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CNN Sunday Morning

Manhunt Under Way in Colorado; South Carolina in Campaign Spotlight

Aired December 09, 2007 - 09:00   ET

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

T.J. HOLMES, CNN CO-ANCHOR: Yes, it is Sunday morning. And no, that's not a preacher at the pulpit, you know who that is, that's the former president. Also a talk show host heading to a football stadium. What in the world is going on on this Sunday? South Carolina is in the campaign spotlight CNN bringing you the best political team on television.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN CO-ANCHOR: And also a manhunt going on right now. There was a shooting in a missionary training center in Colorado overnight, and now police hope fresh snow will lead them to the shooter.

HOLMES: Also, it is a no-go. No launch. Ain't' happening. It's going to be sitting there at least for another day. Just this morning, a fuel sensor failed. Now the Atlantis mission is on hold. We'll bring you a live report from the launch site. Live from the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia, we're bringing you the news from around the world. Good morning to you all, I'm T.J. Holmes.

NGUYEN: Yes, good morning, everybody, I'm Betty Nguyen. We want to thank you for being with us. It is Sunday, December 9. We have a lot to tell you including the Heisman Trophy winner, Tim Tebow, joining us this morning. Talking to him live. T.J.'s not that excited, although he appreciates the win, he thinks he's a great guy.

HOLMES: Have to explain, though, to the people.

NGUYEN: An Arkansas grad, and so you had that on the line.

NGUYEN: My guy came in second, yes.

NGUYEN: It's OK, two years in a row, but that's not the point. Tebow's here and we're excited about that, but we do want to start with this. That manhunt that I just talked to you about out of Colorado following a shooting at a missionary training center outside of Denver.

Police say a gunman walked into the center in Arvada and just opened fire. We're told at least four people are wound, no word yet on their conditions, and it is still unclear whether they're staff members or students. Well, about an hour ago, a police spokesperson talked to our affiliate, KUSA.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SUSAN MEDINA, ARVADA POLICE SPOKESWOMAN: I mean, this is a very extensive crime scene. We have a number of people to interview, we have our crime scene technicians that are in the facility itself, right now, trying to process, to figure out what exactly happened. And again, the key parts of this, we need to capture this person. And so, if anybody out in the community -- we have done some reverse 911, but if we have people in the community with their eyes open and their ears open, if they see something suspicious, we're asking that they call 911 right away.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: All right, here is what police are looking for: A white male around 20 years old. He may have either a beard or a mustache and might be wearing glasses. We'll stay on top of this story.

HOLMES: And we'll take you to this live picture, a gorgeous picture, but they wish it was a different picture of a shuttle taking off, today, but it's not happening. Again, forced to scrub shuttle's planned launch, an on-going sensor problem is the cause this morning. Engineers noticed this again while filling the external fuel tank. The current launcher window now, closes this week. So, that means it could not lift off until 2008, possibly, if they don't get off the ground this week.

NGUYEN: That's in a year.

HOLMES: Yes. So, they are watching this pretty closely, like to get this mission underway this week. We'll have a live report from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, coming your way at the bottom of the hour. We will now take a turn to politics. Less than a month now to the first real test of the presidential campaign season, the Iowa Caucasus. Time to bring out the heavy hitters and, boy we do have some heavy hitters out there.

NGUYEN: Yes, we do. All right, first up, former president Bill Clinton in Charleston, South Carolina, this hour, where he is making the case for wife, Senator Hillary Clinton. The former president is addressing a worship service at Charleston's Royal Missionary and Baptist Church. As you can see, he's spearing live. Let's take a listen.

BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: ...I see you. Think of how that means. You think of how dignifying, how ennobling that is. You thing of all the people that go through life every day and think nobody ever sees them. When we leave here today, somebody's going to have to come in and clean up this church, right?

How many people clean up churches on Sunday morning think that they're not really the ones being prayed for in the service? How many times have you been to a banquet and the people that are serving you, you know they think nobody ever sees them. Nobody every wonders how they make a living or whether they can pay their bills putting that food on our tables. Do you every think about how the food got on your table? What about all the people that were in the chain that got us there? This is a big deal today in this big, fast, busy world where lots of people got lots of things. The most important thing, if we bring America back together again and we're going to reach out to the rest of the world and we're going to try to be a healing force for peace in the Mideast, in Africa, anywhere else, we have to see each other. I see you.

From the first day I met her until this day, my wife had seen people that others overlooked. She has done all the good she can. She has done it well. I will close with this story and say this. I love this election year because I don't have to be against anybody.

