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Mitt Romney Pulling Ahead in GOP Race, Jeb Bush Endorses Romney; Unexplained Shaking in Wisconsin; Romney Wins in Illinois; Standoff in Toulouse, France; Rising Tension over Trayvon Martin Case
Aired March 21, 2012 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, hello, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield in for Kyra Phillips. It is 11:00 in the East coast, 8:00 out West. We have a busy hour for you straight ahead. Let's get straight to the news.
We're keeping an eye on a dramatic standoff in France between a self-proclaimed al Qaeda jihadist and hundreds of police. The suspect accused in a killing spree that includes a shooting at a local Jewish school is still barricaded in his apartment in Toulouse in the south of France.
The 23-year-old suspect police are after is Mohammed Merah. Merah is accused of killing seven people in the last ten days including a rabbi and three Jewish children. Two officers were injured after they tried to raid Merah's apartment early this morning.
The interior minister says the suspect is now talking to police again after cutting them off for several hours. We'll take you live to France for the latest on the situation in about 15 minutes.
New protests, more questions, and demands, there is swelling outrage in the shooting death of an unarmed Florida teen by a neighborhood watch volunteer who is claiming self-defense.
Activists in New York City, a thousand miles from Trayvon Martin's killing, are planning a "million hoodie" demonstration at 6:00 p.m. Eastern in Union Square. Trayvon was wearing a hoodie in the rain when he was shot last month.
Local police are defending their investigation and their decision not to arrest or charge the alleged shooter, George Zimmerman. State and federal investigations are underway as well and Florida's self- defense law called "Stand Your Ground" is under fire.
CNN's John Zarrella has more on all of this in a live report just moments from now.
Afghanistan's foreign minister and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meeting face to face right now in the wake of that shooting rampage that left 16 Afghan civilians dead. We're expecting them to come out and talk about this in about 30 minutes. The minute we hear from them, of course, you will, too.
Meantime, the army staff sergeant, Robert Bales, who is accused in that killing spree could be formally charged tomorrow. His attorney says Bales will likely be charged with homicide, among other things, but his attorney says Bales doesn't remember what happened and may be suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.
Fresh off his big win in the Illinois primary, Mitt Romney is getting another huge shot in the arm. CNN is just learning former Florida governor, Jeb Bush, has just endorsed Romney and is calling on all Republicans to unite to defeat President Obama in November.
Romney's three rivals are vowing to fight on for now. Last night Romney scored a double digit victory over Rick Santorum in Illinois. Ron Paul edged out Newt Gingrich for third place.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FORMER GOV. MITT ROMNEY (R-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Each day we move closer not just to victory, but to a better America. Join us. Join us.
Together we're going to ensure that America's greatest days are still ahead. Thanks, you guys.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: The win increased Romney's sizable lead in the delegate count. 1,144 delegates are need to clinch the nomination.
The battle shifts to Louisiana, which holds its primary come Saturday. Santorum is there right now in Harvey to talk about energy independence.
President Obama is also talking energy today with the main focus on soaring gas prices. With prices up nearly 18 percent this year, Mr. Obama is heading out on a two-day tour out west to promote production of energy sources that could help ease the pain at the pump.
First stop, a solar energy facility in Nevada. From there, he heads to New Mexico to take a look at oil and gas fields. He is scheduled to spend the night in Oklahoma City.
A source tells CNN that tomorrow the president plans to announce that he will expedite the permit for the southern half of the controversial Keystone pipeline.
Is merely touching the vice president of the United States an assault? That question is being considered by the U.S. Supreme Court today. A Colorado man claims the secret service violated his rights to free speech when they arrested him after he approached then Vice President Dick Cheney six years ago.
Steven Howards says he never touched, physically touched Cheney.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVEN HOWARDS, SUING SECRET SERVICE AGENTS: Did you touch the vice president? I said, no, but what I did do is I told Mr. Cheney the way I felt about his policies in Iraq and I said if he wants to be shielded from criticism, he should avoid public places.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Howards is suing two secret service agents because he says they arrested him after voicing his opposition to the Iraq war to Cheney. He was initially charged with harassment in state court, but the charge was later dropped.
On to Utah now, Republican governor, Gary Herbert, has signed a law that extends the waiting period for women who want an abortion. The new law requires a woman to wait 72 hours.
