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Conventions Impact Presidential Race; Gas Prices Shoot Up After Isaac; Faith and Choice for President; River Cruises to Remember; Lynyrd Skynyrd Had Planned to Play RNC; Isaac Still Affecting States; Obama Stumping in Colorado; Missing American Journalist in Syria

Aired September 02, 2012 - 16:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Thanks for joining us in the "Newsroom." Let's go straight to Boulder, Colorado. The president of the United States there stumping, just days ahead of the Democratic National Convention. Let's listen in.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: ... tens of millions of Americans with pre-existing conditions by repealing reform. He calls it Obamacare. You know, I like the name. I do care. We thought to pass that law for families like Ryan's. We know the heartbreak of a broken health care system. I don't mind if folks think I care, I do care. And I don't know exactly what the other sides' proposing. I guess you can call it Romney doesn't care but this law is here to stay. We are not going to refight the battles of the last four years. We are going to implement this law and make the health care system work for families all across America. It is time to move forward. That is the choice in this election.

Of course, this isn't just the only battle that they want to refight. They want to refight battles we thought were settled in the last century. In November you will have some say as to whether women should be trusted to make their own health care decisions. I think they are. You'll have some say as to whether students who were brought here by their parents as infants and have gone to school here and understand themselves to be Americans and pledge allegiance that suddenly they should be kicked out of the only country they have ever known. I don't think so. I've got a different view.

You'll have some say as to whether we should rewrite the Constitution the way the other side's proposing to prevent gay Americans from being able to marry the person they love. You can reaffirm that the strength of our character doesn't come from shoving people to the sidelines. It comes from hearing every voice. Harnessing every talent, realizing that in America we are greater together than we are on our own. That's who we are. That's who we are. And that's what is at stake in this election.

This November you get to decide the future of the Afghanistan war. You know, Governor Romney had nothing to say about Afghanistan last week. He hasn't offered a plan for the 33,000 troops who will have come home from this war by the end of this month. He said that ending the war in Iraq was tragic. I think it was the right thing to do and I said I would do it and we did. I said we would take out Bin Laden and we did. We are bringing our troops home from Afghanistan. And I set a time table we will have them out of there by 2014. Governor Romney doesn't have a time table. I think he is wrong. That is what is at stake in this election. As long as I'm commander in chief we will serve our veterans as well as they served us because nobody fights for us will have to fight for a job or a roof over their heads when they come home. That's the choice in this election.

WHITFIELD: All right. The president of the United States there at the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado to apparently a very supportive crowd there talking about everything from ending the war in Afghanistan to trying to secure jobs especially for veterans and also talking about Obamacare saying that he actually liked the name because yes he does care.

Our Athena Jones is actually traveling with the president there in Boulder, Colorado. And you know, Athena, let's talk about that youth vote. We are talking about a rally there constituted mostly of young people. The youth vote was very pivotal in 2004. Will it be just as vital this year?

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the campaign certainly thinks so, Fredricka. I should tell you that fire department officials put this crowd, you can see it's pretty big, at about 13,000. It's a pretty big crowd. Yesterday he had a crowd of 10,000 at one of the events in Iowa. And what you just mentioned is going to be very, very important to them. This event - people started lining up very early this morning. And all along that line people going along telling people how to get registered, how to make sure that they are registered and make sure that they can vote early. Colorado is an early voting state.

And much of what we have heard from the president is very similar to what we heard yesterday in Iowa. He's spending a little time rebutting what we heard from Republicans at their convention. And also talking about how he's going to be a better defender of the interests of the middle class. But one thing he did at the top of this speech that is really interesting and goes to (INAUDIBLE) of the youth vote is he said they put together a challenge, challenging the folks at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, not that far from here, with you know, people here at the University of Colorado, Boulder, challenging each school to see how many people they can get registered to vote.

And of course many of the people they end up registering are going to be these young voters that helped put him over the top last time around. As you can see they seem pretty enthusiastic. We'll see what comes out of it later, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Athena Jones, reporting from Boulder, traveling with the president.

