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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports

Fate of Kidnapped U.S. Marine Unclear; U.S. Bombs Suspected Safe House in Iraq; Has Kerry Selected a V.P.?

Aired July 05, 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.


DREW GRIFFIN, HOST: And happening right now. The family of a Marine held hostage in Iraq is expected to speak at this hour, just as news of his possible fate is made public.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Missing Marine, mixed messages his fate. Will his life be spared?

Iraq's insurgents. The U.S. just targets a safe house. Does the Iraqi government have its own plan to stop them?

Kerry's choice. Has he already picked a running mate?

Secret lives of wives: the new infidelity. Why are women cheating on their husbands? I'll ask Dr. Drew Pinsky of radio's "Love Line."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Monday, July 5, 2004.

GRIFFIN: I'm Drew Griffin at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Wolf Blitzer off today.

After an emotionally wrenching weekend for the family of a kidnapped U.S. Marine, there are dramatic new developments late today. We expect to hear very shortly from the family of Corporal Wassef Hassoun.

CNN's Rusty Dornin standing by at the family home in Utah. But first, CNN's Zain Verjee joins us here at the CNN Center in Atlanta -- Zain.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks a lot, Drew.

Over the past three days, we've been receiving mixed messages about the status of Corporal Hassoun. But for his family and his friends, the latest message is the most hopeful one.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE (voice-over): Corporal Wassef Hassoun, a Marine translator of Lebanese descent, disappeared in Iraq more than two weeks ago.

On June 27, Al Jazeera TV showed a videotape of Hassoun, blindfolded. The pictures were accompanied by a threat, saying Hassoun would be killed I f the United States did not release Iraqi prisoners.

The hunt in Iraq for Hassoun and his captors turned up nothing.

Then, this past Saturday, the worst possible news for Hassoun's friends and family: a message posted on an Islamic web site declared Hassoun was dead.

But one day later, a sudden reversal. A different web site said, Hassoun was still alive. That message was followed today by a statement delivered to Al Jazeera, attributed to Islamic Response.

It said, Hassoun, quote, "has been sent to a safe place after he had announced his forgiveness and his determination not to go back to the U.S. forces."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: We've got stress there's been no independent verification of any of the claims about Corporal Hassoun -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Zain, what do we know about this group, the Islamic Response, who put out this notice today?

VERJEE: Well, at this stage we don't really know much about Islamic Response to say anything definitive about the group. We don't know how authentic it is. It's not even clear whether it's an extension of other, more well known groups.

Regional experts, though, say that one of the tactics of militant fringe groups is to do this. They take on different names so they confuse the American intelligence to preserve themselves.

GRIFFIN: Zain, it's been a very confusing week. And in Utah for the family, they are making a statement right now. Let's go that in Utah.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... depend upon you to have him (ph). We renew our request to all people of the world to continue to pray for his safe release. We thank everyone for the continued outpour of support and prayers. May God bless us all. Good day.

N-O-S-S-E-I-R.

GRIFFIN: That is a family spokesman, or I believe a cousin of Wassef Hassoun. This is the family home in Utah. Hassoun, born in Lebanon, but his family lives in Utah.

They have been tight-lipped about this entire ordeal from the beginning when it was reported that their cousin and son walked away from duty and then was captured and then perhaps even beheaded was some of the web site addresses over the weekend. And now we're learning that he might be in a safe place.

We're hoping to bring in CNN's Rusty Dornin, who is in Utah and been following this from West Jordan, Utah. Rusty, are you there? What can you tell us?

Apparently we do not have Rusty. Rusty Dornin on that.

She is back. Let's go to Rusty Dornin. Rusty, you've been there most of last few days as the family has ridden the emotional ride.

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Really, they've kept in seclusion the entire time, Drew. And Tarek Nosseir has really been the only person that's a member of the family who has spoken, and he has not spoken since last week.

Now he says that he just hopes he is freed. Of course, they're also hearing conflicting reports. They want everyone to pray for him.

I did speak to someone very close to the family a short time ago who did tell me that the message that was given by the militants, talking about that he was set to a safe place was very unnerving, because what did a "safe place" mean? It was still very upsetting to the family because there have been no independent confirmations of these reports.

So the family is still remaining in seclusion. This statement was actually arranged to be held, regardless of the breaking news today. They had arranged for Tarek Nosseir to give a statement today.

It's only in light of what has happened that is really carrying a lot of significance now. And of course, this family is on edge more than ever -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: And Rusty, this family has no more information than anybody, including the U.S. military, about what happened to this fellow.

DORNIN: They absolutely don't. In fact, the person I spoke to had been watching CNN when he did learn of Al Jazeera's report that he had been freed. So they are not receiving any confirmation, either, whether this is true or not true.

And of course, this happened over the weekend only going to the very negative that he had been killed. So they've really been through one very long nightmare of a roller coaster ride.

GRIFFIN: Part of their statement included the fact that Wassef Hassoun agreed not to return to the U.S. military if he was taken to this quote/unquote safe place. Does that sound like the family member, to them?

DORNIN: The family member -- they are not commenting on anything and have not spoken about any of those reports that Corporal Hassoun, you know, walked away from the base or was lured away or that sort of thing. They have not discussed that whatsoever. And of course he did not discuss that today. GRIFFIN: Rusty Dornin, in West Jordan, Utah, thanks for keeping us up to date as this family watches and waits for any news on Mr. Hassoun.

Iraqi insurgents today launched a new wave of attacks using mortars and roadside bombs. U.S. forces launched a strike of their own against an alleged terrorist safe house.

Let's go to our Baghdad bureau chief, Jane Arraf -- Jane.

JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Drew, it was a huge strike on a safe house, a suspected Zarqawi network safe house in Fallujah, west of Baghdad.

U.S.-led coalition officials say that they dropped four 500-pound bombs and two 1,000-pound bombs on this house in the early evening. At least eight people were killed, one of them a woman, and at least three of them children.

But a U.S. military official tells us that the targets were suspected suicide bombers.

And in a first, the Iraqi government, the interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi, has released a statement saying this was not just a U.S. operation. This was an operation that depended on intelligence from Iraqi security forces. He said it was launched to terminate the terrorists whose vehicle bombs and suicide vests are killing innocent Iraqis.

People on the scene clearly, though, very upset. They said, these are not Mujahedeen. These are not fighters. These were ordinary people. This was a family. And they vowed revenge on the prime minister and on the U.S. forces -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Jane, the price on Zarqawi's head just went up over the weekend -- excuse me -- to $25 million. Anything to suggest that this new information, this new bombing, may be tied to increased information they're getting because of that?

ARRAF: You know, the difference between $10 million and $25 million to most Iraqis is probably negligible. Because $10 million itself is an absolutely outstanding, unintelligible figure to them.

Really what will provide more intelligence is what American officials particularly hope will happen, that Iraqis will stop sitting, as they say, on fence and come forward with information because they want to protect their neighborhoods, they want to protect their schools.

Much easier said than done, of course. People take great risks and anyone giving information on this are putting not only themselves at risk but their families at risk.

But as it is, most people who come and provide intelligence, according to officials, are doing because they want to make their country a safer place, not really for the money -- Drew. GRIFFIN: Jane Arraf, reporting live from Baghdad tonight. Thank you, Jane.

Well, coming up, does Iraqi's new government have an answer to the insurgency? I'll ask former defense secretary William Cohen.

And here's your turn to weigh in on another story. Out Web question of the day: "Does the vice presidential candidate influence your choice for president?" You can vote right now at CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

It's the burning question of the day. We're learning the answer may be out there. The latest on the Veepstakes. Who will be John Kerry's running mate? And could we find out as early as tomorrow morning?

The upcoming political convention raising new fears of terrorism. We'll show you what's being done about that.

And look who's cheating now. Surprising new research on infidelity.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: My hearing (ph) the political polls for the Democratic presidential candidate. The latest on John Kerry's choice for a running mate up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Well, has he or hasn't he? All political eyes on Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, expected to announce his running mate anytime now.

CNN has learned the decision has already been made.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Although the campaign has denied it, a Democratic official who has talked with Kerry tells CNN the candidate has made a decision on a vice presidential running mate and will announce it shortly.

The official says, "It's clear Kerry has made a decision and is committed to announcing it on his terms with discipline more typically associated with Republican campaigns of yesteryear. That obviously means a rapid turnaround."

And CNN has learned that top Democratic leaders from the would-be V.P.'s home state has been alerted of Kerry's decision.

But Kerry's campaign communications director flatly denies it, saying a decision has not yet been made but will be before the convention at the end of the month. No word from the candidate himself.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Because this is not a time for big speeches. I'm not going to make one.

GRIFFIN: He's spending the day hosting a barbecue for politicians from Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania at his wife's farm outside Pittsburgh.

As for the men most widely believed to be on Kerry's short list, they either don't know, aren't talking or both.

We caught up with Richard Gephardt walking his dog this morning in Washington.

REP. RICHARD GEPHARDT (D-MO), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I don't know anything. I'm JUST glad to be here and I defer all questions to the Kerry campaign.

GRIFFIN: Senator John Edwards has a fundraiser in Boston today, and he certainly looked like he was campaigning as he pressed the flesh of constituents on a North Carolina beach yesterday. But through it all, he's staying tight lipped.

Then there's Iowa governor Tom Vilsack, who left Iowa early this morning, destination unknown, saying he was going on a family vacation, but he was accompanied by what looked like a large Secret Service contingent.

