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Romney Wins Six States; Aid Workers Blocked In Homs; Senate Panel Hears Options On Syria; Obama Criticizes Talk Of War; Weighing War Against Iran; Gingrich Wins Big In Georgia; Tough Job Market for College Grads; Obama Steals Super Tuesday Thunder

Aired March 07, 2012 - 10:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: It is the morning after Super Tuesday. The votes are in, but the jury sure is still out. Newt Gingrich wins his former home state, Georgia, which he said was essentiall.

Mitt Romney captures six states, claiming the mathematical victory and Rick Santorum boast momentum doing surprising well capture three states and nearly snagging the biggest prize, Ohio.

This morning though Romney can't claim the crushing victories to win over his sceptics, but he is amassing delegates, more than 400 so far that's way ahead of Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich or Ron Paul, who failed to win a single state last night.

Clearly, this race still has a long way to go. To get an idea of where it may be going, we turn to our political editor, Paul Steinhauser. He's in the capital of Ohio that bell weather state with a long tradition of predicting the eventual nominee. So, Paul, Romney barely won. Does that make a difference?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: It does. No knock out blows here for Mitt Romney in Ohio. But you know, Carol, a win is a win. Look at the latest vote totals though from contest here in Ohio.

And you can see that's pretty darn tight, one percentage point, just around 12,000 votes. That's it separating Mitt Romney from Rick Santorum. So how did he do it? Well, ad spending is one thing.

They really outspent Santorum here, but look at the exit polls. They tell a story as well. For people who said beating Barack Obama, President Obama in November is the most important issue.

Look at that, among electability, Mitt Romney over 50 percent on that one, so that helped him. And also on the economy, Romney keeps touting himself as somebody who can turn around the economy.

Well, he was ahead of the other candidates when it comes to who was best to handle the economy, but Carol, there are troubles also for Romney here in this state.

You look at the exit polls. They indicate he did not do that great with very conservative people, with people who call themselves Born-Again Christians and with blue-collar workers.

Carol, some positive, definitely some negatives for Mitt Romney here in Ohio.

COSTELLO: He was sounding pretty confident though after his win in Ohio, and in five other states. He won six states. What did he say?

STEINHAUSER: He sure did sound confident. You know, listen, look, 419 delegates up for grabs last night, he won about half of them. This is a battle for delegates. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Tonight, we're doing some counting. We're counting up the delegates for the convention, it looks good, and we're counting down the days until November, and that looks even better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEINHAUSER: And as you said, Carol, he's far ahead of the rest of the field when it comes to delegates, but he still got a long way to go, 1,144 is what you need. In the short term, the calendar is a little tough for him. Kansas on Saturday, Mississippi and Alabama on Tuesday, conservative states tough for Mitt Romney -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Paul Steinhauerer reporting from Columbus, Ohio.

Romney did win the most states of yesterday's voting, but he wasn't the night's only winner. Each of his challengers went before their supporters last night and vowed the fight will go on.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This was a big night tonight, lots of states. We're going to win a few, we're going to lose a few, but as it looks right now, we're going to get at least a couple gold medals, and a whole passel full of silver medals.

NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is amazing. I hope the analysts in Washington and New York, who spent June and July explaining our campaign was dead, will watch this tonight and learn a little bit from this crowd, and from this place.

RON PAUL (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If you look at the candidates today, there is very little difference except for one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Here's a glimpse of some campaign travels today. Newt Gingrich will try to build on his Georgia win travel next door to Alabama, making several stops in the state. Rick Santorum stumps in Kansas and in Mississippi.

Let's look at some more at the Super Tuesday outcome with our political director, Mark Preston. Romney wins six states. Santorum wins three and Gingrich wins one. So is the race any clearer or are we in the same place we always have been?

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: We're in the same place as we always have been. We're just a little bit further down the road. You know, Mitt Romney certainly won more delegates last night. You need 1,144 to clinch the nomination.

It's going to be very difficult actually for Mitt Romney to clinch the nomination given the state of the race right now and where we're going. And of course, this could end up in Tampa in a fight.

Mitt Romney though I think with the GOP behind him probably has the edge of taking the nomination.

COSTELLO: So what is next for Romney's campaign? I mean, what does he do now?

PRESTON: He's going to raise money. He needs to raise money. The big question is will he write himself a personal check, Carol, to continue to fund his campaign? He has a big operation, the largest of any of the candidates right now.

