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Homeland Security On Mexico Border; New Study About Women And Heart Attacks; CBS's Mike Wallace Arrested; Shortlist For Greenspan Replacement

Aired August 11, 2004 - 14:32   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.


MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to the CNN Center in Atlanta. This is LIVE FROM. I'm Miles O'Brien.
And I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Here is what's all new this half hour.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

D'WAYNE JERNIGAN, DEL RIO SHERIFF: Are they terrorists? We don't know. Do you know? Does he know? Does he know? Who knows? We're not really checking them out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Lots of questions. Homeland Security worries on the U.S. border with Mexico, in an in-depth report, straight ahead.

A silent killer that strikes without warning. A new study on women and how doctors treat their heart attacks. Elizabeth Cohen is here. She's serious as a heart attack.

And takeout takedown. Mike Wallace goes out for meat loaf, he comes back wearing the bracelets, as they say, and we say, free Mike Wallace.

Health news for you. Some surprising information about women and heart disease, which remains the leading cause of death in the U.S. According to a new study, many women who suffer heart attacks don't even feel a trace of chest pain.

Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here to explain what this is all about.

Hello, Elizabeth.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello.

You know, you watch the movies, there's that classic, you know, someone has a heart attack, clutches the chest, pain radiating down the arm. That's what many of us think of when we think of someone who's having a heart attack. But there's more and more evidence that women often do not suffer from those kind of symptoms.

Let's take a look at the results of a new study. What this study found is that one in 12 people did not have chest pain when they had a heart attack, and that most of those people who did not experience the chest pain were older women with diabetes, heart failure or hypertension.

So if they didn't experience chest pain when they were having their heart attacks, what did they experience?

Well, here's a list of symptoms to watch out for. They had shortness of breath, excessive sweating, fainting and fatigue, nausea and vomiting and nagging pains in the shoulder or jaw.

Now it shouldn't be surprising then that women with these atypical symptoms are 10 times more likely to be misdiagnosed when they go to the emergency room. They show up, doctors say, well, there's no pain there, they get confused, they send them home. And that's why women sometimes are more likely to die of a heart attack, not because the heart attack was so bad, because it was missed.

O'BRIEN: Pain in the jaw, I've never heard that one. With a heart attacks, it's a really interesting list of symptoms. So with those list of symptoms, what are you to do?

COHEN: Right, if you show up at the emergency room, and they dismiss you, and they say, oh, you probably haven't had a heart attack, there's something very important that women need to know. The hospital may want to give you an EKG, put you on a treadmill, see how your heart does. There's some evidence that women will often do an EKG and it'll turn out okay, even if they have had a heart attack. EKG results are different for men and women.

So women should know that they should be persistent, they should push for what's called an enzyme test, which is a blood test that can determine whether or not someone had had a heart attack. But if you think that you might have had a heart attack, if you're female, push the doctors, say, you know, did you check, or did you check again?

O'BRIEN: They are not getting a fair shake, are they? All right, what -- why do you suppose women don't get that tight pain a lot of men report?

COHEN: Well, no one is quite sure. No one really knows for sure. But doctors have one theory, is that men sometimes are more likely to have their heart attacks, to have the actual blockage, in a main artery, and so it will show up better in -- it will be more painful and it will show up in the tests, whereas women, sometimes the blockages are in more minor arteries, don't get the same pain, doesn't show up the same in tests.

O'BRIEN: And of course my personal theory on this, women, who do childbirth after all, can handle a lot more pain.

COHEN: Your theory is that men of wimps.

O'BRIEN: That was my theory. Yes, glad you said it.

COHEN: There you go. FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, two days now from the official start of the Olympic Games in Athens, and there you see, right there on the right side of the screen, the Olympic flame. It is actually in Piraeus, Greece, which is just west of Athens, as it makes its way there. And now, the carrying of the torch will involve about 600 people, and it will be all Greek all the time.

Among those will be a Greek basketball player, a football player, a Greek singer, as well as a volleyball coach. This torch has made its way around the world throughout 26 nations, and now it is finally in Greece, there in Piraeus, not far away from Athens, as it makes its way now to the stadium for the official start of the Olympic Games in Athens, just two days away.

But you're seeing these live pictures right now of the torch lighting there in Piraeus, a beautiful sight, even though it's very dark. But just keep your eye on the flame.

