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Child's Remains Found in Florida; Obama Speaks Out on Illinois Governor Scandal;

Aired December 11, 2008 - 15:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Here is what is making news right now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are the Anthonys aware?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As we have additional information, we will provide you -- yes, they are aware of it.

SANCHEZ: Emotions are running high, a child's body found near the home of missing Caylee Anthony's grandparents.

President-elect Obama says he still doesn't know who on his staff may have talked to the governor's office, but he is saying this:

BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT: I am confident that no representatives of mine would have any part of any deals related to this seat.

SANCHEZ: Also, who is the emissary the governor says offered him half-a-million dollars on behalf of Jesse Jackson Jr.? And, if that person out there, is he singing to the feds?

And snow in New Orleans?

It is 3:00 in Rochester, noon in Bakersfield, your comments unfiltered on Twitter, Facebook, and more.

Our national conversation begins right now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: All right. You may have heard that it has been snowing today in parts of New Orleans and a lot of folks have been making light of it, but apparently there's another side to the story. We are getting information now about a helicopter that has crashed into the Gulf of Mexico. Apparently, the helicopter was transporting workers to an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico when it went down.

Petty Officer Renee Aiello is good enough to join us now. We have just made contact with him. He is going to try and fill us in on what is going on.

Petty Officer Aiello what happened?

PETTY OFFICE RENEE AIELLO, U.S. COAST GUARD: Good afternoon, Rick.

Approximately 9:47 a.m. this morning, our Coast Guard 8th District headquarters operations center in New Orleans received a call. And that call came in from the helicopter leasing company Rotorcraft, and they were reporting that one of its helicopters had failed to report in at its scheduled time.

SANCHEZ: What is the conditions like out there? Would weather have been cause in this?

AIELLO: Right now, we are not looking into the cause of anything. We can confirm the water temperature is about 58 degrees.

Our focus right now is search and rescue. We are out there looking for the remaining three crew members. And we're going to continue doing so until we have exhausted all of our options.

SANCHEZ: So, you have got one already. Three of them are still out there in the Gulf of Mexico somewhere. How long have they been out there?

AIELLO: Well, the call came in at 9:47 a.m. As soon as we received that initial call, we launched our helicopter. We have a small rescue boat crew from Station Sabine Pass, as well as the Coast Guard Cutter Herron (ph). They are all out there converging on the search. And we're going to exhaust all those efforts.

SANCHEZ: Wow. For them to be alive, they would have to be wearing some kind of device at least that is keeping them afloat, and we will all pray and hope that that is actually the case. If the helicopter went down, really, there's no way of knowing, right?

AIELLO: No, there is no way of knowing and the best that we can do is just continue to search and just exhaust all of our options.

SANCHEZ: Hey, thanks so much, Petty Officer Renee Aiello. Good enough to join us with that information.

Again, a story still developing. Three people are missing down in the Gulf of Mexico. As you can hear, the Coast Guard is looking at them -- looking for them, I should say. They have been able to find one, though.

And the other big story of the day that everyone seems to be talking about certainly in parts of central Florida is the search for little Caylee Anthony. As you know, she disappeared some time between June and July, hard to tell because of all the strange stories that we have heard from her mother, Casey, in this case.

The bottom line is that police have found what appear to be the remains of a small child, female. It is Caylee Anthony?

Let's bring in Mike Brooks.

Before we do anything else, we have got a piece of sound that we want to share with you. And, Mike, we're going to go to that in a minute, but what you are telling us is that it sounds like police are reacting very differently in this case than they have in the other case where they thought they had found the body as well.

MIKE BROOKS, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: Well, as you recall, back a number of weeks , go they were in Blanchard Park doing some searches in the river there, because they were in Blanchard Park because she had talked about this. She had said the last time she had seen Caylee was in Blanchard Park with Zenaida Gonzalez, this nanny who never existed.

SANCHEZ: Right.

BROOKS: So, when they found a bag with some toys and they thought were human remains, bones, it turned out to be just rockets and toys.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: But they almost came out immediately and like pooh- poohed the story, didn't they?

BROOKS: They did. They did.

And we have now heard that Jose Baez had gone to the jail and was with Casey Anthony and they also when all this started...

SANCHEZ: Well, what does that mean, that Jose Baez went to the jail and is with Casey? Does that mean that the police are treating this more seriously because they're immediately trying to make ties to her?

BROOKS: Well, I can tell you one thing. Police are treating this very seriously. They are taking their time.

But he goes over there all the time to meet with her. Was this out of the norm? We don't know. But we do know apparently -- our affiliates are telling us that jail personnel notified Casey Anthony when these remains were found.

And they didn't have anything to do with her before. The last time she was watching TV, she saw that, she went back into her cell.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: And for those who have not followed this story as carefully as perhaps you and I have, Casey Anthony is Caylee Anthony's mother, who is behind bars right now being tried for first-degree murder in the disappearance of her daughter.

BROOKS: Right.

SANCHEZ: But, again, the body has not been found. Here is the news conference police had about an hour, two hours ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CAPTAIN ANGELO NIEVES, ORANGE COUNTY, FLORIDA, SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT; At this point, it is very early in this discovery to provide any additional information that can compromise our case. We want to proceed carefully, methodically and allow our investigators and the forensics teams to provide the information to our investigators that is necessary to proceed with this investigation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Ashleigh Banfield is with truTV. She's a host there who is good enough to take some time to join us on this story that she has followed very carefully as well.

