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Rick's List

33 Chilean Miners Trapped Underground; Tiger Woods' Ex-Wife Speaks Out; Primaries in Florida Set Up a Three Candidate Race; Alleged Cult Behind "Go Topless" Day

Aired August 25, 2010 - 15:00   ET

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

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Topping the LIST right now: a question that a lot of people all over the country are asking: Can they survive, and, maybe more importantly, how? How can they survive?

When we first heard the news here that these 33 miners in Chile were alive, even though they had been trapped deep inside the earth for more than two weeks, well, a lot of people started questioning the story.

Well, guess what? Now they're on the 19th day underground. But they're going to have to survive somehow for months and months more. Again, question here is, how? How are they going to do it?

Let's bring in CNN's Karl Penhaul. He is in Chile covering the story for us.

Karl, let me ask you to start this interview the very first question that I have been hearing a lot over the last 24 hours. And that is the mental aspect of this. Is it true that they have not told these 33 men that they're going to have to be down there three, four months?

KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's absolutely true, Rick.

And I was talking in fact just a few moments ago before we came on air to the Chilean health minister. And he says he's not had the heart to tell these men that they could be down there for three to four months.

What he does say, quite key, though, is that the Chilean president himself has talked to the men. And instead of telling them directly, he's kind of thrown them a series of clues. So, he's told the men, you're not going to be out for Chilean National Day on September the 18th. You're going to have a party down there. We're going to send the stuff down there so you can have a celebration.

He says, but we will be giving you our Christmas hug up here. And also quite key, he said to one of the miners who's actually a Bolivian, he said, I as president am going to meet the Bolivian president at the end of November. Will you come with me?

So, he's kind of throwing a few clues out there to the miners, but hasn't told them explicitly that in their best possible scenario, they're not likely to be out of there anything before the end of November, Rick. SANCHEZ: Well, we know two things. They're going to have to deal with the fact that someone's going to have to feed them and clothe them and give them drink. But then there's that little thing called claustrophobia that at some point you could imagine has to set in, if not just downright boredom.

How big is the hole that they're going to use to send them stuff to take care of all of those necessities, and what specifically will they be sending down?

PENHAUL: They're drilling three holes now.

There are two holes already in place and a third hole is being drilled. And that is about four inches in diameter. With my hands, if I make that shape, it's about that big. Down those three holes, they're going to get pumped drinking water. They're going to get some oxygen pumped down there.

And down the other two holes, one of them is going to be a communication line, so, eventually, they will have a live video and microphone link. And then down the third hole, they're going to have to receive all the food that they need, liquid nutrients, and also all the dry clothing they need. They have also asked for a Chilean flag. They have asked for some statues of some Catholic saints down there.

Of course, they want a pack of cards and one of the guys apparently wants some Elvis Presley music. But you're right about the claustrophobia, because here on the rocks behind me are some of the memorials that the family members have set up to their relatives who are in the bowels of the earth right now.

And this guy here, Jimmy Sanchez, 19 years old, youngest of the miners, his wife told me he never wanted to be a miner. It's just financial need that drove him down underground. And she says he hates the dark, he doesn't like being in confined spaces, and on top of that, he's deeply superstitious and has a great fear of the spirits of dead miners.

And, in his wife's words, she says Jimmy is absolutely terrified of the spirits of the dead miners that could be down that shaft right now. That doesn't make good for anybody's mental health. And the health minister today said that three or four of the men really aren't in good mental health.

Added to that -- and this is a detail that you might find interesting -- according, to the medical records, nine of the miners, at least as of 18 days ago, are too fat, too large, too thick-set to fit through the hole that they're going to be digging, about a 35-inch diameter hole.

And, so, over the course of the next few weeks and months, the doctors have really got to keep a close eye on that to make sure they slim down. The health minister says they have probably all lost about 16 pounds so far. But some need to slim down some more.

Well, when I asked him, are you going to have to make the hole bigger? He said, no, believe you me, those that need to slim down will have to slim down.

