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Tropical Storm Isaac Headed Toward Gulf Coast; Gas Prices and Gulf Storms; Romney Arrives in Florida; Key Speeches Tonight at RNC; Curfew in Gulfport as Isaac Nears; Ann Romney Arrives at Convention; Utah Governor Talks Convention

Aired August 28, 2012 - 11:00   ET

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

ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, everybody. I'm Ashleigh Banfield, nice to have you with us.

It's 11:00 on the East Coast, 8:00 on the West Coast and you know what that means. It means we're about to get some brand new numbers on Isaac, a powerful tropical storm may be turning into a hurricane turning northward towards the Gulf Coast and that big threat, though is the rain. Possibly a foot or more and also the tidal surges that those storms bring -- that could bring anywhere up from three to 12 feet. So clearly this is a crisis in the making.

At this point right now, we can tell you that the center of the storm is on track to hit Louisiana a little over 12 hours from now. Tomorrow, of course, as you'll know, the eerie seventh anniversary of Katrina.

Our Jennifer Delgado is watching this from the CNN Weather Center. I know that we're just 23 seconds into the top of the hour and that's usually when they make this declaration as to whether we turned from tropical storm to hurricane. Do you know if we're Cat 1 at this point?

JENNIFER DELGADO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: We are still actually a tropical storm. The winds right now are sustained at 70 miles per hour and, as I'll show you on our graphic here, latest information coming in from the National Hurricane Center, we're still looking at some gusts up to 85 and it's moving to the northwest at 10-miles-per-hour, right now, located about 80 miles from the mouth of the Mississippi.

Now, this system is going to be a slow mover and we really thought it might have become a hurricane. We started to see more increased convection in the center circulation, but here's the fact for you. We are expecting this Tuesday, winds at 80 miles per hour, so still expecting this to become a Category 1 and then sweeping up towards the northwest.

Now, as I said, a very slow mover, so, of course, this is going to mean an increased amount of rainfall and also we're talking about a storm surge for some of these locations anywhere between 8 and 12 feet and that is aboveground.

Now, we're expecting tropical storm conditions to work into the region later on this afternoon into the evening and then the center of circulation very likely to make a landfall as we go into the late hours of tonight, as well as into the overnight of tomorrow.

And then you notice, for the next 24 to 48 hours, it's going to be moving really slow, very likely holding onto tropical storm strength, but the problem is, as I said, Ashleigh, it's really going to be the heavy rainfall, as well as the storm surge and, of course, we're going to add in those winds, as well.

But right now, I just want to point out to you, new in, we do have a tornado watch in effect for southeastern parts of Louisiana, spreading into Mississippi, Alabama, as far over towards the east of Florida.

BANFIELD: I know we've got some of these pictures that have been showing the waves hitting Dauphin Island in Alabama, so it really stated that we shouldn't just be talking about just the eye of the hurricane on its way and tonight is when all danger begins.

These outer bands can be just as deadly and just as damaging and it looks like they're starting to get this by these pictures here.

What's the story right now as we look along the various states in the Gulf Coast in terms of those outer bands? What are they doing at this point?

DELGADO: You know, right now, the outer bands are starting to look a lot better and that's why we are seeing that tornado watch in place because these storms are starting to look a bit better developed.

You can see some of these low cells coming with the rain band and that is what's going to be the problem. With the heavy rainfall and with this onshore flow, we're going to be seeing the strongest and the worst conditions right here in the right front quadrant of this system, Ashleigh.

BANFIELD: All right, Jennifer, keep an eye on that. If that changes to Cat 1, jump in at any moment and interrupts us and let us know what the developing situation is. Do appreciate it. Thank you.

And already, President Obama has offered up federal disaster aid to Louisiana. This before even the bulk of the storm hit. He actually spoke about Isaac just last hour live at the White House. Have a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: As we prepare for Isaac to hit, I want to encourage all residents of the Gulf Coast to listen to your local officials and follow their directions, including if they tell you to evacuate.

We're dealing with a big storm and there could be significant flooding and other damage across a large area. Now is not the time to tempt fate. Now is not the time to dismiss official warnings. You need to take this seriously.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BANFIELD: Take this seriously. Words to live by. Certainly, if you're from New Orleans, that's for sure.

So, just after those remarks, the president actually set out for a road trip. He's campaigning in Iowa and Colorado, which means that Isaac isn't the only distraction, major distraction, for the Republicans who are trying to start that convention, that truncated convention in Tampa.

