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Phoenix Airport Death; Chrysler-UAW Deadline; Salmonella in Pot Pies
Aired October 10, 2007 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning, everyone. You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Tony Harris.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Hi there, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
Watch events come in to the NEWSROOM live. It is Wednesday morning, October 10th.
Here's what's on the rundown.
Death in police custody at the Phoenix airport. Questions about what happened inside a holding cell. Now the victim's husband speaks out.
It is a CNN exclusive.
HARRIS: Also, a noose dangling on a door at Columbia University. Students planning a walkout today to protest racism.
COLLINS: And denials from the president of Oral Roberts University. He says he never skimmed school money to pay for a ritzy lifestyle.
The Larry King interview, in the NEWSROOM.
Our top story this hour, new developments of a woman who died in police custody at Phoenix's Sky Harbor Airport. The investigation takes a twist and her family speaks out.
CNN's Alina Cho is joining us now with exclusive details.
Alina, what have you learned?
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, one of the most interesting things we've learned, Heidi, is that the medical examiner, the same woman who performed the official autopsy on Carol Ann Gotbaum, actually went into the same holding cell where she died and essentially tried to recreate the scene. The doctor's name is Ann Bucholtz.
She was handcuffed and shackled, even placed herself in the same position. She was secured to a bench, and she was able to do all of this, interestingly enough, because she is about the same size as Gotbaum. In fact, the police report says they were the same height, both 5'7, and there was only about a five-pound difference in their weight. And Heidi, we are told that there were photographs taken of that recreation, but so far those photos have not been made public.
COLLINS: Well, Alina, I know that you have learned an awful lot about this in your reporting, and there have been -- there have been quite a few questions about whether or not there was alcohol in her system. We understand, I guess, from the toxicology reports that, in fact, there was some alcohol found.
CHO: That toxicology test result won't be back for several weeks, but, yes, our source tells us, Heidi, that, indeed, it will show that there was alcohol in Gotbaum's system.
We've also learned, interestingly enough, that she was completely sober when she arrived at Phoenix airport. Now, we know that because we're told she sent a series of e-mails, made several phone calls and was "entirely lucid".
Now, sometime later, inside of an hour before her flight was scheduled to leave, she went to a sports bar at the airport to get something to eat, by all accounts, and likely a few drinks. One minute, just one minute after the gate was closed, she arrived and she was told her seat had been given away -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Well, and also, what's interesting about it, I understand, is that that's not really what got her in trouble. Apparently, that was -- what had her so upset is something completely different.
CHO: Well, it was just the beginning. Now, make no mistake, she was mad about missing that initial connection, and it's been widely reported that that was the case. But there is certainly more to the story.
According to the police report and our source, she was desperately trying to get on to the next flight, about an hour and a half later. That flight was also overbooked.
A stranger offered his seat to her. She went to the gate agent with his ticket and was told she could not get on the plane with someone else's boarding pass.
That, she was told, would be a "security breach". And Heidi, that explains something that many people have been wondering about, exactly why she started yelling and screaming, "I'm not a terrorist!"
COLLINS: Yes. Yes, that certainly does explain some of it, at least from what we can tell so far.
And also, I know that Carol Ann Gotbaum's funeral was just this weekend. For the first time, we actually heard from her husband. And you have some audio to share with us?
CHO: That's right, Heidi. And I want to be clear to our viewers that we obtained this audiotape with Noah Gotbaum's blessing, the husband. In a passionate eulogy delivered on Sunday in New York, Noah Gotbaum remembered his wife of 12 years as a loving mother. He also talked about the lesson he has learned about her sickness.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
GOTBAUM: My beautiful girl was so ashamed to seek help. And many of us, myself included, perpetuated that, because we simply didn't understand the disease. We said it can't be. It must be something else causing this.
