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Magic Johnson Campaigns For Hillary Clinton; Federal Reserves Plans to Curb Shady Lending Practices

Aired December 18, 2007 - 15:30   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Well, here it comes again, winter, with a vengeance. Live pictures now. We only have four days left of fall.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: The West coast braces for more heavy rain, more brutal wind, more deep snow from California to British Columbia.

Hello, everybody. I'm Betty Nguyen at the CNN Center in Atlanta.

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

It is 3:00 p.m. here in the East. And we start with this, bracing for the onslaught on one side of the country and digging out on the other. Heavy rain, snow and brutal winds are all part of the mix, as a wave of Pacific storms takes aim at the West coast. And after a blast of wintry weather on the East coast, the big problem today, coping with the cold.

(WEATHER REPORT)

NGUYEN: On to this other story now.

When the CIA destroyed those interrogation tapes from 2002, was it violating a court order from 2005? The federal judge who issued the order wants to know. Judge Henry Kennedy ordered administration lawyers to show up and tell all at a hearing on Friday.

In 2005, Kennedy ordered the administration to hold on to evidence of any alleged abuse of detainees at Guantanamo Bay. Five months later, the CIA destroyed tapes that showed two terrorist suspects being interrogated, apparently under harsher methods approved by the administration. The Justice Department says those suspects were not held at Guantanamo, but lawyers for detainees asked for the hearing, fearing more evidence is being destroyed.

LEMON: Well, he used to play the NBA. She used to lived in the White House. Today, Magic Johnson and Hillary Clinton are both on the campaign trail in Iowa.

And let's go straight to Des Moines now and CNN's Suzanne Malveaux in a snowy Des Moines.

Hi, Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Don. Well, we got a chance to see all of them today. And what's happening is that there really is a fierce battle that's taking place between Senator Hillary Clinton, as well as Barack Obama, over who has the kind of experience necessary to be president.

Well, the person who is at the forefront now of that battle, well, that is the former President Bill Clinton. We had a chance to catch up with him today to ask him about some remarks that have caused some controversy.

He's essentially said that, even when he was governor, young, and he thought he was the best politician in the Democratic Party, he didn't run the first time. He's talking about 1988. He said he had lots of Democratic governors that were encouraging him. But, in his words, he says: I knew in my bones I should not run, that I was a good enough politician to win, but I didn't think I was ready to be president.

Well, we put the question to him today. Just what did he mean by these comments?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Some of the comments you made about Barack Obama, you had said that, in 1988, you weren't ready to be president. You didn't run. Are you trying to say that Barack Obama isn't ready either?

BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No. I'm trying to say that I agree with what "The Des Moines Register" said, that Hillary has the best record of positive change-making in other people's lives. And I think it is important. And I think that's why they endorsed her. That's what I was trying to say.

I think I bragged on all of them, Senator Obama, Senator Edwards, all of them. I like them. I think she has the best record of making change in other people's lives in the most different circumstances. And I think that's very more for the next president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And, Don, we also had a chance to catch up with Magic Johnson as well. He's on the campaign in freezing Iowa with the Clintons today. He was back in South Carolina before. He is trying to drum up the kind of support and he is really echoing the lines that we heard from all of them, talking about that he believes she's more experienced, that she has done more for what he says are the minority communities.

And this is what he said, when he talked about some of the issues, why he is going to vote for her.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EARVIN MAGIC JOHNSON, FORMER NBA PLAYER: You think about her experience of bringing us out of debt, health care, education. She's the one person who can bring all of those things back to us as a country and I think make us powerful again and make us a better country, because of her leadership ability and because of her experience.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And the Obama camp has been emphasizing, this is not a contest about age or of Washington traditional experience, but really they are talking about the timing being right, that there are so many voters that are demanding change. They believe that Barack Obama is uniquely suited for this job -- Don.

LEMON: Suzanne, thank you.

Suzanne, cold there, right?

MALVEAUX: It is getting warm a little bit. But, yes, it is pretty chilly.

LEMON: Yes. I have got to ask you, where is your hat?

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: I'm sorry. I got a hood. I need to put the hood on.

LEMON: All right. Well, when you finish this live shot, make sure you put on the hood. We don't want you getting sick. It is a big political season right now. We need you.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: OK. Thanks, Don.

