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CNN Live At Daybreak
Problems With Early Voting in Florida; Talking with U.S. Troops in Iraq
Aired October 19, 2004 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you.
From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Now in the news, rubble in the streets of Falluja this morning, the aftermath of another series of U.S. air strikes. War planes hit buildings believed to have been used by insurgents loyal to terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Back here in the States, you will probably feel more pain at the pump this morning. Average gas prices have now topped $2 a gallon. That's up $0.46 from one year ago.
In baseball play-off action, two nail biters. Boston took a second game from New York in the A.L. championship series. Yankees still up three games to two. Game six is today.
In the National League, the Houston Astros beat the St. Louis Cardinals, to take a three games to two lead. Game six is Wednesday.
Can you believe that Boston-New York game -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I went to sleep in the eighth inning because it got so boring, Carol.
COSTELLO: So did I.
MYERS: It was the longest eighth inning of all time. It had to break a record.
COSTELLO: It went five hours and 48 minutes. That was the length of the game. But I, too, fell asleep, like around the seventh inning, when they pulled Mike Mussina out. But then I woke up in the tenth and it was like oh my gosh.
MYERS: I went to bed at 8:00, 8:30. My wife came in to bed about 11:30 and I said, "Who won?" And she goes, "It's not over yet." I went, "Oh my lord."
Anyway, good morning, everybody.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: We're down to two weeks before the presidential election and the candidates are running out of time to slay the all important undecided voters. Right now, George W. Bush and John Kerry are in a virtual dead heat. A new poll out this morning from the "New York Times" and CBS News has both at 46 percent among registered voters.
George Bush is hoping the Sunshine State, though, will give him an edge. That's where he is today. He has three rallies scheduled in Florida, including stops in St. Petersburg and Port Richey.
On Monday, Bush targeted voters in New Jersey, a state that lost hundreds of residents on 9/11. Bush vowed to keep up the war on terror and also, of course, took a shot at John Kerry.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My opponent finally has settled on a strategy, a strategy of retreat. He has talked about artificial timetables to pull our troops out of Iraq. He has sent the signal that America's overriding goal in Iraq would be to leave, even if the job is not done. And that approach would lead to a major defeat in the war on terror. As long as I'm the commander-in- chief, America will never retreat in the face of the terrorists.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: John Kerry, in the meantime, has wrapped up a two day swing through Florida. Now he's heading north to some other battlegrounds. He'll visit Pennsylvania and Ohio before he spends the night in Iowa.
In Florida on Monday, though, Kerry delivered some fresh criticism of the war in Iraq. He seized on reports that the former top U.S. general there, Ricardo Sanchez, warned of supply problems nearly one year ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The day after General Sanchez wrote his letter, George Bush went out and told the American people our troops were properly equipped. Despite the president's arrogant boasting that he has done everything right in Iraq and that he's made no mistakes, the truth is beginning to catch up with him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: In Colorado, we're watching a very important ballot measure. It's all about the way the state allocates its nine electoral votes. We talked about this on DAYBREAK a couple of days ago. Our latest CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll shows that 53 percent of likely voters oppose changing their current system of winner take all. The change would allocate electoral votes based on the popular vote totals.
Colorado is just one of the states where voters don't have to wait until November 2. Early voting started there on Monday. Election officials report some long lines and sporadic computer glitches, but no major problems. In Texas, guess who this guy voted for? Former President Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush turned out for the early voting in their state, and we assume they did vote for their son.
Across Arkansas, a heavy turnout on the first day of early voting. The reason? Selection officials cite a tight presidential race and a boost in voter registration.
But things have not been going so smoothly in Florida, which has also kicked off early voting. Not long after the polls opened, problems cropped up, and that has people wondering if the ghosts of the 2000 election are haunting the polls this year.
John Zarrella is in Miami.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: (voice-over): On the first day of early voting in Florida, supervisors of elections heard the two words that make them cringe, "technical glitch."
BRENDA SNIPES, BROWARD COUNTY SUPERVISOR OF ELECTIONS: I do see that the first day of early voting, we do have some technical things that need to be worked out. And I think that's just almost the nature of the beast. But we're on top of it.
ZARRELLA: In a state much maligned for its seeming recent inability to run a problem-free election, the issues elections officials statewide dealt were more spotty than chronic. While voting machines worked, support equipment didn't always.
In Broward County, voters stood in line for more than one hour.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's easier to get a flu shot than to vote.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm very frustrated. I've been here since quarter after 8:00 this morning.
ZARRELLA: Computers at several of the 14 polling places open in Broward County were not talking to computers at the supervisor's office.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The problem here is that there is a problem with the connection with the mainframe computer.
ZARRELLA: Across the state, there were a variety of issues, some technical, but not all.
