in the cnn center, this is "cnn saturday morning." it is saturday, august 18th. good morning, everyone. i'm randi kaye. the man who could be vice president is in florida right now. paul ryan talks to seniors, and at least one of them is guaranteed to love anything he says. brand-new police video surrounding the case of the reported suicide of a handcuffed man. what the dash cam shows after the gun went off. and julian assange, the wikileaks founder, can't go outside or british police will nab him. so, how will he get to the one nation that is offering asylum? much of america heard the name paul ryan for the first

time one week ago today, almost as quickly as people learned his name. they learned about his numbers. that is, the ryan budget plan, and how it aims to privatize medicare. now, for this first time since he became mitt romney's vice presidential pick, ryan is in florida, which has the most senior citizens of any state, 17.3% of the population there. and the reception in the town called the villages has been as warm as florida's weather. >> my grandma moved in with us, with my mom and me, when i was in high school. she had advanced alzheimer's. my mom and i were her two primary caregivers. you learn a lot about life. you learn a lot about your elderly seniors in your family. you learn a lot about alzheimer's. medicare was there for our family, for my grandma, when we needed it then, and medicare is there for my mom while she needs it now, and we have to keep that

guarantee. >> cnn's political editor paul steinhauser is live at the event for us this morning. paul, good morning. so, for those who know florida, no surprise that ryan got such a friendly welcome there in the villages. >> oh, no surprise whatsoever. you know what? paulry j ryan is still here. you can see behind me he's signing autographs and talking to the crowd. this is the largest retirement community in the united states and a very republican area. sarah palin spoke here four years ago when her and john mccain were on the gop ticket. and you're right, ryan talked about his mom throughout the speech. he inter'curoduced his mom, bet who lives half a year here and half a year in wisconsin, introduced her right off the bat and talked about her when he was talking about medicare and the president's economic policies and he went after the president for the you didn't build that comment that the romney/ryan

campaign has been suesing for some time, but medicare is such a big issue in florida, the biggest battleground state. i spoke to supporters prior to ryan speaking. here's what they said about medicare. >> medicare is very important to all the seniors, and i would like romney and ryan to really do their job, and i know they're going to do a wonderful job. >> i think that paul ryan and mitt romney really have a handle on the medicare issue, and if people listen to him very closely, he'll spell it out in minute detail, and i think that's the way to go. >> it's important that i'm all for ryan and romney's plan. down with obama! >> reporter: well, the romney/ryan argument, and you've heard it for a week straight now, and ryan talked about it again today, is that president obama is taking $716 billion out of medicare, a popular program, they say to pay for the

president's health care plan, which americans are divided on. that's their talking point and they've been hammering on it over and over since last week. >> well, the obama campaign certainly hears them, but they're pushing back, aren't they? >> reporter: well, they are, immediately. they began pushing back against ryan and romney right off the bat a week ago, saying that these charges that the president is taking $716 billion out of medicare, not true. in fact, this morning they went up with a brand-new television commercial that's running in a bunch of battleground states to make that point. randi, again, medicare is becoming such an important topic here. then of course, seniors vote in big numbers and in big numbers in some important states like florida where i am. randi? >> paul steinhauser for us, thank you very much, paul. ryan released his tax returns for the last two years. his most recent return shows that he and his wife made more than $323,000 in 2011 and paid close to $65,000 in taxes. that would be 20% of his income. that 20% is a higher percentage than his running mate, mitt romney, paid in 2011.

romney paid 14.5% of his income in taxes that year. and what about 2010? ryan also paid a higher percentage of his income in taxes, 16% to romney's 14.5%. president obama is campaigning in new hampshire today. he holds two events, one in wyndham and a second in the town of rochester. obama won new hampshire in 2008, but the state is up for grabs come november. now to louisiana, where four men and three women have been arrested in connection to a shooting that left two sheriff's deputies dead and two others wounded. the shootings happened 25 miles outside new orleans on thursday. the suspects first attacked a deputy while he was directing traffic, then took off for their trailer park. later, more deputies came to investigate and the suspects opened fire. turning to international news, a bus packed with tourists crashed in mexico. we're told it veered off the road and crashed into a deep ravine in mexico's northern state of durango. at least 12 are dead, 22 others injured, according to state-run

media. the cause of the crash is under investigation. now to some major developments in syria. rebels are saying the syrian vice president has defected but may still be in the country. but syrian state tv released a statement, saying "farouk shareah didn't think for one second to leave the homeland." nick is following all this in abu dhabi. who has it right? has the vice president defected or not? >> reporter: you know, it's still not clear, randi. the government on one hand trying to give you the impression farouk is still at his desk doing his job, having him comment on issues related to the current conflict going on, and at the same time, rebels saying military commanders are trying to get across to jordan. they've just lost contact with the commander, they don't know where he is, but they say they are worried that perhaps his family has been caught by the regime and that will force him to surrender, but we're not seeing him being shown by either side.