These are diseases that have to be understood and treated. Not swept under the rug, demonized and hushed up.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
CHO: Some strong words. And Noah Gotbaum was also passionate when he talked about how he thought her death could have been prevented.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
GOTBAUM: If the airline or the police authority had treated Carol with some modicum of sensitivity and grace, or one single person at that airport had put an arm around her shoulder, sat her down, and given her some protection, she might still be with us today.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
CHO: And one final note. Something interesting that we've learned is that the Gotbaum family is still waiting to get back some of Carol's personal effects. Among them, her BlackBerry. Investigators will certainly want to take a very close look at that.
And also, Heidi, on a much more personal level, her wedding ring. As you know, when people are arrested, police take your personal items from you.
COLLINS: Yes.
CHO: And we have learned that Carol Gotbaum's wedding ring was the one item she fought most to keep.
COLLINS: It is such a sad story.
Quickly, before we let you go, Alina, has there been any information that has come up about why she was traveling alone, particularly because she was apparently on her way to a treatment program for alcoholism?
CHO: That's right. You know, initially, we should mention -- and this has been reported, Heidi -- she was supposed to fly direct from New York to Tucson to that alcohol treatment center called Cottonwood. But she made a last-minute decision to take her kids to school, and that's why she had to take a different flight, which connected her to Phoenix.
She was going to travel alone the entire time, and that's still a big question.
COLLINS: Yes.
CHO: But she was going to fly directly to Tucson. It was the last-minute decision that took her on that connecting flight which she ultimately missed.
COLLINS: All right. Well, excellent reporting. We certainly do appreciate it. Alina Cho, thank you.
CHO: You bet.
HARRIS: Standard procedure or police missteps in Phoenix? We've got law enforcement veteran and analyst Mike Brooks on the line to help us better understand what might have happened.
Mike, good to talk to you.
MIKE BROOKS, SECURITY ANALYST Good to be with you, Tony.
HARRIS: Mike, the -- I'm going to jump around a little bit here. The Gotbaum family believes the police acted improperly here. From what you know about the case, did they?
BROOKS: You know, from what I've seen, Tony -- and again, I've looked at these tapes, I've analyzed them very closely, looked at the police reports -- I do not see any missteps by the police here so far. I mean, from the initial contact with the people at TSA, when she was acting the way she was in the airport after she was denied boarding, you know, they were trying to calm her down and try to talk to her, but she was being totally noncompliant and was just off the deep end.
HARRIS: So, Mike, in the continuing coverage of this story, are you beginning to get the feeling here that perhaps way too many people are looking for faults in the actions of the police officers here?
BROOKS: Well, I think they are. But, you know, it's only -- it's only natural that a family would also -- you know, would take a look and say, OK, what could have been done to prevent her death? And that's natural.
And, you know, I emphasize with the husband that way, Tony. But, you have the medical examiner, who we heard from Alina's reporting, had gone out and tried to recreate it. I mean, they are going out of their way to make sure that a thorough investigation is being done because of the death in police custody.
And that is usually done. But I can tell you, they're really -- they're really going out of their way. But very seldom do you also have videotape, this much videotape, Tony, and that was because it was in the airport.
You know, you go to many airports around the country, there are well over 300 cameras in every airport. Just to see what is going on as per surveillance, and also, if something like this happens, they can go back to it and take a look and say, OK, where is police procedure followed?
HARRIS: Well, let me zero in on this whole idea of a recreation. Are you somewhat surprised that the medical examiner is going to that length to try to figure out what happened in the holding cell?
BROOKS: No, not really, because when this first came out, you know, we -- everybody in law enforcement -- I was talking to my law enforcement friends and former associates and current law enforcement who teach procedures, and we were talking, how could this happen? And then after we heard that there was a shackle, which is about a 24-inch total length chain with a handcuff at each end -- it's basically like leg shackles you see people put on their legs when brought into the courtroom -- as well as regular set of handcuffs, then we could start to say, OK, if she was on a bench and one end of that handcuff shackle was on the bench and she was trying to get out of her handcuffs, then I could say, OK, now I understand how that chain may have gotten across her neck.
I that is what the coroner was trying to do.
HARRIS: Got you.
BROOKS: The medical examiner was trying to recreate this to say, OK, could this have really happened? And -- well, you know what? Yes, it could of happened.