In Orange County, which includes Orlando, computers went down for 10 minutes, reason unknown. In Palm Beach County, a state legislator said she was not given a complete absentee ballot. And in Duval County, the supervisor of elections resigned, citing health reasons.
And while the state began to vote, in a Broward County federal courtroom, a trial began to determine whether electronic voting machines used in 15 counties comply with state statutes in the event of a recount. U.S. Representative Robert Wexler, who brought the suit, charges there's no way to know voter intent because the machines do not offer a paper trail.
REP. ROBERT WEXLER (D), FLORIDA: It's not possible to have a manual recount. That violates not only Florida law, but the federal law.
RON LABASKY, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: The intention of the voter is reflected because the machine records what the voter did.
ZARRELLA: Attorneys for Wexler opened the trial questioning state elections division employees, who defended the e-machine technology.
(on camera): Wexler says he understands that even if he wins, there's not enough time now to change to a different voting method. But he would like to see monitors assigned to polling places to ensure that any irregularities do not go unnoticed.
John Zarrella, CNN, Miami.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Despite the glitches, thousands of people have been casting their ballots early. But will their votes be counted by the time election day rolls around? And, actually, when election day rolls around, are you sure your vote is going to be counted?
That takes us to our e-mail Question of the Morning. Will the presidential election actually be decided on November 2 or on November 3 or on November 4? Tell us what you think. Daybreak@cnn.com. That's daybreak@cnn.com.
There is more fallout this morning from a television broadcasting company's plans to run a documentary critical of Senator John Kerry. Sinclair Broadcast Group ordered its 62 stations to air the film and you're seeing part of it here. Now, Sinclair's chief Washington reporter tells CNN the company fired him because he criticized that order.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JONATHAN LEIBERMAN, FORMER SINCLAIR REPORTER: I feel so strongly that our credibility was at issue here and at the end of the day, I don't think this is about being on the right or being on the left. I think it's about right and wrong in news. And I just -- I couldn't be part of this special where we labeled this as news when clearly what it is is political propaganda. It's part of a documentary. We can't validate the facts. Of course we can't.
So I was fine if the company wanted to run it, again, as an editorial or as commentary. But just don't call it news, because that's how we erode the public trust.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: A statement from Sinclair calls Leiberman a "disgruntled employee."
In other news across America this morning, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is backing a plan to fund stem cell research. The issue known as Proposition 71 would funnel $3 billion into research.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: I am very much interested in stem cell research and support it 100 percent. It was just the question how the state will handle the financial side of it, because -- but they have done something smart, which is that there are no payments due in the next five years. So that is what really made me decide to support it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Schwarzenegger broke with California's Republican Party in endorsing that ballot initiative.
After a week long delay, the defense began for Scott Peterson. Defense attorneys questioned testimony about concrete anchors allegedly used by Peterson to weigh down his wife's body. Closing arguments in the case are scheduled for November 1 or 2.
In San Francisco, charges have now been dropped against a man accused of beating and drowning his wife. The two were aboard a jet ski when it got stuck in the mud. Corbin Easterling says he fell asleep as the couple clung to the watercraft overnight and when he awoke, his wife was dead. An autopsy showed Jennifer Easterling was beaten and drowned. The sheriff is hopeful that charges may be refiled in the case.
Boeing was overpaid at least $49 million by the government. The payments are part of a contract awarded by the Transportation Security Administration. Boeing was contracted to install explosive detection devices at 429 airports. An internal TSA audit found that the original contract was amended 54 times over a year and a half.
We've got a lot more ahead for you this morning.
At 17 minutes past the hour, they're on the front lines in Iraq and we've got a rare look at what these soldiers really think about their mission.
At 38 minutes past, get in line. Flu season collides with a tightly fought presidential race, oh, and it's not pretty. Is there a prescription to fix this mess?
And at 54 minutes past, it's a snuggle partner in the form of a pillow. If you need a shoulder to lie on, an arm to wrap around, you've got to see this.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 5:15 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
American war planes today bombarded suspected terrorist safe houses and weapons depots in Falluja. The U.S.-led forces are targeting suspected hiding places for insurgent leader Abu Musab al- Zarqawi.
The prime minister of Myanmar is under house arrest on corruption charges. A Thai government spokesman says Myanmar's prime minister also has been forced to resign his position.
In money news, Social Security recipients should get a little more in their checks. The annual cost of living adjustment is expected to be bigger than it was last year. But a large chunk of the increase will be eaten up by higher Medicare costs.
In culture, jazz music has a new home in New York. The Frederick P. Rose Hall at Lincoln Center is the first facility specially designed for the education and performance of jazz music.
In sports, pro-football's greatest wide receiver is changing addresses. Jerry Rice got his wish. He was traded from the Oakland Raiders, well, maybe he wanted to or didn't want to go to the Seattle Seahawks, but he's there now. Rice was unhappy with his role in Oakland -- Chad.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
There is no shortage of talk about the war in Iraq from politicians, military experts and pundits. But it's not often we get to hear from soldiers in the middle of the action.
