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GOP Candidates Hit the Road; Making Money in the Windy City; Fierce Fighting in Several Syrian Cities; Shootings on Rise in Kill- adelphia; History Making Olympic Moments; A Surge in Hate in America; Hometown Welcomes V.P. Candidate Paul Ryan; USA Basketball Wins Gold; Long-Term Impact for Olympics' Biggest Names

Aired August 12, 2012 - 18:00   ET

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

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Deborah Feyerick at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Don Lemon is off.

Let's get you up to speed on the news making headlines at this hour.

Egypt's president has removed the country's top two military officers. Also, President Mohamed Morsi reversing a military decree, and taking away lawmaking powers from military generals. The president's party is calling supporters to rally in Cairo's Tahrir Square. Meantime, Egyptian forces are battling militants in the Sinai Peninsula, blamed for last week's attacks that killed more than a dozen troops.

Relief operations begin as rescue operations end for earthquake victims in Iran. Thousands of tents have been set up and food is being distributed where the quakes hit in northwest Iran. There are reports that at least 250 people were killed. More than 1,800 others injured.

A U.S. Navy destroyer is damaged heading into the Persian Gulf. Not from combat, but essentially a traffic accident in the Strait of Hormuz. The USS Porter collided with a Japanese-owned oil tanker. No injuries reported. The ship now in for repairs, was conducting security operations in the area.

Police shot and killed a man near New York's Times Square. The man allegedly threatened officers Saturday with a knife. It's unclear whether the suspect injured any pedestrians. Police pepper sprayed the man six times, and he still refused to drop the knife, and it was a big knife. The man was taken to a hospital where he later died.

Evangelist Billy Graham is hospitalized. The 93-year-old has a pulmonary infection believed to be bronchitis. His spokesman says Graham is being treated with antibiotics and is improving. The hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, says Graham is in stable condition but will spend tonight in the hospital.

Team USA won the men's basketball gold medal. It was a close game. The American team led Spain by one point after the third quarter. Kevin Durant was the high scorer with 30 points. LeBron James scored 19 points, and Kobe Bryant hit 17 points for the Americans.

Uganda's Stephen Kiprotich held up their country's flag as he won the men's marathon. He surged at 23 miles to take the gold medal. It is the second gold medal in Uganda's history.

Well, the man tapped for V.P. on the Republican ticket is campaigning in his home state. This is Waukesha, Wisconsin. Crowds gathered to embrace their congressman, Paul Ryan, and candidate Mitt Romney. The two men are traveling all weekend. This morning, they fired up a GOP meet-up in North Carolina.

Our national political correspondent Jim Acosta was there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: With Paul Ryan little more than 24 hours into his role as Mitt Romney's running mate, there is a race to define the Wisconsin congressman with Democrats stepping up their attacks and noting that Ryan once proposed a partial privatization of the Medicare program. Mitt Romney at two events here in North Carolina described Ryan as someone who came to Washington reluctantly in his late 20s when he was elected to Congress.

Here's what Romney had to say earlier today at an event in High Point, North Carolina.

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He planned on doing something else with his career, but, you know, he looked at the country and recognized the real challenges we had and decided to go and try to make a difference. And so, he went to Washington not to get along with everybody, but instead to bring some new ideas and to help bring people together on both sides of the aisle.

You see, he's someone who recognizes that there are sometimes honest differences between honest people. And he went there to change minds, to find people across the aisle he could work with, and he's done it.

ACOSTA: Meanwhile, the Obama campaign is ratcheting up its rhetoric. Obama campaign senior strategist David Axelrod said on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION" that Ryan is what he called, quote, "a right wing ideologue".

Now, as for Romney and Ryan, they will be wrapping up their day campaigning together in Wisconsin. What the campaign is billing as a homecoming for Paul Ryan, and then Ryan goes out on his own with a solo mission. He will be campaigning in Iowa on Monday, the same day President Obama will be in the state.

Jim Acosta, CNN, High Point, North Carolina.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: And live pictures here, Waukesha, Wisconsin. It's Paul Ryan's homecoming rally. His supporters will launch him from there onto the national stage.

CNN is live from there all evening and I'm going to be checking in with our John King in just a few minutes.

