Can McCain Match Obama's Michigan Turnout?; What Gore Brings to Obama
BLITZER: Carol Costello is monitoring some on they are important stories incoming into THE SITUATION ROOM right now. Carol, what's going on?</s>CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, a very gruesome discovery in Canada. Police say for the fifth time since August, a severed human foot washed ashore on the western Canadian coast of Vancouver, British Columbia. This one was a left foot. All of the others reportedly have been right feet. The latest foot was taken to a local coroner for DNA testing to try to determine identity and any connection to the other remains. Charges dismissed against the highest ranking officer accused in a notorious case -- the killing of 24 Iraqis, many of them civilians, in the town of Haditha in 2005. Marine Lieutenant-Colonel Jeffrey Chessani was accused of failing to investigate the incident. But a military judge today ruled that the general in charge of prosecuting the case was improperly influenced by one of the investigators. And some unexpected traffic for motorists on Interstate 95 in Ormond Beach, Florida today. Yes, take a look. A small plane that suffered engine trouble made an emergency landing right on the highway. It was piloted by an instructor and a student. No one was hurt. The roadway remained open through the whole thing. The plane was undamaged. Later, the plane and its pilot took off again without difficulties. They just had a little detour -- Wolf.</s>BLITZER: Carol, thank you. And to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM. Happening now, Al Gore back in the political arena. Now that he's endorsed Barack Obama, we'll take a closer look at how big an impact he might have on Obama's White House aspirations. Senator Chris Dodd on the offensive -- once a contender for the presidential nomination, Dodd is now fighting off charges that he got special treatment by a mortgage lender. And a possible breakthrough in the Middle East in the form of a truce between Israel and Hamas. The militant leadership in Gaza saying a cease-fire should take hold in a matter of days. All that coming up. We're watching these stories. I'm Wolf Blitzer. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM. An emotionally riveting moment for many Democrats, as a man they believe should have been president throws his support to the man they hope will be president. But Al Gore has much more to offer Barack Obama than just another endorsement. CNN's Carol Costello is working this story for us -- Carol, what can Al Gore do for Barack Obama?</s>COSTELLO: Well, you know, Wolf, a lot of political types say endorsements don't matter. But this one's a little different. Al Gore is much admired and he's putting his money where his mouth is when it comes to Barack Obama.</s>COSTELLO (voice-over): Al Gore, the adored. Back in the day, you know, like last year, many pundits wrote of Democratic voters begging Al Gore to run for president in '08. For some voters, the dream team was Gore/Obama. Today, it's Obama/Gore.</s>JAMES CARVILLE, CNN CONTRIBUTOR, CLINTON SUPPORTER: If I were him, I would ask Al Gore to serve as vice president and energy czar in his administration to reduce our consumption and reliance on foreign energy sources.</s>COSTELLO: Democratic insiders say no chance. They're actually more concerned about Obama's slim lead over John McCain at a time the Republican brand has weakened. So a big Democratic gun like Gore matters.</s>MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Having Al Gore, this elder, this leader, come out and endorse Barack Obama, and to do so in Michigan, a state where Barack Obama was not even on the ballot, I think it's pretty significant.</s>COSTELLO: And if you have a perceived foreign policy experience problem, what better way to assure nervous voters than with support from friends in the know, like former Vice President Al Gore? Gore can also help Obama by raising money. For the first time, Gore is asking his own supporters to donate to another Democrats' war chest.</s>PRESTON: I can't get inside the guy's head but, you know, there's something to be said about, you know, I'm going to make sure that Democrats take back the White House.</s>COSTELLO: It's certainly something Gore hinted at as he endorsed Obama.</s>AL GORE, FMR. VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I can tell you that we have already learned one important fact since the year 2000. Take it from me, elections matter.</s>COSTELLO: To voters, Al Gore is practically synonymous with hanging Chad.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is the swinging door Chad.</s>COSTELLO: He's a living reminder to get out and vote in droves if you want your guy to win. And, of course, there's Gore's reputation as captain planet.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The power is yours!</s>COSTELLO: Global warming is a hot issue, not only among young voters, but among some evangelicals, too, a voting block Obama is actively courting.</s>COSTELLO: But with all the good, there's got to be bad, too, right? Is Gore just old news in a campaign promoting change? Well, Wolf, most analysts say, at least among Democrats and Independents, it's all good. Of course, that all depends on how much actual campaigning Gore does for Obama.</s>BLITZER: Carol, thanks very much for that. And certainly while Senator Obama draws close to Al Gore, John McCain is making a concerted effort to distance himself from President Bush. At least partially. Let's go to Mary Snow. She's looking at this story for us. How is McCain doing this, Mary?</s>MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, he's doing it with a new ad this morning in battleground states and it highlights his differences with President Bush on the environment. It also comes at a time when Democrats try to link McCain with the president whose approval rating now stands at 29 percent.</s>SNOW: It's a message Democratic presidential hopeful, Senator Barack Obama, hopes will stick.</s>SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: On issue after issue, John McCain is offering more of the same policies that have failed for the last eight years.</s>SNOW: But a new McCain campaign ad works to paint a different picture.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Greenhouse gas emissions.</s>SNOW: The campaign is highlighting differences between John McCain and President Bush on global warming policies.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: John McCain stood up to the president and sounded the alarm on global warming five years ago.</s>SNOW: The League of Conservation Voters, a political advocacy group which grades candidates on environmental records, says there is a difference between McCain and Bush. It gives Bush the lowest marks on record.</s>GENE KARPINSKI, LEAGUE OF CONSERVATION VOTERS: To his credit, Senator McCain has been better than President Bush on global warming, but of course that's a very low bar.</s>SNOW: McCain supports a mandatory cap on carbon emissions. President Bush supports a voluntary one. Another area where McCain splits from the Bush administration in recent weeks, arms control. McCain called to work more closely with Russia on nuclear disarmament. But there are similarities between McCain and President Bush on policies. The economy is one of them. While McCain once opposed the president's tax cuts, he now favors them.</s>MCCAIN: I believe that we should make the tax cuts permanent.</s>SNOW: On social security, McCain supports personal savings accounts as does president Bush. McCain supported the initial invasion in Iraq in 2003 but he was critical of the administration's handling of the war. One Republican strategist says a key task for McCain is to define himself before his opponent does.</s>RICH GALEN, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: The advantage that Obama really has in this campaign in terms of the additional money that he's got in his war chest is the ability to run negative ads against McCain in places where McCain might not be able to counter that as we get closer to Election Day.</s>SNOW: Republican strategist Rich Galen also adds that the McCain camp's timing on the new ad on global warming is also seen contrasting McCain's announcement today saying that he supports a ban on lifting the ban on offshore oil drilling, a move certainly putting McCain at odds with environmentalists -- Wolf.</s>BLITZER: Mary, thanks for that, Mary Snow reporting. There were questions about an alleged sweetheart loan, but now the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, the onetime Democratic presidential candidate, Chris Dodd, is speaking out. You're going to hear what he's saying. And you're looking at these pictures. These are pictures coming in from the courthouse in San Francisco. We're going to take you live to San Francisco, to California, where the first full day of legal same-sex marriages is unfolding right now. Hundreds and hundreds of people are waiting in line to get married in California. We'll show you what's happening right here in THE SITUATION ROOM.