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Suspect Arraigned in Clinton Campaign Hostage Drama; No Nukes in Iran?; Gillian Gibbons Out of Sudan

Aired December 03, 2007 - 14:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: The drama all played out in the CNN NEWSROOM on Friday. It was a pretty scary situation for the people walking out as we got videotape of some of the people who were being released, as we were on the air. You could just see the desperation and sadness or the worry I should say on their faces. Eisenberg faces charges of kidnapping and fraudulent use of a bomb-like device. His family said he had a drinking problem so they wanted some help for him. Obviously they couldn't. Prosecutor is talking now. Let's listen in a little bit.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He has past been a danger to the public by that he has repeatedly disregarded court orders and for those reasons I'm going to ask the court to set $500,000 cash bail.

In this case last Friday, we had a stand-off in the city of Rochester right near here, in fact, that lasted for 5 1/2 to 6 hours. The whole northern part of the downtown area of Rochester was closed down. About 250 to 300 people were evacuated, eight businesses were shut down. There were probably about 100 law enforcement officers from several different agencies that responded to the area. And most importantly, your honor, the evacuation I should say included a school, a K-8 school and disrupted the entire school system of the city of Rochester because the bus schedule could not be followed. So other schools had to be on lockdown status for a while. The most importantly, this situation involved the taking of five hostages, six, one of the hostages a small baby with her. The defendant burst into the campaign offices of presidential candidate at a little after 12:30 in the afternoon, as I said there were the six persons in the building, four campaign workers and one campaigner with a baby. The defendant claimed to have a bomb. He ordered all of the hostages to the floor. He ordered them into the back of the office area and ordered them to the floor. He lifted his shirt and showed them what appeared to them to be a bomb, strapped to his chest area. He was holding in his hand a cell phone which he claimed was the detonator for that bomb. They asked him to let the woman with the baby go and after some minutes he did. They also asked him to let a male campaign worker go because he was only 18 years old. He was the youngest of the hostages. The ages are between 18 to 24 years. So these were all very young people, your honor.

(inaudible) show leaving two women and another young man (inaudible) over the course of the next five and half to six hours, the two women were released, and finally (inaudible).

But during the whole time that they were with him, they certainly feared that there could be a very serious explosion of any kind, and although law enforcement has some information that it's possible the device he had was not a bomb, that they certainly could not act other than to treat it as a bomb. And then if they did and eventually the bomb squad came out of the headquarters and took the device off of him and the bomb squad was able to detonate the device and (inaudible).

Now, very obvious what a very serious defense this is. The defendant has a criminal record that starts in the state of Massachusetts and goes back to 1978. Possession of a knife in 1978 for which he was fined, 1981 assault with a dangerous weapon, again, for which he was just fined. There are a couple of theft-related offenses in '81 and '82 in Florida, and then in 1982 in Fitchburg, Mass., burglary and larceny for which he apparently received one year committed, and then in 1985 in Worcester, Mass, he was convicted of rape and sentenced to 10 years.

Now, he apparently escaped in 1986 some months after he began to serve that 10-year sentence. The escape charge, as far as we can tell at this point in time, the notation on the record says guilty file. So apparently there was no further sentence imposed for that, but while he was out on escaped status, Your Honor, he committed another rape,. This was an aggravated rape, and he was charged with that, convicted of that, as well as assault with a dangerous weapon. He was sentenced to 11 to 20 years on the rape and three to five years on the assault with a dangerous weapon.

I don't have his exact date of release from prison in Massachusetts, but at some point he picked up his first conviction in New Hampshire in 2005 which was a failure to register as a sex offender. And that conviction date actually was in this court in 2006.

In 2007, Your Honor, my office...

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: I know the audio is sort of hard to hear, so I'm going to try to recap. But you're looking at live pictures right now.

You may remember on Friday the drama had started at Hillary Clinton's campaign office in Rochester, New Hampshire. It continued throughout the whole day and into the evening.

Now you're looking at live pictures from New Hampshire, talking about Leeland Eisenberg. He's accused of taking five people hostage while wearing what looked like explosives on his body. Here's an up- close picture of him after he was arrested on Friday.

