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Rick's List
Tea Party Candidate Surges in Alaska
Aired August 25, 2010 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, HOST: Hey, John. Thanks so much.
You're not going to believe the tweets, the feedback, emails that we're getting tonight on the Republican who's just announced he is out. We're going to take you all through that.
Meanwhile, here's what else we got coming up.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ (voice-over): It's prime time. Here's RICK'S LIST.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: First of all, how big is your yacht?
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: So rich, he says he can't be bought. And rich enough to attract hangers on like Lindsay Lohan. What now for Jeff Greene?
Bloodshed in Baghdad -- as U.S. troops leave, militants pounce. Death, destruction. Is this what the future of Iraq will look like?
Sex, lies and Elin Nordegren. Tiger Wood's ex-wife is now speaking out after nine months of complete silence -- and wait until you hear what she reveals.
John McCain, winner.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: I'm very grateful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Kendrick Meek, winner.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. KENDRICK MEEK (D), FLORIDA SENATE CANDIDATE: I want to thank President Clinton.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SANCHEZ: In Alaska -- it looks like a draw. So who's the real winner? Sarah Palin?
All this and, of course, breaking news changes everything. Like the news, we don't stop. It's live, it's urgent, it's your list -- it's now.
(MUSIC)
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SANCHEZ: All right. Hello again, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez.
What do you say, we'll begin in Alaska -- that's where we're going to be. That's right. Alaska. Senator Lisa Murkowski is a staple of Republican politics there, right? But she didn't win last night. Instead, she's in a dead heat with Joe Miller who's backed by the Tea Party and, you guessed it, by Sarah Palin.
What gives? Why the bad blood between Murkowski and Palin? And where is this going? We want to find out. And we are going to take you through this story.
But we're going to begin with political story number five. It is the final piece of the puzzle in the blockbuster Senate race in Florida. Congressman Kendrick Meek is going to appear on the ballot for the Democrats after crushing billionaire Jeff Greene -- but in the process of doing that, burning through much of his campaign cash.
Let me take you through this. Now he's up against two, not one, but two rival candidates. Tea Party-backed Republican Marco Rubio and Republican Governor Charlie Crist, who, in order to get on the ballot, is running as an independent. Here's Kendrick Meek speaking today and defining himself against his two opponents.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MEEK: This election is going to be about where the candidates stand. I am running against two conservative candidates for the United States Senate that have similar records.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Here's where it begins to get intriguing, though. Meek says he's the only progressive. Rubio is suggesting he's the only true conservative. So, where does that leave Charlie Crist? Here's Rubio.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO (R), FLORIDA SENATE CANDIDATE: Charlie Crist needs to answer the fundamental question of who he is going to vote for for majority leader if he's elected. And he refuses to answer that question. In fact, he refuses say what he'll do on any issue.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SANCHEZ: Would Republican Crist who's running as an independent go to Washington and then caucus with the Democrats? This is a serious possibility and it may be how he gets money from the Dems and checkmates Kendrick Meek.
Expect this to get interesting with possible bad blood down the line.
Here now number four in politics. Did somebody say bad blood? There's a developing feud in Florida among Republicans because health care executive Rick Scott has beaten the GOP establishment and beaten the establishment's favorite, State Attorney General Bill McCollum. That bruising race has left bruised feelings.
And, today, Republicans said they would help Scott but they canceled a planned unity rally. So much for unity, right?
CNN producer Peter Hamby is in Florida watching those political pickles.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: It sounds to me like there's some serious bad blood here between m McCollum and Scott. Am I wrong?
PETER HAMBY, CNN POLITICAL PRODUCER: You're not wrong. McCollum would not concede when he took the stage last night. And he and Rick Scott still have not talked on the phone. There's a good chance they won't talk on the phone. They don't have to talk on the phone. But the negativity of this race really left some ill will between the two candidates.
SANCHEZ: What is it about Rick Scott that's making Republicans run away from him if he won fair and square?
HAMBY: Well, that's a good point. I mean, he almost doesn't need the Republican establishment. I mean, the establishment, especially on the Republican side in the cycle has proven to be nothing but a liability. So, you know, Rick Scott doesn't necessarily need to reach out to those guys.
SANCHEZ: And a guy who's tainted -- a guy who's tainted. And I say that as someone who's researched him and questioned him. He was nice enough to come on my show and I asked him some very tough questions.
