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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

AFL-CIO Endorses Kerry; University of Colorado Coach Suspendended Over Rape Scandal; President Bush Backtracks On Jobs Creation Forecast

Aired February 19, 2004 - 17:00   ET

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

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


WOLF BLITZER, HOST: Happening now. Coming to the coaches defense, former players speak out charging only one side of the story has been told involving an alleged rape on the Colorado University football team.
Shocking new details of an attack in Iraq. We're learning them right now.

And President Bush on the defensive when it comes to the economy.

Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Chaos in the Caribbean. Haiti's leader vows death. Are U.S. Troops on the way?

Ready or not, the U.S. sticks to the deadline for a hand over in Iraq.

PAUL BREMER, U.S. CIVIL ADMINISTRATOR TO IRAQ: There are 133 days before sovereignty returns to an Iraqi government.

BLITZER: Caught in the act, nuclear inspectors turn up a troubling find in Iran.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We may have a secret program within a secret program.

BLITZER: Indictment, Enron's ex-exec faces the Feds over his company's collapse.

Endorsement, big labor backs a front-runner.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Thursday, February 19, 2004.

BLITZER: Chaos reigns once again in the desperately poor Caribbean nation of Haiti and the United States is trying desperately not to be drawn in again. Two weeks into a bloody revolt which has claimed dozens of lives, President Jean Bertrand Aristide says he's ready to give up his own life to defend his country, but he's not ready to give up power. The U.S. Sent thousands of troops to Haiti only a decade ago, now a much smaller contingent will soon be back on the ground.

Let's go straight to CNN's Lucia Newman. She's in Port-au- Prince.

Lucia, tell our viewers what's going on.

LUCIA NEWMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon, Wolf. Well, the State Department has just issued a warning urging American in this country to leave. The United States is also sending a team of about four military specialists to assess the security situation at the U.S. Embassy and for Americans. There are about 20,000 American citizens living in this country right now, Wolf. In the meantime, President Jean Bertrand Aristide again reiterated today that he would not leave the presidential palace no matter what.

Back to you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Lucia, is there a sense of an imminent crisis right now that could only result, only be conclude with the introduction of an international force, including U.S. forces?

NEWMAN: Some are saying that, Wolf, but the United States has been reluctant until now, as has France, to send a peace keeping force. They say it's up to the Haitians to try to sort out their own problems and come to a peaceful resolution, dialog, negotiations. But all sides here are unwilling to bend. So it may well be, more people are beginning to feel that they be the only way out of this crisis -- Wolf.

BLITZER: What about the American whose are there right now, Lucia.

How worried are they?

NEWMAN: Right now, Wolf, the situation in Port-au-Prince where the majority of Americans live is very, very calm. In fact, as a matter of fact, at this moment there are people setting up bandstands to welcome the carnival this weekend. But there are some that are beginning to get very nervous and, in fact, are considering leaving in the next few days if for not only just temporary until the situation settles or doesn't settle down -- Wolf.

BLITZER: CNN's Lucia Newman in Port-au-Prince in Haiti. Thanks for much, Lucia, for that.

Let's move on now to Iraq. There are new developments in last weekend's bloody attacks on a police station and civil defense compound in the Iraqi town of Fallujah. Attacks which still have U.S. Military officials scratching their heads.

Let's go live to senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the U.S. Military is looking into the case of the quick reaction force that wasn't quite quick enough.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MCINTYRE (voice-over): The U.S. is reviewing what went wrong Saturday in Fallujah where some 20 Iraqi police officers were killed and dozens of prisoners set free after insurgents stormed an Iraqi police station. The U.S. had quick reaction force nearby whose job it is to help Iraqis. It wasn't able to respond in time. And now commanders want to know why.

BRIG. GEN. DAVID RODRIGUEZ: We'll take an assessment of everything that went on during that operation and make the adjustments to make sure something like that doesn't happen in the future.

MCINTYRE: The Pentagon says a number of factors prevented them from helping the police station. The attack was well coordinated and quick, lasting only 15 minutes. The attackers cut the phone lines to the police station, delaying a call for help. It's unclear if there was radio communications. A smaller simultaneous attack in a Iraqi civil defense compound diverted the U.S. force or the QRF to another location where it's seemed the Iraqis had everything under control.

RODRIGUEZ: The American QRF which was about five to ten minutes away responded immediately to the civil defense thing who had obviously better communications with during that 15-minute time period, at which point in time the civil defend corporation commander said we can handle it. The only assistance we need right now is ammunition and arms.

MCINTYRE: Meanwhile, at the police station the Iraqis were quickly overrun.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCINTYRE: The U.S. Is also investigating where the attackers had inside help. Several people, including the mayor of Fallujah and two members of the U.S.-trained Iraqi Civil Defense Force are being questioned under suspicion they may have hat links to the guerrillas -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon.

Jamie, thank you very much. There are still no arrangements set for a handover of power in Iraq. The various parties can't agree how to make it work. But the United States and now the United Nations are both making it clear that the transition must somehow remain on schedule.

Let's go live to our senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth.

RICHARD ROTH, SENIOR U.N. CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the United Nations playing the traditional honest broker role weighing in now on the scheduling of elections in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROTH (voice-over): U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan revealed his anticipated decision on election in Iraq. KOFI ANNAN, U.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL: Elections ask not be held before the end of June, that the June 30 date for hand over of sovereignty must be respected.

ROTH: Minutes before Annan announced his decision, in Baghdad U.S. coalition authorities who asked for the U.N.'s advice, made it clear no matter what the U.N. said about elections for a new government, the June 30 timetable was not to be changed.

BREMER: Changes in the mechanism for forming an interim government are possible but the date holds. And hold, it should.

ROTH: So the big question is how then to replace a U.S. Plan which called for local caucuses in 18 regions of Iraq to choose eventual new leaders following the hand over of authority. The U.N. doesn't want to impose more recommendations right now in the search for a new plan for Iraq.

ANNAN: We have absolutely no prepared options. We need to have the -- Iraq to discuss it. They must take ownership.

ROTH: Iraq's Civilian Administrator Paul Bremer said there are dozens of ways a new transitional government can be selected.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROTH: And diplomats hearsay Kofi Annan may recommend that it would fake some eight to 10 months once preparations were made for elections here. It's also possible Lakhdar Brahimi could go back to Iraq to make some more facts on the ground known.

Back to you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Richard Roth at the U.N. thank you very much, Richard.

Let's move on to a very disturbing discovery by U.N. inspectors in Iran. It's raising new questions about that country's nuclear activities and its nuclear ambitions.

For that, let's turn to national security correspondent David Ensor. He's joining us from the State Department -- David.

DAVID ENSOR, NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, these revelations only underscore Washington's doubts that Tehran is being honest with the international community about its nuclear programs.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ENSOR (voice-over): Iran has been showing inspectors the facilities, but senior bush administration officials say the Iranian enrichment plans and machinery inspectors have now found elsewhere is of a far more sophisticated type than Iran has ever admitted to having.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECY.: These reports that we have seeing of Iran enriching uranium and possessing more advanced centrifuge designs raise serious concerns.

ENSOR: Officials say the P-type centrifuge plans and parts would give Iran much greater capability to produce bomb-grade uranium.

DAVID ALBRIGHT, INST. FOR SCIENCE & INTERNATIONAL SECURITY: So, the P2, although more difficult to make, is a much more sufficient machine, will last much longer and make much more enriched uranium.

ENSOR: It was P-2 technology that was found recently in Lybia supplied officials saying by the black market organization headed by Pakistani scientist Dr. Kamran Khan. U.S. Officials say they are not sure whether where the Iranian plans and parts came from but the discovery is raising troubling questions.

GARY MILHLLIN, WISCONSIN PROJECT ON NUCLEAR ARMS: It's reasonable to ask if Iran seems to be concealing things, why it's doing so. And that, of course, suggests that it may have nuclear weapon intentions, which the United States government believes.

RICHARD BOUCHER, STATE DEPT. SPOKESMAN: We have said that we believe that Iran is continuing to hide information from the International Atomic Energy Agency.

ENSOR: IAEA officials declined all comment for this report. And in Tehran the foreign ministry specificly denied it. A spokesman saying there are no P-2 centrifuge in Iran, neither at civilian or military installations.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ENSOR: Officials expect the latest revelations to be in the IAEI report to the board of governors that will be delivered to them this weekend. A senior State Department official hinted that the U.S. may not ask the board of governors to refer the matter to the U.N. Security Council for action since officials here in this building at least, feel that the rigorous inspections that are now going on in Iran are working rather well and should continue -- Wolf.