Our Jane Arraf got to know some of the troops in Samarra.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When everything went off, I couldn't tell if we were getting ricocheted.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's not as if there's no debate here over whether this war is worth fighting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need to stay the course here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think they're trying to spread us too thin. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The weapons of mass destruction case, I never really thought they existed.
ARRAF: But for these soldiers in Iraq's Sunni Triangle, any debate at all is a bit beside the point. They're here in the middle of it and they'll stay for as long as they have to.
MAJOR GRAHAM HOFFMAN, PSYCHIATRIST: I think there's a little bit of a generation gap and I think the older guys who have read history and that sort of thing see this as a real historical sort of situation. The 19-year-olds don't and they really are fighting for their friends. They're fighting for each other and for the unit.
ARRAF: Specialist Tim Haag is here with his brother, 19. Haag is 22.
SPEC. TIM HAAG, U.S. ARMY: I'm just here to get my buddies home, you know? Helping the Iraqi people is cool, I guess. You know, I haven't killed any terrorists. I've killed poor people.
ARRAF: "They may have been poor but they were shooting at us," his buddies remind him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Poor people with guns.
ARRAF: It's a choice -- them or us -- they all say.
(on camera): For all of the risks soldiers take, a lot of them tell me they won't take the risk of saying on camera what they really believe about this war. They say they'd get into trouble if they admitted that they question whether the United States should even be here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Twenty-five meters to the right and three...
ARRAF (voice-over): Even so, they say they want people to know that things often go better in Iraq than they appear to.
SGT. MAJ. JOHN CALPENA, 1ST INFANTRY DIVISION: People say the entire country is in disarray and we relate that to a neighborhood in New York City, say the Bronx. It was in a gang war or something horrible was happening. The buildings were burning down. Nobody would say the entire United States is in chaos. They would say the Bronx is in chaos. And it's really the same thing here.
ARRAF: Some soldiers joined because of the September 11th attack on the World Trade Center. But with revelations that there were no weapons of mass destruction or links to 9/11, their belief that unseating Saddam Hussein would make the United States a safer place has worn thin.
HAAG: You know, I'm not fighting terrorists anymore. I'm not fighting to find all this mass destruction. When we go into Samarra, we're not looking into the tunnels looking for, you know SCUD missiles with nukes and stuff. We're here to make sure all of our friends who are still here get back safely. And that's all it's all about now. ARRAF: Friendships here forged under fire and strengthened over months of terror and tedium are what keep these soldiers going. In the battle for Samarra, after a long night in a Bradley fighting vehicle, as bullets whizzed by and explosions light the sky, the cold light finally dawns. For this soldier from Alabama, there's the bleakness of not believing in what you're doing, but doing it anyway.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm doing a job that I enlisted to do. I'm going to do that because I enlisted to do it. But I'm doing it for poor reason. And for me, that means it's not worth being here.
ARRAF: Despite his conviction that this war isn't helping the United States, he says he's just reenlisted.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Army may not have all the answers, but it does have enough answers. It does support my family and that's what I'm about. I'm about taking care of my family no matter what it takes.
ARRAF: Family and friends -- what it takes to keep soldiering on in Iraq despite doubts and disillusionments.
Jane Arraf, CNN, Samarra.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: What's hot on the Web straight ahead.
Also, a paraglider feels what it's like to take to the unfriendly skies. We'll show you more of the fallout from this high flying adventure.
And our e-mail Question of the Morning. Do you think the presidential election will be actually decided on November 2? Or the next day, on November 3? We want to hear from you this morning. The address, daybreak@cnn.com. That's daybreak@cnn.com.
And you are watching DAYBREAK for a Tuesday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: With election day inching ever closer, there's no escaping the presidential race. On the last night talk show circuit, in case you missed it, David Letterman took some pot shots at both candidates last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN, COURTESY CBS/WORLDWIDE PANTS)
DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST: Because of the flu vaccine shortage, President Bush says that he will skip getting his flu shot this year. He's not going to have one. He says because of the shortage, he's going to let other people get them. And Kerry says that he'll just get an extra shot of Botox. That's what he said he'd get. That's all he cares about. But have you noticed this now, that both candidates are using fear tactics? It's the last minute in the campaign election and both candidates are now using fear tactics. And, you know, my fear, honest to God, my fear is that one of them will get elected.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: I think that's how a lot of people are feeling this election season, at least if you go out and talk to people, that's what they say.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Either that or they're like for one candidate or the other.
MYERS: And now people are starting to talk about Ralph Nader again. Well, where'd he come from?
COSTELLO: Well, suddenly...
MYERS: I mean I know he's been in there the whole time, but suddenly...
COSTELLO: Suddenly he's become a factor.