Ashleigh, what are you learning?

ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, TRUTV ANCHOR: Well, Rick, what is amazing about the story is that if in fact confirmations are made that those body parts belong to Caylee, there can be a treasure trove of detail that can come out of that that can lend itself to a case.

Prosecutors up until now had to take death penalty off of the table for a variety of reasons. They really could not come up with what they call aggravating factors. At least this is the reported reason, could not come up with enough aggravating factors whereby a jury could vote for the death penalty if they were to convict Casey Anthony of murder.

With a body and with all the details that a body can lend to the case and then all of the forensics that you can get from what was found possibly with this body, and duct tape, and I will get to that in a bit, a garbage bag, and other things that might be around the scene, fibers, clothing, hair, footprints, all of that, it can make a huge case, and it can also bring death penalty back on to the table in this case, Rick.

SANCHEZ: You know what is interesting about this? The grandparents were on "LARRY KING LIVE" last night, and they were asked by Larry about their daughter's situation and whether she had had anything to do with this?

Interestingly enough, the body today has been found very near the grandparents' home.

Listen real quick. Then you, me and Ashleigh will come back and talk about this. Let's listen to the grandparents last night with Larry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "LARRY KING LIVE")

LARRY KING, HOST, "LARRY KING LIVE": George, why wouldn't your daughter have called you and say, Caylee is gone?

GEORGE ANTHONY, GRANDFATHER OF CAYLEE ANTHONY: That's really a good question. I know we kept in contact with her, at least Cindy did, almost everyday or every other day, a little text message here and there. Everything was fine. KING: So what do you make of it? I mean, she's your daughter. You have to have some -- why wouldn't she not -- why would she tell you -- not tell you?

CINDY ANTHONY, GRANDMOTHER OF CAYLEE ANTHONY: I think she's -- I think she was frightened. I think, from what we understand, that, you know, there's been threats to not only Caylee's well-being, but also to our family's well-being.

KING: By?

CINDY ANTHONY: By the people that have Caylee.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Now, you know, it is funny. Ashleigh was alluding to this just moments ago, but it sounds like the only hard evidence they have come up with so far is what they have found in the trunk, correct, Ashleigh?

BANFIELD: So far, that is what we are being told.

Listen, we don't have everything in the case. We may have had 600 pages of information that was released by the authorities, but we don't have everything.

The biggest missing piece of all of this, Rick, and you know this well, was whether in fact it was a murder. A lot of people still thought that Caylee was alive and today still believe so as well. And until you get definitive confirmation that those body parts belong to Caylee, this is also a very difficult case in a courtroom.

Here is the other thing, Rick. A lot of people have talked about the chloroform that was found in that trunk. That is hard evidence, right? The problem is, if anyone is able to determine that this body yields chloroform and it is in fact -- again, let's bring it all down a notch -- they determine that it is Caylee's body, it is a bit unfortunate for the prosecutors and the authorities in the case, because chloroform happens to be a natural byproduct of the decomposition process, so you won't get bubkes off of that.

(CROSSTALK)

BROOKS: I think, Ashleigh, you're not going to get the higher forms, the higher rate of chloroform that they said -- that the FBI evidence said, from a decomposing body.

Now, if this in fact, this body they found today, the remains, if in fact it is, now, what is the condition? These are a lot of different things. What is the condition of the body? How long? Was it in a shallow grave?

(CROSSTALK)

BROOKS: In fact, this area had been underwater when they searched it back in June. SANCHEZ: Then that's the reason they hadn't found these remains up to now?

(CROSSTALK)

BROOKS: That is what the sheriff was saying, that, apparently, this area had been under water. And it's interesting.

SANCHEZ: How close is it, by the way, to the grandparents' home?

(CROSSTALK)

BANFIELD: Three-tenths-of-a-mile.

SANCHEZ: What is it?

BANFIELD: Three-tenths-of-a-mile.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: That is nothing.

BROOKS: Right.

In fact, right before I came here, I was on Headline, Headline. And Natisha Lance, who is a producer for Nancy Grace, was speaking with Captain Nieves, who we heard speak earlier. And she asked him, how far is this?

And she also said herself, it is right through the woods. In fact, this woods abuts an elementary school where Casey Anthony went. So, she is familiar with this area.

SANCHEZ: All right.

Both of you, given what you have known about this case and given how the other apparent finding was handled, do you have any kind of hunches that this thing may be closer to the truth than what we were dealing with last time?

I will start with you, Mike.

BROOKS: Yes, I do. And from talking to sources there, they are saying that everything leads to being Caylee, but they won't come out and say, yes, it is for sure, because they want to send that -- the evidence to the FBI lab and get confirmation of exactly what it is.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: They want to make sure it is done right, but up to now, it certainly looks like it?

BROOKS: Right.

And the sheriff said, when asked, is there any other children matching the description of these remains missing, they said, he said, no, there is not.

(CROSSTALK)

BANFIELD: And no other families who have a sheriff deputy's car parked out cordoning off what be potentially a crime scene.

Rick, let me add one more thing to this that is really fascinating.

SANCHEZ: Sure.

BANFIELD: The garbage bag that this body was found it, you might that garbage bags are garden variety, dime a dozen. Not the case at all.