BLITZER: David Ensor at the State Department for us today. Thank you, David.

A powerful ally, the Democratic front-runner picks up one of the most important endorsements in American politics. Will it give him an edge?

The coach is benched. The university of Colorado's football program under severe scrutiny after a former player's rape allegation. Players are now speaking out.

And a journalist held captive in one of the Middle East most horrific prisons. I'll speak live with Pulitzer prize winning Matt McAllister about what it was like to be a prisoner in Saddam Hussein's Iraq.

We'll get to all of that. First, though, today's news clips.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Iraq's Abu Grahaib prison translates to which of the following? Giant, Strange, Sinful, Great? The answer coming up.

BLITZER: The Bush administration today took another stab at trying to stop the fallout over an optimistic report that the economy would create more than 2 1/2 million jobs this year. But if anything, the effort appears to be a retreat. Our White House correspondent Dana Bash is joining us now live with more on this story. What's the Bush administration saying right now, Dana?

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the Bush campaign chairman said the 2.6 million new jobs forecast is a stated goal and he called it a theoretical discussion by economists. As for the White House spokesman, he said it's simply a snapshot in time by economic forecasters. As for the president, he didn't call it anything at all. Instead, he tried to change the subject to what he was wanting to talk about which are his tax cuts which he says are helping the economy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If Congress doesn't do anything, there will be tax increases on the American people. That's what that means. When you hear, we're going to repeal the bush tax cuts, that means tax increases. That's what that is. I'm going to raise your taxes is what they're saying. There's a philosophical difference here, who would you rather spend your money here, you or the federal government?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now the Bush political team says they're going to continue to have the president talk about issues like tax cuts, things that they want to discuss in this campaign year. But more privately some Republicans are saying they are concerned that this issue is overshadowing some of the good economic numbers that the president is trying to discuss. Back to you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Dana Bash at the White House.

Let's move on to the latest in the fight for the Democratic presidential nomination. We have two correspondents standing by, Kelly Wallace and Dan Lothian.

Kelly, let's begin with you. You're covering John Kerry's campaign. What's going on.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, he received a very big endorsement. A significant endorsement today from the AFL-CIO, the nation's largest umbrella group of labor representing 64 unions, some 13 million American workers. This is significant aids say just to have a lot of people out there trying to get out the vote. And also because the AFL-CIO vigorously opposed the North American Free Trade Agreement which John Kerry supported. So aides believe this could help Kerry as he argues the trade issue with Edwards. There is this point though, a lot of labor unions came out for Dick Gephardt and Howard Dean. Those candidates no longer in the race, so in an interview, CNN's Judy Woodruff, asked John Kerry why he thinks organized labor will really be able to deliver the vote for him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN KERRY, (D-MA) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think we proved over the course of the last primaries and caucuses that I know how to translate into -- into grass roots effort. That's what you have to do, is go out and appeal to voters. I've never taken endorsements as a free-standing effort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: John Kerry, though, getting another boost later today or earlier today when he received the endorsement from Congressman John Lewis of Georgia, the civil rights champion, long-time Congressman. He was there with Kerry's wife, Teresa, endorsing John Kerry. Saying, he did this because he knows John Kerry more than John Edwards.

He believes his endorsement will be significant. It will get all his supporters out to the polls in Georgia. And Wolf, as you know, Georgia one of the ten states holding key contests just a little less than two weeks from now.

BLITZER: Super Tuesday, March 2. Thanks very much, Kelly, for that.

Despite big labor support for John Kerry, Senator John Edwards is certainly pressing ahead with his attacks on Kerry over the issue of trade and specifically the loss of American jobs to overseas as markets. CNN's Dan Lothian is covering the Edwards campaign. He's there live as well -- Dan.

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Senator Edwards is back on the trail after taking a day off making stops in New York and Georgia. He is staying on the message that he believes resonated with Wisconsin voters, that is trade. Something he now call a moral issue.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LOTHIAN (voice-over): Using the issue of trade to define his campaign, Senator John Edwards told a packed audience at Columbia University in New York he will fight to keep American jobs on American soil.

JOHN EDWARDS, (D-SC) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: They cut your wages and benefits as far as they can just to please the stock market. And when they can't cut anymore they pick up your job and take it to another country where they can pay just pennies for an hour's worth of work. Our trade policies encourage it and our tax policies make it worse. LOTHIAN: Voicing often his opposition to NAFTA, Senator Edwards is trying to set himself apart from his chief rival in Democratic frontrunner Senator John Kerry who voted for the trade agreement. And in a bold overture said he's ready to go one-on-one.

EDWARDS: We should debate wherever and whenever. I'll go anywhere in America we need to go to debate these issues.

LOTHIAN: Senator Edwards says he's unconcerned about the AFL- CIO's endorsement of Senator Kerry.

EDWARDS: If you look at what's happened in all of the early primaries, unless I missed something, with the exception of Unite, I've not had the endorsement of labor unions and I've done very well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LOTHIAN: Aides say they are in a good financial position to wage a competitive battle in key Super Tuesday states. In fact, since Wisconsin the campaign has taken in $700,000, more than half of that amount raised over the Internet -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Learning something from Howard Dean's campaign, no doubt. Dan Lothian, thanks very much.

A growing scandal. The university of Colorado football coach benched and defended by his players, while a scandal involving a rape allegation over takes his team.

Handcuffs for the former CEO of Enron. Prosecutors turn up the heat in that investigation.

And going nowhere fast, what U.S. cities do you think have the worst traffic? Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: An army researcher is in isolation while doctors watch her for signs of possible exposure to the Ebola virus. Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr is joining us now with an update. Barbara, what exactly happened?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's bring you up to date on this case. A female civilian army researcher at Fort Detrick, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C. here, working at the army's Institute of Medical Research, last week apparently accidentally pricked herself with a needle while she was working with research mice that had been infected with a low-dose form of something called Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever virus, a very deadly agent, often fatal, not always but quite serious.

Now this woman has shown no signs yet of the illness itself, but the army is taking every precaution and with her consent, and the consent of her family, she has been placed in 30 days of isolation at Fort Detrick. Again, that is with her consent. She has shown no signs of the illness but they do want to watch her. The incubation period for this is about two to 21 days.

What the army is doing at Fort Detrick with the Ebola virus is they are working on a number of research programs related to bioterrorism and also doing some research into possible vaccines and treatment for this deadly disease. In its most severe forms in parts of the world where there have been outbreaks, people experience very difficult to say this, but both internal and external bleeding. It's quite a serious disease. Again, this woman has shown no signs but they're going to watch her for several more days -- Wolf.

BLITZER: I don't know if you know the answer to this, Barbara, but is there any antidote? Is there anything they can do while she's in isolation to prevent the onslaught of this Ebola?

STARR: Well, according to the Center for Disease Control, it's one of the very interesting things about the disease. It often has just terrible devastating effects and it is fatal but it's not always fatal. So they really don't know all that much about it at this point. One of the things the army has been researching is some type of vaccine for this because this is a disease that often is of concern in a potential bioterrorism attack because it is so deadly. So a woman, a researcher who was trying to work on trying to find some sort of vaccine or treatment for it accidentally pricked herself and has exposed herself to it. Again, so far thankfully she has shown no signs of it and she and her family do remain in good spirits.

BLITZER: Let's hope it stays like that. Thanks very much, Barbara, for that story. We'll keep our viewers updated on it in the coming days.

Controversy in Colorado. A female football player alleges rape and a coach is now put on leave. Fallout from a scandal that's rocking the state's university.

Charging the chief. A former Enron CEO is indicted. Federal agents call him a top get but his lawyers fire right back.

And held captive. He was locked up in Iraq's most notorious prison during the war, seeing the horror firsthand. I'll speak live with the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, Matt McAllister. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN. Coming up, benched but receiving a rigorous -- vigorous, that is, defending. New details involving the controversial football coach at the University of Colorado. And another allegation of sexual assault. We'll get to all of that. First, though, the latest headlines.

Five Britons and a Dane held at the Guantanamo base in Cuba will be going home. They have been in detention at the U.S. military facility for two years without a trial. Four other British citizens will remain locked up with hundreds of other people either captured in Afghanistan or suspected of having ties to al Qaeda or the Taliban. South Korea's decision to send 3,000 more troops to Iraq has prompted President Bush to thank the country's leader. The president spoke by phone to his South Korean counterpart earlier today. The pair also discussed the south's next round in nuclear talks with North Korea agreeing they should be constructed and sincere.

San Francisco is suing the state of California over its ban on same-sex marriages. The legal move comes after the city's sanctioned more than 2,700 such marriages in the past week. Two challenges aimed at stopping them are also being considered by separate judges.