O'BRIEN: I think he's asking for them to do another rendition of "Freebird." Isn't that what this is, or no?

COLLINS: Maybe it's Meatloaf.

O'BRIEN: "Paradise."

COLLINS: All right. Well, skepticism very seriously now on Capitol Hill as lawmakers debate ways to keep Americans safer. The 9/11 Commission suggests the country needs one director of intelligence, but criticism is growing over empowering this person with too much authority.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN CAMBONE, UNDERSECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I think we've got to make certain that we don't make, as I said in my opening statement, that in the desire to make adjustments that we make changes that we regret, and that just takes time for reflection. And I think reflection on something this big is important.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Also, of concern, just who should have access to all the intelligence that's being gathered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. RAYMOND ODIERNO, FMR. CMDR., FOURTH INFANTRY: Then to classify some things because of how it's collected, and then it's not available to use, we've got to work our way through that, and we lose some important information based on that, and I know we're working our way to fix that, but that is critical, because what'll happen is, it'll be classified so high, it's limited distribution, and then the people who need it don't get to see it. So we're got to work out way through that.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: House leaders say they hope to have reform legislation ready next month, Senate leaders, by October first.

In our post-9/11 world, the U.S. government has cracked down on foreigners entering the U.S., but over the past year, tens of thousands of illegal immigrants have still been able to slip through.

Our Ed Lavandera explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On a South Texas day in early July, some 30 Brazilian men were wandering through the border town of Del Rio. They were looking to cash some checks. Some were looking for ways to get to Boston just days before the start of the Democratic Convention.

When Sheriff D'Wayne Jernigan found out the men had just been released from Border Patrol custody and that $7,000 had been wired to three of them, he started sounding the alarm, calling anyone who would listen.

JERNIGAN: What is their purpose for going to Boston just before the convention and why is someone from Boston sending them such large amounts of cash?

LAVANDERA: The men were held for a couple of days and checked out. But these illegal immigrants were eventually released and the sheriff has no idea where they went or where they are now.

From Texas to California, this kind of incident is frustrating local law enforcement officers and border patrol agents.

JERNIGAN: I don't think the public understands what's happening, no. I don't think they would put up with it for a minute if they were aware of what was happening.

LAVANDERA: The police chief of Eagle Pass, Texas, knows all too well what is happening. As Tony Castaneda drives us around town, he sees as many as 50 illegal immigrants every day, sometimes casually walking through a golf course, like we found, but usually they're around the bus station.

Rudy Benicio (ph) is from Guatemala on his way to Rhode Island.

(on camera): When did you cross? This morning? About five hours ago. You can Salt Lake see his shoes and jeans are muddy.

(voice-over): The U.S. government calls Rudy (ph) an OTM, which means he comes from a country other than Mexico. OTMs are often handled differently than illegal immigrants from Mexico. If Rudy Benicio (ph) were Mexican, he would have been sent right back across the border. But, instead, following a background check, he's given what's called a notice to appear, an order instructing him to meet with an immigration judge at a date to be determined later.

But the majority never show up. That's why these forms are often called notices to disappear.

TONY CASTANEDA, EAGLE PASS POLICE CHIEF: It's a major loophole, a major, major, major hole, in that it's being created by this particular policy in the national security.

LAVANDERA: In Eagle Pass, it's easy to spot OTMs. They usually walk out of the Border Patrol station carrying that white piece of paper and start looking for the fastest way out of town. Castaneda thinks it would be easy for a terrorist to blend in here.

CASTANEDA: If you can go to a university and learn how to speak Spanish and you're from the Middle East or you're a terrorist, and you master the language and then just come across and say, hey, I'm from Honduras, I'm from Colombia, but you're still nevertheless a Middle Easterner, you could very easily pass, light colored complexion, fair skin, I think very easy.

LAVANDERA: Homeland Security officials say this year alone, almost 50,000 OTMs have crossed the Southern border. About 22,000 of those were released into the United States. Budget shortfalls and lack of bed space make it impossible to hold all illegal immigrants who are captured. So each immigrant is handled on an individual basis.

Victor Certa oversees the Homeland Security division responsible for deciding who is detained and who is released.

VICTOR CERTA, IMMIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT: The concern that we're releasing terrorists, I would say the system is out there to absolutely prevent that from happening. And I feel confident that it is working.