so, it's unclear at the moment, rand decree. >> and u.n. monitors are due to leave damascus very soon, but a new u.n. arab league special envoy has been appointed. does that mean that plans have possibly changed? >> reporter: they're changing. they're changing because they have to change. the acceptance is at the u.n. that the last peace plan is sort of dead in the water, kofi annan's peace plan. he resigned because he couldn't get agreement at the u.n. security council between china, the u.s., russia, britain and france couldn't agree. so the new u.n. envoy is very experienced, well respected, many years working with the arab league. the u.n. point person before and after the taliban, in iraq. but he hasn't put forward a new plan on the way to approach this. so, we don't know what he's going to come up with. it's a tough one for him. >> we've certainly been following the plight of the refugees. what does the situation look like there?

do we have numbers on how many are fleeing across the border? >> it's getting worse, 3,500 in the last few days have crossed the northern border into turkey because a lot of the fighting is in the north part of the country. about 170,000 have fled to turkey, iraq, jordan, lebanon, all the bordering countries around syria right now. it is only getting worse. wherever the fighting is, people flee. that 3,500 crossing into turkey in a few days, that's a large increase. there's a lot of money being put in to helping them, but the people are riding into tented camps and often there's little prepared for them, randi. >> terrible situation, no matter how you look at it. nic robertson, thank you very much. massive, new security measures for coalition troops in afghanistan after a number of attacks by afghans wearing security uniforms. we'll tell you what exactly is being done. ( whirring and crackling sounds )

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welcome back. a u.s. drone strike in the north waziristan district of pakistan. at least five militants were killed in the hit on a suspected militant compound. this is the 28th u.s. drone strike in pakistan this year. in afghanistan, a british soldier has been killed. the british ministry of defense says the soldier was killed "by enemy action" friday while on

century duty in helmand province in the south. three british soldiers have now been killed in helmand this month. the uptick in attacks by afghan security forces against coalition troops has hit home. now all troops at nato headquarters in kabul and all bases across afghanistan have been ordered to carry loaded weapons around the clock. cnn's barbara starr reports. >> reporter: for american troops in afghanistan attacked and killed by afghan forces this year. the top commander, general john allen, is ordering massive, new security measures. starting with his own headquarters in kabul, allen has ordered all troops to carry their weapons loaded at all times. it's a headquarters visited by defense secretaries, diplomats and journalists. until now, it's only been protected by security forces ready for instant combat as they were in september of last year

when insurgents attacked from outside the base. but now, across the country, afghan forces are turning their weapons on nato and u.s. troops. >> our enemies have attempted to undermine the trust between the coalition and afghan forces, and in particular, they have tried to take credit for a number of so-called green-on-blue or insider attacks that have taken place this fighting season. >> reporter: since 2007, 69 americans have been killed by afghan forces, according to the pentagon. the military already is using so-called guardian angels, a service member designated to stand watch over others while they eat and sleep, anywhere they might come in to contact with afghan forces. defense secretary leon panetta is calling once again for better intelligence and better screening of new afghan recruits, but the pentagon is emphasizing, the attacks are still relatively small in

numbers. >> i want to stress that these incidents, which have now involved 31 afghans, do not reflect the pride and dedication of the 350,000 soldiers and police of the afghan national security forces. >> reporter: small numbers or not, the attacks are taking their toll. one u.s. military official in afghanistan who is now carrying his weapon around the clock told me everyone is watching everyone else, just in case. barbara starr, cnn, the pentagon. we get an update on the mental condition of congressman jesse jackson jr. from a longtime friend who's battled the same disorder. former congressman patrick kennedy. like others who braved the sky before her, it took a mighty machine, and plain old ingenuity to go where no fifth grader had gone before. ♪ and she flew and she flew, into the sky and beyond.