We covered a case here with a conviction whereby a New Jersey woman at the time was alleged to have cut up her dead husband, put him into garbage bags and into suitcases and thrown him into the Chesapeake Bay. They found the same kinds of garbage bags in her home that they found covering that dead body, those body parts.

And just the striations in the manufacturer of a garbage bag can be linked to the lot that they came out of. They can link a garbage bag to what is in your home like that.

SANCHEZ: It is not just Bruno Magli then.

BANFIELD: Right.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Thank you so much, Ashleigh. We appreciate you for joining us.

And good to see you, by the way.

BANFIELD: You, too.

SANCHEZ: Our viewers are wondering where you went yesterday. Apparently, we were not able to get you back.

BANFIELD: It was the bugaboos of live television.

SANCHEZ: That's what happens. That's what happens.

And, Mike, as usual, thanks for bringing us up-to-date on that.

BROOKS: Thank you, Rick.

When we come back: Obama now wants to know who talked to who? Who on his staff was perhaps talking to either the governor's office or somebody in the governor's office in specifics? We are going to break that down for you, but in the meantime, take a look at these pictures. This is what is going on in the Southeast today. You see those pictures? You know where that is from? New Orleans, usually referred to as a swamp, on this day, inches of snow. And it is why that developing story we told you about moments ago may be taking place. Three people down in the Gulf of Mexico, the Coast Guard is desperately looking for them. We be all over that story throughout the next hour. Stay with us. We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: If you have ever been to New Orleans, you don't think of it as a city that could actually be snowed under. That is the case today.

In fact, we have got the pictures to -- look at this, a winter wonderland in New Orleans -- 7,000 people are without power. Tree limbs have been snapping because of the icy conditions, the crystallization that forms in parts of the trees and then suddenly they fall to the ground. People have been having a tough time getting around.

The accumulation is several inches, haven't actually been measured yet. They know they got at least an inch. Last measurable snowfall in the New Orleans area? Five inches. That was back in 1963. Wow.

By the way, we are getting a lot of response now to the Caylee Anthony story that we were bringing you a moments ago.

Let's start first of all if we can with Facebook.

This is Kim Reid. She is watching the newscast. She wants to say this. "Sadly, I hope it is Caylee so the poor little girl can finally rest in peace. The mom disgusts me."

Let's go ahead and move over now to our Twitter board if we can. This is Eric (ph), who says, "If she killed her own child, she deserves to die."

And here we go with another one coming in now at the bottom. It says, "How long will it take for forensics to show whether the remains are Caylee or not?"

I will tell you, I was a cop beat reporter for many years in South Florida. It could be days or it could be weeks, depending on how they want to handle it and when they want to release it. And when it happens, you can be guaranteed that we will have it for you right here.

Well, if New Orleans is a story in the news today, imagine what then Chicago is, given the scandal that is taking place there now and the number of people who are likely calling their attorneys to find out if somehow they can be embroiled in this thing obviously involving the biggest player of them all, the president-elect of the United States. That is right, Barack Obama talking about this just today.

It is interesting that he made comments about what he wanted his staff to do now, as in, did any of you talk to somebody in the governor's office? Here is his news conference. We will let you listen to it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: I had no contact with the governor's office. I did not speak to the governor about these issues. That I know for certain.

What I want to do is to gather all the facts about any staff contacts that I might -- may have -- that may have taken place between the transition office and the governor's office. And we'll have those in the next few days, and we'll present them.

But what I'm absolutely certain about is that our office had no involvement in any deal-making around my Senate seat. That I'm absolutely certain of.

And the -- that is -- that would be a violation of everything that this campaign has been about. And that's not how we do business.

So, you know, I think that, like the rest of the people of Illinois, what I want to see is a quick resolution of this issue. I want to make sure that the next senator from the state of Illinois is carrying a forward tradition of service, that the next senator from Illinois is not tainted by what has taken place so far.

I want to make sure that the next senator of Illinois is focused on health care, jobs, and all the struggles that the families of this state are going through.

Phil Elliott, A.P.?

QUESTION: Thank you, Mr. President-elect. Thank you. Have you or anyone in your transition or campaign been interviewed as it relates to the criminal complaint? And who is the transition adviser referenced in the complaint?

OBAMA: I have not been contacted by any federal officials. And we have not been interviewed by them. As is reflected in the U.S. attorney's report, we were not, I think, perceived by the governor's office as amenable to any deal-making. And, you know, I won't quote back some of the things that were said about me. So -- this is a family program, I know.

So, you know -- so, beyond that, I'm not really certain where the investigation is going forward. I will leave Mr. Fitzgerald to address those issues.

OK, Mike Flannery, CBS.

QUESTION: Mr. President-elect, can you shed any light on how it was that the governor got the impression that neither you nor Ms. Jarrett nor any of the people from your office were willing to play ball and why he said those unrepeatable things about you and your -- and your staff?

And a two-partner. We have the former -- the immediate former governor still moldering in the federal prison here in Terra Haute. What's wrong with politics in Illinois?

OBAMA: Well, first of all, I can't presume to know what was in the mind of the governor during this process, so I won't even speculate on that. All I can do is read what was in the transcripts, like the rest of you have read it, and shake my head.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: What a story. Imagine being a political reporter in Chicago right now?