SANCHEZ: Karl Penhaul following that story for us there unbelievably well-reported, bringing us not only some of the anecdotes of the things that we're hearing about from down in that cave, but also some of the emotions that are being felt some of by those men, three in particular, one which he took us through just moments ago, which leads us to this conversation.

How difficult would it be mentally for them to do this and for any of us to experience something like this? I know. You get chills just thinking about it, right, if you're anything like me.

Jeff Gardere is a clinical psychologist. And he's in New York and he's joining us now to take us through this.

Just, look, simple question. I was just talking about this moments ago there with Karl Penhaul. How does one in that condition possibly combat claustrophobia?

JEFFREY GARDERE, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Well, what's going to be key here, Rick, is that there will be communication between these 33 miners and family members and friends.

As long as that communication is constant and can be private, because they are going to send -- as Karl said, they are going to send some microphones down there. If they can have that private communication with family members, that will keep them in touch with the outer world and with those who are most important to them. So, that's the thing that is very, very important.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Is that the most important thing? I'm trying to figure if I was...

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Go ahead.

GARDERE: Yes. Other than the food, of course, and getting the information from company members and state officials and so on in that country, the communication that they have, the intimacy that they have with family members and for those who have friends, that's going to be key.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: But what about with each other? I mean, look, let's face it, those of us who work in environments like here at CNN, for example, and wherever it is that you work in New York or wherever people are hearing the sound of my voice can hear us know that even in large areas, sometimes people kind of can get on your nerves.

GARDERE: Yes.

SANCHEZ: You could imagine 33 men in a small space. At one point does their relating to one another start to become a problem for them and how do they deal with that?

GARDERE: Well, I think that's going to be a problem immediately. What we do know, Rick, is that they have been cooperating with one another.

They have been a support for one another. They have stretched out rations that would normally last two days. They have stretched it out in the 17 days that they have been there. So, that's positive. But now we're talking about a lot of darkness.

We're talking about not as much food as they normally would have. And, most importantly, we're talking about 90-degree weather consistently. And, as your reporter just said, there's the issue of people who already have poor mental health histories to begin with.

So, even if they're supportive to one another, you are going to have some of the weaker personalities that are going to be a real drag on the greater group.

SANCHEZ: Finally, if idle time truly is the devil's workshop, then should they be sent something that would occupy their mind, books, music of some form, those little PDA games or whatever that my kids play with in the backseat of our car when we go for drives, et cetera, et cetera?

Would you suggest that they should, if they can fit that stuff down that narrow hole, send that down to them, so that they can entertain themselves or keep themselves from being bored?

GARDERE: Well, my understanding is that the people from Chile, the government have already talked to NASA.

And NASA, as you know, these people are experts in deprivation and being in isolation for long periods in time in orbit and beyond. And they have suggested that you have to send crossword puzzles, you have to send games, anything that will keep their mind stimulated, because if you don't do that, with that kind of deprivation, they may become psychotic, they may become claustrophobic, they may become depressed.

So, you have to keep their mind going. But the biggest thing here, communication with family and these men being support groups to one another.

SANCHEZ: Jeff Gardere, my thanks to you for bringing us up to date on this through a sense of what the coping mechanisms are for people who are in that situation.

GARDERE: Thank you, Rick. Sure.

SANCHEZ: Can't even begin to imagine.

After nine months of silence, Tiger Woods' ex-wife is speaking out today. She's been so quiet as the golfer's double life was exposed, the sex, the women, the lying, the cheating, everything that has made the news. So, what did she go through and when did she know? Well, she's very specific about answering those questions. And we're going to let you know what she told "People" magazine.

Also, more bloodshed in Baghdad, a wave of bombings killing dozens. As U.S. combat brigades leave the war zone, the violence picks up in the country. Is this what is in store for Iraq henceforth? That's next right here on the LIST. Stay with us. This is your national conversation.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.

It's been a violent day in Iraq. At least 48 people are dead, nearly 300 people are wounded after militants have set off a series of bombs. And, by the way, it's not just in one place. It's all over the country.

