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Witness Says VP's Office Obsessed with Joe Wilson; President Pitches Healthcare Proposal; Arrest Made in Decades Old Civil Rights Case; Violent Student Riot in Beirut; Doctor Credits Hot Sauce for Weight Loss

Aired January 25, 2007 - 13:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Betty Nguyen, in for Kyra Phillips.

Today, heating up. It has been a cold case for more than 40 years. But today an arrest in a civil rights era killing of two black teens.

LEMON: Beirut unrest. Dozens hurt, an unknown number killed as students riot in the streets. Will the Lebanese government survive?

NGUYEN: And listen to this. Can hot sauce really help you lose weight? Well, Dr. Sanjay Gupta is looking at the strange remedy that's become a book on weight loss.

You're live in the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: And we start with news just in. Memories put to the -- to the test in the trial of Lewis "Scooter" Libby, the vice president's former chief of staff; is charged with perjury in a case that began with the leaking of a CIA agent's identity.

CNN's Kelli Arena has just come out of the courtroom in Washington.

Kelli, what do you know?

KELLI ARENA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it is day three of testimony. We're in the middle of our fourth witness. Her name is Cathy Martin. She worked in the press office for the vice president.

And if you wanted to get a lesson in exactly how the White House and the vice president's office deals with the press, well, today was the day to come to court. Lots of inside information from Ms. Martin.

She basically has laid out what almost seems like an obsession by the vice president's office with this whole story of Joe Wilson and the -- the articles and news reports that were out there about his trip to Niger, about his objection to what the president basically had said to -- to basically make an argument for going to war with Iraq.

Now, the reason that this is relevant is because Scooter Libby's lawyer, Ted Wells, in his opening statement basically told jurors that, you know, the Libby and the vice president's office were so concerned with so many other matters that this was an issue that was just so trivial in the scheme of things.

But listening, at least to this first part of Cathy Martin's testimony, it does seem like the vice president's office was fully in gear and obsessed with trying to inject their opinion into media coverage, going so far as to take and make transcripts, live transcripts, of media broadcasts.

So she has not been cross-examined yet. That should happen after the lunch break. We're going to go back in just before 2 p.m., and so we'll see what happens then.

LEMON: All right. Kelli Arena, thank you so much for your report.

ARENA: You're welcome.

NGUYEN: In other news, health and taxes in the heartland. President Bush is in Missouri this hour promoting the health care and tax deduction measures that he proposed in his State of the Union address.

White House correspondent Elaine Quijano is standing by for us just outside Kansas City.

Hi there, Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello to you, Betty.

Well, you know, it's not exactly a made for TV topic. A proposal to change the tax code in order to address the problem of people who do not have health insurance. The White House wants to change the tax code to try to create incentives to encourage people to go ahead and sign up for health care coverage.

But that's exactly why President Bush has traveled here to Lees Summit, Missouri, near Kansas City, to try and explain and sell this idea the president first unveiled in his State of the Union address.

And the president arrived here in Missouri just a short time ago. And this hour, he's taking part in a roundtable discussion at a local hospital, where the president's health insurance proposal has a couple of components.

But just walking through one of those components, here's a part of what the president wants to do. It's a proposal for a $7,500 tax deduction for people who sign up for individual health insurance plans, either through an employer or on their own. And a $15,000 tax deduction for people who sign up for a family health insurance plan.

Now the idea, officials say, is to encourage people who don't have insurance to sign up for a plan on their own, for instance, if their employer doesn't offer one. At the same time, though, the White House acknowledges that 20 percent of workers with employer-based insurance could possibly see their taxes go up. White House officials, though, at the same time argue that more people, they say, will be helped by this proposal than hurt by it.

Already, though, you can imagine, Betty, the political rhetoric over this is heated up. A key Democrat calling this health care proposal, quote, "dead on arrival," and Democrats generally criticizing this plan, Betty, saying that it doesn't do enough to address some of the root problems with the health insurance plans across the country.

NGUYEN: Well, what's being said about this especially from the White House, about the Senate Foreign Relations Committee resolution on Iraq yesterday? Anything?

