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Voting Under Way In Florida Primary; Romney's Relentless Final Florida Push; Obama Defends Drone Strikes; U.N. May Ask Syrian President To Step Down; Newt Gingrich Knocks Charlie Crist; Charlie Crist On Florida 2012; Who Makes More? Government Or Private Sector; The DREAM Act And Florida

Aired January 31, 2012 - 10:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. So far this election season there have been three Republican contests and three different winners. Today, the line is drawn in the Florida sand.

Voting under way in the state's all-important primary and the last polls remain open nearly 10 more hours. And for the candidates, the stakes are huge, 50 delegates are up for grabs. The largest haul yet.

The winner takes all of them and seizes momentum as the clear- cut frontrunner. So if the polls are right, Mitt Romney could be coasting to an easy win in Florida.

But in politics, as we know, don't take anything for granted. John Zarrella doesn't. He's actually at a polling place right there in Tampa suburb of Lithia.

So let's talk about the turnout. It was looking pretty good last hour. John, what's the update?

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it's still pretty good. You know, Kyra, you get the morning rush when people are on their way to work or dropping their kids off at school. A lot of young families are coming here to vote and still coming in as we speak.

But, of course, it will slow down as you get to the late morning, pick up and lunchtime and then of course, pick up again as people are heading home from work. We talked to the folks in Hillsborough County just a little bit ago.

And they said, as of 9:30 this morning, in the sample precincts that they're at, they've had about 6 percent of the registered Republicans voting. Now there are 232,000 in the county.

And the supervisor of elections told us he wouldn't be a bit surprised if he had at least 40 percent when you count in all of the early voting, 40 percent of the eligible Republicans actually voting today. I asked him how do you arrive at these numbers?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EARL LENNARD, HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY SUPERVISOR OF ELECTIONS: What we have to compare it to is 2008, presidential to presidential. The early vote that we've had exceeded 2008 and our vote by mail seems to be gaining in popularity.

It also has exceeded 2008. So in just looking back, if history is an indicator, and if we can go from presidential to presidential, '08 to '12, then I get this feeling that we're going to get a good strong robust turnout.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZARRELLA: Now he was actually telling me that a lot of folks or some folks have actually been calling their offices who had voted early asking if they could get their ballots back, because there's people on the ballot, of course, that have dropped out of the race now.

And of course, that's impossible as we know. They're secret ballots and wouldn't know who to send it back to anyway, but those folks are just out of luck. You can't revote once you've voted.

So for them no luck, but there's nine people on the presidential ballot here in Florida, Kyra, but I guess right now it looks like it's down to two as the real strong candidates here between Romney and Gingrich -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Last hour, you've covered Florida for a really long time and there are a number of differences you see in this primary campaign compared to others.

ZARRELLA: Yes, no question about it, Kyra. You look back and we were talking in the 2000 election, of course, with the hanging chads. That was such an incredible, incredible election.

And then, in the off-year election in '02 and '04, everybody was wondering if Florida was going to get it right and there were some problems again in 2002 with some of the voting machines. They use optical scanners now here, and I'm just showing the folks.

Here's the ballot. This is an optical scanner. So you fill your ballot out and then you bring it other and you place it in the optical scanner. So actually there are two. They'll have the paper vote and they'll also have the machine vote that they'll turn it at the end of the day.

So they'll have both of those, but then, you know, in 2008 Florida moved its primarily up from March to January and there was a huge protest. The Democratic candidates, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton didn't even come down here and campaign during the primaries.

Republicans did and it was, of course, a really huge fight down here with Senator John McCain ultimately winning it over Mr. Romney back then, 37 percent to 30 percent I think was the final vote in Florida. That catapulted, of course, the senator to ultimately winning the nomination -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: John Zarrella in Florida for us. John, thanks. Mitt Romney has a pretty healthy double-digit lead in Florida right now, but that doesn't mean he's laying off Newt Gingrich in the last hours before the polls close, of course.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I know the speaker is not real happy, Speaker Gingrich, he's not feeling excited these days. I know, it's sad. He's been flailing around a bit trying to go after me for one thing or the other and you just watch it and you shake your head. It's been kind of painfully revealing to watch.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Mark Preston, you know, Gingrich had a lot of momentum, right, in South Carolina then all of a sudden we saw this new Mitt coming out in these debates. Now, listen to him, he sounded pretty confident going right after. What happened to Gingrich's momentum?