Rick Pearson does just that. He is joining us now live. He's with from "The Chicago Tribune." And he's one of many reporters who are going to be following this situation, blog-o-gate as some have referred to it already.

And also you see there on the right Kendall Coffey, former federal prosecutor. I have worked with him on many stories in the past. I made a mention of South Florida moments ago. And he has filed as a prosecutor cases like this, so he can take us through part of this conversation.

Rick, let me begin with you.

Barack Obama mentions he is going to be interviewing or talking to some of the folks on his staff, may be perfectly innocent. Who do you think he is going to be talking to first?

RICK PEARSON, POLITICAL REPORTER, "THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE": Well, I would be very curious if he is talking to his incoming chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel. Rahm is the congressman who succeeded Rod Blagojevich in Chicago's northwest congressional district.

And Rahm is kind of a nexus here, because while Barack Obama and Rod Blagojevich are not very close, each of them are close to Rahm Emanuel, and it would be very curious to see how Rod Blagojevich got the impression that the Obama transition team was not going to play ball if indeed those alleged attempts to sell that Senate seat were made.

SANCHEZ: I bet that someone in the Obama staff has had conversations with someone at the U.S. attorney's office.

Kendall Coffey, you are a U.S. attorney. Would it be too far removed to think that something like that has happened, either within the last couple of days or way before these events actually took place?

KENDALL COFFEY, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR: Well, I think, from the federal prosecutor or investigation side, you're looking at all the people, including the Obama camp, of potential victims of an ongoing, breathtaking team of extortion.

So, sure, you speak to as many of the victims as possible. We don't know for sure how many and which particular people, if any, they have spoken to in the Obama camp, because there are so many victims of extortion. But for sure you try to speak to them, because ultimately they are part of this massive that you're putting together.

SANCHEZ: Well, how about this? How many people -- when you are a prosecutor and you, Kendall Coffey, or this in case Fitzgerald, announces on national television that they have got this major investigation, what is it like to be you the next day? How often does your phone ring and from whom?

Because I bet you that there's all kinds of politicians today in Chicago calling to find out whether somehow they're going to be brought into this thing.

COFFEY: Well, the phones are probably setting all kinds of records.

It is great news for defense lawyers, probably never been busier, Rick, but certainly from the prosecution side, all these folks are calling, whether they are lobbyist A, contributor B, chief executive one, so many people referred to obliquely in code phrases in those charging documents by the feds, that this has got to be sending tidal waves throughout the community.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: What did you do when you were a prosecutor in a case like this? Did you take your calls or did you work them or did you try and turn them or deal them?

COFFEY: Well, the latter couple things.

We would work them if we thought they could give us useful information, and there are plenty of people that may have information and need to make a deal. And boy those are the favorite people you would like to talk to. And there are going to be plenty of deals made.

Rick, don't forget, this investigation not over. They are still debriefing some of the key people and getting information.

SANCHEZ: Well, let me tell you who is one of the people who might be willing to make a deal, because I am going to read you something -- this is from -- take this over my shoulder, if you would, Johnny B. Goode.

This is a university professor. This is professor Albert Alschuler. You probably know him pretty well, Rick, there in Chicago.

He says: "If I were his lawyer, I would sit down with him soon," talking about Blagojevich, "and say, this case is not winnable. You are going to the penitentiary pretty soon, and the only question is for how long. Your bargaining power is greater today than it ever will be," interestingly enough.

Rick, is the talk in Chicago -- or do you know of your experiences dealing with this governor in the past, is he the kind of guy who would try and turn a deal for himself here?

PEARSON: No. In fact, he's going to I think play the aggrieved party.

But actually watching corruption cases here in Chicago and particularly the last governor, George Ryan, it is a ladder-building process. So, when you get to Rod Blagojevich, I'm not sure what deal you strike for what purpose. What do you have to give and who else is there to give things on?

SANCHEZ: Well, about this -- one last question. Blagojevich says, and I think this is the most fascinating part of the charging document, Blagojevich says there is an emissary who has come to him with some kind of deal on behalf of Jesse Jackson Jr.

Again, for those of you listening at home, this doesn't mean it happened. There it is. You can read it yourself, "approached pay-to- play, that, you know, he would raise 500 grand. An emissary came. The other guy would raise a million if I made candidate five," who apparently is Jesse Jackson Jr., according to reports filed yesterday, "a senator."

Do we know today who this emissary could possibly be and whether they will then go to the U.S. attorney and start singing like a canary, Rick?

PEARSON: Well, we have talked to people that the congressman has told us that he tried to get to -- get the ear of the governor, because he is not close to the governor.

We have talked to those people. They adamantly deny that they had any role in offering any kind of cash for a Senate seat that Rod Blagojevich would award.

SANCHEZ: Rick Pearson, and, of course, my old friend Kendall Coffey, U.S. prosecutor from South Florida, thank you so much -- former U.S. prosecutor from South Florida, I should say.

My thanks to both of you for being with us.

COFFEY: Hey, thanks, Rick.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: All right.

Let's do this now.

I want to take notice of why in this case it is that no one except the people who are paid to come forward with the information have come forward with the information, with the exception of maybe one or two individuals.

We are getting information now that there is a news conference coming in. This is from Orange County on the Caylee Anthony case.

Let's go ahead and get into this, if we can.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

KEVIN BEARY, ORANGE COUNTY SHERIFF: We have also exhumed the remains, and that has been transported to the medical examiner's office.