JERNIGAN: Welcome to the Val Verde County Jail.

LAVANDERA: Back in Del Rio, Texas, Sheriff Jernigan says he doesn't just see Hispanic immigrants coming through here anymore. In the last three months, records show illegal immigrants from Somalia, Kenya, and Macedonia, to name a few countries, also have been caught.

JERNIGAN: In fact, they're Border Patrol bringing some people in now.

How you all doing?

LAVANDERA: A year ago, his jail housed 300 OTMs a day. That number is down to five a day now. He says, in a post-9/11 atmosphere, immigrants are being captured and released too quickly.

JERNIGAN: Are they terrorists? We don't know. Do you know? Does he know? Does he know? Who knows? We're not really checking them out. We're not even holding them long enough to really make a determination. That's frustrating.

I keep it here all the time.

LAVANDERA: Sheriff Jernigan keeps reminders of 9/11 around the office. He knows the vast majority of immigrants who come across the border are simply looking for a better life. But it's the fear of that one villain who might sneak through the border in his town that makes him sound the alarm.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: All right, we're just supposing a few things next. For instance, let's say John Kerry wins the election in November. Will he keep Alan Greenspan as Fed chairman? Who could fill those shoes? Get a look at the likely candidates coming up.

And our favorite story of this, and really almost any day for a long while, "60 Minute" man Mike Wallace feels the heat, but does his meat loaf get cold before he's out of the cooler? The story in his own words as LIVE FROM orders out after we collar a few commercials.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: You know, New Yorkers always love to tell you about how hard it is to live in their city and how they prevail over the conditions in that town. Well, here's a cautionary tale about how tough it can be...

WHITFIELD: You love this story.

O'BRIEN: ... yes -- to get take-out in New York City.

WHITFIELD: That's right. We're not talking about the actual dish that was served up but what happened afterwards. Legendary newsman Mike Wallace was arrested outside Luke's Bar and Grill in Manhattan last night. All he wanted was...

O'BRIEN: He just wanted some meat loaf.

WHITFIELD: ... some meat loaf and mashed potatoes.

O'BRIEN: Meat loaf and potatoes.

He goes in, he picks it up, and then the trouble occurs. A little skirmish, as they say, on the sidewalk there on 3rd Avenue.

WHITFIELD: It was ugly. Outside, apparently a pair of taxi and limo commission inspectors grilled Wallace's driver for being double parked.

O'BRIEN: Taxi and license -- that's TLC, and there was no love being felt. He came up, of course, being the intrepid correspondent that he is -- 86 years old now. And I love this: The officers say he lunged at him.

WHITFIELD: And I like his reply, "I don't even lunge into bed." I'm not lunging at no...

O'BRIEN: And the officer said, "I feared for the safety of my partner." Can you imagine that one? Let's listen to Mike.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE WALLACE, CBS'S "60 MINUTES": About 25 times a year, I leave the office, get into a Skyline car, go over to Luke's. I call ahead of time saying make me some meat loaf or a hanger stake or something. I'll get there, we'll spend five minutes, we double park. I get the meat loaf, and I go home.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: When you came out this time, what happened?

WALLACE: They were -- they were talking to the driver of the Skyline car. They were looking at his license. I have no idea exactly what happened. So, what happened was that I said, "Officer what's going..."

"Get back in the car."

I swear. So, what happened was I -- "Officer, just tell me, I mean I -- I don't get it. What is this all..."

"Get back in the car."

I mean it, seriously. So, finally, there was a little bit of conversation, and they cuffed me and charged me with -- with disorderly conduct. Took me down to the station, the 19th precinct. I know everybody there, because I covered cops in New York for about a half century, and they were embarrassed -- the people at the 19th precinct. See, these are not New York City cops. These are taxicab and limousine.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The TLC says you were disrespectful and approached these guys three times.

WALLACE: I did what?

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Disrespectful and approached these guys three times.

WALLACE: Well, if...

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: You were asked to step away three times.

WALLACE: No, I was told to get back into the car. OK?

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: What do you say to their -- they're saying you were disrespectful.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Well, if it's disrespectful to ask the question, I guess I was disrespectful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: All right. The man has made a living asking questions.

WHITFIELD: Yes, and he has every right to ask a question. But I love the "back in the car." O'BRIEN: "Get back in the car."

