i'm wolf blitzer sitting in for larry king. "360" starts now. remember sarah palin's allegation that government health care reform would lead to death panels? today, a key voice in the debate. a key republican senator said you should worry about the government pulling the plug on grand ma. we'll get reaction from another key senator in a moment and check the facts with our own dr. sanjay gupta. but first, candy crowley has the "raw politics." >> if it's okay with you, i'll get started. >> reporter: senator chuck grassley holds his 72nd town hall meeting of the year. what a year. >> we're here at a time when i sense that people are scared for our country. >> reporter: his town halls have been twice, sometimes three times as big as he's had in previous years. so many hands in the air, so

many cross currents. >> i need to know what are you doing to these insurance companies that are just putting everything in their pocket. >> simple math, even for this southern iowa redneck? so we can cover the people who want coverage with a private policy. >> reporter: making his way through the questions festering in the iowa countryside, grassley is really in a minefield. why does he support cuts in medicare? he doesn't. will he support a plan with a government insurance option? no. and about those so-called death panels, a term critics use to argue against a provision they say will put the federal government in the euthanasia business. grassley, a man with knowledge of many issues, stepped where he probably should not. >> i don't have any problem with things like living wills, but they ought to be done within the family. we should not have a government program that determines if you're going to pull the plug on

grandma. >> reporter: put him down as not on target. the program, inserted in a house bill, would allow federal reembursement to doctors who want it. critics say the counseling may become coerceive. he works now with democrats and republicans trying to come up with a middle ground bill. he's up for re-election next year, about which he's reminded daily. >> democrat or republican, whoever votes for this bill, we will vote you out! >> reporter: the senator threads his way between his core constituents, angry that he's trying -- >> there's nothing that i would agree to and we have to stop giving ground. >> reporter: and others who have voted for him for three decades, angry he's not trying hard enough. >> i wanted to ask you why you won't use your strong republican

voice to clarify the outright lies that are out there about the programs that are being proposed. >> reporter: and day's end, gralsly was in an open air park in iowa for his 75th town hall meeting of the year. >> i've got 16 more town meetings. so i don't want to draw a conclusion from four town meetings. >> reporter: august may not be the cruellest month, but it's going to seem like the longest one. >> so candy, is he standing by those comments about, you know, the government program pulling the plug on grandma? >> softened it just a little when he talked with reporters and he said listen, do i think this provision will do what some fear? not necessarily, no, i don't. but i think it's incumbent we look at it, that he doesn't believe that there should be a program that pays for this, that the federal government should not pay for this counseling. i also talked to a couple of

doctors and some nurses who said, well, medicare pays for, you know, office visits, so they weren't really sure why there had to be a separate program, so that also raised their suspicions. certainly he backed it off a little but didn't back off what he said was the central fear of people, that this could become a euthanasia panel. >> candy crowley, thank you. senator grassley may have fueled the death fear, but lisa murkowski said there's no reason for opponents to make things up. missouri democrat senator claire mccaskill has acknowledged the concerns of critics while arguing for civility. listen. >> i don't understand this rudeness. what is this? i don't get it. i honestly don't get it. do you all think that you're persuading people when you shout out like that?

you don't trust me? >> no! >> you know, i don't know what else i can do. i don't know what else i can do. if you want me to go home -- >> senator mccaskill joins us now. thank you very much for being with us. i want to get your take on what senator grassley said. he essentially is supporting what former governor palin said about these death panels. >> the irony is that his colleague, republican senator isaacson from georgia, wrote the provision that went in the senate bill and it is about an end of life directive. so the patient and their family are in charge. it has nothing to do with the government. having any control. it's the opposite. it's about the government reimbursing doctors for taking the time to explain the different procedures, to help with any kind of directive, not

to take over. so it is so ironic that senator grassley has got that part confused, because it's his fellow republican from georgia who put it in the bill. >> do you think he is confused or something else at work here? >> you know, listen, i think that there are many provisions of this bill, and i think everyone needs to slow down and take time to study it carefully. because if you do, so much of the misinformation goes away. and this is a big, giant piece of misinformation. >> i assume it's fair to say you've never seen this level of what you call rudeness of anger in a public forum like this. i want to read you what paul krugman wrote. he said what some are reacting to is about president obama than what's about in these health care plans. he said "the driving force behind the town hall mobs is probably the same cultural and racial anxiety behind the birther movement which denies mr. obama's citizenship."