QUIJANO: Yes, White House press secretary Tony Snow was actually asked about this, Betty, aboard Air Force One on the way over here to Missouri. And he said essentially, look, this is not a surprise. The president understands very well that people do have political concerns about the idea of sending more U.S. troops to help quell the violence in Iraq.

But essentially what Snow said was that, you know, the president wants people to at least give this plan a chance. Something that we heard the president himself say in his State of the Union address.

But certainly this coming at a time, Betty, when the White House is facing the criticism, quite forcefully, not just from Democrats, but by some Republicans as well -- Betty.

NGUYEN: CNN's Elaine Quijano for us in Missouri today, thank you, Elaine.

LEMON: A cold case from the early days of the civil rights era. Two black teenagers killed -- kidnapped and killed in Mississippi. Today, 43 years later, a suspect is indicted. He's been on authorities' radar for decades, a reputed former Ku Klux Klansman and a former sheriff's deputy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALBERTO GONZALES, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: We would much prefer, of course, that justice had been served 40 years ago in this case. But what we are doing today, bringing closure to this horrible crime by trying this case through a public trial, should serve as notice to those who would violate the civil rights of their fellow citizens, we will pursue you as long as it takes and as long as the law allows. Whenever it comes, justice is always welcomed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And CNN's Rusty Dornin has been looking into the case from Kenton, Mississippi.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The case languished for nearly 43 years. You can see some recognition of that in the local paper, "Forgotten Killings", a picture of one of the victims, Charles Moore. And it was his older brother that is being credited with reopening this investigation into the deaths of Charles Moore and Henry Dee in 1964.

Seventy-one-year-old James Seale, reportedly a former Ku Klux Klansman, was arrested on federal kidnapping charges. Now this was not the first time that Seale was arrested in connection with this case. He and Charles Edwards were arrested in 1964 and charged with kidnapping and murder.

According to old FBI papers at the time, the FBI said to Seale, "We know you did it. You know you did it. The lord knows you did it."

Seale replied, "Yes, but I won't admit it. You'll have to prove it."

The case was handed over to local authorities. They dismissed the charges three months later because they said witnesses would not testify in the case and there just wasn't enough evidence. Local authorities never resumed the case.

In 2000, the FBI looked into it again. But it wasn't until two years ago when Thomas Moore, the brother of one of the victims, made a personal journey with a reporter from "The Jackson Free Press" and a documentary filmmaker, through his home in Mississippi, talking to people, urging to find the killer of his brother and his friend. He even had a confrontation with Charles Edwards, one of the suspects, at the time. Edwards, according to sources, did give the FBI information which led to the arrest of James Seale.

Rusty Dornin, CNN, Canton, Mississippi.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: And you heard Rusty mention Thomas Moore, the victim's brother. Well, we're going to hear from him later on, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Also want to tell you about this. A campus crisis boils over in Beirut. Residents are taking cover as the army takes up position. We're going to have the latest in a live report. That is next right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: And set phasers to stun. The U.S. military turns sci-fi into fact, with a weapon that will set your hair on fire. Well, sort of. Details on that gun from "Flash Gordon", that type gun, right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Well, Sunnis and Shiites battling in a major Middle East capital. It wouldn't be news in Baghdad. But in Beirut, Lebanon, it is.

Check this out. What started as a fight among students turned into a series of deadly clashes today in parts of the Lebanese capital. And now there's a curfew in effect.

All this in the wake of a general strike aimed at toppling a fragile government that strongly is supported by Washington. Live on the phone with us right now with the latest is CNN's Nic Robertson. Actually, he's going to be joining us live and in person right there.

Nic, give us the latest on how this curfew is taking effect and if it is having an affect.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Betty, it does seem to be having an affect. It was announced about 45 minutes ago. Immediately, people started figuring out how they could get home. The streets are relatively quiet. That does come after the violence at the university this afternoon. The curfew will be in effect until 6 a.m. in the morning.

