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Nevada settled, South Carolina up for grabs

CHARLESTON, South Carolina (CNN) — Sen. John McCain of Arizona and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee are in a close race for first in South Carolina, according to early results.

Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney are vying for third place in the pivotal Republican primary.

Results from the GOP primary come just hours after the Nevada caucuses.

Sen. Hillary Clinton won Nevada’s Democratic caucuses and Romney claimed victory on the Republican side, according to CNN projections.

Only the Republicans face off in South Carolina on Saturday. The Democrats hold their contests in one week.

Although Nevada has more delegates at stake, South Carolina represents an important symbolic win for the Republicans. See scenes from Saturday’s races

The state’s GOP primary voters have picked their party’s eventual nominee in every election since 1980, but with the race so volatile, that may not hold true this year.

Republicans named the economy as the most important issue affecting their vote in primary, according to early exit polling data, echoing Nevada voters in caucuses earlier in the day.

And, like Nevada voters, illegal immigration was the second most important issue. The war Iraq, followed by terrorism, were next, the exit polls showed.

Exit polls in South Carolina indicated clear divisions among voters. Among those who considered themselves born-again or fundamentalist Christians, Huckabee won a clear victory.

Among those that viewed the war in Iraq to be the most important issue, McCain was dominant — but Iraq ranked as only the third most important issue among all voters.

McCain tried unsuccessfully to extend polling hours in South Carolina after learning voting machines in the eastern part of the state were malfunctioning, according to a lawyer for his campaign.

Human error was to blame for putting voting machines offline in 80 percent of Horry County’s precincts, county spokeswoman Lisa Bourcier said.

By 4 p.m. ET, only about four of the county’s 118 precincts were without a working machine, she said.

A win in the South Carolina Republican primary could give one of the candidates a foot up in a race that, so far, has produced three different winners in three major contests. Watch how candidates are competing in South Carolina

South Carolina is the state where the Republican base passes judgment on the candidates, CNN senior political analyst Bill Schneider said. If conservatives are going to rally behind any single contender, we’ll see that happen in South Carolina.

The weather could become a significant factor in the race. Cold rain was falling across the state, and snow was reported in spots.

Snow is rare in South Carolina and brings the state to a standstill when it falls, even in small amounts.

The latest polling in South Carolina had Huckabee as the front-runner. An American Research Group poll conducted January 17-18 had Huckabee leading at 33 percent, followed by McCain at 26 percent.

Thompson was at 21 percent and the poll found and Romney was running fourth at 9 percent. All other candidates were in single digits. The poll’s margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Right now, conservatives are split. Economic conservatives like Mitt Romney, social conservatives like Huckabee, and military conservatives like John McCain, Schneider said. They could end up just as divided after the South Carolina vote.

In Nevada’s contest, Clinton led rival Barack Obama by 6 percentage points with 97 percent of precincts reporting in Saturday’s Democratic caucuses.

Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards was a distant third.

I guess this is how the West was won, Clinton told supporters Saturday. Watch Clinton celebrate in Nevada

Clinton issued a special thanks to her supporters from the 60,000-strong Culinary Workers Union. Clinton had been encouraging members of the union, which endorsed Obama, to vote their conscience.

Zachary Conine, a permanent caucus chairman in Las Vegas, said Clinton’s campaign organization helped hand her the win.

Her people are efficient, fervent. They were there first, they were calling people, they had a list of voters they were using to call people, making sure people came out. They had signs, they had shirts, they had a clear chain of command, he said.

Romney, the projected winner of the GOP caucuses, was cruising with 52 percent of the vote with 98 percent of the precincts reporting, but a dogfight was on for second place.

Nevada marks the third win for Romney. He took Michigan on Tuesday and also won the overshadowed contest in Wyoming.

If you can win those two states — Michigan and Nevada — it means you have put together quite a coalition and have been able to make the kind of inroads you have to make to take the White House, he said Saturday afternoon from Florida. Watch Romney claim victory

McCain and Rep. Ron Paul were in a close race for second place, ahead of Thompson and Huckabee.

California Rep. Duncan Hunter, who received just 2 percent of the GOP vote, abandoned his presidential bid after the results came in.

Nevada marks the second straight win for the former Massachusetts governor, following a win in the Michigan primary earlier in the week.

In a presidential race that’s increasingly coming down to who has the most delegates, a win helps Romney.

