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CNN Sunday Morning
Election Day Preview
Aired November 02, 2008 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN Center in Atlanta, this is CNN SUNDAY MORNING. It is November 2nd. Two days away, folks.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Two days away.
NGUYEN: And hopefully, the decision will be made on Election Day.
HOLMES: We're going to have a little counter, that go in the bottom of the...
NGUYEN: Yes. We are down to the second there.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: We're counting days, hours, minutes, seconds.
Good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: And hello to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes. Seven o'clock here on the east, 4:00 a.m. out west. Glad you could be here with us this morning. And as Betty was just mentioning, we are in that final countdown.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: Polls are going to be closing in two days, and some hours and some minutes and some seconds. The candidates, of course, out and about today in the battleground states and there is a rally we need to tell you about today...
NGUYEN: Yes, listen to this.
HOLMES: Obama is having now. We've seen these large crowds, even record crowds.
NGUYEN: Right.
HOLMES: This was so big our crew that's going to be covering is having a tough time finding parking right now for an event that happens five, six hours from now.
NGUYEN: From now, 1:00 p.m. when it's supposed to kick off.
HOLMES: That big of a crowd.
NGUYEN: Six o'clock.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: It's a long time until then. You know, and also, long lines. Folks are waiting for hours to early vote. The incredible tally so far -- those who didn't want to wait until Election Day, well, you have got to see the numbers of how many have turned out and waited in line. T.J. Holmes will be one of those in line on Tuesday.
HOLMES: Yes, will on Tuesday. I'm telling you, it will go just like that. I'm telling you.
NGUYEN: OK. Well, I hope you're right.
HOLMES: All right. Also, Senator John McCain, you know, he's kind of behind in the fundraising, he can't advertise as much as Obama and be out there. And also, he'll take this air time.
NGUYEN: Hey, that's great (ph), right?
HOLMES: "Saturday Night Live," yes, there with his fake running mate, the fake one, actually.
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: We'll be showing you clips of how he did last night on "Saturday Night Live."
NGUYEN: All right. So, you thought it would never get here. Believe me, we understand. The last Sunday of campaigning in this long presidential race.
Senator John McCain is on the trail in Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and Florida today. Barack Obama starts out with a rally in Missouri, then he heads to Ohio. Now, he probably won't run in to vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, but she'll be campaigning in Ohio as well today. Now, her Democratic counterpart, Senator Joe Biden, he is focusing on Florida. Hillary and Bill Clinton supporting the Democratic ticket with separate events in Virginia and New Hampshire.
And you know, we've got reporters in all of the battleground states following the final days of this campaign. History is going to be made and you are going to be part of it. You can watch it right here.
HOLMES: Well, part of the best political team on television with us this hour. There they are. Up bright and early with us. Deputy political director, Paul Steinhauser there. He, of course, is the one on the left. He is in New York. And Mary Snow is with us as well covering Obama campaign in Columbus, Ohio.
As always, ladies first. We will start with you, Mary.
What is going on there in Ohio? Got a couple big rallies or at least one big rally we know that's coming. MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, T.J. Actually, two big rallies. Later today, Barack Obama and Michelle Obama will be here at the state house in Ohio. Several hours later, Governor Sarah Palin will be here in Columbus, just underscoring the urgency in this battleground state.
And, T.J., as the candidates race across these battleground states, voters are turning out in record numbers in early voting. Take a look at these pictures. This was yesterday here in Franklin County in Columbus. We talked to some people waiting for up to 4 1/2 hours to cast their early ballots. Pretty good demeanor also. We didn't find too many tensions there, the good weather also helped out there.
But consider this: Election board officials had expected about 12,000 people in all to turn out in the last month to vote early in person. Right now, they have nearly 50,000 people who've turned out. When all is said and done, counting the absentee ballots, it's expected that 1/3 of the registered voters here in this state will have voted early, but still, of course, election officials bracing for long lines. This, as the candidates are really targeting those undecided voters.
The last polls that we have here in Ohio show about 7 percent are undecided. For the Republicans, they're making a major push in hopes that they can have a last-minute surge. John McCain has been trailing in the polls here although it has been a very close race and still considered a tossup.
What Republicans are relying on is technology they used in 2004 that they believe will work for them one more time in terms of targeting specific voters. They have been cranking up the phone banks, also knocking on doors.
For the Democrats, Barack Obama campaign has had kind of an impressive ground game here in the state of Ohio, blanketing the state with campaign offices, and they have been knocking on doors for several weeks now on weekends. This weekend alone, their goal is to knock on half a million doors. They are trying to persuade not only Democrats (AUDIO BREAK) perhaps (AUDIO BREAK) independents who may go their way. The only prediction, T.J., is this going to be a very close race -- T.J.
HOLMES: Yes, that's the only thing we're sure about right now, is this is going to be close. We just don't know how close and who's going to be on top.
Mary Snow for us in Ohio this morning. Good to see you. Thank you so much.
And, you all can catch the rest of the best political team on television on "BALLOT BOWL" today from 4:00 o'clock to 6:00 o'clock Eastern where you can hear from the candidates in their own words.
NGUYEN: Well, you know, the long lines, they are just telling the story for us. An awful lot of have you been voting early. Check this out: In North Carolina, more than 2.5 million people cast early ballots, 1.5 million early in Ohio. One CNN iReporter tells us that she waited five hours to vote at a L.A. location.
Now, early voting hours were extended this week in several states and several states do anticipate setting records.
Listen to this: In Las Vegas, an election official said the lines were as long as those at the most popular Disneyland rides. In fact, nearly 23 million people have cast early ballots in 25 states, 31 states allow early voting.
But we don't have the numbers from all of them just yet. Early voting records are being set, though, in several if not all of the states and several have extended their voting hours and open additional early voting sites.
You definitely want to keep it here for official voting totals. They will be released on Election Day.
And as you know, the clock is ticking as that decision day draws near. In two days, watch history unfold with the best political team on television and watch it on CNN worldwide networks, November 4th.
HOLMES: All right. We've been tackling a bunch of issues in the past few days, 10 issues in 10 days. Today, well, the issue we're focusing on is the U.S. Supreme Court. How will an Obama or McCain presidency impact that high court?
NGUYEN: As CNN justice correspondent, Kelli Arena reports, for some voters, it is the only thing that they care about in this election.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Make no mistake, the Supreme Court is very much on the ballot.
WENDY LONG, JUDICIAL CONFIRMATION NETWORK: This is the American citizens' last chance to choose the man who is going to be picking at least, probably, several justices and shaping the court for most of this century.
ARENA: From abortion to the war on terror, the court will play a vital role.
KATHYRN KOLBERT, PRES., PEOPLE FOR THE AMERICAN WAY: I am petrified about what's at stake here.
ARENA: An activists from both parties are making sure the rest of the electorate knows it.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R-AZ) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have not done enough.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, Senator McCain, you have not. Tell John McCain to support judges who support our rights. ANNOUNCER: Choosing the right justices is critical to America. We don't know who Barack Obama would choose but we know this -- he chooses one of his first financial backers a slum lord now convicted on 16 counts of corruption.
ARENA: The face of the court could go through some radical changes. Court observers speculate that 88-year-old Justice John Paul Stevens may retire. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in her late 70s, has had health issues, and Justice David Souter says that he might like to go back to New Hampshire. All three lean left.
EDWARD LAZARUS, SUPREME COURT LEGAL ANALYST: If Barack Obama becomes president, it is almost certain that the court will stay roughly the way it is. If Senator McCain were to win the presidency, he would be replacing liberal justices presumably with justices far more conservative.
ARENA: Both candidates have made no secret about the types of justices they'd pick or avoid.