Police in Colorado today said their investigation -- they're investigating yet another alleged sexual assault involving a University of Colorado football player. This comes after yesterday's suspension of head coach Gary Barnett, a move taken after Barnett criticized a former female player who alleges she was raped by a teammate.

CNN's Michelle Bonner has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHELLE BONNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two days ago, Katie Hnida, a kicker for the University of Colorado in 1999, alleged she was raped by one teammate and sexually harassed by others while she was there. Today, some of her former teammates spoke out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gary Barnett has always stressed the developing an ethical and moral character. As each new season begins, we have meetings, oftentimes for hours on end, regarding the standards of conduct that we are to adhere to as members of the Colorado football team.

A player's conduct book is thoroughly discussed, read and reviewed by each player during these mandatory meetings. In this book, there's even a special section on appropriate sexual conduct. Gary Barnett is an upright, honest and moral man. And I stand by him as my coach, as my leader and as my mentor.

BONNER: So far, Hnida has declined to reveal anyone's name. Late Wednesday night, Gary Barnett was relieved of his coaching duties after he criticized Hnida's kicking abilities while addressing the scandal at a Tuesday press conference.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE) most of the players did not want Katie on the team? And why was that?

GARY BARNETT, HEAD FOOTBALL COACH, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO: Just new, different. You know, it's just -- you know, it's a guy's sport. And they felt like Katie was forced on her -- you know, on them.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

BARNETT: Well, it was obvious Katie was not very good. She was awful, OK? So, you know what guys do? They respect your ability. I mean, you could be 90 years old, but if you can go out and play, they respect you. And what was -- Katie was a girl. And not only was she a girl. She was terrible, OK? And there's no other way to say it. She couldn't kick the ball through the uprights.

BONNER: Betsy Hoffman, the school president, placed Barnett on administrative leave with pay, pending the outcome of an investigation.

ELIZABETH HOFFMAN, PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO: His remarks about her were extremely inappropriate and insensitive. Rape is a horrific allegation and it should be taken seriously.

BARNETT: I sincerely regret that, yesterday, a portion of my remarks were either misinterpreted or taken -- aired out of context. And I apologize for answering that question in a manner where I must have come across as insensitive.

BONNER: The school was also distressed by the release yesterday of a police report from 2001 in which a woman accuses a football player of rape. The woman's name was blacked out on the report, which says she met with coach Barnett and was told that he would take care of the problem, but that he would back his player 100 percent if she pressed charges.

BARNETT: All I can say that is that I believe there are some inaccuracies in the police report. Otherwise, I will address that in the future, if it becomes appropriate.

BONNER: Today, the Boulder police said they are investigating an allegation of sexual assault which occurred in 2002. This would be the sixth allegation against the football team. The school is expected to report the findings of its independent investigation on April 30. In the meantime, the president issued a plea to current and perspective female students.

HOFFMAN: There are 29,000 students on the Boulder campus. This is a very small number of cases, a very small group. We take it very, very seriously, but we still believe that the Boulder campus is a safe place for young women to come.

BONNER: Michelle Bonner, CNN Sports.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Joining us now to talk more about this story, two members of the University of Colorado Board of Regents, the chairman, Peter Steinhauer, and Jim Martin.

Thanks to both of you for joining us.

First to the chairman.

Mr. Steinhauer, is it time for the university to take more specific action against the coach in this particular case, Gary Barnett, for what he said?

PETER STEINHAUER, CHAIR, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO BOARD OF REGENTS: I think that President Hoffman and the chancellor, Dr. Byyny, took the appropriate action last night and let him go to administrative leave with pay. I think this was the appropriate action to do at this time, because this is still the United States and you're innocent until proven guilty.

BLITZER: You heard the question and you heard the answer, the controversial answer that he made. What do you think, Mr. Steinhauer? Was he off base? Should he not have said what he said?

STEINHAUER: I thought his statements were very insensitive and I -- and, personally, I thought they were inappropriate.

BLITZER: Mr. Martin, what do you say?

JIM MARTIN, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO BOARD OF REGENTS: Well, I agree with Chair Steinhauer.

The statements were totally inappropriate. But I want to say that this isn't and should not be just a focus on Gary Barnett. This whole university is shaken. And Gary Barnett is just one part of this athletic department. There's the athletic director. There's the chancellor of the Boulder campus. There's the president. And, ultimately, there is the Board of Regents.

You know, I always hearken back to Howard Dean and that Watergate investigation.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: John Dean.

MARTIN: Howard Dean, Howard Dean, the senator from Tennessee, when he -- and he asked a question. And that question was, what did you know and when did you know it?

BLITZER: That was Howard Baker.

(CROSSTALK)

MARTIN: Howard Baker. I'm sorry. Howard Baker.

The Howard Baker statement, though, could be added -- we could add to that. And that is, what should we have known or what should have been asked during the timeframe of which this story was being taken into consideration?

BLITZER: Mr. Steinhauer, amid all of these allegations of rape and total insensitivity to some of the women who were involved, is it time to put a freeze on the athletic program, maybe just the football program at the University of Colorado, until you sort out what exactly is going on?

STEINHAUER: We have -- the president has appointed an independent person to come in and oversee the athletic department and its policies. We have also appointed the -- the Board of Regents appointed an independent investigative committee this last week made up of seven people, totally independent from the university, that will be studying and evaluating the processes and the procedures of the athletic department and particularly the recruiting procedures here.

MARTIN: Wolf

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Go ahead, Mr. Martin.

MARTIN: That's the only thing Chair Steinhauer and I disagree on. I did not support that original as far as proposal.

I don't think it ought to be done by the university. I use the analogy of the Air Force Academy and its sexual scandal. It began with an internal investigation. I think, given now the events and now the numbers and the severity, that we need a panel that's impartial, that has full subpoena power for not only documents, but for witnesses.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: It sounds, Mr. Martin, that you want a criminal investigation run, let's say, by the attorney general or someone in law enforcement.

MARTIN: Well, obviously, there are possible criminal charges associated with some of these rape charges.

A grand jury can be charged in civil, as far as -- as far as civil challenges as well. And I think the further that it looks like we're getting an independent, impartial panel, the better off now we'll be.

BLITZER: Mr. Steinhauer, do you want the woman, the field goal kicker who alleges rape while she was at the University of Colorado, to come forward and name names?

STEINHAUER: Yes. I think that would be imperative that she do -- if she decides to do that.

And let me -- let me just say this, in contradiction to Regent Martin's statement. I believe that this panel is going to be quite effective. There are great leaders and leaders that react in good times -- great leaders react in bad times. And those are the leaders like President Roosevelt on December 7 of '41 and President Bush of 9/11.

The University of Colorado, I believe, is blessed with one of the great leaders of all universities. She has taken the bull by the horns, not acted at a knee-jerk sense. We've investigated these allegations and accusations. She made a tough decision last night. This has not only affected our university, but it has affected the alums, the students, the other athletic teams, the parents. And I'm very pleased with this. And I believe that it's time to let this investigative committee get on with their business. The Board of Regents, the university and the media needs to step back and let them do their job.

BLITZER: Peter Steinhauer and Jim Martin, I know you guys got a tough job ahead of you. The whole country is watching right now. Good luck to all of you.

STEINHAUER: Thank you, Wolf.

MARTIN: Thank you very much, Wolf.

BLITZER: Please be sure to stay with CNN tonight for "LARRY KING LIVE." He'll have an exclusive interview with the suspended University of Colorado football coach, Gary Barnett. That will begin 9:00 p.m. Eastern, 6:00 Pacific. Larry King speaks to Gary Barnett live, 9:00 p.m., only here at CNN.

And here is your chance to weigh in on this important story. Our "Web Question of the Day" is this. Was putting Colorado coach Gary Barnett on paid leave appropriate? You can vote right now. Go to CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

Facing the feds. A former Enron exec is in cuffs over alleged corruption. His lawyers say he's just a government scapegoat. We'll have that.

Plus, this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Finally, law enforcement is catching up with technology.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Tracking technology, a device that allows law enforcement to easily locate criminals, but is it too easy for others to abuse?

And locked away. He was held captive in a notorious Iraqi prison during the war. Still to come, my interview with the journalist Matt McAllester.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Hours after turning himself into to federal authorities this morning, the former Enron chief Jeffrey Skilling is free on $5 million bond. He's the highest ranking official to date to be charged in the federal investigation into the energy giant's downfall.

CNN financial news correspondent Chris Huntington is following this new chapter in the Enron scandal. He's joining us now live from Houston -- Chris. CHRIS HUNTINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, Well, Jeffrey Skilling was once the second highest ranking executive at Enron, but he entered federal court here in Houston in handcuffs.

