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Arnold to Speak, But Does He Represent GOP?; Giuliani Most Favored GOP Speaker; Scientists Discover Two New Planets

Aired August 31, 2004 - 14:30   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, CO-HOST: Welcome back to the CNN Center in Atlanta. This is LIVE FROM. I'm Miles O'Brien.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: And I'm Kyra Phillips. Here's what's all new this half hour.

Dress rehearsal for a big star. Governor Schwarzenegger getting ready for prime time. Will his message move undecided voters for Bush?

O'BRIEN: And the Milky Way becomes passe. You like that? New discoveries make Mars and Saturn seem like so five minutes ago.

But first, here's what 's happening right now.

Kobe Bryant's sexual assault trial could begin as early as next week. Lawyers questioning another round of potential jurors behind closed doors today. Court officials hope to have 12 jurors and two alternates in place by Friday. And they hope to begin opening statements in a week.

In California, in a courtroom there, a search dog handler is back on the stand at the Scott Peterson murder trial. Prosecutors say search dogs picked up Laci Peterson's scent at the marina where Peterson says he took his fishing trip on December 24, 2002. That's the day Laci was reported missing.

A defeat for the lawyers of Private First Class Lynndie England. They lost their bid to have high-ranking generals testify under oath about the Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal. England is one of seven military police reservists facing charges.

CNN learned a grand jury will soon be impaneled in the Pentagon spy investigation. An analyst is suspected of passing classified information to Israel via a third party. The FBI wants to know if he was given a green light to do so. Both the Israeli government and a pro-Israeli lobby group deny any involvement in that.

PHILLIPS: And one of the biggest stars of the Republican National Convention will be in the spotlight tonight. Until recently, though, Arnold Schwarzenegger was more at home on the silver scene.

A look at his debut on the national political stage from CNN's Kelly Wallace.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He's the rock star of the Republican Party, the action hero...

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: Hasta la vista, baby.

WALLACE: ... turned California governor, still using those Hollywood one-liners.

SCHWARZENEGGER: Thank you. I'll be back. Thank you.

WALLACE: He's got sky-high popularity with Republicans, strong appeal with Democrats, as well, which explains why President Bush, who didn't exactly embrace Arnold Schwarzenegger during California's historic recall, is more than happy to share the stage with him now.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Some accuse us both of not being able to speak the language.

WALLACE: But they do have their differences. Schwarzenegger, unlike the president, is a social moderate who supports gay rights, abortion rights and gun control.

And now he's following in the footsteps of another actor turned California governor who made his way to the national political stage, the late former president Ronald Reagan. The difference? Unless the U.S. Constitution is changed, Austrian-born Schwarzenegger can't make the leap.

SCHWARZENEGGER: When I came to this country 35 years ago, I never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would be standing in front of you here as the governor-elect of California, introducing the president of the United States.

WALLACE: There are risks in this partnership. The governor could be identified with a president enormously unpopular in his home state. Mr. Bush risks getting upstaged by a man who loves to make a splash.

SCHWARZENEGGER: And this is why I'm going to run for governor of the state of California.

WALLACE (on camera): And in an effort, perhaps, to try and not feel steal the spotlight Schwarzenegger won't be appearing on any comedy or news shows while he's here. He's got just two public events in New York City, beyond his big speech tonight.

Kelly Wallace, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: So will Hollywood Arnold be boffo near Broadway? What will the first lady and the first daughters say to woo women into the W. camp? Does the president think the U.S. can win the war on terror or not? And can't someone give Michael Moore a razor? These are some of the questions on our minds as we turn to purveyors of razor-sharp political punditry. From the CNN Convention Diner at the New Yorker Hotel, CROSSFIRE co-hosts Paul Begala and Robert Novak.

Bob, what did you have for lunch?

ROBERT NOVAK, CO-HOST, "CROSSFIRE": I had a hamburger.

O'BRIEN: Hamburger? Paul, what did you have?

NOVAK: It was very good, too.

PAUL BEGALA, CO-HOST, "CROSSFIRE": Cobb Salad. Darn good. It was great.

O'BRIEN: Good food there, right?

BEGALA: Some of those California avocados. Governor Schwarzenegger will be glad to know we're eating them here in New York.