SEN. BARACK OBAMA, (D-IL) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I would not have nominated Clarence Thomas.
MCCAIN: Justices Alito and Roberts are two of my most recent favorites by the way.
ARENA: For now, the court remains tightly divided. Most controversial decisions have come down to a 5-4 vote which is far too close for true believers from both parties.
Kelli Arena, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. So, yes, we are tackling the Supreme Court, just trying to figure out how it will change under the next president and what that will mean to you.
NGUYEN: We're going to hear from someone who knows a whole lot about this coming up in just minutes.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Oh, we do continue our 10 issues in 10 days coverage. And today, we are looking at the Supreme Court and why some legal analysts say this election could be the most important for the courts in decades.
I'm joined by constitutional law professor Robert Schapiro. He teaches at Emory University right here in Atlanta.
So, let's get down to it. Why is this the most important when it comes to electing a president? What kind of affect would he have on the Supreme Court?
PROF. ROBERT SCHAPIRO, EMORY UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL: Well, the Supreme Court that we have now is very closely divided. We have four more liberal justices and four more conservative justices with Justice Kennedy right in the middle.
Now, it looks that like the new president will certainly get some new appointments, Justice John Paul Stevens is 88, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is 75, and those are two of the more liberal members of this Supreme Court. So, if President Obama would replace them, well, I think things would stay about the way they are.
NGUYEN: And McCain?
SCHAPIRO: But if Senator McCain were able to replace these more liberal justices with his preferred nominees, it would likely move the court far to the right.
NGUYEN: All right. Let's talk about issues specifically abortion. How could this be changed?
SCHAPIRO: Abortion is a very important issue. There seemed to be now five justices on the Supreme Court who could have believed that the Constitution guarantees the right to an abortion. If two of those were replaced by Senator McCain based on what he says he's looking for in a nominee, there could well be a change in the court. The court could overrule Roe versus Wade and its protection to the constitutional right to an abortion.
NGUYEN: All right. Affirmative action?
SCHAPIRO: Another issue which we see the court closely divided here -- Justice Kennedy and four other justices seem to believe that race can sometimes be used, say, to promote diversity and education, a school setting in which all the races are represented. The other justices, the four more conservative justices seem to think that it's never a good idea to use race. So, again, if Senator McCain were elected, it could be the end of affirmative action.
NGUYEN: That's a powerful statement right there. Let me ask you this, when it comes to the war on terror and enemy combatants, how could that affect the courts?
SCHAPIRO: Another area where the court is closely divided is about the scope of presidential power. Then (ph) we have some very closely divided decisions where some justices really said we just need to let the president do what he needs to do with the war on terror, and others said, well, let's make sure Congress comes along as well. So, on those kinds of issues, too, there could be a change if Senator McCain were elected.
NGUYEN: Now, if whoever is elected, this is not just the Supreme Court that we're talking about, it also affects lower courts as well. And that could affect a whole vast amount of not only people but different states. So, talk to me about this trickle down effect.
SCHAPIRO: Oh, exactly. That's a very important point. The Supreme Court hears maybe 80 to 100 cases a year and the tens of thousands of other cases are heard by the lower federal courts. There are, currently, Republicans have the majority of about 60 percent of the court of appeals judges, about 10 of the 13 circuits, and these are those kind of everyday issues about how much evidence do you need to have your civil rights claim heard, is there too much litigation, and these cases may take a very long time to reach the Supreme Court or may never reach it.
So, the power to control those courts also is very important in terms on this election.
NGUYEN: So, in your view, when you're looking at this presidential election, would you say, what could happen to the Supreme Court is one of the main issues that people should be thinking about as they go into that voting booth?
SCHAPIRO: Yes. Well, I guess, people need to decide for themselves what is the most important issue. But certainly, there would be a very different Supreme Court depending upon whether Senator McCain or Senator Obama were elected.
NGUYEN: Absolutely. All right. Robert Schapiro, thank you so much for your time this morning. We do appreciate it.
SCHAPIRO: My pleasure.
NGUYEN: All right. T.J., break it down for us. Now, tomorrow we're all about ballot issues and referendums and besides the big race, what else will you be voting for? Ten issues in 10 days only here on CNN.
Also this: John McCain got in touch with his funny side on "Saturday Night Live." You get a chance to see it, T.J.?
HOLMES: I did not. I have not seen it yet. But I have been looking forward to seeing these clips that we're going to show and we're going to show one that a lot of folks and our staff were a fan of. And this is one where he talks about some of the last bit of strategy and campaigning, stuff he needs to do here in the final days. Check him out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE" FROM NBC/BROADWAY VIDEO)
MCCAIN: And here's another bad one.
(LAUGHTER)
MCCAIN: It's called the "Sad Grandpa."
(APPLAUSE)
MCCAIN: That's where I get on TV and go, come on, Obama is going to have plenty of chances to be president. It's my turn.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: All right. You can almost call John McCain the "Saturday Night Live" alum. He's had some pretty memorable appearances on the show. Had another one last night with his wife, Cindy McCain. She was there as well. And who else was there -- Sarah Palin?
NGUYEN: Tina Fey.
HOLMES: OK, yes. I get them mixed up sometimes.
NGUYEN: It's hard, right?
HOLMES: And certainly, she's been seen as Sarah Palin's double these days. She had to participate in the skit there. Here's some of the video.
NGUYEN: Yes. I mean, how could she not participate? And in this clip McCain that we're about to show you, McCain references Barack Obama's multi-channel prime time ad -- you may have seen -- well, then goes on to say the McCain campaign can only afford QVC. So, that should get you up to speed. Now, here's the rest of it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE" FROM NBC/BROADWAY VIDEO)
MCCAIN: Are you someone who likes fine jewelry and also respects a politician who can reach across the aisle? If so, you can't go wrong with McCain Fine Gold.
(LAUGHTER)
(APPLAUSE)
MCCAIN: It commemorates the McCain/Feingold act and also looks great with evening wear. Thank you, Cindy.
(APPLAUSE)
TINA FEY, ACTRESS (impersonating Gov. Sarah Palin): And what busy hockey mom wouldn't want to freshen up her home with Sarah Palin's airs fresheners. You plug these into the wall if something doesn't quite smell right. Also, it's good because it reminds people about William Ayers.
(LAUGHTER)
MCCAIN: Having trouble cutting through a tough piece of pork? Not anymore. With John McCain's complete set of pork knives, they cut the pork out.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: I love that pork knives. OK. It's all good, right?
HOLMES: There you go. As much as people talk about the advantage that Obama has and you talk about charisma being cool...
NGUYEN: Right.
HOLMES: McCain does great on "Saturday Night Live."
NGUYEN: That was funny. And, you know, it's just one of the many clips from last night's show. We'll play more of them for you throughout the morning.
HOLMES: Yes, he's good. Reynolds is with us.
NGUYEN: Pork knives.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You got to like it. I don't care who you are. That's a funny thing to see. Some people may accuse of being cheesy, but you want to see something really cheesy? I mean, literally and figuratively?
NGUYEN: Oh, no.
WOLF: Yes, take a look at this.
(LAUGHTER)
WOLF: This was actually something created by an artist, Esteban Toledo (ph). He made this in Norman, Oklahoma.
HOLMES: Oh, my goodness.
WOLF: He describes this as actually being a very gross process. And I think I agree. I mean, wouldn't you agree it's kind of a gross sort of thing when you see him, in the face of a potential world leader on a slice of cheese?
NGUYEN: How do you do it?
HOLMES: How do you do that?
WOLF: I think it's magic.
NGUYEN: Is it mold? I mean, how do you it?