As expected, he pleaded not guilty to 35 criminal charges that range from conspiracy, securities fraud and insider trading. The government accuses Skilling of orchestrating an elaborate scheme with other Enron executives to manipulate the company's earnings and prop up Enron stock price.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES B. COMEY, DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL: They had a one-track mind. And that was to make sure that Enron consistently beat the earnings expectations of Wall Street analysts, no matter what it took.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTINGTON: Now, Comey said that the gimmicks, as he put it, that Skilling and his confederates used ranged from the simple overstatement of earnings to the very complex hiding of debt and losses in off-balance sheet transactions.

Now, Skilling's high-powered defense team, which the presiding judge jokingly referred to at one point as an embarrassment of riches, says their client is a scapegoat and has always cooperated with the government.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN PETROCELLI, ATTORNEY FOR SKILLING: Jeff Skilling has nothing to hide. He did not steal. He did not lie. He did not take anyone's money.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTINGTON: Now, Deputy Attorney General Comey said that the Enron investigation continues. That's a thinly-veiled threat that there still could be charges against Kenneth Lay.

In other charges, the Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking in excess of $250 million in penalties and restitution from Skilling. As you mentioned, he's out on $5 million bail, but he'll be back in this federal court on March 11 for a pretrial hearing -- Wolf.

BLITZER: And we'll see what the government has in mind, if anything, for Ken Lay. Chris Huntington, thanks very much for that.

Lawyers in the Scott Peterson case spent much of the day in the judge's chambers. Defense attorneys want to bar evidence obtain from a wiretap on Peterson's phone. Peterson is accused of killing his wife, Laci, and their unborn child.

Earlier in the week, the judge in the Peterson case ruled that prosecutors can use evidence obtained from global positioning devices that were planted on Peterson's vehicles. Law enforcement agencies across the country are now making increasing use of these so-called GPS technology equipment.

CNN's Jennifer Coggiola saw a demonstration earlier today in Virginia. She's joining us now live -- Jennifer.

JENNIFER COGGIOLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Wolf.

Well, we went to Arlington, Virginia, where the police department there showed us today how they use these devices to stop crimes as they happen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let me see your hands now! Get your hands up now!

COGGIOLA (voice-over): This guy trying to steal an undercover car equipped with GPS by police didn't stand a chance. Through their bait car activation system, Arlington, Virginia, police have succeeded in making 18 arrests. And auto theft has dropped in the county since the technology was put into use two years ago.

DET. CHRIS DENGELES, ARLINGTON COUNTY POLICE: When a vehicle is entered and stolen, a silent alarm is sent to our communications center, where a dispatcher will intercept the call and then dispatch units to find the vehicle. Finally, law enforcement is catching up with technology.

COGGIOLA: But privacy experts caution that it's essential any new technology implemented by police meet existing search guidelines.

CHRIS HOOFNAGLE, ELECTRONIC PRIVACY INFORMATION CENTER: It's not that the technology is bad. It's that we want to make sure that there are adequate roadblocks to police access to it. And, typically, that roadblock will be a warrant, where police simply have to show probable cause that a crime occurred and go to a judge to prove that probable cause.

COGGIOLA: The GPS systems aren't just available for law enforcement officials. Anyone can buy them online for a multitude of purposes, to track your car's mileage for tax breaks or to monitor teen drivers or confirm suspicions about one's spouse.

Because GPS allows users to determine location, speed anytime anywhere on the planet, just as it can be helpful, it can also be abused, according to domestic abuse advocate Cindy Southworth.

CINDY SOUTHWORTH, NATIONAL NETWORK TO END DOMESTIC ABUSE: GPS is one more tool that abusers can use to stalk their victims. And so they can install it on the car, know her exact location, follow her when he tries to escape the relationship.

COGGIOLA: Last year, this Wisconsin man pleaded no contest to stalking his ex-girlfriend. He had hidden a GPS device in her car to track her every move.

SOUTHWORTH: He was able to know her exact location 24 hours a day because of the GPS system.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COGGIOLA: Now, GPS devices tend to be small, like this one that we got online. So they can easily be hid under the hood of your car, as was the case in Wisconsin, maybe mounted to your battery or your bumper. So, if you do suspect you're being tracked, check those places first -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jennifer Coggiola, good work. Thanks very much.

Hostage horror. He was one of several Western journalists held captive during the war with Iraq, locked up in the country's most notorious prison. Matt McAllester joins me live. That's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Earlier, we asked: Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison translates to which of the following? The answer, "Strange." The notorious Abu Ghraib is the largest prison in the Arab world. During Saddam's regime, it was overcrowded with murderers, rapists, and political prisoners.

From the depths of horror in former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's most notorious prison comes a tale of constant fear and an expectation of death at any moment. It's told by "Newsday" reporter Matt McAllester in his new book, "Blinded By the Sunlight." He was the only reporter taken captive during the war in Iraq. Several photographers were also taken captive.

Matt McAllester is joining us now live here in Washington.

Your colleague, the photographer, was also taken captive. Do you know even now why they picked on you, why they grabbed you out of the Palestine Hotel and took you away to this dungeon?

MATT MCALLESTER, AUTHOR, "BLINDED BY THE SUNLIGHT": It was a combination of two main things.

One was that we were on very restricted visas, whose terms we knowingly violated in order to keep working in Iraq. The second was, we happened upon an opposition stronghold within Baghdad before -- it was a Sufi temple before the war. We had no idea. And this was being closely monitored by the secret police. And...

BLITZER: Just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

MCALLESTER: Yes.

BLITZER: Let me read a passage from the book. And you really go out, tell how you feel.

"Of all the options that face me," you wrote, "the one I feared the most was torture. If it began, I knew they would already have decided my guilt and therefore the future would only be more torture, followed by death. So I would beg them to shoot me if torture began."

You really feared you were going to be tortured and then be killed at any moment?

MCALLESTER: Yes, I calculated about 95 percent chance of being killed. And, after the war, I interviewed a lot of members of the secret police who are sort of sitting quietly in their homes now. And they all laughed in amazement that we would actually managed to get out and said that we must be the luckiest people in Iraq.

BLITZER: We have heard all sorts of horror stories over the years of the Abu Ghraib prison, the torture chambers of Saddam Hussein. You lived through it. How bad was it?

MCALLESTER: For me, it was not so bad.

But what I saw -- they didn't hurt me. But right next to me, they were beating a prisoner who lived opposite of me -- and was ultimately executed a few days after we were released -- senseless with a stick. I heard screaming. And I have spoken to numerous prisoners afterwards about the torture that they went through. But it was around us. We could hear it all the time.

BLITZER: In a very, very moving part, you talk about your job as a journalist in the book. And you write: "I do it to satisfy some dishonorable selfish urge to taste death and danger without suffering the consequences. I should have left Iraq earlier, when other journalists were pulling out."

Elaborate a little bit.

MCALLESTER: That was in the pit of misery when I was feeling that. I mean, when you're facing possible torture and possible death, your regrets tend to come pouring in.

BLITZER: You begin to ask yourself, what the hell am I doing here?

MCALLESTER: Yes, why do I even do this job? Later on, I changed my mind and I thought, no matter what happens, I made the right decision to stay in Baghdad. And I feel that way now.

BLITZER: And would you go back if the situation were the same?

MCALLESTER: Yes, I would. I would.

BLITZER: If there was about to be a war, you would want to be in Baghdad or some other dangerous spot and live through the consequences, knowing what you have lived through already?

MCALLESTER: Yes, absolutely. It's what I do. It's what you do. It's what many of our colleagues do. And that hasn't changed.

BLITZER: "Blinded By the Sunlight," a powerful book by Matt McAllester.

Congratulations.

MCALLESTER: Thank you very much, Wolf.

BLITZER: Matt won a Pulitzer Prize earlier in his career.

And you're still a young guy. How old are you?

MCALLESTER: Thirty-four.

BLITZER: Thirty-four. You've got a lot of time ahead of you. Thanks very much, Matt.

MCALLESTER: Thanks, Wolf.

BLITZER: The results of our Web question when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Here is how you are weighing in on our "Web Question of the Day." Remember, this is not a scientific poll.

As rush hours hit cities across the country, here are the three worst bottlenecks in the country, according to a new Highway Industry Advocacy Group study. The worst bottleneck is Los Angeles at the interchange of Ventura Freeway and Interstate 405. Next in line, Houston, at the interchange between Interstates 10 and 610. The group says the third worst bottleneck, in Chicago.

"LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

END

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Suspendended Over Rape Scandal; President Bush Backtracks On Jobs Creation Forecast>


Aired February 19, 2004 - 17:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, HOST: Happening now. Coming to the coaches defense, former players speak out charging only one side of the story has been told involving an alleged rape on the Colorado University football team.
Shocking new details of an attack in Iraq. We're learning them right now.

And President Bush on the defensive when it comes to the economy.

Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Chaos in the Caribbean. Haiti's leader vows death. Are U.S. Troops on the way?

Ready or not, the U.S. sticks to the deadline for a hand over in Iraq.

PAUL BREMER, U.S. CIVIL ADMINISTRATOR TO IRAQ: There are 133 days before sovereignty returns to an Iraqi government.

BLITZER: Caught in the act, nuclear inspectors turn up a troubling find in Iran.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We may have a secret program within a secret program.

BLITZER: Indictment, Enron's ex-exec faces the Feds over his company's collapse.

Endorsement, big labor backs a front-runner.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Thursday, February 19, 2004.

BLITZER: Chaos reigns once again in the desperately poor Caribbean nation of Haiti and the United States is trying desperately not to be drawn in again. Two weeks into a bloody revolt which has claimed dozens of lives, President Jean Bertrand Aristide says he's ready to give up his own life to defend his country, but he's not ready to give up power. The U.S. Sent thousands of troops to Haiti only a decade ago, now a much smaller contingent will soon be back on the ground.

Let's go straight to CNN's Lucia Newman. She's in Port-au- Prince.

Lucia, tell our viewers what's going on.

LUCIA NEWMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon, Wolf. Well, the State Department has just issued a warning urging American in this country to leave. The United States is also sending a team of about four military specialists to assess the security situation at the U.S. Embassy and for Americans. There are about 20,000 American citizens living in this country right now, Wolf. In the meantime, President Jean Bertrand Aristide again reiterated today that he would not leave the presidential palace no matter what.

Back to you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Lucia, is there a sense of an imminent crisis right now that could only result, only be conclude with the introduction of an international force, including U.S. forces?

NEWMAN: Some are saying that, Wolf, but the United States has been reluctant until now, as has France, to send a peace keeping force. They say it's up to the Haitians to try to sort out their own problems and come to a peaceful resolution, dialog, negotiations. But all sides here are unwilling to bend. So it may well be, more people are beginning to feel that they be the only way out of this crisis -- Wolf.

BLITZER: What about the American whose are there right now, Lucia.

How worried are they?

NEWMAN: Right now, Wolf, the situation in Port-au-Prince where the majority of Americans live is very, very calm. In fact, as a matter of fact, at this moment there are people setting up bandstands to welcome the carnival this weekend. But there are some that are beginning to get very nervous and, in fact, are considering leaving in the next few days if for not only just temporary until the situation settles or doesn't settle down -- Wolf.

BLITZER: CNN's Lucia Newman in Port-au-Prince in Haiti. Thanks for much, Lucia, for that.

Let's move on now to Iraq. There are new developments in last weekend's bloody attacks on a police station and civil defense compound in the Iraqi town of Fallujah. Attacks which still have U.S. Military officials scratching their heads.

Let's go live to senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, SENIOR PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the U.S. Military is looking into the case of the quick reaction force that wasn't quite quick enough.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MCINTYRE (voice-over): The U.S. is reviewing what went wrong Saturday in Fallujah where some 20 Iraqi police officers were killed and dozens of prisoners set free after insurgents stormed an Iraqi police station. The U.S. had quick reaction force nearby whose job it is to help Iraqis. It wasn't able to respond in time. And now commanders want to know why.

BRIG. GEN. DAVID RODRIGUEZ: We'll take an assessment of everything that went on during that operation and make the adjustments to make sure something like that doesn't happen in the future.

MCINTYRE: The Pentagon says a number of factors prevented them from helping the police station. The attack was well coordinated and quick, lasting only 15 minutes. The attackers cut the phone lines to the police station, delaying a call for help. It's unclear if there was radio communications. A smaller simultaneous attack in a Iraqi civil defense compound diverted the U.S. force or the QRF to another location where it's seemed the Iraqis had everything under control.

RODRIGUEZ: The American QRF which was about five to ten minutes away responded immediately to the civil defense thing who had obviously better communications with during that 15-minute time period, at which point in time the civil defend corporation commander said we can handle it. The only assistance we need right now is ammunition and arms.

MCINTYRE: Meanwhile, at the police station the Iraqis were quickly overrun.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MCINTYRE: The U.S. Is also investigating where the attackers had inside help. Several people, including the mayor of Fallujah and two members of the U.S.-trained Iraqi Civil Defense Force are being questioned under suspicion they may have hat links to the guerrillas -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon.

Jamie, thank you very much. There are still no arrangements set for a handover of power in Iraq. The various parties can't agree how to make it work. But the United States and now the United Nations are both making it clear that the transition must somehow remain on schedule.

Let's go live to our senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth.

RICHARD ROTH, SENIOR U.N. CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, the United Nations playing the traditional honest broker role weighing in now on the scheduling of elections in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROTH (voice-over): U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan revealed his anticipated decision on election in Iraq. KOFI ANNAN, U.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL: Elections ask not be held before the end of June, that the June 30 date for hand over of sovereignty must be respected.

ROTH: Minutes before Annan announced his decision, in Baghdad U.S. coalition authorities who asked for the U.N.'s advice, made it clear no matter what the U.N. said about elections for a new government, the June 30 timetable was not to be changed.

BREMER: Changes in the mechanism for forming an interim government are possible but the date holds. And hold, it should.

ROTH: So the big question is how then to replace a U.S. Plan which called for local caucuses in 18 regions of Iraq to choose eventual new leaders following the hand over of authority. The U.N. doesn't want to impose more recommendations right now in the search for a new plan for Iraq.

ANNAN: We have absolutely no prepared options. We need to have the -- Iraq to discuss it. They must take ownership.

ROTH: Iraq's Civilian Administrator Paul Bremer said there are dozens of ways a new transitional government can be selected.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROTH: And diplomats hearsay Kofi Annan may recommend that it would fake some eight to 10 months once preparations were made for elections here. It's also possible Lakhdar Brahimi could go back to Iraq to make some more facts on the ground known.

Back to you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Richard Roth at the U.N. thank you very much, Richard.

Let's move on to a very disturbing discovery by U.N. inspectors in Iran. It's raising new questions about that country's nuclear activities and its nuclear ambitions.

For that, let's turn to national security correspondent David Ensor. He's joining us from the State Department -- David.

DAVID ENSOR, NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, these revelations only underscore Washington's doubts that Tehran is being honest with the international community about its nuclear programs.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ENSOR (voice-over): Iran has been showing inspectors the facilities, but senior bush administration officials say the Iranian enrichment plans and machinery inspectors have now found elsewhere is of a far more sophisticated type than Iran has ever admitted to having.

SCOTT MCCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECY.: These reports that we have seeing of Iran enriching uranium and possessing more advanced centrifuge designs raise serious concerns.

ENSOR: Officials say the P-type centrifuge plans and parts would give Iran much greater capability to produce bomb-grade uranium.

DAVID ALBRIGHT, INST. FOR SCIENCE & INTERNATIONAL SECURITY: So, the P2, although more difficult to make, is a much more sufficient machine, will last much longer and make much more enriched uranium.

ENSOR: It was P-2 technology that was found recently in Lybia supplied officials saying by the black market organization headed by Pakistani scientist Dr. Kamran Khan. U.S. Officials say they are not sure whether where the Iranian plans and parts came from but the discovery is raising troubling questions.

GARY MILHLLIN, WISCONSIN PROJECT ON NUCLEAR ARMS: It's reasonable to ask if Iran seems to be concealing things, why it's doing so. And that, of course, suggests that it may have nuclear weapon intentions, which the United States government believes.

RICHARD BOUCHER, STATE DEPT. SPOKESMAN: We have said that we believe that Iran is continuing to hide information from the International Atomic Energy Agency.

ENSOR: IAEA officials declined all comment for this report. And in Tehran the foreign ministry specificly denied it. A spokesman saying there are no P-2 centrifuge in Iran, neither at civilian or military installations.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ENSOR: Officials expect the latest revelations to be in the IAEI report to the board of governors that will be delivered to them this weekend. A senior State Department official hinted that the U.S. may not ask the board of governors to refer the matter to the U.N. Security Council for action since officials here in this building at least, feel that the rigorous inspections that are now going on in Iran are working rather well and should continue -- Wolf.

BLITZER: David Ensor at the State Department for us today. Thank you, David.

A powerful ally, the Democratic front-runner picks up one of the most important endorsements in American politics. Will it give him an edge?