But in the end -- I mean, this is a guy who as I suggested that day may very well be the poster child for everything that was wrong with the health care system in the United States. The biggest fraud charge in the history of the country was leveled against the country -- the company that he ran. And look, there is no way of getting around that, is there?
HAMBY: I mean, there -- there's serious up side and serious downside for Rick Scott and national Republicans know this. He's got the baggage like he said, Columbia/HCA and that Medicare fraud suit, another health care company that faced lawsuits that he ran. But he has an unlimited well of money that he can spend on this campaign.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: So, the key here now is to give Rick Scott the benefit of the doubt. So, did you see him? He was on tonight with "JOHN KING, USA." Here he is talking about his checkered past in the health care field.
Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICK SCOTT (R), FLORIDA GOVERNOR CANDIDATE: We drove health care inflation down from 18 percent a year to less than 1 percent a year, all for the benefit of patients. Our patient satisfactions were way higher than the national average and so -- and so was the --
JOHN KING, HOST, "JOHN KING, USA": But you also paid a record fine for fraud violation.
SCOTT: And what I tell people is, you know, when you're in business, anything that goes wrong, you should take responsibility if you're the CEO. I do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: By the way, Scott will face Alex Sink this fall. Sink is Florida's chief financial officer and a former executive with Bank of America - which you can then expect that Rick Scott will bring up since Bank of America took a $45 billion federal government bailout. Important to note, they paid it back.
Here now, number three: the worst Election Day prediction. That distinction goes to Arizona Republican J.D. Hayworth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
J.D. HAYWORTH (R), FORMER U.S. REPRESENTATIVE: We think we are on the brink of a historic upset.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: He got smoked instead. Hayworth lost by a margin of nearly two to one to Senator John McCain, who spent $21 million on the race. McCain tacked right on immigration, he tacked right on gay rights, and he tacked right on the environment. He will face Democrat Rodney Glassman.
Here is number two on this political list: Sarah Palin snaps her losing streak. Palin-backed candidates were O-for-five in August, but her record last night is clean as a whistle -- at least as of now. She endorsed John McCain. She backed winning Republicans in two congressional races. And she came up big in her home state of Alaska.
And that takes us, now, to the number one story on my political list. (BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got to rein in the federal government. People of common sense recognize that.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Do you know this man? If you don't now, you will. The number one story on our political list tonight is coming up next.
Also, topless women take their cause to the streets literally. But who's behind this naked protest? We did some digging on this. Wait until you see what we found out. Weird does not describe what you're about to hear on RICK'S LIST.
Stay with us. We're going to be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez.
The number one story on my political list tonight is Tea Party candidate Joe Miller up in Alaska. Haven't heard of him. The votes are still being counted. But Miller could be on the verge of toppling nationally known Republican Lisa Murkowski.
Miller is a lawyer, another political novice, but he does enjoy the backing of former half-term Governor Sarah Palin.
Matt Felling is joining me now from Anchorage. He's with CNN affiliate KTVA.
Here's what I want to know. Why this bad blood between the Murkowskis and Sarah Palin? What is going on there? We've been hearing so much about this over the last 48 hours.
MATTHEW FELLING, KTVA ANCHORAGE (via telephone): Yes. Well, basically, Rick, it boils down to -- it's not so much bad blood as a political rivalry, I would put out there.
I think -- even if you go back into the book, "Going Rogue," there were some parts she glossed over parts of her past. And so, some parts that she really kind of pictured very clearly and distinctly, and she definitely brought up the fact where Frank Murkowski was making the decision about who to hand off the Senate seat moving forward when he was -- when he was leaving that office. And she walked through that process, she walked through how she had a conversation with him, and then he had a conversation with his daughter and he handed to Lisa and it was clear that started divergence between them.
They had both -- they had both been active Republicans in the state before then. But then, I think she really felt jilted and she definitely played a major role yesterday -- if not through just her endorsement, the moneys that followed when she did. SANCHEZ: We're being told now that we may not know who actually wins this thing for another maybe 13 to 14 to 15 days, a couple of weeks, whatever it is. But here's the point. I'm just wondering, would Miller have done as well as he did in this situation, had he not had Sarah Palin's backing?
FELLING: Without a doubt, he would not have gotten anywhere close. I don't get -- I don't get the feeling because his message was delivered through a number of ads that were delivered in the last couple weeks that made a big impression on the electorate. And his message caught a lot of Alaskan's off guard.