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: You know, it's amazing what happens in a week, Kyra. We can point to two things. One is that Newt Gingrich's revival of his campaign was based upon very, very strong debate performances.

And then, of course, last week we saw him turn in not only one, but two lacklustre debate performances, including one at the CNN debate and then also the saturation of negative television advertising that Mitt Romney has put on the air down in Florida to take down Newt Gingrich.

But not only Mitt Romney, but also these independent groups that have spent millions of dollars supporting Mitt Romney's candidacy.

PHILLIPS: Showing that those ads work. So many people talk about them. I'm tired of the negativity. It's dividing the party. You hear all the criticism, right? But bottom line is they work.

PRESTON: They work and you know, people say that negative advertising is terrible and we shouldn't have it, but the fact of the matter is it is a very trusted source of taking down your opponent. That's why we see it.

PHILLIPS: Next stop, Nevada, Gingrich kind of lowering his expectations here. What does that tell us?

PRESTON: That we're not in a sprint, that this is a marathon that he plans on taking this all the way into August. In fact, let's listen to what he had to say yesterday about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to beat a big lie campaign with a big truth campaign. We're going to beat money power with people power. We are going to go all the way to the convention. We are going to win in Tampa and we are going to be the nominee with your help and the Republican Party.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PRESTON: And there you have Newt Gingrich not only talking about how he's going take it to Mitt Romney, but Kyra, he's also going to take it to the Republican Party establishment, which is quickly getting behind Mitt Romney's candidacy.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Mark.

PRESTON: Thanks, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Coming up in just a few minutes, we're going to talk to a man who knows Florida and Florida politics very, very well. Former Governor Charlie Crist. We're talking about the GOP divide, why he went independent, and I'll ask him who gets his vote, coming up at 10:10 Eastern.

And don't forget CNN tonight, we are all watching the Florida primary. We are kicking off our special coverage at 6:00 Eastern with a special edition of "JOHN KING USA.

And that's followed by complete live coverage of primary results at 7:00 with Wolf Blitzer, Erin Burnett, Anderson Cooper, Candy Crowley, John King, Mark Preston and more.

President Obama opening up about drone strikes on al Qaeda targets in Pakistan. It's a topic that usually has the White House and other agencies biting their tongues, but not the case during the president's Google-plus hangout.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I think that there's a perception somehow that we're just sending in a whol bunch of strikes willy nilly. This is a targeted, focused effort at people who are on a list of active terrorists who are trying to go in and harm Americans, hit American facilities, American bases, and so on. It is important for everybody to understand this thing is kept on a very tight leash.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon. What do you think, Barbara? Is the president saying too much?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: It was remarkable to hear his candor very openly about all of this, Kyra, because as you point out, this is a subject, U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan that has been a real secret kept by the CIA.

Somewhat of an open secret, it's well known that they do it, but nobody talks about it. Now the president has. So at this hour, in fact, we're watching the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing very closely up on Capitol Hill this morning.

Just coincidentally the morning after a number of top intelligence officials, you see the Chairman Dianne Feinstein of California there ready to testify before her committee about worldwide threats.

And it is expected this topic may well come up. What was the president thinking? Why did he decide to go public with this? Was it just loose lips or is there some intelligence motivation behind this to try and pressure Pakistan, which is very resentful of these drone strikes?

Of course, Pakistan still very much needed by the U.S. as an ally to go after al Qaeda inside their country. So it will be an interesting day to watch and see what everybody has to say about all this or doesn't have to say about it -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: And Barbara, you know, as we look at those live pictures of that hearing taking place, we're supposed to hear from David Petraus, the head of the CIA.

You and I well know he has talked about drones in the past when he was in country as a commander and has talked about the benefits of these drones.

STARR: He has. You're right, but to a certain extent, Petraeus draws the line at talking about the CIA operations in Pakistan. Of course, now as CIA director, you don't see him out in public very often. He is very tight-lipped about all of this.

What he's been having to deal with behind the scenes is Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, his predecessor, of course, at CIA who's been out there talking about a whole lot of intelligence matters.

Pakistani doctors helping in the Bin Laden raid, Iranian nuclear scientists, drone strikes, all of it, Panetta has been the one talking publicly and extensively about plaintiff these things that had been kept very, very quiet.

You have to think it might be driving Petraeus a little bit nuts. So we'll see what he has to say at this hearing later this morning -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Point well made. Barbara, thanks so much.

Well, today, the United Nations may tell Syria's president he must go. This video posted online explains all the reasons why. It reportedly shows armed rebels in street battles with Syrian troops, antigovernment protesters being shot and killed.