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we are learning more about the condition of congressman jesse jackson jr. from his longtime friend, former congressman patrick kennedy. kennedy visited the illinois democrat this week at the mayo clinic in minnesota where jackson is being treated for bipolar depression. kennedy told cnn jackson is suffering from "deep, deep depression." the son of the late senator, ted kennedy, has also battled with bipolar disorder and says he understands why jackson didn't

immediately talk publicly about his condition. >> our brain, like every other organ in the body, sometimes gets sick, but because it's our brain, we stigmatize the illnesses because the symptoms of these illnesses are behavioral. if he was there for cancer, you wouldn't be doing this show tonight. most americans wouldn't care because they'd say, well, jesse, go get the help. if you have cancer, get treated. but because jesse has a mental illness, as i do myself, and is fighting for his recovery, it somehow sparks this purient interest because we have a fascination with mental illness because it's something we don't understand very much. >> jackson is the 47-year-old son of the reverend jesse jackson. health officials are warning people to be aware of a deadly salmonella outbreak linked to cantaloupes. two people have died and more than 140 others have gotten sick across 20 states. the tainted melons are from a farm in southwestern indiana.

health officials are telling consumers to throw out any cantaloupes from that region. in arkansas, police say chavis carter shot himself while in the back of their squad car cuffed behind his back, and some are wondering how is that physically possible? so, police set out to prove it. you'll also hear what they say happened leading up to the shooting. sorry, my liege. honestly. our sales have increased by 20%. what is this mystical device i see before me? it's an ultrabook. he signed the purchase order. vo: with an ultrabook, everything else seems old fashioned. introducing the ultra sleek, ultra responsive ultrabook. a whole new class of computers powered by intel. well another great thing about all this walking i've been doing is that it's given me time to reflect on some of life's biggest questions. like, if you could save hundreds on car insurance by making one simple call, why wouldn't you make that call?

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jonesboro, arkansas, police say this man, 21-year-old chavis carter, shot himself in the head while in a squad car, handcuffed behind the back. police just released a dash cam recording of the officers explaining their version of events shortly after the shooting. listen. >> i patted him down. i didn't know he had it hidden. when we were talking at the back of the car, we thought we heard a funny noise, a pop. we got in, smelled of gun powder, and he was leaned over. was handcuffed or sitting. >> he was handcuffed behind him. >> some are disputing this, so jonesboro police have released a video to show how easy they say it actually is. apparently, the same height and

build as carter, while handcuffed, you can clearly see this man re-enact shooting himself in the head, as the video continues there. cnn legal contributor paul cowen joins me mow to talk about this. paul, good morning to you. >> good morning, randi. >> we've talked about this case before. missing from both dash cam recordings that police released is the moment police say chavis carter shot himself, and they say that's because the cars were trunk to trunk and not actually facing the back seat where carter was. but what are police trying do by releasing these videos, and do the dash cam tapes even prove anything? >> i think they're obviously trying to push public opinion in favor of the police department, but frankly, i think it's an amateur hour operation. any law enforcement agency that's trying to objectively and fairly investigate an incident shouldn't be partially releasing pieces of evidence that they think exonerates their own police officers. they should be waiting until

autopsy results are in, until gsr gunshot residue tests are in, if residue swaps were done on the other officers and on the suspect. a lot of things should be done before you do a reenactment. so, i'm a little shocked that they would take this tact. people are going to have a hard time accepting any conclusion that they reach in the end. >> yeah. >> because they're prematurely releasing evidence. >> it is awfulically strange, and the fbi is watching this whole case, so that makes it more bizarre. but on the dash cam video, paul, you can hear the officers talking about their plans to take carter to the county jail, even when his aunt comes by the scene. you can hear the officer actually telling her she can get him from jail maybe in the next day or so. do you think that helps the officers' case and maybe speaks to their intention a bit? >> well, you know, i have to say, overall -- and i've looked at a lot of the releases so far, most of it would seem to exonerate the officers.

