CBS Evening News (A block) - 2006-11-06

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:01] I'm Katie Kurrick. The battle for

[0:03] Congress is getting tighter this night

[0:05] before election day. Will it all come

[0:07] down to who's better at getting out the

[0:08] vote? Demonstrations for and against the

[0:11] hanging of Saddam Hussein continue in

[0:13] Iraq as his appeal goes forward. A CBS

[0:16] News exclusive. A global battle between

[0:19] two internet titans over mapping the

[0:22] Earth. And the mighty aircraft carrier

[0:24] Intrepid facing a new enemy tonight,

[0:27] Manhattan mud.

[0:33] This is the CBS Evening News with Katie

[0:36] Curr reporting from CBS News election

[0:39] headquarters in New York.

[0:41] >> Hi everyone. Well, we're down to the

[0:43] final hours now of campaign 06 and the

[0:46] battle for control of Congress is

[0:47] getting tighter by the minute. Just how

[0:50] tight, we won't know until tomorrow

[0:52] night when voters have the final say.

[0:55] Turnout of course is key and both major

[0:57] parties shifted their get out the vote

[0:59] drives into high gear. We'll have more

[1:01] about that in a moment. But first, chief

[1:03] Washington correspondent Bob Schiffer is

[1:04] here with the final pre-election poll

[1:07] numbers. Hi Bob.

[1:08] >> How are you Katie? Well, I tell you it

[1:10] is closer and the question now is just

[1:13] how close. Several polls out this

[1:15] weekend and today show Republicans

[1:17] nationwide are closing the gap. When

[1:20] pollsters from the Pew Research Center

[1:22] asked voters if they plan to vote for

[1:24] the Republican or Democrat in their

[1:26] local races, Democrats came out on top,

[1:28] but only by a fourpoint spread, 47 to

[1:32] 43. The new USA Today Gallup poll

[1:34] reflects the same trend. Democrats come

[1:37] out on top, but the margin has shrunk in

[1:39] that poll from 13 points several weeks

[1:41] ago to just seven now, 51% to 44%. Now,

[1:46] Katie, here is why the Democrats are

[1:47] nervous. Just a week ago, our CBS poll

[1:50] showed more than half the likely voters

[1:53] said they plan to vote Democratic. Only

[1:55] 34% planning to vote Republican.

[1:57] Clearly, that spread is shrinking and

[2:00] things are moving. Having said that, the

[2:02] Republicans are still behind. and they

[2:04] are running with a president who has a

[2:06] very low approval rating and all the

[2:09] polls show Americans believe the country

[2:11] is headed in the wrong direction. So,

[2:13] it's going to be hard for the

[2:14] Republicans to close this gap entirely.

[2:17] >> Why do you think the numbers move so

[2:18] much over the weekend, Bob?

[2:19] >> A couple of things. The Republicans had

[2:21] more money. They're really pouring it on

[2:23] and all the polls show that their voters

[2:25] are now getting enthusiastic and fired

[2:28] up about all this.

[2:29] >> And what is your fearless forecast, Mr.

[2:31] Schaefer? I think the Democrats are

[2:34] going to take the House and I think the

[2:35] Senate is going to wind up 5050.

[2:38] >> So, it should be an exciting night,

[2:40] right?

[2:40] >> Should be.

[2:41] >> All right, Bob Shever. Bob, thanks so

[2:42] much. CBS News has a team of

[2:44] correspondents here in our election

[2:46] headquarters and out in the field to

[2:48] bring you the very latest as the

[2:50] campaign comes to an end. Lee Cowan is

[2:53] in Ohio where both parties are pulling

[2:55] out all the stops to get out the vote.

[2:58] ANYBODY HERE? ANYBODY HERE GOING TO SAY

[3:02] >> IN COLUMBUS? The spirituals are

[3:04] heavenly, but the mission more earthly.

[3:06] Get souls to the polls before time runs

[3:08] out.

[3:09] >> Raise the minimum wage by voting. Raise

[3:12] compassion for our senior citizens by

[3:14] voting.

[3:15] >> Whether it's in the pews

[3:19] >> or in the bleachers,

[3:20] >> doing bumper stickers,

[3:22] >> campaign volunteers like Jamaima Robs

[3:24] are taking advantage of every last

[3:26] second. They've made thousands of phone

[3:28] calls and definitely knocked on hundreds

[3:29] of doors

[3:31] >> and so have the candidates. How

[3:33] exhausted are you at this point?

[3:35] >> Well, I'm running on pure adrenaline. It

[3:37] feels pretty good actually.

[3:38] >> Deborah Price is the fourth ranking

[3:40] Republican in the House and hers is

[3:42] Ohio's race to watch.

[3:44] >> We've looped this district three times,

[3:45] going on four times, and it takes that

[3:48] kind of thing. I am Joe Kilroy. Her

[3:50] challenger, Democrat Mary Joe Kilroy, is

[3:52] running on a mix of caffeine and poll

[3:54] numbers that show her in the lead.

