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CNN LIVE AT DAYBREAK

Updates on the Presidential Campaigns; The Latest in the Scott Peterson Double Murder Trial

Aired October 26, 2004 - 05:00   ET

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


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you.
From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.

Now in the news -- the U.S. Military says an air strike in Falluja has killed an associate of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Al-Zarqawi heads a terrorist network in Iraq and has a $25 million bounty on his head.

The Pentagon is looking at ways to add about 22,000 more troops in Iraq to provide security during elections next year. "USA Today" is reporting some of those troops now in Iraq could have their departures delayed, while others due to be deployed to Iraq could be sent sooner. Also, the "Washington Post" today says the Bush administration will seek about $70 billion more for Iraq and Afghanistan.

Later this afternoon, the Israeli cabinet is expected to approve Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan for withdrawing from part of Gaza. The prime minister wants Israeli settlers out of Gaza by the end of next year.

And remember that bullpen brawl in last year's American League championship series? Former New York Yankees players Jeff Nelson and Karim Garcia were accused of assaulting a groundskeeper. Well, they're set to go on trial in Boston today. But prosecutors say the charges could be dropped if the two perform community service and possibly undergo some counseling.

It's just funny to think of them in counseling.

JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I was going to say, why are you laughing?

COSTELLO: I don't know.

JERAS: You're just airing a story.

COSTELLO: It just seems so silly, the whole thing. The whole fight in the first place was silly.

JERAS: Go figure.

COSTELLO: Good morning, Jacqui.

JERAS: Good morning. How are you?

COSTELLO: I'm fine.

Thanks for...

JERAS: Giggly, I see.

COSTELLO: Yes.

JERAS: All right.

COSTELLO: Well, it's early, you know?

JERAS: Well, hey, let's bring you on down to earth and talk about some serious weather.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Seven days, a week from today Americans will head to the polls. George Bush and John Kerry are using this last week to hit the states that could sway the balance, states like Wisconsin. Both candidates will sweep across that state today. You might remember Al Gore won in Wisconsin in 2000 by fewer than 6,000 votes when the Badger State had the nation's second highest voter turnout. Wisconsin has 10 electoral votes.

Bush starts this morning, though, in Alaska. He then heads to Richland Center and Cuba City before leaving for Iowa and a late afternoon rally in Dubuque. The president's stump speeches are focusing on terrorism and leadership skills. It's a theme he repeats at nearly every stop.

Our senior White House correspondent, John King, is with the Bush campaign.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In Colorado to open the final week, terrorism and leadership the issues the president wants voters to consider most in the end.

GEORGE W. BUSH (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Even when you might not agree with me, you know what I believe, where I stand and what I intend to do.

KING: This headline hardly fit with Mr. Bush's message of strong wartime stewardship, 380 tons of missing explosives in Iraq, more evidence to the Kerry campaign of inept administration planning. The White House played down the episode and turned its fire on Senator Kerry, twisting one of the Democrat's favorite lines. The president says a Kerry administration would be too weak and would react to terrorism instead of hunting the terrorists.

BUSH: My opponent has the wrong strategy for the wrong country at the wrong time. KING: In accusing Mr. Bush of mismanaging the war on terror, Senator Kerry says, among other things, that the United States let Osama bin Laden escape after cornering him in Afghanistan. As he campaigned in Colorado and later in Iowa, Mr. Bush called it another flip-flop, quoting Senator Kerry from three years ago.

BUSH: "I think we've been smart. I think the administration leadership has done it well and we are on the right track." Well, all I can say is that I'm George W. Bush and I approve of that message.

KING: Word Chief Justice William Rehnquist is hospitalized for cancer treatment added a new element to the campaign's final days. Mr. Bush made no mention of Rehnquist. But judges are a campaign flashpoint, and this speech line, after voicing opposition to abortion and gay marriage, is a conservative favorite.

BUSH: And I will tell the people that I'll name federal judges who know the difference between personal opinion and the strict interpretation of the law.

