Transcripts For FOXNEWS Red Eye 20100718

it was right behind me that last month there was a shooting that caused outpourings of antiamericannism in mexico. there is another side to the story and we will tell you what its. >> this is the silent majority that will no longer be silent. >> fighting for better future for her kids. >> we need somebody who is going to go there and fight. >> equal treatment for the media. >> the more women we have the less they will care about what we are wearing and pay more attention to what we are shaying. >> i'm dana perino. look out, washington for this year's mid term elections pink is the new black. >> big brother telling local government you don't matter, we will decide who u you conduct your affairs. >> the department of justice forces a small village in new york to change its municipal elections all because a hispanic had never been vote inside local office. the fix, one man six votes. >> historical. ba loan any. it wasn't historical. it was a mess and the federal government has to take the responsibility for it. >> i'm ainsley earhardt and i will tell you how this election system could be coming to your hometown. >> still think government spending isn't out of control? >> it's done. there you go. >> well, the state of california's crushing budget deficits hasn't stopped them from spending 170,000 taxpayer dollars to move a bush. i'm in the city by the bay and on the trail of an expensive shrub. >> i believe in native plants but i think california goes a little too far. >> excuse me, have you seen this bush? >> but i found that it wasn't as easy as i thought. >> it a powerful special hannity is coming your way, straight ahead. [ male announcer ] the way bugs see it, your home is their home. but now you can build a barrier that kills bugs dead! introducing raid max bug barrier. its auto trigger lets you lay down a continuous, long-lasting barrier. like the pros do. [ ant ] i'm in! i'm out. raiiid?!! [ pow! ] [ male announcer ] bld a barrier indoors and out. with new raid max bug barrier. works up to 12 months. [ female announcer ] sc johnson. a family company. and at holiday inn, you always can. holiday inn. stay you. and stay rewarded with the hit it big promotion-- earn up to five hundred dollars at over three hundred retailers. the most comfortable line of furniture in existence. it's a motion line of furniture that conforms to your body and supports your head, neck, and back seamlessly in any position, leaving your entire body feeling rested and rejuvenated. [upbeat jazz arrangement] ♪ right now, you'll receive a free swing table with the purchase of any stressless recliner. select models are priced from $995... experience the unparalleled comfort of stressless. ...featuring our entire stressless line. give yourself the gift of ultimate comfort. and where better to find it than from stressless, the innovators of comfort. call now for a free catalog and dvd featuring our entire stressless line. investors are demanding more for their money. good. this time, i'm watching fees like a hawk. i hate hidden fees. why should i have to pay for something that i shouldn't have to pay for? td ameritrade's pricing is clear and it's straightforward... it's spelled out upfront. no hidden fees... no bait and switch. no gotchas. and there's one flat rate for online equity trades... for big accounts... or small ones. that's the way it ought to be. time for fresh thinking. time for td ameritrade. >> sean: in the wake of september 11th, president bush warned about the axis of evil threatening the nation. now, a new axis is forming off our shores that poses a dire threat to america and the world. take a look. the obama administration made it a priority to reach out to enemies but the enemies are reaching out to each other, forging ties that are bringing terrorism closer to our shores and moving iran steadily towards its goal of becoming a nuclear superpower. >> there clearly is an axis developing between venezuela and iran primarily but then lately syria has been added to that axis. >> what you are seeing here is another axis of evil akin to the iraq iran north korea axis. >> sean: over the past few years, venezuela, iran and syria have formed increasingly close ties that serve to strengthen the three terror sponsoring states and bolster their ambitions. venezuela has been widely reported that the chavez government funds the farkh terror group that kidnapped three american citizens in 2003. chavez has a role in helping iran acquire nuclear weapons. >> chavez is a mega maniac who has global ambitions and working with the iranians who also have global ambitions is handy for h him because it projects him right on to that stage. >> sean: iran is purchasing the material it needs to build the nuclear warhead despite the sanctions imposed on it by the international community. >> iran is not in a position at this point by itself to pay its suppliers of nuclear technology because that would involve going through u.s. banks so venezuelan banks are now the vehicle through which iran is able to bypass the embargo. >> sean: one branch of iran's development bank now sits in the venezuelan capital to facilitate the transactions. >> with chavez in the middle he can do their work for them and then handle the money taking commissions at both ends so everybody gains. >> sean: venezuela is also supplying iran with something even more valuable. >> an important reserve of uranium in the north of venezuela about 50,000-tons probably that iran is now able to tap. >> sean: so perhaps it is to coincidence that iran has erected a series of factories in this uranium rich area of venezuela. >> it is troubleing that iran has