So after stops in Colorado, Ohio and Louisiana, the president will head to Charlotte, North Carolina for the Democratic National Convention. Brianna Keilar is already there joining us from Charlotte. Brianna, what do we know about the president's objective? Is he kind of writing his own speech or is he fine-tuning it based on what he has seen and felt this weekend in particular while stumping?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He has been busy actually on this trip that Athena is on, Fred. He has been busy writing his speech. We know that he has been accompanied by his chief speech writer. And he has certainly been working on it. He has given the crowd on this trip a little bit of a peek as he is talking about really some of, I think broadly the themes we've heard before that he is going to be talking about there is a choice and between him and between Mitt Romney. And he is going to sort of I think be framing it as such that as we have heard him say before that Mitt Romney he said the ideas that he gave during his convention was reruns and he said yesterday that you might as well been looking at it on a black and white television.

So I think you're going to be hearing him sort of talking about pressing forward and the I think the discussion of optimism that we have heard throughout some of his campaign rallies. And he'll be framing Mitt Romney as kind of trying to go backwards.

But let me just tell you a little bit about what is going on here in Charlotte. If we can pan over and I'm going to ask you to ignore the stand that's holding up sort of the shade that we have here. You can see they are starting to set up some of what are the check points outside of the Time-Warner Cable Arena behind me and this is because here we are. It's Sunday, everything gavels to an opening on Tuesday.

And what they are trying to do, of course, is make sure the delegates can get in. Staff reporters can get in and you need your credential to do that. They are also trying to make sure that it is a secure area. This is officially a national security event and there already are some protests going on, Fred. In fact, just a short distance from here there have been some protesters including Occupy Wall Street south who have been protesting the convention even two days before it starts, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Brianna Keilar, appreciate that from Charlotte, North Carolina.

All right. You may know Barack Obama, the president. What about Barack Obama, the man? CNN's Jessica Yellin spoke with some of this closest advisors and most trusted friends, watch "Obama Revealed, the Man, the President," Monday night 8:00 p.m. Eastern time right here on CNN.

All right. Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are taking the day off from stumping. But it's back to work tomorrow. The Republican presidential nominee will begin preparing for his presidential debates in mock sessions this week.

Meantime, remnants of Isaac still a force of nature. Right now, it's dumping rain in the midwest. More than 250,000 homes and businesses in Louisiana and Mississippi still don't have power five days after Isaac hit as a hurricane there. President Barack Obama will be visiting the Gulf Coast Monday before he heads to Charlotte for the Democratic National Convention. Republican nominee Mitt Romney visited Louisiana on Friday. Meanwhile Isaac hasn't quite let up yet even though the remnants of. On Saturday the storm dumped as much as six inches of rain in the midwest. That area has been fighting severe drought. Flash flood warnings are in effect today for parts of Kentucky, Tennessee and the central Appalachian Mountains.

All right. Residents of Louisiana, near the Mississippi border are cautiously relieved after officials this morning lifted an evacuation order there. People who live near Slidell, north of New Orleans, have been told to leave because of water in a canal that jets off the Pearl River was dangerously high and it was threatening to burst through a lock. CNN's George Howell will talk with some residents before the danger subsided. How did they resolve that situation, George?

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, you know, there was a great deal of focus on that navigational canal that you mentioned that had those two locks, lock one and lock two, contained a lot of water. And there was concern just the other day about the possibility of those locks failing.

Now, this parish they took action. They actually went into that area that is controlled by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. They went in there themselves before the Corps of Engineers and they opened these valves. When they opened the valves on these two locks it relieved a lot of pressure. But still we do know that there will be flooding. There was concern that had water gotten through those locks and gotten out here it would be a lot more flooding.

Well, right now that is not going to be the case. It looks like we will just deal with the flooding that water coming down river. And I want to bring in Christina Garcia. Because we have seen these residents, we've seen people come by all day checking the river conditions but you have been doing something very specific. Would you mind showing us what you've been doing?

CHRISTINA GARCIA: Concerned residents -

HOWELL: Show us what you do there.

GARCIA: I have been counting up the feet from where we started off the edge of the landing all the way up. When I first started it was like 14. Now I'm down to like probably 10.

HOWELL: So I don't know if you can hear this but she has been coming by. She has come by several times and this is what she's done.

GARCIA: I started - like I said it was 15 feet when I first started. It is starting to come up slowly but there is some concern. We are trying to take all precautions.