O'BRIEN: All right. Let's -- Bob Novak, let's talk about Arnold Schwarzenegger a bit. He really -- he really isn't a Republican in the purest sense of the world. I'm sure that you have so many issues, so many bones to pick with him that -- in some sense he doesn't really represent the GOP, does he?

NOVAK: He represents it on taxation, Miles, which is the most important issue for the -- for the Republican Party. He was -- I think he really has a terrific message for California, to say that he got rid of Gray Davis, who was a high tax, high spending person.

The first thing that Governor Schwarzenegger did when he got to Sacramento was repeal the hideous car tax, which was a Democratic proposal. So I think he can say that John Kerry is a national version of Gray Davis. He's a good message for the voters of California.

O'BRIEN: Don't you kind of -- As you look at the list of speakers there, you, especially, must be longing for some real red meat conservatives?

NOVAK: Well, I think we're going to get some real red meat conservatives. One is Dick Cheney, Richard Bruce Cheney. He's going to be on tomorrow night.

And then on Thursday night -- you might have missed this, Miles -- George W. Bush is going to speak. And he's going to give a conservative -- conservative message.

But let me tell you one thing, the biggest issue in the Republican Party is -- is not any of the social issues, it is taxation. And Schwarzenegger is very good on that issue.

O'BRIEN: All right, let's talk about this, Paul Begala. Arnold Schwarzenegger, he is somebody who can really appeal to that middle. Democrats have got to be a little bit nervous about not just him but the moderate tone of this convention. That plays very well to the undecided middle, doesn't it?

BEGALA: It does, if you believe that those sorts of things transfer, and I don't think they do. Governor Schwarzenegger's popular for the very reasons that Bob doesn't like him, because he is pro-choice; he is pro-gay rights. He is pro-gun control rights. He's pro-gun control, I should say.

He's a moderate, and that's why he's popular in the liberal state of California.

But President Bush doesn't hold any of those views, and while it is true that Schwarzenegger is closer to Bush on taxes, last night John McCain, their big star they rolled out last night, was one of the few Republicans who voted against the Bush tax cuts.

And so what you really are seeing here is kind of a bait and switch. It's a bit of a fraud. I mean, I consider it a political cross-dressing of the kind that we haven't seen since J. Edgar Hoover. I mean, they should just be what they are.

In my party we had Teddy Kennedy, Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, Hillary Clinton, the real leaders of our party. That's who spoke.

O'BRIEN: All right.

NOVAK: Let me just respond. Let me just...

O'BRIEN: Bob Novak, you've got to respond to that one.

NOVAK: I just want to -- that's a communist lie about J. Edgar Hoover.

BEGALA: I told you.

NOVAK: It is.

BEGALA: Straight arrow.

NOVAK: But let me respond to what -- let me respond, Miles.

BEGALA: Pinko chiffon, actually.

NOVAK: Miles, let me respond to what he said about the fact that he is -- Schwarzenegger is popular in California because of his position on guns and gays and abortion.

Those were all the positions taken by Gray Davis, the governor they kicked out. He had exactly those positions, and he was kicked out because he was bad on spending and taxes. The great sin of the Democrats is they're a high tax party. And that is the biggest liability for John Kerry at this moment.

O'BRIEN: All right. Paul Begala, we are out of time, but you get to balance it out here. Finish it up. BEGALA: I think another appeal Schwarzenegger has is he's a strong and decisive leader. Republicans are spending tens of millions of dollars this week to portray a sense of strength around George w. Bush. And Bush about blew the whole thing yesterday when he said we can't win war on terror. It's an enormous mistake.

NOVAK: Wait a minute.

BEGALA: It's an enormous mistake, and it undermines the president's whole convention.

NOVAK: I have to respond...

O'BRIEN: Yes, go ahead.

NOVAK: ... that that was a mistake by the president and he corrected himself today.

(CROSS TALK)

O'BRIEN: A flip-flop, I suppose. All gentlemen, our red meat conservative Bob Novak, our salad munching liberal, Paul Begala, thank you both for joining us from the diner -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, taking cues from the political polls we're going to examine the latest numbers from Gallup this week and how they're playing on both sides.

Also, cooperating with authorities to find out what happened. The Dave Matthews Band responds to an alleged waste-dumping suit. We're going to have the details.