i mean, as bizarre as this is, with a man in handcuffs allegedly self-inflicting this wound, you have to say, what would be the motivation of these cops? and frankly, you know, the tone of the audio, when you hear the cops talking to the suspects and to everybody else, they're sort of speaking in a calm, measured way. it's not anger or high emotion, the kind of thing that you might expect if they're about to kill a suspect who's handcuffed in the back of a police car. so, i think the overall tone and tenor would support the claims being made by the jonesboro police, that this is a bizarre, maybe accident that happened, maybe an accidental discharge of the gun. i don't know what they're going to say ultimately, suicide by the suspect? hard to say what they're ultimately going to claim, but that's my preliminary take on the audio and video that i've seen. >> yeah. there are also some interviews with witnesses police released, more information. now, we don't know, of course, if these witnesses were hand-picked by police or how many others they might have

spoken with, but listen to what one witness told a detective about where the officers were when she heard what she thought sounded like a gunshot. >> they put a man in the back seat of the police car. >> okay. >> and then, about 10, 15 minutes after that, we hear a loud pop. i was like, what's going on? >> you heard a pop? >> yeah, it sounded like a gun going off. >> so, where were the police officers when you heard this? >> they were standing on the outside of the car. >> when you heard the pop, the doors were open? of the police car? >> the one to the back seat weren't open. >> they were closed? >> yes, sir. >> that's pretty important stuff right there. what do you make of that? she puts the police officers outside the car when she heard that shot. >> it really exonerates them in terms of having fired the fatal shot. i mean, obviously, if the doors to the squad car are closed, no evidence of damage to the windows, nobody else inside except the suspect. so, this has to be a shot from

the interior of the vehicle, and she exonerates the police officers. now, she won't exonerate them from the big thing of they obviously botched a search of the suspect, if he was carrying a gun and he somehow struggled and it went off, causing this injury. but she certainly would exonerate the police officers as murderers in this case, and that's a really important piece of evidence. >> well, we will continue to watch this case, paul callen, along with you. a lot of people have strong opinions about this, tweeting me this morning. you can find m mme @randikayecnn. thank you very much. could wikileaks founder julian assange escape from the ecuadorian embassy in london? we'll look at all the possible scenarios. ou take it? well, there is. [ male announcer ] it's called ocuvite. a vitamin totally dedicated to your eyes, from the eye-care experts at bausch + lomb. as you age, eyes can lose vital nutrients. ocuvite helps replenish key eye nutrients.

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checking some top stories this hour. in syria, there are conflicting reports over whether the syrian vice president has defected.

rebels say he has, but syrian state tv said in a statement that farouk al shareah didn't think for one second to leave the homeland. meanwhile, an algerian diplomat has been appointed the u.n. arab league special envoy to syria. north korean leader kim jong-un is telling his troops to be prepared for a sacred war between upcoming training exercises between south korea and the u.s. state media says kim ordered forces to deal a deadly blow to the enemy if a single drop is dropped. the training exercises start monday and last until the end of the month. tropical storm helene is moving toward mexico this hour and is expected to make landfall later today. the storm has sustained winds of 40 miles per hour and could dump as much as 8 inches of rain on parts of the state of veracruz. julian assange, who may have been granted asylum by ecuador, is still a virtual prisoner inside that country's embassy in

london. so, will he troy escape? that's the big question. cnn's brian todd takes a look at all the challenges involved with getting out of the embassy without getting caught. >> randi, julian assange might want to find some good books to read, maybe subscribe to a great cable tv package. his chance for using some slight of hand to escape the british police are slim and dwindling. he's reported to be tense and going a bit stir-crazy. wikileaks founder julian assange, hold up inside the ecuadorian embassy in london. he's been there for about two months. now ha ecuador's granted him asylum and britain's refused to honor it, a classic standoff is under way. if assange takes one step outside the embassy -- >> my understanding is that the british will arrest him and extradite him to sweden. >> reporter: that's where assange is wanted for questioning over sexual assault claims. with the fugitive inside in what's at the moment considered ecuadorian territory and with british police outside ready to pounce, scenarios are being debated over a possible assange

escape. is this an option, getting smuggled out in the trunk of a diplomatic car? a former british diplomat says the car would be considered ecuadorian domain. british police, he says, could stop it and not search it, couldn't necessarily pull assange out. but there's a hitch in the plan. the hitch? apparently, there's no garage available to the ecuadorian embassy. we're told there's one entrance, right heerks and obviously that's not an option, completely surrounded by british police. they're in the streets, the alleys, side streets. if anyone was going to try to take aadvantage from the building to a waiting car, the police would get him. the police are also reported to be monitoring the communal areas of the build 'the hallways and elevators, preventing assange from taking an elevator up to the roof where a helicopter could pick him up. police can monitor the hallways and elevators because the ecuadorian embassy occupies only one floor, the first floor, and not even all of that. it's here, right where this window is, and assange can barely step into a hallway