HOWELL: Of all the people we have seen come by today I have to say, you know, we have noticed you doing this. Your home is nearby?

GARCIA: Yes, it is right around the corner.

HOWELL: Concerned that -

GARCIA: Concerned that it will be flooded.

HOWELL: All right. And Christina is not alone there. There are a lot of people who are in this situation on those low lying areas by this river we expect to see some three feet of water before the day is done probably in the next 24 hours, I should say, Fred. So there is water coming, rising slowly but surely.

WHITFIELD: All right. George Howell, thanks so much, and all the best to Christina and her neighbors there. Thanks so much.

All right. To find out how you can help the many people devastated by Isaac visit our Impact Your World page at cnn.com/impact.

Now we're going to take you overseas momentarily. An American freelance journalist disappears while reporting on the conflict in Syria. What this former Marine was doing before he vanished.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: An American freelance journalist covering the violence in Syria is missing. In fact, no one has heard from 31-year-old Austin Tice in weeks. Nick Valencia joining me now with more on his whereabouts, how he went missing and what is his family doing here stateside?

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, state side they are all worried and everyone's wondering where he's at. There is a lot of rumors. It's a very delicate situation right now, Fred. A lot of rumors about his whereabouts and what's happened to him. But earlier this week one of those media organizations that he was working for in a freelance capacity released information saying, citing a senior diplomat with the Czech Republic as well as people with intimate knowledge of this matter saying that he has been detained by the Syrian government. He's being held. Of course, that is the official line coming from the Czech Republic side. But CNN has been unable to confirm that independently and the State Department is not offering much guidance either.

WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness. So what do we understand had been happening? What kind of reporting was he doing before he suddenly went missing? Because I'm sure his family is asking whether there is a real correlation there between what he was reporting on or perhaps where he was reporting inside that country.

VALENCIA: That's a great point, Fred. He was doing extremely gutsy reporting, extremely dangerous and very sensitive reporting as well going as far as to embed himself with the Free Syrian Army. He was spending time in places like Rio (ph) which is a suburb of Damascus, incredibly dangerous as well as places as Homs, which is as you know receives shelling by Syrian government.

And of course, the Free Syrian Army being the main rebel group that's fighting against the Syrian government. The State Department did release a statement to CNN - Jill Dougherty spoke with the State Department earlier this week. And we got a statement from the deputy spokesman. They're saying "We are working with our Czech protecting power in Syria to get information on his welfare and whereabouts and we appreciate the efforts of the Czech mission on behalf of our citizens." They followed it up saying "We have seen news reports that Mr. Tice is in Syrian custody. However the Syrian government has yet to confirm these reports that are protecting power," saying "We urged the Syrian government to respond to Czech's diplomatic note as possible.

It's important to know, Fred, after we removed our embassy from Syria, the Czech Republic started operating in its official capacity for the United States.

WHITFIELD: So he is a former marine turned journalist. This really is his first journalist assignment, isn't?

VALENCIA: This is sort of one of his best.

WHITFIELD: Even though he is used to being in conflict situations.

VALENCIA: Right. He was in the Horn of Africa. HE spent time in Jordan. He spent time on a U.S. carrier. But this is sort of his first time in this type of situation in a reporting capacity. So lots of questions as to his whereabouts. The "Washington Post" (INAUDIBLE) he worked for them as well as CBS News and Al-Jazeera. A "Washington Post" (INAUDIBLE) newspaper saying that he has been detained by the Syrian government. But you know, we still don't know. We do know though that he is missing and hasn't been heard from in almost three weeks.

WHITFIELD: All right. We will continue to watch and learn on that one. Thanks so much, Nick Valencia. Appreciate it.

All right. Back to the campaign trail. President Obama really busy lately on the campaign trail. But CNN got a chance to sit down with him recently. "President Obama Revealed" next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. President Obama busy on the campaign trail. He is in Colorado right now continuing the push in swing states in particular on his way to the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte this week where our chief White House correspondent Jessica Yellin sat down for an in depth interview with the president. She is giving us a preview now of her documentary.