That standoff ended without anyone getting hurt. That was the good news. But presidential candidate Hillary Clinton was contacted. She did head to New Hampshire.

He now faces charges of kidnapping and fraudulent use of a bomb- like device. Apparently, his family said he wanted help for a drinking problem. He didn't have the insurance or the money to pay for it, and then you saw what happened here as it went down live on CNN all day Friday and throughout the evening.

Attorney Mickey Sherman joins us now.

Mickey, I want to get back to what could happen to him now, but I was trying to understand the prosecutor. It sounded like we were getting a recap of his past concerning mental illness issues, talking about possibly escaping an institution. I heard a mention of rape, assault charges. He's got quite a rap sheet, it sounds like.

MICKEY SHERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Most of us thought this was just some flake, some guy with some serious mental problems who kind of got freaked out for God knows what and did this, but this man has a cornucopia of criminal offenses, and it's an unusual collection. Usually people who are on drugs just have drugs, or people who rob people are robbers, but this guy is everywhere -- possession of knife, assault, rape, burglary, larceny.

It's just an amazing collection, and the reason that they mentioned it is not to say that he's the most evil person in the world, but what we're watching is a bond hearing, an arraignment where they're now being asked to set a bond. The judge is being asked to set a bond, and a bond or bail is set on a number of different factors, and one of those factors is his danger to the community and whether or not he's likely to be convicted.

His ties to the community are very important and whether or not he has a history of violence, and whether or not he has a history of not showing up in court. So that's where these other offenses come into play to show his potential danger to the community and whether or not he's ever appeared in court before.

PHILLIPS: Well, and you listen to this long list here of prior offenses and you wonder how is someone even able to be walking the streets and mingling with all of us, you know, in 2007? It really says something about our criminal justice system.

So we're going to wait to hear about the bond here at the arraignment hearing. And the fact that he didn't hurt anyone, how is that going to play into his favor, Mickey?

SHERMAN: That's key. Let me tell you, he ain't getting out of jail today. I mean, they are asking for a $500,000 cash bond. That means that he can't go to a bail bondsman, you know, somebody who puts up the bond and then charges the family or him 10 percent.

He has got to put up $500,000 of a certified check or cash. I don't think he's got it. I think that would be the conventional wisdom.

So this judge's intent, as is the prosecutor, and quite justifiably, in keeping him off the street. But what the defense will do, whether he'll have court-appointed or private counsel, they will immediately, as we say in the system, get him shrunk. They'll get him to a psychiatrist, psychologist, teams, whatever, to show that he truly was insane at the time this incident occurred.

PHILLIPS: We'll follow it. Mickey Sherman, thanks so much for listening in with us. SHERMAN: A pleasure.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Meantime, we have another developing story. Diplomatic pressure on Iran, it's been intense for years now. And a brand new U.S. intelligence report says it worked, at least in terms of halting Iran's nuclear weapons program.

New developments in a long running standoff. Let's go straight to Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon -- Jamie.

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, this new national intelligence estimate just released today provides some hope that perhaps Iran is vulnerable to international pressure. The intelligence estimate judges that Iran effectively halted its nuclear weapons program in the fall of 2003.

And here's the interesting part. It concluded that it did that because of international pressure. It concludes that Iran is less determined and more vulnerable to influence than they previously thought, and that its decisions are guided by a cost benefit analysis, not necessarily a rush to get a nuclear weapon no matter what the political cost. This is a complete -- well, not a complete, but a substantial turnaround from the previous estimates which said that Iran was essentially on the path to a nuclear weapon, and it's informed by new intelligence.

Now what does it say? It says that in a worst-case scenario, very highly unlikely, but it's possible that Iran could make enough fissile material to produce a nuclear weapon by 2009. That's the material for the weapon, not necessarily producing the weapon.

It says it's moderately likely that it could do that in the 2010 to 2015 time frame, and it says basically after 2015, everybody agrees that Iran could, if it wants to, produce a nuclear weapon. But, again, it says at the moment Iran seems to have stopped its weapons program, even while it's going ahead with its civilian nuclear program, and it also notes it's having significant technical difficulties with the centrifuges required to produce that highly enriched uranium at its facility there.