I want you to take a look, first of all, at just how widespread some of these attacks were. They are represented by the dots on the map on your screen. They took place in 13 cities in nearly every region, except the three Kurdish provinces in the north.

It's not yet known if the attacks were coordinated. The worst happened in Kut. That's southeast of Baghdad. At least 20 people died when a car bomb exploded at a police station. A suicide car bomber also hit a police station in northeast Baghdad. That killed at least 15 people and wounded 57 others.

And in central Basra, bombs explode outside this police station, wounding 10 people. The chief of Facility Protection Services was seriously hurt when two bombs went off near his convoy. So, listen to this. This is a litany of things all happening on the same day. By the way, his service is actually in charge of protecting government institutions in Iraq.

So, all of this is coming less than a week after the U.S. completed its drawdown of combat brigades in Iraq. Fewer than 50,000 American troops are going to remain there. They're supposed to be there only to advise and train.

Other U.S. troops are still coming home from Iraq as we speak. In fact we have been monitoring this for the last 48 hours or so. Take a look at the latest. Oh, there go the kiddies. And that's a well- deserved hug. God bless these guys.

There were cheers and lots of hugs and kisses, as the 300 soldiers returned to Washington State today. They part of the 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team that was stationed in Iraq. This ceremony and this homecoming took place at 3:00 in the morning. But you would never know it.

It could have been 3:00 in the afternoon. Just look at the faces of these soldiers. Look at the faces of some of their family members, especially the kids, as they finally get to see their dads for the first time in such a long time. Good for them. President Obama, by the way, has set an August 31 deadline for ending all U.S.-led combat missions in Iraq. He's scheduled a televised speech next Tuesday night. That's the 31st. It's going to be at 8:00 Eastern our time. We will bring it to you. He will talk about Iraq and the war on terror.

But coming up in our 4:00 hour, we are going to take a closer look at the 50,000 remaining troops, who they are, and what exactly is their mission in what is being called Operation New Dawn in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I still feel it was premeditated murder, because they planned it. They got medicine together, mixed the cocktail, put it in the syringes, and gave it to the patients.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: What you just heard there, those are explosive allegations, accusations of murder, actually. Did doctors kill patients who were there in the hospital during Hurricane Katrina? You're going to hear the stories from both sides of this controversial story that we have been following for you.

Also, John McCain's political life survives another day. But there are bigger stories from other primaries around the country as well. Are candidates who aren't Republicans or Democrats rising, these so- called insurgent candidates? And how big of a threat are they? That's next right here on the LIST.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.

At the very top of our follow-up list: last night's primaries. We have got some very interesting Republican races out there, especially in the West, huh? In a year where anti-Washington, anti-incumbency sentiment ran high, especially on the Republican side, one of Washington's ultimate insiders, Senator John McCain, easily won his Republican primary, though not before spending $20 million to do so.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: We will secure our borders, defend our nation, and bring our troops home from Afghanistan with honor and victory.

(CHEERING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: That was McCain's only mention of the immigration issue last night, by the way.

Meanwhile, in Alaska, incumbent Senator Lisa Murkowski, she is losing. She's trailing political unknown Joe Miller by less than 2,000 votes. Miller has the support of the Tea Party. And guess who else is backing Miller? Former Alaska Governor, Republican Governor Sarah Palin is not putting her money on the Republican.

No, she's backing the other guy -- 16,000 absentee ballots are expected to be received over the next couple of weeks. So this contest is really far from over.

Jessica Yellin is joining us now. And she's in Phoenix.

I don't know who your producer or your lighting guy or your technicians are out there, but they -- but I will tell you, since you have been out there in Arizona, you have had the prettiest backgrounds. It's like, every day, it's so pretty there.

(LAUGHTER)

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Isn't it gorgeous? I want to say, though, Rick, while it's gorgeous, we have not been able to enjoy it. So don't think we're not hard at work here.

(LAUGHTER)

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: All right, let's start with the state where you are. And let's talk about J.D. Hayworth and John McCain. What lesson do we take from John McCain's victory last night, or what lesson do the candidates take?