[3:56] >> Go out, work hard, get tired, get some

[3:59] rest, go back out again.

[4:01] >> Ohio Democrats are enthusiastic about

[4:03] this election, but it's the Republicans

[4:05] who've been especially good about

[4:06] getting out the vote.

[4:08] >> Hi, is Greg available?

[4:09] >> Hi, my name is John.

[4:10] >> They've made a dizzying array of as many

[4:12] as 250,000 phone calls a week. That is

[4:15] more contacts in a given week uh this

[4:19] time of year for sure before the

[4:20] election than we made in even 04.

[4:23] >> It's really important. Every vote

[4:24] counts.

[4:25] >> But Democrats are picking up the pace.

[4:26] At this house party, we found volunteers

[4:28] burning up the cell phones. And with the

[4:30] help of labor unions like the AFL CIO,

[4:33] Democrats now seem better organized to

[4:35] mobilize.

[4:37] Hallelujah.

[4:38] >> Their last big rally was this one again

[4:41] at a church, but the time for songs and

[4:43] slogans has passed. Ohio's absentee

[4:46] ballots are already being scanned.

[4:50] And there are a lot of those absentee

[4:52] ballot ballots, Katie. In fact, one out

[4:53] of every three Ohio voters voted

[4:55] absentee just so they could avoid

[4:57] tomorrow's long lines. Katie.

[4:59] >> All right, Lee Cow and Lee, thanks so

[5:01] much. We'll see you tomorrow night. And

[5:02] with the early voting, there are of

[5:04] course early voting problems. Our chief

[5:07] investigative correspondent Armen Cayan

[5:09] is here now with the very latest on

[5:11] that. Armen.

[5:12] >> Well Katie, early voting has been going

[5:14] on in 15 states. An early test of the

[5:16] electronic voting equipment to be used

[5:18] by nearly 90% of the country tomorrow.

[5:21] But problems are beginning to surface.

[5:24] >> Thank you.

[5:25] >> In Tennessee, the site of a very tight

[5:27] Senate race, machines froze up in one

[5:29] county after 10,000 early voters, far

[5:32] more than expected, showed up. The

[5:35] problem easily solved, said a local

[5:36] official when more machines were

[5:39] activated. In Chicago's Cook County, a

[5:41] handful of 32,000 early voters claimed

[5:44] machines switched their votes from

[5:46] Democrat to Republican. County officials

[5:48] later cited voter confusion and error.

[5:51] Similar events took place in parts of

[5:53] Texas and South Carolina. And in New

[5:56] Mexico, the state's computerized voter

[5:58] registration database crashed during the

[6:00] last hours of early voting this weekend,

[6:02] forcing those in line to write out a

[6:04] backup paper ballot or come back

[6:06] tomorrow. Well, both parties have armies

[6:09] of lawyers fanned out across the

[6:11] country, Katie, ready to file court

[6:12] challenges based on voting

[6:14] irregularities as they arise.

[6:17] >> All right, Armen, thank you so much. And

[6:19] if you have any doubt that every vote

[6:21] counts in the battle for Congress, about

[6:23] 20 to 25 House races and four Senate

[6:26] races are considered complete toss-ups

[6:29] tonight. So close, no one is predicting

[6:32] a winner. Correspondents Byron Pittz and

[6:34] Sharon Alons are in states with some of

[6:36] the tightest races in the country. Let's

[6:38] begin tonight in Missouri, specifically

[6:40] St. Louis. Sharon.

[6:43] Well, despite $60 million in spending

[6:46] and endless hours campaigning, tonight

[6:48] the Senate race in Missouri remains

[6:50] exactly how it always has been, too

[6:53] close to call.

[6:55] >> Talent sprinting to the finish line and

[6:57] we're asking you to join us.

[6:58] >> Republican Jim Talent was barnstorming

[7:00] with President Bush. Democrat Claire

[7:03] McCascal called on Senator Barack Obama.

[7:05] >> Clare McCascal WAS GOING TO BE THE NEXT

[7:08] UNITED States Senator from Missouri. But

[7:10] in the end, the Razor Close Rays could

[7:12] be influenced less by those stars and

[7:15] more by this one.

[7:16] >> I care deeply about stem cell research.

[7:19] >> Actor Michael J. Fox has made the ballot

[7:21] initiative on stem cell research a hot

[7:24] button issue in Missouri this year.

[7:26] Number two behind a rock.

[7:28] >> What you do in Missouri matters to

[7:30] millions of Americans.

[7:32] All that attention helped boost Democrat

[7:35] Claire McCascal who supports the

[7:37] initiative, but it also helped to

[7:38] re-energize Republicans who oppose it.