WHITFIELD: Especially, since once they put the cuffs on him, they put him in the "back of the car."

O'BRIEN: He got...

WHITFIELD: He got back in the car.

O'BRIEN: He got back in the car, whether he liked it or not. We got some more excerpts of that amazing Mike Wallace interview and more meat loaf to tell you about.

WHITFIELD: And mashed potatoes.

O'BRIEN: And all that. More "get back in the car" in LIVE FROM's homestretch, which is coming up. We're going to dial up the guys at Luke's, and we'll find out the secret of the loaf and see what they saw as that unfolded.

WHITFIELD: And we'll see what they serve up for us.

But first, are you on the shortlist of replacements for Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan? Something tells me if you are, you're probably not watching this. Well, find out who is on the shortlist.

O'BRIEN: Well, how do you know. They might be watching. They could be watching.

WHITFIELD: They could be watching.

ANNOUNCER: Ahead on CNN...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He now agrees it was the right decision to go into Iraq.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Why did he rush to war...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: At 3:30, top members of the campaigns face off for you vote on "INSIDE POLITICS."

Plus, does an increase in traffic on John Kerry's Web site mean more votes in November?

And in the "CROSSFIRE" at 4:30, is the war on terror the deciding issue for you in Campaign 2004?

Stay with CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: Alan Greenspan has been heading the Federal Reserve Board for almost two decades. This year's presidential election could change that, however. If Senator John Kerry wins, will Greenspan remain as the Fed's compass?

Our Kathleen Hays is in New York with some ideas about the potential successors -- Kathleen?

KATHLEEN HAYS, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS: Well, Fredricka, one thing I can tell you for sure: There's no TV anchors on the shortlist, so you, Miles and I, I guess, are out of the running.

The one thing is for sure that, in 2006, Alan Greenspan will be stepping down. He served as long as he can. So, maybe it's not too early to think who will be next. And definitely whoever is in the White House will determine who that next Fed chairman is.

So, let's say "what if?" What if President Bush wins the election? Well, if you do, you are going -- excuse me -- you're going to hear a name a lot: Martin Feldstein. This is a guy who is a Harvard economics professor.

He's been president of the National Bureau of Economic Research. Sounds nerdy? It is. These are the people, for example, who determine when recessions begin and end. He was chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers back under Ronald Reagan. So, he's definitely got Republican credentials. He knows monetary policy; that's a plus. Some people think maybe he's too much of an academic, doesn't know the political waters well enough. We shall see.

Another guy on the Republican's list, perhaps: the president of the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank, Bob McTeer. Now, this is a guy who's been in the Federal Reserve system practically his whole professional life. He used to be an economist at the Richmond Federal Reserve Bank.

He's know for believing in the new economy. Think back in the height of the stock market and the tech bubble back in the '90s -- that the economy can grow fast, believes in productivity and technology, not so worried about inflation. The plus: Dallas Fed, Texas, get it, George Bush? That could help him out. A minus: probably appeals more to Republicans than Democrats, unlike Martin Feldstein, who seems to have a little more crossover appeal.

Two more names to consider. If John Kerry wins the White House, Bob Rubin, who was the Treasury secretary under President Clinton. Wall Street loves him; Democrats love him. He would be a slam dunk from that side. But maybe less an economist. Maybe that wouldn't help him so much.

And also Larry Summers, who was Bob Rubin's assistant at Treasury. Also was chief economist at the World Bank. A definite economics heavyweight, now the head of Harvard. The question is maybe he's tired of Washington, D.C. If the chairman of the Fed would beckon, he might find himself more interested. You might also ask, "Hey, what about a woman? No women on the list." Well, there's a couple people in consideration -- Alice Rivlin, a former Fed vice chairwoman, also the founder of the Congressional Budget Office. She's has a lot going for her, but not toward the top of the list.

Fredricka, I think we're going to have to work a bit harder to move our side of the gender coin up the list. We shall see.

WHITFIELD: We're just going to have to be patient. Kathleen Hays, thanks very much.

O'BRIEN: You know, you girls shouldn't be patient. You should just push harder, push harder. Anyway...

WHITFIELD: Punch through that glass.

O'BRIEN: Yes, that's it.

An unlikely hero comes to the rescue.