established some factories, a lot of people estimate that these facilitie factories are r armaments and that the ties, the so-called economic ties between iran and venezuela or perhaps syria and venezuela hide support for terrorism. >> sean: those suspicions are grounded in an event that occurred in november of 2008 when turkey intercepted and iranian ship bound for venezuela. aboard the ship were 22 containers labeled track tore parts and authorities found equipment capable of producing explosives. while the iranians attempt to export arms by sea a mysterious plane flight is allowing them to funnel personnel directly into south america. >> several times a week a flight from tehran to damascus to caracas and the people get off the plane and we don't know who they are. >> they are taken to the military terminal at the international airport in venezuela where it is alleged that a lot of terrorists are coming in from the middle east and from eastern europe, coming in to venezuela and then disbursing throughout south america. >> sean: syria and iran may be setting the terrorist west but venezuela is also helping to finance terrorism in the middle east. that is where syria comes in. the country is functionally under the control of iran, its territory used to plan and facilitate iranian backed terror operations in lebanon and around the world. >> the syria iran piece of it mostly has to do with military and terrorist operations in the middle east because hezbollah is an iranian creation and iran runs the organization but syria controls the territory. >> sean: syria and through it iran are among the world's leading supporters and sponsors of terror. in november of 2008 when lebanese terrorist was released from a prison assad awarded him a medal of honor. he perpetrated one of the most brutal attacks, murdering a policeman in front of his 4-year-old daughter and then crushing the little girl's skull. >> today syria is facing a new problem. its oil production declined nearly 40% over the last decade. hugo chavez intervened to build it back up. the president made his first visit to carries ras cass last month. he ratified a pact to construct a oil refinery in syria. >> that oil industry serves directly or indirectly to fund terrorist organizations backed by syria and through syria by iran then clearly the implications of the alliance between syria and iran, on the one hand, and venezuela on the other go far beyond the specific countries involved and they affect the entire middle eastern area. >> the obama administration for its part has been silent about this emerging axis. >> there is no real strategy, no real plan, no real overall vision for the relationship between the united states and the rest of the western hemisphere. >> sean: the president and hugo chavez shared a warm embrace at last year's summit of the americas. shortly thereafter, middle east envoy george mitchell visited damascus to convey the administration's desire to negotiate. >> the united states is committed to a dialogue based on mutual interest and mutual respect. >> sean: president obama made negotiating with iran a priority from the outset. >> we know that you are a great civilization and you accomplishments have earned the respect of the united states and the world. my administration is committed to diplomacy and pursuing constructive ties among the united states and iran and the international community. >> sean: but the new axis threatening the united states suggests the administration tactics may need revision. >> iranians have rebuffed the open hand that the president extended in his inaugural address. the syrians continue to support terrorism around the world. and venezuela is openly disdainful of the obama administration. i think all of these regimes and unfortunately other american adversaries around the world as well see the obama administration as weak and they are planning to and are trying to take advantage of it. >> the administration appears to be at a loss for any other policy since they thought i suppose by virtue of their goodwill that these radicals would sit down with them and lay down their weapons or change their stripes. >> sean: if the relationship between these nations continues to grow the consequences for american international security could be very grave in. >> a lot of expertise, a lot of money and a lot of nastiness and it really is an axis of evil. >> sean: up next, a shooting at the mexican border leaves a boy dead but there is more to the story that you have probably not heard. tucker carlson heads to el paso for a report you will only see right here. >> sean: a recent shooting at the mexican border has gotten international attention but there is more to the story than you may have heard. now, tucker carlson has a closer look at the shooting and a disturbing trend but we need to warn you this report contains graphic images and should not be viewed by children. >> thanks sean. things are getting more secure but also a lot more dangerous for the men and women charged with holding the line. >> bodies rocking you on the south side. >> going for the wall. units pull out. they are rocking you from the south side. >> federal agents under attack as the southern border becomes more secure, law enforcement agents increasingly are being targeted by drug and human smugglers. >> as we gain more control the frustration of them rises. >> border patrol agents this year have been attacked 857 times. up 15% from the same period last year. the most common weapon -- rocks. ron colburn recently returned as national deputy chief of border patrol after serving with the agency for more than 30 years. >> i have been present with the bloodied and bashed