The state currently requires a 24-hour waiting period. South Dakota lawmakers passed a similar law last year, but a federal judge has blocked the law from taking effect.
Texas hit hard by severe rain. Floodwaters are rising and a number of rescues have taken place in Hill County. Eastern Texas, including Dallas, remain under flood warnings today as river levels are still very high.
There is also a flood watch and warning in effect for Louisiana and most of Arkansas. Southwestern Mississippi also has a flood warning in effect.
iPad users, listen up. According to Consumer Reports, Apple's new iPad can reach temperatures up to 116 degrees when running games. That's about 13 degrees hotter than the iPad 2 under similar tests.
Some users complained the new iPad gets uncomfortably hot had they use it, but the issue still hasn't cooled the sales. Apple has already sold more than 3 million new iPads.
All right, mysterious noises leaving people in one small town shaking in their boots. The loud explosion-like noises have been reported in Clintonville, Wisconsin. The unknown sound has been going on since Sunday night.
The city checked water and gas lines and came up with nothing. City officials are hoping to record the noise, but no luck yet.
Still, calls keep coming in complaining of a loud boom that rocks homes and shakes roads. So is the noise man-made or is it something else? We'll have more on this mysterious sound a little bit later on this hour.
And nearly a million people have signed an online petition demanding George Zimmerman be arrested. He is the Florida man who says he killed an unarmed teen in self-defense.
Today, pressure intensifies on the police department to do something.
Plus, new witness accounts of the shooting, including one neighbor who says Zimmerman straddled Trayvon Martin after he shot him.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: More on the loud and growing outcry over the killing of an unarmed teenager in Florida and the state law that may protect the killer.
As you may know, George Zimmerman is the neighborhood watch volunteer who shot Trayvon Martin in the chest after telling the police the teen appeared to be up to no good. Florida is one of more than 20 states with so-called "Stand Your Ground" laws allowing citizens to use deadly force against perceived threats outside the home in public places.
At issue here is whether Zimmerman really saw Trayvon as a threat or was himself the aggressor, perhaps with a racial bias.
Well, two of Zimmerman's neighbors appeared last night on "Anderson Cooper 360."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST, "ANDERSON COOPER 360": So you saw Mr. Zimmerman on top of Trayvon martin.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly.
COOPER: When you say on top of, how so?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He was --
MARY CUTCHER, WITNESS TO TRAYVON MARTIN'S KILLING: Straddling him.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly.
COOPER: His legs were straddling him?
CUTCHER: One on each side, on his knees with his hands on his back.
I didn't believe it was self-defense because what we saw when we walked out on the porch. If it was self-defense, why was he on Trayvon's back?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: CNN's John Zarrella joining me now from Sanford, Florida. We know that people are asking that not only a federal investigation take place, but more be done with the Sanford police department.
At the same time lawmakers are now wanting some reconsiderations of this "Stand Your Ground" law. Explain.
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Fredricka, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement keeps track of these statistics and last year there were 40 cases, 40 cases of justifiable homicide under this so-called "Stand Your Ground" law.
Now, compare that to 2005 when the law went into effect. The number has tripled. In Tallahassee, the governor, Governor Rick Scott, just outside his office, met yesterday with a group of people who rallied for justice and said, you know what, maybe we need to take a look at this law.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Governor, how do you feel about modifying the Stand Your Ground law? From my understanding, most if not significantly all of the people that have been killed were unarmed.
GOVERNOR RICK SCOTT (R), FLORIDA: Right. You know what --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're talking 47 African-American (inaudible) --
SCOTT: You know, I don't think -- I don't -- I'm going to look at it because, if that -- if what's happening is it's being abused, that's not right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZARRELLA: Now, one state legislator out of South Florida's already saying he's going to look into the possibility of amending the law.
Now, you've also got on top of this a number of things happening here today. At 5:00 this afternoon, the city council is going to hold an emergency session to go over where things stand within the community and what is being done in the case.
Fredricka?
WHITFIELD: And so, John, where do things stand as it pertains to the Sanford police department. I know there have been some public calls for the police chief to be fired, but what does the Sanford police department's position on this investigation, where to take it further, et cetera?
ZARRELLA: The Sanford police department has said that they stand by what they did. They believe they have done the right things.
They, in fact, said they invite the Department of Justice, the FBI, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to go ahead and come in and take a look because they feel confident in what they have done and in how they have handled the investigation so far.