YELLIN: Rick, what's fascinating is that John McCain won so comfortably last night in a year that, as you've just said, is seen as such an anti-incumbent, outsider year. And it would seem that John McCain learned the lesson of his fallen colleagues. By that, I mean the senators who were defeated earlier this year by upstart outsider candidates.

And McCain realized early on that he had to wage an aggressive campaign, spending, as you said, more than $20 million -- that is a record in a primary here -- and starting early with negative attack ads on his opponent. He did not let up for a moment.

And the lesson that other candidates could potentially draw from this is that incumbents, insiders could possibly win this year, as long as they wage vigorous, hearty fights from this day forward until the election. So I predict a pretty bitter election campaign season with a lot of negative attack ads Rick.

SANCHEZ: The race that -- you and I talked a little bit about last night at 8:00, but I'm somewhat flabbergasted and I think a lot of people are by the fact that a former Republican governor from Alaska would be backing the person who's running against the prominent Republican family from Alaska.

We're talking about this race between Lisa Murkowski and Miller. And Sarah Palin's really throwing her hat in the ring with Miller on this one against Murkowski. Maybe it's just me, but that just seems very bold and very odd.

YELLIN: No, it was a -- it was remarkable move by Sarah Palin. But there's also political bad blood between the Murkowski and the Palin families because of past contests, political contests, between the two of them.

And she went very aggressively -- when she endorsed Miller, the opponent who was out of nowhere, not a known entity in the state, she was very critical of Murkowski. It wasn't one of those stay-on- positive-message kind of endorsements.

But this is also a case in point about going negative. Murkowski lost her advantage. She had all this money. She was well-known in the state, but she didn't go negative against Miller early. She did not do what John McCain did here. And that could be the reason if she should lose that she lost ground there, in addition this Sarah Palin endorsement. Sarah Palin did have a very good day yesterday.

SANCHEZ: Well, we will probably find out the answer to that question in a week or two. That's how long it's going to take to count these 13,000 to 15,000 absentee ballots that are still out there.

YELLIN: Yes. Yes.

SANCHEZ: I understand there were only about 100,000 people who actually cast ballots in this race, which is -- which talks to that issue of intensity that John King and I were talking about last night.

A familiar name emerged from the 10-person race in Arizona yesterday, did it not?

YELLIN: Yes. Oh, yes, one that you and I have discussed. Ben Quayle, the son of former Vice President Dan Quayle, won.

SANCHEZ: Oh.

YELLIN: He won his race, his primary for Congress here in Arizona. There were 10 contenders in that field. So, he -- the -- his name recognition probably helped him a lot.

You will recall, though, he got national attention for some gaffes early on, including using kids in a photo that weren't his kids. He says he wasn't trying to suggest they were. But he says he had family values. You get the idea. And then he got a lot of attention for this ad he put up saying that President Obama's the worst president ever.

But it looks like he's going to carry that message forward, very Republican district he's in. So, he is the favored candidate to win in the general election.

SANCHEZ: Good for him.

YELLIN: And I should mention, Rick, he's having an event this afternoon. We're going to cover it a little later today. SANCHEZ: Oh, you are? Because I understand you're not going to be able to join me tonight at 8:00. Is it because you're going to be on a plane or is it you're going to be hanging out with a Quayle?

(CROSSTALK)

YELLIN: I'm sorry.

SANCHEZ: You're working again, aren't you?

YELLIN: I'm going to be on a plane. I'm sorry. It's not personal.

SANCHEZ: OK.

(LAUGHTER)

SANCHEZ: Thanks, Jess. Appreciate it. We will be back in touch with you.

(CROSSTALK)

SANCHEZ: Everyone's done something they regret in college. One kid did several things in one night, naked, including trying to take on police. Yes, that's enough to put him on the list you don't want to be on. Wait until you hear this story. It is crazy.

Tiger Woods' ex-wife gives her first and last interview, she says, on the end of their marriage. She said, look, I just want to just tell the story and walk away. Leave me alone.