So all of this presents an opening, the Bush administration argues, for diplomatic pressure for increased international pressure to try to convince Tehran to give up its nuclear ambitions, and it seems to suggest that there's at least a possibility of that working -- Don.

LEMON: Jamie McIntyre.

Thank you, Jamie.

PHILLIPS: Are Iranian leaders feeling pressure from within as well at without?

CNN's Aneesh Raman is in Tehran. Let's get straight to him for an exclusive report -- Aneesh.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN MIDDLE EAST CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kyra.

You know, this nuclear issue really comes down to trust. Iran says it wants to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes. The West, the U.S., doesn't buy it. And a key part of that here from the U.S. are incessantly controversial statements by Iran's president.

Well, inside Iran there is growing dissent, even among those who want nuclear energy, about his course of action.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RAMAN (voice over): Out here, digging is left to the destitute. And at 65 years old, earning a few dollars a day, farmer Hussein (ph) jokes retirement will come with death. He supports three unemployed sons and is desperate for economic change. Because of that, he backs a president who promised to deliver.

"Ahmadinejad is a good person, down to earth, and he mixes with the people. He goes where no one else goes and provides help," he tells me.

(on camera): But support even out here is starting to wither, as President Ahmadinejad pushes more and more against the West with a no- compromise nuclear strategy. It's causing increased criticism at home, and politically right now it's getting nasty.

(voice over): The populist president has been stepping up his attacks on those who question his regime's nuclear stance, saying recently, "They will be exposed before the whole nation. They are traitors."

One target, Hussein Musabian (ph), a former nuclear negotiator accused a few weeks back of spying for foreign governments in anti- regime activities. A court cleared him days again of the spying charge, but Ahmadinejad is not letting go.

In a rare show of criticism, top officials, including an aide to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, have virtually told the president, move on. Many other Iranians want that, too.

This is a broken economy that Ahmadinejad was elected to fix, and with less than two years to go before presidential elections, reformists are subtly showing confidence.

(on camera): What are the chances do you think of him winning reelection?

MA'ASOMETH EBTEKAR, TEHRAN CITY COUNCIL MEMBER: I think that our current president is facing a lot of challenges, particularly at the economic level.

RAMAN (voice over): But far from Tehran, the key question for Ahmadinejad is, can he keep his popularity in the provinces and be forgiven a stagnant economy? Old farmers like Hussein (ph) still see him as a man of the people, but this is one farm and Hussein (ph) is one voice. Just across the street, another farm, another Hussein (ph), who now sees a once populist president as just another politician.

"Whoever his connection goes and gets help," he tells me. "And whoever is like me, poor and downtrodden, must go to a corner and die."

Two farmers, a brewing debate amid an increasingly divided political landscape, with both sides digging in deeper by the day.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

RAMAN: You know, Kyra, it's too late right now for official reaction to that latest report, but tomorrow expect more bluster from Iran, more confidence in the nuclear program it continues without pause -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Aneesh, you listen to stories of those farmers and you understand where they're coming from. On the other side, though, you say he is still such a popular president.

What is making him so popular?

RAMAN: It's the lack of connection between the reformists and the people out in the provinces. The reformists who are challenging Ahmadinejad are seen by those out in the provinces as elitist.

You know, when Ahmadinejad ran for president, no one really covered his campaign because he wasn't in Tehran, and the conservative wisdom here was that Tehran was the only place that mattered. Well, he skirted around it.

He went everywhere none of the politicians had really gone before, and he promised money to them directly. And so that's the thing, these populist voice messages that he gives to those people, they don't know yet who else can deliver if he can't, and that is the key. Can he sustain that support even though he hasn't really delivered yet on the economy?

PHILLIPS: Our Aneesh Raman, the only network correspondent live out of Tehran, Iran.

Thanks so much.

LEMON: Well, some played alongside him, others cheered for him. All of them loved him.

Thousands are packing an arena in Miami this afternoon for Sean Taylor's funeral. It comes a week after the Washington Redskins player was shot in his own home in an apparent burglary gone wrong.

Past and present coaches, past and present teammates, family and friends all came. Police, meantime, have arrested four men in Taylor's death. A lawyer for one says a fifth suspect has yet to be arrested, but police won't confirm it.