It's a very good operation, but it's an expensive operation, and he also needs to run TV ads. Because he needs to make that appeal to the conservative voters, the rural voters, and the Born Again voters, all categories that he lost last night in really that bell weather state of Ohio.

COSTELLO: CNN caught up with Sarah Palin last night. She had some interesting things to say. Number one, she voted for Newt Gingrich, but what she said after that was even more interesting.

PRESTON: Yes, I'll tell you what. What was really interesting about Sarah Palin last night, I'm not sure if we have the sound, but what was great about Sarah Palin is that she was very forth coming about her political future. In fact, let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARAH PALIN, FORMER ALASKA GOVERNOR: Anything is possible, and I don't close any doors that perhaps open out there. So, no, I wouldn't close that door. My plan is to be at that convention.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: OK. She plans to be at the convention. So what might that mean?

PRESTON: Well, so the question to her was very interesting. If someone threw her name in the hat to be the consensus candidate if the Republican Party can't get behind Mitt Romney or Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich come August, would they pull somebody out of nowhere.

And would Sarah Palin turn down any efforts to do that? She said no, which clearly shows that Sarah Palin wants to continue to be in the game. Big question heading into the Republican convention now, Carol, is what role will Sarah Palin play and what night will she speak?

COSTELLO: That would be interesting. Mark Preston, thank you.

Head to our web site for a complete wrap up of the Super Tuesday results and a look ahead to the rest of the GOP race, your best place for politics, cnn.com/politics.

President Obama heads to the battleground state of North Carolina this morning. The president narrowly won the state in 2008, which has been hit hard by the economic downturn.

The president will be talking about the economy at a Daimler Trucks manufacturing plant. CNN plans to carry his remarks live -- his comments should start around 12:45 Eastern.

A U.N. official is on the way to Homs, the Syrian city that's been battered for weeks. The goal is to get relief workers into the hardest-hit areas so they can get in supplies and they can get the wounded residents out.

You can see what's happening there. Aid workers have been blocked again from that area. Now an opposition group says dozens of Syrian tanks are now heading to the city of Ed Lib.

The Senate Armed Services Committee is right now holding a hearing about what the United States should do. Senator John McCain has called for air strikes.

Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr joins us now. You've been monitoring this hearing. Tell us what you're hearing.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, actually this is turning out to be a historic hearing. We are finally seeing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Martin Dempsey, you see them in the hearing room laying out publicly for the first time the Pentagon views on what to do, what not to do in Syria.

Panetta is telling the committee as we speak that military intervention by the U.S. is not an option right now. The president has already said that. They are looking for an international coalition.

Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs is laying out the issue of what the options might be if the U.S. were to get involved in Syria, if President Obama was to finally order U.S. military action. I want you to listen to a little bit of what Dempsey is telling the committee.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You mentioned the principal options in your opening statement, which would include humanitarian relief, no-fly zone, maritime introduction, humanitarian corridor, and limited aerial strikes, for example.

We've -- we're at what I would describe the commander's estimate level of detail, not detailed planning, have not been briefed to the president, have been discussed with the president's national security staff.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: So as CNN has reported for the last several weeks in fact behind the scenes, the U.S. military has been planning those options being ready in case the president were to ask for them, but General Dempsey went on in some military detail to talk about how tough this is.

What he talked about, Carol, is in Syria, you have five times the air defenses, radars, missiles, to be able to shoot down incoming planes, five times as much as Libya, 10 times as much as coalition pilots dealt with back in the war in Bosnia.

That's how tough it would be for U.S. pilots to fly into Syrian airspace. So we're beginning to see the cards laid out on the table really for the first time in some detail.

The one place Dempsey wouldn't go in public is what do you do about Syria's chemical and biological weapons if they were to fall under non--regime's hands, if they were to fall out of anybody's control -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Barbara Starr live at the Pentagon. Talk of war grows louder on the campaign trail, the likelihood of an attack and its consequences next.

Two Oregon police officers are hailed as heroes for their actions at this horrific accident scene. Their story is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Iran, Israel, nukes in the United States, it's a real world worry. To use a cliche, it's become a political hot button.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I think there's no doubt that those who are suggesting or proposing or beating the drums of war should explain clearly to the American people what they think the costs and benefits would be.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So what would the costs and benefits be of a military strike? Joining me from New York live to talk about that, Michael Levi, an expert on nuclear security and a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. Thank you for being here.

MICHAEL LEVI, SENIOR FELLOW, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Good to be with you. COSTELLO: So Michael, if the United States decided to take some sort of military action against Iran, what would it look like?