The coach is benched. The university of Colorado's football program under severe scrutiny after a former player's rape allegation. Players are now speaking out.

And a journalist held captive in one of the Middle East most horrific prisons. I'll speak live with Pulitzer prize winning Matt McAllister about what it was like to be a prisoner in Saddam Hussein's Iraq.

We'll get to all of that. First, though, today's news clips.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER (voice-over): Iraq's Abu Grahaib prison translates to which of the following? Giant, Strange, Sinful, Great? The answer coming up.

BLITZER: The Bush administration today took another stab at trying to stop the fallout over an optimistic report that the economy would create more than 2 1/2 million jobs this year. But if anything, the effort appears to be a retreat. Our White House correspondent Dana Bash is joining us now live with more on this story. What's the Bush administration saying right now, Dana?

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, the Bush campaign chairman said the 2.6 million new jobs forecast is a stated goal and he called it a theoretical discussion by economists. As for the White House spokesman, he said it's simply a snapshot in time by economic forecasters. As for the president, he didn't call it anything at all. Instead, he tried to change the subject to what he was wanting to talk about which are his tax cuts which he says are helping the economy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If Congress doesn't do anything, there will be tax increases on the American people. That's what that means. When you hear, we're going to repeal the bush tax cuts, that means tax increases. That's what that is. I'm going to raise your taxes is what they're saying. There's a philosophical difference here, who would you rather spend your money here, you or the federal government?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now the Bush political team says they're going to continue to have the president talk about issues like tax cuts, things that they want to discuss in this campaign year. But more privately some Republicans are saying they are concerned that this issue is overshadowing some of the good economic numbers that the president is trying to discuss. Back to you, Wolf.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, Dana Bash at the White House.

Let's move on to the latest in the fight for the Democratic presidential nomination. We have two correspondents standing by, Kelly Wallace and Dan Lothian.

Kelly, let's begin with you. You're covering John Kerry's campaign. What's going on.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, he received a very big endorsement. A significant endorsement today from the AFL-CIO, the nation's largest umbrella group of labor representing 64 unions, some 13 million American workers. This is significant aids say just to have a lot of people out there trying to get out the vote. And also because the AFL-CIO vigorously opposed the North American Free Trade Agreement which John Kerry supported. So aides believe this could help Kerry as he argues the trade issue with Edwards. There is this point though, a lot of labor unions came out for Dick Gephardt and Howard Dean. Those candidates no longer in the race, so in an interview, CNN's Judy Woodruff, asked John Kerry why he thinks organized labor will really be able to deliver the vote for him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN KERRY, (D-MA) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think we proved over the course of the last primaries and caucuses that I know how to translate into -- into grass roots effort. That's what you have to do, is go out and appeal to voters. I've never taken endorsements as a free-standing effort.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: John Kerry, though, getting another boost later today or earlier today when he received the endorsement from Congressman John Lewis of Georgia, the civil rights champion, long-time Congressman. He was there with Kerry's wife, Teresa, endorsing John Kerry. Saying, he did this because he knows John Kerry more than John Edwards.

He believes his endorsement will be significant. It will get all his supporters out to the polls in Georgia. And Wolf, as you know, Georgia one of the ten states holding key contests just a little less than two weeks from now.

BLITZER: Super Tuesday, March 2. Thanks very much, Kelly, for that.

Despite big labor support for John Kerry, Senator John Edwards is certainly pressing ahead with his attacks on Kerry over the issue of trade and specifically the loss of American jobs to overseas as markets. CNN's Dan Lothian is covering the Edwards campaign. He's there live as well -- Dan.

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Senator Edwards is back on the trail after taking a day off making stops in New York and Georgia. He is staying on the message that he believes resonated with Wisconsin voters, that is trade. Something he now call a moral issue.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LOTHIAN (voice-over): Using the issue of trade to define his campaign, Senator John Edwards told a packed audience at Columbia University in New York he will fight to keep American jobs on American soil.

JOHN EDWARDS, (D-SC) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: They cut your wages and benefits as far as they can just to please the stock market. And when they can't cut anymore they pick up your job and take it to another country where they can pay just pennies for an hour's worth of work. Our trade policies encourage it and our tax policies make it worse. LOTHIAN: Voicing often his opposition to NAFTA, Senator Edwards is trying to set himself apart from his chief rival in Democratic frontrunner Senator John Kerry who voted for the trade agreement. And in a bold overture said he's ready to go one-on-one.

EDWARDS: We should debate wherever and whenever. I'll go anywhere in America we need to go to debate these issues.

LOTHIAN: Senator Edwards says he's unconcerned about the AFL- CIO's endorsement of Senator Kerry.

EDWARDS: If you look at what's happened in all of the early primaries, unless I missed something, with the exception of Unite, I've not had the endorsement of labor unions and I've done very well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LOTHIAN: Aides say they are in a good financial position to wage a competitive battle in key Super Tuesday states. In fact, since Wisconsin the campaign has taken in $700,000, more than half of that amount raised over the Internet -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Learning something from Howard Dean's campaign, no doubt. Dan Lothian, thanks very much.

A growing scandal. The university of Colorado football coach benched and defended by his players, while a scandal involving a rape allegation over takes his team.

Handcuffs for the former CEO of Enron. Prosecutors turn up the heat in that investigation.

And going nowhere fast, what U.S. cities do you think have the worst traffic? Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: An army researcher is in isolation while doctors watch her for signs of possible exposure to the Ebola virus. Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr is joining us now with an update. Barbara, what exactly happened?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, let's bring you up to date on this case. A female civilian army researcher at Fort Detrick, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C. here, working at the army's Institute of Medical Research, last week apparently accidentally pricked herself with a needle while she was working with research mice that had been infected with a low-dose form of something called Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever virus, a very deadly agent, often fatal, not always but quite serious.

Now this woman has shown no signs yet of the illness itself, but the army is taking every precaution and with her consent, and the consent of her family, she has been placed in 30 days of isolation at Fort Detrick. Again, that is with her consent. She has shown no signs of the illness but they do want to watch her. The incubation period for this is about two to 21 days.

What the army is doing at Fort Detrick with the Ebola virus is they are working on a number of research programs related to bioterrorism and also doing some research into possible vaccines and treatment for this deadly disease. In its most severe forms in parts of the world where there have been outbreaks, people experience very difficult to say this, but both internal and external bleeding. It's quite a serious disease. Again, this woman has shown no signs but they're going to watch her for several more days -- Wolf.

BLITZER: I don't know if you know the answer to this, Barbara, but is there any antidote? Is there anything they can do while she's in isolation to prevent the onslaught of this Ebola?

STARR: Well, according to the Center for Disease Control, it's one of the very interesting things about the disease. It often has just terrible devastating effects and it is fatal but it's not always fatal. So they really don't know all that much about it at this point. One of the things the army has been researching is some type of vaccine for this because this is a disease that often is of concern in a potential bioterrorism attack because it is so deadly. So a woman, a researcher who was trying to work on trying to find some sort of vaccine or treatment for it accidentally pricked herself and has exposed herself to it. Again, so far thankfully she has shown no signs of it and she and her family do remain in good spirits.

BLITZER: Let's hope it stays like that. Thanks very much, Barbara, for that story. We'll keep our viewers updated on it in the coming days.

Controversy in Colorado. A female football player alleges rape and a coach is now put on leave. Fallout from a scandal that's rocking the state's university.

Charging the chief. A former Enron CEO is indicted. Federal agents call him a top get but his lawyers fire right back.

And held captive. He was locked up in Iraq's most notorious prison during the war, seeing the horror firsthand. I'll speak live with the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, Matt McAllister. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Welcome back to CNN. Coming up, benched but receiving a rigorous -- vigorous, that is, defending. New details involving the controversial football coach at the University of Colorado. And another allegation of sexual assault. We'll get to all of that. First, though, the latest headlines.

Five Britons and a Dane held at the Guantanamo base in Cuba will be going home. They have been in detention at the U.S. military facility for two years without a trial. Four other British citizens will remain locked up with hundreds of other people either captured in Afghanistan or suspected of having ties to al Qaeda or the Taliban. South Korea's decision to send 3,000 more troops to Iraq has prompted President Bush to thank the country's leader. The president spoke by phone to his South Korean counterpart earlier today. The pair also discussed the south's next round in nuclear talks with North Korea agreeing they should be constructed and sincere.

San Francisco is suing the state of California over its ban on same-sex marriages. The legal move comes after the city's sanctioned more than 2,700 such marriages in the past week. Two challenges aimed at stopping them are also being considered by separate judges.