PHILLIPS: She's on her way home at last. A British teacher jailed in Sudan for insulting Islam is heading back to the U.K. Gillian Gibbons' family can finally exhale.

Let's get straight to Paula Hancocks. She's live in Liverpool.

Hi, Paula.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Kyra.

Yes, certainly, the ordeal is finally over for Gillian Gibbons and for her family. In a statement that Gibbons wrote to the president who gave her that pardon this Monday morning, she said, "I have encountered nothing but kindness and the generosity from the Sudanese people. I have great respect for the Islamic religion and would not knowingly offend anyone, and I'm sorry if I caused any distress."

Now, throughout this ordeal, we've heard from all her friends and family here in her hometown of Liverpool, who all said she would not have intentionally insulted Islam. Now, her crime was she allowed her 7-year-old students to name the class teddy bear "Muhammad."

Now, we know that she has got that presidential pardon. We heard from John Gibbons, her son, talking just outside his house here a little earlier on this Monday, and he said he was obviously absolutely delighted but wouldn't be 100 percent happy until his mother was on that plane. Now, certainly she on that plane now, and expected to be reunited with her family at some point on Tuesday morning -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We will follow it and that trip home.

Paula Hancocks, thank you.

LEMON: Mortgage meltdown. Could help be just around the corner? What could a freeze on interest rates mean for you?

PHILLIPS: He's less than five feet tall, but he's a secret weapon for one of the country's best college football teams.

Ricky Rosas joins us live.

LEMON: I can't wait to meet him.

And the writers' strike is taking a toll on your favorite TV shows. Find out why it's also hitting this guy right in the wallet.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

PHILLIPS: It's enough to warm the hearts of stressed out homeowners, a possible freeze in mortgage rates that otherwise would keep on rising regardless of whether borrowers can keep on paying. It's not a done deal, but for many homeowners on the brink of foreclosure, it can't happen fast enough.

CNN's Chris Lawrence takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): More than a million homeowners are asking the same questions as Ed Anderson.

ED ANDERSON, FACING FORECLOSURE: Am I going to lose the home? Is it going into foreclosure?

LAWRENCE: He bought his home in suburban Maryland at the height of the housing boom in 2005. His mortgage payment was $2,200.

(on camera): And what is it now?

ANDERSON: $3,400. It's unreal.

LAWRENCE: Where do you get that extra (INAUDIBLE)?

ANDERSON: Again, I have to work as much overtime as I can.

LAWRENCE (voice over): It's not enough to make up that much money. Anderson's a few months behind and facing foreclosure. He got an interest-only adjustable rate mortgage at 6.6 percent. It's already shot up to 11 percent with the potential to soar past 13.

The Treasury Department has been organizing a coalition of lenders, investors and community groups to work on a freeze. A source familiar with the negotiations tells CNN, one of the plans being considered would allow qualified homeowners to keep paying their current interest rate if they can show they can't make higher payments. Leading Democrats are backing the plan.

SEN. CHRIS DODD, (D) CHAIRMAN, BANKING AND HOUSING COMMITTEE: This way, the homeowner can stay there, maintain at least some payments here without losing their home, going into foreclosure.

LAWRENCE: Now, investor would loose out on a lot of profit and critic say homeowners need to take responsibility for what they signed. As for Ed Anderson, a freeze could keep his rate from going any higher and maybe allow him to refinance closer to his original payment.

(on camera): Could you save your home?

ANDERSON: Yes, definitely. That's what I initially was able to afford. But currently, it's just impossible.

LAWRENCE: And when this deal comes together, it could include those folks who got into a subprime mortgage back in 2005 and 2006, have been paying their initial mortgage rate on time, but would have a lot of trouble when their rate escalates.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Well, let's get the status of the rate freeze idea with CNN personal finance editor Gerri Willis.

Gerri, what came out of this meeting today?