LEVI: If the United States decided to take military action against Iran, it would be from the air, not on the ground, and it would probably be targeted primarily at Iranian nuclear facilities, particularly the ones that are involved in enriching uranium.

Then the question would be how much broader do the action go? Some would call for attacking a wider range of nuclear facilities, some potentially near urban areas.

Others would also call for expanding the campaign, particularly to suppress air defenses, but also to take down Iranian capabilities that might be used in retaliation after an attack.

COSTELLO: So Iran would presumably defend itself and its alleged nuclear facilities. So how would it do that?

LEVI: Well, certainly aren't alleged nuclear facilities. We know they are nuclear facilities. The question is to what end are they being used? We don't really know how Iran would react.

One camp says that they will lash out. They will use their proxies, Hezbollah in Lebanon, other forces in southern Iraq or even try to block the Strait of Hormuz where a lot of the world's oil passes through.

Another camp says that if the initial strike either from Israel or the United States was relatively limited. The Iranian leadership might decide to hold back so that the conflict didn't escalate to a higher level

The problem is once you started the ball rolling, you don't know where it ends up.

COSTELLO: So would other countries join in the fight?

LEVI: It's not clear whether there would be much practical wisdom to having other countries join in. The most likely scenario is Israel by itself. If the United States went ahead, it would be an air campaign where frankly the political challenges of working with other countries to have their forces involved would probably outweigh the benefits that would accrue.

Now if Iran moved openly to produce highly enriched weapons-grade uranium for one or more bombs, you can't certainly imagine the rallying of political support for a military campaign. But as far as the actual assets in the air being used in a strike, I find that unlikely as an outcome.

COSTELLO: OK, so let's get to the bottom line here. What are the pros and what are the cons? LEVI: The pros are fairly clear. Iran with nuclear weapons or close to having nuclear weapons would be dangerous in the region and could encourage, almost certainly would encourage others in the region to pursue their own weapons programs with all the dangers that that entails.

So a military strike by setting back not ending, but setting back the Iranian nuclear programs would remove some of that risk. The cons are also stark.

A military action might look limited to start with, but could easily get out of control, hurting not only the region, but the global economy if Iran moves successfully to disrupt either oil production or the flow of oil.

There's really no good choice in this situation. Either way there's a lot of risk. That's yet another reason why we should be trying every other possible way to resolve the situation.

COSTELLO: Michael Levi, thanks so much for joining us this morning. We appreciate it.

Newt Gingrich, the self-described tortoise of the Republican presidential race, Georgia is now in his win column. So where does he go from here? We'll talk to a man who knows him as well as anybody. That's coming up.

Plus help on the way for struggling homeowners, but how many will be getting help from President Obama's new housing plan? That's also coming your way, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Polls suggested that Newt Gingrich would win his home state big, and those polls were right. The former congressman dominated the race in Georgia for the one Super Tuesday victory. Here's what he had to say after.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINGRICH: Remember when it was Tim Pawlenty who was going to crowd me out? Remember then when it was Michele Bachmann? And then it was our good friend, Herman Cain the first time. Then for a brief moment it was Donald Trump almost.

And then it was our good friend, Rick Perry. Then it was Herman Cain the second time. Now it's Santorum. And you just can't quite get across to them, it's all right. There are lots of bunny rabbits that runs through. I'm the tortoise. I just take one step at a time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: It got a lot of applause for that line. Matt Towery is a pollster and he helped Gingrich with his campaign and debate strategy in the '80s and '90s. So you know Speaker Gingrich better than most people.

MATT TOWERY, POLLSTER, FORMER GINGRICH STRATEGIST: Yes, I do.

COSTELLO: Right, so he wins Georgia big, but does lousy in every other state. So what's his end game?

TOWERY: Well, his end game has been to try to develop a southern strategy. Now he partially did that last night. He did have a huge win in Georgia. He wasn't expected to do very well at all in Tennessee in early polling.

So he did a little better in Tennessee than expected and he certainly did better in Oklahoma than expected. But, you know, to say that was a huge night for Newt Gingrich would be stretching things.

He's still in the race, though. He will not get out. He's going to go to Alabama and Mississippi. He now has Secret Service protection, so who knows where he goes from there.

COSTELLO: Well, OK, he's hurting Rick Santorum the most. Rick Santorum wins three streets. He has momentum. Things are looking good for him. If Rick Santorum went up to Newt Gingrich and say, Newt, come on, you're killing me.