How did she handle the scandal? What was the worst betrayal? When did she find out that her husband wasn't exactly faithful? She answers all of those questions. That's next on the LIST.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Let's check our election 2010 Twitter list. It's funny how in the past people thought that this Twitter thing was just a fad and that it would never be taken seriously. Now many of those same people who were saying that actually tweet this show every day, so they can contact and talk to you.

This is some of it now. Let's go to the Twitter board, if we possibly can. Robert, thank you so much. We begin with Kendrick Meek from Florida, Carrie Meek's son. "Our win last night proves that when we stand together, we can overcome even the greatest odds." And then he gives you his Web site there where you can go to.

Look at McCain's daughter. This is Meghan McCain, John McCain's daughter. "Congratulations, dad." But then she's got a dig. Yes, she's got a dig for J.D. Hayworth. "And, J.D., way to -- quote -- 'have the biggest upset in political history.' How about them apples?"

I don't know. That's a dig. Also: "What's the moose hunting like in the beltway?" That does from Joe Miller, the Tea Party candidate who's going up against Lisa Murkowski who as we were just talking about is in a tie with her right now. And he's hoping to take his message to the beltway.

There's no moose, Joe.

All right, take a look at this. OK. What is this, you're asking, right? Well, this -- this is a protest that's going to grab your attention. These are women. You will notice that they're all topless. They're fighting for the right to be topless, like men.

But we have done a little investigation. And we have "bared" out the facts. The answer, we found out, will surprise you, not to mention the shenanigans going on here and the back-and-forths, as they say.

Next: Talk about making an entrance. This parachuter makes his point or gets the point. We will show you where he's going to land. That's ahead right here on the LIST. We are going to be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: You know you're in trouble when you start quoting sausage manufacturers. But let's just go ahead and do that. Country singer and sausage king Jimmy Dean once said "I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination." The next guy, well, he's a living example of this.

I want you to watch as this U.S. army parachuter hits a bit of a snag last night at a Texas Rangers game. Windy weather left him hanging from a flagpole. The soldier was able to detach himself from the chute and walk away unharmed across the scoreboard. Hello? I'm stuck over here. Need some help. Nice recovery.

Check out this free-falling showoff as he solves a Rubik's cube in the air. He claims it only took 31.5 seconds. He did it from the comfort of an inflatable raft and was filmed by five skydiving buddies on the way down. Some folks just have way too much time on their hands.

This next video has animal rights activists and others up in arms. Watch this woman throw her neighbor's cat in a dumpster. She just throws it away. The feline was reportedly trapped for 15 hours. The woman told the British newspaper that she put the cat in the can as a joke. I don't hear anyone laughing.

She reportedly received death threats after this video had gone viral. The woman has since apologized for the behavior. Police have been looking for her. What a mess. Why are you petting the cat if you're about to throw it in the trash? She looks around, she opens it up, and then, watch -- bye-bye, kitty.

That's "Fotos." You can see them all for yourself on CNN.com/ricksanchez.

The Republican race for governor in Florida has gotten nasty. Candidates lobbed attacks after attack at each other. The results are in, and the fighting is far from over. What's really going on with the GOP there? That's that race that involved Rick Scott, remember? He won. That's ahead.

Also, it's a fascinating story. One of the world's most famous athletes just divorced his wife after a very public sex scandal -- actually, I think it's the other way around. She divorced him. Tiger Woods' ex-wife, she is telling her story, the story no one thought she'd be willing to tell. Well, she is. She wants you to know the truth.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.

A story a lot of people are talking about today -- I kind of thought this was a fluff story, and many of you do, too. I've been reading your tweets, and I know you're saying, "Why is this news?"

Well, here's what's interesting about this story. Give me a chance here. This is a story of one woman's humiliation, her very public humiliation and what she's saying she now deserves so that she can rebuild her life, a life very different than the one she thought that she would have all her life.

I'm talking about Elin Nordegren. This is Tiger Woods' ex-wife. In the nine months since her husband's numerous infidelities became tabloid headlines, she hasn't said a word in public, that is until now. Nordegren is revealing a lot, in which she says, look, I'm going to do it one time. It's to "People" magazine. She says that's it.