I talked to a lot of legislators, a lot of candidates, last night, both sides of the aisle, winners and losers, and they were -- they were stunned at the success of the Miller campaign. He was, "A," disgusted with D.C., and you heard him earlier when he was mad about federal spending and then the debt just getting higher and higher and higher. He was very angry at Senator Murkowski for not fighting back against the White House --
SANCHEZ: Interesting.
FELLING: -- even though in recent months she's been voting against health care, voting against unemployment.
And that got a lot of resonance because there's a lot of people -- we are fiercely independent up here, and when D.C. gets involved with Alaska, we don't necessarily always like it, and that's -- that's just a really -- really took off up here.
SANCHEZ: Matt Felling, my thanks to you for joining us with that insight, from CNN affiliate, KTVA.
Meanwhile, we've got a tweet coming in. And look where it's from? It's from Joe Miller, as a matter of fact. Here we go. "What's the moose hunting like in the Beltway?" If he wins, he will have to find out.
All right. You want controversies, we got them.
Number five starts with the naked truth that we have dug up on these topless protesters. This is shot by a CNN iReporter, by the way. Let's take a look.
(VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: This is one of the "go topless" day protests that were held in cities all over the country in favor of women's equality. Women's equality meaning women's right to go topless in public. Just like men can, they say.
You might have seen one of these protests on your local TV news or in your local newspapers over the weekend. What you probably were not told is who is behind it.
Well, we checked. And we're going to tell you. It is the Raelian movement. You may be asking, what is that? Well, some call them the UFO religion.
But the Raelians are considered a cult by people who follow cults. Their founder calls himself Rael. Raelians believe that we were all created by aliens who came to earth in a UFO. Their logo features a swastika inside the Star of David.
Back to the topless women -- not everybody was happy about this protest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at all you perverts.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What about Adam and Eve?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They sinned. They sinned and they put clothes on. That's what they did. They sinned.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Speaking of Adam and Eve, in 2002, the Raelian movement claimed to have created the very first human clone, a baby girl that was named Eve. And this past weekend, they staged the ultimate adult version of made you look. And too many are falling for it. We thought you should know.
Number four, now on the controversy list in the news tonight. New developments on this YouTube video taken by a closed circuit camera in Coventry, England, showing this woman stopping, petting a cat, acting like she's looking at it, and not going to do it any harm. But then she turns around to see if anyone is watching, scoops up the cat and, bam, throws it right into a garbage can and locks it.
Well, now, that woman has been identified. Her name is Mary Bale. And she is apologizing. That is if you can catch up with her.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: Do you regret what happened?
MARY BALE, CAUGHT TOSSING CAT IN TRASH: Of course, I do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Yes, Bale writes in a statement that she can't explain why she did it. She didn't mean to cause any distress to the cat or her owners. And she's vowing to cooperate with police and the Royal SPCA. She has been getting an awful lot of attention.
Our number three controversy takes us back to the States. New York City cabby was stabbed repeatedly in his taxi last night after his passenger allegedly asked the driver if he was a Muslim. The driver is recovering from wounds to his throat, arms and hand. Police have arrested 21-year-old Michael Enright. He is facing attempted murder and hate crimes charges. The attack comes in the middle of the highly charged debate over the building of an Islamic center and mosque near Ground Zero. Police say Enright was highly intoxicated.
Now, number two, this next story, is an absolute horror. It's about rape. In fact, it's about mass rape. Nearly 200 women in Congo are gang-raped in front of their families. International human rights activist are horrified. Not just at the attackers but at the U.N.'s response.
Hutus entered the village in the country's northern province claiming that they were there just for food, before going on a rape spree that lasted for four days. The U.N. says the men are insurgents, loyal to the democratic forces for the liberation of Rwanda and now, they're being hunted down. The U.N. is also saying it wasn't informed about the attack and more than -- until more than a week after it happened.
But an American aide worker tells the "Associated Press" the U.N. peacekeeper forces knew it was happening while it was still going on. The U.N. says not true.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROGER MEECE, U.N. SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR CONGO: It is correct to say they were not given information about reports of rapes of any scale, much less mass rapes. The report that U.N. workers, of which from -- as near as I can understand, are not further identified, were either there or knew of something on 31st, we have found no evidence of that whatsoever.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton visited eastern Congo last year, pledging $17 million to the Congolese government to fight this type of horrible sexual violence.