HARRIS: OK. And one quick one. Do you think this episode will lead to cameras in these holding cells?
BROOKS: Well, you know, the policy with Phoenix and many police departments in just these holding cells is that it's a violation of privacy and the officers can go check on the people. But, I mean, I think there was a gap of about eight minutes from the time that they heard her stop screaming and acting the way she was until the time they went in to check on her, and that is when they found her with the chain apparently across her neck.
And the other thing, Tony, about the BlackBerry, you know, I don't understand why they're not giving the wedding ring back.
HARRIS: Exactly.
HARRIS: To me, that's not of any evidentiary value in this investigation. But the BlackBerry would be, because apparently he made a -- sent a series of e-mails and made a series of calls when she was allegedly lucid before she went to the sports bar 45 minutes before her flight and got something to eat and drink. So they're probably trying to take a look at what her state of mind was before that happened.
HARRIS: Sure.
Mike Brooks, appreciate it. Good to talk to you, Mike.
BROOKS: OK, Tony.
(NEWSBREAK)
HARRIS: Deal or no deal? A strike deadline for Chrysler workers just two hours away. They say they'll walk if there's no agreement.
CNN's Ali Velshi following developments from New York.
Ali, good morning to you.
What are the sticking points sort of at the heart of this?
ALI VELSHI, CNN SR. BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Tony.
Very similar to the sticking points that the UAW had with General Motors. The U.S.-based -- the Detroit-based auto companies are trying to reduce the average hourly amount that they pay workers to cover all the costs.
Their wages are the same as Toyota or Honda. I mean, they are all roughly about 25 bucks an hour, is what these people are paid. But when you add these legacy costs that we've discussed many times, the health care, the benefits for retirees, the costs to Toyota and General Motors -- I'm sorry, General Motors and Chrysler and Ford is about $70 or $75 an hour versus about $50 an hour for Honda or Toyota. So it's all about these retiree benefits.
Now, we've got a deadline of 11:00. In the past, we've seen those deadlines come and go and nothing happened. But you'll recall, Tony, a few weeks ago, we saw them walk off the job. We saw picket lines going on at 1100.
We know that yesterday those 45,000 unionized workers at Chrysler, while the negotiations were going on, they went and signed up for strike pay and they got their picket duty for starting at 11:00 this morning. So we'll have to see whether this actually develops.
HARRIS: We will watch it.
Ali Velshi "Minding Your Business" this morning.
Ali, good to see you. Thanks.
VELSHI: OK.
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: The high school in Crandon, Wisconsin welcoming students today, just days after a deadly rampage. Six young people killed early Sunday were either students there or recent graduates. So was the shooter, off-duty sheriff's deputy Tyler Peterson.
Authorities say Peterson opened fire at a party at his ex- girlfriend's house over homecoming weekend. And we're learning more about how Peterson died. Authorities revealing he was shot once in the arm as police closed in, but they now say he apparently took his own life, shooting himself in the head three times.
HARRIS: New food alerts to tell you about this morning. Seventy thousand pounds of chicken, Broccoli Fettuccine Alfredo made with white chicken, recalled over concerns of listeria. Nobody's sick, though.
And the Agriculture Department says you shouldn't eat Banquet frozen Turkey and Chicken Pot Pies with the code -- here it is -- P-9 on the packaging. They may be linked to 139 cases of salmonella poisoning.
CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here with more on what you should be looking for.
Good to see you, Doctor.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you.
And it just seems like I've been talking about food recalls all year long.
HARRIS: Usually it's E. coli.
GUPTA: E. coli in the spinach, we talked a lot about that. We talk about listeria. And now, as you mention, salmonella as well.
A couple of interesting things here. Talking specifically about these products, I think we can show you specifically what to look for in your freezer, your refrigerator.
Chicken Pot Pies specifically made by Banquet brand frozen. These are the not ready to eat Chicken or Turkey Pot Pies.
Also, the generic store brand chicken. You already mentioned this, Tony, but the P-9 on the side panel as well. So, if you have those, the advice is to go ahead and throw them away, because you could potentially get sick, potentially develop what is known as salmonella poisoning.