TOWERY: Well, you know, I'm not privy to those conversations, but I can say this. It would be likely -- if Gingrich does get out, it would be likely because they simply run out of money. If that does happen, anything is up in the air.

I know that one of the problems for Santorum and for Gingrich is that they have developed sort of personality dislike for Mitt Romney. I'm not speaking for Gingrich, but I know from the feeling of the campaign.

Now I was always taught in politics that you treat it like business, you don't ever take it personally. I don't know what these guys think they're going to get from Barack Obama if they get the nomination, but it's not going to be Valentines and candy. So in that sense Newt is a touch guy, he can take it, but at some point, you get closer to Texas --

COSTELLO: But you're saying that Newt Gingrich is allowing his personal feelings to dictate what he does in this race.

TOWERY: Well, what I'm saying is, I don't think right now it would be a good time for Newt and Mitt Romney to get together for a cup of coffee. That doesn't mean that it can't happen down the road.

I mean, Newt is a big boy. He's been in politics. I mean, he dealt with Bill Clinton, who was allegedly his great enemy and actually they were pretty good friends and got along well. So anything can happen in this race.

What we have right now is a big prize, Texas, but it will be way down the road. It's now turned into winner take all and Santorum and Gingrich are both looking at that, saying, wow, I did get a big winner take all number.

And then we could try to strip Florida and Arizona, because they moved ahead and really should not be winner-take all, but you've got to have momentum to do it. I've seen this guy pull a lot of magic before. Whether he can do it again, we'll wait and see, I guess.

COSTELLO: Yes, the way delegates are awarded has changed.

TOWERY: Yes.

COSTELLO: Sine you were deep into the game and they're not awarded proportionally now.

TOWERY: Yes.

COSTELLO: It used to be winner take all.

TOWERY: Yes.

COSTELLO: What has that done to this primary?

TOWERY: Well, it's made it more difficult for Romney for one thing because Romney is clearly the front running candidate right now, but his delegate lead is not as substantial as it would be had we seen winner take all.

That has a substantial impact on this. That's why it continues to go along and that's why we keep hearing talk of no one having a majority going into a convention, which, by the way, would be a huge problem.

That convention is being held at the end of August. That would give the Republican nominee two months to try to take on Barack Obama, not a good scenario.

COSTELLO: Should I even ask you about Sarah Palin?

TOWERY: Well, you know, like I said, anything can happen.

COSTELLO: That's right. Matt, thanks so much for being here.

TOWERY: Sure.

COSTELLO: Some homeowners will be able to refinance their mortgages more easily and cheaply under a new plan unveiled by President Obama.

Christine Romans joins us live from New York to explain it all. So Christine, who is eligible?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's talk about first lowering the fees on FHA-backed refinancing. These are people who have an FHA-insured loan, might be first time home buyers, many of them are low income. You can have a mortgage rate above 5 percent. But because of the fees they've been unable to refinance into something cheaper. The president wants them to be able to get those lower mortgage rates and save up to a $1,000 annually the White House say. This could be two to three million people here, FHA- insured loans.

The government says contact your lender. I know you always say they don't call you back and they're really hard to deal with. They are, but under the law, they've got to be better now.

Contact your lender because they're going to know if you are eligible. Now a second group her, people who are veterans who were foreclosed on sometimes after 2006, Carol, the government is going to review. The banks are going to review every sing veteran foreclosure since 2006.

If you were wrongly foreclosed on, you're going to get lost equity in the house, a bunch of interest and you're eligible for $116,000 penalty from the banks who foreclosed on you so some really important information there.

Also if you're a service member who was relocated and you had to eat a huge loss in your house, you bought the house from July 2006 to December 2008, you may be eligible there as well for that equity to be paid back to you.

Of course there are terms and conditions, but there are laws and rules to make sure or service members are protected from the shenanigans of the banks we have seen again and again. So if you think that's you, visit your armed forces legal assist assistance office, find the nearest one to you -- Carol.

COSTELLO: We will. Thank you, Christine. Super Tuesday wasn't all about the official Republican candidate, Sarah Palin drop a bit of a mini-bombshell that has a lot of people talking. "Political Buzz" panel coming your way next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Let's get a check of the top stories right now.

Happening right now on Capitol Hill, the Senate Armed Services Committee holds a hearing on the crisis in Syria. John McCain, a ranking committee member has already called for air strikes against Syrian government forces and for arming the rebels. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta testified for U.S. to act U.N. real would be a mistake.

