserve some real recognition for the race that she ran --
O'BRIEN: All valid points, but the question is, does that then damage the potential for the Democrats to win the White House? BERNSTEIN: You know, I think what we're going to see is that, among other things, Bill Clinton is a great Democrat. Hillary Clinton is a great Democrat. They believe in most of the same things as Barack Obama. And when Ted Kennedy and the Clintons and all the rest of them get up there in this convention, you are going to see a coming together and a message that's going to be very powerful.
Are there going to be some hurt feelings left over?
Yes, but --
O'BRIEN: But outside of hurt feelings -- you see John McCain already leveraging, not just the hurt feelings, but the women who wanted to see Hillary get the nod for VP --
BERNSTEIN: Let's see where those women go. Do you think those pro-choice women are really, in the end, going to go for John McCain? I doubt it very seriously, and I don't think they have anywhere to go.
But one of the things to remember is the Clintons always love being on center stage. They're now being ushered off center stage and into a supporting cast role. Sometimes they don't do that too gracefully, but they have to perform. In some ways, Obama has got them --
O'BRIEN: What's the pressure on them like?
BERNSTEIN: Tremendous, because if Hillary is not seen as genuinely supporting and really helping the election of Barack Obama, she doesn't have the future she wants in this party, and Bill Clinton has been the person most damaged in --
O'BRIEN: His legacy.
BERNSTEIN: this primary process because of his actions.
He is not held in the same regard among Democrats as he was going into the primaries, and he is going to have to give a speech that restores his legacy, and he wants to do that.
O'BRIEN: OK, but explain something to me then. We keep having these conversations where people say, I just heard the most amazing speech from Hillary Clinton telling people to get out there, she believes in Barack Obama, and then --
BERNSTEIN: And then we get up and say we don't believe it.
O'BRIEN: No, no.
Then I get a wire that says they're negotiating behind the scenes to work out this balloting, et cetera, et cetera. So, that sounds like two sides of a coin to me.
BERNSTEIN: No, I don't think so.
I think that the negotiating about how her name is put into nomination, in fact, is being done so that she can get up, when the New York delegation is called, and say, I, Hillary Clinton, cast my vote for Barack Obama, and urge that this hall do it by unanimous consent --
O'BRIEN: That will be the turning point, you think?
BERNSTEIN: -- Something like that is going to happen.
But also, let's not kid anybody. This was a difficult, nasty primary campaign. She ran a negative campaign, especially early on, and one of the reasons she's not the vice presidential nominee are those memos that you saw and the fabulous reporting done by the "Atlantic Monthly," in which -- you know -- Mark Penn, who is himself an extension of the Clintons, saying in there, let's run against Obama as if he were not American. He doesn't forget that kind of thing.
O'BRIEN: That will get you knocked out of the VP nod.
BERNSTEIN: Now, Hillary might not have felt quite that, but you know, there's some nasty leftover stuff from this campaign.
O'BRIEN: We've got a lot to talk about.
Carl Bernstein with us and with us for the rest of the afternoon.
And much, much more -- we've got more coverage coming up in about 20 minutes and of course, throughout the day.
Reporting from New York, I'm Soledad O'Brien. Let's send it right back to Atlanta and CNN NEWSROOM right after this short break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: 2:00 Eastern time. Here are the stories we're working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Dramatic moments ahead as the Democrats kick off their convention in Denver. Michelle Obama takes the stage tonight and Senator Edward Kennedy plans to appear, marking only the second time he's been seen in public since his June brain surgery.
Home prices plunging, people are buying. The National Association of Realtors says that existing home sales rose 3.1 percent last month. Still, sales are down more than 13 percent from a year ago.
And no specifics, no deal. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki says the Iraqis won't agree on any U.S. pullout without a specific time line. U.S. and Iraqi negotiators are trying to hammer out details right now.
And we have word of an evacuation in Washington, D.C. Live pictures right now. Apparently, the U.S. District Court, after workers had reported some fumes coming from the batteries that were being serviced, this evacuation was declared. So far, we're told no injuries. Apparently, the evacuation was just ordered as a precaution when the building's ventilation system started to distribute those fumes. We're told approximately 10 units, about 50 firefighters, responded. They're still there on the scene. We'll keep you updated on what's happening there.
All right, it's a storm without (ph) staying power, that's for sure. What's left of Tropical Storm Fay is still causing problems in the south after four separate landfalls in Florida. Fay left many neighborhoods under water. And today, it's drenching the southeast with even more heavy rain. Tornadoes are another big threat, as well.
Chad Myers, you're keeping track of everything. What's going on right now?
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Gustav. Believe it or not the new --
PHILLIPS: Gustav.