without risking apprehension. if he did somehow get to a car, there are airports large and small in every direction, but experts say once he got to one of those, he could easily be captured. he could actually be smuggled out in a crate or a large bag, if it's labeled a diplomatic parcel and british police can't open it, but -- >> i think they could delay it, i think they could hold it, i think they could keep it in a very cold or very hot place or something like that. >> but former british ambassador oliver miles doesn't see that happening. one thing that could happen, he says, assange could simply take refuge inside the ecuadorian embassy, as he has been, but he could do it indefinitely. it's happened before miles per hour 1956, when the soviet union invaded hungary, cardinal joseph minsenti, a top catholic official there, took refuge inside the american embassy in budapest, was granted asylum and lived in the embassy for 15 years. randi, i'd love to see the look on assange's face when someone tells him he may have to live in the ecuadorian embassy for 15

years. >> me too as well, brian. thank you very much. a bizarre murder mystery at a california mansion. police say this boy's death was an accident, but his mother says she has proof that it was not.

this week we are taking a look at a murder mystery in california. police say the case is closed, but my next guest is pleading with officials to reopen the investigation into her son's death. his name is max, and he would have turned 7 last month. here he is with his mom in 2009. >> you always have me in your heart, remember? and where else? >> in your thinking, thoughts. >> yeah. >> in your mommy's thoughts.

>> and in where? your heart and your mind. >> you mean, like here? >> last july, max fell over a staircase at his father's california mansion and went into a coma. three days later, emergency crews were called back to the home. that's when they found the lifeless body of 32-year-old rebecca zahou, the girlfriend of max's father who was home with max the day he fell. she was found naked and hanging from the second story balcony, her hands and feet bound. max died from his injuries a couple of days after that. two tragedies at one mansion in less than a single week. was max murdered? was rebecca? police say no, ruling his death an accident and rebecca's a suicide. max's mother, dina, joins me now with her attorney, angela. thank you both for joining us. dina, i'm so sorry for the loss of your son. >> thank you. >> it just is heartbreaking to see the two of you together in that video as well.

you've conducted a private investigation into max's death and want the case reopened and investigated as a homicide. tell me first about your investigation and what you found. >> well, nine months ago, i hired dr. melnick from san francisco and dr. robo and you can speak to the findings of the experts. >> the most significant findings from our experts that show this was not an accident, and in fact, was an assault scenario, was that max fell on the top, the vertex of his head, not his front forehead. the back injuries were not the result of an impact. they were a result of scraping, pushing against the railing. his center of gravity would not have allowed him to go over the banister the way the accidental scenario said it would. there were no dicing abrasions on his hands for having grabbed at a chandelier. and importantly, the multiple plains of injuries on his body,

including in recessed body areas like the inside of your eye and the nose and the neck would not have happened from an accidental fall. >> now, had you suspected this might be a homicide before these findings, dina? >> i was perplexed with the finding of the san diego sheriff's department and coronado police department. when i was given the debriefing, really all i saw was the diagram they presented to me and it didn't even look like max. the figure looked much taller and i didn't receive the report from their expert until three weeks later and it summed it up saying it was a dog, a ball or a scooter, and it wasn't really clear. so, it doesn't make sense, it didn't add up and i didn't know what happened, and i was hoping that the coronado police department would have gone further than they did at the time. >> tell me just a bit about your son. >> thanks for asking. he was an amazing treasure for me. i was so lucky to have him. and i told him that every single day. so, when i saw him in the morning, i would look at him and

with this great big smile and i would tell him and think to myself, i won the lottery, because he was such a joy. he loved to play soccer. he played since he was 2 and he played, so he was a 5-year-old playing against 6 and 7-year-olds on his blackhawks club. he had a sweetie for two years. he was loyal and generous. and one of the things i think was notable about him is as in life, he was very generous in death. when he died, he saved three other people through his organ donation of, one, his liver, and saved an 11-month-old and then with his kidneys two adults, so he was an amazing boy and lived an amazing life and he loved life and he loved his friends and family, and we miss him very, very much. >> thank you both. angela and dina. appreciate your time. and do keep us up to date on what happens next in this case. >> thank you. in parts of the pacific northwest, this was what a drive on the highway looked like this week. flames chasing your tires.

look at that video. see how victims are coping from a massive wildfire burning since monday.