KING (on camera): The president was told of Rehnquist's hospitalization Monday morning and the White House says he wishes the chief justice a speedy recovery. As for the potential political impact, some Republicans believe the news will increase intensity among social conservatives, who, as one leading Republican strategist put it, view the Supreme Court as the Holy Grail of American government and politics.

John King CNN, Davenport, Iowa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Senator John Kerry opens his day with a speech this morning at the University of Wisconsin Green Bay. And then it's off to Las Vegas for an afternoon rally. He's got an evening rally in Albuquerque before departing late tonight for Iowa. Kerry was in Philadelphia on Monday, accompanied by a Democratic heavyweight, and that would be former President Bill Clinton.

And as our Candy Crowley reports, the former president was certainly a strong draw.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Showtime in Love Park, Philadelphia.

WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON (D), FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If this isn't good for my heart, I don't know what is.

CROWLEY: He is the Democrats' power player and not much can muscle Bill Clinton out of the headlines. But 380 tons of explosives missing in Iraq is a lot.

KERRY: This is one of the great additional blunders of Iraq, the unbelievable incompetence of this administration. CROWLEY: The day's message came straight out of the day's news, but the picture was straight from the heart of the Democratic Party. Seven weeks after major bypass surgery, he looked a little thinner, sounded a little weak, but Bill Clinton still talks the talk better than anyone.

CLINTON: If one candidate is trying to scare you and the other one is trying to get you to think, if one candidate is appealing to your fears and the other one is appealing to your hopes, you better vote for the person who wants you to think and hope.

CROWLEY: Politicians appear alongside Bill Clinton at their own risk. He can make anyone look dull. John Kerry is no Bill Clinton, but he is revving it up in the home stretch with a rip on the president's debate performance.

KERRY: The president kept responding, "It's hard work. It's hard work. It's hard work." Well, my fellow Americans, I am ready and I would be privileged and I am impatient to relieve this president of that hard work.

CROWLEY: Though both the former president and the want to be president publicly dismissed the idea that Clinton can pull votes for Kerry, Kerry strategists privately think Clinton can help seal the deal.

(on camera): Clinton's favorables are higher than either the president's or the Senator's, and he's even more popular among swing voters and African-American voters, two key blocs for a Kerry victory.

Candy Crowley CNN, Warren, Michigan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: For all the latest news from the campaign trail, watch "INSIDE POLITICS" with Judy Woodruff. She'll be live from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Of course, that airs later today, 3:00 p.m. Eastern.

In other news across America this morning, recovery crews have found all 10 bodies from the NASCAR team plane crash in rural Virginia. Investigators are trying to figure out what went wrong, but it won't be easy because the plane was not equipped with a flight data recorder or a cockpit voice recorder.

In the meantime, fans and employees gathered at the race team's headquarters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People are still trying to work and trying to stay busy with, you know, the fab shop. Some of those guys are working and that's how they work through some of this is doing what they do best.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You've got to go to Atlanta next week. You've got to get ready. You've got to go. You know, they won't -- they'll pick themselves up and they'll go, because that's part of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Race team owner Rick Hendrick had decided to skip the flight because he wasn't feeling well. His son, brother and twin nieces are among those who died in the crash.

Bubba the Love Sponge is on the ballot in St. Petersburg, Florida. The former radio shock jock was fired from a Tampa radio station last year after being fined by the FCC. He's officially running for the vacant sheriff post in Pinellas County, Florida. Todd Clem formerly, changed his name to Bubba the Love Sponge Clem.

Georgia's hate crimes law has been struck down as being unconstitutionally vague. The state supreme court ruled that the law could be applied to every possible prejudice, no matter how obscure. The court was reviewing a case where two people had time added to their sentence under the law. Forty-eight states have hate crimes laws, but Georgia's is the only one that doesn't specify who is protected.

Believe it or not, we are nearing an end to the Scott Peterson murder trial.