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fred. You know, right now it's easy to get caught up in the little spats of the campaign news cycle. But in the documentary, we pulled back and look at some of the major events that shaped the last three and a half years, the president's time in office. And one of the recurrent themes is the partisanship in Washington especially meaningful because in 2008 the president campaigned saying in part that he would heal the bitter divides in Washington and around the country.

So in my interview with President Obama I talked to him about why he hasn't built more relationships with some of those Washington insiders who could have helped get his agenda through. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: Sometimes Michelle and I not doing the circuit and going out to dinners with folks is perceived as us being cool. It actually has more to do with us being parents. When we are in town here in Washington in the evenings, 6:30 we want to be at the dinner table with our kids and I want to be helping with their homework. I think sometimes that is interpreted as me not wanting to be out there slapping backs and wheeling and dealing. And that really has more to do with the stage we are in our lives.

YELLIN: If you're reelected your girls will be older and they will probably have their own weekend plans. They might not want to hang out with mom and dad.

OBAMA: It is already starting to happen.

YELLIN: Do you think you might do more outreach of what you call backslapping with members of Congress?

OBAMA: My hope is that getting past this election people will have an opportunity to maybe step back and say, you know what? The differences that divide us aren't as a important as the common bonds we have as Americans. And some of that I'm sure will require additional effort on my part. Hopefully, we'll see more effort on the other side, as well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

YELLIN: So in the documentary we delve more deeply into all of these issues, both the president's family life and some of these issues of partisanship in Washington and who shoulders responsibility for it. We talked to some of the president's closest aides including Secretary Clinton, his former personal assistant, Reggie Love, former chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and the leader of the opposition Speaker John Boehner and a lot of other people. I hope you'll watch. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Of course we will be watching. Thanks so much, Jessica. And of course, you don't want to miss it. More of the president, the man, the president all of it revealed. Thanks to Jessica Yellin. You want to catch that Monday night 8:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

All right. As Democrats gather in Charlotte can President Obama recapture the magic of 2004? We'll explore what he needs to accomplish this week.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: President Obama just finished his speech in Boulder, Colorado. And the message was much the same as it was yesterday in Iowa that Mitt Romney's agenda is an outdated one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) OBAMA: All the challenges that we face in this new century, what they offered over those three days was an agenda that was better suited for the last century. It was a rerun. It could have been on nick at nite. We have seen it before. You might as well have watched it on a black and white TV with some rabbit ears.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. It was a quick stop for the president in Colorado. Now he will be heading off to Toledo, Ohio. And then tomorrow he travels to Louisiana to survey the damage from what was Hurricane Isaac. So both the president and his Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, trying to get their messages across in these crucial campaign swings. Mr. Romney got to sell himself last week at the GOP convention. Now it is the president's turn in the convention spotlight in Charlotte, North Carolina. So what will be the focus? CNN's senior political analyst Ron Brownstein already in Charlotte there where the convention officially gets underway Tuesday. Good to see you, Ron.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Good to see you, Fred. In Charlotte with the sweat to prove it.

WHITFIELD: Yes, I know. It is sweaty isn't it? OK. So if the goal of the Republican convention was to reintroduce Mitt Romney, to humanize him, how will the DNC kind of distinguish itself, will the president be focusing on responding to criticisms similar to how we heard him in Colorado today, will he spell out specific proposals for term number two or reminding America what he has accomplished during his term?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, I think the two principal goals will be one - kind of offensive in terms of Romney and one critical in terms of an Obama second term. The first goal has to be to kind of paint over the picture, repaint the picture they have been working on about Mitt Romney all summer in swing states. As you know, they spent millions of dollars in ads portraying him as the problem than the solution in the economy, arguing that he has someone who has enriched the few at the expense of the many in his private career and that will be his public agenda.

The Republican campaign made it very convention, made a very concerted effort to undo that portrait. I think you'll see the Democrats try to put it back into place. But even more important than that and what has to be the critical element of this convention is give the public, the American voters, a better sense of what President Obama would do in a second term. That's probably been the biggest missing piece of his campaign so far. And it is hard to call this convention a success if by the end of the week, the public does not have a clearer sense of what a second Obama term would bring them.

WHITFIELD: Oh, you know, the president said yesterday, you know, when he made his way back to Iowa stumping - you know, he says I'm coming back to where it all started four years ago. But wow, we are talking about a very different climate now. You know, then his narrative of lets get beyond the bitterness and the pettiness and the anger that has consumed Washington.