So what's it been like for her and her two small children since her seemingly perfect life just blew up in her face? She puts it quite bluntly -- "I've been through hell." The really big headlines from the interview -- she was blindsided, completely blindsided, she said, had no idea that her husband could have been doing this with so many women for so long right under her nose. She says, "I am embarrassed., I never suspected, not a one."

What about the rumors that she attacked and injured her cheating husband the night he wrecked his SUV? She says it's not true. "There was never any violence inside or outside our home. The speculation that I would have used a golf club to hit him is truly ridiculous." There are a lot of comments on this.

By the way, she goes on to say that Tiger was gone. She didn't know where he was. She knew he had taken a drive, so she went looking for him. And that's when she found him unconscious across from the driveway, et cetera, et cetera. That's the story she's telling "People" magazine.

Tweets aplenty. Let's go to one. Gayle King says, "I was a big fan of Elin Nordegren before. I am even more impressed now. A true lady the way she handled this, beginning to end, phenomenal." So let's bring in now Brooke Anderson from "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT." She's our trending topics correspondent on this day, given the fact that Brooke Baldwin's not -- one Brooke for another, that's pretty cool.

(LAUGHTER)

This is a really interesting -- and I meant what I said. And I told it to my staff this morning when we were talking about this. I said the story's kind of fluff, so what? But when you read it, you come away with two things -- a, she deserves after being covered so much to have her story told, if she wants her story out there.

And, two, she talks about things that seem to clear up some of the questions that we've had about this case, specifically what happened the day of the accident.

Your take, Brooke, on this story? I'm sure you've read it through and talked about it.

BROOKE ANDERSON, HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Yes, and I agree with you. She deserves to have her say. And she wants to put the past behind her. She does not intend to talk about this anymore, Rick.

And she said, you know what, I felt stupid. As more and more things were revealed to me, I had no idea that any of this was happening. But she asks herself, how could I not have known? She said that she was humiliated by the betrayal and that the betrayal -- the word "betrayal" is not a strong enough word.

But Rick, I can totally understand that she was unaware because she also says, I was busy for three and a half years with pregnancies and babies. I was going to school for a degree in psychology. So she was blindsided. She married this man who promised to be committed and he violated those marriage vows over and over again. And a lot of people can relate to that part of her story.

SANCHEZ: And he had a job which had him traveling on the road all the time, which obviously is perhaps more conducive for mistakes, errors or indiscretions, whatever it is we want to call them. She did try and put things back together with him, though, right? How did that go?

ANDERSON: She had hoped for a reconciliation. She said -- she told "People" magazine that they worked for months and months. She said they tried very hard. But ultimately she decided that a marriage without trust or love wouldn't be good for anybody.

But, Rick, she did not elaborate on what led her to conclude there could never be trust and love again.

SANCHEZ: There's no question that she seems to be saying, this ain't going to work, it ain't going to work, and before we do any more harm to the kids -- but he's still going to see the kids. They're going to be very respectful as parents with their time with their children, right? She's going to let him see the kids as much as he wants and he's still going to be a part of their lives. ANDERSON: Absolutely. They're going to share custody of the kids. He lives about a mile from Elin's house. And so they have and will continue to have a working parenting relationship.

And Elin said that she's tried to shield these children from all of this drama, from all of this heartache. She knows they're young, but she said she still knows that they feel like something is going on. Of course they do.

But she says that having them around to hug her, to love her is what is giving her the strength to endure and get through all of this, to survive.

SANCHEZ: The going number that's being bantered about out there -- the guy makes between $700 million and -- who knows?

ANDERSON: Yes.

SANCHEZ: We know it's a lot. Some people are saying she's going to get something like $100 million. That's a whole lot --

ANDERSON: Right. Well, initially the reports were that she would get the bulk of his fortune, around $750 million. But you're right, that figure is now closer to $100 million. She would not confirm that. She and Tiger will not talk financial details. They will not talk specifics.