Romney also benefited from his Mormon religion, the poll results show. Romney captured 94 percent of the voters who identified themselves as Mormon, which made up 25 percent of all Republicans participating in the GOP caucuses.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints estimates there are 170,000 members living in Nevada.
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Romney projected to win Nevada GOP caucuses

(CNN) — Sen. Hillary Clinton will win the Nevada Democratic caucuses, CNN projects.

The New York senator led rival Barack Obama by 8 percentage points with about half of the precincts reporting.

Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards was a distant third.

On the Republican side, CNN projects Mitt Romney as the winner of Saturday’s GOP caucuses in Nevada, based on entrance polls and early returns.

Romney was cruising with 55 percent of the vote in early returns, but a dogfight was on for second place.

Romney issued a statement Saturday afternoon.

Today, the people of Nevada voted for change in Washington. For far too long, our leaders have promised to take the action necessary to build a stronger America, and still the people of Nevada and all across this country are waiting.

Whether it is reforming health care, making America energy independent or securing the border, the American people have been promised much and are now ready for change, the statement said.

At the same early stage, Sen. John McCain and Rep. Ron Paul were in a close race for second place, ahead of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and former Sen. Fred Thompson.

Also on Saturday, Republicans were voting in a primary election in South Carolina, where results were expected to come in later. Watch how candidates are competing in South Carolina

The two contests could propel two candidates to front-runner status and winnow the field in this year’s wide-open presidential races. See scenes from Saturday’s races

Economic issues were foremost in the minds of Nevada GOP voters, and that worked in favor of Romney, who has earned a reputation as a successful businessman.

In a CNN entrance poll Saturday morning, 38 percent of Nevada caucus participants cited the economy as their most important issue.

Of those, 47 percent said they were caucusing for Romney, and 26 percent favored Paul.

The second most important issue for Nevada Republicans was illegal immigration, at 34 percent.

Nevada marks the second straight win for the former Massachusetts governor, following a win in the Michigan primary earlier in the week.

Even though the Republican Party cut in half the number of delegates the state party can send to the national convention as punishment for moving its caucuses to Saturday, Nevada has more delegates at stake than South Carolina.

In a presidential race that’s increasingly coming down to who has the most delegates, a win helps Romney.

Romney also benefited from his Mormon religion, the poll results show. Romney captured 94 percent of the voters who identified themselves as Mormon, which made up 25 percent of all Republicans participating in the GOP caucuses.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints estimates there are 170,000 members living in Nevada.

A win in the South Carolina Republican primary could give one of the candidates a foot up in a race that, so far, has produced three different winners in three major contests.

South Carolina is the state where the Republican base passes judgment on the candidates, CNN senior political analyst Bill Schneider said. If conservatives are going to rally behind any single contender, we’ll see that happen in South Carolina.

The weather could become a significant factor in the race. Cold rain was falling across the state, and snow was reported in spots.

Snow is rare in South Carolina and brings the state to a standstill when it falls, even in small amounts.

The latest polling in South Carolina had Huckabee as the front-runner. An American Research Group poll conducted January 17-18 had Huckabee leading at 33 percent, followed by Sen. John McCain at 26 percent.

Thompson was at 21 percent and the poll found and Romney was running fourth at 9 percent. All other candidates were in single digits. The poll’s margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points.

No GOP candidate has gone on to win his party’s nomination without winning South Carolina since Ronald Reagan won there in 1980, but, with the race so volatile, that may not hold true this year.

Right now, conservatives are split. Economic conservatives like Mitt Romney, social conservatives like Huckabee, and military conservatives like John McCain, Schneider said. They could end up just as divided after the South Carolina vote.

Democrats, shifting their focus west to their caucuses in Nevada, face a much different race than the earlier contests back East.

The Democratic candidates are battling for momentum going into Super Tuesday, February 5, Schneider said. Obama had it after Iowa. Clinton had it after New Hampshire. If Obama wins Nevada, January 19, and then South Carolina a week later, he’ll have the ‘Big Mo.’

Clinton’s best shot is to win Nevada, Schneider said. That way, she can split the week with Obama, who is likely to win South Carolina on a strong African-American vote. What would that mean? Probably ‘No Mo’ going into Super Tuesday.

Nevada has a heavily unionized work force, and union support could be a huge factor in the outcome of the Democratic race there.