Now, what is interesting here is just how widespread this is, Tony. Take a look at this map, for example. You look at this idea of how many different states are affected by this -- 139 cases.
HARRIS: Oh, yes. Yes.
GUPTA: We found out as well, Tony, we confirmed this, 23 people have been hospitalized. So this is pretty serious. I mean, actually going to the hospital.
Wisconsin is the most dramatically effected, followed by Pennsylvania, with 13 cases, and Missouri with 11 cases. Conagra, who's making this, is not actually issuing a recall. It's a little confusing here.
They're saying, you know what? This is a problem of undercooking it.
HARRIS: Oh, OK.
GUPTA: But they're also saying, if you bring it back to the store they're going to issue a full refund.
HARRIS: Well, you mentioned that you could end up with salmonella poisoning here. So talk us through this. What are some of the symptoms, how would you know?
GUPTA: Well, you know, a lot may develop salmonella poisoning and never even know that they had had.
HARRIS: Yes.
GUPTA: So that's the good news, if there's good news in all of this. But about 40,000 people...
HARRIS: Except the idea of it passing through the system.
(CROSSTALK)
GUPTA: Forty thousand people. And a lot of people are affected by this every year.
Usually it means a few bad days. You get nauseated, you get vomiting. You may have fever. You may get the chills.
Something important to keep in mind as well, it can start up to 72 hours after you've eaten the product as well, so you've really got to sort of trace back your diet over the past several days to figure out, in fact, if you've been a victim of salmonella poisoning.
HARRIS: And perhaps that gets to the next question of how common it is for someone to actually become sick from it.
GUPTA: Relatively uncommon.
HARRIS: Uncommon? Yes.
GUPTA: You can get salmonella poisoning...
HARRIS: You don't know it oftentimes. You don't know that you're sick.
GUPTA: You don't know it. A lot of times it's just not diagnosed and you feel cruddy for a day or so and say, well, it was just something that I ate or just a little illness.
HARRIS: Dr. Sanjay Gupta with us this morning.
GUPTA: Good to see you, Tony.
HARRIS: Good to see you. Good to talk to you.
COLLINS: A missing mayor. His vanishing act now over, but will he stay in office?
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT: A crew of astronauts in the Baikonur Cosmodrome, the former Soviet Republic of Kazakhstan, are set to vanish from the Earth.
We'll give you the latest on the countdown and their fiery assent which is scheduled for just a few minutes from now ahead in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: An American astronaut, a Russian cosmonaut and a Malaysian tourist aboard a spacecraft. Not the start of a joke, but the beginning of an historic mission.
Our space correspondent, Miles O'Brien, here to take us through the launch.
Miles, I bet you're glad I didn't try to tell a joke there.
So, tell us, why is the station crew launching from Kazakhstan instead of on the space shuttle?
O'BRIEN: Well, this is a good way to get to the space station. The Soyuz rocket, of course, is the safest ride to space there is. And there are only so many seats available on the space shuttle. And it's just part of the whole effort, this joint program, 16 nations in all on the International Space Station.
Just a couple of moments ago this was the scene. This was launch pad number one at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, the former Soviet Republic of Kazakhstan.
Off they went, the three-person crew -- Yuri Malenchenko, who is the Soyuz commander and will be a crew member aboard the International Space Station for six months; Peggy Whitson, the -- his commander on the space station, also a veteran of the space station on previous flights; and Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, the first Malaysian in space. He is going to space as a result of a very unusual contest, Heidi.
The Russians sold the Malaysians about a billion dollars worth of Sukhoi-30 fighter jets, and as part of a deal sweetener, they provided a seat on a Soyuz for a lucky member of a contest winner. And that contest winner is this Malaysian.
And off he will go. He will spend 10 days on the International Space Station. And the crew, the remaining two, will spend six months aboard that, replacing the current crew.
Take a look at these live pictures. You can see them on board.