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the worst wildfire season in ten years is taking its toll in washington state. firefighters there are battling a fire that's been burning for nearly a week, destroyed at least 60 homes and charred more than 23,000 acres. cnn's rob marciano has been talking to families who have been running from those flames. >> reporter: military chinook helicopters continue to attack the taylor bridge fire near cle elum, washington, a battle some residents have already lost and several days in are still shell-shocked. >> it still hasn't registered that we don't have a home. >> reporter: an explosive fire combining lots of dry fuel and strong wind quickly engulfed homes and over 35 square miles of land. we're on the northeast edge of where the fire came through earlier in the week. you can see the blackened

hillside still smoking and smoldering. the fire itself came up this ridge and the winds were so fierce, it actually jumped over this highway and continued burning up underneath those wind turbines. obviously, this is an area that gets a lot of wind. usually, they take advantage of it. this time, it hurt them. >> all of a sudden, a wall of flames came up over the ridge. it just came up over the ridge and, you know, like 100 foot high. >> wow. >> so, then i said, okay, well, let's don't panic, but i think we'd better hurriy. >> reporter: larry putnam and his family made it, but their home did not. only pictures can remind them of their dream home. larry's a contractor, so he's taken refuge in a senior center he actually built. this week, it's a red cross shelter for victims of the fire just like him. >> we built it in 2000, and since then, it has just become the crown, the jewel on the crown of this community, as you can see. and then a couple years ago, it burnt down.

>> reporter: so he built it again. now some evacuees are just using the parking lot. eugene and mary lou smith sleep in their travel trailer and are in no rush to leave. >> they've been so good to us, the red cross and the senior center. we laughed. we says we're going to stay here, they feed us, no dishes, no cooking. why would i want to go home to a yucky old place? >> reporter: like a resort. >> yeah. >> i love it. >> it's like a nursing home, only your freedom to go. >> but we've made the best of a lousy situation. and all of our group, our houses are safe and we thank god for this, but we feel for the ones that have lost their home. >> reporter: for larry putnam, it means rebuilding on land he's lived on for 20 years. >> it's just hard to comprehend when you lose, you know, your home and where you've lived. that's our dream place. i was going to be buried up there. >> reporter: rob marciano, cnn, cle elum, washington. now to colorado where a

29-year-old hiker is expected to face animal cruelty charges after he left his german shepherd stranded on a snow-capped mountain. anthony says he left the dog after a storm rolled in and he was worried for his safety and the dog's feet were injured. a group of volunteer hikers went back up the mountain and rescued the dog days later. investigators say ordelani didn't make any attempt to go back and get the dog and assumed it was dead. the curiosity rover has only been on mars a few days but is already getting a new upgrade. that process should take about four days. meanwhile, we're getting a new look at the surface of the red planet. this 360-degree color image was created from smaller pictures taken by the mass camera on the rover. well, crops around the country are wilting in the heat, but wineries seem to be benefiting from the dry weather. we'll explain. care of legal mat. wouldn't it be nice if there was an easier, less-expensive option than using a traditional lawyer? well, legalzoom came up with a better way. we took the best of the old

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welcome back. the drought this year is affecting farmers across the country, but there is one sector that is benefiting from the hot, dry summer. athena jones explains. >> reporter: months with little or no rain, and july the hottest

month on record, means struggling green and corn crops across the united states, but one sector that could benefit from the dry weather? wine indu. while california still grows most u.s. wine, there are vineyards in all 50 states according to trade group wine america. >> particularly in the midwest, the hardest hit areas in terms of the drought, there are folks that thinking that the grapes are going to be a better quality this year because the berries smaller and the sugar is more concentrated. >> reporter: the folks at this vineyard in loudon county, virginia, are optimistic about the wine these 105 acres will produce. >> it's been dry for the most part. haven't had the typical, you know, long periods of rain that we've expected to see here and there. july was very dry. overall, the grapes are really happy. we're looking forward to what will hopefully be a really good harvest. >> reporter: bloser shows us what will happen as this young cluster develops and the sugar content rises. >> what's going to happen is

they're going to start to blow up like a balloon. we don't want it to blow up so much that because of the rain that it will fill up with water. we want a nice balance with the fruit and the juice inside the skins inside that grape. >> reporter: too much rain can dilute the flavor and lead to problems with mildew and disease. you said some can get to be the size of a newborn baby? >> yeah, a small newborn baby. >> reporter: there is a down side, however, to hot, dry conditions. like potential long-term damage to young vines and smaller harvests. >> we continue with this dry weather. you're going to end up with less water inside that berry. so, you know, in terms of the wineout put, you're going to have, you know, less quantity, higher quality. >> reporter: so while farmers brace for more bad news, vineyards are hoping to reap mostly benefits from this drier than normal growing season. athena jones, cnn, virginia.