Vilsack spent the fourth night with Kerry stumping through the Hawkeye State. Both men dodged the V.P. questions.

Meanwhile, another possible contender, Senator Joseph Biden of Delaware, says he is out and calls himself the most unlikely vice presidential pick you're going to find.

SEN. JOE BIDEN (D), DELAWARE: I'm unaware of any -- any agreement he made or anything he said relative to the vice president about anyone else.

GRIFFIN: Each potential running mate has pros and cons, but Kerry himself has stressed the importance of chemistry, something observers say should not be underestimated in all of the speculation.

JOHN MERCURIO, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Every hour I feel like there's somebody else who sort of rises to the top of the level of speculation. And then they fall to the bottom, because somebody else rises to the top based on a new tealeaf that surfaces.

But one thing that sort of keeps coming back to my mind is that John Kerry, of all people, realizes the importance of sort of going with your gut instincts and not relying on polls.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: For more on the Kerry Veepstakes, let's check in with the host of CNN's "INSIDE POLITICS," Judy Woodruff.

And Judy, I want to have you and I listen to the sound byte we got from the Democratic nominee just a little while ago, kind of playing with the press. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOO CLIP)

KERRY: We're going to do a little rally here in Pittsburgh in Market Square. So if any of you can make it, I'm told the gates open at 7 in the morning if you're up at that hour. But at 9 a.m. tomorrow, we're going to have some fun, and then we'll head out to the Midwest again and back on the trail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: Judy, is the fun going to be picking a vice presidential nominee?

JUDY WOODRUFF, HOST, "INSIDE POLITICS": Well, Drew, one thing we have to keep in mind is that what these presidential nominees are about, or about to be nominees at this point, is drag this thing out just as long as they can, because it brings them press attention. It gets us talking about them rather than their opponent. And it's all to the good, at least at this point, because it's about, you know, John Kerry's decision making.

Now, once he picks the person, you know, we'll start talking about that individual. But you know, we -- everybody around Kerry is telling CNN's team, and it really is a team of people working at CNN. You just interviewed John Mercurio there. We are being told that the decision could come as early as this week. They're not confirming that.

But all of the signals we're getting are that it will be this week. Whether it will be tomorrow morning in Pittsburgh we can't say. I think they could be just being coy with us about that. We'll see.

GRIFFIN: Judy, I guess one of the big questions is, not to jump the gun, has the decision, indeed, been made? Do we know that it's been made?

WOODRUFF: Well, his campaign, as you just heard, officially says no, that they cannot confirm that.

However, Democratic Party sources who CNN has reason to believe are credible sources, have told our reporters, CNN reporters, that the decision has been made, that John Kerry's told them he's made the decision and that he is going to announce it when he's ready. And again, they're being told that it's going to be this week.

It is not in the campaign's interest to say, yes he's made it but he's holding back. So, you know, we're just going to have to wait. My strong guess is, Drew, that it's going to come in the next 24 to 48 hours.

GRIFFIN: Let's read some of the tealeaves on the some of the candidates. Senator Edwards called back to talk with Kerry from a vacation, we're told, at Disney World. What else could possibly make him leave Disney World than a vice presidential nod? And the meeting, we're told, went very well. Is Edwards the front-runner or a front-runner?

WOODRUFF: Well, you know, I think you have to read something into that, Drew.

John Edwards was down there in Florida with his family. His staff was telling reporters, when they were asked directly, no, the senator didn't leave Florida. And now we've come to find out apparently that's because John Edwards didn't tell his entire staff. He told a few people who he had to tell, but he didn't tell anyone.

So now we're learning that he did come back to Washington. That has been confirmed by one or two folks.

So, that is significant, because that means that at least John Kerry wants to talk to John Edwards at this late date. Maybe he invited him back to say, "Hey, you're not it." But if somebody's saying the meeting went well, you know, it certainly gives us reason to think John Edwards is -- is still in the running.

GRIFFIN: Let's talk about the Iowa governor. He, according to our people on the ground, was traveling to an undisclosed location with what looked like a Secret Service contingent.

We know he was orphaned in Pittsburgh. What a better place to make this announcement than this rags to riches kind of story than -- than to announce the vice presidential candidate in Pittsburgh?

WOODRUFF: No question about it, Drew. Tom Vilsack's story is an incredibly compelling story. Here was somebody, as you said, orphaned, brought up by an alcoholic, abusive mother, somebody who literally came from nowhere to make something of himself. Has been a very successful governor of the state of Iowa. A Midwesterner, a moderate, and the story goes on and on.

That's a story that you could see spinning itself out in a positive way for John Kerry if Tom Vilsack is not a national name. But of course, if he's the pick, he's going to become nationally known very, very quickly. So that's a reason I don't think you can rule him out. You can't rule John Edwards out, and I would say you shouldn't rule Dick Gephardt out, either at this point.

GRIFFIN: Well, let's talk about Gephardt, because we have pictures of him today doing something less than vice presidential, picking up dog droppings, of all things. It doesn't look like he is playing into this tealeaf reading that we're doing.

WOODRUFF: But you know, Dick Gephardt has been a loyal Democrat for decades. He is beloved by organized labor. He certainly has paid his dues in Congress having served in the Congress for several decades. He rose to the leader of his party in the House of Representatives.

You know, the talk about Dick Gephardt of late has been, well, Democrats saying, you know, he never led the party to victory. He never was able to get Democrats, to push them into the majority in the House.

But at the same time, here is somebody who is highly respected. We know for a fact that John Kerry thinks very well of Dick Gephardt, that the two men get along well. So for that, for what it's worth, you have to assume that Dick Gephardt has been very, very seriously looked at and still may be seriously looked at by John Kerry.

So again, I think these three men, we don't have any reason to pull any one of them out of the running. But you know, I think you said this a minute ago, there could be others that John Kerry has looked at. If you're the nominee, you want a little element of surprise, and maybe it's somebody we haven't thought about.

GRIFFIN: Have you thought about anybody we haven't thought about, Judy? A dark horse coming out of the blue like -- like Cheney?

WOODRUFF: We've gone over our list today. We looked back at Sam Nunn, the former senator from Georgia who now works with the Nuclear Threat Initiative here in Washington. His staff saying as far as they know he has had no talks with John Kerry. He's expressed no interest in going back into government.

Evan Bayh, the senator from Indiana, where John Kerry's going to be campaigning tomorrow after he leaves Pittsburgh, maybe Evan Bayh. But then we read as of a few days ago, Evan Bayh didn't even plan to be in Indiana tomorrow when John Kerry is there.

So, there's still names out there. Hillary Clinton, you know, you hear the same denials I have. And any number. You know, at one point, the names went on down to 50 or 60 different people.

But among those who are realistic, it's the names that we've been talking about. And, you know, and having said that, John Kerry is fully capable, because we know today our Dana Bash, our White House reporter, was telling me on "INSIDE POLITICS" today she's been told the vetting process has been deep somewhere wider than any of us have been led to believe.

Jim Johnson, who is John Kerry's designated vice presidential vetter, has been talking to more people than the names we've heard of.

So, it does keep this a guessing game. Keeps all of us who follow politics and love politics very much on the edge of our seats this Monday night.

GRIFFIN: Well, Judy, 9 a.m. tomorrow, we'll see just how much fun we're going to have. Thanks for joining us.

WOODRUFF: Thanks, Drew.

GRIFFIN: Well, they are two of the summer's most high-profile events, but how do you keep the political conventions safe from terror? We're going to show you what's being done there.

Cheney under scrutiny. Is he an asset for the Republican base or too much of a lightning rod for Democrats? Plus, our weekly chat with our world affairs analyst, former Defense Secretary William Cohen.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Turning now to the terror threat at home, July Fourth passed peacefully, but some other high profile events are drawing near. And authorities worry al Qaeda may have America in its sights.

Let's go live to our justice correspondent, Kelli Arena -- Kelli.

KELLI ARENA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Drew, FBI Director Robert Mueller laid out a series of special events that he said would be tempting terror targets this summer. Among them the political conventions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA (voice-over): A suspicious package in midtown Manhattan brings an immediate police response, security personnel even more concerned than usual.

Counterterrorism officials say intelligence continues to indicate terrorists are planning to strike before November's election. And they say this summer's Republican convention in New York is a tempting target.

And while the public has been warned about chemical or radiological weapons, there's actually more concern about a conventional attack, like a truck bomb.

KEN PIERNICK, FORMER FBI OFFICIAL: Vehicle-born bombs are fairly easy to conduct, generally speaking. You just need a secluded place to construct it, and you need a means to get to your target and then do your business. So those are very easy.

Getting into a chemical facility or some other kind of sensitive infrastructure requires a great deal of study and planning and coordination.

ARENA: U.S. officials say they believe there may already be operatives in the United States but insist the intelligence on that front is vague. To find out more, officials say investigators are closely examining visa holders already in the U.S. from African countries like Somalia, where al Qaeda has increased its recruiting effort.

And the FBI says it has started interviewing individuals based on names, travel records, phone numbers and any other information gathered by its new task force, formed to deal specifically with the current threat.

Some Muslim groups are worried about profiling.

NIHAD AWAD, COUNCIL ON AMERICAN-ISLAMIC RELATIONS: We believe that, you know, racial profiling and ethnic scapegoating and just the mentality of the usual suspects is counterproductive, ineffective law enforcement, and never worked in the history of this nation. Why do we repeat it?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA: While the concern about an attack remains high, officials stress there is still no specific information to act on and still no plan to raise the national threat level -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Kelli Arena, live in Washington. Thank you.