So, what is the number one controversy on my list tonight? Imagine watching your kids playing a video game that allows them to kill U.S. troops. Now, imagine you lost a child or you lost your husband let's say in Iraq. Nice, huh? I'm all over this one.
Then there's the miners in Chile. They've got a list of their own tonight. Guess what they're asking for to make their lives buried under ground more bearable. I -- we'll tell you. By the way, what would you ask for?
This is your national conversation. This is RICK'S LIST. So glad you're here. We're in primetime.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez.
I want you to know something, this is just wrong -- wrong -- especially when you consider that it's made in America. The number one controversy on my list tonight involves a new video game coming out this fall that literally takes aim at U.S. soldiers -- U.S. soldiers.
Take a look at this. This is a new "Medal of Honor." It's set in Afghanistan. And when you have multiple players at once, it allows you to assume a role of the member of the Taliban with the ability to kill Americans -- American soldiers and marines and sailors.
There are past wars in video games, which I'm sure you know if you have kids. But an actual war that is still going on, that is still being fought, for America?
Families of service members killed in this war are not amused at all by this game. The game is made by Electronic Arts based in California. We've tried to reach out to them to no avail. Reports indicate that they are not apologizing for the game that releases in October.
Now, our people list -- our very famous public figure. A Republican leader has just made an announcement about his sexual preference. Can you figure out who it is?
First though, number five on people: the 33 Chilean miners. Take a look at this animation. This is a plan to rescue them. They have drilled a four-inch hole that helped them discover the miners alive. They will now spend the next three to four months widening that hole to about 35 inches, just wide enough to get them out one by one.
So, what will they do to keep their spirits up?
My colleague Karl Penhaul is now on the scene.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: 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'll have a live video and microphone link.
And then down the third hole, they're going to receive all the food that they need, liquid nutrients, and also all the dry clothing they need.
They've also asked for a Chilean flag. They've asked from 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.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Elvis Presley music. Here is number four on people making news on this day: Former President Jimmy Carter arrived in North Korea today in an attempt to broken a deal to set this man free. His name is Aijalon Gomes. He's a 31-year-old teacher from Boston. He's being held by the communist regime for illegally entering the country back in April. He was sentenced to eight years of hard labor and fined the equivalent of $700,000.
North Korean media reported that Gomes tried to commit suicide last month. U.S. officials will not be on the trip and they say Mr. Carter was not carrying any message from the United States government. His mission is strictly a humanitarian one and what he's taking on as a fellow Christian.
Here now, number three: the loser in Florida's Democratic Senate primary, Jeff Greene. He waged a battle of a campaign but came up short against Kendrick Meek throughout the campaign. The real issues were more often than not tabled in favor of stories about Greene's finances, his riches, and his famous friends. Have a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: The part that I think most likely got the most attention from people was the fact that you did make a lot of your money during the subprime meltdown. Put on the record for us once and for all how you would respond to that charge or that accusation, that you made your money on the backs of people who may have lost some of their homes.
JEFF GREENE (D), FORMER U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE: You know, it's just, again, silliness, because look, I worked hard every day of my life to achieve enormous success, much greater success than I'd ever dreamt of. And when I saw the housing market imploding, I went up against the Wall Street banks. I didn't go against Florida homeowners. My trades are with the biggest banks on Wall Street. If I had lost, I would have written checks to them and if I won, which I did, I got checks from them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Interesting guy. In the end, it seems even billions in net worth and friends like Lindsay Lohan and Mike Tyson could not put him over the top.
You can see my entire interview with Mr. Greene by the way on CNN.com/RickSanchez, my blog.
Here now, number two: Tiger Woods. The same day his now ex- wife's interview with "People" magazine had everyone talking, the world's best golfer spoke with reporters after finishing a Pro-Am round. He was at the Barclay's Cup in New Jersey which he'll begin tomorrow morning. It was the first time he spoke publicly since a judge finalized his divorce from Elin earlier this week.
I want you to take a look at how he responds to some of these -- some of these very personal questions. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REPORTER: Tiger, in today's "People" magazine, Elin described the end of your marriage like a death. She says she feels grief. She feels -- she hopes to forgive you one day. I'm wondering: do you still love her? Do you wish it ended differently?
TIGER WOODS, PGA GOLFER: I wish -- I wish her the best in everything. You know, it's a sad time in our lives. And, you know, we're looking, you know, forward to, you know, in our lives and how we can help our kids the best we possibly can, and that's the most important thing.