The Russians allow a camera on board the Soyuz capsule as they fly to orbit. There you see the Malaysian, Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, left part of your screen. Yuri Malenchenko in the center seat, the Soyuz commander. Not seen here, far right of your screen out of this current picture, is Peggy Whitson. And as they continue their ride towards space, you see there in the foreground -- if you could lose the banner there, you'll see it. On the string is a little toy. And I'll try to highlight it for you here a little bit right in that area right there.
And you can tell when they get to orbit, Heidi, because that string no longer becomes taut. And the little object that is hanging in the bottom of that, a little toy, begins floating.
So off they go. They will dock a day after tomorrow at the International Space Station, if all goes well, and begin their mission.
COLLINS: I thought that was that whip that she got. Did you hear about this, Miles?
O'BRIEN: Yes, I did. I did. You know, you can insert a few jokes on that one, if you like, too. But as the first female commander of the International Space Station, the Russians, as a -- I guess it's a Russian joke.
COLLINS: It's a tradition.
O'BRIEN: Gave her a whip to keep the crew in order. As I say, I'm not going to touch that one with a 10-foot long whip.
This is Peggy Whitson right here, by the way. A series of fascinating traditions before every Russian Soyuz launch.
One of them is to sign the door to the room that the first cosmonaut, first space traveler ever went to, Yuri Gagarin, at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Then they're blessed by a Russian Orthodox priest who sprinkles them all with holy water.
Then there is a customary champagne toast before they head to the spacecraft. Then they stand erect before a special state commission, whereupon they are officially certified to fly. And off they go.
And there's one other custom, Heidi, which is kind of fascinating. Yuri Gagarin, on his way to the launch pad back in 1961, had to stop to relieve himself on the tire of the bus that was carrying him to the space...
COLLINS: TMI. TMI.
O'BRIEN: And so as a result, every cosmonaut and astronaut is expected to do the same.
COLLINS: Really?
O'BRIEN: We don't know if...
(CROSSTALK)
COLLINS: Really? OK. The things that you don't know about...
O'BRIEN: Got to go with the superstitions, right?
COLLINS: ... the International Space Station. Yes, probably. I bet you're right about that.
Al right. Miles O'Brien, nice to see you.
Thanks.
O'BRIEN: Good to see you, Heidi.
COLLINS: Good morning, everybody. I'm Heidi Collins.
HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris.
Welcome back to the CNN NEWSROOM.
She missed her flight. Soon, Carol Gotbaum would be dead inside an airport holding cell. This morning, exclusive new details to report.
A source with knowledge of the case tells CNN the medical examiner had officers handcuff and shackle her just like Gotbaum. The ME about the same size and weight as the dead woman. Gotbaum apparently became furious when she was not allowed to board a flight. Her destination, an alcohol rehab center.
Her husband addressed that pain in his audiotaped eulogy shared exclusive with CNN.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
NOAH GOTBAUM, HUSBAND OF CAROL GOTBAUM: My beautiful girl was so ashamed to seek help. And many of us, myself included, perpetuated that because we simply didn't understand the disease. We said it can't be. It must be something else bothering her. These are diseases that have to be understood and treated, not swept under the rug, demonized and hushed up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Well, police say Gotbaum was apparently drinking before the incident. Her family insists she was not drunk. Authorities believe Gotbaum strangled herself while trying to escape her handcuffs.
COLLINS: More trouble for quarterback Michael Vick. This time, a $20 million penalty. We'll tell you more about that in just a moment.
HARRIS: A new face in the crowd as GOP candidates face-off. Actor and former Senator Fred Thompson makes his debate debut.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK MARKET REPORT)
COLLINS: Unfolding this morning, will they be working on the assembly line or walking the picket lines?
That's right, Chrysler workers threatening to strike if is there no contract agreement. The deadline set by the United Autoworkers Union is just a half hour away. There are reports of progress, but key issues are still unresolved. Among the major sticking points -- health care costs for Chrysler workers and retirees. The deadline for Chrysler follows a two day strike by the UAW against General Motors last month. The union expected to announce today whether members have approved the tentative contract with G.M.