Syrian regime has banned reporters from this conflict. So much of what we see comes from home video like this posted on YouTube. So many of these images are fascinating, this video claims to show two civilians hanging the independence flag of Syria over a highway in Damascus.

It's a brazen show of defiance because it's unfurled near the party headquarters of embattled President Assad. Then there's this funeral procession, a reminder of the hundreds of people reportedly killed in recent days.

Now back to the U.N. and this possible call for Assad to step down. Russia's weighing in, worried about a civil war in Syria. Zain Verjee has been following that for us. Tell us more, Zain.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly what according to the "Interfacts News Agency," the deputy Russian prime minister had said that you do this over at the U.N., and Syria is going to be on a course to civil war.

A lot of people are wondering why is Russia being an obstacle here. Well, Kyra, Russia has a lot of historic, strategic and commercial important trade ties with the Syrians. So they don't want to see anything go south.

Let me just give you an idea of what some of the newspaper headlines are saying. Take a look at the "International Herald Tribune." It says this, Russia's Syrian power play. In the end, Russia's bold declarations and actions in support of the Assad regime are cold calculations meant to revive its position as a global super power.

Backing the Asaad regime is not based on ideological or moral convictions, but on pure power politics. "Gulf News" focusing on Russia, too, Russia seeks win-win formula in Syria. It says, Russia still believes that it can democratize the Syrian government from within securing a soft landing for Syria.

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin wants to make sure neither the Turks nor the Americans get a real say in how Syria develops in the months ahead. Then I like this one actually, closer to home, Kyra.

"The Washington Post" has this, Saving Syria. It said, as long as it has Russia's diplomatic and material support, the Asaad regime is more likely to hold together. That's why the high level lobbying campaign at the Security Council is important.

And that's why the Obama administration should place Russian cooperation on Syria at the top of the bilateral agenda with Moscow. The Syrian regime of Bashar Al-Assad has been clear about the path it will take.

No matter how many calls have been made to step down, he is determined to hold on, and as we can see from the video that's coming out today, even though CNN can't independently confirm it. It seems as though they're just getting tougher and being more brutal in the crackdowns -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We'll pay close attention to the story and especially what comes out of the U.N. Zain, thanks so much.

Charlie Crist talks Florida 2012. We've got the former governor talking about his state why campaigning has turned so nasty and of course, his predictions for November. We'll talk to him right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Charlie Crist knows Florida. The former governor and former Republican has spent his entire political life serving the sunshine state. His name is so familiar to Florida voters. Well, Newt Gingrich has been flinging it around as an insult.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINGRICH: As governor of Massachusetts, he was pro-abortion, pro-gay rights, pro-tax increase and pro-gun control. Now that makes him a moderate in Massachusetts, but it makes him pretty liberal here in a Republican primary, which probably explains why he hired Charlie Crist's staff.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Charlie Crist joining me live from Tampa. Governor, I'm going to ask you point-blank. Are you insulted or is that a compliment coming from the man who's a distant second right now?

FORMER GOVERNOR CHARLIE CRIST (I), FLORIDA: I don't take it either way to be honest with you. You know, during the heat of campaigns, people say a lot of things and I don't know that makes that much difference.

You know, who's working on who's campaign and if they use to work on campaigns of mine. I work with an awful lot of good people here in the sunshine state. It's a great place to be and you can understand why people in any profession would want to work in Florida.

PHILLIPS: All right, Governor, let's talk about -- you knew, I wanted to be in Florida there, beautiful sunshine state. All right, you threw your way --

CRIST: It is a beautiful day.

PHILLIPS: Indeed, it is. You threw your weight behind John McCain in 2008. That put him over the top, Governor. So why are you sitting on the sidelines? Why not endorse someone?

CRIST: Well, particularly in a primary, I'm not a Republican, as you indicated in the lead in. I'm an independent. So I'm an observer, a concerned Floridian, and a patriotic American. I'm watching this election and this campaign very closely.

I care deeply about my state and my country. I'm hopeful that well, we can do is get on a more positive tone, as you have indicated and many reported, it's been a pretty nasty primary here in the sunshine state.

Tens of millions of dollars being spent on about 92 percent negative advertising. And I think what we need to do is have a more positive tone, talk about what each of the candidates want to do for the people if they have the honor of serving as the next president of the United States or continuing to serve, in President Obama's case.