I can tell you that everybody in the state of Florida has been contacted all through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Director Mueller of the FBI has been called. Everybody is working as a big team, like it has been the whole time.

And I also need to put out a little public service message tonight. I don't want any craziness at the Anthony house. It needs to be left alone. Right now, that house is secured for a possibility of being more of a crime scene later.

So, I don't want anything going on crazy there. I want people to act like human beings. And I will tell you we are not going to put up with any nonsense. So, that is the other message that is going out today, too. This is a very active crime scene still. We are going to be here all night. We are going to secure this area. And if anybody wants to try to sneak in and play games, they are going to go to 33rd street, and they can see a judge in the morning.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

BEARY: Well, we are going to search the entire area. It is very wet in there right now. And time is on our side. We are going to do everything by the book. There will be no mistakes made. And that is why we are doing it very methodical.

QUESTION: Sir, you said -- you used the word exhumed before. That implies that the remains were buried.

(CROSSTALK)

BEARY: No, no, they were picked up. And they have been taken by -- to the medical examiner's office by the medical examiner.

QUESTION: Could you describe the bag? Is it a see-through bag? Is it a...

(CROSSTALK)

BEARY: No. That is all evidentiary stuff, and I can't talk about that right now.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

BEARY: Well, we have secured it. And we will have to see if we are going to need another search warrant.

But everybody is being very cooperative. And we just need people to stay cool, calm and collected and not cause any problems, because it is an active investigation.

QUESTION: Are they going to be able to go back to the house or... BEARY: We don't know that right now.

QUESTION: If you think the Anthony home is now an active crime scene, I'm guessing you guys now think that (OFF-MIKE)

BEARY: Well, we have -- we can't assume anything. And that is why you do it by the book, and that is why we have secured that house again.

QUESTION: Are the Anthonys being cooperative?

BEARY: So far. So...

QUESTION: And what's the timeline on when you think (OFF-MIKE)

BEARY: That will be up to the FBI and the medical examiner's office. The medical examiner's office has been in contact with the FBI. And they are going back to take a look at some of the remains as we speak.

And then we will get it all into the proper channels, so that it is properly collected and sent to the FBI lab.

QUESTION: Sheriff, have you been in touch with the Anthony grandparents, Cindy and George?

BEARY: I personally have not.

QUESTION: Has your department (OFF-MIKE)

BEARY: I believe they have been contacted.

QUESTION: Who are you going to have meeting them at the airport?

BEARY: I don't even know what you are talking about.

QUESTION: The Anthony family.

QUESTION: I don't know if any of us are going to be meeting them. That might be set up by somebody else.

Folks, that is all I have got right now. And I appreciate everybody getting the word out. Thank you.

QUESTION: Thank you.

QUESTION: Thanks, Sheriff.

SANCHEZ: There is that -- what seems like an impromptu news conference by Sheriff Kevin Beary of Orange County there. That is in central Florida.

I do believe we have got a shot of Mike Brooks over there, right? Give me that shot, if you can. He is getting set now. He's in the newsroom. I imagine Mike Brooks becomes a very popular person when stories like this break, because he knows them so well. And we also have Randi Kaye, one of our correspondents who has been working on this story. She is going to be joining us now.

Randi, are you there?

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I am, Rick.

SANCHEZ: Fill us in on what your take is after listening to the sheriff. I was kind of surprised that he went before the cameras and made this statement, given that we had been told by Nieves earlier today, his PIO guy, his communications guy, that they weren't going to really be saying a whole lot more until the body was identified.

KAYE: Yes, I don't think they are going to be saying much more.

I mean, I think that, just like the Anthony family, they probably want to know for sure before they say much more. This case has been going on, she has been missing since June. We were down there in July for quite some time -- spent some time with the family and with the authorities. And this has taken a toll on -- on all of them, really. I mean it's a terrible thing to see a young child go missing. And they all worked very hard to try to find her. They were treating it as a missing persons case and then obviously it took a turn where they started to believe that some harm had come to this young girl.

And I believe that they really do believe that this is -- is her...

SANCHEZ: Yes. You get -- you get that...

KAYE: ...or they wouldn't be treating it the way they are and have such security there.

SANCHEZ: You get that sense don't you?

You know, and I -- you know what I was taken by?

I was taken by his reference to no one going over to the Anthony home -- something about we've already had enough problems there. We don't want to have to deal with that again.

Would you let our viewers know what that was all about?

KAYE: Yes. I mean I -- I will admit, you know, we were -- I was one of the many reporters staked out in front of their home. And we moved to the side to give them a -- show them a little more respect as the days went on.

But there was one point where George Anthony, Caylee's grandfather -- came outside and just started screaming at the media, which is understandable considering this was on the day -- I believe it was Caylee's -- it would have been Caylee's third birthday at that point. And people had a lot of questions about how that birthday was celebrated.

And he was upset and visibly upset and... SANCHEZ: As a member...

KAYE: ...told everybody to get off their property and move away from the house.

SANCHEZ: As a matter of fact...

KAYE: I mean you can imagine what they've been living with.

SANCHEZ: Stay there, Randi. We want to keep talking to you on this. Apparently, you know, I think we've got some video of that. We're going to be sharing that with our viewers when we come back.