So at this point, despite all of the cries and outrage over the Sanford police department, they are flat out saying, look, we believe we are handling this in the proper fashion.
Fredricka? WHITFIELD: And how are they responding to the calls that people say, George Zimmerman should at least have been arrested? What is the position of the Sanford police department as to why they did not arrest him?
ZARRELLA: Because at that point in time and they have said repeatedly that there was no evidence and still may not be any evidence in their minds that there was anything other than self- defense because, obviously, Trayvon Martin can't speak for himself.
And George Zimmerman is the only other one who was actually there at the time and he has been claiming self-defense and the police said there is no other evidence or there was no other evidence that it was anything other than self-defense.
So that is why at that point in time he was not arrested, was not charged, and still isn't.
That doesn't mean, Fredricka --
WHITFIELD: Despite those eyewitness accounts.
ZARRELLA: -- may not be surfacing.
Despite the eyewitness accounts, correct.
WHITFIELD: All right and now Zimmerman's father has said that he is not a racist. George Zimmerman is not a racist, but some media reports say that he muttered a racial slur during a call with police -- during the 911 call -- while he was following Trayvon.
CNN has not confirmed that information on that 911 call, but what can you tell us?
ZARRELLA: Well, police are saying when they were asked about it, when CNN asked the police about that yesterday, they also said, look, we didn't hear it on the tape. We haven't been able to hear it on the audio recordings either.
So, I mean, that's what police department is as well saying that it is not at all clear on those audio recordings, even enhanced audio recordings, what George Zimmerman may or may not be saying.
WHITFIELD: OK. And George Zimmerman, has he been relocated? Is he not at his residence and is there anything to him feeling like his life is being threatened right now?
ZARRELLA: I have not heard anything like that. Now, we have heard that he may not be at his residence, that he may be out of town, may not be here, because of the fact that, you know, he is in fear of his life.
But we do not know where he is at this point in time. Although I'm quite confident, I would think, anyway, that the police here know how to get in touch with him. And can get a hold of him if need be in pretty sure order. WHITFIELD: All right, John Zarrella, thanks so much, in Sanford, Florida.
ZARRELLA: Sure.
WHITFIELD: An intense standoff still underway right now in France. It has been more than 12 hours now since this self-proclaimed al Qaeda jihadist barricaded himself in his apartment.
He's suspected of killing seven people in the last ten days. We have got a reporter there on the scene. We'll be checking in with her coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Winter is over. Spring is here. Time to clean out your basements, attics and other junk you stored over the past year. So how about getting your finances in order as well?
Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange with some tips for us. Alison, so what can we do to spring clean our finances?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: OK, so it all begins, Fredricka, with your paperwork.
We talked with Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, the founder of the financial advice blog, "Askthemoneycoach.com," and what she recommends is to do some actual cleaning on your paperwork. Set up a filing system that you understand and digitize your documents as much as possible.
Lynnette says you don't need to access every document immediately, but you really should have easy access to al your old tax documents as well as bank and credit card statements.
Lynnette also recommends shedding any documents you don't need anymore. Time to do away with being a pack rat.
Fredricka?
WHITFIELD: All right, so how do you figure out what you need and what you don't need?
KOSIK: And that's a good question. And a good place to start is looking at your checking and your savings accounts, make a list of your accounts, how much money you have in each, and how much you're charged in fees on each one, and with all the new fees that have been introduced in the past year, Lynette says it may pay to consolidate your accounts.
You may also want to consider joining a credit union. You can visit the Credit Union National Association's website at cuna.org to find a credit union in your area.
Now, the same rules apply to your credit cards. According to creditcards.com, the average APR is at around 15 percent and if you're paying more than that, Lynnette says it may be time to find a better deal. You may want to call your card issuer and ask them for a lower rate. If you get turned down, you can visit card comparison sites like cardratings.com to find a new card.
Fredricka?
WHITFIELD: What about mapping out a strategy for the remainder of the year?
KOSIK: Exactly. And Lynnette says it really is a good idea to check your credit report every year. The National Foundation for Credit Counseling says about two-thirds of Americans haven't even checked their credit report in the last 12 months.
You can get your report for free once each year at annualcreditreport.com. A clean report is critical when it comes to getting a mortgage, if you're buying a car, or you're applying for a new credit card, so you really want to be sure to dispute any errors.