(APPLAUSE)

I love it, no kidding. I mean, tell the truth now. How many times have you been at an election when you said, well, I guess I'll have to vote for old candidate "B" because I would just die if "A" got elected. Haven't' you done it? We all have, haven't we?

I'm going to go in there an vote for "B," I don't really -- but oh, if "A" got it, it'd be the end of the world. I like these people running for president in party, I like a lot of the Republicans running for president. I don't want to in an America, again, where I don't have to dislike somebody.

(APPLAUSE)

Where I think everybody is well-meaning and honest and working for the good of America, and that is the truth, here. We have a great array of candidates. We got the first serious woman candidate, first serious African-American, first serious Hispanic-American candidate and got a bunch lot of other people running and they're good too, and they've done a lot of good for this country and they should not be overlooked or not listened to.

This is a good time to be an American. You don't have to be against anybody. But, it is a sobering time, too, because the challenges are big. And I'm here not just because Hillary is my wife. If we were never married I would be here if asked to be, today. I would come to South Carolina or go anywhere else, because in all the years I've been in politics, and I'll be a voter for 40 years, next year, she has the best combination of mind and heart, of strength of leadership and a feeling for the benefits or the problems of ordinary people of anybody I've worked with.

If you sent me -- if I was like the prophet and I said, here am I, send me. And you sent me into some place that I thought I had no more than a one in thousand chance of coming out of to represent you, and you said: you can take person, and I had to take one person I knew would never wilts under fire, never cracked under pressure, always makes a good decision that I could trust with my life and the life of everybody I was supposed to be representing, of all the great people in the world I have ever known, without blinking, I would take her. I would pick her, alone.

(APPLAUSE) And I want to close with this story that involves only a few African-Americans, but it makes the point. A few months ago I was in a very different setting that this church. I was home in New York and a man I went to college with called and he's a golfing nut and he said, I want to get on a golf course that's 10 minutes from your house. And he said: you used to be president, surely you can get me on. I said: yeah, I can get you on and Hillary is running, not me, I'll go with you.

So, he brought his two friends and I went with him and I got them a caddy to go on this golf course, because it was hard and we played the first and they walked off the green. And for the only time in my life, this caddy reached out grabbed me by the arm hard and he said: Wait, don't go. This is maybe the only chance I'll have to tell you this. He said: you don't know me, do you? I said: No, sir. He said: That's because I'm not really a caddy.

So I thought, what is this guy, a comedian, a terrorist? You know?

(LAUGHTER)

He said: I just do this to supplement my family's income. In my real life I'm a captain in the New York City fire department. So, the guy said: you know, before 9/11, most of us thought we were in the Republican Party because we're mostly Irish and Italian immigrants and we got good jobs and healthcare and we got what we need and we just like all that macho talk they do. The guy was real honest, he said: you just kind of turned us on, all the tough talk, we like that. He said, but then on that awful day when those buildings came down and we, the fireman, had to go through the rubble, desperately trying to find somebody alive, your wife was the first person who knew that many of us would get sick and some of us would die because of what we breathed doing our job. You remember what the fireman, the policeman were breathing? Remember that stuff in the air? That was asbestos, PCBs, benzine -- three cancer causing (INAUDIBLE).

And he said: But President, most of us voted for and the administration we supported, they said there's no way in the wide world we could get sick breathing that stuff. The Environmental Protection Agency said, we couldn't get sick breathing that stuff. Of course, every time they came down to Ground Zero, they were wearing masks. But, they said we couldn't get sick breathing it. He said: But she knew and she fought for us from that day to this. We were crawling in awful days afterwards through all that rubble just trying to find body parts, hoping we could give families some peace of mind. She knew. And he said: Because of her, some of us, who would have died, are alive. And those of us who died, at least our families were given the dignity of knowing we had decent care so that our service was honored. He said: You know, I don't know so much about politics anymore, and I don't care so much about party anymore, but I do want somebody like that to be president, somebody who knows what it's like to be me and be every other person in this country.

I could tell that this had a shattering effect on him, that he was much more sensitive to other people. I don't think that very many people will be invisible to this man anymore, I think he will see people he did not see before because he now knows what it's like to be unseen.

WHITFIELD: Former president, Bill Clinton, known for his speaking -- just his ability to and really wow a crowd and he is doing today, he is engaging the crowd at the Royal Missionary Baptist Church, there in South Carolina. But, he's not the only celebrity on the Campaign trail, this weekend.