Got much more on that in just a moment. We're going to do full-on politics throughout this program, but still, there is this looming danger and, if you do live in New Orleans and you haven't gotten out already, your mayor is telling you don't. Sit there. Sit tight. It's too late, at this point, to get on the move and be clogged in traffic and potentially be in an even more dangerous situation.

However, that said, the city leaders, the state officials and all the feds, they're all agreeing that the buckets of money, the billions of dollars in post-Katrina upgrades to New Orleans, the levees, the pumps and the floodgates have left the city better protected than ever before, but is it enough?

CNN's Brian Todd is there. He's been assessing that story for us. First, give me the weather update where you are.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ashleigh, we're seeing some of the earliest bands of Isaac coming through here. It's fairly calm right now, but we're getting a little bit of the wind whipping up here.

Some of the rain came through here earlier. That's dissipated right now, but we know, of course, that it's coming back and was just told by one of my colleague sin Atlanta that we can expect a strong band here pretty soon.

What we're told, you mentioned, you know, the floodgates, the seawalls, the levees being upgraded. We were just told officials that they are about to close the floodgate that's attached to the world's biggest pumping station. That's called the West Closure Station not far away from here. They are told - we are told that they are sealing off all 127 floodgates in this area to seal off the city of New Orleans from possible overtopping of the levees.

And one of the areas that they're going to be watching most closely is the area of Lake Pontchartrain. My team and I were just up there a short time ago, got some video of the wind and the rain starting to whip up the tide there in Lake Pontchartrain.

You know, that is really the key point that people are watching right here because that was the area that over-spilled during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Some of the areas around the lakes, some of the levee points were breached there, so that area of Lake Pontchartrain is what people are watching, Ashleigh.

Right now, you mentioned evacuations. No mandatory evacuations for the city of New Orleans. What the mayor is saying is that if you live in the low-lying areas of the city that are outside the areas protected by the levees, then you should probably get out. He is, quote, "strongly urging" people to get out in those areas.

But inside the city of New Orleans, no mandatory evacuations as of now, Ashleigh.

BANFIELD: OK, and, Brian, I have some breaking news that I want to bring out viewers right now and it comes out of Gulfport, Mississippi.

The officials in that vicinity have now put in place a curfew, an official curfew now from your authorities in Gulfport, Mississippi, 7:00 p.m. tonight to 7:00 a.m. tomorrow. It's exactly what Brian was just reporting about.

These outer bands will give you a good indication of what's coming, but when it gets dark and when it gets difficult to get around, you're better inside if you aren't already gone, so we're going to take you live to Gulfport, Mississippi, in the next hour.

In the meantime, there is your radar for still Tropical Storm Isaac, but by the hour, this can change. We are awaiting the potential of this being a development into Category 1 and this can happen at any time.

So, again, Gulfport, Mississippi, curfew coming your way, 7:00 p.m. tonight. Back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: Just a quick note for you, if you are heading out the door. You can continue watching CNN from your mobile phone or, if you're heading to work, you can pop us up on your P.C., too, your desktop. All you need to do is go to CNN.com/TV. It's very, very easy. Even I can do it. They'll give you all the instructions.

So, the Republican National Convention is getting underway in Tampa, Florida, today and it would be our lead story - heck, it would be the lead story for the week before and the entire week of, if there weren't this potentially deadly storm that's bearing down on the Gulf Coast today.

Mitt Romney is arriving there in Tampa at any moment, but with Isaac sometimes stealing the spotlight, it is a pretty different game there for Republicans this week. After all, they've already lost a day after cancelling yesterday's events and all of that just because of weather.

So, let's bring in CNN's political editor, Paul Steinhauser, who's with our team in Tampa. All right, so, unfortunate, I mean, what lousy timing, honestly, but do you think, Paul, or is anybody there on the ground talking about any significant loss in bump potential because of what's happening with Isaac and because of, not only the stories leading with the danger of Isaac, but also some of those key players in the media pulling up stakes and moving over to New Orleans to cover the storm coming?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Exactly. Look at us. We've got Soledad O'Brien, we've got Anderson Cooper and a host of people who were here in Tampa, now in New Orleans and along the Gulf Coast.

So, listen, the conventional wisdom, Ashleigh, is, yes, this is a big distraction. It's going to take attention away from this convention and the theme of this convention, of course, and the mission of this convention is to reintroduce Mitt Romney to the American public.

So, could the storm hurt in that aspect? Yes, but here's the contrarian view to that. This is a shorter convention now. It's more streamlined and that actually may help.

And I was talking to a top Republican strategist yesterday and he said, you know what? The storm coverage may actually help in a way because, listen, when big storms like this come through, the ratings for cable news and news, in general, go up.