John King will also present a special hour here on CNN. It is a thorough focus on Paul Ryan, the man, the candidate, from his home state. Paul Ryan in depth, tune in or set your DVR now, 7:00 p.m., coming up, Eastern.

And President Obama is also heading home. There's nothing sentimental about this trip. Mr. Obama hopes to raise an incredible amount of money in Chicago. Today, he'll attend -- count them -- five fund- raisers.

CNN's Athena Jones is covering the president's trip.

And, Athena, what has been on his schedule?

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: (AUDIO GAP) five fundraisers in total, all of them here in his hometown of Chicago. He's here to rev up the hometown crowd and raise a bunch of cash.

Now, ticket prices for these fund-raisers are wide ranging. They go from as low at $51 or starting at $51, which is, of course, the birthday of the president, celebrity earlier this month. All the way up to $40,000 a ticket. One of those $40,000 a ticket is going to be at his home.

They also held a contest where people donating a very small amount, $3, $5, could win a chance to go to that fund-raiser at his house. So, all of that is going on today.

You know, the campaign is not going to be releasing any sort of official tallies for the totals they're raising, but they estimate that today's events will bring in between $3.5 million and $4 million, Deb.

FEYERICK: So, you know, it's going to be very interesting because Romney's campaign has bragged about making money off the Paul Ryan announcement. Is it possible that there's going to be a surge also in the amount of money that is -- that the president is going to bring in?

JONES: Well, it's certainly possible. I mean, on the Republican side people are saying that the Ryan pick is really shoring up the conservative base, Romney's conservative base. And they're hoping on this side that it will pump people up as well.

I can tell you that yesterday, the campaign sent out a long e-mail in response to the Ryan pick trying to introduce him to their supporters. They played on this idea that the Romney/Ryan ticket is the comeback team, "America's Comeback Team". They said really it's America's go back team, go back to old policies that put us in a difficult time where you're going to have policies that favor the rich and big corporations at the expense of the middle class.

This is someone that they're painting as a radical policy man. Ryan was the chief architect of what they're calling this extreme Republican budget that would shrink government dramatically, making big changes to Medicare, Medicaid, and cuts to social programs while protecting tax cuts for the rich, Deb.

So certainly they're hoping that that pick will help them, too.

FEYERICK: It's so fascinating because the Democrats are calling it the go back team. At the same time, the Republicans are basically saying that this is really an opportunity to take the country in a bold, new direction -- clearly with two very different platforms.

It is the beginning of several days of campaigning in the Midwest. What's next for the president?

JONES: That's right. So, tomorrow he heads to Iowa. He's going to do a three-day bus tour hitting seven cities, which is a lot of cities for a state the size of Iowa. You know, it only has six electoral votes, but in a close race every state matters. This is a state that the president won in 2008, but right now polls show that it's a tossup.

And so, you know, in some ways, it's also a symbolic state they want to keep in the blue column because, as you will remember, it was his win in the Iowa caucuses that really lit the fire for his campaign. Back then, it was seen as a long shot campaign for the presidency, but Iowa is really where it all got started for him.

And so, tomorrow he will head to Council Bluffs and he basically traverse the whole state. So, several more days of campaigning in this region, Deb.

FEYERICK: Yes, pretty incredible. Neither side, I'm sure, is going to be taking anything for granted, certainly not the votes that are open or potentially open to them.

Athena Jones for us in Chicago, thanks so much.

Well, Paul Ryan is being called a bold choice, even risky, but how risky is he really? Will Cain and L.Z. Granderson join me next to talk about it.

And more than 200 people in one city have been murdered this year and it's only August. No, it's not Afghanistan, nor is it Syria. It is Philadelphia. Ahead, you're going to see how two photo journalists are combating this crisis with their own weapons, cameras. It's an experiment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: Well, Americans are getting to know Congressman Paul Ryan this weekend, and both parties are trying to define who he really is.

Let's talk about Mitt Romney's new running mate with two of our favorites. Will Cain is a CNN contributor. L..Z Granderson also a CNN contributor and CNN writer for ESPN.com.

Good to see you both.

I know you're alleging you're going to agree on certain things, but let's see what we've got here. L.Z., Paul Ryan has a record. He's got his plan for prosperity. He's outlined how he would reform entitlement spending and overhaul Medicare. Democrats -- they are blasting the ideas.