And you know what, T.J.? It does not get bigger than this lady. Put her up there, folks. Put her up there, you know her name, Oprah Winfrey and she's appearing with Democrat, Barack Obama in three key states. And right now, the epicenter of the "Oprahbama" earthquake is in Columbia, South Carolina. No coincidence our own Suzanne Malveaux is are there, too.

And I imagine that crowd is just as engaged as they fill that stadium, today -- Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Betty, whether or not you call it "Oprahloosa" or "Obama mania," really the excitement is contagious. I want you to just take a look. The line already forming outside, here, about 60 people or so. And this event is five hours away.

Now, the Obama folks are saying, look, just take a look at what happened in Iowa and Des Moines. There were 23,000 tickets distributed. In Cedar Rapids it was 10,000. There are a lot of people who are coming out to hear what she has to say, Oprah. And essentially, what she is doing is she is taking on the big fight here, that argument that Senator Clinton has been making, saying it's all about experience, here.

Well, Oprah said yesterday that she believes that it is Barack Obama who has the kind of experience that is necessary, not the kind that's in Washington. And this is the first time that she is putting her star power behind, actually endearing a presidential candidate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OPRAH WINFREY, TALK SHOW HOST: I'm not here for partisan beliefs. Over the years, I've voted for as many Republicans as I have Democrats. So, this isn't about partisanship for me. This is very, very personal. I'm here because of my personal conviction about Barack Obama and what I know he can do for America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Now, just to give you a sense of what they're up against, Oprah's star power, she reaches about nine million viewers a day, 75 percent of those people are women. So, let's take a look at who they are fighting over, that is the female vote here, and that is why we are seeing the star power as well on Senator Clinton's side. She is campaigning now with her daughter Chelsey, as well as her mother, on the stump. Her campaign says that she is a big Oprah fan, but she ultimately has the confidence in the voters that they're the ones that are going to decide whether or not she becomes the Democratic candidate.

Now, there's a lot of questions here, and even Oprah joked about it whether they're coming to see her or they're coming to see Senator Barack Obama. And even he seemed to make a reference, yesterday, that he acknowledges that that question is an unanswered one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am under no illusion, we've had some big crowds, here in Iowa, we have had -- not had this big crowd in Iowa. So, there's some people here, who are here to see Oprah. And I'm the, you know, I'm sort of a byproduct of that and I appreciate that, but what I know is that for her to take the risk of stepping out of her comfort zone is extraordinary.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And even Oprah joked maybe some people were coming, thinking they'd get a free car or refrigerator, that that's not going to happen. I should tell you, Betty, really, rarely celebrity endorsements end up equaling to votes, here, but the big question is whether or not this really going to have an impact. The one thing that we do know it does, is that it creates a lot of free publicity, a lot of media attention for Barack Obama, essentially a moment here, to listen to his message and try to convince the voters that he's the one -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Yeah, no refrigerators, but it is one of Oprah's favorite things, being Barack Obama. And let's talk about the crowds, today, because they were just -- they came out in full force, yesterday, expect them to fill that stadium, today?

MALVEAUX: They don't expect the fill the stadium, because this stadium actually holds 80,000 people, so that would really be spectacular, but had it at a venue they was scheduled before and they ran out of tickets, because it held about 18,000. So, they expect more than 18,000. They're just hoping to get as many people as possible. It's a free event, they're inviting a lot of people will come out. And really, the selling point here is, obviously, people are coming out to see Oprah, but it does give this opening for Barack Obama to make his message known and to get it out to the people here in South Carolina -- Betty.

NGUYEN: All right, CNN's Suzanne Malveaux, there, for the big show, today. Thank you, Suzanne.

We do want to let you, the viewer, know that we are covering all of these peaches, we covered Mitt Romney on Thursday, of course, Oprah and Obama, yesterday and today Bill Clinton speaking at a church in South Carolina. There's much more to come and we'll be there for it.

HOLMES: Much more to come, because the Iowa caucus just a month away now, and the politicians pulling out all the stops to win over caucus voter and CNN's political editor, Mark Preston, is with us from Washington to talk some politic this is morning. Mark, good to see you, as always. We got through seeing the story about Oprah and Obama -- Oprahbama" or "Oprama," as Betty likes to call it. So, historically, have celebrity endorsements really worked and even if they haven't, is this one different from any other celebrity endorsement we've ever seen? It's Oprah.

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, it's Oprah and I don't think we've seen one on this magnitude, as Suzanne was saying, she's got nine million viewers. I mean, she could be the most famous people in America or certainly one of the most famous people in America. I think she actually can help Obama by going out to these early states, Iowa, South Carolina, New Hampshire and telling them that she's supporting him. What's going to be interesting, T.J., to see if she does a television ad in the next couple of weeks and the Obama people put a lot of money behind it.