But at the university just a few hours ago, there were angry rock-throwing youth. The Lebanese army tried to get between these Sunni and Shia youths to stop them, to stop the violence. They set vehicles on fire, set buses on fire. The army was firing shots in the air from heavy machine guns to try and separate -- separate the crowd.

But in all that violence, at least one person has been killed. More than 80 wounded. And that all happened, all those casualties, around the university area.

The army has now contained the situation. We've heard appeals from Lebanon's prime minister, appealing on television, telling the people of the country to calm down, telling them to go home.

And we've also heard from Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, using the strongest language possible, calling a religious edict, a fatwa, telling his supporters to stay at home, to go indoors, and to obey the curfew that's been -- that's been put in place by the Lebanese army.

The leaders of this country incredibly concerned tonight about the security situation, that it could further spill over and there could be more confrontations in the near future, Betty.

NGUYEN: Nic, we know this started among students. But do you know what sparked this among students?

ROBERTSON: The national strike earlier in the week and the confrontations, the bloody confrontations, that caused two days ago, more than three dead, more than 100 wounded, raised sectarian and pro- and anti-government tensions to a very high level here.

And although we don't know exactly what sparked the violence at the university, we do know that it was Sunni and Shia youths. It appears to be pro- and anti-government youths jumping on that spark, throwing rocks at each other, trying to create mayhem and violence. And it took the army several hours to bring it under control. Surrounding it and then quite literally getting in between the two sides.

I saw one officer, no flack jacket, no helmet, stand up in the middle of the rock throwing crowd, literally waving his arms, trying to get the crowd to calm down. Ultimately at this time in that area, around the university, the situation does seem somewhat calmer, right now at least, Betty.

NGUYEN: Yes, the curfew is in effect. Nic Robertson, thank you for that update. We appreciate it.

LEMON: And we've been following breaking developments on a cold case from the early days of the civil rights movement, two black teenagers kidnapped and killed in Mississippi.

Today, 43 years later, a suspect is indicted in that. He has been on authorities' radar for decades. A reputed former Ku Klux Klansman and a former sheriff's deputy he is. Today, one of the victim's brothers, a 63-year-old man named Thomas Moore, responds to what just happened.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THOMAS MOORE, BROTHER OF MURDER VICTIM: There can be justice even 42 years later. Sometimes individuals have to step up to the plate and work hard, push and keep pushing, even over time somebody like me, just keep on pushing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And just about an hour ago, authorities held a press conference in that case. We'll have more at the bottom of the hour with our Brianna Keilar who is following this story -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Well, you have heard us describe those Iraq war resolutions as nonbinding. And as far as Dick Cheney is concerned, that's definitely the operative phrase. In an exclusive interview yesterday with CNN's Wolf Blitzer, the vice president made it very clear the troop increase will carry on full speed ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: What if the Senate passes a resolution saying this is not a good idea, will that stop you?

DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It won't stop us. And it would be, I think, detrimental from the standpoint of the troops. As General Petraeus said yesterday, he was asked by Joe Lieberman and others in his testimony about this notion that somehow the Senate could vote overwhelmingly for him, send him on his new assignment and then pass a resolution at the same time and say, but we don't agree with the mission you've been given.

BLITZER: So you're moving forward no matter what the consequences?

CHENEY: We are moving forward. We are moving forward. The Congress has control of the purse strings. They have the right, obviously if they want, to cut off funding, but in terms of this effort, the president's made his decision. We've consulted extensively with him. We'll continue to consult with the Congress.

But the fact of the matter is, we need to get the job done. I think General Petraeus can do it. I think our troops can do it. And I think it's far too soon for the talking heads on television to conclude that it's impossible to do, it's not going to work, it can't possibly succeed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: And Wolf, also asked about public criticism of Cheney's lesbian daughter by a conservative group. Cheney's office recently confirmed Mary Cheney is expecting a baby. Well, the V.P. bristled at Wolf's question. And we're going to show you that exchange a little bit later in the NEWSROOM.

LEMON: I haven't heard that this was true, but is it? Can hot sauce help you lose weight?

NGUYEN: I've heard it works, too.