[7:42] How the Fox factor plays out is likely

[7:44] to tip the balance of the Senate. Katie,

[7:47] >> meanwhile, Sharon, I understand this

[7:48] race is so tight, we may not even know

[7:51] the results late tomorrow night.

[7:54] Well, they are under a lot of scrutiny,

[7:56] so it's going to be slow. Add to that

[7:58] the fact that some counties are now

[7:59] reporting that they have twice the usual

[8:02] number of absentee ballots. It could

[8:04] take a while.

[8:04] >> All right, Sharon Alonsi. Sharon, thank

[8:06] you. Now to our national correspondent,

[8:08] Byron Pitts in Connecticut where some of

[8:10] the closest and most crucial House races

[8:13] will be decided tomorrow. Byron?

[8:17] >> Well, Katie, here it's pretty simple.

[8:18] There are three competitive races and

[8:20] they all come down to one word, Iraq.

[8:25] Take Congressman Chris Shayes, one of

[8:27] three Republican incumbents fighting for

[8:29] another term.

[8:30] >> You're congressman and that's

[8:31] Christopher Sheay.

[8:32] >> He served in the House for 19 years, a

[8:35] moderate by any measure. But this year,

[8:37] it's not about Shea's record.

[8:39] >> People are unhappy about the Republican

[8:41] party. They're unhappy about the war.

[8:43] Um, they're not all that excited about

[8:45] George Bush in this district.

[8:47] >> Hi, I'm Diane Frell running for

[8:48] Congress. And that's what Shea's

[8:50] opponent, Diane Pharaoh, has been

[8:51] hearing every day from her supporters.

[8:54] >> A vote for a change, a vote against the

[8:56] war, a vote against Bush.

[8:59] >> Uh, you get a hug for all three reasons.

[9:01] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I have

[9:03] people that will drive by, roll down

[9:04] their windows, and just yell out to me,

[9:07] "I'm voting for you. It's time for a

[9:08] change." I think people are just fed up.

[9:12] >> Now, no votes have been counted, of

[9:14] course, but even the Republicans

[9:15] concede. If the Democrats pick up three

[9:17] seats in Connecticut, and that's a big

[9:19] if, that spells trouble for the GOP

[9:21] nationwide. Katie.

[9:23] >> All right, Byron. Thanks so much. And

[9:24] that brings us to the number one

[9:26] Republican, the man who's not on the

[9:28] ballot, but still potentially a big

[9:30] factor in the voting and has a lot at

[9:32] stake in the outcome. That of course

[9:34] would be President Bush. Jim Axelrod has

[9:37] been with him as he spent the past few

[9:38] days campaigning all around the country.

[9:41] Jim.

[9:42] >> Well, Katie, if the president and his

[9:44] aids are worried, they're sure hiding

[9:46] it. Well, top Democrats say Republicans

[9:48] have made no attempts to reach out and

[9:50] bend fences, even though they may very

[9:52] well have to start working with

[9:53] Democrats. Come Wednesday,

[9:59] on the last day of campaigning, Mr. Bush

[10:01] was out to rally the faithful to go to

[10:03] the polls. Like in Pensacola, Florida,

[10:05] >> we're 24 hours away from voting.

[10:09] Some of the folks in Washington have

[10:10] already think they figured out the

[10:12] results.

[10:13] >> Florida neatly sums up the president's

[10:15] status. Low approval ratings mean he

[10:18] only visits heavily conservative areas

[10:20] like the panhandle.

[10:22] But even there, top GOP candidates don't

[10:25] want to be seen with Mr. Bush. Charlie

[10:27] Chris, the Republican running for

[10:29] governor, chose instead to campaign

[10:31] clear on the other side of the state.

[10:33] The White House wasn't happy. Let's see

[10:36] how many people show up in Palm Beach on

[10:38] 24 hours notice versus eight or 9,000

[10:40] people in Pensacola.

[10:42] >> The president headlines a a rally final

[10:45] rally here in Dallas tonight. He'll vote

[10:46] in Crawford tomorrow, then back to

[10:48] Washington where he'll watch returns and

[10:50] see just how different the last two

[10:52] years of his presidency will be. Katie.

[10:55] >> All right, Jim Axelrod in Dallas

[10:57] tonight. Thank you. After you vote

[10:59] tomorrow, we hope you'll do that. You

[11:01] can tune in to CBS to watch your vote

[11:03] count. We'll have updates throughout the

[11:05] evening and an hour-long election night

[11:07] special with all the latest results and

[11:09] analysis beginning at 10:00 9 central.

[11:12] You can also watch the returns come in

[11:14] on our website at cbsnews.com.

[11:18] There's much more CBS News straight

[11:20] ahead. And coming up next, Larara Logan

[11:23] reports from Baghdad on Saddam's death

[11:25] sentence. How soon could it be carried

[11:27] out? And why are President Bush and Tony

[11:29] Blair at odds over it?