I'm hopeful that will occur. It will be kind of nice once this primary is over at 7:00 tonight in Florida. I look forward to a more positive race going into the fall election.

PHILLIPS: Let's talk about the fact that Florida has really become a bloodbath of negative campaigning. Marco Rubio really went after Gingrich for the negativity. Is this damaging the candidates?

CRIST: I don't think it can be helpful. If you see in polling, people's positives and their negatives, the negatives are up for the Republicans, both in the case of Governor Romney and Speaker Gingrich.

And so, you know, if you're a Republican, you have to be concerned about that. And if you're President Obama's team, you have to be pretty happy about it. Although some make the argument, Kyra, that having this campaign, this primary race continue to go on, gives Republicans voice to continue to spread what message they want to get out there in free advertising, if you will.

Via the reporting that's taking place. On the other hand, it seems it's gotten to such a level of negativity it has to be having a significant detrimental impact on the Republican candidates and whoever the nominee might end up being.

PHILLIPS: OK, so let me ask you this. You know, a lot of people have been talking about this rift among the Republicans. You know, you've got the establishment wing versus new wave like Sarah Palin. Do you think this divide is dangerous to the party?

I mean, think about when you hugged Obama, you embraced his stimulus plan, you know, you were out of the game. So is striving for unity political suicide nowadays?

CRIST: Well, maybe it is. Certainly it seems to be in the Republican Party where the word "compromise" has almost become a dirty word. I think it's very important as we move forward as a country, as Americans that we realize we're all in this together.

It's very important that we work together in order to improve the state of the economy, the housing situation that we're dealing with here in the sunshine state and other states.

If we don't work together to make better progress in the future, it's going to be a tough slog for our country and the more divisive we are, the more negative we are, the more different that's going to be.

So my message would be we've got to unite. We've got to be able to do on compromise in order to do what's right for all Americans not just Republicans or Democrats or independents.

PHILLIPS: So who do you see on the ballot in November?

CRIST: President Obama certainly is going to be on the ballot in November. Tonight will tell us a lot though I think about who the Republican nominee is going to be.

Although, even if as predicted Governor Romney comes out the victor tonight, I don't think it's over. I think some of the states that Speaker Gingrich could do well in.

You know, in Super Tuesday, more of the southern states he would probably have a better opportunity to succeed in are important and he's vowed to take it all the way back here to Tampa for the convention. So time will tell.

PHILLIPS: Would you consider voting for Obama?

CRIST: I would consider that, of course, I would. You know, I'm interested in watching the campaign as it unfolds, as most Americans are. This has been a tough time for the president to govern.

I think everybody understands that. But we're starting to see some positive signs going forward as it relates to the economy. That's very important.

PHILLIPS: Before I let you go, Governor, I've got to ask you this. Would you consider running again as a Democrat?

CRIST: I'm enjoying the private sector. I'm working with a great law firm here in Florida. It's a lot of fun. I get to spend a lot more time with my beautiful wife, Carol. Life is pretty good for Charlie Crist right now.

PHILLIPS: Charlie Crist, thanks for your time this morning.

CRIST: You're welcome. Thank you, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: You bet. CNN tonight full coverage of the Florida primary. We kick off our special coverage at 6:00 Eastern with a special edition of "JOHN KING USA." Covered with live coverage of primary results at 7:00 with Wolf Blitzer, Erin Burnett, Anderson Cooper, Candy Crowley, John King and much more.

So where is the biggest payout working for the feds or in the private sector? A new report says it's a matter of degrees. We've got that story right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Who gets paid more, government employees or private sector workers? Well, you might be surprised by the answer. Felicia Taylor at the New York Stock Exchange -- Felicia.

FELICIA TAYLOR, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you might be surprised. That's right, Kyra. Depending on education level, federal workers may be making more in salary and benefits than their private sector counterparts.

The Congressional Budget Office found federal workers with just a high school diploma make about 21 percent more on wages and their benefits are worth 72 percent more than the private sector.

College grads do have the advantage in benefits, but their salaries are about the same. It's only the PhDs who do better in the private sector. The CBO estimates that the government paid 16 percent more in salary and benefits in 2011 than it would have for a comparable workforce in the private sector.

However, the president of the largest independent union of federal employees disputes the findings. The union says that federal workers make 26 percent less than the private sector. It's also worth noting that federal paychecks have been frozen since 2010.

And they're unlikely to get a raise until 2012. Now I realize I've just confused everybody, because on the one hand we're saying that federal workers make more. On the other hand, we've got the opposite side that says they actually don't. So there you are --Kyra.