LEMON: Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta takes a look at that, coming up straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MUSIC: "Hot, Hot, Hot")

LEMON: Perfect, perfect song for this. You enjoying that?

NGUYEN: I was.

LEMON: Well, something ailing you? Is there something ailing you?

NGUYEN: Not right now, but after a lot of what you're about to talk about, I might have a tummy ache.

LEMON: Might be time to hit the sauce, not the one you're thinking, though, the hot sauce. Here's our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dr. Spiro Antoniades is a runner. But he didn't always have a runner's body. Last year, he weighed 265 pounds. He decided to make himself suffer for eating the wrong things. So before every meal, he downed a shot of hot sauce.

DR. SPIRO ANTONIADES, "HOT SAUCE DIET": It kind of slowed me down. It shocked me a little bit, and it makes me drink some water. And it calms down my abnormal appetites.

GUPTA: Dr. Antoniades is now 70 pounds lighter. He's an orthopedic surgeon who shares his hot sauce diet with other doctors. That doesn't really have any science behind it, but some think it works by tricking the mind. If you have a dose of hot sauce every time you eat junk food, you'll avoid the junk food to avoid the pain.

CLIFFORD WOOLF, MGH/HARVARD: One of the major features of pain is to learn to avoid danger. By taking a swig of Tabasco, you're switching on that avoidance mechanism.

GUPTA: Researchers say a chemical in hot peppers causes that burning sensation. It's called capsaicin. They already know it can lower blood pressure, cholesterol, even fight some cancers. Now they find that burning sensation of arthritis is like the discomfort you feel after eating chili peppers. Those similarities could help scientists zero in on what really causes arthritic pain and lead to the development of better painkillers.

WOOLF: The current analgesics in many patients do not actually reduce their pain and the other is many of them have excessive side effects.

GUPTA: And scientists are studying more hot stuff like wasabi and hot mustard to see how those might also unravel the puzzle of pain.

As for Dr. Antoniades, he thinks he's solved his weight problem. A dose of hot sauce, a little pain and no weight gain.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Sanjay says capsaicin is already used in topical creams to ease pain. It causes heat when spread on the skin, like putting a heating pad on an ache.

NGUYEN: Makes sense.

Well, 2006 was a terrible year for U.S. automakers, especially for Ford. Susan Lisovicz is at the New York Stock Exchange to tell us just how rough it was.

Susan, hi there.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Betty. Just like hot sauce this will also give you indigestion.

NGUYEN: Yes.

LISOVICZ: Ford is making history today, not in a good way. The company says it lost nearly $6 billion in the fourth quarter. Three months. That was more than expected, which brings its loss for all of 2006 to nearly $13 billion, the biggest annual loss in the company's 103-year history. Results taking a big hit from the slumping sales of SUVs and pickups and costs tied to its way forward restructuring plan. Ford had offered buyouts to all 75,000 U.S. factory workers, and more than half have taken them. That resulted in billions of dollars in charges last year. And Ford is warning of even steeper losses the first part of this year -- Betty.

NGUYEN: So despite those losses, some Ford managers may still be getting bonuses, is that why you're wearing green today, Susan?

LISOVICZ: I'm not management and I'm not at Ford, but you better believe this has the union workers seeing red, right? I mean, according to news report, the United Auto Workers union is upset that Ford might pay bonuses to some managers and top executives for progress on the company's turnaround plan.

Union leaders argue that their members deserve just as much credit for whatever progress has been made -- Betty.

(STOCK REPORT)

LISOVICZ: That's the latest from Wall Street. Coming up, I'll have new details on a far-reaching data breach at several major, very well-known discount chains.

NEWSROOM continues in a moment. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello, everyone, I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

NGUYEN: And I'm Betty Nguyen in for Kyra Phillips today.

A cold case cracked wide open. Now a former sheriff's deputy faces federal charges more than 40 years after two Mississippi teenagers were found dead. We're going to hear from the brother of one of those victims.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: A brother's promise fulfilled. For 43 years, Thomas Moore has vowed to bring the killer of his brother, Charles, to justice. Charles Moore was one of two black teenagers who were kidnapped, beaten and drowned in Mississippi in 1964.