in headnd and faces of border patrol agents assaulted by rocks. when one is surrounded by numerous people who have an intent to harm or kill it is not a good situation to be in. >> and that was the situation one agent found himself in on the border by el paso. it was right behind me in the shadow of the train tressel that there was a shooting that involved the border patrol and made international headlines and caused outpouring of antiamericannism in mexico. >> it took place in a channel in the rio grande river. the center of which divides el paso from mexico. much of it was caught on tape by a cell phone camera shot from the mexican side. >> tell me what happened me. >> a group of illegal aliens intending on crossing into the united states crossed right here. the agent. >> right under this railroad bridge. >> right here where we are now. >> and the agent intercepted them here. >> the group runs back through a hole they cut in the fence and attempts to evade the agents. he struggles to detain one of them as the rest run back into mexico. >> he has a hold of the guy. >> and the rest of the persons have having been reterritoriesed and returned to mexico but when they saw his predict ament a person that was resisting him and not going to go along with him they felt they had an advantage to aleast assault and help their one person that was in custody to escape from the grip of the agent. >> the group moves back toward the agent and his suspect, throwing rocks yes. >> tries to retrain custody of the person who is not cooperating and that is not unusual. getting flanked by rock throwers and they begin to move in on him. >> and he fires. >> in the grainy video, most of the rock throwers are off camera but at the moment shots are fired you can see that one of them was in the middle of the channel here and one was to the right-side and behind the agent on the u.s. side here. in the end, a 15-year-old sergio adrian hernandez lay dead. his mother has been telling the worldwide media that he was an innocent bystander just hanging out with friends and that he never entered the united states but that is contradicted by the videotape and extensive smuggling record u.s. officials say he racked up along the boarder in el paso. >> many have most wanted posters and they usually have a poster of ten of the most frequently arrested or most dangerous cross border traffickers, those that apply the trade of smuggling and this young man i have been told was actually on el paso's most wanted. he had a record of at least four prior arrests. >> the boy's family hired a houston attorney to represent him and he denies that he was a smuggler. >> a young kid 15 years of age at the wrong place at the wrong time and was not involved in the other criminal activities that some people are saying he was involved in. >> biometrics don't lie. fingerprints and facial images on computers. i also heard witness accounts that he may have had a criminal record in mexico as well. >> as the age of 15 on el paso's most wanted and had a record in mexico. >> that is what i understand, yes. that is not uncommon in the border environment. the organized crime groups are sophisticated and they purposely recruit teenagers and youths. >> the shooting has sparked massive antiu.s. outrage in mexico where it has become a federal homicide investigation. immediately after there were accusations of corruption from both sides. >> there are reports that authorities from the mexican side of the border moved or attempted to move some of the agent's shell casings to create the case that he had in fact shot the suspect in mexico. >> i heard some witness accounts where persons spotted what looked to be a uniformed mexican police officer who picked up a shell casing or they would suspect a shell casing on the u.s. side and walked back across the river and tried to casually drop it near the body to somehow implicate or imply that the u.s. agent actually ventured into mexico. >> neither the border patrol or the fbi which is handling the case will comment until the investigation is completed but u.s. officials say the use of deadly force is justified if an agent feels he is in danger. take a look at this video from california three years ago. a group of rock throwers targets an agent as he tries to make an arrest. when the 20-year-old suspect picks up a large rock and moves to attack the agent with it, he is shot and killed. the agent was cleared of wrong doing by an outside investigation. but look at how quickly he has to make the decision to use deadly force, less than a second. take a look at this. it is the inside of a border patrol truck that was hit by a rock. here is the agent who was inside. >> all of us that have worn the border patrol uniform have had rocks thrown at us. this is an instrument that can kill. >> as more fencing and infrastructure go up, so do the attacks. >> your success apprehending people, keeping them from crossing the border you think has driven a spike in attacks on agents? >> absolutely. the smugglers are not making the money that they make because our agents are there, because our agents own this territory. that caused frustration. >> this is a shelter for border patrol agents with bull let holes in it. >> prior to the fence we needed to protect agents while they were sitting in the exposed position so close to the international board. and this is bull let resistant glass that clearly did prevent rounds from going through but they hit it. >> that's correct. and some were rocks loss. >> even after the new fence was constructed officials left the battered shelter standing, a reminder to agents of the dangers they face and of their colleague who was unlucky