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Well, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson outlined the latest government and industry efforts to help struggling homeowners keep their homes. The plan included reaching more struggling borrowers and finding affordable mortgage solutions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HENRY PAULSON, TREASURY SECRETARY: First, we are increase efforts to reach able homeowners who are struggling with their mortgages. Second, we are working to increase the availability of affordable mortgage solutions for those borrowers. Third, we are leading the industry to develop a systematic means of efficiently moving able homeowners into sustainable mortgages.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIS: OK, Don, so what does that mean? Well, the goal is to get help to homeowners before they struggle with a subprime mortgage.

According to the Treasury secretary, industry reps will contact borrowers 120 days in advance of their mortgage rate sets to help them. He says they may be offered a modified loan, or refinance letters are being sent to those who can't be contacted by phone -- Don.

LEMON: Oh, OK. All right.

Gerri, let me ask you about this. There's been a whole lot of talk about freezing rates for subprime mortgages. Do you know the latest on that one?

WILLIS: Well, Paulson did not make mention of freezing rates in this speech or teaser rates on ARMs. Now, this is an idea which has been widely discussed. It's probably not off the table yet, but details may emerge later this week.

The bottom line here is that the housing market downturn threatens economic growth. In fact, there are about 2.3 million subprime borrowers who face higher interest rates as their loans -- their adjustable rate loans reset through the end of next year. The peak of these resets will come next March.

Now, if you are concerned about losing your home, call this toll- free number: 1-888-995-HOPE.

Of course, we'll bring you all the latest developments as we get them.

LEMON: Wow, 2.3 million. That's a lot of folks.

WILLIS: It is.

LEMON: A lot of folks.

Gerri Willis, thank you very much.

WILLIS: My pleasure.

PHILLIPS: A man shoots a pair of suspected burglars outside his neighbor's house. Did race have anything to do with it?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It doesn't matter what race the thieves are. They are going to get killed when they break into the wrong house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Taking lives to protect property, community divided.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BUSINESS REPORT)

LEMON: And you know what? Speaking of Louisiana...

PHILLIPS: Here's what everybody cares about.

LEMON: Yes, acting for good. Brad Pitt trying to raise homes and hopes down in New Orleans, The Big Easy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Hello, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips live at the CNN headquarters in Atlanta.

LEMON: And I'm Don Lemon. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Take a look now at Leeland Eisenberg. In a far different scenario than the one we saw on Friday. He's accused of taking hostages at Hillary Clinton's campaign office in Rochester, New Hampshire. This is a picture police took as they booked him. And he went before the court just a short time ago. CNN's Mary Snow is following today's arraignment and she joins us from our New York bureau with the very latest on that -- Mary.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, Leeland Eisenberg was ordered held on half a million dollars bail, also being charged on six felony counts that include kidnapping, criminal threatening and fraudulent use of a bomb-like device. This, of course, after Friday's hostage drama that lasted more than five hours.

Leeland Eisenberg had a court-appointed attorney who said that his client heard voices and a movie in his head, he said. That he had to sacrifice himself on Friday to bring the issue of mental health in America forward. Now the county lawyer in New Hampshire listed a very long criminal record dating back to 1978 that included two rape convictions, and also one count on escaping from prison. Also this attorney saying that Eisenberg had a different name in years past and that he had changed his name. Stalking, also was one of the charges that he had on his record in recent years.

And also the county prosecutor saying had she known or been it been brought to the court's attention that he had mental health issues, or problems with alcohol, that he would have been helped. Eisenberg's attorney said this was a desperate plea for help. That he had tried several avenues and he was rejected and he was calling attention to his mental health problems.

In the courtroom, this was a video arraignment. So you could see Eisenberg's wife and also his two stepchildren sitting in court as this arraignment took place. And he's scheduled to be back in court next on December 10.

His lawyer said that he apologized for what happened on Friday and he said he also wanted to thank law enforcement for in his words professionalism and also for their restraint -- Don.

LEMON: Yes, he need help. But too bad, though, Mary, he had to take it to that extreme.

SNOW: Absolutely.

LEMON: Thank you so much for your report.

SNOW: Sure.

PHILLIPS: Less determined and less capable of producing a nuclear bomb. That's the gist of a U.S. intelligence report on Iran just out today. It says that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003 under international pressure. And it says Iran won't be able to make enough enriched uranium for a nuclear bomb for several more years, maybe not until 2015. Earlier U.S. reports said Iran was determined to develop nukes.