Iraqi insurgents step up their attacks. U.S. forces strike back. Is it all just a sign of more to come, or is there an end in sight? Up next, I'll ask former defense secretary, William Cohen.

Plus, help or harm? That's what some politicos are asking about Vice President Dick Cheney. We look at his role in getting the president re-elected.

And later, off the hook: Winnie Mandela avoids prison time in South Africa. We'll tell you how.

But first, a look at stories you might have missed this weekend.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): A former Olympic wrestler drove his SUV into a crowded terminal building at the Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, airport and crashed into a ticket counter. There were no serious injuries. Thirty-three-year-old Alexis Vila, who won a bronze medal for Cuba before defecting, has been hospitalized for psychological evaluation.

Late arrival. President Bush was forced to cancel plans to attend a Fourth of July church service in Charleston, West Virginia. Mechanical problems with Air Force One delayed the president's arrival, but he did get there in time to speak at the state capital.

A new beginning. New York Governor George Pataki helped unveil the cornerstone for the new Freedom Tower in Manhattan. Pataki says the skyscraper at the site of the World Trade Center will be a symbol of America's resolve in the face of terror.

Wimbledon champs. Roger Federer won his second straight Wimbledon championship, becoming the first man to defend the title successfully since Pete Sampras did it in 2000. Seventeen-year-old Maria Sharapova won her first major title, defeating two-time defending champion Serena Williams.

And that's our "Weekend Snapshot."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Welcome back. U.S. aircraft hit a target in a hard- line Iraqi city. Officials call it a terrorist safe house. Was it the right house? We'll hear from our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr. But first, a quick check of the latest headlines.

New York firefighters battling a five-alarm blaze in a factory in Brooklyn where Mattresses are made. A building next door also caught fire. Officials say four firefighters being treated for injuries. No word yet on the cause there.

Vice President Dick Cheney has dismissed one of his personal physicians allowing (ph) a report the doctor the had abused prescription narcotics. An article in today's "New Yorker" says Dr. Gary Malakoff spent more than $46,000 thousand on Internet drug purchases over 2 1/2 years.

The man known in college basketball as Coach K. giving a live news conference down there at Duke University, he will stay at Duke says Krzyzewski. He's turned down an offer to the coach the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers.

U.S. aircraft given a target in the hard-line city of Fallujah, and they hit it hard. But was it the right target? For the latest details, let's go live to our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Hello to you, Drew. Well, U.S. warplanes in Iraq tonight have conducted an air strike against what is described as a Mujahedeen safe house in Fallujah. Four 500-pound bombs and two 1000-pound bombs were dropped. According to officials at the Fallujah hospital, at least eight people were killed. Now this is the fifth strike in recent days against houses in the city, part of the network the U.S. believes is controlled by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the insurgent leader believed responsible for attacks against civilians and the U.S.-led coalition. Iraqi government sources say it was a precision on a known Zarqawi safe house, but that it was aimed mainly at suicide bombers believed to be operating from that house.

Now a statement from the Iraqi government said, quote: "This precision strike and other recent events are indicators that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and his network is crumbling and there will be no more safe havens for terrorists." But no indication tonight, Drew, that Zarqawi himself was at the house when the bops hit -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon, thank you for that.

Can Iraq's new government come up with a plan to handle the insurgents? We'll turn to our world affairs analyst, former Defense Secretary William Cohen. He is in our Washington bureau.

Good afternoon, Mr. Secretary.

WILLIAM COHEN, FMR. SECY. OF DEFENSE: Drew.

GRIFFIN: On the one hand you have the new Iraqi government offering some sort of amnesty to its insurgents. On the other hand we have another attack by the coalition forces in Fallujah. Are these competing paths to Iraqi security, and can they coexist?

COHEN: No, I think they are complimentary. On the one hand, the United States and coalition forces have to continue to maintain an offense against Zarqawi and his cohorts as such. At the same time, the signal coming forward from the jihadists and the insurgents is to challenge the legitimacy of the new government. And so I think there's a complimentary aspect to this. The one thing that has to be taken into account as far as the granting of amnesty is it has to be done with some care.

On the one hand, the new leadership is trying to separate the insurgents out from the jihadists. They have to be careful that this grant of amnesty is not too deep and too wide. It's one thing to say that you should keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. If you bring your enemies into that tent they may in fact succeed in destroying your government and your existence. And so there's a political aspect to this as well.

If this amnesty is too broad, then it runs a risk of creating political problems back here in the United States for President Bush.

GRIFFIN: Part of that amnesty, somewhat announced yesterday by Ayad Allawi, included amnesty for Muqtada al-Sadr. Is this Shiite cleric somebody they need to bring into the government to give the government its blessing in order for there to be peace?

COHEN: Well, al-Sadr has been in the thorn in the side certainly of the new government. And this may be an effort to persuade him to disband his militia and that if he does so, that he may be granted some form of amnesty and perhaps it might be some kind of a modification of a trial by his peers under Iraqi law and so forth. I think that has yet to be spelled out. But clearly he is presenting a challenge to the leadership.

That in combination with the films that have been released on the part of the jihadists present a real problem for the new government to show that they can't control the violence, that the terrorists are out there and that al-Sadr is challenging them politically. So there's very much to be determined in the future here. The U.S. government has said all along that they believe foreign insurgents were coming into Iraq. There may be some evidence of that with two Iranians arrested in Iraq, said to be carrying out or planning car bombings. But now we're also hearing in "The New York Times" this morning that Saddam's relatives, cousins may be funding this from abroad. What do you make of that?

COHEN: Well, that's a possibility. There certainly is greater coherency as such to the planning and the carrying out of these attacks. They are well-organized and they seem to be well-funded. And so one can't discount where that may be coming from. It really is not relative -- relevant, it seems to me in terms whether it's a relative of Saddam Hussein.

Maybe politically it might carry some significance. But the fact is that money is being funded to the jihadists and to the insurgents. They're able to move. They're able to get explosives to carry out their deeds. And so whoever it is, whether it's a Saddam Hussein relative or not, that has to be cut off and destroyed if there's going to be any longevity to this new government.

GRIFFIN: Mr. Secretary, in terms of ending any legitimacy of Saddam Hussein, I thought a big development came this weekend when Iran wanted to engage in the prosecution of Saddam Hussein, bring charges for the 1980 invasion. Was that a big development in your mind in terms of getting the world united at least against the old regime of Iraq?

COHEN: Well, looking at Iran, they have obviously their motives in trying to indicate to the world that they wish to partake in some kind of a proceeding against Saddam, but clearly they also have to account for their acts of supporting terrorists. And so it may be an effort on the one hand to show that they want to prosecute Saddam or participate in the prosecution of Saddam because of his waging of war against them back in the '80s. But they also have a lot to account for in terms of their continued sponsorship of groups that are really inflicting damages upon innocent civilians through the sponsorship of terrorism.

GRIFFIN: Secretary, time for me to ask the question that I have to ask you on this vice presidential anticipation day. Your name has come up by some here and elsewhere. Has the nominee, John Kerry, talked to you about being a vice presidential candidate?

COHEN: Well, I've been sitting by the phone all weekend and it has yet to ring.

GRIFFIN: Senator William Cohen, thank you for joining us.

COHEN: A pleasure.

GRIFFIN: Excuse, Secretary William Cohen, thank you.

Well, some say he's President Bush's secret weapon, others say he is a vulnerability. Up next, Vice President Cheney, his role in this year's election.

Plus, wives who stray. Why more American women are reportedly finding comfort in the arms of another man.

First a quick look at other news making headlines around the world.

Votes are being counted in Indonesia's first direct presidential election. A private poll projects a runoff between the two top candidates, a former army general and the incumbent president.

Keeping secrets. Israel's atomic energy commission has a new Web site but it offers little information about that country's top secret nuclear program. International Atomic Energy Commission chief Mohamed ElBaradei will visit Israel this week, and he's expected to urge the Israelis to be more forthcoming.

No prison. A South African court has overturned a theft conviction of Winnie Madikizela Mandela handed down last year in connection with a bank loan scam. It left her fraud conviction intact but it suspended her sentence which means the ex-wife of former President Nelson Mandela won't be going to prison.

Hitting the goal. They're still celebrating in Greece after winning the European soccer championship. The Greek national team, a distant underdog when the championships began...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's in!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: ... Defeated Portugal 1-0 in the final game.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And surprise, surprise, it's Greece in the lead!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: And that's our look around the world.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: More now, a story we are following closely, a Democratic official who has talked to John Kerry, say the candidate has chosen a running mate. The announcement could come any time.

CNN's Joe Johns has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John Kerry and his wife Teresa hosting a picnic here in suburban Pittsburgh with speculation raging over who will be his vice presidential running mate. The campaign sticking with the story John Kerry has not made up his mind. However, a Democratic official who has spoken with Kerry tells CNN he has made up his mind and will make the announcement soon.

The question is, of course, how soon? We're told there has been no change in his schedule as yet. Kerry is expected to campaign in Indianapolis, also in Ohio this week. As for some of the people who are said to be on Kerry's short list, Congressman Richard Gephardt was in Washington, D.C. hosting a picnic today. Senator John Edwards of North Carolina was in Boston, scheduled to have a fund-raiser for Kerry today. Tom Vilsack, the governor of Iowa, said he was going to East Coast but was no more specific than that.