LEMON: Thanks, Suzanne.

Well, the front-runners are still in front. But a new "USA Today" Gallup poll shows the Democratic and Republican races for president are very competitive. Among Republicans and Republican- leaning independents, four candidates are effectively tied for second place.

Rudy Giuliani continues to lead with 27 percent. Hillary Clinton is backed by 45 percent of Democrat and Democrat-leaners. That's a modest rise from a poll taken two weeks earlier. Barack Obama is at 27 percent, up three points. John Edwards is at 15 percent.

Money and momentum, Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul says he has got both. His campaign says the Texas congressman raised more than $18 million in the last three months of the year, including more than $6 million from a 24-hour Internet drive on Sunday.

And even though he is still considered the longest of long shots, Ron Paul tells CNN he has no plans to run as an independent.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. RON PAUL (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I haven't considered that. I have no plans of doing this. And we have this money. We have this momentum. It is so early. We haven't had one vote. So, I have no intention of doing that.

We had 57,000 people donate on Sunday and 25,000 were brand-new. So, there's something very significant going on, and I don't think anybody quite has understood this. But the people are very unhappy in this country and they are going to be voting differently this time, and that's what this message is telling us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: Paul says he will keep campaigning no matter how he does in the January 3 Iowa caucuses.

And for all the day's political stories, just go to cnnpolitics.com. Who is endorsing who? Who is surging ahead? Who is falling behind? Again, the address is cnnpolitics.com.

LEMON: Let's talk now about making it safer to buy a home. That's what the Federal Reserve is hoping to do with a few new rules.

Our personal finance editor, Gerri Willis, is following developments. And she joins us now from New York.

What's the plan there, Gerri?

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Well, hi there, Don.

The Federal Reserve today making new rules, trying to write new rules that will protect consumers from unscrupulous lenders.

Here is what Federal Chairman Ben Bernanke said about why they are trying to make these rules.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEN BERNANKE, FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN: Our goal is to promote responsible mortgage lending to the benefit of individual consumers and the economy. We want consumers to make decisions about home mortgage options confidently, with assurance that unscrupulous home mortgage practices will not be tolerated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIS: Now, these rules would require lenders to make sure borrowers could afford the loans they are handing out. They would get rid of prepayment penalties. Those are the fees that can amount to thousands of dollars and really penalize people who want to get a new loan. And they would require mortgages be written in plain English -- Don.

LEMON: OK, Gerri. Sorry. A little burp here.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: What does it mean for people looking then for a first- time mortgage or maybe a new loan?

WILLIS: Well, the Fed is trying to prevent the kinds of excesses we saw during the housing boom, when loans were really easy to get.

But the reality now for many borrowers is that lenders are already more tight-fisted. They are not giving money willy-nilly to anybody and everybody anymore. For that reason, you will have to work far harder at getting best loan you can. Check your credit report at annualcreditreport.com before you apply for a loan and then get your credit score at myfico.com.

Now, a score of 660 will get you a prime rate loan. And if there are any errors in your credit report, fix them pronto.

LEMON: Always a good idea, Gerri, to get your credit report. OK. What's this then mean for people if they have a subprime loan that they can't afford?

WILLIS: Well, look, if you are really struggling out there, having a lot of problems, realize that there is help out there. It is a patchwork of solutions, but it's definitely worth trying to get that help.

Start by calling 888-995-HOPE. Now, this is the president's hot line. These loans are manned by people who can help you negotiate with your servicer or servicer and get you through the process. You can also contact the Department of Housing and Urban Development as well to talk directly with a housing counselor -- Don.

LEMON: All right, Gerri, thank you. Always appreciate your tips. And I'm sure the viewers do as well.

WILLIS: My pleasure.

LEMON: And you can join Gerri. Don't miss her "OPEN HOUSE" this weekend. That's Saturday morning at 9:30 Eastern right here on CNN, and also at 3:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday on Headline News.

NGUYEN: Just wait until you hear this story, an elderly woman somehow left in a wrecked car by police and paramedics. A day later, her body is found. So, when did she die and how was she missed?