Don't look now, but NASA has new details on some new extra planets. We're going to find out what it all means. Actually, Miles is going to explain what it all means next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking the bounce from the RNC. All eyes are on the Republican National Convention this week as we ponder what effect it may have on the November election.

Gallup's editor-in-chief, Frank Newport, in Princeton, New Jersey, he's paying attention to the GOP message.

Frank, the Republicans are bringing out their moderate stars to try and sway independent voters. Which one is likely to have the most impact?

FRANK NEWPORT, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, GALLUP: Well, based on our data Rudy Giuliani last night. Do a little data diving here, Kyra. Following up on the discussion that you've been having there on CNN to show you why the Republicans find it necessary to bring those people out.

This is Bush himself speaking Thursday night, 89 percent favorable rating among his core, the Republicans, but look how low he is among independents, a little below 50 percent; Democrats, just 19 percent.

Let's flip over to Arnold Schwarzenegger, of course, tonight's featured speaker. Not quite as high among Republicans, just 66 percent favorable rating. Look at this: 55 among independents and almost half of Democrats nationwide favorable opinion of Schwarzenegger. So he should have a better audience among these groups over here.

And then last night Giuliani who has the highest favorable rating of any of the speakers that are going to be at the convention that we measured. Overall, about 65 percent favorable rating, roughly. Seventy-seven percent among his Republicans. But look at that, 61 Independents and 56 Democrats.

That's why last night, the presumption is, he probably was preaching to more than just the choir -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Swing voters, more men, more women?

NEWPORT: Well, swing voters are a very interesting phenomenon that we look at a lot here. In fact, all the calls I'm getting here at Gallup from journalists deal with swing voters these days. Who are they?

Seventeen percent of the American population is our latest estimate likely voter population; 17 percent, that's all, Kyra. People say, well who are they demographically? They're young; they're old; they're women; are they soccer moms? Are they neutral, independent women and all that?

There's not a lot of demographic difference. I can tell you that 16 percent of likely voter men are swing voters. That is, they're in play; they're undecided. They say they may switch their vote. Nineteen percent of women nationwide are also swing voters. Not a lot of demographic difference.

In fact, there's not a lot of age differences or education differences. They're kind of diffuse. They're all over the place. But boy, they're the key to this whole election -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Gallup editor-in-chief Frank Newport, thanks so much. Always -- Out with a new book, also. Right, Frank?

NEWPORT: That's right: "Polling Matters," available at your local bookseller.

PHILLIPS: There you go. Quick, shameless plug.

NEWPORT: That's right.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Frank.

All right, Miles. O'BRIEN: Planet hunters are announcing a pair of big discoveries today. Two planets about the size of Neptune, and that's significant, orbiting a pair of stars 30 and 41 light years away respectively.

One of the planets is part of the first documented four-planet solar system outside our own. So how long will it be before we find another Earth-like planet?

Joining us with more on this, how to hunt for planets and the hunt in general, is one of the astronomers in the vanguard of the hunt. Astronomer Geoff Marcy joining us from Washington now.

Geoff, good to see you again.

GEOFF MARCY, ASTRONOMER: Pleasure to be here.

O'BRIEN: All right. Put this latest discovery in some perspective. Neptune-size planets. Planets that you have found before, and there are about 130 or so of them out there now, outside our solar system, have all been the size of Jupiter. Big difference, isn't it?

GEOFFREY MARCY, PLANET HUNTER: That's right. Up until now astronomers have discovered 135 planets orbiting other stars. But today for the first time we're finding planets smaller, not as big as Jupiter and Saturn but small, 10 to 20 times the size of our Earth.

O'BRIEN: Neptune is still, as you just pointed out, rather much bigger than Earth. Of course, we don't know if these planets that you have found are solid or gaseous, right?

MARCY: That's right. It's a big mystery. While these planets are 50 to 20 times the mass the Earth, they could be balls of gas. More likely they're solid rock and ice with a little atmosphere around them. We really don't know.

O'BRIEN: Of course, we should point out to folks that you don't actually see these. This is done by sort of inference. Essentially you're looking for stars that have a little wobble in them. In other words, t he planet kind of pulls around. There you see a depiction of that. This is just an animation. Showing as the planet orbits it actually pulls the star around.