WOLF: Good gosh, it's not mold on, it's a cheese.
NGUYEN: You just said it was gross. I'm figuring, you know, maybe...
WOLF: (INAUDIBLE) enough. I mean, you know...
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: You say it was magic?
WOLF: I'm guessing it's magic. Look, I'm walking over and doing weather. I'm going to leave the rest...
NGUYEN: I think you want to know, Reynolds.
WOLF: I know, and certainly some cheese, that's for sure.
(LAUGHTER)
WOLF: All right. Let's take a look at what else we have out there. Beautiful day in Washington, D.C., that is certainly a good thing to see. Let's show you that. Do we have the shot up? Sure. It's going to be a fine day there. We can expect some scattered showers a little bit further to the south.
In fact, as we head over to the weather map, what we're going to be seeing are scattered showers along the coast namely in Florida right along parts of I-95 this morning, kind of a few rumbles of thunder, some heavy rain at times, but thankfully, nothing too severe. Just some scattered sea breeze coming in, that with a little bit of rumble of thunder near Palm Bay over towards Orlando if you're heading out to the parks. Conditions may be fine for you but you might want to bring along the umbrella. You may have a stray shower or two.
Meanwhile, we head up towards Chicago, up towards Lake Michigan, from Waukegan back over to La Porte, even over near Warsaw, a little bit of scattered shower activity. But then, when you get over to the Great Basin back into the Rockies, we're seeing in Salt Lake City, a little touch of snow in highest elevations, otherwise miniature (ph) rain event.
And in California, you've got everything going on. Some scattered showers, heavy rainfall in the San Joaquin Valley, but when you get higher up into the Sierra Nevada, yes, we're talking about some snow falling.
As we fast forwarding into the forecast not for Monday but into Tuesday, Election Day, it looks like most of your scattered shower activity could be mainly restricted to the northern plains and back into the northern half of the Mississippi valley. Heavy thunderstorms a possibility, but back out to the west, we're looking at potential of some snowfall in the highest elevation, maybe some rainshowers along the coast. From the Carolinas down to parts of Florida, otherwise, a fairly nice day for the Midwest, and for gulf coast, sunny and warm.
That's your forecast -- without cheese. Back to you guys.
HOLMES: There was cheese in there. Reynolds, we appreciate that. We always appreciate when you bring us stories and when you jump on over and do a little of journalism.
WOLF: Just a little bit of contribution trying to, certainly to help out any way I can.
HOLMES: All right. We appreciate you, Reynolds.
WOLF: There you go, man.
HOLMES: Well, a lot of folks out there having a little money set aside. Hey, you there, Betty. NGUYEN: Hey, there.
HOLMES: I know it looks strange to see you and hear my voice.
NGUYEN: Well, you know, I'm working on that deeper voice for you.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: Here we go. So, having, you know, that little money set aside is absolutely crucial in this uncertain economy. Stephanie Elam looks at ways to save that are "Right on your Money."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHEIRESA MCRAE, CONSUMER AFFAIRS EDITOR, BLACK ENTERPRISE: Generally, Americans aren't great savers. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Americans save less than 3 percent their disposable income.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): And many cash strapped consumers are not wondering about their financial future.
MCRAE: The economy has greatly affect to how people are saving with tomorrow in mind as opposed to three years from now.
ELAM: You should have money put away to cover at least three to six months of expenses.
MCRAE: It's very important to build a savings cushion especially if you come into a point in your life where you have an economic crisis.
ELAM: Before you start to save, sit down and create a budget.
MCRAE: Keep track of everything that you spend everyday, and then, this list will help you decide how much of your money is going toward needs and how much is going toward wants.
ELAM: Then, make saving money a habit.
MCRAE: One way to build your savings is by treating your deposits as if it were a bill and (INAUDIBLE) is about deposit and paying that amount in full each month.
ELAM: Stephanie Elam, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. We are checking in to voting irregularities this morning. A lot of people are doing early voting. A lot of people think that's a good thing. Josh Levs is checking on that for us -- Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you know, it is a good thing in a lot of ways, but it's leading to some problems. As we know, our voter hotline is getting thousands of calls and we're hearing from some people who just cannot spend hours waiting in line.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Hello, there. And welcome back to CNN SUNDAY MORNING. I'm T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Yes. Good morning, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen.
HOLMES: All right. Well, Vice President Dick Cheney has endorsed John McCain. Not much of a surprise.
NGUYEN: Yes.
NGUYEN: But now, that endorsement is the centerpiece of a new Obama campaign ad. You probably knew this was coming. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, OBAMA CAMPAIGN AD)
NARRATOR: Barack Obama endorsed by Warren Buffett and Colin Powell.
And John McCain's latest endorsement?
DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm delighted to support John McCain and I'm pleased that he's chosen a running mate with executive talent, toughness and common sense, our next vice president, Sarah Palin.
NARRATOR: And, boy, did McCain earn it? He voted with Bush and Cheney 90 percent of the time.
CHENEY: I'm delighted to support John McCain...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: All right. Obama also had seized the opportunity to poke fun at his opponent during a rally in Pueblo, Colorado.
HOLMES: Oh, my goodness. Paul Steinhauser, what in the world? This is my first time seeing this new ad here.
Let's bring you in. Oh, wait. We'll listen to Obama there?
NGUYEN: Yes, just for a second.
HOLMES: Hold on for a second, Paul. I jumped the gun after that campaign ad.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: Because I was just so taken by it. We're going to listen in to what Obama did have to say as Betty here was saying, and then I'll get to you, buddy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, PUEBLO, COLORADO, SATURDAY) OBAMA: Earlier today, Dick Cheney came out of his undisclosed location, and he hit the campaign trail. And he said that he is and I quote, "delighted to support John McCain." So, I'd like to congratulate Senator McCain on this endorsement -- because he really earned it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: OK. Now, let's bring in Paul Steinhauser. I'm so excited to talk to you sometimes, Paul. I just want to get right to it.
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: I feel the same way, T.J.
HOLMES: All right. This campaign ad here, I guess you could probably see this coming. We haven't seen Vice President Dick Cheney or President Bush out there on the campaign trail pretty much at all. So, you know, I'm surprise we even have new ads coming up at this late date. But that's what they have been trying to do all this time. Put those two together, the McCain and the Bush administration. So what does McCain now saying have they responded to this ad yet?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Well, they haven't just yet to this ad. But you're right. That is Barack Obama's strategy to tie John McCain to George Bush to Dick Cheney and you just saw it in that ad. Dick Cheney yesterday was in Wyoming speaking out in favor of the McCain-Palin ticket. You know, also the Obama campaign came out with another ad called "Rearview Mirror" where a driver looks in a mirror and what does he see? George Bush and John McCain together. Why are they doing this because Bush's approval rating is so long. Barack Obama today though. He is going to be all over the campaign trail in Ohio. Such a crucial state for him. And his running mate, Joe Biden is going to be in Florida. These are both states, 47 electoral votes between the two. Two states they want to steal away from the republican camp.
HOLMES: Where will McCain - I guess where does he feel he needs to campaign in these last couple of days?
STEINHAUSER: Well, he's starting in place where he really needs to campaign and that's Pennsylvania. He's got two rallies there today. He ended up there yesterday. 21 electoral votes here. I think the McCain campaign realizes they're going to be losing some of the states that George Bush won four years ago. So they need to steal a big one back. They're hoping to steal Pennsylvania back. And our poll of polls there shows this tightening up a little bit in Pennsylvania, it's down about six or seven points in our latest poll of polls. So Palin and McCain have been there nine out of the last 14 days and maybe it's making a difference.