Police in Colorado today said their investigation -- they're investigating yet another alleged sexual assault involving a University of Colorado football player. This comes after yesterday's suspension of head coach Gary Barnett, a move taken after Barnett criticized a former female player who alleges she was raped by a teammate.

CNN's Michelle Bonner has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHELLE BONNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two days ago, Katie Hnida, a kicker for the University of Colorado in 1999, alleged she was raped by one teammate and sexually harassed by others while she was there. Today, some of her former teammates spoke out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gary Barnett has always stressed the developing an ethical and moral character. As each new season begins, we have meetings, oftentimes for hours on end, regarding the standards of conduct that we are to adhere to as members of the Colorado football team.

A player's conduct book is thoroughly discussed, read and reviewed by each player during these mandatory meetings. In this book, there's even a special section on appropriate sexual conduct. Gary Barnett is an upright, honest and moral man. And I stand by him as my coach, as my leader and as my mentor.

BONNER: So far, Hnida has declined to reveal anyone's name. Late Wednesday night, Gary Barnett was relieved of his coaching duties after he criticized Hnida's kicking abilities while addressing the scandal at a Tuesday press conference.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE) most of the players did not want Katie on the team? And why was that?

GARY BARNETT, HEAD FOOTBALL COACH, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO: Just new, different. You know, it's just -- you know, it's a guy's sport. And they felt like Katie was forced on her -- you know, on them.

QUESTION: (OFF-MIKE)

BARNETT: Well, it was obvious Katie was not very good. She was awful, OK? So, you know what guys do? They respect your ability. I mean, you could be 90 years old, but if you can go out and play, they respect you. And what was -- Katie was a girl. And not only was she a girl. She was terrible, OK? And there's no other way to say it. She couldn't kick the ball through the uprights.

BONNER: Betsy Hoffman, the school president, placed Barnett on administrative leave with pay, pending the outcome of an investigation.

ELIZABETH HOFFMAN, PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO: His remarks about her were extremely inappropriate and insensitive. Rape is a horrific allegation and it should be taken seriously.

BARNETT: I sincerely regret that, yesterday, a portion of my remarks were either misinterpreted or taken -- aired out of context. And I apologize for answering that question in a manner where I must have come across as insensitive.

BONNER: The school was also distressed by the release yesterday of a police report from 2001 in which a woman accuses a football player of rape. The woman's name was blacked out on the report, which says she met with coach Barnett and was told that he would take care of the problem, but that he would back his player 100 percent if she pressed charges.

BARNETT: All I can say that is that I believe there are some inaccuracies in the police report. Otherwise, I will address that in the future, if it becomes appropriate.

BONNER: Today, the Boulder police said they are investigating an allegation of sexual assault which occurred in 2002. This would be the sixth allegation against the football team. The school is expected to report the findings of its independent investigation on April 30. In the meantime, the president issued a plea to current and perspective female students.

HOFFMAN: There are 29,000 students on the Boulder campus. This is a very small number of cases, a very small group. We take it very, very seriously, but we still believe that the Boulder campus is a safe place for young women to come.

BONNER: Michelle Bonner, CNN Sports.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Joining us now to talk more about this story, two members of the University of Colorado Board of Regents, the chairman, Peter Steinhauer, and Jim Martin.

Thanks to both of you for joining us.

First to the chairman.

Mr. Steinhauer, is it time for the university to take more specific action against the coach in this particular case, Gary Barnett, for what he said?

PETER STEINHAUER, CHAIR, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO BOARD OF REGENTS: I think that President Hoffman and the chancellor, Dr. Byyny, took the appropriate action last night and let him go to administrative leave with pay. I think this was the appropriate action to do at this time, because this is still the United States and you're innocent until proven guilty.

BLITZER: You heard the question and you heard the answer, the controversial answer that he made. What do you think, Mr. Steinhauer? Was he off base? Should he not have said what he said?

STEINHAUER: I thought his statements were very insensitive and I -- and, personally, I thought they were inappropriate.

BLITZER: Mr. Martin, what do you say?

JIM MARTIN, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO BOARD OF REGENTS: Well, I agree with Chair Steinhauer.

The statements were totally inappropriate. But I want to say that this isn't and should not be just a focus on Gary Barnett. This whole university is shaken. And Gary Barnett is just one part of this athletic department. There's the athletic director. There's the chancellor of the Boulder campus. There's the president. And, ultimately, there is the Board of Regents.

You know, I always hearken back to Howard Dean and that Watergate investigation.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: John Dean.

MARTIN: Howard Dean, Howard Dean, the senator from Tennessee, when he -- and he asked a question. And that question was, what did you know and when did you know it?

BLITZER: That was Howard Baker.

(CROSSTALK)

MARTIN: Howard Baker. I'm sorry. Howard Baker.

The Howard Baker statement, though, could be added -- we could add to that. And that is, what should we have known or what should have been asked during the timeframe of which this story was being taken into consideration?

BLITZER: Mr. Steinhauer, amid all of these allegations of rape and total insensitivity to some of the women who were involved, is it time to put a freeze on the athletic program, maybe just the football program at the University of Colorado, until you sort out what exactly is going on?

STEINHAUER: We have -- the president has appointed an independent person to come in and oversee the athletic department and its policies. We have also appointed the -- the Board of Regents appointed an independent investigative committee this last week made up of seven people, totally independent from the university, that will be studying and evaluating the processes and the procedures of the athletic department and particularly the recruiting procedures here.

MARTIN: Wolf

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Go ahead, Mr. Martin.

MARTIN: That's the only thing Chair Steinhauer and I disagree on. I did not support that original as far as proposal.

I don't think it ought to be done by the university. I use the analogy of the Air Force Academy and its sexual scandal. It began with an internal investigation. I think, given now the events and now the numbers and the severity, that we need a panel that's impartial, that has full subpoena power for not only documents, but for witnesses.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: It sounds, Mr. Martin, that you want a criminal investigation run, let's say, by the attorney general or someone in law enforcement.

MARTIN: Well, obviously, there are possible criminal charges associated with some of these rape charges.

A grand jury can be charged in civil, as far as -- as far as civil challenges as well. And I think the further that it looks like we're getting an independent, impartial panel, the better off now we'll be.

BLITZER: Mr. Steinhauer, do you want the woman, the field goal kicker who alleges rape while she was at the University of Colorado, to come forward and name names?

STEINHAUER: Yes. I think that would be imperative that she do -- if she decides to do that.

And let me -- let me just say this, in contradiction to Regent Martin's statement. I believe that this panel is going to be quite effective. There are great leaders and leaders that react in good times -- great leaders react in bad times. And those are the leaders like President Roosevelt on December 7 of '41 and President Bush of 9/11.

The University of Colorado, I believe, is blessed with one of the great leaders of all universities. She has taken the bull by the horns, not acted at a knee-jerk sense. We've investigated these allegations and accusations. She made a tough decision last night. This has not only affected our university, but it has affected the alums, the students, the other athletic teams, the parents. And I'm very pleased with this. And I believe that it's time to let this investigative committee get on with their business. The Board of Regents, the university and the media needs to step back and let them do their job.

BLITZER: Peter Steinhauer and Jim Martin, I know you guys got a tough job ahead of you. The whole country is watching right now. Good luck to all of you.

STEINHAUER: Thank you, Wolf.

MARTIN: Thank you very much, Wolf.

BLITZER: Please be sure to stay with CNN tonight for "LARRY KING LIVE." He'll have an exclusive interview with the suspended University of Colorado football coach, Gary Barnett. That will begin 9:00 p.m. Eastern, 6:00 Pacific. Larry King speaks to Gary Barnett live, 9:00 p.m., only here at CNN.

And here is your chance to weigh in on this important story. Our "Web Question of the Day" is this. Was putting Colorado coach Gary Barnett on paid leave appropriate? You can vote right now. Go to CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

Facing the feds. A former Enron exec is in cuffs over alleged corruption. His lawyers say he's just a government scapegoat. We'll have that.

Plus, this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Finally, law enforcement is catching up with technology.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Tracking technology, a device that allows law enforcement to easily locate criminals, but is it too easy for others to abuse?

And locked away. He was held captive in a notorious Iraqi prison during the war. Still to come, my interview with the journalist Matt McAllester.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Hours after turning himself into to federal authorities this morning, the former Enron chief Jeffrey Skilling is free on $5 million bond. He's the highest ranking official to date to be charged in the federal investigation into the energy giant's downfall.

CNN financial news correspondent Chris Huntington is following this new chapter in the Enron scandal. He's joining us now live from Houston -- Chris. CHRIS HUNTINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, Well, Jeffrey Skilling was once the second highest ranking executive at Enron, but he entered federal court here in Houston in handcuffs.