LEMON: A teen in trouble out in the Pacific miles from land -- the Navy springs into action. How she is doing after emergency surgery by the Navy's doctors, we're going to try to find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: He couldn't get work as a police officer, but he did learn how police officers work.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Did you ever think that you might be chasing another cop? CHIEF CARL KINNISON, CAPE GIRARDEAU, MISSOURI, POLICE DEPARTMENT: Well, you know, there was some speculation, of course. As you're investigating these offenses, you don't want to close any doors.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: The serial killer who used college study to stay one step ahead of police.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NGUYEN: Fifteen past the hour. Here are three of the stories that we are working on in the CNN NEWSROOM.

More miles to the gallon -- today, Congress has passed the first increase in vehicle fuel economy standards in more than three decades. The approved energy bill calls for an average of 35 miles a gallon by 2020. President Bush has signaled he will sign that bill tomorrow.

A federal judge orders Bush administration lawyers to court. He wants to know if the destruction of CIA interrogation violates a court order he issued years ago.

Also new today, Aruban authorities have dropped their case against three young men long considered suspects in the Natalee Holloway case. They are citing a lack of evidence.

LEMON: All right. Take a look at this next story. It's really interesting. Air bags can save lives, but, in this case, they may have hidden one.

Police in California, well, they are trying to figure out how an elderly crash victim was overlooked. Her body was found in her son's car in a tow yard a day after it crashed into a building. Paramedics had taken the son to the hospital. But the woman was apparently concealed by the passenger side air bag. And, needless to say, there are lots of questions, especially from eyewitnesses.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How could they not find the lady? They have been here, all the rescue teams, all the police. I don't know how couldn't they have -- what happened over there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The doors were open on the car and nobody saw this lady in the back of the car or in the front of the car, wherever she was. But the doors were all open. But I think everybody was so fixated on the building, they didn't really pay much attention to the car.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: According to a preliminary coroner's report, the victim died minutes after the crash. It doesn't say whether she might have survived if she had been treated immediately. And, meantime, authorities in Texas are scrambling to explain how a woman who survived a crash was left for dead for hours early on Sunday. Erica Smith lay on the roadside covered by a tarp with a critical head injury. No one realized she was alive until an investigator from the medical examiner's office arrived for her body.

Smith was taken to the hospital, but passed away yesterday. A fire official says the case is being reviewed, but he does not expect paramedics to be disciplined.

NGUYEN: Here's another one for you. Police often try to think like the crooks that they are trying to catch, and apparently vice versa. A man who got away with murder for decades thought like a cop and had the college degree to prove it.

But CNN's David Mattingly reports, in the end, science gave real cops the edge.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY (voice-over): He always preyed on women he could easily overpower. He always struck at night to avoid detection. When he killed, he never spoke of it to anyone. And, for decades, he was the serial killer without a face.

Investigators found many of his victims in their beds, bound, raped and shot in the head. But the killer avoided suspicion in as many as nine murders with moves that were so calculated, police sometimes wondered if they were hunting one of their own.

(on camera): Did you ever think that you might be chasing another cop?

CHIEF CARL KINNISON, CAPE GIRARDEAU, MISSOURI, POLICE DEPARTMENT: Well, you know, there was some speculation, of course. As you're investigating these offenses, you don't want to close any doors.

MATTINGLY (voice-over): Carl Kinnison, police chief of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, didn't know it, but, as a graduate student, he and the killer, a man named Timothy Krajcir, may have crossed paths frequently in the early '80s on the campus of Southern Illinois University-Carbondale.

In and out of prison for rape and other sexual offenses, Krajcir was released in 1981, with a court stipulation that he get a college degree. He graduated from the university in justice administration, a curriculum designed for future cops.

KINNISON: Most of the time, it's people that are interested pursuing a law enforcement career.

MATTINGLY: Around the time he was enrolled, Krajcir killed five women in Cape Girardeau, an hour's drive from campus. Stalking strangers in other towns was one way he stumped detectives.

KINNISON: It's very difficult to track someone who -- who comes into your community, commits a crime, and then leaves.

MATTINGLY (on camera): What classes Krajcir might have been taking while he was here on campus is not really clear. The university tells us they no longer have those records. But one thing is certain: His choice of majors was a strange one. Considering his violent criminal record, Krajcir would have had no hope whatsoever of ever landing a job in law enforcement.