WHITFIELD: A family says this young teenager was a Godsend to their five-year-old son trapped in raging waters. Details on that on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired August 11, 2004 - 14:32   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to the CNN Center in Atlanta. This is LIVE FROM. I'm Miles O'Brien.
And I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Here is what's all new this half hour.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

D'WAYNE JERNIGAN, DEL RIO SHERIFF: Are they terrorists? We don't know. Do you know? Does he know? Does he know? Who knows? We're not really checking them out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: Lots of questions. Homeland Security worries on the U.S. border with Mexico, in an in-depth report, straight ahead.

A silent killer that strikes without warning. A new study on women and how doctors treat their heart attacks. Elizabeth Cohen is here. She's serious as a heart attack.

And takeout takedown. Mike Wallace goes out for meat loaf, he comes back wearing the bracelets, as they say, and we say, free Mike Wallace.

Health news for you. Some surprising information about women and heart disease, which remains the leading cause of death in the U.S. According to a new study, many women who suffer heart attacks don't even feel a trace of chest pain.

Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here to explain what this is all about.

Hello, Elizabeth.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello.

You know, you watch the movies, there's that classic, you know, someone has a heart attack, clutches the chest, pain radiating down the arm. That's what many of us think of when we think of someone who's having a heart attack. But there's more and more evidence that women often do not suffer from those kind of symptoms.

Let's take a look at the results of a new study. What this study found is that one in 12 people did not have chest pain when they had a heart attack, and that most of those people who did not experience the chest pain were older women with diabetes, heart failure or hypertension.

So if they didn't experience chest pain when they were having their heart attacks, what did they experience?

Well, here's a list of symptoms to watch out for. They had shortness of breath, excessive sweating, fainting and fatigue, nausea and vomiting and nagging pains in the shoulder or jaw.

Now it shouldn't be surprising then that women with these atypical symptoms are 10 times more likely to be misdiagnosed when they go to the emergency room. They show up, doctors say, well, there's no pain there, they get confused, they send them home. And that's why women sometimes are more likely to die of a heart attack, not because the heart attack was so bad, because it was missed.

O'BRIEN: Pain in the jaw, I've never heard that one. With a heart attacks, it's a really interesting list of symptoms. So with those list of symptoms, what are you to do?

COHEN: Right, if you show up at the emergency room, and they dismiss you, and they say, oh, you probably haven't had a heart attack, there's something very important that women need to know. The hospital may want to give you an EKG, put you on a treadmill, see how your heart does. There's some evidence that women will often do an EKG and it'll turn out okay, even if they have had a heart attack. EKG results are different for men and women.

So women should know that they should be persistent, they should push for what's called an enzyme test, which is a blood test that can determine whether or not someone had had a heart attack. But if you think that you might have had a heart attack, if you're female, push the doctors, say, you know, did you check, or did you check again?

O'BRIEN: They are not getting a fair shake, are they? All right, what -- why do you suppose women don't get that tight pain a lot of men report?

COHEN: Well, no one is quite sure. No one really knows for sure. But doctors have one theory, is that men sometimes are more likely to have their heart attacks, to have the actual blockage, in a main artery, and so it will show up better in -- it will be more painful and it will show up in the tests, whereas women, sometimes the blockages are in more minor arteries, don't get the same pain, doesn't show up the same in tests.

O'BRIEN: And of course my personal theory on this, women, who do childbirth after all, can handle a lot more pain.

COHEN: Your theory is that men of wimps.

O'BRIEN: That was my theory. Yes, glad you said it.

COHEN: There you go. FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, two days now from the official start of the Olympic Games in Athens, and there you see, right there on the right side of the screen, the Olympic flame. It is actually in Piraeus, Greece, which is just west of Athens, as it makes its way there. And now, the carrying of the torch will involve about 600 people, and it will be all Greek all the time.

Among those will be a Greek basketball player, a football player, a Greek singer, as well as a volleyball coach. This torch has made its way around the world throughout 26 nations, and now it is finally in Greece, there in Piraeus, not far away from Athens, as it makes its way now to the stadium for the official start of the Olympic Games in Athens, just two days away.

But you're seeing these live pictures right now of the torch lighting there in Piraeus, a beautiful sight, even though it's very dark. But just keep your eye on the flame.

O'BRIEN: I think he's asking for them to do another rendition of "Freebird." Isn't that what this is, or no?