does race play a role in this? there was one person in your town hall that had a rosa parks poster, a scuffle ensued. they were all taken out. is race involved in this? >> i don't know. i think there are certain folks in missouri that don't trust government. and they haven't trusted government for a long time. and i think we've done a lot of big, bold things in the last six months. it's a time of uncertainty. people are confused. what's the difference between a stimulus and a t.a.r.p.? i think all of that rolled up, in addition to having a new president that they did not support, i think has led to a heightened sense of passion and fervor. but i think it's all within the confines of our democracy and we may be exercising our muscles of democracy in missouri. but that's okay. that's what this is all about is people being able to express their opinions. >> congressman david scott of georgia, an african-american man, says that racism is

involved, that it's the subtext of this debate. just for the record, do you see any indication of that? >> i think that is irresponsible to say also. there may be individual instances of that. but there are a whole lot of people who are frustrated and cynical and angry and i'm not sure that it would be accurate to make that about race. the disagreement yesterday was more because somebody broke the rules and brought in a sign when nobody else was allowed to bring in a sign and they were flauntsing it and it angered people. there was certainly a little bit of wrong doing on the part of the women who had the sign because they weren't supposed to have them and it was wrong doing on the part of the gentleman that ripped it out of their hands. >> so it was the presence of the poster? >> i'm not even sure -- i don't think it had to do with what was on the poster. we had 2500 people there and they were all instructed with

great big signage you can't bring signs in. and there at the end of the meeting, in walks these women with signs and it agitated the crowd. >> that is certainly something that's being played on liberal blogs that it was a rosa parks poster. >> i think the problem is somebody violated the rules about bringing in signs and it made somebody angry. but we went for two hours and there was just that little incident. there was some rudeness but by and large, we were able to exchange a lot of ideas and i think it was terrific. >> senator, appreciate your time. thank you. >> thank you. no shortage of debate online right now at ac360.com. you can join the live chat. i just logged in myself. getting beyond the sound and furry. talking with protestors about their concerns and the lawmakers trying to answer them. later, the rise of hate-filled militias in america.

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mr. evans? this is janice from onstar. i have received an automatic signal you've been in a front-end crash. do you need help? yeah. i'll contact emergency services and stay with you. you okay? yeah. onstar. standard for one year on 14 chevy models. the anger and distrust expressed is obviously very real. here's what happened to senator ben cardin today. watch. your government has lost the faith and trust of the american people. [ applause ]

>> i think that the obama administration has already started to restore trust in the health care. [ crowd boos ] >> a moment ago, senator mccaskill says he doesn't doubt the motives of critics. other democrats seem to. they say a lot of the anger is being stoked by right wing radio and the republican party. liberal groups are trying to get people to attend these town halls. we wanted to get beyond the shouting and just try to listen to the very real concerns of people on both sides of the debate. tom foreman takes us there. >> reporter: another day, another angry public meeting. this one at a community college in hagerstown, maryland. >> this government is out of control. >> reporter: senator ben cardin is intent on pushing forward with health care reform. >> i can assure you i'm not

going to vote for any bill that will cut off care to someone in need of care. >> reporter: and in the audience mark creslen is just as intent on pushing back. >> how are you going to look at my children and say that they have a better future with $99 trillion, say it with me, $99 trillion. >> reporter: he runs a small health services business from his home. he calls himself an end end who votes mostly republican. he organized one of those anti-tax tea parties. he questions the constitutional right of congress to enact such reform, but mainly he worries that it will mean massive tax bills for middle class families for decades. >> it's disappointing to me that i'm being characterized as a nut. if we just let it go the way it's going now, i've heard it's a trillion dollars for this legislation. it's not going to be a trillion