Six soldiers from the U.K. are missing and presumed dead after an explosion in Southwest Afghanistan. British officials say the soldiers were on patrol in an armoured vehicle in the Helmand Province when it hit a land mine.

Back here in the U.S., gas prices have dropped for the second straight day. The drop was only 0.3 of 1 percent, but it does come after weeks of rising prices. The national average now stance at $3.76 a gallon.

COSTELLO: "Political Buzz" is your rapid-fire look at the best political topics of the day, three questions, 30 seconds on the clock. Playing with us today: Pete Dominick, comedian and political talk show host on Sirius/XM Radio; Jason Johnson is a professor at Hiram College and the chief political correspondent for Politics 365; and Crystal Wright is the editor of the conservative BlackChick.com and a delegate for Newt Gingrich. Welcome to all of you.

CRYSTAL WRIGHT, BLACKCHICK.COM: Thanks.

JASON JOHNSON, PROFESSOR, HIRAM COLLEGE: It's good to be here.

COSTELLO: Ok, first question voter turnout on Super Tuesday wasn't so super saw much of it at Ohio. Well, actually it was about half of what it was four years ago, but it was up from what was expected. The question now why aren't folks rocking the vote now? Crystal?

WRIGHT: Folks are rocking the vote. Republicans are rocking the vote. They're going after their supporters, but make no mistake. By the time we hit August and we have a nominee, Republicans will rally around our nominee, and as one voter in Ohio said, he would vote for a dead dog over Barack Obama.

COSTELLO: Oh, man, Jason?

JOHNSON: Look, the reality is that most of these voters aren't that enthusiastic about the candidates, they are enthusiastic about getting rid of Barack Obama. So I'm not surprised that the voter turnout is low. What's going to be interesting, though, was what does this mean about Mitt Romney in Ohio? You know he was really unpopular for his position on senate vote a couple of months ago. So I think it's the aftermath of that. This could be a problem into the fall because the enthusiasm is not there on the GOP side.

COSTELLO: Pete?

PETE DOMINICK, POLITICAL RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Well no one is rocking the vote Carol because no one has rocked the vote since the '80s. We've got to lose that, Carol, but to -- to quote a woman, I hate to -- I love to ignore I should say the former First Lady Barbara Bush said this is the worst campaign I've ever seen in my life. This is a white, the most white-bred, crust-off line up of candidates.

If you can spitfire and brimstone and say Satan is attacking America and still not be interesting you've got a problem. And the other thing is -- at least two of these candidates at least would no longer be in this campaign if it were not for Seasons United and this Super PACs. They got a lot of money from very rich donors. Yes done.

COSTELLO: Thank you. Its Super Tuesday it's all about the candidates, right? Not when Sarah Palin is around the microphone. Here is the exchange that is getting all of the buzz.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the opening convention question. If we wind up with an open convention and someone wants to place your name -- throw your name into the hat, would you stop them? Would you be open to that?

SARAH PALIN, FORMER ALASKAN GOVERNOR: As I say, anything is possible. And I don't -- I don't close any doors that perhaps would be open out here. So no, I wouldn't close that door. And my plan is to be at that convention.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Aha so here is my question to you. Do you think Sarah Palin is serious, or has she become a Donald Trump-like figure who scrounges around for publicity?

Jason?

JOHNSON: Look, she's lost all credibility when she decided she didn't want to be Governor anymore. Sarah Palin has about as much political influences like Josiah Bartlett from "The West Wing." Any other state politician because she's in the game anymore. She even showed in 2010 that her endorsement doesn't matter.

So no, Sarah Palin is just following the candidates, she's following the cameras, but she's not really anybody influential for the Republican Party heading into the fall.

COSTELLO: Crystal?

WRIGHT: You know I think it's a dumb question and it's a once again an attempt to vilify Republicans. Sarah Palin doesn't have to scrounge for media attention. You know the media comes running like a pack of hound every time she talks and they're afraid of her because she's a political figure, she energizes the base.

Sarah Palin has been pivotal in getting out the vote, she will continue to do so in the fall and to compare her to Donald Trump is insulting when she's a political figure. She was governor of Arkansas -- I mean, she was governor of Alaska and she was the -- ran as vice president of the United States with John McCain so, you know --

COSTELLO: All right ok, my hair is on fire now.

WRIGHT: Trump is a stooge. Sarah Palin is an activist and that what everybody is afraid of.