And we at CNN and the other cable newscasts not only are covering the storm, we are covering the convention here, so there may actually be more eyeballs than less eyeballs right here, watching what's going on in Tampa, Ashleigh.

BANFIELD: All right, well, talk to me a little bit about the schedule of events. You mentioned everything truncated, squashed into the fewer days that they have. What's today got in store?

STEINHAUSER: Well, about three hours from now right behind me here in the convention hall, the Tampa Bay Times Forum, is when the action gets underway.

The first thing that happens, they're going to adopt the platform and rules that were voted on last week and we could get a little bit of a maybe noisy protest from some Ron Paul supporters who don't like some of these rules. We saw a little bit of a protest yesterday, so keep your eyes on that.

Then the roll calls for Mitt Romney and for Paul Ryan, both of them arriving here in Tampa in the next hour or two. Their roll calls will start and, of course, we know Mitt Romney's going to be nominated as Republican presidential nominee. Same thing for Ryan as the v.p. nominee.

And then in prime time, it's the big speakers and we start in the 7:00 Eastern hour, and Rick Santorum. We all remember that him and Romney really went at it in the primaries, as they were battling for the nomination. He is one of the early speakers. I think you'll see him say a lot more nicer things about Mitt Romney this time around than he did back during the primaries.

Scott Walker, the governor of Wisconsin who has been in the news a lot over the last two years, he will be speaking.

Also, some high profile women, Nikki Haley, the governor of South Carolina, and Mary Fallin, the governor of Oklahoma. Of course, they're trying to reach out to women at this convention. There is a gender gap. We've seen it.

Talking about women, Ann Romney, a big speech, 10:00 Eastern in primetime. That's the big hour. The most important speakers go in the 10:00 Eastern hour. Ann Romney, of course, will try to portray her husband and give us a little taste of what he is like, the man, the family man.

And then Chris Christie, the outspoken governor of New Jersey, he is giving a keynote address and all eyes will be on that speech, of course, Ashleigh.

BANFIELD: Yeah, so, obviously, cable news is the place to be because most of those broadcast networks aren't going to start touching those speeches until 10:00 p.m. tonight, Eastern.

So, real quickly for you, as Mitt Romney and, hopefully, his plane will be on time. I don't know if the weather is being affected in Tampa right now. If he arrives - I'm looking at the clock -- anytime now, what does he do between now and the big speech on Thursday?

STEINHAUSER: Well, the campaign is not giving us any details on what he is doing today. What he may be doing today - this is just a guess - he may be meeting with some of the key delegations, some of those key states.

He may be meeting with, of course, his own campaign officials here and other Republican officials and, listen, Ann Romney speaks tonight, so would he want to make a surprise out there at the podium? It's anybody's guess. He may do that.

Now, tomorrow, this is interesting. He's still scheduled to give a speech tomorrow in Indianapolis at the American Legion and then, of course, Thursday night is supposed to be his big night right back here in Tampa, Ashleigh.

BANFIELD: I'm getting word, breaking as we speak, that Mitt Romney has landed. "The eagle has landed" in Tampa, Florida, so he's at the airport and probably headed -- coming your way, Paul Steinhauser. Thanks so much for that.

STEINHAUSER: Coming right to me. Coming right to me, you got it.

BANFIELD: To speak directly to you, I'm told. I don't know. I just heard a little rumor.

STEINHAUSER: Exactly. Yeah. Yeah, that's it.

BANFIELD: Thanks, Paul.

Thirty minutes from now, we're going to take you live to the convention floor. We'll see if we can't peek for Mitt Romney, but methinks maybe he's heading for the hotel to unpack first.

The stakes are big. Tonight, speakers are a big, big deal. Ann Romney, of course, as Paul Steinhauser just mentioned, to do the softening effect, perhaps, and then Chris Christie to really hammer home the platform and then the personality of the party, as well.

And you know something? One thing we've definitely come to expect from the conventions is the bounce. That's the jump in support for the candidates after they've finished pleading their case, telling their platforms and really appealing to the American people before the election.

But you might be interested to see the list of the past. Last few years, the convention bounce has really been kind of "meh." "Meh" means nonexistent.

John McCain and John Kerry in 2004, bupkis. almost nothing. And, if you compare that to Bill Clinton, 16 percent back in 1992, and then Michael Dukakis, 7 percent back in 1998.

And John King, who's our wizard of all things when it comes to this, mentioned don't forget '88. We weren't heavy into cable news at that point. '92, not so much either and then the cable news really hits and you kind of get saturated. Who knows if that's part of the parcel there, but the Romney campaign had hoped for a bit of a bump, without question, after adding Paul Ryan, but that bump didn't come, despite these fantastic pictures.