(voice-over): But, while he couldn't get police work, he was learning how police think.

LT. PAUL ECHOLS, CARBONDALE, ILLINOIS, POLICE DEPARTMENT : He would understand the importance of what we know today as forensic sciences, basically, latent fingerprint development and what the significance of fingerprints would be.

MATTINGLY (on camera): Police say the killer left behind important evidence at all of the crime scenes, but it was never enough to point the finger at anyone, that is, until he came to one house here in this neighborhood in Cape Girardeau.

The killer left behind a footprint, a palm print, blood, and semen. It was everything investigators needed 25 years later to finally solve this case.

(voice-over): Krajcir, now 63, was already serving time in an Illinois prison for rape when his days of silence came to an end in October.

ECHOLS: I have had a conversation with him where he's acknowledged that, as the science grew, he knew that at some point this day was going to arrive.

MATTINGLY: It was the one thing Krajcir couldn't have studied when he was in college, how breakthroughs in DNA testing could one day match him to the Cape Girardeau murders and lead to confessions in nine murders in four states.

David Mattingly, CNN, Carbondale, Illinois.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Witnesses putting their lives on the line for justice left with little protection. We will investigate.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Well, you can certainly say it is a one-of-a-kind vacation adventure she will be talking about for years.

Check out this new video. It is from the Defense Department. It's of a Navy rescue of a 14-year-old Illinois girl with a ruptured appendix. Her name is Laura Montero. She had no idea when she boarded the Dawn Princess on a Mexican cruise with her mom that she would end up on board an aircraft carrier for an emergency appendectomy. The USS Ronald Reagan pulled into port in San Diego last hour. And Montero has been taken off the ship to a hospital. She is expected, though, to make a full recovery.

(BUSINESS REPORT)

LEMON: If your kid put this hole in the wall, well, you would sure notice. But, somehow, it escaped jail guards, and so did two inmates.

We will have an update out of New Jersey.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon live at CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta.

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

You are in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: All right, using tools straight out of a "MacGyver" episode, a pair of New Jersey prisoners pulled off a "Shawshank Redemption" type plot. Yes, this weekend's jailbreak is inspiring tons of Hollywood comparisons. The inmates chiseled a hole through concrete blocks, hid it with girlie pin-ups and weaseled out to freedom. They have been on the loose now for three days.

Though clearly frustrated, the prosecutor did allow some humor to slip through.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TED ROMANKOW, UNION COUNTY PROSECUTOR: I really prefer not to compare it with any movie, although I can understand why, you know, you might, because it does -- to a certain degree, it does looks very similar to some of them. Except I think in "Shawshank Redemption" they had a better poster on the wall.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The escaped inmates, Otis Blunt and Jose Espinosa, are considered dangerous. Cops say they split up after jumping the jail fence and are both probably still in New Jersey. So many questions in this case. The central one, of course, how does something like this happen right under the noses of jail staff?

A little while ago, we talked to a former prison guard. His name is Ted Conover.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TED CONOVER, FORMER PRISON GUARD: But in the right situation, officers should have heard it. In a lot of prisons and jails, you'd have a snitch who would give up these guys, because it's got to take hours and hours and hours. And when neither of those things happens, you can guess that something went wrong.

LEMON: OK. Well, what about safety, because people are probably worried, you know, are concerned or at least thought about, you know, if I have a prison in my area or very near me, should I be worried that something like this could happen?

CONOVER: Oh, man, well, it's always a possibility. It's extremely unlikely. You know, most prisons are really well run. And, like I said, there's got to be multiple failures for this to happen.

And yet, on the other side, you've got this fixed feature of human nature, which is the desire to get out of a box. And some people will just never give up in their quest to do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, Ted Conover did time, so to speak, as a guard at Sing Sing, the famous state pen in New York.

NGUYEN: You've probably heard of the federal Witness Protection Program, right? Probably from the movies. Well, in real life, prosecution witnesses in state cases can get protection, too -- sometimes. Other times, they're On their own and their lives are on the line.

CNN's Randi Kaye is keeping them honest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This man doesn't want you to know his name or where he lives. What's he so afraid of? Getting killed.