And finally, review your savings goals. Lynnette says you should know how much you have in savings, how much you plan to save this year. Budget for major expenses and any large lump sums of cash that you expect. You can use sites like mint.com to set a plan. But you also have to stick to it.
Fredricka/
WHITFIELD: That's right. That's the operative word, "sticking to it," right there.
Alison Kosik, thanks so much. Appreciate that.
All right, they're hearing things in Wisconsin. Is it thunder, explosions, fireworks, or is it something else entirely?
Coming up, the mysterious booms in one small Wisconsin town. No one knows what it is, but everyone is guessing. We'll put our own expert on the case.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Three hundred police officers are in the middle of an intense standoff that is still playing out right now in Toulouse, France, about seven hours south of Paris. A self-styled al Qaeda jihadist is barricaded inside his apartment.
The suspect is accused of killing seven people in the last ten days, including a rabbi and three children at a local Jewish school. A magistrate says the man police are after is 23-year-old Mohammed Merah.
Police say two officers were injured during a shootout with the suspect when they tried to raid his apartment earlier this morning.
Let's go straight to Diana Magnay who is on the ground there in Toulouse. Diana, what more can you tell us about this standoff right now?
DIANA MAGNAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, this siege has been going on for more than 12 hours now. As you say, there was an exchange of gunfire earlier in the morning, two policemen wounded in that.
It all began at 3:00 a.m. There has been some very strange patterns really over the course of the day. The police have been in contact with the suspect. At one point he threw a gun out of the window and said he would hand himself in at midday.
But that deadline passed and he didn't appear. Then negotiations were broken off with police at one point. At one point, police tried to bring his mother to try and talk him out of the house, but he wouldn't come out.
And now negotiations are back on, but the police say the suspect remains very stubborn, very determined, and they say that they cannot continue -- they would rather not continue on this sort of modus operandi once night falls.
But, as you can imagine, everyone in this neighborhood very worried. Police say that he is armed. He has a Kalashnikov and an Uzi with him and a dangerous man as we know from these brutal killings of three soldiers then three children and another Jewish man all in the last ten days.
Fredricka?
WHITFIELD: Diana, that suspect, Mohammed Merah, actually called a French journalist claiming responsibility. That journalist spoke with Carol Costello earlier. Take a listen to what the journalist had to say.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
EBBA KALANDO, REPORTER, FRANCE 24: He said it was necessary to reclaim the dignity of Islam after the affront done to it by the French after it enacted a law outlawing the wearing of the full veil here in France.
And he also said he wanted to protest against France's continued military participation in the war in Afghanistan.
And also he said that the shootings on the Jewish school in Toulouse was to avenge Palestinian children.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Diana, has anyone in this community expressed these types of feelings that Merah expressed to this journalist?
MAGNAY: Absolutely not, no. I mean, it's interesting that he had that conversation with that journalist just two hours before police made their raid, but that is absolutely not the kind of feelings that is represented in the Muslim community here, quite the opposite.
We have been talking to many members of the Muslim community here who are standing around horrified that this killer should have been in their midst, that he should be a Muslim himself, very worried about the repercussions and what will that do for the name of Islam here in France.
So in no way do people here in this town share those sentiments that were expressed there.
Fredricka?
WHITFIELD: All right, Diana Magnay, thanks so much from Toulouse, France.
All right, with Illinois -- back in this country now -- under his belt, along with more than 500 delegates, here is the question. Is Mitt Romney finally in the homestretch and if that's the case, does Rick Santorum have any hope left at all?
All of this is "Fair Game" as the race for the Republican nomination nears a possible end.
But first, Ron Paul is still hanging on in the White House race and he is sticking to his libertarian-leaning views, even when it comes to his own security.
Congressman Paul joined Jay Leno on the tonight show last night and said he won't be taking secret service protection on the campaign trail because it amounts to a form, in his view, of welfare.
In his words, quote, "I'm an ordinary citizen and I think I should pay for my own protection," end quote.
And that brings us to our political junkie question of the day. Which candidate's Secret Service code name is javelin? Tweet the answer to @fwhitfield and I'll give a shout-out for first right answer.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Before the break, I asked who has Javelin as their Secret Service name. The answer is Mitt Romney. The candidates get to pick their own code names. Santorum chose Petrus, the Latin word for "rock." Congrats to John for tweeting me the right answer.