But could his plan force everyone to actually get a little bit more serious and even force the president to come back not just with rhetoric about why his plan is wrong, but a new plan of his own? L.Z.?

L.Z. GRANDERSON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: You know, in a very strange way, Paul Ryan has become somewhat of a game-changer because you're absolutely correct, he's going to force not just President Obama but also Mitt Romney to get specific.

And let's not paint Paul Ryan has the great visionary just quite yet. I mean, he still has a lot of gaping holes that he hasn't answered with his Republican budget as well. For instance, he's talking about recovering much of the money that's going to be lost in tax revenue by closing tax loopholes, but he refuses to tell us exactly which tax loopholes he's going to cut. And without that information, it's hard to have a clear path or understanding what Paul Ryan's intentions are with the country as well.

So, he definitely is going to make everybody get a lot more specific starting with the president, but Mitt Romney has got to come with some details as well.

FEYERICK: No Question. And, Will, so let me ask you that question, because Mitt Romney hasn't exactly been specific on entitlement reform. You know, he said that he's going to come up with a plan of his own. Will that plan be a lot like Ryan's plan? Will this be sort of an amalgamation of different ideas?

How is Romney himself going to get more specific on budget issues?

WILL CAIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, you have to guess at the very least that it would be very similar to Paul Ryan's plan. I mean, having selected him to be his presidential candidate, you have to assume he likes Paul Ryan's budget plan. In fact, he's endorsed it in the past.

And so, for those who think Paul Ryan was some kind of risky pick, you have to ask yourself is it possible to be a little bit pregnant because up to this point Mitt Romney has endorsed it by picking Paul Ryan, just means he's going full in with Paul Ryan's budget plan. So, I think that in and of itself means Mitt Romney has gotten specific.

Regarding President Obama, I think, L.Z. and Deb, your question is a little wishful thinking on whether or not it will force President Obama to be specific. It simply is not politically advantageous up to this pointed to be specific about entitlement reform.

It really means you have three paths. One is you can have government experts ration Medicare. Number two, you can give consumers vouchers and have them make their own choices. That's Ryan. Or number three, you can pretend like neither a necessary, and number three has been the political path for more candidates, including President Obama, up to this point.

FEYERICK: Well, and you raise a very good point there. Again, you can't just say, look, your plan to reform Medicare, to give vouchers, to give bulk sums of money to Medicaid, to the states, you can't say, well, that's not going to work unless you got something -- you know, my vision would be come election day I have five-point plans on both sides and I can look and I can say, OK, Medicare, Medicaid entitlement, you know, I don't know whether that's going to happen.

CAIN: Right.

FEYERICK: Voters always say they want Washington leaders to act like grown-ups and make tough decisions. Ryan seems to have done that.

Are we going to see a totally different vision about these entitlement programs, either from Ryan or from Obama? Will we see that when we go to the polls? L.Z.?

GRANDERSON: I don't think so.

FEYERICK: OK.

GRANDERSON: I don't think so, and, you know, I kind of disagree with your premise that Paul Ryan has got us thinking sensibly or seriously about these issues. There's a story on "The Washington Post" yesterday, and the number two trending topic on Google under Paul Ryan was shirtless. Americans wanted to see a picture of Paul Ryan shirtless.

Number four was the budget. That's where we are. That's what happened after his announcement. We wanted to see him shirtless and then further down we want to talk about the budget.

So I'm not necessarily -- I'm not sure if having Paul Ryan in that conversation is going to force us to be more serious. I think we're still going to be wanting to kick this can down the proverbial road and take the path of least resistance. That's going to be less painful, and that's the only reason why Paul Ryan is a game-changer, because he's suggesting pain where everyone else usually you don't.

CAIN: Right, right.

FEYERICK: So, Will, do you agree with that? Because Romney -- you know, Romney's pick is being called bold, risky. This is a guy who when I hear him talk, when I see him on that campaign trail, he was campaign-ready. He was not, for example, like Sarah Palin who really kind of had to get up to speed on the issues. This is somebody who knows from where he comes and what he's thinking.

CAIN: Right.

FEYERICK: So, is he risky or not so much, Will?