And she said, you know what, money does not buy happiness and it will not put my family back together. That was a really wise statement on her behalf, a really wise outlook to have. But she said it will make life easier and she'll be able to travel back and forth to Sweden to see her family and let her kids experience that culture as well.

SANCHEZ: But it's not like she's turning it down as well. We do have some reaction from Tiger Woods now. Let's go ahead and take that if we can.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIGER WOODS, GOLFER: I wish her the best in everything. It's a sad time in our lives. And we're looking forward to -- in our lives and how we can help our kids the best we possibly can. And that's the most important thing.

It's a sad time, and we're going through it right now. And as far as my game and practicing, that's been secondary. We're trying to get our kids situated to our new living conditions and how that's going to be. That's where our focus is at right now.

You don't ever go into a marriage looking to get divorced. That's the thing. That's why it is sad.

QUESTION: Do you have any regrets?

WOODS: What's that?

QUESTION: Do you have any regrets?

WOODS: Well, my actions certainly led us to this decision. I've certainly made a lot of errors in my life, and that's something I'm going to have to live with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Tiger Woods, it's secondary, his game, and it's also not so good these days, by the way. Hey, Brooke, thanks so much for pinch- hitting for us. We appreciate having you here.

ANDERSON: Sure thing.

SANCHEZ: It was a wild primary night in Florida, and Roland Martin is up next with his thoughts about the Rubio, Meek, Crist, Greene showdowns, the Senate races and a whole lot more. We're going to be right back. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.

Primaries, as you know, in fact, you saw them right here. It seemed like last night at 8:00 p.m. and our primetime edition of "RICK'S LIST" all hell broke loose all of a sudden. Every single one of the results suddenly came in and we were doing projections left and right coming in from Florida, in Florida, Senate race, just the beginning.

Last night, Kendrick Meek soundly beat billionaire Jeff Greene in the Democratic Senate primary. By the way, Mr. Greene is going to be joining us here in just a little bit.

This sets up -- this win by Meek -- sets up maybe the most intriguing race of the fall, the three-way Senate battle. This is going to be between Kendrick Meek, the Democrat, Charlie Crist, the independent, and of course, Rubio, the Republican nominee who also won last night. His victory was a trouncing.

Trying to take advantage of the anti-Washington sentiment, Rubio wasted no time trying to paint both of his opponents as friends of Washington.

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MARCO RUBIO, (R) FLORIDA SENATE CANDIDATE: For people that are happy with the direction Washington is taking America, you'll have two candidates on the ballot, the Democratic nominee and you'll have Charlie Crist.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: There's Rubio and here's Roland Martin. He's joining us from Chicago. Time for a little "R&R" between Roland and Rick. He always makes me say his name first, by the way. This is interesting --

ROLAND MARTIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Of course.

SANCHEZ: -- to see how this thing -- what's your take on this Senate right coming up in Florida?

MARTIN: First of all, it is going to be a truly fascinating race because you really have all of these competing interests. You have Governor Charlie Crist, who frankly ticked off a lot of Republicans by taking their money, abandoning his primary run, and choosing to run as an independent. And so he's being called a political opportunist.

Then you have Rubio, of course, a darling of the tea party. And so therefore he's appealing to that hard right base as well.

But the interesting thing is you have Congressman Kendrick Meek, the first candidate in the race. He thought of course he was going to have a clear path to the Democratic nomination. Then Jeff Greene jumps in, spends almost $30 million, causing Meek to spend basically all of his money.

He now has a difficult situation. He has two months to actually raise the money to compete and you know in Florida, Rick, you've got to spend crazy money on those TV markets when you talk about Miami, Jacksonville, Tampa, Orlando. And so it's going to be a wild race down there. But each candidate does have a shot at winning. It's amazing.

SANCHEZ: Let's talk money. Here's what some speculate could possibly happen, one of the many deals that could go down. Charlie Crist goes to the Democrats and says, you know what, open your coffers, help me out, help me win, you know that I can beat this Rubio guy a lot more than perhaps Kendrick can. And I will, in fact, caucus with Democrats when I get there despite the fact that I might have an "I" in front of my name.