Later in the day McCain goes to New Hampshire. Kind of a sentimental place for him. That's where he won the primary earlier this year that brought his campaign back. Take a listen to this message though. He's really going after Obama saying you can't trust him on international events and foreign crisis. Take a listen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We know my friends that Senator Obama won't have the right response to that test because we've already seen the wrong response from him over and over during this campaign in the short time that he's been in the Senate. He opposed the strategy in Iraq. He refuses to admit he was wrong. He said he would sit down unconditionally with the world's worst dictators.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEINHAUSER: Yes, I think Barack Obama may take a deference to that. He may not really appreciate those comments. These are the closing messages, T.J. You have heard them for a while. You're going to hear them all day today and tomorrow.
HOLMES: It's just today and tomorrow and then we can vote. Paul Steinhauser for us in New York, good to see you. And we of course, we'll see you plenty over the next 48 hours or so.
STEINHAUSER: Thanks, T.J.. Two days to go and where is President Bush? We'll be looking into exactly where he is and where he's been since this whole campaign has really gotten hot and heavy. That's coming up in about 30 minutes.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN, ANCHOR: Also CNN's voter hotline has been very busy. And so far, our hotline, listen to this, has taken 21,500 calls and some of them just looking for information about voting. But 7,300 of you have complained about some kind of voting problems. Now if you do have a voter problem, here's what you do, call our hotline. The number is right there on your screen. 1-877-GO-CNN-08 or 877- 4626608. And for a look at some of the hotline calls, here's Josh Levs. Hey, Josh.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, guys. This is a really interesting one. It introduces some questions about whether these huge lines are really fair for all voters. And if they're effectively preventing some people from voting at all. What I'll play you a clip from two different calls.
VOICE OF MUNIR VENJENK, VOTER: "I am calling from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. And I think the present system of early voting is prejudiced against older people. I'm 84 years old. I waited for an hour and a quarter yesterday but I got to a certain point where they said it is an additional two hours to wait. People in their middle 80s cannot stand for three hours. I think this will discourage many people from early voting."
VOICE OF PEG ARNOLD, VOTER: "I am 65 years old. And I waited 2 1/2 hours in line at my board of elections this morning. When I left, it was still three hours to get into the polls. People are wrapped completely around the building. It's outside. There's nowhere to sit, to go to the bathroom, get a drink, and I finally gave up."
LEVS: It's really interesting, guys. You know, I will say in some places some people who have trouble waiting are ushered to the front of the line. These voters though say it didn't happen for them. And there are ways to vote by mail but a lot of people didn't realize that there are going to be these massive lines. So they didn't sign up in advance for these ballots and in a lot of places it's too late to get them if they want to mail them in.
So one thing we're going to be looking into is what various states and districts do to accommodate people who want to exercise their right to vote but just can not be in line for that long. And once again, I want to tell you, keep those calls coming. You know we're asking you to help us track the problems, reporting them in real time as you can see. It's 877-462-6608. That's gocnn-08. Let's see you get to remember it. We're keeping them honest. And you know what guys, this doesn't end Tuesday. We're expecting to get a lot of calls Tuesday. The voter hotline is going to keep going for a couple of weeks as we piece through what we hear about through the election.
NGUYEN: All right. Do appreciate it. Thank you, Josh.
LEVS: Thanks, guys.
But I tell you. A few minutes with some truth squad to give to you guys. Actually, special for you, guys, today. I know that sometimes you don't like the ones that are in between misleading, true, but incomplete, I have two straight up falsehoods for you. So stay tuned for that.
NGUYEN: Yes. We'll see. No, I'm kidding. All right. Looking forward to it. Thank you, Josh.
LEVS: Thanks, guys.
NGUYEN: You know the long lines, they are telling the story and an awful lot of have you been voting early. Won't you take a look at these early voting numbers. In Los Angeles where one CNN I-reporter said she was in line for five hours. Columbus, Ohio, Durham, North Carolina, Albuquerque, even Las Vegas, one election official said the lines were enormous as long as lines, as we mentioned earlier, most of those popular rides in Disneyland.
HOLMES: We want to follow-up now to a story we were telling you about yesterday morning. And CNN has now confirmed that there's an investigation into a government leak about a member of Barack Obama's family. Someone revealed that Obama's aunt has been living in the U.S. illegally. She's apparently been living in public housing in Boston. A source familiar with the case say Obama's aunt lost an appeal for asylum some four years ago and was supposed to leave the country but did not and Obama said he didn't know about his aunt's status. Her name is Zeituni Onyango. She is a native of Kenya. Btu now, word is that an investigation into that leak and who actually gave that story to originally the "Associated Press" and that investigation is now going on.
NGUYEN: OK.
HOLMES: You can check out our political ticker for all the latest campaign news. Logon to cnnpolitics.com. that is your source for all things political
NGUYEN: Because most people vote with a lot of passion, it can be hard if their candidate loses.
HOLMES: Yes. We have tips to help you cope if some of you - and we know some of you, a lot of you, millions of you are going to be disappointed come Tuesday. But kind of help the country unite instead of divide after that day. Stay here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
NGUYEN: Your vote will change our world. That is what they're saying and it's a powerful message sung by the children's choir from Agape International Spiritual Center in California. The pastor is Dr. Michael Beckwith. The author of a new book out this month called "Spiritual Liberation." He backs Barack Obama for president but I did sit down with him this week to find out how he's preparing his congregation for whoever wins this election and that conversation is this week's "Faces of Faith."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. MICHAEL BECKWITH, AUTHOR AND SPIRITUAL LEADER: If in fact your candidate loses, it doesn't mean to give in to anger. It doesn't mean to give in to just tremendous remorse that it rocks your whole world that you still have everything within you necessary to live a powerful, fulfilling life.
NGUYEN: That's important because there are those that who will be disappointed no matter what the outcome is going to be on the day after election day. So when it comes to acting on that disappointment, is that a fear?
BECKWITH: The fear is coming from the fact that people have a tendency to think that the election is going to determine their destiny in some kind of way. They're banking everything on who gets to be the president of the United States. We know that who gets to be president is going to determine policies, is going to determine Supreme Court justices, is going to determine a lot of things.
However, to put your whole destiny on the government, you know, is to place too much power in the wrong place. The real power is to be placed within you, within your life, your thoughts, your actions.
NGUYEN: To unite and have the country as a whole heal from the deep divisions that this political season has really caused, so how do you go about doing that?
BECKWITH: The key word here is compassion. And compassion comes from walking a mile in another person's moccasins, walking the mile in another person's shoes so if a person is really about compassion, they have to think to themselves how is this other person thinking? Not just how I'm thinking but how is this other person feeling win or lose. NGUYEN: In this campaign season, we have seen religion and politics intertwined. And many times it's been very divisive. When we look back at this, what are lessons to be learned here?
BECKWITH: Oftentimes in situations like this people give vent to their worst fear. When people are very afraid, divisive reveals itself. So people can look at themselves and say you know what I really acted out of my fear. I really acted out of worry. I didn't act out of the highest and best within me. I cut off friendships. I cut off dialogue. I cut off meaningful conversations because someone disagreed with me. That's not maturity. That's immaturity.
So the lesson that we can learn is to look at ourselves and become aware of how we were acting during this particular time and then make meaningful choices to grow and reach over to the so-called other side and have meaningful conversation. We have to live here together. It's one planet. You know one country. We have to live here together which means I have to dialogue with you. Dialogue means I also have to listen to your perspective in order to move forward.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Reverence Beckwith founded the Agape International Spiritual Center in 1986. He is also the founder of the Association for Global Thought and has served on spiritual panels with dignitaries like the Dalai Lama.