BROWNSTEIN: Right.

WHITFIELD: But today, as, you know, "Washington Post" reminds, you know, us the climate is polarized. And instead of cooperation, I'm quoting from an article written by Dan Balz in the "Washington Post," "Instead of cooperation there is confrontation. Instead of civility there is rudeness. The political system seems frozen. And more resistant to compromise than ever."

That coming from the "Post" today. So given that, you know, President Obama's dialogue has to change, does it not?

BROWNSTEIN: Yes. And it already has. I mean, you know, we are living through, as Dan notes, highest level of party line voting in Congress since the late 19th century. There is a trend that predates President Obama, President Bush, President Clinton. We have been moving in this direction for several decades sort of more polarized almost quasi parliamentary system with levels of party unity that we really haven't seen in American politics at the turn of the 20th century.

President came in promising a different tone, faced enormous resistance from Republicans. Debate about how hard he really tried to reach out but in his first two years ultimately ended up governing essentially through that Democratic majority passed a health care bill without a vote from a single -- Republican in either chamber.

After 2010 he tried to move in a different direction. Maybe perhaps more of a Clinton triangulating kind of vision. That hit a dead end with the debt ceiling standoff last summer and since then, without doubt, he has moved in a more partisan direction. Sharpening lines in differences with the Republicans, really trying to draw sharp distinctions for this campaign.

Now what he says is after 2012 if he wins there will be a reset much as there was for Bill Clinton in 1997 when they're able to reach a bipartisan budget deal. We'll have to wait and see. But there's no question that Washington is experiencing levels of party unity and conflict that are really unprecedented in our experience for at least, you know, roughly the last century.

WHITFIELD: And, you know, Ron, you said Obama has to be specific. At the end -- at the end of this convention people feel like they didn't get some real specificity then they are in trouble. But, you know, can we reflect for a moment, you know, on the RNC? Did they miss an opportunity by spelling out what it will do?

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

WHITFIELD: What the nominee -- Romney will do specifically as opposed to criticizing the president? You know, bringing out a guest Clint Eastwood who ultimately ended up kind of upstaging the nominee. I mean we heard Rahm Emanuel on "Meet the Press" earlier today who said Clint Eastwood is a commentary on Romney.

BROWNSTEIN: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Hardly anyone can remember instead what Romney said during the RNC. That is a big problem, isn't it?

BROWNSTEIN: Yes. Look, it was kind of odd. They did not really put a lot of emphasis on their agenda. And what makes that especially odd is there is an ambitious agenda. If you look across the board, Romney is offering I would argue the most aggressive or ambitious conservative agenda since at least Ronald Reagan in 1980, if not Barry Goldwater in 1964.

A 20 percent cut in marginal tax rate. Changing Medicaid and food stamps into block grants. Converting Medicare into a premium support or voucher program. Repealing EPA's authority to regulate carbon emissions. You can go down the list. And they are looking to retrench government at least as aggressively as Obama moved to expand it in 2009 and 2010.

Instead they didn't really highlight any of that in Tampa. They put much greater emphasis on trying to reach out for voters who may have voted for Obama in '08 but are disappointed now, in essence, saying it's OK to kind of change your line. It doesn't invalid your first vote. They tried to be more reassuring than I think line drawing. And that was a kind of odd distinction.

But look, it can't last. The differences between these candidates are very profound. And as we go through the fall I think we're going to see this reemerge certainly in the debates if not sooner.

WHITFIELD: All right. Ron Brownstein, always good to see you. You know, try to stay cool as best you can in Charlotte, North Carolina.

(LAUGHTER)

I know it's tough.

BROWNSTEIN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Hot state. All right. Thanks so much, Ron.

BROWNSTEIN: All right. OK.

WHITFIELD: All right, you can take part in the DNC and CNN's election round table Tuesday. Join Wolf Blitzer, our political team, for a live virtual chat. Just go to CNN.com/roundtable and submit your questions and you'll actually get real answers in real time. The "CNN ELECTION ROUNDTABLE" is at noon Eastern Time Tuesday.