Now one thing the campaign is trying to do is lower expectations at this point. Stephanie Cutter, the press secretary, telling reporters today, if we announce within the next week, it will be the earliest announcement in history.

Joe Johns, CNN, in suburban Pittsburgh.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: Wild rumors and speculations swirl around who will be John Kerry's running mate. The Republican ticket is coming under some quiet scrutiny, specifically Vice President Dick Cheney. CNN's Brian Todd is on that story. He's in Washington -- Brian.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Drew, the scrutiny is all about Cheney's appeal to both sides, to the Republican base as its voice and to Democrats as a target.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice-over): Dick Cheney may or may not love the political fight, and depending on the day, opinions may sway on whether he's good at it. Either way, he's in it now.

DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Ladies and gentlemen, on issue after issue, the choice on November 2 is very clear. It's a choice between President Bush's hope and optimism and Senator Kerry's pessimism.

TODD: But as the vice president ratchets up his attacks on John Kerry, questions are raised about Cheney himself and his role in a campaign that is coming more into focus. Newspaper articles question Cheney's political appeal and zest for campaigning and the vice president emerges as a lightning rod for opponents.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: They believe that they can make him a symbol of what Democrats in particular and perhaps swing voters don't like about the Bush administration, whether it's the questions about the intelligence before the war, the relationship with Halliburton, in a whole series of ways, I think they do see Dick Cheney as a target.

TODD: We put the question to Republican strategists and political commentators on both sides. Is Dick Cheney an asset or liability for the re-election campaign?

ARMSTRONG WILLIAMS, CONSERVATIVE COMMENTATOR: Cheney, without a doubt, is this administration's best spokesperson on the issues. They see him as an elder statesman, as someone who is older and mature, like a father figure.

TODD: We spoke to two Republican strategies who concede, Cheney's connections to the oil service company Halliburton and its controversial dealings in Iraq, are potential problem. And one of them said flatly, he's got to stop publicly referencing the administration's most criticized positions on Iraq.

CHENEY: Because we acted, he will never again brutalize the Iraqi people, never again support terrorists or pursue weapons of mass destruction, never again threaten the United States of America.

TODD: But political analysts and GOP strategists tell CNN, it would be more of a mistake for the Kerry campaign to keep targeting Cheney instead of pushing the debate to President Bush.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD: And one strategist put it this way, Cheney just finished a campaign swing through Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. And the Bush team wouldn't have sent him to those crucial battleground states if they thought he was and a liability -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Brian, if the strategists say he shouldn't talk about weapons of mass destruction or the Iraq-al Qaeda connection, what are they saying he should talk about?

TODD: Well, the two strategists we spoke to said that they believe he should focus more on the economy, on the modest job growth and on the relative successes in Iraq recently, that the handover went relatively well. And they say that you will see more of that coming from Cheney in the next days and weeks, especially as we head toward the Democratic convention.

GRIFFIN: Brian Todd in Washington, thanks for that insight.

Wayward wives and their secret lives. What's making them stray? I will ask Dr. Drew Pinsky of "Loveline."

And a protest in Pamplona. They're running without the bulls. They're running without their clothes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: There's a shocking new cover story in "Newsweek" magazine. "The Secret Lives of Wives" suggest that more and more women are cheating on their husbands and that when it comes to infidelity, there's now a real equality of the sexes. Joining me from Los Angeles is Dr. Drew Pinsky, the co-host of radio's "Loveline."

Dr. Drew, thank you for joining us.

DR. DREW PINSKY, CO-HOST, "LOVELINE": Thank you, Drew.

GRIFFIN: This article basically says, as I read it, in one university study, 10 percent of women cheated about a dozen years ago, and now it's up to 15 percent. Is that your reading of this article, and is that something to be concerned about?

PINSKY: Well, it's one of the data that that they quote. And about 20 or 25 percent of men are quoted as having done so. So it's really that women are catching up with the men and/or perhaps reporting it more honestly. I'll tell you, one of the things that the article also points out, for those clinicians that work with couples that are having trouble, they find incidence more in the range of 40 to 60 percent, again, with the women lagging behind by about 10 percent. But women clearly are common -- these are common behaviors amongst women these days, and more commonly than not in the workplace.

GRIFFIN: Well, Dr. Drew, is there something driving this? Or is it like you said, is it being reported more openly? PINSKY: Actually, there is something driving it. There are sort of two circumstances that commonly come into play. Actually men and women deal with this differently. It's interesting that we're discussing this on the heels of Bill Clinton's book where he reports his cheating having been because he could.

And in fact, in my world, where I work with addicts and I work with people on the radio, that's the reason that men tell me that they cheat, it's because they can. Women, on the other hand, will cheat because they're not getting their emotional needs met in the relationship. And as such, they start to build what we call a bullpen in the workplace. The workplace is really where they sort of start to size guys up and put guys in the sort of bullpen where they can connect with them if they really are never getting their needs met by their spouse.

It's interesting also that men will say, when there is -- comes to light that their wife has been cheating, the men will say, I had no idea, my God, how could this happen. And you talk to the women, they will say, look, I've been telling him for years. He never pays attention. He not spending time at home. He's not nurturing the relationship and giving it what it needs.

GRIFFIN: Really Interesting stories within this article about women who raise their children and then went back to work and suddenly found a lot of things that they were missing in their previous life.

PINSKY: It's true. It's a workplace that gives women an opportunity to develop an independent sense of self. And as such, if they really are not getting needs met and they develop an enhanced sense of self-esteem, greater choices, some of them start to think, well, why not? Why should I be unhappy in the relationship I'm in? And there are also sort of lower barriers I think to women engaging in these sorts of behaviors, less shame, less guilt about it. They feel less responsible for the relationship, and men have to kind of pull their weight in this as well.

GRIFFIN: Is that because of what the article the "Clintonization" or "The Sopranos" or "Sex and the City"?

PINSKY: Well, you really wonder what the impact our culture has had upon all of this. I'm worried that the "Sex and the City" sort of mentality is something that is having an infectious influence on the culture. But I think not. I think predominantly there are really two circumstances that commonly come to bear on this behavior. One is having come from a disruptive or chaotic family system where the capacity for intimacy is often impaired, whether it's a male or female, these are common histories. And secondly, addiction and alcoholism. For women, when they're not acting out on behalf of trying to get their emotional needs met, the second most common category is a woman who's an addict or an alcoholic and acting out part of her disease. This is something I encounter very, very commonly in my clinical world.

GRIFFIN: In terms of saving marriages, when a woman cheats or a man cheats is there a difference as to whether or not the marriage can be saved?

PINSKY: Well, what has been shown, and this article, rather nicely -- it's one of the rare times when a "Newsweek" article, I agree with most of what was in it, the article rather nicely points out that because people are waiting until they're older to have children and get married, very often when there is a problem later on, people are now in their middle ages, they're 40 years of age before the problem comes to light, they look at it as a problem that they need to solve, not as something that they're going to throw away a marriage for.

They've been single, they've had the single life. That is no longer such a romantic possibility for them. They realize that being single isn't sort of all it's cracked up to be. And working on the relationship and working on the problems in their relationship perhaps are more what people should be doing. And yes, both men and women do tend to be more forgiving when they have waited until they're older to get married.

GRIFFIN: Very quickly, are women going to approach the 22, 25 percent that men, involved in cheating?

PINSKY: I think so. I really do. I suspect in reality it probably is closer to that, they just aren't quite reporting it at that level. Remember, people have to be realistic about the differences between men and women. Unfortunately, there's sort of an emphasis in our society on equality. And the reality is that men and women differ quite a bit. That humans differ from chimpanzees by a few hundred DNA pairs, we differ from women, men by an entire chromosome. And it creates a different motivational system, a different set of motivational priorities. And it has to be contained and dealt with according. And so to allow men to cheat merely because they can, I think they have to understand that it has a profound impact on their family. It's a direct attack on their children and wife. And if they really understand that they'll be less likely to engage in these sorts of behaviors.

GRIFFIN: Dr. Drew Pinsky, on a somewhat stunning article in "Newsweek" on infidelity in America, thanks for joining us in Los Angeles.

PINSKY: My pleasure.

GRIFFIN: Flashing flesh at a famous festival. Why the protest in Pamplona? The answer in our "Picture of the Day." And our "Web Question of the Day" is: "Does the vice presidential candidate influence your choice for president?" Vote right now, why wait? The results for you when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Here's how you're weighing in on our "Web Question of the Day." This is not, of course, scientific. But we want to tell you that your e-mail is 39 percent yes, 61 percent no on whether or not the vice presidential candidate influences your choice for president. Stephen (ph) writing that: "The best choice for Kerry's running mate is John McCain. I hope John Kerry can persuade him to join the ticket. By choosing McCain Kerry can show he is a uniter and a bipartisan. Both Kerry and McCain have been in combat duty in Vietnam, are experts on international relations and long-term senators.

And Lauren (ph) sends this: "Kerry's V.P. should be Governor Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania because he can give a political punch as good as he takes one. He's no wallflower, quick-witted, he'd be a great match for Kerry.

Pamplona protest, our "Picture of the Day." Twenty people strip off their clothing today to protest against the annual running of the bulls there. The widely popular tradition ends with a bullfight, which the protestors say is cruel to the animals.