It was a cold case for decades. But not anymore. A suspect is charged. And CNN's Brianna Keilar is in Washington with reaction from the Justice Department -- Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Don.

Reaction from the Justice Department today in the form of an indictment. The indictment of James Seale, 71 years old, a white man, reputedly a former member of the KKK, also a former sheriff's deputy. He was indicted on federal charges in connection with these two murders. He's charged with two counts of kidnapping resulting in death and one count of conspiracy.

As you said, the victims were Charles Moore and Henry Dee, both of them 19 years old, both African-Americans. Dee was a civil rights activist, and Moore was his friend. And they were actually on a road in May of 1964. They were hitch-hiking when a group of men, members of the KKK, kidnapped them, severely beat them and then weighed down their still alive bodies with heavy objects, reportedly an engine block among them, and forcibly drowned them in the Mississippi River. Seale is allegedly one of these men responsible for these murders.

Now, today at the Justice Department, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announced this indictment. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALBERTO GONZALES, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: We would much prefer, of course, that justice had been served 40 years ago in this case. But what we are doing today, bringing closure to this horrible crime by trying this case through a public trial, should serve as notice to those who would violate the civil rights of their fellow citizens we will pursue you as long as it takes and as long as the law allows. Whenever it comes justice is always welcomed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Much credit for this indictment is being given to Thomas Moore, the brother of one of those victims. He relentlessly pursued this case to keep it in the public light. He actually went down to Mississippi with a documentary filmmaker to bring awareness to his brother's decades' old murder and the murder of his friend.

And there were reports that James Seale was dead. Family members of James Seale said that he had died in 2001. But Moore didn't believe those reports. And he went down with this documentary filmmaker and actually physically tracked down James Seale and found that, indeed, he was alive.

He was at this news conference today. Let's listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THOMAS MOORE, BROTHER: I want everyone here, I want the whole world to know. This is not about Thomas Moore. This is about Charles Moore and him and Hezekiah Dee.

And I'm so glad that I, along with Thelma Carter, have had the opportunity to bring their names to Washington, D.C.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: When Thomas Moore found out that James Seale was alive, he brought it to the attention of a U.S. attorney in Jackson, Mississippi. And the FBI reopened this case, deciding they had enough evidence against James Seale.

And actually, James Seale was arrested for the first time in 1964. He was arrested with another man, Charles Edwards, in connection with this case. Charles Edwards, also a Klansman -- and there are reports that Edwards may have told authorities information that led to this indictment.

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, Don, saying today that he couldn't confirm that.

LEMON: Yes, and you know the prosecutors are saying, Brianna, if it wasn't for the filmmaker and not for the brother, they would never have known about this and this case may not have been solved.

But the big question is why has he only been charged -- I think with kidnapping? Why not murder?

KEILAR: No, and that's something that's very glaring. And when you hear these charges, you really wonder that. Attorney General Gonzales was asked that today and he said in these cases, these decades' old cold cases, certain evidence has been degraded, certain witnesses aren't around anymore and it's really difficult sometimes to pursue those charges.

He said they're pursuing charges that they're confident that they can prove. And sort of the example of this is the conviction of Edgar Ray Killen. He was -- back in 2005, he was 80 years old. And he was put in jail to serve a 60 year sentence for the murders of three civil rights workers, very close in time to this -- these two murders. And the prosecutors went after murder charges with Edgar Ray Killen. And in the end, the jury only delivered charges -- or a conviction on manslaughter charges.

LEMON: Very interesting stuff.

Brianna Keilar, thank you so much.

NGUYEN: Well, how the world has changed for Pete Williams. When he was convicted of rape back in 1985, Ronald Reagan was president, the Soviet Union was a superpower, the Internet didn't even exist. After almost 22 years in a Georgia prison, Williams is getting used to a new world. He was released late Tuesday, cleared finally by DNA evidence. And this afternoon, he's going to be talking to us about his ordeal and his new-found freedom. That's at 3:30 Eastern. You don't want to miss it. It's right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: Terror plot? Well, apparently not. But maybe a wake-up call. 27 year-old Armando Bustamante Miranda (ph) was arrested this week. Authorities say he's the man in this surveillance video spilling liquid mercury onto a Los Angeles subway platform just before Christmas. There's the video there.