Also, Mike has made his way back over here to the set now.

You thought we were -- you were done with us, huh?

BROOKS: No. I'm never done with you, Rick.

SANCHEZ: There's plenty more to talk about, apparently.

BROOKS: There is.

SANCHEZ: The case is developing even more.

BROOKS: Absolutely.

SANCHEZ: It's starting to look more and more like your hunch may be right, that this is very different from the case you and I were talking about several weeks ago.

BROOKS: Absolutely.

SANCHEZ: And we are going to get into the discussion of the melees that have taken place outside the Anthony homes. And now police coming out and saying they want to avoid that at all costs.

Stay with us. As this case develops, we're going to take you through it. There's more on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Surprisingly, we just heard a news conference from the sheriff of Orange County, making reference to the discovery of a small child's body. The confirmation of whether or not it's Caylee Anthony not yet made by the authorities or us here at CNN. Nonetheless, it's starting to look like police are heavily investigating -- or heavily invested in this case so far.

And one of the things he mentioned is -- and this is important and Mike Brooks is going to take us through this in a minute. One of the things that he mentions is he wants to make sure that no one goes to the house -- to the Anthony house. They've had enough melees, enough ruckuses there in the past like this...

(VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. Get your own daughter...

(VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: All right. Let's bring Mike Brooks into this -- Mike, the sheriff was adamant about people staying away from that home.

BROOKS: Right.

SANCHEZ: Given the language that you heard him use, what do you think he was trying to say and what's the significance of this?

BROOKS: Well, he said they've secured the house -- the Anthony home. I think, number one, to make sure there's no more of this going on.

SANCHEZ: Right.

BROOKS: And he was very adamant about that -- don't go near the house and don't go near the crime scene, where they've been working. The other thing he also said that I thought was very interesting -- two things. He said: "That their house is secured because it could be more of a crime scene later. And then when he was asked some questions about that, he said, well, we need to see if we need another search warrant.

So what that says to me, as a former investigator, either what some things that they're seeing there at the crime scene or some things that they could get as a result of the forensics examination by the FBI at their lab in Quantico could lead them back to the Anthony house, looking for additional evidence.

SANCHEZ: In other words, in a case like this, you'd want to match Exhibit A with Exhibit B?

BROOKS: Absolutely.

SANCHEZ: Exhibit A from what they found today in the swamp...

BROOKS: Right.

SANCHEZ: ...or wherever that area was. And B would be something in the house...

BROOKS: That's exactly right.

SANCHEZ: Matching fibers, for example.

BROOKS: Trace evidence. We don't know what they've got -- the garbage bags, which they had taken in another search warrant of the Anthony house...

SANCHEZ: Right.

BROOKS: Additional clothing...

SANCHEZ: But have you seen them...

BROOKS: ...clothing from the child.

SANCHEZ: If you see them back at the house tonight looking for more evidence, that's very telling, you're telling me?

BROOKS: That's very, very telling. And as he said -- and he also said that Director Mueller from the FBI has been contacted. So we know that all their resources at the lab are going to be working on this -- through the weekend, he said, if need be -- to make sure we find out exactly what this evidence is, who this person is.

SANCHEZ: Well, Randi Kaye, bring us up to date.

What is the physical evidence that they're dealing with up to now, because they seem to be pretty desperate -- or pretty antsy may be a better word -- to look for more physical evidence in this case against Casey Anthony -- her mother, the little girl's mother?

KAYE: Well, Rick, we have to remember just in all that talk about going back to the house, remember there was -- at one point, there was a lot of talk about this shovel that Casey Anthony, Caylee's mom, had borrowed from a neighbor, which was also very -- very strange for her to be doing so. So why she borrowed that shovel. Maybe they want to take another look at that.

There was also a lot of discussion about possibly Caylee might have fallen into the pool. The ladder had been removed from the pool that's in the back of the Anthony's home.

SANCHEZ: Right.

KAYE: And then all of a sudden the ladder had reappeared. So there was some discussion that maybe there was an accident there and maybe Casey Anthony panicked and disposed of her daughter in some way.

So there's a lot of reasons why they want to go back to the home. But in terms of evidence that they have, one thing that they do know is that about the air in the trunk of the car. They actually had that air tested -- from the car that Casey Anthony was driving. They had it tested at a place in Tennessee which you're familiar with called the Body Farm. And they actually test for -- for evidence that a cadaver had been in the car. They can find out...

SANCHEZ: Really?

KAYE: ...(INAUDIBLE) decomposition.

SANCHEZ: Wow!

KAYE: And that test came back positive, that there -- where there was evidence of decomposition in that trunk. And that is the car that Casey Anthony was driving.

Now, the car had been found abandoned on the side of the road and her parents have said that well, we don't know who was driving that car in between or who took the car. But when they found the car and had it tested, there was evidence of decomposition.

SANCHEZ: You're...

BROOKS: And keep in mind, Rick, the car -- where they found it, by the Amscot -- the check cashing place -- was out of gas, because she had run out of gas and left it there next to a dumpster at the Amscot.

SANCHEZ: And we're left with the prevailing thought over all of this that this woman is a habitual liar. So -- at least according to...

BROOKS: If her mouth is moving, she's lying.

SANCHEZ: Yes...

BROOKS: I mean that's -- it seems like that's has it been all -- you know, throughout the case.