Thanks for joining us. "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired July 5, 2004 - 17:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DREW GRIFFIN, HOST: And happening right now. The family of a Marine held hostage in Iraq is expected to speak at this hour, just as news of his possible fate is made public.
Stand by for hard news on WOLF BLITZER REPORTS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Missing Marine, mixed messages his fate. Will his life be spared?

Iraq's insurgents. The U.S. just targets a safe house. Does the Iraqi government have its own plan to stop them?

Kerry's choice. Has he already picked a running mate?

Secret lives of wives: the new infidelity. Why are women cheating on their husbands? I'll ask Dr. Drew Pinsky of radio's "Love Line."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: This is WOLF BLITZER REPORTS for Monday, July 5, 2004.

GRIFFIN: I'm Drew Griffin at the CNN Center in Atlanta. Wolf Blitzer off today.

After an emotionally wrenching weekend for the family of a kidnapped U.S. Marine, there are dramatic new developments late today. We expect to hear very shortly from the family of Corporal Wassef Hassoun.

CNN's Rusty Dornin standing by at the family home in Utah. But first, CNN's Zain Verjee joins us here at the CNN Center in Atlanta -- Zain.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks a lot, Drew.

Over the past three days, we've been receiving mixed messages about the status of Corporal Hassoun. But for his family and his friends, the latest message is the most hopeful one.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE (voice-over): Corporal Wassef Hassoun, a Marine translator of Lebanese descent, disappeared in Iraq more than two weeks ago.

On June 27, Al Jazeera TV showed a videotape of Hassoun, blindfolded. The pictures were accompanied by a threat, saying Hassoun would be killed I f the United States did not release Iraqi prisoners.

The hunt in Iraq for Hassoun and his captors turned up nothing.

Then, this past Saturday, the worst possible news for Hassoun's friends and family: a message posted on an Islamic web site declared Hassoun was dead.

But one day later, a sudden reversal. A different web site said, Hassoun was still alive. That message was followed today by a statement delivered to Al Jazeera, attributed to Islamic Response.

It said, Hassoun, quote, "has been sent to a safe place after he had announced his forgiveness and his determination not to go back to the U.S. forces."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VERJEE: We've got stress there's been no independent verification of any of the claims about Corporal Hassoun -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Zain, what do we know about this group, the Islamic Response, who put out this notice today?

VERJEE: Well, at this stage we don't really know much about Islamic Response to say anything definitive about the group. We don't know how authentic it is. It's not even clear whether it's an extension of other, more well known groups.

Regional experts, though, say that one of the tactics of militant fringe groups is to do this. They take on different names so they confuse the American intelligence to preserve themselves.

GRIFFIN: Zain, it's been a very confusing week. And in Utah for the family, they are making a statement right now. Let's go that in Utah.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... depend upon you to have him (ph). We renew our request to all people of the world to continue to pray for his safe release. We thank everyone for the continued outpour of support and prayers. May God bless us all. Good day.

N-O-S-S-E-I-R.

GRIFFIN: That is a family spokesman, or I believe a cousin of Wassef Hassoun. This is the family home in Utah. Hassoun, born in Lebanon, but his family lives in Utah.

They have been tight-lipped about this entire ordeal from the beginning when it was reported that their cousin and son walked away from duty and then was captured and then perhaps even beheaded was some of the web site addresses over the weekend. And now we're learning that he might be in a safe place.

We're hoping to bring in CNN's Rusty Dornin, who is in Utah and been following this from West Jordan, Utah. Rusty, are you there? What can you tell us?

Apparently we do not have Rusty. Rusty Dornin on that.

She is back. Let's go to Rusty Dornin. Rusty, you've been there most of last few days as the family has ridden the emotional ride.

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Really, they've kept in seclusion the entire time, Drew. And Tarek Nosseir has really been the only person that's a member of the family who has spoken, and he has not spoken since last week.

Now he says that he just hopes he is freed. Of course, they're also hearing conflicting reports. They want everyone to pray for him.

I did speak to someone very close to the family a short time ago who did tell me that the message that was given by the militants, talking about that he was set to a safe place was very unnerving, because what did a "safe place" mean? It was still very upsetting to the family because there have been no independent confirmations of these reports.

So the family is still remaining in seclusion. This statement was actually arranged to be held, regardless of the breaking news today. They had arranged for Tarek Nosseir to give a statement today.

It's only in light of what has happened that is really carrying a lot of significance now. And of course, this family is on edge more than ever -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: And Rusty, this family has no more information than anybody, including the U.S. military, about what happened to this fellow.

DORNIN: They absolutely don't. In fact, the person I spoke to had been watching CNN when he did learn of Al Jazeera's report that he had been freed. So they are not receiving any confirmation, either, whether this is true or not true.

And of course, this happened over the weekend only going to the very negative that he had been killed. So they've really been through one very long nightmare of a roller coaster ride.

GRIFFIN: Part of their statement included the fact that Wassef Hassoun agreed not to return to the U.S. military if he was taken to this quote/unquote safe place. Does that sound like the family member, to them?

DORNIN: The family member -- they are not commenting on anything and have not spoken about any of those reports that Corporal Hassoun, you know, walked away from the base or was lured away or that sort of thing. They have not discussed that whatsoever. And of course he did not discuss that today. GRIFFIN: Rusty Dornin, in West Jordan, Utah, thanks for keeping us up to date as this family watches and waits for any news on Mr. Hassoun.

Iraqi insurgents today launched a new wave of attacks using mortars and roadside bombs. U.S. forces launched a strike of their own against an alleged terrorist safe house.

Let's go to our Baghdad bureau chief, Jane Arraf -- Jane.

JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Drew, it was a huge strike on a safe house, a suspected Zarqawi network safe house in Fallujah, west of Baghdad.

U.S.-led coalition officials say that they dropped four 500-pound bombs and two 1,000-pound bombs on this house in the early evening. At least eight people were killed, one of them a woman, and at least three of them children.

But a U.S. military official tells us that the targets were suspected suicide bombers.

And in a first, the Iraqi government, the interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi, has released a statement saying this was not just a U.S. operation. This was an operation that depended on intelligence from Iraqi security forces. He said it was launched to terminate the terrorists whose vehicle bombs and suicide vests are killing innocent Iraqis.

People on the scene clearly, though, very upset. They said, these are not Mujahedeen. These are not fighters. These were ordinary people. This was a family. And they vowed revenge on the prime minister and on the U.S. forces -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Jane, the price on Zarqawi's head just went up over the weekend -- excuse me -- to $25 million. Anything to suggest that this new information, this new bombing, may be tied to increased information they're getting because of that?

ARRAF: You know, the difference between $10 million and $25 million to most Iraqis is probably negligible. Because $10 million itself is an absolutely outstanding, unintelligible figure to them.

Really what will provide more intelligence is what American officials particularly hope will happen, that Iraqis will stop sitting, as they say, on fence and come forward with information because they want to protect their neighborhoods, they want to protect their schools.

Much easier said than done, of course. People take great risks and anyone giving information on this are putting not only themselves at risk but their families at risk.

But as it is, most people who come and provide intelligence, according to officials, are doing because they want to make their country a safer place, not really for the money -- Drew. GRIFFIN: Jane Arraf, reporting live from Baghdad tonight. Thank you, Jane.

Well, coming up, does Iraqi's new government have an answer to the insurgency? I'll ask former defense secretary William Cohen.

And here's your turn to weigh in on another story. Out Web question of the day: "Does the vice presidential candidate influence your choice for president?" You can vote right now at CNN.com/Wolf. We'll have the results later in this broadcast.

It's the burning question of the day. We're learning the answer may be out there. The latest on the Veepstakes. Who will be John Kerry's running mate? And could we find out as early as tomorrow morning?

The upcoming political convention raising new fears of terrorism. We'll show you what's being done about that.

And look who's cheating now. Surprising new research on infidelity.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: My hearing (ph) the political polls for the Democratic presidential candidate. The latest on John Kerry's choice for a running mate up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Well, has he or hasn't he? All political eyes on Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, expected to announce his running mate anytime now.

CNN has learned the decision has already been made.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Although the campaign has denied it, a Democratic official who has talked with Kerry tells CNN the candidate has made a decision on a vice presidential running mate and will announce it shortly.

The official says, "It's clear Kerry has made a decision and is committed to announcing it on his terms with discipline more typically associated with Republican campaigns of yesteryear. That obviously means a rapid turnaround."

And CNN has learned that top Democratic leaders from the would-be V.P.'s home state has been alerted of Kerry's decision.

But Kerry's campaign communications director flatly denies it, saying a decision has not yet been made but will be before the convention at the end of the month. No word from the candidate himself.

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Because this is not a time for big speeches. I'm not going to make one.

GRIFFIN: He's spending the day hosting a barbecue for politicians from Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania at his wife's farm outside Pittsburgh.

As for the men most widely believed to be on Kerry's short list, they either don't know, aren't talking or both.

We caught up with Richard Gephardt walking his dog this morning in Washington.

REP. RICHARD GEPHARDT (D-MO), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I don't know anything. I'm JUST glad to be here and I defer all questions to the Kerry campaign.

GRIFFIN: Senator John Edwards has a fundraiser in Boston today, and he certainly looked like he was campaigning as he pressed the flesh of constituents on a North Carolina beach yesterday. But through it all, he's staying tight lipped.

Then there's Iowa governor Tom Vilsack, who left Iowa early this morning, destination unknown, saying he was going on a family vacation, but he was accompanied by what looked like a large Secret Service contingent.