CAIN: He's risky, Deb, because he's done exactly what we're debating, whether or not President Obama will now do. That is -- Paul Ryan has been specific about addressing problems we must address. To be truthful, it doesn't matter if you agree or disagree with Paul Ryan. That's not the point.

The point is he put forward a plan that not everyone is going to like because it induces pain, and there is no painless path to correcting these problems.

I think L.Z. s right, if you see poll after poll, voters want to deal with the budget deficit. They like to see it get in line, but they do not want to do anything about the entitlements that are causing these deficits. So, instead of having President Obama put forward a solution, my guess will be honestly what you will see are ads like throwing grandma over the cliff and less about "here's my alternative plan".

FEYERICK: Well, we still got a long way to go.

GRANDERSON: But, he is throwing grandma -- I mean, he is throwing grandma off the cliff a little bit. I mean --

CAIN: That's nonsense.

GRANDERSON: Without question, it's going to raise costs on health care for senior citizens, and it's going to affect 62 percent of the budget.

CAIN: No, it doesn't touch anybody over the age 55. It doesn't touch anybody over the age of 55.

FEYERICK: Also, you got to keep in mind that it's like 30 years before any of this really sort of materializes and there's something resembling some sort of balance.

GRANDERSON: Well, that's kicking the can down the road again, right?

FEYERICK: Exactly.

GRANDERSON: Those people later but not these people now.

FEYERICK: Well, exactly, we have elections every four years. So there's always some can somewhere being kicked. By the way, shirtless, not so sure, but I think that is in the demographic. It means seniors will play an important role in this upcoming election.

Will Cain, L.Z. Granderson, thanks both of you so much.

CAIN: Thank you.

FEYERICK: Well, a far too familiar sound in Syria.

Reports of escalating violence and heavy shelling in several cities, and now, there is word of atrocities being committed by the opposition.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: Rebel groups say that at least 110 people were killed throughout Syria today as Aleppo and other cities came under intense attack by government forces. Meanwhile, disturbing new accounts are surfacing about brutality on both sides of this conflict.

Ivan Watson reports from Istanbul, and we warn you, some of these images are very graphic.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: As the fighting grinds on in Syria, disturbing images have emerged over the Internet of what appears to be more rebel atrocities. These images are graphic.

This appears to show rebel fighters in the northern rebel-held town of Al-Bab, to the North of Aleppo, throwing government security forces, their bodies off the roof of the communications building in that rebel-held town to their deaths on the ground below. At least four, if not five, stories that these bodies are thrown to the ground. Now, we don't have any confirmation. We don't know exactly when this video was filmed.

We do know from our team inside Syria who have been recently in Al- Bab, that this town is recently controlled by the rebels, by the so- called Free Syrian Army. This is not the first time we've seen members of this rebel opposition summarily executing their enemies. And it's not going to help their image either within Syria or within the court of public opinion in the international community.

Clearly, what appeared to be revenge killings, a cycle of revenge killings being carried out by both security forces backing the government and by the armed opposition, and not helping those Syrians who are on the fence worried about tales of jihadist and foreign fighters and extremists within the ranks of the armed opposition.

In the meantime, the first lady here in Turkey has gone public in this interview published in Turkey's "Sabah" newspaper. Emine Erdogan, the wife of the Turkish prime minister, gave an interview in which she said that she had been very close friends with the Syrian first lady, Asma al-Assad, and that she was frankly surprised at the silence of the Syrian first lady over the course of the violence of the past 17 months. That she had reached out with messages through her husband to the Syrian President Bashar al Assad, asking for the Syrian first lady to call her.

She never received a call. She said they used to get together three times a year without any diplomatic protocol, and that she wished Asma al-Assad brought her children to Turkey where they could have had protection to escape from the violence Asma al-Assad's husband is implicated in. She thought that Asma al-Assad was somebody who wanted democracy and progress in her country and she's, frankly, surprised in this interview that Asma al Assad has not spoken out about the violence that the Syrian government and the Syrian president are directly implicated in.