HARRIS: And the founder of Oral Roberts University speaks out about allegations his son and daughter-in-law misused school funds. Oral Roberts actually called "LARRY KING LIVE" last night -- an exclusive interview.
Richard and Lindsey Roberts were featured guests on the show.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP FROM "LARRY KING LIVE")
ORAL ROBERTS, FOUNDER, ORAL ROBERTS UNIVERSITY: Well, like my son says, it was a surprise and a sort of a shock. But we have been through some tough experiences in building Oral Roberts University, beginning back in the 1960s. And we have survived them all and have built a university that we believe is for the glory of God.
And when I heard this, I immediately went to the rules that the board of regents and I had set up years ago to handle any kind of allegation that came against the university. And we put those into place immediately. And I'm so proud that Richard and Lindsay have taken the lead. And I'm proud of them now.
LARRY KING, HOST: What do you make of the suit?
How shocked are you?
What do you make of the charges?
ROBERTS: Well, if I had not been experienced for 60 years in the healing ministry, facing certain types of allegations from time to time, I might have been terribly shocked. But I know my family. I know my son and daughter-in-law. I know my university. I know the 41-member board of regents. And I know the high standards we have. And I know, also, that I will be faithful and we will be faithful to the friends and partners who made Oral Roberts University possible.
KING: What counsel are you giving your son and daughter-in-law?
ROBERTS: I'm sorry?
I'm giving counsel to my daughter-in-law that the board of regents is going to -- well it has already found an outside firm that's never been a part of Oral Roberts University to look at each allegation separately, to check it out intimately and to report back. And if -- if there is anything out of line, we will bring it into order, like we have always done.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
HARRIS: The elder Roberts was at the center of controversy himself, you may recall, back in 1987. He told supporters God told him to raise $8 million for the university or he would be, "called home."
COLLINS: Michael Vick thrown for a loss. An arbitrator siding with Vick's team, the Atlanta Falcons. He says the disgraced quarterback must pay back almost $20 million in bonuses. The NFL Players Association says it will appeal. Vick pleaded guilty to federal dogfighting charges. Sentencing is set for December 10th. He also faces a November trial on state dogfighting charges.
HARRIS: Another check of weather now.
Rob Marciano is standing by for us, as always, in the CNN Severe Weather Center -- good morning, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Tony.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COLLINS: We want to get to this story now. We are getting more information here in the CNN NEWSROOM about a story we told you about yesterday and also a few days prior about the Atlantic City mayor.
Fredricka Whitfield has been working on this story and has an update for us -- good morning, Fred.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Heidi.
We know that he has been missing for a couple of weeks and his attorney came out and said that he was taking some personal time, taking care of personal matters, while being at the Somerset County Clinic, which is known for a facility to treat people for substance abuse and mental health issues.
And we understand that while the judge has scheduled a hearing on Friday to discuss that perhaps Levy had abandoned his office for two weeks, because no one knew where he was, now his attorney -- Edwin Jacobs is the attorney for Mayor Robert Levy -- says that he is going to be resigning.
Now we still are awaiting some kind of confirmation on exactly when that will be effective. But there has been, you know, quite the confusion over his missing whereabouts for the last couple of weeks. But now addressing possibly some other problems.
We still don't know the exact details of what personal issues he wanted to get addressed at that clinic. So we're still waiting for a lot of answers. But bottom line, missing for a couple of weeks to take care of some personal matters and now possibly resigning. But we'll try to get some information on when he'll be resigning.
COLLINS: Yes, and it's kind of strange, huh?
WHITFIELD: Yes. COLLINS: I mean usually someone comes out when they're taking some personal time from the office and says we're taking some personal time. But nobody knew anything for a couple of weeks.
WHITFIELD: Right.
COLLINS: We'll continue to watch it.
Fred, thanks so much.
WHITFIELD: OK.
HARRIS: GOP candidates face-off with a new face in the crowd. Former Senator Fred Thompson took part in his first debate since jumping into the presidential race. Thompson and his GOP rivals squared off over taxes, trade and the economy. Pundits say the former senator and actor held his own, but he did hesitate briefly during one answer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRED THOMPSON (R), FORMER U.S. SENATOR: We're enjoying low inflation. We're enjoying low unemployment. The stock market seems to be doing pretty well. I see no reason to believe we're headed for -- for an economic downturn.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: OK.