SANCHEZ: It seems to be what everyone has said involved with this case from beginning...

BROOKS: Yes.

SANCHEZ: ...to end, including every -- well, a number of the police that's investigating this unit.

BROOKS: Right.

SANCHEZ: My thanks to Randi Kaye and to you again, Mike.

BROOKS: Thank you, Rick.

SANCHEZ: We promise not to call you again. But if we do, we do.

BROOKS: No, no. Hey, I'm here. I'm here through the Nancy Grace show so.

SANCHEZ: All right. Here we go. The latest now on what's going on in what is one of the most interesting cases to come along the pike in a long time. It's the case of Governor Blagojevich and the first lady, Mrs. Blagojevich -- a Lady Macbeth making her husband's language seem pale by comparison, say investigators. We've got a report on this and let you decide for yourself.

And the latest pictures coming out of Greece. We're going to be sharing with you what people can do with Molotov cocktails after this riot continues, as well.

Stay with us. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: The orange background means it's MySpace. So we're going to go to that right now. Here it is.

You like that, Chris Hall?

A MySpace viewer says to us: "I was one of the few that was hoping Caylee was still alive. How could anyone harm a little child? This is the only time I hope we still hang criminals. But the electric chair will do just fine."

An interesting case there.

By the way, there is no direct confirmation that it is Caylee's body at this point. All indications seem to be pointing in that direction based on what experts say and based on what police are saying and the way that they're behaving thus far.

But we're going to stay on this story. If there is, in fact, a confirmation that it is Caylee's body, then obviously we'll report that to you immediately.

In the meantime, it may be one of the best news stories -- at least when it comes to workers getting together and getting something done. Here's the celebration at the Republic Doors and Windows Company.

UNIDENTIFIED EMPLOYEES: Yes, we did! Yes, we did! Yes, we did!

SANCHEZ: This is -- Yes, we did!, not Yes, we can! This is after they received the news that several banks, including Bank of America and also JPMorgan have offered to help them out and give them the money that they say and have been saying all along that they're due. That's the reason they weren't allowing the people who owned the plant to get back in there. They had essentially taken it over. And it's to some avail. Apparently it's worked.

Leah Fried is joining us. She's the electrical union workers representative. She's got a big smile on the face.

Well, I've got to tell you, we've gotten a lot of mail and a lot of viewer feedback on this. And all of it has been so -- people have been so delighted about the way that this thing is turning out. Give us the good news yourself, if you would.

What are you -- what are you hearing?

LEAH FRIED, UNITED ELECTRICAL WORKERS: Well, we won. The workers won after six courageous days of occupying their workplace. We won all our demands. So that means that they got all their vacation pay. They got all of that money owed to them under the Warren Act -- their severance. And we got two months of health insurance for people, so they're going to be able to take care of their families for that period.

SANCHEZ: And it's coming in the form of what...

FRIED: It's a great victory.

SANCHEZ: It's coming in the form of Bank of America and, I understand, JPMorgan, right? FRIED: That's correct. The total package is totaling $1.75 million. And the lion's share comes from, of course, Bank of America. But JPMorgan Chase did also contribute.

SANCHEZ: How did you guys make this happen?

You know, people are going to want you to write a book so they can copy it, because there's an awful lot of people who have been employees in this country who've walked away from jobs not getting what they felt they deserved.

FRIED: Well, I think -- I think, if anything, what we hope people take away from this is if you organize yourselves, if you stay united, you can win fairness in this country. You can win justice. And that's really what it all comes down to is just sticking together, being really organized and not giving up -- really having hope, believing that the world is what we make it.

SANCHEZ: Leah Fried, thanks so much -- with the electrical workers union.

FRIED: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: With a real happy ending to a story that we've been telling you about for the past four or five days now. My thanks to you.

Once again, Caylee Anthony is missing, a little girl's body is found and police are saying things -- although not directly -- as if they're highly interested in this investigation, as opposed to the last time there had been a find in this case. So we are all over this story and we'll bring it to you as we move forward.

Stay with us. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: We welcome you back to the World Headquarters of CNN. I'm Rick Sanchez.

The tweet of the day goes to -- drum roll, please -- Addison. New on Craigslist," she writes, "Senate seat -- half a million dollars -- cash preferred."

(LAUGHTER)

Well done.

One of the big stories that everybody has been seeing in the last couple of days is what's going on with Blago-Gate in Chicago. My wife and I, of course, have had several conversations about this, including what's going on with the first lady.

And first, you have to understand, my wife has this rule in our house about cursing in front of the kids. It's -- I mean pity the poor fool, including me, who tries to do that. That's why so many people were astounded when they heard of the documents that seemed to reveal that both the husband and the wife, in front of their children, may have been having conversations that involved the "F" word like every other word, as filed and told in this story by Gary Tuchman.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Happier times for the Blagojevich family -- when they had their second child in 2003.

GOV. ROD BLAGOJEVICH (D), ILLINOIS: I think she takes after her daddy. She wanted to stay close to her mother. Both she and I love Patti so much we always like to be close.

TUCHMAN: Now, news helicopters hover over Patti Blagojevich's home that she shares with her husband and two daughters, who are seen going to the car with their mother following behind. Patricia Blagojevich, a woman who, if prosecutors are right, stands by her man -- in an unflattering and sometimes foul-mouthed style.