LEMON: He's been the most prominent figure in the Jena 6 case. Now we're hearing Mychal Bell could be close to a deal that would let him plead guilty to a misdemeanor and avoid trial on battery and misdemeanor charges. The 17-year-old Bell is the last of the six African-American teens charged in the case. And he is still in jail. They are accused of beating up a white classmate at Jena High School. That was a year ago. Cases against the five others on battery charges are still pending.

PHILLIPS: A Texas homeowner shoots and kills two men he suspects of breaking into his neighbor's home. We told you a couple of weeks ago about Joe Horn's call to 911. He's heard telling the operator that he's going to shoot the suspects. Now more fallout with protestors facing off and things getting downright nasty. Reporter Kevin Reese of CNN's affiliate of KHOU has the latest from Pasadena, Texas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEVIN REESE, REPORTER, KHOU TV (voice over): The Christmas decorations light up Timberline Drive, but if you look closely support for neighbor Joe Horn is on display here, too. It certainly was on display earlier. Activist Quanell X came here again to protest the shooting death of two burglars. He got a protest in return.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm glad somebody came and showed up to support our neighbor.

REESE: Some of these people actually live in this neighborhood, but many more of them do not, including a group of bikers who wanted to be here to shout Quanell down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It doesn't matter what race the thieves are, they're going to get killed when they break into the wrong house.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If they were white boys he would have capped them (EXPLETIVE DELETED), too.

REESE: Racial slurs were also shouted from the crowd. Quanell and his supporters raised fists in a black power salute in return.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah!

REESE: The crowd tried to drown them out with another message, to go home.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Give us your address and we'll send our thieves to you.

QUANELL X, PROTEST LEADER: What the two brothers did was wrong. We believe that it's not right for anyone to become judge, jury and executioner.

REESE: Before the shouting and shoving matches were over riot police were on standby just in case this got out of control, but it doesn't and Quanell left and the neighbors and their supporters declared victory.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think that we let them know that we're not going to get pushed around. And that we have the right to stand up, just like they have the right to stand up, and support.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Horn's attorney says that his client fired only after the suspects came into his yard and threatened him. The case is expected to go before a grand jury.

LEMON: Powerful storms from coast to coast, everything from hurricane force winds to icy roads and snow up to your knees. It's quite a mess out there, Chad. You wouldn't know from the weather here in Atlanta.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yeah, pretty nice here. Even wind and 40s is pretty good compared to what everybody else has in the country.

LEMON: I know, I slept with the windows and doors open last night the weather was so good. MYERS: Don't tell -- you know, anybody -- don't tell the burglars. But by the time you woke up this morning it was 40 degrees so you probably had a pretty cold nose.

LEMON: I did have to close it. It did close the windows in the middle of the night.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LEMON: When the weather gets messy our I-Reporters, well, they go right to work. Here's what it looked like in Ken McLeod's neighborhood, White River, Ontario. That was yesterday. That looks like a pretty picture to me. He tells us there was 14 inches of snow, Kyra, on the ground by the time he could even grab his shovel.

SEAN CALLEBS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sean Callebs in New Orleans. Take a look at the decimated Lower Ninth Ward, little pink houses and how this and an effort by Brad Pitt could be a foundation to rebuilding this community. That's coming up.

PHILLIPS: Some of the best minds in the world are looking for ways to put an end to this, preventing a meltdown and protecting the planet. We'll tell you how in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: His presence on the movie screen has made him rich and famous but it's his presence in New Orleans that is now drawing rave reviews. Actor Brad Pitt is kicking off the next phase of his Make It Right campaign to rebuild part of the city devastated by Hurricane Katrina. CNN's Sean Callebs joins us live from New Orleans with more.

Sean, tell us about the project.