It hasn't been easy and it hasn't been pretty, but Mitt Romney is slowly pulling away from the Republican field. The White House race is always "Fair Game."
Let's talk about it with Crystal Wright, editor and blogger at conservativeblackchick.com.
Good to see you.
CRYSTAL WRIGHT, EDITOR, CONSERVAIVEBLACKCHICK.COM: Good to see you.
WHITFIELD: And Democratic strategist, Tara Dowdell, in New York.
Good to see you as well.
TARA DOWDELL, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: OK, so here is the latest delegate count. Romney, opening up a big lead, now has 562 by CNN's estimate. Rick Santorum with 249, and Newt Gingrich is way back with 137. And we just learned, ladies, at the top of the hour, that former Florida governor, Jeb Bush, has endorsed Mitt Romney.
I want to get some reaction from both of you.
Big deal, Crystal?
WRIGHT: Absolutely a big deal. I think it will put all the rumors to rest that former Governor Jeb Bush is not going to be running for president. So -- and I think it was a smart --
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Maybe V.P.?
WRIGHT: Well, look, anything is possible, Fredricka. We also have Rubio, Senator Rubio. Let's not forget about him, in Florida. I think it is a smart move. I think what Jeb Bush is signaling is, like, guys, let's get the party started, wrap up this show. I think you'll see more support rallying behind Romney like we saw in Illinois.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Tara, does it look a little suspicious to wait this long or that the timing would be now?
DOWDELL: Yes, the timing is obviously suspect. Particularly, given the fact that George Bush Sr has already endorsed Mitt Romney and did so a long while ago. I do believe that --
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: And Barbara.
DOWDELL: And Barbara, exactly. But I think this is not a game changer, not a huge boost to the Romney campaign. What it does do is give them free publicity for the day and it's positive publicity. So it provides a temporary small benefit to them.
WHITFIELD: So, Crystal, is this over? Mitt Romney way out front? Is he not nominee?
(CROSSTALK)
Are you saying he's the inevitable nominee? WRIGHT: He is.
(CROSSTALK)
WRIGHT: Look, Fredricka, we have been talking about this. We have all been saying this since the beginning of the year. And I think that the double digit sweep in Illinois -- and let's also remember, Romney won the woman vote, the female vote. He won across incomes in Illinois. He got blue collar voters. He's peeling off tea party voters. And 25 percent of people who say they really want a candidate who is really conservative still voted for Mitt Romney in Illinois.
I think what we're seeing is he is talking the tough talk on Obama. He's the most electable of, you know, the three or four hanger -- in the field. And I think he's really shoulders above the rest. And it is really time for Santorum to bow out. He needs to leave the island of politics, you know. This is not working for him. So, you know, I think Mitt is sealed the deal here. He's really sealed the deal with Illinois. And we saw in his speech last night that he doesn't even talk about his -- you know, the other -- his opponents anymore. All he talks about is Barack Obama, the failed economy that is -- that he's been president of for the last three and a half years. And that message is resonating.
WHITFIELD: So, Tara, you're nodding your head as in, no.
(LAUGHTER)
You don't think he's the inevitable, I guess, nominee. And he has kind of now focused on Obama. You know, anti-Obama, you know, lingo as opposed to even acknowledging that there is still Santorum --
DOWDELL: Right.
WHITFIELD: --that is there and Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul.
DOWDELL: Well, I think Mitt Romney wishes Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich weren't still there, obviously. At the same time, though, I do think those fortunes can rise and fall quite quickly in politics. I do think, though, in the long run, the likelihood is Mitt Romney will be the nominee. He has three very strong advantages. He has money, as we have talked about many times. He also has an organization which money allows him to have. And then on top of it, he shot himself -- despite his constant flip-flopping, he's shot himself in the foot the least out of all of the candidates.
But I think the other story here is the fact that Mitt Romney has yet to close the deal, to this day. He's running against Rick Santorum. And, yes, he did handily beat him in Illinois, but he outspent him 20-1 in Illinois.
(CROSSTALK)
WRIGHT: That's what Barack Obama did in 2008 with Hillary. So let's not try to change the game here just because we have a -- (CROSSTALK)
DOWDELL: No, but it makes a difference. It makes a difference.
(CROSSTALK)
WRIGHT: It sure does, which is why Barack Obama wants to raise a billion dollars to get re-elected.