Obama gained an advantage when he was endorsed by the 60,000-strong Culinary Workers Union, whose members work in Las Vegas and Reno casinos and hotels as kitchen workers, cocktail servers, housekeepers and bellhops.

Obama’s cause gained a boost Thursday when a judge allowed nine at-large caucus sites in Las Vegas casinos, to allow those who work at night to caucus.

Nevada will also be the first test of the Democratic candidates’ support among Hispanics. Democrats moved Nevada’s primary up, in part, to showcase the Hispanic vote, and all the major Democratic candidates are vying to capture it. Watch what role the Hispanic vote plays in Nevada

Nevada has the fastest-growing Hispanic population in the nation, with one out of every five residents now identifying themselves as Hispanic, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Hispanics make up 12 percent of Nevada’s eligible voters, compared with 9 percent of eligible voters nationally.
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Video shows suspected killer buying paint, wheelbarrow

(CNN) — A video recorded last month shows suspected Marine killer Cesar Laurean buying supplies that authorities say could have been used to cover up the murder of a pregnant co-worker, a sheriff’s department spokesman told CNN on Friday.

The surveillance video from December 16 shows Cpl. Laurean shopping at a Lowe’s home improvement store two days after Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach is believed to have been killed, said Onslow County Sheriff’s spokesman Rick Sutherland.

CNN obtained the video from the television program America’s Most Wanted and broadcast it during Friday night’s Anderson Cooper 360.

In the video, Laurean is seen with another person described by America’s Most Wanted as a friend. Sutherland said that investigators believe Laurean was with someone at the store, but had no other comment.

The video shows Laurean purchasing supplies, paint, concrete blocks and a wheelbarrow.

According to police affidavits, Laurean told his wife he buried Lauterbach in their backyard fire pit December 15 after Lauterbach committed suicide in the couple’s home — slitting her own throat. He said he got scared and buried her body, according to the affidavit. Watch what may have happened at the fire pit

Police say they don’t believe his version of the story. They have told CNN that they found blood in more than one room of Laurean’s home and that some of the blood was covered by fresh paint. Lauterbach’s charred body, as well as that believed to be of her unborn child, were found in the fire pit.

Lauterbach, 20, had accused Laurean of raping her last spring. She was reported missing December 19.

Laurean is charged with her murder. An initial autopsy report indicates Lauterbach was killed by blunt trauma to the head.

Neighbors claim to have seen Laurean’s wife Christina painting the inside of her home recently, Sutherland said.

There are some initial reports to suggest that neighbors saw Christina Laurean doing some of the interior painting done in the last month, he said.

She has not been charged in the murder case. Police told CNN she remains a cooperating witness.

Christina Laurean waited a day after her husband told her about Lauterbach’s death before telling authorities about what she knew, according to police search warrant affidavits.

Police are also releasing video of Laurean withdrawing money from an ATM allegedly using Lauterbach’s card on December 24. Police have said he attempted to cover the camera lens with what appears to be a rag or towel.

Authorities suspect Laurean may be on the run in the southwestern U.S. or Mexico, where some of his relatives live. Authorities received a credible tip that he has been seen in the western United States, police said.

Laurean is a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Mexico.
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China shutters Olympians from public view

BEIJING, China (AP) — China will field about 800 athletes for the upcoming Olympics, and right now they are hard to find.

Trying to keep distractions to a minimum — and fearful that opponents might be spying — China is shuttering away its top medal contenders.

It seems inevitable that I will see you guys less and less in the coming months, 110-meter hurdler Liu Xiang, the world record holder and Olympic and world champion, told reporters at his training camp a few weeks ago. Liu, who has sponsorships with Nike and Visa, rivals NBA star Yao Ming as the country’s most visible athlete.

Expected to challenge the United States for the most medals and most golds, China is taking no chances and is hoping to keep pressure off key athletes in sports such as badminton, table tennis, weightlifting, volleyball, track and field, and swimming.

Deng Yaping, who won four gold medals in pingpong, said the pressure could be both a plus and a minus.

Our advantage is playing in our home country and having a great level of support, which is a good thing, said Deng, who was voted the top Chinese female athlete of the 20th century. The disadvantage is the great pressure from the fans.

In the next few months, many of China’s top athletes will move to the heavily guarded, Beijing-based National Sports Training Center. The compound has a 24-hour guard composed of paramilitary police and Beijing municipal police.

We are now entering a period of silence, said Li Yongbo, coach of the national badminton team. E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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