And as CNN's Rusty Dornin reports, the jury might get the option of considering a lesser offense.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Scott Peterson is charged with first degree double homicide. That means the prosecution must prove premeditation, which could be hard to do and why observers here expect the judge to give the jury another option before deliberations begin.

CHUCK SMITH, LEGAL ANALYST: The jury will be ready instructions about first degree murder, special circumstance and then second degree murder. And they will be told that if they're not satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that there's been premeditation and deliberation, they may consider the charge of second degree murder, two counts.

DORNIN: Defense attorney Mark Geragos is likely to fight against a second degree option, hoping for all or nothing. In court today, Geragos called to the stand more police investigators in an effort to show the victim's family members only began pointing fingers at Peterson's odd behavior after they learned of the affair with Amber Frey. And then there were some new phone tapes, including one between Scott Peterson and his brother Joe the day Scott was arrested.

SCOTT PETERSON: I don't think I should come play golf. I'd think I'd better skip it because I don't think I want a picture of me in the press.

DORNIN: Analysts say Peterson didn't appear to be planning on fleeing, which is what prosecutors claim, but he did not appear distraught as he waited to hear the identities of the bodies discovered in the Bay. Observers say so far, Geragos is not delivering the dramatic case he promised in opening statements.

DEAN JOHNSON, LEGAL ANALYST: He was going to prove Scott Peterson stone cold innocent. He was going to turn this into an eyewitness case. Have you heard anything yet -- and we've got about two or three days of testimony to go -- have you heard anything yet that proves Scott Peterson stone cold innocent?

DORNIN (on camera): The defendant's parents took the stand late in the afternoon. Prosecutors have claimed Peterson had $15,000 in cash on him the day he was arrested because he was about to flee. But Peterson's parents told the jury they gave him the money. At least $10,000 was given by his mother for a truck sale involving his brother. The defense could wrap up its case as early as Tuesday.

Rusty Dornin, CNN, Redwood City, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Still to come on DAYBREAK, the tough job of tackling North Korea's nukes. We'll have a live report for you on Secretary of State Colin Powell's challenging visit to the Korean Peninsula. That comes your way at 35 minutes past the hour.

Plus, will the nation's 80-year-old chief justice go back to work just days after cancer surgery? Oncologists say William Rehnquist's condition might be very serious. We'll take a look at the illness at 48 minutes past.

And who are you going to pick, the devil Bush or the scary Kerry? We'll look at a different sort of competition at 54 minutes after.

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.

It is 5:15 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

We are learning more about those missing explosives in Iraq. NBC is reporting the explosives were already gone when American troops arrived at the munitions depot the day after Baghdad fell. An NBC crew was in (AUDIO GAP).

Was the Nuclear Regulatory Commission giving away secrets on the Internet? Their online document library has been temporarily closed after some sensitive documents were found in plain view. Some of the information included nuclear laboratory floor plans and storage details.

In money news, a major merger in the steel industry could mean more stability in the U.S. job market. Middle Steel could become the world's biggest steel supplier after combining companies from several different countries, including the United States. The deal likely means no job cuts at U.S. plants.

In culture, famed American opera star Robert Merrill is dead. Merrill spent 31 years as a featured performer at the Metropolitan Opera. He was also well known for performing the national anthem at Yankees games. Robert Merrill was 85 years old.

In sports, the Cincinnati Bengals enjoy their return to "Monday Night Football." The Bengals beat the Denver Broncos 23-10 for their second win of the year. This was the Bengals' first Monday night appearance in 12 years. And sometimes that makes teams play better -- Jacqui.

JERAS: Wow!

Why 12 years? Do we know?

COSTELLO: Well, because Cincinnati's not a -- was not a very good team for the past 12 years.

JERAS: Oh.

COSTELLO: So, they didn't want them on "Monday Night Football." But last year they were good...

JERAS: So, only the A-list teams get the Monday night billing, huh?

COSTELLO: Usually.