MARTIN: Right.

SANCHEZ: How likely a scenario, Roland, do you think that might be?

MARTIN: Well, first of all, that's already been bandied about. Understand this, with Congressman Kendrick Meek, you have a guaranteed Democratic vote. With Charlie Crist, he can caucus with them, but he might cause you the same amount of pain as Joseph Lieberman who's an independent who used to be a Democrat who lost in the Democratic primary to Nate Lamont.

And so you have an issue -- remember, the problem for the president has been not really the Republicans. They've been saying "no" from day one. The problem has been with Democrats. Remember during health care, the whole constant negotiation with Ben Nelson of Nebraska, with other senators who were conservative Democrats, that's been their problem.

But here is the other thing, Rick. Because of the three people you don't need 51 percent. All you need is 37 percent. So the question for Democrats is, wait a minute. In a state that President Barack Obama won in 2008 where you have hundreds of thousands of more Democrats registered, are you trying to tell me that Democrats don't have the ability to muster 37 or 38 percent to elect one of their own in Florida?

See, that's the whole dynamic.

Here's the other thing. Charlie Crist helped this president out after the stimulus deal. He was one of the few Republican governors who embraced the stimulus deal. And in fact, rick, I went to Florida to speak to the state black caucus there. Governor Crist stopped by. We were talking about the president. He'd say, you know what, I love this guy. I mean, he said and if Governor Sanford doesn't want to take his money, I'll be happy to take it for Florida. Remember the hug.

And so for the White House, here you have a guy who was somewhat of an ally and when it came to stimulus, who you're probably thinking, hum, might be on our side. But the flipside is you have Kendrick Meek running as a Democrat and he could be the only African-American in the Senate. So a whole lot of drama for Democrats in this race.

SANCHEZ: You're absolutely right. This is going to be a whole lot of fun to watch. Thanks for stopping by and visiting us.

MARTIN: Thanks, Rick.

SANCHEZ: Sarah Palin gets back into Alaskan politics with some dramatic results. Our most intriguing is coming up. He had her support, but who is this guy? All right, that's next.

A curious thing started happening over the last year. Public figures and elected officials on the left and the right literally joined our conversation here on "RICK'S LIST" and are tweeting me so I can in turn share their comments and ideas with you. The White House, John McCain, John Boehner, Al Sharpton, Britney Spears -- I mean, I could go on and on. We do this every day, right?

They began listening to me because they know that I listen to you. Let me say it again. I got them to listen to me by listening to you. So now when they tweet, talk to me, I share it with you. It's that easy. They can't avoid hearing you.

We're closing the circle, folks. This is why I, like many of you, believe we're on to something here, a better way of doing news, a more inclusive way of doing news. It's what I write about in my brand new book called "Conventional Idiocy" published by Penguin.

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SANCHEZ: All right, time now to check the list of the most intriguing people in the news today.

Unless you live in the last frontier you probably never heard of this guy. His official bio says he is a West Point grad, army veteran of the first Gulf War, Yale law school, former federal judge. Now he is running for the U.S. Senate. So are you ready for the intriguing part? Show him, Roger. That is Joe Miller. He's relatively unknown, a long shot, a Republican. He's trying to unseat an incumbent senator, also a Republican. This is Alaska.

Who's in Joe Miller's corner campaigning for him, supporting him on twitter and Facebook and in speeches? Sarah Palin, the former governor of Alaska. Yesterday's primary results put Joe Miller in a slim lead against Senator Lisa Murkowski, the incumbent, the long-time Republican.

In fact, every candidate in yesterday's primary was endorsed by Sarah Palin and this one is leading. That goes even for one outside of Alaska. That's influence. And if Joe Miller beats an incumbent because of her help, that would be very intriguing.

We got a whole lot of skin to show you. It was a national "go topless day" and it sparked some heated back and forths. We have the video to prove it as a matter of fact. We'll take you to that. We found some stuff out about this that you may not have known by the way. This is "RICK'S LIST." We'll be right back. I'm Rick Sanchez.

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