HOLMES: A lot of money behind it. We will see, but yes, the crowds she's bringing out are amazing and we'll see how many they can fill up the Gamecocks Stadium, there in South Carolina, today.

Let's turn now to Iowa. The caucuses, less than a month away. The big story here, Mike Huckabee, my goodness, this guy has gone from single digits to somebody that nobody was paying attention to, to the guy that's getting all the attacks now. He is -- can we legitimately call him the frontrunner just yet?

PRESTON: You know, I think you can call him the frontrunner, but we are several weeks away from the caucuses. Mitt Romney has an incredible ground operation in place right now, that's something Mike Huckabee doesn't have, right now. While he's doing well in the polls, and he has been doing well in the polls, you know, it still remains to be seen whether he can actually get voters out to the caucuses on a cold January 3 night to vote for him.

HOLMES: Let me ask you about the polls, there. The "Newsweek" poll, has him some 20, 22 points ahead? Is this an anomaly, here, are we going to see more polls come out that mirror that same thing?

PRESTON: Well, I think we'll see a poll, you know, within that range where we'll see Huckabee ahead. I mean, clearly he's got momentum, right now. But again, it really comes down to a ground operation, it really comes down to whether Huckabee has enough volunteers and enough staff in Iowa, to actually go to people's door and put them in the van and drive them to the Caucus site and get them to vote for him. I mean, that's going to be tough for him. There's no question.

HOLMES: What should we think about that poll, though? That threw everybody off. He's some 22 points ahead, where did that come from?

PRESTON: Well, you know, I think we see it in every election, we see a frontrunner, you know, who's doing well for months and months and months and months and months, and then at some point they have to level off. And you know, people are looking for somebody else and I think that's what we've seen with Mitt Romney. HOLMES: Well, let's talk Mitt Romney, here. Last couple of things we got to hit real quick, here. Mitt Romney, first of all, made the speech, of course, and talked about faith. Did he help or hurt himself here, here? Because, instead of us talking about his politics and his policies, everybody is talking about Mormonism, now. Is that a good thing for him?

PRESTON: Well look, had to make a speech, he had say something. Interestingly enough, he really didn't talk much about his faith at all, you know, in his speech. And I will tell you, you're an Evangelical that does not liking Mormonism, that speech did nothing for you.

HOLMES: Did nothing. All right, and of course, the Republican candidates debating tonight, bilingual debate. They're going to be on a kind of a slippery slope, here, I suppose, since so many of them have some pretty strong stances against immigration, but they're trying to cater to this different audience now. They're walking a tight rope here, I guess.

PRESTON: Well, but you got to give them credit for at least showing up at the debate. They came under a lot of criticism for not initially doing the debate, at least they're doing it, now.

HOLMES: At least they're showing up. All right then, Mark Preston, we can talk to you forever, we appreciate your time, this morning. We'll see you soon.

PRESTON: Thanks T.J.

NGUYEN: Also have this to tell you about new developments on the shuttle launch. Word of another major delay, today. We're going to take you live to Kennedy Space Center.

And these fireworks are up and smoke. Now investigators want to know what set them off.

HOLMES: Also, Michael Vick, his dogs, his house, his life. We got more drama in this saga, it's unfolding this week.

NGUYEN: And hugs for everybody, they go around. The new Heisman Trophy winner has Gator Nation smiling, today. Tim Tebow joins us live on this Sunday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Well, another setback for NASA, this morning, grounding the shuttle until next year? Could it be so? Just about two hours ago, NASA was forced to scrub today's planned launch because of an ongoing engine problem. CNN's John Zarrella is at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

And when we talked last, John, we were all looking to Thursday for a launch. What's the news now?

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Well, kind of thought that, you know, kind of depending on what they looked at and saw in their data, maybe they could try another launch attempt between tomorrow and Thursday, but no joy here at the Kennedy Space Center. NASA announcing, just moments ago, that there will be no launch attempted of the shuttle Atlantis until at least January 2, no earlier than January 2, which of course means it could be much further out that that.

Giving folks a quick look, we've had this ongoing problem in the external tank, here, with some hydrogen sensors, down here. And on Thursday, two of those hydrogen sensors, in the external tank, failed forcing them to scrub the launch. They decided to try again today, with the rules being that if any of the four -- and here's what they would look like and where they would be -- any of these four failed, today, they would scrubbed, one of them failed again, No. 3 sensor, which is one of the same ones that failed on Thursday, so they had to scrub today's launch.