All right. Right now to Louisiana where authorities lifted a mandatory evacuation earlier today for about 1200 homes near the Mississippi border. Residents had been told to leave because water in a canal that jets off the Pearl River was dangerously high. It was threatening to burst through a lock until engineers released some water and eased the pressure. The danger isn't over, however. The river is not expected to crest or I should say it will be cresting tomorrow, is the expectation. Until then 5,000 homes are at risk of flooding.

All right. Hurricane Isaac has cleared out of the Gulf Coast. But people can still feel its effects every time they go to a gas station. The average price of a gallon of regular gas was $3.83 on Friday. That is up 9.4 percent from the end of July.

Our Alison Kosik joins me on the phone right now.

So, Alison, Isaac is gone at least as a major threat, as a hurricane, tropical depression, et cetera. So why are we still seeing these high gas prices?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, you know you can blame Hurricane Isaac for these high gas prices. But the good news is you can pretty much blame Isaac only for the short term. So yes, you expect to see these gas prices stay higher in the short term and then go lower in the longer term. Now the reason Isaac is to blame this is because Isaac hit the Gulf Coast. If you see few oil production in the country is that 40 percent of the major petroleum refineries and capacity is located right along the Gulf Coast.

Now the good news is the refineries, they weren't damaged. But the reason Isaac is having a huge impact on the price you pay at the pump is because these refineries had to shut down or cut back production during the storm. And what that did was knocked out hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil production a day. That down time sent prices higher.

All right, now it's not just Isaac that we can blame for these higher prices so, also there's been a deadly refinery fire in a major facility in Venezuela. That happened two weeks ago. There were also refinery fires happening in California that shut down production, as well. And all of that winds up taking supply, driving up oil prices and then driving gas prices higher.

Think of it this way, it's the law of supply and demand. The less gas on the market you're seeing gasoline prices go higher -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And so what kind of relief might we expect and what course of time?

KOSIK: What analysts are saying that yes, in the short term, you're going to see gas prices really stick around right where they are. The good news is we even saw that leveling off in gas prices today. But half of those nine refineries, they went on -- they're doing back online on Friday. These Gulf Coast refineries. The prices should go lower. But the thing is it may take some time before we see that relief at the pump.

You know one analyst puts it this way saying that prices tend to rise faster on the way up than they fall on the way down. That doesn't help consumers at all. But there is one thing that bright news that could help bring gas prices down, that's the refinery because we're switching from the summer blend of gasoline because it's more expensive than a winter blend. That may be help -- really help with the relief at the pump that we're all so much waiting for -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Alison Kosik, thanks so much for joining us. Appreciate it.

All right. The role of faith, it's getting a lot of attention at this year's political conventions. How big an impact will it have on your choice for president?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The founder of the Unification Church famous for holding mass weddings including some held world wide via satellite has died. Reverend Sun Myung Moon also helped found the conservative "Washington Times." The newspaper reported his death this afternoon.

Moon whose followers were known as Moonies were sometimes called the cult leader. He served a federal prison term in the mid-1980s for tax evasion. Moon died from complications from pneumonia. He was 92.

So let's talk more about Reverend Moon's legacy. I am joined by CNN.com religion editor, Dan Gilgoff, from Washington.

So, Dan, you know, how large of an impact did Reverend Moon make around the world?

DAN GILGOFF, CNN.COM RELIGION EDITOR: Well, Fred, as you mentioned he was a really controversial figure especially in the United States. He himself claimed to be the messiah who was sort of finishing up the work that Jesus Christ left undone. And so a lot of folks called him a cult leader. But he also did start something of a global movement. And I think whenever a charismatic leader/founder someone like Moon dies there is always this question of well, what happens to the movement?

And now one of his sons is going to be taking over the church. I think there's a real question about does this movement have a future and how will it look going forward.

WHITFIELD: All right. So let's make a turn now. Let's talk about how religion might be playing a role in the conventions and the presidential race now. How important is religion to voters in the selection of who should be in the White House?

GILGOFF: It's really important. It's a really good predictor actually of how an American casts a ballot for a president. So in recent elections it's been a better predictor, how often you go to church than, say, income level or whether you live in a rural area or a city or whether you are a man or a woman. So it's a really strong predictor of how somebody votes. The tendency is that the more often you go to church the more likely you are to vote for a Republican for a president.