MYERS: -- the new storm, yes. A brand new storm with a brand new name, and people here are going, gosh, wasn't that quick?
Yes, but you've got to think about this -- if we're going to have, which is kind of the forecast, 15 to 17 named storms -- we're only on G -- we're going to have to maybe one storm a week from here on out. So yes, we're not even done with Fay, but yes, the next storm is already going, and it is south of Santo Domingo and the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Forecasts move to the northwest, maybe toward Gitmo, and then near Kingston, Jamaica, possibly even farther north than that.
This is the wide view, to give you an idea. There's the United States and the Gulf of Mexico. Here's the storm down here, and it's still forecast to be very close to Cuba. A lot like the forecast for Fay, north of Cuba and then maybe on into the Gulf of Mexico. But the very latest models, the ones that are just printed out, the ones that weren't used in this track, all take the storm south of Cuba, not north of Cuba.
Now, is that good news or bad news? Depends on which side of Florida you live on. If you are on the east side of Florida, you don't want this storm here, because then that's attracted to the East Coast. You do want the storm here. Now, if you're on the Gulf Coast, you don't want that, because that takes the storm into the Gulf of Mexico.
So, there's good news and bad news on both sides. But we will watch it for you. It just basically started. The Hurricane Hunter aircraft in it right now, flying through it to see what the storm is really doing. But right now, winds at 60 miles per hour already with Tropical Storm Gustav.
PHILLIPS: We'll track you and Gustav throughout the afternoon.
MYERS: I'm not going very far. I'm going 15 feet from here to there.
PHILLIPS: That's true, you're moving a lot slower than our friend, Gustav.
All right, thanks, Chad.
MYERS: You're welcome.
PHILLIPS: Let's take it over to northern India. Dramatic relief efforts now under way after catastrophic flooding caused by monsoon rains. More than 1 million people in the state of Bihar are cut off now from the rest of the country. Roads and railways have been swept away. Helicopters and troops are trying to get food and relief supplies to the stranded people there. The monsoon season has killed more than 330 people in India so far, and the season runs from June to September.
It's the last thing that some little leaguers in Texas were expecting at practice the other night. A small plane with engine trouble hitting a light pole, then crashing in the infield. One of the rescuers, believe it or not, had a helmet cam and was able to document the whole thing. You can see the pilot, the passenger, both dazed, but still alive. Those kids saw the plane coming just as it took off.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AUSTIN SCARMANDO, WITNESS: It was coming in, and it nailed -- it hit the pole. If it wasn't for the pole, it would have probably came in in left field and hit some of us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Aww, Austin. Well, everyone on the ground is OK. Both men in the plane were hurt, but they are expected to recover.
In Kyrgyzstan, a passenger jet had only taken off when it crashed to the ground. Yesterday's accident outside the capital, left 65 people dead. 25 people made it out alive. Those pilots had reported technical problems aboard their Boeing 737 and requested an emergency landing. Authorities hope to get more information from six crew members who survived. Planes from Kyrgyzstan are now barred now from the European Union, by the way, over safety concerns. This flight was actually headed for Iran.
198 Palestinians freed today from Israeli prisons. Among them, a 16-year-old girl who tried to stab an Israeli soldier, and a militant who served 31 years for a deadly bombing. The release coincides with another visit by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for peace talks with both sides.
Now, check out the greenery at a mall in Miami. Those aren't silk ficus trees, baby, they're pot plants, up to six feet high. We're going to tell you about the big discovery.
And this mother dog deserves milk bones and belly rubs for a lifetime. She turned out to be an abandoned baby's best friend.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: A mall in Miami had a weed problem the landscaping crew just couldn't handle. Federal agents found more than 200 marijuana plants growing in a second-floor storage area. Electricity that powered this greenhouse was diverted from the mall's power supply. Agents said the wiring was so faulty, it could have caused an explosion. Shoppers couldn't believe what was growing right under their noses.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Weird. I don't know. It's really weird. I can't believe it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can't believe that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's awesome. It's incredible. How can it be that nobody finds out before?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: I wonder if they got a special deal. Authorities put the street value of the pot plants at about 1 million bucks. No arrests have been made so far.
Breaking up is hard to do, even in the virtual world. Police say a North Carolina woman met a Delaware man in the web community, Second Life. They fell into an online love affair, which he broke off after they met in person. Police then say the woman drove from North Carolina to Delaware with her dog, broke into the man's apartment with plans to tie him up and kidnap him. The man escaped, called 911 and the woman was later arrested. Oh, by the way, she left the dog behind.
Well a mother dog in Argentina must have thought that the strange creature she found crying in a field was another puppy. Well, think again. She carried it about 50 yards back to where her six newborn puppies were and they all huddled together on a 37-degree night. But she hadn't found another puppy, she had found a newborn baby boy whose mother abandoned him. A man who lives nearby later discovered the newborn and took him to the hospital. Doctors say the dog saved the child's life.