(CROSSTALK)
DOWDELL: And it was overwhelmingly negative ads.
WHITFIELD: You just made the point a moment ago that --
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: But, Crystal, you made a point ago that Santorum ought to go ahead and bow out.
WRIGHT: He should because --
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Why are you not saying the same thing about Newt Gingrich?
WRIGHT: I have said the same thing about Newt -- I was on yesterday talking about Newt has only won two primaries out of 27 contests.
WHITFIELD: So you think he needs to bow out?
WRIGHT: I think -- yes. I think --
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Why is he not? What's going on? Why is he not?
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Why is he still in this race?
WRIGHT: I think it is ego. I also think Newt is doing a strategic move to split the vote, take it away from Santorum. And I really believe, in the end --and we know this because Newt supporters are already doing this. They did it in Illinois. They started throwing their support and their vote behind Romney.
In the end, when Newt drops out, because I think eventually he will, he will throw his support behind Romney. He will not throw his support behind Santorum, who has become a polarizing candidate. I mean, over the weekend, he told the citizens of Puerto Rico that they need to speak English. He also, you know, waged -- he announced he wants to wage a war on pornography on the pornography laws when we have historic unemployment. Come on. Santorum is a ship that is sinking rapidly. And that is why Jeb Bush came out today to endorse Romney.
(CROSSTALK)
DOWDELL: Tell us how you really feel about Gingrich, Crystal.
(LAUGHTER)
WRIGHT: Well, he is.
DOWDELL: With respect to Newt Gingrich, Newt Gingrich can hold a grudge. No one can hold a grudge like Newt Gingrich can hold a grudge. So he's still upset about what happened in Iowa. I believe that Newt Gingrich believes that, had Mitt Romney not launched that massive campaign against him filled with attack ads from his personal campaign and from his super PACs, that Newt Gingrich feels he would be the front-runner right now. And when it comes to Newt's ego there is very few things that can stop him.
But again, the fact that Mitt Romney is battling Newt Gingrich --
(CROSSTALK)
WRIGHT: He's not battling Newt Gingrich, Tara.
DOWDELL: A heck of a -- a hack of a lot more --
(CROSSTALK)
WRIGHT: When did Romney talk about Newt Gingrich in Illinois --
(CROSSTALK)
DOWDELL: Excuse me. But you had an opportunity. Let me speak as well.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: All right. This is why you have three, four that are still in the race. It is still just as contentious among them as it is among the two of you, ladies.
Tara and Crystal, we're out of time. We'll chat with you more, of course, because this race is still going.
And that's "Fair Game."
Thanks so much, ladies.
So what in the world is going on in, of all places, Wisconsin? The ground there is shaking. Houses are rocking. And folks from one small town there say mysterious booms are rattling their nerves. Chad Myers is on the hunt for answers as well, and we'll share, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: We're able to share something with you right away. Hillary Clinton speaking at the White House now. She's meeting with Afghanistan's foreign minister. And just moments ago, she had this to say about the U.S. soldier who allegedly went on a shooting rampage, killing 16 Afghan civilians.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: As I have publicly stated, as President Obama has also, we deeply regretted the unfortunate incidents regarding the Koran, and the recent killings of innocent Afghan men, women and children.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: All right, again, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton there, meeting with the foreign minister of Afghanistan, expressing deep regret for that massacre on 16 civilians in Afghanistan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sounds like a bomb going off.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was like little tremors.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The house is shaking, the windows are shaking. It was quite loud. Sounded like it was in the house almost.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: A mysterious noise in Clintonville, Wisconsin, has a lot of people talking, and they're shaking in their boots too. The loud boom started Sunday night. But the city has yet to record it. Gas lines have been checked and so have water lines and nothing mysterious thus far has been discovered. What is going on and what is causing this? That's the big question.
Chad Myers, say you have an answer.
CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I don't. But I asked for an answer --
WHITFIELD: Or a good guess.
MYERS: I asked for an answer on Twitter and I got some interesting things. Derrick1966 thinks it is the cheese heads that are falling off their -- the shelves. Those big things they we are on their head. And tweetingforreal thinks it is fracking. I don't know whether they're fracking in the area or not. So I guess we'll have to figure that out.