As expected, he pleaded not guilty to 35 criminal charges that range from conspiracy, securities fraud and insider trading. The government accuses Skilling of orchestrating an elaborate scheme with other Enron executives to manipulate the company's earnings and prop up Enron stock price.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES B. COMEY, DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL: They had a one-track mind. And that was to make sure that Enron consistently beat the earnings expectations of Wall Street analysts, no matter what it took.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTINGTON: Now, Comey said that the gimmicks, as he put it, that Skilling and his confederates used ranged from the simple overstatement of earnings to the very complex hiding of debt and losses in off-balance sheet transactions.

Now, Skilling's high-powered defense team, which the presiding judge jokingly referred to at one point as an embarrassment of riches, says their client is a scapegoat and has always cooperated with the government.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAN PETROCELLI, ATTORNEY FOR SKILLING: Jeff Skilling has nothing to hide. He did not steal. He did not lie. He did not take anyone's money.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTINGTON: Now, Deputy Attorney General Comey said that the Enron investigation continues. That's a thinly-veiled threat that there still could be charges against Kenneth Lay.

In other charges, the Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking in excess of $250 million in penalties and restitution from Skilling. As you mentioned, he's out on $5 million bail, but he'll be back in this federal court on March 11 for a pretrial hearing -- Wolf.

BLITZER: And we'll see what the government has in mind, if anything, for Ken Lay. Chris Huntington, thanks very much for that.

Lawyers in the Scott Peterson case spent much of the day in the judge's chambers. Defense attorneys want to bar evidence obtain from a wiretap on Peterson's phone. Peterson is accused of killing his wife, Laci, and their unborn child.

Earlier in the week, the judge in the Peterson case ruled that prosecutors can use evidence obtained from global positioning devices that were planted on Peterson's vehicles. Law enforcement agencies across the country are now making increasing use of these so-called GPS technology equipment.

CNN's Jennifer Coggiola saw a demonstration earlier today in Virginia. She's joining us now live -- Jennifer.

JENNIFER COGGIOLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Wolf.

Well, we went to Arlington, Virginia, where the police department there showed us today how they use these devices to stop crimes as they happen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let me see your hands now! Get your hands up now!

COGGIOLA (voice-over): This guy trying to steal an undercover car equipped with GPS by police didn't stand a chance. Through their bait car activation system, Arlington, Virginia, police have succeeded in making 18 arrests. And auto theft has dropped in the county since the technology was put into use two years ago.

DET. CHRIS DENGELES, ARLINGTON COUNTY POLICE: When a vehicle is entered and stolen, a silent alarm is sent to our communications center, where a dispatcher will intercept the call and then dispatch units to find the vehicle. Finally, law enforcement is catching up with technology.

COGGIOLA: But privacy experts caution that it's essential any new technology implemented by police meet existing search guidelines.

CHRIS HOOFNAGLE, ELECTRONIC PRIVACY INFORMATION CENTER: It's not that the technology is bad. It's that we want to make sure that there are adequate roadblocks to police access to it. And, typically, that roadblock will be a warrant, where police simply have to show probable cause that a crime occurred and go to a judge to prove that probable cause.

COGGIOLA: The GPS systems aren't just available for law enforcement officials. Anyone can buy them online for a multitude of purposes, to track your car's mileage for tax breaks or to monitor teen drivers or confirm suspicions about one's spouse.

Because GPS allows users to determine location, speed anytime anywhere on the planet, just as it can be helpful, it can also be abused, according to domestic abuse advocate Cindy Southworth.

CINDY SOUTHWORTH, NATIONAL NETWORK TO END DOMESTIC ABUSE: GPS is one more tool that abusers can use to stalk their victims. And so they can install it on the car, know her exact location, follow her when he tries to escape the relationship.

COGGIOLA: Last year, this Wisconsin man pleaded no contest to stalking his ex-girlfriend. He had hidden a GPS device in her car to track her every move.

SOUTHWORTH: He was able to know her exact location 24 hours a day because of the GPS system.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COGGIOLA: Now, GPS devices tend to be small, like this one that we got online. So they can easily be hid under the hood of your car, as was the case in Wisconsin, maybe mounted to your battery or your bumper. So, if you do suspect you're being tracked, check those places first -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Jennifer Coggiola, good work. Thanks very much.

Hostage horror. He was one of several Western journalists held captive during the war with Iraq, locked up in the country's most notorious prison. Matt McAllester joins me live. That's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Earlier, we asked: Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison translates to which of the following? The answer, "Strange." The notorious Abu Ghraib is the largest prison in the Arab world. During Saddam's regime, it was overcrowded with murderers, rapists, and political prisoners.

From the depths of horror in former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's most notorious prison comes a tale of constant fear and an expectation of death at any moment. It's told by "Newsday" reporter Matt McAllester in his new book, "Blinded By the Sunlight." He was the only reporter taken captive during the war in Iraq. Several photographers were also taken captive.

Matt McAllester is joining us now live here in Washington.

Your colleague, the photographer, was also taken captive. Do you know even now why they picked on you, why they grabbed you out of the Palestine Hotel and took you away to this dungeon?

MATT MCALLESTER, AUTHOR, "BLINDED BY THE SUNLIGHT": It was a combination of two main things.

One was that we were on very restricted visas, whose terms we knowingly violated in order to keep working in Iraq. The second was, we happened upon an opposition stronghold within Baghdad before -- it was a Sufi temple before the war. We had no idea. And this was being closely monitored by the secret police. And...

BLITZER: Just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

MCALLESTER: Yes.

BLITZER: Let me read a passage from the book. And you really go out, tell how you feel.

"Of all the options that face me," you wrote, "the one I feared the most was torture. If it began, I knew they would already have decided my guilt and therefore the future would only be more torture, followed by death. So I would beg them to shoot me if torture began."

You really feared you were going to be tortured and then be killed at any moment?

MCALLESTER: Yes, I calculated about 95 percent chance of being killed. And, after the war, I interviewed a lot of members of the secret police who are sort of sitting quietly in their homes now. And they all laughed in amazement that we would actually managed to get out and said that we must be the luckiest people in Iraq.

BLITZER: We have heard all sorts of horror stories over the years of the Abu Ghraib prison, the torture chambers of Saddam Hussein. You lived through it. How bad was it?

MCALLESTER: For me, it was not so bad.

But what I saw -- they didn't hurt me. But right next to me, they were beating a prisoner who lived opposite of me -- and was ultimately executed a few days after we were released -- senseless with a stick. I heard screaming. And I have spoken to numerous prisoners afterwards about the torture that they went through. But it was around us. We could hear it all the time.

BLITZER: In a very, very moving part, you talk about your job as a journalist in the book. And you write: "I do it to satisfy some dishonorable selfish urge to taste death and danger without suffering the consequences. I should have left Iraq earlier, when other journalists were pulling out."

Elaborate a little bit.

MCALLESTER: That was in the pit of misery when I was feeling that. I mean, when you're facing possible torture and possible death, your regrets tend to come pouring in.

BLITZER: You begin to ask yourself, what the hell am I doing here?

MCALLESTER: Yes, why do I even do this job? Later on, I changed my mind and I thought, no matter what happens, I made the right decision to stay in Baghdad. And I feel that way now.

BLITZER: And would you go back if the situation were the same?

MCALLESTER: Yes, I would. I would.

BLITZER: If there was about to be a war, you would want to be in Baghdad or some other dangerous spot and live through the consequences, knowing what you have lived through already?

MCALLESTER: Yes, absolutely. It's what I do. It's what you do. It's what many of our colleagues do. And that hasn't changed.

BLITZER: "Blinded By the Sunlight," a powerful book by Matt McAllester.

Congratulations.

MCALLESTER: Thank you very much, Wolf.

BLITZER: Matt won a Pulitzer Prize earlier in his career.

And you're still a young guy. How old are you?

MCALLESTER: Thirty-four.

BLITZER: Thirty-four. You've got a lot of time ahead of you. Thanks very much, Matt.

MCALLESTER: Thanks, Wolf.

BLITZER: The results of our Web question when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Here is how you are weighing in on our "Web Question of the Day." Remember, this is not a scientific poll.

As rush hours hit cities across the country, here are the three worst bottlenecks in the country, according to a new Highway Industry Advocacy Group study. The worst bottleneck is Los Angeles at the interchange of Ventura Freeway and Interstate 405. Next in line, Houston, at the interchange between Interstates 10 and 610. The group says the third worst bottleneck, in Chicago.

"LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

END

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Suspendended Over Rape Scandal; President Bush Backtracks On Jobs Creation Forecast>