So you're looking for wobbles. Is this a fainter wobble because this planet is so much smaller?

MARCY: Well, that's exactly right. Finding the littlest planets, planets nearly Earth mass, means that they yank gravitationally on the star very little. So the star doesn't go around very much. And it's taken new technology to allow us to detect these planets that are a little bigger than earth.

O'BRIEN: All right. You found a bunch of Jupiters. Now you're down to Neptune-size. How -- how long will it take? Is there equipment either in service now or on the drawing boards which will allow you to seek what we're almost interested in, which would be something in that perfect spot around a star, something like the one on the left there, the pale blue dot, Earth.

MARCY: Well, the real exciting prospect, of course, is to find Earth-like planets that might be lukewarm that could harbor life as we know it. And frankly, NASA has three marvelous missions that are designed to do exactly that: Kepler, the space interferometry (ph) system, and the terrestrial planet finder and the three missions NASA has designed to find that little pale blue dot orbiting a yellow star that we hope might harbor life.

O'BRIEN: What's it going to be like if somebody is waving back at you?

MARCY: Well, it will be very exciting. If they're waving back at us and we wave at them it will be the first intergalactic communication we've ever known of.

O'BRIEN: All right. We wish you well in the hunt. Geoff Marcy, with his latest two planets. Got several notches in his belt now. In total about 140 extra solar planets have now been found. Just a matter of time before they find something the size of Earth. Geoff Marcy, thanks very much.

And speaking of being lost in space, I met a lot of very interesting smart, great people covering NASA. This lady is one of them. That's June Lockhart. I met her -- I met her quite a few times, but I met her covering most recently the Opportunity landing back in January. She came by and I said, "Oh, no, is it lost?" No, no, that's just a show.

She's going to be in the house right here on LIVE FROM tomorrow to talk about how her show "Lost in Space" actually upstaged a real mission. Apollo 13, that is. That's tomorrow, 2 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN's LIVE FROM. June Lockhart in the house.

Watching your weight at some of America's favorite restaurants. We'll check out one chain that's putting the calorie counter right on your table, or was at one point.

Also, trouble for Rosario Dawson. We'll tell you what happened to the actress while shooting her latest film in New York.

And she was in or was she out? We'll show you Serena's latest fashion statement. We can certainly stay it's a statement. Turned out to turn quite a few heads there at the U.S. Open, as you can see.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

O'BRIEN: You notice that Bob Novak, he's a big burger guy.

PHILLIPS: Yes, he is.

O'BRIEN: Paul Begala, Cobb Salad.

PHILLIPS: I know. You don't have to really worry about weighing or talking about calories when it comes to Cobb Salad. And the burger, who cares? You're ordering a burger.

O'BRIEN: You're there. I mean, it's like there's no point counting, right?

Phillips: This really does get us to Fred Katayama, we promise.

O'BRIEN: Somehow.

(STOCK REPORT)

PHILLIPS: Shall we check entertainment headlines?

O'BRIEN: Let's do that.

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's move forward for August 31.

Trying to shake -- shake off the stink in Chicago. I don't know why we keep telling this story. It's pretty gross. But members of the Dave Matthews Band say that they're willing to give DNA samples to prove that the raw human waste that doused a tour boat is not theirs.

An Illinois lawsuit contends the band's bus emptied its septic tank while crossing a grated bridge. The band denies it.

O'BRIEN: Rebel without a cause. That's how Serena Williams describes her new attire for the U.S. Open. Her new clothing line set the kind of buzz in her opening match last night. But it didn't hurt her game, of course. The fashion conscious third seed breezed past her opponent from the Czech Republic who was attired much more conventionally, 6-1, 6-3.

PHILLIPS: Well, just call Rosario Dawson a rebel with a cause. That actress was released yesterday after her arrest Sunday at an anti-Bush march in New York. Her film crew was using the massive protest as a backdrop for the movie, "Medium Cool." Though not part of the protest, police grabbed Dawson and another actor, because they were wearing masks.

O'BRIEN: OK. That wraps up this edition of LIVE FROM. I'm Miles O'Brien.

PHILLIPS: And I'm Kyra Phillips. Now to take us through a special 90-minute edition of "INSIDE POLITICS," Judy Woodruff.