MYERS: I know.
COSTELLO: Because he's 1 percent, 2 percentage of the voters are going to vote for him.
MYERS: There you go.
COSTELLO: Which, of course, could affect John Kerry. It'll be a fascinating election, don't you think?
MYERS: It will.
COSTELLO: Letterman also said he had to drive his mom to the Canadian border to get a flu shot, but I don't know if he was joking or not. But I'm sure a lot of people are thinking the same thing.
MYERS: Right.
COSTELLO: Time to check the Web clicks this morning. We're always interested in what you're clicking onto on cnn.com. And the number one clicked on story is quite an interesting one.
MYERS: Yes. There's this EPIRB or transmitting signal that you can go out if you need and rescue, if you have a search and rescue operation going on, this signal will go out at 121.5 megahertz or something like that. Well, this TV set that this guy bought was emitting that signal and all of a sudden the Air Force Rescue Center at Langley goes out and tries to find the guy. But it was...
COSTELLO: They found him, too. MYERS: But it was just his TV.
COSTELLO: They surrounded his house.
MYERS: Oh my.
COSTELLO: And they told him he would be fined $10,000 if he did it again, even though he had no control over his new flat screen television set that was emitting the signal.
MYERS: So it was Toshiba and they sent him a brand new one, thank goodness.
COSTELLO: That's really nice of them.
Mary Poppins comes in...
MYERS: Is voting in Ohio.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: Did you know Mary Poppins is voting?
COSTELLO: Well, now I do.
MYERS: A hundred times.
COSTELLO: This is the second most clicked on story. You know, there have been all sorts of problems with elections across the country, or the coming elections, I should say. Ohio authorities say a man was charged Monday with filling out more than 100 fictitious voter registration forms, some with names such as Disney characters like Mary Poppins and pop singer Michael Jackson.
MYERS: Yes, he was going to get paid for every time he got some new signup or whatever. It was a buck or two. But, no, he got paid in crack.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes, because of his...
MYERS: Well, allegedly.
COSTELLO: Allegedly working for some woman who was a drug dealer. It's a really complicated story. But in the end, if you're going to fill out a phony voter registration card, maybe you should come up with a name that sounds more real.
MYERS: There you go.
COSTELLO: And now our third most clicked on story on cnn.com, Britney Spears is taking time to chill.
MYERS: Yes, she's married now, for real.
COSTELLO: Yes. Yes.
MYERS: She filled out the application, didn't just go through the I dos.
COSTELLO: She's tired of being the blonde on the cover of magazines across the country. She's tired of being exploited. She just wants to go home and watch "Sex and The City."
MYERS: She wants somebody else to go ahead and be on the cover.
COSTELLO: I'll bet you.
So those are your Web clicks of the morning.
MYERS: There you go.
COSTELLO: And I wanted to talk about Dale Earnhardt, Jr., because there is a panel. Three people were on this panel and they decided to uphold the fine because he said that nasty word after winning a race.
MYERS: For his appeal, the word that starts with an S that you shouldn't be saying on television. A lot of people thought that it was the other "F" word and the four letter word, and that was clearly not the case. I watched the race. But 25 points. And he is now down by 24 points. He could lose the championship because of that. The $10,000 I agree with. The points, I'm not sure.
COSTELLO: Yes, I don't know.
MYERS: But the appeal says yes, those 25 points are valid, and they will be deducted from your total. And he is now down by 24.
COSTELLO: You know, $10,000 isn't really very much to him, though.
MYERS: Considering he won $167,000 at that race. If they wanted to fine him and literally fine him a lot, they should have taken away the entire purse, taken it away but then not taken away those 25 points because those could be devastating.
COSTELLO: I have to agree with you, Chad.
Thank you.
Here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
The embattled Red Sox, what a game. They rose to the occasion last night in the 11th hour.
MYERS: Actually, it was the seventh hour or the ninth hour or it seemed -- oh, my.
COSTELLO: Five hours, 48 minutes, baby. Could the Bambino be giving them a break?
And, oh, they've got issues and so do we. But how are the candidates addressing them? From abortion to stem cell research, we'll take a very clear look at where the candidates stand on important issues.
This is DAYBREAK for a Tuesday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONNA ROSATO, WRITER, "MONEY": November and early December are fantastic times to go to Hawaii. There really is no off season for Hawaii. June is a very popular time. A lot of honeymooners go there; also, early fall. But if you go in late fall, in November, early December, outside of the holidays, you'll find fewer crowds, fewer people and better deals. And you'll also have an easier time getting into some of those hard to get resorts. It'll be easier to land an ocean view room if you go this time of year.
The weather is pretty temperate all year round. Early December you may have a little bit of rain. But in general you should still have the fabulous Hawaiian weather, which is 80 degrees and sunny.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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Aired October 19, 2004 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you.