And really, Betty, they've got to get to the bottom of this problem, because historically in the shuttle program, they've only had eight different times when have they had failures of these sensors. And before this year -- they've had three this year, three different shuttles, now have had failures with these sensors.

Before that, they have not had a failure since April of 1992. So, they went 15 years, so clearly something is different, something has changed and NASA is going to have to get to the bottom of this to get to the root cause and they simply do not know what that is. But bottom line, here this morning, no shuttle launch of Atlantis, no earlier than January 2 and the question still remains, are they going to have to roll the vehicle off of the launch pad out there, back into the vehicle assembly building and dig into that external tank to get at those sensors to try and find out what's wrong. So, that's where we stand right now, and NASA has a lot of work to do over the holidays. That is for sure -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Yes, they do. I guess you can say they have the rest of the year to try to figure it out. Thank you, John.

ZARRELLA: Yes, they do. Sure.

HOLMES: There's been an arrest, this morning, in the case of a British man who reportedly faked his own death five years ago. John Darwin's wife, Anne, there she is. She was picked up a short while ago at the airport in Manchester, England. She had just arrived back there, actually, from a flight from Atlanta. Now earlier, she told British tabloids her husband faked his death to get out of debt. He is now facing two charges and is due in court tomorrow.

NGUYEN: Well, it has been quite a weekend for Michael Vick, all kinds of action surrounding the troubled superstar. A judge decides his fate tomorrow, passing sentence on the federal dog fighting charges.

HOLMES: Meanwhile, visitors have been going in and out of his former Virginia home. The home is being sold at auction this weekend. Also, what about those dogs? The fighting dogs confiscated from Vick's are being shipped to shelters around the country and some of them are actually being kept by foster families.

HOLMES: Well, the votes are in. We have a new Heisman Trophy winner.

NGUYEN: And Drum roll, please. Tim Tebow comes out on top. The Florida quarterback will join us live right here on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Welcome back everybody, on this Sunday. I'm Betty Nguyen.

HOLMES: And I'm T.J. Holmes. We want to get you updated on a story we're following out of Colorado, a manhunt underway after a shooting at a missionary training center outside of Denver. Police say a man walked into the center in Arvada, Colorado, and opened fire. Four young people were wounded, still no word yet on their conditions. Police -- about 45 people -- say about 45 people were inside the Youth with a Mission center when this shooting started.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MEDINA: I don't have information about how folks left the building, itself, I do know that the regional transportation district was called in, they did have buss on site very quickly after this incident happened and we were able to transfer those young adults to a safe location where they can begin to be interviewed, as well as being assisted by our victim advocates.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Police say they are looking for a white male around 20 years old, possibly with a beard or a mustache. So, a developing story, there. We'll keep you updated.

NGUYEN: Well, it's a great weekend for skiers out West. You can see, check this out. Plenty of lines at Colorado ski resorts. They're having a great time, but, Reynolds Wolf has been following this while they are just living it up, some folks are really hoping the snow would just go away.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: And our "Quick Hits," going to give you more news in less time, let's start with this. Police are still investigating a mall shooting in Columbus, Ohio, this morning. Witnesses say two men got into a fight yesterday afternoon and one man shot the other in the leg. Shoppers, of course, panicked and ran. Police are looking for that shooter, the victim, though, was taken to the hospital for treatment.

HOLMES: Also, victims of that mall shooting spree in Nebraska being laid to rest tomorrow. Nineteen-year-old Robert Hawkins killed eight people at the mall in Omaha, Wednesday, before killing himself. Wakes and vigils honoring those lost in the massacre are happening today.

NGUYEN: Here's a follow-up on a story that you might remember. Chicago police say they have charged 31-year-old Reginald Potts, Jr. with first degree murder with the death of Nailah Franklin.

Franklin was a 28-year-old pharmaceutical sales representative who was reported missing back in September. Remember this story? Well, Potts was once a boyfriend of Franklin's and before she disappeared, Franklin complained that Potts had called her making threats. Potts denies any involvement with Franklin's death.

Coming up, picture perfect.

HOLMES: Yes, cue the Superman music. Tim Tebow, it is his time to shine. There he is, looking pretty good after a pretty good party night, I'm sure. The 73rd Heisman Trophy winner, there he is.

NGUYEN: Making history, at that.

HOLMES: Making history. The toughest interview of my life is coming up.

NGUYEN: Because you're an Arkansas grad.