COLLINS: Maybe it's Meatloaf.

O'BRIEN: "Paradise."

COLLINS: All right. Well, skepticism very seriously now on Capitol Hill as lawmakers debate ways to keep Americans safer. The 9/11 Commission suggests the country needs one director of intelligence, but criticism is growing over empowering this person with too much authority.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN CAMBONE, UNDERSECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I think we've got to make certain that we don't make, as I said in my opening statement, that in the desire to make adjustments that we make changes that we regret, and that just takes time for reflection. And I think reflection on something this big is important.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Also, of concern, just who should have access to all the intelligence that's being gathered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAJ. GEN. RAYMOND ODIERNO, FMR. CMDR., FOURTH INFANTRY: Then to classify some things because of how it's collected, and then it's not available to use, we've got to work our way through that, and we lose some important information based on that, and I know we're working our way to fix that, but that is critical, because what'll happen is, it'll be classified so high, it's limited distribution, and then the people who need it don't get to see it. So we're got to work out way through that.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: House leaders say they hope to have reform legislation ready next month, Senate leaders, by October first.

In our post-9/11 world, the U.S. government has cracked down on foreigners entering the U.S., but over the past year, tens of thousands of illegal immigrants have still been able to slip through.

Our Ed Lavandera explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On a South Texas day in early July, some 30 Brazilian men were wandering through the border town of Del Rio. They were looking to cash some checks. Some were looking for ways to get to Boston just days before the start of the Democratic Convention.

When Sheriff D'Wayne Jernigan found out the men had just been released from Border Patrol custody and that $7,000 had been wired to three of them, he started sounding the alarm, calling anyone who would listen.

JERNIGAN: What is their purpose for going to Boston just before the convention and why is someone from Boston sending them such large amounts of cash?

LAVANDERA: The men were held for a couple of days and checked out. But these illegal immigrants were eventually released and the sheriff has no idea where they went or where they are now.

From Texas to California, this kind of incident is frustrating local law enforcement officers and border patrol agents.

JERNIGAN: I don't think the public understands what's happening, no. I don't think they would put up with it for a minute if they were aware of what was happening.

LAVANDERA: The police chief of Eagle Pass, Texas, knows all too well what is happening. As Tony Castaneda drives us around town, he sees as many as 50 illegal immigrants every day, sometimes casually walking through a golf course, like we found, but usually they're around the bus station.

Rudy Benicio (ph) is from Guatemala on his way to Rhode Island.

(on camera): When did you cross? This morning? About five hours ago. You can Salt Lake see his shoes and jeans are muddy.

(voice-over): The U.S. government calls Rudy (ph) an OTM, which means he comes from a country other than Mexico. OTMs are often handled differently than illegal immigrants from Mexico. If Rudy Benicio (ph) were Mexican, he would have been sent right back across the border. But, instead, following a background check, he's given what's called a notice to appear, an order instructing him to meet with an immigration judge at a date to be determined later.

But the majority never show up. That's why these forms are often called notices to disappear.

TONY CASTANEDA, EAGLE PASS POLICE CHIEF: It's a major loophole, a major, major, major hole, in that it's being created by this particular policy in the national security.

LAVANDERA: In Eagle Pass, it's easy to spot OTMs. They usually walk out of the Border Patrol station carrying that white piece of paper and start looking for the fastest way out of town. Castaneda thinks it would be easy for a terrorist to blend in here.

CASTANEDA: If you can go to a university and learn how to speak Spanish and you're from the Middle East or you're a terrorist, and you master the language and then just come across and say, hey, I'm from Honduras, I'm from Colombia, but you're still nevertheless a Middle Easterner, you could very easily pass, light colored complexion, fair skin, I think very easy.

LAVANDERA: Homeland Security officials say this year alone, almost 50,000 OTMs have crossed the Southern border. About 22,000 of those were released into the United States. Budget shortfalls and lack of bed space make it impossible to hold all illegal immigrants who are captured. So each immigrant is handled on an individual basis.

Victor Certa oversees the Homeland Security division responsible for deciding who is detained and who is released.

VICTOR CERTA, IMMIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT: The concern that we're releasing terrorists, I would say the system is out there to absolutely prevent that from happening. And I feel confident that it is working.

JERNIGAN: Welcome to the Val Verde County Jail.