Hi, Judy.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired August 31, 2004 - 14:30   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CO-HOST: Welcome back to the CNN Center in Atlanta. This is LIVE FROM. I'm Miles O'Brien.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CO-HOST: And I'm Kyra Phillips. Here's what's all new this half hour.

Dress rehearsal for a big star. Governor Schwarzenegger getting ready for prime time. Will his message move undecided voters for Bush?

O'BRIEN: And the Milky Way becomes passe. You like that? New discoveries make Mars and Saturn seem like so five minutes ago.

But first, here's what 's happening right now.

Kobe Bryant's sexual assault trial could begin as early as next week. Lawyers questioning another round of potential jurors behind closed doors today. Court officials hope to have 12 jurors and two alternates in place by Friday. And they hope to begin opening statements in a week.

In California, in a courtroom there, a search dog handler is back on the stand at the Scott Peterson murder trial. Prosecutors say search dogs picked up Laci Peterson's scent at the marina where Peterson says he took his fishing trip on December 24, 2002. That's the day Laci was reported missing.

A defeat for the lawyers of Private First Class Lynndie England. They lost their bid to have high-ranking generals testify under oath about the Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal. England is one of seven military police reservists facing charges.

CNN learned a grand jury will soon be impaneled in the Pentagon spy investigation. An analyst is suspected of passing classified information to Israel via a third party. The FBI wants to know if he was given a green light to do so. Both the Israeli government and a pro-Israeli lobby group deny any involvement in that.

PHILLIPS: And one of the biggest stars of the Republican National Convention will be in the spotlight tonight. Until recently, though, Arnold Schwarzenegger was more at home on the silver scene.

A look at his debut on the national political stage from CNN's Kelly Wallace.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He's the rock star of the Republican Party, the action hero...

GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: Hasta la vista, baby.

WALLACE: ... turned California governor, still using those Hollywood one-liners.

SCHWARZENEGGER: Thank you. I'll be back. Thank you.

WALLACE: He's got sky-high popularity with Republicans, strong appeal with Democrats, as well, which explains why President Bush, who didn't exactly embrace Arnold Schwarzenegger during California's historic recall, is more than happy to share the stage with him now.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Some accuse us both of not being able to speak the language.

WALLACE: But they do have their differences. Schwarzenegger, unlike the president, is a social moderate who supports gay rights, abortion rights and gun control.

And now he's following in the footsteps of another actor turned California governor who made his way to the national political stage, the late former president Ronald Reagan. The difference? Unless the U.S. Constitution is changed, Austrian-born Schwarzenegger can't make the leap.

SCHWARZENEGGER: When I came to this country 35 years ago, I never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would be standing in front of you here as the governor-elect of California, introducing the president of the United States.

WALLACE: There are risks in this partnership. The governor could be identified with a president enormously unpopular in his home state. Mr. Bush risks getting upstaged by a man who loves to make a splash.

SCHWARZENEGGER: And this is why I'm going to run for governor of the state of California.

WALLACE (on camera): And in an effort, perhaps, to try and not feel steal the spotlight Schwarzenegger won't be appearing on any comedy or news shows while he's here. He's got just two public events in New York City, beyond his big speech tonight.

Kelly Wallace, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: So will Hollywood Arnold be boffo near Broadway? What will the first lady and the first daughters say to woo women into the W. camp? Does the president think the U.S. can win the war on terror or not? And can't someone give Michael Moore a razor? These are some of the questions on our minds as we turn to purveyors of razor-sharp political punditry. From the CNN Convention Diner at the New Yorker Hotel, CROSSFIRE co-hosts Paul Begala and Robert Novak.

Bob, what did you have for lunch?

ROBERT NOVAK, CO-HOST, "CROSSFIRE": I had a hamburger.

O'BRIEN: Hamburger? Paul, what did you have?

NOVAK: It was very good, too.

PAUL BEGALA, CO-HOST, "CROSSFIRE": Cobb Salad. Darn good. It was great.

O'BRIEN: Good food there, right?

BEGALA: Some of those California avocados. Governor Schwarzenegger will be glad to know we're eating them here in New York.