But last year Cincinnati was good, so they appeared on "Monday Night Football."

JERAS: OK.

COSTELLO: And this year they haven't been good, but they won last night.

JERAS: Good for them.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: You want to stick around for some laughs?

JERAS: Sure!

COSTELLO: OK.

As usual, the late night talk show hosts were having a field day with the candidates and their rhetoric. It's providing some good stand up material.

Here's part of what John Stewart had to say on "The Daily Show."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN STEWART, HOST: But for those who believe that this administration's disconnect with reality stems from its failure to listen to what they consider unfriendly viewpoints, it gets a little worse. They don't actually speak to them either.

DICK CHENEY (R), VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And the Iraqis I've talked to, virtually to a man, all reiterate that gratitude they feel to the United States for what we did.

STEWART: Really? Have you talked to the ones with the bombs, because they seem mad?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Don't you wish you could just do the news like that sometimes?

JERAS: It would be fun, yes.

COSTELLO: It would be fun.

I have some ideas.

JERAS: All right then.

COSTELLO: What's hot on the Web, straight ahead.

Also, after a late night calamity on "Saturday Night Live," Ashley Simpson takes to the stage again. We'll hear what the singer had to say about her lip synch malfunction.

You are watching DAYBREAK for a Tuesday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It's that time of the morning when we check out our Web clicks. We are always interested to see what you're interested in on cnn.com.

And are you ready, Jacqui?

JERAS: I'm so ready.

COSTELLO: This is our fun segment.

JERAS: OK.

COSTELLO: You're psyched, I know.

JERAS: Saddle up.

COSTELLO: That's right.

The number one clicked on story on cnn.com, "Bush Cousins Launch Pro-Kerry Web Site." It sounds strange, I know. They're his second cousins. He doesn't even know them.

JERAS: You just don't do that to family, though.

COSTELLO: They don't even...

JERAS: Do you?

COSTELLO: They have never met each other.

JERAS: I know, but they're family.

COSTELLO: Well, it doesn't matter. They've launched a pro-Kerry Web site. In fact, one of them was at a campaign rally holding up a sign, like Bush relatives for Kerry.

JERAS: Ouch.

COSTELLO: Kerry came over and just said hi and he was joking around and said hey, it'd be cool maybe, you know, if you set up a Web site, how funny that would be. And oddly enough, they did.

JERAS: Lo and behold!

COSTELLO: The second most clicked on story, "Cassini To Fly By Saturn's Moon." And you probably know more about this than I, because I'm not good at space stuff. But it sounds absolutely fascinating.

I'm just going to read the first paragraph here. "The NASA spacecraft Cassini, which is carrying a European Space Agency probe, cut off communications with controllers on Monday as it prepared to peer beneath a veil of smog shrouding Saturn's moon, Titan." And this moon is very mysterious. No one's ever really seen what's on it.

JERAS: Really?

COSTELLO: Yes. It's supposed to reflect primordial earth.

JERAS: Wow!

COSTELLO: Pretty fascinating.

JERAS: Hey, you know, speaking of moons, we've got a total lunar eclipse tomorrow night.

COSTELLO: Really?

JERAS: Absolutely. And you can see it right here in Atlanta.

COSTELLO: Really?

JERAS: In fact, if it's clear at your house, you can see it. I don't know if we have time, but I've got a graphic that'll show you where you can see it and where you can't.

COSTELLO: Oh, maybe we can slap that up later.

JERAS: Do we have time?

COSTELLO: Do we have time?

We do.

JERAS: Yes. OK, there we go. There it is. Tomorrow night, it starts at about 9:15 Eastern time, but at the peak when you see the totality, it's about 10:30. And across the country, you're going to have a tough time seeing it across parts of the Ohio Valley, also, across the Southwest and into the Southern Plains States. But across the Southeast into the Northeast, also into the Rockies and the western High Plains and Pacific Northwest, a very high chance of being able to see it.