And that's why you saw Governor Romney at the convention on Thursday night finally start to open up a little bit about his Mormonism, about his church life. I think he wants to make a connection to these churchgoing voters because he really needs their vote. WHITFIELD: So do you think that President Obama during his convention this week will be as compelled to talk about being a Christian?

GILGOFF: Yes, he might. If you look at polls only about half the country actually knows that Obama is even a Christian. Seventeen percent of Americans still think he is a Muslim which is not true. But if you remember in 2004 at the Democratic convention it was Obama's debut, sort of, as a national politician. And one of his big takeaway lines was talking about there is an awesome god in the blue states that people in the blue states worship.

And I think he might use some of that language again because it's really incumbent upon the president to remind voters that he is indeed a Christian especially four years in given that most voters still don't know that.

WHITFIELD: All right, Dan Gilfoff, Thanks so much. I appreciate it.

GILGOFF: Thanks, Fred.

WHITFIELD: And of course you can see more stories about faith and our belief blog at CNN.com/belief.

All right. The cruise of a lifetime along some of the world's greatest rivers. We'll take a ride.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Three people are recovering after a mishap at a Monster Truck event in Oregon. An on looker captured this video on his cell phone of an out of control truck driving straight into a panicked crowd. The driver says the rear wheels on his truck spun out and he crashed through a barricade. Right after the crash he gut out to check on the injured.

And onto Iowa now, federal investigators are trying to figure out what caused a plane to explode in front of thousands of spectators, killing the pilot. Everything started out pretty normal with three planes flying in formation yesterday at the Quad City Air Show. But then all of a sudden one of the planes nose dived into a field while attempting its 45-degree bang. Witnesses watched in horror as the plane exploded into a giant fireball once it hit the ground.

The Quadcity Times Web site is identifying the pilot as 58-year-old Glen A. Smith of Frisco, Texas.

All right. No matter your age chances are you know his work.

(MUSIC)

The song performed by many. Hal David, the man behind this iconic tune, has died. The Oscar and Grammy winning song writer was best known for his partnership with Burt Bacharach. A spokesman for the music association ASCAP says David died in Los Angeles from complications of a stroke. He was 91. In South Africa the country's top prosecutor drops murder charges against hundreds of miners accused of killing their co-workers. The arrest came after a deadly clash with police last month. Witnesses say it was actually the police officers shooting and killing the 34 miners. Three separate investigations are under way. The jailed miners will be released starting tomorrow.

The deadly violence rages on across Syria. Opposition activists say at least 103 people were killed today alone. UNICEF reports 1600 people were killed in Syria last week making it the deadliest week yet in the civil war. This bombing near a government security building reportedly left at least four people wounded.

Today a disaster averted in Louisiana. But there remains worries about a river cresting dangerously high.

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WHITFIELD: It could be one of the best bucket list trips ever. River cruises in South America, Asia and Europe. But we're not talking about giant cruise ships. These are small yachts with a limited number of passengers, intimate trips to amazing sites.

J.D. Rinne of Jetsetter.com told me all about them.

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WHITFIELD: Let's begin with that weeklong cruise to Ecuador's Galapagos Islands.

J.D. RINNE, MANAGER EDITOR, JETSETTER.COM: This is an amazing bucket list trip. It's actually on Jetsetter.com right now. And it's at Ecoventura which is a famous tour operator in this region because it was actually the first cruise ship in this region to be carbon neutral, which is so important in the region like this where conservation is so important.

What's great about Ecoventura is it's just a 20-person yacht that you'll be on. So you'll really get up close and personal with all that wild life that you can only see in the Galapagos. Things like lava lizards and giant tortoises and my personal favorite the blue- footed booby.

WHITFIELD: Oh my. What is that?

RINNE: That is a bird. With blue little feet.

WHITFIELD: Wow.

RINNE: Yes, it's so cute.

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RINNE: And actually there are two naturalist guides on board so they can really tell you and educate you about all of these animals. And it's just a really fun, amazing tour. It starts at just about $2500 for a shared cabin. But remember that includes all your accommodations for seven nights and all your meals at those great excursions.