SCOTT: You're on constant alert.

KAYE: We'll call him Scott. Eight years ago, Scott and his wife witnessed a crime. Their decision to testify against the suspect nearly cost them their lives. And they're not alone. One prosecutor told Congress witness intimidation is an epidemic.

In Baltimore, drug dealers firebombed a witness's home, killing her, her husband and five children. And in Pennsylvania, the threats got so bad, six witnesses recanted their testimony in a murder of a 10-year-old boy.

Scott and his wife testified against their daughter's boyfriend, Keith Reynolds, after he beat her.

SCOTT: I saw the 4-year-old grandson walking around with Kleenex trying to clean up mom's blood.

KAYE: Reynolds got three years for domestic assault. Scott says his family was terrorized. They'd answer the phone and hear this -- a gun being cocked. Strange cars parked outside their home and threats arrived by mail.

SCOTT: There was a threatening letter from him saying that he was going to have us killed. KAYE: Scott says Colorado prosecutors told him a hit had been put on his family. Still, even though the state has a witness protection program, Scott says his family didn't get any help.

(on camera): At any point did the Arapahoe County D.A. Or any of the prosecutors from that office make you aware that there was a witness protection program available to you?

SCOTT: No,. All they did was told us that well, maybe you should move.

KAYE (voice-over): Keeping them honest, we asked the Arapahoe County D.A. Carol Chambers if Scott's family had been offered any protection. Chambers was not the D.A. At the time, but worked in the office and was familiar with the case.

(on camera): As a witness, he says your office never told him about any type of protection program.

CAROL CHAMBERS, COLORADO DISTRICT ATTORNEY: No, I don't believe that to be true.

KAYE (voice-over): We also asked the prosecutor assigned to Scott's case. She told me she's pretty sure she told Scott or his wife about the program, but wasn't sure she'd given details.

Scott says he spent more than $10,000 on security, cameras -- even bodyguards. Scott, his wife and 13-year-old grandson learned to shoot. And Scott never leaves home without this strapped to his chest. As a result of the threats, Reynolds was convicted of witness intimidation and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

That makes Scott one of the lucky ones. These Colorado witnesses were all murdered. Witnesses and their families say Colorado's protection program is hampered by incompetence. And what little money there is to protect witnesses is drying up.

(on camera): It's no wonder critics charge the witness protection program is hardly a priority here. Last year, the City of Denver spent more money planting trees and flowers than the State of Colorado had budgeted to protect the lives of witnesses. The witness protection budget is $50,000. Yet Denver spent nearly twice that making the city look pretty.

(voice-over): On average, the state spends less than $1,000 per witness -- on moving expenses, rent, sometimes furniture. The witness does not get a new identity, like in the federal program.

REV. LEON KELLY, OPEN DOOR YOUTH GANG ALTERNATIVES: The state witness protection program is a joke.

KAYE: Reverend Leon Kelly says most witnesses are used then dumped. One death a decade ago still haunts him. Darryl Givens asked Reverend Kelly if he should testify in a murder case. He did -- but according to Kelly, was not given protection. He ran from the courthouse in fear. (on camera): Darryl Givens moved back to his neighborhood and for months nobody bothered him. But one morning at 1:00 a.m. He paid the ultimate price for testifying. He was sitting in his car with two guys he thought were friends -- one in the passenger seat, one in the back seat -- when they shot him twice in the head.

(voice-over): Givens' murder is still unsolved. Reverend Kelly says he was killed for his testimony and nobody will come forward.

(on camera): Are people running scared?

KELLY: There are people that are terrorized.

KAYE: And you're going to get a thousand bucks. Is that really worth talking?

KELLY: What incentive is it? If, you know, if you think about just getting a thousand bucks, you know, a total of incentive to do the right thing, then you look at it and you get to thinking about is my life -- it is worth no more than a thousand bucks?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: More from Randi Kaye. That's coming up. She talks with a grieving mother whose son fell through the cracks.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: No protection for star witnesses -- states letting them fend for themselves despite threats against them.

More now from CNN's Randi Kaye.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE (voice-over): Javad Fields was a good kid -- a recent college grad who never had trouble with the law. He planned to marry and move East.

