CNN Student News

Aired October 8, 2003

This is a rush transcript. This copy may not be in its final form and may be dated.

First Up: California Votes

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to CNN Student News on this Wednesday, October eighth! I'm Christina Park at the CNN Center. First up--it was an election unlike any other. And when the smoke cleared in the Golden State on Tuesday night. It appeared that a weightlifter, businessman, and world-famous actor was about to take on a new role, as governor of California. Sean Callebs has the scoop on how voters switched channels on Governor Gray Davis, and tuned in to Arnold Schwarzenegger.

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ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR-ELECT: And today California has given me the greatest gift of all. You have given me your trust for voting for me.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN REPORTER: Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife Maria Shriver went to the polls before Governor Gray Davis this morning. It wasn't the only time this day the bodybuilder turned actor bested Davis. By all indications California voters voiced their displeasure with Davis.

GRAY DAVIS, CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR: Tonight the people did decide it's time for someone else to serve and I accept their judgement.

CALLEBS: In this unusual race voters were asked two questions: recall Governor Davis, yes or no?, and which of the more than 130 candidates they want for governor. Schwarzenegger's camp was running like a juggernaut until allegations began to surface over the weekend that he had groped women in the past and basically made unwanted sexual advances towards women. Schwarzenegger apologized for his past behavior and alleged many of the accusations were simply political mudslinging.

Schwarzenegger inherits a state mired in an economic down turn, more than 8 billion dollars in debt, high taxes and the skyrocketing costs of higher education. Now, the secretary of state has a few weeks to certify the election and Arnold Schwarzenegger can boast a new title: governor of California.

Schwarzenegger thanked Governor Gray Davis for being gracious in defeat and pledging to work with him in this time of transition. But after the confetti, the balloons and the champagne, Schwarzenegger summed it up best saying the hard work begins now. In Los Angeles, I'm Sean Callebs, for CNN Student News.

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Shoutout

Time for the Shoutout! Which of these former governors was the last to be removed from office by a recall election? If you think you know it, shout it out! Was it: A) Walter J. Maddock, B) Thomas Edmund Dewey, C) Lynn J. Frazier or D) Ronald Reagan? Three seconds on that--GO! North Dakota governor Lynn J. Frazier was recalled from office in 1921. But his political future was far from over: Frazier went on to serve in the U.S. Senate from 1923 to 1940. That's your answer and that's your Shoutout!

CIA Leak Investigation

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN ANCHOR: A deadline has come and gone for White House staff members to turn over any information that could help the Justice Department find out who apparently blew the cover of a CIA secret agent. The agent's husband says someone in the Bush administration leaked his wife's name as payback for some criticism he made of pre-war intelligence regarding Iraq. John King takes the case.

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JOHN KING, CNN REPORTER: At a morning cabinet meeting, the president sounded a bit skeptical when asked if he is confident those responsible for the leak will be caught.

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH: Now this is a large administration, and there's a lot of senior officials. I don't have any idea. I'd like to. I want to know the truth.

KING: Press secretary Scott McClellan is among the top white house aides who say they had nothing to do with the leak but turned over documents covered by a Justice Department request. The Justice Department deadline for those records is two weeks away. But the investigation is overshadowing other Bush priorities, so White House counsel Alberto Gonzales set a Tuesday internal deadline and Chief of Staff Andy Card told White House staffers in this memo to "do what it takes...to comply by the deadline" because the sooner the investigation is over "the sooner we can all return our full attention to doing the work of the people."

McClellan acknowledged questioning three prominent White House aides because of speculation in media accounts: Senior Adviser Karl Rove, Vice Presidential Chief Of Staff Lewis Libby, and National Security Council Aide Elliot Abrams. All denied any role in the leak.

Democrats complain the president's lawyer is reviewing the documents before investigators get them.

SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER / D- NEW YORK: There ought to be a full investigation - an independent counsel, without any of these bottlenecks.

KING: White House aides say call the counsel's office review standard procedure, but while promising full cooperation, they are not ruling out the possibility of invoking executive privilege to shield classified information from investigators if the White House determines it is critical to national security but not relevant to the investigation. John King, CNN the White House.

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International Headlines

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN ANCHOR: Heading outside the country now, for a roundup of global headlines. A rowdy scene outside a mosque in Baghdad. The demonstration followed yesterday's arrest of a Muslim religious leader called an imam. The U.S. military says the imam and his assistants were hiding assault rifles, grenades, and ammo inside a holy site, which is a violation of Iraq's weapons laws. But some of these demonstrators said that U.S. soldiers entered the mosque to plant the weapons and then photograph them.

Elsewhere in the Middle East...seven new members of a Palestinian emergency cabinet, sworn in by President Yasser Arafat. Two of the cabinet's other members didn't make the ceremony. The Palestinian Legislative Council meets Thursday to consider a "vote of confidence" for the new cabinet...which some leaders hope would give credibility to its programs.

Word to the Wise

A Word to the Wise...

metabolism (noun): the chemical processes occurring within a living cell or organism that are necessary for the maintenance of life

Source: www.dictionary.com

Gaining Weight By Dieting?

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN ANCHOR: Ok, say you eat way too much candy this halloween season and put on a few extra pounds. Before you decide to go on a diet, listen to this: a study released this week says that for kids, dieting is ineffective and may actually make you gain weight. Deanna Morawski gives us the skinny on this surprising find.

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DEANNA MORAWSKI, CNN STUDENT NEWS REPORTER: Go on a diet, lose a few pounds. It works for a lot of adults. But try this on for size: a study by researchers at Brigham and Womens' Hospital in Boston says it has the opposite effect for overweight kids. Their findings show kids between the ages of nine and fourteen who were trying to lose weight tended to gain weight instead. The study says there are two possible reasons for that. The first--while dieting, their metabolism becomes more efficient, requiring fewer calories to maintain their weight or become overweight. Secondly, and more likely, the report said--strict diets are not maintained for very long and are often followed by binge eating.

Researchers also found that the frequency of diets had an effect: girls who dieted less often gained slightly less weight than frequent dieters, but still gained more than those who didn't diet at all. The study has implications for a increasing portion of America: the National Center for Health Statistics estimates that in 2000, 15 percent of u.s. children were overweight. That's more than double what it was in 1980-- six percent.

For kids who are severely overweight, the researchers say, medically supervised weight control may offer benefits. Their advice to the rest: adopt a modest weight control strategy--meaning one that does not require a severe restriction of calories--and make a point to exercise regularly. Deanna Morawski, CNN Student News, Atlanta.

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Web Promo

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Goodbye

CHRISTINA PARK, CNN ANCHOR: Well, it captured the eyes of a nation -- and the dreams of actors, models, teachers and politicians alike...not a small feat for any election! So we'll leave you with some scenes from the golden state, and see you tomorrow here on CNN Student News. I'm Christina Park -- thanks for logging on!