From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Now in the news, rubble in the streets of Falluja this morning, the aftermath of another series of U.S. air strikes. War planes hit buildings believed to have been used by insurgents loyal to terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
Back here in the States, you will probably feel more pain at the pump this morning. Average gas prices have now topped $2 a gallon. That's up $0.46 from one year ago.
In baseball play-off action, two nail biters. Boston took a second game from New York in the A.L. championship series. Yankees still up three games to two. Game six is today.
In the National League, the Houston Astros beat the St. Louis Cardinals, to take a three games to two lead. Game six is Wednesday.
Can you believe that Boston-New York game -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I went to sleep in the eighth inning because it got so boring, Carol.
COSTELLO: So did I.
MYERS: It was the longest eighth inning of all time. It had to break a record.
COSTELLO: It went five hours and 48 minutes. That was the length of the game. But I, too, fell asleep, like around the seventh inning, when they pulled Mike Mussina out. But then I woke up in the tenth and it was like oh my gosh.
MYERS: I went to bed at 8:00, 8:30. My wife came in to bed about 11:30 and I said, "Who won?" And she goes, "It's not over yet." I went, "Oh my lord."
Anyway, good morning, everybody.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: We're down to two weeks before the presidential election and the candidates are running out of time to slay the all important undecided voters. Right now, George W. Bush and John Kerry are in a virtual dead heat. A new poll out this morning from the "New York Times" and CBS News has both at 46 percent among registered voters.
George Bush is hoping the Sunshine State, though, will give him an edge. That's where he is today. He has three rallies scheduled in Florida, including stops in St. Petersburg and Port Richey.
On Monday, Bush targeted voters in New Jersey, a state that lost hundreds of residents on 9/11. Bush vowed to keep up the war on terror and also, of course, took a shot at John Kerry.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My opponent finally has settled on a strategy, a strategy of retreat. He has talked about artificial timetables to pull our troops out of Iraq. He has sent the signal that America's overriding goal in Iraq would be to leave, even if the job is not done. And that approach would lead to a major defeat in the war on terror. As long as I'm the commander-in- chief, America will never retreat in the face of the terrorists.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: John Kerry, in the meantime, has wrapped up a two day swing through Florida. Now he's heading north to some other battlegrounds. He'll visit Pennsylvania and Ohio before he spends the night in Iowa.
In Florida on Monday, though, Kerry delivered some fresh criticism of the war in Iraq. He seized on reports that the former top U.S. general there, Ricardo Sanchez, warned of supply problems nearly one year ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The day after General Sanchez wrote his letter, George Bush went out and told the American people our troops were properly equipped. Despite the president's arrogant boasting that he has done everything right in Iraq and that he's made no mistakes, the truth is beginning to catch up with him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: In Colorado, we're watching a very important ballot measure. It's all about the way the state allocates its nine electoral votes. We talked about this on DAYBREAK a couple of days ago. Our latest CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll shows that 53 percent of likely voters oppose changing their current system of winner take all. The change would allocate electoral votes based on the popular vote totals.
Colorado is just one of the states where voters don't have to wait until November 2. Early voting started there on Monday. Election officials report some long lines and sporadic computer glitches, but no major problems. In Texas, guess who this guy voted for? Former President Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush turned out for the early voting in their state, and we assume they did vote for their son.
Across Arkansas, a heavy turnout on the first day of early voting. The reason? Selection officials cite a tight presidential race and a boost in voter registration.
But things have not been going so smoothly in Florida, which has also kicked off early voting. Not long after the polls opened, problems cropped up, and that has people wondering if the ghosts of the 2000 election are haunting the polls this year.
John Zarrella is in Miami.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: (voice-over): On the first day of early voting in Florida, supervisors of elections heard the two words that make them cringe, "technical glitch."
BRENDA SNIPES, BROWARD COUNTY SUPERVISOR OF ELECTIONS: I do see that the first day of early voting, we do have some technical things that need to be worked out. And I think that's just almost the nature of the beast. But we're on top of it.
ZARRELLA: In a state much maligned for its seeming recent inability to run a problem-free election, the issues elections officials statewide dealt were more spotty than chronic. While voting machines worked, support equipment didn't always.
In Broward County, voters stood in line for more than one hour.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's easier to get a flu shot than to vote.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm very frustrated. I've been here since quarter after 8:00 this morning.
ZARRELLA: Computers at several of the 14 polling places open in Broward County were not talking to computers at the supervisor's office.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The problem here is that there is a problem with the connection with the mainframe computer.
ZARRELLA: Across the state, there were a variety of issues, some technical, but not all.
In Orange County, which includes Orlando, computers went down for 10 minutes, reason unknown. In Palm Beach County, a state legislator said she was not given a complete absentee ballot. And in Duval County, the supervisor of elections resigned, citing health reasons.