But on July 4, 2004, something Javad saw ended that dream. He witnessed his best friend's murder and decided to testify against these men. Two were serving multiple life sentences for other crimes. All pleaded not guilty in this case. His mother says the men threatened her son repeatedly.

Colorado prosecutors have filed more than 2,000 felony witness intimidation cases since 1998. Still, Javad's mother says prosecutors did nothing to protect her son. Before he ever took the stand, Javad was murdered. The gunmen fired 11 shots as he drove along this suburban road. In a flash, Javad and his fiancee, Vivian Wolfe, both 22, were dead.

(on camera): Whoever killed Javad Fields had staked out his house and confronted him twice the day before he was murdered. One of those confrontations took place here at this sports bar. His mother says one of the suspects approached him, told him he was a marked man and told him he'd better watch his back.

Was your son ever told that there was a witness protection program or a relocation program for him?

RHONDA FIELDS, JAVAD'S MOTHER: No. No, he was not told. There was no notification to my son at all.

KAYE: After Javad was killed, his mother confronted prosecutors.

FIELDS: I asked them what happened, why wasn't there any measure taken to safeguard his life? And I was told that he never asked for any protection.

KAYE: Do you think it was your son's job to ask for protection?

FIELDS: No. I think it's the authorities' responsibility to notify witnesses of the dangers that's involved with being a witness.

KAYE (voice-over): Prosecutors understood the danger. In June, 2004, the D.A.'s office filed this order for protection -- requesting Javad's personal information be kept secret. But it wasn't signed by a judge until one year later -- after the defense lawyers had already given the suspects this information, along with other trial documents.

(on camera): Does that anger you, that something so important to saving your son's life could just fall through the cracks like that?

FIELDS: I felt like the D.A.'s office used my son, in a way, to win their case, but did not take the proper measures to safeguard his life.

KAYE: Keeping them honest, we asked District Attorney Carol Chambers why the ball was dropped on the protection order.

CHAMBERS: The case itself changed hands and the follow-up was not done.

KAYE: Chambers says that won't happen again. And prosecutors now attach a notice about witness protection to every subpoena. But even that didn't start until two years after Javad's murder.

(on camera): Witnesses have been getting killed, though, for years.

So why wait until 2007?

CHAMBERS: It was rare.

FIELDS: It really saddens me.

KAYE (voice-over): If Javad Fields had been relocated, his mother is convinced he would be alive today.

How many more, she wonders, will die before the program is fixed?

FIELDS: If we can't protect witnesses, then we really -- our whole government and justice system is just going to collapse. I mean we're just going to have anarchy because no one is going to be able to -- you know, people will just be able to do what they want to do.

KAYE: And witnesses will remain the prime target.

Randi Kaye, CNN, Denver, Colorado.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NGUYEN: Well, there's some fallout over Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee's Christmas ad. We want you to take a look at the ad first.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: ...have been saying, mostly about politics. I don't blame you. At this time of year, sometimes it's nice to pull aside from all of that and just remember that what really matters is the celebration of the birth of Christ and being with our family and our friends. I hope that you and your family will have a magnificent Christmas season.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: If you look at that, behind his head there, you can see a book shelf -- a white book shelf. Well, a lot of people are saying it looked like a cross, which was sending a subtle Christian message there.

Well, Huckabee today decided to respond to that criticism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HUCKABEE: I never cease to be amazed at the -- the manner in which people will try to dissect the simplest messages. You can't even say Merry Christmas anymore without somebody getting all upset about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NGUYEN: He also said a few other things about it -- very interesting.

You want to tune in to "THE SITUATION ROOM" at the top of the hour for the latest on that.

LEMON: A piece of history on the auction block. A rare copy of the Magna Carter goes on sales just hours from now in New York.

A.J. HAMMER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: I'm A.J. Hammer in New York. Some of the world's biggest stars might not be going to the Golden Globes this year. I'll tell you why, when the NEWSROOM continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) NGUYEN: It's OK to support a former teammate who's now a convicted felon -- just not on the football field. Five members of the Atlanta Falcons have been fined by the NFL for displaying tributes to Michael Vick during last week's Monday night game. Roddy White, with the help of Joe Horn, showed off a "Free Mike Vick" t-shirt under his jersey. DeAngelo Hall showed off a poster of Vick.