So, go on out there before you go to bed tomorrow night. A total lunar eclipse. It should be very cool.

COSTELLO: It sounds very cool.

Thanks.

Thanks for that.

JERAS: Sure.

COSTELLO: And see, we aim to please. We slapped that graphic right up for you.

JERAS: There you go.

COSTELLO: It's time for our DAYBREAK "Eye Opener" now.

Elvis is leaving the pond. Take a look at this. That's a knife sticking out of the head of a five foot long alligator. Residents of Sarasota County say the gator has never harmed anyone during the year it's lived there. They even named it Elvis. Police are now investigating, but wildlife officials say Elvis will be destroyed since he has had contact now with humans. Oh.

Yesterday, we told you about the drive in St. Louis to light the Gateway Arch and to light it up pink. Last night, it glowed with color as part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Some people had been opposed to the one day lighting. They said the arch may now be lit in different colors for non-important occasions like Halloween and St. Patrick's Day. But it looked pretty in pink.

JERAS: It did look pretty, didn't it?

COSTELLO: Yes.

In Japan, they have a new way to make people notice your smile. These are tooth ornaments. The jeweled add-ons last about three months and are not harmful, even if you happen to swallow them. For just $90, a tooth artist can either put on your own design or you can choose from 3,000 pre-made designs.

It just sounds like another thing to do.

JERAS: My.

COSTELLO: Oh, let's listen. Ashlee Simpson. I was waiting for her to sing. But apparently she's not going to. Ashlee Simpson performed live at last night's Radio Music Awards in Las Vegas, but the talk still centered on her playback performance on "Saturday Night Live." Simpson says it was acid reflux that led to the problems.

JERAS: I thought it was her band.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUESTION: Something was wrong with your throat?

ASHLEE SIMPSON, SINGER: A severe acid reflux and the day of "Saturday Night Live," I actually completely lost my voice. And in the rehearsals it was going great, and then, you know, it comes like, you know, four hours to the show and I lost my voice so.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: OK?

JERAS: OK.

COSTELLO: Acid reflux.

JERAS: At least she got up there, though, you know? At least she got up there and had the courage to do that.

COSTELLO: She has to. She has to save her career.

JERAS: Really?

COSTELLO: Jacqui feels sorry for her because she's a lot nicer than I.

JERAS: (INAUDIBLE). She's young.

COSTELLO: I know. She's 19, blah, blah.

JERAS: (INAUDIBLE).

COSTELLO: After the SNL snafu, Simpson blamed her band, as you had said. Her father says the drummer pushed the wrong button on the tape machine.

JERAS: There we go. So, it was the band and acid reflux. Now we've got it straight.

COSTELLO: That's why, apparently, she had to lip synch, because she had acid reflux, which apparently affects your voice, which I didn't know.

JERAS: Well, you could just throw up right there on stage. It would be a nightmare.

COSTELLO: Jacqui!

Here's what's all new in the next half hour of DAYBREAK.

The presidential candidates battle it out in the battleground states. But could Democratic gains in Michigan raise red flags for the Republican Party? We'll have more on the possible miss in Michigan.

You're watching DAYBREAK for a Tuesday.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: And good morning to you.

Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK.

From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.

Now in the news, North Korea is saying no thanks to nuclear talks. That's despite pleas from Secretary of State Colin Powell, who's on a trip to Asia. The communist nation says it would be impossible to restart the talks at this time.

Back here in the States, some tougher border security rules take effect today. Travelers from more than 20 nations must now have passports with coding that can be read by a machine.

A plea hearing in Virginia today for convicted sniper Lee Malvo. He's already serving a life term for one of the Washington area sniper shootings. Malvo is now facing charges in two of the other attacks.

In sports, the Cardinals are hoping to ruffle some feathers today. The World Series shifts to St. Louis for game three. The Boston Red Sox up two games to nothing.

To the forecast center now and Jacqui -- good morning.

JERAS: Hey, good morning.

(WEATHER REPORT)

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