Kerry Speaks to National Guard Officers
ANNOUNCER: Flooded, powerless, and blown away: Ivan pummels the Gulf coast and storms on to other targets. John Kerry follows in the president's footsteps, speaking to National Guard officers. Will he press a hot button Bush avoided?</s>GEORGE W. BUSH (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: With your help, we're going to carry Minnesota and win a great victory in November.</s>ANNOUNCER: President Bush on a battleground while his administration addresses a gloomy forecast for Iraq. A doctor-turned-Senate candidate is haunted by past allegations of malpractice and fraud.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What it is, is it's about the politics of personal destruction.</s>ANNOUNCER: Now, live from Washington,</s>JUDY WOODRUFF'S INSIDE POLITICS. JUDY WOODRUFF, HOST: Thank you for joining us. In the next 90 minutes, we'll bring you all the main political stories of the day, but, first, an update on the devastation from Hurricane Ivan and where the storm is heading next. Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is tracking Ivan at the CNN Weather Center. Hello again, Jacqui.</s>JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hello, Judy. We're having some serious problems with tornadoes at this hour. We just had a report of ground truth and some damage in Rockmart in Georgia. That's in Polk County. We told you about that warning an hour ago. And now we have a bunch of brand new warnings. And a lot of these are within this line for Madison and Oglethorpe County in northeastern Georgia, DeKalb County in northeastern Alabama, Western Lamar, Eastern Pike and Spalding County and west central Georgia. You can see all of these warnings beginning to line up behind me. And this one we're particularly concerned about for Griffin. It's heading on up to the north/northeast. And that could be moving into the Atlanta suburbs if this holds together. So, we have confirmed reports of tornadoes in some of these warnings now. And the other thing to keep in mind is that sometimes they are difficult to see in hurricanes because of the tropical rains that are coming down. The rains can be so very, very heavy that you don't always see the tornadoes. You really need to heed warning on these and get to the lowest level of your home to an interior room away from doors and windows and take cover when these warnings are issued. I do want to show you where the watches are in effect. This is the biggest line of concern right now, where we're seeing a lot of rotation in it. Right along I- 20, you can see extending down towards Macon right now. The tornado watch also includes parts of South Carolina, also extending all the way down into the Florida Panhandle. We're watching the storm now. It's taking more of a north/northeasterly track, as we did expect it to, weakened significantly. We're down to 70 miles per hour. So, it is officially a tropical storm, but still a very strong tropical storm, with those 70-mile-an-hour winds. It is forecast to continue to slow down as it moves on up to the north and the east and continue to weaken as it does so. Once we get through tonight, the winds will no longer really be an issue and it's going to be a very significant flooding threat we think as it moves all across the Appalachians and slows down. We also have Hurricane Jeanne weakening as it moves across Hispaniola. And the forecast track for Jeanne has it heading toward the Bahamas and then heading up toward the United States by Tuesday. So, we'll keep a very close eye on Jeanne. And believe it or not, Judy, we've got another little wave which is coming in off the coast of Africa near the Cape Verde Islands right there on the end of your screen. And just read the National Hurricane Center's discussion. And they think this could become a tropical depression later on for today -- Judy.</s>WOODRUFF: There's no end to these hurricanes.</s>JERAS: They just keep coming.</s>WOODRUFF: They sure do. Well, it may be a Tropical Storm Ivan, but it's still doing an awful lot of damage. Thank you, Jacqui, very much. Hurricane Ivan we know now has killed at least seven people in the Florida Panhandle. The storm unleashed tornadoes, as you just heard from Jacqui, fierce winds on the Gulf coast, blowing boats ashore and tearing roofs off of buildings. Many streets and homes are flooded, drenched by Ivan's pounding rains and storm surge. At last report, more than one million people were without power in Florida, Alabama and Mississippi. Many residents have been warned to stay in their homes, rather than risk the dangers of downed power lines and fallen trees. Work crews are out assessing the damage in the storm-ravaged areas, including Panama City, Florida. CNN's Rick Sanchez is there. Hello, Rick.</s>RICK SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Judy. Boy, I'll tell you what, it has really been a long night and a difficult morning as well for the people in this entire region, not just Panama City and Panama City Beach but the entire eastern portion of the Florida Panhandle. In fact, still, people are checking the satellites to see if there could be some other tornado warnings, something that has become the norm in the last 12 to 16 hours. I'm going to venture to go outside here just a little bit to show you what the wind is still doing even after the tornadoes passed. Difficult to walk. You can see what's going on with the surf. Very strong surf still as it continues to push the water. It's moving counterclockwise. The rest of what's left of this Tropical Storm Ivan into this area right here. Obviously, that's a beach that's been depleted somewhat. The erosion, they're going to have to deal with that. And it may end up costing them an awful lot of money all over again. I'm going to try to get over here and get away from that because it's just too difficult to stand there. Maybe I can get a little shelter over here. The most difficult part of this storm without question is what's happened in Calhoun County, where four people have died as a result of a very serious tornado. We're being told that maybe an F-2 or an F-3 tornado that came through there, it cut a path about a mile long, and not only in Calhoun, but in several other areas. But it was in Blountstown, a little community where there was a trailer park community where four people lost their lives. Also in Marianna County, it cut through there as well. Two people have died here in Bay County as well and yet a third in Gulf County. So, seven people dead thus far as a result of this. And most of it ironically enough here in this region of the Panhandle, which is extremely far from where the eye actually made contact this morning -- Judy, back to you.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, Rick Sanchez on the Panhandle of Florida reminding us that even with all the warnings, storms still very dangerous. Seven people dead. Rick, thank you very much. We are going to have more storm updates throughout INSIDE POLITICS. And of course, stay with CNN 24/7 for complete Ivan coverage. And now we turn to the rough and tumble of the presidential campaign. At this hour, Senator John Kerry preparing to speak to the same National Guard group President Bush addressed earlier this week. We plan to carry a portion of his speech live. Let's get a preview though, now, from CNN's Frank Buckley. He is in Las Vegas, where John Kerry is. Hello, Frank.