He told investigators he found the mercury in a dumpster and was hoping to sell it to buy drugs. The FBI does not believe he's a terrorist. But feds wonder how first responders would have responded to a genuine threat. It took transit officials eight hours to alert other agencies to that spill.

NGUYEN: Well, the crowded field of White House hopefuls just got a little more crowded. Republican Congressman Duncan Hunter of California announced today that he is running for president. Hunter has dedicated much of his career to defense issues. He also supports a fence along the border with Mexico to stem the flow of illegal immigrants.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. DUNCAN HUNTER, (R) CALIFORNIA: So we've got just one message. For those who would come to the United States, you know America has the biggest front door in the world. But we have a message. When you want to come to the United States now, come knock on the front door because the fence is going to be up and the back door is going to be closed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Now, let's give you a quick look at where Hunter stands. He is an opponent of abortion rights. He is also an outspoken critic of illegal immigration, as you just heard there. And he supports the construction of a 700 mile long fence along the border between the U.S. and Mexico. On Iraq, Hunter voted to authorize the use of military force and he supports the president's plan to send more troops.

Let's give you this reminder now. Duncan Hunter talks about his new campaign today in the "SITUATION ROOM". He joins Wolf Blitzer at 7:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

LEMON: And the vice president's office recently confirmed that Dick Cheney's lesbian daughter, Mary, is pregnant. In an interview in CNN's "SITUATION ROOM" our Wolf Blitzer asked Cheney about that announcement and the criticism it's generated from some conservatives.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: We're out of time, but a couple issues I want to raise with you. Your daughter, Mary, she's pregnant. All of us are happy she's going to have a baby, you're going to have another grandchild. Some of the -- some critics, though, are suggesting, for example, a statement from someone representing Focus on the Family: "Mary Cheney's pregnancy raises the question of what's best for children. Just because it's possible to conceive a child outside of the relationship of a married mother and father doesn't mean it's best for the child."

Do you want to respond to that?

DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No, I don't.

BLITZER: She's obviously a good daughter. I've interviewed her...

CHENEY: I'm delighted -- I'm delighted I'm about to have a sixth grandchild, Wolf. And I obviously think the world of both my daughters and all of my grandchildren. And I think, frankly, you're out of line with that question.

BLITZER: I think all of us appreciate your daughter -- no, we like your daughters. Believe me, I'm very, very sympathetic to Liz and to Mary. I like them both.

That was just a question that's come up and it's a responsible, fair question.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, what do you think about Cheney's response to Wolf's question? Send us an e-mail. The address is newsroom@CNN.com. We'll share some of your comments later on in the show.

NGUYEN: It's going to be very interesting.

And this, too: running the child sex trade.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You could only sell a dime bag one time, but you can sell a 10 year-old girl over and over again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: The underground world of child prostitution.

That is ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Global leaders, Hollywood's A list, CEOs and decision makers from the world's most powerful companies, even the head of the U.N.'s atomic watchdog agency. You can find them all this week in Davos, Switzerland at the World Economic Forum. It's an annual meeting with plenty of history.

And here's CNN's Becky Anderson.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Few events can generate a line-up like this: British Prime Minister Tony Blair cozying up to rock star Bono, Hollywood's golden couple, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt listening in.

So how does a sleepy Swiss mountain resort manage to pull this crowd?

KLAUS SCHWAB, FOUNDER, WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM: Here is a place where, once a year in a multi-stakeholder platform, you come together and you reflect on the state of the world and hopefully you are able to improve the state of the world. ANDERSON: Well, it was in 1970 that founder Klaus Schwab had the idea to put together the world's movers and shakers for an annual schmooze (ph) fest.

The organization likes to cite the following success stories:

The 1988 Davos Declaration, which they say helped avert war between Greece and Turkey.

The 1989 meeting between the heads of the then East and West Germany, just months before the Berlin Wall came down.