PHILLIPS: OK, now, we're all leaving confused. Is that the deal? Thanks, Felicia.

TAYLOR: Great, right? Back for more.

PHILLIPS: All right, Newt Gingrich hints that he might throw in the towel in two upcoming contests. What does our Political Buzz panel think about that? They weigh in, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking "Top Stories" now.

The U.N. Security Council is considering a call for Syrian President Bashar Al Assad to step down. It's for reasons shown in this home video posted online showing rebels in street fights with Syrian forces. Syrian forces allegedly targeting and killing any government protesters.

Suspected U.S. drone strikes kill at least nine people in southern Yemen. Yemeni security officials say that those killed had links to al Qaeda.

And American aid worker Jessica Buchanan heading home after being freed by U.S. Special Forces in Somalia. Buchanan and her Danish co- worker had been held there for three months were last week rescued by Navy Seals.

All right "Political Buzz". You're rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day, three questions, 30 seconds on the clock. And playing today: Democratic strategist, Robert Zimmerman; founder and editor of Citizen Jane Politics, Patricia Murphy; and Georgetown University Professor, Chris Metzler.

First question guys, Newt Gingrich trailing Mitt Romney in the polls as Florida votes today. Now, the Gingrich camp strongly suggesting it will cede Michigan and Nevada to Romney. Is this a sign the Gingrich's campaign is starting to crumble? Chris?

CHRIS METZLER, PROFESSOR, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY: Absolutely not. It actually is a sign that what Newt is doing at this point is doing what he can, which is the best strategic move possible. He realizes he's not going to win Michigan. He realizes he's not going to win Nevada, so why spend the resources there?

Look, last time around Romney won those states, and so Newt's conserving his resources for the southern swing. That makes sense. There's no sign that the campaign is crumbling. As a matter of fact I think actually the opposite is true. They are looking at strategy, and this is the best possible strategy.

PHILLIPS: Robert?

ROBERT ZIMMERMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, the real test of whether the Gingrich campaign is crumbling or not will be revealed tonight when we look at how he polls in northern Florida, in the panhandle region. Because that would be reflective of how he might compete in the southern states and how he can do with his Super Tuesday southern state strategy.

Bottom line is he's got to be able to keep his money alive through a very tough February and keep his message alive without the megaphone of the debate process. Ultimately I don't think he's on his way to the nomination, but with Sarah Palin accusing his opponents of engaging in Stalinist tactics against Newt Gingrich he certainly can give the Republicans a lot to worry about up until the convention.

PHILLIPS: Patricia?

PATRICIA MURPHY, FOUNDER/EDITOR, CITIZEN JANE POLITICS: Yes, I don't think it's a sign that Gingrich is crumbling. I don't think he's going anywhere, but it's also a very clear sign he can't compete toe-to-toe with Mitt Romney right now. Newt Gingrich doesn't have the money, he doesn't have the staff, he doesn't have the infrastructure, and skipping states has never been a strategy to actually win the nomination.

But Newt Gingrich believes -- and there's a lot of polling to back this up -- that most Republicans just don't like Mitt Romney. They don't want him as their nominee. He wants to somehow find a way to wiggle in there and swipe it away from Mitt Romney. I don't know how he can do it without the money to compete in every state, but he's going to try.

PHILLIPS: All right. Stephen Colbert, his Super PAC has now raised more than a million bucks. So what do you think? Could he shape this race, Robert?

ZIMMERMAN: He could -- maybe not shape the race but he's certainly can educate and mobilize the American people. Stephen Colbert and John Stewart is Mark Twain or the Mark Saul (ph) for those comic historians of our time. They truly, they both truly are, and in fact we're dealing with a campaign financing process that makes Watergate look like a warm-up. It makes look like a PG-rated event.

Hopefully they can get both parties to step up and deal with real reforms. President Obama could do so by endorsing Chuck Schumer's constitutional amendment.

PHILLIPS: Chris?

METZLER: Well, I mean, I do think that it's -- it's a matter of education. Look, the issue is around the Super PACs.

But when we talk about Super PACs, I am always amazed that in that conversation is not about the kind of money and influence that unions have, because in fact if you're going to have the Super PAC conversation, you also have to have the conversation about unions and how much money they can put forth in this process. It is a poisonous process. Even though the Supreme Court has said that it is so -- so- called speech, it still is poisoning the process. So he can raise -- raise the level of awareness.

PHILLIPS: Patricia?