CALLEBS: It's a great project and really probably an area that people identify with the most in being devastated. Driving over that bridge coming into the Lower Ninth Ward this is what we see. You talk about eye-popping, some 150 structures out there just bright pink, and all this is part of Brad Pitt's effort in Make It Right, a foundation that he's started to rebuild this Lower Ninth Ward. It's called Make It Right because they want to rebuild these homes. They want to make it affordable, about $150,000. And they want to make it energy conscious as well. But why pink? That was the big question and here's what Brad had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRAD PITT, MAKE IT RIGHT FOUNDATION: Some people say it's to represent little pink houses, the American dream, the idea of getting a job and raising a family, and sending your kids to school. And all that that was destroyed and that could be again. I like that.

I heard someone else say, well, it's like the pink elephant in the room. It's that it's business as usual at the federal level and down here we're still in limbo, we're still waiting. I like that, too. My thinking why it's pink is because it screams the loudest. It says people are coming back. And they are coming back with the Make It Right Program.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CALLEBS: Coming back and being inside that container down there. There are actually the drawings, the work from the various architects, 13 architects that had work submitted. And just panning out over this area you may see that these homes aren't actually put together, and that's done for a reason.

What they are trying to show is just the devastation after Hurricane Katrina and as the money comes in and people can make donations on a Web site called MakeitrightNOLA.org. They will be putting these structures back together.

As you see there, in the distance, there are some lights going on Kyra. Our Larry King is right now doing an interview with Brad Pitt. That's going to be on Wednesday night talking extensively about this project. And, of course, Brad Pitt's passion for the city of New Orleans -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: So, Sean, let me ask you. The reason why the whole Ninth Ward was wiped out is because it was in the low-lying area. So how does Brad plan to avoid what happened prior and that this area can maintain itself above water, in case something were to happen again?

CALLEBS: It's a good question. It's a fair question. If you look over at that new-looking wall over there. That, of course, is the flood wall where a barge crashed into unleashing the industrial canal in this area just wiping it out. Now, people say this area is probably going to flood again so what they are doing is they are going to build the homes and they will be elevated. Some could be on stilts and some could just be built up several feet.

But what Brad Pitt is trying to get across is this is an area with such rich cultural history, the music, the people, and passion, the gospel, everything is so important in this area. He's trying to bring these people back and of course give this city its feel once again.

PHILLIPS: Sean Callebs live from New Orleans. Thanks, Sean.

Brad Pitt sits down with our Larry King. As you know, Sean just mentioned that. He's actually doing it right now, the interview live right there in New Orleans. You can catch that interview Wednesday on "Larry King Live" at 9:00 Eastern, only on CNN.

A.J. HAMMER, CNN ANCHOR, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT: I'm A.J. Hammer in New York. Jay Leno under fire as "The Tonight Show" staff heads to the unemployment line. What the late-night host is doing to help the writers continue -- as the writers continue to strike. That, and more, straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: Day 29 of the writers' strike. Has it really been going on that long? And with holiday season in full swing it's not the best time for anybody to be out of work. "Showbiz Tonight's" A.J. Hammer joins me now with details on the latest show to fall prey to picketers.

A.J., 29 days, it doesn't --

HAMMER: Yeah.

LEMON: Man, that's a long time.

HAMMER: Yeah, it's unbelievable this is continuing to go on. But remember, Don, the last time it happened it went on for six months. So we could still be in this for the long haul.

And the latest casualty in the ongoing writer's strike is nothing to joke about according to "The Tonight Show" host Jay Leno. Leno says he will now pay the salaries of about 80 "Tonight Show" staffers who are out of work now. And he'll be doing that out of his own pocket for at least the next week. These staffers were officially laid off on Friday with no guarantee of being rehired when their production resumes.

This announcement that Leno will dip into his own pockets came this weekend after disgruntled employees charged the late-night host had been unfair to them after he had promised to keep their jobs safe during the strike. "The Tonight Show", like so many other late-night shows, has been in repeats since the strike got under way on November 5.

Leno has been a familiar face on the picket line. He was even seen handing out pizza to strikers just a couple of weeks ago. He now joins the ranks of his fellow late-night host David Letterman, Craig Ferguson and Conan O'Brien. They are also all ponying up pay checks to their staffs. Now, negotiations between both sides are scheduled to resume tomorrow. So hopefully, Don, there will be some sort of resolution in the near future. It felt like we might have been getting a little closer last week, but it's still a game of wait and see.