Also, during the debate, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani sparred over who spent less and cut taxes more.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUDY GIULIANI (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I brought taxes down by 17 percent. Under him, taxes went up 11 percent per capita. I led, he lagged.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's baloney. Mayor, you've got to check your facts. No taxes in -- I did not increase taxes in Massachusetts, I lowered taxes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: OK.
And Thompson couldn't escape some ribbing when Romney said the debates reminded him of Thompson's TV series.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: This a lot like "Law & Order," Senator.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Thank you. ROMNEY: No, it has -- it has a huge cast and the series seems to go on forever...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.
Senator...
ROMNEY: ...and Fred Thompson shows up at the end.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: That's not bad. Thompson later joked that he watched the earlier debates and they were getting a little boring without him.
COLLINS: Googling on the street where you live -- new technology spreads to the heartland. But not everyone likes the view.
One in a million moment -- residents look on during an arrest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE THOMPSON, WITNESS: Even a normal person wouldn't even do that. Even a half crazy person wouldn't do something like that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: So the crime?
Trying to cash a million dollar bill.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: OK, we are pod casting a little later today -- the wildly successful CNN NEWSROOM pod cast. I believe that, sir. I don't know that that's true, but...
COLLINS: It is.
HARRIS: It is a self-fulfilling prophesy I'm trying to set up here -- say it, believe it, claim it, make it happen.
We appreciate the fact you watch us weekday mornings 9:00 a.m. Until noon Eastern right here in the NEWSROOM.
You can check us any time you want, take us with you any time you want. All you need to do is to go to CNN.com, download the CNN NEWSROOM daily pod cast, available to you 24-7 right there. Pop it up one more time for me -- right there on your iPod. Do it today. No excuses.
COLLINS: People watchers get their money's worth out of a Pennsylvania grocery store from a man's million dollar mistake.
Here's Kimberly Easton. She is with CNN affiliate WPXI in Pittsburgh.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
KIMBERLY EASTON, WPXI CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This Giant Eagle here on Cedar Avenue on the north side has an audience.
THOMPSON: I always sit here and watch people go in and out of the store.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just like a zoo -- something new every day.
EASTON: This time, George Thompson and his buddies watched police arrest this man, 66-year-old Samuel Porter, after police say he tried to change a fake one million dollar bill.
THOMPSON: I seen the police up there by the door with him when they had him in handcuffs. He was just raising hell when they put him in the back of the wagon.
EASTON: Police arrested Porter after a cashier refused to change his fake million dollar bill.
THOMPSON: It was funny in a way, the way that he did it, you know?
EASTON: Police say they arrested him because Porter got mad and tried to tear up the place.
THOMPSON: They pulled him out and had his hands behind him, leaned over that trash can, going through his pockets right there. He kept on cussing the policemen out.
EASTON: This man, who used to work here, keeps coming back because to him, there's nothing like real life drama.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's like a three ring circus over here. Really.
EASTON: Police charged Porter with criminal mischief and forgery. But neighbors think may need further evaluation.
THOMPSON: I think he needs to go to Mayview and get checked out or something. He must have been high on drugs or something, because any normal person wouldn't even do that. Even a half crazy person wouldn't do something like that.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COLLINS: Now, just in case you're wondering, the fake million dollar bill had a picture of President Grover Cleveland. The largest bill in circulation nowadays has just two zeros -- the $100 bill. Close, though.
HARRIS: A George Clooney sighting -- in the file cabinet?
Celebrity gawkers in trouble -- not the paparazzi. This time it's the hospital staff. COLLINS: The U.S. Army apparently winning the battle for new recruits. An announcement expected today.