dollars, it's going to be more than that. >> i'm not going to support a bill that's not paid for. >> reporter: senator cardin presses on, even to all the older voters who showed up, people who polls say are most against this reform, he says have faith. >> i think that the obama administration has already started to restore trust in health care. >> reporter: afterward, he's not sure the meeting changed any minds. >> i think it can alleviate some of the concerns, and there will be a more open mind in considering the legislation. >> reporter: but mark doubts that. and just about everything else he is hearing on this subject. >> i don't believe much what comes out of congress these days. >> reporter: what about the president? >> i don't believe most of what he says. i think they're politicians fundamentally and i think this is what all my friends are thinking too. >> reporter: so the meeting came and went and for mark, health care reform remains a dangerous

gamble. and for ben cardin, it remains the best bet. tom forman, cnn, maryland. >> once again tonight, we're looking at all the players and keeping their claims, keeping them honest. up next, are there going to be death panels that can pull the plug on grand ma? and where a serial killer could be at work. and what authorities are doing about it. y purse and chewed it. my doctor said the bayer aspirin saved my life. please talk to your doctor about aspirin and your heart. i'm going to be grandma for a long time.

each day the debate over health care reform seems to get louder with insults and anger drowning out reasoned debate. here we're committed to cut through the noise and sorting facts through fiction. we're keeping them honest with help from dr. sanjay gupta. one of the most inflammatory charges we've been hearing, a bill calls it an advanced planning consultation.

critics calling it a death panel. you heard senator grassley appearing to endoris that deal. what is the real deal on this alleged death panel, what does it actually spell out? >> i'm probably going to get e-mails about it, but death panel just as a term is probably hyperbole. it's so far out of left field. now, i think it's important to look at the specific language and candy did a great job of this, but they're specifically looking at this idea of a medical professional and a senior sitting down and talking about all sorts of things, living wills, different provisions, do they want certain measures taken near the time of death. all these sorts of things, which sometimes happen in doctor's offices during routine office visits. but sometimes don't. sometimes they're misunderstood and sometimes they're not acted upon. so that's sort of what they're talking about here. having said that, we've been

doing a lot of research into this particular issue. one thing that comes out, and this came out in an article, what is the impact of having this discussion? of a physician sitting down and having a discussion with a senior and saying here are the options near the end of your life. what this article concluded is people who have a discussion like this tend to be less aggressive about their care after a physician spells out the different options. that may be where this idea of death panel sort of is coming from. >> it's interesting hearing the criticism that people are concerned about that, but the idea of an insurance companies make life or death decisions determining who gets care and who doesn't all the time. >> yeah. that sort of gets to this idea of that issue and rationing sort of overall and people always say is there going to be rationed care. i can tell you as a practicing physician, as someone who deals with this daily, rationing does occur all the time. i was in the clinic this past week and i get all this

paperwork that basically says justify why you're doing such and such procedure, justify why you're ordering such a test. and if the justification is inadequate, the answer comes back that's not going to be covered, which is saying the patient has to pay for it, which is what rationing is. so it does occur, much to your point, anderson. >> i want to play something president obama said yesterday in new hampshire that's caused a lot of controversy. >> another myth that we've been hearing about is this notion that somehow we're going to be cutting your medicare benefits. we are not. the aarp would not be endorsing a bill if it was undermining medicare. so i just want seniors to be clear about this. >> what the president said is not correct. aarp is not endorsing this bill. they said indications that we've endorsed any of the health care reform bills currently under

consideration in congress are inadequate. robert gibbs was asked about it and he said the president misspoke. so if aarp isn't endorsing the legislation, why not? do they endorse legislation on other issues? >> we've investigated this pretty fully. what they'll say is they want health care reform. they do believe that guarantied access of health care insurance should be made available to everybody. their big issue, more than anything else, it has to do around the issue of generic versus brand name drugs. their big concern is that there's not enough in this legislation, in this house bill specifically, remember, the senate bill is still being debated, not enough in this house bill specifically to bring brand name drugs to generic quickly enough. brand name drugs are a certain price, generics are cheaper. they think the process should take place faster. if there's specific legislation around that, then this will

probably get their endorsement. >> sanjay, appreciate it. still ahead, the return of militias. a new report says anti-government group are also on the rise and angrier than ever. but first, erica hill has a "360" bulletin. at the white house today, president obama bestowing the highest civilian honor of 15 men and women. among those, billie jean king and senator ted kennedy. hillary clinton insisting free and fair elections are the best defense against government corruption. >> four democracy is still evolving. we had all kinds of problems in some of our past elections, as you might remember. in 2000, our presidential election came down to one state where the brother of the man