Vilsack spent the fourth night with Kerry stumping through the Hawkeye State. Both men dodged the V.P. questions.

Meanwhile, another possible contender, Senator Joseph Biden of Delaware, says he is out and calls himself the most unlikely vice presidential pick you're going to find.

SEN. JOE BIDEN (D), DELAWARE: I'm unaware of any -- any agreement he made or anything he said relative to the vice president about anyone else.

GRIFFIN: Each potential running mate has pros and cons, but Kerry himself has stressed the importance of chemistry, something observers say should not be underestimated in all of the speculation.

JOHN MERCURIO, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Every hour I feel like there's somebody else who sort of rises to the top of the level of speculation. And then they fall to the bottom, because somebody else rises to the top based on a new tealeaf that surfaces.

But one thing that sort of keeps coming back to my mind is that John Kerry, of all people, realizes the importance of sort of going with your gut instincts and not relying on polls.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: For more on the Kerry Veepstakes, let's check in with the host of CNN's "INSIDE POLITICS," Judy Woodruff.

And Judy, I want to have you and I listen to the sound byte we got from the Democratic nominee just a little while ago, kind of playing with the press. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOO CLIP)

KERRY: We're going to do a little rally here in Pittsburgh in Market Square. So if any of you can make it, I'm told the gates open at 7 in the morning if you're up at that hour. But at 9 a.m. tomorrow, we're going to have some fun, and then we'll head out to the Midwest again and back on the trail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: Judy, is the fun going to be picking a vice presidential nominee?

JUDY WOODRUFF, HOST, "INSIDE POLITICS": Well, Drew, one thing we have to keep in mind is that what these presidential nominees are about, or about to be nominees at this point, is drag this thing out just as long as they can, because it brings them press attention. It gets us talking about them rather than their opponent. And it's all to the good, at least at this point, because it's about, you know, John Kerry's decision making.

Now, once he picks the person, you know, we'll start talking about that individual. But you know, we -- everybody around Kerry is telling CNN's team, and it really is a team of people working at CNN. You just interviewed John Mercurio there. We are being told that the decision could come as early as this week. They're not confirming that.

But all of the signals we're getting are that it will be this week. Whether it will be tomorrow morning in Pittsburgh we can't say. I think they could be just being coy with us about that. We'll see.

GRIFFIN: Judy, I guess one of the big questions is, not to jump the gun, has the decision, indeed, been made? Do we know that it's been made?

WOODRUFF: Well, his campaign, as you just heard, officially says no, that they cannot confirm that.

However, Democratic Party sources who CNN has reason to believe are credible sources, have told our reporters, CNN reporters, that the decision has been made, that John Kerry's told them he's made the decision and that he is going to announce it when he's ready. And again, they're being told that it's going to be this week.

It is not in the campaign's interest to say, yes he's made it but he's holding back. So, you know, we're just going to have to wait. My strong guess is, Drew, that it's going to come in the next 24 to 48 hours.

GRIFFIN: Let's read some of the tealeaves on the some of the candidates. Senator Edwards called back to talk with Kerry from a vacation, we're told, at Disney World. What else could possibly make him leave Disney World than a vice presidential nod? And the meeting, we're told, went very well. Is Edwards the front-runner or a front-runner?

WOODRUFF: Well, you know, I think you have to read something into that, Drew.

John Edwards was down there in Florida with his family. His staff was telling reporters, when they were asked directly, no, the senator didn't leave Florida. And now we've come to find out apparently that's because John Edwards didn't tell his entire staff. He told a few people who he had to tell, but he didn't tell anyone.

So now we're learning that he did come back to Washington. That has been confirmed by one or two folks.

So, that is significant, because that means that at least John Kerry wants to talk to John Edwards at this late date. Maybe he invited him back to say, "Hey, you're not it." But if somebody's saying the meeting went well, you know, it certainly gives us reason to think John Edwards is -- is still in the running.

GRIFFIN: Let's talk about the Iowa governor. He, according to our people on the ground, was traveling to an undisclosed location with what looked like a Secret Service contingent.

We know he was orphaned in Pittsburgh. What a better place to make this announcement than this rags to riches kind of story than -- than to announce the vice presidential candidate in Pittsburgh?

WOODRUFF: No question about it, Drew. Tom Vilsack's story is an incredibly compelling story. Here was somebody, as you said, orphaned, brought up by an alcoholic, abusive mother, somebody who literally came from nowhere to make something of himself. Has been a very successful governor of the state of Iowa. A Midwesterner, a moderate, and the story goes on and on.

That's a story that you could see spinning itself out in a positive way for John Kerry if Tom Vilsack is not a national name. But of course, if he's the pick, he's going to become nationally known very, very quickly. So that's a reason I don't think you can rule him out. You can't rule John Edwards out, and I would say you shouldn't rule Dick Gephardt out, either at this point.

GRIFFIN: Well, let's talk about Gephardt, because we have pictures of him today doing something less than vice presidential, picking up dog droppings, of all things. It doesn't look like he is playing into this tealeaf reading that we're doing.

WOODRUFF: But you know, Dick Gephardt has been a loyal Democrat for decades. He is beloved by organized labor. He certainly has paid his dues in Congress having served in the Congress for several decades. He rose to the leader of his party in the House of Representatives.

You know, the talk about Dick Gephardt of late has been, well, Democrats saying, you know, he never led the party to victory. He never was able to get Democrats, to push them into the majority in the House.

But at the same time, here is somebody who is highly respected. We know for a fact that John Kerry thinks very well of Dick Gephardt, that the two men get along well. So for that, for what it's worth, you have to assume that Dick Gephardt has been very, very seriously looked at and still may be seriously looked at by John Kerry.

So again, I think these three men, we don't have any reason to pull any one of them out of the running. But you know, I think you said this a minute ago, there could be others that John Kerry has looked at. If you're the nominee, you want a little element of surprise, and maybe it's somebody we haven't thought about.

GRIFFIN: Have you thought about anybody we haven't thought about, Judy? A dark horse coming out of the blue like -- like Cheney?

WOODRUFF: We've gone over our list today. We looked back at Sam Nunn, the former senator from Georgia who now works with the Nuclear Threat Initiative here in Washington. His staff saying as far as they know he has had no talks with John Kerry. He's expressed no interest in going back into government.

Evan Bayh, the senator from Indiana, where John Kerry's going to be campaigning tomorrow after he leaves Pittsburgh, maybe Evan Bayh. But then we read as of a few days ago, Evan Bayh didn't even plan to be in Indiana tomorrow when John Kerry is there.

So, there's still names out there. Hillary Clinton, you know, you hear the same denials I have. And any number. You know, at one point, the names went on down to 50 or 60 different people.

But among those who are realistic, it's the names that we've been talking about. And, you know, and having said that, John Kerry is fully capable, because we know today our Dana Bash, our White House reporter, was telling me on "INSIDE POLITICS" today she's been told the vetting process has been deep somewhere wider than any of us have been led to believe.

Jim Johnson, who is John Kerry's designated vice presidential vetter, has been talking to more people than the names we've heard of.

So, it does keep this a guessing game. Keeps all of us who follow politics and love politics very much on the edge of our seats this Monday night.

GRIFFIN: Well, Judy, 9 a.m. tomorrow, we'll see just how much fun we're going to have. Thanks for joining us.

WOODRUFF: Thanks, Drew.

GRIFFIN: Well, they are two of the summer's most high-profile events, but how do you keep the political conventions safe from terror? We're going to show you what's being done there.

Cheney under scrutiny. Is he an asset for the Republican base or too much of a lightning rod for Democrats? Plus, our weekly chat with our world affairs analyst, former Defense Secretary William Cohen.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Turning now to the terror threat at home, July Fourth passed peacefully, but some other high profile events are drawing near. And authorities worry al Qaeda may have America in its sights.

Let's go live to our justice correspondent, Kelli Arena -- Kelli.

KELLI ARENA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Drew, FBI Director Robert Mueller laid out a series of special events that he said would be tempting terror targets this summer. Among them the political conventions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA (voice-over): A suspicious package in midtown Manhattan brings an immediate police response, security personnel even more concerned than usual.

Counterterrorism officials say intelligence continues to indicate terrorists are planning to strike before November's election. And they say this summer's Republican convention in New York is a tempting target.

And while the public has been warned about chemical or radiological weapons, there's actually more concern about a conventional attack, like a truck bomb.

KEN PIERNICK, FORMER FBI OFFICIAL: Vehicle-born bombs are fairly easy to conduct, generally speaking. You just need a secluded place to construct it, and you need a means to get to your target and then do your business. So those are very easy.

Getting into a chemical facility or some other kind of sensitive infrastructure requires a great deal of study and planning and coordination.

ARENA: U.S. officials say they believe there may already be operatives in the United States but insist the intelligence on that front is vague. To find out more, officials say investigators are closely examining visa holders already in the U.S. from African countries like Somalia, where al Qaeda has increased its recruiting effort.

And the FBI says it has started interviewing individuals based on names, travel records, phone numbers and any other information gathered by its new task force, formed to deal specifically with the current threat.

Some Muslim groups are worried about profiling.

NIHAD AWAD, COUNCIL ON AMERICAN-ISLAMIC RELATIONS: We believe that, you know, racial profiling and ethnic scapegoating and just the mentality of the usual suspects is counterproductive, ineffective law enforcement, and never worked in the history of this nation. Why do we repeat it?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA: While the concern about an attack remains high, officials stress there is still no specific information to act on and still no plan to raise the national threat level -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Kelli Arena, live in Washington. Thank you.