MURPHY: Yes, I don't think Colbert is going to have a big effect on the campaign. Who he's -- the people he's talking to really are people who are already checked out, annoyed, frustrated, disgusted with politics and it's a huge audience, as we all know. My only hope and I really hope he can at least shame the other campaigns into behaving less badly. And if he can do that, then, I think he has performed a public service.

PHILLIPS: I'm still thinking about Stephen Colbert and Mark Twain, Robert Zimmerman.

ZIMMERMAN: Mark my words.

PHILLIPS: Yes, ok. Censorship, all right, let's get to the "Buzzer Beater" 20 seconds each on this, remember the Gingrich ad attacking Romney for putting the family pet on top his car while going on that family trip a few years ago? Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is a completely airtight kennel and mounted on the top of our car. He climbed up there regularly, enjoyed himself he was in a kennel at home a great deal of time as well. We love the dog.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Ok, well guess what? The Obama camp of course now taking a swipe at Mitt Romney. Chief strategist David Axelrod tweeting this picture with the words "How loving owners transport their dogs."

All right. Guys, how much of an impact will the vote of animal lovers have on this race for the presidency? Patricia?

MURPHY: You know it will have a huge impact on animal lovers. It will have a bigger impact on people who think that Mitt Romney might be missing the normal person gene, like who does that to their dog? And who says that (INAUDIBLE) climb right up there and had a great time? It's not normal. It reinforces the concerns about Mitt Romney's normalcy. I think it has an effect.

PHILLIPS: Robert?

ZIMMERMAN: You know, political consultants and political pundits on both sides, my party and the Republican party think they're being so clever with these types of moments. And ultimately they only impress each other.

I think it's a very hard sell to say Mitt Romney is not for animal, doesn't love his pet, and I think there are pet owners have many issues to confront, but saying either side is anti-pet owner is really kind of foolish.

PHILLIPS: Chris?

METZLER: I mean, who wrote this question? Patricia Murphy?

PHILLIPS: Oh.

MURPHY: Yes, I did. I did it just a minute ago.

PHILLIPS: We are not influenced, we are not partisan here in our question development.

METZLER: No, actually I just don't think it's going to have an impact. It's just kind of a silly question. Who gets the pet lovers' vote? I don't know. I'll vote for Bo.

PHILLIPS: Come on. It will be good -- and help me out Patricia since you wrote the question apparently.

MURPHY: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Doesn't President Obama have some sort of Facebook page you know about for pet lovers? I mean, I heard about this. I should have done my research.

MURPHY: Yes, he does. And it's genius. You don't have to be a Democrat to think that.

PHILLIPS: There you Metzler and take that, buddy, take that to your classroom.

METZLER: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Thanks guys.

MURPHY: And Kyra, I'll tell you where to deposit my check later.

PHILLIPS: Ok, big bucks, baby, big bucks.

All right, be sure to join the best political team on television as the results come in tonight from the Florida Republican presidential primary. Our coverage starts at 6:00 Eastern with a special edition of "John King USA."

Well, reports are leaking new info WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. They say he's now a cartoon. A.J. Hammer has the details.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, the whistle-blowing Web site owner of WikiLeaks Julian Assange will reportedly guest star on "The Simpsons". But he is still under house arrest in Britain.

A.J. Hammer, who leaked this information?

A.J. HAMMER, HLN HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Well, this is actually coming right from the source, Kyra. We can tell you that Fox did confirm to "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" that the WikiLeaks founder is going to be guest starring on "The Simpsons", for their 500th episode. And he'll playing himself.

The episode is scheduled to air on February 19th and it's being reported that the creator of "The Simpsons" heard that Julian was interested in guest starring on the show. He loved the idea so much so he made room for him. And I have to tell you, I love the story line.

Here's what they have going down for the episode. The town of Springfield is holding a secret meeting to kick "The Simpsons" out of town. And it's not until Marge and Homer find out this bit of information that they stumble upon Assange and the high-jinx surely will ensue. I just think it is brilliantly inspired as is always the case with "The Simpsons" -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, it doesn't look like Elton John and Madonna have been inspiring anybody lately. Kind of going at each other.

HAMMER: No. Yes. And Elton's offering up some pretty snarky advice for Madonna before her upcoming Super Bowl half time show this weekend.

Let me now play for you what Elton had to say on "Good Morning America".

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What would your advice be to Madonna this year?