HOLMES: All right. He has been a civil rights leader, a congressman, an ambassador, a mayor, and what is he going to be next?
NGUYEN: Who knows, right?
HOLMES: In studio.
NGUYEN: Well, I knew that. But I mean, limitless with this man. He's indeed our next guest. And we're going to ask him about the race for the White House.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: In the last days before the election, it may be too late for John McCain and Barack Obama to convince a whole lot of voters to change their mind at this day and time.
HOLMES: Yes because the time is right there on the screen. But it's not too late for them to get into last-minute attacks or course and Josh Levs of the truth squad, he joins us now. Josh.
LEVS: Hey, good morning to you, guys. OK. So you know we've had different verdicts throughout the whole time. And you're going to be seeing different ones today. What I actually have for you right now is a misleading and a false and a couple more later on. I want to start off with this. This is John McCain comparing his vice presidential pick to both men on the opposite ticket.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MCCAIN: She has ignited people across America. She's got more experience than Senator Biden and Senator Obama put together.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: You can see that was misleading. If he said executive experience, then it would have been different. But if you look at their experience in elected public office, Obama has a bit more experience than Palin does and Biden has a lot more. So does McCain actually for that matter. That's why they end up with misleading there. This one very ultra specific way if it was just executive, it would have made sense. Now, let's take a look at the other side from Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The choice in this election isn't between tax cuts and no tax cuts. It's whether you believe we should only reward wealth or whether we should also reward work and the workers who create it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEVS: Yes. The only reward wealth, that one's a false. McCain offers across the board tax cuts to all income groups really, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center. He offers larger cuts to high income levels while Obama offers larger cuts to middle and lower income people. You probably know this by now. And Obama said he will raise taxes on families making more than $250,000 a year and individuals making more than $200,000. Both men though in short have put forward plans to help workers. McCain for example wants to cut corporate tax rates. He says that will help small businesses. You can learn a lot more details here, CNN.com. Millions of hits, guys. All you have to do is go to the main page at CNN.com or CNNpolitics and check it out. See that right there. Fact check. It's dark. I already clicked it. But all you got to do is click on that and you can see dozens of fact checks that we've been doing for the last couple months now. If you haven't decided, make sure you decide based on facts and not rhetoric, guys.
NGUYEN: Well, you are a member of the truth squad and speaking of decisions, I believe that D.L. Hughley has decided that you are president of the geek squad.
Tell us what happened.
LEVS: No I got to say the material they're giving you is helping me understand what's so funny about what we do. You know I forget what is so hilarious about what we do. Oh, this is it. We're taking a look. OK. Oh, we're just taking a look at the pictures. You'll see more about it later on this morning. NGUYEN: All right. Can't wait for that. And material? You're acting. Are you a member of SAG? What's up with that? You're supposed to be a journalist.
LEVS: No. I'm going to get calls from SAG, just doing my job. NGUYEN: Oh yes.
LEVS: As a journalist. That's it. That's all.
NGUYEN: I'm confused about you now, Josh. Thank you. A little bit later tonight in the NEWSROOM, listen to this Don Lemon gets real with Princeton Professor author and lecturer. Cornell west. He is a Barack Obama supporter but he wasn't always.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In the beginning, were you a supporter or were you like many African-American leaders who said I got to wait and see. I want to see what he does and wait and see what he does first?
DR. CORNEL WEST, PROFESSOR, AUTHOR, LECTURER: I was suspicious of the brother.
LEMON: As were many African-American leaders. What is that?
WEST: He gave a speech in Boston talking about America's a magical land and a magical country. I said, magical? Slavery. Magical? Slavery, workers subordinated. Domestic violence. What is he talking about? He's going to have a Christopher Columbus experience, he's going to discover America and of course, I didn't have a suspicion because of white mainstreams just so excited about. And I said well, the white mainstream gets highly excited about black man, they got to have a critical disposition.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NGUYEN: Don will have much more of this interview with Dr. Cornell West, that's tonight at 6:00 and 11:00 eastern.
HOLMES: Now tracking national elections on the web, cnn.com making it easy for you to follow along. For the final few days, here now CNN internet correspondent, Abbi Tatton showing you how to track your local races on the web.
ABBI TATTON, CNN INTERNET CORRESPONDENT: This November 4th there's a whole lot going on besides the presidential race. House and Senate seats, up for grabs. The governor's race, ballot matched and if you want to follow what' important to you, go to cnn.com/yourraces. You're going to be able to create a score card of all the contests that you want to follow on election night. And they'll be populated with live results as we go throughout the evening. There's a couple of ways to do this.
First of all, you could punch in your zip code and then all the local races around your area are going to be populated on this score card or you can pick and choose for yourself. This is the select races feature here. Select the race that you would like to follow. For example, in the Senate, you're going to get this dropdown menu with all the Senate races, all 35 going on. Pick one you want to watch. Norm Coleman versus Al Franken there in Minnesota. Add it here. it's going to be appearing in your score guard. Keep going like this for races around the country.
For president, you can go state by state or you can pick all of those battleground sates and add them to your risk. Do this with ballot measures as well. We got a couple dozen going on around the country here, like in California, proposition 8 which would ban same- sex marriage add that over there. When you're done with that, you can do it up to 35 races. This is the score card you're going to see. And right here is where the live results will be coming in on election night. I'm Abbi Tatton with the CNN Election center.
HOLMES: So again, for all the tools to track the race, get complete coverage from the best political team on television, you can check out cnn.com.
NGUYEN: Well, the economy and how it could sway voters in picking the next president. We're going to be looking at that.
HOLMES: We're going to take back at history really and what quickly happens when money is tight.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Well they are breathing a collective sigh of relief. In Connecticut, almost two dozen brides who say they ordered gowns from a shop that suddenly shut down. Finally getting their dresses. Can you imagine, it is your wedding day and you don't know where your gown is? Well the state's attorney general office says it got involved and actually have to pressure the shop to honor it's contracts.
Some of the bride to be, picked up those dresses yesterday, not a moment too soon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, obviously the wedding must go on. I had to get my hair done.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's a great day. I'm excited to have my wedding dress.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: Oh, my goodness. The lady is getting highlights on the day of her wedding. And hey, where's the dress, folks? Well, good thing she's got it. Can you just imagine? Connecticut's attorney general says any pending charges against the shop owner may be dropped if all of the brides who placed an order get their dresses or if they get a refund.
HOLMES: Hey, better to lose a dress than to lose the groom. So hey, you can look at it that way.
NGUYEN: That's a lot of stress. You talk about bridezilla - I mean all over the place there.
OK with two days left until the election, the big focus is on the economy. And for good reason.
HOLMES: A very good reason. There are very big reasons that you no doubt have notice why. Take a look at history. And you'll see a bad economy typically influences the vote. Senior correspondent Allan Chernoff explains for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John McCain didn't cause the economy to slump but history says on election day, he's likely to suffer from it. Because when the economy is bad during presidential elections, the incumbent party almost always loses the White House.
THOMAS MANN, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: The economy is, by far, the most important factor in determining whether the party of the president will be returned to the White House or not.
CHERNOFF: In 1992, the economy struggles cost George H.W. Bush his bid for re-election. Jimmy Carter lost in 1980 because of a recession and the Iranian hostage crisis. And in 1932, voters punished Herbert Hoover for the Great Depression. Not since 1900 when William McKinley won re-election has the incumbent party been victorious during a recession.
Some political scientists say the economy is overshadowing John McCain's potential advantages over Barack Obama.
PROF. SHARYN O'HALLORAN, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY: Characters and issues of leadership were very much McCain's stronghold and his strategy for moving forward and winning this campaign. By shifting the focus back on to the economy and a referendum on the bush administration, it ties him and his campaign closely to the failures of the Bush administration.