Iraqi insurgents step up their attacks. U.S. forces strike back. Is it all just a sign of more to come, or is there an end in sight? Up next, I'll ask former defense secretary, William Cohen.

Plus, help or harm? That's what some politicos are asking about Vice President Dick Cheney. We look at his role in getting the president re-elected.

And later, off the hook: Winnie Mandela avoids prison time in South Africa. We'll tell you how.

But first, a look at stories you might have missed this weekend.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): A former Olympic wrestler drove his SUV into a crowded terminal building at the Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, airport and crashed into a ticket counter. There were no serious injuries. Thirty-three-year-old Alexis Vila, who won a bronze medal for Cuba before defecting, has been hospitalized for psychological evaluation.

Late arrival. President Bush was forced to cancel plans to attend a Fourth of July church service in Charleston, West Virginia. Mechanical problems with Air Force One delayed the president's arrival, but he did get there in time to speak at the state capital.

A new beginning. New York Governor George Pataki helped unveil the cornerstone for the new Freedom Tower in Manhattan. Pataki says the skyscraper at the site of the World Trade Center will be a symbol of America's resolve in the face of terror.

Wimbledon champs. Roger Federer won his second straight Wimbledon championship, becoming the first man to defend the title successfully since Pete Sampras did it in 2000. Seventeen-year-old Maria Sharapova won her first major title, defeating two-time defending champion Serena Williams.

And that's our "Weekend Snapshot."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Welcome back. U.S. aircraft hit a target in a hard- line Iraqi city. Officials call it a terrorist safe house. Was it the right house? We'll hear from our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr. But first, a quick check of the latest headlines.

New York firefighters battling a five-alarm blaze in a factory in Brooklyn where Mattresses are made. A building next door also caught fire. Officials say four firefighters being treated for injuries. No word yet on the cause there.

Vice President Dick Cheney has dismissed one of his personal physicians allowing (ph) a report the doctor the had abused prescription narcotics. An article in today's "New Yorker" says Dr. Gary Malakoff spent more than $46,000 thousand on Internet drug purchases over 2 1/2 years.

The man known in college basketball as Coach K. giving a live news conference down there at Duke University, he will stay at Duke says Krzyzewski. He's turned down an offer to the coach the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers.

U.S. aircraft given a target in the hard-line city of Fallujah, and they hit it hard. But was it the right target? For the latest details, let's go live to our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Hello to you, Drew. Well, U.S. warplanes in Iraq tonight have conducted an air strike against what is described as a Mujahedeen safe house in Fallujah. Four 500-pound bombs and two 1000-pound bombs were dropped. According to officials at the Fallujah hospital, at least eight people were killed. Now this is the fifth strike in recent days against houses in the city, part of the network the U.S. believes is controlled by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the insurgent leader believed responsible for attacks against civilians and the U.S.-led coalition. Iraqi government sources say it was a precision on a known Zarqawi safe house, but that it was aimed mainly at suicide bombers believed to be operating from that house.

Now a statement from the Iraqi government said, quote: "This precision strike and other recent events are indicators that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and his network is crumbling and there will be no more safe havens for terrorists." But no indication tonight, Drew, that Zarqawi himself was at the house when the bops hit -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Barbara Starr at the Pentagon, thank you for that.

Can Iraq's new government come up with a plan to handle the insurgents? We'll turn to our world affairs analyst, former Defense Secretary William Cohen. He is in our Washington bureau.

Good afternoon, Mr. Secretary.

WILLIAM COHEN, FMR. SECY. OF DEFENSE: Drew.

GRIFFIN: On the one hand you have the new Iraqi government offering some sort of amnesty to its insurgents. On the other hand we have another attack by the coalition forces in Fallujah. Are these competing paths to Iraqi security, and can they coexist?

COHEN: No, I think they are complimentary. On the one hand, the United States and coalition forces have to continue to maintain an offense against Zarqawi and his cohorts as such. At the same time, the signal coming forward from the jihadists and the insurgents is to challenge the legitimacy of the new government. And so I think there's a complimentary aspect to this. The one thing that has to be taken into account as far as the granting of amnesty is it has to be done with some care.

On the one hand, the new leadership is trying to separate the insurgents out from the jihadists. They have to be careful that this grant of amnesty is not too deep and too wide. It's one thing to say that you should keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. If you bring your enemies into that tent they may in fact succeed in destroying your government and your existence. And so there's a political aspect to this as well.

If this amnesty is too broad, then it runs a risk of creating political problems back here in the United States for President Bush.

GRIFFIN: Part of that amnesty, somewhat announced yesterday by Ayad Allawi, included amnesty for Muqtada al-Sadr. Is this Shiite cleric somebody they need to bring into the government to give the government its blessing in order for there to be peace?

COHEN: Well, al-Sadr has been in the thorn in the side certainly of the new government. And this may be an effort to persuade him to disband his militia and that if he does so, that he may be granted some form of amnesty and perhaps it might be some kind of a modification of a trial by his peers under Iraqi law and so forth. I think that has yet to be spelled out. But clearly he is presenting a challenge to the leadership.

That in combination with the films that have been released on the part of the jihadists present a real problem for the new government to show that they can't control the violence, that the terrorists are out there and that al-Sadr is challenging them politically. So there's very much to be determined in the future here. The U.S. government has said all along that they believe foreign insurgents were coming into Iraq. There may be some evidence of that with two Iranians arrested in Iraq, said to be carrying out or planning car bombings. But now we're also hearing in "The New York Times" this morning that Saddam's relatives, cousins may be funding this from abroad. What do you make of that?

COHEN: Well, that's a possibility. There certainly is greater coherency as such to the planning and the carrying out of these attacks. They are well-organized and they seem to be well-funded. And so one can't discount where that may be coming from. It really is not relative -- relevant, it seems to me in terms whether it's a relative of Saddam Hussein.

Maybe politically it might carry some significance. But the fact is that money is being funded to the jihadists and to the insurgents. They're able to move. They're able to get explosives to carry out their deeds. And so whoever it is, whether it's a Saddam Hussein relative or not, that has to be cut off and destroyed if there's going to be any longevity to this new government.

GRIFFIN: Mr. Secretary, in terms of ending any legitimacy of Saddam Hussein, I thought a big development came this weekend when Iran wanted to engage in the prosecution of Saddam Hussein, bring charges for the 1980 invasion. Was that a big development in your mind in terms of getting the world united at least against the old regime of Iraq?

COHEN: Well, looking at Iran, they have obviously their motives in trying to indicate to the world that they wish to partake in some kind of a proceeding against Saddam, but clearly they also have to account for their acts of supporting terrorists. And so it may be an effort on the one hand to show that they want to prosecute Saddam or participate in the prosecution of Saddam because of his waging of war against them back in the '80s. But they also have a lot to account for in terms of their continued sponsorship of groups that are really inflicting damages upon innocent civilians through the sponsorship of terrorism.

GRIFFIN: Secretary, time for me to ask the question that I have to ask you on this vice presidential anticipation day. Your name has come up by some here and elsewhere. Has the nominee, John Kerry, talked to you about being a vice presidential candidate?

COHEN: Well, I've been sitting by the phone all weekend and it has yet to ring.

GRIFFIN: Senator William Cohen, thank you for joining us.

COHEN: A pleasure.

GRIFFIN: Excuse, Secretary William Cohen, thank you.

Well, some say he's President Bush's secret weapon, others say he is a vulnerability. Up next, Vice President Cheney, his role in this year's election.

Plus, wives who stray. Why more American women are reportedly finding comfort in the arms of another man.

First a quick look at other news making headlines around the world.

Votes are being counted in Indonesia's first direct presidential election. A private poll projects a runoff between the two top candidates, a former army general and the incumbent president.

Keeping secrets. Israel's atomic energy commission has a new Web site but it offers little information about that country's top secret nuclear program. International Atomic Energy Commission chief Mohamed ElBaradei will visit Israel this week, and he's expected to urge the Israelis to be more forthcoming.

No prison. A South African court has overturned a theft conviction of Winnie Madikizela Mandela handed down last year in connection with a bank loan scam. It left her fraud conviction intact but it suspended her sentence which means the ex-wife of former President Nelson Mandela won't be going to prison.

Hitting the goal. They're still celebrating in Greece after winning the European soccer championship. The Greek national team, a distant underdog when the championships began...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's in!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: ... Defeated Portugal 1-0 in the final game.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And surprise, surprise, it's Greece in the lead!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: And that's our look around the world.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: More now, a story we are following closely, a Democratic official who has talked to John Kerry, say the candidate has chosen a running mate. The announcement could come any time.

CNN's Joe Johns has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John Kerry and his wife Teresa hosting a picnic here in suburban Pittsburgh with speculation raging over who will be his vice presidential running mate. The campaign sticking with the story John Kerry has not made up his mind. However, a Democratic official who has spoken with Kerry tells CNN he has made up his mind and will make the announcement soon.

The question is, of course, how soon? We're told there has been no change in his schedule as yet. Kerry is expected to campaign in Indianapolis, also in Ohio this week. As for some of the people who are said to be on Kerry's short list, Congressman Richard Gephardt was in Washington, D.C. hosting a picnic today. Senator John Edwards of North Carolina was in Boston, scheduled to have a fund-raiser for Kerry today. Tom Vilsack, the governor of Iowa, said he was going to East Coast but was no more specific than that.