running for president was the governor of the state. so we have our problems too. >> those comments gaining a lot of attention tonight. in london, police arresting an arrest in last week's $65 million jewelry heist. a 50-year-old man was arrested on monday, has already been released. it is unclear whether he's one of the two robbers shown fleeing the scene. >> i hadn't seen that video. >> $65 million worth. >> unbelievable. next, the fight for afghanistan. insurgent attacks on the rise as more marines pour into the country ahead of the presidential election there. we'll talk to michael ware there. militias in america, a growing danger. internet recruiting videos on the rise. we'll tell you why and where the threat exists. lower your

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take place. but as president obama's special envoy to pakistan and afghanistan said, there's going to be problems. you've got the security issue, you've got corruption. you've already had election workers killed. i think there's nine that have been killed already. there's going to be areas where essentially people will not be able to vote. so there may be a degree of disenfranchising in some of the areas. either way, it's not going to be a pretty picture. but i think it will lurch its way to some kind of successful outcome. >> does the election make much of a difference in terms of success on the ground militarily? >> in terms of the war, yes and no. in a direct way, no. but in a grander way, in terms of the longest strategy, yes. it's about trying to create a government that the afghans can actually turn to. now, that's so important in counterinsurgency. it's instilling a government and

forces in place that will provide the security, both in terms of delivering services -- >> that's the knock on karzai, that he's just the mayor of kabul. >> and he is. kabul has always been essentially a foreign country within afghanistan. when i lived in kandahar, i felt like i should have shown my passport to get into kabul. it's an entirely different place. you're right, karzai lacks the ability to project central power into the region. but it's so difficult to create a real central government in their country. >> when you lived there, could anyone understand what the heck you were saying? >> no different than today. >> the u.s. has said -- we're trying to establish a connection with peter bergen. >> i wondered why i was getting so much attention. >> i want to play something that richard holbrooke said. he made some interesting comments today. here's a little bit of what he said. >> i would say this about

defining success in afghanistan and pakistan. in the simplest sense, the supreme court test for another issue, we'll know it when we see it. >> i think that other test was porn, wasn't it? art or porn. >> i think that's right. but that aside, it does seem like the obama administration is trying to change the definition of what success is, trying to scale it down, you know, you don't hear these talks about democracy, about nation building. >> and so they should. >> it's preventing al qaeda -- >> and the bush administration already set us down the track of reassessing the strategic goals. as we saw in iraq, let's face it, you're not going to have a glimmering model of democracy in south asia, in kabul. it's never going to be, you know, something perfect. and we've got to remember too, look, this really is a humanitarian mission. america did not go to afghanistan for altruistic

reasons. america is there to protect, preserve and advance american national security interests. so that has to be the goal of the campaign. >> how is the fight going? i mean, early on we heard from u.s. commanders on the ground saying point blank, there's not enough afghan troops involved in this. >> there's not. and they are doubling the size of the afghan army. the afghan army was really just a hodgepodge of different foot soldiers from different warlords. and back then when i last saw them, they might have been wearing an afghan army uniform, but their true allegiances lie to the bloke back home. so this is going to be difficult. in terms of the fight, it's true, the momentum right now is with the taliban. and in a war like this, if you're not winning, then you're almost losing. america is not going to like lose the war in afghanistan on the ground, but you may not win it.

the true victory won't come with bombs and bullets. it's going to have to come with a political solution and the creation of some kind of functioning system, probably a decentralized system. >> which u.s. military commanders say there's not a purely military solution to this thing. >> they're dead right, pardon the pun. the solution is not going to be in the trenches. you're going to have to cut deals. >> a lot of folks working very hard right now fighting in the trenches, though. and they should be applauded. michael, appreciate it. sorry for peter bergen. we tried to establish contact with him. tomorrow, christiane amanpour reports in department on the struggle for the hearts and minds of the next generation of muslims. her investigation goes deep inside islamic society, showing how one religious school was recruited to join the taliban. take a look. ♪ >> reporter: you will find my body in little pieces sings one young boy in this taliban