COSTELLO: Pete, Pete, you are time is up, Crystal, I'm sorry.

DOMINICK: Carol -- Carol, you know not to make hair on fire jokes while I'm sitting right here. That is hurtful and wrong.

Listen, yes Donald Trump is the male Sarah Palin she has been legitimate frankly since by some bizarre happenstance a legitimate presidential candidate chose her to be the VP. The only reason why she remains legitimate is because like Crystal said we like to follow her around with cameras because she's unique, and she's -- she is different and she says bizarre things. But she's really never been I don't think a respectful leader or a respected leader in certainly an intelligent way.

COSTELLO: Hold on.

WRIGHT: How is saying you're going to run for president --

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: Hold on.

Hey, we're getting to the third question now. Last night eight- term Congressman Dennis Kucinich lost his Democratic primary after a redistricting fight. He was a liberal among liberals and a self- proclaimed UFO eyewitness. What will you miss most about this guy?

So Crystal please expound on Dennis Kucinich now.

WRIGHT: You know I don't think there's anything to say. I'm sure that my two liberal colleagues will probably say it's such a sad loss. I think he turned out to neglect his district. I think it's a sad day when Dennis Kucinich says he'll move to Washington to protect his job, just like Barack Obama. More interested in his well-being than the constituents he was supposed to serve. Good riddance and good-bye.

COSTELLO: Jason?

JOHNSON: Look, to be perfectly honest with you Dennis Kucinich served his district but you can't miss what isn't there. And the problem is for the last couple of years Dennis Kucinich has been infinitely more interested in running for president and getting attention. He brought Russell Simmons to West Cleveland to campaign on his behalf. That makes no sense one way or another.

So I'm not going to miss him that much, but I think the Democrats in general are going to be missing a lot of liberals. You've got Barney Frank, Anthony Wiener and now Dennis Kucinich is gone. The left is really missing out on their extreme and vocal liberals.

COSTELLO: Time's up. Thank you so much. Pete?

DOMINICK: Say what you will about Dennis Kucinich, he had a tremendous amount of integrity. He was honest. He wasn't influenced by special interest money. He's like Ron Paul in that way except he doesn't tell people to run and buy gold. He had a lot of integrity and he will be missed. And it's sad -- it's sad that we focused too much on him as a joke. Because he is honest and he wasn't influenced by -- by the special interests that so many other politicians are. And by the way he voted against the Iraq war.

COSTELLO: Thanks to all of you for a spirited discussion on "Political Buzz" today. Crystal, Pete, Jason thanks so much. JOHNSON: Thanks Carol.

WRIGHT: Thanks.

COSTELLO: It is early spring and for the past couple of years that has meant the launch of a new iPad from Apple and this year is no different. What's new, what's cool about Apple's latest gadget coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: All of the rumors wouldn't die, because they were true. Reality star Snooki is making it official. She is indeed pregnant. And while many of you may ask, who cares, clearly a lot of people do.

One of them is "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" host A.J. Hammer. Because it is a big story, or is it, A.J.?

A.J. HAMMER, HLN HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": I care, Carol. I care. Hey, listen, if you follow "Jersey Shore" this is a huge story. Millions of people do pay attention to the "GTL" crew for better or worse. And just last month we had Snooki publicly denying all those pregnancy rumors, but "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" has gotten to the bottom of it.

We've got the official statement from Snooki's rep. Let me read that to you now so we all know it is official. It says "Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi is pregnant and engaged to her boyfriend Jionni LaVelle. Nicole is thrilled to finally be able to share her happy news with her fans."

Well, I don't know what this means to "Jersey Shore" moving forward as a show or really for her planned spin-off series, that's already started shooting but Carol, whatever you think of her, some reality stars like Snooki are big news, they are big business, it's not going away anytime soon, so I would suggest put your hair in a pouf like Snooki.

COSTELLO: I'll try that tomorrow.

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: Maybe it will improve things for me, who knows.

Let's talk about the HBO movie that turned the McCain/Palin presidential campaign into a movie. I'm just wondering how politicians and the public will react because I saw the film. I got a preview, and I don't know, it seemed to me to be one-sided, but the actors did a terrific job.

HAMMER: Yes. And that's what I've been hearing. And is you saw it, you know that the ultimate reaction to it will probably be pretty clearly split along party lines. My producer Doug also saw the film and he said if you're a Palin fan, you're going to hate this film. If you're someone who thinks that Palin wasn't qualified to be vice president, you're going to come out of it saying Julianne Moore did a terrific job.