And, you know, Ryan's a real likable guy. He resonates well within the party and outside the party, too, so now, at this point, looks like they may just have to wait to see if this convention this week, short or not, is going to help to give them the boost that they certainly are looking for.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: You know, when it comes to tracking hurricanes and tropical storms, the goal is really just to get the most detailed and exact information as possible. That's the data.

That's where hurricane hunters come into play and we've got some video that should give you a pretty good idea of their dicey, edge-of-your- seat mission.

How would you like to be flying through that? Look at that path and look what they're going through. That's the eye. Crews from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fly their P-3 aircraft into the eye of the storm. Make no mistake, right through it.

Along the way, they're buffeted by howling winds, blinding rain, hail and violent updrafts and downdrafts and you think you've experienced turbulence on one of your flights? The P-3 probes, by the way -- they probe every wind, every pressure change. They repeat this grueling experience, again and again, during the course of a 10-hour mission. How would you like to be on that plane?

Meteorologist Ian Sears is. He's on board the P-3, as we speak, this very moment. He's flying right into Tropical Storm Isaac and I don't believe we can do this, but he's actually going to speak to me now, live on the telephone.

Ian, can you hear me? Ian, can you hear me OK? I can hear a real staticky line, but can you hear me?

IAN SEARS, NOAA FLIGHT DIRECTOR (via telephone): I can hear you, a little broken.

BANFIELD: Well, first of all, I can't believe I'm doing this interview with you. How close are you right now to the eye?

SEARS (via telephone): I'm sorry?

BANFIELD: How close are you right now in your P-3 to reaching the eye of this storm?

SEARS (via telephone): Oh, well, we left Isaac about 20 minutes ago for a last pass. We made five passes this morning, but we started -- we took off at 4:00 a.m. out of Jacksonville, Florida, and headed out there.

With each pass, it seemed to get a little more organized. By our last pass, we were measuring wind speeds at flight level 8,000 feet of 90 knots. It's just that that 90-knot flight-level wind hasn't reached the surface yet.

We found that the eye was starting to get a little bit more organized and, just as it got a little more organized, it would fall apart. And it was going through these cycles. It seemed like it was pulsing where it was trying to get a little bit stronger and then it would fall apart a little bit.

And, so, it's still struggling to gain intensity, but there is evidence that it is strengthening with some of the flight-level winds that we recorded today. I have it recorded, 90-knot flight-level winds all iterations of our flights and we've been flying this for about a week now.

BANFIELD: So, Ian, we're looking at some video that's been taken and some animations that have been created of flights in the past where you've really sent back some remarkable photos.

We're seeing right now, one of the units that you dropped by parachute through the storm that helps to collect the data, as well.

My question for you is, right now, as you are on the P-3 that flies through the storm, there is another aircraft that I'm guessing you can -- the pictures show that you can see it out your window, that actually sets the blueprint for you.

Am I mistaken? I'm trying to get the mechanics from you as to how you do this without dying.

SEARS (via telephone): I am really sorry. I can hardly understand anything you said.

BANFIELD: I'm not surprised. You're in a hurricane. I think the question I have for you is, how do you do this? How do you know where you're going? Does the other plane that flies with you set your blueprint, your map?

SEARS (via telephone): Well, you know what? I'll just tell you some things that I've seen again today. The crews are having a lot of fun. We're working hard together, making sure that we're collecting all this information so that the National Hurricane Center can make the best advisory forecast.

We're tracking the storm for them. We're getting the measurements of exactly what the storm is doing, where Isaac is going, when is it going to get there and how strong is it going to be there. Those are the questions that we're trying to answer while we're out here.

And it really is an amazing thing. It's one of the best jobs in the world. And we're just having a good time providing information to help keep people safe.

BANFIELD: Ian Sears, you are amazing. For starters, agreeing to do this interview while you're doing this remarkable work, and then, second, you are a former math and science teacher, so the entire country owes you a debt of gratitude and also for collecting the information that helps to determine just where this storm is at every moment that you can.

And, again, I just want to remind you what Ian is doing with his crew is very repetitive. They're having to go through this storm several times a day. They go on 12 hour shifts, so they're 12 hours on, 12 hours off and the next crew comes over.

But they're flying constantly to update the data. And, again, one of those capsules that you saw dropped through the eye of the storm with the parachute on it, I'm probably not going to pronounce this properly, but I think it's called a dropsonde and that measures an enormous amount of data.

They literally fly right over top and drop it right through the middle of the eye so that it can collect data as it falls through the eye and, apparently, the best of the data comes from just before it falls into the water below.