And while the state began to vote, in a Broward County federal courtroom, a trial began to determine whether electronic voting machines used in 15 counties comply with state statutes in the event of a recount. U.S. Representative Robert Wexler, who brought the suit, charges there's no way to know voter intent because the machines do not offer a paper trail.
REP. ROBERT WEXLER (D), FLORIDA: It's not possible to have a manual recount. That violates not only Florida law, but the federal law.
RON LABASKY, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: The intention of the voter is reflected because the machine records what the voter did.
ZARRELLA: Attorneys for Wexler opened the trial questioning state elections division employees, who defended the e-machine technology.
(on camera): Wexler says he understands that even if he wins, there's not enough time now to change to a different voting method. But he would like to see monitors assigned to polling places to ensure that any irregularities do not go unnoticed.
John Zarrella, CNN, Miami.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: Despite the glitches, thousands of people have been casting their ballots early. But will their votes be counted by the time election day rolls around? And, actually, when election day rolls around, are you sure your vote is going to be counted?
That takes us to our e-mail Question of the Morning. Will the presidential election actually be decided on November 2 or on November 3 or on November 4? Tell us what you think. Daybreak@cnn.com. That's daybreak@cnn.com.
There is more fallout this morning from a television broadcasting company's plans to run a documentary critical of Senator John Kerry. Sinclair Broadcast Group ordered its 62 stations to air the film and you're seeing part of it here. Now, Sinclair's chief Washington reporter tells CNN the company fired him because he criticized that order.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JONATHAN LEIBERMAN, FORMER SINCLAIR REPORTER: I feel so strongly that our credibility was at issue here and at the end of the day, I don't think this is about being on the right or being on the left. I think it's about right and wrong in news. And I just -- I couldn't be part of this special where we labeled this as news when clearly what it is is political propaganda. It's part of a documentary. We can't validate the facts. Of course we can't.
So I was fine if the company wanted to run it, again, as an editorial or as commentary. But just don't call it news, because that's how we erode the public trust.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: A statement from Sinclair calls Leiberman a "disgruntled employee."
In other news across America this morning, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is backing a plan to fund stem cell research. The issue known as Proposition 71 would funnel $3 billion into research.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: I am very much interested in stem cell research and support it 100 percent. It was just the question how the state will handle the financial side of it, because -- but they have done something smart, which is that there are no payments due in the next five years. So that is what really made me decide to support it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Schwarzenegger broke with California's Republican Party in endorsing that ballot initiative.
After a week long delay, the defense began for Scott Peterson. Defense attorneys questioned testimony about concrete anchors allegedly used by Peterson to weigh down his wife's body. Closing arguments in the case are scheduled for November 1 or 2.
In San Francisco, charges have now been dropped against a man accused of beating and drowning his wife. The two were aboard a jet ski when it got stuck in the mud. Corbin Easterling says he fell asleep as the couple clung to the watercraft overnight and when he awoke, his wife was dead. An autopsy showed Jennifer Easterling was beaten and drowned. The sheriff is hopeful that charges may be refiled in the case.
Boeing was overpaid at least $49 million by the government. The payments are part of a contract awarded by the Transportation Security Administration. Boeing was contracted to install explosive detection devices at 429 airports. An internal TSA audit found that the original contract was amended 54 times over a year and a half.
We've got a lot more ahead for you this morning.
At 17 minutes past the hour, they're on the front lines in Iraq and we've got a rare look at what these soldiers really think about their mission.
At 38 minutes past, get in line. Flu season collides with a tightly fought presidential race, oh, and it's not pretty. Is there a prescription to fix this mess?
And at 54 minutes past, it's a snuggle partner in the form of a pillow. If you need a shoulder to lie on, an arm to wrap around, you've got to see this.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.
It is 5:15 Eastern.
Here's what's all new this morning.
American war planes today bombarded suspected terrorist safe houses and weapons depots in Falluja. The U.S.-led forces are targeting suspected hiding places for insurgent leader Abu Musab al- Zarqawi.
The prime minister of Myanmar is under house arrest on corruption charges. A Thai government spokesman says Myanmar's prime minister also has been forced to resign his position.
In money news, Social Security recipients should get a little more in their checks. The annual cost of living adjustment is expected to be bigger than it was last year. But a large chunk of the increase will be eaten up by higher Medicare costs.
In culture, jazz music has a new home in New York. The Frederick P. Rose Hall at Lincoln Center is the first facility specially designed for the education and performance of jazz music.
In sports, pro-football's greatest wide receiver is changing addresses. Jerry Rice got his wish. He was traded from the Oakland Raiders, well, maybe he wanted to or didn't want to go to the Seattle Seahawks, but he's there now. Rice was unhappy with his role in Oakland -- Chad.
MYERS: Good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you.