REPORTER: Do you still love her? Do you have any regrets?
WOODS: Well, my actions certainly led us to this -- this decision. And, you know, 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: Woods' game has been terrible of late, comparatively speaking, of course. And now, his wife has done her very first interview detailing what really happened and why she tried but simply could not take him back. That is coming up.
So, who is the number one person on our list tonight? Well, here's a clue. He was a Bush administration insider, head of the Republican National Committee, tried to keep a secret -- some say one of Washington's worst kept secrets, until tonight.
Why? Tonight, he's out. That is next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a little different this time, because last time, I didn't have a baby. So, coming back home, and I'm with her every day, you know, I'll (INAUDIBLE) my wife's doing it -- it's just a little different knowing I'm not going to be able to do it every day.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: A story we are committed to, later an emotional sendoff for hundreds of our troops tonight. They're on a new mission in Iraq. We're going to tell you why they're going there and you'll see them as they depart. What a sendoff.
We'll be right back. This is RICK'S LIST. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, welcome back. I'm Rick Sanchez. This is RICK'S LIST, primetime.
Number one on our list of people making news: a bombshell from the former chairman of the Republican National Committee, Ken Mehlman, who managed the 2004 reelection campaign for President Bush, says he is gay. He came out to the atlantic.com.
And listen to what Mehlman says. Here's a quote that I can read for you. "It has taken me 43 years to get comfortable with this part of my life. Everybody has their own path to travel, their own journey, and for me, over the past few months, I've told my family, friends and former colleagues and current colleagues, and they've been wonderful and supportive. It is something I wish I had done years ago."
But now, get this part of the story. The big reveal in this interview is that Mehlman seems to regret being in the closet during a heated era of anti-gay legislation proposals that were being pushed at the time by the White House he worked for. Quote, "I could have worked against the Federal Marriage Amendment and reached out to the gay community in the way I reached out to African-Americans."
This is interesting. I want to take you to some of the tweets now that we've been getting on this. And man, have we been getting a bevy of them. Let's go over to the Twitter board if we possibly can.
First, from Howard Kurtz. "Ken Mehlman tells Marc Ambinder he's gay. Which, of course, was an open secret in D.C. when he worked for Bush's campaign."
We got another one? "Ken Mehlman, we all knew you was gay, homie, but this about Bush White House and black people, news to me. That's Kwame Kilpatrick that's giving us that one.
And then finally, look at this, "Don't worry, Ken Mehlman. God won't send you to hell for being gay. He'll send you to hell for being an" -- you can see what the word is. My thanks to those of you tweeting and I'll share some more as we move forward with this development.
Big news out of Iraq tonight. And here's that list. Number three, "Operation New Dawn" is about to begin in Iraq and trainers and advisers being sent there departed today from Fort Hood. Their teary- eyed families were there to see them off. And so was our own Ed Lavandera.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're inside a gymnasium here in Fort Hood, Texas. And this is where the soldiers are going through the final preparations to board their flight over to Iraq. A lot of these soldiers have made multiple deployments to Iraq already. Many of them also going for the very first time. At the same time, they're balancing all of that with their family members and their loved ones sitting here in this gymnasium taking a last look at them for the next year or so that they expect to be deployed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a little different this time. The last I didn't have a baby. So coming back home, I'm with her every day. You know, I put her to sleep but my wife's doing it. It's just a little different that I'm not going to be able to do it every day. It feels funny. So, I mean, it's just an adjustment I have to get used to, but I think I'll be able to make it through just fine.
LAVANDERA: There's been a lot of talk, it's a new operation there, "Operation New Dawn." There's an advice and assist role now for you, kind of changing out from combat unit. How has that changed how you prepared for this deployment?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Instead of we're used to doing our -- you know, just do our thing, go out and run our missions. Now we have to kind of work in the Iraqi army counterparts so that they pretty much take the lead. So it's kind of by with them through every mission. They take the lead. We're there to advise, assist, you know, kind of security, make sure everything goes good.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: He's tough. Stay safe, fellows.
Number two from Iraq, a major address set to come from the president Tuesday. That is the same day the U.S. combat mission Iraq officially comes to a close. The White House says that President Obama will talk about the situation in Iraq, but he's also expected to focus on Afghanistan, the war on terror in general.