And then that is radioed back up into the plane where they can then transmit it back to us, so that we know exactly what's coming and, more importantly, the people on the coast on your map, New Orleans, Mobile, Houston even, they need to know this information because they're the ones who are directly affected most.

Stay with CNN for full coverage and up-to-the-minute updates on Isaac.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: It has not made landfall, but Isaac is already having an impact on what you pay for gas. Nearly 80 percent of oil production and half of natural gas output has now been shut down and that means one thing to you. It actually means a lot of things, but one thing you're probably going to know right away. Prices at the pump are spiking.

AAA says the national average for a gallon of regular is now $3.75 and the analysts say the prices could shoot up 10 cents, depending on destructive Isaac turns out to be.

Remember when Christine Romans was here on the set with me yesterday and said something very specific, advice to you? Have a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Fill up your gas tank today. So, numerous experts this morning have told us, fill up your gas tanks today.

As we talk to the energy companies and the oil companies about what they're doing, they're shutting down production.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BANFIELD: She said fill up your gas tank yesterday and guess what? One of our producers saw that gas prices had spiked 10 cents, overnight.

Look who joins me live.

ROMANS: I saved somebody 15 cents. I'm so happy.

BANFIELD: I hope so.

Yeah, but how prescient were you? I was not expecting 10 cents overnight.

ROMANS: Well, in parts of the Gulf Coast and in some areas where they are worried about shortages, you're going to see it jump more than others.

For most of the country, you saw, you know, a few pennies up. You know, could see about 10 cents in the very near-term, according to analysts, because we're seeing the production being shut down in the Gulf.

Yesterday, 24 hours ago, I sat here and told you that 24 percent of production was shut down, oil production. It's now about 80 percent. You take a look at how much our natural gas has been shut, about half, 346 platforms evacuated, 41 rigs evacuated.

Here's why. You've also got the port of New Orleans shutting down right now. Basically, they're tying down, locking down cranes. They're clearing out wharves. They're making sure there's nothing dangerous on those wharves and they're getting it all ready for a very big storm.

Six ships will be weathering this inside. The guy who runs the port said, we've been to this rodeo before. Here's what the rodeo looks like. I can show you Katrina's path. I can show Rita's path. I can show you what the path is projected to be of Isaac and you can see all of those little green platforms and all those other indications on that map that show you a rich infrastructure for energy. There are tens of thousands of people who work in this industry and there are a lot of people who rely on this industry. So they're shutting the whole thing down and that's why you'll pay a little more at the pump.

Can I show you quickly, the other things coming in out of the port of New Orleans?

BANFIELD: Yes.

ROMANS: You've got all kinds of commodities that will be affected. Don't forget, you've got petroleum products that come up and down the river. You have iron and steel that come up the Mississippi River and through these port areas, rubber, paper, all kinds of different grain products, wood, coffee, chemicals, coal. Every single one of these industries and the companies that transport these goods are all hunkering down and weathering for what looks like will be a category-1 hurricane.

BANFIELD: My guess is that the commodities are affected by the gas prices.

ROMANS: These commodities are traded like crazy. When you look at the artery or gateway through Mexico from South American into the heartland of America, the rail arteries that carry all of these things, all of these industries then have natural resources or commodities that they're waiting for to process later on. So it really can affect a broad swath of the economy. But gasoline is the thing you feel the most. And I think you'll see gas prices going up in the near term.

BANFIELD: Oftentimes, when we have a gas crisis go up, we wait for them to go back down, but will this be an excuse to keep the prices high or will they go back down?

ROMANS: They'll probably start to go back down. But Labor Day travel season is coming up. Most likely, you'll see people driving fewer miles over the holiday because gas prices are probably going to go up. It's not just this one storm that affects supply and demand around the world. I told you yesterday about the Venezuela fire, refinery fire. That fire, I'm told, was put out. 48 people were killed in the fire. There are export products -- gasoline is exported from that refinery to the United States to CITGO gas stations in the U.S., so a lot of different parts at play here.

BANFIELD: I heard this morning, it was another tank had exploded overnight.

ROMANS: Yes, but they have main fire out here. But look, you know --

(CROSSTALK)

ROMANS: It reminds you just how the world still runs on oil and crude products. And they're drilling it out of the ocean floor basically, then processing it into a chemical, into all kinds of byproducts, and that goes up as well.

BANFIELD: Assignment for you tomorrow, because if this continues, we're going to have drought issues, so a lot of questions as we continue on, with the byproducts of the storm.

ROMANS: Too much rain can be a good thing. The perfect amount of rain is what they want in the Midwest. Too much won't be a good thing.