There is no shortage of talk about the war in Iraq from politicians, military experts and pundits. But it's not often we get to hear from soldiers in the middle of the action.
Our Jane Arraf got to know some of the troops in Samarra.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When everything went off, I couldn't tell if we were getting ricocheted.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's not as if there's no debate here over whether this war is worth fighting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need to stay the course here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think they're trying to spread us too thin. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The weapons of mass destruction case, I never really thought they existed.
ARRAF: But for these soldiers in Iraq's Sunni Triangle, any debate at all is a bit beside the point. They're here in the middle of it and they'll stay for as long as they have to.
MAJOR GRAHAM HOFFMAN, PSYCHIATRIST: I think there's a little bit of a generation gap and I think the older guys who have read history and that sort of thing see this as a real historical sort of situation. The 19-year-olds don't and they really are fighting for their friends. They're fighting for each other and for the unit.
ARRAF: Specialist Tim Haag is here with his brother, 19. Haag is 22.
SPEC. TIM HAAG, U.S. ARMY: I'm just here to get my buddies home, you know? Helping the Iraqi people is cool, I guess. You know, I haven't killed any terrorists. I've killed poor people.
ARRAF: "They may have been poor but they were shooting at us," his buddies remind him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Poor people with guns.
ARRAF: It's a choice -- them or us -- they all say.
(on camera): For all of the risks soldiers take, a lot of them tell me they won't take the risk of saying on camera what they really believe about this war. They say they'd get into trouble if they admitted that they question whether the United States should even be here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Twenty-five meters to the right and three...
ARRAF (voice-over): Even so, they say they want people to know that things often go better in Iraq than they appear to.
SGT. MAJ. JOHN CALPENA, 1ST INFANTRY DIVISION: People say the entire country is in disarray and we relate that to a neighborhood in New York City, say the Bronx. It was in a gang war or something horrible was happening. The buildings were burning down. Nobody would say the entire United States is in chaos. They would say the Bronx is in chaos. And it's really the same thing here.
ARRAF: Some soldiers joined because of the September 11th attack on the World Trade Center. But with revelations that there were no weapons of mass destruction or links to 9/11, their belief that unseating Saddam Hussein would make the United States a safer place has worn thin.
HAAG: You know, I'm not fighting terrorists anymore. I'm not fighting to find all this mass destruction. When we go into Samarra, we're not looking into the tunnels looking for, you know SCUD missiles with nukes and stuff. We're here to make sure all of our friends who are still here get back safely. And that's all it's all about now. ARRAF: Friendships here forged under fire and strengthened over months of terror and tedium are what keep these soldiers going. In the battle for Samarra, after a long night in a Bradley fighting vehicle, as bullets whizzed by and explosions light the sky, the cold light finally dawns. For this soldier from Alabama, there's the bleakness of not believing in what you're doing, but doing it anyway.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm doing a job that I enlisted to do. I'm going to do that because I enlisted to do it. But I'm doing it for poor reason. And for me, that means it's not worth being here.
ARRAF: Despite his conviction that this war isn't helping the United States, he says he's just reenlisted.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Army may not have all the answers, but it does have enough answers. It does support my family and that's what I'm about. I'm about taking care of my family no matter what it takes.
ARRAF: Family and friends -- what it takes to keep soldiering on in Iraq despite doubts and disillusionments.
Jane Arraf, CNN, Samarra.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COSTELLO: What's hot on the Web straight ahead.
Also, a paraglider feels what it's like to take to the unfriendly skies. We'll show you more of the fallout from this high flying adventure.
And our e-mail Question of the Morning. Do you think the presidential election will be actually decided on November 2? Or the next day, on November 3? We want to hear from you this morning. The address, daybreak@cnn.com. That's daybreak@cnn.com.
And you are watching DAYBREAK for a Tuesday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: With election day inching ever closer, there's no escaping the presidential race. On the last night talk show circuit, in case you missed it, David Letterman took some pot shots at both candidates last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN, COURTESY CBS/WORLDWIDE PANTS)
DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST: Because of the flu vaccine shortage, President Bush says that he will skip getting his flu shot this year. He's not going to have one. He says because of the shortage, he's going to let other people get them. And Kerry says that he'll just get an extra shot of Botox. That's what he said he'd get. That's all he cares about. But have you noticed this now, that both candidates are using fear tactics? It's the last minute in the campaign election and both candidates are now using fear tactics. And, you know, my fear, honest to God, my fear is that one of them will get elected.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: I think that's how a lot of people are feeling this election season, at least if you go out and talk to people, that's what they say.
MYERS: Yes.
COSTELLO: Either that or they're like for one candidate or the other.
MYERS: And now people are starting to talk about Ralph Nader again. Well, where'd he come from?
COSTELLO: Well, suddenly...
MYERS: I mean I know he's been in there the whole time, but suddenly...
COSTELLO: Suddenly he's become a factor.