LAVANDERA: Back in Del Rio, Texas, Sheriff Jernigan says he doesn't just see Hispanic immigrants coming through here anymore. In the last three months, records show illegal immigrants from Somalia, Kenya, and Macedonia, to name a few countries, also have been caught.

JERNIGAN: In fact, they're Border Patrol bringing some people in now.

How you all doing?

LAVANDERA: A year ago, his jail housed 300 OTMs a day. That number is down to five a day now. He says, in a post-9/11 atmosphere, immigrants are being captured and released too quickly.

JERNIGAN: Are they terrorists? We don't know. Do you know? Does he know? Does he know? Who knows? We're not really checking them out. We're not even holding them long enough to really make a determination. That's frustrating.

I keep it here all the time.

LAVANDERA: Sheriff Jernigan keeps reminders of 9/11 around the office. He knows the vast majority of immigrants who come across the border are simply looking for a better life. But it's the fear of that one villain who might sneak through the border in his town that makes him sound the alarm.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: All right, we're just supposing a few things next. For instance, let's say John Kerry wins the election in November. Will he keep Alan Greenspan as Fed chairman? Who could fill those shoes? Get a look at the likely candidates coming up.

And our favorite story of this, and really almost any day for a long while, "60 Minute" man Mike Wallace feels the heat, but does his meat loaf get cold before he's out of the cooler? The story in his own words as LIVE FROM orders out after we collar a few commercials.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: You know, New Yorkers always love to tell you about how hard it is to live in their city and how they prevail over the conditions in that town. Well, here's a cautionary tale about how tough it can be...

WHITFIELD: You love this story.

O'BRIEN: ... yes -- to get take-out in New York City.

WHITFIELD: That's right. We're not talking about the actual dish that was served up but what happened afterwards. Legendary newsman Mike Wallace was arrested outside Luke's Bar and Grill in Manhattan last night. All he wanted was...

O'BRIEN: He just wanted some meat loaf.

WHITFIELD: ... some meat loaf and mashed potatoes.

O'BRIEN: Meat loaf and potatoes.

He goes in, he picks it up, and then the trouble occurs. A little skirmish, as they say, on the sidewalk there on 3rd Avenue.

WHITFIELD: It was ugly. Outside, apparently a pair of taxi and limo commission inspectors grilled Wallace's driver for being double parked.

O'BRIEN: Taxi and license -- that's TLC, and there was no love being felt. He came up, of course, being the intrepid correspondent that he is -- 86 years old now. And I love this: The officers say he lunged at him.

WHITFIELD: And I like his reply, "I don't even lunge into bed." I'm not lunging at no...

O'BRIEN: And the officer said, "I feared for the safety of my partner." Can you imagine that one? Let's listen to Mike.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE WALLACE, CBS'S "60 MINUTES": About 25 times a year, I leave the office, get into a Skyline car, go over to Luke's. I call ahead of time saying make me some meat loaf or a hanger stake or something. I'll get there, we'll spend five minutes, we double park. I get the meat loaf, and I go home.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: When you came out this time, what happened?

WALLACE: They were -- they were talking to the driver of the Skyline car. They were looking at his license. I have no idea exactly what happened. So, what happened was that I said, "Officer what's going..."

"Get back in the car."

I swear. So, what happened was I -- "Officer, just tell me, I mean I -- I don't get it. What is this all..."

"Get back in the car."

I mean it, seriously. So, finally, there was a little bit of conversation, and they cuffed me and charged me with -- with disorderly conduct. Took me down to the station, the 19th precinct. I know everybody there, because I covered cops in New York for about a half century, and they were embarrassed -- the people at the 19th precinct. See, these are not New York City cops. These are taxicab and limousine.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The TLC says you were disrespectful and approached these guys three times.

WALLACE: I did what?

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Disrespectful and approached these guys three times.

WALLACE: Well, if...

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: You were asked to step away three times.

WALLACE: No, I was told to get back into the car. OK?

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: What do you say to their -- they're saying you were disrespectful.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Well, if it's disrespectful to ask the question, I guess I was disrespectful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O'BRIEN: All right. The man has made a living asking questions.

WHITFIELD: Yes, and he has every right to ask a question. But I love the "back in the car." O'BRIEN: "Get back in the car."

WHITFIELD: Especially, since once they put the cuffs on him, they put him in the "back of the car."