BANFIELD: All right, Christine Romans, thank you so much.

Of course, we're going to keep you updated on all things that have to do with Isaac. The latest on the impact on you as well as where the storm is at.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BANFIELD: We still have our eye on Tropical Storm Isaac. But first, we got a little politics we need to talk about because there's a big thing going on in Tampa. Mitt Romney just arrived in Tampa just a short time ago for day one of the Republican National Convention. It is starting late because of the weather issues, but they have reset the schedule and have an impressive slate of speakers all set to get underway tonight. Mitt Romney's going to accept the nomination with his speech on Thursday night. But tonight, two very important speakers are going to be at that podium, Ann Romney, Mitt Romney's wife, and Chris Christie, the governor of New Jersey.

Here's how Christie described his preferred outcome.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS CHRISTIE, (R), GOVERNOR OF NEW JERSEY: I think if the American people watch tonight, leave the speech by saying, yep, that's him, who I heard about, seems genuine to me, then I think I will have done my job. And if they say, I like the vision he's laid out for the country and for his party for the next four years, then I will have done the job for my party and my country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BANFIELD: So, that is his job, as he says it.

Our CNN political correspondent, Jim Acosta.

Jim, when you look at these two speeches come up, and there has been a lot of talk about who's going to get primetime television time, who would be more important when it comes to these to speakers, Ann Romney, who humanizes her husband, or Chris Christie, who's just such a fire brand and so exciting to watch and is very unpredictable and can make some big headlines.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Ashleigh, are you trying to get me to say who's more important, Ann Romney or Chris Christie --

BANFIELD: Yes.

ACOSTA: -- because I'm just not going to go there, Ashleigh Banfield.

(LAUGHTER)

No. Ann Romney is here to show the softer side of Mitt Romney. You saw that in the documentary that Gloria Borger did. She gives a more human element to Romney. So I think we're going to see that tonight. This is a big family. Five sons, 18 grandchildren. I expect Ann Romney to be talking about that tonight and let's face it.

Chris Christie, his specialty is real keeping. He keeps it real. I think there will be some sharp jabs tonight, but Chris Christie has also said he doesn't really like to engage in personal attacks, so I would not expect to hear a negative, nasty speech from Chris Christie.

But Mitt Romney is on the ground in Tampa. He's on the way to his hotel and we expect him to come down to the floor later this afternoon.

I want to show you what we're looking at. These are the big screens inside the hall in Tampa. Just a few moments ago, we saw some sneak previews of themes we will be seeing. We saw some large pictures of Exeter, New Hampshire. We understand from hearing from the Romney campaign -- they were briefing reporters on the campaign plane coming down here -- that Mitt Romney will be making a connection between New Hampshire and Tampa. What that means, we don't know, but he'll be talking about that.

Another adviser said Mitt Romney will be, quote, "speaking from the heart." So that is something I think a lot of Republicans have been dying to hear. They want to hear Mitt Romney speak from his heart.

And they're going to be talking about the economy. Just a few moments ago, we saw on the screen behind me, "we built it." Of course going back to that line they like to go after the president on when the president said you didn't build that at that speech in Roanoke, Virginia. It is a theme they go back to time and again and they are going to be doing it again today -- Ashleigh?

BANFIELD: Give me a bit of a feel, convention speeches in the past. the keynote in the past has often been an introduction of someone to the national scene with potential to be the next potential candidate. I want to talk about Chris Christie and that. Is this an introduction of Mitt Romney that Chris Christie will be doing or is it a de facto introduction of Chris Christie to the rest of us?

ACOSTA: You know, there were consolation prizes that you could say that came out of this vice presidential selection process. I think Mitt Romney thought seriously about selecting Chris Christie. He wasn't selected, but this is a big, big role for him. This is a sort of rollout for Christie in 2016 if he chooses to go down that road, and he's given indications that he is thinking about 2016. So I think we're going to see some of that tonight. Obviously, Barack Obama had that moment in 2004 that sort of electrified the Democratic Party. So yes, that is definitely part of what we're going to be seeing.

But again, this is somebody who has a good connection with Mitt Romney. He's going to be talking about Mitt Romney tonight -- Ashleigh?

BANFIELD: I hope you got a lot of sleep last week, Jim Acosta, live from the convention floor for us because --

ACOSTA: I did not.

(LAUGHTER)

BANFIELD: -- you will be live very late tonight.

Thanks very much, sir. Appreciate it.

ACOSTA: Yes. Sure.