ELTON JOHN, SINCER: Make sure you lip synch good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HAMMER: Simple as that. "Make sure you lip synch good.". Now, Elton and Madonna have gone back and forth for years now. And it's been back on again recently when both of them were up for a Golden Globe award a few weeks ago. Madonna won that award, but the speculation is that this current feud actually began with Lady Gaga.

Let me connect the dots for you on how this plays. Madonna called Lady Gaga's music reductive. To be fair, she wouldn't be the only one who thinks that Gaga was deeply influenced by Madonna. Gaga says she has great respect for Madonna. But Elton John is very close with Lady Gaga. In fact Gaga is actually Elton's child's godmother, so people think that's what's behind his snarky comments at the Golden Globes, Kyra.

Whatever the case is we'll all be watching Madonna to see if she's lip synching or not. She has claimed in the past that she doesn't lip synch. We'll see what happens. That Super Bowl half time show, that's a tough gig. So, you know, I think Madonna actually will probably do terrifically because she's such a perfectionist. But all eyes will be on those lips.

PHILLIPS: We'll be watching. Thanks, A.J.

HAMMER: You got it.

PHILLIPS: Well, all information that you want, breaking in the entertainment world, A.J. has got it, every night, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" 11:00 eastern on HLN.

One student's story, but it speaks for thousands of illegal immigrants living in this country in fear.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're messing with people's lives. Do you even have a heart?

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PHILLIPS: Coming up, her message for Republican candidates.

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PHILLIPS: The DREAM Act, it would provide a path to citizenship for children of illegal immigrants in this country. But Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich have taken a tough stance on this issue, which directly impacts thousands of people, including a lot of them in Florida.

Brooke Baldwin has one student's story for us this morning -- Brooke.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, you know, you talk to a lot of Latino voters here in Florida, and really a big litmus test as far as how they'll vote today is the DREAM Act. I spent my entire evening with this 20-year-old young woman, she's a student here in Florida, and she's here illegally. She did something not a lot of youngsters in her shoes would do. She sat with me in front of the camera to tell her story.

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MAYRA HIDALGO, UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANT: Once in a while we do fall into this really deep just like sense of hopelessness and helplessness. BALDWIN (voice-over): Mayra Hidalgo appears to be a typical college kid. Spanish biology double major, aspiring lawyer, classical singer for fun. But this 20-year-old is one traffic ticket away from being deported.

HIDALGO: At any moment I can have my very life taken from me and be sent back to a country that I don't even remember. Simple things like driving to school or going to get groceries. Those are very stressful situations.

BALDWIN: Hidalgo doesn't have a driver's license, because she's here illegally. She says her parents brought her to the U.S. from Costa Rica when she was just 6 months old on a tourist visa that expired years ago.

HIDALGO: It's unjust. It's frustrating.

BALDWIN: But her frustration toward her parents has slowly turned into gratitude.

HIDALGO: The older I get, the more grateful I am for the sacrifice they've made because I know, regardless of my legal status here, I wouldn't -- I know I have accomplished so much here, because they brought me here.

BALDWIN: Mayra Hidalgo calls herself a dreamer, one who supports the DREAM Act, proposed legislation that would give undocumented young people a pathway to citizenship. If they meet certain requirements like attend a four-year college or serve two years in the U.S. military.

HIDALGO: As a child (INAUDIBLE) I've been an immigrant myself, I feel like my role has always been to go to school, work really hard and have a career. And that's what I want to do, but it's so difficult when you don't have a legal status.

BALDWIN: A bill has yet to make it through congress. President Obama supports the idea and Republican presidential candidates Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich support it, sort of.

NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If you live in a foreign country and you're prepared to join the American military, you can in fact earn the right to citizenship by serving the United States and taking real risk on behalf of the United States.

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That's the same position that I have.

BALDWIN: Hidalgo disagrees.

HIDALGO: I feel like there's other ways to serve this country. Just, being a doctor, being an attorney, those are just as important ways to serve our country just like the military.

BALDWIN: With military service being the only path to citizenship, she wants the candidates to know this. HIDALGO: You're messing with people's lives. Do you even have a heart? Do you understand that these aren't just those illegals. We're humans, we're people here.

BALDWIN: Just showing her face on camera makes Hidalgo vulnerable.

(on camera): Are you scared at all to be sitting here next to me?

HIDALGO: I feel like it's far more important to put a face to the issue to be undocumented students to people can understand our struggle a little better. And if, you know, living in fear is what I have to do to do that, I'm ok with that.