</s>FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Judy. John Kerry speaking to the National Guard association within the half-hour. We're expecting him to go after President Bush pretty forcefully on his management of the war in Iraq. The other day after President Bush just spoke to this organization, Senator Kerry said that it was his view that the president -- quote -- "glossed over" the extent of the problems in Iraq. We expect to hear more of that theme from Senator Kerry here before this organization and more of that forceful critique of the president's handling of the war in Iraq as we've been hearing on the campaign trail like we did yesterday in Madison, Wisconsin.</s>SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The president made a mistake in rushing to war without a plan to win the peace. He made a mistake in rushing to war without understanding the complexity of Iraqi nationalism and tribal feudalism. He made a mistake of rushing to war without knowing for certain what the outcome would be with respect to our allies. He made a mistake in not even guarding the ammunition dumps that are now being used with the weapons that are attacking our kids.</s>BUCKLEY: What we don't expect from Senator Kerry is for him to attack on this issue, the controversy surrounding President Bush and his National Guard service more than 30 years ago, and questions about whether he fulfilled his service. Of course, President Bush and his camp are saying that he did get an honorable discharge and did fulfill his service. Kerry is leaving the attacks on that to Democratic operatives to keep that issue alive. They would like to see this issue drive up President Bush's negatives in the same way that the swift boat controversy drove up Kerry's negatives. But analysts suggest it's unlikely that this issue will actually sway undecided voters on their vote.</s>THOMAS MANN, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: I think it's unlikely for the National Guard and Vietnam to move swing voters by Election Day. In the end, what's really critical, is this is a referendum on George Bush and his management of the economy and the war in Iraq, or is this a referendum on whether John Kerry can be trusted to keep us safe from terrorism? The former elects Kerry. The latter elects Bush.</s>BUCKLEY: And again, we do expect Senator Kerry to go after President Bush on the issue of Iraq. We have an excerpt of some of the comments that he'll be making in his speech. Senator Kerry is expected to say: "You deserve a president who will not play politics with national security, who will not ignore his own intelligence while living in a fantasy world of spin, and who will give the American people the truth." Of course, the Bush campaign saying it's Senator Kerry who's had the inconsistent position on Iraq, and that's not the kind of leadership they say is required when the U.S. is at war -- Judy.</s>WOODRUFF: All right, Frank Buckley waiting for John Kerry to make that speech to the National Guard group. John -- Frank, thank you very much. We appreciate it. Meantime, in Minnesota today, President Bush fired back at Senator Kerry, while his administration addressed that newly disclosed intelligence assessment on Iraq. Here now, our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux. Hello, Suzanne.</s>SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Judy. It is a new national intelligence estimate prepared by the intelligence community. It lays out various scenarios of what could happen in a postwar Iraq. And senior administration officials confirm that it is not all good. This is a 50-page document completed late in July. It was circulated among top White House officials just within the last couple of weeks and it lays out these possible scenarios, some of them sounding quite dire, talks about internal conflict, increased violence and even perhaps a civil war erupting inside of Iraq. I spoke with National Security Council spokesman Sean McCormack earlier today, who talks about the NIE in broad terms because there are parts of it that are classified. And he goes on to say that: "This NIE discusses different possible scenarios for Iraq's political and economic future over the course of 18 months, starting July. The NIE makes clear that the future of Iraq will be determined by a number of factors, including the nation's economic progress, the effectiveness of their political structures and stability." He goes on to say: "We must be ready for more violence, increased violence, tough challenges. Is there a threat of civil war? Yes." But he also says: "We would make the point that prior to the war there were many dire scenarios out there, threat of mass migration, starvation, manmade disasters, as well as political ones like civil war, but that has not come to pass." Now, President Bush campaigning in Saint Cloud, Minnesota, not talking about this document specifically. As a matter of fact, the Bush administration very much focusing on the positive aspects of the future of Iraq.</s>BUSH: In Iraq there's ongoing acts of violence. This country's headed toward democracy. There's a strong prime minister in place. They have a national council and national elections are scheduled for January. It wasn't all that long ago that Saddam Hussein was in power with his torture chambers and mass graves. And today this country is headed toward elections. Freedom's on the march.</s>MALVEAUX: Now, Judy, White House officials take it one step further saying they believe that this document underscores the need for the administration to stay the course and to make sure that those Iraqis, make sure that they have a democracy, fight for democracy and the security, of course. You may recall that the last national intelligence estimate that was completed back in October of 2002 dealing with Iraq was whether or not it had weapons of mass destruction. That, of course, later received a great deal of criticism for its inaccuracies. Well, White House officials emphasizing that this document is not a fact-finding mission, but rather what they call a think piece. But just to let you know the political context here, we are told by the Kerry campaign, expect to hear Senator Kerry talk about that particular document, that report, again making the case that he believes the Bush administration has failed in its Iraq policy and he points specifically to that intelligence document -- Judy.</s>WOODRUFF: Suzanne, that's right. And we do expect Senator Kerry to start speaking now within just a few minutes to the National Guard group in Las Vegas. Suzanne Malveaux at the White House, thanks. Two different takes on the outlook in Iraq and the fallout for the presidential race, that's ahead. I'll talk with Republican Senator John Warner and Kerry adviser and retired Air Force General Merrill McPeak. And later, the party chairmen go head-to-head on the presidential race, the polls and campaign critics. And is Schwarzenegger for president a step closer to becoming a reality? With 47 days until the election, this is INSIDE POLITICS, the place for campaign news.