enough to keep out of his truck a few feet away. >> he was struck in the head and received 27 staples to his head from the rock that came across the river here. >> was there an alte altercati? >> he stepped out of his vehicle and was hit by the rock. >> those on the frontline often need to work in heavily fortified war wagons to protect against the constant barrage. >> these are meant to stop assault on the agents. they chuck anything they can find just to assault the agents so we need these type of vehicles throughout to protect agents on a daily basis. it is beefed up. it will take a beating if it needs to. >> and take it beating it does. here is what it feels like to be riding in a war wagon along the border at night. >> so as the investigation into the el paso shooting continues, the constant battle between the smugglers and men and women tasked with holding the line continues as well and sometime between right now and tomorrow night some where along the southern border three more agents will be attacked. >> sean: and still ahead, the latest revolution making waves within the gop. dana perino reveals how the power of pink can turn d.c. in a new direction. that's next. [ male announcer ] millions of men 45 and older just don't feel like they used to. are you one of them? remember when you had more energy for 18 holes with your buddies? [ glass shatters ] more passion for the one you love? more fun with your family and friends? it could be a treatable condition called low testosterone, or low t. c'mon, stop living in the shadows. you've got a life to live. [ male announcer ] so don't blame it on aging. talk to your doctor and go to isitlowt.com to find out more. >> sean: no doubt you are familiar with red states and blue dogs but what about pink elephants. new command headed for k street and dana has the story. >> will vote in all 35 states in the house of representatives and a third of the states in the senate and several states across the nation. what is it about the mid term elections that could make them one for the books? >> this year will be remembered as a year when conservative women get things done for our country. >> the real story as you mentioned ladies night. >> women candidates making victory speeches across the country. >> let's talk about the women. >> republican women, baby. republican women. >> republican women are storming the nation and now are said to have an overwhelming presence in the 2010 election. among some of the races, carly fiorina taking on barbara boxer. also in the golden state, meg whitman will challenge jerry brown for the title of governor. hopes touth dakota, cristia defeat for the state's only house seat. >> i think south dakota definitely needs people who will stand up and be a leader and speak out. >> and then nevada's sharon angle who faces a battle to unseat an increasingly unpopular senate majority lead. what it was like the decision making process when you decided you would run? >> i was looking for that person who would be a contrast to harry reid and i was hoping that that someone would appear on the scene but it turned out to be me. >> and all eyes are on south carolina, the state that could soon see its first female governor and rising gop star nicky hayley. >> the fact that i happen to be a woman and the fact that i happen to be indian was different but that was not the reason that we won it. it was because the people of south carolina said we wanted something different and someone we can be proud of. >> a could be thanks to endorsement from fellow republican sarah palin. >> sarah palin came and endorsed me and it was really helpful. maybe helped us with the edge to win. >> she was the start of getting people to understand the power of their voice. and the fact that she was going out and looking for good strong conservative people to run is a great thing. she did not have to endorse us and the fact that she came in when i was not the predicted person to win and said these are the kind of people we need to get elected is very important and i think that not only that, i'm looking at what other women i can turn around and help, what other elected officials are conservative that could really make a difference. >> meg whitman. >> this november we will see record numbers of republican women running for office. 82 for the house. 12 for the senate and 10 for governorships. that is more than double the number of candidates that ran for each office two decades ago. >> one of those cycles where it appears there is a lot of women stepping forward. that is what i'm doing and women across the country have been doing. they have been running businesses and raising families and now speaking out for the citizens of this country. it is important for everybody in your demographic to be represented and women do bring a different perspective to any discussion being had. >> we want to talk about issues. we want to talk about solutions and we want to be states women just like there are statesmen. we are wanting to just have our seat at the table, not based on our genders. >> but why the sudden surge? >> we had strong business women who really understood the fact that government was going in a wrong direction. they didn't want bailouts. they didn't want stimulus packages, they wanted elected officials to be more accountable. it was all this message going and returning government back to the people. i really think that is what it was and if women happen to be the messenger i love that because we need more women in office. >> how do these women in particular find the delicate balance? >> women balance finances, they balance home, they balance everything else. >> we have to change hats a lot during