CNN international correspondent Jim Clancy says the president has a tough job when it comes to selling the American public on the vital nature of this Middle East situation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: In some ways, we're back to square one because what are we taking out of Iraq? What have we learned? We learned that we can't -- democracy doesn't march into the Middle East with a gun in one hand and a duffel bag full of hundred dollar bills --
SANCHEZ: And force democracy on to people.
CLANCY: Doesn't work.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
CLANCY: It didn't work at all.
SANCHEZ: Right. Despite what Paul Wolfowitz said would work.
CLANCY: Yes.
SANCHEZ: OK.
CLANCY: Wolfowitz told us that this would work. It apparently hasn't.
SANCHEZ: It could have been. CLANCY: Six months later almost, we don't even have an Iraqi government. They don't know how to deal with this thing called democracy. And you know, by any measure, look at the electricity. Seven years, Rick. The United States of America couldn't even turn on the lights.
SANCHEZ: But here's what I --
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Horrible edit.
That brings us to the number one topic on our Iraq list tonight. A wave of violence across Iraq today has left nearly 50 people dead and hundreds injured. It's happening at the hands of militant groups there. And they are striking in just about every part of the country. It happened in 13 cities, including parts of Iraq where violence was thought to be under control. So far, no one group has claimed responsibility.
We have been telling you all night that Tiger's now ex-wife has finally broken her silence. Up next, we're going to tell you exactly what she is telling "People" magazine. And we're even going to have more from our own Brooke Anderson who's talked to the author of the article. This is a trending story. So is Lindsay Lohan getting out of rehab early? We're going to be right back. Stay right there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: All right, time to see what's trending now with Brooke Anderson. She's the host of Headline News "Showbiz Tonight." And she is filling in a Brooke for a Brooke. She's filling in for Brooke Baldwin.
Brooke, good to see you. I understand that --
BROOKE ANDERSON, HOST OF HLN'S "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": I tried to do justice for Brooke Baldwin.
SANCHEZ: Trust me, you and I worked together earlier today and you held your own, kid.
ANDERSON: Thanks.
SANCHEZ: Elin does this interview and everyone is talking about it. I thought it was going to be a fluff piece. It really wasn't. She was very detailed. She sounded like somebody who really wanted to get a lot off her chest.
ANDERSON: Yes, she did. And you know, a lot of people are talking about this on social media because Elin Nordegren is opening up, talking for the very first time about what led to her divorce from Tiger Woods. She's opening up exclusively, Rick, to "People" magazine and their new issue. She's finally revealing all after nine months of being silent. And, Rick, she said she was silent for that long because she wanted to protect her kids, her two young kids. SANCHEZ: Before we get to what she said, do we know officially why she chose this moment, this magazine to come out and say these things?
ANDERSON: It felt right and as you know her divorce with Tiger Woods was just finalized. She basically said she wants to set the record straight, tell her side of the story and hopes that it helps put all of this behind her. She also hopes that her privacy will be respected now because, Rick, she has no desire for any sort of public life.
SANCHEZ: There's a lot of questions out there as to whether or not she really was caught by surprise with, you know, the reports and the stories and it got so terribly ugly.
ANDERSON: Yes.
SANCHEZ: But what does she say about the timing of her realization for lack of a better word?
ANDERSON: Well, she says she was blindsided. She was in absolute shock, absolute disbelief when she found out. She said she has been in pure hell. And you know, she said that for 3 1/2 years she was busy with pregnancies, with babies, with getting her degree in psychology. And also, Rick, she said felt embarrassed and stupid as more details came out. And she told herself, asked herself, why did I not know? How could I not have known anything?
But one thing she did not talk about or get specific about was that Thanksgiving night car crash of Tiger Woods and what led to all of that. So I asked the "People" magazine writer who interviewed her why she didn't talk about that. Here's what she told me. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANDRA SOBIERAJ WESTFALL, "PEOPLE" MAGAZINE: She didn't want details of that incident to override her story. That for her, the past nine months wasn't just about what happened that night. There's a police report from that night. All she wanted people to know is that she was not a violent person that night or ever. All she was trying to do was get him out of the car.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: As I'm listening --
ANDERSON: So, Rick, there you go, we may never know.
SANCHEZ: You know, as I'm listening to this, I'm just thinking that I know from everything -- you know, I play a lot of golf and I talk about this story a lot with fellows when we're out. And I know that Tiger tried everything he could to put the marriage back. Did she try to put the marriage back? What does she say about that?