But they have ruled some things out. They don't know what it is. I think they may have to rule some things back in, in my opinion. It happens at night. They he don't hear it during the day, seems like it is a little man made, I don't know.
Here we go. They don't think it is earthquake activity, because there has been shaking on the seismometer, but nothing you would expect like the earth shaking. But you would see -- like a big truck go over the roadway, that's the kind of shaking they're seeing on the seismograms and seismographs. There is no water or sewer problems so far. Elevated gas levels are nonexistent. There's no blasting, no mining, no drilling around the area and no military bases. So that's what they think it's not.
So let's look at what they think --
(CROSSTALK)
MYERS: -- it might be. And what they're thinking -- this is exactly my opposite of my thinking, because of how it happens only at night -- gas escaping from underground rocks. This happened before in other places, in upstate New York where booms just happened. They're called Seneca guns. You can Google that. A rock burst.
Maybe just large rocks that are cracking and relieving stress. Some of the areas, things that I'm thinking of, maybe the earth is going up or going down a little bit in the area. They'll watch that on their GPS and do the site surveys. Earth shifting underneath the ground. Or maybe just some sort of natural phenomenon that we don't know about.
But I'm thinking, if it is happening at 11:00 at night, 5:00 in the morning, that's the only time they're hearing it, and they're hearing it in the northeast part of town, maybe it's their water pump, pumping water into the water tower. And when it stops, it shakes. They say the water pipes are rattling. So maybe it's that.
For now, they don't know. But they have experts all over that city waiting for it.
WHITFIELD: Gosh.
MYERS: They tried to record it last night but they didn't get a good recording. It didn't work. So, oh well.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: So maybe tonight.
(LAUGHTER)
MYERS: It is loud. It is loud. It isn't like somebody that just making -- making --
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: Keeping some people awake.
MYERS: Exactly.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness.
Thanks so much, Chad. Appreciate that. MYERS: You're welcome.
WHITFIELD: At 7:00 eastern tonight, the city of Clintonville will hold a news conference on those noises and maybe we'll find out a little bit more then.
Oh, and, Chad, I wonder if you got a chance to see this video earlier. It about knocked me off my chair this morning when I saw it. Take a look. So the strap there is connected with -- yes! A woman in a wheelchair. I nearly flipped out when I saw that. Then of all places, this is Whistler. Have you ever been skiing there? One of the most fantastic places to sky in North America.
We'll tell you more about how this came to be. I think she thought it was invigorating.
(LAUGHTER)
We're going to explain why and how.
MYERS: It just looks frightening.
WHITFIELD: Yes, it does.
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WHITFIELD: Let's go "Street Level" now.
A Safeway Supermarket says they won't sell any more so-called pink slime. The finely textured beef you may have heard about is made from low quality scraps and treated with ammonia. And although the USDA insists it is OK, Safeway says, after considerable consumer concern, it has decided to pull it from the shelves. Safeway has 1400 stores all over the country.
And in New York's Union Square, a Million Hoodies March is being organized tonight for the teen killed in Florida. We talked about the death of Trayvon Martin and the fact his shooter is still free. Organizers of tonight's rally are trying to get one million signatures for George Zimmerman's arrest. In Sanford, Florida, protesters turned out for a rally demanding justice for Trayvon. They also want the Sanford police chief to resign.
In Miami Beach, Florida, panicked witnesses watched a Jeep crash into a gas pump. The vehicle and gas pump burst into flames with a wall of thick smoke. Apparently, the driver lost control while fighting to get to the pump. The Jeep was charred and the pump badly damaged. Luckily, no one was hurt.
In Louisville, Kentucky, the heroic act of a 10-year-old boy saved his little sister's life when their house caught fire. Antoine Burks made it out safely, and that's when he realized his 6-year-old sister was still inside and he rushed back in to get her.
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ANTOINE BURKS, SAVED SISTER FROM FIRE: She was scared to come out, so I jumped back over the fire and ran and carried her out because she's my sister, and I didn't want anything to happen to her.
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WHITFIELD: Both children are recovering from serious burns on their hands and legs.
In British Columbia, you will not believe what this woman did in a wheelchair. Watch with me here. Yes, the woman in that wheelchair is a paraplegic and then went -- oh -- bungee jumping off a bridge in Whistler. The group that organized it, Nine Lives Adventures, says being in a wheelchair actually make it is safer, more stable, and prevents blackouts. The organization was started after its owner broke his neck and then dedicated this company to helping people with reduced mobility to take part in adventure sports.