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BALWIN: A little bit of brief background, Kyra on Mayra. She's actually one of four siblings here in the U.S. The youngest was born here, so she's here legally. The other two siblings, they married into citizenship.

I asked Mayra about that, she says she doesn't want to rely on a mate to become American. She wants to rely on her studies and schooling. And so she has her fingers crossed that whoever becomes president can ultimately help pass and sign the DREAM Act -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Brooke Baldwin in Tampa. Brook, thanks.

And next, if you ever wanted to see an asteroid, well tonight might be your best chance. Rob Marciano here to tell us all about it.

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PHILLIPS: If you have a clear sky tonight, you might just get a glimpse of that asteroid, 433 Eros, the love asteroid is what we have named it. Rob Marciano, isn't that right?

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: That's right. And not because it's shaped like a heart. It's shaped more like Mr. Potato head.

PHILLIPS: You know your Greek mythology here, right?

MARCIANO: It was discovered right around Thanksgiving, way back when and so they named it after the Greek god of love.

So here it is. There's a couple of pictures. But it kind of tumbles five or six times a day. It's pretty big. Let's go over some of the numbers. It's 20 miles -- round about 20 miles by 8 miles wide. So this is the second largest asteroid that comes remotely close to the earth. This is going to be the closest approach since 1975.

It was discovered back in 1898. It takes a couple of years to orbit the sun. Let's have a look at here, real quick. You remember back in the day when you learned about the solar system. Here's your moon. All right, here's your sun. Here's your Mercury, Venus, Earth and there is Eros making its traverse --

PHILLIPS: Time to go back to grade school, Rob.

MARCIANO: Exactly. More than once.

Anyway, you'll need a telescope and strong binoculars to see this tonight. It will be going through Leo, and it will be going also for the next few nights. But tonight will be the brightest. You'll have a chance to see the asteroid of love.

Kyra, back over to you.

PHILLIPS: Thank you, Rob.

MARCIANO: Ok.

PHILLIPS: If your doctor is overweight, would you be quick to take his or her advice about weight loss? It turns out you probably won't face that dilemma. A new study by Johns Hopkins researchers shows that doctors are less likely to talk about weight problems if they're also on the heavy side. The study found only seven percent of doctors who consider themselves bigger than their patients would tell them to lose weight.

And it's going to take more than doctors to get overweight Americans to drop extra pounds, but do ads designed to scare people actually work? Check out this one. It's by the New York City Health Department. And it shows what appears to be an amputee warning against surgery -- or sugary sodas rather and Type 2 diabetes.

The ad has come under fire, because it's a touched-up photo. The actor, by the way, is not an amputee.

But the bigger issue is what will it take to get Americans to lose weight. It's Suzanne Malveaux's talk-back question for you next hour.

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PHILLIPS: Well early Florida voters have given Mitt Romney a big lead on his leading rival. Paul Steinhauser crunches all the numbers for us in Tampa. That's a lot of numbers to crunch.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: You got it, Kyra. Hey listen, polls have been open now about well, since 6:00 a.m. Eastern here in Florida. And here's the story though Kyra. Even before today, 632,000 people -- at least that amount have already voted, absentee ballots, early voting. That's a lot of people.

And guess what? Among these people, maybe Romney has the advantage. Check this out. This is from American Research Group. It's a brand new public opinion survey. It just came out just this morning. Look at the top there. About a third of the people they surveyed said they already voted, and look at Romney with a 51 percent-29 percent advantage among people who have already cast ballots. Among people who said they were going to vote today, about two-thirds of the people, much, much closer, 39 percent to 32 percent. So Romney definitely it seems getting a bump from people who have already cast ballots.

Kyra, one other thing, you turn on the TV here, and this is what you'll hear. Take a listen.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Romney advisers helped Barack Obama write the disastrous Obama care.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So far Newt Gingrich has admitted his mistakes or flipped on --

STEINHAUSER: A little bit of taste Kyra, just a little bit of taste of some of the campaign commercials that flooding the air waves here and guess what; according to CMAG, Campaign Media Analysis Group 92 percent of all the ads run here in Florida over the last couple of weeks have been negative ads -- attack ads -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: So far everybody I talked to this morning say whether Americans want them or not, they work. They totally work.

Paul thanks.

That does it for us. Top of the hour.

Suzanne is back.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: I am back. Nice to be back.

PHILLIPS: Good to see you. D.C. was good to you?

MALVEAUX: D.C. was good, too. I got to see the family, so that was good.

PHILLIPS: Excellent, take it away.

MALVEAUX: Thanks.