HOLMES: Yes, he knows why. We will have that coming up right after the break, but first a tip from the top from an NBA all-star.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): An NBA all-star who works hard on and off the court. Known as one of the greatest defensive player of all time, Houston Rocker's Dikembe Mutombo aims high for success and he believes he's in a position to help others.

DIKEMBE MUTOMBO, ATHLETE & HUMANITARIAN: When you take the elevator to go up, better make sure that when you get on the top, you send the elevator down.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mutombo has not forgotten where his rise to the top started. He's created a foundation to improve healthcare and education in his homeland, the democratic republic of Congo. Recently, his foundation opened a state-of-the-art hospital and research center there.

MUTOMBO: We have an obligation, in our society, today as we are living (ph), to go in and to make a difference. I'm giving people hope that the future can be bright for all of us.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The winner of this year's Heisman trophy is Tim Tebow. (APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: It has been said that Superman wears Tim Tebow's pajamas. The guy is that much of a folk hero and the legend continues. Yes, Tim Tebow is a sophomore quarterback for the University of Florida picked up the Heisman Trophy last night, the first sophomore to ever win that award -- sophomore or freshman -- the first underclassman, really to win that award. Tim Tebow, the golden boy joins us now from New York.

I'll tell you, this is the first interview he's done this morning. I know you had a long night, a heck of a day for you, really. Congratulations, thanks for being here.

TIM TEBOW, HEISMAN TROPHY WINNER: Thank you. I appreciate it. Thanks for having me on.

HOLMES: So, tell me, man, what are did you do with the award last night, the Heisman Trophy, what do you do with the day after you get it? Did you sleep with it? Do you sleep with it close by? Is it on the pillow? Do you buckle it up in the car? What'd you do with it?

TEBOW: Well, actually I don't even get to take it with me for a few days, but when I do get it, I think I'll be sleeping with it for a while.

HOLMES: What was it like to hear your name said? Tim Tebow -- and I know a lot of the hype had been -- you became kind of a frontrunner, if you will, but still, what was it like to finally hear your name said?

TEBOW: It was surreal, it was overwhelming. You know, something you dream about as a kid and for it come true was a great and special feeling. And, you know, it was an unbelievable night for me.

HOLMES: What else do you have to do? People don't know you have a national championship ring, you were a big part of Florida winning last year, even though you weren't the star, you played a big role on that team. This year you're a sophomore, you got the Heisman, you had a heck of a year. What else do you have to prove as a college athlete?

TEBOW: Well, I think No. 1 I got to got get ready for Michigan in the Capital One bowl on January 1. That's what I'll be worried about.

HOLMES: But, after that, next year, the year after? What are do you have to prove yet in your career?

TEBOW: You know, I can get a lot better and we're going to go to work and you know, try to get better as a team and hopefully improve our season next year. HOLMES: Now, did you get caught up with the politics of this award? It's unfortunate, in the past couple of weeks leading up to this award, and I know you're familiar with it, even the Hawaii coach took some shots at you. I was listening to this, live. You know, kind of tore you down a little bit, trying to build his guy up. Sure, he's all right to try to build up his guy, but the politics of this kind of got ugly and people tearing down one candidate to build up another. Did that kind of get to you? What did you think when you hear stuff like that?

TEBOW: Well, you know, during the season, you stay so focused, you really don't even think about it, you don't have time to think about it because you're preparing for game after game after game, but once the season's over, then you have a little more time to reflect and look back and get ready for this and try to and prepare for it. So, you spend more time doing that. But you know, I really try to not get caught up in the politics of it all and just have fun and enjoy the experience.

HOLMES: But, did that kind of get annoying. You're just guy out there doing your thing, didn't ask for any of that and here you got a guy tearing you down, calling you a system quarterback and things like that. I mean, I know you try to get out there and do your thing, but does it take away from the enjoyment and the pleasure of winning the award a little bit?

TEBOW: Not really. Not at all. You know, I've enjoyed it and I've enjoyed this whole experience and that's not going to take me down at all and you're always going to have people who say stuff, so you just got to be able to shrug it off and keep going and move on.

HOLMES: All right, and here you -- this was a question I know all the Gator fans would like to hear. Like I said, you don't have much more to prove as a college athlete. Can you guarantee the Gator nation that you will remain in college and use your last two years of eligibility and you are not going to be jumping to the league any time before your senior season?

TEBOW: Well, I'm going to get my education, that's for sure, you know, that's a priority of mine, that's something -- you know, I dreamed of going to University of Florida. I love being there. I love being a Gator. You know, my mom and dad went there, I had two siblings went there, so I love being a Gator and I'm going to finish out my education.