And he, along with Alge Crumpler and Chris Houston wore black eye strips with written tributes to Vick. The NFL fined them between $7,500 and $10,000 each for violating uniform regulations. Vick, the Falcons' suspended quarterback was recently sentenced to 23 months in prison on federal dog fighting charges.

LEMON: Striking members of the Writers Guild have officially shot down the Golden Globe's request for writers to be allowed to work the awards show. Things aren't looking much better for the Academy Awards. The concern there -- A.J. Hammer of "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" joins us now to tell us more about how it may affect the awards season -- A.J., how is it going to affect it?

HAMMER: Well, Don, let's start off with the Globes. You know, some of Hollywood's biggest stars this year -- from Angelina Jolie to Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts -- they're all nominated for Golden Globes. But just what will the 65th annual ceremony look like if there are no writers?

Well, it appears we're actually going to get to find out. Now, barring any last minute change of heart, the Writers Guild has officially shot down a request from producers asking for a writing waiver for the telecast on January 13th. They're saying that really wouldn't help their cause -- which is, of course, to end the strike as quickly as possible.

Now, this doesn't mean just problems with scripts for the show. A major ripple effect could occur in the form of actors -- nominees all not showing up for the event to honor their own commitments to the strike.

I want you to listen to what "Grey's Anatomy" star and recent Golden Globe nominee Katherine Heigl has to say about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATHERINE HEIGL, GOLDEN GLOBE NOMINEE: I really want to go. I really want to be there. I really want to get to celebrate the year of work and celebrate all the people I admire and respect and their work, and drink a lot -- you know, what the Golden Globes are all about.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right.

HEIGL: But I would feel really, really uncomfortable crossing a picket line. But I'm very hopeful they're going to get a waiver, because I just don't see the point in making a statement at the Golden Globes. I don't.

(END VIDEO CLIP) HAMMER: The Golden Globes organization says it is disappointed in the WGA's decision, since this awards show honors work that was done before the strike.

Don, some people are questioning the logic of a statement like that. But, yes, it looks like it's going to be a very different kind of awards season.

LEMON: Yes, it looks like it. And what about the granddaddy of them all, you know, the Oscars? Do they get a writing waiver or is it too early to tell?

HAMMER: Well, we're still figuring out exactly what's going to happen here. Now, unlike the Globes, the Writers Guild hasn't officially said no to that waiver for the Academy Awards. But right now, all signs are truly pointing in that direction.

The Writers Guild has already declined the Oscars' request for certain clips to be used in the February 24th show. So a lot of people are saying that really indicates that there are no plans for a waiver if the strike isn't settled. Of course, we hope it is.

Now, the Writers Guild of America has been on strike since November 5th. The biggest concern revolving around residuals for contents sold online. And speaking of things that you can find on the Internet, well, that is exactly where fans of Pamela Anderson can go for the latest details on her apparently rocky marriage to Rick Solomon. The onetime playmate and "Baywatch" star has indicated on her Web site that she and her third husband are "working things out."

Now, this news comes just three days after divorce papers were filed citing irreconcilable differences. The couple have both been married twice before. They would still be considered newlyweds by most standards. They got hitched just two months ago. Anderson's message on the Web didn't elaborate on the reasons for, well, first their split and now their reunion. And her rep declined to comment.

And, likewise, no word yet from Solomon's camp. He, of course, is best known -- well, not just for marrying Pam Anderson, but for being married to actress Shannon Doherty and for making and marketing that very profitable sex tape with Paris Hilton.

Now coming up tonight on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT," it's a piece of tape you will not want to miss seeing. Julia Roberts at war with the paparazzi. Another dramatic confrontation -- and it is caught on tape. But the question is do stars deserve to just be left alone if they're out in public or does it just go with the territory?

The heated story tonight on TV's most prove provocative entertainment news show. We'll see you for "SHOW BIZ TONIGHT" at 11:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific on "HEADLINE NEWS."

LEMON: I was just sitting here thinking, A.J., who has the most interesting job, me or you? And before I could get the thought out, it's you. You win. So reporting on all the stars and their craziness.