O'BRIEN: All right. Let's -- Bob Novak, let's talk about Arnold Schwarzenegger a bit. He really -- he really isn't a Republican in the purest sense of the world. I'm sure that you have so many issues, so many bones to pick with him that -- in some sense he doesn't really represent the GOP, does he?

NOVAK: He represents it on taxation, Miles, which is the most important issue for the -- for the Republican Party. He was -- I think he really has a terrific message for California, to say that he got rid of Gray Davis, who was a high tax, high spending person.

The first thing that Governor Schwarzenegger did when he got to Sacramento was repeal the hideous car tax, which was a Democratic proposal. So I think he can say that John Kerry is a national version of Gray Davis. He's a good message for the voters of California.

O'BRIEN: Don't you kind of -- As you look at the list of speakers there, you, especially, must be longing for some real red meat conservatives?

NOVAK: Well, I think we're going to get some real red meat conservatives. One is Dick Cheney, Richard Bruce Cheney. He's going to be on tomorrow night.

And then on Thursday night -- you might have missed this, Miles -- George W. Bush is going to speak. And he's going to give a conservative -- conservative message.

But let me tell you one thing, the biggest issue in the Republican Party is -- is not any of the social issues, it is taxation. And Schwarzenegger is very good on that issue.

O'BRIEN: All right, let's talk about this, Paul Begala. Arnold Schwarzenegger, he is somebody who can really appeal to that middle. Democrats have got to be a little bit nervous about not just him but the moderate tone of this convention. That plays very well to the undecided middle, doesn't it?

BEGALA: It does, if you believe that those sorts of things transfer, and I don't think they do. Governor Schwarzenegger's popular for the very reasons that Bob doesn't like him, because he is pro-choice; he is pro-gay rights. He is pro-gun control rights. He's pro-gun control, I should say.

He's a moderate, and that's why he's popular in the liberal state of California.

But President Bush doesn't hold any of those views, and while it is true that Schwarzenegger is closer to Bush on taxes, last night John McCain, their big star they rolled out last night, was one of the few Republicans who voted against the Bush tax cuts.

And so what you really are seeing here is kind of a bait and switch. It's a bit of a fraud. I mean, I consider it a political cross-dressing of the kind that we haven't seen since J. Edgar Hoover. I mean, they should just be what they are.

In my party we had Teddy Kennedy, Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, Hillary Clinton, the real leaders of our party. That's who spoke.

O'BRIEN: All right.

NOVAK: Let me just respond. Let me just...

O'BRIEN: Bob Novak, you've got to respond to that one.

NOVAK: I just want to -- that's a communist lie about J. Edgar Hoover.

BEGALA: I told you.

NOVAK: It is.

BEGALA: Straight arrow.

NOVAK: But let me respond to what -- let me respond, Miles.

BEGALA: Pinko chiffon, actually.

NOVAK: Miles, let me respond to what he said about the fact that he is -- Schwarzenegger is popular in California because of his position on guns and gays and abortion.

Those were all the positions taken by Gray Davis, the governor they kicked out. He had exactly those positions, and he was kicked out because he was bad on spending and taxes. The great sin of the Democrats is they're a high tax party. And that is the biggest liability for John Kerry at this moment.

O'BRIEN: All right. Paul Begala, we are out of time, but you get to balance it out here. Finish it up. BEGALA: I think another appeal Schwarzenegger has is he's a strong and decisive leader. Republicans are spending tens of millions of dollars this week to portray a sense of strength around George w. Bush. And Bush about blew the whole thing yesterday when he said we can't win war on terror. It's an enormous mistake.

NOVAK: Wait a minute.

BEGALA: It's an enormous mistake, and it undermines the president's whole convention.

NOVAK: I have to respond...

O'BRIEN: Yes, go ahead.

NOVAK: ... that that was a mistake by the president and he corrected himself today.

(CROSS TALK)

O'BRIEN: A flip-flop, I suppose. All gentlemen, our red meat conservative Bob Novak, our salad munching liberal, Paul Begala, thank you both for joining us from the diner -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, taking cues from the political polls we're going to examine the latest numbers from Gallup this week and how they're playing on both sides.

Also, cooperating with authorities to find out what happened. The Dave Matthews Band responds to an alleged waste-dumping suit. We're going to have the details.