Now one thing the campaign is trying to do is lower expectations at this point. Stephanie Cutter, the press secretary, telling reporters today, if we announce within the next week, it will be the earliest announcement in history.

Joe Johns, CNN, in suburban Pittsburgh.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: Wild rumors and speculations swirl around who will be John Kerry's running mate. The Republican ticket is coming under some quiet scrutiny, specifically Vice President Dick Cheney. CNN's Brian Todd is on that story. He's in Washington -- Brian.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Drew, the scrutiny is all about Cheney's appeal to both sides, to the Republican base as its voice and to Democrats as a target.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (voice-over): Dick Cheney may or may not love the political fight, and depending on the day, opinions may sway on whether he's good at it. Either way, he's in it now.

DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Ladies and gentlemen, on issue after issue, the choice on November 2 is very clear. It's a choice between President Bush's hope and optimism and Senator Kerry's pessimism.

TODD: But as the vice president ratchets up his attacks on John Kerry, questions are raised about Cheney himself and his role in a campaign that is coming more into focus. Newspaper articles question Cheney's political appeal and zest for campaigning and the vice president emerges as a lightning rod for opponents.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: They believe that they can make him a symbol of what Democrats in particular and perhaps swing voters don't like about the Bush administration, whether it's the questions about the intelligence before the war, the relationship with Halliburton, in a whole series of ways, I think they do see Dick Cheney as a target.

TODD: We put the question to Republican strategists and political commentators on both sides. Is Dick Cheney an asset or liability for the re-election campaign?

ARMSTRONG WILLIAMS, CONSERVATIVE COMMENTATOR: Cheney, without a doubt, is this administration's best spokesperson on the issues. They see him as an elder statesman, as someone who is older and mature, like a father figure.

TODD: We spoke to two Republican strategies who concede, Cheney's connections to the oil service company Halliburton and its controversial dealings in Iraq, are potential problem. And one of them said flatly, he's got to stop publicly referencing the administration's most criticized positions on Iraq.

CHENEY: Because we acted, he will never again brutalize the Iraqi people, never again support terrorists or pursue weapons of mass destruction, never again threaten the United States of America.

TODD: But political analysts and GOP strategists tell CNN, it would be more of a mistake for the Kerry campaign to keep targeting Cheney instead of pushing the debate to President Bush.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD: And one strategist put it this way, Cheney just finished a campaign swing through Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. And the Bush team wouldn't have sent him to those crucial battleground states if they thought he was and a liability -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Brian, if the strategists say he shouldn't talk about weapons of mass destruction or the Iraq-al Qaeda connection, what are they saying he should talk about?

TODD: Well, the two strategists we spoke to said that they believe he should focus more on the economy, on the modest job growth and on the relative successes in Iraq recently, that the handover went relatively well. And they say that you will see more of that coming from Cheney in the next days and weeks, especially as we head toward the Democratic convention.

GRIFFIN: Brian Todd in Washington, thanks for that insight.

Wayward wives and their secret lives. What's making them stray? I will ask Dr. Drew Pinsky of "Loveline."

And a protest in Pamplona. They're running without the bulls. They're running without their clothes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: There's a shocking new cover story in "Newsweek" magazine. "The Secret Lives of Wives" suggest that more and more women are cheating on their husbands and that when it comes to infidelity, there's now a real equality of the sexes. Joining me from Los Angeles is Dr. Drew Pinsky, the co-host of radio's "Loveline."

Dr. Drew, thank you for joining us.

DR. DREW PINSKY, CO-HOST, "LOVELINE": Thank you, Drew.

GRIFFIN: This article basically says, as I read it, in one university study, 10 percent of women cheated about a dozen years ago, and now it's up to 15 percent. Is that your reading of this article, and is that something to be concerned about?

PINSKY: Well, it's one of the data that that they quote. And about 20 or 25 percent of men are quoted as having done so. So it's really that women are catching up with the men and/or perhaps reporting it more honestly. I'll tell you, one of the things that the article also points out, for those clinicians that work with couples that are having trouble, they find incidence more in the range of 40 to 60 percent, again, with the women lagging behind by about 10 percent. But women clearly are common -- these are common behaviors amongst women these days, and more commonly than not in the workplace.

GRIFFIN: Well, Dr. Drew, is there something driving this? Or is it like you said, is it being reported more openly? PINSKY: Actually, there is something driving it. There are sort of two circumstances that commonly come into play. Actually men and women deal with this differently. It's interesting that we're discussing this on the heels of Bill Clinton's book where he reports his cheating having been because he could.

And in fact, in my world, where I work with addicts and I work with people on the radio, that's the reason that men tell me that they cheat, it's because they can. Women, on the other hand, will cheat because they're not getting their emotional needs met in the relationship. And as such, they start to build what we call a bullpen in the workplace. The workplace is really where they sort of start to size guys up and put guys in the sort of bullpen where they can connect with them if they really are never getting their needs met by their spouse.

It's interesting also that men will say, when there is -- comes to light that their wife has been cheating, the men will say, I had no idea, my God, how could this happen. And you talk to the women, they will say, look, I've been telling him for years. He never pays attention. He not spending time at home. He's not nurturing the relationship and giving it what it needs.

GRIFFIN: Really Interesting stories within this article about women who raise their children and then went back to work and suddenly found a lot of things that they were missing in their previous life.

PINSKY: It's true. It's a workplace that gives women an opportunity to develop an independent sense of self. And as such, if they really are not getting needs met and they develop an enhanced sense of self-esteem, greater choices, some of them start to think, well, why not? Why should I be unhappy in the relationship I'm in? And there are also sort of lower barriers I think to women engaging in these sorts of behaviors, less shame, less guilt about it. They feel less responsible for the relationship, and men have to kind of pull their weight in this as well.

GRIFFIN: Is that because of what the article the "Clintonization" or "The Sopranos" or "Sex and the City"?

PINSKY: Well, you really wonder what the impact our culture has had upon all of this. I'm worried that the "Sex and the City" sort of mentality is something that is having an infectious influence on the culture. But I think not. I think predominantly there are really two circumstances that commonly come to bear on this behavior. One is having come from a disruptive or chaotic family system where the capacity for intimacy is often impaired, whether it's a male or female, these are common histories. And secondly, addiction and alcoholism. For women, when they're not acting out on behalf of trying to get their emotional needs met, the second most common category is a woman who's an addict or an alcoholic and acting out part of her disease. This is something I encounter very, very commonly in my clinical world.

GRIFFIN: In terms of saving marriages, when a woman cheats or a man cheats is there a difference as to whether or not the marriage can be saved?

PINSKY: Well, what has been shown, and this article, rather nicely -- it's one of the rare times when a "Newsweek" article, I agree with most of what was in it, the article rather nicely points out that because people are waiting until they're older to have children and get married, very often when there is a problem later on, people are now in their middle ages, they're 40 years of age before the problem comes to light, they look at it as a problem that they need to solve, not as something that they're going to throw away a marriage for.

They've been single, they've had the single life. That is no longer such a romantic possibility for them. They realize that being single isn't sort of all it's cracked up to be. And working on the relationship and working on the problems in their relationship perhaps are more what people should be doing. And yes, both men and women do tend to be more forgiving when they have waited until they're older to get married.

GRIFFIN: Very quickly, are women going to approach the 22, 25 percent that men, involved in cheating?

PINSKY: I think so. I really do. I suspect in reality it probably is closer to that, they just aren't quite reporting it at that level. Remember, people have to be realistic about the differences between men and women. Unfortunately, there's sort of an emphasis in our society on equality. And the reality is that men and women differ quite a bit. That humans differ from chimpanzees by a few hundred DNA pairs, we differ from women, men by an entire chromosome. And it creates a different motivational system, a different set of motivational priorities. And it has to be contained and dealt with according. And so to allow men to cheat merely because they can, I think they have to understand that it has a profound impact on their family. It's a direct attack on their children and wife. And if they really understand that they'll be less likely to engage in these sorts of behaviors.

GRIFFIN: Dr. Drew Pinsky, on a somewhat stunning article in "Newsweek" on infidelity in America, thanks for joining us in Los Angeles.

PINSKY: My pleasure.

GRIFFIN: Flashing flesh at a famous festival. Why the protest in Pamplona? The answer in our "Picture of the Day." And our "Web Question of the Day" is: "Does the vice presidential candidate influence your choice for president?" Vote right now, why wait? The results for you when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Here's how you're weighing in on our "Web Question of the Day." This is not, of course, scientific. But we want to tell you that your e-mail is 39 percent yes, 61 percent no on whether or not the vice presidential candidate influences your choice for president. Stephen (ph) writing that: "The best choice for Kerry's running mate is John McCain. I hope John Kerry can persuade him to join the ticket. By choosing McCain Kerry can show he is a uniter and a bipartisan. Both Kerry and McCain have been in combat duty in Vietnam, are experts on international relations and long-term senators.

And Lauren (ph) sends this: "Kerry's V.P. should be Governor Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania because he can give a political punch as good as he takes one. He's no wallflower, quick-witted, he'd be a great match for Kerry.

Pamplona protest, our "Picture of the Day." Twenty people strip off their clothing today to protest against the annual running of the bulls there. The widely popular tradition ends with a bullfight, which the protestors say is cruel to the animals.

Thanks for joining us. "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now.

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