HAMMER: We do have a good time.

LEMON: We do. All right. Thank you. We will be watching tonight, sir.

HAMMER: Thanks, Don.

LEMON: It's that time of year that kids pour onto the -- you know, Santa wishes. They get on his lap...

NGUYEN: Right.

LEMON: ...or they tell mom and dad.

NGUYEN: They've got the long list.

LEMON: ...here's what I want.

NGUYEN: However, though, some terrified tots are pouring out nothing but tears when confronted with a bearded man in a red suit.

Remember those pictures where they were just crying?

LEMON: Oh, yes.

NGUYEN: Look at that. Oh, you just feel for him.

LEMON: That scared the heck out of me when I was young.

NGUYEN: I know. Exactly.

Our CNN I-Reporters are capturing all the action. Check out 13- month-old Gordon Hendrickson. That's him right there crying. His dad says it was past little Gordie's nap time, so can you blame him for being a little cranky?

LEMON: Aw. OK. Check out little Sophia here. Look at her.

NGUYEN: Oh, man, she's letting out a big one, isn't she?

Get me out of here now!

LEMON: I don't want to be here. And she was not happy, either, with the first time she met Santa Claus. Her father Anthony says she started wailing the moment he placed her on Santa's lap.

NGUYEN: And we've even got a vintage photo. I-Reporter Carolyn Thorpe says this photo of herself was taken back in 1957. Pretty cute. She was just two years old. This was in Toronto. She says blames all her adult traumas on this very moment.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Do you have some sacred -- or scared, I should say -- they would be sacred for me, because I don't want to show them.

NGUYEN: You don't want anyone to see those. LEMON: (INAUDIBLE) one of the producers asked my mom to send mine.

NGUYEN: I hope we do get one of yours.

LEMON: Oh, she's not doing it.

NGUYEN: Did you cry?

LEMON: Oh, no, she is not doing it.

Send your photos to CNN I-Report. But please make sure that they're photos you or your family member took. Just go to CNN.com and click on I-Report to upload your photo.

And did I cry? Yes, I screamed bloody...

NGUYEN: Of course you did.

LEMON: I'm like this in the picture.

(LAUGHTER)

NGUYEN: Who is this man?

LEMON: And I'm like halfway out of the shot. So...

NGUYEN: That is a great picture. Send it in. Don's mom, please send that in.

LEMON: No.

NGUYEN: All right, so have you ever heard the phrase "pay it forward?"

LEMON: Yes.

NGUYEN: I know you have. Well, we've got a real life example of some folks taking Oprah's advice to heart. That's straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The Magna Carta is one of the foundations of American liberty. Many of our rights enshrined in the words of the centuries old English document. And just a few hours from now, this rare 13th century copy of the Magna Carta goes on the auction block at Sotheby's in New York. Officials at the auction house say they expect to sell it for up $30 million.

NGUYEN: Oh, my goodness.

LEMON: Yes.

NGUYEN: Thirty million.

LEMON: Yes. It is the only privately-owned copy, which is in handwritten medieval Latin. The owner billionaire businessman and former presidential candidate...

NGUYEN: Ross Perot.

LEMON: You got it.

NGUYEN: He's probably one of the only men who can afford it.

LEMON: The proceeds will go to the Perot Foundation.

NGUYEN: All right. It's going to be preserved. That's good.

LEMON: Yes.

NGUYEN: Well, the closing bell is about to ring on Wall Street.

LEMON: That means Susan Lisovicz is standing by with a final look at the trading day -- Susan, are going to be at Sotheby's? It's not far from where you are right now.

NGUYEN: Are you going to be bidding, Susan?

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I would love to witness that...

NGUYEN: Yes.

LISOVICZ: ...because that is a magnificent document, which said that the king was -- had to obey -- abide by the same laws as his people. And it's the basis for our Constitution. The Ross Perot Foundation is going to do good.

And so is the State Bank and Trust in Fargo, North Dakota. It's giving its 500 employees $1,000. The catch here is to give it to someone in need. They have to document the good deed with a video camera that they get the keep. And it's inspired by Oprah's Pay It Forward initiative. And that's in the spirit of the times.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

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