High-level meetings like these have set the bar for just what delegates at Davos can hope to achieve.

GED DAVIS, WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM: We are genuinely -- it's fancy words -- but we are a world in transition. We are, in fact, searching for new order, new structures. And I think this is one of the places you can have, I think, intelligence discussions about that.

ANDERSON: Since the turn of the millennium, the focus has shifted towards globalization and how business can help improve the state of the world. It was in 2002 Microsoft founder Bill Gates announced a $50 million contribution to the fight against AIDS in Africa.

There may be a lot of money pledged to good causes, but this is a meeting that is synonymous with corporate might. It takes 5,000 troops and $5.5 million to protect the Davos elite, a sign to critics that this is very firmly an invitation-only jamboree. Anyone with a sniff of anti-globalization to them will be turned away at the door.

Becky Anderson, CNN, Davos.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: This weather is causing a cattle crisis in Colorado. After five snowstorms in a row, some ranchers still can't get feed to their herds. And more snow is expected this weekend.

Deep snow isn't the only problem. There's also a shortage of hay. The state estimates 10,000 head of cattle at least have died. And with calving season under way, that number is expected to climb.

Colorado Governor Bill Ritter is asking for a federal disaster declaration that would free up low-interest loans.

Grab your warmest coat. And Arctic blast is blowing into the East Coast and our Rob Marciano is here to explain what's going on.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: Well, they should be memorizing times tables and selling Girl Scout cookies. But instead, some girls -- and I'm talking fourth-graders, as young as nine years old -- are forced into prostitution, sex slavery right here in America. CNN's Randi Kaye reports now from Atlanta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Here in Atlanta sex sells in the sex shops, strip clubs and on the street. But beneath it all there is an underground world of child prostitution, a multi- billion dollar business worldwide.

Sex slaves: girls as young as nine paraded on the streets for money, sold from pimp to pimp, locked inside seedy motel rooms to do the unthinkable.

(on camera): How bad is it for them?

LAKENDRA BAKER, YOUTH COUNSELOR: Some of the girls have reported that they've had to sleep with 40 or more men through the course of a night. We call them Johns, but they're really rapists.

KAYE (voice-over): Atlanta is ground zero for child prostitution. Nobody knows how many underage girls are on the streets, but child advocates say it probably runs into hundreds in both poor and wealthy parts of the city.

Raids like this one have only made a small dent in this thriving industry. Pimps are taken to jail. Girls are freed but quickly replaced.

The Fulton County D.A.'s office told us, quote, "From a law enforcement perspective, we need to be much more organized and we need many more resources to adequately combat the plague of child prostitution."

(on camera): Why the interest in such young girls? Experts say the Johns like them because they think they're cleaner than girls who have been on the street for a while. The pimps apparently prefer them because they can control them, they're impressionable and easily manipulated.

(voice-over): Shantique Wallace girl was just 12 when she walked the streets of Atlanta. Her pimp, known on the street as Batman, was willing to take as little as ten bucks from anyone who wanted to have sex with her. Batman made Shantique have sex with another pimp.

(on camera): Take me back to that night when he forced you to have sex with him.

SHANTIQUE WALLACE, FORMER SEX SLAVE: They told me if you don't sleep with him, you're going to die.

KAYE: Did you truly believe your life was on the line?

WALLACE: Yes. Up to this day, I still do. I still do.

KAYE (voice-over): Shantique says she was held prisoner, kept tied spread eagle to bedposts for two weeks in the house her pimp shared with his family. She says sometimes he forgot to feed her. All he wanted was to sell her.

WALLACE: People would come in while I was tied down, look at me, leave out.

KAYE: Turns out Shantique was being held just two miles away from home. Her aunt eventually found her. Other girls remain enslaved on the street for years.

The pimps themselves are often drug dealers looking to make an extra buck.

BAKER: Some are drug dealers. And some are in the business of sex because you can only sell a dime bag one time but you can sell a ten year-old girl over and over again.

KAYE: They use people they call scouts to lure young girls in. And they know which girls will bite. Pimps canvass bus stops for runaways, the most vulnerable.