BANFIELD: Also, want to ask you, do you want to know what it's really like to be there, to experience the convention from inside? It is an exciting place to be. And today, you can join the CNN election roundtable with Wolf Blitzer and our political team. You can submit your own questions and get answers in real time. Don't miss out on the "CNN Roundtable." Starts today at noon, about 20 minutes from now, noon eastern. Log on to CNN.com/roundable. Get yourself an inside eye.

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BANFIELD: Southeast Louisiana was not the only place battered and shattered by Hurricane Katrina and it wasn't the only place that was determined to rebuild stronger after that monster storm hit that area. Today, as Tropical Storm Isaac follows in Katrina's path exactly seven years later to the day, Gulfport, Mississippi, is also bracing. and they're also hoping there that all the hard work and investment in their infrastructure is going to pay off.

CNN's David Mattingly is there now.

David, we had breaking news that Gulfport has put in a nighttime curfew, 7: 00 tonight going until 7:00 a.m. tomorrow?

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Just one of the precautions they're putting into place. That is on top in mandatory evacuation orders that have gone into place in two of the three coastal counties in Mississippi. Those ordered targeted directly for the low lying areas that people know will flood with the rain and the storm surge that's expected with Isaac. But for right now, it's time for everyone to batten down the hatches and make sure that the preparations they've been working on since Katrina will stand and hold.

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MATTINGLY (voice-over): Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, battered by Katrina. Today, still rebuilding. Gulfport, Mississippi, destroyed. Today, seaside lots still vacant and for sale. The scars of Katrina are subtle, but plentiful as Isaac now bears down the same path, due to hit the same day.

But Mississippians acting on tough lessons of seven years ago stand ready.

CORKY HADDEN, GULFPORT, MISSISSIPPI HOMEOWNER: You look at what's happened, this house should be high enough to sustain anything.

MATTINGLY: Corky Hadden's home was stripped down to its foundation by Katrina, so like others, he rebuilt stronger and higher.

(on camera): 24 feet?

HADDEN: It's 24 feet above sea level.

MATTINGLY (voice-over): more than enough, it's believed, to handle Isaac.

(on camera): But nowhere are the changes to Bay St. Louis more obvious than right here on the waterfront. When Katrina hit, the city's old seawall stood at about eight feet high. When they rebuilt, this is what they put in its place. In some places, a pile of cement and steel more than double what it used to be.

(voice-over): The U.S. 90 bridge broken into pieces by Katrina. Also restored stronger and higher. And Gulfport's new $42 million harbor now bracing for its first test.

RYAN LAFONTAINE, GULFPORT SPOKESMAN: The one that was here before Katrina was built out of wood. This one is concrete and built like a fortress.

MATTINGLY: That confidence is everywhere. Ben Stone rebuilt in Gulfport when his neighbors did not. A chance he's willing to take for beach front living.

BEN STONE, GULFPORT HOMEOWNER: Gets angry from downtown, but the most beautiful sight I can see.

MATTINGLY: This is what happened to Stone's house in Katrina. The new one was built with the next one in mind -- windows that can withstand 200 miles of wind, and cement walls six inches thick.

(on camera): Could this house stand up to Katrina?

STONE: Not with me in it.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: Now, he's making a little bit of a joke there, but clearly, a lot of wisdom in that. Everyone around here knows that no matter what kinds of preparations you take, there's no such thing as a building or house that's going to be hurricane proof every single time. But right now, everyone just bracing to see what Isaac brings.

Right now, bright blue skies, a chance for everybody to get in some last-minute beach time before the storm comes to shore -- Ashleigh?

BANFIELD: You always see those surfers too. It's not even the calm before the storm. I can see the wind already picking up, David.

Thank you and be -- stay safe yourself.

Want to make sure you stay with CNN as well for everything you need to know about Isaac. We are on it. Got our radars going all day, all night, will be on. We'll let you know when this becomes a Cat 1 if, in fact, it does.

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BANFIELD: Want to bring you some breaking news. Guess who has arrived? At the convention center in Tampa? Ann Romney at the front podium, no doubt, speaking with her advisers about the speech that she's going to give tonight. She is going to be in primetime right before Chris Christie's keynote address. This is her first opportunity at this point to get before the podium and discuss sort of the mechanics of delivering that speech.

We said the eagle had landed. Perhaps that's the swan, who has landed as well. Ann Romney now going through the motions and the blocking for her big speech up on the main stage with her advisers as well.