O'BRIEN: He got...

WHITFIELD: He got back in the car.

O'BRIEN: He got back in the car, whether he liked it or not. We got some more excerpts of that amazing Mike Wallace interview and more meat loaf to tell you about.

WHITFIELD: And mashed potatoes.

O'BRIEN: And all that. More "get back in the car" in LIVE FROM's homestretch, which is coming up. We're going to dial up the guys at Luke's, and we'll find out the secret of the loaf and see what they saw as that unfolded.

WHITFIELD: And we'll see what they serve up for us.

But first, are you on the shortlist of replacements for Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan? Something tells me if you are, you're probably not watching this. Well, find out who is on the shortlist.

O'BRIEN: Well, how do you know. They might be watching. They could be watching.

WHITFIELD: They could be watching.

ANNOUNCER: Ahead on CNN...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He now agrees it was the right decision to go into Iraq.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Why did he rush to war...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: At 3:30, top members of the campaigns face off for you vote on "INSIDE POLITICS."

Plus, does an increase in traffic on John Kerry's Web site mean more votes in November?

And in the "CROSSFIRE" at 4:30, is the war on terror the deciding issue for you in Campaign 2004?

Stay with CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: Alan Greenspan has been heading the Federal Reserve Board for almost two decades. This year's presidential election could change that, however. If Senator John Kerry wins, will Greenspan remain as the Fed's compass?

Our Kathleen Hays is in New York with some ideas about the potential successors -- Kathleen?

KATHLEEN HAYS, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS: Well, Fredricka, one thing I can tell you for sure: There's no TV anchors on the shortlist, so you, Miles and I, I guess, are out of the running.

The one thing is for sure that, in 2006, Alan Greenspan will be stepping down. He served as long as he can. So, maybe it's not too early to think who will be next. And definitely whoever is in the White House will determine who that next Fed chairman is.

So, let's say "what if?" What if President Bush wins the election? Well, if you do, you are going -- excuse me -- you're going to hear a name a lot: Martin Feldstein. This is a guy who is a Harvard economics professor.

He's been president of the National Bureau of Economic Research. Sounds nerdy? It is. These are the people, for example, who determine when recessions begin and end. He was chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers back under Ronald Reagan. So, he's definitely got Republican credentials. He knows monetary policy; that's a plus. Some people think maybe he's too much of an academic, doesn't know the political waters well enough. We shall see.

Another guy on the Republican's list, perhaps: the president of the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank, Bob McTeer. Now, this is a guy who's been in the Federal Reserve system practically his whole professional life. He used to be an economist at the Richmond Federal Reserve Bank.

He's know for believing in the new economy. Think back in the height of the stock market and the tech bubble back in the '90s -- that the economy can grow fast, believes in productivity and technology, not so worried about inflation. The plus: Dallas Fed, Texas, get it, George Bush? That could help him out. A minus: probably appeals more to Republicans than Democrats, unlike Martin Feldstein, who seems to have a little more crossover appeal.

Two more names to consider. If John Kerry wins the White House, Bob Rubin, who was the Treasury secretary under President Clinton. Wall Street loves him; Democrats love him. He would be a slam dunk from that side. But maybe less an economist. Maybe that wouldn't help him so much.

And also Larry Summers, who was Bob Rubin's assistant at Treasury. Also was chief economist at the World Bank. A definite economics heavyweight, now the head of Harvard. The question is maybe he's tired of Washington, D.C. If the chairman of the Fed would beckon, he might find himself more interested. You might also ask, "Hey, what about a woman? No women on the list." Well, there's a couple people in consideration -- Alice Rivlin, a former Fed vice chairwoman, also the founder of the Congressional Budget Office. She's has a lot going for her, but not toward the top of the list.

Fredricka, I think we're going to have to work a bit harder to move our side of the gender coin up the list. We shall see.

WHITFIELD: We're just going to have to be patient. Kathleen Hays, thanks very much.

O'BRIEN: You know, you girls shouldn't be patient. You should just push harder, push harder. Anyway...

WHITFIELD: Punch through that glass.

O'BRIEN: Yes, that's it.

An unlikely hero comes to the rescue.

WHITFIELD: A family says this young teenager was a Godsend to their five-year-old son trapped in raging waters. Details on that on LIVE FROM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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