Don't look now, but NASA has new details on some new extra planets. We're going to find out what it all means. Actually, Miles is going to explain what it all means next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking the bounce from the RNC. All eyes are on the Republican National Convention this week as we ponder what effect it may have on the November election.

Gallup's editor-in-chief, Frank Newport, in Princeton, New Jersey, he's paying attention to the GOP message.

Frank, the Republicans are bringing out their moderate stars to try and sway independent voters. Which one is likely to have the most impact?

FRANK NEWPORT, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, GALLUP: Well, based on our data Rudy Giuliani last night. Do a little data diving here, Kyra. Following up on the discussion that you've been having there on CNN to show you why the Republicans find it necessary to bring those people out.

This is Bush himself speaking Thursday night, 89 percent favorable rating among his core, the Republicans, but look how low he is among independents, a little below 50 percent; Democrats, just 19 percent.

Let's flip over to Arnold Schwarzenegger, of course, tonight's featured speaker. Not quite as high among Republicans, just 66 percent favorable rating. Look at this: 55 among independents and almost half of Democrats nationwide favorable opinion of Schwarzenegger. So he should have a better audience among these groups over here.

And then last night Giuliani who has the highest favorable rating of any of the speakers that are going to be at the convention that we measured. Overall, about 65 percent favorable rating, roughly. Seventy-seven percent among his Republicans. But look at that, 61 Independents and 56 Democrats.

That's why last night, the presumption is, he probably was preaching to more than just the choir -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Swing voters, more men, more women?

NEWPORT: Well, swing voters are a very interesting phenomenon that we look at a lot here. In fact, all the calls I'm getting here at Gallup from journalists deal with swing voters these days. Who are they?

Seventeen percent of the American population is our latest estimate likely voter population; 17 percent, that's all, Kyra. People say, well who are they demographically? They're young; they're old; they're women; are they soccer moms? Are they neutral, independent women and all that?

There's not a lot of demographic difference. I can tell you that 16 percent of likely voter men are swing voters. That is, they're in play; they're undecided. They say they may switch their vote. Nineteen percent of women nationwide are also swing voters. Not a lot of demographic difference.

In fact, there's not a lot of age differences or education differences. They're kind of diffuse. They're all over the place. But boy, they're the key to this whole election -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Gallup editor-in-chief Frank Newport, thanks so much. Always -- Out with a new book, also. Right, Frank?

NEWPORT: That's right: "Polling Matters," available at your local bookseller.

PHILLIPS: There you go. Quick, shameless plug.

NEWPORT: That's right.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, Frank.

All right, Miles. O'BRIEN: Planet hunters are announcing a pair of big discoveries today. Two planets about the size of Neptune, and that's significant, orbiting a pair of stars 30 and 41 light years away respectively.

One of the planets is part of the first documented four-planet solar system outside our own. So how long will it be before we find another Earth-like planet?

Joining us with more on this, how to hunt for planets and the hunt in general, is one of the astronomers in the vanguard of the hunt. Astronomer Geoff Marcy joining us from Washington now.

Geoff, good to see you again.

GEOFF MARCY, ASTRONOMER: Pleasure to be here.

O'BRIEN: All right. Put this latest discovery in some perspective. Neptune-size planets. Planets that you have found before, and there are about 130 or so of them out there now, outside our solar system, have all been the size of Jupiter. Big difference, isn't it?

GEOFFREY MARCY, PLANET HUNTER: That's right. Up until now astronomers have discovered 135 planets orbiting other stars. But today for the first time we're finding planets smaller, not as big as Jupiter and Saturn but small, 10 to 20 times the size of our Earth.

O'BRIEN: Neptune is still, as you just pointed out, rather much bigger than Earth. Of course, we don't know if these planets that you have found are solid or gaseous, right?

MARCY: That's right. It's a big mystery. While these planets are 50 to 20 times the mass the Earth, they could be balls of gas. More likely they're solid rock and ice with a little atmosphere around them. We really don't know.

O'BRIEN: Of course, we should point out to folks that you don't actually see these. This is done by sort of inference. Essentially you're looking for stars that have a little wobble in them. In other words, t he planet kind of pulls around. There you see a depiction of that. This is just an animation. Showing as the planet orbits it actually pulls the star around.