LEMON: Those guys have big paychecks, we know that, but when you're paying for 80 different salaries each week that can total up to a lot of money.

HAMMER: Yeah, that adds up. But I give all of them and Jay Leno, the latest among them, a lot of credit for doing the right thing.

LEMON: You said it.

And we're speaking of resolutions here. I hear another talk show host Montel Williams is trying to make amends today. What's going on with that, A.J.?

HAMMER: Yeah, listen to this story. Of course, Montel hosts "The Montel Williams Show" and he's come under fire after having an angry confrontation with a high school intern who asked him questions related to rising drug costs.

Now, this all happened on Friday, in Savannah, Georgia. Williams was there to promote a new program that is designed to offer free medical prescriptions to low-income families. Well, during an interview with a local newspaper, Montel Williams became upset with a high school reporter named Courtney Scott (ph).

Courtney (ph), apparently, asked him if he thought that pharmaceutical companies would be discouraged from doing research and development if their profits were restricted. Well, Williams later verbally threatens Scott (ph) and two other newspaper employees at his hotel, where he mistakenly thought that the reporter had followed him. She was actually there to cover an unrelated assignment.

Well, Williams has since said he is sorry for the outburst. He even invited Scott to a taping of the show where he'll publicly apologize. Now Scott, who did file a police report following this whole incident says she will most likely take Williams up on his offer. So hopefully, yeah, the resolution has already come on that situation.

LEMON: Sometimes it's an apology or an I'm sorry. And that's all you can do.

HAMMER: And I like Montel. He's a good guy. I've had some good experiences with him in the past.

LEMON: Another celebrity who is a little fired up today is actress Jennifer Love Hewitt. Hear she's making some comments online about some photographs that were taken of her, always a problem when you're a celebrity, photographs that you don't want shown.

HAMMER: We're so happy that she's doing this. Because as you know, because you're a big "Showbiz Tonight" viewer one thing we talk a lot about on "Showbiz Tonight" is body image perception in Hollywood. So actress Jennifer Love Hewitt is now saying she is totally fed up of being a tabloid target for her weight.

Listen to what she writes on her Web site, quote, "A size 2 is not fat nor will it ever be. And being a size zero doesn't make you beautiful. What I should be doing is celebrating some of the best days of my life and my engagement to the man of my dreams, instead of having to deal with photographers taking invasive pictures from bad angles. I know what I look like and so do my friends and family. And like all women out there should, I love my body. To all girls with butts, boobs and hips, and a waist, put on a bikini. Put it on and stay strong."

Hewitt had been responding to unflattering photos of her snapped by the paparazzi during a recent trip to Hawaii with her fiance, Scottish actor Ross McCall. "The Ghost Whisper" star and Haines underwear model says what upsets her the most the impact and message Hollywood can have on young girls struggling with their own body image. This is something that Jennifer and I have talked about before on "Showbiz Tonight" so I applaud her for coming forward and saying this on her Web site.

LEMON: Absolutely.

HAMMER: Coming up tonight on "Showbiz Tonight," celebrities in rehab caught on tape. Does a controversial new show that shows stars going through rehab go too far? Should their private pain be made so public? We've got a heated debate tonight on TV's most provocative entertainment show. "Showbiz Tonight" at 11 p.m. Eastern and Pacific. We'll look forward to you joining us then.

LEMON: And you know what, good for her, a size 2. Who would think a size 2 is fat?

HAMMER: There are people who say it.

LEMON: Oh, please.

HAMMER: There are people who say it. So, I think more people like Jennifer Love Hewitt coming forward and saying this is who I am, that's good enough. And she looks fantastic, too. She is one of my favorite stars in Hollywood.

LEMON: Absolutely. Eat a chicken wing every once in a while or a hamburger. And it all depends on how you carry it, right?

I've seen bigger -- and they look great -- Queen Latifah, beautiful, beautiful woman. And not a lollipop head as we call them. Thank you, A.J.

Kyra is sitting here going, oh, my gosh.

Thanks, A.J.

PHILLIPS: For a while there the presidential campaign was all Iraq, all the time. But like sand in the desert the top issues might be shifting. We'll tell you what's sharing top billing.

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