Ivan Watson, CNN, Istanbul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK: Very troubling. Ivan Watson, thanks. Well, listen closely for a moment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARAH HOYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Joe Kaczmarek's police scanner crackles to life just before midnight. Moments later, Kaz, as his friends call him, is rushing to the scene of a robbery gone bad.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Photo journalists chasing gunfire in one of America's most violent cities. CNN takes you along for the ride.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: And coming up to the half hour now. Let's get you up to speed on news making headlines.

Paul Ryan firing kind of a zinger at President Obama today. Ryan says Obama's economic policies could make the U.S. more like debt-plagued Greece. He and Mitt Romney campaigned in North Carolina earlier today. To learn a lot more about Paul Ryan at the top of the hour, don't miss CNN's special report on Ryan at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.

President Barack Obama is in Chicago, hitting five fund-raisers in his adopted hometown. The events are expected to raise millions of dollars for his campaign. From Chicago, Mr. Obama leaves for a three- day tour of swing state Iowa.

And incredible new surveillance video out of Kansas City, Missouri. You're looking inside a city bus as it crashes. Roads were slick after storms Wednesday and the driver lost control. The bus rocketed down an embankment, flipping upside down. More than a dozen people were hurt. None of the injuries were life-threatening.

Football's Chad Johnson has been released from a Florida jail after posting bail for a domestic violence charge. The wife of the Miami Dolphins receiver said he head-butted her during an argument. Johnson faces a maximum penalty of one year in jail and $1,000 as part of a fine. He only recently changed his last name from Ochocinco back to Johnson.

And evangelist Billy Graham is hospitalized. The 93-year-old has a pulmonary infection believe to be bronchitis. His spokesman says Graham is being treated with antibiotics and is improving. The hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, says Graham is in stable condition, though he will spend tonight in the hospital.

Well, it is only August, but in Philadelphia more than 200 people have been murdered this year. And in the weeks since the Colorado movie theater rampage, dozens more have been shot.

So as the crisis grows, two photo journalists are experimenting with their own weapon, in the city many are calling "Kila-delphia". CNN's Sarah Hoye follows them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARAH HOYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Joe's Kaczmarek's police scanner crackles to life just before midnight. Moments later, Kaz, as his friends call him, is rushing to the scene of a robbery gone bad. Along for the ride is fellow veteran photo journalist, Jim MacMillan.

The 20-year-old robbery victim has already been taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound to the back. Police take away two men in handcuffs.

Kaz MacMillan co-founded guncrisis.org to help curb gun violence plaguing what is supposed to be the City of Brotherly Love.

JOE KACZMAREK, PHOTO JOURNALIST & CO-FOUNDER, GUNCRISIS.ORG: I want to put the audience out there in the streets and I want them to see what I'm seeing every night in the city. The children watching crime scene investigations night after night, day after day. Anything to disrupt this, marginally disrupt it, I would consider it a success.

HOYE: Since the shooting rampage in Aurora, Colorado, Gun Crisis estimates at least five gunshot victims in Philadelphia alone. So far this year, more than 210 murders, a rate approaching 2007, when the city saw more than a murder a day, and earned its nickname, Kill- adelphia.

JIM MACMILLAN, PHOTO JOURNALIST & CO-FOUNDER, GUNCRISIS.ORG: Turning around the gun violence epidemic is a tall order. It's going to take heroic action. But our cities are full of heroes who have done this before. We can do it again. It's not going to go on forever. And the harder we work, the sooner we will bring an end to the violence.

HOYE: The small volunteer team at Gun Crisis wants to shake things up by chronicling the daily gunfire.

Another radio call and the pair races across town.

On this residential block, a man was shot at least 12 times. Police rushed him to the hospital where he died moments later. The crime lab is documenting the evidence.

At least four people were shot in separate incidents in just two hours.

KACZMAREK: This is a project that I believe in. The city gives us no break. There's an abundance of opportunities to report, unfortunately.

HOYE: Philadelphia had 324 homicides last year, with blacks making up 85 percent of the victims.

KACZMAREK It's costing all of us, whether it's immediately in front of your face or it's several miles away in another community. We are all connected, and it's affecting all of us, and it's costing all of us.

HOYE: While the mayor and other city officials introduce new measures, cash rewards for tips and more police on the streets, the mayhem didn't slow down.

Mayor Michael Nutter more than frustrated.