And then onto Athens, Ohio. A huge boulder almost, almost flattened a house. This massive rock broke free from the hillside and then tumbled straight into a home and then two cars last night. Isn't that extraordinary? The homeowners were in a different part of the House, and they were not hurt. This is a common problem in that area, but the family says they have never been able to see a rock that sizable and huge. What a close call. Very lucky.
The world's biggest cash buyer of ships for demolition has just purchased the vessel that caused the worst tanker spill in U.S. history. Global Marketing Systems paid $16 million for the "Exxon Valdez," now called the "Oriental Nicety." 23 years ago, it dumped 11 million gallons of oil of the Alaskan coast. It resulted in the U.S. requirement that all ships must have two hulls to prevent accidents.
And finally, in Little Rock, Arkansas, a fitting honor for a high-flying couple. Pending FAA approval, Little Rock National Airport will be called Bill and Hillary Clinton Nation Airport. Airport commissioners approved the change by unanimous vote. The 42nd president says he and the secretary of state, quote, "look forward to many happy landings in the years ahead."
All right. So what wasn't in Mitt Romney's victory speech last night? That gives us a clue about where he thinks the race stands. We'll tell you, coming up next.
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WHITFIELD: Here is a look at the latest delegate count for the Republican presidential candidates. With his win in the Illinois primary yesterday, Mitt Romney padded his significant lead over his rivals. He has 562 delegates, followed by Rick Santorum with 249, Newt Gingrich with 137 and Ron Paul with 69. A total of 1,144 delegates are needed to clinch the nomination.
So as we have mentioned, a big name has just endorsed Mitt Romney for the Republican presidential nomination.
Here with details, CNN political editor, Paul Steinhauser.
Good to see you. We're talking about former Governor Jeb Bush. He was mum for a long time, why?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: He sure was. He wanted to let Florida vote in the primary process and he wanted to stay neutral for that.
Fred, we talk about endorsements, do they really matter or not? This is a big one. It's a big deal. It may matter to a degree. A lot of Republicans were hoping Jeb Bush would run for the nomination this time around. He declined. With his endorsement today, it's another sign the establishment is trying to coalesce around Mitt Romney.
Here's part of the statement. It says, "Primary elections have been held in 34 states and now is the time for Republicans to unite around Governor Romney and take our message of fiscal conservatism and job creation to all voters this fall."
Our Peter Hamby did a recording of him a few minutes ago. Jeb Bush reached out this morning to Mitt Romney to tell him about the endorsement so it was not a surprise, at least for the last couple of hours. So Romney -- it may help come November. Florida, a battleground state. Jeb Bush is still very popular in Florida -- Fred?
WHITFIELD: Meantime, Mitt Romney has a few different reasons to feel pretty confident. He just won Illinois. And in his victory speech, he really didn't even make a mention of the other contenders, did he?
STEINHAUSER: Yes. You listen to the speeches by Romney and Santorum last night and it really tells you something. Romney sounded like a general election candidate, firing away at President Barack Obama. And as you mentioned, didn't even mention his rivals for the nomination. He's feeling like he's getting in general election mode already.
Santorum, you heard him link Barack Obama to Mitt Romney when it comes to health care a couple times in that speech, and that's important. Friday is the two-year anniversary of the president's National Health Care Reform Act. And a lot of reasons say that Mitt Romney's act, his law in Massachusetts was the inspiration for the national health care law -- Fred?
WHITFIELD: And then Saturday primary in Louisiana. Santorum spending a lot of time in Louisiana. Newt Gingrich has been eyeing the southern states and is hoping to do well there as well. What do you see in your crystal ball? STEINHAUSER: Yes. Louisiana much more of a conservative state than Illinois, so you could say Santorum is favored. Also a lot on the line for Gingrich down there.
But look at the calendar ahead in April. Let's start with April 3rd, Wisconsin, Maryland, and Washington, D.C., they hold contests. April 24th, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Other than Pennsylvania, all these states in April, they seem to favor Romney a lot more than Santorum -- Fred?
WHITFIELD: All right, Paul. Thanks so much. Good to see you.
STEINHAUSER: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: We'll have much more straight ahead here in the NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Suzanne Malveaux, up next. She got the memo, too. A little orange today.
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