Moore happens to be one of my favorite actress. She plays the would-be vice president during the 2008 presidential campaign. The film portrays Palin as someone way over her head on a national stage, unable to master basic facts. At one point almost having a nervous breakdown.

While the people behind the film admit it's a drama, it's not a documentary, they do argue the move is based on the facts as told in the bestselling book "Game Change" and they do stand behind the portrayal. Interestingly enough -- and I'm curious to see if you agree with this Carol -- the person, my producer Doug says who comes across as the best in the film might be John McCain who gets portrayed as this honest politician who's really just trying to balance doing the right thing with his need to win the elections.

COSTELLO: That's definitely true but I would suggest watching the movie with your partisan friends. Because if you watch it with a person on the other side of the aisle there will be a big fight during the movie and after.

HAMMER: I can only imagine the drinking games already that are going to come from this film. But I do expect big, big ratings for it. There's a lot of interest and it's certainly -- it's a hot, hot topic.

COSTELLO: A.J. Hammer thanks so much.

Want information on everything breaking in the entertainment world? A.J. has got it tonight on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT", 11:00 Eastern or HLN.

It's early spring. For the past couple of years, that has meant the launch of a new iPad from Apple. And this year is no different.

What's new and cool about it, next.

Plus wind and sand come together in California, making driving almost impossible. We'll have more details for you about this big star.

More after the break.

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COSTELLO: Checking stories cross country now. Blowing sand closed parts of I-10 and several other roads in Palm Springs, California yesterday. Winds of up to 50 miles per hour combined with the swirling sand reduced visibility.

In Miami a cell phone captures an off-duty officers hauling mattresses on the top of her cruiser. WPLG says the department fired her just days from retirement for the embarrassment she caused. That same officer had been disciplined 19 times.

And an 81-year-old woman from Newport, Rhode Island is the latest Power Ball winner. The $336 million jackpot is the sixth biggest ever. Louise White took the lump sum payout of $210 million. She bought the ticket as an afterthought while buying her son some rainbow sherbet at the store.

Millions of college grads will be heading out into the workforce in a few short months, but the job market they face is a tough one still. A new study shows that when it comes to wages young people are getting hit hard. Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange. So Alison, tell us more.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: All right. So if you're a college graduate Carol and you're lucky enough to even get a job, guess what? You're not going to be getting paid as much as in years past. Look at this, entry-level wages for a male college graduate dropped 11 percent over the past decade. For females, wages fell almost 8 percent. These numbers coming from the Economic Policy Institute.

So what does less pay mean for the college grads.

Well, this comes at an important time in their lives, you know, they're graduating college hoping to move on with their lives. But it winds up having a huge effect on their lives, because it takes longer for them to pay off their student loans. It limits how much money they can spend which essentially hurts the economy. And most importantly it means their ladder to sections is taller to climb because if you started at a lower point, of course, it's going to take longer to get to the pay that you want. It's tough out there -- Carol.

COSTELLO: It sure is. When we talked to you last hour, you were talking -- you were hinting at maybe a rebound from yesterday. Is it happening?

KOSIK: A little, little rebound. Not very much. You know what; stocks are in the plus column right now. You see the Dow is up 17 points. But yesterday's concerns about the economy, they're carrying through to today because this week we've gotten several reports about countries showing that their economic growth is slowing. It's re- igniting concerns about how far Europe's debt problems will spread.

One thing to remember, Greece, believe it or not, is still not out of the woods. Everybody is still waiting on these private bondholders to officially agree to restructuring the country's debt. that deadline happening on March 20th so everybody watching for that. But we did get an update report on the U.S. job market; that is keeping stocks in the green at least for now -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Alison Kosik, thanks. There's bus in Silicon Valley this morning, thanks again to Apple. We'll take you there to show you what's got everyone (INAUDIBLE).

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COSTELLO: Stories we're working on later today in the CNN NEWSROOM. Barring a major surprise, a noon Eastern news conference, the Colts will announce they are releasing Peyton Manning. Reasons include uncertainty over Manning's neck injury and to save $28 million.

12:45 Eastern, President Obama talking about the economy at a Daimler Truck manufacturing plant in North Carolina. It's a battleground state with high unemployment that Obama narrowly won in 2008. At 1:00 Eastern in San Francisco, Apple is expected to unveil its latest iPad. And we want to talk a little bit more about that.