And Mitt Romney, we are told, was also en route as well. There's no sight of him at this spot. But there are a couple things you should know about this. This is such a big deal. There are 13,000 to 15,000 reporters, just media, 13,000 to 15,000 media at this event. It's the largest media event in the world other than the Olympic Games. It's pretty remarkable. You can think this is a convention. This is not a convention. This is a massive, massive civic event, and it has consumed Tampa -- the security that's involved, the planning, the organizing, not to mention the problems that Isaac threw into this, the complete switch-a-roo that Isaac pulled on the RNC advisers.

Jim Acosta is standing by live for me. We're looking at the live picture.

I just lost Jim Acosta. My apologies.

I may be able to one-up Jim Acosta. Not sure, but I'm hoping here. If Utah Governor Gary Herbert is available.

Sir, Gary Herbert, can you hear me live from the convention floor.

GARY HERBERT, (R), GOVERNOR OF UTAH: I can hear you.

BANFIELD: This is a nice last-minute thing as we're watching the breaking news of Ann Romney. I'm not sure if she's behind you, in front of you or adjacent. Tell me about the planning involved. I have a million questions for you. For starters, get me into the beginning of this day. We're in officially day two, but it is day one because of the storm. As we move into the main events, what are you hoping to achieve today with this agenda?

HERBERT: Well, I think there's a lot of concern here for those who are in the path of hurricane Isaac, and certainly puts a little bit of a damper on the convention because we understand the concerns that those people are going to be harm's way. That being said, there's business to be done here at the convention. We're all excited about the opportunity to finally formally nominate Mitt Romney as our Republican nominee and help him become the next president of the United States. BANFIELD: All right. Talk to me a little bit about some of the conversation that's been leading up to this convention, and that is the big tent theory, and Republicans feel it's a big tent, when there are disparate issues particularly when it comes to gay marriage. Jeb Bush was saying the other day, we have changing demographics here, we need to accommodate some of the thoughts. Civil unions and haven't even begun on abortion.

HERBERT: Well, I think Republican Party, it goes back to the days of Ronald Reagan. We're not all clones of each other. There's room for disagreement. The basic principles, though, limited government, fiscal prudence, making sure we live within our mean, empowerment of the private sector to create wealth, to create jobs. Those principles are pretty uniform. Some of the other areas, there are differences of opinion, but that's OK. That, in fact, is healthy. The discussion that we have. Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are not clones of each other. Again, I think that's healthy. They complement each other and represent a broad spectrum of Americans which I think is going to be healthy in their campaign and I think is going to bring America around and help Mitt Romney turn America around.

BANFIELD: All right. As we move into our keynote address plans for this evening, 10:00, live, which we'll be covering live, Chris Christie, the New Jersey governor, your counterpart in New Jersey. The keynote address. What does he need to do in terms of kicking this off and making sure that the focus of this convention is on Mitt Romney, I don't know if it's humanizing Mitt Romney but getting the focus on the message that Republicans wan to be the message of this election instead of some of the things they have said are distractions leading up to this convention.

HERBERT: Well, I think this convention is an opportunity for America to come to know Mitt Romney like we do here in Utah, and Utah we understand he's a person who's got great leadership qualities based on principles and good values. And was able to, for example, in my own experience, see him turn around the Olympics. I think Chris Christie has an opportunity to introduce those values and principles of leadership that Mitt Romney represents and remind the country that what we're doing now is not working but with a Mitt Romney in the Oval Office we can turn the economy around, we can balance the budgets, we can, in fact, make sure that Medicare and Medicaid are sensible in their approach and don't bust the budget and make sure that we have it for generations to come. I think all those principles of good leadership is what Chris Christie needs to introduce to the American public in regards to Mitt Romney.

BANFIELD: All right. Governor Gary Herbert.

Just want to remind everyone that beside you is the live picture of Ann Romney.

Thank you, sir. Enjoy your time there. I'm going to look for an update for you in the coming days.

There goes Ann Romney as she walks away from the podium, having done some mechanics of the speech. We're keeping a close eye on our other story, Isaac. It's a top tier tropical storm, expected to reach hurricane strength before it hits land later today into tonight. And where will it hit? Southeast Louisiana is most likely, following the path of Hurricane Katrina, exactly seven years ago tomorrow. It is absolutely eerie the similarities in this path. Tropical-storm-force winds are being felt almost 200 miles from the center of the storm right now. But the big threat, of course, isn't necessarily the winds but the water. Massive amounts of water. A foot or more of rain in some places. And storm surges of anywhere from three to 12 feet. So clearly, some infrastructure is going to be severely tested with this storm.

Want to make sure you stay tuned to CNN for all the latest on Isaac all throughout today and also throughout this evening as well.

That is it for the NEWSROOM. Thanks for watching, everyone.

NEWSROOM INTERNATIONAL starts right now after a short break.

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