propaganda video. it's targeting children. celebrating suicide. the taliban recruits its young martyrs from madrases on the pakistan/afghan border. this is one of them. >> translator: my dad was teaching me a couple of pages of the koran. then he couldn't do it and he sent me to a madrassa. >> reporter: his father sent him to a madrassa when he was just 10 years old. for a free education. but they didn't realize what else lay in store for him. >> translator: i was studying in the madrassa when i finished reciting the koran. a mulla told me i should commit a suicide attack. when i said no, i'm not going, he forced me. >> generation islam airs at 9:00 eastern tomorrow on cnn. join the live chat at

ac360.com. just ahead, a new report showing right wing militias on the rise, describing as a powder keg in the report. the only thing missing is the spark. we're taking your questions tonight from mark potak, author of the new report. next your questions to ac360. five young women murdered, their bodies found along the same road. is it the work of a serial killer? now three more women are missing. police are scrambling to solve the case. new centrum silver ultra men's. a complete multivitamin for men over 50. it has antiodants and vitamin d... to support your prostate and colon. new centrum silver ultra men's. ( whooshing, riders cheering ) )

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scott roader, charged with murdering george tiller, sits in jail tonight awaiting trial. authorities are trying to figure out whether he acted alone or was part of a larger conspiracy. there is a list showing who's come by to see him has recently surfaced. one of the people who knows him best, his ex-wife, lindsay

roberts, talked to gary tuchman about the man she says changed into a man she no longer recognizes. >> reporter: lindsey roberts married scott 23 years ago. they're nowdy corsed but had a child together. so their lives have remained enter twined. did you think in years gone by that your ex-husband was capable of murdering a doctor who provided abortion? >> yes. >> reporter: she says in the days she got married she never could have imagined the downward spiral her life would take. were you in love when you got married? >> yes. >> reporter: do you still love him? >> i love the scott i married. >> reporter: this is the man she divorced. lindsey did not want to see her ex-husband in person, so she watched his preliminary hearing on the internet with me in kansas city. >> it's not a nightmare. it's life. it's true. >> reporter: over the years, she

says she saw her husband becoming unglued, fanatical about religion and abortion. she filed for divorce after ten years. they stayed in touch because of their son nicholas, who is now 22. just over a decade when he was stopped with explosives in the car, she warned investigators he was dangerous. she said she was not shocked when her husband was arrested. two weeks after the murder, lindsey received this letter from her ex-husband. >> my guess is that i'll never hear back from you, because that would keep in character with being the grownup, spoiled brat that you are. but my true concern is with our son, nicholas. i'm afraid he's becoming or already become a spoiled brat such as yourself. if you're an adult, you'll respond. if you're a spoiled brat, you won't. >> reporter: lindsey, who says she was emotionally abused for years, did not respond. there's a good chance that scott

will see this story or hear about this story. what would you say to him? >> scott, you had no right to take another person's life. you're not god. you're not a judge. you're not a jury. you say that you are protecting the unborn. that you did it for the children. that you were justified. if you did it for the children, why did i have to fight for years to get child support to care for nicholas? if you did it for the children, if you did it for the children, why wouldn't you pay for a dentist for nicholas? >> reporter: hopes and dreams demolished so completely. >> that was gary tuchman reporting. so if he was fueled by rage over a practice deemed legal under the law, as his ex-wife claims, he's not alone.

a new report out today details a sharp rise in anti-government, right wing militias. they numbers growing rapidly, especially in the midwest, pacific northwest as well as the deep south. according to the report, the people drawn share a hatred of paying taxes and deep outrage over the election of an african-american man as president. so let's dig deeper with director of the sovereign poverty law center. why do you think there's been this increase in militia activity since the beginning of the year? >> i think as you suggest in your introe, it has a lot to do with the rise to power of a black man. for this movement in general, the primary enemy is the government, the federal government. that was true in the '90s and true today. but the big difference today is that the face of the federal government is the face of a black man. so i'm not suggesting that all militias or all people involved in this movement or this ideology are really klansman,