cnn newsroom starts at the top of the hour. fred is here to tell us what she has in store. >> as usual, starting noon eastern time, our brilliant minds, the legal guys will be along with us, richard and avery. they're goug to talk about how everyone is accustomed to fees when you fly, you have gas fees, airline fees. how about passenger usage fees? some passengers are suing. spirit airlines is saying what is that? what is a passenger usage fee? do we have to pay it? >> isn't that what a ticket is? >> that's a good point. maybe can you join in on that class action suit. they want answers. they want compensation. our legal guys will be jumping in on that one. and then we'll have a doctor along to give us an idea as to why baby boomers are being urged to get hepatitis c testing. what's at issue there? and then the weekend, so why not go to the movies? before you go, want to hear from

rottentomatoes.com. we're going to see this behind the scenes video of what the rottentomatoes.com team up is against. how do they review their movies? how do they determine whether something is fresh or rotten? and then she'll also be reviewing "sparkle." does whitney houston's last movie have it? does it have that spark snl. >> it was expected to get good reviews. >> yeah. >> a lot of competition out there this weekend. >> that's right. you'll have to tune in throughout the day. >> yes. all right. that looks like a fun segment. thank you. see you in just a moment. the obama campaign says it will stop talking about mitt romney's tax returns but only if it gets something from the republican presidential candidate. i've still got hours of battery life. it's an ultrabook. i'm good.

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. the obama campaign is keeping up pressure on mitt romney to release more of his tax returns. here's cnn's white house correspond dan loathian. >> reporter: the democrats say they want to know more about mitt romney's personal finances. they've been hitting him on news shows and in political ads. now the obama campaign says they'll stop asking questions if mitt romney releases three more years of tax returns. it's the political version of "let's make a deal." if mitt romney releases more tax returns, the obama campaign promises to back off and stop running ads like this one. >> did romney pay 10% in taxes?

5%? 0%? we don't know. >> reporter: the offer came in a letter from obama re-election campaign manager to governor mitt romney's campaign manager matt roefz. governor romney fears the more he offers the more our campaign will demand that he provide the letter reads. so i am prepared to provide assurances on just that point. if the governor will release five years of returns, i commit in turn that we will not criticize him for not releasing more. governor romney has been under pressure from democrats to be more transparent on his taxes after he insisted on releasing only two years of returns. even some republicans have urged him to do more to make this issue go away. but mr. romney counters that his personal taxes are not what voters care about. >> given the challenges that america faces, 23 million people out of work, iran about to become nuclear, one in six americans in poverty. the fascination with taxes i

paid i find to be very small minded. >> reporter: he did reveal he paid no less than 13% of his income in taxes over the past decade. but even ann romney admits that making more returns public is a bad political move. >> the more we release, the more we get attacked. >> reporter: which brings us back to this offer which was quickly dismissed in a letter from governor romney's campaign manager who wrote "it's clear that president obama wants nothing more than to talk about governor romney's tax returns instead of the issues that matter to voters." he signs off with "see new denver." principal deputy white house spokesman josh earnest was asked to defend this on going line of attack. >> the fact is governor romney has it in his capacity to put all the dwoez rest before the e -- all the questions to rest before the end of the day. i do think the voters have an expectation about trans paparen

that is important. >> here you have the white house talking about tra talking about transparency. they say you won't find a poll out stl that shows americans care more about this than they do about jobs and the overall economy. >> dan, thank you very much. cnn newsroom continues with fred right now. >> good to see you. >> have a great day. >> see you back here bright and early in the morning. much of america heard the name paul ryan for the first time just one week ago today. almost as quickly as people learned his name, they learned about his numbers. that is the ryan budget plan and how it aims to privatise medicare, for example. well now for his first time since he became mitt romney's vice-presidential pick, ryan is inor