MICHAEL NUTTER, (D), MAYOR OF PHILADELPHIA: You want to act like an idiot, if you want to be a (EXPLETIVE DELETED), if you want to be a low life in this town, we will track you down like the dog that you are.

CALLER (voice-over): MacMillan, who works with the city officials, says they are committed because lives depend on finding a solution.

MACMILLAN: What happens next, we elevate the discourse. We bring people together. We build a movement. We stop the killing.

HOYE: A major challenge for a city where murder has become routine.

Sarah Hoye, CNN, Philadelphia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK: Well, with the 2012 Olympics coming to a close, what will you remember about the London games? We'll talk about the history- making moments that, well, you may have missed.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: It's already over, almost. And as the final Olympic moments are etched into the history books, we're looking at what defined the 2012 games. Some stories that you might have missed.

And CNN INTERNATIONAL's Azadeh Ansari is here.

And, Azadeh, we have heard about Michael Phelps and Gabby Douglas, but there were so many Olympic moments not as public but certainly just as meaningful, not as public, but certainly just as meaningful and just as monumental.

AZADEH ANSARI, CNN INTERNATIONAL DESK EDITOR: That's right, Deb. Many of those monumental moments actually featured women, female athletes, some of the times, for the very first time. They raised the bar. They broke through the glass ceiling so they could pave the way for many of the future generation of many of these athletes to come.

Take the case of Sara Atar, who represented Saudi Arabia this year. Even though she finished last in her heat, she received a standing ovation from the crowd for her spirit and participation. You can see her covered from head to toe. Running is hard enough, but then add to that what she had to wear.

Then you had Kyla Harrison, who was the victim of sexual abuse as a teenager, overcomes those odds to become the first U.S. woman to win a gold medal in judo.

We had so many stories like that, and very emotional stories that came out of these Olympics specifically. FEYERICK: You know, it's fascinating because, we're watching some of the Olympics, you really are inspired by the young men and women who have just sacrificed so much and who have worked so hard. All the athletes you just mentioned, they were women. And for the first time, all participating countries, they did have female athletes, and that was very unique as well.

ANSARI: That is correct. If we just look back not that long ago, here at the games in Atlanta in 1996, there were 26 countries that did not have any female representation. In 2008, there were three. And then this year, the pioneers that led the way were Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Brunei, who sent women for the very first time. And 44 percent of all the athletes that competed in these games were female. And even on the U.S. team, we had 269 women to 261 men. So we had more female representation as well.

FEYERICK: And it's so good, especially, you know, for all the young girls out there to see these women who are really striving, really accomplishing all these wonderful things.

Now, the games are also historic for another reason, and that is that this was really -- that there were certain countries that, for the first time ever, took home their first medals. And that's fun. It's exciting.

ANSARI: It's really interesting. The countries we hear about are the ones that top the medal charts, the U.S., China and Great Britain. But the ones we don't hear about are, for example, Guatemala. We didn't hear about Cyprus, Gabon. These are some examples of countries that won their very first medals. The Walker, who won the silver medal in the race walk, from Guatemala, he was actually knighted by -- unanimously, the Guatemalan government voted to knight him. He wasn't just a hometown hero. He really was elevated to the status that maybe even our own athletes won't be.

FEYERICK: You know what? I can see why. Maybe in certain cases somebody should be knighted, if they're bringing home the first medal for a country. That's a big accomplishment.

ANSARI: Just fascinating.

FEYERICK: Azadeh Ansari, thanks so much.

ANSARI: Thank you, Deb.

FEYERICK: We really appreciate it.

Hate groups are on the rise in America. And up next, an inside look at what may be motivating this surge in hate.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: Well, an emotional day for American Sikhs in Wisconsin. Worshippers held their first prayer service since a gunman burst into their temple exactly a week ago killing six people. They honored those killed and called for peace and understanding. Extra security was in place.

The Sikh temple gunman, Wade Page, was once a singer for a white supremacist rock band.

CNN Susan Candiotti reports, hate groups in the U.S. are on the rise.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Wade Page inexplicably targeted a Sikh temple in Wisconsin, the white supremacist not only claimed innocent lives, his actions highlighted a disturbing trend, hate groups are on the rise.