but it is a far more racialized movement than we saw in the '90s. >> you're saying race is a much bigger factor this time around and you're seeing that in the rhetoric they're using? >> in the rhetoric, in the conversations amongst themselves and the issues they take on. it's really quite clear. one thing you hear a lot, again, not certainly from all people in this movement, but for a great many of them is a lot of worry and angst that in 2042 white americans will lose their majority in this country. so that very visible rise to power of obama, the continuing relatively high rates of non-white immigration into this country, mainly mexican, all of those things are part of this. a real worry about gun control, about the new world order coming in and taking all americans'

freedoms away and even the wacky stuff you hear from certain commentators about fema concentration camps and all the rest of it. >> we had a question from a viewer in miami. his question, what democratic traits -- excuse me, demographic traits do the militia members share? >> i think that militia members in the '90s were clearly from all classes of people. you know, it was not thick with lawyers and doctors and so on, but really you had people from each kind of demographic. i think that's probably less true today. i think that it is more working class phenomena. but that is only a sense. it's hard to say without doing a detailed study. but one thing that is clearly true is we're talking basically about a rural population. you don't find these kinds of groups with very few exceptions in urban areas and cities. >> we're seeing more youtube videos made by some of these

groups. >> that's right. and the youtube, of course, reflects the power of the internet for these groups. and that is another piece of it. while we look at this movement and we see a pretty disorganized movement of a lot of little different groups, you know, the fact is that they are able to communicate, to transmit ideology, and in fact to make plans in terms of simply meetings and rallies and other events very easily. so that has been a great boost to them. >> and how many of these groups are just talkers, people who talk big, you know, love running around in forests dressed up in paramilitary gear but ultimately they don't amount to much? >> well, i think that a lot of them are essentially just talkers. but talk is not always completely benign. i think we're seeing that right now. on the town hall meetings and so on. and it is especially unbenign, malignant when the talk is

coming from main street aiders and abetters, politicians and commentators who reiterate and give some authority to the completely false ideas and propaganda theories of these groups. so what i'm saying is there's a poisoning of the main stream political discourse. instead of talking about health care, we're talking about death penalties. >> thank you very much. >> and thank you. >> go to ac360.com for the full report, including a fascinating twisted list of plots, conspiracies and racist rampages in america since the oklahoma city bombing. coming up next, a serial killer on the loose? police in north carolina think someone is getting away with murder, brazenly targeting women on one quiet road. what's taking so long to catch the killer? and powerful flood waters making it almost impossible to reach typhoon victims. we'll show you the video.

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tonight, a grisly story out of north carolina. the remains of five women found in less than five years along a back roads street known as seven bridges road. police believe the murders may be related. three other women are now missing. authorities scrambling for clues, some think it could be the work of a serial killer. david maddingly has the ratest. >> reporter: if someone were looking for a place to get away with murder in north carolina,

edgecombe county's seven bridges road might be the place to go. >> nothing. nothing but trees and pastures. >> reporter: since 2005, the remains of five women, all african-american, and suspected prostitutes, have been found here among miles of woods and crops. there are any number of places you can pull off here, like this spot right here. you can just drive off and disappear into the woods in a matter of seconds. sadly, that's what's been happening to these women. they disappear, never to be seen alive again. is this the work of a serial killer? >> yes, i believe it is. i think the fact that the bodies had been found close together, really would argue for a serial killer. >> reporter: michael teague was once the state's top forensic psychologist and believes the killer is someone who could have a lot in common with his victims. >> their economic level, their background, again, the same race, so i think it's a person that would fit very easily within the environment. >> reporter: all of the victims were last seen in the town of

rocky mount. we went to where they came from. an area where prostitutes work neighborhood streets. >> typically, this is the area. >> reporter: but we found the streets deserted, cleared by fear. prostitutes are easy targets for killers, living fragile lives on society's fringes. still, andre knight says it shouldn't have taken years for the town to take notice. is it just a matter of race or possibly because of what they do for a living? >> i think it's a combination of both. even what a person does, they still have human rights. >> reporter: a turning point in public awareness and the investigation itself was the fifth victim. car niece hargrove, none as sunshine. friends and family publicly demanded justice. local authorities asked the fbi to assist. like the other victims, hargrove disappeared from rocky mount. her body was found in june, off seven bridges road. from the streets of rocky mount, it's only about a 15-minute