So you're looking for wobbles. Is this a fainter wobble because this planet is so much smaller?

MARCY: Well, that's exactly right. Finding the littlest planets, planets nearly Earth mass, means that they yank gravitationally on the star very little. So the star doesn't go around very much. And it's taken new technology to allow us to detect these planets that are a little bigger than earth.

O'BRIEN: All right. You found a bunch of Jupiters. Now you're down to Neptune-size. How -- how long will it take? Is there equipment either in service now or on the drawing boards which will allow you to seek what we're almost interested in, which would be something in that perfect spot around a star, something like the one on the left there, the pale blue dot, Earth.

MARCY: Well, the real exciting prospect, of course, is to find Earth-like planets that might be lukewarm that could harbor life as we know it. And frankly, NASA has three marvelous missions that are designed to do exactly that: Kepler, the space interferometry (ph) system, and the terrestrial planet finder and the three missions NASA has designed to find that little pale blue dot orbiting a yellow star that we hope might harbor life.

O'BRIEN: What's it going to be like if somebody is waving back at you?

MARCY: Well, it will be very exciting. If they're waving back at us and we wave at them it will be the first intergalactic communication we've ever known of.

O'BRIEN: All right. We wish you well in the hunt. Geoff Marcy, with his latest two planets. Got several notches in his belt now. In total about 140 extra solar planets have now been found. Just a matter of time before they find something the size of Earth. Geoff Marcy, thanks very much.

And speaking of being lost in space, I met a lot of very interesting smart, great people covering NASA. This lady is one of them. That's June Lockhart. I met her -- I met her quite a few times, but I met her covering most recently the Opportunity landing back in January. She came by and I said, "Oh, no, is it lost?" No, no, that's just a show.

She's going to be in the house right here on LIVE FROM tomorrow to talk about how her show "Lost in Space" actually upstaged a real mission. Apollo 13, that is. That's tomorrow, 2 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN's LIVE FROM. June Lockhart in the house.

Watching your weight at some of America's favorite restaurants. We'll check out one chain that's putting the calorie counter right on your table, or was at one point.

Also, trouble for Rosario Dawson. We'll tell you what happened to the actress while shooting her latest film in New York.

And she was in or was she out? We'll show you Serena's latest fashion statement. We can certainly stay it's a statement. Turned out to turn quite a few heads there at the U.S. Open, as you can see.

Stay with us.

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O'BRIEN: You notice that Bob Novak, he's a big burger guy.

PHILLIPS: Yes, he is.

O'BRIEN: Paul Begala, Cobb Salad.

PHILLIPS: I know. You don't have to really worry about weighing or talking about calories when it comes to Cobb Salad. And the burger, who cares? You're ordering a burger.

O'BRIEN: You're there. I mean, it's like there's no point counting, right?

Phillips: This really does get us to Fred Katayama, we promise.

O'BRIEN: Somehow.

(STOCK REPORT)

PHILLIPS: Shall we check entertainment headlines?

O'BRIEN: Let's do that.

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's move forward for August 31.

Trying to shake -- shake off the stink in Chicago. I don't know why we keep telling this story. It's pretty gross. But members of the Dave Matthews Band say that they're willing to give DNA samples to prove that the raw human waste that doused a tour boat is not theirs.

An Illinois lawsuit contends the band's bus emptied its septic tank while crossing a grated bridge. The band denies it.

O'BRIEN: Rebel without a cause. That's how Serena Williams describes her new attire for the U.S. Open. Her new clothing line set the kind of buzz in her opening match last night. But it didn't hurt her game, of course. The fashion conscious third seed breezed past her opponent from the Czech Republic who was attired much more conventionally, 6-1, 6-3.

PHILLIPS: Well, just call Rosario Dawson a rebel with a cause. That actress was released yesterday after her arrest Sunday at an anti-Bush march in New York. Her film crew was using the massive protest as a backdrop for the movie, "Medium Cool." Though not part of the protest, police grabbed Dawson and another actor, because they were wearing masks.

O'BRIEN: OK. That wraps up this edition of LIVE FROM. I'm Miles O'Brien.

PHILLIPS: And I'm Kyra Phillips. Now to take us through a special 90-minute edition of "INSIDE POLITICS," Judy Woodruff.

Hi, Judy.

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