(SHOUTING)

HEIDI BEIRICH, SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER: The hate movement has been basically rapidly rising now for a little over a decade.

CANDIOTTI: In 2000, the Southern Poverty Law Center was tracking just over 600 hate groups. By 2011, that number dramatically increased to 1,018.

What changed? Some say the changing face of America, starting with the census that predicted, by 2055, less than half the country would be white.

BEIRICH: If you're a white supremacist and you find that out, it's terrifying because that puts an end to your dreams of creating a white nation in the United States.

(SHOUTING)

CANDIOTTI: Hate groups and hate crimes are mainly motivated by race and religion.

2009, an avowed white supremacist is arrested for tally shooting a security guard at Washington's Holocaust Memorial. He died while awaiting trial.

2011, at a Martin Luther King parade in Spokane, Washington, the FBI find a backpack loaded with explosives. This man, identified as a white supremacist, pleads guilty to a federal hate crime.

This year, 14 alleged members of the anarchist group American Front are arrested on charges, including anti-American paramilitary training and planning an attack in central Florida. Prosecutors say their ultimate aim is race war against Jews, immigrants, and other minorities. Trials are scheduled for later this year.

Which brings us back to Sikh temple shooter, Wade Page. How do you stop an apparent lone wolf?

BEIRICH: The sad fact is that Wade Page is just one of thousands of people who are involved in the skin head movement, the neo-Nazi movement, who look like him, with the racist tattoos, who say vial things about killing Jews or blacks or whatever the case might be. But he decided to step over into violence. Most of these people won't. And it's very, very hard to know when that's going to happen.

CANDIOTTI (on camera): The FBI says, unless there's a threat of violence, agents cannot arrest them, no matter how hateful the speech.

Susan Candiotti, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK: Well, there's nothing like a homecoming rally. And the turnout is expected to be in the thousands. We're going to get a live preview from Waukesha, Wisconsin, with Mitt Romney's new running mate. That's right, you know the man, Paul Ryan.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: Let's go now to Waukesha, Wisconsin. That's where our very own John King is with lots of excited people waiting to welcome their home state congressman and new Republican candidate for V.P., Paul Ryan.

John, we're going to be turning CNN over to you and Gloria Borger in just a few minutes. You've got a special one-hour program focusing on this congressman, the candidate. Where are you going to start? What are we going to learn?

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Deb, we're doing to dedicate the entire 7:00 hour as the American people trying to get to know the man Mitt Romney has just picked as his running mate.

If you look around here, there's a crowd of thousands here in Waukesha, Wisconsin. The congressman's district is a bit of a distance from here, but you can see a very energized crowd of Republicans. The preliminary speakers are speaking. It's the Republicans in the congressional delegation right now.

Look, this state has been reliably Democratic for president for a long time. But Republicans just won that recall election. Remember, they tried to recall the governor, Scott Walker. They are quite energized.

Now that Governor Romney has picked Paul Ryan, Republicans in this crowd will tell you they think this is a shot to put Wisconsin in the Republican column come November. So a big homecoming, a very big homecoming for Paul Ryan, the House Budget Committee chairman, as the people of America try to get to know him. We're giving him the 7:00 hour. No only show you what he's been like on the campaign, but go back through his record of bit as well. And also, Governor Romney and Paul Ryan are scheduled to speak at this event during the 7:00 hour. If this happens, Deb, we'll bring it to you live.

We want to show you -- this is national news all over the country, but especially big deal here in Wisconsin. Here's the front page today of the "Milwaukee Journal Sentinel" today.

And just a bit of a footnote on where we are, we're in the city of Waukesha in Waukesha County. These are the reliable Republican Milwaukee suburbs the Republicans need to win big if they're going to carry the state. John McCain carried the county in 2008. Yet, President Obama carried the state, 56 to 43. So this big crowd tonight is critical, Deb, if the Republicans are not only going to have to intensity, but the high turnouts from Republican they'll need 85 days from now -- Deb?

FEYERICK: All right, John King, thanks so much. We will meet you back at the top of the hour. Thanks a lot.

Well, they were a big deal at the Olympics, but will we remember them when the games are over? Pablo Torre, of "Sports Illustrated," joins me next to assess the long-term impact of the games' biggest names.