drive to get to places just like this. for all practical purposes, it's the middle of nowhere. and this is where vectors say that the victims are being killed. they won't give us a lot of detail about what they are finding but they tell us two victims were strangled, one was stabbed and beaten. three other rocky mount women, who police say are not prostitutes, are currently missing. the sheriff calls this a critical time in the investigation. leading many to hope that this lonely country road will soon lead to a killer. david maddingly, cnn, rocky mount, north carolina. >> scarey stuff. still ahead, a battle for tv ratings. what police say a brazilian crime show host did to win his time slot. also, another michael jackson tribute. this one apparently going global. the details when we continue. (announcer) take your time to find the right time with cialis for daily use... a clinically proven, low-dose tablet

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now some other store yesys

we're following. >> raging waters following a massive typhoon in taiwan. he was trying to cross the river to get to the remains of a temple on the other side. luckily, he was pulled to safety. hundreds more were also rescued. but hundreds are still believed to be trapped in taiwan and more than 100 people are confirmed dead. new cnn polling tonight, sarah palin's approval numbers at 39%, down seven points at may. that was taken before palin's comments claiming provisions of health care reform would result in a death panel. another tribute in the works for michael jackson, scheduled for the end of the month in vienna, on the grounds of a 17th century palace. no word, though, on who's going to perform. and murder for ratings. that's what the cops allege the host of a brazilian crime show is under suspicion of commissioning at least five murders to boost ratings. police accuse him of drug

trafficking. his attorney has said that there is no evidence to prove this. >> wow! that would be crazy. >> it's a crazy story. his son is part of it according to the police. you can't make it up. >> all right. still ahead, everyone's favorite atlanta housewife and mine, himmi. apparently she stopped by cnn today and had a message or two. erica has tonight's "shot." and health care town hall tensions. senators on both sides facing the heat. keeping them honest. we'll be right back. my high cholesterol was contributing to plaque buildup in my arteries. that's why my doctor prescribed crestor. she said plaque buildup in arteries is a real reason to lower cholesterol. and that along with diet, crestor does more than lower bad cholesterol, it raises good. crestor is also proven to slow the buildup of plaque in arteries. crestor isn't for everyone, like people with liver disease, or women who are nursing, pregnant, or may become pregnant.

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astrazeneca may be able to help. (female announcer) it's jennifer's spectacular $699 event. incredible living room packages, $699. stylishly affordable, only from jennifer. anderson mentioned before the break, i'm going to take over the shot tonight. when with you were gone, there were a number of stories -- >> thank you for filling in for me. >> thanks for letting me do it. >> did you keep the room as cold

as i keep it? >> no, that was one of the first things i said, let's turn up the heat. while you were gone, there were all these stories that would come up and say this would be great but anderson is not here. so we thought we would choose one of the staff's favorites to share with you. we found this on "entertainment weekly." take a look. >> i do watch anderson cooper. he's very handsome and all that stuff and sometimes i listen to the news and sometimes i'm just looking at him, child. >> he loves you, too. >> i heard that he loves me and i love you. so anderson, if you're looking, let's do it one more time, boo-boo. >> we know that mimi can't get enough of her boo, a.c. mimi stopped by and apparently she has a new book, she was there to talk about it. but she also had to take a little quiz. >> bradley cooper or anderson

cooper? >> hey, boo-boo. anderson cooper. that's my baby. how did you know that? >> he has said before, he's on record saying he's a fan of "the housewives" particularly mimi leaks. have you had a conversation with him, have you sat down at star bucks? >> we have not sat down. he was supposed to call in, but he was away swimming with the sharks. so gayle king called in instead. >> was that a good substitute? >> yeah, gayle is a huge fan of the "housewives." >> how about that. he's throwing you under the bus there. >> oh, well. maybe we shall meet one day, who knows? anything else? that it? >> that's all i have for now, but the week is young. >> i was afraid it was some big sur price. coming up at the top of the hour, serious stuff, the town hall tensions over health care reform. who president obama just praised the other day. now telling people they have a right to be scared.

we'll be right back. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com