Regarding the accusation that her husband wanted "The Chicago Tribune" to fire editorial writers in return for state help for the company to sell Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs, the wiretappers say she said: "Hold up that bleeping Cubs bleep. Bleep them."

And did she endorse the plot to get rid of the newspaper employees?

Patti Blagojevich, who has been in the real estate business, is allegedly caught dishing this: "Just fire the writers."

And she and her husband are alleged to have schemed to get her high paying positions on corporate boards.

The public has seen a much different Patti Blagojevich. This when she was asked her baby daughter's middle name.

PATTI BLAGOJEVICH: We just do an initial. With a last name like Blagojevich, you don't really need a middle name.

CAROL MARIN, COLUMNIST, "THE CHICAGO SUN-TIMES": This is not a frilly first lady.

TUCHMAN: Carol Marin is a political columnist for the "Chicago Sun-Times" and a political editor for Chicago's WMAQ-TV -- a long-time observer of Illinois' often corrupt political scene.

MARIN: She herself has come under investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office because some of her real estate deals were done in concert with the governor's fundraiser, who now sits in a federal prison on corruption charges.

TUCHMAN: Patti Blagojevich is from a political blueblood family. Her sister, Deborah Mell, will be sworn in as a new state representative next month. But it's her father who's exceptionally well known in Chicago politics. Richard Mell has been a city alderman, the equivalent of a councilman, for 33 years.

Mell has had a falling out with his son-in-law, the governor.

MARIN: This is a family at war for reasons that are hard to completely understand. But the father-in-law is the power broker and the son-in-law, Blagojevich, became the governor. And so when that business splintered, it was -- I mean, Thanksgiving is a bad holiday for the Blagojevich/Mells.

TUCHMAN: We wanted to talk to Richard Mell about his daughter and son-in-law. He would not go on camera but gave us this statement: "My main concern right now is for my daughter and grandchildren. I would rather not discuss this sad situation in the public venue at this time."

And sad it is. Patty and Rod Blagojevich's little girls will now have to compete for the attention of their parents with their father about to enter a legal maelstrom. Things have changed since this pitifully ironic statement when the governor talked about his newborn.

BLAGOJEVICH: She's happy, contented, very straightforward, very honest, which means no political career.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Chicago.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: And when we come back, the story of -- out of Mexico about children being paid to take off their clothes in a festival by the announcer at the festival. It's bizarre. We'll bring it to you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: We brought you that comment a little while ago from Facebook. Look what's going on in MySpace. A lot of folks have been writing in on this. This is Facebook coming in now: "I feel bad for those poor kids who have Governor B and Lady Macbeth as parents. They seem like awful human beings covered in corruption."

And then let's split the camera and go over there to the Twitter board, if we possibly can. And you'll see: "If the workers in the window factory can stand up and win, then what is stopping the Illinois citizens from impeaching Blago -- better known as Governor Blagojevich?"

I had a chance to talk to Glenda today down at CNN En Espanol when I was down there doing a report in lakalaka (ph) land -- Spanish.

You brought to my attention a story about one of these guys in these festivals with the microphone who talks to the crowd. But he started offering something to the children there if they would disrobe, right?

GLENDA UMANA, CNN EN ESPANOL: Exactly. This happened in this little small, poor town like six hours from Mexico City. The master of ceremonies asked for children to volunteer to take off their clothes at center stage.

SANCHEZ: Oh, my goodness.

UMANA: She offered, Rick, between $5 and $15 to the children depending...

SANCHEZ: And because they're -- and because they're desperate and hungry, they probably went along with it, right?

UMANA: Exactly. Some of the parents -- I mean some of the people say -- said that they didn't see anything strange about that. But it was a legislator who see, after two of the children took off all their clothes, that's when a local female legislator stepped in and called a halt to the activities.

SANCHEZ: Good for her. Good for her. You know, it's amazing what some people will do sometimes just to you know...

UMANA: Well, sometimes it's easy for the children to be pulled in taking off their clothes for $5.

SANCHEZ: Yes.

UMANA: Incredible.

SANCHEZ: That's the point, that you're talking about kids who are, in many parts of the world, very desperate and they feel like they need to do something like that, because they, well, want to bring home a buck.

My thanks to you, Glenda.

UMANA: Chiao.

SANCHEZ: Interesting story.

When we come back, the market starts to close. What's going on with other parts of the bailout? We'll bring it to you.

Stay with us. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: We -- boy, have we got some video to share with you. This is a K of C, Kentucky Fried Chicken, out in California. And these are workers. Allegedly, after the store closed, they decided to go in the big sink where they prepare things in the kitchen and have a little party, so to speak -- like a bathing party. And then they took pictures of it. And then they posted it online -- on like MySpace or Facebook.

Oops. They were busted. And now they've been suspended as a result.

Sometimes it's not just what you do, it's what you do afterwards. You've got to -- that's just not very smart. Susan Lisovicz is very smart. She's joining us now to tell us what's going on with the market on Wall Street.

And what is that, Susan?

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

SANCHEZ: It's amazing how these Southern Republicans have decided that they're not going to let this thing go through. At least they're blocking it thus far. We'll see if actually they're able to be swayed one way or another.

Susan Lisovicz, my thanks to you.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're welcome.

SANCHEZ: Let's go to Wolf Blitzer now in "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- Wolf.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Rick, thanks very much.