Dan Simon is our Silicon Valley correspondent. He's in San Francisco, a couple hours ahead of that announcement. Dan, what usually gets people talking are new features. What are we expecting from this new iPad?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, let me tell you something. I've been to a lot of these events, and it's always madness and it's always a lot of fun. And just to put things in perspective for a minute, when the iPad pad first came out two year ago, there are a lot of naysayers, people didn't think you would need another device especially if you had a phone and a laptop.

Well, now a couple of years later, we can tell you that this is Apple's biggest-selling device of all time in the company's 35-year history. That's not only true for Apple; that's true for consumer- like electronics.

So now the question is, what is going to be in the latest iPad which has unofficially been named the iPad. Well, we can expect the usual upgrades; you know, a better screen, a faster processor, faster data connection. Those are all the things that we are expecting. The question is are there going be some secrets here?

The invitation to this event said you've got to come here to see and touch. A lot of people are making hay out of the fact that they included the word touch that there might be some sort of tactile feedback in the iPad so it might make it seem like you're actually seen you're -- it may feel like actual keys on the typewriter as opposed to the screen, so we're going to be seeing what the company's unveiling here in a couple of hours but it's always a lot of fun -- Carol.

COSTELLO: I know I can't wait myself. When can we buy it?

SIMON: Well, usually the pre-orders go on sale in the next day or so, and then by the time you see it in the stores you're looking at one to two weeks. What Apple has really done very well, as we all know, you paid several hundred dollars for the last unit last year. Well, now many people are going to feel like they have to upgrade and shell another $500 it out for the newest version -- Carol.

Well, you got to go Simon today. Dan Simon many thanks. The FDA has a warning for people who use skin creams, beauty soaps than lotions made abroad. Tests have found mercury in products sold in seven states. Here's the list for you: Texas, California, Virginia, Maryland, Minnesota, Illinois and new York.

The products are mostly sold as skin lighteners, or anti-ageing creams. They target Latino, African-American, Asian and Middle Eastern neighborhoods. If you have any of this products, the CDC says stop using them. Mercury in high doses can damage the brain and kidneys.

A blast from the political past. You remember Joe the plumber on the sidelines of the campaign, now he's on the front lines in 2012. We will explain after a break.

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COSTELLO: President Obama stole some of the Republicans' Super Tuesday thunder. Our political director Mark Preston joins me again. A lot of people thought it was a political ploy that the President Obama sort of held this big press conference right on Super Tuesday. You actually wrote a column, five things to take away from Super Tuesday and you say that President Obama accomplished what he set out to do if he did this for political reasons.

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: He did do it for political reasons. Anyone that thinks he didn't do it for political reasons is politically naive. The fact of the matter is he made a lot of news yesterday. We talk about his home mortgage plan. He talked about what's going on in Syria; what's going on in Iran but what he did is what was supposed to be a day just about Republicans became a day about Republicans and President Obama. he used the bully pulpit of the White House to be to be critical of his republican rivals, and he actually did a pretty good job, which just goes to show you if you know how to use the bully pulpit of the White House like President Obama does is a good tool as you head into a general elections.

COSTELLO: So you say that was an unusual thing to do. Why have presidents in the past not done this?

PRESTON: Well, but they have in many ways. I mean the fact of the matter is, you use whatever tools are at your disposal. And Barack Obama will use the White House. Some people think it's tactless, but the fact is it's effective.

COSTELLO: Yes, I guess so. I guess you're right. All's fair in politics, right?

PRESTON: Absolutely.

COSTELLO: Right or wrong. Let's talk a little bit about Joe the Plummer. He claimed victory in Ohio.

PRESTON: Claimed victory in Ohio when he wants to come to Washington and fix the plumbing right. If we are to use a bad pun there. Yes, so Joe the Plummer who made a name for himself back in 2008 won a primary yesterday. He's going to face Marcy Kaptur; he's a Republican running against the Democrat. It will be a hard election for him though.

COSTELLO: Yes. Marcy Kaptur has been in office forever.

PRESTON: A long time.

COSTELLO: She just beat what, Dennis Kucinich in the primary.

PRESTON: Which was a huge upset. Dennis Kucinich will not be in the congress next year.

COSTELLO: All right. Mark Preston, many thanks to you.

Head to our Web site for a complete wrap up of the Supers Tuesday and a look ahead to rest of the GOP race. Your best place for politics, CNN.com/politics.

All right, let's head downstairs. Kyra Phillips, good morning.