ANDERSON: Absolutely. Absolutely. Yes, it was a little too late for Tiger Woods though, but she does say that she worked on things with him for months and months and that they tried very, very hard. But ultimately she decided that a marriage without trust and love just would not work. And she would not give any specifics about their divorce settlement except that they're sharing custody of their two beautiful small children, and that the money she gets will make life easier. She did admit that. But she said it does not put her family back together.
SANCHEZ: Let's move on to Lindsay Lohan. I'm interested because it seems like every time we turn around, you know, Lindsay Lohan is in the news. What's going on now?
ANDERSON: Yes, well, did you know she's out of rehab? A lot of people talking about this.
After 23 days in rehab, Lindsay Lohan is out early. You may remember a judge had laid down the line, said she had to spend 90 days in rehab but she's out after just over three weeks. Was released last night on a judge's order. Here's what Lindsay's lawyer had to say about why.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHAWN CHAPMAN HOLLEY, LOHAN'S LAWYER: The judge allowed her to leave early only because the treating doctors at UCLA felt that she had done everything that had been required of her there. She had initially been ordered, as you know, to serve 90 days there. The doctors very soon recognized that that was completely unnecessary.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: OK, but things ain't going to be easy, Rick, because she's still going to be under strict supervised probation until November 1st. Won't be able to leave California. Has to undergo random drug tests at least twice a week. Has to attend various types of therapy sessions. I'm talking psychotherapy four times a week, chemical dependency classes five time a week. Also behavioral therapy.
She is going to be busy. You know, she had originally been sentenced to 90 days in prison and as I said, 90 days in rehab. This, for violating probation in connection with a previous drunk driving arrest. But she only served 13 days behind bars because of overcrowding.
But, Rick, despite these early releases, her lawyer says she is serious about sobriety and that she has learned her lesson. But I am thinking, Rick, she's going to have to look at these strict probation requirements like it's her job. Because if she slips up, it's back to the slammer just like that.
SANCHEZ: I like your passion on this Lohan story. Almost as if you're pulling for her. Please, Lindsay, let me not have to talk about you again.
ANDERSON: Please.
SANCHEZ: By the way, you are going to be talking about it again, tonight, though, right?
ANDERSON: I am. We're going to have the latest on both the Lilo and Elin stories at 11:00 p.m. Eastern, "Showbiz Tonight" on HLN.
SANCHEZ: Brooke for Brooke, so glad you were here. My thanks to you.
ANDERSON: Thanks, Rick.
SANCHEZ: A curious started happening over the last year. Public figures and elected officials -- I don't know if you have noticed -- on the left and on the right have literally joined our conversation and are tweeting me so that 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 can go on and on, right? You saw some of them tonight. They began listening to me here on CNN because they know that I listen to you. That's it. Wasn't me. It was you.
Let me say it again. I got them to listen to me by listening to you. So now, when we tweet talk together, I share it with you. It's that easy.
They can't avoid hearing you now. We're like closing the circle. This is why I like many of you believe that we're on to something here, doing a more inclusive newscast. It's what I write about in my new book. It's called "Conventional Idiocy." This is what it looks like, as we go to break. By the way, it's published by Penguin.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Hey, look who's up next. Larry King is going to be joining us. And, in fact, he's joining me now, suspenders and all. And you have a guest on tonight that I'm excited to hear for obviously many reasons. She is so dynamic. But I bet she's going to have something to say about this Ken Mehlman development that you and I have just been reading about over the last hour and a half or so.
LARRY KING, HOST, "LARRY KING LIVE": Do you remember Bill Maher on this show, the night I announced that I was going to be leaving the end of the year like?
SANCHEZ: Yes.
KING: He said that Ken was gay and we all looked around in surprise. And Bill Maher said, doesn't everybody know that? Nobody knew it.
SANCHEZ: And you -- I mean, you did your due diligence. You immediately looked at him and said, well, hold on a minute. You know, you can't be saying things like this.
KING: I know.
SANCHEZ: And then you started talking about the ventriloquist. KING: That's right. He was great, by the way. You want to get into that?
SANCHEZ: No, no.
KING: He's the best.
SANCHEZ: Let's not go there.
KING: OK.
SANCHEZ: So tell me about your guest tonight.
KING: Wanda Sykes.
SANCHEZ: Yes.
KING: Wanda Sykes is the guest. She's going to be here for the whole hour. As you know, she's not too afraid to speak out her mind. And we're going to cover a lot of topics with her, including the aforementioned Ken.