MYERS: I know.
COSTELLO: Because he's 1 percent, 2 percentage of the voters are going to vote for him.
MYERS: There you go.
COSTELLO: Which, of course, could affect John Kerry. It'll be a fascinating election, don't you think?
MYERS: It will.
COSTELLO: Letterman also said he had to drive his mom to the Canadian border to get a flu shot, but I don't know if he was joking or not. But I'm sure a lot of people are thinking the same thing.
MYERS: Right.
COSTELLO: Time to check the Web clicks this morning. We're always interested in what you're clicking onto on cnn.com. And the number one clicked on story is quite an interesting one.
MYERS: Yes. There's this EPIRB or transmitting signal that you can go out if you need and rescue, if you have a search and rescue operation going on, this signal will go out at 121.5 megahertz or something like that. Well, this TV set that this guy bought was emitting that signal and all of a sudden the Air Force Rescue Center at Langley goes out and tries to find the guy. But it was...
COSTELLO: They found him, too. MYERS: But it was just his TV.
COSTELLO: They surrounded his house.
MYERS: Oh my.
COSTELLO: And they told him he would be fined $10,000 if he did it again, even though he had no control over his new flat screen television set that was emitting the signal.
MYERS: So it was Toshiba and they sent him a brand new one, thank goodness.
COSTELLO: That's really nice of them.
Mary Poppins comes in...
MYERS: Is voting in Ohio.
COSTELLO: Yes.
MYERS: Did you know Mary Poppins is voting?
COSTELLO: Well, now I do.
MYERS: A hundred times.
COSTELLO: This is the second most clicked on story. You know, there have been all sorts of problems with elections across the country, or the coming elections, I should say. Ohio authorities say a man was charged Monday with filling out more than 100 fictitious voter registration forms, some with names such as Disney characters like Mary Poppins and pop singer Michael Jackson.
MYERS: Yes, he was going to get paid for every time he got some new signup or whatever. It was a buck or two. But, no, he got paid in crack.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes, because of his...
MYERS: Well, allegedly.
COSTELLO: Allegedly working for some woman who was a drug dealer. It's a really complicated story. But in the end, if you're going to fill out a phony voter registration card, maybe you should come up with a name that sounds more real.
MYERS: There you go.
COSTELLO: And now our third most clicked on story on cnn.com, Britney Spears is taking time to chill.
MYERS: Yes, she's married now, for real.
COSTELLO: Yes. Yes.
MYERS: She filled out the application, didn't just go through the I dos.
COSTELLO: She's tired of being the blonde on the cover of magazines across the country. She's tired of being exploited. She just wants to go home and watch "Sex and The City."
MYERS: She wants somebody else to go ahead and be on the cover.
COSTELLO: I'll bet you.
So those are your Web clicks of the morning.
MYERS: There you go.
COSTELLO: And I wanted to talk about Dale Earnhardt, Jr., because there is a panel. Three people were on this panel and they decided to uphold the fine because he said that nasty word after winning a race.
MYERS: For his appeal, the word that starts with an S that you shouldn't be saying on television. A lot of people thought that it was the other "F" word and the four letter word, and that was clearly not the case. I watched the race. But 25 points. And he is now down by 24 points. He could lose the championship because of that. The $10,000 I agree with. The points, I'm not sure.
COSTELLO: Yes, I don't know.
MYERS: But the appeal says yes, those 25 points are valid, and they will be deducted from your total. And he is now down by 24.
COSTELLO: You know, $10,000 isn't really very much to him, though.
MYERS: Considering he won $167,000 at that race. If they wanted to fine him and literally fine him a lot, they should have taken away the entire purse, taken it away but then not taken away those 25 points because those could be devastating.
COSTELLO: I have to agree with you, Chad.
Thank you.
Here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.
The embattled Red Sox, what a game. They rose to the occasion last night in the 11th hour.
MYERS: Actually, it was the seventh hour or the ninth hour or it seemed -- oh, my.
COSTELLO: Five hours, 48 minutes, baby. Could the Bambino be giving them a break?
And, oh, they've got issues and so do we. But how are the candidates addressing them? From abortion to stem cell research, we'll take a very clear look at where the candidates stand on important issues.
This is DAYBREAK for a Tuesday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONNA ROSATO, WRITER, "MONEY": November and early December are fantastic times to go to Hawaii. There really is no off season for Hawaii. June is a very popular time. A lot of honeymooners go there; also, early fall. But if you go in late fall, in November, early December, outside of the holidays, you'll find fewer crowds, fewer people and better deals. And you'll also have an easier time getting into some of those hard to get resorts. It'll be easier to land an ocean view room if you go this time of year.
The weather is pretty temperate all year round. Early December you may have a little bit of rain. But in general you should still have the fabulous Hawaiian weather, which is 80 degrees and sunny.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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