HOLMES: That's a guarantee? You'll finish up your last two years of eligibility -- football eligibility?

TEBOW: I'm not sure what the future holds, but I'm pretty sure.

(LAUGHTER)

HOLMES: Tim! Come on now, you got Gator folks shaking in their Gator boots, right now.

TEBOW: I love being a Gator, I'm going to stay there as long as I can.

HOLMES: As long as you can. All right. Well, Tim Tebow, we appreciate you being here and in of course, in the interest of full disclosure, I am a University of Arkansas graduate and of course, I was pulling for my boy, Darren McFadden, last night, from Arkansas, but still, you are absolutely a deserving candidate. It's been fun to watch you this year. Thanks for being here and good luck getting that trophy back home and getting it in bed with you, all right?

TEBOW: Yes sir, thank you. God bless, thanks for having me on.

HOLMES: Thanks so much, Tim. You take care, buddy.

NGUYEN: I love how he answered that question. He's going to get his education; he's not going to tell you how long that's going may take. And I think he just signed up for summer school as we spoke.

HOLMES: Yeah, he could be 45, after he gets through playing NFL football when he goes back and gets his education.

NGUYEN: That's true, he didn't say how long it would take. But, what a nice guy.

HOLMES: He's a good kid, he had a good background, does some missionary work, so you can't cheer against this kid.

NGUYEN: Exactly.

All right, well, we're going to move on to something else that's important today, because music salvaged after Hurricane Katrina is being released just in time for the holiday season. Take a listen.

(MUSIC)

NGUYEN: This is just some of the historical recordings saved and minutes away, we're going to have more of the great New Orleans jazz sound.

HOLMES: Also if you're driving in the Midwest today, I'm sorry. Stay tuned for the latest from the CNN Weather Center. There could be some ice in your path.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: All right, snow and ice, that is on tap for millions of people in the Midwest, just check it out. It could be some rough riding around on those road. Take a look at this from Flagstaff, of all places.

HOLMES: Yeah, Reynolds Wolf keeping an eye on all this stuff. Been a busy man over there in the Weather Center, today. Got a little bit of everything including a -- I just saw a meteor shower, was that earlier, as well?

REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yeah. You can't stop this things with umbrellas. (WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: Yeah, OK, thank you, Reynolds.

HOLMES: Thanks Reynolds. Well, the history of New Orleans heard in music.

NGUYEN: And just listen.

(MUSIC)

NGUYEN: Yes we do miss the old New Orleans, but people there are still trying to revive the Crescent City and bring back the jazz that it's known for. I'll talk with Vince Jaffe, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC)

ANNOUNCER: New Orleans people, of course, are aware their jazz heritage is disappearing and some are trying, somehow, to save the only art form that is strictly and entirely American.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: That was newsman David Brinkley reporting on Preservation Gall in the 1960s. Well today, New Orleans is a city so devastated by a storm, but its music is surviving, even thriving more than two year after Hurricane Katrina. Shortly after the storm, musician Ben Jaffe went back and salvaged some recordings from the famed Preservation Hall, which is in the French Quarter, now he's put those recordings together in a new boxed CD set. Ben Jaffe is with us this morning from New Orleans.

Thanks for being with us, today. We do appreciate it. You are the creative director and member of Preservation Hall Jazz Band and you're looking good, today. Hey, your parents, correct me if I'm wrong, they founded Preservation Hall. What was that like?

BEN JAFFE, PRESERVATION HALL BAND: They got involved with Preservation Hall in 1961 and at the time they were trying to help preserve a style of music that was on the brink of disappearing.

NGUYEN: And you know, as you grew up, we've got some great pictures back in the era -- when you grew up with the music around you, what was it like for you as a musician? Today, obviously, it had some kind of inspiration for you.

JAFFE: I definitely have more appreciation for my experiences growing up as a child. I got to hang around Preservation Hall just about every night of the week. We grew up in the French Quarters, the musicians and the music were really a part of my childhood memories.

NGUYEN: And that's you sitting on your father's lap in that picture, right there. We also have another picture from the Preservation Hall Jazz Band back in 1976. This is it, and you're coming out that door on the left of the screen. How big of an influence was the music of this time?

JAFFE: To me personally, it was the sound track to my live, growing up, it meant everything to me. It was the first music that I heard in the morning and the last I heard going to sleep at nighttime. And I'm so happy to be a part of a process of perpetuating this music for another generation to appreciate.