CHERNOFF: If the economy were still booming, some analysts say McCain would have an advantage heading into election day. It's not always the economy that determines the outcome of presidential elections. Vietnam was the dominant issue in '68 and '72. At the beginning of this year, it appeared the Iraq war might determine the presidential race. But with the situation in Iraq improving, and the U.S. economy deteriorating, financial concerns have virtually pushed aside the war in voters' minds.
CHERNOFF (on-camera): In fact, only 10 percent of voters say the Iraq war is now the most important issue in this presidential election. According to a recent CNN Opinion research poll. That is not good for John McCain who had been hoping to use his extensive foreign policy and military experience as an advantage over Barack Obama. Allan Chernoff, CNN, New York.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well there we are. Hello there, everybody. Good morning to you from the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. This is CNN SUNDAY MORNING, November 2nd, 8:00 a.m. here in our headquarters here in Atlanta. 7:00 a.m. in the heartland. I'm T.J. Holmes.
NGUYEN: Good morning everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen. We do want to tell you for joining us. All right. Two days to go. It is full steam ahead. Both presidential candidates and their VP picks are making the final push inside battleground states.
HOLMES: All right. With all this going on, who's been missing? Where he has been? President Bush. He hasn't necessarily been on the campaign trail. Will that have an impact at the polls? We'll be looking into that this morning.
But of course, we are down to the wire, two days to go. Senator John McCain is on the trail today in Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and the all-important Florida. Yesterday, he told voters in northern Virginia their support is key to him winning that state. Meanwhile, Barack Obama makes a final stop in Missouri this morning. Then it's on to Ohio. He's got a couple of big campaign events We have a couple of big campaign events scheduled. Obama will end his day in Florida.
NGUYEN: Well there's a tight race in Ohio. That sounded a little familiar to you. Both candidates trying to seal the deal there and our Mary Snow is covering the battleground state of Ohio. She joins us from Columbus, where things sound like they're already starting to get kicked off.
SNOW: They are, Betty. And you know, don't underscore the urgency of the race here in Ohio, Senator Barack Obama and Michelle Obama will be here in Columbus this afternoon. Just hours after that, Sarah Palin will be campaigning here. John McCain spent two days here in Ohio in a race that has been considered a tossup although Obama has been leading in the polls over McCain.
Take a look at the early voters. These are pictures that we got yesterday. Here in Franklin County, early voting. Some people waiting up to 4 1/2 hours to cast their ballots. It's estimated that one-third of the state's voters here will be casting early ballots.
Of course, election officials are seeing that as a very good sign, for a couple reasons, particularly because -- as everybody remembers -- those long line that we saw in 2004. They're trying to avoid a repeat of that. This, as the ground games for both campaigns are being put to the test.
Republicans are making a final push, hoping for a last-minute surge. And they are really relying on some of the techniques they used in 2004 that had George Bush winning this state by only 118,000 votes. Their strategy at this point is: go after the tried-and-true Republicans and get them out to vote.
On the Democratic side, Senator Barack Obama's team has had really a canvassed this state with offices, turning to neighbors, to get neighbors out to come out and vote. They're hoping this weekend to knock on 500,000 doors alone to try and get out their vote. And, of course, Betty, one of the big things that the Obama campaign is relying on: young voters. And they're really hoping that young voters, newly registered voters, will turn things in their favor to win the state.
But one of the only predictions we're getting here on the ground, depending on which campaign you're talking to, of course, they're both predicting victory, but they're saying that, of course, it will be a close race.
NGUYEN: Yes, it's going to be really interesting to see how many young voters do turn out. I can't wait to see the numbers. Thank you, Mary.
HOLMES: Well, of course, the last Sunday here before the election. People are talking about the presidential race pretty much everywhere. And that includes at the church.
Our Dan Lothian is getting a good word at a church in Richmond, Virginia, right about now. He's got his Sunday suit on and everything.
Good morning to you, Dan. What are they talking about this morning?
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, T.J.
Well, we are at the First Baptist Church here in Richmond. The pastor tells us that he's not very political but he has been encouraging his parishioners to vote. We had a chance to talk to some of the churchgoers as they were showing up here this morning for the 8:30 service.
One man is telling me that he will be glad when this is all over. He's very tired of all the political ads on his television screen. In fact, he says, whenever he sees an ad come on, he usually mutes it. And in particular, he says, he has been turned off by the negative ads.
I also talked to another churchgoer. And I was asking her about what happens after Election Day. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LOTHIAN: Whoever ends up winning, whether it's John McCain or it's Barack Obama, do you think the nation is going to have to go through some healing?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, pretty much, yes. They're going to have to do some healing. But, I think, whoever is elected will, you know, will quite go (ph) through that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LOTHIAN: Another churchgoer echoed those remarks saying that there's been a lot of division leading up to Election Day and that there will have to be some healing.
Now, I also asked about whether or not some of these social issues that we have seen in past elections, certainly in 2004, the evangelical vote helped George Bush win and the social issues were very crucial among churchgoers.
And this one gentleman that I talked to said that, you know, the social issues are still very important but what really was a driving everyone to the polls this time around, he believes, is the economy. He says when people are hurting, when they don't have any money in their pocket, that is what they vote on -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right. Dan Lothian is keeping an eye on things from the pews this morning. Dan, we appreciate you. We'll see you here again soon.
NGUYEN: Now, we'll take a look at the running mates because John McCain's vice presidential pick, Sarah Palin is all about Ohio today. She has several campaign stops planned across the state.
Meanwhile, Democratic senator, Joe Biden, is heading south again. He'll be back in Florida today. He spent a whole lot of time there last week as well. Biden will be talking to students at a couple of college campuses.
HOLMES: And a lot of people already got that jump on Tuesday's early voting or Tuesday's voting by early voting. That's allowed now in 31 states. This is the line in Durham, North Carolina. This was yesterday. Two and a half million have already cast their ballots early in North Carolina.
Also, lines in Broward County, Florida. This is where we were keeping an eye on yesterday, had this up live with our Sean Callebs as he kept an eye on this line. A lot of people there lined up at about 6:00 in the morning, thinking the polls are going to be open at 7:00. They actually did open until 10:00 o'clock. But a lot of them still waited for several hours.
Also, in Las Vegas, an election official said the lines were as long as the lines at Disneyland. But those lines of voting were not necessarily the happiest place on earth. In fact, just over 23 million people have cast early ballots in 25 states.
Again, 31 states allow early voting but we don't have the numbers from all of them. Early voting records are being set in several if not all of these states. Many have extended voting hours and opened additional voting sites. All of those will be released on Election Day.
The clock, of course, ticking. Where is -- there's the clock.
NGUYEN: Yes, right there.
HOLMES: There it is. Two days, nine hours, 54 minutes, 12, 11, 10 seconds, before the polls are going to be closing.
You can watch history unfold right here with the best political team on television. CNN's worldwide network, November 4th.
NGUYEN: So, as the time ticks away what -- less than 48 hours, campaigns, they have less, you know, to make their case and get people out to the polls.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: The question is: Where is President Bush and what could his absence mean for this year's race?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NGUYEN: Well, two days before the election. And President Bush is nowhere in sight. Perhaps not a surprise with his record-low 27 percent approval numbers. As Kathleen Koch reports, it is a major departure from presidential tradition.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The final weekend of campaign '88, wildly popular Ronald Reagan did a marathon campaign swing for his vice president.
RONALD REAGAN, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: I'm here today on behalf of a great candidate for the presidency of the United States.