The problem of child exploitation is so enormous here, Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin released this public service announcement targeting Johns.

MAYOR SHIRLEY FRANKLIN, (D) ATLANTA: Dear John, you have been abusing our kids, prostituting them and throwing them onto the street.

KAYE: In Georgia, pimping minors only became a felony in 2001. It was a misdemeanor before then. But convictions still don't come easy. Shantique testified against both her pimps. One cut a deal and walked free. The big fish, Batman, real name Andrew Moore (ph), got 40 years.

Seven years after her ordeal, Shantique is a freshman in college. She struggles with dating. But her grades are good. In her free time, she counsels young girls, hoping to teach them in life they have a choice and child prostitution isn't one of them.

Randi Kaye, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Growing up fast on the front lines. Two young for a beer back home, but not for battle in Iraq. Their stories ahead in the NEWSROOM.

And winking, blinking and drinking. The other side of the State of the Union Speech. That's straight ahead -- you know it's Jeanne Moos -- coming up in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Important people doing strange things at a solemn address. Of course, CNN's Jeanne Moos discovered the State of the Union is a time for doing more than just listening to the president.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Winking, blinking and drinking. We put our magnifying glass on the state of the people watching the State of the Union.

There was winking John McCain, winking away at acquaintances during the speech. And there was drinking that seemed as choreographed as synchronized swimming.

As for the blinking, we clocked Speaker Nancy Pelosi at 85 blinks per minute at one point. In a Washington bar:

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were trying to do a shot with every drink -- or every blink but after about ten, we were forced to stop.

MOOS: But blinking is bipartisan. Remember the days when George Bush blinked his way through a debate with John Kerry?

At times, the State of the Union looked like it induced a dream state. But no, they weren't sleeping, just reading along with the speech on their laps.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The state of our union is strong.

BUSH: The state of our union is not something I'm worried about.

MOOS: A comedy troupe called the Upright Citizens Brigade did this parody of the speech before the real one was delivered.

BUSH: And whatever you voted for, you did not vote for failure.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let me remind you that failure will not be a success.

MOOS: Ever wonder what folks say to the president as he triumphantly enters and leaves? Smooch, smooch.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your best line was, "We did not vote for failure."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Listen, bottom of the ninth, grand slam, you win.

MOOS: The Democrats figured they'd win by being civil. Speaker Pelosi cued her troops on when to stand up and applaud by herself popping up at certain key phrases.

BUSH: ... protect the American people...

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: ... troops in the field and those on their way...

(APPLAUSE)

MOOS: The parody portrayed Speaker Pelosi shaking her head in disbelief. But in reality, her staff briefed her about keeping a neutral face.

Senators Clinton and Obama were in demand after the speech.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are ready for sex change in the White House?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I don't know about that. We're ready...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The face of the next president -- excuse me, sir...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... will be a feminine face...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, thank you. I do think I have some feminine features...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... an actual female with all the fully functioning organs of a female.

MOOS: The functioning parts of a female dressed in white were her hands. Freshman Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann of Minnesota latched on to the president for a record-breaking 24 seconds. And, yes, she's a Republican.

REP. MICHELLE BACHMANN, (R) MINNESOTA: Are we going to get a kiss, Mr. President?

BUSH: Yes.

MOOS: The state of this union seems fine, better than this one.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Will you not touch me?

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: You know, they didn't talk about behind -- they kept watching behind the president...

NGUYEN: Nancy Pelosi, yes.

What was that?

LEMON: I don't know if it was gum or...

NGUYEN: I don't know. But I noticed every little thing that she pointed out. It's just one of those things as a viewer you couldn't help but notice. All those little things, you know, the hand on the shoulder that just wouldn't leave.

LEMON: Yes, we pick up more than they think.

NGUYEN: Yes, we do.

Hey, speaking of, look at this, Buck Rogers, you know, he had a hand-held ray gun. Well, the U.S. military has picked up something else. It's a version the size of a howitzer. Yes, more than just a little ray gun. We're going to show you what it can do. That's ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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