HARRIS: Overweight and ostracized -- a group of Chinese rappers trying to break through the public's perception.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COLLINS: Celebrity gawkers in scrubs and in trouble, accused of peeking at the medical records of actor George Clooney, possibly even dishing to the media. Twenty-seven hospital workers suspended -- no pay. Clooney and his girlfriend were rushed to the hospital following a motorcycle accident last month. He says he believes in the right to privacy, but was hoping the workers wouldn't be suspended.
HARRIS: And China battles a growing problem -- obesity -- people with a bigger body struggle for acceptance in that country.
CNN's John Vause takes a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For these self- described four fab fatties, making it big in China's music industry is all about, well, being big. Combined, the women of the group, called Qian Jin Zu He, weigh more than a thousand pounds -- belting out their signature rap song -- "So What If I'm Fat?"
Brave words in a country where to be this size is often looked upon with scorn.
"There is a belief that people get fat because they're lazy, that we can't even lose weight. That's why we're ridiculed. I want to change that misunderstanding," says Xiao Yang, who started the group a year ago.
She remembers growing up as an overweight child, taking diet pills as a 5-year-old and parents who wouldn't be seen with her in public. "Usually they would go out by themselves and I would go separately. It's not because they were embarrassed, but because they couldn't stand watching people on the street laughing at me."
On stage, there are still the whispers and stares, because this the traditional image of beauty here -- thin, fine and delicate, a china doll.
But it seems with prosperity comes obesity. The Chinese now have a taste for fast food. Cars are replacing bicycles and computer games and television means this generation of kids will be fatter than any other.
(on camera): According to the government, the number of obese and overweight Chinese doubled in a decade, to 300 million. Health experts expect those numbers to only increase in the coming years. The best hope now, they say, is to try and slow the rate of what seems to be an ever expanding Chinese waistline.
CHEN CHUNMING, GOVERNMENT NUTRITIONIST: we can slow it down. The slowing down is possible. So if we slow it down now, then in the future, 20 years, we'll get a big benefit.
VAUSE: The four women say they all want to lose weight, but only for health reasons because now they're happy with who they are and how they look.
John Vause, CNN, Hsutse (ph), China.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
COLLINS: Enraged and in custody at a U.S. airport. Soon, this woman would be dead. Her family speaks out now. Plus, new details in the investigation.
HARRIS: Caught on tape -- granny got the five finger discount. Not shoplifting solo, though. She's got her baby girl -- her granddaughter -- working it, too. That story coming up in THE NEWSROOM.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A propane tanker truck catches fire and explodes outside a foundry in Tacoma, Washington. Our reporter, John Rolon, shot this amazing video on a cell phone camera this weekend. Rolon says there was a hissing sound before the blast and after it he braced himself against the guardrail, as he felt the force of the fire and the heat of the flames on his face.
Typhoon Krosa rips through Taiwan. Our reporter, Chieh-Yuan Shih in Taipei took this footage from his apartment window.
Shou-Chi Kao snapped these photos, showing us the scene after the storm, with tree limbs and debris scattered on the streets.
And if you're French and a rugby fan, there is reason to celebrate. Our reporter Thierry Edge shares this footage from the stadium where France outplayed New Zealand this weekend in the quarterfinals in the Rugby World Cup Championship.
See something you want to share?
You can be an I-Reporter, too, by sending us your photos or videos. Just point your browser to cnn.com.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Oh, boy. OK, a 4-year-old learning the wrong lesson from granny. Police in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania have released surveillance video of this woman in a Sears store. Watch is closely, my friends. She's seen stuffing items in her purse, OK?
Well, as if that's not bad enough, then the camera captures her handing off a blanket to her 4-year-old granddaughter. What does she do?
The little girl hides it from view in her toy stroller. The grandmother has been charged with retail theft, corrupting a minor and endangering the welfare of a child.
COLLINS: Good morning, everybody.
I'm Heidi Collins.
HARRIS: And I'm Tony Harris.
Stay informed all day in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Here's what's on the rundown.
She died in police custody at Phoenix airport. Today, new details about the investigation and the woman's husband speaks out -- a CNN exclusive.
An Ivy League campus stunned by racism -- a noose dangling from a professor's office door. Today, students protest.
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