WHITFIELD: My goodness, that sounds incredible. All right. Next stop, Asia. I mean really big stop.

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RINNE: Yes.

WHITFIELD: Asia and trip to explore Cambodia and Vietnam. And this trip includes a seven-night cruise, as well. This time along the Mekong River.

RINNE: Yes. If you have any interest in visiting Asia this is a great way to do it. There's that seven-night cruise on the Mekong River and this is with Avalon. But also it's a 14-night trip in all. So it has some of that more traditional sightseeing. And you'll see all the best things in this region, which includes temples. You know, there are tons of temples to see, built between the ninth and 13th century. You'll see them all including Angkor Wat which is probably the most famous of them.

This is a very mysterious site that just can't be described. It's so beautiful. Especially at sunset. This cruise starts at about $3300 but again that's for all those 14 nights, 15 days, all your meals and all your excursions are included.

WHITFIELD: Incredible. And so now another river trip. This one in Europe. Along the Rhine, the Main, the Danube, what's that -- I guess what's centerpiece of all this?

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RINNE: Well, once you see the pictures you'll want to leave tomorrow on this cruise. It's a Viking on 190 passenger ship. It's a little bit larger than the other ones we've talked about but nothing like the models (ph) you'd see in the Caribbean so still a really intimate experience. You will see all these great cities on these river places like Amsterdam, Budapest and Vienna, so the classic sights.

But what's important to remember about a cruise like this is that the port cities are very historic. And with the -- on a river cruise you pull right into those port cities and just hop off the ship and be able to tour around all you want. If you're on a walking tour or a bus tour, if you're driving around looking for parking, you'd be worrying those kinds of things. The cruise ship acts as your floating hotel. You just right off and see all those quest sights.

WHITFIELD: Wow.

RINNE: This one is another 14-day one. So a longer one but you'll see everything. It is amazing. It starts about -- $3300. And that includes all your meals, beer and wine with dinner and all those great excursions. WHITFIELD: Incredible. So they give you enough time to get off and, you know, do your touring but please don't forget to get back on the boat or, you know, don't lose track of time.

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WHITFIELD: Then you're really in trouble.

RINNE: That might mess up the trip a little. Yes.

WHITFIELD: That sure would. All right, J.D. Rinne, thanks so much.

RINNE: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Ships ahoy. You can get more details about these incredible river cruises and all kinds of other trips at Jetsetter.com.

Lynyrd Skynyrd best known for hits like "Sweet Home Alabama," "Free Bird", "What's Your Name," I'll "Face to Face" with some of the band members in a moment. They were invited to attend the Republican National Convention. So what stood in their way?

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WHITFIELD: They have been together for the most part of some 40 years. Their music sparking memories of weddings, proposals and school dances, "Sweet Home Alabama," "Free Bird," "What's Your Name", now you know exactly who I'm talking about. Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Well, I sat down face to face with vocalist Johnny Van Zant and guitarist Gary Rossington and Rickey Medlocke and they were invited to the Republican National Convention but weather, not politics, kept them away from Tampa.

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RICKEY MEDLOCKE, GUITARIST: One big misunderstanding, we were going to be there for the Wounded Warriors. We do a lot. We try to do as much as we can for the troops and their families. Johnny even every night dedicates "Simple Man" to the troops and their families. And we were going there specifically to be there for the Wounded Warriors.

You know, I think it kind of got misunderstood, you know, we were drawing the line. And that wasn't what it was at all, you know.

JOHNNY VAN ZANT, VOCALIST: You know, I've got to tell you, we have Democrats in the band. Myself, I'm a Republican. I'm proud to be a Republican. I'll say that to anybody. But for us, hey, we get along in the band. You know? Hey, if the Democrats want us to play their convention we'll go play the Democratic convention.

So -- but no, you know, what, we -- our main thing was to play for the Wounded, you know, Warriors program. We're big supporters of our troops. I don't care who wins this election in November. We have to take care of our troops and their families. And you know what, they are the ones who are sacrificing for this great country and we have to do our part as Americans.

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WHITFIELD: In the next hour we'll hear how after 16 albums the band finds itself playing for three generations of fans and loving it, and how they balance their classic songs with their new material. They've got a new album out now.