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FEYERICK: London's moment in the Olympic spotlight comes to an end tonight leaving us with some amazing memories.

Let's talk about the stars of the Summer Games with Pablo Torre of "Sports Illustrated."

There's a new issue of the "Sports Illustrated" with Usain Bolt of Jamaica on the cover.

And, Pablo, great the see you.

I want to talk about basketball. The U.S. won gold today, defeating Spain. It wasn't exactly a blowout, but another gold for USA basketball. I've wondered how these professional athletes compete in games where there are also 16 and 17-year-olds. But how do you relate the U.S. basketball team's Olympic performance?

PABLO TORRE, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED: Well, Deb, there is a debate throughout the Olympics on whether this Team USA 2012 edition could beat the 1992 Dream Team. And this team, led by Kevin Durant and Lebron James and Chris Paul didn't quite dominate in the way that the '92 team did. But they did bring home the gold. They managed to pull out a victory after some close games against Argentina, against Spain today in a really exhilarating game. And so when you want to assess their performance, you've got to realize global basketball is so much better now. The '92 Dream Team rolled through the world, but this team had stiff competition and, by that standard, their path to gold was much more harder to earn.

FEYERICK: Which was interesting. By the way, several Olympic team members are affected by a blockbuster NBA trade. On Friday, Dwight Howard now joining the Lakers. How big a deal is this?

TORRE: Speaking of super teams, this is a very big deal in the NBA. Used to be, you needed three stars. The Miami Heat last year was that example. But now, you have Kobe Bryant, Paul Gasol (ph), playing in today's gold medal game, joining up with Steve Nash, an all-star, the point guard. Now Dwight Howard, the most athletic, big man in the NBA. And they're penciled in as a favorite for the NBA finals to hopefully unseat Lebron James and the Heat next year.

FEYERICK: Pablo, as somebody who always watches a lot of sports and follows it, as these games wrap up, what are your most memorable moments?

TORRE: I'll give you two. One is an American, one is an international one. The American one is Gabby Douglas. She's famous now, but there are only so many -- there are only so many firsts left in sports. And the term pioneer is often thrown around lightly. But with Gabby Douglas, the first gold medal to be awarded to an African- American woman at age 16, that's a first and a big step in a sport where the demographics shift is going in a new direction. And the international one, it's Usain Bolt. Our calendar in America is so overwhelmed by the NBA, and NFL and MLB, it turns out, being the fastest man in a world still means something. He was the biggest start in London, even ahead of all those MBA players we just mentioned.

FEYERICK: He really got the crowd going. We were showing some pictures of Gabby Douglas, who had fallen at that moment. But the one thing I love watching the Olympics is just the spirit of these young athletes who just overcome incredible odds and who sacrifice so much of their time. And to see her win gold is just so remarkable.

The one thing, you know, will we remember any of these at athletes a year from now? Do they go on to have very lucrative endorsement careers? How do you see it?

TORRE: That's a fair question because the reality of the Olympics is America tends to have the memory of a goldfish. We are so invested in this one thing for about two weeks, and then you don't really think about anybody involved again, with a couple of exceptions. Gabby Douglas certainly is going to be a marketing machine due to those demographics that I mentioned. But let's remember, Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps, remember him, the guy with most ever gold medals, those are two guys who are legitimate all time greats. You said Bolt called himself the best athlete to be alive right now. That's another debate. But we'll be seeing a lot more of him and Michael Phelps and Gabby Douglas in the years to come.

FEYERICK: Just looking at all of these, you wonder, these athletes having had this experience at the Olympics, whether -- how do you go back and kind of get used to life afterwards?

TORRE: Yes. There's all this debate about, when you see athletes celebrate too much, or when we see people, you know, maybe you react negatively when they don't get the results they want. We saw that in gymnastics, for example. The reality is this is such a solitary existence before the Olympics. It's so monomaniacal. All that energy goes into one thing, and now that it's over, you've got to find your own way to make a new life.

FEYERICK: Yes, where do you put that energy? Where do you put that energy?

(LAUGHTER)

All right, Pablo Torre, thanks so much. We really appreciate it.

I'm Deborah Feyerick at the CNN center in Atlanta. CNN's special, "PAUL RYAN IN DEPTH," that begins right now.