NGUYEN: Well, I think jazz lovers around the world are going to be happy that you were able to preserve and, first of all, find some of this music, because a lot of it was destroyed in Hurricane Katrina, including master tapes by, say the likes of Ray Charles, Fats Domino. How were able to find these tapes that you're releasing for the first time?

JAFFE: These recordings miraculously were stored above the top shelf in the Sea-Saint Recording Studio and they were -- really survived the floodwaters by only about two or three inches and we didn't know whether or not the music on the tape survived until we got them back into the studio and starred playing them and lo and behold, there were these songs, some dating back into the 1950s and all the way through the 1970s and 80s.

NGUYEN: And these song have never been released before?

JAFFE: That's correct. Many of the songs that appear on this record were song that were alternate takes or tracks that we didn't even know existed that were recorded by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. We also filled out the recording with new songs that the band recorded just prior to the storm and, of course, after the storm we decided to take the project in a little different direction and we went back and recorded some songs like the one that's playing now, "Do You Know what it Means to Miss New Orleans," and added that to the collection to really show the lifespan of Preservation Hall and New Orleans music.

NGUYEN: Well, you know, it's not only music, this boxed set is really a wonderful item, especially during the holidays because not only does it preserve the jazz of the time, but there are artifacts included in it, replicas of these artifacts. I mean, this one right here is PMJ (ph) brand oysters receipt. Little things like this that made a differently, that especially speak to you. Tell us about this.

JAFFE: Something so simple as an oyster from the 1970s doesn't have much meaning, normally, but put in the context of what we packaged, it means whole lot to us in New Orleans. We lost so many things, so many physical things, that when we found these little pieces of New Orleans memorabilia and Preservation Hall memorabilia, they have this new meaning to us, now, and we were so fortunate that the Preservation Hall archives survived. And many of the items in that package come from our archives and we're so happy to share them with so many people.

NGUYEN: Well, I'm sure people are going to just be thrilled to be able to get their hands on some of this. And we thank you for sharing the music with us and keeping it alive, there in New Orleans. Thanks for being with us, today.

JAFFE: And thanks for having me.

HOLMES: Well, now it's time for us to check in with Howard Kurtz in Washington to see what's ahead on CNN's RELIABLE SOURCES.

Good morning to you, sir.

HOWARD KURTZ, RELIABLE SOURCES: Thanks very much, T.J.

Coming up, Don Imus back on the airwaves, still has plenty of critics. Is he really changing the tone of his show?

The media and Mormonism. Will the press keep harping on Mitt Romney's religion now that he's given his big speech? And are journalists turning on Mike Huckabee now that he's got a surprisingly big lead in Iowa?

The administration downgrades the nuclear threat from Iran and White House correspondents demand answers. That plus and two magazines tarnished by shouting reports from war bloggers, ahead on RELIABLE SOURCES.

HOLMES: All right, Howard Kurtz, we will see you then. Thank you so much.

NGUYEN: And we'll be right back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Well, we have a couple of special animal stories to share with you and who doesn't like animal stories? And of course, things with babies.

Check it out, in Bolivia these endangered turtles were dumped in the mud to start their journey to the river. Look at them struggle, they are pretty cute, 50,000 baby turtles.

HOLMES: Cute turtles?

NGUYEN: Yeah, they're cute. Anything that's a baby is cute. I don't care what it is, even a turtle. They were, 50,000 of them turned loose and environmentalists are trying to replenish the wild population. All of these little guys were born in captivity.

HOLMES: All right, go from turtles to tigers, now. The Sumatran tiger cubs, to be exact, celebrating their first birthday at the Sacramento Zoo. See, those are cute babies.

NGUYEN: Yeah. You'd give a tiger a cake for its birthday, really?

HOLMES: Yes. Don't you get a cake? Everybody likes cake.

NGUYEN: I didn't know tigers like cake.

HOLMES: Yes, they got to share a big cardboard...

NGUYEN: It's cardboard.

HOLMES: Yeah, sorry, not really. It's a cardboard cake, sorry.

NGUYEN: Maybe a steak cake, that's more along their lines.

HOLMES: There were some treats in the boxes, however, for them to find. So, they got to open this up. It seems to have taken them a little while to figure this out since, you know, they're tigers.

NGUYEN: And coming up, he is a Mormon, but will he become president? Mitt Romney had a major speech about his faith, but will his faith prevent his presidency? It's part of the RELIABLE SOURCES round table.

HOLMES: And then coming up at 11:00 and exclusive interview with Pakistan's president, Pervez Musharraf. Join Wolf Blitzer for LATE EDITION, but first we have a check of the morning's top developments.

Today's scheduled space shuttle launch has been postponed until January

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