KEN DUBERSTEIN, REAGAN CHIEF OF STAFF: We went to battleground states, not safe Republican states. We went to Illinois. We went to Ohio. We went to Missouri. We went to all of them, Pennsylvania.
KOCH: Even Bill Clinton, stained by scandals, did a short sprint through New York and Arkansas for Al Gore in 2000.
BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: We've got to keep the prosperity going, not put it at risk.
KOCH: But George Bush, this weekend, has dropped out of sight, spending Friday through Sunday at Camp David.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No campaigning at all?
DANA PERINO, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: That's right.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you think (ph) -- any reason why he (INAUDIBLE) out there?
PERINO: The president is pretty focused on the activities we have here, especially getting this economy back in order. He canceled a lot of our fundraisers and he's going to focus on being with Mrs. Bush and others this weekend at Camp David.
KOCH: But Perino couldn't list any fundraisers that have been cancelled recently. And not only have the four McCain fundraisers the president attended been closed to cameras, President Bush has not appeared with any individual candidate at an open campaign event since August 2007.
STEPHEN HESS, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: These are all politicians who are running for office. They read the polls. And they all have their finger wet and up to see where the breeze is blowing. You can be sure that if George W. Bush was more popular, he'd be out there.
DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Join us in casting your ballots for John McCain and Sarah Palin.
KOCH: Vice President Dick Cheney is out this weekend, Laura Bush campaigned Thursday and will again Monday. Ronald Reagan chief of stuff, Ken Duberstein who's voting for Barack Obama says it must be tough for George Bush who was there for Reagan's farewell campaign swing to know he'll never get one of his own.
DUBERSTEIN: You know, there maybe some sadness today or tomorrow, because he's like a good thoroughbred who wants to be out there running. But sometimes you have to stay in the stable.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KOCH: Now, it looks like a reigned in President Bush will be staying in the stable a few more days, no public events on his schedule Monday or Tuesday. He's already voted by absentee ballot. So, the White House says Mr. Bush will stay at home and watch the returns come in Tuesday night with family and friends -- Betty.
NGUYEN: All right. Kathleen Koch joining us live. Thank you, Kathleen.
KOCH: You bet.
HOLMES: All right. In case some of you all can stay up late enough last night, John McCain had a cameo on "Saturday Night Live" as many of them do these days.
NGUYEN: Good stuff. We saw a little of it earlier.
HOLMES: But he had a special guest with him. His wife was with him as well, and, of course, you see Tina Fey, who's Sarah Palin's double who's getting a lot of credit for Tina look-a-like these days.
NGUYEN: So, let's set this up for you. McCain references Barack Obama's multi-channel primetime ad. Well then he goes on to say that the McCain campaign can only afford say QVC ads. And that should get you up to speed. Here's the rest of it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE" FROM NBC/BROADWAY VIDEO)
MCCAIN: Are you someone who likes fine jewelry and also respects a politician who can reach across the aisle? If so, you can't go wrong with McCain Fine Gold.
(LAUGHTER)
(APPLAUSE)
MCCAIN: It commemorates the McCain/Feingold act and also looks great with evening wear. Thank you, Cindy.
(APPLAUSE) TINA FEY, ACTRESS (impersonating Gov. Sarah Palin): And what busy hockey mom wouldn't want to freshen up her home with Sarah Palin's air fresheners. You plug these into the wall and something doesn't quite smell right. Also, it's good because it reminds people about William Ayers.
(LAUGHTER)
MCCAIN: Having trouble cutting through a tough piece of pork? Not anymore. With John McCain's complete set of pork knives, they cut the pork out.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NGUYEN: I love that pork knives. All right. We're going to show you some more clips from "SNL" last night. And that will be -- well, we got a few more hours on the air. So, stay tuned for that.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: In the meantime, though, you may want to know what the weather is like outside.
HOLMES: Yes.
NGUYEN: What you're dealing with this weekend, the last Sunday before the election.
HOLMES: And that and a lot of people are going to be voting on Tuesday. You talk about the lines, the long lines. You think I'm going to be in trouble since I'm going to try to vote on Tuesday, long lines. Will I need an umbrella?
NGUYEN: Yes.
HOLMES: Will I be cold? Will I be wet? A lot of people are worried.
WOLF: You know, T.J., I can't really speak on behalf of the rest of the nation, but I can tell you, wherever you're going to be, it's going to be snowing, it's going to be raining, thunderstorms, it will be awful.
(LAUGHTER)
NGUYEN: It's going to be miserable.
WOLF: It's always something going on wherever T.J. got there.
(LAUGHTER)
WOLF: No -- what's really great is there are many parts of the country where you have battleground states, especially in places like Ohio... NGUYEN: Right.
WOLF: ... and Pennsylvania and Florida, where the weather should be just fine.
NGUYEN: Good.
WOLF: It's great. You know, we don't need anything else to interfere.
NGUYEN: Absolutely not.
WOLF: But right now, let's enjoy the morning while we can. It's a great morning. Many people in Washington, D.C. waking up to not only great skies, but check out the colors. They've already got the blue skies above but down below, they've got a lot of these autumn colors, these fall colors. They look fantastic. You're heading out for a walk along the Potomac, maybe up on the title basin (ph), it's going to be a nice morning for you.
A little bit chilly in Washington, D.C., 52 degrees. Go out there, grab some coffee, of course, after CNN is over and all the great coverage you're going to see with Howard Kurtz and Wolf later on. But it should be a lovely day. As you make your way further to the north.
As we go to the weather computer, in New York, currently, 40 degrees, 36 in Boston. Expecting clear skies in both those locations. Back over to Kansas City, outside Kaufmann Field, we have currently 38 degrees, 56 in Salt Lake City, 59 in San Francisco, near 39 in Alcatraz.
It should be an OK day for indoor events for California and much of California are going to be seeing the scattered showers. Don't expect too much to change there in the higher elevations, one thing you will see is a change in the precipitation time. Along parts of I- 80, when you get up towards Tahoe, you're going to see some snowfall, up near Donner Pass, it could get kind of windy up there. Also, look for some scattered snow showers in parts of Colorado.
Meanwhile, let's fast forward into Election Day, not Monday but Tuesday. Partly cloudy and cooler as I mentioned for much of the northeast and into the Midwest. Sunny and warm for a good part of the gulf coast and central plains. A slight chance for scattered showers and storms for the Twin Cities, and then back over to the Rockies, Northern California back in Seattle, a chance of rain showers and maybe some snowfall along parts of I-5, not necessarily right along the road, with the higher elevations in Seven Sisters, Cascades, absolutely. Good to have them.
Wherever T.J. goes, you better watch yourself.
NGUYEN: No.
WOLF: It's always a crazy time. I mean that in jest. I mean that with love. NGUYEN: (INAUDIBLE), it will be fine.
HOLMES: It will -- I'm telling you guys, I will report back short line. I'm going to get right through on Election Day.
NGUYEN: If you have a short line, I will be surprised. Although, like we mentioned, more polling places will be open on Election Day.
HOLMES: Will be open, yes.
NGUYEN: So, all of it (ph) lines everywhere.
WOLF: Plenty of opportunities, no excuses not to go out there.
NGUYEN: Yes, not even the weather.
HOLMES: All right.
NGUYEN: Thanks, Reynolds.
HOLMES: All right. Thanks, Reynolds.
Well, we've seen a lot of endorsements right about now in this presidential election. A lot of familiar faces making it known who they want to be the next president. Well, civil rights leader, Andrew Young is here with us this morning. We're going to talk about his choice and other concerns about this historic election as the voters head to the polls. Don't you go anywhere.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Of course, this election, it will go down in history. We're either going to see the first African-American president or our first female vice president. We will talk about that now with Ambassador Andrew Young.