Political conventions aren't just for delegates anymore. Some Hollywood heavyweights will be in Denver this week and in Minneapolis next week to show their support for their party and their candidate.
CNN's Kareen Wynter has more on the star power at the conventions.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAREEN WYNTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: A true Hollywood ticket.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm hoping to go to the convention in Denver. WYNTER: He gets top billing, but Barack Obama won't be the only star attraction under the roof when he accepts his party's official nomination at the Democratic National Convention.
SCARLETT JOHANSSON, ACTOR: I've been thinking about going.
WYNTER: Confirmed celebrities include actors Susan Sarandon, Anne Hathaway, Josh Lucas and Misha Barton, as well as directors, Spike Lee and Quentin Tarantino. That's just for starters.
ROBIN BRONK, THE CREATIVE COALITION: We're going to make great moments in history.
WYNTER: Robin Bronk heads the nonprofit, nonpartisan political advocacy organization, The Creative Coalition. For the past eight years, it's been organizing groups of celebrities who plan events for both conventions.
We are observers. And so we're on the floor, we go behind the scenes, we're in the bleachers.
WYNTER: Bronk says some of their A-list members, like actress Keri Washington, will also attend next month's Republican convention in Minneapolis. The GOP will host its own impressive VIP lineup, including outspoken conservative actor, John Voight.
JOHN VOIGHT, ACTOR: I look forward to the conventions.
WYNTER: California governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and actress Rosario Dawson, whose nonpartisan organization is rallying the Latino vote.
ROSARIO DAWSON, ACTOR: We have a young 19-year-old boy who's really excited about being at the RNC and being embedded there. And we have a young woman who is really excited about being in the DNC. It's just really great to have both their voices be heard.
BRONK: Just because you are an actor or you're in the spotlight doesn't mean that you should check your citizenship at the stage door. You have more of an obligation to get involved.
WYNTER: That, Bronk says, is the power of celebrity.
Kareen Wynter, CNN, Hollywood.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: China's dream, wrapping up the Olympic games with golden ribbon.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Beijing takes a bow, and now London's calling. Last night, Beijing wrapped up the 2008 Summer Olympics with a bang. Some say the closing ceremony was as amazing as the opening ceremony. Now the Olympic eye is focused on London, the host city in four years. Londoners gathered for a big handover party outside Buckingham Palace.
Take a look at the final medal count of the Olympics. The U.S. won the most medals -- 110. China came in second with 100, but got the most gold with 51. Russia came in third overall with 72.
Success for Beijing, not just as Olympic hosts, but as Team China, winning more gold medals than any other country.
CNN's John Vause has more now on China's gold rush.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For China, the perfect end to the perfect games, winning more gold medals than any other country.
DAVID WALLECHINSKY, OLYMPIC HISTORIAN: What you're seeing with China is the most dramatic improvement we've ever seen of any country.
VAUSE: Dramatic, because until China returned to the Olympics in 1984, after years of boycott, it had never won an Olympic gold. Now, China's record-setting golden athletes will be rewarded with hundreds of thousands of dollars, perhaps even millions of dollars, in government bonuses and sponsorship deals.
MA YANHONG, 1984 OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: To make money -- it's good.
VAUSE: Back in 1984, Ma Yanhong was paid just 10,000 yuan, about $1,400 on today's conversion, for her gold in gymnastics.
YANHONG: I think I enjoyed it. And also, it lasts very long to spend that money in those days.
VAUSE: In Beijing, China has not only dominated in sports, where it's traditionally strong, like table tennis, diving and badminton, but also winning first-time gold in archery, sailing, and on the trampoline.
BRIAN CAZANEUVE, "SPORTS ILLUSTRATED:: What they did was really isolate the sports in which they could get multiple medals. It was a very sort of scientific approach to winning the medal count.
VAUSE (on camera): Months before the Olympics, Chinese officials began playing down the chances of topping the gold medal tally. Nonetheless, from the moment Beijing won the rights to stage these games seven years ago, this country began spending big to try and guarantee its best ever sporting results.
(voice-over): Critics say it's about a lot more than a place in sporting history.
WALLECHINSKY: This is a message that is totally being sent by the communist party of China to their own people, and that message is, we brought you this success, trust us in everything else.
VAUSE: Whatever the message, it was delivered not just to most of China, but to the biggest global television audience ever.
John Vause, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Live pictures for you on the kickoff day at the Democratic convention in Denver, and it's making history. Barack Obama poised to become a major party presidential nominee like no other. The best political team on television brings you live coverage all the way.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