We'll go from politics to Palin to thoughts on Prop 8, and you can tweet your questions for her to me at kingsthings in twitter. It's all at the top of the hour on "LARRY KING LIVE."
Rick, send me a copy of your book.
SANCHEZ: Yes. I will, I will, I will.
KING: I love that title.
SANCHEZ: And you know what? We'll spend some time talking about it at some point, you and me. Should we do it on TV?
KING: You bet.
SANCHEZ: OK, you got it. It's a date.
KING: What the hell, yes, OK.
SANCHEZ: Thanks, Lar, appreciate it.
KING: He booked himself. He just booked himself.
SANCHEZ: Sneaky little guy. That's how we are down there, these Cubans from Miami.
Most people do some crazy things in college but one guy is probably really regretting his wild night. This one falls -- you're not going to believe this, folks, nudity, football and stun guns. That's next on "The List."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: I played some college football. And I know that a lot of kids dream about playing college football. But one guy who was living the dream could be wearing a different uniform this fall. Time now for "The List U Don't Want 2 Be On."
This is Tyler Patrick Thomas' story. He's an offensive lineman for Oregon State University. And yes, that appears to be a mullet that he's wearing. Business in the front, party in the back.
Now, hangovers in college are nothing new, right? But something tells me that this guy really regrets what he did the night before. Here's how it goes down.
A woman calls 911. Stay with me here. This is bizarre. She tells police that there's a strange man upstairs in her house. When police arrived, they find Thomas in his birthday suit. And when they ask him to get on the ground, he refuses. Instead, he gets into a three-point stance. You know, like the players, you know, the line of scrimmage, the offensive line? Can you imagine, he's naked. He's a 300-pound naked man dropping down in a three-point stance.
And wait it gets worse. He then charges the officer, exploding out of that three-point stance, who used a stun gun to do, like, you know, a Rick Sanchez on him before they get him into cuffs.
Well, it's no surprise the team has given Thomas the boot. He now faces a laundry list of charges including trespassing and resisting arrest. Of course, he can't remember any of it.
Listen to this. When asked if Thomas had ingested one too many brews, police said, and this is a direct quote, "absolutely." Tyler Patrick Thomas and his hangover. They top "The List That U Don't Want 2 Be On" on this night.
Have you ever seen a Scot scared, stiff (bleep) of a stiff (bleep) wind? What the (bleep)? "Fotos" in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: I kind of like that move, huh? We've got some wild weather here in the Southeastern United States, but it's got nothing on Angola. Let's do "Fotos."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ah, dios mio.
SANCHEZ: I want you to check out this video. It is from the southwestern coast of Africa. Listen to that. Strange rippled sky turns into a wild dust storm that whips past our Scottish iReporter. He says the whole thing only lasted 90 seconds but scared the hell out of him. His language is almost as violent as the storm itself. Which is why you hear all the bleeping, by the way.
And speaking of windy weather, watch as this U.S. parachuter hits a bit of a snag at last night's Texas/Rangers game. Which I was watching, by the way, because I'm a fan of the Minnesota Twins and they beat the Minnesota twins. A gust of wind left him hanging from a flagpole. The soldier was able to detach himself from the chute and walk away unharmed across the scoreboard. Married men won't be surprised by the outcome of this race between two curiously named horses. My wife knows everything and my wife doesn't know. Listen to the announcer trying to call this confusing race between the wives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Into the final furlong. My wife knows everything. The wife doesn't know. They're one-two. Of course, they are.
My wife knows everything in front. To the outside, the wife doesn't know. My wife knows everything. The wife doesn't know. My wife knows everything more than the wife doesn't know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: So, does your wife know everything or does she not know anything? What's going on?
This is like who's on first? My wife knows everything, of course. Was, it turns out, the winner.
I could listen to this all day long. That's fantastic. If you want to listen to it yourself, by the way, all you've got to do is go to "Fotos." And to go to "Fotos" or to see any of the things that we put out for you throughout the day, we put them on our blog. The blog is called CNN.com/RickSanchez.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ah, dios mio.
SANCHEZ: Thanks so much for being with us. I'm Rick Sanchez. We're going to be looking for you here again tomorrow at 3:00, 4:00 and 8:00.
And Wanda Sykes is going to be coming up. She is going to be standing by with Larry King. And this promises to be one heck of a great show.
That's our show. "LARRY KING LIVE" right now.