the day because we do lead such full lives and we like it like that. >> thankfully, weeing a woman politics doesn't mean having to deny being a wife and mother. it is all part of it. >> what did the kids say? >> they said you need to do it and they recognized that their mom was willing to run and make a change and they want to be a part of it. >> i would not be able to do this if i didn't have the family i have. >> this is just a job. at the end of the day i'm back on the couch eating a bowl of cereal like normal do. >> family is one of the major factors driving these women to run for office in the first place. >> it is kind of a mom awakening where women are rising up and saying no, we have had enough already. >> as i traveled all over the state throughout the primary that is one thing that people keep talking to me about, what about our children. we need somebody who is going to go there and fight. >> i have ten grand children and i wanted to leave something to them besides debt and deficit. >> running for office can be hard on a family especially the negative attacks and female politicians often find themselves a target of the mainstream media. >> there may be limits to her appeal. >> i think she is an empty stress. >> this is the gift harry reid has been presented with tonight. >> this was just one of the outfits that sarah palin wore as alaska's governor. >> the cover photo on your magazine is sexist and a wee bit degrading. >> it made the cover of news week which begs the question why in this day and age has the media still have a double standard when it comes to covering men and women in politics. >> we are scrutinized for what we wear, for the makeup. >> the news week article that ran that has you on the cover talked about your saffron color and the tollway it fit. >> i thought it was funny that they cared what suit i was wearing. >> they talk about that because we still have few women in office. the more women we have the less they will care about what we are wearing and they will pay more attention to what we are saying and what we are doing. >> at the end of the day all of these women are just really trying to do the same thing, listen to the people and give them back their government. >> it always surprised me how much apathy there is. and they are focused in on what the problem is and that is the good 'ole boy politics as usual. corruption that they are really just sick and tired of. >> we knew from the beginning that it was us versus the establishment. >> i don't want a house full of republicans. i don't want a house full of democrats. it is the mix that makes it work. that is true for men and women. true for republicans and democrats. we should celebrate this because the more we bring to the table the more good debate we can have and a better government we will have. the power of their voice is going to change the country. >> this is the silent majority that will no longer be silent. >> there is a whole stampede of pink elephants crossing the line and stampeding through november 2, 2010. a lot of women comining togeth. >> sean: coming up, why the department of justice got involved in a small town's municipal elections and why the outcome could set a dangerous precedent. ainsley earhardt has that story coming up next. [ air blowing ] [ clattering ] [ male announcer ] when you're all out of good ideas and you've moved on to the dumb ones, it's time. american standard heating & air conditioning. a higher standard of comfort. today's going to be a good day. & air conditioning. a day filled with promise and opportunity. regions is lending providing capital to help your small business, large companies, and our communities grow. and strengthening our neighborhoods with mortgage, home equity and personal loans. responsible lending means brighter days ahead. let regions help you find the perfect loan for what you need in business. and in life. regions. regions. it's time to expect more. does two jobs. the dry cloths clean better than a broom, and the wet cloths clean better than a mop. so you'll dump your old broom and your old mop. but don't worry -- they'll always have each other. ♪ who's that lady? ♪ who's that lady? ♪ sexy lady ♪ who's that lady? [ female announcer ] the 2-in-1 swiffer sweeper does it all. the electrostatic dry cloths trap and lock dirt, dust, and hair and clean 50% more than a broom. ♪ ♪ real fine lady [ female announcer ] and swiffer wet mopping cloths are premoistened with built-in cleansers that trap and lock dirt deep into the cloth to clean better than a mop. the better sweeping, better mopping swiffer sweeper. gives cleaning a 2-in-1 meaning. winner of the good housekeeping very innovative product award. ♪ >> sean: the voting rights act of 1965 was created to combat discriminatory voting practices but does it have unin tenned consequences? >> it appears that the justice department has been using the voter righting act differently than its writers intended. this is port chester, new york. a small community making national headlines because of its unusual local election. if you are a registered voter here you get six votes when it comes to electing the six member board of trustees. you can vote six times for one candidate or split up votes among different individuals. this is the result of a long battle in court when the justice department came in and said the village's failure to elect an hispanic violated the 1965 voting rights act leaving many people in this community wonder if the federal government got involved trying to make elections here fair or got involved to manipulate the outcome. >> port chester is home to a growing hispanic population. but until this year, no hispanic