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American Morning

Here's What I Don't Get

Aired January 23, 2002 - 08:34   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.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for our "Funny Side Up." We've been telling you about the Lewis-Tyson prefight fight. It was great grist for late night TV as well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAY LENO, "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO": Tyson was finally restrained by his handlers. How embarrassing is that? That a human being has handlers? You know most people have a manager, he has guys with sticks and a rodeo clown. Yaw, come on! Back! Get up! Ooh! Yah, get him up! (UNINTELLIGIBLE). What is that, handlers? Who has handlers? Please!

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAHN: And his handlers didn't save him from himself yesterday. Wow!

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: You know the theory is that he didn't want this fight with Lennox Lewis. You know when he was in the middle of getting his butt whipped rather soundly by Evander Holyfield, the thinking goes, he wanted out of that fight because he was going to lose. He was in the process of losing and that's why he bit Holyfield's ear to get the fight stopped.

There's some talk, and I heard one of the sports guys yacking about it last night on television, that he's got no chance to beat Lennox Lewis and that he doesn't want this fight to happen either. And this was just a way to perhaps duck the fight.

He hasn't been licensed to fight yet and he has to go...

ZAHN: That's what I was wondering.

CAFFERTY: Yes, he has to go before the Nevada State...

ZAHN: Will this hurt him?

CAFFERTY: Huh?

ZAHN: Is this going to hurt him when he tries to get the license to fight? CAFFERTY: I would think...

ZAHN: That's a great way to make it go down in flames, right?

CAFFERTY: I would think it might hurt him. On the other hand, as somebody pointed out earlier, there is so much money in that -- in a Lennox Lewis-Tyson pay-per-view fight that you know, in the end, sometimes the dollars win out.

Speaking of winners, Gary Condit, that world-class Congressman, he's on the campaign trail out there in California. And we caught up with him yesterday. Check this out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Looks good. All right!

REP. GARY CONDIT (D), CALIFORNIA: And I've had every one of my civil liberties infringed upon. I've allowed the police to -- I don't think there's any person that has nothing to do with this that's done more. I mean they've searched my house. I've been free to interview with them, you know, whenever they wanted to. I invited them to my house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAFFERTY: We just wanted to run that to remind you of what an all-around good guy he is.

ZAHN: Well this guy may be facing a new grand jury. Remember that report that got (UNINTELLIGIBLE) last week and...

CAFFERTY: Yes, the FBI, apparently, has gotten active in the investigation again and they're focusing once again on Mr. Condit. Also, the polls indicate he's going to have a real uphill struggle getting reelected.

ZAHN: Well lots of his friends have turned on him, recently.

CAFFERTY: Yes, gee, I wonder why?

ZAHN: This is interesting, they -- no, they stood by him for a long chunk of time and in the last couple of months, sort of said, "I'm not in that camp anymore."

CAFFERTY: Yes, let me out of here.

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