Sir, good to see you, as always. Thank you for being here. And I know now, you do support Barack Obama for president.
ANDREW YOUNG, GOODWILL INTERNATIONAL: Well, I voted for him last week.
HOLMES: You voted for him last week. I think that...
YOUNG: I never came out and had an endorsement.
HOLMES: Now, why didn't you do that?
YOUNG: Well, I wanted to -- I mean, I have a lot of controversy in my background.
HOLMES: And?
YOUNG: I didn't want him to carry -- answer to it. And I never know when something's going to come up when I want to say something that he shouldn't be caught saying.
HOLMES: Caught saying. All right. Well, you support him. You did vote...
YOUNG: Yes. Or -- I mean, the world is a very complex place. And as you know, we were together in Tanzania last year.
HOLMES: Yes.
YOUNG: But I'm -- I'm all over this world. And probably been to 150 some countries. And the world, people say it doesn't make any difference, but the world is exercising an incredible economic effect on the United States right now. I think that could flip right after this election.
HOLMES: As soon as the election is done. Will you talked about our time in Tanzania? When I was there with you, I was right, it were in the heart of the primary season actually.
YOUNG: Yes.
HOLMES: And that was when Barack Obama -- we were over there when he actually kind of wrapped it up. And you said something to me that kind of struck me and that was, you weren't sure if the country was ready to elect a black man president. Do you still feel that way now? Or have things changed at -- this election cycle has changed?
YOUNG: Well, two things. One, there's never been a campaign this well-organized and this disciplined from top to bottom as Barack Obama's been running. Also, there's never been a time more critical in our political and economic life -- I mean, I was born with Franklin Roosevelt.
And not since the Great Depression have we had the threat to the economy that we have now and something drastic. In fact, even though -- well, back when I was supporting Hillary Clinton, I sent Barack Obama a copy of Jonathan Alter's book on Franklin Roosevelt's first 100 days. And I said, you know, you might win. You better read this because...
HOLMES: What changed for you? You were supporting Hillary Clinton, and you said he didn't have the experience and you said he needs to...
YOUNG: No, I never said.
HOLMES: You said he was too young.
YOUNG: No, I never said that.
HOLMES: You said he was too young.
YOUNG: I've said I had known Hillary Clinton since she was a college girl and I only met him once.
HOLMES: Yes. YOUNG: And the only reason I would be voting for him at that point was that he was a wonderful, eloquent speaker.
HOLMES: OK.
YOUNG: But when I read his book, I realized that this young man has a kind of cultural DNA that I think the world needs. Now, I figured it would be another eight years or so before the economy fell apart. We've been on a bubble for a long time. But it happened earlier. If I were making my choice as to who to vote for in August of this year, before the convention, it was very clear that we needed the kind of idealism and enthusiasm that Barack Obama's election would bring to the global economy.
Now, let me say that I'm not blowing smoke here.
HOLMES: All right.
YOUNG: Atlanta was kind of in a rut in 1980 and '81. And my election turned around this economy. And it wasn't that I did anything. Except go around the world and invite people to work with us.
HOLMES: OK.
YOUNG: But we brought in $70 billion of foreign direct investment in Atlanta. Eleven hundred companies moved their businesses here and we created 1 million jobs.
HOLMES: So, before he does anything, just the image, and just him being elected going to change...
YOUNG: No, what it is, it's a belief in America that says, well, I'll be darned. They really do practice what they preach. Yes.
HOLMES: OK, last thing here. And I know we're going to have to let you go. But there's one thing, there was so much talk before, haven't heard this lately, about Obama not being black enough. He is not from the same -- now stay with me here...
YOUNG: That is good.
HOLMES: That is good. OK. You're saying it's a good thing...
YOUNG: That is wonderful.
HOLMES: ... but so many of the civil rights era, I mean, he didn't come up in that era, if you will. So...
YOUNG: And that's a blessing.
HOLMES: OK.
YOUNG: I realize that -- that I have a hard time believing and trusting, because I have so many battle scars and so many wounds from the '30s, '40s, '50s, '60s and '70s. He grew up three of that. And so, we're not so much electing a black man as we're electing one of the brightest and best organized and disciplined young men. I don't relate his election to Martin Luther King as much as I do to John Kennedy and Franklin Roosevelt, because he's a transformational figure. And we didn't make much fuss about the fact that Kennedy was Irish.
HOLMES: Yes.
YOUNG: We don't even know what Roosevelt was. Dutch maybe.
HOLMES: Yes.
YOUNG: But the fact is, that he was the man of the hour, the man that the world needed at that time.
HOLMES: All right. Well, still, we got some voting to do. But, certainly...
YOUNG: Let me just say, that sorority, went out and put water and lemonade, my city councilman had a separate line for senior citizens...
HOLMES: Yes.
YOUNG: I think we have to kind of have some comfort stations for the people who are going to be standing in line all day Tuesday.
HOLMES: There's an idea as well.
Ambassador Young, it's always good to get your insights. Like you said, you got a lot of scars, you've seen a lot, been through a lot, and done a lot. So, it's certainly good to get your insights. Glad we could get you in here on this Sunday morning. Sir, good to see you as always.
YOUNG: (INAUDIBLE), T.J.
HOLMES: All right. Betty?
NGUYEN: All right. A great interview there. Thank you for that.
You know, talking about something a little different, shall we? The ghosts and goblins may have left town until next year but the Halloween pictures keep coming in to the CNN newsroom and Josh Levs will take a look at some of the wacky Halloween photos of our iReporters. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Throughout the day yesterday, our iReporters sent photos of their Halloween costumes.
NGUYEN: Including some people dressed up as CNN personalities. Oh, those should be fun. Josh Levs joins us with that. Hey, Josh.
LEVS: Yes, you know, let see them on the board. I want you, guys, to see this one. Check out this nine-year-old boy dressed as Larry King. Now, maybe they figured they'd get on air which they did. Can we zoom right in? This is from Kevin Caby (ph) who sent as a photo of his son George who apparently, indeed, went around as Larry King last night.
One more I want to show you. Look, guys, we knew a lot of people were going to be Joe the Plumber, right? Did we know a lot of dogs might be Joe the Plumber? Check out this dog. Christian Terrent (ph) dressed up his dog as Joe the Plumber. Apparently got a lot of people talking there.
Now, I want to show you one more video out here (ph). Let's take a look at this video here. It's called "Wall Street Cemetery" from Valerie Karasek. And as you start to go in, take a look at what it says on the grave stones. See that? It's talking about the economy. Everything is falling apart. I think that's really going all out for Halloween.
And if we have a little bit of time, let's go to one more because it can't hurt. We are hearing from lots and lots of people who wanted to celebrate CNN, I guess. So, let's zoom back in here. Can you guys tell me who that's supposed to be? Wolf, Anderson and Larry. That's from Tyler Hilbo (ph) and his friends.
We're getting a lot of these, guys. Keep them coming. Your photos, your videos, your stories: iReport.com. And, of course, guys, throughout the election, we're going to be getting a lot of this. And on Tuesday, we're planning on doing some big, exciting stuff on iReports. So, stay with us for that.
NGUYEN: It sounds good. All right. Thank you.
LEVS: Thanks, guys.
HOLMES: I see the cues of taking a cheap shot at her opponent. North Carolina Senator Elizabeth Dole is feeling the heat over recent campaign ad about religion. Did she take this negative campaign too far or is it just an effective way to reach voters? Our political team weighs in.
NGUYEN: But first, "HOUSE CALL" with Dr. Sanjay Gupta starts right now.