had ever been elected to the board of trustees and only two had ever been on the ballot. the town's mayor offers a reason for the discrepancy. >> most of those people, however, are not united states citizens yet. come here as immigrants most of them. the census estimates that 22% of that group are eligible to vote. >> despite the fact the justice department filed a lawsuit against port chester in 2006 for violating section objection two of the voting rights act. they were acting on a complaint by a hispanic who failed to win a seat on the board in 2001. >> as a result of the complaint he filed with the department of justice they came in and filed a suit. i will tell you, the department receives hundreds, even thousands of complaints every year concerning various voting issues. it's rare, it is not that easy for the department to come in to a village or a town and sue to change the system. >> the village fought against what they say were false allegations. a federal judge sided with the doj and even used the quote extraordinary remedy of halting municipal elections. >> on the one hand, there was the claim that the hispanic voter rights were being disenfranchised but by stopping the election nearly everybody's voting rights in port chester suspended.ugust >> after spending a million dollars on litigation fees the village was forced to compromise. the they proposed that port chester break up into districts. >> when i learned about cumulative voting i thought that this might be a win-win way to bring back an election. >> under cumulative voting each voter has as many votes as there are seats to fill and can split their votes as they see fit. here is an example of how this works. with six votes, a resident could vote once for six different candidates. three times for two candidates. or vote six times for just one candidate. this method was used for the first time on june 15th to elect port chester's six board of trustees but the compromise was costly. the town spent almost $300,000 educating residents on the new voting procedures and despite efforts to target hispanics, voter turnout was only marginally impacted. >> it is money that is spent that i would rather have seen spent on streets and sidewalks and things that impact day-to-day life. >> was all this money wasted just so the justice department could get a hispanic elected into office? >> this is the most diverse board the village has glean it includes louis moreno the first hispanic elected. jojoseph kenner and in depen dn and conservative. is this the result of cumulative voting or is louis moreno simply the first hispanic candidate to connect with voters? the consensus said he would regardless. >> joseph kenner credits his victory to campaigning with fellow republicans and not to cumulative voting. >> we did it the old fashioned way and went door to door every single day. >> cumulative voting measures the intensity of the vote, not so much your popularity. if we have three thousand people voting in an election you only need 300 or 400 people to vote for you. >> as an independent candidate i relied on cumulative voting to level the playing field against the major parties so that i can go out and get people to vote for me six times to actually stand a chance of winning in this election. >> cumulative voting has long been a controversial subject in the world of politics. in 1993 bill clinton nominated an assistant attorney general for civil rights but was forced to withdraw the nomination after controversial surfaced.ngs suspects more troubling are critics claims that port chester is an example of the justice department abusing its pound for the candy. the federal government moving in and stil telling they what to do. they are saying we don't care what the reasons are that you are not electth minority candidates, we insist you adopt a voting system that forces people to think along racial minds. you are encouraging the minority candidates to say the only way you will get minority representation is if you cast all your votes for one candidate. >> this isn't the first instance. >> in north carolina, the majority african american, the majority of the city including african americans voted to change the election rules gorgeous to at large voting. what happened, the justice department said we know best. >> we hit the streets of port chester to find out what the local residents think about the new election laws. >> the village did a good job of informing everybody but i didn't feel it was necessary. >> i thought it went smooth. they did a lot of training for it. i don't think it was as hard as people thought this would be. >> a lot of people being nominated. it was a difficult election. >> i never heard of such a thing. six votes for one person, for two people. i never heard of that. >> while responses varied, towns people were united in criticizing the justice department. >> i think it was unnecessary and i didn't see the basis behind it. >> it was absurd the fact that we could not vote for four years and everything was held up was crazy. >> four years of no voting, quite a long time. >> they went way overboard and it cost us a lot of money and that was not necessary. i don't know, it got blown way out of proportion. >> peter is a 23 year veteran of port chester politics and many say he sums up the town's frustration best. >> historical, baloney. it wasn't historical. it was a mess and the federal government has to take the responsibility for it. >> across the country, others have expressed their concerns. >> i think that the latino community we need to earn it on our own stripes, go out there and recruit candidates. educate people on how the voting process. let them know how important it is to go out there and make it happen. find a candidate that we can believe in. we don't need the help of the federal government. >> should the justice department be able to use the voting rights act to interfere with local elections? in port chester, the result was a million dollars lawsuit and the end of one man, one vote. >> sean: still ahead, how much would you spend to move a bush that was in the way of this billion dollars freeway construction project? the taxpayers of san francisco know, and that is coming up next. we believe you're at your best when you can truly be yourself. and at holiday inn express, you always can. holiday inn express. stay you. and stay rewarded with the hit it big promotion-- earn up to $500 dollars at over 300 retailers. going great, babs. made it really easy for customers to manage their car insurance policy online. well, you know that's why we have 24/7 support, so customers can call us anytime. [ in a robotic voice ] does not compute. error. [ all ] error. error. error. malfunction, babs. beep. boop. boop. ha ha. very funny. powering down. [ new guy ] we'rnot really robots. [ thomas ] i thought we were. [ male announcer ] call today or go to esurance.com. >> sean: all right, so would you spend $175,000 to move a bush? now, san francisco recently did and steven went to the city by the bay to find out why. >> thanks, sean. americans have grown accustomed to the government spending their tax money as they please. but in california things seem to be really spiraling out of control. after hearing how much cash the government dropped on one mysterious bush i had no choice but to head out west. i'm here in the golden state where some call it the iou state. no secret that is bankrupt but in these tough economic times at least they are falling back in love with fiscal responsibility. tightening their belts and buckling down. right? >> this is doyle drive. a billion dollars freeway reconstruction project in san francisco. nobody has a problem with the rebuilding of this place. but what people might have a problem with, however, is, the 175,000 taxpayers dollars used to move a bush smack dab in the middle of it. enter -- this word here that i can't pronounce. species of bush thought to have been extinct until it was discovered during the doyle drive reconstruction project. >> for how long was it believed to to have been extinct. >> it hasn't been seen since 1947. between then and october of 2009. >> the plan was to move the freeway but they first had to save the bush to keep environmentalists happy. so you to move the bush to move the freeway because if you move the freeway without moving the bush, it is not going to work out because people, i mean people like their bushes. first there was the burning bush. then the singing bush. and, of course, the most famous bushes of them all. what happened to the bush since discovery? >> it wasn't practical on any scale to leave it where it was found. it was moved to another location and it was thought for now it would be better just to keep the place undisclosed. >> it was an army base until 1989 and then the national park service took over the last in 1994. what happened next? well, time energy and according to a doyle drive spokesperson $175,000 later the bush was moved to what i'm being told is nearby right here in the presidio. and i just wanted to try and find it. >> excuse me. have you seen this bush? >> sorry. >> no? >> have you seen this bush? have you seen this bush? no. we just spoke with presidio trust tree maintenance who declined to speak on camera as everyone is and claims to not know the where abouts of the elusive bush. >> even the doyle drive project spokesperson declined the requests for an interview. i spoke to a local landscaper and asked what he thought about the move. >> we are in the bay area as i mentioned before and we are environmentally inclined and particularly if it is a plant material or animal or even a little tiny kind of bug, you know, they spend a lot of money for the preservation of that bug because once that is gone that is gone. >> what do the tax paying citizens of san francisco think? >> i think it is ridiculous because we have so many people out of work and $175,000 is a lot of money to a lot of families so i'm really not worried about one bush. i'm worried about all the people going hungry in san francisco and not having jobs. >> something endangered it may be money well spent but i question why it cost that much money to move just one bush. >> i believe in native plants but i believe california goes too far. >> finally we caught a glimpse. >> there its. >> these were taken november 9th from the original plant. >> can i hold the actual -- >> um-h'm. >> i'm holding a piece of magic, finally. >> there you have it, folks. remember it is not just about this manzanita bush. it is about the billions upon billions of dollars in wasteful government spending like this every day. projects in the stimulus bill. pork barrel spending with which americans are increasingly unhappy and can't afford r

Related Keywords

New York ,United States ,El Paso ,Texas ,Nevada ,Port Chester ,North Carolina ,Damascus ,Dimashq ,Syria ,Iran ,Alaska ,Turkey ,Juarez ,Méco ,Mexico ,California ,Lebanon ,Washington ,District Of Columbia ,San Francisco ,South Dakota ,South Carolina ,Tehran ,North Korea ,Houston ,Venezuela ,Americans ,Venezuelan ,America ,Mexican ,Syrians ,Iranians ,Iranian ,Lebanese ,American ,Joseph Kenner ,Harry Reid ,Meg Whitman ,Hugo Chavez ,George Mitchell ,Carly Fiorina ,Nicky Hayley ,Ron Colburn ,Sergio Adrian Hernandez ,Sarah Palin ,Tucker Carlson ,Jon Scott ,Dana Perino ,Jerry Brown ,Louis Moreno ,Ras Cass ,